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 Dike breach in Hunan to be plugged soon 09:03, July 08, 2024 By Zou Shuo ( China Daily The dike breach along Dongting Lake in a township in Hunan province is expected to be sealed off by noon on Tuesday, according to local authorities. As of 3 pm on Sunday, a gap of 87.3 meters had been plugged, with first responders continuing to make efforts to repair the 220-meter breach in the dike in Tuanzhou township of Huarong county in the city of Yueyang, local authorities said at a news conference. After the breach occurred at around 5:48 pm on Friday, President Xi Jinping urged all-out rescue and relief efforts to safeguard people's lives and property. He instructed that people in threatened areas be evacuated in a timely manner and properly resettled. A similar breach had taken place in the township in July 1996. Efforts to plug the dike breach started on Saturday afternoon, after the water level in the lake went down. Zhang Yingchun, executive deputy governor of Hunan province, said that emergency responders were racing against time to seal off the breach. With trucks and barges bringing rocks and raw materials, they can proceed to rebuild 60 to 80 meters of the dike each day. A total of 100,000 cubic meters of rock is needed to plug the whole gap, she said. More than 4,200 emergency responders and over 3,000 pieces of equipment are assisting in the relief and rescue efforts, she added. The central government has allocated 258 million yuan ($35.5 million) and the provincial government 250 million yuan for emergency flood response in Hunan, Zhang said. The embankment, viewed as "the second line of defense", is located about 2 kilometers from the breached dike and is 14.3 kilometers long, according to Xinhua News Agency. An area of 47.64 square kilometers, which is about 92 percent of the township's total area, is underwater, with the average depth of water being 5 meters, according to local newspaper Hunan Daily. The Ministry of Water Resources has sent an expert team to offer technical support to local teams. Li Heng, leader of the expert team, said the most important work is to reinforce the embankment, which separates the flooded township from other areas. All 7,680 residents of the township have been evacuated and resettled, and there were no immediate reports of casualties or injuries, she said. Zhu Dongtie, head of Hunan's Department of Water Resources, said they need to drain about 200 million cubic meters of water and plan to use pumping equipment as soon as the breach is repaired. A total of 3,224 residents have been resettled at four schools in Huarong county. Xiao Juxiang, 68, said she and her husband left their home after hearing an evacuation announcement on the village radio. "The atmosphere was very intense and I was very nervous," she said, emphasizing that she felt reassured after seeing People's Armed Police Force personnel join the rescue efforts. The troops transferred all villagers to safe locations and gave them water and food, Xiao said, adding, "You could see how tired they were. It is no mean task to evacuate so many people." Xinhua contributed to the story. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) 300 Christian nurses and midwives from 40 countries gathered together in Spain to explore strength and caring in the face of ongoing challenges in the profession. Nurses Christian Fellowship International (NCFI) organized the World Congress of Christian Nurses and Midwives quadrennial event at Casa Diocesana, Malaga, June 27-30. Enfermeria Cristiana (Christian Nursing Spain) hosted the conference themed: Strength and Courage to Care: Gods love; and resources for nurses and midwives. The theme reflected the caring heart, which is the foundation for the nursing profession and a recognition that both strength and courage are needed to nurse patients in todays world, according to organizers. At the conclusion of the congress, delegates went away feeling inspired, encouraged, and challenged to provide competent, compassionate, Christ-like nursing or midwifery care, said Anne Biro, NCFI President and International Chairperson of the World Congress, who lives in Canada. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up The event involved Bible expositions, panel discussions and workshops, and plenary sessions with previews of professional development courses courtesy of the NCFI International Institute of Christian Nursing. Participants also enjoyed a Spanish cultural evening that provided an opportunity for conversations and networking. Respected keynote speakers spoke on various aspects related to the Covenant of Care nurses uphold on a daily basis when caring for patients and clients, whether in lower-income or higher-income countries. Upholding this Covenant of Care includes engaging in self-care, including care of one another, to maintain the strength needed for their work, said Biro. Delegates were also challenged to be leaders in areas such as ethics, politics, and social engagement with some speakers calling for delegates to help turn around the erosion of Christian values and beliefs that has occurred over the past century. The keynote speakers included Dr. Wilfred McSherry, professor in nursing from Staffordshire University in England on the subject of Nurse-Patient Covenant to Care. Benson Owusu, a lecturer at the Dept. of Nursing in Central University, Accra, Ghana, spoke on Courage to care in challenging times. And Elcie Thoby, Dean of the School of Nursing at North Haiti Christian University, on Strength to care during adversity. Meanwhile Dr Marsha Fowler, a senior fellow and professor of ethics, spirituality and faith integration at Azusa Pacific University in Azusa, California, who is also an ordained minister in the Presbyterian Church, spoke on Nursing Ethics: Covenant, Character and Relation. Fernando Ramos Pena, President of Enfermeria Cristiana, gave daily Bible talks on Be Strong and Brave: Reflections from three Biblical narratives. In her closing address at the end of the conference, Biro spoke to the nurses and midwives on the question What about tomorrow? The NCFI President encouraged participants, as they returned to regular patterns in homes and workplaces. She warned of the potential to forget following up with friends made at the event or positive resolutions made. Biro called on attendees to remember the importance of regularly accessing Gods love on a personal basis and utilize resources to be both strengthened and encouraged with the effect of empowering the nursing professionals themselves and cared-for patients. At least 50 sessions ran concurrently exploring scientific research, experiential case studies and workshops helping the nurses and midwives gain new insights and skills helpful for their areas of expertise. Biro said the diversity of academics and bedside nurses, young and older, and from every populated continent, leant a greater depth to the discussions. She reported feedback from an unnamed nurse-academic who said the NCFI World Congress was significantly different to other professional nursing conferences. The relationships between colleagues really marked out the event positively, the academic said, as well as the high quality of the professional sessions. The value and impact of these relationships was evident by the number of nurses who still come to NCFI World Congresses even after their retirement, pointed out Biro. It was also evident among the younger generation some of whom first met together online at the monthly prayer gathering for students and newly qualified nurses, and among nurse researchers and educators who are increasingly collaborating together in mutual areas of interest. The relationships that developed among those attending are part of what helps give strength and courage to care. The NCFI World Congress aims to equip and encourage Christian nurses to integrate Biblical principles and Christ-centered values in clinical practice, leadership, education, and research. Apart from the World Congress, the NCFI also offers at least five training courses: Art & Science of Spiritual Care, Faith Community Nursing, Values Based Teaching, The Saline Process, and Biblical Leadership. The organization also publishes a regular Nursing Cares devotional, and organizes online prayer gatherings for nursing professionals, which helps to feed friendships and support amongst colleagues. NCFI is currently made up of 34 official member countries with contacts in other territories, which have a local fellowship and meet the membership criteria. Recordings of the main sessions from the NCFI 2024 World Congress are expected to be uploaded on YouTube in the last quarter of 2024. A crowd of more than 280 people gathered on Sunday evening, July 7 at the Harness Racing Museum & Hall of Fame to celebrate the induction of the Hall of Fame class of 2024. Trainer Jim Campbell, trainer/driver Ed Lohmeyer and breeder/owner David McDuffee led the group, which was honoured during the annual induction dinner on the Museum lawn. Also inducted into the Hall of Fame on Sunday were immortals Colonel Elisha A. Buck, James Clark and Direct Scooter, as well as racehorses Gimpanzee, Mission Brief, Tall Dark Stranger and Wiggle It Jiggleit, plus broodmares Shyaway and Western Montana. Inducted into the Communicators Hall of Fame were Tim Bojarski and the late Dave Brower. Campbell was the USHWA Trainer of the Year in 2022, when he became the third trainer in history to win the Hambletonian (with Cool Papa Bell) and Hambletonian Oaks (with Fashion Schooner) on the same day. The feat also made him the fourth trainer ever to win both those top trotting events twice, joining Hall of Famers Billy Haughton, Joe OBrien and Jimmy Takter. Award winners trained by Campbell during his career include Tagliabue, Galleria, Broadway Hall, Broadway Schooner, Broadway Donna, Real Cool Sam and Cool Papa Bell. Tagliabue and Broadway Schooner were Campbells other Hambletonian and Oaks winners, with Tagliabue being driven to victory in the Hambo by his Hall of Fame brother John. Campbell has won six Breeders Crown trophies and more than 1,450 races lifetime. With more than $55 million in career purses, Campbell ranks 13th in history in U.S. earnings since the inception of official trainer stats in 1991. John Campbell introduced his brother to the crowd at the Hall of Fame ceremony. Its an honour to receive such a special award, to be elected into the Hall of Fame, said Jim Campbell. Its a lifetime achievement of 45 years of training horses, and most certainly I didnt get here without the help and support of so many people over the years. I started off working for my dad [Jack] at Windsor Raceway. My dad was a great horseman and a great teacher. Dad suggested that I go work for John in New Jersey; that I would have a better opportunity working with John. John was just like working for dad, except he was teaching me on the biggest stage of harness racing and getting himself established as well. I cant thank my brother, John, enough. John has taught me so much over the years and helped me with my career. Im very proud of the fact that in 1989, John was the leading driver, and I was the leading trainer, at The Meadowlands. It was a very special year for the both of us. One of my dads best days in racing was when Tagliabue won the Hambletonian. Dad was marching toward the track to congratulate John and I, and a security guard went to stop him. Dad told him, My two boys just won the Hambletonian, youre not stopping me. And they didnt. Well, dad, your two boys made it to the Hall of Fame, thanks to you. Lohmeyer graduated from high school in 1961 and was beginning to make a name for himself as a driver and trainer, but saw his career paused in the mid-1960s while serving with the U.S. Marine Corps in Vietnam. Upon his return, he won the driving title at Green Mountain Park in 1969 and three years later he trained and drove homebred pacer Eddy Jeff to $126,010 in purses an amount that topped all two-year-olds in 1972. In addition to Green Mountain Park, Lohmeyer won driving titles at Atlantic City, Freehold, Liberty Bell and Monticello before curtailing his driving at the age of 37 to focus on training. Top horses associated with Lohmeyer included Landslide, Pacific Rocket and Pacific Fella. He also made an impact as a breeder, with broodmare Flat Foot Fluzy being inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2002, and more recently as the breeder of two-time OBrien Award winner Adare Castle. Lohmeyer retired in 2021 with 2,336 career driving wins, the majority of which came prior to 1981. He was credited with 493 training victories since the inception of official trainer stats in 1991. Introducing Lohmeyer was his cousin, Hall of Fame driver Catello Cat Manzi. This is a great honour, of course, to be among all the Hall of Famers that came in before me, said Lohmeyer. Its just unbelievable to be in that group now. Being at my age, I knew a lot of them. I feel very honoured. This is a special place, Goshen. I started at 12 years old at the Goshen mile track, going with [my uncle Al Manzi], and he taught me how to rake shed rows, clean harness, walk horses and become a horseman. This was before Monticello was built, and Uncle Al had to come here and train horses with his brother Richard and his brother John. So, I had the greatest foundation, which carried me through 64 years in the horse business. The friends Ive made in this business, its immense, and I have a wonderful family. I think thats what this is all about for me. McDuffee, an insurance agent by trade, entered harness racing in the 1980s with partner Tom Walsh, and has expanded his Standardbred footprint as an owner by several degrees of magnitude in the intervening years, with nine Breeders Crown victories, two Hambletonian Oaks, two Little Brown Jugs and three Kentucky Filly Futurities numbering among his successes. He was USHWAs Owner of the Year in 2021. Horses associated with McDuffee over the years include 2013 Horse of the Year Bee A Magician, 2022 U.S. Trotter of the Year Bella Bellini (a mare he bred) and 2002 U.S. Trotter of the Year Kadabra, as well as award winners Conway Hall, Magical Mike, Pizza Dolce, Poof Shes Gone and Venerable. McDuffee was introduced by Hall of Fame trustee Steve Jones. This is an incredible honour for me, said McDuffee. I cant believe Im here. Its amazing. Im going to tell you, it took a village to get me here right now. As an owner, to get to the Hall of Fame, youve got to be the luckiest guy in the world. Not just in the people you surround yourself with, but how you end up with the horses that get you there. And every horse Ive ever had, I could stand here and tell you a story about them. Every single horse has a history. This is a great thrill for me. Brower, who passed away unexpectedly in October 2022 at the age of 53, was a mainstay of The Meadowlands for many years, achieving his biggest recognition as a broadcaster on the nightly racing show from the New Jersey oval, in addition to being that tracks morning-line maker and handicapper. The author of the book Harnessing Winners was also a co-host for Hambletonian Day television coverage on many occasions and worked in broadcasting during the Grand Circuit meets at the Delaware County Fair in Ohio and at Lexingtons Red Mile. Browers sister, Laura, accepted the Communicators Hall of Fame honour on behalf of her brother. On behalf of my mother and the rest of our family, I would like to thank you for extending this incredible honour to my brother, said Laura Brower. Losing Dave so suddenly has been tough for my family, as I know its been tough for his harness racing family too. If Dave were here, the last thing hed want to do is make a long speech, but I know he would say how much he loved being part of the harness racing community, and now I can understand why. Growing up with Dave, for as long as I can remember, it was all about the horses. He could never get enough. And to make a career out of it was like the perfect storm. Not many can say that they love what they do, and Dave genuinely loved it all. Its been a tough year and a half leading up to this day, but Im starting to get past the sadness, and to really celebrate him, his life and his accomplishments, tonight being the greatest of all. Bojarski got started in harness racing in 1986 at Batavia Downs, near his western New York home of Akron, authoring a tip sheet and writing profiles of horsemen. He is in his 23rd year of writing for Hoof Beats, the award-winning magazine of the U.S. Trotting Association, for which he has been a columnist for 11 years. Bojarski also is employed by Plainridge Park, the Standardbred Owners of Massachusetts and that states stakes program, the New York Sire Stakes and Batavia Downs. As a member of [the U.S. Harness Writers Association] for the last 23 years, presenting awards is something Im quite familiar with, said Bojarski. However, Im not used to being on this end of the transaction, so havent quite wrapped my head around this yet. Wanting to write and being given the chance to do so are two different things, so I have to thank the many people who gave me those opportunities. The ultimate gratification is to have the respect of your peers, and thats what really makes this night special. (USTA) In just the second start of her career, Skywalker Sea paced the fastest mile ever for two-year-old pacing fillies over the Oak Grove Racing, Gaming & Hotel oval in winning her division's lone $54,795 dash of Kentucky Sire Stakes on a jam-packed Sunday, July 7 card. Leaving from post seven, driver Yannick Gingras found a snug seat for Skywalker Sea in fourth to a :27 first quarter set by Hip Shot (Scott Zeron). Gingras stayed put through a :57 half before lifting his charge into action up the backside with a first-over push after Hip Shot. Skywalker Sea seized the lead to three-quarters in 1:24.1 and strode in under a hand drive to register a 2-1/2-length win over Hip Shot in 1:52. Accede (Dexter Dunn) gave chase off a ground-saving trip in third and Karma (Andy Miller) finished fourth. A daughter of Downbytheseaside, Skywalker Sea stayed unbeaten from two starts for owner Greg Luther Racing LLC and trainer Todd Luther. Her 1:52 effort lowered the previous mark for two-year-old pacing fillies set by Calgary two years ago by three-fifths of a second. Skywalker Sea returned $2.78 for the win. Just a single division of KYSS also went postward for the three-year-old trotting colts and geldings and the two-year-old pacing colts and geldings. The male sophomore trot opened the card in which Mister Dad (Dexter Dunn, 1:55 winning time; $7 to win) found a seam in the final yards off a pocket trip to grab a nose win over tempo-setting Lindys Coyotito (Andy Miller) and fast-closing Memorynimagination (Scott Zeron). Anette Lorentzon trains Mister Dad, a gelded son of Father Patrick, for owners Kentuckiana Racing Stable and Tulip Racing. The lone KYSS split for male pacing freshmen wrapped the Sunday card and went to Lew Hauber (Dexter Dunn, 1:54; $9.56) off an enterprising pocket ride to punch up and get a neck win over hard-charging Got Bourbon (Todd McCarthy). Ron Burke trains the winning Sweet Lou colt for owners/breeders Burke Racing Stable LLC, Weaver Bruscemi LLC and Jack Piatt II. Freshman trotting fillies sparred in three $54,765 KYSS divisions on the Sunday card. Both Voguish (Yannick Gingras, 1:55.4; $4.36) and Yo Tillie (Verlin Yoder, 1:55.4; $8.62) tied for fastest miles of their division with different trips to boot. Voguish carved the mile as the even-money choice while Yo Tillie powered off a pocket ride to best odds-on choice Stacking Green (Yannick Gingras). Andrew Harris trains and co-owns Voguish, a daughter of Gimpanzee who debuted a winner for partners William Pollock and Bruce Areman, while Verlin Yoder owns and trains Yo Tillie, a daughter of Tactical Landing. The third KYSS split for two-year-old trotting fillies went to Steve Carter trainee Divine Thing (Peter Wrenn, 1:56; $4.40) after she powered first over through the first quarter to the lead and held firm on the point to the finish. Memento Mori (Scott Zeron, 1:56.2; $2.46) made amends for his runner-up debut and led from pillar to post to win in the faster of the two KYSS divisions for freshman trotting colts and geldings. Eric Pataln trains the Chapter Seven gelding, who fended off a late surge from Bank On Me (Todd McCarthy) in the stretch, for owners Thestable Memento Mori and Hutchison Harness LLC. Shoe Shine Willie (Dexter Dunn, 1:57.4; $10.70) stayed flat and inherited an open lane on the turn for home to stay on the straight and narrow and win in the other division for trainer Bill Cottongim. Arson (Scott Zeron, 1:50.1; $6.58) converted a pocket trip to a win in the faster of the two KYSS splits for sophomore pacing males, downing tempo-setter Dancin Champion (Yannick Gingras) in the final strides to win. Eric Patalan trains the Captaintreacherous colt for owners Thestable Arson Group and Hutchison Harness. Copperfield (Marcus Miller, 1:51.2; $78.82) landed a huge upset as the longest shot on the board in the other division, collaring late-leader Swaggy Cal (Dexter Dunn) in the closing strides for the win. Per Engblom pupil Bath Bomb (Yannick Gingras, 1:50.2; $3.94) circled to the lead past the quarter and motored down the road to record the faster mile of the two KYSS divisions for sophomore pacing fillies. The daughter of Lather Up, who competes for owner Morrison Racing Stables, easily waded the center-track rally from Defining Moment (Scott Zeron) to hold the win by 1-3/4 lengths. Viki Hill (Dexter Dunn, 1:52.3; $5.20) survived an uncovered bid through the first three-eighths of the mile in the other division to hold victory by a half-length over room-seeking Seeuontheotherside (Marvin Luna). Black Velvet As (Marvin Luna, 1:53.3; $9.36) took top honours from the three KYSS divisions for three-year-old trotting fillies when she muscled first over to a 3-1/2-length win over pocket-sitter Local Honey (Todd McCarthy). Anette Lorentzon trains the daughter of Archangel for owner ACL Stuteri AB. Stella Volo (Dexter Dunn, 1:53.4; $5.16) and Woman Of Passion (Scott Zeron, 1:54; $2.20) later bested their rivals on the lead to win in the other divisions. Live racing resumes at Oak Grove on Monday, July 8 with a 12-race card starting at 3 p.m. (CDT). Monday's card will feature a carryover into the Early Pick 4, starting in Race 3, worth $849.96. (Oak Grove) King Charles III and leaders around the world will be extending their congratulations to new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer after the Labour Partys thumping victory in the U.K. General Election yesterday, July 4. The party won 412 seats at the time of publication, impressively dominating the previous Conservative Government, which slumped into second place with only 121 seats. Labour, in its prior electioneering for a mission-driven administration, claimed that governments worked best when working in partnership with business, trade unions, communities - and faith groups. So what does that mean for evangelical Christians, of whatever political persuasion who, according to Talking Jesus research, make up six cent of the 68 million adults living in the country? The unraveling of policies and promises into actions remains, of course, a wait and see as the first Labour Government in 14 years finds its feet. But there are some snippets of whats to come for evangelicals from the political partys published election manifesto in the areas of sexuality rights, asylum seekers and poverty. A practicing homosexual seeking help from a church minister, for example, would likely not be allowed to receive prayer and support in accordance with biblical teaching to change their stated sexuality. Labour plans to ban what it calls conversion therapy. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up So-called conversion therapy is abuse there is no other word for it so Labour will finally deliver a full trans-inclusive ban on conversion practices, while protecting the freedom for people to explore their sexual orientation and gender identity, stated the manifesto. All existing strands of so-called hate crime will also become an aggravated offense under Labour plans to protect peoples rights to live out proclaimed LGBT+ identities. The new government also intends to implement recommendations made by the Cass Review about young people with gender dysphoria to receive better care. We will also modernize, simplify, and reform the intrusive and outdated gender recognition law to a new process. We will remove indignities for trans people who deserve recognition and acceptance; whilst retaining the need for a diagnosis of gender dysphoria from a specialist doctor, enabling access to the healthcare pathway. Pro-life campaigner Christian Hacking told Christian Daily International in May that it is undeniable that more Christians will be arrested in the U.K. if Labour comes to power. After recounting his own arrest for praying outside an abortion clinic, Hacking, who works for the Centre for Bio Ethical Reform UK, but spoke in a private capacity, said his hope lay not in politics but in Christians being salt and light. Even so, he warned Christians will find themselves increasingly in the firing line in all sorts of matters, not only abortion but conversion therapy, and sexuality, and we should welcome persecution as a means to help us shed some [spiritual] pounds. There is no specific mention of abortion in the Labour Manifesto but the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children opines that the new governments pledge to strengthen international development work could include further funding of organizations that support or provide abortions in other countries. Meanwhile, Christians from abroad seeking asylum in the U.K., often fleeing persecution in their home country, are promised that Labour will go after the criminal gangs and drop the flagship Rwanda policy of the Tories, which planned to fly refugees back or to Africa, depending on where they came from. This could also have an effect on Christian organizations supporting immigrants. Labour pledged a new Border Security Command to crack down on criminals abusing the asylum system so that it operates swiftly, firmly, fairly, and the rules are properly enforced. This allegedly includes scrapping asylum hotels. Labour will set up a new returns and enforcement unit, with an additional 1,000 staff, to fast-track removals to safe countries for people who do not have the right to stay here, the political party says on its website. We will negotiate additional return arrangements to speed up returns and increase the number of safe countries that failed asylum seekers can swiftly be sent back to. And we will also act upstream, working with international partners to address the humanitarian crises which lead people to flee their homes, and to strengthen support for refugees in their home region. Emily Shepherd who serves as the chief executive officer of Welcome Churches, a church-based charity supporting refugees and asylum seekers through 1,400 U.K. churches in its network, felt unsure about the new governments plans to help refugees. The churches in our Welcome Network celebrate the refugees we have met in our communities in recent years, Shepherd told Christian Daily International. Whilst many of the people seeking asylum that our churches meet will be feeling some relief at not facing immediate removal to Rwanda, the future for these people still feels very uncertain. Shepherd hoped that the new government would put compassion and welcome at the heart of their asylum policies, rather than fear and hostility. The experience of many refugees is that it is local churches and Christians that have welcomed and supported them on their journeys across the globe. Welcome Churches' vision is for every refugee to be welcomed by the local church and we pray the global Church will grasp hold of this vision as well. Labour also purports to prioritize family finances with lower tax rates and reducing food prices. The party also mentioned free breakfast clubs in every primary school but otherwise envisioned an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty without providing particular details in the manifesto. Christians Against Poverty (CAP) issued a press release this morning asking all MPs, of whatever political persuasion, to visit one of their 250 debt centers to see for themselves the financial woes suffered by many people, as reported recently by Christian Daily International. Gareth McNab, CAP Director of External Affairs, referred to a YouGov poll last year showing nearly 90 percent of people in the U.K. want to see poverty tackled. Another poll by YouGov last month showed 21 per cent of adults have skipped meals and 48 percent limit energy use at home, at least once per month, because of burgeoning costs. There is clearly a great public urgency around addressing poverty, and this now needs to be a greater political priority, McNab said. There are important steps that the new Labour Government can take quickly to address this. These include reviewing social security payments against the Minimum Income Standard and making the legal minimum wage the same level as the Real Living Wage. This will help ensure everyone has access to an income that covers their essential needs. The British and Foreign Bible Society published a review of the relationship between the Christian faith and the Labour party in 2010, striking a positive note written at a time when Labour lost a general election, placing the Conservatives in power for the next 14 years, until now. Called Building Jerusalem? Christianity and the Labour Party, and written by Paul Bickley, researcher at Theos, the public theology think tank, the study claimed that if the idea that the Labour Party owes more to Methodism than it does to Marx contains any truth, it is the truth that faith communities can provide personnel. Bickey opined that being part of a faith body, like a church, trained people in the virtues of citizenship, service and common endeavor - virtues without which no political party can long survive. If the Labour Party continues to aspire to be the Party of a just society, which judges its strength by the condition of the weak as much as the strong, provides security against fear, and justice at work, which nurtures families, promotes equality of opportunity and delivers people from the tyranny of poverty, prejudice and the abuse of power, then, inasmuch as it makes a critique which is consonant with the Christian Socialist tradition, it will command high levels of support and involvement from amongst the Christian community, predicted Bickley, giving his own view. Gavin Calver, chief executive officer for the U.K. Evangelical Alliance, believes the new Labour Government carried a significant burden of responsibility. He referred to Psalm 72, praying that God would give the new Prime Minister wisdom and a heart for justice, that he will stand up for the poor and for children in need. The Evangelical Alliance is committed to working with the government on restoring hope in our society, strengthening social cohesion and honouring the dignity and value of every human being. Our faith is a vital component of what makes a difference and helps transform lives across the UK. We look forward to working closely with the new minister responsible for faith groups and encourage the prime minister to appoint a special envoy for international freedom of religion or belief as soon as possible. There will be points in the years ahead where we will disagree with the government's direction and will challenge policies and decisions. Any moves that disempower and harm the most vulnerable in society will be met with a robust response from the evangelical Christians across the UK. Our heart is always to serve and advocate for those most in need and we urge the government to do the same, he said. We encourage the government to meet with evangelical churches and national organisations to understand the vast contribution we are already making every day for those in greatest need. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has recently issued a crucial circular (RBI/2024-2025/48, A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 14) concerning the Export-Import Bank of Indias (Exim Bank) Line of Credit (LoC) to the Government of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana (GO-GUY). This LoC, amounting to USD 2.50 million, is specifically designated for the installation of a Solar Photo Voltaic (PV) Power Plant at Cheddi Jagan International Airport in Guyana. Under this agreement, Exim Bank will finance eligible goods and services exported from India, in accordance with the Foreign Trade Policy of the Government of India. The agreement mandates that at least 75% of the contract value must be supplied by Indian sellers, with the remaining 25% sourced internationally. The effective date of the agreement is June 24, 2024, and disbursement under the LoC must be completed within 48 months after the projects scheduled completion. Reserve Bank of India RBI/2024-2025/48 A.P. (DIR Series) Circular No. 14 July 08, 2024 All Category I Authorised Dealer Banks Madam/Sir Export-Import Bank of Indias GOI-supported Line of Credit of USD 2.50 mn to the Government of Co-operative Republic of Guyana, for installation of Solar Photo Voltaic Power Plant at Cheddi Jagan International Airport Export-Import Bank of India (Exim Bank) has entered into an agreement dated February 29, 2024 with the Government of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana (GO-GUY), for making available to the latter, Government of India supported Line of Credit (LoC) of USD 2.50 mn (USD Two Million Five Hundred Thousand Only) for installation of Solar Photo Voltaic Power Plant at Cheddi Jagan International Airport in Guyana. 2. The export of eligible goods and services from India, as defined under the agreement, would be allowed subject to their eligibility under the Foreign Trade Policy of the Government of India and whose purchase may be agreed to be financed by the Exim Bank under this agreement. 3. Out of the total credit by Exim Bank under the agreement, goods, works and services of the value of at least 75 per cent of the contract price shall be supplied by the seller from India, and the remaining 25 per cent of goods and services may be procured by the seller for the purpose of the eligible contract from outside India. 4. The Agreement under the LoC is effective from June 24, 2024. Under the LoC, the last date for disbursement will be 48 months after scheduled completion date of the project. 5. Shipments under the LoC shall be declared in Export Declaration Form/Shipping Bill as per instructions issued by the Reserve Bank from time to time. 6. No agency commission is payable for export under the above LoC. However, if required, the exporter may use his own resources or utilize balances in his Exchange Earners Foreign Currency Account for payment of commission in free foreign exchange. Authorised Dealer (AD) Category- I banks may allow such remittance after realization of full eligible value of export subject to compliance with the extant instructions for payment of agency commission. 7. AD Category I banks may bring the contents of this circular to the notice of their exporter constituents and advise them to obtain complete details of the LoC from the Exim Banks office at Centre One, Floor 21, World Trade Centre Complex, Cuffe Parade, Mumbai 400 005 or from their website www.eximbankindia.in. 8. The directions contained in this circular have been issued under section 10(4) and 11(1) of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999 (42 of 1999) and are without prejudice to permissions/ approvals, if any, required under any other law. Yours faithfully (N Senthil Kumar) General Manager 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: Boeing says it has reached an agreement with the US Department of Justice over two fatal 737 MAX crashes. Boeing confirmed on Monday that it had reached a deal with the US Department of Justice over two fatal 737 MAX crashes, with court documents showing the planemaker set to plead guilty to fraud. The agreement comes after prosecutors concluded Boeing flouted an earlier settlement addressing the disasters, in which 346 people were killed in Ethiopia and Indonesia more than five years ago. "We have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department," Boeing said in a statement. Families of crash victims immediately filed an objection to the deal, arguing that it "unfairly makes concessions to Boeing that other criminal defendants would never receive." Catherine Berthet, who lost her daughter Camille in the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crashinvolving a 737 MAX 8said the deal reflects "weakness and manifest contempt for the victims' families and public interest." Court papers filed in Texas on Sunday said the company had agreed to plead guilty to "conspiracy to defraud the United States" during the certification of MAX airplanes. The plea deal would see Boeing avoid a criminal trial and instead agree to a series of terms that includes a fresh $243.6 million fine. The company will also be required to make a minimum investment of $455 million in "compliance and safety programs." Families of Boeing crash victims demonstrate in Washington on June 18. Such changes at the firm will be overseen by an independent monitor appointed by the government for a three-year term. The company's board of directors will also be required to meet the families of crash victims. The high-profile agreement follows the DOJ finding in May that Boeing failed to improve its compliance and ethics program, in breach of a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) in the wake of the MAX crashes. Families reject 'generous' deal The families of victims will ask the court to reject the plea deal at an upcoming hearing. "The generous plea agreement rests on deceptive and offensive premises," said the objection filed by their legal team Sunday. In a statement shared by her lawyers, Berthet added that the agreement shows the DOJ's "deafness" despite an alarming rise in incidents. The original DPA was announced in January 2021, over charges that Boeing knowingly defrauded US aviation regulators. Victims' relatives after meeting Department of justice officials on April 24. That agreement required Boeing to pay $2.5 billion in fines and restitution in exchange for immunity from criminal prosecution. A three-year probationary period was set to expire this year. But in January, Boeing was plunged back into crisis mode when a 737 MAX flown by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing after a fuselage panel blew out mid-flight. The incident launched a new wave of scrutiny into Boeing's manufacturing and safety practices, with formal probes initiated by US regulators and Congress. In a May 14 letter to the court overseeing the MAX case, DOJ officials said that Boeing flouted its obligations under the DPA by "failing to design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the US fraud laws throughout its operations." The conclusion opened up the company to possible prosecution, with Boeing initially arguing it had not violated the 2021 agreement. DOJ representatives briefed families in late June on the proposed plea deal and the company was given until July 5 to accept the offer, or face a possibly damaging trial. Boeing was meanwhile met with fresh negative news on Monday, with the US Federal Aviation Administration announcing that over 2,600 737 jets would need inspections, amid concerns that passenger oxygen masks could fail in emergencies. 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 Federal Aviation Administration is ordering for inspections of more than 2,600 US-registered Boeing 737 planes over an oxygen mask issue. US aviation regulators said Monday that thousands of Boeing 737 airplanes would need to be inspected, amid concerns that passenger oxygen masks could fail in emergencies. The airworthiness directive by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) comes into effect immediately and affects more than 2,600 US-registered airplanes. The aim is to ensure that passenger service unit oxygen generators are in the right position on certain Boeing airplanes. Operators are to check the oxygen generators and "perform corrective actions, if necessary, within 120 to 150 days," the FAA said in a statement. It added that the directive was prompted by multiple reports of these generators shifting out of position, and called for a general visual inspection to be conducted. In response to queries, Boeing said that a new adhesive introduced in August 2019 was found to sometimes allow oxygen generator units to shift from their positions. In June, Boeing gave operators instructions to update a portion of the restraining straps on 737 oxygen generators. The company added that it has since gone back to using its original adhesive to ensure that the generators remain in place. The announcement adds to a series of concerns facing Boeing. The manufacturer has been grappling with intense scrutiny since a near-catastrophic event in January, when a fuselage panel blew out of an Alaska Airlines-operated 737 MAX. Earlier on Monday, Boeing said it had reached a deal with the US Department of Justice over two fatal 737 MAX crasheswith court documents indicating that the aviation giant would plead guilty to fraud. Prosecutors had concluded that Boeing flouted an earlier settlement addressing the disasters, in which 346 people were killed in Ethiopia and Indonesia more than five years ago. 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: China's electric vehicle giant BYD will open a factory in Turkey. China's electric vehicle giant BYD will open a factory in Turkey, a government source told AFP on Monday, as the company continues its international expansion. "BYD will open a plant in Turkey," the source said, adding the details would be announced by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The news comes days after the EU slapped additional provisional tariffs of up to 38 percent on Chinese EVs following an investigation that concluded state subsidies meant they were unfairly undermining European rivals. Turkish-made cars enjoy beneficial access to the EU under a customs union that dates to 1995 and the Marmara region around Istanbul has become one of the leading centers of the world's automobile industry. Major carmakers including Fiat and Renault opened plants there at the beginning of the 1970s, with others like Ford, Toyota and Hyundai following, taking advantage of Turkey's position at the crossroads between Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Turkish media reported that the factory would be a one-billion-dollar investment by BYD. Tariff-free The land that was previously allocated for Volkswagen in Manisa in the north of the Western porty city of Izmir would be given to the Chinese company, the pro-government daily Yeni Safak reported. "BYD is the world's largest manufacturer of electric vehicles and one of the most advanced in terms of technology and manufacturing quality," independent consultant Levent Taylan told AFP. "Indeed, this will be an investment for the Turkish market but especially European market, by circumventing the customs tariffs imposed on vehicles of Chinese origin," he said. He said BYD has a potential to sell around 20-25,000 vehicles per year on the Turkish market and export 75,000 to the EU. "A plant (in Turkey) with 100-125,000 vehicles per year in installed capacity would be a reasonable investment," he added. Under new Turkish regulations on investment incentives BYD will be able to circumvent a new 40 percent tariff that Turkey imposed on electric vehicle imports. China has led the global shift to electric vehicles, with almost one in three cars on its roads set to be electric by 2030, according to the International Energy Agency's annual Global EV Outlook. Chinese EV manufacturers have also stepped up exports, prompting many nations to take measures to protect their automakers. They have also begun looking at manufacturing abroad, with BYD having already announced plans to open its first European factory in Hungary. In July, BYD opened a factory in Thailand. The plant in Rayong, an industrial area southeast of Bangkok, will be able to build up to 150,000 vehicles a year, according to the company, which dominates its domestic market. Beijing has warned the EU tariff move could spark a trade war. 2024 AFP In the wake of Hurricane Beryl, churches in the Caribbean and Central America are set to embrace what is expected to be a historic hurricane season, with an 85% chance of experiencing a more active and intense season than normal. Beryl was the first "major" hurricane in July, something unprecedented at the start of the hurricane season. It became the first of its kind to make landfall at a severe category so early. The storm reached 165 miles (155 km) and became a dangerous category five hurricane with a direct path across the Caribbean Sea. It affected several of the Virgin Islands and surrounding islands, Jamaica and southern Mexico. The Reverend Pedro Uh Bote, Bishop of the International Pentecostal Church of God Movement (IDPMI) in southern Mexico, prepared his leaders to be available to their congregations in every possible way. His church also prepared to serve as a shelter for those whose homes were no longer safe. Anticipating the hurricane heading towards the Cancun area as a category one, the churches prepared themselves with food and basic necessities to support the affected families. IDPMI's English Caribbean supervisor, currently based in Jamaica, Pastor Rohan Pellington, was on the island when Beryl hit the Jamaican coast as a Category 4 storm. Churches in Jamaica were set up to serve as shelters in case of severe flooding. As Christian leaders, our intention is to reach out to every member of our churches, Pellington said, to foster calm in times of crisis like this. The Jamaican pastor also worked with Roxhall Secondary School in Kingston to provide a shelter. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up The most important thing for Pellington is that people stay close to God in times of peace so that in times of trouble they can also have their security in God. I hope this motivates Jamaicans to pay attention, he said. It is time to get serious and seek God now. That is my hope, that people will get closer to God. Despite the difficulty, Pellington's church held a thanksgiving service this Sunday, June 7. It could have been a lot worse, he said. We can say that God protected us Despite how things look, the obstacles and challenges, we can say that God has been good, so we should give thanks despite how we have been affected. The Association of Pentecostal Social Services (ASSPEN) of the IDPMI has been in contact with southern Mexico and Jamaica to coordinate the delivery of humanitarian aid to nearby churches and communities. The director of the Missions Department of the IDPMI International Headquarters, Rev. Wilfredo Martinez, stated that he wants to provide emotional help during these difficult times. [At the IDPMI] we have chaplains and many are specialized and have this profile, but we have to coordinate that work for when [these atmospheric events] occur. The director also mentioned that on past occasions the chaplains were mobilized to provide counseling to those affected by the earthquakes that hit Puerto Rico in early 2020. The Bishop of the IDPMI Region of Puerto Rico, Reverend Hernan Rivera Rivera, expressed that in past experiences in crisis situations (such as Hurricane Maria in 2017) the Church mobilized more quickly than first response teams when distributing essential items. IDPMI in Puerto Rico is preparing with aid centers in each municipality of the island so that the necessary aid reaches the towns in need more quickly. We are preparing to be good [first response teams], the first in the middle of any crisis that occurs, said Rivera. During this 2024 hurricane season, the pastors also urge people to pray for Central America and the Caribbean. More than anything, so that we dont lose faith, we dont lose hope, said Pastor Uh Bote. Bishop Rivera encourages to remain calm and to rely on Gods peace. If we all fall, who is going to come and lift others up? Rivera said. That is where we are as believers, as leaders, to instill peace in others and to remain calm enough to be able to get up. He also encouraged people to pray that these atmospheric events will dissolve in the open sea and not affect anyone . I want to say that our prayer is that [Gods] protection will be in all countries, the Bishop added. That people take care of themselves, protect themselves and that all these events have the least possible negative effect on any country. In other words, prayer is not only a selfish prayer, but a prayer for the good of all. Pellington, for his part, encourages younger generations who may have never experienced a major hurricane to turn to God now. If the storm comes, even when you do everything to prepare, your mind has to be fixed on the Lord, he said. Your faith has to be firm in Him. We have to have the conviction that our God will carry us through the storm. Our God is sovereign over the storm. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said this Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be more active and intense than normal. NOAA's report suggests a possibility of 17 to 25 named storms, 8 to 13 hurricanes, and 4 to 7 major hurricanes. First published by Diario Cristiano, Christian Daily International's Spanish edition. A Ukrainian Protestant in her early 50s has received a seven-year jail term for remarks at a home prayer meeting in a Russian-occupied city, while a Ukrainian Orthodox Church priest has disappeared following his arrest, according to Forum 18. After making the alleged remarks at a home in occupied Melitopol in July 2023, the unnamed woman was arrested in early 2024. The Zaporizhzhya Region Investigative Committee refused to tell rights group Forum 18 if Russias Federal Security Service (FSB) had secretly recorded the Protestant meeting. After Russian occupation forces arrested her, she was charged under a law against Public dissemination, under the guise of credible statements, of knowingly false information about the use of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation when conducted for reasons of political, ideological, racial, national or religious hatred or enmity, or for reasons of hatred or enmity against any social group (Russian Criminal Code Article 207.3, Part 2, Paragraph D). Punishments range from a large fine to up to 10 years of prison. Her trial apparently took place at the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya Regional Court, with the date of the verdict and her location unknown, according to Forum 18. Whether she has been able to file an appeal was also unknown. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up The arrest earlier this year happened before the disappearance of the Rev. Feognost Pushkov, 44, from his home in Prosyanoe village, which he shared with his elderly and disabled mother Taisiya, in Russian-occupied Luhansk Region. The priest of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church, which is linked to the Moscow Patriarchate, serves the parish of St. Nikolai in Kuryachivka village, within Starobilsk District of Ukraines Luhansk Region. Forum 18 reported that no one has heard of Pushkovs whereabouts since June 20, when police summoned the priest, who suffers from stress-induced high blood pressure, and he posted this message on Telegram: Im in an ambulance. They want to lock me up at the police. I am between life and death. Help me, everyone who can. My mother wont survive this. Forum 18 reported that Pushkov likely drew the ire of authorities for posting a YouTube video on May 12, 2022 giving his views on patriotism based on Christian principles against those of Russian Orthodox priests supporting Russias invasion of Ukraine. Forum 18 stated that Russia enforcing its laws on occupied Ukrainian territory was illegal under Article 64 of the Geneva Convention. The watchdog stated that Russia had imposed punishments for Ukrainians under its Criminal and Administrative Codes since late 2022 within the occupied areas, including Zaporizhzhia, where the Protestant woman was prosecuted. Jailed Ukrainians are sent to serve sentences in Russia, which also contravenes the Geneva Convention, according to Forum 18. It noted that the conventions Article 76 states, Protected persons accused of offenses shall be detained in the occupied country, and if convicted they shall serve their sentences therein. No official answered phone calls at the Zaporizhzhya Regional Court when Forum 18 called to ask about the welfare of the Protestant woman on June 18 and on July 1. A judge on June 27 refused to respond to the rights group asking questions about the case. The occupation forces Zaporizhzhya Region Investigative Committee also refused to discuss the reported sentence given to the Protestant woman. A duty official in Melitopol, refusing to give his name, told Forum 18 on July 1, We dont have the authority to discuss any criminal cases by phone. An official told Forum 18 that the womans case had been handed to the Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhya Regional Court, and that all questions should be addressed to the court. Terrorist attacks have forced a denomination to close 70 churches in central Nigerias Plateau state, and in the countrys northwest, a kidnapped a priest was released on Sunday (July 7), sources said. The Rev. Amos Mohzo, president of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that attacks by Fulani herdsmen and other terrorists have forced 70 congregations in Plateau states Mangu and Bokkos counties to stop services in the past two years. The Christmas attacks last December directly affected COCIN congregations, he said. Our members were killed, people were killed, people lost their houses, many traumatized, and we couldnt do anything, Pastor Mohzo said. We were stranded, but we had to face the challenge, and Christmas was celebrated by displaced Christians in Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) camps in spite of the tragedy. In the Mangu area, attacks forced at least 40 COCIN congregations to close, he said. Stay informed with The Christian Daily Newsletter Sign up Most of these members of our church were displaced, and many of them are living in camps outside their communities, Pastor Mohzo said. Most of these Christians have been moving here and there trying to survive or find succor. In the Bokkos area, the denomination lost about 30 congregations, he said. All our worship church buildings in these communities were burned down by the terrorists, Pastor Mohzo said. Internally Displaced Christians from these communities are still living in camps outside their communities. And even now, most of them who are farmers are unable to go to their farms. In some cases, Christians who have dared to return to their farms have formed communal groups for a greater sense of security, he said. Notwithstanding, our church members displaced still find it difficult to go to their farms for productive activities because of ceaseless attacks against them by armed terrorists, herdsmen and bandits, he said. With these developments, we have been making efforts to see that our church members that survived these attacks and are living in camps outside their communities are relocated back to their communities; but then, we have to rebuild not just worship buildings, but also their burned houses. At the same time, COCIN evangelistic outreaches in northeastern Nigeria have been hindered by attacks by Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP). Im from the northeast of Nigeria, Gwoza Local Government Area, precisely from Limankara town, and my village is Ngoshe Sama, which is located on the hills, Pastor Mohzo said. Boko Haram took over the village years back, and theyre still there. So, these hills occupied by Boko Haram terrorists overlook Limankara and Gwoza towns. These terrorists come down from the hills to attack our communities and then retreat into the hills. June 29 attacks in Gwoza killed and maimed both Christians and Muslims, he said. We live together as a community, Pastor Mohzo said. However, with the coming of insurgency, the emergence of Boko Haram in Borno state, many of our people have been killed, and others have been driven out and displaced to other areas of Nigeria. Those who have no places to go to had to stay back and make up their minds to die when attacked by the terrorists. Life has not been easy for the survivors, he added. They cannot go their farms because of the terrorists, so they depend on Non-Governmental Organizations to support them, he said. And with present economic hardship being experienced in the country, the NGOs too are unable to cater for these displaced Christians. The sheer number of kidnappings has made it difficult for the COCIN to raise money to ransom one of its pastors, the Rev. Paul Musa, kidnapped along with his wife by Boko Haram terrorists in March 2023, he said. We as a church are handicapped, because it is impossible to raise money at all times to pay ransoms to terrorists in order to secure the release of pastors being held captive, he told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. And this is because almost in all parts of northern Nigeria, our church members and pastors are being kidnapped by terrorists. So, where can we raise large sums of money to get them out from their captors? Nevertheless, COCIN leaders have been appealing to individuals and organizations to help secure the release of Pastor Musa and other church members held captive. Pastor Musa and his wife have been held captive for more than a year. I was recently in the city of Maiduguri and visited his children, he said. Theyre traumatized. They pleaded with me to secure the release of their parents, and I told them that if it is within my reach I will not allow their parents to remain in captivity even for one second, but its beyond us. The children are always crying, always in tears for their parents. It pains my heart to see these children in this way. Boko Haram Islamic terrorists who kidnapped the pastor and his wife in Borno state, northeast Nigeria, in the third week of June threatened to kill him if the ransom were not paid within a week. The ultimatum issued has now expired, as its now more than a week when the threat was issued by the terrorists, and nothing has been heard from his captors, Pastor Mohzo said. We are appealing to the captors of Rev. Musa and his wife to please release them. They should have mercy on the couple and release them. He said terrorist attacks have also engulfed northwest Nigeria. Our churches in the northwest of the country are not spared by terrorists either. Christians in the northwest of Nigeria also suffer the same terrorists attacks, he said. Evangelization activities have been impeded in this part of the country. How can we deliberately jeopardize and endanger the lives of those called to ministry, when we know that theyll become targets of terrorist attacks? In northwest Nigerias Zamfara state, Roman Catholic priest Mikah Suleiman was released on Sunday after being kidnapped on June 22, according to the churchs Sokoto Diocese. He and church officials failed to reveal who had kidnapped him or the terms for his release. I want to thank you for your prayers and support towards my rescue, Suleiman says in a video released by the diocese on Sunday. By the grace of God, Im out from the hands of the bandits. Sokoto Diocese communications director Pascal Salifu thanked the authorities and all involved in securing Father Mikahs release. In the 2024 WWL of the countries where it is most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria was ranked No. 6, as it was in the previous year. Nigeria remained the deadliest place in the world to follow Christ, with 4,118 people killed for their faith from Oct. 1, 2022 to Sept. 30, 2023, according to Open Doors 2024 World Watch List (WWL) report. More kidnappings of Christians than in any other country also took place in Nigeria, with 3,300. Nigeria was also the third highest country in number of attacks on churches and other Christian buildings such as hospitals, schools, and cemeteries, with 750, according to the report. Financial institutions in Latin America are being threatened by a banking trojan called Mekotio (aka Melcoz). That's according to findings from Trend Micro, which said it recently observed a surge in cyber attacks distributing the Windows malware. Mekotio, known to be actively put to use since 2015, is known to target Latin American countries like Brazil, Chile, Mexico, Spain, Peru, and Portugal with an aim to steal banking credentials. First documented by ESET in August 2020, it's part of a tetrade of banking trojans targeting the region, such as Guildma, Javali, and Grandoreiro, the latter of which was dismantled by law enforcement earlier this year. "Mekotio shares common characteristics for this type of malware, such as being written in Delphi, using fake pop-up windows, containing backdoor functionality and targeting Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries," the Slovakian cybersecurity firm said at the time. The malware operation suffered a blow in July 2021 when Spanish law enforcement agencies arrested 16 individuals belonging to a criminal network in connection with orchestrating social engineering campaigns targeting European users that delivered Grandoreiro and Mekotio. Attack chains involve the use of tax-themed phishing emails that aim to trick recipients into opening malicious attachments or clicking on bogus links that lead to the deployment of an MSI installer file, which, in turn, makes use of an AutoHotKey (AHK) script to launch the malware. The Red Mongoose Daemon Infection Chain It's worth noting that the infection process marks a slight deviation from the one previously detailed by Check Point in November 2021, which made use of an obfuscated batch script that runs a PowerShell script to download a second-stage ZIP file containing the AHK script. Once installed, Mekotio harvests system information and establishes contact with a command-and-control (C2) server to receive further instructions. Its main objective is to siphon banking credentials by displaying fake pop-ups that impersonate legitimate banking sites. It can also capture screenshots, log keystrokes, steal clipboard data, and establish persistence on the host using scheduled tasks. The stolen information can then be used by the threat actors to gain unauthorized access to users' bank accounts and perform fraudulent transactions. "The Mekotio banking trojan is a persistent and evolving threat to financial systems, especially in Latin American countries," Trend Micro said. "It uses phishing emails to infiltrate systems, with the goal of stealing sensitive information while also maintaining a strong foothold on compromised machines." The development comes as Mexican cybersecurity firm Scitum disclosed details of a new Latin American banking trojan codenamed Red Mongoose Daemon that, similar to Mekotio, utilizes MSI droppers distributed via phishing emails masquerading as invoices and tax notes. "The main objective of Red Mongoose Daemon is to steal victims' banking information by spoofing PIX transactions through overlapping windows," the company said. "This trojan is aimed at Brazilian end users and employees of organizations with banking information." "Red Mongoose Daemon has capabilities for manipulating and creating windows, executing commands, controlling the computer remotely, manipulating web browsers, hijacking clipboards, and impersonating Bitcoin wallets by replacing copied wallets with the ones used by cybercriminals." HSBC loans Malaysias Leader Energy $23.3 mln for Vietnam renewable energy portfolio By Minh Anh Mon, July 8, 2024 | 4:01 pm GMT+7 HSBC Vietnam and Malaysias Leader Energy Holding Berhad (Leader Energy) have signed a VND593 billion ($23.33 million) financing agreement for the development of solar projects in the country. Representatives of HSBC Vietnam and Leader Energy sign a green financing agreement in Ho Chi Minh City, July 8, 2024. Photo courtesy of HSBC. This transaction marks the bank's second transaction for Leader Energy in Vietnam, following one for a hydropower plant in 2017, HSBC Vietnam said in a Monday release. The new seven-year loan to the wholly owned subsidiary of HNG Capital will be used to support refinancing of the Vinh Hao 6 (VH6), a 50MW solar power plant recently acquired by Leader Energy. Located in the southcentral province of Binh Thuan, the project began commercial operations in 2019, generating 100% of its revenue from the sale of electricity to state utility Vietnam Electricity (EVN) at the feed-in-tariff (FiT) of 9.35 U.S. cents/kWh under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA). The project generates 83,000 MWh electricity thereby offsetting 75,131 tons of carbon dioxide emissions a year. VH6 was fully acquired by Leader Energy in 2023. The company said the acquisition was part of Leader Energys plan to own 500 MW-plus of renewable energy assets in Vietnam. The deal showcased the renewable energy potential of Vietnam given conducive conditions and the government's pledge to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, the bank said. Following this commitment made at COP26, Vietnam has sought to double down on energy transition as the sector accounts for more than half of the nations greenhouse gas emissions. Besides, the country's natural resources present significant potential to attract more investment into the growing renewable energy sector, officials have said. Contributing to the energy transition is a key component of Leader Energys strategy to mitigate climate change and promote sustainable development. The group is expanding its renewable energy portfolio to fulfil its contribution to Vietnam achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, said Jenny Ng, CFO of Leader Energy. Ahmed Yeganeh, country head of wholesale banking, HSBC Vietnam said: This deal demonstrates how the financial sector can play an active role in unlocking the renewable energy potential for Vietnam while supporting the sustainable growth ambition of businesses." London is home to countless art galleries. With so many to choose from, which should you visit should you find yourself in the English capital? CNBC asked a mix of artists to share where people who make art like to see art. Contemporary galleries Lauren Baker, who works in a wide variety of media, also favors galleries offering a broad range of artworks. She recommends Alice Black Gallery in Soho for its "daring fine art with deeply conceptual works. It's not all pretty, there's often some dark and strange pieces that get you contemplating the meaning of life." On the opposite end of the spectrum is the "fun and colorful" display at Woolff Gallery in Fitzrovia, with its "focus on texture and tactile works and many sculptural elements." Baker also appreciates the atmosphere at Mayfair hotel Claridge's ArtSpace, where you can mingle with the "cool art crowd," and then head to the hotel's grand Foyer and Reading Room for traditional afternoon tea. If you find yourself in East London, artist and costume designer Machine Dazzle recommends the galleries Amanda Wilkinson--with its "impeccable taste"--and Maureen Paley. Also on his list are the "forward-thinking and intelligent exhibitions" of Niru Ratnam in Fitzrovia. Tate Galleries and Italian futurism It is impossible to escape the Tate Galleries when you're in London. Landscape painter Katharine Edwards and multidisciplinary artist Komal Madar both recommend Tate Modern. Edwards cites the Mark Rothko room, showing Rothko's Seagram building paintings, which she describes as "contemplative, meditative" and "profoundly affecting." Madar looks forward to seeing Expressionists: Kandinsky, Munter and The Blue Rider, opening October 20. Edwards also recommends Tate Britain, and, of course, the Royal Academy of Fine Arts. The latter is currently mounting is Summer Exhibition, displaying 1,700 works by seven Royal Academicians. She also appreciates the futurist Italian art at the Esoterick Collection in Islington. As for Madar's other recommendations, he suggests Judy Chicago's Revelations at Serpentine North, and the White Cube galleries. A photographer's favorites The Photographer's Gallery in Soho is an unsurprising favorite for photographer Tom Oldham, who is drawn to its "powerful and edgy selections." Even so, he also appreciates the "different works, young and old" at the free-to-enter Gilbert & George Centre, run by be-suited collaborators Gilbert Prousch and George Passmore. And let's not forget London's auction houses, such as Sotheby's and Christie's, where artworks are often exhibited before they go under the hammer. "Viewing is free and it's magical to see so much work of this quality up close," said Oldham. Intel seeks simplified rules, lesser restrictions for Vietnam investment support fund By Tri Duc Mon, July 8, 2024 | 2:14 pm GMT+7 U.S. chip maker Intel has proposed simpler rules related to administative procedures and employment for Vietnams draft decree for the to-be-launched Vietnam Fund for Investment Support. In its statement, Intel Products Vietnam (IPV) said it was already classified by authorities as a high-tech business per its investment certificates. As a result, Intel suggested no more documents for "high-tech business" confirmation as a step to receive support from the fund. Any extra documents are a move against Vietnams efforts to reduce administrative procedures, per governments Resolution 01/NQ-CP issued in January for cutting administrative procedures, the high-tech giant stressed. In reply, the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI), the drafting team of the draft decree, said the Ministry of Science and Technology is in charge of issuing high-tech business confirmation documents, so the two ministries will collaborate on the task. Intel factory in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo courtesy of Nguoi Lao Dong (Laborer) newspaper. Regarding employment-related rules, Intel said those mentioned in the draft were not suitable because high-tech projects, especially those to do with semiconductors, used highly skilled professionals, high-precision technology and equipment and automation, which does not require a large number of workers. Therefore, the draft decree should not have provisions related to employment by high-tech businesses, Intel argued. In reply, the MPI has said that employment was not an absolute requirement to receive support from the fund. Employment, along with high technology, are prerequisites for very special support, the ministry clarified. The requirements aimed to encourage businesses to focus on training and employing high-quality workers as well as project expansion, the ministry added. Intel has so far invested $1.5 billion in Vietnam. The Intel Vietnam factory accounts for 50% of packaging and testing tasks for the giant's global operations. The company "appreciates continued support of the Vietnamese government and is committed to long-term investments in Vietnam," Intel Vietnam representative Phung Viet Thang said last March. Commenting on the draft decree on the fund, the MPI said Vietnams current policy offered limited investment support with just income-based incentives, such as exemptions and reduction in taxes and fees. The upcoming Global Minimum Tax (GMT) will have major impacts in the country, prompting a update of its legal framework, the ministry stressed. In particular, the "outdated" legal framework has prompted some global giants, which had previously proposed huge investments, to bypass Vietnam and invest in other countries. For instance, Intel had suggested a $3.3 billion investment in chip production and asked Vietnam to pay 15% of the investment in cash, but finally decided to invest in Poland, the ministry noted in a report. Japan noodle firm Acecook to start $87 mln investment in northern Vietnam in 2027 By Tri Duc Mon, July 8, 2024 | 10:49 am GMT+7 Acecook Vietnam, under Japanese instant noodle firm Acecook, plans to start operating a VND2,200 billion ($86.6 million) investment in the northern province of Hung Yen from the second quarter of 2027. Kaneda Hiroki, CEO of Acecook Vietnam, made the statement on Sunday at a conference held to discuss the master plan for Hung Yen province for 2021-2030, where the firm received an investment registration certificate. The investment is set to employ 2,000 people, the executive added. Kaneda Hiroki, CEO of Acecook Vietnam, speaks at Hung Yen's master plan announcement on July 7, 2024. Photo courtesy of the government's news portal. He also lauded Hung Yens favorable investment conditions, which prompted the firm to make the move, after its first investment in a factory in Nhu Quynh industrial park began in 2001. At the event, the Ministry of Planning and Investment and Hung Yen authorities granted investment registration certificates and in-principle approval decisions to 24 projects. They included 19 foreign investments of $630 million and five domestic investments of VND10 trillion ($393.6 million). Acecook entered Vietnam in 1993 and is one of the country's top noodle businesses. Prior to the latest addition, Acecook operated 11 factories across Vietnam, employing 6,000 people and supplying 3.4 billion servings a year. The firms average productivity is 600 packs per minute from each production line. In 2022, the firm made a revenue of nearly $600 million. In March 2024, Acecook kicked off the construction of its 12th factory in Vietnam. The $200-million factory, located in the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long, is set to employ 3,000 people, making various products including noodles, rice noodles, vermicelli, and glass noodles. State-owned cement giant Vicem, three subsidiaries to be inspected By Kha Moc, Minh Hue Mon, July 8, 2024 | 10:37 pm GMT+7 Vietnam National Cement Corporation (Vicem) and its three subsidiaries will be put under inspection per a decision by the Ministry of Finance's chief inspector. The three member companies are Vicem Tam Diep Cement Company Limited, Vicem Hai Phong Cement Company Limited, and Vicem Ha Tien Cement Company Limited. The inspection will cover management and use of capital and assets at the enterprises; accounting of revenues and expenses, and business reports; fulfillment of obligations to the state budget; and compliance with legal regulations on finance in 2023. The inspection period is 45 days from the date of announcement of the inspection decision. The headquarters of Vicem in Hanoi. Photo courtesy of Thanh Nien (Young People) newspaper. In the first six months of 2024, Vicems total revenue was estimated at VND13.2 trillion ($519.3 million), equal to 46.1% of its year plan and down 19.4% year-on-year. It paid VND547 billion ($21.52 million) to the state budget, equal to 51.1% of the year plan and down 20.9% compared to the same period in 2023. In 2023, the company reported an after-tax loss of more than VND1.1 trillion ($43.27 million), while the 2022 profit was VND642 billion ($25.26 million). Vicem's large loss mainly came from the sharp decrease in revenue. By the end of 2023, Vicem held 100% of the charter capital of Vicem Hoang Thach Cement Company Limited, Vicem Hai Phong, and Vicem Tam Diep. Vietcombank to sell 6.5% stake to Mizuho, other shareholders soon: broker By Quang Minh Mon, July 8, 2024 | 3:53 pm GMT+7 Hanoi-headquartered Vietcombank, the largest bank in Vietnam by market cap, is proceeding with a long-delayed plan to sell a 6.5% stake to strategic shareholder Mizuho Bank and other stakeholders soon. Related transactions are expected to be completed in the first quarter of 2025, according to ACB Securities (ACBS). Vietcombanks headquarters in Hanoi. Photo courtesy of Nguoi Dua Tin (News Courier) magazine. Based on a similar deal in 2019, ACBS analysts estimate that the bank will sell the stake at VND96,000-100,000 ($3.94) a share, which is 9-13.6% higher than the VND88,000 at Fridays close. At VND88,200 ($3.47) a share, Vietcombank carried a value of VND492.96 trillion ($19.4 billion) at 10:20 a.m. Monday, the biggest bluechip in Vietnams stock market. Selling the 6.5% stake will have a positive impact on Vietcombanks capital adequacy ratio (CAR) as well as its credit growth potential, ACBS analysts said. It would boost the bank's CAR of 11.4% (as of end-2023) by two percentage points, placing it well above the 8% requirement, they added. However, with a higher owners equity, Vietcombanks return on equity (ROE) is projected to decline from the current 20% to 15% in 2026, which is the industrys average, the analysts said. They noted that the bank was scheduled to hold an extraordinary shareholders meeting on August 19 to discuss the issuance and elect more members to the board of directors and supervisory board. Vietcombank had planned to issue a 6.5% stake via a private placement back in 2019.The plan was to sell 307.6 million shares: 46.1 million to Japans Mizuho Bank and another 261.4 million shares to other investors. At the banks 2024 AGM last April, board member Do Viet Hung said such a private offering would depend on market conditions. In January 2019, Vietcombank sold 94.4 million shares, or a 2.55% stake, to Singaporean sovereign fund GIC Private Limited (GIC) and another 16.6 million shares to Mizuho, earning VND6.2 trillion ($244 million at the current exchange rate). Vietcombank has charter capital of VND55.89 trillion ($2.2 billion), with the State Bank of Vietnam holding 74.8% and Mizuho 15% as of end-2023, according to the bank's consolidated 2023 financial statement. Louisiana has passed a law requiring all state-funded schools and universities to display the biblical Ten Commandments. The protests and challenges are underway, with critics contending the law is an unconstitutional government endorsement of Christianity and Judaism. The U.S. Supreme Court's standard is: As long as displays are not intended to be government sanctioning of one religion over another, they are OK. There is no outright prohibition of religious displays on government land. The Ten Commandments are the laws of life. Under whatever name, the very same tenets are part of the teachings of all great religions, including also Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism. That is why today's character education initiatives in schools are not embroiled in debate about the Commandments. They are incorporating the principles as integral to the education process and to solving societal problems. The national Character Counts Coalition has identified "Six Pillars of Character": trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring and citizenship. S.C. American Revolution 250th Anniversary Commission names Grimsley as chairman Retired Gen. William Grimsley appointed as SC250 chairman, leading efforts to commemorate SC's Revolutionary history. Statewide initiatives aim for historical rediscovery. And there are ironically 10 basic rules that can form the foundation of character development. 1. Be honest: tell the truth, be sincere; don't betray a trust, deceive, mislead, be devious or tricky, or withhold important information in relationships of trust; don't steal, cheat, or defraud. 2. Demonstrate integrity: stand up for your beliefs about right and wrong; be your best self. 3. Keep promises: keep your word and honor your commitments pay your debts, return what you borrow. 4. Be loyal: stand by, support and protect your family, friends, employers, community and country; don't talk behind people's backs, spread rumors or engage in harmful gossip. 5. Be responsible: think before you act consider the possible consequences on all people affected by your actions. 6. Pursue excellence: do your best with what you have; keep trying, don't quit or give up easily; be diligent and industrious. 7. Be kind and caring: show that you care about others through kindness, caring, generosity, sharing and compassion; live by the Golden Rule. 8. Treat all people with respect: be courteous and polite; judge all people on their merits; be tolerant, appreciative and accepting of individual differences. 9. Be fair: treat all people fairly; be open-minded; listen to others and try to understand what they are saying and feeling. 10. Be a good citizen: play by the rules, obey laws; do your share. We're less concerned about whether the Ten Commandments as posted in a courthouse, school or public building are called the Ten Commandments or by a name such as the "Laws of life." Whether they are verbatim from the Christian Bible or adaptations such as for character programs, the broader point is to see that mankind learns the rules and lives by them. (TBTCO) - Gia xang dau trong nuoc hom nay (10/10) uoc du bao co the uoc ieu chinh tang manh. Theo o, gia xang trong nuoc co the tang tu 950 - 1.250 ong/lit; gia dau diesel co kha nang tang khoang 820 - 1.050 ong/lit. Tren thi truong the gioi, gia dau giam sau khi du lieu cua Hoa Ky cho thay luong dau tho du tru tang, nhung muc giam bi han che boi rui ro gian oan nguon cung cua Iran do xung ot Trung ong va con bao Milton o Hoa Ky. Saudi Water Partnership Company (SWPC) has announced that it has issued request for proposals (RFPs) to qualified bidders of its Riyadh-Qassim Independent Water Transmission Pipeline (IWTP) project, which on completion, will boast a transmission capacity of 685,000 cu m per day. Additionally, the project includes storage tanks with total capacity of 1.6 million cu m, and 11 city gates, it stated. According to SWPC, the project is being implemented on a Build, Own, Operate, and Transfer (BOOT) model with the commercial operation date set for Q3 2029. Through this IWTP programme, the Saudi government aims to achieve its goals of ensuring sustainable development of the countrys water resources while providing affordable high-quality services, said SWPC in its statement. TradeArabia had earlier reported that a total of 20 developer/developer consortiums had been prequalified for the project. The list of the pre-qualified bidders (lead and/or technical) for the project include global players such as Spanish infrastructure major Cobra Instalaciones y Servicios; Japan's Marubeni Corporation; Italy's Sicim and Chinese groups - Gezhouba Group Overseas Investment, Harbour Engineering Company; Railway Construction Corporation in addition to regional firms - Utico and Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (both from UAE), Kuwait's Gulf Investment Corporation and Bahrain-based energy investment company Lamar Holding. SWPC said that in December last year, a total of 31 companies had expressed their interest in the Riyadh-Qassim project, of which 19 were Saudi firms. The big Saudi firms which have been prequalified are Abdul Aziz Al Ajlan Sons; Hak Pijpleidingen Saudi; Al Bawani Water & Power; Al-Fahd Trading Industries & Contracting; Alkhorayef Water & Power Technologies; Mowah; Al-Rawaf Trading & Contracting; Al Sharif Group; Mutlaq Al Ghowairi; Nesma and Vision International Invest Company. The 859-km-long pipeline will cater to the needs of Riyadh and Qassim regions and its related governorates, it stated. As per a deal inked with SWPC, the successful bidder will provide the entire transmission capacity to the Saudi utility company under a 35-year water transmission agreement.-TradeArabia News Service The 18th Light + Intelligent Building Middle East from January 14 to 16 will be the largest in the events history, with exhibitors from over 30 countries and an expanded exhibition space of 20% compared to 2024. The Middle East and Africa (MEA) LED lighting market is estimated at $3.08 billion and is expected to reach $3.95 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 4.21%, according market intelligence and advisory specialists, Mordor Intelligence. Meanwhile, the smart building sector in the region is undergoing a transformative shift driven by rapid urbanisation, economic development and an increased focus on sustainability and technological innovation and is forecasted to hit $8.9 billion by 2029 according to recent reports by 6W Research. Idea exchange This year, Light + Intelligent Building Middle East will explore the theme Building Commonality Through Community, Creativity and Culture, emphasising the significance of idea exchange, communal advantages and cultural diversity in the Middle East region. Having launched in 2006, Light + Intelligent Building has established itself as the region's most respected event of its kind. The 2025 edition will showcase over 450 exhibitors, with international attendance accounting for a vast proportion of companies featured on the show floor, said Abdul Muhsin, Show Director for Light + Intelligent Building Middle East. Light + Intelligent Building Middle East is part of the International Light + Building brand and features six show sections, including Technical Lighting, Electric Lamps and Components, Decorative Lighting, Architectural Lighting, Electrical Engineering, and Smart Home and Building Automation. The event is co-located with Intersec to form the Mena regions largest trade show for the building services sector. The THINKLIGHT Conference will again be a highlight of the exhibition, bringing together lighting professionals from around the world to meet, exchange ideas and collectively shape the future of lighting design and technology in the region. Smart technologies The third edition of the Smart Building Summit will showcase the revolutionary impact of state-of-the-art smart technologies that seamlessly integrate into our environments. With attendance from industry leaders representing top-tier technology firms to government officials, the Summit serves as a dynamic centre for pioneering advancements and transformative solutions. Following a successful 2024 edition, InSpotLight returns to unveil breakthroughs in the lighting industry. Attendees will hear the latest insights from industry thought leaders and innovators on the technologies reimagining lighting while hosting a series of workshops that provides insights into updates on specifications and standards. Showcasing outstanding lighting products and projects regionally and internationally, the Light Middle East Awards will gather the industrys most influential lighting designers, manufacturers, suppliers and technology solution providers. The Light Middle East Awards includes three main categories: Product of the Year, Project of the Year, and Partner of the Year, with nine awards being presented. Winners last year include Light Touch PLD for Atlantis The Royal. and GLARE for the Islamic Arts Biennale. Nominations are currently open for the 2025 edition of the Awards and will close on 20 August 2024. High-level endorsement Light + Intelligent Building Middle East is endorsed by several highly respected industry organisations, including KNX, the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES), the Society of Light and Lighting, the International Association of Lighting Designers (IALD) and the DALI Alliance. Muhsin concluded: These organisations are recognised for their global expertise and leadership in the fields of lighting design and intelligent building technologies, and their support further underscores the significance and quality of Light + Intelligent Building Middle East. Light + Intelligent Building Middle East will be held at Zaabeel Halls 1-3 at the Dubai World Trade Centre.--TradeArabia News Service NMDC Group, a leader in engineering, procurement, construction and marine dredging, has been awarded a AED130 million ($35.3 million) contract by Jubail Island Investment Company at its Abu Dhabi Mangrove development. The project scope includes channel widening works in Area 2 and 3 within the mangrove, said NMDC in its filing to the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX). The entire contract work is likely to be completed in 180 days, it stated. A leading provider of dredging, reclamation, and marine construction projects in the Middle East, NMDC has a strong local and regional presence with a number of upcoming projects in Southeast Asia and South Asia regions. This win comes close on the heels of NMDC's snapping of a contract from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) for the construction of Al Nouf artificial island. As per the $137-million contract, NMDC will build an artificial island at Al Nouf located west of Abu Dhabi city.-TradeArabia News Service The H Dubai said its new developments in its partnership with the Dubai Autism Center (DAC) will provide vocational training programme for students on the spectrum that is designed to equip students with essential skills and real-world experience. The hotels newest venture also aims at enhancing the students career prospects and personal development. Having previously hosted an array of events such as the celebration of Autism Awareness Month in April, craft workshops, and fundraisers, The H Dubai is the first hotel in Dubai to earn the Certified Autism Center designation. The Dubai Autism Center was established in 2001 by a decree of the Ruler of Dubai as the first Emirati non-profit organisation in the UAE that aims to provide integrated consulting, educational, and specialised therapeutic services in the field of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Through holistic education and therapeutic programmes, the centre works to ensure young people integrate into the community and live fulfilling lives. Dubai Autism Centre has become a beacon of hope for many children and their families, opening a world of new opportunities for young people on the spectrum. The H Dubai hotel, which provides an optimal environment for its newest trainees to flourish, is known for its ongoing work with Dubai Autism Center. With the help of The H Dubai team and Dubai Autism Center teachers, the training programme provides students with a level playing field to acquire key skills and experience. The programme, which ran from May 21 to July 3, was designed to ensure a comprehensive learning experience. During the initial phase (May 21 to June 17), the students received training from The H Dubai team at Dubai Autism Center under the guidance of teachers from the centre. From June 18 to July 3, the students joined the hotel for hands-on experience in a professional setting, mentored by their Dubai Autism Center teachers and behaviour specialists. This blended approach ensures that the students receive consistent support and guidance in a comfortable environment, a statement said. Aya Salem Hafid and Daniel Fahmy are the two incredibly talented students who participated in this programme. Aya, who enjoys colouring, arts and crafts, and swimming, trained in the F&B department. Her tasks will include greeting guests, table setup, making coffees, and guest farewells, said the H Dubai Hotel in a statement. Daniel, who loves conversations, playing bass, listening to classical music, and cooking, was trained in the Front Office department. Each student will be paired with a dedicated mentor from The H Dubai team who will provide ongoing guidance and support throughout the duration of their training, it added. Following the training at the centre and the hotel, under the guidance of the DAC teachers, the students will be able to independently undertake summer internships at the hotel. This phase of the initiative aims to provide the students with a practical, immersive experience that prepares them for future employment opportunities, the hotel said. TradeArabia News Service Boehringer Ingelheim has announced breakthrough results from a survodutide Phase II trial sub-analysis that demonstrate up to 64.5% of adults with fibrosis stages F2 and F3 (moderate to advanced scarring) achieved an improvement. This happened without worsening of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatohepatitis (MASH), versus 25.9% with placebo after 48 weeks of treatment [response difference: 38.6% (95% CI 18.1% - 59.1%), p=0.0005]. F2 and F3 patient populations are at increased risk of developing liver-related complications. The full data results were presented at the European Association for the Study of the Liver Congress (EASL) 2024 and published simultaneously in The New England Journal of Medicine, The secondary endpoint shows that up to 52.3% of adults treated with survodutide (BI 456906) achieved a significant improvement in liver scarring (fibrosis) stages F1, F2 and F3 (mild to moderate or advanced scarring), versus 25.8% with placebo after 48 weeks of treatment [response difference: 26.5% (95% CI 8.37% 44.66%), p<0.01]. Primary endpoint The news follows data announced earlier this year when the trial met its primary endpoint. These results demonstrated that up to 83.0% of adults achieved a statistically significant improvement of MASH versus placebo (18.2%), reinforcing the potential of survodutide as a best-in-class treatment [response difference: 64.8% (95% CI 51.1% 78.6%), p<0.0001]. Survodutide is a glucagon/GLP-1 receptor dual agonist with a novel mechanism of action, and the first to show this level of fibrosis benefit in a Phase II MASH trial after 48 weeks of treatment. The glucagon agonist component in survodutide has the potential to increase energy expenditure and has a direct impact in the liver, which could contribute to the improvement of fibrosis. The GLP-1 agonist component decreases appetite while increasing fullness and satiety. I am particularly excited about the findings of the Phase II trial in survodutide, which demonstrate the potential for glucagon agonism, in addition to GLP-1, to both improve MASH and shift the needle on fibrosis, said Dr Arun Sanyal, MD, Professor of Medicine, Physiology and Molecular Pathology at Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine, and Principal Investigator of the trial. A game-changer These data position survodutide as a leading glucagon/GLP-1 receptor dual agonist that could be a game-changer for people living with MASH and clinically significant fibrosis. An improvement was measured as a decrease of at least one stage in fibrosis after 48 weeks of treatment in this trial. Fibrosis is a measurement of the progression of MASH, a progressive disease impacting more than 115 million people worldwide. MASH is caused by inflammation of the liver that can lead to fibrosis, and severe tissue scarring (cirrhosis) can substantially increase the risk of end-stage liver disease and liver cancer. A liver transplant may be the only treatment option at this stage, which can place significant financial strain on healthcare systems. Liver fibrosis typically worsens slowly, and it is easy to go undetected if the fibrosis is not extensive. The reversal of liver fibrosis is often challenging for advanced stages of scarring and may not be possible for cirrhosis. In this Phase II trial, survodutide also demonstrated significance versus placebo for all other secondary endpoints after 48 weeks of treatment. Actual treatment results showed that up to 87.0% of adults achieved at least a 30% relative reduction in liver fat versus 19.7% with placebo, as well as a relative reduction in liver fat content of up to 64.3% versus 7.3% with placebo. The absolute change from baseline in Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease Activity Score (NAS, which is used to measure improvement in MASH) in actual treatment results was up to -3.3 with survodutide versus -0.4 with placebo. Best-in-class treatment Todays breakthrough fibrosis results further reinforce survodutides potential as a best-in-class treatment for people living with MASH. We will advance quickly into Phase III trials. said Carinne Brouillon, Head of Human Pharma, Boehringer Ingelheim. New treatments are urgently needed for MASH, a disease connected with cardiovascular, renal and metabolic conditions like obesity, and we are excited to continue these important discussions with healthcare authorities. Survodutide is licensed to Boehringer Ingelheim from Zealand Pharma, with Boehringer solely responsible for development and commercialisation globally. Zealand has a co-promotion right in the Nordic countries. In this trial, survodutide demonstrated safety data consistent with GLP-1 based molecules, with no new safety data concerns. Survodutide was granted US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Fast Track Designation in 2021, and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) granted access to the Priority Medicine (PRIME) Scheme for MASH with fibrosis in November last year. Survodutide is also being explored in five Phase III studies for people living with overweight and obesity, both of which are associated with MASH. An additional Phase III trial is evaluating if survodutide helps people living with overweight or obesity, with a confirmed or presumed diagnosis of MASH, reduce liver fat and lose weight.--TradeArabia News Service FarmERP, a global leader in cutting-edge sustainable technology solutions, has announced a strategic partnership with Seiyaj Tech, a Saudi Arabian tech company focused on localising green energy technologies. The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), signed in Riyadh, aims to expand FarmERP's influence and impact in Saudi Arabia, leveraging Seiyaj Tech's extensive business network and local expertise. Saudi Arabia's agriculture sector faces unique challenges, including extreme weather, water scarcity, and limited resources. FarmERP, with over 12+ years of experience in the Gulf region and extensive operations in Saudi Arabia, has developed tailored solutions to meet the specific needs of the regions agribusinesses. Advanced technology This partnership will allow FarmERP to collaborate with leading companies and government organisations, providing them with the advanced technology necessary to thrive in these challenging conditions. Seiyaj Tech boasts a distinguished history of partnerships with major Saudi Arabian government entities and prominent players in the private sector. Renowned for their delivery of advanced software and hardware solutions, Seiyaj Tech empowers clients to achieve scalable growth. Through collaborations with leading global technology providers, they tailor cutting-edge solutions that meet specific local market requirements. This strategic alliance with FarmERP will notably expand their influence, strengthening efforts to advance agritech in the region. This aligns closely with Saudi Arabia's ambitious objectives for sustainable development and food security, underscoring their commitment to transformative technological solutions. Impactful solutions Santosh Shinde, COO and Co-founder of FarmERP, said: "By leveraging Seiyaj Techs local expertise and extensive network, we are confident in our ability to deliver impactful solutions that enhance productivity, profitability, and sustainability. This partnership will enable us to provide the necessary tools and technology to help Saudi agribusinesses thrive and contribute to a more sustainable agricultural sector." Hussein Ali Al Khars, CEO of Seiyaj Tech, added: "Our partnership with FarmERP aligns perfectly with our commitment to bringing advanced technological solutions to Saudi Arabia. We look forward to working together to provide more robust and valuable offerings to our customers, ultimately enhancing & upgrading the agritech landscape in Saudi Arabia." FarmERP has been at the forefront of providing innovative, sustainable technology solutions to some of the largest agricultural and food supply chain companies across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Egypt, and Jordan. With a presence in over 30 countries, FarmERP serves mid to large-size farmers and agribusinesses, managing extensive agricultural operations, and overseeing the entire supply chain from farms to supermarkets. Precision farming techniques Embodying cutting-edge technology, FarmERP's platform integrates precision farming techniques and AI-powered FarmGyan advisories. These innovations are meticulously crafted to enhance resource efficiency, boost crop yields, and foster sustainable agricultural practices, especially tailored to thrive in Saudi Arabia's demanding environmental landscape. Sanjay Borkar, CEO and Co-founder of FarmERP, said: This collaboration with Seiyaj Tech marks a significant step forward in our mission to transform agriculture in the region. With over a decade of proven expertise in the Gulf, FarmERP is well-equipped to address the unique challenges faced by Saudi Arabias agribusinesses. Together, we aim to drive innovation and support Saudi Vision 2030 for a sustainable agricultural future.--TradeArabia News Service OMD, a leading media network in the region and the world, has announced the promotion of the Managing Director of its Egyptian operation, Tarek Jaffar, to Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The promotion is effective immediately. During his 13-year tenure at the group, Jaffar has risen through the ranks working steadfastly in every position at the agency. As Managing Director, he drove the agencys expansion along several axes of development. Thanks to his own and his teams focus on excellence and performance, OMD has grown its client portfolio adding, retaining or growing major accounts, including McDonalds, Savola, Madinet Nasr and Banque Misr. This has led to a 4x rise in staff numbers and the rapid diversification and further sophistication of the agencys service and product offering. Together with his carefully picked team, he delivered significant market share gains, revenue growth and multiple awards and accolades. Extensive experience As CEO, Jaffar will continue to leverage his extensive experience and strategic insights to drive innovation, further strengthen its culture of excellence, and create whats next for its clients, staff and the market as a whole. He will work closely with the board of directors and the executive team to set the strategic direction for the company and ensure it remains at the forefront of media advancements. In the past 18 months alone, OMD Egypt was awarded Agency of the Year, picked up two Effie Awards, and was recently named the number 1 agency in New Business by COMvergence. These could not have been achieved without Tareks dexterity in navigating economic pressures, his obsession with clients success and fostering the right culture with his team, commented Saleh Ghazal, CEO of OMD Mena. In a market as exciting as Egypt, weve had plenty of opportunities to innovate and go above and beyond. Whats even more thrilling is that theres plenty more we can and will do to elevate everybodys game, our teams, our clients, our business partners, added Tarek Jaffar, CEO of OMD Egypt. Be it data, tech, creativity, content and, of course, AI, we will leave no stone unturned to achieve the highest levels of performance and impact. The best part is we know we can.--TradeArabia News Service Abu Dhabi is set to host the World Food Security Summit for the first time at the Adnec Centre Abu Dhabi from November 26-27, aimed at encouraging dialogue and practical steps towards building a sustainable global food system and eradicating hunger. This summit, a part of the activities of Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Security Week (ADAFSW), summit, is being held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President of the UAE, Deputy Prime Minister, Chairman of the Presidential Court and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Abu Dhabi Agriculture and Food Safety Authority (Adafsa). Organised by Adnec Group, in strategic partnership with Adafsa, and UAE F&B Manufacturing Group (FBMG) as a knowledge partner, the summit seeks to attract a range of experts and decision-makers to discuss innovative solutions for strengthening the global food security system. This will support international efforts to eliminate hunger and enhance the UAE's position as a platform for managing dialogues, discussions, and initiatives in global food security, a statement said. The World Food Security Summit will address national, regional, and international issues, providing a platform to exchange best practices and innovations in the food security sector. Saeed Al Bahri Salem Al Ameri, Director-General of Adafsa, said: "Food security is a major global challenge requiring the combined efforts and cooperation of all stakeholders worldwide to find innovative solutions to end hunger, a key UN Sustainable Development Goal. Al Ameri said: "Our aim is to engage all stakeholders worldwide, particularly those from developing countries, as well as women and youth representatives, to share experiences, knowledge, and ideas through this summit. We will also showcase the UAE and Abu Dhabi's exceptional achievements in enhancing food security." Humaid Matar Al Dhaheri, Managing Director and Group CEO of Adnec Group, said: "Organising the summit aligns with Adnec Group's strategy to support all national endeavours aimed at advancing the current and future state of the food security sector. We aim to create a global platform that attracts experts and specialists from across the globe to contribute to transferring and localising advanced technologies within the country. This will further solidify Abu Dhabi's position as a hub for creativity and innovation in these vital sectors. "The summit's strategic importance is amplified by its timing alongside Adife and the Addpe, both of which are organised by Adnec Group. Together, they form a comprehensive system that showcases the latest innovations and technologies in the sector. They also facilitate the establishment of strategic partnerships between major global and local companies. Saleh Lootah, Chairman of FBMG, said the summit will include several themes and discussion sessions that will attract a select group of government officials, decision-makers, experts, and specialists from around the world to discuss the most prominent challenges facing this vital sector and find innovative solutions that contribute to reducing hunger. The first edition of the World Food Security Summit will be incorporated into Adafsw activities. This coincides with the third edition of Adife 2024 and the tenth edition of Addpe 2024. These events are organised by Capital Events, the event organising arm of Adnec Group. Record participation from major global companies specialising in these vital sectors is anticipated, alongside the launch of several new accompanying events. According to estimates from relevant international organisations, over 783 million people worldwide, or nearly 10% of the global population, suffer from chronic hunger. This situation is worsening due to the escalating food insecurity crisis. More than 258 million people in 58 countries face acute food shortages, and experts warn of serious risks threatening an additional 130 million people with falling into the trap of acute hunger in the near future. The Global Food Security Index (GFSI) shows that the crisis is likely to intensify, with food affordability declining by 4% between 2019 and 2022. This decline is attributed to several factors, most notably the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted supply chains and led to rising food prices. Additionally, increased production input costs, such as seeds and fertilisers, and geopolitical challenges like conflicts and wars in some regions, contribute to the problem. The World Food Security Summit in Abu Dhabi is anticipated to attract a wide range of stakeholders from across the food system. This global summit, the largest of its kind, aims to strengthen cooperation between governments, the private sector, institutions, and multilateral organisations. Ahead of the summit, Adafsa will organise a series of events and initiatives within the UAE. These initiatives aim to encourage participation from government and private sectors, civil society organisations, and various community groups, further enhancing the UAEs strong track record in food security. A prominent example of this is the National Food Security Strategy 2051. This strategy aims to make the UAE the global leader in GFSI by 2051. Similarly, the recently launched AgriFood Growth and Water Abundance (AGWA) in Abu Dhabi acts as a comprehensive economic complex. Strategic food security initiatives also include "Ne'ma", a national initiative to reduce food waste and loss is aimed at promoting responsible and sustainable consumption, reinforcing values and traditions related to social responsibility and effective management of national resources. In addition, Adafsa has developed an integrated strategy to achieve global leadership in food security, including restructuring the agricultural sector to enhance sustainability, reduce environmental impacts and pressure on natural resources, ensure fair income for farmers, enhance their competitiveness in the market. To achieve these targets, the authority has launched several supportive initiatives for both the plant and animal agricultural sectors, encouraging the use of modern agricultural technologies such as hydroponics and vertical farming to increase productivity, promoting investment in the agricultural sector. TradeArabia News Service Dubai Electricity and Water Authority's (Dewa) adoption of the Independent Power and Water Producer (IPWP) model has contributed to attracting investments worth AED 43.6 billion ($11.87 billion) over the last 10 years, reported Wam citing its top official. The IPWP model was developed by incorporating the best international experiences and practices. It has been designed to align with the requirements of Dubai and its legislative and technical environment, said its MD and CEO Saeed Mohammed Al Tayer. Dewa contributes to attracting foreign investments through its pioneering energy and water projects based on the IPWP model, which replaced the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) model. Among the Dubai utility's key IPP projects is the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park, the largest single-site solar park in the world, with a planned production capacity of over 5,000MW by 2030 and a total investment of AED50 billion. It has inaugurated 5 phases of the solar park and is currently implementing the 1,800MW 6th phase, costing around AED 5.5 billion. Its other energy projects based on the IPP model include the Hassyan Power Complex, which runs on natural gas. The 2,400MW power complex is one of the largest power stations in the region, using the latest international technologies in energy production. According to him, the independent producer projects encourage partnership between the government and private sectors. Through this model, Al Tayer said, Dewa has achieved the lowest levelised cost of energy (LCOE) in the world in solar energy projects, making Dubai a global benchmark for solar energy prices. The regulatory and legislative frameworks in Dubai, which allow the private sector to participate in energy generation projects, encourage international investors and developers to be a part of the MBR Solar Parks projects, which Dewa is implementing using the IPP model, he stated. Our IPWP projects support the Dubai Economic Agenda D33, which aims to double the size of Dubais economy over 10 years and consolidate its position among the top three global cities. They also align with the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 and the Dubai Net Zero Carbon Emissions Strategy 2050 to provide 100% of the energy production capacity from clean energy sources by 2050, he added. Financial institutions looking to navigate operational hazards effectively should focus on not just mitigating risks but strategically optimising insurance to safeguard the institution's operational integrity and financial stability. This approach fosters a culture of vigilance and preparedness, essential in an era where operational risks are increasingly complex and pervasive, according to Yolla El-Khoury, CEO of ACE Gallagher Holding WLL. Financial institutions are perpetually at risk, navigating a landscape rife with operational hazards. As these risks evolve, so must the strategies to manage them, particularly through robust insurance programmes. Spectrum of threats Operational risk within financial institutions encompasses a spectrum of threats from internal fraud to cyber breaches, each requiring nuanced understanding and strategic coverage. The goal is to mitigate risks while optimising insurance in order to secure comprehensive protection and operational resilience. A growing area of concern is the increasing risk of cyber incidents. As detailed in the Global Financial Stability Report 2024, the risk of severe loss from cyber incidents is on the rise. Such losses could hamper companies funding efforts and even put their solvency at risk. Since 2017, these losses have increased fourfold to $2.5 billion. The indirect costs, including damage to reputation and the expenses associated with security enhancements, are considerably higher. This highlights the critical need for robust cybersecurity measures and comprehensive insurance coverage that includes forensic investigation costs and crisis management. Understanding internal fraud and liability Another significant threat to financial institutions is internal fraud, which remains one of the most prevalent and damaging risks for financial institutions. These institutions often face significant losses due to dishonest employees who exploit trust and procedural lapses. For example, in one case, a bank's head teller, over 35 years of service, embezzled $10 million by manipulating cash records and leveraging his senior position to avoid scrutiny. This incident underscores the importance of rigorous internal controls and vigilant oversight. Further exacerbating the issue is the transient nature of the workforce in regions like the Middle East, where expatriates frequently fill positions, often resulting in high turnover rates. This mobility can lead to delayed detection of fraudulent activities, as seen when dishonest employees flee after committing fraud. Implementing strict verification processes and fostering a culture of accountability are critical measures to mitigate such risks. In addition to internal fraud, professional liability is another area where financial institutions must be vigilant. Errors and omissions, alleged wrongdoing, and breaches of managerial duties can expose institutions to substantial legal and financial repercussions. For instance, a bank was found liable for a $21 million loss due to an employee's misrepresentation in a commercial loan agreement. Such cases highlight the necessity for comprehensive Professional Indemnity coverage to protect against claims arising from negligent or dishonest actions by employees. Exploiting system defects and cyber vulnerabilities System defects and cyber vulnerabilities present another layer of operational risk. As financial institutions increasingly rely on digital platforms, the potential for exploitation by both internal and external actors grows. In one notable case, a customer exploited a defect in a bank's cross-currency transfer system, resulting in a $6 million loss. The bank's system failed to update exchange rates correctly, allowing the customer to transfer funds at inflated rates. Cyber criminals also pose a significant threat. In one case, a group of hackers gained access to a bank's ATM network, installing malware that bypassed withdrawal limits and allowed fraudulent transactions totaling over $500,000. This incident underscores the critical need for robust cybersecurity measures and comprehensive coverage that includes forensic investigation costs and crisis management. Aligning insurance with operational risk Optimising insurance coverage requires a strategic approach that aligns with the specific operational risks faced by financial institutions. Clarity and adequacy are two pillars of this alignment. Clarity involves understanding what is covered, what is not covered but could be, and what cannot be covered under existing policies. Financial lines programmes are complex, often involving bespoke wordings tailored to specific risks. For example, cyber risk coverage must address direct financial loss from cyber fraud, costs for forensic investigations, and liabilities arising from privacy breaches. Mapping these risks to insurance coverage ensures comprehensive protection. Adequacy requires stress-testing insurance programmes against potential exposures through scenario development and risk mapping. Benchmarking against peers and ensuring that the coverage provided by underwriters meets acceptable security ratings are essential steps. Moreover, the insurance programme should be well-understood by all stakeholders, ensuring that it can be effectively accessed and utilised in the event of a claim. A robust insurance programme should not only provide coverage but also demonstrate its effectiveness in paying claims. This involves detailed due diligence and regular reviews to adapt to evolving risks.--TradeArabia News Service Gewan Hotels & Resorts has appointed a new director of operations HE Hotel Apartments by Gewan in Dubai, who, it said, will ensure the highest standards of service and efficiency, and spearhead its rapid expansion and acquisition strategy. With over 13 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Khaled Al Kurdi brings extensive knowledge and a commitment to excellence that will enhance the guest experience at Gewan's latest luxury property. Recognised as one of Hozpitality's Best 30 Front Office Leaders in the Middle East for 2023, Al Kurdi began his career with Wyndham Hospitality in Jordan and has held significant roles in luxury hotels in Jordan and Bulgaria. He joined Kempinski Hotels in Ajman in 2017 and later became Front Office Manager at Fairmont Ajman, a position he held from December 2022. Known for his ability to build strong relationships with his team and foster a positive work environment, he has implemented comprehensive training programmes aimed at delivering exceptional customer service and creating memorable guest experiences. Ahmed Hassib, CEO & Co-Founder of Gewan Hotels & Resorts, said: "We are delighted to welcome Khaled Al Kurdi to the Gewan family. His extensive industry experience and proven leadership align perfectly with our commitment to delivering elite services and exceptional guest experiences." Al Kurdis passion for hospitality and strategic approach to operations make him a valuable asset to Gewan Hotels & Resorts, and his leadership will undoubtedly contribute to the brand's continued growth and success. TradeArabia News Service Central Hotels & Resorts, one of the fastest-growing hospitality management companies in the UAE, has launched its newly designed website, an innovative platform that enhances user experience and reflects the brand's commitment to modernity. This significant update includes not only the main website but also individual websites for each of the properties, ensuring a cohesive and engaging online presence. The inspiration behind the redesign stemmed from a desire to provide guests with a more intuitive and visually appealing digital experience, the hotel said. The new website features clean layouts, modern typography, and high-quality imagery, all of which align with the hotels updated identity. Our goal was to create a platform that is not only aesthetically pleasing but also functional and easy to navigate, said Abdulla Al Abdulla, Chief Operating Officer and Group General Manager of Central Hotels. We have prioritised mobile responsiveness to ensure that guests can seamlessly browse and book their stays across all devices, whether they are on a desktop, tablet, or smartphone. Specific mobile-friendly features have been incorporated to ensure smooth navigation and functionality across all devices. This means guests can easily access the hotel services and make reservations on the go, without any hassle. Central Hotels & Resorts said the redesign comes at a pivotal time for, coinciding with its recent renovations and rebranding efforts. Launching the new website now allows the group to present a unified and refreshed image to their guests, it said. The updated design is not just about aesthetics; its about enhancing the overall user experience. With intuitive navigation, visually appealing layouts, and new functionalities such as integrated booking systems and interactive elements, our website is designed to meet the needs of today's digital-savvy travellers, said Al Abdulla. One of the key improvements is the revamped booking and reservation process. The sites advanced booking systems enable users to easily check room availability, view options, and take advantage of promotions through a user-friendly interface. This streamlined experience simplifies the entire booking journey, making it more efficient and enjoyable for the guests. Security and privacy of user data are paramount at Central Hotels & Resorts. We have implemented robust measures to ensure the protection of our guests' information. This includes SSL encryption for secure data transmission, trusted payment gateways, clear privacy policies, secure login processes, regular security audits, and compliance with data protection regulations, said Al Abdulla. Our staff is also trained in data protection practices to maintain the highest standards of security, he explained. To keep guests informed and engaged, the team will update the website content regularly, including city guide updates, travel tips, promotional offers for rooms and restaurants, and monthly updates on hotel amenities and services. These updates aim to provide valuable and relevant information, enhancing the overall user experience and encouraging frequent visits to our site.-TradeArabia News Service Wego, a leading travel app, and a leading online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena), has partnered with the Jordan Tourism Board, to promote the diverse and captivating travel offerings of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Through this collaboration, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board are committed to showcasing the country's myriad attractions, from the ancient wonders of Petra and Jerash to the natural wonders of the Dead Sea and Wadi Rum. "Wego is excited to partner with the Jordan Tourism Board to highlight the beauty and cultural richness of Jordan to travellers worldwide," said Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Business Officer, Wego. "Jordan offers a wide range of experiences for every type of traveller, from history enthusiasts to adventure seekers. We look forward to working closely with the Jordan Tourism Board to inspire travellers to explore all that Jordan has to offer." As part of the partnership, Wego users will have access to exclusive travel deals, curated itineraries, and insider tips to help them plan their perfect trip to Jordan. Whether travellers are interested in exploring ancient ruins, embarking on a desert adventure, or simply indulging in the country's delectable cuisine, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board said they providing them with the resources they need to make their Jordanian adventure a memorable one. Through joint marketing initiatives, social media campaigns, and promotional activities, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board will work together to raise awareness about Jordan as a premier travel destination and inspire travellers to explore its hidden treasures, its rich history, stunning landscapes, and warm hospitality. TradeArabia News Service CUSTOMER-CENTRIC: Police Commissioner Erla Christopher with some of the feedback boxes following the launch on June 28 at St Joseph Police Station. Photo: TTPS 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. Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton Tulsa World Staff Writer Follow Lenzy Krehbiel-Burton 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 Court calendar: Trial dates have been set in two federal lawsuits against State Superintendent Ryan Walters in the Western District of Oklahoma. As first reported by The Oklahoman, U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot has set a trial date of April 8, 2025, in a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by former Oklahoma State Department of Education employee Janessa Bointy. Bointy accused the OSDE and Walters of firing her after speaking as a parent about mental health resources at an Edmond Public Schools Board of Education meeting. Meanwhile, U.S. District Judge Bernard Jones has set a trial date of June 10, 2025, for a defamation suit filed by former Norman teacher Summer Boismier. Boismier resigned in 2022 after placing a QR code to the Brooklyn Public Librarys Books Unbanned program in her classroom in protest of a state law. In her complaint, Boismier accuses Walters of publishing false and misleading statements on his public social media accounts, including that she was fired and distributed pornography to students. Even though she no longer lives in the state and has never faced any disciplinary action for displaying the QR code, Walters has called for her teaching certificate to be revoked, a penalty typically applied to teachers facing criminal charges. The Oklahoma State Board of Education voted on June 27 to reject a judges recommendation that her license should be left alone. Staffing move: Claremore Public Schools has named Westside Elementary School Principal Schuyler Adkins as its new executive director of fine arts. Adkins has 18 years of experience in public and higher education, including stints teaching music and theater. He is a graduate of Missouri Southern State University, Oklahoma City University and the University of Oklahoma. A new position with the district, the executive director of fine arts will be responsible for overseeing all aspects of CPS fine arts programs across all grades and sites, including managing the Robson Performing Arts Center. Senior prep session: The Osage Nation Education Department is hosting a free two-day orientation event Wednesday and Thursday for incoming Indigenous high school seniors who receive services through the tribes Johnson-OMalley Program. Participating students will receive information on college and career planning, scholarships and job readiness skills. Students may sign up by calling 918-287-5300. Advance registration is required. Independent school districts served by the Osage Nations Johnson-OMalley Program include Barnsdall, Hominy, Pawhuska, Prue, Shidler, Skiatook, Woodland and Wynona. Now hiring: Tulsa Public Schools Operations Team will host a job fair from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Wednesday at the Maintenance Facilities Building, 1555 N. 77th East Ave., for openings with the transportation, child nutrition, grounds, campus police and custodial departments. Attendees are asked to bring two professional references, a copy of their resume, and either their diploma or academic transcript. Broken Arrow Public Schools before and after care program, B&A Connections, will have an open interview event from 1-4 p.m. Wednesday at Arrow Springs Early Childhood Center, 101 W. Twin Oaks St. Enrollment help: Broken Arrow Public Schools will have enrollment assistance available from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. Wednesday at 210 N. Main St. for bilingual families whose students are new to the district. To ensure that appropriate translation services are available, families are asked to register for a 30-minute slot in advance at tinyurl.com/BAPSEnrollmentAid. School board calendar: The boards of education for Coweta, Mannford, Skiatook, Tulsa, Verdigris and Woodland are scheduled to meet Monday, as is the new Statewide Charter School Board. The Board of Directors for the Tulsa School of Arts and Sciences is scheduled to meet Tuesday. Unions Board of Education is scheduled to meet Wednesday. The boards of education for Bixby, Claremore and Pretty Water are scheduled to meet Thursday. 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 As a Tulsa County commissioner seeking to become Tulsas next mayor, Karen Keith finds herself in the middle of the upheaval over conditions at the Family Center for Juvenile Justice a facility she was instrumental in getting built. The state Office of Juvenile Affairs placed the facility on probation in May 2023 after identifying numerous areas of noncompliance, including youth being kept in their rooms/isolated, education concerns, and problems handling grievances and resolutions. OJA lifted the facilitys probation in January, but the problems havent ended there. Two former detention officers have since been arrested, including one who was charged with human trafficking after a 17-year-old resident accused him of paying her for sex. And a federal civil rights lawsuit that lists the three-member Board of County Commissioners as a defendant was recently amended to include 30 alleged victims. At a gathering of the Tulsa chapter of the Oklahoma Federation of Democratic Women last week, Keith offered some unsolicited thoughts on the situation and reminded the audience that county commissioners have no say in the operations of the facility. We have no say on who is hired, she said. And so that goes to the district judge; the district presiding judge is over that along with a state agency, which is OJA, who has oversight. So we gave him a great building, but we are all so, so concerned about what you all and I heard at the same time that you did what was happening, or alleged to have happened. Keiths response evidently didnt go over well with the other Democratic candidate for mayor in the nonpartisan race, state Rep. Monroe Nichols, who also spoke at the event. In a message posted on X, formerly Twitter, the next day, Nichols bemoaned county officials lack of accountability. Last night, I heard the longest serving county commissioner once again claim no responsibility for the treatment of the youth at the center, Nichols wrote. Its clear, adults are fighting to protect their careers, not these vulnerable kids. He wasnt done. A few hours later responding to a tweet critical of the county commissioners response to questions about conditions at the juvenile center Nichols was back on X questioning why those in the know didnt lobby the Legislature to change state law to protect the young people in the facility. Or even called a legislator, Nichols wrote. I dont recall that ever happening. Youth being abused just wasnt anything they cared about. They clearly still dont. Keith responded on Wednesday, saying Nichols had stooped to an all-time low in a desperate attempt to score cheap political points from an alleged tragedy. In seeking to blame the commissioners, Rep. Nichols has fabricated and distorted facts, Keith said. But more importantly, he has ignored the fundamental reality that the state agency charged with the responsibility of securing the safety of the justice-involved youth is answerable to the state Legislature including Rep. Nichols not the county commissioners. Keith also clarified what she meant when she told the Democratic gathering last week that I heard at the same time that you did what was happening, or alleged to have happened. Those remarks pertained to the arrests and alleged crimes of now-former juvenile center personnel, she said, not to OJAs placing the facility on probation. Commissioners were made aware of the fact that OJA had placed the operations on probation based on certain allegations. None of these allegations involved sexual or physical assaults, Keith said. At my direction, my chief deputy met with both the director of the facility and representatives of OJA to discuss the nature and extent of the allegations and what steps needed to be taken to resolve the problems. Keith said her office continued to monitor the situation and that in August OJA reported that the facility was making progress in addressing the issues that had landed it on probation. In December of 2023 the commissioners were advised that most of the issues had been resolved to the satisfaction of the OJA, and in January of 2024 the OJA terminated probation, Keith said. The commissioners and the public in general relied in good faith on the OJAs determination that all of the original probation issues had been resolved to their satisfaction. She reiterated that in Tulsa County, District Judge Kevin Gray, chief judge of the Juvenile Division, has sole authority to hire and fire and is the immediate supervisor of all employees at the Family Center for Juvenile Justice, including the director. Within the constraints of applicable state law, I and my fellow commissioners have always acted in the best interests of our youth, Keith said. On the other hand, Keith added, Nichols sat on the sidelines. During this probationary period Rep. Nichols was a no-show. Now, as a political candidate for mayor, he feigns concern and tries to play the blame game, she said. Nichols denied that his remarks had anything to do with politics. I am a dad first, he said. This is about how we treat vulnerable youth in our community, holding our elected leaders accountable for their actions or in this case inaction, and the need for swift changes to protect future children and families from being further victimized. Describing advocacy for vulnerable youth and a call for accountability as stooping to a new low clearly indicates Keiths lack of commitment to improving conditions for children housed at the juvenile center and their families, Nichols said. Soon after I learned of the issues at FCJJ in May, I reached out to the executive director of the Office of Juvenile Affairs and met with him immediately thereafter, Nichols said. In contrast, Commissioner Keith and her colleagues on the Board of County Commissioners for two years, according to the federal lawsuit, perpetuated an undue and preventable risk to juvenile detainees at the Juvenile Detention Center, for rape, sexual abuse and harassment due to their inaction. <&rule> The Tulsa World is where your story lives Steve Metzer Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer Follow Steve Metzer 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 For generations of Americans, the phrase Go West, young man! captured the idea that a place to make dreams come true could always be found in the West. These days, evidence shows that more people in Western states have concluded that it makes better sense to go to Oklahoma. According to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Oklahoma has ranked 12th among states in recent years in terms of new residents who have moved from other states. And the states domestic population gain since about 2019 has been driven almost entirely by migration from other states in the Midwest or West. Most new arrivals have come from California, but every state in the western half of the country, with the exception of Wyoming, has contributed to Oklahomas population growth, the bank reported in its latest edition of Oklahoma Economist. Randon Young favored Tulsa over other cities such as Dallas, Houston and Charlotte when he was looking to make a move from Los Angeles. The 36-year-old, who specializes in matching businesses in the tech space with talented professionals and with helping businesses innovate by using artificial intelligence, was attracted by incentives to move offered through the Tulsa Remote program, but he said there was a lot more to like about Tulsa and Oklahoma. Young said he found a great three-bedroom home within walking distance of Tulsas Gathering Place. He couldnt have afforded anything like it in Los Angeles. In LA, he said, he found himself stuck in traffic for two hours or more every day. By contrast, he described Tulsa as a 15-minute city with very affordable amenities and attractions close by. Even more important, Young, who did research for a couple of years before making his jump to Oklahoma in January 2023, discovered Tulsa to be an emerging tech hub with many talented professionals already in place or looking to move in and where many companies are looking to locate or grow in scale. You have talent migrating here, and in the head-hunting recruiting space you have to follow the talent, he said. Additionally, Young liked the ideas of getting in on the start of a boom and of empowering Black businesses to thrive as part of the legacy of Tulsas Black Wall Street. A lot of people may look at cities that have already boomed. If you have aspirations to be part of a city thats booming now, Tulsa is a good fit, he said. Tulsa Remote Managing Director Justin Harlan said other people have cited Oklahomas relatively low cost of living and an environment thats encouraging to entrepreneurs as reasons to move here. In Tulsa, he said, they can tap into resources and a strong network of support cultivated through Tulsa Remote. Notably, about three-quarters of the 5-year-old programs participants have remained in Tulsa beyond their original commitment, and many, like Young, say they have no plans to leave. According to its 2023 economic impact report, as of the end of last year 2,819 Tulsa Remote participants have collectively generated $563.6 million in direct employment income and have been responsible for the presence of an estimated 3,554 full-time equivalent jobs in Tulsa County, including 2,252 held by participants and 1,302 created or supported by their spending. It has been estimated that the program has realized a return of more than 13 times its investment in $10,000 incentive grants offered to Tulsa Remote participants. While many new Tulsans have arrived from Western states like California, the program has attracted people from at least 350 cities scattered across 45 states and eight countries. Many say the incentive caught their attention, but its really the community they find here that makes them stay, Harlan said, along with the support and resources. The Kansas City Feds report cited U.S. Census Bureau and Consumer Credit Panel data that showed Oklahoma had a net gain of residents from 29 states over the past year. Oklahoma gained the most residents, by far, from California and Texas. An estimated 3,960 more Californians and 2,600 more Texans moved to Oklahoma than moved from Oklahoma to those states. Arizona contributed the third-highest number of new Oklahomans, at 1,120. Oklahoma did lose residents to some states. In 2022 and 2023 for example, a net 440 Oklahomans left the state for Arkansas, and 320 left for South Carolina. But Oklahoma fared favorably as compared to about three-quarters of the rest of the nation. The reports authors also noted that the increase in population helped reverse an earlier troubling trend described as a brain drain of more people with college degrees leaving Oklahoma than were moving in. The state has had brain gain since the pandemic, they said, but has not yet made up for previous losses. In Tulsa, Young expressed optimism that current trends will continue. My phone rings every day from people wanting information about Tulsa, he said. I tell them its a great landing spot. <&rule> The Tulsa World is where your story lives Many Vietnamese and Chinese air carriers are racing to open and restart air routes between the two nations, goosing the tourism market up. Several Chinese airlines have also increased their flight frequency to meet the soaring travel demand during the summer travel season. Chinas low-cost carrier Spring Airlines on Friday returned to the Vietnamese market with Flight 9C7557 departing from Shanghai for Tan Son Nhat International Airport in Ho Chi Minh City. The airline operates the Shanghai-Ho Chi Minh City route with a frequency of four flights a week. As many as five airlines, including China Southern Airlines, China Eastern Airlines, Vietnam Airlines, Vietjet, and Spring Airlines, are offering regular flights connecting Shanghai with Ho Chi Minh City. A representative of Spring Airlines revealed that the airline would launch various packages and options to satisfy both solo passengers and firms. Spring Airlines is a unit of Spring Tour, a travel giant in China. The carrier owns a fleet of over 125 aircraft and operates flights to 170 domestic destinations and 40 international ones. Another Chinese airline, West Air, opened an air link between Hanoi and Chongqing in mid-May with three flights a week. Before the launch of the air route, Vietnamese tourists had to fly to Guangdong and then take a train to reach Chongqing. The direct route helps shorten travel time between the two destinations and make it convenient for Vietnamese visitors to explore the landscape of Chongqing. A plane with Vietnamese visitors on board lands at an airport in Guangzhou, China. Photo: Cong Trung / Tuoi Tre Vietnamese airlines have jumped on the bandwagon to expand their links to China. Apart from the routes to Shanghai and Chengdu, budget carrier Vietjet will officially serve passengers on the Ho Chi Minh City - Xian route from July. Meanwhile, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines is operating five routes between Vietnam and China, with a total of 33 round-trip flights per week. The airlines are offering a variety of airfare ranges for flights connecting Vietnam and China. For example, the prices of an air ticket on the Ho Chi Minh City - Guangzhou route range from VND5 million (US$195 ) to VND7 million ($273). During the peak summer travel season, tourists tend to order outbound tours to China, Thailand, Japan, and South Korea due to reasonable costs, according to many local tour operators. The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam said that 63 international airlines and four domestic carriers had restored all international air services to what they were before the COVID-19 pandemic. Many airlines are planning to open more routes connecting Vietnam with other new destinations in Central Asia, India, and Australia. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! At least 11 people are dead and 35 more are missing after heavy rains caused a landslide near an illegal gold mine on Indonesia's central island of Sulawesi, an official said Monday. Unlicensed mines are common across the mineral-rich Southeast Asian archipelago, where abandoned sites attract locals who hunt for leftover gold ore without proper safety equipment. The landslide hit a remote village in the Bone Bolango District of Gorontalo Province late Saturday after spells of torrential rain, killing at least 11 and leaving more than two dozen still unaccounted for. "Ten people died. Those who survived increased significantly from five to 20 people," said local search and rescue agency head Heriyanto, who goes by one name. He added that another person who died had yet to be evacuated from the site of the disaster -- and so was not included in the death toll -- and that 35 people were still missing. The number of missing had risen because more families had reported their relatives as unaccounted for, Heriyanto said. Some victims were miners while others were people who operated stalls near the mine. "There are also those who opened kiosks there. Not all were local residents," the rescue official said. Several bridges to the area collapsed and rescuers were having to travel to the site of the disaster by foot due to the difficult terrain, he said. At least 180 people had been deployed as part of the rescue operation, including police officers and soldiers, he added. Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season between November and April, but July is usually dry season and heavy rains are rare. In May, at least 15 people died after landslides and flooding in South Sulawesi Province swept away dozens of houses and damaged roads. A landslide in the same province the month before killed 20 people. Two 18-year-old girls hailing from Nghe An Province, north-central Vietnam have been hospitalized and quarantined following the death of their roommate who contracted diphtheria. The Center for Disease Control of Nghe An recently informed its counterpart in Bac Giang Province, northern Vietnam of the fatal case, as these two girls work at a karaoke parlor in Bac Giangs Hiep Hoa District and had close contact with the diphtheria patient. Earlier, the girls, namely M.T.B. and M.T.S., returned to their hometown in Nghe Ans Ky Son District for taking part in the national high school graduation exam from June 25 to 28 and shared a room with the patient. The girls left Ky Son for Hiep Hoa on July 1 to work at a karaoke parlor. After learning that the roommate died of diphtheria on July 5, the duo bought over-the-counter medicines to soothe their sore throat. Two days later, M.T.B. was taken to the Hanoi-based National Hospital for Tropical Diseases for medical treatment as she tested positive for diphtheria, while M.T.S. was put under quarantine. According to health authorities, diphtheria is an acute bacterial infection that affects the throat and the upper respiratory tract including the nose, nasopharynx, nasal cavity, and pharynx. This contagious disease can lead to outbreaks and can be fatal. Diphtheria patients without proper treatment can die in 6-10 days. To avoid catching diphtheria, people are advised to keep personal hygiene, wash hands regularly with soap, cover their mouth when coughing or sneezing, refrain from having contact with those with probable or confirmed diphtheria, and keep their homes and the surroundings clean and airy. People with suspected diphtheria should seek medical attention as soon as possible. Diphtheria is not only treatable but also preventable with vaccines. The national expanded program on immunization is providing free vaccination against diphtheria to children aged under one. Parents should have their kids get booster shots as the vaccine protection against the disease could wane over time. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A driver was fined VND2.5 million (US$97.5) and had his drivers license revoked for two months for backing a 45-seater sleeper bus along an overpass in Hanoi on Saturday. Traffic police in the capital city on Sunday said they had imposed the fine on L.N.K., a 44-year-old resident in Phu Tho Province, northern Vietnam, effectively for steering the vehicle on Lang Ha Overpass, from which sleeper buses are banned, in Dong Da District, Hanoi. At 9:00 pm on Saturday, he drove the vehicle to the overpass but it could not drive onto the overpass due to a height restriction barrier. As a result, K. reversed the sleeper bus. Fortunately, the bus did not collide with any vehicles. Commuters recorded and shared videos of the case to social media. Many netizens voiced their outrage over the drivers act. At the police station, K. claimed to be a new driver, so he did not know that sleeper buses are banned from Lang Ha overpass. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! Some Vietnamese experts have given voice to a revival of rivers in jeopardy in Hanoi, offering some urgent measures such as tighter control over sand exploitation, improvements of river beds and water flows, and faster wastewater treatment. According to Prof. Vu Trong Hong, expert in irrigation and former Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, many rivers are confronted by severe pollution. Excessive pollution might force rivers to flow back to its main river, Prof. Hong said, taking the case of the polluted Nhue River as an example. In late 2023, the Nhue River in northern Vietnam spilled wastewater over the Hong (Red) River. It is necessary to revive river branches and dig more canals to bring water from the main rivers to fields. In my opinion, an improvement of the Red and Da Rivers beds must be based on their flows, while local authorities should tighten control over sand mining, he said. Associate Prof. Dr. Dao Trong Tu, head of the Vietnam River Network, attributed the lower bed of the Da and Red Rivers to illegal sand exploitation, apart from several other reasons. Once main rivers face subsidence due to unlawful sand mining, water could not flow into branches, worsening pollution in these distributaries. If the treatment of wastewater in rivers is not addressed fully to smooth their flows, these rivers will find it hard to recover. He called for immediate action to ensure the security of water sources and economic growth. Economic expert Pham Chi Lan cited the World Bank as saying that if Vietnam does not take drastic action to boost wastewater treatment, the countrys gross domestic product (GDP) will dip 2.5 percent in 2035. In contrast, its GDP will grow 2.3 percent if the problem is resolved. The figures demonstrate the importance of the water resource, she said. Another economic expert, Le Dang Doanh, former head of the Central Institute for Economic Management, said that Vietnams pollution treatment remains slow. Delays in handling the headache can cause more serious impacts on the next generations. For instance, India is facing a scarcity of clean water, while numerous nations worldwide must filter seawater or recycle wastewater into tap water. In particular, Vietnams Mekong Delta region has suffered from a shortage of water for several months, leading to a wide area of dehydrated crops amid scorching weather. A representative of the Department of Irrigation under the ministry said that the prime minister had previously emphasized that the country would build two spillways in the Red River to guarantee the security of water in the Red River Delta in northern Vietnam. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! A travel company in Hue, the capital city of Thua Thien-Hue Province in central Vietnam, was found to have used an image of Chinas Forbidden City in a poster to introduce a tour to the Vietnamese city and noted it as Dai Noi Hue (Hue Imperial City). Nguyen Van Phuc, director of the Thua Thien-Hue Department of Tourism, said on Monday that the department had required its inspectors to investigate the case to prevent recurrences and an impact on Hues tourism. The poster featuring a series of famed destinations in Hue, such as Hue Imperial City, an incense-making village, Minh Mang Tomb, and Thien Mu Pagoda, has surfaced on social media in Vietnam in recent times. Reportedly, a tour guide from Hoang Thanh Travel Company, based in Hue City, designed and uploaded it to social networking sites. Netizens criticized the company for its limited knowledge of local history. A representative of Hue Monuments Conservation Center said that it already worked with Hoang Thanh Travel Company on the case. They claimed that the mistake was made solely by the tour guide, who later admitted it, removed the poster, and committed himself to being more careful in the future. Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam! The Boyfriend, Japans first same-sex romance reality series, celebrates love in all its forms. Located by the sea, the Green Room beach house sets the stage for nine men to find love. For a month, they live together and take turns working shifts at a peppermint green coffee truck, forging deep friendships and learning about themselves along the way. Hosted by an eclectic mix of personalities, including MEGUMI, Chiaki Horan, Thelma Aoyama, drag queen Durian Lollobrigida and Yoshimi Tokui, the show promises a rollercoaster of emotions. Executive producer Dai Ota, manager of live-action originals at Netflix Japan, said, We started out wanting to highlight the young mens friendships and personalities. Our focus wasnt just on romance but also on spending time together and experiencing personal growth. Kyodo Televisions Keisuke Hishida who serves as the chief producer and director, adds, I discussed with the cast how growth and valuable experiences stem from shared friendships, youth and struggles, not just romance. This led to many unexpected miracles on set. Model, DJ and YouTube vlogger Taiki takes on the roles of producer and casting director. On bringing the charismatic group together, he says, Im so happy with how this series took shape. I listened to each participant with a goal to produce a show that left everyone feeling valued and loved. A total of 10 episodes in four weekly installments begins Tuesday July 9 on Netflix. EXCLUSIVE: Crime comedy hit Deadloch, from co-creators Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan, has been renewed for a second season by Prime Video. Production on the 6-part second season will commence later this year in the Top End of Australia with Kate Box and Madeleine Sami returning as Dulcie Collins and Eddie Redcliffe, respectively. Filming will also take place at Screen Queensland Studios, Brisbane. The detective duo are in Darwin investigating the death of Eddies former policing partner, Bushy, but when the bodies of two Top End icons are discovered in a remote town, they are flung into a new sweatier, stickier investigation. Also reprising their roles are Nina Oyama as Abby Matsuda and Alicia Gardiner as Cath York, Dulcies wife. Sarah Christie, senior development executive, Amazon MGM Studios said, We are thrilled that Deadloch will be returning for a second season to give our global Prime Video customers another dose of its unique blend of Australian humour and gripping mystery, this time set against the visually stunning Northern Territory landscape. The success of the first season, which has become a critical darling and cultivated a passionate fanbase, is a testament to the brilliant creative force of Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan. Its wonderful to be continuing our collaboration with them, Guesswork Television and OK Great Productions, and to bring back our outstanding cast in Kate Box, Madeleine Sami, Nina Oyama and Alicia Gardiner. We cant wait to share more from the world of Deadloch with fans around the world. We are so excited to head to the Top End for a sticky, sweaty and filthy Season Two, said Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan, creators, writers and executive producers. Both of us are thrilled to be teaming up again with comedy angels Kate Box, Madeleine Sami, Nina Oyama and Alicia Gardiner and we cant wait to work with a new bunch of cast members and some massive f***ing crocodiles. Smart, slyly satirical and flat out funny, Season Two picks up where season one left off, said Kevin Whyte and Tanya Phegan, Executive Producers, Guesswork Television. Once again Amazon MGM Studios and Prime Video have given us the opportunity to take the Kates story to every corner of the planet and our new partners Screen Territory and Screen Queensland have enabled us to leave the puffers behind and head north for the next instalment. We cant wait to get back on location with this extraordinary team. Its fantastic that Deadlochs second season will be made at Screen Queensland Studios, Brisbane as well as utilising our local waterways, said Jacqui Feeney, CEO, Screen Queensland. Screen Queensland is passionate about supporting Australian drama production and we look forward to welcoming the creative team behind this internationally acclaimed series to Brisbane. Screen Territory is delighted to continue its production relationship with Prime Video and for the first time Guesswork Television in welcoming Deadloch Season Two to the Northern Territory. said Jennie Hughes, Director of Screen Territory. Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan are immensely talented creatives and we look forward to their unique and quirky take on the Northern Territorys Top End through the adventures of comedic detective duo Dulcie and Eddie. We are excited to support this terrific project which will deliver more opportunities for our local cast and crew and anticipate the production of a fantastic series for Deadloch fans with a unique Territorian twist. Deadloch is also nominated for Best Scripted Comedy Program in the Logie Awards with Kate Box and Madeleine Sami as Best Lead Actress in a Comedy. Deadloch Season Two is created and written by Kate McCartney and Kate McLennan who also serve as executive producers alongside Kevin Whyte and Tanya Phegan from Guesswork Television. Andy Walker is the producer and the series will be directed by Beck Cole and Gracie Otto. Deadloch Season Two is financed with the Assistance of Screen Territory and proudly supported by the Queensland Government through Screen Queenslands Production Attraction Strategy. Sen. Bernie Sanders was asked if he would replace Biden if the president withdrew from the race. Sanders believes Biden can defeat Trump but acknowledges Biden's age as a challenge. Public concern over Biden's health grew after his poor debate performance and confused interviews. Sen. Bernie Sanders sidestepped a question asking if he would replace President Joe Biden in the 2024 election if the president withdrew his candidacy. Public concern over the president's health has grown recently after his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump on June 27. An interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, during which Biden dismissed his performance as a "bad episode" and said he remained determined to stay in the race, failed to do much to quell those anxieties. On CBS News' "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" on Sunday, Robert Costa asked Sanders if he would be willing to accept the Democratic Party's nomination if Biden "ever decided to withdraw from the race." "Right now I am running for reelection to the great state of Vermont as their senator," Sanders said. "That's where my focus is right now." However, Sanders said that Biden "can clearly defeat Donald Trump, the most dangerous president in the history of this country." Biden, 81, is the oldest US President to ever hold office. Sanders, 82, acknowledged Biden's age as difficult for the president moving forward. "Biden is old. He's not as articulate as he once was," Sanders told CBS. "I wish he could jump up the steps on Air Force One. He can't." On Friday, Dem. Senator Mark Warner of Virginia reportedly organized a group of colleagues in the legislature to ask Biden to drop out of the race. The meeting is scheduled to take place on Monday. When asked if he received an invite to the discussion, Sanders indicated that he did not and had no plans to attend. Sanders also described Waner as "one of the more conservative members" of the Democratic caucus. "Look, I understand. Biden had a terrible debate performance. I think he's done better since, he's got to do better again." Despite Sanders' one-year age gap over Biden, questions about a potential candidacy for the Vermont senator are not completely out of left field. Sanders, a Democratic socialist, ran an unsuccessful presidential campaign in 2016 and 2020. In 2022, the senator's 2020 campaign manager wrote in a memo that Sanders would consider another run if Biden did not seek reelection. Read the original article on Business Insider People work to put out fires after Hezbollah launched projectiles at Israel, amid hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in the Galilee People work to put out fires after Hezbollah launched projectiles at Israel, amid hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in the Galilee AMMAN (Reuters) - The Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group said on Sunday it launched a drone attack on Mount Hermon in the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights where Israel has a key surveillance centre. It said this was its first such bombing since it began trading fire with Israel on Oct. 8, a day after its Palestinian ally Hamas attacked southern Israel, sparking the Gaza war. Hezbollah says it would halt operations only when the war ends. . Although it had hit other areas in the occupied Syrian Golan Heights repeatedly, Lebanon's Hezbollah said it was the first time to hit the military target that is at the highest elevation in the Israeli-controlled territory. Israel has key surveillance, espionage and air defence installations on Mount Hermon where it overlooks the Syrian capital and serves to monitor Syria, Iraq, Jordan and parts of Saudi Arabia since the 1973 Oct. Arab-Israeli war. The conflict between the Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel has been gradually intensifying for months, raising fears of a full-scale war, which both sides say they wish to avoid and diplomats are working to prevent it. Hezbollah has ratcheted up its attacks, sending larger numbers of explosive drones, using a new type of rocket, and declaring that it has targeted Israeli warplanes for the first time, according to sources familiar with Hezbollah's arsenal. The escalation has tested unwritten rules that have largely confined the conflict to areas at the border or near it since October, keeping Lebanese and Israeli cities out of the firing line. Israel blames Iranian-backed Hezbollah for the increase in violence and has repeated its vows to restore security to the border. The Israel Defence Forces did not immediately reply to a request for comment on the latest Hezbollah strike. (Reporting by Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Laila Basssam; editing by Diane Craft) Israeli soldiers salute on a military vehicle as they manoeuvre, near the Israel-Gaza border Israeli soldiers salute on a military vehicle as they manoeuvre, near the Israel-Gaza border By Nidal al-Mughrabi CAIRO (Reuters) -A new Israeli assault on Gaza on Monday threatened ceasefire talks at a crucial moment, the head of Hamas said, as Israeli tanks pressed into the heart of Gaza City and ordered residents out after a night of massive bombardment. Residents said the airstrikes and artillery barrages were among the heaviest in nine months of conflict between Israeli forces and Hamas militants in the enclave. Thousands fled. The assault unfolded as senior U.S. officials were in the region pushing for a ceasefire after Hamas made major concessions last week. The militant group said the new offensive appeared intended to derail the talks and called for mediators to rein in Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The assault "could bring the negotiation process back to square one. Netanyahu and his army will bear full responsibility for the collapse of this path," Hamas quoted leader Ismail Haniyeh as saying. Gaza City, in the north of the Palestinian enclave, was one of Israel's first targets at the start of the war in October. But clashes with militants there have persisted and civilians have sought shelter elsewhere, adding to waves of displacement. Much of the city lies in ruins. Residents said Gaza City neighbourhoods were bombed through the night into the early morning hours of Monday. Several multi-storey buildings were destroyed, they said. The Gaza Civil Emergency Service said it believed dozens of people were killed but emergency teams were unable to reach them because of ongoing offensives. Gaza residents said tanks advanced from at least three directions on Monday and reached the heart of Gaza City, backed by heavy Israeli fire from the air and ground. That forced thousands of people out of their homes to look for safer shelter, which for many was impossible to find, and some slept on the roadside. One tank thrust pushed people towards the western road near the Mediterranean, residents said. "The enemy is behind us and the sea is in front of us, where we will we go?" said Abdel-Ghani, a Gaza City resident who did not give his full name. "Tank shells and missiles from the planes are falling on the roads and houses like hell from a volcano. People are running in all directions, and no one knows where to go," Abdel-Ghani told Reuters via a chat app. The Israeli military said fighters with Hamas and allied group Islamic Jihad were hiding behind civilian infrastructure to attack Israeli forces. Israel said it had taken more than 30 fighters out of action. Later on Monday, it issued new evacuation orders for the Gaza City areas of Sabra, Rimal, Tel Al-Hawa and Daraj, telling people to head to Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. The Israeli military said a route would be opened for civilians to evacuate. The Palestinian Fatah Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades said they fired mortar bombs against Israeli forces during the raid in southwest Gaza City. The war was triggered on Oct. 7 when fighters led by Hamas, which controlled Gaza, attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Since then at least 38,193 Palestinians have been killed in the military offensive and 87,903 have been wounded, Gaza's health ministry said in an update on Monday. A total of 40 Palestinians were killed in the past 24 hours, the ministry said in a statement. HOPES FOR A PAUSE The new Israeli offensive comes as Egypt, Qatar and the United States stepped up efforts to mediate a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Hopes among Gaza residents of a pause in the fighting had revived after Hamas last week accepted a key part of a U.S. ceasefire proposal, prompting an official on the Israeli negotiating team to say there was a real chance of a deal. Hamas has dropped a demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before the Palestinian movement would sign an agreement. Instead, the militant group said it would allow negotiations to achieve that throughout the six-week first phase, a Hamas source told Reuters on Saturday. Netanyahu insists the deal must not prevent Israel from resuming fighting until its war objectives are met. At the outset of the war, he pledged to annihilate Hamas. Reaching a deal would jeopardise the coalition keeping Netanyahu in power, which includes far-right parties that have repeatedly vowed to quit if he ends the war too soon. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, from a party representing Israelis who settle on occupied Palestinian land, denounced the potential deal as "a defeat and humiliation of Israel". "Mr. Prime Minister, this is not an absolute victory. This is total failure. We will not be part of a deal of surrender to Hamas," Smotrich told a meeting of his party on Monday. Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said he would back Netanyahu to stay in office if the prime minister faced losing power over committing to a deal. "I promised him a safety net and I will keep that promise," Lapid said. (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi and Christian LoweEditing by Peter Graff, Angus MacSwan, Ros Russell, Philippa Fletcher and Cynthia Osterman) MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin said on Monday it saw no strong political will in France aimed at restoring Moscow's relations with Paris but would follow the formation of France's new government with interest after elections there. Marine Le Pen's nationalist, eurosceptic National Rally (RN), which opponents have accused of being too soft on Russia, failed to win a snap election on Sunday as the polls had predicted, with a leftist alliance unexpectedly taking the top spot in a hung parliament. "The victory of political forces that would be supporters of efforts to restore our bilateral relations is definitely better for Russia, but so far we do not see such bright political will in anyone, so we do not harbour any special hopes or illusions in this regard," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters. "Secondly, it is obvious that a drift is taking place in the moods of French voters, a drift that is really unpredictable. But we will watch the formation of government, the formation of blocs...with great interest. "France is a very important country on the European continent, so of course, everything that happens there is interesting for us." Moscow has long courted leaders on Europe's political far right and is keen to exploit any signs of division in Europe that could weaken support for Ukraine. Le Pen has in the past expressed her admiration of President Vladimir Putin. (Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Writing by Alexander Marrow; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Keith Weir) (Reuters) - Leaders of NATO's 32 member countries meet this week in Washington for a summit of the transatlantic security alliance, with further military and financial support for Ukraine high on the agenda. But much of the focus will be on U.S. President Joe Biden as some in his own Democratic Party call for him to drop his run for a second term. The clamor follows Biden's weak performance in a debate last month against his rival in the Nov. 5 presidential election, former Republican President Donald Trump. The outcome of the election could change the course of Washington's foreign policy. Here are some of the leaders to watch this week at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's meeting: * Joe Biden - The U.S. president faces a critical week as he tries to shore up an election campaign that has been on defense since a shaky June 27 debate against Trump that raised questions about Biden's ability to govern for another 4-1/2 years. Biden, 81, will hold talks with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, among others, amid rising pressure from U.S. congressional Democrats calling on him to end his re-election bid. * Volodymyr Zelenskiy - In addition to drumming up more support to help repel Russia's invasion, the Ukrainian president is expected to push for a quicker path to entering NATO than the alliance has so far been willing to offer. * Keir Starmer - The new British prime minister will make his first international trip after leading the Labour Party to a landslide victory in Britain's parliamentary election last week. Starmer has pledged to maintain the previous Conservative government's approach towards Ukraine by continuing to support Kyiv in its war against Russia's invasion. * Emmanuel Macron - The French president will be in Washington days after losing much of his political power in a snap election. The decision to call the election stunned Macron's close allies and opponents alike, and some in his own camp denounced the move as reckless. After its second round of voting on Sunday, France faces a chaotic hung parliament. * Viktor Orban - The Hungarian prime minister, a critic of Western military aid to Ukraine and the EU leader with the warmest relations with Russia and China, will be in Washington after a surprise visit to Beijing on Monday to discuss a potential Ukraine peace deal. Hungary assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the European Union last week, and Orban has since visited Zelenskiy and Russian President Vladimir Putin. His Russia trip angered other European leaders, who said he had no EU mandate to push for a ceasefire in Ukraine. * Ulf Kristersson - The Swedish prime minister will represent his country at its first NATO summit since joining the alliance in March. Ahead of his trip, Kristersson said Sweden fully supports the idea that Ukraine's future lies in NATO. * Yoon Suk Yeol - The South Korean president, who has pushed for greater security ties with Europe and other U.S. allies to deter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats, plans to discuss the threat Pyongyang poses to Europe by deepening military ties with Russia. * Justin Trudeau - The Canadian prime minister, under pressure as his Liberal government trails the main opposition party in polls, could face renewed questions about Ottawa's defense spending lagging the 2% of gross domestic product agreed by NATO allies. In a policy update this year, the Trudeau government pledged billions more for the armed forces to increase military spending from 1.4% of GDP to 1.76% by 2030. (Reporting by Ismail Shakil in Ottawa; Editing by Don Durfee and Cynthia Osterman) By Patricia Zengerle WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson combined praise for NATO with a call for members to meet their targeted annual spending of at least 2% of GDP on defense in his first major foreign policy speech as the chamber's Republican leader. "I just want to say this, and I'll deliver the message to them emphatically: Republicans, of course, celebrate the peace and prosperity that NATO has secured and will continue to stand by our partners as we prevent needless wars," the Republican House leader said at the Hudson Institute think tank. "But we also believe that NATO needs to be doing more," he said, as members of the military alliance gathered for this week's summit in Washington, which will include meetings with members of the U.S. Congress. Johnson also took a hard line on China, calling it "our single greatest threat... engaging in malign influence operations around the world." He said the House will vote on a series of bills to counter China this year, including beefed up sanctions and efforts to clamp down on trade policies seen as harmful to U.S. interests. Defense spending by NATO members has become a highly contentious issue in recent times as former President Donald Trump accuses Europeans of spending too little on their own security and relying on Washington for protection. Earlier this year, Trump - the Republican candidate in the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election - sparked outrage by suggesting he would not protect NATO members that failed to spend enough on defense and would even encourage Russia to attack them. Johnson is a close ally of Trump and, as speaker, sets the legislative agenda for the House. Months after Democratic President Joe Biden asked the House to approve funding for Ukraine, Johnson changed course this year to allow the House to vote on - and pass - billions of dollars in additional aid to the country. Johnson said people have come up to him at events all over the country and thanked him for passing the funding. "People understand that (Russian President Vladimir Putin) would not stop if he took Kyiv. He's a ruthless dictator in my view," Johnson said. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said last month that more than 20 NATO members will meet the alliance's target of allocating at least 2% of GDP to defense this year, compared with fewer than 10 members five years ago. (Reporting by Patricia Zengerle, editing by Deepa Babington) Chinese premier congratulates new British PM Xinhua) 09:10, July 08, 2024 BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Sunday sent a congratulatory message to Keir Starmer on assuming the position of Britain's Prime Minister. Li said in the message that China and Britain are both permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and the world's major economies, adding that strengthening coordination and cooperation between the two nations not only serves the interests of the two countries, but also is conducive to the unity of the international community in addressing global challenges. The Chinese government attaches great importance to its relationship with Britain, and stands ready to work with the new British government to consolidate mutual political trust, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, enhance people-to-people and cultural exchanges, support the economic and social development of both countries, and jointly promote world peace, stability, and prosperity, said Li. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The revolution sacked King and Parliament, but Washington is more absolute than ever By J.K. Baltzersen web posted July 8, 2024 Was the Revolution worth it? In American discourse, the word king often takes on the meaning of a ruler who has absolutely no checks on his power or all but. This is perhaps not so strange, as America was born out of revolt against the British Crown. But the system the American revolutionaries revolted against, although not a monarchy as emasculated as the monarchy of Elizabeth II and Charles III, was a King-in-Parliament system, where the monarch was bound by limits, notably those put in place in the aftermath of the English Civil War and the restoration of the monarchy after the rule of Oliver Cromwell, particularly the English Bill of Rights of 1689. As American historian and Harvard professor Eric Nelson tells us in his book The Royalist Revolution: Monarchy and the American Founding, the American colonies were founded by royal charter without involvement from Parliament in Westminster. In his classic work Democracy and Liberty of 1896, a work controversial even at that time, in stating a less than friendly relationship between democracy and liberty, W.E.H. Lecky argues the American Revolution was caused by the King having too little power, not too much. Present day historian Eric Nelson concurs. In the Declaration of Independence Parliament in London is mentioned, but the charges are against the King. The colonists had their own institutions. They had no interest in being ruled by a parliament in which they had no constituency. The King, however, was theirs too. The reason the British Parliament was not directly charged in the declaration might very well have been that the colonists did not recognize that assembly's authority over them. They did petition the King with their grievances, but the response of King George III was insufficient in their judgement. In the wording of the declaration, he was deemed unfit to be the ruler of a free people. The declaration was thus a revolt against a particular prince for his failure to protect his people in the colonies against usurpations of the Westminster Parliament, not against the principle of monarchy. Nor could it have been, were the revolution to have any chance of success, given that the support of the French monarchy was essential for victory for the revolutionaries. In hindsight, it was a mistake for the French monarchy to support American independence through war, as its involvement, with the following brink of bankruptcy for the French state, was a major contribution to its own downfall. However, in the heat of the action, it wanted to contribute to the weakening of a rival empire. It would likely not have fought a war against the principle of monarchy. The author of the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson, even had a portrait at his Monticello of French King Louis XVI, ally of the American revolutionaries. That is not to say that there were no anti-monarchists amongst the revolutionaries. The spread and popularity of Thomas Paine's Common Sense likely sealed the fate of hereditary monarchy as a concept for the new American nation. But the American presidency certainly looks a lot like an elective monarchy. Eric Nelson argues the extensive powers of the President are a result of constitutional intent. This may be so, but arguably also mixed in with usurpations of presidents over time and Congress to some extent abdicating its role. Coronations and royal funerals in London certainly are a lot of pomp and circumstance, but so are American presidential inaugurations and funerals. The American Revolution was not about establishing representative government in America. The American tradition of such government goes back to Jamestown, Virginia in 1619, with the establishment of the House of Burgesses. But American government certainly has grown into a behemoth, headed by a presidency, with reference to a mandate of the people, having more power than most monarchs of old could ever dream of. The fears of Alexis de Tocqueville expressed in his classic Democracy in America, that government based on popular sovereignty would become tyrannical, have sadly come true. Gary North, a prolific American writer on economics and history, in an essay, Tricked on the Fourth of July, explained that the American colonies before the revolution were the freest part of the British empire, and likely the freest part of the world, with the possible exception of Switzerland. American revolt created British tyranny in America, said North, and taxes started rising pretty soon after the revolution. Indeed, many of the major infringements on American liberty came much later, but the beginning was not an era of angel government either. It is appropriate to ask what good came out of it, in particular in the long run, with American government on all levels routinely infringing upon rights, mass surveillance, running a global money-created-out-of-thin-air empire, persecuting whistleblowers and their facilitators, as Edward Snowden and Julian Assange, the IRS persecuting American citizens across the globe, whose only way out is to renounce their citizenship of the "freest country in the world." The society that once revolted against tax and competed with Switzerland in being the freest place on Earth now, most unfortunately, has a chief executive who recently quite successfully campaigned around the globe for a worldwide minimum tax. Even the Swiss people has sadly given in to President Biden's assault on international tax competition. America has gone from revolting against taxes to ensuring there is nowhere to hide from taxes, while paying lip service to opposition to absolute power. On the occasion of this past May, when it was 240 years since the Treaty of Paris of 1783 came into effect, formally concluding the American War for Independence, and this recent Independence Day, the state of the American Republic is a sad state. Things certainly have changed, not all for the better. Was it really worth it? J.K. Baltzersen is a Norwegian political commentator and writer. His work has appeared, among other places, in The Washington Times, FEE.org, and Enter Stage Right. Home KYIV (Reuters) - President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban could not mediate between Russia and Ukraine to end the 28-month war, a task he said could only be undertaken by world powers such as China, the U.S. or EU. Orban visited Kyiv and Moscow for talks last week and met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, describing his unexpected trip to Beijing as the third-leg of a "peace mission". As world leaders prepare to head to a NATO summit which starts on Tuesday in Washington, Ukraine's Zelenskiy said only powerful economies or countries with armed forces much stronger than Russia's could manage the task of mediation. "Are there many such countries around the world? Not many. I believe the U.S., and China are such countries. And the EU, not one country, but the whole EU. This could really be an intermediary mission," Zelenskiy told a news conference during a visit to neighbouring Poland. Zelenskiy said Orban's negotiations with Putin, which provoked a rebuke within the European Union, had not been coordinated with Kyiv. "Even if (Putin) meets with a particular state, this does not mean he wants to end the war," he said. Kyiv remains open to proposals from other countries on how to shape the path to peace, but they should align with the Ukrainian vision, in particular a 10-point peace plan, Zelenskiy added. Ukraine hopes to hold a second international summit to consider its proposals for peace later this year. China, which has close ties to Moscow, did not attend the first meeting in June. It has been promoting a six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil in May, proposing an international peace conference "at a proper time" and calling for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia. (Reporting by Olena Harmash and Yuliia Dysa; Editing by Hugh Lawson and Helen Popper) Welcome Guest! You are here: Home France Election Results 2024: No clear winner, Macron asks PM to stay French President Emmanuel Macron Monday asked incumbent Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to stay in office after the 2024 legislative elections in France ended without a clear winner Tuesday July 9, 2024 1:21 AM , ummid.com News Network [New Popular Front leader, Jean-Luc Melenchon, addressing an election rally. In the background is the Palestinian National Flag.] Paris: French President Emmanuel Macron Monday asked incumbent Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to stay in office after the 2024 legislative elections in France ended without a clear winner. The French Parliament has a total of 577 seats, and to win the election the minimum number of seats required is 289. However, the results of the 2024 Parliamentary elections announced on Monday July 08, 2024 saw none of the three alliances even reaching close to the half way mark. The Three alliances that emerged on top after the vote count are: New Popular Front (NFP): NFP is a broad alliance of leftist and environmental parties led by Jean-Luc Melenchon, won the largest number of seats - 188. NFP is a broad alliance of leftist and environmental parties led by Jean-Luc Melenchon, won the largest number of seats - 188. Ensemble: Ensemble is a coalition of centrist parties led by French President Emmanuel Macron. It came second with 161 seats. Ensemble is a coalition of centrist parties led by French President Emmanuel Macron. It came second with 161 seats. National Rally (RN) and its allies: The alliance led by far-right leader Marine Le Pen, won 142 seats. The remaining 86 seats, have been won by Independents and other smaller parties. Like UK general elections , Palestinian issue and the Israeli war crimes in Gaza too were among the key issues in the French elections. Following the hung assembly and split verdict, Gabriel Attal resigned as Prime Minister. But, Macron rejected his resignation. Government Formation Meanwhile, newly elected and returning lawmakers on Monday gathered at the National Assembly to begin negotiations over a new government, a coalition, in earnest. Talks over who should form a new government and who should lead the foreign, interior and finance ministries among others, are expected to be extremely difficult and lengthy. This is so because the political parties negotiating a deal have diametrically opposing policies and contempt for one another, according to Associated Press. We are in a situation that is totally unprecedented, said Jean-Didier Berger, a newly elected lawmaker from the conservative Republicans party. Aurelien Rousseau, a newly elected lawmaker from the New Popular Front and former minister in Macrons government acknowledged disagreements within the leftist alliance over the government formation, but said the alliance could eventually reach an agreement. We need to build compromises, but we need to take time to discuss, to know what we agree on or disagree within the left, Rousseau said. Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. Israel going through most difficult period since its creation in 1948 Worldwide television footages of Israels barbarity on Palestinians who were deprived of water, food, medicine and electricity and destruction unleashed exposed its savage nature Monday July 8, 2024 5:05 PM , Latheef Farook The day after Palestinian freedom fighters, Hamas, attacked occupied Southern Israel on 7 October 2023, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared war on Gaza vowing to wipeout Hamas without a trace saying No talks with Hamas. However from the very beginning many fair minded Jews, including journalist Gideon Levy and Ilan Pappe, Professor of History at the University of Exeter, Israeli historian and political scientist, warned that Hamas cannot be defeated. However wisdom dawned on Netanyahu, ten months later today, when he agreed to negotiate with Hamas after killing around 40,000 Palestinian civilians -more than half of them children- injuring around 90,000 while 10,000 missing. Those who were buried alive in the rubble of destroyed buildings are yet to be known. At least 370,000 housing units in Gaza have been damaged, including 79,000 destroyed completely. Exodus from Israel Netanyahu agreed to talks with Hamas because Israel is collapsing. According to Times of Israel already more than half a million Israelis left occupied Palestine since October 7. Highlighting the seriousness of the situation, former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett urged Israeli citizens not to leave the country as Israel is going through the most difficult period since its creation in 1948. The head of the Israel Occupation Forces said the army is facing troop shortages amid rising casualties in the war against Hamas in Gaza. Yet enlisting more troops is difficult due to rising public opposition to the war and an open conflict between Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and his defence minister. In a related development, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported that dozens of reserve soldiers announced that they would not return to military service in Gaza, even if they were to be punished. Hundreds of reserve soldiers in the Israeli army have travelled abroad without informing their commanders due to the ongoing war on Gaza, where the occupation forces have suffered heavy losses over the past months. One columnist pointed out that with the military significantly weakened , Israel is struggling to survive. Oppressive Arab dictators who handed over the task of keeping the region stable under Israels effective control, feel threatened. Economic Toll of Gaza War In the economic front predictions are that Israel may never recover from its post-October 7 economic collapse. The Palestinian resistance managed not only to destroy Israels internal security perception, but also to erect significant risk barriers for foreign investors. The economic toll of the war may cost Israel an estimated $400 billion in lost economic activity over the next decade threatens Israels economic future. For Israel, 90% of the economic shock will come from indirect effects: reduced investment, slowing productivity growth and labor market disruption. Since October, Israels government has subsidised the salaries of reportedly 360,000 mobilised reservists deployed to Gaza many of whom are high-tech industry workers in finance, artificial intelligence, pharmaceuticals and agriculture. Israeli officials face the challenge of needing to restore confidence and a sense of security which will not prove easy to boost investments. Beyond a clear military and political outcome - both in the Gaza Strip and along the Lebanese border, and a repatriation of the hostages, this requires a clear and goal-oriented economic policy. It is not yet clear how this will eventually be addressed. Tourism suffered the most Across Israel, restaurants and stores remain empty. A long list of airlines cancelled or suspended the majority of their flights to Tel Aviv, and many tourists cancelled their plans to visit Israel. Prior to October 7 visitors to Israel numbered above 300,000 each month. In November, that figure reportedly sank to 39,000. And now it may be almost nil. Construction, accounting for 14 percent of Israels GDP, has taken a huge hit. The Israel Builders Association said that Israels construction industry was operating at roughly 15 percent of its pre-October 7 capacity. The Gaza wars ripple effects throughout the greater Middle East are also negatively impacting Israels economy. Israel imports diamonds, cars, petroleum, and broadcasting equipment, among other things, goods that come via the Red Sea. The recent Houthi missile and drone attacks in this body of water in retaliation for Israels attack on Gaza have not only disrupted global trade but also impacted Israels imports. Many of Israels imports from Asia are now being rerouted around Africa, bumping up costs. In a recent survey, aid organisation Latet found that more than 45 percent of the public fear that economic hardship awaits them either later on in this war or after the war finishes. What is clear is that those Israeli families, who were already living in poverty or who qualified as food insecure prior to October 7, will suffer the most from the economic problems stemming from this war. Worldwide television footages of Israels barbarity on Palestinians who were deprived of water, food, medicine and electricity and destruction unleashed exposed its savage nature. Today, Israel, and its blind supporter US, remain the two most hated countries in the world. It was this situation which, perhaps, forced Netanyahu to agree to peace talks. The so called peace talks are unlikely to succeed as US and Israel together with their Arab stooges wanted a corrupt and sellout Palestine Authority type authority to manage Gaza while Hamas, learnt from past experience, wants nothing but a self government run by Palestinians in Gaza. The ultimate target of US-Europe and Israel is to create Greater Israel which include Gaza, West Bank, part of Egypt, Syria and Saudi Arabia. In fact, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, who is more a messenger boy of Israel than a secretary of state of the most powerful country in the world, are unlikely to agree to a Palestinian rule in Gaza . As pointed by columnist As`ad AbuKhalil , Israels military performance has not been impressive at all. Its forces have committed massacres and crimes of genocide but there are no military victories to speak of and no dismantling of Hamas structure. According to Israeli journalist and author Gideon Levy, Israel would be delighted to cleanse Gaza of the Palestinian people. The problem is that it is not ethical, not legal, and not practical at the same time. [The writer, Latheef Farook, is a senior journalist based in Colombo, Sri Lanka.] Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. India-Iran Ties Under President Masoud Pezeshkian With a new President, Masoud Pezeshkian, in office in Iran, questions are being asked about the future course of Indo-Iran bilateral ties. However, no reset should be expected as both countries understand the need to stand together as bilateral relation have indeed consolidated during the recent past, under Modi 3.0 Monday July 8, 2024 5:28 PM , Asad Mirza [PM Modi and Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a file photo.] With a new President, Masoud Pezeshkian, in office in Iran, questions are being asked about the future course of Indo-Iran bilateral ties. However, no reset should be expected as both countries understand the need to stand together as bilateral biltaeral have indeed consolidated during the recent past, under Modi 3.0. Reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian has won Irans runoff presidential election, beating hardliner Saeed Jalili by promising to reach out to the West and ease enforcement on the countrys mandatory headscarf law after years of sanctions and protests squeezing the Islamic Republic. Pezeshkian promised no radical changes to Irans Shia theocracy in his campaign and long has held the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as the final arbiter of all matters of state. But an Iranian government still largely held by hardliners will challenge even Pezeshkians modest aims. The late president, Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May 2024, was seen as a protege of Khamenei and a potential successor as supreme leader. While Khamenei remains the final decision-maker on matters of state, whichever man ends up winning the presidency could bend the countrys foreign policy towards either confrontation or collaboration with the West, on which the whole edifice of Iranian diplomacy rests. Though, in most countries presidents are usually the final authority in their capacity as heads of state or government - or both - thats not the case in Iran. It is the Supreme Leader, who is the final authority in Iran and sets the domestic and foreign policies of the country and makes all key decisions. Thus, one may wonder if the presidential elections are a mere ruse and the presidents office a mere token. However, the reality is quite complicated. In reality, the president is not a mere decorated mechanical bureaucrat. A president and his ministers still have the crucial executive role and the manner in which they implement the policies and enforce the decisions plays a major role in the outcomes these policies and decisions produce. As a result, while rules like the mandatory wearing of hijab for females in public will not be revoked, the implementation under Pezeshkian is expected to be much more humane and incidents like the custodial killing of Mahsa Amini , which triggered months long protests across Iran, are expected to be checked. And it is this background that well have to see future of the Indo-Iran ties under President Pezeshkian. Quite interestingly, Four polling stations were set up in India Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad to facilitate the over 3000 Iranian population to come out and vote in the elections. At a practical level bilateral ties between the two countries have remained cordial and even trade has seen an upswing. India-Iran bilateral trade during the FY 2022-23 was $2.33 billion, registering a growth of 21.76% YOY. During the period, Indias export to Iran was $1.66 billion (a growth of 14.34%) and Indias import from Iran was $ 672.12 million (a growth of 45.05%). Indian Support to Iran The strong ties are further demonstrated by the manner in which the Indian government used its good offices recently to get Iran a membership berth at BRICS and the manner in which it is going full steam ahead with developing the Chabahar Port in Iran. There is enormous appreciation among Iranian intellectuals, diplomats and politicians regarding PM Modis stellar support for their countrys membership of the BRICS grouping. Modi played a key role to navigate Irans membership purposively at the BRICS Summit in Johannesburg last August. Allegedly, the defining moment was a phone call from the Iranian President late Ibrahim Raisi to Modi in the week before the summit meeting. However, the ground for the last-minute flurry of diplomatic activity was prepared in the preceding weeks by the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval when he attended the meeting of BRICS national security advisors in Johannesburg in late July 2023, just weeks prior to the summit to review security and economic cooperation. Further, Tehran visualises that in the downstream of Chabahar Port, Indian trade and industry can and should enter the hinterland in a big way via trade, investments and project exports. The Iranian side feels that Chabahar has the potential to elevate Indias partnership with Iran to an altogether higher strategic level. Chabahar Project On May 13, 2024, India signed a 10-year agreement with Iran to develop and operate the Shahid Beheshti terminal of Irans strategic Chabahar port. The new agreement follows a previously promised Indian investment in 2016 of a potential $500 million. It comes after multiple failures to fully implement a previous deal concluded in May 2016 to develop two terminals and five berths at Chabahar port to transport goods and gas from Central Asia to India and handle other international cargo. PM Modi travelled to Iran in 2016 to conclude the original Chabahar Agreement , also signing an international transport and transit corridor deal Tehran drafted to expand port infrastructure. But US-led sanctions on Tehran forced New Delhi to call for a temporary halt. India eventually managed to negotiate an agreement with the United States to allow Indian investments in the port. In 2018, Washington agreed to issue sanctions exemptions to enable India to use Chabahar to trade with land-locked Afghanistan for humanitarian purposes. But progress in developing Chabahar continued to be delayed by sanctions. By March 2023, Tehran called on India to use Chabahar port for mutually beneficial trade, including Indian imports of Iranian oil, which New Delhi suspended after the United States declined to extend sanctions waivers. The latest agreement in May, signed by Indian Ports Global Ltd. and Irans Port and Maritime Organisation, is narrowly focused on expanding the Shahid Beheshti terminal, with a $120 million investment from Indian Ports Global and a credit window of $250 million, thereby enabling New Delhi to avoid financially overcommitting to the project. Though, following the signing of the agreement, the United States suggested India could face sanctions for business deals with Iran and India has not yet responded to these threats. As far as the future of Indo-Iran ties is expected, a positive indication of that was recently given by the Iranian Ambassador to India, Iraj Elahi, in a newspaper interview, said that, there would be no change in the foreign policy between Iran and India, irrespective of who comes to power. There is unlikely to be any change in the foreign policy, which is led by the Supreme Leader and different bodies of high-ranking politicians, adding that a large segment of Iranians feel that even if they were to reconnect with the West, sanctions would be imposed again on some pretext or the other. (The writer, Asad Mirza, is a Delhi-based senior political and international affairs commentator.) Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. Welcome Guest! You are here: Home Nothing against Hindus in Rahul Gandhis LS speech: Shankaracharya In a big blow to PM Modi-led campaign against Rahul Gandhi, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, the 46th Shankaracharya of Jyotir Math, categorically said there was nothing against Hindus or Hinduism in the Leader of Oppositions speech in the Lok Sabha Monday July 8, 2024 7:10 PM , ummid.com News Network New Delhi: In a big blow to PM Modi-led campaign against Rahul Gandhi, Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, the 46th Shankaracharya of Jyotir Math, categorically said there was nothing against Hindus or Hinduism in the Leader of Oppositions speech in the Lok Sabha. Swami Avimukteshwaranand, one of the four tallest figures of Hindus, said he had listened to the whole speech of Rahul Gandhi and found nothing wrong in it. We listened attentively to Rahul Gandhi's speech after the matter came in front of us and found nothing against Hindus or Hinduism in it, he said. The Shankaracharya said on the contrary to what is being alleged, Rahul Gandhi in his speech unequivocally emphasized that Hinduism rejects violence. Rahul Gandhi's Speech Delivering his first speech in the Lok Sabha after becoming the Leader of Opposition (LoP) on July 01, 2024, Rahul Gandhi had accused the BJP and its leaders of spreading hate and violence against the Muslims, Dalits and other minority groups. Referring the teachings of Hindu gods and scriptures of Islam, Sikhism, Christianity and Buddhism, Rahul Gandhi said no religion preaches hate and violence. But, here we have the people who call them Hindus but indulge in violence and fear mongering, and spread hate, Rahul Gandhi said with his fingers pointing at the treasury benches. Rahul Gandhis remarks sparked a massive outrage in the Lok Sabha, and PM Modi stood and said: Rahul Gandhis remarks are insult to Hindus. Rahul Gandhi retorted back saying he was clearly accusing the BJP, not Hindus, of indulging in hate mongering. I am telling you the BJP and its leaders. You are not Hindus Hinduism does not preach hate and violence but you only talk about hate, hate and only hate.. Violence, violence and only violence, he said. "Misleading, unethical" Commenting on the entire controversy created by the BJP, the Shankaracharya also slammed the Saffron brigade for manipulating Rahul Gandhis speech to create confusion. The Shankaracharya also demanded action against those using part of Rahul Gandhis speech and sharing on social media. Presenting only fragments of Rahul Gandhi's speech is misleading, unethical and crime. Those doing this must be punished," the Shankaracharya said without directly naming the BJP. Shankaracharya pointing out that Rahul didnt say anything against Hindu religion. The channels & BJP IT cell spreading disinformation against him should be prosecuted pic.twitter.com/MmZm8U6vuf Prashant Bhushan (@pbhushan1) July 8, 2024 In another blow to the BJPs campaign calling Rahul Gandhi anti-Hindu, the Hindu Saints in Maharashtra have invited the Congress leader and the Leader of the Opposition, to participate in Pandharpur Yatra or Wari pilgrimage from Pune to Pandharpur. Rahul Gandhi has confirmed his participation in the Pandharpur Wari on July 13 and 14, 2024. Select Language To Read in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic. "I came in with a foundation. North Georgia took those traits I came with from my parents and enhanced them," Williams said. "The values I had of responsibility and accountability were an easy transition to professionalism and duty. It just made sense to me. North Georgia really instilled that in me." During his junior year, Williams met his future wife, Shelley, a fellow student. They have been married for 25 years and have three daughters. "I couldn't do what I do without her support," Jason Williams said. Shelley Williams later finished her degree elsewhere but felt like it would have meant more to have earned her degree from North Georgia. During the President's Gathering of Generals in April at UNG, Jason Williams and President Michael Shannon surprised Shelley Williams with a certificate granting her alumna status from UNG. Decades later, Jason Williams said the leadership he experienced from the military department faculty, his fellow cadets and in the Mountain Order of Colombo shaped the way he encourages young Army leaders. "You've got to be professional and tough because not every day is going to go your way," Williams said. "You still have to keep your head up and maintain your composure." His current assignment is his third at Fort Liberty, where he spent his years as a captain and major, and where all of his children were born. He said it feels like home. "In my heart from way back, I'm a paratrooper. That's the thing I enjoy most is being around the paratroopers again," Williams said. "It's good to be home." Twenty years since a 60th wedding anniversary celebrated at Czestochowa, Poland (Part Two) By Mark Wegierski web posted July 8, 2024 We then continued towards Piotrkow Trybunalski, a historic town which was the seat of Poland's Royal Tribunal for hundreds of years (before 1795). It was also an occasional point of assembly for the Polish Sejm (or Parliament), whose members were elected from and by the nobility. The traditions of the Sejm stretched back to the Renaissance period. Given that the noble class numbered around ten percent of the population in Old Poland unlike in most other European countries, where it was only one or two percent -- this meant that historically a far larger proportion of the population had full political participation than in some other countries in Europe, such as the French monarchy, where meaningful politics in fact usually revolved around a fraction of a percentage of the population. After the death of the last Jagiellonian King in 1572, Old Poland also had the system where a King was elected for life by the electoral Sejm rather than having a hereditary dynast -- hence it could be called a Royal Republic. Indeed, it was referred to in European diplomacy as "Serenissima" which could be rendered in English as "the Most Serene Republic" a term which had also been used in reference to Old Venice. In the U.S. Constitution of 1787, the office of the President of the United States (which, it may be remembered, was not originally subject to term limits), may have been partially inspired by the Polish elected monarchy. Turning towards the east, we whipped across 80 kilometers to reach Zarnow, a small town whose earliest building (the church) dates back to the tenth century. Zarnow is where her grandparents were living at that time, in a decidedly modest house of a few rooms. I was told that when her grandparents were digging a well, they encountered a very hard wall of rock which might have been remnants of early medieval walls. Unfortunately, with a very overstretched government budget, in a country which is outside of Warsaw and a few other large centers subject to considerable, often grinding poverty funds for exploratory archeological digs are very limited. We quickly loaded the grandparents into the car, which was a rather tight fit for four people and an increasingly nervy dog, and our problems became exacerbated when the grandmother began to suffer from motion sickness. Nevertheless, we persevered and finally reached Czestochowa by about 4 P.M. Her immediate family including her mother, sister, and one brother, lives in a fairly large house with a large yard, on the outskirts of the city. Without stopping to rest or snack, and leaving the dog tied up in the yard, we had to rush by car to the famous Jasna Gora Pauline monastery complex, where a commemorative ceremony had been reserved at the main sanctuary, before the famous icon, the so-called Black Madonna. This was actually the first time in my life that I would be at the shrine. We drove up around the monastery walls to the huge parking lot at the back, at which we were fortuitously able to find a parking spot, owing mainly to my relative's skill. I noted that various small shops selling devotional materials had been built right into what had once been the fortress walls of the monastery. Even in the short time we were there, we saw a fair number of large tour-buses going up the drive. We then walked along through a large gate-tower towards the main chapel where the Black Madonna resides. My relative's grandfather had put on his partisan fighter veteran's uniform with its many medals. He had been severely wounded in the fighting during the war, and, in fact, his first wife had been killed by the German occupiers. One of my first impressions of the buildings was that they are in fact rather small and intimate, rather than ponderous and overwhelming which is perhaps somewhat unexpected from such a world-famous site. Although one of the sharp steeples of the monastery complex can be seen from virtually anywhere in the town, the feeling of actually walking around in the monastery complex is rather human-scale. As we walked into the sanctuary proper, we noticed a marriage ceremony going on directly before the Black Madonna icon. Of course, the icon always has a jewel-encrusted robe for public viewing, so it looks rather different from the unadorned painting. The priest, his attendants, and the young couple were obscured and separated from the main crowd in the chapel by a huge ironwork grille that looked somewhat like an iconostasis in an Eastern Orthodox church. Pilgrimages were continually streaming into the sanctuary, and joining in the ongoing prayers and singing of the wedding service. Unfortunately, it turned out that we had missed our cue and arrived about fifteen minutes too late, whereas the wedding anniversary commemoration had been allotted little more than fifteen minutes. However, we participated in the prayers and singing. It was rather disappointing to have missed a 60th Wedding Anniversary commemoration. Being very tired, I ducked out to the church which sits directly beside the sanctuary-chapel, where I could admire the magnificence of the Baroque altar. Despite my near-exhaustion I appreciated the uplifting beauty of the holy site. (Partially based on the author's article that originally appeared in Chronicles (Rockford, IL) (December 2005), pp. 38-39.) To be continued. Mark Wegierski is a Toronto-based writer and historical researcher. He was born in Toronto of Polish immigrant parents. Home Professor Cao Huy Thuan authored numerous works in French on political science and international relations. Some of his notable works were published in Vietnam, include: - "Thuong e, Thien nhien, Nguoi, Toi va Ta" (HCM City Publishing House, 2000) - "Giao si thua sai va chinh sach thuoc ia cua Phap tai Viet Nam, 1857 - 1914" (Religious Publishing House, 2002) - "Tu ong sang Tay" (Chief Editor, Da Nang Publishing House, 2005) - "Ton giao va xa hoi hien ai" (Thuan Hoa/Phuong Nam Publishing House, 2006) - "Nang va Hoa" (Saigon Culture Publishing House, 2006) - "Thay Phat" (Tri Thuc Publishing House, 2008) - "Khi tua goi khi cui au" (Literature Publishing House, 2011; reprinted by Tri Thuc Publishing House in 2017) - "Chuyen tro" (Tre Publishing House, 2012; reprinted in 2013, 2014, 2016, 2020) - "Nhat ky sen trang" (Tre Publishing House, 2014; reprinted for the 5th time in 2020) - "Soi to nhen" (Tre Publishing House, 2015; reprinted in 2015) - "en voi Phat cung toi" (Hong Duc Publishing House, 2016) - "Nguoi khuan a" (Tre Publishing House, 2018) - "Sen thom nang ha que minh" (Tri Thuc Publishing House, 2020) - "Im lang nhu loi chia tay" (Khai Tam Publishing House, 2022) He was highly regarded by Vietnamese readers for his profound thoughts on philosophy, culture, and literature. Venerable Thich Hai An, Director of the Vietnam Buddhist Academy in Hue City, highlighted Professor Thuans deep connection to his homeland. He frequently lectured at the academy and participated in cultural events organized by the Vietnamese Buddhist Sanghas Central Cultural Committee. The Tu Dam Pagoda will establish a memorial, and the Vietnam Buddhist Academy in Hue will also hold a commemorative ceremony for Professor Cao Huy Thuan. The timing of the memorial service will be determined by his family, with further announcements from the academy to follow. In 2017, Professor Cao Huy Thuan received the 10th Phan Chau Trinh Cultural Award, honoring his significant contributions to Vietnamese culture and education. This award encompasses four fields: culture and education, translation, research, and Vietnam studies. Luu Dinh Long The proposals, aimed at accelerating the growth of Vietnam's semiconductor industry, include: Collaborating on AI Chip Design: Leveraging Vietnams strengths in AI algorithms. Training and Technology Transfer: Cooperating in the training and transfer of AI chip design technology. 5G Technology Partnership: Partnering on the transfer of 5G technology. Expanding the GDC Model: Providing IT services on a global scale through the Global Delivery Center (GDC) model. Enhanced Cooperation and Technology Transfer: Enhancing cooperation and technology transfer to CMC and other local partners. Samsung Chairman Lee Jae Yong acknowledged and appreciated all the proposals from Mr. Nguyen Trung Chinh, highlighting the potential for deepening collaboration in AI chip design. Samsung Group Chairman acknowledged the proposals of CMC Chairman on collaboration to promote AI chip design development Samsung commits to supporting the development of Vietnam's semiconductor industry On July 3, CMC Chairman Nguyen Trung Chinh joined Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh's delegation in visiting Samsung's cutting-edge semiconductor complex in Gyeonggi Province. Mr. Lee Jae Yong affirmed that Samsung will continue to prioritize Vietnam for expanding its cooperation and sustainable development initiatives, aligning with the spirit of "harmonized benefits, shared risks" as emphasized by Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh. The Samsung Chairman noted the remarkable growth of the partnership over the past 16 years, underscoring that "Vietnam's success is Samsung's success, and Vietnam's development is Samsung's development." Mr. Lee Jae Yong, Chairman of Samsung Group, welcomed Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and the Vietnamese delegation in Seoul, South Korea Prime Minister Chinh expressed that Vietnam warmly welcomes and encourages major corporations like Samsung to invest in semiconductor and artificial intelligence technology, while also fostering a robust ecosystem for these sectors. He pledged that Vietnam will refine its policy framework, cultivate high-quality human resources, and develop the necessary infrastructure to optimally support these investment endeavors. The leadership of Samsung Group reaffirmed their strong commitment and determination to significantly invest in and support Vietnam's semiconductor industry. Samsung Group's leaders took a photo with Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and the Vietnamese delegation Addressing the gathering at Samsung's Semiconductor Complex, CMC Chairman Nguyen Trung Chinh highlighted that CMC Global, a subsidiary, currently provides 1,000 experts for Samsung's GDC, ensuring top-tier global IT services. He emphasized that Vietnamese engineers meet Samsung's high professional and technical standards. CMC Chairman also proposed several key initiatives: Technology Transfer and Training: Supporting technology transfer and training initiatives, enabling CMC and other companies to supply high-quality human resources. Providing Experimental Equipment: Facilitating Vietnamese engineers' access to real production environments at Samsung's chip factories for learning and research. Supporting CMC University: Assisting CMC University in training high-quality semiconductor professionals. CMC commits to collaborate with the Government and partners to prepare the necessary technical infrastructure to meet Samsung's investment requirements, ensuring seamless and successful collaboration. PV HA NOI The domestic steel industry is seeing a positive growth trend, projected to increase by 7-8 per cent this year. According to the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA), the total production capacity for crude steel is around 23 million tonnes, while the capacity for finished steel products, including construction steel, hot and cold rolled coils, galvanised sheets and pipes, is approximately 38.6 million tonnes per year. This year, finished steel production is expected to hit 30 million tonnes, reflecting a 7 per cent rise from 2023. However, this recovery remains uncertain due to ongoing challenges. The current state of steel production in Viet Nam is facing significant challenges due to oversupply and increased imports, leading to fierce price competition for domestic steel products. According to Nghiem Xuan a, Chairman of the Vietnam Steel Association (VSA), hot rolled steel (HRC) imports have surged, with April 2024 seeing 890,000 tonnes imported, 1.5 times the total domestic production. Notably, 71 per cent of this imported HRC comes from China. In the first four months of 2024, Viet Nam imported a total of 3.93 million tonnes of HRC, marking a 32 per cent increase compared to the same period in 2023 and equating to 159 per cent of the domestic HRC production volume. Imports from China alone amounted to 2.9 million tonnes, more than double the imports from the same period in 2023. This marks the first time that Viet Nam's HRC imports have exceeded domestic production within a year. The influx of imports has adversely affected the production output of Viet Nam's two domestic HRC producers, Formosa and Hoa Phat. Their production has decreased to 73 per cent of design capacity, down from 86 per cent in 2021, largely due to unfair competition from imported goods sold below cost. Import prices have also fallen sharply, from $613 per tonne at the beginning of 2023 to $541 per tonne by the end of the year. The situation has led to a significant decline in the domestic market share of Formosa and Hoa Phat, dropping from 45 per cent in 2021 to 30 per cent in 2023. The trend of increasing imports is expected to persist, potentially undermining efforts to produce high-quality steel autonomously in Viet Nam. Phan ang Tuat, Chairman of the Vietnam Supporting Industry Association, highlighted the historical context of the trading picture, noting that Viet Nam initially imported HRC due to the high investment and technological requirements of producing it domestically. However, with the investments by Formosa Ha Tinh and Hoa Phat in HRC production, Viet Nam can now produce competitive products. Despite this, the continued large-scale importation of HRC, especially at prices below production costs, poses a serious threat to domestic production and market stability. Trade remedies needed Viet Nams steel industry, despite being a significant player globally and the leading producer in the ASEAN region, faces several challenges that hinder its long-term development. Key issues include a heavy reliance on imported rolled steel, which makes up over 50 per cent of total import turnover, particularly hot rolled steel. In addition, imports of shaped steel, metal-plated and colour-coated products account for about 20-25 per cent of domestic consumption demand. To address these challenges, the Vietnam Steel Association has recommended that relevant agencies enhance the regulatory framework and establish stringent technical and quality management standards. This initiative aims to prevent substandard steel products from entering the Vietnamese market, ensuring they meet technical safety and environmental criteria. The Ministry of Industry and Trade has been urged to implement trade remedies to combat unfair competition and safeguard domestic production. Furthermore, the ministry is expediting the development of the Vietnam Steel Industry Development Strategy, which targets completion by 2030 with a vision extending to 2050. This strategy will incorporate policies aimed at promoting green and sustainable growth within the steel industry. In the absence of a finalised steel industry development strategy, measures are being proposed to manage investments in large-scale steel projects. These are intended to balance supply and demand, prevent resource wastage, protect land capital, minimise environmental impacts, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and promote green production and consumption practices. - VNS Mining the planet for renewable energy By Paul Driessen web posted July 8, 2024 This election year, several critical issues dominate voter concerns. Illegal immigration across unsecured borders by migrants, criminals, sex traffickers and terrorists. Anti-police policies, reduced prosecution of criminals and rising crime. Unprecedented prices for food, clothing, housing and other necessities. Parental roles in education and sex changes for children. Threats to our republic and democracy from unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats who use their powers to persecute, prosecute, silence and even imprison opponents, and control our lives. Also crucial: control over energy the lifeblood of our civilization, jobs, health and prosperity. Will America shut down coal, gas and nuclear electricity generation before it has sufficient reliable replacements? Will we have electricity when we need it, or only when it's available, especially after we're forced to convert gasoline cars and gas stoves, furnaces and water heaters to electric models? What will families pay for that electricity and everything we eat, drink, build and use? Where will we get plastics, paints, pharmaceuticals, and thousands of other products made from oil and gas they want to lock in the ground? What will happen to our jobs, health, living standards and personal choices about where we live, what we eat, what car we can drive and how far, whether we can fly places for vacation? We're told a great energy and economic transformation is underway and is essential to prevent a "climate crisis." In reality, the crisis exists in computer models, headlines and politicized science, but not in actual temperature and weather records. In reality, there is no energy transformation. In 2023, wind and solar power generated 2.7% of the world's primary energy; 81.5% came from fossil fuels. Between 1965 and 2023, North America and Europe cut their fossil fuel consumption almost in half; but over the same period, the rest of the world consumed seven times more than those two regions reduced their use. Emissions went up even more, because China, India and other developing countries require minimal pollution controls on power plants and vehicles. In reality, a transition to an all-electric economy with no fossil fuels means millions of acres of America's wild, scenic and agricultural lands would be covered with wind turbines, solar panels, transmission lines, and warehouses filled with batteries that can spontaneously erupt in flames. In reality, we don't know whether there are enough accessible metal and mineral deposits on Planet Earth to extract all the raw materials required to manufacture the turbines, panels, batteries, transmission lines, electric vehicles, transformers and other equipment the energy transformation would require just for the United States, much less for the entire world. We don't know how many billions of tons of rock would have to be mined, processed and disposed of; how many millions of acres would be impacted; how many millions of tons of toxic air and water pollution would be emitted; what human rights would be violated to get those metals and minerals. One of the most basic and vital metals for the energy transformation is copper. Average worldwide ore concentrations (0.04%) mean miners would have to remove some 40,000,000 tons of overlying rock and extract, crush and process nearly 25,000,000 tons of ore to get 110,000 tons of copper enough for just the first 30,000 megawatts of President Biden's offshore wind plan. Worse, mining is essentially banned in the United States and the Biden Administration has vetoed world-class mines that could have met US needs for copper (and other metals) for decades to come. And the problem isn't just President Biden or the Biden Administration. It's governors like Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer, and countless activists and mostly Democrat politicians who support these policies. Recent studies question whether mining companies can even produce enough copper just for the electric vehicles people are told they must buy much less for wind and solar power; to say nothing of a full US (or global) energy transformation. Again, that's just the copper. A 2022 International Energy Agency report examines the need for essential metals and minerals in energy transitions. Onshore wind installations, the report says, require nine times more materials than combined-cycle gas generating plants, to produce the same amount of electricity. Offshore wind installations require fourteen times more. (These IEA numbers do not include materials for transmission lines or backup power for windless-sunless periods.) The IEA says its projections are "highly dependent" on how quickly and stringently the world actually tries to reach zero greenhouse gas emissions in power generation and all energy uses; on which wind, solar, battery and other technologies dominate; and on whether countries also try to utilize low-carbon (natural gas) or no-carbon (batteries) equipment in mining, materials processing, manufacturing and transporting wind turbines, solar panels, batteries, vehicles and other technologies. However, the IEA calculates, demand for aluminum, copper, cobalt, graphite, iron, nickel, lithium, rare earths, concrete and other "green" energy materials is expected to skyrocket by 5, 20, 40, 50 or more times current global requirements by 2040. The Agency says numerous "challenges" to actually acquiring those materials include actually finding producible deposits, plus land use, water scarcity and pollution, air pollution, toxic mining waste management, corruption and bribery, worker and nearby resident health and safety, and child labor. Meeting these challenges, the IEA says, will require "systematic approaches," the "development of institutions and the rule of law," "inclusive legal frameworks," "responsible" and "robust" pollution and waste management frameworks, "sustainable practices," "international coordination," "capacity building and knowledge sharing," greater "transparency" and, ultimately, "international minerals governance." These actions will all help foster "sustainable and responsible supply chains that contribute to a low-carbon economy" worldwide, the IEA assures us. But will these wishful terms survive collisions with the real world? Developing nations view coal, oil and gas as their key to jobs, modernity and prosperity. China, Russia and their allies perceive the West's fixation on climate change and green energy as opportunities to control US and EU supply chains, geo-political options and military-economic capabilities. The biggest wind energy project in the USA will soon blanket 1,600 square miles (1.25 times Delaware) of New Mexico, to generate 3,500 MW about 30% of the year. The Palo Verde nuclear plant in Arizona generates 4,200 MW from 6 square miles almost 24/7/365. A Bloomberg research team says the world will need at least $200 trillion to stop global warming by 2050. Others estimate $275 trillion! How can we head this economy-and-environment-killing craziness off at the pass? Wise decisions at the ballot box are essential, of course. But state and local governments should enact laws requiring that utilities explain how they will generate wind and solar replacement power on windless winter nights, before they shut down a single coal, gas or nuclear power plant or get approval for a single wind or solar project. (Those are just a few of the actions they can take.) They should also demand full details on where raw materials will come from, and at what dollar, human rights and environmental costs to state and local communities ... and our planet. America's jobs, health, living standards, and right to choose our homes, cars and food depend on it. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow (www.CFACT.org), and author of articles and books on environmental, climate and human rights issues. Home HA NOI Implementing the direct power purchase agreement (DPPA) mechanism between renewable energy generators and large customers is important to developing a competitive electricity market in Viet Nam. On July 5, the Ministry of Industry and Trade held a conference to deploy the Government's Decree 80/2024/N-CP dated July 3, 2024 regulating the DPPA mechanism with two options being through a private power line and the national grid via EVN. In the case of trading renewable energy through a private power line, the electricity price will be set under an agreement between seller and buyer. The electricity price for the contracts trading renewable power through the national grid will be under the regulations on electricity prices issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade. According to Pham Quang Huy, deputy director of the Electricity Regulatory Authority (Ministry of Industry and Trade), building and perfecting fair and transparent mechanisms/policies creates motivation to attract private capital in producing and using renewable energy, leading to promote the development of the competitive electricity market in Viet Nam. Vo Quang Lam, deputy general director of Vietnam Electricity (EVN) said the issuance of this decree meets the expectations of domestic and foreign businesses. "This is a very important step to boost the development of Viet Nam's competitive electricity market," Lam said. "EVN has organised a review of internal processes and this July, EVN will complete the processes to be suitable with the decree as well as related laws, so EVN's member units and the electricity trading companies will immediately implement this decree." At the conference, many representatives of a number of international organisations such as Vietnam Business Forum (VBF), Japan International Bank (JBIC), Embassy of the United States and the Asian Clean Energy Coalition (ACEC), and large electricity customers such as Samsung, all expressed their support and appreciation for the issuance of the DPPA mechanism. The United States Mission to Viet Nam applauded the Government for approving the Decree on the DPPA. The US Mission to Viet Nam through the US Agency for International Development (USAID) has provided technical assistance to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) since 2017 on the design, development and approval of the DPPA. USAID will continue to partner with MOIT on the DPPAs implementation. When implemented, the new policy will allow businesses in Viet Nam to purchase electricity directly from private firms producing renewable energy, enabling them to power their operations with 100 per cent renewable energy. This helps Viet Nam attract private sector investment in renewable energy while meeting the needs of corporate leaders seeking to integrate renewable energy into their operations and achieve their corporations emissions reduction targets. The DPPA will enable businesses to reduce their carbon footprint while also enabling Viet Nam to accelerate its clean energy transition and advance its goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The United States remains Viet Nams partner as you roll out this important initiative, and expand Viet Nams access to clean and renewable energy, said USAID/Vietnam Mission Director Aler Grubbs. At the same time, foreign organisations and companies also consider this decree as a mechanism not only to contribute to ensuring electricity supply but also to help the customers achieve production and green growth goals. It contributes to attracting investment not only in the renewable energy industry but also in sectors with large electricity consumption needs. Especially, the DPPA mechanism also contributes significantly towards developing the competitive retail electricity market in Viet Nam, and improving the effectiveness of State management and the level of competition in electricity trading activities. Speaking at the conference, Minister Nguyen Hong Dien said this is an important and groundbreaking mechanism to contribute to attracting investment in renewable energy development, thereby achieving the goals of energy transition and sustainable development, and development of Viet Nam's competitive electricity market. This is also the mechanism to be interested by many organisations and individuals, especially large electricity users and FDI firms. Therefore, to ensure efficient implementation of the DPPA mechanism, Dien has requested the authorities of localities to effectively implement the tasks assigned in the decree. Those tasks focus on inspecting and supervising the implementation of power purchase contracts in the direct form, as well as resolving complaints and handling violations during implementing this mechanism. EVN and its affiliated units are asked to urgently calculate the costs of using power system services in the DPPA mechanism, and build processes of trading, management and payments for customers. Minister Dien requested the Electricity Regulatory Authority and relevant ministries and branches to amend and promulgate new circulars to carry out this mechanism, ensuring no major obstacles during the implemention of Decree No 80. Along with that, they urgently research and propose a pilot mechanism of electricity prices and submit them to competent authorities for promulgation in August. According to Dien, EVN, electricity buyers and sellers need to proactively review technical conditions to ensure this mechanism does not affect the safety of the national power grid and the process of implementing the Electricity Planning VIII. Large customers are those who use electricity from 500,000 kWh per month, estimated at around 3,000 customers and making up for 30 per cent of the total electricity consumption, according to the Decree 80. The ministry's statistics show that there are nearly 1,500 customers using over 1 million kWh per month, accounting for 26 per cent of the total electricity consumption. There are about 7,700 customers using from 200,000 kWh per month, or 36.5 per cent of the total electricity consumption. A survey conducted by the MoIT at the end of last year found that approximately 20 large companies were interested in purchasing electricity directly, with a total demand of nearly 1,000 MW. Additionally, 24 renewable energy projects with a capacity of 1,773 MW looked at selling electricity through the DPPA mechanism and 17 projects with a capacity of 2,836 MW were considering becoming participants. VNS HCM CITY The adoption of AI applications, especially generative AI, is important for improving Viet Nams competitiveness in the global playing field, delegates told the Shidler Global Leadership Summit. The summit was organised by the Shidler College of Business, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, on July 5 at the Van Lang University in Binh Thanh District to discuss the impact and application of generative AI across many business sectors. The event featured alumni of the Vietnam Executive MBA (VEMBA) programme at the Shidler College of Business currently holding leadership roles at major companies in Viet Nam. Prof. Tung Bui, VEMBA faculty director & Matson Navigation Company chair of global business at Shidler, referred to the concept of a new world order in which there is rising competition between leading countries, which leads to changes in global supply chains, he told Viet Nam News. Viet Nam could benefit from these changes as countries were reducing their reliance on China as a producer and instead seeking other partners like Viet Nam, India and Indonesia. AI applications could help boost a countrys competitiveness in the global market, and Viet Nam could utilise these tools to further exploit its advantages, reduce costs and elevate its position to attract other countries. For instance, they could help reduce operation costs in processes such as quality management and inventory management, rendering a production process smarter and more efficient. They could also help with market research, analysing customer responses and even reduce the language and cultural barriers between Vietnamese businesses and other countries. Generative AI was especially popular because for the first time ever humans could talk to computers and give orders (or prompts) on a conversational level instead of having to learn complicated computer programming languages. Generative AI tools could also process a massive quantity of data at high speed. To have AI applications assist in elevating ones competitiveness in the context of the new world order, this context needed to be included in the training of the application. They needed to understand the global context, ones specific needs and challenges so that they could better help the user. However, one had to be careful of pitfalls when utilising generative AI tools, such as accidently providing wrong answers that seemed reliable, misleading answers due to insufficient training data, incorrect assumptions made by the AI model, or biases in the data used to train it. "An educated AI user must have sharp critical thinking and intuition." AI applications also needed to be fine-tuned for specific tasks. Nguyen Ba Quynh, senior vice president and head of APJ Market and VDC, Hitachi Digital Services, said for AI tools to be effective, data has to be accurate and stored properly so that their value could be extracted. The right data platform, the right level of data management and knowledgeable people with strong ethics are important for digital transformation to be successful, he said. Mai Linh Giang, CEO of the human resource development centre at VNPT Group, said AI tools could help improve labour productivity, utilising big data to help people in decision making, automate processes to reduce work time and create and provide new services or improve existing ones, he said. With the help of AI tools, a company could improve customer service by utilising data gathered from customers from different services, which could be used to develop solutions and services. Nguyen Thi Tra My, Co-founder & Group CEO, The PAN Group, said the agricultural sector is also part of the AI trend as AI applications facilitate automation and efficient management of resources and improve productivity and quality, she said. However, applying AI in agriculture is hindered by challenges related to data, investment and the workforce, she said. AI can be combined with the traditional experiences of farmers to create agricultural models that are sustainable, efficient and suitable to the real conditions. Proper collection and organisation of data allows AI tools to maintain and pass on these traditional experiences to future farmers, she said. Regardless of technological advancement, close co-operation between the state, farmers, scientists, businesses, and consumers is still important, she added. Experts from other fields discussed the use of AI in banking, healthcare, tourism, and others. Leaders need change in mindset Quynh said over the last 10 years there has been a big change in the image of Viet Nam on the global business arena as it became one of the top spots for high-quality workers in software development and engineering, who have been sought after by many companies in the US and Europe. Young engineers are already adopting AI applications such as ChatGPT in their work, and a young labour workforce can in general adopt technology quickly. However, according to experts at the event, many Vietnamese business leaders think technology innovation is either a waste of time or too risky, or they do not have capable internal personnel staff for these changes. Helping the workforce adapt to these new changes, while important, is also challenging and requires a great deal of time. Quynh said Viet Nams last 10 years of experience in technological development could not compare with superpowers, and the country does not have enough top executives with hands-on experience in leading complex technology creation or implementation. "In order for Viet Nam to catch up, we need to compare ourselves to advanced countries. We need business leaders to think of themselves as international citizens and not limit themselves to Viet Nam. Being a great entrepreneur or technologist in just Viet Nam is not enough. Current leaders have great responsibilities to foster the next generation of leaders." Giang said it is crucial for leaders to invest in employees and even in themselves to adapt to AI applications and new changes. A case for AI Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong, vice president and chief revenue officer of FPT Automative FPT Software, said while many businesses have been using AI chatbot customer services, some businesses are reluctant to use AI tools and many people fear that they would replace them. It is harder to persuade staff in manufacturing businesses to adopt these tools, which means it is important to show them, through small tasks, how these tools can benefit them. She pointed to the example of a business that uses cameras and AI applications to gather data on how its staff pick up their lunch in the canteen and analysing that data to help it improve its menus, reduce food wastage and increase staff satisfaction. Successful examples of AI implementation can also nudge other businesses, she said, pointing to the Long Chau pharmacy store chain, which uses AI mentor tools to provide further training to new pharmacists, helping them learn every day in an easy manner, and uses AI to greatly enhance its inventory management to ensure customers have consistent access to products. The growth of AI is inevitable, and so businesses need to find ways to use these tools to benefit them. VNS HA NOI The prices of Vietnamese rice increased strongly in many foreign markets in the first half of this year, according to statistics from the General Department of Viet Nam Customs. The average rice export price went up by over 18 per cent over the same period last year. The grain was sold at US$959 per tonne in Brunei, $868 in the US, $857 in the Netherlands, $847 in Ukraine, $836 in Iraq, and $831 in Turkey. Most notably, in the first quarter, Viet Nam's rice exports to France increased dramatically to 18,200 tonnes worth $19.1 million . During the period, Viet Nam shipped 46,000 tonnes to the European Union (EU), earning $41.4 million , an increase of nearly 118 per cent over the same period last year. The Viet Nam Trade Office in the EU said Viet Nam's specialty fragrant rice varieties such as ST25, ST24, Nang Hoa, and OM are favoured in the market thanks to their standout quality, leading to their high prices there. In the first three months of this year, Viet Nam also exported up to 135,300 tonnes of rice to the American market, with a turnover of $94.5 million , up 299 per cent year-on-year. In the first half, Viet Nam's rice exports reached 4.7 million tonnes, a rise of 10.4 per cent year-over-year, and its export turnover reached nearly $3 billion , up 32 per cent. VNS HA NOI The price of SJC-branded gold bars in the domestic market has remained stable despite the rising global gold price recorded over the past couple of weeks. Throughout the last week, the price of the precious metal steadied, resulting in subdued trading. Specifically, both DOJI Gold & Gems Group and Saigon Jewelry Company (SJC) list the buying and selling prices at VN74.98 million (over US$2,951) and VN76.98 million per tael, the same with those offered at the beginning of the week. A tael equals 37.5 grams or 1.2 ounces. Experts said efforts by the State Bank of Viet Nam (SBV) and related agencies in gold price control have proven effective, helping ease negative impacts by the global market. Truong Vi Tuan, an expert from Giavang.net, said although the price of SJC gold bars has remained flat for 30 consecutive days, that of gold ring has seen fluctuations. DOJI Gold lists the buying and selling prices of Hung Thinh Vuong gold ring at VN75.65 and VN76.95 million per tael, an increase of VN600,000 per tael in both buying and selling prices. Meanwhile, gold ring is priced at VN74.6-VN76.2 million, and VN75.38-VN76.68 million by SJC and Bao Tin Minh Chau, respectively, up VN200,000 and VN300,000 per tael in buying and selling prices. Gold ring price is predicted to continue rising in the time to come in the context of increasing global gold prices. VNS LANG SON A delegation of experts from UNESCO have made a field trip to the northern province of Lang Son for on-site assessment of the dossier submitted to the organisation to seek the organisation's recognition of Lang Son Geopark as a global one. The delegation visited from July 6 -10 to 26 out of the 38 attractions across four tourism routes of Lang Son Geopark, spanning the districts of Bac Son, Binh Gia, Van Quan, Huu Lung, Chi Lang, Cao Loc, Loc Binh, and Lang Son City. Deputy Chairman of the provincial People's Committee Duong Xuan Huyen emphasised that the locality has identified and prioritised tourism as a spreheard economic sector, therefore Lang Son recently invested in developing infrastructure for several potential tourist areas and destinations, including the Lang Son Geopark. Local authorities have also issued numerous policies and mechanisms, and accelerated administrative reforms to create a favourable environment for attracting resources and investment for tourism development, he said. The province is striving to develop the geopark to meet the criteria for recognition as a global geopark, thus conserving and promoting the comprehensive values of geological heritage, culture, history, archaeology, and biodiversity, as well as outstanding scenic landscapes of the region, he added. The official expressed his hope that UNESCO experts will provide recommendations to the province for maximising the potential of the Lang Son Geopark for tourism development, contributing to creating new and sustainable livelihoods for the local community, and promoting socio-economic development of the locality and the northeastern region of Viet Nam. Tuncer and Kristin, experts of the UNESCO Global Geopark Network, stated that they are conducting on-site assessments to provide the most accurate evaluation, contributing to the better development of the geopark. Covering 4,842 sq.km across eight district-level localities, Lang Son Geopark is one of the largest of its kind in Viet Nam and boasts a number of unique values. In terms of geology, geomorphology and landscape, it is home to a rich diversity of palaeobiological fossils dating back as far as 500 million years, many of which indicate this province used to be under the sea in the past. Moreover, this park is endowed with many renowned landscapes such as the low mountain ranges surrounding valleys and villages in Yen Thinh Commune of Huu Lung District, or the caves like Tham Khuyen in Binh Gia District that accommodated prehistoric humans. Regarding cultural values, it houses a number of temples dedicated to the gods in the worship of Mother Goddesses an intangible cultural heritage of humanity, especially Bac Le Temple, as well as villages of Tay and Nung ethnic groups with distinctive cultures. The locality has initially developed four routes comprising 38 tourist attractions within the geopark. Local authorities are taking various measures for improving public awareness of the parks values as well as protecting and making use of its values for tourism development. VNA/VNS A NANG --The best films were honoured at the closing ceremony of a Nang Asian Film Festival 2024 (DANAFF II), with a spotlight on Tran Thanh's film, Mai in the national film category and Culi Never Cries, honoured as the Best Asian Film. Tran Chi Cuong, Vice Chairman of a Nang City People's Committee and Head of the DANAFF II Organising Committee, said the city had a "vibrant and colourful" cinema week, with many film screenings, discussions and activities. "This is the second time a Nang has successfully organised an international cinema event, creating the initial steps in building the city's cinema ecosystem and cultural industry." In the Asian Films Category, the film Culi Never Cries won the top award, Grand Prize for Best Film. In February this year, the film won the Best First Feature Award at Berlin International Film Festival. Representing the film crew, producer and screenwriter Nghiem Quynh Trang said: "After travelling around the world, the film finally arrived in Viet Nam and was warmly received at DANAFF." She also revealed that the film is about to release across cinemas nationwide in September, telling Viet Nam News that she hopes it will be well received by audiences. Pham Thien An was voted the Best Asian Director with his work on Inside the Yellow Cocoon Shell. Before coming to DANAFF II, the film won the Camera dOr Award, at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, Best International Film at Pingyao Film Festival in 2023 and Best film at the Asian Film Festival in 2024. The Best Screenplay Award of the Asian Film Category was awarded to All Ears by Liu Jiayin from China. The film has already won two awards for Best Actor and Best Director at the Shanghai International Film Festival. Yuumi Kawai in the film A Girl Named Ann from Japan won the Best Leading Actress Award and Kang Ren Wu in the film Fly Me To The Moon from Hong Kong, China, received the Best Leading Actor Award. Mai won three awards Mai won Grand Prize for Best Film at the Vietnamese Films Category, and its director, Tran Thanh also received Best Director Award. The leading actress, Phuong Anh ao was also honoured. Tran Thanh said that he is usually afraid to be judged alongside the same category as art-house films. "How to balance art and audiences to sell more tickets is currently a difficult problem for filmmakers. I really want to find that balance of making a film with the quality of an art-house film, while also being approachable and accessible to a general audience," he said. This year's Best Screenplay Award was empty, while actor Thai Ha won the Best Leading Actor Award with the film Con Nhot Mot Chong (Nhot Must Marry). The NETPAC Award for the Outstanding Vietnamese Film is decided and selected by the NETPAC Jury from the Vietnamese Film Contests awarded to the film Lat mat 7: Mot ieu uoc (Face Off 7: One Wish). The Audiences Choice Award for Favourite Vietnamese Film voted by the audience participating in the screenings of 'Todays Vietnamese Cinema' programme was for animation series Ca chep cua ong Tao (The Kitchen Gods Carp), oi lan su nhi nho (Mischievous Lion Dance Crew) and oc la lang Khoai (Extraordinary Sweet Potato). -- VNS HA NOI Although the US Department of States 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom recognises some of the progress Viet Nam has made in protecting and promoting the freedom of religion and beliefs, it still gives poorly objective comments based on unverified and inaccurate information about the reality in the country. The statement was highlighted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson Pham Thu Hang at its recent regular press conference. Responding to reporters questions on Viet Nams reaction to the report, which included putting Viet Nam on its special watch list, Hang stated that Viet Nam is ready to work together with the US over matters of shared concern in the spirit of frankness, openness and mutual respect in contentious issues, thereby contributing to the enhancement of the Viet Nam US Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. It can be affirmed that in Viet Nam, no one is discriminated against due to their religion or belief and the activities of religious organisations are guaranteed in accordance with the law. As a multi-ethnic and multi-religious country with a rich religious life, Viet Nam consistently pursues the policy of respecting and ensuring the right to the freedom of religion, with no one discriminated against on such grounds. The operation of religious organisations are in line with legal regulations, with the rights are enshrined in Viet Nams Constitution 2013, the Law on Belief and Religion 2016 and other relevant legal documents and are respected. Viet Nams achievements in ensuring human rights have been positively evaluated by the international community. During a dialogue on Viet Nams National Report under the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC)s Universal Periodic Review (UPR) fourth cycle in May, many countries recognised and hailed Viet Nam's policies, efforts and achievements in ensuring human rights, including the rights to the freedom of religion and belief. They welcomed Viet Nam's achievements in economic developing, ensuring social justice, improving education to raise public awareness of human rights and promoting the rights of women, LGBT group, and ethnic minority communities. At their working session with Vietnamese leaders last year, Pope Francis and the Vaticans Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin showed their impression at the positive growth, diversity and richness of the religious and belief life in Viet Nam, including the Catholic Church. They agreed that the Catholic Church of Viet Nam should continue to implement the orientation of 'accompanying with the nation', and 'good Catholics are good citizens', encouraging Catholic dignitaries and followers to continue making positive contributions to the growth of the country and the church. In his article entitled 'Derechos humanos en Vietnam: hechos, mas que palabras' (Human rights in Viet Nam: facts, more than words), Moises Perez Mok, head of the Prensa Latina news agencys bureau in Ha Noi highlighted Viet Nams undeniable progress in terms of promotion and protection of human rights, including the right to the freedom of religion and belief, for all. In Viet Nam, the freedom of the press and the freedom of speech, as well as the right to access information are guaranteed, he wrote, noting that after 26 years of connecting to the Internet, Viet Nam has had a modern telecommunications system which is extremely popular and well used. As of September 2023, Viet Nam has 78 million Internet users, an increase of 21 per cent compared to the 2019 figure. The number of mobile broadband subscribers was 86.6 million, a rise of 38 per cent. There are currently about 72,000 associations operating in Viet Nam regularly, actively contributing to handling important economic and social issues of the country, he added. The Prensa Latina veteran journalist made clear that Viet Nam respects and guarantees the freedom of belief or religion, as well as of association, which are the rights established from the founding of the Democratic Republic of Viet Nam (now the Socialist Republic of Vietnam) in 1945 and enshrined in the 2013 constitution. There are 43 organisations associated to 16 religions in the country, with 26.7 million followers, nearly 60,000 dignitaries and 30,000 places of worship, together with a large number of religious publications, Moises Perez Mok noted. Meanwhile, in his article published in The Independent, Grigory Trofimchuk, a Russian international political analyst who has spent many years researching Viet Nam, underscored that one of the most challenging aspects of human rights is religious issues. He affirmed that the religious life is completely open to the people in Viet Nam, confirming that up to 95 per cent of the population practise a belief or religion. The country is home to 43 religious organisations from 16 different religions, with over 26.5 million followers, accounting for 27 per cent of the population, more than 54,000 dignitaries, over 135,000 assistants and nearly 30,000 places of worship, he noted. Many types of beliefs, and worship relic sites and objects have been recognised as world heritage by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the author said. Trofimchuk highlighted the diversity of the media landscape in Viet Nam, with one national news agency and 72 radio and television agencies, which, he said, confirmed the rights to freedom of speech, press and information in the country. The author also wrote that the right to life and the right to respect for human dignity and physical integrity in efforts to ensure human rights in Viet Nam. Another undeniable truth in Viet Nam is the countrys active and proactive efforts in making numerous contributions to the promotion and protection of human rights in the region and the world. The clearest evidence for that is the high level of trust shown through a very high vote for Viet Nam to become a member of the UN Human Rights Council for the 2023-25 tenure and the international communitys high evaluation and recognition of Viet Nams various initiatives to ensure human rights, the rights of developing countries and the rights of disadvantaged groups. Viet Nam has always affirmed the principle of dialogue, cooperation and respect of differences, while stressing that there is no single common model for all countries and each country has its own development path depending on its characteristics and conditions. It is believed that it is time for US authorities to stop making poorly objective and inaccurate statements with prejudice on the actual situation of human rights and belief freedom in Viet Nam. Instead, they should discuss with Viet Nam issues of mutual concern in the spirit of openness, frankness and mutual respect to contribute to and promote the comprehensive strategic partnership for peace, cooperation and sustainable development between the two countries. VNS KHANH HOA The United States Navys 7th Fleet flagship USS Blue Ridge and US Coast Guard Cutter Waesche arrived at Cam Ranh International Port in the south-central province of Khanh Hoa on Monday, starting a five-day joint Navy-Coast Guard routine port visit. The leaders of Naval Region 4 of the Viet Nam People's Navy, Coast Guard Region 3, along with representatives from Khanh Hoa Province and other Viet Nam's authorities held the welcome ceremony for the visiting American crews. Later on the same day, Commander of the 7th Fleet and leaders of the ships paid a courtesy call to leaders of the Khanh Hoa provincial Peoples Committee. Standing Vice Chairman of the provincial Peoples Committee Le Huu Hoang emphasised the importance of the US ships visit as the US has celebrated the 248th anniversary of its Independence Day (July 4) and the two countries are marking 29 years since the normalisation of diplomatic ties (July 12, 1995 2024) The visit is expected to further promote the friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership between Viet Nam and the US, he said. For his part, US Ambassador to Viet Nam Marc Knapper affirmed that Khanh Hoa has organised various activities to contribute to the development of the US-Viet Nam relationship The US will assist Khanh Hoa in attracting investment, especially in the fields of high technology and tourism, in the coming time, he added. During the port visit, 7th Fleet, USS Blue Ridge and CGC Waesche leadership will additionally paid courtesy calls to the leadership of Viet Nam Peoples Navy, Viet Nam Coast Guard. Events during the visit include subject matter expert exchanges and community relations activities. Crew members and the 7th Fleet staff will participate in community relations and cultural events to give back to the community and engage with Khanh Hoa Province's residents to further strengthen bilateral relations in line with Viet Nam-US Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. As the 7th Fleet flagship, Blue Ridge is the oldest operational ship in the Navy. This is the second time the USS Blue Ridge has come to Viet Nam since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1995. VNS HA NOI Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh hailed Malaysia as Viet Nams major trade and investment partner at a reception in Ha Noi on Monday for Malaysian Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry Zafrul Abdul Aziz. Zafrul is on a working visit to Viet Nam to co-chair the 4th session of the Viet Nam-Malaysia Joint Trade Committee in Ha Noi. Currently, Malaysia is the third largest trading partner of Viet Nam in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the 10th largest in the world. With a total registered capital of over US$13 billion, Malaysia is also the third biggest ASEAN investor in Viet Nam, PM Chinh said. Viet Nam always welcomes and encourages Malaysian businesses and investors to operate in the country, he said, adding that Viet Nam commits to protecting their legitimate rights and interests, ensuring fair treatment, and creating favourable conditions for foreign investors, including those from Malaysia. As the goal of achieving $20 billion in two-way trade in the coming years is reachable, PM Chinh suggested both nations continue to leverage their complementary strengths, explore breakthrough solutions to boost economic, trade, and investment cooperation, and join global value and supply chains. He also proposed Malaysia facilitate the entry of Vietnamese goods into its market, particularly processed farm produce, seafood, and food products; assist Viet Nam in developing the Halal industry and encouraging Malaysian investments in Viet Nam in this field, as well as in digital transformation, green transition, clean energy and wind power export. Furthermore, he called for bolstering joint work in emerging fields such as innovation, artificial intelligence and cybersecurity. To further enhance collaboration, the PM proposed sharing experience, jointly building mechanisms and policies, improving governance capacity, transferring technology, and training quality human resources, particularly in emerging sectors. He also highlighted the need to foster effective cooperation between businesses of both countries, people-to-people exchanges, and tourism and cultural collaboration with flexible regulations. On global and regional issues, the government leader said in the current context, Viet Nam and Malaysia need to continue supporting each other at multilateral forums. Together with other ASEAN member states, they should maintain the bloc's central role, strengthen unity in diversity within ASEAN, and maintain an environment of peace, stability, cooperation and development, he said. PM Chinh underscored the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and safety of navigation and aviation in the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), and settling disputes peacefully in line with international law, especially the United Nations Charter and the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). The PM affirmed Viet Nam's support for Malaysia's ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025 and requested Malaysia to back Viet Nam's efforts to have the European Commission's "yellow card" warning against Vietnamese seafood regarding illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing removed. Zafrul, for his part, noted that this is his second visit to Viet Nam and mentioned an extensive agenda involving numerous Malaysian enterprises. He predicted that this year's bilateral trade turnover could reach $18 billion, surpassing the target initially set for 2025. He expressed his strong desire to further advance bilateral economic, trade and investment ties, especially in areas highlighted by the PM, including the Halal industry, which holds significant potential, as well as digital transformation, green transition, wind power, innovation and artificial intelligence. The minister affirmed Malaysia's continuous support for ASEAN's central role in regional issues, and expressed Malaysia's hope for Viet Nam's continued support for its ASEAN Chairmanship in 2025. VNS HA NOI Ha Noi Police Department are deploying both immediate and long-term measures to prevent fires at rental facilities and other establishments under fire safety regulations. The move follows an assessment of recent fire and explosion incidents in the city, where authorities noted a high incidence rate in lodging houses, residential homes, mixed residential-commercial houses, warehouses, workshops and eateries within residential areas. Major General Nguyen Thanh Tung, deputy director of the department said that the department had finished inspections on all 36,972 rental facilities in the city. Penalties were imposed on 3,134 cases, of which, 672 were temporarily suspended and 16,479 establishments were told to stop operations. All violators committed to rectify their violations. The police also reviewed over 3,000 mini apartments and uncovered 9,466 violations. The main violations included inadequate or absent secondary escape routes and fire suppression systems. Many facilities lacked fire prevention equipment while tenants had not received adequate fire safety training. Improper storage arrangements had hindered evacuation routes. Particularly concerning was makeshift electrical connections that did not comply with standards. The persistence of fire safety violations in rental facilities stemmed from various factors. Public awareness and compliance with fire safety measures among residents remained inadequate, despite extensive government campaigns. "Some lodging facilities are in violation of fire safety regulations but tenants still come to stay," he said. Statistics reveal that the city has a total of 36,972 lodging facilities, concentrated mainly in the districts of Thanh Xuan, Cau Giay, Nam Tu Liem and ong a. Clusters of mini apartments are located in Cau Giay Districts Tran Thai Tong Street, where what was once a green rice village has transformed into rows of iron-roofed lodging houses. From house No 91 to 148 in alley No 44 in the street, numerous five-to-seven storey houses are built with compact, balcony-less units resembling stacked matchboxes. Each rented room spans 10-15sq.m, designed without proper ventilation or play areas. According to the district People's Committee, the district hosts 3,328 lodging facilities, including 1,812 for residential purposes and 1,513 for residential-commercial purposes. Inspections identified over 3,100 facilities without fire truck access, 2,800 lacking adequate escape routes, 2,700 missing fire suppression systems and 1,560 violating electrical system standards. Following official directives, more than 970 landlords have installed emergency escape routes for fire incidents. Tenant's awareness The police also found that hidden fire hazards persisted due to tenants' lack of awareness. Vu Ngoc Son, a third-year student from the northern mountainous province of Lang Son has lived in a 10-sq.m room at No 44 Tran Thai Tong Street for three years. Son said he chose the building to hire because he knew that it had compliance with fire safety regulations. However, in his room, multiple electrical appliances, such as computers and chargers, were haphazardly plugged in next to flammable items like paper and notebooks. Le Quang Trung, owner of the building said he also concerned about potential fire hazards, particularly during hot seasons when electrical usage peaked. He also adhered to the district's guidelines by posting fire safety notices in stairwells and each room, though he remained unsure if tenants followed the notices diligently. I cant go into each room every day and remind each tenant to use electricity carefully and be alert for fires and explosions to ensure public safety, he said. Awareness of fire prevention depends a lot on the self-discipline of each tenant." Lieutenant General Nguyen Thanh Tung, deputy director of the police department said the department would work with relevant agencies to strictly enforce suspension orders on high-rise buildings violating fire safety regulations, preventing new violations. Early fire warning In addition to training and upgrading the capabilities of local fire and rescue teams, the city will prioritise applying science and technology in fire prevention. For example, Ba inh District has installed automated fire alarms in all offices, schools and traditional markets while ong a District is experimenting with early warning devices, including lodging facilities. Tran Van Long, a resident living in a rented room in Tho Quan Ward, said he agreed to test the early warning devices and received instructions from the consulting unit to install the app as well as the operating mechanism of the device. "In fire prevention, even a second of delay can save a life. So, I also agree to share the device connection with inter-family groups in warning fire prevention and fighting so that we can warn everyone early," he said. Ha Anh Tuan, vice chairman of the People's Committee of ong a District said that through disseminating activities, local people had become more interested in fire and explosion prevention and control, especially the application of technology in fire prevention. The District People's Committee has assigned the task to the People's Committees of each ward to mobilise people to pilot the installation of equipment and continue to widen their warning eyes so that the equipment could operate optimally as a network of inter-family groups in warning fire prevention and fighting. According to the recommendation of the department, tenants' awareness combined with technology would determine success in the battle with the fire enemy. Each tenant needed to carefully research the factors of a lodging facility in fire prevention, before deciding to bet their life. City recommendations emphasise the critical role of tenant responsibility in fire safety. Each tenant must assess potential risks before renting. By 2030, the city aims to equip all household and residential-commercial units with secondary escape routes and fire extinguishers. Every household member will receive fire safety training and community-based fire prevention teams will be established and maintained in all residential areas. The city plans to install 3,050 outdoor fire hydrants and improve water supply systems across 9,483 alleys with the length over 200m. Approximately 433 reservoirs and fire pump stations are expected to be completed, with an estimated budget of VN26.3 trillion (US$1.03 billion). Statistics showed that between 2014 and 2023, the city reported 4,459 fire incidents, resulting in 202 deaths and 271 injuries. Recent tragic incidents, such as the mini apartment fire in Khuong Ha Street in September 2023 and the fire occurred in Trung Kinh Street in May 2024, underscore the challenges faced by emergency responders in narrow alleyways. VNS Does the Palestinian leadership represent all Palestinians? By Khaled Abu Toameh web posted July 8, 2024 Palestinians who live abroad are calling for a voice in Palestinian decision-making, arguing that neither the Palestinian Authority nor the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) have the right to speak for all Palestinians. In 2017, a portion of the Palestinian population residing outside the West Bank and Gaza Strip announced the formation of a group called the "Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad." The group, which claims to represent 6-7 million Palestinians dispersed throughout more than 50 countries, is fiercely opposed to the Oslo Accords, signed between Israel and the PLO in 1993, and supports the "resistance" against Israel. The group's leaders say that the primary impetus behind its formation is the "marginalization" of Palestinians abroad since the signing of the Oslo Accords. Prior to the agreement, there was a semi-consensus among the Palestinians that the PLO is the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people." After the signing of the Oslo Accords, however, the PLO leadership moved from Tunis and other Arab countries to the West Bank and Gaza Strip. As the PLO began concentrating the majority of its efforts on the Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, the organization's ties with the Palestinians abroad increasingly deteriorated. In the past three decades, the PLO Executive Committee, a crucial decision-making body, and other institutions associated with the organization have met regularly in Ramallah. The PLO no longer has offices in most Arab countries. PA/PLO Leaders Reject the Outsiders Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, who also chairs the PLO Executive Committee, and several PLO leaders are incensed over the formation of the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad. They see the PLO's status as the "sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people" as directly threatened by the group. They are also concerned about the group's extreme stances that it has adopted since its founding, particularly its opposition to recognizing Israel's right to exist and commitment to the "armed struggle" against Israel. The representatives of the Palestinian expatriates maintain that former PLO leader Yasser Arafat was not entitled to "give up 80% of the lands of Palestine" when he recognized Israel's right to exist. Furthermore, they contend that Arafat had no right to abandon the "armed struggle" by purportedly amending the PLO's Charter shortly after the signing of the Oslo Accords. They further state that the PLO leadership is not authorized to surrender Palestinian refugees' and their descendants' "right of return" to their former homes within Israel. Accusing Abbas of "hijacking" and "weakening" the PLO, the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad has demanded extensive reforms in the PLO, but to no avail. Two of the group's declared objectives are "engaging the Zionist enterprise" and "supporting the resistance" inside the West Bank and Gaza Strip. A standard definition of "resistance" is the use of violence by Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and other terrorist groups against Israel. Abbas claims he favors only peaceful "popular resistance" against Israel and therefore views the group's commitment to the "armed struggle" as a challenge to him personally. Given that the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad was established in Istanbul, PA officials surmise that Turkey, together with Qatar, is its primary backer. Qatar and Turkey have supported and encouraged Hamas, an offshoot of the Muslim Brotherhood Organization, for a considerable amount of time. Currently, the offices of the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad are located at the Al-Zaytouna Centre for Studies and Consultation in the Lebanese capital of Beirut, where the Iran-backed Hizbullah terrorist militia exists as a state-within-a-state. Since the start of the Israel-Hamas war, the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad has voiced support for the Palestinian "resistance" in the Gaza Strip and called on the Palestinians to utilize the worldwide support for the Palestinians, especially on U.S. college campuses, to intensify the diplomatic and legal campaign against Israel in the international arena. For now, it does not seem that the representatives of the Palestinians abroad are interested in taking on any role in overseeing the affairs of the Gaza Strip after the war. Instead, they believe the Palestinians should invest their energies and resources in pursuing an international campaign to delegitimize and isolate Israel. In addition, they demand a complete overhaul of the Palestinian political structure, which would involve the ouster of the 88-year-old Abbas and the majority of his associates. On June 28, 2024, some 200 representatives of the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad convened in Istanbul to engage in a symposium centered on the aftermath of Hamas's October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. Speakers at the parley agreed that the attack catalyzed "achievements" gained by the Palestinians, including anti-Israel student demonstrations in the United States, a rise in international attention to the Palestinian cause, a "schism" that has split Israeli society over the war, and the issue of the 120 Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip. It is difficult to see how Abbas or any other Palestinian leader can ignore the voices of Palestinian expatriates. These Palestinians are sending a message to Abbas and other Palestinian leaders that they are not authorized to sign any peace agreement or make any concessions to Israel on behalf of millions of Palestinians abroad whose views seem to be more aggressive towards Israel. Khaled Abu Toameh is an award-winning Israeli Arab journalist, lecturer, and documentary filmmaker specializing in Palestinian affairs. A Senior Distinguished Fellow at the Gatestone Institute and a Fellow of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, he has also worked as a senior producer for NBC in the Middle East and has reported on events in the West Bank and Gaza for several media outlets. Home HA NOI Vietnamese businesses need to proactively apply science and technology, as well as intellectual property as a lever in their development strategy to promote production in a green and environmentally friendly direction, said Luu Hoang Long, director of the Department of Intellectual Property under the Ministry of Science and Technology. Innovation towards net zero is gradually being targeted by the business community in the context of complex climate change developments. The journey towards net zero affirms the urgency in applying science and technology to businesses' production to contribute to implementing commitments at the 26th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on climate change (COP26). Long said innovation is a process of continuous movement, while intellectual property is the result of the innovation process. It also serves as a catalyst and an input to promote innovation. Intellectual property is the foundation and used as a tool to encourage innovation in each country, leading to different developments depending on each country's factors. To realise Viet Nams net zero commitment by 2050, it is necessary to create policy mechanisms that directly impact businesses on the journey towards net zero, he said. Nguyen Quan, chairman of the Vietnam Automation Association, said smart and green production along with innovation are not just trends, but also key factors for businesses to succeed in the digital era. Thanks to the combination of operational technology and information technology, smart manufacturing and green manufacturing have helped businesses increase efficiency, optimise green production processes and enhance their competitive position, he said. The net zero commitment is the key for businesses to transition to sustainable business models. This is also the premise for each business to improve its competitiveness and meet the requirements of international economic integration. Commitment to sustainable development of businesses and application of digital technology is an important premise to ensure that total national greenhouse gas emissions reaches zero net emissions by 2050, he said. According to Long, in each country, intellectual property brings both challenges and opportunities for innovation activities, directly impacting the implementation of sustainable development goals. In Viet Nam, policies and laws on intellectual property have been basically completed. The Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Intellectual Property Law contributes to promoting innovation based on intellectual property rights, improving the capacity to exploit intellectual property rights. Many provinces, cities, universities, research institutes and large enterprises have policies to support and promote the development of intellectual property and encourage the creation, protection and application of new technical solutions. That has increased the number of patent applications submitted to the Intellectual Property Office. VNS HA NOI Deputy Prime Minister Tran Luu Quang has signed a decision to approve the planning of a maritime port system and storm shelter areas for fishing boats. According to the plan, ports and storm shelter areas for fishing boats are identified as critical components of the fishery sector infrastructure, both economically and socially. They are considered one of three strategic breakthroughs, requiring investment to ensure efficient fishery exploitation, economic and social development and social security, while improving the material and spiritual life of the people. The plan, for the period 2021 - 2030, with a vision to 2050, is all part of work to modernise the fishing industry infrastructure, to better meet the needs of logistics services and ensure food hygiene and safety. It should reduce post-harvest losses and guarantee the safety for fishing vessels and fishermen, as well as improve the effectiveness of fisheries management, enhance international integration, adapt to climate change and protect the environment and marine ecosystem and contribute to ensuring national defence and security. The specific goal is that by 2030, there will be a complete system of ports under effective operation and storm shelters for fishing vessels on a nationwide scale. The industrialised and modernised system needs to meet the needs of anchorage, fisheries logistics services and has to be developed in an integrated direction, increasing the value of exploitation. The fishing port system ensures a throughput of 2.98 million tonnes of seafood per year (including 100 per cent of exploited seafood output and a part of marine aquaculture output), ensure the implementation of fisheries management, meeting the requirements for tracing the origin of exploited aquatic products and preventing illegal fishing activities. The system of shelters for fishing vessels ensures that over 83,600 fishing vessels will be able to safely anchor and be protected from storms. All fishing ports and shelter areas must be allocated land and water use according to Articles 78 and 84 of the 2017 Fisheries Law. Additionally, key domestic and international trade hubs will be set up to drive the development of fishery industrial zones, coastal economic zones and major fishing centres linked to key fishing grounds, enhancing the fishery sector's efficiency and sustainability. Infrastructure and capacity of fishing ports will be improved to meet the needs of fisheries logistics, ensure food safety and hygiene and integrate economic development, tourism, culture, society, environmental sanitation, new rural construction and national defence and security in appropriate places. All type I fishery ports in major fishing centres to be built with complete, modern infrastructure with 90 per cent mechanised cargo handling systems. All type II fishery ports to have synchronised infrastructure with 70 per cent mechanised cargo handling systems. Digital management From the period 2021 - 2025, the plan will focus on completing the infrastructure of type I fishing ports at five major fishing centres and storm shelters for regions where most vessels are frequently anchored, fishing port projects and storm shelters for fishing vessels on islands and projects associated with national defence and security. By 2050, a modern, comprehensive fishery port system comparable to major ports globally will be developed meeting green port criteria, with type I fishery ports in major fishing centres acting as international gateways and key links in the global fishery value chain, with high competitiveness. According to the plan, the five major fishing centres will be developed in: Hai Phong City linking to the Gulf of Tonkin fishing ground in Lap Le and Thuy Nguyen districts; a Nang linking to the East Sea and Hoang Sa fishing ground in Tho Quang Ward, Son Tra District; Khanh Hoa Province connecting to the South Central Coast and Truong Sa fishing ground in Cam Linh Ward, Cam Ranh City; Ba Ria - Vung Tau Province linking to the Southeast Coast fishing ground in Long Son Commune, Vung Tau City; and Kien Giang Province linking to the Southwest Coast fishing ground in Tay Yen A Commune, An Bien Sistrict, and Binh An Commune, Chau Thanh District. By 2030, the country should have 173 fishery ports, including 39 type I, 80 type II, and 54 type III ports, with a total capacity of 2.983 million tonnes of fishery products annually and 160 storm shelter areas for fishing boats, including 30 regional and 130 provincial-level shelters, with harbour space for about 90,600 fishing boats. Spending on the plan will come from central and local budgets and private investment. VNS KHANH HOA A Chinese seaman who was in distress and injured at sea has been saved by Vietnamese marine rescuers. He was brought to land by the Viet Nam Maritime Search and Rescue Coordination Centre team and is now recovering in hospital, where his condition is said to be stable. The sailor, 37, was working on the boat when there was an accident and he severed his finger. At 7.30pm on Saturday, the centre received signals from the Chinese ship Xin Dan Yang Ship, which was travelling from China to Singapore. When it arrived in an area, which is 30 nautical miles east of Nha Trang City, the captain reported an emergency. Immediately upon receiving the SOS call from the ship, the centre kept in regular contact and directly worked with the crew to update the patient's condition and provide guidance on initial medical aids to ensure the sailors life. However, his condition became increasingly worse due to heavy bleeding, leading to difficulty breathing, continuous high fever and weak health. Under the direction of the National Committee for Disaster Response, Search and Rescue, the Ministry of Transport, and the Viet Nam Maritime Administration, the centre assigned a ship permanently stationed in Nha Trang City and a medical emergency team to perform supportive work. Sailor Liang Fengshan was brought to the Khanh Hoa Provincial General Hospital for treatment at 11.50pm on the same day. VNS HCM CITY In recent days, many residents of HCM City have been attacked by rove beetles, a type of insect that thrives during the rainy season. Every year during the rainy season, Tran Thi Thanh Linh's family in Thu uc City in HCM City suffers from rove beetles. "Almost every year, our family gets dermatitis due to the toxin of rove beetles. Some years, all three members of my family are affected. Mild cases result in small areas of dermatitis that usually clear up in about 10 to 14 days with topical treatment. However, last year my husband had a severe case with widespread dermatitis and high fever, and he had to be hospitalised," Linh recounted. She added that not only her family but many residents in her apartment building have also been attacked by rove beetles. Bringing her son to the HCM City Dermatology Hospital, Pham Ngoc Loan, a resident of an apartment building in District 8, said that recently, there have been many rove beetles in her home. She shared, "My son thought they were normal ants and killed them with his bare hands. Without realising it, he then touched his face. The next morning, his eyes were swollen, filled with pus, and red, with blisters on his ears. We tried over-the-counter medication, but it didn't help, so I brought him to the hospital." Dr Pham Thi Uyen Nhi, deputy head of the General Planning Department at HCM City Dermatology Hospital, stated that recently, the hospital has received many cases of contact dermatitis due to rove beetles. On average, 50-70 cases are treated daily. Many patients arrive in a severe condition after trying folk remedies or seeking treatment at unreliable facilities, which leads to secondary infections and worsens the condition, the doctor said. In fact, many people confuse the symptoms of shingles with contact dermatitis caused by rove beetles, as they have similar characteristics. According to the doctor, the rainy season's temperature and humidity create favourable conditions for rove beetles to reproduce and thrive. Rove beetles prefer dry places, so during the rainy season, they tend to enter homes. The pederin toxin in rove beetles can cause blisters and varying degrees of dermatitis, from mild to severe. The condition can spread if the wound is not properly cared for or scratched. To minimise the toxin of rove beetles, people should first wash the affected area with water gently, without rubbing too hard, to remove as much of the beetle's toxin as possible. People should also avoid scratching, rubbing, or breaking the blisters caused by rove beetles as it can inadvertently spread the toxin and worsen the condition. If large blisters and spreading lesions appear, they should visit a hospital or specialist for specific oral and topical medications. Nhi also said that when affected by the toxin of rove beetles, people should not apply leaves, homemade remedies, or unknown medications. This not only fails to improve the condition but can also worsen the dermatitis, potentially leading to infection and more extensive lesions. Rove beetles are particularly attracted to electric lights, especially fluorescent lights. Doctors recommend that during the rainy season, residents should install insect screens, reduce indoor lighting to avoid attracting rove beetles, and keep their homes clean, especially areas where insects can hide, such as door crevices and damp corners. Locals should avoid drying clothes outdoors at night to help prevent rove beetles from entering homes as well. VNS TOKYO The Viet Nam-Japan digital transformation association (VADX JAPAN) made its debut in Tokyo on July 7. It is expected to become a platform connecting Vietnamese businesses operating in the information technology (IT) sector in Japan, while promoting cooperation and sharing advanced technology initiatives and solutions between the two countries. Ambassador Pham Quang Hieu emphasised that since 2005, when the first Vietnamese IT company opened its branch in Japan, there have been by now over 60 companies that have established branches or started new operation in the East Asian country. The establishment of VADX JAPAN marks a significant milestone in the strong growth of Vietnamese IT enterprises in Japan, characterised by developments in reputation, quality, workforce scale, revenue, and future development opportunities, he stressed, expressing his hope that in the coming time, it will help Vietnamese IT enterprises in Japan advance further with a determination to lead in promoting digital transformation and making practical contributions to the two countries cooperation, for the benefits of the two peoples. VADX JAPAN Chairman o Van Khac affirmed that the association is not only a hub connecting businesses involved in digital transformation and innovation, but also aims to become a robust bridge for bringing technological initiatives and solutions from Viet Nam to Japan and vice versa. Additionally, IT enterprises from both countries will have ample opportunities to collaborate, contributing significantly to enhancing and improving the quality of IT workforce currently in shortage in Japan. VADX JAPAN will organise activities to promote innovation, technology transfer, research and development, and application of advanced digital technologies for its members. As for human resources development, it aims to build a contingent of tens of thousands of high-quality engineers in Japan and hundreds of thousands of proficient Japanese-speaking engineers in Vietnam. This effort seeks to help alleviate Japan's labour shortage, estimated to reach nearly 800,000 people by 2030 according to data from the Ministry of Economy, Trade, and Industry of Japan, stated Khac. According to VADX JAPAN's assessment, Japan's demand for software development outsourcing is estimated at over 30 billion USD annually, while currently Vietnamese IT enterprises only hold a 6-7% market share. Therefore, the potential and long-term opportunities for them in Japan remain big. The association aims to achieve a total revenue of 1 trillion JPY (approximately US$7 billion) of Vietnamese IT enterprises in Japan by 2033. This goal underscores their ambition to become a reputable and strong organisation, making significant contributions to the digital and green transformation of both countries. VNS VINH PHUC The eighth Red Journey of Vinh Phuc Province is underway with hopes that 8,000 donors will heed the call and donate 5,100 units of blood by the end of July. The blood donation push started on Sunday with the Central Red Journey Organiser and the provincial steering committee for voluntary blood donation. Speaking at the opening ceremony, Chairman of the Vinh Phuc Red Cross Society Tran Phu Phuong said that in recent years, the voluntary blood donation campaign had become something culturally beautiful for all local people and its popularity had spread. He asked for all State employees, armed forces and workers to continue promoting the spirit of kindness and actively participate in the donation programme. This year is the eighth consecutive year that Vinh Phuc Province has joined in the Red Journey, attracting a large number of people from all walks of life. Over seven previous donation campaigns, the province has collected more than 16,000 units of blood. From the start of the year, the province has organised 39 voluntary blood donation sessions, attracting more than 12,000 people and collecting more than 11,000 units of blood, thereby overcoming and limiting blood shortage for emergency and treatment in the area. Le Lam, Deputy Director of the National Institute of Hematology and Blood Transfusion and also Deputy Head of the National Steering Committee for Voluntary Blood Donation, said that after 11 years, 58 provinces and cities have participated in the Red Journey. Millions of people volunteered to donate blood and total donations have exceeded 815,000 units of blood. The Red Journey had gone beyond a simple voluntary blood donation programme and had become a profound social activity, a symbol of compassion and compatriotism, he said. At the opening ceremony, a total of 52 individuals, four families and 18 groups were honoured for their outstanding achievements in blood donation this year. They included Phung uc Viet, a worker from PHflex Vina Co Ltd who has donated blood 30 times and Nguyen Thi Bich Thuong, a teacher at the Xuan Hoa Junior Secondary School in Phuc Yen City, who has donated blood 35 times. Along with couple Nguyen Van Hien and Ho Thi Hong Gam in Xuan Hoa Ward, Phuc Yen City, who have together donated blood nearly 100 times, Hien 45 times and Gam 48 times. VNS HCM CITY Social networks are a powerful tool for healthcare facilities and healthcare professionals to disseminate medical knowledge, promote accurate medical information and increase public awareness of risk factors and pathologies, a roundtable has heard. Vu Manh Cuong, director of the health ministrys National Centre for Health Education and Communication, told the roundtable held by the HCM City University Medical Centre on Saturday that Vietnamese spend an average of two hours and 33 minutes on social networks every day. So it makes eminent sense for health facilities to use digital channels to communicate with patients and share knowledge and information on them and prevent the spread of misinformation, he said. Top hospital managers and healthcare professionals need to acknowledge the role of social media influencers in helping promote medical information and improve public health, he added. Nguyen Van Thang Long, a lecturer at RMIT Vietnam, said around 66 per cent of healthcare facilities use traditional methods to disseminate information to patients, with a focus on statistics and medical jargon. But on social media, which attracts large numbers, misinformation is rampant, he lamented. Healthcare facilities need to transform contents into inspiring stories to attract the public and help healthcare professionals communicate on digital channels, he added. VNS HA NOI The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Viet Nam co-chaired a policy dialogue conference in Ha Noi on Monday to discuss enhancing international cooperation and multi-sectoral coordination in circular economy in agriculture. Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Phung uc Tien highlighted Viet Nam's commitment to a circular economy, pointing to existing policies and directives, including Article 142 of the 2020 Law on Environmental Protection. The agricultural sector has promoted the application and implementation of circular agriculture, explicitly addressed in the 2021-30 strategy for sustainable agriculture and rural development (with a vision to 2050), and a scheme promoting the application and transfer of sci-tech for a circular agricultural economy by 2030, he said. Ramla Khalidi, UNDP Resident Representative in Viet Nam, commended the country's efforts to fulfil its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) - commitments made under the Paris Agreement. She acknowledged the multifaceted benefits of circular agriculture addressing climate change goals, enhancing economic competitiveness, and protecting human health and ecosystems. She called for stronger collaboration to build and perform circular economy policies. This includes ensuring equitable investment allocation, fostering knowledge sharing and cooperation, and leveraging the power of agricultural value chains and sci-tech for communication campaigns to raise awareness. UNDP, she reaffirmed, remains committed to supporting the Vietnamese Government in this journey. Representatives from international and non-governmental organisations, the private sector, ministries and agencies shared insights on international cooperation mechanisms, interdisciplinary coordination to promote circular agriculture practices, and successful case studies. Participants underlined public-private partnerships in driving the success of circular agriculture, with the private sector applying sci-tech to advance relevant initiatives. VNS The initiative is aimed at enhancing patriotism and national pride in Vietnamese youth, promoting the effectiveness of information and propaganda activities of the Youth Union, and providing aid to the people in the southern region. The partnership aims to further Amway Vietnam's corporate social responsibility activities, continuing its mission of serving the community. The activities will revolve around supporting patriotism and national pride, including donating 400 framed maps of Vietnam to local youth unions of the northern midlands cluster and some northern cities and provinces, as part of a campaign launched by the Youth Union to instil pride in local mountain ranges and rivers. Efforts are also being made to promote the effectiveness of information and propaganda activities through the funding package to upgrade the Electronic Information Portal website, which can be found at doanthanhnien.vn. In addition, support will also be provided to drought-afflicted rural areas. Amway Vietnam will donate 60 two-thousand-litre domestic water tanks in Can Tho, An Giang, and Tra Vinh provinces to help address water shortages. The company will also donate one alum water purifier system and 10 school drinking water purifiers to Tay Ninh province. The two parties will expand the cooperation to other cities and provinces nationwide next year. Amway continues nutrition mission Amway Vietnam and the Ministry of Health have signed a memorandum of understanding to expand the formers ongoing programme to provide micronutrients to 85,000 children in Nghe An and Ha Giang provinces in order to combat Vietnams childhood malnutrition. Thriving on stronger US-Vietnam relations With both sides preparing to celebrate a quarter-century of ever-closer friendship between the United States and Vietnam, Amway Vietnam general manager Huynh Thien Trieu talked to VIRs Hara Nguyen about the future ahead in the country. Vietnam Maritime Research and Rescue Coordination Centres staff provide check-ups for the Chinese sailor before brought him ashore for emergency treatment. (Photo: VNA) Khanh Hoa - The Vietnam Maritime Research and Rescue Coordination Centre (Vietnam MRCC) said on July 7 that it had rescued a 37-year-old Chinese sailor on board an oil tanker of China, who was injured in a serious occupational accident. The Chinese-flagged ship, Xin Dan Yang, which was en route from China to Singapore, sent out a call for help when it was sailing in the waters about 30 nautical miles east of the coast of Nha Trang on July 6 evening. Right after receiving the information, the centre guided its crew in providing first aid for the victim whose left thumb was cut off and kept bleeding. However, the mans condition worsened due to blood loss, and he suffered from breathing difficulty and high fever. The centre dispatched vessel SAR 273 with doctors aboard to the ship. The victim was brought ashore and transferred to Khanh Hoa province General Hospital at midnight for emergency treatment. He is now in stable condition. Indonesian comatose sailor brought ashore for treatment Vietnams maritime search and rescue force on December 21 successfully brought an Indonesia sailor with coma and cerebral haemorrhage onboard a Greek vessel to a health station in the central province of Khanh Hoa for treatment. RoK launches search for missing Vietnamese sailor Segye Ilbo newspaper and busanmbc.co.kr of the Republic of Korea (RoK) reported on August 29 that a Vietnamese sailor has gone missing from a Vietnamese cargo ship and the countrys Coast Guard has launched a search for him. Support Us Your Support will ensure EPWs financial viability and sustainability. The EPW produces independent and public-spirited scholarship and analyses of contemporary affairs every week. EPW is one of the few publications that keep alive the spirit of intellectual inquiry in the Indian media. Often described as a publication with a social conscience, EPW has never shied away from taking strong editorial positions. Our publication is free from political pressure, or commercial interests. Our editorial independence is our pride. We rely on your support to continue the endeavour of highlighting the challenges faced by the disadvantaged, writings from the margins, and scholarship on the most pertinent issues that concern contemporary Indian society. Every contribution is valuable for our future. Following the signing of the MoU on July 3, Hoan My and Abbott Vietnam will implement a cardiac risk stratification scheme using the High Sensitivity Tropoin-I RS blood test. This will help doctors diagnose and predict the risk of future cardiac events and make timely treatment decisions. The collaborative initiative also includes deploying the Alinity i mTBI test to assist doctors in assessing brain damage in patients with suspected mild traumatic brain injury and help reduce the rate of unnecessary CT scans. This will allow doctors to make more timely treatment decisions and optimise care for patients. Hoan My and Abbott Vietnam will also build diabetic care programmes and improve treatment outcomes for diabetic patients through comprehensive cardiovascular risk management, early detection, and treatment of diabetic retinopathy. They will also implement joint nutrition interventions for inpatients and outpatients which will help to reduce hospital stays, treatment costs, and readmission rates for patients. In addition, the two sides will deploy a Clinical Decision Support system. This uses AI to help the medical team improve clinical management. It also contributes to improved health screening by categorising patients based on data analysis, applying risk assessment algorithms, and providing better clinical interpretation. The companies will further collaborate on public education programmes specifically for at-risk groups about infectious diseases that require early diagnosis, such as influenza, dengue, HIV, hepatitis B and C, and chronic diseases, such as heart diseases and diabetes. "Our partnership with Abbott Vietnam is an important step in setting the highest standards for healthcare in Vietnam," said Dilshaad Ali Bin Abas Ali, group CEO of Hoan My Medical Group. "This collaboration will help to improve the diagnosis and treatment of non-communicable diseases, which account for over three-quarters of total deaths in Vietnam. Hoan My is committed to investing in technology, facilities, and expertise to raise healthcare outcomes in this country." Hoan My Academy forms partnership with Frankfurt School of Finance & Management Hoan My Academy is partnering with the Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, one of Europes top providers of finance and management training, to provide specialised hospital management training. Hoan My partners with Singapore group to enhance quality of treatment Hoan My Medical Group, Vietnams largest private healthcare network, and The Specialists Collective (TSC), a Singapore-headquartered medical group, have signed an MoU with the aim of enhancing the quality of medical diagnosis and treatment in Vietnam for a range of diseases and conditions, focusing on cardiovascular and neurovascular care. During the official visit to South Korea last week, under the witness of Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, Vice Chairman of Bac Ninh Peoples Committee Vuong Quoc Tuan handed an investment certificate to Amkor Technology Singapore Holdings on factory adjustments for manufacturing, assembling, and testing semiconductor materials and equipment. Inflows picking up the pace for semiconductors, illustration photo/ Source: freepik.com Soon after putting the first phase project into operation, the semiconductor industry giant decided to raise its investment by $1.07 billion, the first billion-dollar foreign-invested project in 2024. This was the highlight of foreign direct investment (FDI) as reported in the first half of the year as revealed by the Foreign Investment Agency under the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI). Amkors additional registered investment in June has captured 47.3 per cent of the total additional investment in six months ($3.95 billion), an increase of 35 per cent on year, instead of continuously decreasing in previous months. In the previous plan, Amkor intended to spend $1.6 billion by 2035, but after the inauguration last October, the company decided to carry out it as soon as possible. Amkor received the investment registration certificate in 2021 in South Korea with an investment of about $530 million, which is expected to be disbursed in five years. Amkor is headquartered in the United States and founded by South Koreans, but invests in Vietnam through various legal entities in Singapore. Semiconductors are heating up FDI inflows into Vietnam. Despite being on a downtrend, global investment flows are still interested in Asia and into emerging industries, which will impact the FDI inflows into Vietnam. In the time coming, FDI into high-tech fields and semiconductor chips will get more dynamic, said Luong Van Khoi, vice chairman of the Central Institute for Economic Management under the MPI. The wave of investing in semiconductor chips has been speeding up since last year, when numerous US investors arrived in Vietnam and expressed their interest in semiconductors. At the meeting with Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung in the US at the end of June, Richard Lawton Thurston, former vice president of Taiwans TSMC, the largest semiconductor manufacturer in the world, said that Vietnam has a huge opportunity to develop the semiconductor and AI industry. AI development needs many different technologies, including sensors, memory, data collection, and processing. Therefore, Vietnam should choose one of the stages to focus on developing and building a strategy, Thurston said. Thurston has assisted many companies and governments in establishing and managing technology parks around the world. The MPI minister asked Thurston to share his experiences in developing the semiconductor industry in Vietnam, and provide recommendations for developing it, especially in terms of human resource development and investment promotion. Minister Dung also asked Thurston to support connections, welcome TSMC to invest in Vietnam, and invite him to be an advisor to Vietnam in the semiconductor industry. Thurston declared he will cooperate and attempt to support the implementation of the ministers proposals. He accepted the invitation to act as an advisor to Vietnam in developing plans and roadmaps for the semiconductor industry development. The semiconductor industry produces electronic components based on semiconductors such as silicon, quartz, gallium arsenide, and other materials. The development of IT, telecommunications, AI, and self-driving cars has increased demand for semiconductor components. South Korea to invest $7 billion in AI by 2027 South Korea will invest almost $7 billion in artificial intelligence by 2027 in an effort to become a global leader in cutting-edge semiconductors, President Yoon Suk Yeol said Tuesday. A strengthened high-tech workforce for semiconductors Vietnam has plenty of work to do if it wants to become a true global hub for semiconductor manufacturing. Dr. Quan Le, principal investigator for the Semiconductor Workforce Development Research Grant under Fulbright University Vietnam, covered the potential for Vietnam and how to reach it with VIRs Vy Vy. Technology giants keen to embrace gifted engineers Many excellent Vietnamese students could soon have opportunities to improve their knowledge and work in microchips and semiconductors at research and development centres of tech groups such as Samsung and Hana Micron. Malaysia's Leader Energy Holding Berhad (Leader Energy), a wholly owned subsidiary of HNG Capital, signed the deal on July 8. The agreement marks the bank's second transaction with Leader Energy in Vietnam, following the financing of a hydropower plant in 2017. HSBC is acting as the sole lender of the seven-year loan, which Leader Energy will use to support the refinancing of Vinh Hao 6 (VH6), a newly acquired 50MW solar power plant. Located in the central province of Binh Thuan, the project entered into commercial operation in 2019, generating all its revenue from the sale of electricity to Vietnam Electricity with a feed-in tariff of 9.35 cents/kwh under a 20-year Power Purchase Agreement. The project generates 83,000MWh and offsets over 75,130 tons of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions a year. VH6 has been fully owned by Leader Energy since last year, reaffirming the company's commitment to more than 500MW of renewable energy assets in Vietnam. The deal also showcases the renewable energy potential of Vietnam, given the government's pledge to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. Following this commitment made at COP26, Vietnam is aiming to focus on energy transition, as the sector accounts for more than half of its GHG emissions. Furthermore, the country's natural resources offer the potential of attracting more investment for the renewable energy sector here. Jenny Ng, group CFO of Leader Energy, said, "We are pleased with the successful refinancing of our VH6 as the arrangement, secured through HSBC Vietnam with the close collaboration of HSBC Malaysia, has provided more favourable terms." "This financial decision demonstrates our ability to commit to being partners in Vietnam's energy transition. We are expanding our renewable energy portfolio here to help the country fulfil its commitment to achieving its net-zero goal by 2050," he added. Ahmed Yeganeh, country head of Wholesale Banking, HSBC Vietnam said, "We are proud to continue supporting Leader Energy in its efforts to decarbonise Vietnam's energy sector and this deal demonstrates how the financial sector can play an active role in unlocking the renewable energy potential of the country." US applauds Vietnam for approving DPPA decree The United States Mission to Vietnam has applauded the government for approving a decree on the direct power purchase agreement. Dutch bank to pump $30 million in renewables in Southeast Asia Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (FMO) has proposed to place $30 million into greenfield renewable energy platform Sustainable Asia Renewable Assets (SARA). The identity of the buyer at the auction in Fontainebleau south of Paris of the finely adorned objects was not made public but the final sale price, with fees, was above the estimates of 1.2-1.5 million euros. This photograph shows a box containing two pistols, which belonged to Emperor Napoleon I, during the preview before their auction, in Paris on June 18, 2024. The sale LEmpire a Fontainebleau, organised by both Rossini and Osenat auction houses, will take place on July 7, 2024 in Fontainebleau. Geoffroy VAN DER HASSELT / AFP Ahead of the sale of the weapons, the national treasures commission of the French culture ministry had classified the objects as national treasures and placed a ban on their export, in a decision published in the government's official journal on Saturday. The issuing of the export ban certificate opens a 30-month period during which the French government can make a purchase offer to the unidentified new owner, who has the right to refuse. Whatever its value and age, a cultural property qualified as a national treasure can leave France only temporarily, with a mandatory return. "Being classified as a national treasure gives an incredible value to the object," said a representative of the Osenat auction house, asking not to be named. The richly decorated guns inlaid with gold and silver feature the engraved image of Napoleon in full imperial pomp. They are said to have almost been used to end the French ruler's life in 1814, when he was forced to give up power after foreign forces defeated his army and occupied Paris. "After the defeat of the French campaign, he was totally depressed and wanted to commit suicide with these weapons but his grand squire removed the powder," auction house expert Jean-Pierre Osenat told AFP ahead of the sale. Napoleon instead took poison but vomited and survived, and later gave the pistols to his squire to thank him for his loyalty, Osenat added. Memorabilia of the emperor is extremely sought after among collectors. One of his famous "bicorne" black cocked hats with its blue, white and red trimmings sold for 1.9 million euros in November. Upon his abdication, Napoleon went into exile on the island of Elba off the coast of Italy. He would soon make a dramatic return to France, only to have his career definitively ended when he was defeated by the British at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, dying in exile on the island of St Helena six years later. Nguyen Thi Mai, aged 48, is busted in the crackdown. (Photo: VNA) Tay Ninh - A recent crackdown on a drug trafficking ring from Cambodia to Vietnam led to the arrest of a woman and the seizure of around 2kg of synthetic drugs in the southeastern province of Tay Ninh, the local police said on July 4. Besides, the force also confiscated 25 million VND (over 980 USD), an electronic scale, and many other things related to the case while raiding the house of Nguyen Thi Mai, 48, in Truong Dong commune, Hoa Thanh district, on July 3. Mai said she bought the drugs from a Cambodian via Telegram platform, then sold them in small packages to addicts in Hoa Thanh and other localities. The police are expanding investigations. Quang Tri Airport spans across 265 hectares within Gio Quang, Gio Hai, and Gio Mai communes of Gio Linh district, with a total investment capital of VND5.8 trillion ($228.3 million). Quang Tri Airport will be developed to meet the standards of a level 4C airport defined by the International Civil Aviation Organisation and a level II military airport, with the capability to accommodate code E aircraft for parking. Additionally, it will fulfill the operational requirements for approximately five million passengers per year and handle a cargo capacity of 25,500 tonnes annually. The project will be carried out for 50 years. Among them, it takes 24 months for preparation and construction and 47 years and two months for operation and toll collection to recoup the investment. The construction of the airport is slated to be completed in July 2026. The project was approved for investment and construction under the public-private partnership model as per Decision No. 2148/QD-TTg issued in December 2021. The airport is expected to meet the soaring demand for air transport, contributing to local socioeconomic development. At the same time, the project aims to ensure high mobility in military operations and disaster relief efforts in the central region in general and Quang Tri in particular. Vo Van Hung, Chairman of Quang Tri Peoples Committee, said, Quang Tri Airport will improve connectivity with the transport infrastructure in place, such as Cam Lo - La Son Expressway, National Highway No.15D, the Trans-Asia road linking Laos and Thailand, the coastal road project connecting the East-West economic corridor, and My Thuy - Dong Ha - Lao Bao Railway. Quang Tri Airport is an important aspect of the local transport network, boosting local socioeconomic development. Addressing the ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Le Thanh Long said he appreciated Quang Tri Peoples Committee, the Ministry of Transport, and relevant agencies for overcoming obstacles and facilitating the airport project. The DPM requested the province assist investors, construction and consultancy units during the project's implementation to ensure site clearance and resettlement works were on track. Inter-agency appraisal council for Quang Tri Airport established The prime minister on October 12 signed Decision No.1196/QD-TTg to establish an inter-agency appraisal council for the feasibility study on Quang Tri Airport. Quang Tri airport project launched A ceremony was held in Dong Ha city in the central province of Quang Tri on December 15 to launch a project to build an airport in the province. At the "Michelin Guide Ceremony in Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Danang 2024" at the InterContinental Saigon Hotel, Ho Chi Minh City on June 27, Vietnam House Restaurant once again affirmed its brand and quality by continuing to appear in the Michelin Selected 2024 list. Located inside an ancient villa at the corner of Dong Khoi and Mac Thi Buoi streets, Ho Chi Minh City, the restaurant serves contemporary Vietnamese dishes, honouring the traditional beauty of Vietnamese cuisine with international influences. Vietnam House Restaurant's traditional cuisine Pursuing a path of culinary creativity, Vietnam House Restaurant's mission is not only to provide delicious meals, but also to inspire and preserve the profound values of traditional Vietnamese cuisine. The restaurant's menu is a culinary journey throughout Vietnam, paying full respect to the regional cultural features. "We are very proud that Vietnam House Restaurant has been honoured with the Michelin Selected award for two consecutive years. This is both a milestone achievement for the restaurant's name and a motivation for me and my colleagues to strive together. Our goal is to maintain the stability of the dishes that many customers love on the menu, while continuously creating new, high-quality, and sophisticated dishes to meet customers' tastes," said Trinh Dinh Vinh, executive chef of Vietnam House Restaurant. Proud to be the only restaurant from the Michelin Selected 2023 list to be upgraded to 1 Michelin Star, the award for The Royal Pavilion, restaurant of The Reverie Saigon, comes on the occasion of its 10th anniversary, preserving the pure and sophisticated Cantonese flavours of the restaurant. The Royal Pavilion is honoured to receive the award Michelin Guide 2023 and 1 Michelin Star 2024 "We are honoured to receive the award for two consecutive years, Michelin Guide 2023 and 1 Michelin Star 2024, I am truly grateful and moved because our efforts are recognised by customers and honoured by the international culinary council. This is evidence of our commitment to providing a complete experience between the excellence of the dishes and the serious commitment to meticulous service and dining environment at our restaurant," said Wong Fu Keung, executive chef of The Royal Pavilion. Cantonese flavours of the restaurant On this special occasion, the restaurant is launching a special menu introducing a luxurious culinary journey with 10 renowned dishes. "This award opens up many opportunities as well as challenges for The Royal Pavilion to set bigger goals and bring unimaginable experiences to customers on the journey of Cantonese cuisine," Wong said. The Reverie Saigon featured in international travel magazine The Saigon Suite at The Reverie Saigon was listed in the12 Penthouse Perches to Swoon Over by Travel + Leisure. The suite was listed amongst 11 other hotel suites from around the globe. Michelin stars shine at The Reverie Saigon The Michelin-starred husband and wife duo Rupert and Carrie Blease from San Francisco restaurant Lord Stanley bring their award-winning, European-inspired cuisine to The Reverie Saigon from July 4 to 7, 2018. VIB is the first local bank to leverage AWS Skill Builder, strengthening and enhancing its cloud computing capabilities. The move is part of VIBs Cloud First strategy, which involves continued investment in employees' upskilling and reskilling, thus ensuring it meets commitments to providing a modern, safe, and convenient set of products and services with the best customer experiences. The integration means VIB's employees will have access to more than 600 free courses and learning plans that cover more than 30 AWS services from foundation to advanced levels. Employees can also access hands-on, interactive courses on how to innovate on AWS Cloud, including practical AI, machine learning, security, database, and storage concepts. Eric Yeo, country general manager of AWS Vietnam, shared, At AWS, we want to help equip organisations with the skills to leverage the cloud, by empowering learners of all levels to build with confidence, and innovate in the digital world to drive transformation. We are heartened by VIB's vision to invest in their employees, and delighted that VIB is the first local Vietnamese bank to implement AWS Skill Builder. Tran Nhat Minh, deputy CEO and head of VIBs Digital Banking Division, stated, Working with AWS on this training project, VIB has not only invested in developing a high-quality cloud computing workforce through specialised training programmes, but has also committed to providing modern, safe, and convenient products and services with the best customer experience, affirming VIB's leading position in technology. Enhancing cloud computing capabilities Incorporating AWS Skill Builder into VIBs employee training programme is part of VIBs strategy to enhance its human resource capabilities through four main pillars: (1) Focusing on high-quality international standard initiatives, including a modern training system operating on a SaaS platform; (2) Developing internationally standardised training programmes directly linked to work processes; (3) Enhancing digital transformation and cloud computing capabilities; (4) Achieving sustainable development based on superior management and operational tools, and an advanced organisational culture. Since 2020, VIB has been transitioning its infrastructure and applications to the cloud and has seen great results, launching over 10 apps on AWS, with the number expected to exceed 30 apps including core banking applications over the next three years. Building on AWS Cloud has also helped VIB speed up product development by an average of 35 per cent, and improve cost savings by about 23 per cent. During this period, VIB has focused on partnering with leading technology firms worldwide to enhance the technological capabilities of its workforce, particularly through information sharing programmes and deep training on cloud and data management solutions. This important foundation laid by VIB at an early stage has facilitated the transition and application of cloud computing, equipping the technology team and the broader VIB staff with a digital mindset. This effort has delivered high-tech and leading trend products, solutions, and applications to customers, which have been highly appreciated and recognised by the market and reputable domestic and international organisations. VIB a leading technology bank The banking industry is witnessing robust digital transformation, driven by the increasing demand for digital experiences from customers and the continuous advancement of technology. Embracing this trend, VIB has pioneered migrating core banking systems to the cloud, providing flexibility, innovation, and enhanced customer experiences. With a vision To be the most innovative and customer-centric bank in Vietnam, VIB is focused on developing infrastructure based on AI-first, mobile-first and cloud-first models, continuously delivering innovative and convenient technology solutions to meet all customer needs and focusing on developing technological human resources. As a result, VIB has achieved strong growth and high digital transformation penetration rates. Since 2017, VIB has maintained a high and sustainable growth rate in digital transactions, with the number of transactions each year nearly doubling the previous year for several consecutive years, reaching 340 million, corresponding to a transaction value of $111 billion, in 2023. Of these, more than 94 per cent of retail transactions were conducted through digital channels, with millions of customers regularly using digital banking services each month. In 2023, VIBs mobile banking application, MyVIB, was recognised by International Finance as the fastest-growing mobile banking application in Vietnam. In 2024, VIB is expected to achieve 510 million digital transactions, with a total transaction value of $150 billion. The financial and banking market is becoming increasingly competitive, with most new products and technologies being quickly replicated by others. With its "3-first" digital banking strategy and pioneering multi-cloud platform in the banking market, a high-quality cloud computing workforce will be the next crucial factor helping VIB consolidate its top technology position, aiming to lead the market in key business areas and become the leading retail bank in Vietnam. VIB honoured at digital transformation conference Vietnam International Bank (VIB) participated in an event on digital transformation in the banking sector hosted by the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) at the National Convention Centre on May 8. VIB helps families celebrate this Mother's Day To celebrate Mother's Day on May 12, VIB is waiving the first-year annual fee when opening a Family Link credit card. With its Family Link credit card series brimming with exclusive offers for family spending, VIB is proud to help parents fulfil their desires to create a cosy home. Bui Thi Viet Lam, representative of the US-ASEAN Business Council (USABC), shared at a seminar late last month that since Vietnam and the United States upgraded bilateral ties in September 2023, the business community has been enthusiastic and anticipated breakthrough policies, especially in high-tech and semiconductor industries. When these businesses meet with government leaders, they affirm that Vietnam is emerging as a prime destination, attracting US investors with the potential to become a regional high-tech hub, Lam said. Investment in semiconductors has been a prime focus in Vietnam for the past year, Photo: Le Toan However, she cautioned that this window of opportunity might only last for one or two years. Investment flows and investors have limitations, and Vietnam faces competition from other countries in the region. Over the past year, there has been a rapid shift in investment attraction towards Malaysia, Indonesia, and Singapore. Many investors initially explored Vietnam but eventually found reasons to invest in other markets, she noted. This competitive landscape poses a significant challenge for Vietnam. Its unfortunate that these significant investments, when diverted to other countries, create entire ecosystems in those nations, Lam elaborated. Vietnam must act swiftly and strategically to capitalise on its current momentum and secure its place as a key player in the global supply chain. Dr. Nguyen Tu Anh, director general at the Department of General Economic Affairs under the Central Economic Commission, stated that Vietnam has significant opportunities to integrate deeper into the global supply chain, driven by government efforts to address economic bottlenecks, particularly infrastructure. Specifically, new investment from China into Vietnam increased from approximately $2.3 billion in 2019 to $3.5 billion in 2023. Vietnam holds a unique position and a tremendous opportunity to connect with polarising trends and various economic poles, Anh said. Alongside the rising investment from China, capital inflows from other countries like the US, Japan, and South Korea have also continued to grow rapidly in recent times. From the perspective of Vietnams economy, there is no polarisation. Eric Broussard, vice president of Amazon, says Vietnam is increasingly positioning itself as a vital emerging manufacturing hub in Asia and globally. Vietnam boasts a diverse range of manufacturing and supply capabilities, covering products from furniture and electronics to textiles and consumer goods, Broussard said. Amazon has a vast global customer base, and Vietnam has the potential to produce a wide array of high-quality, innovative, and competitive products. He also stressed the growing demand for environmentally friendly products, such as eco-friendly straws and recycled plastic bags, which are gaining significant attention in developed markets like the US and globally. These products from Vietnam are well-received for their quality and innovation, aligning with the increasing consumer preference for sustainability, he added. At the seminar, experts pointed out challenges including a shortage of skilled labour, high energy demand, and investment risks. Moreover, as global supply chains shift, there is a growing trend towards a green transformation. Vietnam must meet the global markets carbon footprint reduction standards, Anh said. The country is gradually developing a carbon credit market and conducting greenhouse gas inventories for nearly 2,000 businesses. A significant opportunity is emerging for the economy and businesses from the global supply chain shift. The government is supporting enterprises, but businesses must anticipate risks and challenges to seize opportunities. Lam of the USABC agreed, stating that businesses cannot operate in isolation and face limitations compared to industry giants. For instance, few Vietnamese companies are part of Apples value chain, she said. Therefore, she called for synchronised breakthrough policies, especially as neighbouring countries adopt bold strategies. Examples include sandbox trials to attract investment as Vietnam develops laws to encourage digital technology industries and a semiconductor development strategy. Lam also urged Vietnamese companies to be proactive, prepare for transitions, and embrace trends like green credits and the digital economy to enhance competitiveness and boost exports. Businesses must stay ahead of new trends to strengthen their competitive edge, she said. Meanwhile, Hoang Quang Phong, vice chairman of the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI), highlighted that Vietnam is being chosen as a strategic and high-potential investment destination by many countries, corporations, and large enterprises globally. Vietnam has signed 16 free trade agreements with major global partners, many of which are currently in effect, creating substantial opportunities for supply chain development, Phong noted. However, according to a VCCI report, out of approximately 800,000 domestic private enterprises, less than 2 per cent are large enterprises. The business connectivity between domestic and foreign investors remains weak, and the spillover effect is not substantial. Dr. Le Duy Binh, managing director of Economica Vietnam, stressed, To participate in the global supply chain, adopting environmental, social, and governance standards, as well as models of the circular and green economy, is no longer optional but a mandatory path for domestic enterprises. He acknowledged that joining international supply chains requires compliance not only with local regulations but also with international practices. For example, businesses must adhere to the EUs Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism and the EUs Anti-Deforestation Regulation, Binh added. Vietnam poised for semiconductor boom Vietnam has significant opportunities to develop its semiconductor and AI industries, leveraging a young and well-trained workforce, according to Dr Richard Lawton Thurston, former vice chairman of TSMC. PM visits Samsungs semiconductor cluster in RoKs Gyeonggi province Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his entourage on July 3 visited Samsung's semiconductor cluster in Gyeonggi province as part of his official visit to the Republic of Korea (RoK). With the theme Vietnams competitiveness in the age of AI and new world order, more than 120 top executives and tech leaders discussed the pros and cons of applying AI in their businesses. Professor Tung Bui, director of the University of Hawaii Executive MBA in Vietnam, shared that Vietnam needs to enhance its ability to compete internationally as the country accelerates its global integration amid unprecedented challenges. These include power struggles between China, the United States, the European Union, and Japan, with unpredictable tariff wars, and the uncertain effects of climate change. There are two outstanding issues when applying AI: cost and benefit. Professor Tung Bui, director of the University of Hawaii Executive MBA in Vietnam We need to clearly determine how much we plan to spend on applying AI and what benefits we will gain, which is a question any business must find the answer to, Bui told VIR. AI currently has two main impacts on businesses, which are how to use AI to reduce operating costs and increase sales and revenue, Bui said. According to Prof. Bui, for example, AI can help businesses better understand their markets, and monitor how when customers receive and use products. AI can conduct sentiment analysis, which in turn can help businesses set appropriate prices that satisfy customers. From this, they can increase their revenues. To be able to compete globally, Vietnamese businesses need to clearly know their advantages and disadvantages of AI, and focus on the positives, Bui said. One of the reasons that multinational companies are concerned about Vietnam is that countrys production system is considered inferior to China's in terms of machinery, risk controls, and human capacity. AI will help reduce these concerns, he said. Talking with VIR, Dr. Vance Roley, dean of the Shidler College of Business of the University of Hawaii and faculty leaders of Van Lang University, commented that AI has the potential to transform the workplace by improving onboarding and efficiency. AI can also be used to evaluate company soundness and predict financial outcomes, but it has limitations in certain areas. Training and education are crucial to prepare workers for the impacts of AI. Dr. Vance Roley, dean of the Shidler College of Business of the University of Hawaii and faculty leaders of Van Lang University An AI workforce training programme should be a new initiative for enterprises, in collaboration with universities, Roley said. Vietnam is already a leader in software, and is also on the cutting edge of AI. AI will transform the workplace pretty quickly in Vietnam, and it's going to lead to greater efficiencies and allow people to be more creative. We do not necessarily need to rely on AIs creativeness. but on its efficiencies, he said. He added that to prepare for enterprises to implement AI, they have to invest first in generative AI products and their workforce, so they can use them productively and ethically. This is going to grow very quickly, and workers need to be trained how to use AI efficiently, he said. In the era of AI, competition centres around creating the best intelligence. It is also a race against time, as businesses that fail to adopt new technology quickly risk falling behind. Vietnam, with its strong affinity for technology, seems ready to embrace AI. The Shidler Global Leadership Summit held in Ho Chi Minh City on July 5 gathered more than 120 top business executives and technology leaders Being one of the leaders in the food and agriculture sector, Nguyen Thi Tra My, co-founder and Group CEO of The PAN Group, said the sector cannot stand aside from the trend of applying AI, which can promote automation, improve productivity, and effectively manage resources. However, she added that the application of AI in agriculture also faces challenges in terms of data, investment costs, and labour. Combining AI with farmers' traditional experience can create a sustainable and effective agricultural model, suitable for real conditions. This not only helps increase productivity and product quality but also protects and develops natural resources and biodiversity. If we know how to collect and organise data, AI can be "trained" based on farmers' knowledge and experience, helping to maintain and pass on traditional techniques to future generations, Tra My said. No matter how much technology develops, we still need close cooperation between the state, farmers, scientists, businesses, and consumers, she added. The Shidler Global Leadership Summit also discussed many other topics. Among those were the current business landscape and technology infrastructure in Vietnam, CEOs' perspectives on AI adoption, whether or not Vietnam's IT industry is ready for the AI era, and evaluating the impacts of AI on Vietnams banking and insurance, tourism and hospitality, real estate and manufacturing, and healthcare sectors. It also mentioned the possibility of AI helping to elevate Vietnams agriculture and seafood competitiveness. The Vietnam Executive MBA (VEMBA) programme at the University of Hawaiis Shidler College of Business offers an unparalleled opportunity for career advancement. This AACSB-accredited programme blends rigorous academic coursework with practical, hands-on learning experiences designed specifically for full-time executives. Since its inception in 2001, VEMBA has built a diverse cohort of more than 1,000 professionals from over 20 countries, providing a unique platform for networking and collaboration. The programme's flexible hybrid format, which combines in-person and online sessions, allows participants to manage their professional commitments while pursuing their MBA. With faculty drawn from prestigious institutions and a strong alumni network, VEMBA stands out as a leading choice for those aspiring to leadership and excellence in the global business arena. In recent years, global supply chains have been restructured to enhance resilience against various uncertainties, positioning Vietnam advantageously in a world shaped by shifting geopolitical dynamics and the emergence of generative AI. Redefining the journalism landscape in the age of AI With the recent rise of AI, some journalists and media agencies are fearing an invasion where their journalistic work is used (sometimes without permission) as sources to generate personalised content, or to support social media users in their own quest to become opinion leaders. Unveiling the medias dynamics for the AI era The debate is ongoing as to whether AI could fully replace skilled journalists in the future. Nguyen Thanh Son, chairman of Media Ventures Vietnam Group, discussed with VIRs Hazy Tran the impacts of related applications and the warnings and benefits of AI. Jonathan McCambridge, PA Keir Starmer has met Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly as he continues his tour of the UK. The new British prime minister is visiting Belfast following his trip to Scotland on Sunday, and will also visit Wales to round off a visit to the three devolved regions. He arrived at Stormont Castle early on Monday morning as he begins his first full week in office, ahead of travelling to the Nato summit in Washington on Tuesday. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly greeted Mr Starmer and new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn at the castle entrance before they held a meeting inside. Ms ONeill congratulated him on his electoral success and they discussed Westminster and Stormont parliamentary schedules. After half an hour with Stormonts leaders, Mr Starmer then moved on to Parliament Buildings, where he was greeted at the foot of the landmark steps by Assembly Speaker Edwin Poots. Keir Starmer shakes hands with Edwin Poots, speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA He is then holding talks with representatives from the main Stormont parties. He is likely to face questions about funding for cash-strapped public services in Northern Ireland as well as coming under pressure from Ms ONeill to commit to funding the redevelopment of Casement Park, which has been earmarked to host Euro 2028 matches. He is also likely to be asked about delivering on his partys manifesto pledge to repeal the controversial Legacy Act. Sinn Fein emerged from last weeks election as the Northern party with the largest representation at Westminster and the partys president, Mary Lou McDonald, has urged Mr Starmer to embrace the right of Irish self-determination and constitutional change toward Irish reunification. Mr Starmer has already spoken by phone with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly. He has also had a conversation with Taoiseach Simon Harris, and the two leaders are due to meet later this month. Mr Starmer said he was seeking an immediate reset of the relationship between the Westminster government and devolved nations as he announced his UK tour. He said his landslide victory in the UK election had given Labour a clear mandate to govern for all four corners of the United Kingdom. UK Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn made his first visit to Belfast at the weekend since being appointed (Niall Carson/PA) His new Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn made his first visit to the North since being appointed at the weekend. He held talks with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly at Hillsborough Castle on Saturday and said his priority is to establish a new relationship between the UK government and Stormonts powersharing Executive. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting with Mr Starmer at Stormont to make the case for fair and sustainable funding for our essential public services. He added: I welcome the commitment from the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State that the election outcome again reaffirms support for our place within the United Kingdom and that this new government intends to treat all parts and regions of the Kingdom with respect. Now is a time for new beginnings. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting with Mr Starmer to raise the issue of funding for public services (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Robinson added: I look forward to hearing from the PM on his plans for the UKs future relations with the European Union and his plans to ensure barriers within the United Kingdom are removed. Mr Starmer is expected to visit Wales later on Monday. During his trip to Edinburgh on Sunday, Mr Starmer said he discussed a constructive working relationship on the economy, energy and future of the Grangemouth refinery. UK prime minister Keir Starmer meeting Scottish first minister John Swinney at Bute House, Edinburgh on Sunday (Scott Heppell/PA) Speaking after his meeting with Scotlands first minister John Swinney, Mr Starmer said there were clearly differences of opinion on the constitutional issue of Scottish independence. Mr Starmer said: The point of this meeting was to reset the relationship in a respectful way, in a constructive way, and to recognise that on the economy, energy and very pressingly on Grangemouth, there is room for us to have a constructive way of delivering for very many people across Scotland. He added the pair had a joint view of working constructively, adding: I am absolutely clear that during the campaign I made a commitment that my Labour government would deliver for Scotland. An ancient tree from India is now thriving in groves where citrus trees once flourished in Florida, and could help provide the nation with renewable energy. As large parts of the Sunshine State's once-famous citrus industry have all but dried up over the past two decades due to two fatal diseases, greening and citrus canker, some farmers are turning to the pongamia tree, a climate-resilient tree with the potential to produce plant-based proteins and a sustainable biofuel. For years, pongamia has been used for shade trees, producing legumes that are so bitter, wild hogs won't even eat them. Unlike the orange and grapefruit trees that long occupied these rural Florida groves northwest of West Palm Beach, pongamia trees don't need much attention. They flourish in drought or rainy conditions, and don't need fertilizer or pesticides. They also don't require teams of workers to pick the beans; a machine shakes the little brown beans from the branches when they're ready to harvest. Terviva, a San Francisco-based company founded in 2010 by Naveen Sikka, then uses its patented process to remove the biopesticides that cause the bitter taste, making the beans suitable for food production. "Florida offers a rare opportunity for both Terviva and former citrus farmers. The historical decline of the citrus industry has left farmers without a crop that can grow profitably on hundreds of thousands of acres, and there needs to be a very scalable replacement, very soon," Sikka told The Associated Press. "Pongamia is the perfect fit." What is the pongamia tree? The pongamia is a wild tree native to India, Southeast Asia and Australia. Bees and other pollinators feast on the pongamia's flowers, supporting local biodiversity, said Ron Edwards, chairman of Terviva's board of directors and a longtime Florida citrus grower. The legumes produce oil that can be used as a biofuel, largely for aviation, which leaves a very low carbon footprint, he said. An acre of the trees can potentially provide the same amount of oil as four acres of soy beans, he added. What's left after the oil is removed from the pongamia bean is "a very high-grade protein that can be used as a substitute in baking and smoothies and all kinds of other plant-based protein products," Edwards said. "There's a lot of potential for the food industry and the oil and petroleum industry." It offers an alternative to soybean and yellow pea protein "if you don't want your protein to come from meat," he said. The research is ongoing, he said, but legumes have been used to make really good graham crackers as well as Panova table oil, Aloha's Kona protein bars, protein flour and other products. In December, Terviva signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation to provide biofuel feedstock that can be converted into biodiesel or renewable diesel. Sikka noted Terviva coordinates closely with Mitsubishi on tree plantings and product development and sales. Turning a wild tree into a domestic one hasn't been easy, Edwards said. "There are no books to read on it, either, because no one else has ever done it." Why Florida? "We know pongamia grows well in Florida, and the end markets for the oil and protein that come from the pongamia beans biofuel, feed, and food ingredients are enormous," Sikka said. "So farmers can now reduce their costs and more closely align to the leading edge of sustainable farming practices." At a nursery near Fort Pierce, workers skilled in pongamia grafting techniques affix a portion of the mother tree to a pongamia rootstock, which ensures the genetics and desired characteristics of the mother tree are perpetuated in all of Terviva's trees. Citrus was Florida's premier crop for years until disease caught up with it starting in the 1990s with citrus canker and later greening. Citrus canker, a bacterial disease, is not harmful to humans but causes lesions on the fruit, stems and leaves, and it eventually makes the trees unproductive. Citrus greening, also known as Huanglongbing, slowly kills trees and degrades the fruit, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Greening spread throughout Florida since 2005, devastating countless groves and reducing citrus production by 75%. The disease also spread to Louisiana, Texas and California. Hurricane Ian caused about $1.8 billion in damage to Florida's agriculture in September 2023, hitting the citrus industry at the beginning of its growing season. Disease and climate issues also affected most of the world's top citrus-producing countries. For example, this year's harvest in Brazil the world's largest exporter of orange juice is forecast to be the worst in 36 years due to flooding and drought, according to a forecast by Fundecitrus, a citrus growers' organization in Sao Paulo state. But climate and disease have little effect on pongamia trees, Terviva officials said. "It's just tough, a jungle-tested tree" Edwards said. "It stands up to a lot of abuse with very little caretaking." Pongamia also grows well in Hawaii, where it now thrives on land previously used for sugarcane. What are citrus farmers saying? John Olson, who owns Circle O Ranch, west of Fort Pierce, replaced his grapefruit groves with 215 acres of pongamia trees. "We went through all the ups and downs of citrus and eventually because of greening, abandoned citrus production," Olson said. "For the most part the citrus industry has died in Florida." Edwards said farmers used various sprays to kill the insect that was spreading the disease. Eventually, the cost of taking care of citrus trees became too risky. That's when he decided to go a different route. "What attracted me to pongamia was the fact that, one, it can repurpose fallow land that was citrus and is now lying dormant," he said. "From an ecological point of view, it's very attractive because it can replace some of the oils and vegetable proteins that are now being generated by things like palm oil, which is environmentally a much more damaging crop." 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11 Jan (23) 28 Dec - 4 Jan (27) 21 Dec - 28 Dec (28) 14 Dec - 21 Dec (23) 7 Dec - 14 Dec (22) 30 Nov - 7 Dec (19) 23 Nov - 30 Nov (22) 16 Nov - 23 Nov (19) 9 Nov - 16 Nov (15) 2 Nov - 9 Nov (17) 26 Oct - 2 Nov (10) 19 Oct - 26 Oct (12) 12 Oct - 19 Oct (13) 5 Oct - 12 Oct (19) 28 Sep - 5 Oct (14) 21 Sep - 28 Sep (17) 14 Sep - 21 Sep (19) 7 Sep - 14 Sep (22) 31 Aug - 7 Sep (15) 24 Aug - 31 Aug (14) 17 Aug - 24 Aug (9) 10 Aug - 17 Aug (5) Briefing by the Russian Ministry of Defense Violations by Ukraine of obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention Russian Ministry of Defense Information about violations by the United States and Ukraine of WMD non-proliferation commitments was heard by the expert community Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation continues to record cases of violation by Ukraine of fundamental international instruments, such as the Chemical Weapons Convention. It should be noted that the Russian Defence Ministrys latest briefing on violations by the U.S. and Ukraine of their obligations in the field of non-proliferation of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) has been heard by the expert community. Relevant comments were posted on the European and American media, as well as on information portals in the Asia-Pacific region. Special emphasis has been placed on expanding military biological research in Africa. For example, the Daily Telegraph notes: As Russia managed to halt biological warfare programs in Ukraines territory, the Pentagon is forced to transfer incomplete research from Ukrainian projects to other regions In addition, a number of publications have expressed concern about Ukraines creating a dirty bomb using radiochemicals. The import of spent nuclear fuel and by-products of hazardous chemical plants continues through Poland and Romania, leading to Ukraines becoming a high-risk waste dump. This process is overseen by Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Andrei Ermak and sponsored by the Soros Foundation. Russian Defence Ministry Ukrainian regime regularly violates Chemical Weapons Convention Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: The Ukrainian regime regularly violates the Chemical Weapons Convention. During the special military operation, more than 400 cases of non-lethal toxic chemicals used by the Ukrainian side were registered, most of them officially confirmed by the Russian Ministry of Defence accredited laboratory. The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) regularly uses riot-control chemical agents: gas grenades with a CS substance manufactured by the United States, Ukrainian hand grenades with chemically irritating agents marked Teren-6, and improvised chemical munitions. According to Ukrainian prisoners of war, assault groups of the Armed Forces of Ukraine are equipped with such grenades. There have been numerous cases of the use of chloropicrin irritant by the Ukrainian side, often mixed with chloroacetophenone. Similar incidents occurred near Donetsk, Bogdanovka, Gorlovka, Kremennaya, Artyomovsk. Ukraine, with the complicity of Western countries, does not limit itself to using non-lethal chemical agents by actively using scheduled chemicals such as BZ, prussic acid, and chlorine cyanide. We have already drawn your attention to the statement by the representatives of the Armed Forces of Ukraine that they have such compounds in their possession, including the analogues of the Tabun warfare agent (GA), which is included in Schedule 1 of the Convention and was used by fascist invaders during the Second World War. The AFU troops use toxic compounds not only in the course of combat actions, but also to carry out terrorist attacks in liberated territories against a number of Russian political figures. Moreover, Ukrainian nationalists have repeatedly attempted to destroy chemically hazardous objects in the territories of Donetsk and Lugansk peoples republics thereby threatening the regions civilian population with chemical damage. Russian Defence Ministry OPCW does not respond to information about Ukraines violating Chemical Weapons Convention Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: I would like to point out that investigations of chemical accidents in the conflict zone were conducted in accordance with the OPCW requirements using field and fixed-site laboratories capable of establishing the type of chemical compounds and the country of manufacture. All cases have been officially confirmed by the chemical analytical laboratory of the Russian Defence Ministry accredited by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons. The existing evidence base proving Ukraines violating its obligations under the Convention has been submitted to the OPCWs Technical Secretariat, but no response has been forthcoming so far. Moreover, the Russian Defence Ministry has information about Ukraines active cooperation with the OPCWs Technical Secretariat, which has ratified an additional agreement on privileges and immunities for technical assistance visits. This agreement will enable Ukraine to use the OPCW for its own benefit, circumventing the existing procedures under the Convention, by imposing on the Organisation its notoriously false conclusions about chemical investigations. Russian Defence Ministry AFU chemical weapons laboratory detected close to Avdeyevka Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: A laboratory with chemical equipment was detected in an industrial zone on the ground floor of the destroyed building in one of the locations near Avdeyevka. A mobile diagnostic team of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation was sent to inspect the premises and conduct a rapid analysis. They found a semi-industrial rotary evaporator, a filtering exhaust system, chemical reactors, carbon dioxide bottles, and shelving systems with laboratory dishes and reagents in the laboratory. In addition, personal protective kits gas masks, including those manufactured in the United States, and skin protections (a Polish-made protective suit), were detected. Analysis of the containers showed the presence of sulphuric acid and sodium cyanide suggesting the use of found equipment for the production of toxic substances. Afterwards, wipe sampling from the laboratory equipment and exhaust system was made in accordance with the requirements of the OPCW and delivered to the chemical analytical laboratory of the Russian Defence Ministry for in-depth analysis. Analytical studies in the laboratory conditions showed the presence of sodium cyanide, sulphuric acid, and trace amounts of cyanide in the samples. The presence of these chemicals clearly indicates that the laboratory found was producing toxic systemic agents. The capacity of the laboratory unit is at least 3 kg/day It is maintained by staff of 23 people. I would like to stress that the lethal inhalation dose for this group of toxic substances is very low, and is only 7080 mg per human. It should be emphasised that, under the Chemical Weapons Convention, this groups substance, prussic acid, is in the Schedule 3 of the CWC, and its use is prohibited under Article 1 of the Convention. This compound is a colourless volatile liquid with the smell of bitter almonds. When inhaled, it causes dizziness, vomiting, convulsions, paralysis, and death. Russian Defence Ministry Numerous cases of Kiev regimes using toxic chemicals confirmed Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: During the special military operation, there have been many confirmed cases of the AFU using improvised munitions dropped from UAVs filled with the aforementioned substance. The use of toxic chemicals, including prussic acid, by the Kiev regime is confirmed by numerous witness statements received from civilians and Russian servicemen. Thus, in May 2024, munitions were dropped from Ukrainian UAVs in Semyonovka, 10 km from Avdeyevka of the Donetsk Peoples Republic. According to witnesses, affected rural residents showed symptoms of being exposed to prussic acid: respiratory difficulty, vomiting, and the taste of bitter almonds. Another case of the AFUs using of prussic acid was recorded in early June 2024. After an UAV attack against the Russian positions in Graivoronsk district of Belgorod region, fragments of munitions were detected, the laboratory results of which confirmed the use of the mentioned toxic chemical. The presence of chemical labs in Ukraine similar to the one detected in Avdeyevka is confirmed by the testimony of AFU personnel. A Ukrainian prisoner of war, Sergei Batyr, testified on the involvement of American specialists, as well as the participation of these laboratories in the mass production of kamikaze drones. Russian Defence Ministry U.S. and Germany, together with Ukraine and OPCW, prepare to plant evidence of Russias using chemical weapons Chief of Nuclear, Chemical, and Biological Protection Troops of Armed Forces of Russian Federation Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov: I would like to recall that the U.S. is fully in control of the activities of the OPCW. To settle accounts with the undesirable states, Washington has established an attributive mechanism in the OPCW that was used to investigate the use of chemical weapons in Syria. According to the available information, the U.S. and Germany, together with Ukraine and the OPCWs Technical Secretariat, are preparing to launch a special mission to investigate the so-called use of chemical weapons in Ukraine, with a view to pressing charges against Russia. One of the so-called independent states is to initiate investigations and plant evidence that Russia used toxic chemicals during the special military operation. Americans have already committed some $400,000 to this end. At the same time, the OPCW has received instructions from its Western curators not to respond to the Russian Federations allegations of Ukraines violating the Conventions provisions. It should be noted that the United States and the United Kingdom have adopted a similar approach in the framework promoted within the BTWC: the Science and Technology Review Mechanisms and the International Cooperation and Assistance Mechanism, which will enable them to form expert opinions about biosafety threats in their own interests. To that end, it is planned to create the BTWCs channels of influence on international policy and research structures by providing grant financing. The Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation will continue its efforts to identify violations by Ukraine of its obligations under the CWC, and will keep you informed. Russian Defence Ministry WtR Tropical Storm Beryl unleashed heavy rains and powerful winds along the Texas coast on Monday, knocking out power to more than 2 million homes and businesses and flooding streets with fast-rising waters as first responders raced to rescue stranded residents. Beryl had already cut a deadly path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean before making a turn and later sweeping ashore as a Category 1 hurricane in Texas early Monday. At least two people were killed. The National Hurricane Center said damaging winds and flash flooding will continue as Beryl continues pushing inland. More than 2 million homes and businesses in the Houston area were without power, CenterPoint Energy officials said. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who is acting governor while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is out of the country, said crews cannot get out to fix power lines until the wind dies down. We havent really slept, said Rosenberg resident Eva Costancio as she gazed at a large tree that had fallen across power lines in her neighborhood. She said she had been without electricity for about four hours and worried that food in her refrigerator would be spoiled. We are struggling to have food and losing that food would be difficult, she said. High waters quickly began to close streets. In flood-weary Houston, where previous storms had already washed out neighborhoods, television stations on Monday broadcast the dramatic rescue of a man who had climbed to the roof of his pickup truck after it got trapped in fast-flowing waters. Emergency crews used an extension ladder from a fire truck to drop him a life preserver and a tether before moving him to dry land. Houston was under a flash-flood warning for most of the morning as heavy rain continued to soak the city. Flood warnings also were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast, where a powerful storm surge pushed water ashore, and further inland as heavy rain continued to fall. Suni Jugueta, a captain with the police department in the Houston suburb of Rosenberg, said emergency officials made three water rescues overnight. Rosenberg police also noted that one of their high-water vehicles was hit by a falling tree while returning from a rescue, and they urged people to stay off the roads. Video footage showed heavy street flooding in the barrier island city of Galveston, and Two people were killed after trees fell on their houses: a man in the Houston suburb of Humble and a woman in Harris County, authorities said. Hundreds of trees fell in the county, crushing vehicles and damaging homes, said Precinct 4 County Constable Mark Herman. Patrick warned that flooding could last for days and the storm continues to dump rain onto already saturated ground. This is not a one-day event, he said. Beryl and the widespread power outages were just the latest weather blows for Houston, where nearly 1 million people lost power when deadly storms ripped through the area in May, killed eight people and brought much of the city to a standstill. Texas officials warned people along the entire coastline to prepare for possible flooding, heavy rain and wind. Several coastal counties called for voluntary evacuations in low-lying areas. Local officials also banned beach camping and urged tourists traveling on the Fourth of July holiday weekend to move recreational vehicles from coastal parks. Tornadoes and flash flooding were also possible in eastern Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas, the hurricane center said. In the Texas coastal city of Freeport, Patti Richardson said she was riding out the the storm in her 123-year-old house. We are sitting in the middle of it. It sounds like we are in a train station, its that loud and has been about four hours. Were just hoping everything holds together, Richardson said. You can feel the house shaking. ... Its freaky. More than 1,000 flights have been canceled at Houstons two airports, according to tracking data from FlightAware. The earliest storm to develop into a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic, Beryl caused at least 11 deaths as it passed through the Caribbean on its way to Texas. The storm ripped off doors, windows and roofs with devastating winds and storm surge fueled by the Atlantics record warmth. Three times during its one week of life, Beryl has gained 35 mph (56 kph) in wind speed in 24 hours or less, the official weather service definition of rapid intensification. Beryls explosive growth into an unprecedented early whopper of a storm indicates the hot water of the Atlantic and Caribbean and what the Atlantic hurricane belt can expect for the rest of the storm season, experts said. In Louisiana, heavy bands of rain are expected all day Monday and the risk is going to be for that heavy rainfall and potential for flash flooding, National Weather Service meteorologist Donald Jones said in a Monday morning Facebook Live briefing. Meteorologists in Louisiana are watching for lingering rainbands, which could drop copious amounts of rain wherever they materialize, as well as quick, spin-up tornadoes, said Donald Jones, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Its just a matter of exactly where thats going to be, Jones said. Thats very difficult to predict more than maybe an hour or so in advance. Beryl battered Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane last week, toppling trees but causing no injuries or deaths before weakening to a tropical storm as it moved across the Yucatan Peninsula. Before hitting Mexico, Beryl wrought destruction in Jamaica, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Three people were reported dead in Grenada, three in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, three in Venezuela and two in Jamaica. (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.) The Justice Department says Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of 737 Max jetliners. Now its up to a federal judge whether to accept the plea and a sentence that is part of the aerospace giants deal with U.S. prosecutors. Boeings decision on Sunday came a week after the Justice Department gave the company the choice of entering a guilty plea or facing a trial. Prosecutors say Boeing violated a 2021 deal that had shielded the company from prosecution earlier. Lawyers for some of the relatives of those who died in the two crashes have said they will ask the judge to reject the agreement. One lawyer called it a sweetheart deal. The criminal fraud charge stems from two crashes of 737 Max jetliners that killed 346 people after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years, the Justice Department said Sunday night. Federal prosecutors alleged Boeing committed conspiracy to defraud the government by misleading regulators about a flight-control system that was implicated in the crashes, which took place in Indonesia in October 2018 and in Ethiopia less five months later. As part of the January 2021 settlement, the Justice Department said it would not prosecute Boeing on the charge if the company complied with certain conditions for three years. Prosecutors last month alleged Boeing had breached the terms of that agreement. U.S. agencies can use a criminal conviction as grounds to exclude companies from doing business with the government for a set amount of time. Boeing is an important contractor of the Defense Department and NASA. The case goes back to the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The Lion Air pilots in the first crash did not know about flight-control software that could push the nose of the plane down without their input. The pilots for Ethiopian Airlines knew about it but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in older 737s, and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years. Boeing, which blamed two low-level employees for misleading the regulators, tried to put the crashes behind it. After grounding Max jets for 20 months, regulators let them fly again after the Boeing reduced the power of the flight software. Max jets logged thousands of safe flights and orders from airlines picked up, increasing to about 750 in 2021, about 700 more in 2022 and nearly 1,000 in 2023. The company based in Arlington, Virginia, has dozens of airline customers spanning the globe. The best customers for the 737 Max include Southwest, United, American, Alaska, Ryanair and flydubai. That changed in January, when a panel covering an unused emergency exit blew off a Max during the Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon. Pilots landed the 737 Max safely and no one was seriously injured, but the incident led to closer scrutiny of the company. The Justice Department opened a new investigation, the FBI told passengers on the Alaska plane that they might be victims of a crime and the FAA said it was stepping up oversight of Boeing. A criminal conviction could jeopardize Boeings status as a federal contractor, according to some legal experts. The plea announced Sunday does not address that question, leaving it to each government agency whether to bar Boeing. The Air Force cited compelling national interest in letting Boeing continue competing for contracts after the company paid a $615 million fine in 2006 to settle criminal and civil charges, including that it used information stolen from a rival to win a space-launch contract. The company has 170,000 employees and 37% of its revenue last year came from U.S. government contracts. Most of it was defense work, including military sales that Washington arranged for other countries. Even some Boeing critics have worried about crippling a key defense contractor. We want Boeing to succeed, Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said during a Senate hearing last month on what he termed the companys broken safety culture. Boeing needs to succeed for the sake of the jobs it provides, for the sake of local economies it supports, for the sake of the American traveling public, for the sake of our military. Relatives of the Indonesia and Ethiopia crash victims have pushed for a criminal trial that might illuminate what people inside Boeing knew about deceiving the FAA. They also wanted the Justice Department to prosecute top Boeing officials, not just the company. Boeing has paid fines many a time, and it doesnt seem to make any change, said Ike Riffel of Redding, California, whose sons Melvin and Bennett died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. When people start going to prison, thats when you are going to see a change. At a recent Senate hearing, Boeing CEO David Calhoun defended the companys safety record after turning and apologizing to Max crash victims relatives seated in the rows behind him for the grief that we have caused. Hours before the hearing, the Senate investigations subcommittee released a 204-page report with new allegations from a whistleblower who said he worried that defective parts could be going into 737s. The whistleblower was the latest in a string of current and former Boeing employees who have raised safety concerns about the company and claimed they faced retaliation as a result. (Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.) The Thompson Fire, near Oroville, is now 100% contained at 3,789 acres. The Thompson Fire broke out before noon Tuesday about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Sacramento, sending up a huge plume of smoke that could be seen from space. CAL FIRE says more than 30 structures have been destroyed or damaged. Four firefighters reported injuries, all from heat. The cause of the blaze was being investigated. The Thompson Fire broke out before noon Tuesday about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Sacramento, sending up a huge plume of smoke that could be seen from space. CAL FIRE says more than 30 structures have been destroyed or damaged. Four firefighters reported injuries, all from heat. The cause of the blaze was being investigated. The region is familiar with catastrophic events. The deadliest and most destructive wildfire in state history nearly wiped out the town of Paradise in Butte County in 2018. And in 2017, both spillways of the Oroville Dam the nation's tallest failed, mandating the evacuation of nearly 200,000 people. (The Associated Press contributed to this report.) The Pay Fire, burning near Placerville in California, remains 65% contained at 77 acres. CAL FIRE says the El Dorado County fire started last Saturday afternoon prompting evacuations. At one point, the fire moved towards the Placerville Airport along Country Club Drive, and some buildings were threatened on Country Club Drive and Dueden Drive. CAL FIREE says all evacuation warnings have been reduced to safe to re-enter. The fire also knocked down some power lines near the area where the fire started, temporarily leaving about 2,000 PG&E customers without power. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. For an updated map of evacuations, click this link. The Northbound U.S. 395 ramps to Dandini Boulevard will reopen Thursday morning, September 5. The northbound ramps of Dandini Boulevard Exit 71 have been closed since July 7, while construction crews realigned and widened the ramp. Lanes will be shifted on northbound U.S. 395, and drivers will have to use the right lane to access Dandini Boulevard. The reopening of the Dandini Boulevard ramps is followed by an extended closure of the U.S. 395 exits in Panther Valley, as NDOT construction crews continue to widen and improve the highway. ORIGINAL STORY - JULY 7: As the off-ramp is widened, the northbound U.S. 395 Dandini Boulevard exit will be closed for an extended period and traffic changes will be implemented. The closure is part of the Nevada Department of Transportation's (NDOT) continuing multi-year project to widen and repave approximately four miles of U.S 395 between North McCarran Boulevard and Golden Valley Road to improve the highway. The northbound U.S 395 on and off-ramps to Dandini Boulevard will be closed 24 hours, seven days a week beginning at 9 p.m. Sunday, July 7 through mid-September. The off-ramp from U.S 395 will be widened, slightly realigned and repaved during this project. NDOT says they will heighten the ramp and realign where the off-ramp enters onto Dandini Boulevard. The Dandini and Parr Boulevard bridge over U.S. 395 will remain open. A detour will be available on North Virginia Street (exit 72) to Parr Boulevard. NDOT says southbound U.S 395 ramps to Parr Boulevard will stay open during daytime hours, with periodic overnight ramp closures between the hours of 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. NDOT would like to remind drivers to plan ahead and allow extra time for the following traffic changes, there will be 24-hour, seven-day-a-week lane shifts and speed reductions in addition to lane and ramp closures: Northbound U.S. 395 continues to be reduced to two lanes 24/7 from just north of Oddie Boulevard to Golden Valley Road through mid-2025 as sections of the highway and bridges are removed and reconstructed, retaining walls built and other improvements made. Highway lanes are slightly reduced in width and will be shifted. Speeds are reduced to 55 mph 24/7 through the work zones. Additional overnight lane closures continue, with highway lanes reduced to a minimum of one lane in each direction: Northbound U.S. 395, lanes will be reduced between 8 p.m. and 11 a.m. Southbound U.S. 395, lanes will be reduced between 7 p.m. and 5 a.m. Intermittent ramp closures will take place between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. on Sunday evenings through Saturday mornings. Detour routes will be marked. The Virginia Street on-ramp to southbound U.S. 395 in Panther Valley will be closed through late 2024. The construction schedule is weather-permitting and is subject to change. In the coming months, NDOT advises drivers to anticipate additional major construction impacts, including extended closure of North Virginia Street access to northbound U.S. 395 for bridge construction. People walk around displays of composite power line poles on June 13 during a tour at RS Technologies in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer A metal mandrel, used in the production of the modular sections of composite utility poles, is shown during a tour at RS Technologies new plant in Humble on June 13. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer The filament winding production area is shown during a tour at RS Technologies new plant in Humble on June 13. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer RS Technologies CEO John Higgins speaks on June 13 during a tour of the companys new plant in Humble. The photo in back ground shows a tradition wooden pole damaged during a storm. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer The filament winding production area is shown during a tour at RS Technologies new plant in Humble on June 13. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer People walk around displays of composite power line poles on June 13 during a tour at RS Technologies in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer RS Technologies CEO John Higgins speaks on June 13 during a tour of the companys new plant in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer RS Technologies CEO John Higgins speaks on June 13 during a tour of the companys new plant in Humble. The photo in back ground shows a tradition wooden pole damaged during a storm. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Composite utility poles are installed outside RS Technologies new plant in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer RS Technologies new plant in Humble is shown on June 13. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer HUMBLE A Canada-based company that manufactures power poles, which it says are better able to withstand severe weather than traditional wooden ones, has opened a distribution and production facility outside Houston. A stack of modular sections of composite power line poles are shown at RS Technologies new plant in Humble on June 13. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Resilient Structures, also known as RS Technologies, makes poles from a proprietary resin formula and glass that have never failed in a weather event, CEO John Higgins said. Damaged power poles are a common cause of localized power outages and, in extreme circumstances, can lead to wildfires, prompting utilities nationwide to seek stronger alternatives to wood as they evaluate aging infrastructure. In May, a Texas Legislature committee determined that a decayed utility pole that broke, causing power wires to fall on dry grass in the Texas Panhandle, sparked the Smokehouse Creek wildfire the states largest in history. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Hundreds of thousands of Resilient Structures poles have been installed in 30 countries since the company deployed its first one in 2003, Higgins said. Of Resilient Structures hundreds of utility customers, CenterPoint Energy is the largest. The new 400,000-square foot factory in Humble the company also has facilities in Utah and Ontario was built in anticipation of greater demand for Resilient Structures product from utilities in the Gulf Coast region as climate change fuels increasingly frequent and severe weather, Higgins said. RS Technologies CEO John Higgins speaks on June 13 during a tour of the companys new plant in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer We actually built this plant ahead of demand. Were that confident in the adoption of our poles going forward, Higgins told local officials touring the factory recently, including representatives from CenterPoint and Entergy, another electric utility in Southeast Texas. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Humble facility will be a hub for delivering Resilient Structures poles manufactured at other sites, as company leaders said they are waiting for its other facilities to reach capacity before starting production here. At full capacity, the Texas plant could make 20,000 to 25,000 poles each year and employ up to 450 people, Higgins and Houston plant director Edgar Castro said. Transmission lines carry power over long distances, while distribution lines bring electricity closer to consumers. Resilient Structures poles most often support distribution lines, though its taller poles can be used for transmission, Higgins said. RS Technologies CEO John Higgins speaks on June 13 during a tour of the companys new plant in Humble. The company manufactures composite utility poles. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Resilient Structures poles cost about $5,000 per pole, compared to about $1,500 to $2,000 for a traditional wooden pole, said Vernon Broussard, senior territory manager for Oberlender Co., which coordinates sales between manufacturers and utilities. But a Resilient Structures pole has an 80-year life, compared to 30 years for a wooden pole, he said. Were building poles today that will outlive all of us, said Ed Rushing, Resilient Structures chief operating officer. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Resilient Structures poles in the region can be found along Texas 288 and in Freeport, Fulshear and Tomball, Broussard said. Its poles have been installed in Galveston to improve the areas resiliency against hurricanes, said Jason Ryan, CenterPoints executive vice president of regulatory services and government affairs. Ryan said storms can have dramatically different impacts on infrastructure along the coast. Metal mandrels, used in the production of the modular sections of composite utility poles, are displayed during a tour at RS Technologies new plant in Humble on June 13. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Storm comes through, all the transmission towers are still standing, but literally on the same road, all the distribution poles are on the ground. So one of the reasons behind using the RS poles is we just want the poles to still stay up. We know that poles can stay up because theyre up on one side of the road, Ryan said. Some brown Resilient Structures poles installed outside the Humble facility are nearly indistinguishable from the adjacent wooden poles, though some characteristics can help in telling them apart. A CenterPoint employee noted that Resilient Structures poles are pointy at the top, while wooden poles are flat. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Paddington Ore Sale Extension to Satisfy CP's Perth, July 8, 2024 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Horizon Minerals Limited ( ASX:HRZ ) wishes to update the market on progress for the achievement of Conditions Precedent (CP's) pursuant to the Binding Term Sheet - Ore Sale Agreement (Term Sheet) between Paddington Gold Pty Ltd (PGPL) and Horizon Minerals Limited (Horizon) dated 3 May 2024 to treat 1.4Mt of Horizon ore from the Boorara Gold Project. The Company and AMC Consultants have been working hard to complete the CP's pursuant to the Term Sheet during the past 45 business days, as there has been numerous iterations of mine plan optimisations, mine designs, and schedules leading to the final Ore Reserve Statement. Discussions with Paddington representatives continue to be open and conducive to the completion of CP's and a long term relationship. As a result, Paddington Gold Pty Ltd (a wholly owned subsidiary of Norton Gold Fields Ltd) have provided an extension to the initial 45 business days, for a further 15 business days. A second round of mining and haulage tenders based on a revised mine schedule went out last week, with submissions due on Friday 5 July 2024, most of the tender submissions have been received. About Horizon Minerals Limited Horizon Minerals Limited (ASX:HRZ) is a gold exploration and mining company focussed on the Kalgoorlie and Menzies areas of Western Australia which are host to some of Australia's richest gold deposits. The Company is developing a mining pipeline of projects to generate cash and self-fund aggressive exploration, mine developments and further acquisitions. The Teal gold mine has been recently completed. Horizon is aiming to significantly grow its JORC-Compliant Mineral Resources, complete definitive feasibility studies on core high grade open cut and underground projects and build a sustainable development pipeline. Horizon has a number of joint ventures in place across multiple commodities and regions of Australia providing exposure to Vanadium, Copper, PGE's, Gold and Nickel/Cobalt. Our quality joint venture partners are earning in to our project areas by spending over $20 million over 5 years enabling focus on the gold business while maintaining upside leverage. Related Companies 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 USAA CEO Wayne Peacock. Jerry Lara, San Antonio Express-News / Staff photographer Former University Health CEO George Hernandez. Robin Jerstad /Robin Jerstad University of Texas at San Antonio President Taylor Eighmy. William Luther, Staff / San Antonio Express-News Texas A&M University-San Antonio President Salvador Hector Ochoa. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News San Antonio City Manager Erik Walsh. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer CPS Energy CEO Rudy Garza. Robin Jerstad/Contributor San Antonio Water System CEO Robert Puente. Lisa Krantz/Staff photographer Bexar County Judge Peter Sakai. Josie Norris/San Antonio Express-News Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar. Salgu Wissmath/San Antonio Express-News Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales. Jerry Lara/San Antonio Express-News Northside Independent School District Superintendent John Craft. Ronald Cortes / Contribuitor San Antonio Independent School District Superintendent Jaime Aquino. Ronald Cortes / Contributor North East Independent School District Superintendent Sean Maika. North East Independent School District / Publicly traded companies arent the only ones that disclose aspects of their executives compensation. The annual paychecks of some San Antonio-area bosses from those at USAA to leaders of the citys utilities, school districts and other organizations are disclosed through filings and budget disclosures required by state open records laws. The compensation of top executives at other large employers such as H-E-B, Whataburger and Bill Miller Bar-B-Q, though, is not available because those are privately held. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Heres a look at what we know about compensation for leaders at some other well-known area companies and organizations: USAA USAA would generally not disclose total compensation for its executives because it is a private company, but the state of Nebraska requires insurers that do business in the state to report their pay. According to the insurers most recent report, President and CEO Wayne Peacock saw his compensation from five USAA insurance companies jump 68% to $8.1 million, according to USAAs March report to the Nebraska Department of Insurance. That was up from $4.8 million in 2022. University Health George B. Hernandez Jr., who retired this year as president and CEO of University Health System, was paid $1 million in 2023. He has led the Bexar County-owned hospital district for 19 years. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Hernandez was succeeded Monday by Edward Banos, who had been executive vice president and chief operating officer. He accepted the role in late May after a unanimous vote of the Bexar County Hospital District Board of Managers. University Health is the third-largest public health system in Texas. State universities University of Texas at San Antonio President Taylor Eighmy received $666,319. Texas A&M University-San Antonio President Salvador Hector Ochoa earned $400,000 last year. City, county San Antonio City Manager Erik Walshs total compensation was $405,990 in 2023, a figure based in part on compensation and tenure restrictions that voters placed on his position almost six years ago. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In November, they could be asked to undo that city charter amendment, which stipulates that the city managers salary can be no more than 10 times what the lowest-paid full-time city worker earns. The City Charter Review Commission has recommended asking voters to end the amendment. The leaders of other city-owned businesses also received six-figure salaries in 2023. CPS Energy CEO Rudy Garza received $655,000, and San Antonio Water System CEO Roberto Puente received $593,838. CPS and SAWS are city-owned utilities that provide electric, gas and water services. County Judge Peter Sakai this year is being paid $198,920. Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar will get $175,223, and District Attorney Joe Gonzales is receiving $136,774. School districts Among leaders of area school districts, Superintendent John Craft of Northside ISD earned the most in 2023, with a base salary of $350,000. Northside ISDs enrollment was also the highest, at 101,095. Advertisement Article continues below this ad San Antonio ISD Superintendent Jaime Aquino received the second-highest base pay at $334,183. About 44,670 students are enrolled at schools in the district, the third-highest total. The second-biggest district by enrollment is North East ISD, with 57,374 students, and Superintendent Sean Maika was paid $309,186. Staying true to its commitment of captivating audiences, Colors Kannada, a pioneer in introducing novel storylines with a focus on family values, is back with another captivating show, Nanna Devru. Nanna Devru narrates the story between a revered philanthropist and his devoted disciple. The show follows Mayuri, a kind-hearted nurse from a humble background in Brahmadurga. Mayuri works at one of the many charity hospitals run by Sacchidananda, a well-known philanthropist and industrialist admired for his extensive social work. Mayuri holds Sacchidananda in the highest regard, viewing him as a living embodiment of virtue and wants to follow in his footsteps. Sacchidananda, a 44-year-old widowed father of a 20-year-old daughter Sakshi, who is the opposite of her father, rebellious in nature and revolts against her fathers decisions. Due to Sacchidananda devoting himself to the people's cause, Sakshi has become distant and lives away from him to work in Bengaluru as a bartender which causes a lot of heartache to Sachidananda. Sacchidananda hopes to gain his daughters confidence one day. Mayuri, a 24-year-old is an orphan, raised by her adopted parents Sukumar and Madhavi. Sukumar is a cab driver and Madhavi a homemaker. Mayuri is educated at the institutions run by Sacchidananda and working as a nurse in one of his hospitals, Mayuri deeply admires Sacchidananda's philanthropic work. She is fiercely loyal and willing to go to any lengths to safeguard his reputation and protect him during challenging times. Nanna Devru explores how their lives intertwine after their encounter. The story revolves around Mayuri's unwavering support as she helps Sacchidananda navigate the treacherous web of conspiracies woven against him by his envious family members. The narrative celebrates the unwavering innocence of a village girl who overcomes numerous obstacles to shield Sacchidananda, offering a unique and heartwarming experience for viewers. Mayuri Kyathari, the beloved star of the blockbuster show Ashwini Nakshatra, is back on Colors Kannada as Mayuri with the show Nanna Devru. Alongside her is Avinash Divakar, the grandson of Kannada comic legend Narashimharaju. He is an actor and dabbles as an art director and film director, who portrays the philanthropist, Sacchidananda. The show has a talented cast including Yukta Malnad, Swathi, V Manohar, Rekha Das, Nishitha Gowda, Malathi Sudhir, Yamuna Shrinidhi, Ravi Brahma, Abhishek Shrikanth, and many more. Shruthi Naidu, the successful producer behind Olavina Nildana, helms the production of Nanna Devru. Ramesh Indira, currently renowned for his captivating antagonist roles, directs the show alongside Shruthi Naidu. Prashanth Nayak.B, Business Head of Colors Kannada, expressed his enthusiasm for the show: "As a brand, we are always loved by our audiences for bringing frbesh stories and their successful execution. Continuing that legacy, Nanna Devru presents a captivating narrative that explores the themes of innocence and righteousness. It showcases how these virtues navigate relentless challenges to achieve a greater purpose social service. Having Shruti Naidu and Ramesh Indira adds immense value to this unique story." Gear up for an emotional journey filled with innocence and righteousness! Nanna Devru premieres exclusively on Colors Kannada starting today at 6:30 PM, airing Monday through Saturday. The show will also be available on JioCinema. Fibe, Indias leading Fintech, has roped in Bollywood actor Vikrant Massey as its brand ambassador. Massey, acclaimed for his blockbuster movie 12th Fail, will be a part of Fibes marketing campaigns to highlight the companys quick and hassle-free application process as well as the ease at which its customers can avail of its services. The strong customer connect of Massey will reinforce Fibes familiarity among Gen Z and millennials as a solution which addresses every individuals needs without any lengthy process or questions regarding usage of the loan. The association has commenced with a campaign that wants customers to dismiss the age-old tradition of saying Agli Baar, addressing the common tendency among middle-class individuals to postpone their aspirations or purchase decisions. Conceptualised by VeryBusyPeople Film Production House, the campaign demonstrates Massey as a protagonist and narrator (Sutradhar) to guide the customers through the journey of fulfilling their aspirations through the Fibe app, be it purchasing a dream bike or an online course. Massey further goes on to highlight the benefits of using the Fibe app thereby empowering individuals to make decisions that positively impact their lives. Sudesh Shetty, Founding Member and EVP Marketing, Fibe said, We are thrilled to welcome Vikrant Massey to the Fibe family. Vikrant's relatable and authentic persona makes him the perfect fit to represent the brand Fibe. Fibe has remained committed to upgrading the lifestyle of the salaried class while ensuring to encourage responsible buying behaviour. Vikrants connect with the younger generation will significantly boost our efforts in engaging with the audiences and empower them with the Fibe app through which they can avail our offerings in an easy manner. Vikrant Massey further expressed his enthusiasm stating, I am delighted to collaborate with Fibe in its mission of helping people fulfil their dreams with confidence and ease. The brand not only helps underserved individuals avail financial services but also empowers them with financial independence. The inspiration for this campaign came from the stories of everyday life of the youth who have many dreams and aspirations but avoid making smallest of purchases and push it to Agli Baar because of financial constraints. Through NoMoreAgliBaar campaign, we want to inspire them to seize the opportunities with the support of Fibes financial solutions. Leveraging Masseys relatable appeal with the youth, we aim to create a powerful connection with Gen Z and millennials while enabling them with easily accessible financial solutions, added Sudhir Shetty, Founder & Director at VeryBusyPeople Film Production House. The integrated launch of the campaign will be promoted across various platforms, including digital and social media platforms. Fibe's commitment to enhancing lives extends beyond just traditional loans to offering specialised products that have the potential to impact millions of lives and transform them. Through its Impact loans portfolio, the company is offering EdTech loans, Healthcare loans, Insurance premium financing, and more. The company has created a financial ecosystem with various products like salary advance, personal loans, instant cash loans and Buy Now Pay Later facilities across health and education. Fibe recently raised USD 90 million in a Series E funding round. Here's the campaign Are you ready for the rap track thats going to dominate your playlist this season? Look no further than 'Meri Baggi Mera Ghoda,' the latest rhythmic banger from the much-anticipated film 'Wild Wild Punjab.' Penned, crooned and composed by Bali, this track promises a pulse-pounding experience that will leave music lovers in an uplifted mood. This high-octane track not only exudes unmatched energy but its infectious twang and free-form structure, offer a refreshing departure from regular music, making it an instant hit among listeners. With its infectious beat, 'Meri Baggi Mera Ghoda' is all set to become a go-to track across all music genres. Don't miss out on this electrifying addition to the 'Wild Wild Punjab' soundtrack! Get ready to hit repeat and immerse yourself in the raw, unfiltered energy of 'Meri Baggi Mera Ghoda!' Presented by Gulshan Kumar and Bhushan Kumar, 'Wild Wild Punjab' is a Luv Films production, directed by Simarpreet Singh and produced by Luv Ranjan and Ankur Garg. Starring Varun Sharma, Sunny Singh, Manjot Singh, Jassie Gill, Patralekhaa, and Ishita Raj, the movie is set to release on July 10 on Netflix. Authored by Kruti Berawala, Co-Founder, Stratedgy In brand building, brand architecture plays a pivotal role in shaping the identity and growth of a brand. In our digitally accelerated era, the landscape of brand architecture has encountered a significant shift, presenting newer challenges and considerations. As consumer preferences continue to evolve, the demand for specialisation across product categories is soaring. Traditionally, products within the same family were often grouped under a single brand, allowing the brand to gain recognition under one category before expanding to others. Today, however, the rise of specialised offerings raises the question of whether each new category demands a distinct brand, or if a unified approach can be maintained. The entrepreneurial landscape has also witnessed increased dynamism, with founders venturing into multiple categories shortly after inception. While this ambitious approach can lead to consumer confusion and necessitate higher marketing expenditure, if not planned well, it also presents growth opportunities. Conventional brand architecture models such as the House of Brands and Branded House, though effective in certain contexts, may not seamlessly align with the needs of modern Indian direct-to-consumer (D2C) startups. The House of Brands model, designed for disparate offerings and diverse target audiences, contrasts with the Branded House approach, which leverages existing brand equity across verticals. In light of these complexities, many brands are opting for a hybrid brand architecture, blending elements of both models to strike a balance between differentiation and brand coherence. This nuanced approach acknowledges the unique challenges and nuances of the contemporary market landscape. The Coca-Cola Company, known for its flagship brand Coke, has built significant equity over a century. Fanta launched almost a hundred years later under a flavoured beverage banner, illustrates how much brands can evolve to meet market demands. During World War II, a German trade embargo cut off access to Coca-Cola syrup, leading to Fanta's creation from local ingredients. Fanta was reintroduced in 1955 across European, Asian, and African markets, with a cautious approach in the U.S. market to protect Coke's brand equity. This strategic expansion reflected the company's commitment to balancing brand identity with product diversification to meet global market demands. Similarly, the trajectories of modern delivery apps like Swiggy and Zomato underscore the importance of deliberate brand expansion. Swiggy seamlessly integrated new offerings under its existing brand umbrella, while Zomato, facing challenges in grocery delivery, acquired Blinkit and employed an endorsed brand architecture to leverage its existing brand equity. The rebranding of Meta (formerly Facebook) provides a compelling case study in adaptive brand architecture. By restructuring under the Meta umbrella and articulating a broader vision for the Metaverse, the company has attempted to position itself for future growth and diversification, while retaining the essence of its core offerings. The decision between multiple brands and a unified brand identity hinges on several key considerations: the differentiation of product offerings, the target audience for each brand, and pricing parity across the portfolio. Brand architecture is a dynamic framework that should evolve in tandem with market dynamics and strategic imperatives, serving as the bedrock for business and brand strategy, and eventually, all growth initiatives. DISCLAIMER: The views expressed are solely of the author and Adgully.com does not necessarily subscribe to it. Chinese, Ethiopian officials appeal to embrace civilization diversity for peaceful, better world Xinhua) 09:18, July 08, 2024 ADDIS ABABA, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and Ethiopian officials have stressed the need to respect and embrace the diversity of civilizations to promote peaceful coexistence, mutual understanding, people-to-people ties and development across the world. The call was made at a high-level dialogue, titled "The Civilization Lecture Series," held in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, Saturday. The event aimed to further strengthen exchanges and cooperation of civil societies between China and Ethiopia. Speaking at the event, Li Jun, vice president of China NGO Network for International Exchanges, said it is critical to advocate shared human values to promote peaceful coexistence among different civilizations and people of the world. "We should respect the diversity of civilizations to promote mutual understanding, champion cultural differences based on equality and respect, and reject pride and prejudice, which have been proved to be the biggest obstacles to civilizations, cultural exchanges and mutual learning," Li said. According to Li, the government of China firmly supports the efforts of Ethiopians and others to inherit and develop their own cultures while independently choosing a development path that suits their nations. China is willing to have more dialogues on civilizations, intercultural exchanges and governance experiences. He said a civilization can only sustain its vitality by learning from other civilizations, strengthening people-to-people exchanges and promoting mutual learning. Yonas Adaye, commissioner of the Ethiopian National Dialogue, said at the event that dialogue on civilizations is critical to maintaining world peace and development through intercultural exchanges and cooperation. Noting that China is promoting world peace through cooperation and solidarity, Adaye emphasized the need to advance dialogue and sharing among civilizations in the face of growing confrontations among countries of the world. "Civil societies serve as bridges between states and societies through building trust, teaching the society their rights and responsibilities, dignity, human rights, democratic engagement, and helping them engage with each other," Adaye said. Indicating that China has contributed a lot to promoting win-win cooperation among different countries through its Global Civilization Initiative, the commissioner said the Chinese government's engagement in promoting civilizations and cultural exchanges for shared future and common development has earned the trust of many African countries. The high-level dialogue came after the commemoration of the China-proposed International Day for Dialogue among Civilizations, which was designated on June 10 by the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The adage that you get what you pay for may not always hold true at the highest levels of executive compensation. A San Antonio Express-News analysis of changes in pay for the CEOs of publicly traded companies in the San Antonio area from 2022 through 2023 found that, for some, raises kept coming even as their companies profits floundered. While net income at the 16 companies declined by an average of nearly 31%, the compensation of their chief executives increased by more than 14% in 2023. That topped the average of 12.6% pay increases for CEOs at publicly traded companies across the nation. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Although individual CEOs of companies with declining profitability saw their compensation slide, the pay reductions were smaller than the reductions in their companies net income or increases in net losses. Conversely, six CEOs at companies with increasing profits or declining net losses saw compensation go up by higher percentages than for improvements in their companies bottom lines. For example: About this report This analysis of CEO compensation is based on information found in the annual proxy statements of 16 publicly traded companies in the San Antonio area. It looks at base salary, bonuses, nonequity incentive plan compensation, stock awards, stock option awards and other miscellaneous forms of compensation, such as perks and changes in pension value. Companies vary in terms of which forms of compensation they use in their overall compensation packages. At Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings Inc., net income fell 221.9%. CEO Scott Wells total compensation was down 20.3%. iHeartMedia Inc. net income fell 318.9%, but CEO Robert Pittmans paycheck declined 14.6%. While TaskUs Inc. profit increased 13%, CEO Bryce Maddocks total compensation jumped a whopping 12,980.9%. As BioAffinity Technologies Inc. reduced its net loss by 2.7%, CEO Maria Zannes compensation was up 20.7% Advertisement Article continues below this ad Meanwhile, two CEOs Rusty Rush of Rush Enterprises Inc. and now-retired Joseph Gorder of Valero Energy Corp. took home bigger paychecks while their companies saw falling profits. There were some notable exceptions: At Rackspace Technology Inc., net income decreased by 4.1% while Amar Maletiras total compensation fell much more by 47%. U.S. Global Investors Inc. net income decreased by 8.5% while Frank Holmes compensation fell by 42.3%. Each companys executive pay philosophy is different, with the multiple components that make up the CEOs total compensation varying. Shifts in some of those components often account for big changes in total pay from year to year. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Nevertheless, the general trend is that CEOs of companies with improving performance were rewarded at rates above their companies year-over-year gains while those at companies with declining profit or increasing losses were penalized at rates that were below their companies financial struggles. Heres a closer look at compensation for chief executives of the 16 San Antonio-area publicly traded companies tracked by the Express-News: The self-declaration mandate, as per a directive by the Supreme Court of India, has sent the ad world into a tizzy. According to the Supreme Court order, no advertisement shall run on print, television, or digital media without a Self Declaration Certificate which is valid. As the ad industry goes about complying with the SDC mandate, several areas of concern have arisen. The ground realities of submitting the Self Declaration Certificate are beginning to hit the agencies such as increase in workload and logistical challenges, ambiguity, possibility of unethical players exploiting loopholes. There are also concerns about the whole process adversely impacting creativity and innovation. Keeping these concerns in mind, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) met with various stakeholders of the industry on June 25, following which the Ministry issued a new advisory, wherein submission of the self-declaration certificates has been limited to food and health ads. Moreover, advertisers in these two sectors need to upload annual SDCs instead of every ad released. This has helped ease the situation to a great extent. Also read: In-depth: How AI is revolutionizing self-declaration process amid easing of norms by MIB How the ad industry is adapting to the SDC mandate: Tackling key pain points Social Pill unveils AI Tool to streamline Advertiser Self-Declarations No SDCs for Government ads, Tenders, Public Notices, Obituary ads: PCI ISA urges postponement of self-declaration certificate implementation Dont release new ads without self-declaration certificate post June 18: ASCI to members With the crucial second half of the year coming up, where advertisers and ad agencies look to make good their revenue targets, Adgully spoke to some ad industry experts to find out what would be the impact on ad industry revenues, programmatic ads, festive season campaigns and more. Impact on ad spends in second half of 2024 Complying with the self-declaration certificate mandate has been causing delay in the release of new ads as agencies and advertisers familiarise themselves with the procedures. Any delay in the release of ads has a bearing on the ad spends and revenue implications. So what will be the impact in the second half of 2024 when the festive season sees a surfeit of ads? Rishabh Mahendru, VP - Client Success & Growth, AdLift, explained that while there was a situation of confusion earlier, the picture is clear now since MIB issued a new advisory, limiting Self-Declaration Certificate to the food and health sector only. Earlier, it was across industries, hence everyone was unsure to release a new ad. But since the new advisory, I feel the ad spends will not be effected at large, he opined. Meanwhile, Rekha Motwani, AVP - Media, #ARM Worldwide, noted, Ensuring compliance with the self-declaration certificate mandate may involve some initial adjustments, potentially leading to delays in releasing new ads, especially for industries affected. To ensure smoother execution and management of these compliances, initial expertise will be required, necessitating the allocation of additional resources, including legal reviews and oversight. These additions will increase operational costs and negatively impact the budget for ad spending, potentially affecting smaller companies more stringently than larger ones. While these delays will primarily be due to the initial adjustments needed by advertisers to comply with the new regulations, the long-term benefits are promising, felt Motwani. They will promote transparency, uphold ethical conduct, and safeguard consumer interests. With right and proactive planning, enhanced information, clarity, and streamlined processes, these measures will integrate into regular operations, making them more manageable and minimising significant impact on overall ad spending. Prakhar Srivastava, Finance Controller, White Rivers Media, too, noted that any new policy shift/ directive always brings with it some momentary inconveniences, but one must see the larger picture. The central focus of the Supreme Court directive on SDC was to further establish transparency and authenticity in advertising, and with its latest advisory, theres a sense of reassurance for the advertisers. Now, the SDC will have bearing only on advertisements in the Food and Health sector. With practicality at its core, the latest advisory offers clarity, easing initial apprehensions for a lot of advertisements that were in the pipleline. Shradha Agarwal, Co-founder and CEO, Grapes, agreed that there is a huge delay because of the self declaration mandate. For almost 2 weeks, a couple of my clients have not posted anything. And they are expecting confirmation this week from their legal team to start posting, she added. Will the SDC mandate have a bearing on festive season ads? AdLifts Mahendru felt that there will be more caution in copywriting departments across agencies and industries now. No one wants to have delays in deliverables and will be more cautious in releasing an ad. If we are avoiding fancy claims and sticking to the facts then there will be no bearing on any ad during the festive season, he added. Motwani of #ARM Worldwide added here that while the exact impact remains uncertain, there is a possibility that festive season ads, particularly in food and health-related sectors, could be influenced by the SDC mandate. She said, Given the heightened scrutiny and adherence to legal and ethical standards required across all advertising, brands must ensure their festive campaigns comply with self-declaration requirements. This may involve additional preparatory measures to meet regulatory obligations while maintaining the creative and thematic integrity of their seasonal campaigns. Considering festive season ads are time-sensitive, brands and advertisers will need to adopt a proactive approach to their ad planning, including securing SDC. This will require extra effort initially, but as processes become more efficient, it is expected to become more manageable over time. Grapes Agarwal pointed out, Its an annual self-declaration, so you have to be focussed on your RTV and USPs. In case you keep changing those creatives from a perspective of personalisation, but you uploaded one of them also, it will work and should not create much of a difference, because they are again focussing on the claims not on the way of creative telling. According to her, This mandate will not make much of a difference, because its only the food and health sectors, but also due to the fact that its annual self declaration, so if you do all your RTVs and USPs in one go, this will not impact the festive ad season at all. Impact on programmatic ads The SDC announcement was a hold-back for most programmatic ads as the volume and deliverables for programmatic ads are way higher than any other medium. But since we are directed with the new advisory, we now know which industry we need to take care of most, said Rishabh Mahendru. Meanwhile, Rekha Motwani said that the impact of programmatic ads remains a topic of interest, considering the personalised nature and high volume of such advertising. She explained, In this form of marketing, brands often share creatives and copies, while audience selection and display are dynamically automated through platforms, based on numerous criteria and categories tailored to target specific audiences. Advertisers are keen to understand how these intricate and automated processes will fall under the purview of compliance with the requirements of the self-declaration certificate (SDC). Clear guidelines regarding the personalisation of these ads, including instructions on handling dynamic content and managing high-volume ad campaigns, can significantly aid in manoeuvring through this. Furthermore, collaborative efforts among advertisers, platforms, and regulatory bodies will be crucial. A practical starting point could involve establishing transparent practices that uphold legal and ethical standards mandated by the SDC. This approach will enhance accountability and trust in programmatic advertising, ensuring it continues to deliver targeted and effective campaigns while meeting regulatory obligations. Prakhar Srivastava of White Rivers Media noted that while the food and health sector brands will have to follow the due diligence of SDC, other brands in any case will have to conform with the ethical forms of advertising and in compliance of Rule 7 of the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 - be it for festive season ads or programmatic ads. Rishabh Mahendru, VP - Client Success & Growth, AdLift, explained that while there was a situation of confusion earlier, the picture is clear now since MIB issued a new advisory, limiting Self-Declaration Certificate to the food and health sector only. Earlier, it was across industries, hence everyone was unsure to release a new ad. But since the new advisory, I feel the ad spends will not be effected at large, he opined. Also Read: Week at a glance: SDC mandate pain points; Battle Against Ad Fraud; Dentsu Creative PR Tata Communications today announced the appointment of Bhaskar Gorti as Executive Vice President, Cloud & Cybersecurity Services. Bhaskar will take charge of the new role from July 2024 and will be a part of the Global Management Committee at the company. With his extensive expertise across multiple functions, industries, technologies, and regions, and his focus on customer-centricity, digitalisation, and automation, Bhaskar will be instrumental in further sharpening and executing Tata Communications transformative digital fabric vision. Bhaskar, who holds a Master of Science in electrical engineering from Virginia Tech, brings nearly three decades of extensive experience, having held top positions at industry giants like Oracle (Senior Vice President and General Manager), Nokia (President Nokia Software & Chief Digital Officer, Nokia), Sandvine (Board Member) and, most recently, CEO and Board member at Platform9, the open distributed cloud service. AS Lakshminarayanan, MD and CEO, Tata Communications said: I am delighted to welcome Bhaskar to the leadership team at Tata Communications. His strategic acumen, proven success in scaling technology businesses, and deep understanding of Cloud and Security services, will make him a strong asset to our Global Management Committee. Bhaskar Gorti, Executive Vice President, Cloud & Cybersecurity Services, Tata Communications said: Im excited to join Tata Communications to lead our efforts in delivering cutting-edge cloud and security solutions that empower businesses to innovate securely and efficiently. The companys vision for the digital fabric is truly revolutionary, and its commitment to expanding its cloud and cybersecurity portfolio aligns perfectly with my passion for innovation and growth. I look forward to building on the momentum and driving significant advancements in our solutions. Authored by Mansi Gupta, Chief Business Officer, OpraahFx While earlier the focus was about what a brand represents, Gen Z is especially drawn to brands that reflect their reality, help them express themselves, and foster a like-minded community. According to the 2024 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Brands and Politics, globally, 84% of people report that they need to share values with a brand to engage with it. Gen Z is drawn to brands that reflect their reality, help them express themselves, and foster a like-minded community. For Gen Z, brand positioning goes beyond selling productsit's about telling a story and creating an emotional connection. As the most active users on social media, dating apps, and e-retail platforms, Gen Z wields significant buying power and influence over brand reputation. Therefore, brands must communicate effectively and proactively share positive messages to build trust and avoid the rapid spread of negative news. Gen Z, raised on social media, favors relatable and digestible content. Engaging them with interactive elements on platforms like YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram is key, as these are their preferred spaces. Brands that capture their attention understand their preferences and communicate in their language. It is interesting that according to a McKinsey & Company article, the purchasing behavior of Gen Z in the US and UK demonstrates a significant shift in brand loyalty. While 30% of Gen Z said they would stick with their preferred brand for a new product or service, a notable 62% are open to exploring other options, even if they have a favorite. Furthermore, over half of those who do have a favorite brand are willing to switch if another brand offers a better price or higher quality. Inshort, Gen Z can't be tied down. To appeal to Gen Z, brands now need to go an extra mile and adopt strategies that resonate with this group, such as creating fun, engaging, and shareable bite-sized content. Content Overload and Short Attention Span It's no secret that Gen Z is constantly bombarded with content across various platforms, leading to shorter attention spans and a desire to consume more content in less time. This has forced brands to create concise, engaging, and visually appealing content that can instantly capture their interest amidst the noise. To stand out, brands need to deliver high-quality, impactful messages quickly, utilizing eye-catching visuals, snappy videos, and compelling narratives that resonate with Gen Z's preferences and lifestyle. Effective use of humor, relatability, and interactive elements can also help in grabbing and maintaining their attention. Fast-Paced Change in Trends Keeping up with rapidly changing trends among Gen Z is challenging for brands. The fast pace of trend shifts requires brands to stay constantly updated and agile. To maintain relevance and appeal to Gen Z, brands need to be well-versed in current trends, continuously monitor social media and cultural shifts, and adapt smartly to emerging trends. This means being flexible in their marketing strategies, experimenting with new ideas, and being quick to implement changes that resonate with Gen Z's evolving interests and preferences. Staying relevant in such a dynamic environment demands a proactive approach and a deep understanding of the Gen Z mindset. High Expectations for Authenticity Gen Z values authenticity and transparency from brands and can easily spot insincere or exaggerated messaging. To foster genuine connections, brands need to be honest, transparent, and true to their values, avoiding overly polished or misleading content. Especially with the recent introduction of the Self Declaration Certificate, authenticity has become even more crucial. Brands must communicate openly about their practices, stand by their commitments, and engage in meaningful interactions with their audience. By maintaining integrity and aligning with Gen Z's values, brands can build trust and loyalty in this discerning demographic. Influence of Peer Reviews and Recommendations Word of mouth remains a powerful tool in purchasing decisions even for Gen Z. This generation places significant trust in peer reviews, influencer recommendations, often valuing them more than traditional advertising. Brands should actively encourage and leverage positive user-generated content, reviews, and testimonials to build trust and credibility among Gen Z. By fostering a community where customers share their genuine experiences, brands can create a sense of authenticity and reliability that resonates deeply with this demographic. Demand for Instant Gratification Brands must ensure fast, seamless interactions and provide quick customer service responses to meet Gen Z's expectations for instant gratification. This demographic values efficiency and convenience, so brands that prioritize swift and responsive communication across digital platforms are more likely to capture and retain their attention. By leveraging technology and maintaining a proactive approach to customer service, brands can meet the high standards of Gen Z and enhance overall customer satisfaction. Fragmented Media Consumption Gen Z consumes content across a wide array of platforms and devices, resulting in fragmented media consumption patterns. To effectively reach and engage this audience, brands must adopt an omnichannel approach. This approach ensures consistent and cohesive messaging across all platforms where Gen Z is active. By maintaining a unified brand presence and adapting content strategies to suit different platforms, brands can maximize their visibility and engagement among this diverse and digitally-savvy demographic. This proactive approach not only enhances brand awareness but also strengthens connections with Gen Z across their preferred channels of interaction. These are also the reasons why brands are now relying on partnering with influencers who align with Gen Z's interests and values. Brands can leverage their credibility and reach to deliver messages in an engaging and relatable manner. Social influencers play a crucial role in connecting with Gen Z's interests and values, delivering engaging, educational, and entertaining content. Influencers provide real-time insights and agility to navigate trends, helping brands stay relevant and foster lasting connections. This strategic partnership overcomes challenges of fragmented media consumption, driving brand affinity and loyalty among Gen Z. BMW Hit-And-Run Case: Shiv Sena Leader Rajesh Shah, Father of Key Accused, Granted Bail 2 In a significant development in the BMW hit-and-run case, a Mumbai court has granted bail to Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, whose son, Mihir Shah, is a key suspect in the fatal incident. The 24-year-old Mihir Shah allegedly drove the car that struck and killed Kaveri Nakhwa, 45, while injuring her husband Pradeep. Mihir remains at large. The court had initially remanded Rajesh Shah to 14-day judicial custody earlier today, but he was subsequently granted bail. Meanwhile, police have intensified their search for Mihir Shah, forming six teams to locate him. A Look Out Circular (LOC) has also been issued to prevent him from fleeing the country. Mihirs driver, who is also implicated in the case, has been remanded to police custody until Tuesday. All three individuals involved have been charged with various offenses, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder. However, the court determined that the charge under section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) did not apply to Rajesh Shah. The tragic incident occurred around 5:30 am on Sunday when Mihir Shahs BMW reportedly lost control on Annie Besant Road in Worli, crashing into the Nakhwas two-wheeler. Following the collision, Mihir Shah fled towards the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, abandoning the car and his driver near Kala Nagar in Bandra before escaping. The police continue their efforts to apprehend Mihir Shah as the investigation unfolds. Supreme Court Rejects WB Govt Plea Against CBI Probe Into Land Grabbing, Sexual Assault Allegations in Sandeshkhali 2 The Supreme Court on Monday rejected the West Bengal governments plea challenging a Calcutta High Court order that directed a CBI investigation into allegations of land grabbing and sexual assault in Sandeshkhali. The bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan refused to interfere with the Calcutta HC order, noting that police in West Bengal had failed to act for months. Defending the Calcutta HCs decision, the Supreme Court stated that the order pertains to all related incidents. However, Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing West Bengal, argued that substantial work had been done on the case and that a blanket direction was unnecessary. The apex court remained unconvinced but clarified that its observations would not influence the trial or future remedies related to the case. West Bengal approached the Supreme Court to challenge the April 10 order of the Calcutta High Court, which mandated a CBI investigation into allegations of land grabbing and sexual assault in Sandeshkhali. We say theyre off the beaten path. Or under the radar. Diamonds in the rough. Whatever you call them, Alabama has a slew of tucked-away dining treasures, many of which are hiding right under our nose, just waiting to be discovered. You need to get off the main road and venture outside your normal routine to find most of them, but weve learned that theyre well worth the effort to do so. Here are nine such hidden Alabama restaurant gems that weve discovered in our travels around the state. What about you? What off-the-beaten-path treasures have you found that we need to know about? [Want good news about Alabama delivered to your inbox each week? Sign up for This is Alabamas weekly newsletter.] Pitmaster Jamie Lee Mitchell came home to Sumter County to build his Alabama Rib Shack, which he opened in the small town of Gainesville in 2021. (Bob Carlton/bcarlton@al.com) Alabama Rib Shack in Gainesville The Alabama Rib Shack in the tiny Sumter County town of Gainesville isnt quite as hidden as it was when we first wrote about it two ago -- having since been featured on Season 6 of John T. Edges popular SEC Network series TrueSouth. But its still very much a gem, a stately, A-frame log cabin restaurant that was built by hand by owner and pitmaster Jamie Lee Mitchell, who left Boston and moved his family back to his home in the Black Belt on the Fourth of July 2020. He opened his restaurant about a year later. It is a shack in name only, and a trip to the ARS is a transcendent experience. Its not just about the pork, chicken, sausage, ribs and pig tails that Mitchell smokes from white oak and pecan firewood that he has stacked from the floor to the ceiling of his pit room. Its about the total experience, from meeting Mitchell and hearing about his fascinating journey from rural Sumter County to urban Boston and back home again to sitting in those old church pews repurposed from Gainesvilles historic Clark Chapel United Methodist Church while surrounded by mounted bucks donated by the deer hunters who eat here during hunting season. I wanted to create this amazing atmosphere that no other barbecue restaurant has and just let my mind go wild, Mitchell told us back in 2022. He has done that. And then some. The Alabama Rib Shack is at 9316 State St. in Gainesville, Ala. The phone is 205-652-1115. For more information, go here. READ MORE: A slice of barbecue heaven in Alabamas Black Belt Homecoming and Company, which started in 2018 in the Langston community on Guntersville Lake, moved into this space in nearby Guntersville in 2022. In August 2024, the restaurant moved a second time into Guntersville's historic The Glover building.(Bob Carlton/bcarlton@al.com) Homecoming and Company in Guntersville Jessica Hanners grew up in a little fishing hamlet on Guntersville Lake in northeast Alabama, and after a culinary journey that took her from Portland, Ore., to Charleston, S.C., to Atlanta, Hanners came home and opened what she then called Homecoming Cafe & Country Store in Langston, less than a mile from where she lived as a little girl. It was, as we have previously written, worth the trip, by car or boat a down-home dining spot best known for its elevated breakfasts, reliable lunches and elegant Friday night dinners. Two years ago, Hanners moved her women-owned-and-operated business to Guntersville and rebranded it Homecoming and Company, but it otherwise hasnt skipped a beat. The breakfast menu features candied bacon-stuffed French toast and the Dr. Suess-inspired Green Eggs & Ham, with collard greens, ham, eggs and onion rings over a bowl of local grits. Lunch favorites include a seasonal vegetable plate, a grass-fed burger and the Aloha Yall sandwich, with grilled chicken, ham, grilled pineapple, slaw and Pepperjack cheese. The dinner menu changes from weekly, but among the main attractions are the smoked brisket with green beans and fried potatoes and the seared red snapped with mashed potatoes and griddled green beans. Homecoming and Company is in The Glover building at 524 Gunter Ave. in Guntersville. The phone is 256-202-1880. For more information, go here. READ MORE: This destination Alabama restaurant is worth the trip Former Birmingham TV and radio sportscaster Herb Winches is the proprietor of The Landing at Parker Creek, a dining destination on Lake Martin in Coosa County.(Photo for AL.com by Joey McClure) The Landing at Parker Creek in Equality Whether you arrive by boat or by car, The Landing at Parker Creek is the place to be on summer weekends at Lake Martin. The lakeside restaurant -- which Birmingham sportscasting legend Herb Winches and his wife, Betty, opened in 2015 -- offers outdoor dining pavilions, an open-air cocktail bar and a sandy beach with spectacular sunset views. Chef Torrey Hall, who earned his culinary stripes working in restaurants in his home state of Hawaii, serves a lake-friendly menu that includes a sushi bowl, shrimp tacos, a mahi-mahi sandwich and pork sliders, as well as such specials as parmesan-crusted snapper and blackened halibut. In the nine years since it opened, The Landing at Parker Creek has proven to be so popular with lake lovers that Winches recently opened a second restaurant on the other side of Lake Martin, The Landing at Harbor Pointe. The Landing at Parker Creek is at 8300 Parker Creek Marina Road in Equality, Ala. The phone is 205-410-6091. For more information, go here and here. The restaurant is open Thursdays through Sundays from mid-April through Labor Day. READ MORE: Former Birmingham sportscaster reels em in at his Lake Martin restaurant The crew at Sacs Kitchen in Huntsville, from left: Lydia Hammons, Sarah Burwell, Sarah Douglas, Cameron Parker, Chinelle Liciti, Erica Flint, Malory Fletcher and Carlos Burwell. (Matt Wake/mwake@al.com)Matt Wake Sacs Kitchen in Huntsville Sarah Douglas and her son Carlos Burwell opened Sacs Kitchen in north Huntsville 11 years ago in a space between a beauty parlor, boutique and tax service in a brick building on Mastin Lake Road. Within two or three years, the demand for their fried chicken and catfish was such that they bought the entire building from its previous owner. We started getting busier, Sarah told AL.coms Matt Wake last year, so we needed more room. (A quick backstory: When Sarah was a child, her nickname was Sack because whenever a family member brought home a bag of groceries. she would ask, Whats in that sack? So, when it came time to name her and her sons restaurant, they dropped the k so it could also stand for Sarah and Carlos.) Matt, who knows Huntsville better than most rocket scientists, ranks Sacs moist, crispy fried chicken the best in the Rocket City. Every piece of chicken is cooked to order, and the piping-hot results are well worth the 15-to-20-minute wait, he says. In addition to the top-ranked fried chicken, the Sacs menu includes catfish, pork chops, salmon patties and chicken and dressing, as well as a medley of homecooked vegetables, from collard greens to black-eyed peas, fried green tomatoes to mac and cheese. Service is to-go only, but Sacs also has bar in the back called Sacs Lounge, where guests may stick around and order from the restaurant. Sacs Kitchen is at 6008 Mastin Lake Road, Suite B, in Huntsville, Ala. The phone is 256-746-9030. For more information, go here. READ MORE: Meet the family behind Huntsvilles best fried chicken The Shoals Shack, a roadside joint outside of Florence in the tiny town of St. Florian, isn't much bigger than a food truck but packs some huge flavors.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com The Shoals Shack in St. Florian The Shoals Shack opened four years ago in St. Florian, a tiny town outside Florence in northwest Alabama, and the name is spot-on, AL.coms Lawrence Specker writes. Its about the size of a railroad caboose and sits in the parking lot of a Big Star supermarket on County Road 47. Theres no indoor seating, only a walk-up window and a couple of picnic tables. But the little roadside shack packs some big eats, including not just a stellar selection of burgers but also a wildly delicious aha tuna and avocado appetizer; a hearty chicken Genoa sandwich with pecan pesto, tomato and red onion; and braised beef, blackened shrimp and fried eggplant tacos. Plus, owners B.J. Harris and Jennifer Tester are constantly creating new daily specials to mix up the menu and keep things interesting. As Lawrence writes, As the sign out front says, Its all good. No false advertising there. The Shoals Shack is at 4675 County Road 47 in St. Florian, Ala. The phone is 256-284-7480. For more information, go here. READ MORE: The Shoals Shack: A small place with a big menu The Tally-Ho Restaurant is a Selma favorite that dates to 1942. (Bob Carlton/bcarlton@al.com) Tally-Ho Restaurant in Selma Camouflaged by a canopy of trees in a residential area in historic Selma, the Tally-Ho Restaurant is not easy to find but well worth the search. Believed to date back to 1942, the restaurant had been a private dinner club at one time, and on the inside, it has the rustic look of a log cabin, with dark wood, a vaulted ceiling, exposed beams and a wagon wheel chandelier. The menu includes such appetizers as sauteed crab claws, fried artichoke hearts and French onion soup, as well as entrees such as shrimp and grits, linguini alfredo, French country chicken, fried catfish, a sushi menu on Wednesdays, and the house favorite, a hand-cut, flame-grilled ribeye. Tally-Ho Restaurant is at 509 Mangum Ave. in Selma, Ala. The phone is 334-872-1390. For more information, go here. RELATED: Historic Selma barbecue restaurant reopens Tin Top Restaurant & Oyster Bar opened in 2004 in this location in the unincorporated Baldwin County community of Bon Secour. The restaurant moved into a new location nearby at 17451 County Road 49 South in early August 2024.(Bob Carlton/bcarlton@al.com) Tin Top Restaurant & Oyster Bar in Bon Secour Bob and Patty Hallmark were newcomers to the restaurant business when they opened their Tin Top Restaurant & Oyster Bar among the Spanish moss-draped oaks in beautiful Bon Secour 20 years ago. Bob had been a general contractor and Patty a schoolteacher, and part of their motivation for opening a restaurant was simply Bobs frustration at not being able to find a great steak in Baldwin County at the time. Their New Orleans-influenced restaurant the Pearl of Bon Secour, they like to call it -- quickly became known not only for the steaks but also the bounty of fresh Gulf seafood that is at their immediate disposal. One of the house specialties, the Tender Fenton, is the best of both worlds a 10-ounce tenderloin and an order of Tin Tops signature Oysters Fenton served together in a bowl of Hallmarks house-made steak sauce. The dish is crowned with two pieces of toasted French bread for dipping and dredging. For a lazy lunch, let us also recommend the fried oyster po boy and a side of seasoned lima beans with andouille sausage. Tin Top Restaurant & Oyster Bar closed its original location at 6232 County Road 10 in Bon Secour, Ala., on Aug. 3, 2024, and moved into a new location at 17451 County Road 49 South, on the Bon Secour River, on Aug. 9, 2024. READ MORE: Off-the-beaten-path restaurant is the definition of destination dining Tre Luna Bar & Kitchen in Hoover offers casual dining indoors and out. (Photo by Sara Walker; used with permission from the Sprouthouse Agency) Tre Luna Bar & Kitchen in Hoover Chef Brian Mooney grew up in South Florida, but after he met his future wife, Erin, in Fort Lauderdale, the couple moved to her hometown of Birmingham, where Brian worked for James Beard Award-winning chef Frank Stitt at Bottega before the couple started their Tre Luna Catering business 10 years ago. They added a restaurant, Tre Luna Bar & Kitchen, which they opened in The Village at Brocks Gap retail center near the Hoover Metropolitan Complex in 2019. The name Tre Luna (Italian for three moons) has multiple meanings for the Mooneys -- a play on their last name, a tribute to their three children, as well as a nod to the restaurants Italian-inspired menu, which features a variety of sharable starters, a raw seafood bar, seasonal entrees, brick oven pizzas, and classic Italian pasta dishes. Whether youre sitting indoors or outside under the moon and stars, Tre Luna has a casual and energetic vibe, with an efficient and knowledgeable waitstaff. We recommend you start with the beef carpaccio and/or the sauteed mussels for an appetizer; order the chicken francese with Brussels sprouts and McEwen & Sons polenta or the braised pork shoulder orecchiette with mushroom, spinach, Bechamel cheese sauce and mixed greens for your main course; and save room for the restaurants signature dessert, the Breakup Brookie, a collaboration pairing Tre Lunas in-house chocolate brownie with recipe developer and food stylist Emily Halls Breakup Cookie, served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Tre Luna Bar & Kitchen is at 1021 Brocks Gap Parkway, Suite 145, in Hoover, Ala. The phone is 205-538-5866. For more information, go here. RELATED: 12 Alabama restaurants to put on your 2024 calendar The Wheelhouse in downtown Opp is located in a 90-year-old building that the restaurant's owners renovated and reopened in late 2019. (Photo by Merrill Culverhouse; used with permission) The Wheelhouse in Opp Chef Jon Gibson grew up in the small Covington County town of Opp before embarking on a culinary journey that took him from California to the Florida Keys before he came back home and opened the Wheelhouse restaurant with his childhood friend, pharmacist Merrill Culverhouse. Ive been after him for years to come back, Culverhouse said in a 2021 AL.com feature on their restaurant. We were starving to death in Opp for different food. The old friends spent eight months renovating a 90-year-old downtown building that, at various times in its history, had been home to a post office, a bakery and a peanut butter factory, and they opened the Wheelhouse in late 2019. Gibson -- who, while cooking in California, earned the nickname Guerrilla Chef for his passionate approach to food, sustainability and the environment -- serves what he calls Coastal Comfort Cuisine, and his menu features Alabama Gulf Seafood and Wild American Shrimp dishes -- as well as fresh takes on old favorites, including a seafood pot pie, a grilled chicken mac and cheese, and a chicken-fried hamburger steak. As he said in our 2021 story: I take stuff that I grew up with as a kid and people around here grew up with as a kid and I just twist em enough that theyre unique but still familiar. The Wheelhouse is at 105 East Hart Ave. in Opp, Ala. The phone is 334-764-6482. For more information, go here. READ MORE: The restaurant thats making this Alabama town a dining destination Alabama fans of Lauryn Hill will finally get to see that concert postponed from 2023 when she comes to the Orion Amphitheater Sept. 4, 2024. She will perform hits from her only solo album, The Miseduction of Lauryn Hill, as well as performing with the hip-hop group The Fugees, which features Wyclef Jean and Pras Michel. Her album was recently named the best ever made in a list released by Apple Music, beating out such entries as Thriller by Michael Jackson, Abbey Road by the Beatles, and Purple Rain by Prince and The Revolution. Huntsville, Ala.: Lauryn Hill Hopefully, Hills concert will go on as planned. We did some legwork for you to find the cheapest seats. At the time of this writing, you could find seats for $85 on StubHub | $88 on Vivid Seats | $93 on Event Tickets Center | $70 on SeatGeek. Interestingly, Hill began her career as a teenager as an actress on the soap opera As the World Turns. She also played Rita in the film Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit before joining the Fugees. At the 41st Grammy Awards, Hill received the most nominations in one night for a female artist, with 10. She also became the first rapper to win Album of the Year that night. In 1999, she was the first rapper to grace the cover of Time magazine and she was honored by the NAACP with a Presidents Award for her humanitarian work. By COLLEEN LONG and WILL WEISSERT Associated Press PHILADELPHIA (AP) President Joe Biden urged supporters to stay unified at a rousing Black church service in critical Pennsylvania on Sunday, even as his campaign team quietly braced for growing pressure on him to abandon his reelection bid amid intensifying questions about whether hes fit for another term. Speaking from a stage flanked by sunshine from stained-glass windows at northwest Philadelphias Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, the 81-year-old Biden laughed off concerns about his age, joking I know I look 40 but Ive been doing this a long time. I, honest to God, have never been more optimistic about Americas future if we stick together, Biden said. He didnt use a teleprompter, which has become more common since his disastrous debate performance, but spoke from a prepared speech. That followed Biden joining a Saturday call with campaign surrogates and reiterating that he has no plans to leave the race, despite a political situation that is increasingly precarious. Instead, the president pledged to campaign harder going forward and to hit the road more frequently, according to two people who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. Five Democratic lawmakers have already called on him to abandon his reelection campaign ahead of November, and more could do so in the coming days, as Congress reconvenes. Meeting in person means more chances to discuss concerns about Bidens ability to withstand the remaining four months of the campaign not to mention four more years in the White House and true prospects of beating former Republican former President Donald Trump. Bidens campaign team is quietly preparing for more Democrats to say the president should yield to another candidate in coming days, while holding the call with surrogates and calling and texting lawmakers to try and head off more potential defections. They are also tasking high-profile Biden supporters to speak out, in hopes of bringing those with lingering concerns back in line. Alan Clendenin, a Tampa city councilman and member of the Democratic National Committee, said on Sunday, I believe it is in the best interest of our country and the world that President Joe Biden step aside and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to carry forward his agenda as our Democratic nominee. And director Rob Reiner, who has helped organize glitzy Hollywood fundraisers for Biden in the past, posted on X, Its time for Joe Biden to step down. With the Democratic convention fast approaching, the short term is especially critical. Those who feel Biden is no longer up to the task are imploring Democrats to replace him at the top of the ticket before, they argue, its too late. Bidens Friday interview with ABC has not convinced some who remain skeptical. Thats despite a weekend boost coming from other key Democrats who had raised previous questions but now have moved to support Biden, led by Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi and Rep. James Clyburn of South Carolina. Democratic fundraising bundler Barry Goodman, a Michigan attorney, said Sunday that he still backs Biden but, should he step aside, hed back Harris. Thats notable since Goodman was also a finance co-chairman for both of the statewide campaigns of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has also been mentioned as a top-of-the-ticket alternative. We dont have much time, Goodman said. I dont think the president gets out. But if he does, I think it would be Kamala. Biden nonetheless found an exceedingly friendly audience at Mount Airy, where Pastor Louis Felton likened the president to Joseph and the biblical story of his coat of many colors. In it, Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt by his jealous brothers, only to eventually obtain a high place in the kingdom of the pharaoh and have his brothers beg him for assistance without initially recognizing him. Never count Joseph out, Felton implored. Then, referring to Democrats who have called on Biden to step aside, he added, Thats whats going on, Mr. President. People are jealous of you. Jealous of your stick-to-itiveness, jealous of your favor. Jealous of Gods hand upon your life. That came after Biden entered to applause and a cry of Let him know we are with him! There is no election we can not win, Felton told those assembled. We are together because we love our president. He also called Biden a fighter and winner and led a prayer where he said, Our president gets discouraged. But today, through your holy spirit, renew his mind, renew his spirt, renew his body. The visit gave Biden a chance to energize African-American voters, who are Democrats largest and most-loyal bloc of support. It could also send a message to members of the Congressional Black Caucus, whose endorsement the president will need as he works to quell potential rebellion on Capitol Hill. After the church service, Biden visited a campaign office in Philadelphia, where Sen. John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat who won a tough 2022 race while recovering from a stroke, offered a forceful endorsement of the president. There is only one guy that has ever beaten Trump, Fetterman said. And he is going to do it twice and put him down for good. Biden also has a scheduled rally later with union members in Harrisburg. Stepping off Air Force One there, the president was asked if the Democratic Party was behind him and emphatically responded, Yes. He returns to Washington, where leaders from NATO countries will gather for a three-day summit beginning Tuesday. Despite the sentiments of the likes of Fetterman, though, others arent fully convinced. Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut told CNN that Biden needs to answer those questions that voters have while adding, If he does that this week, I think he will be in a very good position and we can get back to what this campaign needs to be. Biden has rejected undergoing independent cognitive testing, arguing that the everyday rigors of the presidency were proof enough of his mental acuity. Still, California Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff told NBC on Sunday that hed be happy if both the president and Donald Trump took a cognitive test. As some Democrats have done, Schiff also seized on Biden suggesting during the ABC interview that losing to Trump would be acceptable as long as I give it my all. This is not just about whether he gave it the best college try, Schiff said but rather whether he made the right decision to run or to pass the torch. Weissert reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Zeke Miller in Washington, Michelle Price in New York, Meg Kinnard in Chapin, South Carolina, and Bill Barrow in New Orleans contributed to this report. A man has died after fire swept through his Birmingham home Monday. Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service responded about 11:30 a.m. to a home in the 900 block of 51st Street on a report of a person trapped in a house fire. Witnesses and authorities said the man and his wife both safely escaped the blaze, but then the man went back inside for unknown reasons. He did not come back out. A team of firefighters rushed into the house and rescued the man. He was taken to UAB Hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later, Birmingham police confirmed. Several firefighters were checked out by paramedics on the scene. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. The death of an Atlanta doctorate student found Saturday in Birmingham, two days after he disappeared from a family holiday gathering, has been ruled a homicide by the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiners Office. Birmingham police announced the determination Sunday. Authorities have not said how 31-year-old Deundray Cottrell was killed. The search continues for 31-year-old Julian Taylor Morris, who authorities and family have said had a romantic relationship with Cottrell. Fitzgerald called Morris a person of interest. Morris has not been seen since Friday morning. Cottrell was last seen about 10 p.m. Thursday in the 7000 block of Fourth Avenue South. His sister, Angelica Harris, said Cottrell and Morris got to Birmingham about 6 p.m. Thursday to celebrate the holiday. It was her brothers first time seeing the new home she shares with her husband and children. Cottrell lived in Atlanta where he worked in marketing and was working toward his doctorate degree. Deundray Cottrell, 31, disappeared July 4 while celebrating the Fourth of July with his family in east Birmingham.(Special to AL.com) About 10 p.m., Cottrell said he was going upstairs to check on his dog, because of the fireworks. He went and checked on the dog and I never saw him again, Harris said. Morris also was in the house and told family they had a conversation and the Cottrell had left and took off running through the backyard. Family members found Cottrells sunglasses, cell phone and one of his shoes when they began their search for him. Morris, family said, was acting erratically and not like theyve known him to act for the past three years. The family immediately began a search and eventually called police to file a missing persons report. Harris said they later learned he wasnt actually entered into the system as missing until Friday morning. Cottrells family searched for him throughout Friday and Friday night but to no avail. They did track down Ring camera footage at several homes that showed Cottrell running through yards, and even jumping over a gate. It looked like he was looking for refuge, Harris said. He was running for his life. Deundray Cottrell, 31, disappeared July 4 while celebrating the Fourth of July with his family in east Birmingham.(Special to AL.com) Morris then possibly went missing on Friday. Cottrells family saw Morris Friday morning but did not see him after that. Officer Truman Fitzgerald said also on Friday, East Precinct officers began searching the area where Cottrell was last seen. They recovered some of his clothing, and a community member provided officers with surveillance footage of Cottrell walking in the area. On Saturday, family again launched another search, as did Birmingham police. Just before 3 p.m., officers found Cottrell dead in a detached shed of a vacant house, and his family was notified. Hes a well-loved, well-known, good hearted person and theres a lot of people hurting from him being gone, Harris said before Cottrell was found dead. Whats happening doesnt make sense. Morris was the last person who saw Cottrell alive, Fitzgerald said. He is described as a Black male, 5-feet, 6-inches tall and weighing 160 pounds. Cottrell is Birminghams 81st homicide this year. Of those, eight have been ruled justifiable and therefore arent deemed criminal. In all of Jefferson County, there have been 104 homicides, including the 81 in Birmingham. Anyone with information is asked to call homicide detectives at 205-254-7777 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Gov. Greg Abbott and Taiwan Minister of Economic Affairs Jyh-Huei Kuo sign an economic development statement of intent Sunday in Taipei. Office of the Texas Governor Gov. Greg Abbott meets with Taiwan President Lai Ching-te Sunday before signing an economic cooperation pact with the nation and opening a Texas office. Office of the Texas Governor TAIPEI, Taiwan Looking to build on an already thriving relationship, Gov. Greg Abbott kicked off his tour of East Asia by opening a Texas Taiwan office, signing a letter of intent to strengthen business ties and committing to help the island nation have a greater voice on the world stage. We understand, both in Texas and in the United States, the importance of a strong Taiwan for the future of the entire globe, Abbott said on a stage with Taiwanese Minister of Economic Affairs Jyh-Huei Kuo before signing the letter of intent to foster stronger economic ties with Taiwan. One of the best things that we can do to strengthen Taiwan and strengthen its future is by expanding our economic ties, so that Taiwan grows even stronger economically. Earlier, Abbott and members of the Texas delegation, including business and political leaders, met with Taiwanes President Lai Ching-te. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The role that Taiwan plays on the global stage is so incredibly important for so many reasons, Abbott told the president. Trade is an obvious one, semiconductors technology, innovation is another one. But what you do also is so important for world peace and for democracy. Lai thanked Abbott for his visit and for the economic development initiatives the new Texas Taiwan office will spearhead. I assure that the office will create new and trailblazing opportunities for an even stronger collaboration between Taiwanese and U.S. businesses, Lai said. Taiwan, with a semiconductor industry critical to the worlds economy, is Texas seventh-largest trade partner, totaling $21.3 billion in 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Its the worlds largest producer of semiconductors, providing more than 90% of advanced chips used in cellphones, aircraft, electric vehicles and artificial intelligence. According to Abbotts office, Taiwan in 2022 led all nations in foreign direct investment in Texas, with more than $5 billion. Over the past 10 years, Taiwanese companies have created more than 2,200 jobs in Texas. The opening of the Taiwan Texas office in Taipei is a historic event, Abbott said. This is the first time this century that Texas has opened up an office like this in some other country other than Mexico, he said. So of all the countries in the entire world, that shows you how important Taiwan is to Texas. Abbotts visit comes as tensions continue between China and Taiwan. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Taiwan has been independently governed since 1949, but China views the island as part of its territory and hasnt ruled out the use of force to unify the nations. Last year, Texas passed a resolution in support of Taiwan, and lawmakers say its part of a series of moves to link the Lone Star State with the island nation. Also last year, Texas lawmakers provided funding to open an office in Taiwan. Abbott left Taiwan for Seoul, South Korea. He was to meet Monday with the countrys minister of foreign affairs, have lunch with business leaders and attend a reception at the U.S. Embassy. Hell visit Samsung facilities Tuesday. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Abbott is leading a delegation that includes his wife, Cecilia Abbott; Secretary of State Jane Nelson; state Sen. Carol Alvarado, D-Houston; and GOP state Reps. Giovanni Capriglione of Southlake, Angie Chen Button of Garland and Jacey Jetton of Richmond. It also includes economic development officials from San Antonio and San Marcos. Mishandling of a gun is believed to have led to the shooting death of a 15-year-old boy in Birmingham early Sunday. The investigation is still ongoing, but police officials do not believe the fatal shooting was intentional. Authorities initially said the victim was 14 years old but updated his age Sunday night to 15. A 14-year-old boy is being held in juvenile detention while the probe continues. What we have uncovered in the investigation leads us to believe were not dealing with a murder, said Officer Truman Fitzgerald. Its more along the lines of juveniles out early in the morning and someone mishandled a firearm and now weve lost a 15-year-old young man because of that. Just before 7 a.m. Sunday, South Precinct officers were dispatched to a report of a person who showed up at UAB Hospital with a gunshot wound. Once at the hospital, they learned that a minivan arrived at the emergency room with the 15-year-old victim inside. The boy was pronounced dead at the hospital. Officer Truman Fitzgerald said police learned the shooting possibly took place in the area of Roebuck or Huffman. East Precinct officers began to coordinate with South Precinct officers who had responded to the hospital and found a scene in in the 9200 block of Parkway East. More specifically, the scene appeared to be between Walmart and Wells Fargo, near a small strip of businesses. It was at that location that investigators recovered a handgun from bushes. There was also blood on the ground. Four other males were with the victim at the hospital and remained there after taking him for help. The age range was 14 to 18. They were all taken to police headquarters for questioning. Police learned all of the males from the citys west side - were in the van together riding around east Birmingham. Somewhere between the 9200 block of Parkway East and a different location, the 14-year-old male had a handgun in his hand and due to unknown circumstances, he fired the gun and he hit the 15-year-old victim and killed him, Fitzgerald said. All of the juveniles involved were questioned in the presence of their parent or guardian. Fitzgerald said detectives consulted with the Jefferson County District Attorneys Office, and at their direction transported the 14-year-old to the youth detention facility. This is a sad and tragic case, Fitzgerald said. These kids all knew one another. Its another incident where a gun was in the wrong hands. The possibility of criminal charges - which in juvenile court is a petition is still under review. The Jefferson County Coroners Office also still has to rule the manner of death such as homicide, or accidental. Not all homicides are criminal. Nothing we gathered leads us to believe this 14-year-old intentionally shot this 15-year-old in cold blood, Fitzgerald said. The theme in this case is juveniles who have firearms in their hand, mishandled them, and we lost a 15=year-old because of that. These types of deaths are preventable, he said. Anyone with additional information is asked to call detectives at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. Madison police have charged an 18-year-old with murder following a fatal shooting last week. Christopher Saam of Madison has been charged in connection with the death of Brian Wiggins Jr., 18, of Decatur. According to police the shooting happened July 3. Saam was arrested Saturday. The arrest came after police executed search and arrest warrants at a house in Madison. Saam was taken to the Madison County Jail. The investigation is continuing, according to police. The Alabama Law Enforcement Agency reports that a 17-year-old from Huntsville was killed in a collision Sunday morning on U.S. 72. A news release from ALEA did not name the minor. The crash took place about 8:30 a.m. Sunday near the 119 mile marker on U.S. 72 in Jackson County, about halfway between Huntsville and Scottsboro. According to ALEA, the 2015 Altima driven by the teen hit a 1988 Chevrolet C2500 pickup driven by Rodney L. Quick, 50, of New Hope, then struck a trailer pulled by a 1988 Chevrolet R3500 driven by Shelby R. Cloud Jr., 52, of Huntsville. ALEA reported that the teen driver had not been wearing a seat belt and was pronounced dead at the scene. Troopers continue to investigate the incident, the ALEA statement said. On Monday at 1:25 p.m. the National Weather Service issued a heat advisory in effect until 7 p.m. for Lauderdale, Colbert, Franklin, Lawrence, Limestone, Madison, Morgan, Marshall, Jackson, DeKalb and Cullman counties. The weather service comments, "Heat index values up to 109 degrees." "Hot temperatures and high humidity may cause heat illnesses," states the weather service. Mastering the heat: Weather service Guidelines for staying safe in high temperatures Stay hydrated: Make sure to drink plenty of fluids. Seek shelter: Stay indoors in an air-conditioned room to keep cool. Avoid sun exposure: Avoid direct sun exposure, protect yourself and check on vulnerable relatives and neighbors. Child and pet safety: Do not leave young children and pets unattended in vehicles when car interiors can reach lethal temperatures in a matter of minutes. Caution outdoors: If you must work or spend time outdoors, take extra precautions. Optimal timing: If possible, move strenuous activities to early morning or evening for more favorable conditions. Recognize heat-related issues: Familiarize yourself with warning signs and how tp recognize the symptoms of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Stay cool with clothing: Wear lightweight, loose-fitting clothing to stay comfortable. Additional tips for outdoor workers: For outdoor workers, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recommends regular rest breaks in shaded or air-conditioned areas. If someone is overwhelmed by the heat, swiftly relocate them to a cool, shaded location. In emergency situations, dial 911 for immediate assistance. These NWS heat safety recommendations are vital for your well-being during periods of high temperatures. Stay informed and take the necessary steps to protect yourself and others from the heat's potentially dangerous effects. Advance Local Weather Alerts is a service provided by United Robots, which uses machine learning to compile the latest data from the National Weather Service. The ongoing soap opera that is the 2024 presidential election has now entered its will he or wont he phase. Rampant speculation about Biden dropping out of the race, or resigning the presidency, or continuing to run as the Democrat nominee, is now dominating the news cycles. However, Bidens final decision will be based not on headlines or breathless leaks but on what the family perceives as an adequate quid pro quo and the timing of pre-emptive pardons for himself and virtually his entire family. After the debacle that was Bidens performance in the June 27, 2024 debate, it became obvious to the Democrat Party hierarchy and their sycophants in the legacy media that what they already knew and were willingly obfuscating for five years could no longer be papered over. Thus, during the upcoming weeks, the American people will be regaled with a torrent of leaks and innuendos about Bidens health issues. The pressure to either force Biden to resign or renounce his candidacy is accelerating as the Democrats have become increasingly fearful of losing the presidency to their implacable foe, Donald Trump. But how are they going to deal with Biden, Inc. (Joe, Jill, James Biden, and the newest permanent resident of the White House -- Hunter Biden)? By foisting Joe Biden on America, the Democrats best and brightest granted a reprobate the ultimate upper hand in this election cycle: the threat to use the presidents unlimited power to grant pre-emptive pardons to himself and whomever he chooses. With the increasing probability of Donald Trump winning the presidency, the necessity of pre-emptive pardons increases exponentially as the specter of justifiable future retribution for the unleashing of egregious and unconstitutional lawfare against not only Trump, but average Americans, hangs heavily over the current occupants of the White House. The Republican Houses ongoing revelations of potential criminality by Joe; his brother James, Hunter, and numerous other family members, would serve as the basis for countless criminal and civil complaints against Joe and virtually the entire family. Additionally, per the recent Supreme Court decision on presidential immunity, Joe could also be held liable for unofficial acts during his presidency. At a minimum, the legal fees associated with innumerable criminal, or civil filings would impoverish Joe and his entire family. In what will be the most egregious travesty of justice in American history, Joe Biden, in order to protect himself and his family will inevitably issue numerous pre-emptive pardons during the waning months of his presidency. The most important of which will be a self-pardon. Much has been discussed and written about a presidents power to pardon himself. Some constitutional scholars claim a president can issue a self-pardon as the matter was not directly addressed by the Constitutional Convention. Consequently, as there are no constraints defined in the Constitution itself that says he cannot do it, he therefore could. However, other constitutional scholars claim a president does not have the power of self-pardon. In any event, while self-pardons are an issue that could end up before the Supreme Court, it would not prevent Joe Biden from pre-emptively pardoning himself for virtually everything as it would take years into his post-presidency to challenge and potentially reverse. This power to pardon also serves as a potential extortion tool for an unscrupulous and devious cabal such as Biden, Inc. Based on their fifty-year history of financial manipulation, influence-peddling, and fraud, they would not hesitate to effectively blackmail the Democrat Party elites. Therefore, if the Democrat donors and the party hierarchy attempt to utilize the Twenty-Fifth Amendment or demand Joe resign before election day, the Bidens will threaten to issue pre-emptive pardons, including a self-pardon for Joe, before his resignation. Thus, precipitating a massive amount of backlash against the party and all its candidates. Almost certainly guaranteeing a Trump and Republican landslide. If the Democrat cabal insists that he drop out of the race but remain as president, the Bidens will demand a substantial quid pro quo (be it money or other considerations directed not to Joe but the rest of the Biden family) in order to exit the campaign and defer issuing the pre-emptive pardons until after election day. However, he would maintain the upper hand by the mere implied threat of granting pardons anytime in the next four months before the election. If Joe Biden stays in the race it will be because Biden, Inc. could not reach a satisfactory agreement with the Democrat Party elites. If Joe chooses to drop out of the race, it will be because the Biden crime family reached a very lucrative settlement with the Democrat Party elites. The Democrats and the legacy media brought this scenario on themselves by exploiting the COVID-19 pandemic to unconstitutionally manipulate state voting laws, expand and abuse mail-in voting, and orchestrate unfettered ballot harvesting in order to place in office the most incompetent, duplicitous, corrupt, and bribable president in American history. They cannot feign ignorance, as virtually every Washington insider knew Biden was, at a minimum, suffering from early-onset dementia as well as being aware that he has been an unprincipled and avaricious buffoon since his early days in the Senate. Finding a new candidate to replace Joe Biden is the easy part. Getting him to resign or drop out of the race without triggering a political firestorm will prove to be far more difficult. Despite reports to the contrary, the Democrat establishment is not reluctant to nominate Kamala Harris in all her bubbleheaded incompetence. Their problem is what to do with an incumbent who does not give a damn about the future of the party or, more importantly, the country. In all likelihood, the Democrat elites and Biden family will settle for an extremely lucrative arrangement that allows Joe to drop out of the race and remain in office in exchange for waiting until after November 5, 2024 to issue pre-emptive pardons. The Democrats are certain that once Joe is out of the race he will no longer be the center of attention in the campaign. However, if Trump and the Republican Party consistently expose the specter of pre-emptive pardons and continuously and plausibly ask, based on the Biden family history, what deal did the Democrats agree to get him drop out of the race, then, rather than a new Democrat nominee being the focus of the race, a venal, corrupt, and exposed Joe Biden will remain the center of attention in the campaign. After premeditatively foisting Joe Biden on the American people, it is a supreme irony that the Democrat party elites and the legacy media are now being hoisted on their own petard. Image: AT via Magic Studio A common plotline in the Western movie genre involves a lone, hard-bitten, rough-around-the-edges gunslinger, scarcely better than an outlaw himself, who rides into a small town plagued by genuine, hard-core outlaws. The townspeople, even if they dont like the gunman much -- even if they find him uncouth or unfit for polite society-- quickly turn to him as their savior and beseech his help in ridding them of the baddies. And he grudgingly agrees, for reasons that arent entirely clear but usually come down to this: He doesnt care for the bad guys, either. Despite the rough edges, he is driven by a fundamental desire for fairness and justice. He really just wants to be left alone, and he believes others should enjoy that same privilege. In short, he is the quintessential American hero: tough, courageous, competent, iconoclastic. He neither seeks to dominate nor will he allow himself to be dominated. He bows to no one. Oh, and he wins. He does rid the town of the bad guys. And then he rides off into the sunset. As you may have recognized, this is the basic plot of numerous iconic westerns, including Shane, The Magnificent Seven, and Clint Eastwood films like High Plains Drifter and Pale Rider -- although those last two have darker endings. The story line is even parodied in comedies like Blazing Saddles and Three Amigos, which suggests that it is iconic indeed. My contention is that, in modern-day America, Donald Trump is our hard-bitten gunslinger. With a personality forged in the dog-eat-dog world of New York real estate, he can certainly be a rough character. He says harsh things, and he doesnt sugarcoat them. He is notorious, in his business dealings, for staying just inside the lines (the bogus charges brought against him by his enemies notwithstanding). Many probably wouldnt care to invite him over for dinner or bring him as a guest to a friends party. And yet. There can be little doubt that our country is currently besieged by bad guys. Real, honest-to-goodness outlaws whose corruption knows no bounds. Who are determined to push their destructive agenda on America -- DEI, CRT, abortion up to birth, the trans agenda, unfettered immigration, currency manipulation, profiteering from foreign wars -- by any means necessary. Who dont hesitate to take the law into their own hands in order to punish their perceived political enemies. Who clearly will not be satisfied until the rest of us are forced into submission. In the wake of Joe Bidens disastrous debate performance, people all over America -- even Democrats -- are now waking up to this reality. They can see that theyve been lied to. Theyve been had. Our government and media are full of bad actors so intent on consolidating their own power, theyve allowed this husk of a man to masquerade as president for three-and-a-half years, while they pull his strings from behind the curtain. It is also clear that, if this corruption continues unchecked, the United States will devolve in short order into something that is no longer a representative democracy. Something much more like an oligarchy or even a semi-fascist state, where the powerful elites control everything. Such, indeed, is their goal. Can any rational person now doubt that? What can be done? Who can save us from this fate? At this point in history, there is just one man who fills that bill: Donald J. Trump. Perhaps there could have been others, like Florida governor Ron DeSantis. DeSantis is a good man and a fine leader. I have no doubt he would make a terrific president. On a personal note, I would have voted for him in the Georgia Republican primary if he had gotten that far. But there is an argument to be made, I think, that DeSantis, for all his admirable qualities, is not what we need right now. To return to our Western analogy, hes more like the good-guy sheriff, the pure-in-heart, Dudley-Do-Right-type who bravely faces down the outlaws even though he might not be quite up to the task -- unwilling to fight dirty in what is sure to be an epically dirty fight. Maybe, for that kind of fight, we need a guy whos a little rough around the edges himself. Whos not afraid to get down in the dirt. Who can throw a mean roundhouse as well as take one. (Note that, in their desperation, the townspeople dont turn to a good man. They turn to one who knows how to fight fire with fire.) Maybe, for that kind of fight, against the lawless, self-styled elites who seek to strip us of our God-given rights and make us into serfs who will own nothing and be happy, we need our own Shane, our own Pale Rider, someone to put the fear of God in these assholes and run them out of our town -- because, never forget, it is our town. As one of the townspeople says to the Clint Eastwood character in High Plains Drifter, Youre a man that makes people afraid, and thats a dangerous thing. Is there anyone on our side right now -- on the side of America, of the Founding -- who strikes more fear into the hearts of our enemies than Donald Trump? No. Obviously not. They hate all conservatives, thats for sure; but they fear him so much that he has lived rent-free in their heads for nigh onto nine years now. (If you dont believe that, just watch CNN or MSNBC for ten minutes, if you can stomach it.) They fear him so much, theyve literally tried to jail him on a series of trumped-up chargesto the point where future generations will probably think trumped-up refers to the attempted railroading of the 45th president. To put it succinctly, right now, Donald Trump is all weve got. Hes the only one who can go up against these outlaws and stand any chance of taking them out. If he cant do it, I dont know if anyone can. May God be with him. Image: AT via Magic Studio All is not as it seems in America, and after the presidential debate, millions of voters must wonder if they have been living in the Bizarro World. It turns out that the media colluded with the Biden team to create a fictional Joe Biden who has never existed. The real Joe Biden is too mentally compromised to hold office. DC is more of a Potemkin Village and the White House a hall of mirrors than the seat of government. Even worse, the Biden administration and campaign, the DNC, and the mainstream media have all emerged as con artists whose marks have been the American people. The American future depends on voters coming to grips with the reality that they have been had by their president and the media and must fight against a rabid leftwing that, cornered, will do anything to regain power and control over the masses. The simple truth about the presidential debate is that Trump had a good night and did well, while Biden had an awful night and did horribly. Neither the mainstream media nor a White House spokesperson could mask his abysmal performance. Bidens failure was in full view for all the world to see for 90 live, uninterrupted, unedited minutes. Yes, the emperor is as naked as the day he was born. Image by Andrea Widburg using AI. But the debate turned out to be about much more. It revealed the Democrat-Media Complexs well-kept secrets, the kind that can plummet a constitutional republic into blinding darkness, that conservatives have been screaming about for decades, and that led to the rise of MAGA politics and Donald Trump. We knew before the debate that Bidens dementia would be apparent, but how much we couldnt predict. We knew at the debates conclusion that Trump trounced Biden, whose infirmities were on full display. When the Democrat-Media Complex had a nervous breakdown post-debate, it became increasingly clear that the substance of Trumps responses was less of an issue than the fact that Biden and the press were incontrovertibly in cahoots, fully exposed, and now boxed in. They couldnt cover things up as lies, cheap fakes, or Republican wishful thinking. They couldnt attribute Bidens poor performance to fatigue, over-preparation, or a bad cold. It wasnt just that Biden flopped or was exposed as frail and demented. Instead, the public learned that the Democrat-Media Complex had systematically lied about Biden beginning in 2020. And, while no one can guarantee how people will vote in November, hell hath no fury like a voter scorned. Moving forward, voters will doubt what they see on the news and what they hear from anyone associated with the White House, the DNC, and the leftwing punditry. Democrat and Independent voters will begin second-guessing everything they believed from the past and anything they are told today and promised tomorrow. Theyll reconsider some of Bidens behavior and comments that they dismissed when he ran in 2020; theyll take a second look at the videos they were told were cheap fakes; and theyll even rethink some of the propaganda about Trump being a serial liar, cheater, dictator, and traitor who destroyed democracy. Voters will step out of their comfort zones and start reading articles and books by palatable Democrats who have been skeptics, e.g., Matt Taibbi, Bari Weiss, Alan Dershowitz, and Jonathan Turley. Reading fellow travelers who saw the light, theyll feel empowered to dig deeper, perhaps revisiting January 6th. They might actually listen to Trumps speech or learn that Trump offered the National Guard and Pelosi turned him down. They might discover that the only casualty that day was white Ashli Babbitt, who did nothing to justify being shot by black Capitol officer Michael Byrd. Once they reorient their worldview to encompass facts, not narrative, they might understand that Trump is the victim of Democrat lawfare. This is how the sweater begins to unravel. Voters who traditionally havent been paying attention and accept Democrat-Media Complex talking points as gospel will slowly inch over toward conservatives and Republicans. Others will come to that realization almost convulsively. As many who made the Democrat-to-conservative journey knoweither because we grew up and matured or saw the duplicity during the Clinton years or feared the Marxist transformation promised by Obama-Bidenthe engaged public cannot unsee what they saw during that debate. And now that the emperor is exposed as full-on naked and his sycophants as complicit in that charade, the trust is irreversibly breached. As if emerging into daylight after years in the dark, these voters can finally see with clear eyes the years of cover-up and will understand that Democrats have manipulated and controlled the masses. They will continue to do so to ensure we fall in line without their actually having to hold a gun to our heads or put us in gulags. This doesnt guarantee Trumps success on November 5th. We have a lifetime in political years to go and must tread carefully. Republicans must stop calling for Bidens removal and replacementthats a Democrat issue. For some bizarre reason, Bidens handlers think they must continue to spread the myth of Biden by having him give speeches, address poorly attended rallies, and do major interviewsall of which have been a disaster. That is a gift horse. Do not look it in the mouth! For each week that Biden remains in the race, voters remain disillusioned and Republicans benefit. Every interview, presser, rally or speech he fouls up reinforces the lies, betrayals, and cover-ups. If the Democrats oust him, sure, well have to adjust but for now, forcing his replacement will result in a more appealing candidate who will give doubting Democrat voters a reason to vote Democrat. Our focus should be on attacking Bidens record and ability to hold office, while shoring up House and Senate races. As for the Democrats? Let the mayhem reign. Let there be chaos at the convention. Let it be the Democrats who are split for once. However, never underestimate the ability of Republicans to F things up. The Democrat-Media Complexs duplicity revealed that our media is an arm of a political party and, when that party is in power, an arm of the government. That portends nothing good and requires more finger-pointing. Republicans must erase this government-media umbilical cord, and theyre doing so against a maddened animal fighting for its life. Now that the public has (we hope) been forced out of its somnambulant political state to confront and reject the evils of a press and party it once trusted, the media have lost their raison detre. Thats why theyre scrambling like ants in a colony that has just been kicked. In the past, the media could handle losing an isolated election if they maintained a hold over the public. Now, they not only stand to lose the presidency but, more consequentially, they may have lost control over disseminating information and manipulating the publicpropaganda, if you willthreatening their fundamental Marxist transformation of America. While Hell hath no fury like a voter scorned, memory is short-lived in todays political climate. With four months to go, Biden and the corrupt press must remain in the limelight as a constant reminder to voters that theyve been betrayed, manipulated, and mistreated and that the only cure is MAGA. In November, as Americans prepare to cast their votes, they face a critical decision that goes beyond mere political preferenceits a choice with profound implications for the nations economy and security. At the heart of this decision is the stark contrast between the proven leadership of Donald Trump, an unwavering advocate for both the working class and the business community, and the faltering policies of Joe Biden. This choice resonates deeply as it reflects on tangible impacts felt across every corner of American society. Under Trumps administration, significant strides were made to fortify Americas borders and overhaul the immigration system, which are fundamental pillars of national security and economic stability. The introduction of stringent national security travel bans and a robust information-sharing framework exemplified a proactive approach to safeguarding American lives and livelihoods against threats posed by terrorists and extremists. These measures were not reactive but preemptive, setting a standard for global security protocols that prioritized the safety of American citizens. Economically, Trumps administration demonstrated a clear commitment to benefiting American workers and taxpayers through comprehensive border security reforms. By drastically reducing refugee resettlement by 85%, resources were redirected to more efficient overseas resettlement and burden-sharing initiatives, thereby alleviating pressures on local communities and ensuring that resources were used judiciously. Equally pivotal was the comprehensive overhaul of the refugee security screening process, ensuring that those admitted posed no threat to national security or the domestic labor market, thus safeguarding job opportunities for American workers. Beyond immigration reform, Trump enacted policies designed to protect American taxpayers and ensure the self-sufficiency of immigrants arriving in the United States. The implementation of a comprehensive public charge regulation was instrumental in ensuring newcomers could financially support themselves, thereby relieving the burden on taxpayers and promoting fiscal responsibility in immigration policies. Measures aimed at combating birth tourism and restricting illegal aliens access to public housing were critical steps in preserving resources for those who lawfully contribute to the economy, while also maintaining fairness in public services. Moreover, Trumps administration prioritized American workers by instituting policies that mandated federal agencies hire domestically first, thus mitigating displacement of U.S. workers in favor of foreign labor. This commitment to protecting American jobs was underscored by reforms to the H-1B visa program, which sought to ensure skilled foreign workers complement rather than compete with American talent. The decision to withdraw from the United Nationss Global Compact on Migration underscored a steadfast dedication to preserving U.S. sovereignty and safeguarding American jobs, reinforcing the administrations commitment to putting American interests first. Legislatively, Trumps policies restored integrity to programs like Temporary Protected Status (TPS), ensuring strict adherence to statutory conditions and preventing abuse of the system intended for genuine humanitarian crises. This principled approach not only upheld the rule of law but also maintained the integrity of immigration processes critical to national security, promoting a fair and orderly immigration system that prioritized the safety and well-being of American citizens. The economic rationale underlying these reforms is incontrovertible. By securing borders and enforcing immigration laws, the Trump administration fostered a predictable and stable environment conducive to business growth. Certainty in labor markets, coupled with protections against illegal competition, bolstered confidence among investors and entrepreneurs alike, catalyzing economic expansion and innovation across various sectors. This environment stimulated job creation and wage growth, benefiting American workers and reinforcing economic resilience amid global challenges. In stark contrast, the Biden administrations approach has been marked by inefficiency and misplaced priorities, resulting in four tumultuous years marred by insecurity and economic instability. From lax border enforcement to policies that inadvertently incentivized illegal immigration, Bidens tenure left American workers vulnerable to displacement and taxpayers burdened by the costs of unchecked migration. The lack of strategic foresight and effective policy implementation has undermined national security and economic progress, jeopardizing the future prosperity of the American people. In conclusion, the upcoming election is not merely a choice between political figures; it represents a pivotal decision about America's future trajectory. Donald Trumps demonstrated record in fortifying national security, protecting American workers, and nurturing economic prosperity stands in stark contrast to the failures of Joe Biden. For voters prioritizing national security, economic vitality, and a government that champions the interests of its citizens, the choice to support Trump is clear. Supporting Trump means reaffirming America's sovereignty, revitalizing its economy, and ensuring that hard-working Americansfrom Main Street to corporate officescan flourish in a nation that prioritizes their well-being. It is a choice that resonates with those who seek a secure and prosperous future for themselves and future generations, founded on principles of strength, opportunity, and resilience. As November approaches, the decision is not just about who leads the nation, but about the values and vision that will shape Americas path forward for years to come. Joseph Ford Cotto, 1st Baron Cotto, GCCCR (DBA) is the author of What Happened to America?: Howand Whythe American Dream Became a Nightmare. He hosts News Sight, an online program with a sharp focus on the current events that impact your life. During 2014, HLM King Kigeli V of Rwanda bestowed a hereditary knighthood upon him. It was followed by a barony the next year. Cotto holds a doctorate in business administration. Image: Public domain. In an interview with Victor Blackwell on CNN two days ago, Andrea Lawful-Sanders, who conducted a live phone interview with President Biden on July 3 on her program The Source on radio station WURD in Philadelphia the presidents first interview after his disastrous debate with President Trump six days earlier admitted that the White House had provided questions to her in advance. Lawful-Sanders appeared live on CNN on Saturday morning with the other black host Earl Ingram who also interviewed Biden on his Wisconsin radio show a day after Lawful-Sanders, seven days after the debate. Image: YouTube video screen grab. From CNNs official transcript: VICTOR BLACKWELL: Aundrea [sic] Lawful-Sanders is the host of the source on WURD in Philadelphia. BLACKWELL: Andrea, let me ask you here about your interviews and something I listened to both of them. And theres something that similarly here you each were you asked for questions, and maybe thats what youre allowed to ask by the campaign or the White House. But there were essentially the same questions, both interviews about accomplishments, progress in your respective state, whats at stake in the election, what he has to say about his debate performance? And what he would say to voters who think their vote doesnt matter, or might sit this election out? Were those questions given to you by the White House or did you have or the campaign or did you have to submit questions ahead of this interview? ANDREA LAWFUL-SANDERS, HOST, THE SOURCE ON WURD: The questions were sent to me for approval, I approve to them [emphasis added]. BLACKWELL: Okay. So the White House sent the questions to you ahead of the interview? LAWFUL-SANDERS: Yes. BLACKWELL: Okay. LAWFUL-SANDERS: Ive got several questions. eight of them and the four that were chosen were the ones that I approved. BLACKWELL: Okay. And the reason I ask is not a criticism of either view, its just that if the White House is trying now to prove the VIM vigor acuity of the President, I dont know how they do that by sending questions first, before the interview so that the President knows whats coming. Let me play here a bit of your interview. This is and youve probably seen its gotten a lot of attention. This is when he was asked about his accomplishments as president. Lets play it. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE) BIDEN: Im proud to be the, as I said, the first Vice President -- first Black woman -- to serve with the Black president. (END VIDEOTAPE) BLACKWELL: Did you hear as its being covered, the President say that he was proud to be the first black woman president because that's what the headlines all over the internet is suggesting. LAWFUL-SANDERS: I find it interesting that they saw and heard that hes what I got from him was that he was intimating that Kamala Harris was the first black woman Vice President, and I guess with a speech impediment, they heard something else and I find it interesting that was the only thing that they picked out of that entire conversation and ran with it. Look, we have a hard way to go in this country. I am listening to the community that is speaking to me every single day on WURD Radio. We are answering, looking at the things that are mattering to us. We cant afford to get excited and fumble and fumble about what folks are thinking about this, the President and his frailty and his speeches. We are concerned about the purging of the government in Project 2025. Weve been talking about this on WURD since January, fully and completely the slashing of the Department of Justice and dismantling the FBI and replacing their traditional independence, from political pressure with fealty to the administration. Those are the things that matter to us in the black community. So when I asked them, what matters most to you that if President Biden has this speech impediment, or that hes slowing down, versus the other person who has all these other things going on, they keep saying to me, we did it on Friday on the source. We did Thursday. We keep asking them. They keep saying the same thing. We want the Democrats to win because we feel like if we do anything else, its going to be a problem for us. What Im concerned about is that no one really seems to be in the community talking to the very people who has to vote. BLACKWELL: Earl Ingram from Civic Media, Andrea Lawful-Sanders from WURD, thank you both. A win is a win. Heres this, from one of my favorite bloggers, and shared with me by one of ATs dearest friends: Climate Fatigue strikes in Ireland: Most people dont believe it harms them and have no plans to be vegetarian or give up their cars Yet another survey shows most people know what to say when asked banal questions of climate dogma Yes they are very worried. But more than half the population dont believe climate change is going to harm them and they have no intention of giving up meat, or their cars or their pets. This survey gives us (and them) an idea of just how superficial that worry is. Apparently the world is going to end, but 6 out of 10 people are not going to give up their cars, their favorite food or their pets. That means they are not that worried. More than half dont believe its harming them. It doesnt get more basic than this. Four thousand experts have told the people for 30 years that climate change is their fault and a catastrophe and more than half the audience doesnt think the experts are right. Dont get me wrong, weve had to go through a lot of pain to get to this point. Weve seen trillions of dollars either wasted or handed to government cronies, real money that we earned through our blood, sweat, and tears. The negative impact on biodiversity is untold. Weve got dead bats and dead birds, many of which are endangered and keep away mosquitoes and other pesky insects, and our marine creatures populations continue to be decimated: Another tragic discovery was made Monday just south of Graces Cove on Block Island, where a humpback whale was found washed up on shore. This incident adds to a growing number of whale deaths in the area, and attention is increasingly turning toward the nearby wind farms as pic.twitter.com/25dVbbjpDf Newport Buzz (@NewportBuzz) June 25, 2024 Weve watched unfathomable amounts of toxic pollution pour into our air and water: San Diego Firefighters have flown in experts to the Otay Mesa Battery Storage site to study the fire because they don't know how to extinguish it. The has already consumed 5 million gallons of water, and firefighters estimate it will take an additional 7-10 days to control, pic.twitter.com/sVi71XW1Vy Amy Reichert (@amyforsandiego) May 23, 2024 (You can read that story here.) Weve watched the uglification of once-beautiful landscapes, even destroying iconic old-growth forests, all to make way for solar and wind farms: Their output sucks & wind farms are absolutely hideous. Some areas throw a couple on a hillside and liberals pat themselves on the back & think awww how awesome.. clean energy yay us! Thousands of acres of these.. its gross & super dystopian. https://t.co/s1HV5KBB68 pic.twitter.com/wEvUypQSBM Jess (@surlydirly) January 13, 2024 And, these farms (what a perversion of the word!) are producing a whole lot of material thats fixing to go to a landfill or a dumping ground, because as of now, there is no way to dispose of or recycle expired/busted/old solar panels and turbine blades. (The best suggestion yet, as mentioned by someone in ATs comments a little while back, is turning decommissioned wind turbine blades into a big, beautiful border wall.) But again, the results of the survey are cause for optimisma win is a win. The pendulum can swing back, because it is. And to take it a step further, using Platos cave allegory: The experts have destroyed their own credibility (if they ever really had any), as the enlightened public is finding life away from these experts superior, evidently unwilling to go back to the darkness and lies. Hat tip: John McMahon, Kolonga, Qld Australia. Image: Free image, Pixabay license. Workers on the line at the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas Inc. plant in San Antonio in 2022. The automaker is currently running a trial of the Texas-made full-size pickup in Australia and could begin selling them there by the end of the year. Toyota Texas Toyota Motor Corp. is inching closer to expanding the market for its San Antonio-made hybrid Tundra pickup to Australia, a Toyota Australia executive said this week. The automaker announced in December that up to 300 Tundras had been shipped Down Under, where they were reconfigured to move the drivers controls to the right side. The trucks were to be delivered to customers by April. Since then, Tundra drivers have had regular check-ins with Toyota as part of what the Japanese automaker calls a real-world evaluation and validation program. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Toyota hasnt said when Australians might be able to walk into a showroom and buy their own Tundras, but Toyota Australia Vice President of Sales Sean Hanley hinted a launch may not be far off. Im kind of hoping we might have some news by the end of the year, Hanley told Australian outlet Car Expert on Monday. Hanley told the outlet that testing so far has been promising. If Toyota moves ahead with the plan, the vehicle would continue to be made in the San Antonio plant and then sent to Australia to be reengineered for Australian drivers. The move is part of a broader trend of U.S.-made trucks being reworked at premium prices for Australian drivers. Qualitys been good, a couple little things that we fixed, but thats the whole basis of the trial, Hanley said. The trials worked out really well for us, because it was the first time weve ever tried anything like this. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The reengineering program began in 2019 in partnership with Walkinshaw Automotive Group, a Melbourne company that specializes in reworking American vehicles for Aussie drivers. Toyota Australia first said it was looking into bringing the full-size, high-towing power pickup Down Under in 2022. We know there is a demand for full-size pickups like the Tundra but we wanted to ensure that the local right-hand drive conversion and the vehicle as a whole met Toyotas exacting standards for quality and the needs of our customers, Hanley said in a statement in December. The Australian automotive market has been growing the footprint of its U.S. utes or utility trucks over the past decade. Ram Trucks Australia started the trend, beginning a venture in 2013 to bring the Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 to the Australian market. In May, Ram celebrated converting 30,000 trucks since kicking off a decade ago. Ford Australia announced in early 2022 that the Ford F-150 would be coming to Australia under its own reengineering program. Over the first four months, Ford sold nearly 800 of the redone trucks to Australians. But in May, the automaker had to pause sales of the reworked vehicles for a second time, citing potential issues. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Hanley said the way Toyota is handling testing before launching regular sales could set the benchmark for how we bring cars that are converted locally to market. Prices are steep for Aussie drivers across the board, but numerous car trade publications in Australia reported that the Tundra will likely be the top end of the market at about $145,990 in Australian dollars. Thats about $98,000 in U.S. dollars. A new 2024 hybrid Toyota Tundra starts at less than $60,000 in the U.S. market. FROM 2021: Toyota begins producing 2022 Tundra at San Antonio plant To be driven in Australia, the Texas-made Tundras need to have their steering wheels, pedals and other controls moved to the right-hand side of the vehicle. That requires several other parts either being modified or installed in the remanufacturing process: components for the steering rack, instrument panel, firewall, headlights, cabling, harnesses, front seats, carpet and trim. The trial vehicles are being leased to Australian drivers for monthly payments of $2,500 ASD, which is about $1,680 in U.S. currency based on current exchange rates. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Word of the possible market expansion comes as Toyota is expanding the Texas factory where it builds the Tundra. It recently announced a $531.7 million plan to expand its San Antonio plant, a move it said would add 411 jobs. The new lines will make drivetrain parts that are currently produced by a third-party contractor outside Texas. Since the mid-18th century, people in the West viewed the Enlightenment as a historical movement that marked a turning point in human nature. We would retreat from our tribal, primitive, mindless ways and tread a higher path, forever abandoning irrationality. Jews, for whom the Enlightenment provided a magical release from Europes massacres and ghettos, bought into this notion with special fervor. Hitler, they thought, was an aberration, and many believed communism might be the re-set needed to restore rationality. They were wrong. Hitler wasnt the aberration. He was the reversion to the norm, and Europe is reverting again. The Romans hated the Jews because their war with the Kingdom of Judea was one of the most fiercely fought and expensive wars in the history of the Roman Empire. When the Romans finally defeated the Kingdom of Judea, they exiled most Jews from the lands those Jews had occupied for almost 2,000 years and renamed Judea Palestine, after the Biblical Philistines, as an insult to the conquered people. The Jews caused problems again when they refused to join the rest of Rome in embracing Christianity, thereby incurring the enmity of the Roman church. In the same way, they earned both Mohameds and Martin Luthers enduring hatred. Sticking to your principles when everyone urges you to abandon them will not excite admiration. It will, instead, make you hated. Image: Muslims and communists come together to celebrate their victory in France. X screen grab. Beginning around the 8th century, when Roman Christianity really took hold in Europe, the Roman Churchs hatred for the Jews went with it. Europeans hated Jews with blood-thirsty ferocity, barely allowing them to exist in the best of times and, when times werent good, killing or exiling them. The litany of horrors was non-stop, whether in Spain, Germany, Italy, France, England, or anywhere else. Jews were tortured, burned alive, hanged, drawn, quartered, drowned, and anything else the primitive mind could devise in service to such things as keeping up the spirits of the Crusaders, punishing Jews for plagues or crop failures, canceling debts, stealing Jewish goods and land, obscuring the identity of an actual murderer, or just making a point. Thats when the Jewish blood libels came into being, libels that are daily kept alive in the Muslim world. Those Jews allowed to remain in Europe were quartered in ghettos, which were essentially concentration camps. And then came the Enlightenment, which offered a rational, individual-centric view of the world. The Enlightenment valued the Old Testament (i.e., the Torah or the Jewish Bible) because Enlightenment thinkers recognized that it contained within it the most profound concept in the entire Bible: Individuals have value, and that value comes because God created them in his image. Using reason, they concluded that you cannot embrace the Jewish God while at the same time hating the Jews. When William Norman Ewer (1885-1977), a hardcore communist British journalist, penned his nasty little doggerel, How odd of God to choose the Jews, Leo Rosen countered, But not so odd as those who choose a Jewish God yet spurn the Jews. Rosens was the rationalist view and men of the Enlightenment were rational thinkers. The American Revolution was the culmination of this core Enlightened viewpoint, one grounded in a Biblical concept of individual worth and, therefore, liberty. Its not a coincidence that the Founding Fathers were, for the most part, philosemitic. However, less than 20 years later, although few realized it at the time, the French Revolution marked the end of Europes brief flirtation with rationalism and individualismand this despite its famous motto of Liberty, equality, and brotherhood (Liberte, egalite, fraternite). Rather than being the birth of liberty in Europe, the French Revolution marked the birth of statism, which meant a continuation of the totalitarianism that had marked Europe since the ancient tribes consolidated into nations. However, instead of a king presiding over the totalitarian state, bureaucrats and their bosses did. Still, riding high on the tide of the original Enlightenment sentiments, Europeans did repent of their former anti-Jewish ways. Napoleon released Jewish from the ghettos across Europe, and anti-Jewish sentiment became less bloody and more economic and social. Once free from collective imprisonment and the ever-present threat of violent death, Jews thrived and assimilated. Many foolishly believed that their liberty was owed, not to Enlightenment principles themselves but to the end of monarchy. For that reason, many Jews equally foolishly gave their undying fealty to the notion of the state, believing it to be the ultimate rational actor that would always save them. But Europeans werent going to shake off 1,000 years of anti-Jewish sentiment so easily. As noted, Jews were still victims of ongoing discrimination, even without the pogroms that raged in Eastern Europeand that saw the forebearers of so many American Jews head to Ellis Island. And of course, Jews remained the eternal other. They looked different from their European neighbors and, while respecting their laws (unlike todays jihadist Muslims), did not embrace their customs (although that depended on how assimilated they were). This otherness came to a head in 19th century France with the Dreyfus affair, when a French military officer was sent to the notorious Devils Island for espionage, even though everyone knew he was innocent and the culprit was a nobles son. Thats when Theodore Herzl realized that the Enlightenment was dying in Europe and that Jews would never be safe there. It was time for Jews to return to their homelanda land that had languished for close to a thousand years under Muslim colonialism but that had always remained Jewish. Zionism was born. Most Jews, though, continued to have blind faith in the Enlightenment. Even after Hitler and the Holocaust, many Jews believed that what happened was merely an aberration and that Enlightenment rationality, once restored, would continue as the norm. Many continued to insist (as they do today) that communism, which promised rationalism, would be the Jewish refuge. Those Jews missed entirely Karl Marxs virulently antisemitic rants, the socialism part in Hitlers National Socialism, and Stalins Jewish purges. Indeed, my aunt, who was living in Israel after 1948, returned to East Berlin in the early 1950s. When people remonstrated with her for returning to the land of the Nazis, she assured them that communism had purged the Nazis. Fast forward to modern Europe. After WWII, it embraced socialism. As happens with socialism, Europeans stopped having children, so they had to import Muslims to work for them (Turks in Germany, Algerians in France and Belgium, Pakistanis in England, etc.). That controlled trickle turned into a steady stream when leftist governments saw their populations rebel against this replacement and into a flood in 2015, when Angela Merkel opened Europes gates, closed since Vienna in 1683, to people embracing an ideology that has conquest as its central feature. And now, in both France and Britain, the antisemitic left and the genocidal Muslims have made common cause. Those European Jews who still believed in the promises of the Enlightenment or communism are being disabused. The same people who have been marching in support of Jewish genocide since October 7 now control the reins of government. No wonder that, in France, smart Jews say Jews must leave: Moshe Sebbag, a rabbi for the Synagogue de la Victoire, tells The Times of Israel that it seems France has no future for Jews. He advises young French Jews to leave for Israel. But people my age, who are 50, 60, weve made our life here and we fear for the future of our children, he says. His assessment is not due solely to the left-wing blocs success, but to the mainstreaming of antisemitism in general in France, he says. The left is once again kidnapped by the infamous Melenchon. Divisive language. Hate of the republic on the lips. Around him right now are some incarnations of the new antisemitism. A chilling moment. A stain: Continue to fight against these people, French-Jewish philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy writes on X. In England, whether as Labour-allied independents or within Labour itself, Muslims are the rising party. Pro-Palestinian (i.e., genocide against Israel) MPS are the sixth largest party in the UK. The Muslim vote, with backing for the left, is Englands future. These Muslims are all-in on Jihad, and Jews, as always, will be the first to go. Germanys Jews in the 1930s couldnt believe that it would happen there. Well, it could, and it did. Ninety years later, its time for Europes Jews to believe the same. It can and will happen thereand unless American Jews abandon the Democrat party, it can and will happen here, too. Who knew that the despotic inroads on the rights of property referenced by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels in their grotesque work of political ideology (The Communist Manifesto) against property owners would mean devaluation of said property through government policy? The obvious implication was physical violence, as the authors describe wresting away capital and wealth, and taxation, as state-sponsored theft is a given for non-producing and envious failures like Marx, but as weve seen time and again, the lefts policies also rob from us by devaluing the properties in which we invest. Heres the latest example, out of New Hampshire, via a report by Amy Furr at Breitbart News: Worst Its Ever Been: New Hampshire Family Plagued by Backyard Homeless Encampment Robin Bach and her husband have worked hard to restore their 19th century Walker residence for their children, ages 8 and 11, to enjoy for years to come, the Concord Monitor reported Saturday. However, there is an expanding homeless encampment in the woods on their property that has given them cause for concern because no one seems to know who is responsible for it. Bach said her children are afraid to play outside and she has called the police 37 times since 2018 due to numerous issues, such as gunshots, linked to the camp. One incident happened when a man on their property allegedly threatened to shoot her husband after he asked him to leave. In another instance, Bach heard screams of get off me, get off me coming from nearby, and yet another incident happened when a dumpster fire erupted two doors down. Bach said the situation is now the worst its ever been, adding that she cannot use her backyard. I would like my children to be independent and feel comfortable going outside and playing and they wont, she noted. Now, before you feel any sympathy with Bach, she sounds like a leftist to me, and I assume she voted for this; I call this just desserts. As Furr also relays to the reader, Bach thinks that homelessness is a complicated issue and these folks need (government) helpno, they need jail time and a government that doesnt subsidize their poor lifestyle choices by stealing from hard-working Americans, like me and you. But, for the sake of the argument, lets say that Bach wants to sell her home, and move to a place where psychotic violent bums arent lurking in her treelinewhos going to buy this place? After a quick internet search, it looks as though the Bach family dropped almost half a million dollars on this home when they purchased it; real estate websites estimate the value is now around $800k, but again, who would fork over that kind of money for a home that comes with a homeless encampment? And, despite Bach making 37 calls to emergency services over the years, the (leftist) government wont do anything about it. This is exactly what they did with the south waterfront in Portland years ago, before they destroyed the rest of Portland toowealthy people spent millions on luxury condos right along the water, with high-end boutiques and food services in the commercial space belowthen in came the Section 8 housing. Predictably, property values plummeted. Can we all agree that leftists cant govern and at this point, theyve forfeited any right to try? Image generated by AI. During his June 28, 2024 televised debate with Joe Biden, former President Donald Trump stated: I will have that war settled between Putin and Zelenskyy as president-elect before I take office on January 20th. Sound implausible? In 1905, an earlier Republican president, Theodore Roosevelt, mediated an end to the Russo-Japanese war in a month. It could happen again. In February 1904, the battle for influence in Asia between Russia and Japan became a shooting war when Japan attacked Russian fleets in Manchuria (China) and Korea. In 1955, deciding a probate appeal involving a former resident of Manchuria, a California court summarized the causes of the 1904-1905 war in Estate of Nepogodin: In the late 19th and early 20th centuries Russia and Japan extended their influence into Manchuria acquiring seaside territories and developing railways. The Russo-Japanese war (1904-1905) was partly fought in Manchuria. In the 1905 Treaty of Portsmouth [New Hampshire] which ended said war both states agreed to restore Manchuria to China, but nevertheless both retained influence there. The influence of Russia was mainly limited to an interest in the quasi-private Chinese Eastern Railway whereas Japan held another railway and the seaside territories and embarked on the economic penetration of Southern Manchuria. After significant victories, in May 1905 Japans fleet defeated a Russian fleet in the Tsushima Strait between Korea and Japan. Observers compared Japans victory to Admiral Nelsons victory over the French at Trafalgar in 1805. The Japanese cruiser NISSHIN distinguished itself at Tsushima, as did Ensign Isoroku Yamamoto, a young NISSHIN officer wounded by shrapnel. In 1941, Yamamoto planned Japans attack on Pearl Harbor. According to the U.S. State Department Historian, by 1905, the combination of [Russias] losses and the economic cost [to Japan] of financing the war led both countries to seek an end to the war. Japan asked U.S. President Roosevelt to negotiate a peace agreement. Russia assented, and delegations from the belligerents and the United States gathered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, in August 1905. Why Roosevelt? In 1905, the U.S. was still a fledgling power but our 1898 victory over Spain made America the new sovereign in the Philippines and other Spanish possessions in the Pacific. In 1898, then-Assistant Secretary of the Navy Teddy Roosevelt was a prime mover behind the war with Spain. Roosevelt also studied Japanese sea power amply demonstrated at Tsushima. In August 1905, as they came ashore at the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, Thomas Edison filmed Russian and Japanese negotiators in top hats, tails, and straw boaters. The State Department Historian explained that [for] the sake of maintaining the balance of power and equal economic opportunity in the region, Roosevelt preferred that the war end on terms that left both Russia and Japan a role to play in Northeast China. Roosevelt worried about the consequences to American interests if Japan managed to drive Russia out entirely. The treaty signed in Portsmouth on September 5, 1905, secured the peace by (as the Nepogodin court put it 50 years later) restoring Manchuria to China, while both belligerents maintained influence there. When President Roosevelt died in 1919, H.L. Mencken wrote acidly in Roosevelt: An Autopsy that Roosevelts model in Weltpolitik imperialism was German Emperor Wilhelm II. Manchurians enduring Japan-Russia competition for influence over their homeland after 1905 might have agreed. But whatever historians may think of the outcome, Roosevelts role as mediator and the pace of negotiations were exceptional. Is former President Trumps commitment to end the Russia-Ukraine War a reach? Russian President Putin has stated publicly he takes Trump quite seriously. Ukraine President Zelenskiy commented If Trump knows how to end this war he should tell us today. Neither Putin nor Zelenskiy ruled out a Trump mediation. What of former President Trumps timeline for ending the war by Inauguration Day, 2025? The 1905 treaty ending the Russo-Japanese War was concluded in a month, without the tools available to modern diplomacy. Rather, the negotiation was conducted person-to-person by motivated diplomats with instructions from their heads of state, supplemented by the telegraph, the transatlantic cable, and rudimentary telephones. The 1905 Portsmouth Treaty is a testament to strong American diplomacy and global leadership with cautionary overtones. In 1905 the interests and sovereignty of China and Korea apparently mattered little to negotiators, except to the extent they advanced or impeded Russian, Japanese, and American objectives. As such, the 1905 treaty laid groundwork for future conflict in Asia. Flaws and all, however, Roosevelts 1905 peace-making between Japan and Russia was an extraordinary accomplishment. It is instructive about what might be done in 2025 between Ukraine and Russia, with willing antagonists and the right American president. The author served in the Navy in submarines and in Iraq and was a U.S. Senate lawyer. Image: Public domain. The cackling diversity hire of a vice president is a disaster, not just for Democrat election prospects, but for the nation and the world. Let us review her portfolio. She entered the 2019 presidential primary, but dropped out of the race early, after being crushed in the debate by Tulsi Gabbard. Her one shining debate moment was when she accurately condemned Biden for working with segregationists, stopping just short of calling him a racist. She earned zero delegates in the primary. She was bested by the likes of Bernie Sanders, Elizabeth Pocahontas Warren, Mini Mike Bloomberg, Pothole Pete Buttigieg, and Amy Klobuchar (who?). Her support among Democrat voters has not improved since. When Biden won the nomination, he followed through (a rarity) on his promise to choose a woman of color as his running mate. Apparently, Kamala won the coin toss over Stacey Abrams. As vice president, she was tapped in March 2021 as the point person to lead the administrations efforts to secure our southern border. After one trip to Mexico and Guatemala, she released her strategy to address the root causes of migration. The strategy identifies the root causes of migration as corruption, violence, trafficking, and poverty. Duh! She further identified the pandemic and extreme weather conditions as exacerbating factors. (Seriously!) No mention of illegal immigrants from over 100 countries around the world. No mention of the tens of thousands of military-age males arriving from the Middle East, China, and Russia. No specific plan of action to stem the tide or secure the border. We can see the results. In February 2022, Harris was sent to Europe to meet with Zelenskyy and other world leaders to discuss the escalating crisis in Ukraine. Four days later, Russia invaded Ukraine. It seems likely that this situation was entirely beyond her control, and that she was simply Bidens sacrificial lamb. But still, this does not inspire confidence in her diplomatic abilities. We can skip over her undistinguished single term in the Senate, and the launch of her political career as attorney general of California, under the tutelage of Willie Brown. More recently, we hear persistent rumors that she is hated by her White House staff, which suffers from high turnover. Also, who could fail to appreciate her totally cringeworthy eloquence regarding space, Venn diagrams, school buses, and the passage of time? But perhaps most egregious is her continued defense of Bidens mental acuity and fitness for office, even post-debate. It is clear to anyone paying attention that he has been going downhill rapidly over the last year, and that he was showing signs of decline as early as the 2020 campaign. Harris has had a front-row seat, and her dishonest defense of his mental capacity goes well beyond mere loyalty. Section 4 of the 25th Amendment clearly identifies the vice president as responsible, with concurrence of a majority of the cabinet, to determine when the president is unable to discharge his powers and duties, and to transmit this finding to House and Senate leadership. She has willfully failed in this constitutional mandate and has thus put this nation in danger. The security of this nation demands that Biden -- who is clearly incapacitated -- be replaced as president now, never mind the presidential campaign. And the only choice is, God help us, Vice President Harris. Will the Democrat party elite and puppet-masters actually take this step? Unlikely. Instead, they will try to leave Biden in place and rig the candidate nomination, absent voter input, just like they rigged their last two campaigns. They have chosen their DEI candidate and now we all must suffer the consequences. Image: U.S. Senate Precious, innocent babies continue to be one of the best grifts for big government socialist sickos. Heres the latest example, from a report by Lea Skene at AP News: New parents in Baltimore could get $1,000 if voters approve baby bonus initiative A group of Baltimore teachers is asking voters to approve a program that would give $1,000 to new parents in the hopes of reducing childhood poverty starting from birth. The baby bonus will appear on the ballot for city residents in November, after supporters secured the necessary 10,000 signatures to bring the question to voters. Organizers behind the Baltimore campaign say more systemic change is needed on a national level to help lift families out of poverty, but giving new parents a modest financial boost could prove an important first step. An estimated 7,000 children are born in Baltimore each year, so the program would cost about $7 million annually, which is roughly 0.16% of the citys annual operating budget, according to supporters. The initiative wont result in higher taxes, but it will be up to Baltimores City Council to allocate funds if it passes. What could possibly go wrong with handing a chunk of cash to any woman who decides to get pregnant and birth a baby? Seems obvious and rhetorical, but apparently not obvious enough to the Democrat voters with whom weve all got to contend. And, whats even more offensive is this is the very work that crisis pregnancy centers do all the time, on real donations instead of confiscated taxpayer moneyyes, the same CPCs that are constantly demonized, prosecuted, and persecuted by the progressive Democrats. These charities counsel these mothers, meet their financial needs, get them through school, help them find stable homes and jobs, and sponsor baby showers. As Skene reports, there are around 7,000 children born each year in Baltimore, and bases the cost of the hypothetical program on that figurebut Maryland is also an abortion free-for-all, permitting the procedure through all stages of gestational development, often at taxpayer expense; from a mayoral press release just one year ago: Today, Mayor Brandon M. Scott announced that the City of Baltimore, in partnership with the Baltimore Civic Fund, will invest an additional round of grant funding toward nonprofit organizations providing abortion and abortion care services. And this, from February of this year: Governor Wes Moore today announced two major investments to improve access to abortion care statewide. In addition to the Moore-Miller Administration's FY 2025 $5 million allocation to increase Medicaid provider reimbursement for abortion care and reproductive services, the Maryland Department of Health has awarded a $10.6 million grant to the University of Maryland, Baltimore, to administer Marylands Abortion Care Clinical Training Program. With a $1,000 cash incentive now on the table though, in a state that hands out food stamps, rent subsidies, Medicaid, and every other type of welfare under the sun, why wouldnt that birth rate now go up? The decision to undergo an abortion is almost always motivated by self-interest, so why wouldnt abortion-minded women now choose to keep their babies, at least until birth when they can collect the cash payment, then hand the child over to state services? Maryland has a Safe Haven law that allows women to surrender their baby, no penalties, and no questions asked. Will drug addicts exploit this program, handing over drug-addicted and disabled children? Gee, I wonder. And, whos going to pay for that child, including all that extra care? The socialist grift, using children as a commodity, never ends. The government will either pay you to murder them, or theyll pay you to birth them, and you dont even have to take care of the kid, instead handing your child over to social services, each of whom rakes in a serious bounty from state and federal agencies (even more so if this child has health issues from a drug- or alcohol-addicted mother). Also, are illegals included in this? Theyre included in everything else, so why wouldnt they be? Now, they can have their anchor babies, acquire citizenship, and get paid handsomely (considering all the handouts together) to do so. Oh, and for the sake of not leaving low-income mothers out, this handout would go to every single mother, even the ultra-wealthy. Assuming this is merely a $7,000,000 program is utterly ludicrous. This is all socialism, because socialism is a redistribution of wealth, largely from the earners to non-earners. Leftists really cant help themselvesif you can count on them to do one thing, its to steal your money and blow it on stupid government initiatives that dont work as theyre ostensibly intended to, destroying America as it once was, and further bankrupting us all. Image: Free image, Pixabay license. As we approach Unpacked later this week, where Samsung is set to announce the Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Galaxy Z Fold 6, one has to wonder if Samsung can take the crown back from OnePlus/OPPO in the foldable market. Last year, OnePlus announced its first foldable with an asterisk, the Open. We put an asterisk there because it is essentially the OPPO Find N3 in everything but the logo. This is not OPPOs first foldable, but its a third-generation foldable. And it completely surpassed Samsung in one fell swoop. Not only did OnePlus and OPPO put out better hardware than Samsung, but it also put out better software. I recently went back to the OnePlus Open, to use it again ahead of the Galaxy Z Fold 6 launch, and to see how it compares to the current best foldable on the market. And I fell in love with the Open all over again. The rumors for the Galaxy Z Fold 6 arent that great. The rumormill is pointing to a phone that is mostly the same as the previous model, but a tad wider and a new processor. OnePlus Open Canvas feature is the best foldable feature weve seen so far With the OnePlus Open last year, OnePlus debuted Open Canvas which is a feature that was also brought to the OnePlus Pad, and its genius. To put it in the simplest terms, Open Canvas allows the user to have more screen real estate than is actually available. Youre able to push apps off of the screen, and swipe over to them whenever you want. You can run up to six apps on the screen at the same time, which is impressive. Though, admittedly, its not something I do that often. Its not all software though, another decision OnePlus and OPPO made that helped Open Canvas perform so well is, the front display. OnePlus and OPPO opted for a 18:9 front display, which is the aspect ratio for most smartphones these days. But that also means when you open the phone, youre getting a square display (almost) but it also means that having apps side-by-side, they will be 18:9 aspect, instead of super skinny apps like they are on Samsungs Galaxy Z Fold models. One of my biggest complaints with foldables is the aspect ratios of the displays. Samsung, for example, uses a very skinny front display that feels more like a TV remote versus a smartphone. That makes the inner display almost exactly a square, and when you have two apps in multi-window, youre looking at two very skinny apps. Its just not a good user experience, and that had really turned me off from using foldables, because both screens kind of suck for using apps normally. OnePlus put its best cameras ever, in the Open Another area where foldables typically fall short is in the camera department. This is likely because companies are looking to keep phones lighter and thinner, but need larger batteries inside foldables to power those larger displays. OnePlus said screw it, lets put in the best cameras weve ever had. With the Open, OnePlus included a 48-megapixel primary camera with a f/1.7 aperture, a 64-megapixel 3x telephoto and a 48-megapixel ultrawide. On paper, that sounds outstanding, in practice, it is. I was amazed at how well the Open took photos last year while I was reviewing it, and now picking it up again about 8 months later with countless new updates, its still impressive. As I noted in my review last year, OnePlus might have the best cameras on any phone with the Open, nevermind a foldable. Though that has changed now, especially with the Vivo X Fold3 Pro being available. OnePlus did include a pretty massive camera bump on the Open to accommodate these cameras, but its worth it. That camera bump also makes it easier to hold onto the OnePlus Open, in my experience. Samsung cant seem to get rid of the crease Were writing this ahead of Unpacked, and we havent seen the Galaxy Z Fold 6 in person yet, other than in leaks. But it seems like Samsung is still pretty far behind the competition on getting rid of the crease. Companies like Motorola, OnePlus and OPPO have all done a really good job of getting rid of the crease. I mean, its almost non-exsistent on the new Razr+ that was announced last month, as well as the OnePlus Open. But with Samsung, you will most likely still see that crease, and its definitely an eyesore. Can Samsung take back the throne? While I did spend about 750 words trashing Samsung and its foldables, it has come a long way since the first Galaxy Fold back in 2019. But theres still a long way to go. Not just for Samsung but for every company making foldables. Samsung was first to the market, and that means that its competition was able to learn from its mistakes more than Samsung itself. So what can Samsung do with the Galaxy Z Fold 6 to take back the throne? Well, for one, upgrade the cameras. The Galaxy Z Fold 5 cameras are not great at all, to be quite honest, especially for a $1700 phone. They will get the job done, but the Galaxy S24 Ultra is far better. The software is getting there, Samsung does have plenty of great software tweaks to take advantage of that display. However, the biggest thing Samsung needs to address is the aspect ratio. Last year, at Unpacked in Korea, I spoke with Samsung and talked about how the Pixel Fold (the OnePlus Open wasnt out yet) was better than the Galaxy Z Fold 4 (at the time), because of the wider front display. Meaning I didnt need to open the phone as much. Samsung thought that was pointless. This makes me think Samsung wants you to open the phone all the time versus using the front display a lot and opening it for multitasking. If Samsung adopts the wider aspect ratio of the Pixel Fold or the regular smartphone aspect ratio of the OnePlus Open, I think a lot of my complaints about Samsungs foldables will be solved. It sort of feels like, after last year, that Samsung is just phoning it in these days for foldables. A big reason for that is the competition or lack thereof. In the US, its really only competing with the Pixel Fold and OnePlus Open, and only one of those is sold at carriers. On the flip side, it is competing with Motorola, and thats about it. What Samsung really needs is more competition in the US (its biggest market), which will push them to innovate and make bigger upgrades to its foldables. Mini or portable PC tech has evolved over the years. Raspberry Pi and Intel NUCs are some of the biggest names in this segment. Now, a Chinese electronics company that goes by the name Linglong has created a foldable keyboard PC. This device stuffs the innards of a decent notebook inside a foldable keyboard. The mini PC is small enough to fold in half and fit into your back pocket. It is both a foldable keyboard and a mini PC with an AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processor Linglong has shared a live presentation of its keyboard PC on the video-sharing site bilibili. In the video, the presenter pulled out the actual mini PC from his back pocket, showing the devices ultra-portability. The device is both a foldable keyboard and a mini PC with an AMD Ryzen 7 8840U processor. The portable offering even has a built-in battery and a trackpad, so all you need is a display to use it. The Chinese company has presented the Linglong keyboard PC as the ultimate mobility device. The tiny dimensions of the device make it even smaller than the other products in the category. The machine appears to be a more affordable and portable version of the Spacetop G1. In the video, the company has shown the Linglong keyboard PC being attached to a TV, a tablet, and a phone. These devices can double as the display for it. It has 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD, and delivers up to 10 hours of battery life The Linglong foldable keyboard PC can be configured with either 16GB or 32GB of RAM. The SSD storage configurations include 512GB and 1TB. The company claims that the mini PC offers 10 hours of battery life for light office work. Or you can watch movies for up to six hours. Its worth mentioning that, if you attach it to a display that consumes power from the keyboard PC unit, the battery life will go down significantly. Besides the aforementioned features, the Linglong keyboard PC also has a USB 3.0 port, a USB 4 Type-C port, and a USB 3.2 Type-C port. The other connectivity options include Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth. Theres also a small fan inside the keyboard PC for active cooling. The whole package tips the scale at 800 grams. The Linglong keyboard PC will retail at RMB 4,699 or $645 for the 16GB/ 512GB version. The 32GB/1TB storage variant will sell for RMB 5,699 or $780. According to Toms Hardware, Linglong is initially planning to sell around 200 units of the device to beta testers in China. Theres no word if and when the portable will be available to buy worldwide. According to a new report from a trusted source, Huawei will be the first company to launch a tri-fold foldable smartphone. This information comes from Ice Universe, by the way, a well-known tipster. Huawei is tipped to become the first company to launch a tri-fold foldable smartphone He went to X to share the information. He also noted that the competition will be far behind, as in we wont be seeing a tri-fold smartphone from a different company for quite a while after Huaweis device arrives. Ice Universe added that Samsung, who is the only competitor at the moment, is still struggling to study how to make ordinary folding machines thinner while adding that it is an indisputable fact that Samsungs technology has fallen far behind. The tipster went on to say that one of the main prerequisites for a tri-fold smartphone is that it ends up being thin enough. He added that thats Huaweis strength and Samsungs weakness. He pointed to complacency and continuous laziness on Samsungs part as the main reason for that. Huaweis current book-style foldable flagship is notably thinner than Samsungs To give you some context. The Huawei Mate X5, Huaweis latest book-style foldable, is 11.1mm thick when folded. In comparison, the Galaxy Z Fold 5 is 13.4mm. The upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 6 will be slightly thinner than the Galaxy Z Fold 5, but still notably thicker than the Mate X5. Other Chinese OEMs have pushed the ante even further when it comes to the thickness of foldables, however. The HONOR Magic V2 is only 9.9mm thick when folded, and its successor is tipped to be only 9.7mm thick. The Xiaomi MIX Fold 4 will also be extremely thin, allegedly, and so on. Samsung really does seem to be behind in some aspects when it comes to foldables. That is a bit surprising considering that it was first on the scene, by far. Huawei could be the first to release a tri-fold device, but it remains to be seen how compelling will it be. Amid all of its AI drama, Google has also been dealing with another issue. Its been wrapped in a legal battle with Epic Games over how it operates the Google Play Store. At the end of the day, the court ruled in favor of Epic Games, and Google tried its hardest to reverse the ruling. Well, according to a new report, the judge refused to reverse Googles antitrust ruling. To catch you up Heres a recap of the drama. Epic Games has been on the warpath over the past couple of years. Back in 2020, the company filed a lawsuit against Apple, claiming that the company operates an illegal monopoly over the iOS/iPadOS app market. That fire eventually made it over to Google, as Epic sued Google for the same thing. Epic (and pretty much any developer) doesnt like the fact that the company taxes developers a 30% fee on all in-app purchases. This is the same thing that Apple does with its payment system. What makes things worse is the fact that Google forced all Android app developers to use Googles payment system last year. This means that Android apps cant reach out to third-party payment systems; developers are forced to give up 30% of their income. Just like Apple and the App Store, the majority of people get their apps from Googles own app store. What makes these companies different is the fact that Google has allowed people to side-load their apps either through third-party app stores or through direct APK installs. The issue with this is the fact that Google has been posting alarming notifications warning people that side-loading apps could put their phones at risk. It shows these notifications even if the app is safe. These reasons are why Epic has been targeting these companies. It wants to bring sweeping change to the mobile app market as a whole. The ruling In a surprising turn of events, the court ruled in favor of Apple in its case, but it didnt in Googles case. Bear in mind that these rulings came from different judges. As part of the ruling, Google will need to make some major changes to how it operates the Play Store. For starters, the company will need to stop posting the Scare Screens when people try to side-load an app. Also, it will need to allow developers to use the payment system of their choice. This would give users the ability to avoid the ridiculous fees. Google has pushed back against these demands, but its complaints have fallen on deaf ears. The court wont reverse Googles antitrust ruling As it stands, the Google Play Store was deemed an illegal monopoly, so changes will need to be made. Right now, we dont know when these changes will come. What we know is that Google wants them to never happen. The company has been trying its hardest to reverse the ruling. According to the report, U.S. District Court Judge James Donato has thrown out Googles bid to reverse the ruling. The company did not present good grounds for judgment as a matter of law or for a new trial, the judge stated in a 28-page ruling. As part of the argument, Google referred to the different ruling that Apple had gotten for basically the same thing. While Google needs to make sweeping changes, Apple was able to get off Scott-free. Google took every opportunity to tell the jury that Google and Apple compete, and so should be considered to be in the same relevant market. This is true, as both companies were responsible for shady practices, and they both have equal sway over their respective markets. However, Donato wrote that Epic presented substantial evidence showing that the Android-only product markets made factual and economic sense for this case. Google also argued against the scare screens The company also spent time arguing about the ruling that the scare screens were anticompetitive. The ruling was delivered by the judge himself, but Google argued that a jury would not have agreed about the anticompetitive nature of the side-loading warnings. Just like everything else in this case, Googles claim was rejected. Google says that this is a safety measure, and thats not wrong. When side-loading an app, you run the risk of installing malware onto your system. Sure, you run the risk of doing that on the Play Store, but the risk is higher off of the Play Store. The issue is that Googles tactic is to scare people away from side-loading apps altogether. It doesnt matter if the app is safe, youll still get the warning. Epic wants Google to make side-loading apps a single-tap experience without any additional screens. It also wants to keep Google from blocking pre-installed apps on phones. However, were sure that the last part depends more on the device manufacturers rather than Google as a company. Is this right? So, Google threw a tantrum and didnt get any results. The changes that Epic proposed can help Android app developers by offering them more choice with payment systems. Theyre able to avoid the steep 30% Play Store fee. Also, people wont be deterred from side-loading apps onto their phones. Thats a bit subjective, as you do run into some risk when doing so. Those are good things, but the real issue comes with the fact that Apple and Google received different rulings. While Apple is dealing with its own changes, the court ruled in favor of the Cupertino company. Both Google and Apple have their app markets by the throats, and theyre doing everything they can to squeeze every dime out of their developers and users. Developers have to give up a lot of their income to both companies and they both squash freedom. So, why is it that one company has to get off easy? When presented with the evidence that both companies are pulling the same moves, Judge Donato simply dismissed the claims. In all fairness, both Google and Apple are villains in this story, so both of them should be equally punished. Microsofts employees based in China will have to change their phones if they run Android. Microsoft is establishing a new policy where its employees will have to exclusively use iPhone devices. The main reason seems to be the ban on Google Play Services in the Asian country. According to Bloomberg, as of September, employees affected by the decision will only be able to use Apple devices to access identity verification apps. The company wants to ensure that everyone has the Microsoft Authenticator and Identity Pass apps on their phones. Microsoft employees forced to replace their Android devices with iPhones The decision is part of an initiative to set stronger security measures that strengthen the company against potential attacks. For months now, Microsoft has been the target of constant attacks allegedly sponsored by the Russian government. The US government even confirmed that a related data breach also affected the State Department. The breach did not compromise the security of key confidential data. However, the situation caused US legislators to pressure the Redmond giant to implement stricter security systems. According to the report, the company will provide iPhone 15 units as a one-time purchase to its staff in China. Interestingly, even employees based in Hong Kong will have to comply with the measure. Its noteworthy that Google Play Services are available in Hong Kong. However, Microsoft is not making exceptions with its new policies. New policies contradict the Chinese governments position regarding foreign devices Still, the Chinese government may not be too happy with Microsoft employees now exclusively using iPhone devices. Since 2023, they have been promoting the abandonment of devices of foreign origin at work. Like Microsoft, the Chinese government cites security concerns as the reason for the measure. However, now Microsoft employees in China will have to discard Android devices from local brands such as Xiaomi and Huawei in favor of iPhones. Hays County District Clerk Avrey Anderson has resigned from office amid a lawsuit seeking his removal. Anderson, pictured here shortly after he was elected at age 19, narrowly beat a long-time incumbent to win the seat in 2022. Kin Man Hui, San Antonio Express-News / Staff photographer Avrey Anderson, the Hays County district clerk who was elected as a teenager and last fall tried to oust the countys district attorney, has resigned from office. The 21-year-old was facing a lawsuit that sought to remove him from office. The suit accused him of failing to fulfill the duties of the clerks office, including issuing jury summons and subpoenas, sending protective orders to law enforcement and processing cases declined for prosecution, among others. In his resignation letter, published by KUT, Anderson said dealing with the lawsuit has been incredibly stressful and has taken a toll on my life to where I do not enjoy hardly anything anymore. Advertisement Article continues below this ad He could not immediately be reached for comment Monday. HILL COUNTRY HEADLINES: Top stories from the booming region I do not believe it is good for justice and the courts for me to continue in my role currently, Anderson wrote in the letter. Perhaps one day I will be able to get back into the government sector but for now I believe it is best for the people of Hays County to have someone who hopefully attracts less negative attention to themselves. Anderson, a Dripping Springs resident, ran as a Democrat in 2022, beating Republican incumbent Beverly Crumley by about 1,900 votes, a margin of 2 percentage points. He spent no money on the campaign, and had no experience in the clerks office. Democrats swept the Hays County races that year, winning most offices on the countywide ballot. I will not slack off in this job description, and I will not be immature in my election win, Anderson told the Express-News after his victory. Im going to serve them best regardless of if they voted for me or not. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Within the first year of his term, he was embroiled in a political fight with District Attorney Kelly Higgins, who was also elected that November. Last September, about nine months after the two took office, Anderson filed a lawsuit attempting to remove Higgins. In the suit, he cited a new state law targeting prosecutors who refuse to pursue certain types of crimes. He alleged Higgins said he wouldnt prosecute simple drug possession offenses or simple cannabis possession offenses and that he wouldnt prosecute cases related to medical transition care for transgender minors or cases related to medical providers performing abortions, all of which are prohibited by state law. In an interview after he filed the lawsuit, Anderson made clear that the case was personal. He said he wanted to oust Higgins because of a lot of issues that weve had, accusing Higgins of talking down to, threatening and degrading people, including Anderson. I feel like his badge of office is worn as a badge of ego, he said in September. The dude fixates on things and he just degrades people, thats just how he is. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Anderson dropped the suit shortly after filing it, citing requests from the public and members of the county Democratic Party. But by the end of that month, he was facing a removal suit of his own, filed by Austin attorney Chloe Love. Love, whose website says she represents property owners' associations, accused Anderson of incompetence and official misconduct. She said Anderson on multiple instances failed to issue jury summons, forcing trials to be postponed. At a hearing in February, after trials were postponed twice in January due to lack of juries, it was discovered that while the defendant had been physically present for the training on how to ensure that jury summons were sent out, the defendant had not learned how to do so because he was asleep, the lawsuit said. The suit also alleges that Anderson failed to deliver grand jury indictments as required, resulting in depriving defendants of the right to a 10-day notice of new indictments prior to trial, and that he filed to send copies of protective orders to law enforcement agencies. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In one case, an order was issued on March 7, 2023, but when the protected person reported a violation to the San Marcos Police Department weeks later, the agency had no record of the protective order, according to the lawsuit. Similar accusations were made about orders of civil commitment, which are used to mandate mental health treatment. The suit alleges one person, who was in custody in Hays County, waited 210 days for Andersons office to process the order and obtain inpatient treatment. Love also accused Anderson of failing at least five times to provide trial records to the appellate court, resulting in delays. She also alleged he failed to process and report case activities to the Office of Court Administration and failed to process hundreds, maybe thousands of cases that are declined for prosecution. Those people, whose charges have been dropped, had to remain on bond or under bond conditions until the clerks office processed the cases, the suit alleged. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The suit asked a judge to suspend Anderson without pay, to hold a jury trial and ultimately remove him from office. In his resignation letter, Anderson acknowledged making errors, but said he was being targeted because of his age, and said his office has served the courts similarly to other counties. I do not believe I am incompetent in executing specific statutory duties. I have made mistakes, but I do not believe leaving will prevent these mistakes from occurring, he wrote. Hopefully someone older than me will be given the benefit of the doubt. Anderson also said he believes he has worked to improve the clerks office, including automating processes such as the appellate clerks records and saving of hearing notices to cases upon creation. He said he also attempted to automate sending notifications to attorneys and parties. A ballot process that could see online giant Amazon recognise a trade union in the UK for the first time is to start on Monday. Workers at the companys Coventry site will start voting on whether they want the GMB to represent them. There are two key factors in the ballot that will decide the outcome. Firstly, 40% of employees in the bargaining unit must vote, whether they are union members or not. If this threshold is not met, the ballot fails. Then if the 40% threshold is met, it is a straight majority of the vote that decides the outcome. Amazon maintains that its employees have always had the choice of joining a union. The GMB will stage protests at Amazon warehouses across the UK as voting begins. A rally will also be held outside Amazons London head office. Join us on Monday as we take our message direct to Amazon HQ that their union-busting efforts are not welcome in Coventry or anywhere else. Where: Amazon Corporate Office London, 1 Principal Place, London, EC2A 2FAWhen: 5pm, Monday 8th JulyDetails: https://t.co/JIlWVtVXMj GMB Southern Region (@GMBSouthern) July 3, 2024 The union said more than 3,000 workers will take part in the ballot, with the result expected in mid-July. GMB national officer Andy Prendergast said: Workers have come together because of the poverty pay and unsafe conditions Amazon has thrust upon them. They want the same fair pay and safe conditions any of us would demand. Amazon has had every chance to do the right thing now workers are taking things into their own hands to make work better. An Amazon spokesperson said: Our employees have the choice of whether or not to join a union. They always have. Across Amazon, we place enormous value on having daily conversations and engagement with our employees. Its a strong part of our work culture. We value that direct relationship and so do our employees. We regularly review our pay to ensure we offer competitive wages and benefits. Our minimum starting pay has increased to 12.30 and 13 per hour depending on location thats a 20% increase over two years and 50% since 2018. We also work hard to provide great benefits, a positive work environment and excellent career opportunities. These are just some of the reasons people want to come and work at Amazon, whether its their first job, a seasonal role or an opportunity for them to advance their career. Rangers looking after Britains largest mainland colony of Arctic terns are on tenterhooks to see how the seabirds fare after a devastating outbreak of bird flu last year. National Trust rangers are waiting to see if the colony at Long Nanny on the coast of Northumberland has managed to escape avian influenza this year. The coastal site is typically a safe breeding ground for both Arctic terns, which migrate to Antarctica each year and back to breed in a round trip of tens of thousands of miles, and a much smaller colony of little terns, which are the second rarest seabird in the UK. An Arctic tern chick feeding at Long Nanny, Northumberland (National Trust/PA) Last summer, more than 1,000 Artic tern chicks and several little terns died as bird flu swept through the colony, which the National Trust said threatened to undo some of the gains the population had made in recent seasons. This year the number of adult breeding Arctic terns is lower, but the rangers say it is not as bad as they feared, with the number of nests with eggs down 20% at 1,040 compared to 1,300 in 2023. Bird flu had a devastating impact on seabirds across the UK in 2023, with the last two years seeing the worst outbreak of the virus since it emerged in the 1990s, killing birds from puffins to skuas and terns at key breeding sites around the country. James Porteus, area ranger at Long Nanny, said that by this time last year, the first few cases of bird flu had been confirmed and 1,329 Arctic terns 1,066 chicks and 263 adults died from the virus. The good news is that the number of returning adults is higher than we hoped, with well over 2,000 breeding adults recorded. Most birds have successfully laid eggs which have now hatched. We are now on tenterhooks to see how the chicks fare and are hoping that they make it through these critical first few weeks and are able to survive the annual pressures of predation and extreme weather due to climate change, he said. The little tern colony at Long Nanny is much smaller, with the number of returning pairs down a third to a minimum of 24, compared to 37 pairs in 2023. Mr Porteus said any drop in little tern numbers was very worrying, with the number of breeding pairs gradually declining over recent decades from around 2,000 across England in the 1980s to 1,400 today. Habitat loss and recreational disturbance along our coast is impacting our little tern population and reserves such as the Long Nanny are so important to the future of this species in the UK, he said. The team at Long Nanny also confirmed the first known breeding attempt between an American black tern and Arctic tern, but said that although three eggs were successfully laid, it now seems they are unlikely to hatch given the period of time which has now passed. Professor Chris Redfern from Newcastle University, who has been monitoring the pair said: Black terns lay smaller eggs than Arctic terns, and we now know that the Long Nanny American black tern is female. The team at Long Nanny also confirmed the first known breeding attempt between an American black tern and Arctic tern (Gary Woodburn/PA) Although the eggs appear to have been fertile, hatching is now overdue and we suspect that the species difference between Arctic and black terns is too wide to allow healthy, living chicks to develop. He said terns were loyal to their partners, so it would be interesting to see if they tried again next year. The National Trust is asking visitors to the Long Nanny area to avoid disturbing seabirds by keeping a safe distance from the colony and keeping dogs on a short lead at all times in the next few critical weeks of the breeding season. Downing Street admitted the summer will be challenging for the new Government as the first migrants to cross the English Channel since Labours election victory arrived in the UK. Crossings resumed on an overcast Monday which saw relatively calm conditions at sea after a six-day hiatus amid poor weather. Pictures showed groups of people wearing life jackets, and some wrapped in blankets, being escorted off a Border Force boat in Dover, Kent, with children among those seen being carried ashore. Migrants were brought ashore in Dover, Kent, on Monday as crossings resumed after a six-day hiatus due to poor weather (Gareth Fuller/PA) The crossings came as newly appointed Home Secretary Yvette Cooper launched a Border Security Command designed to crack down on people-smuggling gangs orchestrating the crossings. A spokesman for Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told reporters: Were getting to work straight away because we know that this summer will be challenging. The Government is now focused on the work needed to secure our borders and smash the gangs, he added. So far this year 13,574 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel, according to the latest available Home Office figures. This is already a record for the first six months of a calendar year. It is also 12% higher than the number recorded by this time last year (12,119) and up 3% on the same period in 2022 (13,149), according to PA news agency analysis of government data. (PA Graphics) No crossings have been recorded since July 1. The Home Office will confirm how many people made the journey on Monday, the first under the new Labour administration, in data published on Tuesday. Ms Cooper said setting up the unit was Labours first priority on migration as she faced questions on the future of the Bibby Stockholm barge, which is being used to house asylum seekers in Portland, Dorset. She did not confirm whether the Government would abandon use of the barge but, while visiting police officers in Lewisham, south-east London, told reporters: We need to clear the Conservatives asylum backlog, but the first priority has to be to get the stronger border security in place, and that is why our first step is setting up the new Border Security Command. Recruitment of a Border Security Commander, who will report directly to the Home Secretary, has begun, with the new recruit expected to take up their post in the coming weeks, the Home Office said. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has launched a Border Security Command designed to crack down on people-smuggling gangs orchestrating the crossings (Jeff Moore/PA) The commander will be a leader used to working in complex and challenging environments, for example at senior levels of policing, intelligence or the military and will bring together the work of the National Crime Agency (NCA), intelligence agencies, police, immigration enforcement and Border Force, the department said. New laws will be brought in to introduce counter terror-style powers and measures to fight organised immigration crime, officials added. Ms Cooper has also ordered an investigation into the latest routes, methods and tactics used by people-smuggling gangs across Europe to inform a major law enforcement drive over the coming months. Over the weekend, Sir Keir said the stalled multimillion-pound plan to send migrants to Rwanda is dead and buried as he confirmed the deportation policy is to be scrapped. The Prime Minister said he was not prepared to continue with gimmicks as Labour announced plans to free the last two migrants who were detained ahead of anticipated flights. As she met police officers in Lewisham on Monday, Ms Cooper branded the policy a con, telling reporters she is now auditing the entire scheme and the amount of money spent on it. The Prime Ministers spokesman later added that the scheme has been cancelled and wont go ahead. Meanwhile, questions remain over whether Labour will restore rights to migrants making the journey to allow them to claim asylum again. While nothing has been confirmed so far, officials hinted at this being a possibility. Asked if people crossing the Channel to the UK will now have the right to claim asylum, the Prime Ministers spokesman said: We need to ensure that people who arrive here are processed so that people are not sitting in the system, housed in expensive taxpayer-funded hotels as they have been under previous administrations. As well as focusing on the Border Security Command, resources need to be found to staff a new returns and enforcement unit to make sure failed asylum seekers and others with no right to be here are removed, he added. A migrant processing centre in Kent will be visited by the Childrens Commissioner over concerns raised about safeguarding children at the site. Dame Rachel de Souza is expected to visit the former military base in Manston this week, according to her office. The facility is used to process new arrivals of people who have entered the UK by boat crossing the English Channel. Dame Rachel de Souza is expected to visit the centre this week (Aaron Chown/PA) Overcrowding with unacceptable conditions had previously been flagged by inspectors in October 2022, while the Home Office has said significant improvements have been made since that period. The Office of the Childrens Commissioner is a national public body tasked with promoting and protecting the rights of children in the UK, including unaccompanied asylum seeking children. The visit to Manston comes as migrants who crossed the English Channel arrived in the UK on Monday, the first since the Labour Government was elected, with children among those being seen carried ashore in Dover, Kent. A Home Office spokesperson said: The treatment of unaccompanied children is taken very seriously by the Home Office and they are not routinely taken to Manston. Those who arrive with their families are accommodated separately from single adult males, and the health and well-being of all arrivals is taken seriously at every stage of the process. Owen Farrell kicked a late penalty as a dramatic 15-15 draw saw the British and Irish Lions tie their thrilling Test series against New Zealand 1-1 on this day in 2017. Farrells fourth penalty of the night brought the Lions level with three minutes left at Eden Park. Elliot Daly also kicked a penalty for Warren Gatlands side, who had recovered from a 12-6 half-time deficit. Lions captain Sam Warburton and New Zealands Kieran Read lift the Series Trophy after the series is drawn (David Davies/PA) There was still time for more drama after Farrells kick. The All Blacks thought they had a chance to win it in the dying seconds when Beauden Barrett lined up a kick at goal, but referee Romain Poite consulted television replays and awarded a scrum to New Zealand instead for accidental offside. It was just a second drawn series in history for the Lions, with the 15-15 result following a 30-15 defeat in the opening encounter at the same ground and then a 24-21 triumph in Wellington. Gatland had been mocked up by a New Zealand newspaper as a caricature clown after the Lions lost the opener, but had the last laugh as he walked into his post-match press conference wearing a fancy dress red clowns nose. It was my idea, he said. I had it last week but I didnt think it was right time to wear it (after the second Test). He added: The New Zealand public and fans have taken us to their hearts. Its been a great series. Warren Gatland wore a clowns nose to his post-match press conference after being mocked by a New Zealand newspaper (Nick Purewal/PA) What was disappointing for me was how much negativity was out there. I think we should embrace this concept of the Lions, I think its been brilliant. Well just enjoy the next couple of days as a squad and reflect back on what this group of players have achieved. Some of these players have been on two tours now and are undefeated as Lions players. Those players who have been on two tours should be very, very proud of their achievements. New Zealand native Gatland was also Lions boss for the tour to Australia in 2013 that the team won 2-1 and was in charge again for the 2-1 defeat in South Africa in 2021. The latter series was played behind closed doors due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Morne Steyn landing a late penalty in the decider at the Cape Town Stadium to seal victory for the Springboks. Annasofia Scheve covers trending news for the Express-News. She can be reached at Annasofia.Scheve@express-news.net. Annasofia has bachelor's degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Missouri. She is an Ohio native, and wrote for Cincinnati Magazine and the Cincinnati Enquirer before joining the Express-News in 2023. Future of Tata Steel of great concern, says Starmer on visit to Wales Sir Keir Starmer has described the future of Tata Steel as being of great concern following a meeting with the Welsh First Minister on the final stop of his tour of the devolved nations. The Prime Minister visited the Senedd in Cardiff Bay on Monday to meet Vaughan Gething, the leader of Wales, and Jo Stevens, the Secretary of State for Wales. Sir Keirs trip follows visits to the other devolved nations, having stopped in Belfast earlier on Monday and Scotland on Sunday. He arrived at the Welsh Parliament having promised an immediate reset of the relationship between the Westminster Government and devolved nations. It also comes amid concerns about job losses at Tata steelworks in Port Talbot, where around 2,800 jobs are at risk. Speaking after his meeting with Mr Gething in the Cabinet Room, the Prime Minister said he wanted to collaborate with the devolved nations and develop mutual respect and trust. Sir Keir had been due to speak to reporters on the balcony of the Senedd, overlooking Cardiff Bay. However, a small but noisy crowd of around a dozen pro-Palestinian protesters outside the Welsh Parliament forced interviews to be moved to the fifth floor. Speaking to broadcasters, the Prime Minister said: Its very important to me to reset relations with Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, because I want to make sure that we collaborate, theres mutual respect and trust. Here in Wales its particularly important because what I said before the election is that a Labour government would be a game changer, because you would have a UK government, working with the Welsh Government, delivering for Wales, rather than the conflict. This is an early recommitment to what I said in the campaign to come here physically on the third day (of being Prime Minister), to have discussions with the First Minister about the long-term objectives and of course, about some of the pressing issues, including Tata Steel, which is of great concern to me, to the First Minister and to so many people here in Wales. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer listens to a choir at the Senedd in Cardiff (Alastair Grant/PA) Sir Keir described the economy as being in a bad state and said his party now had to get on and deliver that change. The Labour governments in Wales and Westminster are pushing Tata not to pursue any compulsory redundancies, with promises of 3 billion in extra funding for the steel industry in the UK. Speaking to the PA news agency following Sir Keirs visit, Mr Gething said direct talks were taking place about what a better deal for steel could look like. He said the Labour government was offering more money to co-invest in the future of steel and the partys manifesto was clear about the need for more steel products to power the future of the economy. Asked if he could offer any guarantees for the communities affected, the First Minister said people did not want to hear politicians making wild promises but insisted the desire to see a better deal was real and Tata had to make choices. Labour campaigned in the General Election on a platform that promised change. When Mr Gething was asked if the people of Wales may take that to heart in the Senedd elections in 2026 and vote his party out, he insisted his party did not take any voters for granted. He said: Theres a lot to celebrate about this election result, moving from our worst result since 1935 to having 27 out of 32 Welsh MPs as Labour MPs. We now need to look at whats happened in this election, about where we are in delivering improvements in the next nearly two years, and going to the people of Wales, with not just a record we can be proud of, but an offer for the future, about how we want to continue to transform and improve lives here in Wales. Announcing his UK tour, Sir Keir said his partys landslide victory in the General Election has given Labour a clear mandate to govern for all four corners of the United Kingdom. Labour emerged from last weeks elections as the largest party in Wales in Westminster, with the Conservatives wiped out for the first time since 2001. Ahead of the visit, Sir Keir described Wales as having enormous untapped potential ready to be unleashed. He said: Working in lockstep with the Welsh Government and Vaughan, my Government will place the people and communities of Wales front and centre as we move towards a decade of national renewal. That means turning the page on years of economic hardship, towards genuine shared prosperity for working people, so they see and feel real, tangible change in their lives. Sir Keir campaigned alongside the embattled First Minister during the General Election. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer arrives to meet First Minister of Wales Vaughan Gething in the Cabinet Room at the Senedd (Alastair Grant/PA) Mr Gething has faced calls to quit after he lost a no confidence vote last month. It came following the collapse of the co-operation deal between Labour and Plaid Cymru and a series of rows involving Mr Gething and donations to his leadership campaign from a man who has been convicted of environmental offences. His party has been forced to defend Mr Gethings continued presence in the top role in Wales, with Kim Howells, a former Pontypridd Labour MP, describing him as damaged goods during an interview with BBC Radio Wales on Sunday. Mr Howells said Labour needs to change the Welsh leader sooner rather than later with fears the issue could impact the partys chances in the Senedd elections in 2026. Mr Gething has always insisted that he has broken no rules and Ms Stevens said he has her complete support. Ahead of Sir Keirs visit to Wales, Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth and his partys four MPs requested a meeting with the Prime Minister. Ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has dedicated his victory as an independent to the people of his constituency, as he enjoyed sweet success over his former party. He successfully retained his long-held seat of Islington North in London, beating his Labour rival by more than 7,000 votes. In his victory speech, he claimed his campaign had shown what kinder, gentler and more sensible, more inclusive politics, can bring about. He said: I couldnt be more proud of my constituency than I am tonight and proud of our team that brought this result. Thank you very much Islington North for the result we have achieved tonight. He added: I owe my life and my learning and my abilities entirely to the people of Islington North. This victory is dedicated entirely to them. It was just a few days after Rishi Sunak had called the General Election that Mr Corbyn announced he was standing as an independent, vowing to be an independent voice for equality, democracy and peace. He had been suspended by Labour since 2020 after he refused to fully accept the Equality and Human Rights Commissions findings that the party broke equality law when he was in charge and said antisemitism had been dramatically overstated for political reasons. Speaking to the Islington Tribune, he said he would fight to retain a seat he had represented for 40 years, adding: We have to stand up and defend our rights. It was announced that day that he had been expelled from the party, with Sir Keir Starmer saying Mr Corbyns days of influencing Labour were over. Sir Keir had, throughout the campaign, sought to distance himself from his predecessors leadership, with his mantra of running a changed Labour Party and readiness to suspend MPs if they step out of line with his zero-tolerance policy on antisemitism. First elected to Parliament in 1983 as MP for Islington North, Mr Corbyn rose from rebel backbencher, regularly voting against the party whip, to the shock winner of the party leadership contest amid Corbynmania in 2015. Under his turbulent time as leader, Labour received its biggest election upsurge since 1945 in the 2017 snap general election, before suffering its worst defeat since 1935 in 2019 against Boris Johnson. Lauren Rowles always felt teaming up with Gregg Stevenson could produce something special as she targets a third Paralympic gold medal in Paris. Rowles retained her PR2 mixed double sculls title with then rowing partner Laurence Whiteley in Tokyo, and has sights set on another successful defence alongside former Royal Engineer Commando Stevenson. The British duo have only been rowing together since January last year, but soon claimed the European title before winning 2023 World Championship gold in Belgrade. Rowles believes there is still more to come from her and Stevenson as they aim to top the podium in Paris. 1ST GOLD OF THE WORLD CHAMPS It's an ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE race between Lauren Rowles and Gregg Stevenson for and Shuang Liu and Jijian Jiang of , but the Brits find another gear in the red buoys and take the win, unbeaten this season@TNLUK #GBRowingTeam pic.twitter.com/Y3ARB7WeAp British Rowing (@BritishRowing) September 9, 2023 For us to reach this level, with Greg in only his second full season, hasnt gone without the sacrifice and hard work you have to put in, Rowles told the PA news agency. We have a huge amount of belief in ourselves that we can do something incredible in Paris by winning that third gold medal in the event. Sometimes there is sort of an element of surprise (with a new pairing). But when we started the project last year and Greg came on board, then we started rowing together, quite quickly I knew that there was something special there. Lauren Rowles, right, has her eyes on another Paralympics gold medal (ParalympicsGB/imagecomms/PA) In the space of three or four months, we were hitting world records already. It just shows that there is a capacity there to push this event out further than it has ever been before. It was just a case of then putting in the hard work and time really to get to the next level. Rowles and Stevenson have been named as part of a 10-strong ParalympicsGB squad, across four boats, for the Paris Games. At the age of 13, Rowles was diagnosed with the neurological condition transverse myelitis, which interrupts the messages sent from the spinal cord nerves throughout the body. Former wheelchair athlete Rowles, who is paralysed from the waist down, first tried rowing in early 2015 before going on to become a key member of the British squad. Stevenson, meanwhile, only returned to the GB Para-Rowing World Class Programme last year, having retired from the sport competitively to study for a masters degree in Psychology alongside raising a young family. The 39-year-old lost both legs in an improvised explosive device blast in Afghanistan during 2009 and had to learn to walk again with prosthetics. Stevenson a qualified mental health practitioner who worked in the NHS with veterans is determined to make an impact on his first appearance at the Paralympics. A-FINAL: PR2 Mixed Double Sculls (PR2 Mix2x) Lauren Rowles, Gregg Stevenson Shuang Liu, Liang Luo Jolanta Majka, Michal Gadowski #WorldRowingChamps #WRCHBelgrade pic.twitter.com/bVIqNvydGc World Rowing (@WorldRowing) September 9, 2023 When I joined the military, I was constantly looking for a regiment which was pushing things forward, so you had to be physically fit and constantly striving to be the best, he said. It has been really refreshing for me to come back into an environment like that, where we try to constantly push and achieve special things. We are never settling on enough is enough. If we have set a world record, we are almost deconstructing it asking where can we go better? We are constantly striving to push further. Lewis Hamiltons fairytale first win in 945 days is a weight off the seven-time world champions shoulders, Mercedes team principal Toto Wolff has claimed. Hamilton, 39, rolled back the years at Silverstone on Sunday to claim his record-extending ninth home victory and the 104th of his glittering career. An emotional Hamilton said after taking his first triumph since the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on December 5, 2021 a 56-race streak that he doubted whether he would ever win again. He also revealed he struggled with his mental health in the wake of his contentious championship defeat to Max Verstappen. Lewis Hamilton secured his ninth win at the British Grand Prix (David Davies/PA) Wolff, who has also admitted to his own mental health battles in the past, has overseen six of Hamiltons record-equalling seven titles with Mercedes. Hamilton is ending his 12-season relationship with the Silver Arrows at the end of the campaign to join Ferrari. It has been so difficult over the last two years that we couldnt find the performance to give our drivers a car that they could win with, said Wolff. So for Lewis to win again at the British Grand Prix in his last race for Mercedes is almost like a fairytale. We couldnt have scripted it better. It is clear our relationship goes back a long time and each of us has suffered (mentally) at various stages. He has been there for me and, most recently, I have tried to provide my contribution during his doubting times. And that is why it feels really good that he has been able to put all the negative thoughts aside to come up with this performance. It is a weight off his shoulders. Hamilton celebrated his win on home soil by crowd-surfing with his fans at the circuits main stage almost four hours after the chequered flag fell. He is now the first driver in history to win the same race on nine occasions a record he previously shared with Michael Schumacher. He also became the first man to win after making 300 F1 starts. Hamilton recorded his latest victory, 17 years and 27 days after he secured his maiden win in Canada. Another new record. He is now the oldest driver to win a race this century. Hamilton sobbed as he embraced his father Anthony for nearly 20 seconds after he emerged from his cockpit. No. It wasn't a dream pic.twitter.com/cJDHQPHSKu Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team (@MercedesAMGF1) July 8, 2024 I just wanted to be there for Lewis, explained Hamilton Snr the man who forged his sons path to glory. It was nice to be there at the right time because he had a lot of emotion to let loose and Im the only guy, Im sure, that he would be able to do have done that with. He questions himself, like we all do occasionally. You question whether youre still good enough, young enough, strong enough. I know Lewis, and as far as Im concerned he has still got everything he needs to run at the top. And sometimes you just need reminding about that. He knows he has got it. When Lewis hasnt got it, I will let you know. Dont forget, he started this when he was eight. He started from a council house (in Stevenage). We worked hard to get to where we are, and every day he puts in the same graft. He never comes half-hearted. He always gives it his all. Hamiltons triumph was Mercedes second in a row following George Russells win at the previous round in Austria. Toto Wolff called Hamiltons win at Silverstone a fairytale (David Davies/PA) The Silver Arrows have been a shadow of their former selves in the past two-and-a-half years but Wolff hopes Hamiltons triumph could be a springboard for more success. Five races ago we were not even a contender for the podium and we looked to be in for a third year of non-performance, Wolff added. But then it clicked and suddenly everything that hasnt made sense does make sense, like it did in the old days. We are finding performance and putting it on the car, and it is translating into lap time and that hasnt been the case for the past two years. There is more to come in terms of performance. We are bringing updates to the next races in Budapest and Spa but we must not get carried away. We had a win last week, benefiting from Max (Verstappen) and Lando (Norris) tangling, but today we had an honest result. Manchester United are in advanced talks with Marseille over the sale of striker Mason Greenwood, the PA news agency understands. The 22-year-old forward, who has one senior cap for England, could be on his way to France after spending last season on loan with Spanish club Getafe, where he played 33 league matches and scored eight goals. He has been linked with a number of other European clubs this summer, including Lazio and Juventus, but Marseille are now understood to be in pole position to sign him. Mason Greenwood spent most of the 2023-24 season on loan at Getafe (Isabel Infantes/PA) Greenwood was suspended by United on January 30, 2022 over allegations relating to a young woman after images and videos were posted online. He faced charges including attempted rape and assault but the Crown Prosecution Service announced in February last year that the case had been discontinued. United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe said in February this year that the club would take a decision on Greenwoods future in the summer. Its quite clear we have to make a decision. There is no decision thats been made, the Ineos founder said. We will make a decision and we will justify it one way or the other. Manchester United co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe (Peter Byrne/PA). Greenwood is understood to have briefly been at Uniteds Carrington training base on Monday morning to meet with the clubs football leadership, where discussions focused on finding him a new club took place. Several other clubs are understood to have shown interest in Greenwood in addition to Marseille. The player did not take part in training. British Indians have shared their mixed views on Rishi Sunaks incredible achievement becoming the UKs first Asian prime minister. Mr Sunak tendered his resignation as prime minister to the King on Friday morning, with Sir Keir Starmer taking to the lectern outside 10 Downing Street to pay tribute to him for his achievement as the first British Asian prime minister of our country. He added: The extra effort that that will have required should not be underestimated by anyone. We pay tribute to that today. Outgoing Conservative prime minister Rishi Sunak gives a speech in Downing Street, London (James Manning/PA) Mr Sunak was born in 1980 in Southampton to parents of Punjabi descent, and is a practicing Hindu. For British Indians living across the UK, having a prime minister who represents their community has been inspiring for some, with others feeling as though he could be out of touch. Amit Champaneri, 40, told the PA news agency he did not think the incredible achievement would happen in his lifetime. Rishi Sunak becoming the first British Asian prime minister is something my family and I never thought we would see in our lifetime never mind at the time it happened, Mr Champaneri, who is based in Surrey, said. Amit Champaneri said Rishi Sunak becoming the UKs first Asian prime minister was an incredible achievement (Amit Champaneri/PA) It is an incredible achievement and will inspire younger generations in years to come, including my daughter. He described Mr Sunaks outgoing speech as prime minister as dignified, respectful and gracious. Hearing him reflect on his family, culture and referencing Diwali will resonate with so many from the Asian community, he added. His grandparents coming to the UK and (his) parents working so hard to provide him with the opportunities they did not have. It is an aspiration that most Asian parents have for their own children. Sir Keir Starmer paid tribute to Rishi Sunak being the first Asian prime minister of the country in a speech outside 10 Downing Street (James Manning/PA) He applauded new Prime Minister Sir Keir for acknowledging and praising Mr Sunak for the monumental achievement. I am also happy that the new Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer referenced what an achievement it was for Rishi to become the first British Asian PM and the extra effort it must taken to get there, he added. Priya Aggarwal-Shah, a diversity and inclusion consultant and a communications consultant, told PA she has mixed views about Mr Sunaks tenure as prime minister. When Rishi Sunak first became prime minister, it was such a monumental occasion, the 31-year-old who is based in Watford said. It happened during Diwali there was something really special about an Indian prime minister walking into 10 Downing Street, seeing his shoes outside, the Diyas lit up. Priya Aggarwal-Shah said she has mixed views about Rishi Sunaks tenure as prime minister (Priya Aggarwal-Shah/Louise Haywood-Schiefer/PA) I felt this immense sense of pride, especially because it was almost full circle, 75 years after India gained independence from Britain and now we have our first Indian prime minister. However, she said as he was not elected by the public and was chosen to replace Liz Truss, he was battling both a lack of support from the UK populace and his own party. I think that maybe made him turn back on his core values and we saw him actually siding with some policies which really didnt sit that well with me and not calling out racism when it needed to be called out, she added. Over time, I started to disalign with him a little bit and although he was South Asian, he doesnt really represent the majority of Indians in our society anyway. There are some very wealthy Indians in British society, but theres probably a large number of Indians that werent privately schooled, dont have his level of wealth and are probably just working class and he was really out of touch. While she did not hear Sir Keirs tribute to Mr Sunak, she said it was a really nice thing to do. I think what he said is right it is a huge moment to be the first Indian prime minister of Britain, she added. You would never imagine it happen so soon in our lifetime and I think that is something that should be celebrated for sure. Rishi should be proud of that and I think Keir Starmer did the right thing by thanking him and celebrating him. A mother who said she gave her cancer-stricken son a dose of morphine she believes did quietly end his life more than 40 years ago has died, it has been reported. Antonya Coopers son Hamish had been suffering from stage 4 neuroblastoma a rare childhood cancer and was aged seven when he died at home in December 1981. Ms Cooper, a former chairwoman of Neuroblastoma UK, who lived in Abingdon in Oxfordshire, said her young son had been in a lot of pain by the end of his life. She told BBC Radio Oxford last week: I gave him a large dose of morphine that did quietly end his life. On Monday, the BBC reported a statement from her family saying Ms Cooper, who had incurable cancer, had died. The statement said: She was peaceful, pain-free, at home and surrounded by her loving family. It was exactly the way she wanted it. She lived life on her terms and she died on her terms. The broadcaster also reported that the family had been visited by officers from Thames Valley Police following the report last week about Hamishs death. The force had previously said it was aware of reports relating to an apparent case of assisted dying of a seven-year-old boy in 1981. The service added: At this early stage, the force is making inquiries into these reports and is not in a position to comment further while these investigations continue. Antonya Cooper had called for the UK Government to legalise assisted dying so death is not so intolerably inhumane (Antonya Cooper/PA Real Life) Asked for an update following Ms Coopers death, Thames Valley Police said the force is still making inquiries in its investigation. Speaking about her final moments with her son, Ms Cooper told PA Real Life in May: In the middle of the night, we were by his bedside. He was expressing that he had pain and I said Would you like me to take the pain away? He said Yes please, Mama, and so I gave him a dose of morphine sulphate through his Hickman catheter. We had watched him brave through all that beastly treatment, we had had him for longer than the original prognosis, so the time was right. Euthanasia deliberately ending a persons life to relieve suffering is illegal in England and could be prosecuted as murder or manslaughter. Ms Cooper told how she had joined Swiss assisted dying clinic Dignitas and called for the UK Government to legalise assisted dying so death is not so intolerably inhumane. Asked by the BBC if she understood she had potentially admitted to manslaughter or murder in relation to her sons death, she replied: Yes. She told the radio programme: If they come 43 years after I have allowed Hamish to die peacefully, then I would have to face the consequences. But they would have to be quick, because Im dying too. The conversation around assisted dying and calls for a change in the law have hit the headlines in recent months, with legislation being considered in Scotland, the Isle of Man and Jersey. Neuroblastoma UK, which was originally formed as The Neuroblastoma Society by Ms Cooper and others, paid tribute, saying her legacy will live on through the vital research we fund. The organisation said: We are deeply saddened by the news of the death of Antonya and extend our heartfelt condolences to her family and friends during this difficult time. Antonya helped form The Neuroblastoma Society in 1982, which she was Chair of from 2001 2007, building up relationships with leading national and international neuroblastoma clinicians and researchers. This later became Neuroblastoma UK, a charity focused on raising awareness and money for research into the disease. Antonyas contributions have been invaluable, and her legacy will live on through the vital research we fund. Jesus Speaks to the Daughters of Jerusalem by artist Philjames. The artwork was removed from Casula Powerhouse after triggering a barrage of criticism on Friday. Photograph: Supplied A Sydney council has removed a playful artwork of Jesus Christ overlaid with Looney Tunes characters after a torrent of online abuse. Sydney artist Philjames work, Jesus Speaks to the Daughters of Jerusalem, was removed from the Blake Art Prize exhibition at the Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre after fierce criticism was directed at the artist and gallery on Friday, just two days before the eight-week exhibition ended. The biennial prize at the Liverpool city council gallery recognises contemporary artwork that explore spirituality and religion and draws artists from all beliefs and cultural backgrounds. But a last-minute online protest claimed the 2023 oil-on-lithograph work mocked the Christian religion, with some protesters threatening the museum and its staff many of whom are volunteers with violence. Philjames said he received about 200 vile social media messages on Friday and Saturday, with the gallery receiving over 60 phone calls from protesters on Friday alone. I do like stirring a bit of a reaction with my work, but the novelty very quickly wore off on Friday. The level of vitriol and the sheer volume of it was actually frightening, the 48-year-old said. Ive been doing these sorts of works for around 15 years and Ive had one or two people upset but nothing like this. It was vile and not at all Christian. One protester warned him that the gallery better get some extra security, he said. The poor staff who work there dont need this. Its not worth it. Liverpool mayor Ned Mannoun called for the removal of the painting in the face of what he called many complaints from numerous residents who were disgusted and offended that Liverpool Council was displaying this artwork. The Christian Messiah and the Muslim Messiah Jesus has no connection to the cartoon character Goofy, he said in a statement. Charlie Bakhos, the founder of conservative Catholic group, Christian Lives Matter, told supporters on social media that the shocking disrespectful art had been removed. This is another attack on Christianity we have managed to put a stop to thanks to everyones support. Lets keep defending our faith respectfully and we will get results as Jesus is on our side. The acting Liverpool Council CEO, Jason Breton, said the artwork was removed in response to the mayors position, safety concerns and the community response. While Philjames said he was absolutely happy to put safety first, he was concerned that the incident may set a precedent for limits on freedom of expression. That for me is the most problematic thing: the mayor requested it to be taken down, putting politicking before freedom of expression. Where does it end? Mannoun said the right to free speech needed to be balanced with the right to practise religion without fear, persecution or ridicule. Liverpool is one of the most religious LGAs in Sydney. Religious art should be respectful and unifying, not divisive and disrespectful. He said he would make the same calls about art that he considered to be antisemitic or derogatory of any religion. Police were contacted to inform them of potential unrest around the artwork, the council confirmed. The prize is open to believers and non-believers and prizes are strictly non-sectarian. Philjames, whose work has been described as Kafkaesque and surreal, said he grew up attending Sunday school but is not religious. I find it all a bit absurd, it was a playful work. I like incorporating cartoon characters they deal with human issues, he said. To be honest, there wasnt really any meaning behind the piece. Its just an image choose your own adventure. The artist has given his absurdist treatment to a number of subjects, including Queen Elizabeth II, Donald Trump and Christopher Reeve. He is represented by the Chalk Horse Gallery in Darlinghurst and has entered the Blake Prize numerous times. He said he had received an outpouring of support from the artistic community over the weekend. Blake prize organisers are no strangers to controversy. In 2011, artist Luke Roberts triptych of depictions of the crucifixion featured an intersex woman wearing only a pink G-string and nipple tassels. It prompted the Anglican Bishop of South Sydney, Rob Forsyth, to say the work was something [he] would not be happy about, but that did not mean it should be forbidden. In 2007, two separate Blake prize artworks attracted the criticism of both John Howard and Kevin Rudd. One depicted the Virgin Mary wearing a Muslim burqa and another morphed an image of Osama bin Laden with that of a depiction of Jesus Christ. The choice of such artwork is gratuitously offensive to the religious beliefs of many Australians, Howard told News Ltd newspapers at the time. Joe Biden campaigns in Philadelphia on 7 July 2024. Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters Joe Biden came out swinging on Monday against critics of his calamitous June debate performance, telling Democrats in an open letter and Americans in a pugnacious live TV interview he is staying in the presidential race rejecting growing calls to concede that at 81 he is too ineffective to beat Donald Trump and should drop out in favour of a younger candidate. The president lashed out at elites in the party in a live telephone interview with the MSNBC show Morning Joe, saying they were behind calls for him to quit. He added: If any of these guys dont think I should run, run against me. Go ahead. Announce for president challenge me at the convention! Touting what he said was a demanding campaign schedule around hosting a Nato summit this week, the president insisted: The American public is not going to move away from me. Im here for two reasons, pal. One, to rebuild the economy for hard-working middle class people, to give everybody a shot. Its a straight shot. Everybody gets a fair chance. Number two, people always talk about how I dont have the wide support. Come on, give me a break. Come with me. Watch. Concerns about Bidens age have dogged his time in office but they exploded into open view late last month after the first of two scheduled debates with Trump. Onstage in Atlanta, Biden appeared hesitant, confused and physically diminished, struggles aides put down to a cold and jet lag. In comparison, Trump spewed lies virtually unchecked by his opponent or CNN moderators working to rules that precluded instant fact checks. The result was a polling bump for Trump and panic among Democrats. By Monday, nine House Democrats had called for Biden to quit. A reported move towards a similar call in the Senate did not produce a result. Biden insisted his poor debate was down to health issues. I was feeling so badly before the debate, he told MSNBC. They tested me, they thought maybe I had Covid, maybe there was something wrong, an infection or something. They tested me, they gave me those tests. I was clear. So, I had a bad night. Touting public appearances since the debate, Biden said he was in vigorous health and out meeting voters more than Trump. I have a neurological test every single day sitting behind his desk and making these decisions, Biden said. You know it, they know it. Im not bad at what I do. Signaling the size of Bidens problem, however, the New York Times cited White House visitor logs when it reported that an expert on Parkinsons disease visited eight times in eight months from last summer through this spring, including at least once for a meeting with President Bidens physician. Andrew Bates, a White House spokesperson, told the paper: A wide variety of specialists visit the White House complex to treat the thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds. Bates also said Biden had been seen by a neurologist once a year, finding no sign of Parkinsons and he is not being treated for it. In his open letter to Democrats, the president said he was firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump. He also claimed that in extensive conversations with the leadership of the party, elected officials, rank and file members and most importantly Democratic voters, he had heard the concerns that people have their good faith fears and worries about what is at stake in this election. I am not blind to them. Believe me, I know better than anyone the responsibility and the burden the nominee of our party carries. I carried it in 2020 when the fate of our nation was at stake. Biden defeated Trump handily then. But on inauguration day, he was 78 as old as Trump is now but the oldest man ever to take the presidential oath. On Monday, Biden said: I wouldnt be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump. It is unclear what mechanism could be used for replacing Biden, whether with his vice-president, Kamala Harris, or another candidate. In his letter, Biden pointed to his easy primary win over Dean Phillips, a Minnesota representative who campaigned on the issue of Bidens age. The president also pointed to the independent Robert F Kennedy Jr, who threatens to take votes in battleground states. Do we now just say this process didnt matter? Biden asked. That the voters dont have a say? I decline to do that. I feel a deep obligation to the faith and the trust the voters of the Democratic party have placed in me it was their decision to make. Not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals, no matter how well intentioned. The voters and the voters alone decide the nominee. How can we stand for democracy in our nation if we ignore it in our own party? I cannot do that. I will not do that. Biden said he had no doubt he would beat Trump, touting achievements in office. He also said that in a second term, with a Democratic-controlled Congress, he would restore abortion rights by enshrining them in law, while bringing real supreme court reform an ambitious statement, given a Senate map highly favourable to Republicans. Finally, Biden said he was standing up for American democracy. His letter invoked the 6 January 2021 US Capitol attack carried out by Trump supporters, saying his White House predecessor has proven that he is unfit to ever hold the office of president. We can never allow him anywhere near that office again. And we never will. We have 42 days to the Democratic convention and 119 days to the general election it is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Gay marriage - franckreporter/E+ The Church of England has taken its first steps towards allowing gay members of the clergy to marry. The General Synod, the Churchs legislative body, voted to pass proposals that pave the way towards a report on the question of same-sex civil marriage ceremonies between members of the clergy or one member of the clergy and a lay person. Church leaders will now reconvene in February 2025 to discuss the prospect, as well as steps to permit blessings for same-sex couples in so-called standalone services, which closely resemble marriage ceremonies. These would build on proposals agreed in November 2023, when the Synod voted in favour of permitting blessings for same-sex couples during regular church services on a trial basis. The proposals passed comfortably by 22 votes to 12 in the House of Bishops and by 99 votes to 88 among the clergy respectively. Among the laity, the vote was much closer, passing by just four votes, with 95 in favour and 91 against. The proposals were met with widespread dismay among conservative-leaning groups within the Church. Rev Canon John Dunnett, the national director of the Church of England Evangelical Council (CEEC), said: I was born in the Church of England. But if the prayers of love and faith bus continues in the same direction, I sometimes wonder whether I will die as a member of the Church of England or not. The Rev Will Pearson-Gee, a Buckinghamshire rector, said: I think it could be a watershed moment. Theyve woken up a sleeping giant. Up until now weve just been disinterested, but people have been radicalised. The Rev Ian Paul, a member of the General Synod and the Archbishops Council of the Church of England, said: It has now become clear and open that there are bishops who do not believe the doctrine of the Church and are determined that it should change. They will drive this through no matter what the consequences. They seem to be out of touch with what many in the Church believe, and that this change is not something on which many of us can simply agree to disagree. It comes after more than 25 church leaders last month wrote to the archbishops of York and Canterbury warning that such a change could amount to unlawfulness and threatened to create a parallel province, a separate autonomous grouping within the Church. A conservative-leaning group called The Alliance, which describes itself as an informal partnership of leaders from networks in the Church, claims to be supported by 2,000 clergy members. Threatens existence One of the signatories to the letter, Tom Middleton, director of Forward in Faith, which represents around 1,000 Anglican clergy, described the split as potentially the biggest since the Church of England was founded in the aftermath of the Reformation. It threatens the Church of Englands very existence, he said. Ahead of Mondays vote, the Most Rev Justin Welby pleaded for unity between pro-same sex blessing and anti-same sex blessing factions. The reality of the church as we live it is always messy, he told Church leaders gathered in York. That the Church flourishes as one is indispensable to the Gospel in this land. That the Church flourishes as one is essential to the Anglican community, which like all global churches, is deeply divided and seeking the support of each other. The archbishops comments allegedly came after closed-door discussions with rebels who have threatened to break away from the Church over its stance. In addition to same-sex blessings, the motion also put forward steps for establishing pastoral care for those unable to accept the ministry of bishops who provide so-called prayers of love and faith for same-sex couples. Addressing the compromise involved in the vote, the Archbishop of York said: Whats before us isnt what everyone wants, its not really what anyone wants, but it is an Anglican way forward. Speaking after the debate, the Archbishop of Canterbury said: The only way forward is a watertight and enduring protection of conscience. The protection must have teeth to protect against harassment and bullying, he added. President Nayib Bukele is threatening to do to shopkeepers what he did to El Salvador's gangs - Alex Pena/Getty Images El Salvadors hardline president has threatened to treat shopkeepers accused of price gouging like the gangsters he rounded up in sweeping reforms at the start of his controversial presidency. President Nayib Bukele, the millennial leader who once styled himself the worlds coolest dictator, was responding to recent steep rises for food and other basics in the troubled Central American nation. The president warned shopkeepers and suppliers that he was not playing around, stressing: I expect the prices to come down by tomorrow or there are going to be problems. I am going to issue a call, like we did to the gangs at the start of 2019 to the importers, distributors and food wholesalers: stop abusing the people of El Salvador, or dont complain about what happens afterward. Mr Bukele is hugely popular, with an approval rating of around 85 per cent, thanks to his draconian approach to the mara gangs, which has ended their reign of terror in El Salvador. He has locked up nearly 80,000 young men, often without evidence that they are gang members, in harsh conditions, with dozens to a cell and paraded before the cameras in their underwear. Around 80,000 alleged gang member have been locked up in El Salvador - Secretaria de Prensa de la Presidencia Yet the economy has long been Mr Bukeles Achilles heel. The poverty rate, now 30 per cent of the population, and the national debt, now $30 billion or roughly 80 per cent of GDP, have surged since he took office in 2019. Basic foodstuffs such as bread, eggs, meat, beans and fruit jumped 30% in Mr Bukeles first four years in office. But government inspectors say some prices have tripled in recent months. Meanwhile, his flagship economic policy, adopting Bitcoin as the national currency, has baffled ordinary citizens, failed to generate jobs or growth, and antagonised the International Monetary Fund, whose support he badly needs. Mr Bukeles New Ideas party, which claims to be pragmatic and centrist but is increasingly associated with the hard Right, dominates both houses of congress and has given the president wide-ranging emergency powers to tackle the gang crisis. But those powers would not authorise him to jail price speculators. Meanwhile, establishing price controls would be widely seen as both attacking the free market and repeating the mistakes that have ravaged other Latin American economies from Argentina to Cuba. Yet Mr Bukele has shown himself willing to ride roughshod over both basic freedoms and the constitution including running for re-election despite a constitutional ban. Thornberry giving a speech after being declared winner in Islington South and Finsbury on Friday. She had been widely expected to get another post. Photograph: Jon Rowley/EPA The former shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry has said she is very sorry and surprised not to be appointed to the role in the new Labour cabinet, after Keir Starmer appointed the human rights barrister Richard Hermer instead. Thornberry, who was a longstanding member of the shadow cabinet under Starmer and Jeremy Corbyn, had been widely expected to get another post but has not so far been offered one. Thornberry said she was leaving cabinet after eight-and-a-half unbroken years a longer record of service than anyone else. She said she had always worked my hardest to keep the Labour party united. Related: Familiar faces but not all from politics: meet the surprise Labour ministers She said she wished the new cabinet well and said Hermer was a much more accomplished lawyer than I could ever hope to be. She added: Nothing in the personal disappointment I feel can detract from the amazing and historic victory and said she would give her unstinting loyalty to Starmer. Her statement came amid a range of new appointments by the prime minister, including that of transport minister for Peter Hendy, the chair of Network Rail and a former head of Transport for London (TfL), who was previously a crossbench peer. Labour has plans to renationalise the rail network as well as introduce bus franchising, giving new powers to local areas over bus routes, which is the system Transport for London currently operates. Anneliese Dodds, the former party chair, was confirmed as development minister and will lead on the women and equalities portfolio, attending cabinet. However, this meant the party would not have a dedicated secretary of state for women and equalities, which had been promised. Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, took on the nominal position of women and equalities minister because constitutionally that role must be held by a full-time cabinet minister. In addition, Spencer Livermore, a key Labour strategist during Tony Blairs government, was appointed as financial secretary to the Treasury. The new ministerial appointments also signalled a shake-up of those who occupied some of the roles in opposition. Stephen Kinnock, the former shadow immigration minister, became a minister in the Department of Health and Social Care. Angela Eagle, a minister under Tony Blair, joined the Home Office as a minister. Nick Thomas-Symonds, who was Starmers original choice for shadow home secretary, became paymaster general, which was the shadow role held by Jonathan Ashworth until he lost his seat at the election. Thomas-Symonds was also given the portfolio of relations with EU states. Diana Johnson, the former chair of the home affairs select committee, became a Home Office minister. Heidi Alexander, a Labour MP who returned to parliament at the election having left to become a deputy mayor of London under Sadiq Khan, was appointed as a justice minister. Catherine McKinnell, another select committee chair, was made an education minister, as was Chris Bryant, with a joint portfolio in science and culture. Alison McGovern, who stepped up to cover for the now work and pensions secretary, Liz Kendall, while she took leave for an operation, became a minister in that department, along with Stephen Timms. Sir Keir Starmer wants to introduce harsher sanctions on people smugglers - SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP Suspected people smugglers will face travel bans under new counter terrorism-style laws to be set out in Sir Keir Starmers first Kings Speech next week. The new legislation will give the police, Border Force and intelligence officers working under the new Border Security Command powers to treat people smugglers like terrorists. The Border Security Bill, to be set out in the Kings Speech, will allow officers and investigators to use serious crime prevention orders against suspected people smugglers. They enable law enforcement to place tough conditions on travel in the UK or abroad as well as on their access to the internet and banking. Any breach of the order carries a maximum penalty of up to five years in jail. They can be applied both before a suspected people smuggler is convicted or if they are found guilty. They have previously been restricted to terrorists but will be extended to immigration crime in the legislation. Border Force officials will also get expanded powers under the 2000 Terrorism Act for enhanced stop and search powers for anyone suspected of being a people smuggler. Police are required in traditional stop and searches to have genuine and objectively reasonable suspicion that they will find a banned weapon or item like drugs for use in a crime. The new powers will enable officers to carry out personal searches, examine and seize mobile phones and copy any data on the devices of any suspects at ports and border control. Yvette Cooper is Labour's new Home Secretary - JEFF MOORE/AFP Like terrorism police, officers could get warrants to search suspected people smugglers premises and seize items before an offence was committed and apply to courts for early access to financial information on suspects. By replicating this power for organised immigration crime, we can ensure that investigators can raid and seize relevant information and property from addresses linked to people smuggling before an offence has taken place, said a policy document. Hundreds of police officers will be deployed across Europe to stop people smugglers as part of the new UK Border Security Command. On Sunday, Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, announced the first steps in setting up the command by kickstarting the search from Monday for a former police, military or intelligence chief to head it. Neil Basu, a former head of UK counter-terrorism policing, is expected to apply for the job and is likely to be a frontrunner. Mr Basu was overlooked by the previous Government to head the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the Metropolitan Police. Another contender could be former soldier David Neal, ex-chief inspector of borders and immigration. It will also see up to 1,000 extra officers recruited by the NCA, Border Force and MI5 specifically to target smuggling gangs. A significant number will be based across Europe working with Europol and European police forces. The command is modelled on the National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) set up by the last Labour Government to overhaul and coordinate the approach to national security. Neil Basu, a former head of UK counter-terrorism policing, is tipped to head the new UK Border Security Command - DAN KITWOOD/GETTY It will be funded by the money saved by scrapping Rishi Sunaks Rwanda scheme, which is expected to generate some 75 million in the first year. Ms Cooper also announced on Monday that she had ordered an audit of the Rwanda scheme to establish how much it cost and the Governments liabilities. Britain can end the Rwanda scheme by terminating the agreement through a break clause that allowed both governments to leave it. Under the clause, the UK will not have to make any further payments from the date the break clause is activated. The UK has already paid 270m, with the latest 50m instalment handed over in April this year. By ending the scheme, Britain will save two further 50m payments in 2025 and 2026. The agreement stipulated that Britain would still be expected to pay for any migrants who had already been relocated. None have been deported so far although two failed asylum seekers have voluntarily gone to Rwanda under a separate agreement where they were offered a 3,000 incentive to go. The agreement specifically rules out any refunds to Britain of any of the 270m paid or any additional money already advanced to Rwanda. Health Secretary Wes Streeting and Chief Executive of NHS England, Amanda Pritchard, visited the Abbey Medical Centre in London on Monday - Yui Mok Wes Streeting has pledged to divert billions of pounds from hospitals to GP surgeries as he said millions of patients will be able to see the same family doctor for every appointment. In his first major policy announcement, the Health Secretary vowed to reverse a decline in the proportion of the 165 billion NHS England budget that is spent on GP surgeries. More than five million patients a month in England are waiting longer than a fortnight for a GP appointment. An hour after being appointed on Friday, Mr Streeting said the NHS was broken and that this was now the Department of Healths official policy. Patients are finding it harder than ever to see a GP, Mr Streeting said. Patients cant get through the front door of the NHS, so they arent getting the timely care they need. Thats no surprise, when GPs and primary care has been receiving a smaller proportion of NHS resources. Im committed to reversing that. GP Ellie Cannon takes a selfie with Health Secretary Wes Streeting, NHS England Chief Amanda Pritchard, and medical staff - Reuters The Health Secretary visited Abbey Medical Centre, a GP surgery in St Johns Wood, London, on Monday in his first official visit and said the change would ease the pressure on hospitals. My first visit as Health Secretary was to a GP practice because when we said we want to shift the focus of the NHS out of hospitals and into the community, we meant it, Mr Streeting said. Im determined to make the NHS more of a neighbourhood health service, with more care available closer to peoples homes. Because if patients cant get a GP appointment, then they end up in A&E, which is worse for them, and more expensive for the taxpayer. He added: We are committed to bringing back the family doctor, so patients can see the same doctor each appointment, fixing the front door to the NHS. Amanda Pritchard, the chief executive of NHS England, visited the GP practice with Mr Streeting and said GPs were under huge pressure. GP teams are the bedrock of the NHS but right across the country, they are under huge pressure and working incredibly hard to deliver more appointments, she said. We know there is much more work to do to support them and to transform primary care services. Amanda Pritchard, pictured on Monday with Wes Streeting, says GPs are under too much pressure - Yui Mok The Health Secretary will on Tuesday turn his focus to ending strike action by junior doctors, which has disrupted the NHS since 2022. More than 60,000 appointments were postponed because of the most recent strike, from June 27 until July 1. The British Medical Associations (BMA) junior doctors committee has demanded a 35 per cent pay rise. Mr Streeting has previously described their demands as unaffordable. James Timpson is the new prisons minister for Labour - Lauren Hurley It has long been unfashionable to say this too loudly in Westminster, but prisons are vital to public safety and cutting crime. We need more of them. Unsurprisingly, Labours newly appointed Prisons Minister James Timpson doesnt agree. A key-cutting CEO turned prison reformer, he has a history of employing former inmates. He was until recently the chair of a charity whose top priority is to reduce the use of prison. Little wonder then that his ennoblement and appointment by the Prime Minister received the sort of rapturous applause from SW1 that is normally the preserve of Swifties cheering the arrival of Taylor on stage. No amount of expert adulation changes the simple fact that the rehabilitation narrative promoted by figures like Timpson is mostly a myth. In an interview with Channel 4 earlier this year, Timpson claimed that Britain is addicted to punishment and that we imprison too many people for too long. Apparently, only a third [of prisoners] should definitely be there. This will, of course, be news to the public who see constant lawlessness on their own streets and to crime-fighting police officers and victims of crime who routinely see perpetrators walk free. Only 1-in-10 prison sentences are for so-called first-time offenders, sentences hardly ever passed down for small misunderstandings or harmless misbehaviour. More than half of the prison population are there for violent or sexual offences to say nothing of the burglars, robbers, knife carriers, or drug traffickers that some are all too quick to erroneously classify as non-violent. We also know that nearly two-thirds (63 per cent) of prison sentences were handed out to criminals with seven or more previous convictions or cautions with more than half (53 per cent) going to criminals with 11 or more previous convictions or cautions. These are not individuals who made an honest mistake that we all might be guilty of. They are career criminals, enabled to commit crime repeatedly and persistently by a sentencing regime built on the idea of endless second chances. Courts only intermittently deliver our best attempt at incapacitation for those who commit crimes: a prison sentence. Last year, those caught committing a crime with 15 or more previous convictions or cautions only had a 1-in-3 chance of going to prison. Thats right while the courts dished out 26,054 prison sentences to criminals with 15 or more previous convictions or cautions, there were nearly 49,000 occasions where members of this prolific cohort escaped with a caution or non-custodial sentence. Considering that a small proportion of repeat offenders massively overcontribute to high crime statistics, there is no good reason to let so many off with a slap on the wrist. Its vanishingly rare for a prison sentence to be dished out that wasnt deserved. By contrast, its commonplace to see unrepentant criminals walk out of court with a smug grin as they fist bump the air to celebrate their freedom. Be under no illusion that the majority immediately resume their criminal conduct even if only a fraction are caught and show up in the proven re-offending statistics. If we want to cut crime, we need our politicians to display some common sense. Prison works and is an essential public service in need of serious leadership, adequate resources and expansion. Mismanagement and mediocrity must be banished. Timpson favours common sense built on the evidence of the Netherlands, where they have shut half their prisons. The Dutch model is hardly sensible. Their average sentence for rape, in the three years prior to Covid, was just 1 year and 5 months. The shortage of prison places is not of the new governments making. But if they think the answer is to empty the prisons rather than expand them, then they will turn a budding crisis into a chain of avoidable tragedies. It will be law-abiding adults and children up and down the country who will initially pay the heaviest price for such folly but it will be paid back at the ballot box in spades. Joe Biden declared: 'I am not going anywhere' - Nathan Howard/Reuters Joe Biden said Democrats calling on him to stand down was driving me nuts as he dared his critics to go ahead and challenge me for the partys 2024 presidential nomination. The 81-year-old US president declared that I am not going anywhere after his disastrous debate with Donald Trump, 78, triggered calls among Democrats for him to stand aside. Senior party figures including Nancy Pelosi, the former House speaker, have since raised questions about Mr Bidens mental fitness. Mr Biden said it was time to end speculation over the fate of his re-election bid in a letter to Democrats on Capitol Hill on Monday. He wrote: I have heard the concerns that people have their good faith fears and worries about what is at stake in this election. I am not blind to them. But he stressed: Its time for it to end, adding: I wouldnt be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024. I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race. Shortly afterwards, he said he had called in live to MSNBC to say he was tired of the elites in the party who think they know so much more about this years White House race. He urged sceptical Democrats to run against me when the Democratic National Convention meets in August to formally crown the partys presidential candidate. While Mr Biden has secured enough delegates to win the Democratic presidential nomination, some donors and lawmakers have called for him to step aside and let Kamala Harris, the vice-president, or another candidate lead the ticket. If any of these guys dont think I should run run against me. Go ahead. Announce for president. Challenge me at the convention, he told MSNBCs Morning Joe, his favourite morning US cable news programme. He added: I dont care what those big names think. They were wrong in 2020, they were wrong in 2022 about the red wave, theyre wrong in 2024. The president conceded that he had a terrible night during his debate against Trump in Atlanta last month, but added: I have not had many of those nights. In response to questions about his mental acuity, he said: I have a neurological test every single day try sitting behind this desk and making these decisions. It drives me nuts people talking about this. Im not going to explain any more about what I should or shouldnt do. I am running. Listeners reported hearing the sound of paper shuffling as the president spoke. At one point, he was asked specifically whether he had been tested for any age-related illnesses, like pre-Parkinsons or anything like that. Mr Biden skirted the question, saying he thought he had Covid on the night of the debate but was then up until 2am after it meeting crowds. It came as Democratic members of Congress reportedly prepared to convene on Capitol Hill on Monday to press their partys leaders to convince Mr Biden to step aside for a new candidate. A growing number have voiced concern over their party leaders poor public approval ratings, as well as fears about questions over his fitness to serve another four years. They fear it could hurt their prospects for retaining the Senate, which they control by a 51-49 majority, and retaking the House, where Republicans have a 219-213 majority. In his letter on Monday, Mr Biden said he has had extensive conversations with the leadership of the Democratic party and most importantly, Democratic voters over the past 10 days. He said those voters had spoken clearly and decisively during the partys nominating contest, during which he said he had received over 14 million votes. Speaking to MSNBC, Mr Biden added that he retained the support of the average voter and particularly noted his support among black voters. A Reuters/Ipsos poll last week found that one in three registered Democratic voters believes Mr Biden should quit the race. However, the poll found that none of his potential successors fared better in a match-up against Trump. The poll found Mr Biden and Trump tied at 40 per cent each. Queen Elizabeth II was presented with two mallards on a silver tray when she visited Jersey in 2001, a tradition that dates back to the Middle Ages - FIONA HANSON/PA WIRE The King and Queen will be presented with locally laid duck eggs in place of the traditional dead ducks as they embark on a tour of the Channel Islands next week. The couple will undertake a two-day tour of Jersey and Guernsey to highlight a relationship between the Channel Islands and the Crown that stretches back centuries. The visit will take in Jersey potatoes, Jersey milk, traditional Guernsey jumpers, known as Guernseys, and some rare Golden Guernsey goats. King Charles III and Queen Camilla will travel to Jersey on July 15 and then Guernsey the following day - CHRIS JACKSON/AP However, in one significant break with tradition, the presentation of two dead ducks on arrival has been scrapped. Instead, the King will be gifted locally laid duck eggs as a symbol of sustenance. It will form part of the homage paid on the royals arrival at the Royal Square in St Helier on Monday by five senior seigneurs, or lords of the manor. When Elizabeth II visited Jersey in 2001, she was presented with two mallards on a silver tray as part of an ancient tradition dating back to the Middle Ages when six seigneurs would pay homage to the sovereign as the Duke of Normandy. The decision to replace the dead ducks with duck eggs was taken by Jersey officials, in consultation with Buckingham Palace, in recognition of changing times, The Telegraph understands. St Helier's Royal Square features a statue of George II in Roman dress - PATRICK DONOVAN/MOMENT RF Just as the late Queen did not take the dead ducks home, the King will not be packing the duck eggs in his suitcase. Instead, he will touch the bowl that the eggs are in before they are accepted on his behalf by the Receiver General, the Kings representative on the islands. The King and Queen will also be introduced to the best of Jersey at a special Jersey Expo event, which will include Jersey cows and Jersey Royal potato farmers. They will participate in a miniature version of the Genuine Jersey Royal Potato Growing competition, in which local primary school children have taken part for 17 years, vying for prizes in two categories: greatest yield and greatest crop weight. The following day, on Guernsey, the King and Queen will be treated to a showcase of the islands culture, featuring traditional dancers and produce including ice cream made with milk from native cows, as well as seafood, cider and ales, and the Guernsey jumpers. They will also visit Les Cotils, a Victorian country house, where the King will see some rare Golden Guernsey goats. The breed, distinguished by their golden skin and hair, is considered at risk on the rare breeds watchlist. Rare breed saved from oblivion In 1924, a local woman called Miriam Milbourne rescued the Golden Guernsey goats from oblivion after she discovered some in the scrub herds of the island. During the Second World War, when Guernsey was occupied, most of the goats were killed. Ms Milbourne risked her life to save the herd by hiding them for several years at her home. The King is patron of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust, an organisation devoted to achieving a secure future for Britains native livestock breeds. The monarchs title of Duke of Normandy dates from when William the Conquerors son, Henry I, seized the Duchy of Normandy, including the islands, in 1106. At official functions, islanders raise the loyal toast to the Duke of Normandy, our King. The King will deliver a speech during his visit with the Queen later this week - WPA Pool/Getty Images Europe The King will demonstrate his fluent Welsh as he marks the anniversary of the Senedd 25 years after he officially opened it with his late mother. The King and Queen will visit the Welsh parliament on Thursday, when the monarch will deliver a speech reflecting on the past as well as looking ahead to the challenges of the future, such as climate change. The couple last visited the Senedd in September 2022, following the death of Elizabeth II. Then, in a speech also delivered partly in Welsh, the King expressed his immense gratitude for his time serving as Prince of Wales, promising that his eldest son, William, who had inherited the title, also held a deep love for the country. Since ascending the throne, the King has maintained his passion for Wales and has pledged to continue his long association with the country. The King and Queen receive condolences at the Welsh Senedd in 2022 following the death of Elizabeth II - POOL/via Reuters He famously learnt Welsh while studying at Aberystwyth University and remains fluent, surprising aides recently by seamlessly slipping into the language to chat to a Welsh student on an engagement. On Thursday, the King and Queen will be welcomed to Cardiff by the Royal Welsh, who will form a Guard of Honour, marking the first time the King will have seen them since he was appointed their Colonel-in-Chief on St Davids Day. They will be greeted by primary school children representing schools from across Wales, as well as various dignitaries including Vaughan Gething, the First Minister of Wales. Mared Pugh-Evans, who has been appointed the Kings harpist, will play for the first performance in her new position. After various speeches, poems and a performance by a childrens choir, the King and Queen will be introduced to members of Senedd staff who have worked at the parliament for 25 years, or who are 25 years old. Before leaving, they will be introduced to members of the community who have contributed to key moments in the Senedds history, including the petitioner who successfully started a campaign for carrier bag charges. The late Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh and Prince Charles attended the opening ceremony of the Welsh Assembly on May 27 1999 at Crickhowell House in Cardiff Bay. Charles spoke in Welsh to the 60 new Assembly members and the Queen signed a special edition of the Government in Wales Act a symbol of the transfer of powers from Westminster to Wales. Western and UN leaders have condemned a daylight Russian missile barrage that hit Ukraines largest childrens hospital, leaving an unknown number trapped under the rubble, as strikes across the country killed 36 people in one of the deadliest attacks this year. Volodymyr Zelenskiy vowed retaliation as he said Kyivs Okhmatdyt hospital, the main treatment centre in the country for children with cancer, had taken a direct missile hit. The strike was part of one of the heaviest attacks on the capital since Russias February 2022 invasion. Russia cannot help but know where its missiles are flying, and must fully answer for all its crimes: against people, against children, against humanity in general, Zelenskiy posted on the Telegram messaging app. A spokesperson for Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary general, said he strongly condemned the particularly shocking strikes against the childrens hospital and another medical facility, and the security council is to meet on Tuesday at the request of Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the US. Related: No words for this: horror over Russian bombing of Kyiv childrens hospital Barbara Woodward, the UK ambassador to the UN, said on X: We will call out Russias cowardly and depraved attack on the hospital. The Italian foreign minister, Antonio Tajani, called the missile strike war crimes. The British prime minister, Keir Starmer, condemned attacking innocent children as the most depraved of actions. The strikes across Ukraine on Monday highlighted the countrys air defence vulnerabilities a day before Nato leaders are set to meet in Washington for their annual summit, where they are expected to announce new measures to aid Ukraine. Twenty-two people were killed in the capital, including two staff members at the hospital, where three children were hurt. The strike largely destroyed the hospitals toxicology ward, where children with severe kidney issues were being treated. Hundreds of rescue workers and volunteers joined the effort to clear the debris and search for survivors. Officials and emergency staff said it was not immediately clear how many doctors and patients dead or alive remained trapped under the rubble. We are extracting whoever we can. We dont know the number of people trapped there, said the health minister, Viktor Liashko, outside the hospital. Images from inside the hospital, which treats 20,000 children annually, showed bloodied children, collapsed ceilings and destroyed operating rooms. Maria Soloshenko, 21, a nurse in the toxicology ward, said hospital staff had been in the process of moving the children to a bomb shelter when the explosion occurred. There was immediate panic when the strike hit, she said, her gloves covered in blood. Soloshenko said children as young as 18 months had to be urgently taken off dialysis and quickly evacuated through the buildings windows. The Guardian witnessed many young cancer patients in distress during the evacuation, some barely clothed and with medical tubes still attached to them. Tanya Lapshina, a nurse in the trauma department, where the facade was ripped off by the blast, said they managed to move all the children to a bomb shelter. She said: It was complete chaos. The children were in panic, crying in the bunker. There are no words for this. It is awful. I am still shaking. Ukraines presidential office published an image showing one child with a head injury. Kyivs mayor, Vitali Klitschko, described the attack on the capital as one of the heaviest since Russias invasion began more than two years ago. Thanks to western-supplied defences, the city had experienced a relatively peaceful period before Monday. Russia, which has targeted civilian infrastructure throughout the war, denied responsibility for deaths on Monday. In a statement, the defence ministry attributed the incident, without directly referencing the hospital blast, to Ukrainian anti-aircraft missiles, despite visual evidence that appeared to point to a Russian strike. Andriy Yermak, the head of the Ukrainian presidents office, shared an image on X that appeared to show a Russian missile over Kyiv moments before it struck a hospital, identifying it as a Kh-101 cruise missile. Ukraines Security Service said it found wreckage from the cruise missile, which flies low to avoid detection by radar, at the site. The Ukrainian prosecutor general, Andriy Kostin, said he had discussed the attack with the international criminal court (ICC) prosecutor, Karim Khan. We are sending all information and evidence about attacks on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities to the ICC prosecutors office, he said on national television. The court last month issued arrest warrants for Russias former defence minister and its military chief of staff over attacks on Ukraines electricity network. The search efforts at the hospital were hindered by air-raid alarms that forced emergency staff to take shelter. Shortly after the strike on the childrens hospital, missile debris fell on a separate medical centre in the Dniprovsky district of the city, the mayor said, with seven people thought to be killed. Strikes were also reported in other parts of the country. In Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskiys home town, 11 people were killed and 31 were injured, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the mayor. Another four people died in Pokrovsk in eastern Ukraine when missiles hit an industrial facility, said the Donetsk regional governor. Related: Nato will announce historic Ukraine aid package but hospital attack shows its not enough In total at least 36 people across the country were killed, Ukrainian officials said. Zelenskiy said 40 missiles were used in the attack. The International Rescue Committee said the attack was part of a broader pattern of Russian strikes on medical facilities since the invasion. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, the WHO [World Health Organization] has recorded nearly 1,700 attacks on healthcare facilities in Ukraine, the organisation said in a statement. During a press conference in Warsaw after a meeting with the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, Zelenskiy urged Kyivs allies to make a decisive response to the attack. I would also like to hear from our partners [about] a greater resilience and a strong response to the blow that Russia has once again dealt to our people, to our land, to our children, he said, adding that he was waiting for concrete steps from the west to strengthen Ukraines air defences and protect its energy sector. The master has lessons to teach but what did not succeed in the 90s and noughties, certainly won't work today - Stefan Rousseau/PA Britains new Prime Minister is enjoying quite the honeymoon. Across the centrist commentariat, there is elation that the adults are back in the room. An upswell of liberal hope that Labour heralds a return to competent, compassionate politics is palpable. In certain circles, awe at the return of experienced Blairites to government has been barely disguised. To his most ardent fans, Keir Starmer radiates an almost spiritual benevolence. While Tony Blair was filled with a kind of frenetic evangelism, Starmer has struck a more Anglican tone authoritative, non-dogmatic, post-ideological. Perhaps it may yet cut through with a nation weary of perma-crises and endless culture wars. And yet one cannot help but wonder how long the euphoria can last. After all, Western politics is hardly swinging back to a golden age of technocratic managerialism. From France to America, the centre is imploding. Starmer fans may think that the failed Brexit revolution has inoculated Britain from the new populist virus. More accurately, given the Tory implosion, many of the voters who ditched Labour in 2019 had little choice but to give the centre-Left technocrats another go at fixing the country. British technocracy is on its final lifeline, in other words. Those of us who have not drunk the Starmer kool-aid, but are soberly aware that this country stands on the edge of a precipice, must hope that he does in some way succeed. This new Government deserves credit for at least making some of the right noises. With border control the glaring exception, Starmers Labour has generally proved more willing than the Tories to point out problems facing Britain. It has been bolder in its insistence that the NHS is broken and needs to be reinvented. It has also been more assertive about the need for planning reform, even at the risk of upsetting Nimbies. Still, Starmers vow to rebuild Britain appears to be built on shaky foundations. Perhaps most worrying is that Labour lacks a compelling plan for growth. Though Starmer likes to present himself as a consummate pragmatist, his party has developed a romantic weakness for the supposed lessons of the Apollo space programme for the economy today. Obsessed with the age of astronauts and the heroic exploits of JFK administration, and suffering from an intellectual crush on the economist Mariana Mazzucato who argues that the muscular state that propelled men into space must be revived to jumpstart growth today Starmers plan to revive Britain hinges precariously on mission-driven interventionist projects. They range from a National Wealth Fund to the Great British Energy project. It should go without saying that JFKs mission to put a man on the moon which operated on the mantra waste anything but time is a ridiculous model for reviving broke Britain. But it is also a problem that Labour appears decidedly less enthusiastic about the far less glamorous supply-side revolution that the party would be well-placed to pursue. It is ominous that Labour, despite its fitful rhetoric, seems unwilling fundamentally to change Britains nationalised, highly-centralised planning system. The proposals Rachel Reeves announced are, if anything, even more dedicated to top-down control and therefore vulnerable to any change in the political weather in Westminster. Labours masterplan to fix the NHS seems equally flimsy. While some may be reassured by talk of bringing back arch-Blairite Alan Milburn to help reform the health service, fixing it doesnt so much require an experienced hand as it does an unapologetic revolutionary. Milburns task under New Labour to bring waiting lists down through decentralising reforms and more private sector involvement was tough but straightforward, boiling down to a transfer of power from the centre to the frontline of care. Some in the health service, looking for pragmatic solutions to dysfunctional management and patchy state funding, were supportive of his plans (in the end, Milburn was arguably unstuck not by the NHS but the Treasury). In contrast, Labours aim today to reinvent the NHS from a service that patches up patients at deaths door to one that seeks to prevent ill health in the first place is infinitely more difficult. The partys reluctance to level with NHS workers, and the country, on the basic reality that, in a stagnant economy, there is no magical source of extra funding for prevention is a ticking time bomb. Sooner or later, we will have to confront the need to redirect cash from frontline services. Some Blairites also like to wax lyrical about the salvational potential of technologies like genomics to predict and prevent ill health. But there are ultimately no technological silver bullets that can make up for our chronic shortage of healthcare workers or fix the smoking ruins of social care. But perhaps the issue that Starmer is most dangerously weak on is migration. One wonders whether he has made the basic error of mistaking the outgoing Tories for rule-flouting populists that he must define himself against. The reality is that they were only reluctantly willing to flirt with drastic proposals that test international law because all conventional alternatives had failed. And although liberals appalled by the Rwanda policy may celebrate its demise, Britain is now without any deterrence policy whatsoever. The new Home Secretarys Border Security Command repeats the mistake of the war on drugs, trying to clamp down on criminal networks while failing to address the underlying factors fuelling the industry. Experts have already voiced their scepticism that Labour will improve on efforts in the area of enforcement. Starmer may benefit from a fall in the number of legal migrants, driven by a tightening of visa policies announced by the last government. But the numbers will soon plateau. At which point the Prime Minister will have to consider more radical plans like scrapping the worker shortage list, or risk the ire of voters. With the Tories in disarray, Starmer may be sitting pretty for now, but time is shorter for him to deliver than many think. One can almost hear the far-Left earthquake in France rattling the newly-installed furniture in Downing Street. Or indeed the Labour Left and their unions backers murmuring with anticipation that, with centrism imploding internationally, they may be able to install their socialist secret weapon Angela Rayner into No 10 sooner rather than later. Chinese migrant Liu Tiantian, second from left, sits on a bus headed to Costa Rica after having made the perilous trip through the Darien Gap, a roadless jungle between Colombia and Panama. Chinese migrants are flooding into South and Central America to embark on overland journeys to the U.S. border. Matias Delacroix/Associated Press Chinese migrants in a restaurant in Quito, Ecuador, plan their journey through the Darien Gap, the most dangerous part of their overland trek to the U.S.-Mexico border. Alfredo Corchado/Contributor Zhen Jiang and his family receive direction from a Border Patrol agent after crossing the border through rocky, mountainous terrain near Jacumba Hot Springs, California. Some 50,000 Chinese migrants have crossed the U.S. border from Mexico without authorization since 2023. Robert Gauthier/TNS At this bus station in Quito, Ecuador, Chinese migrants buy tickets to Tulcan, on the border with Colombia. From there, they head for the Darien Gap, a perilous stretch of mountain and rainforest that takes them to Panama. Alfredo Corchado/Contributor Every day, migrants from various countries go to this state-run clinic in Quito, Ecuador, to receive yellow fever vaccines, essential for their dangerous journey north. Alfredo Corchado/Contributor QUITO, Ecuador For years, the small, violence-plagued nation of Ecuador has served as a corridor for migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa looking to start their overland trek to the U.S. border. Growing numbers of those migrants are from China. Now, amid a political shift here and a full-court press by the Biden administration to control the flow of migrants, Ecuador is trying to bar its door to Chinese nationals looking to use the country as springboard for journeys to Texas, California and other points north. On July 1, the government began to require that visitors from China obtain visas to enter Ecuador, signaling a shift in the countrys alignment away from China under President Daniel Noboa, a U.S.-educated son of one of Ecuador's richest men. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The policy turnaround underscores how global migration is challenging governments worldwide, testing the tolerance of their citizens and drawing intense pressure from Washington. About this story This article is published in partnership with the Puente News Collaborative, a bilingual nonprofit newsroom, convener and funder whose mission is to provide high-quality news and information about the U.S.-Mexico border. Alfredo Corchado is executive editor and correspondent for the collaborative. Monica Almeida is a freelance journalist in Quito, Ecuador. Paul Mena Mena is a reporter for El Universo, Ecuadors largest newspaper. Angela Kocherga, news director of KTEP public radio in El Paso, contributed to this report, as did journalist Wendy Fry in San Diego. The story was edited by Dudley Althaus. Migrants from outside the continent "are using South America as a bridge to get to Central America and eventually to the United States, forcing countries to place new restrictions, said Ariel G. Ruiz Soto, senior policy analyst at the Migration Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. In the end, a lot of the pressure to stop this flow comes from the United States and even the region, including Guatemala and Panama. President Joe Biden's homeland security secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas, said the U.S. welcomed Ecuadors move to require visas for passport holders from the PRC (People's Republic of China), given smugglers' efforts to exploit that route. 'Resilient and creative' The Biden administration is instituting measures of its own to stem the tide. At the end of June, the Homeland Security Department deported 110 Chinese migrants in the largest removal flight in five years. Some 50,000 Chinese nationals have crossed the U.S. border illegally from Mexico since 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In a related move, the U.S. signed an agreement with Panama on July 1 calling for that country to detain and deport more U.S.-bound migrants. Under the agreement, the Biden administration will give Panama $6 million to pay for deportation flights. The goal is to reduce what the State Department called "unprecedented irregular migration" through the Darien Gap, a region of dense mountains and rainforest between Colombia and Panama. More than 500,000 migrants made the hazardous trip through the Gap in 2023, according to the State Department. Analysts believe the Chinese migration will continue despite such measures, albeit in a more haphazard, less conspicuous way. When the only way to seek refuge in the United States is to set foot on U.S. soil to access our backlogged asylum system, then smuggling networks will always make big profits bringing people to U.S. soil, said Adam Isacson, a security analyst with the Washington Office on Latin America, a think tank. Those networks are resilient and creative. There are 20 countries on the Latin American mainland that with the stroke of a pen at any time could end up becoming a new entry point, Isacson added. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The increase in Chinese nationals crossing the U.S. border comes amid an overall drop in apprehensions of migrants entering illegally. Recent statistics from U.S. Customs and Border Protection show that total "encounters" between migrants and federal agents dropped to 179,000 in April, compared with a historic high of 302,000 in December. Officials have credited stepped-up enforcement by Mexican authorities as well as an executive order Biden signed with an eye toward the November election. The order drastically limits migrants' ability to apply for asylum at times when illegal entries are at high levels. 'There is no work' Chinese migrants pay traffickers to be transported overland to the U.S. border. The amounts vary. A smuggler in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, across the border from El Paso, recently told USA Today that the cost can run more than $75,000. Although Texas has been a major gateway in recent years, tougher enforcement by Mexican authorities in the border states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila and Nuevo Leon has pushed migration streams west. Many migrants now cross into Southern California, particularly the Tijuana-San Diego area. Advertisement Article continues below this ad From October through April of the current federal fiscal year, more than 27,000 Chinese nationals were detained as they entered San Diego County from Mexico. In all 12 months of the previous fiscal year, there were fewer than 1,000 such arrests. Near the town of Jacumba Hot Springs, on San Diegos remote eastern edge, some 20 Chinese migrants recently crouched beneath a blue tarp shielding them from the desert wind. The group, mostly men, used a translation app on their phones to communicate with humanitarian aid workers. Were mostly fleeing the government, one man said. Also, there is no work. 'Universal citizenship' Ecuador, which straddles the equator on South America's Pacific coast, became attractive as a migrant launching point 16 years ago, when a new constitution recognized the rare concept of universal citizenship." That meant welcoming any new arrival, with or without a visa. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Left-leaning political leaders argued that the policy would be reciprocated by the rest of the world. The move backfired. Now, Ecuador is caught in a narcotics-driven gang war, which has forced many of its people to flee north. The new Chinese visa policy in some ways reflects an old one. Ecuador closed its doors to Chinese migrants about a century ago after officials accused them of operating opium dens. The ban was lifted, and Chinese immigrant communities have grown in the past 70 years in Guayaquil, Quevedo and other cities. With the return of democracy in 1980, Ecuador recognized the Peoples Republic of China and has maintained good relations with China since then. During a decade of left-leaning government here, which ended in 2017, China became a major source of financing to build ports, highways and other public works. Almost all production of oil, Ecuadors main export, went to China to pay off the loans. China became a key supplier of vaccines and other aid during the COVID-19 pandemic. Ecuador signed a free trade agreement with China in May 2023. Post-pandemic, Ecuador started to see a change in the flow of Chinese migrants. Because Ecuador lacks direct flights from China, these migrants arrived via Madrid or Amsterdam, having first passed through Thailand or other Asian countries. 'Quite dangerous' They were wealthier and better educated, and like other migrants, they had been prompted to make the journey by messages they saw on social media platforms, especially TikTok, said Joshua Peng, a refugee expert at the Wilson Center, based in Washington, D.C. Peng contends that the U.S. government must have a presence on platforms such as TikTok to facilitate safer travel, at the very least, or discourage people from making misinformed decisions about this pathway that could be quite dangerous. Here in Quito, dozens of migrants mingled recently outside a government-run clinic, waiting to receive a yellow fever vaccine, essential for their long, arduous journey north. Many stared at their cellphones, scrolling. Once vaccinated, many of the migrants from Haiti, Venezuela and Asian countries begin to look for transportation to Colombia. At the bus terminal on Quitos north side, buses traveling to Tulcan, the last Ecuadorian city before the Colombian border, have signs written in Chinese. The five-hour trip costs $10 or less, and migrants usually arrive at Tulcan in the evening. From there, transportation prices soar. As with narcotics, the closer migrants get to the U.S. border, the higher the cost. Taxi drivers at the Quito bus station are talkative and helpful. They offer to connect migrants to Colombian contacts who will take them across the border. Once in Colombia, migrants take a series of buses and small boats north to the Darien Gap, where a days-long trek through roadless jungle has become one of the most dangerous passages in the world. California dreaming From the Quito clinic, a small cluster of six Chinese migrants headed for a plain-looking restaurant, with two TVs blaring, near the legislative palace in the center of Ecuadors capital. Feasting on dumplings, sweet and sour pork and chicken in garlic sauce, the five men and one woman discussed the challenges that lay ahead. Asked why they had left China, Lin Zang, a 31-year-old engineer from Beijing and the only one who spoke even broken English, said firmly, Freedom. She and her husband, Quan Zang, both 33, laughed when asked where they would cross into the U.S. Texas? California? No, no, no. Texas, no," Lin Zang said. The reason: smugglers' fees. "Texas is too high. Expensive. Complicated." Housing developers saved many billions under the Conservatives when rules that would have forced them to build to low-carbon standards were scrapped. Photograph: Gary Calton/The Observer Labour must stand firm against special pleading from housebuilders, who are likely to argue against fitting out new homes to stringent green standards, experts have warned. The chancellor, Rachel Reeves, laid out sweeping changes to the planning system on Monday in her first speech on reviving economic growth while pursuing the climate goal of net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. As well as lifting the ban on onshore wind in England, she reinstated targets on housebuilding, with 1.5m new homes to be built this parliament in England. But Labour will face stiff opposition from housebuilders, if their behaviour in the past decade is any guide, according to experts approached by the Guardian. Housing developers saved many billions of pounds under the Conservatives to whom they were some of the partys biggest donors when rules that would have forced them to build to low-carbon standards were scrapped. The builders said the rules were too onerous and would add to the cost of new homes. Delaying the rules meant they saved about 5,000 per home on average by not having to fit high-grade insulation, heat pumps, solar panels and other green technology. Their savings have come at a high cost to homeowners, however: the occupiers of the 1.5m new homes built since the rules were scrapped in 2015 will have to expensively retrofit their homes, at an average cost of 20,000 each. Ed Matthew, the campaigns director at the E3G thinktank, warned the construction industry was likely to try the same special pleading with Labour: Successive Tory governments caved into the powerful housebuilder lobby, who were major donors to the Conservatives, he said. One of those housebuilders was paying more in bonuses to their executives each year than it would have cost them to make their homes reach the zero carbon standard. Related: Labours housing plans will use land twice size of Milton Keynes, expert says He said Labour must act differently: They will have to resist the siren calls of the housebuilding lobby who may try to use their muscle to put pressure on Labour ministers to water down the standard if they want to build homes fast the same tactic they have used before. But this is just a ruse they have had many years to prepare to implement [low-carbon] standards and zero carbon homes can now be built at volume. It will bring down emissions but it will also be crucial for bringing down energy bills. It is a win-win. Jess Ralston, of the nonprofit Energy and Climate Intelligence Unit, urged Labour to enforce higher standards as quickly as possible. After major housebuilders successfully lobbied against higher standards over the last decade, its about time we got building regulations that ensure new homes are cheaper to run and help our energy security, she said. A government spokesperson said: Our manifesto set out that we want exemplary development to be the norm, not the exception. We will take steps to ensure we are building more high-quality, well-designed and sustainable homes. We fully support the need for low carbon homes and will review proposals and feedback from the future homes standard consultation in due course. Failing to impose these standards has also hurt the UKs ability to meet its carbon budgets, which are now way off track. There are also millions of existing homes that need upgrades, especially to help people struggling in cold, damp, mouldy homes that are endangering their health. Labour will also face opposition from people and groups concerned about the impact of new housing on sensitive environmental sites and natural habitats. Yet building new homes need not be at the expense of nature, the chair of Natural England, Tony Juniper, said last year. He believes areas of the green belt could be built on, provided the government takes care. One key way to do so is through biodiversity net gain, a rule that says developers must take steps to restore and improve conditions for wildlife and species, but allows them to do so at sites other than the ones they build on. In theory, this requirement should boost the UKs biodiversity in sum. Labour will have to prove that this is more than just a gesture, and results in genuine improvements to the plight of the UKs rapidly declining wildlife and habitats. Related: Four ways Labour could deliver on pledge to build 1.5m new homes New homebuilding could also add to the UKs sewage crisis, if done wrong. Massive underinvestment in sewage treatment works across the country must be addressed, campaigners have said. This could prove a significant obstacle to Labours plans. For instance, in the south-east, where population pressure is particularly acute, the previous governments target to build 10,450 new homes in the west Oxfordshire area by 2031 has come up against the reality that sewage treatment works cannot cope with the level of development. Grampian conditions, planning diktats which halt development until sewage infrastructure has been upgraded, have been imposed on housing developments in several areas. Similar submissions for Grampian conditions are being made on several areas over concerns that the wastewater infrastructure cannot cope with the extra demand. These problems can be overcome, if Labour has the will to take on vested interests and nimby tendencies, experts say. Simon McWhirter, the deputy chief executive of the UK Green Building Council, said: [Labour needs] to help make home upgrades easy, ensure new buildings are greener and that our communities and town centres are refreshed and renewed and better prepared for our rapidly changing climate. Buildings can be absolutely pivotal in addressing our climate and cost of living woes. Frances far-right leader Marine Le Pen with Hungarian PM Viktor Orban in 2023. Photograph: Benko Viviven Cher/Press Office of the Prime Minister Frances far-right leader Marine Le Pen has joined forces with the Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban in a new far-right alliance in the European parliament. The group, styled Patriots for Europe, becomes the third-largest force in the European parliament and the largest-ever far-right bloc in the history of the assembly. The announcement came after the surprise result in Frances elections, when Le Pens National Rally came third after tactical voting to block the far right. Jordan Bardella, widely seen as National Rallys prime minister candidate, is now president of the new group in the European parliament. As patriotic forces, we are going to work together in order to retake our institutions and reorient policies to serve our nations and peoples, he said in a statement. The nationalist, Eurosceptic group consists of 84 MEPs from 12 EU countries. Led by Hungarys governing Fidesz party politically homeless since quitting the centre-right European Peoples party (EPP) in 2021 the group was founded only eight days ago by Orban, the ANO party of former Czech prime minister Andrej Babis and Austrias far-right Freedom party leader Herbert Kickl. Italys far-right leader Matteo Salvini announced on Monday that his League MEPs would join the group. After a long period of work, the big group of patriots, which will be decisive to change the future of Europe, comes to life in Brussels today, Salvini said on social media. They follow in the footsteps of the Dutch Freedom party, Spains Vox, Portugals Chega, the Belgian separatist Vlaams Belang and the Danish Peoples party. Our long-term goal is to change European Union policymaking, Kinga Gal, a veteran Fidesz MEP, who will serve as Bardellas deputy, told reporters. The group, she said, would strive to protect Europes Christian roots, ensure the strongest possible protection of Europes external borders and a strong competitive Europe. She said she hoped other like-minded parties would join soon: The door stays open to others who wish to join. The far-right Alternative fur Deutschland, however, has not been invited to join, after being expelled from a previous alliance with Le Pen, when its lead candidate said the SS the Nazis main paramilitary force were not all criminals. Jean-Paul Garraud, a National Rally MEP, told reporters that this statement was totally inadmissible and nothing had changed to justify the AfDs inclusion in the new group. The arrival of Le Pens MEPs catapults the Patriots into third place, ahead of Italian prime minister Giorgia Melonis nationalist European Conservatives and Reformists, pushing the liberal centrists into fifth place and the Greens into sixth. While the group will be far larger than the previous far-right alliance the Identity and Democracy group had 49 MEPs it is likely to struggle to take influential jobs in the parliament, due to an informal cordon sanitaire against the far right. The traditional centre-right and centre-left parties, who once commanded a majority between them, now have only a combined 45% of seats, with the EPP on 188 and the Socialists on 136. The groups could still change before the new European parliament meets for the first time in Strasbourg next week, when it is to vote on whether Ursula von der Leyen gets a second term as European Commission president. Ukraine is the dividing line between the self-styled Patriots for Europe and the more pragmatic nationalist right in the parliaments European Conservatives and Reformists group (ECR). Petr Fiala, the only other EU leader apart from Meloni who is a member of ECR, issued a withering assessment of the new group. Lets call a spade a spade, he said. Patriots for Europe serves the interests of Russia, either consciously or unconsciously, and thus it threatens the security and freedom of Europe. Meloni has proved to be a staunch supporter of Ukraine and of Italys Nato membership, while Orban has infuriated other EU nations with a self-styled peace mission to meet Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin last week, after a visit to Kyiv to see Ukraines Volodymyr Zelenskiy. Anger towards Orban mounted on Monday, as the Hungarian leader arrived in Beijing, where he met Xi Jinping. China is the only world power that has been clearly committed to peace from the beginning, Orban declared in a social media post, adding to the alarm about his foreign trips. In a highly unusual move, EU ambassadors will discuss Orbans so-called peace mission on Wednesday. The tensions are high after only seven days of the presidency, said one EU diplomat, referring to Hungarys current stint in charge of setting the EU agenda. The divisions on Ukraine within the Patriots were suggested by a Dutch MEP, who said: We, as a Dutch delegation, will keep supporting Ukraine as long as there is war. Every other delegation may do so [or] may not do so. Frances National Rally, previously the National Front, had warm ties with the Kremlin before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, but has since said it would maintain military aid for Ukraine. On Monday, Bardella said he took responsibility for the defeat of the RN, behind a united left alliance and President Emmanuel Macrons party. We all make mistakes, I made some, he said. I assume my share of the responsibility both for the victory in yesterdays elections and yesterdays defeat. Speaking on his behalf in the European parliament, RN MEP Jean-Paul Garraud said Macron had been much weakened by the parliamentary elections. And he criticised the cordon sanitaire that prevented RN MEPs and their allies from gaining influential positions in the European parliament as totally undemocratic. Apparently welcoming the French election shock, Polands prime minister Donald Tusk, said: In Paris enthusiasm, in Moscow disappointment, in Kyiv relief. Enough to be happy in Warsaw. Italian opposition parties celebrated the surprise outcome of the French elections, a result that is expected to widen the friction among the far-right allies in Melonis government which had been counting on a triumph by Le Pens National Rally. Elly Schlein, leader of the centre-left Democratic party, said the extraordinary leftwing victory proved that the right can be beaten. Meloni, who last week congratulated the National Rallys performance in the first round of the election, is yet to comment publicly, but sources within her Brothers of Italy party told Corriere della Sera that Le Pens defeat demonstrated that the Italian government was the only stable one in Europe. Marine Le Pen has endured a shock defeat - CHRISTOPHE PETIT TESSON/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock Marine Le Pen endured a shock defeat at the hands of the hard-Left and Emmanuel Macron on Sunday night after French voters turned out in force to keep her party from power. In disappointing results for the National Rally (RN) leader, the New Popular Front, an uneasy alliance of centre-Left, green and far-Left parties, claimed the most seats in the snap parliamentary election, winning 182 in the 577-seat Assembly. Ms Le Pen said her victory had only been deferred. Meanwhile, Jordan Bardella, her 28-year-old party leader, blamed an alliance of dishonour between the Left and Mr Macron for blocking him from taking power as prime minister. A high turnout suggested tactical voting for and anti-Le Pen voting pacts in more than 200 constituencies paid off for the Left and Mr Macron. Mr Bardella said the results had plunged France into the arms of Jean-Luc Melenchon, the hard-Left leader of France Unbowed, the dominant force in the victorious New Popular Front. Mr Macrons Ensemble (Together) alliance won 168 seats, confounding predictions of wipeout to come second after coming third in the first round. RN won 143 seats and finished third, despite being the clear winner in the first round of the snap vote called by Mr Macron. The French President was trounced by Ms Le Pen in Junes European elections. Ms Le Pen had declared her party had practically wiped out Mr Macron after winning the first round of voting on June 30. Power will now likely move away from the Elysee Palace to the French parliament as Mr Macron enters a period of cohabitation with a prime minister from the Left, which will leave him confined to a far lesser role, in charge of foreign and defence affairs. Gabriel Attal, Mr Macrons prime minister, said he would resign on Monday because he had no majority. We were able to hold on. And were still standing with three times as many members of parliament, as was initially believed by the first estimates, Mr Attal said. We have to be ready to rebuild the country, because we are France, and nothing resists the French. Mr Melenchon hailed a result which was claimed to be impossible and ruled out any alliance with Mr Macron. Parisiens celebrate in Republique Square in Paris following the second round of the election - GEOFFROY VAN DER HASSELT/AFP Commentators suggested that was a warning to his centre-Left allies, the Socialist Party, not to strike any deal with Mr Macron, who enraged the Left by raising the retirement age to 64. Mr Macron will hope to split the Socialists from France Unbowed and build a new majority but that is by no means certain. New Popular Front had vowed a total break with Mr Macrons unpopular pensions and welfare reforms before a victory, which leaves France facing a hung parliament three weeks before the Paris Olympics. Turnout was the highest since 1981, reaching 60 per cent by 5pm when Francois Mitterrand was elected president. Some hailed this as a return of the Republican Front first forged when Ms Le Pens father Jean-Marie faced Jacques Chirac in the run-off of the 2002 presidential elections and lost. The IPSOS-Talon projections suggest that a concerted bid by Left-wing and pro-Macron centrists to forge tactical anti-RN voting pacts in more than 200 constituencies paid off. Mr Bardella said, In spite of it all this has been a major breakthrough for the National Rally. He said improbable alliances and unnatural arrangements between the Left and Mr Macron had plunged France into the arms of Mr Melenchon. While many remain flummoxed as to why Mr Macron chose to call snap elections after losing to the RN in European elections, he insisted afterwards that his aim was to clarify French politics, which they say he hopes will eventually leave three clear camps of hard Right, centre and hard Left. Against all expectations, it appears his gamble ultimately paid off, although he has been left a lame duck in deadlocked France for the final three years of his term. Despite the risk, it appears calling a snap election has paid off for Emmanuel Macron - Christian Hartmann/REUTERS Mr Macron cannot dissolve parliament for another year. Tensions were high before the exit polls were released. From Paris to Nantes, Lyon and Marseille, shopkeepers in major cities on Sunday boarded up shop windows in anticipation of protests and riots following the results. In Paris, police warned local businesses along the busy retail strip of Rue de Rivoli to board up their windows in the event of election unrest and outbreaks of violence. Some shopkeepers had boarded up their windows ahead of the first round of voting on June 30 and never took them down. Interior minister Gerald Darmanin mobilised 30,000 police and gendarmes across France, including 5,000 in Paris alone for the runoff vote. Authorities said they feared violent outbreaks from both far-Left and far-Right extremists. The Elysee Palace said Mr Macron would wait for the structuring of the new Assembly before taking the necessary decisions, including over the next prime minister. Joe Biden at a campaign event in Madison, Wisconsin, on Friday. Photograph: Nathan Howard/Reuters Joe Bidens position among congressional Democrats eroded further on Monday when an influential House committee member lent his voice to calls for him to end his presidential campaign following last months spectacular debate failure. Adam Smith, the ranking Democrat on the armed services committee in the House of Representatives, issued the plea just hours after the president emphatically rejected calls for him to step aside in a letter to the partys congressional contingent. Biden had also expressed determination to continue in an unscheduled phone interview with the MSNBC politics show Morning Joe. But in a clear sign such messaging may be falling on deaf ears, Smith suggested that sentiments of voters that he was too old to be an effective candidate and then president for the next four years was clear from opinion polls. Related: The Democrats who have called on Joe Biden to step down The presidents performance in the debate was alarming to watch and the American people have made it clear they no longer see him as a credible candidate to serve four more years as president, Smith, a congressman from Washington state, said in a statement. Since the debate, the president has not seriously addressed these concerns. He said the president should stand aside as soon as possible, though he qualified it by saying he would support him unreservedly if he insisted on remaining as the nominee. But his statements effect was driven home in a later interview with CNNs Jake Tapper, one of the two moderators in the 27 June debate with Donald Trump in which Bidens hoarse-voiced and frequently confused performance and demeanour plunged his re-election campaign into existential crisis. Personally, I think Kamala Harris [the vice-president] would be a much better, stronger candidate, Smith told Tapper, adding that Biden was not the best person to carry the Democratic message. He implicitly criticised Democratic colleagues and Biden campaign staff who were calling for the party to put the debate behind them as one bad night. A lot of Democrats are saying: Well lets move on, lets stop talking about it, said Smith. We are not the ones who are bringing it up. The country is bringing it up. And the campaign strategy of be quiet and fall in line and lets ignore it simply isnt working. Smith joins the ranks of five Democratic members of Congress who publicly demanded Bidens withdrawal last week. He was among at least four others who spoke in favour of it privately in a virtual meeting on Sunday with Hakeem Jeffries, the partys leader in the House. Having the ranking member of the armed services committee join the siren voices urging his withdrawal may be particularly damaging to Bidens cause in a week when he is to host a summit of Nato leaders in Washington. The alliances heads of government and state will gather in the US capital on Tuesday for an event that is likely to increase the international spotlight on Biden, who is due to give a rare press conference on its final day on Thursday, an occasion likely to be scrutinised for further misstatements and evidence of declining cognitive faculties. Unscripted appearances have been rare in Bidens three-and-a-half-year tenure. In an interview with ABCs George Stephanopoulos last Friday, Biden stressed his role in expanding Natos membership and leading its military aid programme to help Ukraine fend off Russias invasion as a key element of his qualification to continue as his partys nominee and be re-elected as president. In the surprise interview with Morning Joe on Monday, Biden put the blame for his current predicament on Democratic elites, an undefined designation which he may now expand to include Smith. That's all, folks: Jesus Speaks to the Daughters of Jerusalem had been on display for two months before it was removed from an exhibition A painting in which Jesus and other biblical figures are portrayed with faces from Looney Tunes cartoon characters was removed from an art exhibition in Sydney after protesters said it mocked Christianity. The oil painting, titled Jesus Speaks to the Daughters of Jerusalem, by a 48-year-old artist called Phil James, was on display at the Casula Powerhouse Arts Centre in western Sydney. It elicited such a strong reaction from local Christians that the mayor of Liverpool council, the local government authority, ordered that it be taken down, despite the fact that the exhibition it featured in had only a couple more days to run. Mr James, who is known for 'inserting new elements on old-found paintings', said he had received threats of physical violence The removal of the painting has led to a debate about artistic freedom and the limits of religious tolerance, with critics saying the decision to take it down was ludicrous. The decision came after a brief but vociferous campaign by a group of conservative Catholics called Christian Lives Matter. Ive just gotten word that this shocking, disrespectful art mocking Jesus Christ has finally been removed, Charlie Bakhos, the founder of Christian Lives Matter, wrote on Facebook. He thanked the hundreds and hundreds of supporters who had respectfully called for the artwork to be banned from the exhibition. The painting was another cheap and low attempt at mocking Christianity here in Sydney, he said. Defending our faith This is another attack on Christianity that we have managed to put a stop to thanks to everyones support. Lets keep defending our faith respectfully. No faith, no religion, no race, no one should be mocked. The artist, who goes by the name Philjames, said he had been taken aback by the reaction to the painting and that he had received threats of physical violence. He had been sent dozens of vile messages on social media, saying that the level of vitriol was frightening. He said that while he was concerned about the safety of gallery staff, amid a threat of protests by campaigners, he was worried that the controversy may have set a precedent on limiting freedom of expression. Politicking before freedom of expression That for me is the most problematic thing: the mayor requested it to be taken down, putting politicking before freedom of expression. Where does it end? The painting had been on display for two months and the exhibition had just two more days to run, but Ned Mannoun, the mayor of Liverpool, said it should be removed from public view. The Christian community and many Muslims take offence at Jesus Christ being portrayed as a Looney Tunes character, he told the Sydney Morning Herald. The right to free speech needs to be balanced with the right to practise your religion without fear, persecution or ridicule. While Muslims do not believe Jesus was the son of God, they do revere him as a holy prophet and he is a prominent figure in the Koran. Satirical painting But the councils decision to remove the artwork was criticised by John McDonald, the Sydney Morning Heralds art critic. Its totally out of line, he said. There should not be a public safety issue about a satirical painting in an art exhibition in a public place. Thats completely ludicrous. The artist is represented by a Sydney gallery that says he is known for carefully inserting new elements on old-found paintings and prints, totally hijacking the original image in the process. The amendments are often from the cartoon golden age of Walt Disney and Looney Tunes, and stretch and squeeze animation style. Liverpool covers a large, sprawling area of suburbs in south-western Sydney. It is an area of great cultural diversity, with migrants from Lebanon, Iraq, Vietnam, Fiji, India and many other countries. More than 40 per cent of the population was born outside Australia. Gabriel Attal arrives to give a speech at Hotel Matignon in Paris after the second round of the French parliamentary elections on Sunday. Photograph: Guglielmo Mangiapane/Reuters Emmanuel Macron has asked Gabriel Attal to stay on temporarily as Frances prime minister to maintain stability after a snap general election left the country facing a hung parliament and fraught negotiations to form a new government. Parties on the left want to seize the moment after their shock win over the far right and on Monday met to discuss policy and potential prime minister candidates. The green-left alliance, the New Popular Front (NFP), surprised pollsters by coming first in the final round a win that was considered highly unlikely, with pre-election polls predicting a far-right surge into the lead. However, with no absolute majority, efforts to form a new French government may take weeks. The snap election was called last month after a humiliating defeat to the far-right National Rally (RN) of Marine Le Pen in European parliamentary elections. The NFP won 182 seats in the 577-seat national assembly, with Macrons centrist Together coalition returning 168 deputies and the RN which after the first round on 30 June had been eyeing a majority finishing third on 143. With no single group securing an absolute majority, the options include a technocratic government of experts, the NFP trying to form a minority government and seeking bill-by-bill support, or a broad coalition of the centre left and centre right. Related: Political paralysis looms in France after shock election result Attal tendered his resignation on Monday morning after Macrons camp lost more than a third of its MPs. The president asked Attal to remain in power in a caretaker capacity to see out the period of the Paris Olympics and to reassure the international community and markets that France still had a functioning government. The unprecedented situation unfolded as Macron, who said he would wait until parliament was structured before making any decisions on a new government, was scheduled to leave the country on Wednesday for a Nato summit in Washington. Attal had earlier said he would be willing to stay on in a caretaker role for as long as necessary to help oversee a smooth transition to a new government, if one could be found in a parliament split into opposing blocs. Macron asked him to remain for the time being, to ensure the countrys stability, the Elysee palace said. Gael Sliman, of the pollster Odoxa, asked: Is this the biggest crisis of the Fifth Republic? Emmanuel Macron wanted clarification with the dissolution, now we are in total uncertainty. A very thick fog. Frances Fifth Republic was established in 1958. The Green leader, Marine Tondelier, one of a number of NFP figures seen as potential future prime ministers, said: According to the logic of our institutions, Emmanuel Macron should today officially invite the NFP to nominate a prime minister. While the NFPs leaders met again on Monday to try to agree a way forward, the leftist alliance appeared divided on how to proceed, with Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the radical-left France Unbowed (LFI), ruling out any coalition deal with centrists. Melenchons lieutenant Manuel Bompard confirmed the partys line on Monday. The president must appoint as prime minister someone from the NFP, to implement the NFPs programme, its whole programme and nothing but its programme, he said. Raphael Glucksmann, a moderate who led the Socialist party list in the European elections, said on Sunday that the NFP must be open to dialogue and compromise with other parliamentary groups to govern, but Bompard refused to engage with that possibility. Tondelier said the prime minister could be someone from any of the NFPs four member parties or an outsider. Olivier Faure, the Socialist party leader, said a name would be presented this week but declined to speculate about coalitions. Related: What is the New Popular Front, surprise winner of the French election? Very little of the NFPs radical economic programme, which includes raising the minimum wage, reversing Macrons pension changes and capping the prices of key goods, would win parliamentary approval without coalition support. Prominent centrists including the former prime minister Edouard Philippe and the long-term Macron ally Francois Bayrou have said they would be in favour of a coalition agreement stretching from the moderate left to the centre right, but excluding Melenchons LFI. We can no longer have one bloc against another it cant work like that any more, Bayrou said on Monday. French voters have told us that we have to abandon, as far as we can, government against the rest for government with the rest. Yael Braun-Pivet, an MP from Macrons camp and the outgoing speaker of the lower house, said voters were telling her: No one has an absolute majority, so you have to work together to find solutions to our problems. The lefts surprise victory came after an anti-far-right republican front formed to avoid splitting the vote in three-way races in hundreds of constituencies. Le Pen denounced the strategy as unfair, but a senior RN member said the party had work to do. We cannot carry on like this, Bruno Bilde, an RN deputy from northern France, told Le Monde, arguing that the party could complain all it likes about the unfair system but when so many candidates lose you have to question the candidates credibility. Jordan Bardella, the RN party president who had led the campaign, said he accepted his part in the defeat of the parliamentary elections, as well as the success of the European elections in which his party topped the poll in France. Wuchner said he flew 2 metres in the air after slipping, banged his head off the floor and has since suffered from repeated headaches. Photograph: Steve Parsons/PA A passenger who suffered a traumatic brain injury after slipping in a puddle of Baileys while heading for a flight could receive up to 4m in compensation. Andreas Wuchner, who was 35 at the time of the incident at Heathrow airport in November 2017, was due to fly home to Zurich after he and his business partner had to rebook flights as a result of missing a previous plane due to traffic. After making their way through security, the pair were the last passengers through the boarding gate for their new flight. Wuchner, who ran an office supplies company, stopped to buy two espressos and two macchiatos from Starbucks. While balancing the four coffees on a tray and rushing to the gate 15 minutes ahead of the scheduled departure, Wuchner slipped on a puddle of Baileys on the airport floor, Central London county court heard. Asked why he stopped for coffees so close to his new flights departure time, Wuchner who had been in London for an event at Wembley stadium said: I really enjoy a proper coffee out of a coffee machine, rather than the normal airport coffee, which is why I went to Starbucks. I went as quickly as possible to the boarding gate, bearing in mind I had four coffees in my hand. I wasnt running, but I went as quickly as I could. I was walking swiftly, bearing in mind the safety of my coffee cups. He said he flew 2 metres in the air after slipping on the alcohol, dropping the coffees and banging his head off the floor. He has since had repeated headaches that can last as long as two weeks since the incident, the court heard. Judge Saunders found BA liable for the accident and decided Wuchner could receive 80% of the value of his 5m claim, once assessed. He was denied 100% due to his contributory negligence. The accident might have been avoided if BA staff had covered the spillage or warned passengers it was there, the judge concluded. Saunders said: It seems inevitable that, through his delay and attempt to obtain last-minute coffees, the claimant had placed himself under greater pressure to board the flight in time, having missed his earlier flight, and been delayed in security. It is a likely scenario that he was anxious to catch his flight, and that the pressure he had imposed upon himself had made that pressure even greater. That, in my view, contributed to the accident. BAs barrister, Tom Bird, said it was Wuchner rushing to the boarding gate with four coffees that had caused the incident and argued that BA should be exonerated from liability. An artist's impression the proposed above-ground Melbourne airport train station in Tullamarine. Photograph: Rail Projects Victoria/PR IMAGE Melbourne Airport has agreed to a compromise and will back down on its demand for an underground railway station, as it hopes to bring forward the projects completion date to 2030. But the premier, Jacinta Allan, poured cold water on the prospect of having the project finished by then, saying the airport cant expect the station to be built within six years, after her government delayed it by four years. On Monday, the airports chief executive, Lorie Argus, announced it would adopt the state governments preferred above-ground station proposal, ending the long-running stalemate. Victorians have waited long enough for an airport rail line. We will work with the Victorian government to deliver their preferred above-ground station at the airport so the rail line can become reality, Argus said. While Melbourne airport has consistently advocated for an underground station, we are prepared to compromise on our position to ensure we have more transport options in place for the millions of new passengers that will visit Victoria and the airport precincts expanding workforce. Speaking on ABC Radio National, Argus was hopeful the state government would finish the station in time to line up with the airports third runway opening, which she said was estimated to bring 45 million travellers to the airport each year. This was despite the governments announcement in May that the project would be delayed by at least four years to 2033, due to the standoff with the airport operator. If we can pick up the pen quickly and get it built, Id love to see it in place if not at the same time, [then] just after our runway by 2030, Argus said. But we recognise that might not be realistic, we need to let the state work that through. But we will not be difficult. We will work with them to have this built as quickly as possible. Related: Victorian treasurer threatens to consider train station for Avalon amid dispute with Melbourne Airport Allan welcomed the airports change of heart, but said it would not be possible to meet that timeline. Their position has only changed in the last 24 hours and that does not wash away the four years of delay caused by their previous insistence that it be an underground station that costs time and money, she said. She said the government was yet to conduct early works as a result of the impasse, and foreshadowed further negotiations between the federal government and Melbourne Airport to discuss compensation for land. In 2020, the state and federal government each committed $5bn to the Melbourne airport rail. But the project has stalled over the states insistence it would not finance the more expensive underground option demanded by the airport. In an attempt to settle the argument between the Victorian government and Melbourne airports owner and operator, Australia Pacific Airports Melbourne, the federal government appointed a mediator. In his report to the Albanese government last month, mediator Neil Scales recommended against further commonwealth and state consideration of an underground option at this time. Scales wrote that the airport could produce a comprehensive business case so governments can examine the proposal in detail if they are to be convinced to fund the more expensive option. But in the interim, he recommended that the federal and Victorian governments proceed with initial construction works on the rail line. These include no regrets work at Sunshine station that could be built. Argus said another business case would take up to two years to complete and the airport cant afford to wait any longer. Victorians have had enough of this topic and were certainly all a little bit tired of talking about it, she said. The mayor of Moonee Valley Council, which will host the rail line, issued an eight-word statement welcoming Melbourne airports change of heart. About bloody time. Lets get on with it, Pierce Tyson said. The opposition transport infrastructure spokesperson, David Southwick, said: The time for excuses and delays is over Labor must get on with building Melbourne Airport Rail. The migrants were picked up by the Border Force in the Channel on Monday and brought to shore at Dover - Gareth Fuller/PA Wire The first migrant boat has crossed the Channel since Sir Keir Starmers election victory, as his spokesman admitted it would be a challenging summer for the new Government. A group of migrants reached the midway point of the Channel on Monday morning after being shepherded from the northern French coast by the French navy. They were then picked up by Hurricane, a Border Force catamaran, and brought to shore at Dover, where they were led to the processing centre wearing orange lifebelts. They are the first to arrive since Sir Keir won the election and declared that the Rwanda scheme was dead and buried within 24 hours. The decision means the migrants will be entitled to seek asylum in the UK rather than face the prospect of being detained and deported to Rwanda. Their arrival takes the number to have crossed the Channel so far this year to a record 13,600 the highest since the first migrants crossed in January 2018. It is about three per cent higher than the 13,172 at the same point in 2022, the previous record year, and eight per cent higher than the 12,503 at the same point in 2023. The first crossing came a day after Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, announced hundreds of officers would be deployed across Europe to stop people smugglers as part of her plans for a new UK border security command. Sir Keirs spokesman said: The Government has set out its very clear position that, as the Prime Minister said over the weekend, the Rwanda scheme is dead and buried. It started. The scheme was cancelled and flights wont go ahead. The Government is now focused on the work needed to secure our borders and smash the gangs, in addition to recruiting for the border security command. The Home Secretary has also commissioned an investigation from the Home Office and the National Crime Agency into the tactics used by people-smuggling gangs to inform a major law enforcement drive over the coming months, and were getting to work straight away because we know that this summer will be challenging. On additional powers the border security command would have, the spokesman said: The Home Secretary has previously set out that the new command will have new counter-terror powers to enable search and seizure. Last week, The Telegraph revealed that migrants in Dunkirk camps celebrated Labours landslide victory and the scrapping of the Rwanda scheme. They vowed to cross the Channel at the first chance they got. On Monday, Ms Cooper also announced that she had ordered an audit of the Rwanda scheme to establish how much it cost and the Governments liabilities. Britain can end the Rwanda scheme by terminating the agreement through a break clause that allowed both governments to leave it. Under the clause, the UK Government will not have to make any further payments from the date the break clause is activated. The UK has already paid 270 million, with the latest 50 million instalment handed over in April. By ending the scheme, it will save two further 50 million payments in 2025 and 2026. Sir Keir Starmer chairs his first meeting of the new Cabinet in Downing Street on Friday - ANDY RAIN/POOL/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock So your party has just won an election. Now what are you going to do? For those who have been appointed as ministers in the new Labour government, these first days in power will be a whirl of activity. From meeting the staffers to letting it be known how many sugars you take in your tea, theres a lot to get done when youre entering a department. Now that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has appointed his first cabinet, its new members will already be getting their feet under the table in their respective offices. So how does it all work, and what actually happens when a new guard comes in? From the moment your ministerial car collects you from Downing Street following your appointment, and takes you on the short but momentous drive to your Whitehall building, your life will be completely transformed. Not everyone is ready for this. In 2010, one of the new ministers I think a Liberal Democrat had to be chased down the street to be told his car was waiting for him, says Dr Catherine Haddon, a programme director at the Institute for Government. The arrival at the department is often carefully choreographed. In some cases, civil servants are expected to give their new cabinet secretary a rousing welcome to show they are ready and willing to serve the new government. It doesnt matter what the politics or political party is, they have to pivot to whoever the public has chosen, says Dr Haddon. After the theatrics are over, the real business of preparing to govern gets under way. Therell be a departmental briefing from the permanent secretary the most senior civil servant in any department and some ministers will want to do a town hall meeting with their hundreds of new staff. Its a whirlwind of introductions, says the former Conservative Lord Chancellor David Gauke. You get to meet all your private office, who will be waiting around, anxious to meet you. Then its a sit-down talk and youre straight into it, discussing the brief and if youve got any priorities. Theres a huge amount of reading to do to get on top of everything, he says. All while congratulatory messages flood in from friends and family. You dont get a chance to respond to those for ages, because its straight into the work and [there are] lots of questions about how you want to work, how youll combine your parliamentary and constituency duties, what are your policy priorities and how much media work you want to be doing, says Gauke. David Gauke seved in the Cabinet of both Theresa May and David Cameron - John Nguyen/JNVisuals For those who were already shadowing their role in opposition, mastering the brief should be easier. Access talks will already have taken place before the election. If theyve gone well, that will mean [the minister] has not only got to know the permanent secretary but some of the senior staff in the department, says Dr Haddon. That will really help them. Its not all endless meetings and briefings, though. Ministers also get to put their stamp on their new surroundings. In some departments they may be able to choose which office they want. But this itself may be fraught with politics. These are delicate issues, says Lord David Willetts, the former Conservative business and universities minister. There is some element of choice. You havent got complete choice but they may give you a bit of flexibility. Some incoming ministers ask to see the permanent secretarys office, to see if theyd rather have that which can create problems! Another perk for ministers besides the car, the diary secretary to manage your life and the phalanx of staff ready to do your bidding is the chance to choose your own artwork from the Government Art Collection for the walls of your new office. But this, too, can be a competitive process. One particularly popular piece Damien Hirsts Beautiful Portrait, of Queen Elizabeth II was moved between ministerial offices five times in as many years. Ed Vaizey, then arts minister, bagged it after the 2015 election ahead of his then boss Sir John Whittingdale, who had incorrectly assumed that as culture secretary his claim to the artwork would trump a juniors. The painting was later inherited by Matt Hancock when he became the new minister of state for digital and culture in 2016. Matt Hancock gave Beautiful Portrait pride of place in his office - Twitter Gauke, who was appointed Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury in May 2010, when the Coalition government won power from Gordon Browns Labour, was in search of something more old-school for his walls. I did a trip to the Government Art Collection and thats quite a fun hour or afternoon out of the office to go and have a look at some paintings, he says. But it wasnt a day one priority. What did he choose? I had a very traditional office at the Treasury, so in that room I went for very old-style portraits. Lord Willetts, whose wife is an artist (meaning he already had his own private source of artwork), was more interested in acquiring bookcases for his new office when he entered government in 2010. Its not a bed of roses, but equally people arent trying to make life difficult for you, he says. If you have reasonable requests about what you need in your working environment, what meeting table you want, the civil servants will help out. But, he warns, there is a potential pitfall. The private secretary will ask you things like, How do you like your coffee? and, If you need sandwiches for lunch, what shall we get you? And all these are FOI-able. This means the answers to these crucial questions can be discovered by any member of the public or journalist via a Freedom of Information request. A lot of ministers get caught out, says Lord Willetts. They say, I like my tea with two sugars or I like ham in my sandwich or the text of the briefing is too small and six months later The Daily Telegraph will be running a story about the minister who insisted on two sugars and objected to the type size of the briefings. Usually the ministers first red box which contains the daily flow of papers such as briefings, written advice on policy issues and draft letters will be received within a couple of days of them taking office. Ministerial decisions will need to be made fairly promptly, so that staff can begin getting on with making progress on the commitments set out in the partys manifesto with which civil servants will already be familiar. [The red box] might not be as heavy in the first few days as it will become, says Dr Haddon. Both practically and psychologically there are big adjustments to be made for someone entering government for the first time after years in opposition. Its a great moment, says Lord Willetts. In opposition, your support staff is tiny. You have a tiny office and you may have a couple of advisers. Suddenly theres this enormous machine. Some might find it overwhelming. But Gauke suspects most would say its just exciting. Theres lots of new experiences, he says. I remember phoning home and reporting in to the family. That was all quite fun, when you can finally catch your breath. If theres suddenly a lot for them to get their heads around, its unlikely any new ministers will be complaining. If youve gone into politics and [now] youre a frontbencher, this is the moment youve been hoping and preparing for, says Gauke. This is the reward for slogging it out in opposition. Melissa Manno is a reporter covering education for the San Antonio Express-News. She can be reached at melissa.manno@express-news.net. She graduated from Penn State University in 2022 with a bachelors degree in journalism and minors in geography and digital media trends and analytics. She is also the 2021 Hearst National Journalism Writing Champion. Keir Starmer hosting his first cabinet at 10 Downing Street. Photograph: Lauren Hurley/No 10 Downing Street Dr Stephen Riley (Letters, 5 July) succinctly outlines the success of the Tories in providing for the elite they represent by redistributing wealth from the poor to the rich. I awoke on 5 July to a new dawn here in north Herefordshire: a Green party MP and a Labour government. After breathing a sigh of relief, I am filled with hope and joy because weve been left to live in a wasteland for far too long; disrespected, insulted, robbed, unloved and, many of us, destitute. Paying taxes is joyful if the NHS is there for us, if everyone has the right to a home, a good education, transport, food and heating. This is what we need, not just for ourselves but for all our neighbours. If our new political leaders prioritise our wellbeing and the sustainability of the planet above profit, and they make a contribution to world peace, then this new beginning is really something to celebrate. Janette Ward Tarrington, Herefordshire While reading the paper on Monday, particularly the report on David Lammys visit to Europe (Operation reset: Lammys mission to reconnect gets off to flying start, 8 July), I started to feel something I couldnt initially recognise. Then I realised it was positivity, and even pride, for my country. Helen Beioley Stroud, Gloucestershire One thing that needs to change is the trust of people in politicians, and this could start by civilising the House of Commons. Keir Starmer could lead the way in PMQs by not evading questions like previous incumbents have or shouting. The speaker could also help by ensuring that MPs are heard in silence and by allowing clapping the way to show appreciation in polite society. Robert Dyson Kenilworth, Warwickshire Have an opinion on anything youve read in the Guardian today? Please email us your letter and it will be considered for publication in our letters section. The Lake fire burns close to what was Michael Jackson's Neverland Ranch in Los Olivos, California, on 6 July 2024. Photograph: David Swanson/Reuters A fierce heatwave has shattered temperature records across the US west and has been tied to at least four deaths in Oregon, with more heat on the way as dangerous weather fueled the outbreak of new wildfires. Oregon faced triple-digit temperatures and saw several records toppled over the weekend, including in Salem, where on Sunday it hit 103F (39.4C), topping the 99F (37.2C) mark set in 1960. Authorities in Multnomah county home to Portland, where temperatures broke daily records over the weekend said they were investigating four suspected deaths tied to the heatwave. More than 146 million Americans were under extreme heat alerts on Monday, as both sides of the country cooked. Excessive heat warnings, the National Weather Services (NWS) highest alert, stretch across the west, covering parts of California, Nevada, Arizona, Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Areas on the east coast, including Florida, Georgia, Alabama and Mississippi, were also under heat advisories. Related: Motorcyclist dies from heat exposure in Death Valley as temperature reaches 128F Dozens of locations in the west and Pacific north-west tied or broke previous heat records in recent days. On Sunday, Las Vegas set an all-time record high of 120F (48.8C), while across the desert in Death Valley national park, temperatures reached 128F (53.3 C), breaking a daily heat record and coming just shy of its all-time high. The dangerous temperatures caused the death of a motorcyclist in the park. Meanwhile, firefighters are battling a flurry of new blazes that sparked in the brutal temperatures over the weekend, with the sweltering conditions posing challenges for fire crews. There were 73 large active fires burning across the country on Monday, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, collectively covering close to half a million acres, and fire conditions are expected to continue through the week. California, which was left covered in quick-to-burn grasses after a wet winter, saw an explosive week, and firefighters are battling 18 active blazes. In Santa Barbara county, the Lake fire burned through dry grass, brush and timber over the weekend, prompting evacuations of some rural homes, including the Neverland ranch. The fire has grown to 20,320 acres and was at 8% containment Monday morning. Further north, the Shelly fire, which erupted in Californias Marble Mountain Wilderness last Wednesday, continues to pose threats to communities, private timberlands, cultural resources, and wilderness areas, Cal Fire posted in an update Monday, as fire behavior became more extreme through the weekend. Yesterday, as well as today, we have experienced some problematic weather forecasts that leads to critical fire behavior, John Chester, operations section chief with Cal Fires Siskiyou unit said. We are expecting the same weather patterns and forecasts over the next few days. Fire conditions have also been intense in Utah, fueling rapid growth for several large fires. The Silver King fire, which has roared across more than 10,823 acres more than 4,500 acres in a single day has exhibited extreme behavior and is 0% contained. Hundreds of homes are at risk from the fire, as state officials secured federal support Monday. A warming and drying trend will continue today with an excessive heat warning, as temperatures continue to increase above average the relativity humidity continues to drop to 10 15%, officials with the US Forest Service said in a Monday morning update on the fire, adding that gusty winds will continue to fan the flames. These elements combine for extreme fire weather. The heatwave came as the global temperature in June hit a record high for the 13th straight month and it marked the 12th straight month that the world was 1.5C (2.7F) warmer than pre-industrial times, the European climate service Copernicus said. While parts of California will see some relief from the brutally hot conditions, extreme heat is predicted to linger across the US west throughout the week. As the heatwave shifts north into Oregon and Washington, and moves east covering parts of the Great Basin and Arizona, more records will likely be broken. The multi-day length and record warm overnight temperatures will continue to cause heat stress in people without adequate cooling and hydration, NWS meteorologists wrote in a forecast published on Monday. Related: Its unbearable: in ever-hotter US cities, air conditioning is no longer enough Rare heat advisories were extended even into higher elevations including around Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, with the weather service in Reno, Nevada, warning of major heat risk impacts, even in the mountains. More extreme highs are in the near forecast, including possibly 130F (54.4C) around midweek at Furnace Creek, California, in Death Valley. The hottest temperature ever officially recorded on Earth was 134F (56.67C) in July 1913 in Death Valley, though some experts dispute that measurement and say the real record was 130F (54.4C), recorded there in July 2021. Park officials warned visitors to take the heat seriously. While this is a very exciting time to experience potential world record-setting temperatures in Death Valley, we encourage visitors to choose their activities carefully, avoiding prolonged periods of time outside of an air-conditioned vehicle or building when temperatures are this high, Mike Reynolds, a park superintendent said. More on extreme heat and wildfires in the US Keep the gates locked: Prison works in keeping dangerous men off our streets - Lucy North/PA In these pages last month, I warned of Labours radical hard-Left agenda. With a huge majority behind Sir Keir Starmer, we can now see it in action. The change Labour is bringing is clear: taxes up, prisons emptied and our borders opened. The Conservative Party has much soul-searching to do. We must strike a careful balancing act of defending the things we got right in Government like education reforms that massively expanded opportunity, a sustained period of close to full employment, and the restoration of our national sovereignty while being frank about where we let voters down. This will take time. But as we conduct this necessary post-mortem, we cannot give Labour a free pass. We owe it to the country to scrutinise everything the Government does and fight policy decisions that harm the national interest. And I can think of no greater threat to the national interest than Labours plan to release thousands of offenders early from prison in the coming weeks. Lets be clear what this would mean. Letting out thousands of prisoners just 40 per cent or less of the way through their sentence risks triggering a crime wave of rapes, assaults and robberies in the very near future. Most people in our prisons have offended many times before and will offend again. Nine per cent of criminals are responsible for 52 per cent of all convictions. Thats why, under the Tories, we brought in 5,700 extra prison places a far better record than Labour. Of course, I acknowledge that difficulties exist in managing our criminal justice system, but I know from my time at the Home Office that there are real alternatives to Labours policy of mass-release. Labour says this is an emergency so lets treat it like one and act seriously. Labour could deport foreign criminals and give them a lifetime ban from ever re-entering the UK, which would free up thousands of places. It could explore creating emergency capacity (as we did with hospitals during Covid) by delivering Rapid Deployment Cells. The British people did not vote to let despicable criminals off scott-free. In fact, Labours own manifesto repeatedly criticised early release policies. This is an ideologically-driven choice being taken when Labour feels that opposition is lacking. The newly appointed prisons minister, James Timpson, is a decent man who has done plenty of good work to help ex-prisoners rebuild their lives. Theres an important role for that. But he has also made clear he believes far fewer people should be in jail. Labour is portraying its extreme policies as inevitable ones. But the party cant spin its way out of this: it is a policy choice and will elevate ideology above public safety. This duplicity is not limited to law and order. Rachel Reevess speech suggests that within days of entering Downing Street Labour will be back doing what it does best: raising taxes. Leaks reveal that the Government intends to introduce a punitive farms tax by applying a 40 per cent inheritance rate to family farms as they pass through the generations. It is also set to slap increased capital gains tax on people for having the temerity to work hard and earn a living. We must be clear: these are not necessary economic measures as any revenue raised will be negligible. Rather, theyre barely disguised acts of class warfare designed to punish Conservative voters. These tax plans are more redolent of student union socialists than serious Government. And on his first day in office, Starmer scrapped the Rwanda plan and surrendered to the people smugglers. Instead of pursuing a deterrent, Labour has rebranded the existing Small Boats Operational Command. Starmer said he would strengthen the border, but he is leaving us without one. The only credible solution is to bolster the Rwanda scheme, as myself and scores of Conservative colleagues proposed. Unsurprisingly, Labour hid these policies from view during the campaign. Labour attacked early release policies, said itd secure a strong border, and said it wouldnt raise taxes. Labour knew there was no way it could win a mandate from the British public for this. Starmer is now ignoring the interests and values of the majority. Far from being unburdened by doctrine, he is unburdened from what British people want and advancing dangerous ideas that have circulated in the Labour movement for the last few decades. We should now take our time in agreeing on a new direction. But, in the meantime, we must unite and fight this radical agenda with everything weve got. Rt Hon Robert Jenrick is Conservative MP for Newark Douglas Ross stood down as Scottish Tory leader midway through the election campaign - Andrew Milligan/PA The Scottish Tories could break away from the UK party in an effort to detoxify the Conservative brand. Murdo Fraser is expected to run for the post of Scottish Tory leader after Douglas Ross stood down midway through the election campaign. Allies of Mr Fraser believe he will adopt a similar platform to when he stood for the leadership in 2011 and proposed setting up a separate Scottish centre-Right party a proposal rejected when he lost to Baroness Davidson. However, supporters said events such as partygate and the short-lived Liz Truss premiership, followed by the electoral collapse of the UK party, had breathed new life into his proposition. While the Tories held five of the six Scottish seats they won in 2019 at the general election, there is alarm that the partys vote share almost halved, falling to just 12.7 per cent. Even staunch opponents of the idea of a new party acknowledged that Mr Fraser would be the man to beat should he declare his candidacy, given his name recognition and standing among the grassroots. He is believed to be in the US on a family holiday, but is weighing up his options. Everybody is taking stock but I think Murdo probably will stand, said Liz Smith, a veteran Scottish Tory MSP who previously backed Mr Fraser. We have suffered from the various problems at Westminster, not least a perception of a lack of integrity and trust. A lot of voters believed the party down south had not behaved well. So a separate party has to be part of the mix. Times have moved on, and there is still validity to Murdos call. Everybody recognises it was his brainchild. There is a very strong case for a centre-Right conservative party in Scotland with its own principles and its own identity. Another Scottish Tory MSP said they expected Mr Fraser to stand and put forward his new party plan, or a variation of it. Murdo has been pushing this for years, so hell see this as his big chance, said the MSP. Hell have to be careful about how it is pitched, as our members are proud of the party and wont want to hear theyre part of a toxic brand. But theres no doubt that we have been dragged down by the UK party. Multiple Tory sources have told The Telegraph that there is a strong appetite for a battle of ideas to decide the next Scottish leader. Russell Findlay, the Scottish Tory justice spokesman, is considering running and is seen as another leading leadership contender. He has been a strong performer at Holyrood but his critics point to his lack of experience, having only entered politics in 2020, and his closeness to Mr Ross. Jamie Greene, on the Left of the Scottish party, is also believed to be considering running, as is Maurice Golden, who has rejected the idea of a split. Mr Ross stood down amid a backlash over his decision to replace David Duguid, a popular incumbent MP, who was in hospital with a serious spinal illness. He then lost Aberdeenshire North and Moray East to the SNP, blaming a large Reform UK vote. However, party insiders said some voters and local activists were infuriated by the perception that Mr Duguid had been stabbed in the back by Mr Ross, and refused to support him as a result. The main childrens hospital in Kyiv was struck in a Russian missile barrage which killed at least 22 people, including two children, in strikes on the Ukrainian capital. A further 82 people were injured, the citys military administration said. Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, said Russian forces fired more than 40 long-range munitions, including the hypersonic Kinzhal, at different cities in a rare daytime raid. Rescue workers were dispatched to Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital amid reports that children were trapped in the wreckage of the building. Woman holds a young child in her arms in the wake of the attack Parents holding bloodied babies, crying and dazed, were photographed trying to escape the carnage after the strike. Young patients could be seen receiving treatment on the street as local authorities promised the missile attack would not disrupt services at the hospital. Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital amid reports that children were trapped in the wreckage of the building - Gleb Garanich/REUTERS Volodymyr Zelensky said that there were an unknown number of people trapped under the rubble of the hospital - REUTERS Footage shows a medical worker in blood-stained scrubs joining the rescue effort as emergency services and volunteers passed individual bricks along a line in a scramble to free people trapped under the rubble. The hospitals roof has caved in and there are plumes of thick, black smoke rising from what appeared to be the impact zone. Children hooked up to IV drips and their parents, some wearing face masks, were seen waiting patiently in a queue of seats next to the hospital, as officials said patients would be moved away from the damaged facility. Children hooked up to IV drips and their parents were seen waiting patiently in a queue of seats - REUTERS A woman soothes a young patient near the hospital - REUTERS Emergency workers were met with blood-lined floors, doors and windows blown off their hinges and hospital beds and equipment scattered as they looked for survivors. A woman was pictured carrying a young child, wrapped in a sheet, being carried out of the hospital. The child was bleeding from its forehead, nose, neck and arms. The blue-tinted windows on the outside of the hospital were blown from their frames and piles of rubble was strewn on the floor as part of the building collapsed. Rescuers work at the hospital after a Russian missile strike - REUTERS The hospital's roof caved in following a missile attack - REUTERS Patients at the hospital were being evacuated to nearby facilities in the city, Serhii Popko, the head of Kyivs military administration, said, as another raid siren was sounded over the capital. The hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, people are under the rubble, the exact number of wounded and dead is currently unknown. Now everyone helps to sort out the debris: doctors, ordinary people, Mr Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Russia cannot help but know where its missiles are flying, and must fully answer for all its crimes: against people, against children, against humanity in general. It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, the Ukrainian president added. Pictures distributed by officials from the children's medical facility in Kyiv showed people digging through mounds of rubble - REUTERS The attack has already generated international condemnation with the British government labelling the attack appalling while Paris said it was barbaric. Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, said: Attacking innocent children. The most depraved of actions. We stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression our support wont falter. On the day of the missile attack, Poland and Ukraine signed a bilateral security arrangement in which Warsaw promised to look into ways to use its own air defences to intercept Russian missiles and drones heading for its borders in Ukrainian airspace. A young boy is carried into an ambulance The long-range barrage on Ukraine came as Viktor Orban, Hungarys prime minister, met Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, to discuss a potential peace deal to end the war. Mr Orban has also visited Mr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin in recent days. Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, said the attack was one of the heaviest on the capital since the target of Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. Local authorities reported that debris of Russian missiles intercepted by Ukrainian air defence systems rained down on six neighbourhoods in the Ukrainian capital, damaging residential blocks and offices. Explosions rang out and black smoke could be seen rising from the centre of Kyiv - AFP In Kryviy Rih, central Ukraine, at least 10 people were killed and 31 others injured, Oleksandr Vilkul, the citys mayor, said. Metinvest, Ukraines largest mining company, said 10 employees were killed and 30 injured in a strike at a coal processing plant in the city. Three more people died in Pokrovsk, in eastern Ukraine, when missiles struck an industrial facility. The cities of Dnipro and Kramatarosk were also targeted. Pupil typing text message on smart phone while sitting at the desk in the classroom Eton College has announced that new pupils starting in September will be prohibited from bringing smartphones to school. This is a wise move; research suggests that children in schools with effective phone-bans achieve greater academic success. The ability of private schools to act as educational trail blazers is one of the strongest arguments for their existence. If Etons smartphone ban results in improved pupil performance, we can assume that many state schools will follow suit. But the negative effects of smartphones on children extend far beyond their impact on educational attainment. Across almost every conceivable measure, the experience of childhood has worsened in recent years. Data from across the Western world shows sharp increases in child suicide, self-harm, eating disorders, porn addiction, loneliness and sexual exploitation. All of these trends can be traced back to the introduction of the front-facing camera iPhone in 2010 and the explosion of social media use from 2014. This phone-based childhood exposes children to unimaginable harms. Social media and gaming algorithms drive powerful addictions, and camera smartphones allow predators to groom and abuse children even when they are apparently safe in their own homes. Even for children who do not encounter harmful content, smartphones act as experience blockers that rob them of vital real world physical and relational experiences that their brains and bodies need to mature. For the first time since records began, human IQ may be falling. The consequences for society of a whole generation whose intellectual curiosity has been numbed by screen addiction hardly need spelling out. It is not in childrens best interests to be allowed access to smartphones and social media. Although the departing Conservative government was rumoured to be considering an outright ban, Labours manifesto made no mention of the issue. Left-wing politicians seem content to blame the crisis of childhood on austerity, despite the evidence that children in all Western countries have experienced the same decline since 2010, regardless of who has been in power. Sadly, the welfare of children seems to be an afterthought in modern British politics. The prevailing political philosophy of our time that of liberal individualism prioritises adult rights and convenience over the needs of children to be protected and nurtured. Lockdowns, childcare policy and a complete silence on our epidemic of family breakdown all demonstrate that, for the political class at least, adult autonomy trumps childrens security. The same mistake is being made over access to smartphones. This is not an issue of freedoms or rights but one of child protection. Just as we protect children by prohibiting them from smoking, drinking, and having sex, we have a moral duty to protect them from the proven harms of smartphones and social media. When it comes to child safeguarding, it is not good enough to revert to tired cliches such as the genies out of the bottle. Eton should be congratulated on its bold new policy. But all children need protecting from smartphones, social media and the online wild west, not just a privileged few. Nicholas Collon conducting the BBC Philharmonic - BBC/ CHRIS CHRISTODOULOU BBC Proms/ BBC Philharmonic One of the Proms boasts is that it keeps classical music alive and kicking, by commissioning so many new pieces there are 13 in this season. And it offers resources for them on a lavish scale most organisations cant rival. Take last nights new piece The Gorgeous Nothings from British-born, New-York-domiciled composer Anna Clyne. It was performed by two orchestras the real live BBC Philharmonic in front of us, conducted by Nicholas Collon, and the invisible Augmented Orchestra, a sound processing system which seized and transformed sounds from parts of the live orchestra, and sent them careening around the hall through loudspeakers. Next to the orchestra were the seven singers of The Swingles, the present-day descendants of the famous Swingle Singers of the 1960s, whod flown over from the US for the premiere. All very lavish, and the sounds they produced certainly had a filmic gorgeousness. But is that really the right quality for a piece based on seven tiny poetic fragments by Emily Dickinson, even if one of those fragments describes the gorgeous nothings which compose the sunset? Dickinsons poetry evokes huge mysteries in a quiet, domestic tone of voice. Capturing that double-edged quality has tested the sensitivity and inventiveness of many fine composers. Clyne didnt even try. Instead she went straight for the emotional jugular, in a piece that sounded like a set of inspirational slogans for a corporate awayday. Time and again the Swingles would sing a line with medieval-sounding hymnic simplicity, but swathed in orchestral luxuriousness. This would then be repeated, while the orchestra would big up the essentially thin idea with a huge crescendothe go-to procedure for film composers wanting a quick route to feelings of awe. But Dickinsons poetry cant bear such treatment. You cannot sing One note from One Bird is better than a million words over and over without reducing it to banality. It was dispiriting, to hear something so utterly formulaic at the Proms. Some might castigate the piece that followed, Olivier Messiaens huge Turangalila Symphony on the different grounds of being overblown and sentimental. Ive felt that myself, but on this occasion I loved it all even the treacly bits where it sounds as if the stars are dancing a jig to the sounds of the Blackpool Tower organ. What made this experience transporting rather than toe-curling was its exemplary clarity. The fact is Messiaens symphony is often hugely over-dense, with twittery, glittery curlicues in celeste and piano and vibraphone layered over rapturously sweet strings and huge, awe-inspiring chorales in the brass. True there were times when one saw the blur of pianist Steven Osbornes hands, without actually hearing him. But when audible his rhapsodizings were beautifully tender, and the angelic singing of the electronic Ondes Martenots was touched in delicately by Cynthia Millar. Collon controlled everything with a sure and energizing hand. Ive often heard sounds of apocalyptic grandeur in the Albert Hall, but the final ear-splitting crescendo Collon conjured from the massed performers topped them all. IH Watch this Prom on Friday on BBC Four. Listen on BBC Sounds and watch on BBC iPlayer for 12 months. The BBC Proms continues until September 14. Three Choirs Festival - Dale Hodgetts Three Choirs Festival/ Worcester Cathedral Britains oldest music festival has always inclined towards spiritual music which, as it rotates around the three cathedrals of Worcester, Hereford and Gloucester, is natural enough. Theres something about the way sound rises and echoes in those huge spaces which sends the mind soaring, often in ways distant from the solid Anglicanism of the festivals early days. Last nights concert from the Three Choirs Festival Voices and the Philharmonia Orchestra in Worcester Cathedral was certainly suffused with uplift. It was focused on the idea of messages: not the everyday sort done from a smartphone, but expressions of warning from a colonised people, of hope from the Bible, and a yearning for liberation from a young local poet. These were some of the topics of Nathan James Deardens brand-new piece Messages. Much of the time it struck a note of tremulous hope, the hushed implorings of the chorus haloed by the strings of the Philharmonia, and for a while the piece seemed becalmed in that mood. Not a moment too soon it came to vigorous life, and succeeded in being genuinely moving. A perfect hushed stillness followed in the next piece, Judith Weirs Still, Glowing, in which a single chord was refracted endlessly, like a gemstone held and turned against the light. After the interval came a different, quaintly naive sort of message: the one recounted in Gustov Holsts retelling of an ancient Indian legend, in which a cloud carries a plea of love and yearning from a man to his beloved, far away in the Himalayas. Cloud Messenger was over-long the cloud certainly takes its time over the journey. But it was full of wonderful luminous moments, with echoes of not-quite-digested Wagner and Debussy and Holsts own soon-to-be-written Planets jostling together. The choir, orchestra and mezzo-soprano Beth Taylor directed by Geraint Bowen caught its wandering chromatic yearnings beautifully. Then in the fading twilight we moved round the corner to the College Hall also medieval and lofty but more intimate for a late-night immersion in a more overtly mysterious sound-world. GBSR Duo, named after pianist Siwan Rhys and percussionist George Barton, offered eight short pieces, all intriguing in different ways. Sometimes they ventured to extremes of quiet simplicity, as in The Memory of Roses by the late Dutch composer Louis Andriessen. Sometimes they tended towards complication, as in the endlessly floating trills and flurries of the brand-new O Dreamland by Luke Lewis. Two pieces lingered most in the mind. One was the Garden of Gethsemane for solo piano, by the Ethiopian nun and composer Emahoy Tsegue-Mariam Guebru, which was rhapsodic, melancholy and austere all at once. The other was the closing piece Mr. Andersons Pavane by the late Steve Martland. It launched off with peremptory American-minimalist energy, but soon developed a craggy formality, as if the spirit of an Elizabethan dance had been pulled into the 21st-century. It was moving, to feel the spirit of this much-missed composer come alive in this ancient space. IH The Three Choirs Festival continues in Worcester until August 3; 3choirs.org Prom 12: CBeebies Prom Wildlife Jamboree - Andy Paradise/Paradise Photo Proms 2024, CBeebies Prom Wildlife Jamboree, Royal Albert Hall This 70-minute CBeebies Prom was a wildlife-themed music extravaganza that brought together the stars of the BBC arm aimed at children under six. Hey Duggee, Bluey, Octonauts, Andys Adventures and more were all represented. It was like the Eras tour for nippers. And at times it felt as though the CBeebies Prommers were making as much noise as Taylor Swift fans. I left at the end looking like a popcorn McFlurry thanks to a nearby gaggle of excitedly expectorating pre-schoolers. But for uplifting, clever, educational fun and some wonderful music to boot it was hard to beat. My five-year-old son Lenny was captivated throughout, beckoning and hollering from his Albert Hall swivel seat like it was Christmas morning. The concept was simple. The famous venue was reimagined as a watering hole to which the CBeebies presenters thought theyd invited an army of animals for a wildlife jamboree. The arena was bathed in warm swampy light in front of a stage set with reeds and rocks. Except that Dodge T. Dog, a Border Terrier puppet, had forgotten to post the invites. So the audience had to track down the animals ourselves with the help of the programmes stars (either in real life or cartoon form). Along the way we won Hey Duggee badges essentially Scout badges from friendly brown cartoon dog, Duggee. The series of mini quests were interspersed with music courtesy of Sinfonia Smith Square conducted by Trinidadian-Canadian Kwame Ryan and the CBeebies East London Schools Choir, a hundreds-strong group of schoolchildren who were ranged in primary coloured t-shirts behind the stage and were supplemented by the BBC Singers and Blue Peters Joel Mawhinney. The music was nicely programmed to be accessible, interesting and unexpected, possibly harder than it sounds. So the, perhaps inevitable, medley of CBeebies tunes sat alongside the Dance from Othello by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor. Winter from Vivaldis Four Seasons was played with panache by soloist Leia Zhu, who stayed on to demonstrate how the violin can replicate the sound of teeth chattering or snow falling. Indeed, throughout, Ryan and the orchestra showed us how certain instruments sounded like certain animals, such as a French horn for a tiger. It was Carnival of the Animals meets Johnny Morris. An arrangement of Bill Witherss Lovely Day, featuring the in-form choir, was harmonic bliss. Throughout, on-stage presenters Maddie Moate, Chantelle Lindsay and Puja Panchkoty kept the energy levels up. Andy Day, he of the Adventures fame, exuded his charming Indiana-Jones-meets-the-singer-from-Toploader vibe, while the dancing of CBeebies Houses Rhys Stephenson showed why he was a Strictly semi-finalist in 2021. Presenters Hamza Yassin and Steve Backshall made cameos on the big screens. A few things irked. The dialogue echoed not helped by constant ambient toddler chatter. And in a section about droughts, one of the presenters told us to save water by having shorter showers. It was too Aunty knows best for my liking. The highlight, however, was the world premiere of When the Rains Come, written especially for the event by Sarah Class. Handclaps and Tubular Bells-style chimes gave way to a piece that was swooningly widescreen. It was set to a film of animals finding water. It sounded vital and felt nourishing. A bit like water itself. Now that, grinned Lenny as we left, politely ignoring my McFlurried shirt, was fun. JH Hear this Prom on BBC Sounds. Every Prom is broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. The Proms continue until September 14 bbc.co.uk/proms Proms 2024, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, Royal Albert Hall Ryan Wigglesworth conducts some beautiful playing let down by awkward moments - Andy Paradise Englishness is in the Proms DNA think silly hats, a feeling of friendly democracy in the ample bosom of the Royal Albert Hall, and a willingness to send itself up. And once in a while an all-English programme actually comes along. Last night was one such, brought to us by the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. The marks of a certain sort of Englishness courtly, rhythmically strange, touched with magic were vividly present in the first piece, the Symphonic Suite from Benjamin Brittens opera Gloriana. Brittens brilliant re-imaginings of Elizabethan dances were etched with lovely soft-edged clarity and lightness, with Andrew Duncans tuba tripping along as gracefully as the flutes. Conductor Ryan Wigglesworth brought out the delicious dissonant tangle of the stately Pavane, daring in a way which foreshadows Thomas Adess more recent recreations of the musical past. Then came the first piece in this years Proms season to take on one of the burning topics of the moment, the natural environment. However Cheryl Frances-Hoads Cello Concerto wasnt a lament, or a homily. It was more a rhapsodic hymn to the natural glories of the planet, some threatening (volcanoes), some magical (clouds of swifts in flight), and one, blooms of green algae in the oceans, that some might find scary. None of this need matter when listening to my concerto said Frances-Hoad in the programme note, as if to reassure us that these inspirations would be subsumed into a compelling musical argument. And so they were, to a degree. The massive brass chorales, twittering flute-calls and stepwise melodies unfurling into cloudy shapes were pictorially suggestive, but musically potent too. The soloist Laura van der Heijden spun a beautifully rhapsodic line around and above the orchestral music. There were many incidental beauties but the difficulty of integrating all these disparate inspirations tested even Cheryl-Hoads very considerable talents. The ending, though very striking, didnt quite clinch things. Some say Elgar showed a similar failure to clinch a musical argument in his 2nd Symphony, which filled the Proms second half. For me a bigger problem was Wigglesworths brisk no-nonsense tempo at the beginning. Coupled with the orchestras lean sound it felt like an attempt to rein in the musics Edwardian opulence which is a shame as the opulence is part of its essence. Fortunately things improved. The sheer strangeness of the musics many visionary moments shone through, as did the bleak grandeur of the funereal slow movement. If the optimism of the final movement did seem somewhat forced, it wasnt the performers fault. IH Hear this Prom on BBC Sounds. Every Prom is broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. The Proms continue until September 14 bbc.co.uk/proms Proms 2024, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Royal Albert Hall Ryan Bancroft conducts the BBC National Orchestra of Wales at the Proms - Sisi Burn The first weekend of the Proms showed off the range of this great festival, with the joys of disco rubbing shoulders with the heaven-storming ecstasies of Mahler and the quieter spirituality of sacred choral music. Monday night offered something only the Proms could take on; two huge unfamiliar works from that over-ripe musical world of pre-First World War Vienna, where romantic ardour was always dissolving into dream or nightmare. In Schoenbergs Pelleas and Melisande, which launched the Prom, it was the other way around. At the beginning, we seemed to be immersed in a bad dream, the violas and clarinets groping as if in a fog, portraying the princess Melisande lost in a forest. The BBC National Orchestra of Waless Principal Conductor Ryan Bancroft took this opening with a slowness that could have been excessive the silences felt cavernous and it seemed the music would never come to life. But Bancroft rescued things with his wonderfully sure, decisive unfolding of the ensuing narrative. We felt the burgeoning passion between Melisande and the young Pelleas, and the louring suspicion of her husband Golaud. As always with Schoenberg, there was an excess of convoluted melodies layered upon one another, but Bancroft and the players made the complication seem lucid. The moment when Golaud kills Pelleas came with shocking suddenness, and the funeral of Melisande, who dies of a broken heart, had a hair-raising, glassy strangeness. Throughout, the creation of brooding uncanny atmosphere and the building of dramatic tension were held in an ideal balance. Only the flirty moments when the flute and silvery glockenspiel pranced heavily in waltz rhythm felt unconvincing and slightly cringy, as if wed suddenly been whisked to a Viennese boudoir. But that wasnt the performers fault. Sometimes, there are aspects of the musical past that just cant be rescued. After that portrayal of a woman as forest creature who is both innocent and seductive came another orchestral piece centred on a strange sort of female, this time with a fishy tail. This was The Little Mermaid, a retelling of Hans Christian Andersens famous story in rich orchestral colours by Alexander von Zemlinsky, Schoenbergs bosom buddy and brother-in-law. The musics side-slipping, endlessly unstable harmony was similar to Schoenbergs, but as this beautifully shaped performance showed the sound-palette was lighter and more glowingly seductive. There were numerous sweetly enticing solo passages, from trumpeter Philippe Schartz, orchestral leader Lesley Hatfield and others. There were also more of those flirty waltz-like moments for the wedding of the Mermaid and the Prince, but because the overall sound-world was sweeter they felt more convincing. Where the piece failed, compared with Schoenbergs, was in projecting a real dramatic narrative. The music seemed to float at a great distance from the story, expressing a generalised image of love, celebration and the Mermaids sad death. But again, this was hardly the fault of Bancroft and the players. They gave it their all, and if the piece didnt really cohere as a story, we could certainly revel in its sumptuous charm. IH Hear this concert via the BBC iPlayer for 12 months. The Proms continue until Sept 14. Tickets: 020 7070 4441; bbc.co.uk/proms Everybody Dance! The sound of Disco, Proms 2024, Royal Albert Hall Everybody Dance! The Sound of Disco, at the Proms - Andy Paradise Every year, a few killjoys tell us the Proms ventures into pop will bring about the end of civilisation. Even they might have been melted by Saturday nights celebration of the glories of disco. There were silver glitter dresses, sequined bell-bottoms and shirts of blood-constricting tightness and that was just the audience. Youth actually outnumbered the grey-haired boppers, proving that disco never really goes away, it just rests for a decade or two. Usually at Proms pop gigs, things take a little while to warm up. On Saturday, everyone leapt to their feet instantly for the opening number, Disco Inferno. Solo singer Cedric Neal strutted in a green sequined jacket, egging on the five excellent backing singers, and bringing a nice touch of eye-rolling self-mockery of which we would see more later. After that, it was uphill all the way, with 22 more disco numbers weighted towards American disco, but with classics from the Bee Gees and others from this side of the pond. Some of the titles looked unfamiliar on the programme, but the minute they started you thought ah, its that one, proving how firmly these songs are lodged in our collective consciousness. Behind the bopping, swaying singers was the BBC Concert Orchestra. Why bring in an orchestra when a few guitars, synths and drums would do the job, you might be thinking? In fact, the potency of disco owed much to its orchestral sheen, which was recreated here in excellent new orchestrations by Callum Au and others, all energetically conducted by Daniel Bartholomew-Poyser. It allowed for some hair-raising instrumental solos which sometimes rivalled the singers, from clarinetist Nicholas Carpenter (outrageous in Walter Murphys disco version of Rhapsody in Blue) and trumpeters Patrick White and Tom Walsh. We could savour the classical streak in Murphys cheeky yet learned version of Beethovens Fifth (gotta love that inverted augmented sixth just before the climax!), and the Broadway glamour of the slow introductions, such as the one to I Will Survive. Speaking of which, I did wonder: who would dare to recreate the heartbreak and defiance of Gloria Gaynor in that great song? Vula Malinga, thats who, and her confidence was not misplaced. Elizabeth Troy, resplendent in gold glitter, brought a lovely relaxed happiness to Im Coming Out. Vanessa Hayness repeated ecstatic crescendos in Feels Like Im in Love drove the audience wild. The only slight dampener on the evening was the odd sound balance, which made the singing hard to hear. Finally came Bee Gees Night Fever, which drove everyone even wilder. The performers werent going to be allowed to go without an encore, and eventually all four soloists returned for The Last Dance, with Cedric Neal now flaunting a strawberry-coloured glitter jacket. The 1970s may have been a dour decade in many ways, but as this wonderful Prom reminded us it gave birth to a genre that is pure musical joy. IH Hear this concert on BBC Sounds and watch it on BBC iPlayer for 12 months and on BBC Two later in the summer. The Proms continue daily until 14 September bbc.co.uk/proms Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Cheltenham Music Festival He allowed the music to breathe: conductor Andrew Manze - Chris Christodoulou The Cheltenham Music Festival may be somewhat diminished since its glory days in the last millennium but it still offers a wonderful programme of brilliant young performers and intriguing premieres. For the 2024 edition, the focus has been on local boy Gustav Holst, known to millions through his orchestral suite The Planets (first performed in 1918), but precious little else. Thats a sad omission as Holst was a fascinating figure, who learned Sanskrit while working as a jobbing trombonist and music teacher, and was influenced by Japanese and Indian music. This year marks the 150th anniversary of Holsts birth, so this was surely the moment for the Festival to reveal that theres more to Holst than The Planetswhich they did, sort of, but in a disappointingly timid way. They offered none of the Indian-inspired works, or his strange orchestral piece Egdon Heath (1928), which exceeds The Planets in harmonic daring. Still, they did feature the quietly ecstatic Hymn of Jesus, and on the last day the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra took a deep dive into the English folk music of this many-sided composer. If youre allergic to self-consciously rumbustious evocations of footing it merrily upon the village green then the prospect of three folk-influenced pieces by Holst in succession would be unappealing. But these wonderful performances, vigorous without being yokelish and delicate without being precious, might have won you over. Holsts familiar St Pauls Suite may have been written for the young players of St Pauls School for Girls but it requires a needle-point delicacy in the diaphanous second movement, and a seraphic purity of tone from the orchestral leader in the surprisingly sinuous, almost Arabic-sounding third movement, which they certainly received. Throughout, conductor Andrew Manze showed a keen awareness of the harmonic and rhythmic surprises under the musics naive surface, and made sure we noticed them, too. The rarely-heard A Fugal Concerto (1923) was an intriguing hybrid, as if the spirit of Bach had descended on that village green, and the first of the Two Songs harked back to a different sort of Englishness, more courtly than folk-like. The evenings most emotive moment came in the slow movement of Vaughan Williamss English Folksong Suite, where the orchestras principal oboist unfurled the melody My Bonny Boy with lovely aching nostalgia. It would have been intriguing, after that folk-drenched first half of the concert, to see how British composers have projected the folk influence onto a bigger symphonic canvas. But one could hardly complain when the RLPO offered Mozarts radiant Jupiter symphony instead. Andrew Manze is a hugely experienced conductor of Mozart, and feels no need to make his mark with ear-seizing oddities of tempo and phrasing. He allowed the music to breathe naturally, making sure there was plenty of air and light in those pert, balanced phrases, and guiding our ears to the harmonic surprises with the tiniest pulling-back, to set them in relief. The joyous apotheosis of the final movement wasnt always perfectly nimble-fingered, but it certainly blazed with glory. IH No further performances Classical Pride, Barbican Classical Pride 2024, at the Barbican - Matthew Johnson A zippy opener, new commission, compact concerto, contemporary work and short symphony with chorus at first glance, this could have been be any other mixtape-style Barbican concert. But there were rainbow lights winking around the stage and the podium was wrapped in the LGBTQ+ flag. The sartorial choices were brighter, sparklier. I smoothed my own sequinned combat trousers and caught the eye of another person wearing the same. This was Classical Pride, the second instalment of Oliver Zeffmans cleverly conceived celebration. Last years concert, also at the Barbican, with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra was surprisingly the first event of its kind in Europe. Sunday nights performance was the culmination of an expanded five-day series, featuring musicians from UK conservatoires, community choirs and another first: Classical Drag. Coplands rousing Fanfare for the Common Man heralded the arrival of compere Nick Grimshaw. Classic FMs idiosyncratic gala concerts and uneven Proms broadcasts have long shown how difficult it is to provide snappy context for complex music but Grimshaws informality generally worked well, guiding newcomers and pinpointing the programme. As music organisations struggle against a tide of funding cuts at national (for example English National Opera) and local (CBSO) level, Zeffmans ability to secure growing support is all the more impressive. It has enabled several Classical Pride commissions from major composers, including Good Morning, Beauty by Jake Heggie, which received its premiere here. Pumeza Matshikizas creamy soprano whipped up the joyous love song, with Bernsteinian flourishes from the orchestral accompaniment (Barbican house band the London Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Zeffman). Having performed at last years event (with his partner Samson Tsoy), Pavel Kolesnikov returned as the soloist in Saint-Saenss second piano concerto. The virtuosic, showstopping opening is tempered by the dreamy second theme and a humorous, scurrying finale. Kolesnikov proved a balletic pianist in Tchaikovskys Valse Sentimentale, his arms danced into the space above the keyboard, never to the detriment of his technique. Some might attribute this to queering the performance, an idea that encourages authenticity in musical expression. Composer Julius Eastman (1940-1990) once summed up that spirit when he told an interviewer: What I am trying to achieve is to be what I am to the fullest black to the fullest, a musician to the fullest, a homosexual to the fullest. While we didnt have any Eastman in the main hall Jessie Montgomerys arrangement of Eastmans Gay Guerilla was performed in the foyer prior the concert proper Cassandra Millers Round hinted at his radical musical minimalism, with trumpets positioned up in the balcony and an urgent, repeated motif. Sounds swirled, programme pages turned. Russell Thomas in town to sing Mario Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Royal Opera House was joined by the LGBTQ+ Community Choir for Szymanowskis dramatic Symphony No 3 Song of the Night, an ecstatic work that is texturally dense Thomass tenor rather got lost in the weave. The counterpoint to this uplifting evening was the reminder that Pride is a protest movement, because rights are still not universal. To that end, all proceeds from Classical Pride are donated to Rainbow Road, Amplifund and the Terrence Higgins Trust. CJ No further performances Sound Within Sound, Southbank Centre The Southbank's festival explores the concept of Sound Within Sound - Getty A sound within a sound its a strange idea. How can one sound contain another? As the first concert in Sound Within Sound the Southbanks festival of experimental music from around the world unfolded, it became clear. It means sounds of bewitching unfamiliarity: the booming and gurgling and hissing of water and insects and bells, intricate and many-layered, like one shape unfolding to reveal another. Sounds which after a moment of resistance you sink into pleasurably, with a mysterious sense of connecting with something age-old. This was the sound of Jitterbug by New Zealander Annea Lockwood, who back in the heady late 1960s became briefly notorious for recording the sound of burning pianos. Not very green! she confessed in her post-concert chat with the festivals curator Kate Molleson, though she has more than made up for it since by settling in Montana and turning to nature for inspiration. Lockwood is one of many outsider modernists who were just as bold in their reinventions of music as any of the lustrous names of the West who dominate the official histories. Ten of them, including an Ethiopian nun who went to a Swiss finishing school and a Brazilian composer who created an entire menagerie of new instruments, are revealed in Mollesons 2022 book (which gave the festival its name) at the Southbank, the music of all of them is being heard, some of it for the first time in the UK. Many of the mysterious sound-within-sounds of Lockwoods music turned out to be field recordings of rivers and insects, subtly altered and diffused by the Queen Elizabeth Halls superb sound-diffusion system. Layered above them were plaintive notes and almost-mute sighings and scratchings from violinist Angharad Davies and cellist Anton Lukoszevieze. They played these tiny sounds with the same delicate care as a pianist would place a note in a Mozart sonata, with expressive results that were just as potent but in a different way. A Mozart sonata arouses memories of all the other sonatas one has ever heard. Here, the cello and violin keenings seemed new-minted and yet old, like a voice of nature. After that, it was a shock to be plunged into the jangling, hard-edged, clockwork world of Music for 5 Pianos by Cuban composer Jose Maceda. Maceda was inspired by folk music from across the world, not just his native land, but he was also a dreamer of new musical worlds as bold as any in the West. This piece, played by superb precision and sensitivity by five pianists of the group Apartment House conducted by Jack Sheen, revealed both sides of this extraordinary man. The rhapsodic flurries tossed from one piano to another sounded like a village fiesta; the bell-like chords and interlocking patterns seemed to point to the stars. It was miles from Lockwoods nature mysticism, but the grandeur and innocent freshness were the same. In all, it was a wonderful beginning to a festival that harked back to the days when the Southbank was habitually bold. Lets hope its a sign of things to come. IH Festival continues until July 7. Tickets: 020 3879 9555; southbankcentre.co.uk The Exclusive Brethren, now known as the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, issues laptops to students at its OneSchool Global campuses. Illustration: Victoria Hart/Guardian Design Students at a network of private schools set up by the Exclusive Brethren sect are subject to near constant surveillance, including in out-of-school hours, according to former staff, students and parents. They say school-issued laptops are closely monitored by a roster of church members. Parents of former students told Guardian Australia they were also watched by these so-called device monitors to ensure they were checking the internet use of their children, and could be reported to the church if they failed to do so. All students, staff and parents are told their school devices are monitored and the OneSchool Global (OSG) network says any surveillance strictly abides by the Privacy Act and all other Australian laws. OSG says there is no involvement from any church in the surveillance procedures, but this is disputed by former staff and students. Official school documents are also understood to refer repeatedly to the involvement of local community pastoral support. The Brethren, which is now known as the Plymouth Brethren Christian Church, was once accused by the former prime minister Kevin Rudd of being an extremist cult. Former members say it practises a strict doctrine of separation from worldly people, meaning its members are not allowed to socialise with non-members, and access to technology and the internet is tightly controlled. The Brethren counters these claims by saying it is a mainstream Christian church. The fact is that we live amongst and work beside people from within our church, outside of our church and in all walks of life, a church spokesperson said. The leader of the church, Bruce Hales, has rejected Rudds accusations as not factual. They were not informed, and it seems to us they were deliberately intended to put the Brethren in an unfair light for political purposes, he said. Guardian Australia has spoken to multiple former staff members, students and parents who claim that students who attend OSG schools are monitored through a combination of CCTV cameras installed in all campuses, and through the monitoring of laptops by other members of the Brethren community. Devices and internet use watched OSG has 31 campuses in Australia and 2,500 students enrolled. Globally, it runs 120 campuses in 20 countries from its headquarters in Sydney. The school network was established by the Brethren to enable their children to be educated away from the mainstream school system. The church says they do not run the schools, and that non-Brethren families can enrol their children if they adhere to their ethos. The school is supported by volunteers from the church community. Computers and phones used by Brethren church members come from the Brethrens central business group, Universal Business Team (UBT). The computers used by students in the Brethren schools are installed with UBT software called Streamline3 which allows for remote monitoring of internet and email use, and includes periodic screen capturing. Personal devices are not usually permitted. So-called student device monitors are engaged on a voluntary basis in each Brethren community linked to each school campus, and it is expected that at least one of these monitors is a Brethren elder a father over the age of 50 whose children have left school. OSG said that all of these volunteers receive extensive training and are required to have Working with Children checks. Related: You feel like youre in prison: workers claim Amazons surveillance violates labor law Each week, these monitors charged with helping to review and apply IT policies are required to report to the school the internet activity of each student and any inappropriate search terms or content. They are expected to regularly report their findings to the local church leadership. The monitors are also expected to ensure that parents access their childs email account by having it installed on their own devices. The monitors are required to report to the school weekly on any parents who are not accessing the Streamline3 portal to check on their childs internet use. Parents say they are sent a weekly summary of their childs internet use and are then required to log on to the portal to access the full computer activity of their child, including their email activity and any files they have accessed or created each week. They are looking for you to dob in your child if they are doing anything the church doesnt like Households that are reported as not having logged into the portal may also be referred to the local community for pastoral action. One parent who has since left the Brethren, and spoke on the condition of anonymity, said they had been reprimanded for not reporting on their childs internet use. You cant protect your child as a parent without getting done as a member of the church. They are looking for you to dob in your child if they are doing anything the church doesnt like. According to a publicly available privacy notice for younger students at OSG schools in the UK, the school will monitor your childs use of email, the internet and mobile electronic devices. In certain circumstances we will look at the content of your childs communications (e.g. emails and text messages). This is to check that your child is not misbehaving when using this technology or putting themselves at risk of harm. The monitoring we do is carried out using computer software which will automatically tell us if something isnt right. The software collects screenshots, search terms and websites visited. An ICT misuse behaviour management policy written by the OSG global IT team ranks IT breaches according to four different levels, with a serious breach including the sharing of non-school related music, videos or games. Blacklisted sites Facebook is among the blacklisted sites, and repeated access to it is also considered a serious level breach that will be reported to campus administrators for action. Unsuitable personal relationship communications are also in this category. Separately, the schools also engage volunteer community members for an email monitoring team at each school, which is tasked with checking the email correspondence of students. Families are told that parents must be vigilant in monitoring their children, and it is seen as faithful to report something to the church authorities as they seek to protect children from the outside world. Related: Revealed: Home Affairs paying to access controversial tool tracking mobile phone movements Parents can be sent screenshots of every website visited by their child on a daily or weekly basis and are taught how to permanently delete any unsuitable files such as music unrelated to school work and to search for terms of concern. Guardian Australia understands that one guidebook for device monitors describes how to search a childs internet activity for terms of concern, suggesting as an example a search for the word gay. OSG told the Guardian that their technology uses categorisation and content filtering, based on the same standard lists of search terms and classifications used by other schools to identify any online activity which is not appropriate in a school environment. This technology does not have additional filtering which would block searches around sexual orientation. It would likely have additional filtering which would apply to searches around self-harm, eating disorders and so on. Use of CCTV cameras Closed-circuit television cameras are also installed in all indoor and outdoor spaces of OneSchool Global campuses, including classrooms, storage rooms and entry to bathrooms. All outdoor areas are also covered by CCTV, including carparks, areas where children queue for buses, and gymnasiums. Areas that are not covered by CCTV are considered to be out of bounds for students. Staff rooms are also monitored with CCTV. A privacy notice for staff issued to UK-based school staff and seen by Guardian Australia says that the schools regularly monitor and access the IT system used by staff using Streamline3. The School may also monitor staff use of the School telephone system and voicemail messages. Staff should be aware that the School may monitor the contents of a communication (such as the contents of an email), the memo states. Monitoring may be carried out on a random basis and it may be carried out in response to a specific incident or concern. It says the Streamline3 software automatically monitors the School IT system (for example, it would raise an alert if a member of Staff visited a blocked website or sent an email containing an inappropriate word or phrase. If anything of concern is revealed as a result of such monitoring then this information may be shared with the HR Team and this may result in disciplinary action. Exclusive Brethren schools have operated under various names since 1994, but were rebranded globally as OneSchool Global in 2019. In a 2009 fellowship meeting in Argentina, Hales spoke about his philosophy in regards to the schools. My philosophy about schooling is I want to be in control, and I want to know those teachers know that were in control. And control is critical. And if they dont respect you, I wouldnt have them near the place Theyve got to respect our way of life the way were bringing our families up our ethos And thats how you keep control in the school. Normal practice, school says A spokesperson for OneSchool Global said it was normal practice for the school to have software, policies and procedures to prevent harmful content, malware and the like on school-issued computers. At the 31 OSG schools across Australia, schools strictly abide by the Privacy Act and all other Australian laws. This includes in relation to the use of CCTV, which is undertaken in the same fashion as other schools, the spokesperson said. They said the school had a multilayered approach to keeping children safe while they were using school-issued devices, saying Streamline3 was installed along with safe-search mode and other off-the-shelf technology. Streamline3 is installed on every OSG device which is essentially a firewall that protects from malware and viruses, in addition to being an internet filter. It has different profiles and applications for students compared to non-students, the spokesperson said. The non-student version is not monitored and is used for filtering and preventing malware only. Jack Dolan, 15, is critically ill in hospital and doctors are unsure how long he will live for - Triangle News /David Dolan A 15-year-old boy has been left in a vegetative state after doing a show-off backflip off a pier while on his first trip to a beach without his parents. Jack Dolan landed on his head after jumping off Stone Pier in Margate, Kent, on June 23. His parents Lisa Dolan, 33, and Dave Dolan, 35, are now fundraising so they can move house and make the necessary alterations in order to look after him at home. Their son requires round-the-clock care and doctors are unsure how long he will survive. Speaking about the incident, Mr Dolan said: I think he misjudged it and landed face first on the water and knocked himself out. It was only three or four metres and if hed landed a quarter rotation one way or the other he would probably have been fine. Thats why we cant be angry at him. Hed done it so many times before, there is no blame. I know he was laughing, I can actually see him doing it, smiling and being a complete show-off. He added: The last thing he would have known was being happy. A still from a video from September 2023 showing Jack Dolan in Egypt, doing the same flip which left him brain damaged - Triangle News/David Dolan It was their childs first trip to the beach without them as he has ADHD. Mr Dolan, who lives in Rainham, Kent, said: It was the first time wed let him. Wed always said no because we were quite strict. He had ADHD and he acts before he thinks. But he was 15 and we wanted to give him a bit more freedom. Jack, a pupil at The Howard School in Medway, was with a group of friends and his girlfriend when the accident occurred. It is thought he did not realise the height of the pier or the depth of the water when he jumped in. He is understood to have been knocked unconscious upon impact before his friends pulled him from the water. After Jacks friends called emergency services and his parents, he was taken to Kings College Hospital, London, by air ambulance. An MRI scan later revealed the teenager had suffered severe brain damage. End of life care Doctors said he may live for just weeks - but conceded that he could survive for years. Mr Dolan said: Hes on end of life care and while his body is OK, his brain is dead. He cant go to a childrens hospice because you have to be close to death. Hes off life support and breathing, but doing nothing else. His eyes flutter sometimes but hes asleep most of the time. We want to take him home, but we live in a maisonette and we cant have him here. A person in a vegetative state is alive, can breathe unaided and there is a slim chance of recovery. Brain death is when a person is being kept alive artificially and there is no chance of recovery. The family, including Jacks sisters Faith, 10, and Grace, eight, are in council accommodation and are raising money for home alterations at a new property. Mr Dolan said: We need two reception rooms, a downstairs closet and a wet room. Jack has been described as "the biggest joker, with a heart of gold" - Triangle News /David Dolan Around 12,000 has been raised out of a target of 20,000. Sam Cass, who organised the crowdfunder for Jack, described him as the biggest joker, with a heart of gold. He added: He loves to show off in front of girls and wont leave the house without doing his hair. He loves his family, will do anything for his sisters and this fundraiser is to take a little bit of the burden away from them. Many people love Jack and Im sure they all wish the family wasnt going through this right now. Palestinians flee the eastern part of Gaza City after being ordered by the Israeli army to evacuate the area. Photograph: Dawoud Abu Alkas/Reuters People in Gaza City have reported one of the heaviest attacks by Israeli forces since 7 October, sending thousands of Palestinians fleeing from an area already ravaged in the early weeks of the nine-month-old war. The latest Israeli incursion into the eastern sector of Gaza City came as Israels far-right coalition parties threatened again to stop ongoing negotiations in Qatar for a ceasefire, arguing that halting the fighting now would be a huge mistake. Sporadic militant activity has hindered Israeli efforts to maintain control in Gaza. Despite claiming authority over the Gaza City area months ago, Israel has had to contend with persistent pockets of resistance, forcing a re-evaluation of its military strategy and redeployment of forces. Before the recent offensive, the Israeli military said it had issued evacuation orders in the targeted zone. The territorys civil emergency service told Reuters it believed that dozens of people had been killed in Gaza City but that teams were unable to reach them because of offensives in a number of areas. Local sources said Israeli warplanes had bombed a residential apartment near an industrial junction south of Gaza City, killing two citizens and wounding five others. They said a house south of Gaza City was bombed, killing one person and wounding seven others. Eyewitnesses said that thousands of citizens were displaced from areas south-west of the city towards the north-west and spent the night on the streets without shelter, a source said. Sayeda Abdel-Baki, who was sheltering at her relatives home in the Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City, told Associated Press: We fled in the darkness amid heavy strikes. This is my fifth displacement. Medics at al-Ahli Arab Baptist hospital in Gaza City had to evacuate patients to the already crowded and under-equipped Indonesian hospital in the northern Gaza Strip, Palestinian health officials said. According to an Israeli military statement, Israeli forces were operating following intelligence indicating the presence of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist infrastructure, operatives, weapons and investigation and detention rooms, including in the Unrwa headquarters. Philippe Lazzarini, the commissioner general for Unrwa, the UNs agency for Palestinian refugees, has previously criticised Hamas and Israel for occupying and using its facilities during the conflict. Hopes among Gaza residents of a pause in the fighting had revived after Hamas accepted a key part of a US ceasefire proposal, prompting an official in the Israeli negotiating team to say there was a real chance of a deal. However, the Israeli finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, who heads a pro-settler party that is part of Benjamin Netanyahus governing coalition, said stopping the war now would be a huge mistake. Hamas is collapsing and begging for a ceasefire, Smotrich wrote on X. This is the time to squeeze the neck until we crush and break the enemy. To stop now, just before the end, and let him recover and fight us again, is a senseless folly. Concerns are growing in Israel over the substantial influence wielded by the far-right opponents of a ceasefire deal in the coalition. Netanyahu is facing criticism from opposition parties, media and families of Israeli hostages, who accuse him of undermining efforts to reach a ceasefire and secure the release of the hostages for his own political survival. On Monday, a senior Hamas official accused Netanyahu of stepping up combat and bombardment in Gaza in order to derail the latest truce effort. Whenever a round of negotiations begins and a breakthrough is within reach, he disrupts it all and escalates the aggression and massacres against civilians, the Hamas official told Agence France-Presse. Netanyahus popularity plummeted after the 7 October attack by Hamas, which exposed serious flaws in Israeli security. Most political observers say he would lose elections if they were held now. This is not the first time that far-right parties within the coalition have interfered with negotiations. Dahlia Scheindlin, a political analyst and author of The Crooked Timber of Democracy in Israel, said: Its natural that the far-right parties have influence over Netanyahus decisions. They are his coalition partners and they were voted into that position. It would be strange if they didnt have influence over Netanyahu. In addition, the war cabinet is gone and Netanyahu has a poor relationship with his defence minister and is suspicious of the military establishment. Any influence they have is certainly matched by the partners Netanyahu chose for his government. The unusual background is that Netanyahu didnt really have a choice of coalition partners in 2022 because he had been indicted So no other parties would join his government. When people elected this government in 2022, they werent expecting a war of this magnitude they didnt know that they were choosing leaders for this purpose. On Sunday, Netanyahus office issued a document saying any deal must allow Israel to resume its offensive until it reaches its war goals. The document was heavily criticised by the opposition leader, Yair Lapid, who said: What good does this do? We are at a crucial moment in the negotiations, the lives of the hostages depends on this. Why make such taunting announcements? How does this help the process? AFP, AP and Reuters contributed to this report TSMC (TSM) TSMCs shares jumped as much as 3% in Taipei (2330.TW), extending its rally this year to more than 75% as chipmakers brace for TSMCs price increases. Shares also received a boost after Morgan Stanley joined a list of brokers raising price targets on the chipmaker before its earnings report. TSMCs hunger marketing strategy seems to be working, Morgan Stanley analysts including Charlie Chan wrote in a note Sunday, Bloomberg first reported. Our latest supply chain checks indicate that TSMC is delivering a message that leading-edge foundry supply could be tight in 2025 and customers may not get sufficient capacity allocation without appreciating TSMCs value. Read more: FTSE 100 LIVE: European stocks up as left wing bloc beats far right in French election SMC's quarterly investors conference is scheduled for 18 July, with market attention focused on AI chip demand, the foundry's expected price increase, and capital expenditures. The maker of the worlds most advanced chips is expected to report 36% revenue growth from a year earlier. Boeing (BA) Shares in the plane manufacturer were in the red ahead of the US opening bell as the company agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of its 737 Max jetliners. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence, or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the US. Boeing will pay a $243.6m (190.1m) fine and invest at least $455m (355m) over three years to strengthen its safety and compliance programmes as part of the plea deal. A total of 346 people died in the incidents which involved a Lion Air MAX 8 flight in Indonesia in 2018 and then, six months later, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 outside Addis Ababa. Paramount (PARA) One of Hollywood's oldest companies, Paramount Global, has agreed to merge with independent film studio Skydance Media. As part of the deal, Paramount chair Shari Redstone agreed to sell her familys National Amusements Inc., which controls about 77% of the voting stock in Paramount, for $2.4bn, according to a statement released by the company on Sunday. Skydance will subsequently merge with Paramount, offering $4.5bn in cash or stock to shareholders and providing an additional $1.5bn for Paramount's balance sheet. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2025. Read more: Stocks that are trending today "Given the changes in the industry, we want to fortify Paramount for the future while ensuring that content remains king, said Redstone. Our hope is that the Skydance transaction will enable Paramounts continued success in this rapidly changing environment. It comes just weeks after Redstone blocked a deal with Skydance and marks the close of a complicated eight-month process in which Redstone held discussions with a range of potential suitors including private equity group Apollo and Sony (SONY). Shares in Ocado surged after the online supermarket revealed plans to build its third robotic warehouse in Japan as part of its tie-up with Aeon in the country. The FTSE listed group which first struck a partnership deal with Japanese retail company Aeon in 2019 said the new site in Kuki-Miyashiro will go live in 2027. It comes after Aeons first robotic warehouse opened in the Kanto region of Japan a year ago, powered by Ocados technology, with a second due to launch in Hachioji in 2026. Read more: What the new Labour government means for your money The pair plan to open further robotic warehouses across the country as Aeon expands its online grocery delivery offering. Tim Steiner, chief executive of Ocado Group, hailed the latest announcement as an exciting moment for Aeon and Ocados relationship as we deepen our already strong partnership. Download the Yahoo Finance app, available for Apple and Android. An African elephant with a super tusker in the background in Amboseli national park, Kenya. The tusks weigh about 45kg each and are prized by hunters. Photograph: Klein & Hubert/naturepl.com In the borderlands of Tanzania and Kenya, the super tuskers roam. A combination of old age, genetic pooling and prolonged protection from poaching has created a population of bull elephants with enormous tusks, weighing up to 45kg apiece, large enough to scrape along the ground as the animals walk. To many, the bulls are living icons of the African savannah. They are also highly prized by trophy hunters. Now, a series of super-tusker killings has sparked a bitter international battle over trophy hunting and its controversial, sometimes counterintuitive role in conservation. Some conservationists believe the killing of these extraordinary animals should not be allowed. Others say controlled, regulated hunting can actually contribute to elephants long-term survival by providing jobs for local people and incentives for habitats to be preserved. The conflict began brewing last year, when the Tanzanian government ended a 30-year informal agreement with Kenya by allowing hunters to legally shoot at least two out of the 10 remaining super tuskers. The herd is a cross-border population that migrates between Kenya (where trophy hunting is banned) and Tanzania, where wildlife laws allow for trophy hunting on auctioned wildlife-rich blocks, for foreign hunters who can afford a premium safari package. The targeted elephants were among the largest, oldest bulls, a group of conservationists wrote in a letter decrying their loss, which was published in the journal Science in June. They represented one of the last gene pools for enormous ivory and the source of the largest tusks ever collected. This month, the Tanzanian government will decide whether to issue more super-tusker hunting permits for the coming year. The authors urged them not to do so, and focus instead on ecotourism. Alive, these super tuskers have great biological, economic and social value, they wrote. Once they are shot, their contribution ends. Jackson Mwato was born near Amboseli and grew up watching elephants roam around his home. These tuskers are dear to the Maasai. We have coexisted with them for ages. They dont know any international borders and some of our clans are named after them, he says. Mwato is executive director of the Amboseli Ecosystem Trust that brings together conservancies covering 158,000 hectares (390,000 acres), and says the loss of the big tuskers could affect more than 65,000 households who rely on tourism. If they disappear, it will be a loss to the country and the Maasai community. People who talk about hunting not having an impact, or endangering elephant society, are only looking at it from numbers Joyce Poole, conservationist The tuskers belong to a population of 2,000 involved in the 51-year-old Amboseli Elephant Research Project, the longest study of elephants in the world. Conservationist Joyce Poole, co-founder of Elephant Voices and lead author of the letter protesting against their deaths, says the elephants uniqueness as scientific subjects should be protected. Additionally, she says, those killed were keystone individuals, which younger males learn from and which coordinate the movements of closely bonded animals. People who talk about hunting not having an impact or endangering elephant society, are only looking at it from numbers, Poole says. Theyre not looking at how those individuals have a role in society. Audrey Delsink, wildlife director of the Humane Society International, agrees, describing these animals as living icons with immeasurable tourism value. But other scientists say many who oppose hunting seem to push for bans even if they harm habitats, wildlife and communities. However distasteful many may find hunting, it can and does work as a provider of revenue for conservation and communities, says Prof Adam Hart from the University of Gloucestershire, co-author of the book Trophy Hunting. Evidence shows that abolishing trophy hunting and the incentives it creates for conservation without funded alternatives can lead to greater loss of wildlife. Some studies have found that habitats managed for hunting can protect many other endangered species nearby. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has concluded there is substantial evidence trophy hunting produces positive outcomes for wildlife conservation. In 2017, the organisation said trophy hunting was increasingly under intense scrutiny and facing high-profile and often effective campaigns calling for broad-scale ban which could hasten rather than reverse the decline of iconic wildlife, remove the economic incentives for the retention of vast areas of wildlife habitat, and alienate and undermine already marginalised communities who live with wildlife. A Tanzanian tour operator, who spoke on condition of anonymity and has hosted hunting parties for decades, says for local people, the benefits of trophy hunting far outweigh the losses. He says: You have someone paying $5,000 for a licence and about $10,000 for the trophy. Leasing a whole block could be as much as $60,000. Is that not creating employment for local people and ploughing back the money to conservation? One hunting camp employs close to 30 local people. Related: Bill banning import of hunting trophies into UK passed by MPs He says hunters must be accompanied by anti-poaching personnel increasing the range of patrols and that they picked off old animals. If my cow gets old, I normally sell it to a butcher or slaughter it myself. Likewise, would you rather not get top dollar from an animal that would have died of old age anyway? Amy Dickman, professor of wildlife conservation at the University of Oxford, said the argument is a microcosm of a much wider debate about the unintended harms of hunting bans. Focusing on the scientific value of the bulls perpetuated the idea that elephants and researchers were more important than local people, she says. The letter follows the damaging pattern of demanding that hunting ends now, while providing no immediate alternative revenue stream, she says. [It] failed to even mention local communities. People dont care as much about unintended consequences, she adds. [They] assume if you just ban something, then those animals will live in harmony in that place. Its often not the case. For some scientists, these elephants age, distinctiveness, and our growing understanding of the complexity of their communication make the losses particularly difficult. Poole has been studying the Amboseli population since 1975 and over the decades, her research has revealed how sophisticated their communication is, including a paper last month that found elephants have names for one another. My heart goes out to them, because they are just such incredible animals, she says. 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 The neonicotinoid pesticide Cruiser SB is used on sugar beet crops, and has now been banned by the EU. Photograph: Loop Images/UIG/Getty Images The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is being investigated by the environmental watchdog after Conservative ministers authorised a bee-killing pesticide that was banned by the EU. The investigation into Defra was launched after the campaign group ClientEarth submitted a complaint to the Office for Environmental Protection, which was set up after Brexit to replace the EUs framework for punishing environmental offences by governments in the bloc. On Monday, the OEP announced it would be investigating the emergency authorisation of a neonicotinoid pesticide in 2023 and 2024. It said: The investigation is seeking to determine whether there were serious failures to comply with a number of environmental laws in relation to emergency authorisations granted for the use of Cruiser SB on sugar beet seeds. In particular, the investigation is considering Defras interpretation and application of the precautionary principle and compliance with its nature conservation obligations when it considers granting emergency authorisations. The neonicotinoid pesticide Cruiser SB is used on sugar beet and is highly toxic to bees and has the potential to kill off populations of the insect. It is banned in the EU but the UK has provisionally agreed to its emergency use every year since leaving the bloc. The former environment secretary Michael Gove promised in 2017 that ministers would use Brexit to stop the use of the pesticide. Instead, the EU banned all emergency authorisations of neonicotinoid pesticides while the UK government has allowed its use, one of many ways the UK has diverged from EU environmental policy since Brexit. Prof Dave Goulson, a bee expert at the University of Sussex, has warned that one teaspoon of the chemical is enough to kill 1.25bn honeybees. Related: I have seen the decline: pesticides linked to falling UK insect numbers Conservative ministers authorised the pesticide for use this year, against the warnings of scientific advisers. Both the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and the Expert Committee on Pesticides raised concerns over this years emergency authorisation. Neonicotinoid pesticides can stay in the soil for years, and they taint any flowering plant which grows, meaning that bees foraging for nectar from a flower can be poisoned years after treated seeds were planted. During the general election, the Labour party committed in its manifesto to end the authorisations of the pesticide because of its effect on bees. Kyle Lischak, of ClientEarth, said: Failing to take a proper precautionary approach when approving the use of pesticides is threatening our pollinators and the wider environment and puts England even further off-track from meeting its 2030 biodiversity targets. This investigation also sends an important signal to government and other decision-makers: laws that protect nature such as the habitat regulations have to go beyond planning decisions and include other activities that could threaten nature. And while this investigation is under way, we are calling on the new government to support UK farmers to adopt sustainable methods of pest control that work with nature, rather than putting it at risk as they are the custodians of so much of Englands natural environment. Richard Benwell, the chief executive of Wildlife and Countryside Link said: This case will rightly investigate whether proper process was followed in allowing the use of banned pesticides, but if it is successful then the lessons are much wider. Scientific advice on major environmental decisions shouldnt be swept under the carpet for political or economic expediency. We welcome Labours commitment to end the use of emergency authorisations for neonicotinoids, and hope the party will pay heed to the opinions of its expert advisers and the urgent need for ecological action in all its decisions, from toxic chemical use, to planning on land and at sea. A Defra spokesperson said: We are at a crisis point nature is dying across Britain. This government will change existing policies to ban the use of bee-killing pesticides to protect our vital pollinators. Long-term prisoners in Scotland could be released after serving two thirds of their sentence under Government plans. The Scottish Government has been wrestling with a rising prison population in recent months, with a programme of early release currently under way for more than 500 inmates. But announcing the move earlier this year, Justice Secretary Angela Constance said more was needed to impact the population over the long term. A consultation published on Monday showed some prisoners could be allowed out under licence after serving two thirds of their sentence; this would be a return to the policy from before February 2016. Views are being sought on changing the point of release under licence conditions for people serving a custodial sentence of four years or more. Find out more at https://t.co/vnXlHWcsGT pic.twitter.com/PgMxAgQohc ScotGov Justice (@ScotGovJustice) July 8, 2024 Currently, prisoners are eligible to be released under licence six months from the end of their sentence. Those who are given an extended sentence where a court enforces a period in prison followed by supervision after release will also not be eligible. Ms Constance said: Supervision is a commonly used element of custodial sentences as part of efforts to prepare individuals nearing their return to the community to settle and ultimately to not re-offend. Our proposals would bring forward the point at which long-term prisoners are released so individuals spend more time under licence conditions in the community before the end of their sentence. Individuals would continue to serve their sentence but do so in the community under strict supervision, which can improve reintegration back into society and reduce the risk of re-offending. We are considering these measures to find a better balance between the time spent in custody and time supervised in the community, particularly following the recent increase in the prison population when Scotland already has one of the highest in Western Europe. Public safety will be paramount. Release under licence conditions means strict community supervision and specific support in place informed by robust individual risk assessments of prisoners. These measures would be introduced through legislation, requiring debate and the approval of Parliament. I invite people to share their views. But the Scottish Tories criticised the move. The SNP want to release dangerous criminals who have served just two-thirds of their sentence which, if enacted, would pose a serious risk to public safety, a spokesman for the party said. The fact that these plans are even being proposed is systematic of the SNPs failure to invest in our prison estate which is crumbling at the seams. The needs of criminals have yet again been put above the needs of victims in the SNPs justice system. Scottish Lib Dem justice spokesman Liam McArthur said the issues facing the prison system were a mess of the SNPs own making. On their watch weve seen the prison population spiral out of control, dangerous levels of overcrowding and cuts to schemes that would have helped people avoid reoffending, he added. The consultation will close on August 19. The plans come as the Scottish Government released statistics showing an increase in the re-conviction rate in 2020-21 compared to the previous year. The figures show a 2.6 percentage point rise to 26.9%, while the average number of re-convictions per offender increased by 8% from 0.41 to 0.44. Despite the recent increase, however, re-conviction rates have been on a downward trend in the past decade, falling from 29.6% in 2011-12. Men were more likely to be re-convicted than women, while offenders who committed crimes of dishonesty were most likely to do so again. The SNPs internal difficulties led to people feeling the party was detached from their daily lives, Westminster leader Stephen Flynn said as he reflected on the partys heavy General Election defeat. A disastrous election night for the SNP saw the party fall to nine MPs, down from 48 in 2019, losing in the entirety of Scotlands central belt. Senior figures in the party have been airing their opinions on the reasons for the losses, with ousted MP Joanna Cherry laying the blame at former leader Nicola Sturgeons door. Former Westminster leader Ian Blackford gave a cautious backing to John Swinneys leadership but said voters had sent the SNP a very clear message. Mr Flynn was re-elected in Aberdeen South but his majority was reduced to 3,758, as Scottish Labour finished second in the constituency. In an article written for the Daily Record, he said the SNP must be guided by the brutal honesty of the election results. He said: We were beaten and we were beaten well we cant and we wont run away from that truth. The SNP lost dozens of seats in the election (Michal Wachucik/PA)(Michal Wachucik/PA) Honesty and humility is the only response with any hope of winning back those who voted for others or those who decided to stay at home. The Aberdeen South MP said it would take time to understand the defeat but it was clear the partys difficulties in recent years had contributed. He continued: The distraction of dealing with our own internal difficulties has meant people began to feel that we were detached from their daily lives and lived experience. We have lost trust and its our job, and our job alone, to win it back. Mr Flynn backed Mr Swinneys leadership and said it was right to genuinely congratulate Sir Keir Starmer on his victory. The SNP MP added: We dont agree that stability means change and we dont believe it will fix Britain. Those are the fundamentals of why we still believe in independence. Meanwhile, former SNP minister Alex Neil repeated his call for Mr Swinney to resign. He told The Herald that a new leader who was not associated with the Sturgeon/Swinney years of failure should be put in place over the summer. Ousted MP Joanna Cherry laid the blame for the partys election performance at Nicola Sturgeons door (Jane Barlow/PA) He said: The only two people who we have there are Kate Forbes and Stephen Flynn. My view is that Swinney should hand over to that new generation. But Deputy First Minister Ms Forbes backed Mr Swinney to revitalise the partys fortunes. Competence and integrity must be the hallmark of our leadership and its certainly the two words that have been on John Swinneys lips prior to the election, throughout the election and now in the aftermath of the election, she said on BBC Radio 4s Today programme on Monday. Those are two flags, as it were, that need to be planted on everything that we do and I believe John Swinney is the leader to do that and I am very pleased to be supporting him in his mission to achieve that. Following Ms Sturgeons resignation in March last year, Humza Yousaf became SNP leader and First Minister after a leadership contest which exposed divisions in the party. He stepped down after just over a year in the job as he dealt with the backlash of his decision to suddenly end the powersharing agreement with the Scottish Greens. There is also an ongoing police investigation into the funding and finances of the SNP. Sir Keir Starmer has met Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly as he continues his tour of the UK. The Prime Minister is visiting Belfast following his trip to Scotland on Sunday, and will also visit Wales to round off a visit to the three devolved nations. He arrived at Stormont Castle early on Monday morning as he begins his first full week in office, ahead of travelling to the Nato summit in Washington on Tuesday. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly greeted Sir Keir and new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn at the castle entrance before they held a meeting inside. Ms ONeill congratulated him on his electoral success and they discussed Westminster and Stormont parliamentary schedules. After half an hour with Stormonts leaders, the new Prime Minister then moved on to Parliament Buildings, where he was greeted at the foot of the landmark steps by Assembly Speaker Edwin Poots. He is then holding talks with representatives from the main Stormont parties. He is likely to face questions about funding for cash-strapped public services in Northern Ireland as well as coming under pressure from Ms ONeill to commit to funding the redevelopment of the Casement Park stadium, which has been earmarked to host Euro 2028 matches. First Minister Michelle ONeill (front left) and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly (back left) welcome Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer to Stormont Caste (Niall Carson/PA) He is also likely to be asked about delivering on his partys manifesto pledge to repeal the controversial Legacy Act. Sinn Fein emerged from last weeks election as the Northern Ireland party with the largest representation at Westminster and the republican partys president, Mary Lou McDonald, has urged the new Prime Minister to embrace the right of Irish self-determination and constitutional change toward Irish reunification. Sir Keir had already spoken by phone with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly following his election success. He has also had a conversation with Irish Premier Simon Harris, and the two leaders are due to meet later this month. Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn met First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly at Hillsborough Caste on Saturday (Kelvin Boyes/PA) The Prime Minister said he was seeking an immediate reset of the relationship between the Westminster Government and devolved nations as he announced his UK tour. He said his landslide victory in the General Election has given Labour a clear mandate to govern for all four corners of the United Kingdom. His new Northern Ireland Secretary, Hilary Benn, made his first visit to the region since being appointed at the weekend. Hilary Benn made his first visit to Belfast at the weekend since being appointed Northern Ireland Secretary (Niall Carson/PA) He held talks with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly at Hillsborough Castle on Saturday and said his priority is to establish a new relationship between the UK Government and Stormonts powersharing Executive. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting Sir Keir at Stormont to make the case for fair and sustainable funding for our essential public services. He added: I welcome the commitment from the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State that the election outcome again reaffirms support for our place within the United Kingdom and that this new Government intends to treat all parts and regions of the Kingdom with respect. Now is a time for new beginnings. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting with the PM to raise the issue of funding for public services (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Robinson added: I look forward to hearing from the PM on his plans for the UKs future relations with the European Union and his plans to ensure barriers within the United Kingdom are removed. On his visit to Wales, Sir Keir will attend the Senedd in Cardiff and hold talks with First Minister Vaughan Gething. There he is expected to insist Wales has enormous untapped potential ready to be unleashed, and will vow to work in lockstep with the Welsh Labour administration in Cardiff Bay. Embattled First Minister Mr Gething has faced calls to quit after he lost a no-confidence vote last month, following the collapse of the co-operation deal between Labour and Plaid Cymru and after becoming embroiled in a series of rows. Plaid leader Rhun ap Iorwerth has requested a meeting with the new Prime Minister ahead of his visit, in order to probe Labours position on various areas of devolved policy. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer met Scotlands First Minister John Swinney at Bute House in Edinburgh on Sunday (Scott Heppell/PA) During his trip to Edinburgh on Sunday, Sir Keir said he discussed a constructive working relationship on the economy, energy and future of the Grangemouth refinery. Speaking after his meeting with Scotlands First Minister John Swinney, the Prime Minister said there are clearly differences of opinion on the constitutional issue of Scottish independence. Sir Keir said: The point of this meeting was to reset the relationship in a respectful way, in a constructive way, and to recognise that on the economy, energy and very pressingly on Grangemouth, there is room for us to have a constructive way of delivering for very many people across Scotland. He said the pair have a joint view of working constructively, adding: I am absolutely clear that during the campaign I made a commitment that my Labour Government would deliver for Scotland. Leading dentists have welcomed a chance to move forward after meeting the new Health Secretary. During the General Election campaign, Wes Streeting pledged to meet dentists on July 8 to begin discussions about reforming the NHS dental contract, which has been branded by many as not fit for purpose. The contract for dental services has been blamed for a number of problems in dentistry, including an exodus of NHS dentists and so-called dental deserts, where patients struggle to find NHS care close to where they live. After the meeting, the British Dental Association (BDA) said that Mr Streeting recognised that failed contracts and underfunding have fuelled the current crisis. The BDA also said it feels there is now a chance to to rescue and reform a service millions depend on. The first step to save NHS dentistry is admitting we have a problem.@WesStreeting has done so today. Theres recognition that failed contracts & underfunding have fuelled the current crisis. Theres now a chance to move forward to rescue & reform a service millions depend on. pic.twitter.com/Gr8RHCKry4 BDA (@TheBDA) July 8, 2024 It said it will work constructively with the new Government on delivery of its manifesto commitment of 700,000 new urgent and emergency dental appointments. Shawn Charlwood, chairman of the BDAs General Dental Practice Committee, said: The first step to save NHS dentistry is admitting we have a problem. Wes Streeting has done so today. There is finally recognition that failed contracts and underfunding have fuelled the current crisis. We take absolutely nothing for granted, and will hold this Government to account as we did the last. But theres now a chance to move forward, to rescue and reform a service millions depend on. Labour also pledged during the General Election campaign to create an extra 100,000 urgent dental appointments for children in a bid to clear backlogs in England. The additional appointments will be delivered in the evenings and at weekends while the proposals will cost 109 million a year, the party said. The UK will only be able to secure a better deal with the EU if it can demonstrate a willingness to operate the existing trade agreement for Northern Ireland, Sir Keir Starmer has said. On a visit to Stormont, where the outworking of existing trading arrangements has been the source of major political instability, the Prime Minister was pressed on his stated intention to strengthen ties with Brussels. The devolved institutions at Stormont were in cold storage for two years after the DUP exercised a veto power to collapse the governance structures in protest at the economic and legal barriers created between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK as the result of Brexit. Brexit rules require additional checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK (Liam McBurney/PA) The Northern Ireland Protocol that Boris Johnson struck with the EU, and its successor, the Windsor Framework, which Rishi Sunak negotiated with Brussels, both involve a requirement for checks and additional red tape on the movement of goods from Great Britain into the region. Under those accords, Northern Ireland effectively aligns with many EU rules and regulations in order to maintain an open border on the island of Ireland. Speaking to reporters after meeting with the five main Stormont parties in Belfast on Monday morning, the Prime Minister was asked whether his ultimate objective was to secure a trade deal that saw the whole of the UK interacting with the EU on the same basis, without any divergence for Northern Ireland. You are right to say we want to improve relations with the EU, he replied. We think we can get a better deal than the botched deal that Boris Johnson brought home and we will work on that, understanding the work that needs to be done and the nature of the challenge. In the meantime we do have to get on with implementing the important changes that are necessary under the existing arrangements we have got because we are not going to be able to get a better relationship unless we demonstrate a commitment to the relationship and the agreements that have already been put in place. Sir Keir Starmer insisted Wales has enormous untapped potential ready to be unleashed as he prepares to complete his UK tour. The Prime Minister will attend the Senedd in Cardiff and hold talks with First Minister Vaughan Gething on Monday. His visit to the Welsh Parliament is part of a whistlestop tour also taking in Scotland and Northern Ireland as he pursues an immediate reset of the relationship between the Westminster Government and devolved nations. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer will attend the Senedd during his visit to Cardiff (Anthony Devlin/PA) Sir Keir said: Wales has enormous untapped potential ready to be unleashed. Working in lockstep with the Welsh Government and Vaughan, my Government will place the people and communities of Wales front and centre as we move towards a decade of national renewal. That means turning the page on years of economic hardship, towards genuine shared prosperity for working people, so they see and feel real tangible change in their lives. Sir Keir campaigned alongside the embattled First Minister during the General Election. Mr Gething has faced calls to quit after he lost a no-confidence vote last month. It came following the collapse of the co-operation deal between Labour and Plaid Cymru and a series of rows involving Mr Gething. Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth and his partys four MPs have requested a meeting with the new Prime Minister (Ben Birchall/PA) Ahead of Sir Keirs visit to Wales, Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth and his partys four MPs requested a meeting with the PM. Mr ap Iorwerth wrote: We welcome your statement of intent to reset the relationship between the UK Government and the Welsh Government; however, this cannot be achieved unless the views of elected representatives in Wales are respected. Where there is historical discrepancy between members of the Welsh Government and now UK Government on issues such as the devolution of the Crown Estates, the devolution of justice and policing, HS2 consequentials, and a fair funding formula for Wales, we would welcome early clarification on your position going forward. Waless ability to prosper is reliant on having the necessary funding and powers to create a fairer economy that is able to adequately resource our public services. 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. Ruth Breen is still working as a midwife 10 years after becoming a 1m EuroMillions winner.(Anthony Devlin/PA) (PA) A midwife who won the lottery 10 years ago has revealed she is still delivering babies despite becoming a millionaire. Ruth Breen, 45, was on her lunch break while working at the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary in Wigan in 2014 when she checked her emails and discovered she had won 1 million on the EuroMillions. A decade on, the mum-of-one is still working for the NHS, although she has enjoyed splashing out on holidays to destinations including Dubai, St Lucia and Mauritius. An awful lot has changed in the past 10 years but then again, not so much," she says of life after the windfall. The win came at the most perfect time ever," she continues. "It allowed me to reduce my working hours, giving me a much better work-life balance. Im really lucky that I only work part-time. Thats enabled me to spend much more time with my daughter doing fun mum things instead of working flat out for a really busy service. "Weve had great holidays, but weve tried to keep our feet on the ground and I think working really helps me to do that. Breen also wanted to continue working as an example to her daughter, who was 11 when she won. The universe gifted me something incredible but you cant take it for granted, not everybodys that lucky," she adds. Ruth Breen after winning 1 million on EuroMillions in 2014. (Anthony Devlin/PA) (PA) Breen says her first purchase following the win was a pair of Jimmy Choos. I nearly cried when I was paying for them in Selfridges because I couldnt believe I was actually able to purchase this and I had the money to do it," she says of the moment. "It was a little bit overwhelming. That collections a little bit bigger now, I dont cry as much any more! The community midwife now arrives at her visits in a BMW X3, saying the need for boot space prevented her from driving a sportier model, but she still lives in the house she bought just before her win. She also believes most of the new mothers she works with are unaware they are being looked after by a millionaire. I dont introduce myself and say oh by the way I won a million quid 10 years ago," she says. "The vast majority of people havent got a clue and thats the way I like it. "Im treated just like any other midwife by patients and staff." Breen has been supporting the charity, The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan. (Anthony Devlin/PA) (PA) To mark the 10-year anniversary of her win, Breen has been supporting charity The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan. "We all know theres a cost-of-living crisis thats been going on for quite some time and babies dont come cheap," she explains. Not everybody is fortunate enough to be able to just go out and spend however much on all the equipment theyre going to need," she says. Alison Wakefield, who set up the baby bank in 2022 after having her youngest child, adds: Without our support wed have babies who wouldnt have a safe space to sleep, that would be sleeping on the floor or in drawers, and wed have babies using nappies more than once. "Its an essential service that is definitely needed," she continues. "Without us people would be going without and babies would be going without. Additional reporting PA. Read more real lives Watch: County Durham Foster Carer Wins 150,000 On Postcode Lottery "After realizing her mistake, the sister frantically tried to extinguish the device in the bathroom sink, but it was too late," authorities said Getty A stock image of an ambulance in motion. An 11-year-old girl in Michigan had her hand amputated after police say her twin sister "mistakenly lit an explosive device" thinking it was a firework. The June 27 incident in River Rouge severely injured Caitlyn Conway, local TV stations WJBK and WXYZ reported. In a GoFundMe campaign organized by police, authorities said Caitlyn's sister "mistakenly lit an explosion device, believing it to be a harmless firework. In a split second, their lives were changed forever." "After realizing her mistake, the sister frantically tried to extinguish the device in the bathroom sink, but it was too late," police added. "The explosion caused significant injuries to one of the sisters, resulting in the amputation of her right hand and part of her forearm." According to law enforcement, Caitlyn's sister only sustained minor cuts and bruises; and the twins' father told WJBK in a story published last week that Caitlyn was "in good spirits." Related: Multiple Injured After Fireworks Shoot into Crowd at Fourth of July Event in Utah Police said an adult woman, who was not identified, was asleep on the couch when the explosion happened and that the girls' mom was at work, per WJBK. Afterwards, the sisters sought help from their aunt, who lives two doors down, according to WXYZ. "My first response was to make sure she did not die," Erica Dickerson, the aunt, told the station. Related: Florida Man Initially Thought to Have Been Fatally Shot May Have Died from Fireworks Accident: Police The explosion caused extensive damage to the exterior and interior of the home, police said in their message on GoFundMe, noting that the family is now looking for a new place to live. Meanwhile, authorities told WJBK that Caitlyn was released from the hospital. Investigators have since determined that the device belonged to the girls' grandfather, WXYZ reported. He was not charged with a crime, according to the station. PEOPLE has reached out to police for further comment. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. "The remaining material from the [explosive] is in the process of being sent to Michigan State Police Laboratory for additional testing," police told WJBK, noting that the investigation remains ongoing. Police in the GoFundMe offered their support for the family "in their time of need." So far, more than $5,000 has been raised. "No family should have to endure such a devastating loss," police said, "and every donation, no matter how small, can make a difference in helping them rebuild and recover from this tragedy." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A 6-year-old child shot during a July Fourth holiday gathering in a neighborhood east of Washington D.C. has died, police announced Sunday. Two other people a man and a woman also suffered gunshot wounds in the Thursday night shooting in Temple Hills, an unincorporated community located in Prince George's County in Maryland. The Prince George County Police Department identified the fatal child victim as Ahsan Payton of Washington, D.C. As of Monday, police said, no arrest had been made in the case and the agency's homicide detectives were working to identify a suspect or suspects in the shooting. Ashan Payton, 6, of Washington D.C., was shot and critically injured during a July 4th holiday gathering in a neighborhood just east of Washington D.C. The boy died on July 6, 2024. Two adults also suffered injuries in the Thursday shooting in Prince George's County, Maryland. Heat death reported in CA: Motorcyclist dies in Death Valley from extreme heat, 5 others treated Two adults also hurt during Maryland shooting According to a preliminary investigation, police said the shooting took place during a holiday gathering in the neighborhood, police said. Officers responded to a report of a shooting about 7:50 p.m. and reported they found Payton suffering from a gunshot wound. The boy was rushed to a hospital for treatment where he died as a result of his injuries late Saturday night, police said. Two adults were also injured during the shooting an unidentified man who suffered non life-threatening injuries and an unidentified woman police said was treated on the scene for a gunshot graze wound. Police did not elaborate on the man's injuries. Motive under investigation, reward for info leading to arrest The agency's Homicide Unit detectives on Monday continued to investigate a motive in the shooting, according to a news release. Anyone who attended the party or with information about the shooting is asked to call Prince George County police. A reward of up to $25,000 is being offered for information leading to an arrest and indictment in this case. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 6-year-old boy dies after shooting at July 4th gathering in Maryland Richard Atrero de Guzman/Anadolu Agency // Getty Images Pets have been jet-setting since Kiddo the cat accidentally crossed the Atlantic by airship in 1910. Bringing a pet aboard a modern aircraft is quite a bit more complicated, though. Pet owners looking to fly with their medium- to large-sized dogs are typically faced with a risky prospect. Multiple incidents in recent years have resulted in dogs dying due to logistical challenges surrounding the cargo hold, but no major airlines permit medium- to large-sized dogs in the cabin. While the conditions in the cargo hold are largely safe for animals, rough or improper handling, injuries from kennel escape attempts, and lengthy delays can lead to dangerous and sometimes fatal conditions. Such incidents have caused some major airlines, including United Airlines and Delta Air Lines, to ban pets in the cargo altogether, leaving pet owners with even fewer options than before. So what's a pet owner to do? CitizenShipper consulted travel industry experts, veterinary experts, news articles, and Department of Transportation data to explore the future of air travel with pets. An emotional separation Gone are the days when emotional support pot-bellied pigs, turkeys, and the like could accompany owners in the cabin due to changes to the Air Carrier Access Act. In 2021, the DOT revised the definition of service animals to exclude emotional support animals, permitting airlines to ban most animals from the cabin. The change now defines service animals as specially trained dogs that aid people with disabilities. They are not considered pets, but working animals, and are exclusively permitted to fly in the cabin on any airline. As a result, most major airlines only allow small pets that can fit in kennels that slide underneath the seats to fly in the cabin, including Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Hawaiian Airlines, United Airlines, and Southwest Airlines. Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, and Hawaiian Airlines also allow pets to travel by cargo or as checked baggage. Medium- and large-sized pet owners thus face a daunting prospect when seeking pet-friendly air travel: whether to check their beloved animal as cargo or forgo the idea altogether. While the idea of stashing a furry family member among luggage may cause some worry, flying is a relatively safe form of travel for most types of pets. In 2022, the most recent collected data available, there were 7 animal deaths out of 188,223 total transported, per the DOT. Additionally, modern cargo holds are generally temperature-regulated and pressurized, just like the cabin. However, unexpected challenges in air travel and extreme weather conditions still occur. While annoying or uncomfortable for human passengers, they can prove dangerous or even deadly for cargo critters. Dr. Ray Spragley of Zen Dog Veterinary Care in New York told Stacker that "weather conditions affecting the cargo hold" and "stress levels of the pet throughout the flight" are some of the top concerns among pet owners approaching a flightand with good cause. A Seattle-based couple recently lost their two bulldogs to heatstroke when they traveled via cargo in August 2023 on a Patriot Express flight from Misawa Air Base in Japan. However, with strategic travel planning, pet owners can mitigate their concerns about the cargo to avoid hazardous conditions. "This includes avoiding summer and winter, where the cargo hold may be much more uncomfortable for your pet," Dr. Spragely said. "Flying midweek to avoid very popular travel days may give a pet more room in the cargo hold. It is also important to pick a flight with minimal layovers. Each time a pet has to be removed from the plane will cause more stress." Lida Amani, a Washington D.C.-based travel agent, also shared that pet stress is a concern pet owners have when trying to coordinate pet-friendly travel. "People worry about their animal being sick or scared on a plane," Amani told Stacker. "And it makes pets have anxiety and discomfort when they go from one location to the other." Uncontrollable delays in takeoff and deboarding also stress out pets lingering unsupervised in an unfamiliar and dangerous environment. This can lead to escapes and related injuries, such was the case with Maia, the dog who escaped her crate and was found three weeks later at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Moreover, the cargo environment does present health risks for certain vulnerable species, particularly those that are brachycephalic (or short-headed) with stubby muzzles. In dogs, this includes bulldogs, Pekingese, pugs, Boston terriers, and shih tzus, as well as Burmese, Himalayan, and Persian cat breeds. "Brachycephalic pets are more susceptible to the stresses and risks of flying because their short noses make them more susceptible to extreme temperatures and air quality," Dr. Spragley said. According to the DOT's monthly air travel consumer reports, 14 of the 22 dogs that passed away in the cargo hold since January 2020 were brachycephalicsix of which were bulldogs, specifically. Of the remaining eight deaths, one was due to improper kenneling, another was because of an escape attempt, and three were puppies. Owner distaste for these less-than-stellar cargo conditions, combined with increased pet spending, has spurred a new wave in pet travel with the launch of dog-friendly airlines such as BARK Air. A new era in pet-friendly flight Wingless pets now have another way to take flight with the launch of BARK Air, per the company's April 2024 press release. The new airline is a subsidiary of BARK, which produces the BarkBox subscription service, and it operates in partnership with a jet charter company. The airline's maiden flight took place on May 22, 2024, with six dogs and 11 people from New York to Los Angeles. The high-flying pups enjoyed chicken-flavored puppuccinos, snacks, and spa services en route. Currently, the charter air service flies through four citiesNew York, London, Los Angeles, and Parisbut is expected to add more over time. Capacity is capped at 10 humans per flight and tickets cost around $6,000 for one human and one dog, though CEO Matt Meeker reportedly intends to lower prices as demand increases. The announcement follows the 2023 inaugural flight of England-based K9 Jets, which currently flies to 11 cities, including Dubai, London, Los Angeles, and Melbourne. Similarly, charter airlines such as Ohio-based NetJets and the VistaPet subdivision of VistaJet allow animal passengers in the cabin of their pet-friendly flights with trained staff and snack offerings. These advances are merely the beginning of dog-friendly travel. The hospitality industry is increasingly facing more demand for pet-friendly travel accommodations, per a study by the University of Surrey published in September 2023. More tellingly, BARK Air has reportedly already received 15,000 requests for more destinations. Story editing by Carren Jao. Additional editing by Kelly Glass. Copy editing by Paris Close. Photo selection by Lacy Kerrick. This story originally appeared on CitizenShipper and was produced and distributed in partnership with Stacker Studio. Boeing will have a felony conviction if it follows through on an agreement with prosecutors to plead guilty to fraud in connection with approval of its 737 Max before two of the planes crashed, killing 346 people off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The American aerospace giant has apparently made the calculation that admitting to a crime is better than fighting the charge and enduring a long public trial. The plea deal is not yet a sure thing, however. Relatives of some of the passengers who died have indicated they will ask a federal judge in Texas to throw out the agreement, which they say is too lenient considering the lives that were lost less. They want a trial, they want a huge fine, and they want Boeing leaders to face charges. In a legal filing late Sunday minutes before a midnight deadline the Justice Department disclosed the agreement and said the fraud charge was the most serious readily provable offense it could bring against Boeing. Prosecutors say Boeing will pay another $243.6 million fine, matching a fine it paid in 2021 for the same crime. The Justice Department says a conviction for fraud will hold Boeing accountable for misstatements it made to regulators who certified the 737 Max in 2017. The crashes took place less than five months apart in 2018 and 2019. The company still faces investigations into the blowout of a panel from an Alaska Airlines Max in January, increased oversight by the Federal Aviation Administration, and accusations from current and former employees about poor workmanship and retaliation against whistleblowers. Here is what to know about the case and what could be next for Boeing: What did Boeing admit? Boeing agreed to plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States in this case, deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration. The Justice Department first filed that charge in 2021, but it agreed not to prosecute Boeing if it paid a fine and successfully completed three years of a form of corporate probation under what is called a deferred-prosecution agreement. In May, however, the department determined that Boeing had not lived up to that agreement, setting in motion the events that led to Sunday's plea deal. The plea deal could help Boeing resolve a black mark on its reputation the felony charge that the American aerospace giant deceived regulators who approved the airplane and the pilot-training requirements to fly it safely. What did Boeing agree to do? Boeing will pay another fine, bringing the total to $487.2 million, which the Justice Department says is the legal maximum for the fraud charge. The deal also requires the company to invest at least $455 million to improve safety. It will be on court-supervised probation for three years, and the Justice Department will name an independent monitor to oversee Boeing's compliance with terms of the plea agreement. Boeing's board of directors will be required to meet with families of the victims. Can the judge block the deal? Yes. There will be a hearing before U.S. District Judge Reed OConnor in Fort Worth, Texas. He can accept the agreement, in which case he can't change terms of Boeing's punishment. Or he can reject it, which would likely lead to new negotiations between Boeing and prosecutors. A date for the hearing has not been set. Deals in which the defendant and the federal government agree on a sentence are controversial in legal circles. Judges don't like them. They feel that it usurps their authority, said Deborah Curtis, a former Justice Department lawyer. O'Connor, however, has shown deference before to the Justice Department's power. When families of the crash victims tried to undo the 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement, the judge criticized what he called Boeings egregious criminal conduct but ruled that he had no authority to overturn the settlement. How are relatives of the crash victims reacting? Many are outraged by the agreement. Zipporah Kuria, a 28-year-old London woman whose father, Joseph, was on the Ethiopian Airlines Max that crashed in March 2019, wanted a trial that she thinks would have unearthed new details about what led up to the crashes. Now, with the likelihood that there will never be a trial, the opportunity to continue digging, the opportunity to continue finding out what has gone wrong here and what is wrong, is kind of taken away from us, Kuria said. So yet again, they (the victims) have been robbed of their dignity, and we have been robbed of our closure. Javier de Luis, an MIT aeronautics lecturer whose sister, Graziella, died in the Ethiopia crash, also finds the punishment for Boeing to be inadequate. If you look at the elements that make up this plea agreement, theyre pretty much typical for what you would expect to see in a white-collar fraud investigation not in the case of a crime that led directly to the deaths of 346 people, he said. Nadia Milleron, a Massachusetts resident whose 24-year-old daughter, Samya Stumo, died in the same crash, wants Boeings current and previous CEOs to face charges. After the Indonesian crash, they knew that something was wrong with this plane, and they knew it could crash, she said. They gambled with peoples lives, and they are gambling right now. What effect would a conviction have on Boeing? Boeings business has never fully recovered from the crashes. After the renewed scrutiny that followed the Alaska Airlines incident, the company failed to book any new orders for the Max in April and May. It has fallen even farther behind European rival Airbus in production and deliveries of new planes, which means less revenue is coming in. All of this is happening while Boeing looks for a new CEO to replace David Calhoun, who says he will step down at the end of the year. That said, the share price of the company's stock rose slightly Monday. Will Boeing lose government contracts? Probably not. Government contractors can be suspended or disbarred for criminal convictions, but agencies generally have leeway to grant exceptions. Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder said the Justice Department notified the Defense Department about Boeing's plea deal. The Defense Department will assess the companys remediation plans and agreement with the Department of Justice to make a determination as to what steps are necessary and appropriate to protect the federal government, Ryder said. In 2006, the Air Force cited compelling national interest to let Boeing keep competing for contracts even after the company admitted charges that included using stolen information to win a space-launch contract and paying a $615 million fine. Does the plea affect other investigations into Boeing? It would only resolve the fraud charge filed after the two deadly crashes. The FBI told passengers on the Alaska Airline Max that suffered a panel blowout while flying over Oregon that they might be victims of a crime. The National Transportation Safety Board is also investigating that incident, and the Federal Aviation Administration is looking into Boeings manufacturing quality. What happened in the crashes? Boeing added new flight-control software to the Max that could push the nose of the plane down if a sensor indicated the plane could be approaching an aerodynamic stall. It didn't initially tell pilots or airlines about the software, known by the acronym MCAS. The system activated before both crashes based on faulty readings for the single sensor on each plane, according to investigations of the Oct. 29, 2018, crash of a Lion Air Max off the coast of Indonesia and the March 10, 2019, crash of an Ethiopian Airlines Max near Addis Ababa. Other factors contributed to the Lion Air crash, and the Ethiopian pilots were aware of MCAS but still couldn't regain control after the nose began pitching down without their input. ___ Koenig reported from Dallas and Richer reported from Washington. Haleluya Hadero in South Bend, Indiana, Cathy Bussewitz in New York, and Tara Copp in Washington contributed to this report. Thousands of protesters marched through Barcelona over the weekend to express anger at mass tourism and its impacts on Spain's most visited city. Bystanders dining in restaurants in the popular La Barceloneta neighborhood were soaked when some protesters sprayed them with water guns. Video showed diners being forced to change tables at some restaurants to escape the protests on Saturday, while other restaurants were symbolically taped off by the demonstrators. Carrying banners reading "Tourists go home," protesters called for a reduction in the number of foreign visitors to Barcelona, stopping in front of hotels and restaurants to confront tourists. Anti-mass tourism protesters squirt water on diners during a march in Barcelona denouncing the impacts of the high levels of tourism / Credit: Reuters "I have nothing against tourism, but here in Barcelona we are suffering from an excess of tourism that has made our city unliveable," one of the demonstrators told the French news agency AFP. Local authorities say the cost of housing has risen 68% in the Spanish city over the past decade, becoming one of the main points of contention for the disgruntled residents. "The last years, the city has turned completely for tourists, and what we want is a city for citizens and not in service of tourists," another protester told a Reuters news camera. In June, Mayor of Barcelona Jaume Collboni said that by 2028, he would stop renewing the thousands of tourist licenses that permit landlords to rent out accommodation to foreign visitors. The move would make the homes, which are currently advertised on platforms such as Airbnb, available to locals, according to Collboni. An anti-tourism placard is seen during the demonstration. More than 3,000 people demonstrated against the tourist overcrowding suffered by the city of Barcelona and in favor of tourism reduction policies. The demonstration involved symbolically closing hotel establishments, bars and restaurants while heading towards Barceloneta, one of the neighborhoods that suffers the most from the presence of tourism. / Credit: Paco Freire/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images More than 12 million tourists visited the city, famed for sights such as the Sagrada Familia basilica, last year alone, according to local authorities. The latest protest comes after similar large-scale demonstrations in other tourist hotspots across Spain. A protest in Malaga, in the southern part of the country, drew some 15,000 people to rally against over-tourism in June, while the island of Palma de Mallorca saw more than 10,000 people march against the impact of mass tourism in May. According to Spain's national statistics office INE, the first five months of 2024 alone saw more than 33 millions tourists visit the country, which represents an increase of 13.6% compared to the previous year. Spain isn't the only European nation grappling with the impact of tourism on the local population. Earlier this year, Venice, Italy became the first city to impose a fee on daily visitors. Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries 3D printing a 100-home community in Texas, and someday on the moon | 60 Minutes By AbdelHadi Ramahi, Amr Alfiky and Alexander Cornwell AL-ARISH, Egypt (Reuters) - Hundreds of trucks loaded with food and water have been stranded on a scorching Egyptian road, some for nearly two months, awaiting permission to deliver the much needed humanitarian supplies to war-torn Gaza. About 50 kilometres from the Gaza border, trucks carrying flour, water and other aid line a dusty road in both directions. The drivers say they have been waiting for several weeks in the searing Egyptian summer heat. The standstill is exacerbating Gaza's dire humanitarian crisis after nine months of war between Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas. Aid groups warn there is a high risk of famine across the besieged coastal territory. The truck drivers, parked on the outskirts of the Egyptian city of al-Arish in the Sinai Peninsula, say they have been unable to deliver humanitarian supplies ever since Israel expanded its offensive on the Gaza-Egypt border in May. Some food has had to be discarded, they said. "I swear to God, before this load, we came here and stood for more than 50 days and eventually the load was returned because it had expired," said truck driver Elsayed el-Nabawi. "We had to turn around and return it. We loaded another batch, and here we are standing again and only God knows if this load will make it before it expires or what will happen to it." The Israeli military started its assault on the southern Gazan city of Rafah in May. The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a lifeline to the outside world for Gazans, allowing the delivery of aid and the evacuation of patients, has been shut since then. Talks involving Egypt, the United States and Israel have failed to reopen Rafah, where Egypt wants a Palestinian presence restored on the Gazan side of the border. Israeli flags now fly over Gazan buildings destroyed along the border with Egypt. "We've been stranded here for over a month waiting to deliver this load. We've waiting for our turn but nothing yet" said Ahmed Kamel, another of the truck drivers, who sit by their vehicles drinking tea and smoking cigarettes. "We don't know our fate - when we will be able to enter? Today? Tomorrow? The day after tomorrow? Only God knows. Will the stuff we're carrying hold up or most of it will go bad?" Aid and commercial supplies have still entered Gaza through other land border crossings, through air drops and by sea, but aid groups and Western diplomats say the supplies are far below needs. The drivers say they are waiting for Israeli permission. 'DIFFICULTIES' Distribution of aid in Gaza was difficult even before Israel's assault on Rafah. Israel has enforced restrictions on goods entering the enclave, saying it wants to prevent them reaching Hamas. Some aid convoys have also been hit in Israeli military strikes, resulting in deaths of aid workers. Palestinian gangs inside Gaza have also reportedly sought to steal aid and commercial supplies entering the territory of some 2.3 million Palestinians. Desperate Palestinians have also overwhelmed trucks, taking much needed humanitarian supplies. A senior official at the Israeli foreign ministry said the backlog of aid in Egypt was due to humanitarian aid that has piled up on the Gazan side of the Kerem Shalom crossing point, creating a backlog of around 1,200 truckloads worth of aid. The official said that while Israel continued to facilitate the entry of supplies into Gaza, the distribution network inside Gaza run by international groups had been "disrupted" in recent months, blaming local Palestinian criminal gangs and Hamas. The Israeli military, which oversees coordination of aid in Gaza, has said that it is letting in enough food in from Israel and Egypt for the entire population. It has also acknowledged that aid agencies face "difficulties" in transporting food once it has entered through crossing points, including from Israel. Maha Barakat, an assistant minister in the United Arab Emirates foreign ministry and a trained medical doctor, said Palestinians who were able to leave Gaza were malnourished. The UAE has been involved in medical evacuations from Gaza. "They are becoming thinner and thinner," Barakat told Reuters aboard a UAE government chartered flight to al-Arish, and that the lack of nutrition meant wounds were unable to heal. "It is becoming more than just injuries of war," she said. (Reporting by Abdelhadi Ramahi, Amr Alfiky and Alexander Cornwell; Writing by Alexander Cornwell; Editing by Ros Russell) Xinjiang scientists discover plant with potential to survive on Mars Global Times) 09:21, July 08, 2024 Photo: Courtesy of the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography of the Chinese Academy of Sciences In a groundbreaking discovery, researchers from the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have found a desert moss species, known as Syntrichia caninervis, that has the potential to survive in extreme conditions on Mars. The Global Times learned from the institute that during the third Xinjiang scientific expedition, the research team focused on studying the desert moss and found that it not only challenges people's understanding of the tolerance of organisms in extreme environments, but also demonstrates the ability to survive and regenerate under simulated Martian conditions. Supported by the Xinjiang scientific expedition project, researchers Li Xiaoshuang, Zhang Daoyuan and Zhang Yuanming from the Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography and Kuang Tingyun, an academician from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, concentrated on studying the "pioneer species" Syntrichia caninervis in an extreme desert environment, according to the institute in an article sent to the Global Times on Sunday. Through scientific experiments, the researchers systematically proved that the moss can tolerate over 98 percent cell dehydration, survive at temperatures as low as -196 C without dying, withstand over 5000Gy of gamma radiation without perishing, and quickly recover, turn green, and resume growth, showcasing extraordinary resilience. These findings push the boundaries of human knowledge on the tolerance of organisms in extreme environments. Furthermore, the research revealed that under simulated Martian conditions with multiple adversities, Syntrichia caninervis can still survive and regenerate when returned to suitable conditions. This marks the first report of higher plants surviving under simulated Martian conditions. The research team also identified unique characteristics of Syntrichia caninervis. Its overlapping leaves reduce water evaporation, while the white tips of the leaves reflect intense sunlight. Additionally, the innovative "top-down" water absorption mode of the white tips efficiently collects and transports water from the atmosphere. Moreover, the moss can enter a selective metabolic dormancy state in adverse environments and rapidly provide the energy needed for recovery when its surrounding environment improves. Based on the extreme environmental tolerance of Syntrichia caninervis, the research team plans to conduct experiments on spacecraft to monitor the survival response and adaptation capabilities of the species under microgravity and various ionizing radiation adversities. They aim to unravel the physiological and molecular basis of the moss and explore the key life tolerance regulatory mechanisms, laying the foundation for future applications of Syntrichia caninervis in outer space colonization. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) White Oak Bayou is seen flooding just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Bayous and streams across the Houston area are overflowing as heavy rain continues, pushing water onto surrounding streets. Many have been inundated with over 5 inches of rain in the past 24 hours, with some surpassing 10 inches, according to data from the Harris County Flood Control District. In addition to flash flooding that has left roads soaked and littered with debris, some of the area's crucial conveyances of stormwater to the Gulf of Mexico are seething, including Clear Creek along the southern Harris County line. "Most of them I can name are out of their banks," Houston Mayor John Whitmire said, noting White Oak Bayou is especially dangerous and topping its banks. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As a result of the high waters, officials pleaded with people to stay off roads, noting they have already performed more than two dozen water rescues in Houston alone, mostly caused by people driving into flood waters. "We're in rescue mode," Whitmire said. "Help us not risk emergency response lives and time." Houston-area sheriff's deputies and constables performed dozens more rescues. The region's rivers and bayous, meanwhile, were taxed but performed as intended, according to Harris County Flood Control District meteorologist Jeff Lindner. "Considering the amount of rain and how quickly it fell six to 12 inches across a lot of Harris County in five or six hours the creeks and bayous did really well," Lindner said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad As a result, the county avoided widespread structural flooding, although some streets near bayous became trecherous. White Oak, especially at Heights Boulevard, spilled onto local streets. Buffalo Bayou in downtown Houston crept up toward buildings, but had not poured from the floodway surrounding it as of noon. By 2 p.m., levels were dropping. BERYL IN TEXAS: Live weather updates: Beryl makes Texas landfall and unleashes wind and torrential rain on Houston The county's flood warning system released alerts of potential flooding along dozens of waterways across the city, with rain falling at a pace of at least an inch every 15 minutes. Recent alerts spanned from South Mayde Creek near Katy to the west through Patricks Bayou by Deer Park in the east. Both the East and West forks of the San Jacinto River were also rising rapidly by mid-morning on Monday. Houston emergency responders have received at least 25 calls for water rescues since 6 a.m., according to police and fire logs.The rescues occurred across the city as Hurricane Beryl began to cross southeast Texas. Residents calls came in addition to four others listed as unknown types of rescues, as well as several fires and gas leaks. Harris County Sheriff's Department also conducted at least 25 water rescues, Sheriff Edward Gonzalez said. None required a boat. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Officials in unincorporated Brazoria and Fort Bend counties did not have updated counts, but reported dozens of water rescues along flooded roads and, in rare cases, from homes trapped by rising waters. Along White Oak Boulevard , where condominiums are tucked south of Woodland Heights along the popular bayou trails, Harris County Constable Precinct One deputies donned emergency vests and waded through waist-high water to make sure residents in first floor units were safe. The risk, officials stressed, will remain and alter slightly over the coming hours. "Once the water clears, we are going to find other hazards," said Randy Macchi, chief operating officer for Houston Public Works. While rains have mostly moved on, it will be some time before the true impact of the storm and inundation can be assessed, officials said. Flash flood warnings expired midday Monday for the Houston area, but water was still making its way to the Gulf, in a steady, manageable way. Advertisement Article continues below this ad "If you go back to some of our other big floods, we're talking rainfall rates of five, six inches an hour," Lindner said. "And we didn't see any of that today. I don't think we had rates over about three inches an hour." Lindner said Houston also benefited from going into the storm with relatively dry conditions. The direction of the storm helped, as well. Beryl moved from south to north, which can be less damaging than when the rainfall moves from west to east, Lindner said. May's devastating derecho storm moved west to east, but was also more destructive because of the wind, not the rain. Lindner said some structural flooding may have been prevented by Harris County's flood mitigation efforts, including the $480 million Project Brays that was completed in 2022. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Australian government entities must adopt three new mandatory directions from the Department of Home Affairs Secretary as they face increased scrutiny regarding supplier vetting, conduct regular security assessments and collaborate with the Australian Signals Directorate to share threat information. The full directions include 001-2024 managing foreign ownership, control or influence risks in technology assets. This requires entities to identify indicators of foreign ownership, control, or influence risk related to the procurement and maintenance of technology assets and to appropriately manage and report those risks. Direction 002-2024 technology asset stocktake will require all internet-facing systems or services to identify and actively manage the risks associated with vulnerable technologies in operation, including those they manage for other entities. Lastly, Direction 003-2024 supports cyber threat visibility. This involves participating in the Australian Signals Directorates Cyber Security Partnership Program and, for those using threat intelligence sharing platforms, sharing cyber threat information. New Delhi/Moscow: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is scheduled to be hosted for a private dinner by Russian President Vladimir Putin at his dacha outside Moscow late on Monday evening (IST), said earlier in the that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. In a departure statement in New Delhi, Modi said he looks forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. He added: We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. Modi reached Moscow late on Monday evening. In a major gesture by Russia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was received by Russian first deputy prime minister Denis Manturov on arrival at Moscow airport on Monday evening (IST). It may be noted that Manturov is senior to the deputy prime minister who received Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit earlier to Russia. It is understood that in a rare gesture, the Manturov also accompanied Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car. In another gesture by Russia, the Indian tricolour was projected on the Ostankino TV tower in Moscow in honour of Modi's visit. Modi said: I am embarking on an official visit to the Russian Federation for the 22nd Annual Summit and my first-ever visit to the Republic of Austria over the next three days. The Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. In Moscow, meanwhile, Indias ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar said the PMs visit to Moscow was expected to yield tangible outcomes in many areas. He said Modis talks with President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday will focus on bilateral trade and economic ties and in some new areas of scientific and technological research, with tangible outcomes in many areas. This will be Mr Modis first visit to Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Speaking to PTI Videos, the ambassador said extensive dialogue on trade, economic and investment cooperation and connectivity will be a key focus of discussions during the PMs visit. Asked about likely decisions in the areas of energy and defence, Kumar said: We have a set of documents that we are working on. Some of those agreements relate to trade and economic ties and also in some new areas of connectivity, and scientific and technological research. So I expect that we would have tangible outcomes in many of these areas. Referring to his visit to Austria, after Russia, Modi said in his departure statement: In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism. This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria who is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct. In Russia, it remains to be seen whether the proposed key defence mutual logistics pact -- the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS) between both nations will be inked during this visit or not. Modi will discuss with President Putin on Tuesday at the summit the whole gamut of bilateral ties as part of the Special Privileged Partnership between both nations that encompasses defence supplies, including S-400 missile supplies, the whopping imbalance in trade ties, and energy cooperation between both countries. The Russia-Ukraine conflict is also expected to be discussed prominently and Modi is expected to push for an end to the conflict and reiterate it is adversely impacting developing countries of the Global South. On Ukraine, Modi is likely to reiterate New Delhis stand that diplomacy and dialogue was the way forward and that both parties to the conflict will need to hold sincere and practical talks to resolve the issue. NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that police cannot require an accused to share their Google location to track movements as a condition for bail, as it would violate privacy rights. A bench of Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan set aside a bail condition imposed by the Delhi High Court that required a Nigerian national to share the Google Maps pin from his mobile device with the investigating officer in a drugs case. Justice Oka stated, There cannot be a bail condition defeating the very objective of bail itself. We have said Google pin cannot be a bail condition. There can't be a bail condition enabling the police to constantly track the movement of the accused. Police cannot be allowed to peep into the private life of the accused on bail. The court pronounced the verdict on a plea by Frank Vitus, a Nigerian challenging the bail condition in a drugs case. On April 29, the apex court had reserved its verdict, indicating it would examine whether the condition imposed by the Delhi High Court, asking an accused to "drop a Google pin" from his mobile phone to enable investigators to track his movements while on bail, violated the fundamental right to privacy. In a landmark decision, a nine-judge Constitution bench had on August 24, 2017, unanimously declared that the right to privacy is a fundamental right under the Constitution. The apex court took note of the condition and stated that prima facie it violated the right to privacy of the accused released on bail. Similar bail conditions requiring the sharing of Google pins have been imposed by the high court on other accused in different cases as well. The top court has taken note of such bail conditions for other accused too. On February 8 of this year, the Delhi High Court granted bail to one Raman Bhuraria, who was arrested in connection with a money laundering probe arising from an alleged Rs 3,269 crore financial irregularity case against Shakti Bhog Foods Ltd. The High Court had imposed several bail conditions, one of which stated that "the applicant shall drop a Google pin location from his mobile phone to the IO concerned, which shall be kept operational throughout his bail." NEW DELHI: In a landmark ruling, the Supreme Court on Monday established comprehensive guidelines against the "disparaging" portrayal of persons with disabilities in visual media and films, emphasising that terms such as "cripple" and "spastic" have acquired devalued meanings in societal perceptions. The verdict came in response to a plea filed by petitioner Nipun Malhotra, who argued that the Hindi film 'Aankh Micholi' contained deprecatory references to differently abled persons. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud stated, "Words cultivate institutional discrimination, and terms such as cripple and spastic have come to acquire devalued meanings in societal perceptions about persons with disabilities." Laying down the guidelines, the bench mandated that the film certification body CBFC must seek the opinion of experts before allowing screening. The apex court stated, "Visual media should strive to depict diverse realities of persons with disabilities, showcasing not only their challenges but also their successes, talents, and contributions to society. They should neither be lampooned based on myths nor presented as super cripples." The bench, also comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, emphasised that "stereotyping is an antithesis to dignity and non-discrimination." They highlighted the judiciarys evolving role in safeguarding individual rights and addressing the complex intersections of disability, gender, and mental health. We must distinguish disabling humour that demeans and disparages persons with disability from disability humour, which challenges conventional wisdom about disability. While disability humor attempts to better understand and explain disability, disabling humor denigrates it," the bench said. "We take this opportunity to provide a framework for the portrayal of persons with disabilities in visual media that aligns with the anti-discrimination and dignity-affirming objectives of the Constitution as well as the rights of persons with disabilities." The judgment underscored the detrimental impact of stereotypes on discrimination and the enjoyment of fundamental rights, referencing a landmark decision from August 24, 2017, where a nine-judge Constitution bench unanimously declared the right to privacy a fundamental right under the Constitution. The bench also rejected a one-size-fits-all approach to disability, acknowledging the importance of preventing stigmatisation and discrimination, which profoundly impact the sense of identity and dignity of individuals with disabilities. The guidelines advocate for inclusive language and representation, avoiding terms that perpetuate negative stereotypes such as cripple and retard. The bench held that "creators must strive for accurate representation of medical conditions to prevent misinformation and stereotypes." The Supreme Court further directed that the context, intention, and overall message of a film must be considered before judging its content. Disabling humour that demeans persons with disabilities should be distinguished from humor that challenges conventional wisdom about disability. The bench emphasised the principle of "Nothing about us without us," promoting the participation of persons with disabilities in the decision-making process regarding media content. They directed that statutory committees and expert opinions should be constituted under the Cinematograph Act and Rules to ensure that PwDs have a voice in evaluating media content. Engaging with disability advocacy groups can provide invaluable insights and ensure accurate and respectful portrayals, the bench said, recommending that media creators undergo training and sensitisation programs to understand the impact of their work on the dignity and rights of PwDs. Petitioner Nipun Malhotra, a disability rights activist, had complained against the movie 'Aankh Micholi', produced by Sony Pictures Films India, arguing that it contained derogatory and discriminatory remarks towards PwDs. Senior advocate Sanjoy Ghose, representing Mr. Malhotra, highlighted specific instances in the film where people with speech disabilities were called "atki hui cassettes" (stuck cassettes) and a person with memory issues was referred to as "bhulakkad baap" (forgetful father). A medical facility in Pasay with Chinese and Vietnamese doctors and nurses has been shut down. According to investigators, victims of modern-day slavery forced to work in online scams who fall ill or suffer torture are brought to these facilities, which are also used by fugitives seeking changes to their physical appearance to escape police. Manila (AsiaNews/Agencies) An anti-crime operation by Philippine security forces in Pasay, Metro Manila, has discovered an illegal hospital that treated victims of gambling-related human trafficking, as well as fugitives seeking cosmetic alterations to escape arrest. The facility involved with Philippines Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs) was discovered thanks to a tip-off. Three doctors, two from Vietnam and one from China, a Chinese pharmacist, and a Vietnamese nurse were arrested, none licensed to practice in the Philippines. Hair transplant equipment, dental prostheses, and even a room for skin whitening sessions were found, all intended for a Chinese clientele involved in criminal activities related to gaming. If you bring all of these together, you can create an entirely new person out of those, said Winston John Casio, a spokesman for the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission At least two other illegal health facilities were reported Metro Manila that deal with the Pogo industry, he added. We are concerned that Pogo workers who get sick or shot when kidnapped or tortured in POGOs do not go to legal hospitals but to illegal ones like this, Casio explained. In recent months, the Philippine Congress has been pushing to ban POGOs, citing the industry's links to a range of criminal activities, including scams and human trafficking. The authorities freed more than 150 Chinese workers after raiding a compound in Porac, Pampanga province, where they discovered equipment used for torture, scams, and even camouflage uniforms. According to Casio, only 42 offshore gaming operators in the Philippines currently hold valid licences, mostly in Metro Manila, while the government has already cancelled about 298 other Pogo licences. Yesterday's Israeli attack struck the Sacred Family school, which has sheltered displaced people for months. In a statement, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem expresses "grave concern" over the "scenes of civilian casualties and of destruction in the compound. "We are well, reports the parish priest, who urges the faithful to pray for peace". On Saturday, at least 16 people died at the UNRWA-run al-Jawni school in Nuseirat refugee camp. Gaza (AsiaNews) Two schools were hit by Israeli attacks on Hamas "targets" in Gaza, one run by the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, serving, according to a press release by the Patriarchate, as place of refuge for hundreds of civilians since the start of the war in Gaza. The blood and violence of the past weekend have resulted in at least 20 dead, 16 in a strike on a UN-run school and four at the Catholic school, according to sources in Gaza. For months, such educational establishments have been taking in homeless families. Right after the attack, Fr Gabriel Romanelli, parish priest at the Sacred Family parish church in Gaza, posted a message on social media stating that We are fine" even if the situation remains "very negative" and for this reason he urged everyone to "pray for peace". One of the people killed in the attack against Catholic school, which had been closed for some time and had been turned into a shelter for refugees, was Ihab al-Ghusain, Deputy Minister of Labour in the Hamas administration. In a statement released yesterday a few hours after the attack, the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem said that it was monitoring, with grave concern, the news of the raids, apparently launched by the Israeli army against the Sacred Family school in Gaza in the morning. Footage and media reports from the place include scenes of civilian casualties and of destruction in the compound, the statement reads. While property of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, the Sacred Family School has, since the beginning of the war, been a place of refuge for hundreds of civilians. No religious personnel reside in the school. The Latin Patriarchate condemns in the strongest terms the targeting of civilians or any belligerent actions that fall short of ensuring that civilians remain outside the combat scene. We continue to pray for the Lords mercy and hope that the Parties will reach an agreement that would put an immediate end to the horrifying bloodbath and humanitarian catastrophe in the region. The patriarchate opened the school in Gaza in 1974, expanding it in the following years; over time, more modern facilities were needed to meet demand for modern education. The existing school was built in 2001 thanks to the work of Fr Manuel Musallam, parish priest of Sacred Family parish at the time, and from donations by outside donors. That year, the new school was renamed Sacred Family, like the local parish, which commemorates the passage of Mary, Joseph and the Child Jesus through Gaza to Egypt. Until the war forced it close, it was one of the most important establishment run by the Latin Patriarchate in Palestine and one of the best in the region. It provides a high level of education, supports cultural exchanges, and offers a suitable and safe environment for exceptional education for all. this according to the schools website. It includes all educational stages: kindergarten, elementary, and secondary with about 700 students. Gazas Catholic school is not the only educational institution to be hit over the weekend. Al-Jazeera reported that Israeli missiles hit the UNRWA-run al-Jawni school in Nuseirat refugee camp on Saturday that had been turned into a refuge for displaced Palestinians, killing at least 16 people. The attack also threw into chaos the al-Aqsa Martyrs hospital in Deir el-Balah, which has a capacity to treat 200 people but was coping with over 600 patients. Israeli military sources said that the UN school was targeted because of terrorists operating in the area. Conversely, the Palestinian news agency WAFA, reported that the building was used as a shelter for hundreds of displaced people, mainly women and children, while Hamas denied that its fighters were present at the structure. "Another day. Another month. Another school hit," wrote Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA[*] Commissioner-General, on social media platform X on Sunday. UNRWA spokesperson Juliette Touma told AFP that more than half, or 190, of UNRWA's facilities have been hit, some more than once, by Israels military response to the 7 October Hamas attacks. At least 196 UNRWA employees have been killed, including two on Saturday. "When the war started we closed the schools and they became shelters," Touma explained. Since then, at least 450 "incidents" have involved UNRWA buildings. UN-protected facilities in the Gaza conflict have suffered damage that is unprecedented in the history of the UN. Hamas called the attack on Al-Jawni school an "odious massacre", while the Israeli military said it targeted "a hideout and operational infrastructure from which attacks" were carried out against its troops. Hamas killed 1,195 people, mostly civilians, in its attack in southern Israel, kidnapping 251 people, with 116 still held as hostage whose fate is unknown. The Israeli army has killed at least 38,153 people in Gaza, mostly civilians. [*] United Nations Relief and Works Agency. by Joseph Masilamany King Ibrahim Iskandar spoke on Islamic New Year, urging Muslims to avoid online platforms filled with discussions and insults. He urged fellow Muslims to rely on authoritative sources regarding religious teachings and precepts. Kuala Lumpur (AsiaNews) Malaysian King Ibrahim Iskandar has asked Malaysians not to turn social media platforms into places of discussion and insults because such actions can only sow divisions and cause conflict, not only among Muslims but also between ethnic groups professing other faiths. Speaking on Maal Hijrah (Islamic New Year), which is celebrated today, the sovereign stressed the importance of caution when looking for religious information online, urging people to make sure that the content is authentic and comes from authoritative sources. Do not shame others or viral shameful contents, as this will only cause division and conflict, the king said during the celebrations at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre, expressing concern about the growing spread of misleading and inaccurate information related to Islam, especially teachings that deviate from Islamic principles. In the past, religious education primarily involved reading books and attending kuliah (religious classes) in mosques. Today, however, society increasingly turns to online sources like Ustazah Facebook and Ustaz TikTok for religious learning, the king said. Ustaz is an honorific title for teachers and educators. King Ibrahim urged the citizens of Malaysia to be demanding in their search for information, because inaccurate information can lead to confusion and divisions. The government has also been urged to boost measures against content that deviates from Islamic precepts through a centre for the dissemination of correct information. During the New Year's ceremony, Datuk Mohd Na'im Mokhtar, the Minister in the Prime Minister's Department in charge of Religious Affairs, said that Muslims must work together to build a nation based on Islamic values. Enough of the infighting. Its detrimental to both the religion and the country, he said. It is necessary to Put an end to all the hatred with the values of rahmah (compassion) and love, he said, urging Muslims to take responsibility for preserving national harmony guided by the principle of fiqh ta'ayush (coexistence). Dont use religious and racial sentiments as a means to gain support and pursue specific interests, he added, noting that Maal Hijrah is an opportunity for all Muslims to open a new chapter, also vis-a-vis new technologies. Muslims must not be left behind in mastering knowledge for the country to prosper, he stressed. Shown is a satellite view of Beryl Sunday afternoon, about 12 hours before landfall. NOAA After spending a week and a half moving across the Atlantic Ocean, Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, Beryl is expected to make landfall along the Central Texas coast in the early morning hours on Monday. Beryls projected storm track has moved well to the east over the last couple of days, meaning that San Antonio will see little, if any rainfall from the much-anticipated tropical system. However, Beryl is still bringing big threats of flooding, damaging winds and storm surge to parts of the Central and East Texas coasts. Shown is the track Beryl has taken, ever since becoming a named storm in late June. National Hurricane Center Landfall time and location Beryl made landfall near Matagorda at 4 a.m. Monday as a Category 1 hurricane. It packed sustained winds of 80 mph. Thats about 75 miles southwest of Houston and 150 miles southeast of San Antonio. Advertisement Article continues below this ad San Antonio forecast The vast majority of the moisture associated with Beryl will be along and east of the storms center. The west side of the track is known as the dry side. With San Antonio over 100 miles west of Beryls track, very little, if any rain, is expected in the Alamo City. A few isolated tropical showers and storms are possible in San Antonio from the morning into the early afternoon, but coverage will be low, with only 20% of Bexar County seeing any rain. Rain totals, if any, will be less than a quarter-inch. Shown are expected rain totals Monday. nws austin/san antonio Slightly higher rain chances are expected northeast on Interstate 35 in New Braunfels, San Marcos and Austin. Still, rain totals here are expected to be less than an inch, if any. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tides rise around homes just before hurricane Beryl is expected to make landfall on Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Surfside Beach. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Beryl will cause partly to mostly cloudy skies in the morning, but some sunshine is expected by the afternoon in San Antonio. Temperatures will still rise to the low- to mid-90s. Beryl will also cause some breezy winds in San Antonio, sustained at 15 mph with some gusts to 25 mph. Southeast Texas threats Rainfall: Much higher rainfall totals are expected along and east of Beryls path. Along the coast, from Matagorda east to Galveston and Houston, 5-8 inches of rain are expected Monday. Farther north, 3 to 5 inches of rain are expected in College Station, Huntsville and north to Tyler. Strong winds: Hurricane-force winds are possible in the immediate area where Beryl makes landfall early Monday. These areas, such as Matagorda, Palacios and Bay City, could experience 100 mph wind gusts. Tropical storm-force wind gusts up to 70 mph are possible in Houston. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Shown are expected rainfall totals Monday as Beryl moves through East Texas. Pivotal Weather Storm surge: Beryl will cause the Gulf of Mexico along the Texas coast to rise several feet. Waters could rise up to 6 feet at Matagorda Bay and up to 5 feet in Galveston Bay. That is capable of causing devastating coastal flooding. The next few days The remnants of Beryl will move northeast into the Mississippi River valley on Tuesday, and into the Midwest on Wednesday. As it moves farther away, the forecast in Texas will get back to normal. Advertisement Article continues below this ad On Tuesday, San Antonio will see mostly sunny skies and high temperatures in the mid- to upper 90s, typical for early July. There is a chance of a few pop-up showers and thunderstorms by the afternoon and evening, but rain chances will only be 20-30%. In Trieste for the Social Week of Italian Catholics, the brother of Shahbaz Bhatti, Pakistans Minorities Minister killed in 2011, spoke about a recent trial that has reopened wounds for the countrys Christian community over its blasphemy rules. For Paul Bhatti, the government must ensure that no one can teach a person to kill or die in the name of religion. Trieste (AsiaNews) After his assassination in March 2011 in Islamabad, world leaders spared no words to honour the memory and work of Shahbaz Bhatti. About 10,000 people gathered for the funeral in Khushpur of the far-sighted Catholic political leader, appointed in 2008 as Pakistans first Minorities Minister, but for Paul Bhatti, a medical doctor working in Treviso, northeastern Italy, he was simply "my brother". This is how he introduced himself in Triestes Giuseppe Verdi Square last Friday, guided by presenter Lorena Bianchetti, at one of the events organised for the 50th Social Week of Italian Catholics, which ended yesterday with Pope Franciss visit. The gathering was especially important after Pakistans Christian community saw old wounds reopen following the end of a trial connected to the outburst of anti-Christian violence in August 2023 in Jaranwala, Punjab. In a recent decision, the local anti-terrorism court in Sahiwal, chaired by Judge Ziaullah Khan, convicted a 22-year-old Christian man while the culprits of the violence continue to benefit from impunity. Episodes like this show how necessary it is to uphold Shahbaz Bhattis legacy, focusing on the blasphemy law, often used to accuse minorities. This climate still exists because it is based on an ideology that comes from education," Paul Bhatti told AsiaNews at the end of the Social Week. More than 50 per cent of people are illiterate, trained to live and die. Then someone uses them as tools. After Shabhaz's death, Paul Bhatti continued his brother's work for a period by becoming special advisor to then Prime Minister Gilani at the same ministry, which took the name of National Harmony in July 2011. There should be political stability that leads to real reforms," he explained; for example, working with Muslim friends, we promoted a law to protect Christians (about 1.6 per cent of the population). Bhatti would like to see action to stop mobs of thousands turn on small communities, stirred by false accusations, without police standing idly by. First, safety and protection should be guaranteed, so that there will be no more victims in the future. We need a military force that acts effectively," Paul Bhatti told AsiaNews. Then, penalties must also be imposed on those who abuse the blasphemy law. It should be officially stated that no one can teach a person to kill or die in the name of religion. Earlier, during the public talk in Trieste, he stated that extremists, fanatical people, who take the law in their own hands, I don't think they belong to religion. Shahbaz Bhatti was a victim of an extremist ideology that opposed his aversion to the blasphemy law. Paul Bhatti also spoke about the relationship he had with his brother, between Italy and Pakistan. I knew Shahbaz as a younger brother. I didn't know him as a person who devoted his life to Pakistan, who tried to unite various faiths, who tried to eliminate hatred from the country, he explained. After rushing back to Pakistan for the funeral, which drew lots of people from different backgrounds, he met with the then President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, husband of Benazir Bhutto, prime minister of Pakistan, who was killed in a suicide attack in 2007. This led him to decide to stay, otherwise "no one would work for unity, dialogue, strength, against an ideology that we need to eliminate. Shahbaz's mission had to continue," he told the people, about 500, attending the Social Week. In Verdi Square, he talked about Shahbaz Bhatti's commitment to improving the conditions of Asia Bibi, a young Christian woman on death row for blasphemy. Shahbaz was convinced, first of all, regardless of whether the law is right or wrong, that she had not committed this crime," Paul said, noting that other people are in a similar situation. When Shahbaz was appointed minister, threats against him intensified, especially following the assassination of Salman Taseer, the governor of Punjab, a Muslim who also came to Asia Bibis defence. In addition to love for Pakistan, Shahbaz had a strong faith. In his spiritual testament he says that he would have felt fortunate if during this struggle Jesus had accepted the sacrifice of his life," he added. Shahbaz Bhatti's Bible is now in Rome, in the Basilica of San Bartolomeo all'Isola, dedicated to the "new martyrs". Many now hope to see in the not-so-distant future the completion of the process of beatification by martyrdom in odium fidei, promoted by the Archdiocese of Islamabad. But it is a long journey. We need people to speak about him, and have what they say recorded," Paul Bhatti told AsiaNews. Meanwhile, hope lives on. by Nirmala Carvalho An evangelical community that prayed in a private home battered and detained after Hindu extremists accused them of 'forced conversions'. In the district of Jabalpur, an investigation into book prices inflated by a publisher sent to prison only the leaders of the most renowned Christian schools, including a Protestant bishop and a Catholic priest. Jaipur (AsiaNews) - More Christian communities and schools targeted by prosecutions instigated by Hindu fundamentalists. On 5 July in Bharatpur, in the State of Rajasthan, more than 20 people who were attending a prayer meeting promoted by an evangelical community in a private home were arrested on charges of forced conversions. Members of the community, including some women, were also attacked by a mob of Hindutva (the ideology of Hindu nationalists) supporters led by Rajesh Singhal, a local leader of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). The fanatics accused the group of practising forced conversions. After receiving information about the riots and religious conversions, a Mathuragate police team reached the site and arrested 28 people, including 20 women. The deputy superintendent of the local police said that investigations were ongoing and that the people were 'detained for questioning'. Meanwhile, in the federal parliament in Delhi, a Christian MP - Jose K Mani - raised before the Minister for the Protection of Minorities the case of a Protestant bishop and the headmasters and managers of five Christian schools, including a Catholic priest, who have been in jail in the state of Madhya Pradesh since 27 May because they are accused of charging 'exorbitant fees' for the students of their schools. The area is again Jabalpur where last year Bishop Gerald Almeida were also the target of a very harsh campaign launched against Christian-promoted schools by the Commission for the Protection of Children's Rights (controlled by Hindu nationalists). The Protestant bishop arrested is Rev. Ajay Umesh Kumar James of the Church of Northern India (CNI), while the priest is Fr. Abraham Thazhathedathu, from the diocese of Jabalpur. Among the 22 people in prison are also a headmistress and other staff of two local Catholic schools. They are accused of conniving with a publisher who allegedly charged exorbitant prices for books. The police action was limited, however, to only 11 schools, seven of which are well-known and run by Christians. There are 1,037 registered public schools in the district. "Our people were arrested and imprisoned like hardened criminals," lamented Fr Davis George, vicar general of Jabalpur, when asked by the Catholic website MattersIndia. "Even if there were differences in the rates or errors in the account book, the official concerned should have served us a notice and asked for an explanation instead of putting them in jail. This kind of action is a mockery of democracy. We have already applied for bail for our collaborators in the High Court, but the hearing is being delayed'. Christians are less than one per cent of the 72 million inhabitants of Madhya Pradesh, an overwhelmingly Hindu state. Today's news: South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at NATO summit to discuss Pyongyang's threat to Europe; Viktor Orban met with Xi Jinping on a 'peace mission': the Philippines reinforces rice agreements with Vietnam, of which it is the first buyer; Hareetz says the Idf on 7 October ordered the 'Hannibal' directive. JAPAN Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike won a third consecutive term in the gubernatorial elections held yesterday, securing her position for the next four years. She received more than 2.9 million votes, or 42.8% of the vote, in the election. He successfully steered Japan's most populous city through the Covid-19 pandemic and the delay of the Olympics in 2021. SOUTH KOREA South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said he will discuss with NATO leaders the threat North Korea poses to Europe by deepening military ties with Russia, warning that Moscow must choose between the two Koreas. Future ties between Seoul and Moscow thus depend on Russia, Yoon said, adding that the decision on arms support for Ukraine will be made on the basis of the military pact between Moscow and Pyongyang. CHINA - HUNGARY Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met with Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, just days after holding talks on a potential peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin. According to Chinese state media, Orban and Xi met at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing. Orban launched a 'peace mission' after his country took over the rotating EU presidency earlier this month. PHILIPPINES - VIETNAM The Philippines wants to increase rice agreements with Vietnam to ensure its food security, Agriculture Secretary Francisco Tiu Laurel said during a visit to Vietnam. He visited the Vietnamese province of An Giang in the Mekong Delta, one of the country's main rice producing areas. Vietnam is the world's third largest exporter of rice and the Philippines has been its main buyer in recent years. ISRAEL On 7 October, the Israeli army issued the Hannibal Directive - a controversial Israeli military policy aimed at preventing the capture of Israeli soldiers by enemy forces even at the cost of killing their own soldiers. This was revealed in aninvestigation by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz. The newspaper stated that during the Hamas attack, the Israeli army issued an order that not a single vehicle was to return to Gaza. RUSSIA In addition to the citizens of Central Asia, the Russian occupation army in Ukraine also fights inhabitants of Nepal, Sri-Lanka, Burundi, Congo and several other 'exotic' countries, whom the Kremlin insists on calling 'volunteers' despite increasing information about their enlistment by force and deception, as told by prisoners of war to Ukrainians. ARMENIA Prime Minister Nikol Pasinyan issued a message to the people on the occasion of Armenia's Constitution Day, in which he explained that the current law of the state 'is in deep social and psychological conflict', and the people who are truly sovereign 'after the Velvet Revolution of 2018' are called upon to 'decide on a new text, with new methods'. by Melani Manel Perera Although Sri Lanka does not produce products containing mercury or persistent organic pollutants, it imports a lot of them from abroad. The United Nations Development Programme will implement the activities, which will last five years and have been financed by the Global Environment Facility. Colombo (AsiaNews) - A 5 million US dollar United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) project for chemical waste disposal will be implemented in Sri Lanka with funding from the Global Environment Facility, an organisation that provides funds for environmental protection activities. Entitled 'Integrated Management and Environmentally Sound Disposal of Pops Pesticides in the Agricultural Sector and Mercury & Waste in the Healthcare Sector in Sri Lanka', the project will be managed by the UNDP as well as the Ministry of Environment. "UNDP is committed to assisting the Sri Lankan government in developing a chemical waste management system," commented Azusa Kubota, the UN agency's representative in Sri Lanka. "It is only through a coordinated approach that we can fulfil our ambition to save both people and the planet," she added. 'Although stringent standards have been introduced, the lack of capacity to enforce these standards results in the continued mismanagement of chemical imports into the country,' the UNDP pointed out in a statement. Sri Lanka does not produce products containing mercury or persistent organic pollutants (called pop, persistent organic pollutants), but imports a lot of them from abroad. Pops' are pollutants that do not biodegrade, but accumulate in soil and living tissue. The aim of the project is to strengthen Sri Lanka's waste disposal systems, thereby promoting compliance with international commitments, explained B. K. Prabath Chandrakeerthi, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Environment. "This is a good opportunity for Sri Lanka to provide financial and technical assistance to improve the regulatory framework for waste and chemical management and support the transformation of sanitary waste management systems," he added. The five-year project will cover the health and agriculture sectors. The launch event was attended by a number of government representatives, including officials from the Ministry of the Environment, Agriculture, Education, Health, Energy, representatives of provincial councils, Customs, the Investment Council, and various other public and private entities dealing with the environment. The project, the UNDP further emphasised, will contribute to the achievement of the UN Sustainable Development Goals. How to Use Beard Balm Do You Know the Right Way to Balm Your Beard? The AskMen editorial team thoroughly researches & reviews the best gear, services and staples for life. AskMen may get paid if you click a link in this article and buy a product or service. Generations of beardies often ask about the sudden rise of a product dedicated exclusively to facial hair. Why are there so many balms and what to do with them? Beard-specific balms arent new. Quite the opposite, actually. For centuries, America's Indigenous people have used oils and balms, blending castor, almond, and grape seed oils to keep bearded skin smooth and facial hair soft. That beard balms are today ubiquitous is merely circumstantial a changing norm of face maintenance. RELATED: Top Beard Balms and Oils Whereas once a shaved face conveyed seriousness and purpose, a survey conducted by OnePoll concludes that 33 percent of American men have facial hair of some kind, while 55 percent of men worldwide now sport a little facial fuzz of some kind. Large or small, glorious or not, that face requires up-keep. What Is Beard Balm? Beard balms have earned notable distinction for several reasons. While both beard oils and beard balms moisturize, beard balm doubles as a styling pro, too, because it is thicker, less oily, and ultimately lighter for all-day wear. What sets beard balm apart from beard oil is the addition of wax, which renders the product solid, explains Rob Karreman, director, Dr K Soap Company. The addition of wax gives beard balm its unique property that of smoothing the beard and improving its appearance by adding hold, which keeps stray hairs in check. Beard balm is a waxy paste that includes ingredients such as beeswax, various skin-friendly oils, and butters such as shea or cocoa. It is more a leave-in face conditioner, moisture sealant, and styling aid, adds Sam Pollack from Beard Grow XL. Whether your beard is thick, thin, long or just starting to take flight, beard balms help style, maintain and even give the appearance of a slightly thicker beard by keeping hairs in place, swept to the side or just left to their own device. Beard Balm Benefits and How to Use It Adding beard balm to your medicine cabinet helps maintain the overall health of your skin and facial hair. If youve ever had visibly red, dry skin underneath your beard, a purpose-built waxy moisturizer can leave skin under your facial hair looking healthier, and beard hair, less coarse. Additionally, if your beard lacks thickness, several beard balms use ingredients like biotin liposomes and white willow bark that might actually promote fuller growth. Adding it to your morning routine takes seconds while the benefits of a cleaner, better-smelling face lasts all day. Like the application of wax to short hairstyles, correct use of beard balm neednt be overcomplicated. Scoop out a dime sized amount from the tin and rub the wax in your hands until fully melted. The amount used will depend on the beard, explains Pollack, so definitely adjust as necessary. The product should be worked through the beard with the fingers, starting at the root all the way to the end of the beard hair. You can also choose to massage some underneath the beard as well to prevent dry skin and dandruff. Pro tip: some guys use a boar bristle or synthetic vegan bristle beard brush to distribute balm more evenly through beard hair. Wed definitely recommend this. Not only does it distribute from root to tip more effectively, it also styles face hair and acts as a gentle exfoliant on the skin, too. How to Choose the Right Beard Balm for You Guys with thicker beards should use beard balm for taming hairs, styling, and moisturizing. Balms can also be used on patchy, sparse, or brittle beards to achieve a thicker look. In either case, choosing the right kind of beard balm from the many available is simply a matter of paying attention. Quality balms are full of oils like jojoba and argan to add moisture and sealing ingredients like beeswax to keep hair hydrated longer. They also eschew unpronounceable chemicals that are alcohol or petroleum-based that can easily irritate or dry out skin. A good beard balm will have oils with a low comedogenic rating this means that they will not clog the pores, says Karreman. Another important aspect is fragrance since the balm is close to the nose, choosing a beard balm with a subtle and pleasing fragrance is a must. Best Beard Balms The beard balm market is a crowded one, indeed. Finding one that works is about weighing ingredients against health and the key benefits of use that youre looking for. With lime, sandalwood, tobacco, bergamot, cedar and other added scent profiles, choosing a smell that couples with your cologne and hair product is a consideration, too. With that in mind, here are a few AskMen favorites: Live Bearded Beard Butter Beard Butter makes your beard look, feel, smell, and grow better. No joke. A creamy blend of key ingredients like shea butter, coconut oil, jojoba oil, vitamin E, and others, this stuff is formulated to help with overall beard growth and health. Throw some on and youll smell as though youre walking through a citrus grove or sitting next to a crackling campfire. All natural and made in the US of A. $18 at Amazon.com Beard Bolt XL Looking to bulk up your face sweater? This one-of-a-kind balm is designed to help yield thicker beards thanks to its key ingredient, caffeine, which according to this company helps stimulate hair follicles. Shape and tame flyaways, prevent dandruff and make your beard bigger, too. Thats a lot in one balm. $22.75 at Amazon.com Scotch Porter Conditioning Beard Balm Beard balm should have a smooth texture for easy application, something this Scotch Porter Beard balm figured out a while back. Like all balms, apply to clean beards so that youre not weighting down your hair or clogging follicles. Your beard will thank you later. Bonus: This balms is free from all sulfates, silicones, parabens, phthalates, petrolatum, mineral oil, and synthetic colors. $17.99 at ScotchPorter.com Dr. K. Soap Company Beard Balm For those seeking neutral and/or a fragrant balm, Dr. K. does both. Well. Made in Ireland, all products are SLS free, paraben free, petroleum free and never tested on animals. Cool Mint and Woodland scents are at once refreshing and contain shea butter for beard conditioning while oils like coconut and vitamin E soothe and revitalize beard and skin. Styling beards will never be the same. From $15 at DrKSoap.com Viking Revolution Beard Balm Effective and affordable, this staple beard balm from the grooming warriors over at Viking Revolution applies smoothly, taming even the burliest, thickest of beards and tinging your facial hair with the refreshing, long-lasting scent of sandalwood. $9.88 at Amazon.com Captain Fawsetts Private Stock Beard Balm Its hard to distinguish which Fawsett beard balm we lean towards more: the Private Stock, or with aromas of tobacco, cedar and leather, the Maharajah. Either would be ideal choices, really. Handmade in small batches and comes in aluminum tin. $31.91 at Amazon.com You Might Also Dig: Champion local news. Join our community of readers who value daily beat reporting and in-depth stories alike. Your membership allows us to continue the legacy of local, independent journalism in the Roaring Fork Valley. With your support, we can remain a free and accessible source of news for everyone, always without paywalls or corporate influence. Together, we can ensure that vital local stories are told. At the recent ECOWAS summit, the military leaders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso ruled out their nations' return to the West African regional bloc, a rejection that could jeopardise efforts to tackle coups d'etat and curb the violence spreading across the region. The leaders of the military juntas of the three countries announced this position during their first summit in Niamey, Niger's capital, following their withdrawal from ECOWAS in January. This tripartite meeting took place a day before the African bloc's summit in Nigeria. The coup authorities of these three countries also accused the bloc of failing to fulfil its mandate by committing to consolidate its own union, the Alliance of Sahel States, an organisation created last year after the estrangement of its regional neighbours. The head of Niger's military government, General Abdourahamane Tiani; Malian Colonel Assimi Goita; and Burkinabe Captain Ibrahim Traore show the documents of the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) they signed during their first summit in Niamey July 6, 2024 - PHOTO/AFP For Niger's military leader, General Abdourahmane Tchiani, ECOWAS, established almost 50 years ago, has become "a threat" to the Sahel countries. For this reason, Tchiani insisted on moving forward with the Alliance of Sahel States, "instead of an ECOWAS whose directives and instructions are dictated to it by powers outside Africa", This meeting between the three Sahelian countries shows the deep division within ECOWAS, a bloc that, despite its efforts to remain united, is seeing growing internal tensions. However, as Karim Manuel, Middle East and Africa analyst at The Economist Intelligence Unit, points out to AP, mediation attempts are likely to continue, particularly led by the new Senegalese government, although "they will not bear fruit in the near future". For Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, reconciliation is possible. "We must do everything possible to avoid the withdrawal of these three brotherly countries from ECOWAS," Faye said, noting that reforms were necessary in order to "adapt ECOWAS to the realities of our times". The Alliance of Sahel States, formed in September last year, has been presented and promoted by Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso as a platform for seeking new partnerships with countries such as Russia and consolidating their independence from former colonial power France, which they accuse of influencing ECOWAS. Also in this sense, these three countries have expelled French troops, facilitating Russia's military expansion in the region. The military leaders who govern Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger formed a new confederation on July 6, 2024 by signing a treaty during their first summit in Niamey, after severing ties with ECOWAS - PHOTO/AFP At the recent Niamey meeting, Burkina Faso's leader, Captain Ibrahim Traore, reaffirmed these issues and accused foreign countries of exploiting Africa. "Westerners consider that we belong to them and that our wealth also belongs to them," Traore said, according to AP. "They think they are the ones who should keep telling us what is good for our states," he added. The capital Traore assured that this stage "is over forever", as the resources of African countries will be for their people. "The attack on one of us will be an attack on all the other members," said Mali's leader, Colonel Assimi Goita. The Sahel alliance, after electing Goita as its leader, signed a pact in which the three countries pledged to create a regional parliament and a bank similar to those run by ECOWAS. They also pledged to pool their military assets to fight insecurity in their countries. On the other hand, ECOWAS during its summit warned of the "disintegration" facing the region following the formation of the Sahel alliance. According to the head of the Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, after the withdrawal of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso, these countries risk "political isolation", losing millions of dollars in funding and hampering freedom of movement. Nigeria's President and ECOWAS Chairman Bola Ahmed Tinubu during the opening speech at the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) summit in Abuja, Nigeria July 7, 2024 - REUTERS/MARVELLOUS DUROWIYE These gaps will also increase insecurity and obstruct the work of the long-proposed regional force. ECOWAS has been discussing how it can fund a regional force to combat terrorism and restore constitutional order in Niger, the last of the three countries to suffer a coup d'etat. However, analysts point out that it is not only these three nations that feel alienated from ECOWAS. In recent years, the bloc has lost the support of its citizens, who in many cases have celebrated and supported the recent wave of coups in the region due to the lack of opportunities and high insecurity in their countries. "ECOWAS is largely seen as representing only the interests of its members' leaders and not the interests of the people," Oge Onubogu, director of the Wilson Center's Africa Programme, told AP. 8 July 2024 08:30 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more In April 2024, Azerbaijan witnessed a substantial surge in its natural gas exports to Turkiye, marking a pivotal moment in the economic relations between these two strategic partners. According to recent reports cited by the Turkish Energy Market Regulation Authority (EPDK), Azerbaijan's natural gas exports to Turkiye rose by 12.02 percent compared to the same period last year. This increase underscores Azerbaijan's growing role as a crucial supplier of natural gas to Turkiye amidst shifting dynamics in the global energy landscape. During April 2024, Azerbaijan exported 1.001 billion cubic meters of natural gas to Turkiye, a notable uptick from 893.36 million cubic meters in April 2023. This achievement firmly positions Azerbaijan as Turkiye's largest natural gas exporter during the reporting period. The rise in exports reflects Azerbaijan's commitment to enhancing energy cooperation with Turkiye, leveraging its strategic geographical position and substantial natural gas reserves. In contrast to Azerbaijan's upward trajectory, Iran and Russia, traditional suppliers to Turkiye, experienced contrasting fortunes. Iran, historically a significant gas exporter to Turkiye, saw its exports decline sharply by 37.25 percent to approximately 543.99 million cubic meters. This downturn underscores challenges faced by Iranian gas exports, possibly influenced by geopolitical factors and economic constraints. Meanwhile, Russia, another major player in the region, also encountered a substantial decline in its gas exports to Turkiye. Russian exports plummeted by 76.01 percent, supplying only 413.24 million cubic meters in April 2024 compared to 1.524 billion cubic meters in April 2023. This sharp decline highlights Turkiye's diversified approach to sourcing natural gas, pivoting towards more stable and reliable partners. Turkiye's total gas imports in April 2024 amounted to approximately 2.395 billion cubic meters, reflecting a significant reduction of 39.85 percent from April 2023's 3.982 billion cubic meters. This decrease underscores Turkiye's strategic efforts to manage and diversify its energy sources amidst global supply uncertainties and price fluctuations. Specifically, imports of pipeline gas, including Azerbaijani supplies via pipelines like the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP), decreased by 40.38 percent to 1.958 billion cubic meters. Similarly, liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports, which play a complementary role in Turkiye's energy security strategy, declined by 37.37 percent to 437.25 million cubic meters. These figures highlight Turkiye's adaptability in balancing its energy mix and reducing dependency on any single source or route. The burgeoning economic ties between Azerbaijan and Turkiye in the natural gas sector signify deeper strategic alignment and mutual economic benefits. Azerbaijan's enhanced role as Turkiye's primary natural gas supplier reinforces bilateral relations built on trust, reliability, and shared economic interests. Moreover, amidst global efforts towards energy transition and sustainability, Azerbaijan's natural gas exports contribute to Turkiye's energy security while aligning with environmental goals. Looking ahead, the trajectory of the Azerbaijan-Turkiye natural gas trade will likely continue evolving, shaped by geopolitical developments, market dynamics, and technological advancements. As both countries explore opportunities for further collaboration, particularly in infrastructure development and renewable energy initiatives, the strategic partnership is poised to strengthen, fostering stability and economic growth across the region. Azerbaijan's significant increase in natural gas exports to Turkiye in April 2024 not only underscores economic interdependence but also sets a positive precedent for future cooperation in energy and beyond. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 15:59 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more Italy has emerged as the leading European buyer of Azerbaijani gas, marking a notable development evident in quarterly reports since the beginning of 2024. During a meeting in Milan between Minister Parviz Shahbazov and Italian Minister of Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Picetto Fratini, it was announced that Azerbaijan plans to supply Italy with 9.6 billion cubic meters of gas this year. The discussions encompassed broad cooperation in the energy sector, including topics addressed at the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) and Italy's leadership in the G7. Both parties expressed satisfaction with the robust and strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Italy, emphasizing the growth of cooperative relations. The meeting underscored President Ilham Aliyev's commitment to advancing Azerbaijan's ties with Italy, highlighting Italy's status as Azerbaijan's primary trading partner. Italy has received over 30 billion cubic meters of gas out of the total 37.9 billion cubic meters supplied to Europe, positioning Azerbaijan among Italy's top three gas suppliers and marking significant achievements in bilateral relations. Further discussions included plans to expand the capacity of the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline (TAP) by 1.2 billion cubic meters starting in 2026, aimed at enhancing collaboration in energy security and efforts towards decarbonization. The meeting also addressed cooperation with Ansaldo Energia on equipping a 1,280 MW power plant and substations in liberated areas, alongside exploring opportunities for renewable energy supply. Italy expressed keen interest in accessing 'green energy' from Azerbaijan via the Caspian-Black Sea-European Green Energy Corridor, signaling mutual aspirations for sustainable energy solutions. Speaking to Azernews British expert Neil Watson noted that Italy has always been a very significant energy partner for Azerbaijan. "Currently, Italy imports 23 percent of its energy, and Baku is the second greatest supplier of gas after Algeria. This is predominantly because the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) section of the Southern Gas Corridor delivers to an Italian interconnector. Baku Caspian Gas and Crude Oil are a reliable and diversified energy source for Italy and across Europe. Gas is also recognized as a transitional energy source before carbon-neutral sources take over. Italy recently announced plans to increase TAP capacity by 1.2bcm per annum to reach 11.2bcm by 2026, eventually reaching 20bcm," the expert added. According to him, Italy has already achieved an 18 percent increase in its level of domestically produced renewable energy. "Nonetheless, its potential requirement for energy from renewable sources remains considerable, and it will certainly be a prime customer for so-called green energy through the proposed Black Sea-European Green Corridor if it is to achieve its COP29 commitments, much of which will be generated via the join projects in renewable energy to be implemented in the liberated territories." N. Watson concluded that Italian-Azerbaijani energy relations are already very strong, and only just lag behind that with the UK. "I believe that Italy will strongly propound the current and future role of Azerbaijan in the European energy mix, both in hydrocarbons and renewables. Italian politicians and policymakers have already witnessed the proactive and pragmatic approaches of Official Baku. The Italian G7 Presidency and Azerbaijani COP29 hosting will complement each other, demonstrating the strength of this partnership at a time when Europe needs diversified and reliable energy sources." --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Vice President Kamala Harris' husband has tested positive for COVID-19 after experiencing mild symptoms, but she tested negative and is symptom-free, according to a report Sunday. Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff's office said was he was tested Saturday after feeling ill, CNN reported. The couple joined President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden on a White House balcony for Thursday's Fourth of July celebration in the nation's capital, but it's unclear if the Bidens have been tested, CNN said. Last week, Joe Biden blamed his disastrous debate performance against former President Donald Trump on "feeling terrible" because he was suffering from a cold. "The docs with me, I asked if they did a COVID test because we were trying to figure out what was wrong," Biden said in an ABC News interview broadcast Friday. "They did a test to see whether or not I had some infection, you know, a virus. I didn't. They just said I had a really bad cold." Emhoff's infection marks at least the second time he has contracted COVID-19. He tested positive in March 2022 and Harris tested positive the following month but never experienced any symptoms, according to CNN. 8 July 2024 10:22 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more Azerbaijan was represented at the '2024 Korea Import Fair' exhibition, Azernews reports citing the Export and Investment Promotion Agency - AZPROMO. It was noted that during the '2024 Korea Import Fair' international exhibition in Seoul, South Korea's capital, Azerbaijani products from local companies were showcased at a unified stand organized by the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Korea, following a buyer mission from South Korea to Azerbaijan in March of this year. Azerbaijani products garnered significant interest from visitors. Yusif Abdullayev, Executive Director of AZPROMO, delivered a video address at the seminar on 'Investment Opportunities in Azerbaijan' held within the exhibition's framework. Tural Hajili, Deputy Executive Director of the Agency, also spoke at the event, providing insights into Azerbaijan's business environment, trade and investment opportunities, as well as support mechanisms for exporters. The seminar concluded with a question-and-answer session. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 11:37 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more At the opening ceremony of the 18th Baku Summer School of Energy, Mukhtar Babayev, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan and President-designate of COP29, emphasised the need for Azerbaijan to set an example as host of COP29, Azernews reports. He highlighted ongoing efforts to update the national emissions reduction plan, aiming to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Babayev also outlined the priorities for COP29, including discussions on sustainable agriculture, science, water, technology, innovation, sustainable urbanisation, and health. He emphasised the importance of addressing the challenges faced by the most climate-vulnerable countries, spanning regions from Africa to Asia and the Caribbean. "These discussions at COP29 aim to facilitate climate action investments, overcoming barriers many countries encounter," Minister Babayev emphasised. The minister highlighted that the world will convene at COP29 in Baku this November to discuss strategies for limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. He underscored Azerbaijan's significant role in the energy sector: "Azerbaijan currently supports European Union energy security through natural gas exports. Revenue from our fossil fuel industry fuels long-term sustainable development efforts. This includes establishing a green corridor for renewable energy in Europe and financing green energy and energy efficiency projects domestically. As a developing economy, we recognise the financial challenges of transitioning to a net-zero, climate-resilient future." --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 14:18 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more The economic ties between China and Azerbaijan are developing in an ascending line, and the economic indicators of the two countries have reached the highest level, China's Charge d'Affaires in Azerbaijan, Ding Tao, said, Azernews reports. He announced the SCO Demonstration Zone - Logistics and Trade Promotion Conference in Azerbaijan. Tao noted that the value of trade turnover between the two countries rose by 43.5% and reached $3.1 billion in 2023. "China-Azerbaijan relations are developing in an ascending line. The ties between the two countries have passed the test of time. Currently, the ties have reached the highest level, he added. The diplomat underlined the importance of China-Azerbaijan cooperation in the transport sector within the Belt and Road Initiative. Valeh Alasgarov, the chairman of the board of the authorised body of the AFEZ, said at the SCO Demonstration Zone - Logistics and Trade Promotion Conference in Azerbaijan that it will be more profitable for China to produce goods to be exported to Europe in the Azerbaijan-Alat Free Economic Zone (AFEZ). He noted that this would free China from additional transport costs and create conditions to benefit from the concessions and opportunities of the AFEZ. Of course, it is necessary to further develop the Middle Corridor by making investments. The development of the Middle Corridor and the location of the free zone on this corridor are not accidental. We will be happy to see Chinese companies in Azerbaijan. Yesterday, the participants of this event, a delegation from China, visited the AFEZ. They had the opportunity to get familiarised with the conditions there and were informed about the advantages of the free zone. I once again invite Chinese companies to operate in the AFEZ. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 13:43 (UTC+04:00) "As the Small and Medium Business Development Agency (SMB), we are keen on collaborating with our Chinese counterparts to develop business support programs." Azernews reports that this statement was made by Orkhan Mammadov, Chairman of the SMB Management Board, during the "SCO Demonstration Zone - Logistics and Trade Promotion Conference in Azerbaijan" held in Baku. Mammadov emphasised the significance of establishing platforms for business cooperation and crafting joint business ventures: "I am confident that the active involvement of Azerbaijan's Trade Representative Office in China, along with trade houses, will bolster relations among SMEs in both our countries, thereby enhancing the trade cycle. Organising business missions sector-wise will facilitate a thorough exploration of market opportunities for our enterprises, foster robust business connections, and enable collaborative projects. SMB's stands ready to assist entrepreneurs in coordinating such missions and visits. Chinese enterprises stand to benefit from Azerbaijan's favourable business and investment environment." --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 15:18 (UTC+04:00) Nazrin Abdul Read more The Baku Summer Energy School provides exceptional opportunities for participants to gain a deep understanding of Azerbaijan's energy policy and its global implications. Minister of Energy Parviz Shahbazov emphasized these points during the opening ceremony of the 18th Baku Summer Energy School, Azernews reports. He underscored Azerbaijan's longstanding role as a reliable energy supplier, particularly through its significant contributions from oil and gas to economic development. Shahbazov highlighted the broader impact of Azerbaijan's energy resources, ensuring both national and regional energy security. Gary Jones, Regional President of bp overseeing Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkiye, echoed these sentiments in his address, stressing Azerbaijan's crucial role in regional and European energy security. He also expressed optimism about Azerbaijan's future in renewable energy, citing a three-decade partnership with the country and anticipating further collaboration in this promising sector. The Chief Executive Officer of COP29, Elnur Soltanov, highlighted this year, Azerbaijan's hosting of the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) serves as a significant catalyst for its advancements in "green energy." Soltanov emphasized that this opportunity will showcase Azerbaijan's proactive efforts on a global stage. "Azerbaijan has a compelling narrative to share," he stated. "Having established itself in the oil and gas sector, we have now emerged as a reliable partner in global energy security." --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 17:39 (UTC+04:00) Ulviyya Shahin Read more Two documents were signed between Azerbaijani and Chinese companies during the conference on "Shanghai Cooperation Organization Demonstration Zone - Promotion of Logistics and Trade in Azerbaijan" held in Baku, Azernews reports. The first document was signed between Absheron Logistics Center and China's "Shandong Chilu Express Eurasia Class Train Operation" company. The second document was signed between Azerbaijan's tourism company "Eco Voyage" and China's "Qingdao Qingsong Global Cooperation International Trade Co. The Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a Eurasian political, economic, and security alliance comprising eight member states. China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, India, and Pakistan. The SCO aims to enhance regional cooperation and stability. A "demonstration zone" typically refers to an area designated to showcase specific economic or developmental initiatives within the framework of the SCO. The signing of documents between Azerbaijani and Chinese companies at such conferences underscores efforts to strengthen economic ties, promote investment, and enhance logistical capabilities between the two countries within the broader SCO framework. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Children's writer Gulzar Ibrahimova has presented her fairy tale book "Trolls' Secret" at International Mugham Center, Azernews reports. The book presentation was organized with the support of the Nizami Ganjavi Weekend School of Azerbaijani language in Oslo, Norway. Coordinator of the Nizami Ganjavi Weekend School Gunay Aliyeva briefed the audience about the book. The fairy tale book "Trolls' Secret" is dedicated to the trolls, the fairy tale heroes of the Scandinavian peoples. Speaking about the novel, writer Gulzar Ibrahimova said that the tale was created for a year. At the event, children's writer, head of Agilli Bala Publishing House Fatima Alkhas, Doctor of History, Professor Sahin Fazil, poets Gulaya Shinikhli, Fakhraddin Meydanli, Zaur Ustac and others expressed their opinion about Gulzar Ibrahimova's new book. The artistic part of the event featured colorful musical and dance numbers with participation of Nizami Ganjavi Weekend School's students. The young talents sang songs "My mother tongue" and "Sag ol, O Vatan!" (lyrics-Gulzar Ibrahimova, music-Elshan Nijat). Employees and numerous readers of Yasamal district Centralized Library System, representatives of the Russian community, children and parents as well as numerous book lovers took part in the event. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 16:45 (UTC+04:00) Laman Ismayilova Read more The guests of the 14th Silk Road International Music Festival have enjoyed a vibrant show delivered by TURKSOY artists and the Turkish Inegol Folk Dance Ensemble, Azernews reports. At the beginning of the concert held at Heydar Aliyev Center in Shaki, the spectators were informed about the activities of the Inegol Folk Dance Ensemble. Founded in 2021, Inegol successfully represents Turkiye at major music events and festivals held in the country and abroad. The ensemble took the third place at Lazgi International Folk Games Festival 2024, held in Uzbekistan. It has been brought to attention that the collective, consisting of 40 people, participates in the Shaki festival with 12 dancers. The artistic director of the collective is Atilla Mert, his adviser is Fatih Sen. Colorful dance show as well as the performances of People's Artist of Kazakhstan Bakhtiyar Taylakbayev and Kazakhstan's Cultural Worker Lara Rysbay, were warmly welcomed by the audience. The concert featured Azerbaijani, Turkish and Kazakh songs. At the end of the concert, the festival's artistic director, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Composers' Union, People's Artist Frangiz Alizade, and Azerbaijan's representative in TURKSOY Elchin Gafarli, expressed their gratitude to the artists for a fascinating concert. On behalf of the festival organizers, the artists were presented with the symbolic symbol of the festival, as well as TURKSOY's commemorative gifts. Note that TURKSOY has its roots in meetings held in 1992 in Baku and Istanbul, where the ministers of culture from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkiye, and Turkmenistan declared their commitment to cooperate in a joint cultural framework. The International Organisation of Turkic Culture TURKSOY is the UNESCO of the Turkic World and was established in 1993 upon the signature of its founding agreement by the Ministers of Culture of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Turkiye. ---- Laman Ismayilova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @lmntypewriterrr Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 16:24 (UTC+04:00) Fatima Latifova Read more The Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Alen Simonyan, will meet with Speaker of the Azerbaijani National Assembly Sahiba Gafarova in Geneva in November, Azernews reports. Based on the preliminary agreement reached in the previous meeting, the next meeting between Alen Simonyan and the Speaker of the National Assembly will take place in November in Geneva. It should be noted that on March 22, the speakers of the Azerbaijani and Armenian parliaments, Sahiba Gafarova and Alen Simonyan, had a bilateral meeting within the framework of the 148th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union held in Geneva. During the meeting, issues regarding how the parliaments of the two countries could support the peace process amid ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia were discussed. On May 16, the second meeting between the speakers of the Azerbaijani and Armenian parliaments was held within the framework of the 1st Session of the Organising Committee of the VI Global Conference of Parliament Speakers held in Geneva. The discussion continued on how the parliaments of the two countries could support the peace process amid ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 18:46 (UTC+04:00) By Dr Mehmood Ul Hassan Khan President Ilham Aliyev is well known for his rigorous politicization and democratization in South Caucasus and beyond. Ilham introduced and subsequently institutionalized numerous structural reforms that have further strengthened political liberalization, opposition co-existence, women empowerment, political diversity, accountability, transparency, openness, and the role of the law gearing up immense socio-economic development to provide basic necessities of life and protection of basic human rights. The snap parliamentary elections in 2024 in Azerbaijan vividly reflect Ilham's firm belief in the trinity of modern democracy. It now seems that the Republic of Azerbaijans State, Society, and System have been further decentralized gearing to stable and sustainable development, ethnic diversity, multiculturalism tagging people, nature, business, and investment with friendly governance. Most recently, President Ilham has signed a decree on the dissolution of Azerbaijans Parliament of the sixth convocation and the appointment of an extraordinary election to the Azerbaijan Parliament. An extraordinary election will be scheduled for September 1, 2024. In this regard, on June 21, the Parliament of Azerbaijan appealed to the President with a proposal to call early parliamentary elections. The need to reschedule the elections was justified because in November, when they were originally scheduled, Azerbaijan will host the COP29 and other major international events. On June 24, the President of Azerbaijan requested the Constitutional Court to review whether the dissolution of the parliament complies with the country's Constitution. The Constitutional Court, in a plenary session, confirmed the legality of the President's decision to dissolve the parliament consistent with Article 981 of the Constitution of Azerbaijan. Thus it has no political maneuvering and administrative control. Despite sponsored media outlets of the West the Republic of Azerbaijan has the trinity of a modern democratic system consisting of respect for human civilization, fair, free, and transparent elections, a stable political system, and responsive democracy, pivotal for human survival, protection of basic human rights, freedom of expression, socio-economic prosperity, qualitative life, and last but not least, respect of humanity and ethnic diversity and hopefully, parliamentary elections 2024 will further strengthen, streamline, and systematized the governance, socio-economic sustainability and international cooperation. Azerbaijan is a democratic country, and its Chief Election Commission is also an independent legal entity. Azerbaijans society believes in fair play, equal opportunity, the right to access information, and last but not least, the right to association, the golden parameters and principles of modern Western democracy. Moreover, the independence and vibrancy of its mass media always protect transparency and fairness in elections. Historically, Azerbaijan was the first functional democracy in the entire Muslim world. Since its independence, it has been implementing numerous structural reforms to achieve the optimal levels of politicization and democratization in its country. Azerbaijan has its unique model of politics and democracy which has succeeded in achieving desired goals of socio-economic prosperity in the country. During the last two decades, the state budget has increased 30 times. The budget expenses per person were less than 150 manats in 2003; today, this number is more than 3500 manats. As for social protection expenses, the increase in this area is more than 20 times. Also, compared to 2003, the poverty level in 2022 has decreased from 44.7 percent to 5.5 percent, and the average monthly salary has increased from 77.4 manats to 839.4 manats. Thus, his policies have been catalysts for socio-economic development in the country. The average nominal monthly salary has increased 12 times, from 76.8 manat ($45) from January through November 2003 to 923.1 manat ($543) for the same period in 2023. The minimum wage has increased 38 times, from nine manat ($5.29) in 2003 to 345 manat ($202.9) in 2023. The number of employment contracts has increased by 38.5 percent, from 1.3 million in 2017 to 1.8 million in 2023. Employment has increased by 25 percent, from four million people in 2003 to five million people in 2023. The number of economically active population has grown by 20 percent, from 4.4 million people to 5.3 million people. The annual amount allocated for employment programs has increased from seven million manats ($4 million) in 2018 to 525 million manats ($308.8 million) by 2024 (75 times increase). Under the presidency of President Ilham Aliyev (20 years), the GDP of the non-oil sector has grown 3.4 times showing the success of diversification of the macro-economy. Azerbaijans foreign exchange reserves have grown more than 47 times exceeding $66 billion. More than 2.5 million new jobs have been generated in the country enabling the reduction of poverty. Its GDP estimation is 6.3 percent which is the highest in the South Caucasus. The ruling party of Azerbaijan rightly decided to hold an early election in the country because of achieving close liaison with the ongoing diversified but integrated economic and structural reforms. Moreover, the constitution of Azerbaijan allows snap elections which are also endorsed by the Electoral code. With the successful holding of snap parliament elections in free, fair, and transparent manners, the Republic of Azerbaijan, a pioneer of secular democracy in the CIS and South Caucasus has now started its journey from electoral democracy to substantial & liberal democracy. Electioneering is at its peak. Political parties and their candidates are trying hard to win the hearts & souls of the common people to secure a majority in the upcoming election. The Azerbaijan Democratic Republic (ADR) was the pioneer in granting rights of voting to women even before the so-called civilized West. It introduced a novel concept of political diversity through the real representation of ethnic groups/identities in the parliament. the ADR consolidated the concept of political liberalism through the participation of various businessmen, and unionists in its first parliament even before the Japanese model of politico-economic governance. In summary, President Ilham Aliyev is the real custodian and guarantor of democracy in Azerbaijan which is responsive, productive, progressive, and participatory gearing the country towards greater prosperity, connectivity, qualitative life, and political diversity. It is a multi-party democracy which demonstrates its political maturity, societal decency, development-oriented policies, and the rule of law. The Republic of Azerbaijan constantly continued the democratic spirit, concepts, and political reforms and achieved a sustainable political system with a liberal democracy in its country. It has its own unique salient features which do not merely rely on mercantilization of economics and exploitation of agents of production. Its journey towards rigorous politicization and democratization has been peoples friendly through holding constant and timely elections. It has always been preferring people over profits by providing basic necessities of life and protecting social equilibriums and spirits of multiculturalism. Thus President Ilhams political discourse is achieving miracles in terms of immense socioeconomic development, a corruption-free system, good governance, fair, free, transparent, and open elections, the neutrality of all stakeholders, free will of the people, denial of all discriminations, the institutionalization of women empowerment and judicial independence in the Republic of Azerbaijan. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Beleaguered aircraft company Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy to commit fraud linked to two catastrophic crashes in a plea deal opposed by victims' families. Under the deal, Boeing would pay a fine of $243.6 for defrauding safety regulators by violating an agreement after the crash of two 737 MAX planes that killed 346 people, according to court papers filed Sunday night by the Department of Justice. Under the plea deal, an independent monitor would also oversee compliance with regulations at Boeing for three years during a probationary period. In addition, the company must invest at least $455 million in compliance and safety programs, according to a U.S. prosecutors' court filing late Sunday. The plea deal must be approved by a federal judge, who could still reject all or part of it. The Department of Justice sued Boeing last year after it argued that the company had violated an agreement in 2021 that it would make significant safety changes after the crashes in 2018 and 2019. Families of victims filed a separate document in court concerning the agreement saying that they will object to the deal, CNN reported. They "intend to argue that the plea deal with Boeing unfairly makes concessions to Boeing that other criminal defendants would never receive and fails to hold Boeing accountable for the deaths of 346 persons." The families had sought an admission of fault in the crashes and wanted the company and executives to face trial, according to their attorney, Paul Cassell. "This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died," Cassell said in a statement reported by the Associated Press. "Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and D.O.J., the deadly consequences of Boeing's crime are being hidden." The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia. It does not give officials immunity, or Boeing immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon early this year. The Department of Justice said in a statement reported by CNN that Boeing will be "required to make historic investments to strengthen and integrate its compliance and safety program. This criminal conviction demonstrates the department's commitment to holding Boeing accountable for its misconduct," it added. 8 July 2024 12:57 (UTC+04:00) Fatima Latifova Read more The holding of the summit of the leaders of the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) in Shusha has a historical meaning, Azernews reports, citing Minister of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan, Jeyhun Bayramov, as he told journalists in his statement. The minister noted that one of the priority issues for Azerbaijan is to develop cooperation within the OTS. "On the initiative of President Ilham Aliyev, a proposal was put forward to hold informal summit meetings of the OTS every year. The third such summit took place in Shusha. After the liberation of the lands, significant events were held in Shusha. However, at the international level, the meeting of the OTS leaders in the form of a summit has a historical meaning. We are proud of this," J. Bayramov emphasised. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 13:24 (UTC+04:00) Fatima Latifova Read more The "Birlik-2024" command-staff exercises have started in Kazakhstan with the participation of military personnel from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan, Azernews reports. The military maneuvers are being held at the "Oymasha" training ground in the Mangistau region in the west of the country and will continue until July 17. More than 4,000 personnel and 700 units of military equipment are involved in the exercises. The main purpose is to check the swift reaction of ground forces' maneuvers, aerial reconnaissance, naval special forces, military aviation, and military ships during the execution of combat missions in a military conflict situation. Participants will also be tested on various military combat types, tactical planning, and shooting capabilities. It should be noted that a cultural and public event is also planned for the last day of the military exercises. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 19:33 (UTC+04:00) Fatima Latifova Read more The informal summit held in Shusha on July 5-6, with the participation of the leaders of the Organisation of Turkic States, concluded with the adoption of an important document comprising crucial points. It is certain that this event will go down in the history of the entire Turkic world as a significant milestone. This is also the first ever international summit held in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. Also, the signing of the Garabagh Declaration is particularly noteworthy. There is no doubt that this summit will further strengthen the unity of the Turkic world. The political analyst Amid Aliyev, commenting on the issue for Azernews, stated that holding this summit in Shusha was extremely important for various reasons. "The informal summit of the OTS held in Shusha last week was notable for several reasons. The meeting had a predominantly political purpose. Given the global changes occurring in the world and the reformation of the region's geopolitical landscape, holding this meeting in the Caucasus, specifically in Shusha, was extremely significant. At the summit, the message was conveyed that Shusha is not only the political centre of Azerbaijan but also of the entire Turkic world. In the next 10 years, Shusha will be capable of fully competing with the Davos and Munich conferences," he said. The expert mentioned that in the future, the OTS could also ensure a military dimension in its activities. "Important theses were voiced by Azerbaijan's leader, President Ilham Aliyev, at the Shusha meeting. Considering that the upcoming century will be the "Turkic Century," it was firmly stated that the OTS will play an essential role. For this purpose, key goals such as the development of transport and communication lines within the Turkic Council's geography, the exploitation of energy resources, especially alternative energy sources, and the creation of an economic union were identified. All of this suggests that in the near future, the Turkic Council will be fully operational in political, economic, and likely military aspects," the expert added. The political analyst also recalled the Turkic Council's efforts on climate change. He noted that discussions on this topic within the council are necessary. "In the context of global challenges and climate change, the unity of the Turkic Council is extremely important. Within this geography, the complete drying up of the Aral Sea, the decline in the Caspian Sea level, difficulties in accessing drinking water sources, and destruction caused by annual rainfall give ground for more active discussions on these processes within the council." He drew attention to the upcoming COP29 event to be held in Azerbaijan. "It is gratifying that this issue is being discussed within the framework of the Turkic Council before the COP29 event to be held in Azerbaijan in November. The Shusha summit, which occupies a middle ground between the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the COP29 events, played a key role in solving political, economic, and social problems in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres." The expert commented on Shusha hosting the Turkic Council's meeting. He said that the declaration signed within the summit reflects the future of the Council. "After the Second Garabagh War, Shusha, which played the role of a political centre for the second time, became significantly important in the formation of the OTS and its operation as a unified organisation. The Garabagh declaration signed at the end of the meeting can be considered a document that determines the strategic development path of the Turkic Council for the next decade," he noted. The political analyst said that the principles of security and development of the countries in the region will be the main foundations of the future period. "In the following period, the Turkic Council will face a new era in terms of quality and content. The main elements of this era will be free economic development, social stability, military security, and integration into the world community of the states and peoples located in this geography," the expert said. Patrick Walsh, an Irish historian and political analyst, drew attention to Azerbaijan's relations with the Turkic world, especially with Turkiye. The relationship between Azerbaijan and Turkiye is very important. It was significant in the winning of the 2020 war and has a decisive geopolitical effect in the region. It means that the Western Powers and Russia have to take account of Turkiye when they are dealing with Azerbaijan. This is particularly important with regard to Moscow, which cannot attempt to intimidate Baku without endangering very important relations with Ankara, which have become all the more vital with the conflict in Ukraine. The expert stated that Azerbaijan's strategic importance in terms of connecting the West and the East is unequivocal. Azerbaijan occupies a significant link in the developing Eurasian chain which will bring the East, and particularly China, closer to Europe. It is also a North-South nodal point between Russia and Iran. All this makes peace and stability in the region vital for the wider world and it is in everyone's interests that economic development takes place along associated corridors and transit routes. The participation of Hungary in the informal summit of heads of state of OTS in Shusha, representing Europe, and the discussions regarding Hungary's becoming a member state of OTS in the future added special importance to the event. Patrick Walsh did not rule out highlighting Hungary's participation in the Shusha summit. He mentioned that it is gratifying that Brussels is interested in cooperating with Azerbaijan. Hungary is another independently minded country. Part of the EU but not willing to sacrifice its national interests to Brussels' whims. It is welcome that this most independently minded country joins with 2 other similar states - Turkiye and Azerbaijan - in the mutual interest of support and development, he added. However, it is significant to note that Hungary's participation in the summit was not unequivocally received by the European Union. A criticism addressed by Josep Borrell, the head of the EU's foreign policy administration, to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban for participating in the Turkic Council summit revealed the European Union's jealous attitude towards Hungary making independent decisions among Turkic-speaking countries. .@PM_ViktorOrban didnt received mandate from the #EUCO to represent it at the summit of the Organisation of Turkic States. The EU rejects attempts to legitimise the Turkish Cypriot secessionist entity & recognises only the Republic of Cyprus. https://t.co/vhTfO3IoVe Josep Borrell Fontelles (@JosepBorrellF) July 6, 2024 Patrick Walsh stated that Hungary has its own free will in this matter. He said that Hungary does not want to be a tool of the European Union. As I said, Hungary does no one's bidding. It will not tolerate policies that are detrimental to the Hungarian national interest. We have seen this in several instances where it obstructed some anti-Russian policies of the EU because they would have been particularly harmful to Hungary's relations with Russia and Belarus. Hungary refuses to be a passive tool of Western interests, and this annoys Brussels who are used to compliance to policies that are frankly dictatorial in nature, ordained by a small European elite who are going down a road that is harmful to the interests of ordinary Europeans, the expert noted. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 17:21 (UTC+04:00) By Mazahir Afandiyev Following the dissolution of the USSR in 1991, neighboring Armenia launched an armed offensive against newly independent Azerbaijan. As a result, over a fifth of the country's territoryincluding the city of Shushahas remained under occupation for thirty years. The occupation resulted in the widespread ethnic cleansing of almost one million Azerbaijanis from these lands, along with other major crimes. Since 1993, our nation has prioritized its Sustainable Development by taking into account universal ideals, to which the entire globe is bound. Particularly in the last 20 years, under President Ilham Aliyev's direction, these valueswhich prioritize tolerance and cosmopolitan valueshave shaped the entire Azerbaijani community. Today, Azerbaijan continues its commitment to partnership on all international platforms and demonstrates to the world community the way to achieve sustainable development. Within the framework of this cooperation, in recent years, our country has become an integral part of the Turkic world, setting in its multi-vector foreign policy the priority of strengthening relations, especially with the Turkic states. Presently, Azerbaijan persists in its dedication to collaboration on global stages and exemplifies to the global community the path towards sustainable development. In the context of this cooperation, our nation has developed into a vital component of the Turkic world in recent years, prioritizing the development of ties, particularly with the Turkic states, in its multifaceted foreign policy. Nobody is unaware that one of the international forums that varies in significance for Azerbaijan is the Organization of Turkic States. As of right now, Azerbaijan has provided extensive support for the organisation's founding and operations. In our renewing world, combining the historical achievements of the Turkic states committed to the ideas of peace, security, stability, development, and progress with modern challenges, ensuring better coexistence of peoples, and strengthening the more stable unity of the Turkic states in the current geopolitical situation reflects the national interests of Azerbaijan. Turkic states are currently working on significant documents that will define sustainable development in practically all areas. Specifically, the 2040 adoption of the "Overview of the Turkic World-2021" serves as the primary road map for adjusting to the changes occurring in our more interconnected world. Guaranteeing the Turkic states' unity and ensuring the durability of their influence on the regional and global economies are among the top priorities here. According to this perspective, the Republic of Azerbaijan's initiative to host an informal summit of the heads of state of the Organization of Turkic States in Shusha on July 6 of this year and the signing of a declaration on the outcomes of the meeting proved that Garabagh is the beating heart of the Turkic world. Another accomplishment of the Azerbaijani people was President Ilham Aliyev's address during the summit, which once again reflected our aspirations and future vision. The summit's location in Shusha, which is regarded as the jewel of Garabagh and one of the major hubs of the sociopolitical and cultural life of both Azerbaijan and the region, was obviously planned. As a result, Shusha, which has come to represent a tolerant and cosmopolitan Azerbaijan, was named the "Cultural capital of Azerbaijan" in 2021. In 2022, Azerbaijan proclaimed that year to be the "Year of Shusha" in honor of the 270th anniversary of Shusha's founding. Shusha was named by ICESCO the "Cultural Capital of the Islamic World" for 2024 and by TURKSOY the "Cultural Capital of the Turkic World" for 2023. At the same time, in 2021, in the city of Shusha, a representation of our unwavering spirit, the Shusha Declaration, was signed. This document is significant not only for Azerbaijan but also for the whole Turkic world. President Ilham Aliyev's extensive and in-depth speech emphasized once more the significance of the Turkic states in establishing regional security and stability. It stressed that the Turkic peoples constitute a family founded on shared ethnic roots, history, language, culture, traditions, and values. The president's visionary and focused words, "The XXI century should become the century of development of the Turkic world," made it clear that the key to uniting and organizing Turkic-speaking states and accomplishing all of their objectives is cooperation based on respect for one another. President Ilham Aliyev mentioned in his speech that positive dynamics are developing friendly and brotherly relations as well as cooperation between Azerbaijan and the Turkic states. He also mentioned the growing volume of trade turnover and stated that the work being done is in the best interests of all nations. This year, Azerbaijan will host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, or COP29, marking a further triumph for the country and the Turkic region. "Drawing on the experience we have gained during the four-year-long chairmanship of the Non-Aligned Movement, Azerbaijan will spare no effort to strengthen solidarity and reach consensus between developed and developing countries," President Ilham Aliyev emphasised. Naturally, one of the primary responsibilities in this regard is to enhance international solidarity worldwide as well as within the context of the Turkic world. In this sense, the 31-point "Garabagh Declaration of the Informal Summit of the Organisation of Turkic States," which was signed by five heads of state, will enable the Turkic states to identify the Turkic point of view in discussions of global challenges, as well as to further strengthen the solidarity of the Turkic world and participate at a high level in the work of COP29. Mazahir Afandiyev is a member of the Milli Majlis (the Azerbaijani Parliament). --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 22:06 (UTC+04:00) On July 8, the fifth meeting of the Organizing Committee was held in connection with the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29). Azernews reports, citing Azertag that Samir Nuriyev, Head of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and chairman of the Organizing Committee, noted that the preparation process for COP29 is under the constant supervision of President Ilham Aliyev. Samir Nuriyev said that President Ilham Aliyev at the "Shanghai Cooperation Organization plus" format event held on July 4 and at the informal Summit of the Heads of State of the Organization of Turkic States organized in Shusha on July 6, Azerbaijan was among the developed and developing countries during COP29. stressed that he will spare no effort to create a bridge and reach a consensus. The Chairman of the Organizing Committee added that in the "Karabakh Declaration" adopted at the Shusha Summit, the brotherly Turkish states supported Azerbaijan's consistent efforts to achieve real results at COP29. Samir Nuriyev said that in response to President Ilham Aliyev's invitation to the Leaders' Summit, the number of heads of state and government that will participate in the event has increased. He emphasized that the great interest in the Summit is an indicator of respect for our country, confidence in Azerbaijan's ability to organize huge international events at a high level, and confidence in its firm political will regarding the green transition. The head of the Presidential Administration said that the final text of the "Host Country" Agreement to be signed between the Government of Azerbaijan and the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change will be ready soon, taking into account the opinions of the relevant state institutions. The chairman of the Organizing Committee noted that after the Bonn climate conference held on June 3-13, 2024, Azerbaijan entered the active stage of the COP29 presidency. Talking about Azerbaijan's COP29 priorities, Samir Nuriyev said that a list of initial proposals consisting of 14 initiatives was prepared based on the proposals of various state institutions, as well as as a result of intensive discussions with the UN and other international institutions. Samir Nuriyev noted that the thematic days of COP29 have already been divided in agreement with the UN. Touching on the fact that Azerbaijan is open to cooperation with non-governmental organizations and think tanks in the fight against climate change, Samir Nuriyev stressed that the work towards the establishment of the COP29 International Consultative Committee consisting of a number of influential foreign persons is being finalized. Then the Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, appointed President of COP29, Mukhtar Babayev gave a speech and reported on the general progress of COP29, the results of the Bonn climate conference, and the foreign visits of the COP29 team. Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Anar Alakbarov, reported on the organizational-logistics activities in preparation for COP29, including the works started on building the infrastructure at the Baku Olympic Stadium. Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeyhun Bayramov made a speech on general substantive issues, the negotiations on the new climate finance target at the Bonn climate conference, the Action Agenda of the COP29 Presidency, and initiatives. Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan - Head of the Department of Foreign Policy Affairs of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Hikmet Hajiyev spoke about communication issues, including work with foreign media. Human rights commissioner (ombudsman) Sabina Aliyeva informed about the activities carried out and planned measures for COP29. Minister of Emergency Situations Kamaladdin Heydarov spoke about the measures taken in the field of fire and technical safety. Eldar Azizov, the head of Baku City Executive Power, spoke about the capital's preparations for COP29. Deputy Chairman of the Food Safety Agency Zakiya Mustafayeva spoke about the organization of public catering services and the control measures implemented in this direction. Director of "DOST Inclusive Development and Creativity Center" Limited Liability Company Nigar Mammadova spoke about the work done in connection with COP29 through the DOST Inclusive line. At the end of the meeting, tasks were given on the implementation of the COP29 Action Plan and other related issues. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 14:58 (UTC+04:00) "Azerbaijan has involved many interested parties in the process of transitioning to green energy. Joining forces with stakeholders can make it possible to achieve greater achievements in this direction." Azernews reports that SOCAR president Rovshan Najaf said this at the opening ceremony of the 18th Baku Summer Energy School. He said that Azerbaijan not only increases the volume of energy supply to many countries, but also ensures their energy security. "The organisation of the Summer Energy School is a very appropriate platform for discussing such issues," R. Najaf said. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 08:00 (UTC+04:00) After the defeat of the Macronists in the extraordinary parliamentary elections in France, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would submit his resignation to the President of the Republic, Azernews reports. According to the preliminary calculations of the "Ipsos-Talan" polling center, the left-wing coalition in the National Assembly is in first place with 171-187 deputies, together with the allies of the presidential camp in second place with 152-163 deputies, and the far-right National Unity party is in third place with 134-152 deputies. decided. After the left-wing coalition won the majority in the second round of the parliamentary elections, Prime Minister Attal said that he would submit his resignation letter to President E. Macron on July 8. "Our country is experiencing an unprecedented political situation and is preparing to welcome the world in a few weeks," said G. Attal, referring to the Paris Olympic Games, and said that he will exercise his powers as long as his duties require. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 10:00 (UTC+04:00) A few days ago, we found out that the Bank of Georgia, which is considered the leading bank of the neighboring Republic of Georgia, was actively involved in financing the non-governmental organization "The Union for Protection of the Interests and Rights of the "Artsakh" People", established under the leadership of Karabakh separatists, Azernews reports. According to information, the mission of this organization is to advocate for the collective rights of Karabakh Armenians who continue to live as "migrants" in Armenia and around the world, to represent their interests on international platforms, and to revive separatism by drawing the world's attention to the problems of Karabakh Armenians. The funding of the organization stems from donations from citizens, and this process is carried out through "AMERIABANK", which operates in Armenia. While 90 percent of the shares of "AMERIABANK", which provides funding for the newly initiated separatist activities, belong to the leading bank of the Republic of Georgia - Bank of Georgia, the remaining 10 percent of the shares are owned by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Exhibit 1: Number of AMERIABANK shares held by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development Exhibit 2: Purchase of shares in AMERIABANK by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 2015 The negotiations on the purchase of shares between AMERIABANK and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development first started in 2015. The EBRD acquired a 20.6 percent stake in AMERIABANK in December of that year in exchange for a $40 million investment. Although for a long time "AMERIABANK" belonged to the Armenian billionaire Ruben Vardanyan, who lived in the Russian Federation, the sale of the bank's shares occurred in February this year. Meanwhile, for reference, before the change of shareholders, 48.82 percent of the bank's shares were owned by "Imast Group (CY) Limited", 17.71 percent by EBRD, 13.91 percent by Asian Development Bank (ADB), and 12.05 percent by ESPS Holding Limited. Even though the EBRD's stakes have decreased since the change earlier this year, it is clear that the aforementioned bank continues to maintain its position as a shareholder. Cooperation between the EBRD, headquartered in London, and the Republic of Azerbaijan began in 1992, and currently, bilateral cooperation is governed by the country's Strategy document for 20192024. The involvement of the EBRD, which operates within a fairly broad framework with Azerbaijan and is directly engaged in financing projects in the energy and other sectors considered strategic, in a project aimed (even if indirectly) at reviving Armenian separatism is unacceptable. The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is an international financial institution that is officially committed to promoting integrity and high ethical standards in all business operations following international practice. The EBRD's Office of the Chief Compliance functions to investigate allegations of corruption, money laundering, and fraud filed by the bank and to address these issues. The involvement of "AMERIABANK", whose shareholder is the EBRD, in the financing of separatist activities claiming the sovereign territories of Azerbaijan, is an international crime. Also, this activity of the mentioned bank is a violation of international compliance rules. Taking into account corporate business ethics and international financial principles accepted in the world, the participation of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development in financing the project formulated against the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan is unacceptable. We hope that this step, incompatible with the spirit of strategic relations established between the Republic of Azerbaijan and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, will soon be eliminated by the General Compliance Office of the Bank. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 19:50 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva Trade between Russia and the United States increased 1.5 times in May compared to April to $ 487 million, Azernews reports. It is noted that this is the highest indicator of trade turnover since May last year. Thus, Russian exports in late spring increased by 47% to $439 million. The main commodity in US imports from Russia was uranium, purchases of which resumed again after a pause in April - it was purchased for $209.5 million. At the same time, purchases of fertilizers decreased by 60% to $99.5 million, and platinum by 6% to $88.9 million. At the same time, the States increased the import of plywood by more than five times, to $11.6 million, and also purchased ferroalloys for $ 10.7 million for the first time since January. At the same time, American exports to Russia increased by 41%, to $48 million. Russia mainly bought American vaccines - their import increased 2.5 times, to $15.6 million. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz 8 July 2024 20:41 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva After the launch of mass production of KAAN combat aircraft the first Turkish fighter of national production Turkiye intends to transfer about 150 units from the first batch to the allied countries, Azernews reports. According to the Report with reference to Star, this was stated by Mehmet Demiroglu, the new secretary general of the state aerospace company TUSAS, engaged in the development of 5th generation KAAN fighters. "At the first stage, we intend to produce more than 100 units for the needs of the Turkish Air Force. Approximately the same number of fighters will be produced for friendly and allied countries. Currently, several countries are showing serious interest in KAAN. To be precise, we are talking about about 150 units. Initially, we plan to produce about 250-300 aircraft. However, the priority will remain to meet the needs of the domestic Air Force," he said. He also stressed that after the launch of production, Turkiye will become one of the four countries in the world producing fifth-generation fighters. "The first KAAN in the Blok-10 configuration will be ready in 2025. After that, the main test flights will begin. The tests will be completed no earlier than 2028. We plan to deliver the first 20 aircraft in 2028," Demiroglu added. Demiroglu said that the difference between the first Blok-10 configuration and subsequent more modernized KAAN models, which are planned to be produced in the future, has not been disclosed: "However, the first batch of aircraft in the Blok-10 configuration will be several times superior to the fighters in service with the Turkish Air Force in terms of stealth, speed, radars. For example, the AESA radar installed on KAAN [manufactured by the Turkish defense giant ASELSAN] has a longer range than the same radar installed on the F-16. With each new configuration, KAAN's capabilities will be improved." The fifth-generation KAAN fighter is the first Turkish-made national combat aircraft, and has been under development since 2017. The prototype fighter made its first flight on February 22, 2024. Serial production is planned for 2028. At the end of July 2023, the Ministry of Defense Industry of Azerbaijan and TUSAS signed a protocol on cooperation on the KAAN project. After that, in March 2024, former CEO of TUSAS Temel Kotil informed the media that one of the KAAN components would be manufactured in Azerbaijan. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger pickup for 2024 stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Jesus R. Garcia The Ford Ranger debuted in 1983 and took a hiatus from 2011 to 2018. It came back on the scene in 2019 with an all-new T6 platform Ford Australia developed for a global market. The compact-turned-mid-size truck is now in its fifth generation, with a new body style for 2024. Todays Ranger is extra-large compared to its 1983 origin model, but full-size trucks have also ballooned, allowing it to continue as a practical option for truck buyers. Still, the Ranger is no longer the younger sibling in the F-Series household. The family dynamics have shifted, leaving the Ranger in the middle between Fords golden child F-150 and the new baby Maverick. Thats a unique position: no other U.S. manufacturer offers a full, mid and compact utility pickup trucks in their lineup. As a result, the Ranger has to stand out against the Tacoma, Frontier and Colorado, but also against its own OEM family. Leading to the central question of the road test: does it stand out? The short answer is yes. It stands out from other mid-size pickup trucks with family-oriented interior comfort, a spirited powertrain, snappy sedan-like handling and rugged capability. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The model tested is the Ford Ranger XLT 4x2. It came fully loaded with a host of available options like its Hot Pepper Red Metallic ($495) exterior color and the Advanced Towing and Tech Package ($2,305), which includes everything one needs in a factory tow rig: trailer brake controller, Pro trailer backup assist, reserve park aid with trailer guidance, adaptive cruise control and a 360-view camera. Max towing for the Ranger is 7,500 pounds with payload capacity as high as 1,805 pounds when optioned with a towing package. Ford Ranger XLT 4x2 Engine: 2.3L Turbocharged EcoBoost Transmission: 10-speed automatic transmission 0 to 60: 6.5 seconds Starting Price: $32,720 (XL 4x2) From a styling perspective, the Rangers height stands door-to-door with its full-size alternatives, so long as those trucks arent wearing a lift kit. The Ranger XLT comes standard with the Sport Package, which adds a set of 17-inch gray-painted aluminum wheels wrapped in all-terrain tires, which helps boost its stature and provide 8.8 inches of ground clearance (9.3 inches on 4x4 models). If youre under 5'8, youll probably wish the Ranger came equipped with side steps. I appreciate the trucks new, squared look over the previous generations smoothed car-like fascia, which made it look like a modern reboot of the Ford Ranchero. The 2024 Ford Ranger once again looks like the F-150s little brother, with a family resemblance in the headlights and grille. Inside, you have a choice between an Ebony or Sandstone cloth interior. The Sandstone cloth seats did a great job of deflecting the Texas summer heat, saving me from doing the hot potato dance when sitting down. A contemporary 12.4-inch vertical screen, with Apple Car Play and Android Auto standard, sits in the dashboards center with a traditional PRNDL shift lever underneath, accompanied by a rotary dial to select drive modes. The steering wheel is small in diameter for a truck, making it delightfully easy to maneuver using the palm of your hand. Overall, the interior layout is straightforward, providing plentiful storage compartments under the rear seats and a hidden upper storage cubby above the glovebox. My parents and adult younger brother commented on the comfort and ride quality of sitting in the rear seats. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Off-road, the Rangers Sport Package all-terrain tire setup allowed it to bounce over the terrain like a billy goat. Moreover, the suspension did an excellent job absorbing the impacts so my spine wouldnt have to, even when more than one tire left the ground. Granted, this model did not have a 4x4, but even still, I had no trouble navigating steep inclines on soft dirt in triple-digit heat, thanks in part to the optional electronic rear locking differential ($420). Motivating the truck up the hill is a 2.3L EcoBoost turbocharged four-cylinder engine producing a confident 270 horsepower and 310 lb-ft of torque. It delivers its power quickly, allowing for brisk bursts of acceleration to get around slow drivers hogging the fast lane. Rangers equipped with 4x4 feature the new 2.7L EcoBoost V6 engine, making 315 hp and 400 lb-ft, while the Ranger Raptor uses the big boy 3L twin-turbo EcoBoost V6, producing a stout 405 hp and 430 lb-ft. But no matter the engine, all 2024 Rangers use the same 10-speed automatic. Gas mileage on the Ford Ranger XLT (non-4x4) is rated at 21 mpg in the city and 25 on the highway, and I averaged 22 mph overall during a 500-mile road test. Pricing is the one area that may make or break your decision to visit your local Ford dealer. A base Ranger XL starts at under $33,000 but rapidly jumps over $36,000 when you add 4x4, partly due to the addition of the larger V6 powertrain. The same goes for the XLT and Lariat, which start at $35,660 and $43,680, respectively, and jump to the $40,000 and $50,000 benchmark when you add another axle and two cylinders. Those interested in the new high-performance Raptor are looking at a starting price of $55,620. Advertisement Article continues below this ad 8 July 2024 22:24 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva The euro is trading 0.3% lower in Australia on Monday than at Friday's close, a negative trend that may reflect investor concerns about the victory of leftist parties in the French elections, Azernews reports. According to him, $1,0807 is being offered for 1 at the Australian Stock Exchange trading that opened on Monday. Investors were worried about the prospect of Le Pen's "National Unification" coming to power in France, but the victory of the left-wing New Popular Front was their greatest fear due to the coalition's promises to expand budget spending when the country's public finances are already burdened with debts, the agency writes. Earlier, the newspaper Le Monde, citing data from the Interior Ministry, reported that the alliance of the left, the New Popular Front, was winning early elections to the National Assembly (lower house of parliament) of France, receiving 182 mandates. --- Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz Meridian-based Idaho State University School of Nursing will begin offering the first nurse anesthesia degree program in Idaho, according to a July 5 report from NBC affiliate KTVB. If the program is granted accreditation, the first cohort will begin in the fall of 2025 at ISU's Meridian campus. The three-year program will prepare future CRNAs to "provide a full range of anesthesia services to meet the growing needs of Idaho's diverse population and remedy the critical anesthesia shortage in the region," according to the report. A physician with a St. Louis office and two employees have been accused of illegally prescribing controlled substances and healthcare fraud. From at least July 2016 to December 2021, David Parks, MD, and two employees conspired to prescribe controlled substances outside the usual course of practice to maximize their patient population, the Justice Department said in a July 8 news release. Alongside the two employees, James Bilderback and Michelle Scheer, Dr. Parks regularly prescribed Schedule II controlled substance prescriptions, including hydrocodone, oxycodone and dextroamphetamine-amphetamine salts, despite being rarely at the clinic and using presigned prescriptions. Dr. Parks and Mr. Bilderback also conspired to Medicare, Missouri Medicaid and private health insurers by billing them for false claims. Mr. Bilderback was the offices' clinical manager and clinical research coordinator who later married Dr. Park. Additionally, after prescriptions became electronically processed in spring of 2019, Dr. Parks and Mr. Bilderback gave the cell phone to staffers with no prescribing authority. The three were each indicted on a charge of conspiracy to illegally prescribe controlled substances and five counts of illegal prescribing of a controlled substance. Dr. Parks and Mr. Bilderback were also indicted on one count of conspiracy to commit healthcare fraud, eight additional counts of illegal prescribing of a controlled substance and 15 counts of making false statements related to healthcare matters. Greenville-based Quasar Family Medicine North Carolina has filed a complaint that its lead physician concealed his drug overprescription and fraudulent billing to push the sale of his practice to another physician and then turn patients against the new owner. According to the June 28 complaint filed in the North Carolina Business Court, Charles Jahrsdorfer, MD, broke purchasing and employment agreements to "destroy" Carolina East Family Medicine after he sold the clinic. Allegations include turning staff against the new ownership and stealing patient lists to later start a competing healthcare provider. The attorney for Dr. Jahrsdorfer told Law360 that he denies all allegations. "Dr. Jahrsdorfer was terminated by Quasar Family Medicine while he was out for health-related reasons, and has since been sued by Quasar," Emily Massey, attorney for Dr. Jahrsdorfer and other defendants, told Becker's in a statement. "Because of that lawsuit, we cannot comment further except to state that Dr. Jahrsdorfer vehemently denies all of the allegations and will vigorously defend his rights against Quasar." Quasar's owner, Sean Feinberg, MD, said in the complaint that after he purchased the clinic, he found that many patients came to the clinic because Dr. Jahrsdorfer was overprescribing Adderall. Additionally, the clinic was charging for in-house visits even if the patients didn't see the physician. According to the complaint, Dr. Jahrsdorfer also took patient lists to form a competing practice with his wife. In June, Dr. Jahrsdorfer also allegedly attacked an assistant by calling her a "Judas and a snake" because the assistant exposed that he took the list. The complaint also alleges Dr. Jahrsdorfer told patients he was fired, urging them to rally. Patients allegedly showed up to the clinic with no doctor to serve them, leading Quasar Family Medicine to close the clinic. According to the complaint, patients then vandalized the building by writing on it. Quasar Family Medicin's suit alleges fraud, breach of contract, misappropriation of trade secrets and tortious interference with prospective economic advantage, among other claims. "Our primary concern is the well-being of our patients," a spokesperson from Quasar Family Medicine North Carolina said in a statement shared with Becker's. "Despite the challenging circumstances we were all dealt, we are committed for the long run to maintaining the highest standard of care and support for the community of Pitt County." The practice said they are adding imaging diagnostics, acupuncture, massage, and IV therapy, to "enhance the patients care with a holistic approach." "To have the only provider unexpectedly leave clearly put us in a challenging situation," Quasar's spokesperson added. "However it brought to our attention several serious concerns in the way prior operations were conducted at Carolina East Family Medicine. Not only did the providers absence affect our operations, the chaos that ensued was attributed to us. Most importantly and of great concern, a significant number of patients on controlled substances were left without care. Consequently, we were maligned and mobbed." Hilo Community Surgery Center in Hawaii was slated for closure until Frederick Nitta, MD, took over as CEO. Dr. Nitta, an obstetrician-gynecologist, joined Becker's to share the most effective changes he made to financially revitalize his ASC. Note: Response has been lightly edited for length and clarity. Question: What are some investment opportunities in the ASC industry? Dr. Frederick Nitta: There are many opportunities, but backing up from this, the ASC needs to be run efficiently. Costs must be held down, supplies need to be researched and coders need to be able to get involved to ensure maximum reimbursement. Let me explain what I mean by the above. I was picked to become the CEO of Hilo Community Surgery Center in October 2023. The board had already voted to close it down. Once I took over the management of the surgery center, dozens of problems were identified. As far as the overhead side, employees were overpaying themselves every month, not negotiating contracts, charging for overtime when they did not even work 40 hours in that week, and hiring friends and family members to do repairs at hugely inflated prices. There also was no receipt book kept for cash. An example is a $2,000 charge to unclog a toilet. Another is that packs to do cataracts were $200 to $300 a case. We now pay less than $20 for similar packs. Maximum reimbursement was not pursued, as the coder was untrained. Multiple procedures were not paid, secondary insurance claims did not go out, and even patients' copays were never billed. Now, we have certified coding specialists who are accredited by the American Health Information Management Association on staff who are bringing in more than double what we received in the past. Now that the surgery center is doing better, we are adding plastic surgery, expanding orthopedics, and doing major gynecological procedures on an outpatient basis. There are opportunities, but ASCs need to be properly managed, run efficiently, and not used as a piggy bank for employees or its owners. Medtech company Insign Medical Technology and artificial intelligence company AAEON have partnered to develop an AI-assisted endoscopy system. The new system, EndoDASS, integrates AAEON's BOXER-8641AI Fanless Embedded AI System and Insign's software, according to a July 4 news release from AAEON. The system will join a handful of AI-assisted colonoscopy platforms on the market, including Medtronic's GI Genius. Hurricane Beryl made landfall as a Category 1 storm during the early hours of July 7 and has since caused several hospitals and health systems to adjust some services, CBS affiliate KHOU reported. As of the morning of July 9, seven individuals in Texas and at least one in Louisiana were confirmed dead due to the storm. Amid the conditions brought on by Beryl, many Houston-area hospitals closed or cut services July 8 and continue to monitor conditions. While the storm has now weakened to a tropical depression, it could still bring heavy rain, flooding and tornadoes to some areas, The Weather Channel reported. "In terms of hospitals generally in the Houston and surrounding areas, there have been some challenges with staffing, with some hospital employees having a hard time getting to work or are dealing with their own homes, families and safety," a spokesperson for the Texas Hospital Association told Becker's. "There have been some sporadic hospital reports of power issues, wind, and water damage and some flooding that has impacted areas around some of the hospitals. But we are grateful that so far we have not heard of any more significant hospital damage at this point. And no reports of patient care being compromised, and of course, thats the thing we focus on first and foremost in any emergency." Houston Methodist had all its locations open as of the morning of July 8, and it noted on its website that if conditions worsen, patients will be contacted and alerted of changes to their care. The health system said it will make decisions regarding whether to continue with elective surgeries on the evening of July 8. There were no new updates as of the morning of July 9. HCA Houston also has guidelines for patients related to hurricanes and "contracts with vendors from around the state and nation to provide support from on-site security to generators and food for our patients and staff," the health system said. "Transfer processes and plans with our network of hospitals across the country also exist should patients need to be relocated." There were no new updates as of the morning of July 9. The University of Texas Medical Branch, based in Galveston, closed its clinics as of the evening of July 7 and canceled elective surgeries and procedures for July 8. It added that one urgent care location would open at noon Central time July 8Monday, while others will be closed. However, its hospitals and emergency departments in Galveston, Angleton Danbury, League City and Clear Lake will be open. As of July 9, UTMB confirmed it is experiencing "a power-related telephone issue is currently affecting all calls to and from UTMB." KHOU reported July 8 that the following services at Houston-area hospitals were affected: Legacy Community Health clinics closed July 8, telehealth available. Baylor College of Medicine open at noon Central time. Michael E. Debakey VA Medical Center closed July 8 for outpatient appointments. Other VA locations and clinics will also be closed July 9. MD Anderson closed for patient appointments July 8 with exception for urgent procedures at Texas Medical Center campus. Texas Children's open as normal. Memorial Hermann closed July 8. Harris Health Ben Taub and Lyndon B. Johnson hospitals will remain open, but all outpatient and clinic locations are closed July 8. Prior to the storm making landfall, the Texas Hospital Association spokesperson said that "hospitals had brought online their emergency planning and response command centers last week and had been monitoring the storms movement," she noted. "They made decisions about how to shuffle patient placement if needed and followed their procedures to ensure the storm didnt interrupt medical services." Shenandoah City Council was lukewarm about purchasing a block party trailer that residents can rent with members concerned about liability and regulations on its use. Jason Fochtman Shenandoah City Council was lukewarm about purchasing a block party trailer that residents can rent, with members concerned about liability and regulations on its use. Councilman Ted Fletcher said the block party trailer concept first came up for discussion last year as a way to encourage residents to get together in their neighborhoods. It wasnt a lot of capital to make happen and bring neighbors together, Fletcher said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The trailer would include games, a bounce house, coolers, tables and chairs. It would also have a barbecue grill and canopy. According to the city, those items have already been purchased. It would be managed through our parks department, Fletcher said. It would not be just people coming in to reserve it. They would have to have the approval of the neighborhood. It would be something the city would deliver to a location. Councilman Charlie Bradt was concerned about the trailers $25,000 price tag. I just dont think it is necessary; we have a lot of things weve got to do, Bradt said. I just dont know if it is going to be an albatross for the city or not. I think the cons outweigh the pros. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Councilman Jim Pollard said he wasnt sure the city would generate much revenue from a block party trailer. Seems like we are taking on a lot and not sure how much we get for it, Pollard said. City Attorney Bill Ferebee said staff looked at other municipalities, such as Sugar Land, Arlington and Plano, and how they managed similar trailers. Ferebee said trailer users were responsible for any and all damage and that some municipalities require insurance to cover any loss. Most cities' troubles seem to be with damage to the trailer and contents, and people dont want to pay for the damage done, Ferebee said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Ferebee said those cities also prohibit using the trailers for several types of events, including activist rallies, marches, animal obedience, fireworks events or commercial use. All cities require bathroom facilities; it can be in someones house, but there has to be open bathroom facilities for anyone associated with the use of the trailer, Ferebee said. Apparently some cities have had problems with the lack of bathroom facilities. Officials at Alaska Regional Hospital in Anchorage, are hoping to expand emergency medicine services to residents south of the city with construction of a new full-service ER, the hospital announced July 2. The hospital cited "growing demand for emergency care" as the impetus behind its proposal for constructing a new, full-service, emergency room in South Anchorage. Since 2023, the hospital's ER volume has risen 14% and ambulance arrivals have gone up 23%, it noted. "We heard the community's call for more healthcare services, and we are answering it. This facility will increase the number of ER beds in the city something the community desperately needs," Alaska Regional Hospital CEO Jennifer Opsut said in the news release. "We will be offering the 110,000 plus residents of South Anchorage the same nationally recognized care offered at our main campus ER, but much closer to their homes, schools, outdoor recreation spots and workplaces," she added. The hospital is currently seeking state approval for the project and filed for a Certificate of Need from the Alaska Department of Health a requirement before construction begins. If granted, the new facility will feature five ER beds and 24 hour emergency care including, diagnostics, imaging and laboratory services. Walmart aimed to leverage its retail success formula in the healthcare sector, however, the experiment did not go as planned, The Wall Street Journal reported July 5. In April, Walmart said it would be closing its 51 health centers across five states and discontinuing its virtual-care services. Despite positive feedback from patients who appreciated the convenience of these clinics, Walmart could not establish a sustainable business model, resulting in financial losses, the Journal reported. Walmart is not the only major player rethinking its approach to healthcare. In June, Walgreens Boots Alliance said it plans to reduce its stake in VillageMD, a primary care provider, as part of a broader turnaround strategy. This decision follows a series of clinic closures by Walgreens, reflecting a larger trend of big companies pulling back from the healthcare sector. Over the past few years, large retailers, private equity firms and insurers have aggressively pursued acquisitions of physician practices. According to the Journal, this trend peaked between mid-2022 and early 2023, marked by Amazon's $3.9 billion acquisition of One Medical, Walgreens' $9 billion investment to expand its medical practices and CVS Health's $10.6 billion purchase of Oak Street Health. At the time, it seemed that primary care was poised to become another big-box service seamlessly integrated into the shopping experience. However, this vision has proved challenging to realize. "Primary care is hard," Stephanie Davis, an analyst at Barclays, told the Journal. Additionally, Craig Garthwaite, PhD, a strategy professor at Evanston, Ill. based Northwestern University, highlighted the difficulty of applying Walmart's cost-reduction strategies to healthcare. The high costs associated with medical professionals, such as family physicians and nurse practitioners, do not lend themselves to the economies of scale that Walmart excels at in retail, according to Dr. Garthwaite. These ventures also faced poor timing. The cost of employing medical professionals has surged in the wake of the pandemic, exacerbating an already severe shortage. Concurrently, government reductions in Medicare payments have squeezed reimbursements, further complicating the financial viability of these healthcare initiatives, according to the Post. Despite these setbacks, there is still potential for profitability in the healthcare sector, though it might require a different approach. Large hospital systems have long used primary care as a gateway to higher-margin services, directing patient traffic within their networks. This strategy, while lucrative, has often resulted in increased healthcare costs without necessarily improving patient outcomes, according to the report. Walgreens' VillageMD is exploring a value-based care model, in which physicians are incentivized to keep patients healthy, earning a fixed fee per patient. However, this approach demands substantial financial resources, which Walgreens lacks, according to the report. Parker Snure, an analyst at Raymond James, told the Journal that the lack of visibility and marketing for VillageMD locations illustrates the challenges in building patient awareness and engagement. Unlike CVS, which owns insurance company Aetna, Walgreens does not have an integrated insurance component, limiting its financial synergies, according to the report. CVS' acquisition of Oak Street aimed to replicate the success of UnitedHealth Group, which has long integrated healthcare provision and insurance. However, CVS' recent earnings have underwhelmed investors, prompting it to seek private equity partners to fund Oak Street's expansion. Mike Pykosz, co-founder of Oak Street and now president of healthcare delivery at CVS, emphasized the importance of gradual growth and focusing on Medicare patients in underserved communities. "If it were easy to provide higher-quality care and take on costs, we wouldn't have the problems with healthcare we have in this country," he told the Journal. Another model gaining traction is the subscription or concierge approach, in which physicians charge a flat monthly fee for enhanced services, similar to Costco's membership model. Amazon is exploring this through One Medical, potentially using healthcare as a loss leader to bolster its Prime offerings. While Amazon has struggled to establish a significant presence in healthcare, its approaches and vast resources make it a formidable contender, according to the report. Hot Springs, Va.-based Bath Community Hospital will switch to a Meditech EHR system on July 15. Bath Community will implement the Meditech Expanse EHR system, according to a July 5 news release from the hospital. This move will put Bath Community on one system that allows it to combine patient records from physicians' offices and hospitals. Bath Community Hospital is a 25-bed, not-for-profit critical access hospital. Portland-based Oregon Health & Science University has cut a telehealth nursing unit that launched at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, affecting 21 jobs. A spokesperson for OHSU confirmed to Becker's that members of the Oregon Nurses Association accounted for 21 of 297 reductions announced in recent days. The job cuts are part of the system's larger plan to cut more than 500 jobs over a 90-day period, which was included in the fiscal year 2025 budget approved by the board of directors June 28. "The strategic alignment work aims to shift OHSU's overall strategy to its core, state-mandated missions, including improving access to the complex specialty and subspecialty services that no other health system in the region can provide," an OHSU spokesperson said in a statement. "As a result, while planned reductions in force are largely administrative roles, other programs may be impacted as well." According to Willamette Week, the affected nurses were part of a telehealth unit that has been cut. The ONA has criticized the layoffs, saying the nursing job cuts are "confirmation" that executives will not limit job cuts to non-patient-facing roles. "Their cuts will reduce Orgeonians' access to care and ultimately make it harder for more people to get the care they need when they need it," Duncan Zevetski, RN, vice president of the ONA, told Willamette Week. An OHSU spokesperson cited the June 28 board of directors meeting, where it was mentioned that "500 patient-facing roles were being added, as 500+ largely administrative roles were being eliminated." In May, OHSU and Legacy Health, also based in Portland, signed a binding, definitive agreement to unite as one health system under OHSU Health. Palo Alto, Calif.-based Stanford Health Care and Blue Shield of California went out of network on June 29 in Santa Clara and Alameda counties. Hospitals affected include Stanford Health Care Medical Center, Lucile Packard Childrens Hospital in Palo Alto and Stanford Health Care Tri-Valley in Pleasanton. "While we are disappointed we have not reached an agreement at this time, both parties continue to engage working toward a resolution to continue our long-standing network relationship," Patty Gonzalez, vice president of network management at Blue Shield, said in a July 5 news release. Nonprofit Blue Shield of California has 4.8 million members and is the third-largest health insurer in California, behind Kaiser Permanente and Anthem Blue Cross. "Stanford Health Care and Stanford Medicine Children's Health are negotiating a new agreement with Blue Shield of California to continue patient access to our network of care," a system spokesperson told Becker's. "Everyone at Stanford Health Care and Stanford Medicine Children's Health remains focused on providing our patients and their families with the safest, highest quality care." "Whether or not a new agreement will be reached, Stanford Health Care and Stanford Medicine Children's Health will continue to welcome all Blue Shield of California patients and will honor Blue Shield's in-network out-of-pocket expenses for all services and care at our facilities. Patients and families will not experience any disruption to their care or change in the quality or cost of care." As the Federal Trade Commission celebrates another victory in challenging a hospital merger, a policy advisor from Stanford University argues that U.S. policies intended to limit healthcare costs by restricting the supply of hospitals are actually exacerbating the very issue they were meant to address. Lanhee Chen, PhD, the David and Diane Steffy fellow in American public policy studies at the Hoover Institution and director of domestic policy studies and lecturer in the public policy program at Stanford (Calif.) University, expressed his concerns in a June opinion piece in JAMA. He contends that supply-side restrictions on U.S. healthcare have led to unintended consequences such as the consolidation of market power, limited access to care and higher costs for patients. Dr. Chen's commentary focuses on certificate of need laws, in which a state's health planning agency or other entity must approve the creation of new healthcare facilities or the expansion of existing ones. He also examines certificate of public advantage laws and the restrictions on physician-owned hospitals, the latter of which were enacted under the 2010 Affordable Care Act. "Even though some of these policies were well-intentioned and designed to control costs, they have, in practice, undermined competition and ironically led to higher prices in the long run," he posits. Key points and arguments from Dr. Chen's opinion piece include: 1. Decline in hospitals: The number of hospitals in the US dropped by 22% from 1974 to 2015, with rural areas hit hardest, leaving nearly 30 million people more than an hour away from trauma care. 2. Restrictive laws backfire: The healthcare industry has not increased the number of facilities due to laws intended to limit hospital spending that, according to Dr. Chen, have paradoxically had the opposite effect. Certificate of need laws, although repealed at the federal level in 1987, still exist in various forms in many states, restricting the supply of new or renovated hospitals and other care facilities. As of February 2024, 35 states and Washington, D.C., operate CON programs. 3. Pandemic impact: "The COVID-19 pandemic illustrated the troublesome consequences of CON laws," Dr. Chen writes. "During the pandemic, states with CON laws restricting the number of beds had 12% higher use rates and hospitals in those states were 27% more likely to have all their beds filled." Dr. Chen urges state and federal policymakers to recognize the unintended effects of these laws and regulations and to consider whether repealing or modifying them could benefit patients and communities. He highlights that "too few health policy analysts and commentators have focused on these supply-side limitations, which significantly restrict the number of clinicians and health care facilities." Find the JAMA opinion piece, published June 27, in full here. Artificial intelligence is helping drive CIO pay packages to new highs, The Wall Street Journal reported July 8. CIO compensation is up 7.48% at large enterprises and 9% at midsize enterprises over the past year, according to data from consulting firm Janco Associates cited in the story, reflecting the desire for leaders with AI expertise. "ChatGPT caught a lot of incumbent technology companies by surprise, and no organization wants to be left behind," Shaun Hunt, CIO of construction company McKenney's, told the newspaper. "This increased demand and limited supply of technology leaders is driving up compensation for these critical roles." CIOs' median base pay increased to over $220,000 for large enterprises and neared $210,000 for midsize enterprises, with new CIO compensation packages ranging from $1.5 million to $1.8 million at those enterprises, according to the story. This jump in pay also comes in response to CIOs gaining more leadership responsibility, with 63% of the tech leaders now reporting directly to the CEO, according to data from management consultant Deloitte cited by the Journal. "It goes back to that evolution of the CIO reporting to the CEO," Blue Shield of California CIO Lisa Davis told the news outlet. "Now the compensation has to come with it." Bethesda, Md.-based Aledade, a physician-led accountable care organization, has tapped Jessica Somers as CFO. Ms. Somers will succeed John Doyle, who will now serve as head of the company's operations, according to a July 8 news release shared with Becker's. Prior to her new role, Ms. Somers led development and execution of strategic growth investment, including strategic partnerships, joint ventures and mergers and acquisitions at Evolvent, a publicly-traded company with a focus on health outcome improvements. She also served as CFO of New Century Health, a subsidiary of Evolvent. The largest hospital operator in the country is seeking leaders for numerous roles at the top of its facilities. With 186 hospitals and approximately 2,400 sites of care, Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare is seeking to fill thousands of positions across its 20-state enterprise. Below are job listings active on the HCA job boards as of July 7 for C-level executive positions with its hospitals or subsidiaries, organized by role and presented alphabetically by site. CFO 1. HCA is seeking a CFO for the overall strategic and financial operations for its Gulf Coast supply chain division, based in Tomball, Texas. 2. HCA Florida Putnam Hospital, a 99-bed facility in Palatka, Fla., is seeking a CFO. 3. Lee's Summit Medical Center, an 88-bed hospital in Lees Summit, Mo., is in need of a CFO. The hospital recently appointed a new CEO in May. 4. The 386-bed Los Robles Regional Medical Center in Thousand Oaks, Calif., is seeking a CFO. The Los Robles Health System, which includes the hospital, recently welcomed a new CEO in April. 5. Med City Alliance Mental Health, a full-service behavioral health hospital in Fort Worth, Texas, is looking for a CFO. 6. Pinewood Springs, a 60-bed inpatient behavioral health hospital in Columbia, Tenn., is seeking a CFO. 7. Research Medical Center in Kansas City, Mo., is in need of a CFO. The hospital campus includes 590 beds and 25 service lines. CMO 8. HCA Florida Largo Hospital is looking for a chief medical officer. The 455-bed facility is in Largo, Fla. 9. The 273-bed HCA Houston Healthcare West in Houston is seeking a chief medical officer. 10. The 155-bed HCA Florida Sarasota Doctors Hospital is in need of a chief medical officer. 11. HCA's Presbyterian/St. Luke's Medical Center in Denver, a 680-bed facility, is seeking a chief medical officer to replace a leader who departed for AdventHealth's East Florida Division. CNO 12. The 57-bed Memorial Health Meadows Hospital in Vidalia, Ga., is seeking a chief nursing officer. Bloomberg Philanthropies is donating $1 billion to Johns Hopkins University, making medical school free for students from families earning less than $300,000 a year. The tuition policy change at the Baltimore-based school will take effect this fall. Tuition will be covered for medical students from families earning less than $300,000 a year, a threshold that represents 95% of all Americans. Additionally, the school will cover living expenses and fees for students from families earning up to $175,000. "Making medical and nursing school more affordable is a society-wide challenge, but individual schools and donors can help lead the way," Michael R. Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg LP, wrote in his annual letter on philanthropy, released July 8. Mr. Bloomberg graduated from Johns Hopkins University in 1964 with a bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering. Currently, nearly two-thirds of all students seeking a medical degree from Johns Hopkins qualify for financial aid and students graduate from the school with an average total loan debt of approximately $104,000. The foundation notes that the $1 billion gift and the covered expenses for qualifying families will reduce the average student loan debt for Johns Hopkins medical graduates to $60,279 by 2029, while students from the vast majority of American families "will pay nothing at all." Gifts to medical schools attract significant attention and public interest, often more so than many other charitable donations, even those of higher dollar amounts or from famous benefactors. However, such donations are less common than one might expect, with financial support for medical students being relatively rare compared to other causes donors choose to fund. In 2020, the average debt of graduating medical students was approximately $207,000. This gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies aligns with its previous contributions to Johns Hopkins and its more recent efforts to build the healthcare pipeline. In 2018, the foundation gifted $1.8 billion to Johns Hopkins to ensure that students are accepted regardless of their family's income. "This gift has permanently established need-blind undergraduate admissions, and reduced the debt burdens that students are forced to carry," Mr. Bloomberg said in his letter. In 2024, Bloomberg Philanthropies put $250 million toward a first-of-its-kind initiative for healthcare high schools in 10 rural and urban areas, in which more than a dozen health systems and public schools work together to design curriculum and job placement pathways to build healthcare workforce pipelines. A public works crew member fights high winds as he tries to secure a loose traffic light over FM 518 near Bay Area Blvd in League City after Hurricane Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, near Matagorda. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer A Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Deputy walks on the street where the Constables office reported a 74-year-old woman died after a tree fell on a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Resident Richard Cano, 87, clears debris near his home just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Houston officials are asking residents to stay home Monday night, as floodwaters from Tropical Storm Beryl begin to recede and crews start surveying the regions damage. An array of hazards, they said, continues to threaten public safety, including falling trees, high water, hanging power lines, broken traffic signals, and of course the widespread lack of power. The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for Tuesday, with the heat index likely rising to 105 degrees as a wide swath of the community contends with power outages. Advertisement Article continues below this ad LIVE UPDATES: Death toll rises to 4 after Hurricane Beryl moves through Houston Any residents with generators should ensure they are not running indoors or near garages. Laurie Christensen, Harris Countys fire marshal, said generators should be at least 15 feet from the homes, calling carbon monoxide poisoning a silent killer after storms. "Dont let the clear skies fool you," Mayor John Whitmire said at an 5 p.m. news conference. "We still have dangerous circumstances." Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo offered a similar message: We're not out of the woods yet... Lets just wait until tomorrow. Doing a damage assessment on your own property is one thing, but driving around unnecessarily we really ask that you avoid it. Four people have been confirmed dead because of the storm. Earlier Monday, county officials reported two known deaths from fallen trees: a 53-year-old man in Humble and a 74-year-old grandmother in Spring. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Investigators later determined a house fire that killed a man early Monday likely was caused by lightning from the storm, and a civilian employee of the Houston Police Department was found dead in a submerged car in the floodwaters of Houston Avenue, near City Hall. Whitmire, who hailed the man as a "hero," said he got stuck in the floodwaters on his way to work Monday morning after exiting Interstate 45. More than 2 million people remained without power Monday evening after Hurricane Beryl swept through the Houston area Monday, bringing torrential downpours, high wind gusts and the threat of tornadoes to the metropolitan area. The wind was expected to peak around 11 a.m., though gusts of up to 30 to 40 mph are possible through about 7 p.m. Beryl was downgraded to a tropical storm around 10:20 a.m., as the eye worked its way through Houston's core. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Many of the city's bayous, though, were near or over their banks, creating the potential for more flooding. Whitmire said many of the city's service facilities, along with its animal shelter, are without power. In this episode, recorded at the 21st Annual Spine Orthopedic and Pain Management-Driven ASC + the Future of Spine Conference, Dr. James Choo, Interventional Pain Physician at Pain Consultants of East Tennessee ASC discusses high healthcare costs and how they have affected his role, the evolving patient-provider dynamic, and more. Disclosure: This content is subject to change without notice and offered for informational use only. You are urged to consult with your individual business, financial, legal, tax and/or other advisors and/or medical providers with respect to any information presented. Synchrony and any of its affiliates, including CareCredit, (collectively, Synchrony) makes no representations or warranties regarding this content and accept no liability for any loss or harm arising from the use of the information provided. All statements and opinions in this podcast are the sole opinions of the guest. Your receipt of this material constitutes your acceptance of these terms and conditions. resented. Synchrony and any of its affiliates, including CareCredit, (collectively, Synchrony) makes no representations or warranties regarding this content and accept no liability for any loss or harm arising from the use of the information provided. All statements and opinions in [describe the document/presentation/ recording/podcast] are the sole opinions of the [speaker/author/guest]. Your receipt of this material constitutes your acceptance of these terms and conditions. A clinical trial has found an injectable HIV treatment could be an effective prevention for the infection, NPR reported July 3. A clinical trial by drugmaker Gilead conducted a randomized study on 5,300 cisgender women in South Africa and Uganda. Of the participants, 2,134 received a twice yearly injection of lenacapavir. The trial began in August 2021, and to date no woman who received the injections has contracted HIV, compared to 2% of the women taking oral medication. A daily oral pill called pre-exposure prophylaxis is commonly used to prevent HIV. It can be 99% effective in stopping new HIV infections from sex. However, use of the pill can be infrequent for some users due to stigma, the report said. Lenacapavir has been approved by the FDA for HIV treatment since 2022, but this is the first clinical trial to use it as prevention. The results were significant enough that the Data Monitoring Committee an independent group that assesses the progress of clinical trials urged Gilead to halt the blind trial and provide injections for all participants. The study has not been peer reviewed. The company is working on a trial that will analyze the drug's efficacy among cisgender men, transgender men and women and nonbinary individuals in Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Peru, South Africa, Thailand and the U.S., according to NPR The National Committee for Quality Assurance has denied an accreditation for medical credentialing at Chillicothe, Ohio-based Adena Health. The accreditation is designed for healthcare organizations that provide full-scope credentialing services, including verification of clinicians' credentials and monitoring of sanctions, complaints and quality issues between recredentialing periods, according to NCQA's website. The denial means Adena Health's credentialing program does not meet NCQA's standards. At present, only three other healthcare organizations nationwide have been denied this accreditation, according to NBC affiliate WCMH. Adena Health has appealed NCQA's decision. "Adena Health has had a long, positive history and relationship with NCQA," a health system spokesperson told WCMH. "As payor requirements evolve, we continue to work with the organization to meet those changing requirements. This work is not impacting our ability to credential, and we remain confident in our credentialing standards." The denial comes more than a year after the WCMH reported on claims that a surgeon at the system performed cardiac procedures before receiving proper credentials. Adena Health has denied these claims. As practices and tech companies alike have had to weather complicated economic and reimbursement environments over the last 15 years, a handful have been unable to persevere, instead filing for bankruptcy. Here are six notable spine and orthopedic bankruptcies from the last 15 years: 1. In February, spinal cord implant designer InVivo Therapeutics filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. 2. Spine devicemaker Surgalign filed for bankruptcy in 2023, selling its assets to Xtant Medical Holdings. 3. In 2021, Specialty Orthopedic Group Tennessee in Lebanon filed for voluntary Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, allowing its businesses to restructure debts to help repay creditors over time. 4. In 2014, Baxano Surgical, whose product lines included the AxiaLIF family of products for single and two-level lumbar fusion, VEO lateral access and interbody fusion system, iO-Flex minimally invasive lumbar decompression system, iO-Tome facetectomy system and Vectre and Avatar posterior fixation systems, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. 5. ReGen Biologics, a company focused on manufacturing orthopedic products, filed for voluntary petitions for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2011. 6. In 2010, Lawrence Rothstein, MD, a Dayton, Ohio-based board-certified anesthesiologist and pain medicine specialist, filed for bankruptcy. Infrastructure Minister John ODowd and Economy Minister Conor Murphy have visited Foyle Port where they heard about the role it can play in NIs transition to Net Zero. The Ministers met the new Foyle Port Chair as well as members of the Executive Team who run the port. The Ministers had the opportunity to hear about Foyle Ports plans to deliver long-term economic development and marine tourism in the region. Infrastructure Minister John ODowd said: This was my first opportunity to visit Foyle Port and to hear about the role it plays supporting the infrastructure and economy of the region. "Foyle Port is a key economic driver for this region having attracted significant inward investment. The Port plays a crucial role within our infrastructure and economy and facilitates the import of essential cargo to support a range of business sectors across the North-west. "The visit was also an opportunity to learn more about the Ports future plans as well as hearing about further opportunities for collaboration and support for this unique cross-border asset and vital marine and global gateway. Economy Minister Conor Murphy said: The team at Foyle Port are to be commended on their ambitious and exciting plans. The location has great potential to drive forward our all island economy. "It provides a physical link between the Wild Atlantic Way and the Causeway Coastal Route which presents great potential to build upon the ongoing work to develop stronger alignment and for visitors to access destinations right across the north. "I was also very interested to hear more on the Ports plans in assisting in our transition towards a net zero economy. Offshore renewable energy will have a key role to play in achieving net zero. I want to build on our previous success in renewables development and ensure that potential investors see the north as open for business. Ryan McCready, Chair, Foyle Port on welcoming the Ministers to the Port today, said: This is a welcome and timely visit by the Ministers to see for themselves the Ports unique location as a cross-border asset and marine gateway serving the north west region of the island of Ireland. "Our proximity to sources of power, transport links, data connectivity and land capacity is shaping and accelerating the long-term development of the Port as a utility and trading platform. "Our strategic priority to decarbonise the operations of the port is presenting significant opportunities within the digital economy, providing further support to the ever-growing offshore renewables sector and the enhancement of the cruise tourism facility at Greencastle in Co Donegal. "Foyle Port has huge potential as an economic driver for the north west region and now is the prime opportunity for the Ministers to work with us to invest in the Ports infrastructure and our ambitious programme of development to help deliver good jobs and greater regional balance, whilst supporting the green economy and boosting productivity at the same time. The patisserie team from InterContinental London at the O2 have been named winners of Bake Off: The Professionals. Team captain Tanuj, 29 and team member Narayan, 30, defeated rivals from The Royal Airforce Club in London and Soko Patisserie in Solihull in the final, hosted by Liam Charles and Ellie Taylor. For their first challenge, the teams were tasked with creating a lavish afternoon tea display, including finger sandwiches, scones and two different types of pastries, while the final challenge of the series required the bakers to create a banquet celebrating the best of British, with a towering sugar and chocolate showpiece and enough desserts to feed 120 people. 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 InterContinental team impressed by whipping up a feast including a bamboo charcoal brioche with a citrus crab filling for the tea challenge and a lavish Tower Bridge chocolate showpiece for the banquet. After their win, Tanuj, known as TJ, said: We did it, I cant believe it but we did it! You can see on my face, the tears and the smiles and I am just so happy to see my mum and dad standing there and being so proud of me. I was so emotional when they announced our names, it is literally our dream come true! He added: The moment we heard our names announced everyone was quite emotional, the whole room was a bit teary. TJ and Narayan from The Intercontinental O2 (Love Productions) Me and Narayan were in tears, but they were happy tears as we had put so much hard work into this. For us, we were a bit exhausted but it was an immensely proud moment. We had a kind of strategy that we would divide the workload between us so we could complete each challenge and I guess it worked in our favour. So there was a bit of planning and I would say quite a bit more than we would do in our normal day work. Narayan and me have worked together in various locations as we work for the same chain of hotels. We got along so well from the day we met, we always want to throw ideas at each other and we just clicked. We were good friends but since this competition he has become more of a brother. Judge Cherish Finden said: Their final challenge sent a tingle down my spine. I cant tell you how proud I am. They impressed me from day one and each week they came back stronger and stronger. Wow! Fellow judge Benoit Blin added: I am delighted for TJ and Narayan they have been the most consistent team and the level of their work and experience has been the greatest. A final autopsy report on murder victim Kathryn Parton may not be available until early next year, a court heard today. A judge was also told it will take up to six months to obtain full forensic evidence in connection with the fatal attack at the 34-year-old victims home in east Belfast. A local Co Down councillor has condemned graffiti showing a sectarian slogan painted on a wall as flags were also removed close to a bonfire site. Newry Mourne and Down DUP Councillor Alan Lewis said two flags were removed from homes and Up the Ra painted along the gable wall at De Courcey Way in Dundrum overnight. He said the incidents happened close to the nearby bonfire and the home owners impacted have been left shaken. He confirmed the PSNI and Housing Executive have both been contacted. In a statement the PSNI confirmed the incident is being treated as a hate crime. Mr Lewis said: Flags removed and sectarian slogan painted on wall adjacent to a bonfire site, we must not allow those who seek to wreck community relations win. Nobody wants this type of behaviour, its intimidation, threatening and those behind it will achieve nothing. "For years the 11th night bonfire here has been a non issue, through local engagement and working alongside PCSP, NIHE and police, most of the issues have been successfully resolved. "There is no space for this type of threatening behaviour. It is not acceptable. The community do not want it. "These people are plastic provos who wish they were living in years gone by. The community has dealt with much worse over the years, this latest attack is shocking but unfortunately not surprising. "I have spoken with PSNI and NIHE. Home owners living along the row are very shaken, upset and rightly feel victimised. Id appeal to those who sneak around in the dead of night, to wise up, grow up, if they want to make a positive contribution to their community then come see me, lift the phone, dont be cowards hiding behind a tin of spray paint. In a statement the PSNI said: Police are investigating a report of criminal damage on wall in Dundrum. A report was received on Monday morning, 8th July that graffiti had been sprayed on a wall. Also, it had been reported that two flags had been taken down and found in a hedge. Enquiries into the incident, which is being treated as a hate crime, are ongoing. Anyone who may have witnessed any suspicious activity in the area or who has any information which could assist is asked to contact police on 101, quoting 604 08/07/24. News Catch Up: Tuesday 9 July 2024 New South Antrim MP Robin Swann said he had requested a meeting with police to discuss the incidents (Niall Carson/PA) Police are investigating five reports of racist graffiti being daubed on the walls of properties in Antrim. The daubing of swastikas and neo-Nazi group Combat 18 graffiti in the town occurred between Sunday and Monday. Amnesty International has expressed concern over the incidents, describing it as a sustained campaign of racist intimidation. It follows reports in recent weeks of a number of families leaving their homes following racist attacks. A PSNI spokesperson said: Police are investigating following five separate reports made between Sunday 7 and Monday 8 July, of racist graffiti daubed on the side walls of properties in the Parkhall Road area, Fountainhill area, Craigmore Park area, Market Street area and Castle Mall area of Antrim. Enquiries in relation to these reports, which are being investigated as racially motivated hate crimes, are ongoing, and we are appealing to anyone with any information which may assist us to get in touch. New South Antrim MP Robin Swann said he had requested a meeting with police to discuss the incidents. South Antrim MP Robin Swann said racist attacks would not be tolerated in the Antrim community (Liam McBurney/PA) He said: Overnight, Combat 18 and swastika graffiti were daubed on properties in Antrim. The police have since confirmed that there have been five separate reports of graffiti on houses across Antrim. Those taking part in these acts want to cause fear or promote hatred and these racist attacks will not be tolerated in the Antrim community. Any house subject to racist graffiti in Northern Ireland is an insult to democracy. He added: I have requested a meeting with the PSNI to discuss the actual facts behind the attacks. The PSNI remain on the ground in the community and are working towards finding those responsible for these attacks. Patrick Corrigan, Northern Ireland director of Amnesty International, said: This sustained campaign of racist intimidation across Antrim is appalling. It seems clear that in Antrim, as in other places, we have seen gangs of masked men carry out racist attacks on homes and community buildings, that there is illegal paramilitary involvement. Patrick Corrigan of Amnesty International called for resolute police action and courageous political leadership (Liam McBurney/PA) It is outrageous that, in 2024, the threat of violence from armed and dangerous groups is determining who can live where in Northern Ireland, rather than the lawful authorities. He added: The neo-Nazi graffiti throughout the town overnight is a further attempt to frighten and intimidate ordinary people. For this to end, we must see resolute police action and courageous political leadership, both to reassure the victims of these horrendous crimes, but also to hold to account those responsible. To defeat racism and sectarianism, we need both words and action. Fermanagh primary school appoints one of Northern Irelands youngest principals A former pupil at Fermanagh Gaelscoil is set to return to the school this time as the principal, at the age of just 25. Caoimhe Green is set to take up the role this September and is expected to be one of Northern Irelands youngest principals. She first attended Bunscoil An Traonaigh in Lisnaskea as a pupil as a child and will now lead the school after the departure of outgoing principal Sorcha Murphy, who first met Ms Green as a P3 pupil. Ms Murphy has been at the helm for the past 17 years and said that she is delighted that past pupil Ms Green is taking up the post. I am so delighted that some of the pupils I have known at the school are now coming back to where they were first educated, she told Belfast Telegraph. They have so much to give back to the education system and I know the school will be in good hands now with Caoimhe. I am so pleased with her appointment as principal. The former principal first met Caoimhe when she was in P3. Caoimhe was in the first class to walk through the doors of the school 20 years ago when it opened, but I knew her when I arrived and she was in P3, she explained. She is originally from Fermanagh and moved to Monaghan so its great to see her back. I remember her as a very ambitious, enthusiastic and studious person when she was at the school and she has grown into such a lovely and pleasant young lady, she added. I know the Board of Governors are delighted to have her on board. Bunscoil An Traonaigh was first established in 2004 and moved to a site at Drumbrughas North, Lisnaskea, in 2007. It was placed into formal intervention in 2010 but has since exited with the Education Training Inspectorate (ETI) now rating standards as good. In 2015, Education Minister at the time John ODowd made the decision to relocate the school to the former site of Lisnaskea High School, just two years after the controlled secondary was shut. Ms Murphy said that she first learnt Irish in secondary school but believes it is beneficial that children pick up the language at a young age. I was raised English speaking but studied Irish as a subject in secondary school then went on to do my degree in it; I had a love for the language since I was a teenager, she told this newspaper. I think the younger you start anything, children as young as 3, 4 or 5 are just sponges, they soak up everything and pick up the wee words and phrases with such ease, its natural for them. Ms Murphy said that she has been honoured to see the school grow from just 12 pupils when it was first opened to now over 60. For a fairly small school that is Irish-medium its a fantastic thing to see pupil numbers grow so significantly, she said. Ms Murphy said that she is now taking a career break from teaching. Originally from Armagh, she said that, while she will not miss the commute, she will miss the pupils. A car kicks up flood water on Shepherd Drive after Hurricane Beryl came through on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Gary Hafernick drives his 1926 Ford Model T through the rain as outer bands from Tropical Storm Beryl hit the Texas coast Sunday, July 7, 2024, in Palacios. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer People gather outside a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail where Maria Loredo, 74, died after a tree fell on her second story bedroom during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer A man looks out a patio at The Oceanfront Loft Apartments in Galveston after the patio was damages from Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Severe flooding is seen next to the I-10 freeway just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer People gather outside a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail where Maria Laredo, 74, died after a tree fell on her second story bedroom during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Items remain on a shelf among the damage at a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail where Maria Laredo, 74, died after a tree fell on her second story bedroom during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Haley Loredo holds a cell phone photo of her children with their grandmother, Maria Loredo, 74, who died after a tree fell on her second story bedroom at their home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. The cell phone photo was taken Feb. 10, 2024. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Kimmy Crowson, left, passes the time in the garage of their powerless home with a game of Uno with her children Kia and Kayla after Hurricane Beryl made its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Cody Harris gets help as he uses a chainsaw to cut a large, down tree after Hurricane Beryl made its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Louise Cohen, right, and Zilfa Ruhen help clear neighborhood drains after Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Ishika Samant/Staff photographer A plant can be seeing flaring over Galveston Bay after Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Fallen power lines on Termini San Louis Pass Road on Galveston Island as a result of Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Drake White helps clear his street in front of a large, downed tree after Hurricane Beryl made its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Elias Ramirez, 13, carries a log from a pecan tree to the street as he helped his neighbor Adam Bucko clean up after the tree fell in the Oak Forest subdivision after Hurricane Beryl came through on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Rebecca Chem, 16, and her mother, Sophia Chem, give away donuts at Best Donuts, 8320 Louetta, after losing power in the wake of Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. The family had made over 40 dozen donuts during the early morning before losing power during the storm. The family offered the donuts for free. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer People watch out onto flooded Allen Parkway after Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Ishika Samant/Staff photographer Ralph Rodriguez hauls debris and cut branches from a large tree that fell on his home as Hurricane Beryl makes its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Kingwood. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Claire Alexander, 7, holds baby squirrels as she and other children helped neighbors clean up storm debris in the Candlelight Plaza subdivision after Hurricane Beryl came through on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Karen Warren/Staff photographer Steve Sapio fills up gas cans for his beach house generator at one of the few stations that had electricity in Galveston after Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer A No Swimming sign washed on the shore from Hurricane Beryl at Galveston Beach on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Elijah Thomas-Mandoza moves a limb after a tree fell into the street at his parents home on Loring Ln. near Cypress Hill Dr. during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. Firefighters from the Ponderosa Fire Department stop by and cut the limbs to help clear the street. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Leo uses an ax to help remove a large, downed tree from a street after Hurricane Beryl made its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Kimmy Crowson, left, passes the time in the garage of their powerless home with a game of Uno with her children Kia and Kayla after Hurricane Beryl made its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Houston. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Anthony Le, left, and his father Phuong Le help pull a car stuck in the mud after Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Ishika Samant/Staff photographer Chris Weiss helps haul cut branches away from a large tree that fell on the home of Ralph Rodriguez as Hurricane Beryl makes its way through the Greater Houston area after coming ashore as a Category 1 storm, Monday, July 7, 2024, in Kingwood. Jason Fochtman/Staff photographer Buffalo Bayou floods near Downtown Houston just after Hurricane Beryl made landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A man walks down the middle of a flooded road as Hurricane Beryl wanes on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Galveston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer A tattered American flag flies in the wind after Hurricane Beryl made landfall nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, near Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Beach goers try to keep their balance as wind gusts continue while Hurricane Beryl slows down on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Galveston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Debris fills Termini-San Luis Pass Road south of Galveston after Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Otto Barrera carries chainsaws and tools to help his neighbors after Hurricane Beryl made landfall nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer A public works crew member fights high winds as he tries to secure a loose traffic light over FM 518 near Bay Area Blvd in League City after Hurricane Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, near Matagorda. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Andrew Parada, an employee at Residence Inn mops up the floor as water keeps leaking in during Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Galveston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Water flows out of the banks of White Oak Bayou into Studse Park in the Heights as Hurricane Beryl moves through town on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston, TX. Jill Karnicki/Staff photographer A worker carries a chain saw from the scene where according to Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Deputies office a 74-year-old woman died after a tree fell on a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer A sailboat sits submerged after Hurricane Beryl came ashore nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer A light is seen hanging from a street sign just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Resident Richard Cano, 87, clears debris near his home just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A Houston Police Officer directs traffic off of eastbound I-10 due to flooding as Hurricane Beryl moves through town on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston, TX. Jill Karnicki/Staff photographer Public works crews clean debris off Main Street in League City after Hurricane Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, near Matagorda. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Water flows out of the banks of White Oak Bayou at Heights Blvd. as Hurricane Beryl moves through town on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston, TX. Jill Karnicki/Staff photographer The roots of a large tree are visible after toppling over in the front yard of a home in League City after Hurricane Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, near Matagorda. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer An under construction home is seen tilted after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A vehicle maneuvers around a fallen tree on Champion Forest Dr. during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer The Bayou is seen flooding just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A fallen fence in seen in a residential neighborhood in East Houston just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer The Colony Creek Dr. street sign dangles at the intersection of Louetta Rd. during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Diego Noria, 28, clears debris from a drain in front of his business just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Construction falls on a power line as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Debris is seen in the East End neighborhood of Houston as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Debris and flooding are seen in the East End neighborhood of Houston as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A man walks back to his truck after returning his shopping cart to the stall as Hurricane Beryl moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, at a grocery store in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Debris blocks FM2031, the main access road, after Hurricane Beryl came ashore nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Construction falls on a power line as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A flooded parking lot is seen in the East End neighborhood of Houston as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer A man walks to his truck with groceries as Hurricane Beryl moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, at a grocery store in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer An HEB store sits surrounded by sandbags with pallets of water as Hurricane Beryl moves through the area Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Tree limbs downed by Hurricane Beryl litter a street as the storm moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer A destroyed trailer sits near beach homes after Hurricane Beryl came ashore nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Debris blocks FM2031, the main access road, after Hurricane Beryl came ashore nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Homes that line the shore are seen after Hurricane Beryl made landfall nearby Monday, July 8, 2024, in Matagorda. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Franklin Boyat moves lawn equipment with a riding mower as Hurricane Beryl moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Is this a hurricane? he asked. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer An American flag and a Texas flag blow in the wind as Hurricane Beryl moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer An American flag and a Texas flag blow in the wind as Hurricane Beryl moves inland Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer A vehicle maneuvers through high water and debris on Cypresswood Dr. during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer A vehicle maneuvers through high water and debris on Cypresswood Dr. during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Spring. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer Broken lamppost at a hotel in Galveston as a result of Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer Andrew Parada, an employee at Residence Inn mops up the floor as water keeps leaking in during Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Galveston. Elizabeth Conley/Staff Photographer A group of people hide behind a car to shield themselves from wind and rain from Hurricane Beryl as they film videos for social media Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Brent Meads films himself as he stands in the heavy wind and rain from Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Meads said he came from Las Vegas to experience a hurricane for the first time. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer A group of people hide behind a car to shield themselves from wind and rain from Hurricane Beryl as they film videos for social media Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Rain from Hurricane Beryl is illuminated by a hotel sign Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Heather Bruley laughs as she runs in the wind and rain from Hurricane Beryl on Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Heavy rain from Hurricane Beryl is illuminated by parking lot lights Monday, July 8, 2024, in Bay City. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer Local officials continue to warn Houston residents to stay off the roads as several bridges, intersections and highways are shut down Monday afternoon due to the onslaught of rain caused by Hurricane Beryl Monday. The National Weather Service issued a flash flood warning for northeastern Brazoria County, southwestern Chambers County, northeastern Fort Bend County, northwestern Galveston County and Harris County early Monday morning, lasting until 1 p.m. At 11 a.m., the National Weather Service reported between 4 to 7 inches of rain fell across the region, with an extra inch potentially falling as the storm weakens. LIVE UPDATES: Beryl makes landfall as Category 1 hurricane Advertisement Article continues below this ad I-45 North Freeway southbound between Cavalcade and Patton is now blocked off due to high water, the latest flood-driven road closure announced by the Texas Department of Transportation. Other roadways, like the Fred Hartman Bridge that connects La Porte to Baytown, were shuttered Monday morning due to high winds. The department's Houston district office used social media to urge locals to "please stay off the roads" regardless of specific closures, reporting "multiple roadways impacted at this time due to high water or debris." Its map of highway conditions shows a cluster of flooded roads in Houston and surrounding areas, stretching past Cypress to the northwest and as far east as the Bolivar Peninsula. Galveston ferry operations also halted in the early hours of Monday morning due to severe weather. Here are other road closures and high water locations collected throughout the day by the Houston Chronicle. High water locations are from the Harris County Flood Control District and Houston Transtar. Street closure information is from the Houston Chronicle's Texas Flood Map and Tracker. This list will be updated. After talking tough in Opposition, new PM Keir Starmer is now coy about united Ireland referendum When asked by the Belfast Telegraph, Prime Minister declined to say if he would call a discretionary border poll something he can do within the terms of the Good Friday Agreement Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaking to reporters in the Great Hall at Parliament Buildings, Stormont. Photo: Kevin Scott Sam McBride Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 16:11 New Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has declined to state clearly whether he might call a border poll while the SDLP has come out to say "we're not anywhere near" a referendum on Irish unity. New PM Sir Keir Starmer promises stability as he arrives for meetings with NI politicians Labour premier promising stability as he prepares to sit down with Stormont leaders Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer meets with First Minister Michelle ONeill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly on June 14th 2024 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Suzanne Breen Sun 7 Jul 2024 at 22:23 Sir Keir Starmer will make his first visit to Stormont as Prime Minister to meet Michelle ONeill and Emma Little-Pengelly tomorrow. Natasha O'Brien pictured on O'Connell Street, Limerick near where she was viciously assaulted in May 2022. Natasha OBrien was viciously assaulted on a street in Limerick city by soldier Cathal Crotty, who received a three-year suspended sentence. Photo: Brian Arthur Soldier Cathal Crotty was given a suspended sentence for his assault on Natasha O'Brien The soldier who sparked public outcry after avoiding a prison term for an unprovoked assault on a young woman is to be dismissed from the Defence Forces this week. Cathal Crotty (22) was last month given a fully suspended three-year prison term for the attack on Limerick woman Natasha OBrien in 2022. Upon completion of the court process, the Defence Forces launched dismissal proceedings against Crotty. This process has now concluded and the soldier is expected to be formally discharged from the military on Thursday. There had been concerns that any appeal lodged by Crotty or the State against his sentence could delay him being discharged. Over a week after the sentence, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed the sentence on the grounds that it was unduly lenient. Read more Appeal lodged against suspended sentence for Irish soldier who beat woman unconscious in random attack However, after seeking legal advice, the Defence Forces has completed the dismissal process and Crotty will be discharged because of his criminal conviction. Ms OBrien was knocked unconscious by Crotty in Limerick City Centre on May 29, 2022. He later boasted about the attack. He told friends on social media afterwards: Two to put her down, two to put her out. Natasha OBrien explains how she regained her hope after almost losing faith in humanity Limerick Circuit Court heard the soldier grabbed Ms OBrien by her hair and delivered six upper cut punches to her face and head. He continued punching her after she fell to the ground and was losing consciousness, the court heard. Ms OBrien said she had politely asked Mr Crotty to stop shouting homophobic slurs at people but he grabbed her and assaulted her. Following the court case, the Government ordered a review of how many serving Defence Forces personnel have criminal convictions or are charged before the courts. A report into the matter uncovered 68 such cases and with the offences including rape, sexual assault, and domestic violence. Last week, the Irish Independent revealed how one soldier continued to serve with the Defence Forces despite being convicted and jailed over a sexual offence. Dismissal proceedings against this individual have also commenced in recent weeks. Gardai are investigating the circumstances of a threatening letter sent to Cathal Crottys family residence last week. The letter was addressed to Cathal Crottys father, began: Mr Crotty, please understand this letter has nothing to do with you, so nothing will be done to you or your house. But if you do as we ask, all isnt lost, however in not doing as we ask, it will be a very sad story indeed for your son, Cathal. It also stated: Mr Crotty, justice wasnt done in court, your son cant get away with this crime. However, we will look at the case if your son (moves) out of the county for good, in two weeks time. This talk with my members is his last hope, leave now or else, well, you know Mr Crotty what is coming. The anonymous letter which includes a Dublin postmark repeats: Get him out for good and we will leave him be. The letter concludes: Time is running out fast 2 weeks or we are coming down Mr Crotty, night or day. A garda spokesman said: An Garda Siochana is aware of correspondence received at a domestic residence in Co. Clare in July 2024. The garda spokesman added that enquiries are ongoing. First Minister of Northern Ireland Michelle ONeill and Sinn Feins President Mary Lou McDonald (right), address the media in the Great Hall of Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Belfast, following a meeting with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (Liam McBurney/PA) Sir Keir Starmer has said he is committed to the principles of the Good Friday Agreement when considering the possibility of a referendum on Irish unity. His remarks came as Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald repeated her prediction that there would be a border poll by 2030, adding the issue of Irish reunification has has never been more alive. However, DUP leader Gavin Robinson said there was no mood in Northern Ireland for engaging in a neverending, repetitive psychodrama about a border poll. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer leaves Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) The Prime Minister met with political parties at Stormont on Monday. Ms McDonald, whose party last week emerged as the largest Northern Ireland party at Westminster following the General Election, said she used her meeting to urge Sir Keir not to bury his head in the sand on the question of Irish unity. The 1998 Good Friday Agreement sets out that the current Northern Ireland Secretary can call a border poll when he or she believes a majority of people in the region support a change to the constitutional status. Sir Keir has previously stated that the issue of a united Ireland is not on his horizon and at the weekend the new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn said he believed the prospect of a vote on Irish unity is off into the distance. Asked about the potential of a border poll when he spoke to the media, the Prime Minister said: This is provided for by the Good Friday Agreement, the framework is set out and I am absolutely committed to the Good Friday Agreement. Today is a recommitment to that and to the approach and the role of the UK Government in that as the honest broker. I am the Prime Minister for the whole of the UK, elected into office just a few days ago. But to reaffirm the importance of the principles of the Good Friday Agreement is part and parcel of why I am here today. Ms McDonald said last weeks election result reflected again that all is changed here and changing. She said: We have reiterated our view to the Prime Minister that it is foolhardy to bury your head in the sand on this question. We have reminded him that the provision for referendums is at the very heart of the Good Friday Agreement. Yes, we need to see progress on this, yes we need if people talk about conditions for a referendum, lets have clarity on what is meant by that. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed as he was asked about a border poll by 2030 (Liam McBurney/PA) This is a question that needs to be addressed by all of us. Asked if she was still aiming for a unity referendum to be held by 2030, the Sinn Fein president said: Yes, yes it is. She added: As we get into the detail of all of this with the British Government, as they set out their own thinking, I hope increasingly that they will amplify their points and offer more clarity as to what they mean when they say the condition is met, when it becomes apparent, well what makes this apparent? How does this become manifest to their way of thinking? We look forward to engaging with that, but what we can say without fear of contradiction is that the issue of reunification and referendums has never been more alive in Irish political discourse right across the island. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed when the 2030 date was put to him. He said: We have heard plenty like that before and were still waiting. Mr Robinson added: Keir Starmer is a unionist, Keir Starmer is somebody who has indicated a border poll is not on the horizon. Anybody who studies the outcome of the election on Thursday will see that the combined unionist vote still outstrips the combined nationalist vote. There is no mood for constitutional change, but more than that, there is no mood for engaging in this neverending, repetitive psychodrama when it is not where the people are. More than 10,000 airline passengers suffered flight cancellations on Sunday and Monday (Steve Parsons/PA) More than 10,000 airline passengers suffered flight cancellations because of bad weather and air traffic control (ATC) restrictions. British Airways axed 51 fights due to operate to or from Heathrow on Sunday, and a further 31 on Monday. Several airlines also cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. Affected passengers are unlikely to be eligible for compensation as the disruption is deemed to be out of airlines control. But they are entitled to assistance, which could involve refreshments, overnight accommodation and rebooking with alternative carriers. A British Airways spokesperson said: Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines weve had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them on to alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today. Two British Airways aircraft were taken out of service for safety checks on Sunday after they were struck by lightning. An easyJet spokesperson said: EasyJet operated around 1,800 flights yesterday and is operating a similar number today, however, some flights yesterday evening and three flights from London Gatwick this morning have unfortunately been disrupted due to the knock-on impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays. While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused and are providing impacted customers with hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight. Ryanair avoided cancelling UK flights but suffered delays, which it blamed on ATC. In a message on its website, the airline said: ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5% behind 2019 levels) with repeated staff shortages. On Monday 8 July, 21% of Ryanairs first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC staff shortages. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanairs control. The Scottish Conservatives could face political extinction if they do not have a wide debate on the future leadership of the party, an MSP has said. Jamie Greene said there should be no swift return to business as usual after his party slumped to its lowest-ever vote share at a general election, returning five MPs north of the border. Current leader Douglas Ross is due to stand down and a number of MSPs are understood to be considering whether to enter the race to succeed him. However, the contest will not begin until at least next week as the partys management board will decide on the timeline at the weekend. Mr Greene was dropped from a frontbench role by Mr Ross last year, with his vote in favour of the of the Gender Recognition Reform Bill seen as being the most likely factor. Writing in the Times on Monday, he said: Is the Scottish Conservative party leadership hoping for a conveniently short contest, with high barriers to entry, to appoint its preferred candidate? Or is it willing to have a real and meaningful conversation about what sort of party they want any new leader to lead? I suspect some grandees prefer the former; a swift return to business as usual. I, however, and many others, believe the latter is a necessity. Ill say this frankly: the party must do this properly to ensure the widest possible debate, lest we risk political extinction. He said there is little appetite for a reactionary lurch to the right in Scotland, but the status quo is equally unappetising. Mr Greenes sentiments were endorsed by justice spokesman Russell Findlay, who is considering whether he will enter the race or not. He said: Tories across the UK have taken a beating although our success in Scotland in holding constituencies shouldnt be overlooked. Russell Findlay is considering a bid to replace Mr Ross (Fraser Bremner) Everyone should take time to reflect on the message we have been sent. Scotland needs to play a big part in rebuilding an election-winning conservative movement and, along with many others, Ill be taking careful consideration of the new circumstances we are in and of how I can best contribute to that task. North east MSP Maurice Golden has also said he is considering a bid for the Scottish Conservative leadership. Other possible contenders are understood to include party chairman Craig Hoy and deputy leader Meghan Gallacher, both of whom played a prominent role in the Scottish Conservative campaign after Mr Ross announced he would stand down. However, so far nobody has confirmed they will go for the top job. Mr Ross decided he would stand down following unease from Conservative colleagues at this decision to run in Aberdeenshire North and Moray East. He ran in the stead of former MP David Duguid, who was barred from standing by party bosses due to ill health. But the current Tory leader was beaten by SNP candidate Seamus Logan, who won 13,455 votes to Mr Rosss 12,513. A Scottish Conservative spokesperson said: The management board will meet soon to agree a timeline and format for the contest. Sir Keir Starmer has described the future of Tata Steel as being of great concern following a meeting with the Welsh First Minister on the final stop of his tour of the devolved nations. US President Joe Biden is standing firm against calls for him to drop his candidacy for a second term, calling for an end to the intra-party drama that has torn apart the Democrats. Mr Biden wrote in the two-page letter on Monday that the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. He stressed that the party has one job, which is to defeat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. In the letter, which follows an ongoing row over his performance in a TV debate against Mr Trump, the President said: We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. 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 letter was sent from the campaign to Democratic politicians as they return to Washington following the July 4 recess. Mr Biden followed the letter up with a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe show, on which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Mr Biden said. He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Mr Trump. President Joe Biden has expressed his frustration by calls from party officials for him to step aside (Susan Walsh/AP) Mr Bidens efforts to shore up a deeply anxious Democratic Party came as its members of congress return to Washington and confront a choice: to revive the Presidents campaign, or edge out the party leader. Top-ranking Democratic legislators have joined calls for Mr Biden to step aside, despite his defiance. At the same time, some of his most staunch supporters are redoubling the fight for his presidency, insisting there is no-one better to beat Mr Trump in what many see as among the most important American election of a lifetime. It is a tenuous and highly volatile juncture for the Presidents party. Democrats who have worked alongside Mr Biden for years if not decades and cherished his lifes work on policy priorities are now entertaining uncomfortable questions about his political future. Mr Trump will attempt to return to the White House, following his defeat in the 2020 poll (AP) This is also unfolding as Mr Biden hosts world leaders for the Nato summit this week in Washington. Time is not on the partys side, almost a month from the Democratic National Convention and just a week before Republicans gather in Milwaukee to renominate Mr Trump as their presidential nominee. Many Democrats are arguing the attention needs to be focused instead on the former presidents felony conviction in the hush money case and pending federal charges in his effort to overturn the 2020 election. It is what Mr Biden himself might call an inflection point. As he defiantly says he will only step aside if the Lord almighty comes and tells him to, Democrats in the US house and senate are deciding how hard they want to fight the President to change course, or indeed if they want to change course at all. In an effort to get on the same page, house Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is convening legislators for private meetings before he shows his own preference, according to an insider. He plans to gather Democrats on Monday whose bids for re-election are most vulnerable. Anxiety is running high among Democrats over Mr Biden in the wake of his dismal TV debate performance (AP) But a private call on Sunday of some 15 top house committee members exposed the deepening divide as at least four more Democrats representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, Jim Himes of Connecticut, Adam Smith of Washington state and Mark Takano of California privately said Mr Biden should step aside. Mr Nadler, as the most senior ranking member on the call, was the first person to speak up and say that Biden should step aside, one source said. He did so aware of his seniority and that it would allow others to join him. Many others on the call raised concerns about Mr Bidens capability and chances of winning re-election, even if they stopped short of saying the President should step out of the race. Still other members, including representatives Maxine Waters of California and Bobby Scott of Virginia, both leaders in the Congressional Black Caucus, spoke forcefully in support of Mr Biden, as did Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee. 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 Several legislators appeared frustrated that senior leadership was not providing direction or a path forward. One Democrat said that regardless of the decision, the situation has to end now. Mr Neal said afterwards that the bottom line is: Mr Biden beat Trump in 2020 and hell do it again in November. The upheaval is also testing a new generation of leaders, headed by Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both New Yorkers have refrained from publicly directing legislators on a path forward as they balance diverse opinions in their ranks. Behind the scenes is speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi, who continues to field calls seeking her advice about the situation, and is widely viewed as the one to watch for any ultimate decision on Mr Bidens future because of her proximity to the President and her vote-counting skills in party politics. Ms Pelosi spoke up last week, saying Mr Bidens debate performance raised legitimate questions he needed to answer, but she has remained supportive of the President. A helicopter drops water on flames from the advancing Lake Fire in Los Olivos, California (Eric Thayer/AP) A long-running heatwave that has already shattered previous records across the US will persist, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that will soar throughout the week, forecasters said on Sunday. In California, crews worked in sweltering conditions to battle a series of wildfires across the state. In Santa Barbara County, northwest of Los Angeles, a fire had scorched more than 20 square miles (53 square kilometres) of dry grass, brush and timber after breaking out Friday. There was no containment by Sunday morning. The blaze was burning through mostly uninhabited wildland, but some rural homes were under evacuation orders. High temperatures were expected through the week, with little relief from the heat even at night.Signs and traffic cones block a road to Sycamore Valley Ranch, formerly the Neverland Ranch when it was owned by Michael Jackson, as firefighters work against the advancing Lake Fire in Los Olivos, California (Eric Thayer/AP) An excessive heat warning the National Weather Services highest alert was in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10% of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest were expected to tie or break previous heat records, he said. Many areas in Northern California surpassed 43.3C, with the city of Redding topping out at a record 48.3C. Phoenix set a new daily record on Sunday for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 33.3C. Las Vegas on Saturday tied the record of 46C, last reached in 2007, and on Sunday the city was flirting with a record high of 47.7C. Temperatures in Oregon were expected to exceed 37.7C on Sunday and soar as high as 46.1C in some parts of California, Mr Jackson said. On the more humid East Coast, temperatures above 37.7C were expected, though no excessive heat advisories were in effect for the region on Sunday. On Saturday, Raleigh in North Carolina reached an all-time record high of 41.1C, with a maximum heat index of 47.7C, he said. Rare heat advisories were extended even into higher elevations including around Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, with the National Weather Service in Reno, Nevada, warning of major heat risk impacts, even in the mountains. First lady Jill Biden insists that her husband Joe Biden has made it clear that hes all in (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Jill Biden declared herself all in on President Joe Bidens bid to remain as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, despite calls by some Democrats for him to drop out after his damaging debate performance against Donald Trump shook their confidence in him. The president himself has brushed aside those calls and insisted anew that he isnt leaving the race. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, the first lady told a military crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina, the first of three battleground states she was visiting. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) Thats the decision that hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in too, said Jill Biden, who teaches English and writing as a community college professor. Her day-long tour was part of the Biden campaigns broader effort to rebound from the presidents halting performance against Mr Trump in last months debate. The debate led some congressional Democrats and others to call on him to let another candidate challenge Mr Trump because they no longer believe the 81-year-old president is mentally and physically capable of defeating the former Republican president in November. The president has insisted since the debate that he is staying in the race. He did so again on Monday in a letter to congressional Democrats and during an on-air telephone interview with MSNBC. The first lady then used her appearance to draw contrasts between her husbands and Mr Trumps attitudes toward US service members, veterans and their families. The presidents late son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware Army National Guard, and the first ladys father was a Navy signalman during World War II. This is personal to us, she said, describing the waits to connect phone calls with a service member stationed overseas or having to smile through a loved ones absence on holidays. Let me ask you this Does Donald Trump know what its like? she said. The president has faced calls to step aside following a poor performance in the first debate against Donald Trump (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) The first lady mentioned reports that Mr Trump, during a 2018 trip to France, referred to service members who paid the ultimate sacrifice as suckers and losers/ Mr Trump denies making the comments. Its disgraceful, but its not surprising, she said. Noting that the Supreme Court has said presidents are immune from prosecution for acts committed while in office, the first lady said our democracy cannot withstand a Trump president with virtually no limits. Members of our military honour their oath to support and defend the Constitution. We cannot trust Donald Trump to do the same, she said. You deserve a commander in chief who serves with integrity and wisdom and character, and thats my husband, Joe Biden. Joe Biden and Donald Trump clashed over who cares the most about veterans during their debate in June (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) A spokesperson for Mr Trumps campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment. During the debate, Mr Biden and Mr Trump argued over who cares the most about veterans. Mr Biden noted that he recently visited an American military cemetery in France, the final resting place for US soldiers who fought in the First World War, which Mr Trump notably skipped on his 2018 trip. Mr Trump asserted during the debate that the Democratic president is coddling migrants while neglecting the needs of veterans and service members, and he faulted Mr Biden for the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. Matt Young is a trending sports reporter at the Houston Chronicle. He can be reached at matt.young@houstonchronicle.com. Matt has been a sports editor/writer at the Chronicle since 2015. He's proudly from Alief and occasionally sits alone in his four-cornered room staring at candles. Travel review: Waxing lyrical about Wexford It may not be the coolest county in Ireland, but for sheer beauty, not to mention bars and restaurants, its one of the best Ferrycarrig Hotel on banks of the River Slaney Ciaran Barnes Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 07:51 Just an hour outside Dublin is one of the most underrated holiday destinations in Ireland, with world-class beaches, heritage sites and top hotels. Fake nun demands 100m for being left in cell covered in her own blood and urine Anna Christian told court she was represented by Holy Spirit Rachel Mulcahy, aka Anna Christian John Toner Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 07:50 A bogus nun filmed participating in loyalist band parades has appeared in court demanding 100m in damages for being left lying in her own urine in a police cell. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina walks on the red carpet upon her arrival at the Beijing Capital International Airport, July 8, 2024. Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived in China for a state visit on Monday, about two weeks after a similar trip to India, with experts saying her government was performing a strategic balancing act between the rival Asian giants. While in Beijing, Hasina will seek a U.S. $5 billion (587 billion taka) loan, which would help assuage Chinas feelings after Bangladesh expressed a preference for New Delhis recent offer on helping manage the Teesta rivers waters, to a Chinese project planning the same, diplomatic observers say. Dhaka is finely balancing between two big powers for her perceived national interests, Munshi Fayaz Ahmad, a former Bangladesh ambassador to China, told BenarNews. A cornerstone of Bangladesh foreign policy is friendship to all, malice to none, he said. We have historic ties with India. India is our first neighbor. We are deeply dependent on each other on many issues. But India cannot meet all of our development endeavors, Ahmad said. [But] no single country can meet our development assistance needs, which China does. So, we need China. But we [also] need India, we need the U.S. Hasinas China visit through Thursday comes at the invitation of Chinese Premier Li Qiang, while her June 21 two-day visit to India was at Prime Minister Narendra Modis invitation. Other than negotiating for the $5 billion loan, China and Bangladesh do not plan to sign any agreements during Hasinas trip, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud told reporters on Sunday. Extending a loan to Bangladesh would benefit China as well, according Md. Tauhid Hossain, a former foreign secretary. China commands a huge amount of money. Bangladesh needs a hefty amount of finance to overcome the ongoing economic crisis, he told BenarNews. China is ready to offer loans to Bangladesh for two-way gains: They will get interest. At the same time, Chinese influence in Bangladesh will increase, too. Indian Border Security Force (BSF) personnel use a speedboat to patrol along the Teesta river on the border with Bangladesh near the Barun post some 80 kms (49.7 miles) from Siliguri in the Indian state of West Bengal, on July 3, 2016. [Diptendu Dutta/AFP] Meanwhile, Dhaka has said it would first consider New Delhis proposal over Beijings on the management and conservation of Teesta river waters that India and Bangladesh share, for the resolution of a longstanding dispute. Teesta is a common river between Bangladesh and India. India has made a proposal for its management and communicated to us that they will send a technical team in this regard, Mahmud told journalists on Sunday about New Delhis proposal during Hasinas trip there last month. As this is a common river, we have to consider their proposal first, naturally. Bangladesh and India have been in negotiations to share the waters of the Teesta, a river entering Bangladesh via Indias West Bengal state, since the early 1950s, but a water-sharing agreement has yet to be signed. A big obstacle has been the state of West Bengal rivers are a state subject in India. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has said that her state would suffer if the Teestas waters were divided. With water-sharing deals repeatedly falling through, a frustrated Bangladesh in 2019 turned to China for help according to local news reports. In 2020, Beijing presented the $1 billion Teesta River Comprehensive Management and Restoration project, which raised alarms in New Delhi because of the potential proximity of the enterprise to the Indian border. Former Bangladesh Foreign Secretary Hossain noted that China has since begun to rethink its involvement in the project, although he did not say why. A Bangladesh newspaper in 2022 quoted the then-Chinese envoy as saying that some sensitivities that we sensed had led to Beijing being a bit reluctant. China has come to understand that they alone cannot implement the Teesta development project. But Beijing would ask for a clear cut response from Dhaka on the Teesta project because Bangladesh [had] requested China to implement the project, he said. Bangladesh will try to compensate in some other ways if China is unhappy about our position on the Teesta. A temporary fence blocks a woman from seeing the site of a June 27 apparent arson fire that killed journalist Rico Sempurna Pasaribu and three family members in Kabanjahe, North Sumatra, Indonesia, July 4, 2024. Police in Indonesias North Sumatra province confirmed Monday that arson was behind a fire that killed a journalist and three family members at his home, and said two men suspected of setting the blaze were in custody. The June 27 attack has raised concerns about press freedom in Indonesia amid speculation that the death of Tribrata TV journalist Rico Sempurna Pasaribu, 48, was linked to his reporting on a gambling operation allegedly involving military personnel. Rico, along with his wife, a child and a grandchild died in the fire. Gen. Agung Setya Imam Effendi, the North Sumatra police chief, identified the suspects only by their initials, RAS and YST. He said RAS was arrested Saturday and had admitted to setting the fire, while YST was apprehended early Sunday. They acted as the executors. They sprayed and poured fuel on the front and side walls of the victims house, Agung said during a news conference where he was joined by Maj. Gen. Mohammad Hasan, the regional military commander. We must rely on evidence. Whether they were paid and so forth is still under investigation, Agung said when asked about a potential motive. Today we arrested the executors and we are working on identifying individuals connected to them. We have identified those who have interacted with these perpetrators, he said. Senior Commissioner Hadi Wahyudi, a North Sumatra police spokesman, said 28 witnesses had been questioned and surveillance footage from around the scene had been analyzed. We will not stop at these two executors. We will expand our investigation, Hadi said in a written statement to BenarNews on Monday. The investigation revealed that the two suspects were seen riding a motorcycle toward the victims residence and leaving shortly after the fire started, he said. The suspects motorcycle matches the characteristics analyzed from the CCTV footage, Hadi said. Journalist Rico Sempurna Pasaribu, seen here in an undated image from his Facebook page, was killed in what police have determined was an arson fire at his home on June 27, 2024. [Sempurna Pasaribu Facebook] Agung said the suspects were to be charged with intentionally causing a fire, explosion, or flood, and as a further consequence, causing general danger to the property or lives of others, and could face life in prison if convicted. He did not say when the charges would be filed. The pair can be detained by investigators for 40 days before being turned over to the prosecutor who has 30 days before taking the case before the court. Gambling reporting Suspicions of alleged army involvement were revealed by a fact-finding team from the North Sumatra Journalists Safety Committee (KKJ) in Medan. KKJ revealed that Rico had reported on gambling activities in Padang Mas, a village in Kabanjahe district, Karo regency, and had named a TNI member allegedly involved. Rico also posted the report on his Facebook page. After the news was published, a soldier contacted Ricos superior, requesting the report be taken down, but the request was denied, according to KKJ. The group said Rico had confided in colleagues that he felt uneasy after the report was published. Human Rights Watch (HRW) researcher Andreas Harsono said the suspected killing of Rico was unprecedented in Indonesia. Many journalists have been killed alone. This is the first suspected murder in Indonesian history where a journalist was killed along with his family, Andreas told BenarNews. Military support Mohammad Hasan, the regional military commander, told reporters that troops would back the police investigation. We are giving full support. The TNI, specifically Kodam I Bukit Barisan, has been frequently mentioned in the news, Hasan said, using an acronym for the Indonesian Armed Forces. The arson attack on the journalists residence is the second such incident in North Sumatra in 2024. On March 21, the home of Junaidi Marpaung, a journalist for the online media outlet Utama News, was set on fire by unknown individuals. Junaidi, who is also a member of the Indonesian Journalists Association (PWI) in Rantau Prapat, Labuhan Batu regency, was reporting on drug trafficking in his area and had received several threats via social media. Junaidi and his family were able to escape the fire. In 2023, the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) recorded 89 cases of attacks on journalists and media outlets across Indonesia, the highest number in the past decade. The highest instances of violence occurred against journalists and media covering three key issues: accountability and corruption (33 cases), social issues and crime (25 cases), and environmental and agrarian conflicts (14 cases), according to the report. It also indicated that the majority of perpetrators were state actors, accounting for 36 cases, followed by non-state actors with 29 cases, and unidentified actors in 24 cases. HRWs Andreas noted that violence against journalists tends to occur outside major cities, where oversight from press organizations or civil society groups is less prevalent. Journalists in rural areas are more vulnerable. In Jakarta, there are many watchdogs, Andreas said. He urged journalists outside big cities to regularly build networks to become more cohesive and protective of one another. Journalists need to organize. The more oversight, the lower the potential for violence and attacks, he said. Philippines Secretary of Defense Gilberto Teodoro Jr. (third from left), Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo (second from left), Japans Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (third from right) and Japans Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (second from right) hold a 2+2 meeting at a hotel in Metro Manila, July 8, 2024. UPDATED at 11:36 a.m. ET on 2024-07-08 The Philippines and Japan signed a defense pact Monday that will allow troops to be deployed in each others country, a landmark agreement seen as a counterweight to Chinas growing assertiveness in the South China Sea. Filipino Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa signed the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) at a ceremony in Manila witnessed by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Japans foreign and defense ministers were in the Philippine capital for so-called two-plus-two meetings with their Filipino counterparts. The RAA serves as a framework for security operations and training between the two nations, including joint military drills and maritime patrols in South China Sea waters claimed by Beijing but that lie within the Philippines exclusive economic zone. Japan has pursued similar agreements with a handful of countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, but this is a first in Asia. It also signifies the first time Japanese troops will be allowed to return to Philippine soil since the Imperial armys occupation during World War II. Speaking after the signing, Kamikawa hailed the pact as a great achievement that would help maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law. Teodoro said the deal was a step forward for the region and would add another layer to bilateral and defense relations. It would also help uphold the essence, principles, and concepts of international law particularly UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), he said. Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations were strategically important for Japan, as they are situated at a key junction of its sea-lanes. He added Japan was keen to deepen trilateral and quadrilateral ties, with the Philippines, United States and Australia. The Philippine defense and foreign secretaries (right, second from right) join hands with their Japanese counterparts (left, second from left) after their 2+2 meeting at the Shangri-La Hotel in Taguig City, Metro Manila, July 8, 2024. [Jojo Rinoza/BenarNews] The signing of the RAA comes amid escalating tensions between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea. On June 17, Filipino officials said China Coast Guard personnel, armed with pikes and machetes, punctured Philippine boats and seized firearms during a resupply mission to an outpost on Second Thomas Shoal. One Filipino sailor lost a finger in the clash, the third such encounter this year in which Philippine personnel have been hurt. On Monday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo thanked Japan for standing by the Philippines in its maritime dispute with China. He also praised Tokyo for supporting the rules-based international order, including a 2016 international arbitration ruling that found China had violated Manilas sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone. Amidst the backdrop of the geopolitical situation in this and other regions, which has put the stability and predictability of the rules-based international order under stress, we discussed global and regional issues of common concern, Manalo said during the two-plus-two meetings. Chester Cabalza, president of International Development and Security Cooperation, a Philippine think-tank, said the defense deal was groundbreaking and would serve as a counterweight to China in the region. The significance of the military pact enlivens the agility and deterrence of Manila with the quantum leap support of a strategic and technologically advanced neighbor like Japan, Cabalza told BenarNews. Don McLain Gill, a political analyst at the international studies department of De La Salle University, said the agreement would act as an independent stabilizing force. At the same time, it would be compatible with U.S. efforts to form a network of alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan has played a significant role in crafting a more robust framework for Manila-Tokyo ties, and Japan has also demonstrated its steadfast commitment in being the Philippines major economic and defense partner, he said. In a scenario where the U.S. may dial down its support for Manila, our partnership with Japan is likely to remain steadfast and consistent. Filipino members of Lila Pilipina, a group representing comfort women who were raped and tortured during the Japanese occupation in World War II, and other activists protest in front of the Japanese Embassy, Pasay City, Metro Manila on July 8, 2024. The activists opposed the signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between Manila and Tokyo. [Gerard Carreon/BenarNews] Following the signing of the RAA, China reiterated that bilateral cooperation should not target third parties. The exchange and cooperation between countries should not undermine the mutual understanding and trust between other countries in the region. It should not threaten regional peace and stability, target any third party, or harm the interests of any third party, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said in a news briefing on Monday, when asked about Chinas reaction to the Manila-Tokyo defense pact. The Asia-Pacific region does not need any military bloc, still less groupings that incite bloc confrontation or a new Cold War, he said. He also reminded Japan of its aggression and colonial rule over the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries during World War II. Manila has a similar defense deal with Washington, the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, which sets the terms under which American military personnel can operate on Philippine soil. The U.S. now has access to nine military bases across the archipelago and has pledged U.S. $100 million for upgrades. Jojo Rinoza and Gerard Carreon contributed to this report from Manila. This story has been updated to include comments from Chinas foreign ministry, Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., and Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo. Small Sichuan city ranks second in global caviar production with annual output of 60 tons 09:25, July 08, 2024 By Zhang Yiyi ( Global Times The city of Ya'an, Southwest China's Sichuan Province has risen to second position in the global caviar production market, CCTV reported on Sunday. Caviar is originally sourced from Russia and Iran. Fourteen percent of caviar worldwide comes from this small Chinese city, and is exported to more than 30 countries, featuring in top hotels like Dubai's Burj Al Arab, Paris's Galeries Lafayette, and various Michelin-starred restaurants. High-end international chains are increasingly recognizing the quality of Sichuan's caviar, according to CCTV. "Our caviar comes from sturgeon over 10 years old and is mainly for export. We mainly export to Europe, the US, the Middle East, and Asia," an employee from Frosista Caviar, the representative caviar-producing corporation in Ya'an on Tmall, told the Global Times on Sunday. The product is also becoming increasingly popular on the domestic market, despite a slight price increase due to higher costs and other factors, with the high quality and nutrition increasingly drawing 'tasters', according to the employee. Caviar's value stems from the lengthy breeding cycle of sturgeon, taking at least 7 to 8 years to mature, and intricate processing that requires over ten steps within 15 minutes to ensure freshness. With strong market demand and declining wild sturgeon resources, caviar prices have steadily risen, cementing its status as a global luxury. Ya'an, located in an inland basin, produces high-quality caviar primarily due to the superior high-mountain glacier meltwater which is free from industrial pollution, providing an excellent water source for sturgeon growth, Fan Xubing, the chairman of Seabridge Marketing, a China-based international company in the fishing sector, and also an aquatic industry insider and analyst, told the Global Times on Sunday. "Successful sturgeon farming requires fresh water, proper water sources, and investment in technology, all of which Ya'an has, making it perfect for caviar production," Fan said. "The high production volume, competitive price, and high quality of the Chinese caviar make it popular worldwide, particularly in the US market," Fan added. In 2023, Ya'an processed 60 tons of caviar, raising its global market share from 12 percent in 2022 to 14 percent. Of this, 45 tons were exported, generating $12.71 million in revenue, a 25 percent increase, according to the data from Ya'an's government. The prominence of Ya'an caviar is an example of the thriving caviar industry in China, industry observers said. The main reason for China's large-scale caviar production is its breakthrough in the global challenge involved in wild sturgeon farming, according to The Paper.cn. "China's sturgeon breeding and processing industry has become one of the largest in the world, bringing Chinese caviar to the global market," Fan said. From January to May 2024, China exported 88,407 kg of caviar, an 11.1 percent increase compared to the 79,566 kg exported during the same period last year, according to data from the General Administration of Customs of China. (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Lydia Nunez Landry is a resident of Seabrook and disability activist living with multiple sclerosis. Courtesy Lydia Nunez Landry For most people who live in Houston, hurricane prep is as simple as dusting off a flashlight and buying bottled water. For elderly residents and those with disabilities, it's not so easy. Medication must be carefully counted, double-checked and counted again. Evacuation routes are researched and planned weeks ahead of time. Houstonians who are physically impaired may have a laundry list of needs that must be addressed well before a storm appears on any radar. You really cant afford to be reactive, said Lydia Nunez Landry, a resident of Seabrook with multiple sclerosis. I have suitcases already packed with photos and important documents. Ill usually attend any meetings held by the city in early to mid spring to get a better idea of what that years season will look like. The vast majority of my prep is completed by around May. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Landry, a lifelong resident of communities along the Gulf Coast, has experienced hurricanes from New Orleans to Galveston. As her condition worsened, Landry went from using a cane, to a walker to eventually needing a powered wheelchair to get around. Beryl, which is expected to be a tropical storm by the time it reaches Houston, has been a major concern for Landry. She said that, despite the storm not being as intense as Ike or Katrina, she has lost a significant amount of sleep in the days leading up to Beryls landfall. I live within rolling distance of the bay so flooding is always a concern for my family, Landry said. It isnt easy. I have to make sure I have access to a van that can support my wheelchair, someone to drive it and access to a facility with power if it needs charging. I also have pets to care for, loved ones to check on its seriously stressful. A good nights sleep likely won't be in the cards until Beryl has fully passed over the city, Landry said. As a resident of a historically flood-prone region, she said the majority of her time in the coming days will be dedicated to monitoring road and power grid conditions. Landry counts herself among the lucky few with a support network capable of helping her adjust. Many others, she said, lack a safety net to fall back on in the event of an emergency. Advertisement Article continues below this ad My partner is actually my caregiver; not a lot of people have support like that, Landry said. Im very fortunate because so many out there don't have anyone to check on them, anyone to bring them food or water. Sometimes they just get left behind entirely. Their friends, neighbors and family just forget about them. Community, Landry said, is more than just a buzzword. At a time when proper treatment is often cost-prohibitive, she said just checking on your friends and neighbors can be the difference between life and death. That sentiment was echoed by Lynn Griffin, a 76-year-old resident who first moved to Houston after her husband died in 2014. Now retired, Griffin said her family has since moved elsewhere and Beryl is the first storm shes weathered without them. My church family is everything, Griffin said. Faith alone can only get you so far, its the friends you make at service that are the ones that will keep you alive. I dont feel worried at all because I know I have good people watching my back. Gearing up for the storm, Griffin said, was more of a challenge mentally than physically. Grocery shopping, topping off her gas tank and buying some extra water was simple, she said. Mentally preparing herself to spend the night without the support of her children and late husband, however, was another thing entirely. Advertisement Article continues below this ad What helped her, she said, was training her mind to focus only on what she had immediate control over. That meant not kicking herself for trivial mistakes and being aware of her own limits, Griffin said. If you'd like to leave a comment (or a tip or a question) about this story with the editors, please email us We also welcome letters to the editor for publication; you can do that by filling out our letters form and submitting it to the newsroom. BENNINGTON A Pownal man already charged with the repeated sexual assault of a child in Pownal in 2021, resulting in the victim giving birth, has now been charged in a new case of repeated sexual assault with a different child. Levi Varno, also known as Levi Haner, 29, of Pownal, is charged with four new counts: aggravated, repeated sexual assault of a child, repeated sexual assault of a child, and two counts of repeated sexual assault. Each of the four felony counts carries a possible life sentence if Varno is found guilty. That sentence cannot be suspended, deferred, or served as a supervised sentence. Varno pleaded not guilty at his arraignment last Wednesday to all four counts. In a surprising move, Judge Howard Kalfus released Varno back into the residence he shares with his mother, Angel Varno. The release was surprising given that both Levi Varno and his mother, who is charged with overseeing her son while he is on conditions of release, are both facing felony charges related to a different, earlier case of sexual assault of a minor back in 2021. Further, on the same day that Varno was arraigned on the new charges, he was also charged with two misdemeanors of violating his conditions of release related to the first case. Varno is charged with both the repeated sexual assault of a child between 2013 and 2016 and with non-consensual, repeated sexual assault between 2011 and 2013. According to an affidavit in the new case, Manchester Police were recently notified of a possible sexual assault years ago in Manchester by the father of the victim. The father reported that his child texted him that Varno had raped him. The affidavit states that Angel Varno, the maternal grandmother of the victim, was on the front cover of the Bennington Banner, which prompted the victim to text his father about his own assault. The victim disclosed to his father that Angel Varno had walked in and saw Levi raping him, walked out, and shut the door. According to a source at the courthouse, it is possible that there might be additional charges filed against Angel Varno. It should be noted that the victim had a twin brother who passed away in 2018 at the age of 11. According to an interview police had with the victim, that sibling was also a victim of the repeated sexual abuse suffered by his brother. According to the affidavit, the abuse started when both boys were living at the Dufresne Trailer Park in Manchester. The repeated assaults were frequent and in many locations. Levi Varno is a family member who used to babysit. Both of the victims were four years old when the alleged abuse began. According to the affidavit in the older abuse case still making its way through the system, a call came into the Department of Children and Families in July of 2021 from the Sunrise Family Resource Center in Bennington concerning a female minor. The alleged victim's brother had reported to an SFRC employee that his younger sister was sleeping with then-24-year-old Varno. The victim had been living inside the Varno residence for seven months during the alleged ongoing assaults. A supervisor at DCF received a call that same day from a doctor alerting them that the victim was pregnant. An investigation ensued, with the victim denying Varno was the father. A baby was born to the victim in March of 2022. During an interview with a case worker in November of 2022, the victim acknowledged Varno as the father and expressed a desire to be with him when she turned 16. A subsequent DNA swab confirmed Varno as the father. Further investigation and interviews with the victim revealed that she met Varno when she was 13 when Varno would babysit her and her brother. Eventually, Varno would drive the victim out into the woods in Pownal to have sex on numerous occasions. She eventually became pregnant and promised Varno she would not say anything. Varno was arrested after a police interview where he allegedly confessed to being the father of the victims baby. Varno's mother was herself charged with being an accessory to her sons alleged ongoing assault in the first case. She was arraigned on one count of being an accessory to aggravated repeated sexual assault of a child. She faces a possible 25-year to life sentence if she is convicted. According to a police affidavit in her accessory case, at a weight of evidence hearing in September in front of Bennington Judge Kerry McDonald-Cady, Angel Varno testified under oath that she was aware of the relationship between her son and the 14-year-old victim and that her son and the victim had sex. She also admitted to letting both the victim and her son live together at her home for almost a year. Levi Varno was 24 at the time. Angel Varno pleaded not guilty at her arraignment. She was released on conditions, including no contact with the victim as her trial progresses. Levi Varno and Angel Varno can continue living together in Pownal as they await trial. So far, no further hearings have been scheduled in the case. Levi Varno is also currently out on conditions, including having no contact with the victim or the baby or with anyone under 16. In addition, Levi Varno must abide by a 24/7 curfew at his residence as he awaits trial. He faces a 25-year maximum sentence if hes found guilty in the first case. Angel Varno is considered by the court to be Levi Varnos responsible adult, making sure he follows his conditions and is responsible for reporting him if he breaks curfew or violates any conditions. It should also be noted that Varno was charged on the same day he was charged in the new case with two violations of his conditions of release for coming within 300 feet of his victim and harassing her and for violating his conditions by breaking his curfew. Bennington Judge Howard Kalfus still decided to release Levi Varno back into the care of his mother after the new sex abuse charges and the violations charges. There are no new hearings set in the case. This story was updated at 11 a.m. Monday, July 8 to add a Monsanto company statement. LEE Monsanto and two other companies have asked a federal judge to dismiss the town of Lees lawsuit against them, claiming its central legal argument intentional infliction of harm isn't recognized under state law. In a motion filed Wednesday at U.S. District Court in Springfield, Monsanto, Solutia LLC and Pharmacia LLC collectively referring to itself as Pharmacia alleged that the town's claims should be rejected for several reasons, including noncompliance with federal court procedure rules, a statute of limitations and the federal laws governing the Rest of River cleanup. The motion was one of several filed by GE and Monsanto in the lawsuit this past week. Some were in response to a motion brought by the town last month, in which it sought a default judgment against GE for failing to meet a court deadline. In its motion to dismiss, Pharmacia makes several arguments as to why it believes the towns claims ought to be dismissed with prejudice. Its foundation is a fictional tort intentional infliction of harm which the Town says supports claims for civil and criminal conspiracy, the company said of Lees lawsuit. A civil conspiracy requires an underlying tort, but Massachusetts law does not recognize a tort for intentional infliction of harm. And the Town lacks authority to bring criminal charges in the context of this civil action. Pharmacia also argues that a statute of limitations applies because the alleged conduct happened before 1977; because the town of Lee knew of the potential for litigation against Monsanto for at least a decade, and had been in PCB cleanup negotiations for years. In its motion for summary judgment, the town said the statute of limitations starts last December, when it first learned of the 1972 agreement indemnifying Monsanto for the sale of PCBs to General Electric. Notably, Pharmacia had no involvement in that settlement agreement, but the Town blames Pharmacia for its terms, the company said in its motion. The Town participated in the administrative processes and agreed to the plan, including the location of the waste disposal facility, so it cannot now challenge the plan through different legal means, the company said. In a statement, the company pointed out its lack of involvement in the revised cleanup plan, in which a PCB landfill, not part of the original 2016 cleanup permit, is being sited on Woodland Road. "The case should be dismissed in its entirety for several reasons, including that there is no legal basis for imposing civil liability on Monsanto for the conduct of General Electric and other parties in connection with the disposal facility those parties not Monsanto agreed to create. Moreover, claims against Monsanto are time-barred and preempted by federal law, and the foundational claim in the case, intentional infliction of harm, is not recognized under the states civil law," a company spokesman said. Monsanto discontinued its own legal production of PCBs nearly five decades ago, conducted hundreds of studies on PCB safety, and provided appropriate warnings to its customers based on the state-of-the-art science at the time, the spokesman said. In the towns lawsuit, it points out that Monsanto, Solutia and Pharmacia were not involved in the Rest of River cleanup settlement, and also says the cleanup settlement does not prohibit the town from seeking monetary compensation for the harm inflicted by PCBs. Pharmacia also points out that the town approved the revised cleanup settlement resulting from Rest of River Municipal Committees closed-door negotiations. The Town is precluded from reneging on its commitment to EPA. Likewise it cannot, as a workaround, seek to impose civil liability on Pharmacia for the acts of GE and others made under the agreed-upon corrective action plan. Another catalyst for competing motions in the case centers on whether GE responded to the towns request for summary judgment in a timely fashion. In a motion filed on June 20, the town said GE had missed a deadline to respond to its motion. According to the town and its attorney, Cristobal Bonifaz, the date of service was May 10 meaning its 28-day period for response ended on June 8. In a response filed on July 1, General Electric said it had missed the deadline because it did not formally become an official party to the action until June 17. Given that GEs deadline to respond to Lees Motion for Summary Judgment has yet to occur, Lees Motion to Default is not ripe for hearing, the company said through its legal counsel, Campbell, Conroy & ONeil of Boston. The town filed the lawsuit in Berkshire Superior Court on March 13, alleging the companies knew PCBs impacted human health and the environment, constituting intentional infliction of harm to humans and the environment." General Electric removed the case to U.S. District Court on April 9. Pharmacia also moved to strike Lees motion for summary judgment on Wednesday, deeming it procedurally improper and premature. In an agreement signed Jan. 21, 1972, GE agreed not to sue Monsanto for claims arising from the environmental and health harm caused by PCBs, which it used in building power transformers in Pittsfield in coolants and lubricants for their insulating and fire-resistant properties. The town of Lees lawsuit alleges that Monsanto knew, and did not tell GE or its other customers, that PCB Aroclors 1254 and 1260 both used at the Pittsfield facility would bind to river sediments instead of washing out to sea. GE used PCBs in its manufacture of power transformers at its East Street campus from 1930 through 1977, when Monsanto stopped making them. The chemical was dumped into the Housatonic River, leaked into the groundwater in the area, dumped at sites throughout the region, and was present in fill given to employees for residential properties. In 2000, GE signed a consent decree in which it agreed to remove PCBs from its campus and the Housatonic River. The current Rest of River cleanup, from the confluence of the East and West branches of the Housatonic to Great Barrington, was negotiated in 2020 and upheld by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit last year. Committed to strengthening Ohios economy through innovation, Bowling Green State University, The University of Toledo, and regional public and private entities are leveraging their combined industry and research expertise to establish an innovation hub expected to create 1,600 jobs and a $284 million economic impact during the next seven years. The Northwest Ohio Glass Innovation Hub, funded through a $31.3 million grant from the Innovation Hubs program administered by the Ohio Department of Development, will build upon the regions existing industrial and research capabilities to solidify Ohio as a global leader in glass technology. With industry-led research backed by the regions anchor institutions, the Glass Innovation Hub also is expected to increase state tax revenue by $25 million and produce more than 200 new graduates working in science, technology, engineering and math fields to meet surging workforce demands. The state funds will be matched by $10.4 million in cost-sharing funds from private sector industry and public sector universities, economic development organizations and community foundations. The regional initiative, announced on July 1 by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine at O-I Glass headquarters in Perrysburg, underscores the University's commitment to driving economic vitality in northwestern Ohio and beyond through public-private partnerships, world-class research, in-demand academic programs and workforce development. New collaboration will evaluate Aptamers fibrotic liver delivery vehicles with siRNA Aptamer Group plc (AIM: APTA), the developer of novel Optimer binders to enable innovation in the life sciences industry, is pleased to announce a new agreement with AstraZeneca, a global biopharmaceutical company, to evaluate the Optimer fibrotic liver delivery vehicles for the targeted delivery of siRNA. Following the encouraging results achieved to-date with Aptamers fibrotic liver delivery vehicles, the next phase of this research will explore the potential of the non-viral delivery vehicle and its applicability with a tool siRNA. Under the agreement, AstraZeneca will provide an siRNA to be trialled with Aptamers Optimer- based delivery vehicle for fibrotic liver cells. Aptamer Group will conduct in-house experimental work to assess the effectiveness of this delivery vehicle with the AstraZenecas siRNA. Upon success, Aptamer Group will progress to internally generating demonstrator data in animal models for evaluation by AstraZeneca. Delivery of siRNA to precise cell types and tissues with successful cell internalisation remains a significant challenge for the wider therapeutic application of the technology. Despite this limitation, the siRNA market was still valued at over $13 billion in 2023. Optimer technology could represent a paradigm shift in the targeted delivery of siRNA molecules, due to the high levels of selectivity, high affinity and simple conjugation of siRNA payloads, offered using Optimer delivery systems as non- viral vectors. If successful Optimer-enabled delivery of siRNA could lead to the development of novel compounds that have significant advantages over current cell and tissue-targeting methods. Dr Arron Tolley, Chief Technical Officer of Aptamer Group, said: We are really excited to work with AstraZeneca to evaluate and optimise our Optimer delivery vehicles. Partnerships such as this will enable Aptamer Group to make rapid progress in this area, which is a key focus for Optimer technology. Targeted delivery to specific cell types remains a critical unmet need in many applications within the tissue targeting space and, as such, has been part of our strategic focus to support the development of binders with the potential for long-term, high value. Our initial dataset in Optimer targeted delivery has raised significant interest from multiple parties. We are eager to advance to animal model testing and delighted to continue collaborating with AstraZeneca in this endeavour. Reaching proof of principle in animal models will derisk the Optimer delivery platform and bring us closer to delivering targeted and effective gene therapies for patients. People gather outside a home in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail where Maria Loredo, 74, died after a tree fell on her second-story bedroom during Hurricane Beryl Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer At least seven people have died in the Houston region as a result of Hurricane Beryl, according to city and county officials. Three of the seven confirmed fatalities were reported in Montgomery County. An emergency management official said a man in his 40s was killed by a falling tree while riding his tractor. Two other people were discovered dead in a tent in a wooded area in Magnolia. No other details were immediately available. We are deeply saddened by these losses and extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and friends affected, said Trey Baxter, spokesperson for the county's emergency management team, in a news release. Our priority remains the safety and well-being of all residents as we continue our recovery efforts. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The identities of the individuals killed in Montgomery County have yet to be released. A civilian employee of the Houston Police Department was found dead in a submerged car in the floodwaters of Houston Avenue near City Hall. Acting HPD Chief Larry Satterwhite later identified the man in a post on X as Russell Richardson, a 54-year-old HPD information security officer who was caught in rising flood waters on Houston Avenue. Mayor John Whitmire, who hailed the man as a "hero," said Richardson was on his way to work Monday morning after exiting Interstate 45. Investigators determined a Houston house fire that killed a man early Monday was likely caused by lightning from the storm. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Earlier, county officials confirmed two deaths from fallen trees: a 53-year-old man in Humble and a 73-year-old grandmother in Spring. LIVE UPDATES: More than 1M lose power in Houston as Hurricane Beryl pounds region A man died after a tree fell on a home in Kings River Village in Humble, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez confirmed on X. Gonzalez said the man, 53, was sitting in his home with his family, waiting out the storm, when an oak tree fell on their roof and a structure fell on the man. Gonzalez confirmed another death around 10 a.m. after a tree fell on 74-year-old Maria Loredo in the 17400 block of Rustic Canyon Trail. Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo said Loredo, a grandmother, was in her bedroom at the time. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Local officials urged residents to remain home as crews continue to assess the damage. An array of hazards continues to threaten public safety, including falling trees, high water, hanging power lines, broken traffic signals, and of course widespread power outages. Laurie Christensen, the Harris County fire marshal, urged residents with generators to ensure they are not running indoors or in garages. The devices should be kept at least 15 to 20 feet away from a home, and she called carbon monoxide poisoning a silent killer after storms. We cant even get there to save you because you cant wake up to tell us you need us, Christensen said. The hurricane, which was downgraded to a tropical storm late Monday morning as it moved inland, has claimed at least 12 lives in the Caribbean, according to Caribbean National Weekly, with three fatalities confirmed in Grenada and Carriacou, three in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and three in northern Venezuela. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Beryl began as a Category 5 hurricane and was downgraded to a Category 4 before slamming into Jamaica last week. It made landfall near Matagorda, Texas around 4 a.m. on Monday as a Category 1 hurricane. Correction (July 8, 5:55 p.m.): An earlier version of the story misspelled the name of Maria Loredo. 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. Ken Coster breaks down fallen trees in his front yard after Beryl made landfall early morning Monday, July 8, 2024, in Houston. Ishika Samant/Staff photographer CenterPoint Energy estimated Monday evening that it would restore power to 1 million customers by end of day Wednesday, July 10. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Nearly 800,000 additional customers may be without power after Wednesday as temperatures rise to the triple digits this week. The National Weather Service issued a heat advisory for southeast Texas on Tuesday with the heat index expected to rise to 105 degrees. "While this would normally be below criteria, the widespread loss of power and A/C will make for dangerous conditions," forecasters said on X. While we tracked the projected path, intensity and timing for Hurricane Beryl closely for many days, this storm proved the unpredictability of hurricanes as it delivered a powerful blow across our service territory and impacted a lot of lives, said Lynnae Wilson, senior vice president of CenterPoint Energy, in a news release. CenterPoint's outage tracker reported more than 1.7 million customers affected -- down from a Monday peak of 2.26 million-- on Tuesday morning. A spokesperson said Monday evening it restored power to nearly 285,000 customers on Monday; it is unclear how many of those are temporary restorations. Advertisement Article continues below this ad In a statement late Monday afternoon, CenterPoint said it would estimate when power would be restored only after its crews complete a damage assessment. The statement did not address how long the assessment would take; crews must also begin routing power through intact lines and clearing vegetation. After that damage assessment, CenterPoint said it would begin publishing estimates of when power will be restored, with those projections growing more detailed over time. At a press conference hosted by Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo on Monday afternoon, CenterPoint official Paul Locke said in response to questions that the utility will "have a better idea sometime tomorrow (Tuesday) on the timeline (for) restoration." We understand how difficult it is to be without power for any amount of time, especially in the heat, said Lynnae Wilson, a CenterPoint vice president, said in the company's prepared statement. We are laser focused on the important and time-sensitive work that lies ahead. The company's statement also noted that "customers in the hardest-hit areas may experience prolonged outages and should prepare accordingly." It did not specify the areas considered hardest-hit. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The number of homes and businesses in the dark is more than double those left powerless during the peak of May's derecho event, which knocked 922,000 offline. It took six days to restore nearly all of those customers. Monday morning's outage is the largest total number of Houston area customers without electricity in CenterPoint history, topping the 2.1 million customers who lost power during Hurricane Ike in September 2008. A light is seen hanging from a street sign just after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall on Monday, July 8, 2024 in Houston. Raquel Natalicchio/Staff photographer Beryl made landfall near Matagorda early Monday as a category 1 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. The total number of CenterPoint electric customers offline rose from around 500,000 at 6 a.m. to more than 1 million by 7 a.m. More than 200,000 Entergy Texas customers were also without power as of mid-day Monday, with many outages in Montgomery, Jefferson, Walker, Liberty and Galveston counties. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Beryl barreled in as CenterPoint was still updating its public alert systems. During the May derecho, the companys main public information site, its Outage Tracker map, crashed from a combination of high demand from customers and widespread outages. CenterPoint recognizes the inconvenience to its customers and will continue to provide general outage information in the interim, the company said in a news release, adding that it hopes to debut a new system by the end of July. In the interim, CenterPoint encouraged people to sign up for its Power Alert Service to receive emails, text messages or phone calls about their exact address. Making information available to customers is a good way for utilities (and government agencies) to build trust, said Pablo Pinto, a professor in the University of Houstons Hobby School of Public Affairs. "When information is not available, individuals tend to rely on heuristics and personal biases to assess what is going on, which is often not great." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Lenore Mayberry, who lives in Houston's Kashmere Gardens neighborhood, had time to make bacon and coffee and watch the news before her lights went out about 8 a.m. And then her worries began. Predominantly low-income Kashmere Gardens, much of which sits in the floodplain, has historically struggled to get needed recovery services. A city of Houston resilience hub to provide resources for residents such as power banks, air conditioning and food has yet to come to life after opening in December. What's more, Mayberry was without power for two and a half weeks after the May derecho, one of the last customers restored. She worries Beryl will be a repeat. Most of Katy was dark, too. So residents gathered at a nearby Buc-ees, which had power. Samuel Kenney stopped by with a neighbor to get fuel for a generator, passing downed trees and flooded roads en route. All in all, I cant complain, Kenney said, 45 minutes into his wait in line. We didnt have any real damage, and our friends are all safe. Heather Williams, another Katy resident, was at Buc-ees getting ice to keep her freezer cold. "Plus," her son Brantley added, biting into a brisket taco, the food is really good." Those without power do not need to report their outages, CenterPoint said. "Our system tells us where the outages are located across our service area thanks to our smart meter technology that lets us know your power is out," the company said in a social media post. "Theres no need to hold to speak to an agent so please keep the phone lines open for those reporting hazardous conditions." Anyone who sees a downed power line or smells natural gas indoors is encouraged to call CenterPoint Energy at 713-207-2222. - Staff writers Reporters Claire Goodman and Abby Church contributed to this report. In this photo taken June 29, 2012, Jeff Brantingham, anthropology professor at the University of California Los Angeles, displays a computer generated "predictive policing," zones at the Los Angeles Police Department Unified Command Post. Damian Dovarganes / Associated Press 2012 Two armed men stormed the Sunglass Hut on West Gray two years ago, threatened employees with a gun and stole thousands of dollars in cash and merchandise. The Houston Police Department got to work investigating until they got a call from the stores parent company. Using facial recognition software that had quickly scoured through driver license and booking photos, the companys loss prevention department had found their guy: a 61-year-old Texan named Harvey Eugene Murphy Jr. Never mind that Murphy was 2,000 miles away in Sacramento, Calif., at the time of the robbery. When Murphy returned to Texas and attempted to renew his license at a Harris County DMV, HPD arrested him and sent him to jail for 10 days. By the time Murphys alibi cleared his name, he had been beaten and raped by three men in a jail bathroom, he alleges in a lawsuit filed earlier this year. Any one of us could be improperly charged with a crime and jailed based on error-prone facial recognition software," the lawsuit says. "The companies that use this kind of software know it has a high rate of false positives, but they still use it to positively identify alleged criminals." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Since 2019, at least six other people in the U.S. have been falsely accused of committing a crime after an inaccurate facial recognition scan including a woman who was held for 11 hours while eight months pregnant. All six were Black, though Murphy Jr. is white. If we cant even get facial recognition right, how can we trust the high-tech tools more and more police departments are using to pinpoint criminals and even to predict future crimes? Last month, Houston City Council approved a $178,000 HPD contract with a company called Airship AI to expand the server space of 64 security cameras around the city. The Chronicle had previously reported the contract was for 64 new cameras, but Victor Senties, a spokesperson for HPD, told the editorial board that they strictly purchased video storage space for the cameras HPD is already using. Senties insisted that despite the company name, the deal has nothing to do with AI or facial recognition. When we pressed him for more details on the cameras' capabilities, or on why the contract was with a company dedicated to "AI solutions," we got no answers. The murkiness is worrisome. Especially when Airship AI's mission is clear: They work to improve public safety and operational efficiency by "providing predictive analysis of events before they occur." That is in line with what then-Police Chief Art Acevedo saw as the future of the department. In a 2017 news conference, he said "You can almost move into a predictive model where you might be able to determine, based on previous patterns of crime, what should we expect at any given month based on a deep dive, an analysis, of three to five years of crime data." In the early 2010s, police departments around the country looking to do more with fewer resources gambled on a buzzy new idea: predictive policing. It resembled a less fanciful version of Steven Spielberg's "Minority Report." Machine learning algorithms would spot patterns in crime reports, arrest records, license plate images and many other types of data and spit out predictions of where and when a certain type of crime would occur, as well as who might be likely to commit it. The underlying theory was that, like earthquakes and their aftershocks, crime begets more crime nearby. Peoples past and present, then, could also shed light on whether crime was in their future. On its surface, predictive policing isnt that different from cops huddling around a map, pinning crime spots and trying to figure out patterns that might help them deter crime before it happens. Or from a responsible citizen calling police about a suspicious person in their neighborhood. As one Chronicle letter writer recently pointed out in response to HPD's Airship AI contract, Arent we all urged to see something, say something? Advertisement Article continues below this ad But just as the fear of terrorism after 9/11 primed Americans to unreasonably report their Muslim neighbors, the data fed into algorithms is susceptible to our own biases. Historically, Black people are more likely than white people to be reported for a crime whether the person reporting is Black or white. Black neighborhoods, then, get disproportionately flagged as high risk. This can create a dangerous feedback loop: Sending more cops to an area all but guarantees theyll find more crime, and more crime means more cops get sent there. Ultimately, predictive policing is better at predicting future policing than future crime. Between 2018 and 2021, more than 1 in 33 U.S. residents may have been subject to police patrol decisions made using a predictive policing software called PredPol, now rebranded as Geolitica. A 2021 investigation by the Markup and Gizmodo found that Geoliticas software tended to disproportionately target low-income, Black and Latino neighborhoods in 38 cities across the country. Predictive policing was pitched as a solution to human biases a way to remove human variability from the equation. But by basing the future on a past marred by discriminatory policing, the technology has served to legitimize and reinforce our worst human impulses. Predictive policing "was supposed to be more objective than having a racist police officer standing on a street corner, Rodrigo Ferreira, a Rice University professor who specializes in technology and ethics, told us last week. But its actually doing something very similar or perhaps even worse because its hidden behind the veil of a computer. The case of Murphy Jr. isnt just a story straight out of a George Orwell novel. Its a sober reminder that technology, just like the humans who built it, isnt infallible. It also answers to no one. As a 1979 IBM presentation famously warned, A computer can never be held accountable, therefore a computer must never make a management decision." Advertisement Article continues below this ad Who is held responsible when an AI-powered tool leads to devastating consequences? The people employing the technology? The police officers who act on it? Or the software companies who keep their proprietary algorithms hidden inside a black box? The asking prices of homes increased by 7.3 per cent in the second quarter of the year nationally, according to a new report. MyHome.ie's latest property report found asking prices rose at the fastest rate in almost two years in Q2, with the median asking price nationally reaching 365,000, up 5.1 per cent on the first quarter of the year. Advertisement In Dublin, asking prices shot up by 7.2 per cent in the year, to hit a median of 465,000, while prices outside of Dublin rose to a mid-point of 310,000, up 7.6 per cent annually. By quarter, asking prices increased by 3.3 per cent in the capital and 6.7 per cent outside of Dublin from Q1 to Q2. Taking three-bed semi-detached properties around the country, the report found the largest annual increases in asking prices were noted in Kildare (14.3 per cent), Westmeath (11.9 per cent), Roscommon (10.8 per cent) and Limerick (10.6 per cent). The research pointed to the strength of the labour market and the loosening of mortgage lending rules as factors contributing to the upward trend in asking prices. Advertisement The report noted average earnings in Q1 stood at 50,300, up 4.7 per cent annually, while the average mortgage approval value rose by 4.6 per cent in the year to April. Additionally, the volume of first-time buyers with a mortgage value of 3.5 to 4 times their income has jumped from 6 per cent in 2022 to 36 per cent last year. The report added the "continual poor supply of properties", illustrated by the 11 per cent reduction in the number of properties listed on the property website compared to last year, also served to drive up prices. MyHome.ie added that in May, the median selling price of homes was 6 per cent over the asking price, up from 1 per cent last year. A soldier who walked free from court last month despite being found guilty of beating a woman unconscious in a "vicious" street attack has been discharged from the Defence Forces. The Irish Examiner reports, Private Cathal Crotty, who beat Natasha OBrien unconscious, is leaving the Defence Forces on Thursday. Advertisement He had seven days to appeal against an army decision last month to dismiss him over the 2022 attack. That appeal process has, according to sources, concluded and a senior officer has signed his dismissal papers. Once Crotty has handed back his standard issue equipment and uniform, and had his exit medical, he will be escorted off the premises at Sarsfields Barracks, Limerick. He beat Ms OBrien unconscious in a random street attack on May 29th, 2022, and boasted about it afterwards on social media. Advertisement The 22-year-old, from Parkroe Heights, Ardnacrusha, Co Clare, initially told gardai it was Ms OBrien who instigated the attack at OConnell Street, Limerick, but admitted his guilt after gardai showed him CCTV footage of him attacking her. Despite his actions, he walked free from court after now-retired Judge Tom ODonnell gave him a fully suspended sentence. The sentence prompted protests and criticism. Ireland Taoiseach 'threw Defence Forces under bus' with co... Read More But a spokesperson stated last month: The Defence Forces unequivocally condemn any actions by serving personnel that are contrary to or do not reflect our values. Any conviction in a civilian court may have implications for the retention and service of members of the Defence Forces, as stipulated in Defence Forces Regulations. Once due process has been completed in a civilian court of law it becomes a matter for the relevant Defence Forces authorities in accordance with Defence Forces Regulations. The Defence Forces has since confirmed 68 serving soldiers have been convicted in the last three years or are currently before the courts on a range of criminal offences. A man in his 30s is due before the courts on Monday morning in connection with a large drugs seizure at Dublin Airport. Revenue officers found 15kg of herbal cannabis worth around 300,000 on Sunday. Advertisement The man was held at a Garda station in north Dublin following his arrest. He has since been charged and will appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice on Monday morning. A judge has warned of a tsunami about to reach shore as a report highlights a shortage of special care placements for vulnerable children. The latest publication from the Child Law Project (CLP) contains 70 reports, arising out of court hearings attended in the first half of this year by reporters from the project. Advertisement One relates to a teenager who, it was alleged, was raped while in the care of Tusla and who was believed to have been sexually trafficked across Ireland. On one occasion, she was found two hours away from her placement after she made a call at 11pm to her guardian ad litem to say she had no idea where she was. Although her case had been in court over 10 times, there was no special care bed available for the teenager, who had the cognitive ability of a 10-year-old child. An accommodation unit was eventually secured for her in Britain. Advertisement A judge described her case as shocking and the worst case I have ever come across. The volume highlights that three out of the 15 cases in the first High Court special care list after the court Christmas vacation related to children where special care orders had been made a number of weeks previously but where no special care beds were available for them. A judge expressed concern about what would we do when someone has to explain where a child who should have been in special care commits suicide or dies as a result of the conduct that meant they should be in special care? He said: I dont know why those in the CFA [Tusla, the child and family agency] are not dealing with this as a crisis situation. Advertisement This is a tsunami about to reach shore and nothing is being done. In another case, during the review of a special care order made four weeks earlier for a teenage boy, the court heard that there was no bed available and no immediate prospect of a bed. The court heard that the teenager was found to have had shop vouchers and expensive clothing, which raised the concern that he was already being exploited. The judge said: This is a scandalous situation to exist and in large measure the situation and the crisis is going completely under the radar on a national level due to the in camera nature of these proceedings. Advertisement Meanwhile, the volume also raises concerns about the availability of foster and residential care for children. In one such case, a judge made a series of one-week extensions to interim care orders because of the lack of appropriate placements for five siblings. Normally extensions are for 28 days. The judge said the situation was unacceptable and appalling and that the children could have grounds for a future civil action against the State for negligence. Advertisement CLP chief executive Maria Corbett, warned: The lack of suitable care placements is having a domino effect that risks collapsing the care system. The knock-on effects of a lack of appropriate placements are compounding existing difficulties for children and staff and so we fear the system has begun to unravel. The knock-on effects of a dearth of placements include [Tusla] delaying applications to take children into care and continuing to use unregulated or unsuitable emergency placements. Many children are experiencing multiple placement moves, often over a short period of time, despite stability being a known key ingredient for a successful outcome to care. Urgent action across government is needed to halt this spiral of poor practice and to build trust in the care system. Tanya Ward, chief executive of the Childrens Rights Alliance, said the latest volume from the Child Law Project confirmed the lifesaving role that the child protection and welfare services play for children in need of care. We are particularly concerned for the welfare of approximately 70-80 children. This is a small group of children, but they need a stepped-up approach from Tusla and other support services. She added: The core child protection and welfare system needs a significant investment so that Tusla can provide appropriate placements as well as access to health and mental health services for children in their own communities. The publication is the last volume to be published by the CLP under a three-year grant from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth, which expires in October this year. The project has been running for the past 11 years. UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has said he is committed to the principles of the Good Friday Agreement when considering the possibility of a referendum on Irish unity. His remarks came as Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald repeated her prediction that there would be a Border poll by 2030, adding the issue of Irish reunification has has never been more alive. Advertisement However, DUP leader Gavin Robinson said there was no mood in Northern Ireland for engaging in a never-ending, repetitive psychodrama about a Border poll. Keir Starmer leaves Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Starmer met with political parties at Stormont on Monday. Advertisement Ms McDonald, whose party last week emerged as the North's largest party at Westminster following the UK General Election, said she used her meeting to urge Mr Starmer not to bury his head in the sand on the question of Irish unity. The Good Friday Agreement sets out that the UK's current Northern Ireland secretary can call a Border poll when he or she believes a majority of people in the region support a change to the constitutional status. Mr Starmer has previously stated that the issue of a united Ireland is not on his horizon and at the weekend the UK's new Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn, said he believed the prospect of a vote on Irish unity is off into the distance. Asked about the potential of a Border poll when he spoke to the media, Mr Starmer said: This is provided for by the Good Friday Agreement, the framework is set out, and I am absolutely committed to the Good Friday Agreement. Advertisement Today is a recommitment to that and to the approach and the role of the UK government in that as the honest broker. Advertisement I am the Prime Minister for the whole of the UK, elected into office just a few days ago. But to reaffirm the importance of the principles of the Good Friday Agreement is part and parcel of why I am here today. Ms McDonald said last weeks election result reflected again that all is changed here and changing. She said: We have reiterated our view to the Prime Minister that it is foolhardy to bury your head in the sand on this question. Advertisement We have reminded him that the provision for referendums is at the very heart of the Good Friday Agreement. Yes, we need to see progress on this, yes we need if people talk about conditions for a referendum, lets have clarity on what is meant by that. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed as he was asked about a border poll by 2030 (Liam McBurney/PA) This is a question that needs to be addressed by all of us. Asked if she was still aiming for a unity referendum to be held by 2030, the Sinn Fein president said: Yes, yes it is. She added: As we get into the detail of all of this with the British government, as they set out their own thinking, I hope increasingly that they will amplify their points and offer more clarity as to what they mean when they say the condition is met, when it becomes apparent, well what makes this apparent? How does this become manifest to their way of thinking? We look forward to engaging with that, but what we can say without fear of contradiction is that the issue of reunification and referendums has never been more alive in Irish political discourse right across the island. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed when the 2030 date was put to him. He said: We have heard plenty like that before and were still waiting. Mr Robinson added: Keir Starmer is a unionist, Keir Starmer is somebody who has indicated a Border poll is not on the horizon. Anybody who studies the outcome of the election on Thursday will see that the combined unionist vote still outstrips the combined nationalist vote. There is no mood for constitutional change, but more than that, there is no mood for engaging in this never-ending, repetitive psychodrama when it is not where the people are. Keir Starmer has met Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly as he continues his tour of the UK. The new British prime minister is visiting Belfast following his trip to Scotland on Sunday, and will also visit Wales to round off a visit to the three devolved regions. Advertisement He arrived at Stormont Castle early on Monday morning as he begins his first full week in office, ahead of travelling to the Nato summit in Washington on Tuesday. Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly greeted Mr Starmer and new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn at the castle entrance before they held a meeting inside. Ms ONeill congratulated him on his electoral success and they discussed Westminster and Stormont parliamentary schedules. After half an hour with Stormonts leaders, Mr Starmer then moved on to Parliament Buildings, where he was greeted at the foot of the landmark steps by Assembly Speaker Edwin Poots. Advertisement Keir Starmer shakes hands with Edwin Poots, speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA He is then holding talks with representatives from the main Stormont parties. He is likely to face questions about funding for cash-strapped public services in Northern Ireland as well as coming under pressure from Ms ONeill to commit to funding the redevelopment of Casement Park, which has been earmarked to host Euro 2028 matches. Advertisement He is also likely to be asked about delivering on his partys manifesto pledge to repeal the controversial Legacy Act. Sinn Fein emerged from last weeks election as the Northern party with the largest representation at Westminster and the partys president, Mary Lou McDonald, has urged Mr Starmer to embrace the right of Irish self-determination and constitutional change toward Irish reunification. Mr Starmer has already spoken by phone with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly. He has also had a conversation with Taoiseach Simon Harris, and the two leaders are due to meet later this month. Advertisement Mr Starmer said he was seeking an immediate reset of the relationship between the Westminster government and devolved nations as he announced his UK tour. He said his landslide victory in the UK election had given Labour a clear mandate to govern for all four corners of the United Kingdom. UK Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn made his first visit to Belfast at the weekend since being appointed (Niall Carson/PA) Advertisement His new Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn made his first visit to the North since being appointed at the weekend. He held talks with Ms ONeill and Ms Little-Pengelly at Hillsborough Castle on Saturday and said his priority is to establish a new relationship between the UK government and Stormonts powersharing Executive. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting with Mr Starmer at Stormont to make the case for fair and sustainable funding for our essential public services. He added: I welcome the commitment from the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State that the election outcome again reaffirms support for our place within the United Kingdom and that this new government intends to treat all parts and regions of the Kingdom with respect. Now is a time for new beginnings. DUP leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting with Mr Starmer to raise the issue of funding for public services (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Robinson added: I look forward to hearing from the PM on his plans for the UKs future relations with the European Union and his plans to ensure barriers within the United Kingdom are removed. Mr Starmer is expected to visit Wales later on Monday. During his trip to Edinburgh on Sunday, Mr Starmer said he discussed a constructive working relationship on the economy, energy and future of the Grangemouth refinery. UK prime minister Keir Starmer meeting Scottish first minister John Swinney at Bute House, Edinburgh on Sunday (Scott Heppell/PA) Speaking after his meeting with Scotlands first minister John Swinney, Mr Starmer said there were clearly differences of opinion on the constitutional issue of Scottish independence. Mr Starmer said: The point of this meeting was to reset the relationship in a respectful way, in a constructive way, and to recognise that on the economy, energy and very pressingly on Grangemouth, there is room for us to have a constructive way of delivering for very many people across Scotland. He added the pair had a joint view of working constructively, adding: I am absolutely clear that during the campaign I made a commitment that my Labour government would deliver for Scotland. Several officials in the Middle East and the US believe the level of devastation in Gaza caused by a nine-month Israeli offensive has likely helped push Hamas to soften its demands for a ceasefire agreement. Over the weekend, Hamas appeared to drop its demand that Israel should promise to end the war as part of any ceasefire deal. Advertisement The sudden shift has raised new hopes for progress in internationally brokered negotiations. Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu boasted on Sunday that military pressure including Israels ongoing two-month offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah is what has led Hamas to enter negotiations. Hamas, an Islamic militant group that seeks Israels destruction and took control of Gaza in 2007, is highly secretive, with little known about its inner workings. Advertisement Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu appear closer to a deal than they have in recent weeks (AP) But in recent internal communications seen by The Associated Press, messages signed by several senior Hamas figures in Gaza urged the groups exiled political leadership to accept the ceasefire proposal pitched by US president Joe Biden. The messages, shared by a Middle East official, described the heavy losses Hamas has suffered on the battlefield and the dire conditions in the war-ravaged territory. It is not known if this internal pressure was a factor in Hamas flexibility. But the messages indicate divisions within the group and a readiness among top militants to reach a deal quickly, even if Hamas top official in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, may not be in a rush to do so. Advertisement Mr Sinwar has been in hiding since the war erupted last October and is believed to be holed up in a tunnel deep underground. US officials declined to comment on the communications. But a person familiar with Western intelligence said the groups leadership understands its forces have suffered heavy losses and that has helped Hamas move closer to a ceasefire deal. Two US officials say Washington is aware of internal divisions within Hamas and that those divisions, the destruction in Gaza or pressure from mediators Egypt and Qatar could have been factors in the militant group softening its demands for a deal. Advertisement The Middle Eastern official shared details from two internal Hamas communications, both written by senior officials inside Gaza to the groups exiled leadership in Qatar, where Hamas supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh, is based. A protest took place in Tel Aviv on Sunday, marking nine months since the start of the war and calling for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip (AP) The communication suggested that the war had taken a toll on Hamas fighters, with senior figures urging the militants political wing abroad to accept the deal despite Mr Sinwars reluctance. Advertisement Hamas spokesperson Jihad Taha dismissed any suggestions of divisions within the group. The movements position is unified and is crystallised through the organisational framework of the leadership, he said. The messages acknowledged Hamas fighters had been killed and the level of devastation to the Gaza Strip wrought by the Israeli campaign in the enclave. They also suggest that Mr Sinwar either is not fully aware of the toll of the fighting or is not fully communicating it to those negotiating outside the territory. It was not known whether Mr Haniyeh or any other top officials in Qatar had responded. Israeli officials declined to comment on the communications. Egypt and Qatar also had no immediate comment. Egypt and Qatar have been working with the United States to broker a ceasefire and end the devastating nine-month war. After months of fits and starts, talks resumed last week and are scheduled to continue in the coming days. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have died, with many more facing famine (AP) A deal is far from guaranteed. Mr Netanyahus office announced over the weekend that gaps still remain. US officials said they are cautiously optimistic about the prospects for a ceasefire based on the latest developments, but stressed that numerous efforts had looked promising only to fall through. However, the sides appear closer to a deal than they have been in months. Israel launched the war in Gaza after Hamas October attack in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people mostly civilians and abducted about 250. Israel says Hamas is still holding about 120 hostages about a third of them thought to be dead. Since then, the Israeli air and ground offensive has killed more than 38,000 people in Gaza, according to the territorys health ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians. The offensive has caused widespread devastation and a humanitarian crisis that has left hundreds of thousands of people on the brink of famine, according to international officials. The war in Gaza has prompted international legal scrutiny of Israels conduct, including a case at the top UN court on charges of genocide brought by South Africa and a request for arrest warrants against Mr Netanyahu by the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, who also sought warrants for Hamas leaders. Hamas has warned that Israels expanding military operations in Gaza City and the displacement of thousands of residents could have disastrous repercussions for talks aimed at a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages. The militant group said in a statement released on Monday that its top political leader Ismail Haniyeh warned mediators of the collapse of the negotiations, saying Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli army would bear full responsibility. Advertisement Israeli forces advanced deeper into the Gaza Strips largest city in pursuit of militants who had regrouped there (Leo Correa/AP) The statement came days after the two sides had appeared to have narrowed gaps in the long-running talks aimed at pausing the fighting nine months into the war in Gaza. Earlier on Monday, Israeli forces had intensified an operation in the Gaza Strips largest city in what the military said was intended to weed out militants, sending thousands of Palestinians fleeing. Advertisement The incursion into the eastern part of Gaza City expands Israels engagement in the northern part of the beleaguered territory, an area Israel said it had seized control of months ago yet which has seen pockets of militant resurgence that have scaled back Israeli military gains. Israel had ordered evacuations in the area before the raid was launched, the military said. Heavy fighting in the area in the initial weeks of the war all but emptied out Gaza City and its environs, and the Israeli military has prevented most people from returning to their homes there. The Israeli military said militant activities have increased (AP) Advertisement But several hundred thousands of Palestinians remain in the area, living in the shells of their homes or shelters. The fresh fighting meant new displacement for many residents there. Residents reported artillery and tank fire in the area, as well as air strikes. The Gaza health ministry, which has limited access to northern Gaza, did not immediately report casualties. The Hamas-run Civil Defence also did not disclose casualty numbers immediately, saying the area was inaccessible because of the fierce clashes. Advertisement The fighting comes as Israel and Hamas appeared to be the closest they have been in months to agreeing to a ceasefire deal that would bring a pause in the war in exchange for the release of dozens of Israelis held hostage by Hamas in the Gaza Strip. CIA Director William Burns returned to the region on Monday for talks in Cairo, according to Egypts state-run Qahera TV, which is close to the countrys security services. An Israeli delegation was also heading to the Egyptian capital, Israeli media reported. But obstacles remained, even after Hamas agreed days ago to relent on its key demand that Israel commit to ending the war as part of any agreement. Protests took place in Tel Aviv as the war passed the nine-month milestone (AP) Advertisement A key part of that shift in its stance, officials told The Associated Press, is the level of destruction in the Gaza Strip caused by Israels intense bombing campaign. Hamas does however want to include in the deal that the meditators guarantee that negotiations conclude with a permanent ceasefire deal, according to two officials. The current draft says that the mediators the United States, Qatar and Egypt will do their best to ensure that the negotiations lead to an agreement to wind down the war. That could remain a sticking point for Israel, which has rejected any deal that would force it to end the war with Hamas still intact a condition reiterated by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The officials said that another term that remains at an impasse is whether Hamas should be allowed to choose the high-profile prisoners held by Israel that it wants released as part of the deal. Some of the veteran prisoners were convicted of serious crimes against Israelis and Israel opposes letting Hamas determine those who are to be freed. The Lancet - the most prestigious medical journal in the world - conservatively estimates that the death toll in Gaza could be 186,000 or more. Thats 8% of the population. I repeat my longstanding call for the UK government to immediately end all arms sales to Israel. Zarah Sultana (@zarahsultana) July 7, 2024 While diplomatic efforts to bring an end to the war were ramping up, people in Gaza were seeing no end in sight to their suffering. Residents fleeing eastern Gaza Strip areas said Israel was carrying out heavy strikes, which prompted some Palestinians sheltering in places that were not under evacuation orders to seek refuge elsewhere. Fadel Naeem, the director of the Al-Ahli hospital said patients and their companions fled the facility in panic even though there was no specific evacuation for the area around the hospital. He said people had left for fear of the worst, adding that patients in a critical condition had been evacuated to other hospitals in northern Gaza. Marwan al-Sultan, director of the Indonesian Hospital in northern Gaza, said it received 80 patients and wounded people from Al-Ahli who were packed into every corner. Many cases require urgent surgeries. Many cases suffer from direct shots in the head and require intensive care. Fuel and medical supplies are dwindling, he said. He said the hospital also received 16 bodies of people killed in the Israeli incursion, half of them women and children, on Monday. The Israeli military said it launched the operation after it received intelligence that showed the area was housing militants from Hamas and the Islamic Jihad group as well as weapons and investigation and detention rooms. Protests against the war have taken place in Israel (AP Photo/Leo Correa) The military said a facility belonging to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, was also being used by the militants, without providing evidence. The war has killed more than 38,000 people in the Gaza Strip, according to the health ministry in Gaza, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. The fighting has decimated large swaths of Gazas urban landscape, sparked a humanitarian catastrophe and displaced most of the territorys 2.3 million population. The war erupted with Hamas surprise cross-border raid on October 7, which killed 1,200 people in southern Israel, most of them civilians, according to Israeli authorities. The militants took roughly 250 people hostage, and about 120 are still in captivity, with about a third of those said to be dead. Israeli protesters blocked roads across the country, calling on Israeli prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu to step down and pushing for a ceasefire that could bring back the hostages held by Hamas. The demonstrations on Sunday, marking nine months since the war in Gaza started, come as international mediators have renewed efforts to broker a deal. Advertisement Any deal will allow Israel to return and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved, Mr Netanyahu said in a statement on Sunday that was likely to deepen Hamass concerns about the proposal. Hamas over the weekend appeared to have dropped a key demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war, according to Egyptian and Hamas officials. The war, triggered by the Palestinian militant group following a cross-border attack on October 7th, saw 1,200 people killed and 250 others taken hostage. A retaliatory Israeli air and ground offensive has killed over 38,000 Palestinians, according to the territorys Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. Advertisement Sundays Day Of Disruption started at 6.29am, the moment that Hamas militants launched the first rockets toward Israel in October. Protesters blocked main roads and demonstrated outside the homes of members of Israels parliament. Near the border with Gaza, Israeli protestors released 1,500 black and yellow balloons to symbolise those who were killed and abducted. Advertisement The Eviatar outpost is seen in the Israeli-occupied West Bank (Ohad Zwigenberg/AP) Hannah Golan said she came to protest the devastating abandonment of our communities by our government. She added: Its nine months today, to this black day, and still nobody in our government takes responsibility. About 120 hostages remain captive after more than 100 hostages were released as part of a November ceasefire deal. Advertisement Israel has already concluded that more than 40 of the remaining hostages are dead, and fears spread the number may grow as the war drags on. The Israeli prime minister had previously said while he was open to pausing the war as part of a hostage deal, Israel would press on until it reached its goals of destroying Hamas military and governing capabilities and bringing home all those held captive by Hamas. Meanwhile, Israeli airstrikes overnight and into Sunday meanwhile killed at least 13 Palestinians, including the undersecretary of labour in the largely dismantled Hamas-run government. Ihab al-Ghussein was among four people killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City, according to the Civil Defence, a first responders group. Advertisement Six Palestinians were killed in central Gaza after a strike hit a house in the town of Zawaida, according to the al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital. Another Israeli airstrike early Sunday hit a house west of Gaza City, killing another three people, the strips Hamas-linked civil defence said. The Gaza Health Ministry said on Saturday an Israeli airstrike killed at least 16 people and wounded at least 50 others in a school-turned-shelter in the Nuseirat refugee camp. The Israeli military said they were targeting Hamas militants and had taken numerous steps to reduce civilian casualties. Also on Sunday morning, the Lebanese militant group Hizbullah said it launched dozens of projectiles toward northern Israel in the north, targeting areas more than 20 miles from the border, deeper than most launches. A 28-year-old Israeli man was seriously wounded in Kfar Zeitim, a small town near the city of Tiberias, Israels national rescue service reported. Another attack near the border wounded three people, one of them seriously, according to the Galilee Medical Centre. Israeli media reported that the critically wounded individual was an American citizen. There was no immediate confirmation from the army. The barrage came after the Israeli military said in a statement an airstrike targeted a car and killed an engineer in Hezbollahs air defence unit on Saturday. On Sunday, Israel issued new evacuation orders for parts of Gaza City, which was heavily bombed and largely emptied early in the war. The military separately announced that one of its officers was killed in battle in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, bringing the total number of Israeli soldiers killed to 680 since the start of the war. The anxious, sad, young female patient wears her gown as she waits in the hospital room. SDI Productions/Getty Images U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) speaks during a 2021 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to examine Texas's abortion law. Pool/Getty Images In the two years since Roe v. Wade was overturned, women in Texas have been robbed of their freedoms. They are understandably scared and we physicians are too. We both began practicing reproductive health care because we felt women needed to be better represented and cared for medically. Now, practicing under Texas near-total ban on abortions, we are seeing the opposite of that. Because we face the threat of losing our medical licenses or even going to prison, doctors have been forced to turn away patients in need of our care. We can tell you about the patients we have seen in heartbreaking scenarios like the 13-year-old who became pregnant after being sexually assaulted by a family member, or a patient battling cancer who faced the devastating choice between ending her pregnancy to start chemotherapy or risking death. We can also tell you about the women who could not financially support additional children or were simply not ready to welcome a child. Advertisement Article continues below this ad We have treated all of these women. In each case, it is our duty to give factual information and offer professional opinions. In each case, it should be her decision according to her values. And in each case, under Texas extreme abortion laws, we have been unable to help them. Before Roe was overturned, we were already having difficult conversations about patients limited options under Texas SB 8 law. In the wake of Dobbs, its gone mostly silent. Patients are no longer showing up or if they do, they are in helpless situations. They ask us, What do I do? or, How do I get help? with the underlying concern of, Can I trust you with this information? Before Dobbs, women would come to us when they were ready to start a family. Since Dobbs, we have seen a dramatic increase in the number of women asking for permanent sterilization. They dont want to risk the danger of becoming pregnant in our state. It is heartbreaking to see the trust and care built over time with our patients in these moments eroded by policies that paralyze us both. This is the reality in Texas. And it is no wonder that we are seeing a drought of talent as OB-GYN residents refuse to practice in our state due to the risks. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Extreme politicians without any medical knowledge or training should not be able to override licensed physicians simply because they decide to. It is ridiculous to suggest that a blanket ban could address all women and maternal situations. We must restore womens freedom to make their own medical decisions and restore the safe and effective practice of reproductive health care. Codifying Roe v. Wade at the federal level is the first step forward. This issue, we all know, is on the November ballot and nowhere, we think, is it more plain than in the race to represent Texas in the U.S. Senate. Sen. Ted Cruz fought for years to overturn Roe v. Wade, working to elect members of the Legislature, endorse personhood amendments and approve federal judges to make it a reality. On the day of the Dobbs decision two years ago, he called it nothing short of a massive victory. He explicitly supports a total ban with no exceptions for rape, incest or health of the mother and he has called Texas abortion ban perfectly reasonable. There is nothing reasonable about what is happening to women and providers. Thats why in November, thousands of other doctors will join us in voting for Cruzs opponent, U.S. Rep. Colin Allred. Texas women and doctors cant go on this way. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Many of us know a friend or family member who has come down with nasty cold-like symptoms over the last few weeks, and talk about the resurgence of Covid has started circulating. New variants such as FLiRT have started to spread across Ireland this summer but what does this mean and how worried should we be? Advertisement What are the new Covid variants and how are they spreading? Summertime is packed with opportunities to socialise and gather with hordes of people at crowded places such as festivals, and these events provide the perfect environment for viruses to spread. Increased travel and big events such as festivals often result in crowded settings where the virus can spread more easily, and there is no longer any legal restrictions like wearing masks, social distancing, says Dr Mariyam Malik, a GP. Advertisement Some health experts have also suggested that two new Covid variants, FLiRT and LB.1, might be able evade immunity, which is why people who have been vaccinated are still getting ill. The FLiRT variant has specific changes in its spike protein that might make it spread more easily and dodge immunity from past infections or vaccines, says Malik. Similarly, the LB.1 variant has mutations that help it spread and possibly weaken the protection we get from previous immunity, making these variants different from earlier versions of the virus. New variants come about because the virus naturally changes over time, adds the GP. When lots of people get infected, the virus has more chances to mutate. Also, our immune responses from past infections or vaccines can push the virus to evolve. What symptoms should people look out for? If you have been suffering with a stubborn cough or sore throat recently that just wont go away, you may have caught one of these new strains of Covid. Advertisement A bad cough is a symptom of the new variants of Covid (Alamy/PA) The symptoms of the FLiRT and LB.1 variants are generally like those of earlier Covid-19 strains, says Malik. Common symptoms include fever, cough, fatigue, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, muscle or body aches, shortness of breath, headache, and a runny nose. People infected with the FLiRT and LB.1 variants do typically test positive on standard PCR tests, Malik adds. Rapid antigen tests also known as lateral flow tests can also detect these variants, though their sensitivity might vary. Advertisement What are the treatment options? Doctors generally recommend self-isolating and using over-the-counter treatments if you are experiencing these symptoms. It is best to try to self-isolate, rest and stay hydrated, advises Malik. Use over-the-counter medications for symptom relief, such as paracetamol and ibuprofen, and monitor your symptoms closely, seeking medical help if they worsen. How can I prevent my family from getting the new variants? To prevent the spread of Covid-19, it is crucial to stay up to date with vaccinations and boosters, says Malik. Regular hand-washing helps prevent the spread of the virus. Advertisement Keep on top of your Covid vaccine jabs (Alamy/PA) Regular testing and isolating if you develop any symptoms or test positive can also help control the spread of the virus, adds the GP. When should I see my GP? For mild symptoms, rest and home treatment are usually sufficient, and there is generally no need to visit your GP, says Malik. However, it is essential to seek medical attention if experiencing severe symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, chest pain, confusion, or a persistent high fever. Individuals with underlying health conditions should contact their GP if they test positive or develop symptoms, as they may be at higher risk for severe illness. Russian missiles have killed at least seven people and struck a childrens hospital in the Ukrainian capital Kyiv, authorities said. Another Russian attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih is said to have killed at least 10 people. Advertisement The Russian barrage targeted five Ukrainian cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, hitting apartment buildings and public infrastructure, Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in a social media post. Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Advertisement At least 20 people were killed and around 50 people were injured across the country in the Monday morning onslaught, interior minister Ihor Klymenko said. In Kryvyi Rih, 31 people were injured in addition to the 10 deaths in what the head of city administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said was a massive missile attack. Advertisement Explosions were also reported by local officials in Ukraines central Dnipropetrovsk region. At the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital in Kyiv, rescuers were searching for people under the rubble of a partially collapsed wing of the facility, Mr Zelenskiy said, adding that the number of casualties was not yet known. It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, Mr Zelensky said on social media. Advertisement Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Different cities Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk. More than 40 missiles of various types. Apartment buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital have been damaged. All pic.twitter.com/8mN73BKLuY Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Advertisement The assault is the biggest bombardment of Kyiv for several months. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. The Kinzhal flies at 10 times the speed of sound, making it hard to intercept. City buildings shook from the blasts. Explosions were felt and heard across Kyiv (AP) The Kyiv city administration reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in a handful of Kyiv areas, with fires breaking out. Thick plumes of smoke could be seen rising from several parts of the capital. The head of Ukraines presidential office, Andrii Yermal, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the citys streets. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said official assessments of the attacks consequences are still being carried out. The attack came on the eve of a three-day Nato summit in Washington, which will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since the Second World War. Hurricane Beryl swept into Texas early on Monday with heavy rains and powerful winds, knocking out power to two million homes and businesses and flooding streets with fast-rising waters as first responders raced to rescue stranded residents. Beryl had already cut a deadly path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean before turning toward Texas. At least two people were killed. Advertisement Power lines downed by the effects of Hurricane Beryl block a highway near Palacios, Texas (Eric Gay/AP) The Category 1 hurricane hit land just before 4am, then weakened to a tropical storm about five hours later. The National Hurricane Centre said damaging winds and flash flooding will continue as Beryl continues pushing inland. Advertisement CenterPoint Energy in Houston reported that two million homes and businesses were without power. Flood warnings were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast, where a powerful storm surge pushed water ashore, and further inland as heavy rain continued to fall. High waters quickly began to close streets in storm-weary Houston, which was again under flood warnings after heavy storms in recent months washed out neighbourhoods. Television stations broadcast the dramatic rescue of a man who had climbed to the roof of his pickup truck after it got trapped in fast-flowing waters. Emergency crews used an extension ladder from a fire truck to drop him a life preserver and a tether before moving him to dry land. Advertisement 10am CDT Key Messages for #TropicalStorm #Beryl: Life threatening storm surge, damaging wind gusts and considerable flash flooding continue across portions of southeast #Texas. See https://t.co/tW4KeGe9uJ and https://t.co/SiZo8oA90V for more info and the latest updates pic.twitter.com/lzfmaN3Cmt National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) July 8, 2024 Advertisement Houston was under a flash-flood warning for most of the morning as heavy rain continued to soak the city. Flood warnings also were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast, where a powerful storm surge pushed water ashore, and further inland as heavy rain continued to fall. Rosenberg police noted that one of their high-water vehicles was hit by a falling tree while returning from a rescue, and they urged people to stay off the roads. Two people were killed after trees fell on their houses: a man in the Houston suburb of Humble and a woman in Harris County, authorities said. Advertisement Beryl had weakened to a tropical storm after damaging Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula but became a hurricane again late on Sunday. The storms centre hit land about 85 miles (137 kilometres) south-west of Houston with top sustained winds of 80mph (129kph). As #Beryl approaches Texas, our airline partners are canceling and adjusting flights. Before heading to the airport, please check with your airline for your flight status and rebooking options. Stay safe, Houston! pic.twitter.com/V7x2QgN2Z2 Bush Intercontinental Airport (@iah) July 8, 2024 More than 1,000 flights have been cancelled at Houstons two airports, according to tracking data from FlightAware. Beryl is expected to weaken to a tropical storm on Monday and a tropical depression on Tuesday, the weather service said, forecasting a turn to the north-east and an increase in speed on Monday night and Tuesday. The storms centre is expected to move over eastern Texas on Monday and then through the lower Mississippi Valley into the Ohio Valley on Tuesday and Wednesday, the weather service said. Beryls moving inland but this is not the end of the story yet, said Jack Beven, senior hurricane specialist at the National Hurricane Centre. While I am in Taiwan, South Korea & Japan working on business deals worth billions, I remain in daily contact with Texas Division of Emergency Management & local officials to ensure preparation for Hurricane Beryl. Your safety is our top concern.https://t.co/hk9OssJHlQ Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) July 7, 2024 People on the Texas coast boarded up windows and left beach towns under evacuation orders. The storm was projected to come ashore early on Monday in the middle of the Texas coast around Matagorda Bay, an area about 100 miles south of Houston, but officials cautioned its path could still change. As the storm neared the coast, Texas officials warned on Sunday it could cause power outages and flooding but also expressed worries that not enough residents and beach vacationers in Beryls path had heeded warnings to leave. One of the things that kind of trigger our concern a little bit, weve looked at all of the roads leaving the coast and the maps are still green, said Dan Patrick, who is serving as the states acting governor while governor Greg Abbott is travelling overseas. So we dont see many people leaving. US President Joe Biden is standing firm against calls for him to drop his candidacy for a second term, calling for an end to the intra-party drama that has torn apart the Democrats. Mr Biden wrote in the two-page letter on Monday that the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. Advertisement He stressed that the party has one job, which is to defeat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. This morning, I sent a letter to my fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill. In it, I shared my thoughts about this moment in our campaign. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/ABtAaJrr0n Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 8, 2024 Advertisement In the letter, which follows an ongoing row over his performance in a TV debate against Mr Trump, the President said: We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Advertisement The letter was sent from the campaign to Democratic lawmakers as they return to Washington following the July 4 recess. Mr Biden followed the letter up with a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe show, on which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Mr Biden said. President Joe Biden has expressed his frustration by calls from party officials for him to step aside (Susan Walsh/AP) Advertisement He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Mr Trump. Mr Bidens efforts to shore up a deeply anxious Democratic Party came as its members of congress return to Washington and confront a choice: to revive the Presidents campaign, or edge out the party leader. Top-ranking Democratic legislators have joined calls for Mr Biden to step aside, despite his defiance. Advertisement At the same time, some of his most staunch supporters are redoubling the fight for his presidency, insisting there is no-one better to beat Mr Trump in what many see as among the most important American election of a lifetime. It is a tenuous and highly volatile juncture for the Presidents party. Democrats who have worked alongside Mr Biden for years if not decades and cherished his lifes work on policy priorities are now entertaining uncomfortable questions about his political future. Mr Trump will attempt to return to the White House, following his defeat in the 2020 poll (AP) This is also unfolding as Mr Biden hosts world leaders for the Nato summit this week in Washington. Time is not on the partys side, almost a month from the Democratic National Convention and just a week before Republicans gather in Milwaukee to renominate Mr Trump as their presidential nominee. Many Democrats are arguing the attention needs to be focused instead on the former presidents felony conviction in the hush money case and pending federal charges in his effort to overturn the 2020 election. It is what Mr Biden himself might call an inflection point. As he defiantly says he will only step aside if the Lord almighty comes and tells him to, Democrats in the US house and senate are deciding how hard they want to fight the President to change course, or indeed if they want to change course at all. In an effort to get on the same page, house Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is convening legislators for private meetings before he shows his own preference, according to an insider. He plans to gather Democrats on Monday whose bids for re-election are most vulnerable. Anxiety is running high among Democrats over Mr Biden in the wake of his dismal TV debate performance (AP) But a private call on Sunday of some 15 top house committee members exposed the deepening divide as at least four more Democrats representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, Jim Himes of Connecticut, Adam Smith of Washington state and Mark Takano of California privately said Mr Biden should step aside. Mr Nadler, as the most senior ranking member on the call, was the first person to speak up and say that Biden should step aside, one source said. He did so aware of his seniority and that it would allow others to join him. Many others on the call raised concerns about Mr Bidens capability and chances of winning re-election, even if they stopped short of saying the President should step out of the race. Still other members, including representatives Maxine Waters of California and Bobby Scott of Virginia, both leaders in the Congressional Black Caucus, spoke forcefully in support of Mr Biden, as did Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee. We have to bring back dignity and hope in America. That is my goal, that is what were going to do.pic.twitter.com/yf13cqkaJj Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 7, 2024 Several legislators appeared frustrated that senior leadership was not providing direction or a path forward. One Democrat said that regardless of the decision, the situation has to end now. Mr Neal said afterwards that the bottom line is: Mr Biden beat Trump in 2020 and hell do it again in November. The upheaval is also testing a new generation of leaders, headed by Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both New Yorkers have refrained from publicly directing legislators on a path forward as they balance diverse opinions in their ranks. Behind the scenes is speaker emerita Nancy Pelosi, who continues to field calls seeking her advice about the situation, and is widely viewed as the one to watch for any ultimate decision on Mr Bidens future because of her proximity to the President and her vote-counting skills in party politics. Ms Pelosi spoke up last week, saying Mr Bidens debate performance raised legitimate questions he needed to answer, but she has remained supportive of the President. Most medical students at Johns Hopkins University will no longer pay tuition thanks to a gift of one billion dollars (778 million) from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Starting in the autumn, the gift will cover the full tuition for medical students from families earning less than 300,000 dollars (233,617). Living expenses and fees will be covered for students from families who earn up to 175,000 dollars (136,276). Advertisement Bloomberg Philanthropies said that currently almost two-thirds of all students seeking an MD from Johns Hopkins qualify for financial aid, and future doctors graduate from the university with an average total student loan debt of approximately 104,000 dollars (81,006). Michael Bloombergs Bloomberg Philanthropies has donated a billion dollars to the John Hopkins medical school (Shannon Stapleton via AP, Pool, File) The gift will also increase financial aid for students at the universitys schools of nursing, public health, and other graduate schools. Advertisement Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg LP, announced the gift on Monday. In a statement, Mr Bloomberg, who received a bachelors degree in electrical engineering from the same university in 1964, said: By reducing the financial barriers to these essential fields, we can free more students to pursue careers theyre passionate about and enable them to serve more of the families and communities who need them the most. Advertisement The entire gift has been delivered to John Hopkins endowment and every penny will go directly to students, said Ron Daniels, president of Johns Hopkins University. Mike has really been moved by the challenges that the professions confronted during the course of the pandemic and the heroic efforts theyve made to protecting and providing care to American citizens during the pandemic, Mr Daniels said in an interview. I think he simply wanted to recognise the importance of these fields and provide this support to ensure that the best and brightest could attend medical school and the school of nursing and public health. Advertisement Bloomberg Philanthropies previously gifted 1.8 billion dollars (1.4 billion) to Johns Hopkins in 2018 to ensure that undergraduate students are accepted regardless of their familys income. Johns Hopkins will be the latest medical school to offer free tuition to most or all of their medical students. In February, Ruth Gottesman, a former professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine and the widow of a Wall Street investor, announced that she was donating one billion dollars to the school. The gift meant that four-year students immediately received free tuition and all other students would be offered free tuition in the fall. Advertisement Beginning in the fall of 2024, Johns Hopkins University will provide tuition-free Medical School for most medical students and expand aid for future nurses and public health pioneers. Learn more: https://t.co/QuBluT7CWo Johns Hopkins University (@JohnsHopkins) July 8, 2024 In 2018, Kenneth and Elaine Langone gave 100 million dollars (77 million) to the NYU Grossman School of Medicine to make tuition free for all current and future medical students through an endowment fund. The couple gave a second gift of 200 million dollars (155 million) in 2023 to the NYU Grossman Long Island School of Medicine to guarantee free tuition for all medical students. Kenneth Langone is a co-founder of Home Depot. Other medical schools, such as UCLAs David Geffen School of Medicine, offer merit-based scholarships thanks to some 146 million dollars (113 million) in donations from the recording industry mogul, David Geffen. The Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine has also offered tuition-free education for medical students since 2008. There have been only a handful of billion-dollar donations to universities in the US, most coming in the past several years. Student debt limits opportunity. @BloombergDotOrg's new gift will make @JohnsHopkins medical school free for a majority of students and increase financial aid for students at other Hopkins graduate schools, as well. https://t.co/UUwohEJMm9 pic.twitter.com/243zLg62Ci Mike Bloomberg (@MikeBloomberg) July 8, 2024 In 2022, venture capitalist John Doerr and his wife, Ann, gave 1.1 billion dollars (856 million) to Stanford University for a new school focusing on climate change. The small liberal arts school, McPherson College, in Kansas, has received two matching pledges since 2022 from an anonymous donor totalling one billion dollars. The school, which has around 800 enrolled students, has a program for automotive restoration and is located about 57 miles north of Wichita, Kansas. Bloomberg, the former New York mayor, gave three billion dollars (2.3 billion) to charities in 2023, making him one of the largest donors, according to research by the Chronicle of Philanthropy. Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Moscow to begin a two-day visit, his first since Russia sent troops into Ukraine. Mr Modi is set to have dinner with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, to be followed by talks. Advertisement The Indian leader last travelled to Russia in 2019, when he attended a forum in the far eastern port of Vladivostok and met Mr Putin. The leaders also saw each other in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation bloc. A memorable welcome in Moscow! I thank the Indian community for their affection. pic.twitter.com/acTHlLQ3Rs Advertisement Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Mr Modi posted photos of his arrival in Moscow on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, saying in both Russian and English that he was looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of co-operation. Advertisement Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people, he wrote, also sharing a picture of himself and Mr Putin hugging. Later, the two leaders were pictured in videos shared by the Kremlin at Mr Putins residence, Novo-Ogaryovo, near Moscow. Mr Putin drove Mr Modi around the grounds in a buggy and showed him his stable with horses. According to state news agencies, the two had earlier watched a horse show with performers in national Russian dress. Advertisement Gratitude to President Putin for hosting me at Novo-Ogaryovo this evening. Looking forward to our talks tomorrow as well, which will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia. pic.twitter.com/eDdgDr0USZ Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Advertisement Mr Modi thanked Mr Putin for hosting him at Novo-Ogaryovo and said he was looking forward to Tuesdays talks, which he hoped will go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia. Russia has had strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhis importance as a key trading partner for Moscow has grown since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. China and India have become key buyers of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies that shut most Western markets off to Russian exports. India now gets more than 40% of its oil imports from Russia, according to analysts. Under Mr Modis leadership, India has avoided condemning Russias military action in Ukraine while emphasizing the need for a peaceful settlement. Students in Pennsylvania had created fake TikTok accounts to impersonate their teachers by posting racist memes, homophobic videos, and more that could damage the faculty's reputations. The New York Times reported that around 20 faculty members became victims of fake teacher accounts. Pennsylvania Eighth Graders Behind TikTok Impersonating Accounts According to the report, eighth graders at Great Valley Middle School in Malvern, Pennsylvania were behind the impersonating scheme against their teachers. A veteran Spanish teacher, who had never used TikTok, saw her fake profile with posts including her family photos. The fake accounts were used to create pedophilia innuendo, made-up sexual hookups among teachers, racist memes, and homophobic posts. Patricia Motz, the Spanish teacher, is just one of the victims. Some of the accounts have been deleted from the platform, however, hundreds of students have already viewed, followed, and commented on the accounts. The school district announced that it suspended the students involved in the case. However, the school did not disclose how many students were responsible for the issue. Social Media Exposure of Youth Becomes a Hot Topic The investigation saw that students used photos from the official website of the school to edit photos and insert text for their memes. Several posts were sensitive content, intended to shame teachers. The principal of the school, Edward Souders, wrote to the parents of all eighth graders to address the issue. In an email, he asked parents to guide their children on how to use social media responsibly. "Your support in reinforcing the values of respect and responsibility will go a long way in creating a safer space for our students and staff both online and in person," he added. Meanwhile, the school district finds it difficult to hold students accountable due to the courts' general protection of students' right to free speech off-campus. Japan and the Philippines have signed a key defence pact which the deployment of Japanese forces for joint military exercises. The two Asian nations are now building an alliance as they both face an increasingly assertive China. Advertisement Mondays Reciprocal Access Agreement, which similarly allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, was signed by Philippines defence secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese foreign minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Junior. Philippine and Japanese officials said it would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures. Chinese Coast Guard hold knives and machetes as they approach Philippine troops on a resupply mission in the Second Thomas Shoal at the disputed South China Sea in June (Armed Forces of the Philippines/AP) Advertisement The Philippine government said in a statement that Mr Kamikawa and Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara are in Manila to hold talks with their counterparts on ways to further deepen relations. Japans defence pact with the Philippines is its first in Asia. It signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain last year. Many of Japans Asian neighbours, including the Philippines, were under Japanese aggression until its defeat in the Second World War. Japans efforts to bolster its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue but the two countries have steadily deepened defence and security ties. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishidas moves dovetail with President Marcoss effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. Advertisement The busy sea passage is a key global trade route that has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but is also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. Japan has had a long-standing territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea, while Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an axe aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic face-off in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Philippines strongly protested against the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded $1 million for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Jill Biden declared herself all in on President Joe Bidens bid to remain as the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, despite calls by some Democrats for him to drop out after his damaging debate performance against Donald Trump shook their confidence in him. The president himself has brushed aside those calls and insisted anew that he isnt leaving the race. Advertisement For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, the first lady told a military crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina, the first of three battleground states she was visiting. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta) Thats the decision that hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in too, said Jill Biden, who teaches English and writing as a community college professor. Advertisement Her day-long tour was part of the Biden campaigns broader effort to rebound from the presidents halting performance against Mr Trump in last months debate. The debate led some congressional Democrats and others to call on him to let another candidate challenge Mr Trump because they no longer believe the 81-year-old president is mentally and physically capable of defeating the former Republican president in November. The president has insisted since the debate that he is staying in the race. He did so again on Monday in a letter to congressional Democrats and during an on-air telephone interview with MSNBC. The first lady then used her appearance to draw contrasts between her husbands and Mr Trumps attitudes toward US service members, veterans and their families. Advertisement The presidents late son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware Army National Guard, and the first ladys father was a Navy signalman during World War II. This is personal to us, she said, describing the waits to connect phone calls with a service member stationed overseas or having to smile through a loved ones absence on holidays. Let me ask you this Does Donald Trump know what its like? she said. The president has faced calls to step aside following a poor performance in the first debate against Donald Trump (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File) Advertisement The first lady mentioned reports that Mr Trump, during a 2018 trip to France, referred to service members who paid the ultimate sacrifice as suckers and losers/ Mr Trump denies making the comments. Its disgraceful, but its not surprising, she said. Advertisement Noting that the Supreme Court has said presidents are immune from prosecution for acts committed while in office, the first lady said our democracy cannot withstand a Trump president with virtually no limits. Members of our military honour their oath to support and defend the Constitution. We cannot trust Donald Trump to do the same, she said. You deserve a commander in chief who serves with integrity and wisdom and character, and thats my husband, Joe Biden. Joe Biden and Donald Trump clashed over who cares the most about veterans during their debate in June (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) A spokesperson for Mr Trumps campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment. During the debate, Mr Biden and Mr Trump argued over who cares the most about veterans. Mr Biden noted that he recently visited an American military cemetery in France, the final resting place for US soldiers who fought in the First World War, which Mr Trump notably skipped on his 2018 trip. Mr Trump asserted during the debate that the Democratic president is coddling migrants while neglecting the needs of veterans and service members, and he faulted Mr Biden for the chaotic withdrawal of US troops from Afghanistan. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said that he expects the upcoming Nato summit to provide specific steps to strengthen his countrys air defences against Russia, hours after a Russian missile attack killed at least 31 people and wounded 154 others in various locations, including a childrens hospital in Kyiv. Mr Zelensky met with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw to discuss further support for Ukraine from Nato, as well as signing a bilateral cooperation and defence document. Advertisement We would like to see greater resolve in our partners and hear resolute responses to these attacks, Mr Zelensky told a joint news conference, stressing that Ukraine will take its own retaliatory steps. We must hold Russia accountable for its acts of terror and Putin for ordering the strikes. Every time there are attempts to discuss peace with him, Russia responds with attacks on homes and hospitals. This is why we can only force Russia into peace, and we can only achieve this pic.twitter.com/zXbLHLPMc1 Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Advertisement I can see a possibility for our partners to use their air defence systems in a way to hit .. the missiles that are carrying out attacks on our country, Zelenskyy said. Mr Zelensky stopped in Warsaw en route to a Nato summit, which begins Tuesday in Washington, marking the Western defence alliances 75th anniversary. Advertisement Leaders are expected to discuss ways of providing reliable long-term security aid and military training for Ukraine more than two years after Russias full-scale invasion. At the start of the news conference with Mr Tusk, Mr Zelensky asked those gathered to observe a moment of silence for the victims of Mondays airstrikes. Mr Tusk offered every available form of help for the children evacuated from the bombed hospital. The two leaders signed a co-operation and defence agreement that spells out Polands continued support for Ukraine in defence, especially air defence, energy security for Ukraine, and Polands participation in reconstruction. Advertisement A legion of Ukrainian volunteers currently abroad will be trained in Poland with the aim of joining the defence effort on Ukraines soil, Mr Zelensky said. I had a meeting with the @prezydentpl, Andrzej Duda. I informed him about the Russian attacks and discussed what is needed to provide greater protection for our people. Enhancing defense cooperation and addressing the needs of the Ukrainian Defense Forces are top priorities. We pic.twitter.com/GbNIkUnRdc Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Advertisement Poland will be represented at the Nato summit by President Andrzej Duda, who was scheduled to meet with Mr Zelenksy later on Monday. Poland is among the staunchest supporters of Ukraine and has offered around 4 billion dollars (3.1 billion) in military equipment, training and other items for defence. It is also offering humanitarian, political and economic support. An initiative likely to be endorsed at the three-day summit is Nato taking more responsibility for co-ordinating training, and military and financial assistance for Ukraines forces, instead of the US. Europeans also are talking about giving Ukrainians a greater presence within Nato bodies, though there is no consensus yet on Ukraine joining the alliance. Mr Tusk said that Poland will continue to advocate among our allies that this path for Ukraine to reach the EU and NATO membership should be as fast as possible. The companys planned 2200m diamond-core (DC) program at Ricciardo is the first diamond drilling at the site since three holes were put in by the previous operator in 2014. About 5030m of RC and 1420m of DC drilling have already been completed in this program and apart from the above results, the remaining analyses are awaited. The Ricciardo zone sits in the middle of the 25km-long Golden Corridor at Golden Range, which hosts six discrete deposits made up of 18 historic pits that are all open at depth and show immediate growth potential. Ricciardo once came under the moniker Silverstone, presenting as just one discrete area of workings in a string of named workings arrayed along the 2.3km strike of the trend all of which have now been merged into the bigger overall resource area. The names of the original workings are still used for convenience to identify their positions along the trend and include Silverstone North at the top end through Ardmore, Copse, Silverstone, Silverstone South and Eastern Creek in the south of the gentle arc of historic workings. The Ricciardo gold system, which currently comprises the most significant part of Warriedars Golden Range project, has seen only limited drilling below around 100m depth. The current program is part of the companys mission to infill and extend its knowledge base and ultimately the resource along the entire strike of the new Ricciardo system. The deposit boasts a mineral resource estimate of 8.7 million tonnes at a grade of 1.7g/t gold for 476,000 ounces. Much of the soft gold-bearing oxide material at Ricciardo has been mined by previous operators. Results from the first four diamond holes extend the high-grade shoot below the Silverstone North pit and also infill a previous gap in the high-grade zone of the mineral resource below the northern part of the Ardmore pit, adding confidence and continuity to the mineral resource in the northern part of the Ricciardo trend. While the early results pertain to just a small part of the current phase of drilling, they continue to highlight the outstanding resource growth potential at Ricciardo and ultimately, look set to demonstrate similar outcomes along the entire Golden Corridor trend. AIC Mines Jericho-Eloise copper project Cloncurry, Queensland Hit: 3.9m at 1.77 per cent copper, 0.32g/t gold from 453m. With enough hits to make any prospector sing at a waterhole, AICs deep diamond drilling at its Swagman shoot has defined copper-gold mineralisation through an 800m strike, about 500m north of its Matilda lens. The headline hit also intercepted 2.1m at 2 per cent copper from 483m and is supported by two other holes in the same campaign to sniff out Swagmans northward plunge potential. One of those two holes turned in 2m at 3.39 per cent copper, 1.01g/t gold and 5.12g/t silver from 549m and a separate deeper intercept of 3m at 1.48 per cent copper, 0.38g/t gold and 1.23g/t silver from 588m. It was the deepest hole put in down-plunge at Swagman and at this stage, mineralisation remains open below that level. They may not be the biggest copper hits around, but they do tell a story of a new discovery that went from a geophysical anomaly late last year to looking like a new and important shoot with major implications for the company in the space of a mere handful of follow-up drillholes. The new high-grade Swagman shoot was initially inferred from a diamond hole drilled in September last year to test a geophysical conductor 1.8km north of the Jericho mineral resource area that jagged 9.8m going 2.1 per cent copper from 491.15m. The follow-up campaign comprised seven diamond drillholes put in for a total of 2927m, principally to determine up and down-dip extensions at Swagman, and both copper grades and widths appear to rise with increasing depth. Importantly, Swagmans top 150m up-plunge has yet to be infilled to see what is going on under the surface sediment cover. Increasing evidence for a northward plunge at Swagman is consistent with the same plunge noted at Matilda and near its vent shaft, the northernmost extent of Matilda drilling. The same or similar plunge directions and angles are evident at both Squatter and Jumbuck, centred about 500m and 1500m south of Matilda, respectively. While mineralisation remains open north of Matilda and south of Jumbuck, the limits of which essentially define the current Jericho mineral resource trend, the rapidly-evolving prospectivity at Swagman suggests strong potential for it to close the Matilda-Swagman gap and significantly bolster the resource potential of the Jericho trend. With Jericho only 4km south of AICs operating Eloise copper mine, any serious resource development of the Jericho belt could transform Eloise into a flagship asset for the company, increasing production and project life, while reducing operating costs through economies of scale and with multiple ore sources de-risking production. And if Swagman can be shown to develop even further north, it might also confirm a separate trend parallel to the Eloise mine structures, further increasing its importance. Eloise is a high-grade operating underground mine 60km south-east of Cloncurry. It began production in 1996 and has yielded about 350,000 tonnes of copper and 175,000 ounces of gold. AIC aspires to produce about 12,500 tonnes of copper and 5000 ounces of gold in concentrate per year. Management says it is planning more drilling at Swagman, possibly from underground via the Eloise-Jericho link drive, to explore further down-plunge at Swagman and to infill the 500m of prospective strike between Matilda and Swagman that is presently almost devoid of drilling. It could almost be enough to make your billy boil. Mt Malcolm Mines is pulling in some nice grades, including 1m at 111g/t gold, from bulk sample grade-control drilling at its Golden Crown project near Leonora. Mt Malcolm Mines Golden Crown Prospect near Leonora, WA Hit: 1m at 111g/t gold Mt Malcolm Mines hit the jackpot for the week with its headline 1m intercept included in a 14m run at 16.78g/t gold from just 4m depth, which also included 6m going 36.75g/t. That top value is also accompanied by a bunch of five more stellar responses from the companys recent grade-control drilling at its aptly named Golden Crown project near Leonora. Some might say that it is not too much of a surprise that such a string of results came from a 5m-by-5m or 8m-by-8m drill pattern comprising 18 holes in an already-defined potential high-grade resource occupying an area just 50m long and 15m wide that has been slated for bulk sampling. However, in any reasonable context, a string of six different drillholes with top intercepts containing numbers broadly between 6g/t and 38g/t gold in intervals ranging between 1m and 14m, is worthy of mention. The second-best hit is 9m at 21.12g/t gold from 12m including 1m going 65.66g/t and 4m running 37.87g/t. From an intercept length-grade perspective, the sixth-best hit threw up 1m at 6.69g/t gold from 5m and 3m going 1.9g/t from 10m. The Golden Crown drilling comprised 522m to test an area originally outlined by RC work in February, with hole depths ranging between 18m and 24m. Management says results confirm high-grade gold mineralisation in the area proposed for imminent bulk sampling. Interestingly, the 24m maximum depth of drilling, the shallow, high-grade gold intercepts and the surface environment in the drilling area, all point to the mineralisation being partly or wholly within the oxidized zone. Those factors imply potentially low-cost excavation, but they also suggest the possibility for bonanza-zone secondary gold influences at or around current or ancient water table levels. The latest results are in line with Golden Crowns rich history and have made it a focal point for the companys project development. Based on its February RC drilling results, which highlight the high-grade gold mineralisation, it says they provide a solid foundation for a robust maiden mineral resource estimate. Historically, Golden Crown was a significant producer, yielding 1720 ounces of gold between 1899 and 1904. It features three shallow lodes that remain open down-plunge. Mt Malcolms share price leapt nearly 43 per cent on the back of the news last Friday to an intraday trading high of 5c after a previous close of 3.5c, with almost 50 million shares traded the biggest volume in the companys history. With the Australian gold price continuing to soar among its giddiest peaks, today hovering at about $3544 per ounce, it is certainly a good time for companies to be reporting decent grades especially when they can produce a cluster of them running more than an ounce and up to 3.5 ounces per tonne. KGL Resources Jervois project Northern Territory Hit: 7.44m at 7.49 per cent copper from 708.75m KGLs deep diamond drilling at its Jervois project produced this high-grade copper hit at its Rockface prospect and it includes 36.19g/t silver and 0.89g/t gold. The primary intercept also features intervals of 0.73m at 10.83 per cent copper, 33.8g/t silver and 0.43g/t gold from 709.77m, 0.86m going 10.94 per cent copper, 51g/t silver and 0.64g/t gold from 713.30m and 0.47m at 18.91 per cent copper, 56.6g/t silver and 0.2g/t gold from 716.50m. A shorter primary intercept sits above the foregoing run, presenting 2m at 7.37 per cent copper, 41.12g/t silver and 0.38g/t gold from 617.16m. The hole is one of 11 put into Rockface in a bid to increase managements geological confidence in its mineral resource categories before a planned resource estimate update for the zone and all holes reported were aimed at infilling and testing its lateral extents. The base metal mineralisation at Jervois is stratabound and contained within steeply-dipping lenticular bodies or lodes in metamorphic rocks disposed along a 12km-long arcuate strike and has a stratigraphic thickness up to about 600m. KGL is focussed on its Rockface and Reward prospects, where it is using downhole electromagnetic (DHEM) geophysical surveying and follow-up diamond drilling. The combination has been delivering a steady run of high-grade intersections in extensive mineralised zones. Downhole geophysical surveying has identified new conductors from which drilling is locating further high-grade mineralisation. The growing database continues to support the companys interpretation of parallel North and Main lodes at Rockface. At the Main lode, six holes targeted the upper part of the deposit to infill gaps before the next resource upgrade and to support potential upward extensions of the underground resource back towards the surface. Three of the holes cored through strongly-mineralised copper zones. At the North lode, two holes put in to test a gap between the North and Main deposits, intersected mineralisation corresponding to both lodes, separated by about 50m of mostly unmineralised ground. The company says it has completed its resource infill drilling at Rockface and is now waiting on assay results, expected in the coming weeks, which will be incorporated into a mineral resource update. Meanwhile, the biggest available rig onsite is now tasked with drilling two deep holes beneath Rockface North to explore the depth extension potential of the mineral resource where DHEM surveying has indicated mineralisation continuity. Once that work is completed, DHEM surveys will be undertaken in those holes to explore ahead for further deep extensions. To date, the Jervois mineralised structures appear persistent, predictable and dependable, with a strong potential for producing multiple high-grade copper resource zones, sweetened up by gold and silver credits. Is your ASX-listed company doing something interesting? Contact: mattbirney@bullsnbears.com.au Advertisement Exclusive Eating outFood Paddingtons NOTA to transform into a Michelin-inspired Italian fine-diner I wanted to be a bit of a pioneer. A popular former Rosmarino chef will serve two degustation menus, taking diners on a food tour of the Italian peninsula. Matt Shea July 8, 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 Dario Manca wasnt expecting to open his own restaurant. Not yet, anyway. But then a space like 224 Given Terrace doesnt come up that often. The heritage-listed premises right in the guts of Paddington are perhaps still best known as the original home of classic French restaurant Montrachet, but has enjoyed a fruitful recent life as NOTA, Sebastiaan de Kort and Kevin Dochertys European diner, which became a local favourite after opening in early 2019. Dario Manca will open Attimi by Dario Manca in early September. Markus Ravik NOTA will run its last service on August 3, with de Kort and Docherty consolidating their interests at Allonda with co-owner of that restaurant, Yanika Sittisuntorn but a succession plan was always in place. In September, Manca will open Attimi by Dario Manca, an Italian restaurant serving a fine-dining style degustation menu on weekends, and an a la carte menu during the week. Advertisement To be completely honest with you, I was not really looking to become a business owner, says Manca, who was most recently executive chef at popular Valley restaurant Rosmarino, where he became known for his playful spins on traditional Italian food. Before that, he was head chef at Za Za Ta, and previously worked at the award-winning Pilu at Freshwater in Sydney, and various restaurants in Italy and the United Kingdom. I was looking for probably the last good experience as an employee, maybe an executive [chef] position. But then I saw that NOTA was becoming available, and they actually contacted me ... so it [happened quite quickly]. Exclusive Paddington restaurant NOTA announces closure I had toyed with the idea of my own place four years ago. I was playing with spreadsheets and things for a while, but then Rosmarino came up and that was obviously a really great experience. On weekends, diners can expect a choice of two set menus: a smaller degustation taking a quick Italian tour across eight courses with snacks and more substantial plates, with a larger 12-course degustation featuring even more regional influences. Advertisement There are so many good Italian restaurants in Brisbane amazing restaurants but more in that trattoria style, Manca says. There is not that kind of approach of an Italian Michelin experience here in Brisbane. So I wanted to see if I could be a bit of a pioneer. Also, there are restaurants such as Exhibition, or Restaurant Dan Arnold excellent places that focus on degustation only, and it really works for them. Brisbanes most exciting restaurant openings of 2024 (so far) Im only taking the one space, he adds, as Manca wont be taking up the lease on the second dining room that NOTA expanded into in 2022. So at that point I knew I would need to cut myself out a [particular] spend per head, and thats where the idea for this model originated from. There are so many good Italian restaurants in Brisbane but more in that trattoria style. There is not that kind of approach of an Italian Michelin experience here. So I wanted to see if I could be a bit of a pioneer. Dario Manca From Tuesday to Thursday, Attimi will wind back to an a la carte menu, suitable for locals who want to drop in for a snack, small plate or a glass of wine. Advertisement People can get a bit scared of the term fine dining but every time I go back to Italy or Europe and get that Michelin experience, Im thrown into a bit of a wonderland, Manca explains. Its such a beautiful chance to take something traditional say a lasagne, but transform it into maybe a taco, for example then you close your eyes, and you feel your nonna hugging you. Its a multisensory experience and fun and different, but still hits the spot for flavour. Manca is still resolving his approach to drinks, but says to expect a regionally focused Italian wine list, with some skin-contact bottles thrown in for good measure. Diners at Attimi can expect a choice of two set menus: a smaller degustation taking a quick Italian tour across eight courses, with a larger 12-course degustation featuring more regional influences. Markus Ravik For the fit-out, Manca is going to keep some elements of the existing NOTA dining room but says he ultimately wants Attimi to feel like a new creation. For starters, hes cutting back the bar to add more seats, and wants to make better use of the restaurants footpath dining. Advertisement I dont want people who have been coming here for years thinking it feels the same as before, Manca says. But Ill be cutting the bar first of all, because there will be that greater focus on food. Attimi by Dario Manca will open in early September. Stephen Jones, the assistant treasurer and minister for financial services, says he is disappointed Fatima Payman left the Labor Party last week because he believes there is no underlying difference in the senators position on Palestine and that of the party leadership. Speaking on the ABCs Afternoon Briefing today, Jones said he still called the Labor-turned-independent senator a friend and was incredibly saddened by the whole series of events, particularly if you sort of pull up the hood and see what has gone on underneath. Assistant Treasurer Stephen Jones. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen When you look at all the essence of what the people on the left, people in the centre and others are calling for: they want recognition, they want an end in the war, they want an independent state for Palestine, Jones said. I want that, the prime minister wants that, the government wants that. So much of this debate, frankly, is focusing on distinctions that have no underlying difference. For that reason, Im disappointed on what has gone on. Loading After weeks of increasing isolation and a rebuke from the prime minister for using the controversial pro-Palestine slogan, Paymans schism with federal Labor leadership burst into the open in late June when she crossed the floor of the Senate to support a Greens motion to recognise Palestine. Labor had sought to amend the motion to add recognising Palestine as a part of a peace process in support of a two-state solution and a just and enduring peace. But the Greens rejected the amendment and accused the government of a cowardly delay tactic in fulfilling its intention to recognise a Palestinian state. The WA senator was then suspended from Labors caucus for a short period for voting for the original Greens motion. That became an indefinite suspension following Paymans explosive ABC interview, in which she vowed to cross the floor again on the issue. Last Thursday, Payman quit Labor, accusing the party of not caring about the suffering of Palestinians and acknowledging she had met with a coalition of Muslim groups planning to harness discontent with the partys perceived lack of support for the Palestinian cause. On Tuesday, Jones said the tumultuous events had obscured Labors stance on the issue. Heres part of his response when asked whether the Payman saga had shown the partys leadership was out of touch with rank-and-file members who want a stronger stance: An extra 160,000 services will be added to Brisbanes bus network in a landmark deal to share ticket revenue between Brisbane City Council and the state government. The council has been pressing the state government for two months for extra money from fares as it injects funds into the citys bus network with the $1.4 billion Brisbane Metro service. Under the LNPs Metro plan, the 60 mega buses will collect passengers from suburban hubs such as this one at UQ and carry them through the CBD on a five-minute frequency. Credit: Brisbane City Council To date, all fare revenue has been collected by the state government. A special council meeting will be held soon to sign the new deal. All ticket revenue will continue to go to the state government in the meantime. Opinion pieces from local writers exploring their suburbs cliches and realities and how it has changed in the past 20 years. I hit a kangaroo in my new car. It was a Kia, it still is, but Im now waiting for half of the body to come on a boat from Korea, so I wont be seeing it for a while. But thats OK because I live in Hurstbridge, and we are always prepared for that kind of thing out here. Our little community, 30 kilometres north-east of Melbourne, sits at the point where concrete suburbia meets bushland, and we happily give way to nature all the time. Our colonial-style village is perfect for people who lose their cars because of a sudden encounter with the wildlife. Everything is within a 10-minute walk: the friendly organic fruit and veggie guy, the friendly butcher, the friendly family-run baker and the friendly lady who sells and possibly makes her own earwax candles. But theres more to Hurstbridge than our walkable urban design and organic produce. Were lots of fun, too, and we love tourists. The University of Melbourne is being investigated for potentially breaching privacy laws by using surveillance technology to identify students involved in a sit-in during protests over the war in Gaza in May. Twenty-one students who are facing suspension or expulsion over the protests were emailed CCTV images of themselves inside the Arts West Building on the universitys Parkville campus during the multi-day sit-in. The University of Melbourne is facing an investigation over surveillance of protesting students. Credit: Jason South Alongside the zoomed-in stills were details of the students use of the campus Wi-Fi network, which the university said was evidence of alleged wrongdoing that would be presented when misconduct trials begin on Wednesday. The Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner confirmed on Monday it had begun preliminary inquiries into the University of Melbourne, which is bound by the Privacy and Data Protection Act. Madrid: Tourists dining in Barcelona were drenched with water guns by angry crowds of anti-tourism protesters marching down the main boulevards. Several thousand demonstrators rallied through hotspots including the famous La Rambla, carrying banners that said Tourism kills the city and Dear Tourist: Balconing is fun! alluding to the practice of jumping from hotel balconies into swimming pools, which often ends in serious injuries for intoxicated tourists. Protesters shoot water from water pistols at tourists during a protest against mass tourism in Barcelona. Credit: Reuters Some of the demonstrators called out insults at tourists who took photographs of the march, while others taped off hotels and restaurants in a symbolic protest at over-tourism in the Catalan capital. The use of water guns by some protesters against onlooking tourists prompted heated verbal exchanges, but order was maintained by police escorting the march. I am so proud that this industry has given me lifetime friendships, connections and supporters who were always there for me. Grateful for my journey so far and hopeful for a successful year ahead. The Central government is planning to issue a final call to four states and seven Union Territories (UTs) which are yet to submit their strategic investment plan (SIP) to avail funds to revitalise the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), a senior government official said. In her 2022 Budget speech, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) scheme as part of the governments effort to revive the MSME sector after the pandemic shock. All States and UTs were told to develop and submit a strategic investment plan (SIP) to get Four Hizbul Mujahideen terrorists, who were killed in an encounter on Saturday night in Chinnigam Frisal in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district, had been reportedly staying in a hideout, which was a bunker constructed inside an almirah. An unnamed security official told NDTV that the terrorists "had created a bunker inside an almirah", adding that the involvement of locals in sheltering these terrorists was also being investigated. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp During the security operations, two soldiers of the Indian Army, including an elite para commando, were killed in action. In total, six Hizbul terrorists were neutralised during separate encounters in south Kashmir's Kulgam. Speaking to NDTV, Inspector General of Police VK Birdi said that while one soldier was killed in action during the first encounter in Madergam, four terrorists were shot dead and an additional soldier was killed in action during the second encounter in Chinnigam, which is also in Kulgam. Citing Birdi, the report said that all the killed terrorists were affiliated to the Hizbul Mujahideen, with one of them being the local commander of the Hizbul. Well-fortified bunker Citing a video that surfaced online, the Hindustan Times reported that security officials were seen on the site, inspecting the hideout. According to the report, the video purportedly showed what appeared to be a small, but well-fortified concrete hideout that had been concealed behind a wardrobe or almirah inside a civilian residence at Chinnigam Frisal. See how a bunker has been built behind the cupboard in the house.#KulgamEncounter#Kashmir #JammuKashmir #Kulgam pic.twitter.com/TUsWpQU4Qa Indian Army has discovered a new hideout of terrorists in Kulgam, Kashmir, where they used to hide.See how a bunker has been built behind the cupboard in the house. #IndianArmy July 7, 2024 Two separate encounters in Kulgam The first encounter broke out in Madergam, while the second one took place in Chinnigam in Kulgam. According to the NDTV report, the four terrorists killed in Chinnigam have been identified as Yawar Bashir Dar, Zahid Ahmad Dar, Tawheed Ahmad Rather, and Shakeel ah Wani. The two terrorists neutralised in Madergam have been identified as Faisal and Adil. While both the encounters occurred in the interiors of Kulgam, security officials have reportedly reviewed the situation in view of the Amarnath Yatra. An unnamed security official told NDTV that the encounter sites were in the interiors of Kulgam and away from the national highway, adding that the police and other security agencies were keeping a close watch. Speaking about the operations, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police RR Swain reportedly said that the neutralisation of such a big number of terrorists was a major achievement. "Chinar Corps Commander, Chief Secretary of J-K, DGP J-K, and other dignitaries and all ranks paid homage to Lance Naik Pardeep Kumar and Sepoy Pravin Janjal Prabhakar, who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in Kulgam on 06 Jul 2024," Indian Army Chinar Corps posted on X on Sunday. "Martyrdom is not the end, it's the beginning of a Legend " #ChinarCorps Cdr, Chief Secretary UT J&K, DGP J&K, other dignitaries & all ranks paid homage to L NK Pardeep Kumar and Sep Pravin Janjal Prabhakar, who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in #Kulgam on 06 Jul pic.twitter.com/ORbXuBaSua July 7, 2024 (With inputs from agencies) Increased sale of Unit Linked Insurance Plans (ULIPs) is set to weigh on the margins of listed life insurance companies in June quarter of FY25 (Q1FY25) despite higher premium accumulation on a favourable base. A buoyant equity market has led to an increase in sales of ULIPs, driving the growth in Annualized Premium Equivalent (APE) of life insurers. APE is the sum of regular premiums plus 10 per cent of new single premiums in a particular period. According to analysts at Emkay Global Financial Services, Value of New Business (VNB) margins for private sector life insurers will After consolidating capital adequacy, improving profitability and asset quality, regional rural banks (RRBs) will now focus on diversification of lending products to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) for value addition in agriculture chain and allied sectors. The top priority will be upgrading the technology platform for digital banking for retaining existing customers and attracting new ones in rural areas. Goverdhan S. Rawat, deputy managing director, National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (Nabard) told Business Standard that with fund infusion and profitability, the capital adequacy has improved substantially and asset quality is robust. Now, they will intensify Endangered Oriental storks nesting on pylons receive good care in Panjin, NE China's Liaoning People's Daily Online) 09:46, July 08, 2024 Instead of using drones as they usually do, power transmission line operation and maintenance workers from a power supply company in Panjin city, northeast China's Liaoning Province, recently inspected power lines at a pylon located in a river channel with a pair of binoculars. "It's currently the breeding season for Oriental storks. The noise from drones might disturb them, so during this period, we're using high-powered binoculars and telephoto cameras to check power grid conditions," explained a worker. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Through the lens, a large nest could be seen in the middle of the tall iron tower, where an Oriental stork, an endangered bird species under first-class national protection in China, was tending to four chicks. Panjin, which has been recognized by the Ramsar Convention as an international wetland city, is located on the East Asian-West Pacific flyway, one of the world's nine major bird migration routes. It serves as an important stopover site and destination for migratory birds in East Asia and Australasia, and is also a key area in China's migratory bird flyway protection network. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Over 300 bird species inhabit Panjin, each with unique habits. Oriental storks in particular often nest on power transmission towers, making it a necessity for the city to balance the safe operation of the power grid and the normal activities of birds. State Grid Panjin Power Supply Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the State Grid Corporation of China in Panjin, has made continuous efforts to achieve the goal over the years. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) The company has kept recording information about power lines and areas of power facilities where wildlife is often spotted, and created an "ecological power grid map" covering Panjin's entire 2,400-kilometer power transmission lines and nearly 7,400 pylons. It has also formulated an eco-friendly inspection plan that specifies inspection priorities for bird-inhabited power lines, no-fly zones for drones, and locations for digital inspection and monitoring devices, quietly safeguarding rare bird species through practical actions. (Web editor: Xian Jiangnan, Liang Jun) Titan Company released a disappointing pre-quarter Q1FY25 business update which has led to downgrades. Kalyan Jewellers, a key rival of Titan, did better going by its business update for Q1FY25. Analysts also pointed out that there will be increased competition in the space with the advent of Aditya Birla Group. Titan reported sales growth of about 9 per cent Y-o-Y in Q1FY25. It added 61 stores during the quarter and its total retail presence (including CaratLane) stood at 3,096 stores at the end of Q1FY25. The domestic jewellery division grew 8 per cent Y-o-Y (ex-bullion) in Q1FY25 I have been investing in the Indian markets for multiple decades. Throughout this time, we have consistently seen global companies continuously increase their stakes in their Indian operation. Multinational corporations (MNCs) have consistently looked for opportunities to increase their economic ownership or take their Indian subsidiaries fully private, either through mergers with private companies, stock buybacks, or preferential allotments. The higher the stakes, the better, with full ownership of the Indian business as the ultimate goal. Many increased their stakes at a premium to the then-prevailing market price, implicitly signalling that markets were underestimating the long-term prospects Excessive centralisation in medical-college admissions. Heat becoming deadlier. And changing dynamics in Indian banking. Todays reading QUOTE If the flood is declared a national problem, how will it benefit us? Rather, foreigners will stop Six weeks ago, the newly-founded Revolutionary Communist Party (RCP), on the back of the wave of support for Fiona Lalis public decimation of Suella Braverman, took the bold decision to run her as a candidate in the general election in the East London constituency of Stratford & Bow. In the end, we gained 1,791 votes for a real communist programme and candidate and raised the profile of the RCP to new heights in London and across the country. These votes in east London reflected a complete rejection of capitalism and mealy-mouthed reformist tinkering. These were votes for bold, uncompromising revolutionary change! Bold campaign There has been nothing quite like this campaign in living memory. You would have to go back to the Neath by-election campaign of the old Revolutionary Communist Party in 1945, where Jock Haston polled 1,781 votes, to see such a result for a bold revolutionary programme. Or even back to 1929, when the Communist Party leader Harry Pollitt contested the seat of Seaham Harbour against the Labour leader Ramsay MacDonald, gaining 1,451 votes. This was back when the Communist Party, though degenerated, still had the trappings of a revolutionary party. Today, in the course of our campaign, the members of the RCP were put on a war footing, Hundreds were mobilised, including from different parts of the country, in order to seize this historic opportunity. In the best traditions of the past, our campaign organised rallies, marches, and open-air street meetings, where we put forward our unabashedly communist programme, reaching hundreds of households, local shops, and workplaces across the constituency. This sterling work over nearly six weeks culminated in an amazing final rally on Saturday 29 June. This kicked off with militant speeches from Fiona and other comrades in Stratford Park, who exposed the lying capitalist politicians and the whole blood-soaked British establishment. This then led to a march of between 250 and 300 to Stratford station, accompanied by a tide of red flags and revolutionary chants. From here, we spread out across the constituency to canvas support. The pavements were awash with a sea of RCP flags and Palestine flags. Slogans like healthcare not warfare! and Keir Starmer: blood on your hands! echoed down the high street. Marching through Stratford and Bow, in support of @fiona_lali campaign pic.twitter.com/wcW5XEVCdx Jorge Martin (@marxistJorge) June 29, 2024 Such was the enthusiasm during the campaign that more than 500 volunteered to help spread the word. Around 100,000 leaflets were distributed some translated into four languages and some 2,000 posters were put up across the constituency. More than 10,000 was collected for the election campaign, mostly from small donations. The campaign generated interest across the media in dozens of interviews, including with Pink Floyd legend and lifelong campaigner, Roger Waters. Fionas social media posts have reached 6.5 million people. As a result, Fionas name recognition, together with the partys name, has been phenomenal. Out on the street, and on demonstrations, people are constantly approaching and welcoming Fiona at every turn. RCP on the map The party did an excellent job of spreading the ideas of revolutionary communism to wide layers of the population, in the constituency and far beyond. Our reach was far greater than anything achieved before. Our ideas of genuine communism certainly hit home to layers who had never come across such ideas, including many young people, many of whom were too young to vote. As a result of this work, hundreds have written in to join the party. In the end, we are delighted by the 1,791 workers who consciously voted for a revolutionary communist programme and candidate. This represented 4.1% of the total vote. This shows the potential everywhere. Unlike others, we did not water down our ideas or identity to gain votes. In this way we put down a solid marker for the future. We put the RCP on the map. This vote was a colossal achievement, given the large number of independent pro-Palestine candidates who were standing in this constituency. A number of these candidates had links to the local mosques, businesses, and community elders. There was also a candidate from the Green Party, which has councillors in the area, which acted to syphon votes from the left. With the other parties standing ten in all this turned out to be one of the most contested constituencies in the country. Smears and slander We also faced a vicious smear campaign from the Workers Party candidate, its acolytes, and even George Galloway himself, which had a certain impact. Incapable of answering us politically, they spread malicious lies and conspiracy theories, accusing us of being state agents and Zionist spies! These attacks became so unhinged that, under pressure, their candidate was forced to take down a video and backtrack on some of their outlandish allegations. This smear campaign simply shows the lengths these people are prepared to go in an attempt to discredit a genuine revolutionary opponent. Using these methods of lies, insinuation and slander, they will be incapable of building a genuine party, let alone a workers party. We conducted a principled campaign, based on our ideas. We refused to be drawn into the gutter. Our main enemies were the defenders of capitalist slavery, the warmongers of Sunaks Tories and Starmers Labour. Revolutionaries, not politicians It was a campaign like no other, built on the dedication and inspiration of hundreds of communists who want to change the world and have the ideas to do it. As Fiona said, were against austerity, but were also for something. Were for an economy run on the basis of need not profit. It was a campaign built in and through the streets. Hence our slogan, were revolutionaries, not politicians! The campaign has succeeded beyond our wildest dreams. Under the banner of revolutionary communism, weve managed to connect with thousands of people. Consistently, comrades have reported the unbelievably positive and electric response to our fearless speeches and rallies, which have struck a chord amidst the prevailing passivity of the left. Time after time, we would speak to someone who expressed a cynical attitude to politicians, and for that reason was sceptical of our campaign. But our comrades were not afraid of discussing with anyone, and we knew that our ideas and our programme could answer working class peoples problems. I think what's brought so many people into this campaign has been the positive case we've been making for a fundamental change. It's not just what we're against but what we're for: a socialist society run for need not profit pic.twitter.com/y7zTEepguj Fiona Lali (@fiona_lali) June 30, 2024 One member of the public said to our comrades, not to be rude but politicians have never done anything for me. None of us are voting. But after a short explanation of our programme and highlighting the fact that Fiona pledged to take a workers wage, and not the salary of an MP he changed his mind: I wasnt going to vote but Ill vote for Fiona. We need someone to stick up for us. Long live communism! We were amazed at the reach of the campaign. Whenever we went out campaigning, it was guaranteed that several times, people would embrace our comrades because they were such admirers of Fiona and her ideas. One of our comrades who lives in the constituency received a message in his block of flats group chat, from someone he had never met, calling for everyone to vote for Fiona Lali. I went into a corner shop in Mile End to ask about putting up a poster in the window, reported one comrade. Before I could speak, the shopkeeper simply said Lali?. When I said yes, he pointed to the window and said of course you can put it up. I spoke with a person while door-knocking who works at a McDonalds, reported another RCP member. She said everyone there has been discussing Fiona and her programme, and their manager is also encouraging people to vote for Fiona. On the last day of campaigning, we organised multiple marches in the different wards of Stratford & Bow. If you're in Stratford and Bow today you can't miss us! pic.twitter.com/pd4Pgg4dGk Fiona Lali (@fiona_lali) July 4, 2024 How often do these residential, working class streets get groups of political activists energetically marching through them and engaging with the residents? At one point on one of these marches, an entire family came out of their house, fists in the air, to greet us. The father shouted out long live communism! This goes far beyond just Stratford & Bow: internationally Fionas bold stand has resonated with scores of young revolutionaries, who are beginning to see us as a point of reference. Now the real work begins As a result of this work and dedication, weve already recruited dozens to the party, and are busy creating new party branches across London not just within the constituency, but also in places like Walthamstow and North Greenwich. Weve massively extended the prestige and reach of the RCP, and gathered a network of supporters and sympathisers to help us grow. But this is just a glimpse of things to come. The newly-elected Starmer government which has climbed into power with the lowest vote share for a parliamentary majority in British history will be despised. The election campaign was one of the best experiences of my life! Now the fight carries on. If you voted for me please get in touch! I'd love to chat. If you supported me and want to keep doing so join the Revolutionary Communist Party (@revcommunists) WE HAVE A WORLD TO WIN!! pic.twitter.com/DCt3fcRWSy Fiona Lali (@fiona_lali) July 6, 2024 The anger and disillusionment will only intensify as workers and youth are treated to more austerity, attacks, and imperialist war. More than ever, they will be looking for an escape route. But there is no way out under capitalism. In these conditions, imagine what ten thousand organised communists could do. The history of the RCP has only just begun. This campaign which has been even more successful than the campaign run by the original RCP in the 1945 Neath by-election has been an invaluable preparation for the storms that are being prepared by British capitalism. The RCP has already won from this campaign. We have recruited dozens of new comrades, and have massively increased the profile of our party. Our aim was to test the ground and put down a marker for the future; to build a movement of revolutionaries to take on capitalism and the ruling class in general. We must, and we will, become a real point of reference because huge class battles impend. There is no shortage of anger. What is needed is a powerful revolutionary organisation that can organise this anger. Weve made a splash. Now the real work begins. We have to build the party, and establish branches in every workplace, university, school, and neighbourhood steeled and ready for the storms that impend. We invite you to join us in this task! 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 One of the important (but less mentioned) lawyers in the Trial of the Century case in Dayton, Tennessee is the Attorney General, Frank M. Thompson who in 1925-1926 had been appointed by the five person Tennessee Supreme Court to the highest legal non-judicial post in the state in September or November 1913. Frank M. Thompson (1860-1926) was a native of Paris, Tennessee and became an attorney in 1882 after studying law for six months under the supervision of a lawyer mentor (no law school training was required during that period). After several years of law practice in Paris he came to Chattanooga where he would eventually enter into a short partnership with former Tennessee Governor Robert L. Taylor and practiced law for 31 years prior to September 17, 1913 where he was appointed Attorney General and Reporter (of legal cases) for the entire state of Tennessee by the Supreme Court. In that capacity, he and his staff would be responsible for representing local criminal appeals from the 95 counties in the state and to defend the constitutionality of any legislature acts and Tennessee Constitution. The Anti-Evolution Law (Butler Act) was enacted and approved by Governor Austin Peay in March 1925. A speedy trial was held in the Circuit Court of Rhea County between July 10-18, 1925 and the defendant John Scopes was found guilty and fined $100.00 by Judge John T. Raulston (more to follow later on this ruling). Defense counsel attempted to appeal the ruling to the Tennessee Supreme Court to be argued by Attorney General Frank M. Thompson or his designate surrogate. Because of state, national, and international significance, General Thompson decided to argue the case himself on behalf of the citizens of the Volunteer State. The 99th and 100th Anniversary of the Scopes case verdict in 1925 will be celebrated in July 2024 and throughout March through July 17-18, 2025 and to many is the Trial of the Century because of the battle between Fundamentalists and Modernists and individuals involved over the evolution issue. Due to heart problems Frank Thompsons physicians advised him to turn the appellate case over to one of his associate attorneys and he did so with great reluctance and regret. In the obituary article in the Chattanooga Times following his death on July 20, 1926, he is quoted: I would give a thousand dollars to argue the case myself prior to the scheduled hearing of the arguments He worked strenuously upon the Scopes case and delayed a thirty days rest cure which his physicians urged to direct preparations of the states side of the appeal. Upon his death General Thompsons body was transported by the Dixie Flyer train from Nashville to Forrest Hills Cemetery. A twenty-nine page Resolution in his Memory was entered in the official state record by a committee of 17 prominent lawyers and judges that included several of his funeral pall bearers. Law and history books duly note the presence of the name Frank M. Thompson like many other less recognized parties in the famous Scopes trial. His family tree branches in the judicial and legal communities in Tennessee including Nashville and Chattanooga are all part of an interesting part of the States history. ---- If you have additional information about one of Mr. Summers' articles or have suggestions or ideas about a future Chattanooga area historical piece, please contact him at jsummers@summersfirm.com) The Orange Grove Center is a private nonprofit organization serving adults and children with intellectual and/or disabilities. Founded in 1953 by a group of Chattanooga parents and community leaders who were seeking services for children with disabilities, the Orange Grove Center partners with local businesses to provide jobs, as well as transportation, for the people it serves and more. Among those founders was the late Janet Strang, a long-time resident both Lookout Mountain and Summertown on Signal Mountain. The list of folks who have been involved with Orange Grove is long, ranging from Max Bahner, Skip Nardo and Larry Cash to Thomas A. Caldwell Jr. and the entire Kent family of Lookout Mountain. Now a new generation is stepping up to continue the support, adding energy and savvy and a whole lot of fun to the organization, starting with a major fundraiser, Bingo at the Grove. Not exactly your grannys bingo, this event features a delicious seated dinner, table-side bar service, music, dancing, and a crazy-fun signature bingo game with cash prizes! Now on its third year, Bingo for the Grove raised over $125,000 for Orange Grove last year. These funds directly benefit transportation needs and enrichment programs in so many ways. Monies raised also support a salaried, full-time position necessary to re-launch Special Olympics teams and help with community involvement. Truly, Orange Grove Center touches many people in our community in many different ways. Laura Carmichael Probasco, who helped create Bingo for the Grove and co-chaired it the past two years, has a dear family member, Uncle Doug, who has been at Orange Grove for 46 years. The positive impact Orange Grove has had on Lauras family is the reason she is involved. In 2021, Laura set out to find someone who could help her co-chair Bingo for the Grove, so she enlisted Hallie Haley. Hallie had just moved to Lookout Mountain from Washington, D.C., and was looking for ways to get involved in the community. Hallie was immediately drawn to Orange Grove and its mission. Last year, Laura and Hallie recruited Alicyn York to help with the chairing responsibilities, and in fact, Alicyn had attended the inaugural Bingo for the Grove with her husband, Garnett Decosimo, and was eager to raise awareness for this fantastic organization. Julianna Robinson, along with Carmen Patty (vice-chair), Laura Probasco and Hallie Hailey (sponsorship chairs), Julia Bursch (vendor relations chair), Conley Crimmins (silent auction chair), Emma Grace Shannon (social media chair), Mary Clare Holm (decor chair), and Rayvn Cartwright (program chair), are planning the 2024 event, which promises to be a fantastic evening. Each of these committees is jampacked with committed folks who are working their hardest to support this important organization. Bingo for the Grove will take place at the Hunter Museum of American Art on Saturday, Aug. 10. Just like the previous events, the 2024 bingo extravaganza promises to be as much fun as it is important. Our goal this year is to raise $150,000 for Orange Grove Center, Julianna said. This years event will be tented on the River Terrace at the Hunter Museum, which gives us the exciting ability to accommodate more guests. We can sell more individual tickets, as well as more sponsorship tables. Tickets will be $200 per ticket and will be available for purchase June 10. The majority of tickets have been sold, but there are several remaining enough for you and a few of your friends! Contact Julianna Robinson at julianna.robinson@sq1realestate.com for more information and for sponsorship opportunities. Get tickets at https://www.orangegrovecenter.org/bingo-for-the-grove. Remember when I said this is not your grannys bingo evening? I may need to take that back, depending on the age of your grandma. The theme is Palm Royale, so glamor up your make-up, tease that hair and channel Kristin Wiig as you not only secure your seat at this fantastic event in your 1960s get-up, but truly make a positive difference. * * * Ferris Robinson is the author of three childrens books, The Queen Who Banished Bugs, The Queen Who Accidentally Banished Birds, and Call Me Arthropod in her pollinator series If Bugs Are Banished. Making Arrangements is her first novel. Dogs and Love - Stories of Fidelity is a collection of true tales about mans best friend. Her website is ferrisrobinson.com and you can download a free pollinator poster there. She is the editor of The Lookout Mountain Mirror and The Signal Mountain Mirror. Democrats and their media pals are in chaos. The news media didnt cover Joes condition, instead they ran cover for his condition. They faked surprise and outrage at first, but the outrage was really about the hoax being exposed. A Clinton pal attempted a rescue on ABC in a short taped interview. Joe said nobody said he needs a cognitive test but then admitted he couldnt remember if he rewatched the debate and blamed Trump for his bad night. At a Wisconsin rally Joe vowed he would beat Trump again in 2020. He made a campaign speech in a PA church which is supposed to threaten their non-profit status (IRS.gov 1/30/24) but apparently not if its Joe. He thanked PA voters for helping him win his Delaware senate seat each time (WashTimes 7/7/24). Was he supposed to reveal that? Now supporters pushing the sharp as a knife myth are leaving Joe daily as are many big donors who wrote the checks that helped perpetuate the hoax. As the hoax was debunked and Joes poll numbers slid, Dems in tight races began turning on him. Where were they before the debate? As they now offer themselves for re-election, why should anyone trust them? The party runs the risk of collapse should Joe be given the door and Vice President Harris isnt the nominee. An open convention with Pro-Hamas activists battling police outside the convention hall would be an ugly replay of Chicago 1968. Another bad visual was when many of the governors who would like to jump ahead of Harris were seen ducking out of the White House meet with Joe looking like rats deserting a sinking ship. In the meantime, whos running the government? Is it Dr Jill, son Hunter or Joes staff? The watchdog group, Open the Books reported Joe spent $225 million just on his White House staff since January, 2021. With all we now have confirmed, how could anyone who lectures us about saving democracy vote for four more years of this chaos? Ralph Miller The Tennessee Valley Authoritys Connected Communities initiative announced Monday funding up to $2 million for six pilot projects that provide STEM education and workforce development training, increase connectedness, lower energy costs, deliver environmental benefits and increase community resiliency. Connected Communities is a unique initiative that helps communities improve the quality of life for their residents, and were excited to see what impact the next round of pilot projects will have on the people we serve, said Joe Hoagland, vice president of Innovation and Research at TVA. The six pilot projects awarded funding by the TVA Connected Communities initiative are: Memphis, Tennessee. Engaging Children in the Power of STEM Education and the Career Pipeline: Expanding the technologies at the Wang Experiential Learning Center to equip local students with workforce education and skill development. Nashville, Tennessee. Connecting Families for Student Success: Enhancing parental access to, understanding of and involvement in their childrens academic journeys. Ripley, Tennessee. Lighting the Way: Resilient Ripley Microgrid: Building a resilient microgrid to lower energy costs for local city facilities and ensure reliable power during emergencies. Memphis, Tennessee. Driving Tennessee Forward - EV Technologies: Providing the community with equitable access to EV charging stations and developing a curriculum for students to learn job skills related to EV charging. Approval in process, expected to be completed this summer. Kilpatrick, Alabama. High-Tech Connect Center: Creating a community-based indoor/outdoor technology center in Kilpatrick, Alabama to provide access to fiber internet, digital literacy training and more. Approval in process, expected to be completed this summer. Guntersville, Alabama. Connected Community Through Sustainable Service: Transforming an area into a sunrise-to-sunset district that offers a public education space, amenities for residents and guests and an opportunity for students to learn about new, clean technologies. Approval in process, expected to be completed this summer. Connected Communities is one of several TVA initiatives designed to help achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This initiative enables communities readiness for a future energy grid. Ensuring communities have access to amenities such as broadband internet, healthy environments, job opportunities and resiliency plans is important as the electric utility industry continues to grow and transition. Mr. Hoagland expressed the importance of community participation in achieving a future low-emissions grid: So many of our programs rely on things like the internet or innovative technologies. By working with communities to bring partners together to deploy projects that focus on these topics, were ensuring our communities are better prepared for the future. A total of 27 applications were submitted and evaluated by a diverse group of stakeholders. Of the projects submitted, six projects were awarded grants for the next round of pilot projects. These projects will share over $2 million in grant funding from TVA in 2024 through 2026. The first call for pilots selected nine pilot projects that ranged in topics from digital literacy classes to professional childrens videos for workforce development to a solar plus storage project. The profound impacts of these pilot projects have benefitted hundreds of people across the region, prompting TVA to release another call for pilots in 2023. Georgia Caruthers, Connected Communities initiative lead, explained that continuing to work with communities on important pilot projects is making a significant difference in TVAs service region. The first round of pilot projects produced such incredible projects around the region, and the entire Connected Communities team is excited for the new group of pilot projects to hit the ground running, said Caruthers. Pilot projects are just one of the ways TVA supports communities, and the positive benefits from these projects leave lasting impacts on the communities they serve. The Connected Communities initiative now has more than 20 pilot projects supporting one or more of the four focus areas: Broadband and Digital Literacy: Elevates digital equity and inclusion for everyone by supporting broadband expansion and access to modern technologies. Economic Empowerment: Supports economic security so the people in TVAs service region can contribute, to the best of their abilities, to the modern economy. Energy & Environmental Justice: Promotes access to healthy natural and built environments and reliable, affordable, clean energy for everyone in the TVA service region. Enhanced Community Resiliency: Enhances community resiliency through plans and resources that help communities minimize impacts, effectively endure evolving challenges and strengthen recovery strategies for the future. Puryear Law Group PLLC has changed its name to Puryear Pippenger & Cook PLLC to reflect the firms continued expansion and the leadership of its partners Andrew Pippenger and Charles Cook, according to Dan Puryear, founder. Puryear Pippenger & Cook has offices in Nashville and Chattanooga. Our firms new name marks a significant milestone in its history as we continue to grow our reach in representing a spectrum of clients in the financial services, real estate, construction and insurance industries, said Mr. Puryear. Since joining the firm, Andy and Charlie have been essential to its trajectory, and I am honored that our partnership is now recognized through our new name, Puryear Pippenger & Cook. Mr. Pippenger joined Puryear Law Group in 2019 after spending over two decades at Leitner, Williams, Dooly & Napolitan, PLLC. Based in Chattanooga, Mr. Pippenger specializes in litigation, from real estate to contract and property disputes. Among other legal affiliations, he is a member of the Federation of Defense and Corporate Counsel and the International Association of Defense Counsel. Dan, Charlie and I began our careers at large law firms and have a shared understanding of the benefits of effective collaboration with boutique firms to bring expertise and different perspectives to the table, said Mr. Pippenger. Im honored to partner with Dan and Charlie in continuing to grow our enterprise and provide exceptional representation to our clients in partnership with other legal professionals. An industry veteran with over 30 years of legal experience, Mr. Cook joined Puryear Law Group in 2022 after a tenure at Adams and Reese. He primarily represents clients in commercial litigation, bankruptcy matters and commercial loan workouts. Mr. Cook has been named Best Lawyers Lawyer of the Year in 2014 for Nashville Banking and Finance Litigation and in 2021 for Nashville Financial Services Regulation Law. Its a privilege to be part of this firm and work with our exceptional team as we seek to help our clients navigate complicated legal matters, said Mr. Cook. We have a new name that reflects our partnership in helping our clients achieve the justice they deserve, and its an honor to work alongside Dan and Andy in this endeavor. Since establishing his own firm in 2002, Dan Puryear has represented clients in the areas of commercial litigation, commercial collections and judgment recovery, commercial creditors rights in bankruptcy and commercial construction litigation. In 2003, the American Board of Certification recognized Mr. Puryear as the youngest attorney in the nation to obtain certification as a specialist in creditors rights. A longstanding Executive Committee Member of the Creditors Practice Section of the Tennessee Bar Association, Mr. Puryear is also the updating author of a nationwide form book for Thompson Reuters West focusing on Debtor-Creditor practice. Puryear Pippenger & Cook has updated its website and logo to align with the firms new name. Earlier this year, Charlotte the stingray became famous for her mysterious pregnancy. Somehow, she had gotten pregnant even though she was the only stingray in her enclosure. Sadly, she has died due to a rare reproductive disease, according to a North Carolina aquarium. We are sad to announce, after continuing treatment with her medical care team and specialist, our ray, Charlotte, passed away today, Team Ecco Aquarium said. The Team Ecco family appreciates your continued love and support while we navigate this great loss. Charlotte was housed at the Aquarium and Shark Lab by Team Ecco in Hendersonville, North Carolina. She gained national attention after it was announced back in February that she was pregnant. She lived in a tank with two young male sharks. Initially, the aquarium team speculated that Charlotte may have been carrying a stingray-shark hybrid. She even had multiple bite marks on her, which is a behavior of sharks when they mate. However, several scientists quickly dismissed the theory. They pointed out that such an occurrence was biologically impossible and compared it to the ludicrous idea of a dog and a cat having a baby. Later, experts said she had likely become pregnant through a process called parthenogenesis, a form of reproduction that does not require a mate, and it can happen with sharks, snakes, and lizards. Charlotte was believed to have been pregnant with four pups since around November. The exact timeframe for birth was unclear because pregnancy in stingrays of Charlottes age was uncommon. It was estimated that Charlotte was about 12 to 14 years old. The aquarium thought the stingray would give birth sometime in February, but she never delivered any pups. Stingrays typically have a gestation period of four to five months. Clearly, Charlotte was experiencing some kind of health issue. Concern for Charlottes health grew, and questions were raised about the aquariums standards for animal care. Sign up for Chip Chicks newsletter and get stories like this delivered to your inbox. Illustration by Mallory Rentsch Tlapek / Source Images: Unsplash / Pexels In Asia, Thailand is the go-to location for Christian conferences. Thanks to its sunny weather, low cost of living, bountiful hotels, and close proximity to countries closed to missionaries, Thailand is often the gathering spot for missionaries and international evangelical organizations. Though Theravada Buddhists make up about 93 percent of the population, the Thai government is open and accommodating to Christian groups, to the point where the country has become a popular spot for numerous mission agency headquarters. Yet the freedom that Christians enjoy in Thailand hasnt translated into a wide acceptance of Christianity by local Thais. Despite nearly 200 years of Protestant missions, only about 1.2 percent of the population are Christians. The question of why Thailand is such difficult soil for the seed of the gospel to grow has plagued missionaries, as many have seen little fruit for the years theyve spent learning Thai, building relationships, and trying to introduce locals to the gospel. CT asked two missionaries and three Thai church leaders about why they believe growth has been so slow in Thailand and what can be done to help Thais better connect with the gospel. They pointed to the reality of spiritual warfare, the challenge of communicating Christian concepts to Thais, a lack of discipleship, and the role of Buddhism in Thais cultural identity. Sign up for Moore to the Point Join Russell Moore in thinking through the important questions of the day, along with book and music recommendations he has found formative. Email* Sign Up This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply. Thanks for signing up. Please click here to see all our newsletters. Sorry, something went wrong. Please try again. Allan Eubank, cofounder of Thai Christian Foundation and missionary in Thailand for more than 58 years, Chiang Mai In Thailand, people experience multiple layers of powers and principalities. One of the reasons Christianity hasnt grown in Thailand is because many of us do not fully understand the struggle against powers and principalities outlined in Ephesians 6:1020. When I first received the calling to be an evangelist, I didnt understand these powers. Neither did my theology professors in the 1950s and 60s during the peak of rational criticism of the Bible. In the beginning of my ministry, I struggled to reach people because I thought that their belief in evil spirits would pass away with education about different spirits, including the Holy Spirit. However, after 10 years, I realized that Thais needed to know more about who God is, why we need him, and what happens when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. We then created a small booklet that talks about salvation called the Itract. Since then, I have seen more people responding to the gospel. Another reason that Christianity hasnt grown very quickly in Thailand is because Thai Christians often dont look any different than the world. We have often given in to the temptation for power, material wealth, and sex. We have often been very arrogant, choosing not to repent when we do something wrong and choosing not to forgive those who have hurt our feelings. As Christians, we try our best to evangelize and share the gospel with others despite our weaknesses. However, in the end, conversion happens in Gods own time. He will bring the harvest. Manuel Becker, coordinator for YWAM Frontier Missions Thailand, Phitsanulok The foremost reason for the apparent resistance of Thais toward Christianity is the inseparable intertwining of the cultural identity with religious affiliation to Buddhism. To be Thai is to be Buddhist. Consequently, embracing Christianitywhich is viewed as a Western religionentails losing ones Thai identity, which results in significant social repercussions, as becoming a Christian usually means staying away from anything related to Buddhism. In Thai society, almost all important events include Buddhist elements. Christians need to free the gospel from Western Christianity and allow Thais to explore ways to follow Jesus the Thai way without adopting Western forms that are foreign to their culture. This will affect the form of the gatherings of believers and how the gospel message is proclaimed. Instead of trying to plant megachurches, we should focus on smaller house churches that foster a familial atmosphere. The perception that clergymen are more important and holy than laymen needs to be overcome, and the priesthood of all believers needs to be promoted. Only when Thais find incarnational ways of following Jesus will we see a greater kingdom breakthrough in Thailand. Natee Tanchanpongs, lead pastor at Grace City Bangkok and former academic dean of Bangkok Bible Seminary Over the years, the Thai church has often been the same as the world around it when she should be different, and different when she should be the same. For example, materialism, moralism, and class system have often looked the same in both society and the church. At the same time, the church has often used words and concepts that are foreign to the people around her. Its possible that the Thai people havent fully embraced the gospel because the gospel message has not been clearly communicated and Christians in the church havent lived out the gospel of Jesus Christ in the ways that they should. D. A. Carson points out the truth of compatibilism, which means that God is sovereign while at the same time human beings are responsible for their actions. Jesus puts forward this twin truth when he says, All those the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never drive away (John 6:37). Perhaps this is the best way to explain what happens in Thailand. Jesus goes on to say that no one can come to him unless the Father draws or enables them (John 6:44, 65). In the end, God is the one who draws individuals to himself. There is thus a sense that what happens in Thailand is not within human control, just as corporate spiritual revivals are not ultimately caused by human beings and their actions. Mali Boon-Itt, church leader and pastors wife at 4th Church Suebsampantawong, Bangkok Christians havent been able to communicate across different worldviews. Even though we are speaking Thai, Buddhists dont understand what we are saying because Christianity isnt the same as the Buddhist worldview. Christianity doesnt make sense to them, so it doesnt touch their hearts. Another problem that may impact Christians ability to be influential in Thailand is that there is a lot of corruption in churches. There are a lot of lawsuits where Christians are suing one another. This is not a great witness to the Thai people. In order to effectively share the gospel in Thailand, you not only need to know Thai well, but you also need to know both Christian theology and Buddhism very well. You need to be able to communicate in a way that Buddhists appreciate and understand. In order to do that, you need to understand how to translate the concept of redemption in a way that Buddhists can understand. This isnt only a problem in Thailand. Its a problem across the Buddhist world. Nurot Panich, executive pastor of Acts of Christ Church in Bangkok Christianity hasnt grown in Thailand because Thai churches often lack unity. There is a lot of conflict in churches, and a lot of problems arise within and across organizations. Also, Thai church leaders often act as bosses rather than managers. In Thai culture, its widely accepted that lower-level leaders cannot disagree with senior leaders. This means that rising church leaders must always follow the senior pastors. This is a problem because sometimes junior leaders have good ideas, but because of their status, they cannot propose them. Thai church leaders also struggle to provide discipleship, especially for new believers. Churches in Thailand might evangelize well but often fail to disciple new converts. Only about 10 percent of new converts continue to get involved in church. Discipleship is a long-term process that requires commitment. Because many church leaders dont want to make that commitment, they prefer evangelizing at a one-time event. As Christians, the best way to share about Christ is to allow our life to be a good witness whether we are at home, at school, or the marketplace. No matter where we go, we should represent Christ. When people see that our actions glorify the Lord, they will be impacted in a positive way. Survey finds that evangelical voters are motivated by care for those in need. Christopher Furlong / Getty Images The United Kingdom elected a new prime minister in a landslide win for the Labour Party, a significant shift of political power after 14 years of Conservative-led government. Neither party secured the majority of the countrys evangelical vote, but evangelicals of varying affiliations will be following how the new Labour government addresses areas of concern for the church, including the treatment of refugees, the beginning and end of life, and policies around sexuality and gender. In the July 4 election, Sir Keir Starmer garnered the second-largest parliamentary victory since World War II, just short of the margin Tony Blair won by in 1997. Research from our team at the Evangelical Alliance found that 42 percent of evangelical Christians said they would vote Labour while 29 percent would vote Conservative. (The survey was conducted in late 2023 before a new party, Reform UK, increased in popularity.) 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. Just over half of evangelicals said they want to vote for a party that represents biblical values, but there is no consensus on what party that might be. A significant minority in our polling do not see that as a top issue in determining how they voteprobably because they do not see any party as offering that option. When asked whether a commitment on certain issues would increase their likelihood to vote for a party, evangelicals wanted parties to protect free speech, stand for global religious freedom, reduce term limits on abortion, oppose assisted suicide, support safe routes for refugees, and promote marriage in the tax system. The only issue evangelicals were polled on that has had any salience in the UK election is reform of laws that protect single-sex spaces on the basis of biological sex. Many non-Christians have spoken up about the issue, probably most notably Harry Potter author J. K. Rowling, who was very critical of the incoming governing partys position on the issue. The diversity of opinions among evangelical Christians means that no political party stakes a claim to their vote, but it can also mean political issues are viewed as too difficult to talk about in church. Less than 2 percent of evangelicals we heard from said their church leader had explicitly backed a party or candidate, and only 1 in 7 had witnessed clear support or opposition for particular policies. The governments legislative priorities will be set out in the Kings Speech on July 17, but key policy announcements ahead of that will demonstrate its focus in the early months. Evangelicals will be paying particular attention to the Labour governments decisions on how sex and gender are handled in school. Prior to the election, plans were in place to take a more cautious approach and to ensure teachers are able to assert that biological sex determines someones gender, not being disciplined if they do not use the gender or pronouns a child asks to use. A related area where evangelical Christians are likely to challenge the incoming government is over its commitment to introduce a ban on sexuality and gender conversion practices. Previous proposals could significantly affect churches and Christian ministries by restricting their freedom to teach and provide pastoral care and prayer. The new Labour government immediately scrapped the former governments agreement with Rwanda for processing asylum applications, which had been a highly controversial policy in recent months. The previous government passed numerous laws to try and tighten immigration requirements, and the UK Evangelical Alliance joined with fellow Christian organizations to call for a systemwhatever the level of immigrationthat treated people humanely and with the inherent dignity they have as people created in the image of God. Critics worried that too many proposals put forward instead treated them as pawns in a political game. The Evangelical Alliance is committed to working with the government on restoring hope in our society, strengthening social cohesion, and honoring the dignity and value of every human being, said Gavin Calver, CEO of the UK Evangelical Alliance. Our faith is a vital component of what makes a difference and helps transform lives across the UK. Churches were more likely to talk about local social issues such as poverty or global issues like war and peace, international poverty, or the persecuted church. Though churches are likely to talk about practical care for asylum seekers and refugees, fewer than 1 in 5 heard their church talk about immigration policy. In UK politics, life issues like abortion and assisted suicide are considered matters of conscience and typically are not governed by party platform, so members of Parliament (MPs) are free to vote as they wish. Starmer, the new prime minister, has indicated that the government wont take a position on any potential new law on assisted suicide, but he has also pledged parliamentary time to consider the matterso it will likely be a key issue over the next couple of years. Before the election was announced, the Conservative-majority Parliament was expected to vote on reforms regarding the regulation of abortion; these were abandoned when the election was called but are likely to come back for Parliament to consider. Our survey found that the top reason motivating how evangelicals vote is the party that helps those most in need. Though the estimated turnout was the lowest in 20 years, more than 9 in 10 evangelicals said they planned to vote in the election. Evangelical Christians will be looking to work productively with the new government and with individual MPs both nationally and locally. As representatives of specific geographical areas, MPs want to build strong links with local groups, and this is a chance for churches to forge relationships and influence decisions for their communities and the country. There will be points in the years ahead where we will disagree with the governments direction and will challenge policies and decisions. Any moves that disempower and harm the most vulnerable in society will be met with a robust response from evangelical Christians across the UK, Calver said. Our heart is always to serve and advocate for those most in need, and we urge the government to do the same. Danny Webster is director of advocacy for the UKs Evangelical Alliance. Home News 11 Christians sentenced to combined 90 years in prison in Vietnam go missing Eleven Vietnamese Christians, sentenced to a total of 90 years and eight months in prison for their religious activities, have mysteriously disappeared, raising significant concerns about the treatment of religious minorities in Vietnam. These individuals, arrested between 2011 and 2016, include six Protestants and five Catholics, now unaccounted for in the Southeast Asian nations prison system. The six Protestants are associated with the unapproved Degar Protestantism, and the five Catholics are from the Ha Mon Catholic Church, said the U.S.-based persecution watchdog International Christian Concern, noting that both religious movements lack official recognition from the Communist regime of Vietnam, which frequently targets such groups under accusations of undermining national unity policy. Protestants Ro Mah Pla, Siu Hlom, Rmah Bloanh and Rmah Khil were specifically targeted for their involvement in Degar Protestantism. 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 Meanwhile, Sung A. Khua faced arrest under the pretense of deforestation after refusing to renounce his faith, while Y. Hriam Kpa was detained for his refusal to close his church. The five Catholics Runh, A. Kuin, A. Tik, Run and Dinh Kuh faced similar charges for their involvement in Ha Mon Catholicism. The Degar, also known as Montagnards, are an indigenous group in Vietnams Central Highlands, historically allied with the United States during the Vietnam War and known for their Christian faith. Montagnard Christians are often coerced into renouncing their religion, facing severe repercussions like beatings and imprisonment if they resist, according to the Campaign to Stop Torture in Vietnam. The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom has reported continuous violations in Vietnam, including the destruction of homes and expulsion of families like that of Sung A. Khua, to suppress Christian activities. In 2018, Vietnam enacted the Law on Belief and Religion, which ostensibly regulates religious practices but has been criticized for its restrictive nature. The USCIRFs 2019 assessment labeled the registration process for religious groups as complicated and burdensome, noting prolonged delays in application approvals. This legislation not only controls recognized religions but also pressures unrecognized groups to conform to state-sanctioned practices, significantly hindering religious freedom. U.S. Representative Glenn Grothman, in a 2022 statement, condemned the Vietnamese governments actions, stressing the need for international leadership in defending religious liberty. He drew attention to the lack of awareness among many Americans regarding the severe human rights abuses occurring under communist regimes like that of Vietnam. The latest annual USCIRF report, released in May, states that religious freedom violations in Vietnam have persisted, with ongoing persecution of independent religious communities. It says the government has been particularly aggressive toward ethnoreligious minorities, implementing directives that infringe upon religious practices and language, as seen in the forced renunciations and disruptions of religious gatherings. USCIRF has recommended that Vietnam be redesigned as a country of particular concern for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom, as defined by the International Religious Freedom Act. Home News 5 highlights from Biden's interview with George Stephanopoulos: 'The Lord's not coming down' President Joe Biden sat down last week with ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos amid widespread criticism over his debate performance against former President Donald Trump that some critics described as "dismal." Biden has since faced calls for him to step aside as the presumptive 2024 Democratic nominee, though he issued a letter on Monday asserting his intention to remain in the race. More than 51 million people tuned in to watch the unusually timed June debate last week, according to the Nielsen company. 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 Here are 5 highlights from Biden's interview with Stephanopoulos on Friday. Home News As 2024 election grows increasingly unpredictable, journalist warns Christians must awaken The 2024 election is shaping up to be the most consequential and unusual political showdown in at least a generation, with historic elements emerging on a near-daily basis. Even before the fallout over the most recent debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, 2024 was being called the biggest election year in history and with good reason. Seven of the world's 10 most populous countries, including the United States, are slated to hold national elections throughout the year. But its the Biden-Trump battle that is capturing the most attention across the nation and globe. 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 With so many eyes on the American political landscape, Christian Post reporter Ian Giatti is launching a new investigative podcast aimed at exploring the electoral landscape through conversations with top Evangelical voices from across the political spectrum. Politics in the Pews, launching July 12 across podcast platforms (subscribe here), will investigate the history and influence of the Evangelical movement in American politics, where churches and Christian leaders stand and more. We want to really focus our audience and Christians at large in America to start thinking about the significance of this election, Giatti said, adding that he wants to get Christians engaged and involved in exploring why this election truly matters. Listen to Giatti preview Politics in the Pews: The Politics in the Pews host noted an undeniable reality: that this unusual election could get even more unusual as we go forward, which is why hes hinging his investigative podcast on key ideas and discussions surrounding the campaign and election. [We want to take] a look at where we've been as a country and as the Church, Giatti said. The history of the religious right movement, for example, the Moral Majority, how Evangelicals have influenced politics over the last half-century. Additionally, the show aims to explore why the election matters, whats at stake, and why Christians should pay close attention. Ultimately, Giatti wants to motivate people to head to the ballot box in November. [We want to] make sure Christians understand please, please go out and vote, regardless of what you may think about election integrity, regardless of what you may think about all that's going on, he said. Go and carry out our civic duty. But thats not all; Giatti also wants to awaken people to the time that we're living in. The country is undergoing a lot of changes right now, he said. And I think we all feel it, we all sense it, and it will continue to do so regardless of the outcome of the election. Giatti continued, I think we, as the Body of Christ, need to start thinking practically. I think we need to start understanding what it looks like to apply what we learned through the Word and in fellowship and take it into the world and into the culture. In addition to the podcast launching July 12, a special, in-person Politics in the Pews event will take place on Aug. 27 at Fellowship Church in Grapevine, Texas, (tickets are on sale here). This event will help round out the podcast conversation while also digging deeper into some relevant and pertinent electoral subject matter. This special event will include panels that explore Evangelicals' history as a movement, Trumps impact, and what a second Trump administration could look like. One panel will even discuss Christian nationalism, a term increasingly used in secular and faith-based circles. [This will be a] discussion around what it is, what it isn't, how it's being used to bludgeon and silence the Church versus concerns within the Church about what it may be and how it may look, Giatti said. Find out more about the in-person event here. And be sure to subscribe to Politics in the Pews before the podcast launches July 12: Home News Berlin bans Hamas red triangle used to target Jews, supporters of Israel The state Senate in Berlin, Germany, has passed a motion to ban the inverted red triangle, identified as a symbol used by Hamas and their supporters to mark targets, amid escalating tensions surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This decision comes as a response to the symbols increasing visibility in propaganda and public spaces, posing a direct threat to Jews and advocates for Israels security. The motion states that the banned symbol, a scarlet arrow icon, has been notably used in videos and graffiti to identify enemy targets, including pro-Israel academics and politicians, according to The Telegraph. A recent incident involved the defacement of Berlins Free University, where the graffiti Kai will pay was seen beneath the red triangle, directly targeting Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner after his decision to evict pro-Palestine protesters from the university, the British newspaper said. 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 symbol has seen a resurgence in Berlin, not just at protests but also as graffiti on buildings, homes and campuses such as Humboldt University, i24 News reported. This has prompted concerns about rising antisemitism, highlighted by incidents like threatening banners at Humboldt University and similar graffiti found as far as Brooklyn, New York. Humboldt University President Julia von Blumenthal has condemned the vandalism and threats, labeling them as shocking antisemitism and calling for heightened security measures. The motion, supported by a grand coalition of the Christian Democrat, Social Democrat and the AfD, also refers to the symbols historical roots. The red triangle, originally used by Nazis in concentration camps to mark political prisoners, has been repurposed by Palestinian militant groups, including Hamas, to denote targets such as Israeli tanks in their propaganda efforts. The contentious use of this symbol in Berlin, home to Europes largest Palestinian population, has spurred a series of pro-Palestine protests and subsequent police actions. The federal government of Germany, a staunch supporter of Israel, has also expressed its alignment with the motion, citing Israels security as intertwined with Germanys state rationale. However, opposition to the ban has surfaced, citing legal and constitutional concerns. Green politician Vasili Franco argued that blanket bans on symbols could pose legal challenges, especially when symbols like the red triangle are used by different groups for varied purposes. For instance, the symbol is also part of the flag used by the association of victims of Nazi persecution. Niklas Schrader, a deputy from the Left party, also warned of potential legal implications that could extend to other organizations inadvertently. In May, The Times of Israel cited reports in German media saying that a Hamas terror cell was planning to attack the Israeli Embassy in Berlin and a U.S. military base in Germany. Authorities discovered the intended targets from data on a smartphone seized from a suspect arrested in Berlin in December. The suspect, of Lebanese origin, faced accusations from prosecutors of scouting locations to conceal weapons for the terror group. According to the report, he received directives from Hamas officials in Lebanon. In January, reports emerged of Hamas operating a network of operatives across Europe, directed by terror leaders based in Lebanon. The networks objective was allegedly to carry out attacks on Jewish and Israeli targets outside of Israel. Home News Biden doctor met with Parkinsons expert at White House, visitor logs show White House visitor logs reveal that President Joe Bidens personal physician, Dr. Kevin OConnor, met with Parkinsons disease expert Dr. Kevin Cannard from Walter Reed Medical Center earlier this year. The revelation comes amid heightened scrutiny over the presidents health following a concerning debate performance. In January, OConnor convened a meeting at the White House with Cannard, who specializes in movement disorders, and two other unidentified individuals, as disclosed by the White House visitor logs, the New York Post reported. Dr. John Atwood, a cardiologist from Walter Reed, was also present, although the identity of the fourth attendee remains unknown. 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 According to a White House spokesperson, the visit was part of a routine wherein specialists from Walter Reed regularly consult at the White House to treat military personnel stationed there, noted National Review. Cannards expertise in Parkinsons is well-documented, having co-authored research on the diseases early stages and actively engaged in ongoing studies with partners at Vanderbilt University. His profile on Doximity features his extensive work in this field. Parkinsons disease typically presents symptoms like tremors, movement difficulties, speech changes and impaired balance, which progressively worsen, often starting on one side of the body. The timing of this consultation coincides with 81-year-old President Bidens notably poor performance at his first presidential debate, where his speech appeared slurred, and he struggled with coherence, battling against former President Donald Trump, who is 78. The incident fueled widespread speculation and concern regarding his cognitive health, leading to calls from within his own party for reconsideration of his candidacy as the national convention looms. Following the debate, the White House confirmed that Biden had consulted OConnor about a cold he experienced during the debate, which had not been disclosed earlier. No medical evaluations have been reported since his annual physical in February, which concluded that Biden was fit for office. The results of any cognitive test were not released. CNN medical analyst Dr. Gupta has advocated for Biden to undergo a comprehensive neurological examination and make the results public, citing concerns about the presidents confusion and altered facial expressions. In an interview with ABCs George Stephanopoulos, Biden dismissed the necessity of an independent cognitive test, attributing his lackluster performance at the debate to merely a bad night. He refuted suggestions that he should undergo a separate neurological assessment, asserting that his daily activities are sufficient cognitive testing, noted The Guardian. During a recent meeting with over 20 Democratic governors, Biden discussed personal adjustments to his schedule, suggesting that he plans to avoid events after 8 p.m. to accommodate his need for more rest, The New York Times reported. His offhand comment about needing more sleep because its just my brain was interpreted by some attendees as a humorous remark, while others found it concerning. Moreover, Bidens campaign tactics, including providing pre-approved questions to interviewers, have sparked debates about the controlled nature of his public engagements and raised questions about his teams management of his public image. Amid the ongoing debate, The Wall Street Journal said both Biden and Trump exhibit typical age-related challenges, like occasional forgetfulness and speech mishaps. Geriatric experts note that while some cognitive changes are expected with aging, the extent and visibility can vary widely among individuals. People vary. Some people decline a little bit more in these areas, a little quicker. Some people maintain it and never decline, Dr. Mary Tinetti, geriatrician and professor of medicine at the Yale School of Medicine, was quoted as saying. Home News Biden speaks at black church; bishop praises president as 'the man we need' President Joe Biden spoke at a predominantly African American church in Pennsylvania on Sunday, where the church's leader called him the "man we need" and praised the Democratic Party as the "party of law." During remarks at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia's Sunday worship service, Biden said he has "never been more optimistic about America's future" provided "we stick together." "Our purpose is to serve others," Biden said. "We're all created equal in the image of God and deserve to be treated with dignity and respect our entire lives. We've never fully lived up to that, but we've never fully walked away from it either." 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 Biden spoke about leading the country through the COVID-19 pandemic, his efforts to eliminate student loan debt and boasted about his administration seeing the lowest unemployment rate for African Americans since the 1970s. "We just have to work together," Biden said, receiving cheers and applause, adding that "we have to bring back dignity and hope in America" and "we must unite America again." The church celebrated Biden's speech, explaining in a Facebook post that the congregation was "honored to welcome President Biden to our church this morning." "His message of unity and hope resonated deeply with our congregation as we continue to pray for the healing of our nation. We are grateful for his leadership and commitment to serving all Americans," stated Mount Airy. Biden's visit to the church comes after many within his own party and establishment news media have called on him to drop out of the presidential race due to his widely criticized performance at his first debate against Republican challenger Donald Trump and questions surrounding his health. Bishop J. Louis Felton prayed for God to renew Biden's mind, body and spirit, saying that Biden is the "man we need during these [perilous] times." "Father, I remember a bumper sticker on a senior citizen's car that said, 'I may be slow, but I'm in front of you,'" the bishop said. "Use our president. Use his experience. Use his handicaps and be glorified in his life." Earlier in his remarks, Felton said he wasn't sure why people wanted to make "an issue" of Biden's "condition of stammering and not being able at certain times to bring forth words while another person lies fluently, and you never challenged his lies." He pushed back on remarks former President Trump made during the presidential debate last month about his comments surrounding the 2017 Charlottesville, Virginia, white supremacist rally and the 2021 U.S. Capitol riot. "You are not the party of law," Felton said in response to Trump before seemingly praising the Democratic Party. "We are right. We are the party of law. We are the party of respect. We are the party of reconciliation. We have the big tent. We have genuine love for America." Felton also responded to secular critics who questioned why the president was giving a speech at the church "in as much as there is such thing as separation of church and state." "We are firm believers in separation of church and state," he said. "We are separated but we are not divorced. Since we are not divorced, we still have visitation rights. The president has a right to be here." During a private call among Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives on Sunday, several congressmen demanded that Biden end his reelection campaign, Politico reported. Those on the call who wanted Biden to stand down included Jerry Nadler of New York, Adam Smith of Washington state, Mark Takano of California and Joe Morelle of New York. Biden, who already received enough votes during the Democrat Primary season to secure the party nomination, has refused to withdraw his presidential candidacy. In a Wednesday meeting with around 20 Democratic governors, the 81-year-old Biden said that he needed more sleep and to work fewer hours. When Biden was pressed on the call about his health, three sources who spoke with The New York Times recalled Biden saying that he is in good health but suggested "It's just my brain." Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania is among congressional Democrats who continue to support Biden, arguing that a single debate performance should not define the incumbent candidate. "I'm unwilling to discard a great president, a decent man and a loving father after 50 years in public service, over a 90 minute debate," tweeted Fetterman. "Responding with disorder, panic and disloyalty is not meeting this moment." Home News Christian leaders respond to suicide bombings in Nigeria Christian leaders in Nigeria expressed shock and dismay at suicide attacks in Gwoza, Borno state that killed both Muslims and Christians. We are concerned about the resurgence of suicide bombing in our country and the threat it poses to the lives and livelihoods of Nigerians, said Archbishop Daniel Okoh, president of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), about the June 29 attacks in a statement issued on behalf of Nigerian Christian leaders on July 3. This senseless act of violence is a stark reminder of the evil that terrorism represents and the need for collective action to defeat it. Beginning with a female suicide bombing at a wedding of a Muslim couple, at least two other suicide bombings at other locations followed, killing more than 30 people and wounding many more, said Nigerian Vice President Kashim Shetim. 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 two subsequent bombings on June 29 targeted a funeral and a hospital in Gwoza, close to the border with Cameroon. No one has taken responsibility for the bombings, though Islamic extremist group Boko Haram and the terrorist group with which a faction has aligned, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), have long been active in the area and are suspected. Muslim victims killed during the attacks on Saturday were moved immediately to the towns cemetery for burial, where the second female suicide bomber struck. Christians who were able to identify victims in the first blast took them and buried the bodies on June 30. As Boko Haram and ISWAP are motivated by a radical Islamist ideology, they treat Muslims who do not profess their view as infidels and target them as they do Christians. Boko Harams 15-year drive to impose Sharia (Islamic law) throughout Nigeria originated in Borno state, displacing more than 2 million people and killing more than 40,000. In Saturdays attacks, injuries reportedly included skull and limb fractures. Okoh commended security agents for their efforts to contain terrorism. We encourage them not to relent in their efforts, as every necessary intervention is welcome to prevent a relapse into the dark days of suicide attacks, he said. We must not let down our guards, as the situation could escalate and affect not only innocent lives but also worship centers and other large gatherings. The president of the Church of Christ in Nations (COCIN), the Rev. Amos Mohzo, is a native of Gwoza County. He told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that he lost some church members and relatives in the attacks. Pastor Mohzo called for the government to make concerted efforts to stop terrorists in Nigeria. Nigeria remained the deadliest place in the world to follow Christ, with 4,118 people killed for their faith from Oct. 1, 2022 to Sept. 30, 2023, according to Open Doors 2024 World Watch List (WWL) report. More kidnappings of Christians than in any other country also took place in Nigeria, with 3,300. Nigeria was also the third highest country in number of attacks on churches and other Christian buildings such as hospitals, schools and cemeteries, with 750, according to the report. In the 2024 WWL of the countries where it's most difficult to be a Christian, Nigeria was ranked No. 6, as it was in the previous year. Originally published by Christian Daily International-Morning Star News Home News Trump proposes GOP platform that softens abortion stance despite pleas from Christian conservatives A proposed Republican Party platform backed by presumptive presidential nominee, former President Donald Trump, would soften the pro-life stance of the GOP, removing calls for federal restrictions to abortion access and language opposing same-sex marriage. The 2024 Republican convention platform committee reportedly voted 84-18 on Monday during a closed-door session in favor of the proposed abortion plank, which does not call for a national abortion ban nor a constitutional amendment to protect unborn human life. In 2016 and 2020, Trump ran on a platform that called for a constitutional amendment to protect unborn life and for a national abortion ban with some exceptions at 20 weeks into a pregnancy. But in the build-up of the 2024 race, Trump has openly expressed support for states to determine their own abortion laws and pushed back on social conservatives seeking to enact federal restrictions on abortion. Trump previously criticized Florida for passing a six-week abortion ban. 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 document references the overturning of the U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision that had declared abortion to be a constitutional right. Trump nominated three of the justices involved in the decision to overturn Roe, and he has taken credit in his campaign speeches for that decision. "After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the states and to a vote of the people," reads the document in part, according to a copy obtained by The Washington Post. "We will oppose late term abortion while supporting mothers and policies that advance prenatal care, access to birth control, and IVF (fertility treatments). Trump's platform draft also removes language condemning the U.S. Supreme Court's 2015 decision making same-sex marriage a national right, according to The Post. The new draft doesn't weigh in on same-sex marriage and states that "Republicans will promote a culture that values the sanctity of marriage, the blessings of childhood, and the foundational role of families, and supports working parents." Conservative Christian groups have lobbied the GOP to retain the socially conservative planks of the Republican Party platform, including its pro-life stance. The Washington-based Family Research Council launched the Platform Integrity Project along with several other Christian and conservative groups. "Party platforms matter," FRC President Tony Perkins, a platform committee member, said in a statement. "They state a party's principles and priorities. America is an unprecedented place of moral and cultural confusion and is in dire need of leadership and moral clarity." "The Republican Party must once again communicate a clear and hopeful contrast between the parties by painting a message for voters on the foundational issues life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness not in pale pastels but in bright, bold colors." Ralph Reed, founder and chair of the Faith & Freedom Coalition and a longtime Christian conservative political activist, believes the language is "unapologetically pro-life." "The Republican Party platform makes clear the unborn child has a right to life that is protected by the Constitution under the due process clause of the 14th amendment," Reed told Politico. "That language has been in the GOP platform for 40 years and reflects the view of Ronald Reagan." "While aspirational, it applies to both the states and the federal government," he added. "The proposed ban on late term abortion also implies federal as well as state action." Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, a 2016 presidential candidate, told CNN that he supported making the Republican platform "reflect our nominee." "Our nominee's position happens to be one grounded in reality. The reality of it is the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade. What that basically means is now it's not states, it's voters at individual states who will get to decide how and what level they want to restrict abortion, if at all," he said. "I also think it's important to remember that Democrats, their last platform, basically endorsed abortion paid for by taxpayers at any time without any restrictions. I think the question here is are they going to have a radical plank in their platform that requires Americans to pay for abortions at any time for any reason up until the moment of birth." Perkins disagrees with Rubio. "I'm stunned by Sen. Marco Rubio's capitulation to the forces of abortion," Perkins tweeted. "There are so many inaccuracies in his comments that I don't know where to start. First, a human life amendment has never been within political reach, it has always been aspirational and so it should remain. I can assure you that if the GOP abandons the unborn in the Party Platform, it will dampen Bible-believing, conservative voter enthusiasm and turnout." Last week, Perkins sent a letter to Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley opposing what he called an unprecedented "RNC Gag Rule," which he said "restricts access to the deliberations of various committees and subcommittees only to the credentialed delegates of those committees." The rule made it so "neither guests nor the press will be allowed to observe the platform committee or subcommitttee decisions of the Party's principles and policy priorities." "The RNC Gag Rule heightens speculation that the GOP platform will be watered down to a few pages of meaningless, poll-tested talking points," Perkins lamented. Home Opinion Dealing with cosmic tyrants One of the oldest and most often repeated lies about religion and Christianity, in particular, is that its responsible for the majority of historical wars and bloodshed. Au contraire. Theres no question that atrocities have occurred because of religion (e.g., ISIS, the Crusades, the Thirty Years War, etc.). Still, they barely register on historys violence Geiger counter compared to the carnage and body count produced by secular governments. Hitler, Stalin, Pol Pot, take your pick. 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 For proof, look to historians Philip and Axelrods three-volume Encyclopedia of Wars which shows that of the 1,763 wars waged throughout human history, only 123 have been religious in nature. That amounts to a surprisingly low 6.98% of all wars resulting from religion. Further, when wars carried out in the name of Islam are subtracted, the percentage falls to 3.23%, meaning that all religions combined minus Islam have been responsible for less than 4% of all humanitys wars and violent conflicts. The sobering fact that secular despotic governments account for the vast majority of all violence and war in human history is summed up by political science professor R. J. Rummel this way in his book, Death by Government: Almost 170 million men, women and children have been shot, beaten, tortured, knifed, burned, starved, frozen, crushed or worked to death; buried alive, drowned, hung, bombed or killed in any other of a myriad of ways governments have inflicted death on unarmed, helpless citizens and foreigners. The dead could conceivably be nearly 360 million people. It is though our species has been devastated by a modern Black Plague. And indeed it has, but a plague of Power, not germs. Does reading Rummels synopsis of our violence give you pause? It sure has that effect on me and also makes me wonder while I know the Bible says that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually (Gen. 6:5), the degree of such atrocious behavior seems to exceed what even we are capable of. Almost like theres a higher-order evil thats masterminding the whole thing. And not surprisingly, thats exactly what the Bible says is happening. Suit up If youve been around the block a few times with your Bible, you know that Ephesians 6 is the chapter where the apostle Paul famously instructs us to suit up with the armor of God (vv. 11, 13-18). But the reason why were told to do so is because the evil we see around us has spiritual puppet masters behind the scenes pulling the strings of their human marionettes. Paul begins by saying, For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood (vs. 12), with the term wrestle indicating a very personal, intense, hand-to-hand encounter. If you used to compete in wrestling like I did, you know its one of the most exhausting physical activities on the planet. And exhausting perfectly describes how it feels to deal with all the evil our culture oozes from its pores. The apostle then goes on to tell us who were up against: the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places. Of those listed, the most interesting one to me is cosmic power, which is the Greek term kosmokrator (used only here in the Bible) that denotes a cosmic tyrant, a power that presides over this present darkness. When R. J. Rummel says were suffering from a plague of Power, he didnt know how right he was it doesnt get any worse than that. Scripture tells us repeatedly that the devil owns our space. It says, the whole world lies in the power of the evil one (1 John 5:19); that he is the prince of the power of the air, with Jesus referring to him multiple times as the ruler of this world (John 12:31, 14:30) and not disputing his claim during His wilderness temptation when the devil said of the world: it has been handed over to me, and I give it to whomever I wish (Luke 4:6). That being true, what are we to do? First, we need to recognize the deeds of the cosmic tyrants and not be fooled by the angel of lights (2 Cor. 11:14) surface-level appearance, which can sometimes be enticing. As Hamlet said, The spirit that I have seen may be a devil; and the devil hath power to assume a pleasing shape. Next, realize that the worst blow any of us can deal against the ones ruling over this present darkness is to bring someone into the light of Gods salvation. Gospel means good news on the battlefield, which is exactly what happens when someone receives Christ. This is why Paul referenced the enemys commanders when speaking about how the Gospel came so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places (Eph. 3:10). Remember also, The Son of God appeared for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. (1 John 3:8). Lastly, dont forget that all the evil cosmic tyrants operate only under the permissive will of the ultimate Cosmic Ruler who has them all on a leash. Sometimes that tether seems too long for our liking, but in the end, God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose (Rom. 8:28). And sometimes, God reaches down and deals a supernatural defeat against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places that manipulate evil people. Take for example the historical account of the Assyrian king Sennacherib who came against Jerusalem to destroy it as he had other nations (see 2 Chron. 32:9-22). God miraculously destroyed Sennacheribs army sending the Assyrian king home to be murdered by his own children. This episode is not only in the Bible but in other historians accounts as well. An archaeological find, Sennacherib's Prism, which was discovered in the ruins of Nineveh in 1830, details the events of Sennacherib's campaign against Judah and bragged that he had trapped Hezekiah like a bird in a cage, which is exactly how the Bible depicts the event. But although Sennacherib boasted he had overcome all other nations; nothing is found about him taking Jerusalem. Instead, the Greek historian Herodotus records that Sennacherib failed due to being overrun by a horde of field mice that gnawed quivers and bows and the handles of shields, with the result that many were killed fleeing unarmed the next day. Or, God routed Sennacherib and his cosmic tyrant puppets just as Scripture says. Sometimes God punches through our space-time continuum Himself to KO the evil forces we cant see like in Sennacheribs case and other times we fret as He appears to let them have the upper hand. But sooner or later, His justice hammer falls on both the invisible cosmic tyrants and their in-the-flesh pawns. As A. W. Tozer said, The wheels of Gods justice may grind slow, but they grind exceedingly fine. Until His grinder stops, lets continue to do our part by making as many sons and daughters of light as we can. Archbishop who opposed Pope Francis excommunicated from Catholic Church (CP) A Roman Catholic archbishop who questioned the legitimacy of Pope Francis and portions of the Second Vatican Council has been excommunicated from the Catholic Church for the canonical crime of schism. Carlo Maria Vigano, 83, who served as the Vatican's ambassador to the United States from 2011 to 2016, was informed Friday by the Vatican's doctrinal office that it had found him guilty, according to a press release from the Holy See. "His public statements manifesting his refusal to recognize and submit to the Supreme Pontiff, his rejection of communion with the members of the Church subject to him, and of the legitimacy and magisterial authority of the Second Vatican Council are well known," the Vatican said. "At the conclusion of the penal process, the Most Reverend Carlo Maria Vigano was found guilty of the reserved delict of schism," the Vatican added. According to canon law, schism is defined as a "refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him." The decision from the Vatican comes two weeks after the Catholic Church's disciplinary body issued a decree summoning Vigano to an extrajudicial trial in Rome for "the crime of schism." The archbishop did not appear at his own trial, according to The Washington Post. He had earlier tweeted that he assumed his sentence "has already been prepared, given that it is an extrajudicial process." In a lengthy statement on June 20, the prelate said he considered the charges against him "an honor." Now that he is excommunicated, he is formally considered to be outside of the Catholic Church and is barred from partaking in Catholic sacraments, including Communion, and is forbidden from ordaining priests or officiating Mass. Vigano had drawn attention in recent years by calling for the resignation of Pope Francis, whom he refers to using his given name Jorge Mario Bergoglio. In 2020, Vigano accused a cabal of leaders within the Catholic Church of permitting "heresy, sodomy and corruption" to run amok in the institution. In a letter to then-President Donald Trump, he claimed there was a "deep church" that was enabling evil. He described a group as "mercenary infidels who seek to scatter the flock and hand the sheep over to be devoured by ravenous wolves." Vigano also penned a letter in 2018 that alleged dozens of former and current high-level Catholic officials covered up accusations of sexual abuse against disgraced former Cardinal Theodore McCarrick, according to the National Catholic Register. Vigano took special aim at the pope, accusing him of ignoring his predecessor's sanctions against McCarrick and urging him to resign to "set a good example for cardinals and bishops who covered up McCarrick's abuses." Weeks before his schism charge, Vigano alleged on May 29 that Francis had committed the "same abuses" as McCarrick while serving as a bishop in Argentina, though he offered no evidence. "Bergoglio does not want to oust homosexual seminarians and priests: he rather wants to complete the work of infiltration and corruption of the Clergy through homosexuality and pedophilia, so that by declassifying the serious sinfulness of sodomy and corruption of minors the door opens on the civil front to decriminalization of these crimes," Vigano said at the time. Vigano was relatively muted in his response to his excommunication on social media, though he retweeted figures such as Gen. Michael Flynn, who accused the pope of hurling the Catholic Church into a state of schism. "The church under this dark Pope is in a state of Schism," Flynn tweeted. "Church leaders and the laity world wide, especially in America, need to wake up. When someone of [Vigano's] stature is excommunicated, we Catholics are in serious trouble. Like many other globalist institutions, the Church of Rome under Bergoglio is out of touch with the sentiment of their ekklesia." "I say to my brothers: 'If you are silent, the stones will cry out,'" Vigano also tweeted, citing Luke 19:40. The Christian Post Church of England continues on path towards same-sex blessings The Church of England's parliamentary body today agreed to continue moving forward with plans to introduce standalone services of blessing for same-sex couples. A motion asking that bishops revise current Pastoral Guidance that restricts the use of the Prayers of Love and Faith (PLF) in standalone services was backed by all three houses in the General Synod. The vote revealed the depth of divisions in the Church of England with 22 bishops voting for and 12 against, with five abstentions. In the House of Clergy, 99 voted for and 88 against, with two abstentions, while in the House of Laity, 95 voted for and 91 against, with two abstentions. The motion committed the House of Bishops to report back to Synod in February 2025 on further theological work into the implications of PLF for the doctrine of marriage, and clergy in same-sex civil marriages. Bishop Martyn Snow, lead bishop for the Living in Love and Faith process, said he had heard the concerns of both sides of the debate and wanted them to know that "you have a place in the Church of England, you are loved by God, we want you to be sat at the table". He insisted that no one was being forced out of the Church and that introducing the prayers does not amount to a change in doctrine on marriage or sex outside of marriage. "They are intended as simple prayers which send out a strong message of welcome," he said. The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, said that the last 18 months since Synod first approved the process towards PLF had "felt like 18 months of trench warfare on this issue", as he asked Synod members to "put down our rifles". He denied that PLF amounted to a change in doctrine and said that no one would be "asked to do what their conscience cannot allow". In the days leading up to the debate, the Alliance network of traditionalist Anglicans in the Church of England wrote to the Archbishops of Canterbury and York warning that if standalone PLF services are introduced, they will "have no choice but rapidly to establish what would in effect be a new de facto 'parallel Province' within the Church of England and to seek pastoral oversight from bishops who remain faithful to orthodox teaching on marriage and sexuality". In a written response issued prior to Synod, the Bishop of Oxford, Steven Croft, called the letter "threatening" and "catastrophising". Addressing Alliance members during the Synod debate, Bishop Snow said, "I know that you want to remain in the Church of England and I am grateful for your commitment to continue in conversation with us." The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, added that he "cannot imagine the Church of England without the Alliance network members and friends". Helen Lamb, a lay Synod member who signed the Alliance letter, was sceptical about the promises. "Thank you for words of wanting to listen, wanting to engage ... but I'm afraid I'll believe it when I see it," she said. "We want to stay on the bus; please don't run us over." Rev Vaughan Roberts warned that the Church of England risked going the same way as the Episcopal Church in the US, which split over the issue of same-sex marriage and blessings. He warned that the proposals did not offer "a trajectory that makes us believe there's a place for us", and warned that "the consequences could be massive". Evangelical Anglican theologian and blogger, Rev Ian Paul, echoed these fears and predicted that trust "will finally be broken" and the "Church will split". He went on to warn that the Church "will continue in serious decline". "In 14 years we have halved in size," he said. "In one diocese, the number of children attending has dropped by 50 per cent in four years and there are no real signs that this is slowing yet, let alone reversing. "After the Scottish Episcopal Church changed its doctrine of marriage, it declined by 40 per cent in six years. The Church of Scotland will be extinct by around 2038, in just 14 years from now. "No Western denomination has changed its doctrine of marriage without then accelerating in decline. We will be no different. This is not catastrophising. This is not a power play. This is honesty. My friends, this is reality." He said that if people did want to vote for the motion, they should do so "with your eyes wide open, knowing it will destroy trust, knowing it will divide the Church, knowing it will lead to greater decline". "Personally I don't feel that any of these things are a demonstration of the love of God," he said. "Vote for this only if you think distrust, disunity, decline are the price worth paying." Church of England recognises human dignity of disabled children The General Synod of the Church of England made their first request to the new government and unusually it was something that everyone in the chamber could support. In a multi-faceted motion that was inspired by the experience of Christine, a church member from Wigan, Synod voted to call on "His Majesty's Government and healthcare providers to ensure that mothers whose unborn child may be disabled in any way are given comprehensive and unbiased information about the condition and support available to them". Rev Pete Spiers, who is himself affected by the drug thalidomide, proposed the motion, which began by affirming that "every person is unique and precious and made in the image of God"; challenged the "common assumption that bringing a disabled child into the world is a tragedy to be avoided"; and called for greater "support for parents and families of children born with disabilities" from both public authorities and church bodies. He spoke of an informal group in his diocese, known as The Magnificat Group, that brings together "people with experiences of disability, baby loss and of good and bad examples of support and advice given to parents and to children when hearing the news of an unexpected pregnancy". With more than 3,000 abortions in England and Wales due to disability each year, Pete shared his concern that "The Church was in danger of falling into silence over an issue deemed too difficult." Yet he needn't have worried. For almost an hour a stream of Synod members shared their experiences and their support for the motion. There were those, like Pete, who gave thanks they had been born before genetic screening was common. Mary Bucknall, who along with her sister, was born profoundly deaf, said, "Some would argue that it would be better not to be born at all with a disability, however I do believe that God had a purpose when he created the disabled people in the womb - so that his love and care could be displayed for all to see. I myself have experienced God's love and care through many wonderful people I have met on my life journey." Lay Synod member Rebecca Chapman described "the treadmill of testing" she faced when soft markers showed up on her 20-week scan. The Archbishop of Canterbury spoke about Ellie, his neurodivergent daughter, now 32, and the test offered to his wife during pregnancy, when it was made very clear that if it "proved positive, it would be expected that we asked for a termination. It was not a neutral process because they said, 'It's expensive'." Another member of Deaf Anglicans Together, Elaine Heath, signed her speech to an interpreter. She spoke of her own experience of being pregnant at 38 and of the doctors who said, "'Well, gosh you're nearly 40' and so they said I would need a test ... I didn't want them to do that because I didn't want to have an abortion". Parents spoke of the joys and struggles of bringing up disabled children, those with Down's Syndrome, the neurodiverse, those with severe learning difficulties or invisible physical disabilities. There was not a dry eye in the house as one grandmother spoke of the experience of supporting her daughter and son-in-law as "they grappled with the information" that their "precious baby boy had developed severe brain impairment, incompatible with life ... I was privileged to name and bless my beautiful grandson who I know is with Jesus," she said. But she asked for prayer for her daughter who has struggled to find "appropriate support that acknowledges her pain as a mother with empty arms". A common theme among parents of disabled children was the challenge of supporting them into adulthood, as Rev Alice Kemp, said, "It's a really difficult time, that transition time when all the support you had from hospitals, children's hospitals, schools, therapists, disappears sometimes overnight. Transition is meant to be gradual but the reality is it isn't and we often we find ourselves at our children's 18th birthday and the world is changed." Communities like L'Arche were praised, as were those that offer opportunities for meaningful employment. Rev Kate Wharton said that the highlight of her time at Synod was hearing the campaigner, Heidi Crowter, preach a semon on Psalm 139: "Heidi said this, 'God made us every single bit including my extra chromosome. God made our inmost being, which I think is who we really are so we should use our whole person for God's glory." Time ran out before Rev Neil Barber, who also has the joy of knowing the Crowter family, could share his story of parenting a child with significant learning disabilities. "Parents of children with additional needs often carry huge unseen burdens in many areas of their lives, and there are too many bad news stories of families with special needs giving up on church because it's just too difficult," he said after the debate. "I thank God for a church community who have loved and blessed my family - through our son's childhood and now into adulthood. It takes effort and determination. But it'll only really happen when, from the grass roots up, church is literally good news to all. And, as Heidi pointed out to me, that is nothing less than Jesus requires." Sir Keir Starmer may hope to run a government unburdened by doctrine but after Sunday's debate there is no doubt that the General Synod wishes to remind him, and his parliamentary colleagues, that every person is unique and precious and made in the image of God. The whole debate can be watched here Islam, sectarianism and the General Election If you were asked which was the sixth largest political party in the UK, bigger and more successful than the Green Party or Plaid Cymru, equal to the DUP and Reform, in which direction would your guess take you? Plaid Cymru want greater representation for the Welsh in our shared Parliament, the Green Party want these islands cleaner and greener. The DUP are pursuing a particular political balancing act in Northern Ireland and Reform want to mend Conservatism throughout these islands. But the five independent pro-Gaza MPs who were elected stood on a platform which demanded support for a genocidal struggle to remove the Jewish people from their historic homeland, and ensure the victory of the Palestinians in general and the terrorist group Hamas in particular. What has this aim got to do with British domestic politics? Nothing. What has it got to do with the body politic in these islands? Very little. Instead it is the importing of a 1,500-year feud between the followers of Muhammad and the Jewish community who refused to accept his claims to be a legitimate prophet speaking on behalf of their God. The dominant perspective behind an immigration policy that has driven the enormous increase in the practice of Islam in these islands has been a dogmatic multiculturalism driven hard by the Left. The assumption was always that Islam would integrate with Western secular society - an exercise in wishful thinking produced by a certain mixture of hubris, ignorance and myopia that both underestimates and misunderstands what Islam is, and what it asks of its followers. There was always going to be a moment when Islam broke the surface of the political pond and emerged in its own right. Until this election, it largely hid behind Labour as an element in its support base. The most recent catalyst that produced the signs that Islam was going to emerge as a political entity in its own right was of course the slaughter by Hamas of over a thousand Israeli civilians on October 7, 2024. Muslims reacted with fury when Israel defended herself by pursuing Hamas in Gaza. A regional conflict rooted in the Middle East found itself replicated and inserted into every community in the West where Muslims were to be found in significant numbers. Initially what was described as sectarian violence spilled out onto the streets in the form of enormous demonstrations for Palestine and against Israel in a way that was fuelled by a highly sophisticated campaign of Palestinian propaganda which presented Muslims as the wounded, vulnerable victims of firstly Jews, and then secondly anyone who refused to join in the campaign to crush Israel in particular and Jews in general wherever they might be found. There were grotesque moments such as when Muslim mobs in Russia's mostly Muslim region of Dagestan stormed the airport in Makhachkala in search of Jewish passengers arriving from Israel. The outbreak of toxic antisemitism within the Labour party presented the Labour Party with a difficulty it could not find a solution to. The Labor movement found itself caught between two victim narratives and would inevitably fall short in the face of Islamic calls for Jewish genocide. Frustrated with what from an Islamic viewpoint was the inadequacy of the Labour leadership's response, the fury against Israel broke through formally into political sectarianism at the General Election this month when Islamic independents stood against Labour candidates in a trial of strength. Labour lost four seats outright to pro-Palestinian independent candidates in constituencies with a large Muslim presence. In Blackburn, the constituency once held by former home secretary Jack Straw, Labour's Kate Hollern lost by 132 votes to the independent Adnan Hussain. In Dewsbury and Batley, Heather Iqbal, a former adviser to the new chancellor, Rachel Reeves, lost by nearly 7,000 votes to Iqbal Mohamed. In Birmingham Perry Barr, the former Labour MP Khalid Mahmood lost to the independent Ayoub Khan. In Birmingham Hodge Hill, the former cabinet minister Liam Byrne won by just over 1,500 votes over James Giles, the candidate for George Galloway's Workers Party of Britain. Shadow cabinet minister Jonathan Ashworth was one of the four to lose his seat for Leicester South, an area where 35% of the population identify as Muslim. His seat was captured by an independent candidate Shockat Adam, running on a pro-Palestinian ticket, who won by 979 votes. Celebrating his win, he claimed that his victory was an indication to those who had been in power so long that they had forgotten the people they were serving. "This is for the people of Gaza," he claimed. This represented a radical new reconfiguration of British politics. Suddenly the people to be served were a conflation of local Muslims and the very much non-local people of Gaza. It is clear now that the four seats that Labour lost to pro-Palestinian independents are just the latest, and most dramatic, expression of Muslim political power, growing in proportion with the overall Muslim population. The realisation that the mayors of London, Oldham, Luton, Oxford, and Blackburn are all Muslims provides a stark reminder of the spread of the influence of Islam on local politics as well as the national platform that has been secured. Muslims are now able in those areas where they constitute more than a third of the population they need not be a majority, for Muslims vote as a bloc to elect those who will demand that the government adopt anti-Israel policies. Shaista Aziz, a former Labour councillor commented in an article she wrote for Al Jazeera: "The pro-Palestine left made a significant impact on this election. But the fight is far from over. Now that the Tories are out, and Labour is in power, this non-homogenous group needs to unite further, and develop new strategies to pressure the new government to take meaningful action on issues that matter to them, starting with the war in Gaza." This is a rallying cry to the new Islamic MPs at Westminster to use the democratic machinery of the UK government to pursue Islamic agendas. I remember the profound shock and surprise I felt when a highly respected academic colleague told me that the overt aim of the Muslim community in the UK was to take advantage of the combined factors of mass immigration, a higher birth rate, and an Islamic block vote in elections to ensure that the combination of demography and democracy would reshape British politics to reflect Islamic political, religious and cultural ambitions over the coming decades of this century. The next most significant threat that we face in our society is the government adopting a harsh and restrictive definition of Islamophobia, which it intends to legislate against. This will make it effectively impossible to discuss Islam in public. It's just possible that Jess Phillips - having nearly lost her seat in Birmingham and experienced aggressive heckling at her acceptance speech after suffering profoundly disturbing levels of intimidation and aggression during her campaign - may change her mind about Labour policy on Islamophobia. We face two problems. Firstly, the growing power and influence of Islamic sectarianism, but making it so much worse, the inability to use the 'I-' word in any public discussion. Murders are described as 'terror' with no mention that they were done in the name of Islam. The importation of Palestinian rage against Israel is covered up with 'sectarian politics' instead of Islamic antisemitism. And, if the Government's plans to criminalise Islamophobia are carried through, self-censorship will become state censorship. Knowing how to respond to this change in our political, social and religious landscape is going to be hard enough as it is. Being fined or sent to prison for talking about it will make things infinitely worse. Jess Phillips, over to you. With new patriarch, Bulgarian Orthodox Church turns toward Moscow A tense election in the Bulgarian Orthodox Church on 30 June ended with the enthronement of Metropolitan Daniil of Vidin as the new metropolitan of Sofia and patriarch of all Bulgaria, giving the Russian Orthodox Church in Moscow an apparent ally as the church and its sponsor, Vladimir Putin, look to strengthen its influence in the Balkans. A 52-year-old former monk, Daniil was elected by just three votes over his main competitor, Metropolitan Grigori of Vratsa, by the 140 lay and clerical delegates on the church's electoral council. At 52, just two years older than the minimum age church law allows for the Patriarch, Daniil will likely hold the post for many years. Since the outbreak of full-scale war between Russia and Ukraine in 2022, churches across Eastern Europe have been riven over their connections with the world's largest Orthodox body, the Moscow Patriarchate, and recognition of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine, which proclaimed its independence in 2018. Many who opposed Daniil worry that his election represents a sharp turn away from the policies of his predecessor Neophyte I, who is remembered as a unifier. "For many of us observers, these elections were a referendum of where a Bulgarian church is heading in terms of the wider Orthodox Church," Andreja Bogdanovski, a scholar and analyst on Orthodox Christianity, told RNS. "Up until a week ago, there was a distinction between pro-Russian groups among the hierarchies and also those who want to see closer relations with the Orthodox Church of Ukraine and the Ecumenical Patriarch." Eastern Orthodoxy is a fellowship of more than a dozen independent churches "autocephalous" in Greek each led by a patriarch or other leader and ruling a defined geographical region. In 2019, Russia broke communion with Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople, regarded as the "first among equals" among the patriarchs, after Bartholomew recognized the move by Ukraine's anti-Moscow Orthodox Christians to organize as a semi-independent church. The move prompted Kirill to declare the Russian invasion to be a holy war. Since then, Bartholomew has lent his support to other Orthodox parishes seeking to exit from the Russian church and brought them under his wing. In Ukraine, the United States and elsewhere, Russia has been accused of using its church as a sort of shadow foreign service, or even a spy network. Last summer, the ROC's top-ranking priest in Bulgaria was expelled from the country on charges of espionage. The Bulgarian Church, however, has not taken a final position on Ukraine's autocephaly, despite Neophyte I's sometimes harsh criticism of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Daniil, on the other hand, has rejected calling Russia the aggressor in the war and has spoken out harshly against the independence of the Ukrainian independent church while attacking his Bulgarian church colleagues who have supported it. In 2019, Daniil's letter to Orthodox leaders around the world strongly criticizing the Ukrainian Church earned him a rebuke from the synod of the Bulgarian Church. Days before his election, in an interview with Bulgarian media, Daniil compared the Ukrainian Church's independence with Soviet repression of the church, comparing the Soviets' "slaughter of priests, destruction of hundreds and thousands of temples, attempt to replace the institution itself through a renewed schism," to the creation of "the so-called Orthodox Church in Ukraine." Daniil had a close relationship with Archimandrite Vassian, the Russian Orthodox priest expelled last summer, after which he publicly defended the accused spy and lambasted the Bulgarian synod for its decision to briefly take over operation of the Russian Church. "His actions are being perceived as very pro-Russian, giving us a hint about what the future holds for the church, which has closer ties to Moscow and Patriarch Kirill strengthening his influence in southeastern Europe," said Bogdanovski. For his part, Kirill congratulated Daniil in a statement, saying, "Today the Russian Orthodox Church sincerely rejoices together with its beloved Sister Church, for standing at its helm is a God-wise hierarch known for his piety, firm commitment to the sacred canonical order and willingness to work selflessly, strengthening the ecclesiastical unity." Daniil's enthronement comes at a time when the Russian church has been strongly focused on building its support in the Slavic countries of southeastern Europe. The Russian church has long had strong ties with the Serbian Orthodox Church, much as the Russian state has with the Serbian government under the presidency of Aleksandar Vucic. While Russia had broken ties with Constantinople over the autocephaly of the Ukrainian Church, it backed the 2022 decision to grant autocephaly to North Macedonia's orthodox Christians who had previously been subsumed under the Serbian church. That angered Constantinople, but also Greece, which objected to the church being named "Macedonian," just as they had blocked the state from joining NATO until it added "North" to its name. While Bulgarians have been more divided on Russia than other European Union states, a majority still view Putin unfavorably and feel that Russian influence is a threat to both the EU and NATO, according to recent polling. Religion News Service We're always interested in hearing about news in our community. Let us know what's going on! Go to form A glimpse into smart factory where a hybrid engine is completed in just 53 seconds People's Daily Online) 09:54, July 08, 2024 In the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, a 1.5T hybrid engine is completed in just 53 seconds. An industrial robot assembles an engine in the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) The factory boasts over 300 sets of smart equipment, more than 200 robots and over 150 unmanned logistics vehicles, which work together to produce engines on the automated production line. Photo shows hybrid engines on the production line in the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) A worker operates a robot to assemble engines in the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) "We can produce more than 300,000 sets of hybrid engines annually. This is inseparable from the application of digitalization," said Huang Qingmin, director of the innovation and development center of the company. The smart factory uses a wide range of equipment, including a camera-based vision system, smart sensors, electronic labeling, and so on, to monitor and analyze data in real time. Workers check engines before they roll off the production line in the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) Photo shows a 1.5T hybrid engine manufactured in the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) The 1.5T hybrid engine, a collaborative effort between SAIC-GM-Wuling (SGMW) and Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd., stands out in its class with its thermal efficiency of 43.2 percent. The engine surpasses its competitors by achieving a reduction of more than 35 percent in overall fuel consumption, making it a cost-effective and economically efficient choice. Its exceptional performance places it at the forefront of the industry. Photo shows the smart factory of Liuzhou Saike Technology Development Co., Ltd. in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. (People's Daily Online/Fu Huazhou) Liuzhou is making vigorous efforts to build a new ecosystem for a new energy vehicle industry that is driven by innovation, led by major enterprises and pursues the development of industrial clusters. The city is ramping up efforts to foster the development of new quality productive forces and implementing various strategies to attract investment from companies along the industrial chain, striving to build itself into a global hub for the new energy vehicle industry. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) 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. UN Women Moldova Country Office is looking for a Communication Officer. Reporting to the Project Management Specialist, the Communications Officer ensures the timely and quality formulation and implementation of the communications and advocacy plans to increase the standing and awareness of UN Women with partners, the media and the public. The Communication Officer will support advocacy efforts, maintenance of media relations, and organizational outreach efforts, in order to increase the standing and awareness of UN Women with partners, the media and the public. The Communications Officer collaborates closely with other Country Office colleagues, as well as the Regional Office counterparts, to ensure communications activities and organizational outreach efforts are aligned with corporate communications policies and initiatives and follow innovative approaches and good practices. The Communications Officer promotes a client-oriented approach in UN Women. Interested candidates are invited to submit their online applications by 14 July 2024 to UN WOMEN Jobs - 116592- Communications Officer/SB4.4 - Local post for Resi (undp.org) , with the following documents: Motivation letter; Duly filled UN Women Personal History form (P-11) which can be downloaded from: https://www.unwomen.org/sites/default/files/Headquarters/Attachments/Sections/About%20Us/Employment/UN-Women-P11-Personal-History-Form.doc . Applications without the completed UN Women P-11 form will be treated as incomplete and will not be considered for further assessment. Kindly note that the system will only allow one attachment. Only short-listed applicants will be contacted. Note: In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. The creation of UN Women came about as part of the UN reform agenda, bringing together resources and mandates for greater impact. It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system (DAW, OSAGI, INSTRAW and UNIFEM), which focused exclusively on gender equality and women's empowerment. Diversity and inclusion: At UN Women, we are committed to creating a diverse and inclusive environment of mutual respect. UN Women recruits, employs, trains, compensates, and promotes regardless of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, ability, national origin, or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, competence, integrity and organizational need. If you need any reasonable accommodation to support your participation in the recruitment and selection process, please include this information in your application. UN Women has a zero-tolerance policy on conduct that is incompatible with the aims and objectives of the United Nations and UN Women, including sexual exploitation and abuse, sexual harassment, abuse of authority and discrimination. All selected candidates will be expected to adhere to UN Womens policies and procedures and the standards of conduct expected of UN Women personnel and will therefore undergo rigorous reference and background checks. (Background checks will include the verification of academic credential(s) and employment history. Selected candidates may be required to provide additional information to conduct a background check. Keir Starmer has appointed former Labour shadow charities minister Lisa Nandy as culture secretary in his first cabinet as prime minister, which has been described as having the strongest charity sector background in modern history. Nandy, who was shadow international development minister prior to this years general election, said she was thrilled to lead the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). The Civil Society and Youth Directorate was part of DCMS prior to the election but the department has yet to confirm its portfolio for this parliament. Nandy said: As culture secretary, I will do everything I can to harness the limitless potential of the extraordinary people in these amazing sectors to drive economic growth, unlock opportunities for everyone and change lives for the better. The hard work begins today. Neil Heslop, chief executive of the Charities Aid Foundation, said: With considerable experience of working in frontline charities, the new secretary of state will recognise the sectors expertise in serving communities and delivering social impact. We look forward to working in partnership with the department to make sure the civil society sector thrives in the coming years. Sarah Elliott, CEO of NCVO, said: With Labours promise at the start of the year to reset the relationship between civil society and government and a cabinet now made up of ministers with charity sector experience, the scene is set for greater collaboration from day one. Its vital the new government sticks to this promise to unlock the potential for growth, stronger communities and a fairer society for all. We look forward to being part of that journey and are clear that the charity sector stands willing and ready to work with you. Elsewhere, Anneliese Dodds has been appointed as minister for international development. Romilly Greenhill, chief executive of NGO umbrella body Bond, said her organisation hopes to see aid spending return to 0.7% of the UK's Gross National Income under Doddss leadership. We hope in time to also see an independent department responsible for, and with autonomy over, the UK aid budget, she said. We look forward to working with her to pursue an approach to international development based on genuine respect and partnership with lower-middle income countries. Eight cabinet members with charity sector experience Eight members of Starmers cabinet have previously worked in the charity sector, according to an analysis by Pro Bono Economics (PBE), the highest number since Gordon Brown was prime minister. The cabinet also includes four former civil society ministers or shadows including Nandy, energy secretary Ed Miliband, environment secretary Steve Reed and leader of the House of Lords Baroness Smith. PBE director of policy and communications Nicole Sykes and senior research and policy analyst Jack Larkham wrote that Starmers cabinet has a greater depth and breadth of charity experience than Browns did. They note that work and pensions secretary Liz Kendalls experience at the Maternity Alliance, Nandys time at Centrepoint and the Childrens Society and health secretary Wes Streetings previous employment by the Helena Kennedy Foundation and Stonewall. Meanwhile, science secretary Peter Kyle spent five years as deputy chief executive of sector membership body ACEVO. An opportunity to grasp Sykes and Larkham wrote: Having eight members of the cabinet with first-hand knowledge of the challenges of charity commissioning, the burden of grant applications, the uncertainty of charity staffing, and the imperfect landscape of charity governance creates a convenient shortcut to delivering that change. These ministers dont need briefing on these issues: theyve lived them. So organisations trying to influence can jump straight to the change thats needed an efficiency thats likely to be welcome at this time of immense pressure. Having a cabinet with the strongest charity sector background in modern history is not a magical solution to the sectors woes, but it could be an opportunity to grasp. 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, Jonathan Freeman, new CEO of the Charity for Civil Servants New CEO for civil servant charity The Charity for Civil Servants has announced that Jonathan Freeman will take up the role of the CEO in September. He will replace Graham Hooper, who has led the charity for nine years. Freeman is founding CEO of CareTech Charitable Foundation, a grantmaking organisation, and was formerly interim CEO of the COSARAF Charitable Foundation from 2018 2021. Peter Schofield, chair of trustees, said: We are very lucky to have someone of Jonathans calibre joining the charity as CEO and I look forward to working closely with him, as the charity continues to offer such vital support to our civil service community. Stonewall appoints Simon Blake as CEO Stonewall has appointed Simon Blake as its incoming chief executive. Blake, who will begin his new role in September, is currently CEO of Mental Health First Aid England, a role he has held since October 2018. In an increasingly polarised world, empathy is built and change created through conversation, dialogue and alliances, said Blake. Stonewall has always been at the vanguard of change. I am honoured to have been appointed as CEO and I am excited to work with, for and on behalf of our diverse LGBTQ+ communities." Kids Village appoints first permanent CEO Kids Village, a charity which is aiming to build the UKs first holiday village providing free breaks for children with critical illnesses, has appointed Katrina Cooke as its first permanent CEO. Cooke joins Kids Village from the Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce, where she has most recently held the role of chief commercial officer. She takes over the helm from Paul Faulkner who has held the role of interim CEO since the charitys relaunch in January. On Call Africa CEO steps down Ben Margetts has announced he will step down as chief executive of international development charity On Call Africa in the next 10 months. He said: As we reach a critical stage of growth, I feel its important to have a CEO who is proximate to our work, driving it forward and ensuring alignment with the needs of the Zambian Health System. I remain passionate about our work and am committed to ensuring a smooth transition over the next 10 months. We aim to have a new CEO in place as soon as possible to facilitate a seamless handover before I move on. CIoF appoints chair The Chartered Institute of Fundraising (CIoF) has named Harpreet Kondel as its next chair. She will succeed Nadine Campbell, who has been in post for three years. Kondel is interim director of public income and engagement at RNIB and has 30 years experience in the sector. She works freelance for Halpin as a consulting fellow and is a trustee and chair of the fundraising committee at St John Ambulance. She has experience working in interim roles at MS Society, the Trussell Trust, Animals Asia and more. Blood cancer charity appoints chair Blood cancer charity Myeloma UK has appointed David Ereira as its chair. Ereira is a partner at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP and was a trustee and acting chair of Marie Curie. Im delighted and honoured to be taking up the position of chair of the Myeloma UK board of trustees, said Ereira. STAMMA appoints chair STAMMA has announced that, after an extensive search, Roger Pim will lead its board, after illness forced Joanna Gaukroger to step down. Abrdn senior investment director Pim first got involved in the charity in 2004 as a founding board member of the Scottish branch of the British Stammering Association (now STAMMA), where he was involved until 2007. Acting chair Paul Fix will continue in post until October, when he will formally hand over the reins to Pim. Karen Frank announced as BHF chair Karen Frank has been announced as the British Heart Foundations chair. Frank has been a member of the BHFs board since October 2019 and acting chair since the end of 2023. She has led several global businesses during her career including roles at Sovereign Wealth Fund, Barclays and Goldman Sachs. Trussell Trust appoints chair Anti-poverty charity the Trussell Trust has appointed Natalie Campbell as chair, taking over from Stephen Hicks. Campbell is currently CEO of Belu Water, an ethical drinks business which gives away 100% of its net profit annually to WaterAid, and chancellor of the University of Westminster. She has held a range of positions at the Royal Foundation, Civil Service Commission, and as chair of the Nominet Trust and of Grant Thorntons Vibrant Economy Commission. Health charity appoints chair Director of strategic planning for NHS Lothian Colin Briggs is joining Chest Heart & Stroke Scotland as its chair. Briggss 24 years of NHS management experience includes 15 years of running hospitals and GP services and he has been chair of Penumbra Mental Health for over two years. As well as his extensive professional experience in the healthcare sector, Briggs has personal experience of the conditions CHSS supports. He explained: My maternal grandmother had a stroke when she was 53 and as a result she lost her fine motor skills. My other grandmother had COPD in the last few years of her life and Ive got a very good friend that has Long Covid. I have been very impressed with the innovations CHSS is making in that field with its work to provide support services and tailored resources to help people self-manage their condition. Senior appointments at Open Sight Hampshire Ian Morris and Gemma McKnight have been recruited as members of the sight loss charitys senior leadership team. Morris will join in the new role of head of service from Guide Dogs, where he was interim deputy chief operations officer for a year. Before that, he was national head of operations projects. He has held various roles in pharmaceutical companies. McKnight will become head of income generation and communications. She joins Open Sight Hampshire from Oracle Cancer Trust, where she has been head of fundraising and communications for two years. She is currently a trustee of Wessex Cancer Support. She has held posts at Jubilee Sailing Trust, Maggies Centre and more. Chief executive Chris Dixon said: The appointment of Ian and Gemma reinforces our commitment to move the organisation forward and raise its profile within Hampshire. Our main priority is meeting the needs of people with visual impairment, with innovative and proactive services. Ian will bring skills, knowledge and lived experience that will be vital in this journey and Gemma will support us to identify funds and support that will enable us to sustain and build upon our goals and aspirations. New deputy director for childrens charity The childrens charity Demelza has appointed Dave Winch as its deputy director of nursing. Winch has more than 20 years experience in nursing and was most recently a senior lecturer at Canterbury Christ Church University (CCCU). He is honorary lecturer at CCCU and an external examiner at the University of Wales. On his appointment, he said: I first came to Demelza when I was a student nurse and to provide teaching around tracheostomy and ventilation care when I was working at a tertiary centre. The reason I wanted to come back here is the atmosphere. Everyone has been hugely welcoming and it's been amazing seeing the care that has been delivered and that remains top notch today. Friends of the Earth co-executive directors stand down After four and a half years leading Friends of the Earth, Miriam Turner and Hugh Knowles have resigned as co-executive directors. Their decision to stand down comes after Knowles had to take a leave of absence from work due to a health issue. Miriam and Hugh joined Friends of the Earth as co-directors of innovation back in 2017, before taking on the role of co-executive directors in 2020. They have decided to stand down together. Friends of the Earths board is working closely with staff on an interim arrangement, while a permanent replacement for the co-executive director role is found. Emergencies charity honours Elizabeth Balgobin The National Emergencies Trust has named former trustee Elizabeth Balgobin, who passed away in March this year, as an honorary trustee in recognition of her contribution to its formation. It has also announced the appointment of four new trustees and the departures of Jhumar Johnso, Louise Wilson and Ashley Head. The new trustees are former Refuge CEO Ruth Davison, former deputy mayor for fire and resilience Baroness Fiona Twycross, Cosegic chair Martin Smith and Odgers Berndtson Group managing partner Jes Ladva. CPRE announces president Mary-Ann Ochota has been elected president of countryside charity CPRE. Ochota is a broadcaster, author and anthropologist whose passionate expertise has engaged people worldwide with landscapes, heritage and the natural world. She has presented factual programmes for the BBC, Channel 4 and National Geographic, including Time Team, Mystic Britain and Ancient Impossible. Ochota said: "What an honour to be elected president of CPRE, the countryside charity, at such a critical moment for our country and our planet. Brain Tumour Research announces chair UK charity Brain Tumour Research has announced changes to its board of trustees effective from 1 July 2024, the beginning of its new financial year. As the charity celebrates 15 years since its launch, Wendy Fulcher is standing down as chair while current vice chair Rob Hughes will take over as its new chair and trustee Sue Farrington Smith will become vice chair. Former chief executive of Brain Tumour Research, Farrington Smith led the coming together of a number of brain tumour charities to found Brain Tumour Research in 2009. At the end of June last year, Farrington Smith announced that she was retiring from her role as chief executive after undergoing extensive surgery for low-grade abdominal cancer the previous year. Hughes and his wife, Carole, established Annas Hope, a member charity of Brain Tumour Research when they lost their youngest daughter Anna to a brain tumour at the age of three. StepChange recruits chief operating officer StepChange has appointed Martin Clift as its chief operating officer. Clift, who will take up the role at the beginning of September, previously worked at Barclays for 37 years, during which time he specialised in large scale distribution, operations leadership and strategic transformation. Clift said: Im really proud to be joining StepChange and I look forward to contributing to the important work that the charity does, particularly at a time when so many people need support with their finances. 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, Sign up for The Media Today, CJRs daily newsletter. A week agoafter Marine Le Pens far-right Rassemblement National (RN, or National Rally in English) and its allies won the first round of snap legislative elections in Francethe worlds press treated it as a seismic development, and with no little angst. Front pages the world over splashed images of a smiling Le Pen, describing her party, variously, as so close to power and having achieved a prelude to its triumph; one Italian newspaper mocked her up as Napoleon. (NapoLe Pen.) In the pages of the Washington Post, Emmanuel Macronthe putatively centrist president, who called the snap elections as a sort of challenge to surging far-right supportwas also compared to Napoleon, albeit in the context of the latters disastrous attempt to invade Russia in 1812; other papers emphasized the low score of Macrons parliamentary allies. (One christened him Micron.) The Spanish Diari de Tarragona filled its front page with a dejected-looking drawing of Obelix, the French comic-book character, and a headline calling the French crazy. French democracy speaks, a Swiss paper wrote, and its frightening. This morning, the headlines look very different: The second round of the elections took place yesterday, and delivered a huge surprise. A coalition of left-wing parties won the most seats in the National Assembly, albeit falling well short of a governing majority; Macrons allies (who Politico confidently predicted would finish third at best) lost dozens of seats but still came in second ahead of Le Pen and her allies. French TV footage (which quickly went viral online) showed far-right supporters eagerly awaiting the results, then looking stunned and crestfallen when they came through; one network, France 24, imposed the shock results on a diagram of the Assembly that erroneously showed the far right with the biggest seat share. Semafors Ben Smith asked Pierre Haski, a veteran French commentator, how the media had failed to see the results coming. He replied that journalists had become obsessed with the far right after its first-round victory and that pollsters had been confused by the uncharted territory, but that even left-wing leaders were surprised. He added, its a political miracle. The whiplash-inducing headlines offer globally relevant lessons about the folly of journalists assuming the popular will ahead of its expression. But the surprising topline results risk masking a much more complicated ongoing story. For starters (and as many headlines did also attest overnight) its highly uncertain what will happen next: no party or bloc has a legislative majority, leaving the identity of the next prime minister unclear and elevating the odds of long-term chaos. (Macron is slated to remain president through 2027 whatever happens, but the new legislative arithmetic could significantly erode his power and force him to cohabit with a prime minister from a rival party.) Nor should the underperformance of the far right obscure the extent to which it has already eaten its way to the heart of French public lifenot least in the media arena. The election campaign offered further evidence of this trend, even if many voters ultimately said no. In the end, the far right finished third in terms of seats, despite clearly winning the first round of the elections, because what the French call the republican front stood in its wayin many districts, candidates who qualified for the second round got out of the race to allow a rival to take on the far right alone, even in cases where they had huge political differences. The broader instinct to keep the far right from holding institutional power at all costs held for decades, not only in French partisan politics but in other spheres of society, including the media. In some places, something like it holds still. Ahead of the first round, more than a hundred news outlets signed an open letter calling for a journalistic common front against the far right and warning that its arrival in power would constitute a mortal threat to press freedom; the letter was signed by progressive and alternative publishers, but also by five staffers from the public broadcaster. (As a result, they were taken off campaign-related coverage.) Hundreds of online creators also called for a mobilization against the far right, calling themselves the popular Stream. On the whole, however, this instinct has grown weaker in recent yearsand, as Ive reported on numerous occasions, the media has been a key site of this dynamic. Many mainstream outlets have increasingly normalized hard-right themes and figures; in some cases, theyve been taken over by them. Most notably, the family business of Vincent Bollore, a conservative billionaire, has snapped up important properties in print, TV, and radio, and been widely accused of dragging them toward the political right, a process sometimes referred to as Bollorisation. (He has denied editorial meddling at his properties, saying this year that he is not an Attila.) Bollore and his properties were at the heart of controversy again during the recent campaign. As it got underway, Le Monde reported that Eric Ciotti, the leader of Frances traditional conservative party, personally consulted with Bollore before announcing that he would form an electoral alliance with Le Pen, alienating many of his co-partisans and triggering no little drama in the process. Then, right at the end of the campaign, Le Journal du Dimanchea once-staid paper that hired a hard-right editor while being acquired by Bollores group last yearreported that Macrons government was planning to loosen immigration restrictions. Macron allies furiously denied the story, accusing the paper of Trumpist methods and of complicity with Le Pens party. One official said that he would file a legal complaint on the grounds of fake news. Sign up for CJRs daily email There were campaign-related tensions beyond the Bollore universe, too. Ahead of the first round, a senior editor at Le Figaro, a traditional conservative newspaper, went on Europe 1 (a radio station that Bollore owns) and made remarks that some of his staff perceived as supportive of the alliance between Ciotti and Le Pens party; the editor said he was only offering his analysis and that Le Figaro would not back Le Pen, but ahead of the second round, dozens of staffers were reportedly up in arms again after he suggested in an editorial that, while the far-right program was worrying in many respects, the far left posed a bigger threat. (He reportedly denied again that the paper was moving to the far right.) Elsewhere, staffers at Marianne, a magazine currently owned by the controversial Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky, went on strike after Le Monde reported that a businessman interested in buying the publication has ties to Le Pen and her allies. (The status of his bid now appears to be in limbo.) As indicated by these developments and the election-time letter, French journalists have not all watched quietly as parts of their industry have moved in a rightward direction. (The letter warned explicitly that the media has been favored terrain in the far rights strategy of conquest.) And as I wrote in March, this dynamic has faced other forms of friction, including an official order for Frances broadcast regulator to more strictly police the pluralism obligations of a Bollore-owned TV channel, and an ongoing process by which the regulator will decide which channels get to make use of terrestrial frequencies that are owned by the state; starting today, the regulator will hear applications from existing and interested channels, a process that is likely to bring additional scrutiny to Bollores properties and could even see them lose out. But Alexis Levrier, a media historian, told me in March that he thinks the regulator is unlikely to take such strong action and that, in general, the political elite appears scared of standing in Bollores way. Yesterday, the French electorate did stand in the way of Le Pen and her allies, at least in terms of allowing them to enter government. The republican front held. To the extent that sympathizers of her project and others like it have indeed made the media their favored terrain, its tempting to argue that they have failed, at least for now; as another media historian, Claire Secail, put it ahead of the first round of the elections, French society, in its plurality and complexity, is not what the polarized Bollore ecosystem wants to present it as. (Respecting such complexity is itself a globally relevant media lesson.) For her part, Le Pen suggested yesterday that the press had helped to block her party from power, accusing it of clearly taking part in the election on behalf of a coalition spanning the French political landscape. If this wasat leasta grotesque overgeneralization, Le Pen had a point when she also noted that the party made significant gains in terms of its number of seats yesterday, despite its perceived underperformance. The tide is rising, she told an interviewer from TF1. It didnt rise high enough this time, but its still rising. Our victory is only delayed. Time will tell if shes right about that. For now, those covering French politics should not overstate the health of the republican front, nor take their eyes off the progress the far right has made to this point. This morning, parts of the international press kept their eyes on the ball. France and Europe can breathe a sigh of relief, the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet wrote. But the election results dont signify that the Rassemblement National is finished. Quite the opposite. Other notable stories: The Washington Posts Janay Kingsberry profiled The Shade Rooma burgeoning Black media empire that has gone from an Instagram page offering biting commentary and celebrity gossip to covering Biden as part of the White House press pool. The growth signals how much the platform has become a cultural force in the Black community, wielding enough power to not only cover culture but also to shape it, Kingsberry writes. The site has often faced accusations of spreading misinformation, but as Black Americans increasingly turn to social media for political engagement, TSR remains a target for elected officials, including Barack Obama, Biden and [Kamala] Harris, who have stepped into The Shade Room to address issues affecting the Black community. And WNYC, the New York public radio station, turns a hundred today. To mark the anniversary, hosts Brian Lehrer, Michael Hill, and Brooke Gladstone have recorded special announcements for the citys subway system, whose riders will also hear tidbits of New York and WNYC history, including old coverage of a Yankees World Series win and an interview with a fish from a Staten Island zoo. WNYC is also hosting a re-imagining of its first broadcast, while the Empire State Building will be lit in its honor. ICYMI: What does the Washington Post newsroom want? Jon Allsop is a freelance journalist whose work has appeared in the New York Review of Books, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic, among other outlets. He writes CJRs newsletter The Media Today. Find him on Twitter @Jon_Allsop. Insurer GEICO has agreed to pay $6 million to settle claims by auto damage claims adjusters who allege the insurer failed to pay them for all hours they worked off-the-clock. The settlement affects 806 adjusters countrywide who worked for GEICO from 2020 to 2023. Each will receive an average net payment of $4819.17, after attorneys fees, administrative costs and other deductions. The settlement addresses two similar cases brought in federal district courts in New York and Maryland. The settlement has been approved in Maryland court; approval is pending in the New court. The cases allege GEICO violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) and various state laws. Among other rights, the FSLA promises requires employers pay time-and-a-half overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours a week. The adjusters in both cases assert that adjusters are typically scheduled to work 7.75 hours per day, five days per week, for a total of approximately 38.75 hours per week. However, they say GEICO regularly required adjusters to work additional hours beyond this scheduled time while off the-clock in order to satisfy the insurers claims productivity, customer service, and other metrics. The plaintiffs allege that they were not permitted to record overtime and that doing so would negatively impact their scores on GEICOs performance metrics. They said supervisors discouraged overtime to save on labor expenses and often issued blanket prohibitions that barred any overtime at all. They maintain that GEICO knew or should have known that such unpaid work was occurring. GEICO has denied liability, arguing that adjusters were responsible for submitting their hours worked and verifying the accuracy of all hours including any overtime and that they were paid for all hours submitted. If the adjusters worked extra hours without GEICOs knowledge, it had no way of discerning the unpaid time, the insurer argued. GEICO also disputed the appropriateness of collective treatment of all of the adjusters in the class actions, contending that the collective covers adjusters that work in disparate settings. Boeing Co. agreed to plead guilty to criminal conspiracy to defraud the US after the Justice Department concluded the planemaker failed to adhere to an earlier settlement stemming from two fatal crashes of its 737 Max jetliner. Under the agreement in principle with US prosecutors, Boeing faces a criminal fine of as much as $487.2 million, the maximum allowed by law, though the actual amount will be determined by a judge, according to the Justice Department. As part of the agreement filed late Sunday in a Texas court, the DOJ has asked the judge to credit Boeing for the prior fine it paid, which would bring the new penalty down to $243.6 million if approved. Related: Justice Department to Charge Boeing, Seeks Guilty Plea From Planemaker The company will install a corporate monitor and be required to spend at least $455 million to bolster its compliance and safety programs over the next three years as part of the deal, which requires court approval. It would also be subject to a period of court-supervised probation. The US government and Boeing are still finalizing the pact and expect to file the final plea agreement by July 19. The guilty plea marks a low point in the companys century-long history after years of turmoil sparked by two crashes of its 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. The agreement also has the potential to complicate Boeings interaction with the government as a major defense contractor and builder of the presidential aircraft, though the company is likely to seek a waiver or turnaround that allows it to keep doing business in those areas. Related: Prosecutors Recommend DOJ Criminally Charge Boeing as Deadline Looms On the other hand, the deal stands to spare Boeing from the distraction of a criminal trial at a time when its finances are in disarray and its leadership is in limbo. The US company has been in crisis mode throughout the past six months after a near-catastrophic accident, which set of the chain reaction leading to the companys guilty plea. The Justice Department determined in May that Boeing breached a 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement tied to the crashes that was struck in the waning days of the Trump Administration. That followed the blowout of a fuselage panel on a 737 Max 9 on Jan. 5, just days before the deal was set to expire. Related: 737 Max Crash Victims Families Seek $25 Billion Boeing Fine The DOJ later concluded Boeing failed to meet a requirement of that deal to implement an effective compliance program to prevent and detect violations of US fraud laws. Extremely Disappointed As a result of the fuselage mishap, Boeings executive suite has been thrown into turmoil as its board searches for a new chief executive officer. The companys finances are also showing the strain of a slowdown in production in the aftermath of the January accident, as it works to bolster quality and retrain workers under close supervision by the US Federal Aviation Administration. The company has said it would probably burn through about $8 billion in cash during the first half of 2024. In a brief statement, Boeing confirmed it had reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to approval of specific terms. The planemaker in June had told prosecutors that it disagreed with the finding that it had violated the earlier deal. As part of the 2021 deal, Boeing paid a criminal fine of $243.6 million and admitted to deceiving the FAA about an obscure flight control system linked to the crashes. The company also pledged to improve its internal safety controls. In return, the government would withdraw a criminal charge against the company after three years. The latest agreement was bitterly criticized by families of the crash victims, who were not consulted before it was unveiled. The families quickly filed a notice to object to the latest agreement, as well. As part of the new plea deal, Boeings board of directors will meet with the relatives of the crash victims a request previously made by the families. We are extremely disappointed that DOJ is moving forward with this wholly inadequate plea deal despite the families strong opposition to its terms, Erin Applebaum, a partner at Kreindler & Kreindler LLP who represents families of the crash victims, said in an emailed statement. While were encouraged that Boeing will not be able to choose its own monitor, the deal is still nothing more than a slap on the wrist and will do nothing to effectuate meaningful change within the company, she said. The agreement also stipulates that the government will select and oversee the corporate monitor, addressing a concern the families had raised about the monitor being entirely independent. Boeing also faces investigations by the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Congress and a Seattle-area grand jury into the events that led to the accident in January aboard an Alaska Airlines plane. The case is US v. Boeing, 21-cr-005, US District Court, Northern District of Texas (Fort Worth). Top photo: The Boeing Co. 737 Max 9 jetliner stands at the companys manufacturing facility in Renton, Washington, U.S., on Tuesday, Mar. 7, 2017. Boeing is holding intense discussions with airlines and lessors for the Max 10X and has extended business offers to some potential buyers as it builds a case for the narrow-body jet, said Boeing Vice President of Marketing Randy Tinseth. The decision on whether to launch the plane is expected this year. Photographer: David Ryder/Bloomberg. Copyright 2024 Bloomberg. More than 1.5 million homes and businesses in Texas lost power after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in the state, bringing howling winds and driving rain that knocked out electric lines. The storm made landfall shortly before 4 a.m. local time Monday near Matagorda, between Houston and Corpus Christi, as a Category 1 hurricane with winds of about 80 miles (130 kilometers) per hour. The US National Hurricane Center is warning people of the risk of flash floods as the system moves north through the state. About 1.54 million customers in the state were without power as of early Monday morning, according to PowerOutage.us. Most of those homes and businesses are served by CenterPoint Energy Inc. As recently as April, data from Whisker Labs Inc. showed that the utility operated the most stressed local power grid in the country. Related: Report: Insured Losses from Beryl in Jamaica and Caymans $400M-$700M; Mexicos Yucatan Less Than $1B Flights are being canceled in Houston, which was pounded with heavy wind and rain. Beryl will also cause interruptions to Texas facilities for liquefied natural gas, and European natural gas prices rose in response during trading Monday. Some oil operations are also at risk for disruption. Parts of Texas have already received as much a nine inches (23 centimeters) of rain, and Beryl may end up dumping a total of 15 inches in some areas, according to David Roth, a meteorologist with the US Weather Prediction Center. The heaviest rainfall will focus on southeast Texas, including Houston, and in areas within about 50 miles of the coast. Related: Hurricane Beryl Roars Toward Jamaica on Destructive Path Radar update 5:54am: Flash flooding ongoing in/around parts of the Houston area. 3-6 inches of rain has fallen & another 2-4 inches are possible as rainbands from Beryl persist across the area. DO NOT DRIVE ON FLOODED ROADS. Avoid driving if possible. #txwx #houwx #glswx #bcswx pic.twitter.com/SEsLprs4d NWS Houston (@NWSHouston) July 8, 2024 Even though Beryl is now ashore, Roth warned that some of the most dangerous weather can come from the bands that trail the eye of the storm. Because the track of the system is bending to the northeast, that means Houston and coastal areas to the south are at risk of drenching rain that can trigger floods. The environment doesnt get much worse than in the wake of a tropical cyclone, Roth said in an interview Monday. Southeast Texas is the real problem today. Related: Record-Breaking Hurricane Beryl Is Getting Stronger on a Path to Grenada The Port of Houston has been shut down and Houston officials are warning people to stay off the roads and be avoid windows and balconies because of high winds. Theres a lot to be wary of, Roth said. Top photo: A resident boards up an apartment ahead of Hurricane Beryls arrival in Corpus Christi, Texas on July 7. Copyright 2024 Bloomberg. SANTA FE, New Mexico Actor Alec Baldwin arrived at court Monday for a preliminary hearing on charges of involuntary manslaughter over a fatal shooting on the set of Rust, a Western movie. The hearing, expected to last much of the day, will allow Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer to consider requests from prosecutors and defense attorneys that could restrict what evidence, testimony and court arguments are heard by a jury. Updated story: Alec Baldwin fatal shooting trial commences with opening statements Baldwin took a seat in the courtroom Monday beside a four-person legal team, sitting between lead attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro, with a yellow legal pad on the table in front of him, The Associated Press said. Jury selection is expected Tuesday, July 9, with the trial to follow. Previously: Alec Baldwin indicted again in fatal shooting with prop gun on Rust set Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer for the Western film Rust, was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal on a movie set outside Santa Fe in October 2021 when the revolver went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Movie weapons supervisor Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was sentenced to 18 months in prison in April for the shooting. Prosecutors blamed Gutierrez-Reed for unwittingly bringing live ammunition onto the set of Rust, where it was expressly prohibited, and for failing to follow basic gun safety protocols. She is appealing the conviction. Rotunda Rumblings When they go low, we get high: Laura Hancock visited a marijuana dispensary in Monroe, Michigan, 25 minutes from Toledo, to get a picture of how recreational sales will look in Ohio. Michigans market is more mature than Ohios, which will give it a price advantage, at least in the beginning. Monroe only has 21,000 residents yet there are 18 dispensaries, and its a question how many will survive over the long term. Michigans regulations allow for a better customer experience because people can examine marijuana before buying it. Ohio only allows smells of sample in jars. Wanting out: Lobbyist and former Ohio Republican Party Chairman Matt Borges made arguments to the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals seeking his release from a five-year prison sentence. As Jake Zuckerman reports, Borges argued he was a private actor who did nothing wrong, as opposed to some of the public officials accused of taking bribes from FirstEnergy Corp. Not backing down: U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan, a Champaign County Republican, suffered a setback when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to halt the Biden administrations efforts to tamp down on misinformation by pressing social media platforms, a case to which Jordan and other lawmakers submitted a brief. But Sabrina Eaton reports that Jordan vows to continue his fight against what he characterizes as government agencies censoring information such as alleged vaccine harms or unproven election fraud. Court-delivered bling: The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a Henry County jeweler can sue the Napoleon, Ohio, police department, several of its officers and the city for throwing him in jail for four days, on what jeweler Jascha Chiaverini says were baseless charges, The Blades David Patch reports. Chiaverini was eventually released and the charges against him were dropped, but he feels he wasnt able to clear his name in a case involving alleged stolen jewelry purchased by Chiaverinis store. Financial aid: The federal governments botched FAFSA rollout has put a strain on many Ohio colleges in getting financial aid packages ready for students. At many schools, the number of completed FASFAs are down. Schools are trying to fix errors on students applications, worried the lack of financial clarity could discourage some students from going to college altogether, the Columbus Dispatchs Sheridan Hendrix reports. Lobbying Lineup Five organizations lobbying on House Bill 92, which would allow the Ohio Board of Pharmacy to develop a program to import drugs from Canada. 1. AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals 2. Bristol-Myers Squibb 3. Johnson & Johnson 4. Pfizer Inc. 5. CVS Health Birthdays Mehek Cooke, attorney and Ohio Republican strategist and commentator Straight From The Source Stay out of my district, bigots. -State Rep. Casey Weinstein, a Hudson Democrat, on X, criticizing Libs of TikTok, an account that frequently trolls liberals, which attacked a Stow councilman for his dress during a Fourth of July parade. Capitol Letter is a daily briefing providing succinct, timely information for those who care deeply about the decisions made by state government. Subscribe to get Capitol Letter in your email box each weekday for free. A controversial Texas immigration law allowing state police to arrest and deport people suspected of unlawfully crossing from the Mexican border awaits constitutional review but that hasnt stopped other states like Oklahoma, Iowa and Arizona from proposing similar rules. Texas SB 4, signed by Gov. Greg Abbott in December, received vehement opposition from civil rights groups, who sued to stop the legislation from becoming effective in March. Civil rights advocates have long opposed laws like these, calling them unconstitutional and contradictory to and an attempt to bypass federal immigration policy. In May, the ACLU of Oklahoma, the National Immigration Law Center and the law firm Rivas & Associates filed a lawsuit on behalf of Padres Unidos, a grassroots community support system based in Tulsa, opposing House Bill 4156. Modeled after the Texas law, it was set to take effect on July 1 but a court ordered a pause. This is a testament to the resilience of the Oklahoma immigrant community, who stood up against one of the most anti-immigrant laws ever passed in the state, said Nicholas Espiritu, the deputy legal director of the National Immigration Law Center, in a statement. The federal courts have been clear that HB 4156, like similar laws in Texas and Iowa, is unconstitutional. In early June, Arizona legislators passed a ballot referral immigration bill for voters to decide in November whether it should be a state crime to cross from Mexico without authorization and allow local law enforcement to arrest people they believe are in the country illegally. Arizonas proposed law, HCR 2060, would grant immunity to local government and police officials during its enforcement. The bill doesnt specify any age restrictions or exempt locations like schools, hospitals and places of worship. Civil rights advocates worry that it and similar laws would lead to racial profiling of marginalized people. Migrant advocates said the new rules could be easily weaponized against communities of color and are reminiscent of Arizonas infamous show your papers law enacted in 2010. According to the ACLU, it would disrupt the asylum process for people escaping persecution in their countries and would require state officials to detain immigrants in county jails. If approved at the ballot in November, HCR 2060 would pose similar risks of racial profiling, harassment, and arrest of long-time Arizona residents, Noah Schramm, the border policy strategist for the ACLU of Arizona, said early June. If the goal of HCR 2060s proponents was to frighten communities of color across the state, threaten the separation and incarceration of families at the border and otherwise cast Arizona as a deeply unwelcoming place for immigrants, they may well have succeeded, he added. Days later, the ACLU and immigrants rights groups in Arizona announced a lawsuit against the sweeping unconstitutional, anti-immigrant measure. A federal court issued an injunction on a similar immigration law in Iowa later that month. Senate File 2340 which the ACLU described as one of the worst immigration laws ever passed in Iowa history allowed police to arrest people based on their status and judges to jail or deport residents believed to be non-citizens. The legislation was signed into law in April and would have gone into effect on July 1. Sadly, we are still seeing copycat laws and proposed measures that would cause irreparable harm for immigrant families, including in Arizona, Texas, and Oklahoma, said Emma Winger, the deputy legal director at the American Immigration Council, in a statement. These types of laws create absolute chaos and human suffering and have no place in our legal system. President Joe Biden arrives to speak to supporters and volunteers during a campaign stop at a Biden-Harris campaign election office in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on July 7, 2024. Saul Loeb | Afp | Getty Images A Parkinson's disease expert visited the White House several times over the past year, including a January meeting with President Joe Biden's personal doctor, NBC News confirmed on Monday. Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist who specializes in Parkinson's, visited the White House at least eight times over an eight-month period, as confirmed by public visitor logs stretching until March. Several news outlets previously reported the doctor's visits. The logs did not specify why Cannard was at the White House, who he was there to see or whether Biden was present during his visits. Biden's physical fitness has been a lingering public concern throughout his term. But those worries turned into a full-fledged panic when over 51 million viewers watched him stammer through the June debate against former President Donald Trump. In response to the reports of Cannard's visits, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said that Biden's medical exams have "found no sign of Parkinson's, and he is not being treated for it." White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre didn't supply more information about the Parkinson's doctor's visits during Monday's press briefing. "For security reasons, we cannot share names," Jean-Pierre said, though Cannard's name was included in the public logs. "It doesn't matter how hard you push me. It doesn't matter how angry you get with me. I'm not going to confirm a name. It doesn't matter if it's even in the log. I am not going to do that from here. That is not something I am going to do," she said. 'Not going anywhere' On Monday morning, Biden defended his place at the top of the Democratic ticket in a surprise television interview on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" and on a call with Democratic donors. "I'm not going anywhere," Biden said in the televised phone interview. "I absolutely believe that I am the best candidate to beat Donald Trump in 2024." Since Biden's disastrous debate performance on June 27, various Democratic donors have been sounding the alarm on whether he can beat Trump in November. "I'm getting so frustrated by the elites in the party" calling for him to step down, the president fumed on MSNBC. "I don't care what the millionaires think." Biden insisted to hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski that the concerns of his wealthy backers would not dictate his political future. "I want their support, but that's not the reason I'm running," Biden said. "I'm not running about what they think and what they care about. And by the way, you don't see a whole hell of a lot of them flocking to Trump. You don't see a whole lot of CEOs flocking to Trump." "I'm not going to explain any more about what I should or shouldn't do," the president added defiantly. "I am running. I am running." Democratic worry on Capitol Hill Biden's surprise MSNBC appearance came after a weekend where his political wounds appeared to deepen. Despite his campaign's efforts to stem the bleeding, more lawmakers, donors and strategists have gone public with their doubts. On Monday, several Democratic senators came forward with statements presenting something of an ultimatum for the president, urging him to prove to the public that he has what it takes to defeat Trump and carry out a second term. "President Biden has got to prove to the American people including me that he's up to the job for another four years. Meanwhile, I'll continue to do what I've always done: Stand up to President Biden when he's wrong and protect our Montana way of life," Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., said in a statement to NBC News. Sen. Martin Heinrich, D-N.M., echoed that warning in his own statement, "President Biden needs to continue to demonstrate that his debate performance was just a bad night, and that he has a clear path to defeating Donald Trump." Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, in Youngstown on Monday said his constituents "have legitimate questions about whether the president should continue his campaign, and I'll keep listening to people." The outpouring of comments came after the cancellation of a Monday meeting of Democratic senators reportedly organized by Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., to discuss Biden's reelection concerns. Warner on Monday issued a similar comment as his colleagues: "It is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people." The drop-out pressure has mounted even more on the other side of Capitol Hill. During a meeting of senior House Democrats on Sunday, four more top Democrats told party leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York that Biden should exit the 2024 race, according to NBC News: Reps. Adam Smith, Wash., Jerry Nadler, N.Y., Mark Takano, Calif., and Joe Morelle, N.Y. They joined five other House Democrats who had already publicly called on Biden to step down last week, including Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., who announced her position on Saturday. On Monday, Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats, doubling down on his commitment to stay in the 2024 race, as they all returned to Washington after the holiday recess. "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end," Biden wrote in the letter. "Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us." Damage control Last week, Biden held several meetings and calls with Democratic lawmakers and allies, including former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., House Minority Leader Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. Rescuers work at the scene of an Ethiopian Airlines flight crash near Bishoftu, or Debre Zeit, south of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Monday, March 11, 2019. Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to criminal fraud tied to the fatal 737 Max crashes, a decision that brands the U.S. aerospace giant a felon but allows it to avoid trial while it tries to turn the page from safety and manufacturing crises. Under the deal, Boeing would face a fine of up to $487.2 million, though the Justice Department recommended that the court credit Boeing with half that amount it paid under a previous agreement, resulting in a fine of $243.6 million. The plea deal requires the approval of a federal judge to take effect. If the deal is accepted, it could complicate Boeing's ability to sell products to the U.S. government as a felon, though the company could seek waivers. About 32% of Boeing's nearly $78 billion in revenue last year came from its defense, space and security unit. A Defense Department official said Monday the DOD would assess Boeing's remediation plans and its agreement with the Justice Department "to make a determination as to what steps are necessary and appropriate to protect the Federal Government." The plea deal also installs an independent monitor to oversee compliance at Boeing for three years during a probationary period. Boeing would also have to invest at least $455 million in compliance and safety programs, according to a court filing. Boeing also agreed for its board of directors to meet with crash victims' family members. So much for the $3 trillion club: Investors and Wall Street analysts alike are now talking about when Apple might top a $4 trillion stock market value. Wedbush on Monday reiterated its $275 price target on Apple shares for the next 12 months, citing "more signs of iPhone stabilization" in China and the potential for a global iPhone 16 upgrade cycle driven by new artificial intelligence features. That target, based on Apple's current share count, would take the tech giant's market value above $4 trillion. For those keeping score, Apple closed above a $3 trillion market value just over one year ago. It was joined by fellow portfolio names Microsoft in January and Nvidia last month. "We have seen one [name] become the great stock of this period," Jim Cramer said Monday. "It's Apple." He described the iPhone as the "greatest consumer product of all time," adding Apple's stellar fundamentals and growth prospects will continue to carry shares higher. Apple and Nvidia are Jim's only "own, don't trade" stocks. AAPL YTD mountain Apple (AAPL) year-to-date performance Apple shares reached an all-time intraday high to start the week, continuing last week's terrific start to the second half of 2024. Shares gained more than 7% last week, compared to the S & P 500's nearly 2% advance, and are now up 18% for the year. This marks a dramatic turnaround for Apple. Slower iPhone sales in China, which account for nearly 20% of Apple's overall revenue, dogged the stock into April. But it found its footing and soared nearly 6% on May 3, the day after quarterly results were much better than feared. Shares rose another 7% on June 11, the day after management unveiled the company's long-awaited generative AI initiative, Apple Intelligence. The announcements at Apple's annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) included an overhaul of Siri, an integration of OpenAI's ChatGPT, and a suite of other new features. The new features are only compatible with last year's iPhone 15 Pro and newer models. Apple's buzzy AI tools should increase iPhone sales, which make up roughly half of the company's overall revenue, as users trade up for the latest more innovative models. "Our bullish stance on Apple looking ahead is based on our belief and work in the field that pent up demand around an AI-driven super cycle beginning with iPhone 16 this Fall as 270 million iPhones have not upgraded their iPhone in over 4 years based on our estimates," the Wedbush analysts, led by Dan Ives, wrote in Monday's note. They have a buy-equivalent rating on shares. Apple's high-margin services business , which includes App Store sales and subscriptions, will benefit from AI as well. Services have been a driver of Apple's revenue growth in recent quarters. Wedbush analysts argued that more developers will build hundreds of AI-driven apps within the next year that will be featured in the App Store, giving Apple a percentage of sales from each transaction. "The OpenAI partnership creates the highway for developers around the globe to focus on iOS 18 and this, in turn, will create a myriad of monetization opportunities for Cook & Co., over the coming years that the Street is still not fully appreciating," the analysts said. "To put some numbers around the opportunity: we estimate this could result in incremental Services high margin growth annually of $10 billion for Apple as this all kicks in and will be the start of a new multi-pronged AI revenue stream that is both hardware and software-driven," Wedbush said. Jim has long touted Apple's services business as well. During the Club's June Monthly Meeting, he said that the division "will become more and more important, to the point, ultimately, where the Apple iPhones and other devices will be thought of as the Gillette razors and the service revenues will be the incredibly high margin, totally proprietary, blades." (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long AAPL, NVDA, MSFT. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED. The Apple logo is displayed at the Nasdaq MarketSite just before the opening bell in New York on Thursday, Aug. 25, 2011. Scott Eells | Bloomberg | Getty Images A can of Carlsberg AS pilsner and a Britvic Plc apple drink arranged in London, UK, on Friday, June 21, 2024. LONDON Soft drinks maker Britvic has agreed to a sweetened takeover bid of 3.28 billion ($4.2 billion) from Carlsberg, the companies said Monday. The deal agreed offered 1,290 pence per share for Britvic, with a small dividend that gives shareholders 1,315 pence per share. Britvic in June refused an improved cash takeover bid from Carlsberg offering 1,250 pence per share of the British soft drinks maker. It said at the time that the proposal "significantly undervalues Britvic, and its current and future prospects." Carlsberg's previous June 6 offer price of 1,200 pence per Britvic share was also declined. Ian Durant, the nonexecutive chair of Britvic, said the proposed deal "creates an enlarged international group that is well-placed to capture the growth opportunities in multiple drinks sectors." He also namechecked Carlsberg's agreement with PepsiCo which, he said, provides the "combined group with a strong platform for continued success." Carlsberg CEO Jacob Aarup-Andersen said in the same statement that the deal combines "Britvic's high-quality soft drinks portfolio with Carlsberg's strong beer portfolio and route-to-market capabilities, creating an enhanced proposition across the UK and markets in Western Europe." PepsiCo is key to the deal, as Britvic bottles and distributes PepsiCo brands in the U.K. and Ireland. Carlsberg and PepsiCo earlier this year agreed to waive a "change of control clause" in the bottling contract. Pipes carry water, steam and oil at Devon Energy Corp.'s 35,000 barrel per day Jackfish Projects plant, where Steam Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) is used to extract bitumen from oil sands, near Conklin, Alberta, Canada. Devon Energy said on Monday it had entered into a deal to acquire private equity firm EnCap-owned Grayson Mill Energy's Williston basin business in a cash-and-stock deal worth $5 billion, as it aims to cash in on high stock valuations to grow acreage. The deal value includes $3.25 billion in cash and $1.75 billion in stock. A consolidation in the U.S. energy sector that triggered $250 billion worth of deals in 2023 has bled into this year, with companies seeking opportunities to deploy their capital and expand their reserves. This has created a favorable environment for private equity firms like EnCap to cash out on assets. In June, the firm sold some shale assets of oil and gas producer XCL Resources for about $2 billion. Reuters reported in January that the firm planned to sell Grayson Mill, a major Bakken-focused energy producer formed by EnCap in 2016, with operations in North Dakota, Montana, and the Powder River Basin in Wyoming. Devon said the deal, expected to close by the end of the third quarter, will add 307,000 net acres to the company's position in the Williston Basin. The energy producer expects its output to grow to 765,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) from 664,000 boepd. The acquisition helps extend Devon's drilling inventory in the Williston Basin, Scott Hanold, analyst at RBC Capital Markets, said but added that the price seems a bit high. "Given the relative maturity of the basin, assets in the Williston Basin generally are not as competitive compared to places like the Permian Basin." The company's board of directors also expects to expand its share repurchase by 67% to $5 billion through mid-year 2026, while the acquisition is expected to add to the company's dividend payout starting 2025. Every weekday the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer holds a "Morning Meeting" livestream at 10:20 a.m. ET. Here's a recap of Monday's key moments. The S & P 500 hit a record high Monday after the benchmark gauge on Friday finished its fourth positive week in the past five. The market's recent gains are driven by strength in mega-cap tech names like Microsoft , Apple , Meta Platforms and Amazon . Shares of the iPhone maker hit a new high after the opening. "We are in kind of a crazy market," Jim Cramer said. "We have stocks that are flying. But they are flying on multiple expansions, which, therefore, makes it a little frothy." We trimmed our positions in Palo Alto Networks and Meta Platforms Monday after the tech stocks recovered from their post-earnings sell-offs earlier in 2024. We locked in a gain of 150% on Facebook shares purchased in April 2022 and a 94% return on Palo Alto stock bought in February 2023. Jim reiterated his long-time thesis: "Bulls make money. Bears make money, [but] pigs get slaughtered." Monday's trade follows last week's sales of Morgan Stanley and Wells Fargo shares. Eli Lilly shares are up nearly 1% Monday following a 1.8% gain on Friday, recovering from a drop earlier last week after President Joe Biden called for lower GLP-1 prices. Jim brushed off any concerns, and maintained that the pharmaceutical giant could still hit a $1 trillion market capitalization. Not only is demand for Lilly's blockbuster offerings like Mounjaro and Zepbound extremely high, but the company received more positive news last week: Lilly's donanemab received FDA approval for the treatment of early symptomatic Alzheimer's disease. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long LLY, AMZN, META, AAPL, MSFT, MS, WFC. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED. Founder of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon reacts during the election night of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad in Paris on July 7, 2024. After the left wing's election success in France on Sunday, all eyes are now on radical firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon, who has demanded the left be given the premiership and a chance to govern following its unexpected election win. The New Popular Front (NFP) coalition of which Melenchon is the self-appointed figurehead won the largest number of seats in the second round of France's snap parliamentary election. Comprising Melenchon's far-left France Unbowed party, the Socialist Party, the French Communist Party as well as green, center-left and left-wing political groups, the NFP unexpectedly thwarted the far right's advance and is now positioning itself as the possible leader of a coalition government. "The president has the power, the president has the duty to call on the New Popular Front to govern. It is ready for it," Melenchon said Sunday night after exit polls projected the NFP's win. Europe had braced itself for France's far right to win the largest number of votes in the second round of the country's snap election. In the event, the left-wing NFP gained 180 seats, according to results published by broadcaster France Info, but still fell short of the 289 seats needed to have an absolute majority in the 577-seat National Assembly. French President Emmanuel Macron's centrist "Together" bloc came in second with 163 seats and the far-right National Rally and its allies won 143 seats. The results mean France is confronting a hung parliament Monday morning, with a difficult path ahead to forming a new government, or perhaps a technocratic government. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he would tender his resignation following the election result, but Macron on Monday asked Attal to remain prime minister for the time being "in order to ensure the country's stability," Macron's office said in a statement, Reuters reported. Emboldened by the unexpected election victory, Melenchon who in the past has praised late Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, said he'd take France out of NATO and proposed 100% tax rates on France's super wealthy insisted the new prime minister should come from the left-wing alliance. Bitcoin has also been under selling pressure from the German government as well as collapsed bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox. Cfoto | Future Publishing | Getty Images For weeks now, Germany's government has been selling hundreds of millions of dollars worth of bitcoin and it's been a key factor behind the cryptocurrency's intense sell-off. Last month, the German government began selling bitcoin from a wallet operated by the country's Federal Criminal Police Office, referred to locally as the Bundeskriminalamt, or BKA. The BKA sold 900 bitcoins in June worth approximately $52 million as of Monday from a massive haul seized from a now-defunct movie piracy website, according to on-chain data tracked by blockchain analysis firm Arkham Intelligence. Last week, the government sold an additional 3,000 bitcoins worth roughly $172 million. Then on Monday, German police sold a further 2,739 bitcoins, or $155 million worth of the cryptocurrency. watch now The government has been sending its crypto reserves to exchanges such as Coinbase , Bitstamp and Kraken. The German government wasn't immediately available for a comment when contacted by CNBC on Monday. Bitcoin price reaction In tandem with these sales, bitcoin has seen its price fall dramatically. Bitcoin sank below $55,000 on Friday, hitting its lowest level since February 2024, according to CoinGecko data. At one point in the day, the entire crypto market had shed more than $170 billion in combined market capitalization in a 24-hour period, CoinGecko's data showed. Germany's bitcoin sales aren't the only concern for crypto investors. The cryptocurrency has also been under pressure from the payout of billions of dollars' worth of digital currency from the collapsed bitcoin exchange Mt. Gox which went bankrupt in 2014 to creditors. On Friday, the trustee for the Mt. Gox bankruptcy estate, Nobuaki Kobayashi, said it had begun making repayments in bitcoin and bitcoin cash to some of the creditors through a number of designated crypto exchanges. Hundreds of millions of dollars is a lot of money. But it's a drop in the ocean if you look at bitcoin's overall token issuance. There are around 19.7 million bitcoins in circulation today, worth $1.1 trillion, according to CoinGecko data. For investors, though, it's all about how those sales are impacting the mood in the market. James Butterfill, head of research at crypto asset manager CoinShares, told CNBC that, though "relatively minor," the bitcoin sales have "affected market sentiment." Bitcoin's price is still up a good 89% in the last 12 months. Why Germany owns $2 billion in bitcoin In January 2024, police in the eastern German state of Saxony announced the seizure of close to 50,000 bitcoins, worth around $2.2 billion at the time. The haul was labeled by Saxony police as "the most extensive seizure of Bitcoins by law enforcement authorities in the Federal Republic of Germany to date." The funds were seized from the operators of Movie2k.to, a movie piracy site that was active in 2013, and transferred to a crypto wallet owned by Germany's Federal Criminal Police Office. watch now According to Arkham Intelligence, which tracks movements from the German government's bitcoin wallet, the tokens began moving as far back as 2013 when they were originally seized. Today, Germany's BKA holds roughly 32,488 bitcoins. At current prices, the government's holdings are worth roughly $1.9 billion. Not everyone is happy with Germany's decision to sell its bitcoin holdings, though. Joana Cotar, a member of the German Bundestag, which is the country's parliament, said in a post on X last month that, rather than selling its bitcoin, the government should be holding the token as a "strategic reserve currency." Cotar said she has written to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Finance Minister Christian Lindner and Saxony Minister President Michael Kretschmer to tell them selling bitcoin "is not only not sensible, but counterproductive." She said she's invited the German officials to a lecture with Samson Mow, a prominent bitcoin influencer, on Oct. 17 at the Paul-Lobe-Haus building in Berlin. Investors should take a look at the options market to bet on the long-awaited rebound of Wells Fargo , according to the derivatives research team at Goldman Sachs. John Marshall, the firm's head of derivatives research, said in a note to clients that Wells Fargo looks like an options trade candidate ahead of its earnings report. He said Goldman bank analyst Richard Ramsden is optimistic about Wells Fargo's outlook for the rest of the year. "Richard is constructive on WFC heading into 2Q24 earnings as he sees upside to 2024 NII guidance and earnings driven by an acceleration in loan/deposit growth along with potential asset cap lifting," the note said. Wells Fargo is set to release its latest earnings before the bell on Friday. Marshall suggested investors take a look at the call options with a $61 strike price that expire later this month. Call options give the holder the right to buy a stock at a preset strike price. They serve as a bet that the stock will rise above the strike, thus allowing the stock to be bought at a discount. The risk to the trade is that stock trades below the strike price until expiration, and the premium to buy the option is lost. WFC 5Y mountain Wells Fargo is off to a strong start in 2024 after a long period of underperformance. Wells Fargo has been a long-term underperformer among bank stocks, and it is still under regulatory restrictions related to a fake accounts scandal under a previous CEO. However, the stock has rallied more than 20% this year, and Goldman sees signs that the bank's fundamentals could top expectations. "WFC guided for 2024 NII (Net Interest Income) to decline by 7-9% [year over year] and Richard sees upside to this guidance as he expects NII to decline by only 7% on the back of deposit and loan growth rising in 2H24. Richard sees multiple tailwinds to earnings growth if the Fed were to lift the asset cap restrictions imposed on WFC," the note said. CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed reporting. Russian President Vladimir Putin speaking to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting at Taj Exotic Hotel on October, 15, 2016 in Benaulim, Goa, India. Mikhail Svetlov | Getty Images News | Getty Images India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to meet President Vladimir Putin on Monday, marking his first visit to the Kremlin since the invasion of Ukraine. Modi arrived in Moscow for the two-day state visit on Monday afternoon. The prime minister said he looked forward to "further deepening the special and privileged strategic partnership" between Russia and India, according to a Google-translated post on social media platform X. Their meeting is significant as it's the Indian premier's first bilateral trip overseas since he was reelected for a rare third term in June. The two leaders are set to reinforce the development of "traditionally friendly relations between Russia and India," as well as discuss "topical issues on the international and regional agendas," the Kremlin said last week. The meeting will provide an opportunity for the two sides to review a range of bilateral issues from defense and trade, to investment ties and energy cooperation, India's Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said in a media briefing on Friday. On the agenda Russia and India will also assess the status of bilateral engagements in groupings such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Group of 20, the BRICS bloc of developing nations, the United Nations, and the East Asia Summit, Kwatra said. "The issue of early discharge of Indian nationals who have been misled into the service of the Russian army is also expected to figure in the discussions," Kwatra added. Since March, India has sought the release of nationals, said to have been "duped" into serving in the Russian army, following the uncovering of what the South Asian nation has labeled as a "major human trafficking network." Subscribe now Get a weekly roundup of news from India in your inbox every Thursday. watch now "This trip will rankle many Western observers," an analyst at the Lowy Institute pointed out in a published commentary. India's refiners have been snapping up discounted Russian oil since the start of the Ukraine war. New Delhi's purchase of cheap Russian oil has been viewed as "profiting from troubles in the heart of Europe," the Lowy report said. India and Russia's historical ties India and Russia have shared a long-standing security cooperation partnership since the Cold War period, with New Delhi's armed forces heavily reliant on Moscow for military equipment. Modi's last visit to Russia was in 2019 when he visited the far eastern port of Vladivostok for an economic forum. The two last met in person in 2022 at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization held in Uzbekistan, where Modi had told the Russian president that it was not an era of war but stopped short of condemning his actions in Ukraine. Russia, like the U.S., has its own place in India's foreign policy, said former Indian Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal in a recent post on social media platform, X. "Neither India nor the global south consider Putin an international pariah," the former ambassador to Russia added. India's bilateral trade with Russia jumped 33% in the financial year ended March 2024, hitting an all-time high of $65.7 billion. However, trade remains imbalanced, Kwatra pointed out. India's exports to Russia were $4.26 billion, while imports from the Kremlin amounted near $61.44 billion, official data showed. Modi's relations with China Tanaonte | Istock | Getty Images The future of a Federal Trade Commission ban on noncompete agreements, scheduled to take effect this fall, is unclear after a preliminary ruling from a federal court last week. Nearly 1 in 5 Americans, an estimated 30 million people, are subject to a noncompete agreement, according to the FTC. The agreements prevent workers from taking a new job with competitors or starting a new business in the same industry. The Biden administration first proposed banning noncompete agreements in January 2023. In response, the FTC received more than 26,000 comments, with 25,000 of them in favor of the rule. Legal challenges on noncompete ban Judge Ada Brown, a Trump-appointed federal judge in Texas, issued a preliminary order against the FTC ban last week in a lawsuit brought by Ryan LLC, a Dallas-based tax services firm. The firm uses noncompete agreements to keep competitors from hiring away its workers and to keep workers from poaching firm clients. Ryan argued the FTC overstepped its legal authority to ban noncompete agreements. The court agreed the FTC lacks authority to make the sweeping rule and said the plaintiffs are likely to succeed on the merits of the case. The injunction came just days after a Supreme Court decision to overturn what's known as the Chevron doctrine. That decision gives judges more power to challenge federal agencies' rulemaking authority. Brown's injunction has a limited scope: It only bars the FTC from enforcing the ban against the plaintiffs, including Ryan LLC as well as the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Business Roundtable and other business groups. It does not extend to member companies of those groups. The judge said she intends to rule on the merits by the end of August, and experts anticipate business groups will try to make the case for the judge to issue a nationwide ban. What a noncompete means for workers Workers should know if they are bound by one of these agreements and its scope. Employment attorneys say clients are often unaware the impact noncompete agreements can have or think they are unenforceable. "Look at how much deferred compensation you have tied to it, or that you have to pay back if you violate it," said Peter Rahbar, an employment attorney. watch now While several states ban or restrict noncompete agreements, having one can make it difficult to find another job. "Part of the problem is some employers won't even talk to a potential candidate if they have a noncompete," said Rahbar, who is the founder of the Rahbar Group in New York City. Noncompete enforcement can be 'heavy handed' Even with state bans, some companies aggressively enforce noncompete agreements, which are not limited to highly compensated workers. The agreements are often written to require the employee to pay all legal fees in the event an agreement is challenged. So even if an agreement may be on shaky legal ground it can be difficult to break. "What we end up telling the employees is that if they get sued, they will likely, even if they win, have to pay roughly $100,000 to $150,000 in attorney fees," Daniel Kalish, an attorney with HKM Employment told the FTC in support of the ban at a hearing last year. One executive told CNBC that despite being laid off from his multinational employer, the noncompete he had signed barred him from working in the industry for five years. "It would have cost me half a million to a million dollars to fight, with no guarantee," said the executive, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of being sued by that former employer. "The problem is, what are you going to say? No, I'm not going to sign this, then you're not getting promoted." Despite efforts to ban noncompete agreements, Rahbar said companies have gotten more aggressive about using them. "I've seen employers just trying to jam them in and be really heavy handed in enforcing them in some cases," he said. If you're asked to sign a noncompete France's President Emmanuel Macron looks on as he leaves after his vote in the second round of France's legislative election at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France on July 7, 2024. Ludovic Marin | Afp | Getty Images The gamble that French President Emmanuel Macron took when he called a snap election has not paid off, according to Armin Steinbach, Jean Monnet professor of EU Law and economics at HEC Paris. "It didn't pay off. What [Macron] wanted to achieve was clarity, clarification on support for his government, and in that he failed," Steinbach told CNBC's Charlotte Reed on Monday. Macron had called for a new legislative nationwide vote in France after the country's far-right party made significant gains in the European Union election last month. Concerns grew about the far-right Rassemblement National (RN) coming out on top on a national level after the party saw a surge in votes in the first round of voting on June 30. This however, did not hold true on Sunday following the second round of voting, as the left-wing New Popular Front coalition is set to hold the largest number of seats, according to results published by the Interior Ministry. watch now Macron's centrist Ensemble bloc is set to make up the second-largest group in parliament, followed by the RN and its allies. But even as the RN is set to place third in the election, things will not be easy for Macron, Tina Fordham, founder of Fordham Global Foresight, told CNBC's "Squawk Box Europe" on Monday. "Yes he was able to keep the far right from first place but they've increased their seat share and now he has to deal with this unruly left and unruly right," she said. "In terms of his legacy, he will be in for a real political fight." watch now The election outcome has weakened Macron on a global level, Fordham suggested, adding it will make it more difficult for the president to maintain his policy positions. HEC's Steinbach also pointed to potential issues regarding policymaking. "His bloc lost significantly in votes. We are now with a parliament composed of one-third left, one-third right, one-third in the center it's fragmented and there's a risk of a gridlock. I don't see this as a success for Emmanuel Macron," he said. A parliament with no party holding an absolute majority, also referred to as a hung parliament, means policymaking and addressing issues such as public finances could now be difficult. France is facing a huge amount of debt and the European Union last month said it would place France under an "excessive deficit procedure" as its budget deficit is larger than 3% of its gross domestic product. Artificial intelligence has been a big boon for San Francisco real estate. But not enough of one to make up for the broader struggle across the market. The vacancy rate for San Francisco office space reached a fresh record of 34.5% in the second quarter, according to a report Monday from commercial real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield. That's up from 33.9% in the first quarter, 28.1% in the same period a year ago and 5% before the pandemic. Meanwhile, the average asking rent dropped to $68.27 per square foot in the quarter, the lowest since late 2015, down from $72.90 a year earlier and a peak of $84.70 in 2020. San Francisco is reeling from the twin challenges of bringing people back to the office after the Covid pandemic and a slowdown in the tech market that's led to mass job cuts across the industry. Tech companies have laid off more than 530,000 employees since the start of 2022, according to the website Layoffs.fyi, with major downsizing at Alphabet , Meta , Amazon , Tesla , Microsoft and Salesforce . Softening the blow of late has been the soaring popularity of generative AI and the decision by fast-growing startups to open large offices in San Francisco. OpenAI, the market leader with a private valuation that's topped $80 billion, announced in October that it was leasing about 500,000 square feet of space in the Mission Bay neighborhood, the biggest office lease in the city since 2018. Robert Sammons, senior research director at Cushman & Wakefield, said OpenAI is continuing to look for more space in the city. Also last year, OpenAI rival Anthropic subleased 230,000 square feet at Slack's headquarters. And in May of this year, Scale AI signed a lease for a reported 170,000 to 180,000 square feet of space in Airbnb's office building. "San Francisco is certainly the center of AI, but AI is not going to save the San Francisco commercial real estate market," Sammons said. "It will help." While richly capitalized AI startups are signing large leases for new space, the bigger trend is that tech companies, law offices and consulting firms are looking to reduce their footprint when existing leases come up, Sammons said, reflecting the widespread move to hybrid work. In many cases, companies are looking to relocate to higher quality space in more desirable parts of the city, because prices have come down and employers need to be near restaurants and shops to get staffers to come back, Sammons added. "The best quality trophy space continues to perform well, because tenants want to be in the best locations with the best amenities around them," Sammons said. Some of the city's top employers, including Salesforce, Uber , Visa and Wells Fargo , have brought employees back to offices for part of the week. That's helped in the financial district, where the vacancy rate is still 34.2% on the north side and 32.7% on the south side at the end of the quarter. In SoMa, which historically was a popular area for venture-backed startups, the vacancy rate is almost 50%. SoMa is further away from mass transit options and has also been hurt by large retail departures. Vacant office space across San Francisco for the quarter totaled 29.6 million square feet, Cushman & Wakefield said. The firm said in its report that there are positive signs in the market, with absorption poised to improve in the second half and office job numbers stabilizing following a steep drop-off. But Sammons said it looks like there's more room for rents to fall and for vacancies to rise. Uncertainty surrounding the upcoming presidential election may be a factor delaying new leases, he said. "Sometimes tenants postpone making decisions when there are major elections," he said. WATCH: Commercial real estate vacancies in San Francisco are at an all-time high Workers producing garments at a textile factory that supplies clothes to fast fashion e-commerce company Shein in Guangzhou in southern China's Guangdong province. Jade Gao | Afp | Getty Images The rise of Asian fast fashion retailer Shein already has Amazon on alert, but its plans of selling proprietary supply-chain technology and services to companies around the world has attracted attention from another corner: U.S. cybersecurity firms and national security experts who warn of the potential for a company with close ties to China spying on the supply chain as it seeks to grow its global logistics footprint. Shein logistics software is in beta testing with select supply chain customers, according to a person familiar with its plans. The U.S. supply chain has millions of connection points that link companies of all sizes. What makes the connections hum are application programming interfaces, or APIs, used by companies to increase efficiencies and save money. API software allows applications to communicate with each other in real-time and is crucial to logistics companies to integrate with freight providers, streamline operations, and create efficiencies for providers in their supply chain and ultimately, the end customer. "The APIs in the logistics infrastructure are very interconnected, often without cybersecurity being contemplated," said Lee Kair, principal and head of the transportation and innovation practice at The Chertoff Group, who formerly served as a top official at the Transportation Security Administration. Cybersecurity experts and policy analysts say the supply chain of vendors is constantly changing, and the potential to gain data access is as simple as identifying the weakest link in a company's data network. Typically, small companies have more vulnerable back-office systems, with weaker cyber protocols. "There is a tremendous amount of logistics integration in the world of fast fashion. These integrations can be compromised for nefarious purposes to expose customer data or compromise other connected systems," Kair said. According to data from Exiger, a supply chain intelligence intelligence company used by the U.S. government and critical infrastructure industries for risk management, there is a complex web of entities connected to Shein which indicates the company's supply chain is more expansive and complex than most people realize. Exiger data shows that while Shein has 44 direct relationships, such as with its parent company Zoetop, and discloses over 5,000 suppliers, an analysis of all of its materials producers shows a supply chain connectivity map that expands substantially. In all, 10,821 companies comprise a supply chain one tier away from Shein. Drilling down deeper into that network of those Shein partners, it expands to 50,000-plus entities, including major U.S. companies, such as Forever 21, operated by Authentic Holdings and mall operator Simon Property Group both of which announced formal partnerships with Shein last year focused on access to bricks-and-mortar retail. Allowing Shein to embed its technology within U.S. supply chains could undermine the competitive landscape, violate regulatory standards, and introduce a host of risks, including cybersecurity, said Dewardric McNeal, managing director and senior policy analyst at Longview Global, who served as a policy expert on Asia for the Obama administration's Department of Defense. "Given the intricate nature of the U.S. and global supply chains, the potential for espionage or data gathering is a significant risk," McNeal said. "Shein's software could provide unprecedented access to sensitive supply chain data, which the Chinese government could seize under its laws. This exposure poses a direct threat to U.S. supply chain integrity, making it vulnerable to exploitation and manipulation." Shein has made moves to distance itself from Chinese affiliations. In 2022, Shein moved its headquarters from China to Singapore for regulatory and financial reasons. However, the company's supply chains and warehouses are still in China. "The concern of any company with significant Chinese ownership and physical presence is the legal framework in China," Kair said. "Chinese law requires the company's cooperation in providing sensitive information related to U.S. citizens to the Chinese government. Even with a headquarters based in Singapore, company supply chain data could be subject to seizure by the Chinese. This is a clear vulnerability of U.S. customer data." Kair referred to the moving of the company's headquarters from China to Singapore to ease regulatory scrutiny as another example of the practice known as "Singapore washing." watch now There are certifications in place for companies to prove their information security controls meet accepted corporate standards, including a SOC2 Type II Report created by a third party auditing firm to examine a company's internal controls and how well they safeguard customer data an audit that can take several months or more. The other primary certification is an ISO 27001 certification, which is the international industry standard for information security management systems, and its extension, ISO 27701 both of which Shein says are among its implementation of industry standard controls to protect customers' data. "We try to limit our data collection to the minimum amount of information necessary to process commercial transactions," Shein said in a statement to CNBC. "We have built systems in accordance with leading data protection frameworks such as the International Standards Organization's standard 27001 and 27701," it stated. The International Standards Organization, which maintains ISO standards, explained by email that it does not carry out any certifications, which are issued independently of ISO by the various national and international certification bodies operating around the world. "As such, the ISO Central Secretariat doesn't have a database of these certifications," it wrote. Certified companies have an obligation to inform customers of the name of the organization having issued the certificate, and verification of certification should be addressed to that certification organization. CNBC searched the ISO's IAF CertSearch database to find a certificate for Shein or its parent company Zoetop, but no certificate validation was found. Shein told CNBC that it has the relevant certifications from third-party auditors. Storing sensitive data locally To allay national security concerns, Shein has set up data storage in respective markets. It stores U.S. customer data within Microsoft U.S.-based Azure cloud and AWS US-based cloud. In the EU, customer data is stored in Frankfurt, Germany. Payment data is not collected by the company in the U.S., but by American payment processing company, Worldpay, which is majority owned by public equity firm GTCR. The data stored in China covers its industrial supplier management and digital merchant system, which facilitates the transactions from garment raw materials ancillary materials like buttons, zippers in moving the product in China. Ram Ben Tzion, co-founder and CEO of Publican, a digital vetting platform for global trade, tells CNBC it is possible for Shein, and the Chinese government, to misuse supply chain and consumer data. He says the effort to raise Shein's profile as a global logistics provider is directly related to the intensifying economic battle between the U.S. and China. "You are now seeing this new business service being offered," said Ben Tzion. "Pushing Shein as a logistics company is a response or retaliation to the U.S. tightening up everything outsourcing from China," he said. "This is a way for China to regain a hold on the global supply chain," he added, referring to the flow of trade away from China, and Chinese giants finding it difficult to raise capital in the U.S. market. A man walking past a logo of fast fashion e-commerce company Shein outside its office in Guangzhou in southern China's Guangdong province. Jade Gao | Afp | Getty Images Shein's manufacturing and supply chain infrastructure has also presented legal issues for partners and political blowback in the U.S. related to the longstanding international issue of forced labor in China. The source familiar with Shein's operations said it is in compliance with policies from Social Accountability International, an NGO that sets strict international fair labor standards. But a spokeswoman for SAI says Shein has shown no evidence that they do in fact operate in alignment with SAI's labor standards. "SAI has not engaged directly with Shein and cannot confirm whether their practices align with our standards. In order to support such a claim, Shein would need to be much more transparent about their business practices and supply chain," the spokeswoman said. McNeal said there are significant concerns about Shein's supply chains being deeply intertwined with forced labor from Xinjiang Province in potential violation of the Uyghur Forced Labor Protection Act. "Supporting a company with such links contradicts U.S. regulatory efforts and ethical standards and could increase scrutiny from the Department of Homeland Security's, Customs and Border Patrol and the UFLPA Entities List Office," he said. Shein's planned U.S. IPO is considered "all but dead," with several powerful political figures in the nation's capital among those who sought to block it for reasons including its supply chain issues and use of trade loopholes (Shein is now pursuing a potential London listing instead). Shein has also been spurned by the U.S. retail industry's largest trade group, into which it sought membership. Shein's cybersecurity protocols have previously come under fire. In October 2022, the New York Attorney General fined Shein, its affiliate Romwe, and parent company Zoetop for $1.9 million over its handling of a 2018 data breach in which 39 million Shein accounts and seven million Romwe accounts were stolen, including accounts for more than 800,000 New York residents. "Data ownership and protecting against cybersecurity threats are absolutely essential in the context of global supply chains," said Srini Cherukuri, vice president of IT infrastructure & chief information security officer at ITS Logistics. "Conducting due diligence of data security and privacy practices of everyone in the supply chain is crucial to protecting against cybersecurity attacks, mitigating impacts, and optimizing the recovery time of business operations." Shein's fast rise to dominance Shein's dominance lies in the company's hyper-flexible supply chain, according to a recent report from supply chain intelligence firm Zero100. It found that using over 5,400 nearby factories in Guangzhou for micro-batch production, the company is able to work with rapi design-to-delivery cycles, lower production costs, and minimize inventory risk. Led by founder Chris Xu's deep knowledge of SEO and online marketing, Shein has also developed a data-driven approach to fuel its growth. Integrating continuous, real-time AI data across its marketplace platform, Shein enables "dynamic demand-supply matching, data-driven trendspotting, and algorithmic supplier selection, with AI outputs feeding into subsequent models for comprehensive decision-making across the value chain," Zero100 stated. That supply chain efficiency is being hailed as a positive, but Ben Tzion said that smaller manufacturers and social media influencers should understand that China's effort to push Shein as a logistics company "is an attempt to distance itself from the liabilities associated with its trade practices and push it on to smaller business owners." Using Shein for logistics also means giving up all control of their supply chain and followers. "It is a safe assumption to say using a third-party like Shein for manufacturing and production will give Shein complete access to all company information, as well as its consumers and followers' shopping habits," he said. Fast fashion's trip from manufacturing to market Logistics services tied to production of items like sneakers and apparel in Asia require multiple supply chain touchpoints. "The average touch point for a sneaker and apparel is 5.6," said Eric Fullerton, senior director of product marketing for supply chain research firm Project44. "These shipments on average use three out of four modes of transportation [ocean, rail, truck, air]." According to Project44's analysis, sneakers and apparel travel an average of 42% around the world during the manufacturing process. The average distance traveled from the factory to the distribution center is 9,630 miles. That is long enough to walk back and forth across the United States nearly four times. The average shipment travels through 8.4 states in the US. Most medical students at Johns Hopkins University will no longer pay tuition thanks to a $1 billion gift from Bloomberg Philanthropies announced Monday. Starting in the fall, the donation will cover full tuition for medical students from families earning less than $300,000. Living expenses and fees will be covered for students from families who earn up to $175,000. Bloomberg Philanthropies said that currently almost two-thirds of all students seeking a doctor of medicine degree from Johns Hopkins qualify for financial aid, and 45% of the current class will also receive living expenses. The school estimates that graduates' average total loans will decrease from $104,000 currently to $60,279 by 2029. The gift will also increase financial aid for students at the university's schools of nursing, public health, and other graduate schools. "By reducing the financial barriers to these essential fields, we can free more students to pursue careers they're passionate about and enable them to serve more of the families and communities who need them the most," Michael Bloomberg, founder of Bloomberg Philanthropies and Bloomberg LP, said in a statement on Monday. Bloomberg received a bachelor's degree in electrical engineering from Johns Hopkins University in 1964. The gift will go to John Hopkins' endowment and every penny will go directly to students, said Ron Daniels, president of Johns Hopkins University. "Mike has really been moved by the challenges that the professions confronted during the course of the pandemic and the heroic efforts they've made to protecting and providing care to American citizens during the pandemic," Daniels said in an interview. "I think he simply wanted to recognize the importance of these fields and provide this support to ensure that the best and brightest could attend medical school and the school of nursing and public health." Britain's Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves delivers a speech at the Treasury, to an audience of leading business figures and senior stakeholders, announcing the first steps the new Labour Government will take to deliver economic growth, in London on July 8, 2024. LONDON Britain's new finance chief on Monday outlined a spate of measures to revitalize the U.K.'s languishing economic growth and address national housing shortages. "I have repeatedly warned that whoever won the general election would inherit the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War. What I have seen in past 72 hours has only confirmed that," newly minted Finance Minister Rachel Reeves said in her first major speech in the post on Monday, adding that "nowhere is decisive reform needed more urgently than in the case of our planning system." A former Bank of England economist, Reeves was appointed as Britain's first female chancellor of the exchequer equivalent to a finance minister on Friday, when newly invested Prime Minister Keir Starmer named his first Cabinet. Ahead of her first speech, she championed economic growth as both a party priority and the "national mission." She is not expected to deliver her first state budget until the fall and on Monday said she will reveal the explicit timeline "in due course." Reeves added that she has instructed Treasury officials to provide an assessment on the state of British spending inherited from the previous Conservative administration, which she aims to present to Parliament before summer recess. Housing and planning were center stage in Reeves' Monday speech: "First, we will reform the national planning policy framework, consulting on a new growth-focused approach to the planning system before the end of the month. Including restoring mandatory housing targets. And as of today we are ending the absurd ban on new onshore wind [farms] in England," she said. "We are going to get Britain building again. We are going to get Britain's economy growing again. And there is no time to waste," Reeves added. House building has surfaced as a key priority of the Labour government, which seeks to cut through the red tape that has chronically fettered housing supply and ballooned the country's real estate market. A total of 212,570 new homes were completed last year under the Conservative administration, according to government figures, while the Resolution Foundation think tank in late March found that U.K. households receive "an inferior product in terms of both quantity and quality," even as, "compared to our general price levels, the UK has the highest quality-adjusted price of housing of any developed economy." Emergency forces and civilians conduct search-and-rescue operations among the rubble of 'Okhmatdyt' Children's Hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, on July 8, 2024. A barrage of Russian missiles across Ukraine killed at least 31 people, injured 125 others and seriously damaged a key children's hospital in a rare large-scale daytime attack, Ukraine's Ministry of Internal Affairs said. Russian forces launched more than 40 aerial missiles at the cities of Kyiv, Dnipro, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's native Kryvi Rih, according to the Kyiv city military administration. At least 20 people died in Kyiv and 61 were injured, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said, in a Google-translated statement. The Ukrainian capital's Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital undertook "considerable destruction," with patients being transferred to other medical facilities in Kyiv. It was not immediately clear whether the site was directly hit or struck by missile debris. A doctor and another adult died in the medical facility, Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said on Telegram, prior to the ministry update. He added at the time that 16 people were injured in the hospital, seven of whom were children. "This is horror and genocide!" Klitschko said. Several other regions declared fatalities, with people killed in Kryvy Rih where Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the local military administration, declared a day of mourning as well as in Dnipro and Pokrovsk, according to regional heads. The casualty figures could not be verified by CNBC and are subject to change as rescue operations continue. Vast plumes of smoke, rains of debris and razed sites can be seen in pictures shared by Ukrainian officials, which CNBC was unable to authenticate. "Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDREN'S hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children," Zelenskyy said of the offensive on X. "Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general." Russia's Ministry of Defense said accusations of deliberate missile strikes against civilian sites were "absolutely untrue." The ministry said its forces had answered Kyiv's hostilities with a mass attack on Ukrainian military facilities and air bases with long-range precision weapons. "The strike's objectives were achieved. The designated facilities were hit," the defense ministry said in a Google-translated statement. CNBC has reached out to Russia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for comment. Vietnam is the most affordable place to live in for expats, according to a report by InterNations. Moving to a foreign country may seem like a pipe dream, but it doesn't have to break the bank. When deciding whether to move overseas for life or work, one of the biggest factors to consider is personal finances. For the fourth consecutive year, Vietnam is the most affordable country in the world for expats, ranking first out of 53 destinations when it comes to personal finances, according to a 2024 InterNations study. To be clear, out of 53 places, it came in 40 for quality of life, 29 for expat essentials such as digital life, housing and language, and ranked 14 for working abroad with considerations like career prospects, salary and job security factored in. More than 12,000 expats across 174 territories worldwide participated in the broader Expat Insider 2024 survey which provided insights including the best and worst places to live, quality of life, working abroad and personal finance. For the Personal Finance Index, InterNations asked survey respondents to rank their personal satisfaction levels in three areas: general cost of living, satisfaction with financial situation, and whether disposable household income was enough to lead a comfortable life. This data was used to compile the report which remains largely unchanged from last year, with the exception of a new entrant to the list Brazil (9th) replacing Malaysia, which dropped from 5th in 2023 to 11th this year. Here are the top 10 destinations expats say are best for their personal finances: Vietnam Colombia Indonesia Panama Philippines India Mexico Thailand Brazil China Asian countries dominated this year's list, nabbing six out of the top 10 positions. Southeast Asia, in particular, stood out with Vietnam, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand all ranking in the top 10. "Housing is a big plus in all four countries: Thailand ranks 1st, Vietnam 2nd, Philippines 5th, and Indonesia 8th," Kathrin Chudoba, chief marketing officer for InterNations, told CNBC Make It. "Most expats agree that it's easy to find housing, and they are happy with how affordable it is." Out of surveyed expats living in Vietnam, 86% rate its cost of living favorably that's more than twice the global average of 40%, and 65% of respondents in the country say they are satisfied with their financial situation compared to 54% globally, according to the report. In addition, 68% of respondents say their disposable household income is more than enough to lead a comfortable life, compared to 41% globally, the survey showed. Colorado Politics is published both in print and online. Our website features subscriber-only news stories daily, designed for public policy arena professionals. Member subscribers also receive the weekly print edition of our award-winning newspaper, containing outstanding features and news stories, in their mailboxes every Saturday. Consuming even a single alcoholic drink per day can significantly shorten one's lifespan, according to recent findings by Dr. Tim Stockwell, a prominent researcher at the Canadian Institute for Substance Use Research. Stockwell's analysis suggests that a pint of beer, a glass of wine, or a shot of spirits each day can reduce life expectancy by approximately two and a half months. The implications are reportedly more severe for heavy drinkers. Those who drink significantly more alcohol than that -- about 35 beverages a week -- could slash a staggering two years off their lifespan, Stockwell told the Daily Mail. These revelations challenge the commonly held belief that moderate alcohol consumption might be safe or even beneficial. "Alcohol is our favorite recreational drug. We use it for pleasure and relaxation, and the last thing we want to hear is that it causes any harm," Stockwell noted. "It's comforting to think that drinking is good for our health, but unfortunately, it's based on poor science." Recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed the potential dangers of alcohol. They reported that alcohol consumption is linked to a higher risk of various health conditions, including cancer, heart disease, high blood pressure, stroke, and liver disease. Annually, over 20,000 people in the United States die from alcohol-related cancers alone. The CDC defines "moderate" drinking as one drink per day for women and two for men, a guideline that now appears to be overly lenient given the emerging evidence. Last year, Ireland took a bold step by requiring health warnings on alcohol labels, becoming the first country to do so. Canada also revised its health guidelines, recommending that individuals limit their consumption to no more than two drinks per week. Stockwell's research contributes to a growing body of literature that contradicts the long-held belief that moderate alcohol intake can be part of a healthy lifestyle. For years, moderate consumption of red wine was touted for its heart benefits, but newer studies suggest otherwise. "Being able to drink is a sign you are still healthy, not the cause of being in good health," Stockwell explained. "There are lots of ways these studies give false results that are misinterpreted to mean alcohol is good for you." While many may view their nightly glass of wine or occasional cocktail as a harmless indulgence, the new findings urge a reevaluation of drinking habits in light of their potential impact on lifespan and overall health. Migraines affect over a billion people globally, causing debilitating symptoms such as throbbing head pain, nausea, and fatigue lasting for days. Despite their prevalence, understanding how these severe headaches originate has been a longstanding challenge for scientists. A study conducted on mice offers new insights into the neurological processes underlying migraines. Researchers propose that during cortical spreading depression (CSD), a momentary shutdown of neuronal activity, changes occur in the cerebrospinal fluid surrounding the brain and spinal cord. This altered fluid, they suggest, may flow through previously unknown anatomical pathways to activate pain and inflammatory receptors in the skull, thereby triggering migraines. "This work is a shift in how we think the headaches originate. A headache might just be a general warning sign for lots of things happening inside the brain that aren't normal," said Gregory Dussor, a neuroscientist at the University of Texas at Dallas. Study co-author Maiken Nedergaard from the University of Copenhagen added, "Migraine is actually protective in that way. The pain is protective because it's telling the person to rest and recover and sleep." Unlike other types of pain, migraines originate from areas outside the brain, where pain receptors are absent. This disconnect between brain activity and peripheral nervous system response complicates treatment efforts. Published on July 4 in Science, the study focused on a mouse model of aural migraine, often preceded by an aura phase with symptoms such as sensitivity to light and numbness. During this phase, CSD triggers changes in the cerebrospinal fluid that researchers believe activate nerves in the meninges, layers protecting the brain and spinal cord. Nedergaard's team investigated whether similar leaks in cerebrospinal fluid activate the trigeminal nerve, which extends through the face and skull, concentrating at the trigeminal ganglia. These nerve clusters play a crucial role in transmitting sensory information and contain receptors for pain and inflammatory proteins. Analyzing cerebrospinal fluid from mice experiencing CSDs, researchers observed significant fluctuations in protein concentrations, including an increase in CGRP, a protein targeted by migraine medications. They also identified a novel gap in protective layers around the trigeminal ganglion, allowing fluid to affect nerve cells, potentially triggering migraines, Nature reported. Philip Holland, a neuroscientist at King's College London, commented, "It really shows this nice potential interaction between how something changing in the brain could impact the periphery. There can be a crosstalk between these two components of the nervous system, and we should be more aware of it." Future studies, Dussor suggested, should delve into why proteins in cerebrospinal fluid affect the trigeminal ganglion specifically for migraines and not other types of pain, paving the way for expanded understanding and innovative therapies. Researchers in the United States have uncovered a surprising new indicator of cognitive decline and dementia: a change in exploration behavior by middle age. Their study found that middle-aged adults are less efficient explorers in a maze learning task compared to younger individuals. This finding opens new avenues for diagnosing and treating cognitive decline. Spatial navigation, the daily skill of moving from one place to another, typically deteriorates with age. This decline has long been attributed to worsening spatial memory due to natural changes in brain structure and function. However, researchers suggest that altered exploration behavior, observed in aging animals and now humans, also plays a significant role. Lead author Dr. Vaisakh Puthusseryppady, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of California, Irvine, highlighted the study's key findings. "Compared to younger individuals, middle-aged people exhibit overall less exploration when learning a novel maze environment, and seem to be prioritizing learning specific important locations in the maze as opposed to the overall maze layout," he said, as quoted by PsyPost. The study, published in Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience, involved 87 middle-aged participants, averaging 50 years old, and 50 young participants, averaging 19 years old, all without any history of neurological or psychiatric diseases. Participants navigated a virtual reality maze during two phases: an exploration phase to learn the maze and a wayfinding phase to apply their knowledge. Results showed that young participants had a higher success rate in navigating the maze. However, statistical analyses revealed that middle-aged participants' reduced success was partly due to their different exploration behaviors. Dr. Mary Hegarty, a professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, noted the significance of these differences, saying, "Compared to younger individuals, middle-aged individuals explored the maze environment less, as they traveled less distance, paused for longer periods of time at decision points, and visited more objects than young individuals." The researchers speculate that these behavioral changes may be linked to age-related alterations in the brain's navigation network, such as the medial temporal and parietal lobes. The findings suggest that training middle-aged adults to explore novel environments more effectively could help improve their spatial memory and slow cognitive decline. Co-author Daniela Cossio, a PhD student at UC Irvine, emphasized the potential applications. "If we were to train middle-aged people to explore novel environments better -- with a focus on traveling greater distances, visiting paths that connect the environment, in a more spread-out manner -- this might lead to improvements in their spatial memory, helping to slow down their decline in cognitive ability," she explained. Dr. Elizabeth Chrastil, an associate professor at UC Irvine, expressed optimism about future research. "We are currently investigating whether these kinds of changes in exploration behavior can be identified in people at risk of Alzheimer's Disease, as well as in those who actually have Alzheimer's. We anticipate that altered exploration behavior could ultimately become a novel clinical marker for early cognitive decline related to Alzheimer's," she said. This study not only sheds light on the underlying causes of age-related cognitive decline but also paves the way for new diagnostic and therapeutic strategies. Mixing energy drinks with alcohol can lead to significant memory and learning problems. Understanding Memory Impairment Memory impairment occurs when the brain's ability to store, retain, and recall information is disrupted. The hippocampus, a critical brain region, plays a central role in these processes. Impairment in this area can significantly affect a person's cognitive functions. Effects of Consuming Energy Drinks, Alcohol on Memory Impairment A study conducted by researchers at an Italian university examined the effects of combining alcohol and energy drinks on memory. The study involved feeding male rats either energy drinks, alcohol, or a mixture of both over 53 days. Behavioral tests and brain scans were used to assess the cognitive abilities of these rats. The findings, published in the journal Neuropharmacology, revealed that the combination of alcohol and energy drinks led to persistent memory and learning issues in the rats. These cognitive problems remained even after the rats stopped consuming the mixed drinks. The hippocampus, responsible for memory and learning, showed noticeable alterations. Potential Risks to Adolescent Brain Health The researchers emphasized that adolescence is a crucial period for brain development. The long-term effects of consuming alcohol and energy drinks together during this stage are not well understood. However, the study suggests that this combination could pose significant risks to brain health during adolescence. The study also found that mixing alcohol with energy drinks may affect the plasticity of the hippocampus. Initially, the rats experienced a temporary boost in certain brain functions after consuming the mixed drinks, followed by a decline over time. This indicates that the brain's ability to adapt and learn was impaired. Implications for Human Health The researchers highlighted the need for further studies on humans to confirm these findings. However, the results suggest that the health risks of mixing energy drinks with alcohol are substantial. Both substances are harmful on their own, and their combined effects appear to be more detrimental. The study noted that the amount of alcohol and energy drink mixture given to the rats was similar to binge-drinking levels observed in young adults. This behavior is becoming increasingly common, raising concerns about its potential consequences on human health. Your first day at work could go very well or very poorly. Best-case scenario: The computer has an error, and suddenly, the entire company belongs to you. Worst-case scenario: Two planes fly into the World Trade Center, and youre the brand-new Chief of ATC Operations for the FAA. The following first days arent quite as bad as that last one, but theyre pretty bad. 5 A Teacher Was Immediately Arrested, Drunk and Pantsless As soon as you read that headline, you started picturing exactly what sort of debauched classes this Oklahoma high school teacher hosted. But when Lorie Hill was found drunk at school in August 2014, classes were still a week from starting. She showed up anyway and also decided to ditch her pants. Wagoner Police Department It was August in Oklahoma. Who could blame her? When you find a woman in a building drunk and without pants, theres often the possibility thats shes a victim of a crime. The teachers who entered the classroom and spoke to Hill quickly concluded that she was instead the perpetrator of a crime. While there is no specific law against shedding lower garments in a school zone, police booked her on public intoxication. Her arrest meant shed miss the first week of class, which really sounds like a blessing. 4 A Florida Cop Was Arrested for Child Porn on Day One If you were disappointed that our last school story didnt feature any actual sex crimes, fear not: We have another for you. This ones about sheriffs deputy Kai Cromer, who set a department record this past March for quickest arrest meaning, he was the cop to be arrested the quickest, not the cop to arrest the quickest. For his first day on the job, Cromer had to attend an orientation for new recruits, which was held at Vero Beach High School. The exact reasoning behind this choice of venue is unclear, but it proved fortuitous because it allowed a teen at the school to catch sight of him and say, Hey, isnt that the guy who was on Snapchat asking me for nudes? Advertisement Indian River County Sheriff's Office Most Florida cops arent caught committing any kind of sex offense until day three, at the earliest. It certainly appeared to be. To make sure, that very same day, police entered Cromers home to check his computer. This is speed you rarely ever associate with police policing themselves, but it was essential in this case if they wanted to act before their guy deleted the evidence. Inside, they found enough photos and videos of underage subjects that they fired him immediately as well as arrested him. Cromer is only 19 years old. In response to the incident, the department announced that theyre considering raising the minimum age of recruits to 21. We could write an entire article analyzing the dubious reasoning behind that choice. Advertisement 3 A New Tree Cutter Fell Right into the Wood Chipper Our next new employee was also 19 on his first day. His name was Mason Cox, and he was working for a North Carolina landscaping company named Crawford Tree Service. Hed arrived with no previous experience with trees, but hed climbed cell towers professionally, which is the sort of terrifying job that may well make someone feel ready for anything. The team was pulling down unwanted trees and putting them into a wood chipper. No one alive witnessed exactly what went wrong, and maybe that was the problem maybe a supervisor should have been overseeing this new employee on his first day with this dangerous piece of equipment. Police would later guess Cox may have kicked a branch into the chipper. The head of the company, Jon Crawford, instead suggested maybe the chipper grabbed a loose piece of his clothing. Whatever the cause, Cox found himself being pulled in. Advertisement Advertisement Stegeren/Wiki Commons Fargo was supposed to be a warning, not an instruction manual. Crawford hit the kill switch on the machine, but that wasnt enough to stop what was in motion. Reports say that Cox was eventually found inside the wood chipper. If our knowledge of chippers is accurate, a certain percentage of him must have been ejected from the chipper after passing through it. Medical personnel arrived too late to help Cox, but they did find themselves with a patient to attend to. Crawford had a heart attack at the scene and needed to be rushed to the hospital. Advertisement 2 A Very Important Man Had A Heart Attack Next up is another tale of a heart attack. When youre a paramedic working for the city, you know youre going to have to attend to a heart attack patient sooner or later. When youre a medic hanging around a TV shoot, however, you perhaps dont expect something like that will happen to the small handful of people in your building. And you probably hope it wont happen to this guy: AMC Oh no, Saul is down. Who do we call? Bob Odenkirk had a heart attack while filming the sixth season of Better Call Saul. Attending to him that day was the onsite medic, and it was his first day on the job. He was a retired firefighter, so he had a certain level of training, but hed never once done CPR on someone before. In fact, someone else attempted CPR on Odenkirk before the medic acted, and its possible that this other person saved his life. The medic later visited Odenkirk in the hospital and apologized for his inexperience. Advertisement Advertisement Odenkirks heart attack happened three years ago this month, by the way. That may surprise you if you remember hearing about it in the news if you, like so many other people, had your sense of time broken at the start of this decade, and its still not recovered. Judith Belushi Pisano passed away on Friday night at the age of 73, survived by four children and six grandchildren, as well as three siblings, according to The Marthas Vineyard Times. For comedy fans, Belushi Pisano is, of course, most famous for being the widow of John Belushi, her high school sweetheart, who died in 1982. Belushi Pisano had a lot of engagement with her late husbands legacy in the years following his death, penning multiple books on the subject, and even participating in the organization of a Blues Brothers-themed convention in the historic Old Joliet Prison. Not surprisingly, a whole lot of Crystal Head vodka was served. Less well-known is the fact that Belushi Pisano briefly worked behind-the-scenes at Saturday Night Live. Very briefly, that is. Yeah, even the wife of one of the shows most legendary cast members hated her experience writing for the long-running sketch show. Don't Miss As Belsuhi Pisano revealed during an interview for Live from New York: An Uncensored History of Saturday Night Live, she decided to do a little writing for SNL, but her time there only amounted to three weeks, and just one show. Dick Ebersol took over SNLs producing duties in 1981 (Lorne Michaels left the show in 1980, and his replacement, Jean Doumanian, was relieved of the job after only a handful of episodes), prompting Belushi Pisano to seek a writing position. Why would you ever want to write for Saturday Night Live? John Belushi asked his wife at the time. Belushi Pisano reasoned that she had already contributed to the show, but just didnt get any credit for it. I had been around it so much, and sometimes even participated giving somebody a line or something, Belushi Pisano stated. She had also worked as an associate on the National Lampoon Radio Hour, so when it came to writing for SNL, she told herself, I can do that. Advertisement The Ebersol season also saw the return of head writer (and Muppet-hater) Michael ODonoghue, who, famously, wasnt always the easiest person to work with. And things were even worse in the Ebersol era, according to Belushi Pisano. He didnt want to be there, and he was really miserable about it, she recalled. Advertisement Belushi Pisanos contribution to the show was a lengthy Raging Bull parody sketch co-written with Mitch Glazer, but it was immediately rejected by ODonoghue. We were like an hour late handing it in, so Michael refused to look at it. It was just like school, she admitted. Ebersol only got to produce one show before the sixth season was abruptly cut short by a writers strike. The one episode, which Belushi Pisano worked on, was a super weird one, featuring several new cast members, guest star Chevy Chase, and somewhat conspicuously, no guest host. Instead of an opening monologue, we got a wildly unpleasant sketch in which Joe Piscopos Frank Sinatra rants about the evils of Japanese people while encouraging viewers to buy American cars. Advertisement When the show returned later that year, Belushi Pisano wasnt a part of the writing staff, saying of the experience, I thought it would be interesting. But I really didnt like it. And shes far from the only one who felt that way You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time youre reading this). Rare is the element of critical infrastructure ecosystem that doesnt contain legacy systems declared at end of life (EOL) or outdated and unsupported software or operating systems. Any CISO in charge of safeguarding said infrastructure should aspire to know and refresh often their knowledge of where that legacy tech resides, given the length and breadth of its footprint from operational technology (OT) to information technology (IT). The lack of this knowledge effectively creates risky blind spots for which the CISO will be held both responsible and accountable, as there is no doubt that critical infrastructure sits squarely in the crosshairs of many a potential adversary. A previously unreported security breach at OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, has raised alarms over the potential of foreign adversaries, such as China, accessing sensitive AI technologies. While the hacker did not access the core code, the incident that took place in 2023 has sparked fears over foreign adversaries particularly China stealing sensitive AI secrets, The New York Times reported. The breach occurred early last year when a hacker infiltrated OpenAIs internal messaging system, gaining access to employee discussions regarding the companys latest AI advancements, the newspaper said quoting two anonymous sources. Residents relocated after Dongting Lake dike breach Ecns.cn) 11:24, July 08, 2024 Villagers at the resettlement site of Huarong County Vocational Secondary School are scrubbing bamboo mats, July 6, 2024. (Photo: China News Service/Yang Huafeng) After a breach hazard occurred at the frontline dike of Dongting Lake in Yueyang City, Hunan Province, effective measures were taken by Junshan District and Huarong County, Yueyang City, to fully ensure the proper resettlement of local residents. Trucks line up to dump stones into the breach of Dongting Lake in Yueyang City, Hunan Province, July 6, 2024. (Photo: China News Service/Yang Huafeng) Around 3:00 p.m., the water levels inside and outside the Tuanzhou embankment in Huarong County, Hunan Province, were roughly equal. The on-site command center was urgently sealing the breach. Bulldozers pushed stones into the breach at a dike of Dongting Lake in Yueyang City, Hunan Province, July 6, 2024. (Photo: China News Service/Yang Huafeng) Trucks dump stones into the breach at a dike of Dongting Lake in Yueyang City, Hunan Province, July 6, 2024. (Photo: China News Service/Yang Huafeng) Villagers chat at a resettlement site of Huarong County Vocational Secondary School, July 6, 2024. (Photo: China News Service/Yang Huafeng) (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) 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. Sidewalks could potentially be installed on Julia Street from Church to Lennox streets and halfway up Curie Lane to connect to the existing partial sidewalk leading to Marie Curie Elementary School in Amsterdam under a proposal being considered by the city. The result is catastrophic for the UK, for our communities and for the next generation. People didnt know what they were voting for. Theyre too stupid. They were swayed by that lying fraud Nigel Farage. Theres no proper majority. The vote was merely advisory, not binding. It will have to be re-run. We need a Peoples Vote to put it right. The courts will have to intervene. Bring on Baroness Hale. Wheres Gina Miller when you need her? We must have a second general election, NOW! Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaks at a conference following his first Cabinet meeting at Downing Street on Saturday The quote in the first paragraph was from Keir Starmer, launching his four-year campaign to overturn the result of the Brexit vote. He wheeled out every argument in the book to claim that the outcome of the 2016 referendum, in which 17.4 million people voted Leave, was an affront to democracy. The 52/48 margin was too narrow, Starmer and the Stop Brexit gang maintained. There needed to be a supermajority. David Lammy, our new Foreign Secretary, railed: When we talk about the will of the people, let us remember the 48 per cent who voted against this. Let us think about what they deserve. Wake up. We do not have to do this. We can stop this madness and bring this nightmare to an end. When the Remainers couldnt halt Leave by parliamentary means, they resorted to lawfare. Step forward that mysteriously well-funded businesswoman Gina Miller, who went to the High Court to stop Brexit happening. Later, the Supreme Court under Baroness Hale - she of the Boris The Spider brooch - ruled against Prime Minister Johnsons attempts to prorogue Parliament to prevent Remainers, led by partisan Speaker John Bercow, frustrating the clear will of the British people. Foreign Secretary David Lammy during a meeting with the Canadian minister for foreign affairs in London Guyanese-British business owner and activist Gina Miller, who challenged Brexit in 2016 The BBC went into full national mourning mode. For weeks, the airwaves were dominated by the Alastair Campbells and Anna Soubrys screaming for a second referendum. Hundreds of thousands marched through London protesting the illegitimate result. Yet it is worth reminding ourselves that the 17.4 million who voted Leave was the largest number to have voted for anything in history. They represented 52 per cent of the electorate, compared to the 34 per cent won by Labour last week on a low turnout with just 9.7 million actual votes, barely half the Leave haul in 2016. Unless Ive missed something, though, nobody is calling for a second General Election, even though Labour gained a whopping 172-seat majority on a vote share of little more than one-third. Yet using the logic employed by Starmer and Co after the referendum, there should be a confirmatory re-run right away. This ridiculously disproportionate outcome makes a complete mockery of our so-called representative democracy. But the result has been accepted with barely a peep of protest. I havent heard anyone complaining, Lammy-style, that we must remember the 80 per cent of the British people who didnt vote Labour and claiming we can still stop this madness and bring this nightmare to an end. Theres no evidence of a Gina Miller figure lining up a legal challenge. Farage is still getting a slandering all round, obviously, but nobody is calling the British people who put Labour into power a bunch of ignorant racist gammons who didnt know what they were voting for. Nor are the fanatically pro-EU Lib Dems demanding the immediate introduction of proportional representation, after first-past-the-post delivered them 71 seats. If you can win big simply by falling off a paddleboard and bungee jumping, why worry? Meanwhile, Starmer and Lammy, those tribunes of democracy, have already set about unpicking Brexit, despite having only received the support of one in five of those eligible to vote. Camden Council leader Georgia Gould poses with Sir Keir at a 2019 anti-Brexit rally So what about an imminent second election? This time, even Brenda from Bristol might be in favour. After all, to coin a phrase, this result is catastrophic for the UK, for our communities and for the next generation. Sadly, I wouldnt hold your breath. They are the masters now and will probably spend the next five years working out how to abolish elections altogether, while cementing us back into the EU permanently. Makes you proud to be British. As Scarlett slumped, dead, in my arms, I felt my heart break. Worst of all was knowing I had done this to her. It was March 29, 2021, and I had just killed my dog. It was I who had rung the vet and booked the appointment, and I who had cooked her final meal (M&S Best Ever Burger). It was I who led her into the surgery, lifted her up on to the trolley and held her while the vet put the cannula into her leg. I'd nodded at the vet to let her start administering the deadly solution and I'd seen what no one else saw, a flash of reproach in her eyes, even as she fell lifeless into my arms. It was the saddest day of my life, more heartbreaking, even, than the death of my elderly father six months before. That had felt like the right and proper closing of a circle and part of the cycle of life, with no decisions to make. All we had to do was ensure we got there to say goodbye, send him well-loved into the night and then look after my mother as she grieved her companion of 57 years. Susannah Jowitt with her dog Vesper, who she got two years before the death of Scarlett Susannah describes the day she lost Scarlett as 'the saddest day of my life, more heartbreaking, even, than the death of my elderly father six months before' The fact that this, the loss of Scarlett, made me feel worse was a source of guilt, of course. She was just a dog, right? We'd done everything by the book, too, buying a 'transitional dog', Vesper, two years beforehand, so Scarlett could teach her the lie of the land and we'd still have a dog to carry on the dog-owning (and dog-loving) routine after she'd gone. We had taken heed of the advice 'better a day too early than a day too late', and made sure to track when Scarlett no longer seemed to enjoy, or manage, her life. We didn't want her to be that dog on wheels, or in a pram. We knew she would have hated that. So why did it feel so wrong? I think because I felt like god, and not in a good way. I felt like I had taken a life. All my dog had done was love me unconditionally, 100 per cent, every minute of her life. And what had I done to reward that love? Meanwhile Vesper, no longer merely a transitional dog, was clearly wrestling her own demons: straight from her puppy litter into our arms and the larks with Scarlett, she had never been alone. Now she was left at home by herself, when my husband, our children and I were all out and about. She wasn't having that. She howled and barked every minute we were gone. Not ideal when you live in a terraced house. In time, with enough of my friends telling me to get over my god complex and realise Scarlett had had a good long life at 14-and-a-half years, and with the new dog needing my attention and training, I pulled myself together, because she was just a pet... Until January this year, when my friend, the Killing Eve director Harry Bradbeer, called to tell me that his beloved dog Socks had just died. 'I'm just heartbroken, Susannah,' he sobbed. 'It's as if I've lost an extension of myself. I can't bear it. I knew you would understand.' Scarlett with Susannah's son Winston at their family home Susannah says Scarlett was the first dog she owned as an adult, and the first pet that she made the decision to put down (Pictured with Vesper) As he spoke, I thought sadly of Socks, a gorgeously eccentric dachchua (a cross between a dachshund and a chihuahua) whom we had looked after a couple of times, immortalised as Socks, the Wonder Dog in the 2020 adventure film Enola Holmes, which Harry had directed. 'Oh Harry, I feel your pain...' I said, and then stopped. Because I did feel pain, but not his. Selfishly, it was all mine. A tsunami of misery and ugly grief for Scarlett swamped me, as overwhelming as it had been three years' before, and I couldn't actually speak for the physical feeling of loss. Harry and I wept together that day and a few occasions after that. He is, after all, the man soppy enough to persuade Phoebe Waller-Bridge not to strangle the guinea pig Hilary in Fleabag, which he also directed, as she had done in her original theatrical monologue. Hilary, animal-lovers will be relieved to hear, went on to live a long happy life. But where had my sudden, ugly resurgence of grief come from? I wandered around the internet, looking for an explanation, which is how I found Dawn Murray, a 60-year-old Scottish pet bereavement counsellor. Dawn is the founder of the new Association of Pet Bereavement Counsellors (APBC), which brings together UK independent counsellors to self-regulate what could become an industry of charlatans preying on, and profiting from, the vulnerability of others. I tell her Scarlett's story how she was the first dog I owned as an adult, and the first pet that I made the decision to put down; how I feel I didn't own Scarlett but that she and I were a unit, which is why I felt so bad about taking her life away. She clucks sympathetically and says: 'Susannah, you are the very person that we are trying to get our message out to. No two people grieve the same, but we can help.' For the first time in three years, I feel like I'm not being ridiculous. It turns out I am suffering stages of grief, but not those we are said to go through when a human dies. The three stages of pet bereavement are very different and the feelings of sadness themselves, says Dawn, are easier to resolve. First, there is anticipatory grief, unique to humans since we are the ones deciding when our animal will die. The APBC offer pre-euthanasia counselling over the phone to address not only the agony of indecision about what to do with an ailing pet, but the ignorance of what putting them down actually entails. Too often people start to mourn a beloved pet before it's even gone and are then consumed by guilt about whether they've got the timing wrong. Dawn tells me about a small, elderly woman who suddenly had the strength to lift her huge collie dog down the stairs when he needed to go out, so strong was her grief (and denial) at his failing health. Susannah says she still 'misses the feeling of closeness' she shared with Scarlett 'We are able to help people on that,' she says. 'We can take them through the euthanasia process and take the dread out of it, as well as reminding them that animals want quality of life too. 'Your Scarlett almost certainly didn't want to go on being as stiff and immobile as she was. And remember, everything you did was with the intention of just wanting her to be comfortable and at rest, so there's no guilt to be felt for that.' Then there is disenfranchised grief the 'just a pet' feeling which means you're not allowed to grieve for more than a couple of days before you pack away your 'self-indulgent' misery. Dawn tells me about one client who had to call in sick to work because he couldn't face explaining to his boss why he was so upset. 'Yet these animals have been so central to our lives,' she says in her comforting West Lothian burr, 'that is it any wonder we miss them so much? With working from home, you and Scarlett probably spent more time with each other than you did with anyone else.' I suddenly have a gut-wrenching flashback of the way I wrote my books from the sofa in our old kitchen, Scarlett curled up next to me with her warm, woolly bulk. Poodles are always affectionate but not always as present as Scarlett: I still miss that feeling of closeness. Our son was often ill with a bad chest as a child, and he still remembers lying on Scarlett and feeling the enormous comfort she could give just by being there; we called her 'The Nursemaid'. How could this gentle soul be 'just a pet'? Absurd, Dawn and I agree. Finally, there is 'incomplete grief', when you pay the price later for repressing pet bereavement and just keep on keeping on. We both think this is what happened when Harry called me: his news opened the floodgates of my dammed-up emotion, over-whelming me with sadness as fresh as it had been three years before. Left untackled, this can manifest itself as prolonged grief disorder, a newly acknowledged mental health affliction. 'One chap rang and told me all about the death of his dog Lucky,' Dawn says, 'and how he hadn't come to terms with it at all and how it was now affecting his relationship with his current dogs because he was so frightened of them dying. Turns out Lucky had died ten years before!' One chat with Dawn later in which she worked out that he'd never understood the process of Lucky's euthanasia and had blamed himself for it ever since and the man went away informed and comforted, able to see the wood for the trees for the first time in a decade. After an hour on the phone with a pet bereavement counsellor, my black grief and guilt have similarly gone. I have shared my 'daft' feelings with someone who didn't think they were daft and she has given me the immeasurable gifts of perspective and sympathy. She has also reminded me that perhaps I am living too much in the past; that dogs themselves live only in the present. Indeed, we laugh, I should Be More Dog. I think Dawn is probably one of the kindest people I have ever spoken to. She has been a pet bereavement counsellor for over 20 years, ever since she lost her mum and her much-loved dog, Caz, within a few weeks of each other and spent a lonely Christmas working out how to come to terms with it. Since then she has lost more than 25 dogs and a few cats so knows whereof she speaks and married her 'wonderful husband' Dave, who has a good enough job to support her financially. This financial help is important. For although, over the past two decades, Dawn has comforted hundreds of clients (often aged between 35 and 55, only slightly more women than men, surprisingly, but nearly all of them softies from the South of England), she has done it all for free. She spends up to 16 draining and exhausting hours on the phone each week coaxing vulnerable and tearful people through their grief (mostly for dogs, but also for cats, horses, rabbits, guinea pigs, and even a rat or two). On her books at the APBC are counsellors both free and paid, which we agree is entirely fair enough because they are providing an expertise that saps their time and energy. However, Dawn is adamant she will never charge. 'I have always vowed that nobody would ever have to pay for me to comfort them,' she says. 'That way, this service is open to everyone and that's important to me.' Later, I take Vesper for a walk and feel lighter than I have for months. See: apbcounsellors.co.uk; livingwithpetbereavement.com An e-book, Introduction to Pet Bereavement Counselling by Dawn Murray, is available on Amazon and free on Kindle Unlimited. Last week, Amelia Shean heard a knock at her door, but when her boyfriend went to answer it, they discovered it wasn't for either of them. 'We have an antique door knocker,' she explains. 'It's very heavy and people were using it as part of their shot. They were holding it to stage a photograph, and they'd let it fall so it sounded like someone was knocking.' It's not the first time something like this has happened. 'We also had a man walking past the window again and again until he knocked on the door to ask if he could come and take a look around inside,' she says. Her boyfriend, 37, had recently seen a TikTok dance routine being set up in the street, but chose not to investigate further. If you think it's bad having to run downstairs to take delivery of your neighbour's parcels, imagine how annoying it is to have strangers not just knocking on your door, but organising photo shoots and dance routines in front of your house. This is what happens when you move into one of London's most picturesque streets. Amelia Shean, 31, founder of Shean Communications, lives in one of London's most picturesque streets What she hadn't realised was that she'd have to share her home with hordes of Instagrammers and TikTokers who want to use it as a pretty backdrop When the opportunity to rent in Hillgate Village in West London came along, Amelia, 31, founder of Shean Communications, jumped at the chance as two-bedroom houses here sell for an average of 1.5million. After all, who wouldn't want their first home with their boyfriend to be a pastel-hued terraced house that's straight out of a Richard Curtis rom-com? What she hadn't realised was that she'd have to share her home with hordes of Instagrammers and TikTokers who want to use it as a pretty backdrop. 'I can't remember the last time I didn't see someone taking photos or a group posing together. It's a daily occurrence.' It's a fate shared by a handful of other homeowners in London who live in similar rainbow-coloured streets, such as Chalcot Crescent in Primrose Hill or Bywater Street in Chelsea, or pretty mews homes, such as the one in the 'to me you are perfect' scene in Love Actually. 'I think it must be listed on some website of the prettiest houses in London, as it's strange how many people are turning up,' Amelia says. 'It's not unusual for me to look out of the window and see multiple shoots going on at weekends. The largest group I've seen is about eight. 'I used to live just off Portobello Road, where there's another street with lots of beautiful, coloured houses. They have ropes outside theirs to stop people going up and down the stairs and taking photos but I had no idea that people came here to take pictures before we moved in.' She says it is 'crazy' how early tourists start taking photos in the street. The first few arrive as she is still bleary-eyed and leaving for work. 'It's like Shaun Of The Dead,' she laughs. 'All of the people are in groups and are dazed and confused. They are always doing that rocking backwards and forwards on one foot thing as if you're walking somewhere that everyone does on Instagram. Then they quickly go back to check their phones to see if they like the pictures or not. 'The other day, I saw people going back and forth like that for 20 minutes.' In Notting Hill influencers set up tents for outfit changes outside popular houses She says the only time no one is there taking pictures is when it's dark. 'It was a compliment at the beginning but now it is slightly annoying as they get in the way when you're on your commute. 'Sometimes I'll have to wait inside the house for a few minutes while they finish up, to avoid being part of the shot myself.' Living in such a pretty home makes you house proud, particularly when people are taking so many photographs of the front. 'I wanted to have flowers in the flower boxes outside,' Amelia says. 'But people kept sitting on them and breaking them accidentally when taking pictures, so now I'm going to get some beautiful fake ones.' When she first moved in, her mother bought her a Christmas wreath for the front door. 'It had a really big gorgeous bow on it,' she remembers. 'Within three days, the huge satin centrepiece had vanished. Why not just take the whole wreath?' Parcels have never gone missing, but delivery men often have to circumvent the photographers, who sometimes stand in the road. While Amelia is keeping a sense of humour about her Instafamous house, not all residents are as relaxed. In Notting Hill, where influencers set up tents for outfit changes outside popular houses, one resident started leaving stains on the ground by her front door to deter visitors, while others have thought about repainting their houses a plain colour and even moved out to avoid the throngs. Amelia isn't planning to move, nor has she bought a rope yet to cordon off her VIP residence, but she has bought dark glasses and keeps her head down as she walks in and out of her house, so nobody asks her to take pictures. Like a celebrity? I say. 'Yes, except obviously I'm not,' she laughs. But her house is. She may be the brains behind one of the UK's most successful fashion brands - but Clare Hornby tried her hand at multiple businesses before striking gold with ME+EM. It's been a landmark week for the luxury womenswear brand, which was worn by Lady Victoria Starmer and Angela Rayner on their first day in Downing Street. Since it was founded in 2009, ME+EM has also become a staple brand for royal women - including the Princess of Wales, Duchess of Edinburgh and Queen Camilla. Over the weekend, Sophie Winkleman - wife of Frederick Windsor - was pictured wearing a white summer dress by the brand to attend Wimbledon. Meanwhile, Lady Victoria Starmer attended the Coral-Eclipse races in Surrey wearing a 325 green floral ME+EM dress - after the 275 red frock she wore to arrive at 10 Downing Street sold out in 48 hours. ME+EM founder Clare Hornby photographed in one of her stores. The brand has been worn by the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh several times over the years Pictured: Lady Victoria Starmer wore a ME+EM dress on Friday after her husband Sir Keir won the election by a landslide That said, the recent royal and political endorsements are a far cry from Clare's humble beginnings in business. Here FEMAIL reveals how ME+EM went from a struggling pyjama business to a fashion brand reportedly worth 130m. Young entrepreneurial spirit Clare Hornby, 54, who now lives in Oxford, grew up making her own clothes out of Vogue patterns to fit her tall frame. Her mother worked as a teacher while her father became a managing director of a building company. As a teenager, the mother of five - who later studied to become an advertising executive - sold second-hand Italian shoes at a market in Oldham and previously told The Times she would queue up at 6am to get a stall. Speaking to the Daily Mail in 2019, Clare explained: 'As a teenager in Oldham, Greater Manchester, I was always buying patterns and fabrics and loved the process of making something unique. Now you can buy something in Primark for a fiver, theres no incentive to make your own. 'At 14 I had a market stall selling factory seconds. I had lots of business ideas, but it wasnt until my 30s that I had that lightbulb moment to create my own fashion business.' When she married advertising agency founder Johnny Hornby in 2003, Clare became step-mother to his three teenage children - and the couple also went on to have two daughters of their own. Sophie Winkleman wearing a white tiered summer dress by ME&EM at Wimbledon this weekend Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner wore a green suit and orange dress by ME+EM for her first days in Downing Street In an interview with This is Money, Clare said she discovered her 'love of luxury', which eventually inspired her to create ME+EM, while working as a marketing trainee for Harrods. She said: 'You could shop on staff discounts, and I missed it when I left. Advertising taught me about the strategic positioning of brands, mapping the market.' 'Doing something for herself' Finding herself a mother-of-five, Clare said she wanted something of her to focus on and decided to set up her own fashion business. She previously told Febe: 'Id become both a mum and a step-mum, and to keep all the wheels on the track, I needed to do something for myself. So I went for it.' In 2007, Clare and her friend Emma Howarth set up 'The Pyjama Room' - remortgaging their homes and using 100,000 of savings to fund their business venture. Speaking to The Marylebone Journal, Clare explained: 'At that time, the loungewear revolution hadnt really begun and PJs were relegated to the darkest, most distant corner of the department store. 'The insight was that you spend a lot of time at home with your partner, you want to be comfortable but always end up hanging out looking scruffy, so we tried to elevate that.' At the time, Clare said she had 'no relevant experience' in fashion and was told to 'give up immediately' by a fashion buyer she met on a research trip to New York. Lady Victoria Starmer attended the Coral-Eclipse races in Surrey this weekend wearing a 325 green floral ME+EM dress The Princess of Wales wore this pink shirt dress by ME+EM for a surprise appearance at Chelsea Flower Show last year What's more, Clare also told Febe how she 'probably wouldn't have started' if she had known how challenging it would be and described a 'soul-destroying moment' where fabric suppliers refused to speak to her because her business was online-only. ME+EM rebrand Looking back on their first business, Clare said it was 'too narrow a concept', which is what led the friends to rebrand to ME+EM. The rebrand allowed the co-founders to expand into knitwear, outwear and occasionwear. In 2012, Emma stepped down from the business and now works for the agency Dog, Cat & Mouse. Speaking to Femail, Clare later explained: 'We later rebranded ourselves as Me + Em offering designer-quality basics for busy women. 'Our wide-legged roll-top palazzo trousers from that first collection are still bestsellers.' In 2015, the Princess of Wales took the brand into the mainstream when the royal was pictured wearing a blue-and-white striped top while playing with toddler Prince George at her husband's polo match. Pictured: The Princess of Wales wore a blue-and-white striped top by ME+EM to attend Prince William's polo match in July 2015 Pictured: The Duchess of Edinburgh seen wearing a floral ME+EM dress for the late Queen's Platinum Jubilee celebrations in Belfast Duchess of Sussex stands with former Sentebale Chairman Johnny Hornby (who is married to ME+EM founder Clare Hornby) during the Sentebale Polo 2018 The royal has since gone on to wear ME+EM on several occasions - including a pink shirt dress for a surprise visit to the Chelsea Flower Show last year. In an interview with The Telegraph, Clare confirmed that the Princess' endorsement always has the biggest impact on their sales. The founder said: 'There isn't anyone like her. In terms of global appeal, nothing comes close. And quite rightly. She is amazing. So stoic, and therefore, we respect her.' However, this isn't the only connection Clare has to the Royal Family - as her husband Johnny previously served as a trustee for Prince Harry's charity Sentebale for 11 years until July 2023. His departure prompted Harry to pay tribute to his 'leadership and vision' and 'dedication, partnership and friendship'. Describing Hornby's commitment to the children and young people of southern Africa as 'incredible', Harry and the charity's co-founder, Prince Seeiso of Lesotho, thanked him for enabling Sentebale to 'deliver holistic support to thousands in Lesotho and Botswana'. Johnny's departure came after it was reported he was the one who encouraged Jeremy Clarkson to issue a public apology to Meghan Markle and Prince Harry for a column he wrote about the Duchess in The Sun, in which he pointed out that he hated the former actress on 'a cellular level'. Cracking America In March 2022, it was reported that ME+EM had been valued at over 130m - having brought in new investors to break into the North American market. Pictured: ME+EM's shop front in Marylebone. The brand has now opened stores on Madison Avenue in New York and the Hamptons In July 2022, company had hired former Marks & Spencer clothing boss Maurice Helfgott (pictured) to increase their online presence in the US Four months later, the Evening Standard reported that the company had hired former Marks & Spencer clothing boss Maurice Helfgott to increase their online presence in the US. Maurice said at the time: 'I first met Clare 15 years ago and it's been inspiring to see her bring a unique, driven approach that really understands what millions of women want from a luxury fashion brand.' At the time, ME+EM had already had boutiques in Boston and Madison Avenue in New York. Since then, they've also gone on to open a shop in the Hamptons. Speaking to Glossy, Clare said: 'We like you to bring in your dog, bring in your kid and bring in your partner, and we like you to dwell. 'As a result, our stores form communities, all by themselves.' The founder said in a statement in May this year: 'We've already seen strong U.S. demand through our e-commerce operations and we hope that the new campaign and new U.S. stores are going to amplify interest from discerning American shoppers - it's an exciting time for us.' Clare has also spoken in several interviews about the brand's 'three Fs' principles and how they want everything they produce to be 'flattering, functional and [last] forever'. Speaking to Marie Claire, Clare previously said the 'work/life' balance is 'every mother's biggest dilemma' and said she struggles with 'mum guilt'. She added: 'Its every mothers biggest dilemma. Its actually not about a work/life balance, but a constant feeling of guilt. I worry about my kids not getting enough of my time, and equally, my employees too.' Princess Diana and the British designer worked together on five occasions Dame Zandra Rhodes, the dresser of Diana, Princess of Wales, has claimed that the royal got a 'raw deal'. British fashion designer, Zandra, 83, who is based in Bermondsey, south London, is famous for her bold designs and equally daring electric pink hair. Her designs are often sported by the rich and famous, including Diana Ross and Nicole Richies. But it was Princess Diana's support that really helped raise Zandra's profile, cementing her status as one of Britain's greatest designers. In conversation with The Times, Zandra shared a glimpse into her relationship with the royal, describing her as warm', despite having a 'raw deal'. British fashion designer Zandra Rhodes said Princess Diana got a 'raw deal' in life (seen together in 1997) 'You can have all the riches in the world, but if you don't have love, or don't feel loved, you have very little,' Zandra added. Her working relationship with Diana began in 1981 when the royal came into her London boutique with her friend (and later wife of Prince Andrew) Sarah Ferguson. The pair browsed the shop like any other customers - despite Diana's recent engagement to the then-Prince of Wales. After the two friends perused the racks, Zandra received an unexpected call - it came from British Vogue, which was asking her to submit a design for Diana's royal wedding dress. While Zandra's black corset sketch never became the wedding royal dress, it did end up in the possession of perhaps the next most famous Diana - Diana Ross. And it was not the end of the road for the Princess and Zandra - the pair went on to work together five times in total. In 1986, Diana returned to Zandra's shop and picked out a black dress to be remade in pink. The garment became one of the statement pieces worn by Diana during an official visit to Japan that same year. Zandra recalled the experience of working with Diana, saying: 'You get let into the palace with this dress over your arm and you do a curtsy, and you bump into the children's toys.' She continued: 'Happy wasn't a word I would have associated with her, but she was very warm. Diana is photographed in one of Zandra Rhode's designs in July, 1987 at Charleston Manor, Seaford. It is the same dress that became a statement piece of her official visit to Japan a year prior Diana first visited Zandra Rhode's London boutique in 1981 with Sarah Ferguson (Zandra is seen in 2019) 'Diana got a raw deal. You can have all the riches in the world, but if you don't have love, or don't feel loved, you have very little.' While she has experienced enormous success in her career, it hasn't all been plain sailing for the designer, who opened her first shop in London in 1967 and is renowned for her imaginative use of colour and vivid prints. The fashion and textile designer has been open about her health struggles, which started during the Covid-19 pandemic. Zandra had just begun a yoga session in her flat with her best friend, artist Andrew Logan when she realised something was amiss. 'We were lying there, on our little lilac mats, and my stomach felt full,' she told the Daily Mail in 2021. 'I thought, "It can't be full I haven't eaten anything".' She went to her doctor, and then for tests, which revealed a tumour. Three months of chemotherapy, then immunotherapy followed, all during the first lockdown. 'Right at the beginning... they said I'd probably got six months to live. I said, "What?!", she shrieked recalling her shock. 'I said, "I've got lots of projects coming up. I've got to last longer than that!". The British designer (seen in 2020) has recently released her fifth book - Iconic: My Life in Fashion in 50 Objects 'And then I had my treatment and they said I'd probably got at least two years. That gives me time to get myself together and get things done.' 'What I don't understand is why it didn't worry me. I just had to pull myself together. The amount of work I've got to get through! 'I've got 100 chests of clothes because I never sold my original designs so we've been cataloguing and repairing them.' She added: 'I'm consolidating my legacy. If I hadn't got work, I wouldn't have pulled through. Work keeps driving me forward. You have to get all the tasks done in time. Because of the lockdown, you weren't allowed to have anyone with you at the clinic... I just got in an Uber and went.' Despite the doctor's initial prediction, Zandra has recently released her fifth book - Iconic: My Life in Fashion in 50 Objects. Do you believe your success is all down to good luck or timing? Are you at the height of your career but feel a deep sense of dread or guilt? You might be suffering from imposter syndrome. Thankfully, Dr Carmen Harra, American author of Committed: Finding Love and Loyalty Through the Seven Archetypes, has told FEMAIL how to discover whether you are possibly experiencing the condition. 'Imposter syndrome refers to repeated thoughts that you dont deserve your success and that your accomplishments are the result of fraudulence,' explained the psychologist. It comes after new research by California University showed women in high-flying jobs are still far more likely than their male colleagues to fall victim to the psychological experience of intellectual and professional incompetence. Could you be suffering from this psychological condition? Reflect on the following questions to try and find out how likely it might be: Do you believe your success is all down to good luck or timing? Are you at the height of your career but feel a deep sense of dread or guilt? You might be suffering from imposter syndrome (stock image) 1. I attribute my success to: A. My consistent and diligent hard work. B. My work mixed with a bit of luck. C. Mostly luck, not so much my work. D. Dumb luck, I dont deserve any of it. 2. I tend to downplay my achievements: A. Never. B. Rarely. C. Often. D. Always. 3. When performing an unfamiliar task, I feel: A. Completely confident - I know what Im doing! B. Pretty confident - I think I know what Im doing. C. Somewhat unconfident - Im mostly making it up as I go along. D. Completely unconfident - I have no idea why I even agreed to do this. 4. I believe my competency level is: A. Above average. B. Average. C. Below average. D. Abysmal. 5. When someone compliments my competency or abilities, I feel: A. Incredible, Ive earned it. B. Good, but I know I couldve done even better. C. Slightly embarrassed, because Im not as competent as everyone thinks. D. Very embarrassed, because Im not competent at all. 6. I feel like I struggle more than others to get things done. A. Dont agree at all. B. Dont agree except in some situations. C. Somewhat agree. D. Strongly agree. 7. I tend to compare myself to others: A. Never. B. Rarely. C. Often. D. Always. Woman in high-flying jobs are more likely to suffer from imposter syndrome, according to new research (stock image) 8. When Im given a challenging project at work, my first reaction is: A. Bring it on, I love a good challenge! B. Ill work my way through it, even though it may not be perfect. C. Ill work my way through it, even though it makes me feel uncomfortable. D. I have no idea what Im doing, Ill make it up as usual. 9. When attention is drawn to my success, I feel: A. Worthy of it. B. Decent about it. C. Uncomfortable about it. D. Unworthy of it. 10. I feel like other people deserve my accomplishments more than I do. A. Dont agree at all. B. Dont agree except in some situations. C. Somewhat agree. D. Strongly agree. 11. Regarding my career, if I could go back and do things over again, I would: A. Do them exactly the same way. B. Do them the same way with a few exceptions. C. Change some of the decisions Ive made. D. Change all of the decisions Ive made. 12. In all honesty, I feel like a fraud. A. Never. B. Rarely. C. Often. D. Always. If you answered mostly As: Dr Carmen said: 'You are far from having imposter syndrome. On the contrary, you are brimming with confidence in your advancements and potential. 'Continue to radiate this excellent work ethic, and teach others how to believe in themselves, too.' If you answered mostly Bs: Dr Carmen said: 'It is unlikely that you have imposter syndrome. You are sure of your abilities and work while also acknowledging that you are imperfect. 'This is completely normal and ensures a healthy balance between certainty and modesty.' If you answered mostly Cs: Dr Carmen said: 'You may have a low level of imposter syndrome. Although you do recognize that youve worked hard, your success is a source of considerable discomfort. 'You are sometimes struck by a sense of unworthiness that is to your benefit to address and resolve.' If you answered mostly Ds: Dr Carmen said: 'You may have a moderate to high level of imposter syndrome. 'You are under the impression that youve been able to fool others into believing in your competency and feel as though your accomplishments are the result of pure luck. 'Shifting this mentality will not only contribute to your mental and emotional wellbeing, but will encourage continued progress.' Dr Carmen added: 'If you find yourself battling this psychological phenomenon, chances are that the feelings of disgrace and embarrassment youre experiencing did not originate in adulthood - they are likely the result of certain pains or traumas from your younger years. 'What you feel in your career you may also feel at home, so take care not to allow those self-degrading tendencies to seep into and damage your relationships with the people who love you. 'It is imperative to discover the source of your lack of confidence and eradicate it. 'Usually this means making peace with whatever has happened and acknowledging that you are not the product of your past. You exist here and now and are exactly where youre meant to be. 'Because imposter syndrome does not develop overnight, elevating your beliefs will prove to be a process. 'If you need any help relieving the symptoms of imposter syndrome, seek out the assistance of a qualified professional who will work with you in steps to build a solid sense of self-security.' A young woman has revealed the very awkward text she received after ghosting a would-be suitor she'd met online. Emily Webb, 25, was in LA when she stopped texting the man back after he asked her to 'hang out' on her last Saturday night in the city. When he didn't hear back from Emily, he sent her a survey to work out exactly why he had been ghosted. He also asked her to 'rate his appearance out of five'. Emily laughed as she revealed the odd response to being ghosted: 'Dating is serious business in 2024.' The survey gave her four options as her 'primary reason for disinterest' in the man, who wasn't wasting a good opportunity for some helpful feedback. They included: 'No rizz' (charisma), 'was kind of on the fence about looks and decided the other way', 'just got busy/forgot' and 'personality was not hitting'. Emily found the survey 'hilarious' and noted she's ghosted a lot of men and never been asked to fill out a rejection poll before. 'At least he's trying to improve,' she laughed. Emily Webb, 25, laughed as she shared the awkward reaction the man had to being ghosted Emily ghosted the man from LA as she wasn't currently there, he then made the surprising next move of sending her a dating survey for some feedback 'He's trying to work on himself, I respect it,' she added. The man had asked her to 'come out' for his birthday, adding he would be going clubbing with his friends. She said heading out in a group setting would make her feel like an 'accessory' and wouldn't be doing that. The man responded by letting the young blonde know she would be a 'hot accessory', so she made an excuse about flying out the next day before she stopped responding. Some of Emily's fans laughed and said the man should have been able to pick up on her cues without sending a survey. 'There is no way he did this - so funny,' wrote one. But others were unimpressed by her video, labeling it 'cruel'. 'I would ghost you if I saw this,' one man said. 'Stop using people,' said another. Others just wanted to know if she actually filled out the survey. With many Aussies looking for love on dating apps, ghosting has become commonplace. Emily admitted she's never been sent a survey after ghosting someone before A poll by Forbes Health found that 76 percent of participants had either ghosted or been ghosted. Dr Roxy Zarrabi, a Chicago psychologist, explained why ghosting can be so painful and awkward for people. Ghosting is a form of rejection, and not knowing the reason behind it can make people incredibly anxious, as well as hurt. 'You may find yourself fixating on outlandish theories and trying to find the elusive missing piece of the puzzle to reach closure,' Dr Zarrabi said. It also usually ends with people blaming themselves, the doctor explained. Singles talking about ghosting across social media thought the apps were to blame. 'Options are addictive, apps give too many options,' one woman who has been ghosted said. Another woman wasn't wasting any time pondering over why she had been ghosted. 'Don't text them please. Let the dead rest,' she said. A Sydney couple has been slammed for a gross act in a Mexican restaurant A pair of Guzman y Gomez customers have been called out for letting their dog sit on their table as they tucked into their food. The Sydney couple were recently photographed enjoying their meal in the city's inner west as their dog sat at the counter, where other people would later eat. Another customer was 'horrified' ' and shared the damning scene on Reddit. 'I love dogs, but what kind of an idiot puts their dog on a table where people eat?' one person asked. 'Dog owner here. That's moronic. I do not want canine a**hole germs in my burrito, por favor,' another said. A Guzman y Gomez spokesperson told FEMAIL: 'GYG's Shift Leader asked the guest to take the dog off the bench (and out of the restaurant) as soon as they saw this occurring. It appears another guest took a photo prior to this occurring. 'GYG's policy is in line with NSW Food Authority guidelines: pet dogs are not allowed in restaurant, pet dogs may be allowed in outdoor dining areas only at the discretion of the business, and live animals are not permitted in areas where food is handled. 'Assistance animals (such as service dogs) must be allowed in areas used by customers. It's disappointing that a guest chose to do this however the team at GYG followed our policies as soon as they were aware.' A Sydney couple was recently photographed with their dog sitting on the table at a Guzman y Gomez restaurant in the city's Inner West Other Australians slammed dog owners who treat their pets like humans instead of animals. 'Dog people are insane around here,' a man said. 'It's overwhelming, every time I'm in Newtown I see dogs in places you'd least expect to.' 'That's f**ked. Your dog doesn't need to go everywhere with you,' a woman wrote. 'I don't hate dogs. But you shouldn't be able to take them wherever you want,' another echoed. 'Your dog isn't going to get anxiety because you didn't take them to Guzman y Gomez,' one added. One woman shared a list of reasons it's unsafe to take dogs into restaurants. 'Dogs (aside from service dogs obviously) aren't and shouldn't be allowed everywhere because they can be unpredictable for a multitude of reasons, can be a liability, and end up easily ruining another stranger's dining experience despite how their humans conduct themselves. 'Imagine trying to eat while a nearby dog accidentally takes a s*** on the floor or a highly allergic person turning up for a reservation and having to leave. 'I love animals as much as the next person, don't get me wrong, but I'm not about to take my cat to dinner because I'm going miss her or whatever. I'm an adult that understands that it's not reasonable or considerate.' A man lost his nose when his dog ripped it off while trying to save him from a seizure but surgeons were able to build him a new one using part of his rib. Ben Horne, 34, had suffered with epilepsy since his teens, but after undergoing a change of medication started having night seizures. During one attack, his dog Henry became 'spooked' and mauled his face, ripping off his nose, and parts of his mouth and chin. The injuries were so severe, the aerospace engineer of Yeovil, Somerset, was barley able to talk but managed to call for an ambulance. Over the last five years he has struggled to come to terms with his new appearance and undergone ten operations to reconstruct his face, using bones from his ribs and skin from his forearm and forehead. Ben Horne, 34, has suffered with epilepsy since he was 15 but after undergoing a change of medication he started having night seizures Mr Horne is finally starting to accept his new face and hopes by sharing his story and he can help others going through similarly traumatic experiences. Mr Horne said: 'During one of my night seizures my dog got spooked. 'In the process he did a lot of damage to my face. 'My whole house was plastered in blood. I called 999. I couldnt really talk but I managed to convey I needed an ambulance. 'When I came round a nurse said Im going to hand you a mirror and its going to be a big shock. 'I couldnt quite believe the amount of damage. It was heart-breaking. Im really trying to accept myself. 'Its learning to love yourself and the way that you are rather than reflecting on how you used to be.' During one episode, his dog Henry became spooked and mauled his face, ripping off his nose, and parts of his mouth and chin. he is pictured here before the accident The aerospace engineer of Yeovil, Somerset, pictured here before the accident, was left him barley able to talk he managed to call for an ambulance After the incident in November 2019, Mr Horne's top lip was hanging down, he had lost a lot of his chin and was only left with the septum bone in his nose. He was rushed to Musgrove Park Hospital, Taunton, for a 10-hour emergency operation to piece what they could back together. 'I remember looking in the mirror and I just wished that I hadnt managed to call an ambulance,' Mr Horne said. 'I didnt see how I could live with what happened,' he added. Due to the pandemic, he did not start reconstructive surgery until May 2021 at Southmead hospital, Bristol. After the incident in November 2019, Mr Horne's top lip was hanging down, he had lost a lot of his chin and was only left with the septum bone in his nose Due to the pandemic, he did not start reconstructive surgery until May 2021 at Southmead hospital, Bristol The initial reconstructive surgery involved creating more of a septum the middle part, made to flexible cartilage for his nose. However, this collapsed shortly after and he had to wait until October 2021 for the next op, during which surgeons took skin from his left forearm to create the inner part of his nose. Mr Horne said: 'Both my forearms are tattooed so I had to make a decision over which I preferred. 'At least I can say I have a tattooed inside in my nose.' They also took bones from his ribs in the same surgery and an artery from his forearm to connect this into his neck. 'I found it very difficult. I always tried to keeping looking forward,' he said. 'Having a tattooed chunk on my face that I had to put make-up on every day.' Surgeons took skin from his left forearm, which was tattooed, to create the inner part of his nose During another surgery part of his forehead skin was taken and folded over the top of his tattooed skin He had another surgery in September 2022 to take part of the skin from his forehead and fold it down over the top of the tattooed skin. He said: 'Having the forehead flap - it was huge on my face. 'They have to leave the skin connected so you have a huge lump hanging over your eyes.' There was more surgery in March 2023, where bone from his hip and the cartilage from his rib was grafted in after the previous donor bone got infected. He still needs plastic tubes to help him breathe (pictured) so the next step is to find a way to remove those without his nose closing up In May 2023, Mr Horne had the forehead skin disconnected and the team have since been completing operation to work on the structure of his nose. He still needs plastic tubes to help him breathe so the next step is to find a way to remove those without his new nose closing up. Mr Horne is now starting to accept his new appearance but has struggled with stares. He said: 'Its very difficult when you see people staring at you. I liken it to a dream where you are naked in public. 'You want to hide but you cant. You cant change things and what has happened.' Mr Horne's dog Henry, who had for 10 years before the accident, has now been rehomed after an assessment and is happy in his new family. He told MailOnline that he has chosen not to make the breed of the dog public. Now, Mr Horne is fundraising to support Exeter Plastic Surgery and Epilepsy Action and will be taking part in two Tough Mudder races, and two 50k races. A mother-of-three feared she was 'going to die' after a weight loss jab left her vomiting uncontrollably and with pounding headaches. In a bid to shed a few pounds ahead of a summer holiday, Stacey Smith from Sheffield found slimming injections being sold on Facebook by a local clinic. After inquiring in June, the mum-of-three, who suffered a stroke two years earlier, was immediately told they had a vacancy and visited the salon 10 minutes later. The 38-year-old, who is a size 12 to 14, paid 20 for the jab and claimed the process took 'two minutes'. Just over an hour later she began suffering trapped wind and heartburn but was told by the salon's therapist this was 'normal' who urged her to drink water. It was only after Ms Smith began projectile vomiting the following day that her 13-year-old daughter was forced to call an ambulance. In a bid to shed a few pounds ahead of a summer holiday, Stacey Smith from Sheffield found injections being sold on Facebook by a local clinic The 38-year-old, who is a size 12-14, paid 20 for the jab and claimed the process took 'two minutes'. But just 90 minutes later she suffered trapped wind and had reflux. However, she says she was told by the salon this was 'normal' and instead urged to drink water It was only after Ms Smith began projectile vomiting the following day and could not even move from her bed, that her 13-year-old daughter was forced to call an ambulance She is now begging others who are considering buying cheap weight loss drugs not to, saying you may lose weight 'but you'll be skinny in your coffin'. Recalling her ordeal, Ms Smith who is 5ft 3in said: 'I've never been that ill in my life and I don't ever want to be again. I thought I was going to die. 'The pain in my head, I'd never felt anything like it in my life. It was like somebody had taken a sledgehammer to my skull. 'I couldn't get my head off the pillow and I couldn't have lights on. 'I've never ever been sick like this in my life, it didn't stop for days on end to the point where I couldn't get off the bed. 'I couldn't even hold down sips of water. I had to phone my ex partner and said "I'm dying you're going to have to come".' Ms Smith claims she first saw ads for the so-called 'skinny shots' earlier in the year on Facebook. Intrigued by a string of glowing customer reviews and transformation pictures, she contacted the salon said she wanted to book in. She added: 'I'm quite curvy, a size 12 top and a size 14 to 16 bottom. I'm well known for my bum and thighs, people are like "I'd pay a fortune for that". 'I'd seen adverts for it [the skinny jab] for a few months but because summer's coming up, I want to go on holiday and I want to feel confident and wear a bikini and summer dresses. 'I'd just gone through a break up too. I get my lips done, I get a bit of Botox so I'm not scared to do stuff but I'm also not an uneducated woman. Intrigued by a string of glowing customer reviews and transformation pictures, she contacted the salon on on June 21 and said she wanted to book in. Ms Smith, owner of a dog walking company claimed she was told there was a vacancy so within 10 minutes popped into the salon and had it done Despite being discharged days later, she says she is still suffering from headaches, bloating, struggles going to the toilet and still hasn't regained her appetite 'I'm not an idiot, so I've actually surprised myself that I've done such a stupid thing. 'I think I'm going through perimenopause and I've put a bit of weight on. 'I'd been umming and aahing with the idea for a while. It's not like I don't go to the gym, or I'm unfit.' She said: 'I [messaged her and] said "I'm going to do it" and she replied "I'm in the salon now if you want to come". 'Within ten minutes of me messaging her I went. When I went for that jab, no word of a lie, I was in that salon for two minutes. 'I walked in, she asked if I had diabetes and asked if I was on things she listed, I said "no". 'She said "yeah that's fine", I handed her 20, she jabbed me in the stomach and I left.' Wegovy and Ozempic work by triggering the body to produce a hormone called GLP-1 that is released naturally from the intestines after meals After she was rushed to Chesterfield Royal Hospital by ambulance a day later, where medics prescribed her pain relief, anti-sickness medication and she was put on an IV drip. 'Doctors said it can happen [with this jab], that there was no quick fix and there's no reverse drug it's just a case of waiting for it to get out of your system,' Ms Smith added. Doctors could not be certain what the injections contained. The most well-known weight loss jab is semaglutide the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy which has been shown to help users lose up to 33lbs (15.3kg) on average over 68 weeks. It is part of a class of drug known as a GLP-1 receptor agonist: these treatments trick the brain into thinking it's full, consequently slashing appetite. Huge global demand, however, has seen counterfeit versions flood the market. Health officials have already seized more than 600 potentially fake Ozempic pens across the UK since the start of 2023. Counterfeit weight loss jabs have in the past been found to have insulin, a drug used by diabetics, in them. Insulin works by rapidly lowering blood sugar, but if sugars are not raised to begin with, doing so can have severe and potentially fatal consequences. Despite being discharged from hospital days after being admitted, Ms Smith says she is still suffering from headaches, bloating, struggles going to the toilet and still hasn't regained her appetite. She said: 'I take 50 per cent of the blame myself for doing something so stupid. 'What's annoyed me the most is she's [the owner is] still promoting this stuff knowing I've just been in hospital, knowing she could have potentially killed me, but she's still advertising it. 'I still have pains in my head, I still feel sick and I can't eat as much. After all that sickness I've not even lost a pound, it's crackers. 'I still have that bloated feeling and I can't for the life of me poo properly. 'I wouldn't recommend anyone try this, you may as well just sign your death wish. 'You might lose your weight but you'll be skinny in your coffin. Don't do it.' Semaglutide has been available on the NHS since 2019, and in the US since 2017, for type 2 diabetics to manage blood sugar levels. Semaglutide has been shown to help users lose up to 33lbs (15.3kg) on average over 68 weeks. The treatments trick the brain into thinking it's full, consequently slashing appetite and stopping users from overeating. Huge global demand, however, has seen counterfeit versions flood the market. Health officials have already seized more than 600 potentially fake Ozempic pens across the UK since the start of 2023 Another slimming jab, tirzepatide, branded as Mounjaro, was given the green light earlier this year in the UK, and in 2022 in the US. Ministers in Britain plan to dole these drugs to millions of overweight Brits to fight the obesity crisis. Children could eventually be given the jabs, too. Prescriptions for Ozempic and similar weight loss medications have also exploded in the US, with 39million people or 12 percent of the population now thought to have used them. Like any medication, semaglutide can cause side effects that vary in both frequency and severity. Reported problems include nausea, constipation, diarrhoea, fatigue, stomach pain, headaches and dizziness. Other symptoms, such as hair loss, have also been reported among some patients. Latest NHS data shows 26 per cent of adults in England are obese and a further 38 per cent are overweight but not obese. In the US an estimated 41.9 per cent of adult population are obese. Despite the hormone mimicking jabs being designed to help overweight patients become healthier there have also been growing concerns about the number of normal weight and underweight patients taking them for cosmetic reasons. Your browser does not support iframes. Young women in particular are believed to be obtaining the drug via online pharmacies, who offer them at between 150 to 200 ($200-$250) per month, after providing false information about their appearance and health. In some cases, people taking the jabs without legitimate medical cause are thought to be doing so as a result of their eating disorders. Just weeks ago, NHS England's medical director warned the drugs can be dangerous and should not be seen as a 'quick fix' for people who 'just want to lose a few pounds'. Professor Sir Stephen Powis said the drugs should only be used to treat obesity or diabetes and not abused by holidaymakers trying to get 'beach body ready'. READ MORE: Two to three cups of coffee could slash your risk of an early grave As heat waves spread across the US, many of us are ditching hot coffee for iced coffee or cold brew. But while the chilled version might help cool you down, it could change the impact of the drink on your health. According to Dr Majid Basit, a cardiologist at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital in Texas, a piping hot cup of Joe might have more disease-fighting nutrients than iced coffee. Additionally, the strong aroma of a steaming cup has been shown to improve mood and reduce feelings of fatigue. However, cold coffee may still have some advantages, including being less acidic and even helping to regulate blood sugar. Research suggests that coffee can boost health by preventing chronic diseases and improving metabolism. But it's long been debated if it's better to drink it hot or iced 'Hot coffee has been shown to have higher amounts of antioxidants, which may offer health advantages,' Dr Basit told HuffPost. Antioxidants are molecules that attack free radicals, unstable compounds that increase oxidative stress throughout the body. Too much oxidative stress has been shown to damage cells and lead to long term health issues like heart disease, Alzheimer's, kidney failure, and even some forms of cancer. A 2018 study in the journal Scientific Reports, for example, found that hot coffee had higher levels of antioxidants compared to cold brew. This is because brewing coffee with hot water extracts more nutrients from the beans than cold water. Other antioxidant rich foods include berries, green tea, dark chocolate, beans, and artichokes, among others. Some research also suggests that hot coffee may give you a bigger boost of energy as well. A 2020 study from the American Chemical Society, for example, found that hot brewing methods led to slightly higher caffeine levels than cold brewing coffee. Jordan Karchner, a coffee expert and founder of Grounds & Hounds Coffee Co, told Bustle that cold brew 'contains less caffeine, which is a benefit for those who really crave a second cup of coffee but feel a little shaky.' And even getting a whiff of hot coffee could make you feel more relaxed, as hot coffee has a stronger aroma than iced drinks. A study published in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry using rodents suggested that a single whiff hot coffee reduced tiredness and stress levels. And 2021 research found that people who inhaled coffee aromas before undergoing dental procedures were less anxious and more relaxed than those who did not. 'Since hot coffee has more vapors emanating from it, it is possible this effect may be heightened with hot coffee versus cold coffee,' Dr Basit said. And a 2009 study found that participants who held a cup of coffee for a few minutes were more likely to see others as generous, caring, and warm than those who were asked to hold an iced coffee. Drinking coffee in moderation could be good for you, according to researchers. The caffeinated drink has been linked to reducing your risk of type-2 diabetes, Alzheimer's, heart disease and liver disease, among other benefits However, iced coffee may have its own advantages. For instance, cold coffee tends to be less acidic than hot coffee, as heat increases the acid content. Drinks that are more acidic can upset your gut's healthy bacteria, leading to digestive distress. Dr Eva Cwynar, an endocrinologist based in Beverly Hills, told First for Women: 'Acidic coffee upsets your natural gut flora, which actually makes you feel sluggish.' Cold brew coffee has also been shown to contain higher levels of magnesium and antioxidants called chlorogenic acids. These can helps regulate blood sugar and lower blood pressure, which decreases the risk of developing heart disease. However, Dr Barit has cautioned that research is limited, and much is still unknown about which coffee temperature is better. 'More research needs to be done,' he said. A fifth of drivers are unwittingly breaking the law by using a mobile phone at a time when they think they can't be caught, according to a new report. A study of 2,003 Britons found that 19 per cent admit they handle their phone when the vehicle is stationary at traffic lights or in a queue of vehicles. Yet this is still a breach of the law, with rules dictating that motorists can only touch a device when they are making a call to emergency services or to tap-and-pay on their smartphones at drive-thru restaurants and tolls. The study's findings come as drivers are being warned that the latest speed camera technology is now capable of catching them breaking other laws, including holding a phone, not wearing a seatbelt and even tailgating other motorists. A fifth of drivers are breaking laws around using a mobile phone behind the wheel possibly out of ignorance, a new study has suggested. It comes as experts warn motorists that speed cameras are now capable of catching them handling a device The research, commissioned by insurer Aviva, found cases of drivers breaking other motoring rules out of ignorance. For instance, a third (32 per cent) polled admitted to using their horn out of anger at other road users despite rule 112 of the Highway Code stating that it should only be used when your vehicle is moving and you 'need to warn other road users of your presence'. It adds that you should 'never sound your horn aggressively'. Other habits revealed by respondents which may also result in driving laws being broken if deemed to have prevented a driver being in full control of a vehicle when involved in a crash include driving barefoot (10 per cent), while eating or drinking a non-alcoholic drink (34 per cent) and while smoking or vaping (15 per cent). A third of motorists say they've aggressively used their horn to show frustration at other road users, despite the Highway Code suggesting against this Aviva motor claims manager Martin Smith said: 'Our research shows that a large portion of drivers are taking dangerous risks while behind the wheel of a car. 'Not only does this increase the chance of a collision, it means that you could receive a fine and/or points on your licence which may affect how much you pay for car insurance in the future. 'No matter how tempting, it's important that drivers remove any potential distractions in their car and make sure they are appropriately dressed for driving which includes footwear too. 'Changing a few of your driving habits only takes a few minutes and can prevent an incident from occurring.' Department for Transport figures show 22 people were killed and a further 148 were seriously injured in crashes on Britain's roads in 2022 in which a driver using a mobile phone was a contributory factor. Official figures also show that the number of convictions for using a phone at the wheel reached a seven year high in 2023 Official figures also show that the number of convictions for using a phone at the wheel reached a seven year high in 2023. Ministry of Justice stats say 13,332 drivers were found guilty at court for the offence last year, up from 6,990 motorists in 2022 - meaning a year-on-year spike of 90 per cent. Legislation banning hand-held mobile use while driving was introduced in December 2003. However, due to a high proportion of road users using a variety of loopholes in the law, the Government moved to a 'zero tolerance' approach to handing a device when driving as well as increasing punishment for the offence in March 2022, meaning offenders now face six penalty points and a 200 fine for handling a phone in any way, Drivers hit with minimum 200 fine and 6 points for handling a phone for any of the following reasons - illuminating the screen - checking the time - checking notifications - unlocking the device - making, receiving, or rejecting a telephone or internet-based call - sending, receiving or uploading oral or written content - sending, receiving or uploading a photo or video - utilising camera, video, or sound recording functionality - drafting any text - accessing any stored data such as documents, books, audio files, photos, videos, films, playlists, notes or messages - accessing an application - accessing the internet Source: Department for Transport This includes touching the screen to scroll a music playlist, browse the internet, take a photograph or play a mobile game is now strictly prohibited, and these rules apply when stopped at a red light or stuck in traffic. The only exceptions are for making calls to emergency services when there is no safe place to pull over and to use contactless payments like Apple Pay at fast-food drive-throughs and to pay tolls, while hands-free calls are also still permitted. The AA says the rise in conviction rates for handling phones is thanks to the inception of new roadside cameras. It also believes fresh tactics deployed by police forces and local authorities across the country - such as covert HGV's prowling motorways for drivers using phones and targeted periods of enforcement - have contributed to the rise. Jack Cousens, head of roads policy for the AA, told This is Money: 'Despite a high-profile change in the law, it seems many drivers are still falling foul when it comes to using a mobile phone behind the wheel. 'Better cameras that can detect more offences is a good thing as it tightens up the rules of the road. 'However, technology can only do so much and is unable to stop someone in the act.' The RAC's road safety spokesman, Rod Dennis, says that despite the penalties for using a handheld phone having doubled to six penalty points and a 200 fine, it's clear far too many drivers are 'still prepared to put lives at risk by engaging in this dangerous practice'. He added: 'We suspect a major reason for this is a lack of enforcement, meaning many drivers have no fear of being caught. 'AI-equipped cameras that can automatically detect drivers breaking the law offer a chance for the tide to be turned. 'The police can't be everywhere all of the time, so it makes sense that forces look to the best available technology that can help them catch drivers acting illegally. 'What's more, we know from RAC research that drivers are widely supportive of tougher enforcement of the law around handheld mobile phone use, with nearly half of these (47 per cent) saying that camera technology like this is the best way of doing so.' We detail below the three types of advanced speed camera currently in use that can snare drivers who make calls or text at the wheel... Roadside cameras that can catch drivers on the phone Currently, there are at least 18 different types of speed camera used across Britain. Some of these are not only capable of catching motorists over the speed limit, they can also detect other offences including handling a phone, not wearing a seatbelt, running a red light and even tailgating another road user. Here's what three of the cameras capable of catching drivers on the phone look like and how each works... 1. Jenoptik VECTOR-SR speed camera The VECTOR-SR has been dubbed an 'ultra' speed camera due to it being the most advanced of its kind yet. Having received approval for use in Britain back in 2019, it looks and works very differently to typical roadside cameras. The cameras are elevated high up on a long pole designed to deter vandals from attacking them - however many have already been cut down by angry motorists. The VECTOR-SR speed camera has been dubbed an 'ultra' speed camera due to it being the most advanced of its kind yet. They are elevated high up on a long pole designed to deter vandals from trying to destroy them - though that hasn't worked It can double as both a speed camera and one that can record motorists committing other offences. It uses a video-based system that works in tandem with an intelligent virtual grid to judge if a driver is speeding. This means there is no need for sensors to be dug into the road, which is costly and requires road closures for their installation. Yet another reason why it is very attractive to cash-strapped police forces and local authorities. Measurements from the radar technology is then validated by secondary independent and image-based evidence. That means there is no need for road markings - which have typically been one of the biggest tell-tale signs to let drivers know the whereabouts of speed cameras - sometimes making them difficult to spot. The system uses infra-red technology which allows images to be captured via still photos and video recordings, which eliminates the need for a camera flash, even at night and in bad weather. Unlike previous cameras which only capture vehicles travelling in left-hand lanes, the new model captures up to three lanes of traffic going in both directions. This means one installation can enforce an entire section of road. It will also be able to identify speeding vehicles and their owners quickly, too, as it has built-in Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) tech. Police and authorities can use this to request information about the registered keeper via the DVLA's database. And because the camera records footage of a driver breaking the limit, any visual evidence showing motorists driving without a seatbelt or using a mobile phone can be used to enforce these offences too. 2. Aecom mobile AI camera The Aecom is a mobile camera that is very different to the conventional police camera van at the side of the road. The 'Big Brother' vehicle is the brainchild of National Highways. It is designed in a way that it can catch a multitude of offences - but not speeding. It was first trialled by Warwickshire Police in 2022 with great success, and is being put through its paced by a number of different constabularies. Durham, Greater Manchester Police, Humberside, Staffordshire, West Mercia, Northamptonshire, Wiltshire, Norfolk, Thames Valley Police and Sussex and all using the Aecom in 2024. The van can travel to offence hotspots and pull up at the roadside. A large metal structure then extends from the roof to create a mobile overhead gantry with cameras and the latest in surveillance tech at an elevated position. It can also be transported on the back of a custom trailer, which is then fixed to the roadside to allow van to drive away to conduct other duties. Humberside Police and forces in East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire have deployed this trailered version this year. This next-generation mobile camera has its own overhead gantry structure that can capture photographic evidence of drivers using a phone at the wheel or not using their seatbelt The Aecom camera technology can also be transported to the roadside via a trailer The system uses multiple cameras with high shutter speeds, an infra-red flash and a lensing and filtering system that can record high-definition images of passing vehicles. These cameras - using artificial intelligence (AI) - can determine if motorists are using a handheld mobile phone at the wheel or if a driver - or passenger - isn't wearing a seatbelt. The van is also capable of being kitted with additional technology to detect tailgating offences, although this system does not form part of the trials in Warwickshire and across other parts of the country. The Government's major roads department says the hi-tech van is first being used to 'understand the scale of the problem around these dangerous motoring offences', though suggest similar technology-packed vehicles could be distributed across the country to 'boost road safety'. 3. Long Ranger mobile speed camera Police forces since 2018 have been using a new long-range camera that can catch motorists speed from over half a mile away. It's been dubbed the 'Long Ranger' but some constabularies. It can capture speeding drivers at one kilometre (0.6 miles), making it the longest distance speed enforcer currently in use. The long-ranger camera can snap drivers speeding from a mile away. It can also be used to enforce dangerous driving, seatbelt and mobile phone offences Because of its sniper-like long-distance capabilities, it could be too late for drivers to spot one being used in a roadside camera van further up the road. And it's not just speed that the long ranger can detect. It's also used for catching tailgaters, middle-lane hoggers, drivers not wearing seatbelts and anyone using a phone behind the wheel. Driving without tax also at an all-time high Analysis of the MoJ figures by the AA also identified that driving without vehicle tax rose to an all-time high of 99,694 convictions, a year-on-year increase of 94 per cent. 'It is concerning that driving without tax almost doubled in a year,' Cousens said. 'While too early to tell if this rise is related to the cost of living, the high conviction rates should serve as a deterrent not to dodge paying for a virtual tax disc.' Similarly, drivers failing to comply with red lights and signs were at a 12-year high of 11,940 guilty verdicts. Elsewhere, court cases for speeding offences fell by 8 per cent with more than 203,500 guilty verdicts handed to drivers. When looking at motor insurance cases, driving a vehicle without insurance fell to 71,458 last year (76,390 in 2022), but keeping a vehicle without insurance reaching a four-year high (58,690 in 2023 vs 40,392 in 2022). Drink and drug driving related cases, seatbelt offences and driving whilst disqualified also remained at similar levels to 2022. In total, 732,758 drivers were in the dock for motoring related offences with 672,901 being found guilty a conviction rate of 92 per cent, showing that drivers sat in front of a judge or magistrate are unlikely to get away with it. Motoring offences also took up the lion's share of the courts time, with three in every five cases being for driving misdemeanours, the MoJ stats suggest. Andrew Newland and his team at Angle have achieved something unique for a small-cap healthcare company they have developed a cancer diagnostic technology from first principles and brought it to the brink of commercial success. A recent fundraiser that added 9.3million to the coffers is expected to help the business reach cash flow break-even by the end of next year. This success is backed by three deals with two large pharmaceutical companies, giving Angle three opportunities to generate significant revenues as the contracts progress through the trial stages. It has teamed up with AstraZeneca and Japans Eisai with both essentially funding the product development phase for cancer assays. Achievement: Healthcare company Angle has developed a cancer diagnostic technology from first principles and brought it to the brink of commercial success Deeper dive Angle is the inventor of Parsortix, a liquid biopsy technology that has received FDA approval for use in breast cancerthe first and only such device to achieve this for its intended use. Parsortix captures circulating tumour cells (CTCs) from a single blood draw, recovering intact, living cancer cells. This is crucial for understanding and treating the disease, as these CTCs are involved in cancer spread. By capturing the cells involved in metastasis, Parsortix allows for a detailed analysis of the disease's current state. Researchers can examine DNA, RNA, protein expression, and cell morphology, providing a comprehensive understanding that can be repeated as often as needed, which is impossible with traditional methods. In contrast, standard cancer diagnostics rely on tissue biopsies, which are invasive and rapidly become out of date as they cannot be easily repeated. After surgeries like mastectomies, there are no remaining cells to analyse for ongoing monitoring. Advantage Parsortix This is a significant drawback, as cancer evolves over time, and understanding its current status is crucial for effective treatment. The liquid biopsy industry has up until now focused on the analysis of circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) from blood samples. However, ctDNA consists of fragments of dead cancer cells mixed with other cell debris, offering limited DNA information only. RNA, protein and cell morphology cannot be assessed. In short, this ctDNA material does not provide insights critical for a full understanding of cancer's behaviour. Moreover, studies indicate that ctDNA can be present in individuals without active cancer, complicating interpretation. You will not get the complete picture of cancer evolution if you are starting with a partial sample of fragments of dead cells, says CEO Newland. Advancing analysis Angle is advancing its cancer analysis capabilities by developing assays related to protein assessment, critical for targeting specific drugs. Currently, the company is working on assays for HER2 in breast cancer and DNA damage response in multiple cancers and has begun developing a test for prostate cancer receptors. The HER2 assay will be a critical component in the development of antibody-drug conjugates (ADCs), highly targeted treatments that attach to cancer cells and release their therapeutic payload, minimizing side effects. Partner Eisai has earmarked $2billion to develop next-generation HER2 ADC treatments. As part of a pilot study, Angle is being paid $250,000 to evaluate its assay to measure HER2 expression to identify patients who will benefit from the treatment. Follow-up studies This initial success could lead to multiple large-scale follow-on studies, generating significant revenue as drug candidates progress through clinical trials. The first of two Angle collaborations with AstraZeneca focuses on DNA damage response (DDR). Cancer cells are adept at repairing themselves, so a whole new generation of treatments are being developed to block the repair pathway to tackle the disease. And Angle is lending its support to effort. Under the 150,000 AZ deal, Angle is enhancing its existing DDR assay to include assessment of CTC micronuclei. A second agreement with AstraZeneca involves developing an androgen receptor (AR) detection assay for prostate cancer studies, valued at 550,000. Financial savings The financial impact of using assays to guide clinical trials is significant, given the $1.5billion cost of developing new drugs. Optimising the process or reducing the failure rate can save tens, if not hundreds, of millions of dollars. Theres a big financial impetus for them [the big drug companies] to go down this [testing] route, it saves a lot of money, and will make their drugs much more effective says Newland. The deals with AstraZeneca and Esai are just the beginning. Angle is in discussions with 11 potential new customers, including six household-name pharmaceutical companies, Newland reveals. For now, Angle is focused on successfully developing its assays for its two major customers. Analysts reckon success could pave the way for phase II clinical trials, potentially generating between 1.2million and 3.6million per trial. The figures jump to 15million to 45million for a phase III clinical trial and could reach up to 100million per year if a companion diagnostic is approved, the Citys number crunchers suggest. The opportunity for Angle is significant, supporting the expectation of cash break-even next year as cash burn reduces to around 1million a month. For all your small-cap breaking news go to www.proactiveinvestors.com. Ocado Group intends to construct its third robotic warehouse in Japan as part of its tie-up with Aeon. The FTSE 250 firm began a partnership in November 2019 to develop the Japanese retail giant's online grocery operations using its Ocado Smart Platform. In 2023, Ocado opened a 'customer fulfilment centre' in Chiba to serve customers across the Kanto region. Tie-up: Ocado Group began a partnership in November 2019 to develop the online grocery operations of Japanese retail giant's Aeon using its Ocado Smart Platform It plans to launch another one in the city of Hachioji in 2026 and now wants to open a third CFC in Miyashiro, Saitama Prefecture, the following year, with more to follow afterwards. Ocado also announced that it would bolster labour productivity levels by upgrading its live operations with new technologies, such as its on-grid robotic pick. Based in Hatfield, Hertfordshire, Ocado sells automated technology to companies, but is better known for running a grocery website in a joint venture with Marks & Spencer. Tim Steiner, Ocado's co-founder and chief executive, remarked: 'Today is an exciting moment for Aeon and Ocado's relationship as we deepen our already strong partnership.' 'As demonstrated by the state-of-the-art CFC live in Honda, Ocado is helping Aeon Next to provide a seamless online grocery experience to customers across Tokyo. 'We can't wait to bring this service to even more customers in the years to come.' The announcement marked a significant uplift for the business, which suffered a massive blow in June when Canadian supermarket chain Sobeys revealed it would delay opening its fourth Ocado robotic warehouse in Vancouver. Ocado declared it would instead focus on increasing orders and sales across its existing warehouses. It further said that the mutual exclusivity agreement with Sobeys, Canada's second-largest food retailer, had ended after six years. Ocado Group shares plummeted to their lowest value in six years as a result. Although they have somewhat recovered and were 5.5 per cent higher at 346.2p on mid-Monday afternoon, their value has still more than halved this year. While Ocado's sales are growing, they have slowed considerably since the end of Covid-related restrictions encouraged many consumers to return to in-store grocery shopping. In addition, the company has struggled to turn a profit, posting a 394million loss for the 12 months ending December 2023 and a 581million loss the year before. Making online grocery sales profitable has traditionally been very challenging due to the major infrastructure costs needed to build a broad operation and the 'last mile' problem - the huge expense of transporting products from warehouses to homes. At the same time, Ocado is embroiled in a dispute with M&S over a final payment related to their joint venture. Paramount Global, one of Hollywoods oldest companies, has agreed to merge with independent film studio Skydance Media marking the end of an era for the movie giant. Paramount chairman Shari Redstone, 70, will sell her familys majority stake in the business with the newly formed company worth an estimated 22billion. Paramount whose hits include Titanic and The Godfather has been part of the Redstone empire for the past three decades. It worked on Top Gun: Maverick with Skydance. Set up 1912, Paramount was bought in 1994 by Sharis late father Sumner, who built a global media empire from his fathers drive-in theatre chain National Amusements. Tie-up: Paramount worked on the 2022 blockbuster Top Gun: Maverick, starring Tom Cruise (pictured), with Skydance Aside from the film studios, Paramount owns television networks including CBS as well as Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and MTV. Skydance Media is an independent film studio launched in 2010 by billionaire David Ellison the son of Larry Ellison, one of the worlds richest men with a fortune of 124billion, who founded software company Oracle. Skydance is backed by US private equity groups including RedBird Capital, which walked away from a joint bid with the UAE government to buy the Telegraph newspaper group in April. As part of the deal, Skydance will pay 1.9billlion to buy National Amusements, which controls Paramount. It will also invest around 6.2billion in the newly formed company, which includes 1.2billion help pay down debt. Ellison, 41, will become the chairman and chief executive of the new Paramount. He said: This is a defining and transformative time for our industry and the storytellers, content creators and financial stakeholders who are invested in the Paramount legacy. The deal tops off a tumultuous period for the company since merger talks began at the end of 2023. In April, Paramount long-time boss Bob Bakish quit following reported tensions with Redstone. Adding to the series of dramas, Redstone pulled the plug on advanced talks with Skydance last month, claiming that the two sides were unable to reach mutually acceptable terms. But last week, Skydance and Paramount appeared to turn a corner, with Redstone reportedly keen to get a deal over the line viewing it as the best option for her family and the companys legacy. Aside from Skydance, Redstone also held talks with Japanese tech firm Sony as well as private equity group Apollo about possible tie-ups. Redstone said: Given the changes in the industry, we want to fortify Paramount for the future while ensuring that content remains king. Our hope is that the Skydance transaction will enable Paramounts continued success in this rapidly changing environment. Redstone inherited the business in a Succession-style battle after her fathers death in 2020. She had been initially nominated as his successor but spent years wrangling with her father to land the job after they became estranged. They managed to settle their bitter feud before he died. Analysts believe the new owners will breathe life into the company, which has struggled in recent years in the face of streaming services, dwindling TV viewing figures and spiralling debts of around 11billion. That has put pressure on shares, which have slumped by around 77 per cent in the past five years. Paolo Pescatore, media analyst at PP Foresight, said the merger was an end of an era for the group but also an opportunity. He added: New ownership means change in thinking and approach which is needed. Russ Mould, an analyst at AJ Bell, said: Investors will be hoping that Skydance can bring some new sparkle to the broader Paramount group. Boeing faces a 380million fine after pleading guilty to defrauding the US government in the wake of two deadly plane crashes. The plea makes the plane maker a convicted felon in connection with accidents in Indonesia in 2018 and Ethiopia the following year that killed 346 people. Their families who wanted Boeing to face a criminal trial and had pushed for a record fine of up to 14.6billion branded it a sweetheart deal that let Boeing off the hook. Plea deal: Plane-maker Boeing plead guilty to defrauding the US government in the wake of two deadly plane crashes The US aerospace giant is only expected to pay half the fine as it has already paid 190million. It comes after the US Department of Justice (DOJ) found Boeing had broken the terms of a 2021 settlement. The department claimed the plane maker had failed to design, implement and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the US fraud laws throughout its operations. A Boeing spokesman confirmed they had reached an agreement with the DOJ. The guilty plea potentially threatens the companys ability to secure lucrative government contracts with the likes of Nasa. He wasn't reported missing for nine months after his 2021 disappearance Collins vanished the night he returned to Arkansas after visiting his mistress Cops probing the mystery disappearance of a cheating Army veteran who was not reported missing for nine months now believe he was murdered. Shannon Collins, 52, vanished in March 2021 after returning to his wife and son, 24, in Pottsville, Arkansas, from a trip to visit his mistress in Tennessee, DailyMail.com can reveal. His family is now refusing to cooperate with authorities investigating the disappearance, after his wife Tresa told them he walked away from the home after an argument. 'We've done a lot of work on it, and we're looking at is as maybe he didn't just walk off,' Lt. Dain Yarbrough of Pope County Sheriff's Office said. 'We are definitely looking at the foul play aspect to it.' Police investigating the disappearance of a veteran in Arkansas say he was killed as a result as foul play with his family believing his wife could have harmed him in a jealous rage, DailyMail.com can reveal. (Pictured: Shannon and wife Tresa Collins) Shannon's case is being kept alive by his younger brother Blake, who is convinced he will never see him again. 'My brother's not missing. My brother's dead,' Blake, 45, bluntly told DailyMail.com in an exclusive interview. 'Two people, who allegedly watched Shannon leave his own house for the last time, tell police two completely different stories about how he left. 'Why are they lying? Why are they covering it up? At this point, my family and I have come to our own conclusions as to what happened to Shannon.' Police have confirmed that Shannon returned home to Pottsville on March 11, 2021. Tresa, 53, did not report him missing to the police, and failed to tell his extended family that he had not returned home for over a month. Shannon's brother Blake told DailyMail.com he was the one who filed a report with police when he returned to Arkansas from living out of state, nine months after Shannon was last seen. Shannon Collins, 52, vanished in March 2021 after returning to his home in Pottsville, Arkansas, from a trip out of state Tresa reportedly told authorities in her only interview that she and Shannon had an argument when he returned but went to bed 'as normal' the night before he vanished Shannon with his son Josh, wife Tresa, and stepdaughter Brittany Initially Tresa claimed that he had 'left the family' after an argument, and was texting her, their son, and Brittany, 33, her daughter from a previous relationship, from a new number. However, when Shannon did not respond to messages from his parents or two siblings, they began to get concerned despite his wife's claims that he was in contact with her. Blake said once he involved the police in his brother's disappearance, Tresa and her children have never spoken to his family again. He confirmed that Shannon had been having an affair with a woman in Tennessee and that Blake believes that Shannon and Tresa had a dispute when he returned from his lover. Blake told DailyMail.com that the marriage had been 'over for some time' before Shannon vanished, and his brother had described his wife as 'jealous' multiple times during their relationship. 'He was going to divorce her as soon as their son graduated from college', he said. 'She knew exactly where he was, and that he was involved with another woman. 'Then she sat at home all week, and I believe that he came home, and she confronted him.' Blake added that his brother's lover has spoken with police. He does not know the woman's identity, and has urged her to get in touch with the family directly if she has any information. The FBI is now assisting in the three-year investigation into the disappearance of the veteran, and the Sheriff's Office want those with information to come forward 'My family and I have come to our own conclusions as to what happened to Shannon,' his younger brother Blake told DailyMail.com Shannon, who served as a soldier in the United States Army National guard, took on a delivery job after he was medically discharged from the military at the rank of Sergeant Major SGM after 24 years of service He also claims that the last message Shannon's phone ever sent was a Facebook message to the anonymous woman, saying 'I'm ok', though he doesn't believe his brother wrote it. Blake, who lives in Texas, is begging anyone with information to come forward, and believes that Shannon was killed the night that he went missing. He has also launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money towards their investigative efforts. My brother's not missing. My brother's dead Blake Collins Speaking to DailyMail.com he said: 'You don't immediately assume your brother's wife and family could've done something horrible to him and are making attempts to keep their actions hidden. 'We have done everything in our power to be helpful and cooperative to the police investigating Shannon's case. 'The same cannot be said about anyone involved in Shannon's immediate family. The people who were supposed to be closest to Shannon know the truth about what happened, but they've decided they aren't talking and are unwilling to help.' Tresa reportedly told authorities in her only interview that she and Shannon had an argument when he returned but went to bed 'as normal' the night before he vanished. She claims that he simply 'walked away' from the house, adding that he was on pain medication and may not have been thinking straight. Blake Collins was the one who reported his brother missing nine months after he disappeared Shannon had been in Tennessee with his mistress before returning to his family in Arkansas Shannon poses for a woodland photoshoot with his wife Tresa, son Josh and stepdaughter Brittany Detectives confirmed that witness statements and cell site evidence confirmed both Tresa and her son were home when Shannon arrived back from his trip. Shannon's stepdaughter, Brittany, later told police that she saw him get into a vehicle with an unknown driver contradicting her mother's prior statement. During her interview, Tresa also said that she believed Shannon had 'checked himself into a mental facility' but would let them know he was okay. Blake said that Tresa did nothing to stop her husband's US Army pension payments following his disappearance, and they were only halted after he reported his brother missing. Police say there were 'inconsistencies' in her testimony and served a search warrant on the home she shared with Shannon. Tresa then refused to speak to authorities without a lawyer. She is currently being represented by attorney Michael Robbins, who successfully defended Kevin Jones after he was accused of murdering his beauty queen girlfriend Nona Dirksmeyer in the 'Murder in Apartment 12' case. Robbins did not respond to requests for comment by DailyMail.com. Lt. Yarbrough told DailyMail.com that the FBI had now been called in to assist in the three-year-long investigation. 'We are still looking at any angle we can get to help us further what we have already, we'll take any help that we can get,' he said. Yarbrough added that while he didn't want to say definitively that Shannon was dead, that is his working theory of the investigation. In a statement the sheriff's department confirmed that Shannon's wife and son told officers that he 'walked away' from the home March 12. 'During the initial, and only, interview the wife participated in, she gave false and misleading statements to investigators,' they added. 'Investigators attempted to obtain follow-up information from Shannon's wife and children but were advised that they had obtained counsel and wished to speak to investigators no further. 'They have provided no information since to help further the investigation. To this date, there have been no leads from the public, nor family or friends that would suggest to investigators that Shannon is living elsewhere or even left the Pottsville area.' Shannon, who served as a soldier in the United States Army National guard, took on a delivery job after he was medically discharged from the military at the rank of Sergeant Major SGM after 24 years of service. He was supposed to make a delivery on the day of his disappearance, but never showed up for the job, which his family say was out of character for the veteran. The family met with Pope County prosecutor Jeff Phillips this month to discuss movement in the case but were told that they felt there is not enough evidence to bring charges. Shannon's family is hopeful that renewed interest in the case will help bring more information to light, and result in charges in his case. 'Our family is strong, and we have faith,' said Blake 'Faith in God. And faith in the fact that the police and legal system will come to their senses and do the right thing to bring justice to Shannon, and peace to my family.' Four pet dogs are dead and three are fighting for their lives after a dog sitter allegedly crammed them into a tiny shed on an 86-degree night. Gabriela Masak had a five-star rating on dog-sitting app Rover from more than 900 reviews when the now-heartbroken owners entrusted their beloved pets to her. Instead, they received panicked texts about 5 am on June 29 telling them their dogs suffered heatstroke and were being rushed to a vet in Houston. Masak wrote in the texts shared with DailyMail.com by the heartbroken pet owners that she put the dogs to bed at 10 pm and woke up at 5 am to find her air conditioning had failed, which she blamed for their deaths. The petsitter is under investigation by Houston Police Department animal cruelty detectives, but has not been charged with a crime. Gabriela Masak had a five-star rating on dog-sitting app Rover from more than 900 reviews when the heartbroken owners entrusted their beloved pets to her The small wooden shed is visible over the back fence of the home and was only built last year Several of the owners said they were led to believe their pet was the only one she was looking after, besides her own two dogs. Some were repeat customers and often sent photos of their pets inside the house either by themselves or playing with Masak's dogs. They now say they feel conned after discovering Masak had at least 11 dogs at her home in Timbergrove. 'We were lied to and deceived, we thought he was safe her house we thought we had checked everything out, it's shocking,' Matthew Johnston, whose chocolate Labrador named Porter died, told DailyMail.com. A small wooden shed is visible over the back fence of Masak's home that she shares with her partner, Chevron engineer Ryan Hilton, and was only built last year when turf was put down in the backyard. The house was pelted with eggs days after the dogs died as angry locals and friends of the pet owners shared their accusations online. The seven dogs, all from Rover, that suffered from heatstroke were housed overnight in the shed when its air-conditioning failed while Masak was asleep in the house, owners said police told them of Masak's account to officials. Meanwhile, the owners of another four dogs that were unharmed are believed to have found Masak through other channels. Goose, pictured with his owner Jessica Hayward, was one of four dogs that died after the dogsitter crammed them into a tiny shed on an 86F night Masak runs two dog-sitting businesses named Best in Class and The Ultimate Petsitter. She studied petroleum and natural gas engineering at Pennsylvania State University where she also worked as a petsitter in her spare time. 'Dog, cats, donkeys - you name it! I take the experience that I have from owning my own pets and apply it to this part of my business,' she wrote on her website. A blog post from February 28, 2016, talked up her experience working in a barn and railed against pet owners who don't get their animals neutered. 'Owning a pet does not necessarily mean making sure that they are fed and cared for,' she concluded. 'You cannot control and plan for everything that will occur over the lifespan of the pet, and fixing an animal is the responsible thing to do.' After her panicked early-morning texts and phone calls, Masak took the seven dogs to Gulf Coast Veterinary Specialists where she gave false names and contact numbers for their owners, the owners have claimed. Masak's Rover profile was then taken down, along with all her and Hilton's social media profiles, and she stopped responding to texts. Multiple attempts by DailyMail.com to reach either of them were unsuccessful. A blog post talked up Masak's experience working in a barn and railed against pet owners who don't get their animals neutered Masak's Rover profile was then taken down, along with all her and Hilton's social media profiles, and she stopped responding to texts Jessica Hayward and Taylor Friesenhahn dropped off Goose, their Petit Brabancon, a type of Brussels Griffon, at Masak's home on June 27 and went on vacation. Hayward said they got a call at 5:30 am on June 29 and 'immediately knew something was wrong.' 'Gabriela was crying hysterically and couldn't get words out. All I said was, "Is Goose alive?" and she said no,' she told DailyMail.com. 'We asked what happened, and she said that she put him in his crate at 10 pm and when she checked on him at 5am he was dead, and mentioned that she had AC issues.' The temperature in Houston was between 83 and 86 degrees during those hours, and reached a maximum of 95 the afternoon before. 'An hour went by, and we hadn't heard from her, and we were hysterical so we called the vet,' Hayward said. That was the first time the couple learned their dog was one of seven staying at the house who had been brought in with heatstroke. Jessica Hayward and Taylor Friesenhahn dropped off Goose, their Petit Brabancon, a type of Brussels Griffon, at Masak's home on June 27 and went on vacation Goose was put to bed in his crate at 10 pm and was dead by the time he was seen again at 5 am, Masak told his owners 'We knew nothing about the shed, nor that there were other dogs there. We were always under the impression that he was the only dog she was taking,' Hayward said. 'We never heard from her since, she still has his belongings, and there was no apology or recognition, nothing. 'We're devastated and not sure how we can even function without him. We don't have children so he wasn't just a dog, he was our child. 'Everyone who met him knew how much we dedicated our lives to giving him the best life a dog could have. Everyone falls in love with him immediately.' Friesenhahn said they used Masak's services a few times over the past year, but she never let them inside and always picked up or handed back Goose in the driveway. 'They created an illegal system in their home we all feel like we've been conned and misled in the same way,' he claimed. 'How many times, we don't know, but all signs suggest there was a scaling of this operation recently.' Matthew and Jordan Johnson lost their six-year-old chocolate Labrador named Porter and had an eerily similar story Jordan (pictured with Porter) said they were in Canada visiting the rest of their family when they got messages from Masak early in the morning about the situation Matthew and Jordan Johnson lost their six-year-old chocolate Labrador named Porter and had an eerily similar story. They were in Canada visiting the rest of their family when they got messages from Masak early in the morning about the situation. 'We had an emergency. I'm at the vet. I woke up, and the AC wasn't working,' she wrote through the Rover app in messages obtained by DailyMail.com. 'Oh no! Can we call you? Is Porter ok?' they replied, then spoke to her on the phone. 'She told us he died from heatstroke and that didn't make sense as how could it possibly have gotten hot enough in her house even if the AC went out for that to happen,' Jordan said. Not until they spoke with the vet did they know Porter was only one of many dogs staying together, contrary to photos Masak sent them. 'The first time we knew there were other dogs was when the vet called us and said, "You're one of the seven,"' Jordan said. 'I thought Porter was there alone with one or two other dogs. I thought I was sending my dog to [what was portrayed in] the photos she sent me. Nobody would send their dog to be in a shed with 10 other dogs. 'She called us because she needed us to call the vet and put our paperwork in and credit card down, I have no illusions that she called us because she was trying to inform us of anything because after that we heard nothing.' A photo Masak sent to the Johnstons during a previous stay in April, showing him inside and only with one of Masak's own dogs 'We had an emergency. I'm at the vet. I woke up and the AC wasn't working,' Masak wrote through the Rover app The couple are still in Canada with two and four-year-old kids and all their extended family as they didn't want to take them back to the Houston heat after Porter's sudden death, so they are staying until July 14. 'It helps to be with family, but we're angry and really upset,' Jordan said. 'He was a part of our family, he's been with us through a lot of change in our lives - we got him when it was just my husband and I and were living in Calgary, and since then we've gotten married and had two kids and moved to Houston.' Archie, an 11-month-old Bernedoodle, was luckier as he survived the night and is in critical condition but improving. 'We have a long way to go. We're staying positive and he's fighting,' his owner, Andrew Seerden said. Seerden woke up to messages from Masak starting at 5:39 am. 'I'm taking Archie to the emergency room. I woke up and the AC wasn't running. He has heat stroke and we are rushing to Gulf Coast,' they read. Seerden replied at 6:46 am, writing, 'Oh my god. Updates?' Masak wrote she was at the vet, and he asked, 'Where was he?' Jordan said Porter was part of her and Matthew's lives since they were living in Canada, and in that time they moved to Houston, got married and had two children Seerden said Masak didn't answer the question and replied, 'They are trying to reach you to start care.' 'We need to know what happened and where he was,' Seerden insisted. 'You need to call us back now.' 'My first thought was where was he? If our power goers out in the middle of the night we're going to get a little warm but none of us are going to get heatstroke,' he said of the brief call. 'Her response was "in the back room" which sounds to me like it's a room, not the back shed. None of us would have been OK with them being out there.' Seerden said the vet had problems contacting or even identifying the dogs' owners after Masak dropped them off, and only got his number because it was written on Archie's collar. 'Gabriela not once in a text or a call expressed any concern or sympathy or apologized, or asked how he was doing or what she could do,' he said. Archie is still in the vet hospital on oxygen and attached to a monitor with a feeding tube. 'He was in about as bad a shape as he could have been, and still be alive. We had several meetings with the vets where they took us into a room and it felt like it was the end,' Seerden said. 'The things they're most concerned about have improved but he's not out of the woods yet.' Archie, an 11-month-old Bernedoodle, was luckier as he survived the night and is in critical condition but improving Archie is still in the vet hospital on oxygen and attached to a monitor with a feeding tube Seerden woke up to messages from Masak starting at 5:39 am Other former Masak clients whose dogs were not at her house that night were horrified to hear of the accusations shared on social media. 'Our jaws are on the floor as we read this. We just had our dog there last weekend. She usually sent pictures of him playing with a ball in the backyard but she was radio silent,' one wrote. Another added: 'I left my dog with gabby at least 10 times. I've recommended her to friends and family. I am absolutely sick that this happened.' A third wrote: 'She was our dog sitter but we luckily got him back a day before this happened Very shocked... We've used her for the past two years and she always said our dog was the only one too.' Another pet owner wrote that they hired Masak in the past because she had such good reviews on Rover and many repeat customers. They explained that there were no incidents, but the reports explained a lot of minor issues. 'When we dropped her off the first time she did not take us inside the home to see the living conditions. We used her services 2-3 times and never saw the inside premises,' they wrote. 'Our dog would always have her chin and neck soaking wet, most likely because she was captive in that shed and she was chugging water to regulate her temperature.' Their dog also each time came home with serious stomach issues where they had to seek weeks of medical attention. BARC, the City of Houston's municipal animal shelter, visited the house but wasn't allowed in until police obtained a search warrant. The BARC truck is seen waiting outside the house Pet owners said they feel conned after discovering Masak had at least 11 dogs at her home in Timbergrove Staff at the vet clinic also recalled their distress at having to treat the dogs when they arrived and deal with the four that died. 'As someone who took care of one of the dogs that arrived DOA at our hospital, the way I sobbed for an hour when I was told. He was a sweet little angel and the bestest boy,' one wrote, Another vet worker wrote: 'Goose was the absolute cutest boy and was loved across so many departments. He was even in one of our OR techs' profile photos! 'He made so many people happy and always put a smile on my face whenever I saw him.' Other locals who heard about what happened wrote online that they heard dog barking in the backyard and reported it to authorities. BARC, the City of Houston's municipal animal shelter, visited the house but wasn't allowed in until police obtained a search warrant. Eventually, the remaining four dogs were removed from the property. Investigators were seen searching the house on Monday afternoon and Houston police opened an animal cruelty investigation. No charges have been filed. BARC previously issued Masak a citation for not having a commercial pet service facility license. Hayward said she wanted Rover to vet dog sitters better and make sure they were trained better and checked on how they look after dogs Hayward said she wanted Rover to vet dog sitters better and make sure they were trained better and checked on how they look after dogs. 'We have to hold these apps accountable to make sure they don't allow unqualified people to take in 10 dogs, without anyone's knowledge, and there needs to be regulations to prevent this from happening,' she said. Friesenhahn added: 'We're helicopter dog parents, we're very particular about who takes care of him and we did all the due diligence so if it can happen to us, it can happen to anyone.' Rover said it was 'deeply concerned' and promised to conduct a 'thorough investigation' and cooperate with police. 'We are committed to supporting these pet parents throughout this heartbreaking ordeal, including reimbursing the families for related veterinary expenses,' it said. EXCLUSIVE An influencer and her family have moved out of their McMansion after her boyfriend was allegedly kidnapped from the property and had his teeth pulled out with pliers over a drug debt believed to be owed by one of her relatives. TikTok star Angel Bowyer, 25, and her partner Peter Vuong, 27, were asleep in her family's Smithfield home, in Sydney's west, on March 9 last year when a group of men allegedly stormed the house armed with sledgehammers and guns. The men then allegedly abducted Mr Vuong and held him captive in a squalid Belmore property in the city's inner-west, where he was reportedly blindfolded and tortured for six days while they tried to extort a $5million ransom. The cash demands were allegedly sent to crypto investor Tran Dinh, husband of Ms Bowyer's cousin, who then tipped off police and triggered a complex rescue operation to save Mr Vuong. Mr Dinh is believed to have been the intended target of the attack and has since left Australia, while six men and a woman were arrested in relation to the alleged abduction. Daily Mail Australia can now reveal the Bowyer family - which includes Angel, her mother Yen, father Linh, and brother Tim - put their home up for sale in August, five months after the alleged attack. The four-bedroom property on a 683sqm block features a 'theatre room', two bathrooms, a double garage and a $4,000 security system. It was sold on September 26 for $1,570,000, with the family purchasing another property in Sydney for $1.8million the following month. Peter Vuong, 26, and his glamorous influencer girlfriend Angel Bowyer (above, together) were sleeping in her family's Smithfield home when he was allegedly kidnapped at gunpoint and taken to a squalid house 20km away and tortured The Bowyer family's Smithfield house where Mr Vuong was allegedly kidnapped (pictured) has quietly been sold The property, which sold for more than $1.5million, also features a 'theatre room' and a $4,000 security system Neighbours previously told Daily Mail Australia the family had installed a hi-tech security system at the premises just days before the alleged kidnapping. Court documents allege the accused attackers had made a botched attempt to abduct Mr Vuong days before he was kidnapped. Angel Bowyer is a convicted drug offender who was jailed for selling huge quantities of MDMA, but has now re-invented herself as a big-brand influencer with more than 350,000 followers. After being released from prison, she found fame on TikTok where she partners with popular fashion labels including Pretty Little Things, Stax and Gingham & Heels. Despite being embroiled in the alleged kidnapping scandal, her social media stardom has continued to thrive. Her following has grown by more than 1,000 over the past 12 months and she has now also become an ambassador for American brand, FashionNova. Mr Vuong (left) is pictured with Tran Dinh (right) Bowyer is a big-brand influencer, with more than 350,000 followers across Instagram and TikTok Daily Mail Australia is not suggesting any member of Ms Bowyer's family had any involvement in Mr Vuong's extortion, or that they knew about her previous drug dealing. Viliami Siasau, 20, Valali Tonga, 21, Sunia Siasau, 21, and John Totau Fahamokioa, 21, Lolo Liavaa, 20, and Kitueau Tatafu, 22, were arrested on March 14, 2023, shortly after Mr Vuong was rescued. Sira Elkheir, 22, was arrested the following month on April 12 and charged with allegedly accessing confidential data - including driver's licence details and addresses - through her public servant role at Service NSW to assist with the kidnapping and extortion. Ms Elkheir pleaded guilty and was sentenced in March this year to an 18-month good behaviour bond and 30 hours of community service work. The charges against John Totau Fahamokioa have since been withdrawn, while the matters of Sunia Siasau, Viliami Siasau, Valali Tonga, and Lolo Liavaa remain before the courts. Pictures show killer nurse Lucy Letby smiling with friends on a hen do a day before she murdered her first tiny victim. The group, mostly nurses, are seen posing on Lendal Bridge in York, with Letby - then 25 - at the head of the party in a black floral dress and matching black clutch bag. Wearing badges to mark the occasion, they visited several bars in the city and ended up in Vodka Revolution. Letby returned to work a day later on June 8, 2015, having agreed to cover for a colleague. Within 90 minutes of clocking on at the unit, she had murdered a little boy - who can only be identified as Baby A. Lucy Letby (far right) poses with friends on a hen do in York a day before she murdered a baby. Also in the photo - fourth from right - is Janet Cox, a former colleague who still believes Letby was innocent Another photo from the weekend shows the group at a railway station. Everyone else pictured was completely oblivious of Letby's crimes He had been born 12 weeks earlier weighing 3lbs 12oz and died after Letby injected him with air. She later told a colleague that the boy 'died very unexpectedly,' adding that: 'Dad was on the floor crying, ''Please don't take our baby away''.' Twenty-four hours later Letby would be trying to kill the infant's twin sister, Baby B. Months later she carried out sinister Facebook searches for their parents. Letby was originally found guilty in August of murdering seven children and trying to kill six others, but the jury failed to reach a verdict on the attempted murder of a premature girl known as Baby K. A jury convicted her of this count on Tuesday. One of Letby's friends who were with her on the hen do was her colleague Janet Cox - who like everyone else who worked on the killer's unit was entirely oblivious to her crimes. Mrs Cox remains convinced of her innocence, and attended every day of her second trial. She spoke briefly at the front door of her semi-detached home in Ellesmere Port on the Wirral when approached by MailOnline after the original verdicts. Asked whether she still believed in her friend's innocence, Mrs Cox replied 'Yes' but refused to elaborate further. Letby, 34, ranks as Britain's most prolific baby killer in modern times after killing seven babies and attempting to kill a further seven between June 2015 and June 2016. Cheshire Police are still investigating her for other possible crimes against babies even earlier in her nursing career. Letby is the most prolific child killer in modern British history One of Letby's friends who were with her on the hen do was her colleague Janet Cox - who like everyone else who worked on the killer's unit was entirely oblivious to her crimes. They are pictured at another social event A photo showing Letby during a night out that she shared on her social media Officers are currently sifting through the medical notes of 4,000 babies at two hospitals where Letby worked between 2012 and 2016 the Countess of Chester and Liverpool Women's Hospital. In August, Letby refused to come up from a holding cell to hear him impose no fewer than 14 whole life orders. Tuesday's conviction this time for cynically dislodging the breathing tube of an infant so tiny she would have fitted in her open palm means it is almost a formality that she will receive a 15th whole life term. Mrs Cox is not the only friend or colleague of Letby who has stood by her. Dawn Howe, a long-term friend, is among those who refuses to accept the jury's decision that the nurse is a baby killer. Speaking to the BBC's Panorama programme last summer, Ms Howe, 33, said: 'Unless Lucy turned around and said 'I'm guilty' I will never believe that she's guilty. 'We know she couldn't have done anything that she's accused of, so without a doubt we stand by her. 'I grew up with Lucy and not a single thing that I've ever seen or witnessed of Lucy would let me for a moment believe she is capable of the thing's she's accused of. 'It is the most out-of-character accusation that you could ever put against Lucy. 'Think of your most kind, gentle, soft friend and think that they're being accused of harming babies.' She also accused police of 'trying to build a case, to find someone culpable to find someone to blame' as she maintained Letby's innocence. Letby wearing an academic gown on her graduation day For any middle class white woman, there is little worse in today's world than being branded a 'Karen'. Their diva strops, caught on camera, spark cries of outrage and vitriol usually reserved for pedophiles and rapists. But now these reviled outcasts may have found an unlikely savior. A crisis management firm, led by 46-year-old Evan Nierman, is riding to their rescue. And he has started by taking a shot at one of the most infamous cases of 'Karen shaming' in America. Crisis manager Evan Nierman (right) has taken up the cause of dozens of American women who have been branded 'Karens' on social media, including 'SF Karen' Lisa Alexander (left) Alexander, 58, was denounced as a 'racist' in 2020 after accusing a Filipino man of defacing private property by scrawling Black Lives Matter on a wall in San Francisco It transpired that the man in question, James Juanillo (pictured), had been renting the property in Pacific Heights for more than a decade. He filmed the exchange and the clip went viral Lisa Alexander, the 58-year-old CEO who was labeled a racist after asking a Filipino man whether he owned the San Francisco property he was scrawling Black Lives Matter on in June 2020, is one of dozens of so-called 'Karens' Nierman and his firm, Red Banyan, are helping to rebuild their reputations. Under Nierman's guidance, Alexander appeared on an episode of Dr. Phil in April, claiming the incident was simply a 'misunderstanding between neighbors'. She said she still receives death threats four years on from the notorious incident, with the viral story destroying her life, business and health. 'I want my life back,' she pleaded. Nierman believes this is something all 'Karens' deserve. What's in a name? He is wading into a toxic culture war. The 'Karen' meme took off in the wake of the police killing of 46-year-old George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25, 2020. During a period of heightened racial tensions, the moniker came to describe white women who carried out alleged acts of everyday racism. Often, this took the form of calling the cops on people of color while making false allegations about their conduct. There was white investment manager Amy Cooper, who called the police on Christian Cooper, a 57-year-old black birdwatcher who had asked her to leash her dog in New York City's Central Park. Miss Cooper falsely alleged that 'an African American man' was threatening her. Alexander's story fits a similar narrative. But 'Karen' has come to embody a broader range of behaviors. During the pandemic, the slur was used to describe a vocal minority of middle-aged white women who opposed social distancing. Most recently, a woman in Willis, Texas, was given the ignominious title after calling a 17-year-old manager at a snow cone stand a 'b****' after bullying her for a refund. Their defining essence is 'entitlement, selfishness, a desire to complain,' according to Heather Suzanne Woods, a meme researcher and professor at Kansas State University. Following years of death threats, Alexander appeared on an episode of Dr. Phil in April to tell her side of the story. She vehemently denied being a racist Alexander's friend Robert Larkins (left), who featured in the viral clip alongside Alexander, was sacked from his investment firm following 'allegations of racism' Juanillo had chalked Black Lives Matter onto the wall in front of his rental property To defend these people is not a popular act. But, much like a criminal defense attorney, Nierman believes everyone has a right to a fair hearing in the court of public opinion. Alongside Alexander, he has taken up cases such as that of Erica Erickson, a 41-year-old woman from North Carolina who was hounded out of Puerto Rico after neighbors accused her pet rescue center of animal rights abuse, something she vehemently denies. Others are documented in his 2023 book, 'The Cancel Culture Curse'. Most of Nierman's clients do not want to speak to the media, scarred by prior experiences. They prefer that Red Banyan operate privately, rebuilding relations with business partners and neighbors away from the prying eyes of the public. 'In most cases, these are not people who've done these terrible things for which they need to do penance,' he tells DailyMail.com from his office in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. 'These are good people who become the target of attacks. They never really even have the chance to explain themselves before their careers and their reputations are decimated.' Judging by his clients' inbox, he has his work cut out. 'We are watching you racist b****, we will make sure your business will always suffer,' reads one message sent to Alexander in the wake of her Dr. Phil appearance. 'Accuse us and we will accuse you. Burn in hell and we will piss on your grave,' it continues. 'Lisa, you are one ugly f****** whore,' screams another. 'Have you looked in the mirror? You are a seriously ugly ****. How on earth did you ever become the CEO of a skincare company? You filthy, ugly old ****.' Pictured: 'Central Park Karen' Amy Cooper, who called the police on Christian Cooper, a 57-year-old black birdwatcher who had asked her to leash her dog in New York City in 2020 There are enough of these to fill a short novel. As foul as they are, Nierman wants them to be made public in the hope it will make people 'think twice' before they decide to resolve disputes by uploading clips on social media, which can quickly gather a narrative of their own. Again, he is in the minority. According to a 2021 study conducted by the Pew Research Center, 58 per cent of U.S. adults believe calling out others on social media will hold them on accountable for their actions, while 38 per cent said it punishes those who don't deserve it. Fighting back Nierman passionately believes Alexander has been unfairly maligned. The video that led to her downfall shows her and her friend Robert Larkins asking dog walker James Juanillo if he lives in the property he was painting a Black Lives Matter stencil on. The pair told him he was acting illegally, claimed the home wasn't his property and that they knew the owner. Unbeknown to them, Juanillo had been renting the multi million dollar mansion for more than a decade. The indignant tenant uploaded footage of the exchange to Twitter alongside the caption: 'A white couple call the police on me, a person of color, for stenciling a #BLM chalk message on my own front retaining wall. 'Karen' lies and says she knows that I don't live in my own house, because she knows the person who lives here. #blacklivesmatter.' He later added: 'These are white people weaponizing [sic] their white privilege and casually calling in potentially lethal consequences on an innocent POC [person of color] while they knowingly LIE about their bonafides. Don't enable white supremacy!' The clip immediately went viral and Alexander was met with a barrage of abuse. Denounced as a 'racist', she lost business partnerships for her skincare firm LaFace. Larkins, meanwhile, was fired by his investment firm, which released a statement saying that the 'alleged racism' was 'inconsistent with our values'. The city of San Francisco even introduced the Caution Against Racially Exploitative Non-Emergencies Act - or the CAREN Act - later that year, which criminalized racially motivated emergency calls. Days after the incident, Alexander issued a public apology, saying that she was sorry she had disrespected Juanillo, and that she should have minded her own business. Evan Nierman, of Red Banyan Crisis Management, says most women who are condemned as 'Karens' in the wake of viral videos 'are good people' who are 'victims of attacks' But Nierman says the apology was issued 'under duress' - and she had nothing to be sorry for. On the Dr. Phil show, Alexander emphasized several key points. That she approached Juanillo in a calm and 'respectful' manner. That, at first, she did not see he was stenciling 'Black Lives Matter' - and that the message was irrelevant to the fact that she thought he was vandalizing someone else's property. That when she did see what he was writing, she said: 'Absolutely, your signs and everything, and that's good, but this is not the way to do it.' That she had known the elderly owner for 15 years and had no idea he had been renting the property out to boarders - something Juanillo chose not to mention during their interaction. Nierman has also taken issue with media reporting of the incident. He points out that articles repeatedly suggested that Juanillo owned the property, rather than rented it, and repeated his claim that Alexander called 911. Alexander says in fact Larkins called a non-emergency Neighborhood Watch number. She has also claimed that, following the incident, Juanillo followed them from his home in Pacific Heights for an hour and a half to their apartment in the Marina District, where he hid behind the bushes of the garage next door. 'Milking it' Juanillo, for his part, said he was 'disgusted' by Alexander's TV appearance. He has since been active on X, saying he was boycotting 'Dr. Phil'. 'They constructed a narrative that was so contradictory to what actually happened that day,' he told The San Francisco Chronicle. 'When you've done something wrong, let your apology stand and then improve your life.' But Nierman has turned his ire back on Juanillo and the 'Karen shaming' culture. 'It's time to let her move on with her life,' he says, pointing out that four years after the incident, Juanillo still has the clip pinned to the stop of his feed on X. 'There must be some reason that he's chosen to make this the defining moment of his entire life at her expense. 'He certainly increased his Twitter [now known as X] followers significantly.' Nierman has accused Juanillo of making his dispute with Alexander the 'defining moment of his life' and not allowing her to move on with her life Juanillo's personal website flogs merchandise depicting the infamous encounter, including a jigsaw puzzle and mug of his Black Lives Matter stencil for $33.50 and $12.50 respectively Juanillo has 18,600 followers on X, where he describes himself as an 'activist' and 'social justice warrior'. His personal website displays the viral video front and center of its home page, which also flogs his services as a speechmaker as well as merchandise depicting the infamous encounter, including a jigsaw puzzle of his Black Lives Matter stencil for $33.50. Nierman has no time for any of it. 'There's a lot of people out there who are irrelevant and enjoy the fact that they get to be a part of the drama,' he says. 'It doesn't seem to matter to them that there's a real person on the other side, whose life can be completely upended because they're not willing to forgive or forget.' Central Florida has been dubbed 'Sinkhole Alley' after it became notorious for the dangerous phenomenon in which the ground collapses without warning - putting nearby homes and businesses at huge risk. Many residents in the state are still haunted by a major incident that occurred at a car dealership in Lake Rose in 1981, with some vehicles still below the surface today. Dr. Manoj Chopra, an expert in sinkholes and erosion from the University of Central Florida, spoke to ClickOrlando this week about the prevalence of sinkholes across the state and why they happen. Chopra says 'Sinkhole Alley' encompasses a huge swath of land in Florida and 'goes all the way from Hillsborough County, and close to Tampa, all the way up to Daytona, and through our areas of Maitland and Winter Park'. Of the nearly 27,000 sinkholes reported in Florida, 20,145 of the dangerous voids are located in Sinkhole Alley's three counties: Pasco, Hernando and Hillsborough. Central Florida has been dubbed 'Sinkhole Alley' after becoming notorious for the dangerous phenomenon where the ground suddenly collapses. Pictured: A car being pulled into a sinkhole in Florida Dr. Manoj Chopra, an expert in sinkholes and erosion from the University of Central Florida, explained the prevalence of sinkholes across Central Florida Aerial footage from 1981 shows a major sinkhole in Winter Park, Florida, that caused the collapse of a car dealership, leading to vehicles being submerged to this day Chopra highlighted the devastation left behind the infamous 1981 sinkhole in Winter Park near Orlando, which grew to 400 feet in diameter, swallowing-up five cars, two businesses, a three-bedroom house, nearby streets and the deep end of an Olympic-size swimming pool. Many sinkholes eventually become picturesque lakes, and Chopra pointed out the easy way you can find one from above. 'If you fly over Central Florida, if you see those really round lakes, they're probably sinkholes, because a sinkhole is typically a funnel that fails the surface and falls in,' Chopra said. While they may appear beautiful from above, they are actually a significant threat to the safety of locals. Perhaps most disconcerting is that some sinkholes seemingly happen at random. While sinkholes that develop under sandy soil typically show danger signs in their surface depressions before collapsing, those that start crumbling under clay layers, like the fatal incident in Seffner, can collapse suddenly and without warning. In 2013, Seffner resident Jeff Bush, 37, was in bed sleeping when a sinkhole unexpectedly swallowed him up. First responders were unable to recover his body after it plunged into the void beneath. Chopra said the clay - acting as a barrier - actually conceals the erosion eating away below the surface until it implodes, taking everything above it down with it. In 2018, a dozen sinkholes opened up in a Florida city, forcing eight homes to be evacuated and prompting fears other residents would also have to leave. The holes began appearing around a retention pond in the Wynchase neighborhood of Ocala, and continued to pop up over two weeks while locals were left stumped - and terrified - by the underlying cause. This photo shows a sinkhole that in 2013 fatally swallowed a man sleeping in his own house. The sinkhole has reopened for a third time, this time behind chain-link fencing and doing no harm to people or property A home is destroyed after the backyard behind the home collapsed into a sinkhole, taking their patio and boat in November 2013 in Dunedin, Florida In 2018, a dozen sinkholes opened up in a Florida city, forcing eight homes to be evacuated and prompting fears from other residents they will be the next to leave Demolition experts watch as the home, destroyed, March 3, 2013, after a sinkhole opened up underneath it late evening swallowing Bush, 37, in Seffner 'They just keep coming,' local resident Maren Pinder told WFTV at the time. 'Are we safe? We don't know. It's really scary. We just have a bag ready in case we are told to evacuate.' Some sinkholes can lie dormant for decades - before they inevitably swell and cause further damage. In 2023, the deadly Seffner sinkhole, that previously took the life and home of a Florida man while he slept, returned for a third time. Since the death of Bush, the sinkhole has been surrounded by a chain-link fence in an effort to protect residents of the Tampa suburb from further harm, an ominous warning of the hole's destructive power. An effort in 2015 saw officials fill the hole with a mixture of gravel and water after it opened for a second time. However, the sinkhole grew to 19 feet wide at its largest and state records show that Florida sinkholes can grow to as large as 400 feet (121 meters), swallowing cars, businesses and, in one 2006 instance, draining nearby Scott Lake. One sinkhole in Emerald Springs called Mystery Sink, now infamous for claiming two lives, was permanently closed to the public with a large, barbed fence now surrounding the area. Pictured: The deadly Mystery Sink where two people lost their lives in a matter of days Central Florida has been dubbed 'Sinkhole Alley' after becoming notorious for the dangerous phenomenon where the ground suddenly collapses In 1970, a 16-year-old boy, Fred Schmidt of Orlando, went scuba diving with local instructor Hal Watts in the lake known for its deep-water diving lessons. The pair ventured into Mystery Sink in search of a lost safety vest, but tragedy struck when Watts realized the teen was no longer by his side. Despite spotting the boy for a brief moment below him, Watts was unable to locate him before he blacked out. Three days into the search for the boy's body, tragedy struck again when diver Bud Sims, assisting in the operation, became entangled in search lines and panicked, losing his mouthpiece as he tried to surface. Tragically, Sims collided with a TV boat's hull, succumbing before he could be rescued. Despite efforts to recover the bodies, neither of the teenager's nor Sims' remains were ever found. When it comes to prevention, Chopra insists homeowners understand the geological history of their neighborhood. He also recommended consulting the Florida Geological Survey's sinkhole map to assess the risk level of a particular location. But at a certain point, avoiding the nearly 30,000 sinkholes in Florida may come down to a matter of luck. Ivanka Trump has re-emerged as her father Donald's fiercest public defender, even as she defiantly says she won't return to politics. The former first daughter will attend the Republican National Convention next week, a source close to her told DailyMail.com, but she will be there in a personal capacity to support her father. She will be there on Thursday, July 18, to see Donald Trump formally accept the nomination. However, Ivanka 'will not serve in any political capacity at the event as a delegate, fundraiser or otherwise,' the source said. Other Trump family members are expected to be in attendance. Meanwhile, Ivanka sat down for a one-hour on camera interview last week, where, among other topics, she expressed her support for Donald Trump. Ivanka Trump has re-emerged as a top Donald Trump defender Ivanka's decision is in stark contrast to the 2020 election when she introduced her father at that year's convention. She was also heavily involved in the 2016 convention. But she has done a 180 on politics since Donald Trump lost that contest. Ivanka opened up about her decision to leave politics in a rare interview. In an hour-long interview with Lex Fridman, she said she wanted to spend more time with her three children and, after four years of serving in her father's White House, felt like she 'left it all on the field.' 'I spent four years in Washington. I feel like I left it all on the field. I feel really good about it and I feel really privileged to have been able to do what I did,' she said. She said, however, she is father's top supporter, as the former president battles multiple legal cases. 'On a human level, it's my father and I love him very much, so it's painful to experience, but ultimately, I wish it didn't have to be this way,' she said. Ivanka was a senior advisor in Trump's administration from 2017 until 2021, but she has not been heavily involved in his second bid for the White House. When Donald Trump announced his bid for re-election last year, Ivanka said in a statement posted to social media that she loved her father but would be staying out of politics. She was not at his announcement speech. Nor did she attend the first presidential debate. 'I love my father very much. This time around, I'm choosing to prioritize my young children and the private life we are creating as a family,' the former White House adviser said. 'While I will always love and support my father, going forward I will do so outside the political arena,' she said at the time. She also was one of the few family members who didn't join him at his trial in New York earlier this year, when the former president was being prosecuted over hush-money paid to porn star Stormy Daniels. She did, however, join her stepmother Melania - who also never appeared at the trial - in gathering around Donald Trump at Trump Tower after the jury convicted him on 34 felony counts But Ivanka Trump - with her 7.5 million followers on Instagram and 10.4 million followers on X - could be a powerful influencer and defender for her father even if she doesn't formally return to the political realm. Fridman asked Ivanka Trump to elaborate on her statement now that Donald has again clinched the Republican nomination and now may be the favorite to win in November. Ivanka Trump has opened up for the first time about her father's court battles during a podcast Trump's eldest daughter has been absent from her father's 2024 campaign, something she first stated publicly would be the case back when Donald announced his third run for the White House in 2022 'It was a decision rooted in me being a parent, really thinking about what they need from me now. Politics is a rough business and I think it's one that you also can't dabble in, I think you have to be either all in or all out.' Ivanka referenced 'the cost' her children would pay from her absence were she to go all in on the campaign trail, adding 'I'm not willing to make them bear that cost.' 'As their mom, I think it's really important that I do what's right for them. I think there a lot of ways you can serve, the enormity, the scale of what can be accomplished in government service, but I think there's something equally valuable in helping in your own community.' She said there was 'a lot of darkness, a lot of negativity' in politics and says it's the opposite of 'what feels good for me as a human being.' Earlier on, Fridman asked Trump more about her famous father, wondering how his run for office changed her own life. 'Nothing about our lives had been constructed with politics in mind,' she said of when Donald first told her she was running. 'It was an extraordinary experience, there was so much intensity and so much scrutiny and so much noise. That took, for sure, a moment to acclimate to. I'm not sure I ever fully acclimated to it.' Ivanka cited 'the process' of learning the day-to-day workings of the presidency while on the job as a senior advisor as 'the most extraordinary' part of the Washington years.' Then President Donald Trump and Ivanka Trump, who served as a senior adviser, at a White House event in June 2020 Ivanka Trump, Lauren Sanchez, and Kim Kardashian are Hollywood's newest besties - seen together at Kardashian's birthday party earlier this year She also discussed the pressure to help her father, a neophyte in politics suddenly the leader of the free world. 'My father had never spent the night in Washington DC before staying in the White House,' she said. 'He trusted us and our ability to execute and there wasn't a part of me that could imagine a 70 or 80 year old version of myself that would have been ok with saying no.' Ivanka and husband Jared Kushner have worked to distance themselves from the tumultuous world of politics amid Donald Trump's re-election campaign and his various legal woes. They relocated to Florida with children Arabella, 12, Joseph, 9, and Theodore, 8, after Trump left office in January 2021. Ivanka has been focused on charity work and reconnecting with her old friends since leaving the White House. She has been seen with Lauren Sanchez and Kim Kardashian. Kim and Ivanka's friendship traces back several years, and it only strengthened after the pair began working on prison reforms together. Kardashian met with then-President Trump to talk about the subject. Ivanka and husband Jared Kushner joined them. Ivanka also has been seen on the Miami social scene, attending events like Art Basil. 'She basically wants a new life to compensate for what she lost when she spent four years in her father's Washington,' a source close to her told People earlier this year. 'She misses her active social life and group of friends.' Senator Tim Scott has topped Dailymail.com's poll of the possible vice president picks for Donald Trump. Aides have let it be known that Doug Burgum, North Dakota governor, Sen. Marco Rubio and Sen. J.D. Vance are on a shortlist of three as they tease his announcement ahead of the Republican Party convention next week. But Dailymail.com's poll of 1,000 likely voters puts a surprising name at the centre of the mix, with 13 percent saying they want to see Scott, the only black Republican in the Senate, on the ticket. Foreign policy expert Rubio is second with 12 percent tied, with former neurosurgeon Ben Carson, who survived four years in Trump's cabinet. J.L. Partners asked 1000 likely voters who they would like to see as Trump's VP pick. The results carry a margin of error of plus/minus 3.1 points Vance, a big favorite with Trump's MAGA base, manages only four percent, as does Burgum, who still has little name recognition but has reportedly hit it off with the former president. The top three stay the same when just Republican voters are considered. Speculation about Trump's choice reached fever pitch at the end of June when the former president claimed he had made up his mind and his choice would most likely be present in Atlanta, Georgia, for the first presidential debate. But he and his team have kept their counsel since then leaving the spotlight on President Joe Biden's poor performance and Democratic anguish about whether he should even stay on the ticket. 'It could happen anytime this week,' said Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller during a Fox News appearance. The J.L. Partners poll of 1,000 likely voters showed that Trump had extended his lead over Biden by two points to six points in the aftermath of the debate. Trump is due to hold a rally in Miami on Tuesday, triggering questions about whether he could be about to announce one of the Florida-based possibles as his vice presidentRubio, in particular. Then again, there's another rally in Pennsylvania on Saturday ... close to Vance's home state of Ohio. Insiders say nothing should be taken for granted when wondering what Trump will decide. Having stoked speculation about his pick, Donald Trump has kept his own counsel since the first presidential debate with President Joe Biden Sen. Tim Scott and Ben Carson are popular with likely voters, according to a poll of likely voters, adding food for thought as Donald Trump weighs his VP pick Trump has reportedly narrowed his choice to from left to right: Sen. Marco Rubio, Gov. Doug Burgum, and Sen. J.D. Vance Biden was leading Trump this time last year, but has seen the former president steal a lead since then. Trump now has a six point advantage, according to our exclusive poll Each of the top three has influential members of Trump world pushing their name. Steve Bannon, former White House chief strategist, has been quietly pushing Burgum as a safe pair of hands who would not overshadow his boss. Donald Trump Jr and conservative activist Charlie Kirk have been promoting Vance as the pick of the grassroots movement. And pollster Kellyanne Conway has argued that Rubio would do best at bringing in key demographic groups to the Trump coalition. 'As President Trump has said himself, the top criteria in selecting a vice president is a strong leader who will make a great president for eight years after his next four-year term concludes,' said Trump campaign senior adviser Brian Hughes. 'But anyone telling you they know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying unless that person is named Donald J. Trump.' There's the sound of heavy breathing and branches snapping underfoot. And then he emerges from the thicket, his head dripping with sweat. Christopher Pennington, a former British military serviceman, is now leading the search in Tenerife for missing teenager Jay Slater. When the Spanish police announced a week ago that they were ending their unfruitful search for Jay, Chris was left in disbelief. A 19-year-old boy had gone missing, his family were devastated and the world wanted answers. And yet, the local authorities had decided - after less than two weeks - to throw in the towel. Fascinated with the case to the point of obsession, Chris began to conduct his own search. Just days after the official mission was called off, he found fresh evidence. A pair of black sunglasses - with one lens punched out - lying in the undergrowth close to where Jay's mobile phone was last recorded. Former British military serviceman Christopher Pennington is now leading the search in Tenerife for missing teenager Jay Slater Jay, 19, has been missing since June 17 after he left an Airbnb in the village of Masca, Tenerife The discovery made news around the world and propelled Chris overnight into becoming an online celebrity who now boasts more than 30,000 followers on TikTok and has since had to close his account to stop floods of messages from amateur sleuths. For the first time this weekend, Chris exclusively allowed the Mail to join him on his latest foray into the rugged and rough terrain around the Parque Rural de Teno, on which the hunt for clues about Jay's disappearance has centred. 'This area has not been searched properly,' he says, defiantly. 'You can tell, the authorities have stuck to the paths because they've assumed Jay did too.' Chris looks me straight in the eyes: 'But that's not how you conduct a thorough search.' Chris moved to Tenerife in March 2006. 'I'd already been visiting frequently because my father moved out here in 2003, taking early retirement,' he explained. 'And I just fell in love with the place.' Enamoured with the sunny climes, relaxed pace of life and breadth of opportunities, Chris settled into life as a British expat on this idyllic Spanish island. Although he is now a respected property developer, in his previous life Chris had served as a reservist in the British Army. Indeed, the skills he acquired have formed the bedrock of his approach to the ongoing search. 'My squadron worked in Combined Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked) or CVR(T),' he says - which involves armoured vehicles on scouting and combat missions or logistics moving across difficult terrain. 'We were passed intelligence with which we drafted a strategy, cross-referenced all the information and then carefully selected our targets.' But surely, on a case with this level of international interest, it has been hard to maintain the laser-like focus he was used to in the military? 'You've got to close the noise out,' he continues. 'Focus on the facts. It doesn't help to start entertaining conspiracy theories, that just takes your eye off the ball.' Chris exclusively allowed the Mail to join him on his latest foray into the rugged and rough terrain around the Parque Rural de Teno, on which the hunt for clues about Jay's disappearance has centred A derelict hut with empty water bottles, eerie symbols scratched into the walls and - bizarrely - clean clothing Indeed, Chris's experience is perfectly suited to a case like this. His methodical approach is admirable. We know that Jay left the Papagayo nightclub at roughly 5.30am and was driven by convicted drug boss Ayub Qassim and another unknown man 25 miles to an Airbnb outside the village of Masca, which he left the following morning before disappearing. It was revealed yesterday by TV detective Mark Williams-Thomas, who has been helping the Slater family find Jay, that Qassim was also the mystery man known as 'Johnny Vegas' - a nickname that, until this revelation, had been attributed to a mystery second man staying with Qassim. The true identity of this other individual remains unknown. In a video shared on X, Williams-Thomas said: 'In the last 24 hours I have spoken in detail with Ayub Qassim, who is also known as Johnny Vegas. 'He said he was on the [coastal] strip, Jay wanted to carry on partying and he said he had nowhere to stay, so he said he could come back to his place. 'In the car, they played music and chatted before stopping to get a drink at a cafe just prior to entering the mountains. [Qassim] was driving, his friend was in the passenger seat, and Jay was in the back.' To understand how Jay must have felt as he headed into the mountains, Chris decided to follow his route at exactly the same time of day. So, at 5:30am on Saturday, he drove the treacherous, winding road north from near the Papagayo nightclub to the Casa Abuela Tina Airbnb in Masca. 'I didn't go more than 15km an hour,' Chris says. 'Because of the hairpin turns, you've essentially got to crawl up. It's dark, it's extremely dangerous. Fred Kelly peers into one of the derelict huts he and Chris pass through on their search for Jay A dirty shirt hangs against the wall of a derelict hut 'Arriving up here that early, it felt eerie,' Chris continues. 'Let be me frank, it's scary up here on your own in the darkness.' The Mail met Chris at the exact point he found those sunglasses - the spot he believes Jay may well have veered off to head down the ravine. It's just gone 8am, roughly the time at which Jay is believed to have hurriedly left the property. 'I've worked out the most sensible places to search,' Chris explains. 'You can see two large palm trees roughly one hundred yards from one another,' he adds, pointing to a small area above the ravine. 'Through a source, I have the precise geolocation where Jay's phone last pinged. And it's somewhere between those two trees.' Jay's mother - Debbie Duncan - claims she does not recognise the sunglasses found by Chris. However, having seen photographs of Jay, I find it impossible not to think they bear a startling resemblance both to a pair Jay was seen wearing the night before his disappearance, as well as a pair worn by his associate Qassim. Indeed, when Chris alerted the authorities to his discovery, they were very interested. He was told not to place them in a plastic bag in case of condensation contamination, but to wrap them gently in a paper towel and hand them in. He did so, and the evidence is now police property. As for the area Chris tells me the phone was last heard, cacti and brambles have formed an almost impenetrable barrier seemingly preventing anyone from conducting a thorough search. Today, however, Chris is going in - he isn't going to be perturbed by a few brambles. Cacti and brambles have formed an almost impenetrable barrier seemingly preventing anyone from conducting a thorough search With a hi-vis jacket in case he runs into trouble or becomes disorientated in the thicket, Chris scrambles down into the bush, entering from the point where he found the sunglasses. He tells me not to follow but to walk down an adjacent path where he will meet me. Almost immediately, Chris is swallowed by the shrubbery and disappears. The only trace of him is the snapping of twigs beneath his feet and the occasional grunt as he wades through. How on earth would Jay, after a three-day drugs 'bender' at the New Rave Generation music festival, have made his way through here? He was supposedly trying to get back to Los Cristianos, the beach town where he had been staying. 'You can only imagine,' says Chris, 'that he's looked down at the coastline in the distance and thinks it's a lot closer than it really is. And that heading straight through the bush is the quickest route to safety.' Indeed, in the sweltering heat - with dehydration a deadly risk - it is easy to become disorientated and confused. Perhaps Jay was simply making a panicked break for the coast? Twenty minutes pass before Chris re-emerges. He's only travelled about 100 yards, but sweat is pouring from his scalp. His hands and ankles are cut and scraped. 'That was tough,' he admits. 'I couldn't even see two metres ahead of me.' We believe that Jay - based on evidence of a Snapchat call made to his friend Brad Hargreaves - also cut himself badly as he tried to traverse this terrain. Could Chris have taken the exact same route that Jay did three weeks previously? It's certainly possible. Either that, or the mobile phone was thrown into the bushes by a nefarious actor. In which case, it could still be here, lying among the cacti. Chris wonders aloud: 'If Jay came off the path and went through there, like I've just done, he wouldn't leave the path again. You'd have to be mad.' So we continue down the path and deep into this unholy ravine. We pass two derelict huts where I previously revealed in these pages the discovery of empty water bottles, eerie symbols scratched into the walls and - bizarrely - clean clothing. Finally, the path comes to an end. It's not physically possible to continue on to the coast. Chris takes a look at his phone and reveals we've dropped to 650 metres above sea level, from a starting point of 782 metres. It's a long climb back up and, running short on water, it's time we returned. But suddenly, Chris spots figures over the other side of the ravine. He gets a telescopic lens from his backpack and looks through it. It is Jay's father, Warren, and brother Zak. They're conducting their own desperate search along with seven others - members of a local hiking group. When we return to the top of the ravine, the Mail spoke with one of the hiking group: Juan Garcia, a 53-year-old local who had been searching along with his four-year-old sniffer dog, Caperucita. 'The police have searched here with a helicopter,' Juan tells the Mail. 'But it's a labyrinth of bushes and you can't see much from the air. We really are looking for a needle in a haystack.' For now, thanks to the tenacity of people like Chris and Juan, the search continues. The question, however, is for how much longer volunteers can continue to put themselves through the physical and psychological toll of this unforgiving search. The Night Caller (Channel 5) Rating: During the only upbeat scene in The Night Caller, lonely taxi driver Tony decides he's going to be a bit more Clint Eastwood, live his life a bit more like John Wayne. He doesn't have a horse and a six-gun, just a black cab and a library card. But he swaggers into the mobile library van like he's walking through the swing doors of a saloon in his jingling spurs and borrows a stack of cowboy tales by Louis L'Amour. Do libraries really still stock Wild West novelist Louis L'Amour? In his day, he sold close to a third of a billion books, putting him in the same league as Stephen King. Though his dozens of stories, with titles like The Shadow Riders and Dark Canyon, were sometimes formulaic, they promised escapism and a satisfying shoot-out with justice done. The Night Caller delivers none of that. Robert Glenister delivers a strong performance as a man crushed by depression, frustration and bitterness. But it's a grimly unrelenting watch, and four consecutive nights of this could be enough to make any rancher saddle up and ride into the sunset. Robert Glenister as black cab driver Tony Conroy in Channel 5's new drama The Night Caller Sean Pertwee stars as Lawrence Brightway, the host of the night-time talk show that Tony listens to In the opening shot, Tony is standing in the shower, dripping blood from his battered face an unpleasant and brutal image. We don't know what's happened to him, but finding out clearly isn't going to be fun. And so it proves. Former teacher Tony works the night shift in Liverpool city centre, picking up drunks and hen parties, enduring streams of abuse, and hosing out the back of his cab with a pressure washer at the end of each night. Then he goes home to his joyless flat and lies in bed alone, staring at the ceiling, having flashbacks about a drowned schoolchild. Throughout the series Tony suffers flashbacks of a drowned schoolchild Tony is a lonely man in his 50s who works the night shift in Liverpool city centre, picking up drunks and hen parties, enduring streams of abuse, and hosing out the back of his cab with a pressure washer at the end of each night Suzanne Packer, who played Tess Bateman in Casualty for nearly 20 years, is his only friend, and he barely knows her she just makes his cuppa in the all-night cafe. His idea of light relief is listening to the night-time talk show, where listeners can ring in to vent about their divorce/taxes/debts delete as applicable. Someone should tell Tony about the oldie stations. A bit of Northern Soul or classic rock has got to be better than Wendy from the Wirral, moaning about her bunions. Suzanne Packer, who played Tess Bateman in Casualty for nearly 20 years, is his only friend, and he barely knows her she just makes his cuppa in the all-night cafe Steve Walters (left) plays Rob, a fellow taxi driver who frequents the same cafe as Tony (right) This is similar territory to BBC1's The Responder, which saw Martin Freeman as a disillusioned copper patrolling Merseyside by car at night. But downbeat though it was, that show had a plot about drugs crime. The Night Caller focuses entirely on the battleground inside Tony's head, and the consequences when his anger boils over. Sean Pertwee supplies the right balance of sincerity and schmaltz as the radio host, fielding calls from an assortment of loudmouths and lonely hearts. Part pub landlord, part Samaritans volunteer, he calls everyone 'mate', in a voice just loud enough to be audible but sure not to wake the neighbours. If Whispering Bob Harris retrained as a psychotherapist, this is how he'd sound. NDIS Minister Bill Shorten says regulations that allow participants to access government-funded sex workers will be scrapped, saying it 'doesn't pass the test' for a service that is reasonable or necessary. Appearing on Sky Sunday Agenda, Mr Shorten said while most NDIS participants were 'doing the right thing,' he conceded the 'rules have been a bit loose at the margins'. In turn, this has led to service providers rorting the system, allowing people to claim services such as international group trips to Japan, steam rooms and cryptocurrency. 'The way the scheme works is you get a personal budget. We want to make sure that you get your personal budgets done with a good needs assessment,' he said. 'Then what we want to do is make sure that you've got the ability to get things that are reasonable and necessary. 'Part of me sort of groans whenever I've got to go through some of the rubbish that some people have claimed, but that's not what most people are doing.' Asked specifically about whether participants could continue to claim the use of sex workers under the proposed new reforms, Mr Shorten ruled it out. 'It's just not a sustainable proposition. It just doesn't pass the test,' he said. Bill Shorten's attempts to cut the scheme's costs has led to government-paid sex work to be scrapped just months after he took aim at cruises advertising support payments However, he added the government was only aware of 'one or two' examples of it happening. 'It's not what's happening in most of the scheme,' Mr Shorten said. 'While people with disabilities are currently able to access government-funded sexual support services, strict eligibility requirements apply.' Previously, disability advocates told a senate inquiry that the NDIS should include a sexuality framework with women with disabilities choosing not to date out of fear of being exposed to high rates of sexual violence. 'Even though I could date on Tinder, it was toxic, and it was violent, and it was volatile, and if I hadn't met my partner, I would be looking to have access (to sex support) because it was not safe to continue to date men in the community,' said People With Disabilities president Nicole Lee. Mr Shorten remained on the warpath after the Coalition and the Greens stalled passing major reforms for a further eight weeks, with the legislation to be subjected to an inquiry. Labor has said its NDIS reforms will save $14.4bn over the next five years, and will focus on tightening rules around services and expand safeguards and assessment criteria on people accessing the scheme. The disgruntled minister has claimed the delay will cost taxpayers $1m an hour, until parliament resumes sitting following the midwinter break. Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie said the opposition won't be 'bullied' into rushing the decision and said the inquiry was needed to hear more evidence. Asked specifically about whether participants could continue to claim the use of sex workers under the proposed new reforms, Mr Shorten ruled it out 'It's really fascinating that Labor expects the opposition and the parliament to back their so-called reforms without any level of scrutiny. We've sensibly sent this to a senate inquiry to flesh out the issues,' she told Sky. 'As soon as that has been completed and we've heard from not just the sector but clients then maybe we'll be developing our own amendments to that legislation. This is how parliament should work.' Mr Shorten continued his campaign to pass the legislation in parliament last week, launching a roving billboard with the sign: 'Save the NDIS, put participants first, senators'. Labor and One Nation also became unlikely allies, with One Nation leader Pauline Hanson supporting the legislation and urged senators to 'put your politics aside'. 'I'm calling on the Coalition and the Greens, if you really care about the people out there put your put your complaint forward, put your amendments forward, and then if they're reasonable, I'm sure that we can support it because that's what we want,' she said. Australians applying for their L-plates will now be able to sit the exam at home rather than having to visit Service NSW. The revamped and interactive exam will be available on any computer that has an internet connection from Monday. The exam comprises of simulations of real world situations as well as multiple choice answers. Drivers will only be required to pay $55 when they pass the exam - rather than having to pay a fee every time they take the test. Transport for NSW Duncan Lucas told 9 News other parts of Australia already had the option to do the test at home. 'It's flexible. It's accessible. It's modern. It's interactive,' he said. 'The test has been in place in four other states across Australia for a while now, and we've seen no evidence of systemic fraud or cheating.' Shabbir Petrolwala, 16, is one of the first people who trialed the online driver knowledge test. Australians applying for their L-plates will now be able to sit the exam at home rather than having to visit Service NSW (stock image) Last year, there were more than 215,000 would-be drivers sitting the exam (stock image) The Year 10 student managed to get behind the wheel for the first time on the weekend with his father Murtaza in the passenger seat. Shabbir did laps around a car park at Lalor Park as he slowly got the hang of things. But for some people, the rite of passage is still important. Selena Hallacq, 16, sat her test at Service NSW branch at Bondi Junction. She admitted she felt the pressure, but said she wouldn't trade in the experience for an online test. 'I feel relieved, it's something that's been taken off the list I can now move onto actually driving, because it's something I've been wanting to do forever,' she said. The new online option also helps take pressure off NSW centres, which experience a high volume of residents taking the test. Last year, there were more than 215,000 applicants sitting the exam. A mom who got her calf torn off by a shark at a Texas beach on July 4th has spoken out about the terrifying experience, saying she first thought the predator was just a 'huge fish.' Tabatha Sullivent was in the water on South Padre Island with her daughter and husband when the shark began hunting them. She said they were out past a sand bar when the shark followed her to shallow water and attacked her. 'I turned around, and all I saw was something gray in the water. So, I just kicked at it, because I thought it was a huge fish, and it was coming at us. That's when I think it grabbed my leg,' Sullivent told CBS News Texas from her hospital bed. The bull shark - a creature with one of the strongest bites in the animal kingdom sank its teeth into her lower leg with no intention of letting go. Tabatha Sullivent sits in a hospital bed after her calf was bitten off by a bull shark. Her husband, who bravely fought off the beast, sits next to her Sullivent is seen bleeding from her leg into the ocean as the group who pulled her out of the water surround her Sullivent said her husband valiant fought off the beast, jumping into the water and grabbing her. In the process, he was bitten twice as well. Beachgoers pulled her out of the water, and first responders were soon on the scene tending to her gaping wound. 'If my husband didn't jump into action and everyone else on the beach, if I didn't have people pulling me out - not just to pull me out but jumping between the shark and me - I don't think it would've stopped,' she said. A total of four people encountered the shark in the water, according to initial reports. The Sullivents were bit and while two others escaped with minor injuries. Social media footage of the attack shows Sullivent laying on the sand while a dorsal fin can be seen swimming back and forth near the shoreline. Blood from her wound can be seen turning the water a dark red, while first responders wrap a tourniquet around her leg. Blood from her wound can be seen turning the waters washing up on the beach a dark red, while first responders wrap a tourniquet around her leg A dorsal fin can be seen swimming back and forth near the shoreline as the woman lays on the sand The incident happened on South Padre Island, Texas, on Thursday morning and the woman had to be hauled to shore by a team of rescuers 'My leg is pretty much gone,' she told FOX Dallas-Fort Worth roughly a day after the attack. 'They flushed it out today. It's all the way to the bone. It did not go through the bone.' Sullivent will need multiple reconstructive surgeries, but doctors are optimistic that she'll be able to keep her leg and walk again. 'I have movement in my toes and in my ankle. My bone structure is good. I'm going to probably need physical therapy for sure,' Sullivent said. The North Texas couple were celebrating their daughter Skylar's 15th birthday on the day of the attack, and their 16th wedding anniversary was supposed to be the day after. The Sullivents didn't expect to spend their special day in a hospital room together, but they're happy to be alive and together. 'Somebody or something was definitely looking over us for sure,' Sullivent said. Sullivent said her bite was 'all the way to the bone.' First responders quickly arrived on the scene to bring Sullivent to safety Tabatha was taken to a nearby hospital where she is in stable condition. Her husband Cary Sullivent (right) remains by her side Their daughter Skylar posted an update on her parents' condition shortly after the attack. 'My mom is trying to get as much rest as she can and figure out the road ahead. Recovery will be a long process but I know she will get through it,' Skylar wrote on Facebook. A GoFundMe page was set up recently to help fund the couple's recovery and has already raised nearly $25,000, rapidly closing in on its $30,000 goal. Given the clear threat the shark posed to anyone frequenting beaches in the area, local officials were keen on dealing with the predator right away. South Padre Island and Cameron County Parks officials located the shark, harnessed it and moved it back out into deeper waters so it won't be an ongoing threat to beachgoers, KFDX-TV reported. Helicopter footage released by the Texas Department of Public Safety shows officials flying directly over the shark as it swims through shallow waters right after the attack. The animal was not harmed or physically injured over the course of this operation to get it back out to sea, according to Captain Dowdy from Texas Parks and Wildlife. This image provided by Texas Department of Public Safety shows a shark close to the share in South Padre Island, Texas on Thursday, July 4, 2024 The shark swims right near an incoming wave, shortly after biting two people and encountering two others Dowdy said the 'unusual' attack was likely caused by weather changes from incoming Hurricane Beryl, which will strike the Texas coastline sometime Monday as a Category 1 hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. Immediately after the attack, Texas Parks and Wildlife released a statement telling beachgoers that authorities were patrolling the beach by land, by boat and by air. The city also considered closing the beach entirely to the public. In March, a 14-foot great white shark was spotted near South Padre Island, according to local radio station KNFM. But given that officials are reasonably confident that the culprit in the most recent attacks was a bull shark, it's likely that great white wasn't involved. This comes after two teenagers and a woman were attacked by a shark early last month in Walton Beach, Florida. Elisabeth Foley, the first victim of a shark attack on Florida's panhandle, is pictured left Lulu Gribbin, was one of the teen girls attacked by a shark last month in Florida. The bites were so severe that surgeons needed to amputate her 'right leg halfway up from her knee to her hip,' according to a Facebook post written by her mother According to the Walton County Sheriff's Office, 45-year-old Elisabeth Foley was bit by the marine animal in the water near Watersound Way and Coopersmith Lane at around 1:15pm. She sustained 'significant trauma to the midsection and pelvic area and amputation of her left lower arm,' according to South Walton Fire District Fire Chief Ryan Crawford. At around 3pm, officials responded to calls of another shark attack on two female teenagers, 15 and 17 years old that occurred four miles away from the first attack. The teens were later identified as Lulu Gribbin, who lost a hand and a leg, and McCray Faust, who suffered injuries to her foot. All three of the victims, who were visiting the area from other states, were attacked while they were swimming near the sandbar. We will neither rejoin the EU, nor even go back into the single market or the customs unions so declared Sir Keir Starmer, on taking office. Yet as Labour talks of closer links to Europe, a close inspection of the new Cabinet by ROSS CLARK reveals every single MP around the table campaigned for Remain in the 2016 referendum. And many went on to demand a second vote to try to overturn the result of the first 1 Sir Keir Starmer Prime Minister In February 2019, Sir Keir, then shadow Brexit secretary, demanded a second referendum between a 'credible Leave option' and remaining in the EU. But even his proposed Leave suggestion meant staying in the customs union. The British people weren't to be trusted with the choice of a harder Brexit. 2 Angela Rayner Deputy Prime Minister She voted to remain in the EU but opposed a move by Labour MPs to thwart Brexit, saying: 'I don't think people want to see us in a second referendum. They want to see parliamentarians working together to get the best deal we can.' In February 2019, Sir Keir, then shadow Brexit secretary, demanded a second referendum between a 'credible Leave option' and remaining in the EU Angela Rayner voted to remain in the EU but opposed a move by Labour MPs to thwart Brexit 3 Pat McFadden Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster He described Boris Johnson and Michael Gove as 'Brextremists' and asserted in the Daily Mirror leaving the EU was going to land Britain with a bill for 58billion. That was misleading as this, in fact, was money which Britain had agreed it would contribute to the pensions of EU staff over many years. 4 Bridget Phillipson Education Secretary A loud campaigner for a second referendum, she hoped it would reverse the result of the first. 'I think leaving would cause far more serious lasting damage,' she wrote in 2019. 5 John Healey Defence Secretary He campaigned for Remain in the 2016 referendum campaign but has been quieter than most on the subject. 6 Liz Kendall Pensions Secretary She claimed 'it will be the people who voted Brexit who will end up paying the price with their wages and employment rights' if the government took advantage of Brexit freedoms and liberalised the economy. 7 Louise Haigh Transport Secretary She campaigned for remain and wrote on her website in 2017 that she would 'fight tooth and nail to ensure that Brexit is not used as an excuse to negotiate away our rights, protections and close trading relationship with the EU'. Louise Haigh wrote that she would 'fight tooth and nail to ensure that Brexit is not used as an excuse to negotiate away our rights, protections and close trading relationship with the EU' Ed Miliband was appointed Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero Pat Fadden described Boris Johnson and Michael Gove as 'Brextremists' and asserted in the Daily Mirror leaving the EU was going to land Britain with a bill for 58billion 8 Steve Reed Environment Secretary He claimed in September 2016 that the government 'will use the excuse of global competition outside the EU to slash rights and benefits'. Workers' rights remained intact. 9 Richard Hermer Attorney General He has not previously been in politics, having been a lawyer at Left-leaning Matrix Chambers. 10 Ian Murray Scottish secretary Mr Murray said that, 'David Cameron gambled his future and that of the country on the EU referendum'. 11 Hilary Benn Northern Ireland Secretary He was chairman of the Commons Brexit committee which demanded a Norway-style exit where Britain remained in the single market. Mr Benn later switched to blocking Brexit altogether, telling a People's Vote rally: 'Brexit will make us poorer. Who voted for that?' 12 Jo Stevens Welsh Secretary Ms Stevens felt so strongly she resigned as shadow Welsh secretary to continue campaigning. 'Obviously, it's no secret I want us to stay in the European Union,' she said. Hilary Benn was chairman of the Commons Brexit committee which demanded a Norway-style exit where Britain remained in the single market Yvette Cooper campaigned to remain in the EU even though her Yorkshire constituency was heavily Leave-voting Shabana Mahmood complained Theresa May's government had 'made no attempt to reach out to the 48 per cent' who had voted Remain 13 Wes Streeting Health Secretary Mr Streeting wrote on his website in November 2018: 'I believe very strongly that a people's vote is right in practice and in principle the Brexit on offer bears so little resemblance [what] people were promised that it is right to ask if they really want to proceed on this basis.' 14 David Lammy Foreign Secretary Soon after the vote in 2016, Mr Lammy tweeted: 'Wake up. We do not have to do this. Stop this madness through a vote in parliament.' He demanded a second referendum and compared the hard-Brexit European Research Group of Tory MPs to Nazis. 15 Rachel Reeves Chancellor She wrote an article in the Yorkshire Post demanding a 'people's vote'. She claimed Brexit had already shrunk the UK economy by 2.5 per cent before we had even left. Actually, the economy grew steadily in the first two years. 16 Yvette Cooper Home Secretary She campaigned to remain in the EU even though her Yorkshire constituency was heavily Leave-voting. In 2019, she tabled a Commons Bill to delay Brexit. When that failed, she produced a Bill to prevent Britain from leaving the EU without a withdrawal deal. 17 Jon Reynolds Business Secretary He campaigned for Remain, but was one of he first Labour MPs to accept the result, saying in July 2016 that the party should 'stop sulking'. 18 Ed Miliband Energy Secretary When in 2013, prime minister David Cameron announced his intention to offer a simple in-out referendum, Mr Miliband told the BBC: 'I think it is incredibly dangerous what David is doing. I think he is essentially sleepwalking us towards the exit door.' But he has always respected the result. 19 Shabana Mahmood Justice Secretary She complained Theresa May's government had 'made no attempt to reach out to the 48 per cent' who had voted Remain. She stated in a letter to constituents in 2021: 'I consistently voted for the softest possible departure for Britain leaving the EU.' 20 Lisa Nandy Culture Secretary Ms Nandy campaigned for Remain but admitted that people had voted 'so they can take back control of their labour market and our response was to call them stupid or racist'. Lisa Nandy campaigned for Remain but admitted that people had voted 'so they can take back control of their labour market and our response was to call them stupid or racist'. David Lammy demanded a second referendum and compared the hard-Brexit European Research Group of Tory MPs to Nazis Steve Reed claimed in September 2016 that the government 'will use the excuse of global competition outside the EU to slash rights and benefits' 21 Baroness Smith of Basildon Leader of the House of Lords She claimed in the Lords that the Brexit vote had caused a 'spike in hate crimes' despite a lack of evidence. There was no great leap in 2016, the year of the referendum. 22 Peter Kyle Technology secretary He wrote on the Labour List website that 'Brexit is a big deal, but it is not a done deal' before adding, menacingly, that 'those leading Labour these days were not marching alongside us. Their absence did not go unnoticed.' 23 Lucy Powell Leader of the Commons She campaigned to Remain and later demanded that Britain should stay in the single market and customs union. 24. Darren Jones Chief Secretary to The Treasury He said: 'I'm very clear that my number one priority is to make the case over and over again to the government, to my constituents and the British people that we should have the right to change our mind as the facts become clear about this Tory-led Brexit disaster.' An attorney, who became known as the 'Christmas lawyer' after a massive lights display featuring a live nativity scene, camel and 700,000 lightbulbs attracted thousands of visitors to his Idaho home, could have his case heard by the Supreme Court. Jeremy Morris from Hayden, just east of Spokane, Washington attracted both the fury of his neighbors and the attention of Apple TV+ which ended up featuring the row in a 2021 documentary 'Twas the Fight Before Christmas'. In 2017, a jury found that his homeowners association (HOA) discriminated against him due to his religious beliefs by attempting to halt his Christmas display. But a federal judge later overturned this verdict and ordered Morris to pay over $111,000 in legal fees to the HOA. Jeremy Morris became known as the 'Christmas lawyer' after a massive lights display featuring a nativity scene, camel and 700,000 lights attracted thousands of people to his Idaho home In 2017, a jury found that his homeowners association (HOA) discriminated against him due to his religious beliefs by attempting to halt his Christmas display Morris then went on to contest the ruling in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which reviewed the case in June 2020. Four years on, a three-judge panel has now issued a mixed ruling, favoring both the HOA and Morris in different aspects, but setting the stage for a new jury trial. Morris, meanwhile, is 'absolutely' considering appealing to the Supreme Court first. The Supreme Court receives over 7,000 case requests annually but typically hears fewer than 100. 'It was made clear that a jury could find that there was a hostile atmosphere created, that our family was discriminated against', Jeremy Morris explained to Fox News regarding the decision. 'We can retry the case and I do believe that we would win as we did before. If we were to strictly interpret this decision, people of any faith can be discriminated against. You can admit that you're discriminating against them,' Morris said. 'We all know that no court would do that, but a court just made it clear you can do that to a Christian.' Despite legal threats from the HOA, he continued with his elaborate light show, a live nativity scene, and even a camel Thousands came to view the bright sight consisting of 200,000 lights alongside costumed characters, musicians and a children's choir An elaborate nativity scene was also part of the eye-catching display The dispute began after Morris made an offer on a house following his first light show at his former home in Christmas 2014. When he informed the West Hayden Estates HOA of his plans to repeat the event, the HOA attempted to prevent it, citing potential violations of community rules regarding size, noise, and brightness. The HOA also expressed concerns about the event's impact on 'non-Christians' and the possibility of attracting 'undesirables.' Morris argued that the HOA's actions constituted religious discrimination and moved into the house. Despite legal threats from the HOA, he continued with his elaborate light show consisting of 200,000 lights alongside costumed characters, musicians, a children's choir, a live nativity scene, and even a camel. Morris even rented a fleet of shuttle buses to bring visitors to the event while he recruited volunteers to direct traffic through the streets around his house. Thousands of people from as far away as Canada and news crews from across the arrived over the course of five evenings to see the display which raised money for children's charities. The conflict then escalated with reports of harassment and threats against Morris and his family. Neighbors were accused of harassing spectators while another local resident was caught on camera offering to 'take care of him.' In January 2017, Morris sued the HOA for religious discrimination under the Fair Housing Act. Although a jury initially sided with Morris with a court ordering the HOA to pay him $75,000. Neighbors painted Morris as an extremist bully who secretly recorded their conversations and obsessively documented other HOA members' alleged rule violations to build his case. In a shocking twist Judge B. Lynn Winmill overturned the verdict, claiming the issue was the Morris family's violation of neighborhood rules, and not religious discrimination When they appealed the decision, in a shocking twist Judge B. Lynn Winmill then overturned the verdict, claiming the issue was the Morris family's violation of neighborhood rules, and not religious discrimination, and ordered Morris to pay the HOA's legal fees of $111,000. Winmill said the secret recordings showed Morris behaving in an 'aggressively confrontational' way and permanently banned him from staging a Christmas display without HOA permission. The 9th Circuit's recent ruling has since confirmed the judge's reversal but also found evidence that the HOA's actions were partially motivated by Morris's religious expression. The ruling was split, with a dissenting judge suggesting the HOA's behavior was more about making the Morris family unwelcome. The HOA 'categorically denies it interfered with the Morrises' right to purchase and enjoy their home free from discrimination and has always strived to foster an inclusive and welcoming environment for all residents,' attorney Peter Smith, wrote in a statement to Fox News. Jeremy Morris is seen with his wife Kristy and his Christmas decorations at his home in Hayden, Idaho. He has been embroiled in a court battle with his HOA over the decorations Morris has since moved out of Idaho and is now also planning to sue the Idaho State Bar for $10million for allegedly pressuring him to relinquish his legal license 'We look forward to the opportunity to demonstrate in court that the Association acted legally. We are confident that the legal proceedings will ultimately vindicate the Association and show that it has not created a hostile neighborhood for the Morrises.' Despite the HOA's denying there were any discriminatory practices, the legal battle continues. At one point, Morris said that he didn't want to take legal action even offering to waive his rights to proceed with a lawsuit if the HOA agreed to leave his family alone. But the HOA refused. Morris, who has since moved out of Idaho, is also planning to sue the Idaho State Bar for $10 million for allegedly pressuring him to relinquish his legal license in exchange for dropping disciplinary charges related to comments he made about the judge in his case. Johnny Mercer has criticised Keir Starmer for his apparent failure to appoint a Veterans Minister in his new cabinet despite promising to do so in his manifesto. The former Conservative MP claimed the position remained vacant on a post on X, formally known as Twitter. Mr Mercer, who held the role from 2019 until losing his Plymouth Moor View seat at the 2024 general election, posted: 'You will note already that, despite his explicit personal promises in the election campaign, Keir Starmer has not appointed a veterans minister to his Cabinet. He added: 'If you understand what veterans need from their Government, this matters very much.' The former army veteran served three tours in Afghanistan and his introduction of laws to protect veterans from prosecution overseas and in Northern Ireland was widely praised when he was in office. Johnny Mercer was the Veterans Minister from 2019 until losing his Plymouth Moor View seat at the 2024 general election Sir Keir Starmer (centre) confirmed he would appoint someone into the role for his Cabinet when asked in a campaign question-and-answer session Mr Mercer also referred to his other governmental achievements as part of his X message, including Operation Fortitude, a government funded hotline to end homelessness among veterans and Operation Courage, an NHS mental health specialist service designed to help serving personnel due to leave the military, reservists, armed forces veterans and their families. He claimed the Veterans Minister's ability to have cross-government capability and position outside of the Ministry of Defence enabled his programmes to initiate change. Mr Mercer said: 'Those now in power, paraded around by Starmer for their various military experiences, must mark themselves on how they too now actually change the lives of those who need them in the serving and veteran community.' As Veterans Minister, Mr Mercer attended Cabinet meetings, but Sir Keir Starmer is yet to appoint someone into the role. Asked whether he would have someone in his Cabinet responsible for veterans at a campaign question-and-answer session, Sir Keir replied: 'Yes, we will. I think it's very important.' The Veterans Minister is responsible for all veterans' issues, Afghan accommodation and cross government support. Mr Mercer also acknowledged that he had 'focused on some areas more than others' and felt he had not done 'enough' overall. He said: 'Veterans' rights, mental healthcare, rough sleeping, prosthetics and of course protecting Northern Ireland veterans. 'I was unsuccessful in some areas too some issues remained outside my control, like Vets UK and compensation. I wear all the criticism. I did my best and often felt broken myself in the process. I am comfortable I could not have done more in the time and political space that I had. The opportunity for others to step up is always there.' On the cover of The Economist magazine a month after he became French president in 2017, Emmanuel Macron was memorably pictured walking on water. Today, after his gamble to call a snap general election backfired spectacularly, this poster boy for globalist liberalism has seen his legacy sink beneath the waves. From having a healthy majority in the National Assembly, Mr Macron has thrown it all away. His centrist Ensemble bloc is diminished, demoralised, outnumbered. France faces the chaos of a hung parliament. The biggest party is set to be the New Popular Front a hard-Left coalition of socialists, greens, Islamists and wokeists. This rabble was recently denounced by Mr Macron as 'anti-democratic and pro-Russian'. Yet he urged his party to ally with these militants and oddballs to see off Marine Le Pen's hard-Right National Rally. From having a healthy majority in the National Assembly, Emmanuel Macron has thrown it all away, his snap election gambling having spectacularly backfired Her party came third despite expectations of being the largest force, having tapped into major discontent over mass migration, the cost of living crisis and the EU. Yet still the number of seats it holds looks likely to increase. This election result should be another huge wake-up call for ruling elites across the continent. Voters in Britain have always eschewed extremist politics, treating firebrands of the hard-Left and hard-Right with equal derision. But the populist Right is on the rise here in the shape of Reform UK. Nigel Farage's party got 14 per cent of votes cast and five parliamentary seats. And with his TikTok-friendly campaigning, Mr Farage is attracting younger voters. How can Labour and the Tories respond? First, they must listen to and understand the concerns of the disillusioned millions. Nigel Farage's Reform UK got 14 per cent of votes cast and five seats. To respond, Labour and the Conservatives must listen to and understand voters' concerns Tony Blair was right to tell Sir Keir Starmer he needs to tackle high immigration to stave off the surge by Reform. Meanwhile, the Tories are seeking to win back voters who jumped ship both to the Lib Dems and Reform parties almost diametrically opposed. This will be no easy feat. When the race to replace Rishi Sunak begins, the contenders must explain how they'd regain control of our borders. Failure by the main parties to grasp this nettle risks a further flood of voters to Reform. That would mean the unappealing prospect of Mr Farage breaking through as Marine Le Pen did, and fragmenting British politics further into divisive factions. Brexit backtracking During the election campaign, Sir Keir Starmer couldn't have been clearer. Brexit, he said, would not be reversed by Labour. His promise not to rejoin the single market or customs union, nor seek a return to free movement, would have persuaded lots of Leave supporters to vote for him. But with his feet firmly under his Downing Street desk, is Sir Keir, a hardline Remainer, now set to betray their trust? During his campaign, Sir Keir Starmer promised he would not reverse Brexit or rejoin the single market or customs union, but the new Prime Minister admitted yesterday that work had 'already begun' unpicking the Boris Johnson's deal The new Prime Minister admitted yesterday that work had 'already begun' on unpicking Boris Johnson's Brexit deal. The aim is for closer ties with Brussels to facilitate trade, such as fewer food checks and aligned veterinary standards. But the price for lowered trade barriers would be the UK signing up to a raft of EU regulations. This would see us become a rule-taker rather than a rule-maker defeating a key objective of Brexit entirely. Once we start bowing to the bloc again, where will it end? Surely moving back into the EU's orbit is not the answer to our economic problems. The British economy is already outperforming most of Europe. Those are the facts. However, Sir Keir's bid to reopen Brexit is driven not by practical solutions but Remainer dogma. Up to 40,000 convicted criminals could be freed after serving less than half of their sentences behind bars under Labour plans to ease the prison overcrowding crisis. Lags could be allowed out on licence after serving 40 per cent of their terms to prevent jails running out of space within weeks. It came after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer at the weekend said prisons are an 'obvious example' of a 'broken' system. A record 88,225 people are currently in prison in England and Wales and there are believed to be less than 700 places remaining. On Friday Sir Keir appointed a radical reformer to run prisons in England and Wales. James Timpson, who was made the new minister for Prisons, Parole and Probation, has a long track record in advocating for reforms to the UK prison system. The Timpson CEO and son of the British cobbler's founder has previously advocated for shorter prison sentences and has been applauded for his schemes in rehabilitating offenders. The newly-minted peer has also suggested that two-thirds of prisoners did not need to be there, instead backing community sentences which would see more offenders spared jail time. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer at the weekend said prisons are an 'obvious example' of a 'broken' system. A record 88,225 people are currently in prison in England and Wales. Prisons Minister James Timpson during an interview with Channel 4 earlier this year, where he laid out his radical attitude towards reforming the UK's prison system Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said there is not going to be a 'quick fix' to the problem of overcrowding in prisons and that the new Labour Government has to deal with the legacy the Tories have left behind. Speaking after meeting police officers in Lewisham, she said: 'I'm extremely concerned with the legacy that the Conservatives have left us with on prisons. It seems to have been a complete scorched earth policy in which they have failed to build the prisons that we need. 'They have allowed the number of remand prisoners, of people waiting for trial to increase because of the chaos and the backlog in the criminal justice system. 'All of those things are going to need to be addressed and to be fixed, and the Prime Minister has said there isn't going to be a quick fix, but we're going to have to deal with the legacy that we inherit. 'But I think it's been totally irresponsible, the way the Conservatives have handled this for not just recent months, but in fact, for years. It's deeply, deeply damaging what they have done, and we are going to have to look at what it is we now inherit.' Newly appointed Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has been advised that the emergency early release plan could prevent prisons running out of space within weeks. The Ministry of Justice (MoJ) have been told by officials that the move would give them an extra 18 months to allow more prison places to be freed up. It would also allow for a wider review of sentencing to take place. While no decisions have been finalised and opposition from other ministers is expected, this is a plan Labour are currently considering. The move would see prisoners serving sentences with a fixed end date, who are currently being released after serving half their time, freed 40 to 43 per cent of the way through instead. Offenders who are subject to parole board decisions surrounding their release and those imprisoned for sex crimes, violence or terrorism would not be eligible for the scheme. It would replace the 10-week early release scheme currently used by prisons which have reached capacity. If implemented, the new scheme would see thousands of prisoners released early across all prisons in England and Wales. Ministers are aware they must make a decision in the coming week as it will take the prison service six weeks to carry out risk assessments on inmates and assign probation officers to them. Newly appointed Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood has been told that the emergency early release plan could prevent prisons running out of space within weeks If they decide to go ahead with the plan, it would require laying secondary legislation instead of a full Parliamentary Bill. It would also allow enough time to refurbish old prison cells and get more jails running services online. Ministers are expected to confirm the manifesto pledge for a review of sentencing, which would include the possibility of replacing some prison sentences under 12 months with suspended jail terms. A prison service source told The Telegraph: 'It feels like the only measure that buys time because of the terrible inheritance left by the last government who didn't fix the prisons crisis and allowed it to get into this state.' The Prison Governors' Association, penal experts and the Prison Reform Trust, have all backed the early release scheme. The Prison Reform Trust was chaired by James Timpson, who was appointed Prisons Minister by Sir Keir on Friday. Mr Timpson, whose shoe repair and key-cutting business has pioneered the employment of ex-offenders, is expected to lead efforts to reduce reoffending, with a focus on getting them working as the biggest combative method. In the past, the businessman called for the government to take the 'politics out of sentencing' and proposed a system akin to the Netherlands, where community sentences are used more frequently. Coles shoppers have been left divided over who is to blame after a customer complained about broken eggs left on the shelves for half-an-hour. A concerned shopper spotted the filthy state of the shelves at the Coles in Melbourne on Sunday and claimed she watched staff ignore it for 30 minutes. She shared the photo of the shabby shelves to Facebook with the image sparking a fierce debate over who was at fault. Some slammed the staff and claimed they had witnessed similar scenes in other stores, while others blasted the customers for making the mess in the first place. 'There was a broken egg somewhere on shelf, smell was horrible, not one person cleaned it up,' one claimed. 'I stopped buying eggs there, couldn't stand the stink in the aisle.' A second said: 'I have seen the same in our Coles store too in the middle of the week, (I) no longer shop there... No pride no respect these days' A former supermarket manager chimed in, saying the state of the shelf was 'unacceptable'. An image of broken eggs left on a shelf at a Coles in Melbourne (pictured) has sparked fury from Aussie shoppers as staff reportedly ignored the issue for about half an hour 'Fill the empty space with a product that will make an extra (revenue) ate the register,' they wrote. 'Customers pay wages with their purchases, plus the sale on eggs could have compensated the 10 minutes of cleaning required.' Other users took aim at the shopper for claiming to have stood by and judge staff instead of alerting them. 'You have time to stare at eggs for 30mins but not notify any staff,' a user wrote. 'They have things to do and looking at eggs I bet isn't on their mind.' Another said they shouldn't complain about staff but the 'customers who make this mess'. A Coles spokesman told Daily Mail Australia that the supermarket 'takes food safety extremely seriously and our teams work hard and pride themselves on keeping a clean and hygienic environment in all our stores'. 'Our shelves are thoroughly cleaned regularly, and in relation to the photo you have provided, this appears to be an isolated situation.' It comes as Coles and Woolworths are forced to ration egg purchases as the supply chain is restricted by outbreaks of avian flu (stock image) The incident comes as the bird flu outbreak continues to spread, with 11 farms across NSW, the ACT and Victoria impacted, resulting in more than one million chickens being killed. The shutdown of farms has disrupted the supply chain to the point where Coles and Woolworths have been forced to restrict the amount of eggs customers can buy. McDonald's is also feeling the pinch, announcing this week its egg-heavy breakfast menu would be stopped at 10.30am instead of midday to limit use. Australian Eggs boss Rowan McMonnies said consumers who shop around will still be able to find eggs even if one store had temporarily run out. 'If you want eggs, you will get them,' Mr McMonnies said. You can donate to Julia's GoFundMe here A fit and healthy young Aussie traveller has been placed in a coma after a simple case of Bali Belly triggered dangerous seizures. Julia Barresi, 19, had been feeling ill for several days while holidaying on the Indonesian island with friends before suffering a series of seizures on July 1. She was rushed to intensive care and given anti-seizure medication before being flown home to Australia and transferred to The Royal Melbourne Hospital. Her mother Jen Barresi said Julia had been put in a coma and was scheduled to undergo an MRI on Monday. 'She's a healthy, vibrant, switched on, beautiful human being. She's my best friend in the whole wide world,' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'She's never had a seizure. She's had health issues when she was younger but she's perfectly healthy now.' The heartbroken mum said she had booked a flight to Bali to help Julia recover from her illness before she got a harrowing phone call. 'Julia and I were communicating constantly and on Monday (July 1) she just didn't seem good so I booked a flight to come over first thing Tuesday,' she said. Melbourne woman Julia Barresi, 19, had been feeling ill for several days while holidaying in Bali with friends before suffering a series of seizures on July 1 Julia, pictured with her brothers, grandfather and her mother Jen Baressi (front right), was rushed to intensive care at a Bali hospital and given anti-seizure medication before being flown home to Australia and transferred to The Royal Melbourne Hospital 'And then her beautiful friends rang me. They called me and said, "she's having seizures" and I just said, "get her straight in the cab, don't wait for an ambulance and get her straight to the hospital".' Ms Barresi said she did not believe her daughter had done anything that could have triggered the seizures. It's understood low sodium levels caused by the illness she suffered is believed to have been a factor. 'She's not a big drinker. I don't even think she would have drank much at all because she was sick, so she wouldn't have touched it,' she said. 'She's very careful with her food, with hygiene, the water, everything. So there's nothing that she's done to cause what's happened. 'I know her. We live together so we know each other inside out.' Her mother Jen Barresi said Julia had been put in a coma and was scheduled to undergo an MRI. Julia is pictured with her father Francis Ms Barresi is hoping her daughter is well enough to celebrate 20th birthday on July 29. 'She's a healthy, vibrant, switched on, beautiful human being. She's never had a seizure,' Ms Barresi said Julia's friend Stephanie Michielin has started a GoFundMe to raise money for her medical bills which may not be covered by her insurance. She said the flight back to Australia could cost the family up to $170,000. Ms Barresi has since praised the team at Medical Rescue, based in Queensland's Burleigh Heads, for how they handled Julia's flight home. 'Medical Rescue coordinated and executed Julia's evacuation with such professionalism and compassion. We were continuously updated throughout the journey and they made the process much less stressful and traumatic,' she said. Ms Barresi is hoping her daughter is well enough to celebrate her 20th birthday on July 29. 'She's a very loved young lady,' she said. 'I'm not just saying this because I'm her mother, if I wasn't her mother, I would want to be her friend. 'She's been through hell and back but she'll bounce back. Anyone who knows Julia knows how special she is, she doesn't have a nasty bone in her body.' A mother-of-seven has been sedated after detectives told her three of her children were killed in a house fire that was allegedly lit by their father. Dean Heasman, 28, allegedly barricaded his partner Stacey Gammage, 29, and their kids inside their government-owned home in Lalor Park, in Sydney's west, at about 1am on Sunday and set it on fire. Two boys, age three and six, were taken to Westmead Hospital in a critical condition but died of their injuries. Once firefighters extinguished the flames, they found the body of a 10-month-old girl. Her body was removed from the property during forensic investigations on Sunday afternoon. Detectives swarmed the home throughout Sunday looking for clues as to how the blaze began, and whether Heasman allegedly used a fire accelerant. Among the evidence removed from the house were two water bottles with a brownish petrol-like liquid inside. Police allege Heasman held the front door shut when emergency services arrived and shouted, 'Let me die here' as the children screamed for help inside. Heasman is reported to have suffered burns to his skin and throat and the affects of smoke inhalation during the tragedy and is now in an induced coma as detectives wait to interview him. Dean Heasman, 28, and Stacey Gammage, 29, are pictured together. They had seven children, three are now dead Pictured: A forensic investigator pulled a bottle of brownish petrol-like liquid from the scene where three kids burned to death Pictured: Forensics holding a second bottle of tea-brown liquid, during an investigation into the cause of the blaze Neighbours told Daily Mail Australia that all three front rooms of the home were quickly engulfed with flames, before power lines began to spark and snapped off the house. Local resident Jarrod Hawkins, whose daughter was friends with one of the surviving children, was hailed a hero after rushing to the burning home and saving a nine-year-old girl and her three brothers, aged 4, 7 and 11. The eldest boy told his rescuers: 'Dad tried to kill me.' Once Mr Hawkins left the burning home with four children, they were placed on the other side of the road before another neighbour Damien Dubois decided to move them away from the scene. 'I had the four kids and they were cold so we picked them up and took them into the back room of my place,' Mr Dubois told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was trying to console them. The two younger kids weren't saying anything so I picked them up and took them out of the way of all this trauma. 'They didn't need to watch it all.' Mr Dubois recalled Heasman taking some of the children on quad bike rides around the local neighbourhood just a few weeks ago. The government-owned property in Lalor Park was quicky engulfed in flames in the early hours of Sunday morning Pictured: A fire and rescue worker shovelling soot and debris from the property on Sunday Neighbours and family friends left floral tributes for the three kids who died on Sunday Family friends arrived at the scene after news of the tragedy broke on Sunday, with many leaving floral tributes. One family friend, Douglas King, added: 'I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it with my own eyes. '[Heasman] was always with his kids and he was good to the kids - nice, calm and collected. He was telling me last year he had a newborn on its way.' Mr King said he was shattered by the tragedy because he thought Heasman, who he affectionately called 'Deano reamo' and 'Deano the albino' was a 'respectful person with morals'. He added: 'Deano was a good person. Its mad. It's devastating. I hope the kids fight through it. I hope they survive. I feel bad for Stacey.' Another said: 'I've known Deano since we were grasshoppers in pre-school and I can't believe this.' Neighbour Jarrod Hawkins (pictured hugging his son) was praised for rushing into the burning home. Police said his actions 'saved further lives from being lost' Neighbour Damien Dubois (pictured) rushed to the scene to bring the surviving children inside, away from the burning house During a press conference on Sunday, Blacktown Police Acting Superintendent Jason Pietruszka said Mr Hawkins' actions at the scene 'saved further lives from being lost'. He was unable to confirm whether Heasman was armed while trying to stop others from entering the property, but he said that would be a line of inquiry within the coming days. Homicide Squad Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said police were treating the fire as a domestic-related multiple homicide. He said at Ms Gammage and her surviving children are being treated at Westmead Hospital for burns and smoke inhalation. Heasman is under police guard in an induced coma in the intensive care unit. No charges have been laid. 'At this stage it does appear the 28-year-old is responsible for multiple deaths of young lives that have been tragically taken away,' Det Supt Doherty said. 'We're alleging the 28-year-old man took actions to prevent the young people inside being rescued.' The Archbishop of Canterbury has revealed his wife felt pressured to abort their disabled child by hospital staff. Justin Welby's daughter, Ellie, who is now aged 32, suffers from dyspraxia a condition which affects movement and co-ordination. He told the General Synod in York it was 'expected' his wife Caroline would opt for an abortion if the disability test she was offered when she was pregnant came back positive. The Archbishop said hospital staff discussed with him and his wife the high costs associated with raising children with disabilities, The Telegraph has reported. Mr Welby said: 'Before [Ellie] was born, during the pregnancy, there was some concern and a test was ordered, but it was made very, very clear to my wife that if the test was taken and proved positive, it would be expected that we ask for a termination. The Archbishop of Canterbury (pictured with his wife Caroline) has revealed she felt pressured to abort their disabled child by hospital staff Justin Welby 's daughter, Ellie, who is now aged 32, suffers from dyspraxia a condition which affects movement and co-ordination 'It was not a neutral process, because they said it's expensive.' He described Ellie as 'precious because she's wonderful, she's kind, she is someone who gets cross and gets happy and gets sad. She's not that severely disabled'. Mr Welby's has previously said he does not pray for Ellie in relation to her disability because it is part of her. The Archbishop's comments came after Ven Pete Spiers, an archdeacon from Liverpool, put forward a motion challenging the assumption that raising children with disabilities is a tragedy. Archdeacon Spiers called for better support for the parents of disabled children from healthcare providers. He also wants the Government to ensure parents received unbiased information about the condition their unborn child has been diagnosed with. Archdeacon Spiers's motion passed unanimously at the Synod by 312 votes for and zero against. Mr Welby's (pictured speaking to parliament) has previously said he does not pray for Ellie in relation to her disability because it is part of her The Archbishop's comments came after Ven Pete Spiers, an archdeacon from Liverpool, put forward a motion challenging the assumption that raising children with disabilities is a tragedy The Church of England is opposed to abortions carried out because the unborn child is disabled. During a parliamentary debate on the subject in 2013, the Church described the law as 'discriminatory'. The Abortion Act which was introduced in the UK in 1967 allows terminations up until 24 weeks. There are very limited circumstances that allow an abortion after 24 weeks, for example if the mother's life is at risk or the child would be born with a severe disability. The General Synod is the national assembly of the Church of England which first came into being in 1970. It considers and approves legislation affecting the whole of the Church of England. This includes formulating new forms of worship and debating matters of national and international importance. Former Liberal PM Malcolm Turnbull has once again taken aim at current Liberal leader Peter Dutton. I am starting to wonder if Turnbull will ever have anything nice to say about anyone involved in the party that helped him achieve his life's ambition of becoming PM. He's described Dutton as 'a thug', claiming that his approach to politics is all about stoking 'division and animosity'. It is the ultimate case of the pot calling the kettle black - given Turnbull's track-record. Malcolm Turnbull is the last major figure left from that bitter period in Australian politics still waging war over his perceived wrongs of the past. Kevin Rudd, Julia Gillard and Tony Abbott have all moved on. Not Malcolm Turnbull. He's happy to play the role of Liberal critic whenever needed. Try as I might I cannot think of a more divisive figure within the Liberal Party over the past 20 years than Malcolm Turnbull. While Turnbull has labelled Dutton a thug, the bigger political thug in recent times would surely have to be Turnbull. His political career was defined by stepping over others. I'm not just talking about his quiet, ruthless campaign against Tony Abbott. The history of Turnbull's naked political ambitions go much further back. He entered parliament at the 2004 election - taking out one-term Liberal MP Peter King - and quickly worked his way into John Howard's cabinet. All of a sudden that cabinet started leaking for the first time in a decade. He denied being responsible. Perhaps it was a coincidence. When Howard's leadership came under pressure in the countdown to the 2007 election, Peter Costello was the alternative to lead in most people's minds. Turnbull suggested himself. After the election defeat Turnbull nominated for the Opposition leadership, only to lose to Brendan Nelson. He marched into his new leader's office to give him a serve, before challenging for the leadership within the year. Dr Nelson claimed Turnbull constantly made 'life difficult' for him for his nine months in charge, before he finally seized the job himself. After Tony Abbott secured a thumping 2013 election win he fought a war on two fronts - against the newly minted Labor opposition and Team Turnbull. Eventually Turnbull orchestrated a coup and took over, only to lead the Coalition to a disastrous 2016 election 'win' - securing the most slender majority possible - 76 seats in the 150 seat House of Representatives. By all accounts it was a disastrous campaign and Turnbull was a difficult political leader to manage on the campaign trail. While Turnbull's career in politics was punctuated by forceful political moves to seize power off internal rivals, his animosity towards others came later. His behaviour since his forced retirement is a far cry from Julia Gillard's dignified post-politics career. Turnbull never got over being ousted from the prime ministership. Not one to break bread thereafter, he has fought a public relations war ever since against everyone and anyone he believes conspired against him. This is where we get to what is really behind his criticisms of Dutton. In 2018 Dutton decided - rightly or wrongly - that he would challenge Turnbull for the leadership. It was an ambitious move Turnbull must have understood, given he'd done the exact same thing to Abbott in the Coalition's first two years in office. I was critical of Dutton's move against Turnbull at the time, taking the view that after so many years of leadership instability on both sides it was time for the Liberal Party to pick and stick, no matter the electoral consequences. To show that it was putting those years behind it. In the aftermath of the Dutton-Turnbull showdown Scott Morrison came through the middle and took over as PM, going on to win the seemingly unwinnable 2019 election. Turnbull retired, Dutton's political career continued. But Turnbull's animosity grew like a cancer. Dutton's role as ringleader for the putsch was not been forgotten. So it is no surprise that he makes regular appearances spitting bile in the Opposition Leader's direction. It wasn't so long ago that Malcolm Turnbull promoted Peter Dutton. Now Dutton is a 'thug' who is all about 'division and animosity, generally targeted at immigrants' Apart from the unhealthy nature of being consumed by such bitterness I can actually understand why Turnbull feels the way that he does. Having the prime ministership wrestled away from you must be a devastating blow. But let's not kid ourselves that Turnbull's critique of Dutton is motivated by anything other than spite. Nor that he is a pillar of virtue when it comes to rising above political thuggery, divisiveness and shows of animosity. Then there is his suggestion that Australians should be terrified of the prospect of Dutton the politician. Turnbull promoted Dutton within cabinet and considered him a key political adviser in his team. If Dutton were really as bad as Turnbull now claims, what does it say about the former PM's preparedness to promote and support such a person? But we've heard these attacks before. While the TV hosts and their audience last night were shocked to hear Turnbull's attacks, anyone keeping a close eye on politics in this country wouldn't have been. Turnbull made similar observations on the ABC series dissecting the Coalition's time in power, also describing Dutton as a thug. His attacks on Dutton are becoming so predictable I doubt they shift a single vote against the Opposition Leader. They may even help Dutton within the mainstream, where Turnbull never managed to be seen as anything other than out of touch. His attacks say more about him than Dutton. Turnbull would rather settle petty personal grudges than act with the sort of post-parliamentary career dignity befitting a former PM I was a strong supporter of Malcolm Turnbull's political ambitions. I was one of his preselectors back in 2003. I advocated for him to assume the opposition leadership. For him to take over the prime ministership. I hoped he would elevate the moderate cause within the Liberal Party. I opposed the move by Dutton to replace him. And he's good company: quick-witted, amusing with his storytelling and armed with a wealth of facts and anecdotes at his fingertips. But fast forward to today, it is with a heavy heart that I have to admit that on reflection he's been a net negative for the Liberal Party and a disappointment to small L liberals. Now, at nearly 70-years of age, Turnbull would rather settle petty personal grudges than act with the sort of post-parliamentary career dignity befitting a former PM. It's a crying shame. Mostly for Malcolm. Matt Rowley is the latest high profile ouster at Nine The Nine-owned Pedestrian Group is slashing dozens of jobs as part of a major restructuring that will split the business in half. Pedestrian Group's chief executive, Matt Rowley, announced the news to staff on Monday morning, and revealed he would also be leaving the group as part of the restructure. As part of the changes, the group will soon exit its licensing deals to publish third-party brands, including Vice, Refinery29, Gizmodo, Lifehacker, and Kotaku, causing up to 40 job losses. As a result, Nine would focus solely on its own brands, Pedestrian and Pedestrian TV. Kate McGregor, who is the Managing Editor at Refinery29, was among the those who lost their jobs. 'Today I, along with the Refinery29 Australia team and dozens of my Pedestrian Group colleagues were made redundant - my heart is heavy,' she wrote on social media. 'It goes without saying that farewelling Refinery29 Australia and Pedestrian Group is personally so sad, but after more than ten years in media, I've learned you have to play the hand you're dealt.' Athina Mallis, the managing editor of Gizmodo Australia, revealed she had only been in the role for under six months before her role was cut. The chief executive of Pedestrian Group, Matt Rowley, left the publisher as part of a major cost-saving restructuring effort on Monday Director of Nine's news website, Kerri Elstub, told staff that more jobs would be removed still as the company continues adjusting its budget 'I won't lie, I am upset, angry, and sad that the digital media industry is shrinking. Good, hard-working journalists are losing their jobs. 'We work tirelessly to make sure the site looks good, copy is clean and the stories are factual and original. Let's hope our work is not in vain,' she said. Nine bought 60 per cent of Pedestrian for $10million in 2015 before buying the remainder of the company for $39million in 2018. It's yet another blow for staff at Nine, after CEO announced hundreds of jobs would be axed as part of a $30million cost-cutting plan for the business. 'From our nationwide team of almost 5000 people, around 200 jobs are expected to be affected across Nine, including some vacant and casual roles not being filled,' Mr Sneesby said. 'In order for us to be able to keep investing in digital growth opportunities across Nine, we must continue to responsibly manage costs through the cycle.' The job cuts include 38 positions in the high-profile news and current affairs broadcast team, which encompasses 9News and 60 Minutes. It's yet another blow for staff at Nine, after CEO announced hundreds of jobs would be axed as part of a $30million cost-cutting plan for the business. 'From our nationwide team of almost 5000 people, around 200 jobs are expected to be affected across Nine, including some vacant and casual roles not being filled,' Mr Sneesby said. 'In order for us to be able to keep investing in digital growth opportunities across Nine, we must continue to responsibly manage costs through the cycle.' Today Show host Karl Stefanovic is pictured. Nine has revealed 38 jobs are set to be axed from the news and current affairs team. Daily Mail Australia does not suggest Mr Stefanovic's role will be cut The job cuts include 38 positions in the high-profile news and current affairs broadcast team, which encompasses 9News and 60 Minutes. Additionally, 90 jobs will be eliminated from Nine's publishing division, affecting roles at The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age, and The Australian Financial Review. Mr Sneesby attributed the job cuts to the likely termination of a commercial deal with Meta - the owner of Facebook and Instagram - to pay for news articles it posts, as well as a weakened advertising market. 'These are tough decisions and I acknowledge it will be an uncertain period for some of you. It's important to reiterate that Nine remains in a strong position,' Mr Sneesby explained. 'All of our business units are either completely digital or have rapidly growing digital revenues - and each one maintains a leading position in their respective markets.' The announcements follow the exit of news boss Darren Wick in March after a complaint was lodged by a female employee about inappropriate conduct. His replacement Fiona Dear told staff on Friday the jobs cuts will see a 'loss of 38 roles around the division, 12 of these positions are already vacant.' 'We are also looking to identify potential savings with casual and freelance roles and new technology,' Ms Dear said. Nine's cutback announcement came in the same week about 150 staff were let go by Seven West Media in 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's withdrawal. '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.' Shocking footage has captured the moment a woman smashed the windshield of a car in a violent road rage incident. New Zealand woman Chantelle Baker was driving behind a blue Mazda Demio on Saturday in Rangiora, near Christchurch, when the incident unfolded. Video shows the moment two women suddenly sprinted out of the Mazda and ran toward Ms Baker's car. The windshield was shattered when one of the women jumped onto the hood and stomped on it. The woman then jumped off the car, opened the driver-side door, and yelled 'f*** off'. Ms Baker quickly put the car in reverse and drove away from the scene as the women ran back to their own car. Ms Baker claimed the road rage incident started after the driver of the Mazda nearly caused a crash at a merge lane. 'They tailgated me as I slowed down to 40km (per hour) after witnessing them nearly crash behind me,' Ms Barker said. Shocking footage has captured the wild moment a woman smashed the windshield of a car in a violent road rage incident Ms Barker claimed the pair threw rocks at her car which hit a window where her eight-month-old baby was sleeping. 'I then found them and tried to get a photo of their licence plate and as soon as they saw me stop they ran towards me, jumping on the windscreen and sending glass all through the car and opening my car doors trying to grab me,' she said. Ms Baker explained that the vehicle she was driving was a 'borrowed car' and that she now had to pay to replace the damaged windshield. Police confirmed a report was received in relation to the incident. 'One driver apparently followed another driver after a car failed to merge correctly,' police told NZ Herald. 'The cars have stopped at a petrol station where one person has reportedly got out and jumped on the other person's vehicle, breaking a window.' Ms Baker explained the vehicle she was driving was a 'borrowed car' and she now has to pay to replace the damaged windshield Ms Baker (pictured) is the daughter of former New Conservatives Leader Leighton Baker and gained a mass following for her anti-vaccine protests Police said the investigation was in its 'early stages' and no one was hurt during the incident. Ms Baker is the daughter of former New Conservatives leader Leighton Baker and is a well-known anti-vaccine influencer. In 2022, Baker's Facebook page was deactivated by Meta after she shared misleading and 'harmful information' about the vaccine. A report by independent research group The Disinformation Project found Ms Baker's live broadcasts had greater engagement than mainstream media despite spreading false claims. A former prison guard who was found guilty of sexually abusing 10 inmates, including a pregnant woman, at a Sydney jail will remain behind bars after the state's highest court turned down his appeal. Wayne Gregory Astill was sentenced to 23 years in prison after he was convicted of 34 charges, including aggravated sexual assault and indecent assault. He was found guilty of 27 charges related to non-consensual conduct but admitted to seven counts of misconduct in office related to inappropriate consensual sexual acts. The jury found he sexually assaulted 10 prisoners, one of whom was pregnant at the time, while he was stationed at Dillwynia Correctional Centre in northwestern Sydney. Earlier this year, he took his case to the Court of Criminal Appeal to appeal his convictions and sentence. Wayne Gregory Astill was sentenced to 23 years in prison after he was convicted of 34 charges, including aggravated sexual assault and indecent assault One female inmate said her abuse at the hands of Wayne Astill began soon after his promotion to a senior position at Dillwyna (above), Australia's largest women's prison His barrister Tomislav Bicanic argued the trial judge, District Court Judge Gina O'Rourke, had erred when she gave a direction to the jury about 'tendency' evidence. During the trial, the Crown prosecutor argued the evidence demonstrated Astill had a tendency to make sexually suggestive comments, put himself in a position where he was alone with women, and engage in sexual acts without consent. Mr Bicanic argued the Crown had relied upon evidence that 'varied widely in terms of severity or seriousness' and conduct for which Astill was not charged. He argued Judge O'Rourke should have given further direction to the jury about how they should think about the tendency evidence in order to avoid 'reasoning errors'. However, during an appeals hearing in June, Crown prosecutor Elizabeth Nicholson said it wasn't necessary because the jury had been 'correctly directed' by Judge O'Rourke, who had 'made it abundantly clear' they must not find Astill guilty unless they found the victims' testimony proven beyond a reasonable doubt. Sex beast Wayne Astill forced a female inmate onto a table and raped her, afterwards threatening her if she disclosed his actions to anyone She argued the jurors were given clear instructions multiple times about the standard and onus of proof. 'The jury clearly understood those directions,' the Crown prosecutor said at the time. 'There cannot be a miscarriage (of justice or) a practical disadvantage to the applicant in circumstances where the jury is considering the same body of evidence.' His appeal was heard by Chief Justice Anthony Bell and Justices Kristina Stern and Justice Richard Button earlier this year. On Monday, the Court of Criminal Appeal handed down a unanimous 3-0 decision in which Astill was refused leave to hear his appeal against his conviction and sentence. Astill will be eligible for release on parole in December 2037. A man has been charged with murder after allegedly stabbing his father several times during a family dispute. Robert Hillemacher, 84, was allegedly stabbed to death at a house on Foote Street in Brighton, south-east Melbourne, about 8.30pm on Friday. Emergency services attempted to perform CPR, however he was pronounced dead at the scene. His 52-year-old son, Anton Hillemacher, was arrested before he was charged on Sunday with murder, breach of an intervention order and aggravated burglary. He was remanded and faced Melbourne Magistrates' Court later that night but the matter was adjourned until October 28 for a committal hearing. A social media post - believed to be written by Hillemacher - said he had previously been living with his father, the Herald Sun reported. He added that he had since been sleeping on his younger brother's couch in recent weeks. Two of his brothers are understood to have been travelling overseas on holiday when the news broke of their father's death. Anton Hillemacher, 52, (pictured) has been charged with murdering his father after allegedly stabbing him several times during a family dispute Robert Hillemacher, 84, was found severely injured at a home in Brighton, southeast Melbourne, about 8:30pm on Friday night and was pronounced dead soon after They are set to return to Australia in the coming days. Robert had been living in the area for about 50 years and was well known among locals and neighbours. One neighbour described the incident as a 'terribly tragedy'. An Aussie driver told police he needed to go the toilet when he was caught at nearly double the speed limit. The man's white Suburu was caught by NSW Police speeding at 111kmh in the 60kmh zone on Parramatta Road at Burwood in Sydney at 11.20pm on Friday June 28. When the NSW Police Force Traffic and Highway Patrol Command pulled the man over, the driver told them he needed to use the bathroom. But the man's reason wasn't enough to convince police, who fined him $2,764 for speeding in a clearly signposted stretch of road. The impatient driver's licence was suspended for six months. A driver of a white Suburu told police he was travelling at 111kmh (pictured) in the 60kmh speed zone because he needed to use the bathroom Also owns investment properties and profits from rent and sales Greens deputy leader Mehreen Faruqi is set to reap an $850,000 windfall from an upcoming property sale from her multimillion-dollar housing portfolio. The NSW Senator, who with her party is openly critical of government policies supporting 'wealthy property investors', appears to be quite a savvy investor herself. Property records show that Ms Faruqi, who has blasted the unaffordability of homes in Australia, is selling a property in Port Macquarie, on the NSW north coast, with a price guide of $1,000,000 to $1,100,000. She and her husband bought the four bedroom home for $250,000 in 2001. It went on the market in May, setting up the opportunity for a sizeable six-figure profit. Ms Faruqi also makes $750-a-week from a three-bedroom house she rents at Beaconsfield, in Sydney's inner-south. She paid just $193,000 for that property in 1996. And she owns a 500-metre-squared parcel of land in Lahore, a city in northern Pakistan, plus a four-bedroom residential property in an inner Sydney suburb, where the average property is worth $2.5million. That home was bought for an undisclosed sum in 2007. Ms Faruqi's property portfolio has come under fire by conservative lobby group Advance Australia, which labelled her 'just another politician, riding on her high horse about the housing affordability crisis while doing nothing about it and banking a fortune'. Ms Faruqi recently described the housing system in Australia as one that 'sees millions screwed over while banks and property developers make an absolute killing off the misery of others'. NSW Greens senator Mehreen Faruqi is pictured during Question Time in Parliament House on July 1 Senator Faruqi slammed the Albanese government's solution to the housing crisis last week in an Instagram post (pictured) She has previously taken aim at government supports for 'wealthy property investors' - in line with the Greens policy to scrap negative gearing and the capital gains tax discounts. Ms Faruqi did not always plan to sell her Port Macquarie bolthole for a tidy profit. She had originally submitted a development proposal to Port Macquarie Hastings Council in May 2023 to subdivide her investment property in three and build double-storey townhouses on the land. The ambitious plan involved knocking down 20 trees in prime koala habitat. An ecological report tendered to the council said the plans would 'result in the loss of the majority of vegetation on the site' near Lighthouse Beach. The senator has previously been critical of past state governments allowing native forests to be logged and koala habitats to be cleared. She copped backlash over the development proposal and appears to have scrapped the plan altogether a year later, placing the property on the market. Mehreen Faruqi is selling her Port Macquarie investment property for $1,100,000 (pictured) She bought the property for $250,000 in 2001 and, if sold at the asking price, she would pocket an extra $850,000 Sandra Bourke, a spokeswoman for conservative lobby group Advance, told Daily Mail Australia: 'I can't remember the last time I heard The Greens talking about the environment. That's because they're just not who they used to be. 'They used to be about protecting forests, now they're about themselves.' Daily Mail Australia has contacted Ms Faruqi for comment. According to The Greens website, 'a safe and affordable home is key to living a life with dignity. In a wealthy country like Australia, nobody should be forced to go without one'. 'Yet renters and mortgage holders are suffering. Big banks and wealthy property investors are making billions in profit, while millions of Australians are struggling to keep a roof over their head.' The Greens' housing affordability proposal would cap rent at 25 per cent of the tenant's income, and end capital gains tax discounts and negative gearing. The NSW senator came under fire on Sunday following her appearance on the ABC's Insiders, when she refused to say whether she believes Islamic terrorist group Hamas should be dismantled. Ms Faruqi also owns an investment property in Beaconsfield, in Sydney's inner-west (pictured) She rents the property for $750-per-week, which is about 40 per cent of the average salary in NSW (property pictured) She was asked five times whether she believed the extremist group responsible for the deadly October 7 attack on Israeli festivalgoers should be abolished as a condition of Palestinian statehood. 'Hamas has nothing to do with recognising Palestinian statehood,' she told host David Speers. 'Recognising Palestinian statehood is about Palestinians being able to self-determine.' When questioned further on the issue, the senator said: 'I can't keep repeating it again and again, [Hamas] has nothing to do with Palestinian statehood.' 'Palestinians need to decide where they want to go with their own region, not intervention from western countries.' Speers noted Hamas was listed in Australia as a terrorist organisation and told the senator: 'Surely you're able to say whether you'd like to see them gone or not?' She replied: 'It's not up to me to say who should be gone or not.' Ms Faruqi said she couldn't answer the question because it's based on a 'hypothetical situation' if Palestinians were to be granted statehood. A resident has been accused of using orange traffic cones to reserve a space on a street where parking has become difficult to find. Several traffic cones were set up along the kerbside in Leichhardt, in Sydney's inner west. A frustrated local shared a photo on Facebook, fuming that there is already not enough parking on the busy street. 'It's been ongoing for months and doesn't look renovation-related,' he wrote. It is understood that there are no parking restrictions on the street, meaning residents are free to park there for as long as they like, if they can nab a spot. Social media users were quick to share their thoughts, with many suggesting the neighbours just move the witches hats. Meanwhile, others called the parking act 'outrageous', 'entitled, 'rude' and 'selfish'. 'I've noticed that for months and wondered why people have been so observant of them,' one person wrote. One resident has been using orange traffic cones to block off street parking for at least two cars near their home in Leichardt, in the city's inner-west 'I guess if you're self-entitled and can get away with it.' 'Remove them when they aren't there, someone will park there,' another suggested. Some supported the act and dismissed the criticism as 'grumbling', claiming that residents were entitled to reserve a parking spot. The Inner West Council stated that reserving street parking in this manner is prohibited, explaining that residents are not allowed to leave items, such as traffic cones, unattended in public spaces. 'Unfortunately, this type of thing does happen in our local government area,' a spokesperson told Yahoo. The council encourages anyone who sees someone using their belongings to obstruct public use of amenities to report it. Fines for this type of offence range from $330 to $660. However, it seems people using witches hats to secure street parking has been an issue for years, as others shared their photos and stories online. 'The inner-west summed up,' another person captioned a separate photo of a resident blocking off a space outside their house. 'This is so ridiculous. A friend got chased down the street once because she moved cones and parked there,' another added. A pair of well-connected Democrats have issued a bombshell memo detailing their wild plan to replace President Joe Biden on their 2024 ticket. It would require Biden to step down as the head of the ticket by mid-July to pave the way for other Democrats to throw their hats in the ring for a 'blitz primary' that would feature celebrities such as Taylor Swift and Oprah, according to Semafor. The six candidates with the most votes from delegates would also have to vow to run a positive-only campaign. The plan is the brainchild of Rosa Brooks, a Georgetown law professor who served in both the Obama and Clinton administrations and as a volunteer policy adviser to the 2020 Biden campaign, as well as Ted Dintersmith, a venture capitalist and education philanthropist who has donated to a number of Democratic campaigns. They have already circulated the plan to Democrat donors, as well as officials within the Biden campaign and administration - and say they have widespread support. A pair of well-connected Democrats have issued a memo detailing their plan to replace President Joe Biden as the nominee The plan is the brainchild of Rosa Brooks, a Georgetown law professor who served in both the Obama and Clinton administrations and as a volunteer policy adviser to the 2020 Biden campaign, as well as Ted Dintersmith, a venture capitalist and education philanthropist who has donated to a number of Democratic campaigns Under the plan, Biden would have to step down as the Democratic nominee by mid-July and announce the new system to decide who would take his place, with the backing of Vice President Kamala Harris. Any Democrats who wish to become the new nominee would then have just a few days to announce their candidacy, and the six who garner the most votes from delegates must pledge to run a positive-only campaign in the month leading up to the convention. The so-called 'blitz primary' would then include weekly forums with each candidate moderated by cultural icons like Michelle Obama, Oprah and Taylor Swift. The nominee would ultimately be chosen by delegates using a ranked-choice voting system before the start of the Democratic National Convention in Chicago on August 19. Brooks and Dintersmith then suggest the nominee should be unveiled on stage with Biden, former President Barack Obama and former President Bill Clinton. Part of the plan calls for celebrities like Taylor Swift to hold weekly forums with the candidates Brooks and Dintersmith also floated Oprah as a potential moderator It insists donations would start to pour in if Democrats follow the plan, and argues Biden would be celebrated as a 'modern-day George Washington' - putting away his lust for power for the good of the country. 'We can limp to shameful, avoidable democracy-ending defeat. Or Democrats can make this Our Finest Hour,' the memo says. 'While we hope for help from Lord Almighty, the Lord helps those who help themselves,' it continues, apparently referencing Biden's make-or-break interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos in which he said only the 'Lord Almighty' could tell him to drop out of the race. 'We need to act. Now,' the memo argues. But it acknowledges that there are some issues with the plan, as Biden has thus far refused to step down. Additionally, under the plan Vice President Harris would not automatically take the helm as several Democrats rally around her. The 81-year-old president has insisted he is not dropping out of the race Biden has been facing calls to drop out since his abysmal performance at the CNN debate on June 27 'Will it happen? Probably not, absent a timely decision by Party leaders, including President Biden, who truly put country first,' the memo says. 'Yes, President Biden has served his country with distinction for five decades. Yes, this honorable man deserves our respect, gratitude and admiration. But not our blind loyalty. 'America desperately wants an uplifting choice,' it says. Still, Brooks said she has received near-universal support from those to whom she sent the memo - suggesting that party leaders would be on board if Biden backs it. Under Brooks and Dintersmith's plan, Vice President Kamala Harris would not be guaranteed the nomination The 81-year-old president has been facing calls to drop out since his abysmal performance at the CNN debate on June 27, when he repeatedly trailed off mid-sentence during the debate, and stood slack-jawed while Trump spoke. Once it was finished, Biden was seen standing around his podium before First Lady Jill Biden eventually ushered him off the stage. It has since been revealed that the president showed up late to his disastrous debate with Donald Trump. He left his hotel in Atlanta 27 minutes late and arrived with less than half an hour to spare, with no time to learn where to look when Trump was talking, the Washington Post reported. As a result, he often looked in the wrong direction and appeared like he was staring into space, barely aware of what was going on. Biden later blamed 'exhaustion' and being 'sick' for his performance at the debate - claiming he even had to take a COVID test before the debate. Biden arrived at the disastrous debate 27 minutes late, it has been revealed He tried to prove he was still capable of running the country with the one-on-one interview with Stephanopoulos once again failed to convince even those in his own party that he has the mental fortitude required for four more years. Words like 'heartbroken', 'doomed' and 'a f***king disaster' were all used by more than half a dozen Congress Democrats, according to NBC. Another post-debate interview also made headlines after Biden said he was a 'black woman,' while apparently attempting to hail his appointment of Harris as vice president. But it was later revealed that the president's team sent the interviewer at WURD radio in Philadelphia questions to ask the commander-in-chief. That interviewer, Andrea Lawful-Sanders, has since been fired, with WURD saying in a statement that her use of pre-determined questions 'violates our practice of remaining an independent media outlet accountable to our listeners.' It added that the 'practice of de-legitimizing black voices continues today,' and is concerned that any perception of accepting prepared questions will make it seem that the station is a 'mouthpiece' for the Biden administration. Biden is plowing ahead with his campaign, making stops in Pennsylvania on Sunday As of Sunday, at least 10 Democrats have called on Biden to withdraw from the race. Judiciary Ranking Member Jerry Nadler and House Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano are among those who expressed they want Biden to end his White House bid. Reps. Don Beyer, Adam Smith and Joseph Morelle, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, also said Biden is done for. Meanwhile, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) has begun organizing a group of Senate Democrats to discuss Biden's future. Still, Biden is plowing ahead with his campaign - appearing at a predominantly black church and an ice cream shop in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania on Sunday. 'Folks, with your permission, I'm going to find out if we have any ice cream,' Biden mumbled. 'You know, ain't it really dull when you have a president who's known for two things Ray Ban sunglasses and chocolate chip ice cream?' Some at the outdoor event described the president's remarks as hard-to-hear. 'If I stand here long enough all of those folks in the back are going to die of sun stroke,' Biden said. 'I'm not going to do that.' A passenger taking an Uber ride found themselves caught up in a heated incident when an agitated cop stopped his driver and hauled him away in handcuffs. Video footage shows the rider's view from the backseat after he was picked up from Miami International Airport on Saturday. The clip begins once the car is already pulled over and the cop is heard asking the Uber driver, who was wearing a sweat band over his black curly hair, for his license, registration and insurance documents. According to Miami-Dade Police, the Uber was blocking traffic while dropping off a passenger in an unauthorized location at Miami International Airport, WSVN reported. The Uber driver appeared to be startled as he was rushed to provide the information from different places in his vehicle, but as he asked for more time to gather the documents together the cop seemed to view this as a delay tactic. Pictured: The Uber driver at the Miami airport that would eventually get arrested by a police officer The driver nervously looked back at his passenger - who he had likely known for all of two minutes - and asked him to record what was going on. The passenger quietly affirmed that he was already rolling, seemingly not wanting to draw any attention to himself. Shortly after this, the cop issued his first threat to the driver as he demanded his insurance details. 'Are you going to give it to me?' the officer asked. 'Or are you coming out of the car?' Once the driver checked with the officer on which documents he wanted and if it was okay for him to reach for them, he began rooting around in his glovebox. He appeared to hand over his license before saying to the cop: 'It's Saturday, we're both working. I'm just dropping someone off.' He gets cut off, the officer not wanting him to draw any parallels between their two jobs. 'We're both not doing the same thing, sir. I'm providing safety and security, and you're obstructing the roadway,' the officer said. The two continued to have a heated exchange, which culminated in the officer proclaiming he is older and has more life experience. The passenger captures the moment the cop leads away the driver, who is bounded at the wrists with handcuffs 'I am older. I do have more experience. You are younger, and I wish you would listen more than you speak. That's why God gave you two ears and one mouth. You listen more than you speak. 'Give me your registration and your insurance. I'm not here to take your nonsense.' The driver called out the cop for being 'aggressive' and said 'there's a way to do it.' 'I apologize if you feel that way, but you have to do what you're told,' the cop responds. When the driver doesn't immediately hand over the documents and instead lectures him about treating him kindly and like a human being, the officer threatens to pull him out of the car once again. 'This is not normal. This is not normal,' the driver repeats in disbelief, looking back at the passenger's camera again. The tension grew until the officer lost his cool. He resorted to snatching all the papers in the driver's lap. 'Give me the registration and give me the god damn insurance and stop playing games with me,' the cop said as he ripped the registration from the driver's hand. He also told the driver that if he 'resists' him, he'll 'make the news.' Eventually, the driver was able to pull up his insurance card on his phone, saying it was a screenshot. This was the wrong thing to say. 'You have to have a physical insurance,' the cop told him. According to Florida state law, this is incorrect. The Uber driver is pulled out of the car by the cop after he failed to produce a physical copy of his insurance card The cop throws the driver against his own car window before slapping handcuffs on him Here, the passenger leans forward to record the officer handcuffing his Uber driver Florida's 2023 statutes say that proof of motor vehicle insurance 'shall be in a uniform paper or electronic format.' In fact, Florida is one of 49 states - and Washington D.C. - that allow its residents to show their car insurance via their phone. New Mexico is the only state where an electronic insurance card isn't explicitly accepted. Officials from the police department confirmed that contrary to what the officer said, an electronic insurance card is valid during a traffic stop. When the driver eventually confirmed he didn't have a paper copy of his insurance, the pair's misunderstanding of one another continued. The cop was heard fiddling with the handcuffs and started to pull the driver out of the car. The driver reminded him that his car was still in drive. Once the vehicle was in park, the officer wasted no time in ripping him out of his seat and slamming him up against the car window. He then bent him over the still-open driver's side door and ordered him to put his hands behind his back. Vehicles drive along the departures area at Miami International Airport on July 3, 2024. The passenger leaned closer and recorded the officer tightening the handcuffs over the driver's wrists, before he yanked him away back to the police car. He was led backwards to the squad car and put inside. Investigators told WSVN the Uber driver wasn't obeying commands and was detained, but wasn't arrested. The three-minute long video of this arrest got over 14,000 likes on TikTok and nearly 4,500 comments as of Monday morning. Many viewers thought the cop seemed to be on a power trip, with others saying he should be fired for his conduct. Viewers of the TikTok video took to the comments to react to the cop's conduct throughout the encounter with the Uber driver 'That was so out of control. That cop was so out of line and needs to suffer consequences - Im sure this isnt his first time behaving like this,' one person wrote. Others mentioned the cop's flawed understanding of the law governing electronic insurance cards, with one person saying she's been driving for ten years and has never had a problem showing insurance on her phone. A popular Instagram account that shares Miami-Dade content reposted this video, where it got almost as much engagement as it did on TikTok. Team South Florida, a nonprofit that supports the families of fallen officers, commented on the Instagram repost of the video. 'This is one we cannot get behind. To our law enforcement family, take this one on the chin, learn from it, and do better,' the organization wrote. 'We are the first to defend law enforcement when in the right. We cannot and should not ignore when we are in the wrong though. 'The only excuse we can think of was a bad day, tough previous call, or an ego/attitude problem. None of which are excuses.' DailyMail.com approached the the Miami-Dade Police Department for comment. A child has been killed and 10 other people injured after in a horrific car accident in the Northern Territory. On Sunday, just before 11am, a Toyota Prado with 11 passengers crashed on Mardiyardu Road, located between the northern towns of Kalkarindji and Lajamanu. The car was driven back to Kalkarindji, where a CareFlight team was waiting to provide assistance, as reported by the Northern Territory Police. The eight-year-old child was declared dead shortly after. The Toyota Prado, with 11 passengers crashed on Mardiyardu Road, located between the Northern Territory towns of Kalkarindji and Lajamanu, about 700km south of Darwin An eight-year-old child died in the crash while nine other people suffered non-life-threatening injuries A 29-year-old woman was allegedly driving the car when it crashed. She, along with nine other people, suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Detective Senior Sergeant Richard Musgrave said the crash allegedly involved alcohol. 'Communications from the scene was limited due to the remote location of the crash, and Major Crash Investigators are currently on-site at both scenes,' he said on Monday. 'This is a complex crash involving alcohol and a large number of unrestrained passengers that has tragically resulted in the death of a young child.' 'Local police are providing support to the families and local communities affected.' Officers have launched an investigation into the cause of the crash and have urged anyone with information to contact police. A father who lost his son to cancer has been left livid after discovering scammers were trying to capitalise on his death. Perth father Mark Tracy told 9News that his son Levi, 19, died on Tuesday, the day following his own father's death. The family were trying to plan the funeral when they became aware of Facebook pages that were set up by scammers asking people for donations in the days after Levi's death. The pages imitated another Facebook page the family had created to keep Levi's friends and family updated about his condition that was called Lifeline for Levi. With over 4,000 members, the page was a way for the family to communicate with their loved ones and share details about Levi's journey. It had encouraged people to donate blood, plasma and a kidney. 'This particular scamming page, they are personally reaching out and messaging people,' Mr Tracy said. 'They have a PayPal account they are trying to get people to send money to.' Heartless scammers have targeted the grieving family and friends of Levi Tracy (pictured) with messages seeking financial gain after the 19-year-old died from cancer Levi was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin's T-cell lymphoma when he was seven years old, going through 'gruelling' chemotherapy for more than two years before he went into remission. Then when Levi was 17, he was diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, which sadly claimed his life two years later. But sadly after he died, scammers created fake pages, then reached out to Levi's family and friends asking for donations. 'I am reaching out to ask for your support in a difficult time,' one scam message read, according to The West Australian. 'Recently our beloved Levi passed away leaving behind a family in need of our help. 'To assist them in this challenging period, I am seeking donations to cover funeral expenses and provide financial support.' The scammers created fake Facebook groups asking for kind-hearted users for donations to their PayPal accounts to 'support' Levi's family (pictured, his father Mark Tracy) Mr Tracy said he felt anger and frustration because it brought everything up to the surface again, and people were now questioning their integrity. 'Which is hard at any point but even more hard this week,' he said. '(Levi) cared for everybody, his humour, he was just bright, he just lit the room up. 'There were times, we would not have got through without that support.' EXCLUSIVE A dying western Sydney grandmother has spoken of her shock at finding out her grandson is accused of killing his three children in a horrific house fire. Dean Heasman, 28, allegedly barricaded his partner Stacey Gammage, 29, and their seven kids inside their housing commission home in Lalor Park, in Sydney's west, before setting it ablaze at about 1am on Sunday. Two boys, aged three and six, were taken to Westmead Hospital in a critical condition but died from their injuries. Once firefighters extinguished the flames, they also found the body of a 10-month-old girl. Her body was removed from the property during forensic investigations on Sunday afternoon. Family matriarch Neryle Heasman, 82, told Daily Mail Australia she knew her grandson Dean as 'a nice child' but said she had been estranged from him in recent years. 'I didn't have a lot to do with him since his father, my son also named Dean, passed away,' she said. 'On the odd occasion I saw him, I remember him being a nice child.' Dying grandmother Neryle Heasman has spoken of her shock at finding out her grandson is accused of killing his three children in a horrific house fire. Dean Heasman, 28, and Stacey Gammage, 29, are pictured together. Three of their seven died in the blaze Mrs Heasman, who is receiving home palliative care for terminal lung cancer and has six months to live, said she had not met her great-grandchildren. 'I have kept up with his family through photos on Facebook,' she said. But she was stunned to discover he was at the centre of the police investigation into the deadly fire. 'Are you sure we're talking about the same Dean?' she asked Daily Mail Australia, and added: 'He is albino.' Four other children, including a nine-year-old girl and three boys aged 11, seven, who were trapped inside the home, were treated at the scene and taken to Westmead Hospital in stable condition in the early hours of Sunday morning. Their mother Stacey Gammage, 29, was treated for smoke inhalation while her de-facto partner Dean Heasman, 28, was arrested and taken to hospital under police guard. Heasman allegedly threw a pillow on fire at his partner, which was partly responsible for igniting the blaze, reported the Daily Telegraph. Investigators are also probing whether Heasman allegedly used an accelerant after a second explosion engulfed the home in flames moments after he threw the fully alight pillow at his partner. The father-of-seven is understood to have no significant criminal history, but in 2017 did have a run in with the Australian Tax Office. Then just 21, he pleaded guilty to making a false statement and was convicted, but avoided jail and instead was put on an 18-month good behaviour bond by the NSW Local Court - and was also ordered to pay back $2,809 to the ATO. On Monday friends and members of the community arrived at the scene many leaving floral tributes, stuffed toys and candles. Western Sydney grandmother Neryle Heasman, 82, is in home palliative care for lung cancer Neighbours and family friends left floral tributes for the three kids who died on Sunday The housing commission property in Lalor Park was quickly engulfed in flames in the early hours of Sunday morning Among evidence removed from the house were two water bottles containing a tea-like liquid On Sunday detectives swarmed the home looking for clues on how the blaze began, and whether a fire accelerant had been used. Among the evidence removed from the house were two water bottles with a tea-coloured liquid inside. Police allege Heasman held the front door shut when emergency services arrived and shouted, 'Let me die here' as the children screamed for help inside. Heasman is reported to have suffered burns to his skin and throat and the affects of smoke inhalation during the tragedy and is now in an induced coma as detectives wait to interview him. Neighbours told Daily Mail Australia that all three front rooms of the home were quickly engulfed with flames, before power lines began to spark and snapped off the house. Local resident Jarrod Hawkins, whose daughter was friends with one of the surviving children, was hailed a hero after rushing to the burning home and saving a nine-year-old girl and her three brothers, aged four, seven and 11. The eldest boy told his rescuers: 'Dad tried to kill me.' Once Mr Hawkins left the burning home with four children, they were placed on the other side of the road before another neighbour Damien Dubois decided to move them away from the scene. Emergency services, including at least 20 firefighters and six fire trucks, rushed to Freeman Street following reports a home was ablaze Dean Heasman, 28, was arrested at the scene and taken to hospital under police guard 'I had the four kids and they were cold so we picked them up and took them into the back room of my place,' Mr Dubois told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was trying to console them. The two younger kids weren't saying anything so I picked them up and took them out of the way of all this trauma. 'They didn't need to watch it all.' Mr Dubois recalled Heasman taking some of the children on quad bike rides around the local neighbourhood just a few weeks ago. Woolworths will sell Australian flags for the Paris Olympics after the supermarket boycotted them for Australia Day. Woolworths released a statement on Monday revealing the flags would be available for purchase. 'With the 2024 Paris Olympic Games beginning later this month, and as a proud Australian retailer, we are pleased once again to be the official Fresh Food Partner of the Australian Olympic & Paralympic teams,' it read. Woolworths revealed customers would also be able to purchase a 'locally made hand-held Australian flag' made from timber and polyester. The flags will be available to customers all year round. 'Once available in store the locally made hand-held flag will be available to purchase all year round from the general merchandise section and also online,' the statement read. 'Locally made hand-held Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander flags will be available for purchase later this year. These flags will also be available all year round.' Woolworths will sell Australian flags for the Paris Olympics after the supermarket boycotted them for Australia Day The flags will be available all year round at Woolworths (stock image) A limited range of Green and Gold bakery products including a smash cake will also be sold. The move comes after the supermarket giant chose not to sell the flags and any items related to January 26 celebrations earlier this year. The company said in a statement at the time that demand for Australia Day merchandise has declined over the years. 'At the same time there's been broader discussion about 26 January and what it means to different parts of the community,' they said. Aussies slammed the controversial decision as 'un-Australian' and it drew widespread condemnation. Peter Dutton joined in on the pile on and urged Aussies to boycott Woolworths and said shoppers should 'take their business elsewhere'. 'It's up to customers whether they want to go in and buy the product or not...I think people should boycott Woolworths,' Mr Dutton told 2GB. Former Woolworths CEO Brad Banducci defended the decision not to stock the products. Mr Banducci said the supermarket was focused on helping customers save money when they buy groceries at their stores. 'We all make different decisions on what to stock...we're focused on providing great value on everyday needs so you can mark [Australia Day],' he said. A limited range of Green and Gold bakery products including a smash cake (pictured) will also be sold Peter Dutton (pictured) had previously urged Aussies to boycott Woolworths after the supermarket giant opted not to stock Australia Day merchandise earlier this year Mr Banducci announced he would step down as CEO of the company less than a month later. He will be replaced Amanda Bardwell, who is the current managing director of digital subsidiary WooliesX, in September. Woolworths has taken a massive hit to its reputation as a result of the intense scrutiny over the decision. The company, which was once ranked as the 7th most reputable brand in Australia, is now ranked 42 according to leading corporate reputation management firm RepTrack. The ongoing cost of living crisis has also done little to stem the blow to the perception the company currently has among shoppers. Woolworths has also been at the centre of six parliamentary inquiries this year alone. Mr Banducci was also grilled at one of the inquiries and was threatened with a six-month jail sentence for failing to answer questions into supermarket pricing. An Ohio police chief has been fired after the mayor of a small town accused him of a raft of violations, which included her smelling marijuana in his office. Chief Harold Webb was asked to take a drugs test at the request of Mayor Jewell Hayes-Hensley of New Miami Village in Butler County, but he refused and suggested that the act was degrading. New Miami Village Council unanimously voted to terminate Chief Webb on June 27. The town's mayor, with a population of 2,200 has since gone public to spell out a long list of alleged violations committed by the fired chief. Her claims include 911 emergency calls being ignored and the theft of hot dogs from a local gas station, when only free soda drinks were permitted while on duty. Hayes-Hensley also accused Webb of 'theft in office' by fabricating timesheets, 'cashing his paycheck knowing he was required to show proof of his being at work.' An Ohio police chief, Harold Webb, pictured, was fired by New Miami Village Council for multiple violations, including faking overtime sheets and the police dept smelling of marijuana The Mayor of New Miami Village, Ohio, Hayes-Hensley had become suspicious the chief had been stating that he had been working when in actual fact he was not on shift Hayes-Hensley became suspicious that the chief had been stating that he had been working, when in actual fact he was not on shift at the police station. At the start of June, the chief stated he had worked 48 hours in a single week yet had only been seen on duty for two days out of seven. Upon closer inspection, Webb had only 'logged in for service' for one of the days of the week. The mayor then asked for video evidence of the chief being on the job, but none was forthcoming. Webb also works full-time for the U.S. Postal Service. It was when Hayes-Hensley paid a visit to the police department to collect the chief's daily time logs that she noticed the smell of marijuana. 'The first thing that came out of my mouth was who has been smoking weed in here. The smell of marijuana could knock you off your feet,' she wrote in lengthy and descriptive five page letter detailing her allegations. Webb, who had only been in the role for a year, explained the stench as coming from a raid in March in which more than 850 grams of marijuana flower was seized. A letter was then hand-delivered to the police chief's home notifying him that he needed to take a drugs test. Webb refused noting that he felt degraded after being told that he would have to take the test in front of a nurse as a witness. 'You know what you win. This is the third time you have questioned my integrity,' Webb texted the mayor, adding that he would be resigning 'this evening.' 'Do you understand how belittling it is to have someone watch me urinate? Also, the reason my office had an overwhelming smell of marijuana is that there is over 850 grams of flower marijuana from the search warrant off Reiff Drive in March. 'Sorry things didn't work out for us,' he wrote. 'Hopefully, you can continue to move the village forward.' The chief was in trouble earlier this year for allegedly stealing hot dogs from a local gas station when the agreement was made for him only to be allowed free sodas Mayor Hensley felt she was left with no choice but to fire the mayor after he failed to hand in his resignation letter despite offering to do so Despite offering to resign, Webb never submitted his resignation letter leaving the New Miami Village council no choice but to fire him. In a statement, Mayor Hensley wrote: 'It is my job to ensure the residents of our community are safe. My goal is to turn our village around and make it a safe and thriving community for all. 'Council and I are working very hard to have a greater police presence in our village and do a major cleanup both with crime and housing. It is time that residents of the village of New Miami know they have a mayor and council working to put the community's needs first and do everything within their power to make the village of New Miami a safe, clean, and thriving community.' During his short time in the role, Webb had already had a run-in with the mayor and had been placed on administrative leave without pay after he appeared to mishandle the police department's Facebook page. The town of New Miami in Butler County, Ohio is home to 2,200 residents Hensley said the chief had allowed inappropriate comments to be posted on the message board including from his own wife. Ultimately the Facebook page was taken down. 'We will not use a village site to tear our village down,' Hensley stated at the time, in April this year. After Webb was reinstated following his suspension, other grievances were filed against him including some village employees but it was only a matter of months before the chief was finally fired. 'Chief has decades of experience in law enforcement. He's never been disciplined before, nothing to this magnitude. His officers love him,' Webb's lawyer, Jeff Gray told Fox 19 earlier in the year. 'They are willing to stick up for him. I think that speaks a lot about his character.' The deputy leader of the Greens says the major parties have failed to address the needs of migrant communities and their voices are not being heard. Muslim voters have 'long been ignored', says Deputy Greens leader Mehreen Faruqi, amid expectations a grassroots organisation will field candidates in Labor-held seats. The senator also expressed pride in Western Australian senator Fatima Payman for 'standing strong on her convictions' after she quit the Labor Party over her stance on Palestine statehood. Senator Faruqi said she had been in touch with the senator over the past few weeks but had not tried to recruit her to the Greens. The Greens are also expected to keep pressuring the federal government to recognise a Palestinian state, Senator Faruqi said in an interview on ABC's Insiders on Sunday. Queried on her views on The Muslim Vote, a grassroots organisation set to run candidates in some Western Sydney Labor strongholds, Senator Faruqi said the major parties had failed to address the needs of those communities. 'People of colour and Muslims have for too long been ignored in this country,' she said. Politicians from both the major parties had used migrant communities as 'tokens' and 'photo opportunities at religious events', she said. Deputy Greens leader Senator Faruqi says Muslims have long been ignored in Australia Senator Fatima Payman quit Labor after defecting to the crossbench (pictured) 'So I don't find it surprising at all that communities are organising and communities are saying, 'well, you know, we want our voices heard, and one way to do this is to actually organise and to put up candidates'.' According to the 2021 census, the number of Australians who identify as Muslim, from all forms of Islam, totalled 813,392 people, or 3.2 per cent of the population. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has raised concerns about the nation going down the road of faith-based politics, saying it would 'undermine social cohesion'. Senator Faruqi was not concerned by Muslim communities running their own candidates as people had a right to express their faith in Australia. She believed in a 'secular parliament' with a 'separation of church and state' and would like to see the Lord's Prayer no longer read out at the start of each Senate day. 'I would like to get rid of it because so many people of different faiths and from all over the world live in this country, and that is not representative,' she said. The final two weeks of parliamentary sitting before the mid-winter break were dominated by the fallout from Senator Payman's decision to cross the floor to support a Greens motion on Palestinian statehood. More than two-thirds of the United Nations' membership recognise a Palestinian state and it has been a non-member observer state of the UN General Assembly since November 2012. Mehreen Faruqi says major parties used migrant communities as 'tokens' and 'photo opportunities' Senator Faruqi said the Greens would continue to pressure Labor to recognise Palestinian statehood and self-determination. She said it was a separate issue as to whether or not Hamas should be dismantled. 'Who is going to dismantle it? It is up to the people in Palestine and that region to make sure that people can live in peace,' Senator Faruqi said when pressed on the question of Hamas' future. 'The Palestinians need to decide where they want to go with their own region,' she said. Australia has listed Hamas as a terrorist organisation and the senator said the Greens had made no demands to change that. Government Services Minister Bill Shorten said he was disappointed Senator Payman had left the Labor Party but it was ultimately her decision. Yet were Mr Shorten to leave the party, he said he would give up his seat. 'As charming and charismatic as individual candidates are, people vote for parties, quite often,' he told Sky News on Sunday. Nationals senate leader Bridget McKenzie said it was 'an issue of the prime minister's own making'. 'This guy has been left floundering and focused more on internal factional politics, and, you know, constructing his foreign policy through the lens of how it will impact Western Sydney,' she told Sky News on Sunday. Northern Territory Police have ordered another snap lockdown for Alice Springs after a string of incidents, including the alleged assault of four off-duty officers by a group of about 20 youths The curfew on the outback town will last from 10pm till 6am for three days and apply to adults and children. NT Police Commissioner Michael Murphy announced the curfew on Monday after Sunday morning's incident. It's the second time this year a curfew has been imposed on Alice Springs, following a 14-day lockdown around Easter after 150 people allegedly rioted through the streets. During their walk, the four off-duty police officers - three women and a man - were allegedly approached from behind by a group of about 20 male youths who proceeded to assault them. One of the female off-duty officers was pulled to the ground and had her bag allegedly stolen. Another woman was allegedly punched in the face and kicked multiple times before her mobile phone was taken. The male off-duty officer was also punched and kicked multiple times. NT Police have imposed another curfew on the town of Alice Springs The four off-duty officers returned to their accommodation where they contacted police. Two of the women were taken to Alice Springs Hospital for treatment of minor wounds. Police are urging anyone who may have witnessed the incident or has information to come forward. Under laws introduced in May, the NT's police commissioner has the power to declare 72-hour lockdowns to respond to "public disorder". Boeing executives have accepted a $243.6million plea deal that would see the company avoid a criminal trial over two deadly 737 Max crashes. Under the agreement, Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from the fatal crashes in Indonesia in October 2018 and in Ethiopia less than five months later that killed a combined 346 people. Boeing must also pay the hefty fine, invest at least $455million in compliance and safety programs, and have an independent monitor oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The agreement came just days after federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice of entering a guilty plea and paying the fine or facing a trial on felony criminal charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States. They have argued that the aerospace company deceived regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements. Boeing executives have accepted a $243.6million plea deal that would see the company avoid a criminal trial over a pair of deadly 737 Max crashes The plea deal must now be approved by a federal judge in Texas in order to take effect. The judge - who has previously criticized what he called 'Boeing's egregious criminal conduct' - could then approve the plea deal, or he could completely reject the agreement, which would likely prompt the Justice Department to create new negotiations with Boeing. But even then the plea deal would only cover the company's wrongdoing before the crashes, in which all of the passengers and crew members perished. It would not give the company immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, and would not cover any current or former Boeing officials - only the company itself. The plea deal would not give the company immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January Attorneys representing some of the families of the crash have said they are going to pressure the judge to reject the agreement. 'This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died,' said attorney Paul Cassell. 'Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and [the] DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeing's crimes are hidden.' The relatives have pushed for a criminal trial, arguing that it may prove Boeing executives knew they were deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration about its faulty flight-control system. They also want the Justice Department to prosecute those officials. 'Boeing has paid fines many a time and it doesn't seem to make any change,' said Ike Riffel, of Redding, California, whose sons died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. 'When people start going to prison, that's when you are going to see a change.' Attorneys representing some of the families of the crash have said they are going to pressure the judge to reject the agreement The families have long pushed for a criminal trial, arguing that it may prove Boeing executives knew they were deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration about its faulty flight-control system In the two crashes - in Indonesia in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019 - MCAS automatically pointed the nose of the plane down based on faulty sensor readings, and pilots were unable to regain control. On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX operating the Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew. The pilot at the time did not know that the software could push the nose of the plane down. Five months later, on March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft which operated Ethiopian flight 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, Ethiopia, six minutes after takeoff, killing all 157 people aboard. Pilots on that plane knew about the software issue, but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. But Boeing downplayed the significance of the system, and didnt overhaul it until after the second crash. On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX operating the Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew On March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft which operated Ethiopian flight 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, Ethiopia The Justice Department investigated Boeing in 2021, and charged the company with deceiving FAA regulators about the software - which did not exist in older 737s and about how much training the pilots would need to fly the plane safely. After secret negotiations, the government agreed not to prosecute Boeing on a charge of defrauding the United States by deceiving regulators who approved the plane. In exchange, the company paid $2.5 billion - a $243.6 million fine, a $500 million fund for victim compensation, and nearly $1.8 billion to airlines whose Max jets were grounded. But in May, officials determined the company breached the agreement - setting the stage for criminal charges. Glenn Leon, head of the Justice Department criminal division's fraud section, said in a letter filed in Texas federal court that Boeing failed to make changes to prevent it from violating federal anti-fraud laws - a condition of the the 2021 settlement. The department claims that Boeing failed to 'design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the U.S. fraud laws', according to NBC. Lawmakers have since also released a report with explosive allegations from a Boeing quality insurance inspector, Sam Mohawk, who said the company installed faulty parts onto planes and that he was later told by his managers to conceal the evidence from government regulators The Justice Department investigated Boeing in 2021, and charged the company with deceiving FAA regulators about the software but decided not to charge the aerospace company Boeing officials, however, denied those claims. 'We believe that we have honored the terms of that agreement, and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the Department on this issue,' a spokesperson said at the time. 'As we do so, we will engage with the Department with the utmost transparency, as we have throughout the entire term of the agreement, including in response to their questions following the Alaska Airlines 1282 accident.' But at a recent Senate hearing, Boeing CEO David Calhoun apologized to the crash victim's families. 'I'm deeply sorry my whole team at Boeing, everybody worldwide past and present,' Calhoun said. READ MORE: Incredible mugshots of 1900s criminals in Australia Mugshot went viral with many fawning over his good looks An Aussie man whose handsome 'hot' mugshot sent social media alight has walked free from jail. Melbourne man Jess Mabilia, 28, faced Melbourne Magistrates' Court on Monday, pleading guilty to trafficking meth and GHB. Police arrested the 28-year-old on March 1 after he was found sleeping inside a stolen Audi Q5 in Richmond. Officers searched the car and found in the boot a gym bag filled with meth, vials of GHB and counterfeit cash. Mabilia was charged and released on bail after pleading guilty to possessing counterfeit currency. On March 17, police again found Mabilia in another stolen car at The Basin and was caught with two knives, scales, dexamphetamine, meth, an imitation firearm and 1,4-Butanediol. Mabilia pleaded guilty to drug and weapon possession, as well as possessing property reasonably suspected of being stolen - which included a silver necklace and a box containing nine opals. His defence lawyer told the court Mabilia did not know the car was stolen as it was given to him by a friend so that he could live in the vehicle, the Herald Sun reported. Jess Mabilia, 28, made headlines after his mugshot went viral The court also heard Mabilia planned to leave his life of crime and work with his dad as a painter in Wonthaggi once he is released from jail. The father-of-two, who grew up in Frankston, had multiple previous convictions and had slipped into drug use after he broke up with his partner. He was sentenced to 113 days - almost four months - of time served in pre-sentencing custody and was released on a 12 month community corrections order with a conviction. Mabilia avoided an eight-month jail sentence by pleading guilty to all charges. The 28-year-old ignited social media after Victorian Police issued a public appeal to find him as he was wanted on a warrant for contravening court orders. Police shared Mabilia's mugshot and described him as '185cm tall with a medium build, blue eyes and dark hair'. The 28-year-old was wanted on a warrant for contravening court orders. He pleaded guilty to a slew of offences and was sentenced to time-served along with a 12 month community corrections order Social media users flooded the post with comments about Mabilia's striking good looks Social media users flooded the Facebook post, with many commenting on Mabilia's striking good looks. 'Are you trying to lock him up or hook him up,' one person commented. 'Charged with breaking and entering the hearts of single mother's on Facebook,' a second person wrote. 'He's probably just busy signing contracts with Vogue magazine and is on his way right now and be in season two of Bridgeton as Simon Hastings half-brother,' a third chimed. A fourth added: 'Is he on Tinder or Grindr? Asking for a friend,' while a fifth person said she 'hoped to find him on Tinder before the authorities find him'. Others claimed Mabilia's handsome features resembled celebrities including musician John Mayer and actor Robert Pattinson. The post even reached international waters, with women across the ditch in New Zealand offering to harbour him as a fugitive. Tensions are rising over plans for a KFC to be built in a hipster suburb, as locals fear the street's once diverse character is being overwhelmed by chicken shops. The fast-food giant is planning to open a new restaurant opposite the Newtown Hotel on King Street, in the Sydney's inner west. It would be the sixth chicken shop within a 100-metre radius of El Jannah Chicken, Broaster Chicken, Clem's, Ogalo Newtown, and Gami Chicken. Local restaurant owners fear the area is becoming oversaturated with chicken restaurants, questioning whether there is really the need for another. Chef Fabio Stefanelli, from Italian restaurant La Favola, said he has seen lots of chicken restaurants come and go over the years. 'We need more diversity and variety a mix of cuisines but now when you walk down King St every second shop is a chicken shop,' he told the Daily Telegraph. 'People want to come to Newtown because it's supposed to be different and have variety but it's become boring. 'I think the reason there are so many is because everyone loves fried chicken and also it's cheap and easy for restaurants to produce.' The fast-food giant KFC is planning to open a new restaurant opposite the Newtown Hotel on King Street, in the city's inner-west If the proposal is greenlit, the $638,000 fast food restaurant would open at the site which was previously occupied by Indian restaurant Kammadhenu If the proposal is greenlit, the $638,000 fast food restaurant would open at the site which was previously occupied by Indian restaurant Kammadhenu. According to planning documents lodged with the City of Sydney, the development would involve adapting the current building with new signage, kitchen spaces, a self-service kiosk, and seating. 'The activation of the currently vacant premises will contribute to the ongoing vibrancy, vitality and the economic and commercial longevity of the King Street Local Centre,' the application read. 'The premise is within an accessible area being located within 800 metres of Newtown Railway Station, situated along King Street regularly serviced by buses and within the vicinity of key community and social infrastructure.' The KFC would be open from 10am to 11pm on Sundays to Thursdays and 10am to 2am on Fridays and Saturdays. Daily Mail Australia contacted KFC for comment. A five hour manhunt has ended in the arrest of a man after a young woman was allegedly stabbed to death. Emergency services were called to a unit complex on the Great Western Highway at Kingswood in Sydney's west at about 1.40pm. A woman, 21, found with two stab wounds to her chest died at the scene, despite desperate attempts by paramedics to revive her. NSW Police launched a search for a man allegedly seen fleeing the scene. Following extensive inquiries, police arrested a 22-year-old man a few kilometres away in Derby Street, Penrith. He was taken to Penrith Police Station, where he is assisting police with inquiries. Earlier at a press conference, Detective Superintendent Trent King said the man was last seen on foot running from the unit complex. Its believed the man and woman were known to each other. Emergency services were called to a unit complex on the Great Western Highway at Kingswood, at 1.40pm on Monday A crime scene has been established as detectives launched an investigation A 21-year-old woman was found with two stab wounds to her chest at a unit complex in Sydney's west 'It's alleged that a 21-year-old male in a domestic relationship with this person is the perpetrator of this incident and had caused those injuries to the female, he is now wanted in relation to her death,' Supt King said. 'We do know who he is, however, at this stage, the investigation is very early on, and there are further processes to be completed before I can release any further details in relation to him. The woman is yet to be formally identified and a report will be prepared for the coroner. A crime scene has been established with detectives launching an investigation. Superintendent King said the woman was living in a share house arrangement with other people. He added that neither the victim or the man were known to police for domestic violence related incidents. Nepean Police officers were at the scene within minutes of the incident Police launched an urgent search for a man seen fleeing from the scene A man has been bitten in a shark attack at a picturesque remote beach 1200km north of Perth, just days after locals had been warned of increased danger. Ambulance services raced to Fourteen Mile Beach, on Western Australia's northwest coast, to reports of the shark attack about 11am on Monday. They found a male victim who had been mauled by an unknown species of shark and rushed him to a nursing post for treatment at Coral Bay, about 40km north. A WA Country Health Service spokesperson confirmed the victim is in a stable condition. It came just hours after authorities issued a warning about sharks in the area following the discovery of a whale carcass off nearby Point Cloates. Parks and Wildlife Service officers advised beachgoers in the Point Cloates area to be wary of taking to the water as the carcass could attract sharks. Swimmers near Fourteen Mile Beach have now also been urged to 'take additional caution' when near the coast and to 'be aware of any signage and beach closures'. Just 10 minutes prior to the attack, a shark estimated to be about 4m-long of an unknown species was spotted off the coast of Exmouth, according to SharkSmart. More to follow A man has been rushed to hospital after being attacked by a shark off the coast of Fourteen Mile Beach, south of Coral Bay in WA (pictured), about 11am on Monday Millions of Britons are planning to 'work from the beach' this summer as they take advantage of policies that allow them to do their jobs while out of the office. It is thought that more than six million plan to use the flexibility to do their jobs while on holiday, with some using it as a chance to spend more time abroad than they would have otherwise. However, people grasping the opportunity with both hands to travel abroad and do their job at the same time could find themselves in hot water with their colleagues who are still working in the office. A study has found that one in five staff get frustrated when they find out some of their co-workers are logging on to virtual meetings from the beach or beside the pool. Meanwhile, nearly a quarter of staff have voiced their concerns that those who are abroad are not being as productive as workers who are still in the office. Research has found that up to six million British workers plan to do their jobs while abroad this summer. Pictured: A woman works on her laptop while sat at a table overlooking a sandy beach The research, which was commissioned by price comparison website MoneySuperMarket, also found that a quarter of office-based workers said their colleagues abroad missed deadlines because of time-zone differences. The rise of remote work policies skyrocketed during the Covid pandemic as lockdowns and self-isolation policies forced employers to allow people to do their jobs from home. Since then many firms have kept these in place for fear of staff deciding to leave if they are forced back into the office, and now a third of the UK workforce is now employed by companies that allow them to do their jobs from home. The study work-from-anywhere policies made staff more likely to stay with their employer, while a third said they thought it increased productivity, in contrast to the quarter of staff who though it caused a hit to productivity. The boss of one marketing company said that far from just working from home, she encourages her staff to work abroad for at least one month a year. Natasha Hatherall Shawe, whose firm TishTash has offices in Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Britain, told The Times she valued giving her employees 'freedom to work from anywhere'. She told the publication: 'If you don't trust them to be productive regardless of location, then you shouldn't have hired them in the first place. 'Businesses also need to adapt to evolving work habits. I've found our Gen Z team members in particular value the flexibility to work abroad, prioritising work-life balance and the chance to travel.' The study found that nearly a fifth of workers get frustrated when logging on to virtual meetings to find colleagues working from abroad Debbie Crosbie - who was appointed CEO of Nationwide at the end of 2021 - dramatically axed the building society's work from anywhere policy last year Despite the apparent popularity of remote working, many employers have been reluctant to embrace it, with fears it could lead to poor communication and lack of teamwork. A top figure at MONY Group, which owns MoneySuperMarket, said that despite these worries it also offered staff the ability to work from abroad if they wish. Lisa Townsend, chief people officer, said: 'We allow our team to work from a different location once or twice a year. 'We know some people use the time to experience new cultures or to visit loved ones, while it allows others to better balance work and home life.' However, some firms have decided to push back against the apparent march towards remote working policies. Last year Nationwide Building Society scrapped its work from anywhere policy and ordered staff back to the office two days a week. Its new CEO Debbie Crosbie said she wanted staff to work 40 per cent of their full-time shifts from the office, a departure from the policy of her predecessor which was put in place due to Covid. In a staff magazine before Christmas, the company said: 'Requirement to work from Nationwide premises has always been a contractual obligation. 'The Society will be monitoring data on access to offices to understand site utilisation and identify non-compliance with the minimum requirement. 'However, the society has given us an assurance that such data will only be used to inform discussions, and not as an absolute measure of compliance.' Brussels, Belgium (PANA) - Last month was the hottest June since records began and the thirteenth month in a row to set a temperature record, according to new data released on Monday from the European Unions Copernicus Climate Change Service A driver has been killed following a horror crash between a ute and truck that sent both vehicles careening off the road. Emergency services received reports of a two-car crash on the Mid-Western Highway in Carcoar, south-west of Bathurst in NSW, at about 1:25pm on Monday. A man, aged in his 60s, was found dead at the scene. He had been driving the ute with a trailer attached to the back of it. The driver of a Pantech truck, which was towing a horse float, was not injured in the crash while two passengers, a boy and a girl, received minor injuries. The Mid-Western Highway has been closed to heavy vehicles between Mandurama and Blayney as police launch an investigation into the collision. While light vehicles are still permitted, drivers have been urged to allow extra travel time as diversions and hazardous road conditions remain in place. Police will prepare a report for the Coroner. Anyone with information or dashcam footage related to the crash has been urged to contact police. A driver has died and another has escaped injury after a ute and a truck collided on an outback highway in Carcour, southwest of Bathurst, on Monday afternoon (pictured) Welsh leaders will roll out the red carpet for King Charles and Queen Camilla as the royal couple mark the 25th anniversary of the Senedd. The 75-year-old monarch and Camilla, 76, will be greeted with a Guard of Honour by The Royal Welsh when they arrive at the parliament building in Cardiff on Thursday. It will be the first time His Majesty will have seen the military unit since he was appointed their Colonel-in-Chief on St David's Day on March 1. Primary schoolchildren from schools across Wales, a civic line-up, the Llywydd, presiding officer, Elin Jones and Vaughan Gething, the First Minister of Wales, will also greet the royal couple. The King's harpist, Mared Pugh-Evans, will play in her first performance since being appointed in her new position as Charles and Camilla enter the Siambr - the debating chamber. The country holds a special place for Charles with him previously being the Prince of Wales for 64 years. In his last visit to the Senedd in September 2022, he gave a historic speech in Welsh and spoke of how close Wales was to his mother's heart as he received a motion of condolence following the death of Queen Elizabeth II. Welsh leaders will today roll out the red carpet for King Charles and Queen Camilla as the royal couple mark the 25th anniversary of the Senedd (Charles and Camilla visit the Senedd in 2022) Charles and Camilla last visited the Senedd in September 2022 (pictured), receiving a motion of condolence following the death of the late Queen The Llywydd will make opening remarks, followed by Mr Gething and the party leaders. Two poems written by Aron Pritchard will then be performed, one written when he was a school pupil to mark the first official opening of the then National Assembly in 1999 and a new one written for this event - Mr Pritchard is now a member of staff at the Senedd. A choir from a local primary school, Ysgol Treganna, will also perform. The King will then give a speech, marking the 25th anniversary of the Senedd, after which the Llywydd will close the session. Entering the Cwrt, Charles and Camilla will be introduced to members of Senedd staff who have worked at the parliament for 25 years, or who are 25 years old. They will also meet members of the Senedd. Before leaving, the King and Queen will have the opportunity to meet members of the community who have contributed to key moments in the Senedd's history, including the petitioner who successfully started a campaign for carrier bag charges, and Welsh Youth Parliament representatives. King Charles, with the Queen Consort, speaking after receiving a Motion of Condolence at the Senedd in Cardiff in 2022 The 75-year-old monarch and Camilla, 76, will be greeted with a Guard of Honour by The Royal Welsh when they arrive at the parliament building in Cardiff (Pictured leaving the Senedd in 2022) It will be the first time His Majesty will have seen the military unit since he was appointed their Colonel-in-Chief on St David's Day on March 1 (Pictured greeting the public in Cardiff in 2022) Charles waves as Camilla smiles as the couple attend the ceremonial opening of the sixth Senedd Charles listens as he receives a Motion of Condolence at the Senedd in 2022 following the death of Queen Elizabeth II The Any Body Can Choir will perform in the background, which is made up of children who would not ordinarily get the opportunity to try musical activities. Charles and Camilla last visited the Senedd in September 2022, receiving a motion of condolence following the death of the late Queen. They also visited the Senedd in October 2021 with the late Queen. The visit marked the opening ceremony of the sixth session of the Senedd. Throughout this year, the Senedd will be celebrating and reflecting on its 25 years and looking to the future. Planned activities include an exhibition, in partnership with the National Library of Wales Political Archives, displaying items from key milestones in the past 25 years, and an exhibition featuring members of the community who have contributed to the Senedd's story so far. Last week Charles and Camilla appeared to be in high spirits as the sipped a glass of whisky during a visit to Edinburgh. King Charles and Queen Camilla raised a glass of Duncan Taylor whisky to mark the 900th anniversary of the City of Edinburgh last week Her Majesty, 76, appeared to take a liking to the Scottish whisky, which has its origins in Glasgow 75-year-old King Charles similarly appeared to enjoy the afternoon tipple in Edinburgh Castle The Queen sipped a 52-year-old liquor and agreed 'that hits the spot' as she joined her husband to celebrate the city's 900th birthday. The monarch, wearing his King Charles III Tartan Kilt, also took part in a short Ceremony of The Key as he was welcomed inside the castle. The City of Edinburgh Band played a specially written piece of music composed by PMaj Lowther of Queen Victoria School called 'King Charles III Welcome to Edinburgh Castle' as the royals were driven up the hill Crown Square. A brisk wind whipped round the castle amid brief rain showers and Camilla was heard saying: 'I'm hanging onto my umbrella.' Charles told one guest: 'I hope you don't get blown away'. A mother who admitted to killing her terminally ill child with a large dose of morphine in 1981 has died after her own cancer battle. Antonya Cooper, 77, from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, died over the weekend after fighting incurable breast, pancreatic and liver cancer. Last week, Ms Cooper spoke out for the first time to reveal how, in 1981, she had given her seven-year-old son the drug to stop his suffering and 'quietly end his life'. Ms Cooper, the former chair of Neuroblastoma UK, said Hamish had been 'in a lot of pain' and was 'facing the most horrendous suffering'. She said she was 'willing to face the consequences' of a murder or manslaughter charge and shortly after, Thames Valley Police announced it had launched a probe into the case. In a statement to the BBC, Mrs Cooper's daughter said she passed away at home surrounded by family and it was 'peaceful' and 'pain free'. Tabitha said: 'It was exactly the way she wanted it. She lived life on her terms and she died on her terms.' Antonya Cooper with her son Hamish following his bone marrow autograft in 1980 Mrs Cooper's son Hamish is pictured smiling in late 1974 She said Hamish was facing unimaginable suffering and was in 'intense pain' while battling his stage 4 cancer before his death in 1981 Patriotic Hamish, with a Union flag on his hospital bed. He spent 16 months undergoing 'beastly' cancer treatment at Great Ormond Street hospital after being diagnosed, aged five When she spoke out last week, just days before she passed away, Mrs Cooper opened up at length about her son's heartbreaking story. She said Hamish was 'telling me he was in pain and asking me if I could remove his pain' and that as a mother, she was 'not going to let him suffer'. The brave youngster had been battling neuroblastoma - a rare cancer that affects children - since the age of five and had been given just three months to live. Some 16 months of 'beastly' cancer treatment at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital had left him in constant agony. Ms Cooper added: 'It was the right thing to do. My son was facing the most horrendous suffering and intense pain, I was not going to allow him to go through that.' Antonya Cooper among bluebells in Bagley Wood in April 2024 BBC Radio Oxford asked Antonya if she understood she was potentially admitting to manslaughter or murder, and she replied: 'Yes' (Pictured: Hamish in Pembrokeshire with his granny in 1974) 'On Hamish's last night, when he said he was in a lot of pain, I said: 'Would you like me to remove the pain?' and he said: 'Yes please, mama',' Mrs Cooper told BBC Radio Oxford. 'And through his Hickman Catheter, external, I gave him a large dose of morphine that did quietly end his life.' Discussing her decision last May she added: 'We had watched him brave through all that beastly treatment, we had had him for longer than the original prognosis, so the time was right.' The dying 77-year-old was asked by BBC Radio Oxford if she believed her son knew she was intending to take his life. Mrs Cooper said that she would have honest conversations with Hamish and his sister Tabitha, (left) who were 'thick as thieves', about the 'probability of his not surviving' 'I feel very strongly that at the point of Hamish telling me he was in pain, and asking me if I could remove his pain, he knew, he knew somewhere what was going to happen,' she replied. 'But I cannot obviously tell you why or how, but I was his mother, he loved his mother, and I totally loved him, and I was not going to let him suffer, and I feel he really knew where he was going.' Mrs Cooper's admission came as she fought to change the law on assisted dying. Assisted suicide - the act of intentionally helping someone to end their life - and euthanasia - the deliberate ending of a person's life - are both illegal in the UK. Hamish died at home on December 1, 1981. In 1979, after his fifth birthday, Hamish started crying in pain and losing weight and with her mother's instinct, Antonya knew he was 'seriously ill'. But it took 13 weeks of visits to seven different GPs before she decided to take Hamish to see a private paediatrician at the John Radcliffe Hospital and even then, she was told there was 'nothing wrong'. Mrs Cooper spoke out about how she gave Hamish a 'large dose' of morphine to 'quietly end his life' Antonya 'insisted' on further examinations, including blood tests and an X-ray and it later transpired that Hamish had a grapefruit-sized tumour within his abdomen, namely stage 4 neuroblastoma. Hamish was then transferred to Great Ormond Street Hospital (GOSH), where he underwent chemotherapy, a bone marrow autograft, radiotherapy, and surgery to remove the cancerous tissue, which had shrunk to the size of a tangerine. His prognosis was three months and he subsequently underwent 16 months of treatment at GOSH, which 'ruined parts of his body' but extended his life. Antonya said she would have honest conversations with Hamish and his sister Tabitha, who were 'thick as thieves', about the 'probability of his not surviving'. While Hamish did not ask about death directly, there came a point later on where, in answer to one of his questions, Antonya said to him: 'Yes, Hamish, you probably will die.' This was incredibly challenging, but after his treatments ended, he returned to school, his hair started to regrow, and in the summer of 1981, the family enjoyed holidays by the sea. In the autumn, however, Hamish took a knock on one of his ankles and developed septic arthritis, which led to biopsies being taken and these later revealed that his cancer had 'returned with a vengeance'. At this point, Mrs Cooper said they 'knew that was the final journey' and, after receiving palliative care at home and being given morphine sulphate, Hamish died on December 1 1981. After Ms Cooper shared her story, Thames Valley Police launched an investigation. A spokesperson from the police force said last week: 'Thames Valley Police is aware of reports relating to an apparent case of assisted dying of a seven-year-old boy, in 1981. 'At this early stage, the force is making enquiries into these reports and is not in a position to comment further while these investigations continue.' Emmanuel Macron has traded one nightmare for another, preventing Marine Le Pen's hard-right National Rally from winning France's parliamentary elections yesterday but instead paving the way for a hard-left alliance to emerge victorious. France's political landscape was plunged into turmoil after a stunning election race resulted in a hung parliament - and a man Macron sees as a left-wing extremist is now baying for his blood. Defying the predictions of political experts, French polls and the world's media, the New Popular Front alliance (NFP) - led by Jean-Luc Melenchon and his France Unbowed party (LFI) - came from behind to eke out a victory with 182 seats in parliament ahead of President Macron's centrist 'Together' coalition on 168. The hard-right National Rally (RN) ended up in third place with just 143 seats, despite having led the race convincingly after the first round of elections just one week ago. This means the overwhelming majority of seats are now split between three factions, all of which harbour very different ideas about the future of France with little interest in forming a coalition. Macron is now seeking to capitalise on the chaos, refusing the resignation of his protege Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and instructing him to stay in place as the government sits in limbo. Such chaos is reflected on the streets of France where thousands upon thousands of protesters violently clashed with riot police, set fire to electric bikes, threw flares and smashed up property - a mere three weeks before Paris is set to host the Olympic Games. Emmanuel Macron avoided that which he feared the most in France's stunning parliamentary elections yesterday as Marine Le Pen's hard-right National Rally failed to scoop an absolute majority, instead suffering a shock defeat Defying the predictions of political experts, French polls and the world's media, the New Popular Front alliance (NFP) - led by Jean-Luc Melenchon (left) - came from behind to eke out a victory with 182 seats in parliament Melenchon, who is often compared to former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, promised to increase public spending by at least 150billion within the next five years, which will be financed by increasing taxes French riot police stand in position near burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators following partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 A crowd of demonstrators gather on the Republic square in Paris to celebrate the victory of the left-wing NFP alliance Your browser does not support iframes. PARIS: A protester throws a projectile near burning bicycles during clashes with police after the exit polls Macron is now seeking to capitalise on the chaos, refusing the resignation of his protege Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (pictured) and instructing him to stay in place as the government is left in limbo A man places an uprooted plant on a pile of burning e-bikes during a protest following the legislative election results on July 8, 2024 in Paris, France People gather in front of 'Le Monument a la Republique' statue during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 Demonstrators shout with joy to celebrate the victory of the new popular front. Participants gathered during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024 People against the hard-right RN party celebrate during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris, France, on July 7, 2024 PARIS: French CRS riot police run past burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators People celebrate during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 Protesters clash with police in Paris late last night In a stunning example of political conniving, last week saw Macron's centrists and members of the NFP work together to block a hard-right majority. More than 200 left-wing or centrist candidates withdrew after the first round to avoid splitting votes, building a united Republican front to crush RN hopes of an absolute majority. But Macron's hope that his decision to call snap elections would give France a 'moment of clarification' has done exactly the opposite, as all three main political blocs fell far far short of the 289 seats needed to control the 577-seat National Assembly. Formed just last month, the NFP brings together socialists, greens, communists and the hard-left into one super-camp - with the leader of the radical left, Jean-Luc Melenchon, vowing to implement several socialist policies that critics fear will leave France 'ungovernable'. Melenchon, who is often compared to former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, promised to increase public spending by at least 150billion within the next five years, which will be financed by increasing taxes. The hard-left leader, who has previously been accused of antisemitism, also said he would raise the minimum wage by 14 per cent, introduce a ban on price increases of essential goods and reduce the state pension age from 64 to just 60. While the NFP secured the most seats in parliament, it does not have anywhere near enough seats for a majority and the lack of such for any single alliance means Melenchon cannot form a government alone. Instead, he will be forced to negotiate with other parties in the hopes of organising a coalition government. But leader of the centrists Macron has already labelled him an extremist - and it is almost impossible to imagine a scenario in which the despondent and crestfallen RN agrees to enter into government with an alliance on the opposite side of the political spectrum. With the government now in deadlock as the parties squabble over who will lead, Macron today declared that Attal will remain in place as Prime Minister. But he will have his work cut out to do what Macron requested of him upon his appointment seven months ago - 'to ensure the stability of the country'. Macron's outgoing finance minister Bruno Le Maire celebrated the loss of the hard-right, but warned France could now risk a financial crisis if warring parties cannot come to an agreement and form a coalition in short order. 'The most immediate risk is a financial crisis and France's economic decline,' he said. 'The second risk is an ideological fracture of the nation,' he added. Founder of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon gestures following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad in Paris on July 7, 2024 PARIS: Around 30,000 riot police have been deployed in France amid fears of violence breaking out PARIS: Hundreds of people gathered together after exit polls predicted that a left-wing alliance was leading PARIS: French riot police were armed with batons and shields as they tried to tackle the violence PARIS: Firefighters extinguishe burning bikes during a gathering for the election night PARIS: The far-Right National Rally are predicted to come third - despite leading after the first polls PARIS: A protester kicks back a tear gas canister as clashes occur in the French capital PARIS: French riot police clash with activists on Sunday night PARIS: Anti-riot police officers stand next to a burning pole during a gathering NANTES: A demonstrator throws a smoke flare during reactions to projected results NANTES: Protesters launch molotov cocktails at riot police in western France PARIS: Demonstrators launch fireworks on the outskirts of the French capital NANTES: Masked protesters clash with anti riot police after the second round of elections NANTES: Furious protesters took to the streets after the second round of elections Marine Le Pen's (pictured) hopes of forming France's first hard-right government since the War have been dashed after a left-wing coalition took the most seats in the second round of the legislative election, exit polls predict Supporters of The Ecologists-EELV green party celebrate following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 The New Popular Front (NFP) alliance was on course to have 172-215 MPs with Emmanuel Macron's (pictured) centrists on 150-180 seats and the far-right National Rally (RN) on 115-155, according to projections by four leading polling firms In a sombre speech after the second-round legislative election, Jordan Bardella, the president of the far right RN, denounced the political manoeuvering that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations. An unprecedented number of candidates who qualified for the runoff stepped aside to allow an opponent to go head-to-head with the National Rally candidate, increasing the chances of defeating them. Despite projections widely considered disappointing for the anti-immigration, nationalist party, it still increased its seat count in parliament to an unprecedented high. 'Tonight, by deliberately taking the responsibility to paralyse our institutions, Emmanuel Macron... is consequently depriving the French people of any responses to their daily problems for many months to come,' Bardella said. Hard-left Melenchon, 72, giving his first reaction, called on French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to resign and said the left-wing coalition was ready to govern. 'The French people have voted with a conscience,' said Melenchon, a former presidential candidate and one of the main leaders of the NPF. 'Our people have clearly ruled out the worst solution to our problems.' Melenchon welcomed 'a result that had seemed impossible', adding: 'This evening the RN is far from having an absolute majority. This is a huge relief for millions of people who make up the new France.' MARSEILLE: People light flares as they celebrate the election results in France PARIS: Protesters occupy the Place de la Republique after the exit poll results were announced NANTES: Riot police officers charge at protesters during a demonstration PARIS: Several e-bikes were lit on fire near the Place de la Republique PARIS: Anti-riot police officers detain a protester during a gathering for the election night PARIS: People gather at the Place de la Republique after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections NANTES: An injured riot police officer is dragged away by colleagues amid the violence PARIS: An activist is detained by police in Paris on a night which descended into chaos NANTES: Protesters use umbrellas as they clash with riot police NANTES: A protester lets off a flare as he hides behind the cover of an umbrella NANTES: An injured riot police officer in western France NANTES: Police chase demonstrators during reactions to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections PARIS: Protesters have taken over the memorial on the Place de la Republique in the capital A supporter of the left wing coalition Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) gives the middle finger and holds a flare as she celebrates after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Rennes on July 7, 2024 Supporters of French far-left opposition party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) react after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections at Place Stalingrad in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French left-wing Socialist Party (PS) watch a screen displaying the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 PARIS: People stand in Republique Plaza as they react to the projection of results during the second round of the legislative elections PARIS: French police stand in position behind flares during clashes with demonstrators as people gather at the Place de la Republique after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections NANTES: Demonstrators set off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections RENNES: Tear gas has been deployed as rioters clash with security forces following an election night event after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election NANTES: Police chase demonstrators during reactions to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections RENNES: A photographer takes pictures of tear gas during clashes with security forces following an election night event after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election PARIS: Supporters light red flares during the election night of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad LYON: Demonstrators light off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections People deploy a giant national flag reading 'France is the fabric of migration' and a banner reading 'stop genocide' during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 A participant stands among anti-fascist symbols during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024 People celebrate after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Marseille on July 7, 2024 Macron will now attend this month's landmark NATO summit in Washington a diminished figure, with France left without a stable ruling majority less than three weeks before Paris hosts the Olympics. The snap elections in this nuclear-armed nation have potential impact on the war in Ukraine, global diplomacy and Europe's economic stability - and the results are almost certain to undermine Macron's power and influence for the remaining three years of his presidency. The election campaign, the shortest in French history, has been marked by a febrile national mood, threats and violence - including racist abuse - against dozens of candidates and canvassers. Turnout was high, with left-wing and centrist candidates urging supporters to defend democratic values and the rule of law - while the far right scented a chance to upend the established order. By 5pm local time, according to interior ministry figures, some 61.4 percent of voters had turned out - the most since 1981. An outright RN victory would have seen Macron forced into an uneasy cohabitation with Bardella as prime minister for the remaining three years of his term. Even without that scenario, France is left with a hung parliament with a large eurosceptic, anti-immigration contingent. This would have weakened France's international standing and threaten Western unity in the face of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 'Even if the right extreme less strong than expected, the country is more divided than ever,' Armin Steinbach, European economist and professor at Business School HEC Paris, said. 'Centre parties have lost compared to the last election in 2022. Extreme parties, from the left and right, have gained. The country is polarised.' PARIS: People light up the sky with fireworks as protesters gather on the Place de la Republique NANTES: Riot police arrest a protester who is holding their hands up in surrender Rioters in Paris set off flares as thousands took to the streets to celebrate or protest the election results Hundreds of riot police officers were deployed all over Paris to patrol the streets ahead of expected riots Shops in Paris were boarded up ahead of the expected protests in the French capital on July 7, 2024 People react to the projection of results for the second round of the legislative elections, Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Nantes, western France Jordan Bardella, President of the French far-right Rassemblement National (National Rally - RN) party, delivers a speech on stage after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 High street stores across Paris were seen boarding up this morning ahead of the second round of parliamentary voting amid fears of protests Several central areas within Paris are concerned with the possibility of protests erupting, including Rue de Rivoli, the Opera area, and the Champs-Elysees Supporters of the left wing coalition Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) celebrate after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Rennes on July 7, 2024 France's Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (L) gives a speech following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Matignon in Paris on July 7, 2024 Demonstrators light off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections, in Lyon, central France, Sunday, July 7, 2024 In a somber speech after the second-round legislative election, Jordan Bardella (pictured), the president of the far right RN, denounced the political maneuvering that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations Far-right National Rally party leader Marine Le Pen answers reporters after the second round of the legislative election, Sunday, July 7, 2024 at the party election night headquarters in Paris Hard-left France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon (right), giving his first reaction, called on French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to resign and said the left-wing coalition was ready to govern French far-right Rassemblement National (RN) political party MP for Pas-de-Calais Marine Le Pen during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of French parliamentary legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French left-wing Socialist Party (PS) react following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French far-right Rassemblement National (National Rally - RN) party hold French flags as they react after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the RN in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (pictured) said he would offer Macron his resignation on Monday but was ready to serve 'as long as duty demands', notably in light of the imminent Games Partcipants react as they listen to the announcement of the projected results of the second round of France's crunch legislative elections during a rally in Nantes, western France on July 7, 2024 Rassemblement National militants during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 Supporters the French Left wing coaltion parties 'Le Nouveau Front Populaire' (The new Popular Front in French) react after the second round of thelegislative elections results at Place d ela Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 He added: 'A deadlock is the most likely outcome because of the lack of majority in parliament. A quick solution within days is unlikely. 'France has no political culture to make coalitions and compromises, like Germany or Italy. That is why it feels like a crisis for the French.' EU officials, already learning to deal with far-right parties in power in Italy and the Netherlands and frustrated by Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, are watching France closely. With the country on tenterhooks, last week saw more than 200 tactical-voting pacts between centre and left wing candidates in seats to attempt to prevent the RN winning an absolute majority. This has been hailed as a return of the anti-far right 'Republican Front' first summoned when Le Pen's father Jean-Marie faced Jacques Chirac in the run-off of 2002 presidential elections. The question for France now is if this last-ditch alliance of last resort can now support a stable government, dogged by a huge RN bloc in parliament led by Le Pen herself as she prepares a 2027 presidential bid. If no coalition emerges, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal could try to lead a minority government as, under French rules, the president can not dissolve parliament again and call a fresh poll for 12 months. Supporters of The Ecologists-EELV green party celebrate following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 Rassemblement National militants during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 People react to the projection of results after the second round of the legislative elections, Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Nantes, western France France's President Emmanuel Macron (R), flanked by his wife Brigitte Macron (L), exits a polling booth, adorned with curtains displaying the colors of the flag of France, to vote in the second round of France's legislative election at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France on July 7, 2024 People deploy a giant national flag reading 'France is the fabric of migration' during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 France's President Emmanuel Macron votes in the second round of France's legislative election at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France on July 7, 2024 A barricade burned as protesters demonstrated against the French far-right National Rally party Anti-riot police officers pushed back protesters on Paris streets following the first round of voting on June 30 'France is on the cusp of a seismic political shift,' said analysts at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), warning of 'legislative gridlock' that would weaken 'France's voice on the European and international stage'. Professor Steinbach said that two main scenarios are possible now: 'Firstly, a minority government by the left-wing block because as the 'winner' they have the legitimacy to form a government. 'With this result, there'll be no Macronist prime minister, hence a Cohabitation. Much depends on whether the NFP will stay united and not break up in old conflicts. 'They could in next days propose a moderate left-wing PM candidate. Francois Holland could be such candidate. 'Secondly, Macron's party and Republicans form a coalition as a minority government. This would be very unpopular and may trigger protests because he clearly lost the election.' A couple who bought a plot of land in the hope it would be worth more than $5.5million to fund their retirement have lost a legal battle with Transport for NSW after their rural acreage was swallowed by the Pacific Highway upgrade for a fraction of the price. Raymond and Wendy Dibb bought 2.7hectares at Korora, on the outskirts of Coffs Harbour on the NSW north coast, for $118,000 in 1988 with a plan to subdivide it into 26 lots and sell it off in years to come. They planned to fund the development with a credit loan from their eldest son, who co-founded a gold mining company in Africa. The land speculation looked set to pay off when in 1996 when Coffs Harbour Council rezoned the land as residential, which paved the way for redevelopment. But five years later, the NSW government urged the council against rezoning the land until the new route for the Pacific Highway was decided. Transport for NSW compulsorily acquired the land in 2021, valuing it at $1.062million - five times less than the couple's estimate. The Dibbs took Transport for NSW to court, arguing it was really worth $5.5million, but lost the case at the end of June with the court awarding them just $1.359million in compensation. 'This was a pretty significant financial transaction thats really gone bad for us,' a devastated Raymond Dibb told the Sydney Morning Herald. Raymond and Wendy Dibb bought 2.7hectares at Korora, on the outskirts of Coffs Harbour, for $118,000 in 1988 with with a plan to subdivide it into 26 lots and sell it off in years to come The Pacific Highway bypass near Coffs Harbour is expected to open to traffic in late 2026. Pictured are current works between Bruxner Park Road and West Korora Road 'And its got nothing to do with our investment choices. 'Were talking about landowners just minding their own business, and someone comes knocking on your door, saying "we're going to take your land".' Mr Dibb said that most landowners settled with the government 'with a gun to their head' at much lower prices than their land was worth. He claimed that Transport for NSW originally offered the couple just $470,000 for their land five years ago. 'I cant let this go because we're talking millions of dollars,' Mr Dibb said. 'We could have resolved this much earlier if it was only about the self-interest aspect, but the number of people Ive spoken to over the years (whose land was affected by the bypass), you would break down and cry if you heard their stories.' Mr Dibb said he was considering whether to take the case to the High Court. The Pacific Highway is Australia's largest road infrastructure project, costing $2.2billion The Pacific Highway is Australia's largest road infrastructure project, costing $2.2billion. The Dibbs' plot of land will be the site of a major intersection when the bypass opens to traffic in late 2026. A Transport for NSW Spokesperson said it 'empathises with residents and landowners affected by property acquisitions'. 'When planning for major infrastructure projects, we always try to minimise the need for property acquisition,' they added. 'Transport for NSW is committed to working collaboratively with property owners to enable the majority of land acquisition requirements to be completed by agreement, rather than a compulsory process. 'Wherever possible, Transport for NSW seeks to complete property acquisition by a negotiated agreement. All Transport for NSW offers to landholders are based on an independent valuation. 'Where a negotiated agreement cannot be reached, the property is compulsorily acquired in accordance with the Land Acquisition (Just Terms Compensation) Act 1991. 'When this happens, the Valuer-General, who is independent of Transport for NSW, is engaged.' Were you a passenger on the Ryanair flight RUK3034 from Morocco to London on Wednesday? Contact chris.jewers@mailonline.co.uk to share your story A mass brawl broke out on a Ryanair flight from Morocco to London last week forcing the plane to divert just 36 minutes into the journey. Video from the cabin shows passengers screaming at each other in a row that was reportedly sparked when a family asked to swap seats. Visibly flustered cabin crew are seen trying to calm the passengers down as the plane soars at 30,000 feet. The plane was travelling from Agadir to London Stansted on Wednesday evening when a row broke out between two families as people boarded, one witness said. The passenger said a man, believed to be in his late 20s, asked another passenger to move so he could sit with his wife and children, according to The Sun. A mass brawl broke out on a Ryanair flight from Morocco to London last week forcing the plane to divert just 36 minutes into the journey, with footage capturing the chaos However, the other passenger - a woman who was sitting with her own daughter - reportedly refused to move for the man, who became angry at her. The witness said the irate man started threatening the women. Despite this, the plane took off with no issues, but as soon as the seat belt signs were turned off, the woman's husband - said to be in his 30s - leapt to his wife's defence. The two men threw punches at each other, the witness said, while Ryanair staff tried to intervene and bring an end to the fight. 'They were trying to punch each other,' a British passenger told The Sun anonymously, saying that this led to the mass brawl. 'One of the families was part of a larger group so other passengers started to join in. 'Then a lady in the row behind started to have a panic attack because of everything going on. She was screaming and there were kids crying. 'It was like a snowball effect,' the 36-year-old passenger said, describing the journey as a 'flight from hell'. 'It all escalated from that one passenger wanting to change seats,' they added. The plane was diverted and landed at Marrakech around 30 minutes after take off. Flight tracker website FlightAware showed the journey of flight RUK3034 as it took off from Agadir, a city on Morocco's southern Atlantic coast. Video from the cabin shows passengers screaming at each other in a row that was reportedly sparked when a family asked to swap seats Flight tracker website FlightAware showed the journey of flight RUK3034 as it took off from Agadir, a city on Morocco's southern Atlantic coast The radar map shows the aeroplane travelling north before making an abrupt turn east and landing in Marrakesh, 127 miles north-east of where it took off from The radar map shows the plane travelling north before making an abrupt turn east, before landing in Marrakesh, 127 miles north-east from where it took off from. Moroccan police met the plane and marched the nine people who were involved in the cabin scrap off the aircraft. To add to the chaos, another passenger fell ill amidst the fight and had to be given oxygen mid-flight. He was treated by medics who determined he was unfit to fly. The unwell man then became abusive towards the cabin crew and refused to disembark, with this also being captured by mobile phone footage. He can be heard saying that the crew 'think I'm a terrorist,' adding: 'that's why they're bringing the whole army here to take me down.' He is also heard threatening: 'Give me my f****** bag. I will whack your jaw bruv' as other passengers begged him to get off the plane. He was also removed by police. In the two hours that it took cabin crew and police to remove the disruptive passengers from the plane, the staff reached their maximum daily working hours. This meant that all passengers had to disembark the plane, were herded onto a bus, and taken to a hotel where they stayed the night. They were all booked onto another flight the following day, which was also cancelled, meaning they didn't arrive back to Stanstead until Thursday evening. In a statement to MailOnline, Ryanair confirmed the series of events and apologised for the 'diversion and subsequent delay caused by a small group of disruptive passengers' saying that this was out of the airline's control. 'This flight from Agadir to London Stansted (3 July) diverted to Marrakesh after a small group of passengers became disruptive, and during which time another passenger became ill onboard,' the statement said. 'Crew called ahead for both medical and police assistance, which met the aircraft upon arrival at Marrakesh. The small group of disruptive passengers were then removed from the aircraft by airport gendarmerie. 'The passenger who became ill was provided with oxygen onboard before being treated by airport medics, who determined he was not fit-to-fly. In a statement to MailOnline, Ryanair confirmed the series of events and apologised for the 'diversion and subsequent delay caused by a small group of disruptive passengers' 'This passenger refused to disembark and became abusive towards crew and was also removed from the aircraft by airport gendarmerie. 'As it took almost 2hrs in total to treat and offload these disruptive passengers, the crew reached their permitted flying hours and the flight was delayed overnight. Affected passengers were provided with overnight accommodation and transport to/from the airport. This flight departed to London the following day (4 July). 'We sincerely apologise to passengers for this diversion and subsequent delay caused by a small group of disruptive passengers, which was out of Ryanair's control,' the statement added. A schoolboy has been left in a vegetative state after he flipped off a pier and landed 'face first on the water'. Jack Dolan, 15, went to the beach for the first time by himself on June 23, and threw himself off Stone Pier in Margate, Kent. He had done the move dozens of times before, most recently on holiday in Egypt in September, but this time he landed head first on the water. The impact left Jack essentially brain dead - while his brain stem shows signs of activity and he is breathing for himself, the rest of his brain is severely damaged and he will not recover. Now, his stepfather Dave Dolan and mother Lisa are desperately fundraising to move house so they can bring Jack home to die. Jack Dolan, 15, went to the beach for the first time by himself on Sunday, June 23, and threw himself off Stone Pier in Margate, Kent He had done the move dozens of times before, most recently on holiday in Egypt in September (pictured), but this time he landed head first on the water The impact of the jump was so severe it knocked him unconscious and caused his brain to be damaged so badly scans show it is beyond repair Dave said the jump from the Stone Pier (pictured) was three or four metres high but if Jack had landed a quarter rotation one way or the other he would probably have been fine Dave, 35, who brought Jack up as his own, said the teen was essentially in a 'grey area' where experts don't know how long he will stay alive, saying it could be weeks or years. 'I think he misjudged it and he landed face first on the water and knocked himself out,' distraught Dave said. 'It was only three or four metres and if he'd landed a quarter rotation one way or the other he would probably have been fine. 'That's why we can't be angry at him. He'd done it so many times before, there is no blame. 'I know he was laughing, I can actually see him doing it, smiling and being a complete show off. 'The last thing he would have known was being happy.' It was the first time Jack had gone to the beach without his mum and dad as they were protective of him as he had ADHD and was liable to act without thinking. Now his stepdad Dave Dolan and mum Lisa (pictured) are desperately fundraising to move house so they can take Jack out of hospital and care for him themselves until he dies A tragic last picture shows Jack just half an hour before it happened, smiling as he arrives at Margate Station with a friend Jack had travelled to the popular Kent seaside town with friends, and they went to this pier to enjoy the sunshine Video footage from his holiday in Egypt in September shows him laughing and doing the same move off the side of a jetty 'It was the first time we'd let him,' Dave continued. 'We'd always said no because we were quite strict. He had ADHD and he acts before he thinks. 'But he was 15 and we wanted to give him a bit more freedom.' Jack, a pupil at the Howard School in Medway, was with four or five friends and his girlfriend on the day. The teen most likely didn't realise how high the pier was, was knocked unconscious and then drowned, although he wasn't in the water long before being pulled out. A tragic last picture shows Jack just half an hour before it happened, smiling as he arrives at Margate Station with a friend. Video footage from his holiday in Egypt in September shows him laughing and doing the same move off the side of a jetty. Dave, who lives in Rainham, Kent, said he was proud of Jack's friends for their actions following the horrifying accident. One rang 999 while his girlfriend immediately contacted Jack's mum, who rushed to the popular beach resort. The teen was treated by paramedics before being taken to King's College Hospital by air ambulance, but MRI scans show his brain is beyond repair. When doctors withdrew his life support, amazingly the youngster breathed for himself, but that is about as much as his body can do. Doctors are unsure whether he will live for weeks or even years but he will need round-the-clock care, something the Dolans cannot provide for him in their current flat. 'He is in a grey area,' Dave, an area supervisor for a facilities management company, said. The family (pictured together) - including Jack's sisters Faith, ten, and Grace, eight - are currently in council accommodation and are hoping they can be moved to a house suitable for Jack as soon as possible 'He's on end of life care and while his body is OK, his brain is dead. 'He can't go to a children's hospice because you have to be close to death. He's off life support and breathing, but doing nothing else. 'His eyes flutter sometimes but he's asleep most of the time. 'We want to take him home, but we live in a maisonette and we can't have him here. 'We need two reception rooms, a downstairs closet and wet room.' They were given the option of putting him in residential care, sending him out for fostering or taking him home. The family - including Jack's sisters Faith, ten, and Grace, eight - are currently in council accommodation and are hoping they can be moved to a house suitable for Jack as soon as possible. What is dystonia? Dystonia is the name for uncontrolled and sometimes painful muscle movements (spasms). Dystonia is caused by a problem with the part of the brain that controls movement. Symptoms of dystonia include: uncontrolled muscle cramps and spasms parts of your body twisting into unusual positions such as your neck being twisted to the side or your feet turning inwards shaking (tremors) uncontrolled blinking Advertisement If they can find a new home they will need to complete renovations quickly to make it able to cope with Jack and the mass of equipment he will need. Jack is currently suffering from dystonia, which causes uncontrolled and painful muscle movements. The family also need help finding a wheelchair for Jacks needs, whilst maintaining and creating a new normal for his two younger sisters. They have set up a Just Giving page to help them make the alterations if they get rehoused and to pay for the eventual funeral costs. It has so far raised 12,000 of its 20,000 target with 451 supporters donating. Dave says it is the least they can do for Jack. 'We've looked after him this far and I won't turn my back on him now,' Dave added. 'We want to bring him home as soon as we can.' Meanwhile Lisa, 33, is learning to care for Jack from the doctors and nurses in London and will give up her job in finance. Sam Cass, who organised the crowdfunder for Jack, described him as 'the biggest joker, with a heart of gold.' He added: 'He loves to show off in front of girls and won't leave the house without doing his hair. 'He loves his family, will do anything for his sisters and this fundraiser is to take a little bit of the burden away from them. 'Many people love Jack and I'm sure they all wish the family wasn't going through this right now.' But experts say she is now unburdened to make a bid for the presidency in 2027 Last night's tumultuous parliamentary elections in France saw President Emmanuel Macron and his centrist alliance achieve one key goal - preventing the hard-right from taking power. For weeks it looked as though the party of his arch-nemesis Marine Le Pen would storm the polls, the only question being whether the National Rally (RN) would win with an absolute majority. But the hard-right matriarch was humbled by the French electorate yesterday who instead gifted victory to the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance, led by the France Unbowed (LFI) party's Jean-Luc Melenchon. Now though, with the overwhelming majority of parliamentary seats split fairly evenly between three factions, France's politics is set to descend into chaos. Many of the key parties are bitterly opposed - for example, Macron and Melenchon have already ruled out negotiating with one another's parties, as many centrists see the radical left LFI as being just as extreme as the RN. And even if elements of the NFP alliance hash out some kind of deal and form a coalition government, the left-wing bloc is unlikely to be able to pass any of its key proposals if centrists and members of the RN vote against them. With Macron's presidency coming to an end in 2027, three years of political paralysis in France could well give Le Pen all the ammunition needed to fight her way to the top. France's hard-right matriarch Marine Le Pen was humbled by the French electorate yesterday - but analysts say she is now unburdened by political responsibility and can prepare a bid for the presidency in 2027 Jordan Bardella, President of the French far-right Rassemblement National (National Rally - RN) party, leaves the stage after his speech following partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 French CRS riot police run past burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators following partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 French riot police stand in position near burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators following partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Bicycles burn during tensions near Republique plaza in Paris following the second round of the legislative elections, Sunday, July 7, 2024 Emmanuel Macron avoided that which he feared the most in France's stunning parliamentary elections yesterday as Marine Le Pen's hard-right National Rally failed to scoop an absolute majority, instead suffering a shock defeat Jean-Luc Melenchon leader of La France Insoumise (LFI) gestures as he speaks after the announcement of the results of the second round of the legislative elections in Paris, France, 07 July 2024 French political scientist Nonna Mayer, whose research focuses on far-right movements in France and Europe, told BBC Radio 4 this morning that although RN did not achieve the result it desired, it is in a better position than ever before. 'It's not a total defeat (for the RN). They still have the highest number of seats they ever had with 143,' Mayer said. 'The good thing for them is that it seemed they arrived unprepared. The decision of Macron with these snap elections took everybody by surprise... (the RN) now have three years to prepare for the next presidential election.' Indeed, when Macron initially called the snap vote in early June after his centrist party suffered a heavy defeat to the RN in European parliamentary elections, many analysts warned that Le Pen's outfit was not ready to campaign on such short notice. Though Le Pen and her hotshot 28-year-old party president Jordan Bardella tasted unexpected defeat yesterday, experts pointed out that Le Pen is now free to prepare and campaign for the 2027 presidency unburdened by responsibility for running the country. '(The RN) will not be forced to try to govern and will thus avoid any responsibility for what happens in France during the next few years,' Douglas Webber, Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the INSEAD school, told Euronews. 'As they will not be able to be blamed for what happens in the next few years, they will have a good chance of winning the next presidential elections, all the more so because this election result will produce a great deal of political uncertainty in France.' This notion is not lost on Le Pen, nor Bardella. In the wake of yesterday's defeat, Le Pen hailed the 'rising tide' of support for her party across France and was clear on her intentions to push for the presidency in 2027. 'It did not rise high enough this time, but it continues to rise and, consequently, our victory has only been delayed,' she declared. Bardella meanwhile expressed fury at last night's results, dubbing the local electoral pacts that saw the left and centrists join forces to avoid splitting the anti-RN vote as an 'alliance of dishonour'. He said it had thrown France 'into the arms of Jean-Luc Melenchon's extreme left' and left the nation divided. Armin Steinbach, European economist and professor at Business School HEC Paris, appeared to agree. 'The country is more divided than ever. Centre parties have lost compared to the last election in 2022. Extreme parties, from the left and right, have gained. The country is polarised.' He added: 'A deadlock is the most likely outcome because of the lack of majority in parliament. A quick solution within days is unlikely. 'France has no political culture to make coalitions and compromises, like Germany or Italy. That is why it feels like a crisis for the French.' In the wake of yesterday's defeat, Le Pen hailed the 'rising tide' of support for her party across France and was clear on her intentions to push for the presidency in 2027. 'It did not rise high enough this time, but it continues to rise and, consequently, our victory has only been delayed,' she declared National Rally Parliamentary leader Marine Le Pen speaks to the press and supporters following her party's defeat in the French parliamentary elections on July 7, 2024 in Paris, France National Rally supporters react following the party's defeat in the French parliamentary elections on July 7, 2024 in Paris, France Anti riot police officers received a molotov cocktail during a demonstration following the announcement of the first results of the second round of France's crunch legislative elections in Nantes, western France on July 7, 2024 Participants gather during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 People gather in front of 'Le Monument a la Republique' statue during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 (L-R) Leader of La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon, LFI President Manuel Bompard and newly re-elected LFI Deputy Daniele Obono react during a speech after the announcement of the results of the second round of the legislative elections in Paris, France, 07 July 2024 Leaders from the NFP left-wing alliance met overnight for their first talks on how to proceed following their unexpected election victory yesterday. But they gave little sense of direction in media interviews this morning - perhaps a sign of things to come. 'According to the logic of our institutions, Emmanuel Macron should today officially invite the New Popular Front to nominate a prime minister,' said Green leader Marine Tondelier, one of a number of NFP figures seen as potential candidates for the post. Tondelier said on France Inter radio the prime minister could be someone from the hard-left France Unbowed party, the Greens or the Socialists, the three largest parties in the alliance. Olivier Faure, the Socialist leader, said on France Info radio that he expected the parties to agree on a plan this week, but sidestepped a question on whether the NFP would be prepared to negotiate a deal with Macron's centrist camp. Raphael Glucksmann, a prominent moderate who led the leftist ticket in last month's European elections, said on Sunday that a hung parliament required openness for dialogue. But firebrand LFI leader Melenchon - one of the most divisive figures in French politics - has explicitly ruled out any deal with Macron's centrists, and on Monday his ally Manuel Bompard sounded equally uncompromising. 'The president must appoint as prime minister someone from the New Popular Front to implement the NFP's programme, the whole programme and nothing but the programme,' he said on France 2 television. Challenged on how that would be possible without an absolute majority, Bompard refused to engage with the question, insisting that as the NFP had come first, it should govern and shrugging off the idea of negotiating with anyone else. However, there is little chance that any of the left-wing bloc's key proposals, which include raising the minimum wage, reversing Macron's pension reform and capping the prices of key goods, would pass a parliamentary vote without some kind of agreement with lawmakers from outside the bloc. (From left to right) Mathilde Panot, Manuel Bompard, Jean-Luc Melenchon and Daniele Obono seen on stage at the headquarters of La France Insoumise after the results of the second round of the legislative elections French MP of left wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Manuel Bompard (2nd R) speaks next to (from L) Bastien Lachaud, Mathilde Panot and Daniele Obono Anti-riot police officers detain a demonstrator during a gathering for the election night following the second round results of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on the night of July 8, 2024 A crowd of demonstrators gathered on the Republic square to celebrate the victory of the new popular front. Participants gathered during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024 Founder of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon reacts during the election night of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad in Paris on July 7, 2024 Some prominent centrist figures, including Edouard Philippe, a former prime minister under Macron, said they were ready to work on a pact to ensure a stable government, but were not prepared to work with France Unbowed, a force seen by many French centrists as just as extremist as the RN. Yael Braun-Pivet, a lawmaker from Macron's party who was the National Assembly leader before the election, said French political culture would have to evolve, becoming less antagonistic and more cooperative across party lines. 'The message I'm hearing from voters is 'no one has an absolute majority, so you have to work together to find solutions to our problems',' she said on France 2 television. The euro slipped on Monday by as much as 0.4% as investors grappled with the uncertainty in Paris. 'There's really going to be a vacuum when it comes to France's legislative ability,' said Simon Harvey, head of FX analysis at Monex Europe in London. Risk analysis firm Eurasia Group said there was 'no obvious governing majority' in the new parliament. 'It may take many weeks to resolve the muddle while the present government manages current business.' Thousands of thrill seekers took on the Pamplona bull run over the weekend, as they looked to prove that they could outrun - or at least avoid - rampaging fighting bulls. While thousands avoided the animals' horns, at least six people were injured yesterday, with one participant gored and five suffering bruising, local government sources in the Spanish city said. Dramatic pictures show participants stumbling and covering their heads as they are trampled in the dangerous race - which takes place over 850 metres through the city centre's narrow streets. Some of the revellers goaded the animals, leaving commentators saying it had been a miracle no-one had been attacked and badly hurt or even killed. Sixteen people have been killed at the annual festival since records began in 1910, most recently in 2009, while many more are injured as they try to outrun the wild beasts. The festivities, which include the bull runs as well as concerts, religious processions and copious amounts of wine, were made famous by 1926 Ernest Hemingway novel 'The Sun Also Rises'. Revellers brace themselves as a wild cow jumps over them, at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, Spain, July 8, 2024 A 'recortador' (bull trimmer) jumps over a bull in the Plaza de Toros bullring during a show after the first day of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 7, 2024 A recortador is run over by a raging bull in the Plaza de Toros bullring during a show after the first day of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona A bull rams into a recortador who fell to the ground during the ritual performance Participants covered their heads as the bull leapt over them as it was driven into the arena Participants run ahead of 'Cebada Gago' bulls during the 'encierro' (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 8, 2024 A participant is hit by a young cow during a show after the second 'encierro' (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona A reveller jumps over a wild cow, at the San Fermin festival in Pamplona Participants run ahead of 'Cebada Gago' bulls during the 'encierro' (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona Participants run ahead of 'Cebada Gago' bulls during the 'encierro' (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival On Sunday, a man was gored and another five rushed to hospital with trauma injuries. A 37-year-old man from Beriain near Pamplona where the annual festival takes place every July suffered the only gore injury, said to have been to his palate. The other five casualties included a 54-year-old man from New York. All six runners who needed hospital treatment were males. The curtain went up on nine days of festivities on Saturday as thousands filled the city's main square for the 'chupinazo' - the firecracker which launches an event dating back to medieval times. Revellers dressed in the must-wear white outfits with a red bandana around their necks celebrated by soaking each other in wine and sangria. Sunday morning's 8am bull run was the first of eight so-called encierros which is the highlight of the festival. Two of the six fighting bulls, led by six steers, became detached from the rest of the group during the half-mile run through the streets of Pamplona's old town. They remained in the bullring at the end of the course for more than a minute before ranchers guided them away from runners massing around them into pens. The bulls that run each morning are killed in the afternoon by professional bullfighters. Participants run ahead of 'Cebada Gago' bulls during the 'encierro' (bull-run) of the San Fermin festival in Pamplona, northern Spain, on July 8, 2024 Participants in red and white clothes run ahead of 'Cebada Gago' bulls during the 'encierro' The animals run from their corral to the bullring through the narrow streets of the old town over an 850 metres Between 200 and 300 people are usually injured in the run each year at the festival during the bull runs, often including foreigners from Britain, the US and Australia. The most recent death was in 2009 when 27-year-old Daniel Jimeno, from Madrid, was gored in the neck by a bull called Capuchino. Animal rights activists campaign against the festival every year, saying it is cruel to animals who are goaded and then killed in front of baying crowds. Rachel Reeves will vow to end the blocking of housing development and major infrastructure projects today - with parts of the green belt targeted for building. In her first major speech, the Chancellor will put her faith in a dramatic overhaul of the planning system to boost economic growth. Before MPs break for the summer, councils will be issued with mandatory targets to clear the way for hundreds of thousands of new homes. And ministers will begin work on controversial plans to weaken protections for some parts of the green belt to make room for development. Ministers are also looking to relax planning rules for major infrastructure projects, such as the installation of hundreds of miles of new electricity pylons needed to link up wind and solar farms to the grid. Touring broadcast studios ahead of Ms Reeves' appearance this morning, Treasury chief secretary Darren Jones said that stimulating 'strength and growth' in the economy is Labour's 'first and most important mission'. He tried to play down concerns that local communities will be 'excluded' from decisions on housing projects, saying the idea was just to remove 'inertia'. In other early moves from the new government today: Keir Starmer is visiting Northern Ireland, and will head to Wales later as well as posing for a photograph with his new MPs; More than 330 MPs who have never served in Parliament before are descending on Westminster as the Commons prepares to reconvene tomorrow; Tory recriminations are gathering pace in the wake of the extraordinary election meltdown last week. In her first major speech, Chancellor Rachel Reeves will put her faith in a dramatic overhaul of the planning system to boost economic growth Vowing to take the 'difficult decisions' needed to boost economic growth, the new Chancellor will use her first major speech to reveal that the Government is beginning its assault on the planning rules (Stock Image) Touring broadcast studios ahead of Ms Reeves' appearance this morning, Treasury chief secretary Darren Jones said that stimulating 'strength and growth' in the economy is Labour's 'first and most important mission' Ms Reeves will admit the public finances are so stretched that boosting growth is the 'only route to improving the prosperity of our country'. The landslide election win has given Labour a 'mandate' for radical change, she will argue. Ms Reeves will insist that planning reform is among the 'first steps' needed to 'fix the foundations of our economy, so we can rebuild Britain'. 'Our manifesto was clear: Sustained economic growth is the only route to improving the prosperity of our country and the living standards of working people,' she will say. 'Where governments have been unwilling to take the difficult decisions to deliver growth or have waited too long to act I will deliver. 'It is now a national mission. There is no time to waste.' Ms Reeves was appointed as Britain's first female Chancellor on Friday, and warned that there was 'not much money around'. However, left-wing MPs and union leaders are already pushing for Sir Keir and Ms Reeves to turn on the spending taps. Unite boss Sharon Graham said there was scope for the Government to borrow tens of billions of pounds to 'invest' in the economy and public services. She urged Ms Reeves to scrap Labour's tight fiscal rules and pour billions into Britain's 'crumbling public services'. 'We are going to have to borrow to invest,' she told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. 'We have not got time to wait for growth. 'People are literally hurting out there and we are going to have to borrow to invest our crumbling public services need money.' The intervention is an early sign that the Labour leadership may find it hard to resist reverting to its tax-and-spend traditions. The union boss warned that new Sir Keir 'won't have a lot of honeymoon period' unless he delivers quickly. Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham, on the same programme, called for a 'decisive break with austerity'. Sir Keir yesterday began a whistle-stop tour of the UK with a visit to Scotland, where he promised an 'immediate reset' of relations with the devolved administrations. The union boss warned that new Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer 'won't have a lot of honeymoon period' unless he delivers quickly Tomorrow he will travel to the Nato summit in Washington where he will seek to reassure leaders that his Government can be trusted on defence despite ditching Rishi Sunak's pledge to raise military spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade. Labour's decision to target the planning system immediately is likely to bring it into conflict with both countryside campaigners and those communities that feel they are already at the limit of development their area can take. It could also trigger a backlash from some of its own MPs who represent a swathe of constituencies across southern England where planning reform has been resisted for years. During the election campaign, one Labour official said the party was prepared to 'flatten the whole green belt'. This was denied by Labour. Ben Houchen, Tory mayor of Tees Valley, said promising rapid growth on the back of planning reform could become 'a noose around the Labour Party's neck'. He added: 'How keen are the Labour Government to tinker with environmental regulations which is one of the largest delays in the planning system?' Tripoli, Libya (PANA) - A delegation from the Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority and Royal Jordanian Airlines has arrived at Maitigua International Airport, on the eastern outskirts of Tripoli, to examine procedures relating to civil aviation safety and security and the extent to which they comply with the rules and standards of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) A Swiss executive whose love for 'proper coffee' meant he slipped in a puddle of Baileys has won up to 4million after a legal dispute against British Airways. Andreas Wuchner was rushing for a flight home to Zurich from Heathrow Airport in November 2017, when he had a sudden urge for latte macchiatos from Starbucks. Balancing a tray of espressos and two latte macchiatos, he did not see the alcohol on the floor and slipped over hitting his head causing brain damage. He sued BA claiming they were at fault for not putting out a floor covering or signage warning him of the spill. Andreas Wuchner sued British Airways for compensation after slipping in a puddle of Baileys At the Central London County Court, Judge David Saunders ruled partially in favour of the then 35-year-old, but added as Mr Wuchner was rushing, he could not award the full amount because in part he should have been more careful. The judge said he was only able to entitle Mr Wuchner to 80 per cent of the compensation claim, which BA still contests. The figure Mr Wuchner will be awarded is yet to be settled between himself and BA and may require another court hearing if no agreement is reached. The court heard that BA hotly contests Mr Wuchners 5million valuation of his claim, denying that the injuries he sustained ruined his business and left him unable to work. In evidence Mr Wuchner said: 'I really enjoy a proper coffee out of a coffee machine, rather than the normal airport coffee, which is why I went to Starbucks. 'I went as quickly as possible to the boarding gate, bearing in mind I had four coffees in my hand. 'I was told I went two metres in the air, thats what was said to me.' Mr Wuchner arriving at the Central London County Court Judge Saunders said he found it 'unusual that no immediate steps were taken by anyone from BA to prevent an accident'. But he also added: 'It is likely, and I accept that BA has demonstrated this, that he has not taken as much care as he should reasonably have been expected to.' Previously Mr Wuchner was awarded 130,000 in the same claim against BA by Judge Simon Monty in February 2021. The judge allowed Mr Wuchner's lawyers to sue for more should they wish to and in April of this year they sued again - this time claiming for 5million in compensation. Heathrow Airport, where Mr Wuchner slipped in the Baileys causing him brain injuries Mr Wuchner argued the injury he suffered means he is unable to work again and he was forced to close his office supplies company. The court heard he suffers from headaches which can last up to two weeks and struggles with forgetfulness. Before the accident, the businessman had spent the day with contacts and enjoying an evening in a lounge at Wembley Stadium. He had already missed one flight due to traffic and rebooked, but told the judge that, due to long security queues, he and his business partner were the last to the boarding gate. It was with 15 minutes to spare before the flight took off that he fell in the Baileys having gone to get coffee. Judge Saunders ruled: 'Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but it was probably not the best decision that he has ever made, and one that he now surely regrets. But finding BA mostly to blame, he continued: 'I have found that it was within the gift of BAs employees to ensure that the area was safe, and that they should have done this to satisfy passenger safety.' A British tourist has accused a fellow holidaymaker from the UK of raping her after they met at a nightclub in the Cyprus party resort town of Ayia Napa, reports say. The 18-year-old woman went to Cypriot police and told them that she woke up in the bed of the man, who is reported to be 19 years old. Local reports say the man has been arrested and has denied the accusation. The woman is said to have told police 'she had the feeling that someone had intercourse with her', as well as how she met the suspect. An investigation has been launched over the July 3 incident, with Police combing through CCTV footage to establish a timeline of events. A British tourist has accused a fellow holidaymaker from the UK of raping her after they met at a nightclub in the Cyprus party resort town of Ayia Napa (pictured, stock image) The woman has also undergone a medical examination, reports say. According to the investigation, the woman visited various bars in Ayia Napa with her friends. At one point in the night, the 19-year-old introduced himself. The pair - who are understood to both be from England - partied in a nightclub together before leaving together to the hotel where they were both staying. According to the 19-year-old, the woman fell asleep in his room wearing her clothes in the early hours of the morning, local news site Reporter has said. However, according to the woman, she woke up at around 5.30am and realised that both she and the man were undressed. She also claimed that the man helped her dress and carried her back to her own hotel room. But when she returned to the room, the woman says she had the feeling that someone had had intercourse with her, investigators have said. She told police that if the suspect did indeed have intercourse with her, then he took advantage of her being intoxicated. The man has denied that he raped the woman and has given investigators details of his movements that night, which he says refute the accusations. He is set to be held in police detention for five days as the investigation continues. This is a breaking news story. More to follow... The families of the 346 victims who died in two separate Boeing crashes have slammed the $243.6million 'sweetheart' plea deal that will see the company avoid a criminal trial. Under the agreement, Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from the fatal crashes in Indonesia in October 2018 and in Ethiopia less than five months later that killed a combined 346 people. Boeing must also pay the hefty fine, invest at least $455million in compliance and safety programs, and have an independent monitor oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The plea deal must now be approved by a federal judge in Texas in order to take effect, but attorneys representing some of the families have said they are going to pressure the judge to reject the agreement. 'This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died,' said attorney Paul Cassell. 'Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and [the] DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeing's crimes are hidden.' On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX operating the Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew An Oromo man hired to assist forensic investigators walks by a pile of twisted airplane debris at the crash site of an Ethiopian airways operated Boeing 737 MAX aircraft on March 16, 2019 Families of crash victims immediately filed an objection to the plea deal, arguing that it 'unfairly makes concessions to Boeing that other criminal defendants would never receive'. They have pushed for a criminal trial, arguing that it may prove Boeing executives knew they were deceiving the Federal Aviation Administration about its faulty flight-control system. They also want the Justice Department to prosecute those officials. 'Boeing has paid fines many a time and it doesn't seem to make any change,' said Ike Riffel, of Redding, California, whose sons died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. 'When people start going to prison, that's when you are going to see a change.' Cassell, in a statement to CNN, added: 'This deceptive and generous deal is clearly not in the public interest.' The relatives, who are seeking a public trial on the charges against Boeing, will ask the court to reject the plea deal at an upcoming hearing. Boeing executives have accepted a $243.6million plea deal that would see the company avoid a criminal trial over a pair of deadly 737 Max crashes Families of crash victims immediately filed an objection to the plea deal, arguing that it 'unfairly makes concessions to Boeing that other criminal defendants would never receive'. Pictured: Family members hold placards of their lost loved ones from Boeing 737 Max plane crashes during Senate testimony of Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun on June 18, 2024 Court papers filed in Texas on Sunday said the company had agreed to plead guilty to 'conspiracy to defraud the United States' during the certification of MAX airplanes. The plea deal sees Boeing avoid a criminal trial, instead agreeing to a series of terms including a $243.6million fine on top of the same sum already paid. The company will also be required to make a minimum investment of $455million in 'compliance and safety programs'. Such changes at the firm will be overseen by an independent monitor appointed by the government for a three-year term. The company's board of directors will also be required to meet the families of crash victims. Boeing CEO David Calhoun apologized to the crash victim's families at a recent Senate hearing, saying: 'I'm deeply sorry my whole team at Boeing, everybody worldwide past and present.' The plea deal would not give the company immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January Attorneys representing some of the families of the crash have said they are going to pressure the judge to reject the agreement The agreement came just days after federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice of entering a guilty plea and paying the fine or facing a trial on felony criminal charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States. They have argued that the aerospace company deceived regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements. The judge - who has previously criticized what he called 'Boeing's egregious criminal conduct' - could then approve the plea deal, or he could completely reject the agreement, which would likely prompt the Justice Department to create new negotiations with Boeing. But even then the plea deal would only cover the company's wrongdoing before the crashes, in which all of the passengers and crew members perished. It would not give the company immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, and would not cover any current or former Boeing officials - only the company itself. Pictured: Officials inspect engine of the crashed Lion Air jet on November 4, 208, in Jakarta, Indonesia. An Indonesian investigation found a Lion Air flight that crashed and killed 189 people five years ago was doomed by a combination of aircraft design flaws, inadequate training and maintenance problems Pictured: Shoes found during the search for victims from the Lion Air flight JT 610 are collected at the Jakarta International Container Terminal in Jakarta, on October 31, 2018 Pictured: Rescuers carry body bags containing the remains of the victims of Lion Air crash at Tanjung Priok Port in Jakarta, Indonesia, Friday, November 2, 2018 In the two crashes - in Indonesia in 2018 and in Ethiopia in 2019 - MCAS automatically pointed the nose of the plane down based on faulty sensor readings, and pilots were unable to regain control. On October 29, 2018, the Boeing 737 MAX operating the Lion Air Flight 610 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after takeoff, killing all 189 passengers and crew. The pilot at the time did not know that the software could push the nose of the plane down. Five months later, on March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft which operated Ethiopian flight 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, Ethiopia, six minutes after takeoff, killing all 157 people aboard. Pilots on that plane knew about the software issue, but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. But Boeing downplayed the significance of the system, and didnt overhaul it until after the second crash. On March 10, 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft which operated Ethiopian flight 302 crashed near the town of Bishoftu, Ethiopia Pictured: A bouquet of flowers is placed in front of a pile of debris at the scene of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash on March 13, 2019 Pictured: Investigators and recovery workers inspect a second engine after it is recovered from a crater at the scene of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash on March 13, 2019 in Ejere, Ethiopia. All 157 passengers and crew perished after the Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 Flight came down six minutes after taking off from Bole Airport The Justice Department investigated Boeing in 2021, and charged the company with deceiving FAA regulators about the software - which did not exist in older 737s and about how much training the pilots would need to fly the plane safely. After secret negotiations, the government agreed not to prosecute Boeing on a charge of defrauding the United States by deceiving regulators who approved the plane. In exchange, the company paid $2.5 billion - a $243.6 million fine, a $500 million fund for victim compensation, and nearly $1.8 billion to airlines whose Max jets were grounded. But in May, officials determined the company breached the agreement - setting the stage for criminal charges. Glenn Leon, head of the Justice Department criminal division's fraud section, said in a letter filed in Texas federal court that Boeing failed to make changes to prevent it from violating federal anti-fraud laws - a condition of the the 2021 settlement. The department claims that Boeing failed to 'design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the US fraud laws', according to NBC. The Justice Department investigated Boeing in 2021, and charged the company with deceiving FAA regulators about the software but decided not to charge the aerospace company Lawmakers have since also released a report with explosive allegations from a Boeing quality insurance inspector, Sam Mohawk, who said the company installed faulty parts onto planes and that he was later told by his managers to conceal the evidence from government regulators Boeing officials, however, denied those claims. 'We believe that we have honored the terms of that agreement, and look forward to the opportunity to respond to the Department on this issue,' a spokesperson said at the time. 'As we do so, we will engage with the Department with the utmost transparency, as we have throughout the entire term of the agreement, including in response to their questions following the Alaska Airlines 1282 accident.' President Joe Biden is given detailed instructions with pictures and large font instructing him on how to enter and leave venues ahead of planned events, it has emerged. A template provided to event staffers, and obtained by Axios, shows how Biden's aides prepare a short document with a photograph that depicts his precise route he needs to use to 'walk to the podium'. The template also reportedly included memos that showed the 'view from podium' and 'view from audience', which were also accompanied by photographs. The White House has claimed the short memos are 'basic approaches' that are critical to Biden's 'advance work' as president, adding that the same approached is also used by Vice President Kamala Harris' team. But some event staff have said they were 'surprised' by the memos and do not think a 'seasoned political pro' should need verbal and visual guidance on 'how to enter and exit a room'. President Joe Biden is given detailed instructions with pictures and large font instructing him on how to entry venues ahead of planned events, it has emerged. Biden is pictured in March 2021 looking at notes as he answers questions from journalists Biden's aides prepare a short document with a photograph that depicts his precise 'walk to the podium', Axios has revealed. Biden is pictured reading a note from an aide during a meeting in the South Court Auditorium of the White House on July 28, 2022 The White House provides event staff with a template to use when preparing their instructions for Biden ahead of events, Axios reported. The template, referred to by Biden's staff as 'advance work', uses large font and visual aids to show different views of the venue interior, including the President's entry and exit paths. A staffer who allegedly worked a Biden event in the last 18 months described the guidance as 'detailed verbal and visual instructions'. The worker, who claimed to be 'surprised' by the guidance, added: 'I staffed a simple fundraiser at a private residence, but they treated it like it was a NATO summit with his movements.' Biden's staff has seemingly downplayed the guidance, alleging that 'high levels of detail and precision are critical to presidential advance work regardless of who is president'. The White House told Axios the documents 'are basic approaches that are used by any modern advance team, including the vice president's office and agencies.' A spokesperson for Harris reportedly confirmed that she and her staff are briefed in a similar way at events, saying: 'These documents are standard logistical briefing materials and photos for any principal, including the vice president.' DailyMail.com has approached the White House for comment. The White House has claimed the short memos are 'basic approaches' that are critical to Biden's 'advance work' as president, adding that the same approached is also used by the Vice President's team. Biden holds a card handed to him by an aide that reads 'Sir, there is something on your chin' during a meeting at the White House on July 30, 2021 Democratic lawmakers held a crisis call on Sunday afternoon to discuss President Joe Biden 's viability as their 2024 candidate amid growing concerns over their own political futures in November Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries scheduled the call with caucus members as they prepare to head back to Washington, D.C. on Monday after breaking for the July 4 holiday The event documents were made public on Sunday, the same day that Democratic lawmakers held a crisis call to discuss Biden's viability as their 2024 candidate amid growing concerns over their own political futures in November. On the call, at least five more Democratic lawmakers called on Biden, 81, to step aside, according to reports. And most agreed that Vice President Harris, 59, should be the nominee instead. Judiciary Ranking Member Jerry Nadler and House Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano are among those who expressed they want Biden to end his White House bid. Reps. Don Beyer, Adam Smith and Joseph Morelle, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, also said Biden is done for. Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries scheduled the call with caucus members as they prepare to head back to Washington, DC on Monday after breaking for the July 4 holiday. 'The s**t is going to hit the fan on Monday, when Congress returns,' a House Democrat said in a recent report. They added: 'People are scared about their own races. But they're also worried about the country, and about democracy.' Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is also organizing a group of Senate Democrats to discuss Biden's future, and is pushing to meet Monday evening. Judiciary Ranking Member Jerry Nadler and House Veterans' Affairs Committee Ranking Member Mark Takano are among those who expressed they want Biden to end his White House bid Reps. Don Beyer, Adam Smith and Joseph Morelle, the top Democrat on the House Administration Committee, also said Biden is done for This comes after reports that Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) began organizing a group of Senate Democrats to discuss Biden's future. Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told NBC's Meet the Press during a Sunday interview: 'The performance on the debate stage, I think, rightfully raised questions among the American people about whether the president has the vigor to defeat Donald Trump. And this is an existential race.' He should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. Joe Biden is running against a criminal. It should not be even close. And there is only one reason why it is close and that's the president's age.' the California Democrat added. 'And what I would advise the president is seek out the opinions of people you trust. He's obviously talked to his family about this but he should seek out people with some distance and objectivity. 'He should seek out pollsters who are not his own pollsters.' 'Take a moment to make the best informed judgment. And if the judgment is run then run and beat that SOB.' Democratic lawmakers are growing increasingly worried about their races in November and are likely to up calls for President Joe Biden to drop out of the race this week Also this past weekend, a White House staffer who has worked closely with Biden for years revealed how the commander-in-chief's mental acuity has seemingly declined. The senior White House official who worked with the Biden during his presidency, vice presidency and 2020 campaign told the New York Times he no longer believes the 81-year-old has what it takes to defeat Trump. That official, who declined to be named so he could speak openly, said the president has shown more and more signs of his age in recent months - speaking more slowly, haltingly and quietly. Biden has also appeared more fatigued in private, the staffer said, concluding that he should not continue to seek re-election. Others in Biden's inner circle have noted that he seems to trail off mid-sentence and freeze in public. Last month, the president apparently froze at a Juneteenth White House celebration. He was seen staring blankly ahead as Vice President Kamala Harris danced beside him. In a speech at the event, he also seemed to slur his words. Less than a week later, Biden again stopped abruptly at a fundraiser in Los Angeles, staring blankly over the crowd for several seconds. But a White House representative dismissed reports of a frozen reaction to DailyMail.com as 'fakes' and 'lies,' explaining his reaction was simply 'taking in an applauding crowd for a few seconds.' In more recent days, donors were left stunned when Biden described a French cemetery in Normandy as 'Italian' at a fundraiser in the Hamptons, insiders told the Washington Post. When Biden later made an appearance at the New Jersey governor's private villa, sources said he spoke so softly that a crowd of 50 people had to crane their necks to hear him speak from a teleprompter. Then on Thursday, Biden seemingly mixed himself up with his Vice President Kamala Harris in an interview with Philadelphia's WURD 'By the way, I'm proud to be, as I said, the first vice president, first black woman... to serve with a black president,' he said, confusingly. Biden wandered off during a demonstration by parachutists at the annual G7 meeting and was stage managed by the Italian prime minister 'Proud to be involved of the first black woman on the Supreme Court. There's so much that we can do because, look... we're the United States of America.' He appeared to be highlighting his appointment of Kamala Harris as the United States first black female vice president. But Biden himself was previously vice president, which is likely what he was referring to in 'to serve with a black president.' Even politicians in other countries have apparently noticed the American president's mental issues. Last month, Biden wandered off during a demonstration by parachutists at the annual G7 meeting and was stage managed by the Italian prime minister. He then skipped out on a major dinner, as the Italian media reported that Biden was 'tired' after a full day of events. Three French officials who helped organize Biden's visit to France have said their US counterparts' reactions to the options offered for a state visit in Paris and D-Day commemorations in Normandy made them believe the president's health must be fragile. They were told the president needed some time to rest and they felt Biden's entourage was very protective of him. Biden aides have been trying to limit President Biden's on-air stumbles for years Aides have shortened the size of the staircase up to Air Force One after a series of falls For years, White House aides have been trying to reduce the president's on-air stumbles - shortening the size of the staircase to board Air Force One, with a Secret Service agent standing at the bottom of the stairs as an extra precaution. Aides have also built-in recovery stretches to his schedules - long weekends or extended stays in either his home state of Delaware or at the presidential retreat at Camp David. Biden's public interactions - especially those with journalists - have even been greatly reduced under a mandate led by one of his top advisers, Anita Dunn. At the same time, Biden's advisers have maintained that the president is in top shape, both physically and mentally, and will be able to effectively serve another term until 2028 - when he would reach 86 years old. Labour is already tiptoeing towards the EU. David Lammy's first act as Foreign Secretary was to tour Europe promising a 'reset'. He will put the Brexit rows behind him, he says, and 'reconnect' with the EU. How? Brussels sources expect conversations to start in ten days' time at Blenheim Palace, when Britain takes its turn at hosting a twice-yearly pan-European summit. It is an ironic choice of venue. Blenheim was given to the Duke of Marlborough in 1705 after he won the battle of that name, thereby ensuring that Europe did not fall under the domination of a single power (the French). Britain was to play the same role again and again, beating Napoleon, the Kaiser and Hitler, and helping liberate Central Europe from Communism. Now, after three centuries of fighting for the independence of smaller European countries, we are preparing to sacrifice our own to the very bloc we voted to leave. David Lammy's first act as Foreign Secretary was to tour Europe promising a 'reset' Labour is already tiptoeing towards the EU, Daniel Hannan writes No one is against closer trade links with the EU, or the mutual recognition of qualifications, or joint research schemes. Britain pushed for all those things in the withdrawal talks. It was the EU that said they could not happen at least, not without Britain being seen to pay a price, such as accepting free movement or paying a financial tribute. Labour is talking about unconditionally following whatever regulations Brussels decides to adopt in future, a form of subservience known as 'dynamic alignment'. Lammy's approach rests on a whopping falsehood. He believes the UK chose to be distant from the EU. Any remaining commercial barriers, he thinks, are a product, not of Brussels vindictiveness, but of Tory dogma. But nobody objected to economic links. On the contrary, the complaint throughout our membership was that we had voted to join a common market, not a united Europe. Britain's negotiating objective was to preserve the closest economic links it could while recovering political sovereignty. To a large degree, it succeeded. No other country, except those on their way to full membership, has a deeper trade deal with the EU. Sir Keir Starmer campaigned to overturn what he regarded as the 'catastrophic' 2016 vote, only changing his stance when the electorate forced him to in 2019 As well as scrapping tariffs and providing for mutual market access, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement covers transport, aviation, environmental protection and the rights of each other's citizens.Yes, there are areas where we might go further, notably mutual recognition on food standards, pharmaceuticals and financial services. But the resistance has always been on the EU side. EU leaders were clear there had to be a visible price for Brexit, even if that impoverished their own citizens. Economic barriers hurt both parties. When, for example, Brussels refuses to give equivalence to British financial services companies (despite Britain giving it to EU companies) it damages its own businesses by denying them easy access to the world's cheapest money markets. Nor is there any reason to tie free movement of goods and services to free movement of people. No other trade agreement in the world makes such a link. And none involves budgetary contributions. It would not occur to the United States to demand that Canada pay cash for market access. If the EU wanted a mutually profitable deal, it would seek mutual recognition in areas such as chemicals, financial services and veterinary standards. But it still sees Britain as a recalcitrant province, and demands we accept whatever it lays down. There is no economic case for such a surrender. But Labour is emotionally attached to Europe. Sir Keir Starmer campaigned to overturn what he regarded as the 'catastrophic' 2016 vote, only changing his stance when the electorate forced him to in 2019. Britain's Foreign Secretary David Lammy meets Canadian Minister for Foreign Affairs Melanie Joly Lammy was even more fanatical, likening Eurosceptics to Nazis and, when challenged, saying he had not gone far enough. These are not pragmatists looking for a win-win deal, but ideologues prepared to pay an economic price to get closer to Brussels. No wonder EU chiefs, led by the Irish prime minister welcome the opportunity. Yesterday, Lammy referred to Ernest Bevin, the former lorry driver who became Clement Attlee's foreign secretary, as 'my political hero'. Bevin was indeed an admirable politician, a flinty patriot with a way of cutting through people's pretensions. When it was suggested that Britain should join the fledgling EEC, Bevin, in his no-nonsense Somerset drawl, responded: 'If you open that Pandora's Box, you never know what Trojan 'osses'll jump out.' He was right. And he would surely tell his successor the same thing today. Lord Hannan is International Secretary of the Conservative Party and serves on the Board of Trade Advertisement This is the moment a Russian supersonic missile slammed into a Ukrainian children's hospital in Kyiv today, one of several 'genocidal' nationwide attacks launched by Vladimir Putin's forces across the country. Explosions rang out and black smoke could be seen rising from the centre of the Ukrainian capital. The assault is the biggest bombardment of Kyiv for several months, and comes on the eve of a key NATO summit in Washington. Several other cities were also hit in Monday's salvo, with another Russian attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih said to have killed at least 10 people. Reports said at least 36 people were killed and more than 100 injured across the country. In Kyiv alone, 10 were killed and 35 were wounded, officials said, and at least two doctors are missing. Meanwhile, further explosions were heard over the capital after the initial strikes as Ukrainian air defences intercepted more projectiles - thought to be drones, even as rescuers worked to clear the rubble at the country's largest children's hospital. Air defences shot down 30 of 38 incoming missiles, the air force said. Pictures distributed by officials from the children's medical facility showed people digging through mounds of debris, black smoke billowing over a gutted building and medical staff wearing blood-stained scrubs. Children - some still hooked up to medical machines - were pictured outside the building in hospital beds, or being held by their mothers or hospital staff. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had targeted five cities with more than 40 missiles of different types in the assault, adding that people were trapped under the rubble of the children's hospital. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. The Kinzhal flies at 10 times the speed of sound, making it hard to intercept. City buildings shook from the blasts. 'There are people under the rubble, and the exact number of casualties is still unknown,' the president wrote on social media. 'Right now, everyone is helping to clear the rubble - doctors and ordinary people.' Russian missiles have struck a children's hospital in Kyiv and killed at least three people elsewhere in the Ukrainian capital, authorities have said. In shocking footage, a woman is seen carrying a young child, along side a medical worker. All three are covered in blood A woman, her face covered in blood, is lifted from rubble in Kyiv after Russia unleashed a wave of deadly missile attacks this morning A huge fireball is seen rising over Kyiv next to another smoke plume today A child receives medical attention after the Russian missile strikes on a Kyiv children's hospital Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during a Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024 Hundreds descended on the bombed-out hospital this morning to help with rescue attempts amid reports young patients were trapped under rubble Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia had targeted five cities with more than 40 missiles of different types in a 'genocidal' attack, adding that people were trapped under the rubble of the children's hospital. Pictured: People help to clear the rubble at the site A woman carries a child near Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital after it was struck by missiles Dramatic images show the scale of the devastation in the aftermath of Russia's horrifying attack on the hospital in Kyiv this morning A woman sits next to the bodies of her relatives killed during a Russian missile strikes, July 8 A woman weeps as she comforts are wounded child in the aftermath of Putin's horrific attack on a children's hospital in Kyiv this morning Medical staff provide assistance to local residents injured during a missile attack in Kyiv today Several cities across Ukraine were hit in Monday's salvo The attack struck Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine's biggest children's medical facility, that sits on the outskirts of the city's central district. Its significance has been likened to London's Great Ormond Street Hospital. The Security Services of Ukraine (SBU) said its initial assessment found that Moscow had struck the facility with a KH-101 strategic cruise missile, while a senior presidential official Andriy Yermak said the projectile 'contains dozens of microelectronics manufactured in NATO countries'. There was no official word on casualties there, but one report said five people were killed at the site, with rescue efforts continuing. 'The SBU will do everything possible to ensure that the enemy feels maximum retribution for each of his war crimes, in particular, for today's attack on Ukraine,' said SBU head Vasyl Malyuk. 'This retribution will be both legal and moral. A terrorist state is not an abstract concept. There are specific names of the killers. And nothing will save them from justice.' Russian strikes also 'destroyed or damaged' three electrical substations in Kyiv, the energy operator DTEK said. 'Three DTEK transformer substations were destroyed or damaged in the Golosiivskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts. Power grids were also damaged,' DTEK said on social media. Other cities - notably Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slov'yansk and Krematorsk were also hit in a brutal attack from dictator Vladimir Putin's forces that plainly impacted on civilians. In Kryvyi Rih, birthplace of Zelensky, ten were reported killed, with 31 wounded. The president is currently out of the country on a visit to Poland. He arrived in Warsaw as news of the shocking attacks broke around the world, and later held a minute's silence with Polish PM Donald Tusk. 'Russian terrorists once again massively attacked Ukraine with missiles. Different cities: Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rig, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk,' Zelensky said, listing major civilians hubs in the south and east of the country. 'More than 40 missiles of various types Residential buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital have been damaged.' Municipal officials said earlier that at least seven people had been killed in the barrage that hit Kyiv. 'Attack on Ukraine at a time when there are the most people on the streets. Crazy Russian terrorists,' posted Zelenskiy's chief of staff Andriy Yermak. 'They beat the cities, where there were many people. They hit the children's hospital. There are children. It is a terror that the world must see and respond to. 'This is genocide,' he added. Condemnation followed the strikes from abroad, including from the UK where newly appointed foreign minister David Lammy called for Russia to be held responsible for its 'illegal war' while reiterating the UK's support for Kyiv. 'Russia's strike on the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv is an appalling attack on Ukrainian civilians,' Mr Lammy wrote on Twitter. 'My thoughts are with all the victims and their loved ones. 'The UK's support to Ukraine is iron-clad. We must hold those responsible for Putin's illegal war to account.' France's foreign ministry called the day-time bombardment of a children's hospital in Kyiv 'barbaric'. 'These barbaric acts directly and deliberately targeting a children's hospital can be added to the list of war crimes for which Russia will have to account,' the ministry said. The United Nations Security Council will meet on Tuesday - at the request of Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States - over the attack, diplomats said. 'We will call out Russia's cowardly and depraved attack on the hospital,' Britain's U.N. Ambassador Barbara Woodward said in an X post on Monday. Images from inside the hospital shows the mangled equipment in a children's ward in the wake of the missile attack Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital after it was struck by Russian missiles Women hold young patients at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024 A woman holds the hand of a young patient outside Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital today A small child receives medical attention in an ambulance after Monday's missile strikes Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital after it was struck today Smoke rises over the Kyiv skyline after a Russian attack, Monday, July 8, 2024 Children look on near Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024. Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital after today's strikes Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024 Two women comfort one another as they sit with an injured child in the aftermath of the hospital attack this morning Russian forces have repeatedly targeted the capital with massive barrages since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022, and the last major attack on Kyiv with drones and missiles was last month. One target appeared to be an unfinished business centre near the Lukyanovskaya metro station in central Kyiv. In Krematorsk, the Russian Armed Forces hit a machine-building plant, with a column of smoke rising above it. In Kryvyi Rih the administrative building of an industrial enterprise was hit. 'In Dnipro, a high-rise building and an enterprise were damaged. A service station was damaged. There are wounded,' the Dnipropetrovsk governor Sergiy Lysak said. In the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces have taken a string of villages in recent weeks, the regional governor said three people were killed in Pokrovsk - a town that had a pre-war population of around 60,000. There was no immediate comment on the strikes from the Kremlin but it insists its forces do not target civilian infrastructure, despite evidence that strongly suggests otherwise. The Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv is the largest children's hospital in Ukraine, and is famous around Europe for its excellence. As a result of the strike, the toxicology department was damaged. The hospital director Volodymyr Zhovnir said a missile had hit one of his buildings - understood to be the toxicology department. They are organising the evacuation and relocation of everyone in the premises. A source told Ukrainian Pravda that there were victims in the hospital.The debris was being cleared by rescuers who asked for silence to hear any cries from anyone buried under the rubble. Rescuers were seen on video desperately removing rubble as sick children sat outside attached to drips. The hospital housed children receiving dialysis, said Minister of Health Viktor Lyashko. They were attached to blood purification devices. Intensive care, operating, and oncology departments were damaged, he said. 'The first task is to transport patients to a place where there is a ventilator and oxygen.' Medical staff, some covered in blood, are seen joining the rescue efforts in Kyiv today Emergency services work at the site of Okhmatdyt children's hospital hit by Russian missiles, in Kyiv, Ukraine Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during a Russian missile strikes Rescuers work at a site of a building damaged during a Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024 Black smoke rises over the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv on July 8, 2024 after the Russian attack Smoke rises in the sky over the city after a Russian missile strike in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024 Holoviy had heard that an air strike had hit the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv, leaving it shattered and smouldering. Smoke was still rising from the rubble as he arrived. The 37-year-old said it was 'impossible to convey' his emotions after finding his wife and son safe. 'Honestly, the main thing was to see my wife and child, I didn't pay attention to the rest,' said Holoviy. Patients, staff and family members had rushed to the basement after an air raid alarm sounded earlier on Monday, according to Natalia Svidler, 40. 'We heard a loud rumble and then the ceiling of the basement collapsed a little,' said Svidler, whose daughter Illia was scheduled for surgery at the hospital later this week. 'Everyone got very scared, of course. Everyone started screaming and running.' Hundreds of survivors emerged from the bunker and gathered at the base of the gutted hospital, eventually forming a human chain to help remove rubble by hand. Residents, rescuers, military personnel and doctors with blood-soaked scrubs all chipped in to help clear the debris, following reports that people were trapped under the rubble. 'For some reason, we always thought that Okhmatdyt was protected,' said Nina, a 68-year-old hospital employee. 'We were 100 percent sure that (the Russians) would not hit here,' she told AFP, as she described the frantic rush as staff moved children with IV drips to the bunker. 'I'd rather be killed! I've already lived! But why these children,' she asked. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko urged residents to stay in shelters. A Ukrainian firefighter works to extinguish a fire in a residential building following a missile attack in Kyiv on July 8, 2024 Ukrainian firefighters work to extinguish a fire at the site of a missile attack in Kyiv on July 8 Smoke from a missile is seen in the sky on July 8, 2024 over Kyiv Smoke from a missile explosion rises over the city on July 8, 2024 Zelensky and other officials in Kyiv have been urging Ukraine's allies to send more air defence systems, including Patriots, to the war-battered country to help fend off fatal Russian aerial bombardments. 'Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes,' Zelensky said in another post on social media. As outrage grew over the strike, Russian sources claimed the children's hospital was hit during an attack on a 'plant' and 'patriot missile complexes'. But one Russian military analyst - Sergey Markov - went as far as to claim it had been Ukrainian missiles that hit the hospital, repeating a line that has been seen in previous atrocities committed by Moscow's armies against Ukraine. 'Such a photo will be on all screens until the NATO Summit in Washington,' he said referring to the hospital strike. 'These are children with cancer who are sitting on the streets of Kyiv, because the hospital building is broken. 'It was destroyed by missiles of the Air Defence Forces of the Ukrainian Armed Forces,' he claimed, 'because the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces was holding a meeting in a building next to the hospital - the generals of the Ukrainian Armed Forces were covered by children. 'But this truth will be known in Russia, yet Western audiences will hide this truth. 'And the Western world will be howling for a week.' The attack came on the eve of the three-day Nato summit in Washington. The gathering of western leaders will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliance's unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europe's biggest conflict since the Second World War. This is a breaking news story. More to follow... A young dad allegedly started a blaze that killed three of his children by setting a pillow on fire and hurling it at his partner, seconds before a second explosion engulfed their home in flames. Dean Heasman, 28, allegedly barricaded his partner Stacey Gammage, 29, and their kids inside their housing commission home in Lalor Park, in Sydney's west, at about 1am on Sunday and set it on fire. Two boys, age three and six, were given CPR at the scene and rushed to Westmead Hospital in a critical condition, where they died of their injuries. Firefighters found the body of a 10-month-old girl inside the home. The children's mother had to be sedated after detectives told her three of her children had perished in the inferno. Her four other children survived the blaze. Investigators have spent the last two days looking for clues as to what sparked the blaze. Heasman allegedly threw a pillow on fire at his partner, which was partly responsible for igniting the blaze, reported the Daily Telegraph. Investigators are also probing whether Heasman allegedly used an accelerant after a second explosion engulfed the home in flames moments after he threw the fully alight pillow at his partner. Dean Heasman, 28, and Stacey Gammage, 29, are pictured together. They had seven children, three are now dead Shocked neighbours and friends placed flowers and candles outside the home on Monday Among the evidence removed from the house were two water bottles with a brownish petrol-like liquid inside. Police allege Heasman held the front door shut when emergency services arrived and shouted, 'Let me die here' as the children screamed for help inside. It is further alleged he dragged some of the children back inside as they tried to escape. Heasman is reported to have suffered burns to his skin and throat and the affects of smoke inhalation during the tragedy He remains in an induced coma as detectives wait to interview him. His condition reportedly worsened on Monday, the Daily Telegraph reported. Pictured: A forensic investigator pulled a bottle of brownish petrol-like liquid from the scene where three kids burned to death Pictured: Forensics holding a second bottle of tea-brown liquid, during an investigation into the cause of the blaze Neighbours told Daily Mail Australia that all three front rooms of the home were quickly engulfed with flames, before power lines began to spark and snapped off the house. Local resident Jarrod Hawkins, whose daughter was friends with one of the surviving children, was hailed a hero after rushing to the burning home and saving a nine-year-old girl and her three brothers, aged 4, 7 and 11. The eldest boy told his rescuers: 'Dad tried to kill me.' Once Mr Hawkins left the burning home with four children, they were placed on the other side of the road before another neighbour Damien Dubois decided to move them away from the scene. 'I had the four kids and they were cold so we picked them up and took them into the back room of my place,' Mr Dubois told Daily Mail Australia. 'I was trying to console them. The two younger kids weren't saying anything so I picked them up and took them out of the way of all this trauma. 'They didn't need to watch it all.' Mr Dubois recalled Heasman taking some of the children on quad bike rides around the local neighbourhood just a few weeks ago. The commission housing was quickly engulfed in flames in the early hours of Sunday morning Pictured: Firefighters were seen shovelling soot and debris from the property on Sunday Neighbours and family friends left floral tributes for the three kids who died on Sunday Family friends arrived at the scene after news of the tragedy broke on Sunday, with many leaving floral tributes. One family friend, Douglas King, added: 'I wouldn't have believed it if I didn't see it with my own eyes. '[Heasman] was always with his kids and he was good to the kids - nice, calm and collected. He was telling me last year he had a newborn on its way.' Mr King said he was shattered by the tragedy because he thought Heasman, who he affectionately called 'Deano reamo' and 'Deano the albino' was a 'respectful person with morals'. He added: 'Deano was a good person. Its mad. It's devastating. I hope the kids fight through it. I hope they survive. I feel bad for Stacey.' Another said: 'I've known Deano since we were grasshoppers in pre-school and I can't believe this.' Mr Hawkins has since set up online fundraising page to help support family members once they've released from hospital. Neighbour Jarrod Hawkins (pictured hugging his son) was praised for rushing into the burning home. Police said his actions 'saved further lives from being lost' Neighbour Damien Dubois (pictured) rushed to the scene to bring the surviving children inside, away from the burning house During a press conference on Sunday, Blacktown Police Acting Superintendent Jason Pietruszka said Mr Hawkins' actions at the scene 'saved further lives from being lost'. He was unable to confirm whether Heasman was armed while trying to stop others from entering the property, but he said that would be a line of inquiry within the coming days. Homicide Squad Detective Superintendent Danny Doherty said police were treating the fire as a domestic-related multiple homicide. He said at Ms Gammage and her surviving children are being treated at Westmead Hospital for burns and smoke inhalation. Heasman is under police guard in an induced coma in the intensive care unit. No charges have been laid. 'At this stage it does appear the 28-year-old is responsible for multiple deaths of young lives that have been tragically taken away,' Det Supt Doherty said. 'We're alleging the 28-year-old man took actions to prevent the young people inside being rescued.' The parents of a 14-year-old girl who died after suffering a single stab wound to the chest have appeared in court charged with her murder. Scarlett Vickers was found fatally injured at a house in, Darlington, County Durham, by the emergency services shortly after 11pm on Friday, just hours after a neighbour claims to have had a 'normal conversation' about shopping with her mother. The schoolgirl was pronounced dead at the semi-detached property after succumbing to a single stab wound to the chest, a court heard today. This morning her father Simon Vickers, 49, and mother Sarah Hall, 44, appeared at Newton Aycliffe Magistrates' Court charged with murder. The court was told that Hall - who was seen shaking throughout the five-minute hearing - is 'absolutely distraught' by the incident and lawyers for both parents said their clients 'dispute' the prosecution's version of events. The defendants, both of Geneva Road, Darlington, appeared dressed in grey police-issue sweatshirts and trousers, speaking only to confirm their names and dates of birth. Police in forensics gear stand next to a marked police van outside a property in Geneva Road, Darlington on Sunday, July 7 Floral tributes and balloons have been left outside Scarlett's house by heartbroken friends and neighbours Sarah Kemp, prosecuting, at Newton Aycliffe magistrates court, said: 'There was an incident at the home address in Darlington resulting in the fatal stabbing of Scarlett, the 14-year-old daughter of both defendants. 'She suffered a single knife wound to the chest resulting in her death. This is not a matter that can be dealt with here and I ask the case be sent to the crown court.' Georgia Snowden, representing Hall - who shook throughout the five minute hearing - said: 'There is a dispute over the facts of the case. My client is absolutely distraught.' Amrit Jandoo, for Vickers, said that he also disputed the facts likely to be presented by the prosecution when the case next comes to court. District Judge Steven Hudd told Vickers and Hall: 'The offence of murder is one which can only be heard at crown court. I am sending your case to Teesside Crown Court for a plea and case management hearing on August 5.' He said if either defendant wished to make a bail application they would be able to do so on Wednesday, but both were remanded into custody in the meantime. Neighbours today spoke of their 'utter shock' after Scarlett's death, with heartbroken friends leaving floral tributes outside the house where she was killed. It is claimed that Scarlett lived with her father Simon, who works for the 3M manufacturing plant in Newton Aycliffe, mother Sarah, who doesn't work, and the family dog, Buster. One message left by a friend outside her house said: 'To Scarlett. Rest easy sweet girl, we all love and miss you. Sleep well from Demi and Lexi.' A neighbour said: 'It's hard to take in because they are such a normal family. Simon has a good job and his partner comes across as very pleasant as well, she would always smile and say hello. 'It's hard to imagine what could have happened for things to go as wrong as this. 'There wasn't any sign of trouble that night, the first anyone knew was when the police cars and ambulance arrived.' Another neighbour said: 'I spoke with Sarah earlier that day and it was the most normal conversation you could imagine, we were talking about shopping. 'I used to see their daughter playing in the garden, they've always seemed like a completely normal, pleasant family. It's such a shock that a young girl's life has been lost in that way. A police officer stands next to a police cordon in Geneva Road, Darlington, on Sunday night, July 7 Police officers stand next to a cordon in Geneva Road, Darlington, on Sunday night, July 7, after a 14-year-old girl was found dead at a house on Friday night 'It's incredibly sad and I think most of us who live nearby are struggling to get it out of our heads. It's been an utter shock.' Jack James, deputy member of Darlington Youth Parliament, said: 'Saddened to hear about the death of Scarlett Vickers. From what I have seen from many young people in the town I can tell that she was a wonderful girl who was looked up to very much by her friends. 'I send my deepest wishes to all affected by the death of Scarlett.' And Shaney Pattison posted a tribute online, writing: 'RIP Scarlett, such a cruel world we live in. You will be missed.' One resident who lives on the street, but did not want to be named, described the young girl as a 'canny lass'. They said: 'It's absolutely awful. I just read about it. We used to see her going up and down the street but we never talked. 'The other week our son and her were catching a loose dog on Yarm Road and he said she was a canny lass.' Another resident said: 'It's horribly shocking. It's just awful. They kept themselves to themselves that family. I don't know anything more.' Detective Superintendent Craig Rudd, Senior Investigating Officer at Durham Constabulary, said in a statement on Sunday: 'This incident has resulted in the tragic death of a young girl, and our thoughts are with her family and friends. 'I would like to thank the local community for their patience and co-operation while investigative work is still being carried out at the scene, and to reassure residents that we believe this to be an isolated incident.' A North East Ambulance Service spokesperson said: 'We received a call at 22.46 on Friday, July 5 to an incident at a private address on Geneva Road in Darlington. 'We sent five resources in total including a doctor and a specialist paramedic. Police also attended the scene.' Thousands of holidaymakers have been left 'stranded' after airlines axed dozens of flights, blaming it on air traffic control issues and bad weather. London's two busiest airports went into a meltdown yesterday after easyJet grounded 32 flights at Gatwick and BA axed another 32 at Heathrow. The airlines blamed the cancellations on air traffic control issues and bad weather on the continent, with up to 10,000 holidaymakers left stuck in terminal limbo. Passengers were hit by a double whammy of rail delays after a signalling failure on the Thameslink line yesterday morning hit trains travelling via Gatwick Airport. While the situation had cleared up at Heathrow by Monday, easyJet were still suffering some delays at Gatwick into the afternoon. EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays.' EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays'. Pictured: File image London 's two busiest airports went into a meltdown yesterday after easyJet grounded 32 flights at Gatwick and BA axed another 32 at Heathrow. Pictured: File image Passengers took to social media to slam easyJet and British Airways for the travel chaos Furious travellers slammed the airlines on social media and questioned why other carriers flying the 'same route, same day' have not cancelled flights. EasyJet axed flights from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice alongside flights to Belfast and Edinburgh. And BA cancelled round trips to Rome alongside routes to Naples, Barcelona and Cyprus. Only one flight was cancelled at Manchester and London Stansted - the country's third and fourth largest airports. One person said on X: '@easyJet Why is the @TUIUK flight, same route, same day, not cancelled then? Baffling how easyJet alone suffers so many of these 'beyond control' cancellations? Could it in fact be pilot/ crew shortage per chance??' However, easyJet told the traveller that 'many factors come together that can lead to our flights being disrupted it's never just one thing. If it is due to something that is outside our control or pilot/crew shortage we need to state it as such.' Others revealed how their flights were cancelled as they waited at the gate to board the plane. British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Pictured: A passenger shared this image, which they said was taken from the flight A map showed the flight's route travelling on a smooth course before suddenly circling and zigzagging away from Heathrow Another said: '@easyJet absolutely terrible. Flight from Gatwick to Munich Friday 5th July cancelled after we were all at the gate. After only 1 hour delay told the crew were out of hours, really! We were left stranded. Thanks @premierinn for finding us a room. #easyJet #airline fail'. A third person, who this time directed their anger at BA, said: '@British_Airways you cancelled my flight with a few hours noticed causing me to miss a job interview and more importantly my brothers birthday. 'You offered me a 10h Stopover flight the next day instead of my original 2hr30 flight to Heathrow. Please respond to my ticket!' A fourth said: 'To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace! Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation!' British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Both planes had to be taken out of service while the company's staff carry out safety checks. A spokesperson said: 'Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines we've had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. 'We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today.' And a spokesperson for easyJet added: 'easyJet operated around 1800 flights yesterday and is operating a similar number today however some flights yesterday evening and three flights from London Gatwick this morning have unfortunately been disrupted due to the knock-on impact of adverse weather yesterday and air traffic control delays. 'While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused and are providing impacted customers with hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight.' And a London Gatwick spokesperson said: 'Poor weather, including numerous thunderstorms across the UK and much of Europe, caused some delays at the airport yesterday afternoon (Sunday 7 July). Flights are operating as normal this morning with no further delays.' While low-budget carrier Ryanair has made no cancellations although it did apologise to customers for some delays due to 'repeated air-traffic control staff shortages'. It reads: 'Ryanair, Europe's No.1 airline, on Mon 8 Jul apologised to its passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today Mon 8 Jul which are affecting all European airlines. 'ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being five per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated 'staff shortages'. 'On Mon 8 Jul, 21 per cent of Ryanair's first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC 'staff shortages'. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. 'We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanair's control.' British Airways has been contacted for comment. It marks yet another issue after a summer where families trying to get away for the summer have been hit by delays at airports. In late June Heathrow was left in chaos after an IT allocation failure in British Airways' systems left passengers stranded on planes and facing hours of delays collecting their luggage. The UK's busiest airport revealed passengers travelling from Terminal 5 'may be impacted' by the failure in BA's Allocation systems, adding that no other airline has been affected. Video from the Terminal showed massive queues of stricken travellers forming across the airport, as passengers struggled to correctly find their luggage. Footage from inside the transport hub showed enormous queues forming outside BA's baggage claim area in the terminal, as well as the customer assistance desk in the arrivals' area. Customers unleashed their fury as they shared horror stories about trying to calm children having panic attacks and waiting for hours, with one branding the UK a 'third world country'. Just days later stranded holidaymakers hit out at 'disgusting' services after Gatwick Airport suspended all their flights. Passengers faced massive delays, last-minute diversions to other London airports and missed connections after a Boeing 777 British Airways flight had to make an emergency stop on the runway due to 'having hot brakes'. It sparked chaos for thousands of Brits hoping to kick summer off with a holiday as any flights due to take off or land at the airport were temporarily suspended. Eton College has banned new pupils from bringing smartphones into school - and will issue them with a basic Nokia handset instead. The elite 52,000-a-year private school has written to families of its next cohort of Year 9 students to warn them of the new policy, which will begin in September. The world-famed establishment - whose pupils have included Princes William and Harry - has become the latest college to join the clampdown on smartphones. It comes amid raising concerns over the impact the hi-tech devices are having on children's behaviour and mental health. In a letter to parents, Mike Grenier, Eton's deputy head overseeing pastoral care, said new boarders aged 13 should have their smart devices taken home after its SIM card is transferred to an offline Nokia headset, that can only make calls and send texts. Eton has banned new pupils from bringing smartphones into school in a new crackdown (file photo) The elite 52,000-a-year private school has written to families and said pupils will be given a basic Nokia model that can't access the internet, which SIM cards can be placed into Eton currently doesn't allow younger boys to have their phones on them during the day, and those teens in the first three years of the college must hand in their devices at night. The latest crackdown on smartphones, which will apply to those in the first year of school - Year 9 - has already been trialled in boarding houses, Mr Grenier said. 'When used responsibly and in moderation, [smartphones] can be a key part of life for the modern teenager and can create positive social networks and give access to news and views from around the world,' he said, reported the Telegraph. 'However, despite these positives, there are also associated challenges and potential areas for concern, especially around socialisation, misuse and overuse and the impact on both mental and physical health.' Eton added if a child did need a smartphone, it could be stored with staff, with the school already issuing iPads to pupils to use for their studies - with 'age-appropriate controls' in place. The world-famed establishment (pictured) - whose pupils have included Princes William and Harry - has become the latest college to join the clampdown on smartphones A number of other private schools are also cracking down on smartphone use by introducing tighter rules for the September intake. While some, like Alleyns in Dulwich, south London, are going even further and calling on parents not to buy the devices for young children at all. At the independent Brighton College, Year 7 pupils aged 11 will not be able to have phones that can access the internet on site from September, while offline phones will be locked away during the day. A similar rule is being introduced at Thomas's in Battersea, south London, which was attended by Prince George and Princess Charlotte. But other areas are going further still. In the communities of Greystones and neighbouring Delgany, near Dublin, Ireland. 95 per cent of the 22,000 residents have banned their children from owning phones until at least the age of 12. It means most of the area's 3,500 primary school pupils are phone-free. Rachel Harper, headteacher of St Patrick's National School in Greystones, spearheaded the initiative to to withhold phones from children. 'I've had calls from Australia, camera crews from the US, France and Scandinavia,' says Ms Harper. 'On one level it's amazing as we're just this little school, but on the other hand it tells me that this is a global issue: it doesn't matter where you live, parents have the same concerns.' Rachel Harper, headteacher of St Patrick's National School in Greystones, near Dublin, has spearheaded the initiative to to withhold phones from children Meanwhile in England, St Albans has echoed the clampdown, with some 20 local headteachers having called for the Hertfordshire city to become Britain's first smartphone-free area for children under the age of 14. In a letter to parents, headteachers branded the devices 'highly addictive' and urged parents not to give their youngster's such hi-tech device. Instead, they urged parents to opt for a basic 'brick' which allows children to contact their family when needed but have encouraged them to hold off on smartphones which allow access to the internet, social media and an endless library of apps. 'The use of smartphones is now a feature of daily life for most adults and over the last few years the age at which children are given their first smartphone has dropped significantly,' the headteachers wrote in May of this year. 'We know that in our schools some children as young as Key Stage 1 have smartphones. Whilst smartphones can be a very helpful piece of technology for adults, they can equally expose children to a number of negative risks.' They continued: 'In a world where fast-changing technology is actually impacting the development of our childrens brains, it is up to us to stand up for them, and their futures. If not us, then who?' Parents and grandparents living in St Albans leant their support to the initiative, hailing it a 'good idea'. Mother Ariana Stanciu, 33, said: 'I've seen the letter and I completely agree. I don't think kids should go anywhere near a smartphone until at least the age of 14.' Grandmother Sian Jay, 61, echoed these thoughts, adding: 'I do think it's a case of the longer you can hold off with the phones, the better. St Albans is bidding to become Britain's first smartphone-free city for children aged under 14 Grandmother Sian Jay, 61, said in St Albans: 'I think it would be impressive to not let your kids have a phone until 14 but I do think it's good as I worry for children' 'You hear awful things about what children end up seeing online and there's a lot of concern around social media and mental health. 'I also think that I have adult children and I see how phones affect them. So just imagine what it's like for children.' Smartphones have been linked to poor mental health, depression and low self-esteem, especially in young teenagers. And a recent Unesco Global Education Monitoring report showed children can take up to 20 minutes to concentrate once disturbed by a notification on their phone. Smartphones can also expose children to harmful content including pornography - and can lead to youngsters being groomed and targeted by paedophiles online. Second defense line imperiled after dike breach in central China Xinhua) 13:46, July 08, 2024 HUARONG, Hunan Province, July 8 (Xinhua) -- An embankment seen as the second line of defense following a dike breach in central China's Hunan Province was under threat on Monday, local authorities said. More than 300 police officers and firefighters are working to stem the piping effect that is eroding the embankment in Huarong County, the province's water resources department said. The 14.3-km embankment is around 2 kilometers behind the dike that burst on Friday at Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, following a heavy rainstorm. The piping effect can hollow out a dike and lead to a burst if not properly handled. At least 7,000 residents have been evacuated following the dike burst on Friday, and thousands of rescue workers are working around the clock, closing the breach at a rate of 60 to 80 meters a day. The 226-meter breach is expected to be sealed by Tuesday noon. As of 8 a.m. on Monday, 138.5 meters of the breach in the dike had been sealed. At the site Xinhua reporters saw trucks loaded with boulders and gravel lining up to dump their materials on both sides of the breach, while large excavators and bulldozers carried out the filling operations. "Although the water level of Dongting Lake is dropping, we are currently in the main flood season," said Zhang Biao with the Hunan Port Shipping and Water Resources Group Co., Ltd. He noted that should a second flood occur, a larger area will be affected. An unnamed rescue personnel told Xinhua that challenges such as a tight supply of specialized materials, narrow dike roads on either side of the breach, and the scorching summer heat have all affected the efficiency of the operation. Zhang Xuanzhuang with the China Anneng Group First Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd. noted that hectic work will continue even after the dike is sealed. "We are under tremendous pressure reinforcing the dike to ensure long-term stability and draining the water of the flooded fields," he said. Besides, rescuers will help residents quickly resume normal production and daily activities. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Missing Jay Slater refused a lift back to his hotel from a remote Airbnb where he had travelled with two older British men because he was hungry, it has been claimed. The apprentice bricklayer, 19, had gone back to the 40-a-night holiday rental with convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim and another mystery man in the early hours of June 17. Qassim, 31, was one of the last people to see Jay before he called a friend to say he was walking home and vanished without a trace. He has not been seen or heard from in 21 days after last being seen on Monday, June 17. He was last seen just after 8am by a witness who said he was walking back to his hotel in the party resort of Playa de las Americas after missing a bus. Spanish police have described the two men as 'irrelevant' to the investigation. Earlier this week, Qassim told MailOnline he had invited the teenager back to the cottage in the village of Masca because his friends had left him at an end-of-festival after party. TV sleuth Mark Williams-Thomas has since interviewed Qassim, who posted an Instagram video of himself sitting on the same mosaic style doorstep where Jay sent his final Snapchat image, and gathered new information. The investigator said that Qassim claimed to have offered Jay a lift back to his hotel after he slept, but was turned down as he was hungry and 'wanted some scran'. It is the latest development in the search for the missing teenager which has seen: Jay Slater, 19, went missing in Tenerife on June 17 after he left the AirBnB in the village of Masca The 40-a-night Casa Abuela Tina holiday rental near the remote village of Masca where Jay spent his final hours before going missing Ayub Qassim posted a video of himself on the doorstep of the AirBnB where missing raver Jay Slater stayed Mr Williams-Thomas, who helped expose Jimmy Savile's vile sex crimes after the TV presenter's death, revealed that Qassim said that Jay had been eager to leave the Airbnb on waking up the next morning and a neighbour had told him about a bus that could take him back. He said: 'Qassim said to him 'Chill, mate, I'll drop you off later, when I wake up' but he said Jay said 'nah, I need some scran, I'm hungry' 'Jay said he had been told by the woman the bus to Los Cristianos was every ten minutes and Qassim said there was no bus and added 'Do what you like' before going to sleep.' Mr Williams-Thomas added: 'Qassim says the next thing he remembers is getting a call from one of Jay's friends to say he is lying in a ditch somewhere and that he's been "bitten by a cactus".' Jay from Oswaldtwistle, Lancashire, has not been seen or heard of since he vanished on June 17 and police spent 13 days combing the Masca gorge, an hour from Playa de las Americas, before calling the search off. Last week, mewly revealed video footage showed where Jay headed to following an after party at Papagayo nightclub on the infamous Veronicas Strip in the raucous Playa de las Americas resort popular with British holidaymakers. On Sunday, Mr Williams-Thomas told MailOnline he interviewed Qassim and coaxed out more details from him, including the nickname 'Johnny Vegas' is his. Missing Jay posted a final picture at 7.30am on Snapchat from the house of 'two English lads' an hour before phoning his friend Lucy. The video was taken on the same doorstep as Qassim's video Another picture of Qassim's Instagram shows him with two unknown teenagers on the treacherous road leading to Masca dancing on stone bollards by the side of the road A screenshot of Jay's last known location where his phone battery died Jay, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire, travelled to the Canary Islands for a musical festival with his friend Lucy and another friend Qassim, 31, (pictured far left with British rapper Potter Payper) was tracked down last week and said apprentice bricklayer Jay, 19, 'arrived alive and left alive' The former Metropolitan Police officer told MailOnline: 'In the last 24 hours I have spoken in detail with Ayub Qassim, who is also known as Johnny Vegas. 'He told me he was on the [Veronicas] strip in Playa de las Americas and said that Jay wanted to carry on partying and that he hadn't anywhere to stay, so he [Qassim] invited him back to his rental. 'In the car they played music all the way, they stopped once to get a can of fizzy drink, and there was three of them in the car, Jay in the back and Qassim's friend in the front. 'Once at the property, his friend opened the door, and went to the left and went straight to sleep. 'Jay walked in, Qassim walked in behind him, went upstairs, and got him a red blanket.' Mr Williams-Thomas added: 'Qassim said 'Yo bro, the sofa's for you there' and he gave him a towel if he needed a shower. 'Jay also asked for a cigarette and Qassim gave him a Camel cigarette and left it on the side. 'Jay then asked for a charger and then went into Qassim's friend room, while he was sleeping and got the charger.' Mr Williams-Thomas said that Qassim told him he then went to sleep and woke up to the sound of the door buzzing. Qassim booked the Airbnb, which Jay went back to with him and another man, under the name Ayub Abdul Jay's father Warren and brother Zak pictured on Wednesday hiking through the mountain track where Jay's phone was last located. They have returned to a Tenerife gorge with a search team He added: 'Qassim opened the door and spoke to a woman and man and they told him to move his car, which he did, and he said he could see Jay chatting to a woman. 'He said that after moving the car, he came back and saw Jay had his trainers on and he told Qassim that the woman had said he could get a bus 'every ten minutes'. 'Qassim said to him 'Chill, mate, I'll drop you off later, when I wake up' but he said Jay said 'nah, I need some scran, I'm hungry.' 'Jay said he had been told by the woman the bus to Los Cristianos was every ten minutes and Qassim said there was no bus and added 'Do what you like' before going to sleep.' Mr Williams-Thomas said: 'Qassim says the next thing he remembers is getting a call from one of Jay's friends to say he is lying in a ditch somewhere and that he's been "bitten by a cactus".' Qassim would not tell Mr Williams-Thomas the identity of the second man who was with him and refused to discuss an alleged theft of a Rolex which might have contributed to Jay's disappearance. Last week the TV detective, who has probed a string of missing persons cases, also said Jay had been 'anxious and scared' when he left the property. Qassim who has spoken to Spanish police was jailed in 2015 for nine years for being the ring leader of a London-based gang dealing heroin and crack cocaine in Cardiff. Qassim invited Jay back to his rented holiday cottage after a rave in Tenerife and says: 'He came to my Airbnb alive and he left my Airbnb alive' Qassim, 31, was jailed nine years ago for being the mastermind behind a sophisticated operation to flood Wales with Class A drugs Jay (right) pictured alongside his mother Debbie and brother Zak (left) who flew out to Tenerife after his disappearance A map showing Jay Slater's last known movements before he disappeared Jay Slater's best friend Lucy Law previously posted this picture on social media of the missing teenager nearly three weeks after he vanished in Tenerife He is also closely connected to a legal cannabis cafe in Tenerife owned by his childhood pal drill rapper Potter Payper. Pictures on Qassim's Instagram show him allegedly at a police station in Tenerife and another pictures him with two unknown teenagers on the treacherous road leading to Masca dancing on stone bollards by the side of the road. While another shows him at the steering wheel of a car driving at 125kph in what is thought to be a motorway tunnel leading from Playa de las Americas to Masca. Intriguingly Qassim has now deleted all his posts from his Instagram account - quack.quack1 - which has the two ducks and a picture of the top of his head under a palm tree. The bio reads: 'To move a mountain, you've gotta start by moving the little stones 1st,' which is saying attributed Chinese philosopher Confucius.' Initially it was thought Johnny Vegas was the nickname of the second man who was at the Airbnb but this has been ruled out by Mr Williams-Thomas new interview. However Qassim's story is still far from clear as Jay's apartment was just ten minutes from Papagayo's nightclub where the after party was being held. On Saturday Jay's uncle Glen Duncan, 41, searched the area for several hours with Jay's dad Warren, 58, and his brother Zak, 24. After more than six hours under a blazing sun, he told waiting media: 'There's millions of apartments and hotels down there in Los Cristianos and Playa de las Americas. 'The fact he [Qassim] has come out and said all his mates have left him and he had nowhere to go, he was ten minutes from his apartment in Los Cristianos. '[Jay's] not stupid. If he didn't have a room key he could have gone to reception for a replacement.' Spanish police told MailOnline that although the search was over 'the investigation was continuing and there were many open avenues being looked into'. Thieves are targeting careless holidaymakers on the beach at night, police say Crime is on the rise in Ibiza and popular tourist hotspots throughout Spain's Balearic Islands, with thieves targeting careless holidaymakers swimming, partying and even having sex on beaches at night, the National Police has declared. Authorities beefed up police presence throughout tourist areas from April as part of 'Operation Summer 2024', deploying units from mainland Spain and seconding officers from various departments to crack down on crime over the peak season. Officers on the island of Majorca made more than 100 arrests for robbery and theft between mid-April and mid-June in the city of Palma alone, a National Police spokesman said. But law enforcement members have warned that crime rates are still increasing on the islands as criminals target unsuspecting and unprepared holidaymakers. Crime is on the rise in Ibiza and popular tourist hotspots throughout Spain 's Balearic Islands, with thieves targeting careless holidaymakers swimming, partying and even having sex on beaches at night Law enforcement members have warned that crime rates are still increasing on the islands as criminals target unsuspecting and unprepared holidaymakers Police officer Rafael Jiminez said that besides theft and robbery on the beaches, the stretched police force is battling to crack down on home invasions and drug trafficking The National Police in June told the Majorca Daily Bulletin that the most vulnerable victims are foreigners on the beaches at night, with thieves 'taking advantage of the fact that tourists come to the beach to bathe, have sex or meet in groups'. Police officer Rafael Jiminez told Swedish outlet Expressen: 'New figures that we have just received show that crimes have increased dramatically. 'Above all, it is robbery. Ibiza is the worst affected of the Balearic islands.' He also explained that besides theft and robbery on the beaches, the stretched police force is battling to crack down on home invasions and drug trafficking. 'People are robbed in their homes, even when they are at home sometimes. 'Then we have a lot of drug trafficking, he says. We are an island with lots of parties, discos and clubs. 'Drugs are very much connected to that business - it's increasing too much right now.' Typically reliable Democratic Party donors in Hollywood are withholding their cash until President Joe Biden is replaced at the top of the ticket in the wake of the aging commander-in-chief's disastrous debate performance last month. Biden, 81, regularly lost focus and trailed off mid-sentence when faced with a typically robust performance from his Republican challenger, ex-president Donald Trump during their showdown on CNN. Last week, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, who has donated $100,000 already this election cycle, and Disney heiress Abigail Disney, who has earmarked donations of up to $635,000, made headlines as they were among the first to announces that they were ceasing funding until Biden pulls out. Now more bigshots in tinsel town are making similar moves. Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof, who has also given $100,000, wrote an op-ed for Deadline in which he made it clear he would no longer fund a Biden-led campaign. In an email to The Los Angeles Times, Lindelof doubled down saying that despite his 'immense respect' for Biden, the risks posed by another Trump presidency meant the stakes were simply too high. Abigail Disney, a known liberal philanthropist, has promised to withhold all funding for Biden's campaign Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof spoke of his respect for Biden in a recent op-ed but maintains the aging Democrat should step aside Media mogul Barry Diller has said he will no longer support the Democratic Party's presidential push with Biden at the top of the ticket Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings was among the first billionaires to pull his funding for the Biden campaign in the wake of the CNN debate 'For me, this isnt about the ability to govern, its about the ability to WIN,' he told the newspaper. Media mogul Barry Diller, contributor of around $150,000 this cycle, also told The Ankler that he wouldn't continue to fund the Biden campaign. Diller, known for his roles at Fox and USA Television, is married to designer Diane Von Furstenberg. However one key figure, Andy Spahn, who is known for his role in advising Hollywood's wealthiest people how to donate to liberal causes, is urging calm. 'Everyone just needs to take a breath. This will sort itself out soon enough,' he told The LA Times. Hollywood super-agent Ari Emanuel alluded to this trend last week at an event in Colorado. Emanuel said that most of his wealthy pals are concentrating on the Senate and Congress when it comes to donations. He went on to blame the Democratic Party for the mess created. '[Biden] said he was going to run for one term, and hes doing it to restore democracy. He then runs for a second term thats the first bit of malarkey, as he would say. He and his cohorts have told us that hes [been] healthy for over a year,' Emanuel said, via The Hollywood Reporter. 'I had a father who died at 92, but at 81 I took away his car, and it was a very simple test for me. If you were driving from downtown Beverly Hills to Malibu, would you want Biden to do it at night? Would you want Trump to do it at night?' 'If the answer is neither, you cannot have them running a $27 trillion company called the United States,' he ranted. Biden has maintained that he will remain in the race despite mounting pressure In contrast, Trump's campaign continues to raise money hand over fist, reporting a haul of $331 million in the second quarter of 2024. That number bests the $264 million that Bidens reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee reported raising over the same period. Trumps total includes $111.8 million that the campaign says it raised in June. That sum is less than the $127 million Biden reported raising last month, which includes more than $33 million on the day of the debate and in its aftermath. But Trumps campaign reports that it ended the quarter with $284.9 million cash on hand, compared with $240 million reported by Biden. Meanwhile, the granddaughter to Roy Disney, the co-founder of the Walt Disney Corporation, has often made noise for her liberal politics despite her wealth, which is believed to be around $120 million. 'I intend to stop any contributions to the party unless and until they replace Biden at the top of the ticket. This is realism, not disrespect. Biden is a good man and has served his country admirably, but the stakes are far too high,' she said in a statement. The 64-year-old Disney's announcement comes just a day after Reed Hastings became one of the first liberal megadonors to turn off the spigot until the president stands aside. 'If Biden does not step down the Democrats will lose. Of that I am absolutely certain. The consequences for the loss will be genuinely dire,' she continued. Disney believes that the 'excellent' Vice President Kamala Harris is more than capable of topping the ticket. 'If Democrats would tolerate any of her perceived shortcomings even one tenth as much as they have tolerated Bidens (and lets not kid ourselves about where race and gender figure in that inequity) and if Democrats can find a way to stop quibbling and rally around her, we can win this election by a lot,' she said. Disney's gifts have been generous toward the party during the Trump and Biden eras. She has donated to Biden-affiliated and Democrat-affiliated PACs over the past decade to the tune of at least $635,000, according to CNBC. However, a Biden campaign official told DailyMail.com that Disney has not donated to the campaign nor the Democratic National Committee since 2020. Disney is not alone, as the hits just keep on coming for Biden, who angered Democrat governors at an emergency meeting Wednesday night where he claimed he wanted to stop working past 8pm to preserve his fading energy, per CNN. A group of wealthy donors are also secretly plotting to start Next Generation PAC, a $50-100 million effort to support a Democrat nominee not named Joe Biden, according to the New York Times. Next Generation PAC - founded by crypto billionaire Mike Novogratz - will hold its money until Biden's resigns and give to his replacement on the ticket. Should he not get out of the race, they will focus on down-ballot Democrats but not to Biden. While the committee hasn't filed with the FEC, the Biden campaign has reportedly heard of it and tried to talk its backers into stopping. A senior member of Keir Starmer's shadow cabinet voiced her shock and disappointment today after being snubbed for a government role. Emily Thornberry, who was shadow attorney general until the election, said she had not been given a job by the party leader as he set out his first administration. Sir Keir made high-profile human rights barrister Richard Hermer his Attorney General on Friday, one in a series of technocratic appointments. But over the weekend and into Monday, as more junior roles were dished out, there was no room for the Islington South and Finsbury MP, who was shadow foreign secretary under Jeremy Corbyn. Ms Thornberry's career has been overshadowed by a number of high profile gaffes, including sneering at a house for proudly flying the England flag. And during the election campaign she was slapped down by a shadow Cabinet colleague for saying that it was 'fine' if the manifesto pledge to make private schools pay VAT increased the size of state school classes. In a statement on X, Ms Thornberry pointed out she had been in the shadow cabinet for more than eight years, adding: 'I am very sorry and surprised not to be able to continue that work in government, but I wish all my brilliant colleagues well, and I know that Richard Hermer KC - a much more accomplished lawyer than I could ever hope to be - will do an outstanding job as Attorney General. Emily Thornberry, who was shadow attorney general until the election, said she had not been given a job by the party leader as he set out his first administration Sir Keir made high-profile human rights barrister Richard Hermer his Attorney General on Friday, one in a series of technocratic appointments In a statement on X Ms Thornberry pointed out she had been in the shadow cabinet for more than eight years 'Nothing in the personal disappointment I feel can detract from the amazing and historic victory that all of us in the Labour movement worked together to win last week, and the chance we now have to change the country for the better.' It is understood that Ms Thornberry could still be offered a role by Sir Keir that sits outside the Government. He later insisted she has a 'big part to play' in Labour. Speaking to reporters in Wales, the Prime Minister said: 'I'm putting together a very strong team based on delivering. 'We got a very strong mandate at the general election, a mandate for change, a mandate for doing politics differently, and about service. That's why I'm putting my team together. 'Emily Thornberry has been fantastic, she's got a big part to play, as has every single one of my now 412 Labour MPs. 'But it's very important that we demonstrate the progress we're making, which is why I've been to Scotland, to Northern Ireland, and now to Wales to reset the relations.' Who's in Keir's Cabinet? Angela Rayner - Deputy PM, Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Secretary - Deputy PM, Levelling Up, Housing and Communities Secretary Rachel Reeves - Chancellor of the Exchequer - Chancellor of the Exchequer David Lammy - Foreign Secretary - Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper - Home Secretary - Home Secretary John Healey - Defence Secretary - Defence Secretary Wes Streeting - Health Secretary - Health Secretary Bridget Phillipson - Education Secretary - Education Secretary Shabana Mahmood - Justice Secretary - Justice Secretary Pat McFadden - Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster - Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Ed Miliband - Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary - Energy Security and Net Zero Secretary Liz Kendall - Work and Pensions Secretary - Work and Pensions Secretary Jonathan Reynolds - Business and Trade Secretary - Business and Trade Secretary Peter Kyle - Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary - Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Louise Haigh - Transport Secretary - Transport Secretary Lisa Nandy - Culture Secretary - Culture Secretary Steve Reed - Environment Secretary - Environment Secretary Darren Jones - Chief Secretary to the Treasury - Chief Secretary to the Treasury Richard Hermer - Attorney General - Attorney General Ian Murray - Scottish Secretary - Scottish Secretary Hilary Benn - Northern Ireland Secretary - Northern Ireland Secretary Jo Stevens - Welsh Secretary - Welsh Secretary Lucy Powell - Leader of the House of Commons - Leader of the House of Commons Baroness Smith - Leader of the House of Lords - Leader of the House of Lords Sir Alan Campbell - Chief Whip Advertisement Mr Hermer, who was called to the Bar in 1993 and appointed Queen's Counsel 16 years later, is arguably one of the most surprising appointments to Sir Keir's cabinet. It was thought the now Prime Minister would appoint Ms Thornberry, but she was brutally brushed aside in favour of Mr Hermer who has been given a peerage to take on the role. Mr Hermer is a deputy high court judge assigned to the King's bench division and administrative court. He has previously shown his support for Palestinian people as a human rights lawyer. Last year, he was one of a number of signatories of a letter written to the then Foreign Secretary James Cleverly which stated the 'Israeli government is led by a coalition of far-right parties whose common goal is the formal annexation of the West Bank and the extension of a one-state reality of unequal rights over more than five million Palestinians under occupation'. Labour's historic landslide election victory has left a Tory bloodbath in its wake as several notable figures from the previous cabinet failed to win over the electorate. And as the new cabinet make their way to Downing Street with many shadow ministers being promoted - certain decisions have left eyebrows raised. James Timpson, chief executive of his father's Timpsons shoe repair chain business, was made the minister for Prisons, Parole and Probation during the Prime Minister's appointments. Another recognisable face joining the ranks of Starmer's new roster is Sir Patrick Vallance - who acted as a chief scientific adviser during the COVID-19 pandemic. Now serving as the Minister of State of science, the 64-year-old was nicknamed 'Dr Doom' during the pandemic for being the face of SAGE's bleak projections. Although Mr Timpson OBE's newly earned position was surprising, he is well renowned for his work advocating for ex-convicts and passion for business. Chair of the Employers Forum for Reducing Re-offending (EFFRR) until 2016, the Timpson's boss has been applauded for his schemes rehabilitating offenders. That same year, he became Chair of the Prison Reform Trust establishing Employment Advisory Board network throughout the country to help improve job opportunities for prison leavers. Richard Hermer (pictured at the weekend) already has a track record in working with Keir Starmer's Labour party, having advised them on the government's Economic Activity of Public Bodies Bill last Summer For his very active work in getting disadvantaged people in employment and training, the new cabinet member was awarded in OBE in 2011. Namely, the retailer's CEO employed ex-prisoners in branches of his family's business in a bid to rehabilitate them. According to The Mirror, the UK business has now hired 600 ex-criminals throughout the UK. He told the publication in 2019: 'If you employ an ex-offender, someone long-term unemployed, a veteran, a care leaver, or someone who is disabled, the employer should not pay national insurance for the first 12 months.' Sir Keir is also said to be looking to bring former Blairites back into the fold as he seeks to shore up relations with the US and drive forward reform of the NHS, sources say. Alan Milburn, a former MP and Health Secretary under Tony Blair, is set to help reform the National Health Service in an as-yet undetermined role, according to The Telegraph. The move is seen to indicate that the private sector will still be a core component of their vision for the service, with Mr Milburn allegedly advising new Health Secretary Wes Streeting to ensure they can 'hit the ground running', according to the newspaper. David Miliband is also pegged for a return to politics, with party insiders telling The Sun that Sir Keir has the new Energy Secretary's brother in consideration for the next ambassador to the United States - once the US elections conclude. David Miliband served as Foreign Secretary under Gordon Brown between 2007 and 2010, and spent a year as Minister of State for Communities and Local Government when the role was created under Blair. The Prime Minister has already taken strides in government with calls to foreign leaders and the appointment of a decorated cabinet of veteran politicians and field experts. Whisked into Silverstone in a helicopter, it was a return to the A-list lifestyle that Phillip Schofield enjoyed for decades. His very public arrival at the British Grand Prix with his wife and two daughters yesterday came almost 13 months to the day since the broadcaster, 62, left ITV under a cloud. But gone were the tears of that day - and instead a smile has returned, the same one that was clear for all to see after a four-hour dinner with friend Declan Donnelly last month. These two public appearances are bound to prompt speculation: Is the former television star about to make a sensational comeback? Mark Borkowski, arguably Britains leading PR guru, told MailOnline that there should now be 'no surprise' if Mr Schofield makes a TV return, perhaps even in 2024. But amid rumours execs at ITV and the BBC are not receptive, Phil must convince them that he can 'win back the trust' of audiences and be more 'likeable' after the scandal involving a younger male colleague and his falling out with Holly Willoughby. 'Never write off Phillip Schofield', Mr Borkowski told MailOnline: 'He's making all the right noises and hanging out with his A-List mates. He's rehabilitating and people like an underdog and a comeback story. The broadcaster was all smiles with his family yesterday amid rumours he is plotting a comeback Former This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield arrived at Silverstone by helicopter ahead of the British Grand Prix Phil grinned as he arrived for the race in Northamptonshire alongside his wife Stephanie Lowe and his two daughters, Molly, 30, and Ruby, 27. Former This Morning host Phillip Schofield, 62, was pictured smiling with I'm A Celebrity star Declan Donnelly, 48, charging rumours that a return to TV for the axed presenter is on the cards During his epic tumble from grace, Mr Schofield's failing friendship with ITV co-host Holly Willoughby, 43, became a national fascination. Their relationship is over, sources say Mr Borkowski said: There are no surprises here and don't write off Phillip Schofield. Phillip is a bona fide talent created by television. There aren't that many around at the moment as TV looks at more and more influencers and reality stars thrown up from places like Love Island. He has a talent. It's finding him a format'. Mr Borkowski has said that Mr Schofield will be searching a for a TV format to relaunch his career and should take note of Noel Edmonds successful return to TV with Deal or No Deal. A quiz show format like that, for example, could give him the chance to win the trust of the audience back but he shouldnt expect a primetime return. There are a lot of comparisons here with Noel Edmonds. If you think back, he returned with such an incredibly successful format in Deal or No Deal, which he made his own and turned that afternoon slot into something quite extraordinary. It provided the ground for shows like Pointless', he said. His big task is to persuade TV bosses that the audiences are going to go with him. If he can do that, he'll be back, because talent like his is hard to make. He's got to overcome that and bring the trust of the audience back. Do something about the perception of his ego and become likable again, and find a really winning new format. There's plenty out there, whatever time of the day. It doesn't need to be primetime. Mr Borkowski also believes that Schofield has been savvy in the way he has brought his eldest daughter Molly in to do his PR. What's important about her is that she understands his pain and she's likely to go on that journey with a real passion for him, he said. She's understands exactly what's going on and understands the way television works having lived it with her father. So you never know, she might be developing into a significant talent herself. It is now just over a year since Schofield's epic fall from grace, when, after years of lying about his long-term romance with a much younger This Morning colleague. Schofield admitted to a relationship with a much younger male colleague (pictured centre) and having lied about it to bosses - as well as his loved ones Mr Schofield is captured walking his puppy in the rain in May. He has remained off TV screens since he admitted to his relationship a year ago Insiders told the Mail's Katie Hind that the past year has done nothing to dampen Schofield's self-belief. He remains furious and still sees himself as the victim of the saga. 'Phillip firmly believes that he has been mistreated by ITV. He thinks he was thrown under the bus. From some of what he says, he feels he is the victim,' a source said recently. Schofield 'thinks he was the fall guy. He can't work out why he was the one who had to go from This Morning last May', the insider added. Schofield 'thinks he was the fall guy. He can't work out why he was the one who ha red to go from This Morning last May', the insider added. The star-struck young man at the heart of the scandal, who first met Schofield when he was just 15, during a visit to his theatre school in the North West of England, is said to be struggling. Struggling in particular to come to terms with the relationship and how infamous it became especially across social media. After leaving ITV with a pay out, insiders say he went abroad. There was a stint at another terrestrial broadcaster before life in the industry became too much and he left to work in a pub. For Schofield, gone are the many industry friends who had once so enjoyed being in his orbit. Instead, there are dog walks, evenings in front of the TV with his daughters Molly and Ruby and visits to Cornwall to see his elderly mother, Pat. He's been very open about the fact that he's been undergoing therapy. A visit to his local pub is seen as a 'treat' these days. His wife Stephanie Lowe, who had their 31st wedding anniversary, remains absolutely loyal to him. They have matching dogs. They split up four years ago after Schofield publicly announced he was gay. Yet the couple remain married and Stephanie has stood by the fallen star in a remarkable show of devotion despite the devastating betrayal which would lead to her husband's downfall. Phillip Schofield pictured with his wife Stephanie Lowe carrying puppies on his birthday over Easter They split up four years ago after Schofield publicly announced he was gay. They are not divorced Just 13 months ago Schofield was riding high as one of Britain's highest profile TV celebrities earning 730,000-a-year for fronting This Morning alongside Holly Willoughby and worth a reputed 10 million. In a well-publicised fall from grace, Schofield's world fell apart overnight when he dramatically stood down from the popular daytime show after 21 years. In an emotional TV interview Schofield admitted he had made 'a grave error' which had led to the end of his career. He told the BBC: 'I have to talk about television in the past tense, which breaks my heart. I have lost everything. 'What am I going to do with my days? I see nothing ahead of me but blackness, and sadness, and regret, and remorse, and guilt. I did something very wrong, and then I lied about it consistently.' For Schofield it was the heartache he put Steph, 60, and their daughters Molly, 30, and Ruby, 27, through which seemed hardest to explain. He said: 'I had a wonderful marriage, have a wonderful marriage, although it's not brilliant right now, with an incredibly supportive wife and two wonderful children.' Significantly, Schofield, continued to wear his wedding ring during the interview while confirming he and Stephanie 'are separated but we are very much together.' Describing the moment he confessed the affair to his wife he said: 'Let's just say it was an incredibly difficult conversation. The most difficult conversation I've ever had to have with her, and she is extremely disappointed because I lied to her as well.' Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby hug as he came out as gay on This Morning Three years earlier, in February 2020, Schofield praised his 'remarkable' wife after he announced his sexuality live from the This Morning sofa. He admitted after the revelation, that he knew he was gay when he tied the knot with Stephanie. But he told how he had been leading the 'perfect life' as a married family man and said he hadn't wanted anything to get in the way of their happiness. Schofield said: 'Whatever was ''there'' I thought, ''OK, whatever this is, you stay back because I am happy'.' He added of his wife: 'Steph is my closest confidante. She's been amazing. I have no secrets from Steph'. Schofield said he knew he had caused his wife great pain saying: 'That is what makes this so hard. Knowing you are hurting the perfect person but I still love Steph as much as when we first met. More, probably.' He added in an Instagram post: 'Steph has been incredible - I love her so very much'. A man who killed his estranged wife by smashing his ute into her car at 140km/h uttered a haunting threat months before the horrific murder, her grieving family have revealed. Kristy Armstrong, 36, died 400 metres from her home at Molong, near Orange in NSW's Central West, on June 9 last year. The mother-of-three was killed instantly on her way home from the school run when a ute driven by her estranged husband Troy Armstrong collided into her green sedan. Troy, 35, was charged with murder and two counts of attempted murder after two children, aged eight and 11, sitting in the back seat suffered injuries in the crash. He took his own life in prison last month, five days before the anniversary of his heinous crime. Haunting doorbell footage obtained by A Current Affair has emerged of a bitter argument Kristy and her estranged husband had outside her house in the months before her death. Troy had smashed a window to take the keys to the family car when Kristy confronted him in the presence of a neighbour. 'Are going to help or are you just going to put up with this?', Kristy pleaded with the neighbour as Troy started to take off with the car. Kristy Armstrong (pictured), 36, died only 400 metres from her home at Molong, near Orange in NSW 's Central West on June 9 last year The mother-of-three was killed instantly when she was driving home from the school run and her green sedan collided with a ute (pictured) being driven furiously by her estranged husband Troy Armstrong Troy then answered: 'Are you gonna help? Are you gonna run her over?' Kristy applied for an AVO against her ex in November but wasn't granted an interim order until May, court documents revealed. She died less than a month later. A close friend alleged that police did not take Kristy's fears seriously. 'The police officer that did come out when Kristy opened the door, he was like, 'oh, this is Troy Armstrong's house. He wouldn't do anything like that, this must be a mistake' and he left,' the friend told the program. Kristy's heartbroken parents are now raising her children. They claim their daughter had been subjected to months of verbal, emotional and physical abuse. The couple claimed their estranged son-in-law punched holes in the walls and had messaged Kristy saying: 'So what's the point? It's either I die or you die'. 'He had said to Kristy, 'If you go, when you come back, the house is gonna be burnt down, the cat will be dead and I'll be dead as well,' Donna Thornell said. Troy Armstrong killed himself in prison last month, five days before the anniversary of his heinous crime. He's pictured with Kristy in happier times. Kristy's heartbroken parents have called for more support groups She added: 'I just miss her so much and she should be here raising her kids. Not us.' Her parents are trying to raise awareness of Australia's domestic violence epidemic. 'I think there was just not enough support groups in the local community and not enough training for those in those support groups,' her father Peter, said. 'Plus the police as well, I think and probably not enough staff as well. She was promised that somebody would come out and put in cameras, change the locks, do this and that and nobody came out.' Ms Thornell said Troy's decision to end his life instead of facing justice proved he was 'selfish to the end'. 'Five days from the anniversary, once again he controlled what he wanted to do,' she said. Her husband said they felt 'initial relief' but now feel 'cheated' because they 'won't have the opportunity to see him found guilty'. Troy had not yet entered a plea when he killed himself in his cell at the Metropolitan Remand and Reception Centre in Silverwater, in Sydney's west, on June 4. If you or someone you know needs support, contact Lifeline 13 11 14 or 1800 RESPECT The Conservative Party's Twitter profile was deleted today following the general election - but the Tories insisted its disappearance was not their fault. Social media users on X, formerly Twitter, were stunned to see the account, which was started in 2008 and has 629,000 followers, missing this morning. But the Conservatives' press team said it had played no part in their online presence vanishing. Instead they laid the blame at the door of Elon Musk's X - and claimed the same error was affecting multiple accounts. By lunchtime it had returned, together with all of the posts the site had put up throughout its history. But it was too late to stop social media users from ridiculing what had happened. Some joked it was because the account had been hacked, while others said it was done to delete the account's history. Social media users on X, formerly Twitter, were stunned to see the account, which was started in 2008 and has 629,000 followers, missing this morning Social media users were quick to ridicule the deletion with many attributing it on the general election defeat Rishi Sunak and his wife Akshata Murty leave 10 Downing Street following the Conservative Party's defeat in the general election MailOnline contacted both the Conservative Party and Twitter for a response on the incident. One social media user joked: 'Either this is the biggest sulk in UK political history... or they gave Liz Truss the admin job out of pity.' Another user commented: 'Have they joined the Reform Party or something? (laughing face emoji)' The account's deletion comes after the Conservative Party suffered their worst ever result in a UK general election winning only 121 seats. Former Prime Minister Liz Truss, whose brief, disastrous time in office led to a slump in Tory support from which it never recovered, was ejected from the Commons. A host of other big beats and cabinet ministers, including Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, Commons leader Penny Mordaunt, Justice Secretary Alex Chalk and former minister Sir Jacob-Rees Mogg all lost their seats. Sir Keir Starmer's landslide majority of 172 was just short of the 179 won by Tony Blair in 1997. The Conservative Party's accounts deletion account comes after the party were accused of using the press Twitter account to mislead voters during a general election debate on June 26. Sir Keir Starmer's landslide over the Conservatives was short of the 179 majority won by Tony Blair in 1997 The Conservatives Press Office account, CCHQPress, remained operational Conservative Party HQ faced accusations of misleading the public by rebranding its official press account on X as 'Tax Check UK' while Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer debated on the BBC last month Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter/X, has previously called the website the home of free speech Conservative Party HQ faced accusations of misleading the public by rebranding its official press account on X as 'Tax Check UK' while Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer debated on the BBC. While CCHQ does include 'by the Conservatives' in the profile's bio, some claimed it would be possible for users to see its posts without reading the description. The account rebrand attracted criticism by fact checking website Full Fact, which in a statement on X said: 'We've written to @Conservatives to ask them to remove the 'Tax Check UK' rebrand of @CCHQPress. This misrepresents posts on the account as an impartial fact checking service. Voters deserve better.' Meanwhile Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter/X, has previously called the website the home of free speech. Since Mr Musk took over Twitter as it was then known in late 2022, he has loosened content moderation on the site and allowed more controversial material on the platform, as part of his support of 'absolute free speech'. Since his takeover, it has been reported that the platform has seen substantial revenue decline as advertisers have abandoned it over concerns about Mr Musk's belief in 'absolute free speech' and his tolerance of more controversial content. It has led the company to turn to subscription options including X Premium, which enables users to pay to be verified in order to open up new income streams. A mental health nurse has faced court for the first time over the alleged murder of her husband, as horrifying new details about the crime scene emerged. Caroll Hopkinson, 58, was charged over the death of Simon 'Hoppo' Hopkinson, 60, after his body was discovered at the couples Taperoo home in Adelaide's north-west on Sunday morning. Ms Hopkinson, a mental health nurse with more than 20 years of experience, was allegedly the one who called police to the home on Sunday. Shocked neighbours claimed they saw Ms Hopkinson sitting at the front of the house appearing 'nonchalant' before she was arrested and escorted from the scene by police. Ms Hopkinson appeared in Port Adelaide Magistrates Court on Monday still dressed in the pyjamas and pink dressing gown she was arrested in, with bandages wrapped around her hands. She remained silent in the dock as her defence lawyer told the court there would be no application for bail. Police prosecutors told the court they require at least 20 weeks to examine evidence, including analysis of the alleged crime scene, the Adelaide Advertiser reported. 'We require around four months and four weeks, just to get some blood splatter analysis,' the prosecutor said. Caroll Hopkinson, 58 (right) has appeared in court over the alleged murder of her husband Simon Hopkinson, 60 (left) Caroll Hopkinson, 58, is pictured being led away by police after the body of her husband was discovered in the couple's home on Sunday morning The cause of Mr Hopkinson's death has not been revealed. Ms Hopkinson was remanded in custody and reappear in court again in November, unless a bail application hearing is called before then. It's understood that the couple were both psychiatric nurses. Ms Hopkinson's LinkedIn profile reveals that as well as being a registered nurse working in mental health, she operated a small pet boarding facility called Cat Catraz, 'The ultimate in small pet boarding'. Ms Hopkinson's lawyer declined to comment on the cause outside court. The couple's home remained a crime scene on Monday. Shocked neighbours were horrified to hear about the alleged incident on what is usually a quiet suburban street. Caroll Hopkinson (pictured) was remanded in custody and will reappear in court in November One woman said although though she didn't know the pair very well, they 'seem lovely'. Other neighbours described them as 'a happy couple' and 'beautiful people'. Kyla Vermeulen, a resident of the street for 14 years was 'pretty shocked' to hear of the death, adding that 'it's quite sad'. She added it was 'mostly older people and families' who lived in the area. Another local resident Matt Carr told the ABC that he heard sirens when he woke up and 'there was a bit of activity going on out the front'. 'You don't expect to wake up to that in your front yard on a Sunday morning,' he said. Police urge anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers. The manufacturers say the machines us AI facial recognition software Americans in Alabama, Oklahoma and Texas, are now able to go into grocery stores and pickup ammo straight out of a vending machine that's 'as easy to use as an ATM.' American Rounds, the company behind the innovation, says that the machines are similar to traditional vending machines but use sophisticated AI facial recognition software to ensure that the purchase is legal. The majority of laws around the purchase of ammo in the US revolve around age restrictions. Federal law demands that purchasers of ammo for rifles must be 18 and for handguns, 21. There is no limitations on the amount of ammunition that buyers can purchase. 'Our smart retail automated ammo dispensers have built-in AI technology, card scanning capability and facial recognition software,' the company boasts on its website. 'Each piece of software works together to verify the person using the machine matches the identification scanned.' According to American Rounds, the machines use AI facial recognition software to ensure the purchaser is over 18 There are no limits placed on the amount of ammo that a purchaser can buy The presence of the machines was first reported at the beginning of July with Cleveland.com mentioning that they were operational in six locations across Oklahoma and Alabama. Shortly afterwards, the presence of a machine in Tuscaloosa became the subject of a city council meeting leading to its removal because of zoning issues. The store maintains it was removed because of lack of sales. 'We are still happy to be working with Fresh Value, Pell City, and we have plans to expand with Fresh Value to their other locations,' American Rounds CEO Grant Magers told Al.com. 'The city of Tuscaloosa has been very supportive, and we are thankful for that support,' he added. The company is currently looking at expanding its operations into Louisiana and Colorado. In an interview with Newsweek, Magers said that the machines were now in four states and that it will shortly be expanded to eight. 'We have over 200 store requests for AARM [Automated Ammo Retail Machine] units covering approximately nine states currently and that number is growing daily,' he said. In terms of legalities, on American Rounds' website, Magers reminds users of the vending machines that state laws often dictate that records be kept on ammo purchases, something that his products adhere to. In January, the US surgeon general declared gun violence a public health crisis, driven by the fast-growing number of injuries and deaths involving firearms in the country. American Rounds, the company behind the innovation, says that the machines are not that similar to traditional vending machines in that they use AI facial recognition software to ensure the purchase is legal Jonathon Candy, pictured with his wife, Lindsay, killed his family in an horrific mass shooting in April in Oklahoma where American Rounds now sells its ammo The advisory issued by Dr. Vivek Murthy, the nation's top doctor, came as the U.S. grappled with another summer weekend marked by mass shootings that left dozens of people dead or wounded. 'People want to be able to walk through their neighborhoods and be safe,' Murthy told The Associated Press in a phone interview at the time. 'America should be a place where all of us can go to school, go to work, go to the supermarket, go to our house of worship, without having to worry that that's going to put our life at risk.' Ammo vending machines: How it works Customers use the touch screen to make their selection based on the type of gun involved, long guns or handguns. After making their selection, users verify their identity by inserting their state issued ID. This prompts the machine's 360 facial recognition software to ascertain that the same person in the id picture is the same person making the purchase. Once that's approved, the user then moves to the payment option before receiving their ammo. There is no limit to the amount of ammo a person can buy. Advertisement To drive down gun deaths, Murthy calls on the U.S. to ban 'assault weapons and large-capacity magazines for civilian use,' introduce universal background checks for purchasing guns, regulate the industry, pass laws that would restrict their use in public spaces and penalize people who fail to safely store their weapons. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, over 1,300 people died as a result of gun violence in 2022 in Alabama, where the first vending machines appeared, the fourth highest in the country. In May, the state was rocked when three people were killed and more than a dozen were wounded during a May Day event in the town of Stockton in the southern part of the state. In Oklahoma, around 700 people die as a result of gun violence every year. In April, a man killed his wife and three of their four children in an horrific murder suicide in Oklahoma City suburbs, the most recent mass shooting in the state. The couple's ten-year-old son was unharmed in the violence. Meanwhile, Texas, where American Rounds have vending machines, has the highest number of gun related deaths in the US with an average of over 4,600. The most recent mass shooting in the Lone Star State state occurred on July 4 in Fort Worth where three people, including two children, were killed in a shooting outside of a car wash. Firearms are the most common weapon used in homicides of spouses, intimate partners, children or relatives in recent years, according to data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Guns were used in more than half, 57 percent, of those killings in 2020, a year that saw an overall increase in domestic violence during the coronavirus pandemic. Seventy women a month, on average, are shot and killed by intimate partners, according to the gun control group Everytown for Gun Safety. Prominent French Jews have sounded the alarm after the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance took a surprise victory in parliamentary elections yesterday, slamming one of its key figures for alleged anti-Semitism. The NFP alliance, whose constituent parties include the Socialists and the hard-left 'France Unbowed' (LFI) party of divisive leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, came from behind to eke out a victory with 182 seats in parliament ahead of President Macron's centrist 'Together' coalition on 168. The hard-right National Rally (RN) ended up in third place with just 143 seats, despite having led the race convincingly after the first round of elections just one week ago. Critics had denounced the RN ahead of yesterday's second-round run-off vote, labelling it a party of racists rife with xenophobia. But LFI leader Melenchon is extremely unpopular among France's Jewish population, many of whom accuse him of holding anti-Semitic sentiments. Moshe Sebbag, a rabbi at the Grand Synagogue of Paris said in the wake of the election that 'it seems France has no future for Jews', and advised younger Jews to 'leave for Israel'. 'People my age, we've made our life here... we fear for the future of our children,' he told The Times of Israel. Meanwhile, French-Jewish philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy said: 'The left is once again kidnapped by the infamous Melenchon. Divisive language. Hate of the republic on the lips. Around him right now are some incarnations of the new antisemitism... Continue to fight against these people.' Yesterday's surprise election results left France with a hung parliament with the overwhelming majority of seats split between three factions, all of which harbour very different ideas about the future of France. President Emmanuel Macron is now seeking to capitalise on the chaos, refusing the resignation of his protege Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and instructing him to stay in place as the government sits in limbo. Defying the predictions of political experts, French polls and the world's media, the New Popular Front alliance (NFP) - led by Jean-Luc Melenchon (left) - came from behind to eke out a victory with 182 seats in parliament Melenchon, who is often compared to former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, promised to increase public spending by at least 150billion within the next five years, which will be financed by increasing taxes Young people shout slogans at the rally held after the results of the second round of the legislative elections were announced at Place de la Republique, Paris, July 7, 2024 French riot police stand in position near burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators following partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the Place de la Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron are seen outside a polling station in Le Touquet Paris Plage, northern France, Sunday July 7, 2024 A man places an uprooted plant on a pile of burning e-bikes during a protest following the legislative election results on July 8, 2024 in Paris, France Macron is now seeking to capitalise on the chaos, refusing the resignation of his protege Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (pictured) and instructing him to stay in place as the government is left in limbo Your browser does not support iframes. Melenchon in the run-up to yesterday's elections dismissed claims he was anti-Semitic and has long said such accusations are simply trotted out to discourage people from voting for the left. In 2018, he famously declared that when a 'man of the left is called an anti-Semite, it means he's not far from power'. But the 72-year-old has made a series of statements that have given French Jews cause for concern. He was lambasted as far back as 2013 when he was accused of making anti-Semitic remarks about France's then-finance minister, and again in 2017 when in a speech he callously labelled French Jews 'an arrogant minority that lectures to the rest'. More recently he has been criticised for downplaying or dismissing the existence of antisemitism in France even amid an increase in reported anti-Semitic acts following the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas on October 7. In a blog post published less than two months ago, the LFI chief declared that antisemitism in France was 'residual' and 'absent' from pro-Palestinian rallies. Three weeks later, a 12-year-old girl was brutally gang-raped and called a 'dirty Jew' in a Parisian suburb in a case that sparked widespread outrage in France. In a stunning example of political conniving, last week saw Macron's centrists and members of the NFP work together to block a hard-right majority. More than 200 left-wing or centrist candidates withdrew after the first round to avoid splitting votes, building a united Republican front to crush RN hopes of an absolute majority. But Macron's hope that his decision to call snap elections would give France a 'moment of clarification' has done exactly the opposite, as all three main political blocs fell far far short of the 289 seats needed to control the 577-seat National Assembly. Formed just last month, the NFP brings together socialists, greens, communists and the hard-left into one super-camp - with the leader of the radical left, Jean-Luc Melenchon, vowing to implement several socialist policies that critics fear will leave France 'ungovernable'. Melenchon, who is often compared to former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, promised to increase public spending by at least 150billion within the next five years, which will be financed by increasing taxes. The hard-left leader also said he would raise the minimum wage by 14 per cent, introduce a ban on price increases of essential goods and reduce the state pension age from 64 to just 60. A crowd of demonstrators gather on the Republic square in Paris to celebrate the victory of the left-wing NFP alliance PARIS: A protester throws a projectile near burning bicycles during clashes with police after the exit polls People gather in front of 'Le Monument a la Republique' statue during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 Demonstrators shout with joy to celebrate the victory of the new popular front. Participants gathered during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024 Emmanuel Macron avoided that which he feared the most in France's stunning parliamentary elections yesterday as Marine Le Pen's hard-right National Rally failed to scoop an absolute majority, instead suffering a shock defeat People against the hard-right RN party celebrate during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris, France, on July 7, 2024 PARIS: French CRS riot police run past burning bicycles during clashes with demonstrators People celebrate during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 Protesters clash with police in Paris late last night While the NFP secured the most seats in parliament, it does not have anywhere near enough seats for a majority and the lack of such for any single alliance means Melenchon cannot form a government alone. Instead, he will be forced to negotiate with other parties in the hopes of organising a coalition government. But leader of the centrists Macron has already labelled him an extremist - and it is almost impossible to imagine a scenario in which the despondent and crestfallen RN agrees to enter into government with an alliance on the opposite side of the political spectrum. With the government now in deadlock as the parties squabble over who will lead, Macron today declared that Attal will remain in place as Prime Minister. But he will have his work cut out to do what Macron requested of him upon his appointment seven months ago - 'to ensure the stability of the country'. Such chaos is reflected on the streets of France where thousands upon thousands of protesters violently clashed with riot police, set fire to electric bikes, threw flares and smashed up property - a mere three weeks before Paris is set to host the Olympic Games. Macron's outgoing finance minister Bruno Le Maire celebrated the loss of the hard-right, but warned France could now risk a financial crisis if warring parties cannot come to an agreement and form a coalition in short order. 'The most immediate risk is a financial crisis and France's economic decline,' he said. 'The second risk is an ideological fracture of the nation,' he added. Founder of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon gestures following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad in Paris on July 7, 2024 PARIS: Around 30,000 riot police have been deployed in France amid fears of violence breaking out PARIS: Hundreds of people gathered together after exit polls predicted that a left-wing alliance was leading PARIS: French riot police were armed with batons and shields as they tried to tackle the violence PARIS: Firefighters extinguishe burning bikes during a gathering for the election night PARIS: The far-Right National Rally are predicted to come third - despite leading after the first polls PARIS: A protester kicks back a tear gas canister as clashes occur in the French capital PARIS: French riot police clash with activists on Sunday night PARIS: Anti-riot police officers stand next to a burning pole during a gathering NANTES: A demonstrator throws a smoke flare during reactions to projected results NANTES: Protesters launch molotov cocktails at riot police in western France PARIS: Demonstrators launch fireworks on the outskirts of the French capital NANTES: Masked protesters clash with anti riot police after the second round of elections NANTES: Furious protesters took to the streets after the second round of elections Marine Le Pen's (pictured) hopes of forming France's first hard-right government since the War have been dashed after a left-wing coalition took the most seats in the second round of the legislative election, exit polls predict Supporters of The Ecologists-EELV green party celebrate following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 The New Popular Front (NFP) alliance was on course to have 172-215 MPs with Emmanuel Macron's (pictured) centrists on 150-180 seats and the far-right National Rally (RN) on 115-155, according to projections by four leading polling firms In a sombre speech after the second-round legislative election, Jordan Bardella, the president of the far right RN, denounced the political manoeuvering that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations. An unprecedented number of candidates who qualified for the runoff stepped aside to allow an opponent to go head-to-head with the National Rally candidate, increasing the chances of defeating them. Despite projections widely considered disappointing for the anti-immigration, nationalist party, it still increased its seat count in parliament to an unprecedented high. 'Tonight, by deliberately taking the responsibility to paralyse our institutions, Emmanuel Macron... is consequently depriving the French people of any responses to their daily problems for many months to come,' Bardella said. Hard-left Melenchon, 72, giving his first reaction, called on French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to resign and said the left-wing coalition was ready to govern. 'The French people have voted with a conscience,' said Melenchon, a former presidential candidate and one of the main leaders of the NPF. 'Our people have clearly ruled out the worst solution to our problems.' Melenchon welcomed 'a result that had seemed impossible', adding: 'This evening the RN is far from having an absolute majority. This is a huge relief for millions of people who make up the new France.' MARSEILLE: People light flares as they celebrate the election results in France PARIS: Protesters occupy the Place de la Republique after the exit poll results were announced NANTES: Riot police officers charge at protesters during a demonstration PARIS: Several e-bikes were lit on fire near the Place de la Republique PARIS: Anti-riot police officers detain a protester during a gathering for the election night PARIS: People gather at the Place de la Republique after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections NANTES: An injured riot police officer is dragged away by colleagues amid the violence PARIS: An activist is detained by police in Paris on a night which descended into chaos NANTES: Protesters use umbrellas as they clash with riot police NANTES: A protester lets off a flare as he hides behind the cover of an umbrella NANTES: An injured riot police officer in western France NANTES: Police chase demonstrators during reactions to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections PARIS: Protesters have taken over the memorial on the Place de la Republique in the capital A supporter of the left wing coalition Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) gives the middle finger and holds a flare as she celebrates after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Rennes on July 7, 2024 Supporters of French far-left opposition party La France Insoumise (France Unbowed - LFI) react after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections at Place Stalingrad in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French left-wing Socialist Party (PS) watch a screen displaying the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 PARIS: People stand in Republique Plaza as they react to the projection of results during the second round of the legislative elections PARIS: French police stand in position behind flares during clashes with demonstrators as people gather at the Place de la Republique after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections NANTES: Demonstrators set off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections RENNES: Tear gas has been deployed as rioters clash with security forces following an election night event after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election NANTES: Police chase demonstrators during reactions to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections RENNES: A photographer takes pictures of tear gas during clashes with security forces following an election night event after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election PARIS: Supporters light red flares during the election night of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad LYON: Demonstrators light off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections People deploy a giant national flag reading 'France is the fabric of migration' and a banner reading 'stop genocide' during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 A participant stands among anti-fascist symbols during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024 People celebrate after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Marseille on July 7, 2024 Macron will now attend this month's landmark NATO summit in Washington a diminished figure, with France left without a stable ruling majority less than three weeks before Paris hosts the Olympics. The snap elections in this nuclear-armed nation have potential impact on the war in Ukraine, global diplomacy and Europe's economic stability - and the results are almost certain to undermine Macron's power and influence for the remaining three years of his presidency. The election campaign, the shortest in French history, has been marked by a febrile national mood, threats and violence - including racist abuse - against dozens of candidates and canvassers. Turnout was high, with left-wing and centrist candidates urging supporters to defend democratic values and the rule of law - while the far right scented a chance to upend the established order. By 5pm local time, according to interior ministry figures, some 61.4 percent of voters had turned out - the most since 1981. An outright RN victory would have seen Macron forced into an uneasy cohabitation with Bardella as prime minister for the remaining three years of his term. Even without that scenario, France is left with a hung parliament with a large eurosceptic, anti-immigration contingent. This would have weakened France's international standing and threaten Western unity in the face of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. 'Even if the right extreme less strong than expected, the country is more divided than ever,' Armin Steinbach, European economist and professor at Business School HEC Paris, said. 'Centre parties have lost compared to the last election in 2022. Extreme parties, from the left and right, have gained. The country is polarised.' PARIS: People light up the sky with fireworks as protesters gather on the Place de la Republique NANTES: Riot police arrest a protester who is holding their hands up in surrender Rioters in Paris set off flares as thousands took to the streets to celebrate or protest the election results Hundreds of riot police officers were deployed all over Paris to patrol the streets ahead of expected riots Shops in Paris were boarded up ahead of the expected protests in the French capital on July 7, 2024 People react to the projection of results for the second round of the legislative elections, Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Nantes, western France Jordan Bardella, President of the French far-right Rassemblement National (National Rally - RN) party, delivers a speech on stage after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 High street stores across Paris were seen boarding up this morning ahead of the second round of parliamentary voting amid fears of protests Several central areas within Paris are concerned with the possibility of protests erupting, including Rue de Rivoli, the Opera area, and the Champs-Elysees Supporters of the left wing coalition Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) celebrate after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during an election night event in Rennes on July 7, 2024 France's Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (L) gives a speech following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Matignon in Paris on July 7, 2024 Demonstrators light off smoke flares as they react to projected results after the second round of the legislative elections, in Lyon, central France, Sunday, July 7, 2024 In a somber speech after the second-round legislative election, Jordan Bardella (pictured), the president of the far right RN, denounced the political maneuvering that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations Far-right National Rally party leader Marine Le Pen answers reporters after the second round of the legislative election, Sunday, July 7, 2024 at the party election night headquarters in Paris Hard-left France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon (right), giving his first reaction, called on French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to resign and said the left-wing coalition was ready to govern French far-right Rassemblement National (RN) political party MP for Pas-de-Calais Marine Le Pen during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of French parliamentary legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French left-wing Socialist Party (PS) react following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 Supporters of the French far-right Rassemblement National (National Rally - RN) party hold French flags as they react after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at the RN in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (pictured) said he would offer Macron his resignation on Monday but was ready to serve 'as long as duty demands', notably in light of the imminent Games Partcipants react as they listen to the announcement of the projected results of the second round of France's crunch legislative elections during a rally in Nantes, western France on July 7, 2024 Rassemblement National militants during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 Supporters the French Left wing coaltion parties 'Le Nouveau Front Populaire' (The new Popular Front in French) react after the second round of thelegislative elections results at Place d ela Republique in Paris, France, July 7, 2024 He added: 'A deadlock is the most likely outcome because of the lack of majority in parliament. A quick solution within days is unlikely. 'France has no political culture to make coalitions and compromises, like Germany or Italy. That is why it feels like a crisis for the French.' EU officials, already learning to deal with far-right parties in power in Italy and the Netherlands and frustrated by Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban, are watching France closely. With the country on tenterhooks, last week saw more than 200 tactical-voting pacts between centre and left wing candidates in seats to attempt to prevent the RN winning an absolute majority. This has been hailed as a return of the anti-far right 'Republican Front' first summoned when Le Pen's father Jean-Marie faced Jacques Chirac in the run-off of 2002 presidential elections. The question for France now is if this last-ditch alliance of last resort can now support a stable government, dogged by a huge RN bloc in parliament led by Le Pen herself as she prepares a 2027 presidential bid. If no coalition emerges, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal could try to lead a minority government as, under French rules, the president can not dissolve parliament again and call a fresh poll for 12 months. Supporters of The Ecologists-EELV green party celebrate following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election during the party's election night event in Paris on July 7, 2024 Rassemblement National militants during an evening gathering of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN) on second round of legislative elections at Pavillon Chesnaie du Roy of Parc floral in Paris, France on July 7, 2024 People react to the projection of results after the second round of the legislative elections, Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Nantes, western France France's President Emmanuel Macron (R), flanked by his wife Brigitte Macron (L), exits a polling booth, adorned with curtains displaying the colors of the flag of France, to vote in the second round of France's legislative election at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France on July 7, 2024 People deploy a giant national flag reading 'France is the fabric of migration' during an election night event following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris on July 7, 2024 France's President Emmanuel Macron votes in the second round of France's legislative election at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France on July 7, 2024 A barricade burned as protesters demonstrated against the French far-right National Rally party Anti-riot police officers pushed back protesters on Paris streets following the first round of voting on June 30 'France is on the cusp of a seismic political shift,' said analysts at the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), warning of 'legislative gridlock' that would weaken 'France's voice on the European and international stage'. Professor Steinbach said that two main scenarios are possible now: 'Firstly, a minority government by the left-wing block because as the 'winner' they have the legitimacy to form a government. 'With this result, there'll be no Macronist prime minister, hence a Cohabitation. Much depends on whether the NFP will stay united and not break up in old conflicts. 'They could in next days propose a moderate left-wing PM candidate. Francois Holland could be such candidate. 'Secondly, Macron's party and Republicans form a coalition as a minority government. This would be very unpopular and may trigger protests because he clearly lost the election.' The daughter of Canadian literary icon Alice Munro has accused the late author of turning a blind eye to the sexual abuse she endured as a child at the hands of her stepfather. Just weeks after the Nobel laureate's death at 92, her youngest daughter Andrea Skinner detailed the accusations against her late stepfather Gerald Fremlin in a harrowing essay for the Toronto Star. The Toronto Star reports that Skinner, now 58, went to the police about the abuse in 2005, when Fremlin was 80 years old. Fremlin, a cartographer, received a suspected sentence and probation for two years - with Munro choosing to stay with him until his death in 2013. Skinner said she wanted 'story, my story, to become part of the stories people tell about my mother... I never wanted to see another interview, biography or event that didnt wrestle with the reality of what had happened to me, and with the fact that my mother, confronted with the truth of what had happened, chose to stay with, and protect, my abuser.' The daughter of literary icon Alice Munro says she was sexually abused by her stepfather since she was nine years old - and that her mother stayed with him after she learned of it Just weeks after the Nobel laureate's death at the age of 92, Munro's daughter Andrea Skinner detailed the accusations against her late stepfather Gerald Fremlin in a harrowing essay In her essay, Skinner wrote that Fremlin began sexually abusing her in 1976, when she was nine and he was in his 50s. She said the first sexual assault happened during a visit to Munro and Fremlin's home in Ontario, after Fremlin climbed into the bed she was sleeping in. Skinner said she told her stepmother, who told her father, who did not confront Munro. In the following years, Skinner says Gremlin often exposed himself to her, told her about her mother's sexual needs, and 'about the little girls in the neighborhood he liked.' 'At the time, I didnt know this was abuse. I thought I was doing a good job of preventing abuse by averting my eyes and ignoring his stories,' Skinner wrote. Skinner added that Gremlin lost interest in her when she entered teenagehood, but she continued to suffer consequences of the abuse and developed bulimia, insomnia and migraines. It was after Munro reacted to a story about a character who dies by suicide after being sexually assaulted by her stepfather that Skinner decided to tell her mother the truth. Skinner, pictured as a child, wrote that Fremlin began sexually abusing her in 1976, when she was nine and he was in his 50s Skinner's essay has rocked the literary world, where Munro is praised for perfecting the contemporary short story and known for exploring themes such as sex and trauma Skinner wrote a letter describing the abuse, and says Munro 'reacted exactly as I had feared she would, as if she had learned of an infidelity.' 'As it turned out, in spite of her sympathy for a fictional character, my mother had no similar feelings for me,' she wrote. Skinner added of her mother: 'She said that she had been "told too late"... [that] she loved him too much, and that our misogynistic culture was to blame if I expected her to deny her own needs, sacrifice for her children and make up for the failings of men. 'She was adamant that whatever had happened was between me and my stepfather. It had nothing to do with her.' Munro then reportedly left her marital home and went to stay at a condo she owned. Meanwhile Fremlin wrote letters to the family in which he admitted to the abuse but blamed it on Skinner, describing her as a 'homewrecker' and accusing her of going into his bedroom 'for sexual adventure.' Skinner says that Fremlin wrote in one letter: 'If the worst comes to worst I intend to go public... I will make available for publication a number of photographs, notably some taken at my cabin near Ottawa which are extremely eloquent one of Andrea in my underwear shorts.' But Munro went back to Fremlin, and remained with him until his death. Alice Munro, laureate of the Nobel Prize in Literature, represented by her daughter Jenny Munro (L) receives her Nobel Prize from King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden in 2013 Skinner says she never reconciled with her mother, but now has a good relationship with her siblings Andrew, Jenny, and Sheila. Skinner's essay has rocked the literary world, where Munro is praised for perfecting the contemporary short story and known for exploring themes such as sex and trauma. The characters in Munro's stories were often girls and women who lead seemingly unexceptional lives but struggle with tribulations ranging from sexual abuse and stifling marriages to repressed love and the ravages of aging. Canadian magazine writer and editor Michelle Cyca wrote on X: 'Lots of people reflexively denying that Alice Munro could have knowingly spent her life with the pedophile who abused her daughter, or rushing to say they never liked her writing. 'Harder to accept the truth that people who make transcendent art are capable of monstrous acts.' American novelist and essayist Brandon Taylor, meanwhile, wrote: Im so in awe of her courage... [her account] is 'personally devastating in that I recognize so much of my own story and history in her experience.' Munro died in May after suffering from dementia for at least a decade. Carol Vorderman has gone to war with Laura Kuenssberg and demanded the BBC politics presenter is replaced by Victoria Derbyshire after she sparked fury with her 'opinionated' and 'rude' interview with Ed Davey. Kuenssberg is facing a backlash and has been accused of 'bias' after her grilling of the Lib Dem leader over the weekend, with people on social media branding her introduction of the MP as 'disgraceful'. And now Countdown star Vorderman has waded into the row and hinted that Kuenssberg should be swapped out with Newsnight host Derbyshire, 55 - as she branded the 47-year-old's introduction of Sir Ed 'quite extraordinary'. Opening her interview, Kuenssberg said: 'This election made history for all sorts of reasons, and when you put the votes together, the smaller parties got their highest ever share of the votes. 'Maybe it was the bungee jumping, or maybe given that the Liberal Democrats want to change the voting system, ironically perhaps they just learned how to play it better by ruthlessly targeting seats where the Conservatives had held them.' As a video showing Mr Davey celebrating his election success, Kuenssberg continued: 'Well there he is, Ed Davey, the happiest man in Britain, he looked like there, celebrating winning more than 70 seats, and he joins us this morning from south west London. 'Ed Davey, congratulations, I suppose, on your more than 70 seats.' Laura Kuenssberg (left) is facing a backlash over her 'rude' introduction of Sir Ed Davey during her interview with him on Sunday Carol Vorderman has called on BBC bosses to replace Kuenssberg with Victoria Derbyshire amid a backlash online over the interview The ex-Countdown numbers guru has called on Newsnight presenter Derbyshire (pictured) to replace Kuenssberg Vorderman issued her reaction to the comments in a series of posts on X over the weekend She was interviewing Sir Ed after his party secured more than 70 MPs in last week's election However, it was the veteran political journalist's use of the phrase 'I suppose' in the introduction which sparked outrage online - with many demanding the BBC sacked Kuenssberg. Joining the backlash, former Countdown star Vorderman, 63, appeared to call on the BBC to drop Kuenssberg from her political show and replace her with veteran presenter, Victoria Derbyshire. 'Time for #bbclaurak to become #bbcVictoriaD don't you think? @vicderbyshire Quite extraordinary,' she wrote on X, adding: 'Vic D is exceptional and gives them all a hard time if that is what's needed. She knows her detail and cuts through with any bias. BBC is lucky to have her.' Others on social media lashed out at how Kuenssberg delivered her introduction of the Lib Dem leader. 'Is it just me or is it time that Laura Kuenssberg was dropped? She's far too opinionated and often downright rude,' wrote one user, while another said: 'When she said, 'Congratulations, I suppose' I physically jumped. The BBC needs to look closely at her performance. She is not employed to put her own opinion forward.' Another added: 'Laura Kuenssberg is often criticised, often unfairly, for her perceived partisanship. But, then this - coming out with such ungracious & begrudging acknowledgement of Ed Davey's election success.' While a fourth wrote: 'Absolutely disgraceful from #LauraKuenssberg she's practically snarling as she says 'Ed Davey, congratulations -I suppose' get rid of her @BBCPolitics.' People on social media have called for Kuenssberg to be replaced by Victoria Derbyshire (pictured) Kuenssberg (left) is facing a backlash over her 'rude' introduction of Sir Ed Davey during her interview with him on Sunday During the interview, Kuenssberg made reference to some of the bizarre election photo opportunities taken by Sir Ed, which included bungee jumping and paddle boarding The Lib Dem leader has previously been interviewed by Victoria Derbyshire (both are pictured in September 2023) 'Laura Kuenssberg thinks belittling someone who brought a smile to our faces during this election makes her clever! It doesn't,' tweeted another viewer. 'She is ignorant and is totally lacking integrity. Her attitude says far more about her than it does about Ed Davey who has faced and overcome far more.' 'Laura Kuenssberg's diabolic introduction to her interview with Ed Davey. No spoilers. Wait until the end. It's worth it,' wrote author @edwinhayward alongside a clip of the exchange. In the video, Sir Ed appeared unfazed by the remarks during his interview with Kuenssberg When approached by the MailOnline about the backlash against Kuenssberg, the BBC declined to comment. MailOnline has approached Kuenssberg for comment. Arch-cheerleader Vorderman was among the smug Left-wing luvvies to gloat about the Tories' crushing election defeat last week. Arch-cheerleader Carol Vorderman led celebrations on social media alongside a slew of celebrities who all wanted their moment in the limelight after Labour's landslide. She has become well-known for her anti-Tory tirades on social media - having previously clashed with former veterans Minister Johnny Mercer. And former Countdown human calculator Vorderman exploded into a vicious tirade against the Tories on Channel 4 before shuffling to social media to show off her glee. Following the results of the bombshell exit poll, Vorderman bellowed 'I think we should get the party started', as she appeared on Channel 4's TV election coverage. She told Channel 4: 'Everybody out there is thinking: no more of the lies, the deceit, the corruption.' Posting to X, formerly Twitter , the former Countdown numbers guru shared a video captioned: 'POV: The Labour Party have just won a landslide in the election' Carol Vorderman bellowed 'I think we should get the party started', as she appeared on Channel 4 's TV election coverage The former Countdown presenter (pictured) has become well-known for her anti-Tory tirades on social media and did not let up this evening Posting on X on Friday morning, she added: 'Johnny Mercer gone. Jacob Rees Mogg gone. Gillian Keegan gone. Tories we don't have to endure anymore. Here's to a new chapter. You are all AMAZING.' Vorderman also posted a mocking video captioned: 'POV [point of view]: The Labour Party have just won a landslide in the election.' Bursting out of a door marked Dressing Room, Vorderman mouthed to a voiceover: 'Oh my God, ok it's happening. Everyone stay calm.' Bumping into two women carrying bundles of paper she was met by Guardian columnist Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall, who continued: 'Everyone stay calm. Stay [bleep] calm!' But Vorderman's outbursts against the Tories have previously led to her being binned by the BBC over her posts on social media. She was even embroiled in a vitriolic row with former Tory veterans minister Johnny Mercer, who lost his seat in Plymouth in last week's election. So savage was the long-running social media war, Mr Mercer once extraordinarily took a swipe at her 'shi** lonely life'. The Tory MP hit back after Vorderman - who was dropped by the BBC over her anti-government rants - accused him of breaking a promise to end homelessness among ex-forces personnel. The former Countdown maths whizz said Mr Mercer had vowed to eradicate the problem this year, but in fact numbers had risen by 14 per cent. However, he argued that his pledge had been to stop 'veterans sleeping rough due to a lack of provision' - which he had achieved. Mr Mercer complained that Vorderman and the Labour candidate in his Plymouth seat, Fred Thomas, were 'deliberately misleading people' to 'make your sh** lonely life better'. 'No one normal really cares about your view. They think you're mad. I'm changing veterans' lives. What I came into politics to do,' he posted on the X site. Johnny Mercer (pictured right with wife Felicity) hit back after Carol Vorderman (left) - who was dropped by the BBC over her anti-government rants - accused him of breaking a promise to end homelessness among ex-forces personnel Mr Mercer complained that Vorderman and the Labour candidate in his Plymouth seat, Fred Thomas, were 'deliberately misleading people' about his pledge on homelessness to 'make your sh** lonely life better' Vorderman hit back by branding Mr Mercer 'childish' and saying he was 'slinging abuse' Vorderman hit back by branding Mr Mercer 'childish' and saying he was 'slinging abuse'. She also complained that he had 'insulted' Mr Thomas by sniping that he only served 'five minutes' in the forces, when actually he had been in the Royal Marines for seven years. Mr Mercer - a former army captain - and his wife Felicity have had a long-running spat with Vorderman. The famed numbers guru was told to leave her show on BBC Radio Wales for breaching the broadcasters new social media guidance. She had been at the station for five years but said she was 'not prepared to stop' venting her 'strong beliefs' on Twitter and Instagram. The presenter added: 'Consequently I have now breached the new guidelines and BBC Wales management have decided I must leave. We each must make our decisions.' Ms Vorderman had been accused of 'flagrantly breaching' the BBC's impartiality rules with her anti-Tory outbursts, which have included calling ministers 'a lying bunch of greedy, corrupt, destructive, hateful, divisive, gaslighting crooks'. The BBC brought in new social media rules for its presenters following outrage earlier this year over Match of the Day presenter Gary Lineker's tweet which comparing the Government's Rwanda policy to Nazi Germany. These prevent high-profile stars from attacking political parties and individual politicians as well as weighing into controversial issues before elections or referendums. The rules apply when their show is on air and in a two-week window before and after. Ms Vorderman said in a statement at the time: 'The BBC recently introduced new social media guidelines, which I respect. 'However, despite my show being light-hearted with no political content, it was explained to me that, as it is a weekly show in my name, the new guidelines would apply to all and any content that I post all year round. 'Since those non-negotiable changes to my radio contract were made, I've ultimately found that I'm not prepared to lose my voice on social media, change who I am, or lose the ability to express the strong beliefs I hold about the political turmoil this country finds itself in. 'My decision has been to continue to criticise the current UK Government for what it has done to the country which I love and I'm not prepared to stop. 'I was brought up to fight for what I believe in, and I will carry on. 'Consequently I have now breached the new guidelines and BBC Wales management have decided I must leave. We each must make our decisions. 'I'm sad to have to leave the wonderful friends I've made at Radio Wales. 'I wish them, and all of our listeners, all the love in the world. We laughed a lot, and we will miss each other dearly. 'But, for now, another interesting chapter begins.' Her sacking followed a bizarre feud with former Tory veterans minister Johnny Mercer's wife Felicity - who celebrated the Vorderman losing her BBC radio job. The long-running feud between the two unlikely foes started last year when Vorderman accused Mrs Cornelius-Mercer of 'harassment' and shared a reel showing a series of tweets she had sent her. Mrs Cornelius-Mercer, seen here with husband Johnny, had a long-running feud with Ms Vorderman Ms Vorderman had a long-running spat with veterans minister Johnny Mercer and his wife Felicity, who celebrated today by tweeting: 'Binned by the BBC' Ms Cornelius-Mercer also liked this tweet comparing Ms Vorderman to the Harry Potter villain Ms Vorderman has become known for her virulently anti-Tory posts on social media Mrs Cornelius-Mercer also accused Ms Vorderman of being a 'celebrity attack dog' who was 'inciting people to hate all Tories'. The row even made it into the House of Commons when a Conservative MP accused Ms Vorderman of being a 'snob' after she criticised the Mercers for not going to university. Ms Vorderman declared: 'I've been harassed by Johnny Mercer's wife for months. This is from just one day in April + much more abuse elsewhere. I didn't respond at all. Until he mocked military using foodbanks. She's paid c45k on MP expenses (+200% pay rise) to do this?' In response, Mrs Cornelius-Mercer said she had been tagging her in abusive tweets sent to her husband to show how she had stirred up 'awful traffic' by 'telling followers to target MPs'. She added: 'Feel free to stop the reel and read them. These hateful comments are sent to us as a direct result of @carolvorders drivel. I've only ever reacted to her rubbish about hating all Tories, which has been going on long before I got involved.' Speaking to LBC, Ms Vorderman said Mrs Cornelius-Mercer sent her '60 tweets' over one day. 'Jonny Mercer's wife has been harassing me for months on Twitter, on one day she sent over 60 tweets, the words she used about my private life were really misogynistic actually,' she said. 'To the point where I almost felt like reporting her to be honest, I found it quite upsetting.' A woman was forced to change her dinner plans after being left stunned by the price of an El Pollo Loco drive-thru meal. The customer named Josie posted a TikTok video last week of her reaction over the 'crazy' cost of its 12-Piece Fire-Grilled Chicken Family Meal. 'I did not buy. I went home and made dinner. I was not going to get ripped off,' Josie wrote in the video. The drive-thru menu read that the 12-piece family meal cost $43.99 despite Josie claiming it used to be less than $30. Her video has since racked in over 50,000 views on TikTok, and it's currently her most-watched clip on her account. A TikTok user named Josie posted a video on the social media platform about her frustration with the price of a family meal at El Pollo Loco Josie did not identify what she planned to order before she caught the price of the family meal. 'I remember when the 12-piece family meal was $12.99. Now, it's $43,' she said. 'I was okay when it was $23.99 and $28.99, but $43.99? That is crazy.' The 12-piece family meal on the drive-thru menu came with 12 pieces of chicken, three large sides, tortillas, and chips and salsa. Customers also have the option to order an 8-piece or 16-piece family meal instead of a 12. The 8-piece meal comes with eight pieces of chicken, two large sides, tortillas, and chips and salsa, and consumers who purchase the 16-piece order will get more chicken and an extra side. The starting price for the 8-piece family meal is $32.99, while the 16-piece is at least $52.99, according to Grubhub. However, prices may vary based on the restaurant's location and taxes. The 12-Piece Fire-Grilled Chicken Family Meal at the drive-thru came with 12 pieces of chicken, three large sides, tortillas, and chips and salsa Josie claimed that she remembered when the same family meal was available to purchase at El Pollo Loco for $12.99 to $28.99 Juan Francisco Ochoa opened the first El Pollo Loco restaurant in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico, in 1975 and expanded to the US five years later. Today, there are nearly 500 El Pollo Loco restaurants in the US alone. El Pollo Loco has maintained successful operations since it first opened, but it was one of the many restaurant chains that switched up its menu prices last year. The company announced in a press release that it made $7.5 million from October to December last year, which was down from the $9.5 million it made during that time in 2022. The chain also finished off the year with a $14.8 million in restaurant contribution, which is higher than last year's amount. The increase was primarily due to better operating efficiencies and higher menu prices, according to its news release. El Pollo Loco also raised its prices due to the increase in California's minimum wage, which became $20 an hour for fast food employees on April 1. El Pollo Loco hiked up its menu prices due to the increase in minimum wage in California and the restaurant chain introduced Kiosks into some of its locations Other TikTok users have been just as unhappy with the 'absurd' El Pollo Loco prices. 'Their prices have gone up, and their portions have gone down. I only opt in for their $6.00 combos now. Not spending more than that,' commented a TikToker. Another person wrote: 'I used to get the Double Chicken Tostada Combo for $8.00 to $10.00 two years ago. Now, the plain classic tostada combo alone is $14.00. Make it make sense.' TikTok users have also complained about the hiked-up prices at KFC and Popeyes, and multiple commenters insisted that Josie consider boycotting fast food restaurants. 'I boycotted a lot of fast food restaurants since they started price gouging Best decision Ive made in a while,' one TikToker wrote. A few users suggested that consumers purchase chicken from local grocery or warehouse stores instead to save money. 'I'm in Florida. I can go to Publix and get eight pieces of chicken for $9.99,' a TikToker wrote. A Florida police dog has become the latest victim of the deadly heatwave sweeping the US. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest, including Nevada, Palm Springs and Medford tied or broke previous heat records with temperatures well over 100 degrees. In Miami, where temperatures climbed to 108 degrees during the July 4 weekend, a beloved police K9 named Archer succumbed to the heat while searching for a suspect. It came after a visitor died in Death Valley National Park from heat exposure when temperatures hit 128 degrees there on Saturday, while another person was hospitalized. Madison County Sheriff's Office said officers were hunting for a man who was on the run after jumping from a vehicle on Interstate 10 on July 4 with Archer when he collapsed. A Florida police dog named Archer has become the latest victim of the deadly heatwave sweeping the US after he succumbed to high temperatures during a chase on July 4 The department said he suffered a 'heat episode' and died the next day at an animal hospital in Gainesville 'surrounded by his handler, fellow members of our canine unit and medical staff'. 'K9 Archer honorably fulfilled his duty by protecting our citizens, our communities, and our deputies without fear or hesitation,' Sheriff David Harper wrote in a July 5 Facebook post. 'K9 Archer will remain in our hearts forever and never to be forgotten. Rest easy our protector, we will continue to hold the line in your honor.' The suspect involved in the chase was arrested. His identity and charges have not yet been released. Defending his unit's canine procedures in light of Archer's death, Sheriff David Harper said the 'felon' was moving toward a home and was only 'a couple hundred yards away' from his target when Archer succumbed to the heat. 'What would have happened had the criminal made it to one of those residences?' Harper wrote on Facebook. 'We will never know because multiple dedicated deputies led by one amazing and committed canine named Archer located and arrested the criminal before he was able to reach the manicured grass in the yard. 'Yes it is hot. No doubt about that. However heat does not deter criminals and crime.' In Miami, where temperatures climbed to 108 degrees over the July 4 weekend, a beloved police K9 named Archer succumbed to the heat while searching for a suspect Visitors walk under the sun at Badwater Basin in Death Valley National Park, near Furnace Creek, during a heatwave impacting Southern California on July 7, 2024. A motorcyclist died from heat illness in the area on Saturday A man wipes his face near the Las Vegas strip during a heatwave in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 7, 2024. According to the US National Weather Service, high temperatures in Las Vegas on Sunday could reach up to 117 degrees It comes as American cities have smashed all-time heat records as scorching temperatures grip the country. An excessive heat warning, the National Weather Service's highest alert, is in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10 percent of the population. The West Coast has so far borne the brunt of the heat wave with Palm Springs, California hitting its hottest ever temperature - 124 degrees on Friday. Likewise, Las Vegas hit 120 degrees on Sunday, breaking its previous record of 119 degrees and Death Valley reached 127 degrees. Across the West temperatures are consistently climbing into the 105-118 range, with Medford, Oregon hitting 109 degrees on Friday, smashing its previous record of 102 which had stood for 113 years. Even San Francisco - which is usually cooled by the ocean - climbed into the high 80s over the weekend. The scorching outlook in America reflects a global trend towards more extreme weather patterns worldwide. Tourists take photos near the Las Vegas strip during a heatwave in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 7, 2024 Vendors selling water try to stay cool during a heatwave in Las Vegas, Nevada on July 7, 2024. According to the US National Weather Service, high temperatures in Las Vegas on Sunday could reach up to 117 degrees The Earth's more than year-long streak of record-shattering hot months kept on simmering through June, according to the European climate service Copernicus. Global temperature in June hit a record high for the 13th straight month and it marked the 12th straight month that the world was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times, Copernicus said in an early Monday announcement. 'It's a stark warning that we are getting closer to this very important limit set by the Paris Agreement,' Copernicus senior climate scientist Nicolas Julien said in an interview. 'The global temperature continues to increase. It has at a rapid pace.' That 1.5 degree temperature mark is important because that's the warming limit nearly all the countries in the world agreed upon in the 2015 Paris climate agreement, though Julien and other meteorologists have said the threshold won't be crossed until there's long-term duration of the extended heat - as much as 20 or 30 years. 'This is more than a statistical oddity and it highlights a continuing shift in our climate,' Copernicus Director Carlo Buontempo said in a statement. There's hope that the planet will soon see an end to the record-setting part of the heat streak, but not the climate chaos that has come with it, scientists said. Jill Biden heads to three key battleground states on Monday to campaign for her husband as more Democrats publicly call on Joe Biden to exit the presidential race. The first lady will attend campaign events in North Carolina, Florida and Georgia all states Bidens re-election campaign is still eying for a win in November, despite the flurry of calls for him to step down. During her trip she will formally launch Veterans and Military Families for Biden. Her trip comes as Bidens place on the Democratic ticket is at a tipping point. He, buoyed by his wife and other family members, believes he can turn this around. But members of his party worry the situation is going to get worse. Jill Biden has been adamant that Joe Biden stay in the race. But she also hasnt answered questions yet from the media about his condition or addressed questions about whether she worked with staff to hide it from the public. Jill Biden heads to three key battleground states on Monday to campaign for her husband as more Democrats publicly call on Joe Biden to exit the presidential race She has stood by him. She was at Bidens side in Pennsylvania on Sunday as he tries to quiet concerns about his mental health and physical fitness. But, as they were campaigning, House Democrats held a crisis call where at least five more of them called on Joe Biden to exit the race. Democrats are worried that, in addition to Republican Donald Trump winning the presidency, the GOP will also win both chambers of Congress, leaving no check on Trumps presidential power. Through the crisis, however, Jill Biden has been her husbands staunchest defender. We are not going to let 90 minutes define the four years that youve been president, she told him after the debate. She also has taken charge of launching the Biden campaign's biggest voter initiatives, including Women for Biden and Seniors for Biden. On Monday she adds veterans and military families to her list. Jill Biden is the daughter of a World War II veteran and the Bidens' late son Beau served in Iraq. As first lady, she has promoted her Joining Forces Initiative to support military families. She often talks about the Bidens' ties to the military. Jill helps husband Joe Biden from the CNN debate stage after his car-crash debate with Trump that sparked calls for him to step down Both she and President Biden have criticized Donald Trump for his comments on veterans, particularly on a report that he called them 'suckers' and 'losers.' Trump has denied those comments. Her tour on Monday will take her to three states with high populations of veterans and military families. Her first stop of the day is in Wilmington, N.C., a state critical to both candidates victory plans. Trump leads by six points in the polls there, according to Five Thirty Eights polling average of the state. Jill Biden then heads to Tampa, Florida. The presidents re-election campaign has argued the state is in play this year even though it has gone red from Trump in the past elections. Her final stop of the day is Georgia. The first ladys arrival in the state is the biggest event there since the debate two weeks ago, where Joe Biden struggled to find words and fumbled in his responses to Trump. Jill hasnt answered questions yet from the media about his condition or addressed questions about whether she worked with staff to hide it from the public. Jill has stood by him. She was at Bidens side at a New York fundraiser on the Saturday after the debate (pictured) and in Pennsylvania on Sunday as he tries to quiet concerns about his mental health and physical fitness Trump leads in Georgia by almost six points, according to Five Thirty Eights polling average of the state. Biden won the state in 2020 the first Democrat to carry it since Bill Clinton. Both candidates want to win it in November. The Biden campaign is struggling to right itself in the almost two weeks following the debate. President Biden, in an attempt to show his mental prowess, conducted two interviews with black radio stations in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Only later it was revealed the campaign gave the questions to the hosts ahead of time. And the Philadelphia station fired its host in response to the news. Next Biden sat down with ABC News to try and calm the storm. But Democrats worries continue to grow and more voices are adding on to those calling on Biden to step down. Donors also are panicking. And one senior administration official told the New York Times that Biden is not capable of doing the job. The family, however, has circled the wagons. Jill Biden and Hunter Biden are now acting as the presidents gatekeepers. He has also doubled down, telling ABC News that nothing but an act from God could get him to exit the contest. The presidents sister, Valerie Biden Owens, is also standing by him. Owens ran Joe Bidens first Senate campaign and has been involved in every one of his campaigns since. She is his top political adviser. Jill, Hunter and Valerie are the three most important people in any decision Joe Biden makes about his future. He listens to them the most. They would need to give their blessing from him to exit the presidential race. They show no signs of doing so. The Biden clan gathered at Camp David last weekend for a pre-planned photo shoot with famed photographer Annie Leibovitz. But the main topic of conversation was Biden's disastrous debate performance against Trump. Both she and President Biden have criticized Donald Trump for his comments on veterans, particularly on a report that he called them 'suckers' and 'losers.' Trump has denied those comments All the family urged Bien to stay in the race. Jill Biden, in particular, points to all the family has had to endure during Joe Bidens time in the White House. She noted the prosecutor of Hunter Biden, NBC News reported, pointing out he could go to prison. The family and even some Republicans saw Hunters prosecution on a 2018 gun purchase as too much over reach. Jill Biden argued now was the time to fight. There is another reason the Bidens are digging in their heels. The family, particularly Jill Biden, remembers how Joe Biden was forced out of the 1988 presidential race after a plagiarism scandal. 'In 1987, she saw him be forced out by the press, pundits and polls, and it was really a scarring experience for both of them,' Michael LaRosa, the first lady's former press secretary, told the New York Times. He said had discussed the 1988 episode multiple times with the first lady when he worked for her. 'I think they learned from that experience and they weren't going to have their hands forced like they were in 1987.' Yvette Cooper branded the Rwanda migrant deportation scheme a 'complete con' today as she hinted Labour would try to recoup some of the 290million spent before it was axed. The new Home Secretary said she planned to audit the programme to send Channel boat arrivals to east Africa, which was axed by Sir Keir Starmer in one of his first decisions after entering No10. But almost a third of a billion pounds has already been given to the Kagame government, despite the only migrants to leave Britain being four volunteers. Questions will be raised over how much can be recouped. But Ms Cooper told LBC radio: 'We are auditing the whole scheme It has clearly been a complete con.' It came as more boats crossed from France to be picked up by Border Force today. The new Home Secretary said she planned to audit the programme to send Channel boat arrivals to east Africa, which was axed by Sir Keir Starmer in one of his first decisions after entering No10. It came as more boats crossed from France to be picked up by Border Force today. Questions will be raised over how much can be recouped. But Ms Cooper told LBC radio: 'We are auditing the whole scheme It has clearly been a complete con.' Asked if she has had any contact with Rwanda about winding the plan down and getting any money back, Ms Cooper said: 'Well, the Prime Minister has obviously set out the position on the Rwanda scheme where as we know, the Conservatives ran this scheme for two and a half years, and sent simply four volunteers as well as hundreds of millions of pounds.' She said her 'key priority' as incoming Home Secretary is to 'strengthen Britain's border security, where I think we have been let down for too long'. Last night it was announced that counter-terrorism-style laws to combat the Channel crisis are being drawn up. The Home Office promised 'early legislation', suggesting a new Bill will be contained in the King's Speech later this month. However, the Government has still not disclosed what the counter-terrorism powers will involve, or fully explained how they will help fill the vacuum left by the scrapped Rwanda asylum scheme. It is not yet known whether MI5, MI6 and GCHQ will be directly involved in small-boat investigations. The announcement came as Sir Tony Blair warned the new Labour government it must draw up a 'plan to control immigration' to see off the 'challenge' of Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Ms Cooper today launched the hunt for an 'exceptional leader' to head up her new Border Security Command. The Prime minister's spokesman admitted the summer will be 'challenging' for the Government as small boat crossings continue, with the Rwanda scheme 'dead and buried'. Asked if those arriving by small boats would now have the right to claim asylum, the Prime Minister's spokesman said: 'We need to ensure that people who arrive here are processed so that people are not sitting in the system, housed in expensive taxpayer-funded hotels as they have been under previous administrations.' A 21-year-old fisherman died after his gear dragged him into the water in Southwest Alaska, officials said. Commercial fishing crewmember Corwin Wheeler fell from the boat in Kvichak Bay Friday, during a contracted fishing expedition. A mayday call reported him overboard at 12:31 pm, spurring a rescue operation. The bay has some of the highest tides in the world, and the operation was ultimately unsuccessful. Officials said Wheeler first became tangled in his fishing gear, before being pulled overboard and into the water. Tributes have since poured in for the young angler, headed by his father. Commercial salmon fisher Corwin Wheeler, 21, fell from a boat in Kvichak Bay Friday while fishing salmon, officials said 'On 07/05/2024 at approximately 1231 hours, DPS Patrol Vessel Stimson received a MAYDAY call from a commercial salmon fisherman in Kvichak Bay stating he lost a crewman over the side of his vessel,' the Alaska Department of Public Safety said in a statement. 'AWT [Alaska Wildlife Troops] responded to the area with two patrol skiffs and arrived just as the reporting vessel had located and retrieved their unconscious crewmember out of the water. 'AWT performed lifesaving measures for approximately one hour prior to pronouncing the crewman deceased. 'Investigation revealed [he] had become entangled in fishing gear and was pulled overboard and underwater. 'Next of kin has been notified.' The boy's father posted to Facebook a day later. 'I loved him more than anything else in the world,' Jeff Rowe, of Illinois, wrote Saturday. 'I pray he knows that, and I hope he has found peace. More info will be posted when it's available.' Wheeler is survived by his sister Zoe. His mom and stepfather are currently making arrangements for his funeral. A subsequent rescue proved unsuccessful. Corwin lived in Madison and was born in Salem, his social media shows Photos show him happily working the Bering Sea, as a contacted commercial fisherman The bay has some of the highest tides in the world, which proved fatal for the young fisherman. It is located about 435 miles southwest of Anchorage According to his social media, Corwin lived in Madison, and was born in Salem. Photos show him happily working the Bering Sea in the summer and winters. In the winter, he worked for Alaskan Leader Seafoods - one of the largest fishing companies in Alaska. They own four super long-liners that operate year-round, according to its website. It bill itself as one of 'the most progressive, innovative and vertically integrated Hook & Line fishing compan[ies] in Alaska,' meaning fisherman fish by means of a series of baited hooks. This summer, though, he was working for a different company on a boat called the Anna Joy, fishing for salmon. In the winter, Corwin worked on one of three fishing vessels belonging to Alaskan Leader Seafoods, the F/V Alaskan Leader, F/V Bristol Leader and the F/V Bering Leader. Speaking to Dailymail.com, Company President Keith Singleton called Corwin's passing a 'tragedy', as investigators confirm Corwin accidentally became entangled in his gear. 'We loved him here,' Singleton added, describing how he would regularly work for them during cold-fishing expeditions. Corwin - seen here gripping a grouper - worked both the summer and winter fishing seasons The bay where Corwin has been working was also particularly well known for its inherent dangers. It can be found on the upper reaches of the bay, which is one of the most dangerous regions in the world for large vessels The dangers of working the Bering Sea are well known - with trawlers by and large painting it as one of the coldest and most dangerous seas across the globe. It is also one of the most dangerous places to fish, with decorated commercial fisherman Corey Arnold famously labeling the sea 'a continuous storm.' The bay where Corwin has been working was also particularly well-known for its inherent dangers, and can be found on the northeast side of Bristol Bay, near King Salmon. More specifically, it can be found on the upper reaches of the bay, which experience some of the highest tides in the world. In some parts, tidal extremes in excess of 30 feet have been measured, the eighth highest in the world. Coupled with an outsized amount of shoals, unseen sandbars, and shallows, this makes navigation troublesome, especially amid frequently strong winds. It is also the shallowest part of the Bering Sea, making it one of the most dangerous regions for large vessels. The Albanese government has called on major Australian banks to continue operations in Pacific countries, amid fears the withdrawal of services would allow China a way in to increase its influence in the region. The importance of continued operation and multilateral collaboration between Australia and the Pacific will be addressed by Treasurer Jim Chalmers in his keynote address at the Pacific Banking Forum on Tuesday, calling on the private sector to do its bit. 'We know how critical these services are for local communities,' he will say. 'Which is why we have been actively talking to all the major Australian banks to let them know how important a continued Australian banking presence in the region is to the government.' His comments come as Pacific countries are facing the fastest withdrawal of banking services globally, which prohibits their banks and populations from accessing cross-border payment services, global financial systems and funding for essential projects. Workers in Australia are also unable to send money to their home countries. This has prompted fears of increased influence from the Chinese Communist Party, with its state-owned bank already highlighting intentions to operate across Papua New Guinea, after establishing a presence in the capital Port Moresby. Dr Chalmers will also announce a $6.3m funding boost to help boost systems and law enforcement processes so that banks are incentivised to continue their operations. Treasurer Jim Chalmers will urge Australia's major banks to keep branches open The funding is split into three initiatives including $2.9m to the World Bank to help develop inclusive and secure digital identity infrastructure, $1.7m to the Asian Development Bank to boost compliance on anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing requirements, and $1.7m to help criminal justice and law enforcement efforts which will be administered by the Attorney-General's department. He listed five goals for Australia, including the intent to reverse declining services, alleviate immediate pressure on the local institutions, attract new private investment into the markets, and improve the integrity measure to boost market confidence. 'Ensuring all Pacific countries have access to safe, secure and stable banking is one of Australia's highest priorities in the region,' Dr Chalmers will say. 'You can bank on Australia to work with you to keep the Pacific connected to the global financial system.' Dr Chalmers will also announce on Tuesday that he will be attending the Pacific Islands Forum Economic Ministers meeting, which will take place in August in Suva, Fiji, where he will update the ministers on the progress to date. On Monday, ANZ boss Shayne Elliott said it was difficult and risky for banks to operate in the Pacific areas because of the smaller economies and business conditions. There are fears that continued withdrawal of banking services in Australia would allow China to increase its influence in the Pacific region (stock image) ANZ has the largest reach out of any other Australian bank in the region, with 19 branches, however it has closed 10 branches, excluding Papua New Guinea, in the past five years. It also exited American Samoa and Guam in 2022. 'Each country has its own laws, regulations, customs and tax. While it's important that each country charts its own course, this can create costs for businesses that want to operate across the region,' he said. He said banks would find it easier to operate if Pacific countries adopted common laws, implemented 'consistent regulation' and enhanced 'regional financial crime efforts'. 'High-cost and high-risk countries that don't offer scale have become less attractive for banks to serve,' he said. 'While the Pacific is not unique in facing this challenge, it is an area that is badly affected by it.' Big Brother contestant Autumn Daly has been arrested in Texas over a theft charge. Daly, who appeared on the CBS show's second season in 2001, was taken into custody in June in Lewisville for an outstanding warrant, TMZ reported. Police reportedly tracked Daly's car to a retail consignment store she owns in the city called Encore! Encore! Daly, 51, allegedly admitted to officers that she was in the process of taking care of the warrant. Big Brother contestant Autumn Daly was arrested in Texas over a theft charge Daly rose to prominence after appearing on Big Brother and becoming the third person kicked out that season She is accused with stealing property worth between $30,000 and $150,000 in 2023. Daly was released from jail after posting a $2,500 bond. Police have declined to release additional details, citing an ongoing investigation. The former BB contestant told TMZ: 'Its a retaliation attempt on the part of a former business associate who sued me in civil court and lost. 'It wont stick and Im in the process of suing them for $500K as well, so best I dont say anything further.' Daly, pictured in 2001, was released from jail after posting a $2,500 bond Daly rose to prominence after appearing on Big Brother and becoming the third person kicked out that season. Dr Will Kirby went on to win that season. Sir Keir Starmer today suggested he would only achieve his hoped-for 'better deal' with the EU if Labour can prove it will stick to current Brexit arrangements. The Prime Minister said his new Government would have to 'demonstrate a commitment to the relationship and the agreements' already in place. Ahead of last week's general election, Sir Keir promised to rewrite the current Brexit trade agreement as he attacked Boris Johnson's 'botched deal'. Speaking in Belfast today, the PM reiterated his wish to 'improve relations with the EU'. But he suggested this would only come if the UK showed it was continuing to abide by the current deal - including the Windsor Framework for Northern Ireland. Sir Keir made a trip to Stormont to meet Northern Ireland's political leaders as he continued his triumphal tour of the UK after Labour's huge election win. After meeting Scottish First Minister John Swinney in Edinburgh yesterday, the PM travelled to Belfast before then meeting beleaguered Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething in Cardiff today. Mr Gething last month lost a vote of no confidence in the Welsh Senedd, but he has refused to resign as First Minister because the motion was not binding. Sir Keir Starmer today suggested he would only achieve his hoped-for 'better deal' with the EU if Labour can prove it will stick to current Brexit arrangements The Prime Minister was pictured with Northern Ireland's First Minister Michelle O'Neill as he met with Northern Ireland's political leaders at Stormont Sir Keir later met with beleaguered Welsh First Minister Vaughan Gething in Cardiff as he continued his triumphal tour of the UK On his visit to Stormont, Sir Keir was pressed on his bid to strengthen Britain's ties with the EU. Northern Ireland's political institutions were left unable to function for two years while the DUP staged a long protest against initial Brexit arrangements under the Northern Ireland Protocol. They agitated against the economic and legal barriers created between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK under the terms of the agreement. Former PM Rishi Sunak saw his Windsor Framework - his attempt to overcome the long UK-EU stand-off over the Protocol - also opposed by the DUP. Asked today if his ultimate aim was to secure a trade deal that saw the whole of the UK interacting with the EU on the same basis, without any divergence for Northern Ireland, Sir Keir said: 'You are right to say we want to improve relations with the EU,' he replied. 'We think we can get a better deal than the botched deal that Boris Johnson brought home and we will work on that, understanding the work that needs to be done and the nature of the challenge. 'In the meantime we do have to get on with implementing the important changes that are necessary under the existing arrangements we have got because we are not going to be able to get a better relationship unless we demonstrate a commitment to the relationship and the agreements that have already been put in place.' A Boston-area teacher has been fired for speaking out against critical race theory on social media after a series of her contentious TikTok videos emerged. Kari MacRae, a Bourne School Committee member, was hired as a business teacher at Hanover High School, but was terminated just weeks later over posts she made about gender identification and racism education, the Cape Cod Times previously reported. School officials told her in a letter that keeping her employed at the high school would have 'a significant impact on student learning.' Bourne teachers union and other members of the community were behind her resignation in 2021. McRae claimed it was a 'violation of free speech' and filed a free speech lawsuit suing school officials and the Hanover school district. After she lost the First Amendment case in Massachusetts U.S. District Court she appealed to the higher court, U.S. Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit, but on Wednesday lost her First Amendment case federal appeals case against the school district. Kari MacRae, a Bourne School Committee member, was hired as a business teacher at Hanover High School, but was terminated just weeks later Hanover High School is a public school located in Hanover, Massachusetts 'Now on appeal, MacRae implores us to do some course correction and fix what she says the district court got wrong,' the appeals court wrote in its recent decision, the Boston Herald reported. 'After taking the time to carefully review both sides' arguments, however, we conclude that the district court got it right.' Before MacRae was hired at the high school she had been campaigning for a seat on the Bourne School Committee and in her videos spoke about her agenda. In one of the videos she said. 'So pretty much the reason why I ran for school board and the reason why I'm taking on this responsibility is to ensure that students, at least in our town, are not being taught critical race theory. That they're not being taught that the country was built on racism 'They're not being taught that they can choose whether or not they want to be a girl or a boy. 'It's one thing to include and it's one thing to be inclusive. And it's one thing to educate everybody about everything. It's completely another thing to push your agenda.' She added: 'With me on the school board, that won't happen in our town.' MacRae had also shared, liked, posted and reposted several disputable memes on TikTok. After she officially became an elected member of the Bourne School Committee she was hired at Hanover High School - teaching mostly LGBTQ and Black students. The school, however, was unaware of MacRae's controversial social media posts. After she was fired by the school she took the school district to court claiming that they had 'unconstitutionally retaliated against her for exercising her First Amendment rights.' The appeal court cited that MacRae 'did not take her termination on the chin.' School officials 'consistently testified that students would not feel safe or comfortable learning from MacRae, given the potential to perceive some of her posts as transphobic, homophobic, or racist, as per the appeals court. In its ruling, the Appeals Court wrote that many students and teachers were aware of MacRae's posts and were discussing them. They added: 'Given the circumstances both at Bourne and at Hanover, Defendants were eminently reasonable in predicting disruption would be forthcoming if they did not act.' In response to the lawsuit, school officials said preventing disruption to the learning environment outweighed MacRae's First Amendment interests, and the U.S. District Court agreed with the school officials, as per the Herald. MacRae, who resides in Bourne, Massachusetts, is a Republican running for a State Senate seat. Hundreds of new MPs began to descend on Westminster today as Parliament started to sort itself out following the upheaval of the General Election. Scores of Labour politicians as well as new groups from the Green Party and Reform are expected to start setting themselves up ahead of the King's Speech and the State Opening of Parliament on July 17. Some managed to arrive from across the UK smoothly, with Rosie Wrighting, 26, the new Labour MP for Kettering, posting a selfie in front of Big Ben, saying: 'First day in the new office. I am looking forward to getting everything set up and being ready to serve the people of Kettering.' And the Green Party's quartet of new MPs posed for pictures on College Green. However some newly-elected Labour MPs criticised the reliability of train services after suffering disruption during journeys to take their seats in the House of Commons. The politicians took to X to complain as they travel to London ahead of the Parliament sitting on Tuesday for the first time since the General Election. Some managed to arrive from across the UK smoothly, with Rosie Wrighting, the new Labour MP for Kettering, posting a selfie in front of Big Ben, saying: 'First day in the new office. I am looking forward to getting everything set up and being ready to serve the people of Kettering.' And the Green Party's quartet of new MPs posed for pictures on College Green. However some newly-elected Labour MPs criticised the reliability of train services after suffering disruption during journeys to take their seats in the House of Commons. Henry Tufnell, MP for Mid and South Pembrokeshire, posted: 'Unfortunately the journey involves no direct trains from Pembrokeshire and a delayed @GWRHelp train via Gloucester.' Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer stands with all 411 Labour Party MPs at Church House in Westminster Henry Tufnell, 32, MP for Mid and South Pembrokeshire, who travelled to the capital on Sunday, posted: 'Heading to London and excited to begin work as the MP for Mid & South Pembrokeshire. 'Unfortunately the journey involves no direct trains from Pembrokeshire and a delayed @GWRHelp train via Gloucester. Lots of work to be done...' Paul Foster, MP for South Ribble, added: 'Day One on my way to Parliament and guess what... @AvantiWestCoast go and cancel my train just as I get to Preston station. 'To make matters worse, the train actually pulls into the station! Utter shambles.' He posted an image of a departures board showing the cancellation of a 6am train to London Euston. Another disgruntled Avanti West Coast passenger was Claire Hughes, MP for Bangor Aberconwy, who wrote: 'In news that will shock absolutely no-one, my @AvantiWestCoast train down to London for my first day in Westminster has been cancelled.' Andrew Ranger, who was elected to represent Wrexham, replied: 'That'll be my train too!! Well we have another thing to add to the list of things to tackle. avantifail.' During the election campaign, Transport Secretary Louise Haigh said that, if Labour won, the party would urgently consider stripping Avanti West Coast of its contract due to its 'woeful service' on the West Coast Main Line. She has pledged to bring all train services on Britain's railways into public ownership. Josh Fenton-Glynn, MP for Calder Valley, suffered disruption while travelling with Northern, which is already controlled by the Department for Transport. He posted an image at 9.24am on Monday of himself at Hebden Bridge station with the caption: 'On my way to London! I'm so excited to be starting a journey to be the voice in Westminster for the Calder Valley communities I love.' In a subsequent post eight minutes later, he added: 'In news that will shock absolutely no one, my @northernassist train is delayed.' Kirith Entwistle, 33, who represents Bolton North East, posted an image of the town's railway station with the caption: 'Day 1 and my train into Manchester to get to London is cancelled. Off to a great start!' Meanwhile Green co-leader Carla Denyer, 38, urged Labour to scrap the two-child benefit cap and revoke the licence for the Rosebank oil field as she arrived at Parliament as one of four newly elected Green MPs. 'We'll be pushing Labour to, especially in these first 100 days, take some swift actions on those low-hanging fruit that they could take to help make this country a fairer, greener place straight away,' she said. 'So for example, the Labour Party supports the Conservative policy of a two-child benefit cap. 'They want to keep that in place even though it holds 250,000 children into poverty unnecessarily. It's not even that expensive to lift it and it would be a massive single policy intervention they could make to help deal with inequality in this country. 'On climate, it's great that Ed Miliband has said that they will lift the de facto ban on onshore wind, that is long overdue. 'I think he also needs to look at Labour's previous promises to keep the brand new licence for the Rosebank oil and gas field. 'The climate science is clear, we cannot be creating new oil and gas wells at this stage in the climate emergency. So we will be pushing the Labour Government to reconsider on that, and on other measures that they could take right away to help fix the issues in this country.' An influencer and mother-of-three suddenly died at her home in southeastern Brazil on Friday. Marina Mamade, 34, rose to fame during the 2022 presidential elections while championing her left-wing ideas on social media. A one-time supporter for former President Jair Bolsonaro, the activist ditched him in favor of then candidate Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva after a video surfaced of the far-right leader speaking to Freemasons. Mamade followed by post a viral video in which she distance herself from Bolsonaro and claiming that 'Lula was a true Christian.' The Minas Gerais Civil Police said its forensic unit investigated Mamade's home as part of the investigation. Brazilian influencer and mother of three children, Marina Mamade, was found dead at her home in Outro Petro, a city in the southeastern Brazil state of Minas Gerais The Minas Gerais Civil Police is awaiting results of an autopsy to determine the cause of Brazilian influencer Mariana Mamade (pictured here with her three children) 'The body of the 34-year-old victim was sent to the Forensic Medical Center to undergo examinations,' police said. 'The (Minas Gerais Civil Police) clarifies that the official expert was on site carrying out the necessary surveys for the investigation. As soon as possible, more information will be released.' Mamade's, who had more than 41,000 followers on Instagram, was active on the social media network moments before she passed away, sharing a picture of herself holding a cup. 'When he left, he had his hands in his pocket, head up,' she wrote in Portuguese. 'I didn't look back, because looking back was a way of staying in any piece to break incomplete, thick in the middle of back. I wasn't looking, and then I didn't stay. Complete, set off.' Last Wednesday, she posted a photo of her and her three children celebrating her 15-year-old's birthday. 'All love is sacred,' she wrote 'You are part of me, forever.' Marina Mamade's seen her in her last post on Instagram, several hours before she died ay her home Friday Marina Mamade rose to fame during the 2022 Brazilian presidential elections when withdrew her support for then President Jair Bolsonaro after learning that he was an alleged Freemason Minas Gerais Congressman Andre Janones lamented Mamede's death and lauded her for her political activism. 'I received with great sadness the news of the passing of Marina Mamede, who was cowardly persecuted for her political positions. May God receive her in his infinite mercy and comfort the family's heart,' he wrote on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. 'Your contribution in 2022, in the battle for democracy will never be forgotten and, given the finiteness of life, will make you eternal in our memories. Rest in peace!' 'Our sincere condolences to family and friends at this difficult time. Marina will be missed and a legacy of dedication and struggle,' Minas Gerais Congressman Padre Joao wrote on X. Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki warned President Biden's first major interview following his poor debate performance might not be enough to quiet concerns, calling it 'just okay.' The 81-year-old president has been facing immense pressure from some Democrats to step side after his stumbling showing in Atlanta raised questions about his fitness for a second term, but the president insists he's staying in the race. Psaki, now a host on MSNBC, started her show on Sunday by addressing the president's interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos on Friday where he pushed back on concerns. 'I watched it. I've watched a lot of these. I've prepped him and others for a lot of these. I would say it went just okay for the president,' Psaki said. 'I mean in many ways people watching saw what they wanted to see because for some he looked better than he did at the debate. He did. He was more clear. He seemed much better prepared to make his case and make the case against Trump,' she continued. 'But there were also some moments and not just one that did not go well.' Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said on her MSNBC program that President Biden's first interview after the debate 'wasn't a home run at all' and he did 'just okay' Psaki said when the interview ended, it 'left us all in this sort of purgatory for the moment' and said it 'wasn't a home run at all.' She noted a CBS News poll from last week which showed 72 percent of voters who believe Biden does not have the mental or cognitive health to serve, saying one interview 'definitely doesn't have the capacity' to change that perception. Psaki also suggested the freakout from Democrats is not going away any time soon. 'The questions I know Im getting from text messages from friends, from family are twofold: Whats going to happen and what is the best path forward?' Psaki said. 'And Im not going to sit here this afternoon and tell you I know the answer to either question.' Biden sought to quiet the panic over his debate performance when he sat down for his first network interview in Wisconsin after the debate. The president did better during the high-stakes sit down than he had at the podium beside Donald Trump. He did not have any major gaffes. But he still remained less than convincing and rambling in his answers at times. 'I just had a bad night,' Biden told Stephanopoulos of the debate. 'I don't know why.' President Biden sat down with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos for an interview in Wisconsin where he insisted he 'just had a bad night' during the debate President Biden speaking at a campaign stop with union workers in Harrisburg, PA on Sunday The president dismissed the doubters, arguing questions over his ability to defeat Trump are coming from the press and not the vast majority of voters. He also rejected his low approval rating and insisted he was staying in the race. 'If the Lord Almighty came down and said, "Joe, get out of the race," Id get out of the race,' Biden said. 'The Lord Almightys not coming down.' Biden has also joined a series of other interviews and made appearances on the campaign trail since the disastrous debate. He campaigned in Wisconsin on Friday and Pennsylvania on Sunday. President Biden giving remarks at the Mount airy Church of Gd in Philadelphia on Sunday On Monday morning, Biden called into MSNBC's Morning Joe where he fielded tough questions over his performance and ability to beat Trump from its co-hosts. During the interview, he went after Trump's debate performance, blasting the ex-president as a liar and arguing he beat him in 2020 and would do it again. The president also slammed those calling for him to exit the race as the 'elite.' Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the hard-left 'France Unbowed' (LFI) party, shares a number of things in common with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn. The comparison was drawn frequently in the run-up to the French parliamentary elections this past weekend. But it has become all the more pertinent since the shock victory of the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance - of which Melenchon's LFI is the largest constituent party - over Emmanuel Macron's centrists and Marine Le Pen's hard-right National Rally party yesterday. The Melenchon-Corbyn connection goes beyond shared ideology and adherence to hard-left politics - the two stalwarts of the European left wing have met on several occasions, and have spoken fondly of one another over the years. Britain's former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, right, speaks with French far left politician Jean Luc Melenchon outside the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024 Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the hard-left ' France Unbowed' (LFI) party, shares a number of things in common with former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn Jeremy Corbyn gives a speech after being declared winner of the North Islington Parliamentary seat, in London, Britain, 05 July 2024 Britain's former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, centre, speaks with French far left politician Jean Luc Melenchon, left, outside the International Court of Justice in The Hague, Netherlands, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024 Both Melenchon and Corbyn have met on several occasions over the years, though the content of their discussions has always remained private. But Melenchon - who has been accused incessantly of antisemitism despite repeated denials - has routinely defended Corbyn from those same accusations that dogged him for the length of his tenure as leader of the Labour party from 2015-2020. He attended a Labour party conference in 2015 shortly after Corbyn was elected leader in a landslide victory, where he told reporters that both he and Corbyn were supported by people who want to 'take back control of their situation when faced with bankrupt parties, institutions and figures'. Melenchon also said in 2015 that a Corbyn win in a general election would be 'extremely gratifying' describing the then-Labour leader as 'capable' and 'unique'. In 2018, Melenchon travelled to Liverpool to speak at a pro-Corbyn event in Liverpool, where he said they both represented 'the paradox of an older man representing a cause powered by millions of young people'. And the pair were pictured together earlier this year at the Hague in the Netherlands, where they attended a hearing following South Africa's allegation that Israel was committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza. Both are known for their fervent pro-Palestine campaigning, with Melenchon declaring that he is committed to formally recognising a Palestinian state should he rise to power. He has also openly described Israel's bombing of Gaza following Hamas' October 7 attacks as a 'genocide', and refused to label Hamas a terrorist organisation. These stances have only added to the claims of antisemitism that have blighted Melenchon's career - much like those levelled at Corbyn. The LFI leader is extremely unpopular among France's Jewish population, as evidenced by the harsh criticism from prominent Jewish figures following the NFP's success in Sunday's election. Moshe Sebbag, a rabbi at the Grand Synagogue of Paris said in the wake of the election that 'it seems France has no future for Jews', and advised younger Jews to 'leave for Israel'. 'People my age, we've made our life here... we fear for the future of our children,' he told The Times of Israel. Meanwhile, French-Jewish philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy said: 'The left is once again kidnapped by the infamous Melenchon. Divisive language. Hate of the republic on the lips. Around him right now are some incarnations of the new antisemitism... Continue to fight against these people.' Melenchon greets Corbyn at a meeting at the Hague earlier this year File photo dated 21/03/19: Then-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (right) and then-shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer in Brussels Former Labour Party leader and newly elected MP Jeremy Corbyn addresses members of the press at the National March for Palestine in London, United Kingdom on July 6, 2024 (From left to right) Mathilde Panot, Manuel Bompard, Jean-Luc Melenchon and Daniele Obono seen on stage at the headquarters of La France Insoumise after the results of the second round of the legislative elections Three years younger than his British counterpart, the 72-year-old Melenchon has been a fixture in French left-wing politics for decades and held ministerial posts in past governments. Born in 1951 in Tangier, Morocco, to Spanish and Sicilian parents, he emigrated to France as an 11-year-old and joined the Socialist party in 1976. After spending more than 30 years as a socialist, he left the party in 2008 to forge his own path, disillusioned with what he felt was the party's tilt towards the centre. He made his first unsuccessful bid for the presidency in 2012 as a member of the Left party, and went on to launch the France Unbowed party in 2016. A year later he attempted a second run at the presidency and lost out to incumbent Emmanuel Macron. Melenchon tried for a third time in 2022 and came third behind hard-right leader Marine Le Pen and the ultimate victor Macron - but his popularity grew with each successive attempt. A fiery orator, Melenchon is one of the most divisive figures in French politics, enthusing some voters while horrifying others with his unbridled tax-and-spend proposals, class war rhetoric and controversial foreign policy positions, especially on Gaza. He has now declared the French left 'ready to govern' after the NFP alliance emerged victorious in yesterday's elections - albeit with nothing close to a majority. 'Our people have clearly rejected the worst-case scenario. (Prime Minister Gabriel Attal) has to go... The New Popular Front is ready to govern', Melenchon said. Founder of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) Jean-Luc Melenchon reacts during the election night of left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at La Rotonde Stalingrad in Paris on July 7, 2024 Former Labour Party leader and newly elected MP Jeremy Corbyn joins other independent candidates and MPs at the National March for Palestine in London, United Kingdom on July 6, 2024 Corbyn, born in 1949, has had a similarly turbulent political career. His rise to the leadership of the Labour Party in 2015 marked a significant shift to the left, with his time as leader characterised by his commitment to socialist principles, including public ownership of utilities and staunch opposition to austerity. Corbyn led Labour to a strong performance in the 2017 general election, though he ultimately resigned after the party's catastrophic defeat to the Conservatives in 2019. He was suspended from the Labour party in 2020 - and was subsequently expelled by the current leader and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer earlier this year - after he insisted that claims of antisemitism made against him were overblown for 'political reasons'. 'The scale of the problem also dramatically overstated for political reasons by our opponents inside and outside the party, as well as by much of the media,' Corbyn said, having condemned antisemitism in the strongest possible terms. Melenchon has made several similar statements. In the run-up to yesterday's elections dismissed claims he was anti-Semitic and has long said such accusations are simply trotted out to discourage people from voting for the left. In 2018, he famously declared that when a 'man of the left is called an anti-Semite, it means he's not far from power' - and also declared that Corbyn was not an anti-Semite either. 'I don't believe it. He belongs to a humanist tradition, which is incompatible with antisemitism.' Republicans are demanding more information on the program's effectiveness Republicans are threatening to shut down a taxpayer-funded program they claim is censoring conservative Americans' freedom of speech. The State Department's Global Engagement Center (GEC) directs and coordinates efforts to 'counter foreign propaganda and disinformation.' But it has been exposed for giving out taxpayer-funded grant money to organizations currently being sued for First Amendment-related violations, posing freedom of speech and censorship risks according to GOP members of Congress. House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul, R-Texas, is now asking why the taxpayer-funded program should continue. In a letter McCaul wrote to Secretary of State Antony Blinken this month first obtained by DailyMail.com, the chairman is demanding the GEC be shut down at the end of the year. The State Department's Global Engagement Center gave out grants to organizations who allegedly censored Americans' free speech. As Republican House lawmakers have sought more information about the GEC, agency employees have withheld documents, McCaul says He also wants to know why the department has 'withheld information' on the center's effectiveness. 'To begin with, the GEC is facing growing scrutiny here in Washington and across the country,' McCaul wrote to Blinken in the letter. 'Many of these inquiries concern the GEC's relationships with organizations primarily U.S. technology companies and NGOs that conduct censorship worldwide.' Some of the GEC's partner organizations that McCaul says are engaged in censorship practices are the Election Integrity Partnership (EIP) and the Global Disinformation Index (GDI). He says that the EIP conducted censorship by communicating 'with social media companies to identify American-origin posts as mis- or disinformation and effect their takedown, many during the 2020 election cycle.' McCaul has also questioned the GEC's partnership with GDI, which maintains a 'blacklist' of U.S. news outlets. He claimed that list is evidence of bias against conservative publications and thus the GDI is not deserving of grant funding. The GEC is also a central feature in two ongoing federal lawsuits, the chairman notes in his letter. Both have alleged the federal government infringed Americans First Amendment rights. House Foreign Affairs Chairman Michael McCaul, R-Texas, (center) sent a letter to Secretary of State Antony Blinken demanding more information on the controversial counter propaganda program Global Engagement Center (GEC) McCaul and the committee asked Blinken for a response to their questions by July 19 'The House Committee on Foreign Affairs has repeatedly expressed its concerns that the GEC is: (1) contributing to the censorship of American voices through grants to, and other collaboration with, private organizations that conduct operations in both the U.S. and foreign countries; and (2) effective perhaps at identifying, but nonetheless ineffective at preventing or stemming, foreign misinformation and disinformation.' The letter also highlights how the GEC has been at the center of several congressional probes and an internal State Department report found the group 'has suffered from serious internal dysfunction.' The GEC was set up during the global war on terror and has been used to combat misinformation about the U.S. and its operations, particularly during its fight with ISIS. But Republicans are suggesting its downfalls outweigh its benefits. McCaul continued to Blinken: 'Your Department refuses to acknowledge that these ongoing controversies complicate an objective appraisal of the GEC.' 'Any value the GEC provides is tempered by genuine concerns that the GEC is at best indifferent to, and at worst complicit in, an orchestrated and systematic effort to stretch the term 'disinformation' to encompass viewpoints that, among American progressives, are deemed to be politically disfavored or inconvenient.' The GEC has helped disinformation regulators censor Americans' content online, the GOP Texas lawmaker claimed 'Unfortunately, as we will describe, the Department has denied us the information necessary to assess these issues' severity; as such, we have serious reservations about reauthorizing the GEC.' McCaul requested Blinken provide additional answers on GEC's effectiveness before July 19 so that the committee can better inform itself on whether the State Department program should be renewed at the end of 2024. DailyMail.com reached out to the State Department for comment. An armed attack by Russia against Sweden or its allies cannot be ruled out, Stockholm has warned in its newly published security strategy, which labels Moscow its biggest threat in the coming years. Sweden has beefed up its national security policy amid concerns that led its army's supreme commander to warn Swedes that they had to 'mentally prepare for war.' The new national security strategy was published today and extends until 2030. The illegal invasion of Ukraine by Vladimir Putin's forces in 2022 prompted the Scandinavian nation to join NATO, ending more than two centuries of neutrality. The seriousness of the Russian threat will depend on what happens next in the Ukraine war, Defence Minister Pal Jonson told a press briefing. Russia's threshold for using military force is 'low', he said, adding that Moscow is 'ready to take major political and military risks.' A US Marine is seen on top of a HIMARS (High-Mobility Artillery Rocket System) during the Baltops 24 military exercises on the island of Uto, in the archipelago of Stockholm, Sweden The seriousness of the Russian threat will depend on what happens next in the Ukraine war, Defence Minister Pal Jonson told a press briefing Russia's threshold for using military force is 'low', according to Stockholm. Pictured: Putin with troops in Moscow last month While Stockholm had shared a partnership with the alliance for 30 years, it only officially joined on March 7 - two years after its policy of military non-alignment changed following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. In its new strategy, Sweden also stated it 'has also taken steps to protect its strategic assets,' particularly in the north. In 2023, a Swedish mining group announced having discovered Europe's 'largest known deposit of rare earth elements' in Sweden's Arctic. Sweden is one of the EU's biggest mining countries, making up more than 90 percent of the bloc's iron ore production. Sweden's accession to NATO was hailed as a huge step forward in shoring up the bloc's eastern flank. Troops joined the largest NATO exercises since the Cold War ended within hours of Sweden becoming part of the alliance. Soldiers from Britain and the US have also been hosted on the country's territory as part of the extensive war games. Strategically, beyond its long Baltic coastline, Sweden brings with it the island of Gotland which could play a central defensive role. Just across the water Russia has its own vital outpost - the exclave of Kaliningrad, with the Baltic state seen as on the frontline if war were to erupt. ervicemen belonging to the US Maine Corps and the Stockholm's Amphibious Regiment are seen during the Baltops 24 military exercises on the island of Uto In January, Sweden's civil defence minister warned his country could face the prospect of war. Carl-Oskar Bohlin urged citizens to join voluntary defence organisations in preparation for a potential armed conflict. 'There could be war in Sweden... The world is facing a security outlook with greater risks than at any time since the end of the Second World War,' the minister said at the time. The latest warning comes on the eve of the three-day Nato summit in Washington, which will see western leaders seek to reassure Ukraine of the alliance's unwavering support. The latest assault by Putin's forces on civilian targets in Ukraine this morning saw a supersonic missile slam into a children's hospital. It was the biggest bombardment of Kyiv for several months, while several other cities were also hit, with dozens killed. Train passengers faced widespread disruption as dozens of ScotRail services were cancelled because of a shortage of drivers. About 80 services did not run due to drivers opting not to work extra shifts as overtime amid a dispute over pay. The disruption to journeys on routes including some from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen followed the cancellation of around a quarter of ScotRail trains on Sunday. The train drivers union Aslef told the state-owned rail operators bosses on Friday that it was going to recommend balloting its members about industrial action. It blamed the Scottish Government, which it said should have foreseen the driver shortages a mile down the tracks. There was widespread disruption to ScotRail services caused by a lack on train crews Yesterday, the Scottish Conservatives said the problems were down to the SNPs failures. Shadow cabinet secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport, Douglas Lumsden MSP, said: The knock-on effects of this pay dispute is the last thing passengers across Scotland need. They are already continuing to suffer frequent cancellations and delays due to the SNPs failures since nationalising rail services two years ago. SNP ministers must get a grip of this situation and fast as rail users wont continue to tolerate ongoing cancellations and a reduced service. If they dont resolve this dispute urgently, then it will make a mockery of their claims to encourage more people to use public transport, and harm Scotlands struggling economy. ScotRail made an offer to Aslef on Friday in line with the governments public sector pay guidelines in an attempt to break the deadlock with drivers. A previous offer which would have seen drivers receive a six per cent pay rise over three years and improved maternity and paternity pay was turned down last month. Most of ScotRails 1,200 drivers are members of Aslef and many have chosen not to work extra Sunday shifts or overtime. Rail operators have traditionally relied on drivers working extra shifts to cover Sunday services, and the shortages led to 243 cancellations. Some services on Sunday only ran every hour. There are also concerns that if additional shifts have to be covered on weekdays because of staff absences or illness they could prove hard to fill. Aslefs Scotland organiser Kevin Lindsay told the BBC: The Scottish government is the sole shareholder of ScotRail yet have completely failed to address the driver shortage. This is a crisis entirely of their own making. ScotRail has apologised for the cancellations and said it is working to find a solution to the dispute. Mark Ilderton, ScotRails service delivery director, said: Were sorry for the inconvenience caused to our customers. We know how frustrating it is when cancellations occur. Customers should check their journey on our website and mobile app before they travel and should also bear in mind that services will be busier than usual. We want to resolve the pay dispute with trade unions, and we remain fully committed to further discussions. A Transport Scotland spokesperson said: We acknowledge the desire of rail unions to negotiate a fair settlement for their members. ScotRail, as a public body and the employer, has responsibility and the ability to negotiate within the limits of public sector pay metrics. However, as rail unions have been made aware, any offer beyond these requires Scottish Government approval at senior level following the appropriate process. We would encourage rail unions to continue meaningful dialogue with ScotRail, so that a mutually agreeable outcome can be reached as soon as possible. Andrew Tate and his brother Tristan have been accused of being 21 million 'serial tax evaders' by Devon and Cornwall Police with the force filing a civil claim against the pair in the UK. The siblings, as well as a woman referred to only as J, are accused of failing to pay a penny in tax on millions of pounds of revenue earned from businesses online between 2014 and 2022. The UK force is seeking around 2.8 million in seven frozen bank accounts. Sarah Clarke KC for Devon and Cornwall Police said: 'Andrew Tate and Tristan Tate are serial tax and VAT evaders. 'They, in particular Andrew Tate, are brazen about it.' Andrew Tate pictured leaving Bucharest Court with his brother Tristan, 35, on July 4. The pair are now accused of being 21 million 'serial tax evaders' by Devon and Cornwall Police The siblings, as well as a woman referred to only as J, are accused of failing to pay a penny in tax on millions of pounds of revenue earned from businesses online between 2014 and 2022 Andrew (C) and brother Tristan (back R) speak to journalists after being released from detention in Bucharest, Romania, on March 12, 2024 Ms Clarke quoted from a video posted online by Andrew Tate, in which he said: 'When I lived in England I refused to pay tax.' The court heard he said his approach was 'ignore, ignore, ignore because in the end they go away'. The court also heard the brothers had 'a huge number of bank accounts' in the UK, seven of which have been frozen. Ms Clarke said that money 'washed around UK bank accounts' that were used 'as a mechanism for moving revenues from their business activities through a wide number of accounts'. She told the court: 'That's what tax evasion looks like, that's what money laundering looks like.' The money came from products they sold online as well as their OnlyFans sites. The Tates are accused of failing to pay tax and money laundering in both the UK and Romania, the court heard. It is claimed the brothers paid just under $12 million into an account in J's name and opened a second account in her name, even though she had no role in their businesses. Devon and Cornwall Police allege that this was fraud by false misrepresentation. The money came from products the brothers sold online as well as their OnlyFans sites Andrew Tate pictured leaving court in Bucharest, Romania in MArchafter a hearing It is claimed the brothers paid just under $12 million into an account in J's name and opened a second account in her name (pictured: Tristan Tate in Bucharest in March) Money from businesses, including Cobra Tate, Hustlers' University and War Room was paid into the first account, held with Stripe, and the majority of payments out went to one of Andrew Tate's accounts. It was opened in February 2019 in J's name with an incorrect date of birth and later driving licenses belonging to both Andrew Tate and J were submitted as proof of identity and address to the payment service provider - Tate in October 2019 and J in June 2022. The proceedings are civil, which uses a lower standard of proof than criminal cases with Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring deciding on the balance of probabilities whether what the police claim is true. J also moved money through her own account, including one payment of 805,000 that was made to her Revolut account. Of this 495,000 was paid to Andrew Tate, and 75,000 to an account in J's name that was later converted to cryptocurrency, it is alleged. Gary Pons, for J, argued that the funds in the Gemini account were in cryptocurrency and therefore could not be frozen at that time. The case was adjourned until Tuesday. The claim comes after the brothers celebrated a legal victory today after courts in Romania ruled they are free to leave the country for the first time in two years. Tate, who is a former kickboxer and controversial internet personality, posted a video to X, formerly Twitter, announcing the news this afternoon, declaring 'I AM FREE... THE SHAM CASE IS FALLING APART'. The 37-year-old, and his brother, 35, were charged in mid-2023 with rape, human trafficking and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, which they deny. Romanian prosecutors formally indicted Tate in June along with his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian women in the same case. All four were arrested in late December 2022 near Bucharest and have denied the allegations against them. A spokesperson for the brothers said: 'The Romanian courts have ruled in favour of Andrew and Tristan Tate, lifting restrictions on their travel within the European Union,' adding: 'This represents a significant victory and a major step forward in the ongoing case.' They went on to say that the decision 'is a strong affirmation of our clients' fundamental right to free movement, a cornerstone principle of the European Union. Andrew and Tristan's lawyer, Eugene Vidineac said: 'We embrace and applaud the decision of the court today, I consider it a reflection of the exemplary behaviour and assistance of my clients. 'Andrew and Tristan are still determined to clear their name and reputation; however, they are grateful to the courts for placing this trust in them. 'For the brothers, who have faced limitations on their movement for nearly two years, this ruling is a welcome relief. 'It allows them to resume their lives with greater freedom and peace of mind. It was opened in February 2019 in J's name with an incorrect date of birth and later driving licenses belonging to both Andrew Tate and J were submitted as proof of identity and address to the payment service provider Romanian prosecutors formally indicted Tate in June along with his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian women in a case 'They are now able to travel freely throughout the EU to pursue professional opportunities without restriction.' In Tate's video announcing the ruling, he paced through what appeared to be a garage lined with supercars while shirtless and said: 'For the first time in nearly three years, the judge has decided I can leave Romania.' He also referred to the charges as a 'sham case' before referencing a platform that says it teaches the skill of money-making. Tate repeats these sentiments in the video, adding: 'The process is the punishment, in the end I'll be innocent.' He also protested his innocence in the one-minute-and-20-second clip. A naked decorator who was painting his friend's house had the police called on him after a passing tradesman took offence. Stuart Gilmour, a 45-year-old notorious naturist, was painting the house in Middleton, Greater Manchester, on Friday, June 14 when an officer paid him a visit. The thoughtful lorry driver had been donning a pair of tracksuit bottoms and a t-shirt at 2.30pm each day he was painting not to alarm any children at a nearby school who may pass by. And unbeknownst to Stuart, his friend had tipped off the neighbours about his lack of attire in a note she pushed through people's letterboxes describing him as 'really lovely' and urging them to 'be kind'. But the father-of-two believes a passing tradesman who caught an eyeful called the police - leading to the visit. Stuart Gilmour, a 45-year-old notorious naturist, was painting the house in Middleton, Greater Manchester, on Friday, June 14 when an officer paid him a visit Stuart, from Middleton, Greater Manchester, was undergoing the mammoth three-day task of painting the terracotta tiles on friend Maria Goodey's house (pictured together) when he got the police visit While wearing only his trusty walking boots and balancing on a ladder 26ft in the air, he heard the 'strange' whirring of an electric police car pulling into the quiet close he was working in. To spare the blushes of the cop looking upwards, Stuart shimmied down the ladder only to discover a female officer at the bottom. Stuart said he explained to the bemused policewoman that it's not illegal to be naked in public and that he had the permission of the homeowner. Happy with the explanation, the officer wished him well before hopping into her car and driving off. Stuart, who jokes he now has 'the most famous builder's bum in the north west', said he understood why police attended but wants to share the message that 'nude is not rude'. He said: 'One female officer came out. 'It was an electric car so it sounded a bit strange, I looked round and saw that it was a police car. 'She pulled in and I thought "well I'm not going to stay on the ladder so she has to get out of the car and look up at me, I'll come down the ladder and meet her at the bottom". While wearing only his trusty walking boots and balancing on a ladder 26ft in the air, Stuart heard the 'strange' whirring of an electric police car pulling into the quiet close he was working in 'She got out [of her car] giggling to herself and she said "do you have any idea why I'm here?". 'I said, "well I've got a good idea" and we were giggling. 'I said "I'm just painting, I'm a naturist" and gave her the spiel of "it's not illegal to be naked in public and I've got the permission of the owner". 'She just went "no problem at all, I hope you have a happy day painting" and off she went and that was that. 'I've now got the most famous builder's bum in the north west.' Stuart, from Middleton, Greater Manchester, was undergoing the mammoth three-day task of painting the terracotta tiles on friend Maria Goodey's house when he got the police visit. As it was nice weather, he asked the 57-year-old transport coordinator if she was ok with him painting in the buff. Maria agreed and he got to work on the three-bed detached house using masonry paint and a brush to transform the red tiles into a brown colour to match the window frames. Stuart said he enjoyed 'normal' chats with neighbours who didn't bat an eyelid at him painting in his birthday suit. Unbeknownst to Stuart, his friend had tipped-off the neighbours about his lack of attire in a note she pushed through people's letterboxes describing him as 'really lovely' and urging them to 'be kind' He said: 'I enjoy being outdoors and I like to help people out when I can. 'It was quite warm so I phoned her and asked for permission to strip off, because obviously I don't want to upset anybody, and she said 'yeah, no problem'. 'I wasn't aware she'd posted all these letters through everybody's post box so I found it strange that neighbours were talking to me normally. 'A passing van with a mini digger had come into the cul-de-sac to turn around and I think it might have been him who called the police.' What does UK law state about public nudity? Indecent exposure is defined in the Sexual Offences Act 2003. It is an offence for a person to intentionally expose their genitals with the intention for someone to see them and be alarmed or distressed. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has published guidelines on how they deal with cases of naturism and nudity in public. Naturism is the practice of incorporating nudity into ones everyday life. In these instances, prosecutors will seek to balance the 'right to freedom of expression and the right of the wider public to be protected from harassment, alarm and distress.' In other words, the prosecutors will look for any indications of a sexual nature in the nudity or where there was any intention to cause alarm or distress. If these are absent, they could take no action against the nudist unless there was actual alarm or distress caused. Source: Stuart Miller Solicitors Advertisement Regularly going about his business in the buff, Stuart said there was a welcome benefit to painting in the nude - feeling more confident working so high up. Stuart said: 'It's the first time I've been on a ladder so high up nude. 'When I was clothed I was a bit shaky and remember thinking "God this is high" but when I was naked I was absolutely fine. 'I felt like I was in contact with the ladder and I wasn't going to get my clothes caught on anything because I didn't have any. 'I felt more comfortable naked than in the pants and t-shirt. 'It was nice to be able to get on with the job and not be worried about upsetting anybody.' Despite feeling more comfortable in his birthday suit than regular clothes, Stuart said he's always mindful of respecting other people's beliefs. Stuart said: 'I don't mind the police coming out, they've got to check up. 'If you force it [naturism] on people they're not willing to listen. If you show that bit of respect to families when they have children about, they're more accepting of you. 'I just think it's the right thing to do. It's not everyday you see someone naked walking around is it? 'I suppose it helps I've got a nice bottom.' Maria said: 'The top and bottom of it is I didn't want him getting any grief. 'I wrote something out for every neighbour and posted it through the letterbox. I just felt it was the right thing to do. 'Stuart is lovely and he has an absolute heart of gold and I know he doesn't deserve the backlash. 'I caused a bit of a stir, there were a few photographs going round. 'As far as I'm aware, because people knew what was happening, nobody had anything bad [to say] and we gather that the person who reported him to the police wasn't actually a neighbour. 'He's done a fantastic job, I highly recommend him.' Maria's note to her neighbours read: 'Just so you are aware, I have a decorator painting the outside this week, he is a 'naturist'. 'He promotes "loving the skin you're in", mental health and wellbeing, "nude is not rude". 'He's a really lovely man - please be kind! He will be fully clothed after 2.30pm - thinking of school children. 'Thank-you, Maria.' Greater Manchester Police confirmed the log details are correct. Disturbing new details have emerged in the case of the North Carolina mother-of-five who allegedly tortured and murdered her two adopted children. Avantae Deven, 63, of Fayetteville, who is accused of murdering siblings Blake and London Deven, allegedly coerced another one of her other children to help dismember their bodies. She reportedly asked them to 'take the blame' if they were caught because their sentence would be less severe, WRAL News reported. Chilling court documents reveal that Deven had one of the children purchase supplies and items from a local store to dismember Blake, the arrest warrant alleges. A surveillance video showed Deven out with two of her other children purchasing a red cooler. Investigators believe the cooler is where London's remains were kept, as per court documents, the news outlet revealed. Avantae Deven's mugshot on June 23. She was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse causing serious bodily injury, two counts of destroying human remains/concealing an unnatural death and one count of kidnapping Court records reveal the lengths she took to keep the murders hidden, including recruiting a family friend to impersonate her son during a home visit when the Cumberland County Department of Social Services stopped by for a visit, as per the news outlet. Both siblings had not been seen for years, but were never reported missing by Deven, their adoptive mother. All five of Deven's children were adopted, an official said. On June 23, she was arrested and charged in the death of her daughter, London , and the disappearance of her son, Blake, who is presumed dead, according to Fayetteville Police. She was charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse causing serious bodily injury, two counts of destroying human remains/concealing an unnatural death and one count of kidnapping. In April, two sets of remains were found in a metal burn barrel on Beaver Dam Road in Autryville, a town in North Carolina, WRAL reported. One set was determined to be London. The other remains are undergoing further testing, but a 'preliminary' report shows they belong to Blake, according to court records obtained by The Fayetteville Observer. Blake Deven is believed to be deceased after his adoptive mother horrifically tortured him and his sister for years. The photo was taken in 2012. He would have been 17 London Deven was starved and neglected investigators said. In the photo taken in 2008, she was approximately 12 years-old. She would have been 27-years of age now Deven allegedly created a sick plan to dispose of Blake's body and reportedly told one of her other children who was forced to assist in the horror. 'If this ever gets found out,you need to take the blame because I will get the death penalty,' she told the youngster, 'and because of your age you won't get in trouble if you take the blame.' It is alleged that Deven then incinerated Blake's remains in a burn barrel in the backyard of the Eichelberger Drive home and removed any evidence of the boy's death from the home, according to the affidavit, The Independent reported. 'Avantae developed a plan to hide Blake's remains, and she forced another person in the household to participate,' he added. 'They dismembered him and burned his remains.' In June, she went before Judge Caitlin Evans in Cumberland County District Court in Fayetteville, North Carolina. If convicted, she could face the death penalty, WRAL News reported. She is currently being held without bond at the Cumberland County Detention Center until her next hearing that is scheduled for July 17. In April, detectives searched Deven's home where the siblings reportedly lived - and made the gruesome discovery of the metal burn battle containing partial human remains. Investigators believe they had been tortured, and physically abused by their adoptive mother for years and revealed the horror the children had to endure in her care. London Deven, the older child, was reported to have been neglected and starved, investigators said. They also believe the children are dead. London Deven would have been 27-years-old, and her brother, Blake, 17. Cumberland County District Attorney Billy West spoke outside the courthouse appalled by the heinous acts. 'The allegations are certainly some of the worst that I've seen in the almost 25 years that I've been doing this.' Deven's defense attorney said: 'I know the allegations can't be any worse. I do have complete trust and confidence in our judiciary.' Sgt. Jeff Locklear answers questions about the arrest of Avantae Deven in connection with the disappearance of Blake Deven and London Deven Investigators were tipped off to Blake's disappearance in November 2023, when officers responded to a call from a child living at the home who was attempting suicide, according to a lead investigator in the case. The child told police chilling details in which he told them that 'he hadn't seen his brother Blake Deven in about five years and the last time he saw him he had a broken arm. He then told police Blake is now dead.' At that time, there was no missing persons report filed on Blake, but investigators said Deven filed one after they began to probe. Upon hearing the inhumane treatment they endured, the children's biological mother told WRAL News: 'I'm so sorry son you didn't deserve this.' Deven moved to the Fayetteville area in 2015 with her elderly mother, and five children she had adopted. Three of the boys were biologically related and two girls were not related to each other or the boys, according to ABC11 News. The children had been interviewed by police and Department of Social Services (DSS) who shared the horrific and sick treatment they endured at the hands of their adoptive mother. They also told officials what they believe may have happened to their siblings - Blake and London. According to the children, they were kept in a dark, small room and given little, or no food, and if they wrote apology letters for their behavior they could earn food. ABC11 reported that forensic evidence supported the allegations of torture, starvation, and isolation by investigators. According to police, Deven gave authorities different stories to prolong the investigation being done. One of those tales included that Blake was 'possibly at a Buddhist retreat in the mountains,' said Sgt. Jeff Locklear, a lead investigator. In another twisted detail, police said when the DSS came to the house for a visit, Deven had a family acquaintance pretend to be Blake. Detectives tracked down the person who admitted he took part in the impersonation at Deven's request. Speaking with others, investigators learned other heinous acts of torture, abuse and neglect, including no hygiene, and were forced to use a small plastic container for restroom purposes for days, weeks or months at a time. A person who once lived in the home told police that Blake died in 2017 after being tortured for years, starved and neglected that rendered him unconscious. Deven refused to get her son medical help, despite pleas from her other kids. The person told officials, that she came up with a plan to hide the boy's remains until she could decide how to get rid of them permanently, eventually putting them in a burn pit in the backyard. Deven also told one of the children who had been in her care that left the home at one point that she had to put London in a 'mental institution,' as per documents, when they asked. Torrential rain and storms across the Atlantic have been blamed as being behind a flight meltdown at Gatwick and Heathrow which left 125 grounded after two British Airways aircrafts were struck by lightning within hours of each other. Hurricane Beryl has cut a deadly and devastating path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean, leaving at least 11 people dead and flattening entire islands before striking Texas this morning. 10,000 holidaymakers were left stranded after airlines axed flights in reaction to the weather being 'upside down', with British Airways scrapping 51 fights due to operate to or from Heathrow on Sunday, and a further 31 on Monday. Several airlines also cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. Speaking about the delays, aviation expert Julian Bray told MailOnline: 'Hurricane Beryl - this is the big thing happening in Texas at the moment. Hurricane Beryl has cut a deadly and devastating path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean, leaving at least 11 people dead and flattening entire islands before striking Texas this morning 10,000 holidaymakers were left stranded after airlines axed flights in reaction to the weather being 'upside down'. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon Several airlines cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. Pictured: easyJet Check in Area Gatwick South Terminal today EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays'. Pictured: File image London 's two busiest airports went into a meltdown yesterday after easyJet grounded 32 flights at Gatwick and BA axed another 32 at Heathrow. Pictured: File image 'And basically the whole weather system at the moment, as you know it's been raining quite a lot lately. The weather is completely upside down at the moment.' Explaining why so many planes ended up being cancelled, he added: 'It's like a row of dominoes. If one of the dominoes falls over, then all the other dominoes fall over, and that causes all the delays and the backups.' Passengers were hit by a double whammy of rail delays after a signalling failure on the Thameslink line yesterday morning. EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays.' Furious travellers slammed the airlines on social media and questioned why other carriers flying the 'same route, same day' have not cancelled flights. EasyJet axed flights from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice alongside flights to Belfast and Edinburgh. Furious travellers slammed the airlines on social media and questioned why other carriers flying the 'same route, same day' have not cancelled flights. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon BA cancelled round trips to Rome alongside routes to Naples, Barcelona and Cyprus. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon Passengers took to social media to slam easyJet and British Airways for the travel chaos And BA cancelled round trips to Rome alongside routes to Naples, Barcelona and Cyprus. Only one flight was cancelled at Manchester and London Stansted - the country's third and fourth largest airports. One person said on X: '@easyJet Why is the @TUIUK flight, same route, same day, not cancelled then? Baffling how easyJet alone suffers so many of these 'beyond control' cancellations? Could it in fact be pilot/ crew shortage per chance??' However, easyJet told the traveller that 'many factors come together that can lead to our flights being disrupted it's never just one thing. If it is due to something that is outside our control or pilot/crew shortage we need to state it as such.' Others revealed how their flights were cancelled as they waited at the gate to board the plane. British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Pictured: A passenger shared this image, which they said was taken from the flight A map showed the flight's route travelling on a smooth course before suddenly circling and zigzagging away from Heathrow Another said: '@easyJet absolutely terrible. Flight from Gatwick to Munich Friday 5th July cancelled after we were all at the gate. After only 1 hour delay told the crew were out of hours, really! We were left stranded. Thanks @premierinn for finding us a room. #easyJet #airline fail'. A third person, who this time directed their anger at BA, said: '@British_Airways you cancelled my flight with a few hours noticed causing me to miss a job interview and more importantly my brothers birthday. 'You offered me a 10h Stopover flight the next day instead of my original 2hr30 flight to Heathrow. Please respond to my ticket!' A fourth said: 'To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace! Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation!' British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Both planes had to be taken out of service while the company's staff carry out safety checks. A spokesperson said: 'Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines we've had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. 'We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today.' And a spokesperson for easyJet added: 'easyJet operated around 1800 flights yesterday and is operating a similar number today however some flights yesterday evening and three flights from London Gatwick this morning have unfortunately been disrupted due to the knock-on impact of adverse weather yesterday and air traffic control delays. 'While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused and are providing impacted customers with hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight.' And a London Gatwick spokesperson said: 'Poor weather, including numerous thunderstorms across the UK and much of Europe, caused some delays at the airport yesterday afternoon (Sunday 7 July). Flights are operating as normal this morning with no further delays.' While low-budget carrier Ryanair has made no cancellations although it did apologise to customers for some delays due to 'repeated air-traffic control staff shortages'. It reads: 'Ryanair, Europe's No.1 airline, on Mon 8 Jul apologised to its passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today Mon 8 Jul which are affecting all European airlines. 'ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being five per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated 'staff shortages'. 'On Mon 8 Jul, 21 per cent of Ryanair's first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC 'staff shortages'. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. 'We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanair's control.' British Airways has been contacted for comment. It marks yet another issue after a summer where families trying to get away for the summer have been hit by delays at airports. In late June Heathrow was left in chaos after an IT allocation failure in British Airways' systems left passengers stranded on planes and facing hours of delays collecting their luggage. The UK's busiest airport revealed passengers travelling from Terminal 5 'may be impacted' by the failure in BA's Allocation systems, adding that no other airline has been affected. Video from the Terminal showed massive queues of stricken travellers forming across the airport, as passengers struggled to correctly find their luggage. Footage from inside the transport hub showed enormous queues forming outside BA's baggage claim area in the terminal, as well as the customer assistance desk in the arrivals' area. Customers unleashed their fury as they shared horror stories about trying to calm children having panic attacks and waiting for hours, with one branding the UK a 'third world country'. Just days later stranded holidaymakers hit out at 'disgusting' services after Gatwick Airport suspended all their flights. Passengers faced massive delays, last-minute diversions to other London airports and missed connections after a Boeing 777 British Airways flight had to make an emergency stop on the runway due to 'having hot brakes'. It sparked chaos for thousands of Brits hoping to kick summer off with a holiday as any flights due to take off or land at the airport were temporarily suspended. Homeless migrants appear to have been drinking cups of vodka at 7am in their makeshift camp blighting London's swanky Mayfair district. The group were pictured at a table outside their tents in the capital's exclusive Park Lane area, where they appeared to mix vodka with bottles of Coca-Cola. Beaming a smile, one bearded man was photographed filling a glass with the liquid before dragging on a cigarette - with a large music speaker seen next to him. The images come as Channel migrants who recently arrived in Britain partied after Labour's landslide victory over the Tories - saying Sir Keir Starmer's government 'will be very good for us'. Labour has already announced plans to release the last two migrants detained as part of the Rwanda scheme after the new Prime Minister declared the Tory policy 'dead and buried'. Beaming a smile, one bearded man was photographed filling a glass with the spirit before dragging on a cigarette - with a large music speaker seen next to them The migrants were spotted drinking at 7am on Monday morning, drinking vodka at their encampment Their 'tent city' was pitched up outside the exclusive Park Lane in London's Mayfair area Yvette Cooper, the new Home Secretary, confirmed that two people who had been held pending removal to the African country will be bailed over the coming days. At least 290million of taxpayers' cash had already been earmarked for the Rwanda scheme, despite no migrants ever being deported under the proposals. New PM Sir Keir confirmed the end of the Tories' flagship scheme to forcibly deport those arriving via small boats in the Channel to Rwanda. Speaking at his first Downing Street press conference on Saturday, he said: 'The Rwanda scheme was dead and buried before it started. It's never been a deterrent. 'Look at the numbers that have come over in the first six-and-a-bit months of this year, they are record numbers that is the problem that we are inheriting.' Sir Keir added: 'It's had the complete opposite effect and I'm not prepared to continue with gimmicks that don't act as a deterrent.' Just days earlier The Mail spoke to Sudanese national Omer, 23, who is now living at a Home Office hotel in the port city of Hull, east Yorkshire, at the taxpayers; expense. He travelled with four friends across the Channel to get to the UK illegally. Speaking as millions of Brits went to the polls last Thursday, he said: 'The Labour government will be very good for us,' 'I hope the Labour party wins. I am very happy I left France because the far-right party is close to victory.' A group of people are pictured on board a smuggler's boat in an attempt to cross the Channel near Dunkirk The Mail first interviewed Sudanese national Omer, 23, in a Calais camp last month and he is now living at a Home Office hotel in the port city of Hull, east Yorkshire. File photo Labour has announced plans to release the last two migrants detained as part of the Rwanda scheme after Sir Keir Starmer declared the Tory policy 'dead and buried' Yvette Cooper, the new Home Secretary, confirmed that two people who had been held pending removal to the African country will be bailed over the coming days Images today at Park Lane come as a row continues to rumble over the homeless migrants living in Mayfair. The asylum seekers have previously been blasted for leaving behind piles of rubbish as they moved their tented village . The group - which includes around 17 men and women, believed to be from Eastern Europe - recently relocated from the Hyde Park Corner area of Park Lane to land near Marble Arch. Rubbish including plastic bottles, duvets, shoes and clothes was left behind at the site. Black plastic bin bags and a sign with the message 'please, I'm very hungry, help me, God bless' were also among the items left behind. Migrants were previously pictured setting up camp outside the Hilton Hotel in Mayfair, just yards away from Hyde Park. A woman wearing a pink top and green trousers was seen sitting in a tent covering in a blue tarpaulin. A man with a black hat, trousers and grey jacket was also spotted walking around the camp which was scattered with shopping trolleys, blow-up mattresses and crates. Residents have reportedly alerted police and authorities about the encampment and rubbish left behind but are frustrated that nothing has been done. In 2019, a homeless camp mainly made up of Romanian and Bulgarian migrants pitched up in the same area after being moved from Marble Arch by police. And in July 2020, a group of people believed to be migrants also set up camp outside the Hilton Hotel in Mayfair, just yards away from Hyde Park. A businesswoman's habit of constantly posting on social media helped authorities in Brazil capture her drug lord husband after a two-year manhunt. Ronald Roland, 50, was arrested last Tuesday at his condominium in the southeastern city of Guaruja after his wife, Andrezza de Lima, had previously shared one of their locations, TV Globo's news magazine show Fantastico revealed. Roland, de Lima and their daughter were sleeping when Federal Police raided their residence. De Lima, who owns a bikini shop, often posted their travels to Colombia, Dubai, France and Maldives, appearing beside Roland on private jets and top tourist attractions. The kingpin was among eight people arrested as part of an operation across seven states, with authorities seizing large amounts of cash, jewelry, weapons, a boat, 34 cars and an airplane. Brazilian drug lord Ronald Roland (pictured with his wife Andrezza de Lima) was arrested last Tuesday at his home in Guaruja, Sao Paulo. Authorities located his whereabouts following a recent social media post shared by de Lima Brazilian authorities said Ronald Roland (picture here in 2019) had drug smuggling contacts with Mexican cartels Federal Police investigators alleged that he had contacts with drug cartels in Mexico and estimate he laundered $900 million over the last five years. One of the 100 businesses that were used to launder cash was his wife's bikini shop. 'Houses were purchased in the name of companies whose partners were people without the minimum economic capacity to acquire real estate, vehicles, aircraft,' Federal Police agent Ricardo Ruiz told the network. 'We found partners of companies, for example, who work in a restaurant, but who are partners in several companies that moved tens of millions of reais.' Ruiz added that the agency had been looking into Roland's activities since 2012. He was working as an airline pilot at the time and investigated for his connections to drug traffickers who sent massive loads of drugs from Central and South America to Mexico. Brazilian drug trafficker was sleeping at home with his wife (pictured here) and daughter when cops raided the residence in Guaruja Brazil's Federal Police seized a private jet from Brazilian drug lord, Ronald Roland, during an operation last week Two of the 34 vehicles that Brazil's Federal Police confiscated last Tuesday during a series of raids across eight states that led to the arrest of eight people, including a drug lord with ties to Mexican cartels Andrezza de Lima often posted photos of her and her Brazilian drug lord husband, Ronald Roland, on Instagram to show off their vacation to top tourist destinations Roland raised eyebrows in 2019 when he moved into a luxiruius condominium in Uberlandia, a city in the nearby southeastern state of Minas Gerais. He was spotted one week driving a $91,500 vehicle and the following week one valued at $183,000 and a week later a luxury car worth $146,000. 'This caught the attention of the neighborhood. Who is this person who moved here,' Ruiz said. He was arrested in July 2019 after his former wife shared a photo on Instagram with the location of a Sao Paulo restaurant where they were having lunch. A mugshot taken at the time of the arrest confirmed that he had undergone plastic surgery and had marks on his face. New York City real estate mogul Brandon Miller died last week at the age of 43. Miller was the principal partner at Real Estate Equity Corporation, and the husband of Candice Miller, a socialite and founder of the lifestyle blog Mama & Tata. He was buried at the New Montefiore Cemetery in West Babylon over the weekend. The father-of-two died on Wednesday, per the cemetery's records, first cited by The Real Deal. Miller's cause of death remains unconfirmed by his family. New York City real estate mogul Brandon Miller died last week at the age of 43. He was also the husband of Candice Miller, a socialite and founder of the lifestyle blog Mama & Tata He had reportedly been in intensive care at Stony Brook Southampton Hospital for days before his death. Miller was also related to fashion blogger Arielle Charnas' who is Candice's cousin. He and his wife own a $9million home in Tribeca and another $3million house in Southampton. Candice started her fashion and lifestyle blog, Mama and Tata, with her sister Jenna Crespi in 2016 and has since taken over the majority of the business. She is also the co-founder and chief marketing officer of the vintage-inspired clothing line Black Iris, and the is the head buyer for Tenet shop in Southampton The father-of-two's cause of death remains unconfirmed by his family. The Millers are pictured in 2023 The socialite was among Ivanka Trump's social circle in Miami; the two were photographed at the beach together in 2021 The couple is seen back in February at a charity event in the celebrity hotspot Casa Cipriani The socialite was among Ivanka Trump's social circle in Miami; the two were photographed at the beach together in 2021. Candice is a prominent face on the Hamptons social scene, as is her cousin, controversial fashion blogger Arielle Charnas of Something Navy, who also has her own condo in the same exclusive Miami building that Ivanka was living in. She often shared images of her family on Instagram but appears to have deleted her social media following her husband's death. The couple were childhood friends and married in 2009; they renewed their vows in 2019. Miller's father Michael Miller founded REEC in 1978, and Miller began his work at the company in 2004. Candice (left) is cousins with famous influencer Arielle Charnas (right) Brandon and Candice Miller's Southampton home is pictured Miller and and his wife own a $9million home in Tribeca. Their luxury building is pictured The company has developed more than 20 million square feet throughout the US, and is behind several high-profile projects in Manhattan. The family has been sued several times over alleged financial misconduct, as reported by the Real Deal. Michael Miller, who died in 2016, was sued in 2019 over claims that he told his assistant to forge his son's signature on various loans. That suit was settled. Candice is a prominent face on the Hamptons social scene. She is pictured with her late husband in 2008 Candice started her fashion and lifestyle blog, Mama and Tata, with her sister Jenna Crespi Then in May, 2022, TD Bank sued Miller, his mother and his sister, accusing the trio of engaging in fraudulent transfers to keep the bank from collecting a $2.1 million judgment from his mother. Another lawsuit, filed in May, claims Miller owed over $55,000 in docking fees to a marina in Aquebogue, New York. DailyMail.com has repeatedly reached out to the Real Estate Equity Corporation for comment on this story. A Range Rover driver who was accused of assaulting a charity worker who rowed with him for parking his car outside his house has been cleared in court. Emyr Lloyd, 74, was charged with common assault after arguing with Gwyn Pierce over the parking of his Range Rover Evoque 4x4 outside the 57-year-old's home in Denbigh, North Wales. Mr Pierce claimed the grandfather-of-six told him to 'f*** off' and punched him in the face after he told him he couldn't leave his car where it was because it was obstructing the alleyway beside his home. He also alleged that Mr Lloyd tried to kick him during the confrontation on January 9, before getting into his car and attempting to run him over. But Mr Lloyd, who had just returned to his vehicle from a business meeting when the bust up happened, maintained he was in fact on the receiving end of aggressive behaviour from Mr Pierce. On Monday, Mr Lloyd was cleared of the charges at Llandudno Magistrates' Court after JPs found he acted in self-defence because he felt 'threatened' by Mr Pierce's demeanour. Emyr Lloyd's Range Rover Evoque 4x4 (pictured) was parked outside Gwyn Pierce's home - which led to an ugly row breaking out Mr Pierce (pictured) alleged grandfather-of-six Mr Lloyd tried to kick him, then got into his car and tried to run him over Mr Lloyd's defence solicitor, David Jones, said there had been a 'poor' investigation by North Wales Police, who had not taken a statement from a key eyewitness. Mr Jones told the hearing: 'Police turn up at the scene and decide, because someone has blood on their lip, they must be the victim and it's Mr Lloyd who has to be taken to the police station. 'You are being asked to accept a 74-year-old (his age at the time) gentleman who's just left a business meeting launched into an unprovoked assault on Mr Pierce.' Matthew Lloyd, unrelated to Emyr Lloyd, the resident whose statement was not taken by police, gave evidence in court where he described the actions of Mr Pierce as 'almost farcical'. He recalled: 'He (Mr Pierce) was flailing on the back of (Mr Lloyd's) car.' The court heard Mr Pierce was angry because Mr Lloyd's car was obstructing the alleyway beside his home. Despite Mr Pierce demanding that Mr Lloyd leave, his Range Rover was only able to reverse perhaps 'an inch', as Mr Pierce had put a bin in the way, the court was told. The defendant had to get out and beg Mr Pierce to allow him to drive off. In evidence, Emyr Lloyd said Mr Pierce shouted 'in a very aggressive loud voice don't ever park there again.' Mr Lloyd denied swearing or using violence and said Mr Pierce came towards him 'in a threatening manner' so he put up his left hand as a barrier. Mr Lloyd (pictured) had just returned to his vehicle from a business meeting when the confrontation happened in Denbigh, North Wales Street view of Denbigh, North Wales, where the confrontation took place on January 9 Mr Pierce, who has a faded 'Keep driveway clear' sign is at the entrance to the alleyway outside his home (left), said he felt 'let down by the court' having been refused permission to watch via videolink and not told of the verdict 'He had totally lost it,' the defendant said. When he reversed slowly, Mr Pierce appeared to launch himself at the back of the car. Mr Lloyd said: 'I was convinced it was a scam.' Finding him not guilty of the assault and awarding defence costs, chair of the bench Paula Roberts said: 'We don't feel Mr Pierce's evidence was credible.' She said Matthew Lloyd and another independent witness were credible and honest and Mr Lloyd had seen Mr Pierce placing a blue bin behind the defendant's car. Ms Roberts said: 'We found Emyr Lloyd's evidence to be clear, consistent and credible. He was clear in his description of events and stated he felt threatened by Mr Pierce's demeanour. 'Any injury caused would have been caused by Mr Lloyd taking action in self-defence.' Speaking from his picturesque home in the North Wales countryside, Mr Lloyd said after the trial: 'I have suffered sleepless nights. It's had the same effect on my wife. I'm glad it's all over. It was very stressful. It's taken over our lives for the last six months.' 'On the day, the police officer asked 'are you prepared to come to the station? It's a voluntary interview. If you don't come, I will arrest you' it wasn't much of a choice. 'I thought I was purely giving my side of the event. It turned out they were treating me as a suspect. They didn't make that clear.' Mr Lloyd, who has medical problems with both hands and was charged in March, added: 'The amount of support I have had from clients is unbelievable.' Mr Pierce, who has a faded 'Keep driveway clear' sign is at the entrance to the alleyway outside his home, said he felt 'let down by the court' having been refused permission to watch via videolink and not told of the verdict. He added: 'It doesn't surprise me they found in his favour because of the way I was treated by everybody. The only nice people were victim support.' Jurors overseeing the case of Karen Read voted unanimously to acquit her of murdering her police officer boyfriend, her attorneys have claimed. Read could be tried again after her high-profile nine-week court case ended in a mistrial as the jury was unable to agree whether she had killed John O'Keefe with her SUV in January 2022. Although jurors failed to find consensus on the three charges she faced, they did muster 12 - 0 in favor of acquittal for murder, according to new court documents filed by the defense. They also voted unanimously to acquit her of leaving the scene of an accident where there was injury or death but remained deadlocked 9 - 3 in favor of her being guilty of vehicular manslaughter. Read's lawyers now argue the 44-year-old - who was dubbed 'America's happiest murder defendant' for her blithe courtroom behavior - cannot be tried again for the murder as it would result in double jeopardy. The jury unanimously voted to acquit Karen Read, 44, of murder charges Read's boyfriend, John O'Keefe, 46, was found dead 6am on January 29, 2022, outside a house where Read dropped him off for an afterparty about 12.45am Attorney Alan Jackson added that Judge Beverly J. Cannone had a legal duty to inform the defense that the jury had reached a unanimous verdict on two of the three charges when she pronounced a mistrial. According to court documents, Jackson contended that this would have enabled them to argue that a mistrial should not have been reached. Jackson further insisted that the judge should have entered an acquittal on both the murder charge and the charge of leaving the accident. The reason why the jury was unanimous on the charge of leaving the scene of an accident and split on the charge of manslaughter lies in the question of Read's intent. In order to be guilty of leaving the scene of an accident where death or injury is present, the driver must be aware that someone was maimed or killed. Read and her attorney, Alan Jackson, laugh after recess at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham on May 2. Jackson has argued in court documents that the jury's vote to acquit should protect Read from double jeopardy murder charges Jackson and his client were seen getting cozy in public while the jury deliberated The jury agreed that Read, who was accused of leaving her boyfriend for dead in the snow outside a friend's house, was ignorant of O'Keefe's plight. The charge of manslaughter, however, does not hinge on intent, and all prosecutors are required to prove is reckless conduct. If Jackson succeeds in his bid to push the double jeopardy issue, Read could still be retried on the charge of vehicular manslaughter. Last Monday's mistrial ending marked an end of the bitter legal drama, over the course of which Read and her defense tried to paint her as the hapless victim of a far-reaching plot to frame her. Prosecutors countered that Read ran over O'Keefe to end their toxic relationship before leaving him for dead in the snow. On the evening of O'Keefe's death, he and Read had been drinking with a group of friends at the Waterfall Bar and Grill in Canton, around 14 miles south of Boston, and were invited to his friend Brian Albert's home for an afterparty. Read, who prosecutors say drank several alcoholic drinks beforehand, decided to drop her boyfriend at the afterparty before she went to his home to sleep at around 1am. O'Keefe shared the home with his orphaned niece and nephew. Prosecutors had claimed Read and O'Keefe's relationship was on the rocks when he died 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 telling him: '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. According to Read's version of events, she woke up at 4am to find that O'Keefe never returned home, leading her to frantically drive out to try and find him. After finding O'Keefe's body outside Albert's home, which party attendees claimed he never entered, first responders on the scene alleged that Read repeatedly told them she hit him while in a panicked state. O'Keefe was found in the snow outside this home in Canton, around 12 miles from Boston, in the early hours of January 29, 2022 Read (right, with her defense attorney following Monday's decision) claimed she was the victim of a wide-ranging conspiracy to frame her for murder Vehicle data also found that Read reversed her SUV for 62 feet at 24mph near to Albert's home. O'Keefe's cause of death was listed as blunt force trauma and hypothermia, with pieces of Read's taillight found around his body, prosecutors said. In his closing argument on Tuesday, Norfolk County Assistant District Attorney Adam Lally said the claims that Read was framed was little more than 'rampant speculation.' Lally also pointed to hair and DNA from O'Keefe found on the rear end of Read's SUV. The defense countered that the taillight was actually broken by Read when she left in a panic to find O'Keefe when he never returned home. This included security video shown at trial showing Read clipping O'Keefe's vehicle as she backed out of her home to search for him. Read claimed that attendees at the afterparty beat him to death, and her attorneys presented phone data that showed O'Keefe's phone climbed dozens of steps at the time he was allegedly struck. Jackson said that these steps could have been the basement of Albert's home. Albert was never charged with any wrongdoing. Read's attorneys added that although first responders claimed she spoke of hitting O'Keefe at the scene, they alleged this evidence was falsely given at a later date and not said at the time. A forensic engineer was brought in to evaluate the case, who testified that if O'Keefe had been struck by a vehicle at over 20mph he would expect to see more severe injuries. Last week, another twist in the trial emerged after Michael Proctor, the lead investigator in Read's case, was relieved of duties after 'serious misconduct.' Last month, Proctor testified in the trial that he had sent his friends and coworkers various text messages about Read, a financial analyst and college professor. Proctor called Read a 'whack job' and a 'c***' and referred to her as a 'babe' with 'no a**,' while also making light of her 'Fall River accent. In other messages, he joked about rummaging through her phone for nude photos during the investigation. Read's defense attorneys claim these texts support their theory that she was framed by police in a vast conspiracy to blame her for the killing. Proctor claimed that 'these juvenile, unprofessional comments had zero impact on the facts, the evidence and the integrity of the investigation.' Sources have since told NBC Boston that Proctor is also part of a federal probe into the handling of the case. When her trail began, Read received a slew of support from true crime fans who camped outside the courthouse with signs reading 'Free Karen Read.' A judge issued an order barring Read's supporters from coming within 200 feet of the courthouse or wearing supportive colors due to her rampant support As her trial began, Read received a slew of support from true crime fans and locals who camped outside the courthouse with signs reading 'Free Karen Read' Many took to wearing pink as a show of support for Read, leading a judge to issue an order barring any clothing or accessories that could be perceived as encouraging, and banning them from coming within 200 feet of the courthouse. As the trial made national headlines, some observers were turned off by Read's apparent flippant attitude during the proceedings, leading her to be nicknamed 'America's happiest murder defendant.' The moniker was coined by one of Read's legion of X.com detractors. The nickname has since stuck. She was seen winking to cameras and snacking inside the courthouse, which angered some critics. The Ministry of Defence has accepted responsibility for the hearing loss suffered by former armed forces personnel in a 'groundbreaking' agreement at the High Court. At a hearing on Monday, lawyers for the MoD accepted that it had a 'duty of care' towards personnel amid legal claims brought by former members of the armed forces who suffered from hearing loss, having disputed this in earlier legal action. The agreement applies only to those who have served in regular or reserve armed forces since 1987 but does not apply to civilian military staff or cadets. While the MoD accepts that noise exposure during service caused hearing loss among former personnel, it may dispute the extent to which this happened in individual cases. That issue, and others in contention in relation to the claims, are due to be decided at a trial involving several 'test cases', which is expected to be held between October and December 2025. The Ministry of Defence has accepted responsibility for the hearing loss suffered by former armed forces personnel (pictured: MoD headquarters in London) The outcome of the trial will likely then affect how much compensation thousands of others could receive. Approving the agreement, Mr Justice Garnham, sitting with Judge Richard Davison, said: 'We are happy to agree that order. 'I would add our congratulations to the parties for the consensus that seems to lie behind it.' As part of the agreement, the MoD will also no longer fight claims brought by those represented by one legal firm, Hugh James, on the basis that they are being brought to court too late, or the level of noise they were exposed to. This means that those represented by Hugh James will only need to prove they suffered hearing loss during service, with the amount of compensation received to be determined through a 'matrix', based on when someone left the military. Claimants may still be able to launch an individual legal challenge if they disagree with what is offered. Hugh James currently represents around 5,000 ex-servicemen and women, with thousands of others represented by other law firms. Under the agreement, the MoD reserves the right not to offer compensation in the same terms as those determined by the 'matrix' to those who are not represented by Hugh James. Simon Ellis, partner and head of the specialist military department at Hugh James, said: 'This is a groundbreaking development for servicemen and women seeking justice for their hearing loss. The hearing took place at the High Courts of Justice (pictured) in London on Monday 'Many military personnel suffered hearing loss that was entirely preventable, had they been provided with the correct equipment and training. 'As a result, individuals have had their careers prematurely ended, other employment opportunities denied to them, and their personal lives irrevocably changed. 'People who put their lives on the line in the service of our country should expect that they are not put in additional unnecessary danger by their employer. 'The Ministry of Defence has both accepted the duty of care that they owe military personnel to protect their hearing and agreed that all individuals discharged after 1987 can secure the compensation they are entitled to for any hearing loss resulting from their military service.' The agreement comes after a High Court ruling in March last year, where former Royal Marine James Barry was awarded more than 700,000 in compensation after having to leave the service because of hearing loss. Mr Barry, 35, joined the Royal Marines in 2013 and began to suffer hearing loss during live-fire training exercises. He was medically discharged in 2017 because of his hearing loss, which he described as 'life-shattering' and leaving him feeling 'very bitter' towards the MoD. In a ruling, Mr Justice Johnson said that while hearing protection was available for Mr Barry, it was 'inadequate and incompatible with other equipment'. Former Royal Marine James Barry, 35, pictured outside London's High Court last year after he was awarded more than 700,000 in compensation after having to leave the service because of hearing loss He said problems 'were well known' but 'lamentably, it appears that nothing was done by the MoD to address the obvious and serious problem'. He said: 'At the time, it didn't dawn on me how significant (being medically discharged) was. I have a lot more issues now with anxiety, stress, I feel like a lost boy. It's really, really difficult.' He continued: 'People think I have won the lottery. The reality of it is I have had to drag my partner and my two young children through probably the most depressed, anxious six years I have ever had in my life. 'I am probably in a worse mental state than I ever had been. It is hard for me to think that I used to be this person who was considered mentally resilient, and the things that I achieved in (the Royal Marines). I am a shadow of that bloke now.' Mr Barry said the agreement was 'absolutely brilliant' and he hoped that it 'changes the attitude of people', and encouraged those with a 'legitimate claim' to come forward. A former Royal Marine has said the Ministry of Defence (MoD) accepting responsibility for hearing loss suffered during service gave him a 'glimmer of hope' in his legal fight for compensation. Robert 'Barney' Barnett was medically discharged from the armed forces in 2014 after an 18-year career, which saw him serve on three tours of Afghanistan and two of Iraq. The 44-year-old is now one of thousands hoping to receive compensation for noise-induced hearing loss suffered during military service after the MoD accepted that it had a duty of care towards personnel. Robert 'Barney' Barnett, 44, was medically discharged from the armed forces in 2014 after an 18-year career, which saw him serve on three tours of Afghanistan and two of Iraq The agreement, approved by the High Court on Monday and which is the first of its kind, could allow thousands of former servicemen and women to claim damages. Mr Barnett launched legal action against the MoD in 2016, having never been able to afford the hearing aids he needed after suffering around a 20% loss of hearing in each ear. He said the legal process was 'slow' and 'frustrating', having rejected low settlement offers in the past, with those affected by hearing loss 'treading water'. He said: 'It gives me a glimmer of hope. Not just me, I hope nobody has to go through what I have. It's speeding up the process. 'The people who don't have a good support network, this injection of cash, whatever that will be, whatever level, for some people that will mean the world, to not have to go through this lengthy legal battle.' He continued: 'The reason I am doing this is to spread the message far and wide. We found in the veteran community and the services, sometimes things are kept need-to-know, so the hope of doing this is that the message is spread far and wide, and there is hope. 'If you don't ask, you don't get, so it is worth at least ringing, texting, or sending an email just to make an initial inquiry.' Mr Barnett, from Christchurch in Dorset, joined the Marines aged 16, following in the footsteps of his father, who served in the Royal Navy for 40 years. He was exposed to various weapons and mortar fire and first noticed hearing problems in 2008. Mr Barnett said that service-issue hearing defenders 'wouldn't fit under your helmet, let alone with the earpiece for your radio'. He said: 'All we cared about were the people left and right of us. In the heat of battle, you don't really think about your hearing defenders.' Mr Barnett is one of thousands hoping to receive compensation for noise-induced hearing loss suffered during military service after the MoD accepted that it had a duty of care towards personnel He continues to suffer from tinnitus in his job in security, having been denied the opportunity to pursue a planned career in the police after leaving the military. He said: 'Every single day it affects me. It wakes me up, it is a constant buzzing in my ear. I don't like to be in places like nightclubs, even offices, on the trains. 'The moment let's say three of four people came into the room, or are speaking, let's say for instance they had alcohol, then the noise level rises and I find it extremely difficult.' Mr Barnett said that those who were medically discharged were given three months to 'get your life in order', and that he knew 'some' people who had taken their own lives after being medically discharged due to hearing problems. The father-of-one said the process was 'absolutely heartbreaking' and the adjustment to civilian life was 'brutal'. He said: 'It was extremely difficult because the jobs I could have gone into were limited. 'My first choice would have been RMR (Royal Marines Reserves) as a backup, I would have applied for the police, and having been limited in where you can go, it does start to affect you after a while, because not only have you lost your identity from the service, you are also limited as to where you can go.' He continued: 'It is hard. It is a hard transition, and it is extremely turbulent post being medically discharged as opposed to discharged. 'When you leave, it's your choice, and you have around 12 to 24 months to plan your exit and attend courses, but when you only have three months to get your life in order ... it's a very lonely place sometimes.' On Monday, lawyers for the MoD accepted that the organisation had a duty of care towards personnel who were suing the body, having previously disputed this in earlier legal claims. There are thousands of active cases, with the agreement applying to those who have been in regular or reserve armed forces since 1987 and does not apply to civilian military staff or cadets. While the MoD accepts that noise exposure during service caused hearing loss among former personnel, it may dispute the extent to which this happened in individual cases. This issue, and others in contention in relation to the hearing-loss claims, are due to be decided at a trial involving several 'test cases', which is expected to be held between October and December 2025. The outcome of the trial will likely then affect how much compensation thousands of others could receive. When asked about his feelings towards the MoD, Mr Barnett said: 'I don't have anger against them, but there is more, dare I say it, frustration. 'But again, by going through this process, we make it easier for those behind us, and that is what it is all about.' The first migrants to cross the Channel since Labour's election victory have arrived in the UK as Home Secretary Yvette Cooper vows to crack down on people smuggling gangs. Pictures showed groups of people arriving from France wearing life jackets, and some wrapped in blankets, being escorted off a Border Force boat in Dover, Kent, with children among those seen being carried ashore. Crossings resumed on Monday, after a six-day hiatus amid poor weather conditions at sea, on the same day Ms Cooper launched a Border Security Command designed to crack down on the gangs orchestrating the crossings. The new Home Secretary branded the Rwanda migrant deportation scheme a 'complete con' today as she hinted Labour would try to recoup some of the 290million spent before it was axed. Ms Cooper said she planned to audit the programme to send Channel boat arrivals to east Africa, which was axed by Sir Keir Starmer in one of his first decisions after entering No10. But almost a third of a billion pounds has already been given to the Kagame government, despite the only migrants to leave Britain being four volunteers. Pictures showed groups of people arriving from France wearing life jackets, and some wrapped in blankets, being escorted off a Border Force boat in Dover, Kent The first migrants to cross the Channel since Labour's election victory have arrived after crossings resumed on Monday for the first time in six days amid poor weather conditions at sea The new Home Secretary said she planned to audit the programme to send Channel boat arrivals to east Africa, which was axed by Sir Keir Starmer in one of his first decisions after entering No10. Questions will be raised over how much can be recouped. But Ms Cooper told LBC radio: 'We are auditing the whole scheme It has clearly been a complete con.' So far this year 13,574 migrants have arrived in the UK after crossing the Channel, according to the latest available Home Office figures. This is already a record for the first six months of a calendar year. No crossings have been recorded since July 1. The Home Office will confirm how many people made the journey on Monday, the first under the new Labour administration, in data published on Tuesday. Ms Cooper said setting up the Border Security Command unit was Labour's first priority on migration as she faced questions on the future of the Bibby Stockholm barge, which is being used to house asylum seekers in Portland, Dorset. She did not confirm whether the Government would abandon use of the barge but told reporters: 'We need to clear the Conservatives' asylum backlog, but the first priority has to be to get the stronger border security in place, and that is why our first step is setting up the new border security command.' Recruitment of a border security commander, who will report directly to the Home Secretary, has begun with the new recruit expected to take up their post in the coming weeks, the Home Office said. The commander will be a 'leader used to working in complex and challenging environments, for example at senior levels of policing, intelligence or the military' and will bring together the work of the National Crime Agency (NCA), intelligence agencies, police, immigration enforcement and Border Force, the department said. It came as more boats crossed from France to be picked up by Border Force today. The Home Office will confirm how many people made the journey on Monday, the first under the new Labour administration, in data published on Tuesday (pictured: A group of people thought to be migrants are brought in to Dover, Kent on Monday, July 8) New laws will be brought in to introduce counter terror-style powers and measures to fight organised immigration crime, officials added. Ms Cooper has also ordered an investigation into the latest routes, methods and tactics used by people smuggling gangs across Europe to inform a 'major law enforcement drive' over the coming months. Over the weekend Sir Keir Starmer said the stalled multi-million pound plan to send migrants to Rwanda is 'dead and buried' as he confirmed the deportation policy is to be scrapped. The Prime Minister said he was 'not prepared to continue with gimmicks' as Labour announced plans to free the last two migrants who were detained ahead of anticipated flights. Asked if she has had any contact with Rwanda about winding the plan down and getting any money back, Ms Cooper said: 'Well, the Prime Minister has obviously set out the position on the Rwanda scheme where as we know, the Conservatives ran this scheme for two and a half years, and sent simply four volunteers as well as hundreds of millions of pounds.' She said her 'key priority' as incoming Home Secretary is to 'strengthen Britain's border security, where I think we have been let down for too long'. Last night it was announced that counter-terrorism-style laws to combat the Channel crisis are being drawn up. The Home Office promised 'early legislation', suggesting a new Bill will be contained in the King's Speech later this month. However, the Government has still not disclosed what the counter-terrorism powers will involve, or fully explained how they will help fill the vacuum left by the scrapped Rwanda asylum scheme. Questions will be raised over how much can be recouped. But Ms Cooper told LBC radio: 'We are auditing the whole scheme It has clearly been a complete con.' It is not yet known whether MI5, MI6 and GCHQ will be directly involved in small-boat investigations. The announcement came as Sir Tony Blair warned the new Labour government it must draw up a 'plan to control immigration' to see off the 'challenge' of Nigel Farage's Reform UK. Ms Cooper today launched the hunt for an 'exceptional leader' to head up her new Border Security Command. The Prime minister's spokesman admitted the summer will be 'challenging' for the Government as small boat crossings continue, with the Rwanda scheme 'dead and buried'. Asked if those arriving by small boats would now have the right to claim asylum, the Prime Minister's spokesman said: 'We need to ensure that people who arrive here are processed so that people are not sitting in the system, housed in expensive taxpayer-funded hotels as they have been under previous administrations.' Missing raver Jay Slater's father has called for Interpol to get involved in the search for his son who has now been missing for three weeks on the Spanish island of Tenerife. Desperate Warren Slater, 54, spoke out after spending more than six hours searching a mountainside with Jay's brother Zak, 24, in searing 25C temperatures as they continued their desperate hunt for him. The 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer has not been seen since he went to a remote AirBnB at Masca, an hour from the party resort of Playa de las Americas on June 17, in the Parque Rural de Teno with two men. Police and mountain rescue teams using dogs, drones and a helicopter spent 13 days looking for him before calling the search off on June 30 and have dismissed the men as 'irrelevant'. Warren said: 'We need to, as a full family, do a proper press conference and ask the British authorities to help. He's a British citizen. Get Interpol involved. 'It's just us. I haven't got a team. We need a team to come over here and find out for us what the police are doing and what we need to do. Missing raver Jay Slater's father has called for Interpol to get involved in the search for his son who has now been missing for three weeks on the Spanish island of Tenerife Jay, 19, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire, travelled to the Canary Islands for a musical festival with his friend Lucy and another friend Missing raver Jay Slater's father (left) has called for Interpol to get involved in the search for his son who has now been missing for three weeks on the Spanish island of Tenerife The 19-year-old apprentice bricklayer has not been seen since he was taken to a remote AirBnB at Masca, an hour from the party resort of Playa de las Americas on June 17 Pictured: Jay Slater with his mother Debbie, 55 'Our hands are tied over here, we need experts. How long can you stay here for? 'It'll take an army 10 years to cover all this. I'd employ a team of Gurkhas.' Last week MailOnline identified one of the men who drove Jay back to the Airbnb as convicted drug dealer Ayub Qassim, 31, but he has insisted the youngster 'arrived alive and left alive'. Warren and Zak have been focusing their search on an area of the valley where Jay's phone last pinged and from where he sent his location to friend Lucy Mae Law, 19. She said the last time she heard from him was at 8.50am on June 17 and he said 'his phone was down to one per cent, he was lost and thirsty' before the line went. Warren said: 'I've been through 80% of that valley, so we went further along. 'We've driven and we've walked down the path at the next village, up the mountain there's a viewpoint that looks down, you can either follow the road, but we didn't, we parked up and walked down.' Police say Jay walked up the hill from the village of Masca in the wrong direction, at 8.15am, after being told there was no bus back to his Paloma Beach hotel in Los Cristianos until 10am. Warren, pictured during the search, said: 'It's the fourth time I've done this. It was hard, I nearly put my eye out. Tell me where I look, I can only go off the last sighting' Pictured are Warren, Zak and other searchers on Saturday in the valley in Masca Jay, from Oswaldtwistle in Lancashire, travelled to the Canary Islands for a musical festival with his friend Lucy and another friend Police and mountain rescue teams using dogs, drones and a helicopter spent 13 days looking for him before calling the search off on June 30 and have dismissed the men as 'irrelevant' Missing Jay posted a final picture at 7.30am on Snapchat from the house of 'two English lads' an hour before phoning his friend Lucy They believe he then left the road and took a remote path down into the desolate valley in the mistaken belief it was a short cut back. But sceptical Warren said: 'It doesn't make sense, he's either hid himself, but why would he hide himself? Or he's just .? 'We've done the valley where his ping was, we've gone up the road to a vantage point, there's cliffs there and there's a valley and a village there. 'All I'm thinking is common sense, would you try and walk through there. Where we've been today you can see there's a hiker's path with proper stones. 'We've gone straight down, and you end up in the village.' Warren described how they had also searched a derelict stone cottage halfway down the track where there were water bottles, empty tea bag boxes and women's clothes. He said: 'I'd go into the first building you see. Ideal spot for shelter is that little cave isn't it, get a bit of shade, you're hung over, get your head down in there. 'The police are convinced that's where his last ping were. From the Airbnb, he's a fit lad, 25 minutes you can get to the top, to where the cafe is. Jay's father Warren and brother Zak pictured on Wednesday hiking through the mountain track where Jay's phone was last located A map showing Jay Slater's last known movements before he disappeared The 40-a-night Casa Abuela Tina holiday rental near the remote village of Masca where Jay spent his final hours before going missing 'If he's followed the road and been where we've been today, it's took him an hour and a half. 'Dozens of cars would have gone past him. We got here at 9am and the 10am bus passed us. And it would have passed him. 'I've been up here three weeks and I've never seen as many cars. 'We've been on two wild goose chases yesterday to abandoned buildings.' Spanish police have said the investigation remains 'open' and they are 'pursuing all avenues' but refuse to disclose if they believe there as any third-party criminal involvement. 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The Prime Minister held the first meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) since last Thursday's vote in Church House - a stone's throw away from the Houses of Parliament. It was suggested Sir Keir had chosen the venue as committee rooms in the House of Commons - where PLP meetings are traditionally held - were not big enough. But, despite the celebratory mood among Labour MPs, the PM is understood to issued a warning that voters had only placed their trust in the party 'for now'. 'They're not converts,' Sir Keir was said to have told his MPs of the 9.7 million Britons who supported Labour last week. Sir Keir Starmer gathered all 411 Labour MPs in Westminster tonight as he displayed the full size of his general election win Sir Keir posed for a 'selfie' with Brent East MP Dawn Butler as he held the first meeting of the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) since last Thursday's vote in Church House Despite the celebratory mood among Labour MPs, the PM is understood to issued a warning that voters had only placed their trust in the party 'for now' It is understood the PM told the PLP meeting in his remarks: 'Election victories do not fall from the sky. 'They are hard won and hard fought for and this one could only have been won by a changed Labour party. 'We campaigned as a changed Labour party and we must govern as a changed Labour Party. People have placed their trust in us for now, but they're not converts. 'We have to return politics to public service, to show to the British people that politics can be a force for good. 'We have a mandate for change, a mandate for renewal.' As she left the PLP meeting, Bradford West MP Naz Shah said the central message of Sir Keir's speech to his MPs had been 'the grown-ups are back in charge'. She said: 'It's not a playground, this is running the country and hitting the ground running.' Sir Keir attended the PLP meeting having earlier completed his triumphal tour of the UK in the wake of Labour's landslide election win. After meeting with Scottish First Minister John Swinney in Edinburgh last night, the PM met with devolved leaders in Belfast and Cardiff today. Speaking to reporters in the Welsh capital, the PM admitted he was 'concerned' about those areas where Labour was not able to secure votes last week. Thursday's election saw a strong performance by a number of independent candidates who stood on a pro-Gaza platform in the wake of the Middle East conflict. Sir Keir was asked if he accepted there is a problem between Labour and British Muslims, following a drop in vote share in areas with a high Muslim population. He replied: 'Very many people voted Labour in that general election who've never voted Labour before. 'We now hold seats in parts of the country that have never had a Labour MP, so this is an incredibly strong mandate. 'Of course, wherever we weren't able to secure votes, I'm concerned about that.' He added that where his party did not secure the votes it would work to 'address that'. A 42-year-old woman has been charged in a murder-for-hire plot after she allegedly offered a man sexual favors and $10,000 to kill her lover's wife and adult daughter. Yue Zhou, of Flushing, Queens, was accused of offering cryptocurrency and cash to successfully execute her plan for the double murder - while completely unaware that the website she was using on the dark web was fictitious. Chinese national Zhou, who worked as a masseuse for spas across multiple states, also had a dating profile on Match.com, sources told DailyMail.com. She was arrested on June 5 in Virginia and transported to New York on July 3. On Monday, she was arraigned in Brooklyn federal court by Judge Robert M. Levy and pleaded not guilty. She is being held in jail and didn't make a bail application. The two victims, who she tried to get killed with the phony hitman, were unharmed. Yue Zhou,42, of Flushing, was accused of offering cryptocurrency, cash, and even sexual favors to successfully execute her plan for the double murder - while completely unaware that the website she was using on the dark web was fictitious The U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York noted that 'newer technologies' including Bitcoin were used to carry out her scheme the 'end result would have been age-old cold-blooded murder.' 'Her depraved plan was only thwarted because the website she used to set up the murder-for-hire was a scam,' he said. Zhou allegedly used an alias 'BIGTREE,' and sought to hire a hitman between the dates of March 25, 2019 and April 4, 2019. At the time, Zhou was having an affair with her married lover, and had become emotionally invested in the relationship, expressing a desire to get married and have children with him, documents claimed. Unaware that the hitman website she was using was bogus and run by a third party, she allegedly completed the financial transactions necessary to further her murder-for-hire plot. During the probe, special agents with Homeland Security Investigations confirmed that a cryptocurrency transaction occurred related to the 'BIGTREE' order. To pay for the murder, she contacted a Bitcoin exchange service that served as an intermediary, based in Ukraine. She made a $5,000 payment in Bitcoin to the website. She then provided approximately another $5,000 in cash to a middleman in Brooklyn. After both transactions were made she emailed the hitman-for-hire website administrator to confirm the payments were received. After making the payment, she proceeded to give a detailed description of her lover's wife, victim number one. She gave the fake hitman the woman's home address, work schedule, and the best time of day for the kill - so her lover would have an alibi for the murder. She continued to secure the murder of her boyfriend's daughter, victim number two. When she grew suspicious that the hitman website was a scam, she started to send several disturbing threats to the hitman website administrator, threatening physical and sexual violence against the administrator and his family. In December 2019, Zhou contacted her lover's daughter, who was from an earlier marriage, and sent her threatening messages, according to the documents. She was arraigned on Monday at the Brooklyn federal courthouse She allegedly said: 'Warning: I will cut your body into hundred pieces if you guys still don't take responsibilities. I know where you live. I watch you all time.' In February 2021, Zhou sent a text to a neighbor of her lover's daughter with a proposition of $10,000 and sex to kill the daughter and get rid of her body in a lake. She said, according to court documents, '[t]hrow her body into the lake. I really dont want to see her again.' Around January 2, 2021, cellular data revealed that Zhou contacted the neighbor for victim two, from Cheyenne, Wyoming. Zhou previously worked for short periods of time at multiple spas around the country that are connected to illicit sex work, including a spa in Cheyenne, Wyoming that went under the name Asian Relax Sap on West Lincolnway. The spa owner and an employee were arrested in April 2021 for prostitution following an extensive investigation that determined that workers at the spa were offering and performing sexual acts in exchange for money, local reports show. Zhou worked at the Cheyenne spa in 2020 and 2021. On June 5, she was arrested at a spa in Virginia pursuant to the arrest warrant issued with her indictment, according to the U.S. Attorney's office. Before her arrest, Zhou had also worked at a spa in Maryland that was also connected to illicit sex work, according to local law enforcement. Zhou, who faces a lengthy sentence if convicted, is a citizen of China, and does not have permanent legal US status, and therefore, considered a serious flight risk. The evidence against Zhou included messages to the hitman-for-hire website, text message correspondence, cell site data, IP address information, witness testimony with an identification of the defendant, a cryptocurrency tracing analysis and transaction detail. 'Although the defendant has no prior documented criminal history in the United States, her involvement in a depraved plot to kill Victim-1 speaks volumes as to her characteristics, as does her later targeting of Victim-2, the adult daughter of Victim-1s Spouse,' the U.S. Attorney's office said. Her next court date is scheduled for July 31. A popular radio DJ was kidnapped and tortured to death just yards from the Spurs stadium before his naked body was dumped in the woods, a court has heard. Koray Alpergin, 43, was allegedly snatched from outside his north London home with his girlfriend Gozde Dalbudak, 34, and 'frog-marched' into a white van after they had dinner in Mayfair. He was the owner of Turkish radio station Bizim FM and had connections with celebrities such as rapper P Diddy and internet sensation 'Salt Bae'. The DJ suffered 'horrific injuries' before he was killed while Ms Gozde was locked in a toilet for two days, jurors at the Old Bailey were told. His naked body was then dumped in woodland in Loughton, Essex, before it was found by a dog walker, the court heard. He suffered 94 injuries, including 14 broken ribs and severe head injuries, ligature injuries to his neck and injuries to his private parts. Koray Alpergin was kidnapped and tortured to death after going to an Italian restaurant in Mayfair in October 2022 Isay Stoyanov, 43, and Dylan Weatherley, 20, deny murdering Mr Alpergin, two counts of kidnap and two counts of false imprisonment. Jurors were told Kyle Mitchell-Peart, 31, has admitted two counts of kidnapping and two counts of false imprisonment. Crispin Aylett, KC, prosecuting, said: 'On the evening of Thursday October 13, 2022, getting on to two years ago, the victims in the case, Mehmet Koray Alpergin and his girlfriend, Gozde Dalbudak went to an expensive restaurant in Mayfair in central London 'At the time of his death Mr Alpergin was the owner of a Turkish language radio station Bizim FM, based in London. 'He was a well-known and popular figure within the Turkish community in London. 'As Koray Alpergin got out of his Audi car, a man ran towards him, that man was followed by three others, although Mr Alpergin tried to run away, they quickly caught him. 'He was frogmarched past his own car and bundled into a white van parked nearby. 'Ms Dalbudak had remained in the car, she was later to tell the police that she heard the sound of a scuffle. 'A masked man appeared at the window of the car, he had a knife, he told Ms Dalbudak to be quiet. She got out of the car and he led her over to the van. 'The van was driven away with Mr Alpergin and Ms Dalbudak in the back. 'The prosecution suggest that no less than eight men had driven in two vehicles, a white van and a Volkswagen Polo. 'The occupants of those two vehicles had waited for Mr Alpergin's Audi to arrive. 'Four men were convicted of the kidnap of Koray Alpergin and Gozde Dalbudak. 'Two other men have fled the country, they are believed to be in Turkey. 'The seventh man was Kyrie Mitchell-Peart. 'This convoy of eight men and two vehicles cannot have been put together on the off chance.' Jurors heard that a tracking device had been placed on the car allowing the group to follow it. Having waited and kidnapped both Mr Alpergin and Ms Dalbudak, the two vehicles drove back to the Tottenham area, arriving at around 11.20pm. The van went down an alleyway, which was connected to the back of a restaurant named Stadium Lounge. 'It was here, in the Stadium Lounge, that Koray Alpergin was murdered,' Mr Aylett continued. His girlfriend Gozde Balbudak was also kidnapped and locked in a toilet for two days before she was released 'As for Godze Dalbudak, she spent almost two days shut up inside a lavatory at the Stadium Lounge. 'The door to the lavatory was blocked by a large refrigerator. 'It was not until late on the Saturday afternoon, Ms Dalbudak was released. 'In the early hours of Saturday, the Renault Megane was driven to Loughton in Essex. 'There, the naked body of Koray Alpergin was dumped in some woods. A few hours later, the body was found by a man walking his dog.' The court heard how Mr Alpergin had been expecting trouble for some time. On September 24, 2022, he and a friend were driving back to his address in separate cars. Mr Alpergin told his friend that his car was making 'odd noises' to which his friend asked: 'are you sure your car was not bugged?' Mr Alpergin did not laugh at the comment and it turned out that the tracking device was fitted to his car just the day before, the court heard. As his friend was leaving later that evening, he asked them to let him know if there was a white van parked outside. 'Koray Alpergin must have had some idea of what was in store for him,' said Mr Aylett. Weatherley, from Tottenham, and Stoyanov from Haringey, both deny murder, two counts of kidnap and two of false imprisonment of the couple. Mitchell-Peart, from Whetstone, north London, has admitted two counts of kidnapping and two counts of false imprisonment. The trial continues. Amid the implosion of Joe Biden's reelection campaign and worries over his public mental decline, it's now revealed that a Parkinson's disease expert has been making frequent visits to the White House. Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist who specializes in movement disorders at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, stopped in at the president's residence eight times in eight months, according to public visitor logs. On January 17 this year, the logs indicate, Dr. Cannard met with Biden's White House physician Dr. Kevin O'Connor, cardiologist Dr. John E. Atwood and another unidentified individual at 5 p.m. O'Connor says he has not ordered a cognitive test for the 81-year-old president despite rising calls for the mental assessment after Biden's car crash debate last month with Donald Trump and the bungled damage control that ensued. Biden's team and allies are scrambling to convince voters and Democrat lawmakers and Party members that he is still fit for another term behind the Resolute Desk with flailing poll numbers and a rising resistance within the left. Dr. Kevin Cannard is a movement disorder specialist at the Walter Reed Medical Center in Maryland. It was revealed through White House visitor logs that he visited President Joe Biden's White House eight times over the course of eight months Cannard's most recent appointment at the White House in late March 2024, but his first visit was in November 2022. The majority of Cannard's stop-ins spanned from summer 2023 to spring 2024. The doctor recently published a paper on Parkinson's disease, a central nervous system disorder that affects movement control and is most often classified by body tremors. Biden has sought to quash rumors he is unfit to lead and still asserts he will run in the November election, but has refused to state whether he is undergoing regular, official cognitive tests. 'Look, I have a cognitive test every single day,' Biden said when asked by ABC's George Stephanopoulos on Friday, as he referred to the tasks he faces daily in a rigorous job. 'Every day, I have that test. Everything I do. You know, not only am I campaigning, but I'm running the world.' Records show the president was in the White House on the day of the medics' January meeting, as it took place on the same day he hosted House and Senate leaders to convince them to back extra funding for Ukraine. President Joe Biden, 81, and his team have attempted to squash concerns within the party claiming he is not fit to serve another term following his car crash debate performance against Donald Trump Cannard has been in his position at the Walter Reed center for almost 20 years. He has served as 'neurology specialist supporting the White House Medical Unit,' since 2012, according to his LinkedIn. The White House has declined to confirm if the doctors met with Biden, but O'Connor's primary duty is to attend to the president and the first family. The doctor issued Biden a clean bill of health during an annual exam in February, which ruled out Parkinson's, O'Connor said at the time. He became the president's physician in 2021 and has contact with him every day. Following the debate, the White House said Biden had done a verbal 'check-in' with his doctor. But questions over his competency remain, especially after his first sit-down interview since the disastrous June 27 debate did little to assuage fears. Several Democrats had called for Biden to quit the race following the debate and they reiterated this wish after yesterday's ABC interview. Joe Biden's White House physician Dr. Kevin O'Connor (pictured) met with Dr. Cannard in January, visitor logs show The White House refused to say if the doctors met with Biden during the appointment, but the president was in D.C. at the time Former White House physician and current Rep. Ronny Jackson accused the president and his wife of attempting to gloss over his state of mind. 'I believe he and Jill Biden have led the cover up,' Jackson said. 'Kevin O'Connor is like a son to Jill Biden she loves him. It's crazy. 'Kevin O'Connor was in that job on day one of the Biden administration because they knew they could trust Kevin to say and do anything that needed to be said or done and cover up whatever needed to be covered up. He is part of the Biden family.' O'Connor and Cannard refused to comment when approached by the New York Post. A White House spokesman also declined to comment on the nature of the meeting. 'A wide variety of specialists from the Walter Reed system visit the White House complex to treat thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds,' he said. This video is no longer available This video is no longer available A former centerfold Playboy Bunny of the Year was left shocked when she found out that the memorabilia from her modeling days was worth thousands of dollars. Candace Jordan, from Chicago, brought her risque Playboy outfit to Antiques Roadshow - and was left stunned when it was valued by their professional. Jordan's setup consisted of her 1976 Playboy of the Year costume, her first-runner-up trophy from the International Bunny of the Year Pageant, and her 1976 Bunny of the Year Pageant program. Back in 2014, all of her merchandise was worth between $8,200 and $11,300, according to appraiser Laura Woolley. Today, her fun-filled Playboy bunny collection is valued at $18,500 to $25,700. Candace Jordan brought her Playboy memorabilia to a Chicago event and described each item on Antiques Roadshow Jordan's setup consisted of her 1976 Playboy of the Year costume, and her first-runner-up trophy from the International Bunny of the Year Pageant A smiling Jordan, who went by Candy during her Playboy Bunny days, brought the original dress, cufflinks, sash, and bunny ears with her. She also brought a picture of her wearing the outfit during a Jerry Lewis telethon. Jordan revealed on Antiques Roadshow that the outfits belong to the Playboy clubs, but she managed to snag the outfit and kept it ever since. 'The costumes were all made to fit the individual girls. So it's not like they can reuse them anytime,' Jordan told the appraiser. The outfit also included the suit's signature bunny tail, which is still intact and in good condition. Woolley was most intrigued by Jordan having every piece of her Bunny suit in her collection, which she said was 'pretty extraordinary.' She added that the suit alone would be estimated anywhere between $2,000 and $3,000 at the time. Appraiser Laura Woolley was most intrigued by Jordan having every piece of her Bunny suit in her collection, which she said was 'pretty extraordinary' Jordan brought a photo of her wearing the outfit during a Jerry Lewis telethon, and has posted photos of herself rocking the outfit on Instagram Jordan's Bunny of the Year trophy was a first for Woolley. 'I've never seen a trophy come up. I think most of the women who won that, it was such a prestigious thing to win...,' she told the former bunny. Although her trophy was estimated to be worth between $2,000 and $3,000 at the time, Woolley couldn't overlook the pageant program. 'This is the Bunny of the Year Pageant program. There was all these celebrities that were in the audience for the international pageant, because it was the first one that was ever televised,' Jordan said. She pointed out a few celebrity signatures that were on her program, including Steve Martin, Ringo Starr, and OJ Simpson. 'I didn't even remember getting these signatures,' she told Woolley. 'But after I pulled it out of storage and looked at it, my husband said, "My God, do you know the names that are on here?" So it was pretty exciting.' Woolley told Jordan that the program would've been at least $200 to $300 'if not more.' Woolley claimed she had never seen an International Playboy Bunny of the Year trophy until that Chicago event The former centerfold first became a Bunny while she was a student at St Louis University. She was asked to pose for Playboy shortly afterward, and after her photos didn't go unnoticed, she packed her bags and moved into the mansion. Jordan had the time of her life being a Playboy Bunny and living in the mansion with Hugh Hefner himself. 'I was a centerfold in 1979, and all the Playmates, the girls, were very diverse; they were all beautiful, and it was like a sorority,' Jordan said. 'There were friends, there was no competition, no jealousies. Living at the mansion with Hef was surreal.' She added that celebrities would 'die to get to the mansion' back then, and the Rolling Stones would occasionally host parties there. 'I guess I really kind of took it for granted. And now, in hindsight, I think, I slap my forehead and think, "Wow, those were really heady days,'" Jordan told Woolley. Jordan, who is still affiliated with Playboy, spoke highly of Hefner and called him the 'perfect gentleman.' The former bunny and her husband occasionally spent time with Hefner at LA parties until the Playboy founder died in 2017. Jordan originally worked at the Playboy Club in St Louis while attending St Louis University. She moved into the Playboy Mansion a short time later Jordan is now a successful media personality and Playboy brand ambassador who is not afraid to reminisce about her time as a bunny. She posted a throwback promotional image of herself on Instagram last month in a Playboy Bunny suit for the Chicago club she worked at. After her Antiques Roadshow appearance, Jordan claimed in an Instagram post that the Chicago History Museum was interested in her Playboy memorabilia. Rachel Reeves 'let everyone know who's boss' and looked like 'an angry teacher in school assembly' in her first major speech as Chancellor, a body language expert has said. Speaking at the Treasury for the first time, Ms Reeves vowed to make a dramatic overhaul of the 'timid' planning system to stop housing developments being blocked. She also spoke about stripping local people of powers to object to onshore windfarms as decisions are to be taken at national level, and said she wanted to unblock the process for other major projects. Analysing the inaugural speech of Britain's first female Chancellor, body language expert Judi James told MailOnline that Ms Reeves delivered a performance of 'charm mixed with the tone of an authoritative and rather angry head teacher'. She added that Ms Reeves 'tough' tonal style was also 'very on-brand' with Sir Keir Starmer's first speech as PM, with her delivery 'designed to give the impression of decisiveness'. Speaking at the Treasury for the first time, Rachel Reeves vowed to make a dramatic overhaul of the 'timid' planning system to stop housing developments being blocked Analysing the historic speech of the first female Chancellor, body language expert Judi James told MailOnline that Ms Reeves delivered a performance of 'charm mixed with the tone of an authoritative and rather angry head teacher' She said: 'Placed under intense scrutiny in her new role as a global financial power-broker, Reeves delivers a body language performance of charm mixed with the tone of an authoritative and rather angry head teacher addressing the school during assembly. 'Her tonal approach is very on-brand with Starmer's first speech as PM. Their leadership style during their speeches looks firm to the point of strict, as though toughness has been a deliberate brand decision.' Ms Reeves set the stage for Labour's big push on planning by admitting that the public finances are so stretched that boosting growth is the 'only route to improving the prosperity of our country'. According to Ms James, the Chancellor's repeated use of the word 'I' in the speech helped her 'grab the helm of the Treasury and let everyone know who is boss'. She said: 'Reeves grabs the helm of the Treasury and lets everyone know who is boss, with the repeated use of the word 'I' starting off some 'critical parent'-style statements like "I made clear", "I'm not willing to accept" and "I will not be playing games..." and "I will not hesitate to act" with the word 'I' delivered in tonal italics. 'Her delivery looks designed to give the impression of decisiveness. Describing "The only route" to financial stability she performs a micro head-cock as though daring anyone to challenge her. 'Her "I have repeatedly warned..." comes with a grim eye expression as her smile drops and she launches into her tough talk, and when she seems to want to set out her strength in the new role there is a micro-snarl of the top lip and later a micro-sneer as her upper cheeks lift as she informs her audience "I will not shrink....' Ms James also compares Ms Reeves performance to former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher as she 'combines this tough act with moments of disarming charm'. She continued: 'Telling the world "Britain is a place to do business" Reeves performs a prim, firm pursing of the lips followed by an exaggerated toss of the head in a look of defiance while her eyelids flutter to suggest a glint of defiant anger. 'Like Thatcher back in the day, though, Reeves combines this tough act with moments of disarming charm. Like Thatcher her smile flashes on regularly, especially at the start, and then when she asks each journalist for their question. 'When she is called 'chancellor' by one journalist her dimpled smile is a beam of what looks like delight to hear herself called by her new title, suggesting some intense celebrations in private, behind closed doors.' Chancellor Rachel Reeves will put her faith in a dramatic overhaul of the planning system to boost economic growth A slew of Cabinet ministers were on hand at the Treasury to watch Ms Reeves' speech today Ms Reeves is embraced by business secretary Jon Reynolds after her speech today Ms Reeves was appointed as Britain's first female Chancellor on Friday, and warned that there was 'not much money around'. However, left-wing MPs and union leaders are already pushing for Sir Keir and Ms Reeves to turn on the spending taps. Unite boss Sharon Graham said there was scope for the Government to borrow tens of billions of pounds to 'invest' in the economy and public services. She urged Ms Reeves to scrap Labour's tight fiscal rules and pour billions into Britain's 'crumbling public services'. 'We are going to have to borrow to invest,' she told the BBC's Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg. 'We have not got time to wait for growth. 'People are literally hurting out there and we are going to have to borrow to invest our crumbling public services need money.' However, Ms Reeves insisted today that she will not 'throw caution to the winds' and ditch fiscal rules to borrow more. Touring broadcast studios ahead of Ms Reeves' appearance this morning, Treasury chief secretary Darren Jones said that stimulating 'strength and growth' in the economy is Labour 's 'first and most important mission'. He tried to play down concerns that local communities will be 'excluded' from decisions on housing projects, saying the idea was just to remove 'inertia'. Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has also called for a 'decisive break with austerity'. Labour's decision to target the planning system immediately is likely to bring it into conflict with both countryside campaigners and those communities that feel they are already at the limit of development their area can take. It could also trigger a backlash from some of its own MPs who represent a swathe of constituencies across southern England where planning reform has been resisted for years. During the election campaign, one Labour official said the party was prepared to 'flatten the whole green belt'. This was denied by Labour. Ben Houchen, Tory mayor of Tees Valley, said promising rapid growth on the back of planning reform could become 'a noose around the Labour Party's neck'. He added: 'How keen are the Labour Government to tinker with environmental regulations which is one of the largest delays in the planning system?' Sir Keir yesterday began a whistle-stop tour of the UK with a visit to Scotland, where he promised an 'immediate reset' of relations with the devolved administrations. Tomorrow he will travel to the Nato summit in Washington where he will seek to reassure leaders that his Government can be trusted on defence despite ditching Rishi Sunak's pledge to raise military spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP by the end of the decade. Alec Baldwin appeared in a New Mexico court on Monday ahead of his manslaughter trial over a fatal shooting on the set of his Western film 'Rust'. Baldwin, 66, is facing a single felony count of involuntary manslaughter and up to 18 months behind bars following the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. In court on Monday, Baldwin sat between his attorneys and thumbed through papers, wearing glasses and close-cropped hair. The trial is set to start tomorrow with jury selection and is scheduled to last ten days. While the actor sat in court, his wife Hilaria was spotted alongside their daughter Carmen picking up lunch in New York City. In court on Monday, Baldwin sat between his attorneys and thumbed through papers, wearing glasses and close-cropped hair Baldwin, 66, is facing a single felony count of involuntary manslaughter and up to 18 months behind bars following the death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins While the actor sat in court, his wife Hilaria was spotted alongside their daughter Carmen picking up lunch in New York City In October 2021, Baldwin was rehearsing a cross-draw maneuver with the revolver when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has pleaded not guilty and claims the gun accidentally fired after he pointed it toward Hutchins and pulled back the hammer, when it fired. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer has ruled that his role as a co-producer isn't relevant to the trial, siding with his defense attorneys. Judge Sommer said told the court: 'I'm having real difficulty with the state's position that they want to show that as a producer he didn't follow guidelines and therefore as an actor Mr. Baldwin did all of these things wrong that resulted in the death of Ms. Hutchins because as a producer he allowed these things to happen. 'I'm denying evidence of his status as a producer.' Special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson argued unsuccessfully to allow evidence that Baldwin's 'role as a producer made him keenly aware of his responsibilities on set' for safety. 'It goes to Mr. Baldwin's knowledge, knowing that his conduct on set was negligent,' she said. Last week, the judge cleared the way for crucial firearms experts for the prosecution to testify about Baldwin's handling of the revolver and whether the gun was functioning properly prior to the fatal shooting. Halyna Hutchins, 42, was a mother-of-one and up-and-coming cinematographer when she was fatally shot on the set of 'Rust' Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer has ruled that his role as a co-producer isn't relevant to the trial, siding with his defense attorneys The infamous gun fired on set that ended up killing cinematographer Hutchins Prosecutors have argued that a state workplace safety investigation, which found serious violations on set, was incomplete, untrustworthy and should be prohibited from the trial. In April of this year, Hannah Guttierez-Reed, the armorer on set, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in Hutchins's death and sentenced to 18 months. The night before the incident, six members of the camera crew quit because of their concerns over safety. The jury heard that Baldwin commissioned director Souza to write the script, which he owned the rights to. Baldwin was the lead actor on the movie and was also a producer. The court heard that Baldwin himself made the set unsafe by waving his gun like a 'pointing stick' at people. The FBI conducted an accidental discharge test on the gun by striking it from several angles with a rawhide mallet, eventually breaking the gun. Baldwin has consistently maintained his innocence, but Guttierez-Reed's attorneys claim the environment he created on set led to Hutchins's death Rust armorer Hannah Guttierez-Reed was sentenced to 18 months in prison for the involuntary manslaughter of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins Prosecutors plan to present evidence at trial that they say shows the firearm 'could not have fired absent a pull of the trigger' and was working properly before the shooting. Baldwin has twice been charged in Hutchins's death. Prosecutors dismissed an earlier charge, then refiled it after receiving a new analysis of the revolver that Baldwin pointed at Hutchins. Since the 2021 shooting, the filming of Rust resumed but moved to Montana under an agreement with Hutchins's husband, Matthew Hutchins, which made him an executive producer. The completed movie has not yet been released for public viewing. A father-of-two stabbed to death in the street in east London has been pictured for the first time. Josh McKay, 33, from Waltham Forest, was knifed in the neck on Saturday. Emergency services were called to the busy high street shortly before 3pm on July 6 following reports of a stabbing. Police officers, the London Ambulance Service and London's Air Ambulance attended the scene, but despite their efforts, Mr McKay passed away at the scene. On Monday, a 29-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of murder and taken into custody. Josh McKay, 33, from Waltham Forest, was stabbed in the neck and killed on Lea Bridge Road on Saturday Emergency services were called to the busy high street shortly before 3pm on July 6 following reports of a stabbing (pictured: Lea Bridge Road in Leyton, east London) It came a day after detectives also arrested a 38-year-old woman on suspicion of assisting an offender. She has since been released on bail. A post-mortem examination found Mr McKay's cause of death to be a single stab wound to the neck. In a statement released by the Met police, Josh's family said: 'The heart of our family has stopped beating. The world is less brighter without his beautiful smile.' Detective Chief Inspector Linda Bradley from the Specialist Crime Command said: 'Our investigation is making progress and we have now made two arrests. 'We are continuing to carry out extensive enquiries, including a review of CCTV footage, and our colleagues from the local policing team remain in the area. 'However, we still need your help. Two children have been left without a father. If you saw anything, or have information regarding the person who killed Josh, please do the right thing and call us or contact Crimestoppers anonymously.' Stella Creasy, MP for Walthamstow, today wrote on X: 'Walthamstow this is the formal plea for help to catch the killers of a young man who did so much for our community brutally murdered on Saturday' In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Stella Creasy, MP for Walthamstow, wrote: 'Walthamstow this is the formal plea for help to catch the killers of a young man who did so much for our community brutally murdered on Saturday. 'His family are bereft and his kids now have to face life without their beloved dad. 'This happened on Lea Bridge Road and know lots of people were around so help us bring the killer to justice- if you can help please come forward.' A man took upskirt photos of women at a Walmart before punching an officer who tried to detain him, cops said. Keevis Jumon Holland, 41, has since been incarcerated as a result - after allegedly filming women underneath their dresses at the store in Irving, Texas, on July 1. The suspect hails from a town that's a suburb of Dallas, some 30 miles away, cops said. His actions were foiled by an off-duty police officer, tipped off by staffers who saw him wearing his fully-marked police uniform. An altercation ensued, during which a cuffed Holland got his hands on the officer's Taser, before running and driving off. Cops in Irving went on to match the perp's license plate to Holland, while identifying him as the suspect due to his driver's license photo. An arrest followed - just a day removed from the initial incident. Officers are now vetting the case. Scroll down for video: Keevis Jumon Holland, 41, has since been incarcerated as a result - after allegedly filming women underneath their dresses at the store in Irving, Texas 'Like, I almost don't believe it,' said Omar Ayala, one of Holland's neighbors, of the recent bust. 'They had normal clothes on, but they had guns and, like, vests on and everything,' he said of the SWAT team. 'And they were yelling from the microphone saying "Come out, come out."' In a somewhat anti-climactic development, though, Holland was not at home at the time, cops said. However, he would turn himself in a few hours later, showing up at the Dallas County Jail that very evening. Ayala went on to state how he was surprised because his neighbor seemed like a nice guy, despite the fact he has several prior offenses. One of them is eerily identical to the recent incident, and saw Holland plead guilty in 2017 to secretly recording women on two separate occasions at another Walmart in West Dallas. He was sentenced to one year in prison, due to him being on parole at the time for aggravated robbery - an offense that saw him slapped with a sentence of 20 years. The incident happened at this Walmart on July 1, and ended with Holland fleeing before turning himself in the next day This time around, he faces charges that include aggravated assault of peace officers, as well as taking a weapon from an officer and assault causing bodily injury. This comes as a result of the altercation that occurred as the off-duty officer from the East Texas town of Ore City tried to detain Holland. The unnamed officer attempted to detain Holland in handcuffs, before being punched several times in the face by the perp's partially cuffed fist. Irving cops said in a statement that 'as the officer placed a handcuff on [Holland's] left wrist, [Holland] turned around and began striking the officer's face and head repeatedly with closed fists.' The officer was hit with the loose handcuff with each punch, cops said - recalling how the restraint opened a cut on his head. 'The officer then fell to the ground before dropping his department issued Taser, which Holland proceeded to pick up and point at the officer. He did not discharge it, however, and ended up fleeing before driving off and getting tracked down/ Before he turned himself in, an Irving SWAT team tracked his house down in Rowlett, but he was not home. One of the officers who took part in that operation is seen here 'Like, I almost don't believe it,' said Omar Ayala, one of Holland's neighbors, of the recent bust. 'They had normal clothes on, but they had guns and, like, vests on and everything,' he said of the SWAT team. And they were yelling from the microphone saying "Come out, come out"' As of writing, Holland is being held on $152,000 bond, despite the absence of an invasive visual recording charge. Such an offense is considered a felony in Texas, and is punishable by a stint in a state jail for no more than two years - or at the very least, 180 days As of writing, Holland is being held on $152,000 bond, despite the absence of an invasive visual recording charge. Such an offense is considered a felony in Texas, and is punishable by a stint in a state jail for no more than two years - or at the very least, 180 days. To be found guilty, prosecutors will have prove in state court Holland intended to invade the women's privacy during his alleged recordings. That said, there are some places in the US where the act is not considered illegal, namely Massachusetts. The act there is protected - as the women are considered to be clothed and not nude nor partially nude. A bill was proposed to amend this back in September, but it has yet to be signed into law. As for the recent incident, more charges could be filed. Irving cops have not detailed the condition of the off-duty officer. A Brazilian mountain climber was found lifeless after falling into the crater of Peru's fourth highest mountain, his family said. Marcelo Delvaux had been missing since June 30 when he started to descend from Nevado Coropuna in Arequipa. Delvaux, considered by many as the best mountaineers in Brazil, didn't survive the fall into the crevasse of the mountain, which is 21,079 feet above sea level, his sister told CNN Brasil. The family hired professional guides who joined the police in searching for Delvaux on July 4 before the search was called off Sunday. 'When they got up there, they found his poles stuck in the ice and the crack open, which is where he fell and probably died instantly,' Delvaux sister, Patricia Delvaux, said. 'Because he was unable to activate the GPS's 'SOS', we assume he fell there. The crack is very deep, very difficult to perform a rescue.' Brazilian mountain climber Marcelo Delvaux was found dead Saturday, a week after falling into the crater of the Nevado Coropuna, the fourth highest peak in Peru The Nevado Coropuna is located 21,079 in Arequipa, Peru Pedro Hauck, a hiker and friend of Marcelo Delvaux, wrote on a blog that he at the mountain grounds on June 25 and set up his camp tent and went on several walks while eventually taking a different route to reach the southwestern end of the Nevado Coropuna. 'More technical and more beautiful than the normal one. Very much like Marcelo, who doesn't follow normal paths and tries to make his own, avoiding famous places,' Hauck said. Hauck said that Delvaux reached Nevado Coropuna's summit around 3pm local time and started his trek down about half hour later. But the GPS stopped transmitting his location after he made it 328 down the mountain and started to register points that were near each other, similar to what occurs when the signal is being lost. 'What if Marcelo had dropped the GPS and it had rolled into a crevasse? That could explain why he hadn't contacted anyone,' Hauck wondered. Marcelo Delvaux was known as perhaps the best mountain climber in Brazil Marcelo Delvaux had climbed at least 150 mountains, including the Himalayas Marcelo Delvaux's trekking poles were located Saturday morning. The search and rescue team spotted his tent and equipment at the base of the mountain and footprints were discovered around the edge of the edge of the mountain's crater. 'Perhaps on the way up, he used them to signal the best place to cross, but on the way down he ended up losing support and our friend disappeared into its cold, dark interior,' Hauck wrote. The Nevado Coropuna was one of 150 mountains that Marcelo Delvaux conquered alongside the Himalayas and Andes. The mountain features seven peaks and takes about three to four days to climb. Marcelo Delvaux first attempted to climb the Nevado Coropuna in 2015 and returned in 2016 and made it to the top of four of the seven summits. He went back in July 2023, but had to abort the trip after encountering an area that was full of crevasses. He lived in the southeastern Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte, but often spent most the year hiking and working as tour guide in the Andes. Sir Keir Starmer has been urged to crack down on SNP ministers spending taxpayers money on independence, overseas embassies and other reserved areas. Labour grandee Lord George Foulkes called on the new Prime Minister to stop the Scottish Government wasting public money which should be spent on devolved issues it is responsible for. He also said Scottish Secretary Ian Murray and the Treasury should tell SNP ministers to stop interfering in areas outwith their remit and instead focus on improving neglected services in devolved matters. He also wants the UKs top civil servant to instruct Scottish Government officials so that they are clear the UKs responsibility for reserved areas such as foreign affairs and the constitution must be respected. Mr Murray pledged during the election campaign to step up UK Government efforts to promote Scotland The Brand overseas, including through its global trade networks and embassies. Airmiles Angus Robertson with Scots actress Karen Gillan during New Yorks Tartan Week event in 2022 Writing in todays Mail, Lord Foulkes said the new government needs to stop the wilful and mischievous spending on areas which are not devolved but remain responsibilities reserved to the UK Government. He condemned the number of overseas trips by SNP Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary Angus Robertson nicknamed Airmiles Angus and said the constitutional futures division, which produces pointless papers on aspects of independence, should be dismantled. He welcomed Sir Keirs willingness to work with the Scottish Government on areas like the future of the Grangemouth refinery but said it will not be so easy to tell the Scottish Government to abandon areas for which they have no responsibility so that they can run more effectively devolved areas which have been neglected by them. In a plea to Scottish Secretary Mr Murray, Lord Foulkes said: He, together with the Treasury, should make it clear to the Scottish Government they must stick to the areas for which responsibility has been devolved. The Cabinet Secretary must back this up by ensuring that the Scottish Permanent Secretary, John-Paul Marks, is aware of the Governments insistence that the UKs responsibility for reserved areas is respected. And the 37 Scottish Labour MPs should make it clear Scotland has two governments and they must each co-operate but also respect their own areas of competence and responsibility. According to analysis by Scotland in Union, the total cost of Holyroods constitutional futures division, which is responsible for writing the Building a New Scotland series of papers on independence, has been 2.97million during the current parliamentary term. The SNP governments Supreme Court defeat on the power to hold an independence referendum also cost the public purse 251,729. It has also established nine foreign offices across Europe and North America. Lord Foulkes condemned the expansion of the overseas offices, which he described as pretend embassies. He said: The First Minister said if he obtained a majority of seats in the election it would be a mandate for independence. Well, he spectacularly failed on that test and on the percentage of votes too, where pro-independence parties achieved only 34 per cent. The message from the people of Scotland is clear that the campaign for independence should be off the agenda for the foreseeable future and the Scottish Government should get on with the areas for which it has responsibility and has manifestly failed. So the constitution should be removed from Robertsons title and he should transfer funds to culture where the budget has been drastically cut. Last July, Simon Case, the head of the UK civil service, said a probe had been launched into officials being ordered to work on blueprints for independence. He described the spending as unusual and a bit worrying. He also said the civil service could refuse to work on any area reserved to Westminster. In his first visit to Scotland as Prime Minister on Sunday, Sir Keir said he and First Minister John Swinney agreed they can work constructively together and reset relations between the two governments. During the election campaign, Labour pledged to use the UKs global trade networks and embassy reach to promote Scottish businesses, boost exports and attract investment to create jobs and growth. A Scottish Government spokesman said: The First Minister and Prime Minister discussed a range of areas where both governments can work together, based on renewed respect for the devolution settlement. Sir Keir Starmer was under pressure on defence last night after Russia's sickening attack on a children's hospital in Kyiv. Vladimir Putin faced global condemnation following the deadly missile strike on the Okhmatdyt hospital, which specialises in treating child cancer victims. The murderous attack sends a chilling message to Nato leaders gathering in Washington today for a summit to mark the military alliance's 75th anniversary. It will also amplify Ukraine's demands for more air defence weapons to defend its skies. Sir Keir, who flies to the US capital this evening, was told to 'put his money where his mouth is' on defence. He was urged to respond to Moscow's attack by committing to a timetable for raising Britain's military spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP. Rishi Sunak had pledged to hit the target by 2030 and had planned to use the summit to press other leaders to follow suit to demonstrate to the Kremlin that the West will never abandon Ukraine. People clear rubble after the Russian missile strike on Okhmatdyt hospital, one of the largest children's hospitals of Ukraine Vladimir Putin faced global condemnation following the deadly missile strike on the Okhmatdyt hospital, which specialises in treating child cancer victims Downing Street said Sir Keir was committed to reaching the target 'as soon as possible within the fiscal rules'. But former Armed Forces minister Mark Francois said the new PM had a duty to go further. He told the Mail: 'This terrible attack in Ukraine is a brutal reminder of the threat we face. The best way for the Prime Minister to respond is to go to that summit and commit to a timetable for reaching that 2.5 per cent target. 'It is the perfect platform for a new PM to send a message to the world that he is committed to defence he needs to put his money where his mouth is.' Former defence secretary Sir Gavin Williamson said: 'If the new PM's commitment to defence is going to be more than just warm words if he is going to show he is serious about it then he is going to have to make that shift to 2.5 per cent and provide a concrete timetable for getting there. 'The UK made that commitment under Rishi Sunak and Nato will be expecting us to maintain it.' Former British Army commander Colonel Hamish de Bretton-Gordon said: 'This is Sir Keir's first international engagement and it is imperative he shows us and the world that he is the real deal. 'There is significant political instability in Europe and the United States which will continue throughout 2024. 'Britain's new government, which has entered office with some question marks surrounding its security policies, must show strong leadership for the sake of Ukraine and the West. This is a big test.' An injured hospital worker watches as rescue efforts began at Okhmatdyt hospital after it was hit by a Russian missile attack on Monday A Russian missile seen plummeting down on to Okhmatdyt hospital in Ukraine Sir Keir described the attack as 'the most depraved of actions,' adding: 'We stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression our support won't falter.' New Defence Secretary John Healey, who was scrambled to a bomb shelter while visiting Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky at the weekend, said the Government would 'step up UK support for Ukraine with a new military aid package and stand shoulder to shoulder with our Ukrainian friends for as long as it takes'. Sir Keir is expected to hold talks with Mr Zelensky and US President Joe Biden at this week's summit, which will focus heavily on bolstering support for Ukraine. The PM's spokesman said: 'Attacking innocent children is deplorable. One of the key themes of the Nato summit will be to send a very clear signal to Russia that Nato stands with Ukraine against Russian aggression and Nato support will not falter.' Mr Zelensky vowed Russia would be 'held fully accountable for its crimes' after at least two people were killed in the strike on the children's hospital. Okhmatdyt is renowned for its childcare facilities, and carries out 10,000 surgical procedures each year. Around 600 children are treated at the institution at any one time. Sir Keir Starmer was under pressure on defence last night after Russia 's sickening attack on a children's hospital in Kyiv An injured man talks on the phone after Russia's missile attack in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday The air strike on the hospital was part of a Russian barrage, with more than 40 long-range missiles killing at least 36 and injuring 140 at targets across Ukraine. A large part of the hospital's toxicology ward was flattened by what Ukrainian officials believe was a Kh-101 cruise missile, which typically carries a 1,000lb warhead. Medical workers in blood-stained scrubs were seen searching desperately for patients and staff trapped in the rubble. A woman was seen carrying a bleeding infant in a sheet, while children hooked to IV drips were treated next to the bomb site. A surgeon who was performing open-heart surgery is said to have shielded his patient's body from flying debris. He then fitted her with a bypass device. Moments after the missile hit, Svitlana Kravchenko whose two-month-old son is being treated at the hospital rushed to cover him with a cloth to protect him from the debris and dust. Her voice quivering, the 33-year-old spoke as she emerged from a bomb shelter. 'It was scary. I couldn't breathe,' Ms Kravchenko said. 'I was trying to cover him. I was trying to cover him with this cloth so that he could breathe.' Alla, a nurse at the hospital, told reporters: 'Something hit nearby and then it hit us. After that it was chaos and I don't remember anything.' In a rare move, the UN Security Council is expected to meet today to discuss the incident. Writing on X, Mr Zelensky said: 'Russia cannot help but know where its missiles are flying, and must fully answer for all its crimes; against people, against children and against humanity in general. 'It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now.' Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack was one of the heaviest on the city since the invasion began in February 2022. 'It's not war, it is genocide of the Ukrainian population,' he added. Russia's defence ministry claimed the hospital was hit by a Ukrainian air defence missile. President Biden is setting up the next hurdle as he proves he is up for campaigning amid calls by lawmakers for him to step back submitting to what the White House is now calling a 'big boy' press conference. The commitment came on a day Biden phone into MSNBC and wrote restive congressional lawmakers seeking to provide assurances that he can beat Donald Trump after his shaky debate performance. 'I guess a big boy press conference, we're calling it, and take some questions from you all,' White House national security spokesman John Kirby called it while discussing Biden's schedule. White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre also used the term which came from a reporter who last week wanted to know the nature of the event. Biden will 'hold a press conference - a big boy press conference,' Jean-Pierre said at the White House while battling questions about Biden's health and cognition. The White House frequently uses the term 'press conference' even for events where Biden stands side-by-side with a world leader and takes two questions from each side, usually calling from a pre-determined list. The White House says President Biden will hold a 'big boy press conference' on Thursday suggesting he will submit to multiple questions The use of the term suggests Biden will speak for longer, or perhaps even venture off his list to call on people who raise their hands, a throwback to rituals of the past. Applying the term 'big boy' to the upcoming event would also suggest prior press events were something less than that. It comes as Biden himself has been asserting his vitality and effort. 'That's why I've been out. I've been testing myself - been tested everywhere I go. Going out and making the case. The night of that debate, I went out, I was out until two o'clock in the morning that very night. That very night. It drives me nuts, people talking about this,' he said. National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications, John Kirby, also used the 'big boy' terminology, which traces to a reporter's question last week Biden is under pressure to demonstrate his fitness after his disastrous debate against Donald Trump Kirby himself was asked to say if he had ever in his experience seen Biden as he appeared on the debate stage with Trump in Atlanta a performance that Biden has called a 'bad day' and 'terrible.' 'In my experience, the last 2 1/2 years, I have not seen any reason whatsoever to question or doubt his lucidity, his grasp of context, his probing nature, and the degree to which he is completely in charge of facts and figures,' said Kirby. He said this morning Biden asked him to produce some facts that he had to go back and retrieve. Any presidential press conference carries some risk that the president will go off script. The stakes will be high Thursday, after some Democrats groused that Biden did not sufficiently put doubts aside in his interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos that aired Friday and Sunday. He has held multiple campaign events since the debate, but has continued to make gaffes or odd statements. Asked how he would feel next fall if Trump won the election, Biden responded: 'Ill feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest job as I know I can do, thats what this is about,' Biden responded. (ABC later changed its transcript of the sit-down to read, 'I did the good as job as I know I can do.' With a growing number of elected lawmakers calling for Biden to go, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz told DailyMail.com any candidate can have a bad day - or five of them. it. Do you know any candidate in the United States of America that doesnt have five bad days on the campaign trail? Because Ive had five and Im 57 years old, she said. This is the problem, is that the press is intricately parsing and separating and dissecting every single word, every single movement. Theres no human being on earth that could withstand that kind of scrutiny. Biden's presser comes during a NATO summit he is hosting in Washington this week. That will allow him to focus in part on issues like Gaza and Ukraine that, though arduous, might offer welcome relief from questions about his own fitness, age, and acuity. At his last press conference, in Bari, Italy, Biden complained when a reporter asked him a question about Gaza when he was standing alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. An Italian truck driver has allegedly killed his wife before using her phone for months to pretend she was alive. Francesca Deidda, 42, disappeared in May from the Italian town of San Sperate, in Cagliari, southern Sardinia and investigators believe that she was killed by her husband, 43-year-old Igor Sollai, local media reports. After Deidda was last seen, messages were reportedly sent from her phone telling friends and family that she needed some time away due to a breakdown of her relationship - but she refused to speak to anyone on the phone. The call centre she worked at also received her resignation in an email sent after she disappeared. Investigators allege that these messages and emails were written by Sollai after he killed his wife and hid her body, using them to conceal his crime and pretend Deidda was still alive. Francesca Deidda, 42, disappeared in May from the Italian town of San Sperate, in Cagliari, southern Sardinia and investigators believe that she was killed by her husband, 43-year-old Igor Sollai (pictured) After Francesca Deidda (pictured) was last seen, messages were reportedly sent from her phone telling friends and family that she needed some time away due to a breakdown of her relationship - but she refused to speak to anyone on the phone The call centre she worked at also received her resignation in an email sent after she disappeared While the phone has not been found, 'traces left by the suspect online' led to his arrest, according to local media. Deidda was reported missing by her brother and a coworker on May 30. When Sollai was asked by police why he didn't report his wife missing, he said it was because her brother had already done so. Police quickly ruled out suicide and voluntary separation and focused their investigation on Deidda's relationship with her husband, who reportedly gave several conflicting statements. Sollai claims that his wife wanted some time apart to 'reflect', according to local reports. Investigators say the evidence indicates that the couple had hit a rough patch in their relationship before Deidda disappeared. Investigators allege that these messages and emails were written by Sollai after he killed his wife and hid her body, using them to conceal his crime and pretend Deidda was still alive. Deidda was reported missing by her brother and a coworker on May 30 Police quickly ruled out suicide and voluntary separation and focused their investigation on Deidda's relationship with her husband, who reportedly gave several conflicting statements (pictured: the couple together before Deidda disappeared) Despite no body being found in the case, Sollai has been arrested on murder charges last week and remains in prison. He maintains his innocence and his lawyer, Carlo Demurtas, told local media: 'There is no evidence that this was a homicide' Despite no body being found in the case, Sollai has been arrested on murder charges last week and remains in prison. He maintains his innocence and his lawyer, Carlo Demurtas, told local media: 'There is no evidence that this was a homicide. 'And to date we have no evidence to say that our client used his wife's phone or sent the email.' Demurtas had campaigned for Sollai to receive house arrest or to be released pending trial, but a judge ruled today that the truck driver will remain in custody. The couple's house, where they had been living together since 2012, as well as their cars has been seized by police. A 23-year-old son stabbed his beloved mother to death in a horrific knife attack after his deteriorating mental health was misdiagnosed as autism. Alan Williams, who was in fact suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, had the delusional fear his mother Lorraine Cullen, 43, intended to harm his eight-year-old sister. Williams then brutally attacked her with two or three knives in the living room of her home in Huyton, Liverpool on the night of May 10, 2022. The 23-year-old was detained under the Mental Health Act and has been held in a high-security in-patient hospital since the killing. Williams's treating forensic psychiatrist Dr Melanie Higgins told Liverpool Crown Court on Monday his diagnosis of autism three years earlier 'was a catastrophic misdiagnosis'. She said the mistake lead to multiple missed opportunities to treat his paranoid schizophrenia that he had been suffering from for a number of years. Alan Williams, who was in fact suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, had the delusional fear his mother Lorraine Cullen (pictured), 43, intended to harm his eight-year-old sister Williams (pictured) admitted attacking his mother with whom he had been very close when he was deemed fit for interview In 2021 Williams was admitted to the Coniston ward at the Knowsley Resource and Recovery Centre near St Helens. However Dr Higgins stated in court: 'Despite noting multiple bizarre behaviours, and concerns raised by the family, no diagnosis is made, other than the diagnosis of autism being taken as fact, and no treatment is offered, although a recommendation is made that he be followed up by the Early Intervention Team.' She added: 'They (the family) were mocked for trying to get him help. It was very poor clinical care indeed.' Williams admitted attacking his mother with whom he had been very close when he was deemed fit for interview. Prosecutor Richard Pratt KC said: 'He said that he believed his mother was intending to kill his sister, either by drowning in her bath or 'snapping her neck'. 'He accepted in interview that his beliefs were delusional.' Ms Cullen suffered 30 wounds concentrated to the back of her head and neck. She also had defensive injuries to her hands and arms as she desperately tried to fend off the attack. Dr Higgins said that Williams, who was described as intelligent and without any previous convictions, 'felt he had no option and if he did not act he would miss the opportunity to save his sister. 'It was a terrible decision he felt he had to make.' She said that Williams eventually and spontaneously realised he had been acting under a delusion and describes his attack as 'shameful'. Williams was described by his heart broken relatives, including his older heart-broken sister Kayleigh, as kind and caring. She said he is a gentle, sensitive man who truly adored their mum. She also told in her impact statement how six months before the tragedy he believed the television was telling him to go to the woods and told her not to drink tea their grandmother made as it was poisoned. It was after that he spent a week in Whiston hospital but while staff assured the family that he was sleeping well, they knew he was posting on Facebook all through the night. Mr Pratt told the court that after he was discharged he was carrying a knife for self-protection as he was worried his grandmother would try to murder him. Kayleigh described him as her closest friend and said she had her mum and brother taken away from her and her life 'has been torn apart.' Williams's treating forensic psychiatrist Dr Melanie Higgins told Liverpool Crown Court (pictured) on Monday his diagnosis of autism 'was a catastrophic misdiagnosis' 'He has been so unbelievably let down,' she added. Ms Cullen's mother, Angela Dalzell, described how Williams loved his mum, who was an office worker. 'Everyone knows him to be a perfect gentleman with a gentle soul,' she said. Her husband, Michael, horrifically found his daughter's body in a pool of blood after Williams rang saying he had killed her, adding 'she was in a better place.' The defendant had been due to spend the night at his mother's home but instead killed her, taking his little sister back to his house. When police went to Williams' flat they found his sister asleep and unharmed and he told officers, 'I just wanted to look after my sister.' Williams, who had moved into his own flat in January 2022 in Huyton, denied murder but admitted manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility, which was accepted by the Crown. Imposing an indefinite hospital order Judge Andrew Menary, KC, the Recorder of Liverpool said that Williams was described as 'a delightful, loving, caring young man who in normal circumstances would never have done anything like this.' He told the defendant, who appeared via video link: 'Whether the events of this night of May 10, 2022 could have been avoided by much earlier diagnosis and intervention he will never know for sure. 'But the views of the consultant psychiatrists in this case - that there has been a wholesale failure of mental health provision and numerous missed opportunities to identify and attempt to treat your serious and enduring chronic condition of paranoid schizophrenia. 'This includes what is described by Dr Higgins as a catastrophic misdiagnosis that you suffered from a neurological-diverse condition when it is her very firm view that you are not autistic.' He continued: 'The previous responses of clinicians appear to have been pathetically inadequate and might be a reflection of the gaps in mental health provision currently available or might be the result of overworked or under-resourced practitioners. 'Sadly it is the experience of this court that this situation is not a rare occurrence and the consequence is utter devastation of yet another family.' Imagine a Russian missile hitting Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London and you'll have some idea of the visceral impact, the horror, of Monday's air strike on Kyiv's famous Okhmatdyt hospital. Once again, the sickest children in Ukraine have been forced out of their beds by Vladimir Putin's disgusting imperial ambitions. This time, it seems they were deliberately targeted in an outrageous mid-morning blitz. Photographs and film footage show child patients among the casualties. We have reached a new and still more dreadful stage of the war. I witnessed the first mass evacuation from the Okhmatdyt, Ukraine's largest paediatric facility, on March 5, 2022. Imagine a Russian missile hitting Great Ormond Street children's hospital in London and you'll have some idea of the horror of Monday's air strike on Kyiv 's famous Okhmatdyt hospital Once again, the sickest children in Ukraine have been forced out of their beds by Vladimir Putin's disgusting imperial ambitions Then, the Russian army was at the gates of Kyiv and the hospital windows were shaken by the concussion of artillery fire. Some panes had been smashed by shrapnel. Shards of glass lay scattered in the yard. The situation was untenable for the youngsters already suffering too much and a decision was made. Those not too gravely ill to be moved would be sent on buses and then trains to the safety of the West. A cavalcade of misery then followed for some 300 children and parents. It was a pitiful scene in particular the exodus of young patients from the cancer department. I was there as six children aged from one to 17 gathered in the entrance lobby of the hospital to begin a gruelling journey. Nine-year-old Antonina was being helped out of her wheelchair by her mother, Alina. Diagnosed with cancer in 2017, the child was so thin and frail that her progress to the bathroom resembled that of a great-grandmother. 'Of course, I'll be relieved when I know for sure that my child will be cared for somewhere safe,' Alina told me. 'But until then, I will worry. I'm her mum.' Sister Olena Baidalenko, a senior nurse in the oncology department, described the ordeal ahead: 'I have no idea how long the journey will take them in these circumstances but, when we sent the first three children west at the start of the week, it took five days to reach Germany, where they are now. Questions to answer: President Vladmir Putin pictured on Monday in Moscow Who could argue that Monday's attack was not a calculated war crime? Pictured: Ukrainian families take shelter following the attack in Kyiv 'But it's been very scary here for the children, for us and their parents. A few days ago there was a gunfight next to the hospital and a bullet hit one of our windows. 'Then, when our air defences hit a Russian cruise missile, the blast destroyed the glass in our reception doors. 'We had to drop everything and run to the shelters even though we were preparing chemotherapy treatment for [a four-year-old]. We had to delay it. You can't stop in the middle of the procedure.' At the time, I ended my report with the words: 'Shame on you, Mr Putin.' What words can be used today? The cruelty of Monday's attack was on another scale. Fresh blood now spatters the floors. Hundreds of windows have been blown in, peppering the children with glass. Young patients from the cancer department have been evacuated for a second time. They sat in wheelchairs outside under the hot sun, still connected by tubes to their life-sustaining equipment. Who could argue that this was not a calculated war crime? Oleksandr Kostiuchenko, the Mail's translator in Kyiv, speaks for every parent in the city when he says: 'I just feel devastated.' If the Russians are prepared to hit the Okhmatdyt in daylight, then nowhere is sacred. The pictures wouldn't look out of place in Country Life magazine. An ostentatious chandelier, a three-oven Aga in the flagstone-floor kitchen, while the stylish study features floor-to-ceiling custom bookcases. The 750,000 sandstone mansion, set in glorious Lanarkshire countryside, even comes with stable blocks. Welcome to the home of Morgan McSweeney now the second most powerful man in the country. Tony Blair employed the thuggish Alastair Campbell as his chief spin doctor, while Peter (now Lord) Mandelson revelled in his nickname 'The Prince of Darkness'. Yet McSweeney, Starmer's new 'head of political strategy', stands to be more influential than either of his Downing Street predecessors. As one senior party figure puts it: 'No unelected figure in postwar Labour history wields as much power as Morgan McSweeney.' The redhead Irishman, who was the brains behind Starmer's triumphant election victory, also helped to install Starmer as leader and purge the party of the far-Left. Ruthless and calculating, McSweeney now has significant control over messaging and policy. Though he rarely credits him publicly, Starmer has McSweeney to thank more than anyone for making it to Downing Street. Yet even many Labour MPs have probably never met McSweeney, who at party conferences shuns the bars and spends most of his time in the leader's hotel suite. The 750,000 sandstone mansion, set in glorious Lanarkshire countryside, even comes with stable blocks. Welcome to the home of Morgan McSweeney (pictured) now the second most powerful man in the country Yet McSweeney, Starmer's new 'head of political strategy', stands to be more influential than either of his Downing Street predecessors and policy. Though he rarely credits him publicly, Starmer has McSweeney to thank more than anyone for making it to Downing Street The anonymity suits the workaholic McSweeney, who was invariably at his desk at Labour's South London HQ by 6.30am. He will not show any signs of slowing down now that Labour is in government. And from his new desk in No 10 he will be closely observing exactly who visits Starmer. When key aides lined Downing Street to welcome the incoming Prime Minister, McSweeney was already inside. Starmer made a beeline for his adviser who was suited and booted rather than casually dressed in his customary jeans and made sure his was one of the first hands he shook. McSweeney's word is law. One top party figure tells me: 'Every minister defers to him. He is Keir Starmer's friend, confidant and enforcer. There is no higher praise at HQ than: 'Morgan loves it.' Yet perhaps not from all quarters. Relations between McSweeney and Sue Gray, the former 'impartial' civil servant whose excoriating Partygate report triggered the ultimate downfall of Labour's nemesis Boris Johnson, are said to be prickly. Gray is now the Prime Minister's chief of staff another vital Downing Street role. One source says: 'Keir needs Morgan by his side. Morgan's desk will be outside the No 10 study, and he will be in and out of Keir's office more than Sue. But look out for the fireworks.' So who is Morgan McSweeney and what does he plan to do with the power he now wields? The 47-year-old was brought up in Macroom in County Cork, and still speaks with a soft Irish lilt. His grandfather, Michael, won a medal from the IRA for his service during the 1916 war of independence from Britain. His father, Tom, was an accountant and his mother, Carmel, worked in an office. Yet politics runs in the family: cousin Clare Mungovan was a special adviser to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar. In the summer of 1994, when Tony Blair became Labour leader, McSweeney, then 17, left Macroom for a new life in London. Blair knew he had to modernise the Labour Party, which had lost four successive elections, and McSweeney watched with interest. In the summer of 1994, when Tony Blair (pictured) became Labour leader, McSweeney, then 17, left Macroom for a new life in London He will not show any signs of slowing down now that Labour is in government. And from his new desk in No 10 he will be closely observing exactly who visits Starmer He was a restless spirit, dropping out of the London School of Economics and working for a time on building sites. After time in the U.S., he came back to London to study politics and marketing at Middlesex University in 1998. He then joined the Labour Party in 2001 the year of the second Blair landslide and played a key role organising for marginal seats in 2005's election, which delivered a third successive Labour victory. Then he hitched his colours to Steve Reed, a Labour councillor in Lambeth, South London, who was trying to wrest control of the authority from the hard-Left. Under 'Red Ted' Knight, Lambeth was infamous, beset by mismanagement, corruption and a historical child-abuse scandal. McSweeney who I'm told was 'solid, not spectacular' at the time threw himself into the battle. In Lambeth he met his future wife, Imogen Walker, who became deputy leader of the reformed council. The two share that Lanarkshire home, purchased in 2020. In last week's election, Walker won the local (safe Labour) seat of Hamilton and Clyde Valley, by more than 9,000 votes. She is expected to be fast-tracked for ministerial promotion. A natural in front of the cameras, she was an actress. In the 2002 Channel 4 documentary The Real Linda Lovelace, about the 1970s porn star, she played Lovelace. After Lambeth, McSweeney went to Barking and Dagenham in East London to help vanquish the hard-Right BNP, which had won a dozen seats on the local council. Jon Cruddas, now Dagenham MP, tells me: 'He has the psychology of an organiser, and he's quite brilliant at it. These political skills have been chiselled out over years, so he's no blow-in to anything.' A Labour source says: 'He saw himself as a modern-day Witchfinder General. Except it wasn't witches in the ducking chair but extremists from the Left or Right.' Within a few years, the BNP had lost every one of its council seats. At last McSweeney turned his eyes to the national stage, running the 2015 leadership campaign of Liz Kendall, a moderate. Kendall came last with a paltry 4.5 per cent of the vote as Corbyn romped home. Aghast at the result, McSweeney became director of a new group, Labour Together, whose goal was to drag the party back into the centre. Early recruits included Rachel Reeves, now Chancellor, and Health Secretary Wes Streeting. They unlike Starmer, who referred to Corbyn as his 'friend' had both refused to join Corbyn's shadow frontbench, and were seeking an alternative leader. As Labour Together's influence grew, McSweeney was becoming the respected backroom player he had always wanted to be. After the 2019 election, when Labour under Corbyn suffered its worst defeat since 1935, Starmer asked McSweeney to run his leadership campaign. They had at least one thing in common: they were both passionate Remainers. After the 2019 election, when Labour under Corbyn suffered its worst defeat since 1935, Starmer asked McSweeney to run his leadership campaign Starmer ran on an extravagantly Corbynite ticket, pledging to scrap university tuition fees, defend free movement across Europe and hammer the rich with punitive taxes. The hard-Left policy document did the trick to satisfy the Corbynistas and Starmer won decisively in the first ballot. All ten pledges were later abandoned on the orders of McSweeney. He has since ensured the Party's rules were altered to make it harder for Left-wingers like Corbyn to win again. 'He has been purging Lefties to ensure that after Starmer goes, a centrist takes over,' said another Labour figure who is not a fan of McSweeney. 'If he's successful he will be trying to write himself into the succession plans.' H e's even curbed the influence of Tony Blair, whose grandly named 'Institute' provides staff and policy papers for the Labour frontbench. A senior Labour source tells me: 'Morgan thinks Blair has had his time. While Blair can call Starmer whenever he likes, it's McSweeney whose advice he ultimately takes. Morgan thinks Blair's ideas are from a different era that he's yesterday's man.' Another senior figure told me: 'If it goes wrong for Starmer, he will find out how ruthless McSweeney is. Just as Boris found with [ex-adviser] Dominic Cummings.' One Labour parliamentary candidate says: 'Starmer won the leadership on a lie because every single policy commitment he made has been junked by McSweeney. Will they do the same thing with the promises made in the election campaign? If they do, the voters will be much less forgiving.' Democratic Congressman Adam Smith is calling for President Joe Biden to step aside from the presidential race so Democrats can defeat Donald Trump in November and said he believes Vice President Kamala Harris would be a better choice. Smith is the highest ranking member in the House to go public to date amid questions over the president's fitness to serve a second term after his disastrous debate performance last month. 'President Biden should end his candidacy for a second term as President and release his delegates to the Democratic National Convention to enable the party to nominate a new candidate for President,' Smith said in a statement on Monday afternoon. 'This must happen as soon as possible to give the new ticket the maximum amount of time to make its case to the American people,' he continued. Congressman Adam Smith (D-WA) publicly called on Biden to step aside and said he believes Vice President Harris is a stronger candidate to beat Trump in a CNN interview Smith argued Biden continuing his campaign would be a 'mistake' and exiting the race now would allow Democrats to find a candidate who would be 'in the strongest possible position to beat Donald Trump in November.' Smith also appeared on CNN Monday afternoon where he pleaded with Biden's backers to put their personal feelings for the president aside. He told Jake Tapper he believes Harris is a better option. 'Personally I think Kamala Harris would be a much better, stronger candidate,' Smith said. 'And because she is constitutionally his second, that's the way it's supposed to work.' He said they ran as a team this election from the very start. Smith also claimed Democrats have a strong record to run on and praised the president's first term but raised concerns about telling voters about that record. President Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House on July 4, 2024 Smith is the highest ranking House Democrat to call on Biden to step aside so far. He said Democrats have a strong record to run on but the president is 'not capable of delivering that message' 'We've got a good message,' Smith said. 'The President has shown he is not capable of delivering that message in an effective way.' Smith there were concerns leading up to the president's debate performance, and it hasn't gotten better since. He blasted Biden saying any 'good debater' would have been able to respond to Trump. The Democratic lawmaker said the Biden campaign strategy of staying quiet and falling in line is not working right now. He also pushed back on Biden's remarks on MSNBC's Morning Joe during a phone interview on Monday morning that it is the 'elites' trying to push him out. Smith argued those people were who put him in office in the first place. He pointed out that Biden lost Iowa, New Hampshire and Nevada during the 2020 primary but there was a 'nationwide movement' to make him the nominee over Senator Bernie Sanders. Smith is one of a handful of Democrats in Congress calling for Biden to step aside in the presidential race. He first made his stance that Biden needed to drop out known on a private call over the weekend with colleagues. But on Monday, Biden sent a letter to members of Congress where he insisted he would stay in the 2024 race and committed to defeating Trump. 'I wouldn't be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024,' he wrote. Sir Keir Starmer's Chief of Staff Sue Gray cut a casual look yesterday as she accompanied the new Prime Minister to Northern Ireland. The former top civil servant, who investigated Covid-19 lockdown breaches in Downing Street under ex-PM Boris Johnson, was in Belfast with the new premier as part of his tour of the UK to 'reset' relations with the devolved nations. Sir Keir used the trip to focus on the importance of keeping the peace in Northern Ireland following The Troubles. The issue is close to Ms Gray's heart as she once ran a pub in the province with her husband just ten minutes from the border with the Irish Republic, in a part of rural County Down. Sir Keir Starmer 's Chief of Staff Sue Gray cut a casual look yesterday as she accompanied the new Prime Minister to Northern Ireland The former top civil servant, who investigated Covid-19 lockdown breaches in Downing Street under ex-PM Boris Johnson , was in Belfast with the new premier as part of his tour of the UK to 'reset' relations with the devolved nations The fact that Ms Gray, a born-and-bred Londoner, moved to what was known as 'bandit country' at the time sparked questions over whether she was a British spy. However, she later denied that this was the case. Ms Gray quit her civil service role in March last year to take up the post as Sir Keir's Chief of Staff, sparking controversy. Allies of Mr Johnson claimed it showed her report into Downing Street gatherings during the pandemic, which contributed to his resignation in 2022, was a Labour 'stitch-up'. Last week Ms Gray's son, Liam Conlon, became MP for Beckenham and Penge. He is one of 47 new MPs endorsed by the Labour Movement for Europe, which favours a much closer deal with the European Union including aligning with Brussels regulations. The new intake is set to greatly strengthen the pressure group, which is thought to have already had 80 members. Its chairman is Stella Creasy. A shocking video captured the moment four security guards pinned a man down outside a downtown Milwaukee hotel - ultimately leading to his death. Dvontaye Mitchell, 43, was pronounced dead at around 4pm on June 30 outside the Hyatt Regency hotel, where security guards were seen trying to hold him down as he pleaded for help. At least one of the guards appeared to be kneeling on Mitchell's back, while another was seen holding his head in the video posted to Instagram by his cousin Samantha Mitchell, which she said was shared to the family by a witness on the scene. The other two were seen holding down his legs and arms. The guard holding his head also appeared to hit Mitchell with an unidentified object several times and yelled at him to 'Stay down! Stop fighting!' But Mitchell could be heard grunting and shouting 'Please help! Please! I'm sorry.' A shocking video shows four security guards pinning a man outside a Hyatt Regency hotel in downtown Milwaukee When one of the guards ultimately notices he is being filmed he says: 'This is what happens when you go into the ladies room!' When the guard holding his head ultimately notices a bystander is filming them, he says: 'This is what happens when you go into the ladies room!' Police have said Mitchell walked into the hotel that afternoon and caused a disturbance. They did not specify what happened, but witnesses said he locked himself inside a bathroom with a woman, Fox 6 Now reports. He then allegedly fought with security guards as they were escorting him out, and the guards detained him until the police arrived at the scene. But when authorities finally arrived at the hotel, they found Mitchell unresponsive and, after performing life-saving measures, pronounced him dead at the scene, NBC News reports. Mitchell's mother said she was taken aback later, when she saw the injuries to her son's body. 'It looked like the side of his face was bashed in,' Brenda Giles told WTMJ. 'All across here, it was just swollen.' Dvontaye Mitchell, 43, was pronounced dead on the scene of the hotel on June 30 Giles has since suggested that her son was suffering from a mental health episode, and is calling for justice with the help of famed civil rights attorney Ben Crump - who called Mitchell's death 'disturbing' and 'reminiscent of the killing of George Floyd.' 'Everybody in America after George Floyd should have trained their employees and security personnel to not put knees on people's backs and necks,' Crump, who previously represented Floyd's family, said at a news conference on Monday. 'And when people are having problems breathing, don't keep them in a prone position.' The attorney went on to blame the security guards' use of 'excessive force' for the death of an 'unarmed man,' as he called for a 'thorough and transparent investigation' into their actions. Mitchell leaves behind a wife, daughter and a son His family is now demanding criminal charges be filed against the security guards, and have called for more transparency in the investigation Mitchell's grieving family is also demanding criminal charges be filed against the security guards, and have called for more transparency - asking for security footage from inside the hotel to be released, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. They note that Mitchell leaves behind a wife, daughter and son. 'They murdered my child,' Giles told WTMJ, adding that her 'frustration lies' with the security guards. 'Ain't nobody been charged with this case,' she said. 'They tryin' to sweep this under the rug and we not letting it go under the rug.' Milwaukee police have said its homicide unit is investigating Mitchell's death, but have not yet determined that the case is criminal in nature. The death is also being reviewed by the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office. Famed civil rights attorney Ben Crump compared Mitchell's death to that of George Floyd But in the meantime, Hyatt has said that all of the security guards involved have been suspended as a third-party operator investigates their actions. 'We are working swiftly with the hotel's third-party operator, Aimbridge Hospitality, to understand the full extent of what transpired,' a spokesperson for the hotel chain told NBC News. 'We understand Aimbridge Hospitality is conducting a thorough investigation and has suspended the employees involved in the incident.' The spokesperson also noted that the hotel is cooperating with police, and said: 'We extend our heartfelt condolences to all those who knew and loved Mr. Mitchell.' A spokesperson for Aimbridge Hospitality also said it is offering 'our sincere condolences to Mr. Mitchell's family and loved ones. 'We continue to do everything we can to support law enforcement's ongoing investigation into this incident and have no further comment at this time,' the spokesperson told WTMJ. 'We remain committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all hotel guests and associates,' the spokesperson added. Still, Crump said he wants to keep Mitchell's death in the spotlight as tens of thousands of people descend on Milwaukee for the Republican National Convention next week. He noted that the hotel where Mitchell was killed is right across the street from the Baird Center - one of the main venues for the high-profile event. Stephen King, a legendary author of horror fiction, has been scared into pleading Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 election, as many Hollywood elites start to turn on the president. Biden remains adamant that he's the man to beat Donald Trump despite the fallout from his debate disaster and feeble ABC News interview, sending out a letter to Congress saying as such early Monday. However, King - a reliable celebrity liberal and anti-Trump voice - has spoken out to say that Biden should call it quits. 'Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election,' he wrote Monday morning. Elon Musk, a fan of King's who often chirps back at him as the CEO of X, jumped into the replies with a cheeky jibe. Stephen King, a legendary author of horror fiction, has been scared into pleading Joe Biden to drop out of the 2024 election, as many Hollywood elites start to turn on the president He exclaimed: 'Even Stephen King is voting for Trump!' King is not likely to vote for Trump, as a post just a day earlier slammed the ex-president for his allies 'planning what amounts to a fascist state.' Typically reliable Democratic Party donors in Hollywood are withholding their cash until President Joe Biden is replaced at the top of the ticket in the wake of the aging commander-in-chief's debate performance. Biden, 81, regularly lost focus and trailed off mid-sentence when faced with a typically robust performance from his Republican challenger, ex-president Donald Trump during their showdown on CNN. Last week, Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, who has donated $100,000 already this election cycle, and Disney heiress Abigail Disney, who has earmarked donations of up to $635,000, made headlines as they were among the first to announces that they were ceasing funding until Biden pulls out. Now more bigshots in tinsel town are making similar moves. Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof, who has also given $100,000, wrote an op-ed for Deadline in which he made it clear he would no longer fund a Biden-led campaign. In an email to The Los Angeles Times, Lindelof doubled down saying that despite his 'immense respect' for Biden, the risks posed by another Trump presidency meant the stakes were simply too high. 'For me, this isnt about the ability to govern, its about the ability to WIN,' he told the newspaper. Elon Musk, a fan of King's who often chirps back at him as the CEO of X, jumped into the replies with a cheeky jibe Media mogul Barry Diller, contributor of around $150,000 this cycle, also told The Ankler that he wouldn't continue to fund the Biden campaign. Diller, known for his roles at Fox and USA Television, is married to designer Diane Von Furstenberg. However one key figure, Andy Spahn, who is known for his role in advising Hollywood's wealthiest people how to donate to liberal causes, is urging calm. 'Everyone just needs to take a breath. This will sort itself out soon enough,' he told The LA Times. Hollywood super-agent Ari Emanuel alluded to this trend last week at an event in Colorado. Emanuel said that most of his wealthy pals are concentrating on the Senate and Congress when it comes to donations. He went on to blame the Democratic Party for the mess created. '[Biden] said he was going to run for one term, and hes doing it to restore democracy. He then runs for a second term thats the first bit of malarkey, as he would say. He and his cohorts have told us that hes [been] healthy for over a year,' Emanuel said, via The Hollywood Reporter. 'I had a father who died at 92, but at 81 I took away his car, and it was a very simple test for me. If you were driving from downtown Beverly Hills to Malibu, would you want Biden to do it at night? Would you want Trump to do it at night?' 'If the answer is neither, you cannot have them running a $27 trillion company called the United States,' he ranted. Typically reliable Democratic Party donors in Hollywood are withholding their cash until President Joe Biden is replaced at the top of the ticket in the wake of the aging commander-in-chief's disastrous debate performance Many liberals have begun to freak out over the possibility that Biden could relinquish the White House back to Trump In contrast, Trump's campaign continues to raise money hand over fist, reporting a haul of $331 million in the second quarter of 2024. That number bests the $264 million that Bidens reelection campaign and the Democratic National Committee reported raising over the same period. Trumps total includes $111.8 million that the campaign says it raised in June. That sum is less than the $127 million Biden reported raising last month, which includes more than $33 million on the day of the debate and in its aftermath. But Trumps campaign reports that it ended the quarter with $284.9 million cash on hand, compared with $240 million reported by Biden. A shocked bar patron has revealed the amount he was asked to leave as a tip when paying his bill in San Diego. Gordon Kling showed how upon paying his $24.50 tab at Catalina Lounge in Ocean Beach he was presented with a 100% tip option, which would have doubled his total to $49. Other options on the payment device include an extortionate 50% tip which would have added $12.25 to the man's total, together with more moderate 25% and 20% options. After posting an image of the tip settings online, many viewers felt the options were a ruse to lure unwitting, and possibly inebriated patrons into paying more. 'There is no way somebody hasn't accidentally tipped 100% thinking that "oh that's just the total, that's the one I want". That's deliberately misleading,' one person wrote. Godon Kling posted a picture online showing the tipping options at the bar He named the Catalina Lounge in Ocean Beach, San Diego, as the premises where he spotted the 100% tip option The photo appeared to resonate with followers who believed the bar was trying to scam their customers. 'Haha thats exactly why I took a photo,' Kling responded. 'I was drunk af and thought I was seeing things. I took the photo to revisit in the morning and was in total disbelief.' Other users chimed in suggesting the venue was attempting to prey on people being slightly worse for wear and not realizing they were tipping so much. 'Thats hilarious. Catalina lounge is a dive, too. All these bars in PB and OB pray on drunk guys on dates,' explained one user. The man, who posted on X, Gordon Kling, was shocked to see the tipping options There are pool tables for patrons at the Catalina Lounge dive bar in San Diego Commenters suggested Kling take his business elsewhere following the bar's antics 'Not even the bars in Pacific Beach are this bad. The MAX Ive seen in PB is 35% (I think at Mavericks). Not even on date lmao. I was just out with the boys playing pool,' Kling explained. 'When I saw this pic I immediately thought of Catalina before even reading what you said. When I saw it there for the first time I was in disbelief. Imagine how many drunk people hit 100%,' wrote Bianca in response to the post. Another X user believed the bar was relying on customers misreading the options. 'Actually thats clever at a bar - gives servers an incentive to increase sales b/c the more drunk the patron gets the more that 100 will look like 10%.' 'It should not be up to the customer to provide livable wages to employees. Tipping culture is toxic,' added another. DailyMail.com has reached out to Catalina Lounge for comment. Three-quarters of Americans believe tipping culture has gone too far and most say minimum wage should be increased to off-set the need for gratuity, a new study by CouponBirds shows Guilt-tipping, paying a tip out of awkwardness or pressure when you would rather not, is on the rise. This spring it was revealed how Americans are spending an average $453 more a year on gratuities than they would like to thanks to 'guilt-tipping.' Consumers say they have paid an average of $37.80 a month on reluctant tips because they would feel guilty about not doing so, according to new research. A new poll by Talker Research found that over a quarter of the 2,000 surveyed said they are 'always or often forced to tip more than they would like.' Typically, the average respondent had tipped more than wanted to six times in the past month alone Another recent study found that three-quarters of Americans believe tipping culture has gone too far. Americans have grown frustrated with tipping screens. One Alaska restaurant presented diners with the option to tip 100 percent The findings come amidst a widespread backlash against 'tipflation' which has seen tipping culture spill out from bars and restaurants and into stores, takeout chains and even self-service machines. 84 percent of respondents to the CouponBirds survey argued that the minimum wage should be increased to off-set the need for gratuity. Across the board, tipping was most common for restaurant service. Some 59 percent of consumers said they would tip at dinner while 43.8 percent they would for food delivery. It was followed by hairdressing and beauty services - which 41.1 percent of individuals said they would tip for. Some 39.6 percent said they would add gratuity in a taxi while 36.8 percent said they would tip at a bar. The least likely place shoppers would tip was at a convenience store or Bodega. Some 4.9 percent of survey respondents said they would add gratuity in this instance. Suspected people smugglers are to be treated like terrorists under Labour's new government - as Sir Keir Starmer launches his own crackdown on illegal migrant crossings after scrapping the Rwanda scheme. The new legislation, due to be set out in Sir Keir's first King's Speech next week, will give the police, Border Force and intelligence officers to use serious crime prevention orders against people smugglers. They enable officials to place tough sanctions on travel in the UK or abroad as well as on their access to the internet and their finances. Breaching the order can result in up to five years in jail. The order can be applied both before a suspected people smuggler is convicted or if they are found guilty. It has previously been restricted to terrorists but will be extended to immigration crime, The Telegraph reports. It comes as the first migrants to cross the Channel since Labour's election victory arrived in the UK on Monday. Border officials are also set to be given enhanced stop and search powers under the 2000 Terrorism act for anyone suspected of people smuggling. Sir Keir Starmer is launching his own crackdown on illegal migrant crossings after scrapping the Rwanda scheme It comes as the first migrants to cross the Channel since Labour's election victory arrived in the UK on Monday Usually with stop and searches, police must have 'genuine and objectively reasonable suspicion' that they are going to find a weapon or item such as drugs. Enhanced powers enables officers to seize mobile phones and copy data on devices of any suspects. Like terrorism laws, police could get warrants to search properties belonging to people smugglers and seize items before an offence was committed. 'By replicating this power for organised immigration crime, we can ensure that investigators can raid and seize relevant information and property from addresses linked to people smuggling before an offence has taken place,' a policy document said seen by the Telegraph. Hundreds of police officers will be deployed across Europe to crackdown on people smugglers. New Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is searching for a former police, military or intelligence chief to head the new UK Border Security Command. Neil Basu, a former head of UK counter-terrorism policing, is one of the frontrunners. It comes as Rwanda said it had 'fully upheld its side of the agreement' after Sir Keir confirmed the controversial deportation policy pushed so heavily by the Conservatives is to be scrapped. In a statement on Monday, a spokesperson in Kigali said they 'take note' of the UK Government's plan to axe the multimillion-pound agreement, which Rishi Sunak had set up in an effort to deter migrants from crossing the English Channel. New Home Secretary Yvette Cooper is searching for a former police, military or intelligence chief to head the new UK Border Security Command On Monday, groups of migrants were seen arriving from France wearing life jackets, and some wrapped in blankets Border Force were deployed to pick up migrants in the Channel on Monday afternoon On Saturday, Sir Keir described the Migration and Economic Development Partnership (MEDP) with the African nation as being 'dead and buried before it started'. The statement from Rwanda comes after the first migrants to cross the Channel since Labour's General Election victory arrived in the UK, adding to the 13,574 already recorded by the Home Office to make the journey this year. A Rwandan government spokesperson said: 'Rwanda takes note of the intention of the UK Government to terminate the Migration and Economic Development Partnership Agreement, as provided for under the terms of the treaty passed by both our parliaments. 'This partnership was initiated by the government of the UK in order to address the crisis of irregular migration affecting the UK - a problem of the UK, not Rwanda. 'Rwanda has fully upheld its side of the agreement, including with regard to finances, and remains committed to finding solutions to the global migration crisis, including providing safety, dignity and opportunity to refugees and migrants who come to our country.' Labour committed to scrapping the Rwanda scheme in its winning manifesto. The Tories had pledged a 'regular rhythm of flights every month' to Rwanda in their election offering, but the previous government had refused to say how much more money - on top of 290 million already committed - the UK had agreed to pay Rwanda as part of the deal. Figures obtained in 2023 using the Freedom of Information Act revealed a further 2.1 million spent fighting legal challenges to the plan. A spokesperson for Sir Keir told reporters earlier on Monday: 'We're getting to work straight away because we know that this summer will be challenging.' The Government is 'now focused on the work needed to secure our borders and smash the gangs', he added. Over the weekend, the Prime Minister said he was 'not prepared to continue with gimmicks' as Labour announced plans to free the last two migrants who were detained ahead of anticipated flights. 'Look at the numbers that have come over in the first six-and-a-bit months of this year, they are record numbers - that is the problem that we are inheriting,' Sir Keir added. 'The Rwanda scheme was dead and buried before it started. It's never been a deterrent.' According to the MEDP, either government could have axed the agreement, but it will only formally end three months after the other party is notified in writing. It would have lasted until April 13 2027, had the UK Government not signalled its end. It enabled the Government to send migrants who did not have a right to remain in the country to Rwanda if they had 'arrived in the UK through an illegal and dangerous route' since 2022. The 13,574 arrivals so far in 2024 is a record for the first six months of a calendar year. It is also 12 per cent higher than the number recorded by the same time last year (12,119) and up 3 per cent on the same period in 2022 (13,149), according to PA news agency analysis of government data. Ms Cooper said while visiting police officers in Lewisham, London: 'We need to clear the Conservatives' asylum backlog, but the first priority has to be to get the stronger border security in place, and that is why our first step is setting up the new Border Security Command.' On the campaign trail before last week's election, former prime minister Mr Sunak described Labour's pledges as 'an illegal migration amnesty and sweetheart deal with the European Union that would see Britain taking even more illegal migrants from the continent'. First lady Jill Biden on Monday suggested she is not behind President Joe Biden's determination to stay in the 2024 presidential race as the couple goes on the offensive to keep the Democratic party in line. She also lectured the press corps traveling with her on asking her questions about the president's standing with the party. 'Why are you screaming at me? You know me. Don't scream at me. Just talk,' the first lady said with a smile after she made an unscheduled stop at a coffee shop in Tampa, Fla. But she still didn't answer any questions about the president's health or Democrats' concerns about his ability to beat Donald Trump. Jill Biden spent Monday on a three-state tour to tout Biden's committment to veterans The first lady is on a three-state tour to launch Veterans and Military Families for Biden. In her remarks, she emphasized the administration's committment to veterans and reassured the crowd President Biden is staying in the 2024 contest. 'For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that he's all in,' she said. And, while she didn't directly address the rumors that she was behind his decision, she did indirectly hint to it. 'That's the decision he's made and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in too. I know you are too or you wouldn't be here today. And with four more years Joe will continue to fight for you,' she said. The crowds reacted with cheers, yelling variations of 'yes' and 'four more years.' Biden was greeted with friendly crowds at all three venues. Voters at them told DailyMail.com that while they acknowledged the president's bad night at the debate, they were still backing him over Donald Trump. The venues were filled with cheering supporters, Biden-Harris signs and out pourings of affection for the first lady as she campaigned in the three battleground states. But there were protesters too - at all three stops. In North Carolina and Georgia, Trump supporters waved flags as the Jill Biden's motorcade drove by. In Florida, there were protesters of the president's policy in Gaza, with one sign reading 'Genocide Jill' - a play on the 'Genocide Joe' signs that have followed the president. Jill Biden's message matched Joe Biden's as the president spent Monday on the offensive, sending a letter to Congressional Democrats declaring he was staying in the race. He also held a call with donors, telling them he was 'done talking about the debate.' 'We need to move forward. Look, we have roughly 40 days til the convention, 120 days til the election. We can't waste any more time being distracted,' Biden said, according to a recording obtained by Politico. Jill Biden shakes hands at a campaign event in Tampa, Fla., on Monday Jill Biden led the charge on moving forward. She is one of the president's closest advisers and seen as one of the few people who could convince him to step down as the Democratic nominee. But she made it clear she was 'all in,' spending the day attacking Trump for his record on veterans and arguing the former president should not be in power. She told the military-heavy crowds that she and Joe Biden know what it's like to be in the armed services. Their late son Beau served in Afghanistan in the Delaware National Guard. 'This is personal for us. We know what it's like to connect with a lagging phone call from across the world, to smile through another holiday at the table. Let me ask you this: Does Donald Trump - does Donald Trump know what it's like?,' she said. She repeated the story of how Donald Trump called soldiers 'losers' and 'suckers' a story which Trump denies. 'He's evil,' she said in Georgia of the former president. 'He didn't want to be seen with injured veterans because it didn't look good for him. It's disgraceful. But it's not surprising,' she said. She also warned what would happen if Trump returned to the White House. 'Donald Trump wakes up every morning thinking of one person and one person only: himself,' she said. And she specifically mentioned the recent Supreme Court ruling that presidents have immunity while they are in office. 'We know what Donald Trump is like as commander-in-chief. He dismissed the military community diminished. America's leader ship around the world. It could be worse this time. He said he wants to be a dictator from day one,' she said. She noted the recent Supreme Court decision that ruled presidents have immunity from official actions while in office. 'Our democracy cannot stand a Trump presidency with virtually no limits,' she warned. The Biden family has circled the wagons around the president. Jill Biden and Hunter Biden are now acting as the presidents gatekeepers. The presidents sister, Valerie Biden Owens, is also standing by him. Owens ran Joe Bidens first Senate campaign and has been involved in every one of his campaigns since. She is his top political adviser. Jill, Hunter and Valerie are the three most important people in any decision Joe Biden makes about his future. He listens to them the most. They would need to give their blessing from him to exit the presidential race. They show no signs of doing so. The Biden clan gathered at Camp David last weekend for a pre-planned photo shoot with famed photographer Annie Leibovitz. But the main topic of conversation was Biden's disastrous debate performance against Trump. Both Jill Biden and President Biden have criticized Donald Trump for his comments on veterans, particularly on a report that he called them 'suckers' and 'losers.' Trump has denied those comments All the family urged Bien to stay in the race. Jill Biden, in particular, points to all the family has had to endure during Joe Bidens time in the White House. She noted the prosecutor of Hunter Biden, NBC News reported, pointing out he could go to prison. The family and even some Republicans saw Hunters prosecution on a 2018 gun purchase as too much over reach. Jill Biden argued now was the time to fight. There is another reason the Bidens are digging in their heels. The family, particularly Jill Biden, remembers how Joe Biden was forced out of the 1988 presidential race after a plagiarism scandal. 'In 1987, she saw him be forced out by the press, pundits and polls, and it was really a scarring experience for both of them,' Michael LaRosa, the first lady's former press secretary, told the New York Times. He said had discussed the 1988 episode multiple times with the first lady when he worked for her. 'I think they learned from that experience and they weren't going to have their hands forced like they were in 1987.' Labour was accused of clearing the way for tax rises last night, after Rachel Reeves warned Britain's public finances are in the worst state since the Second World War. The new Chancellor issued a doom-laden warning about the 'spending inheritance' left behind by the Conservatives, whom she accused of years of 'economic irresponsibility'. And she revealed she has already commissioned Treasury officials to conduct a review of the public finances 'so that I can understand the full scale of the challenge'. Ms Reeves said she would set out the results later this month when she updates Parliament on the date of her first Budget, which is expected in September. Labour's manifesto pledged the party would not raise the headline rates on income tax, National Insurance or VAT. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has warned Britain's public finances are in the worst state since the Second World War Labour's manifesto pledged the party would not raise the headline rates on income tax, National Insurance or VAT But it left the door open to changes in a string of other taxes, including capital gains tax, inheritance tax and council tax. During the election campaign, Ms Reeves appeared to accept she would not be able to 'open the books' and say things are worse than she thought because 'we've got the Office for Budget Responsibility now', which publishes full details of the public finances. Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, said: 'The books are open. Everyone knows exactly the problems a new government will inherit.' But Ms Reeves yesterday suggested that her first 72 hours in the job had convinced her the situation might be worse than it seemed. In her first major speech as Chancellor to business leaders at the Treasury, she said: 'I have repeatedly warned that whoever won the General Election would inherit the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War,' she said. 'What I have seen in the past 72 hours has only confirmed that our economy has been held back by decisions deferred and decisions ducked, political self-interest put ahead of the national interest. 'A Government that put party first and country second.' She added: 'That is why over the weekend I instructed Treasury officials to provide an assessment of our spending inheritance so that I can understand the full scale of the challenge.' A Tory party spokesman accused the Chancellor of preparing the ground for swingeing tax rises. The Tories have accused the Chancellor of preparing the ground for swingeing tax rises 'Rachel Reeves herself said you don't need to win an election to find out the state of the public finances, admitting that with the OBR, there is already detailed public scrutiny of the country's finances,' the spokesman said. 'We warned that Labour would attempt this ruse as a cause to raid pensions and raise taxes. It is now clear that is coming to pass, and the British people will pay the price.' A Treasury source denied that Ms Reeves was already plotting a new tax raid, saying her speech was focused on the need to boost economic growth in order to meet future spending needs without raising taxes. In her speech, the Chancellor said economic growth was the 'only route to the improved prosperity'. She also took a swipe at union barons who are already urging her to open the spending taps. Unite union boss Sharon Graham urged her to scrap Labour's tight fiscal rules and pour tens of billions into Britain's 'crumbling public services'. But Ms Reeves said she did not agree with those arguing that, now the election is won, 'the time for caution is over'. She said her borrowing rules would remain in place, adding: 'I know that many of you aren't used to hearing this after recent years, but I believe that the promises that a party is elected on should be delivered on in government.' Meanwhile, Tony Blair will warn today that Britain is facing 'an unenviable triple whammy of high taxes, heavy debt and poor outcomes' unless ministers embrace the use of artificial intelligence in the public sector. He said AI could generate annual savings of 10 billion by the end of the Parliament and 35 billion in a decade and said failure to embrace the technology would leave the UK 'much poorer'. Cases of whooping cough, the flu and gastroentiritis have surged, with young children particularly hard hit by the wave of illness which is putting 'unprecedented' pressure on some hospitals. The winter peak is still yet to be reached in northern Australia popular with holiday-makers, prompting a leading general practitioner to urge everyone to get an influenza vaccination. More than 170,000 influenza cases have been confirmed so far in 2024, with 29 per cent of them in children under nine years of age. Infections in 2024 are already 27 per cent higher than the first six months of 2023. Those figures do not give a complete picture as many people do not get tested, according to Royal College of General Practitioners rural chair Michael Clements. He said cases are likely to climb as the winter virus peak hits warmer areas in August and September. 'We certainly are concerned that this is going to continue to increase and potentially overwhelm the hospital systems,' the Townsville GP told AAP. His comments echo NSW Health Minister Ryan Park, who reported 'unprecedented' demand on emergency departments in his state due to a 30 per cent jump in flu cases, combined with fewer GPs working in the community. Victoria's health department warns vaccine coverage of influenza remains 'low' in all age groups including children, despite a sixfold increase in emergency department presentations due to the flu from April to June. Doctors and health authorities urge people to get vaccinated as infectious diseases surge in winter Dr Clements said COVID-19 infections could have lowered immunity to influenza, and reduced herd immunity across the population. He also cited more international travel and people going to work while unwell - two factors that were greatly reduced during Covid lockdowns - as factors that spread illness. Cases of pertussis, known as whooping cough, have already surged past pre-pandemic levels to more than 12,900 so far in 2024, which is four times the number of total infections in 2023. More than 60 per cent of cases have been in children under 14, with NSW health warning of 'unseasonably high' infections of whooping cough and pneumonia in school-aged children. It can be deadly for babies, with Dr Clements noting many infants and adult patients with whooping cough have also tested positive to several other viruses at the same time like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) or COVID-19. 'These are spikes, we certainly have to acknowledge that they are big increases on the last years,' he said. 'What's hard to know is how to interpret it, so whether or not we're just interpreting a return to normal behaviour post COVID.' Winter lurgies are back with a vengeance and doctors are concerned about an "explosion" of illness Cases of a particular gastroenterisis strain have also already tripled the 2023 total, surging to more than 11,700. Cryptosporidiosis is spread by a parasite in some swimming pools, and anyone with symptoms is advised to stay out of the water for at least four weeks as they could still be shedding the virus, which can survive chlorine. Dr Clements is concerned about what he described as the 'massive explosion' in preventable illness and said he has noticed fewer campaigns from the federal government encouraging people to get jabbed. 'We can't look into the crystal ball and say whether we're at the peak now or whether we'll have another one,' he said. 'It's never too late to get a vaccine.' They're really trying it, aren't they? President Joe Biden and his Inner Circle Delusionists are hoping to brazen it out and prop up this past-its-expiry-date presidency. In the process, they're proving themselves to be everything they've ever leveled at Donald Trump: out-of-touch, a sore loser, anti-democracy. Mad King Joe just won't quit. As he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in Friday's primetime interview, 'if the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me' only then will he consider stepping back from the ticket. Maybe. Snap polls following the CNN debate disaster in the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal both show Trump pulling to a six-point national lead. Reports suggest that Democratic party internal polling is even worse. One leaked survey has Biden losing Virginia, New Mexico, and New Hampshire (he won all three comfortably in 2020). Meanwhile, party officials are privately at least tearing themselves apart, with a handful of senior figures breaking rank and publicly calling for Joe to go. President Joe Biden and his Inner Circle Delusionists are hoping to brazen it out and prop up this past-its-expiry-date presidency. In the process, they're proving themselves to be everything they've ever leveled at Donald Trump: out-of-touch, a sore loser, anti-democracy. Big donors Netflix's co-founder Reed Hastings and Disney heiress Abigail Disney among them are slowly raising the alarm, along with big-beast lefties like Stephen King. As of writing, nine House Democrats all on the ballot in November and worried about their own electoral prospects have spoken out. That number will only grow. While nowhere near as injurious as the CNN debate, the Stephanopoulos interview has clearly failed to move the needle. As one senior House Dem not brave enough to be named told Reuters late Friday: 'I don't see how he lasts the week as the nominee.' And yet Biden is digging in, seemingly comfortable to gaslight everyone even his own party. As he told Stephanopoulos, he'd happily take the side down with him. Stephanopoulos: 'If you stay in and Trump is elected how will you feel in January?' Biden: 'I'll feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest [sic] job as I know I can do, that's what this is about.' Lawmakers returned to Capitol Hill on Monday after the July 4 recess to find a letter in their inboxes from the man himself. 'I am firmly committed to staying in this race,' Biden reiterated in a typically over-long screed, before dragging himself out of bed to rant and rave from the bunker on an incoherent phone-in with his pals on MSNBC's 'Morning Joe'. 'I'm more than the presumptive [nominee], I'm going to be the Democratic nominee,' he told a stunned Mika Brzezinski. Hours later, reports emerged that an expert on Parkinson's disease visited the White House eight times between last July and this March. How do we know this? Because the White House's own publicly released visitor log says so. Yet, when asked repeatedly about it by reporters on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre flatly refused for 'security reasons' to 'share names of [medical] specialists'. It was a particularly novel tactic in the on-going Biden ill-health cover-up, since the expert's name Dr Kevin Cannard is 'shared' clearly in the White House's public records. Last week, KJP tried insisting that Biden's poor debate performance was down to the combination of a bad 'cold' and 12-day old 'jetlag'. Do these people take us for fools? Mad King Joe just won't quit. As he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in Friday's primetime interview, 'if the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me' only then will he consider stepping back from the ticket. (Pictured: in Atlanta with Trump at last month's CNN debate). He is digging in, seemingly comfortable to gaslight everyone - even his own party. (Pictured: with his wife, Jill). Biden's Chief of Staff Jeff Zients certainly does. He held an all-staff call last Wednesday in which he took no questions and fobbed off worried employees, saying: 'Put your heads down hold your heads high.' He may as well have told them to brush up their resumes. Last Monday, Biden called a brief press conference supposedly to make comments on the Supreme Court's Trump immunity ruling that day, but really just to prove that he could still read off the teleprompter after 8pm. To make the president appear less cadaver-like, his makeup team sent him out looking even more orange than Trump himself. Old Joe, who just weeks ago was lecturing us to question neither judge nor jury in Trump's hush money case, shifted gears to criticize the 'Court's attack [on] the rule of law in this nation'. He said that no one should be 'a king above the law' and that there are now 'virtually no limits on what a president can do'. Truer words. In the debate with Trump who he calls a 'congenital liar' Biden claimed no American troops have been killed on his watch. The families of the 13 service men and women who died during the US's botched Afghanistan withdrawal beg to differ and the American public have had enough. We deserve, for instance, to know more about Joe's shrinking circle of hangers-on his crackhead felon son and Vogue covergirl wife at their helm who may or may not be running the country. The 'impenetrable group of enablers', as one insider described them to Politico, who keep him 'isolated' like a feeble monarch holed up in his throne room. The Mad King's media bag-handlers at the New York Times and CNN have finally given up the ghost, openly now accepting what the rest of us have known for months: Joe can't go on. Yet this administration backed by shameless bigwigs like Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton cannot, will not give in, hoarsely screeching their message to stay in line behind Biden. Even if that line increasingly resembles a funeral procession. A woman sobbed yesterday as she told of her 'shame' after the former head of Britain's police watchdog allegedly raped her when she was 14. Michael Lockwood, ex-director general of the Independent Office for Police Conduct, is accused of abusing two 14-year-old girls 40 years ago. The Old Bailey heard Lockwood, then a lifeguard, led one of them to the storeroom of a leisure centre, where he allegedly raped her. In a video interview shown in court, she fought back tears as she told police: 'I was a virgin... never kissed a boy. When I went into the room... I had no idea what was going to happen.' The woman, now in her 50s, claims Lockwood, 65, thrust his hand in her underwear before raping her. Michael Lockwood, ex-director general of the Independent Office for Police Conduct, is accused of abusing two 14-year-old girls 40 years ago The Old Bailey heard Lockwood, then a lifeguard, led one of them to the storeroom of a leisure centre, where he allegedly raped her She said: 'He was taking advantage of me. He was always in control.' Lockwood, then aged around 26, is accused of raping the girl in the storeroom on multiple occasions in the mid-1980s, leading her to fear she may be pregnant. She told officers: 'I remember what happened and I remember the shame.' She said Lockwood was 'aware of my age', and claimed he would give her lifts home in his Ford Capri, but never drop her at her front door as he didn't want her parents to know what he was doing. Fearing she would get in trouble and others would be 'disgusted', she recalled: 'I thought, I can't tell anyone.' Earlier, jurors were told that at the time of the alleged rape, Lockwood was dating another victim he previously assaulted. He is accused of grooming her six years earlier, pulling her into the toilets of the leisure centre near Hull to fondle her breasts. The pair later began a sexual relationship when she was 16, which ended when she discovered that he was engaged. Lockwood, of Epsom,Surrey, left the IOPC when the allegations surfaced in 2022. He denies three rapes and 14 indecent assaults on two girls between 1979 and 1986. He told police he had no memory of the complainant. Trial continues. Rachel Reeves yesterday paved the way for the construction of thousands of wind turbines as she vowed to 'get Britain building again'. In her first set-piece speech as Chancellor, Ms Reeves ditched a nine-year ban on new onshore wind farms as she declared war on the planning system. The ban was imposed by then PM David Cameron after a backlash in rural communities. But Ms Reeves described the ban as 'absurd' and warned it would hinder progress towards Labour's bid to make the UK a 'clean-energy superpower'. Minutes after she finished her speech at the Treasury, guidance was issued to local authorities lifting the ban. In her first set-piece speech as Chancellor, Rachel Reeves ditched a nine-year ban on new onshore wind farms as she declared war on the planning system New onshore wind farms were banned nine years ago by then PM David Cameron after a backlash in rural communities The move could clear the way for the construction of more than 10,000 wind turbines by the end of the decade, as Labour pursues its target of decarbonising the electricity grid by 2030. Ms Reeves also confirmed she will impose mandatory housing targets on councils in a push to build 300,000 homes a year. The decision could put her on a collision course with new Labour MPs in parts of southern England where development has been a political flashpoint. Former Tory energy minister Sir John Hayes said: 'Offshore wind farms are far more efficient there is no case for moving back onshore.' The Justice Secretary is expected to announce plans to release 'several thousand' criminals later this week in a high-risk move to tackle the prison overcrowding crisis. Shabana Mahmood is likely to bring in new measures which will see a large number of offenders effectively handed a 'get out of jail free' card. The emergency measures are expected to allow convicts to be automatically released after serving 40 per cent of their sentence, rather than the current 50 per cent. Prison sources said the move - which is likely to require final sign-off by Prime Minister Keir Starmer - will be designed to free several thousand inmates early over coming months. It comes after Sir Keir attacked the Tories at the weekend for leaving the penal system in a 'mess'. Shabana Mahmood (pictured) is likely to bring in new measures which will see a large number of offenders effectively handed a 'get out of jail free' card. Sir Keir Starmer attacked the Tories at the weekend for leaving the penal system in a 'mess' Last October, Conservative ministers introduced a scheme allowing inmates serving up to four years in jail to be released early and in May the maximum discount was increased to 70 days But backing a wider prisoner release scheme risks the party being accused of being 'soft on crime' despite its manifesto pledges to improve the criminal justice system. One prisons leader told the Mail that the Justice Secretary needs to release up to 4,000 criminals to create 'breathing space' in the packed jails. Mark Fairhurst, chairman of the Prison Officers Association, said: 'I think they should be aiming for 3,000 to 4,000. That would give us some breathing space.' There are currently 700 spare places in adult male jails which are likely to see the system through to early autumn, he added, if the number being jailed by the courts follows normal patterns and dips during August. Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, during a visit to meet police officers in Lewisham, south-east London, yesterday MON, said: 'I'm extremely concerned with the legacy that the Conservatives have left us with on prisons. 'They have allowed the number of remand prisoners, of people waiting for trial, to increase because of the chaos and the backlog in the criminal justice system. 'All of those things are going to need to be addressed and to be fixed, and the Prime Minister has said there isn't going to be a quick fix, but we're going to have to deal with the legacy that we inherit.' She said the previous government had been 'totally irresponsible' in its management of the jail system. Last October, Conservative ministers introduced a scheme allowing inmates serving up to four years in jail to be released early. By May the maximum discount had been increased to 70 days. Lower-level violence criminals were eligible under the scheme but the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has refused to release details of the numbers and types of offenders who have been released. Further increases to 80 or 90 days are believed to have been considered as part of a range of options handed to Ms Mahmood. But a blanket 40 per cent discount is understood to be favoured, partly because it avoids immediately freeing offenders who have been handed short-term sentences by the courts. The prison population in England and Wales stood at 87,453 on Friday. By comparison, the number was 44,000 when then Conservative home secretary Michael Howard delivered his famous 'prison works' speech - championing use of custodial sentences - in 1993. MoJ data says the 'usable operational capacity' in the jails is 88,864, indicating about 1,400 spaces are available. However, some of these will be in women's or open prisons, while key pressures are in the adult male estate. Holidaymakers stranded at Heathrow have hunkered down for the night in the terminal after storms across the Atlantic forced dozens of flights to be cancelled. Photos show passengers in Terminal 5 trying to get some sleep on the hard plastic chairs as many were not able to stay in the hotel opposite. Holidaymakers were spotted surrounded by their luggage and trollies in an otherwise deserted terminal as they settled down for the night. Torrential rain has been blamed a flight meltdown at Gatwick and Heathrow on Sunday into Monday that left more than 125 planes grounded. It came after two British Airways aircraft were struck by lightning within hours of each other. W as YOUR flight hit by cancellations? Email: olivia.christie@mailonline.co.uk Stranded passengers hunker down for the night in the terminal after dozens of flights were cancelled Holidaymakers were spotted surrounded by their luggage and trollies in an as they settled down for the night The check-in area was deserted after the desks closed this evening Holidaymakers stuck in Terminal 5 at Heathrow this evening Passengers camped out on the hard plastic chairs after the check-in desks closed on Monday Hurricane Beryl has cut a deadly and devastating path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean, leaving at least 11 people dead and flattening entire islands before striking Texas on Monday morning. 10,000 holidaymakers were left stranded after airlines axed flights in reaction to the weather being 'upside down', with British Airways scrapping 51 fights due to operate to or from Heathrow on Sunday, and a further 31 on Monday. Several airlines also cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. Speaking about the delays, aviation expert Julian Bray told MailOnline: 'Hurricane Beryl - this is the big thing happening in Texas at the moment. 'And basically the whole weather system at the moment, as you know it's been raining quite a lot lately. The weather is completely upside down at the moment.' Explaining why so many planes ended up being cancelled, he added: 'It's like a row of dominoes. If one of the dominoes falls over, then all the other dominoes fall over, and that causes all the delays and the backups.' Passengers were hit by a double whammy of rail delays after a signalling failure on the Thameslink line yesterday morning. EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays.' Furious travellers slammed the airlines on social media and questioned why other carriers flying the 'same route, same day' have not cancelled flights. EasyJet axed flights from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice alongside flights to Belfast and Edinburgh. The terminal appeared deserted after the check-in desks closed A passenger inside Terminal 5 at Heathrow on Monday evening following flight cancellations The check-in desk area appeared deserted following cancellations on Sunday and Monday A female passengers sites inside Terminal 5 at Heathrow on Monday evening with her luggage Passengers hunker down on the black plastic chairs inside Terminal 5 Passengers were stranded due to flight delays and cancellations Hurricane Beryl has cut a deadly and devastating path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean, leaving at least 11 people dead and flattening entire islands before striking Texas this morning 10,000 holidaymakers were left stranded after airlines axed flights in reaction to the weather being 'upside down'. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon Several airlines cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday EasyJet confirmed 'some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays'. Pictured: File image London 's two busiest airports went into a meltdown yesterday after easyJet grounded 32 flights at Gatwick and BA axed another 32 at Heathrow. Pictured: File image Furious travellers slammed the airlines on social media and questioned why other carriers flying the 'same route, same day' have not cancelled flights. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon BA cancelled round trips to Rome alongside routes to Naples, Barcelona and Cyprus. Pictured: Gatwick this afternoon Passengers took to social media to slam easyJet and British Airways for the travel chaos And BA cancelled round trips to Rome alongside routes to Naples, Barcelona and Cyprus. Only one flight was cancelled at Manchester and London Stansted - the country's third and fourth largest airports. One person said on X: '@easyJet Why is the @TUIUK flight, same route, same day, not cancelled then? Baffling how easyJet alone suffers so many of these 'beyond control' cancellations? Could it in fact be pilot/ crew shortage per chance??' However, easyJet told the traveller that 'many factors come together that can lead to our flights being disrupted it's never just one thing. If it is due to something that is outside our control or pilot/crew shortage we need to state it as such.' Others revealed how their flights were cancelled as they waited at the gate to board the plane. British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Pictured: A passenger shared this image, which they said was taken from the flight A map showed the flight's route travelling on a smooth course before suddenly circling and zigzagging away from Heathrow Another said: '@easyJet absolutely terrible. Flight from Gatwick to Munich Friday 5th July cancelled after we were all at the gate. After only 1 hour delay told the crew were out of hours, really! We were left stranded. Thanks @premierinn for finding us a room. #easyJet #airline fail'. A third person, who this time directed their anger at BA, said: '@British_Airways you cancelled my flight with a few hours noticed causing me to miss a job interview and more importantly my brothers birthday. 'You offered me a 10h Stopover flight the next day instead of my original 2hr30 flight to Heathrow. Please respond to my ticket!' A fourth said: 'To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace! Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation!' British Airways blamed the weather for their delays - after a night when two aircraft were struck by lightning. Both planes had to be taken out of service while the company's staff carry out safety checks. A spokesperson said: 'Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines we've had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. 'We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today.' And a spokesperson for easyJet added: 'easyJet operated around 1800 flights yesterday and is operating a similar number today however some flights yesterday evening and three flights from London Gatwick this morning have unfortunately been disrupted due to the knock-on impact of adverse weather yesterday and air traffic control delays. 'While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused and are providing impacted customers with hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight.' And a London Gatwick spokesperson said: 'Poor weather, including numerous thunderstorms across the UK and much of Europe, caused some delays at the airport yesterday afternoon (Sunday 7 July). Flights are operating as normal this morning with no further delays.' While low-budget carrier Ryanair has made no cancellations although it did apologise to customers for some delays due to 'repeated air-traffic control staff shortages'. It reads: 'Ryanair, Europe's No.1 airline, on Mon 8 Jul apologised to its passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today Mon 8 Jul which are affecting all European airlines. 'ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being five per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated 'staff shortages'. 'On Mon 8 Jul, 21 per cent of Ryanair's first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC 'staff shortages'. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. 'We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanair's control.' British Airways has been contacted for comment. It marks yet another issue after a summer where families trying to get away for the summer have been hit by delays at airports. In late June Heathrow was left in chaos after an IT allocation failure in British Airways' systems left passengers stranded on planes and facing hours of delays collecting their luggage. The UK's busiest airport revealed passengers travelling from Terminal 5 'may be impacted' by the failure in BA's Allocation systems, adding that no other airline has been affected. Video from the Terminal showed massive queues of stricken travellers forming across the airport, as passengers struggled to correctly find their luggage. Footage from inside the transport hub showed enormous queues forming outside BA's baggage claim area in the terminal, as well as the customer assistance desk in the arrivals' area. Customers unleashed their fury as they shared horror stories about trying to calm children having panic attacks and waiting for hours, with one branding the UK a 'third world country'. Just days later stranded holidaymakers hit out at 'disgusting' services after Gatwick Airport suspended all their flights. Passengers faced massive delays, last-minute diversions to other London airports and missed connections after a Boeing 777 British Airways flight had to make an emergency stop on the runway due to 'having hot brakes'. It sparked chaos for thousands of Brits hoping to kick summer off with a holiday as any flights due to take off or land at the airport were temporarily suspended. The home of an elderly woman believed to have been murdered and dumped in a wheelie bin remains deserted days after the tragic discovery. Homicide detectives established a crime scene at the Coolaroo home, in Melbourne's north, on Saturday after her body was found at a rubbish tip. Detectives believe the woman's remains were put inside a bin that was picked up from the woman's Hilgay Street home by a garbage truck on Tuesday. On Monday, a lone detective was spotted entering the house through the front door. He was seen closing an open window at the front of the home before leaving about 10 minutes later. Victoria Police refused to comment on the investigation on Monday, telling Daily Mail Australia detectives are continuing to probe the tragedy. Apart from teams of media representatives, no-one was seen visiting the property on Monday. Nor did anyone attend to leave floral tributes, which have become routine at other similar tragedies. A detective attended the Coolaroo home on Monday and was seen closing the front window, which had been left wide open to the elements. One neighbour told Daily Mail Australia the neighbourhood remained in shock following the suspected murder. 'We've never seen anything like this out here. It's just awful,' the man said after pulling over in his vehicle to chat. The scene outside the home was a far cry from the community response to the death of Chaithanya 'Swetha' Madhagani. Ms Madhagani's body had also been stuffed into a wheelie bin found on Mount Pollock Road in Buckley, west of Geelong, on March 8. Her death sparked an outpouring of emotion from the community, with friends gathering to honour her in Point Cook, where she lived. Coolaroo residents have provided mixed reports as to the identity of the latest bin victim, with different accounts placing her age at anywhere between her late 40s to early 80s. One man claimed the woman had only lived at the property for about two months. The neighbourhood is situated a stone's throw from working class Broadmeadows, with government housing accounting for the majority of Hilgay Street. Detectives attended the Hilgay Street home on Saturday (pictured) after a woman's body was picked up by a garbage truck Chaithanya 'Swetha' Madhagani's body was found in a wheelie bin in March The wheelie bin that contained the body of Chaithanya 'Swetha' Madhagani Other neighbours claimed they saw a man's car parked in the driveway of the murder house and had seen a man taking out the bins in the days before the body was found. One woman said she had only spoken to the murdered woman about what day the bins were collected. None of her neighbours knew her name or anything about her. The woman is the 48th killed in Australia this year, which has infuriated Australians across the country. 'Why will the government not acknowledge the war on women in this country?' one angry woman posted to social media. 'Call it what it is - domestic terrorism. Stop funding wars overseas and start addressing the enormous cost of violence against women.' Another wrote: 'You get more jail for speaking the truth than for killing your wife and family - it is disgusting.' Waste management staff located the body while moving green waste at the Cooper Street tip in Epping on Wednesday The woman is yet to be formally identified, with detectives waiting for the results of a post-mortem investigation. Police continue to canvass the area for CCTV footage and are keen to speak to anyone who may have it or dashcam footage captured between Sunday, June 23 and Tuesday, July 2. Detectives are also keen to speak to anyone who may have witnessed anything suspicious in the area around that time. Staff at an Epping tip on Cooper St contacted police after they found the woman's body, which detectives believe was in a bin picked up outside her home that day. Detectives also inspected a brick home 100m down the street from where the victim lived. The owners of that home are believed to have travelled overseas last month and have not yet returned. On Saturday, officers were seen inspecting grass clippings from the home next door to that property. Anyone with information on the Coolaroo incident should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Aussies faced with ridiculously high property prices are coming up with creative ways to make the most of a market that shows no signs of slowing down. Arianne Endrizzi, 35, a married mother with two young kids, bought an investment property at Redland Bay, southeast of Brisbane, with her 70-year-old mum Susan Putnam in June 2022. 'It was an answer to a problem,' she told Daily Mail Australia. 'It was more "can we help each other out?" and "how can we support each other and move forward with our goals?".' Ms Putnam faced being unable to access the full pension after selling a two-bedroom unit at Hornsby, in Sydney's north, for $730,000. The family home, or someone's principal place of residence, is exempt from the assets test for those on the pension but with money in the bank, Ms Putnam was only able to get a part pension. To get around this, mum and daughter jointly paid $195,500 each for a $391,000 block of land at Redland Bay, with land having lower stamp duty than a house and land package. Together, they then spent another $285,970 building a four-bedroom house with two bathrooms. Arianne Endrizzi, 35, a married mother with two young kids, bought an investment property at Redland Bay, south-east of Brisbane , with her mother Susan Putnam, 70, in June 2022 (they are pictured with baby Aurora) They divided the total cost of $676,970 in half, with Ms Putnam putting $338,500 into the Redland Bay property and the rest of her savings into a house in north Queensland's Atherton Tablelands so she would have money in both an investment property and a principal place of residence. Ms Endrizzi, who grew up in Sydney, borrowed $180,000 towards the land and house in Redland Bay, and used her savings to fund the rest - with the property now on the market with a weekly asking rent of $725. Property investment is now Ms Endrizzi's full-time job with the mother-of-two living in a house at Palm Cove, north of Cairns. She also has investment properties at Red Cliffs near Mildura in north-west Victoria, another at nearby Nangiloc, a house at Burpengary north of Brisbane and Yarrabilba south of Brisbane. 'Be creative in the way you gather a deposit - the emergence of financial content on platforms like podcasts, social media, YouTube and books provide valuable information to help give people ideas,' she said. The mother and daughter divided in half the total cost of $676,970 to build the house at Redland Bay, southeast of Brisbane Ms Endrizzi borrowed $180,000 towards the cost of the Redland Bay land and house and used her savings to fund the rest of it Australia's median home price of $793,883 is beyond the reach of an average, full-time worker earning $98,218. That's because banks can't lend someone more than 5.2 times their salary, limiting the typical worker to a $600,000 home even if they had a 20 per cent deposit. The middle market house price in every capital city, except Darwin, is now unattainable for a single, average-income earner unless they were able to buy with a spouse, relative or friend. AMP chief economist Shane Oliver said Baby Boomers were now typically helping their kids buy a home so they didn't have to wait for them to die to get an inheritance. 'The Baby Boomers and some Gen X are benefiting from the prices - they're in a bit of a position from a wealth perspective to hand some money to their kids now rather than wait for inheritance to do it,' he said. James Kirkland, the executive general manager of sales at Little Real Estate, said had had never seen so many buyers were turning to the 'Bank of Mum and Dad' during his two decades in the business. A Melbourne mum has discovered it's cheaper to fly to Bali and get dental work done while on holiday than seek treatment in Australia during the cost-of-living crisis. Routine dental procedures like a clean are two-thirds cheaper in Bali compared to Australia. With airfares and resort-style accommodation thrown in, a Bali holiday is the same price as an annual dental visit and private health insurance in Australia. Kirstin Edwards, 38, has travelled annually to Bali for a holiday since 2016 - with the exception of 2020 and 2021 when Covid border closures were enforced - and during these trips had her routine dental work done. 'We've been to Bali seven times now and most of those trips we've had dental treatment,' she told Daily Mail Australia. The businesswoman, who also raises a 12-year-old stepson with her builder husband Tom Gatiss, 37, says that by ditching private health insurance, she can fund a one- to three-week holiday in Bali that includes a trip to the dentist. 'Rather than paying that private health every month, we put that money towards the family holiday, which makes great memories,' she said. 'In a high-stress environment, it's incredibly important to have something to look forward to.' A Melbourne mum has discovered it's cheaper to fly to Bali and get dental work done while on holiday than seek treatment in Australia during the cost-of-living crisis Ms Edwards, who markets children's travel diaries online, joked that even visiting a dentist could be enjoyable if it came with a Bali holiday. 'Maybe you don't look forward to that part [dental work] but the rest of the holiday is pretty fantastic - it doesn't bother me going to the dentist,' she said. 'It's like one or two days out of your whole holiday.' In Bali, a scale, clean, check-up and Botox to treat TMJ disorder, or teeth clenching, typically costs $400 - or a third the $1,300 Ms Edwards was paying in Melbourne. Private health hospital and extras coverage for families typically costs $4,000 a year and is the kind of money that could be spent on return airfares and resort-style accommodation for just $60 to $150 a night - a fraction of what it costs in Australia. 'If you want really luxurious accommodation, it's still significantly cheaper,' she said. Ms Edwards, who goes to the Rejuvie clinic at Sanur, said dentists in Bali she had used had been trained in Singapore and the United States, adding she had experience no problems with her treatment. Kirstin Edwards, 38, has travelled annually to Bali for a holiday since 2016 - with the exception of 2020 and 2021 when Covid border closures were enforced - and during these trips had her routine dental work done The businesswoman says that by ditching private health insurance, she can fund a one- to three-week holiday in Bali that includes a trip to the dentist 'Way back when, when I first went, I was definitely a little apprehensive but when I found out that our dentist at the time had their training in Singapore and America, I felt very comfortable,' she said. When asked if she would also trust a Bali dentist with more complex procedures like X-rays, wisdom teeth removal, root canal surgery or crowns, she said: 'Yes, a thousand per cent I would.' Her only advice is to visit the Bali dentist early on in the trip in case a follow-up visit is required. 'I always encourage people, when I speak to them, to go on the first one or two days of their holiday - that way if you need extensive work done, you've got time to have it facilitated,' she said. The Australian Dental Association discourages 'dental tourism' because patients who receive treatment overseas are not able to seek redress or take their dentist to a health ombudsman if they are unsatisfied. Ms Edwards, who markets children's travel diaries online, joked that even visiting a dentist could be enjoyable if it came with a Bali holiday Furthermore, complications from dental treatment while overseas are not always covered by travel insurance. The ADA also warns: 'Language and culture differences may mean the practitioner who treats you may not fully understand what you want or accurately determine what you need to solve your dental problems.' Families on a combined income of $186,000 have to pay a Medicare levy surcharge of up to 1.5 per cent if they don't have private health insurance. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has been slammed for carrying on with his business trip to Asia while Hurricane Beryl batters his state. Monday morning, Hurricane Beryl came on shore as a category 1 storm, dumping at least 10 inches of water on Houston. With winds stronger than 90 mph, as many as 2.7 million people in the great Houston area were left without power and two people have been killed. But Abbott was nowhere to be seen as emergency responders raced to save lives. He was bone dry seven thousand miles away rubbing shoulders with Korean businessmen and dignitaries in Taiwan as part of the trip to boost Texas's 'relations' with Asia. Texas' governor is being criticized for not canceling an economic tour to Asia while his state braced for a hurricane Beryl slammed into Houston this week with 80mph winds and torrential rain that left some motorists stranded '#AsianAbbott is taking "leadership" cues from #CancunCruz. And this trip is the ABSOLUTE LEAST productive use of OUR TAX DOLLARS for Texas,' tweeted @HKR30754663. 'Asia Abbott is a comparison to the nickname given to US Senator Ted Cruz of Texas in 2021. He notoriously fled the Lone Star State during the worst freeze in state history that killed over 700 people state wide. Cruz was then called 'Cancun Cruz.' Unlike Cruz, Abbott was on state business abroad. He left Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick in charge as state preparations for Beryl began last week. Abbott's has already made stops in South Korea and Taiwan, and had planned to also visit Japan. Abbott has been on a multi-day economic trip in Asia As 2.7 million Texans were left without power due to massive flooding, many were wondering why Abbott had decided to carry on with a business trip to Asia instead of staying in Austin to direct the emergency response to Beryl. 'Read the room,' one social media user responded to Abbott's posts about his trips. Many in the Houston area were stuck at home without power Monday. 'My power went out in Galveston in the middle of the night and Im sure it will be out for days while we try to ride out the storm in 90+ degree heat and 100% humidity, but Im glad youre having a nice vacation,' @mollywwid tweeted. The mayor of Houston said he too was suffering through no having no power and air conditioning along with millions of others in +90 degree heat and sweltering humidity. 'I do not have power. We're all living this together. We're all in this together.' At least two people died as a result of the storm, officials confirmed. Abbott's office did not immediately respond to the timing of his trip. 'I met with President @ChingteLai; signed an Economic Development Statement of Intent with Minister of Economic Affairs Jyh-Huei Kuo; AND announced the State of Texas Taiwan Office,' tweeted Abbott Abbott meeting with officials in Seoul However, his office did proudly announce he intended to open a Texas in Taiwan. None of the countries Abbott is visiting are his state's number one trading partner. Texas exported $129.5 billion in goods to Mexico in 2023, representing 29 percent of the state's total goods exports, according to government statistics. South Korea does ranks as the state's fourth largest trading partner. 'South Korea leads all nations for foreign direct investment by amount of total capital investment in Texas over the last decade,' the governor's office said in a press release. 'Over the past 10 full years through 2023, companies from South Korea have invested $20.59 billion in 38 projects creating more than 7,000 jobs in Texas. Scientists have discovered a hidden source of pollution in Los Angeles that contributes about 60 percent to the toxins in city air during the summer months. The new study led by the University of California, Berkley found that the over 10 million trees throughout LA are releasing harmful compounds that react to form 'smog,' which can cause allergic reactions or organ damage in high concentrations. Worse, many of these emissions are released when vegetation endures hot temperatures, which triggers them to release the compounds as a way to cope meaning the issue could magnify as climate change smashes heat wave records. Researchers are now urging California officials to rethink their climate change efforts, including which species of trees and shrubs to plant to green up the city. Today, 60 percent of the air pollution in Los Angeles comes from a surprising source: plants Even just trace exposures to smog has been linked to increased risks of heart attack, stroke, atrial fibrillation and pneumonia in recent studies. The pollutant's lethal power in major US cities led to both the passage of the 1967 Air Quality Act and the 1970 Clean Air Act half a century ago. Traditionally, scientists have focused on the synthetic sources of smog, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and the chemical compounds that react in air to form them including ingredients in solvent-based paints, inks, and other products. But the new study, published this June in the journal Science, broadened its focus to explore how naturally produced VOCs, called terpenoids, are stored and expelled by so-called 'biogenic' sources like trees, plants, and soil deposits. Researchers surveyed the city via sensors mounted atop an aircraft to collect their VOC data: both the variety of different of VOCs and the amount of them in the air. The team discovered multiple unexpected biogenic sources including the region's citrus fruit-juicing and dairy-producing hubs as well as ethanol biofuel plants. In the presence of sunlight, VOCs react with nitrogen oxides (NOx) to cause smog or 'ground-level ozone,' which is harmful to human health and other living things. Both gasoline and diesel fuel release nitrogen during combustion, which latches onto oxygen in the air to create NOx: a now heavily regulated source of air pollution from automobiles, and the source of LA's infamous smog problem decades ago. Study co-author Dr Ronald Cohen, a chemistry professor and director of UC Berkeley's Atmospheric Sciences Center, told DailyMail.com that those successful car regulations are why the city's VOC pollution is now only 40 percent man-made. 'On a hot day 15 years ago,' Dr Cohen wrote via email, 'transportation emissions were higher than biogenics [i.e. plants].' 'Biogenics today are about the same on a hot day,' the Berkley chemist explained, 'but transportation emissions are now much lower.' A two-engine UV-18A Twin Otter research aircraft (above) equipped with micro-meteorological sensors ('inlet' above) was used by the scientists to collect data on the shifting amount and chemical make-up of the air pollution in Los Angeles across weather conditions Above, flight path's of the researchers' twin engine Otter as it collected and measured the concentration of four air pollution chemical in the atmosphere above LA 'In the context of ozone,' he added, 'it's probably more important that transportation emissions have decreased, revealing the existing emissions from the biosphere.' But despite this welcome news, the researchers' new study also found troubling spikes in the sheer volume of these naturally made 'biogenic terpenoid' VOCs in the air, specifically an increase in plant-based VOCs tied to high temperature days. Both ozone and other chemical byproducts of VOCs in the atmosphere, known as organic aerosols, were higher in Los Angeles during the summer, the authors found. Dr Cohen told DailyMail.com that this had as much to do with the increasing total number of heat waves per year as any particular record-breaking hot days. 'It's probably better to think of the number of hot days increasing separately from the maximum temperature,' he advised. 'Both have occurred.' Study co-author Dr Ronald Cohen, a chemistry professor and director of UC Berkeley's Atmospheric Sciences Center, told DailyMail.com that those successful car regulations are why the city's volatile organic compounds (VOCs) pollution is now only 40 percent man-made The natural plant biology of blooming season and a few specific non-native plants introduced to LA have also contributed to these unwelcome summer spikes in VOCs. Dr Cohen and his colleagues found that concentration rates for two plant-made VOCs monoterpene and sesquiterpene were higher in downtown Los Angeles than in the comparatively more lush San Bernardino Valley. While the researchers hold open the possibility that urban 'fragrance-related sources' may have added to those downtown numbers, they attributed part of the problem to VOC-emitting non-native trees like eucalyptus. Sometimes called 'California's Most Hated Tree,' whole groves of this primarily Australian genus of tree were planted in the state beginning in the 1850s, primary for firewood and as windbreakers along the region's dry arid landscape. 'If you go back to California farm journals of the 1870s, '80s, '90s,' historian Jared Farmer told public radio station KQED, 'there's just report after report of disappointment, like "these trees are no good."' 'Flowering' seasons for eucalyptus and some other key species, the scientists found, are expected to increase VOC emissions leading to 'high ozone and particle pollution events.' Within LA's San Joaquin Valley, the researchers also found spikes in VOC emissions linked to the state's famous orange groves, and its citrus processing facilities like juice factories and citrus packaging warehouses. Wildfire smoke - like this massive plume from LA's Sepulveda Boulevard on October 28, 2019 - also contribute to the plant-based VOC mix in the regions air pollution High ethanol emissions, another VOC, were found predictably from a 'green' ethanol biofuel plant in the valley as well. Both of these sources were identified with the aid of Google Maps data. The team's so-called airborne flux measurements were pulled via multiple flights across weather conditions of a two-engine UV-18A Twin Otter research aircraft equipped with micro-meteorological sensors. The Twin Otter, which is flown out of LA's Burbank airport by the Naval Postgraduate School, is of a kind typically used by commercial skydiving companies. Dr Cohen told DailyMail.com that any future regulatory action should both aggressively curb the NOx auto exhaust that reacts with these plant-based VOCs but a plan should also be in place to avoid needlessly adding species that release VOCs. 'Policy advice would be (a) focus on reducing NOx emissions because the trees, shrubs and etc. are already planted,' Dr Cohen said, 'and (b) seek the lowest VOC-emitting trees for new planting.' World-renowned psychologist and culture war crusader Dr Jordan Peterson is not afraid to voice his opinions however unpopular they may be. The Canadian academic has been both praised and criticized for his take on trans medical issues, COVID-19 travel restrictions and Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But his latest claim might be the most contrarian yet. In a podcast with UK politician Nigel Farage this week, Dr Peterson said burning fossil fuels was good for the environment. 'The influx of carbon dioxide from the fossil fuel industry into the atmosphere,' he said, 'is actually a net ecological good.' Dr Peterson pointed to NASA data that showed some parts of the planet are thriving: 'In the last 20 years alone, the planet has greened by an area factor of 20 percent,' he said during Wednesday's podcast. On his DailyWire+ program Dr Jordan Peterson told Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage this week that 'in the last 20 years alone, the planet has greened by an area factor of 20 percent' 'This is straight-up NASA data,' Dr Peterson said. 'I'm not making any of this up.' 'Not only has it got greener, and a lot greener, the places that got greener were primarily semi-arid areas,' Dr Peterson said, 'in fact, exactly the areas that the climate doomsayers said would turn into outright desert.' 'My view as a scientist who is capable of assessing data,' the psychologist said, 'is that... the planet is actually in a pretty severe carbon dioxide drought.' Despite pervasive global warming doctrine, a small but growing number of experts have spoken out against what they say is climate alarmism. Some, like Cambridge professor Mike Hulme, believe climate change is real, but that an overemphasis on curbing greenhouse gases has warped political priorities. But few have claimed that the fossil fuel industry has been a net positive for nature. DailyMail.com reached out to the scientists behind the NASA data alluded to by Dr Peterson. Their past and present responses offer a far different take on that data. Researchers with NASA's Ames Research Center and other scientists who work with the agency's satellite sensors, for example, did not attribute this greening of the desert or other 'semi-arid areas' to those regions' plants starving for the carbon dioxide released by fossil fuels. 'The effect comes mostly from ambitious tree-planting programs in China,' according to Abby Tabor, a spokesperson for NASA Ames. The discovery was first made public in 2019, when NASA Ames released images from the US space agency's Terra and Aqua satellites which showed that large swaths of the Asian country had become 16 percent greener between 2000 and 2017. For over two decades, both satellites have been in orbit equipped with MODIS, a sensitive tool for measuring the wavelengths of reflected sunlight and solar energy. NASA satellite data has shown that that China alone contributed an estimated 25 percent to the global net increase in green leafy area. 'The effect comes mostly from ambitious tree-planting programs in China,' according to Abby Tabor, a spokesperson for NASA Ames China's concerted geoengineering project had been, in part, a response to the expanding Gobi desert to its northeast, a spread hastened by climate change. 'Once people realize there is a problem,' as NASA climate scientist Dr Rama Nemani put it, 'they tend to fix it.' Dr Nemani specialized in remote sensing and ecological forecasting at NASA Ames for 18 years before his retirement in 2021, and coauthored a paper on both China and India's sprawling greening efforts for the journal Nature Sustainability in 2019. He and his colleagues found that China alone contributed an estimated 25 percent to the global net increase in green leafy area. But while China's reforestation efforts have greatly helped to combat air pollution, soil erosion and desertification within its own borders, their efforts alone have not been nearly enough to undo all the damage wrought by climate change. Earth has witnessed to two simultaneous events in the era of fossil fuel consumption: 'greening' areas, some caused by nature overtaking retreating glaciers, and 'browning' areas, often the scorching death of plants near the equator. But Dr. Nemani and his co-authors found that the majority these new green areas referred to by Dr Peterson's '20 percent' increase figure 'overlap with croplands.' Their study put numbers to what NASA called 'intensive agriculture' projects in both China and India, which they found increased food production 35 percent since the year 2000, via improved groundwater irrigation infrastructure and fertilizer use. 'In the 1970s and '80s in India and China, the situation around vegetation loss was not good,' Dr Nemani said. 'In the 1990s, people realized it, and today things have improved,' he said. 'Humans are incredibly resilient. That's what we see in the satellite data.' After a boom in natural greening due to greenhouse gasses in the 1980s and '90s, rising temperatures have now cancelled that out in the 21st Century, an international team of scientists found in 2019. Top, satellite data shows a flourishing in vegetation from 1982-1998 Above, satellite data shows the dramatic retreat or 'browning' of global vegetation from 1999-2015. Researchers said that rising temperature's effect on atmospheric water vapor has created an atmospheric vapor pressure deficit (VPD) that's killing plant's through dehydration But a more recent study by an international team of scientists indicates that any of the benefits to global vegetation due to either China and India's agricultural revolution or to carbon dioxide emissions have now taken a sharp turn for the worse. After a boom in natural greening due to greenhouse gasses in the 1980s and '90s, rising temperatures have now cancelled that out in the 21st Century, they wrote. The 'browning' trend according to these researchers from the US, UK, France, China, South Korea, Switzerland, Germany and Japan was documented via global satellite data also derived from NASA's MODIS. Their study, published in the journal Science Advances, showed a flourishing in vegetation from the years 1982-1998 that took a dramatic retreat from 1999-2015. As one of the study's lead authors, ecologist Dr Wenping Yuan from Peking University, told Newsweek, the mystery of this global plant death was hard to explain based on just temperature increases alone. Above, an aerial view of a forest fire in the Encontro das Aguas park in the Pantanal wetlands in Brazil on November 19, 2023. The severe drought in much of Brazil last year was caused by climate change and the expansion of agricultural crops, experts have said 'We noticed global vegetation growth decreases starting from the late 1990s. We tried to search for the causes [by looking at] temperature, precipitation and radiation,' Yuan said. 'However, we failed to find strong evidence.' The solution turned out to be the rising temperature's effect on atmospheric water vapor, which has created an atmospheric 'vapor pressure deficit' (VPD) that is literally killing plants through dehydration. 'Basically, if the water potential is larger in the atmosphere i.e. VPD is larger water will dissipate faster from the soil and plants,' Yuan said. 'It's like there's a pump in the air, and the pump extracts the water from the soil and plants via the vascular tissue. When the VPD increases,' the ecologist said, 'then the pump extracts the water faster and stronger.' NOAA estimated that the global average for carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere has cleared 419.3 ppm. 'The last time atmospheric carbon dioxide amounts were this high was roughly 3 million years ago, during the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period,' NOAA's Global Monitoring Lab Dr Peterson said that he based his assessment an epochal 'carbon dioxide drought' on 'historical standards over periods of millions of years, instead of thousands.' But data collected from air bubbles trapped deep within mile-thick ice core samples and other paleoclimate evidence appear to dispute this view. 'During the ice age cycles of the past million years or so,' according to reports by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 'atmospheric carbon dioxide never exceeded 300 ppm [parts per million].' 'The last time atmospheric carbon dioxide amounts were this high was roughly 3 million years ago,' NOAA's Global Monitoring Lab assessed, 'during the Mid-Pliocene Warm Period.' NOAA estimated that the global average for carbon dioxide in Earth's atmosphere as of 2023 has cleared 419.3 ppm. The agency noted that this was a 50 percent increase since the Industrial Revolution began in the mid-1700s, when carbon dioxide levels were at just 280 ppm or less. China's re-greening dates back to 1978 with an ambitious military program set to plant 100 billion trees across the country by 2050. Above, condos in 'Forest City,' a development project launched under China's Belt and Road Initiative in Malaysia photographed in September 2023 Wednesday's commentary was not the first time Dr Peterson's analysis on climate change and carbon emissions have brought him into conflict with US government's climate scientists, however. After his 2022 appearance on Joe Rogan's podcast, NASA climate scientist Gavin Schmidt blasted Dr Peterson for not knowing 'what the heck a climate model is.' For his part, Dr Peterson has accused his critics of being 'informed by the Club of Rome 'overpopulation' doomsayers,' in reference to the European non-profit group which he believes has engaged in an agenda-driven disinformation campaign. But it remains unclear how, if at all, a European nonprofit with annual revenue well under 2 million euros would manage to influence a US agency like NASA whose annual budget hovers in the billions, with $34.14 billion earmarked for 2024. To judge from NASA's own scientists, much of the world's successful 're-greening' has been the consequence of two of the world's largest countries by land mass, China and India, undertaking expensive, state-sanctioned efforts to grow vegetation. As DailyMail.com reported in 2014, China's re-greening dates back to 1978 with the ambitious military program to plant 100 billion trees across the country by 2050. Dubbed the Three-North Shelter Forest Program, or more commonly 'the Great Green Wall,' part of the project was to construct large strips of woodland to halt the expansion of the Gobi Desert, whose expansion has caused damaging dust storms. Some of China's cities, such as Beijing (shown in 2021), have spent years ravaged by dust storms that make their way South from the Gobi desert. China bet big on the idea that a 'Great Green Wall' tree-planting project will improve the quality of life for people in these cities For decades the Gobi Desert has been advancing and causing serious dust storms to key cities In 2018, in fact, a large detachment of China's People's Liberation Army, along with members of the armed police force, were withdrawn from their posts on the northern border to work on these non-military tasks inland. Contrary to the notion that the burning fossil fuels aided this process, which might have been true in the 1980s and '90s, any more carbon [CO2] emissions can only undermine these Manhattan Project-like greening efforts. 'The CO2 concentration in the atmosphere will increase if other conditions do not change,' as Dr Yuan put it, 'which will result in a stronger greenhouse gas effect.' 'Decreased rates of vegetation growth will reduce vegetation biomass inlandincluding crop yields, herbage yields, forest biomass stock, etc. which will reduce the supply to human society.' A cold, rainy summer might not be much to look forward to, but experts now say Britons should enjoy it while they can. This interactive map developed by scientists from the University of Maryland lets you take a terrifying glimpse into the scorching future of your city in 60 years' time. Already, more than half of the planet is expected to shift into new climate zones by the end of the century. Experts predict that London's summers will become 4.6C (8.3F) warmer and 10 per cent drier - giving the city the same climate as the South of France. Lead researcher Matthew Fitzpatrick, of the University of Maryland, says: 'Everything is moving towards the equator in terms of the climate that's coming for you.' This interactive map offers a terrifying glimpse into Earth's scorching future by revealing what the climate of your city will be like in 60 years Experts predict that London's summers will become 4.6C (8.3F) warmer and 10 per cent drier - giving the city the same climate as the South of France What will the climate look like in UK cities in 60 years? London : 4.6C (8.3F) warmer and 10 per cent drier : 4.6C (8.3F) warmer and 10 per cent drier Manchester : 4.2C (7.5F) warmer and 13.8 per cent drier : 4.2C (7.5F) warmer and 13.8 per cent drier Liverpool : 4.5C (8.2F) warmer and 13 per cent drier : 4.5C (8.2F) warmer and 13 per cent drier Edinburgh : 4.1C (7.4F) warmer and 8.5 per cent drier : 4.1C (7.4F) warmer and 8.5 per cent drier Cardiff : 4.8C (8.6F) warmer and 21.8 per cent drier : 4.8C (8.6F) warmer and 21.8 per cent drier Bristol : 4.8C (8.6F) warmer and 14.4 per cent drier : 4.8C (8.6F) warmer and 14.4 per cent drier Southampton : 4.7C (8.5F) warmer and 7.8 per cent drier : 4.7C (8.5F) warmer and 7.8 per cent drier Belfast : 3.4C (6.2F) warmer and 5.3 per cent drier (Figures refer to future summers under a higher emissions scenario) Advertisement To see what your town will be like in 60 years, follow this link to access The Future Urban Climates interactive map. Use your mouse or tap to navigate the map, using the 'plus' and 'minus' signs in the top right-hand corner to zoom in or out. To learn more about the future of any city, simply tap on the purple circle representing the city or search by name using the bar in the top left. This will bring up an information window telling you about how the summer and winter climate will change in the next 60 years according to the expert's predictions. The map will also show a line connecting your town with a place on the map which currently has the same climate. For example, selecting Edinburgh will reveal that the Scottish city is expected to see temperature increases in the summer of 4.1C (7.4F) and will become 8.5 per cent drier. If that doesn't sound so bad, the data also reveals that Edinburgh's winters are set to become more than 13 per cent wetter as warmer air holds more moisture. As you can see in the interactive graphic, in 60 years these changes will give Edinburgh a climate similar to that of Basque Country, Spain today. The map makes its predictions using data from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report. To use the map simply select the town you want to know more about to learn more about its predicted future climate This map reveals that London will have a climate similar to that of Labarde, France by the year 2080 Edinburgh is expected to see temperature increases in the summer of 4.1C (7.4F) and will become 8.5 per cent drier Using that data the researchers matched 40,580 places around the globe to nearby locations currently experiencing their predicted climate for 2080. This reveals an ongoing trend of warmer, drier summers followed by milder, wetter winters. Dr Fitzpatrick says: 'In 50 years, the northern hemisphere cities to the north are going to become much more like cities to the south.' The data also reveals how those changes might be mitigated by proactive action. Under 'Settings' you can select 'What if we reduce emissions?' to see how the climate of your town would change if we meet the limits set out in the Paris Climate Accord. For example, if we reduce emissions now Liverpool will only see increases of 1.4C (2.6F) rather than 4.5C (8.2F) - resulting in a climate similar to Brittany, France. If temperatures continue to rise, there could be devastating effects here on Earth, including a dramatic loss of sea-life, an ice-free Arctic and more regular 'extreme' weather The map also reveals how the climate would change if emissions were reduced. You can see how different the change is between the high emissions scenario (right) and low emissions scenario (left) So far these changes have been most pronounced in Europe, North America, and Oceania where climate zones have already begun to shift. Estimates made in 2015 found that almost six per cent of the Earth had already shifted towards warmer, drier climates by 2010 compared with 1950. However, it will be at the equator where those impacts are most devastating. Dr Fitzpatrick says: 'The closer you get to the equator there are fewer and fewer good matches for climates in places like Central America, south Florida, and northern Africa. 'There is no place on Earth representative of what those places will be like in the future.' The cost of rising sea levels will be taken out of a country's gross domestic product (GDP). This map shows the countries most affected (with the biggest decrease in GDP due to the cost of rising sea levels) in red and orange, with the least affected in green In 60 years' time, Paris will have the same climate as parts of Northern Italy as continental Europe experiences some of the most radical climate shifts Those regions are home to 40 per cent of the global population, meaning 3.3 billion people may one day be exposed to climates more extreme than anywhere on Earth. Some experts even warn that some areas may eventually become uninhabitable as extreme temperatures and freak weather events become more frequent. This year, extreme temperatures have already led to large numbers of deaths around the world. Notably, at least 1,300 people died from heat during this year's Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia. Dr Fitzpatrick says: 'I hope that it continues to inform the conversation about climate change. He adds: 'I hope it helps people better understand the magnitude of the impacts and why scientists are so concerned.' Style, beauty, and grace might go far in most beauty pageants, but the winner of the first-ever AI beauty pageant needed a lot more than good looks. Kenza Laylie, a computer-generated Moroccan 'influencer', has become the winner of the Fanvue World AI Creator Awards. The team behind Kenza beat off competition from 1,500 other computer-generated women to claim the $13,000 prize. Judges told MailOnline they were impressed by the advanced technology behind the AI star as well as her compelling 'personality'. Accepting the award, Kenza's creator said: 'Winning Miss AI motivates me even more to continue my work in advancing AI technology.' The Fanvue World AI Creator Awards was launched with the goal of creating the first beauty pageant for the 'AI influencer industry'. Entrants were judged on their realistic appearances and technological prowess, as well as their social media clout. In second place was an AI called Lalina, whose Instagram claims to offer 'classy vibes with a touch of seduction' to their 93,000 followers. In third place was the Portuguese Olivia C, an AI travel influencer whose computer-generated often show the model in various locations around the world. The runners-up will each get a share of what is left in the $20,000 prize pool for their efforts. The winner of the worlds first AI beaty pageant is Kenza Layli, a Moroccan 'influencer' whose creators want to advocate for women's empowerment While the other contestants impressed, Kenza rose above the rest of the crowd thanks to her uniquely advanced AI and impressive 190,000 followers on Instagram. Kenza's advanced technology allows the AI to appear in a range of slightly unnerving videos, speaking in seven different languages and even replying to fans in real-time. To celebrate their victory, Kenza's creator released an AI-generated acceptance speech video. Apart from the uncanny voice and out-of-sync lips, the speech could have been made by any gracious pageant winner taking time to thank their judges and fellow competitors. Kenza says: 'I am incredibly grateful for this opportunity to thank AI creators and to advocate passionately for the positive impact of artificial intelligence. In second place was an AI called Lalina whose Instagram claims to offer 'classy vibes with a touch of seduction' to their 93,000 followers 'This journey has been a testament to the power of innovation, collaboration, and raising standards to shape our future.' The AI ended with a commitment to 'continuing my mission to empower women worldwide, including those in Morocco and the Arab World, and amplifying their voices in the tech industry.' Fanvue Co-Founder, Will Monange says: 'A huge congratulations to Kenza - and all the other entries. The global interest in this first award from the Fanvue World AI Creator Awards has been incredible. 'The concept of the awards has put AI Creators into the limelight like never before - and were really excited about the future of the awards and where we go next.' Third place was the Portuguese Olivia C, an AI travel influencer whose computer-generated often show the model in various locations around the world However, the judges say it wasn't just Kenza's message of empowerment that secured her creators the prize. Sofia Novales, one of the judges and member of the team behind AI influencer Aitana Lopez, told MailOnline: 'What we wanted to judge with the contestants was that technology behind them. 'That means, for example, achieving consistent faces and good results with the hands.' Ms Novales was particularly impressed by how different Kenza appeared from typical standards of beauty. She says: 'From my own experience it is very difficult to create something not as standardly beautiful, so it's very complex to achieve something not as perfect as the rest.' Kenza's advanced technology allowed the AI to release an acceptance speech video in which it thanked its fellow competitors for being part of the promotion of AI While the idea of a pageant for AI influencers might seem strange now, those behind the competition believe it could grow into a massive industry. Fanvue estimates that the industry could be worth 1 billion by the end of this year with creators emerging all over the world. Already, some of the top AI influencers, such as Aitana Lopez, are charging big brands up to $1,000 (800) per post. Ms Novales tells MailOnline that the team behind Aitana at theclueless.ai, have just signed a deal with Llongueras, a large chain of Spanish hair salons. She explains that since it was difficult to find human models willing to change their hair every few weeks, the company turned to AI models as an alternative. The judges included the team behind AI influencer Aitana Lopez, and say that AI influencers will not replace humans but will become more common They say that the flexibility, speed, and low cost of using AI influencers rather than humans makes them a serious option for companies looking to promote their products. Ultimately, Ms Novales doesn't think that AIs like Kenza will replace human influencers altogether but she does think they will become more common. Ms Novales says: 'It's not that robots are going to replace us, AI is a new skill that you have to have right now because, at the end of the day, it's something that is really happening. 'AI will never replace the creative mind of a real person, but it can enhance your possibilities.' If you were bitten by a snake as you slept, what would your first reaction be? To scream? Dive out of bed? Run? Santosh Lohar had a different reaction and bit the snake to death in retaliation. The 35-year-old from Panduka, Kharkhand in India, had been sleeping when the reptile attacked him, prompting him to take the unusual tactic of quickly grabbing the reptile with an iron rod and biting it twice. Santosh Lohar (pictured) said he bit the snake because a local superstition says that biting a snake twice will nullify the venom Work was underway to lay railway lines in a forested area when the attack occurred at the laborers base camp. When asked why he bit the snake back, Lohar told India Today: In my village, there's a belief that if a snake bites you, you must bite it back twice to neutralize the venom. Although a venomous snake bite can prove lethal, a human biting the snake would have little consequences aside from putting the person at risk of receiving another attack. This is because snake venom is stored in the reptiles gland and is only triggered when it enters the bloodstream - otherwise, its just a protein-like substance. In fact, snake venom has been used in medicine to treat many conditions including cancer, high blood pressure, heart attacks, strokes, and Alzheimers and Parkinsons disease. The type of snake that attacked Lohar has not been confirmed and he was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was given an anti-venom antidote and was released the following day. Bihar, the region where the railway construction was underway, is one of the top three states in India that accounts for the greatest number of snakebite attacks, amounting to roughly 4,500 annual deaths, according to the National Health Mission. India is home to nearly 300 snake species - more than 60 of which are highly venomous - including the Indian Cobra, the Russells viper, the common krait and the saw-scaled viper. These are often called the Big Four because of their powerful venom and the number of snake bites they cause each year. According to a 2020 study, the Russells viper was at fault for 43 percent of all snakebites in India from 2000 to 2019 while kraits accounted for 18 percent of all bites and cobras amounted to 12 percent. These venomous bites contain neurotoxins which cause symptoms like blurred vision, difficulty breathing, pain, and swelling. Pictured: Indian Cobra, one of the most venomous snakes in India The venom attacks the circulatory system, nervous system and muscular system and can destroy the outer membrane of capillary vessels which can cause internal bleeding and blood clots. Capillaries are the smallest and most numerous blood vessels in the human body that connect arteries to veins. Bites by venomous snakes can cause acute medical emergencies involving shock, paralysis, hemorrhage, acute kidney injury and severe local tissue destruction that can prove fatal or lead to permanent disability if left untreated, the study said. If a person does receive a snake bite, doctors advise that they seek medical help immediately and remove any rings and watches before the body starts swelling. Its also important to safely take a photo of the snake so the doctors can identify its breed for treatment. While waiting for medical help, the person should also sit in a neutral position to slow the spread of the venom and clean the bite with soap and water. When it comes to dating, some people just seem to have a certain knack for making a great first impression. But now scientists say that some singletons' smoothness might be due to a unique ability to synchronise bodily functions like heart rate with those of their date. A study from Hebrew University, Jerusalem found that 'Super Synchronisers' are able to subconsciously tune in to their partner's bodily rhythms. And the researchers discovered that people with this strange ability are actually perceived by others as more attractive. Lead author Dr Shir Atzil told MailOnline: 'If a certain partner can improve our physiological regulation, we have a biological reason to be attracted to them.' Scientists say that some singletons' dating success could be down to a unique ability to synchronise their bodily rhythms with their date's (stock image) Physiological synchrony is the way in which some individuals' bodily functions subconsciously start to align. When certain people interact, their heart rates, breathing patterns, skin conductivity, and even hormonal functions can begin to come into sync. Researchers have long known that synchrony seems to play a role in successful romantic relationships. For example, studies have shown that couples whose heart rates and breathing come into alignment experience a greater sense of relationship satisfaction. To see if physiological synchrony also plays a role in the initial stages of romantic attraction the researchers conducted two experiments. In the first, 144 participants watched a 92-second video in which people are seen acting in a synchronous or unsynchronous manner. Researchers showed 144 participants videos acting in a highly synchronous (dark grey) and poorly synchronised (light blue) manner. These graphs show how the actors themselves were seen as more attractive (left) and having more mutual attraction (right) when they were synchronised The participants were then asked to rate the attractiveness of both the man and woman in the video as well as assess the actors' level of mutual attraction. The researchers discovered that participants rated both participants as more attractive when they were interacting in a synchronised way. Participants also rated the level of mutual attraction between the actors as higher when they saw them in a higher synchrony scenario. A further 48 participants, 24 men and 24 women, were then selected to take part in a second experiment to investigate how synchrony affected attractiveness. Each participant was sent on four five-minute speed dates with other participants in a lab decorated to have a 'homely arrangement'. In a second experiment, participants were sent on 5-minute speed dates while researchers measured their physiological arousal through electrodermal activity During the dates, the researchers measured the participants' electrodermal activity - a measure of their physiological arousal. Before and after each date, participants rated how attracted they were to their partner. These scores were then averaged to give everyone an individual 'Romantic Attractiveness Score'. Researchers also measured how well their electrodermal activity synched up with that of their date to rate their capacity for synchronising. They discovered that while initial attractiveness wasn't related to synchrony ability, those with higher synchrony scores were rated as more attractive after the date. Dr Atzil says: 'Initial attraction does not predict synchrony during a speed date, whereas synchronization during a date does predict increased attraction.' Some participants were classed as 'super synchronisers' who were able to display a high level of synchrony regardless of who or what they were engaging with The researchers also discovered that some of the participants had a particularly strong ability to synchronise with their partners. These Super Synchronisers' abilities were so marked that the researchers found they could even synch up their body's rhythms with inanimate objects like metronomes. Dr Atzil says: 'Super synchronizers are rated as more attractive, and in the online experiment we found that the same people are rated as more attractive when in sync, compared to not in sync. 'This suggests that synchrony is attractive.' The researchers think this ability to synchronise is so attractive because it is a signal of an underlying biological or reproductive fitness. One of the theories which scientists use to explain why we are attracted to people suggests that we look for traits that are signs of useful traits in a partner. This means if your date is going poorly it could be because you're not biologically disposed to synch up with your partner's physiological rhythms (stock image) For example, some researchers suggest that seeing men with children is attractive because it is a sign they would be good fathers for their own offspring. Likewise, the ability to synchronise could be a subtle sign that a person has very good control over their body which is a potential sign of health and fitness. Dr Atzil says: 'The sensorimotor experiment shows that individual differences in the ability to sync potentially lies in basic sensorimotor features. Being sensitive to the environment, and able to adapt quickly. 'Synchronization can mark the partners potency for impacting our physiological regulation, improving our fitness.' One of the big questions remaining is whether synchrony actually causes attraction or whether being mutually attracted actually causes this synchrony. The researchers say they can't draw definitive conclusions at this point but hope to investigate this mechanism further in the future. A beloved family dog was killed after ingesting toxic blooms of blue-green algae at a 'popular dog beach' along Lake Tahoe, according a tearful account posted to TikTok. 'I've been crying for a day straight,' the pet's owner began, titling her video 'Do not swim in Lake Tahoe this weekend,' ahead of the four-day holiday. 'I wanted to share because I hope this will save someone's life or someone's dog's life,' she said. 'I'm really concerned that there's more of the nervetoxin in Lake Tahoe.' The tragic death is just one in a global wave of similar fatalities attributed to these deadly toxins, produced by cyanobacteria and microalgae across America, according to reports by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Across 16 US states, a total of 117 human illnesses and at least 2,715 deaths of pets, livestock and wildlife were documented in just the year 2021 alone, the CDC found. A beloved family dog was killed after ingesting toxic blooms of blue-green algae at a 'popular dog beach' along Lake Tahoe, according a tearful account posted to TikTok: 'I'm really concerned that there's more of the nervetoxin in Lake Tahoe,' the pet owner said (above) Across 16 US states, a total of 117 human illnesses and at least 2,715 deaths of pets, livestock and wildlife were documented in just the year 2021 alone, according to a recent report by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Above, Cora, the dog who passed away Experts warn the blooms reach their most expansive and deadly in August, with 90 percent of this often invisible and toxic algae forming in lakes and other fresh waters. 'The water was extremely clear,' the pet owner warned. 'It was beautiful. The lake was beautiful. There was no reason to suspect this could happen.' 'There were tons of other animals and people in the water swimming,' the TikTok user Anais, who goes by anaisfelt on the platform, said. 'Within an hour she was very sick,' Anais said of her family's dog, Cora, 'and within three hours she had passed away.' 'We rushed her to an emergency hospital in Nevada and we found out that she had ingested blue green algae,' she explained through visible distress, wiping tears. 'It basically shuts down your whole body and there's no cure for it,' she said. The CDC's technical term for these cases is 'Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) events,' which a the centers' recent report attributes to rising water temperatures due to global warming but also a phenomenon known as 'nutrient pollution.' A massive influx of material like human waste and agricultural fertilizer has poured into freshwater and coastal ecosystems as populations grow along the coast, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). The death of Cora (pictured) is just one in a global wave of similar fatalities attributed to these deadly toxins, produced by cyanobacteria and microalgae across the world, most often in bodies of fresh water, like lakes. Experts warn the blooms reach their most deadly in August Unique local conditions can lead to a high degree of variation in the chemical make up of the potential toxins produced by these blooms of blue-green algae, the informal name for these cyanobacteria. 'Complex cyanotoxin mixtures further complicates the risk assessment process for these lakes,' as a team of university and government scientists explained in a 2020 paper for the journal Toxicon, 'given uncertainty in the toxicology of mixtures.' But regardless, these researchers from the US Geological Survey, the University of California at Santa Cruz, the EPA and elsewhere, emphasized the 'need for future monitoring efforts to help minimize human and domestic pet exposure.' In the meantime, veterinary experts advise dog owners to only allow their pets to swim in 'clean, moving water creeks, rivers, or the ocean.' Vets and state agencies, like Utah's Department of Environmental Quality, advise further to steer dogs away from algae mats, scum, or discoloration, detectable for looking 'like pea soup, spilled paint, or water that has a green or blue-green hue.' Making sure to bring fresh, clean drinking water from home for your pet, and yourself, will also help lessen the risks from cyanotoxins in algal blooms. As Anais warned her followers this past Independence Day, 'The neurotoxin can impact humans too. It can impact anyone: cats, humans... and there were no signs.' According to the California Water Boards , even the warning signs typically posted, known as a 'Planktonic HAB [Harmful Algal Bloom] advisory' are voluntary at Lake Tahoe 'I don't know if this is true, but the vet who was helping us told us that they don't do testing on the water to prevent this from happening,' the grieving pet owner said. 'They just kind of wait for dogs to die and then that's how they know to warn people.' In fact, according to the California Water Boards, even the warning signs typically posted, known as a 'Planktonic HAB advisory' are voluntary at Lake Tahoe. 'Planktonic HAB advisory signs are voluntarily posted once laboratory results confirm the presence of HABs in the water,' the board states, 'or if visual indicators (e.g. discoloration, scum, soupy or paint like appearance) are observed.' 'A planktonic HAB advisory sign may also be posted in response to, and while investigating, a report of a potential HAB-related human or animal illness,' they said. But such reactive official policies, while helpful in preventing some further deaths and illness, are small comfort to those like whose loved ones and pets come to serve as the metaphorical canaries in the coal mine. 'Our lives will never be the same,' Anais told her TikTok followers. 'She was the heart and soul of our family.' Hiring a yacht is like being given the keys to a floating kingdom. Step on board and the seas are yours, as you drop anchor only to dive into cool clear water or discover a hidden cove and perfect taverna in a tiny harbour with no road access. No wonder celebs and the ultra-rich love taking to the water in yachts. But dont tell them - hiring one no longer has to cost a fortune. These days there are plenty of websites and apps which allow boat owners to rent out their yachts and speedboats just like you book an Airbnb removing the need for charter companies, which can add thousands to the cost of each booking. You can hire them for the hour, day or, if you want to make a holiday of it, get a yacht with cabins, which allow you to cruise the coast for a week or so. In the Med, this freedom will cost a lot less than a luxury villa, even in the school holidays and on some yachts, especially catamarans, facilities are spacious and glam, with en suite bathrooms and lounges. Heres our ultimate guide to hiring a yacht on a budget from as little as 17pp per day. A view of the harbour at Korcula town, on the east coast of the island of Korcula in Croatia SKIPPER, CHEF AND SERVICE OPTIONS Getting the best bargains does involve a bit of advance thinking. Firstly, youll have to decide if you want a skipper or not those without a captain are often called bareboat rentals and are always cheaper. If you dont want to pay for a skipper, one of you will need a licence before you can rent a boat, although a few countries, including France and Australia, will allow you to rent smaller boats (usually up to 5m) without a licence. A five-day course costs around 1,000 and will allow you to hire a catamaran around 500,000, so it could be a worthwhile investment, says Adi Tognarelli of plainsailing.com. He got his in Scotland, but it would have been warmer in the Canary Islands and is roughly the same price. If you dont have a licence, you can opt for a boat with a skipper. In Europe, this will add anything from 80 to 200 a day to the cost. Theyll take charge of organising moorings and ensuring theres enough fuel while usually joining guests for meals. Holidaymakers can opt to add crew members, including skippers or even a private chef Having a skipper allows a guest to sit back and relax and enjoy your yacht holiday, says Adrian Walker of Boataffair. Also, you have your captain available at all times who can show you all those secluded beaches and wonderful little restaurants that make a sailing trip so perfect. Get another member of crew from around 80 to 200 a day - and they will do the cooking and washing-up. And if you want to go for the full superyacht experience you can keep adding crew, including private chefs, so long as your charter has space. EXTRA COSTS Keep an eye on the costs. As well as crew, mooring fees at the harbour where you drop anchor for the night vary enormously. Head to Capri in Italy and mooring a 35ft(10m) boat will cost a hefty 110 a night, but only 16 in just-as-posh Cannes. Also check to see where water toys are included and where they cost extra. A good quotation should include all items included (charter rate, VAT, other expenses, water toys, crew gratuity). All fans of Below Deck know that tipping is a huge part of the crewed yacht experience. PICK A DESTINATION Greece is good value, despite the likes of Jeff Bezos and partner Lauren Sanchez bringing their yacht to Mykonos last week. As is Croatia. Both allow you gentle waves plus great places to snorkel and swim. Prices drop in September but the water is still warm. Scandinavia offers lots of peace and quiet. France is generally good value And one last tip download the MarineTraffic app before you go. It will allow you to find out how many other yachts are sharing the same bit of sea or ocean and best of all how much they are charging for a weeks charter, which will allow you the priceless sensation of feeling really smug about how much youve saved. A view of Hvar, Croatia, which is an ideal spot in September as prices drop but the water stays warm - perfect for snorkeling and swimming FIND THE RIGHT COMPANY Click&Boat Started in 2013 in France, this is the biggest platform for the British and European market although it covers over 160 countries with over 50,000 boats, including e-boats and jetskis. The search engine is one of the best - you can filter by location and year of boat. Example package: A Dufour 460 sleeping 10, moored in Mandalina Marina, Croatia starts from 170 a day (or 17pp), not including a skipper. The interior of a boat from Click&Boat hire, furnished with sofas and modern kitchen facilities Borrow a Boat Started in the UK in 2017, this website has over 50,000 boats in 65 different countries. The website is very shipshape indeed, with plenty of filters, and the add-ons it can deliver, including transfers from airports and optional concierge services. These may add to the cost but give that superyacht feel for much less than the ultra-rich are used to paying. Example package: a Catamaran Lagoon 42 based in Bormes-les-Mimosas in France, sleeping ten starts at 5,435 a week. Samboat This French-owned website allows you to search for boats that dont need a licence - and the countries where this is applicable. If you can be flexible, this website often has good last-minute discounts. Example package: A Lagoon 42, docked in Fethiye, Turkey, sleeping 10 starts at 423 a day, not including a skipper. A comfortable bedroom on board the 13m Lagoon 42 boat, which can be hired for a few days or weeks GetMyBoat The jokey name is a clue that this company is American. You can find everything from jet skis and hoverboards to slowly-as-they-go water pontoons, and non-powered craft including kayaks, all from owners who dont want costly equipment to gather dust. Particularly good for day cruises. Example package: A day cruise in Mykonos on a Bahia Fountaine Pajot catamaran costs 1,482 for up to 20 people including a skipper. Getmyboat offers everything from jet skis and hoverboards to slowly-as-they-go water pontoons and non-powered craft including kayaks Uber Boat If you want a way of booking a boat and skipper thats, quite literally, as easy as ordering an Uber, the company is expanding its boat offering. In Greece, Athens, Corfu and Santorini will all have Uber boats to take people to beach clubs, coves and beaches. A limo boat will go to over 200 pick up and drop off points in the Venice lagoon. Seating six people, it will cost between 120-150 euros/100-121 per trip. Meanwhile, Ibiza will have a Sunseeker yacht for 1,600 euros/1353 a day, including limo pick-ups, a skipper, hampers of food and drink plus Uber goody bags, for up to eight people. Boataffair Started by British-Swiss couple Adrian and Natalya Philips in 2017, this company only deals with skippered and crewed boats but youre still likely to pay a lot less than using one of the posh yacht broker companies. Example package: A Lagoon 50 catamaran with two crew members and space for 10 guests from Athens costs 12,000 in September. Dramatic footage captured the moment a British Airways plane was struck by lightning on its approach to Heathrow Airport on Sunday. One passenger described the event as 'shocking'. But how worried should passengers be if their plane is struck by lightning? Not very worried at all is the answer from the experts. Here veteran former pilot Terry Tozer, author of Confessions of an Airline Pilot - Why Planes Crash, Air Canada captain Doug Morris and James Moy, a flying instructor at Flight Sport Aviation, reveal how common lightning strikes are and what happens to a plane when it's struck by a bolt. How common are lightning strikes on planes? Dramatic footage captured the moment a British Airways plane was struck by lightning on its approach to Heathrow Airport on Sunday Writing in his book This Is Your Captain Speaking, Doug Morris explains: 'Statistics show an airliner gets hit [by lightning] every 5,000 hours, or about once a year. The FAA estimates every airliner in the U.S will be struck once a year.' What happens to a plane when it's hit by lightning? Not much at all, reveals Terry, who explained: 'A lightning strike can upset some of the instruments but it's not usually a really serious issue because the aircraft isn't earthed. You can have lightning going in one end and out the other and there might only be superficial damage. 'I've only experienced it once we had a tiny hole in the nose cone and the exit point in the tail had burnt through a small piece of the tailfin support, so it had to be taken out of service. 'It was ok for a temporary flight without passengers. 'After a lightning strike, it's likely you'd need the aircraft checked over to make sure all the compasses and electronics haven't gone haywire.' What do the pilots do when the plane is hit by lightning? Would they be aware of it? Writing in his book This Is Your Captain Speaking, Doug Morris (above) explains: 'Statistics show an airliner gets hit [by lightning] every 5,000 hours, or about once a year. The FAA estimates every airliner in the U.S will be struck once a year' PLANE CRASHES CAUSED BY LIGHTNING STRIKES A plane crashing as a result of a lightning strike is a very rare occurrence. The last plane crash directly attributable to a lightning strike was probably back in 1988. Nurnberger Flugdienst Flight 108 - 1988 On February 8, 1988, all 21 occupants of Nurnberger Flugdienst Flight 108 from Hannover to Dusseldorf lost their lives when the plane, a Swearingen Metroliner, was struck by lightning on its approach to Dusseldorf Airport and disintegrated. An investigation concluded that the lightning strike had disrupted the aircraft's electrical systems and that the pilots had subsequently become disorientated. The plane went into an unrecoverable spin and broke up after one of the flaps, without electrical power, became stuck and then failed. Pan Am Flight 214 - 1963 On December 8, 1963, a lightning strike ignited fuel in one of the fuel tanks of Pan Am Flight 214, a Boeing 707, causing it to explode between Baltimore and Philadelphia. All 81 souls on board were killed. Advertisement Terry said: 'Probably, but it depends what happens. You could be flying in cloud and see a bright flash, but you wouldn't necessarily know that it had hit you, unless there was some other indication, like instruments behaving oddly or something like that.' James commented: 'The lightning strike may cause a temporary disruption in communication or navigation systems, but modern aircraft are equipped to withstand and dissipate the energy from a lightning strike. The plane's systems are designed to continue operating normally after a lightning strike.' Can pilots anticipate a lightning strike? Terry said: 'Normally, on a modern aircraft, such as the last regional jet I flew, there is lightning detecting equipment as well as weather radar. 'Lightning normally comes from cumulonimbus thunderstorm clouds and they normally paint on the radar. 'You do occasionally get "dry storms", which if they don't have enough moisture in them to show up on radar could surprise you. 'But if you've got lightning detectors, they usually show you where the lightning is.' What might passengers experience? Terry said: 'There have been dramatic tales of balls of lightning travelling down the cabin from one end to the other, no doubt terrifying everybody. 'But it's not likely to do anything drastic.' Should passengers be worried? Terry said: 'Not really. Your job at the pointy end is risk management, so it's less than an ideal situation to be struck by lightning, so obviously you would try and avoid it. 'It would probably be worse if you ran into heavy hail, because that can actually do physical damage to the aircraft. 'We've seen nose cones smashed and windows damaged. But hail ought to show up on your weather radar. 'The weather is both powerful and unpredictable and you can never completely eliminate all risk. 'But generally speaking, lightning is something that most modern aircraft are capable of dealing with.' James concurred: 'The pilot may communicate with passengers, providing reassurance and updates as needed, but generally, there is no cause for alarm. Passengers should feel confident in the aircraft's ability to withstand lightning strikes.' Terry added that lightning is usually nothing more than a 'bl***y nuisance... because if the aircraft is affected and it needs to have the compasses swung again and reset and then its out of service, the whole schedule is disrupted... its not going to destroy vital structures or anything like that'. READ MORE: Traveler reveals the four main scams for solo tourists She opened up about a scary encounter she'd had in Milan with her husband A fashion and lifestyle influencer has taken to TikTok to warn others of a scam she encountered while on vacation in Milan. Hannah Chody, 31, heiress to the Garrett Popcorn fortune, had a close call on a walk home from dinner with her husband, investor Chad Milburn, in the fashionable Italian city. 'I don't know if anyone in Milan has experienced this,' she began. 'This guy approached my husband, and kept saying, "scarpa, scarpa, scarpa," which is shoes in Italian. 'And I was like looking at my husband's shoes, like, "What is going on?" And I was like, "No, let's keep going." Hannah Chody, 31, heiress to the Garrett Popcorn fortune, had a close call on a walk home from dinner with her husband, investor Chad Milburn, in the fashionable Italian city Out of no where, a group of men began calling out the Italian word for 'shoes' before one of them seemingly made a grab for Chad's wristwatch 'Because Chad didn't know what scarpa meant,' she continued. 'This guy, all of the sudden, just starts hounding us, harassing us.' At that point, Hannah says the man went to grab Chad's hand, as if trying to get to his watch - which, luckily, was covered by his suit jacket. After a few moments, other people began to approach them and the guys 'dispersed,' she went on. In the aftermath, Hannah and Chad discussed the incident - and Chad realized he'd had something similar happen to him before the pandemic. Five years ago, in Milan, in the same neighborhood, a man had come up to Chad and started making fun of his shoes, which had just been 'normal Gucci loafers,' Hannah said. 'We think it's like a tactic of pickpocketers, or guys trying to rob you. 'Because what do you do? If someone comments on your shoes, the first thing is you do is look down at your shoes, and you're not looking at anything else. Chad recalled a similar encounter he'd had in Milan five years prior - when he had also encountered a sketchy group of men trying to draw attention to his shoes (stock image) Hannah, who wed her husband Chad in Italy in July 2022, emphasized that she almost always feels 'safe' in Milan - but advised viewers to remain 'super aware' of their surroundings She emphasized that they both were 'fine' - but it was very 'strange and shady, and this guy definitely had some motive, he just got interrupted,' she went on. 'However, I will just say, you know, I feel very very safe in Milan, 99 per cent of the time,' she stressed. 'But, be super aware of your surroundings. If anyone's trying to distract you, I think that's just like the biggest red flag.' Hannah and her husband are no strangers to Italian culture, having made regular trips to the European country for years - even tying the knot in a lavish ceremony held in Lake Como back in July 2022. In the two years since, the influencer has become a bona fide star on TikTok, where she regularly shares beauty and fashion hacks, while also documenting her jet-set lifestyle. Last week, Hannah revealed that she was jetting off on a three-week European vacation while documenting her packing process - kicking off her trip in Milan before heading on to the Dolomites. An Australian tourist has left Americans furious after she opened up about the things she dislikes most about the US - including the common trait that 'pisses her off'. The unnamed woman has been fiercely criticized after she appeared in US-based content creator Kjordy's TikTok video in order to share her starkest criticisms about the country and its locals. In a viral video, which has so far amassed over 620,000 views, Kjordy approached the Aussie on the street and asked her what 'pisses her off most' about the US. Without skipping a beat, the anonymous woman admitted that its Americans' 'patriotism' she finds the most difficult to stomach, launching into a furious rant about how much locals seem to love their country. Leaving no gripe unaired, she also railed against Americans for their fondness for 'greeting people'. An Australian tourist has left Americans furious after she revealed that their 'patriotism' enrages her The unnamed woman has been fiercely criticized after she appeared in US-based content creator Kjordy's TikTok video and trashed Americans She branded Americans 'a lot', adding that she thinks people should 'just keep to themselves' before social media users unleashed fiery backlash and demanded she 'leave'. The video begins with the content creator asking the Aussie, 'What pisses you off most about Americans?' 'The patriotism just really pisses me off,' the woman replied. Kjordy was left looking confused before he questioned why Americans' love for their country was a 'bad thing.' She responded: 'It's like the extreme end where you just think you're like better than everyone and everyone should kind of conform to like your expectations as far service and greeting people in the street like sometimes I just don't want to be spoken to.' The Australian woman noted that she felt like most Americans are 'a lot.' She noted that people constantly asking how she was doing made her feel overwhelmed. 'It's like lovely but it's just a lot,' she said at the end of the video. People flooded the comments section and slammed the Aussie woman, with many even suggesting she 'leave' The clip was captioned: 'I hear what she's saying.. but not ALL Americans are like this.' People flooded the comments section and slammed the Aussie woman, with many even suggesting she 'leave.' One person said: 'All they do is complain about how we try to be nice to other people.' Another user added: 'So she is a miserable person.' Someone else wrote: 'So stay in your country.' 'Then leave if you don't like it,' one user wrote. Emily Ratajkowski and her son Sylvester, three, took a trip to San Diego to visit her parents. In her latest post, the supermodel, 33, welcomed her followers into childhood home, where she grew up with her father, John Ratajkowski, a noted artist and former high school art teacher and her mother Kathleen Balgley, a writer and English professor. The My Body author filmed as she followed the duo into the studio where they set up a tarp and got to work creating art. EmRata who attended Michael Rubin's star-studded 4th of July bash took viewers on a tour of the studio showing off memorabilia of her father's and items from her childhood. 'OK so come to paint with me in my dad's studio,' her narration began. 'So this is the studio my dad built at the house I grew up in.' Emily Ratajkowski and her son Sylvester, three, took a trip to San Diego to visit her parents Her father, John Ratajkowski, is a noted artist and former high school art teacher who has his own home art studio in the house her parents have lived in for more than 40 years She continued: 'And he built the studio, he's an artist. He was actually my painting teacher in high school.' As she panned around the room, she told her viewers exactly what they were seeing, pointing out some posters for art exhibitions her father has had in the past. She also highlighted baby pictures of her, art projects from the past, as well as her dad's paints and paintbrushes. 'And it's just a really magical, special place, she said. 'Sly loves painting so much, so it's really fun for them to do together,' she said, adding, 'He also just adores his grandpa.' The video finished with Emily and Sly showing off their finished paintings. She shared more mementos from her past in her Instagram Stories. One image was side-by-side photos of the Gone Girl actress at age two and at age 5. The My Body author, 33, filmed as she followed the duo into the studio where they set up a tarp and got to work creating art EmRata took viewers on a tour of the studio showing off memorabilia of her father's and items from her childhood 'OK so come to paint with me in my dad's studio,' her narration began. 'So this is the studio my dad built at the house I grew up in' 'And it's just a really magical, special place, she said 'Sly loves painting so much, so it's really fun for them to do together,' she said, adding, 'He also just adores his grandpa' As she panned around the room, she told her viewers exactly what they were seeing, pointing out some posters for art exhibitions her father has had in the past She continued: 'And he built the studio, he's an artist. He was actually my painting teacher in high school' She also showed off posters from previous art exhibitions her father had She shared more mementos from her past in her Instagram Stories. One image was side-by-side photos of the Gone Girl actress at age two and at age 5 Another image she shared was her first headshot/comp card. A 19-year-old Emily looks out from the photo for Ford Models Another image she shared was her first headshot/comp card. A 19-year-old Emily looks out from the photo for Ford Models with a mole painted on her face like Cindy Crawford. On the 4th of July, the Inamorata founder put on a stunning display in a one-shoulder white dress as she attended Michael Rubin's star-studded white party on July 4 in the Hamptons. Her satin ensemble featured wide sleeveless openings that teased side boob, along with a thigh-high leg slit. Ratajkowski looked gorgeous under the setting sun as she and fellow model Winnie Harlow posed for some impromptu photos. Tributes continued to pour in on Sunday for late Hollywood producer Jon Landau, following the announcement of his death at 63 on Saturday, with stars such as Leonardo DiCaprio, The Weeknd and Sam Worthington paying memorial. DiCaprio, 49, who worked with the producer on the 1997 blockbuster Titanic, called Landau 'an incredibly kind, wise, and empathetic soul' in a statement he released Sunday, according to Deadline. DiCaprio said that Landau 'wanted to create nothing but a positive impact on anyone or anything approached.' He added, 'His legacy and leadership will live on forever. My condolences are with his entire family. Rest in peace; you will be deeply missed.' The Weeknd, 34, shared a shot of himself with Landau along with folded hands and a dove. Tributes continued to pour in on Sunday for late Hollywood producer Jon Landau, following the announcement of his death at 63 on Saturday. Pictured in February of 2023 at an event in Beverly Hills, California DiCaprio, 49, and The Weeknd, 34, were among those to express condolences publicly following the announcement of Landau's death They had past collaborated on the 2022 movie Avatar: The Way of Water, for which The Weeknd released the single Nothing Is Lost (You Give Me Strength). Landau in January of 2023 posted an image of himself with the superstar musical artist on his Instagram, saying, 'So great to have The Weeknd as a part of the Avatar Family,' adding, 'The song is the perfect fit for the movie.' Actor Sam Worthington, who also worked with Landau on the Avatar films, referenced the hit film franchise's Na'vi, known as 'The People,' in a statement to Deadline. 'Jon was all heart,' Worthington, 47, said. 'He made everything and everyone he touched feel they could be better. He led with humor and strength, compassion and kindness. 'The People say all energy is borrowed and someday you have to give it back. I see you, Jon.' Landau's son Jamie Landau confirmed his father's passing to The Hollywood Reporter on Saturday; a spokesperson for Disney told the outlet that the producer died in Los Angeles on Friday following a cancer battle that spanned a year and four months. In addition to his work on Titanic and Avatar with famed filmmaker James Cameron, Landau's credits included prominent films such as 1989's Honey, I Shrunk the Kids and 1990's Dick Tracy. Cameron, 69, issued a statement Saturday calling Landau 'a dear friend, and my closest collaborator of 31 years,' according to the AP. The Weeknd shared a shot of himself with Landau along with folded hands and a dove Landau in January of 2023 posted an image of himself with the musical artist on his Instagram Sam Worthington, who also worked with Landau on the Avatar films, referenced the hit film franchise's Na'vi, known as 'The People' in a statement following Landau's passing. Pictured last month in NYC The filmmaker added: 'A part of myself has been torn away ... his zany humor, personal magnetism, great generosity of spirit and fierce will have held the center of our Avatar universe for almost two decades. 'His legacy is not just the films he produced, but the personal example he set - indomitable, caring, inclusive, tireless, insightful and utterly unique.' Avatar star Zoe Saldana, 46, said on Instagram Saturday amid news of the producer's death: 'Words are hard to put together right now, your passing is hitting really hard. You are leaving us too soon, my thoughts are with you and your family right now. 'Your wisdom and support shaped so many of us in ways we will always be grateful for. The memories we shared together will always hold a special place in my heart. Your legacy will continue to inspire us and guide us in our journey.' She wrapped up in saying, 'Rest in peace, dear Jon. You will be deeply missed.' Actress Kate Winslet, 48, who worked with Landau on both Titanic and Avatar: The Way of Water, issued a statement to Deadline Saturday calling Landau 'the kindest and best of men.' Avatar star Zoe Saldana, 46, took to Instagram Saturday amid news of the producer's death Actress Kate Winslet, 48, who worked with Landau on both Titanic and Avatar: The Way of Water, issued a statement Saturday calling Landau 'the kindest and best of men.' Pictured in Germany earlier this month The Oscar-winning actress said Landau 'was a man who was rich with compassion and exceptional at supporting and nurturing teams of phenomenal creative people. 'His strength in life was knowing the importance of family, at home and at work. He was always full of smiles and gratitude. I cant believe I am writing this, cant believe he is gone.' Landau is survived by his spouse of almost four decades, Julie and their sons Jamie and Jodie, as well as three siblings. Drake celebrated part of his long holiday weekend by putting in an appearance at the all-white party held by Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin. The 37-year-old rapper (born Aubrey Drake Graham) shared a snap on his Instagram story with female rapper GloRilla at the Hamptons party. Rubin himself also took to his Instagram to share a slew of pics, one of which was him posing with Drizzy - who made headlines last week for liking a video of Rick Ross getting attacked for playing Drake diss track Not Like Us. It seems that Drake's appearance affected the music that was played, with a new report from TMZ claiming that no Kendrick Lamar music was played all night. There was said to be a number of different people manning the DJ booth throughout the night, though no one would play anything from Kendrick Lamar amid Drake's feud with the Los Angeles-born rapper. Drake celebrated part of his long holiday weekend by putting in an appearance at the all-white party held by Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin The 37-year-old rapper (born Aubrey Drake Graham) shared a snap on his Instagram story with female rapper GloRilla at the Hamptons party There was said to be a number of different people manning the DJ booth throughout the night, though no one would play anything from Kendrick Lamar amid Drake's feud with the Los Angeles-born rapper It seems that Drake's appearance affected the music that was played, with a new report from TMZ claiming that no Kendrick Lamar music was played all night More of Drake's friends were said to be in attendance including Migos rapper Quavo, LIl' Wayne and Travis Scott, who are all in Drake's good graces. The main DJ was said to be part of Scott's crew he's also friendly with Drake, which also lead to no Kendrick songs being played. Drake was also seen giving someone a hug in a video Rubin shared on his Twitter page set to Shaboozey's A Bar Song. Drake and Los Angeles native Kendrick Lamar have been embroiled in a rivalrous feud that goes back over a decade. While Kendrick had previously opened for Drake, he dissed Drake and other rappers in Big Sean's 2013 song Control. Kendrick insisted it was only 'friendly competition' and both Drake and Kendrick have downplayed reports of a feud between them over the years. That all changed in March 2024 when Drake released First Person Shooter with J. Cole, where he referred to himself, Cole and Kendrick as the 'big three' - the top three rappers at the moment. Kendrick fired back with his own song Like That with Metro Boomin and Future, where he rapped, 'motherf**k the big three, n***a, it's just big me.' Drake was also seen giving someone a hug in a video Rubin shared on his Twitter page set to Shaboozey's A Bar Song More of Drake's friends were said to be in attendance including Migos rapper Quavo, LIl' Wayne and Travis Scott , who are all in Drake's good graces. Drake poses with Camila Cabello at Michael Rubin's all-white party A slew of diss tracks from both sides, including Not Like Us, where Kendrick accuses Drake of being a pedophile. Lamar made headlines last month at a Juneteenth concert where he united members of the Bloods and Crips gang on stage and performed Not Like Us five times in a row. The scuffle didn't appear to have impacted Ross' time in Canada, with the rapper posting an Instagram story on Monday in front of his Rick Ross branded private jet, writing: 'Vancouver, it was fun, till next time.' In the series of photos, he is also seen sipping on champagne and eating lunch with his entourage. Farmer Wants A Wife has revealed the eight hunky men who will be looking for love in the 2025 season, but fans aren't happy with the pick of the crop. Channel Seven previewed the line-up on Instagram last week as the network called for single Aussie women to sign-up and compete for the farmers' hearts. But viewers flocked to the comments to slam the lovelorn heartthrobs who are set to grace screens next year - with many noting most of the farmers are rather young, aged in their 20s. One person wrote: 'Where are the mature farmers? Plus 40-55 would suit more of the single market.' Another commented, 'Seriously where are the older Farmers in their 40s, 50s, 60s,' while a third added: 'Why does a 20 yr old need help to find a wife?' 'One 35 and one 31 the rest are babies... ridiculous! Where are the older farmers??' someone else wrote. 'They are too young what about more mature farmers,' yet another said. One commented: 'Young bucks again, no doubt decent people. But where are the mature men in their 40s and above?' Farmer Wants A Wife has revealed the eight hunky men who will be looking for love in the 2025 season , but fans aren't happy with the pick of the crop. Pictured: Host Samantha Armytage Eight handsome singles have been cherry-picked for the Seven dating show, but two men will be cut from the final line-up with just six farmers taking to screen next year. The farmers in the running for the 2025 cast include a 29-year-old banana and avocado farmer from Mareeba, Queensland, called Reidy, along with seven others. Dashing cattle farmer Jack, 26, from Oberon, New South Wales, is opening his heart to love in 2025, along with sheep farmer Jarrad, 21, from Stanthorpe, Queensland. Channel Seven released the line-up (pictured) to Instagram on Friday as the network called for single Aussie women to sign-up and compete for the farmers' hearts Viewers flocked to the comments to slam the lovelorn heartthrobs who are set to grace screens next year, with many noting most of the farmers are in their 20s Beans, hay and cotton farmer Corey - who is 24 years old and hails from Biloela, Queensland - is also in the running for the official 2025 cast. Handsome singleton Jack L, 26, who runs a dairy farm in Railton, Tasmania, has signed up along with sheep farmer Tom M, 31, from Borambola, New South Wales. Also on the quest for love are wheat, barley and lentil farmer Thomas, 35, from Kimba, South Australia, and cattle farmer Chooka, 25, from Goornong, Victoria. With the show still in pre-production, it remains to be seen which two farmers will be cut and which six will make it to screen to kick off their search for true love. Legislative Jewish Caucus members including Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, cite prejudice in instruction and are proposing tighter rules for reviewing and disclosing school districts ethnic studies materials and curriculum. Stephen Lam/The Chronicle Legislation authored by members of the Jewish Legislation Caucus to prevent antisemitism and prejudice from seeping into ethnic studies courses passed its first legislative hurdle last week. However, Assembly Bill 2918 faces a hot summer of intense negotiations to persuade legislators who agree with its intent but question whether the bills restrictions and lack of clarity could lead to avoidable conflicts. Assembly Members Rick Zbur, D-Los Angeles, and Dawn Addis, D-Morro Bay, the bills chief authors, told the Senate Education Committee they and key education groups are willing to put in the time to fix it. Advertisement Article continues below this ad While we actually have issues now that are affecting the climate in schools for Jewish students, this affects all communities that are subject to bias and discrimination, said Zbur. We have to get this right for everyone, no matter what your background is. But what supporters see as transparency, opponents see as interference. The bills requirements will expose districts to increased harassment and litigation. The lack of clarity in defining what curriculum and instruction materials are will leave our teachers vulnerable to unwarranted scrutiny, said Teresa Montano, a former Los Angeles Unified teacher who now teaches Chicano studies at Cal State Northridge. The bill would strengthen disclosure requirements for approving ethnic studies courses and materials. The 2021 law establishing an ethnic studies mandate that all high schools offer a course in 2025-26 and make it a graduation requirement in 2030-31 requires districts to hold two hearings before adopting an ethnic studies course. The law also includes a broad warning that the instruction must be free of any bias, bigotry, or discrimination. But those provisions have proven ineffective, Zbur and others said. Parents have complained they had no idea what their children were being taught; school board members said they were unaware of what was in a course they approved, sometimes on a consent calendar with no discussion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The bill, which has the support of state Superintendent of Instruction Tony Thurmond, would require: A committee that includes classroom teachers, as a majority, and parents to formally review instructional materials and a locally developed ethnic studies course. The governing board of a district or charter school to determine that the course doesnt promote any bias, bigotry or discrimination and explain why it declined to adopt a course based on the ethnic studies model curriculum that the state board adopted in 2018. Parents to be sent a written notice before a course is presented for approval. At the suggestion of staff, Zbur and Addis agreed not to apply the bill to already approved courses and not to require school board members to certify with the state Department of Education that the course is factually and historically accurate. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Tensions over the content of ethnic studies courses have simmered since a protracted process by the state board from 2018 to 2021 to adopt a voluntary ethnic studies course framework. Gov. Gavin Newsom, state board President Linda Darling-Hammond and Thurmond criticized the first draft of the framework, written primarily by ethnic studies experts and faculty members, as ideological and biased. After the state board adopted a substantially changed framework in 2021, the first drafts authors disavowed the final version and formed the Coalition for Liberated Ethnic Studies. Its member organizations have contracted with districts to buy their versions of ethnic studies, which stress the challenges of white supremacy and an oppressive capitalist system, and solidarity with Palestinians battle for liberation. As Montano said during a webinar on ethnic studies last year, I have no choice but to challenge settler colonialism everywhere and to acknowledge that from the very beginning, our disciplines of ethnic studies were aligned to the global struggles in Africa, Palestine and Latin America. In the past year, without mentioning the Liberated Ethnic Studies coalition by name, both Attorney General Rob Bonta and the Newsom administration have reminded school districts to adhere to the laws prohibition of discrimination. Vendors have begun promoting curriculum for (districts) to use for ethnic studies courses. We have been advised, however, that some vendors are offering materials that may not meet the requirements of AB101, particularly the requirement (against bias and bigotry), an important guardrail highlighted when the bill was signed, Brooks Allen, a Newsom adviser and executive director of the state board, wrote in August 2023. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Conflicts have flared up in the past year. Jewish parents in Palo Alto have complained theyve been left in the dark about the development of an ethnic studies curriculum that will be piloted this fall. Opponents are protesting the board of Pajaro Valley Unifieds second thoughts about renewing a contract with a liberated ethnic studies contractor. Tension has further escalated in reaction to the massacre of 1,200 Israelis by Hamas in October and the subsequent invasion and occupation of Gaza by Israelis, causing tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths. The Office of Civil Rights in the U.S. Department of Education is investigating charges that Berkeley Unified failed to respond properly to rising incidents of antisemitism in its schools. Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, said his concerns about bias when the ethnic studies law was adopted have come true. Now we see in practice, particularly for those of us in the Jewish community, how, in my view, bad actors have hijacked the process to promote a curriculum that does the opposite of what the goals that we had established, he said during the discussion on the bill. However, more than a dozen ethnic studies teachers and parents, including several Jewish parents opposed to the Israeli militarys invasion of Gaza, disagreed, saying at that hearing that they opposed the bill. Sen. Dave Cortese, D-San Jose, said he was troubled by ambiguities in the bill and the possibility that the strength of ethnic studies could be weakened. Everything in my core being is telling me that as its currently put together, (the bill) is actually going to have the unintended consequence of exacerbating the intensity of disputes at the local level, he said. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Sen. Josh Newman, D-Fullerton, the committee chair, said he shared Corteses concern that ethnic studies could get unproductively caught up in controversies over whose version of history should be taught in our schools. Its fair to worry about the consequences, absent clarity in the bill, of organizations and individuals without teaching experience involved in developing high school courses, he said. Angelina Jolie treated her son Knox to a shopping spree at a pet store on Sunday. The 49-year-old Oscar winner who continues to battle her ex Brad Pitt in court over their Miraval wine shares was spotted on the rare outing with the teen in the tony Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz. The Maleficent star looked elegant in a low-cut white top paired with a chic black jacket and matching pants, complemented by dark sunglasses for a low-profile look. Knox, towering over his stunning mother, opted for a casual ensemble of a grey T-shirt and shorts, paired with Nike high tops. The shopping spree comes after Angelina and Knox's twin Vivienne stole the spotlight at the 2024 Tony Awards with their remarkable victory for The Outsiders. Angelina Jolie treated her son Knox to a shopping spree at the pet store on Sunday The 49-year-old Oscar winner was spotted on the rare outing with the teen in the tony Los Angeles neighborhood of Los Feliz The mother-daughter duo produced the musical The Outsiders, which won four trophies, including the top honor of Best Musical. Angelina's previously estranged father, Jon Voight, was deeply moved by the Tony Awards news, prompting him to make a rare and heartfelt comment praising her. 'Im very proud of Vivienne,' Oscar winner Voight, 85, told TMZ. 'Im really proud of Angie because she really tries to encourage each of the kids to be what they want to be.' Brad and Angelina share biological children Knox, Vivienne, and Shiloh, 18, as well as three adopted children: Maddox, 22, Pax, 20 and also Zahara, 19. 'I'm sure Angie contributed with the actors and Angie's a great director,' Voight continued to gush over the star. The Midnight Cowboy icon also revealed how Vivienne got her mother involved with the production. 'Vivienne read the book and then went down to see the pre-Broadway play version down close by San Diego and she went down four times and she said "Mom, you got to see this,"' he explained to the outlet. The accolades follow a history of turbulent moments between Voight and Jolie, which have caused periods of estrangement over the years. The Maleficent star looked elegant in a low-cut white top paired with a chic black jacket and matching pants, complemented by dark sunglasses for a low-profile look They reconnected briefly during the filming of Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001, but Jolie reportedly cut ties with her father again in the early 2000s. 'We don't really speak that much anymore,' the Changeling star told Vogue in 2002, shortly after starring in the Lara Croft film. Voight's infidelity during his marriage to Jolie's mother, Marcheline Bertrand, and their subsequent divorce reportedly were key factors in the father and daughter's estrangement. Although the pair have made up in the past, Voight recently slammed his daughter for her anti-Israel posts. He branded them as 'lies' and said 'the Israeli army must protect thy soil.' Jolie is formerly a special envoy of the UN High Commission for Refugees. She accused Israel of 'deliberately bombing children, women, families, deprived of food, medicine and humanitarian aid' in violation of the international law. In response, Voight said he was 'disappointed' that his daughter did not understand that Hamas' objective was 'to annihilate the land of the Jews.' Jon Voight is 'proud' of his daughter Angelina Jolie and granddaughter Vivienne after they stole the spotlight at the 2024 Tony Awards with their remarkable victory; (pictured 2022) The mother-daughter duo produced the musical The Outsiders , which won four trophies, including the top honor of Best Musical; (pictured 2024 Tony Awards) 'Im very proud of Vivienne,' Oscar winner Voight, 85, told TMZ on Sunday. 'Im really proud of Angie because she really tries to encourage each of the kids to be what they want to be' The accolades follow a history of turbulent moments between Voight and Jolie, which have caused periods of estrangement over the years; (pictured 1998) Meanwhile, Vivienne's appearance at the June 16 Tony Awards came as another blow to Brad on Father's Day shortly after she notably dropped his surname on her Playbill credit. The mother daughter duo paused for a quick photo session together upon arriving to the Lincoln Center where the ceremony took place. At one point, the pair were spotted sharing a laugh before heading into the main venue. Last month in May, it was also revealed that Vivienne dropped the last name Pitt from her moniker in The Outsiders Playbill. According to People, the former couple's daughter was listed as Vivienne Jolie in the literature, instead of Vivienne Jolie-Pitt. It's unknown if she has legally changed her name. The move came shortly after Angelina was ordered by a judge to turn over every NDA agreement that she signed with a third-party over an eight-year period amid the ex spouses' ongoing legal battle. Vivienne's name change comes after her older sister Zahara made a similar choice in public. Last November, when she was inducted into the AKA sorority at Spelman College, she appeared to drop her father's last name as she introduced herself. In a video clip shared by Essence magazine, she stated, 'My name is Zahara Marley Jolie.' Pitt has also faced scorn from his son Pax, 20, who called him a 'world-class a**hole' and a 'despicable person' in an explosive instagram rant revealed by DailyMail.com. Brad PItt and Angelina are still embroiled in an ongoing divorce battle and the actor reportedly has a strained relationship with this children; (former couple seen in 2014) Jolie, who shares six children - Maddox, 22, Pax, 19, Zahara, 18, Shiloh, 17, and twins Knox and Vivienne, 1 - with Pitt, reportedly reached out to Voight in 2010; ( pictured in 2014) Also last month, Brad and Angelina's daughter, Shiloh, 18, officially requested to drop 'Pitt' from her surname in court documents obtained by TMZ. Angelina and Brad began dating after Pitt and then-wife, Jennifer Aniston, announced their divorce in 2005. The two later tied the knot in 2014, with the Maleficent actress filing for divorce in 2016 after only two years of marriage. Three years later in 2019, Brad and Angelina were declared legally single. Kyle Sandilands has revealed his family were forced to flee a playground while on holiday in Mossman when a fight broke out between locals. The radio shock jock, 53, poked fun at the difference between his getaway to Port Douglas compared to his co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson's glamorous Europe trip. While Jackie, 49, jetted off to France for a society wedding at a castle, Kyle told how he and his family were faced with some much less high-class antics. During their break from KIIS FM, Kyle - who hails from Queensland - and his wife Tegan Kynaston travelled to Port Douglas with their baby boy Otto, 23 months. But things took a turn when they visited their nearest park in Mosman and were forced to flee the area when an expletive-laden fight broke out between two families. Speaking on the Kyle and Jackie O Show on Monday, Kyle explained they were left surprised when they saw groups of people drinking and smoking in the park, despite signs warning against it. He shared: 'I get out of my car, we've driven to this children's playground and there's a sign on the fence saying no smoking, no drinking, no dogs inside the child's playground, that's normal. 'We swung the gate and the locals were in there, they had dogs in there, they had alcohol, they had cigarettes, everywhere was smoking!' Kyle Sandilands has revealed his family were forced to flee a playground in Mossman when a fight broke out between locals (he is pictured with his wife Tegan and baby Otto) He said the groups had large Rhodesian Ridgeback dogs off the lead in the park and were all arguing in expletive-laden rants, leaving Kyle and his family shocked. 'They were all fighting with each other. There was one group on the little barbeque area, and one bird was yelling [string of expletives], screaming,' he shared. 'Tegan panicked, my wife has never seen anything like this. I said ''babe it's fine'', her eyes went as big as dinner plates as she was taking the baby out of the car. 'There was a lot of yelling out and carrying on. I heard one group yell out, and I thought thank God someone has got some sense. 'I heard one bird yell out ''stop swearing you c***, this is a f**king child's park''. I thought, someone has got some sense.' In the tense holiday twist, Kyle said he quickly took a video of their son Otto, 23 months, on the flying fox (pictured) before fleeing the park when two families got involved in a tense row However, he said another woman then approached the person with a bottle in hand, prompting Kyle and his family to flee the park amid the argument. 'I thought OK, we'll get the kid on the flying fox real quick, get a little video, and then raced back to the car and fled the area,' he shared. Comparing his holiday to Jackie's European getaway, Kyle joked he was a 'peasant' for most of his trip and certainly wasn't enjoying luxury speedboat trips like his co-host. 'The only speedboating I was doing was speedboating the hell out of that park! Two very different holidays,' he quipped. Meanwhile, Jackie added of her luxury voyage: 'I was surrounded by the fanciest of the fancy!' He poked fun at the difference between his holiday and his co-host Jackie 'O' Henderson's lavish Europe trip attending a high-society wedding in France (pictured on the day) While Kyle was in Port Douglas, Jackie had a lavish holiday in Europe, sightseeing in London and relaxing in Mykonos, Greece, before jetting to France for a wedding. She joined Sydney's socialites at a three-day event as Alexander Porter, whose family owns Australia's leading condom brand Four Seasons, exchanged vows with partner Chris Ledlin. Their wedding took place at Chateau de la Napoule, a restored French castle, located in Mandelieu-la-Napoule - about a 15 minute drive from Cannes. Jackie stole the show on the couple's big day, looking ever inch the Hollywood movie star in a $5,500 Mariam Seddiq white strapless bridal gown featuring a puff skirt. She completed her look with a pair of long black Opera gloves, Valentino shades and a $1,700 Paco Rabanne clutch as she pulled out all the stops for the glitzy day. Jackie joined Sydney's socialites at a three-day event as Alexander Porter, whose family owns Australia's leading condom brand Four Seasons, exchanged vows with partner Chris Ledlin As well as the wedding, Jackie also enjoyed a Greek getaway with her best friend Gemma O'Neill where they stayed at 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. There's more good will flowing between Jennie Garth and Peter Facinelli in the wake of their recent conversation about family and marriage on her I Choose Me podcast. On Sunday, the former Beverly Hills, 90210 star took to her Instagram page to reveal the former couple reunited once again for a Family Day Out together on a boat for the July 4th holiday that included their three daughters Luca, 27, Lola, 21, and Fiona, 17. And from the sound of things the pair sealed their newfound friendship after some rocky days in the past that resulted in them splitting in 2012, and ultimately getting divorced the following year after about 12 years of marriage. 'So, if you've heard this weeks I Choose Me podcast update you'll know that there have been some BIG changes since my ex, Peter Facinelli, & I sat down to chat about all things co-parenting, divorce & bringing significant others into our children's lives on the podcast,' the actress wrote in the caption. Garth, 52, went on to share how she had hoped their tough conversation on the podcast 'would bring some positive changes into both our families lives,' but confessed 'I truly didn't think we would get to the point were at now!' Peter Facinelli (left) reunited with ex-wife Jennie Garth (second right) for a fun 'Family Day Out' together on a boat with their three daughters Fiona, 17, Lola, 21, and Luca, 27 Facinelli organized their afternoon out together on the water one week after he and Garth aired out their long-running grievances when they discussed family matter on her I Choose Me podcast last week 'We had a family day out,' Garth continued, before adding, 'It was a beautiful day & seeing the girls happy made my heart feel so full!' The Urbana, Illinois native also gave a mention to her husband Dave Abrams, writing, 'We missed you hubs,' and then joking, 'I'm still in shock that nobody was pushed overboard! #success.' She even gave a shout-out to her ex-husband: 'Thanks for organizing it @peterfacinelli,' she concluded along with several hashtags: '#IChooseMe #family #reunited #lifeafterdivorce.' The cover photo showed The Twilight alum and his ex-wife leaning on the side of the boat next to the anchor with all three of their girls, who were all flashing big beaming smiles. There's also a sweet snap of the sisters posing for the camera together while holding on to their 21-month-old brother Jack, which is their dad's son with fiance, Lilly Anne Harrison. Facinelli started dating Harrison in 2016 following his split from Jaimie Alexander, and eventually got engaged in January 2020, just two months before COVID-19 was deemed a pandemic. Harrison, an actress, 35, gave birth to their boy Jack in September 2022. The former couple's three daughters Luca, Lola and Fiona posed with their younger brother Jack, 21 months, who their dad's son from his engagement with Lily Anne Harrison The former couple's daughter Lola seemed to be overjoyed at spending the day with her parents Facinelli's fiance Lily Anne Harrison was also on hand for the family outing with her son The former couple, who were married from 2001 to 2013, laid down with their girls to take in the the incredible view Fanicelli first met Garth on the set of the television film An Unfinished Affair (1995), and they then began dating soon after, which ultimately led to them tying-the-knot in January 2001 in a traditional ceremony. They would welcome their first daughter Luca in June 1997, four years before they made their union legal, and then Lola about a year later in December 2002. Fiona made her grand arrival on Planet Earth in September 2006. Garth, who was first married to Daniel B. Clark for two years, ending in 1996, rebounded from her second divorce from Facinelli by starting up a romance with actor David Abrams in 2014 after meeting on a blind date. They got engaged a year later, and ultimately getting married in July 2015. The pair went through a rough patch where they separated in 2017 and then filed for divorce the following year, only to reconcile and dismiss the divorce proceedings in February 2019. Garth was able to get a selfie of some of the younger members of their party The family stopped for a group photo on the dock next to the boat Garth and Facinelli met in 1995 on the set of a TV movie, and went on to be married from 2001 to 2013; they are pictured in Los Angeles in February 2005 Just last week Garth revealed that she is now 'officially friends' with Facinelli after opening up about their lives together and their separation and divorce on her podcast. During the newest episode of I Choose Me that debuted last Monday, the What I Like About You alum revealed that Facinelli has since unblocked her from Instagram. 'I want to share with you guys something really quickly. The good that has come from this pod but specifically the episode with my ex Peter. Guys, we are officially friends now,' Garth admitted. 'He even unblocked me from Instagram. I've been blocked on his socials for so long that I stopped caring years ago. But Im unblocked now. Thats big news,' Garth added. SpongeBob SquarePants got the profile treatment on CBS News Sunday Morning as the animated character who lives in a pineapple under the sea turns 25. CBS News correspondent and co-anchor Lee Cowan, 59, visited the Nickelodeon studios in Burbank, California, for a feature that included interviews with cast members of the long-running show that officially premiered on July 17, 1999. 'SpongeBob SquarePants and his undersea buddies have become a multi-billion dollar a year franchise for our sister network Nickelodeon. They spawned countless video games, internet memes, action figures, three feature films, even a Broadway musical,' Cowan said. 'He lets his freak flag fly. He is who he is. It's amazing that folks find that empowering that are now grown-ups or even little kids now,' said Tom Kenny, 61, who has voiced titular character SpongeBob since 1999. Cowan observed that what separates SpongeBob from other cartoons, in part, is the cast. SpongeBob SquarePants got the profile treatment on CBS News Sunday Morning as the animated character who lives in a pineapple under the sea turns 25 'Every one of them has been side by side since the very beginning,' Cowan said. During a group interview with Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence, Rodger Bumpass and Mr. Lawrence, Cowan said, 'What an amazing gift you guys have given people.' 'No, but we got the gift,' said Lawrence, 57, who voices squirrel Sandy Cheeks who wears a diving suit and lives underwater. 'It's our first best destiny I always say,' chimed in Bumpass, 72, who voices Squidward Tentacles. Behind-the-scenes video was shown of the cast recording a scene and afterward Cowan told the voice actors that he was struck how they still laugh at it. 'That's the beauty of it,' said Fagerbakke, who voices dimwitted starfish Patrick. 'We always will laugh at it,' Bumpass added. 'Patrick still makes me laugh. I kind of lose myself in Patrick,' Fagerbakke admitted as a clip was shown of Patrick asking if mayonnaise was an instrument. CBS News correspondent and co-anchor Lee Cowan, 59, visited the Nickelodeon studios in Burbank, California, for a feature that included interviews with cast members of the long-running show that officially premiered on July 17, 1999 'SpongeBob SquarePants and his undersea buddies have become a multi-billion dollar a year franchise for our sister network Nickelodeon. They spawned countless video games, internet memes, action figures, three feature films, even a Broadway musical,' Cowan said 'He lets his freak flag fly. It's amazing that folks find that empowering that are now grown-ups or even little kids now,' said Tom Kenny, 61, who has voiced titular character SpongeBob since 1999 During a group interview with Kenny, Bill Fagerbakke, Carolyn Lawrence, Rodger Bumpass and Mr. Lawrence, Cowan said, 'What an amazing gift you guys have given people' 'We always will laugh at it,' said Rodger Bumpass Cowan told viewers how this 'fantastically improbable world was dreamed up by a former marine biologist named Stephen Hillenburg'. Kenny gave Cowan a tour of the 'Nickelodeon archives' with a short Igor impersonation. 'Hillenburg thought it would be particularly funny if the sponge who lived in this tidepool wasn't an actual sea sponge, but an ordinary kitchen sponge instead,' Cowan said. He added: 'Hillenburg's premise was simple. A happy-go-lucky SpongeBob wants nothing more than to be the best fry cook in the ocean. And has a pet snail named Gary.' Cowan said that Ramsey Naito, president of Nickelodeon Animation, argues that SpongeBob became for Gen Z what Mickey Mouse was to Baby Boomers. 'One of the things I always loved about SpongeBob, personally, is that SpongeBob reminds us of the kid inside of us all, truly. That sweet, honest, naive, loveable kid in all of us,' Naito said. 'Patrick still makes me laugh. I kind of lose myself in Patrick,' Bill Fagerbakke admitted as a clip was shown of Patrick asking if mayonnaise was an instrument The Nickelodeon show has spawned numerous Internet memes A SpongeBob SquarePants show played on Broadway 'One of the things I always loved about SpongeBob, personally, is that SpongeBob reminds us of the kid inside of us all, truly. That sweet, honest, naive, loveable kid in all of us,' said Ramsey Naito, president of Nickelodeon Animation Kenny noted that SpongeBob does get discouraged and feels bad, but he always comes back. Fagerbakke said a 15-year-old girl came up to him at a convention and said she went through a period of great depression and the show made her want to keep living. 'That's such an incredibly intense thing to hear. And I look up and there's her mother standing right behind her, she's sobbing,' Fagerbakke said of the show's impact on people. SpongeBob SquarePants creator Hillenburg died in November 2018 at age 57 after being diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. Ajay Rochester looked effortlessly stylish as she was spotted out shopping in Los Angeles after detailing her Ozempic use. The former Biggest Loser host, 55, showed off her figure in a blue floral summer dress as she was seen running errands in a grocery store. She styled her ensemble with a pair of white heeled boots and toted her essentials in a brown crossbody handbag. Ajay swept her blonde-tinted locks into a messy bun and fixed her glasses on top of her head to complete her chic ensemble. As well as running errands, the TV presenter was also seen having an animated conversation with someone on the street. Ajay was born in Sydney and rose to fame as the host of reality weight-loss television series The Biggest Loser Australia from 2006 until 2009. She has since moved to the United States and is currently based in Los Angeles, where she works as a casting director. Her latest outing comes after Ajay detailed her use of controversial 'weight loss' drug Ozempic after struggling with her weight for several years. Ajay Rochester cut a stylish figure as she was spotted out shopping in Los Angeles after detailing her Ozempic use The former Biggest Loser host, 55, showed off her figure in a blue floral summer dress as she was seen running errands in a grocery store She styled her ensemble with a pair of white heeled boots and toted her essentials in a brown crossbody handbag Ozempic is a diabetes medication which is being sold privately for weight loss, and celebrities including Sharon Osbourne and Amy Schumer have admitted to using the drug. Speaking with 7NEWS Spotlight in April, Ajay detailed her heartbreaking struggles with her weight as she claimed Ozempic has changed her life. 'This drug has absolutely transformed my life. It's not a trick. It's not cheating. It's medicine,' she said. 'Like, I was a prisoner in my body... Let the magic happen. I have a disease, like I didn't want to die from obesity.' She recalled facing immense pressure to look a certain way during her time hosting The Biggest Loser, which led to unhealthy eating habits. As well as running errands, the TV presenter was also seen having an animated conversation with someone on the street Ajay swept her blonde-tinted locks into a messy bun and fixed her glasses on top of her head to complete her chic ensemble Her latest outing comes after Ajay detailed her use of controversial 'weight loss' drug Ozempic after struggling with her weight for several years 'The pressure was on to lose those extra kilos. When I was hosting Biggest Loser, the lightest I got was 70 kilos and I did not eat, did not eat,' she explained. 'I was an emaciated doll that was still apparently not thin enough.' She heartbreakingly told how she has often been publicly humiliated over her weight and once had a milkshake thrown at her in the street. 'I mean, people have thrown things at me in the street, like I had a milkshake thrown at me in Sydney one time, where these guys said, "yeah, you fat pig." And threw a milkshake at me, driving past,' she explained. Last Friday, Viola Davis shared a rare photograph of her 'soon-to-be 14-year-old' daughter Genesis Tennon ahead of her birthday this Wednesday. The 58-year-old EGOT champ - who boasts 16.9M social media followers - captioned the kitchen snap: 'Love her soooo much!' Viola's post received glowing comments from her former Help castmate Octavia Spencer as well as Alicia Keys, Vanessa Williams, Deborah Roberts, Elizabeth Perkins, Gina Torres, Holly Robinson Peete, Loni Love, and Sheila E. Davis and her husband-turned-JuVee producing partner Julius Tennon - who adopted the teenager back in 2011 - impressively celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary on June 23. 'Here's to 21 more. My best decision. I love you,' the Kung Fu Panda 4 actress gushed. Last Friday, Viola Davis shared a rare photograph of her 'soon-to-be 14-year-old' daughter Genesis Tennon ahead of her birthday this Wednesday: 'Love her soooo much!' At 70, the twice-divorced Texan is 12 years older than Viola, and they originally met way back in 1999 on the set of CBS series City of Angels. Davis is also stepmother to Julius' two children - daughter Shevonda Tennon, 47; and son Duriel Tennon, 44 - from his six-year marriage to ex-wife #1 Sheryl Arnold, which ended in 1980. 'I use beauty as a tool to help me embrace the joy in life and further my self love, and I feel like people see that radiating through. I work out, I put on a nice shade of lipstick to please me,' the South Carolina-born thespian told Harper's Bazaar UK on May 28. 'I take a bath every night, with my husband, and we sit in the tub and we laugh and we talk, we do facials. I tell him how pretty he looks, he says how beautiful I look. I love facials, acid peels, steam showers, red-light therapy, and drinking water. 'Running around with my daughter keeps me feeling young and she makes me laugh and Ive decided I like my smile, so I want to laugh more. Feeling the sunshine with sunscreen on, of course makes me feel alive.' The Air actors launched their publishing company JVL Media in April in order 'to champion and elevate voices that resonate with authenticity and are often overlooked.' And in May, the Silver Dollar Road producers invested funds into ALTR, an upcoming self-help app featuring short-form audiobooks from black luminaries. On March 1, Variety reported that Viola had just wrapped her role as POTUS Taylor Sutton in Patricia Riggen's G20 Summit-set terrorist thriller G20, which they shot in Cape Town, for Amazon MGM Studios. The 58-year-old EGOT champ's post received glowing comments from her former Help castmate Octavia Spencer as well as Alicia Keys, Vanessa Williams, Deborah Roberts, Elizabeth Perkins, Gina Torres, Holly Robinson Peete, Loni Love, and Sheila E Viola and her husband-turned-JuVee producing partner Julius Tennon (R, pictured May 13) - who adopted the teenager back in 2011 - impressively celebrated their 21st wedding anniversary on June 23 Davis - who boasts 16.9M social media followers - gushed: 'Here's to 21 more. My best decision. I love you' At 70, the twice-divorced Texan is 12 years older than the Kung Fu Panda 4 actress, and they originally met way back in 1999 on the set of CBS series City of Angels (pictured June 10) Viola is also stepmother to Julius' two children - daughter Shevonda Tennon, 47; and son Duriel Tennon, 44 - from his six-year marriage to ex-wife #1 Sheryl Arnold, which ended in 1980 On March 1, Variety reported that Davis had just wrapped her role as POTUS Taylor Sutton in Patricia Riggen's G20 Summit-set terrorist thriller G20, which they shot in Cape Town, for Amazon MGM Studios The South Carolina-born thespian will reprise her DC Comics role as Suicide Squad commander Amanda Waller in James Gunn's seven-episode adult animated series Creature Commandos, which will be 'released later this year' on Max On March 10, Gunn shared an update on Viola's standalone spin-off Waller: 'Waller's still happening and Jeremy [Saulnier] and Christal [Henry] are hard at work writing great stuff, but the schedule was impacted by the strikes so Waller will come after [Peacemaker season two] in the larger order of things' Davis will reprise her DC Comics role as Suicide Squad commander Amanda Waller in James Gunn's seven-episode adult animated series Creature Commandos, which will be 'released later this year' on Max. On March 10, Gunn shared an update on the L'Oreal brand ambassador's standalone spin-off Waller: 'Waller's still happening and Jeremy [Saulnier] and Christal [Henry] are hard at work writing great stuff, but the schedule was impacted by the strikes so Waller will come after [Peacemaker season two] in the larger order of things.' Viola overcame an impoverished upbringing in Rhode Island living in apartments that were 'condemned and rat-infested' and she didn't have a lot of friends. Davis earned a full scholarship to Rhode Island College, thanks to federal program TRIO Upward Bound, and went on to graduate from the prestigious Julliard School. The casting for the live-action film adaption of Moana (2016) is taking shape. Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, the man who voiced the role of Maui in the fully animated Moana (2016), took to his Instagram page to show fans some of the actors who are now set to bring their characters to life. 'Exciting and inspiring casting news as we begin to bring together our live action MOANA family,' Johnson wrote in the post featuring headshots of the cast alongside their animated characters. The first images reveal Catherine Laga'aia, 17, as the young actress who will play the titular Polynesian heroine, Moana. The Sydney, Australia native is a relative unknown with Samoan heritage, according to The Independent. Rounding out the new cast members: John Tui, 49, who play her dad Chief Tui, Frankie Adams, 30, portrays her mom Sina, while Rena Owen, 61, takes on the Gramma Tala character. Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson, 52, slipped into promo mode for the upcoming live-action remake of Moana, which will see him play the role of Maui after voicing the character in the fully animation Moana (2016) After listing the four actors added to the cast, Johnson reminded fans that he's also part of the cast, writing, 'And yours truly, as the demigod ~ MAUI.' The Hollywood leading man added, 'It's our deepest honor to share the legends, songs, dances and traditions of our Polynesian culture with all of you and your families around the world.' He went on to announce that production on the live-action Moana is set to begin in August, and that #MOANALiveAction is scheduled to premiere in theaters July 10, 2026! Rounding out the post, Johnson reminded people that Thomas Kail will be directing the live-action version, and that famed Broadway star Lin Manuel Miranda is doing the music for the movie. Kail is working from a screenplay by Jared Bush, who served as the writer of the fully animated Moana (2016), which went on to become a smash hit with fans, grossing $687.2 million while working with a $150-175 million budget. Moana is a passion project of sorts for The Rock, considering he has Samoan citizenship due to his mother being Samoan, according to IMDb. 'This story is my culture, and this story is emblematic of our people's grace and warrior strength. I wear this culture proudly on my skin and in my soul,' he said of Moana. 'There is no better world for us to honor the story of our people, our passion and our purpose than through the realm of music and dance, which is at the core of who we are as Polynesian people.' Johnson shared some of the casting decision by posting a photo on Instagram featuring headshots of the cast alongside their animated characters Catherine Laga'aia, 17, who will play the titular Polynesian heroine, is a Sydney, Australia native with Samoan heritage, like many of the cast Along with starring as Maui in the live-action Moana, Johnson will also be a producer The fully animated Moana 2 is scheduled to premiere in theaters on November 27, 2024 Sean Bailey, Disney Live Action's president of production, recognized that only seven years had passed since the animated Moana film was released, but took into account that the celebration of Disney's 100th anniversary contributed to the decision to remake the film so soon. Johnsons' post comes as the full animated sequel, Moana 2, moves forward with its production that is being written and directed by Dave G. Derrick Jr. Aulii Cravalho , 23, is reprising the titular voice role of Moana for the second installment of the animated version. Moana 2 is scheduled to premiere in theaters on November 27, 2024. Bhad Bhabie has accused her child's father Le Vaughn of domestic abuse while sharing a series of harrowing social media posts. The rapper and OnlyFans star, 21, detailed the violence she claims he subjected her to and the shocking injuries she says she sustained. Bhad Bhabie - who is best known for her Cash Me Outside catchphrase - posted CCTV purportedly capturing a physical altercation between her and Le Vaughn. Bhad Bhabie - whose real name is Danielle Bregoli - has since deleted the footage which was originally posted to her Instagram Stories on Sunday. The clip, which was captured outside a home in the early hours of June 30, allegedly shows Danielle being thrown to the ground by a man she identified as Le Vaughn. Bhad Bhabie (pictured - whose real name is Danielle Bregoli - has accused her child's father Le Vaughn of domestic abuse while sharing a series of harrowing social media posts The rapper and OnlyFans star, 21, detailed the violence she claims he subjected her to and the shocking injuries she says she sustained (pictured) Danielle shares her daughter Kali Love with Le Vaughn, after they welcomed their first child together earlier this year in March. She wrote: 'This man think he gonna [sic] take my daughter from me! Say whatever you want, [trying to] take my baby is crazy.' Additional Instagram Story posts revealed two graphic photos of Danielle's injuries, showing a nearly swollen-shut bruised eye and deep scratches on her skin. Danielle went on to directly address the domestic abuse allegations via her Instagram Stories, revealing that she shared the footage and images so show him 'what he does is wrong' and to 'take accountability' for his actions. She noted that she wanted him to 'make a real change' and that she loves him 'more than I love myself and it's honestly really sad,' calling it 'real life.' 'He's going to get the help he needs,' she added, and said she didn't share it for people to 'attack him', before deleting the posts soon after. The rapper also shared a poignant quote on Instagram: 'I used to tolerate a lot because I didnt want to lose people, but now I realize that those people arent my people.' The accusations come just weeks after Danielle was detained by police in a case of mistaken identity in June. Danielle shares her daughter Kali Love with Le Vaughn, after they welcomed their first child together earlier this year in March Bhad Bhabie - who is best known for her Cash Me Outside catchphrase - posted CCTV purportedly capturing a physical altercation between her and Le Vaughn Danielle directly addressed the domestic abuse allegations via her Instagram Stories, revealing that she shared the footage and images so show him 'what he does is wrong' She was filmed surrounded by police officers and squad cars at a 76 gas station near Woodland Hills, California, in a video obtained by TMZ. She was seen talking to police with sources revealing she had been driving her Mercedes when she was followed by three patrol cars. When she stopped at the gas station, they swarmed her and she was detained for a brief period but let go after an investigation. Law enforcement sources told the publication police were responding to a burglary radio call on the 4500 block of Winnetka Circle in Woodland Hills - with the star's Mercedes matching the description of the burglary suspect. Officers spoke with Danielle and Le Vaughn and she later shared a statement discussing the experience on social media. She wrote: 'Yesterday we got pulled over by LAPD. They eventually released us and explained they were looking for a similar vehicle that matched the description of a car involved in criminal activity. 'We are okay but a bit shaken up. Luckily my daughter was not in the vehicle at the time.' Having announced late last year in December that she was expecting her first child, she opened up to People about how she first discovered she was pregnant while also revealing her name. She explained: 'The name doesn't really have any specific meaning. It's just his mom picked the middle name and then I had a list of five names I liked, and Kali was one of them.' The influencer added, 'I thought that Love went good with Kali.' Danielle shared a photo of herself with her baby girl for the first time in an Instagram post on March 23. Danielle, who announced she had given birth on March 15, could be seen resting in bed with the newborn cradled in her arm. She discovered she was pregnant in July last year just one day after missing her period and becoming suspicious over her increased appetite. The disturbing accusations come after the OnlyFans model was detained by police in a case of mistaken identity in June She was filmed surrounded by police officers and squad cars at a 76 gas station near Woodland Hills, California , in a video obtained by TMZ; (pictured in February) Danielle said the test came back positive, and she immediately went to tell her boyfriend even though he 'was still asleep' because she was 'just too eager to tell him'. She revealed at the time: 'I probably could have did it in a cute way, but I just woke him up and was like, "Look, look, look!"' The same month Danielle announced the gender of her then unborn baby via a Marc Jacobs campaign. The Gucci Flip Flops rapper and Le Vaughn began dating in July 2020 and have been together for over three years. Danielle rose to fame after appearing on a 2016 episode of Dr. Phil, where she went viral with the phrase, 'Cash me outside, how 'bout that?' She has established a lucrative career on OnlyFans and claims she has amassed more than $50m from the site as well as in rap music and branding endeavours. Danielle's fame has since led to other income streams, including a $1million deal to endorse makeup brand Copy Cat Beauty. She currently charges $23.99 for a one-month subscription to her OnlyFans page. Former Bargain Hunt presenter Tim Wonnacott's shock exit from the programme made headlines back in 2015. Tim, 73, starred on the popular show for more than a decade between 2003 and 2015 after replacing David Dickinson, before deciding to step down. The antiques expert and presenter fronted more than 1,000 episodes of the British show, becoming a familiar and well-loved face for viewers - which made his swift disappearance even more out of the blue. So why did he decide to leave the show he became best known for? Here, MailOnline looks at why beloved Bargain Hunt presenter Tim Wonnacott chose to leave the programme behind almost a decade ago and what he's been up to since. Former Bargain Hunt presenter Tim Wonnacott's shock exit from the programme made headlines back in 2015 - but why did he leave the show? (pictured in 2018) Why did Tim Wonnacott leave Bargain Hunt? The star announced his shock decision in a statement released on November 25, 2015. It read: 'I am pleased to have been part of Bargain Hunt for so many years and have thoroughly enjoyed every one of my, roughly, 1,200 programmes hunting out bargains with the contestants. 'Alongside continuing to voice Antiques Road Trip for the BBC, I look forward to developing new programme ideas.' The BBC also released a statement, which read: 'We would like to thank Tim Wonnacott for his dedication to Bargain Hunt over the last twelve-years and for the great expertise that he has brought to the show in that time. 'Bargain Hunt will be moving in a new direction next year utilising a team of experts who present a number of shows each. Tim continues to work with the BBC on Antiques Road Trip.' Although the statements make the exit seem straightforward, Tim reportedly departed from the programme after a confrontation with producers and alleged complaints from staff at BBC Bristol. It was reported that he was probed by the BBC amid reports staff had accused him of picking on them while filming the antiques show and stepped down after allegedly being suspended following the disagreement. A source at BBC Bristol told The Mirror: 'I've always found him fine to work with. But some staff have been unhappy and made a complaint. 'The word bullying has been used and the BBC has to take these things seriously and check them out.' Although it was never confirmed why he actually left, the presenter's official departure was announced in November 2015, leaving fans confused. The BBC refused to comment on 'individual staff matters' or any more specifics of the suspension, while at the time Tim only said he is off the show for 'personal reasons'. The star announced his shock decision in a statement released on November 25, 2015 Although it was never confirmed why he actually left, the presenter's official departure was announced in November 2015, leaving fans confused What is Tim Wonnacott doing now? Although viewers no longer see Tim's face on Bargain Hunt, he never left the world of TV. The star still works with BBC One to narrate Antiques Road Trip, as well as its celebrity spin off version, which is a role he has held since 2010. His voice was also heard on a 2020 Channel 5 documentary called When Classic TV Goes Horribly Wrong - a compilation of TV fails. Other TV appearances of Tim's include Restoration on BBC One, Test The Nation, Ready, Steady, Cook, and Put Your Money Where Your Mouth is. Away from his work, Tim spends time with his wife Helen, who he's been married to since 1984, and their three children - Alice, Fred, and Brian. In 2018, the former Bargain Hunt presenter put his luxury country estate on the market for 2.75million as he prepared to up sticks and move to Australia. The couple were selling the two properties that sit on their 10-acre stretch of land in Horsham, West Sussex, and told The Telegraph at the time that they were planning to move down under to make more TV programmes. 'I'm looking forward to it. But I'll always regard England as my home,' he said at the time. However, if his social media accounts are to go by, it looks like Tim is back on British soil and attending auctions in the UK. He often shares snippets of what he's up to on his X (formerly Twitter) account, including the rare finds he's bagged along the way. Jaden Smith was called a 'rainbow in human form' in a gushing birthday tribute posted on social media by his girlfriend Sab Zada. Sab, 25, took to Instagram on Sunday to share a birthday message to Jaden, who turns 26 on Monday, along with several photos of them together. She posted: 'happy birthday, you are sweeter than skittles falling through a rainbow on a Sunday afternoon, I love you and I'm grateful gravity was on the right side of history to bring us together. You have the kindest heart and the cutest most contagious laugh. With a hug always at hand and a shoulder to cry on. 'You know more about me than most people and are the least judgmental human I've ever met to say the least. You are a rainbow in human form. Bright, rare and beautiful. May life always be kind to you and may love and joy never be your stranger. To another year around the sun,' Sab added for her roughly 940,000 followers on Instagram. Jaden Smith was called a 'rainbow in human form' in a gushing birthday tribute posted on social media by his girlfriend Sab Zada The photos showed Sab and Jaden enjoying time together as they were seen dancing and cuddling. Sab celebrated her 25th birthday last month and has been dating Jaden for about four years. The couple were first linked in 2020 when paparazzi spotted them holding hands after seeing a movie, which was documented by Daily Mail. The son of Will Smth and Jada Pinkett Smith hasn't shared much information about his romance with Zada. Sab also had not spoken publicly about their romance until her Sunday post on Instagram celebrating Jaden's birthday. The influencer, who goes by 'Pasabist' online, has more than 940,000 fans and followers on Instagram and is active on TikTok, where she tries different trends and dances, while also doing vlogs about makeup, fashion and cooking on her YouTube channel. She is signed with Select Model Management in Los Angeles, for which she's worked on collaborations with brands such as L'Oreal and Crocs. Sab, 25, took to Instagram on Sunday to share a birthday message to Jaden, who turns 26 on Monday, along with several photos of them together. The photos showed Sab and Jaden enjoying time together as they were seen dancing and cuddling Trey Smith, Willow Smith, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, Jaden and Adrienne Banfield-Norris are shown in May at the Bad Boys: Ride Or Die premiere in Los Angeles Like Jaden, she also has a passion for music, which includes such recent releases as 1005 and Time in 2022, which came after the indie singles Stable and Peter Pan. Sab's first EP, titled Hafren, debuted in June 2023, according to People. Jaden last month released a new single titled Roses. He released his third studio album CTV3: Cool Tape Vol. 3 in August 2020. We Are China Unwavering resolve of armed police forces combating floods in Central China (People's Daily App) 14:30, July 08, 2024 In the battle against floods, the armed police forces stand firm, enduring hours of grueling work. (Interns Jia Yuqing and Li Yunrou contributed to this video; Source: China Youth Daily) (Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun) Firefighters rescue a dog Sunday at Fort Funston in San Francisco. San Francisco Fire Department San Francisco firefighters rescued a dog off a steep bluff at Fort Funston on Sunday morning in what served as a timely reminder of the perils at the off-leash paradise. The dog, a medium-size husky or herding mix, went over the cliff about 15 feet down the side of a slope around 10:20 a.m., said San Francisco fire Capt. Justin Schorr. Firefighters used ropes to lower the main rescuer, who put a harness on the canine, then carried the dog while the rest of the crew pulled both up to safety, Schorr said. The dog did not appear injured and was reunited with their owner. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The rescue didnt take long, he said, adding that dog rescues are all too common. Our firefighters have a lot of experience doing this with the number of dogs unleashed in the area, the captain said. Dog rescues are usually more frequent in the summer. Schorr noted that Sunday offered nice weather to walk along the cliffs. We just need to do it safely and carefully, he said. On X, the fire department reminded canine friends to stay on the trails and leashed to their humans whenever possible. Dani Imbert cut a very glamorous figure as she joined her co-stars to film the upcoming series of The Only Way Is Essex in Cyprus on Sunday. The reality personality, 26, was joined by her castmate Chloe Meadows, as well as other recognisable faces including Courtney Green and Ella Rae Wise. The group are currently staying at the exclusive Cap St Georges Hotel in Paphos, Cyprus, while filming series 34 of the ITVBe reality show. During the outing, Dani, 26, looked incredible as she put on a busty display in a deeply plunging green maxi dress, which dropped to her navel. The stylish ensemble boasted a halterneck design and figure-hugging fit, which showcased her toned stomach and enviable curves. Dani Imbert, 26, set pulses racing as she put on a busty display in a plunging green maxi dress while filming for the upcoming series of The Only Way Is Essex on Sunday She was also joined by her glamorous castmate Chloe Meadows, 32, who sent temperatures soaring in a metallic ombre co-ord set The reality TV star added inches to her frame with a pair of gold strappy stiletto heels and further accessorised with a layer of gold-toned bangles. Meanwhile, her castmate Chloe, 32, sent temperatures soaring in a metallic ombre co-ord set. The chic ensemble showcased Chloe's toned abs and consisted of an off-the-shoulder top and a low-rise maxi skirt. She added inches to her frame with a pair of high heels and further accessorised with a layer of necklaces. Elsewhere Dan Edgar, 34, and Ella, 24, enjoyed some downtime as they ventured out for a sweet date night with castmates Diags, 33, and Jodie Wells, 32. While the other TOWIE cast members were feeling in a clubbing mood as they arrived at the hotel. It comes after Dani revealed she had a huge falling out with cast member Harry, which Series 33 did not capture, and admitted the pair haven't spoken since. Dani told The Sun: 'Personally, I get along with everyone bar one. It's Harry. We did have a bit of drama back in Bali but we kind of cleared the air.' Dani looked incredible as she showcased her enviable figure and further accessorised with a layer of gold bangles Meanwhile, Chloe's racy ensemble showcased her toned abs and consisted of an off-the-shoulder top and a low-rise maxi skirt 'Then, it wasn't actually shown, but we had another falling out during the finale of the last series and he did actually kick me out of his party. 'I think this series it's about addressing it with him and seeing where I stand because I've not spoken to him since.' 'I've heard that he's nervous and I understand why because he was so clearly in the wrong. For me, I'm sick of him randomly having these turns and these lash-outs. It will be interesting to see how the conversation goes.' Harry is already not talking to former best friend Ella, after ditching her in favour of Amber Turner, Chloe, Courtney Green and Elma Pazar, known as the 'Girl Band'. This rubbed Ella up the wrong way as Amber is the ex-girlfriend of Ella's current flame Dan. It comes after Ella revealed Dan had cheated on her with his ex-girlfriend Hannah Rally while she was on holiday in Dubai. Elsewhere Dan Edgar, 34, and Ella-Rae Wise, 24, were dressed to the nines as they enjoyed some downtime and ventured out for a sweet date night The couple who recently got back together were also joined by castmates Diags, 33, and Jodie Wells, 32, who got several glam snaps before the outing Meanwhile, Sophie Kasaei,34, exuded elegance as she cut a glamorous figure in a sparkly black co-ord and was joined by boyfriend Jordan Brook, 29 Junaid Ahmed, 28, also attended the exclusive club sporting a mint and baby pink trouser co-ord set He was joined by Joe Blackman who cut a smart casual figure in a cream textured shirt and white chino shorts Meanwhile, Courtney Green, 29, cut a stylish figure in a metallic knit co-ord which consisted of a one-shoulder top and a maxi skirt Newest castmate Freddie Bentley, 26, was also in Cyprus filming for the upcoming series A source has since told The Sun: 'Dan was dating Hannah for around nine months, they got together shortly after he split from Amber.' 'Things were going really well and he even told her he loved her but he said he wasn't ready for anything serious. Next thing he is in Bali for Towie filming and is getting with Ella.' 'Hannah was obviously really shocked, but she just didn't want the drama to decide to wash her hands of him. But they ended up getting together again when Ella was out of town in Dubai.' 'Ella ended up finding out what happened between Dan and Hannah and was furious. 'She confronted Hannah about it and called her embarrassing as well as some other choice words. 'It got pretty nasty but was really the last straw for Hannah. Ella seems to have forgiven him for now.' MasterChef Australia contestants Mimi, Sav, Pezza, and Harry faced off in a high-stakes battle for the top four on Sunday night. Nat, who won the last immunity guarantee in the competition, watched on as the contestants were tasked with creating a dish using an extreme ingredient. Mimi incorporated the bitter gourd into her dish, Sav chose the Carolina Reaper chili pepper while Pezza and Harry both opted for the Epoisses cheese. Harry presented a gnocchi Epoisses, and Sav offered a Carolina Reaper Prawn Consomme. Meanwhile, Mimi served up a soft-shell crab don with bitter gourd kimchi, and Pezza went for an eye fillet, which fans labelled a 'deconstructed steak sandwich.' In the end, Mimi was sent home after failing to impress the judges, leaving viewers in an uproar. Social media users were quick to share their disappointment over the unexpected elimination. 'It's a crime she was eliminated...poor judging,' one fan wrote. MasterChef Australia contestants Mimi, Sav, Pezza, and Harry faced off in a high-stakes battle for the top four on Sunday night. Pictured: judge Andy Allen Another outraged viewer demanded, 'I WANT TO TALK TO THE MANAGER,' in all caps. The backlash continued with viewers questioning the judges' decision to keep Pezza in the competition despite his controversial dish, even labelled 'basic' by Andy Allen. 'Stupid result Mimi's cooking was far superior to Pezzas average dish,' one said. Nat, who won the last immunity guarantee in the competition, watched on as the contestants were tasked with creating a dish using an extreme ingredient but in the end, Mimi (pictured) was sent home after failing to impress the judges Social media users were quick to share their disappointment over the unexpected elimination 'Are you serious. WTF. How did that piece of steak keep him in this. What a bloody joke,' another commented. 'By this logic, Im also a top 4 cook in MasterChef. I can absolutely nail a cook on a steak. I can caramelise onions. I can melt cheese and smear it on a plate. Blair can also talk in the 3rd person. #MasterchefAU absolutely stupid judging tonight,' a user blasted. The 2024 season is still ongoing, but Network 10 have already confirmed the program will return in 2025 with judges Andy Allen, Jean-Christophe Novelli, Poh Ling Yeow and Sofia Levin. Viewers were in an uproar over the shock elimination and questioned the judges' decision to keep Pezza in the competition despite his controversial dish The panel of four made their debut in season 16 this year after Andy, 36, was the only judge to return to the show from last year's panel. Melissa Leong was dropped from the series and Jock Zonfrillo tragically died in April last year, just one day before season 15 was set to air. Andy, who joined the panel in 2020, admitted he was unsure about returning after the devastating loss of Jock but decided his friend would have wanted it. He has in turn survived a zombie apocalypse, fronted a notorious Brummie crime family and even fathered the atom bomb, but one could be forgiven for overlooking this bearded actor as he ambled a quiet street in Bath on Wednesday. Surrounded by a small production team, he was shooting scenes for latest film Steve, in which takes the titular lead as a headmaster fighting to maintain his school's integrity. With principal photography concluding in the Somerset spa town, the actor was seen with a hood pulled over his head as he wandered the street in a filthy shirt. His usually recognizable face was also smeared with dirt, while a greying beard made his famously chiseled features difficult to discern. On an overcast day in Bath, a crew-member held an umbrella above his head as he waited for his next take - but can you guess who it is? One could be forgiven for overlooking this bearded actor as he ambled a quiet street in Bath on Wednesday Surrounded by a small production team, he was busy shooting scenes on for latest film Steve, in which he plays a headmaster fighting to maintain his school's integrity Principal photography began on May 24, 2024, with its final scenes filmed in Bath on July 5 That's right, it's Cillian Murphy! The Oscar-winning star was filming his last scenes on the set of his forthcoming project, a Netflix adaptation of author Max Porter's 2023 novella Shy. Murphy, best known for his role as gang boss Tommy Shelby in BBC crime drama Peaky Blinders, plays a headteacher in charge of a school for boys with societal and behavioural difficulties. The forthcoming film, renamed Steve for Netflix, is being developed by Murphy's own production company, Big Things Films. Principal photography began on May 24, 2024, with its last scenes filmed in Bath on July 5. Murphy is also expected to reprise his role as Shelby for a Netflix film adaptation of the hit British series, the streaming service has confirmed. Netflix confirmed the news on X with a photograph of the script, while the Oscar winning actor told Deadline: 'It seems like Tommy Shelby wasnt finished with me 'It is very gratifying to be recollaborating with Steven Knight and Tom Harper on the film version of Peaky Blinders. This is one for the fans.' Cillian Murphy is a household name, but he looked radically different while filming Steve Murphy as fans know and love him (left) and the Irish actor in character on the set of Steve (right) Murphy is perhaps best known for his role as gang boss Tommy Shelby in BBC crime drama Peaky Blinders Peaky Blinders' original writing and directing team will be returning alongside Cillian Murphy, for the programme's Netflix film adaptation, the streaming service confirmed Co-writer Tom Harper shared: 'When I first directed Peaky Blinders over 10 years ago, we didnt know what the series would become, but we did know that there was something in the alchemy of the cast and the writing that felt explosive. 'Peaky has always been a story about family - and so its incredibly exciting to be reuniting with Steve and Cillian to bring the movie to audiences across the world on Netflix.' While Steven added: 'Im genuinely thrilled that this movie is about to happen. It will be an explosive chapter in the Peaky Blinders story. No holds barred. Full-on Peaky Blinders at war.' In March, Steven thrilled fans after he confirmed Cillian would star in the film during an appearance at BirminghamWorld for the premiere of his BBC show This Town. He said: '[Cillian] is definitely returning for it. We're shooting it in September just down the road in Digbeth.' The film is set to begin filming at Digbeth Loc Studios in Birmingham in September, and will be set during the Second World War. The remaining Strictly Come Dancing judges have come out to give their full support to Giovanni Pernice. Craig Revel Horwood, 59, and Motsi Mabuse, 43, have now shown their support by taking part in his dance classes after Shirley Ballas, 63, and Anton Du Beke, 57, previously did the same. Announcing the event on social media, the post read: Well it wouldnt be fair to only have 2 of the judges would it. So excited to announce that none other than @craigrevel and @motsimabuse will be joining us for an afternoon of dance fun on the 29th of September! The BBC launched an investigation after the dancer was accused of 'threatening and abusive behaviour' while working on the show last year. Craig Revel Horwood, 59, and Motsi Mabuse, 43, have now shown their support for Giovanni Pernice by taking part in his dance classes after staying quiet about his 'bullying' scandal While Giovanni's conduct is under investigation he has remained teaching, hosting regular workshops for the public through Ballando dance school (pictured at last month's workshop) Sherlock actress Amanda Abbington, 50 was paired with Mr Pernice but quit the BBC One programme mid-series in 2023 citing 'personal issues'. It was then revealed she had been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder following her stint on the show. Ms Abbington recently claimed that the show left her with PTSD and reportedly demanded footage of their rehearsals together. Other celebrity contestants such as Laura Whitmore, 39, Ranvir Singh, 46, and an unknown male contestant have also since come forward in making complaints about his behaviour. While it's been claimed that BBC bosses have banned the cast from discussing the 'bullying row', Ms Ballas, the shows head judge, has previously spoken out in support of Mr Pernice saying the truth will come out. Earlier this month Ms Ballas and Mr Du Beck showed their support for Mr Pernice by teaching at his Ballando dance workshop. At the event Ms Ballas said it was an 'honour and a privilege' to be at the workshop with Mr Pernice adding: 'Ive known him for 10 years and were good friends.' Offering a 'huge thank you' to the Italian professional for having her at his workshop, Shirley continued: 'I will be one person who will be by his side forever. What you see is what you get with him.' The professional dancer, 33, is at the centre of a bullying row after claims made of misconduct by his Strictly partner Amanda Abbington (pictured) and two other women A new dance class with Ms Mabuse and Mr Revel Horwood is yet to go on sale but is set to take place in late September in London The next event, hosted with Ms Ballas and Mr Du Beke alongside Mr Pernice, is already sold out for the end of the month. The new dance class with Ms Mabuse and Mr Revel Horwood is yet to go on sale but is set to take place in late September in London. Fans were quick to comment on the new announcement with one saying: This is fabulous to see the other two judges supporting Gio. Another said: So happy Giovanni is getting the support from all the Judges. Their support comes as Strictly Come Dancings 20th anniversary special at Buckingham Palace was scrapped this weekend because of the ongoing probe into Mr Pernices behaviour. According to The Sun the idea has been quashed, despite talks with the Royal household, due to 'logistical problems' 'diary clashes' and Giovanni Pernice's misconduct probe also a 'factor' in the decision. A Rick Springfield fan reportedly had the authorities called on her after she allegedly made two unwanted visits to the rocker's Los Angeles-area property. TMZ reports a woman gained access to Springfield's property twice in the past week after she convinced security at his gated community that she was his maid. The fan - a woman in her 40's - never actually came into contact with Springfield, 74, however, she did manage to appear at his front door and speak with one of his sons during her second visit. Deputies were reportedly contacted and the woman was ordered by them to leave the property and never return. According to the authorities, the woman did indeed leave and has not yet returned. A Rick Springfield fan reportedly had the cops called on her after she made two unwanted visits to the rocker's property in Los Angeles; pictured January 2024 However, police will be conducting even more patrolling in the community out of an abundance of caution. This particular case is not deemed stalking, according to TMZ. 'The term stalking means engaging in a course of conduct directed at a specific person that would cause a reasonable person to fear for his or her safety or the safety of others or suffer substantial emotional distress,' according to the U.S. Department of Justice. A musician and actor, Rick was born Richard Lewis Springthorpe in Australia but is known professionally as Rick Springfield. From 1969 to 1971, he was a member of the pop rock group Zoot before embarking on his own solo career. He released his debut single Speak to the Sky, which reached the top 10 in Australia in mid-1972. However, he is perhaps best known for his iconic 1980 pop tune Jessie's Girl. As an actor, Springfield's resume includes a long-running role on the daytime soap opera General Hospital, where he played Dr. Noah Drake. More recently he was on Californication, The Goldbergs and True Detective. In 2015 he gave a stunning performance as Greg, Meryl Streep's rocker boyfriend, in Ricki And The Flash. A musician and actor, Rick was born Richard Lewis Springthorpe in Australia but is known professionally as Rick Springfield; pictured in 1981 Springfield pictured performing in Las Vegas last year Springfield released his first album in five years, Automatic, last year. Fans can currently catch him on tour, with his next stop schedule for July 11 at the Pikes Peak Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Springfield has been married to Barbara Porter since 1984 and they have two sons together, Liam and Joshua. Two new bombshells have entered the Love Island villa in a last-minute shock shake-up that led another star to sensationally quit the show. The Islanders were coming to terms with the aftermath of an explosive Movie Night, which was aired during Sunday night's episode, when two new hunks arrived - reportedly Reuben Collins and Joshua Oyinsan. According to The Sun, the brand new additions will turn heads in scenes that are set to air this week. An insider told the publication: ' A lot of them are on shaky ground and then there is the very single Mimii so their entrance causes quite a stir. 'The final is now looming but everything still feels very unsettled even more so after the newbies arrive.' Two new bombshells have entered the Love Island villa in a last-minute shock shake-up that led another star to sensationally quit the show. The Islanders were coming to terms with the aftermath of an explosive Movie Night, which was aired during Sunday night's episode, when two new men arrived It comes as MailOnline revealed that Uma Jammeh, 23, made the choice to leave the ITV2 villa after her partner Wil Anderson was dumped in a brutal twist The shock arrival was revealed when Uma got a text reading: 'Mimii, Jessy and Uma, it's time to get ready as Reuben and Josh want to take you out for drinks! Please get ready to leave the villa.' After heading off on tapas dates with the newbies, the girls come back and Mimi gushes: 'They're 10/10,' with Uma adding: 'Revenge is sweet. That's exactly what I needed to remind me who I am.' However, things quickly took a turn as it comes as MailOnline revealed that Uma Jammeh, 23, made the choice to leave the ITV2 villa after her partner Wil Anderson was dumped in a brutal twist. In scenes that are yet to air, she was chosen by bombshell arrival Reuben Collins during a re-coupling, leaving Wil axed from the series. But following her heart, she told bosses her only option was to leave alongside her partner, sacrificing her place in the competition. The scenes will shock viewers after Uma was left devastated by Wil's actions during Casa Amor, where he pursued Lucy Graybill, and failed to apologise when incriminating scenes were aired during the show's Movie Night. A source revealed: 'Uma made her feelings towards Wil clear by remaining loyal to him during Casa Amor. 'But now she's made a huge commitment by quitting Love Island after he was dumped when she was stolen by one of the new bombshells. The model made the choice to leave the ITV2 villa after her partner Wil Anderson was dumped in a brutal twist Following her heart, she told bosses her only option was to leave alongside her partner, sacrificing her place in the competition 'It was an emotional moment shared by all of her fellow Islanders but it's what she wanted to do to remain true to herself. 'She knew at this last stage in the competition that she wasn't going to develop feelings for anyone else and she couldn't see Wil leave on his own.' The couple leaving Love Island comes after Wil, 23, was criticised for his treatment of Uma. She was left in tears after bosses aired scenes from Casa Amor during the show's Movie Night, where he pursued other connections and insisted his type was a 'petite blonde.' Reacting defensively, he claimed he acted that way because he felt like it, refusing to apologise to Uma, who had explained her feelings were hurt. A girls' girl and fan favourite, Uma opted to leave the ITV2 series, shocking bosses, who were keen for her to stay The scenes will stun viewers after Uma was left devastated by Wil's actions during Casa Amor A TV source told MailOnline Uma says an emotional goodbye to her co-stars in scenes set to air later this week The model's time on Love Island saw her date Ayo Odukoya before she developed feelings for Wil The model's time on Love Island saw her date Ayo Odukoya before she developed feelings for Wil. Uma and Ayo coupled up despite his connection with Mimii, who he later continued to pursue. It took her time getting to know Wil, waiting a week before kissing the quantity surveyor but after being separated during Casa Amor, Uma's feelings became clear. However, Wil passionately kissed Lucy, throwing his romance with Uma into doubt. After being shown his behaviour on the big screen, Uma said: 'I'm so embarrassed, I really thought he was a different person 'For you to sit there and be like oh yeah that's my perfect type, that's actually quite upsetting for me to hear.' The tables turn after Uma dates the new arrivals, with her saying: 'Revenge is sweet that's exactly what I needed to remind me who I am.' Love Island continues on Monday at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX Bethenny Frankel has broken her silence on her former fiance Paul Bernon dating a much younger woman. Paul, 45, is reportedly seeing Olivia Culpo's sister Aurora, 35. The 53-year-old Real Housewives of New York City alum took to her Just B podcast on Sunday to vent. 'Last week, I started to see my name in headlines being portrayed as the jilted ex who had been upgraded from, that my ex had moved on from me with a younger woman,' Frankel began. 'It regurgitated the continuous narrative that he is a very under the radar person who had now gotten serious with someone, had a girlfriend, met her family, met her kids,' she added. Bethenny Frankel has broken her silence on her former fiance Paul Bernon dating a much younger woman; the exes pictured in June 2022 Paul, 45, is reportedly seeing Olivia Culpo's sister Aurora, 35 'She had met his kids. He was in a serious relationship. He had bought her presents, and they were a new unit.' Frankel did not like being made to feel like she was 'some sort of spinster that's just home crying.' The TV star also insisted that she was actually 'really happy' after the split. But to have haters accuse her of being jealous threw her off. 'It was definitely shocking, and it's embarrassing,' she continued. 'Hearing about your ex-fiance committing to another woman shortly thereafter on their first date, and then being inside their relationship, hearing about their sex and their gifts and meeting each other's kids, and the level of commitment was gutting.' This comes after she took to TikTok to say she was having a 's**t week.' On the Fourth of July, the recorded herself in bed as she lamented her recent days, following news that her ex Paul is dating Aurora. 'My mother dying when I was at a low was like a 1, maybe this was like a 3,' Frankel admitted in the tense clip, which she documented from her home in The Hamptons. 'I didn't sleep all week,' she told her 1.8 million followers. Frankel was propped up in bed with her dog, dressed in a multicolor hooded sweater with her dark hair pulled back. 'Last week, I started to see my name in headlines being portrayed as the jilted ex who had been upgraded from, that my ex had moved on from me with a younger woman,' Frankel began 'It regurgitated the continuous narrative that he is a very under the radar person who had now gotten serious with someone, had a girlfriend, met her family, met her kids,' she added; Culpo pictured in November 2022 She wrote, 'Happy Fourth,' across the video in white font and in the caption put, 'Crap week,' adding hashtags. 'By no means am I going to pretend like I'm livin' la vida loca,' she said to viewers, adding, 'because I'm livin' la vida no-ca.' Bethenny didn't mention her ex or Aurora explicitly, but promised fans, 'I'll tell you all about it this week on the podcast,' referring to her Just B podcast series. As for her 14-year-old daughter Bryn, who is with her in the Hamptons, she said, 'I'm thrilled that Bryn's with her friend. She's next door doing Americana and at a barbecue.' As she continued her monologue, Bethenny said she's trying 'not to bust out' as she took a deep breath. Then she emphasized that her week has been 's**t on a cracker.' She clarified it was nothing that she did, using the metaphor that she 'got dragged behind a car for no reason.' To cope, she said she was going to watch the television series Sons of Anarchy. This comes after she took to TikTok to say she was having a 's**t week.' On the Fourth of July , the recorded herself in bed as she lamented her recent days, following news that her ex Paul is dating Aurora 'I'm going to watch Sons of Anarchy and watch them kill some people, otherwise I'm gonna do it,' the former reality television personality stated. And she said that taking a nap on Thursday was her 'Met Gala.' The Skinny Girl Margarita founder also revealed she ate 'a bag of chips, some Swedish candy, and a can of Amy's lentil soup.' The mother-of-one sarcastically added, 'It was sexy as f**k,' before also sharing that she 'had a grapefruit margarita in bed, as one does.' News broke days before Olivia Culpo's Rhode Island ceremony that Aurora is dating Bethenny's ex-fiance a month after their split was announced. Olivia had a strict guest policy at her wedding to Christian McCaffrey and shared why her older sister, Aurora's new beau was 'not invited' on the Wednesday episode of her Barely Filtered podcast. Aurora called her sister's decision 'rude,' to which the former pageant queen replied, 'No, [it's] rude to invite somebody I've never met.' Frankel has been reminding followers that she still looks great in her early 50s Olivia labeled Paul the 'flavor of the month,' and assured him, 'Sorry, it's not a reflection of you; it's a reflection of my sister.' Aurora and Paul sparked romance rumors in June, with a source telling Us Weekly that the influencer and real estate developer 'have been dating for over two months now. He moved on very quickly after Bethenny.' 'Her family has met him and thinks he's a really nice, 'normal' guy,' the insider continued. 'They have a lot in common with him being from Boston and Aurora from an area nearby. Aurora has been spending time in Boston with him recently.' Despite her lousy week, Bethenny shared a celebratory July Fourth Instagram post featuring her daughter on Thursday. Kym Marsh's friends are reportedly worried that her new romance with a younger man could all end in heartache if it 'fizzles out'. The actress, 48, has the support of her pals who are apparently 'happy' she has found someone, but they are said to have concerns that she could end up hurt. Kym revealed her relationship with Samuel Thomas, 29, on her Instagram page on Sunday evening as she declared her love for her new man. The couple met while working on a production of 101 Dalmatians: The Musical and she has already had to defend their relationship over the big age-gap. According to The Mirror, those close to Kym also have some concerns about her new relationship following her run of bad luck with men. Kym Marsh's friends are reportedly worried that her new romance with a younger man could all end in heartache if it 'fizzles out' The actress, 48, has the support of her pals who are apparently 'happy' she has found someone, but they are said to have concerns that she could end up hurt (pictured Samuel) A friend of Kym's said: 'Samuel seems a really nice lad and we are pleased for Kym and she seems really happy again. But it is a unique situation when you are working together on a show and spending so much time together. 'The relationship will have to change when the show ends and they have their own lives and new projects to work on. Hopefully the spark will continue and the relationship will become a long term one. 'Kym is headstrong and throws herself into romance, I hope she doesn't get hurt or it doesn't fizzle out. Unfortunately she has had her fair share of bad luck in love.' MailOnline have reached out to Kym's representatives for comment. Kym was forced to defend her new relationship on Sunday evening after cynical Instagram followers savaged her for dating someone who is the same age as her son. The mother-of-three had previously confirmed her romance with fellow actor Samuel, a co-star in her touring production of 101 Dalmatians. At 29, Thomas - who she refers to as 'the most amazing man ever' - is the same age as her eldest child, David Cunliffe. Kym revealed her relationship with Samuel Thomas, 29, on her Instagram page on Sunday evening as she declared her love for her new man Kym was forced to defend her new relationship with Samuel Thomas on Sunday evening after followers savaged the actress for dating a man who is the same age as her son Kym (far right) with her son-in-law Mikey Hoszowskyj (left) and daughter Emilie (centre) at the Pride Of Britain Awards in 2023 And Instagram followers were quick to make the connection after Kym announced her latest romance by describing Thomas as her 'soulmate.' Commenting on the post, one unimpressed follower wrote: 'Jesus... Another amazing man.....5 minute wonder... he looks like your son.' A second added: 'He looks like your son! Kym I like you but keep it private.' Responding to the posts, the irate actress - whose third marriage ended just 13-months ago - snapped: 'Do one.' New boyfriend Thomas - who plays bespectacled Tom in 101 Dalmatians - also weighed in, adding: 'I wonder whats missing from your life that you need to comment on others. Sad really.' Hours earlier Kym revealed she's found love with her young co-star, her first serious romance since the collapse of her third marriage little more than a year ago. 'Met the most amazing man ever! Sometimes the most unexpected things happen at the most unexpected times. @samuelthomasuk I love you,' she captioned a photo of herself and Thomas. Sharing a black and white photo to his own Instagram account, Thomas wrote: 'I didnt expect you, but here you are. I love you.' 'Ditto. The best things happen unexpectedly. Love you too,' Kym responded. Both mother-of-three Kym and her new boyfriend responded after followers poked fun at Thomas being 29 - the same age as her eldest child Kym confirmed she has found love with fellow actor Thomas, her co-star in a touring production of 101 Dalmatians 'Met the most amazing man ever! Sometimes the most unexpected things happen at the most unexpected times. I love you #beautiful #soulmate #loveyou,' she captioned the post The actress is a parent to son David, 29, and daughter Emilie, 27, from a former relationship with builder David Cunliffe. The couple, who met in a Lancashire pub, separated in 1999, shortly before Kym found fame as a contestant on TV talent show Popstars, where she would become a member of short-lived pop group Hear'Say. Two years later Kym was making an appearance on Top Of The Pops when she crossed paths with actor Jack Ryder, a household name at the time thanks to his role as Jamie Mitchell in EastEnders. They married at St. Albans parish church, Hertford, in August 2002 and subsequently sold the pictures to OK! magazine for a reported 300,000. But seven years later it was all over, with Ryder filing for divorce on the grounds of adultery following her apparent fling with second-husband-in-waiting Jamie Lomas Friends initially feared Kym had rushed into her relationship with Lomas, who she started dating just four months after separating from Ryder. Samuel shared his own loving tribute to his new partner after confirming the relationship on Sunday evening The actress met Thomas while starring in 101 Dalmatians The Musical (pictured at the press night in June) The pair met on a train as they made their way to the 2007 TV Quick Awards, but casual chat soon turned into romance with the pair going public in 2008 - a year before her divorce. They had been together for less than two months when Kym fell pregnant with their first child, but tragedy struck when their son Archie Jay died moments after being born 18-weeks premature on February 11. The couple had happier news when they welcomed daughter Polly in March 2011. They exchanged vows in September 2012 but were divorced by 2014, with Kym reportedly stunned by Lomas' decision to break it off. She remarried for a third time to Scott Ratcliff back in 2021. The pair split 13 months following their wedding when Kym filed for divorce citing unreasonable behaviour. The couple were said to have broken up following a trial separation, due to work keeping them apart. A source told The Sun: 'They both really tried to make it work, but the cracks have been there for a while and they were only getting to see each other for one or two days a week at the very most. 'Kym's been so busy, and last year (being on Strictly Come Dancing) meant even her weekends were stacked up along with weekdays rehearsing, more recently she's been filming all over the place and rehearsing for a new theatre run.' Adding about how Army Major Ratcliff's work drove a wedge between him and Kym, the insider said: 'Scott is based in barracks down south he's got a very busy career as well. Kym's still a working mum, too, and lives up in Cheshire with her family. 'In the end it was the fact they lived so far away from each other that just made it impossible.' The source said the pair 'had a trial separation' and were 'hoping to get things back on track', but added they have decided 'it's best to go their separate ways'. She was previously married to Hollyoaks star Jamie Lomas from 2012 to 2014 and they have just one child together, Polly, 13 READ MORE: Love Island star who quit the show REVEALED after leaving the villa to follow their dumped partner The fallout of Love Island's Movie Night continues on Monday night's episode as Uma Jammeh and Matilda Draper rage at their partners. One of the many revelations from Sunday's explosive episode was that Uma's partner Wil, 23, and Matilda's partner Sean, 24, got much more busy with the Casa Amor girls that they had let on. Movie Night, rebranded as the Love Island Film Festival, saw both couples, and the almost all the other Islanders, lose their tempers with one another. Monday night's spoiler clip sees Uma, 23, and Matilda, 24, sit on the daybeds to discuss how they are now feeling. Uma begins: 'Im so embarrassed, I really thought he was a different person' The fallout of Love Island's Movie Night continues on Monday night's episode as Uma Jammeh and Matilda Draper rage at their partners One of the many revelations from Sunday's explosive episode was that Uma's partner Wil, 23, and Matilda's partner Sean, 24, got much more busy with the Casa Amor girls that they had let on Movie Night, rebranded as the Love Island Film Festival, saw both couples, and the almost all the other Islanders, lose their tempers with one another Matilda confirms: 'Yeah, what we saw was really sh**, but the way theyve handled it has made it ten times worse.' When an emotional Uma tells Wil he didn't have to kiss Lucy in Casa Amor, he cruelly replies: 'But, I wanted to.' Uma recalls: 'For you to sit there and be like oh yeah thats my perfect type, thats actually quite upsetting for me to hear.' Matilda tells Uma: 'Babe do you know what? Youre the most beautiful girl inside and out.' Uma's best friend Mimii adds: 'This is the thing with men, they just get excited over a new shiny toy.' Matilda says of her partner Sean: 'The way hes gone about it tonight has pushed me even further from how I feel about him right now' The girls' chat soon gets interrupted by both Wil and Sean who want to ask if they can move forward. Monday night's spoiler clip sees Uma, 23, and Matilda, 24, sit on the daybeds to discuss how they are now feeling. Uma begins: 'Im so embarrassed' Matilda confirms: 'Yeah, what we saw was really sh**, but the way theyve handled it has made it ten times worse' The girls' chat gets interrupted by both Wil and Sean (pictured on earlier in the series) who want to move forward Unfortunately, fans will never know if Wil would have been able to make it up to Uma as MailOnline can exclusively say she will walk out of the show on Monday night. After two male bombshells enter, one picking Uma and the other Mimii, Wil is left single and is dumped. Uma, not believing she will find another connection, decides to leave the villa, too, despite Wil's behaviour. She had been on the show since Day 3 and started her journey coupled up with Ayo. One of this series' first storyline came from Uma and Mimii vying for Ayo's affections, and Mimii eventually coupled up with Ayo. However, he left her during Casa Amor for new girl Jessica S. Uma moved on with Omar before settling with Wil on Day 16. A source revealed: 'Uma made her feelings towards Wil clear by remaining loyal to him during Casa Amor. 'But now she's made a huge commitment by quitting Love Island after he was dumped when she was stolen by one of the new bombshells. 'It was an emotional moment shared by all of her fellow Islanders but it's what she wanted to do to remain true to herself. 'She knew at this last stage in the competition that she wasn't going to develop feelings for anyone else and she couldn't see Wil leave on his own.' Sunday's episode saw two Islanders leave: Ellie Jackson, 22, and Trey Norman, 24, who hit a rough patch when Ellie couldn't get over fling from the outside Ciaran Davies It comes after two Islanders left in Sunday's episode: new couple Ellie Jackson and Trey Norman. Things seemed to be going well for the pair until Ellie, 22, began overemphasising the brief virtual fling she had with Ciaran, 24, on the outside. Ciaran is currently coupled up with Nicole, and though the two have said they loved each other, their arguing may soon make their union impossible. Love Island continues tonight at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX. Cindy Crawford made sure all eyes were on her on Sunday evening. The 58-year-old model who recently modeled the same jacket she wore when she was 20 looked radiant in a silk tan blouse while on her way to a romantic dinner with her husband, Rande Gerber, in Malibu. She paired the classy look with white jeans and a brown belt as the pair arrived at Nobu. Her slightly curled brunette locks showcased her striking beauty, sitting over her shoulders. Cindy Crawford made sure all eyes were on her on Sunday evening. The 58-year-old model who recently modeled the same jacket she wore when she was 20 looked radiant in a silk tan blouse while on her way to a romantic dinner with her husband, Rande Gerber, in Malibu She paired the classy look with white jeans and a brown belt as the pair arrived at Nobu. Her slightly curled brunette locks showcased her striking beauty, sitting over her shoulders The mother-of-two accessorized with a brown belt and gold hoop earrings. She rocked a pair of clear sandals while throwing a tan sweater over her shoulders. The brunette beauty was accompanied by her husband, Rande Gerber, 62. He opted for a black button up and dark jeans for the casual outing. The five foot ten looker and the Casamigos co-founder were first linked in the early 1990s and began dating in 1995. They married in 1998 and share two children, daughter Kaia, 22, and son Presley, 24. Crawford's romantic outing with her husband of 26 years comes weeks after she opened up about out earning her parents with her modeling gigs at 18. 'I started modeling in Chicago, and in Chicago, it's a small pond, so I was the big fish pretty quickly there,' the Illinois native explained on the Kelly Corrigan Wonders podcast. 'And I was making more money than my parents made, more money than they could ever have even dreamed of,' she said. Having dabbled in the fashion industry and television, she remains humble. Especially when it comes to aging as a model. In 2022 the entrepreneur said in an interview that she feels society is fixated on changes that come as one grows older. 'Even in my Meaningful Beauty infomercial, they used to say, "She hasnt aged" and they would show side-by-sides. And Id tell them to stop, because it puts too much pressure on me,' she explained. The five foot ten looker and the Casamigos co-founder were first linked in the early 1990s and began dating in 1995. They share Kaia, 22, and Presley, 24; seen in 2023 Crawford's romantic outing with her husband of 26 years comes weeks after she opened up about out earning her parents with her modeling gigs at 18; seen in 1996 Crawford also explained that she has come to terms with aging and just wants to be herself. 'I know all the ways that Ive aged,' she said. 'My face has gotten much thinner; my mouth isnt as full. Being told Im ageless isnt right, especially because getting older is hard enough, never mind that we live in a youth-obsessed culture.' She finished: 'Im not 25, so why should I be trying to look 25? Why do I want someone to mistake me for a 25-year-old? Ive had children. I have all this life experience.' A Patelco Credit Union branch in Novato. The credit unions CEO said Monday that its team worked through the weekend to restore and fix core functionality after a ransomware attack last week. Aidin Vaziri/The Chronicle UPDATE: Patelco Credit Union still struggling to restore service two weeks after ransomware attack One of the largest credit unions in Northern California and the nation said it has stabilized its network and begun processing transactions following a weeklong outage caused by an ongoing ransomware attack. Patelco Credit Unions CEO, Erin Mendez, said in an update to members on Sunday that its team worked through the weekend to restore and fix core functionality, adding, We can see the light at the end of the tunnel. Patelco Credit Union security breach: What members need to know and do Advertisement Article continues below this ad The ransomware attack, reported June 29, forced Patelco to shut down electronic transfers, balance inquiries and direct deposits. The credit union was also forced to limit debit and credit card transactions for its members. Mendez reiterated that members money is safe and secure, with other services set to be restored shortly. I know Ive stated this to you before, but the restoration of our systems while ensuring their future security requires careful and methodical work, Mendez wrote. I know this may not be moving as quickly as youd like, but please know we are working as quickly as we can and we know how critically important this is to our members. The credit union serves nearly half a million people across Northern California, including in the Bay Area and Sacramento, and reports about $10 billion in assets. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Jennifer Aniston, 55, and Reese Witherspoon, 48, looked much younger than their years in a recent photo. The veteran Hollywood actresses were wrinkle free as they touched heads with matching blonde hair while smiling. Aniston was alerting her Instagram followers she was back at work. She, Reese and Tig Notaro were on the set of season four of their hit Apple TV+ series The Morning Show. 'Let @themorningshow season 4 games begin, Here we come!' wrote Aniston as she added two red heart emojis. Aniston had on a white tank top with ripped jeans and flip flops while Witherspoon was in a denim shirt, white tank top and jeans. Tig also had on a denim shirt but she added a V-neck white shirt and shorts. Jennifer Aniston , 55, and Reese Witherspoon , 48, looked much younger than their years in a recent photo. The veteran Hollywood actresses were wrinkle free as they were touching heads with matching blonde hair Aniston was alerting her Instagram followers she was back at work. She, Reese and Tig Notaro were on the set of season four of their hit Apple TV+ series The Morning Show. 'Let @themorningshow season 4 games begin, Here we come!' wrote Aniston as she added two red heart emojis Jennifer and Reese also both had on bold silver jewelry as they help up signs: Jen's had her name and her character's name Alex Levy while Reese had her name and her character's name Bradley Jackson. Tig plays Amanda Robinson. It has been reported that Julianna Margulies will not return to the Morning Show but Jon Hamm is. Jeremy Irons has also reportedly been added to the cast. Meanwhile, Jennifer said in June that Reese is like a sister. 'We have a real interesting relationship. It's like we're family for sure,' Aniston told the audience at the panel discussion which included her The Morning Show co-stars Karen Pittman, Notaro, Billy Crudup, Jon Hamm, Mark Duplass, and Nestor Carbonell. Witherspoon was unable to attend the event. 'We love to hate each other, and we love to love each other, and I think that's sort of a really fun dynamic that Reese and I get to play,' the Emmy winner said of her character Levy and Witherspoon's Jackson. 'And, of course, we would like to be together forever, I would think. I hope, but ... we really don't know what's going to happen.' Aniston and Witherspoon have been enjoying a family-style relationship since 2000, when Witherspoon, then an up-and-coming actress, played Rachel Green's little sister Jill on two episodes of Friends. 'We met on the set of Friends,' Witherspoon told Harper's Bazaar in 2019. 'We have a real interesting relationship. It's like we're family for sure,' Aniston said of her character Alex Levy and Witherspoon's Bradley Jackson. 'We love to hate each other, and we love to love each other, and I think that's sort of a really fun dynamic' The pals and co-stars first met in 2000, when Witherspoon had a guest spot in two episodes of Friends playing Rachel's little sister Jill. 'She was just so effortlessly affable, bubbly, and sunny. Weve been friends ever since,' Witherspoon told Harper's Bazaar in 2019 'I played her sister. I was 23 years old and had just had a baby. I was nursing Ava on set, and Jen just kept going, "You have a baby?" I was like, "I know, its weird,"' she said. The versatile actress and producer said Aniston 'was so sweet to me. I was really nervous, and she was like, "Oh, my goshdont worry about it!" I marveled at her ability to perform in front of a live audience like that with no nerves.' 'They would change all the lines and she was just so effortlessly affable, bubbly, and sunny. Weve been friends ever since.' Where their on-screen friendship will take them in season four of The Morning Show is anyone's guess. Alex was dealing with her betrayal of on-screen boyfriend Paul Marks, played by Jon Hamm, who wanted to buy UBA and sell off pieces of the network. Bradley and her brother, Hal, were off to talk to the FBI about their roles in the January 6 insurrection. 'I think the big question this year is, who and what can you trust?' said showrunner Charlotte Stoudt. 'Can you trust your co-workers? Can you trust your own eyes? Can you trust what you see in a world of AI and defects? It's a tricky world,' she explained. Karen Pittman, Tig Notaro, Billy Crudup, Jon Hamm, Mark Duplass and Nestor Carbonell took part in the panel with Aniston. Witherspoon was unable to attend In a hint at what season four will contain, it was revealed that Hamm's Paul Marks will make a return to the show 'I mean, just look at the headlines. We just take it from the headlines. Honestly, because that's our inspiration. It's the real life.' At an event in April, Stoudt revealed the new episodes would be focused on the upcoming presidential election. Hamm's character will return for season four as well. 'I'm so glad that he was with us this season, and look forward to seeing him again next season,' Carbonell said at the discussion. Jenn Tran is opening up about her search for long-lasting love on The Bachelorette. Tran, who was named The Bachelorette's first Asian American lead, opened up to People about her experience on the show - admitting she is 'very happy' with the ending of her season. 'I'm very happy with the ending and I'm very happy with the way everything panned out,' she told the outlet. 'I learned so much every day that I was there [to find out] about myself and what I wanted in a relationship. There was so much growth.' During the course of filming, Tran, 26, also redefined what she was ultimately looking to get out of the show. 'I feel like when you start on the journey, you're so hopeful for an engagement,' she explained. 'And then as you go through the journey, it's like, what [does] an engagement really mean to you? Is it just a ring, or is it a commitment? Jenn Tran is opening up about her search for long-lasting love on The Bachelorette; pictured arriving to Good Morning America in New York on Monday 'What I really was looking for was a lasting partner, so I think my definition of that really changed throughout the journey,' she added. During her interview, Tran also revealed the racism she endured after being named The Bachelorette's first-ever Asian American lead. 'I won't say that it's all been positive because racism still exists,' she told People. However, Tran has also received positive feedback from those 'grateful' to see her grace their TV screens. 'I have gotten a lot of hate messages, but along with that, I've also gotten so many people who have been so grateful to see somebody like me on their screen. I feel so grateful and honored that I get to do that for people because growing up, I never had that. I am becoming the role model that I've always wanted to see as a little girl.' Tran was unaware of the depth of the racism until after she finished filming The Bachelorette, when she logged back onto her phone and saw the hateful remarks left behind by trolls. 'I was announced, and then, I had immediately left for filming. I didn't have my phone throughout that whole time, so I had no idea what the world was saying until I came back from this amazing experience. I was so excited and so hopeful, and then, I go online and I read a bajillion people's opinions on everything. That was really disappointing,' she explained. While it was difficult for Tran to read the racist comments, she still remains positive and optimistic: 'I'm so honored to be the first Asian American lead. I know I'm inspiring so many people to embrace their differences. Tran has made history as the franchise's first-ever Asian American lead Tran donned a hot pink dress and strappy metallic heels 'I really think my story lies in the fact that I've always felt different my entire life, and I hope that people can see that you shouldn't want to be normal, you should embrace what makes you you.' Tran was studying to become a physician's assistant, however has put her education on hold as she seeks love on reality TV, according to People. Tran was announced as the next Bachelorette after unsuccessfully vying for Joey Graziadei's heart on his season of The Bachelor. 'Tran is a sweet and compassionate woman who has dedicated her life to helping others and is currently studying to become a physician assistant,' her bio reads. 'The bilingual Vietnamese beauty currently resides in Miami and is ready to find love with a man who's as reliable and thoughtful as she is. When she's not studying, Tran loves reading, paddleboarding and traveling whenever she has the chance.' Jenn, who is Vietnamese American, said that it felt 'honestly incredible' to have been chosen as the next star of The Bachelorette. 'I feel so so grateful and so honored to be the first Asian bachelorette in this franchise,' she said as she was announced. Tran rocked a head full of loose waves in addition to silver earrings and black sunglasses She joined The Bachelor franchise as a contestant on Joey Graziadei's season 'Tran is a sweet and compassionate woman who has dedicated her life to helping others and is currently studying to become a physician assistant,' her bio reads Her new position as The Bachelorette was also a corrective to a dearth of Asians on TV when she was younger. 'Growing up, I've always wanted to see Asian representation on TV. And I feel like it was really sparse,' she admitted. 'Any time Asians were in the media, it was to fill a supporting character role, to fulfill some sort of stereotype, and I felt really boxed in by that because I was like, 'I don't see myself on screen. I don't see myself as a main character.' Jenn looked incredible as she promoted her new season ahead of tonight's premiere. She couldn't have looked any happier as she arrived to Good Morning America wearing a hot pink dress and massive smile. Jenn slipped her feet into metallic heels and rocked a head full of loose waves for her moment in the spotlight. Season 21 of The Bachelorette will premiere tonight on ABC at 8/7c. Rhian Sugden looked radiant in a lime green maxi dress as she arrived at the Mum & Me event with her husband Oliver Mellor and their 'miracle' baby George. The model, 37, and actor Oliver, 43, welcomed son George in April after a challenging five-year journey which involved eight rounds of IVF and 150,000. Stepping out together for the parenting event for influencers in Hale, Trafford, on Monday, Rhian and Oliver showed off their new family unit. Rhian looked stunning in a shirt-style maxi dress out with silver buckle belt while out in Manchester, as well as a pair of gold buckle strap slider sandals. Meanwhile Oliver looked smart in a white mesh Cuban shirt with black trousers and taupe suede trainers. Rhian Sugden looked radiant in a lime green maxi dress as she arrived at the Mum & Me event with her husband Oliver Mellor and their 'miracle' baby George in Manchester on Monday Stepping out together for the parenting event for influencers in Hale, Trafford, Rhian and Oliver showed off their new family unit On Friday, Rhian shared a selection of throwback holiday snaps to her Instagram on Friday after welcoming her first child, a baby boy, in April. Taking to her Instagram, Rhian looked radiant in one photograph as she showed off her incredible figure and peachy bottom in a purple one-piece swimsuit. She looked nothing short of sensational as she posed on a boat and showed off her peachy derriere in the scoop-back swimsuit. Rhian styled her locks in a messy bun and wore a pair of dark shades to complete the look. Meanwhile, in another snap shared to her grid, Rhian put on a busty display in a yellow bikini as she swam underwater with a scuba mask on. She captioned the post with: 'Working on myself, my life and my peace! (whilst wearing this beautiful mask (smiley face emoji). It comes after Rhian and Oliver, who had nearly given up hope of starting a family, shared their emotional journey to parenthood in an interview with The Sun. Rhian revealed how the pair faced numerous hurdles, including a miscarriage scare at six weeks and a dramatic birth that required George to receive emergency oxygen, but despite that, his arrival has 'taken all the years of pain away'. Rhian looked stunning in a shirt-style maxi dress out with silver buckle belt while out in Manchester, as well as a pair of gold buckle strap slider sandals Rhian shared a selection of throwback holiday snaps to her Instagram on Friday after welcoming her first child, a baby boy, in April Taking to her Instagram, Rhian looked radiant in one photograph as she showed off her incredible figure and peachy bottom in a purple one-piece swimsuit Rhian and her husband, Oliver Mellor, welcomed son George in April after a challenging five-year journey which involved eight rounds of IVF and 150,000 The former Page 3 model discovered she was pregnant last August and announced her news three months later in a heartfelt post. Cradling her blossoming bump she captioned the picture: 'We have the most exciting news to share. Good things come to those who wait.' Rhian shared stories of her IVF journey on her Instagram, where she admitted the process 'changes you as a person'. The model who struggled with a low egg count and went through eight rounds of IVF said: 'The day the doctors put the last two eggs in, I had my legs up in the air on the table, crying and thinking, 'What's the point? I said if it didn't work, I would just give up.' She documented the whole thing and in one montage of clips showcased the pile of medication needles she needed which left her stomach badly bruised, plus all the collection of pregnancy tests she took when she found out about her 'miracle baby.' Before Rhian fell pregnant she shared her emotional journey to parenthood in an interview with The Sun The new mum said she was close to giving up and since having George feels he has 'taken all the years of pain away' Despite her happy news, just six weeks later, the blonde beauty endured a scare and started bleeding. She and her husband were in Manchester airport at the time which Oliver recalled as being 'the saddest, most glum flight, thinking we had lost our baby.' Fortunately, George survived and was born healthy at 8lb 7oz after a planned C-section. However, it wasn't all plain sailing and the little tot had turned blue and needed help with his breathing. Daisy Edgar-Jones oozed sophistication as she donned a brown satin corset gown with a chiffon black cape for the European premiere of Twisters in London. The Normal People actress, 26, turned heads on Monday as she arrived for the premiere of the Twister sequel at Cineworld Leicester Square in London. Daisy looked cosy with co-star Greg Powell, 35, as the pair beamed at one another while posing with In The Heights star Anthony Ramos, 32. She stunned for the premiere in a satin strapless gown which had a ruched detailing at the waist and a full skirt, as well as a flowing cape draped over her left shoulder. Daisy's gown, which also had a leg split, was paired with black patent stilettos and she was seen being protected from the unpredictable British weather with an umbrella. Daisy Edgar-Jones oozed sophistication as she donned a brown satin corset gown with a chiffon black cape for the European premiere of Twisters in London Daisy's gown was paired with black patent stilettos and she was seen being protected from the unpredictable British weather with an umbrella Meanwhile Anyone But You star Glen looked dapper in a black suit with white lining as well as an unbuttoned shirt and dark red patent shoes. Hamilton star Anthony opted for a striking ensemble consisting of a pair of white wide-leg trousers, with a mesh vest and a black double-breasted blazer, as well as accessorising with a gold chain. In May a trailer of the flick was released which opened at an Oklahoma rodeo with a crowd watching a bull rider until swirling leaves entered the arena followed by a storm siren. The animals fled along with the crowd and a truck trying to drive away from the chaos was lifted up by the wind and tossed into an electric sign. 'A once in a generation tornado outbreak continues across Oklahoma,' a TV weatherman reported as Kate Cooper, played by 25-year-old English actress Daisy, was studying the storm from afar at a federal weather agency. A supervisor asked Kate for help with tornadoes after admitting that he'd never seen any like them before. 'No, I don't chase anymore,' Kate said. After being told that her help could save lives, Kate reluctantly agreed to give him one week. English actress Daisy teamed up with Glen Powell to chase a massive tornado in a new trailer released on Wednesday for the upcoming disaster sequel Twisters The Normal People actress, 26, turned heads on Monday as she arrived for the premiere of the Twister sequel at Cineworld Leicester Square in London Daisy stunned for the premiere in a satin strapless gown Daisy looked cosy with co-star Greg Powell, 35, as the pair beamed at one another Daisy's gown had a ruched detailing at the waist and a full skirt, as well as a flowing cape draped over her left shoulder Day's gown also had a leg split and her brunette locks were kept down Daisy and Glen posed alongside co-star Anthony Ramos Diays and Glen laugh with one another at the premiere in London Kate joined NASA and FEMA experts in Oklahoma and was surprised when self-described 'tornado wrangler' Tyler Owens, played by Glen, 35, arrived. 'If you feel it,' Tyler said to his adoring fans. 'Chase it!,' they hollered back. Tyler was shown telling Kate that his crew was different and didn't need fancy equipment and doctorate degrees. 'Sometimes the old ways are better than the new,' Tyler said. 'Well, you can always trust a guy who puts his face on a T-shirt,' Kate quipped as a shirt was shown with a graphic of Tyler and the phrase, 'Not My First Tornadeo'. Tyler shot fireworks into a tornado much to the surprise of Kate and told her, 'You got quite the reputation, city girl.' He later questioned Kate about her theory that she can disrupt a tornado. She admitted to getting her test wrong in the field. 'We never had a chance,' Kate said. 'You want one?,' Tyler asked. They both then chased down a tornado together that turned out to be a twin storm system. 'They're combining,' Kate warned. Meanwhile Anyone But You star Glen looked dapper in a black suit with white lining He also wore an unbuttoned shirt and dark red patent shoes Hamilton star Anthony opted for a striking ensemble consisting of a pair of white wide-leg trousers Anthony also sported a mesh vest and a black double-breasted blazer, as well as accessorising with a gold chain Self-described 'tornado wrangler' Tyler Owens, played by Glen, 35, arrived at the tornado scene Kate and Tyler were in a small Oklahoma town when a tornado touched down Kate and Tyler were shown in a town named Reno as a tornado touched down and knocked down a water tower. They raced along near an oil refinery being ripped apart by a tornado as the trailer ended. A note at the end said that Universal Pictures is partnering with the American Red Cross to help people affected by disasters. Twisters is scheduled to be released in cinemas on July 19. The film directed by Lee Isaac Chung also stars Anthony Ramos and features Brandon Perea, Maura Tierney, Sasha Lane, Kiernan Shipka and Paul Scheer. Twisters is a stand-alone sequel to the 1996 film Twister that starred Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton, Jami Gertz and Cary Elwes. The classic film sees two storm chasers on the brink of divorce be forced to work together to create an advanced weather alert system by putting themselves in the cross-hairs of extremely violent tornadoes. Heartstopper fans have gone wild after first look images of season three were released. The beloved comic book-turned-Netflix show will return to screens again later this year, dropping on October 3. And after being given a glimpse at the series on Monday, fans have claimed that one image - in which Nick is seen at the beach looking concerned while on the phone - shows the moment he says 'I love you' to Charlie. Season three will see Charlie battle with wanting to confess his love to Nick, while Nick also has something pressing to tell him. The first look images show the couples looking strong as ever, as Nick and Charlie, Elle and Tao, and Tara and Darcy are all seen sharing adoring looks. Heartstopper fans have gone wild after first look images of season three were released on Monday The beloved comic book-turned-Netflix show will return to screens again later this year, dropping on October 3 Friendship is yet again a running theme of the upcoming series, as one image shows Charlie leaning on Tobie for support while in another he is having deep chats with his sister Tori in bed. In a group snap, the cast are also seen beaming as they enjoy a day at the zoo. However charlie is also seen looking sad in one of the pictures, hinting that his struggles from season two may carry over. Taking to X, formerly Twitter, as the first look images dropped, fans wrote: 'Nick feeling all helpless,'; 'OH IM CRYING,'; 'The noise I made when I saw the I love you photo was not human,'; 'Im gonna have a breakdown over this,'; 'Kit Connors sad/worried face. Im not ready for the beach scene,'; 'ummmmmm is the second pic of nick and charlie what i think it is??? wet hair nick in a sweatshirt????'; 'It's like they're saying, "Hey, remember when we left you hanging with that cliffhanger? Well, here's a sneak peek to tide you over until the new season drops!"' In May it was revealed that Netflix had set the release date for Heartstopper season 3 with the help of an exclusive snippet from a new Billie Eilish song. The first look images show the couples looking strong as ever, as Nck and Charlie, Elle and Tao, and Tara and Darcy are all seen sharing adoring looks Darcy and Tara are seen staring lovingly at each other as they go in for a kiss Friendship is yet again a running theme of the upcoming series, as one image shows Charlie leaning on Tobie for support In another snaps he is having deep chats with his sister Tori in bed Taking to X, formerly Twitter, as the first look images dropped, fans wrote: 'Nick feeling all helpless,'; 'OH IM CRYING,' The 22-year-old pop megastar shared her unmistakable vocals, which could be heard in the clip. The clip concluded with the release date of the third season of the British coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama television series which is October 3. The clip begins with Charlie Spring (Joe Locke) practising how to tell Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) that he loves him when his sister Tori (Jenny Walser) walks in on him. Tori is in disbelief that Charlie hasn't said those three words yet to which he replies: 'I don't want him to have to say the awkward "I love you too" 'cause he feels obligated to.' His sister thinks Nick feels the same and she urges him to say it today. Charlie walks down to meet up with Nick as they share a flirty stare at one another. Despite his sister's advice, he obviously freezes up as he says: 'I... just never seen you in a vest before.' Nick jokingly replies: 'Well, I've never seen you in a cap before.' In a group snap, the cast are also seen beaming as they enjoy a day at the zoo However charlie is also seen looking sad in one of the pictures, hinting that his struggles from season two may carry over The two share a giggle before walking off together. The upcoming season's synopsis reads: 'Charlie would like to tell Nick that he loves him. Nick also has something important to say to Charlie. 'As the summer holiday ends and the months race on, the friends begin to realize that the school year will come with both its joys and its challenges. 'As they learn more about each other and their relationships, plan social events and parties and start thinking about university choices, everyone must learn to lean on those they love when life doesn't go to plan.' The series was created and written by Alice Oseman who has written the book series of the same name as the upcoming season is directed by Andy Newberry. Also returning to the series are actors including William Gao, Yasmin Finney, Corinna Brown, Kizzy Edgell, Tobie Donovan, Rhea Norwood, and Leila Khan. Sir Ian McKellen hid his neck brace with a scarf on a trip to the shops as he continues to recover following his shocking fall off stage. The legendary actor, 85, was playing John Falstaff in a production of Player Kings at the Noel Coward Theatre in London's West End on June 17 when he lost his footing in a fight scene and plunged from the stage into the audience. Sir Ian spent three nights in hospital and was forced to withdraw from the show's tour after suffered injuries to his wrist and neck. Last week, the actor was spotted strolling to his local Waitrose wearing a neck brace and with his hand in a splint. Sir Ian kept a low profile in casual blue shorts and a T-shirt with a hat pulled down over his famous face. Sir Ian McKellen, 85, hid his neck brace with a scarf on a trip to the shops as he continued to recover following his shocking fall off stage The legendary actor was playing John Falstaff in a production of Player Kings at the Noel Coward Theatre in London's West End on June 17 when he lost his footing in a fight scene and plunged from the stage into the audience Sir Ian spent three nights in hospital and was forced to withdraw from the show's tour after suffered injuries to wrist and neck (pictured on stage April 11) Last week Sir Ian took to X, formerly Twitter, to share a health update with his legions of fans. Writing: 'Just two weeks after my accident onstage I want to assure my many well-wishers that the injuries (to wrist and neck) are on the mend,' he wrote. 'My doctors promise a complete recovery - but only if I avoid work over the next few weeks.' After the shock incident, he was rushed to hospital to receive treatment and the remainder of his performances for the week were cancelled to allow him to rest. 'Meanwhile the show goes on and the Player Kings company start their four weeks tour without me,' Ian continued on X. 'Any actor will say that missing a performance feels somewhat shameful, even when he is not to blame. None of us ever wants to let down our audience,' he added. Sir Ian announced that he was having 'physiotherapy, light exercise and a lot of essential rest at home' after three nights in hospital. The actor was in a scene involving the Prince of Wales and Henry Percy when he fell off the front of the stage, and was heard to cry out in pain as staff rushed to help. In his statement last Thursday, Sir Ian said: 'After three nights in hospital, the effects of my fall onstage have been fully analysed and I'm now having physiotherapy, light exercise and a lot of essential rest at home. Now the actor was spotted strolling to his local Waitrose He was wearing a neck brace and with his hand in a splint Sir Ian kept a low profile in casual blue shorts and a T-shirt with a hat pulled down over his famous face The actor slipped his feet into a pair of comfy white trainers He pictured up some essentials including a packet of Italian biscuits The actor carried his shopping in a bag for life Last week Sir Ian took to X, formerly Twitter, to share a health update with his legions of fans 'Meanwhile, my part in Player Kings is filled by the redoubtable David Semark supported by Robert Icke's amazing production and cast. 'The many messages of love and support will, I am sure, aid the speedy recovery that my doctors have promised me.' Player Kings, a production of Henry IV, parts one and two, adapted and directed by Robert Icke, ended its run at the Noel Coward Theatre. The play will then move to the Bristol Hippodrome next month before being staged in Birmingham, Norwich and Newcastle. It comes after Ian appeared in good health last week as he danced around a luxury mansion with Anthony Hopkins, 86. It comes after Ian appeared in good health last week as he danced around a luxury mansion with Anthony Hopkins , 86 He couldn't wipe the smile off his face as he larked around with close friend and fellow actor in matching checkered jackets. Anthony posted the video on Instagram and paid a sweet tribute to Sir Ian, hailing his spirit 'unbreakable'. He captioned the post: 'Today I celebrate my dear friend, Ian and his unbreakable spirit I love this man. We both have our Gucci on... Thank you, Salma'. After the fall, Sir Ian was rushed to hospital to receive treatment and the remainder of his performances for the week were cancelled to allow him to rest. Glenn Powell showed off his hunky shirtless frame in a thirst trap snap - ahead of Monday's Twisters premiere in London with co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones. The actor, 35, got hearts thumping as he posed nearly nude with only a gray towel wrapped around his hips - flashing his ripped biceps, midriff and oblique muscles. Powell was holding his precious pup Brisket in the selfie - with fans quickly left impressed by the racy snap and his cute pet dog. 'Glen Powell with a puppy is exactly what I needed today,' stated a follower. 'Printing and hanging the last pic on my wall.. because the dog is too cute, ya know,' wrote a fan eager to re-decorate. Glenn Powell showed off his hunky shirtless frame in a thirst trap snap - ahead of Monday's Twisters premiere in London with co-star Daisy Edgar-Jones 'It's official. Half nekked thirst trap, and all this full-blooded female can see is THE BABY FLOOF! GP being upstaged by the true GQ centerfold ' wrote one fan. The pooch has turned out to be quite popular with the cast and crew. Powell shared snaps of the pup getting some love from co-stars David Corenswet and Katy O'Brian, Edgar-Jones and Brandon Perea. In a video shared on the Twisters Movie and Hot Brisket Instagram accounts, Powell explained how the popular pooch came into his life. The single Hit Man star explained that 'The Twisters movie made me realize that my heart is soft enough to become a father, so I adopted an adorable puppy named Brisket.' He adopted the sweet rescue dog from the Labelle Foundation just before heading to Oklahoma City, where the film was shot, to keep him company. 'The tornadoes just don't cuddle the same,' the actor quipped. Brisket already has nearly 30,000 followers on social media. Powell adopted the sweet pup about a year ago, just before heading to Oklahoma City to shoot Twisters. The pooch has his own Hot Brisket Instagram account with nearly 30k followers Powell shared snaps of the pup getting some love from Twisters co-stars David Corenswet and Katy O'Brian Co-stars Daisy Edgar-Jones and Brandon Perea made sure to get in some cuddle time with Brisket. Powell joked the pooch had 'joined the cast of Twisters and was quickly called the Lassie of his generation' The proud papa revealed in a video he had adopted Brisket to keep him company. 'The tornadoes just don't cuddle the same,' the actor quipped The actor jokes that ''Rumors are swirling of him leading a Homeward Bound reboot that would crown him as "Hollywoods King of the Animal Kingdom"' Posting next to the photo carousel, Powell explained that his four-legged friend had his eyes set on bigger things. 'Shortly after being adopted, @hotbrisket joined the cast of Twisters and was quickly called the Lassie of his generation,' the proud papa revealed. 'Rumors are swirling of him leading a Homeward Bound reboot that would crown him as "Hollywoods King of the Animal Kingdom."' Twisters opens in theaters July 19. Tanuj and Narayan from The Intercontinental London were crowned winners of Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 during Monday's nail-biting finale. The duo were left emotional when their names were announced by judges Cherish Finden and Benoit Blin following five intense weeks of challenges. Tanuj and Narayan defeated rivals from The Royal Airforce Club in London and Soko Patisserie in Solihull at the final hurdle. For their last challenge the teams were tasked with baking sumptuous afternoon tea for 120 people, and the winner's final bake 'sent a tingle' down judge Cherish's spine. While presenting the silver trophy she gushed: 'Their final challenge sent a tingle down my spine. I can't tell you how proud I am. They impressed me from day one and each week they came back stronger and stronger, Wow!'. Tanuj (L) and Narayan (R) from The Intercontinental London were crowned winners of Bake Off: The Professionals 2024 during Monday's nail-biting finale. The duo were left emotional when their names were announced by judges Cherish Finden (L) and Benoit Blin (R) following five intense weeks of challenges For their last challenge the teams were tasked with baking sumptuous afternoon tea for 120 people, and the winner's final bake 'sent a tingle' down judge Cherish's spine Adding: 'I am delighted for TJ and Narayan they have been the most consistent team and the level of their work and experience has been the greatest.' Following the news viewers rushed to X, formerly Twitter, branding the pair 'so talented' and 'well deserved winners'. Writing: 'Easiest winners ever! So talented!': 'Yay, my favourites won. My favourites from the very first episode I saw them. So talented, so much attention to detail. Well done Tanuj and Narayan': 'Love it, love it, love it!!! My winners from the beginning many congratulations Tanuj and Narayan. Well deserved winners'. Team captain Tanuj said: 'The moment we heard our names announced everyone was quite emotional, the whole room was a bit teary'. 'Me and Narayan were in tears, but they were happy tears as we had put so much hard work into this. For us, we were a bit exhausted but it was an immensely proud moment'. He continued: 'We had a kind of strategy that we would divide the workload between us so we could complete each challenge and I guess it worked in our favour. So there was a bit of planning and I would say quite a bit more than we would do in our normal day work. 'Narayan and me have worked together in various locations as we work for the same chain of hotels. We got along so well from the day we met, we always want to throw ideas at each other and we just clicked. We were good friends but since this competition he has become more of a brother. Before adding: 'We brought the trophy back to the hotel but, of course, had to keep it in hiding until tonight. It has pride of place in the hotel lobby, the ideal place for everyone to see it!'. Tanuj and Narayan defeated rivals from The Royal Airforce Club in London and Soko Patisserie in Solihull at the final hurdle Team captain Tanuj (L) said: 'The moment we heard our names announced everyone was quite emotional, the whole room was a bit teary' Following the news viewers rushed to X, formerly Twitter, branding the pair 'so talented' and 'well deserved winners' It comes following show host Liam Charles, who presents alongside comedian Ellie Taylor, had his huge net-worth reportedly revealed. The TV star, 26, is speculated to boost a net worth ranging between 740,000 to 3.7m, according to Buzzlearn. The British presenter joined The Great British Bake Off on season 8 in 2017, and not long after he became a presenter on Bake Off: The Professionals and a judge on Junior Bake Off. On the show, he impressed judges Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith and made it through to the quarter-final, eventually ending up fifth. Coming from humble beginnings, the Hackney-born was just a student at Goldsmiths University when he firstly joined the baking contest. The host is fully invested in his rooted passion for cooking and has wrote two books including Cheeky Treats: 70 Brilliant Bakes and Cakes and Second Helpings. Following his stint on Bake Off, Liam has been worked as a food columnist for the Guardian. Despite being extremely low-key with his personal life and mostly uses his social media for things related to baking as well as fun content - Yahoo reported that he previously mentioned a girlfriend named Alexis in a now-deleted Instagram post. Britain's Got Talent's next series will reportedly film a 'large chunk' of it's auditions in Blackpool, the seaside town best associated with rival Strictly Come Dancing. Every season the BBC show's competitors travel north for a special episode where they perform for a huge audience at the iconic Tower Ballroom. But now BGT may also be planning to film from the exact same venue in 'yet another move' to be king of Saturday night telly. A source told The Sun: 'Strictly's annual jaunt to Blackpool is one of the show's "special moments" and is widely seen as a milestone for the contestants'. 'But now that trip will be replicated by its ITV rival, there's little doubt they're trying to encroach on their territory. Britain's Got Talent's next series will reportedly film a 'large chunk' of it's audition's from Blackpool, the seaside town best associated with rival show Strictly Come Dancing (L-R) BGT's runo Tonioli, Alesha Dixon, Amanda Holden and Simon Cowell Every season the BBC show's competitors travel north for a special episode where they perform for a huge audience at the iconic Tower Ballroom (2023 winner Strictly winners Ellie Leach and Vito Coppola) But now BGT may also be planning to film from the exact same venue in 'yet another move' to be king of Saturday night telly (Tower Ballroom pictured during 2022 Strictly) 'It's yet another move to take on the dominance of Strictly on Saturday night telly.' MailOnline have contacted ITV for comment. It comes after Davina McCall broke her silence on joining the Britain's Got Talent following reports Bruno Tonioli could be facing the axe. The former Big Brother host, 56, has recently been standing in show judge Amanda Holden, 53, on her Heart radio show but has now ruled herself out of joining the ITV panel. Telling The Mirror: 'It's one thing stepping in for Amanda on Heart, but I couldn't fill a seat on BGT. I feel that that would be wrong in some way'. 'Amanda is on Heart every day, but BGT is massive. I couldn't do it!'. Last month Bruno, 68, hit back at speculation he won't appear on the next series and claimed he's be 'back with bells on'. After the show came to an end last month, reports were rife the judging line up for the 18th series could undergo a shake up as filming for auditions later this year would clash with Dancing With The Stars in the US. A source said: 'Strictly's annual jaunt to Blackpool (pictured) is one of the show's "special moments" and is widely seen as a milestone for the contestants' They continued: 'But now that trip will be replicated by its ITV rival, there's little doubt they're trying to encroach on their territory' But a source told MailOnline that Bruno defiantly declared: 'I'm not going anywhere. I will be back with bells on', when asked about whether his job was at risk. It came following reports that Simon Cowell could be forced to axe Bruno from the show after two series by ITV, despite him wanting his pal to stay. The former Strictly judge, who replaced David Walliams on the panel last year, is said to been branded by an executive at the broadcaster as 'one tone and hysterical'. According to The Sun producers planned to take advantage of Bruno's scheduling conflict for the next series due to his commitments across the pond filming Dancing With the Stars. It comes after Davina McCall broke her silence on joining the Britain's Got Talent following reports Bruno Tonioli could be facing the axe The former Big Brother host has been standing in show judge Amanda Holden , 53, on her Heart radio show but has now ruled herself out of joining the ITV panel (Bruno Tonioli pictured) Davina said: 'It's one thing stepping in for Amanda on Heart, but I couldn't fill a seat on BGT . I feel that that would be wrong in some way' (L-R) BGT judges Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden, Alesha Dixon, Bruno Tonioli MailOnline contacted Simon and Bruno's reps for comment at the time. An ITV spokeswoman said: 'Any plans for Britain's Got Talent 2025 will be announced in due course'. While another source told MailOnline: 'This year's BGT was a runaway hit and Bruno played a big part in that. He is much loved by the audience, the acts, his fellow judges, ITV and Thames alike.' Simon recently shut down the rumours as he confirmed that the Italian choreographer will be returning next year despite scheduling clashes but admitted there will be some sort of stand-in. Appearing on Heart Radio, the music mogul, 64, explained: 'I would not replace him. I love Bruno on the show.' Simon explained that there is a problem with Bruno's schedule next year, therefore the star will be replaced for some of the auditions that he is unable to attend. Clearing up the rumours Host Jamie Theakston asked the star: 'I'm gonna read you a headline from one of the papers today Simon... "Britain's Got Talent set to drop judge, Bruno"' As Simon confessed the headline was false, Jamie pressed: 'Okay, well, what of that isn't truth? Simon explained: 'Seriously. I spoke to... I don't know where all this stuff comes from. I spoke to the producers literally two weeks ago about there is a scheduling issue with Bruno. 'Because we're doing the auditions... some of the auditions this year and he's going to be in America. 'So maybe there'll be a stand in for him. I don't know. But I love Bruno on the show. I think he's brilliant Pierce Brosnan made a rare public outing with his mother Mary following an evening at swanky private members' club Oswald's in London on Saturday night. The Irish actor, 71, left the venue holding hands with his mother, 90, while flashing a Hollywood smile to cameras as they made their way home. Pierce was sporting a smart black suit and shirt for the occasion, which he teamed with a pair of orange-tinted glasses. Meanwhile, Mary wore black trousers and a black jacket with a black and white striped jumper and a black cross-body bag. The retired nurse supported herself with a walking stick and she accessorised with a lovely pearl and silver necklace. Pierce Brosnan made a rare public outing with his mother Mary following an evening at swanky private members' club Oswald's in London on Saturday night The Irish actor, 71, left the venue holding hands with his mother, 90, while flashing a Hollywood smile to cameras as they made their way home Pierce was sporting a smart black suit and shirt for the occasion, which he teamed with a pair of orange-tinted glasses Pierce is the only son of Mary and carpenter Thomas Brosnan, whom Pierce previously said he has only met once. Of his upbringing, Pierce told Cigara Ficionado in 1997: 'I grew up in a very small town in southern Ireland. I never knew my father. He left when I was an infant and I was left in the care of my mother and my grandparents.' Mary worked in England to provide for the family and Pierce recalled: 'My mother came home once a year, twice a year. Consequently, there was a certain amount of early loss in that young boy's life.' However, he described his mother as 'very courageous', making clear that he harboured no resentment. After his grandparents died, Pierce went to live with relatives and then a 'big, warm momma' named Eileen in a boarding house. Pierce has four children of his own; Christopher, 51, Sean, 40, Dylan, 27, and Paris, 23 - and has been married to American journalist Keely Shaye Smith for 23 years. His first daughter Charlotte died from ovarian cancer and her mother, Australian actress Cassandra Harris, widowed Pierce with the same disease. Career wise, Pierce most recently appeared in television film The Great Lillian Hall, loosely inspired by American stage actress Marian Selde. He starred alongside Jessica Lange, Kathy Bates, and Grey's Anatomy's Jesse Williams. The retired nurse supported herself with a walking stick and she accessorised with a lovely pearl and silver necklace Pierce is the only son of Mary and carpenter Thomas Brosnan, whom Pierce says he has only met once Pierce has four films in the works , three of which he is currently filming. They are Unholy Trinity, Four Letters Of Love, Black Bag, and The Thursday Murder Club Pierce has four films in the works, three of which he is currently filming. They are Unholy Trinity, Four Letters Of Love, The Thursday Murder Club, and American spy thriller film Black Bag. Black Bag enjoys an all-star cast: Cate Blanchett Michael Fassbender, Bridgerton's Rege-Jean Page, Naomie Harris, Tom Burke, and Maris Abela who starred in Amy Winehouse biopic Back To Black. Unholy Trinity is an American Western film co-starring Samuel L. Jackson and Gregory Peck's grandson Ethan. The Thursday Murder Club, based on Richard Osman's 2020 novel of the same name, will also star Helen Mirren and David Tennant. Scott and Elizabeth Walker at their home in Arvada, Colo. The Walkers are plaintiffs in a fraud lawsuit recently filed against Sonoma developers Ken Mattson and Tim LeFever. Nathan W. Armes/Special to the Chronicle Kenneth Mattson made Elizabeth Walker an offer in 2010, after her father died, that seemed like a solution to a serious problem. She and her brother had inherited her fathers house in Manhattan Beach. It was a haven for her family: the house her grandfather bought in 1939, the place where five generations of her family reunited every summer, so special that her parents ashes are scattered there. Walker and her brother couldnt afford to keep the house alone. Mattson, their financial adviser, offered to buy half the property in return for investments that would provide regular income while allowing them to retain ownership of half the house and its use. Advertisement Article continues below this ad He assured Walker and her husband, Scott, who now live in Colorado, that the property would be safe and a continued refuge for their family. In April, however, the couple, now both 68, received a startling surprise: Mattson, the CEO of a seemingly flourishing real estate investment business with holdings throughout Sonoma County and the state, had failed to make interest payments on a loan hed taken out on the home for more than six months. Now, the home was being foreclosed on. There was worse news, too: Mattsons business partner, Timothy LeFever, accused Mattson of defrauding their shared company, leaving the Walkers and others with their investments potentially vaporized. For the Walkers, that was nearly everything theyd saved from Scotts dental business over the course of their marriage of 45 years as well as the inheritances the couple had received after their parents deaths, and their retirement savings more than $4 million in total. This is like a friend stabbing you in the back, Walker said. It just keeps getting worse. On Monday, the Walkers and five other clients sued the Sonoma real estate developers and several of their businesses, accusing the businessmen of fraud, elder abuse and other financial misconduct. Mattsons attorney was not available for comment by print deadline, and LeFevers attorney did not respond to a request for comment. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Francisco, marks a significant new challenge to Mattson and LeFever, who are embroiled in lawsuits with each other and other investors and under scrutiny by the FBI, the SEC and the IRS. While other investors have filed their own litigation, most have not sued LeFever. Mondays lawsuit names both developers. And the scope of the suit is larger, because the plaintiffs are seeking approval from the court for a class action status, meaning it could represent all of Mattsons and LeFevers clients over the last 24 years. Its unclear how many people invested with the men, though plaintiffs attorneys have already identified hundreds, said Blair Kittle, an attorney with Burlingame-based Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy, one of three law firms suing Mattson and LeFever. Part of the problem, he said, is that Mattson failed to properly document many of his transactions with clients. Were still uncovering it, Kittle said. Records were not kept correctly. So the people we know about are only those people who have self-organized to get together (sue the developers). Thats already in the hundreds. So we expect it to be more than that. Investors ranged the spectrum, from schoolteachers to attorneys, according to the lawsuit, with savings that ranged from high five figures up to several million dollars. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The suit describes Mattson selling clients on a pitch of regular monthly payments from real estate investments, and additional payouts after property sales, driven by appreciating property values. Those payments, attorneys wrote, sustained a facade that masked growing disarray and overextension, until the scheme collapsed earlier this year. In an interview, the Walkers said their relationship with the men began more than 20 years ago. Evangelical Christians, they met the LeFever family through a Bible study and then Mattson. Mattson was then a stockbroker, the Walkers said, and spoke to an investing club that Elizabeth participated in for fun. A few years later, Mattson came to their home, described his vision over coffee, and they decided to invest some of their funds with him. When the stock market tanked in 2009, they continued to receive monthly checks, and their real estate ventures soon were outpacing their other investments. Little by little, they invested more of their savings with Mattson, and spurred by their successes, referred friends and relatives. They continued investing as Walker neared retirement, handing off his dental business to his son. Advertisement Article continues below this ad LeFever and Mattson, meanwhile, used investor money to build a real estate portfolio across California worth more than $400 million, according to public records. Earlier this year, investors said they stopped receiving monthly rental distributions. LeFever then turned on his business partner and accused him of stealing from their company and taking millions from clients in exchange for nothing, according to a lawsuit he filed May 31. The Walkers said they are dealing with humiliation and embarrassment after seeing their well-meaning efforts to help friends implode. We feel crushed. Absolutely crushed. We trusted both of them, Scott Walker said, probably more, because they claimed to be men of faith. The Walkers are not alone. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Besides the Walkers, the Chronicle has spoken to more than a half dozen investors most not yet affiliated with the lawsuit who described investing with Mattson and LeFever. They recalled meeting the men through friends and relatives, or through the broader group of churchgoers connected through Bible studies, youth groups or other faith-based organizations. For many, the investments were the equivalent of retirement plans or pensions. Investors described now having to rely on air miles and friends generosity to pay bills; taking in boarders to try to make mortgage payments, looking for work after years of retirement, having to delay college for their children even worrying about the price of blueberries while doing their grocery shopping and wondering if it was an expense they could justify. They were appalled, they said, by the response from LeFever and Mattson, who they believed should be working to make investors whole rather than lawyering up. If they were truly living out their Christian values, they would be sitting at that table with their checkbook open instead of lawyering up and fighting each other, Elizabeth Walker said. The litigation comes weeks after the FBIs raid on Mattsons home in Sonoma County and the closure of a classic car dealership he owned in Fairfield that was beset by complaints from customers about nonpayment and other issues. The three law firms filing the suit have all handled serious class actions before: The Cotchett firm was lead attorney in a lawsuit against Pacific Gas and Electric after fatal wildfires in 2017 and 2018; Lieff, Cabraser, Heimann & Bernstein represented several states in lawsuits against tobacco companies in the 1990s that settled for $42 billion; and Casey Gerry Schenk Francavilla Blatt & Penfield secured $7 billion in damages from Exxon on behalf of 32,000 plaintiffs in the late 1980s after a massive oil tanker spill off the coast of Alaska. Besides the Walkers, the plaintiffs include a 65-year-old pastor and his wife who Mattson met at a church in Windsor and now live in Alaska, a 70-year-old Arizona woman and a Virginia couple. All fell victim to charisma and the sales pitch they were given, Kittle said. It just shows that regular people are no match for professional scammers. Mattson has previously denied any wrongdoing, instead blaming LeFever for failing to pay out monthly returns to investors. LeFever has declined past requests for comment, but issued public calls on Mattson to come clean and reimburse investors. After the Walkers realized their home in Southern California was headed toward foreclosure, they called Mattson and demanded his agreement to sell. After some negotiation, they said, he agreed. The sale gave them some small savings that they can rely on for the immediate future. Everything else, however, might be gone. The decision to sue was a painful one, they said, though they hoped it might help other investors. They confirmed their on-off romance was very much back on during a steamy beach PDA session last week. And Ella Rae Wise and Dan Edgar looked happier than ever as they dressed to impress for a date night in Cyprus while filming alongside their TOWIE co-stars on Sunday night. Ella, 24, wore a beautiful pale pink sheer maxi dress splattered with red polka dots as she took in the sunset at the Exclusive Club at Cap St George Hotel in Paphos. Dan, 34, wore a white T-shirt and matching shorts, while accessorising with sunglasses and a green patterned scarf knotted around his neck. The pair beamed as they left the venue, where filming for series 33 is well underway despite series 32 only ending on Tuesday. In May, Ella confirmed she and Dan had split after reports he cheated on her with his ex-girlfriend Hannah Rally. Ella Rae Wise and Dan Edgar looked happier than ever as they dressed to impress for a date night in Cyprus while filming alongside their TOWIE co-stars on Sunday night Ella, 24, wore a beautiful pale pink sheer maxi dress splattered with red polka dots as she took in the sunset at the Exclusive Club at Cap St George Hotel in Paphos Dan, 34, wore a white T-shirt and matching shorts, while accessorising with sunglasses and a green patterned scarf knotted around his neck Ella and Dan had been seeing each other since February when they got close while filming series 32 in Bali. The Essex beauty had told her followers she was 'happily single' and 'focusing on myself and my brand' during a Q&A on her Instagram Stories. Ella and Dan were reportedly open to continuing their romance after Bali and discussed their future while filming their final scenes for series 32. The romance had followed Dan's messy and emotional split from Amber Turner, who joined the cast in Bali, and his subsequent relationship with Hannah. A source told The Sun: 'Dan was dating Hannah for around nine months, they got together shortly after he split from Amber. 'Things were going really well and he even told her he loved her but he said he wasn't ready for anything serious. Next thing he is in Bali for TOWIE filming and is getting with Ella. 'Hannah was obviously really shocked, but she just didn't want the drama to decide to wash her hands of him. But they ended up getting together again when Ella was out of town in Dubai.' After returning to the UK, Ella was furious with Dan's transgression and even reportedly confronted Hannah and called her 'embarrassing'. The pair beamed as they left the venue, where filming for series 33 is well underway despite series 32 only ending on Tuesday Ella posed up a storm after confirming the couple's on-off romance was very much back on during a steamy beach PDA session last week However, it was revealed all had now been forgiven when Ella and Dan were pictured sharing a steamy kiss on the beach in Paphos last week. Series 32 of TOWIE aired between March and June and was filmed between February and April. The series' storylines included Amber struggling to watch Ella and Dan's new romance progress in front of her face - and quitting the series as a result. In an exceedingly awkward conversation, Amber told Dan that she was fine with he and Ella cracking on, while Dan was confused as to why she wouldn't be. The ex-couple dated for five years and broke up because Dan didn't seem to want marriage or children with Amber. Amber told The Sun in March: 'Lets get one thing right - Ella's always had a thing for Dan, she always has. She is single now naturally she is going to want to go for Dan. 'She doesn't owe me anything. She is not my friend. Dan is a good looking guy...Whatever they get up to is none of my business. It is what it is. It's been a long time. 'He swore on his life he never flirted with her. It has made me feel like he had a thing for her in the past. At the end of day he was my boyfriend of five years. We've got a dog. We lived together.' The Union Budget FY25 should focus on offering relief to taxpayers, especially in the lower income brackets, to stimulate consumption, industry players suggested. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is scheduled to present the full Budget for fiscal 2024-25 on July 23 which will be the first major policy document of the new government. The industry also urged the finance minister to lower corporate tax, phase out tax exemptions, and broaden tax base to boost economic growth. Rationalise and simplify the tax system to improve compliance and promote investment. Consider measures such as reducing corporate tax rates, phasing out tax exemptions, and broadening the tax base to make the tax regime more efficient and equitable, Assocham said. Rating agency ICRA said the government is likely to set a fiscal deficit target at 4.9-5 per cent for FY25, as against 5.1 per cent estimated in the Interim Budget on February 1, without compromising the capital expenditure target of Rs 11.1 lakh crore. While favourable developments on the revenue front portend positively for the fiscal dynamics in FY2025, ICRA believes that fiscal consolidation will turn quite challenging beyond the current fiscal, the rating agency said. Mayank Gupta, co-founder and COO of Zopper Insurtech said the Budget is expected to focus on policies to promote economic growth and offer relief especially for the lower income brackets to stimulate consumption. From the point of view of insurance, we suggest amending section 80C of the Income Tax Act to permit a greater limit on insurance premium payments, thereby encouraging more individuals to buy insurance products. Additionally, there should also be an allowance of deduction for term life insurance under the new tax regime, he said. Anish Mashruwala, partner, JSA Advocates and Solicitors said NBFC sector is expecting some ease of doing business considering the multitude of regulatory compliances. Of course a balance needs to be struck in terms of oversight and hopefully this is something that the government ably considers, Mashruwala said. Rumki Majumdar, economist, Deloitte India suggested that the government must expand the scope of PLI schemes, especially for sectors that can create more jobs, such as textiles, handicraft and leather. The schemes must continue in sectors that have seen success, such as electronics, auto and semiconductors, Majumdar added. On expectations from the finance minister, Vishal Goel, managing director, RX Propellant said the life sciences sector has immense potential and has been drawing global players to not only leverage the strength in contract manufacturing but also establishing global capability centres (GCCs). We are optimistic that the upcoming budget announcement will prioritise the life sciences sector, enhancing investment flows and fuelling innovation and success in India, Goel said. The presence of Indian nationals on the Russian side of the Ukraine conflict raises broader questions about the ethics of foreign combatant recruitment. The issue of Indians fighting along with the Russian forces in the Ukraine War is particularly piquant, given Indias historic relations with the Soviet Union earlier and Russia now. The fact that many had claimed to have been forced to fight had forced the Indian Government to intervene. It is a claim that hasnt been conclusively confirmed as the Indian Embassy was aware of many Indians having signed up for support jobs in the Russian Army. Pending confirmation that their terms of service had been unfairly and involuntarily extended to fight on the frontline, the Indian authorities had formally sought their discharge. It further advised Indians to exercise caution and stay away from this conflict diplomatese for dissuading Indians from joining any Russian Army, in any capacity, given the situation. But as it routinely happens e.g., as it happened with advisories to Indian students to leave Ukraine before the full-fledged assault, some heeded the call and some didnt, till the situation became desperate and inextricable for them. The Russians have been particularly keen to swell their ranks with foreigners given the heavy loss of lives in the bloody stalemate and the accompanying sense of fatigue and despondency amongst its combatants. The inclusion of private militias like the Wagner Army is under that impulse. But the inclusion of individual foreigners is a formalized initiative that can be traced back to Law 29 March 1998 On Military Obligation and Military Service which has since then been made increasingly attractive and lenient to attract new intake. Talks of individuals from Central Asian Countries (for the Soviet Union), Cuba, Afghanistan, Nepal, Syria, Somalia etc., have been doing the rounds. For these foreign inductees, besides the relatively lucrative salary ($2000-$3000), the additional lure of Russian citizenship is dangled. Estimated to be numbering in thousands, BBC reported that as of last year's end, 254 foreigners had been killed in the conflict. How many of them had enlisted for support jobs and how many were forcibly taken for active combat, remains a matter of conjecture. The tact of enlisting mercenaries is an old and convenient practice, as besides the relatively low levels of accountability, they also come with the plausible option of deniability. Under the International Criminal Court and the International Humanitarian Law, the status of mercenary does not constitute a specific crime. But they are not entitled to the status of prisoner of war and its necessities. The idea is to discourage mercenaries as material greed-based and amoral entities as opposed to soldiers of the nation who are driven by a sense of national purpose, patriotism, and professional excellence.To qualify as mercenaries, six criteria need to be fulfilled. Firstly, the person is specially recruited internally/abroad. Secondly, the belligerent participates in conflict. Thirdly, he/she is motivated by private gain, as promised by one side in the conflict. Fourthly, they are not national, resident or interested party in the said conflict. Fifthly, they do not belong to the militaries of either side. Sixthly and lastly, they have not been sent by a non-interested state on any official duty as a member of their military. Therefore, it could be presumed some Indians who are unfortunately caught in a form of combat that they probably had not imagined whilst signing up, and may still qualify as mercenary. Such a scenario does not reflect well on the nation as it is suggestive of limited job opportunities domestically and therefore suggests societal desperation which is understandable for broken nations like Somalia or Syria, but not India.Sadly, portents of cannon fodder or even human trafficking are rife, but given the opaqueness that surrounds the Russian reality, nothing can be confirmed. Such times birth human trafficking networks that paint a very different picture to recruit the gullible when the truth is starkly different. There have been gut-wrenching pleas from some Indians beseeching the Indian authorities to secure their release, with some losing their lives, soon after that. The Indian External Affairs Minister is believed to have reiterated his concern to his Russian counterpart during a recent bilateral in Astana, Kazakhstan. To the query, if S Jaishankar had taken up the issue of stranded Indians, he assured, Very clearly and strongly... several Indians have been pressed into service with the Russian Army. Only when they come back will we know the full circumstances. But whatever the circumstances are, to us it is unacceptable that Indian citizens find themselves in the army of another country in a warzone. I told him that we seek their cooperation and that they are our friend and partners. We have to find a way so that these people can return to India as quickly and effectively as possible. Thankfully, despite the ostensibly pro-Ukraine position taken by Delhi, it has maintained a parallel and strong relation with Russia, replete with non-linear moves as part of its strategic independence. However, while the government had initiated the needful from Russian authorities, there is a reciprocal expectation of Indians abroad to heed advisories, and not wait for situations to deteriorate. No right-thinking country would encourage its citizens to partake in conflicts given the diversity of complex geopolitical and societal ramifications, amongst which guaranteeing their safety would be paramount. For Russians, foreign recruitment makes practical sense for Indians to be availing the same, reflects poorly. (The writer, a military veteran, is a former Lt Governor of Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Puducherry. The views expressed are personal) Despite a Supreme Court ruling highlighting the impact of freebies on election fairness, political parties continue to leverage public funds for electoral gain In the Maharashtra Budget for 2024-25 presented by Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, the BJP-led MahaYuti has announced financial assistance of Rs 1,500 per month for eligible women between 21 to 60 years of age, a stipend up to Rs.10,000 per month for youth in industrial and non-industrial sectors, electricity bill waiver for farmers etc. Unambiguously, these are freebies - an acronym for something given by the State free of charge aimed at garnering votes during the State assembly elections later this year. In a July 2013 order in S Subramaniam Balaji vs Government of Tamil Nadu & Ors, the Supreme Court (SC) had said that the distribution of freebies of any kind influences all people; that It shakes the root of free and fair elections to a large degree. Yet, it had held that promises in the election manifesto cannot be construed as corrupt practice under the Representation of People Act (RPA), or any other prevailing law and, hence, distribution of freebies cant be stopped when the ruling party uses public funds for this purpose through the passage of Appropriation Acts in the state assembly.In the same order, it directed the Election Commission of India (ECI) to frame guidelines that could govern the contents of the election manifesto of all the recognized political parties as when it had acted while framing guidelines for general conduct of the candidates, meetings, processions, polling day, etc. Further this can also be included in the model code of conduct under a separate head for guidelines for election manifesto for guidance of political parties and candidates.The ECI never came out with any such guidelines.Emboldened by ECI inaction, the political parties who in the past, were placing freebies in a corner of their manifestos, have started catapulting them to the centre stage. Now, freebies hold the key to winning elections. In February 2020, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by Arvind Kejriwal mesmerized Delhi, voters, by promising free or heavily subsidized electricity and free water, free bus rides for women, free Wi-Fi, and so on. In 2022 in Punjab, AAP promised free electricity to each household for consumption up to 300 units per month, waiver of all outstanding power bills, Rs 1000 per month to every woman aged 18 or above etc. The party won the state with a thumping majority. In Uttar Pradesh also in 2022, BJP promised 20 million smartphones for poor students, two free LPG cylinders every year, Rs 100,000/- for the marriage of girls from poor families, and so on.Meanwhile, the matter came up before the SC through a public interest litigation (PIL). On January 25, 2022, it observed This is no doubt a serious issue. Budget for freebies is going above the regular budget. It also reiterated that this disturbs the level playing field. On August 3, 2022, it gave a sense that it is for Parliament, besides the ECI, to take the initiative to enact a law on curbing freebies. It also sought suggestions on the composition of a committee that could go into the issue dispassionately and make recommendations. But, the above decisions havent been acted upon. Although, on its part, the ECI had sent out questionnaires asking parties to give specifics of what they intend to promise voters, financial impact and how this will be funded, there hasnt been any follow-up. Meanwhile, the freebies continue to proliferate. In Karnataka elections in May 2023, the grand old party (GOP) promised five guarantees viz. Gruha Jyoti, Gruha Lakshmi, Sakhi programme, Yuva Nidhi, and Anna Bhagya. The trend continued during elections in Madhya Pradesh (MP), Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Telangana held in November/December 2023. While, in Rajasthan, Congress promised Rs 10,000 every year to the female head of the family under the Gruha Lakshmi Yojana, in MP, BJP increased the grant to Rs 1,250 per month under Ladli Behna Yojana; the amount to be hiked to Rs 3,000 per month. Additionally, in MP, under Ladli Lakshmi Yojana, the BJP promised girls Rs 200,000/- till they get married. In Chhattisgarh, it promised Rs 12,000 per year to married women under the Mahtari Vandan Scheme. In Telangana, the GOP beat all promising 10 grams of gold besides Rs 100,000/- cash to women getting married. In the run-up to the general elections, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on December 23, 2023 supply of free foodgrain under the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) to over 800 million persons, Congress gave ten guarantees in its manifesto Nyay Patra" released in April, 2024. Meanwhile, in Delhi, Kejriwal promised Rs 1000 per month to all women above the age of 18 years under the Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana (MMSY). For State elections later this year, parties are readying to give another round of big doles. As mentioned earlier, the BJP-led MahaYuti has already announced a bountiful package for Maharashtra. For others viz. Haryana, and Jharkhand, parties will follow suit. The SC assertion on January 25, 2022 Budget for freebies is going above the regular budget is confirmed by facts on ground zero. Whereas, in Delhi, these cost the exchequer around Rs 12,500 crore annually, in Punjab the impact is close to Rs 20,000 crore. In Karnataka, at over Rs 60,000 crore, the cost of five guarantees exceeds the existing fiscal deficit. Redeeming the guarantees promised in GOPs Nyay Patra" could cost the Central Government a mammoth around Rs 46,00,000 crore. In Maharashtra, Rs 1,500 per month to eligible women alone would cost Rs 46,000 crore a year. When the top court says freebies are bad, why doesnt it ban them? A big deterrent is none other than the SC order of July 2013 which says it cant be construed as corrupt practice Within the meaning of section 123(1)(A) of the RPA, 1951, the expression bribery has been defined to mean any gift, offer or promise by a candidate or his agent or by any other person with the consent of a candidate or his election agent of any gratification with the object of inducing an elector as a reward to his candidature. The irony is, that when a candidate uses his own pocket money to bribe the voter, it is treated as corrupt practice, but when the party on whose symbol he is seeking election bribes voters using public money, the top court doesnt treat it that way. The Union Governments standards of financial propriety lay down inter alia that no authority shall exercise its powers of sanctioning expenditure to pass an order which will be directly or indirectly, to its advantage; and the expenditure from public moneys should not be incurred for the benefit of a particular person or a section of the people unless a claim for the amount could be enforced in a court of law or the expenditure is in pursuance of a recognized policy or custom. The reckless spending of the taxpayers money on freebies is neither a recognized policy/custom nor it is sanctioned in a court of law. It is a blatant financial irregularity that amounts to bribing voters using public money solely to gain electoral advantage. The SC should change its stance to recognize this and force the Parliament to enact a law if it feels existing laws dont provide for it. (The writer is a policy analyst; views expressed are personal) The brutal attack on Shiv Sena(Punjab)leader Sandeep Thapar allegedly by Nihang Sikhs in Ludhiana has triggered a political slugfest with Opposition criticising the AAP Government there for law order situation in the State. The condemnation came after Thapar was attacked with swords near the Civil Hospital in Ludhiana on Friday. He sustained serious injuries. Thapar, known for his vocal stance against Khalistan, was returning from an event at the Samvedna Trust when the attackers, dressed in traditional Nihang attire, intercepted him. The video footage shows Thapar on a scooter with his security personnel when the attackers surrounded him. Despite his attempts to reason with them, the situation quickly escalated into violence. With folded hands, Thapar pleaded for mercy, but the attackers mercilessly struck him on the head, causing him to collapse. Even on the ground, he was subjected to further assaults, leaving him in critical condition. Thapar's gunman left the crime scene without any retaliation. Eyewitnesses immediately rushed Thapar to the Civil Hospital, from where he was later transferred to the Dayanand Medical College and Hospital for further treatment. Hospital sources indicate that he suffered severe injuries to his head, arms, and legs, requiring urgent medical intervention. The Ludhiana Police have registered a case of attempted murder against the unidentified attackers. Two suspects, identified as Sarabjit Singh and Harjot Singh, were arrested in Fatehgarh Sahib district, while a third, Tehal Singh, is still on the run. In response to the escalating tensions, political figures from across the spectrum condemned the attack, with accusations levied against the Punjab government for failing to maintain law and order. Opposition leaders, including Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu, Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur, and BJP Punjab chief Sunil Jakhar, called for immediate action and accountability from Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann. Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu said "Such a brutal attack on an individual in full public view is condemnable. It has created panic among residents." In his first trip since the start of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday began a two-day high-profile visit to Russia to hold summit talks with President Vladimir Putin with a focus on boosting bilateral ties in areas of energy, trade and defence. Modi was received at the airport by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. The Russian First Deputy Minister also accompanied the Indian Prime Minister to his hotel from the airport in the same car, officials said. Manturov had received Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Russia as well. It is Modi's first trip to Russia since 2019, the first after the start of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 and first in Modi's third term as the Prime Minister. Russian President Putin is set to host a private dinner for Modi tonight ahead of Tuesday's talks at the 22nd India-Russia summit in Moscow. "The PM is set to hold substantive discussions with Putin to take forward the special partnership between the two countries. He will also interact with the Indian community in Russia," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on social media. In his departure statement, Modi said India seeks to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. After concluding his engagements in Russia on July 9, Modi will leave for Austria in the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in over 40 years. The focus of the Modi-Putin summit talks are expected to be on further boosting bilateral cooperation in trade, energy and defence. The Ukraine conflict is set to figure in the discussions. "The special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges," Modi said in his departure statement. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues," he said. New Delhi has been stoutly defending its "special and privileged strategic partnership" with Russia and maintained the momentum in the ties notwithstanding the Ukraine conflict. India has not yet condemned Russia's attack on Ukraine and consistently pitched for resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. The Prime Minister said the visit will also provide him an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. In the talks, Modi is expected to urge the Russian end recruitment of Indians as support staff to Russian military and ensure return to home of those still operating in the force. The annual summit between the prime minister of India and the president of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. The annual summits are held alternatively in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021 in New Delhi. President Putin had visited India to attend the summit. The summit saw both sides sealing 28 MoUs and agreements besides coming out with a joint statement titled "India-Russia Partnership for Peace, Progress and Prosperity". Prime Minister Modi and President Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. There was yet another judicial reverse suffered by the Mamata Banerjee Government with the Supreme Court on Monday asking the State counsel why the administration should want to shield an accused before dismissing the State plea to scrap the ongoing probe into the Sandeshkhali incident conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The State Government had approached the Apex Court to get the CBI investigation ordered earlier by the Calcutta High Court quashed. "Why should the State be interested in protecting someone?" the Bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan wondered before dismissing the State plea. The Calcutta High Court had on April 10 ordered a CBI investigation into the incidents of Sandeshkhali where villagers complained en masse of large-scale land grab and sexual exploitation of women allegedly at the behest of Trinamool Congress strongmen Sheikh Shahjahan, Uttam Sardar and others. All were presently in jail. Moving the Apex Court, the State Government had earlier said the High Court order directing CBI investigation into the case had demoralised the police administration. It also said it was the State police which had arrested Shahjahan before handing it over to the CBI. However the opposite side contended that the State had not only tried to stall CBI investigation but also it had handed arrested the main accused after several weeks of the incident apparently because he was a powerful TMC leader. The CBI has been investigating three separate cases with Sandeshkhali appearing in all of them. While the agency is investigating the case of multi-crore public distribution system scam that has seen former State Minister and powerful TMC leader Jyotipriya Mallick going to jail. It is also dealing with the alleged attack by the men of Shahjahan on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials who went to the reverine island of Sandeshkhali on January 5 to investigate his connection with the ration scam. The CBI started investigating the third case around Sandeshkhali when the Calcutta High Court directed it to take over the complaints of land grab and sexual assault on women in the North 24 Parganas village surrounded backwaters and Sunderbans. The High Court had directed a court-monitored CBI investigation wherein it has asked the Agency to file comprehensive reports on the alleged land grab whence the occupied agricultural lands had been converted into water bodies for pisci-culture and the cases of crimes against women. Apart from hitting the national headlines the Sandeshkhali incident became a major electoral issue before the general elections though it is another matter that none of the political opposition including the Left and the BJP could extract any political dividend out of it with the TMC not only winning Basirhat parliamentary seat where Sandeshkhali is an Assembly segment but also improving its overall tally from 22 to 29 whereas the BJP came down from 18 seats to 12 seats whereas the Left could win none. The Congress which had won 2 seats in 2019 managed to win only one seat. At least four Indian Army soldiers were martyred and five others were grievously injured in yet another provocative terror strike on an Army vehicle near Badnota village of Machhedi under the jurisdiction of Lohai Malhar block in Billawar tehsil of Kathua district on Monday. The area falls under the 9 Corps of the Indian Army. The attack took place a month after a group of foreign terrorists targeted a pilgrim bus in which nine civilians were killed and 41 others were injured in the Reasi district on June 9. A similar attack was attempted on an Army post by another group of terrorists in the frontier Rajouri district early on Sunday morning. However, the same was repulsed by one of the alert troopers manning the periphery of the Army installation. According to preliminary reports, a group of terrorists pitched atop a prominent hill feature targeted the Army vehicle by first hurling a grenade and later opening indiscriminate firing to inflict maximum casualties. The terrorists also took advantage of the foggy weather and poor road conditions before targeting the Army vehicle. During the heavy exchange of firing several soldiers were badly hit. The fate of terrorists could not be known immediately as the anti-terrorist operation was still going on in the thickly forested area. Confirming the firing incident, a spokesman of the Jammu and Kashmir police in a brief statement said, "Exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces going on in the Machedi area of Kathua district. Two Army personnel were injured in the initial round of firing. A massive search operation has been launched". Meanwhile, additional troops have been rushed to the spot to plug the escape routes and neutralise the terrorists. Senior police and Army officers were supervising the ongoing operation. The Army authorities have issued an advisory to the residents in the area to remain indoors and not to venture out to prevent injuries in the heavy exchange of gunfire. A day after gunning down six terrorists in two back-to-back encounters in the South Kashmir district of Kulgam Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1 sec RR, on Monday claimed the security forces have inflicted a big blow to the Pro-Pakistan terrorist outfit Hizbul Mujahideen in the Valley. The killing of six terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul Mujahideen, he said. The security forces are also investigating the role of the locals in sheltering the terrorists inside their homes. During the routine searches, the security forces stumbled upon a well-fortified concrete hideout concealed behind a wardrobe in a civilian residence situated in the Chinnigam Frisal area of Kulgam. The senior Army officer also paid tributes to the martyred soldiers who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty during the twin encounters. Briefing media persons, Brigadier Chauhan said after concluding the operation, we found and promptly destroyed an IED weighing approximately 6 kilogram, keeping collateral damage in mind. Speaking on the Modergam encounter, Javed Ahmad Matoo, DIG South Kashmir, said two terrorists were killed in the second operation. Adil, who had multiple FIRs against him in different police stations, was killed in one operation. The second encounter took place in the Chinnigam area based on specific information, resulting in the killing of four terrorists. Among them was Yavar Bashir Dar, a Category A terrorist. The others were identified as Tauheed Ahmed, Shakeel Ahmed Wani, and Zahir Ahmad Dar. A significant cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from the encounter site. Both locations had hideouts that the terrorists had been using for a considerable time, Matoo said. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini on Sunday said that in the last 10 years or so, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Double-engine Sarkar in the State has established a system that works for the welfare of all sections of society and has taken the states development to new heights. The developmental works carried out during the tenure of the present government has surpassed the works done during the 48 years of previous governments. The amount of development work done during this governments tenure has never been done before, said Saini while addressing the gathering at an event held in Panipat where he inaugurated and laid the foundation stones for 32 projects worth over Rs 227 crores. The projects included the inauguration of 19 projects costing Rs 36.55 crores and the foundation stones for 12 projects costing approximately Rs 191 crores. Additionally, the Chief Minister announced an allocation of Rs 10 crores for development works in the Panipat Urban Assembly constituency and Rs 10 crores for the Panipat Rural Assembly constituency. Saini said that infrastructure is considered a measure of physical development for any nation or state. Strong infrastructure not only uplifts the standard of living of the people residing there but also attracts industries and investments, thereby strengthening the states economy. Haryana maintains an annual economic growth rate of eight percent due to its strong infrastructure, compared to the national average of 6.7 percent. The Chief Minister said that when the present government took on the responsibility of serving the state in 2014, we faced many challenges as the previous government had left a dilapidated economy, a collapsed cooperative structure, and public sector undertakings running at a loss. He said that the previous governments had always prioritized regionalism and nepotism in development and jobs. During previous governments, there was significant discrimination in development and welfare schemes, with development focused only on one region, neglecting the rest of the State. However, under the guidance of PM Modi, following the philosophy of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Prayas, Sabka Vishwas and Pandit Deen Dayal Upadhyayas philosophy of Antyodaya, the pace of development has been accelerated, changing the face of the state without any discrimination, said Saini. He said that the present State Government has considered every individual in Haryana as their own and has worked to uplift every section, following the mantra of Haryana Ek-Haryanvi Ek. Equal development of every region is a priority for the government. The Chief Minister also criticized the previous Congress Government for failing to provide plots to the poor despite promises. The plots were shown, but no documents or possessions were given. Eligible people were left wandering. Understanding their plight, the current government has given possession of 100-square-yard plots to all eligible people. Where land was unavailable, provision has been made to provide an amount of Rs one lakh each in the accounts of eligible beneficiaries to buy plots. He said that on June 30, the Government had issued social security pensions to 75,000 new beneficiaries. On the same day, assistance was provided to 2,000 beneficiaries for house repairs under Dr BR Ambedkar Awas Navinikaran Yojana. Additionally, under the Mukhyamantri Shehri Awas Yojana, the State Government has also given 30-square-yard plots to around 15,000 families. Target to install solar panels on roofs of 1L houses Saini said that at the consecration ceremony of the holy temple of Suryavanshi Lord Rama in Ayodhya on January 22, 2024, Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to establish a solar rooftop system on the roof of every home. To achieve this, the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana has been started. Extending this scheme, the Haryana Government has decided to provide solar systems for free on the roofs of one lakh houses of the poor by providing additional grants, he said. In this scheme, an amount of Rs 60,000 will be provided by the Central Government and Rs 50,000 by the Haryana Government. Additionally, the Haryana Government has removed the minimum monthly charge for domestic electricity consumers. Now, the bill will be charged only for the units consumed, benefiting 9.50 lakh poor families in the State, he said. He further said that the State Government has given more powers to panchayats to expedite rural development. Now, sarpanches can carry out development works costing up to Rs 21 lakhs without a tender. The State Government, with new thinking, new vision, and hard work, is giving a new direction and pace to Haryanas development so that every section of society can be happy and Haryana can reach new heights of development, asserted Saini. Inaugurates Orphanage and Old Age Home in Panipat In another event, Saini inaugurated a 400-bed orphanage and old age home in Sondhapur village, Panipat. He also announced Rs 21 lakh from his discretionary fund to the Panipat branch of Jan Sewa Sansthan, Rohtak. This Orphanage and Old Age Home will play a crucial role in helping the needy and the helpless. Such institutions inspire others who work for the service of those in need, said Saini, adding that saints and great personalities hold a significant place in the nations development and they will always prove to be inspiring for service. Praising the sacred work done by the institution, he said that in addition to the government, society is always ready to promote such noble work and welfare of the people. The Chief Minister said that numerous schemes have been implemented by the State Government for the upliftment of the elderly, which are currently benefiting them. The increase in pensions has honoured the elderly. Senior citizens who do not have shelter will benefit from this Old Age and Orphanage home, he added. An owner of properties worth rupees crores has been arrested for his alleged involvement in cybercrime at Giridih on Sunday evening. Giridih district Superintendent of Police, Deepak Kumar Sharma, had a tip off that a 24-year-old local youth was involved in cheating and fraudulent activities by way of cybercrime near Gapai village under muffasil police station areas of the district. Consequently, a police team was constituted and pressed across the suspected location. The Cyber DSP, Abid Khan, led the police team. Cyber PS in-charge, Ajay Kumar, and SI, Gautam Kumar, are among other members of the police team. The perpetrator has been identified as one, Sonu Verma, son of Chetlal Verma, a resident of Gapai village under the same PS areas of the district. With at least 3-4 four named FIRs against him, the culprit, Sonu Verma, has an old criminal record in Giridih and other places. He was also jailed for another cyber related case at Worli Mumbai. Besides, another cyber criminal, Mahendra Mandal, accused in Giridih Cyber PS Case No 28/2023, had also termed Verma as one of his close associates in his confessional statement to the police. Mandal has been languishing in Giridih central jail for the past few months. During investigation, it came to our knowledge that the perpetrator had owned properties worth rupees crores. Apart from plots of land worth more than rupees 2 crores at Bengabad in Giridih, he has owned a luxury car, a 16 - wheeler truck, a well furnished flat in Hazaribagh district, motorcycle, scooty and other valuables. These are only the known properties, portions of which he had owned in the name of his relatives and family, SP, Deepak Kumar Sharma, said adding the Giridih police would also appeal to the other concerned central and state agencies to probe into the properties acquired by the perpetrator or his family. Interestingly, the perpetrator tried to escape the police action with the undue influence of a few renowned persons, but the Giridih police appeared reluctant in their step against the cybercriminals. AIIMS Bhopal MBBS students Eeshan Pawar, Tithi Shah, and Divyansh Sharma have been selected for the prestigious BIRAC E-YUVA Fellowship scheme. The BIRAC E-YUVA (Encouraging Youth for Undertaking Innovative Research through Vibrant Acceleration) Fellowship is a highly esteemed program that nurtures young innovators in biotechnology. The selected students' project focuses on developing a magnetic probe to facilitate easy suturing in deep cavities and areas with poor visibility. This innovative tool aims to enhance surgical precision and efficiency, addressing a significant challenge in the medical field. The project was carried out under the mentorship of Dr. Kumar Madhavan, Associate Professor in the Department of Urology at AIIMS Bhopal. By providing opportunities like the BIRAC E-YUVA Fellowship, AIIMS Bhopal is empowering its students to become pioneers in medical innovation and contribute significantly to the healthcare industry. Amidst swirling controversies and conflicting statements, Khadoor Sahib MP and pro-Khalistan ideologue Amritpal Singh has unequivocally distanced himself from remarks made by his mother, Balwinder Kaur, asserting that he was not a supporter of Khalistan. Amritpal, head of Waris Punjab De, is currently lodged at Assams Dibrugarh jail facing stringent National Security Act (NSA). Amritpal, in an official statement issued through his team on Saturday night, expressed dismay over his mothers comments and reaffirmed his unwavering dedication to the ideals of the Sikh panth. When I learned of the statement made by Mata ji yesterday, I was deeply hurt. While I believe that Mata ji may have made this statement inadvertently, such assertions should never come from my family or anyone associated with me, read the statement. Dreaming of Khalsa Raj is not a crime but a matter of pride. Countless Sikhs have laid down their lives to realize this dream, and we cannot waver from this path, he said emphatically. Singh, who has been vocal about his commitment to Sikh sovereignty, underscored his prioritization of panthic values over familial ties. I have repeatedly declared on public platforms that if ever faced with a choice between panth and family, I will always choose the panth, he affirmed in his statement titled Official Statement by Bhai Amritpal Singh. The controversy erupted when Balwinder Kaur, during a media interaction in Amritsar on Friday, asserted that her son is not a Khalistani supporter and urged for his release to focus on addressing Punjabs pressing issues. She later clarified, in a video message, that her statement had been misinterpreted by the media. In response, Amritpal acknowledged the sensitivity of the issue and drew a historical parallel to illustrate his stance. There is a historical incident where, amidst the martyrdom of Sikhs with Banda Singh Bahadur, a 14-year-old youths mother attempted to save him by disavowing his Sikh identity. In response, the youth declared that if she denies him as a Sikh, he denies her as his mother. While extreme, this example conveys a fundamental principle, he said. I caution my family against any compromise on Sikh sovereignty and urge them to maintain utmost clarity while engaging with the sangat (congregation), he emphasized. Amritpal and Kashmiri leader Sheikh Abdul Rashid were recently granted parole to attend their swearing-in ceremony as Lok Sabha members. Amritpal, who contested the 2024 elections independently, secured victory from the Khadoor Sahib constituency with a substantial margin of 1,97,120 votes over Congress candidate Kulbir Singh Zira. Currently incarcerated, Amritpal was temporarily transferred to Delhi for the oath-taking ceremony. His arrest stems from a confrontation in Moga's Rode village last year, where he and his supporters clashed with police while attempting to free an associate from custody. The State BJP will make an issue of ouster of Champai Soren as Chief Minister at the Special Assembly session of Jharkhand Assembly scheduled on Monday. Last week Champai was asked to quit the post of Chief Ministership making way for Hemant Soren. Soren took oath as Chief Minister of Thursday. The State BJP convened a meeting of party MLAs at party office. State BJP president Babulal Marandi, Leader of Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri and others were present at the meeting. At the meeting the BJP leaders also discussed on party strategy for special assembly session. Chief Minister Hemant Soren will face floor test on Monday. Meanwhile, in other development Leader of Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri, Ranchi MLA CP Singh, Kanke MLA Samari Lal, Rajmahal MLA Anant Ojha and Godda MLA Amit Mandal met the candidates who were protesting in front of Raj Bhavan demanding an inquiry into the irregularities in the JSSC PGT exam and the successful candidates of Shreya Digital, Bokaro and Shiva Infotech exam centers and heard their issues in detail. On the occasion, Leader of Opposition Amar Kumar Bauri said that many irregularities have come to light in the JSSC PGT case. The way the candidates have shown strong evidence of the injustice being done to them, it seems that the Jharkhand government has sold jobs by taking money from the successful candidates. The government should get this case investigated simultaneously when the CBI is already investigating the appointment scam case. He said that the state government had promised to give 5 lakh jobs per year and promised to give an allowance of 5 to 7 thousand rupees to the youth if they do not get a job. But far from giving jobs, the government is selling jobs. Many cases were investigated by forming SIT, in which two officers of the state government were also arrested. But the whole case went into cold storage and no action was taken against anyone. He told that initially the students sitting on the dharna were being persuaded but now they are also being threatened. If any kind of misbehavior happens with the youth, then the Bharatiya Janata Party will fight this battle from the road to the House. He clearly said that the government should not misbehave with the youth, otherwise they will have to lose power as well as Jharkhand. Meanwhile, Ranchi MLA CP Singh said that the way the students have presented the evidence, it seems that the candidates have been successful only from five centers of Jharkhand, the company which was given the tender to conduct the examination is already blacklisted, despite this, questions are being raised on the government for conducting the examination again by the same company. The Ranchi MLA said that this entire matter should be investigated by the central investigation agency so that the students can get justice. At the same time, he also suggested the students to go to the Hon'ble High Court so that the CBI can investigate this entire matter through the court. Let us tell you that for the last 23 days, the PGT candidates have been sitting on a dharna in front of Raj Bhawan. And are demanding a high level investigation of the entire matter. The people who met were mainly present District President of Bharatiya Janata Party Ranchi Mahanagar, District Officer of Bharatiya Janata Party Scheduled Caste Front, District President and District Officer of Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha workers. The Transfusion Medicine Department of Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (BMHRC) honored voluntary blood donors and various organizations for their dedication to blood donation on Saturday. Additionally, an awareness program about sickle cell disease was organized. The event was attended by Dr. Manisha Shrivastava, the Director-in-Charge of BMHRC, Dr. Ruby Khan, Deputy Director of the MP State Blood Transfusion Council, a large number of voluntary blood donors, representatives from various organizations, and patients battling sickle cell-thalassemia and their families. During the event, speech and slogan competitions were held, and the winners were honored.Addressing the attendees, Dr. Manisha Shrivastava emphasized the importance of being compassionate towards patients coming to the hospital and serving them diligently. She praised the work of blood donors, stating that they donate blood selflessly and without any expectations, which makes their act even greater. She mentioned that the BMHRC blood bank has been operating continuously for the past 24 years and expressed pride that no needy person has ever had to struggle to get blood. There has never been a shortage of blood in the blood bank. Dr. Shrivastava also highlighted that sickle cell disease is preventable, and even those affected by it can lead a normal life with proper treatment. The Government of India and the Madhya Pradesh government are doing significant work to prevent and raise awareness about this disease.Dr. Ruby Khan congratulated the blood donors, stating that they are truly serving humanity. The blood donated by them can save the life of a pregnant woman or a thalassemia patient. In light of this great work, honoring blood donors is a small gesture. She urged people to ensure that before donating blood, they verify whether the blood bank is authorized, licensed, and how it uses the blood. She also emphasized that the blood bank should provide free blood to patients suffering from thalassemia and other blood disorders Pankaj Agarwal appointed as Hry Chief Electoral Officer Chandigarh: In a minor reshuffle in the administration, the Haryana Government has issued posting and transfer orders of one IAS officer with immediate effect. Pankaj Agarwal has been posted as Chief Electoral Officer, Haryana and Commissioner & Secretary to Government, Elections Department, said the official spokesperson on Monday. Haryana to launch state-wide campaign against Drug Menace: CS Chandigarh: Haryana Chief Secretary TVSN Prasad on Monday directed all the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Superintendent of Police (SPs) to launch a month-long state-wide extensive campaign to tighten noose around those involved in drug peddling in the State. While presiding over the 8th State Level Committee Meeting of Narco Coordination Centre (NCORD), he called for coordinated efforts of Civil and Police administration, Health, Social Welfare and Education Departments for the success of this campaign. All the Deputy Commissioners and Superintendent of Police attended the meeting through video conference. The Chief Secretary directed the senior civil and police functionaries to diligently discharge their duties towards achieving the State Governments vision of making Haryana, a drug free State. Emphasizing the need to further strengthen the system to gather information, he directed the Deputy Commissioners to hold regular meetings with the head of educational institutions to protect the youth from falling in the clutches of drugs. Provide 2 kW solar energy connections immediately to applicants: Hry Minister to official Chandigarh: Haryana Energy Minister Ranjit Singh Chautala on Monday directed that applicants of the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijlee Yojana should be provided with 2 kilowatts of solar energy connections immediately. Strict action will be taken against any officers showing negligence in this matter. Chautala was addressing electricity consumers from across the state in Hisar, listening to their issues and resolving them. Target to open 500 creches in State: Hry Minister Chandigarh: Haryana Women and Child Development Minister, Aseem Goel on Monday said that while the government has set a target to open 500 creches for child care, more creches will be opened if necessary. The government has approved a comprehensive budget in accordance with its "Creche Policy." For 2024-25, Rs 3215 lakh has been allocated, reflecting the state government's commitment to women and child welfare. Chandigarh approves implementation of micro-chipping in stray dogs to conduct dog census Chandigarh: The Finance and Contract Committee of Municipal Corporation Chandigarh on Monday accorded approval for implementing micro-chipping in stray dogs to conduct a dog census and improve Vaccination Management by purchasing 1000 microchips along with applicator and 1 reader at an approximate cost of Rs. 4.00 lakhs. The meeting of F&CC was held under the Chairmanship of Kuldeep Kumar, Mayor and attended by Anindita Mitra, Commissioner and other members of committee. The Committee discussed the terms and conditions of the lease deed to be executed between Health Department and Municipal Corporation Chandigarh for construction of Urban Ayushman Arogya Mandir (UAAM) under the Pradhan Mantri Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission at land measuring 0.3 acre situated in Indra Colony, Manimajra for 99 years on monthly rent of Rs. 2 lacs. The committee recommended the terms & conditions to be presented in the next General House meeting for discussion and approval. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Union Forest and Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav participated in the plantation programme organised in Indore under the resolution of Prime Minister Narendra Modis "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" campaign. After arriving in Indore, they first garlanded the statue of Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar. Chief Minister Dr. Yadav and Union Minister Yadav also planted Rudraksha saplings on this occasion. On this occasion, Urban Development and Housing Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya, Water Resources Minister Tulsiram Silawat, Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava, MLA Golu Shukla, Gaurav Randive, Chintu Verma and other public representatives were specially present. Chief Minister Dr. Yadav said that it is a matter of great pleasure for us that Prime Minister Modi has launched the "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" campaign for environmental protection. Under this campaign, 5.5 crore saplings are being planted in the entire state. It is a matter of pride that the work of planting 51 lakh saplings has been started in Indore city and the entire district. He said that the plantation campaign in the state is taking the form of a mass campaign. Active participation of every section of the society is being seen in this. Meanwhile, the Chief Minister and Union Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Minister Bhupendra Yadav offered prayers to Lord Jagannath at Jagdish Temple in Ujjain on Sunday morning and wished for the happiness and prosperity of the people of the state. Chief Minister Dr. Yadav said that as per tradition, the Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath will be taken out with full enthusiasm. Yadav said that there is an atmosphere of great joy and happiness regarding the Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath. He also congratulated the people of the state for Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra. On this occasion, public representatives like MLA Anil Jain Kaluheda, Vivek Joshi, Satyanarayan Khoiwal, Sanjay Aggarwal, and Ravi Shankar Verma were present. A major tragedy was averted as a big piece of false ceiling at the emergency cabin collapsed at government hospital in Bhopal, however, no doctors and patients were injured in the incident. The accident was reported in the new building of Hamidia Hospital at around 12.10 pm, when the false ceiling of the cabin in the emergency collapsed. At the time of incident, Chief Medical Officer Soumitra Batham was voisiting patients. The new building of Hamidia Hospital built at a cost of Rs 727 crores started its operation a few months ago, but it could not even withstand the first rains. Around 250 to 350 patients come to the emergency every day. The new building of Hamidia Hospital, was inaugurated by the then Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan in August 2023. Earlier, a false ceiling caved in at the ICU of the paediatrics department of a hospital in Gwalior. The incident occurred on Friday in the Kamla Raja Hospital, a part of Gwaliors famous Jayarogya Hospital. Fortunately, no casualties or injuries were reported in the incident. In a high-stakes confrontation, a notorious member of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) Simranjit Singh, alias Bablu, was injured while attempting a daring escape just hours after his arrest. The dramatic incident unfolded on the outskirts of Jalandhar, where Bablu, implicated in the recent murder of former terrorist Rattandeep Singh, made a desperate bid for freedom, only to be stopped by police gunfire. Bablu, a figure with deep connections to international terror networks, was apprehended by the Counter Intelligence (CI) unit of Jalandhar. His capture was a significant victory in Punjabs ongoing crackdown on organized crime, said the state Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav, recounting the tense moments of the escape attempt. DGP Yadav, detailing the dramatic events, said: Simranjit Singh, alias Bablu, attempted to escape custody, resulting in his injury by police fire on the outskirts of Jalandhar city. Bablu was apprehended by CI Jalandhar following revelations during an interrogation, leading to an operation near Wadala on the Jalandhar-Nakodar road where Bablu had hidden the pistol allegedly used in Rattandeep's murder. Going into background of the matter, the former militant Rattandeep Singh was assassinated on April 3, 2024, in SBS Nagar by two assailants on a motorcycle. The high-profile murder had raised concerns about the resurgence of organized militant activities in Punjab. The swift arrest of Bablu marks a critical step in resolving the case and preventing further violence. During the operation, police recovered two sophisticated firearms a .32 Webley revolver and a .32 pistol, along with a magazine and 19 live cartridges. The recovery of these weapons is a testament to our resolve in disarming criminal elements and ensuring public safety, said DGP Yadav. Preliminary investigations revealed that Bablu was acting under the instructions of Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Rinda and USA-based Gopi Nawanshehria. The duo had orchestrated the target killing of Rattandeep Singh to instill fear and chaos within the community. Notably, Bablu's accomplice, Jaspreet Singh, alias Jassi Kulam, managed to escape abroad post-assassination, highlighting the international dimensions of this criminal nexus. The police have invoked sections of the Arms Act and criminal conspiracy in this case. We are actively investigating to uncover further links and collaborators involved in this conspiracy, said the DGP, adding that the polices aim is to dismantle the network and prevent future crimes orchestrated by these terror modules. The Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU) has adopted two villages of Pochanpur and Amberhai areas in South - West Delhi for developing it as 'Smart Villages'. In this regard Padma Shri Prof. (Dr.) Mahesh Verma, Vice Chancellor of the university along with other officials visited these villages and explored the possibility of allround holistic development in the areas of education, environment, health, training, awareness, skill development, sports, etc. "The university has a Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and will like to take down the classroom information to the neighbouring community for their transformation," Verma said. The local MP Kamaljeet Sehrawat and the District Magistrate (South West) Lakashya Singhal addressed the 'Jan Sunvai' held at these two villages to hear the grievances of the local villagers. The DM, a pass out of the university, stated that over 170 projects were approved worth Rs 200 crore in the recent times in South - West district. Directing the concerned officers to implement new plans to make Gurugram cleaner, Haryana Chief Secretary TVSN Prasad on Sunday said that the State Government is committed to ensure cleanliness and a strong drainage system in the city. Besides, the number of sanitation vehicles will be increased for door-to-door garbage collection, said Prasad holding the meeting with eminent citizens of Gurugram city. Prasad directed the formation of a three-member committee in the meeting, which will set standards for sanitation vehicles to collect door-to-door garbage. Subsequently, Gurugram Municipal Corporation will issue a public advertisement under which any agency, RWA, institution, or any individual provides a vehicle of prescribed capacity along with a driver to the municipal corporation for door-to-door garbage collection, it will be paid on a monthly basis as per the rate fixed by the committee. The Chief Secretary said that it is mandatory for these vehicles to have GPS installed so that their location can be continuously tracked, with their link made available in the public domain for citizens' information. The minimum service period for vehicles used in this work in Gurugram city will be set for at least three years. The number of vehicles collecting door-to-door garbage in Gurugram city should be up to 1000, Prasad added. Also taking note of the problem of waterlogging during rains in Gurugram city, the Chief Secretary obtained information from officers regarding arrangements for drainage and cleaning of drains. If any agency mishandles drainage cleaning work, action will be taken against it. In the meeting, Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav informed that 112 critical points prone to waterlogging have been identified in the district, and IAS, HCS, and other senior officials have been assigned duty to monitor these locations. Municipal Commissioner Dr Narhari Singh Bangar said that in Gurugram city, four major and nearly 600 kilometres of smaller drains are used for drainage work. Tenders have already been issued for cleaning all drains, and cleaning work is underway. In this regard, the Chief Secretary directed to assign an SDO or other officer duty every 10 to 20 kilometres of drain length, who will report on the daily progress of cleaning work. Action will be taken against any agency found mishandling this work. In the meeting, the demand of Gurugram Municipal Corporation for the procurement of 40 compactors and suction machines was also instructed to proceed. The Chief Secretary directed the officers concerned to prepare a plan to correct the waste disposal plant at Bandhwari landfill site with cleanliness and environmental experts present in the meeting. He also carefully listened to suggestions from those present in the meeting and assured citizens that he would continue to hold weekly online or offline meetings. Supporters of the recall of Temecula school board President Joseph Komrosky hold up signs along Rancho California Road in Temecula (Riverside County) on May 29. Sandy Huffaker/Special to the Chronicle A crowd of supporters listen to speaker Eric Trump during the Inland Empire Family PAC fundraiser at the Temecula Stampede in Temecula (Riverside County) on May 22. Sandy Huffaker/Special to the Chronicle A truck advertising a position in the recall vote against two Sunol Glen Unified School District board members sits outside of the school in Sunol on April 15. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle Two years into a conservative push to take over school boards across the state an effort that saw some initial success the strategy is facing significant backlash. Many conservative candidates have made parental rights their primary agenda, which theyve pitched as a way to give parents control over what happens in their childrens classrooms but is often a cover for anti-LGBTQ policies. This year alone, voters have recalled six school board members who put in place policies attacking queer and transgender students under the guise of giving parents a voice in schools or protecting schools from legal attacks. Meanwhile, a statewide effort to get a parental rights measure on the November ballot failed to collect enough signatures to qualify. The state is poised to enact a ban on one such policy passed by many conservative-led school boards: The new law, if signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom, would ban schools from forcibly outing trans students to their parents. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The latest example of voters rejecting conservative school board takeovers came Tuesday, with the narrow recall of Sunol Glen Unified School District trustees Ryan Jergensen and Linda Hurley. Both trustees backed a policy that allowed only the U.S. and California state flags on campus a move that many took as a ban on the LGBTQ Pride flag. We have a lot of proof points now across the state that the average voter is not happy with what extremists are doing with our school boards, said Kristi Hirst, co-founder of Our Schools USA, a group that helps elect candidates opposed to conservative policies. Austin Bruckner Carrillo speaks during a Sunol Glen Unified School District Board of Trustees meeting at Sunol Glen School in Sunol on Oct. 10, 2023. Scott Strazzante/The Chronicle Far-right school board members have proven time and time again that theyre willing to take our tax dollars and use them to advance political crusades, and theyre doing this at the detriment of good governance, Hirst said. Its hurting our students and public school systems, and voters are not happy with it. Parental rights have become a bedrock of the conservative talking points in national and California politics the topic is critical enough that it drew Eric Trump, son of the presumptive Republican presidential candidate, to a May rally in Riverside County in support of a school board member facing recall. Advertisement Article continues below this ad I am convinced that the issue of 2024 needs to be about parental rights, Assembly Member Bill Essayli, R-Riverside, told more than 100 people at an event at last years California Republican Party convention called Parent Revolt: Run or Recruit. It is an issue that transcends politics, it transcends language, it transcends culture. In California, school boards in recent years have been perceived as a means for Republicans to gain political power in a state where Democrats hold all the statewide offices and a supermajority in the Legislature. For school board races, candidates arent identified by their party affiliation on the ballot. Starting during the pandemic, conservative parents upset by school closures and mask rules began making noise at board meetings. Soon after, Republicans began a concerted effort to run candidates for Californias 5,000 local school board seats many of which had been uncontested. Republican Assembly Member Bill Essayli speaks during a rally at the California Capitol in Sacramento on Aug. 28, 2023, in which anti-LGBTQ groups announced three ballot measures aimed at curtailing the rights of transgender youth. Andri Tambunan/Special to the Chronicle 2023 Hirst has tracked more than a dozen school districts in California including her own, in Chino Valley that flipped to a far-right majority in the past two years. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Once in office, conservative majorities can fire superintendents and legal counsels and change policies. And they can level attacks on LGBTQ rights, including everything from banning Pride flags to forcing schools to out students to their parents when they identify as transgender. The anti-LGBTQ policies reflect efforts happening at the state level outside California, said Tom Temprano, managing director of external affairs for Equality California, an LGBTQ advocacy group. Here in California, theyre taking a page and bringing it to the school boards instead, where they think they have a better chance of passing, Temprano said. What these successful recalls show, though, is that these anti-LGBTQ stunts distract from what schools should be doing, he said. Their Sunol Glen school board members ouster came after the recall last month of Temecula Valley Unified School District board President Joseph Komrosky, who launched a forced outing policy targeting transgender students and supported removing an eight-paragraph mention in an optional textbook of civil rights icon Harvey Milk, who he falsely referred to as a pedophile. Advertisement Article continues below this ad That followed the recall in March of Orange Unified School District Board President Rick Ledesma and board member Madison Miner, two proponents of parental rights. Recall supporters bounced them after the board banned the LGBTQ Pride flag, temporarily shut down the districts digital library because it allegedly contained age-inappropriate books, and required staff to tell parents if their child identified as transgender. Also in March, Emily MacDonald, a Woodland Joint Unified School District (Yolo County) school board member, resigned after the early results showed her losing a recall election. MacDonald was up for recall largely for making anti-transgender statements, including saying last year that children must be protected from transgender procedures as a result of social contagion. The blueprint for taking control of local school boards is similar to how conservatives meticulously planned for decades to take over the Supreme Court and most state legislatures two institutions where conservatives hold sway, said Morris Fiorina, a professor of political science at Stanford University and senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. Both efforts involved creating think tanks dedicated to the issues, raising money and training candidates all of which took decades to do. In that light, this run of recalls are firefights in the larger war, said Fiorina, author of Culture War? The Myth of a Polarized America. This is part of a long game thats being played. Lawrence Rosenthal, chair of the Berkeley Center for Right-Wing Studies, said the recalls represent a pushback against the rising tide of Christian nationalism in the country. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Recently, Louisiana state lawmakers required public school classrooms to display the Ten Commandments, and Oklahomas state superintendent of public education, Ryan Walters, said that public schools are required to incorporate the Bible, which includes the Ten Commandments, as an instructional support. Youre seeing something of a pushback throughout California, in the recalls, Rosenthal said. Whether that pushback has a kind of a national weight, I dont know. Supporters of conservative candidates said they have no intention of backing off of their platform this year, even after the disappointing recalls. Its a big hurdle to overcome in California to even get elected to a school board as a conservative candidate, said Greg Burt, vice president of the California Family Council. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Union Forest and Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav participated in a large-scale tree plantation program in the BSF Range area in Indore as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modis Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign. They planted saplings in memory of their mothers. Dr. Yadav planted a Banyan sapling in honor of his late mother, Smt. Leelabai Poonamchand ji Yadav. Similarly, Union Minister Yadav planted mango saplings in memory of his late mother, Santra Yadav. Urban Administration and Housing Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya also participated, planting a mango sapling in memory of his late mother, Smt. Ayodhya Devi Vijayvargiya. Yadav emphasized the long-standing environmental significance of Indore and Ujjain, highlighting that Indore is the origin of seven rivers, including the Kshipra. Addressing a massive plantation programme in Indore, he noted that the city holds a unique identity both nationally and globally and aims to be the top city in cleanliness and greenery. In response to Prime Minister Modis Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign, saplings are being planted across the country. Dr. Yadav praised the efforts of the Union Forest and Environment Minister, which led to Madhya Pradesh acquiring leopards, a source of state pride. He remarked on India's tradition of nature worship, referencing Vedic beliefs that value the environmental importance of lakes, ponds and trees. Dr. Yadav reaffirmed Indores commitment to becoming a green and clean city, with the entire community united in this effort. Union Forest and Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav highlighted the Prime Ministers Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign, which aims to plant 140 crore saplings across the country. He noted the recent extreme heat, with temperatures reaching 45 to 50 degrees, and discussed how human development and the construction of concrete cities have led to the destruction of the earths greenery. Despite technological progress, nature provides essential resources such as food, water, and medicinal elements. Yadav emphasized the need to honor both our biological mothers and Mother Earth, who sustains us, by committing to a greener planet. He reminded everyone that the earth belongs to all living beings and urged every citizen to plant trees under the Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign. He commended Madhya Pradeshs tree plantation efforts and praised Indores initiative to become both a green and clean city. During the event, Union Minister Yadav and Chief Minister Yadav were honored with mementos, a Pagdi, and an Angavastra. Urban Administration and Housing Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya stated that Indores green coverage will be significantly increased. He mentioned that, in addition to planting 51 lakh plants, special efforts will be made to ensure their conservation. Minister Vijayvargiya noted that various social organizations and institutions are taking responsibility for conserving these saplings. The campaign is being effectively implemented in Indore with active public participation. He expressed confidence that Indore will become the leading city in green coverage. On this occasion, Water Resources Minister Tulsiram Silavat, Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargava, MP Shankar Lalwani, MLA Golu Shukla, Madhu Verma, Ramesh Mendola, District Panchayat President Reena Malviya, Krishna Murari Moghe, Gaurav Ranadive, Chintu Verma, etc. dignitaries were present. Divisional Commissioner Deepak Singh, Collector Ashish Singh, Municipal Corporation Commissioner Shivam Verma, BSF IG CSWT B.S. Rawat, Inspector General Assistant Training Center BSF Ashwin Kumar Sharma along with officers and a large number of women and environment lovers were present in the program. Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) Haryana State unit president Rampal Majra on Sunday said that his party will enter into a tie-up with its former ally, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), for the Haryana Assembly polls, which are scheduled later this year. Majra, talking to reporters in Chandigarh, said: The two parties have, in principle, agreed to enter into an alliance for the upcoming Haryana assembly and a formal announcement in this regard will be made on July 11. He further said that the seat sharing and other issues related to the alliance are being firmed up. INLD secretary general Abhay Singh Chautala on Saturday met BSP president Mayawati at the latters residence in Lucknow. Various issues related to the state were also discussed by the two leaders during the meeting, Majra said. All non-BJP and non-Congress outfits should come together and strengthen the hands of Abhay Singh Chautala, the well-wisher of the farmers and the labour class. Many such outfits are already in touch with us, he said. The INLD and the BSP fought the recently held Lok Sabha polls separately in Haryana and both received a severe drubbing. The BSP had fought nine of 10 parliamentary seats while INLD contested seven seats, but both failed to open their account. In February 2019, the BSP had called off its nearly nine-month-old alliance with INLD, which was the then Haryanas main opposition outfit. The development at that time had come amid a feud in the Chautala family. Former MP and Abhay Chautalas elder brother Ajay Singh Chautala and Ajays son Dushyant Chautala had formed the JJP party in December 2018 after a split in the INLD earlier that year. In an encounter between police and Naxalites in Balaghat, Madhya Pradesh, police killed Naxalite Ukas Sohan, who had a bounty of Rs 14 lakh on his head. Police were surrounding the accused. During this, he opened fire on the police team. The Naxalite was killed in retaliatory firing. There was an exchange of fire between security forces and Naxalites in Kothiyatola of Hatta police station area on Monday. The operation of security forces is going on in the area. After the encounter, an alert was issued in Balaghat district. According to ADG ANO (anti-Naxal operation) Jaideep Prasad, the Naxalite Ukas Mohan who was killed was a resident of Bastar Bijapur. Illegal firearms have been recovered from the killed terrorist. A very expensive wireless of Kenwood company has also been found in the possession of the accused. Naxalites used to use it for mutual communication in the forest. Earlier on April 1, security forces killed two Naxalites in Balaghat district of the state. During this, weapons were also recovered from them. On April 1, late Monday night, a police search operation was going on in the forest of Kerajhari on the Madhya Pradesh-Chhattisgarh border. During this, an encounter broke out between the police and the Naxalites. The bodies of both the Naxalites were recovered during the search on Tuesday (April 2) morning. The slain Naxalites were identified as Sanjita alias Kranti and Raghu alias Sher Singh. The police also recovered an AK-47, another rifle and items used daily near the bodies of the Naxalites. During this, the possibility of many Naxalites being injured in the encounter was also expressed. Earlier in December 2023 last year also, a Naxalite was killed in Balaghat. There was information about the presence of Naxalites in the forest of Soopkhar in Garhi police station area near Kanha National Park, on which the Hawk Force team started a search operation. During the search operation, the security forces saw the Naxalites and started firing on them. In retaliation, 1 Naxalite was killed. Weapons were also recovered from him. Haryana Public Health Engineering Minister Banwari Lal on Sunday suspended District Elementary Education Officer (DEEO) Nirmal Dahiya for harassing the department officers. The action came during the monthly meeting of the District Public Relations and Grievances Committee in Hisar district where the employees of District Elementary Education Department lodged a complaint against the DEEO Dahiya. In the complaint, the employees stated that the officer was harassing them in various ways. Acting on the complaint, Banwari Lal immediately ordered the suspension and transfer of District Elementary Education Officer Nirmal Dahiya. In the meeting, 17 complaints were heard and necessary directions were given to the officers concerned. Before the meeting, the Minister laid the foundation stones for additional structures to improve water supply in the various villages of Hisar district and the widening or strengthening works of 12 roads with a total length of 23.985 kilometres. During the meeting, Lal, while listening to the grievances, directed the officers to ensure the prompt resolution of complaints brought before the committee, so that people do not face any inconvenience. In the meeting, Ran Singh, a resident of the village Shikarpur, complained that the depot holder never comes to the village for ration distribution. The person running the depot only comes at the end of the month for one or two days and always cites problems like machine malfunction and shortage of ration, causing many people to not receive their ration. The Minister directed the SDM Hisar to form a committee to investigate the matter. Similarly, another complainant reported the illegal occupation of government land between Sisai Bridge on Hansi Main Road and Nehru College. The Minister directed the concerned officers to immediately remove the encroachment. In another complaint, there was a demand to stop construction in an illegal colony and take action against the involved employees. The Minister directed the concerned officers to investigate the matter. The Uttar Pradesh government has signed more than 150 defence manufacturing agreements valued at Rs 25,000 crore (approximately 3 billion USD). This move aligns with Indias record-breaking annual defence production, which reached Rs 1.27 trillion (15.4 billion USD) in the fiscal year 2023-24, marking a 16.7 per cent increase from the previous year. The defence projects are strategically located within the UP Defence Industrial Corridor (UPDIC), spanning six nodes across Lucknow, Kanpur, Jhansi, Aligarh, Chitrakoot and Agra districts. These projects are expected to generate 40,000 new jobs, significantly contributing to the states economic growth. We have signed 154 memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with various companies, and around 85 more deals are currently under evaluation, an official said. The UP Expressway Industrial Development Authority (UPEIDA), the nodal agency for the corridor, continues to acquire large tracts of land for industrial allocation. The UPEIDA has already acquired 1,700 hectares, with more than 40 companies receiving land allocations. These 42 companies will invest nearly Rs 8,000 crore in their respective projects, positioning UP as a crucial player in Indias quest for self-reliance in defence production and boosting defence exports, the official said. The UPEIDA has signed MoUs with notable firms such as Adani Defence and Aerospace, BrahMos Aerospace, Ancor Research Labs, Tata Technologies, Bharat Dynamics Limited, Delta Combat Systems, SpiceJet Technic, Verivision, HAL, Gliders India, DRDO, and Aerolloy Technologies, among others. Indias defence exports rose by over 32 per cent from Rs 15,920 crore in 2022-23 to Rs 21,083 crore in 2023-24, as per the defence ministry. UP is leveraging its vast micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) base to propel Make in UP and cater to the expanding defence export market by advancing its industrial value chain. Additionally, 35,000 Kalashnikov AK-203 assault rifles, assembled at the Korwa factory in Amethi, have been delivered to the Army by Indo-Russia Rifles Private Limited. The production of nearly 6,00,000 AK-203 rifles is planned over 10 years. Though Amethi is not part of the UP Defence Industrial Corridor, the Korwa unit has strengthened the states role in Indias defence manufacturing ecosystem. Another Indo-Russia joint venture plant, spread over 80 hectares, is being established in Lucknow to manufacture BrahMos missiles for the Indian defence forces. BrahMos is a joint venture between Indias DRDO and Russias NPOM to develop next-generation supersonic missiles for the Indian military. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) Managing Director Shalabh Goyal conducted an inspection of the RRTS corridor from Meerut South Station to Sarai Kale Khan Station in Delhi. He was accompanied by the NCRTC Director and other officials during this visit. The inspection began at Meerut South Station, where construction has been completed, and Namo Bharat trains will soon commence operations. Goyal closely examined the station's operational preparations and reviewed the parking facilities. Meerut Metro will also start from this station, enhancing convenience for residents traveling from Meerut South to Modipuram. The station features three platforms: two for Namo Bharat trains and one for Meerut Metro. An 8-km section from Modi Nagar North Station to Meerut South will soon be open to the public, allowing residents to reach Ghaziabad from Meerut South in minutes. Currently, trial runs for Namo Bharat trains are ongoing between Modi Nagar North and Meerut South stations. Following this, Goyal inspected the corridor from Modi Nagar North to Sahibabad, the operational section of the RRTS, and travelled on a Namo Bharat train. During this intensive inspection, he interacted with the station controllers, train operators, and other operational staff to understand their daily challenges. He experienced passenger-centric facilities such as push buttons, PSD, stretcher space, and the train's high speed. He praised the cleanliness of the stations and urged officials to continuously improve cleanliness standards. Currently, Namo Bharat trains operate across eight stations in the 34 km section from Sahibabad to Modi Nagar North. With the upcoming commencement of services from Modi Nagar North to Meerut South, the operational section will extend to 42 km including 9 RRTS stations. Goyal also inspected the ongoing construction works at New Ashok Nagar and Sarai Kale Khan elevated stations in the Delhi section. He assessed the challenges faced by officials in the rapid construction work and motivated them, emphasizing strict adherence to safety and security norms. The Delhi section of the RRTS corridor spans 14 km, with 9 km elevated and 5 km underground. The underground section includes the construction of Anand Vihar Station. The viaduct construction in the Delhi section is complete, and the three under-construction stations are nearing completion. Efforts to integrate these stations with other transport modes are also underway. Goyal highlighted that the construction of the country's first RRTS will spur development in Delhi-NCR and provide a high-speed public transport system for residents, with NCRTC personnel playing a crucial role in this development. Following the resolution of the 63rd Meeting of the Board of Governors of the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Jamshedpur, a two-Member Inquiry Committee was constituted to investigate matters related to Col. (Dr.) N.K. Rai, Registrar of NIT Jamshedpur. The committee members visited NIT Jamshedpur today to probe into these issues. The inquiry stems from concerns regarding the appointment of Dr. Nishith Kumar Rai as the Registrar of NIT Jamshedpur in 2020, which reportedly violated Government of India appointment rules and provisions outlined in the NIT Act and Statutes. Allegations suggest that Dr. Rai's appointment involved fraudulent means, misuse of government funds, fraud, embezzlement, and extensive financial irregularities in construction work. According to the NIT Act and Statutes, the Registrar position must be filled based on a selection process and due appointment procedures. Dr. Nishith Kumar Rai applied for the Registrar position at NIT Jamshedpur while holding the same position at Lalit Narayan Mithila University, Darbhanga (Bihar). However, it has come to light that Dr. Rai had been dismissed from his position at Lalit Narayan Mithila University on 24th September 2020, under orders from the then Governor and Chancellor of Bihar, as per official order Memo No. BSU(Registrar) 2712017(Part: I)- 2172lcs(1) dated 24.09.2020 (Annexure: I). NIT Jamshedpur requested vigilance clearance for Dr. Rai on 15th September 2020 (Annexure: II), but he was appointed Registrar on 21st October 2020 without obtaining the necessary clearance. It is alleged that Dr. Rai concealed his termination and secured the appointment through illegitimate means, bypassing required procedures both before and after his appointment. A copy of the office order No. NITJSR/ESS/CD/2020-21/510 dated 21.10.2020 (Annexure: III) reveals the involvement of senior officials in concealing his dismissal. Post-appointment, Dr. Rai allegedly transferred Establishment Section employees and attached outdated vigilance clearance documents to his appointment file, further indicating procedural bypassing. The Honorable Patna High Court, in case number CWJ 178/2021, upheld Dr. Rai's dismissal from Lalit Narayan Mithila University, validating the termination and rejecting Dr. Rai's appeal. At the Niti Ayog function of the launching of Sampoornata Abhiyan here in Daltonganj, when health indicator was being discussed for the aspirational block Harihurganj in Palamu, DC Shashi Ranjan turned towards the media bench asking them "How many of you people have got your BP checked recently?" He didn't find anyone saying that they had their BP checked,which surprised the DC most when a voice came from the media bench that "It's low BP here in the press." "It can't be. You people's BP must be high." reminded the DC. It was no frivolity but it was a message from DC Shashi Ranjan not to ignore either BP or diabetes as he said "I read somewhere that India is a growing capital of diabetes in the world." He asked for a regular check up for blood sugar. It was far more serious than any humour but it carried a lot of sense and sensibility when it was revealed by the consultant for the Niti Ayog Himanshu Joshi attending this function of the Sampoornata Abhiyan here that less than 3 percent people of the aspirational block Harihurganj has been screened for BP and diabetes when 60,000 people are to be screened for BP and diabetes. Joshi asked the health official of the aspirational block Harihurganj to achieve 100 percent of screening for BP and diabetes here by September 30 when this Sampoornata Abhiyan will conclude on the day September 30. For Niti Ayog health of men, women and children matters most. As regards health of women district social welfare officer Neeta Chouhan made a very honest revelation that 13, 682 women are currently in the family way and a large majority of them suffer from anemia. She suggested they eat saag to replenish iron in the body. Education too came up when district education officer Durganand Jha informed that there 43 primary schools, 35 middle schools and 10 high schools including 2 2 plus schools under the aspirational Harihurganj block limits were enrolled students will be provided with books and facilities for better learning. On the final day of campaigning for the Jalandhar West bypoll, political parties engaged in intense blame game, with the Congress and BJP vehemently criticizing the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) over the law and order situation in Punjab. In response, AAP defended its record, intensifying the already heated political atmosphere. Punjab Congress president Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Leader of Opposition in Vidhan Sabha Partap Singh Bajwa on Monday chose to hold a joint press conference, where they unleashed a barrage of accusations against the AAP Government. Warring asserted that the Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had failed to address the issues faced by employee unions, alleging that roads leading to Manns events were blocked to prevent employees from voicing their concerns. Warring highlighted several failures of the Mann administration, including the withholding of Rs 550 crore grant from the Central Government due to issues with a school development scheme's naming. He also noted the disillusionment of moong dal growers, claiming that Punjab had regressed 25 years in just 2.5 years of Manns rule. Bajwa appealed to the voters to reject AAP to save democracy, accusing the party of planning to capture booths on poll day by deploying 25 DSPs across Jalandhar West. He also alleged that AAP intended to distribute 12,000 stitched suits as election incentives to women voters. Warring did not hold back his criticism, stating, I have never seen such a bad government in my 45 years of politics. The Punjab government has failed on every front. Even a common rickshaw driver knows that the government is not doing anything for us. The AAP government promised a 'Rangla Punjab,' but today, it has turned it into a dirty Punjab. BJPs Fierce Critique Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar also criticized AAP, urging the voters to reject the partys ineptness and callousness and save Punjab from what he described as a Taliban-like grip of violence and apathy. Jakhar emphasized the importance of voting to restore law and order and safeguard Punjabs long-term interests with strong, decisive governance. Jakhar cited recent violent incidents in Ludhiana and Maur as examples of the AAP Governments failure to maintain public safety. He accused the Chief Minister of tarnishing Punjabs social harmony and brotherhood, urging the voters to remember these incidents when casting their ballots. AAP defends record on law and order Responding to accusations, AAP strongly defended its track record on law and order in Punjab. AAP's chief spokesperson and MP Malvinder Singh Kang asserted that both leaders have no standing to criticize, as their respective parties past governments in Punjab had a history of patronizing gangsters. Kang accused the previous BJP-SAD and Congress Governments of providing government protection to criminals, fostering an environment where gangsters could operate with impunity. He emphasized that under Chief Minister Bhagwant Manns administration, there has been a significant crackdown on anti-social elements, with hundreds of criminals arrested and brought to justice in the past two years. In the Mann Government, any criminal incident is promptly investigated, and the accused are swiftly arrested, Kang stated. He contrasted this with the previous regimes, where he claimed that those in power selectively encouraged the youth to commit crimes, reassuring them of protection. Punjab Cong Concludes Poll Campaign with Flag March Punjab Congress concluded its energetic campaign for the by-election with a spirited flag march, underscoring strong support for party candidate Surinder Kaur. The event witnessed a robust turnout of supporters lining the streets of Jalandhar West, showcasing solidarity and confidence in Surinder Kaurs dedication to their constituency. Known for her lifelong commitment to public service in Jalandhar, Kaur has struck a chord with voters who see her as a genuine advocate for their concerns and a symbol of effective governance. The flag march symbolized the widespread backing she has garnered, highlighting her deep-rooted connection with the community and unwavering resolve to address their needs. Among the prominent figures present was state party chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring, who asserted, The voters have made their choice clear. They recognize that Surinder Kaur Ji is the voice that Jalandhar West needs, committed to ensuring tangible progress. Throughout this campaign, people have expressed their desire for a change after enduring two tumultuous years under the Aam Aadmi Party. Prestige Education Foundation, in partnership with AIC-Prestige Inspire Foundation, recently hosted an international roundtable conference on quantum computing titled "Opportunities & Technologies Beyond Visibility." The event drew global dignitaries, experts from the USA, Israel, Germany, and Italy, and key representatives from India's central and state governments. During the conference, three major Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs) were signed with key global companies to establish a Center of Excellence for Quantum Computing. This center will specialize in training, skills development, and education, as well as conducting cutting-edge technology projects. Dr. Davish Jain, Chairman of the Prestige Education Foundation and Chancellor of the Prestige University, stated, "Quantum computing is poised to transform the world, and at Prestige, we acknowledge both the opportunity and the challenge. We are establishing a Center of Excellence for Quantum Computing and other advanced technologies in collaboration with top international companies. This initiative will drive skill development and research, benefiting students and society." Andre Kinog, CEO of GQI USA, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership, stating, "We are pleased to partner with Prestige and are committed to bringing the benefits of quantum computing to India." Dr. Sanjeev Patni, CEO of AIC-Prestige Inspire Foundation, highlighted the event's significance, saying, "This conference is the first international conference in India on quantum computing. We at Prestige are keen to bring valuable knowledge to India and Indore." The "BEYOND VISIBILITY" conference provided a unique platform for attendees to gain a comprehensive understanding of quantum computing and its transformative potential. It was attended by scientists, researchers from the USA, Israel, and Italy, high-ranking officials, policymakers from India's central and state governments, including C-DAC, NITI Aayog, and MPSEDC, renowned industry leaders, and technology experts. Corazon Dandan finished her shift as a telephone operator and was taking BART home to Daly City when she was pushed to her death on the train platform on July 1. The man accused of pushing her remained hospitalized, delaying a scheduled arraignment. Courtesy of Alvin Dandan The man accused of pushing a 74-year-old woman to her death at the BART Powell Street Station in San Francisco did not appear at a scheduled court appearance Monday because he was hospitalized. Trevor Belmont, 49, was still under medical evaluation, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Brian Stretch said during the scheduled hearing Monday morning. Belmont was unavailable for visitors last week because jail officials said he was being held for psychiatric evaluation. Belmont was in custody at San Francisco General as of Monday morning, jail records showed. He was arrested July 1, on the train platform shortly after he allegedly pushed Corazon Dandan, BART Police said in a statement the following day. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Police described Belmont as transient and said he also goes by the name Hoak Taing. He was booked into San Francisco County Jail on charges of murder and elder abuse. Dandan was waiting for a train to take her home to Daly City, when Belmont allegedly pushed her into an oncoming train. She hit her head on the train, police said. Last week, prosecutors charged Belmont on one count of murder, inflicting great bodily injury on a vulnerable victim, and that he intentionally killed the victim while lying in wait, according to the San Francisco District Attorneys Office. Dandan sustained multiple head injuries and was taken to the San Francisco General Hospital, where she died, officials said. Dandans family members described her as a kind and generous woman who moved to the U.S. from the Philippines in the 1980s. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has congratulated Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and the citizens of Bhopal for setting a record by planting 12 Lakh saplings in a single day under the Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign. In his tweet, Prime Minister Modi praised this initiative by Dr. Yadav and the people of Bhopal, calling it a model for the entire country. He emphasized that such efforts play a crucial role in making the environment cleaner and more beautiful. Yadav stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's inspiration has always driven historic achievements through public participation and the collective resolve of the nation. From transforming the country's image through the cleanliness campaign to combating COVID-19, India set a remarkable example to the world under Prime Minister Modi's leadership. Yadav expressed confidence that the Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign will not only promote environmental protection but also strengthen the sacred spirit of honoring mothers. He further added that under Prime Minister Modi's leadership, Madhya Pradesh is committed to planting 5.5 crore saplings.It may be noted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi started the Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam campaign on the occasion of World Environment Day. Yadav started this campaign in the state by planting saplings at Jamboree Ground, Bhopal on Saturday. A record 12 lakh saplings were planted in a day at 300 places in the capital Bhopal. Residents and students also contributed to the campaign by planting saplings in large numbers. In a significant breakthrough amid ongoing efforts to make Punjab a safe and secure state, the Amritsar Commissionerate Police have successfully dismantled an inter-state organized crime syndicate. The operation led to the arrest of the syndicates kingpin and four accomplices from a flat in Kharar, said the state Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab Gaurav Yadav on Monday. The kingpin, identified as Jai Sharma alias Sukha Pistol Ambarsarya from Prem Nagar, Amritsar, was apprehended along with Nikhil Sharma alias Lala of Sandhu Colony, Moni of Kot Khalsa, and Arpit Thakur and Karan Sharma, both from Sri Naina Devi in district Bilaspur, Himachal Pradesh. Sukha Pistol has a criminal history with seven cases under the Arms Act, and charges of snatching and theft registered against him. Police teams recovered two .32 bore pistols, three magazines, and eight live cartridges from the arrested individuals. DGP Yadav stated that police teams had been monitoring the movements of Sukha Pistol and his accomplices based on reliable inputs indicating their trip to Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh, to procure illicit weapons. Upon their return, the police pinpointed their location in Kharar and swiftly conducted a raid under the supervision of ADCP City-2 Abhimanyu Rana, leading to the successful arrest of all accused and the recovery of the firearms. Preliminary investigations revealed that the syndicate members were planning an imminent attack on a rival gang. The accused have been booked under the newly-introduced section 111 (Organized Crime) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), along with relevant sections of the Arms Act. Amritsar Commissioner of Police (CP) Ranjit Singh Dhillon provided further details, indicating that the criminal syndicate was involved in various criminal activities including theft, snatching, and arms trafficking. He emphasized that investigations are ongoing to trace the forward and backward linkages of the syndicate and identify the Madhya Pradesh-based arms smugglers. More arrests and recoveries are anticipated as the investigation progresses. A case has been registered, dated July 7, 2024, under section 111 of the BNS and 25(7) of the Arms Act at Police Station Civil Line Amritsar. AIIMS Bhopal has been organizing outreach activities for budding students. In this sequence, an educational visit of class 10th and 11th students of Sagar Public School was organized on Saturday. Dr. Ashwani Tandon, Associate Dean (Academics) informed that it was an extraordinary experience for the students, especially as a student of Biology, who got the opportunity to understand the concepts of human anatomy in a more in-depth manner. The visit of the students started from the Anatomy Museum. In this, they observed various carefully preserved human organs. They visited various laboratories of translational medicine and observed the sophisticated equipment that doctors use to diagnose various diseases. Information about the process of extracting DNA from blood, saw the operation of several machines including homogenizer, gel electrophoresis apparatus, UV transilluminator and PCR machine (polymerase chain reaction machine). The complex steps involved in PCR were explained comprehensively. After this, the students had the privilege of meeting Prof. Dr Ajai Singh, Executive Director, AIIMS and engaging in an interactive session with him. Through this interaction, they gained insights into pursuing careers in other fields that fall under the purview of science. Dr Ajai Singh broadened the program and encouraged them to explore more in radiology and medicine. The feedback from all the students stated that they felt extremely fortunate to have the opportunity to visit AIIMS and expressed their heartfelt gratitude to their school teacher Shikha, Principal and doctors of AIIMS Bhopal, especially Dr Rupinder Kaur Kanwar, Dr Sunita Athavale and Executive Director Prof. Dr Ajai Singh for this experience. Under the aegis of Jharkhand Prajapati Kumhar Mahasangh, talent felicitation ceremony cum district conference was organized at Nagar Bhavan. In the conference, first of all, garlands and floral tributes were placed on the portrait of the respected former district president of the federation, late Harihar Prasad Prajapati. On the occasion, former State President cum former Chairman of Mati Kala Board Srichand Prajapati, State President Dev Narayan Prajapati, State General Secretary Ishwar Chandra Prajapati, Akhaj Prajapati, Vikram Mahato, Ajay Prajapati inaugurated the function by lighting the lamp. Chief guest SP Harish Bin Zaman was present in the first session of the program. SP wished the students a bright future and said that they should set their goals and work honestly. Will surely succeed. You are the future of India. Education is the backbone of the nation. Former Chairman of Mati Kala Board, Srichandra said that just as potters carve clay and make it valuable, in the same way, through education, we can build our future as well as develop the society. In the second session, State President Devnarayan Prajapati explained in detail about the educational, social, economic and political strength and participation of the society. State General Secretary Ishwar Chandra said that the organization work of the federation is going on in 24 districts of the state. This talent honor ceremony cum district conference program is for this purpose. On the occasion, the meritorious girl students were honored with certificates and medals by the SP and visiting guests. On this occasion, District Committee was elected for the upcoming session in which District President Saroj Prajapati, General Secretary Shyam Prajapati and Treasurer Pradeep Prajapati were made. Chatra District President Gautam Kumar Ajay Prajapati Hariom Prajapati etc. addressed the function. People of the society were present on this occasion. Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva on Monday accused the duo of former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Education Minister Atishi of badly damaging the school education system of the city. They have not recruited regular teachers nor guest teachers and have diverted teachers to non teaching duties thereby leading to one of the worst teacher student ratios in Delhi government schools, Sachdeva alleged. He said that the BJP never does politics over education and said, BJP never wants to do politics on education department work but Minister Atishi has today forced us to put in public domain as to how the Kejriwal government has damaged the education system of Delhi. The state BJP chief alleged that the national capital in 2024 has 995 normal schools as compared to 1015 in 2015 when Arvind Kejriwal government first came to power while stating that in these 10 years they have not hired any new regular or guest teachers. The other 32 schools for specialized education totally lack facilities are some of them worst schools. As per the Right to Education statistics Delhi government schools need around 62,000 teachers while there are only around 43,000 teachers alongwith around 13,000 guest teachers. There is a lack of around 6000 teachers in Delhi Government schools, he stated, adding that the government schools lack teachers yet the Kejriwal Government has diverted over 5000 teachers to non teaching duties thus badly affecting teaching in schools. Shockingly school teachers are forced to do clerical duties, work as legal assistants and work as OSDs to senior officials. Despite a lack of 6,000 teachers, the Sisodia and Atishi duo have removed almost 5,000 teachers from teaching duties, he said. Sachdeva said 205 teachers have been made School Mentors, 1,027 have been made School Coordinators, 1,027 have been made Teacher Development Coordinator while they now don't perform any teaching duty. 70 teachers who have law qualification have been diverted to work on Education department's legal assistants while another 102 teachers are forced to work as OSDs to the Deputy and Assistant Directors of Education in the education department, Sachdeva said, claiming that the posts of around 5,200 clerks and accounts staff in Delhi government schools are vacant. While on half of them contract employees have been kept at a salary of 25,000 per month while against the other half some 1,500 teachers in salary brackets of 70,000 per month are forced to work as clerks and accounts officers, he said. Further, Sachdeva alleged, Teachers teaching in class IX & XI are working in the most frustrating atmosphere as for the last eight years they are forced to fail almost half the students as Sisodia and Atishi duo want only meritorious students to go up to class X and XII so that they give best results. He further claimed that use of first and eighth periods in daily time tables for happiness and co curricular activities means that students lose almost 25 per cent of teaching time every day. In a brutal triple murder in Ghazipur district, a man, his wife and their son were murdered by slitting their throats while they were sleeping in their house in Kusumhi Kala village under Nandganj police station of the district. The murders came to light when the youngest son of the deceased family returned home after watching an orchestra programme organised in the village. According to reports, Munshi Bind (45) of Khilwa Mauja in Kusumhikala under Nandganj police station area and his wife Devanti (40) were sleeping in a hut outside the house while the elder son Ramashish (20) was sleeping inside the house. They were murdered by slitting their throats by unknown assailants sometime late on Sunday night. The entire family had gone to enjoy the performance of an orchestra organised in the village to celebrate some function on Sunday night. Around midnight, they all returned and went to sleep. The youngest son, Asheesh, however, left the house again to enjoy the orchestra. The incident came to light when Ashish returned home after watching the programme in the wee hours of Monday. He saw his parents lying dead in a pool of blood outside the house. When he ran inside the house to wake up his elder brother, he found blood all over him. On seeing the bodies, Ashish started screaming and shouting and hearing the noise, people from nearby areas reached there. On receiving information, the police immediately reached the spot along with senior officers including Superintendent of Police Omveer Singh. Omvir Singh said that prima facie it appeared to be a planned murder because all the deceased had been attacked on their necks. Meanwhile, in another incident in Sambhal district reported late on Sunday night, two groups clashed with each other over a rivalry in village Bhikampur Jagir under the Rajpura police station. Five people were seriously injured in the clash while a 50-year-old villager, Ramveer, died during treatment in the district hospital. His family members allege that when Ramveer was injured, the police kept him in custody and when his condition worsened, he was admitted to the hospital. His brother Bhoop Singh said that on Monday that the mundan ceremony on Ramveers five-year-old grandson Bobby was to be held at Anupshahr Ganga Ghat. He said that some local residents refused to attend it so on Sunday night, around 10 pm, Ramveer went to their houses to convince everyone to attend the function. Bhoop Singh said that some argument broke out between the two sides after which some villagers attacked Ramveer and brutally assaulted him and also opened fire. On getting information about the fight, other people also reached the spot. Rameshwar, Dinesh, Varsh and Billu were injured in the incident. Baba Singh, Kalicharan, Harvansh from the other side were also injured. They were taken to the police station but when Ramveers condition deteriorated, he was shifted to hospital where he died on Monday morning. Further investigations are on in the matter. The Election Commission on Monday allowed the Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar to accept donations keeping in mind the forthcoming assembly polls in Maharashtra. The Sharad Pawar-led outfit had requested the commission to certify the status of the party for it to accept voluntary contributions from the public. The poll panel has authorised the party to "accept any amount of contribution voluntarily offered to it by any person or company other than a government company" under the relevant sections of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which govern the contribution to all political parties. An eight-member delegation of the NCP-SP party led by its working president Supriya Sule met the commission on Monday. In July last year, Ajit Pawar led a rebellion against his uncle Sharad Pawar and claimed the symbol as well as the party name Nationalist Congress Party, citing the support of over two-thirds of the outfit's legislators in the Maharashtra assembly. The Election Commission upheld his claim and asked the Sharad Pawar-led faction to pick a new name as an interim measure in view of the Lok Sabha elections. The authorisation to the NCP-SP to accept donations will be applicable till the final disposal of the petition in the Supreme Court against the Election Commission decision. The Sharad Pawar-led NCP-SP contested 10 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra and won eight, while Ajit Pawar's NCP contested five seats and managed to win just one. Twelve more people have been killed in lightning strikes in seven districts of Bihar, officials said on Monday. With the fresh fatalities, over 40 people have lost their lives to lightning strikes in various districts of Bihar in the last 10 days, including 22 in the last 48 hours. The 12 fresh fatalities were reported in the last 24 hours, while 10 deaths were reported in the preceding 24 hours, they said. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar expressed condolences over the deaths of the 12 people and announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased. He appealed to the people to remain alert and vigilant and stay indoors during thunderstorms. He also urged people to follow advisories issued by the Disaster Management Department. According to a statement issued by the chief minister's office (CMO) on Monday, Jamui and Kaimur reported three deaths each, followed by two in Rohtas and one each in Saharsa, Saran, Bhojpur, Gopalganj. The NATO summit, being hosted by US President Joe Biden here this week, is likely to show a strong demonstration of America and its allies' support for Ukraine and make significant new announcements to increase military, political and financial support for the war-torn European country, according to administration officials. The three-day NATO summit to be held here from July 9 to 11 will be the first to include Sweden as a member of the alliance. Sweden officially joined the alliance in March. The historic summit would also mark the 75th anniversary of the founding of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), which is now a strong military alliance of 32 countries. "It has been truly indispensable to Euro-Atlantic security, deterring threats to the United States and our allies," a senior administration official told reporters ahead of the summit. On Sunday, President Biden also spoke about the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, DC. "I'm about to host the NATO nations in Washington. We put them together," Biden said. "The world's looking to us. Not a joke. The world is looking to America not to carry their burden, but to lead their hopes." Being held in the American capital, soon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi had a summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, the NATO summit, officials said "will send a strong signal to Putin that if he thinks he can outlast the coalition of countries supporting Ukraine, he is dead wrong". "We are also going to send an important message to the rest of the world, including through our partnerships in the Indo-Pacific, as we stand together united and in support of democratic values," said the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The Washington summit will kick off on Tuesday, with Biden welcoming NATO leaders, and along with the First Lady, hosting a 75th anniversary commemoration event at the Mellon Auditorium, which is the site of the original signing of the North Atlantic Treaty that established the NATO on April 4, 1949. It is also the site of the 1999 50th anniversary commemorative event hosted by the then president Bill Clinton. NATO was created to provide collective security against the Soviet Union. On July 10, the president will welcome Sweden as the newest member of the alliance at a meeting of NATO's 32 allies. Later in the evening, they would host the NATO leaders for a dinner at the White House. On July 11, NATO will hold a meeting with the European Union (EU) and NATO's Indo-Pacific partners -- Australia, Japan, South Korea and New Zealand -- to deepen their cooperation. Officials also said there will be a strong language regarding China. "We are bringing together some of our closest non-NATO partners to have a discussion around issues like resilience and cyber disinformation, technology and the like. In terms of deterrence and defence, of course, NATO is focused on the Euro-Atlantic area, and that is where its capabilities are being deployed," an official said. "But the United States has a range of partnerships with countries around the world, which you might call variable geometry, with different partners including in the Indo-Pacific. This particular grouping of the IP4, as we call them in NATO lingo -- Australia, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea -- these are some of our closest partners that we work within the region," the official added. President Biden's faltering performance in last week's debate has raised new concerns among allies already worried about the possibility of a second Trump presidency as they head for the NATO summit, the Washington Post reported. Jailed former premier Imran Khan was hatching plots inside the prison to create another political chaos in Pakistan, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifs advisor on political and public affairs has claimed. Speaking on Geo News programme Naya Pakistan, former interior minister Rana Sanaullah said that 71-year-old founder of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party was not permitted by the court to hold political meetings at the high-security Adiala Jail. Khan, who faces over 200 cases and has been convicted in a few of them, has been in jail since August last year. Sanaullah, who is the Prime Ministers Adviser on Political and Public Affairs, claimed that the PTI founder is not allowed to make such plans to create chaos while sitting in jail. He claimed that evidence available with authorities concerned solidifies the claims of such planning underway in the jail. The PMs aide, however, said that the government has no audio or video evidence of the planning but those who are responsible and performing duties there have them. Sanaullahs statement came after the leaders of the former ruling party said they were denied permission to meet the partys incarcerated founder in Adiala Jail despite waiting for a few hours outside the facility earlier this week. Commenting on the planned rally by Khans party in Islamabad, the PML-N senior leader said that the PTIs decision to hold a power show in Muharram - the first month of the Islamic calendar which starts from Monday - was inappropriate. PTI on Saturday postponed its rally in the suburbs of Islamabad after revocation of its permission by the authorities, citing security concerns. The party was set to organise its power show at Tarnol at 6 pm for which it had secured a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the Islamabad deputy commissioner. However, the city administration on Friday cancelled the permission saying the NOC issued by the deputy commissioner was reviewed afresh in the wake of security concerns. Earlier in the day, Khans party filed a petition in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) seeking contempt proceedings against the Islamabad district administration and police for cancelling the NOC. It stated that the party had approached the IHC for permission for the rally and during the hearing of its petition, the court was told by the administration that permission had been granted for the rally. Separately, an anti-terrorism court has reserved its decision on Khans interim bail requests related to the May 9 incidents, including the Jinnah House case and two other cases, The Express Tribune newspaper reported. During the hearing on Saturday, Khans counsel, Barrister Salman Safdar, argued that the PTI founder was being targeted for political reasons. In my entire career, I have never seen so many cases against a single individual. Those who were actually inciting against institutions at the scene were not arrested, Safdar alleged. How could a case be filed against him when he was in custody at the time of the crime? the PTI chiefs counsel questioned. After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its judgement on Khans interim bail requests. On July 3, a district and sessions court in Islamabad acquitted the PTI founder along with all other defendants in a case registered at Islamabads Aabpara police station. Hundred Acre founder Jayson Woodbridge has purchased Madrigal Family Winery for his Fortunate Son brand. Provided by Hardy Wilson/Hundred Acre Wine Group The founder of Napas cult Cabernet winery Hundred Acre is expanding his empire. Jayson Woodbridge has purchased Madrigal Family Winery in Calistoga, an understated winery across the road from Bothe Napa Valley State Park. Its his third Napa Valley purchase in four years to grow his Fortunate Son wine brand, which he launched in 2018 nearly two decades after he founded the acclaimed Hundred Acre winery that shot him to fame. The purchase includes a small vineyard and Madrigals wine production facility and tasting room. This type of opportunity only comes along for vineyards of this quality perhaps every 50 years, said Woodbridge, who makes Fortunate Son wines with the same techniques he uses for Hundred Acre. But for now, these wines can be acquired for under $200 a bottle, whereas bottles of Hundred Acre start at $750. Advertisement Article continues below this ad A purchase price was not disclosed. Woodbridge, one of a handful of vintners that recently sued Napa County over its strict regulations, called the Madrigal site some of the best ground in Napa Valley and said hes been seriously eyeing the estate for the past two years as a home for Fortunate Son. His focus with Fortunate Son is on historic and multigenerational family-owned vineyards that have flown under the radar and, in his view, been underutilized. In 2020, Woodbridge purchased the David Fulton Ranch, which was one of the first vineyards and wineries established in Napa Valley. Then, in 2022, he bought an 18-acre vineyard on Calistogas Larkmead Lane; Woodbridge said hed admired the vineyard, first planted in 1882, from afar for 30 years. Madrigal, previously owned by Napas famed Duckhorn Vineyards, is less than a half mile from the Larkmead site and within five miles of David Fulton. The Madrigal family arrived in Napa Valley from Mexico in the 1930s to work in farming, then started a company in the 1970s that now manages over 800 acres of vineyards. The winery was founded in 1995 after the family seized an opportunity to purchase some vineyard land theyd been farming for Duckhorn Vineyards. Madrigal produces roughly 10,000 cases of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah and other wines each year. The winery had a second tasting room and art gallery in Sausalito, but it closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Madrigal patriarch Jess Madrigal has retained about 40 acres of vineyard, from which he will continue to sell grapes. (Woodbridge said he may be interested in purchasing some of that fruit.) It is unclear if the Madrigals, who did not respond to the Chronicles request for comment, will continue to produce the wine elsewhere. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said a new era of Pakistan-China cooperation in the information technology (IT), communication, mining, and energy sectors has dawned and will lead to economic development and deepening of the time-tested bilateral relationship. Sharifs remarks came as he chaired a review meeting in Islamabad on Saturday on the implementation of agreements and MOUs reached during his recent visit to China, Radio Pakistan reported. The prime minister said that the promotion of Pakistan-China cooperation in these fields will lead to economic development, strengthening of regional ties, and deepening of the relations between the two countries. Referring to the time-tested Pak-China friendship, he said that China had always supported Pakistan in difficult times. China has emerged as the strongest economic power and Pakistan can emulate its development, he added. The 72-year-old Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader said that no disruption will be tolerated in the implementation of agreements and memorandums of understanding (MoUs) signed during his visit to China, announcing to personally monitor the implementation of these agreements and MoUs. The prime minister was also briefed about a delegation of Chinese shoemaking companies recently visiting Pakistan to shift their manufacturing units to the cash-strapped country and that the Chinese companies have the potential to invest USD 5-8 billion in this sector. Regarding the agriculture sector, he was apprised that 12 leading companies of China will participate in the Food and Agri Expo to be held in Pakistan this year. Sharif also reviewed the progress regarding sending 1,000 students from Pakistan to China on government scholarships for advanced training in the agriculture sector. He directed that students from all four provinces, including Gilgit-Baltistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK), should be sent to China on the basis of merit, while students from backward areas of Balochistan should be given special priority in the programme. Sharif instructed to start sending students for modern agricultural training in China from the next academic semester. Besides, the meeting was told that over 100 Chinese companies are in contact with Pakistani companies for business and investment. The meeting was also briefed about the progress on the technical training of 3,00,000 students by Huawei, a one-stop operation to facilitate business, smart governance and smart city. The prime minister was also apprised of the progress made by China on various communication, infrastructure, and electricity projects in Gwadar. Sharif advised expediting measures for the development of Gwadar Seaport, Gwadar Airport, and Gwadar Industrial Zone to make Gwadar the hub of trade corridor in the region. He also instructed to speed up the negotiations with Chinese solar panels and equipment manufacturing companies to move their factories to Pakistan. The 72-year-old leader embarked on his first visit to China after he took over as prime minister for the second term after his PML-N party-led coalition government assumed power in March. Addressing the Pakistan-China Business Forum last month, Sharif assured all-out facilitation to Chinese investors and the security of Chinese individuals, projects, and investments in Pakistan. He said his government had taken various measures to ensure fool-proof security to protect the lives of Chinese workers in Pakistan. Five Chinese nationals and a Pakistan driver were killed in a suicide attack in Dasu in March. Pakistan paid USD 2.58 million as compensation to the families of those killed in the attack. Sri Lanka has decided to lift from next year a ban on the visit of foreign research ships imposed after strong security concerns raised by India and the US following frequent docking requests from hi-tech Chinese surveillance vessels, the Japanese media reported. The change in position was conveyed by visiting Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Ali Sabry to the NHK World Japan. With the increased movement of Chinese research vessels in the Indian Ocean, New Delhi had expressed concern that those might be spy ships and urged Colombo not to allow such vessels to dock at its ports. After India raised concern, Sri Lanka banned the entry of foreign research vessels from docking at its port in January. Earlier this year, it had made an exception for a Chinese vessel but said the ban would continue otherwise. Sabry said his government cannot have different rules for different countries and only block China. He added that his country will not take sides in a dispute between others, the NHK World Japan said in a report on Friday. The moratorium is till January next year. Sri Lanka will then no longer ban foreign research ships from its ports next year, Sabry said. Two Chinese spy ships were allowed to dock in Sri Lanka ports within 14 months through November 2023, with one called for replenishment and the other for research. Chinese research ship Shi Yan 6 arrived in Sri Lanka in October 2023 and docked at Colombo port, for what Beijing cited as geophysical scientific research in collaboration with the island nations National Aquatic Resources Research and Development Agency (NARA). The US had expressed concern to Sri Lanka before the arrival of Shi Yan 6. In August 2022, Chinese navy vessel Yuan Wang 5 docked at Hambantota in southern Sri Lanka for replenishment. Cash-strapped Sri Lanka considers both India and China equally important partners in its task to restructure its external debt. The island nation was hit by an unprecedented financial crisis in 2022, the worst since its independence from Britain in 1948, due to a severe paucity of foreign exchange reserves. Meanwhile, Sabry also expressed gratitude for Japans plan to provide a ship equipped with sonar, which, he said, will give Sri Lanka an opportunity to do its own survey and collect its own data, and commercially exploit it. Sabry emphasised that Sri Lanka has untapped maritime resources, and research is essential, but it has to be done in a transparent manner, the NHK report added. San Francisco Supervisor Catherine Stefani wants to lower the retirement age for firefighters. She is among the supervisors proposing new pension benefits for city workers. Benjamin Fanjoy/The Chronicle San Francisco is staring down nearly $790 million in budget shortfalls over the next two years. That stunning gap has led to discussions of cuts to everything from food access programs to youth and family services such as child care and violence prevention. A recent 46-page San Francisco civil grand jury report suggested these budgetary woes are features of our post-COVID economy, not bugs. The report paints a dire picture if the city doesnt learn to manage its labor, health, and pension costs. A key problem, according to the report: a legislative fetish by city leaders for placing so-called spending set-asides on the ballot that handcuff the ability of lawmakers to be flexible during the budgeting process. If that sounds bad, it is. But you wouldnt know it from looking at the roster of charter amendments supervisors want to put on the November ballot, several of which would hand out new multimillion-dollar pension benefits like they were Tic Tacs. Advertisement Article continues below this ad To start, theres a measure from Supervisors Matt Dorsey and Aaron Peskin that would establish a new deferred retirement option program for some police officers who are over the age of 50, allowing them to receive pension benefits in addition to their salary as an incentive to prevent early retirement. An analysis by the San Francisco City and County Employees Retirement System found that the program could add as much as $19 million in unfunded pension costs in its first year alone. We cant afford to not solve our public safety challenges, and theres no challenge more serious than police understaffing, Dorsey told the editorial board, noting his measure could be sunset after five years if police hiring improves. But San Francisco already gave officers generous retention bonuses in 2023. And the city previously tried a deferred retirement option as a retention mechanism in 2008, before ultimately rejecting it as San Diego did years earlier as ineffective and costly. Meanwhile, a proposed initiative from Supervisor Catherine Stefani would allow firefighters to retire with maximum pension benefits at age 55 instead of 58, at an estimated cost of $10.2 million in the first year. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Everyone loves firefighters. But unlike most of its other workers, the city is not suffering from firefighter hiring or retention problems. If theres a good justification why now is the appropriate time to give them a far more generous retirement benefit than any surrounding Bay Area county, weve yet to hear it. Stefanis proposed measure is particularly confusing because shes nearly out the City Hall door and on her way to a presumptive win for a seat in the state Assembly. She appears ready to blow a hole in the citys budget and start a public sector union benefit war on her way out. About Opinion The editorial positions of The Chronicle, including election recommendations, represent the consensus of the editorial board, consisting of the publisher, the editorial page editor and staff members of the opinion pages. Its judgments are made independent of the news operation, which covers the news without consideration of our editorial positions. Finally, Supervisor Asha Safai has a proposed measure that would give up to $4.4 million annually in new pension benefits to nurses and 911 dispatchers. This measure is the least onerous of the three and may indeed make sense given the burnout and staffing issues the city has for these jobs. But taken as part of the proposed $34 million pension liability whole, we have concerns. The civil grand jury report was supposed to be a wake-up call about the urgent need for financial discipline. 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Lea Suzuki/The Chronicle A federal appeals court cleared the way Monday for San Francisco to sweep homeless encampments, in the wake of last months Supreme Court ruling, as long as it allows residents to recover their personal property. U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna Ryu issued an injunction in December 2022 limiting the city from removing people from street camps without offering them immediate shelter. She relied on rulings by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that said local governments violate the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment by evicting homeless people, seizing their property and subjecting them to criminal charges if they have nowhere else to go. Advertisement Article continues below this ad But the Supreme Court overturned the 9th Circuit rulings in a 6-3 decision June 28, saying cities were acting because of the residents actions, not their homeless status. While the case was before the Supreme Court, Ryu said she would leave her injunction in place until 30 days after the court ruling to allow time to assess it. But on Monday, a 9th Circuit panel ordered Ryu to lift her injunction against clearing the encampments. The panel said, however, that officers must still comply with San Franciscos bag and tag policy protecting property that is found unattended but not abandoned at the sites. Under the policy, the items, such as luggage, backpacks, medication and personal papers, must be taken to a city Public Works storage site for 90 days, and officers must leave a note at the encampment site saying where the property can be found. City officials had asked the court to refrain from ordering them to follow those standards, saying the criteria may not be clear. But the court panel Judges Patrick Bumatay, Lucy Koh and Roopali Desai said, Requiring the City to comply with its own detailed policy document does not raise these concerns. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Mayor London Breeds office thanked the judges for expediting their decision to discontinue the injunction and said her office was consulting with City Attorney David Chiu on any changes that might be needed in city policies. San Francisco is a city that prioritizes compassion and we will continue to lead with services first in all our outreach efforts but we cannot allow for people to refuse services and shelter when offered and available, Parisa Safarzadeh, a spokesperson for the mayors office, said. Breed said after the Supreme Court ruling that the city hopes to remove all tent camps from its streets. City officials say they continued to clear encampments even after Ryus order and evict residents who refused offers of shelter. But Ryu has declared that the citys shelters were full and waiting lists were closed. An attorney for the Coalition on Homelessness, which obtained the injunction, said the ruling would not end judicial oversight of the citys policies. Our lawsuit will continue and we expect San Francisco to follow its ordinance and policies requiring the city to offer shelter before clearing encampments, said attorney Nisha Kashyap of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area. Criminalization of homelessness is a failed policy, and punishing people for being too poor to afford rent will only make homelessness in San Francisco worse. The city must commit to increasing affordable housing and temporary shelter. Advertisement Article continues below this ad President Joe Biden faces a pivotal week as Democrats in both chambers will meet Tuesday and likely discuss his political future, all in the aftermath of a debate performance that fueled voter concerns. Kevin Dietsch/TNS WASHINGTON With Congress back in session, 31 foreign heads of state set to descend on Washington and a rare solo press conference, this week will likely determine President Joe Bidens fate in the presidential contest. Bidens uneven performance in a debate against former President Donald Trump on June 27 ignited a firestorm about the 81-year-old presidents fitness for another term, a blaze that the White House has been unable to snuff out despite Bidens assurances that hes up for the job. Concern has only grown among Democrats, with six House Democrats publicly calling for Biden to step aside and many more anonymously telling reporters the same. Four of House Democrats top committee members said Biden should withdraw from the race in a call Sunday that included the ranking member on each of the 20-odd House committees, the Washington Post and CNN reported. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The clock is ticking, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., told CNN Sunday. This is going to be a really important and vital week for the country and for the president. Voters do have questions, and personally, I love Joe Biden. I dont know that the interview on Friday night did enough to answer those questions, and so I think this week is going to be absolutely critical, Murphy said, referring to Bidens interview with ABC News. This week is the first time both chambers of Congress will be in town since the debate, and concern over the presidents electability is expected to be a topic of discussion in Democrats meetings Tuesday. Biden sent a letter to lawmakers Monday confirming his commitment to continue running for president, and he reportedly meet with the Congressional Black Caucus whose members have largely stood behind him Monday night. House Democrats are scheduled to meet Tuesday at 9 a.m., multiple outlets have reported, and Senate Democrats will meet at their weekly luncheon the same day. (Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., initially planned to host a private meeting Monday with other senators to discuss Bidens candidacy but canceled it, CNN reported Sunday.) Californias lawmakers will also convene at a weekly caucus meeting Wednesday. Several top California Democrats have said they support Biden, with the caveat that he must prove himself to voters. Rep. Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco, said concerns about Bidens debate performance were legitimate, and Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, who is running for Senate, said Sunday that while Biden has been an extraordinary president, he should pass the torch if he cannot beat Trump overwhelmingly. Advertisement Article continues below this ad California Sen. Alex Padilla has repeatedly defended Biden and said he should continue running. He told MSNBC Sunday, The debate was not the best performance the president has acknowledged that. But you know what was? The rally the next day in North Carolina, the rally a couple (of) days ago in Wisconsin. So many other events that he has done to show the Joe Biden that we all know. If theres a silver lining thats come out of this debate, its let Joe be Joe. Gov. Gavin Newsom has been unwavering in his support for Biden and expressed confidence in him following a White House meeting with Democratic governors Wednesday. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Santa Clara, whos expected to run for president in 2028, reiterated that voters wariness of Bidens abilities was justified in a statement to the Chronicle. President Biden won the primary and was picked to be our nominee. Voters select our nominee, not superdelegates, big donors, or the media. That said, I expect complete transparency from the White House about this issue and a willingness to answer many legitimate questions from the media and voters about his capabilities. He has to earn that trust and that requires more than one interview, Khanna said. The United States will also host foreign leaders beginning Tuesday for the North Atlantic Treaty Organizations 75th anniversary. The critical meeting will focus on threats to peace and democracy, including Russias invasion of Ukraine, and its likely that European leaders will want assurances that Biden can beat Trump, who has questioned Americas role in the alliance. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Biden will also hold a press conference Thursday the fifth solo domestic news conference of his entire presidency and his first in seven months, the last being in November 2023 in Woodside. Democrats will likely want to wrap up this conversation by the end of the week before the Republican National Convention begins on July 15 in Milwaukee. Xi meets Hungarian prime minister, exchanging views on ties, Ukraine crisis Xinhua) 08:02, July 09, 2024 Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban here on Monday, and the two sides exchanged in-depth views on the Ukraine crisis. Orban briefed Xi on his recent visits to Ukraine and Russia. Xi expressed appreciation for Orban's efforts in promoting the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and elaborated on China's relevant views and propositions. Xi stressed that an early ceasefire and a political settlement are in the interests of all sides, adding that the priority is to cool down the situation by observing the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no fanning by any party over the flames. Xi called on the international community to create conditions and provide support for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiation between the two sides, saying that only if all major countries inject positive rather than negative energy, can a ceasefire in this conflict emerge as soon as possible. "China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way and encouraging and supporting all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis," he said, adding that the basic propositions of China and Hungary and the direction of their efforts are the same and that China is willing to stay in communication with Hungary and all relevant parties. Xi noted that during his successful state visit to Hungary two months ago, the bilateral relations were elevated to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era, which gave new historical significance to the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year and injected strong impetus into the high-level development of China-Hungary relations. Noting that the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee will be held next week, Xi said China will further deepen overall reform and promote high-quality development and high-level opening up, which will provide new opportunities and create new momentum for China-Hungary cooperation. Xi said that the two countries should maintain high-level exchanges, deepen political mutual trust, strengthen strategic communication and coordination, continue to firmly support each other, strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and continue to enrich the bilateral all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era to better benefit the people. He congratulated Hungary on assuming the rotating presidency of the European Union (EU) and said there is no geopolitical contradiction or fundamental conflict of interests between China and the EU. China-EU relations are of strategic significance and global influence and should maintain steady and sound development, Xi said, calling on the two sides to jointly respond to global challenges. Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the EU, Xi said, adding that the two sides should stay committed to the correct path of bilateral partnership with cooperation as the defining trend, continue to promote two-way opening up, strengthen international coordination, and contribute to world peace, stability, development and prosperity. It is hoped that Hungary, as the holder of the rotating EU presidency, will play a positive role in promoting the sound and stable development of China-EU relations and facilitating constructive interactions, Xi added. Orban said that over the past two months, the two sides have earnestly implemented the important outcomes of President Xi's visit to Hungary, strengthened friendship and mutual trust, and laid a solid foundation for the future development of bilateral relations. In the face of the current turbulent international situation, China not only loves peace but has also put forward a series of constructive and important initiatives, proving with its own concrete actions that China is an important stabilizing force for world peace, Orban said. He added that Hungary highly appreciates and values China's role and influence and is willing to maintain close strategic communication and coordination with China. Hungary advocates strengthening cooperation with China and opposes forming exclusionary cliques and bloc confrontation, Orban said. Hungary is willing to take the rotating EU presidency as an opportunity to actively promote the sound development of EU-China relations, he said. Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lin) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Rep. John Garamendi walks past demonstrators protesting outside of a fundraising event attended by then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi in San Francisco on June 28, 2019. Garamendi announced Monday he is receiving treatment for cancer. Paul Chinn/The Chronicle Rep. John Garamendi is receiving treatment for early-stage multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer, he announced Monday. Im embarked on my journey to remission, Garamendi said in a video posted on X. He is receiving chemo immunotherapy as an outpatient at a Kaiser facility in Sacramento, he said. Its uncertain when Garamendi will return to D.C., his spokesperson Tessa Browne told the Chronicle. Garamendi, a Democrat whose district includes Richmond, Vallejo and Fairfield, said his wife, Patti, is a member of the Congressional Families Cancer Prevention Program, and encourages him to get regular screenings and tests. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Multiple myeloma happens when healthy plasma cells multiply and produce abnormal antibodies, which can lead to a host of medical issues affecting the bones, kidneys and other organs and tissues, according to the Cleveland Clinic. Garamendi is among the Bay Area members of Congress who have voiced concerns on a group of billionaires plan to build a new city in Solano County. He was elected in 2009 after a long career in California politics as a legislator, insurance commissioner and lieutenant governor, and a stint in Washington as deputy interior secretary in the Clinton administration. I know that Ill get through this while continuing to serve my extraordinary constituents and advance the American democracy, Garamendi said. Last week, former Bay Area Rep. Jackie Speier announced she has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Key Points: Japan and the Philippines signed a historic Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) allowing troops to be deployed on each others territory. The agreement is a key step in bolstering security cooperation between the two nations amid growing concerns over Chinas assertiveness in the South China Sea. The RAA signifies a shared commitment by Japan and the Philippines to strengthen their defense capabilities and work together to deter potential threats. Philippines and Japan Deepen Defense Ties with New Agreement In a significant move to bolster security cooperation in the face of Chinas growing assertiveness, Japan and the Philippines signed a landmark defense pact allowing troops to be deployed on each others territory. Get alerts: The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA), finalized in Manila, provides the legal framework for both countries to send defense personnel to each others territory for training, joint exercises, and other operations. This agreement represents a significant step forward in the growing strategic partnership between the two nations. A Historic Agreement The RAA was signed by Philippine Secretary of Defense Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Yoko Kamikawa at a ceremony witnessed by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. The signing took place at the presidential palace, signifying the importance of the agreement to both countries. This is a historic day for the Philippines and Japan, said President Marcos during his remarks. This agreement is a testament to our shared commitment to peace and stability in the region. The agreement will allow for the deployment of Japanese troops to the Philippines under the Visiting Force status, a key element in facilitating joint exercises and training operations. The agreement also allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for similar purposes. Strategic Implications Analysts see the RAA as a critical step in bolstering security cooperation between Japan and the Philippines, particularly in the face of rising tensions in the South China Sea. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire South China Sea, a strategic waterway also partly claimed by Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei. The region has witnessed increasing militarization by China, including constructing artificial islands and deploying military assets. This agreement comes amid growing concerns over Chinas assertiveness in the region. The signing of the RAA signals a clear intention by Japan and the Philippines to strengthen their defense capabilities and work together to deter potential threats. Addressing Chinas Concerns China has expressed concerns about the RAA, arguing that it could undermine peace and stability in the region. Exchanges and cooperation between countries should not damage mutual understanding and trust among countries in the region, undermine regional peace and stability, or target or harm the interests of third parties, said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian. However, Japan and the Philippines have repeatedly stressed that the agreement is not directed against any specific country and aims to promote regional security and stability. A Shared Commitment to Security The RAA is a testament to the shared commitment of Japan and the Philippines to strengthening security ties. Both nations are treaty allies of the United States, and the RAA is seen as further enhancing the US-led security architecture in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan is one of the Philippines four strategic partners, said the Filipino presidency. The annual trade volume between the nations climbed to $20.71 billion last year. Looking Forward The RAA marks a significant milestone in the defense cooperation between Japan and the Philippines. The agreement is expected to enhance the military capabilities of both countries, deter potential threats, and promote regional stability. As the geopolitical landscape in the Asia-Pacific region continues to evolve, the RAA is expected to play a crucial role in shaping the future of security cooperation between Japan and the Philippines. Ciara Hampsey is a young artist from Magherafelt who has dedicated her life to the creative industries. Ciara has been working around the arts since she left secondary school in 2015. Her art is truely eyecatching, particularly her painting of County Derry born poet Seamus Heaney, which has turned heads since it an image of it was uploaded to social media. She studied Art, English and Theatre Studies for A-Level, before heading to Queens University, Belfast to take on an undergraduate degree in Drama with English. Speaking about her time at uni, Ciara said: During my time in uni, I was creating a lot of SFX/theatrical make-up looks and posting them on my Instagram. These posts caught the attention of a local nightclub, and I was then offered a spot in the club to do some facepainting for their customers. Little did I know, that time in my life would pave the way to where I am now. She continued explaining how her career developed after her graduation saying: Once I graduated from my undergraduate degree, I decided to return to Queens to do a Masters in Arts Management. It was from doing that degree that I realised the opportunities that were present in the arts and creative sectors here. I was still dabbling at face painting at this stage, but I soon moved from painting faces to painting windows for Halloween and Christmas, and this eventually led to painting larger scale murals for clients across Ireland and England. Ciara explained how she has always been a bit of a yes woman and has said yes to every single opportunity that has come her way. Whether I knew how to go about doing it or not I did it. I believe you will always find a way, and one opportunity always leads to another, she stated. The Magherafelt woman is primarily an acrylic painter, however, in terms of subject matter, she is pretty open to a wide variety of things, whether its portraiture, landscapes, animals, tropical flowers, the list goes on. Ciara says she hasnt really found her speciality just yet. Ciara believes she is living the dream. Speaking on her career she said: Ive been able to turn my hobby into a full time career. Not many people can say that. I love the freedom it gives me, I love the ability to travel absolutely anywhere to display my passion. Im incredibly grateful to have met so many incredible people along the way. Ciara also enjoys the collaborative nature of the job. I love coming together with my clients to discuss ideas. Its extra rewarding seeing their happy faces once Ive brought their ideas to life. The artist believes that being from County Derry is undoubtedly a huge part of her cultural identity. She said: Its what Ive grown up with. I believe the idea of cultural identity subconsciously inspires my artwork and career. A lot of my work resides in local hospitality venues, many of which are family-led. I have lost count of how many fiddles, pints of the Black Stuff and pub grub images Ive painted over the years. But having partnered with these venues, Ive witnessed the connection between all things culture. Art, traditional music, local food and beverage, family and how they bring local communities together. It all goes hand in hand. Ciara said the sense of community has been integral to her career. Ive found that the people of Derry are really keen to celebrate local talent and share their stories, as seen with my recent paintings of Seamus Heaney and Liam Neeson. Ciaras painting of Seamus Heaney was a commissioned piece for the new Fiddlers Rest Bar in Portglenone. This was to match another commissioned piece of Liam Neeson. The paintings are on display in the bar, as a celebration of local talent. In terms of inspiration, Ciara loves street art, and finds herself in awe of the local talent here. However she says her biggest inspiration is her family. As cliche as it sounds, my family have been my main inspiration when it comes to my career. Their support and encouragement over the years has really kept me grounded and were constantly sharing ideas with each other, she said. Another inspiration of Ciarass is the late playwright Jo Egan. During my theatre days, I had the pleasure of working with Jo on her production Body Politics, she said. Jo was someone who was incredibly comfortable and confident in her storytelling. She gave a voice to those whose stories typically went unheard. In one of our last interactions, I fondly remember Jo joking that she was running out of steam, even though she was working on a new script, and that she was leaving it up to me and other upcoming artists to carry the creative torch. I think of those words way more than I care to admit, but theyve definitely aided me in times of creative block or self doubt. And last but not least, Ciara admits finding inspiration in song lyrics! She said: I can sit and listen to lyrics and images will flash into my head instantly. Ive a huge list of painting ideas that are all inspired by different songs, from rap to dance to country music. I actually completed a skateboard design at the end of 2023, which was inspired by Ultrabeats Elysium. You can find Ciara and her stunning work on Instagram and Facebook - @paintedbyciarah 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. Festival season is well and truly underway. Recently, we had (in England) Glastonbury, featuring Paul Casey, Kneecap, Problem Patterns and other artists that have yet to feature in these pages. Closer to home, this past weekend saw the return of the always brilliant Stendhal Festival. Now in its fourteenth year, Stendhal brings together the best local and not-so-local talents across three days in July. Unfortunately, my deadline for this column is the day things kick off, which means the big interviews are going to be next week. This week, in an exclusive, first of its kind pre/review, Im going to be taking a look at some of the artists that will be playing/have played at this years festival. So, just pretend this is a week ago and lets go: Red Eye Pariah Red Eye Pariah are a group I first encountered two years ago during my first year at the festival. The band, made up of Sammy Stevenson (lead guitar), Alex Close (bass), Joe Dawson (drums) and Deano Kelly (vocals/guitar), describe themselves as a four piece indie band from Antrim just out here chasing the dream. So far, the group have released a number of singles and the EP Koala Tea and this year marks their third consecutive appearance at Stendhal. Their set is usually one of the festival highlights for anyone who manages to catch it and Im sure this year will be/was no exception. Parker Next up is a band very familiar to regular readers. Parker have been a key part of the local music scene since their inception in 2021. Made up of Dylan Bradley (guitar and vocals), Eoghan Donegan (bass) and Michael Brown (drums), Parker first played Stendhal in 2022 and continue to put on incredible live shows wherever they play. Last year saw the release of their album Never Let This Go (available now in Cool Discs) and they have spent a lot of the last year touring the world in support of it. Recently, they also played a homecoming gig in Bennigans as part of their Irish tour. TomCat Now onto TomCat, another group that have been making a splash on the local scene in recent times. Made up of Emer McLaughlin (bass and vocals), Niamh ORaw (guitar and vocals), Liam Bradley (guitar) and (usually) Jason Feenan (drums) [Tom Carlin (of Selador) will be taking Jasons place for Stendhal this year], TomCat have so far shared bills with CHERYM, Parker, TRAMP and many more. Last year also saw the release of their debut single Its Not Always Gonna Be Like This, arguably one of the best songs of 2023. CHERYM Next we move on to a band that closed out the Friday night of Stendhal in 2022. CHERYM are, to put it simply, one of the best live bands youre going to see. Made up of Hannah Richardson (guitar and vocals), Emer McLaughlin (also of TomCat) (bass and vocals) and Alannagh Doherty (drums), CHERYM have played shows around the world in the past few years, recently returning from Germany ahead of a number of festival dates both here and in the UK later this summer. February of this year saw the release of their debut album Take It Or Leave It (available now in Cool Discs) and they will also be supporting the Undertones on their European tour later this year. Paddy Nash Now its time for one of Derrys finest songwriters, the legendary Paddy Nash. Paddy has been a staple of the Derry music scene for decades, having been a member of the Whole Tribe Sings and leader of the Happy Enchiladas. More recently, Paddy has been playing a more stripped back show, usually just himself and the guitar, as seen at last years Gig For Gaza in Sandinos. This year also saw the triumphant return of the Whole Tribe Sings for a one-night-only reunion in the Nerve Centre in aid of the Tuned In Project. Regardless of the setup though, the one thing that always shines through is the songwriting. With four albums so far to his name (three with the Happy Enchiladas and one solo, all available in Cool Discs), Paddy Nash is a legend of Derry music. Obviously, I cant feature everybody thats going to be playing/has played at this years festival, but the above are just a few of the many brilliant names on this years bill. Of course, half the fun of going to these things is discovering new talent I never would have heard of otherwise, so be sure to keep an eye out next week to see who this years discoveries are. Now, time for the socials: Red Eye Pariah can be found on Facebook and Instagram @redeyepariah, Parker @bandcalledparker, TomCat @tomcat_band, CHERYM @cherymoffical, Paddy Nash @thenashman and Stendhal itself @stendhalireland and at stendhalfestival.com Taiwan's floating wind plan hinges on timely actions Launching a floating offshore wind demonstration program will solidify Taiwan's pioneering position in the APAC region's energy transition. Carlos Martin Rivals, CEO of BlueFloat Energy, has called for urgent action to realize floating offshore wind projects in Taiwan. He stressed the importance of announcing a feed-in tariff (FIT) by Q3 2024 to derisk developer activities. Martin Rivals emphasized that bankability is a pivotal driver for the floating wind market's consolidation. Meeting the stringent requirements of lenders, export credit agencies, technical advisors, and insurers will naturally filter viable floater concepts and suppliers. "Developer and bankability criteria will inherently filter the floater universe," he stated, underscoring the necessity for technologies that can meet these rigorous standards. He highlighted several decisive factors for floating wind projects. Firstly, offering viable economics through a well-structured FIT is crucial to incentivize developers to invest in the first floating wind projects. A FIT will de-risk the regulatory framework and establish a supply chain aligned with the latest international best practices. Martin Rivals also stressed the importance of port readiness, noting that port upgrades need substantial support from government funding. Leveraging existing floating experiences can enhance local port infrastructure, with different requirements for demonstration versus commercial projects. Timing is critical for Taiwan's success in floating wind energy. Announcing plans by Q3 2024, securing the weather window in 2025, and achieving Commercial Operation Date (COD) by 2030 are essential milestones to support Taiwan's net-zero goal. Timely action is vital to avoid missing crucial project windows. Drawing lessons from international markets, Martin Rivals emphasized the importance of pre-commercial projects. These projects are vital for accelerating cost reduction in subsequent commercial phases. Successful implementations in Portugal, France, and the UK have demonstrated the effectiveness of combining grants, subsidies, and FITs to kickstart the industry. Addressing the critical role of ports, Martin Rivals noted that international markets often struggle with port readiness. He highlighted the need for government funding to upgrade port infrastructure, emphasizing that requirements for pre-commercial projects may differ from commercial ones. "It's important that we leverage experience from existing floating projects, as they are very different from fixed-bottom wind," he stated. Looking to the future, Martin Rivals recommended immediate actions to ensure timely project development, stressing the importance of not delaying due to port infrastructure. He suggested implementing alternative mitigation measures to keep activities on track. Defining how the commercial phase of floating wind will look is also crucial. Announcing a FIT by Q3 2024 will allow bid submissions by Q1 2025, ensuring developers can utilize the 2025 weather window for site investigations and achieve COD by 2030. Finally, Martin Rivals highlighted that offshore wind, particularly floating wind, can drive substantial job creation. This will stem from the vast amounts of affordable renewable power attracting new industries, such as data centers and ship manufacturing facilities. San Francisco firefighters battled an apartment fire in a building on Leavenworth Street on Monday. San Francisco Fire Department An electric scooter that was charging caused a fire that ripped through an apartment in a building at at 60 Leavenworth St. in San Francisco. One person suffered non-life-threatening injuries from the fire. San Francisco Fire Department officials said they received multiple calls before 11:30 a.m. Monday about a fire in a fourth-floor apartment. The person injured was transported to a local hospital for further assessment and care according to public information officer Jonathan Baxter. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The department found heavy fire activity from the fourth floor window of the apartment, Baxter said. The full extent of the damage to the building and the cause of the fire were under investigation Monday afternoon, Baxter said. Three people, all adults, were displaced as a result of the fire. The 100 block of Larkin and Leavenworth streets up to Market Street was blocked off as firefighters battled the blaze. Surrounding Muni lines, including the 5, 5R and 27 were rerouted due to fire activity, San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials said over social media. Nearly four years ago, a fire at a high rise in San Francisco's Financial District caused by a scooter battery fire displaced 15 people and injured five. Electric-scooters caused more than 20 fires in 2023, the Chronicle previously reported. When the scooters charge, the lithium-ion batteries can potentially to overheat and short circuit, erupting into flames. The Board of Supervisors passed legislation in March that created new safety rules for how lithium-ion batteries, like the types used in scooters, could be charged and stored. Advertisement Article continues below this ad India roundup: India to launch public AI platform under IndiaAI Mission India is eager to build its AI capabilities under the IndiaAI Mission. Meanwhile, India's efforts to attract Tesla have hit another roadblock amid a slowing global EV market that may impact capital expenditures of EV makers. India to launch public AI platform under IndiaAI Mission Ashwini Vaishnaw, the Union Minister for Electronics and IT, said at the Global IndiaAI Summit 2024 that the government would launch a public software UPI-like platform for AI. The state-backed initiative aims to provide entrepreneurs with essential resources like computing power, high-quality data sets, and standardized protocols. Researchers and businesses can leverage the platform to expedite AI development. India-based MosChip leads design of indigenous HPC chip for national computing initiative According to a statement by the Ministry of Electronics & IT of India on the Press Information Bureau, the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) collaborated with a consortium formed by India-based MosChip Technologies and Japan-based Socionext to design and develop the AUM, an indigenous Arm-based HPC processor that incorporates advanced packaging technology. Tesla reportedly delays investment plan in India amid slowing EV market According to Bloomberg, Tesla is unlikely to proceed with its investment plans in India in the near future. Officials in New Delhi have not heard from Musk's team since he postponed his visit to India in late April. Sources familiar with the matter indicate that Tesla has financial concerns and does not intend to make new investments in India soon. Apple suppliers in India reportedly reach incentive requirements except for value addition According to Business Standard, Apple suppliers, which are eligible for India's production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme for large-scale electronics manufacturing, outperformed expectations on five out of six monitored parameters set by the government. These include incremental production value, exports, investment, and freight on board (FoB) value. Alibaba to suspend data center operations in India and Australia Alibaba Cloud has announced plans to discontinue its data center operations in Australia and India as part of a strategic shift in infrastructure investment. The decision, outlined in a statement on Thursday, comes amidst a broader effort to enhance spending in Southeast Asia and Mexico. 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. Taiwanese aerospace SMEs navigate certification hurdles, eyeing global markets Taiwan's small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in aerospace manufacturing face a unique challenge: the high cost of obtaining necessary certifications. To mitigate these expenses, many SMEs prioritize securing orders before pursuing certification. This approach, while financially pragmatic, raises concerns in an industry where precision is paramount. Albert Hung, General Manager of Min Chun Precision, underscores this dilemma, noting that recent Boeing mishaps underscore the critical importance of meticulous standards in aerospace. Min Chun's Journey into Aerospace When Min Chun decided to enter the aerospace supply chain, the company spent two years obtaining certifications without any orders. In an industry that prioritizes high precision and quality, certification should ideally come first, yet the reality is often more complex. Before venturing into aerospace, Hung worked at his family's precision machinery parts processing company. He remarked that transitioning from general precision machining to aerospace involves numerous obstacles, including the challenge of exporting machine data for tracking purposes. Reflecting on Min Chun's early days, Hung shared that the company targeted the aerospace industry around 2010 and began preparations. By 2012, they officially entered the industry but did not rush to secure orders. Hung explained that while it seems logical to obtain certification before accepting orders, the costs involved mean that Taiwanese SMEs often secure orders first and use the revenue to cover certification expenses. Some companies even test the waters by taking orders and obtaining certification years later, which is problematic. According to international management standards, certification should precede order acceptance, but in Taiwan, the reverse can occur. Min Chun, however, secured certification first, spending NT$200,000 to NT$300,000 annually for two years without any orders. Even in the first year of receiving orders, their revenue was only in the five digits. Hung emphasized that traceability is crucial in aerospace. Every part and process, including time, location, and machinery, must be documented. The data accumulated over five years is substantial, and if issues like those recently experienced by Boeing arise, it is difficult to quickly retrieve records without early digital transformation. Unique Challenges in Aerospace Manufacturing Unlike common consumer electronics, aerospace products do not have standard specifications. Customers design and specify requirements, and suppliers evaluate their capability to produce and assess risks before quoting. Once an agreement is reached, an order is placed. The basic principle for aerospace products is First Article Inspection (FAI), where random samples from the first production batch are inspected to ensure all requirements are met. Production then follows the FAI guidelines, and any necessary parameter adjustments require additional verification under aerospace regulations due to the need for traceability. Discussing the current aerospace metal manufacturing market, Hung noted that Taiwan has about a dozen companies, but Min Chun focuses on large aerospace components, facing only 2-3 competitors locally. Globally, however, competition is fierce. Examining global leaders Airbus and Boeing, Hung observed that Boeing, amid US-China tensions, prefers to avoid the Chinese supply chain. In contrast, Airbus closely collaborates with China, purchasing hundreds of aircraft and using Chinese components in return. Taiwan vs. China: A Competitive Analysis Comparing Taiwanese and Chinese competitiveness, Hung stated that the gap is minimal. Taiwan focuses more on quality, while China, supported by subsidies, can afford high-end equipment and secure substantial government orders, ensuring steady development. However, for advanced technology, Taiwan has an edge. For instance, Taiwanese aerospace leader AIDC manufactures everything from aircraft engines to wings. As Taiwan's aerospace sector aims for the skies, navigating these certification challenges will be crucial for maintaining global competitiveness. The industry's ability to balance financial pragmatism with stringent quality standards will likely determine its future success in the international market. Weekly news roundup: Qualcomm, MediaTek feel pressure from Huawei comeback, Micron cautions about over-capacity These are the most-read DIGITIMES Asia stories in the week of July 1 July 5. Qualcomm and MediaTek Face Pressure from Huawei's Resurgence in Chinese Handset Market Chinese smartphone brands' international sales performance will be crucial in easing the pressure smartphone SoC suppliers Qualcomm and MediaTek are experiencing from Huawei's revival in China's market. Huawei, which had been nearly obliterated from the market until last year due to US trade sanctions, has now garnered a 15% share in the domestic Chinese market. Qualcomm is the major chip supplier for Samsung's premium smartphones, while MediaTek relies heavily on shipments to Chinese smartphone brands. Micron Cautions About Over-Capacity Amid Global Semiconductor Investment Wave Sumit Sadana, CBO at Micron, said the company's production capacity is fully booked through the end of 2025 thanks to AI, highlighting strong market demand for its high-performance memory solutions. However, Sadana also expressed concerns about potential over-capacity amid the semiconductor investment frenzy across many countries, stating that careful management is needed to balance global supply and demand. Chinese Chipmakers Halt Trading or Retract Listing Plans Tightening control in China's capital market is ending an era of unrestrained growth for Chinese semiconductor companies, forcing many to delist or abandon IPO plans. Over 30 Chinese companies terminated their IPO plans during the first half of 2024, with many others that went public during the IPO bubble expected to end trading on the stock markets soon. Among the delisted companies is Beijing Zuojiang Tech, once touted as "China's Nvidia." Largan and GSEO Set to Supply Periscope Lenses for New iPhones Apple is set to expand the use of periscope lenses in its upcoming iPhone series, with Taiwanese lens module manufacturers Largan Precision and Genius Electronic Optical (GSEO) expected to be the primary suppliers. Largan already supplied periscope lenses for the premium iPhone 15 Pro Max, launched in 2023. In 2024, more models in the upcoming iPhone lineup will feature periscope lenses, hence the addition of GSEO as a new supplier. Intel Unveils New 4nm Flagship GPU Made by TSMC Intel recently announced its flagship "Battlemage" GPUs, with the highest-end BMG-G31 reportedly featuring 32 Xe2 cores. Manufactured using TSMC's 4nm process, these GPUs will hit the market as early as the first half of 2025. This marks Intel's latest attempt in its persistent GPU ambitions since 2017. However, it still needs to significantly improve its technical capacity and marketing efforts to attract consumers away from Nvidia and AMD. TSMC Reportedly Completes Tape-Out for Next-Gen Google Tensor SoC TSMC has reportedly completed the tape-out for the next-generation Google Tensor SoC using the foundry's 3nm process technology. Google Pixel smartphone shipments have been low, partly due to its lack of standout features compared to competition from other major brands and partly due to its weaker chip performance. According to industry sources, the switch to TSMC from Samsung for foundry support for the Tensor G5 will greatly enhance the competitiveness of Google's in-house developed smartphone chips. China Downplays Importance of Lithography Tools in Semiconductor Challenges China seems to be deliberately downplaying the importance of lithography equipment, as it is conspicuously missing from a list published by the China Association for Science and Technology (CAST) regarding the challenges facing the country's science, engineering, and technology sectors in 2024. Observers surmise that the omission is likely due to political considerations, trying to avoid drawing attention to the country's activities amid US trade sanctions. The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed a United flight bound for San Francisco International Airport from Chicago was forced to turn back and is investigating the incident. Wilfredo Lee/Associated Press A United Airlines flight bound for San Francisco had to return to Chicago due to a potential cabin pressurization issue. Flight UA343, a Boeing 737-900, departed from Chicago OHare International Airport at 11:01 a.m. local time on July 3. The crew identified the issue during ascent, leading to an aborted climb and descent to 10,000 feet. The aircraft safely landed back at OHare about an hour after takeoff. All 163 passengers and six crew members deplaned normally at the gate, according to a United spokesperson. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the incident and is investigating. United arranged another aircraft to transport the passengers to San Francisco International Airport later that day. A British truck driver who was arrested following a 3.2 million drug seizure in north Louth, has been jailed for five years at Dundalk Circuit Court. Jonathan Doran of Eyton Road, Telford, Shropshire, England pleaded guilty to having cannabis for sale or supply at Circle K, Ballymascanlon, Dundalk on October 29th 2019, when it had a market value of 13,000 or more. Members of the Garda National Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau acting on a tip-off had the lorry under surveillance at Ballymascanlon and moved in when they saw the defendant get out and speak to the driver of an Audi that arrived at the scene, and attempted to detach the trailer from the cab. His phone was seized and he gave his password. The court heard on Friday that he drove the lorry to a customs facility where the trailer was found to mostly contain pallets of onions, but almost 163kg of vacuum packed cannabis was found among heads of lettuce at the back. The defendant told how he had been sent to collect a consignment in Spain and had travelled by ferry from Santander and had arrived in Cork that morning and had been told somebody else was going to collect the trailer. He had been detained in the UK since his arrest in December 2021 until his extradition and has been in custody here since last October. He had 41 previous convictions but none for drug offences and had been a HGV driver for 30 years. Judge Dara Hayes imposed a seven-year sentence but suspended the final two years on him entering a good behaviour bond and back dated it to when he first went into custody. Local Senator, Erin McGreehan, has said she is hopeful of having a meeting with new Northern Ireland secretary of state, Hilary Benn, to emphasise the need to repeal the contentious legacy act. The act, which has been opposed by both sides of the political divide in the North, gives immunity for crimes committed in the past. One of Labours manifesto policies was to repeal and replace the act. Mr Benn and Sen McGreehan met earlier this year when the veteran politician visited Dublin. He was shadow spokesman on Northern Ireland at the time, while Sen McGreehan was part of a Fianna Fail deputation. An MP for South Leeds since 1999, the son of former prominent left wing Labour politician, Tony Benn, has been vocal in his opposition to the legacy act, and has also come out in favour of the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast. We had a very positive meeting, said Sen McGreehan. I genuinely felt he took on board all that we had to say. We highlighted in particular the need to repeal the legacy act, and unlike meetings weve had with previous Northern Ireland secretaries, he seemed genuinely interested in what we had to say. Since his appointment last weekend, Mr Benn said his number one objective has always been to help the people of Northern Irelands government, A controversial new slip lane layout on the N53 which caused confusion and danger to motorists has been reversed after it was highlighted to Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) by Dundalk TD Ruairi O Murchu. The lefthand turnoff for the L7132 on the Castleblayney Road was removed by TII in May as part of their delineation contract. The slip lane was taken away, meaning that motorists who wished to turn left had no choice but to indicate and make the sharp turn in fast-moving traffic. In an initial response to Deputy O Murchu, TII said the removal of the left-turn diverge lane at this location is part of a TIIs delineation contract. These design proposals were agreed upon with Louth County Council, the road authority for the area, and are consistent with the approach for treatment of such turning facilities elsewhere on national roads. But Deputy O Murchu persisted with TII, highlighting drivers concerns, and asking TII for assurances that safety was their number one priority when redesigning the slip lane. Last Friday, TII wrote to the Sinn Fein TD again, this time advising them of a change of mind on the junction and promising to reinstate the original layout. TII said: In light of the concerns raised in your correspondence, Transport Infrastructure Irelands (TIIs) Signs and Lines Team have reviewed this location and will reinstate the original layout. TII notes the high traffic flow demands for turning vehicles on this school road and agrees that the previous layout, with a dedicated deceleration lane, appears to have functioned well as part of the original safety scheme at this staggered junction. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Deputy O Murchu said: This is a victory for common sense, and I am grateful to TII for seeing this. I am also grateful to the constituents who raised this issue with me as the redesigned layout caused confusion and danger to motorists who use this road every day. Safety must be the number one factor when looking at roads and how they are designed, particularly considering the increased number of crashes and fatalities this year. The way the junction was previously laid out was far safer and I am glad this was recognised by TII. Fusing afrobeats with the soulful melodies of RnB while drawing inspiration from a rich tapestry of musical influences, Dundalk based songwriter Nia Keyo is ready to release her new single Yeah on July 12, 2024. Yeah is a vibrant and evocative anthem capturing the nuanced dance where flirtation and interest simmer just below the surface. Yeah is about recognizing the signsthose stolen glances, the light touches, and the lingering conversations that signal more than just casual interaction. The song's protagonist is caught in this cycle of back-and-forth, where signals are sent but never fully articulated. With a catchy chorus and relatable verses, Yeah empowers listeners to take control of these ambiguous interactions. The protagonist decides to break the loop by giving a clear green light, signalling to the other person that the next move is theirs to make. This decisive moment is both a challenge and an invitation, pushing the hesitant admirer to step up and express their feelings openly. Nias sound is a captivating blend of sultry vulnerability and raw emotional depth, an approach to writing that has been moulded by her many influences, like Alicia Keys and Mariah Carey. Her Brazilian-Angolan heritage has slowly cultivated Nias love and curiosity for Afro-Beats and Brazilian/Latino music. Creating a sonic experience that is as diverse as it is unforgettable, her eclectic music taste has allowed her to venture into various music forms outside of RnB and HipHop. Incorporating unexpected rhythms and elements to create her own sound. Produced by Chris Kabs, with Yeah Nia Keyo has crafted a relatable anthem for anyone who has ever been caught in the tantalizing yet frustrating web of unspoken attraction. It's a reminder that while the dance of flirtation can be exhilarating, sometimes you need to take a leap of faith and say it outright. Beginning her journey in the early years of her childhood, Nia took her first steps into the world of music, with her first public performance at the age six. A simple duet, but that consisted of self-initiated focus and persistence with rehearsals and the strive to perfect the song as much as she could. Young Nia showed her parents this was a hobby worth their investment. In 2015 she began recording covers and her renditions of chart-topping songs, later releasing these to her own YouTube channel. Here she began understanding the intricate process that is creating music. Nias dedication to her craft led her to immerse herself in the studio, where she has worked closely with notable Irish artists including Chris Kabs and JyellowL. Taking to the stage Nia has supported artists like Alan McKee, Negro Impacto and Toshin. Nia has been back in the studio again creating and polishing tracks, producing a pool of songs to select from as she works towards her EP. Working closely with the TEMO Worlds production team, her main focus is on developing an official body of work to be released in early 2025. While the new British Prime Minister Keir Starmers been on his first visit to Ireland today, Donegal is a place he has close to his heart. Starmer entered Downing Street as Labour's first prime minister in 14 years after a landslide victory at the general election and has met Stormont First Minister Michelle ONeill and Deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly. Before Euro 2020, which was played 12 months later due to the pandemic, Starmer posted a photo on what was then called Twitter, saying: "Finally back in training! Still got a few months before Gareth Southgate announces the squad for the Euros..." The photo showed Starmer wearing a Donegal training top. He later revealed that the top he was pictured in was bought whilst on honeymoon with his then-new wife Victoria in Ireland back in 2007. People cool off in mist machines along the Las Vegas Strip on Sunday, the day temperatures in the city hit an all-time record. John Locher/Associated Press Las Vegas smashed its all-time temperature record Sunday. The city hit 120 degrees for the first time in recorded history amid an extreme, long-lasting Western heat wave. The 120-degree temperature was measured at Harry Reid International Airport, the official weather station of Las Vegas, at 3:38 p.m. and 4:43 p.m. according to the National Weather Service. Harry Reid International Airport is located adjacent to the Las Vegas Strip several miles south of downtown. Several other weather stations throughout the Las Vegas metro area exceeded 118 degrees Sunday afternoon. Advertisement Article continues below this ad The previous all-time record temperature in Las Vegas was 117 degrees. It has been achieved five times, most recently in 2021. At 114 it feels like youre living in a pizza oven, Las Vegas-based food writer John Curtas, a resident since 1981, wrote on X. Getti Kehayova posted videos of herself on social media roasting marshmallows on her car antenna Sunday afternoon. Making smores on my car antenna in the Las Vegas heat wave, Kehayova wrote alongside footage of herself struggling to grab ahold of the sun-cooked marshmallows. The average temperature in Las Vegas between June and August has climbed more than six degrees since 1950 amid human-caused climate change mostly due to higher night-time temperatures. Bishop, along the east side of the Sierra Nevada in California, tied its all-time temperature record on Sunday as the mercury hit 111 degrees, according to the National Weather Service. In Fresno, the airport hit 114 degrees Sunday, tying an all-time record. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Death Valley hit 129 degrees Sunday afternoon, tying a daily record but shy of the all-time record of 134 degrees. A motorcyclist died due to the extreme heat, and five other riders he was with were also treated for heat exposure. Sundays other hot spots around the West included 115 degrees in Bakersfield, and 117 degrees in Redding and Palm Springs. Palm Springs and Redding set new all-time heat records last week, with Palm Springs hitting 124 degrees Friday and Redding reaching 119 degrees on Saturday. More than 40 million Americans are currently covered by an excessive heat warning or watch, all west of the Rocky Mountains, according to the National Weather Service. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Following successful completion of the power station reliability run, Contacts new Tauhara geothermal plant is now undertaking final commissioning activities. This is a significant milestone in the delivery of Contact26, Contacts strategy to lead the decarbonisation of New Zealand. Tauharas 30-day power station reliability run was completed on Monday 24th June, with the plant run continuously over that period at around 152 MW1. The plant was also successfully tested at the target capacity of 174MW. As Contact completes the final stages of commissioning, Tauhara will be run at 130-135MW for the next two months while modifications are undertaken to address vibrations in a section of the steam separation plant. Once commissioned, Tauhara is expected to operate at around 152MW until further modifications are undertaken during the first planned outage, scheduled for October 2025, to secure long-term generation of 174MW (as previously advised). Contacts 51.4 MW geothermal plant, Te Huka 3, remains on track to be online in Q4 2024. The replacement of the Wairakei A&B geothermal power station is the next geothermal development in Contacts pipeline. Contact is targeting a final investment decision in Q4 2024 on a new binary plant of around 100 MW2, with an indicative construction completion target of mid-2027. A further update, including Wairakei extension considerations, will be provided at Contacts FY24 results in August. Outlook Contacts normalised and expected EBITDAF for FY25 is $770m, materially higher than expected in FY24 (see guidance table in Appendix). Contact FY25 outlook reflects changes to its generation portfolio as it delivers on its Contact26 commitments with Tauhara and Te Huka 3 coming online. Expected geothermal volumes for the year reflect final planned commissioning activities and the statutory four-yearly outage at Te Mihi (which reduces generation by around 150GWh). Large new long-term contracts to the New Zealand Aluminium Smelter (NZAS), Genesis, Oji Fibre and Pan Pac all commence in FY25. With a reduction in expected gas deliveries, geothermal outages will need to be met with acquired generation which has elevated near-term generation costs. With a long-term contract now in place with NZAS and current geothermal projects at or near completion, Contact expects to deliver a 4cps uplift from its current 35cps annual dividend. This would be phased in 2cps increases across the final FY24 and interim FY25 dividend periods. While the proposed initial ~100 MW Wairakei replacement capex project is under construction, further increases to dividend per share are not currently anticipated.3 - ends - Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: TRU - WHO Agency UNITAID Features TRU in Tech Landscape Report PaySauce Quarterly Market Update - September 2024 October 2nd Morning Report Rua Releases Annual Report for Year Ended 30 June 2024 SCL - Settlement of orchard sales The Warehouse Group 2024 ASM and Director Nominations AIR - Update on Chief Operational Integrity and Safety Officer Comvita Limited - Annual Report 2024 September 27th Morning Report Spark announces departure of Finance Director Auckland, New Zealand, 8 July 2024 - Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Corporation Limited advises that the strike price for the dividend reinvestment plan (DRP) operating in respect of the dividend payable on Wednesday 10 July 2024 has been set at NZ$28.9705 per share (after the application of a 3% discount). The strike price is calculated as the volume weighted average sale price for an ordinary share calculated on all price-setting trades of shares which took place through the NZX Main Board over a period of five trading days immediately following the dividend record date of 27 June 2024. Shareholders who have elected to participate in the DRP reinvest their dividends to receive additional shares, rather than cash. The number of Fisher & Paykel Healthcare shares to which participants are entitled is calculated by multiplying the net dividend per share by the number of that participants participating shares and then dividing that number by the issue price of NZ$28.9705, rounded down to the nearest whole share. The DRP offer document setting out the terms and conditions of the plan and further details of its operations is now available on the companys website at www.fphcare.com/drp. The company also advises that the foreign exchange rate used for the payment of the dividend on 10 July 2024 to Australian investors in AUD has been set at 0.90954. About Fisher & Paykel Healthcare Fisher & Paykel Healthcare is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of products and systems for use in acute and chronic respiratory care, surgery and the treatment of obstructive sleep apnea. The companys products are sold in over 120 countries worldwide. For more information about the company, visit our website www.fphcare.com. Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. It is allowable to use some form of non-de-plume for your name, however we recommend real email addresses are used. Comments from free email addresses such as Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc may not be approved. Anti-spam verification: Type the text you see in the image into the field below. You are asked to do this in order to verify that this enquiry is not being performed by an automated process. Related News: TRU - WHO Agency UNITAID Features TRU in Tech Landscape Report PaySauce Quarterly Market Update - September 2024 October 2nd Morning Report Rua Releases Annual Report for Year Ended 30 June 2024 SCL - Settlement of orchard sales The Warehouse Group 2024 ASM and Director Nominations AIR - Update on Chief Operational Integrity and Safety Officer Comvita Limited - Annual Report 2024 September 27th Morning Report Spark announces departure of Finance Director FANCY a designer handbag without feeling guilty about treating yourself? Well, thats exactly what you can have if you visit the Temperance Hall in Kinsale on Friday, July 19. A sale of new and pre-loved handbags will be available to purchase, along with jewellery and clothing from Kinsales Ms Ellies Boutique from 9.30am, and all at affordable prices. The sale is the brainchild of local woman Cathy OBrien, who was inspired by her son, David Tobin, to raise funds for a cause close to his heart. David went to Tanzania this year as part of a contingent from Kinsale Community School, organised by the Teretta Foundation which helps people in need in the East African country. Now Cathy is raising money for the same foundation. The story begins last year, when Lenore Good of the Teretta Foundation went to Kinsale Community School to organise a trip to Tanzania with the transition and 5th year students. There was huge interest from the student body, and in February a group of these students, including David, went on the trip of lifetime. Initially, the tasks set by Lenore were to raise enough funds at home to supply one year of food for at-risk primary school children, to raise enough to manufacture wheelchairs for children who never get the chance to be outside participating in games with their friends, and to raise enough to take 240 children on an excursion to a waterpark. Lenore says she was humbled by the efforts made by these teenage students. Kinsale Community School has a good track record with regard to sustainability, fast fashion and human rights issues, so there was huge support from the faculty. Lenore, along with Joanne OConnor and Veronique OToole from the school, accompanied the students to Tanzania for their two-week stay. The first task was to purchase the food and other supplies, load them, and deliver them to the school. Over the two weeks, they spent time every day with the children at the Stella Maris school. They played games with them and visited their houses. They sang and danced together and bonded over the fortnight. The day trip to the water park was magical for everyone involved. The accompanying teachers kept the parents at home up to date on how everyone was getting on and what their daily diary entailed. Group chats kept everyone in the loop. By the time the students came home to Cork, they had been given an experience they would never forget. It was humbling and inspiring. Cathy says the trip was an enriching experience for her son David and he would love to go back again. David cherishes the memories and the experiences he had there and was eager to do something more to help if he could, she said. Cathy was looking for a way to help, so when Lenore asked if anyone would like to go to Tanzania with her next September, Cathy jumped at the chance. The Teretta Foundation is raising funds to build a safe house for at-risk children in the area. This would be able to accommodate 95 vulnerable children and will cost 250,000 to build. The aim is to raise 50,000 for each trip so the work can begin in earnest. Lenore is hoping to secure corporate funds to cover the costs of a playground, kitchen, and other necessities, and with the generosity shown so far this can surely be achieved. Lenores first trip was in 2021 and the amount of work this lady has done to help the needy in Tanzania is staggering. With the aid of her friends both here and in Tanzania, Lenore has secured day trips for 540 children, has bought more than 30 wheelchairs for disabled children, secured food for the school for over two years, and has helped 26 students go to college. After Davids trip, aiding the Teretta foundation has become a family affair and Cathy will be assisted on the day of the sale by her son and daughter and other members of her family. There will be a small charge at the door to cover tea, coffee and scones, and if anyone wishes to get involved, all the information on the work of the foundation will be available on the day. Handbags are mounting up ready for their new owners, the special pieces from Ms Ellies Boutique have been chosen, and the friends are lining up eager to help on the day. So get your guilt-free handbag at the Temperance Hall in Kinsale on July 19, and help a very worthy cause, and some very worthy women, to do something amazing. US telecoms multinational Motorola Solutions is to open a research and development centre in Cork city centre, creating some 200 highly skilled jobs. The company said its new Cork team will be focused on designing software for the corporations land mobile radio portfolio, with plans for expansion across other technologies. The company said the new centre would complement Motorolas existing work in Ireland, which is focused on delivering the emergency services secure communications network, Irelands National Digital Radio Service. Tanaiste Micheal Martin said it was excellent news for Cork city: The more research and development design jobs we can attract into the city, the better, in terms of sustainability of our economy into the future, and I think it reflects the strengths of our two universities. Our education framework within Cork is proving to be very attractive, with both the universities and also Tyndall, Mr Martin said. Its a vote of confidence in Cork. Lord Mayor of Cork Dan Boyle, also welcomed the news: The development of a new research and development centre for technology can only be good for the city and the region. ENDORSEMENT Simon Coveney, Fine Gael TD and the former enterprise minister, said it was an endorsement of Cork as a place that remained highly attractive for tech-based jobs and research. Its a sign that the quality of graduates that you can find in Cork from our universities here is stronger than ever, and some of the biggest companies on the planet want to continue to invest and build out their footprint in Ireland and in Cork, and thats for a lot reasons, but mainly because of the people that they can get here, and of course the business-friendly environment that the Government guarantees, Mr Coveney said. Colm Burke, Minister of State at the Department of Health and Fine Gael TD for Cork North Central, welcomed the announcement: Cork is a very attractive area for research companies to locate as we have both UCC [University College Cork] and MTU [Munster Technological University] producing highly qualified candidates who have the required skills for this type of employment. Thomas Gould, Sinn Fein TD for Cork North Central, said it was good news and welcome news for the city, especially when were after losing two companies in Blackpool recently with Dulux and Blizzard, we need investment in jobs in Cork, and we also need targeted supports for the northside to get more jobs up here. Mick Barry, People Before Profit-Solidarity TD for Cork North Central, also noted the recent job losses at employers such as VMWare and Blizzard: Its important that replacement jobs have wages and conditions that are at least the equivalent of the ones that have been lost, so Ill take an interest in how that plays out. Padraig OSullivan, Fianna Fail TD for Cork North Central, said: Its great to see more businesses locating in Cork, and thats due to the highly educated and professional workforce and due as well to ongoing Government investment in Cork. Donnchadh O Laoghaire, Sinn Fein TD for Cork South Central, said the news reflected that Cork had a crucial role to play: I think a great deal more can be done in attracting people across a wide range of industries, but a number of steps need to be taken in terms of infrastructure, accommodation, and a variety of other investments, but this is positive news for Cork, and hopefully it can be built upon. Ensuring Cork is a "safe city is non negotiable" the president of Cork Chamber has said. Cork Chamber president Rob Horgan and Cork Business Association (CBA) president Aaron Mansworth both spoke during a panel discussion entitled Inclusivity and City Centre as part of a symposium of city centre stakeholders hosted by Cork City Council last week. Their discussion explored how stakeholders can work together towards a more vibrant and safe city centre. Speaking to The Echo following the event, president of Cork Chamber and owner of Velo Coffee Roasters, Rob Horgan, called for an inclusive and welcoming city and highlighted the need for more collaboration with An Garda Siochana. We need to ensure that our city works for everybody. A safe city is non negotiable. Its no longer acceptable to rely on reported crime numbers as a measure of safety, he said. Cork city centre needs to be an inclusive and welcoming place where everybody feels safe. There is no doubt that we need greater resourcing for our gardai to support our communities. This resource needs to be a publicly visible garda presence, not a quoted number. To give Cork city a resource that wont maintain our current number when you allow for garda retirement and promotion out of Cork is an insult to the city. CBA president Aaron Mansworth described the symposium as a positive but honest event with the right array of stakeholders in attendance. We spoke about the opportunities for the city, we spoke about the challenges facing the city and overall I think it was a very good event to be part of and the CBA are delighted to partake in it. What were trying to do is to make sure that forums in place are the right forums with the right people and to ensure we have the right communication channels. Its about people being honest and as open as possible and it is up to us as representative organisations to work with as many of the other organisations as possible to feed in but also give information back to our members and to really make sure its an aligned and open narrative. CBA president Aaron Mansworth described the symposium as a positive but honest event with the right array of stakeholders in attendance.Pic: Brian Lougheed During breakout discussions following the event, there was an agreement among stakeholders in attendance that Cork is a very safe city but that there are still issues to be addressed in order for people to feel safe on the street at all times of the day and night. The need for more lighting was also discussed, with a discussion on how dimly lit areas tend to draw anti-social behaviour and how more lighting on North Main Street has made a big difference to how the city feels. The anti-social behaviour of people urinating on the street was also highlighted and there was a call for the provision of public toilets in order to help prevent such behaviour from occurring in the city. An Garda Siochana said it is dedicated to ensuring the safety of all communities in Cork city and that it takes reports of anti-social behaviour seriously and actively addresses these issues. This week gardai launched the Summer High Visibility Patrols initiative for Cork city centre with the aim of keeping people safe as well as reducing incidents of retail crime in the area, a spokesperson for An Garda Siochana told The Echo. Local gardai also participated in a symposium organised by Cork City Council during which all stakeholders reaffirmed a commitment to keeping Cork city safe for residents, visitors and the business community. An Garda Siochana works with community leaders, stakeholders, including Cork City Council and the Cork Business Association, with a view to addressing local issues. The owner of Corks oldest barbershop has joined in the hospitality industrys calls for the Vat rate to be reduced from 13.5% back down to the previous rate of 9%. Mick Moriarty, also known as the Baldy Barber, has been a long time campaigner for a reduced Vat rate for businesses providing a service like his. The 13.5% Vat rate applies to catering, restaurants, hotels, attractions including the cinema, theatre, gallery, amusement parks and open farms, as well as hairdressing services. Mr Moriarty told The Echo: Hairdressers and barbers are all attached to hospitality, I dont know why theyre putting the two together. When the VAT rate rose in September of last year by 4.5%, his business shared that they would not be increasing their prices, but keeping them at 16 for a haircut. Mr Moriarty said: If the hospitality VAT rate goes down to 9%, I hope that hairdressing will go down too. Id be known as the VAT man in the industry, Ive been fighting for years to have the threshold increased. VAT registration is obligatory when your turnover exceeds, or is likely to exceed, the VAT threshold, which is 37,500 for hairdressing. The amount is too low altogether, and everyone renting a premises, no matter what, has to pay VAT, Mr Moriarty said. Ive been saying this for years, and I maintain that any business giving a service should pay VAT of just 5% to 7%, and the threshold should be abolished. The rate increased from 9% to 13.5% the same time as it did for restaurants, and is one of many expenses that has risen recently for business owners, Mr Moriarty explained: Our electricity was very high up to a few weeks ago, I got bills for 600, which is very expensive for a barbers. The Baldy Barber made headlines in January when he shared the news that he would be forced to close after nearly 87 years in business, due to high costs of operating. He told The Echo at the time: We charge 16 per haircut, including 1.90 VAT. I always said that I would never overcharge a customer, which was part of my reason for closing. However, in April of this year, he shared: Since there hasnt been interest in buying our business, were taking down the For Sale sign, and added that they will continue to be open six days a week. A Cork restaurateur has raised concerns about the attractiveness of Cork city centre and how it is affecting businesses. Richard Gavin, the owner of SpitJack on Washington St, has said Cork city centre is no longer making people feel welcome and is deterring potential customers from spending time in the city. Mr Gavin called on Cork City Council to provide more amenities in the city centre such as public toilets. We are having to clean human excrement off our doorsteps, he said. There are no public toilets in the city and we have a homelessness crisis but nothing is being provided for people on the streets. So what we need the council to do is provide a safe, clean environment for customers who want to come into the city so we can have some chance of making our businesses survive. I think the days are gone of asking for supports because theres no appetite there for that. He also called for the council to make an effort to put Cork back on the map as the foodie destination of Ireland by helping to save businesses from more closures. Weve had a lot of restaurants close in Cork that had been trading for years. Its hard for Cork. The city has lost some really good restaurants and really good restaurant operators, and Cork is built on a culture of food. I moved to Cork and set up my business here because of what Cork could offer in terms of being a food-led capital and produce capital. Mr Gavin said that tourism exists off the back of Corks food culture and that people come to the city because it is known as the food destination of Ireland, but that its identity as such has been falling apart in recent years. When we first opened, there were food tours and a lot of different things promoting food in Cork and it was a very vibrant city in terms of what they were offering but a lot of that is gone, Mr Gavin said. People are now just trying to survive. Cork City Council has been contacted by The Echo for comment on the issues raised by Mr Gavin. A total of 308,100 passengers went through Cork Airport in June as the busy summer season fully kicked in. Just over 3.5m passengers went through Cork and Dublin airports combined, according to daa, the airports operator. A total of 1,983 flights left Cork Airport in June, and the busiest day of the month was Friday, June 21. Cork Airport outperformed Dublin on a number of key metrics, seeing a 10% increase in passengers compared to June 2023, while in Dublin the annual increase was just 3%. 100% of passengers were through security in less than 20 minutes in Cork compared to 96% in Dublin, bag return time was 12 minutes in Cork on average compared to 20 minutes in Dublin, and there were 74% of on-time departures overall in both airports. According to daa CEO Kenny Jacobs: June was a big month at both Cork and Dublin airports as we welcomed hundreds of thousands of business and leisure passengers into and out of Ireland. Big events such as concerts are now a big draw for tourists into Ireland and weve had no shortage of those all-around Ireland over the past month. June was very busy at Cork Airport, with over 308,000 passengers travelling to and from the busiest airport serving the south of Ireland. The month saw two new Ryanair summer services starting up to Rhodes and Zadar, with both performing extremely well so far. Traffic to and from France was considerably higher than last year, with 32% more passengers travelling on services between Cork and France, aided by the increased capacity on the Air France service between Cork and Paris Charles de Gaulle. Cork Airport is providing a gateway for tourists from mainland Europe to fly into the south of Ireland and Im delighted that Lufthansa will operate larger A319 aircraft on their Frankfurt service in July. Throughout the month, Cork passengers enjoyed a very efficient airport experience with an average of five-minute security queue times across the month. Meanwhile, Cork Airports duty-free shop has been renamed as part of a rebranding project. The travel retail store, formerly known as The Loop, will now be called Cork Airport Duty Free. ARI, the daas global airport retailing subsidiary, is also rolling out the rebrand at Dublin Airport. The logos for both locations pay homage to the cities themselves. In Corks logo, the C represents the River Lee running through Cork City, the O Corks iconic English Market, the R The Rebel County and the K the Old Head Lighthouse of Kinsale. The Mayor of County Cork has welcomed news that applications for a new affordable-housing development will open in the county next week. Cork County Council has announced that the scheme, which consists of 20 new family homes at a significant reduction from market price, will become available at midday on Monday, July 15. Constructed by JOD Developments, the houses will be available for first-time buyers who do not own a home, although a small number of exceptions apply, such as Fresh Start applicants. This development of 10 two-bed and 10 three-bed, A-rated family homes is located at Almans View, overlooking Bandon town. The 10 two-bedroom houses will be available from 220,000, a reduction of 25.4% from market value; while the 10 three-bedroom houses will be available from 260,000, a reduction of 22.3% from market value. Welcomed The Mayor of the County of Cork, Fianna Fail councillor Joe Carroll, said he welcomed the announcement of the affordable-housing scheme for Bandon. The development at Almans View offers high-quality, affordable homes in an exclusive development within walking distance to the town centre. The houses feature a bright spacious layout, high-end finishes throughout and are located in a great location with scenic views across the valley over the River Bandon, Mr Carroll said. Through the scheme, purchasers will enter an affordable-dwelling purchase arrangement with Cork County Council, with the council retaining a percentage equity share, equal to the difference between the market value and the price paid by the purchaser, expressed as a percentage of the market value of the dwelling, to a minimum of 5%. Applications will be accepted between 12 noon on July 15 and noon on August 5 on Cork County Councils website at https://www.corkcoco.ie. Airlines are to be encouraged to move routes and traffic from Dublin to Cork airport, the daa CEO has revealed. New incentives will be offered to airlines who are capped from growing at Dublin, including lower charges in Cork airport. The revelation was made at the launch of Cork airports Economic Impact Study. It revealed that Cork Airport contributed 1.045 billion to the Irish economy and supported more than 12,650 job in 2023. Launched today by Minister of State for Transport James Lawless TD, Ireland's EU Commissioner Designate Michael McGrath TD and Tourism Ireland's Chief Executive Alice Mansergh, the analysis by InterVISTAS Consulting shows that Cork Airport plays a critical role in supporting jobs across the south of Ireland. Jobs Day-to-day operational activities at Cork Airport directly supported 2,330 jobs in companies across the airport campus including airlines, air traffic control, ground handlers, airport security, immigration, customs, and airport retailers in 2023. An additional 10,320 jobs stemmed from the indirect, induced, and catalytic impacts of the airport's operations. The analysis also included examination of the connectivity of Cork Airport. The 2023 IATA Connectivity Index, which measures the international access from an airport to the global economy, shows that Cork Airport is the best-connected airport in the Republic of Ireland outside of Dublin. Move seat capacity To promote enhanced connectivity and traffic growth at Cork Airport, Cork Airport announced today that airlines will be encouraged to move seat capacity to Cork from Dublin by way of discounts on airport charges at Cork Airport. Speaking at the launch of the study, Kenny Jacobs, CEO of daa said: "Cork is a really great airport and daa is committed to supporting its growth to five million passengers a year within the next decade, while maintaining the warm Cork welcome and customer service our passengers know and love Cork for. Cork Airport will continue to expand its route network, including offering new incentives to encourage airlines that are capped from growing at Dublin to take advantage of Cork Airport's great facilities. Good connectivity throughout the island is critical to attracting tourists and investment to Ireland and there is a real danger of losing out to other countries while the Dublin cap remains in place. He explained, Airlines that move routes and traffic from Dublin to Cork Airport will be offered lower charges at Cork Airport to encourage airlines to keep those routes in Ireland and to support jobs and connectivity." Niall MacCarthy, Managing Director, Cork Airport added, "It is an exciting time at Cork Airport. We will be expanding our facilities in the next number of years to provide more airside and terminal facilities to support strong growth and jobs. Cork Airport is the best performing commercial semi-state body in Ireland for energy reduction for two years running, and the next step on our journey is to seek planning for an airport solar farm, to demonstrate our commitment to sustainable development. Alice Mansergh, Chief Executive, Tourism Ireland said that overseas tourism to Cork city and county alone brings in excess of 600 million to the region per annum. She explained: Alongside our programme of advertising and publicity, partnerships play an important role as we seek to grow overseas tourism revenue to Ireland by +5.6% on average each year to 2030." Minister of State at the Department of Transport, James Lawless said: "As an island nation, our airport network is critical to our connectivity and as Ireland's second largest international airport, Cork is an essential part of that infrastructure. The significant funding to Cork Airport provided by government in recent years has assisted in future proofing the airport's infrastructure and will enable the airport to realise its ambitious plans for growth over the coming years. EVEN moderate hearing deficiencies can impact educational attainment, so having a very low threshold for suggesting that a child has a hearing assessment or hearing check can be crucial. Children and young people with hearing issues can present in so many different ways; some only have difficulties with certain voices, not with others. Additionally, normal hearing one week doesnt stop a cold making hearing difficult the next. Even permanent hearing losses can develop and progress over time. It is important for parents and teachers to look out for signs of possible hearing problems in children. The sooner advice is sought, the quicker appropriate action can be taken. To illustrate this, here is Jordans story - although the childrens names have been changed, this story is real. Case study Jordan was a happy and friendly child who loved to learn new things and play with his friends. He was always curious and eager to explore the world around him. But something changed when Jordan was four years old. He started to have trouble paying attention, sitting still, and following instructions. Jordan would often daydream, get frustrated easily, and shout at people. Sometimes he would get aggressive and hit or bite others. His parents and teachers thought he might have a problem, such as ADHD or autism, but they didnt know what to do. One day, Jordans school was visited by a school entry hearing screening team, and using specialist SchoolScreener software, they checked all the childrens hearing. They used a special device, developed by Thomson Screening, to measure how well the children could hear different sounds. The screening team noticed that Jordan didnt pass the test, and suspected he might have a hearing problem. Jordan was referred to the local paediatric audiology team, and they confirmed he had a conductive hearing loss: the sound waves could not reach Jordans inner ear, because there was fluid in his middle ear. This made everything sound muffled and distorted, and it had even affected his speech and language development. The audiology team explained that Jordan needed to have ventilation tubes inserted in his ears, which would drain the fluid and restore his hearing. But they also said the waiting time for this procedure was 4-6 months, and they didnt want to delay treatment. So, the audiologists offered Jordan a bone conduction hearing aid, a device that bypasses the middle ear and sends the sound vibrations directly to the inner ear through the skull. They fitted Jordan with the hearing aid and at first it was overwhelming, but soon he was enjoying hearing the sounds of birds, and cars in the distance, and music and laughter. He heard the world. From then on, Jordan wore the hearing aid every day, except when it was very loud, and everyone noticed a big difference. He could hear what people were saying, and he could respond. Jordan could follow instructions and complete tasks. He could join conversations, make jokes, play with his friends, and share his feelings. Jordan was back to being the happy and friendly child he used to be. During his journey, his parents considered his 11-year-old sibling Auden, who was very shy and quiet. Teachers often commented that Auden would hardly participate in lessons and sometimes give very strange answers that were missing the point. So, the parents decided to take Auden for a hearing test. Soon they found out he must have developed a permanent hearing loss soon after birth that had slowly worsened over the next 10 years. After being given hearing aids, Auden started to notice what she had been unable to hear before, and light was shone on why learning had been so difficult until then. Schools have vital roles Please be curious. Teachers can make such a positive difference to children with hearing difficulties. A microphone for the teacher and speakers at the back of the classroom helps pupils to understand better and enables a teachers voice to stay quieter and therefore calmer and clearer. Shouting does not help anyone with hearing problems. Good classroom acoustics are also important. Bare glass or concrete walls generate echoes (increase reverberation) and degrade the sound information. Most people can lip read to some extent. Being able to see a teachers face well when they are talking really helps. So, asking someone to listen and write at the same time disadvantages everyone with hearing problems even if they wear hearing aids. Hearing aids make things louder, but that doesnt necessarily mean the sound is as normal. If you have a school entry hearing screen team coming, please help them to find a quiet room for testing and support them in seeing all children. Jordans story underscores the importance of early detection and intervention for hearing issues in children. Parents and teachers should be proactive in identifying potential hearing problems, ensuring that children receive the support they need to thrive both academically and socially. Dr Sebastian Hendricks is a consultant in paediatric audiovestibular medicine at Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children & Medical Director (Hearing) of Thomson Screening, whose Screener software is used in over 5,000 schools by NHS (non clinical staff) screening KS1 childrens hearing and vision. The Auckland Airport Board today announced the nomination of Grant Devonport as a new board director. Mr Devonport has accepted the nomination. Mr Devonport was the Chief Financial Officer of Australia Pacific Airports Corporation, which owns Melbourne Airport and Launceston Airport, until January this year and is currently a non-executive director of MOVE Logistics Group Limited, and the chair of its Risk Assurance and Audit Committee. As announced earlier this year, Mr Strange will retire after the upcoming Annual Meeting and Julia Hoare will succeed his position as board chair, having been on the board since 2017. Mr Strange said, Grant is an experienced CFO and transformational leader, with over 25 years of multinational experience including CFO roles with Myer Proprietary Limited and Toll Group Limited. If elected, he will be a strong addition to the Board." Mr Devonport commented, I am pleased to accept this nomination from the Board and look forward to working with the Auckland Airport team. Its an incredibly exciting time to be joining with a huge transformation program underway and with all of the airport upgrades. The shareholders will have the opportunity to vote on Grants election at the Annual Meeting on 17 October 2024 and the Board will recommend that shareholders vote in favour of the appointment. ENDS Comments from our readers No comments yet Add your comment: Your name: Your email: Not displayed to the public Comment: Comments to Sharechat go through an approval process. Comments which are defamatory, abusive or in some way deemed inappropriate will not be approved. 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Related News: TRU - WHO Agency UNITAID Features TRU in Tech Landscape Report PaySauce Quarterly Market Update - September 2024 October 2nd Morning Report Rua Releases Annual Report for Year Ended 30 June 2024 SCL - Settlement of orchard sales The Warehouse Group 2024 ASM and Director Nominations AIR - Update on Chief Operational Integrity and Safety Officer Comvita Limited - Annual Report 2024 September 27th Morning Report Spark announces departure of Finance Director (Photo: Ivars Kupcis / WCC)Residential buildings and children's playground in Irpin, Kyiv region, destroyed during Russia's invasion of in Ukraine, in August 2022. World Council of Churches head Rev. Jerry Pillay has denounced missile strikes on Kyiv and other densely populated areas of Ukraine, that severely damaged two of the country's main hospitals for children and women, including the country's largest pediatric facility. "It is the latest significant incident in which disregard for international humanitarian law has been evident," said WCC general secretary Pillay, on July 8 on the attacks which killed at least 36 people. Witnesses expressed shock and revulsion after deadly missile strike on Ukraine's largest pediatric clinic. Both Pope Francis and the leader of Ukraine's Greek Catholic Church also condemned the targeting the children's hospital in Kyiv, Crux reported. "The Pope expresses his deep concern over the increase in violence," a statement said, saying, "while expressing his closeness to the innocent victims and wounded, he hopes and prays that concrete paths can soon be identified to put an end to the ongoing conflicts." "The children sat in stunned silence, their fragile bodies still tethered to medical drips outside the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in central Kyiv, where an impromptu field camp had sprung up," reported The Guardian newspaper. The children had emerged from the hospital's dark, dusty bomb shelter, and their eyes were still adjusting to the light. "A woman rushed past, cradling an infant covered with blood," said the report. An hour earlier, Okhmatdyt, Ukraine's largest paediatric clinic, renowned for its cancer treatment and a place many of the children had called home for months, had been targeted by a powerful Russian missile attack that took its toll and left many injured. The attack left the hospital's toxicology ward in ruins, wrecked by the explosion that sent shrapnel tearing through the main hospital building, shattering its windows. One of the surgical rooms, where doctors had been operating on a child, was reduced to rubble. WCC's Pillay stressed that all those who target civilians and civilian infrastructure do so in violation of the most fundamental principles of law, ethics, morals, and religion. "In this brutal war resulting from Russia's illegal and immoral invasion of Ukraine, civilians are suffering the consequences every day" Pillya said. He noted that a recent UN report states that from March to May this year alone 436 civilians were killed and 1,760 injured in Russian attacks on Ukraine. However, he observed that civilians in Russia are also suffering the consequences of this "unconscionable conflict." "To prevent more bloodshed and destruction, all such violations must stop, and the war must end," said the WCC head. by Inam Ul Haque Afghan analysis space is filled with certain myths created particularly by Afghan watchers of Afghan and Pakistani origin. Such myths can steer any naive policymaker into a different and uncharted territory. Some myths were created on purpose mainly by Pashtun academics to lionise Afghans fighting the Soviets, and most recently the US/NATO occupation forces. Some myths were generated by IEAs military ascendency against the Afghan and foreign forces. Perpetuation of such myths in a different environment served certain policy ends in context, however, persisting with them in a changed environment can result in faulty policy outcomes. From the mythical romanticism of holy warriors in wars against the USSR and the US-NATO combine to the pragmatic reality of soldier-ruler, after the fall of Kabul, the reincarnation is phenomenal. Lets scan the mythological landscape. Workers harvest saffron flowers in Herat province, Afghanistan, Nov. 13, 2023. (Photo by Mashal/Xinhua) Myth no 1. Afghans are better left alone; Afghanistan being sovereign, hand-off policy suggested. Easier said than done in the real world, when vital interests and massive investments are at stake. In a research paper on Pak-Afghan bilateralism, while pursuing a Masters degree in IR in 2003-2004 at the NDU Islamabad, the line of argument by this scribe was that despite short and mid-term animosity, Afghan state and society would be friendlier towards Pakistan in the long-term (2030) because of the inescapable multidirectional interdependence, where Afghan dependence on Pakistan is substantially more than other way round. This interdependence creates problems as well as leverages for Pakistan. As half of Pakistan KPK, Balochistan and the NMDs are co-joined twins with eastern Afghanistan, with situation on either side affecting the other. TTP as a sticking no 1 variable is a case in point. So, in the prevailing milieu, how can Pakistan remain indifferent to the situation in Kabulgeostrategically, politically, in the security realms and economically? It should not! Myth No 2. Afghans can resolve their differences by themselves. It is basically an extension of myth no 1. If this was the case, why would there be a need for Geneva Accords, Mecca Accord and Doha Agreement (and Doha Process 1,2 and recently 3), facilitated, participated, adopted and implemented by foreign stake holders and Afghans? Yes, sociologically the Afghan Conflict Resolution Mechanism (CRM) in the form of jirga at various levels is robust enough to iron out intractable problems, but only when there is no outside interference and support. CRM becomes foreign-dependent and, therefore, ineffectual when internal players are beholden to foreign interests, as has been the case in recent Afghan history. Myth No 3. IEA is not amenable to force. IEA leadership is pragmatic, savvy and wise, knowing when to withdraw, or claim an alibi when their rhetoric runs counter to reality. Their recent denial of TTP safe havens on Afghan soil and pronouncements that TTP is a Pakistani issue, with IEA nothing to do with it, is a disclaimer and retreat behind rhetoric in the face of intractable and undeniable facts. Afghan yield to pressure when pressure is formidable. Their retreat from Pakistani territory during Bajaur Operation in 1960-62, when PAF punishingly bombed the Royal Afghan Army, is a case in point. Succumbing to Soviet pressure, Afghanistan would have been a Soviet Socialist Republic, had it not been for Pakistans lead role during the Jihad (1979-1989). Afghan yield to pressure when pressure is formidable. Deployment of right leverages at right time will always result in change of course by Afghansovertime, even if the present-day obstinacy makes such shift improbable and less visible. Afghan/Pashtun strategic patience involves opponents in an excruciating contest of grit and will, where holding the nerve is the calling and winning strategy. And to do so, knowing Afghan/Pashtun sociology and psychology helpsdifficult indeed. Myth No 4. IEA is militarily ten-foot tall and may embroil Pakistan in a war of unbearable attrition. Learning wrong lessons by Taliban rank and file from IEAs previous military campaigns is never helpful. As mentioned, had it not been for Pakistans steadfast support in laying a weapons, ammunition, equipment and manpower conduit from Pakistan to the Seven-Party Alliance fighting the USSR; had it not been for Pakistans technical and continuous military support and advice; had it not been for Pakistan taking around five million uprooted Afghan on its soil purely on humanitarian grounds, and under Islamic, Pashtun and neighbourly amity, without being a signatory to the 1951 Geneva Convention on Refugees and its 1967 Protocol; and had it not been for the indispensable logistic support to Afghan mujahideen leaders, fighters and families in Pakistani hospitals, schools and work placesAfghanistan would have been a Soviet Republic. Likewise, if it was not for Pakistans ostensible double game with the 50-nation alliance next door; and for safe havens in Pakistans erstwhile FATA; and Taliban leaderships comfortable homes across Pakistani cities, the IEA leadership would still be battling the US/NATO in Afghan mountains, instead of enjoying peace and ruling Kabul. Doha parleys were unthinkable without ISI/PAKMIL interlocution. You just need to read Zalmay Khalilzad. Yes, IEA rank and file seem to have taken wrong military lessons vis-a-vis Pakistan from both wars, against the Soviet Union, and the US-NATO combine lately. Pakistan unlike Russians, Americans and Europeans knows Afghan human geography well. Under hypothetic scenario of bilateral hostilities, PAKMIL would never be interested in territorial acquisitions and dominance, it would enjoy a just cause (like the IEA in the cited conflicts), have short supply lines and greater operational synergy, and the advantage of interior lines. So, the adventurous IEA rank and file, IF ANY, gunning for border fights, beware! IEAs saner leadership knows this and their comparative national power potential. If there is one lesson from the Soviet pullout and the US/NATO leaving Afghanistan recently in the end, it is the indispensability of Pakistani sanctuaries and safe havens. Without these, the bravest of the brave would be biting the dust. Myth No 5. Afghanistan provides strategic depth to Pakistan. Nothing could be further from reality than this imaginary iteration by some military thinkers, inadequately schooled in the art of strategy. It is in fact Pakistan that provides strategic depth to Afghanistan. Without this depth, Soviet troops would still be in Afghanistan, and mujahideen in mountains or in exile. Yes, IEA ascent to power, engineered and assisted did provide Pakistan with Strategic Dividend against a two-front war scenario (India plus Afghanistan), that by itself is a wrong strategic notion forwarded by some Pakistani military planners, too fearful of the Pashtunistan Bogey, and not knowing the Pashtun sentiment. Myth No 6. Pashtuns in Pakistan would want to reunite with parent state of Afghanistan, hence the bogey of greater Pashtunistan. This is an unrealistic figment of imagination by some non-Pashtun segments of the Pakistani Miltablishment, who cite this bogey to justify their appeasement of Kabul and other Pashtun nationalists, insensitive and unaware of the larger Pashtun sentiment. In 2001, as a Directing Staff in Staff College Quetta, a colleague (later Lt Gen) would heatedly argue for this fallacy of thinking. Pashtunistan issue is dead, and its raising, if any, by nationalists are feeble attempts by them to stay politically relevant, and to maximise political advantage in the Federation of Pakistan, just like small ethnic groups do elsewhere. In the prevalent stable political construct, Pakistani Pashtuns look up to Islamabad, whereas Afghan Pashtuns throw their lot with Kabul. Yes, ethnic amity and common heritage would always work to foster positive bilateralism and neighbourly coherence, hence that must be fostered. Afghanistan, barring occasional border flare-ups (motivated mainly by easement rights, smuggling interests and other local dynamics), would never go whole-hog against Muslim Pakistan. Myth No 7. Hostile Afghanistan presents Pakistan with two-front war scenario, simultaneously with India and Afghanistan. This is again a notion of Pakistans strategic construct advocated by the Miltablishmentthat is also too far-fetched. Besides being unrealistic, it also encourages appeasement of Kabul and/or overt and at times unnecessary involvement in Afghanistans segmentary politics. In both cases, the ensuing policy stands on borrowed legs. Afghanistan, barring occasional border flare-ups (motivated mainly by easement rights, smuggling interests and other local dynamics), would never go whole-hog against Muslim Pakistan. Kabul clearly knows the comparative national power potential (NPP), Pakistani leverages and the futility of such exercise, more than some movers and shakers in Islamabad. In all three Indo-Pakistan wars, Afghanistan despite friendlier ties with India, never ever postured to take military advantage of the situation. Pashtuns on either side ensure security against third partiesjust see historic continuum. This myth also generates grandiose strategic iterations, like the necessity of Pakistan consequently seeking strategic depth in Afghanistanthe notion deflated last week. Such uncalled-for overt patronisation hurts Afghan sensibilities and is better when avoided. Myth No 8. If IEA wants, it can initiate effective (ejection) action against TTP. As mentioned repeatedly, IEA is incapable, more than it is unwilling to eject the TTP. Having understood the IEA predicament, Pakistan should continue to pursue religious diplomacy with Kabul, launch IBOs relentlessly (cis and trans-frontier), share intelligence and other support with Kabul, ratchet up diplomatic pressure and grant the TTP-issue a normal lifespan. Pakistan needs to do what it needs to do without making politically motivated absurd statements. Myth No 9. Pakistan never had any coherent Afghan policy. I hear this argument in important discourses from knowledgeable figures, who ironically were involved in policy formulation. This is perhaps attracting attention by saying something negativeknowing well its absurdity. We partnered with the rest of the world in successfully rolling back the Soviet occupation of Afghanistan, next door; Pakistan helped Afghans win their independence from 50-nation occupation force led by the US, and wisely pursued a policy protecting its national interestsas far as its NPP could permit; Islamabad remains the indispensable and most relevant interlocutor for stabilisation of Afghanistan, and yet sadly and ironically we are said to have no coherent Afghan policy. Re-reading some recent history would correct the ridiculousness of such blatantly anti-Pakistan, and self-belittling iterations. Our foreign office, military, political government and intelligentsia followed a first-rate Afghan policy to protect Pakistans core national interests as far as possible, under a given environment. Yes, policy implementation is not a clear-cut and clean affair, and has fallouts, that even powerful countries cannot escapedespite the alignment of policy objectives and direction. Americas meddlesome involvement in the Middle East would help detractors understand this truism. Policy improvement, review, fine-tuning and calibration to respond to emerging crises is a constant process that should continue. And policy should remain institutionalised, and not personality driven. Myth No 10. Pakistan has exhausted its leverages vis-a-vis Afghanistan. This was the observation of a respected Afghan watcher during a diplomatic function recently in Islamabad, shared by many. It is also an absurd fallacy. Other than historic, religious, ethno-linguistic, social, psychological, trade, economic, political and diplomatic leverages that Pakistan enjoys vis-a-vis Kabul as argued, Kabuls only leverage against Pakistan is Pashtunistan, if TTP is considered as transient dictate of the environment. And the Pashtunistan issue is out of sync with ground realties and overtaken by changing times. Today even Afghans (inclusive) having lived in the relative safety and prosperity of Pakistan want to make Pakistan their permanent home, come what may! Afghan refugees find it unthinkable to be uprooted again and thrust into the uncertainty of Afghanistan. Afghan grocery shopping is not possible without Pakistans border markets (hence the tension with fence). Female education, denied to Afghan diaspora inside their own country, is available to them in Pakistani schools, colleges and universities. Besides quality education, it affords them lifelong friendships. Healthcare at doorstep is available to Afghans already in Pakistan, and those re-entering for medical treatment, importantly at affordable costs, way cheaper than India, as some Afghans like to tout. Pakistani Embassy and consulates cannot handle the visa deluge. The list is long than the space can permit dear drawing room intellectuals. Myth No 11. Trade potential with Central Asia through Afghanistan is immense. One grew up with such noise about the potential that hasnt actualised despite Soviet Central Asia shedding the Soviet yoke in the 1990s. For over three decades this mantra has remained a mantra. The wealth flowing through pipelines, the gold and goods through container trucks, and the people and ideas on knowledge highway hasnt happened. We need to re-assess the Central Asian potential realistically and Afghanistans role in it pragmatically under cold calculating commercial logic, and not under historic romanticism. We might be surprised. Myth No 12. IEA is a monolith. Without deep socio-historic insight into Afghanistans segmentary politics, it is easier to consider the Islamic Emirate that evolved from the Afghan Taliban as a monolith. It would be useful to dissect IEAs religious, ideological, political, cultural, tribal and ethnic profile to understand it well. First religion and ideology. IEA mostly follows the Hanafi Islam, of taqleedi school of thought, steeped into the Deoband tradition emanating from the chain of Haqqani madrassas in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Briefly, Hanafi is one of the four widely practiced jurisprudence in contemporary Islam, following the fiqh (lawfare) of Imam Abu Hanifa (699-767 AD). Taqleed is the Subcontinents version of religious practice, emphasising following the clergy as opposed to re-interpretation or ijtihad. Deoband, Saharanpur, UP, India is the alma mater for taqleed in the Subcontinent with pervasive religious influence. Its leaders played a leading rule in Muslim political organisation and education in the 1860s. Haqqani is the nom-de-guerre used by graduates of Darul-Uloom Haqqania, Akora Khattak, KP, Pakistan, and its affiliate madrassahs elsewhere in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Since its inception between Kandahar and Maiwand in eastern Afghanistan in 1990s, Taliban Movement has steered clear of Salafi Islam practised by some Afghan resistance groups (Harkat and Hizb) and Shia influences under Hizb-e-Wahdat. Its alliance with Salafist al-Qaeda, espousing universal appeal for Sharia-based revolutions, was a patron (al-Qaeda)-client (IEA) relationship, that remains tactical in nature, and is nurtured by a curious mix of Islamic brotherhood and the tenets of pashtunwali the Afghan/Pashtun tribal code. In this universe, religious practice is subservient to tribal, specifically the pashtunwali ethos. IEA recalcitrance on girls education and female employment is a case in point. Within the broader Movement, Kandahar the spiritual head of the Movement is the ideological mover and shaker under the venerated Maulvi Haibatullah Akhundzada, hence my repeated emphasis on religious diplomacy with Kandahar. Kandahar is ideologically puritanical and symbolic. Northern Afghanistan Khowst, Paktia, Paktika, Nangarhar, etc bordering Pakistan have remained under the influence of Siraj Haqqani et al. These are formidable fighters making up the bulk of IEAs military power. Haqqanis voluntarily joined IEA during the 1990s and were not coopted under duress like many other groups. Hence Haqqanis yield influence and their distinct identity within IEA. Puritanical Kandahar and pragmatic Khowst share the need to present a united front to the world beyond Afghanistan as an existential compulsion. They need to be seen on one-page despite the cited backgrounds and differences. Second, ethnically the IEA, although predominantly Pashtun (95%), also has a sprinkling of non-Pashtun elements from northern Afghanistan, especially from the Uzbek, Tajik and Turkmen ethnic groups. IEA decided to penetrate northern Afghanistan around 2006 from Farah province, fanning into Nuristan, Badakhshan, etc. Besides, IEA is also a conglomerate of disparate groups, like Central Asias IMU (Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan), Chinas ETIM (Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement), TTP, al Qaeda, Arab fighters, Punjabi Taliban, etc following different ideological strands, and religiosity levels. Third, culturally IEA is not steeped in equal measure into religious zealotry, as significant renegade elements from the erstwhile Soviet era mujahideen groups, criminals, highway men, brigands and disgruntled government employees form its rank and file. The Movement actually started against the immorality, excesses and cruelty of strongmen and their militias, who had divided Afghanistan into their fiefs after the Soviet pullout in early 1990s. They had established checkpoints all over and would exact taxes and levies and administer punishments. Led by seminary students, the Movement over a period incorporated all segments of Afghan society through negotiations, appeasement, motivation and use of force. And in this all-male enterprise, there is no female cadre known, other than the female students of madrassahs inside Afghanistan. Four, IEA mirrors Afghanistans tribal mosaic especially in case of its Pashtun cadre. Afghan tribalism emphasises loyalty, following, and the power of collective. Tribal identity is segmentary and results in weak political organisation among Pashtuns as a whole, therefore it is important to hold things together using religion as the much-needed glue. IEA is traditionally populated by clergy namely the Akhunds, the Mojaddedis, the Maulvis, the Sheikhs, etc. Haqqanis of Loya Paktia (grater Paktia) are mainly from Zadran tribe (Mezi subtribe) with their spiritual and military power resident in Pakistans north Waziristan District, warranting collaboration with Wazir, Daur and Mahsud tribes on the Pakistani side. Whereas, the Kandahar elite is mainly from Hotak (Ghilzai) and Durrani tribes, collaborating with the Suleman Khel, Kakar and Achakzai tribes on Pakistani side of the Durand Line. Five, politically the IEA has hardliners represented by scholars and clerics; and moderates including the comparatively liberal younger cadre. Whereas the elderly non-yielding conservatives see everything through a spiritual and Islamist prism, emphasising the virtues of jihad and disregarding modern life and its bounties; the younger moderates are more worldly, IT-savvy and image-sensitive. In this see-saw for power and influence, conservatives have the final word. So, in the final analysis, relative opening-up of the Movement to a semblance of modernity would be possible over time in mid to long-term. Taliban Movement, like all movements, has a lifespan that should be granted, while understanding its compositional diversity, as discussed. That brings us to Myth No 13. IEA can re-orient the Afghan Transit Trade through the Iranian port of Chabahar, cutting reliance on Karachi and Pakistan. Landlocked Afghanistan heavily relies on transit trade from Pakistan through five joint border crossings at Torkham, Ghulam Khan, Angoor Ada, Spin Boldak and Dand-e-Patan. The Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investments first deputy head, Mohammad Yunus Momand recently claimed development of Wakhan Corridor and Chabahar Port as potential alternatives. India too seeks trade with Iran, Afghanistan and Central Asia through Chabahar Port cutting off Karachi and Gwadar. IEA has reportedly committed a $35 million investment in Chabahar. Whereas such attempts would betray Pakistans longstanding goodwill and concessions, it is easier said than done. A tilt towards a sanctioned Iran would compound IEAs problems of international legitimacy and undermine its residual influence with Pakistan. It is also not possible in the near to mid-term, given that ATT through Pakistan is deeply entrenched in the bordering business elite. These Sunni Pashtun traders may find it hard to trade through a Shiite Iran, that uses leverages much more punishingly than a sympathetic Pakistan. Maj Gen Inam Ul Haque retired from a distinguished military career spanning nearly four decades, including key roles in Operation AL-MIZAN combating terrorism along Pakistans Western borders. A graduate of prestigious military institutions and holder of multiple masters degrees, he now chairs companies promoting Pakistans defence exports, tourism, and home improvement. He contributes a weekly column to the Daily Express Tribune, engages actively in Rawalpindi Islamabad think tanks, and participates selectively in TV shows. Based in Islamabad, he can be contacted at tayyarinam@hotmail.com. Aries Spears took to Instagram to share his opinion on Black women wearing fake lashes while promoting his "Spears & Steinberg" podcast. In a recent reel upload, the 49-year-old stand-up comedian gave out a "quick public announcement," saying, "To all my beautiful Black queens out there, I want you to know from the bottom of my heart that I love you, I respect you. You're beautiful and you're mandatory." "That being said, can some of you all please, for the love of god, stop wearing your 'big fake a** eyelashes? You have no idea. Are you not aware of how ridiculous that s**t looks?" he continued. Mimicking how the fake lashes allegedly look with his hands, he remarked, "To have this on your face, it looks like you got pterodactyl wings on your face. You don't need it." "And if you're not proportioned correctly, and you're as skinny as Snoop Dogg, with this on your face, it is just a horrible look. Them (sic) eyelashes look like BBLs to your face. You don't need it. Love and respect." He captioned his reel, "STOP IT! Them [s**t emoji]'s look RIDICULOUS," and promoted his podcast, saying, "DM me for the link to the 'Spears & Steinberg' podcast. Also, subscribe to our YouTube channel under spearsbergpod. Hit like and subscribe." Seeing his post, social media users on Instagram quickly shared their thoughts and reactions. RELATED: Black Passenger In First Class Told To Use Restroom At Back Of Plane By AA Flight Attendant "Seems like you always have something to say negative[ly] about [Black] women. All races of women go overboard with it, but when [Black] women do something that does look good etc...," commented one Instagram user. "I just wanna know why people are so invested in others and what they do. Especially because everyone isn't perfect and has things they could work on, Mr Spears included," wrote another. "Sir, you need to worry about your blood sugar and cholesterol before worrying about our lashes. You have serious health issues. I can take my lashes off in five seconds, but it's [going to] take time for you to get your health together. I mean this as respectfully as you intended for your message to be," suggested a different commenter. "You have bigger things to worry about, like those dark circles around your eyes," quipped someone else. A few, however, agreed with Spears' message and said he was only sharing his opinion. "I agree with your message. I think that is kinda ridiculous as a fully grown man as well though. Everyone has an opinion right?" wrote one person. "As a woman who barely has eyelashes and still will not 'snuffleupagus' up her lash game, I approve [of] this message," commented another person. "I approve this PSA," said someone else. GREAT FALLS, Mont. - After the business of Independence Day flowing into the weekend, there are even more summer events to look forward to in Great Falls. Dive in with Shannon Newth to learn more about the musicals, museums, and festivals that are ready to welcome you to Great Falls in the week of July 8. Brother Van House tours Sometimes remarked as the "Best Loved Man in Montana," Brother Van is known for his work towards building important institutions like hospitals, colleges, churches and homes across Montana. The house he lived in in the early 1900s will be opening up for tours starting on Tuesday, July 9. Those tours will go Tuesday through Friday through the month. Visiting the Brother Van House could inspire you to to sing, to preach, and to encourage people to be good, as the most beloved man in Montana sought out to do as he traveled via steamboat, according to Suzanne Waring. Opening of "The Music Man" The Great Falls Theatre Company presents "The Music Man," its opening night being Thursday, July 11. The show will run Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays through July 20. This play will be performed at the Great Falls High School Davidson Family Auditorium to allow for accompaniment from a live band. Tickets start at $17 and can be purchased online at the theatre's website. Don't procrastinate, though - online sales close one hour before showtime! First Peoples Buffalo Jump Kite Festival First Peoples Buffalo Jump State Park is hosting the kite festival on Saturday and Sunday, July 13-14 from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. each day. Families can bring their own kits to decorate the sky with, or kite kits will be available to purchase on site for $10 so you can build your own. It's more than just paper on strings! Elaborate art and creativity goes onto many of the kites at this festival. There will also be history lessons and traditional Native game stations to ensure a full weekend of fun for the whole family. More information about the festival can be found on FWP's website. Labour's general election victory and the subsequent possible tax shifts could impact land and farm sales in England, according to property experts. Potential increases in Capital Gains Tax or the removal of Agricultural Property Relief (APR) could impact the market, GSC Grays warned. The firm, which has offices in the north of England, said it was hoped that Business Property Relief (BPR) would remain unchanged. But if APR is modified, it said farmers must ensure their farms are active enterprises to benefit from this relief. Labour made no promises on Capital Gains Tax in its manifesto, although during the election campaign, Sir Keir Starmer did guarantee that under a Labour government people selling their main home would not pay CGT. GSC Grays noted that land sales are currently experiencing increased activity, despite there being a shortage of good-sized arable or commercial farms coming to the market. Supply and demand are roughly balanced, but it would not take much to tip this balance, GSC Grays said, especially with factors like debt reduction and changes in farming policy playing a significant role. Guy Coggrave, managing director for GSC Grays, noted that farmers are increasingly using specialist advice focusing on profitability and sustainability of their farms. He said: For those who are considering selling, it is advisable to act promptly to make the most of what currently remains a favourable tax regime, which many commentators anticipate will change this autumn or next spring. With a new government crossing the threshold at Number Ten, law firm Clarke Wilmott LLP discusses how Labour will make their pledge to double the number of agricultural co-operatives and mutuals a reality. A key Labour manifesto pledge for agriculture was to double the number of co-operatives and mutuals in the industry from the current level of around 800. Approximately half of UK farmers are currently members and co-owners of these businesses, which play an important role in the UKs agricultural sector by giving farmers more control over the supply chain. Successful examples include the likes of Arla, one of the countrys biggest dairy co-operatives, owned by 2,000 dairy farmers and responsible for supplying more than a quarter of the nations milk pool. The volatility and uncertainty currently facing UK agriculture means farmers are already looking to alternative business models. Joint ventures, share/contract farming, and Producer Organisations (POs) are all different forms of co-operation and offer opportunities and benefits to different owners. Government support for creating more of these businesses will be welcome, but sound legal advice will be key in ensuring their success. The new administration plans to support this initiative by introducing a comprehensive package of measures designed to encourage the formation and growth of co-operatives and mutuals. This includes: Financial Incentives: Introducing grants and low-interest loans specifically for the development of co-operatives and mutuals. Education and Training: Providing farmers with access to education and training programs on the benefits and mechanics of forming co-operatives. Regulatory Support: Simplifying the regulatory framework to make it easier to establish and operate co-operatives. Forming a co-operative is currently a separate process (overseen by the FCA) from setting up a typical private company (registered at Companies House). Whereas Companies House charges 50 and typically processes the application within 24 hours, the FCA can levy fees of up to 950 and aims to register a co-operative within 15 working days. Any measures that narrow this gap, whilst ensuring the unique ethos of cooperatives is maintained, will be very welcome. Partnerships and Networks: Facilitating partnerships between co-operatives and research institutions to drive innovation and efficiency. Marketing Support: Assisting co-operatives in developing strong marketing strategies to promote their products both domestically and internationally. To spearhead this initiative, Labour propose to establish a dedicated task force that will work closely with industry stakeholders, legal experts, and financial institutions to identify and overcome barriers to the creation and expansion of co-operatives. Within the agricultural team at Clarke Willmott, specialist corporate lawyers have experience in the formation of various trading entities and groups. There are multiple aspects to consider when joining a cooperative or mutual including the rules, standards and contracts that farmers will be committing to. It is also important to think about what returns you are expecting from your involvement. There is a fundamental difference between private companies, where profits and capital are distributed in accordance with how many shares you have bought, and co-operatives, where returns are typically based on how much you have participated in or traded with the society. Like any contract it is important to consider the impact they will have one your business operation, succession planning and the flexibility you may need if your circumstances change. While using a standard document (such as model articles of association for companies or a co-operative sponsoring bodys model rules) may be convenient in the short term, it can lead to problems further down the line. As such it important to take experienced legal advice based on your particular circumstances. In the words of the incoming Agricultural Minister: Doubling the number of co-operatives and mutuals is not just a target; it's a necessary step towards a more resilient and self-sufficient agricultural sector. "By empowering farmers through co-operation, we can build a future where they have greater control, security, and prosperity. by S. Mohammed Bokreta Editors Note: As Algeria celebrates its Independence Day on the 5th of July, we reflect on the profound impact of the Algerian Revolution not only on its own soil but also across the globe. This article delves into the far-reaching influence of the 1954 revolution, highlighting its role in inspiring liberation movements worldwide. Algeria celebrates on 05 July the 61st anniversary of its Independence from France. [Photo: EPA / MOHAMED MESSARA] O, my Sustainer! Open up my heart to Thy light and make my task easy for me, and loosen the knot from my tongue so they might fully understand my speech. (Holy Quran 20:25-28) History not only tells us about the past but also influences our present and shapes our future. This vivid definition inspired me to reflect on the greatness and impact of the Algerian revolution of the 1st of November 1954. In June 1982, in Tehran, the capital of the newly established Islamic Republic of Iran, a revolution had toppled the Pahlavi dynasty, which was supported by US imperialism for decades. The once formidable army of the Shah was known as the fifth world power. Our visit to Iran was part of our quest to understand this nascent revolution, which disrupted Western plans. The octogenarian Imam Khomeini had created an upheaval in the Middle East. As Zbigniew Brzezinski, the former US National Security Advisor, noted, Imam Khomeini viewed America as a corrupting force, promoting alcoholism, pornography, and the erosion of ethics and morality among the Muslim people of Iran. During our stay, the war imposed on Iran by Saddams Baathist regime, financially supported by the Persian Gulf monarchies and the West, was at its peak, causing immense destruction. These opponents saw the new Islamic regime as a destabilizing threat to the region and to the allies of the great Satan. The slogan Neither East Bloc nor Western Bloc, championed by Imam Khomeini, inspired many freedom fighters to adopt an exceptional stance during a time when people yearned for modern Islamic thought and support for emancipatory movements challenging the status quo. During a visit to the lavish marble palace Saadabad in Tehran, converted into a museum after the revolution, I was surprised to meet Professor Nur Misuari, chairman of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) from the Mindanao Islands in the southern Philippines. He informed me that his movement had modeled itself on the Algerian FLN-ALN during its struggle against the Manila government, adopting the same tactics used by our Glorious Mujahedeen during the war of liberation against the French occupiers. Remarkably, the MNLF even shares the same name, FLN. Awed and surprised by this revelation, I realized the profound impact of our great Algerian revolution on liberation movements, even in remote places like the Mindanao Islands, stretching between the Pacific Ocean and the South China Sea. With rationalism and a scientific approach, this encounter in Tehran in 1982 filled me with indescribable pride in the Weight of the Algerian Revolution. It was a true battle for freedom, faith, and human dignity. The universal dimension of the November 1954 revolution is intimately linked to the proclamation of the 1st November declaration, which focuses on Islamic principles, social justice, equity, authenticity, and modernity. During the celebration of the 60th Anniversary of the 1st November revolution in 2014, Professor Nur Misuari reaffirmed his earlier comments made in Tehran by sending me a letter reconfirming the content of our meeting 34 years ago. This testimony is written today through the will of Almighty God, fueled by a fierce ambition to travel and a curiosity to discover others. This experience has enriched my general culture and continues to improve through research, travel, and interactions with wise people and scholars. It is a Divine blessing to increase knowledge and adhere to the teachings of the Holy Quran, starting with the verse: Read in the name of thy Lord. In writing this historic testimony, I do so with consciousness and a love of writing, not by directive. It is intended primarily to serve future generations of my Muslim community (Ummah) and my country. S. Mohammed Bokreta is a Freelance Writer and Cultural Consultant based in Algiers, Algeria. Specializing in Islamic values, political issues, historical events, and tourism topics, his work has been featured in international newspapers and magazines for over 36 years. Fluent in Arabic, French, and English, Bokreta also translates significant Islamic manuscripts. With a background as a Bank and Shipping Manager, his extensive experience and communication skills aim to educate and inspire future generations. As Bangladesh faces crucial hurdles in benefitting from duty-free market access to China due to several systemic and strategic issues, business leaders emphasise the necessity of signing a free trade agreement (FTA) with China to boost exports. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations Bangladesh could potentially earn an additional $27 billion by exporting quality and diversified goods to China, provided its market share increases to 1 per cent, a recent study by the Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID) revealed. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations However, critical barriers preventing this growth are Bangladesh's heavy reliance on the readymade garment (RMG) sector; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; insufficient participation in marketing, sales and after-sale services; cultural and language barriers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations, the study report said. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations RAPID chairman MA Razzaque said China prefers high-quality garments from Italy and other European countries, importing such products worth around $10 billion annually. Bangladesh must diversify its exports and improve product quality to penetrate the Chinese market. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations He emphasised the need for aggressive policies, including attracting China-oriented investments and signing trade agreements, according to Bangladesh media reports. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations Chinese products also often have lower price than similar-quality products from Bangladesh, he noted. The rising e-commerce sector in China is another challenge, as entrepreneurs in Bangladesh need better skills to effectively tap this market. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations Encouraging Chinese investors to set up manufacturing hubs in Bangladesh could be a strategic move, Razzaque suggests. As Bangladesh faces hurdles in gaining from duty-free market access to China, business leaders emphasise the need for signing an FTA with China. A study found critical barriers preventing Bangladesh's export growth to China include over-reliance on garments; lack of integration with Chinese retailers; and stringent Chinese labelling and packaging regulations Al-Mamun Mridha, general secretary of the Bangladesh China Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCCI) said some Chinese investors are indeed considering shifting their manufacturing units to Bangladesh. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS) Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific (APAC) more advanced economies, which may result from the growing number of consumers ascending to the middle and upper classes, according to McKinseys latest ConsumerWise Survey. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Consumer optimism in China increased in the second quarter (Q2) this year, primarily fueled by younger generations, while confidence dipped in India ahead of the national election results. This decline was particularly pronounced among baby boomers, the survey revealed. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the United States. In Australia, economic activity has virtually stalled, and Japans economy contracted in the second quarter, primarily because of the repercussions of the Noto earthquake in early 2024 and slowing economic growth. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Consumers in leading APAC markets have turned more cautious and thoughtful since the beginning of this year and a growing number of consumers are trading down to save money, although many are also inclined to selectively splurge, it found. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. While South Koreas economy expanded faster than anticipated, consumer confidence there has declined. However, there is a pronounced generational divide: Gen Xers and baby boomers are more pessimistic about the economy than millennials and Gen Zers. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others, an article on McKinsey website said. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. In India, consumers consistently express net positive spending intent for both essential and semi-essential items. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. In Japan and Australia, net spending intent is largely negative, except for a few essential categories. Consumers in these countries show the least inclination to spend on luxury and non-essential items. Overall spending intent remains negative across all categories in South Korea. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Consumer demand is rising for the seamless integration of physical and digital retail offerings, or a so-called phygital experience. According to the survey, consumers are using a broader range of channels than ever before to purchase groceries and other goods, with South Korea, China and India showing particularly high levels of omni-channel engagement. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. In these countries, more than half of consumers expect to use multiple channels for shopping across all categories. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Despite economic uncertainty promoting increased saving, APAC consumers are increasingly willing to spend more in select categories. Between 60 and 80 per cent of consumers in India and China are increasing their spending overall. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. APAC consumers are actively adapting their shopping habits; for example, switching brands, trying new digital shopping methods and opting for private-label brands. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Across the region, more than 60 per cent of consumers say the primary motivation for switching brands or retailers is the pursuit of better value. Quality and novelty also play crucial roles in influencing consumer behaviour. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. The shift has been particularly significant in China in Q2 2024: 86 per cent of consumers have altered their shopping behaviour in search of greater value, an increase of seven percentage points from the previous quarter. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. In contrast, consumers in Japan are changing their behaviour at a slower pace, demonstrating greater brand loyalty and a preference for familiar shopping channels. Consumer confidence is higher in India and China than in Asia-Pacific' (APAC) more advanced economies, a McKinsey survey revealed. Consumer sentiment appears less buoyant in advanced APAC economies than in Europe and the US. While spending intentions for the coming quarter are positive in some APAC markets, they are predominantly negative in others. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS) Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security by participating in the design and development of the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. Prime Minister Hun Manet met visiting Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko at the Peace Palace in Phnom Penh. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. Kamikawa said Japan would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity, a Japanese foreign ministry release said. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. They also agreed to expand economic cooperation and attract Japanese investment into the latter. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. For the future, the Government of Japan will continue to strengthen and expand relations and cooperation with the Royal Government of Cambodia in both bilateral and multilateral frameworks, Manet posted on social media. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. Both leaders discussed ways to further strengthen and expand economic cooperation and attract investment from Japan. Japan and Cambodia recently agreed in principle to strengthen and expand cooperation in infrastructure and maritime security. Japanese foreign minister Kamikawa Yoko said his country would like to cooperate with Cambodia to develop the Sihanoukville Autonomous Port as a hub and logistics base for the latter and the region to strengthen maritime connectivity. Kamikawa promised to encourage more Japanese investors to invest in Cambodia. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (DS) EURATEX together with COTANCE and CEC hosted the TCLF SkillBridge Stakeholder Event, an important step towards forming regional skills partnerships by bringing together various stakeholders from industry, education, and public sectors. The TCLF SkillBridge Stakeholder Event, hosted by EURATEX, COTANCE, and CEC, marked a significant step in fostering regional skills partnerships across Europe. Funded by the European Commission, the project targets up to 25 regions with strong textile, clothing, leather, and footwear industries, complementing initiatives like AEQUALIS4TCLF and METASKILLS4TCLF. Co-financed by the European Commission, TCLF SkillBridge aims to establish and nurture regional partnerships between TCLF industries, regional authorities, and local universities and VET providers. The project will target up to 25 European regions with a strong concentration of textile, clothing, leather or footwear industries. This regional focus will allow the development of specific action plans related to reskilling and upskilling, which meet the needs of each target region. The project will support the creation of such partnerships, facilitate community exchanges for knowledge sharing, and provide support to SMEs, enabling them to upskill and reskill their workforce in tune with the evolving demands of the industry. The TCLF SkillBridge project complements 2 other initiatives AEQUALIS4TCLF and METASKILLS4TCLF which have already been launched under the Erasmus+ Programme. As a result, the industry has now a coherent set of instruments across the EU to address the skills challenges. During the event, stakeholders from the Emilia Romagna Region, ATEVAL, and Verband der Deutschen Lederindustrie e.V. gave insights in their experiences in skills collaborations in their regions. An interactive session then followed, where stakeholders discussed how to successfully establish such regional partnerships under the Pact for Skills. Dirk Vantyghem, EURATEX director general was excited to host the event as coordinator of the TCLF SkillBridge project: This project confirms the importance of working at regional level, close to the SMEs and understanding the specificities of each region. We hope TCLF SkillBridge will act as a trigger to mobilise relevant stakeholders to co-invest in their TCLF industries. In this relation, Carmen Arias, secretary general in the European Footwear Confederation (CEC), added: By investing in education and training that align with the region's economic priorities, policymakers can ensure that workers have the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in the evolving labour market. As CEC, we will continue helping these industries build a competitive advantage and position themselves in the global market. COTANCE secretary general, Gustavo Gonzalez-Quijano: "In the SkillBridge project, COTANCE is leading the charge by offering tailored mentorship to TCLF stakeholders aimed at guiding their regional skills partnerships towards developing educational strategies for higher levels of sustainability and competitiveness in their respective industries. Working closely with partners across Europe, we are united in our mission to drive the EU leather, textiles, clothing, and footwear sectors towards a greener, more resilient and innovative future. Note: The content of this press release has not been edited by Fibre2Fashion staff. Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU) by Linda Farthing and Thomas Grisaffi The following article is syndicated in partnership with the North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA). Remigia Ferrel Vallejos, a Bolivian union executive from Chimore, in the coca-grower Chapare region, isnt nostalgic for the old days. Before there was a lot of fatalism. Many times, in meetings I was told, women dont count, the man has to come, she explains. Thats how it was; we didnt even have the right to speak, or keep our own names, or hold title to land. Now its almost 50-50, we have rights, and we participate. We have authorities at every level of government who are women. Market Scene, La Paz, Bolivia [ Photo: Lesly Derksen/Unsplash] Ferrel is describing the remarkable transformation over a decade of Bolivias rural Indigenous women from helpers of male-dominated peasant unions to ministers in the Movement Toward Socialism (MAS) government of Evo Morales from 2006 to 2019. Yet this achievement stands in stark contrast to the current disintegration of the MAS and its political project due to a fractious competition between the current president, Luis Lucho Arce, and former President Morales. The infighting has also split the national Indigenous womens organization, the National Confederation of Campesino Women of Bolivia Bartolina Sisa, commonly known as Las Bartolinas, that spearheaded the changes in Indigenous womens status during the Morales era. The Bartolinas are estimated to have some 1.5 million members, making it the countrys most important womens organization as well as the largest Indigenous womens organization in the Americas. Despite the rifts today, the surge in political inclusion of one of Latin Americas most politically marginalized groups achieved by the Bartolinas reflects a metamorphosis that has never occurred anywhere else before or since. Bolivias gains in gender parity are particularly significant during the current super election yearwhen more of the worlds population will vote than any other time in human historyyet most candidates worldwide remain men. Seeds of Change The roots of Bolivias success are found in Ferrels home region of the Chapare, where Indigenous coca-growing women, known as cocaleras, fought against the 1990s U.S.-financed war on drugs. Constant police and military repression in the Chapare during that period accelerated the creation of a separate womens movement. I always say women are stronger thanks to coca, thanks to the government of the USA, jokes former union leader Apolonia Sanchez, who from 2016 to 2019 headed the Cochabamba departments Decolonization unit. We were obliged to get organized, even if the men did not want us to. Given cocas importance to household finances in the Chapare, growers mobilized to defend their right to cultivate the leaf, using the vocabulary of Indigenous rights and national sovereignty. Women also deployed traditional gender roles as the weaker sex to advance their movements goals in the streets: Women went first because the men were attacked like animals, and we werent. For that reason, women have always been at the head of the march, recalls union leader Rosena Rodriguez from the town of Shinahota. In March 1995, a congress of national peasant organizations convened to form a political instrument to represent campesino interestswhich eventually became the MAS party. Womens involvement proved a game changer in ensuring Moraless rise to national leadership; he and other male coca grower leaders efforts to position themselves as the vanguard of the countrys peasant movement depended on cocalera backing. Our brother Evo said, together with the women, we will defend ourselves, recalls Sanchez. Another critical turning point came with the 400 km (250 mile) Womens March to La Paz in December 1995, demanding an end to coca eradication and respect for human rights. For the first time in Bolivias history, Indigenous women acted as representatives of social movements and negotiated directly with the government without male intermediaries. By the early 2000s, cocaleras from the Chapare had become the countrys most dedicated advocates for Indigenous women. We remain the best organized, says Maria Eugenia Ledezma, the leader of the Chapare womens organizations. Our struggle is not just for our own region, its for the whole country. For people with little formal education, union participation was like going to school, preparing them for leadership positions. Cocalera and former Bartolinas executive Leonilda Zurita, who served as a national senator from 2006 to 2009, told sociologist Sandra Ramos Salazar: To go to union meetings was our high school, the meetings of the Six Federations [Chapare coca growers unions] our university, and national level meetings our specialization. This training has meant that the cocaleras have led the Bartolinas more often than women from anywhere else in the country. That cocalera leadership and influence proved instrumental in the formidable coalition of social movements that thrust Morales to the presidency in late 2005. The new government went on to guarantee equal pay for equal work; significantly increase womens access to land, education, and health care; and announced plans to curb endemic violence against women, among the highest in Latin America. Bolivias overall poverty rate plummeted, which impacted the poorest, least educated, and most marginalized groupworking-class Indigenous womenmore than any other.Nonetheless, like many laws in a country that has always lacked implementation capacity, equal pay enforcement was (and is) almost non-existent. And despite legal protections and government campaigns, violence against women persists as one of Bolivias most serious problems. Girls and women endure more partner violence than anywhere else in Latin America and the Caribbean, with most femicides57 percentimpacting largely Indigenous women from the countryside, where only 30 percent of the population currently lives. Indigenous Women and Feminisms Find Common Cause As Indigenous womens organizing gathered steam, this constituency also benefited from the advances made by urban middle-class feminists, particularly their pioneering work advancing electoral representation during the late 1990s. Indigenous women nevertheless kept a critical distance during this period. Tensions between the Bartolinas and feminists have historically run deep, stemming from hundreds of years of Indigenous womens servitude to lighter-skinned women, who often viewed them as clients of their nongovernmental projects rather than as political partners. The Bartolinas frequently identified feminism as a white, middle-class consequence of capitalism, even when they were in the same political party. Prior to 2019, when Morales was ousted and replaced with a far-right government, Bolivian feminismwith the exception of feminist anarchist groups like Mujeres Creando and the Asamblea Feminista Comunitariararely considered Indigenous women, either theoretically or ideologically. This blind spot echoed historical patternslike the exclusion of Indigenous women from the first suffrage struggles in 1929, which advocated literacy as a criterion for the votethat have hampered collaboration between Indigenous women and middle-class women for generations. Indigenous women argued that feminism incited disagreements with Indigenous men and undervalued Indigenous culture. Because of these differences, racial equality has consistently trumped gender as Bolivian Indigenous womens priority, although that has steadily shifted with time. In 2023, the Bartolina leadership declared a frontal fight against machismo which is the source of violence and violation of our rights. This changed dynamic in Bolivias womens movements is also reflected in the explosive growth of radical feminism in the aftermath of the 2019 crisis, mirroring a process throughout the Americas, particularly among young urban women, including those of Indigenous origin. Fueled in part by widespread revelations of sexual abuse in Bolivia condoned by the Catholic Church, marches for International Womens Day and the hemispheric Ni Una Menos anti-violence campaign have proliferated and grown, as have feminist collectives and organizations. Almost all of this new mobilization incorporates a broader population in terms of race and class than its predecessors. The Struggle Goes On In 2009, the Bartolinas successfully coordinated with middle-class feminists to incorporate gender parity into a new constitution, which emerged as one of the most advanced in womens rights in the world. The Bartolinas were largely convinced by cocalera leader Leonilda Zurita, who argued that gender parity was consistent with Indigenous values. The political parties agreed to gender parity without realizing what it actually meant, said Monica Novillo, former director of the Womens Coalition, a broad-based alliance of feminist non-governmental organizations. The Constitution changed a great deal, raising consciousness of womens rights among many people for the first time, maintains Freddy Condo, a longtime adviser to the Bartolinas. Today, Bolivia stands out as one of the few countries where women make up approximately 50 percent of lawmakers across all levels of government. As Bolivian women only won the vote in 1953, this achievement is extraordinary. Achieving gender equality has not been easy: after parity was mandated, some men presented themselves as women and were crudely referred to as transvestite candidates in the media. And male-dominated parties often selected women candidates they were sure they could control, according to Jessy Lopez, director of the Association of Councilwoman of Bolivia, or ACOBOL. Violence against the new female politicians grew as well. Over 80 percent of women municipal councilors reported to ACOBOL at least one case of violence or political intimidation while in office, most often carried out by other authorities, Lopez told us in a 2015 interview. Councilwoman have had their house set on fire, their husbands fired from their jobs, their children assaulted, and been physically attacked, all so that theyll resign early, she reported. In two cases, women serving as municipal council members have been murdered. In 2012, Evo Morales government passed Law 348, one of the regions most progressive anti-violence laws, which was accompanied by a public campaign denouncing violence against women. This is our great internal contradiction, explains Monica Novillo, We have extremely high levels of violence at the same time that we have achieved legislative equality. Implementation of the law has been patchy at best. While domestic violence reporting rose by 40 percent, Law 348 faces the same problems with its application as other laws: inadequate resources. Women are also re-victimized by the judicial system, face chronic corruption and impunity, as well as a culture that obstructs womens ability to denounce their aggressors. One of the few women mayors in rural Bolivia, the Chapares Segundina Orellana, told us: There remains an attitude that women are inferior, and this begins in childhood. Women suffer because we have family responsibilities, and men just dont understand. We need more education and training to lead. One struggle Bolivian women face is the doble jornadathe double working day. Womens responsibility is still the family: to raise children, cook, and once that is done, then we can leave home and work as leaders, says Honorata Diaz, a former Chapare municipal councilwoman. Ruth Sejas Charca, another former councilmember, agrees: Women always have more work and responsibilities. While the mobilization of the cocaleras pushed the MAS government toward greater emphasis on rural Indigenous women, many stumbling blocks remain. As a woman, I have been a union leader and I have known women who have been the top leader of their union, which is usually a mans job, says departmental assemblywoman Maria Javier Yucra. There have been advances, right? But we still have so much more to do. Linda Farthing has 30 years of experience in Latin America as a journalist, independent scholar, study abroad director, and film field producer. She has written four books on Bolivia and reported for The Guardian, Al Jazeera, the Nation and NACLA. Thomas Grisaffi teaches Human Geography at the University of St Gallen, Switzerland. He is the author of Coca yes, Cocaine no: how Bolivias coca growers reshaped democracy (Duke University Press, 2019). SINGAPORE, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- From 3 to 5 July 2024, The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon led a delegation from the Supreme Court of Singapore on a visit to the Supreme Court of Brunei Darussalam. Last July, the Chief Justice of Brunei Darussalam, The Honourable Dato Seri Paduka Steven Chong Wan Oon visited the Singapore Courts. During Chief Justice Chong's visit to Singapore, the two Chief Justices held an in-person bilateral meeting, and a Memorandum of Understanding to promote bilateral judicial cooperation between the two judiciaries was signed. During Chief Justice Menon's visit to Brunei Darussalam, the two Chief Justices discussed how judicial cooperation between the Singapore and Brunei judiciaries could be further enhanced. Chief Justice Menon also met with Brunei Darussalam's Attorney General, Yang Berhormat Datin Paduka Dayang Hajah Nor Hashimah binti Haji Mohammed Taib. Chief Justice Menon delivered a speech to the Brunei judiciary on "The Role of an Effective and Efficient Judiciary in Promoting Economic Development - The Singapore Perspective" during the visit. In the speech, he shared the Singapore perspective on the role of the judiciary in promoting and supporting economic development on three levels. First, by deciding individual cases in a way that is sensitive to commercial realities and responsive to new developments in the wider operating environment; second, by providing efficient and appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms; and third, by supporting the broader transnational system of commercial justice that provides a sound legal framework for transnational commercial activity. Justice Kannan Ramesh, who was part of the Singapore delegation, briefed Bruneian stakeholders and government agencies on Singapore's insolvency and restructuring regime. He spoke about Singapore's experience in reforming and modernising Singapore's legal frameworks for insolvency and restructuring, and in particular on Singapore's adoption of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency, and on the development of the Judicial Insolvency Network's Guidelines and Modalities. Chief Justice Menon said: "I am deeply grateful for the warm and generous welcome extended to the Singapore delegation by Chief Justice Chong and the Brunei judiciary. The discussions we have had will be invaluable in helping both judiciaries understand one another's experiences and perspectives better. This visit has deepened the ties between our two judiciaries and has paved the way for enhanced judicial cooperation." Visit News and speeches (judiciary.gov.sg) for more details. View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/chief-justice-sundaresh-menon-visits-brunei-darussalam-to-further-bilateral-judicial-cooperation-302190508.html LONDON, July 08, 2024, the global leader in Decision Intelligence, to support the UK Armed Forces Community with service-friendly policies and recruitment efforts. Quantexa's signature reinforces its commitment to the UK military by pledging to: Offer 10 days paid leave for Reserve Forces and Cadet Force Adult Volunteers (CFAVs) Work with the Career Transition Partnership (CTP) to help those transitioning back into civilian life Work with Forces Families Jobs (FFJ) to provide training and employment opportunities for family members of currently serving UK military personnel As part of the partnership, Quantexa will work to embed the values and principles of the Armed Forces Covenant into its team culture by supporting staff with flexible and inclusive working arrangements tailored to individual staff's needs. Quantexa will also proactively work to increase the number of people with security clearances in its wider network. The official signing event took place on the 12th of June in the historic room of the Ministry of Defence main building with Major General Sarah Johansen, the Deputy Chief of Defence Intelligence and Quantexa CEO Vishal Marria. They were joined by several Quantexa representatives, including Chief Operating Officer Ray O'Brien and Chief Evangelist Imam Hoque, as well as board members Simon Collins, former KPMG chairman; Colin Bell, CEO of HSBC PLC; and Lord Jonathan Evans, former Director General of MI5. Vishal Marria, Quantexa Founder and CEO, said: "We are honored to sign the UK Armed Forces Covenant, which shows our dedication, appreciation, and admiration for the courageous people who protect our country. By signing the agreement, we promise to create opportunities and provide support for veterans, reservists, and their families, making sure they receive the acknowledgment and help they deserve." To learn more about the Armed Forces Covenant, please visit here. About Quantexa Quantexa is a global AI, data and analytics software company pioneering Decision Intelligence to empower organizations to make trusted operational decisions with data in context. Using the latest advancements in AI, Quantexa's Decision Intelligence platform helps organizations uncover hidden risk and new opportunities by unifying siloed data and turning it into the most trusted, reusable resource. It solves major challenges across data management, customer intelligence, KYC, financial crime, risk, fraud, and security, throughout the customer lifecycle. The Quantexa Decision Intelligence Platform enhances operational performance with over 90% more accuracy and 60 times faster analytical model resolution than traditional approaches. An independently commissioned Forrester TEI study on Quantexa's Decision Intelligence Platform found that customers saw a three-year 228% ROI. Founded in 2016, Quantexa now has more than 700 employees and thousands of platform users working with billions of transactions and data points across the world. Media Enquiries C: Stephanie Crisp, Fight or Flight E: Quantexa@fightorflight.com OR C: Adam Jaffe, SVP of Corporate Marketing T: +1 609 502 6889 E:adamjaffe@quantexa.com Phoenix, Arizona--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Phoenix Pro Landscaping, a leading provider of comprehensive landscaping services in Gilbert, Arizona, has announced the launch of its groundbreaking "Water-Wise Landscapes" program. This innovative initiative aims to transform residential and commercial properties in Gilbert, offering sustainable, drought-resistant landscaping solutions that beautifully align with the region's arid climate while significantly reducing water consumption. In response to the increasing water scarcity concerns in Arizona, Phoenix Pro Landscaping has developed this program to address the growing demand for environmentally responsible landscaping options. The "Water-Wise Landscapes" initiative combines cutting-edge xeriscaping techniques, smart irrigation systems, and native plant selections to create stunning outdoor spaces that thrive in Gilbert's unique desert environment. Figure 1 Landscaping Gilbert AZ To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10606/215691_50a1d3e8c48ff85f_001full.jpg Anthony Campos, owner of Phoenix Pro Landscaping, expressed his enthusiasm for the new program: "As stewards of the environment and leaders in landscaping Gilbert, we recognize our responsibility to promote sustainable practices. Our 'Water-Wise Landscapes' program represents a significant step forward in water conservation efforts while delivering the aesthetic appeal our clients desire. We're not just creating beautiful landscapes; we're fostering a more sustainable future for our community." The "Water-Wise Landscapes" program offers a comprehensive landscaping approach beyond traditional methods. It includes: Xeriscaping Design: Phoenix Pro Landscaping's team of expert designers creates custom landscape plans that maximize water efficiency without compromising on beauty. By strategically placing drought-resistant plants and incorporating hardscaping elements, they create visually striking landscapes that require minimal water. Smart Irrigation Systems: The company integrates state-of-the-art irrigation technology that utilizes weather data and soil moisture sensors to optimize watering schedules. These systems can reduce water usage by up to 50% compared to traditional sprinkler systems. Native Plant Selection: Phoenix Pro Landscaping emphasizes the use of native and adapted plant species that thrive in Gilbert's climate with minimal water requirements. This approach not only conserves water but also supports local ecosystems and wildlife. Soil Improvement: The program includes advanced soil amendment techniques to enhance water retention and promote healthy plant growth, reducing the need for frequent watering. Rainwater Harvesting: Innovative rainwater collection systems are incorporated into the landscape design, allowing homeowners and businesses to make the most of Gilbert's limited rainfall. The launch of this program comes at a crucial time for Gilbert and the broader Phoenix metropolitan area. With water conservation becoming increasingly important in the face of ongoing drought conditions, Phoenix Pro Landscaping's initiative offers a proactive solution that allows residents and businesses to maintain beautiful outdoor spaces while being mindful of water usage. Figure 2 Lawn Service Gilbert To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10606/215691_50a1d3e8c48ff85f_002full.jpg "Our clients are increasingly aware of the need for water conservation, but many are unsure how to achieve this without sacrificing the beauty of their landscapes," Campos noted. "The 'Water-Wise Landscapes' program demonstrates that sustainability and aesthetic appeal can go hand in hand. We're excited to see the positive impact this will have on our community and the environment." Phoenix Pro Landscaping's commitment to sustainability extends beyond this new program. The company has also implemented eco-friendly practices in its operations, including the use of electric landscaping equipment to reduce emissions and noise pollution. Additionally, they offer organic lawn care options, further minimizing the environmental impact of their services. The "Water-Wise Landscapes" program has already garnered attention from local environmental groups and city officials. Gilbert's Water Conservation Office has expressed interest in partnering with Phoenix Pro Landscaping to promote water-efficient landscaping practices throughout the city. As part of the program's launch, Phoenix Pro Landscaping is offering free consultations to Gilbert residents and businesses interested in transforming their outdoor spaces. These consultations will provide property owners with personalized recommendations for creating water-wise landscapes that meet their specific needs and preferences. "We believe that education is key to promoting sustainable landscaping practices," Campos explained. "Through these consultations, we aim to empower our clients with the knowledge and tools they need to make informed decisions about their outdoor spaces." The introduction of the "Water-Wise Landscapes" program reinforces Phoenix Pro Landscaping's position as a leader in innovative and sustainable landscaping solutions in Gilbert. As the company continues to grow and evolve, it remains committed to balancing beautiful design with environmental responsibility. For Gilbert residents and businesses looking to enhance their properties while conserving water, Phoenix Pro Landscaping's new program offers an exciting opportunity to be at the forefront of sustainable landscaping. With their expertise in lawn maintenance, hardscaping, and landscape design, combined with this new focus on water conservation, Phoenix Pro Landscaping is poised to transform the way Gilbert thinks about outdoor spaces. About Phoenix Pro Landscaping: Phoenix Pro Landscaping is a premier provider of comprehensive landscaping services in Gilbert, Arizona, and the surrounding areas. With a team of skilled professionals and a commitment to sustainability, the company offers a wide range of services including lawn care, landscape design, installation, lawn maintenance, and now, water-wise landscaping solutions. Phoenix Pro Landscaping is dedicated to creating beautiful, functional, and environmentally responsible outdoor spaces for residential and commercial clients. For media inquiries, please contact: Anthony Campos Owner, Phoenix Pro Landscaping Phone: (480) 600-0603 Email: info@phoenixprolandscaping.com Website: https://phoenixprolandscaping.com/ To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215691 SOURCE: Link Sprint Digital Raleigh, North Carolina--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - As the year transitions into its third quarter, VIP Capital Funding goes a notch up with their improved fast funding solutions for small and mid-sized businesses in the US. Addressing previous challenges, the company now offers quick online application and requires only 3 - 4 months' bank statements to initiate the credit approval process. The decade-old Fintech firm assures to capably support 95% of the SMBs during economic fluctuations. Photo: Joshua Triplett, Founder | President To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10050/215232_1cc36b5c04e089b7_001full.jpg Joshua E Triplett, founder and president of VIP Capital Funding, stated, "Our feature-rich business term loans California can be used as bridge loans now to efficiently deal with financial gaps in businesses. Companies with annual revenues of $1MM - $125MM can easily avail the funds as we value cash flow over credit score." In the current economic climate, many SMBs encounter significant challenges in running their ventures. The capital provided by the Fintech firm can be utilized for multiple business activities such as expansion, marketing & advertisement, renovations, purchase of equipment, materials or machineries, new investments or projects, etc. Borrowers can expect their working capital loan approval within 24 hours of applying and secure funding in 24 - 48 hours of acceptance, owing to the company's enhanced online process. According to Joshua E Triplett, this rapid turnaround is crucial in today's fast-paced business environment, where any delay in credit disbursal can be detrimental. VIP Capital Funding further provides 100% - 200% increased financing amounts based on average revenue over 4 months. In a recent statement issued by VIP Capital Funding, its Vice President, Carlos Hernandez shared his insights on the company's journey. "I have faced and overcome several challenges in my quest to support small and medium-sized businesses. Initially, gaining the trust of owners wary of external funding was difficult. Many were hesitant towards new financial partnerships owing to their previous undesirable experiences." "However, our unwavering commitment, honesty and transparent policies helped us in building trust with our clients and gaining their loyalty for working capital loans. That's the most gratifying part of my role," he added. Carlos Hernandez further mentioned success stories of a local bakery and a tech startup who have expanded their businesses and strengthened cash flow with flexible revenue based funding Ohio from VIP Capital Funding. Senior Funding Manager of the Fintech firm, James Jones shared another case study of a construction business, "The owner avails our fast funding solution every quarter for valuable business operations like prep work for a new project, expansion, etc. Besides exclusive features, he benefits from our early prepayment discounts for easy business loan repayment." Randy Kranawetter, Senior Funding Director, VIP Capital Funding pointed out a recent notable accomplishment, stating, "A dental company with a complex business structure was facing significant financial obstacles. Regardless of their intricate setup, we managed to secure a $3,000,000 bridge loan for them which enabled the company to navigate ongoing challenges and pursue expansion." As 2024 steadily nears its end, the growing awareness and demand for ethical financing solutions keeps VIP Capital Funding optimistic about the future. "We are dedicated to continually improving our services, ensuring convenience, and providing tailored corporate loans Florida to address unique business needs. Our aim is to play the catalyst for success, aiding more businesses in thriving and contributing to the country's economy," said the founder, Joshua E Triplett. About VIP Capital Funding VIP Capital Funding is a prominent Fintech firm with its scope spreading across the United States. It provides customized working capital loans starting from $50K to up to $15MM with minimal eligibility criteria. Based in Raleigh, North Carolina, the company is founded by Joshua E Triplett with the aim to make financial solutions affordable and accessible. Currently, more than 50 members are employed who together support ventures with fast funding, flexible features and an effortless procedure. Media Contacts Joshua Triplett, Founder | President VIP Capital Funding: LinkedIn Facebook Instagram Reddit handles Website: https://vipcapitalfunding.com/ Office Phone: 800-735-7754 Carlos Hernandez, Senior Vice President Direct: 919-300-0203 Email: carlos@vipcapitalfunding.com James Jones, Senior Funding Manager Direct: 919-300-5906 Email: james@vipcapitalfunding.com Randy Kranawetter, Senior Funding Director Direct: 919-300-5906 Email: randy@vipcapitalfunding.com To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215232 SOURCE: VIP Capital Funding Commerce Resources Corp. (TSXv:CCE)(FSE:D7H0)(OTCQX:CMRZF) (the "Company" or "Commerce") announces that is has filed on SEDAR+ a technical report prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101") titled "Mineral Resource Estimate for the Ashram Rare Earth Element and Fluorspar Deposit, Nunavik, Quebec, Canada". This filing follows the May 22, 2024 announcement of an updated mineral resource estimate for the Ashram Rare Earth Element and Fluorspar Deposit (the "Ashram Deposit" or "Ashram") with 73.2 Mt at 1.89% TREO?and 6.6% CaF2 indicated, and 131.1 Mt at 1.91% TREO and 4.0% CaF2 inferred1. The technical Report has been prepared by BBA Inc., with contributions from PLR Resources, DRA Global Limited and L3 Process Development, all consulting groups independent of the Company, in accordance with NI 43-101. The report is available on SEDAR+ and will shortly be available on the Company's website. ? TREO = sum of all lanthanide oxides + yttrium oxide 1 Ashram mineral resource estimate is reported at a cut-off of CAD 287 Net Metal Return (NMR) per tonne with an effective date of April 4, 2024. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves as they do not have demonstrated economic viability. NI 43-101 Disclosure Patrik T. Schmidt, M.Sc., P.Geo., Dahrouge Geological Consulting Ltd., a Permit holder with the Ordre des Geologues du Quebec and Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, supervised the preparation of the technical information in this news release. About the Ashram Deposit The Ashram Deposit is central to the Eldor Carbonatite Complex and bordered by an earlier staged calcio-carbonatite and various altered (fenitized) wallrock units. In contrast to its host rocks, the Ashram Deposit appears as a magnetic low and gravity high. Currently, the deposit geometry and geology can best be described as a moderate to steeply NE dipping ovoid, with simple rare earth mineralogy (monazite, bastnaesite, xenotime) that has an unusual enrichment in magnet feed elements (i.e. higher Nd+Pr Oxide/TREO). The Ashram Deposit is a single mineralized body outcropping at surface and has a drill delineated footprint of over 700 m along strike, 300 m across, and 600 m deep, and remains open at depth. About Commerce Resources Corp. Commerce Resources Corp. is a junior mineral resource company focused on the development of the Ashram Rare Earth and Fluorspar Deposit located within their Eldor Property, in northern Quebec, Canada. The Ashram Deposit is characterized by simple rare earth (monazite, bastnaesite, xenotime) and gangue (carbonates) mineralogy, a large tonnage resource at favourable grade, and has demonstrated the production of high-grade (more than 30 - 45% TREO) mineral concentrates at high recovery (more than 60 - 75%) in line with active global producers. The Ashram Deposit also has a fluorspar component which makes it one of the largest potential sources of fluorspar in the world and could be a long-term supplier to the met-spar and acid-spar markets. The Company is positioning to be one of the lowest cost rare earth producers globally, with a specific focus on being a long-term supplier of mixed rare earth carbonate and/or NdPr oxide to the global market. Additionally, Commerce is committed to exploring the potential of other high-value commodities on the Property such as niobium and phosphate minerals, which may help advance Ashram by reducing costs through shared development. For more information, please visit the corporate website at www.commerceresources.com or email info@commerceresources.com. On Behalf of the Board of Directors COMMERCE RESOURCES CORP. " Chris Grove " Chris Grove CEO and President Tel: 604.484.2700 Email: cgrove@commerceresources.com Web: http://www.commerceresources.com Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward Looking Statements This news release contains forward-looking statements, which includes any information about activities, events or developments that the Company believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future. Forward looking statements in this news release include that Ashram has the potential to become one of the largest fluorspar sources in the world and a long-term supplier to the met-spar and acid-spar markets; that the Company is positioning to be one of the lowest cost rare earth element producers globally, with a focus on being a long-term global supplier of mixed rare earth carbonate and/or NdPr oxide; and that the Company may explore the potential of other high-value commodities on the Eldor property. These forward-looking statements are 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. Risks that could change or prevent these events, activities or developments from coming to fruition include: that the Company may not be able to fully finance any additional exploration on the Ashram Project; that even if the Company is able raise capital, costs for exploration activities may increase such that the Company may not have sufficient funds to pay for such exploration or processing activities; the timing and content of the proposed drill program and any future work programs may not be completed as proposed or at all; geological interpretations based on drilling that may change with more detailed information; potential process methods and mineral recoveries assumptions based on limited test work and by comparison to what are considered analogous deposits that, with further test work, may not be comparable; testing of our process may not prove successful or samples derived from the Ashram Project may not yield positive results, and even if such tests are successful or initial sample results are positive, the economic and other outcomes may not be as expected; the anticipated market demand for rare earth elements and other minerals may not be as expected; the availability of labour and equipment to undertake future exploration work and testing activities; that mineral resource estimates may not be indicative of actual deposits; geopolitical risks which may result in market and economic instability; and despite the current expected viability of the Ashram Project, conditions changing such that even if metals or minerals are discovered on the Ashram Project, the project may not be commercially viable. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Company assumes no responsibility to update or revise such information to reflect new events or circumstances, except as required by law. SOURCE: Commerce Resources Corp. View the original press release on accesswire.com Oxolife's OXO-001 is a safe, first-in-class drug designed to improve the odds of an embryo embedding by making the endometrium more conducive to implantation Ongoing pregnancy rate was 10.6 percentage points higher in women who received OXO-001 than in those who received a placebo (46.3% for OXO-001 vs. 35.7% for placebo) Live birth rate was 6.9 percentage points higher (42.6% vs for OXO-001 vs. 35.7% for placebo) Results - from proof-of-concept Phase 2 double-blinded, randomised controlled trial in women up to 40 years of age who used donor eggs - to be published in Human Reproduction Human Reproduction Oxolife plans pivotal Phase 3 study - to include women using own eggs BARCELONA, Spain, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Oxolife, the female fertility biotech focused on enhancing embryo implantation in women undergoing assisted reproductive technology (ART) fertility treatment, today presents successful phase 2 clinical data on its fertility pill OXO-001 at the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) 40th Annual Meeting held in Amsterdam. OXO-001 is a first-in-class, non-hormonal drug that acts directly on the endometrium - the inner lining of the uterus - to make it more conducive to embryo implantation. Failure of viable embryos to implant is a major reason why so many rounds of in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) do not result in pregnancy, and consequently a major cause of heartache among those trying for a baby. Taken twice daily, starting one menstrual cycle before embryo transfer and then for five weeks after transfer, OXO-001 is designed to reduce that distressing possibility. Today, Oxolife is presenting highly promising new data at ESHRE from its proof-of-concept Phase 2 double-blinded, randomised controlled trial of OXO-001, in which it was tested against a placebo pill. An exploratory subset analysing 96 women up to 40 years of age, who all underwent single embryo transfer using donor eggs, found OXO-001 resulted in a large and statistically significant improvement in the biochemical pregnancy rate (early detection of pregnancy). While 52.4% of those who received the placebo (22 of 42) had a biochemically confirmed pregnancy, among those who received OXO-001 the rate was 75.9% (41 of 54). There were also clinically meaningful improvements in: the clinically confirmed pregnancy rate (fetal heartbeat five weeks after embryo transfer) - 50.0% for OXO-001 vs. 35.7% for placebo; the ongoing pregnancy rate (10 weeks post-embryo transfer) - 46.3% vs. 35.7%; the live birth rate - 42.6% for OXO-001 vs. 35.7% for placebo. The Phase 2 trial was not powered to confirm that the differences for these outcomes were statistically significant. However, the data generated strongly supports advancement to Phase 3 confirmatory trial. Results of the Phase 2 trial are due to be published soon in the highly-regarded journal Human Reproduction. Agnes Arbat, Chief Executive Officer, Oxolife, said: "Most rounds of IVF or ICSI still end in failure - many, because a viable embryo does not implant. A simple-to-take pill that materially improves the chance of success would therefore be of huge benefit to those who want a baby. This proof-of-concept phase 2 study shows that hope is now a step closer. Physicians and patients tell us that they consider a five percentage-point improvement in the ongoing pregnancy rate after IVF / ICSI to be clinically meaningful, so to achieve double that is amazing. This study was purposefully designed to include only women who used donor eggs so it could single out the true effect of OXO-001 on the endometrium. However, we believe OXO-001 has the potential to work equally well in those using their own eggs, and we are already planning a pivotal Phase 3 clinical trial in this more extensive group to support product registration." Professor Dr Karen Sermon, Chair of ESHRE, who was not involved in the study, commented: "Despite continuous developments in ovarian stimulation, embryo manipulation and culture, improving live birth rates in medically assisted reproduction has been incremental at best. A jump of nearly seven percentage points is very good news for our patients, and hopefully, this can be confirmed in larger patient groups." OXO-001 works directly on the endometrium to encourage the embryo to stop rolling, to invade endometrial tissue, and to complete implantation. Extensive preclinical testing, plus clinical testing in 300 women to date, has shown it has an excellent safety profile. It is rapidly absorbed and expelled by the woman's body within 24 hours after administration. In follow-up of babies six months after birth, all demonstrated normal development with no differences compared to placebo. About one in six women of childbearing age has trouble conceiving[1], while use of fertility treatment is increasing worldwide as couples delay childbearing. Latest figures compiled by ESHRE[2] indicate around four million ART cycles are now performed globally each year, resulting in about one million babies. However, recurrent embryo implantation failure remains a significant challenge[3]. About Oxolife Oxolife is a specialist biotech focused on female fertility. Its lead compound is an easy to administer, non-hormonal, oral pill that addresses two indications; its lead programme is embryo implantation, a major factor in improving pregnancy success rates; a secondary indication is Polycystic Ovary Syndrome ("PCOS"), where it recovers ovulation and fertility. Its lead indication in embryo implantation has completed phase 2 studies, while its PCOS indication is on track for IND/ CTA application in H1 2025. With the global infertility market growing at 4.5% a year, due to later pregnancies, obesity, smoking and alcohol, 76m women a year are affected, with an expected market value of $45.4bn in 2029. Oxolife is currently fundraising to accelerate the progress of OXO-001, its lead programme, through the clinic and is also exploring potential partnerships to bring the benefits of OXO-001 to patients as rapidly as possible. https://oxolife.com/ About the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology The main aim of ESHRE is to promote interest in infertility care and to aim for a holistic understanding of reproductive biology and medicine. ESHRE collaborates world-wide and advocates universal improvements in scientific research, encourages and evaluates new developments in the field, and fosters harmonisation in clinical practice. It also provides guidance to enhance effectiveness, safety and quality assurance in clinical and laboratory procedures, psychosocial care, and promotes ethical practice. ESHRE also fosters prevention of infertility and related educational programmes and promotes reproductive rights regardless of the individual's background. ESHRE's activities include teaching, training, professional accreditations, mentoring and career planning for junior professionals, as well as developing and maintaining data registries. It also facilitates and disseminates research in human reproduction and embryology to the general public, scientists, clinicians, allied personnel, and patient associations. https://www.eshre.eu [1] https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/infertility.htm [2] ESHRE ART fact sheet 10, November 2023 [3] Cimadomo, D., Craciunas, L., Vermeulen, N., Vomstein, K., & Toth, B. (2020). Definition, diagnostic and therapeutic options in recurrent implantation failure: An international survey of clinicians and embryologists. Human Reproduction, 36(2), 305-317. https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/deaa317 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/a-pill-for-infertility-oxolifes-non-hormonal-oral-drug-raises-embryo-implantation-rate-pregnancy-rates-and-live-birth-rate-in-women-undergoing-ivf-and-icsi-data-being-presented-at-eshre-shows-302189714.html - Mr. Campione brings more than 25 years global experience in successful development and commercialization of diagnostic imaging agents and radiopharmaceuticals - - Blue Earth Diagnostics co-founder and former Chief Executive Officer David Gauden, D.Phil., appointed as full-time Chief Executive Officer of sister company Blue Earth Therapeutics - - Executive appointments designed to optimize growth and industry leadership for both Bracco companies - Bracco and Blue Earth Diagnostics Ltd, a Bracco company and recognized leader in the development and commercialization of innovative PET radiopharmaceuticals, today announced the appointment of Marco Campione as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), reporting to Bracco Imaging CEO Fulvio Renoldi Bracco. Mr. Campione also joins the Blue Earth Diagnostics Ltd Board of Directors and will serve as Vice Chair of the Blue Earth Diagnostics Inc. Board of Directors. Dr. David Gauden, a co-founder of Blue Earth Diagnostics and with the Company since 2014, assumes the role of full-time CEO of Bracco subsidiary Blue Earth Therapeutics. The changes reflect a carefully planned strategy to drive continued growth, development and opportunity for both companies and Bracco. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708534807/en/ Marco Campione, Chief Executive Officer, Blue Earth Diagnostics, a Bracco company (Photo: Business Wire) "I congratulate Marco Campione on this CEO appointment and we look forward to drawing upon his strategic, operational and broad general business expertise as we increase our global leadership throughout the diagnostic radiopharmaceutical industry," said Fulvio Renoldi Bracco, CEO of Bracco Imaging. "Marco joins the Bracco Group at a transformative point in our evolution, as the company matures, broadens its horizons globally and expands its commercial presence." Mr. Renoldi continued, "I also want to take this opportunity to recognize the many contributions of David Gauden in advancing the success of Blue Earth Diagnostics, and I wish him the best of success in now leading Blue Earth Therapeutics as its full-time CEO." "I am excited and honored to assume the role of CEO at Blue Earth Diagnostics," said Mr. Campione. "The Company is a recognized leader throughout the nuclear medicine and oncology communities, having a strong reputation grounded in successful innovation, execution and dedicated service on behalf of patient health. I look forward to applying my experience towards expanding availability of the Company's PET imaging products for prostate cancer, advancing its development programs in PET neuro-oncology and solid tumors, and in exploring additional opportunities and collaborations." Marco Campione brings more than 25 years of experience from GE HealthCare, where he most recently served as Executive Director and Global Head of Contrast Media, General Manager Pharmaceutical Diagnostics North America and President GE HealthCare Inc. About Blue Earth Diagnostics Blue Earth Diagnostics, an indirect subsidiary of Bracco Imaging S.p.A., is a growing international molecular imaging company focused on delivering innovative, well-differentiated diagnostic solutions that inform patient care. Formed in 2014, the Company's success is driven by its management expertise and supported by a demonstrated track record of rapid development and commercialization of positron emission tomography (PET) radiopharmaceuticals. Blue Earth Diagnostics' expanding oncology portfolio encompasses a variety of disease states, including prostate cancer and neuro-oncology. Blue Earth Diagnostics is committed to the timely development and commercialization of precision radiopharmaceuticals for potential use in imaging and therapy. For more information, please visit: www.blueearthdiagnostics.com. About Bracco Imaging Bracco Imaging S.p.A., part of the Bracco Group, is a world-leading diagnostic imaging provider. Headquartered in Milan, Italy, Bracco Imaging develops, manufactures and markets diagnostic imaging agents and solutions. It offers a product and solution portfolio for all key diagnostic imaging modalities: X-ray imaging (including Computed Tomography-CT, Interventional Radiology, and Cardiac Catheterization), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Contrast Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS), and Nuclear Medicine through radioactive tracers and novel PET imaging agents to inform clinical management and guide care for cancer patients in areas of unmet medical need. Our continually evolving portfolio is completed by a range of medical devices, advanced administration systems and dose-management software. In 2019 Bracco Imaging enriched its product portfolio by expanding the range of oncology nuclear imaging solutions in the urology segment and other specialties with the acquisition of Blue Earth Diagnostics. In 2021, Bracco Imaging established Blue Earth Therapeutics as a separate, cutting-edge biotechnology vehicle to develop radiopharmaceutical therapies. Visit: www.braccoimaging.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708534807/en/ Contacts: For Blue Earth Diagnostics (U.S.) Priscilla Harlan Vice President, Corporate Communications (M) (781) 799-7917 priscilla.harlan@blueearthdx.com For Blue Earth Diagnostics (UK) Clare Gidley Associate Director Marketing and Communications Tel: +44 (0)1865 784186 clare.gidley@blueearthdx.com Media Sam Brown Inc. Mike Beyer (M) (312) 961-2502 mikebeyer@sambrown.com Cantech Media announces the 2024 Cantech Letter Conference taking place on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, at the Arcadian Loft in Toronto, ON. taking place on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, at the Arcadian Loft in Toronto, ON. Cantech Media is proud to collaborate with co-title sponsors of the event, Toronto Stock Exchange and Angad Capital Inc. Vancouver, British Columbia and Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Cantech Media (the "Company" or "Cantech"), a Canadian online publication of technology focused news, analysis, and insights, is pleased to announce the 2024 Cantech Letter Conference will take place on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, at the Arcadian Loft in Toronto, Ontario. The event provides up and coming technology companies with the unique opportunity to showcase their innovations and growth strategies and also participate in individual 1-on-1 meetings with potential investors and capital markets professionals. Cantech is proud to continue its collaboration with Toronto Stock Exchange ("TSX"), who will once again join the conference as title sponsor and host an onsite market open ceremony. Cantech is also excited to welcome a new co-title sponsor Angad Capital Inc. ("Angad Capital"). 2024 Cantech Letter Conference Date: Wednesday, October 9, 2024 Time: 8am to 5pm Location: Arcadian Loft, 8th floor, 401 Bay Street, Toronto, ON The Cantech Letter Conference, recognized as Canada's foremost technology investment event, is an annual gathering that brings together the country's most promising tech companies, innovative startups, influential investors, and capital markets professionals. The conference places a strong emphasis on publicly listed companies, providing them with a premier platform to showcase their achievements and future prospects. This dynamic conference serves as a hub for networking, knowledge exchange, and investment opportunities, featuring cutting-edge product demonstrations and direct engagement with industry leaders. The conference will also feature engaging panel discussions with industry experts, offering insights into current trends, challenges, and opportunities within the tech sector. Nick Waddell, President of Cantech Media, commented, "We are thrilled to announce the return of the Cantech Letter Conference. The challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic temporarily halted our operations, but we are excited to reconvene once again. Many will know us as the best place for public companies in the innovation sector to meet investors. This event has always been about fostering meaningful connections and showcasing the potential of innovation. After the challenges of the past few years, we are more committed than ever to supporting the growth and success of the companies and investors who participate in our conference." Dani Lipkin, Managing Director of the Global Innovation Sector at TSX and TSX Venture Exchange, commented on the conference, "Toronto Stock Exchange and TSX Venture Exchange share very similar goals as the Cantech Letter Conference in our dedication to driving the growth of the Canadian technology sector, fostering collaboration, and highlighting the nation's leading technological advancements. We are very pleased to return as a title sponsor for Canada's premier technology conference." Pardeep Sangha, President and Founder of Angad Capital, commented, "We are proud to collaborate with Cantech and Toronto Stock Exchange for this exceptional event. This conference provides a unique platform for companies and investors to connect and create lasting impacts in the innovation sector. Investors and analysts will benefit from direct interactions with management teams of high-growth technology companies." This one-day conference is anticipated to sell out quickly. Public companies are encouraged to reserve their spots today to ensure participation. Presenting companies and sponsors should contact our sales manager, Tara Whittet at tara@cantechletter.com For more information, visit: www.cantechletter.com/conference. About Cantech Media For fifteen years, Cantech Media, the parent company of Cantech Letter, has been committed to the innovation sectors in the Canadian public markets. Cantech Letter gathers research from Canada's leading investment banks to provide individual investors with timely, expert voices in the space. For more information, visit: www.cantechletter.com. About Angad Capital Angad Capital is a Vancouver based Capital Markets Advisory and Investor Relations Firm. Angad Capital was founded by Pardeep Sangha in 2019 after a successful career as a technology sector analyst focused on small cap technology companies trading on the TSX and TSX-Venture exchanges. Pardeep has over 20+ years of investing and advising experience with private and public tech companies. Angad Capital offers specialized capital markets advisory services tailored for early-stage technology companies. Some of the Angad Capital's clients include WELL Health Technologies Corp., HEALWELL AI Inc., DCM Data Communications Management, Wishpond Technologies Ltd., Tribe Property Technologies and Avante Corp. Cautionary & Forward-Looking Statements All information presented in all forms at the Cantech Letter Conference or in press releases, videos, emails, or otherwise posted on our website, and the Cantech Letter Conference or YouTube channel (the "Media") is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as an offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell securities. 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We do not receive compensation for, and do not engage in, providing advice, making recommendations, issuing reports, or furnishing analyses on any of the companies, securities, strategies, or information presented. We may buy and sell securities in any company mentioned and may profit in the event those securities rise in value. There are risks involved in any investment. We are not analysts and investing in securities is for individuals with high risk tolerance and not for the general public. We recommend you consult with a professional investment adviser, broker, or legal counsel before purchasing or selling any securities referenced on or at any of our Media. For Further information: Nick Waddell CEO and Founder, Cantech Media nick@cantechletter.com Pardeep S. Sangha President and Founder, Angad Capital pardeep@angadcapital.com 604-572-6392 To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215591 SOURCE: Cantech Letter Saskatoon, Saskatchewan--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Core Nickel Corp. (CSE: CNCO) ("Core Nickel" or the "Company") is pleased to announce Geotech Ltd. has commenced helicopter-borne Versatile Time-Domain Electromagnetics (VTEM) and horizontal magnetic gradiometer geophysical surveys on the Company's 100%-owned Halfway Lake and Resting Lake projects (the "Projects") (Figure 1). The Projects are situated in the central region of the Thompson Nickel Belt in Northern Manitoba, approximately 20 km from the town of Wabowden. The Projects feature significant nickel intersections based on historical drilling and are strategically positioned along an established trend with several nickel deposits and showings. Additionally, the area benefits from surrounding infrastructure including Provincial Highway 6, the HBR (Omnitrax) Rail Line and a major hydroelectric transmission line along Highway 6. Figure 1 - Halfway Lake and Resting Lake Project Location To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10145/215606_f458a6da74804b1d_001full.jpg The Halfway Lake Project covers a NE-SW trending synform consisting of Ospwagan Group, which includes the target formation Pipe pelites, coincident/proximal to elongated ultramafic lenses (Figure 2). The Halfway Lake property has a geological environment (stratigraphy, metamorphic grade, and ductile deformation) similar to that hosting the Thompson deposit (150 Mt at 2.32% Ni) 1. Numerous nickel occurrences have been intersected historically on the property including the W62 zone from the 1960s, which intersected grades up to 1.32% Ni over 3.05 m in drillhole W62-D. The Company completed a drilling program on the W62 zone in March 2024 that intersected 0.37% Ni over 91m, including localized 1.0 m intersections grading over 1.0% Ni in HFW-002. See full news release on the Company's website here. The Halfway Lake deposit, located outside of the northern block of the property contains, contains 900,000 tonnes at 1.2% Ni.2 Figure 2 - Halfway Lake Geology To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10145/215606_f458a6da74804b1d_002full.jpg The Resting Lake Project covers a NE-SE trending synform (Figure 3), similar to the Halfway Lake property. Nickel mineralization was intersected in a number of historical drillholes hosted exclusively in ultramafic rocks. Two significant zones of mineralization occur adjacent to the property, the Resting Lake deposit in the north (90 Mt at 0.3% Ni)3 and the Reed zone in the south with several high-grade intersections up to 1.77 m at 2.86% Ni4. Figure 3 - Resting Lake Geology To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10145/215606_f458a6da74804b1d_003full.jpg Caitlin Glew, VP Exploration of Core Nickel, commented "We are thrilled to initiate the airborne geophysical surveys on the Halfway Lake and Resting Lake projects. The geophysical data acquired from Geotech's VTEM Plus system will effectively locate conductive anomalies and aid in mapping geological structure and lithology. The Core Nickel team is looking forward to having property-wide, high-resolution geophysical data that will provide drill-ready targets for future exploration on our Central Thompson Nickel Belt projects." About Core Nickel Core Nickel Corp. is a junior nickel exploration company that controls 100% of five properties in the prolific nickel district, the Thompson Nickel Belt (TNB) in Northern Manitoba, Canada. The five properties consist of approximately 27,000 hectares of land that is proximal to existing infrastructure, such as highways and operating mills. Map: Core Nickel's Thompson Nickel Belt Properties To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/10145/215606_f458a6da74804b1d_004full.jpg Core Nickel has a large contiguous land package in the northern part of the TNB, situated approximately 16-20 km from the City of Thompson. Core Nickel's northern TNB projects consist of three properties: Mel, Hunter, and Odei River. The Mel property encompasses the Mel deposit, which is characterized by a historical NI-43-101 resource estimate with an indicated resource of 4.3 million tonnes at 0.875% nickel, equating to 82.5 million lbs contained nickel, and a historical inferred resource estimate of 1.0 million tonnes at 0.839% nickel, equating to 18.7 million pounds of contained nickel5. The target stratigraphy (Pipe Formation) that hosts the Mel deposit, and other deposits in the Thompson Nickel Belt, extend onto the Hunter and Odei River properties and drillhole intersections into the target stratigraphy on the Hunter project have successfully intersected elevated nickel. The Company also holds two properties in the southern TNB near Wabowden: Halfway Lake and Resting Lake. Both properties host the target Pipe Formation associated with known elevated nickel mineralization and are proximal to existing nickel deposits, mills, and other infrastructure. The Qualified Person under National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects for this news release is Caitlin Glew, P. Geo., Vice-President Exploration for Core Nickel Corp., who has reviewed and approved its contents. References 1Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba. (February 28, 2024). Thompson Nickel Discovery - Inco Mine. 04/07/2024. 2CaNickel Mining Limited. (2023). Satellite Deposits. 04/07/2024. 3J.D. Bamburak. (1990). Metallic Mines and Mineral Deposits of Manitoba. Open File Report OF90-2 Manitoba Energy and Mines. 04/07/2024 4"Technical Report on the Halfway Lake and Resting Lake Properties Thompson Area, Manitoba" prepared for CanAlaska Uranium Ltd., C. Beaumont-Smith (P.Geo.) of CBSGeoscience Ltd., July 20, 2022 5 "Technical Report on the Mel Deposit, Northern Manitoba" prepared for Victory Nickel Inc, Shane Naccashian (P. Geo.) of Wardrop Engineering Inc., March 9, 2007 Technical Disclosure The historical results contained within this news release have been captured from Manitoba Integrated Mining and Quarrying System ("iMaQs") as available and may be incomplete or subject to minor location inaccuracies. Management cautions that historical results were collected and reported by past operators and have not been verified nor confirmed by a Qualified Person but form a basis for ongoing work on the subject properties. On behalf of the Board of Directors "Misty Urbatsch" Misty Urbatsch CEO, President and Director Core Nickel Corp. Contacts: Misty Urbatsch, CEO and President Tel: 306-668-6927 Email: murbatsch@corenickel.com General Enquiry Tel: 306-668-6927 Email: info@corenickel.com Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its regulations services accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Forward-looking information All statements included in this press release that address activities, events or developments that the Company expects, believes or anticipates will or may occur in the future are forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve numerous assumptions made by the Company based on its experience, perception of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors it believes are appropriate in the circumstances. In addition, these statements involve substantial known and unknown risks and uncertainties that contribute to the possibility that the predictions, forecasts, projections and other forward-looking statements will prove inaccurate, certain of which are beyond the Company's control. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the Company does not intend to revise or update these forward-looking statements after the date hereof or revise them to reflect the occurrence of future unanticipated events. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215606 SOURCE: Core Nickel Corp. Kamoa-Kakula produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate in Q2 2024 First concentrate from the Phase 3 concentrator achieved on June 10, 2024, ramp up to steady state expected in Q3 2024 DRC power grid infrastructure upgrades continue, as well as phased roll-out of on-site, backup generation capacity Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2024 financial results and host conference call for investors on July 31 Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of the Congo--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Executive Co-Chair Robert Friedland and President Marna Cloete announced today that the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate during the second quarter of 2024 and 186,925 tonnes of copper in the first half of 2024. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator is expected to ramp up to steady-state production in the third quarter, increasing annualized copper production capacity to over 600,000 tonnes. Ivanhoe Mines maintains its 2024 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula at between 440,000 to 490,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators milled approximately 2.3 million tonnes of ore during the second quarter at an average feed grade of 5.3% copper. Copper production from the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators was 99,706 tonnes during the quarter, at an average flotation recovery rate of 87.0%, exceeding the Phase 1 and 2 concentrator design recovery rate of 86.0%. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator, which was recently completed months ahead of schedule, produced its first concentrate on June 10, 2024, and is undergoing the completion of hot commissioning. Since June 10, the Phase 3 concentrator has produced 1,100 tonnes of copper in concentrate. As of June 30, 2024, a total of 4.82 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.26% copper is stored in surface run-of-mine (ROM) stockpiles at Kamoa-Kakula. This includes 2.31 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.72% at Kakula and 2.51 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 2.85% at Kamoa and Kansoko. The stockpiled ore, from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines, contains over 70,000 tonnes of copper and is being used for the hot commissioning and ramp-up of the new Phase 3 concentrator. (L-R) Kamoa Copper's Magloire Kashiba, Mine Managerial Lead; Dodo Mbay, Executive Head of Concentrators; and, Fabrice Nkomba, Mining Superintendent, holding the first batch of copper concentrate from the Phase 3 Concentrator. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3396/215699_ec2565e424e99b18_002full.jpg The bank of Larox filters with the first batch of concentrate produced by the Phase 3 concentrator on the left. The Phase 3 concentrator processes ore exclusively from the adjacent Kamoa and Kansoko underground mines. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3396/215699_ec2565e424e99b18_003full.jpg Dusk over the Phase 3 concentrator, which was recently completed months ahead of schedule. The Phase 3 concentrator and adjacent Kamoa and Kansoko underground mines are located approximately 10 kilometres to the north of the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators and smelter construction site. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3396/215699_ec2565e424e99b18_004full.jpg Stabilizing grid power improving mining rates and head grade As mentioned in the company's 2024 first quarter results on April 30, 2024 , Kamoa Copper continues to work closely with the DRC's state-owned power company, La Societe Nationale d'Electricite (SNEL), to deliver solutions for the identified causes of instability experienced across the southern DRC's grid infrastructure since late 2022. The project work, funded by Kamoa Copper, commenced in March 2024 and is expected to be completed by late 2025. The funding is assigned to increasing transmission capacity and improving the reliability of the grid. Compared with previous quarters, production and mining head grades notably increased in the second quarter due to the improved stability of grid-supplied power. Improved grid stability allowed the underground crews to mine the higher-grade areas of the Kakula Mine, which are less accessible when power is unstable due to reduced underground water pumping availability. Since mid-March, grid power to Kamoa-Kakula has been supplemented by imported power via the Zambian interconnector. Currently, 55 megawatts (MW) of power is being imported from Zambia and Mozambique. Subject to capacity availability, Kamoa-Kakula's executive team are targeting up to 100 MW to be imported by year-end. As a redundancy measure, Kamoa Copper's engineering team continues to expand on-site backup generation capacity to ensure there will be full on-site backup for the Phase 1, 2 and 3 operations. On-site backup-power generation capacity is on schedule to increase to over 200 MW by the end of 2024. An additional 72 MW of new generation capacity has recently been delivered to site. Installation and commissioning of the new generators is expected to be complete in early August, increasing the total on-site generation capacity to 135 MW. ProMarks and Trafigura sign MOU with the Angolan government to build a 2,000 MW high-voltage "interconnector" to supply hydro-powered electricity in DRC and Zambia. On July 4, 2024, Trafigura Group of Geneva, Switzerland and ProMarks of Luanda, Angola signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Government of Angola to study the technical and economic viability of building a 2,000 MW high-voltage electricity "interconnector" (a high-voltage direct current transmission line) to export surplus green electricity to the DRC Copperbelt and Zambia. The project enables electricity generated by hydroelectric dams located in the north of Angola to be connected to the Southern Africa Power Pool. A joint venture will be formed between ProMarks and Trafigura to develop, finance, construct and operate the electricity "interconnector". The project is intended to be financed through a combination of equity capital and third-party debt. Planning, approvals and construction would take around four years after the final investment decision is made. See link to the full press release made by Trafigura: https://www.trafigura.com/news-and-insights/press-releases/2024/promarks-and-trafigura-sign-mou-with-the-angolan-government/ Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2024 financial results and host conference call for investors on July 31 Ivanhoe Mines will report its Q2 2024 financial results, and a detailed update on its operations, before the market opens on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. The company will hold an investor conference call to discuss the Q2 2024 financial results on the same day. Details of the call will be shared closer to the date. An audio webcast recording of the conference call, together with supporting presentation slides, will be available on Ivanhoe Mines' website at www.ivanhoemines.com. After issuance, the Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis will be available at www.ivanhoemines.com and www.sedarplus.ca. Qualified Persons Disclosures of a scientific or technical nature at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Steve Amos, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Amos is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is Ivanhoe Mines' Executive Vice President, Projects. Mr. Amos has verified the technical data disclosed in this news release. Other disclosures of a scientific or technical nature regarding the stockpiles in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Joshua Chitambala, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Chitambala is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is the Resource Manager for Ivanhoe Mines. Mr. Chitambala has verified the other technical data regarding the surface stockpiles disclosed in this news release. Ivanhoe has prepared an independent, NI 43-101-compliant technical report for the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, which is available on the company's website and under the company's SEDAR profile at www.sedarplus.ca: Kamoa-Kakula Integrated Development Plan 2023 Technical Report dated March 6, 2023, prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd.; China Nerin Engineering Co. Ltd.; DRA Global; Epoch Resources; Golder Associates Africa; Metso Outotec Oyj; Paterson and Cooke; SRK Consulting Ltd.; and The MSA Group. The technical report includes relevant information regarding the assumptions, parameters and methods of the mineral resource estimates on the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex cited in this news release, as well as information regarding data verification, exploration procedures and other matters relevant to the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release. About Ivanhoe Mines Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal projects in Southern Africa; the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC, the construction of the tier-one Platreef palladium-nickel-platinum-rhodium-copper-gold project in South Africa; and the restart of production at the ultra-high-grade Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC. Ivanhoe Mines also is exploring across circa 1,808 km2 of highly prospective, 60-100% owned exploration licences in the Western Forelands, located adjacent to the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC. Ivanhoe is exploring for new sedimentary copper discoveries, as well as expanding and further defining its high-grade Makoko, Kiala, and Kitoko copper discoveries as the company's next major development projects. Information contact Follow Robert Friedland (@robert_ivanhoe) and Ivanhoe Mines (@IvanhoeMines_) on X. Investors Vancouver: Matthew Keevil +1.604.558.1034 London: Tommy Horton +44 7866 913 207 Media Tanya Todd +1.604.331.9834 Website: www.ivanhoemines.com Forward-looking statements Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information or statements. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this news release. Such statements include, without limitation: (i) statements that Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator is expected to ramp up to steady-state production in the third quarter, increasing annualized copper production capacity to over 600,000 tonnes; (ii) statements regarding the company's maintain 2024 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula being between 440,000 to 490,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate, (iii) statements regarding expectations that project work by SNEL to deliver solutions for the identified grid instability are expected to be completed in late 2025; (iv) statements that backup power generation at Kamoa-Kakula is scheduled to increase to over 200 MW by the end of 2024 and that installation and commissioning of the new generators is expected to be complete in early August, which will increase the total on-site generation capacity to 135 MW; and (v) statements regarding the MOU between Trafigura and ProMarks, including that a joint venture will be formed between ProMarks and Trafigura to develop, finance, construct and operate the electricity interconnector to export surplus green electricity from Angola to the DRC Copperbelt and Zambia. Furthermore, concerning this specific forward-looking information concerning the operation and development of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, the company has based its assumptions and analysis on certain factors that are inherently uncertain. Uncertainties include: (i) the adequacy of infrastructure; (ii) geological characteristics; (iii) metallurgical characteristics of the mineralization; (iv) the ability to develop adequate processing capacity; (v) the price of copper; (vi) the availability of equipment and facilities necessary to complete development and exploration; (vii) the cost of consumables and mining and processing equipment; (viii) unforeseen technological and engineering problems; (ix) accidents or acts of sabotage or terrorism; (x) currency fluctuations; (xi) changes in regulations; (xii) the compliance by joint venture partners with terms of agreements; (xiii) the availability and productivity of skilled labour; (xiv) the regulation of the mining industry by various governmental agencies; (xv) the ability to raise sufficient capital to develop such projects; (xvi) changes in project scope or design; (xvii) recoveries, mining rates and grade; (xviii) political factors; (xviii) water inflow into the mine and its potential effect on mining operations, and (xix) the consistency and availability of electric power. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether such results will be achieved. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed above and under the "Risk Factors" heading in the company's MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2024, in the company's current annual information form, and elsewhere in this news release, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions, the company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release. The company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of the factors outlined in the "Risk Factors" section of the company's MD&A for the three-month year ended March 31, 2024, in the company's current annual information and elsewhere in this news release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215699 SOURCE: Ivanhoe Mines Ltd. 2024 China-Latin America Eye Health Institutions Development Forum held in Mexico People's Daily Online) 15:57, July 08, 2024 The first China-Latin America Eye Health Institutions Development Forum was held on June 26, 2024, in Mexico City, Mexico. The forum was hosted by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) and the National Health Commission of China's Blindness Prevention and Treatment Training Base, co-organized by He Eye Specialist Hospital Group (HESH Group), Mexico's APEC Hospital de La Ceguera, and Delos Foundation International. The forum, which aims to promote exchange and cooperation between ophthalmology institutions in China and Latin America, and build a stronger bridge for China-Latin America friendship and cooperation, attracted over 120 representatives from the eye health sector globally. Professor He Wei, the chairman of this forum, delivers his opening remarks. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) In his opening remarks, Professor He Wei, founder of HESH Group and the forum chair, said eye health, as an important part of human health, has become a major global challenge, adding that technological innovation is not only the inevitable choice for meeting this challenge, but also the responsibility and mission of medical and technological workers. The forum has gathered the wisdom and strength of global eye care experts to help improve the level of eye health services in China and Latin America, opening up a new path for exchange and cooperation in the field of eye health between the two sides, said He. Dr. Francisco Martinez Castro, the Co-Chairperson of this forum and the President of IAPB Latin America, delivers his opening remarks. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Dr. Francisco Martinez Castro, co-chair of the forum and President of IAPB Latin America, stated in his speech that this forum has pioneered a new bridge for knowledge sharing between Latin American countries and China in the field of eye health. It is expected to deepen exchange and cooperation among experts from various countries, especially in utilizing innovative technologies and available resources to enhance each country's capabilities in the field of eye health. At the forum, representatives from Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, and other Latin American countries shared the current status and future development trends of eye health in their respective countries. Dr. Xiao Wei from Sun Yat-sen University Eye Center, Dr. He Xiangui from the Clinical Research Center of Shanghai Eye Disease Prevention and Treatment Center, and Professor He Wei from He Eye Specialist Hospital Group (HESH Group) shared China's experiences in blindness prevention and control, especially in the field of myopia prevention and control among children and adolescents. The forum also launched the "China-Latin America Training Program", under which HESH Group plans to provide 10 to 15 sponsorship opportunities each year for ophthalmologists and optometrists from Latin American countries to visit and study in China. During the forum, a "Visiting Professor" ceremony was held for six Latin American experts at Liaoning He University. In the future, these experts will provide more professional guidance for the discipline building and high-quality development of Liaoning He University, jointly promoting the cultivation of specialized, compound, and high-level talents in the field of ophthalmology, and strengthening international exchange and cooperation. Professor He Wei presents the appointment letter to Dr. Francisco Martinez Castro, the President of IAPB Latin America. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Professor He Wei presents the appointment letter to Dr. Valeria Sanchez, the Director of the Mexican Association for the Prevention of Blindness. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Mr. Drew Keys, the President of IAPB West Pacific and Latin America, and Professor He Wei present the appointment letter to Professor Jorge Foster from the University of Buenos Aires, Argentina. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Mr. Drew Keys, the President of IAPB West Pacific and Latin America, and Professor He Wei present the appointment letter to Associate Professor Fernando Malerbi from the University of Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Mr. Drew Keys, the President of IAPB West Pacific and Latin America, and Professor He Wei present the appointment letter to Dr. Luz Marina Melo from the Caribbean Ophthalmological Clinic, Colombia. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Mr. Drew Keys, the President of IAPB West Pacific and Latin America, and Professor He Wei present the appointment letter to Ms. Cristina Sanchez Gaoto, an ophthalmology specialist from Paraguay. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) Six Latin American experts were appointed as Visiting Professors at HESH Group. (Photo provided to Peoples Daily Online) (Web editor: Xian Jiangnan, Liang Jun) by Xi Jinping In this lovely midsummer season, I will pay a state visit to the Republic of Tajikistan at the invitation of President Emomali Rahmon. This will be my third visit to Tajikistan. I last set foot on this beautiful land five years ago. The famous Tajik poet Rudaki once said that nothing could compare to the joy of a reunion with family or friends. I look forward to my meeting with President Rahmon to jointly open up brighter prospects for China-Tajikistan relations. Children rehearse for a martial arts performance at the Confucius Institute at Tajik National University in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, June 11, 2024. (Xinhua/Zheng Kaijun) China and Tajikistan, connected by mountains and rivers, share a common destiny. The ancient Silk Road bears witness to the 2,000-plus years of friendship between our two nations. Zhang Qian, a royal emissary of Chinas Han Dynasty (202BC-220AD), Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang), an eminent monk of the Tang Dynasty (618-907) who travelled westward for Buddhist scriptures, and Chen Cheng, a diplomat of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) all left their footprints of friendship in Tajikistan. Sogdian merchants, travelling across the Eurasian continent, facilitated trade between China and Central Asia, West Asia, and even Europe, and made distinctive contributions to cultural exchanges and mutual learning among peoples along the Silk Road. Thirty-two years ago, China and Tajikistan established diplomatic relations, opening a new chapter in our relations. Over the past three decades and more, China-Tajikistan relations have stood the test of the volatile international situations and maintained the momentum of sound and steady development. Our overall relationship has made a historic leap from good-neighborliness to a strategic partnership, and to a comprehensive strategic partnership. Together, we are committed to building a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future, blazing a successful path for growing relations between neighboring countries. China and Tajikistan treat each other with sincerity, respect and trust. We firmly support each other on issues that bear on our respective core interests, particularly independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity. We respect the development path that each has chosen in light of our respective national conditions. We resolutely oppose interference in internal affairs by any external force under any pretext. As always, we understand and support each other on issues related to our respective major concerns. We take pleasure in each others progress in development and national revitalization. We have established cooperation mechanisms in key areas, which provide an important institutional guarantee for furthering bilateral relations. President Rahmon and I have met 15 times. We enjoy a good working relationship and a deep personal friendship as we jointly guide the development of China-Tajikistan relations. China and Tajikistan both pursue mutual benefit and win-win in cooperation. China has long been Tajikistans largest source of investment and its major trading partner. Our two-way trade was close to 4 billion U.S. dollars in 2023, reaching another record high. Such strong momentum has continued in the first four months of this year. Tajikistan was among the first countries to participate in Belt and Road cooperation. A number of China-Tajikistan joint projects have been implemented, including a cement plant in Yavan, an agriculture technology demonstration center in Khatlon, and an agriculture and textile park in Dangara. They have helped upgrade Tajikistans industrial technology and created thousands of local jobs. The China-Tajikistan highway and the Vahdat-Yavan railway tunnels, which are built by Chinese companies, make places along the routes more easily accessible. Premium green produce of Tajikistan such as cherries, lemons and grapes have steadily made their way to Chinese households and are quite popular among Chinese consumers. It is particularly heartening that the Tajik parliament building and government building, which President Rahmon and I jointly launched five years ago, will soon be completed. They will be new landmarks in Dushanbe and new symbols of China-Tajikistan cooperation. China and Tajikistan remain committed to mutual learning through friendly exchanges. The Confucius Institutes and the Luban Workshop have helped train a large number of Chinese speakers and technical personnel, who are now a vital force for the development and cooperation between our two nations. The Sino-Tajik Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine and the program of Lifeline Express International Sight Saving Mission that provides free cataract surgeries for patients in Tajikistan have contributed to public health in our two countries through a combination of traditional Chinese medicine and modern technology. The Culture Day programs, seminars on specific subjects, student exchange programs, and the translation and publication of literature in our respective languages have helped foster greater mutual understanding and strengthened the ties between our two nations. These initiatives are akin to small streams that will ultimately converge to form a vast ocean of friendship between our two nations. There are now nine pairs of sister provinces/cities between our two countries. This is another example of how our friendship has been growing with vigor and vitality. China and Tajikistan treat each other with sincerity and stand in solidarity in times of challenge. In response to COVID-19, our two countries pulled together in combating the pandemic. We provided each other with a large number of medical supplies, and China sent professional medical teams to Tajikistan to assist in its COVID response. Together, we erected an ironclad line of defense against the virus. We timely consulted with each other and took actions together to resolve the issues concerning the Karasu-Kulma Pass, and ensured safe and smooth passage through the artery route of transportation and logistics. China and Tajikistan have maintained close coordination and collaboration on the international stage, supporting and responding positively to each others major initiatives. Both of our countries firmly uphold the international system with the United Nations at its center, the international order based on international law, and the norms governing international relations underpinned by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter. We both endeavor to contribute to safeguarding international fairness and justice. China and Tajikistan are both at a critical stage of national development and revitalization. China is pursuing high-quality development and advancing high-standard opening up. The Chinese people are working in unity to build China into a great modern socialist country in all respects, and to advance the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation on all fronts through a Chinese path to modernization. Tajikistan is making great strides on its path to realizing the National Development Strategy of the Republic of Tajikistan up to the period of 2030. I look forward to my meetings with President Rahmon to discuss how best to promote closer cooperation and bring our bilateral relationship to new heights. We need to improve the top-level design for our relationship to ensure its steady development in the right direction. We need to maintain high-level exchanges as frequently as necessary, deepen our experience sharing on governance and build stronger mutual political trust so as to always keep the relationship on the right track. We need to deepen our cooperation at all levels and in all areas, and spare no effort to implement the top-level consensus in full so as to add an enduring momentum to the China-Tajikistan relationship. We need to expand results-oriented cooperation to provide stronger material foundations for China-Tajikistan relations. China will work with Tajikistan to strengthen complementarity between the Belt and Road Initiative and the National Development Strategy of Tajikistan up to the period of 2030 as a concrete step to boost our respective development and revitalization. We need to consider new measures for trade promotion and expansion, accelerate the construction of the key section of the China-Tajikistan highway, and open more direct flights in response to the travel needs of our peoples. Other areas of cooperation include high and new technologies such as new energy vehicle, solar panel and satellite communication. China will import more premium produce from Tajikistan, and encourage strong Chinese companies to make more investments in Tajikistan as a step to help modernize its industrial system. We need to deepen security cooperation and build a strong development security shield. We need to jointly act on the vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, enhance exchange between our law enforcement and security agencies, crack down on terrorist, extremist and separatist forces such as ETIM, and prevent and combat infiltration and sabotage by terrorists and extremists. We should remain resolute in opposing any attempt by external forces to interfere in our internal affairs or to undermine regional stability, so as to provide strong and effective safeguards for the development of our countries. We need to promote people-to-people and cultural exchanges to strengthen public support for a lasting friendship between our two nations. We welcome more Tajik friends to China for sightseeing, academic studies, as well as investment, business and exchange opportunities. China will continue to expand cooperation with Tajikistan in such areas as culture, education, health and sports. I hope to see more exchanges between our young people and more exchanges at subnational levels. I also hope our people-to-people exchanges will be as frequent as those between relatives. The Luban Workshop, Confucius Institutes, and the Sino-Tajik Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine are expected to play a greater role. We need to accelerate the mutual establishment of cultural centers, and expand cooperation at subnational levels as steps to ensure that China-Tajikistan friendship is sustained through generations. We need to enhance unity and collaboration and help foster an international environment favorable for peace and development. The two sides need to step up coordination and collaboration on multilateral platforms such as the United Nations, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the China-Central Asia mechanism. We need to practice true multilateralism and promote an equal and orderly multipolar world and universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization. We need to deliver on the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, stand up for our common interests and those of other developing countries, and make our contribution to safeguarding international fairness and justice. A Chinese poet in the Tang Dynasty once wrote, One can enjoy a grander sight by climbing to a greater height. We from China look forward to working with our Tajik friends to draw a new blueprint for stronger China-Tajikistan friendship, write a new chapter in our mutually beneficial cooperation, and create a brighter future of our two nations. Xi Jinping, President of the People's Republic of China NEW YORK and LOS ANGELES, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The booming market of mobile app development in the United States is experiencing a phenomenal level of growth. With projections estimating this market to reach a whopping $187 billion by 2026, this spike in demand has created a fruitful ground for enterprises to jump in and monetize. New York is one such tri-state area known for its modern tech innovation and highly competitive market, and global leaders are trying to make a name and reputation in the current NYC tech scene. Almost every other industry is trying to get a piece of the cake but only a handful of companies have succeeded in delivering triumphant app solutions. This growing surge is further fueled by an increase in smartphone users and diverse industries opting for Android and iOS apps across industries. That's where Hyperlink InfoSystem's global presence took the cake. Being one of Big Apple's fastest-growing app development companies in 2024, Hyperlink InfoSystem has cemented its reputation for delivering some of the most effective and unique mobile app solutions to clients across various industries. This remarkable growth trajectory is further fueled by the commitment to delivering meritorious, customized solutions with a user-first approach. Hyperlink InfoSystem's rise to prominence in New York's tech scenario is a testament to its perseverance and innovation as a top app development company in 2024. With a staggering number of 2700+ globally satisfied clients and a credible 98% client retention rate, Hyperlink InfoSystem's success is further enhanced by its client satisfaction ratios. Since its inception in 2011, they have leveraged top cutting-edge technologies such as AI, blockchain, AR/VR, big data, and NFTs to yield top-notch app solutions that are high-performing and feature-loaded. Boasting a proficient team of developers, thought leaders, and out-of-the-box thinkers, they pride themselves on understanding the unique objectives and obstacles faced by many clients, rendering tailored solutions for tangible results. In a recent conversation, Mr. Harnil Oza, CEO of Hyperlink InfoSystem, expressed his happiness over the company's accomplishments and goals for the future. "At Hyperlink InfoSystem, we are embracing innovation to its fullest in today's dynamic mobile landscape. We have the best of developers and strategists spread across the globe who meticulously craft apps that transform their enterprise digitally and ensure a fighting competition in the crowded app marketplace." When asked about what new arenas they're willing to explore, Harnil said, "The global mobile market is bursting with billions of smartphone users, and hence now the focus is on building unique and objective-oriented applications that also create new opportunities for users and clients alike." Looking ahead, Hyperlink InfoSystem plans to retain its pace by geometrically growing the mobile app development industry, expanding its developer staff, cultivating an innovative culture, and investing more in emerging technologies. The company rigorously develops each app to ensure stability and peak performance. As demand for feature-packed, customer-driven products grows, the enterprise will now focus on delivering new-age solutions inspired by this trend. The mobile app market will continue its ascent, and Hyperlink InfoSystem aspires to remain the leading force behind every innovation, by shaping the future of the app experience for users and businesses. 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/2429933/4743119/Hyperlink_InfoSystem_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/hyperlink-infosystem-1-new-yorks-fastest-growing-app-development-company-in-2024-302190745.html Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - CopAur Minerals Inc. (TSXV: CPAU) (OTCQX: COPAF) ("CopAur" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has signed a non-binding indicative term sheet with Nevada Sunrise Metals Corporation ("Nevada Sunrise") to acquire Nevada Sunrise's 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Mountain Gold Project in Nevada ("Kinsley Project"). If the transaction is completed CopAur will own 100% of the Kinsley Project. The indicative term sheet outlines a potential transaction whereby CopAur will acquire Nevada Sunrises' 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project in consideration of the payment of CDN$475,000 and the issuance of 1,000,000 common shares of CopAur. The shares will be deposited in escrow and will be released in successive releases of 250,000 shares once every calendar quarter commencing after expiry of the four-month statutory hold period after the closing date. The terms are indicative, and the final terms are subject to the negotiation and completion of a definitive agreement on terms acceptable to CopAur and Nevada Sunrise. The transaction will be subject to several conditions including CopAur arranging a financing in the amount of a minimum of CDN$475,000, completion of satisfactory due diligence and the fulfilment of various closing conditions, including acceptance by the TSXV. Chief executive officer Jeremy Yaseniuk stated: "Acquiring the remaining 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project will provide us with full control over the project and the ability to concentrate our efforts on advancing this exciting project. We completed reverse circulation and diamond core drilling program in late 2023 at Kinsley Mountain within the Main Pit North area located one kilometre southeast of the Western Flank Zone which intersected high grade near-surface oxide gold intercepts with the gold hosting Dunderberg shale 75 metres outside the current resource pit shell providing opportunities for near pit resource expansion. We now hope to initiate the integrated exploration data analysis to further advance the understanding of the Kinsley Project mineralization that will increase the efficiency and robustness of future exploration, targeting resource definition and development work." The Kinsley Project hosts current mineral resources that CopAur is working to upgrade and expand. The Kinsley Project was a historical past producer that yielded 138,000 ounces of near-surface open-pit oxide gold between 1995 and 1999. A technical report on the Kinsley Project titled "Technical Report of the Kinsley Project, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, U.S.A.", dated June 21, 2021, with an effective date of May 5, 2021, prepared by Michael M. Gustin and Gary L. Simmons, is available for review under New Placer Dome Gold Corp.'s issuer profile on SEDAR+. About CopAur CopAur is an exploration company focused on developing projects within the emerging, mineral-rich mining regions of Nevada. The Company is backed by a dynamic and experienced team of resource professionals advancing its projects in Nevada with the flagship project being Kinsley Mountain gold property, a Carlin-style project located 90 kilometres south of the Long Canyon mine (currently in production under the Newmont/Barrick joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines). Qualified Person The scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Kristopher J. Raffle, P.Geo. (British Columbia), principal and consultant, of APEX Geoscience Ltd. of Edmonton, Alta., and a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects). For more information, please contact: CopAur Minerals Inc. Jeremy Yaseniuk, Chief Executive Officer & Director Tel: +1 (604) 773-1467 Email: jeremyy@CopAur.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. The securities under the financing referred to in this news release have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act, or the securities laws of any state of the United States and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, "U.S. persons" (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to an exemption from such registration requirements. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Forward-Looking Information This news release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or the Company's future performance including obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals for and completion of a definitive agreement with Nevada Sunrise to purchase its 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project. All such statements involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results to vary from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements including negotiation and finalization of a definitive agreement and the satisfaction of all closing conditions to complete the transaction, including a condition for CopAur to raise sufficient financing for the transaction, completion of due diligence and the parties obtaining TSXV approval. Forward-Looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, they should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and they will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions on the date of this news release, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revised any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities regulations. Not for distribution to U.S. news wire services or dissemination in the United States To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215665 SOURCE: CopAur Minerals Inc. MONACO, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Challenges and tests in and out of the water but also opportunities to learn and improve. At the Monaco Energy Boat Challenge, the nautical event dedicated to alternative propulsion organized at the Yacht Club de Monaco, universities students get to confront each other but also to meet shipyards and industry representatives to think about their future. A corporate mentoring program is available for the teams taking part in the competition if they ask for it. "We have some industry players and also some past alumni who actually are accompanying each team for different subjects such as engineering, project management and supply chain. So the idea is that they help the team throughout the year to make the project better. Usually it is more the rookies that require the program but also for some very specific technicalities such as hydrogen," explained Charlotte Mille, YCM sustainability manager. Among the shipyards involved there's Sanlorenzo that has been supporting the University of Genova: "We started the program started more or less two years ago when we launched the idea to the professors and students of the University. The year before we were here and saw a lot of students that were doing something very interesting with this innovative boats. Then we reported the idea to University of Genova and pushed a bit them to enter the challenge. We gave them some support from the founding point of view and also sharing some ideas bringing some sort of practical experience." From their point of view, the students find the program helpful and mind-opening: "Working with Sanlorenzo was a great experience because it helped us to know better composite materials and also to work with sustainable materials and also to get lighter and better in performance. The technical expertise of Sanlorenzo team was very important to develop new technology and for us to be more competitive and sustainable during this competition," explained Francesco Travi a student taking part in the competition and studying at University of Genova. More over for the young competitors there are opportunities to make contact with the industry by applying for job offers and internships via the Job Forum. "Here we're gathering all the industry players who are here whether it is for the conferences or for the races. It's in form of 'job dating' so it works with quick interviews then contacts and hopefully finding good talents," added Mille. Supported by the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, UBS, BMW and SBM Offshore, the event has attracted the attention and support of well-known names in the industry like Monaco Marine, Oceanco, Ferretti Group, Azimut/Benetti Group and Lurssen, all keen to play a part in the yachting transformation. So for these young competitors there are opportunities to make contact with the industry by applying for job offers and internships via the Job Forum. For more information: Press Office LaPresse - ufficio.stampa@lapresse.it A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ad9fb726-a327-4dfe-899a-00d9bcd03ce9 A video accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/16452379-7a52-4958-a2c6-4c0aa5478080 WESTFORD, Mass., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to SkyQuest, the global Zero Trust Security Market size was valued at USD 25.5 billion in 2022 and is poised to grow from USD 31.6 billion in 2023 to USD 99.7 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 15.5% during the forecast period (2024-2031). Zero trust facilities provide secure access to cloud-based apps and data. Organizations need to develop robust data protection mechanisms to comply with stringent data privacy regulations such as the GDPR and CCPA. Companies using the mistrust policy are playing an increasing role in industries as a primary security system. The traditional range-based model is being abandoned. Large tech companies are buying security services without guarantees to improve security services. Download a detailed overview: https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/zero-trust-security-market Zero Trust Security Market Overview: Report Coverage Details Market Revenue in 2023 USD 31.6 billion Estimated Value by 2031 USD 99.7 billion Growth Rate Poised to grow at a CAGR of 15.5% Forecast Period 2024-2031 Forecast Units Value (USD Billion) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered Offering, Deployment, Authentication Type and End-User Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Latin America Report Highlights Updated financial information / product portfolio of players Key Market Opportunities Increasing Adoption of Cloud Technology Key Market Drivers Increasing Number of Cyber Threats and Data Breaches Segments covered in Zero Trust Security Market are as follows: Offering Software, Service Deployment Cloud, On-premise, Multi-Cloud/Hybrid Authentication Type Multi-Factor Authentication, and Single-Factor Authentication End-User IT and Telecom, BFSI, Manufacturing, Healthcare, Energy and Power, Retail, Government, Other Industries Request Free Customization of this report: https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/zero-trust-security-market BFSI Sector: Verifying Endpoints with Confidence The BFSI sector is optimal for implementing zero trust security solutions, as being the segment most susceptible to such threats and subjected to strict legal restraints. BFSIs have identified key factors to explain why who must invest in cybersecurity, such as the increasing number of ransomware attacks, regulations and forced labor. In short, remote employees and third parties also have additional information as it is difficult to express themselves. The introduction of zero trust security market is accelerating in this sector due to widespread adoption. Healthcare organizations are now rapidly adopting trustless security, as the need for improved access control and protection of patient data is essential. Lack of trust through a minimum privilege policy make it possible for doctors to access all patient records simultaneously. This access is the important one as it is often the target of cybersecurity threats so issues with patient data being breached security and industry compliance makes healthcare one of the fastest growing markets for trust-free security solutions. Empowering Multifactor Authentication Segment: Zero Trust Security for Every Role A key segment in the zero trust security market is multifactor authentication. Companies such as Microsoft, Google and the industry identified the most reliable way to deal with security attacks as Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) with a ranking of 99. It also found that 9% of automated bot threats have been blocked for therefore it established its trust to enhance security. This great success rate of zero trust security encourages the use of MFA as an important prospective means of constantly obtaining and verifying its authorization. MFA is gaining popularity among organizations for mitigating new and improved threats as its adoption helps expand the zero security market among organizations to protect their valuable assets. The single-factor approach uses only one credential for authentication, such as a password or OTP as opposed to a username. In this authentication mode, it is important to use a combination of letters, cases, numeric values and symbols to ensure that a strong password is created because this creates difficulties and time for hackers to use permutations and combinations. View report summary and Table of Contents (TOC): https://www.skyquestt.com/report/zero-trust-security-market Fortifying the Future: The Impact and Promise of the Zero Trust Security Market The future of the uncertainty-free security market is promising, driven by continued technological advancement and increased awareness of cyber threats. Emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and behavioral analytics enhance the power of trustless solutions, making them more flexible and intelligent. As cyber threats evolve, reliance on imperfect modeling will play an important role in future proofing and cybersecurity measures, all firmly designed to ensure that organizations are protected. The zero trust security market is poised to redefine the cybersecurity landscape. Related Report: Cyber Security Market Network Security Market Endpoint Security Market Managed Security Services Market Application Security Market About Us: SkyQuest is an IP focused Research and Investment Bank and Accelerator of Technology and assets. We provide access to technologies, markets and finance across sectors viz. Life Sciences, CleanTech, AgriTech, NanoTech and Information & Communication Technology. We work closely with innovators, inventors, innovation seekers, entrepreneurs, companies and investors alike in leveraging external sources of R&D. Moreover, we help them in optimizing the economic potential of their intellectual assets. Our experiences with innovation management and commercialization has expanded our reach across North America, Europe, ASEAN and Asia Pacific. Contact: Mr. Jagraj Singh Skyquest Technology 1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886 USA (+1) 351-333-4748 Email: sales@skyquestt.com Visit Our Website: https://www.skyquestt.com/ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2446095/SkyQuest_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/zero-trust-security-market-set-to-surge-beyond-usd-99-7-billion-by-2031-skyquest-technology-302190658.html Through strategic investments, DAMAC is dedicated to fostering innovation and driving the next wave of technological advancements DUBAI, UAE, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- DAMAC Group, a leading conglomerate known for its diverse investment portfolio, has announced a significant increase in its investment in the rapidly evolving Artificial Intelligence (AI) sector. DAMAC Group announced notable investments in leading AI companies including a $50 million in the AI startup, Anthropic - as one of the top investors who have bought into the company from the cryptocurrency exchange, FTX. The Group has also made investments in xAI - an American AI startup founded by Elon Musk and in Mistral - a France-based AI company which is one of the best European large-language model open source. This strategic move aligns with the Group's vision to support and develop cutting-edge AI technologies and infrastructure. The DAMAC Group's diversified family office has already invested in over 70 funds across various strategies, demonstrating its commitment to fostering innovation and growth across multiple industries. With this new focus on AI, the Group aims to further enhance its role in advancing foundational AI models and infrastructure. "As a forward-thinking organisation, we recognise the transformative potential of AI in shaping the future," said Hussain Sajwani, Founder of DAMAC Group. "Our increased investment in AI reflects our commitment to supporting the development of groundbreaking technologies that can drive significant progress and create new opportunities across various sectors." "We are excited to be part of the AI revolution and to contribute to the growth of this dynamic industry," added Sajwani. "Our investments in companies like Mistral, Anthropic, and xAI underscore our dedication to fostering innovation and driving the next wave of technological advancements." A study by PwC underscores the immense potential of AI to transform the productivity and GDP potential of the global economy. AI could contribute up to $15.7 trillion to the global economy by 2030. Initial GDP gains will be driven by improvements in labour productivity as firms augment their workforce with AI technologies and automate certain tasks and roles. By 2030, 45% of total economic gains will come from product enhancements, stimulating consumer demand through greater product variety, increased personalisation, and enhanced affordability. The greatest economic gains from AI will be seen in China, with a 26% boost to GDP, and in North America, with a 14.5% boost. Together, these regions will account for almost 70% of the global economic impact, equivalent to a total of $10.7 trillion. DAMAC Group's increased focus on AI and technological infrastructure is expected to bolster its existing portfolio and pave the way for new strategic partnerships and collaborations. The Group aims to leverage advanced technologies to create value and drive sustainable growth. ABOUT DAMAC GROUP The DAMAC Group is the multi-billion-dollar business conglomerate of UAE based Hussain Sajwani. The Group's investments are divided into seven core areas; real estate, capital markets, hotels & resorts, manufacturing, catering, high-end fashion and data centres. Some of the Group's most notable activities include DAMAC Properties, one of the region's largest property developers, the acquisition of the Italian fashion house, Roberto Cavalli and luxury Swiss jewellery brand de GRISOGONO, the 50-storey development DAMAC Towers Nine Elms in London and a luxury resort in the Maldives. In a bid to disrupt the global data centre landscape, the Group recently announced plans to build data centres through its digital infrastructure company, EDGNEX Data Centres by DAMAC, across different global locations. Today, the Group's global footprint extends across North America, Europe, Asia, Middle East and Africa. With its vision firmly set on growth and expansion, the Group continues in its quest for diversification and business excellence. For more information, please contact: Visit us at www.damacgroup.com Email: corporatecommunications@damacgroup.com Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2455928/DAMAC_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/damac-group-announces-increased-investment-in-artificial-intelligence-sector-with-notable-investments-in-anthropic-xai-and-mistral-302190927.html Expanding Messaging Capabilities for Businesses SAN FRANCISCO and STOCKHOLM, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sinch (Sinch AB (publ) - XSTO: SINCH), which is pioneering the way the world communicates through its Customer Communications Cloud, today introduced the Sinch Omnichannel Connector on Salesforce AppExchange. This innovative solution enhances conversational marketing opportunities and customer experiences by offering Salesforce Marketing Cloud customers advanced one-way and two-way messaging capabilities. The solution is now available on Salesforce AppExchange. The Sinch Omnichannel Connector seamlessly integrates with the Salesforce ecosystem, empowering businesses to elevate their marketing strategies by reaching and engaging customers across their preferred channels. This new offering expands the reach of Salesforce Marketing Cloud platform features, providing a comprehensive suite of omnichannel messaging capabilities. Businesses can now connect with customers through one-way and two-way messaging across 13 diverse channels, including platforms like RCS, Kakao Talk, Viper, and Instagram. This expands Salesforce's native channels of SMS, MMS, Email, WhatsApp, and LINE, providing a comprehensive communication solution. "With the Sinch Omnichannel Connector, businesses can enhance their customer communications, personalize engagements, and maximize the return on their marketing investments," said Jonathan Campbell, Senior Director, Messaging Products at Sinch. "Salesforce Marketing Cloud users can now leverage a broader spectrum of messaging channels through Sinch, beyond those directly supported by Salesforce, to optimize their marketing strategies and elevate customer engagement." To get started, Salesforce Marketing Cloud users simply need to have an existing account and onboard the Conversation API through the Sinch Dashboard. From there, they can easily activate the channels of their choice, tailoring their messaging strategy to suit their unique business needs. Sinch has partnered with Salesforce since 2014 when Salesforce expanded its SMS offering into international markets. Sinch is a strategic supplier for Salesforce's global SMS delivery and provides enterprise-grade messaging solutions that support Salesforce and its global customer base. For more information visit Sinch Omnichannel Connector Salesforce, AppExchange, Marketing Cloud and others are among the trademarks of Salesforce, Inc. CONTACT: For further information, please contact: Janet Lennon Director of Global Communications janet.lennon@sinch.com This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/sinch-ab/r/sinch-launches-omnichannel-connector-on-salesforce-appexchange,c4012692 View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sinch-launches-omnichannel-connector-on-salesforce-appexchange-302190931.html BANGALORE, India, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Flexible Display Market is Segmented by Type (Liquid Crystal Display (LCD), Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED), Electronic Paper Display (EPD)), by Application (Smartphone, Tablet, Laptop, Smartcard, TV, Wearable Display): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2024-2030. The Global Flexible Display Market was valued at USD 4882 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 28130 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 27.9% during the forecast period 2024-2030. Claim Your Free Sample Now: https://reports.valuates.com/request/sample/QYRE-Othe-2Y395/Flexible_Display_Market Major Factors Driving the Growth of Flexible Display Market: The market for flexible displays is expanding quickly as a result of developments in display technology and rising consumer desire for creative and adaptable electronics. Compared to conventional rigid displays, flexible displays-which can be twisted, rolled, or folded-offer a number of benefits, such as increased durability and new design options. Their use in smartphones, wearable technology, televisions, and other consumer electronics has increased as a result. The market is further driven by consumers' increasing inclination for small, stylish gadgets and by major industry players' ongoing expenditures in R&D to enhance the functionality and productivity of flexible displays. Unlock Insights: View Full Report Now! https://reports.valuates.com/market-reports/QYRE-Othe-2Y395/flexible-display TRENDS INFLUENCING THE GROWTH OF THE FLEXIBLE DISPLAY MARKET The market for flexible displays is expanding at a substantial rate because of Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) technology, especially in the smartphone and tablet segments. When compared to typical LCD displays, OLED displays are preferred due to its greater image quality, which includes higher contrast ratios, faster reaction times, and better color accuracy. Their small, light weight, and flexibility enable the creation of cutting-edge gadget designs, such curved and folding screens, which are becoming more and more well-liked by users. Since OLED technology satisfies customer desire for svelte, highly functional, and aesthetically beautiful gadgets, its adoption by top manufacturers in flagship smartphones and high-end tablets is driving market expansion. The flexible display industry is expanding at a substantial rate thanks to the usage of flexible screens in wearable technology. The development of lightweight, robust, and flexible screens that can follow the curves of the human body has been made possible by flexible OLED and e-paper technologies, which improves the wearable devices' use and comfort. These displays may be easily integrated into a variety of form factors, such as smartwatches, fitness trackers, and medical monitors. They also have excellent image quality and low battery consumption. Flexible display usage is speeding up and the market is developing as a result of customer desire for wearable technology that is both innovative and visually beautiful, as well as the increased emphasis on health and fitness monitoring. Another important element propelling market expansion is the deployment of flexible displays by the automobile industry. Advanced infotainment, dashboard, and head-up display systems are becoming more and more common in modern cars. Flexible screens provide automakers the chance to create creative, curved, and ergonomic interfaces that improve the look and feel of their vehicles. Flexible displays are in high demand as a result of the rising trend towards connected and autonomous vehicles. These displays offer adaptable and aesthetically pleasing ways to integrate cutting-edge technologies into the interior of automobiles. The market for flexible displays is being greatly impacted by the growing popularity of foldable smartphones. Leading smartphone makers are introducing foldable versions that provide bigger screens in smaller form factors by utilizing flexible display technology. Customers looking for rich viewing experiences and multitasking capabilities may find these devices appealing. Flexible display demand is being driven by the creative design and improved functionality of foldable smartphones, which are generating consumer attention and acceptance. The rivalry grows as more companies join the foldable smartphone space, which accelerates the development of flexible display technology. The rising demand for foldable smartphones is having a significant effect on the flexible display business. Prominent manufacturers of smartphones are releasing foldable models that use flexible display technology to give larger screens in smaller form factors. These gadgets may be intriguing to customers who are searching for multitasking capabilities and rich viewing experiences. The need for flexible displays is being fueled by foldable smartphones' innovative designs and enhanced functionality, which are drawing interest and acceptance from consumers. The competition intensifies as more businesses enter the foldable smartphone market, hastening the advancement of flexible display technology. Own It Today - Buy Now! https://reports.valuates.com/api/directpaytoken?rcode=QYRE-Othe-2Y395&lic=single-user FLEXIBLE DISPLAY MARKET SHARE ANALYSIS Because of the strong consumer electronics industry and the presence of large electronics manufacturers, the flexible display market in Asia-Pacific is expanding significantly. Leading nations in the creation and manufacturing of flexible display technology include China, Japan, and South Korea. The fast commercialization of flexible displays is facilitated by the region's robust manufacturing base and significant expenditures in research and development. The use of cutting-edge display technology in products like smartphones, wearables, and televisions, together with the strong demand for cutting-edge consumer electronics, are further factors propelling market expansion in this area. Key Players: Samsung Display (Korea) LG Display(South Korea) Hewlett-Packard Company (US) Atmel Corporation (US) Kent Displays (US) Universal Display Corporation (US) Novaled AG (Germany) DuPont Corning (US) Philips Electronics (Netherlands) Materion Corporation (US) AU Optronics (Taiwan) E Ink Holdings (Taiwan) Purchase Regional Data: https://reports.valuates.com/request/regional/QYRE-Othe-2Y395/Flexible_Display_Market 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 Tablet & Notebook Display market was valued at USD 17200 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 23550 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 4.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - The global Interactive Display Screens market was valued at USD 1014 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 1546.5 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 6.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Commercial Display Cabinet Market - Digital Display System Market - Intelligent Display System Market - The global Display Inspection Equipment market was valued at USD 2633.8 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 3502.6 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - The global Paper-like Display market was valued at USD 431 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 1844.3 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 23.1% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - The global Flexible Electronic Paper Display market was valued at USD 870 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 1319.2 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 6.0% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Field Emission Display Market - Flexible LCD Display Market - Movable Imaging Display Market - Large Size Display Panel Market - Medium-Small Display Market - The global On-camera Monitor market is projected to reach USD 113.5 million in 2029, increasing from USD 86 million in 2022, with the CAGR of 4.2% during the period of 2023 to 2029. - Next Generation Display Market - The global Passive-Matrix OLED Display market was valued at USD 360 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 802.8 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 12.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Curved Screen Display Market - Expended Reality Display Market - Consumer Electronics Display Devices Market - The global Display Test Equipment market was valued at USD 2633.8 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 3502.6 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 4.2% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - The global market for LED Display Screen was estimated to be worth USD 7725.1 million in 2023 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 10840 million by 2030 with a CAGR of 4.9% during the forecast period 2024-2030 - LED Interactive Display Market - Smart Display Market - OLED Displays and Accessories Market - The global market for OLED was estimated to be worth USD 20860 million in 2023 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 51130 million by 2030 with a CAGR of 13.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030 - The global OLED Display Panel Luminescent Material market is projected to reach USD 1909 million in 2029, increasing from USD 593 million in 2022, with the CAGR of 18.2% during the period of 2023 to 2029. - Organic Light-emitting Diodes (OLEDs) Microdisplay Market - OLED Encapsulation System Market - The global Coater and Developer for Large Size OLED market was valued at USD 64 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 93 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 7.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Flexible Transparent OLED Displays Market - OLED Digital Signage Market - Foldable Flexible OLED Panel Market - The global Automotive OLED Lighting market is projected to reach USD 66 million by 2030 from an estimated USD 18 million in 2024, at a CAGR of 24.5% during 2024 and 2030. - OLED Deposition Equipment - Market - Biomedical-grade Polymer OLED Materials Market - The global Passive-Matrix OLED Display market was valued at USD 360 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 802.8 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 12.5% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - AR and VR Silicon-Based OLED Panel Market - The global LCD TV Panel market is projected to reach USD 62410 million by 2030 from an estimated USD 54770 million in 2024, at a CAGR of 2.2% during 2024 and 2030. - The global TFT-LCD market is projected to reach USD 90020 million by 2030 from an estimated USD 102250 million in 2024, at a CAGR of -2.1% during 2024 and 2030. - The global LCD Touch Screens market was valued at USD 142 million in 2023 and is anticipated to reach USD 244.9 million by 2030, witnessing a CAGR of 8.1% during the forecast period 2024-2030. - Transparent LCD Display Market - LCD Splicing Screens Market - Flexible LCD Display Market - Flat Panel LCD Controller Market - Full LCD Instrument Cluster Market - Military LCD Display Market - LCD Diffusion Film Market - LCD Digitizer Market - LCD Panel Sealant Market - PCBs for Automotive LCD Market - LCD Screen Charging Pile Market - The global LCD Photoresists revenue was USD 1242.8 million in 2022 and is forecast to a readjusted size of USD 1449.9 million by 2029 with a CAGR of 2.2% during the forecast period (2023-2029). - LCD Reflective Film Market 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/flexible-display-market-size-to-grow-usd-28130-million-by-2030-at-a-cagr-of-27-9--valuates-reports-302190966.html Glen Ellyn, Illinois--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - With a background in fostering innovation and small businesses, Joe Cassidy will bring a wealth of experience to the new position of Assistant Provost of Workforce and Economic Development at College of DuPage. Cassidy served for 14 years as the College's dean of Continuing Education, which provides a wide range of educational opportunities such as adult education, career and technical training, and lifelong learning. He also oversaw the Public Services Division, which includes the Fire Science program, the Suburban Law Enforcement Academy and the Homeland Security Training Institute. Most recently, he helped launch the Aviation Management program. He also played a pivotal role in founding and managing Innovation DuPage, an enterprise that fosters innovation and entrepreneurship. ID was created through a partnership between COD and the Village of Glen Ellyn, and its success reflects his dedication to local and regional economic development. "I am deeply committed to leveraging my new role to facilitate the growth of entrepreneurs, startups and small businesses in our region," he said. "By establishing and strengthening strategic partnerships and connecting to Illinois workforce initiatives, we will empower individuals to realize their entrepreneurial and career ambitions. My goal is to deepen the connections between College of DuPage, its students, industry and academic partners in our region." Cassidy earned his bachelor's degree in English education from Northern Illinois University, an MBA from Westwood College and an Ed.D. from Benedictine University. Before coming to COD, he was assistant vice president of Extended Studies at Naropa University in Boulder, Colo., where he helped create a bridge between the classroom and the professional working world, and then spent two years as director of Campus Operations at the Chicago Loop campus of Westwood College. Cassidy's involvement and connections extend beyond the College with such key organizations as Choose DuPage and workNet DuPage. His collaboration with the National Association of Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) exemplifies his commitment to sharing best practices and fostering collaboration on a national scale. He is the president-elect of the National Council for Continuing Education and Training, a member of the Illinois Science and Technology Coalition, and the finance chair of Naropa University's Board of Trustees. In 2022, Cassidy received an Entrepreneur Excellence Award from The Daily Herald Suburban Business for Outstanding Service to Entrepreneurs. COD Provost Mark Curtis-Chavez said Cassidy's elevation underscores the institution's commitment to advancing economic growth. "Joe Cassidy brings extensive experience and deep connections to this new role," he said. "His knowledge of workforce and economic development, along with a commitment to student success, will position College of DuPage as a leader in regional economic development." Joe Cassidy, College of DuPage Assistant Provost of Workforce and Economic Development To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9467/215728_0ba4de0844bc4a48_001full.jpg # # # Contact: Brian Kleemann kleeman@cod.edu (630) 942-2370 To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215728 SOURCE: College of DuPage Originally published on HARMAN Newsroom STAMFORD, CT / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / At HARMAN, we believe that true innovation thrives when diversity and inclusion are not just buzzwords, but core values. Celebrating Pride Month is just one way we demonstrate our commitment to creating a workplace where everyone feels valued, inspired, and empowered - not just for one month, but every single day. As a global connected technologies leader, HARMAN develops products that make life easier, productive, and entertaining. The brilliant minds behind our groundbreaking innovations are our greatest asset, and we recognize the importance of allowing our people to bring their whole, authentic selves to work. At HARMAN, every identity is celebrated, and every voice is heard. In honor of Pride Month this June, HARMAN celebrated with a vibrant series of events, sponsored by our Pride Employee Resource Group (ERG), in support of the LGBTQIA+ community. Join us in looking back at our Pride Month programming that served as a part of our ongoing efforts to foster a safe, equitable, and inclusive work environment for all people at HARMAN: Flag Raising Ceremonies Several HARMAN locations from all over the globe kicked off Pride Month with an intersectional Pride flag raising ceremony to represent our commitment to recognizing and honoring diverse identities within our company. These ceremonies were held globally, including sites in the US, Mexico, India, and several European countries as Germany and Poland. Amplifying Authentic Voices To reflect on HARMAN's journey toward becoming a more equitable workplace, Nick Parrotta, President DTS and Chief Digital & Information Officer and Executive Sponsor of our Pride ERG, shared an inspiring message about HARMAN's DE&I progress, the challenges ahead, and the valuable contributions our LGBTQIA+ colleagues have made to HARMAN. We also conducted a global virtual fireside chat with guest speaker Kaneesha Nadal, member of our Partner Workplace Pride, Cell Therapy Specialist I+ at Kite Pharma, and a DE&I professional, where they explored the significance of authenticity and embracing our true identities. From Kaneesha's experience in amplifying unheard voices and stories within marginalized communities, attendees gained insights from their experiences and expertise with social activism that can be applied to being your authentic self in the workplace and beyond. Exploring Mentorship in the LGBTQIA+ Community with Samsung HARMAN joined our parent company Samsung and members of our partner Out in Tech for a networking event bringing Samsung and HARMAN's Pride ERGs together. In a panel discussion held at the Samsung store in NYC and virtually livestreamed, speakers explored professional mentorship in the LGBTQIA+ community, intersectional identities, and the importance of community. The discussion was followed by drag shows, interactive games, Samsung and HARMAN product giveaways, and opportunities for members of our Pride ERG to connect with colleagues from all over the world. Pride Parades All Over the World HARMAN's enthusiasm for allyship was on full display with our presence at local Pride parades and events in communities where we operate all over the world. This included Motor City Pride in Detroit, Michigan, a high-energy flash mob performance in India, Pride parades across Mexico, Pride festivities at Summerfest in Germany, and a special Pride event at the JBL Store in Munich, Germany. Parades continue in several European countries, including Hungary, and the HARMAN team will also proudly participate in the Amsterdam Parade. Continuing Pride Celebrations in Europe Activities in Europe will continue as we celebrate Pride in July and August. Our commitment to inclusivity will be showcased through various events, including workshops and panels in collaboration with local entities and NGOs. These events aim to foster meaningful conversations and further support our diverse communities across the continent. At HARMAN, our greatest strength lies in our people. When different identities are supported and celebrated, our diverse employees are empowered to innovate in ways that maintain HARMAN's position as a connected technology leader. We are proud of our progress in promoting a culture of authenticity, diversity, and acceptance, but know that the work is never done as we continue progressing towards a more inclusive and equitable future. For more information about our commitment to DE&I, visit: https://www.harman.com/career/diversity. View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from HARMAN on 3blmedia.com. Contact Info: Spokesperson: HARMAN Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/harman Email: info@3blmedia.com SOURCE: HARMAN View the original press release on accesswire.com Kunstliche Intelligenz hat spatestens nach dem Raketenstart von Chat GPT das Leben aller verandert. Doch der Superzyklus steht nach Meinungen von Experten erst am Anfang. Wahrend Aktien wie Nvidia von der ersten Aufwartsentwicklung stark profitieren konnten, versprechen aussichtsreiche Player aus der 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! July 7, 2024: NATO is depending more on locally developed weapons and munitions rather than obtaining them from the United States. The war in Ukraine has encouraged this trend because European nations now realize that they have a very real threat next door with Russia. The Americans are concentrating on how to deal with growing Chinese aggression in the Pacific. The Result is NATO fending for itself more than any time in the past. For example, Germany is currently building the first of six F-126 frigates. These will be the largest warships to serve in the German navy since World War II. The first of the six 10,000-ton F126s will enter service in 2028. Each ship will cost about $1.5 billion. These frigates are 177 meters long and have a top speed of about 50 kilometers an hour. Economical cruising speed is 21 kilometers an hour. Max range is 7,400 kilometers at cruising speed. Endurance is 21 days before refueling and resupply is needed. The crew of 114 can be augmented by 84 additional specialist personnel, including special operations troops. There is a full range of electronics including surface and air search radars as well as fire control radar and sonar for detecting and tracking submarines. Radios include one that uses a satellite link. There are several decoy systems to disrupt the guidance systems on incoming missiles. If that doesnt work there are several anti-missiles systems using autocannon and missiles. There are also VLS cells for up to 64 anti-aircraft missiles. Eight NSM anti-ship and land attack missiles are carried. There are also two 27mm autocannon and four 12.7 machine-guns. There are also non-lethal water cannon and long range acoustic devices to send warnings to small boats approaching the frigate. Two helicopters and one UAV are carried along with a hangar to hold all of them. The F-126 is designed to be continuously deployed for two years without need for major maintenance. This means a F-126 can operate for 5,000 hours a year, which means 57 percent of 365 days in a year. Warships tend to spend a lot of time idle in port. While the F126 was built for combat, its predecessor, the F125 frigates, also contained many innovations. Unfortunately that resulted in an unexpected and unwanted distinction; the first ship of the class, the Baden-Wurttemberg, was rejected by the navy after failing to perform during sea trials. The builder quickly addressed the most serious problems, which were all software related. The Baden-Wurttemberg finally entered service in 2018. The Baden-Wurttemberg did not begin a year of sea trials until the end of 2016. This produced a growing list of problems the builders hustled to fix while also dealing with some of the defects. The list of problems was too long and the navy refused to accept, or commission, the Baden-Wurttemberg into service. While this was embarrassing, it was also the right thing to do because otherwise the problems would have become a major scandal. Not all the problems were made public, if only because some involved new tech that was highly classified. It was known that a new computerized command and control software system for the CIC (combat information center) had an unacceptable number of bugs as did some of the other software for automating operation of the ship and making possible a smaller, by about 50 percent, crew than would normally be needed. The new radar system and other sensors had problems as did the damage control system. All these are easily fixed. There was also a perceptible 1.3 degree list to starboard, which has since been fixed. The four F125 frigates displace 7,200 tons each. This is larger than some destroyers, but it's become unfashionable in Europe to call a warship a destroyer. Those attitudes played a role in the failure of the Baden-Wurttemberg. It was no secret that attracting the best engineering and design talent to warship construction has been difficult. Since the Cold War ended in 1991 and Germany was reunited, it became fashionable to downplay defense in general and working in the military or defense industries became less popular. Even though these industries remained major employers and Germany continued to export innovative warship designs, the F125s were more innovative than any surface warship Germany had put into service during the last century. Before World War I Germany produced battleships that, ship-for-ship, were superior to those any other nation was building. In both World Wars German developed and produced the most advanced submarine designs. During the Cold War Germany was divided and concentrated on its land forces. The Cold War West German navy concentrated on coast defense, mine clearing and ASW (Anti-Submarine Warfare). Thus the F-125s were an ambitious effort that, it turned out, the German navy lacked the project management talent to handle problems. The shipbuilding industry also proved unable to cope. Some of the problems were higher up. The government thought, as did many others, that Russia would remain a benign neighbor. Russia was, for a while, but by 2008 the Russian government was dominated by former KGB secret police officers who decided to revive the Cold War and police state rule inside Russia. German leaders were slow to realize that this revival of Russian aggression was not temporary but growing. That became obvious in 2014 when Russia seized Crimea and portions of two adjacent provinces from Ukraine and made more threatening moves in the Baltic Sea. That was bad news because the four F125s were replacing the eight smaller 3,700 ton F122 class ships that were designed and built in the 1980s to defend the Baltic. For this the F125s were much less capable. The F125s were designed for global operations, a first for German warships of this size. They were called peacekeeper or commando cruisers only half in jest. But now the threat is greatest where it has always been, the Baltic and the North Sea. The main deficiency of the F125s was the lack of sonar and ASW (Anti-submarines warfare) torpedo tubes. The F125s are 149.5 meters long and highly automated. They have a crew of 110, although there are accommodations for up to 190. This allows the ship to carry commandos, aid workers, or whatever. Actually, they have two crews, so the F-125s can stay at sea for long periods of time with the crews changing every four months. Armament consists of eight anti-ship missiles, two RAM anti-missile missile systems (with 21 missiles each), one 127mm gun, four 27mm automatic cannon, five remotely controlled 12.7mm machine-guns, two manually controlled 12.7mm machine-guns, and water cannons. There are also two NH90 helicopters and four 11 meter long, high speed (74 kilometers an hour) boats for the commandos who could also use the helicopters) and one or two UUVs (unmanned underwater vehicles) for clearing mines. There's also space for two 20 foot shipping containers carrying any special equipment. Electronics includes a phased array air search radar as used on Aegis ships and the usual complement of communications and countermeasures equipment. What is missing is the ASW capabilities the F122s had although these can be added. The helicopters can be equipped with dipping sonar and sonobuoys as well as ASW torpedoes. A towed sonar array can be added to the F125s as well as the electronics needed to operate it. That will take time and be costly. Germany ordered theF125 class frigates in 2007 and the first was to service in 2016. Each ship cost nearly a billion dollars. Some innovations did work. In 2012 Germany received the OTO/Melara 127mm/64 five inch gun for the F125 frigates. This 127mm Lightweight Naval Gun Mount was ordered five years earlier and is an automatic cannon that is operated by remote control. There is, in effect, no gun crew in the conventional sense. The gun system weighs 25 tons, including four magazines, so up to four different types of shells can be used including high explosive, anti-aircraft rounds, or GPS guided. The gun can fire up to 35 rounds a minute. The gun barrel can be elevated 70 degrees. Standard unguided shells have a max range of 30 kilometers, while the Vulcano (GPS guided) version can hit targets over 100 kilometers away within 20 meters of its aiming point. The U.S. Navy spent nearly a decade and over $600 million to develop a similar guided shell and failed. There are doubts that Vulcano will succeed in being affordable and reliable but so far tests have been successful and even the U.S. Navy considered buying it. Until 2022 only Italy, Germany and Qatar used Vulcano shells. In 2022 Germany began shipping 155mm Vulcano shells to Ukraine and within a year Ukraine became the largest user of Vulcano shells, using them successfully against Russian targets. Capstone Copper Corp. ("Capstone" or the "Company") (TSX:CS) (ASX:CSC) will release its 2024 second quarter ("Q2 2024") results on Thursday, August 1, 2024 after market close. The announcement will be followed by an investor conference call the same day at 5:00pm Eastern Time 2:00pm Pacific Time (Friday, August 2, 2024, 7:00am Australian Eastern Standard Time). Q2 2024 Results Webcast and Conference Call Details Timing: August 1, 2024, 5:00 pm ET 2:00 pm PT August 2, 2024, 7:00 am AEST Conference call webcast link: https://app.webinar.net/rvoN9NB96e0 To connect by phone: To instantly join the conference call by phone, please use the following URL https://emportal.ink/3V3qtOy to easily register yourself and be connected into the conference call automatically. You can also dial direct to be entered to the call by the operator: Toronto: (+1) 416-764-8650 Vancouver: (+1) 778-383-7413 Australia: 613-627-2402 North America toll free: 888-664-6383 An audio replay of the conference call will be available until August 8, 2024. Replay Dial-in Numbers Toronto: (+1) 416-764-8677 North America toll free: 888-390-0541 Code: 142180# After the replay expiration, an audio file will be available on Capstone's website at Capstone Copper Events and Presentations. Further information is available at www.capstonecopper.com. ABOUT CAPSTONE COPPER CORP. Capstone Copper Corp. is an Americas-focused copper mining company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. We own and operate the Pinto Valley copper mine located in Arizona, USA, the Cozamin copper-silver mine located in Zacatecas, Mexico, the Mantos Blancos copper-silver mine located in the Antofagasta region, Chile, and 70% of the Mantoverde copper-gold mine, located in the Atacama region, Chile. In addition, we own the fully permitted Santo Domingo copper-iron-gold project, located approximately 30 kilometres northeast of Mantoverde in the Atacama region, Chile, as well as a portfolio of exploration properties in the Americas. Capstone Copper's strategy is to unlock transformational copper production growth while executing on cost and operational improvements through innovation, optimization and safe and responsible production throughout our portfolio of assets. We focus on profitability and disciplined capital allocation to surface stakeholder value. We are committed to creating a positive impact in the lives of our people and local communities, while delivering compelling returns to investors by responsibly producing copper to meet the world's growing needs. Further information is available at www.capstonecopper.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708681114/en/ Contacts: Jerrold Annett, SVP, Strategy Capital Markets 647-273-7351 jannett@capstonecopper.com Daniel Sampieri, Director, Investor Relations Strategic Analysis 437-788-1767 dsampieri@capstonecopper.com In a much-anticipated decision, the FDA approved Eli Lilly's donanemab. This anti-amyloid antibody is the third drug intended to alter the progression of Alzheimer's disease treatment. This approval will intensify the competition between Eli Lilly's Donanemab and Biogen and Eisai's ADUHELM (aducanumab), and LEQEMBI (lecanemab). LAS VEGAS, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Alzheimer's disease, the most common type of dementia, is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with a multifactorial pathogenesis. It is characterized by a gradual decline in cognitive and functional abilities, with individuals eventually losing the ability to undertake everyday tasks and function independently. As per DelveInsight analysis, in 2023, the total diagnosed prevalent cases of Alzheimer's disease in the 7MM were 15.4 million. These cases are projected to increase further during the forecast period (2024-2034). In 2023, the United States had the highest proportion of diagnosed prevalent cases of Alzheimer's disease among the 7MM, comprising approximately 41% of the total cases. Conversely, the United Kingdom had the lowest share, representing nearly 4% of the total diagnosed prevalent cases of Alzheimer's in 2023. As the size and proportion of the US population aged 65 and older continue to increase, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's or other dementias will grow. While there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease at present, starting treatment early and maintaining it consistently is crucial for alleviating clinical symptoms. Early diagnosis is vital for applying symptomatic therapies, addressing behavioral issues, and implementing lifestyle changes that can reduce the risk of dementia and potentially slow disease progression. Most current dementia treatments focus on increasing the levels of specific brain neurotransmitters like acetylcholine, serotonin, and noradrenaline, or decreasing the activity of others, such as glutamate and dopamine. Because of potential side effects, it's crucial to tailor dementia treatment to individual patients, taking into account their other health conditions and therapies. The impact on heart function, drug elimination, and other interactions should be evaluated individually. Medications like acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (AChEIs) and the N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonist memantine have been available in the US for over ten years for symptomatic relief. Approval of novel anti-amyloid biologics, which are 'disease-modifying,' with novel targeted mechanisms of action, has led to significant improvements from the traditional symptomatic treatment regime. With an improved pathological understanding of Alzheimer's and the discovery of new therapeutic targets, novel monoclonal antibodies have been approved in the last couple of years. In June 2021, Biogen and Eisai's ADUHELM (aducanumab) received accelerated approval, and in July 2023 LEQEMBI (lecanemab) received the full US FDA approval. Learn more about the FDA-approved Alzheimer's disease drugs @ Drugs for Alzheimer's Disease Treatment Biogen and Eisai's ADUHELM was granted accelerated approval by the FDA for treating early Alzheimer's disease, including mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's. It is the first treatment to target amyloid plaques and address Alzheimer's pathology. However, the drug is not widely available since it hasn't received traditional approval in the US and was rejected in Europe and Japan, tempering expectations for its success. LEQEMBI (lecanemab), another drug by Biogen and Eisai, received accelerated approval from the US FDA in January 2023. By July 2023, this approval was upgraded to a traditional one following a confirmatory trial that demonstrated a 27% slowing in decline, confirming the drug's clinical benefits. This achievement is a significant milestone, addressing the unmet needs of patients with early Alzheimer's and paving the way for future biologics and drugs targeting the disease's underlying pathology. This approval is advantageous for Biogen and Eisai, ensuring their profitability, and first-mover market advantage, and helping them recover from the ADUHELM setback. Moreover, after declining Eli Lilly's Alzheimer's drug donanemab for accelerated approval last year, the agency has now granted the anti-amyloid therapy full approval. This makes it a competitor to Eisai and Biogen's LEQEMBI. The FDA has approved donanemab-abzt, branded as KISUNLA, for treating adults with early symptomatic Alzheimer's disease, which includes individuals with mild cognitive impairment and those in the early stages of dementia. KISUNLA, administered monthly, stands as the pioneering treatment directed at amyloid plaques, backed by evidence allowing for cessation upon plaque removal. This approach aims to reduce treatment expenses and minimize infusion frequency. To know more about Alzheimer's disease treatment options, visit @ New Treatment for Alzheimer's Disease The Alzheimer's disease market is crowded with so many companies including BioVie, AB Science, Cassava Sciences, TauRx Therapeutics, Novo Nordisk, Eli Lilly, Athira Pharma, Alzheon, Eisai, and others are running clinical trials to improve the treatment space. The Alzheimer's disease pipeline possesses potential drugs in mid-stage developments to be launched shortly. Some of the promising drugs in the pipeline include NE3107, masitinib (AB1010), simufilam (PTI-125), Hydromethylthionine mesylate (TRx0237), semaglutide (NN6535), remternetug, fosgonimeton (ATH-1017), ALZ-801 (valiltramiprosate), E2814, and others that hold the potential to create a significant positive shift in the Alzheimer's disease market size. Discover which therapies are expected to grab major Alzheimer's disease market share @ Alzheimer's Disease Market Report BioVie's NE3107 is an orally administered small molecule that can penetrate the blood-brain barrier. It acts as an anti-inflammatory and insulin sensitizer by binding to extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), selectively inhibiting inflammation. NE3107 blocks the activation of ERK/NFkB and the production of TNF triggered by inflammatory stimuli like lipopolysaccharide. BioVie is developing NE3107 for the treatment of Parkinson's disease, multiple myeloma, and prostate cancer. Despite Phase III results not meeting the primary efficacy endpoint due to exclusions, the trial's adaptive design allows continued patient enrollment to achieve statistical significance for regulatory approval. Based on promising efficacy signals from the trial, BioVie plans to collaborate with the US FDA to achieve this goal, aiming for a global launch by 2026. AB Science's Masitinib (AB1010) is an oral tyrosine kinase inhibitor designed to target activated cells of the neuro-immune system, specifically mast cells and microglia, which can accumulate within the central nervous system (CNS) at effective therapeutic levels. Research increasingly links mast cells and microglia to the pathophysiology of Alzheimer's disease. Evidence suggests that Masitinib may offer therapeutic benefits in treating patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's disease, as demonstrated in a Phase II study. AB Science is currently conducting a Phase III trial to further confirm these findings. Cassava Sciences' Simufilam (PTI-125) is a small-molecule drug candidate designed to bind and reverse an altered form of the scaffolding protein filamin A (FLNA), which plays a crucial role in regulating the actin cytoskeleton in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients. Administered orally, simufilam enhances the function of multiple brain receptors and exhibits potent anti-neuroinflammatory effects. Cassava Sciences is currently conducting Phase III clinical trials to evaluate simufilam tablets for Alzheimer's disease, with enrollment completed for both studies. The company expects to release top-line data by the end of 2024 for the first study and by mid-2025 for the second study. Discover more about drugs for Alzheimer's disease in development @ Alzheimer's Disease Clinical Trials The anticipated launch of these emerging therapies for Alzheimer's disease are poised to transform the market landscape in the coming years. As these cutting-edge therapies continue to mature and gain regulatory approval, they are expected to reshape the Alzheimer's disease market landscape, offering new standards of care and unlocking opportunities for medical innovation and economic growth. DelveInsight estimates that the market size for Alzheimer's disease is expected to grow from USD 2.6 billion in 2023 with a significant CAGR by 2034. This growth can be attributed to the introduction of upcoming therapies and the rising prevalence of the disease. The anticipated launch of these therapies is also expected to attract new entrants to the Alzheimer's disease market, resulting in increased competition and innovation. DelveInsight's latest published market report titled as Alzheimer's Disease Market Insight, Epidemiology, and Market Forecast - 2034 will help you to discover which market leader is going to capture the largest market share. The report provides comprehensive insights into the Alzheimer's disease country-specific treatment guidelines, patient pool analysis, and epidemiology forecast to help understand the key opportunities and assess the market's underlying potential. The Alzheimer's disease market report proffers epidemiological analysis for the study period 2020-2034 in the 7MM segmented into: Total Diagnosed Prevalent Cases of Alzheimer's Disease Age-specific Cases of Alzheimer's Disease Gender-specific Cases of Alzheimer's Disease Severity-specific Cases of Alzheimer's Disease The report provides an edge while developing business strategies by understanding trends shaping and driving the 7MM Alzheimer's disease market. Highlights include: 11-year Forecast 7MM Analysis Epidemiology-based Market Forecasting Historical and Forecasted Market Analysis upto 2034 Emerging Drug Market Uptake Peak Sales Analysis Key Cross Competition Analysis Industry Expert's Opinion Access and Reimbursement Download this Alzheimer's disease market report to assess the epidemiology forecasts, understand the patient journeys, know KOLs' opinions about the upcoming treatment paradigms, and determine the factors contributing to the shift in the Alzheimer's disease market. Also, stay abreast of the mitigating factors to improve your market position in the Alzheimer's disease therapeutic space. Related Reports Alzheimer's Disease Epidemiology Alzheimer's Disease Epidemiology Forecast - 2032 report delivers an in-depth understanding of the disease, historical and forecasted Alzheimer's disease epidemiology in the 7MM, i.e., the United States, EU4 (Germany, Spain, Italy, and France), the United Kingdom, and Japan. Alzheimer's Disease Pipeline Alzheimer's Disease Pipeline Insight - 2024 report provides comprehensive insights about the pipeline landscape, pipeline drug profiles, including clinical and non-clinical stage products, and the key Alzheimer's Disease companies, including Biogen, AZTherapies, Cerecin, Neurotrope, Synaptogenix, INmune Bio, Cassava Sciences, EIP Pharma, Neuraly, AB Science, Cortexyme, Anavex Life Sciences, Athira Pharma, Time Therapeutics, Denali Therapeutics Inc., Alector Inc., Lexeo Therapeutics, TrueBinding, Inc., Vaccinex Inc., Annovis Bio Inc., Eisai Inc., Hoffmann-La Roche, Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc., Otsuka Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Cognition Therapeutics, Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, ImmunoBrain Checkpoint, AbbVie, AriBio Co., Ltd., Oryzon Genomics S.A., Eli Lilly and Company, Neurokine Therapeutics, Excelsior, Seelos Therapeutics, Inc., Janssen Research & Development, LLC, Shanghai Hengrui Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., reMYND, Alzinova AB, VTBIO Co. LTD, BioVie Inc., Prothena Corporation plc, Coya Therapeutics, Inc., among others. Parkinson's Disease Pipeline Parkinson's Disease Pipeline Insight - 2024 report provides comprehensive insights about the pipeline landscape, pipeline drug profiles, including clinical and non-clinical stage products, and the key Parkinson's disease companies, including Cerevel Therapeutics, Inhibikase Therapeutics, Neuraly, Peptron, Biogen, Roche, Brain Neurotherapy Bio, Inc., Modag, Annovis Bio Inc., BioVie Inc., United Neuroscience Ltd., Luye Pharma Group, AbbVie, UCB Biopharma SRL, InnoMedica Schweiz AG, Integrative Research Laboratories AB, H. Lundbeck A/S, Shanghai WD Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd., Cerevance Beta, Inc., Nobilis Therapeutics Inc., BlueRock Therapeutics, Taiwan Mitochondrion Applied Technology Co., Ltd., among others. Psychosis in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease Market Psychosis in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's Disease Market Insights, Epidemiology, and Market Forecast - 2032 report delivers an in-depth understanding of the disease, historical and forecasted epidemiology, as well as the market trends, market drivers, market barriers, and key psychosis in Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease companies, including Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Karuna Therapeutics, Vanda Pharmaceuticals, Suven Life Sciences, Enterin, Intra-Cellular Therapies, Merck Sharp & Dohme, among others. About DelveInsight DelveInsight is a leading Business Consultant and Market Research firm focused exclusively on life sciences. It supports pharma companies by providing comprehensive end-to-end solutions to improve their performance. Get hassle-free access to all the healthcare and pharma market research reports through our subscription-based platform PharmDelve. Contact Us Shruti Thakur info@delveinsight.com +14699457679 Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1082265/3528414/DelveInsight_Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/eli-lillys-donanemab-approval-heats-up-alzheimers-disease-treatment-market--delveinsight-302190544.html Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Nova Lithium Corp. (CSE: NVLI) (OTC Pink: NVLIF) (FSE: YQ1) (WKN: A3DMP6) ("Nova" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it changed its name from "Nova Lithium Corp." to "Nova Pacific Metals Corp." today. At the opening of the market on July 11, 2024, the Company's common shares will trade on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the new name. In connection with the name change, the Company's trading symbol will be changed to "NVPC". The CUSIP number assigned to the Company's common shares under its new name will be 66979J106. There is no consolidation of the Company's share capital in connection with the name change and, as a result, certificates representing common shares of the Company will not be affected by the name change and shareholders will not be required to exchange their shares or take any other action. Shareholders holding share certificates of the Company can request a replacement certificate, however new certificates are not required and will not be automatically issued. Nova Lithium's CEO, Mr. Malcolm Bell, stated, "We are excited to announce the Company's new name, Nova Pacific Metals Corp. Our new name reflects our broad commitment to building significant shareholder value through the acquisition, exploration and development of strategic mineral properties in North America." For more information about Nova Pacific Metals Corp., please visit our website or contact our investor relations department. About Nova Nova is a Canadian exploration and development company focused on pursuing projects with a significant discovery providing a viable pathway to development. The key projects owned by the Company are its Deer Musk West Lithium project located in Clayton Valley, Nevada and its recently acquired Lara Project located on Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The Company intends to continue its exploration and development efforts on its mineral projects with an view towards maximizing shareholder value. For additional Information please visit: www.novalithiumcorp.com On behalf of the Board of Directors Malcolm Bell Chief Executive Officer For Further Information, please contact: Nova Pacific Metals Corp. Investor Inquiries info@novalithiumcorp.com +1-778-868-2226 The Canadian Securities Exchange has not in any way passed upon the merits of the matters referenced herein and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this news release. Forward-Looking Information Certain statements contained in this news release may constitute forward-looking information. Forward-looking information is often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "anticipate", "plan", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "intend", "should", and similar expressions. Forward-looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated in such forward-looking information. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in this forward-looking information as a result of regulatory decisions, competitive factors in the industries in which the Company operates, prevailing economic conditions, changes to the Company's strategic growth plans, and other factors, many of which are beyond the control of the Company. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in the forward-looking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward-looking information should not be unduly relied upon. Any forward-looking information contained in this news release represents the Company's expectations as of the date hereof, and is subject to change after such date. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities legislation. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215892 SOURCE: Nova Lithium Corp. Apriori Bio, a Boston, MA-based biotechnology company providing innovations against viral threats, raised US $1.1M in funding. CEPI made the investment. The company intends to use the funds to biology-informed artificial intelligence platform Octavia. Led by CEO Lovisa Afzelius, Apriori is biotechnology company providing innovations against viral threats. Its approach centers on a technology platform, Octavia, which allows to survey the entire fitness landscape of existing and potential viral variants to design new vaccines. It can also inform public health policy in real time by predicting the impact of emerging variants. The Octavia platform works by characterising large libraries of viral variants on their ability to bind to cells in the human body and evade the immune response. Then using machine learning, Octavia generates maps to identify the mutations that have the greatest escape potential and could therefore pose the greatest threat. These insights can guide how new vaccines are designed and how existing vaccines are updated so that they can protect against worrisome variants for years to come. Octavia uses both computational insights and experimental biological data to build and train its algorithms. This includes looking at evolutionary trees of viruses to identify the point at which viral variability is most likely to occur and exploring how mutations could affect each other. The company was founded in 2020 by Flagship Pioneering. Commenting on the news, Lovisa Afzelius said: We are honoured to be recognized by a global leader in pandemic preparedness who shares our commitment to better protecting humanity from rapidly-evolving viruses. With CEPIs support, we will continue advancing our Octavia platform, focusing on viruses beyond coronavirus, to ensure the global community is better prepared to effectively address future outbreaks with precision and speed. FinSMEs 08/07/2024 River, a Bengaluru, India-based electric vehicle manufacturer, received a Series B funding from Mitsui & co., Ltd. and Marubeni Ventures. The amount o the deal was not disclosed. The company intends to use the funds to consolidate its position and expand its footprint in the electric vehicle industry. Founded in March 2021 by Aravind Mani and Vipin George, River is an electric vehicle (EV) startup with a a focus on design and technology. Rivers journey began with the development of its maiden product, the Indie in 2021. Soon after, the company set up a 1.2 lac sq. ft. manufacturing facility with a production capacity of 1 lac units per year. Earlier this year, River marked a significant milestone in its expansion plans starting with its first store in Bengaluru followed by expansion across India. By year end, the brand plans to have a presence in 50+ cities in the country. Since its inception, River has raised $68M from global investors. Apart from Mitsui & Co., Ltd, River is the first Indian investment of all its investors Japans Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. and Marubeni Ventures Inc., Dubai based conglomerate Al-Futtaim Automotive, Lowercarbon Capital, Toyota Ventures, Tel Aviv based Maniv Mobility and San Francisco based Trucks VC. FinSMEs 08/07/2024 The grapevine has been suggesting for eons now that Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra came close while shooting for Farhan Akhtars Don 2. Thats not all, Khan was one of the judges for the Miss India World pageant in 2000 where Priyanka Chopra was one of the contestants. During a Q and A session with the judges, this is what SRK asked Chopra- Hypothetically, if you were to marry one of the following, who would it be? An Indian sportsman, like Mohammad Azharuddin who would take you all around the world, make your country proud and make you swell with pride. This was the first time they met. Advertisement A video of the actor singing Marry Me to the Quantico star from an event has gone viral on social media: The friendship between Bollywood superstars Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra made headlines for a long time. While there had been media reports of Chopra being cornered by star wives, being called a home-breaker, and being shunned by Bollywood A-listers like Karan Johar, SRK remained silent. SRK breaks his silence In an interview to CNN IBN back in 2012_,_ Shah Rukh finally broke his silence and spoke of his relationship with Chopra and his reaction to the reports about her. The actor said he was sorry because Priyanka had not been given the respect that she deserves. To me what is most disturbing is that a lady who has worked with me has been questioned and somewhere down the line has not been shown the respect that I show her, or to all women. I think it is disrespectful and I am extremely sorry about that, sorry means not because of the things that I have done but because she is a friend, Khan said. Priyanka Chopra on moving to Hollywood In an interaction with Dax Shepherd on his podcast Armchair Expert, Chopra revealed, I was being pushed into a corner in the industry (Bollywood). I had people not casting me, I had beef with people, I am not good at playing that game so I kind of was tired of the politics and I said I needed a break. She added, This music thing gave me an opportunity to go into another part of the world, not crave for the movies I didnt want to get but I would require to schmooze certain clubs and cliques of people. It would require groveling and I had worked a long time by then that I didnt feel like I wanted to do it. Priyanka Chopra made her Bollywood debut in 2003 with Anil Sharmas The Hero- Love Story Of A Spy. She later went on to be seen in films like Andaaz, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Aitraaz, Waqt, Don, Krrish, Fashion, Dostana, Kaminey, Don 2, Agneepath, Bajirao Mastani, and The Sky Is Pink. Amid bitterness in their relationship, Prince Harry is expected to return to the UK Royal Family permanently without Meghan Markle, as per historian Hugo Vickers who reflects on the lost opportunities following their decision to step back from royal duties. read more Prince Harry has always played a second fiddle to his wife Meghan Markle. Harry and Meghans marriage was going through a rough patch for a long time and Firstpost had written about it earlier. Experts too had earlier predicted that the couple is heading towards different directions. According to reports when Royal biographer Hugo Vickers was asked where Harry and Meghan Markle would be in 10 years. Vickers said that returning home would be very nice for the Duke of Sussex. Vickers added, I think hell come home. If he comes home, it will be very nice for him, because he wont particularly want to. Hes quite angry, I think, he said. He was then asked if he thought Harry would return to the UK alone. He said, Yes, I do (think hell come alone). Advertisement Harry is lonely and finding the day long According to reports published in Mirror it was mentioned that Harry is finding the day long and lonely but Meghan Markle is in her natural environment. All is definitely not well in Harry and Meghans relationship. The report further says, Harry has been plagued with a major regret as his life in the United States with wife Meghan Markle comes under threat, a Royal expert has claimed. Meghan worried about her life The Mirror report added that the Duchess of Sussex is increasingly worried that her life is not going in the direction she had planned. According to reports, Royal author and expert Tom Quinn, There is a growing rift between Harry and Meghan Markle caused by Meghans increasing concern that her life is not going in the direction she had planned. He added, Meghan Markle loves media attention and hates the fact that surveys suggest she and Harry are no longer of much interest to the American public. In fact, Firstpost had earlier reported, how Hollywood is ostracising Harry-Meghan and favouring William-Kate. Despite Meghan Markles prior ties to Hollywood, her and Harrys contacts in the industry are moving to Kate and William. According to the Mirror report, after being snubbed in the Emmy nominations, the pair are reportedly seeing their empire fall around them. Egoistic Meghan Markle hates any kind of criticism. Tom Quinn also added that Meghan Markle is particularly sensitive to any criticism of her luxurious lifestyle in the US, as she believes it should be admired, not criticised. For Prince Harry, Quinn claimed that he has become increasingly bored and is looking back to the UK, where most of his army and school friends still live. He never sees [them] because they wont visit him in the States because they find Meghan difficult, the expert added. Advertisement (With added inputs from agencies) In China, many people are humorously selling their jobs and coworkers on Xianyu, Alibabas second-hand e-commerce portal, to unwind from work and get rid of the work smell. Many annoying bosses, terrible jobs, and hated colleagues are among the listings on the website that are for sale, with prices ranging from Rs 4 lakh to Rs 9 lakh read more In China, there's a new viral trend where bosses, colleagues and jobs are up for sale on second-hand e-commerce platforms. Representational Image/Reuters How does your work compare when it comes to stress? Toxic or unfair workplaces, unsupportive bosses, annoying colleagues - different jobs have different levels of inherent stress. Young professionals these days find numerous unique coping methods to deal with such stress. In China, theres a new viral trend where bosses, colleagues and jobs are up for sale on second-hand e-commerce platforms. Lets take a look. Selling jobs or bosses Many people are humorously selling their jobs and coworkers on Xianyu, Alibabas second-hand e-commerce portal, to unwind from work and get rid of the work smell. Advertisement The term work smell in the neighbouring country describes the feeling of mental and physical exhaustion that follows a hard days work. Many annoying bosses, terrible jobs, and hated colleagues are among the listings on the website that are for sale, with prices ranging from Rs 4 lakh to Rs 9 lakh, according to the South China Morning Post. One user, selling her job at Rs 91,000, claimed that the work pays Rs 33,000 a month and that buyers can recover their investment in three months. Another person wrote, Selling a colleague who is very good at being sarcastic for 3,999 yuan (Rs 45,925). I can teach you how to deal with this colleague and offer 10 tips to avoid being the scapegoat at work. A third professional claimed to have listed his terrible boss for 500 yuan (about Rs 5,742), saying that the supervisors criticism of him on a regular basis caused him a great deal of mental stress. Also read: Why bosses in China could be penalised for invisible overtime No real cash transaction Interestingly, all of this is done in jokes, so vendors make sure the ads dont result in actual financial transactions. In case, someone gets the product, the seller typically backs out of the agreement immediately following the sale or declines the order altogether. Advertisement An unidentified seller told SCMP: Someone did pay before, but I applied to offer them a refund, and I deleted the listing after. This is just my way of venting my emotions, not actually buying or selling anyone. I saw many people selling their jobs on Xianyu, and I thought it was interesting, so I wanted to try it too. Selling my job that has no weekends for just 9.9 yuan feels like a small act of revenge. Xianyus statement After the trend gained momentum, Xianyu stated on Weibo on June 11, saying that selling people without their consent is illegal. Liu Yan, a lawyer from Hunan United Pioneer Law Firm, told Xiaoxiang Morning Post, If the other persons personal information such as names, ID numbers, home addresses, and contact numbers are publicly disclosed on online platforms without consent, it constitutes an invasion of privacy and may be illegal. Advertisement It is pertinent to mention here that unauthorised disclosure of another persons personal information in China carries a fine or a maximum 10-day jail sentence. Work culture in China According to a McKinsey Health Institute survey last year, which polled over 30,000 workers in 30 nations, China ranked third with 75 per cent for employees well-being. The survey was determined by evaluating their physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. Since young people are losing their willingness to follow the intense work culture, with burnout being a widespread problem in the country. According to the Global Times, in December 2023, a woman from Southwest Chinas Sichuan Province reportedly spent three hours and a half leaving over 600 WeChat work groups after she quit her job. Advertisement As per the 2023 survey by dtcj.com, over 90 per cent employees had invisible overtime, including 60 per cent who experienced it frequently. The top three practices included responding to work messages after logging out, participating in training or competitions the company organised and standing by at any time despite without any task assigned. The poll suggests over 73 per cent of people said they worked overtime to finish their workload. Globally, over 50 per cent of workers exhibit signs of burnout, which increases their likelihood of quitting their jobs by three times. Over the course of the 30 countries covered by the study, 22 per cent of workers report having signs of burnout at work. Advertisement Researchers looking at demographic disparities on burnout discovered that workers between the ages of 18 and 24 who work for smaller companies and all non-managerial professionals have higher rates of burnout symptoms. The survey results highlight an important trend: the majority of variation in burnout symptoms may be attributed to demands, or aspects of work that demand energy, including dealing with toxic behaviours or role ambiguity. In order to protect the workers from such invisible overtime, China was earlier considering offering legal protection to employees forced to stay online even after work hours. With inputs from agencies Frances New Popular Front (NFP), a left-green alliance, has emerged as the shock winner of the snap election. While it was a blow to the far-right National Rally, no party has been able to secure a majority. Where does this leave French President Emmanuel Macron? read more People gather on the Republique plaza following the second round of the legislative elections, on July 7 in Paris. A coalition of the French left that quickly banded together to beat a surging far right in legislative elections won the most seats in parliament but not a majority, a stunning outcome that threatens to plunge the country into political and economic turmoil. AP Frances election has thrown up a big surprise. Marine Le Pens far-right won the first round winning 33 per cent of the popular vote. In the second round, the unexpected happened. The left emerged victorious with Emmanuel Macrons centrists making an unpredicted comeback. With this, the National Rally was pushed to the third spot. However, none of the three blocs have a majority by themselves of at least 289 seats out of 577. France then faces a hung parliament. Advertisement So what happens next? Is a coalition on the cards? What does the future hold for French President Macron? We explain. What happened in the first round? The first round of snap two-round general election saw the far-right win. Marine Le Pens National Rally (RN) won 33 per cent of the popular vote. The leftwing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance got 28 per cent and Macrons centrist Together bloc secured 21 per cent. To win one of the 577 seats in the national assembly in the first round, a candidate must get more than 50 per cent of ballots cast, representing at least 25 per cent of registered voters, according to a report in The Guardian. Far-right National Rally party leader Marine Le Pen answers a television network after the second round of the legislative election at the party election night headquarters in Paris. The leftist parties defeated the far-right in the snap election. AP What are the results after the second round? After the second round held on Sunday (July 7), the New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the surprise winner of the elections. The left-green alliance dominated by Jean-Luc Melenchons radical left bagged 182 seats in the 577-seat assembly. Macrons centrist Together coalition will have 163 MPs and the National Rally and its allies, who were looking at a majority after the first round, have 143. While three major political blocs emerged from the elections none of them is close to the majority of at least 289 seats. Far-left France Unbowed founder Jean-Luc Melenchon delivers his speech after the second round of the legislative elections on 7 July in Paris. A coalition on the left that came together unexpectedly ahead of Frances snap elections won the most parliamentary seats in the vote. AP Where does a hung parliament leave France? Advertisement The National Assembly is the most important of Frances two houses of parliament. It has the final say in the law-making process over the Senate, which is dominated by conservatives, reports The Associated Press (AP). While not uncommon in other European countries, modern France has never experienced a parliament with no dominant party. Such a situation requires lawmakers to build consensus across parties to agree on government positions and legislation. Frances fractious politics and deep divisions over taxes, immigration and Mideast policy make that especially challenging. This means Macrons centrist allies wont be able to implement their pro-business policies, including a promise to overhaul unemployment benefits. It could also make passing a budget more difficult. Advertisement Can NFP form a government? The NFP is an alliance comprising the Unbowed France (LFI), the Socialist Party (PS), the Greens and the Communists. But they do not have an absolute majority. Melenchon ruled out a broad coalition of parties of different stripes. He said Macron had a duty to call on the leftist alliance to rule. On Sunday, he demanded that the French president appoint a prime minister from the NFP and implement its programme in its entirety. However, others, including those in the coalition, said that the leftist bloc would be forced to negotiate as it had no majority. According to Frances constitution, the president can pick the prime minister. Since the parliament can force the resignation of the government, the head of the state picks someone acceptable to the assembly, reports The Guardian. Advertisement Far-left France Unbowed founder Jean-Luc Melenchon (centre) delivers a speech after the second round of the legislative elections in Paris. The New Popular Front alliance won the most votes but without winning an absolute majority. AP The PM would be someone from the largest bloc in parliament. But appointing a leader from the radical left comes with challenges of its own, risking no-confidence votes by the centre-right, far-right and possibly the presidents camp, the report says. However, there is no firm timeline for when Macron must name a prime minister and no firm rule that he has to name a prime minister from the largest party in parliament. Can Macron forge a deal with the left? France is not accustomed to post-election coalition building, which is common in northern European parliamentary democracies like Germany and the Netherlands. Its Fifth Republic was designed in 1958 by war hero Charles de Gaulle to give large, stable parliamentary majorities to presidents and that has created a confrontational political culture with no tradition of consensus and compromises, according to a report in Reuters. Advertisement However, a hung parliament leaves President Macron with little choice but to reach out to the left. He may seek a deal with the moderate left to create a joint government. The deal could take the form of a loose, informal alliance that would likely be fragile. Macron has said he would not work with the hard-left France Unbowed party, but he could stretch out a hand to the Socialists and the Greens. They may refuse to take it, however. Macrons government last week suspended a decree that would have diminished workers rights to unemployment benefits, which has been interpreted as a gesture toward the left. Supporters of the far-left France Unbowed) party wave flags, in Paris. AP On Sunday, Raphael Glucksmann, who led the Socialist in the European elections, said, We are in a divided assembly; we have to behave like adults Parliament must be the heart of power in France. Macron will likely be hoping to peel off Socialists and Greens from the leftist alliance, isolating France Unbowed, to form a centre-left coalition with his bloc. However, there is no sign of an imminent break-up of the New Popular Front at this stage. According to the constitution, the president decides who to ask to form a government. But whoever Macron picks faces a confidence vote in the National Assembly, which will convene for 15 days on 18 July. This means he needs to name someone acceptable to a majority of lawmakers. What if no agreement is reached? This would put France in unchartered territory. The French constitution says Macron cannot call new parliamentary elections for another 12 months. If Macron cant make a political deal, he could name a government of experts unaffiliated with political parties. Such a government would likely deal mostly with the day-to-day affairs of keeping France running. Complicating matters: Any of those options would require parliamentary approval. What about an interim government? French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he would tender his resignation to Macron on Monday morning, but that he was available to act in a caretaker capacity. He said he is ready to remain in the post during the upcoming Paris Olympics and for as long as needed. An interim government would handle current affairs pending further political negotiations. Macrons office says he will wait for the new National Assembly to organise itself before making any decisions on the new government. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal leaves after delivering a speech following the second round of the legislative elections, in Paris. While he said he would resign, he would be available to act in a caretaker capacity. AP What about Macrons future? The presidents term runs until 2027, and he has said he will not step down before its end. With no majority and no possibility to implement his plans, Macron comes out weakened from the elections. In line with Frances constitution, he still holds some powers over foreign policy, European affairs and defence and is in charge of negotiating and ratifying international treaties. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the countrys armed forces and holds the nuclear codes. French president Macrons turn runs until 2027. However, the election results have left him weakened. File photo/AP Theres a possibility the new prime minister would be unable or unwilling to seriously challenge Macrons defence and foreign policy powers and would focus instead on domestic politics. The prime minister is accountable to parliament, leads the government and introduces bills. As of now, France has plunged into political uncertainty. It remains to be seen what the future holds. With inputs from agencies Trips to space have been increasing over the last six decades. Missions can last up to months. But what happens to the human body when it stays in space for such long times? read more SpaceX Dragon capsule carrying four astronauts returns from the International Space Station and splashes down in the Gulf of Mexico. AP Only about 600 people have ever travelled to space. The vast majority of astronauts over the past six decades have been middle-aged men on short-duration missions of fewer than 20 days. Today, with private, commercial and multinational spaceflight providers and flyers entering the market, we are witnessing a new era of human spaceflight. Missions have ranged from minutes, hours and days to months. As humanity looks ahead to returning to the Moon over the coming decade, space exploration missions will be much longer, with many more space travellers and even space tourists. This also means that a wider diversity of people will experience the extreme environment of space more women and people of different ethnicities, ages and health status. Advertisement Since people respond differently to the unique stressors and exposures of space, researchers in space health, like me, seek to better understand the human health effects of spaceflight. With such information, we can figure out how to help astronauts stay healthy both while theyre in space and once they return to Earth. As part of the historic NASA Twins Study, in 2019, my colleagues and I published groundbreaking research on how one year on board the International Space Station affects the human body. I am a radiation cancer biologist in Colorado State Universitys Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences. Ive spent the past few years continuing to build on that earlier research in a series of papers recently published across the portfolio of Nature journals. These papers are part of the Space Omics and Medical Atlas package of manuscripts, data, protocols and repositories that represent the largest collection ever assembled for aerospace medicine and space biology. Over 100 institutions from 25 countries contributed to the coordinated release of a wide range of spaceflight data. The NASA Twins Study NASAs Twins Study seized on a unique research opportunity. NASA selected astronaut Scott Kelly for the agencys first one-year mission, during which he spent a year on board the International Space Station from 2015 into 2016. Over the same time period, his identical twin brother, Mark Kelly, a former astronaut and current U.S. senator representing Arizona, remained on Earth. Advertisement AP My team and I examined blood samples collected from the twin in space and his genetically matched twin back on Earth before, during and after spaceflight. We found that Scotts telomeres the protective caps at the ends of chromosomes, much like the plastic tip that keeps a shoelace from fraying lengthened, quite unexpectedly, during his year in space. When Scott returned to Earth, however, his telomeres quickly shortened. Over the following months, his telomeres recovered but were still shorter after his journey than they had been before he went to space. As you get older, your telomeres shorten because of a variety of factors, including stress. The length of your telomeres can serve as a biological indicator of your risk for developing age-related conditions such as dementia, cardiovascular disease and cancer. In a separate study, my team studied a cohort of 10 astronauts on six-month missions on board the International Space Station. We also had a control group of age- and sex-matched participants who stayed on the ground. Advertisement We measured telomere length before, during and after spaceflight and again found that telomeres were longer during spaceflight and then shortened upon return to Earth. Overall, the astronauts had many more short telomeres after spaceflight than they had before. One of the other Twins Study investigators, Christopher Mason, and I conducted another telomere study this time with twin high-altitude mountain climbers a somewhat similar extreme environment on Earth. We found that while climbing Mount Everest, the climbers telomeres were longer, and after they descended, their telomeres shortened. Their twins who remained at low altitude didnt experience the same changes in telomere length. These results indicate that its not the space stations microgravity that led to the telomere length changes we observed in the astronauts other culprits, such as increased radiation exposure, are more likely. Advertisement Civilians in space In our latest study, we studied telomeres from the crew on board SpaceXs 2021 Inspiration4 mission. This mission had the first all-civilian crew, whose ages spanned four decades. All of the crew members telomeres lengthened during the mission, and three of the four astronauts also exhibited telomere shortening once they were back on Earth. Whats particularly interesting about these findings is that the Inspiration4 mission lasted only three days. So, not only do scientists now have consistent and reproducible data on telomeres response to spaceflight, but we also know it happens quickly. These results suggest that even short trips, like a weekend getaway to space, will be associated with changes in telomere length. Advertisement Scientists still dont totally understand the health impacts of such changes in telomere length. Well need more research to figure out how both long and short telomeres might affect an astronauts long-term health. Telomeric RNA In another paper, we showed that the Inspiration4 crew as well as Scott Kelly and the high-altitude mountain climbers exhibited increased levels of telomeric RNA, termed TERRA. Telomeres consist of lots of repetitive DNA sequences. These are transcribed into TERRA, which contributes to telomere structure and helps them do their job. Together with laboratory studies, these findings tell us that telomeres are being damaged during spaceflight. While there is still a lot we dont know, we do know that telomeres are especially sensitive to oxidative stress. So, the chronic oxidative damage that astronauts experience when exposed to space radiation around the clock likely contributes to the telomeric responses we observe. We also wrote a review article with a more futuristic perspective of how better understanding telomeres and ageing might begin to inform the ability of humans to not only survive long-duration space travel but also to thrive and even colonise other planets. Doing so would require humans to reproduce in space and future generations to grow up in space. We dont know if thats even possible yet. Plant telomeres in space My colleagues and I contributed other work to the Space Omics and Medical Atlas package, as well, including a paper published in Nature Communications. The study team, led by Texas A&M biologist Dorothy Shippen and Ohio University biologist Sarah Wyatt, found that, unlike people, plants flown in space did not have longer telomeres during their time on board the International Space Station. The plants did, however, ramp up their production of telomerase, the enzyme that helps maintain telomere length. As anyone whos seen The Martian knows, plants will play an essential role in long-term human survival in space. This finding suggests that plants are perhaps more naturally suited to withstand the stressors of space than humans. Susan Bailey, Professor of Radiation Cancer Biology and Oncology, Colorado State University This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. July 8, 2024: Romania, a NATO member that has a Black Sea coast and a Ukrainian border, is spending billions of dollars to build a new airbase and storage facilities for military equipment. Romania believes that Russia, another country with a Black Sea coast, will be a continuing problem in the region. Romania wants to prepare facilities that Romania and its NATO allies can use. At the same time Romania is purchasing more defensive systems like Patriot and GEM-t to deal with any Russian attempts to officially or covertly carry out air attacks on Romania. The new air base will be used by NATO allies, particularly the United States, to monitor activity in the region. The Americans have already been using AWACS and ELINT (Electronic Intelligence) aircraft to monitor Russian activity in the Black Sea. The new airbase will be able to handle more NATO member, particularly American, monitoring aircraft. Romanian air bases have already hosted combat aircraft from several NATO nations. These aircraft carry out patrols in the Black Sea to protect unarmed surveillance aircraft. Romanian efforts to upgrade its air force included retiring the last of its MiG-21 fighters in early 2023. This ended the nearly 70 years of MiG-21 use by European nations. Small numbers of MiG-21s still serve in a number of African countries. Romania has a small economy, and defense budget, compared to the original West European NATO countries and most other new East European NATO members. This has made it difficult but not impossible to upgrade its military to meet NATO standards. That meant replacing all the Russian combat aircraft with more capable Western models. If you were on a budget, the best inexpensive NATO compliant fighter was the F-16. There was a thriving market in second-hand F-16s and upgrades for F-16s. of all ages. There was an upgrade market for MiG-21s after the Cold War ended in 1991. Romania kept its MiG-21s relevant for a long time via periodic upgrades. This kept Romanian MiG-21 LanceR models in service longer than anyone elses. Romanias transition to F-16s also involved a series of upgraded second-hand F-16s. For example, Romania replaced 17 current second-hand F-16Bs with 32 more modern Norwegian second-hand F-16s. Norway upgraded its F-16s to the equivalent of the F-16C Block 50 in 2010. Romania negotiated the purchase of the Norwegian F-16s for $12 million per aircraft. This included spare parts and support equipment plus maintenance and technical training services. Deliveries began in 2023 and will be completed in 2024. These aircraft are good for at least another ten years. Norway had the best maintained F-16s in NATO, and recently replaced its F-16s with F-35s. The Romanian F-16s from Portugal had been upgraded to a less advanced F-16 version. Romania is one the three NATO nations including Bulgaria and Turkey with a Black Sea coastline and the only one bordering Ukraine. That land border is used to get NATO supplies into Ukraine. Romania also provides training for some Ukrainian troops and security for commercial shipping moving between Ukraine and the Turkish exit to the Mediterranean. Romania and many other NATO members have long used the F-16 because this aircraft has the most impressive combat record of any current jet fighter. The U.S. was the earliest and largest user of the F-16 and its F-16 fleet, containing many aircraft acquired in the 1980s, is rapidly aging. The average age of American F-16s is over 30 years, and the average aircraft has nearly 7,000 flight hours on it. Most European nations received their F-16s in the 1980s and have upgraded them since, but they are still elderly aircraft. Back in 2009 the first Block 40 F-16 passed 7,000 flight hours. In 2008 the first of the earliest models (a Block 25) F-16 passed 7,000 hours in the air. The F-16C was originally designed for a service life of 4,000 hours. Advances in engineering, materials and maintenance techniques have extended that to over 8,000 hours. Because of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, F-16s sent to these areas flew over a thousand hours a year more than what they would fly in peacetime. The official successor to the F-16 is the new F-35. This aircraft is more complex, capable and expensive. So much so that many F-16 users are asking for an upgraded F-16 as an alternative to the expensive F-35. Cases of mosquito-borne Zika virus have been rising across the country, with Maharashtra and Kerala reporting in double digits. Amid mounting cases, the Centre has issued an advisory calling for vigilant monitoring, especially among pregnant women, to ensure early detection and preventive measures read more Cases of mosquito-borne Zika virus have been reported in Maharashtra and Kerala. AP As the monsoon brings relief from the scorching heat across the country, it has also ushered in a concerning health challenge: the Zika virus. Recently, Pune in Maharashtra has seen a notable increase in Zika virus cases, with 11 cases reported until Sunday. Even though Pune has reported Zika cases from select parts of the city, the virus may have spread to most areas and its possible that more people may have contracted it, experts from ICMR-National Institute of Epidemiology (ICMR-NIE) said. Advertisement Meanwhile, Kerala has reported 14 cases till July 2, including one in a pregnant woman, raising alarms due to the virus severe risks, especially to expectant mothers and their babies. The Zika virus, notorious for its ability to cause serious health complications, has prompted the central government to issue urgent advisories to states. They emphasised vigilant monitoring, especially among pregnant women, to ensure early detection and preventive measures. As authorities have advised caution, heres everything you need to know about the Zika virus. Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin will be the first of its kind since the Ukraine war began. In the context of Indias interest in maintaining good relations with both Russia and the West, and in light of a need to counter Chinas growing closeness with Moscow, the timing of this visit is everything. We explain why read more Prime Minister Narendra Modis upcoming visit to Russia, scheduled for July 8-9, has generated a lot of buzz in India. This is the first time Modi will have an in-person bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin since the beginning of the Ukraine war in February 2022. The last time the two leaders met for such a meeting was in December 2021 nearly three years ago. Given the current geopolitical context, and internal developments in Western countries, the timing of this visit, from a strategic point of view, has become rather important. Advertisement We explain why that is the case. We take a look, first, at why PM Modi and President Putin held off on a visit or in-person meeting for a relatively long time. Then, we look into why there was no time like the present for the visit. No Modi-Putin meeting for nearly 3 years: Why? India, which has deep ties with Russia, has boosted its ties with the West, especially the United States, in the past couple of decades. India is interested in maintaining good relations with the West. Image courtesy: US embassy As is well-known, Indias foreign policy vis-a-vis these two nations is to maintain a delicate balance, and not to get caught in their power tussle in the global arena. This strategy has existed since the Cold War days, in the form of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM). When Russia attacked Ukraine in February 2022, the rift between Moscow and the West inevitably widened to a degree not seen in recent history. US and several countries in Europe condemned the act of war, and levied sanctions on Russia. India did neither. New Delhi stuck to saying it promotes peace, without condemning Putin or Russia. In fact, in a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, PM Modi even conveyed our clear support for dialogue and diplomacy to find a way forward. Met President @ZelenskyyUa in Hiroshima. Conveyed our clear support for dialogue and diplomacy to find a way forward. We will continue extending humanitarian assistance to the people of Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/1srbIIJUB3 Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) May 20, 2023 Advertisement PM Modi also refrained from a bilateral meeting with his Russian counterpart. There were virtual summits, and sideline meet-and-greets at in-person multilateral summits that kept the Indo-Russia strategic partnership robust, but otherwise, India maintained neutrality. There were other challenges, too. During this time, Putin leaving Russia had also become a rarity. The timing of an in-person meeting was also complicated by a coup attempt and then elections in Russia. Close on the heels of that came the Indian elections. Advertisement In the meanwhile, issues, including those around oil purchase, securing the return of stranded Indians from Ukraine and Russia, and discharge of Indians misled into fighting in the war, had to be addressed via virtual meetings. Despite Western sanctions amid the Ukraine War, India has continued to purchase the Russian oil. Reuters Is the current timing right? Matters of defence trade and partnership, oil, and Indians stuck in the Ukraine war have continued mounting. The need for a closed-door, in-person meeting has been mounting. Meanwhile, Russias reliance on China which, unlike India, has shown animosity towards the West on multiple occasions kept advancing. When Putin finally started venturing on foreign trips, China became a popular spot to go to. He called on Xi Jinping in Beijing shortly after the inauguration of his fifth presidential term. More recently, he also met the Chinese leader at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit. PM Modi did not attend the summit in Astana, Kazakhstan. Advertisement Russian President Vladimir Putin shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during a meeting in Beijing. Both nations have expressed growing interest in Svalbard. Reuters Russias growing closeness with China is not pleasing to India, especially since Moscow is an ally to both the rival Asian nations. New Delhi has to ensure that Russia maintains neutrality in the India-China territorial disputes (as it has done so far), instead of shifting to Beijings corner. For Putin, on the other hand, having a bilateral meeting with recently re-elected PM Modi would be great optics. It would go to show that despite multiple efforts by the West, Moscow isnt isolated in the global arena. That was the cue to it being a good time for the Indian and Russian leaders to meet. Advertisement Other cues, those specifically in Indias interest, were the internal developments in several countries in the West. Primary, among these, are elections. The elections in the European Union got the leaders worried about the surge of right-wing populism throughout the continent. A woman casts her ballot for the European elections in a polling station in Frankfurt, Germany, June 9, 2024. AP Then, snap elections in the United Kingdom and France turned the focus of those nations inwards. In the United States, too, the debacle at the first presidential debate led to a significant amount of focus of the leadership turning inwards. All told, many Western leaders were preoccupied with domestic issues, reducing their focus on international diplomacy. Additionally, according to a recent report in Politico, With attention turned to the Middle East, and the divide over Gaza widening, indefatigable Zelenskyy has struggled to cut through. In simple words, the recent developments in the Israel-Hamas conflict have diverted global attention from the Ukraine situation. The war in Gaza overshadowed the conflict in Ukraine. Reuters It may be argued that that has created a great strategic window for PM Modis visit: A window where the pushback from the West could be expected to be limited. The eagerness for an in-person meeting between Modi and Putin was evident. The rapid arrangement of this visit, once the opportunity arose, underscores the mutual interest in strengthening bilateral ties. In a nutshell A stitch in time saves nine. The timing of Modis visit to Russia is strategic. It has come at a moment when countering the growing Chinese closeness with Moscow was crucial. What has also been leveraged well is a period when Western attention is diverted by domestic issues and other global conflicts. The eagerness from both India and Russia to engage in high-level dialogue shows the importance of their bilateral relationship. With Indias proven track record of managing its foreign policy dynamics, any diplomatic pushback from the West can be expected to be addressed effectively, maintaining Indias strategic interests. With inputs from agencies After absconding for three days, Mihir Shah, the son of Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) leader Rajesh Shah has been arrested in the Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case. The 24-year-old was allegedly behind the wheel of the luxury car when it rammed into a bike in Mumbais Worli area, killing a woman Kaveri Nakhwa and injuring her husband read more Mihir Shah, 24, is the son of Rajesh Shah, a politician from the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction). Image Courtesy: @sirajnoorani/X After being on the run for 72 hours, Mihir Shah, the son of Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, has been arrested by the Mumbai Police. As per a News18 report, the 24-year-old accused in the Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case, was nabbed from Shahpur in Thane and will be brought to the Worli police station. Shah has been accused of allegedly driving a BMW car, which fatally knocked down a woman, Kaveri Nakhwa (45), and injured her husband Pradeep while the couple was on their two-wheeler in Mumbais Worli area on Sunday morning. Advertisement Shahs arrest comes after the authorities had formed six teams to arrest him and also issued a Look Out Circular to prevent him from fleeing the country. Heres a revisit of who Shah exactly is and the fatal crash that put him in the spotlight. The hit-and-run incident The woman, identified as Kaveri Nakhwa, 45, and her husband Pradip, 50, were returning to their home in Worli Koliwada after buying fish from Sassoon Dock in Colaba, according to News18. While they were travelling on the arterial Annie Besant Road, the driver of the BMW car lost control at around 5.25 am and hit their bike, according to Worli police. The 45-year-old was allegedly dragged on the cars bonnet for 100 metres before getting flung, as per Mint. She was rushed to a nearby Nair hospital where she was declared dead on arrival. Her husband was discharged after treatment. A damaged BMW car that was involved in an accident, parked on the premises of Worli police station, in Mumbai, Sunday, July 7, 2024. A woman was killed after the car rammed into a bike she was riding with her husband. PTI According to Hindustan Times, the driver was taking Mihir Shah back home, however, upon reaching Worli, he insisted on driving the car. Shortly after he took over the wheels, the accident took place. Advertisement Shah was accompanied by Rajrishi Bidawar, who is in his early thirties. According to the investigation, the duo were returning home from a long drive at Marine Drive. News18 report states that the BMW was later abandoned in Kala Nagar in the Bandra East area. The forensic team visited Worli Police Station to inspect the car. Shah and Bidawat reportedly fled in an auto-rickshaw. The latter came to Borivali after the accident and was soon detained by police. He is currently in police custody. About Mihir Shah The 24-year-old is the son of Rajesh Shah, the deputy leader of Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) in Palghar district. Advertisement He studied till Class 10 and did not pursue education thereafter, as per Mint. He was helping his father with his construction and real estate business in Maharashtra. Shah is on the run and the police are trying to arrest him. Hours before the car crash, Shah along with his friends went to a Juhu pub. According to India Today, the pub owner, however, said he did not have an alcoholic beverage, but only drank Red Bull. The accused and his friend reportedly spent Rs 18,000 at the bar, as per Mint. Currently, police are probing whether he was drunk at the time of the incident. Advertisement Shah has been booked under various sections of Bharatiya Nyaya Sahita, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), 281 (rash and negligent driving endangering human life), 125-B (endangering life and personal safety), 238, 324(4) (committing mischief amounting to cause loss and damage), as per India Today. The accuseds father arrested, girlfriend questioned Initial probe suggests that he went to his girlfriends house before absconding. The police are questioning her for giving refuge to the accused. Rajesh Shah, Mihirs father, was arrested after hours-long questioning by the police. The arrest came after it was found that the BMW car was registered in his name. Advertisement The driver of the vehicle has also been detained. The 24-year-old accuseds mother, and his two sisters are also absconding after locking the house, according to Mint. The victims husband breaks down After the fatal BMW crash, Pradeep Nakhava broke down while speaking to the media. He claimed that those involved in the accident were big people and nobody will do anything. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray visits Worli police station to meet a man whose wife was killed after a BMW car rammed into the bike they were riding, in Mumbai, Sunday, July 7, 2024. PTI Nakhava speaking to Hindustan Times, said, The accident happened at 5.30 am, the car came from behind and rammed into the scooter. I fell on the left side, but my wife was dragged through the road, he said. I have two children, what will I do? These are big people, nobody will do anything, we will suffer. Law is equal for all Speaking about the incident, CM Eknath Shinde said the law was equal for everyone and no would be spared. The law is equal for all and the government sees every case in the same way. There will be no separate rule for this accident. Everything will be done as per the law. The police will not shield anyone. The Mumbai accident is unfortunate. I have spoken to the police department to take strict action, he said. Aaditya Thackeray reaches Worli police station Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray visited Worli police station and also assured the deceaseds husband of all help to bring justice. I dont want to make this political, Whoever the driver is, should be arrested, he said, adding, Whether the accused belongs to gaddar gang, we dont want to make it political." He emphasised the revelation of information by CCTV footage while demanding quick action in the case. Porsche car crash Notably, the case comes less than two months after the Porsche accident case that took place on May 19 in Punes Kalyani Nagar. Two IT professionals, who hailed from Madhya Pradesh, were killed after the Porsche, allegedly driven by an inebriated minor driver, rammed into their bike. The case made headlines after the accused minor was given bail by the Juvenile Justice Board on lenient terms. The Pune police also found efforts by his parents to cover up the incident. The accuseds parents and doctors of Sassoon Hospital reportedly switched blood samples to nullify alcohol tests. The family also forced the driver to take the blame for the crash. With inputs from agencies Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is making his first trip to Russia since the beginning of the Ukraine war, is set to attend a private dinner with President Vladimir Putin. Experts say New Delhis importance to Moscow as a trading partner has only grown since 2022, but that there is a perception that ties have drifted amid Russias growing friendship with China and the Wests cosying up to India read more Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Russia today. Modi is making his first trip to Russia since the beginning of the Ukraine war. He is set to reach Moscow on Monday and attend a private dinner with President Vladimir Putin. His two-day visit slated for July 8 and 9 will see the 22nd India-Russia annual summit review ties between the two countries. The 22nd annual summit between India and Russia would provide an opportunity to the two leaders to review the whole range of bilateral issues, including defence, trade linkages, investment ties, energy cooperation, S&T (science and technology), foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra told reporters in Delhi. Advertisement Modis previous visit to Russia came in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in the Far East city of Vladivostok. He last travelled to Moscow in 2015. Putin last met with Modi in September 2022 at a summit of the SCO in Uzbekistan. In 2021, Putin also traveled to New Delhi and held talks with the Indian leader. But how has India navigated ties with Russia amid Ukraine war? Lets take a closer look: The relationship Russia has had strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhis importance as a trading partner for Moscow has grown since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022 Russia is a key supplier of cut-price oil and weapons to India, but its isolation from the West and growing friendship with China have impacted its time-honoured partnership with New Delhi. The United States and its Western allies have in recent years cultivated ties with India as a bulwark against Beijing and its growing influence in the Asia-Pacific, while also pressuring it to distance itself from Russia. Modi, who was returned to power last month, last visited Russia in 2019 and hosted President Vladimir Putin in New Delhi two years later, weeks before the invasion. Advertisement Russias war in Ukraine has transformed ties with India, said Swasti Rao, from a think tank funded by Indias defence ministry, the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. There is no decline in goodwill between India and Russia per se, she said. But there are challenges that have cropped up. These are external factors, which have been strong enough to bring in a paradigm shift in India-Russia bilateral issues, she added. Nandan Unnikrishnan of the New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation said the upcoming in-person meeting showed the two sides were looking for ways forward. Advertisement There have been pressures on India, and there have been pressures on the India-Russia relationship, Unnikrishnan said. Face-to-face interactions help in working out positions, he added. Im sure Modi would like an assessment from Putin on the Ukraine war. Russia is a great power It is a member of the Security Council with the veto and we in India remember that the veto has been exercised in our favour several times in the past, Unnikrishnan told Arab News. New Delhi has shied away from explicit condemnation of Russia for its invasion of Ukraine and has abstained on United Nations resolutions censuring Moscow. But Russias war in Ukraine has also had a human cost for India. Advertisement New Delhi said in February it was pushing Russia to release some of its citizens who had signed up for support jobs with the Russian military, following reports some were killed after being forced to fight in Ukraine. The China question Moscows deepening ties with Beijing have also raised concerns for New Delhi. China and India, the worlds two most populous nations, are intense rivals competing for strategic influence across South Asia. India is part of the Quad grouping with the United States, Japan and Australia that positions itself against Chinas growing assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region. Russias growing closeness with China has set some in New Delhi on edge. AP The United States and the European Union accuse China of selling components and equipment that have strengthened Russias military industry allegations Beijing strenuously denies. Advertisement That leaves India with a dilemma. The deepening of the strategic alignment between Russia and China is uncomfortable for New Delhi because its like your best friend sleeping with the enemy, Rao told Bloomberg. Given that we have these concerns it makes sense for the prime minister to go there and talk to Putin at the highest level. Their relationship has to evolve, said Rao. Some say India should strongly engage with Russia so it doesnt fall into the lap of China, said Rao. Others would say, that ship has sailed. Unnikrishnan told Arab News it seemed like New Delhi and Moscows ties are drifting. Our relationship with the US has been growing rapidly, becoming closer and closer It was giving rise to all kinds of speculation that distance from Russia is growing. I think the PM felt that now its time to remove such a perception, he told Arab News. India has multiple partners, and it will not have a relationship based on dictation by any third party. It will maintain relationships depending on the national interest. Modi on Thursday skipped the summit of a security grouping created by Moscow and Beijing to counter Western alliances. Modi sent External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization at its annual meeting in Kazakhstans capital of Astana. The meeting is being attended by Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. However, others like Jaishankar deny that the relationship has changed. Deccan Chronicle quoted Jaishankar as writing in Why Bharat Matters that the relationship is the subject of attention not because it has changed but because it has not. Jaishankar earlier said the Moscow-New Delhi ties are the stable factor in international relations. The visit of a leader of a state such as India demonstrates that Russia isnt facing international isolation, and for the Kremlin this is very important, Aleksei Zakharov, an expert on India based in Moscow told Bloomberg. Defence New Delhi and Moscow have forged a tight relationship since the Cold War, and Russia was for a long time Indias biggest arms supplier. In the early 1990s, the Soviet Union was the source of about 70 per cent of Indian army weapons, 80 per cent of its air force systems and 85 pe cent of its navy platforms. India bought its first aircraft carrier, INS Vikramaditya, from Russia in 2004. It had served in the former Soviet Union and later in the Russian navy. While the Ukraine war has stretched Russias arms supplies, and India is eyeing other sources. New Delhi has been reducing its dependency on Russian arms and diversifying its defense procurements, buying more from the US, Israel, France and Italy. Russias share of Indian imports of weapons has shrunk considerably in recent years, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). It dropped from 76 percent in 2009-13 to 36 percent in 2019-23, SIPRI said, noting France is now a close second, providing 33 percent. MiG-29 Fighter Jets deployed in Srinagar. ANI India has instead looked to Western suppliers, most notably France and the USA, and its own arms industry, SIPRI said, adding that its arms procurement plans seemingly do not include any Russian options. Rao said the Ukraine war had accelerated Indias push to diversify its defence purchases. The Ukraine war has become one of grinding attrition, she said. There are genuine concerns about Russias export capabilities, and its focus and priorities. Oil At the same time, India has also become a major buyer of discounted Russian oil, providing a much-needed export market for Moscow after it was cut off from traditional buyers in Europe. As per Bloomberg, India is buying more than 2 million barrels of oil per day. Thats 20 times more than it was buying in 2021. That has dramatically reshaped energy ties, with India saving itself billions of dollars while bolstering Moscows war coffers. Indias month-on-month imports of Russian crude increased by eight percent in May, to the highest levels since July 2023, according to commodity tracking data compiled by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air. India imports crude oil from Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and the UAE as well as liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Qatar through the Strait of Hormuz, which is a narrow sea passage between Oman and Iran. Unsplash / Representative Bloomberg quoted rating agency ICRA as saying that New Delhis oil purchases from Moscow saved it $13 billion over the past two years. However, this has also resulted in Indias trade deficit with Russia rising to a little over $57 billion in the past financial year. Russian crude comprised 41 percent of Indias total crude imports in May, and with new agreements in place to conduct payments in rubles, the trade might grow significantly, the research centre said. Trade As per Business Today, trade between India and Russia was at $65.7 billion in the financial year ending March 2024 a 33 per cent increase from 2023 of which Indias imports accounting for $61.43 billion. Russia is now Indias fourth-largest trading partner after China, the United States and the UAE. Jaishankar in May, speaking at the annual general meeting of the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), said this is not a temporary phenomenon. For long, we have looked at Russia from a political or security perspective, he said. As that country turns eastwards, fresh economic opportunities are presenting themselvesthe spike in our trade and new areas of cooperation should not be regarded as a temporary phenomenon. India has also been keen to boost exports of pharmaceutical, machinery and other goods to Russia. Kwatra told The Hindu, In every sector, whether it is in agriculture, manufacturing, pharmaceutical or services, we are trying to maximise Indian exports to Russia so that the trade imbalance can be addressed. He added that the payment mechanisms between New Delhi and Moscow, which had been impacted by sanctions, were working fine currently. As per Business Today, the two nations are currently talking about signing an investment treaty. A free trade agreement between India and the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union is also on the horizon. What do experts say? Experts say the personal relationship between Modi and Putin has also been a huge factor over the past few years. Both the leaders have praised each other, their policies and despite some differences on geopolitical issues and Russias Ukraine invasion the bonhomie remains, a piece in News18 noted. The article noted Putins recent fulsome praise of Modi. (I) cannot imagine that Modi could be frightened, intimidated or forced to take any actions, steps, decisions that would be at variance with the national interests of India and the Indian people, Putin said. They add that New Delhi and Moscow need each other. Russia is the largest country in the world. It has a (large) number of natural resources, and we are an economy that is growing, and we will soon require much larger amounts of natural resources, so for a variety of reasons, Russia is important and it plays an important role in maintaining multipolarity in Asia, Unnikrishnan added. This is about maintaining the status quo, Zakharov, the Moscow-based India specialist told Bloomberg. Ties are not deteriorating but theres no particular drive to improve relations either. Ex-Indian diplomat Anil Wadhwa told DW both countries will be eager to maintain their relationship. Cooperation in oil and gas and defence would be on the agenda, Wadhwa added. Equally important will be the Russian stance on the BRICS expansion, the relationship with China and prospects for cooperation in new areas like connectivity between the two countries, he added. With inputs from agencies PM Narendra Modi is in Moscow to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. The visit, a first by Modi since the Ukraine war broke out, will see the two world leaders discuss global as well as regional issues, including trade and defence ties read more Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin on Monday (July 8) and Tuesday. The two leaders have met a total 16 times since Modi became prime minister, but not since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. File image/Reuters In February 2022, the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, throwing the region and the world order into peril. Now, two years into the war amid efforts by other countries to play mediator between Moscow and Kyiv Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in Russia on a two-day visit (July 8-9) for the 22nd India-Russia annual summit that will review the entire range of multifaceted ties between the two countries. After Russia, Modi will embark on a historic trip to Austria, marking the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 41 years, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said. Advertisement The Kremlin has said that PM Modis very important and full-fledged visit will be seen by the West jealously. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying: They (the West) are jealous that means they are closely monitoring it. Their close monitoring means they attach great importance to it. And they are not mistaken, there is something to attach great importance to. But whats expected from this important visit? Whats the agenda on the table for the two world leaders? And what is the significance of the meet? Modi-Putin meet Last month, the Kremlin had announced that PM Modi would be visiting Russia to meet President Vladimir Putin. This would be the Indian PMs first visit to Russia since the start of the war; the two leaders Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi had last met in Russia in 2019, in the far eastern port of Vladivostok. The two leaders also met in person in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) bloc. Before departing from New Delhi, PM Modi in a statement said: I am embarking on an official visit to the Russian Federation for the 22nd Annual Summit and my first ever visit to the Republic of Austria over the next three days. I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. In Moscow, Modi will attend a private dinner hosted by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Modi is also expected to meet the Indian community in Russia. PM Modi will also lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Solider in the Kremlin and visit an exhibition in Moscow. From Russia, Modi will travel to Austria and call on Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen and hold talks with Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Advertisement Discussions galore Ahead of his visit to Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told VGTRK, a Russian state-run television channel, that the program of Modi in Moscow will be extensive and the two leaders will be able to have informal talks. Obviously, the agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as well We are expecting a very important and full-fledged visit, which is so crucial for Russian-Indian relations, Peskov was quoted as saying. Advertisement Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for Moscow, in New Delhi. PTI He further added that as Russia-India relations are at the level of strategic partnership, there would be both one-on-one talks in the Kremlin and those involving delegations. Elaborating ahead of PM Modis departure, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra had said that issues of regional and global interest will be on the agenda of the talks between PM Modi and President Vladimir Putin. When asked if the issue of the ongoing war would be raised, Kwatra said, In all the past summits, even on the sideline meeting in Samarkand in 2022 the issues of regional and global importance of both countries are always taken up by the two leaders. You are very well aware of what PM spoke when he referred to the ongoing conflict between Russia, Ukraine in Samarkand. Advertisement According to a report in The Hindu, official talks and delegation-level talks will focus on addressing trade and banking challenges due to western sanctions, the possibility of more predictable pricing and long-term contracts for Indian energy imports in oil and LNG, opportunities for investment, as well as connectivity projects like the International North South Transport Corridor (INSTC), the Chennai-Vladivostok maritime route, and the North Sea corridor. Moreover, the trade imbalance between the two countries will also be up for discussion. In 2023-24, Indias exports to Russia were valued at $4 billion. However, Indian imports were close to $60 billion. This is one major aspect that will be looked into, said Kwatra in a press briefing too. When asked how this issue would be addressed, he said that attempts have to be made to raise the exports from India. We will try that exports from India should increase as fast as possible, so that the trade imbalance can be rectified fast, he said. Advertisement Reports citing officials also said that the Chennai-Vladivostok maritime route will also feature in the talks between Modi and Putin. For the unaware, the Chennai-Vladivostok route covers a distance of approximately 5,600 nautical miles, or about 10,300 km. Once operational, it will enable faster movement of goods between India and Russia taking travel time from the current 40 days to 24 days. Apart from trade talks, discussions on defence ties will also be held. The Financial Express has reported that Putin and Modi will discuss the supply chain and production challenges that have led to the delay of the delivery of the S-400 Triumf air defence system. In 2018, the two countries had signed a deal to purchase five squadrons of the S-400 air defence system, with India receiving three squadrons, and the remaining two expected within the next 12-24 months. Theres also talks that Modis visit will also give the two leaders an opportunity to discuss opportunities for joint space missions. The issue of Indians in the Russian Army will also feature, as Modi will press for early discharge or even a full waiver of the processes for those wishing to return, as soon as possible, reported The Hindu. Also read: As PM Modi leaves for Russia next week, military aviation remains biggest Indo-Russian Bear Hug Significance of Modi-Putin visit The Modi-Putin visit will be closely watched not just by India geopolitical experts but by people across the world as it assumes great significance. First and foremost, this visit comes even as the Russia-Ukraine war continues. India has maintained a tight balance between the two nations, refusing to take sides, with PM Modi speaking to both leaders and urging for some resolution between the two. In 2022, Modi had also said that todays era is not of war. Interestingly, while Modi visits Russia, heads of NATO countries will meet in a summit from July 9 to 11 in Washington. This has raised questions on the signal Modi is sending to the world on New Delhis position on the war. However, Kwatra has rejected any connection and said Modis visit was part of the calendar of summits between the two countries. The bilateral visit this time is just a scheduling priority that we have undertaken and thats what it is, he told reporters at a briefing. Some experts note that PM Modis visit to Moscow is an attempt to send a message to China, who has been inching closer to Moscow in recent times. File image/AP Some experts believe that Modis trip to Moscow could also help boost Putins image on the global platform. Currently, the Russian leaders world travel is very curtailed owing to the arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for actions over the war in Ukraine. We kind of see Putin going on a nostalgia trip you know, he was in Vietnam, he was in North Korea, Theresa Fallon, an analyst at the Center for Russia, Europe, Asia Studies, was quoted as telling AP. In my view, hes trying to demonstrate that hes not a vassal to China, that he has options, that Russia is still a great power. Some others also state that the visit is an attempt to send a message to China, who has been inching closer to Moscow in recent times. Chietigj Bajpaee, senior South Asia research fellow at the UK-based Chatham House, told AP that India is becoming increasingly estranged from forums in which Russia and China play a prominent role. This is evident in Indias relatively low key presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization last year, and now the decision by Modi not to attend this years summit, Bajpaee said. It is left to be seen what materialises from Modis visit to Putin. We shall keep a close eye on it. With inputs from agencies The US is battling extreme heatwaves this year. With temperatures shattering records and reaching as high as 38 degree Celsius in many regions, around 36 million people, or about 10 per cent of the nations population, are likely to be affected read more The National Weather Service reported that around 36 million people, or about 10 percent of the nation's population, are under excessive heat warnings. In Californias Death Valley National Park, one of the hottest places on Earth, the mercury climbed to 127 degree Fahrenheit (52.8 degree Celsius) on Friday, breaking previous records. AP This summer, millions across the United States are enduring an unprecedented heatwave that has shattered temperature records from coast to coast. As oppressive heat and humidity push temperatures above 100 degree Fahrenheit (38 degree Celsius) in regions from the Pacific Northwest to the Northeast, millions are seeking relief in cooling centers and air-conditioned spaces. Jacob Asherman, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service, warned that Eastern cities like Eugene, Portland, and Salem in Oregon could see records tumble. A dangerous and historic heatwave is just getting started across the area, the National Weather Service (NWS) in Las Vegas was quoted in the AP, predicting temperatures to peak between Sunday and Wednesday, and extending the excessive heat warning for much of the Southwest into Friday. Advertisement But why is the US, which records an average temperature around 20-30 degree Celsius, recording such extreme temperatures? Lets take a closer look Sweltering cities As record-breaking heat continues to grip the United States, high temperatures are expected to meet or exceed daily records in Washington state, Oregon, northern Arizona, Idaho, and especially California, which has been the hardest hit. Northern California has been particularly scorched, with many areas surpassing 110 degree Fahrenheit. The city of Redding hit a record 119 degree Fahrenheit (48 degree Celsius) on Saturday. Bryan Jackson, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service (NWS), told Reuters that temperatures in the state are running up to 20 degrees above normal for this time of year. Were expecting it to merely drift east through the early part of next week and basically persist through the week, so weve got a real expansive and extreme heatwave ongoing, and its expected to continue this week, Jackson said. Californias Death Valley National Park, one of the hottest places on Earth, the mercury climbed to 127 degree Fahrenheit (52.8 degree Celsius) on Friday, breaking previous records. AP The NWS reported that around 36 million people, or about 10 percent of the nations population, are under excessive heat warnings. In Californias Death Valley National Park, one of the hottest places on Earth, the mercury climbed to 127 degree Fahrenheit (52.8 degree Celsius) on Friday, breaking previous records. Gia Ponce, a ranger at the national park, noted the increasing frequency and duration of heatwaves. July is one of the hottest months, but the length of heat is something that we are starting to see more often. With each coming summer, we are having lengthier heatwaves, with more challenging temperatures. Advertisement Despite the intense heat, some visitors are drawn to these extreme conditions. Death Valley during the summer has always been a bucket list thing for me. For most of my life, Ive wanted to come out here in summertime, said Kinsel, a visitor from Las Vegas exploring Death Valleys Badwater Basin, as reported by AP. Mounting death toll The extreme heat is not just uncomfortable; its deadly. In Arizonas Maricopa County, which includes Phoenix, there have been at least 13 confirmed heat-related deaths this year. Additionally, more than 160 other suspected heat deaths are under investigation, according to the countys most recent report. This grim tally does not include the tragic death of a 10-year-old boy who suffered a heat-related medical event while hiking in Phoenix. Advertisement On Saturday, a motorcyclist, who was part of six bikers who were biking through Death Valley, died of suspected heat exposure while another was hospitalised for severe heat illness. Wildfire risks With temperatures reaching perilous levels, California firefighters battle a string of smoky wildfires fanned by low humidity and triple-digit temperatures. In Southern California, residents were ordered to evacuate parts of Santa Barbara County late Saturday, where the Lake Fire has scorched more than 13,000 acres since Friday. AP In Southern California, residents were ordered to evacuate parts of Santa Barbara County late Saturday, where the Lake Fire has scorched more than 13,000 acres since Friday, according to Cal Fire. Firefighters told AP that the blaze was displaying extreme fire behavior and had the potential for large growth. Whats behind the sizzling heat waves? The World Weather Attribution (WWA) group analysed the excessive heat from May to early June, focusing on the US heatwave in southwest states such as California, Nevada, and Arizona. Their findings revealed that human-induced climate change has made these extreme heatwaves 35 times more likely. Advertisement Experts warn that climate change is causing more frequent and intense extreme weather events, including heatwaves. The results of our study should be taken as another warning that our climate is heating to dangerous levels, stated Izidine Pinto, a researcher at the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, in an interview with the BBC. Experts warn that human-induced climate change is causing more frequent and intense extreme weather events, including heatwaves in the US. Reuters As long as humans fill the atmosphere with fossil fuel emissions, the heat will only get worse vulnerable people will continue to die and the cost of living will continue to increase, Pinto added. According to Copernicus, Earth experienced record-high temperatures for 13 consecutive months, with June 2024 marking the 12th straight month of global temperatures 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has called for urgent action to avert climate hell, highlighting the unprecedented heat records. Advertisement Long-term greenhouse gas emissions and factors like El Nino are contributing to the rising temperatures. Scientists warn that without curbing emissions, the planet is on a trajectory towards a 3-degree Celsius increase, which would have catastrophic consequences. With input from agencies Chinas Coast Guard vessel CCG-5901 entered Manilas exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea on 2 July. Anchored near Sabina Shoal in the Spratly Islands, the monster ship is 541 feet long and has a displacement of 12,000 tonnes. It is said to be bigger than any regular coast guard ship in the world and larger even than some US Navy destroyers. China has become increasingly aggressive in the South China Sea, which it claims, leading to tensions with a number of governments including Manila read more The CCG-5901 is said to be thrice the size of US coast guard vessels and has more firepower than its counterparts. Image courtesy: X China has anchored its largest coastguard vessel in the South China Sea. The 165-metre monster ship is in Manilas exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the South China Sea. The development came just days before Japan and the Philippines signed a deal to boost defence ties. But what do we know about the ship? Why is the Philippines worried about it? Lets take a closer look: What do we know about the ship? As per CNN, the China Coast Guard vessel CCG-5901 is anchored near Sabina Shoal in the Spratly Islands. Advertisement The ship is 541 feet long and has a displacement of 12,000 tonnes. The CCG-5901 is thrice the size of US coast guard vessels. It is said to be bigger than any regular coast guard ship in the world barring a specialty US Coast Guard icebreaker and even larger than some US Navy destroyers. The CCG-5901 even has more firepower than its US counterparts. It has two main 76.2-millimeters guns compared to just one main 57-millimeter gun on the US vessels. The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said the vessel, which entered the 200-nautical mile area on July 2, is meant to intimidate its smaller neighbour. PCG spokesperson for Jay Tarriela said that the Chinese vessel was warned that it was in the Philippines EEZ and asked about their intentions. The Chinese ship, which has also deployed a small boat, was anchored 800 yards away from the PCGs vessel, Tarriela said. The CCG-5901 is five times bigger than the PCGs ship. Not going to be intimidated Its an intimidation on the part of the China Coast Guard, Tarriela said. Were not going to pull out and were not going to be intimidated. Chinas embassy in Manila and the Chinese foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Chinas coast guard has no publicly available contact information. Advertisement Ray Powell, a South China Sea expert and director of SeaLight at the Gordian Knot Center for National Security Innovation at Stanford University, told CNN that the monster has been roaming the EEZ since a clash near Second Thomas Shoal in June. The Philippines has soldiers living aboard a rusty, aging warship at the Second Thomas Shoal, which was deliberately grounded by Manila in 1999 to reinforce its maritime claims. In this handout photo provided by Armed Forces of the Philippines, Chinese Coast Guard hold knives and machetes 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 Immediately following the dramatic standoff at Second Thomas Shoal The Monster toured nearly every Philippine outpost and key feature in the South China Sea, Powell said. Its massive size enables it to intimidate its neighbours while avoiding the escalatory implications of sending a gray-hulled military vessel, Powell added. Advertisement It is not really intended to carry out traditional coast guard missions, but is primarily used as a central element in Chinas paramilitary maritime force, Powell said of The Monster. Why is the Philippines worried? Because China claims most of the South China Sea, a key conduit for $3 trillion of annual ship-borne trade, as its own territory. According to CNN, this includes several islands and sandbars hundreds of kilometres from mainland China. This has led to tensions between Beijing and several other governments that have made competing claims including Manila. Advertisement Beijing rejects the 2016 ruling by The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration which said its expansive maritime claims had no legal basis. This isnt the first time Beijing has displayed such aggression. China has carried out extensive land reclamation on some islands in the South China Sea, building air force and other military facilities, causing concern in Washington and around the region. Philippines president Ferdinand Marcos Jr earlier in July instructed the armed forces to de-escalate tensions in the South China Sea. In May, the PCG deployed a ship to the Sabina shoal to deter small-scale reclamation by China, which denied the claim. On June 17, a Philippine Navy sailor lost his thumb and several others were injured after Chinese Coast Guard (CCG) personnel repeatedly rammed Philippine rubber boats to stop them from delivering food supplies, firearms, and other necessities to BRP Sierra Madre. Advertisement The CCG personnel were seen brandishing knives, an axe, and pointed sticks. Based on the videos and photos released by the Philippine military, the Navy boats were slashed and the navigational screen was smashed. Manila has also raised concerns that Chinese forces might take action against the warship BRP Sierra Madre, an ageing ship that was deliberately grounded on the shoal in 1999 to assert Philippine claims to the area Image Courtesy AP The Philippines has demanded damages from China following the destruction of the Philippine equipment and vessels during June 17 incident. Weeks after the June 17 incident, Philippine and Chinese officials met in Manila in bilateral talks meant to de-escalate and manage disputes. Chinese vice foreign minister Chen Xiaodong met with Philippine Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Maria Theresa Lazaro at the China-Philippines Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the South China Sea (BCM) in Manila China called on the Philippines to stop maritime infringement and move towards stabilizing their relations and protect these from further deterioration. During the talk, China reiterated its sovereignty over Renai Jiao, Beijings name for Ayungin Shoal, and the adjacent waters, and its sovereign rights and jurisdiction over the relevant waters. The Chinese side urges the Philippine side to stop maritime infringement and provocation at once, earnestly abide by the provisions of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), return to the right track of properly handling disputes through dialogue and consultation, jointly manage the situation at Renai Jiao with the Chinese side, promote the easing and cooling down of the maritime situation, and stabilize China-Philippines relations from further deterioration, China Foreign Ministry said in a readout. For its part, the DFA said in a statement that the June 17 incident was also discussed during the meeting. Lazaro and Chen, the DFA said, had frank and constructive discussions on the situation in the South China Sea. Noting recent incidents in the South China Sea, both sides recognized that there is a need to restore trust, rebuild confidence, and create conditions conducive to productive dialogue and interaction, the department said. The two sides discussed their respective positions on Ayungin Shoal and affirmed their commitment to de-escalate tensions without prejudice to their respective positions, it added. While there was substantial progress on developing measures to manage the situation at sea, the DFA said significant differences remain. Collin Koh, research fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, told CNN that the incident displays Beijings proclivity for escalation dominance. The China Coast Guard doesnt want to be outdone thus this monster came along to show whos got a bigger set of muscles, Koh added. Landmark achievement On Monday, the Philippines and Japan boosted their defence ties by signing a reciprocal access agreement (RAA) on Monday, saying they were seeking stability in the region, amid rising tensions with China. Japanese foreign minister Yoko Kamikawa described the pact, which eases the entry of equipment and troops for combat training and disaster response, as a landmark achievement. The deal is the first of its kind to be signed by Japan in Asia and coincides with a rise in assertive actions Chinese vessels in the disputed South China Sea. This is another milestone in our shared endeavour to ensure a rules-based international order, Philippine Defence Minister Gilberto Teodoro told reporters after the signing. Both the Philippines and Japan have taken a strong line against what they see as an increasingly assertive China in the South China Sea. Japan, which last year announced its biggest military build-up since World War Two in a step away from its post-war pacifism, does not have any claims to the South China Sea, but has a separate maritime dispute with China in the East China Sea, where the two countries have repeatedly faced off. It has supported the Philippines position in the South China Sea and has expressed concern over Chinas actions, including recent incidents that resulted in damage to Philippine vessels and injured a Filipino sailor. The Philippines and other Southeast Asian Nations are situated in a key junction of Japans sea lanes; advancing defence cooperation and exchanges with the Philippines is important for Japan, Defence minister Minoru Kihara added. Lin Jian, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, said the Asia-Pacific region does not need military blocs, still less does it need to provoke confrontation between different camps or small circles that encourage a new Cold War. During World War II, Japan was responsible for invasion and colonial rule of Southeast Asian countries, including the Philippines, Lin told reporters in answer to a question at a regular briefing. Japan should seriously reflect on its history of aggression and be cautious in words and deeds in the field of military security. The Philippines has a Visiting Forces Agreement with the United States and Australia. Tokyo, which hosts the biggest concentration of US forces abroad, has similar RAA deals with Australia and Britain, and is negotiating another with France. The RAA will take effect after being ratified by both countries parliaments. With inputs from agencies A report in an Israeli newspaper has claimed that the IDF initiated the controversial Hannibal protocol during the Hamas attack on 7 October. The directive is said to be named for Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca who killed himself rather than fall into the hands of his arch enemy Rome. It allows Israeli troops to use maximum force to stop their brothers-in-arms from being kidnapped which many soldiers and officers take to mean taking actions that could cost the hostages their lives read more The Israeli Army, amid the chaos and confusion of 7 October, reportedly issued an order saying not a single vehicle can return to Gaza." Reuters Did Israel implement he controversial Hannibal protocol during the October 7 attack? Thats what a new report says. The Haaretz daily newspaper said that testimony from troops and officers who participated in the fighting during the Hamas attack indicated that the Hannibal protocol was activated. But what do we know about it? And what does the report say? Lets take a closer look: What is it? The Hannibal protocol is also known as the Hannibal directive or Hannibal procedure. Advertisement As per Al Jazeera, the Israeli Army policy is aimed at preventing the capture of soldiers. It orders soldiers to act with maximum force to stop fellow troops from being taken as prisoners which many soldiers and officers take to mean taking actions that could cost the hostages their lives. You will open fire without constraints, in order to prevent the abduction, Yehuda Shaul, an-ex Israeli army soldier, told the website. Shaul added that the order allows troops to take aim at at junctions, roads, highways and other paths the enemy may use to transport a kidnapped soldier. Though the military has denied the protocol allows troops to kill their brothers-in-arms, soldiers say it is understood to be just that. Shaul said he and other commanders were given the order verbally. Ive never seen any written text of the rules of engagement, Shaul told the outlet. As per The Telegraph, it is named after the Carthaginian general Hannibal Barca. Hannibal fought and beat Roman armies several times becoming one of its most feared and reviled enemies. However, in the end, Hannibal was defeated by the Romans. He killed himself by taking poison in 181 BC rather than letting himself be taken prisoner by his arch enemy. Advertisement However, other sources dispute the origins saying the protocols name was randomly generated by a computer. Origins The order was devised by three senior army commanders in 1986, Benny Brunner, a Dutch-Israeli documentarian told the website The Progressive. Brunner has made two films on the subject The Hannibal Directive and The H Protocol. The higher echelon of the army noticed that the politicians didnt have the means to handle negotiating the release of an Israeli captive soldier. There were exchanges of a lot of Palestinian prisoners for one or two soldierssometimes it was just exchanging the body of a soldier. So they . . . decided, We have to help the politicians, to prevent them facing the need to negotiate. Advertisement As per Al Jazeera, the order was crafted in the aftermath of troops from the Israeli infantry Givati Brigade being kidnapped by Hezbollah. Their soldiers did not open fire on the car in which Yosef Fink and Rafael Alsheikh were abducted. As per The Times of Israel, the order was drafted a year after the Jibril Agreement which saw Israel exchange 1,150 prisoners for just three of its soldiers. The Hannibal protocol order was crafted by three senior army commanders in 1986 The idea behind the protocol was to put in place a process, which all troops would be aware of, to thwart any abduction. Advertisement Major General (res) Yaakov Amidror, one of the people who drafted the order, told the newspaper what we needed was clarity. Amidror, a former national security advisor, said the order aimed to stop soldiers from being kidnapped by enemies even at the price of harming or wounding them. The directive, which was kept secret for decades, only came to light in 2003 after an Israeli doctor serving as a reservist contacted Haaretz. But those that wrote the order remain defiant. Amidror told The Times of Israel that war is a dangerous thing. Its a military operation to return a hostage soldier, he said. Soldiers [lives] can be risked. Advertisement However, Al Jazeera quoted Uri Misgav, an Israeli journalist at Haaretz as saying that the exchange of troops for prisoners was seen as a humiliation and damaging the national honour. Thats why we want to prevent [the capture of soldiers] at all costs, even at the cost of the death of the soldier, Shaul added. Israel previously implemented the Hannibal protocol during its 2014 war with Gaza. The Association for Civil Rights in Israel (ACRI) in 2014 had criticised the directive as illegal. The ACRI said it fundamentally violates the principle of distinction in international humanitarian law and is an illegal method of warfare that violates the laws of war. The protocol was repealed in 2016 by then-IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot Haaretz quoted a report from the Israels state comptroller as saying it recommended doing away with the protocol after heavy criticism and its numerous interpretations by those in the army. Israels state comptroller said the directive was unclear about the value of an abducted soldiers life. It said different areas of the military even used various versions of the order. According to their phrasing at the time Hannibal orders could have been interpreted in various ways with respect to the terms that describe the value of an abducted persons life, it said. The report also said the order did not explicitly mention the need to respect two key principles of international law: distinction between military and civilian targets and the use of proportional force against a given threat. It recommended that the principles be clearly reiterated as part of any future procedure. However, the Israeli military is thought to have introduced a new version of the protocol in 2018. A military official said the revised order calls for forces to act in order to thwart any abduction, but while not endangering the life of the abductee. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity under military guidelines, said the issues of proportionality and distinction are already part of standard rules of engagement. Annyssa Bellal, an international lawyer who specialises in armed conflicts and international law, and senior researcher at the Geneva Graduate Institute, told 19 From a legal point of view, the directive is very controversial. Shaul said that while some people see the protocol as insensitive it makes perfect sense to soldiers. You dont want to be abducted and maybe just missing for the rest of your life. Or who knows what [else could] happen with you? Shaul added. What does the report say? The Haaretz report states that the Israeli Army, amid the chaos and confusion of 7 October, issued an order saying not a single vehicle can return to Gaza. Haaretz quoted a senior Israeli army source as saying that the protocol was employed on October 7. The source added that who gave the order will become clear after an inquiry. At this point, the [Israeli army] was not aware of the extent of kidnapping along the Gaza border, but it did know that many people were involved. Thus, it was entirely clear what that message meant, and what the fate of some of the kidnapped people would be, the report said. The report added that the cumulative data indicates that many of the kidnapped people were at risk, exposed to Israeli gunfire, even if they were not the target. It said the Hannibal protocol was employed at three army facilities infiltrated by Hamas and this did not prevent the kidnapping of seven of them [soldiers] or the killing of 15 other spotters, as well as 38 other soldiers. The Times of Israel quoted a senior IDF source as saying everyone knew by then that such vehicles could be carrying kidnapped civilians or soldiers. You couldnt really know if there were any such people in a vehicle. I cant say there was any clear instruction, but everyone knew what it meant to not let any vehicles return to Gaza, the source added. Israel puts the toll on 7 October at 1,139. It says around 250 citizens were captured. Haaretz quoted an army spokesperson as saying that it has begun conducting internal investigations of what transpired on October 7 and the preceding period. The aim of these investigations is to learn and to draw lessons which could be used in continuing the battle. When these investigations are concluded, the results will be presented to the public with transparency, the spokesperson added. With inputs from agencies The Zorawar light battle tank weighs 25-tonnes and will be able to navigate steep mountains and cross water bodies like rivers. Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Larsen and Toubro (L&T), it has been designed for rapid deployment largely along Indias border with China. It could be inducted into the Indian Army as early as 2027 read more The tank is named for 19th Century general Zorawar Singh, a famed military commander in the employ of Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir, who led the Dogra armys operations in Ladakh and western Tibet. India has unveiled its Zorawar light battle tank. The tank, developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Larsen and Toubro (L&T), will be deployed at the China border. The tanks trials occurred in Gujarats Hariza less than two years after it was approved. But what do we know about the tank? Lets take a closer look: As per The Print, the tank has been developed under the Indian Armys Project Zorawar. The air-transportable 25-tonne tank has been designed for rapid deployment largely along the frontier with China. Advertisement The Indian Army is looking at deploying over 350 light tanks mostly in the mountainous border areas. The army wants these tanks equipped with AI, as well as integrated tactical surveillance and loitering munition drones. WION reported that the tank is named for 19th Century general Zorawar Singh. Singh, a famed military commander in the employ of Maharaja Gulab Singh of Jammu and Kashmir, led the Dogra armys operations in Ladakh and western Tibet. Zorawar means strong and powerful in Hindi. According to Eurasian Times, the tank easily managed to overcome a 20-degree incline during its unveiling. L&T has said the tank can handle inclines over 30 degrees. As per India Today, the tank will be able to navigate steep mountains and cross water bodies like rivers far more easily than its forerunners such as the heavy-weight T-72 and T-90 tanks. This will allow it to be deployed in areas like eastern Ladakhs Pangong Tso Lake. As per The Times of India, approval to acquire the light tanks at a cost of Rs 17,500 crore was given in 2022 by defence minister Rajnath Singh. The tank, though lighter, will have the same firepower as a regular tank. Advertisement It will be inducted into six regiments. As per Economic Times, the Zorawar tank will be more mobile and more accurate than the Chinese Type 15 tanks deployed on the Ladakh border. It will be equipped with 105 mm gun made by John Cockerill which will also be produced in India. The tank will also come with an integrated Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to increase battlefield visibility. As per India Today, the tank will have an active protection system which will protect it from anti-tank guided missiles and projectiles. As per Eurasian Times, the tank has a Multi-Ranging Sensor (MRS) as well as a BEL Remote Weapon Station (RWS) and Safran Paseo optics and two Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGMs). Advertisement It also comprises a Light Weight Rifle (LWR) and add-on modular armour blocks. It has Composite Rubber Tracks (CRT) and additional cameras. The tank is powered by the American-made Cummins 750 hp engine. The tank will now undergo desert trials. It will also be tested in the high-altitude areas of Ladakh. An army soldier stands guard at Zojila Pass, situated at a height of 11,516 feet, in Kargil, Ladakh. PTI We have to go through summer trials and winter trials and there will also be high altitude trials. In my estimation, it will take about a year to year and a half to complete the full cycle of trials, DRDO chief Samir Kamat said after reviewing the project. The first tank could be deployed as early as 2027, Kamat added. Advertisement Sources told the development of the Zorawar tank is the fastest for such a weapon in India. The Times of India reported that 59 of the tanks will be manufactured by DRDO with L&T as lead system integrator, while the other 295 will be produced under the Centres Make-1 category. The newspaper quoted a DRDO official as saying that the agile and versatile light tank will be capable of operations in the most challenging environment in the world with minimal logistic support. Due to its lighter weight, the tank has high strategic mobility. It can be transported by air and is capable of amphibious operations. It can fire at high angles of elevation and perform the role of limited artillery, the official added. Advertisement Kamat told the newspaper that the trial was a momentous day. The prototype, designed and developed in a short period of 24 to 30 months, is an example of what can be achieved when the DRDO and industry work together, Kamat added. L&Ts JD Patil added that the time taken to develop the tank 19 months after being awarded the contract in April 2022 is a world record. This partnership example provides the way ahead for development of complex systems/platforms indigenously through Synergy of strengths between both strong partners - DRDO and L&T, leveraging each others proven capabilities and track record to accomplish the development, complete first set of track trials and concurrently achieve production readiness of high order under two years, Patil said. Interestingly, the tank could have been developed even faster. Germany, which was originally slated to provide an engine, delayed the project by a year when it cancelled the export license, as per Eurasian Times. The development of Zorawar is being seen to be aimed at countering Chinas deployment of tanks of the same categories. The army planned to procure light tanks equipped with adequate firepower for deployment in high-altitude areas with an aim to enhance agility, manoeuvrability and operational capability. It has taken a series of measures since the Galwan Valley clashes in eastern Ladakh to enhance its combat capabilities. It deployed a significant number of easily transportable M-777 ultralight howitzers in mountainous regions along the LAC, including in Arunachal Pradesh. The M-777s can be transported quickly in Chinook helicopters. The army has also deployed heavy tanks like T-90 and T-72 and infantry combat vehicles in eastern Ladakh. The artillery units of the Army have already deployed K-9 Vajra Tracked Self-Propelled Howitzers, Pinaka rocket systems and Dhanush gun systems along the frontier with China. The Indian and Chinese militaries have been locked in a standoff since May 2020 and a full resolution of the border row has not yet been achieved though the two sides have disengaged from a number of friction points. The ties between the two countries nosedived significantly following the fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades. India has been maintaining that its ties with China cannot be normal unless there is peace in the border areas. With inputs from agencies Japan and the Philippines have signed a one-of-a-kind bilateral defence agreement aimed at enhancing joint exercises and strengthening security cooperation, in response to Chinas increasing assertiveness in regional waters. The pact marks a significant step in reconciliation between Tokyo and Manila following Japans savage WWII occupation in the Philippines read more Japan Defence Minister Minoru Kihara, Japan Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., Philippine Defence Minister Gilberto Teodoro, and Philippine Foreign Minister Enrique Manalo pose for a photo following signing of the reciprocal access agreement, at the Malacanang Palace in Manila, Philippines, July 8, 2024. Reuters The Philippines and Japan signed a landmark defence pact on Monday (June 8), marking a major milestone in their security relations amid rising tensions in the Indo-Pacific. The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) allows the deployment of forces on each others soil, facilitating joint military exercises and strengthening their defensive capabilities against Chinas growing assertiveness in regional waters. The agreement was signed by Philippine Defence Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in a ceremony in Manila, witnessed by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Advertisement This landmark deal, the first of its kind for Japan in Asia, sets a framework to ease the entry of foreign personnel and equipment for military cooperation between the two nations. It will come into effect once ratified by both countries legislatures. Why is this pact significant? The defence pact is historically significant given the brutal occupation of Japan in the Philippines during World War II, during which more than 500,000 Filipinos were reportedly killed. It marks a crucial step in reconciliation between Tokyo and Manila, combining their defence forces against a larger threat - Beijing. The RAA is a strategic response to the rising influence of China in the South China Sea, where Beijings expansive maritime claims clash with those of several Southeast Asian nations, including the Philippines. An international tribunal ruled in 2016 that Chinas claims had no legal basis, a decision that Beijing continues to reject. Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. attends a meeting with Japans Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Defence Minister Minoru Kihara, during a courtesy call at the Malacanang Palace in Manila, Philippines, July 8, 2024. Reuters Both the Philippines and Japan, close allies of the United States, have taken a firm stance against Chinas aggressive behaviour. Japan, though not a claimant in the South China Sea, faces its own maritime dispute with China in the East China Sea. Advertisement In December 2023, Japan announced its largest military build-up since World War II, aiming to bolster its defensive capabilities in response to perceived threats from China and North Korea. This includes doubling its defence spending over five years to become the worlds third-largest military spender after the US and China. Also Read | Explained: How every dispute in the South China Sea fits into Beijings hegemonic ambitions Japans foreign minister Yoko Kamikawa hailed the agreement as a groundbreaking achievement and highlighted the importance of a free and open international order based on the rule of law. We would like to work closely with your country to maintain and strengthen this, she said. Advertisement Japan has RAAs with Australia & Britain as well Under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Japan has been proactive in strengthening its defence ties with other nations, including signing similar RAAs with Australia and Britain, and negotiating another with France. South Korea and the United Kingdom are also pursuing one. Japan has also agreed to provide the Philippines with coastal surveillance radars under its Official Security Assistance program, aiming to enhance the Philippines deterrence capabilities. Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, greets Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, prior to their bilateral meeting at the prime ministers official residence in Tokyo, December 17, 2023. File Image/AP This defence pact dovetails with Marcos efforts to forge security alliances to enhance the Philippine militarys limited capacity to defend its territorial interests in the South China Sea. The region is a crucial global trade route claimed almost entirely by China, but also contested by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. Advertisement Tackling the Chinese threat in South China Sea The RAA will also allow Japan to participate fully in the annual Balikatan military exercises conducted by the Philippines and the US. Previously, Japanese forces could only join as observers. This development comes as both nations face increasing pressure from Chinas assertive actions in the South China Sea and the East China Sea. In recent incidents, Chinese coast guard ships have used water cannons against Philippine vessels near disputed shoals, and there have been several confrontations between Chinese and Philippine forces. Chinese Coast Guard vessels fire water cannons towards a Philippine resupply vessel as it made its way to the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, March 4, 2024. File Image/Reuters In the most severe incident, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears, and axes rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels at Second Thomas Shoal, injuring several Filipino sailors and seizing navy rifles. Advertisement The Philippines has strongly protested these actions, demanding compensation and the return of the rifles. In response, China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, claiming the Filipino sailors had strayed into Chinese territorial waters. How have stakeholders reacted? The international community, including Japan and the United States, has expressed serious concern over Chinas actions. The US, bound by its treaty obligations, has reiterated its commitment to defend the Philippines in the event of an armed attack. Japans Ministry of Foreign Affairs echoed this sentiment, stressing the importance of upholding freedom of navigation and regional stability. Japans Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Philippines Defence Minister Gilberto Teodoro shake hands after signing the reciprocal access agreement, at the Malacanang Palace in Manila, Philippines, July 8, 2024. Reuters Japans defence minister Minoru Kihara and Philippine counterparts will continue to hold talks to deepen their strategic ties and address regional concerns. Also Read: How Vietnam is growing bigger by building islands in South China Sea This defence pact represents a significant step in the evolving security dynamics of the Indo-Pacific region, with both nations seeking to enhance their military cooperation to counterbalance Chinas growing influence. With inputs from agencies Actress Samantha Ruth Prabhu stirred controversy by advocating an alternate method for treating viral infections: nebulising a blend of hydrogen peroxide and distilled water instead of traditional medications. This sparked a heated debate with The Liver Doc, Dr Cyriac Abby Philips, who sharply criticised Samantha and warned about the potential dangers of the treatment read more Samantha Ruth Prabhu found herself embroiled in a controversy after advocating for hydrogen peroxide nebulisation on social media. Instagram/ @samantharuthprabhuofficial Samantha Ruth Prabhu, a beloved figure in Indian cinema, recently found herself embroiled in a controversy after advocating for hydrogen peroxide nebulisation on social media. In her post on Instagram, Samantha suggested an alternative approach to treating viral infections, urging her followers to try nebulising with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and distilled water instead of resorting to medications. Before taking medication for a common viral, consider trying an alternative approach, Samantha wrote. One option is to nebulize with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and distilled water. Works like magic. Avoid unnecessary use of pills, she added. Advertisement This endorsement caught the attention of Dr. Cyriac Abby Philips, known on social media as The Liver Doc, who vehemently criticised Samanthas recommendation. Dr. Philips labelled the actress as health and science illiterate and accused her doctors of being businessmen. He also issued a stern warning about the potential dangers of hydrogen peroxide nebulisation. Left: Influential Indian actress Ms. Samantha Ruth who is unfortunately a health and science illiterate advising millions of her followers to inhale hydrogen-peroxide to prevent and treat respiratory viral infections. Right: Scientific society, The Asthma and Allergy Foundation pic.twitter.com/Ihn2xocKUt TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) July 4, 2024 But what exactly is hydrogen peroxide nebulisation, and why has it sparked such a heated debate? Lets delve deeper into this controversial treatment and the risks it poses. Understanding hydrogen peroxide nebulisation Hydrogen peroxide nebulisation involves inhaling a mist of diluted hydrogen peroxide through a nebuliser, a device commonly used to deliver medication directly into the lungs for conditions like asthma. Advertisement Hydrogen peroxide, composed of hydrogen and oxygen, is an antiseptic used as an oxidising and disinfecting agent in various applications. This chemical compound is found in bleaches, dyes, antiseptics, and disinfectants. However, when this highly concentrated chemical compound is nebulised and inhaled, it can potentially interact with substances in the air or residues in the nebuliser equipment. According to the Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, this interaction can lead to the production of harmful by-products or gases that damage the lungs and cause inflammation in the airways. The science and the risks Proponents of this method claim that it can help cleanse the respiratory tract, kill pathogens, and prevent respiratory infections. However, these claims are not backed by health experts. Advertisement Even the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved nebulistion of the chemical compound for any medical use citing potential health risks, a Medical News Today report said. Mucosal irritation Inhaling hydrogen peroxide can damage the mucosal lining of the respiratory tract, which provides moisture to tissues and protects the airway from inhaled dust, toxins, and pathogens. When high concentration is inhaled it can lead to mucosal irritation, which means an inflammation or discomfort in the mucous membranes. This can lead to swelling, pain, burning, dryness, and difficulty in swallowing. The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states that even 3 per cent of the solution can irritate the mucosal tissue and cause asphyxiation. Advertisement Damages lungs Inhaling hydrogen peroxide poses a significant risk of developing pulmonary edema, a condition where fluid builds up in the lungs, leading to severe respiratory distress and dangerously low oxygen levels in the blood. This can escalate to life-threatening complications, says the US CDC. Additionally, it can cause pneumonitis, an inflammation of the lungs triggered by long exposure to irritants or chemicals, a study published in the journal Cureus said. It can lead to shortness of breath, chest pain, and coughing up blood, making it a serious health concern. Cytotoxicity Dr Roohi Pirzada, a General Physician based in Mumbai explains in Only My Health, Hydrogen Peroxide is cytotoxic, meaning it can kill cells. Inhaling hydrogen peroxide can lead to cellular damage and death within the respiratory system, particularly affecting the delicate cells lining the lungs, Advertisement According to a study published in Nature, cytotoxicity operates through various mechanisms such as membrane degradation, DNA impairment, oxidative stress, and disruption of cellular functions, ultimately contributing to tissue damage and cell death. War of words After facing criticism, Samantha responded with a three-page statement, clarifying that she had shared the nebulisation method with good intentions and not to harm anyone. Defending herself, the actor pointed out that her recommendation was based on advice from her doctor with 25 years of experience. Without directly naming The Liver Doc, Samantha suggested that critics should engage in debates with her doctor rather than targeting her personally with harsh comments. The Liver Doc once again called her a serial offender in the context of healthcare misinformation. He reiterated that he would be provocative and strongly criticise such posts to help people. Ms. Samantha Ruth Prabhu has responded to my "provocative" criticism of her endorsement of unscientific, pseudoscientific and baseless alternative medicine therapies by playing the victim card and endorsing more alternative practices. Please note, she is a serial offender in https://t.co/eRvsXrGlZq pic.twitter.com/iRadZgrHTE TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) July 5, 2024 I have been fighting medical/health misinformation for the longest time and it just does not seem to end. I have come to understand that the only way to fight medical misinformation is to consistently speak about it and make examples of people who mislead and misinform, TheLiverDoc had earlier posted on social media. Additionally, three-time Grammy Award winner and environmentalist Ricky Kej voiced support for The Liver Doc, stating that Samanthas advocacy of the treatment ventures into dangerous territory. He endorsed The Liver Docs decision to confront Samanthas endorsements, backed by numerous supporters. Ms. Samantha Ruth Prabhu has responded to my "provocative" criticism of her endorsement of unscientific, pseudoscientific and baseless alternative medicine therapies by playing the victim card and endorsing more alternative practices. Please note, she is a serial offender in https://t.co/eRvsXrGlZq pic.twitter.com/iRadZgrHTE TheLiverDoc (@theliverdr) July 5, 2024 samantha should just take the L and delete everything. leave these medical advices to actual doctors. https://t.co/2H6pSRV3Yf fabricated city (@wondeukyool) July 5, 2024 Do alternatives exist? Yes, but depends. According to Cambridge University Hospitals, saline nebulisers help to thin down the secretion, which makes it easier to cough up and swallow. It can mitigate the functional signs of threatening pulmonary obstruction and treat mild respiratory problems, according to a study published in the journal, Physiological Research. However, it is always safer to consult doctors for accurate diagnosis and effective treatment as it may vary depending on the type of virus infecting the person. With input from agencies In addition to the four Indian Army soldiers who have been killed, four more have been injured, according to defence officials read more Four Indian Army soldiers have been killed in a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua, according to defence officials. In addition to the four personnel who have been killed, four more soldiers have been injured, ANI quoted officials as saying. The casualties occurred as terrorists on Monday attacked an Army convoy in Machedi area of J&Ks Kathua district. The firefight in the area is still ongoing. #UPDATE | Four Indian Army soldiers have been killed while an equal number are injured in the terrorist attack in Machedi area of Kathua. The firefight between troops and the terrorists is on. More details awaited: Defence officials https://t.co/IfGjVDT9rx ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 Advertisement The Kashmir Tigers, an outfit understood to be a front of Jaish-e-Mohammed, has claimed responsibility for the attack, according to CNN-News 18. The attack occurred at around 3:30 pm near Badnota village in Lohai Malhar, around 150 kms from Kathua town, according to Times Now. The report further said that terrorists hurled a grenade at the Army convoy on the Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road and then opened fire. They fled from the spot and reinforcements were rushed to area to find and neutralise the terrorists. This is the fifth terrorist attack in J&K in the past one month. Last month, the four attacks took place in Reasi, Kathua, and Doda. Ten people were killed in the attacks, including nine Hindu pilgrims in Reasi in an attack on a bus carrying pilgrims to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine. More than 40 people were also injured in this attack. The history of major floods in Assam during Congress rule, where little was done to mitigate the crisis, does not absolve the current BJP government of its failures in preparation, planning and handling of the situation read more Assam is no stranger to floods, political blame games during floods, or the flood-fuelled corruption that rages like a fearsome river in spate. On Monday, Leader of Opposition and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited Assam, meeting with people affected by the floods and tweeting about it. He highlighted the number of deaths and displacements caused by the floods, stating, These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJPs double-engine government, which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam. Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision - proper relief, rehabilitation, and compensation in the short term, and a pan-Northeast water management authority to do everything necessary to control floods in the long term. Indeed, there is no doubt about that. Advertisement The extreme devastation caused by flooding in Assam is heartbreaking - with innocent children like 8-year old Avinash being taken away from us. My heartfelt condolences to all the bereaved families across the State. Assam Congress leaders apprised me of the situation on pic.twitter.com/Nbx356QPEF Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 8, 2024 Why Rahul Gandhi needs to look back Rahuls visit to Assam during such a significant natural disaster is politically wise and timely, likely earning him some goodwill. However, there is another aspect of the data he should consider. According to the Assam water resources department, about 10.2 per cent of Indias total area is flood-prone, whereas in Assam, 39.58 per cent of the state is vulnerable to floods. This means that Assams flood-prone area is nearly four times the national average. Since Independence, Assam has experienced major floods in the years 1954, 1962, 1972, 1977, 1984, 1988, 1998, 2002, 2004 and 2012. Almost every year, three to four waves of floods ravage the flood-prone areas of the state. The average annual loss due to floods in Assam amounts to approximately Rs 200 crore. Notably, in 1998, the loss was around Rs 500 crore, and in 2004, it escalated to about Rs 771 crore. Advertisement According to data available on the Open Government Data (OGD) Platform India, the year 2002 was particularly devastating, with over 7.5 million people affected and total damages amounting to Rs 753.03 crore, largely driven by extensive crop and house damage. In 2004, the impact on houses was notable, with over 663,000 houses damaged. The year 2012 stands out with a staggering Rs 3,200.31 crore in damages, primarily due to substantial losses in public utilities. The fact remains that in all instances of major floods prior to 2016, the Congress was in power in Assam. This raises the question: did the Congress recognise the need for a long-term solution to Assams floods only after losing power in the state? During their tenure, embankments and dykes were repeatedly swept away, corruption was rampant and a comprehensive long-term strategy was conspicuously absent, just as it is today. Advertisement After India gained independence in 1947, the Congress party dominated Assams political landscape for several decades. The party led various state governments and played a key role in the states development and integration of diverse ethnic groups. During the 1950s to the 1970s, the Congress party was the primary political force in Assam with leaders like Bimala Prasad Chaliha serving as chief minister. The 1980s were marked by the Assam Movement (1979-1985), a significant protest against illegal immigrants. This movement culminated in the signing of the Assam Accord in 1985. During this period, the political fortunes of the Congress fluctuated with the emergence of the Asom Gana Parishad as a strong regional party challenging Congresss dominance. In the 1990s, the Congress regained power under the leadership of Hiteswar Saikia and later Tarun Gogoi. This period saw the party reestablishing its influence and addressing various socio-political challenges in the state. From 2001 to 2016, Tarun Gogoi served as the chief minister for three consecutive terms. Advertisement BJP also has its share of blame The OGD data reveals that similarly, in the year 2017 saw a sharp rise in damages, reaching Rs 4,164.81 crore influenced by severe crop damage and extensive house damage affecting over 1,11,000 houses and leading to significant public utility losses. The data also reveal recurring issues, such as cattle loss and human lives lost, with notable spikes in years like 2019 and 2020, where combined damages exceeded Rs 3,000 crore each year. These years highlight the persistent vulnerability of the region to natural disasters, emphasising the need for improved disaster management and mitigation strategies. Between 2000 and 2020, natural disasters had a significant impact on various aspects of life, including agricultural areas, population, infrastructure and livestock in Assam. Advertisement As on 7 July 2024, out of 36 districts, 28 of them Kamrup, Nagaon, Cachar, Dhubri, Goalpara, Morigaon, Hailakandi, Bongaigaon, South Salmara, Dibrugarh, Karimganj, Lakhimpur, Hojai, Nalbari, Charaideo, Biswanath, Golaghat, Jorhat, Dhemaji, Barpeta, Sonitpur, Kokrajhar, Majuli, Kamrup (M), Darrang, Sivasagar, Chirang and Tinsukia were reeling under floods in the state. The loss of life and property has been tremendous this time as floods have affected both urban and rural areas. Just like the previous Congress governments, the BJP has made lofty promises to resolve the flood issues, but unfortunately, these promises fade away as soon as the waters recede. Walking through flood-affected areas in gum boots, surveying from a helicopter and visiting people in relief camps are mere optics until a practical and scientific solution is implemented. Walking through flood-affected areas in gum boots, aerial surveys and relief camp visits must translate into actionable and sustainable flood management policies. Otherwise, these actions become mere fodder for social media, eagerly consumed by an ever-hungry online audience. River bank erosion crisis According to the state water, resource department, Assam is grappling with a significant issue: river bank erosion caused by the Brahmaputra, Barak and their tributaries. This phenomenon leads to damages amounting to several hundred crores annually. Over the past decades, more than 4.27 lakh hectares of land have been lost to erosion by the Brahmaputra and its tributaries, accounting for 7.40 per cent of the states total area. On average, approximately 8,000 hectares of land are eroded each year. In some areas, the Brahmaputra river has widened up to 15 kilometres due to this persistent erosion. Erosion has also resulted in frequent breaches of embankments, affecting new regions annually. The states fertile agricultural lands, crucial for the rural economy, are steadily diminishing, exacerbating economic hardships for many communities. The scale and impact of river bank erosion in Assam are both severe and distressing. A flood-hit economy Floods have a significant negative impact on Assams economy as it loses an estimated Rs 200 crore every year due to it. Beyond political optics, there is a pressing need for a holistic approach to flood management. The historical data points to a pattern of recurring floods and escalating economic losses indicating systemic failures in disaster preparedness and management across different political regimes. Both the Congress and BJP have made lofty promises, but the implementation has often fallen short. Effective flood mitigation requires comprehensive planning, robust infrastructure and stringent implementation of flood control measures. A scientific approach, incorporating modern technology for flood prediction, real-time monitoring and community-based disaster preparedness programmes, is crucial. Moreover, addressing the corruption and bureaucratic inefficiencies that hinder flood management projects is imperative. Only through a concerted and sincere effort can Assam hope to mitigate the devastating impact of floods and safeguard its economic and social well-being. Or else, it is hollow politics without concrete policies. As PM Modi departed to Russia for his first bilateral meeting with President Vladimir Putin after assuming office for the third term, the Congress on Friday came up with a series of questions for PM Modi, including whether relations between the two countries cooled off somewhat under his watch read more As Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed to Russia for his first bilateral meeting with President Vladimir Putin after assuming office for the third term, the Congress on Friday came up with a series of questions for PM Modi, including whether relations between the two countries cooled off somewhat under his watch. In a long post on X, Congress general secretary, in-charge communications, Jairam Ramesh, said, India inherited a rich relationship with first the USSR and later Russia due to the astute diplomacy and strategic initiatives of various Congress Governments through the decades. More recently, in his ten years as Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh met Vladmir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev (the two Presidents of Russia who served during his tenure) 16 times in India or Russia. By comparison, this is only Mr. Modis 11th meeting with President Putin after 10 years in office. Advertisement Three questions for the Prime Minister as he heads to Russia today 1. India inherited a rich relationship with first the USSR and later Russia due to the astute diplomacy and strategic initiatives of various Congress Governments through the decades. More recently, in Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) July 8, 2024 While his propagandists make grand claims of having stopped the war between Russia and Ukraine, have relations between the two countries taken cooled off somewhat under Mr. Modis watch? the senior Congress leader asked. Comparing exports and imports bills between FY14 and FY23, Jairam said Indias exports to Russia stagnated, falling from $3.17 billion to $3.14 billion while the imports surged exponentially, rising from $6.34 billion to $46.21 billion. He said such a lopsided trade relationship is unsustainable in the long-term, and has deleterious consequences for our domestic industry. Is a rectification of this trade imbalance on the agenda for the non-biological Prime Ministers talks with President Putin? What is his vision to improve the trade balance between the two countries? Advertisement Talking about the Indians stranded in the Russia-Ukraine conflict zone, he said at least 50 Indian nationals have joined the Russian Army and two individuals have already been confirmed as fatalities of the war. Many others have been duped into fighting a war where they have no stake, aside from a chance to escape the poverty and unemployment crisis that the non-biological Prime Minister has perpetuated domestically, Jairam said. Will the non-biological Prime Minister take up the cause of these youth? Will he ensure their safe return to India as soon as possible?, he further asked. #WATCH | On PM Modi's visit to Russia, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh says, "I have raised three questions to the non-biological PM. Dr Manmohan Singh and Putin and the Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev had met 16 times in 10 years. Putin and Modi have met 11 times. So does this mean some pic.twitter.com/fFDTwN7055 ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 Advertisement The Prime Minister will hold summit talks with President Putin amid the conflict in Ukraine during his visit. This is his first trip to Russia since 2019 and the first since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. PM Modi and Putin are set explore ways to further expand bilateral relations in diverse areas, including trade, energy and defence, at the 22nd India-Russia annual summit on Tuesday. Advertisement With inputs from agencies Fifty flights have been cancelled till 11 am on Monday at the Mumbai airport due to low visibility and heavy rains. Of these, IndiGo had to cancel 42 flights, including 20 departing ones, while six flights of Air India including three arrivals were cancelled, a source said read more Flight services at Mumbai airport were severely impacted on Monday due to low visibility after heavy rains in the city, leading to runway operations being shut for over an hour and approximately 50 flights being cancelledQ, sources said. Of the 50 cancelled flights (both arrivals and departures) till 11 AM, 42 were operated by IndiGo and six by Air India, they said. Fifty flights have been cancelled till 11 am on Monday at the Mumbai airport due to low visibility and heavy rains. Of these, IndiGo had to cancel 42 flights, including 20 departing ones, while six flights of Air India including three arrivals were cancelled, a source said. Advertisement The government-owned Alliance Air also had to cancel two flights (one departure and one arrival) on Monday, the source added. Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL), the private airport operator, stated that inclement weather led to the temporary suspension of runway operations from 2:22 a.m. to 3:40 a.m. on Monday. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport (CSMI) has deployed airport personnel across the Terminals to support passengers and provide them with necessary assistance, MIAL said. MIAL also requested passengers to connect with their respective airlines and check the schedule before arrival at the airport. Sources had earlier said that runway operations had to be suspended from 2:22 a.m. to 3:40 a.m., resulting in the diversion of around 27 flights to nearby airports. Flights were diverted to cities such as Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, and Indore, among others, they said. Mumbai city recorded 101.8 mm of rainfall in nine hours on Monday, nearly seven times more than its suburbs in the same period, while some other parts of Maharashtra also experienced heavy showers, said the weather office. The Colaba weather station, which records weather parameters for the island city, registered 101.8 mm of rainfall from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm, said Sushma Nair, scientist, India Meteorological Department (IMD) Mumbai. On the contrary, the Santacruz weather station, which measures weather parameters for Mumbais suburbs, recorded only 14.8 mm of rainfall from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm, she said. Advertisement The island city, generally, receives much less rain than the suburbs. In its plea before the apex court, the state government said the high courts order demoralised the entire state machinery, including the police force read more New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by the West Bengal government challenging the Calcutta High Courts order which directed a CBI investigation into the allegations of crimes against women and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali. Why should the state be interested in protecting someone? a bench of Justices B R Gavai and K V Viswanathan observed, adding that on the last date of hearing, the counsel appearing for the state said the matter be adjourned after the apex court asked this specific query. Advertisement Thank you. Dismissed, the bench said. The top court was hearing the state governments plea challenging the Calcutta High Courts April 10 order. While hearing the plea on April 29, the apex court asked the West Bengal government as to why the state should come in as a petitioner for protecting the interest of some private individuals. In its plea before the apex court, the state government said the high courts order demoralised the entire state machinery, including the police force. The CBI is already investigating the case of attack on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in Sandeshkhali and has registered three FIRs related to incidents on January 5. Noting that the investigation will be monitored by the court, the high court directed the CBI to file a comprehensive report on the alleged illegal conversion of agricultural land into water bodies for pisciculture after conducting a thorough inspection of revenue records and physical inspection of land alleged to have been converted. The high court also directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate allegations of crimes against women and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali and submit a comprehensive report to it on the next date of hearing. The incident took place at Badnota village in Lohai Malhar, 150 kilometres from Kathua town, when some Army vehicles were on a routine patrol in the area, officials said read more An encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in the Machedi area of Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua district on Monday after terrorists opened fire on an Indian Army vehicle. Defence officials said the area falls under the 9 Corps of the Indian Army, adding more details were awaited. According to a PTI report, at least two soldiers were injured in the incident. The incident took place at Badnota village in Lohai Malhar, 150 kilometres from Kathua town, when some Army vehicles were on a routine patrol in the area, officials said. Advertisement Security forces retaliated and an exchange of fire was going on when last reports were received. Reinforcements have been rushed to the area and further details are awaited, the officials said. Todays attack comes 24 hours after after six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir Kulgam district. Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan said one Army personnel sacrificed his life during the operation. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Kulgams Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a spike in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralised in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain had said With inputs from agencies Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made Russia the first bilateral visit of his third term. This will not be lost on Western leaders read more As Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to Moscow on July 8-9 for a summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin, hackles will momentarily rise in the United States and Europe. It is exactly the kind of optics they do not want to see as the Russia-Ukraine war grinds on. Modi has made Russia the first bilateral visit of his third term. That will not be lost on Western leaders busy putting out fires in Europe as the continent swings right and an increasingly infirm US President Joe Biden trails former President Donald Trump in opinion polls. Advertisement What message does Modis summit meeting with Putin in Moscow send to the West? Putin has been vilified, sanctioned and ostracised by the US-led Western alliance since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Significantly, this is the first India-Russia summit since 2021. It is also the first time Modi will meet Putin in Moscow after the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The special relationship between the US and India remains strong despite Indias increasing show of strategic autonomy. Both countries have more to lose than gain by loosening ties. Washington needs India as a reliable ally in the Indo-Pacific. India needs the US for trade and defence technology. Indian and US national interests are broadly aligned. But relations between New Delhi and Washington have cooled since the Nijjar-Pannun cases arose a year ago. President Joe Biden favours closer ties with India even though many of his aides, who lean towards the Democratic partys hard Left, believe India requires a periodic reality check. The Nijjar-Pannun case is one such. The FBI cooked up a murder-for-hire charge against Indian businessman Nikhil Gupta based on sketchy online messages. Gupta was entrapped by the FBI in Prague, jailed for a year in the Czech Republic, and extradited last month to the US to stand trial in a New York court. Advertisement The evidence against Gupta is so thin that it hasnt been publicly revealed. US justice can be deeply compromised as cases against recently released Wikileaks founder Julian Assange and the ongoing legal battles with Donald Trump clearly indicate. The US administration has a well-oiled network of NGOs and global agencies which do its bidding to keep recalcitrant allies on the back foot. A favourite target is religious freedom in India. The US State Department is often deployed to convey the message. Last month, Secretary of States Antony Blinken personally released the State Departments Religious Freedom Report 2023. It noted violent attacks on Muslims and Christians. The report added: 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. Advertisement This was a direct attack on Indias internal affairs by Americas most senior diplomat who has developed a close relationship with his Indian counterpart, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. It is akin to Jaishankar publicly releasing a ministry of external affairs (MEA) report on racially motivated police shootings of minority blacks in the US. That would be a serious transgression of diplomatic protocol. The US calls itself the leader of a rules-based world order. It breaks every rule in the book but expects other countries to abide by them. The MEA swiftly issued a strong rebuttal to the State Departments report on religious freedom in India: The report is deeply biased, lacks understanding of Indias social fabric and is visibly driven by vote bank considerations and a prescriptive outlook. We therefore reject it. The exercise itself is a mix of imputations, misrepresentations, selective usage of facts, reliance on biased sources and a one-sided projection of issues. This extends even to the depiction of our Constitutional provisions and duly enacted laws of India. It has selectively picked incidents to advance a preconceived narrative. Advertisement Revealing Indias new resolve to take the fight to the US when necessary, an Indian media report on the MEA rebuttal added pointedly: In 2023, India officially took up numerous cases in the US of hate crimes, racial attacks on Indian nationals and other minorities, vandalisation and targeting of places of worship, violence and mistreatment by law enforcement authorities as well as giving political space to advocates of extremism and terrorism abroad. Balancing Moscow and Washington What worries Washington most is the possible resumption of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral that has been suspended since the LAC standoff in Ladakh in 2020. Moscow is keen on the RIC becoming an annual summit between Putin, Xi Jinping and Modi. That is unlikely in the near future given the frozen relations between Beijing and New Delhi. Advertisement For Russia though, the RIC is another platform to show that most of the world outside the US-led Western alliance has not boycotted Moscow, a stated aim of Washington and London. By freezing $300 billion in Russian assets in Europe and the US and using the income from it to finance the Ukraine war, the West has set a precedent that in future could backfire on it. India is wary of being drawn too closely into the Russia-China dynamic. It is in particular annoyed with Moscow for pushing to expand BRICS to several countries, including Pakistan. BRICS has already given membership to five countries (Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the UAE, Ethiopia and Iran). Adding another ten or more countries, as Moscow wants, will dilute Indias own standing in BRICS of which it is a founding member. Moscows intent is to broaden every platform it is part of to counter the Wests attempt to isolate it. But this strategy is not in Indias national interest. As the putative third largest economy in the world by 2029, India is positioning itself to play the role of a balancing pivot between the US and China. Aligning too closely with either the US-led West or the China-Russia alliance is not in its long-term interest. By 2030, India will likely be a $7 trillion economy. Its per capita income in nominal terms will be $5,500. In Purchasing Power Parity (PPP) terms, per capita income will be $12,000. Not high, but well above levels India was stuck at for six decades after Independence. In Moscow, meanwhile, Modi will have an opportunity to get a first-hand account of the war in Ukraine. Despite the conflict, Russias economy is set to grow at over 3 per cent a year, outpacing every major European economy and a shade above even US GDP growth in 2024. India now buys around half its crude oil from Russia. Rupee-rouble trade is small but, despite setbacks, is growing. The move away from a US dollar-driven global economy is where Moscows and New Delhis interests converge. Modi declined to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) meeting in Kazakhstan last week, deputing Jaishankar instead, though Xi Jinping and Putin were present. The message of strategic autonomy was aimed at both the West and the Moscow-Beijing alliance. The writer is an editor, author and publisher. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views. Over the past two decades, the Global North has outsourced its carbon footprint, shifting pollution-intensive industries and waste to the Global South. This practice often manifests in carbon credits, where vast tracts of land in developing countries offset the emissions of industries in developed nations read more Indian small farmers stand at the cusp of a transformative opportunity to become carbon miners. By earning income through carbon credits for their sustainable practices, these farmers can significantly contribute to the global fight against climate change. With environmental management becoming a global priority, businesses, governments, and civil society organisations (CSOs) are embedding carbon management into their core strategies. This shift is driven by regulatory mandates like the European carbon tax (Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism), ambitious goals such as net-zero by 2050, and the urgent need to mitigate the adverse business impacts of climate change. Advertisement Atmospheric commons and the global carbon budget The earths atmosphere, a shared resource crucial for climate stability, has been disproportionately consumed by developed nations. The United States, with just over four per cent of the global population, has historically contributed around 25 per cent of cumulative carbon emissions. Similarly, the European Union, home to six per cent of the global population, accounts for roughly 22 per cent of historical emissions. In stark contrast, developing regions like India and Africa, representing over a third of the global population, have each contributed around three per cent of the global emissions historically. Over the past two decades, the Global North has outsourced its carbon footprint, shifting pollution-intensive industries and waste to the Global South. This practice often manifests in carbon credits, where vast tracts of land in developing countries offset the emissions of industries in developed nations. While Europe boasts a 27 per cent reduction in emissions, its actual consumption-based emissions have risen by 11 per cent since 1990, exposing a gap in their green legislation. The need for inclusive carbon markets is evident, especially for the millions of smallholders in the Global South, including India. To understand their impact, we must not just look at the opportunities but also address the significant challenges these farmers face daily. How it may Impact small farmers While carbon offsetting and insetting present opportunities, they also pose significant challenges: Advertisement Land displacement and loss of livelihoods: In countries like Indonesia, carbon offsetting projects have converted agricultural lands into forest plantations, displacing smallholders and disrupting their livelihoods. In India, similar issues arise when large-scale afforestation projects encroach upon agricultural lands, forcing farmers to leave their ancestral homes and livelihoods. Inequitable financial benefits: Financial rewards from carbon offsetting rarely reach smallholders. With most small farms in India being less than one hectare, the business case for agroforestry is weak. Middlemen and rapidly sprouting carbon companies often capture the lions share of the benefits, leaving farmers with scant returns. Many Indian farmers find themselves working as contract farmers for carbon developers, with little to show for their efforts. Administrative complexity: The bureaucratic hurdles of carbon offsetting schemes are daunting. Smallholders struggle with the intricate requirements and high costs of compliance and auditing, further marginalising them. In India, the complexity of these processes can be a significant barrier, preventing farmers from accessing the benefits of carbon markets. Potential market exclusion: Insetting demands costly changes in farming methods, which smallholders in India often cant afford. For example, small tea farmers in Assam might struggle to meet new corporate carbon standards, risking exclusion from supply chains. The added burdens of traceability and certification favour larger farms, threatening the economic stability and future of these smallholders in agriculture. Marginalisation of farmers in the carbon credit system: Expensive audit agencies and so-called experts establish complex rules for carbon standards, audits, and pricing, leaving farmers on the sidelines. This exclusion not only marginalises the very communities we strive to uplift but also jeopardises the integrity and inclusivity of sustainable development initiatives. Poor enabling environment: In India, income from carbon credits is not classified as agricultural income and is subject to a tax rate of 10 per cent under Section 115 BBG of the Income Tax Act. This differs from agricultural income, which is typically exempt from tax under Section 10(1). Additionally, transferring carbon credit dues from abroad adds complexity due to high transaction costs and the intricate process of receiving funds from outside India. Moreover, India increasingly aims to retain agricultural carbon credits to meet her Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), restricting the export of these credits. What India can do to help its farmers In the pursuit of inclusive markets, a multifaceted approach is essential. Here are some practical steps India can take: Implement transparent pricing mechanisms: India needs transparent pricing mechanisms that reflect the true value of carbon sequestration efforts and the costs incurred by farmers. This includes covering certification costs and providing financial incentives to make carbon farming viable and attractive. Introduce an enabling environment for carbon: Carbon produced by smallholders should be treated as agricultural income and receive a tax waiver under Section 10(1). Additionally, smallholder farmers may be given a waiver from the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) and allowed to sell their carbon to the highest bidder. Efficient governance for carbon verification and trade: The Government of India should establish a robust mechanism for efficient governance of carbon verification and trade to avoid a free-for-all scenario. Efficient governance would ensure transparency, credibility, and accountability in carbon markets, thus attracting more investments and fostering trust among stakeholders. Centralised governance can streamline processes, reduce transaction costs, and provide clear guidelines for small farmers and businesses. Simplify carbon measurement and verification: Streamlining carbon measurement and verification processes can make them more accessible and affordable for farmers. Simplified methodologies that reduce administrative burdens and costs can encourage broader participation and compliance. Develop farmer-led standards: Carbon standards should incorporate traditional practices and knowledge from farmers themselves. This ensures that the standards are relevant and practical, reflecting the realities of smallholder farming. Address the price paradox: The current system, which pays high prices for carbon credits while squeezing small farmers on commodity prices, creates a paradox that undermines sustainability. Ensuring that farmers receive a living income or living wage supports the long-term viability of agricultural practices. Foster collaboration and capacity building: Collaboration between governments, businesses, CSOs, and smallholder farmers is essential for building an inclusive carbon market. Training and capacity-building programmes can help farmers understand and engage with carbon markets. Climate and farmers: A win for both environment and livelihoods The integration of carbon management into sustainability strategies offers a unique opportunity to empower smallholder farmers and promote a more inclusive and equitable system. By implementing transparent pricing mechanisms, promoting farmer participation, simplifying measurement processes, developing farmer-led standards, establishing direct benefit-sharing mechanisms, addressing the price paradox, and fostering collaboration, India can create a supportive framework that benefits both the environment and smallholder livelihoods. As India moves towards a sustainable future, recognising the vital role that smallholders play in this journey is crucial. By co-creating solutions that empower farmers and promote inclusivity, we can turn the challenge of carbon reduction into an opportunity for sustainable development. Advertisement Dr Shatadru Chattopadhayay is the managing director of Solidaridad Asia and works with farming communities for sustainable development in agriculture. The views expressed are the authors own. As per Democratic Party rules, and as Biden himself mentioned, he is technically the partys nominee. However, there is a purely theoretical chance that Democrats can choose another candidate at their four-day national convention that begins on August 19 read more Following the debate against his rival Donald Trump, talk of replacing US President Joe Biden as the Democrat nominee for the upcoming elections has emerged. File image/Reuters Half of the United Statesthe liberal halfis in a state of panic. A very aggressive panic, as Tom King, CNNs seniormost Washington DC correspondent, put it minutes after the first presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump on June 27 ended. More than 51 million viewers were exposed to what has been the worst-kept secret in the USthat their countrys president is going senile, if he is not already so. Advertisement But Biden, equally aggressively, refuses to accept this. A large section of Democrats are hankering for him to quit his re-election bid and give the stage over to someone else. Biden, though, is totally adamant. In an ABC News interview last Friday, he said that he would drop out only if the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get outta the race. He also said that hes running the world and has been doing so very well. Only a few hours before the interview, Biden had gotten his years mixed up at a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin. Well, let me say this as clearly as I canIm staying in the race, he told a cheering crowd. Ill beat Donald Trump. I will beat him again in 2020. A seconds pause, and then, And by the way, Im going to do it again in 2024. The liberals worst nightmare seems to be coming true. Donald Trump, who is a mixture of Voldemort and Thanos to them, will be moving back to the White House. The debate was a disaster for Biden. During those 90 minutes, Biden often looked befuddled. He mumbled and sometimes he was unable to complete sentences or was plain incoherent. At one point, after he answered a question about the massive illegal migration crisis the country is facing on its southern border, Trump shook his head and said: I dont really know what he said at the end of that sentence. I dont think he knows what he said either. Advertisement When the debate ended, while Trump strolled off the stage, Bidens wife Jill held him by the hand and gently guided him out. For at least a year now, every opinion poll has found that a high percentage of Americans think that Biden does not have the cognitive abilities any more to be an effective president and that he should not run one more time. A Wall Street Journal poll done right after the debate found that 80 per cent of voters now think so. Biden, who will turn 82 a fortnight after the election on November 5, is already the oldest US president ever. If re-elected, he will be 86 by the time he remits office. Since moving into the White House in January 2021, Biden has tripped on staircases several times, shaken hands with invisible entities, lost his train of thought on many occasions, had clear memory lapseslike saying that Francois Mitterrand, who died in 1996, was still the president of France, and even spoken gibberishhe said something that sounded like cumalidefasredsulc to describe the benefits of his debt forgiveness plan. Last year, at a press conference in Vietnam, he started speaking so incoherently that his staff ushered him off the stage mid-sentence. Advertisement Trump is 78, but does not show his age. He remains energetic and as physically belligerent as ever. The Department of Justice appointed attorney Robert Hur to investigate whether Biden had illegally stored classified documents from his days as vice-president in the Barack Obama administration in his home after his tenure was over. The transcripts of Hurs interviews reveal that Biden couldnt remember the year when his beloved son Beau died, and even the years2009-2017when he was vice-president. In his report, Hur wrote that Biden was an elderly man with a poor memory, so though he had committed a crime, criminal charges should not be filed against him. In other wordslet the poor man be, he doesnt know what he is doing. But this poor man holds the most powerful job in the known universe. Advertisement That Biden has been getting too old for the task has been common knowledge. There are dozens of videos on social media of him doing or saying something silly or inexplicable, but the White House has consistently maintained that the president was hale and hearty in body and mind. While a backbencher school child could see that this was not true, mainstream liberal US media, led by the New York Times, Washington Post, CNN and MSNBC, have fervently toed the official line, terming all of it Republican Party propaganda and Trumpist smear campaigns. Top NYT columnists like Nobel laureate Paul Krugman and multiple-award-winning journalist Thomas Friedman have repeatedly written, as recently as a few months ago, that Bidens mind was sharp as a razor. Advertisement Its quite entertaining to see how all these hallowed media outlets made a U-turn within hours of the presidential debate ending. NYT and Washington Post are now appealing to Biden every day to retire. NYT has suddenly discovered that Mr. Biden is not the same today as he was even when he took office three and a half years ago. The keyword here is even. Perhaps inadvertently, the writers are acknowledging that Bidens brain was already diminished when he took oath as president. Anonymous Biden aides have admitted to the paper that the decline had accelerated lately. So everyone near him knew for a long time that the presidents brain was fading. Both Krugman and Friedman are asking Biden to drop out. The truth is that the Democratic Party and influential legacy media have been lying consistently and have colluded in a massive three-and-a-half-year cover-up that could have endangered the world. Maybe it already has. All because they are morbidly afraid of Trump returning to the White House. So what happens now? As per Democratic Party rules, and as Biden mentioned in his ABC News interview, he is technically already the partys nominee. There is a purely theoretical chance that Democrats can choose another candidate at their four-day national convention that begins on August 19, where the partys presidential candidate will be formally anointed. But that leaves just two and a half months for the new anointee for the White House campaign. The best solution that frantic Democrats are suggesting is that Biden resign the presidency. Kamala Harris becomes president and automatically the Democrat candidate. Harris is the most unpopular US vice-president in the entire era of opinion polls, but from the Democrats point of view, she has national name and face recall, which none of the other potential nominees have. Plus she is a woman and a Black. And she aint senile. But Trump will possibly crush Harris, who ran a spectacularly bungled-up campaign in 2020 for the Democratic Party nomination for presidential candidate. As political scientist Charles Lipson has written in The Spectator, When it comes to keeping Biden or replacing him, they are damned if they can, damned if they do, and damned if they dont. And while Democrats try desperately to figure out a solution to this trilemma, Trump would be laughing his head off. As would Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin. The author is former managing editor of Outlook, former editor of The Financial Express, and founding editor of Outlook Money, Open, and Swarajya magazines. He has authored books such as The IITians: The Story of an Extraordinary Indian Institution and How its Alumni Are Reshaping the World, Fallen Angel: The Making and Unmaking of Rajat Gupta, and The Last War. The views expressed in his column are personal, and do not reflect those of Firstpost. You can follow Sandipan Deb on Twitter @sandipanthedeb By investing in these GPUs, the Indian government aims to boost the computational capabilities available to startups and other enterprises involved in AI research and development read more The Government of India (GoI) is gearing up to invest around 5,000 crore from the total 10,372 crore allocated for the India AI Mission, into GPUs, with speculations coming up that suggest a major bulk of this fund will go to NVIDIA. This significant portion of the funding from India AI mission will be used to procure advanced Graphics Processing Units (GPUs) and provide subsidized compute capacity to Indian startups, as revealed by a senior official from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) during the Global IndiaAI Summit held in New Delhi. Advertisement GPUs are highly specialized chips that excel at accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning tasks by enabling faster data processing. These chips, produced by leading companies such as Nvidia, Intel, and AMD, are critical components in building powerful and efficient AI systems. By investing in these GPUs, the Indian government aims to boost the computational capabilities available to startups and other enterprises involved in AI research and development. Abhishek Singh, the Additional Secretary of MeitY, explained that the government has earmarked nearly 5,000 crore to acquire over 10,000 GPUs. This initiative is part of the broader mission to enhance Indias AI infrastructure. He noted that the government is in the process of issuing tenders for these procurements, but emphasized that the approach would not involve directly purchasing and managing the GPUs. Instead, the government seeks to encourage private sector investment and will subsidize part of the cost of accessing these compute resources. Singh elaborated that the aim is not to build a government-owned, publicly-run infrastructure but rather to support private investments while making computing capacity more affordable. This subsidy will lower the costs for those who need computational power, such as startups developing AI models, conducting research, or working on complex algorithms. By doing so, the government hopes to reduce the financial burden currently faced by these innovators and researchers. Advertisement One of the key aspects of this approach is allowing the end users to decide which GPUs best meet their specific needs. Whether a startup requires the H100, Gaudi 2, or any other specific model, the choice will be theirs. The government will not impose decisions on which GPUs to use, recognising that startups and other enterprises are best positioned to determine the most suitable infrastructure for their AI projects. This user-centric procurement model ensures flexibility and responsiveness to the varied needs of the AI community in India. To prevent potential misuse of subsidised compute resources, such as the trading of vouchers, the government plans to implement checks and balances. Advertisement Singh stressed the importance of ensuring that the subsidies are used appropriately and reach those genuinely in need of computational power for AI development. This safeguard is crucial to maintaining the integrity and effectiveness of the subsidy program. Earlier, MeitY Secretary S Krishnan mentioned that to expedite and broaden the availability of GPU resources across the country, the government is considering mechanisms like viability gap funding or a voucher-based system. The Government of Indias substantial investment in GPUs under the India AI Mission is a strategic move to bolster the nations AI capabilities. By making powerful computing resources more accessible and affordable, this initiative aims to foster innovation, support startups, and drive significant advancements in the AI sector. Advertisement The emphasis on user choice and prevention of misuse ensures that the benefits of this investment reach the right hands, ultimately contributing to Indias growth as a global AI powerhouse. The crew lived and worked in a 1,700 square-foot (157 square meters) 3D-printed habitat, simulating life on Mars. Their mission was part of NASAs Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) project read more The crew of a NASA mission to Mars recently emerged from their simulated yearlong voyage, which took place entirely on Earth. Four volunteers, Kelly Haston, Anca Selariu, Ross Brockwell, and Nathan Jones, spent over 12 months inside NASAs first simulated Mars habitat at Johnson Space Center in Houston. They left the artificial environment on Saturday around 5 p.m. Haston, the mission commander, greeted everyone with a simple Hello, expressing her joy at finally being able to speak to others outside the simulation. Jones, the missions medical officer, remarked that their 378 days in confinement had passed quickly. Advertisement The crew lived and worked in a 1,700 square-foot (157 square meters) 3D-printed habitat, simulating life on Mars. Their mission was part of NASAs Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog (CHAPEA) project. They focused on tasks such as simulated spacewalks, called Marswalks, growing and harvesting vegetables and maintaining their habitat and equipment. The simulation included challenges that a real Mars mission would face, such as limited resources, isolation, and communication delays of up to 22 minutes with Earth. The aim was to prepare for future Mars missions by studying how these conditions affected the crews health and performance. Steve Koerner, deputy director of Johnson Space Center, emphasized the importance of the first crews work on nutrition and its impact on performance. He called the research crucial science for preparing humans for Mars exploration. The crew was on a strict meal plan, separated from their families, and under constant observation. NASA has planned two more CHAPEA missions to continue gathering data on physical and behavioural health and performance through similar simulations. The four volunteers, greeted by Kjell Lindgren, an astronaut and deputy director of flight operations, spoke about their gratitude for each other and those who supported them. They reflected on the lessons learned about a potential manned mission to Mars and sustainable living on Earth. Brockwell, the crews flight engineer, highlighted the importance of sustainability, emphasizing that resources must be used no faster than they can be replenished and waste must be managed efficiently. He expressed gratitude for the opportunity to live in the spirit of planetary exploration and adventure. Selariu, the science officer, addressed the question of why there is a fixation on Mars. She explained that the possibility of reaching Mars unites and brings out the best in humanity. She viewed the mission as a defining step for Earthlings towards a brighter future. Advertisement The CHAPEA project represents a significant step in Americas goal to lead global space exploration efforts, with Mars being the ultimate destination. (With inputs from agencies) Last month, the unions first strike involved a coordinated mass walkout using annual leave, which Samsung claimed had no effect on business operations. On Monday, Samsung again reported no production disruptions read more Samsungs share price saw a modest increase on Monday, reflecting investor confidence after last weeks preliminary earnings exceeded analyst expectations. The stock reached its highest point since January 2021, buoyed by a strong performance in the chip market. Image Credit: Reuters Samsung Electronics is dealing with a three-day strike that began on Monday as workers push for better pay. The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), representing about 30,000 membersnearly a quarter of the companys South Korean workforce is demanding not only higher wages but also an extra day for really dim off, leave for unionized workers and changes to the employee bonus system. Despite the strike, analysts believe that the impact on production at the worlds largest memory chipmaker will be minimal. Advertisement The low participation rate and automated production processes are cited as reasons for this. However, the strike still highlights growing dissatisfaction among employees, particularly at a time when the chip industry is focusing heavily on artificial intelligence. Last month, the unions first strike involved a coordinated mass walkout using annual leave, which Samsung claimed had no effect on business operations. On Monday, Samsung again reported no production disruptions. This time, the union announced that 6,540 workers would participate in the strike, primarily those at manufacturing sites and involved in product development. They noted that the strike includes workers responsible for monitoring automated production lines and equipment, suggesting that operations could be impacted. EUnion president Son Woo-mok countered media reports of low participation, explaining that the union, which is only five years old, has not had sufficient time to fully educate its members about the issues. He believes the participation rate is reasonable for such a young union. Vice president Lee Hyun-kuk warned that further strikes could occur if Samsung does not meet the unions demands. The current proposals from Samsung offer flexibility in pay and leave conditions but fall short of the unions expectations for increased pay and leave. Additionally, the union is calling for a more equitable bonus system. Advertisement They pointed out that while executive bonuses are based on personal performance goals, rank-and-file workers bonuses are calculated by deducting the cost of capital from operating profit. An engineer named Park Jun-ha, who joined Samsung in January, expressed disappointment with the companys opaque bonus scheme, stating that he no longer feels proud to work there. The unions influence has grown since Samsung committed in 2020 to stop discouraging organized labour. This rising voice within the company comes as Samsung faces stiff competition in the chip market, especially for those used in AI applications. Despite these challenges, Samsung reported a significant increase in second-quarter operating profit, thanks to rebounding chip prices driven by the AI boom. Advertisement Samsungs share price saw a modest increase on Monday, reflecting investor confidence after last weeks preliminary earnings exceeded analyst expectations. The stock reached its highest point since January 2021, buoyed by a strong performance in the chip market. China started an 11-day joint military exercise with Belarus on Monday on the border with Poland and not far from Ukraine borders. Is China giving a message to the West? read more Is the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war entering a new phase? This question has become significant in the view of fast-paced developments. China has sent a group of army personnel to Belarus for joint military training on Monday. Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban met China President Xi Jinping in Beijing on his Peace Mission 3.0, following his surprise visits to Russia and Kyiv soon after his country took over the presidency of the European Union. Advertisement Against this backdrop, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy visits Warsaw to meet Polands leadership, with Prime Minister Donald Tusk receiving him at the airport. And the site where Chinese and Belarussian soldiers are conducting their joint military training is on the Poland border, not far from the Ukrainian border. The Belarus angle Belarus has been a close ally of Russia, to the extent that it has allowed its borders to be used by Russian forces to supply war essentials to support the troops that invaded Ukraine in February 2022. Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko has not opposed Russia President Vladimir Putins interpretation of the Rus nation when he includes Belarus in it. It is the same logic that Putin applied when he ordered his forces to invade Ukraine. Putin strongly felt that Zelenskyy was obliterating the Rus nation heritage in Ukraine to align it more with the West. Belarus has supported Russias invasion of Ukraine but without committing its own troops to the war. Back in 2022, when Russian forces launched the all-out invasion of Ukraine, they sent troops across the Belarus borders but suffered reverses near Kyiv and were forced to halt and later pull back. Lukashenkos allegiance toward Putin and Russia saw his country becoming a member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation at the recently held summit at Kazakhstans Astana the meeting which India Prime Minister Narendra Modi skipped earlier this month. Belarus has long been considered as a ground for launching more offensive against Ukraine or other Nato members if the West decides to get involved in the ongoing war more directly. Belarus has concretised its equation with Putins strongest ally China with the fresh move. Advertisement The Poland angle The choice of the site Brest for the joint military training is also curious. It is located on the Poland border. And it is not far from the Ukraine border. Officially, it is an anti-terror training, code-named Eagle Assault. But the military exercise comes amid a number of military and defence-related developments. Poland, a Nato member, has been vocal about its support to Ukraine. Its support to Ukraine turned a leaf on the first anniversary of Russias invasion of Ukraine last February, when Polands then-Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki paid a surprise visit to Kyiv. Photographs in the press showed Morawiecky standing next to Zelenskyy in a khaki jacket to match the Ukrainian presidents wartime style. The Polish prime minister brought with him the first delivery of Leopard tanks, a solidarity gesture worthy of a good neighbour. Advertisement However, Poland has also maintained friendly relations with China, with its President Andrzej Duda visiting the country to hold talks with Xi last month. The meeting was a rare occasion when the top leader of a Nato-member nation visited the country that supported Russia in its offensive against Ukraine. The military exercise also comes when the Nato has upped its supplies to Ukraine and member-countries are holding a summit in the US to celebrate the trans-Atlantic military groupings 75 years of formation. The Nato members are likely to commit more to extend military aid to Ukraine, whose Zelensky will be attending the meeting. Advertisement What Eagle Assault means to China In its official statement, China said the exercise was part of an annual plan based on a mutual agreement between the two countries. The exercise aims to enhance the training and coordination capabilities of the participating troops and deepen practical cooperation between the ground forces of the two countries. Given Poland is Nato member and Duda only recently having said that he was happy that Xi called him a friend, China seems to be sending a message to the West that as the US-led bloc pressures Beijing in the South China Sea and over Taiwan, the new global power is also capable to reach their doorstep. That Russia has already sustained all the sanctions that the West could impose on the country despite its struggling economy, China is much better placed to manage its affairs in the situation of a direct clash with the West or a military grouping in Asia-Pacific. Advertisement For record, Quad a grouping of India, Australia, Japan and the US are scheduled to conduct a naval exercise in the South China Sea later this year. And in a first, Japan has signed a defence pact with an Asian country Philippines, burying the lingering issues of the Second World War. Both countries have had tense relationships with China over its military assertiveness in the region. Japan had signed similar pacts with the UK and Australia last year the two countries increasingly complaining about Chinas aggressive trade and military behaviours. Hungary under Orban has built substantial political and economic ties with China. The European nation hosts a number of Chinese electric vehicle battery facilities, and in December it announced that Chinese EV manufacturing giant BYD will open its first European EV production factory in the south of the country read more Chinese President Xi Jinping called on world powers to help Russia and Ukraine resume direct dialogue and negotiations during a meeting Monday with Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban, according to state broadcaster CCTV. Orban made a surprise visit to China after similar trips last week to Russia and Ukraine to discuss prospects for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine. Orban praised Chinas constructive and important initiatives for achieving peace and described Beijing as a stabilizing force amid global turbulence, according to CCTV. Advertisement Besides Russia and Ukraine, the end of the war depends on the decision of three world powers, the United States, the European Union and China, Orban wrote in a Facebook post showing him shaking hands with Xi. Orban met with Xi just two months ago when he hosted the Chinese leader in Hungary as part of a three-country European tour that also included stops in France and Serbia, which unlike the other two is not a member of the European Union or NATO. Hungary under Orban has built substantial political and economic ties with China. The European nation hosts a number of Chinese electric vehicle battery facilities, and in December it announced that Chinese EV manufacturing giant BYD will open its first European EV production factory in the south of the country. Peace mission 3.0 is how Orban captioned a picture posted early Monday on the X social media platform depicting him after having stepped off his plane in Beijing. He was being greeted by Chinese Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Hua Chunying and other officials. His previously unannounced visit comes on the heels of similar trips last week to Moscow and Kyiv, where he proposed that Ukraine consider agreeing to an immediate cease-fire with Russia. His visit to Moscow drew condemnation from Kyiv and European leaders. The number of countries that can talk to both warring sides is diminishing, Orban said. Hungary is slowly becoming the only country in Europe that can speak to everyone. Advertisement Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the EU at the start of July and Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested Orban had come to Moscow as a top representative of the European Council. Several top European officials dismissed that suggestion and said Orban had no mandate for anything beyond a discussion about bilateral relations. The Hungarian prime minister, widely seen as having the warmest relations with Putin among EU leaders, has routinely blocked, delayed or watered down EU efforts to assist Kyiv and impose sanctions on Moscow for its actions in Ukraine. He has long argued for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine but without outlining what that might mean for the countrys territorial integrity or future security. Advertisement That posture has frustrated Hungarys EU and NATO allies, who have denounced Russias actions as a breach of international law and a threat to the security of countries in Eastern Europe. The latest sentences were handed down as M23 rebels, which Kinshasha accuses Rwanda of backing, last week seized new terrain on the northern front of the conflict that has been ongoing for two-and-a-half years in the North Kivu province. A military court condemned 16 people to death in one case in the court in North Kivu read more A military court in DR Congos volatile east sentenced 22 soldiers to death on Monday for fleeing the enemy during fighting with M23 rebels, a lawyer told AFP. Sixteen soldiers were handed death sentences in one case in the North Kivu province, and six others in a separate case, just days after 25 soldiers received a similar judgement. The latest sentences were handed down as M23 rebels, which Kinshasha accuses Rwanda of backing, last week seized new terrain on the northern front of the conflict that has been ongoing for two-and-a-half years in the North Kivu province. Advertisement A military court condemned 16 people to death in one case in the court in North Kivu. The prosecution had asked on Saturday that 22 people in the case get the death penalty. But the court on Monday instead handed down 10-year prison sentences to three defendants and acquitted three others. In a separate case examined and judged on Monday in North Kivu, six of the seven defendants were sentenced to death and one person was acquitted, lawyer Jules Muvweko told AFP. The lawyer said he intends to appeal the sentencing. Last week, a court sentenced 25 soldiers to death during a one day trial for also fleeing the enemy, lawyers said. A total of 31 defendants, including 27 soldiers and four of their civilian wives, appeared before the Butembo garrison military court in North Kivu, near the front line. The other accused, including the four women, were acquitted for lack of evidence, Muvweko said. Since the end of last week, the M23 (March 23 movement) have taken several towns on the northern front of the conflict. Their gains include the strategic town of Kanyabayonga, which is seen as a gateway to the major commercial centres of Butembo and Beni. Advertisement The M23 have also seized vast swathes of territory over the past several years, almost completely encircling Goma, the provincial capital of North Kivu, killing scores of people and displacing hundreds of thousands more. There are already 2.8 million displaced people in North Kivu, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he looks forward to discussing strengthening the bonds between India and Austria as well as exploring new avenues of cooperation read more Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be in Vienna on Tuesday, July 9, where he will be spending two days during which he will call on the president of Austria and hold restricted, delegation-level talks as well as meet with Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Modis trip to Austria is historic as it marks the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 41 years after Indira Gandhi. PM Modis decision to include Austria in his first bilateral foreign trip in his third term in office speaks volumes about the importance he places on firming up diplomatic ties with the European nation. Advertisement During his visit, PM Modi said he looks forward to discussing strengthening the bonds between India and Austria as well as exploring new avenues of cooperation. PM Modi also said that his visit to Austria a historic occasion as it coincides with 75 years of establishing bilateral diplomatic relations between both the countries. The visit of Prime Minister Modi is expected to give a boost to India-Austria ties. Talking about bilateral ties, the India-Austria Startup Bridge was launched this year in February with an aim to facilitate collaboration and knowledge sharing between startups in both the countries. What is India-Austria Startup Bridge? Last week, Indias Foreign Secretary, Vinay Kwatra, said that the India-Austria Startup Bridge, launched during Austrian Minister for Labour and Economy Martin Martin Kocher visit to New Delhi, has already had a very promising start." The India-Austria Startup Bridge is a collaborative initiative focused at fostering connections and collaboration between the vibrant startup ecosystem of both the countries. Also Read: Modi to be first Indian PM to visit Vienna in 41 years: A look at India-Austria ties In June, about 20 Indian startups visited Vienna for a very big event, Foreign Secretary (West), Pavan Kapoor, informed last week. Advertisement The aim of the India-Austria Startup Bridge is to facilitate connections between startups in the two countries with investors, partners and mentors, it also aims to promote exchange of knowledge as well as best practices. This also aims to provide access to new markets to the startups from both India and Austria as well as encourage joint ventures and co-creation ventures between them. India and Austria have a start-up bridge aimed at innovation, especially tech innovation. What does Austria offer for tech ties between the two countries to blossom? How India-Austria Startup Bridge is benefitting the two countries According to Jajati Mohanty, CEO, Schiebel India, Austrian companies bring with them a plethora of knowledge related to high precision manufacturing and optimal integration which gets further enhanced through obsolescence management over its life cycle. This knowledge, if leveraged with the skills and the growing technological sector in India, would provide a rich harvest in advanced engineering products which can be suitably integrated into different industrial applications like space, aerospace, defence and cyber security, he said. Advertisement One good example here is the Camcopter S-100 rotary unmanned aerial system which Schiebel Aircraft GmbH is implementing along with VEM Technologies as its production partner and the complete process of licensed production followed by setting up of the MRO for life cycle management, Jajati Mohanty further said. In an interview with The Economic Times in February this year, Kocher said Austria has been increasingly targeting South and South East Asia with India topping the list to export its products including machinery, chemical and pharmaceutical products, automobile related items. Austria is focusing on South Asian and SE Asian markets in a big way since the Russian market has been closed following the war. India is of special interest to Austria given its complementarities in the field of economy. Austria also serves as the gateway to the German speaking markets of Europe, the Austrian minister was quoted as saying. Advertisement Kocher had highlighted that Austria, one of the richest countries in the European Union, is also becoming an attractive destination for the Indian Film industry to shoot movies as good incentives are being provided. India-Austria economic ties India and Austria economic ties have been robust with more than 30 to 40 large Austrian companies already established in India across various sectors such as infrastructure, tunnelling, and track laying. Also, both the countries have been keen on exploring collaboration in key areas including clean technologies and renewables, with Indian businesses looking to learn from Austrian expertise in these sectors. According to MEA, the bilateral trade between India and Russia has seen a sharp increase in 2023-24 and has since touched close to $65 billion, primarily due to strong energy cooperation between both the nations. With Indian exports of $4 billion and Indian imports being close to $60 billion, trade remains imbalanced, which is a matter of priority in our discussions with the Russian side. Advertisement With inputs from agencies Despite being mocked as political gambler and condemned for serving France to the far-right on a platter, President Emmanuel Macron had the last laugh as he checkmated the far-right in parliamentary elections and reduced it to a third-place finish read more In defiance of all the polls and punditry, the French parliamentary elections have thrown a hung parliament in whats one of the biggest upsets in recent times. As voting in the second round of elections closed on Sunday at around 8 pm local time, the exit polls flashed on French news channels and the projections on the screen took the breath away of people across the spectrum. In elections whose results were a foregone conclusion in favour of the far-right National Rally (RN) party from the onset, the party was driven to the third position. Advertisement Contrary to all predictions, the New Popular Front (NPF), a newly-formed alliance of leftist parties, came first and President Emmanuel Macrons centrist bloc came second. In the final results, of 577 seats, the NPF won 182 seats, the Macrons bloc won 163 seats, and the RN and partners were reduced to 143 seats. Macron has had the last laugh for now At a time when RN leader Marine Le Pen and her wonderkid Jordan Bardella were supposed to bask in glory, it was Macron who was the centre of attention mocked for a month as a political gambler and condemned for serving France to far-right on a platter. Instead of a gamble, as Firstpost reported on the election day, Macron had played a calculated move and killed several birds with one stone. Behind the far-rights loss is Macrons cunning scheming and realpolitik that few could grasp until the exit polls were released. By calling the elections, Macron checked the rise of far-right, insulated himself from the blowback of anti-incumbency at least until 2027, and avoided the most awkward cohabitation with the far-right that would have derailed his presidential agenda as well as the functioning of the French govt, says Swasti Rao, a scholar of Europe at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA). The belief that Macron gambled and lost the plot was rather simplistic and incorrect as he is a very seasoned leader. His decision seems to have several layers than merely being a losing bet it was first perceived as, said Rao in an interview with Firstpost before the results were out, adding that the call for snap elections was likely a calculated move. Advertisement In an interview after the results, Rao says that Macrons call was indeed a calculated move and is a sign of his ingenuity. Macron was convinced that you could neither stop the far-right nor check anti-incumbency. To address these concerns, he called the snap elections just after the European Parliaments election results. That gave him a moral high ground whereby he could claim that he was giving people their voice and also gave him a benefit of doubt over what his real intentions were. In October, Macrons centrist coalition would have lost the majority anyway as they were bound to lose the vote on the budget. By calling the elections, Macron also avoided that embarrassment, says Rao, an Associate Fellow at the Europe and Eurasia Center at MP-IDSA. Advertisement As far-right party National Rally has been stopped at the third spot, President Emmanuel Macron has had the last laugh for now (Photo: Reuters) Now, as a left-wing government will come up, the anti-incumbencys burden will be shared and a cohabitation a situation when the president and prime minister are from opposing parties with the far-right would be avoided. Macron, the maverick of French politics who refuses to go down quietly into the night, killed many birds with one stone. But how did this happen? Was the far-right not certain to win French elections? Were all the polls and pundits wrong? When Macrons centrists were staring at a rout and Le Pens RN was set to have a sweeping victory at the end of the first round of polling, what changed between the first and second rounds of elections that turned the tides? Well, Macron happened. Advertisement The 48 hours that turned the tides of French elections At the end of the first round of elections on June 30, the far-right RN won 33 per cent votes, the leftist bloc 28 per cent, and Macrons centrists around 21 per cent. In the French electoral system, a candidate needs to win over 50 per cent votes to win in the first round. If no one crosses the threshold, then all those with over 12.5 per cent votes go to the second round in which the one with most votes win. In the first round of elections, 39 of 76 seats that were won by candidates getting more than 50 per cent votes were won by the RN. The party was therefore set to win the elections. Advertisement Then, in the next 48 hours, the tide of the elections turned but few could grasp what was happening. At Firstpost, we noted what happened. During July 1-2, . The withdrawals were aimed to consolidate the non-right voters behind a single candidate on a seat and to prevent the break-up of non-right votes. In an article before the results were announced, we noted that this withdrawal was the first sign that Macrons calculated move was working well. To prevent the far-rights march to victory, the centrists and leftists had formed an ad-hoc alliance at Macrons prodding. The ad-hoc alliance with the singular objective to beat RN worked as was seen in the results yesterday. Jordan Bardella of the National Rally appeared set to be the next French Prime Minister until the election results (Photo of a poster of Bardella and party leader Marine Le Pen, Credit: AFP) Macron had counted on the fact that both the centrists and leftists detested the chaos of a right-wing government and had a common foe in National Rally. After it became clear after the first rounds results that they could not beat the far-right, they consolidated all the non-right and anti-right votes. Macron had regarded this tactical voting as a final resort from the beginning and this is what delivered yesterdays results, says Rao, the Europe expert at MP-IDSA. Macron saves his presidency & prevents political chaos Macron realised that he was going to enter into cohabitation anyway as his centrist bloc was going to lose the parliamentary majority anyway in October with the vote on budget. So, he decided to pre-empt the elections and take the initiative. Instead of entering into cohabitation with the far-right, Macron set in motion a plan as detailed above that made sure he would be entering into a cohabitation with the leftist alliance thats much more manageable. Contrary to the prevalent analysis on social media, the left-wing alliance NPF is not made up of all extremist parties. It comprises of four main parties and only two of them are far-left, while the other two, Socialists and Greens, are relatively moderate. The 4 party alliance is more moderate compared to the National Rally and it will therefore be much easier for Macron to enter into a cohabitation with them instead of the far-right, provided the PM is chosen from the moderate of its factions, says Rao. Had Macron entered into cohabitation with the RN, then the next three years would be full of chaos as the party has little substantial to offer except for proposed overspending and rhetoric on immigration. The tussle between the premiership and the presidency could have also derailed Macrons agenda. Now, with moderate NPF in the premiership, Macron can have a relatively smooth tenure. While commentators dismissed the call for snap elections as a gamble, President Macron was playing a calculated game (Photo: AP) If the prime minister and the president remain in deadlock, then its not just Macron who will face anti-incumbency. The leftist PM and his government will also face it. Moreover, if the tussle gets too bumpy, then the president holds an important lever. In the most extreme case, he can call dissolve the assembly and call for fresh elections. So, it is also in NPFs favour to figure out a working relationship with Macron so that both sides could go about doing their business without too much trouble, says Rao. In getting a leftist coalition into premiership, Macron sought to save the remainder three years of his presidency. Three years later, Le Pen is bound seek a run for presidency again but thats three years later another battle another day. For now, Macron has prevailed. What do France election results mean for Europe? As the far-right has not won premiership and Macron remains in the saddle, Europe has breathed a sigh of relief. There will be continuity in French support to Ukraine and leadership in strengthening the European security architecture. Until a far-left prime minister takes over, there will be continuity in relations with Europe, says Rao, adding that both far-left and far-right leaders are sceptical of the European Union (EU) and this why prospects of Bardellas premiership had made some in Europe anxious. Macron is the foremost supporter of Ukraine in Europe and champions Europes self-reliance in terms of security. As the EUs foremost military power and one of the pillars of the broader European security along with the United Kingdom, Germany, and Poland stability and a moderate leadership rooted in EUs values is what EU looks for in France. That looks settled at least for the next three years. In France, there is broad consensus among all parties on the broad support to Ukraine and acknowledgement of the dangers from Russia even though there are subtle differences, says Rao. Moreover, the security and foreign policies remain the domain of the French president, so Macron will have enough room to implement his European agenda if the PM is chosen from moderate left, which looks likely. Rao adds that its only the far-left and far-right leaders who incite concerns while moderate right and moderate left are more compatible with the broad republican outlook. Scepticism for Europe and NATO and the lack of a vision of lasting European security are features of extremists on both sides of the spectrum. Thats why whenever far-left or far-right surges anywhere, there is anxiety among EU leaders, says Rao. In a stunning break from expectations, the left-wing New Popular Front (NPF) emerged as the single-largest bloc in French elections and drove the far-right National Right (RN) to the third spot read more The French left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front (NPF), has said that it will name its prime ministerial candidate this week. In a stunning break from expectations, the NPF emerged as the single-largest bloc in the French parliamentary elections. The tactical voting arrangement between the NPF and the centrist bloc of President Emmanuel Macron relegated the far-right National Rally (RN) of Marine Le Pen, which was widely expected to storm to the first position with overwhelming majority, to the third position. Advertisement Olivier Faure, the leader of the NPF-constituent Socialist Party, said that the coalition will name the prime ministerial candidate this week, according to AFP. In the French elections, the NPF won the most 181 of 577 seats, followed by Macrons centrist bloc that won 160 seats, and the RN coming third with 143 seats, according to the Associated Press. As the elections have thrown a hung parliament, France is now under a political deadlock that may take weeks or months to be resolved. Either the different parties will strike a deal to run a coalition government or there may be a minority government as no single party of bloc has reached the majority-mark of 289. Following the European Parliamentary elections last month in which the far-right RN made impressive gains, Macron dissolved the parliament and called snap elections. In the polls, the RN was expected to comfortably won the elections and drive Macrons centric bloc to a distant third. The same was reflected in the first round of French election results on June 30. Then, after the first round of French elections, as it became clear that the RN would win, the centrists and leftists struck an ad-hoc alliance of sorts where more than 200 candidates withdrew with the idea of consolidating all non-right voters behind a single candidate. The bet appears to have worked as the NPF came first, the centrist bloc second, and the RN third. Advertisement PM Gabriel Attal from the outgoing government of Macrons centrist bloc has resigned and will continue as the caretaker prime minister until the new government takes over. While the Left-wing alliance New Popular Front (NFP) made a surprise comeback, the second phase of polling left France in a political limbo after none of the parties contesting the elections came close to winning an absolute majority read more The left-wing alliance in France made a major comeback after it won the most seats in the French parliament thwarting the hopes of the countrys far-right. In the second round of voting in the French snap polls, the New Popular Front (NFP) a cluster of several parties ranging from the far-left to the more moderate Socialists and the Ecologists won the most seats leaving Marine Le Pens National Rally (RN) Party down to crumble. Advertisement However, the results from the second phase of polling also left France in a political limbo after none of the parties contesting the elections came close to winning an absolute majority. Earlier this year, French President Emmanuel Macron dissolved the countrys National Assembly and called for a snap election after his party gave a deplorable performance in the European Union Parliamentary elections. After the second phase of voting, the NFP won 182 seats in the National Assembly, making it the largest group in the French parliament, Le Monde reported. However, it fell short of reaching the 289 figure to form a government with an absolute majority. Le Pen celebrated too early Meanwhile, Macrons centrist Ensemble alliance made a strong recovery in the second phase of voting and managed to win 163 seats. Despite leading in the first phase of the polls, Le Pens RN and its allies won 143 seats, making an abysmal fall in the second phase. The RNs strong performance in the first round stirred concerns that France might end up electing its first far-right government since the collaborationist Vichy regime of World War II. The fear was so severe that by Tuesday last week, more than 200 centrist and left-wing candidates withdrew from the second round, in a bid to avoid splitting the vote. As soon as the early projections started pouring in National Rallys PM hopeful Jordan Bardella condemned the results and said that France had been thrown into uncertainty and instability. Disappointed by the results, the 28-year-old slammed NFP and accused the alliance of dishonour. As from tomorrow, our deputies will take up their places to make sure we counter the migration policies and other policies of the far left. We will not enter into any kind of coalition or compromise, we will be on the side of the French people, he said. Advertisement PM Attal to tender resignation Following the results of the second phase of voting, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would submit his resignation to Macron on Monday morning. He said that he would step aside in accordance with his principles. While announcing his decision at a press conference, the French premier acknowledged that it was an unprecedented political situation that would plunge many people into uncertainty. Attal made it clear that he does not want to see the nation divided into three blocs. That is not France, it is not the politics of the French people. As from tomorrow, we have to work towards a new political deal which will involve all the French with clear values and guarantee a union and never yield to division. We must, in all this, preserve our humanity, guarantee our security, be by the side of those who believe in France, Attal averred. Advertisement While France managed to save itself from the clutches of the far-right, the results from the two phases left the country in a political deadlock. With inputs from agencies. Attal made the announcement at a press conference on Sunday, immediately after the results started tilting in favour of the NFP read more French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said that he would resign from the prime ministerial post after the elections. Reuters French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would tender his resignation to French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday after his coalition failed to win a majority in the parliament. The results for the second phase of snap elections came as a surprise after the Left-wing alliance called New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the largest party in the parliament. Attal made the announcement at a press conference on Sunday, immediately after the results started tilting in favour of the NFP. Keeping the upcoming 2024 Paris Olympics in mind, the French premier noted that he will be ready to remain in office if his resignation is rejected, as long as duty requires, Le Monde reported. Advertisement Etre Premier ministre est l'honneur de ma vie. Le lien que nous avons tisse est ce que j'ai de plus precieux. Ce soir, la formation politique que j'ai representee dans cette campagne ne dispose pas d'une majorite. Fidele a la tradition republicaine et conformement a mes pic.twitter.com/DgcbNKoTLE Gabriel Attal (@GabrielAttal) July 7, 2024 Being prime minister is the honour of my life, he said. In keeping with republican tradition, I will tender my resignation to the president of the Republic tomorrow morning, the French prime minister furthered, adding that his alliance failed to form a majority in the French National Assembly. Start of a new era: Attal While announcing his exit, the 35-year-old French politician said that the results reflected a start of the new era. Tonight marks the start of a new era, Attal said in his speech, stressing that Frances destiny would more than ever be played out in Parliament. Meanwhile, Elysee Palace maintained that Macron will wait until the new Assemblee has been structured before taking the necessary decisions. This indicates to the prospects of the French leader rejecting Attals resignation and asking him to stay in office until the new prime minister is appointed. It was Macron who called for snap elections last month, after his alliances deplorable performance in the European Union Parliamentary elections. After the second phase of voting, the NFP won 182 seats in the National Assembly, making it the largest group in the French parliament_, Le Monde_ reported. However, it fell short of reaching the 289 figure to form a government with an absolute majority. Advertisement Meanwhile, Macrons centrist Ensemble alliance made a strong recovery in the second phase of voting and managed to win 163 seats. Despite leading in the first phase of the polls, Le Pens National Rally (RN) and its allies won 143 seats, making an abysmal fall in the second phase. With input from agencies. The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening its alliances from Canberra to Tokyo to counter Chinas growing military might and influence in the region. Chinese officials have accused the United States of trying to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO read more Japan's Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Philippine's Defence Minister Gilberto Teodoro shake hands after signing the reciprocal access agreement, at the Malacanang Palace in Manila, Philippines, July 8, 2024. REUTERS The Philippines and Japan signed a key defence pact on Monday that will allow the deployment of troops on each others territory, as they boost ties in the face of Chinas growing assertiveness. The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) was finalised in Manila, where Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa held talks with their Philippine counterparts Gilberto Teodoro and Enrique Manalo. The accord, which Tokyo and Manila began negotiating in November, provides the legal framework for Japan and the Philippines to send defence personnel to each others territory for training and other operations. Advertisement Teodoro and Kamikawa signed the agreement at the presidential palace. It will take effect once ratified by lawmakers in both countries. The signing was another milestone in our shared endeavour to ensure a rules-based international order, to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and particularly in our region, Teodoro told reporters. The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening its alliances from Canberra to Tokyo to counter Chinas growing military might and influence in the region. Chinese officials have accused the United States of trying to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO. The signing of the RAA comes as Chinas sabre-rattling towards Taiwan and over the South China Sea fuels fears of a potential conflict that could drag in the United States. There have been escalating confrontations at sea between Chinese and Philippine ships as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims to nearly all of the strategic South China Sea. The most serious happened on June 17 when Chinese coast guard personnel wielding knives, sticks and an axe surrounded and boarded three Philippine navy boats during a resupply mission to Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands. A Filipino sailor lost his thumb in the incident. Tokyo and Beijing are also at loggerheads over disputed islands, controlled by Japan, in the East China Sea. Advertisement Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said the Asia-Pacific region did not need military groups, let alone small circles that encourage a new Cold War and provoke confrontation. Japan invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II but the two countries have since grown closer due to trade and investment and, more recently, to counter a resurgent China. Japan is a key supplier of security equipment and technology to the Philippines, including patrol vessels and surveillance systems. Tokyos ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, flagged in a speech on Thursday significant developments in Japans defence equipment supplies to the Philippines. - Linchpin - Tokyo has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia in recent years. Advertisement Manila has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. The Philippines has been a key focus of US efforts to build an arc of alliances, owing to its position in the South China Sea and its proximity to Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Philippine support would be crucial for the United States in the event of any conflict. Leaders from Japan, the Philippines and the United States had their first trilateral summit in April aimed at boosting defence ties in Washington. It was held on the heels of four-way military drills that included Australia in the South China Sea, riling Beijing. Advertisement Beyond our bilateral relations, Japan is also keen to deepen trilateral and quadrilateral ties, such as Japan, the Philippines, United States or Japan, the Philippines, United States and Australia, Japans Kihara told reporters. Japan, wary about possible future changes in US policy in the region, was seeking to play a larger role in security, analysts said. The Japanese would like to impress upon the Americans that Japan is the linchpin of US security presence, military presence here in the region, and of course, the most reliable ally of the United States, said Renato Cruz De Castro, professor for international studies at De La Salle University in Manila. The defence pact with the Philippines is the first to be forged by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain last year read more Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, greets Philippines' President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., prior to their bilateral meeting at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo, Dec. 17, 2023. AP File Japan and the Philippines signed a key defense pact Monday allowing the deployment of Japanese forces for joint military exercises, including live-fire drills, to the Southeast Asian nation that came under brutal Japanese occupation in World War II but is now building an alliance with Tokyo as they face an increasingly assertive China. The Reciprocal Access Agreement, similarly allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, was signed by Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. It would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures, Philippine and Japanese officials said. Advertisement Kamikawa and Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara are in Manila to hold talks with their Philippine counterparts on ways to further deepen relations, the Philippine government said in a statement. The defense pact with the Philippines is the first to be forged by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain last year. Under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the Japanese government has taken steps to boost its security and defensive firepower, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from Japans postwar principle of focusing only on self-defense, amid threats from North Korea and Chinas growing assertiveness. Its doubling defense spending in a five-year period to 2027 in a move to bolster its military power and make Japan the worlds third-biggest military spender after the United States and China. Many of Japans Asian neighbors, including the Philippines, came under Japanese aggression until its defeat in World War II and Japans efforts to bolster its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue. Japan and the Philippines, however, have steadily deepened defense and security ties. Kishidas moves dovetail with Marcos effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. The busy sea passage is a key global trade route which has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. Advertisement The United States has also been strengthening an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including in any future confrontation over Taiwan, and reassure its Asian allies. Japan and the Philippines are treaty allies of the U.S. and their leaders held three-way talks in April at the White House, where President Biden renewed Washingtons ironclad commitment to defend Japan and the Philippines. Japan has had a longstanding territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea. Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships, meanwhile, have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. Advertisement In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an axe aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic faceoff in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Philippines strongly protested the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded $1 million for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Japan and the United States were among the first to express alarm over the Chinese actions and call on Beijing to abide by international laws. Washington renewed its warning that it is obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would discuss with NATO leaders the distinct threat North Korea poses to Europe by deepening military ties with Russia, warning that Moscow must choose between the two Koreas where its true interests lie read more South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol at a recent meeting in the Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, on 27 May 2024. Reuters File South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would discuss with NATO leaders the distinct threat North Korea poses to Europe by deepening military ties with Russia, warning that Moscow must choose between the two Koreas where its true interests lie. It depends entirely on Russia where it wants to take future ties with South Korea, Yoon said, adding that Seoul would make a decision on weapons support for Ukraine based on how a new military pact between Moscow and Pyongyang plays out. Advertisement Military co-operation between Russia and North Korea poses a distinct threat and grave challenge to the peace and security on the Korean peninsula and in Europe, Yoon told Reuters. The remarks came in a written response to Reuters questions ahead of a visit to Washington for a NATO summit. Yoon, who became the first South Korean leader to attend a NATO summit in 2022, is set to depart on Monday for the Washington event, his third time attending such a meeting. Together with Australia, Japan and New Zealand, South Korea makes up the four Asia-Pacific partners joining in the talks on 10 and 11 July. Relations between South Korea and Russia have soured as Moscow receives shipments of ballistic missiles and artillery from Pyongyang for its war against Ukraine. Both Russia and North Korea deny such deals. Russia has called South Korea the most friendly among unfriendly countries, with President Vladimir Putin saying it would be making a big mistake if it decided to supply arms to Ukraine. South Korea protested when Putin visited Pyongyang in June and signed a treaty with leader Kim Jong Un that covers mutual defence. Advertisement North Korea is clearly a menace to the international society, Yoon said in his comments. I hope that Russia will sensibly decide which side - the South or the North - is more important and necessary for its own interests. He added, The future of ROK-Russia relations depends entirely on Russias actions, referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea. Yoon has pushed for greater security ties with Europe and other US allies to deter North Koreas nuclear and missile threats. At the same time, he has looked to boost the Souths role in global security, on issues such as Russias invasion of Ukraine and rivalry between China and the United States. Advertisement Arms for Ukraine When asked if he would authorise weapons for Ukraine, Yoon said South Korea would look at the level and substance of military co-operation between Russia and North Korea. That would include areas such as arms dealing, transfers of military technology and assistance with strategic materials, he added. Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council which approved sanctions resolutions until 2017, has engaged in an illegal military partnership with North Korea, Yoon said, adding that it was troubling to consider what help it might be giving Pyongyang in return. There will be a clear negative impact on South Koreas ties with Russia if it continues to violate UN resolutions, he added. Advertisement Before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it was South Koreas fifth-largest export destination, while Russia was a key supplier of energy to South Korea, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies says. South Korea will take its partnership with NATO to a new level in September, through a cyber defence exercise in which it plans to host NATO member states, organised by the countrys intelligence agency, Yoon said. Leaders are gathering in Washington for the summit of the the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that will also celebrate the 75th anniversary of the military alliance. Yoon declined to comment on possible changes to US policies if Donald Trump becomes president a second time in November elections, but pointed to unwavering bipartisan support for the US-South Korea alliance over the past 70 years. Advertisement The alliance will stay strong going forward, Yoon added. Trumps allies are assuring officials in Japan and South Korea he will support a Biden-era effort to deepen three-way ties aimed at countering China and North Korea, Reuters has reported. Are there many such countries around the world? Not many. I believe the U.S., and China are such countries. And the EU, not one country, but the whole EU. This could really be an intermediary mission, Zelenskiy told a news conference during a visit to neighbouring Poland read more President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban could not mediate between Russia and Ukraine to end the 28-month war, a task he said could only be undertaken by world powers such as China, the U.S. or EU. Orban visited Kyiv and Moscow for talks last week and met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday, describing his unexpected trip to Beijing as the third-leg of a peace mission. As world leaders prepare to head to a NATO summit which starts on Tuesday in Washington, Ukraines Zelenskiy said only powerful economies or countries with armed forces much stronger than Russias could manage the task of mediation. Advertisement Are there many such countries around the world? Not many. I believe the U.S., and China are such countries. And the EU, not one country, but the whole EU. This could really be an intermediary mission, Zelenskiy told a news conference during a visit to neighbouring Poland. Zelenskiy said Orbans negotiations with Putin, which provoked a rebuke within the European Union, had not been coordinated with Kyiv. Even if (Putin) meets with a particular state, this does not mean he wants to end the war, he said. Kyiv remains open to proposals from other countries on how to shape the path to peace, but they should align with the Ukrainian vision, in particular a 10-point peace plan, Zelenskiy added. Ukraine hopes to hold a second international summit to consider its proposals for peace later this year. China, which has close ties to Moscow, did not attend the first meeting in June. It has been promoting a six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil in May, proposing an international peace conference at a proper time and calling for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia. As the highest free-standing building in Russia, it is a renowned symbol of Russian broadcasting, as well as a famous landmark and a must-visit destination in Moscow. Earlier, Modi was received at the airport by Russias First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. He was accorded a ceremonial welcome read more One of Moscows landmarks, the Ostankino TV tower, was lit up in the colours of the flags of India and Russia on Monday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi began a two-day high-profile visit to the Russian capital to hold summit talks with President Vladimir Putin. Rising to 1,771 feet (540m), the Ostankino TV Tower is the worlds 4th tallest and Europes highest of its kind. The tower was erected in 1967 by the well-known Soviet engineer, Nikolai Nikitin. Advertisement As the highest free-standing building in Russia, it is a renowned symbol of Russian broadcasting, as well as a famous landmark and a must-visit destination in Moscow. Ostankino TV Tower in Moscow today in honour of Prime Minister @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/9osYXlyUIK Naveen Kapoor (@IamNaveenKapoor) July 8, 2024 Earlier, Modi was received at the airport by Russias First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. He was accorded a ceremonial welcome. The Russian first deputy minister also accompanied the Indian prime minister to his hotel from the airport in the same car, officials said. Modi was also accorded a grand welcome by the Indian community on his arrival to the Russian capital. A memorable welcome in Moscow! I thank the Indian community for their affection, the prime minister posted on X along with a series of photographs. Advertisement It is Modis first trip to Russia since 2019, the first after the start of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 and the first in Modis third term as the prime minister. Lahore, the capital of Pakistans Punjab province, has been the fourth most-polluted city in the world, as per a report read more Pakistan has been ranked as the second most-polluted country (Photo: AP) After Lahore, the capital of Pakistans Punjab province, witnessed record pollution levels, the provincial government has decided to treat smog as a year-around epidemic. This is a change from the government current position under which smog was being treated as a seasonal issue, according to The Dawn newspaper. Smog is a mixture of smoke and fog and is often linked to winters and industrial pollution or farm fires. Most of the smog is whats called photochemical smog, which is produced when sunlight reacts with nitrogen oxides and at least one volatile organic compound (VOC) in the atmosphere, according to National Geographic Encyclopaedia. Advertisement The encyclopaedia further said that nitrogen oxides come from vehicular emissions, coal power plants, and factory emissions, whereas VOCs are released from burning of fossil fuels, paints, and many cleaning solvents. The coming together of these two types of substances and reaction with sunlight causes smog. The decision comes after Pakistan was ranked the second-most polluted country and Lahore the fourth-most polluted city in the world, as per the paper. How Pakistans Punjab province plans to tackle smog? The Pakistans Punjab provincial government has chalked out a plan to tackle smog that involves government interventions, stricter enforcement of existing policies, and awareness campaigns for the public as well as the industry, as per The Dawn newspaper. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has said that the smog should not just be managed but prevented in the first place, according to the newspaper. The task to implement the plan is with the Punjab Environment Protection and Climate Change Department (EPCCD). Marriyum Aurangzeb, a senior minister in Maryams government, told the paper that the new strategy will enable all government departments to work together in the short and long term. The gravity of the situation calls for a multi-sectoral and immediate response. The environment protection department has been deliberating on viable solutions during the first hundred days of the Punjab government and has launched a preventive operation from July to September 2024, said Aurangzeb. Advertisement The strategy involves an indiscriminate crackdown on brick kiln owners who have not implemented Zigzag Technology, checking vehicular emissions, checking industrial emissions, and checking people burning garbage, rubber, or agricultural waste, reported the paper. Moreover, the paper reported that the government will encourage people to pool cars or use public transport to commute. The government will also address the issues of industrial pollutants by deploying a multi-sectoral approach involving the transport, agriculture, energy, education, industries, municipal, and health departments, according to the paper. EPCCD Secretary Raja Jahangir Anwar also touched upon the pollution coming from India into Pakistan. While cross-border smog contribution is a reality necessitating joint action, local compliance to environmental standards at the provincial level is our responsibility. The department has studied international practices, particularly from China and India. We have concluded that city-specific interventions focusing on greening, promoting clean energy, and controlling industrial emissions are necessary, said Anwar to The Dawn. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbans unannounced visit to China comes after his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday about the war in Ukraine read more Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday, state media reported, in a visit the European leader has branded as a Peace mission 3.0 after recent trips to Moscow and Kyiv. The unannounced visit comes a day before NATO is due to hold a summit to mark its 75th anniversary, with setbacks in Ukraine set to dominate discussions, and follows Orbans surprise trips to Russia and Ukraine in the past week. Advertisement Orban, the friendliest EU leader towards Moscow, held talks with President Vladimir Putin on Friday about the war in Ukraine during a trip criticised by both Kyiv and the EU, which said it threatened to undermine the blocs stance on the conflict. Putin told Orban, that Ukraine must withdraw its troops from regions that Moscow has annexed if it wants peace. Hungary took over the European Unions rotating presidency at the start of July, and the EUs foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Orbans trip to Russia was purely a bilateral affair and he has not received any mandate from the EU Council to visit Moscow. In a short statement earlier, the Chinese foreign ministry said the Hungarian leader would meet Xi for in-depth communication on issues of mutual interest. Close to both Xi and the Kremlin, Orban has refused to send weapons to Kyiv, unlike his fellow EU leaders. China and Russias strategic partnership has grown closer since the invasion of Ukraine. Beijing presents itself as a neutral party in the war and says it is not sending lethal assistance to either side, unlike the United States and other Western nations. It has however offered a critical lifeline to Russias isolated economy, with trade booming since the conflict began. Advertisement Orban was greeted at the airport by Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, according to a photo the nationalist leader posted on social media platform X. Major investment Xi visited Hungary in May this year, for the final leg of a European tour that also led him to France and Serbia. Following a meeting with Orban, Xi said Beijing placed great importance on its relations with the EU. Despite its small size, the Central European country of 9.6 million people has attracted a flood of major Chinese projects in recent years, mostly related to battery and electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing. The Hungarian government boasted about having around 15 billion euros ($16 billion) worth of ongoing projects originating from the Asian country. Advertisement Orban has been championing an Eastern opening foreign policy since his return to power in 2010, seeking closer economic ties to China, Russia and other Asian countries. Last October, the Hungarian premier was the sole EU leader to attend the summit for Xis flagship Belt and Road initiative in Beijing. In a rare gesture, Russias first Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov also accompanied Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car read more Prime Minister Narendra Modi received by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov upon arrival ar Moscow's Vnukovo-II International Airport on July 8, 2024. Source: X/@narendramodi Russia appears to be giving special treatment to Prime Minister Narendra Modi soon after he landed in Moscow on Monday, July 8. Upon his arrival at the Vnukovo-II airport, PM Modi was received by Russias first Deputy Prime Minister (1st DPM), Denis Manturov, who is a senior to Deputy PM who received Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Russia. Also, in a rare gesture, Manturov also accompanied PM Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car. Advertisement PM Modi is on his first trip to Russia since it began invasion of Ukraine. #WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives at Hotel The Carlton in Moscow In a rare gesture, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Manturov accompanied PM Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car. PM Modi is on a two-day official visit to Russia. pic.twitter.com/r1ZQH2ykzV ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 Manturov, who has served as Russias industry minister, was promoted by President Vladimir Putin in May this year to a role of top deputy prime minister overseeing the defence sector. PM Modi will be in Moscow for two days before he leaves for Austria. Upon his arrival in Moscow, PM Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome soon after he arrived in Moscow. During his visit, PM Modi will co-chair the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit with Russian President Putin. He will also interact with the members of Indian Community in Moscow. Landed in Moscow Moments after touching down in Moscow, PM Modi posted pictures from the airport of him being received by Manturov and being accorded guard of honour. Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people, PM Modi posted on X. Advertisement Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people. pic.twitter.com/oUE1aC00EN Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Russia, Modis first bilateral foreign trip in third term Advertisement PM Modis decision to choose Russia in his first bilateral foreign trip in his third term in office speaks volumes about the importance he places on firming up diplomatic ties with the country. Also, the visit shows that the Indian Prime Minister has been treading a fine line between maintaining a longstanding friendship with Russia and courting closer Western security ties. PM Modi last visited Russia in 2019 to attend an economic summit in the Russian city of Vladivostok. He hosted Putin in Delhi in 2021, weeks ahead of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine. PM Modi and Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. Advertisement PM Modi gets a warm welcome #WATCH | Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets children and interacts with the members of the Indian diaspora gathered at The Carlton Hotel in Moscow PM Modi is on a two-day official visit to Russia. pic.twitter.com/5EqG1vVs6H ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 The Indian diaspora welcomed Prime Minister Modi at The Carlton Hotel in Moscow. The PM met and interacted with children and other Indians living in Russia who had congregated to welcome him. It (Annual Summit) is a way of taking stock of any relationshipone of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendouslyThere are issueslike the trade imbalance. At the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other, said Jaishankar read more Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Russia, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Monday said that India economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously and it will be a great opportunity for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin to directly talk to each other on several matters, including trade imbalances. It (Annual Summit) is a way of taking stock of any relationshipone of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendouslyThere are issueslike the trade imbalance. At the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other, said Jaishankar. Advertisement #WATCH | On PM Modi's visit to Russia, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar says, " ...There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are 2 countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. pic.twitter.com/kyImZnmm2h ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 Jaishankar said India and Russia did value the need for an annual summit but there was a bit of delay in organising it. " There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are two countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. Last year, when I went to Moscow, I carried a message from the PM that we are committed to the annual summit and we will do it soonerit is a regular recurrence. It is a way of taking stock of any relationship," said the external affairs minister. When asked about his recent meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov and whether he raised the issue of the Indians stranded in the Russia-Ukraine conflict zone with him, Jaishankar said the matter was discussed" very clearly and strongly". Several Indians have been pressed into services with Russian Army, only when they come back we will know the full circumstances. But, whatever the circumstances are, to us it is unacceptable that Indian citizens find themselves in the army of another country in a warzone, said Jaishankar. Advertisement He said that he told Lavrov that India seeks Russias cooperation and a much stronger follow-up in the matter and the Russian foreign minister appreciated the point. #WATCH | When asked if he raised the issue of Indians stranded in the Russia-Ukraine conflict zone, during his bilateral with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, EAM Dr S Jaishankar says, " ...Absolutely...very clearly and strongly... several Indians have been pressed into pic.twitter.com/2wJGZ90hNE ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 We have to find a way so that these people can return to India as quickly and effectively as possible. He (Lavrov) appreciated the point The Foreign Ministry has been speaking to the Russian Defence Ministry in this regard. I urged him that we need a much stronger follow-upI have taken it up and I intend to continue taking it up until all our people there come back, added Jaishankar. Prime Minister Modi will begin his two-day trip to Russia today, departing from Delhi at 10.55 am. He will arrive at the Vnukovo-II International Airport at 5.20 pm later in the day. Advertisement It will be his first visit to the country since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, and will be the 22nd India-Russia summit that will review the entire range of multifaceted ties between the two countries. During their meeting, both leaders will assess various facets of bilateral ties, encompassing defence, investment, energy cooperation, education, culture, and people-to-people exchanges over the next two days. Following his visit to Russia, PM Modi is slated to visit Austria on July 9. With inputs from agencies Prime Minister Narendra Modi begins his two-day (July 8 to 9) visit to Moscow. He is in Russia at the invitation of Vladimir Putin to hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. The Russian President will also be hosting a lunch for the Indian Prime Minister read more Prime Minister Narendra Modi has departed for Moscow on Monday, July 8, where he will be meeting his friend Russian President Vladimir Putin in his own country for the first time since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The Indian PM last visited Russia in 2019. The Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, PM Modi said in a departure statement before embarking for Russia on Monday morning. Advertisement Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia, PM Modi further said. Why PM Modi is visiting Russia Prime Minister Modis trip to Russia is at the invitation of Putin to hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. The annual summit between India and Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two nations. Apart from the summit, PM Modi and Putin will review the entire range of multifaceted relations between India and Russia and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest during their meeting. The Russian President will also be hosting a lunch for PM Modi and delegations. PM Modi will also be visiting an exhibition centre in the VDNKH Complex, Rosatom Pavilion. Advertisement Prime Minister Modi will also be addressing a gathering of the Indian diaspora in Russia. In an announcement, the Kremlin said PM Modis visit mentions the nature of the traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, further development of which the two leaders plan to discuss. Other topics of the conversation include current issues of international and regional agenda." Modi-Putin will have informal talks In an interview with Russias state-run VGTRK television channel, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the program of PM Modi in Moscow will be extensive and both the leaders will be able to have informal talks. Obviously, the agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as well, Peskov said, adding that the Kremlin is expecting a very important and full-fledged visit, which is so crucial for Russian-Indian relations." Advertisement Peskov stated that the Russia-India relations are at the level of strategic partnership and went on to say that there would be both one-on-one talks in the Kremlin and those involving delegations. West closely & jealously watching Modis Russia visit Peskov also alleged that the West is closely and jealously watching PM Modis Russia visit on July 8 and 9. They are jealous - that means they are closely monitoring it. Their close monitoring means they attach great importance to it. And they are not mistaken, and there is something to attach great importance to, TASS quoted Peskov as saying. When Modi-Putin met last The last time PM Modi met in person with Putin was in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization bloc. Advertisement When India-Russia Annual Summit was held last The leaders of India and Russia have held annual summits since 2000 but the last in-person meeting was held in 2021. The 21st bilateral Summit was held in December 2021 when Putin visited New Delhi. The meeting had been due in Moscow in 2022 when Russia invaded Ukraine, but it did not take place. Also, it did not take place in 2023 due to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and due to PM Modis diplomatic engagements and Indias G20 Presidency. How many times Modi and Putin have met? According to the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), over the past 10 years, PM Modi and Putin have met 16 times. Advertisement PM @narendramodi will embark on a visit to Russia & Austria on July 08-10, 2024. Watch highlights of s partnership with & . pic.twitter.com/sUGUERnijX Randhir Jaiswal (@MEAIndia) July 7, 2024 India-Russia trade The bilateral trade between India and Russia in FY 2023-24 stood at a record high of over $65.70 billion. It is also worth mentioning that Russia has consistently expressed support for Indias candidature for a permanent seat at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). With inputs from agencies As the Bangladesh Biman special flight carrying Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina departs from Dhaka at 11 am (Bangladesh time) and lands at Beijing International Airport at 6 pm (local time), all eyes will be on her until she leaves China on July 11 and returns to Dhaka at 2 pm. While bilateral visits are common between neighbouring countries, any leaders visit to China often raises speculations and concerns. Prime Minister Hasinas visit is no exception, particularly because it is of significant interest to India. The developments over these four days could potentially reshape Indias relationships with both China and Bangladesh. This marks Prime Minister Hasinas fifth visit to China and her first since securing a fourth consecutive term in office. India will closely monitor what the elevation of Bangladesh-China bilateral relations to a new level means for its own strategic interests. Advertisement Whats on the agenda At least 20 memorandums of understanding are expected to be signed, covering areas such as economic and banking, trade and investment, digital economy, infrastructure development, disaster management, construction of the sixth and ninth Bangladesh-China friendship bridges, agricultural exports, and enhancing people-to-people connectivity. According to The Dhaka Tribune, Bangladesh Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud, at a curtain-raiser briefing, said that China is committed to being a key partner in Bangladeshs infrastructure and economic development. He expressed hope that the visit would be fruitful, enhancing strategic relations. Mahmud highlighted Bangladeshs intention to seek Chinas assistance in investment, trade, financial aid, and the repatriation of Rohingyas, while continuing to support China in the global arena. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning announced that China is ready to work with Bangladesh to uphold the spirit of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, deepen political mutual trust, align development strategies, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and elevate bilateral relations. Currently, there are no loan agreements to be signed, although the topic may arise during discussions. Bangladesh is aware of the risks associated with Chinese loans. Speculations had suggested that Bangladesh might seek substantial loans to bolster its dwindling foreign reserves, with discussions centred on a $5 billion loan in Yuan for trade facilitation, but terms and conditions have yet to be agreed upon. Advertisement Regarding the Teesta river project, Foreign Minister Mahmud assured that Indias concerns would be taken into account if China raises the issue. He emphasised that India had proposed joint river management and planned to send a technical team to collaborate with Bangladeshs team. China has also proposed involvement, but any discussion will consider Bangladeshs shared interests with India. Chinese Ambassador Yao Wen recently stated that Beijing respects Bangladeshs decision in this matter, potentially easing Indias worries. Moreover, Bangladesh is unlikely to join Chinas Global Development Initiative at this time. The outcomes of Prime Minister Hasinas meetings with President Xi Jinping, particularly the joint statements, will be closely scrutinised to gauge the future trajectory of Bangladesh-China relations. Advertisement India is watching Both China and Bangladesh are aware that India is closely monitoring Prime Minister Hasinas visit to China. Chinese government mouthpiece The Global Times noted that Indian media are highlighting the visit, which follows closely after Hasina attended Prime Minister Narendra Modis swearing-in ceremony on July 4. The Indian media have emphasised potential Chinese investments in Bangladesh under the Belt and Road Initiative, noting that Bangladesh is the second-largest recipient of Chinese investment after Pakistan. The Global Times accused Indian politicians and media of questioning Chinas intentions, asserting that the tangible benefits of Chinas BRI cooperation with Bangladesh and Pakistan speak for themselves. Advertisement Historically, China opposed the creation of Bangladesh in 1971 and used its UN Security Council veto to block its membership on several occasions. China recognised Bangladesh as an independent country on August 31, 1975, weeks after the assassination of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. During President Xis 2016 visit to Dhaka, the two countries upgraded their relationship to a Strategic Cooperation Partnership. Analysts believe Prime Minister Hasinas consecutive visits to India and China are an effort to balance relations between the two Asian powers. The key question remains how resolute Prime Minister Hasina will be in resisting any Chinese attempts that might undermine Bangladeshs ties with India. The demonstrations come as long-running efforts to broker a truce gained momentum last week when Hamas dropped a key demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war read more A demonstrator holds a sign during a protest marking nine months since the start of the war and calling for the release of hostages held in the Gaza Strip by the Hamas militant group, in Tel Aviv, Israel. AP Marking nine months since the war in Gaza started, Israeli protesters blocked highways across the country Sunday, calling on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down and pushing for a cease-fire to bring back scores of hostages held by Hamas. The demonstrations come as long-running efforts to broker a truce gained momentum last week when Hamas dropped a key demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war. The militant group still wants mediators to guarantee a permanent cease-fire, while Netanyahu is vowing to keep fighting until Israel destroys Hamas military and governing capabilities. Advertisement Any deal will allow Israel to return and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved, Netanyahu said in a statement Sunday that was likely to deepen Hamas concerns about the proposal. Sundays Day of Disruption started at 6:29 a.m., the same time Hamas militants launched the first rockets toward Israel in the Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war. Protesters blocked main roads and demonstrated outside of the homes of government ministers. Near the border with Gaza, Israeli protestors released 1,500 black and yellow balloons to symbolize those fellow citizens who were killed and abducted. Hannah Golan said she came to protest the devastating abandonment of our communities by our government. She added: Its nine months today, to this black day, and still nobody in our government takes responsibility. Palestinian militants killed some 1,200 people in the surprise attack and took 250 others hostage. Israels retaliatory offensive has killed over 38,000 Palestinians, according to the territorys Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. About 120 hostages remain captive after more than 100 hostages were released as part of a November cease-fire deal. Israel has already concluded that more than 40 of the remaining hostages are dead, and there are fears that the number will grow as the war drags on. Advertisement The United States has rallied the world behind a proposal for a phased cease-fire in which Hamas would release the remaining captives in return for a lasting cease-fire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. But Hamas wants guarantees from mediators that the war will end, while Israel wants the freedom to resume fighting if talks over releasing the last batch of hostages drag on. Israel continues to battle pockets of Palestinian militants across Gaza after months of heavy bombing and ground operations that have devastated the territorys main cities and displaced most of its population of 2.3 million people, often multiple times. On Sunday, Israel issued new evacuation orders for parts of Gaza City, which was heavily bombed and largely emptied early in the war. Advertisement The Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza town of Khan Younis said the bodies of three Palestinians were retrieved from the area of the Kerem Shalom crossing with Israel. A hospital statement said they were handcuffed, and an Associated Press reporter saw one of the bodies with bound hands. Abdel-Hadi Ghabaeen, an uncle of one of the deceased, said they had been working to secure the delivery of humanitarian aid and commercial shipments through the crossing. He said he saw soldiers detain them on Saturday, and that the bodies bore signs of beatings, with one having a broken leg. The Israeli military said it was looking into the reports. Advertisement Thousands of Palestinians have been detained since the start of the war, and many of those who have been released, as well as some Israelis who have worked at detention facilities, say detainees have been tortured and held under harsh conditions. Israeli authorities have denied abusing prisoners. Israeli airstrikes overnight and into Sunday meanwhile killed at least 13 Palestinians, including the undersecretary of labor in the largely dismantled Hamas-run government. Ihab al-Ghussein was among four people killed in a strike on a school-turned-shelter in Gaza City, according to the Civil Defense, a first responders group under the Hamas-run government. Hamas mourned his loss in a statement and said a strike earlier in the war had destroyed his house and killed his wife and daughter. Advertisement The Israeli military said it had struck a militant complex in the area of a school building, as well as a nearby Hamas weapons-making facility in Gaza City after taking steps to mitigate harm to civilians. The military separately announced that one of its officers was killed in battle in the southern Gaza town of Rafah, bringing the total number of Israeli soldiers killed to 680 since the start of the war. The Lebanese militant group Hezbollah said early Sunday that it launched dozens of projectiles toward northern Israel, targeting areas more than 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the border, deeper than most launches. A 28-year-old man was seriously wounded, Israels national rescue service reported. Another attack near the border wounded three people, one of them seriously, according to the Galilee Medical Center. Israeli media reported that the critically wounded individual was an American citizen. There was no immediate confirmation from the army. Hezbollah began launching rocket and mortar attacks after the outbreak of the war in Gaza. The range and severity of the attacks and Israels counterstrikes have escalated in recent weeks, raising fears of an all-out war that would have catastrophic consequences for people on both sides of the border. Mediators from the United States, Egypt and Qatar have intensified their efforts in the past week to broker an agreement between Israel and Hamas. Hezbollah has said it will halt its attacks if there is a cease-fire in Gaza. The compromise on Saturday by Hamas could lead to the first pause in fighting since November and set the stage for further talks, though all sides still warned that a deal is not yet guaranteed. Washingtons phased deal would start with a full and complete six-week cease-fire during which older, sick and female hostages would be released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. During those 42 days, Israeli forces would withdraw from densely populated areas of Gaza and allow the return of displaced people to their homes in northern Gaza. War-weary Palestinians in the Gaza Strip appeared pessimistic, after previous instances in which the two sides appeared to be closing in on a deal. We have lived nine months of suffering, said Heba Radi, a mother of six children living in a tent in the central city of Deir al-Balah, where she has been sheltering since they fled their home in Gaza City. The cease-fire has become a distant dream. While previewing the summit at a press conference NATO chief Jen Stoltenberg emphasised that the summit will focus on taking measures which would bring peace in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war read more As the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) prepares to mark its 75th anniversary while conducting a three-day summit in Washington, the blocs Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg raised concerns about the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war. While previewing the summit at a press conference on Sunday, Stoltenberg said all NATO members want peace. He insisted that the war could end easily, but peace could only be achieved if Russian President Vladimir Putin understood he cannot win on the battlefield. Advertisement The quickest way to end this war is to lose the war, the NATO chief averred. But that will not bring peace. That will bring occupation," he added. While discussing the war, Stoltenberg outlined key measures NATO would take as the conflict rages on. These measures include; the establishment of the command centre in Germany, enhanced financial and military aid to Ukraine and setting up bilateral security arrangements, Voice of America reported. After laying out the initiatives, Stoltenberg also acknowledged the complexities involved in Ukraines potential membership in the alliance and the blocs united front against Russia. In April this year, Stoltenberg indicated that the alliance did not expect to offer Ukraine a NATO membership during the summit, but rather provide the war-stricken nation a bridge to membership. Hungary to not block NATO plans despite closeness with Russia After Hungarian President Viktor Orbans visit to Russia became concerning to the West, Stoltenberg made it clear that the European nation would not block any potential NATO decision. While speaking to the reporters, the NATO chief recounted his recent visit to Budapest, where he secured an agreement with Orban ensuring that Hungary will not obstruct the proposed support measures for Ukraine. It is pertinent to note that Budapest has made it clear that it will not participate in the new NATO security assistance command for Ukraine but will fulfil its other NATO obligations. Hungary also made it clear that it would continue to contribute to the common NATO budget. Advertisement Stoltenberg insisted that NATO must operate cohesively in developing new defence strategies, emphasizing unity despite differing perspectives. Stoltenberg on the impact of US Elections on NATO The NATO chief also mentioned that the United States would continue to remain a staunch NATO ally, regardless of the outcome of the 2024 US presidential elections. He supported his argument by attributing to the past criticisms by former president Donald Trump and insisted that his displeasure was primarily to defence spending issues rather than NATO itself. He went on to compare NATO to a big family that every now and then has arguments and disagreements. While recalling his experience working with former Presidents Barack Obama, Trump and the current President Joe Biden, Stoltenberg noted that despite differing political leadership, the US has remained an ardent ally of NATO. Advertisement With inputs from agencies. Russian missiles struck different cities in Ukraine, just a day ahead of the three-day NATO Summit which will be hosted by US President Joe Biden in Washington read more At least 20 people died after Russia launched massive missile attacks against Ukraine, ahead of the NATO summit. In the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, at least seven people were killed after a Russian missile struck a childrens hospital on Monday. The mayor of the city said that the authorities reached the location immediately after the strike and evacuated the occupants who were seeking refuge in the hospital. Meanwhile, the head of the military administration in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih said that at least 10 people had been killed there and three more were injured in the eastern town of Pokrovsk, BBC reported. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was visiting Poland when the attack jolted Ukraine. Advertisement Zelenskyy condemns the incident In a post on X, the Ukrainian leader mentioned that over 40 missiles struck different cities across the country. Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Different cities Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk. More than 40 missiles of various types. Apartment buildings, infrastructure, and a childrens hospital have been damaged, he wrote in the post sharing an image of a damaged building which was struck by a Russian missile. In a separate post, Zelenskyy shared the video of the devastation from the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital in Kyiv. He also noted that the hospital is touted as one of the most important hospitals in Ukraine and Europe. Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Different cities Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk. More than 40 missiles of various types. Apartment buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital have been damaged. All pic.twitter.com/8mN73BKLuY Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are people under the rubble, and the exact number of casualties is still unknown. Right now, everyone is helping to clear the rubble doctors and ordinary people, the Ukrainian leader averred. Advertisement Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general, he added. In a sharp criticism of Russias conduct, Zelenskyy noted that the world is watching what Russia is doing in Ukraine. Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 Advertisement Cancer and Intensive care wards were hit in the attacks Shortly after Zelenskyys post, Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said that cancer and intensive care wards were hit in the attack. While speaking to Reuters, Vitaliy Klitschko, Kyivs mayor said that the attack can be seen as the worst one conducted on the capital since the start of the war. Elsewhere, Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the military administration in Kryvy Rih, posted on Telegram that at least 10 people were killed and 31 wounded following the attack in the city. He mentioned that out of the 30 injured 10 people are in critical condition. Advertisement With inputs from agencies. The governors across the have warned that the prison estate in England and Wales will be effectively full within the next week or so read more To address the issue of overcrowding in prisons, the UKs Labour-led government said that they are considering plans to release offenders after they served 40 per cent of their sentence. The proposed plan is just one of the several options the Ministry of Justice is weighing to deal with the issue, The Guardian reported. Prison overcrowding is the most urgent problem faced by the UK PM Keir Starmers administration which witnessed a landslide victory in the 2024 UK General Elections. The governors across the country have warned that the prison estate in England and Wales will be effectively full within the next week or so. Advertisement No one wants to do it, but their hands have been forced by the inaction of the last lot. Its very much an option though and not a done deal yet," a source close to the new government told the British news outlet. The new proposal in question would release prisoners on determinate sentences between 40 per cent and 43 per cent of the way through their sentence. However, the offenders who were jailed for sex crimes, violence or terrorism would be effectively excluded from the scheme. The new government is planning to introduce the plan by replacing the current 10-week early release scheme. We havent made any decisions yet, were just kicking the tyres on all the options. But the crisis is acute and there are no easy decisions ahead of us," another government insider claimed. The prison overcrowding crisis As of May 2024, the prison population stood at 87,505, while the official usable capacity stands at 88,895. In light of this, former PM Rishi Sunaks government formally triggered a crisis measure by using police cells to house inmates. The Sunak administration also introduced a measure of releasing some prisoners 70 days before their sentences were due to end. In his first press conference as Prime Minister, Starmer also raised this issue and highlighted that it would be impossible to stop the current policy of releasing prisoners early because of the lack of capacity in jails. Weve got too many prisoners, not enough prisons, Starmer said. Keeping the crisis in mind, the new British premier has already appointed James Timpson, the businessman and rehabilitation campaigner, as the new prisons minister. Interestingly, more than 10 per cent of Timpsons workforce comprises former prisoners and Timpson has previously argued that only a third of people in prison should really be there. However, Starmer has not stated whether he agrees with the statement or not. British Defence Minister John Healey announced that the UK will provide Ukraine with additional missiles, artillery guns, and boats read more Sir Keir Starmers new Labour Partys government has assured Ukraine that the British support in the war with Russia will continue for as long as it takes. Within days of the formation of the Labour government, British Defence Minister John Healey visited Ukraine to meet President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and gave him a guarantee that all additional military aid promised in April will be delivered within the next 100 days. Healey told The Sun newspaper that while Russian President Vladimir Putin, who ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, is counting on the patience of Western countries to run out regarding the support to Ukraine, the British support to the country will continue until victory is achieved. Advertisement Putin is looking for Western nations to lose patience to lose resolve, he must know that Britain under Labour will stand with Ukraine for as long as it takes to win. We will confront Russian aggression and we will pursue him for his war crimes, said Healey. Starmers new government has hit the ground running on the security and diplomatic agenda. Right after the first Cabinet meeting, as Healey visited Ukraine, Foreign Minister David Lammy embarked on a three-nation tour of Germany, Poland, and Sweden. Like Healey, he also reaffirmed the British support to Ukraine and said it remained ironclad. "Our commitment to stand with the Ukrainian people is absolute. Traveling to Odesa, Defence Secretary @JohnHealey_MP met with President @ZelenskyyUa to confirm Britain's steadfast commitment to Ukraine will be reinvigorated by the new UK Government. https://t.co/8WrIagKcy3 pic.twitter.com/XjxMQJqOoh Ministry of Defence (@DefenceHQ) July 7, 2024 Even as the United Kingdom has had political upheavals in recent years, the support for Ukraine has been consistent and both the previous Conservatives and incumbent Labour are in agreement on the issue. Boris Johnson, the former British PM, was the first major Western leader to visit Ukraine in the initial days of the war when Kyiv was still under frequent assaults. Rishi Sunak continued the support and approved more aid and announced hikes in British military spending and revamping of the military industry. Starmer has said that the position will continue. With the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Europe faces its worst security crises since the World War II. For countries in Eastern Europe, it is an existential crisis as they see that if Russia captures Ukraine, then they are likely to be next to face Russian interference and belligerence. In the interview with The Sun, Healey stressed on the bipartisan consensus on the issue. Advertisement At every stage since Putin launched his full-scale invasion, we have backed all the military aid the extra funding had our full backing in opposition, we will now deliver it in government, said Healey. UK will be Ukraines firmest friend Healey has said that the UK under Starmers new government will be the firmest friend of Ukraine. Healey said that hist first question after taking over the defence ministry was to ask how they could speed up deliveries to Ukraine. Since the beginning of the war, one complaint of Ukraine has been that deliveries have been very slow, so the Labour government has decided that the aid committed to Ukraine by the previous Sunak government in April will be provided within 100 days, said Healey. Advertisement British Defence Minister John Healey also held talks with Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov (Photo: UK Ministry of Defence) Hitting out on the gap between promises and deliveries, Healey said that he would not make promises that he would not be able to keep. Healey further outlined the three-step process that the defence ministry will now implement: First of all we speed up delivery of what we have already announced. Secondly we will step up further and see what kit we can offer the Ukrainians. So I have the MoD begin scouring stockpiles, especially for the kit that the Ukrainians are using every day in this fight. From missiles to boats, UK announces more aid to Ukraine During his first visit to Ukraine, Healey also announced that the British government has approved a new tranche of military supplies that includes missiles, boats, and ammunition, among other weaponry. Advertisement In the interview with The Sun, Healey said the British government had cleared the following in the latest tranche: 90 Brimstone missiles used to attack tanks and armoured vehicles 50 boats for marine operations in the Black Sea 40 new minefield clearing rollers 10 AS90 heavy artillery guns Healey also said that the UK will partner with allies to provide Ukraine with weaponries. In terms of artillery guns, he said that the UK will provide barrels and the United States will provide shells. He further said that this will mark the beginning of barrels production in the UK after many years. Healey told the newspaper, Part of the special leadership that the UK has demonstrated since Putin invaded has been the ability to bring other allies together, to do more and give more. And you will see next week at the NATO summit, you will see the 32 nations to also step up support for Ukraine and importantly make the same sort of long term commitment to maintain support for Ukraine. Directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects is prohibited by international humanitarian law, and any such attacks are unacceptable and must end immediately, he said. The Security Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday morning was requested by Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States read more Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024. REUTERS The United Nations Security Council will meet on Tuesday over a Russian attack on Ukraine that struck Kyivs main childrens hospital, said diplomats. Russia blasted the hospital with a missile in broad daylight on Monday and rained missiles down on other cities across Ukraine, killing at least 36 civilians in the deadliest wave of air strikes for months. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the Russian strikes, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said. Guterres found the attack on the childrens hospital and another medical facility particularly shocking, Dujarric said. Advertisement Directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects is prohibited by international humanitarian law, and any such attacks are unacceptable and must end immediately, he said. The Security Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday morning was requested by Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States. We will call out Russias cowardly and depraved attack on the hospital, Britains U.N. Ambassador Barbara Woodward said in an X post. The Russian defense ministry said its forces attacked defense industry targets and aviation bases. It has denied targeting civilians, although its attacks have killed thousands of civilians since its invasion in February 2022. The Republican lawmaker insisted that these tests are important and recommended a similar evaluation procedure to be conducted for all future presidential nominees as well as those who may take over from a president or a nominee read more Amid growing concerns about US President Joe Bidens ability to continue with his re-election bid, South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham joined the list of people who are calling for the 81-year-old president to take physical and cognitive tests. However, the Republican senator also mentioned that former President Donald Trump should also undergo evaluation. The Republican lawmaker insisted that these tests are important and recommended a similar evaluation procedure to be conducted for all future presidential nominees as well as those who may take over from a president or a nominee. Advertisement All nominees for president going into the future should have neurological exams as part of an overall physical exam Lets test Trump. Lets test Biden. Lets test the line of succession," the 68-year-old conservative lawmaker told CBS News on Sunday. This is a wake-up call for the country. We need to make sure that the people who are going to be in the line of succession are capable of being commander-in-chief under dire circumstances," he furthered. Call for making health evaluation a norm in the presidential race Grahams demands for making health evaluation a norm came after California Democrat Adam Schiff said hed be happy if both Biden and Trump took tests. Frankly, a test would show Donald Trump has a serious illness of one kind or another. Schiff also said Biden should pass the torch if he cant win overwhelmingly. The demands for introducing presidential cognitive testing came after Bidens embarrassing performance against Trump in the first 2024 presidential debate. Many have even asked the 81-year-old president to step down and pass on his baton. Im offended by the idea that he [Biden] shouldnt take a competency test, given all the evidence in front of us, the South Carolina Senator exclaimed. He went on to claim that the POTUS is living in denial and insisted that the reluctance is dangerous for the countrys future. Most of us are concerned with the national security implications of this debate about President Bidens health. Im worried about Biden Biden being the commander-in-chief for the next four months," he added. Advertisement Graham also predicted that Biden most likely will be replaced as the Democratic nominee by the US vice-president, Kamala Harris. He emphasised that when Harris enters the presidential race, the tussle of the Oval Office will become dramatically different. If she does become the nominee, this is a dramatically different race than it is right now, today. I hope people are thinking about that on our side, he concluded. Indias recent diplomatic maneuvers, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankars visit to Colombo, underscore its strategic pursuit of a significant cobalt deposit in Sri Lankas seabed, according to a report, citing experts read more Raw cobalt is seen at a manufacturing plant. Sri Lanka does not yet hold sovereign rights over the area of cobalt-rich seabed that it claims. AFP File While India formally launched a new $6 million Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC) in Sri Lanka recently, designed to help broadcast weather warnings and security information, Indias true interest lies in gaining access to the cobalt-rich Afanasy Nikitin Seamount, situated potentially within Sri Lankas maritime boundaries. According to a South China Morning Post report, citing experts, Indias recent diplomatic maneuvers, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankars visit to Colombo, underscore its strategic pursuit of a significant cobalt deposit in Sri Lankas seabed. The move is seen as part of a broader strategy to bolster ties with its island neighbour and assert dominance in the Indian Ocean region. Advertisement Cobalt is an essential mineral in rechargeable batteries, a critical component in the global transition away from fossil fuels to electric vehicles and renewable energy storage. Dr Bhagya Senaratne, a postdoctoral fellow at New York University Shanghais Centre for Global Asia, told South China Morning Post that the emphasis on the launch of the MRCC was Delhis way of strategically communicating to the world its focus on the Indian Ocean region. It was also a move to demonstrate to other countries, including China, that India is going to retain Sri Lanka within its sphere of influence, she was quoted as saying. Senaratne said India has a history of seeking to gain the upper hand over strategic resources in the Indian Ocean. And its latest manoeuvre is hardly unexpected, given the disputes that have previously flared up between India and Sri Lanka over oil exploration rights in the Mannar Basin, she added. If India cant have it, then the likelihood of it allowing Sri Lanka to work with another actor to extract (a resource) is slim to none, she told South China Morning Post. Sri Lanka has sought to expand its continental shelf beyond the usual 200 nautical miles to assert a broader claim over the seabed, the approval for which is still awaited from the International Seabed Authority (ISA) after the island nation first submitted the request in 2009. Senaratne said India, initially, did not contest the claim but after New Delhi realised the economic potential and geopolitical influence Sri Lanka could wield from resource extraction beneath those waters has captured Indias attention and interest. Advertisement Chinese presence Given Sri Lankas strategic location, Colombo often finds itself caught in the middle of geopolitical tensions between Beijing and Washington and its allies, as evident with the arrival of Chinese research vessels at Sri Lankas ports. After Colombos decision in December to impose a one-year moratorium on the docking of research vessels, believed to be influenced by pressure from India and the US due to Chinese research activities in Sri Lankan waters, Delhi has increased its diplomatic engagement. Senaratne said the Chinese research activities likely prompted India to intensify its scrutiny of the seabed to understand the nature of the Chinese vessels studies. Advertisement Whats at stake? KV Thomas, a retired scientist from the National Centre for Earth Science Studies in Thiruvananthapuram, told Al Jazeera that China was a key factor behind Indias decision. He said that Indias efforts in deep-sea mining are in their early stages. However, it has shown significant ambition recently. In 2021, India initiated the Deep Ocean Mission to explore deep-sea resources, committing $500 million over five years to this project. By 2023, the Indian government revealed plans under this mission to develop a manned deep-sea mining submersible for the exploratory extraction of polymetallic nodules from the seabed. These nodules, known as manganese nodules, are crucial reservoirs of essential minerals such as cobalt. Advertisement Currently, China dominates the global supply with 70 per cent of cobalt and significant shares of lithium and manganese, as highlighted by the International Renewable Energy Agency. India, aiming for net-zero emissions by 2070, seeks access to these minerals to support its transition to a clean energy economy. Sri Lankas claim Usually a nations continental shelf spans up to 200 nautical miles (370 km) from its coastline, defining an exclusive economic zone where it can exclusively exploit resources, although foreign ships can freely navigate through. However, coastal nations can petition the United Nations Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), asserting that their continental shelf extends beyond this limit. Advertisement In 2009, Sri Lanka applied to extend its continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles. The CLCS has yet to make a decision on Sri Lankas claim, but if approved, it would encompass the Afanasy Nikitin Seamount within Sri Lankas maritime boundaries. The CLCS reviews such claims from countries seeking extended continental shelf boundaries. In previous instances, Pakistan, Australia, and Norway have successfully secured rights to maritime territories extending beyond 200 nautical miles from their shores. Initially, in 2010, India did not contest Sri Lankas claim before the CLCS. However, in 2022, India changed its stance, arguing that Sri Lankas claim would adversely affect its interests. India urged the commission not to endorse Sri Lankas submission. India seeks approval for exploring cobalt In January, India approached the Jamaica-based International Seabed Authority (ISA) to seek approval for exploring the cobalt-rich Afanasy Nikitin Seamount, located in the central Indian Ocean, east of the Maldives and approximately 1,350 km (850 miles) from Indias coast. Established in 1994, the ISA is an autonomous international organisation mandated by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea to regulate economic activities on the seabed. India submitted an application to the ISA along with a $500,000 fee, outlining its plan to conduct extensive geophysical, geological, biological, oceanographic, and environmental studies in the proposed area spanning 15 years. The Afanasy Nikitin Seamount comprises 150 blocks spread over 3,000 sq km (1,158 sq miles). During the evaluation of Indias application, the ISA determined that the Afanasy Nikitin Seamount is entirely situated within an area claimed by another country as part of its continental shelf. According to Al Jazeera, while the ISA did not specify the country in its communication, experts believe it refers to Sri Lanka. A countrys continental shelf refers to the underwater edge of its landmass. The ISA communicated its findings of competing territorial claims to India and requested a response. However, on March 12, India informed the ISA that it would not be able to provide a timely response for consideration during the ISAs 29th Session of the Legal and Technical Commission, where the application was under review. Consequently, the ISA has placed Indias application on hold pending further response from India. The ISA is expected to revisit the application once India submits its response. With inputs from agencies London-based Nothing launched the CMF Phone 1, the companys first smartphone under its CMF by Nothing sub-brand, earlier today. It is still a 5G support, AMOLED screen, 50MP camera and a large 5000mAh battery, which we had seen in other Nothing Phones, but this has a completely new design, interchangeable back covers, and accessories. Is this worth the price? Let us dive into the review to find out. Box Contents CMF Phone 1 8GB + 128GB in Black colour USB Type-C to C cable SIM Ejector tool User manual and warranty information Display, Hardware and Design Starting with the display, the CMF Phone 1 has a 6.67-inch Full HD+ rigid OLED display with a pixel resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels, 20:9 aspect ratio and a pixel density of about 395 PPI. The display is bright, thanks to 700 nits (typical), and 2000 nits peak brightness, which is enabled when you are watching HDR content. The phone has a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate display can switch between 60Hz and 120Hz. It has 240Hz touch sampling rate. When enabled, it offers a buttery smooth user experience, especially when you are scrolling through the UI and when gaming. It also has HDR 10+ support, which works for YouTube. Under the display options, there are different options to adjust colours based on your preference. There is also a night light option that lets you reduce the displays blue light emission, so it doesnt cause eye strain when you are reading at night. There is Dark mode, similar to other Android phones. It has an always-on display option, but it doesnt offer a lot of customization, and is similar to the Pixel. It doesnt have MEMC or DC Dimming option, but the company says that it has 960Hz PWM Dimming. The company doesnt reveal which glass it uses. The phone has a tiny centre punch-hole that houses a 16-megapixel camera. Above the display, there is an earpiece on the top edge, but it doesnt act as a secondary speaker. The phone has an optical in-display fingerprint scanner. There is a small bezel below the display, but it is not uniform to the sides and the top, unlike the Nothing phones. Coming to the button placements, the power button is present on the right side and the volume rockers are on the left side. The hybrid dual SIM slot, primary microphone, USB Type-C port and the loudspeaker grill are on the bottom. The secondary microphone is on the top. The sides have a plastic finish. The phone has a removable plastic back which can be removed by removing four screws. It takes a few minutes to remove it. The back in the black and light green colours have a smooth matte finish. This is how the back looks when you remove the back cover, since the back cover has the side buttons as well. Due to the removable back cover, it only has IP52 ratings. Back in the Blue and Orange colours have a vegan leather finish, so it is thicker at 9mm, and weighs 202g compared to the 8mm thickness and 197g weight in the standard model. If you dont want to get the colour model, the back covers that include the accessory point in the matching colour, and the matching SIM tray is available separately for Rs. 1499. This is a good idea if you are ready to spend more. The fold-out stand is another interesting accessory that supports the phone in either landscape or portrait. It costs Rs. 799. The Lanyard is easy to use with the hook and the ring. The card case snaps onto the phone with an attachment and can be attached and detached magnetically. It can hold up to 3 cards and allows for contactless payment through the case. The CMF Phone 1 Stand, Lanyard, and Card Case cost Rs. 799 each. Camera 50MP main camera with f/1.8 aperture, 1/1.95 Sony IMX882 sensor 2MP portrait camera with SmartSens SC202 sensor, f/2.4 aperture 16MP front camera with GalaxyCore GC16B3 sensor f/2.0 aperture The camera UI is similar to phones running Nothing OS 2.5 or above. There are options for Slo-mo, Video, Photo, Portrait and more option that has time-lapse, pano, and expert mode. The expert mode is pro mode, which lets you adjust white balance, focus, shutter speed (1/8000s to 32 seconds), and ISO (100 to 6400). It doesnt have RAW option. Coming to the image quality, daylight shots came out well with good dynamic range and the images are natural-looking. After pixel binning technology, you get 12.5MP output. HDR shots are better with improved dynamic range. There is no ultra-wide camera. The 16MP front camera is decent in daylight, and you get full 16MP output. Edge detection in portrait is good, thanks to the secondary camera. Lowlight camera performance is average, and the auto night mode helps to keep the noise low, but you cant expect much in the price range. Check out the camera samples. It can record videos at 4k resolution at 30 fps from the rear camera, and the front camera has 1080p 60 fps video recording. It doesnt have OIS, and EIS is manageable, but it brings down the resolution to 1080p. The front camera video quality takes a hit with bright background since it is completely blown out. Software, UI and Apps The CMF Phone 1 runs Android 14 out of the box, with Nothing OS 2.6 on top. It has May 2024 Android security patch. The company has promised 2 Android OS updates and 3 years of security patches, which is less compared to Nothing Phone. Apart from the fonts and UI, it gives a stock Android experience without any bloatware. Nothing OS 2.0 brought customize grid design, widget size, and color themes, and has new folder layouts and illustrated covers. The Nothing OS 2.6 refines them. There are 30 widgets, and the Community Headlines Widget and Date Widget are new. Out of 8GB LPDDR4X RAM, you get 7.4GB of usable RAM, and about 3GB of RAM is free when default apps are running in the background. It has up to 8GB of virtual RAM. Out of 128GB, you get about 107GB of free storage. Some countries have a 256GB version, which might launch in India later. Since this has a hybrid SIM slot, you can use the secondary SIM slot as a microSD slot, and it accepts cards up to 2TB. It has UFS 2.2 storage, which is common in the phones in the price range. Apart from the Google apps, it doesnt have any third-party apps. Fingerprint sensor and Face unlock The phone has an in-display optical fingerprint sensor which immediately unlocks the phone just by keeping your finger on the sensor. You dont get any animation options. The phone also has face unlock that can unlock the phone in seconds, but it is not as secure as fingerprint. Music Player and Multimedia YouTube Music is the default music player. It doesnt have Dolby Atmos or any other custom audio features. Audio through the mono speaker is decent, but not loud. Audio through the headphones is good as well. This has Widevine L1 so that you can play HD content on Amazon Prime Video, Netflix and other streaming apps. The is HDR playback on YouTube, but not on Netflix. Dual SIM and Connectivity It has the usual set of connectivity features such as 5G with support for n1, n3, n5, n8, n28, n38, n40, n41, n77, n78 bands, dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 6 802.11 ax (2.4 + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5.3, GPS + GLONASS, but lacks NFC support. The phone also has carrier aggregation. We did not face any call drops and the earpiece volume is good, even though it is present on the top edge. The CMF Phone 1s body SAR is 1.17W/Kg and head SAR is at 1.19/Kg which higher than some mid-range phones, however it well under the limit in India, which is 1.6 W/kg (over 1 g). Performance and Benchmarks This is the first phone to use a Dimensity 7300 SoC in India. The successor of the Dimensity 7050 SoC has 4X Arm Cortex-A78 cores at up to 2.5GHz paired with 4X Arm Cortex-A55 cores. Compared to 6nm process in the Dimensity 7050, this uses TSMCs 4nm process, offering up to 25% lower power consumption compared to the predecessor. The phone has vapor chamber liquid cooling, but the company doesnt reveal the size. The new Arm Mali-G615 GPU is decent for normal games, but it cant handle high-end games. For the price, this is fine, since most phones only have Dimensity 6000 series and Snapdragon 6 series. Similar to the Pixel phones, there is Game mode and Game Dashboard. In 3D Mark wild life stress test, it scored 99.5% which is good. The temperature increased from 30 to 38 degrees, which is not much since the chip is not powerful. That said, check out some synthetic benchmark scores below. The Nothing Phone 2a is clearly better than the CMF Phone 1 when it comes to AnTuTu, and Geekbench 6 Single-Core benchmark, but the CMF Phone 1 scores in Geekbench 6 Multi-Core benchmark. Battery life Coming to the battery life, the phone packs a 5000mAh (typical) built-in battery, same as the Nothing Phone 2a. Thanks to the optimization, it lasts for a day even with heavy use on 5G. With minimal use on Wi-Fi, it should last for 2 days. I got 6 to 7 hours of screen on time with over a day of use, with mixed use of mostly Wi-Fi and occasional 5G use in 120Hz. This is similar to Nothing Phone 2a. With 33W fast charging, it can charge from 0 to 50% in about 20 minutes and up to 100% in over an hour with the official 33W fast charger. It doesnt have wireless charging Conclusion At a starting price of Rs. 15,999, the CMF Phone 1 offers most essentials that you need such as an AMOLED display which is good, smooth performance, Nothing OS without any bloatware, and a decent main camera. If you like to swap the rear covers, this is an added advantage. Wish it had stereo speakers, and a better front camera. Pricing and availability The CMF Phone 1 is priced at Rs. 15,999 for the 6GB + 128GB model and the 8GB + 128GB model costs Rs. 17,999. With Rs. 1000 bank discount on the first day of sale on Flipkart, it will be available at an effective price of Rs. 14,999. It will be available from Flipkart and retail partners, with open sales commencing on July 12 at 12 noon. Alternatives If you spend a bit more, the iQOO Z9 8GB + 128GB model is a good alternative that offers a better gaming performance, OIS, and stereo speakers. Pros Unique design with replaceable back covers, accessories 120Hz AMOLED display is good Smooth performance Main camera performance is decent Good battery life Cons No stereo speakers IP52 ratings Average front camera for videos With inputs from Siva Bharani Annual output value of China's ornamental fish sector exceeds 10 billion yuan People's Daily Online) 13:30, July 08, 2024 Photo shows an ornamental fish farm in Tangwan village, Rugao city, east China's Jiangsu Province. (Photo/Xu Hui) The annual output value of China's ornamental fish sector has topped 10 billion yuan ($1.37 billion). On June 21, the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs (MARA) encouraged regions across the country to support and guide the development of the sector according to local conditions. In 2022, China raised 3.56 billion ornamental fish, with the output value reaching 11.09 billion yuan. Zhao Wanping, vice president of the Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, said that in 2022, China's ornamental fish sector accounted for 13.22 percent of the total output value of the country's recreational fishery industry, which reached 83.93 billion yuan. That year, the ornamental fish sector showed the fastest year-on-year growth rate among all categories in the recreational industry. According to market research, the market size of the aquarium pet market has seen a compound annual growth rate of 11.8 percent in the last five years, with fish accounting for a large share. Small ornamental fish have gained popularity among young Chinese, many of whom keep them on their office desks. A report jointly released by Chinese e-commerce platform Taobao and other organizations reveals that keeping fish on desks in the office has become one of the main forms of consumption in the aquarium pet industry. Forty-two percent of surveyed consumers kept fish to relieve stress, while 16 percent and 15 percent did it to decorate their workspace and out of personal interest respectively. Meanwhile, 57 percent of surveyed consumers spent 1,000 to 3,000 yuan annually to keep fish on desks in the office, and 10 percent of surveyed consumers paid more than 5,000 yuan a year for the activity. A technician feeds fish at an ornamental fish farm in Tuzhou village, Taihe county, Ji'an city, east China's Jiangxi Province. (Photo/Deng Heping) According to industry experts analysis, China has seen an increasingly large consumer base for ornamental fish in recent years, with people keeping fish both at their homes and on their office desks. This has significantly driven the expansion of the ornamental fish market. Fancy carp, which are sought-after ornamental fish as they represent auspiciousness and good luck in Chinese culture, are becoming the calling card for Jinan, capital city of east China's Shandong Province. Jinan ranks among the top cities in China in terms of the farming and market size of fancy carp, with an economic output of 400 million yuan, said an official from the Jinan bureau of agriculture and rural affairs. By 2025, Jinan plans to establish two to three fancy carp industrial parks and 10 demonstration bases, which are expected to support over 40 fancy carp enterprises above designated size. South China's Guangdong Province is home to the largest distribution center of fancy carp in the country, producing about 80 percent of mid-to-high-end fancy carp nationwide. Zhenping county in central China's Henan Province produces 60 percent of the country's fancy carp, which are exported to Europe. Other regions are also developing thriving ornamental fish sectors, including Chongqing Municipality and Fujian and Liaoning provinces. Yanwan village in Tongliang district of Chongqing produces more than 90 million ornamental fish fry annually, including over 30 varieties such as fancy carp. Home to more than 80 goldfish farms, Fuzhou city in Fujian exports goldfish to over 10 countries and regions, including Japan and the U.S. Anshan city in Liaoning is building a distribution center for ornamental fish in northeast China, with the production of guppies making up about 70 percent of the country's total. To further promote the healthy development of the ornamental fish sector, MARA will actively include the sector in corresponding development plans. Zhao suggested carrying out research and development of breeding techniques and building standardized farming bases in major ornamental fish-producing areas according to relevant development plans. Zhao also called for tourism industrial parks themed on ornamental fish that integrate farming, research, science popularization, and leisure tourism to be established in places including Beijing, Guangdong, and Shanghai. The development of the ornamental fish sector is inseparable from efforts such as collection and protection of germplasm resources. MARA will strengthen policy support for the breeding of ornamental fish to provide a solid foundation for the growth of the sector. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) : ... Chicago, July 07, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Global Polycarbonate Resin Market size is projected to reach USD 20.1 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 5.5 % from USD 15.3 billion in 2024, as per the recent study by MarketsandMarkets. Growing demand from the automotive industry, coupled with rapid urbanization and infrastructure development, will contribute to the rapid growth in the demand for polycarbonate resin. Download PDF Brochure: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=1326 Browse in-depth TOC on "Polycarbonate Resin Market 206- Market Data Tables 34- Figures 201- Pages List of Key Players in Polycarbonate Resin Market: Covestro AG (Germany) SABIC (Saudi Arabia) Mitsubishi Engineering-Plastics Corporation (Japan) Lotte Chemical Corporation (South Korea) Teijin Limited (Japan) LG Chem (South Korea) Formosa Chemicals and Fibre Corporation (Taiwan) Trinseo PLC (US) Chimei (Taiwan) Idemitsu Kosan Co., Ltd. (Japan) Others Drivers, Restraints, Opportunities and Challenges in Polycarbonate Resin Market: Drivers: Rapid urbanization and infrastructure development Restraints: Residual BPA in food packaging and medical applications Opportunity: Growth in emerging economies to boost the market growth Challenge: Intense competition from alternative materials Get Sample Pages: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=1326 Key Findings of the Study: Medical application is the fastest growing end-use industry of the polycarbonate resin, in terms of value. Asia Pacific captures the largest share in the polycarbonate resin market during the forecast period, in terms of value. Based on application type, the polycarbonate resin market has been segmented into electrical & electronics, optical media, consumer goods, automotive, films & sheets, construction, packaging, medical and others. In the electrical and electronics industry, polycarbonate's exceptional electrical insulation properties and heat resistance make it ideal for manufacturing various components such as connectors, sockets, and switchgear housings. Additionally, its transparency and impact resistance render it valuable in optical media, where it is used to produce CDs, DVDs, and Blu-ray discs. In consumer goods, polycarbonate finds utility in the fabrication of durable yet lightweight products like water bottles, kitchen appliances, and luggage due to its high impact strength and aesthetic appeal. The automotive sector benefits from polycarbonate's ability to withstand high temperatures and impacts, making it suitable for producing headlamp lenses, interior trim components, and exterior body panels. Polycarbonate's versatility extends to the construction industry, where it is utilized in the fabrication of roofing panels, windows, and skylights owing to its excellent weatherability and clarity. Furthermore, in packaging applications, polycarbonate's toughness and resistance to chemicals and sterilization processes make it a preferred choice for food containers, medical device packaging, and beverage bottles. Finally, in the medical field, polycarbonate's biocompatibility, transparency, and stabilizability make it indispensable for manufacturing medical devices, such as IV connectors, surgical instruments, and blood oxygenators, ensuring both safety and reliability in critical healthcare settings. Get 10% Customization on this Report: https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestCustomizationNew.asp?id=1326 Asia Pacific is the fastest-growing market for polycarbonate resin. This growth is mainly attributed to the Its robust industrial infrastructure, coupled with rapid urbanization and burgeoning manufacturing sectors, drives substantial demand for polycarbonate resin across diverse applications. Moreover, the region's expanding middle class fuels consumer demand for durable goods, electronics, and automotive products, all of which heavily rely on polycarbonate. Additionally, Asia-Pacific economies often prioritize infrastructure development and construction projects, further boosting demand for polycarbonate resin in applications such as roofing, windows, and insulation. Furthermore, favorable government policies, coupled with the region's status as a manufacturing hub, attract investments from multinational corporations, fostering a conducive business environment for polycarbonate resin producers. With its burgeoning population and rising disposable incomes, the Asia-Pacific market presents unparalleled growth opportunities for polycarbonate resin manufacturers, making it the focal point for industry expansion and investment. Browse Adjacent Markets: Resins and Polymers Market Research Reports Related Reports: NEWARK, Del, July 07, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- According to a Future Market Insights (FMI), the projected global market size for industrial robot controllers is expected to reach USD 1081.6 Million by 2024, and is set to grow at a CAGR of 9.1% from 2024 to 2034. It is estimated that worldwide sales of industrial robot controllers will total USD 2584.2 Million by 2034, driven by increasing adoption of robot control software and automation solutions. India is expected to dominate the industrial robot controller market by 2034, with a CAGR of 13.6%. China, Spain, and France are likely to follow closely behind. The Asia Pacific region is also expected to become a prominent market for industrial automation. Single axis and articulated robots are expected to dominate the market. Cybersecurity concerns are increasing due to complex robot controllers. Automation trends drive demand for advanced industrial robot controllers, requiring advanced, connected, and adaptable systems for complex robotic systems and collaborative robotics, ensuring productivity and safe human-robot interaction. Industrial robot controllers revolutionize operator interaction with robotic automation systems, prioritizing ease of use and simple design as well as simplifying programming to reduce the learning curve for new operators. Request Sample Report and Explore Industry Trends! https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-10326 Industrial robot controllers are being utilized by automakers to improve operational efficiency, streamline workflows, smoothen production processes, reduce human labor requirements, increase productivity, and address evolving market needs. Companies in the industrial robotic controller market thrive by effectively managing expenses, providing value-added solutions, and anticipating industry trends to meet evolving client requirements. Is the Growing Penetration of Robotics within the Industrial Sector Facilitating Industrial Robot Controller Market Growth? Robotics is playing an integral part in transforming the ways industries work conventionally. With the trend of industry, 4.0 creating deeper inroads across the industrial sector, automation, and robotics are gaining massive popularity across the globe. Increasing deployment of advanced robots for automating manufacturing processes such as assembling, painting, welding, and lifting among others by industrial players is anticipated to favor growth in the market. Also, various automotive manufacturers are increasingly investing in advanced robotic technologies for accelerating their production process along with decreasing human intervention for reducing errors. For instance, BMW i Ventures announced investing in a leading provider of vision software for logistics robots, Plus One Robotics, to automate the vehicle supply chain and logistics in April 2021. As industrial robot controllers are used to controlling the robotic functions and oversee the industrial robots deployed in the automated manufacturing processes, a multiplicity of such developments are estimated to create high revenue generation opportunities in the market. Key Takeaways from the Market Report: The industrial robot controller market is set to reach USD 2584.2 Million by 2034 with a CAGR of 9.1% . by 2034 with a CAGR of . By axis type, single axis is leading the robot controller market with a value share of 47.4% in 2024. in 2024. Based on robot type, articulated robot accounted for a market share of 37.4% in 2024. in 2024. India is estimated to record a CAGR of 13.6% between 2024 and 2034. between 2024 and 2034. China is anticipated to hold the leading position and show steady growth at a CAGR of 10.2% by 2034. Small-scale industries increasingly demand collaborative robots due to their low costs and ease of use. Increasing government initiatives across developing nations to promote the adoption of automation are projected to create new opportunities for key players, opines Nikhil Kaitwade, Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights (FMI). Whos Winning? The industrial robotic controller industry is highly competitive, with key players like ABB, FANUC, and Siemens offering a wide range of robotic components. Companies are increasingly investing in research and development to create innovative features and meet evolving customer demands. Leading companies are progressively expanding into emerging markets through strategic alliances and partnerships. Companies that provide comprehensive solutions build long-lasting customer relationships and offer after-sales support will experience growth in the industry. Success in the market highly depends on companies' ability to differentiate themselves, anticipate trends, and offer innovative solutions. Industry Updates: ABB , headquartered in Zurich, in June 2024, announced the release of its OmniCore platform for control across its robotics line for endless value creation. , headquartered in Zurich, in June 2024, announced the release of its OmniCore platform for control across its robotics line for endless value creation. Dongfeng Motor, headquartered in Wuhan, in June 2024, signed a partnership contract with UBtech Robotics, headquartered in Shenzhen, to employ their humanoid robots in automotive manufacturing tasks. Key Manufacturers of Industrial Robot Controllers: Staubli International AG Mitsubishi Electric Corporation OMRON Corporation DENSO Wave Incorporated SEPRO Group WAGO Motion Controls Robotics Inc. NexCOM Inc. Wynright Corporation KUKA AG Yaskawa Electric Corporation Grab Premium Report and Stay Ahead of Your Competition! https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/checkout/10326 Integration of IoRT, Robotic, and AI to Bode well for the Industrial Robot Controllers Market Growth Integration of advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and the internet of things (IoT) is taking the industrial robots sector to another level. Thus, numerous industrial robot controller manufacturers are aiming at entering into collaboration with leading IoT platform-based companies to develop novel products integrated with innovative Internet of Robotic Things (IoRT) technologies. For instance, FANUC, a Japanese provider of automation products and services, entered into an agreement with providers of industrial automation solutions Rockwell Automation and Cisco to develop an open platform, FANUC Intelligent Edge Link and Drive (FIELD). The platform uses advanced sensors and machine learning technologies for effectively controlling collaborative industrial robots. A slew of such new product launches in the country is projected to favor the growth in the Japanese industrial robot controller market. Get More Insights into the Industrial Robot Controller Market Report: In its latest report, Future Market Insights (FMI) offers an unbiased analysis of the industrial robot controller market, providing historical data from 2019 to 2023 and forecast statistics for the period 2024 to 2034. To understand the industry potential, growth, and scope, the industry is segmented based on axis type (single axis, four axis, six axis, and other axis), robot type (SCARA robot, delta robot, Cartesian/gantry robot, articulated robot, collaborative robot, and dual arm robot), and regions. Industrial Robot Controller Market Segmentation Analysis: By Axis Type: Single Axis Four Axis Six Axis Other Axis By Robot Type: SCARA Robot Delta Robot Cartesian/Gantry Robot Articulated Robot Collaborative Robot Dual Arm Robot By Region: North America Latin America Western Europe Eastern Europe Middle East Africa South Asia East Asia Report Preview: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/industrial-robot-controllers-market About Future Market Insights Industrial Automation: The Industrial Automation division of Future Market Insights offers a novel approach and innovative perspective in analyzing the industrial automation domain. 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 warehouse robotics market is projected to evolve from USD 1,540.57 Million in 2024 to USD 5,609.75 Million in 2034. The global industrial robotics market is estimated to surpass USD 220 Billion by the end of 2033. The global intelligent motor control market to be worth of USD 6,477.6 Million by 2034. The global building automation system market is estimated to surpass USD 96,264 Million by the end of 2033. The global underground mining automation market is estimated to be valued at USD 2,516.7 Million in 2032. The global motor winding repair service market to be worth of USD 12,780 Million by 2032. The global curing oven market is estimated to be valued at USD 6871.90 Million in 2034. The global laser cutting machine market is estimated to be valued at USD 6,635.90 Million in 2034. The global traction motors market to be worth of USD 30.0 Billion by 2032. The global robotic lawn mower market is estimated to be valued at USD 3,462.23 Million in 2034. 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, U.S. 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 Press release Ecully, July 8, 2024 8 a.m. Spineway continues its sales and marketing efforts in Europe The Spineway Group, a specialist in innovative implants for the treatment of severe spine disorders, announces that it participated in the 38th edition of GEER, the annual congress of the Spanish Spine Society, held in Malaga in May. GEER is the annual meeting of spine surgeons in Spain, like the SFCR Congress held in Montpellier at the beginning of June.1 Spineways participation in these two international congresses allowed the company to develop new training partnerships and to increase its visibility and position in key European markets. At the SFCR Congress, Spineway recruited a new agent to strengthen its presence in the Paris-South and North-West regions, with a view to eventually covering the whole of France. At GEER, Spineway was present alongside its two distribution partners, the Palex group and Technospine. Palex is a major player in import and distribution in Spain (1 billion in revenue). Active in all medical and surgical specialties, it is responsible for expanding sales of Spineways arthrodesis ranges in Spain (in particular the VEOS system). Technospine is responsible for distributing the Groups ESP disc prostheses in Spain. During the congress, Stephane Le Roux, Group CEO, and Fabrice Paccagnella, Global Sales Director, accompanied by members of the sales and marketing team, presented the VEOS and ACIFBOX ranges and the Groups latest innovations to the Spanish surgical community. Europe has become the 2nd sales territory since July 2022 (over 50%), thanks to the acquisitions of Distimp in 2021 and Spine Innovations in July 2022, whose products meet the needs of spine surgeons. The next major event for Spineway will be the SILACO Congress in Mexico, from July 24 to 27, which will bring together spine surgeons from Latin and South America. Spineway plans to continue its expansion in Europe and confirms its aim of becoming a major player in less invasive spine treatments. Next event : July 15, 2024 H1 2024 revenue July 24 to 27, 2024 SILACO Congress in Mexico SPINEWAY IS ELIGIBLE FOR PEA-SME (EQUITY SAVINGS PLANS FOR SMES) Find out all about Spineway at www.spineway.com This press release has been prepared in both English and French. In case of discrepancies, the French version shall prevail. Spineway designs, manufactures and markets innovative implants and surgical instruments for treating severe disorders of the spinal column. Spineway has an international network of independent distributors and derives more than 70% of its revenue from exports. ISIN: FR001400BVK2 ALSPW Contacts: SPINEWAY GROUP Shareholder-services line Available Tuesday through Thursday +33 (0)806 706 060 Eligible PEA / PME ALSPW Euronext Growth AELIUM Finance & Communication Investor relations Solene Kennis spineway@aelium.fr 1 Press release of June 10, 2024 Attachment CNHs A Sustainable Year series spotlights sustainable production in Lecce Basildon, July 8, 2024 In the third installment of CNHs A Sustainable Year series learn more about how our first electric compact wheel loader started production this month at our Lecce plant in Italy. The article explains how we redesigned every aspect of this new 3.7-ton machine, and how investment in more sustainable manufacturing processes is transforming operations at the plant. Lecce is home to CNHs largest photovoltaic power installation to date. This comprises 7,300 solar panels, with a peak power of 3.3 Megawatts (MW) at any one time, reducing CO 2 emissions by more than 1,200 tons per year the equivalent of a petrol-powered car circumnavigating the world 125 times. The site produces machines for CNHs CASE Construction Equipment and New Holland Construction brands with more than 200 models rolling off seven production lines, including a brand new one for the electric compact wheel loaders. Read our sustainable production in Lecce story here CNH Industrial (NYSE: CNH) is a world-class equipment, technology and services company. Driven by its purpose of Breaking New Ground, which centers on Innovation, Sustainability and Productivity, the Company provides the strategic direction, R&D capabilities, and investments that enable the success of its global and regional Brands. Globally, Case IH and New Holland supply 360 agriculture applications from machines to implements and the digital technologies that enhance them; and CASE and New Holland Construction Equipment deliver a full lineup of construction products that make the industry more productive. The Companys regionally focused Brands include: STEYR, for agricultural tractors; Raven, a leader in digital agriculture, precision technology and the development of autonomous systems; Hemisphere, a leading designer and manufacturer of high-precision satellite-based positioning, and heading technologies; Flexi-Coil, specializing in tillage and seeding systems; Miller, manufacturing application equipment; Kongskilde, providing tillage, seeding and hay & forage implements; and Eurocomach, producing a wide range of mini and midi excavators for the construction sector, including electric solutions. Across a history spanning over two centuries, CNH has always been a pioneer in its sectors and continues to passionately innovate and drive customer efficiency and success. As a truly global company, CNHs 40,000+ employees form part of a diverse and inclusive workplace, focused on empowering customers to grow, and build, a better world. For more information and the latest financial and sustainability reports visit: cnh.com For news from CNH and its Brands visit: media.cnh.com Media contacts: Rebecca Fabian Alex Ellis North America United Kingdom Tel. +1 312 515 2249 Tel. +44 (0)758 106 1696 mediarelations@cnh.com Attachments Thumzup app users can now get paid to post about DiBella Sub locations across New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Connecticut Los Angeles, CA, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Thumzup Media Corporation ("Thumzup" or the "Company") (OTCQB: TZUP), an innovator in social media branding and marketing solutions, is excited to welcome 43 DiBellas Subs locations across New York, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Ohio and Connecticut to its growing roster of partners on the Companys proprietary cash rewards platform. DiBellas Subs, known for its delicious subs and exceptional service, now offers customers the opportunity to earn cash rewards for sharing their experiences on social media through the Thumzup app. This exciting partnership enables DiBellas Subs customers to easily order their favorite subs from any of the 43 locations and get rewarded for promoting the brand on social media. We are excited to further our national footprint as we continue our nationwide expansion efforts, said Robert Steele, CEO and Founder of Thumzup. This collaboration is a testament to DiBellas Subs' commitment to innovation and customer engagement. By leveraging our platform, we aim to enhance their reach and reward loyal customers for their advocacy. It's a win-win for both the brand and its fans. The Thumzup app is available for download on the App Store and Google Play . About DiBellas Subs DiBellas Subs is a beloved sandwich shop known for its freshly baked bread, quality ingredients, and friendly service. With locations spanning across New York, Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Connecticut, DiBellas Subs prides itself on creating memorable dining experiences for its customers. For more information, please visit https://www.dibellas.com . About Thumzup Thumzup Media Corporation (Thumzup) is democratizing the multi-billion dollar social media branding and marketing industry. Its flagship product, the Thumzup platform, utilizes a robust programmatic advertiser dashboard coupled with a consumer-facing App to enable individuals to get paid cash for posting about participating advertisers on major social media outlets through the Thumzup App. The easy-to-use dashboard allows advertisers to programmatically customize their campaigns. Cash payments are made to App users/creators through PayPal and other digital payment systems. Thumzup was featured on CBS News Los Angeles and is a publicly traded company (OTCQB stock ticker: TZUP). For more information, please visit https://www.thumzupmedia.com . Legal Disclaimer This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include, without limitation, statements about its potential growth, impacts on the advertising industry, plans for potential uplisting, and planned expansion. These statements are identified by the use of the words "could," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "estimate," "expect," "may," "continue," "predict," "potential," "project" and similar expressions that are intended to identify forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this press release. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Although we believe that our plans, objectives, expectations and intentions reflected in or suggested by the forward-looking statements are reasonable, we can give no assurance that these plans, objectives, expectations or intentions will be achieved. Forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond our control) and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from historical experience and present expectations or projections. Actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and the trading price for our common stock may fluctuate significantly. Forward-looking statements also are affected by the risk factors described in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. Contact Info investors@thumzupmedia.com 800-403-6150 Attachment CEDARVILLE, OHIO, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Success begins with great ideas. Dr. Kary Oberbrunner, Berry Chair and assistant professor of entrepreneurship at Cedarville University, encourages his students to generate, pitch and pursue ideas. Gladys Cerrato, a senior marketing major, responded by proposing the translation of Oberbrunners book, Day Job to Dream Job, into Spanish to expand his international influence. Cerrato, from Juticalpa, Honduras, has dreamed of owning her own business since she was 12 years old. When she read Oberbrunners book, she realized her dream of becoming an entrepreneur could become a reality. I realized I could succeed and become an owner, an entrepreneur, after reading Dr. Oberbrunners book, said Cerrato. I came away inspired and motivated to help others from my country discover their potential. Thats when she shared the idea of translating the book into Spanish. The e-book is scheduled for release on July 9 and Oberbrunner plans on partnering with Cerrato on the Spanish translations of his other 14 books. In the meantime, hes mentoring her about business best practices, marketing strategies and pitfalls to avoid as a new future business owner. Cerrato completed the translation with the help of artificial intelligence (AI), a tool Oberbrunner encourages his students to utilize. He teaches his students that AI is an innovative technology that can and should be leveraged for success in many situations. Determined to equip others in Spanish-speaking countries, she pitched the idea to Oberbrunner, who immediately encouraged Cerrato to move forward with her book translation vision. When Gladys approached me with her idea, it took less than five seconds to say yes, said Oberbrunner. I knew Gladys could have an impact on Spanish speaking entrepreneurs and that she could turn her talent for translation into a future business when she graduates. Because of Oberbrunners ability to draw on his own success as an entrepreneur, he is always looking for ways to give his students a boost when they show real initiative. In Cerratos case, he was able to take what would have been a project and turned it into a future business opportunity. Oberbrunner also shares his experience as a Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author of more than a dozen books with his students. Along with his role at Cedarville University, he also serves as the CEO of Igniting Souls and Blockchain Life in which he promotes intellectual property and turns it into 18 streams of revenue. He's also a screenwriter and inventor, and he's been featured on CBS, Entrepreneur, FOX News and Yahoo. I want to give my students the gift of belief and self-confidence. Learning and using new tools helps to that end, said Oberbrunner. Cerrato has big dreams and sees this as the first step toward building a business focused on making great resources available to more people through translation. Her plan is to officially launch her business after graduation. Located in southwest Ohio, Cedarville University is a Baptist university with undergraduate programs in arts, sciences, and professional programs, and graduate programs including the Bachelor of Arts in Marketing. With an enrollment of 5,456 students in 175 areas of study, Cedarville is one of the largest private universities in Ohio and is recognized nationally for its authentic Christian community, rigorous academic programs, and high graduation and retention rates. For more information about the University, visit cedarville.edu. By Rich Stratton, Assistant Director of Public Relations Photo Captions 1- Dr. Kary Oberbrunner and Gladys Cerrato are excited to share Day Job to Dream Job in Spanish. 2- Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author Kary Oberbrunners book Day Job to Dream Job in Spanish. Photos by Rich Stratton Attachments New York, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blank Rome LLP is pleased to announce that Jeffrey Jeff A. Fickes and Christopher Chris J. DePizzo have joined the firms New York office as partners in the Corporate, M&A, and Securities group. They bring extensive experience representing businesses and investors throughout the United States and internationally in private equity (PE) transactions, mergers and acquisitions (M&A), and other corporate matters. Jeff and Chris join Blank Rome from Ballard Spahr where Jeff co-led the private equity group and served as a member of the firms senior leadership team. Jeff and Chris join Blank Rome during a period of exciting strategic growth. In May, the firm opened its Boston office with a 25-attorney team with leading corporate, finance, M&A, tax, litigation, and cannabis practices, and several weeks later expanded with three additional corporate and transactional attorneys. We are delighted to welcome Jeff and Chris to our firm and growing corporate team, said Grant S. Palmer, Blank Romes Chair and Managing Partner. They are both highly regarded corporate attorneys who have successfully handled complex and sophisticated transactions for their clients. Jeff also has significant business experience that provides him with unique perspective as a lawyer and enables him to build deep relationships with his clients. We are excited by the momentum in our Corporate, M&A, and Securities group and look forward to continued growth to support our clients. Jeff brings decades of experience in business to his role as a trusted adviser to his clients, which include investors as well as company owners, boards, and senior executives. He has served as lead counsel on domestic and international mergers, acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, PE, venture capital, recapitalization, debt and equity financing, and other strategic transactions, as well as corporate governance and organizational matters. Jeff grew up in a closely held business environment, and before entering private legal practice he held corporate financial management positions in both public and private companies, including a Fortune 500 company. Chris has extensive experience advising private equity firms and their portfolio companies, along with other public and private companies, on a broad range of complex transactions, including platform and add-on acquisitions, leveraged buyouts, carve-outs, strategic mergers, minority and emerging company investments, dispositions, special situations transactions, and joint ventures. He also counsels clients on various general commercial, corporate, and governance matters. He has handled transactions involving and has represented companies spanning the corporate life cycle, from innovative start-ups to international market leaders. Jeff and Chris are outstanding additions to our experienced team of dealmakers, said Louis M. Rappaport, partner and co-chair of the Corporate, M&A, and Securities group. They have impressive track records of advising clients on a wide range of transactional matters, and their experience will be instrumental in helping our clients navigate the complexities of deal-making as we embrace the dynamic opportunities of the second half of 2024. Blank Rome is highly regarded for its corporate bench and capabilities in mergers, acquisitions, and private equity transactions, which will complement my practice, said Jeff. I was also drawn to Blank Rome for the firm's diverse practice areas and strategic office locations, particularly in markets outside of New York such as Chicago, Dallas, and Houston where I have strong client relationships. I look forward to serving clients from Blank Romes national platform and contributing to the firms success. I am excited to join Blank Rome and work with my talented new colleagues across the firm, said Chris. Blank Rome has a strong reputation for providing high-quality legal services and strategic business counsel to its clients. The firm also has a collaborative and supportive culture that fosters professional growth and development. I am eager to broaden the work we do for clients at Blank Rome. Jeff has completed Harvard Law Schools Leadership of Law Firms program and earned his J.D. from The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law, his MBA (finance concentration) from The Ohio State University Fisher College of Business where he was the Banc One Capital Fellow and a member of Beta Gamma Sigma Honors Fraternity, and his B.S. in Accounting from The University of Akron. Chris earned his J.D. from University of Pennsylvania Law School, his Certificate in Business and Public Policy from University of Pennsylvania Wharton School of Business, and his B.A., summa cum laude, from Saint Peters University. About Blank Rome Blank Rome is an Am Law 100 firm with 16 offices and 750 attorneys and principals who provide comprehensive legal and advocacy services to clients operating in the United States and around the world. Our professionals have built a reputation for their leading knowledge and experience across a spectrum of industries and are recognized for their commitment to pro bono work in their communities. Since our inception in 1946, Blank Romes culture has been dedicated to providing top-level service to all of our clients and has been rooted in the strength of our diversity and inclusion initiatives. For more information, please visit blankrome.com. ### Attachments LOS ANGELES, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Daves Hot Chicken, the scrappy late-night pop-up turned hot chicken sensation, today announced that UK & Ireland residents will soon have the chance to enjoy some of the best hot chicken on the planet. Daves Hot Chicken has signed an agreement with Azzurri Group to open 60 locations, with the first location planned to open in London by Q1 2025. Azzurri Group is one of the UKs largest and most successful hospitality investment platforms. The Group operates two leading national Italian full-service brands, Zizzi and ASK Italian, the UKs leading quick-service Italian, Coco di Mama and renowned Irish fast casual Mexican restaurant brand Boojum. Azzurri employs nearly 6,000 people, serving over 15 million meals annually across its portfolio of more than 230 restaurants and stores. When we first tried Daves Hot Chicken we were blown away as it makes some of the most craveable and delicious food weve ever had, said Steve Holmes, CEO of Azzurri Group. Were excited to bring this incredible brand to the UK and to be their partner in this ambitious roll-out. We know there is an opportunity to make Daves Hot Chicken one of the iconic restaurant brands, and we do that by partnering with incredible operators, like Azzurri Group, said Bill Phelps, CEO of Daves Hot Chicken. The flavor of Daves Hot Chicken resonates across borders, and were looking forward to the first UK store getting open soon. Daves Hot Chicken is one of the fastest growing restaurant brands in US history, and is a social media sensation with 2.4m TikTok followers and 1.2m followers on Instagram, supported by market-leading Google customer reviews. The brand has broad consumer appeal with the core customer base being Gen Z and Millennial males. Daves Hot Chicken specializes in jumbo Hot Chicken Sliders, Tenders and Bites, along with sides of house-made Kale Slaw, creamy Mac & Cheese and crispy, seasoned French Fries. Offered at seven spice levels ranging from No Spice to Reaper (which requires a signed waiver for those who dare), each piece of juicy, hand-breaded chicken is spiced-to-order. In early 2024, the company also introduced Daves NOT Chicken, the brands take on hot, juicy and crispy Cauliflower Sliders and Cauliflower Bites. Each store is popping with eye-catching colour and energy, with exclusively designed LA-based street art reflecting the connection with the parking lot where the brand began. About Daves Hot Chicken In a modern-day American dream story, three childhood friends, Chef Dave Kopushyan, Arman Oganesyan and Tommy Rubenyan, scraped together $900 to launch Daves Hot Chicken in a parking lot, portable fryers and folding tables in tow, in 2017. Daves Hot Chicken quickly took off, opening an East Hollywood brick-and-mortar restaurant shortly after, with support from Tommys brother, Gary. In 2019, the team struck a deal with Wetzels Pretzels co-founder and former CEO, Bill Phelps, to begin franchising the Daves Hot Chicken concept, with Billboards Artist of the Decade, Drake, investing in the brand as well alongside other celebrities including Samuel L. Jackson and Usher. With over 200 restaurants now open, the company has sold the rights to more than 700 franchise locations in the U.S., Middle East and Canada and will open 90-plus locations this year. Harkening back to an Eater LA blog that helped propel early interest in the brand, the companys mission is to blow their minds. About The Azzurri Group Azzurri Group is one of the UKs largest and most successful hospitality investment platforms. We operate two leading national Italian full-service brands, Zizzi and ASK Italian, the UKs leading quick-service Italian, Coco di Mama and renowned Irish fast casual Mexican restaurant brand Boojum. Azzurri employs nearly 6,000 people, serving over 15 million meals annually in our growing estate of over 230 restaurants and stores. Across all of our brands we focus on what really matters to our customers a memorable experience, high-quality food, great people, and beautifully designed restaurants and stores. The service is personal, the food delicious and the whole experience leaves you wanting more. Media Contact Joshua Levitt PR for Daves Hot Chicken josh@fikacollective.com Ben Foster PR for Azzurri Group ben.foster@powerscourt-group.com A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/ebfa5c3e-3b87-4428-a7cb-108794c7f315 German Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck inaugurates new biomass power plant Ingelheim site can cover 95% of its energy needs from renewable sources New power plant helps achieve the companys global climate targets and saves around 50,000 tons of CO 2 per year Boehringer Ingelheim inaugurated a biomass power plant at its Ingelheim site on Monday. With the new power plant, Boehringer Ingelheim is optimizing its energy supply and protecting the environment at the same time: Around 50,000 tons of CO 2 are saved per year. The CO 2 emissions of the site's own energy generation are reduced by 70%. In total, the company is investing EUR 205 million in sustainable infrastructure projects in Ingelheim and will be able to cover 95% of its energy requirements at the site from renewable sources in the future. The Vice Chairman of the Board of Managing Directors, Michael Schmelmer, described the commissioning as a "significant milestone" for Boehringer Ingelheim and explained: "Part of our sustainability goals is to protect natural resources so that our earth remains a place worth living in for people and animals. With an environmentally friendly and more independent energy supply, we are ensuring stable production in order to be able to deliver medications for patients worldwide." The ceremonial inauguration was attended by the German Vice Chancellor and Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck and Rhineland-Palatinate Environment Minister Katrin Eder. Federal Minister for Economic Affairs and Climate Action Robert Habeck said: "The decarbonization of all areas of our economy is necessary in order to achieve global climate targets on the one hand and a reduction in energy imports on the other. Boehringer Ingelheim is a good example of this. The company uses renewable energies for production. It trains and attracts talents as an attractive employer. Last but not least, it invests heavily in research and development, thus contributing to better healthcare and future proofing of the site." Biomass is an important source of renewable energy and is considered almost CO 2 neutral. The waste wood used as fuel in Ingelheim is a waste product. It comes from the Rhine-Main area and is controlled according to strict quality standards. Further measures for CO 2 neutrality by 2030 The company has set itself the goal of making its business operations CO 2 neutral by 2030. To this end, many individual projects are being implemented to save energy worldwide. By constructing more energy-efficient buildings, for example, the company has so far been able to save around 25% percent of its energy needs per square meter of floor space in Ingelheim. In Ingelheim, the company has also been operating its own solar park since 2023. Several other Boehringer Ingelheim sites are already certified as carbon neutral, for example in Dortmund (Germany), Gainesville (USA), Zhangjian (China) or Sant Cugat (Spain). About Boehringer Ingelheim Boehringer Ingelheim is a biopharmaceutical company active in both human and animal health. As one of the industrys top investors in Research and Development, the company focuses on developing innovative therapies in areas of high unmet medical need. Independent since its foundation in 1885, Boehringer takes a long-term perspective, embedding sustainability along the entire value chain. More than 53,500 employees serve over 130 markets to build a healthier, more sustainable, and equitable tomorrow. Learn more at www.boehringer-ingelheim.com . Attachments VAIL, Colo., July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Orthopaedic surgeon Kris Alden, M.D., Ph.D., who specializes in joint replacement surgery and treating hip and knee arthritis and related disorders, joined The Steadman Clinic surgical staff on July 1. Dr. Aldens medical background includes education and training at prominent medical institutions including Mayo Clinic and Johns Hopkins University. He joins the team from the Fort Myers, Florida, area, where he practiced after many years serving in his native Chicago region. Dr. Alden will be seeing patients at the clinics located in the Steadman Philippon Orthopaedic Center in Basalt and Aspen Valley Hospital. Bringing an outstanding hip and knee specialist such as Dr. Alden into our roster continues to strengthen our team of surgeons here at The Steadman Clinic, said Marc Philippon, M.D., managing partner of The Steadman Clinic and chair of Steadman Philippon Research Institute (SPRI). Dr. Alden provides us with an outstanding hip and knee surgeon in Aspen and Basalt and adds significant expertise and experience to our talented group of surgeons and doctors there. We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Kris Alden to our community, said Dave Ressler, CEO at Aspen Valley Hospital. Dr. Aldens extensive expertise in comprehensive hip and knee care, combined with his commitment to patient-centered care, will significantly enhance our ability to provide top-tier orthopaedic services. His innovative approach and dedication to restoring patients mobility align well with our mission to deliver extraordinary healthcare. We look forward to the positive impact he will bring to our community. Dr. Aldens emphasis on patient care makes him a perfect fit. When I first talked to the physicians at Steadman, I was extremely impressed with not only the clinical expertise of the group, but also their overall dedication to outstanding patient care, said Dr. Alden. The extremely high caliber of orthopaedic care that they offer to patients is something that I strongly believe in and want to be a part of. Dr. Aldens background includes training at a number of very prestigious and respected universities and clinics. A graduate of the University of Chicago, he later completed a highly competitive dual degree program in which he received his M.D. and Ph.D. (biophysics) concurrently at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Following medical school, Dr. Alden trained in orthopaedic surgery at The Johns Hopkins Hospital in Baltimore. During his final year of residency at Johns Hopkins, he served as chief resident. Upon completion of his residency, he began his fellowship in hip and knee reconstruction surgery at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. As a fellow-in-training at Mayo Clinic, he worked with some of the best surgeons worldwide in the latest approaches to hip and knee replacement, minimally invasive surgery and complex revision hip and knee replacements. Years of an academic and private practice followed near his suburban Chicago hometown of Hinsdale, Illinois, after which he moved to southwest Florida to live and work near his retired parents. I was in the Chicago area for school and work for most of my life and really wanted to try something new. My parents were my focus and, like a lot of Chicagoans, they had retired to Florida. They needed some help healthwise, so that's why I moved down there for the last several years. The opportunity to move to The Steadman Clinic was a prospect that Dr. Alden could not turn down. Dr. Aldens surgical skills and approach to his practice complement The Steadman Clinics mission and philosophy. With a particular interest in using innovative techniques, he strives to achieve the best results for active patients with hip and knee arthritis, offering both non-surgical and surgical treatments to resolve pain and restore function. I believe that life is about movement, mobility and fitness, said Dr. Alden. And a sedentary lifestyle can lead to multiple detrimental health implications. I love what we are able to accomplish with hip and knee replacement procedures because that enables people to become more active and get back to doing the activities that they enjoy, which is what life is about. Dr. Alden is also known for his customization techniques in knee replacement surgeries. I found that customizing the surgery, tailoring it to each individual patient, is an effective way to help them achieve their recovery goals, said Dr. Alden. Patient-specific instrumentation is a mechanism that we can basically customize the total knee to fit each patient individually and adjust for their sizes, anatomic dimensions and deformity so we can correct it in an optimal way. Hip and knee replacement is one of the most successful procedures in all of medicine, continued Dr. Alden. There are obviously a lot of ways to achieve the desired outcome, but I happen to really believe in this technology and the rapid recovery associated with newer techniques in hip and knee replacements. I think it's a fabulous way to offer patients a rapid recovery and a relatively simple way to achieve their overall mobility goals and rehabilitation. Dr. Alden also looks forward to working side-by-side with the doctors and researchers at SPRI as he makes the move to the Roaring Fork Valley. I did my Ph.D. in biophysics and I've always enjoyed research, noted Dr. Alden. I think it's a way to help advance the field of orthopaedics by answering questions and doing clinical trials. Having access to a world-class research facility is just a phenomenal part of the position at The Steadman Clinic and I'm thrilled to be a part of it. For further information, contact Lynda Sampson, vice president of external affairs at The Steadman Clinic/SPRI (lsampson@sprivail.org). Attachment MBABANE After completing tertiary education, nearly everyone aspires to get employed, but others have been waiting for over 20 years for this opportunity. These are some of the poignant stories that were shared by some of the unemployed people, who were interviewed by this reporter. Eswatini is among the countries whose unemployment rate remains relatively high, as it increased by 2.1 per cent from 33.3 per cent to 35.4 per cent in 2023. Graduates This is according to the Integrated Labour Force Survey 2023, which was officially released by the Minister of Labour and Social Security, Phila Buthelezi, early this year. In an interview with this publication, some of the graduates disclosed that they had reached middle age. In contrast, others are now 50 years old, which is a difficult time to prove to hiring managers that they could do more of the things that are important to the employer. Sleeping with depression and waking up with sadness and feeling useless is a common factor among most of those who are unemployed. There are currently 793 614 people of working age in the country but those who are employed are about 260 356. Unemployment Swaziland Unemployed Peoples Movements (SUPMO) Lucky Dlamini said Eswatini is the fourth country with the highest unemployment rate in the world. This, he said, was a catastrophe, considering the size of the population of 1.2 million. Dlamini said SUPMO has always been advocating for the country to look deeply into its policies and amend them to address urgently the huge unemployment rate. He said there was a need to quickly resolve the economic crisis and inequalities by having a political will to create a redistribution of the economic programme. Furthermore, he said there were about 63 per cent of people who were living below the poverty line. Such, he said, was a bad situation with devastating effects. OAK RIDGE, N.C., July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Oak Ridge Financial Services, Inc. (Oak Ridge; the Company) (OTCPink: BKOR), the parent company of Bank of Oak Ridge (the Bank), officially announces the promotion of Kevin Reid to Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President. I am delighted to share that Kevin Reid has been promoted to Chief Financial Officer and Senior Vice President of Bank of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Financial Services, Inc., said Thomas W. Wayne, CEO. With an extensive background in accounting and auditing in the financial services industry, Kevin has played a unique and pivotal role in enhancing the Banks financial health and strengthening our risk position. Reid joined Bank of Oak Ridge in May 2021 and served as Controller and Vice President prior to his promotion. He is a North Carolina Certified Public Accountant with a Bachelor of Business Administration Degree in Accounting from Radford University. He has more than a decade of experience in public accounting and auditing. Reid serves as the Banks Information Security Officer and will maintain this role in conjunction with his promotion to CFO. He also serves as one of four trustees for Bank of Oak Ridges Employee Stock Ownership Plan. Kevin has demonstrated exemplary leadership of the Accounting and Information Technology Departments. He has made notable contributions to both areas with respect to risk mitigation, regulatory and financial reporting, and information and cybersecurity controls, said Thomas W. Wayne, CEO. He is distinctly qualified to serve the Bank as CFO, and we are excited for the diverse skillset and experience he will bring to the role. Wayne has served as the Banks CFO since the Bank founding in 2000 until present, along with serving as President since 2016 and CEO since 2019. Following Reids promotion, Wayne will continue to lead the Bank in his present role as CEO and as a member of the Bank and Companys Board of Directors. As our Bank continues to grow, it is time for my role to evolve. I am honored to pass the CFO baton to Kevin, allowing me to fully focus on my role as Chief Executive Officer, said Thomas W. Wayne, CEO. About Oak Ridge Financial Services, Inc. Bank of Oak Ridge is an employee-owned community bank that delivers Spectacularly Local banking. Based in the Triad, our local decision makers know you by name and provide personalized, 5-star client service. Plus, we offer all the bells and whistles to ensure your banking experience is easy, safe, and convenient. If youre ready for a new or additional banking partner, we make it easy to switch. For more information, give us a call or visit one of our convenient locations in Greensboro, High Point, Summerfield, and Oak Ridge. Oak Ridge Financial Services, Inc. (OTC Pink: BKOR) is the holding company for Bank of Oak Ridge. Bank of Oak Ridge is a member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender. Awards & Recognitions | 500+ 5-Star Reviews | American Bankers Top 100 | Top SBA Lender in NC Banking for Business & Personal | Mobile & Online Banking | Digital Wallet | Worldwide ATM | Debit, Credit & Rewards | Checking, Savings & Money Market | Loans & SBA | Mortgage | Insurance | Wealth Management Lets Talk | 336.644.9944 | www.BankofOakRidge.com | Extended ITM Hours: Live Banker Assistance at all Triad Locations Forward-looking Information This release contains certain forward-looking statements with respect to the financial condition, results of operations and business of the Company. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties and are based on the beliefs and assumptions of management of the Company and on the information available to management at the time that these disclosures were prepared. These statements can be identified by the use of words like expect, anticipate, estimate and believe, variations of these words and other similar expressions. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a number of important factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially include, but are not limited to, (1) competition in the Companys markets, (2) changes in the interest rate environment, (3) general national, regional or local economic conditions may be less favorable than expected, resulting in, among other things, a deterioration in credit quality and the possible impairment of collectability of loans, (4) legislative or regulatory changes, including changes in accounting standards, (5) significant changes in the federal and state legal and regulatory environment and tax laws, and (6) the impact of changes in monetary and fiscal policies, laws, rules and regulations. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements. NEW YORK, July 08, 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 are investigating PlayAGS, Incorporated (NYSE: AGS), relating to its proposed merger with affiliates of Brightstar Capital Partners (Brightstar), a middle market private equity firm. Under the terms of the agreement, AGS shareholders will receive $12.50 per share in cash for each share of common stock owned as of the closing of the transaction. ACT AS SOON AS POSSIBLE: The Shareholder Vote is scheduled for August 6, 2024. Click here for more information https://monteverdelaw.com/case/playags-incorporated/. 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 Attorney Advertising. (C) 2024 Monteverde & Associates PC. The law firm responsible for this advertisement is Monteverde & Associates PC (www.monteverdelaw.com). Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome with respect to any future matter. NORFOLK, Va., July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The new Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University (ODU) establishes the Commonwealth of Virginias largest academic health sciences center. Launched this month, Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences is a result of Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS) integrating with ODU. The integration brings five academic colleges and schools together into Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University: Eastern Virginia Medical School (EVMS); Ellmer College of Health Sciences; Ellmer School of Nursing; EVMS School of Health Professions; and the proposed Joint School of Public Health (awaiting approval by the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia and the Council on Education for Public Health), a partnership with Norfolk State University. The launch is just the beginning of our continued journey that will mark lasting impact, sustained improvement and positive momentum in the fundamental areas of education, research and clinical care throughout our region and the commonwealth, ODU President Brian O. Hemphill, Ph.D., said. As the largest academic health sciences center in the state, we offer more programs, enroll more students and produce more graduates. EVMS brings its rich 50-year history as a medical school founded by the community, for the community, to ODU, a Research 1 (R1) institution classified by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. By integrating with ODU, nearly 2,195 EVMS employees became state employees and more than 1,440 students became Monarchs. In a letter to campus, President Hemphill wrote, As we have successfully secured all required approvals, most notably from the Commonwealth of Virginia and the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges, the launch marks a transformational moment in the storied history of our great institution with the official establishment and first day of Macon & Joan Brock Virginia Health Sciences at Old Dominion University. It is a direct result of nearly three years of unwavering collaboration, true partnership and hard work at both the individual and collective levels across our campus and the community. In a recent video message to EVMS, Alfred Abuhamad, M.D., now serving as ODUs executive vice president for health sciences and dean of Eastern Virginia Medical School, acknowledged the hard work and investment of talent and time by faculty and staff. Because of you and your dedication to our shared ideals, your faith in our promise we stand today on the shoulders of our founders and all who came before us empowered to shape a future that is stronger and healthier for our entire community and even beyond, he said. The integration was achieved through the leadership and support of Governor Glenn Youngkin and Virginias General Assembly, including The Honorable Sen. L. Louise Lucas and The Honorable Del. Barry D. Knight, who served as chief co-patrons of the enabling legislation. The General Assembly allocated $65 million for operations in the 2024-26 biennium budget. Sentara Health is a committed partner to the integration, dedicating approximately $350 million in funding over the next decade to ensure high-quality training for the next generation of healthcare professionals. On June 7, the University announced two major gifts of support totaling $40 million. Dennis and Jan Ellmer committed $20 million to provide scholarships for students pursuing health sciences degrees at ODU. The awards, through the Dennis & Jan Ellmer Health Scholars Program and the Dennis & Jan Ellmer Nursing Scholars Program, represent a unique mix of both need- and merit-based criteria. Within a decade of operation, the Ellmer Health Scholars Program alone will provide a total of $3.3 million in direct support of 275 total scholarship awards in both new and renewable formats. The academic health sciences center bears the name of the late Macon Brock and his wife, Joan Brock, whose generous gift of $20 million established the Brock Opportunity Scholarship for medical students. The scholarship will support promising students with financial need who live in Virginia, are interested in caring for underserved populations, and plan to practice in Hampton Roads or Virginia upon completion of their residency or fellowship. ### ABOUT OLD DOMINION UNIVERSITY: Old Dominion University, located in Norfolk, is Virginia's forward-focused public doctoral research university with over 24,000 students, a top R1 research ranking, rigorous academics, an energetic residential community and initiatives that contribute $2.6 billion annually to Virginia's economy. Attachment Press Release VELIZY-VILLACOUBLAY, France July 8, 2024 Declaration of the number of outstanding shares and voting rights as of June 30, 2024 Dassault Systemes (Euronext Paris: FR0014003TT8, DSY.PA) today announced below the total number of its outstanding shares and voting rights as of June 30, 2024, according to articles 223-16 and 221-3 of the General Regulation of the Autorite des marches financiers. Number of outstanding shares: 1,339,093,392 Number of voting rights*: 2,013,026,170 *The total number of voting rights is calculated on the basis of the total number of outstanding shares, even if the voting rights attached thereto are suspended, pursuant to Article 223-11 of the General Regulation of the Autorite des marches financiers relating to the method for calculating the percentages of holdings in shares and in voting rights. We invite our shareholders to refer to this article should they need to declare crossing of thresholds. Declarations related to crossing of threshold must be sent to: Dassault Systemes, Investor Relations Service, 10, rue Marcel Dassault, CS 40501, 78946 Velizy-Villacoublay Cedex (France). E-mail address: Investors@3ds.com ### ABOUT DASSAULT SYSTEMES Dassault Systemes is a catalyst for human progress. We provide business and people with collaborative virtual environments to imagine sustainable innovations. By creating virtual twin experiences of the real world with our 3DEXPERIENCE platform and applications, our customers can redefine the creation, production and life-cycle-management processes of their offer and thus have a meaningful impact to make the world more sustainable. The beauty of the Experience Economy is that it is a human-centered economy for the benefit of all consumers, patients and citizens. Dassault Systemes brings value to more than 350,000 customers of all sizes, in all industries, in more than 150 countries. For more information, visit www.3ds.com Dassault Systemes Investor Relations Team FTI Consulting Beatrix Martinez: Arnaud de Cheffontaines: +33 1 47 03 69 48 +33 1 61 62 40 73 / 69 24 Jamie Ricketts: +44 20 3727 1600 investors@3ds.com Tom Blundell: +44 20 3727 1600 Dassault Systemes Press Contacts Corporate / France Arnaud Malherbe: +33 1 61 62 87 73 arnaud.malherbe@3ds.com Dassault Systemes. All rights reserved. 3DEXPERIENCE, the 3DS logo, the Compass icon, IFWE, 3DEXCITE, 3DVIA, BIOVIA, CATIA, CENTRIC PLM, DELMIA, ENOVIA, GEOVIA, MEDIDATA, NETVIBES, OUTSCALE, SIMULIA and SOLIDWORKS are commercial trademarks or registered trademarks of Dassault Systemes, a European company (Societas Europaea) incorporated under French law, and registered with the Versailles trade and companies registry under number 322 306 440, or its subsidiaries in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners. Use of any Dassault Systemes or its subsidiaries trademarks is subject to their express written approval. Attachment VANCOUVER - - July 8, 2024 - Giant Mining Corp. (CSE: BFG) | (OTC: BFGFF) | (FWB: YW5) ("Giant Mining" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it has engaged Big Sky Exploration, LLC ("Big Sky") of Eureka, Nevada for diamond core drilling (the "Core Program") at the Majuba Hill Porphyry Copper Deposit ("Majuba Hill"), a copper, silver, and gold project located in Pershing County, Nevada. Big Sky will undertake the Core Program, which plans to drill a minimum of 1,600 feet (488 meters) of core drilling within the existing exploration target area. The contract does not specify a maximum drilling requirement, allowing for flexibility in the execution of the project. Additionally, the Company is also contemplating drilling two deep core holes, each expected to reach depths of up to 3,500 feet (1,066 meters). Drilling operations are set to commence with the arrival of the drilling rig on July 15, 2024. David Greenway, CEO of Giant Mining Corp., commented on the new drilling contract, stating, "We are thrilled to announce that the core drilling contract has been awarded to Ben Sieben's team at Big Sky Exploration. This group effort marks the beginning of one of most exciting drill programs in recent memory for Giant Mining. Ben's team engages and implements modern mud technologies and engineering, leading to what we believe will be excellent recovery success. We are confident that their expertise and innovative approach will lead to significant discoveries and advancements for our company." Drilling will focus on the drill targets designed to expand the mineral potential at Majuba Hill, ensuring a comprehensive understanding of the deposit. The Core Program will provide detailed and accurate data that is crucial for delineating the extent and continuity of the copper, silver, and gold mineralization. As previously stated, this investment in drilling is essential for refining the geological model of Majuba Hill, significantly enhancing Giant Mining's resource evaluation efforts. The drilling data collected from these programs will enable the Company to update its resource estimates with greater precision, ultimately contributing to the advancement and economic assessment of the project. By thoroughly exploring and defining the mineral potential, the Company aims to optimize the development strategies for Majuba Hill, aligning with management's commitment to creating shareholder value through meticulous exploration and resource management. Click Image To View Full Size Figure 1: Giant Mining historic and planned core holes in blue. About Big Sky Exploration, LLC Big Sky Exploration, LLC, headquartered in Eureka, Nevada, was established from a genuine passion for diamond core drilling, bringing extensive expertise to the forefront of the mining industry. With a commitment to maximizing core recovery, Big Sky Exploration demonstrates unparalleled flexibility and adaptability to varying hole conditions. The company takes pride in delivering high-quality, cost-effective solutions tailored to meet the demands of the most challenging drilling environments. Qualified Person The scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by E.L. "Buster" Hunsaker III, CPG 8137, a non-independent consulting geologist who is a "Qualified Person" as such term is defined under National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43- 101"). About Giant Mining Corp. Giant Mining Corp. is engaged in the identification, review and acquisition of latter stage copper and copper/silver/gold assets. This is in direct response to the growing worldwide demand and lack of supply for precious metals fueled by the Green New Deal in the US and most other developed nations with similar programs aimed at addressing climate change. Such programs are heavily reliant on silver, gold and especially copper to produce Electric Vehicles and other renewable power sources, as well as building infrastructure to provide clean and affordable electricity. The flagship project is the Majuba Hill copper, silver and gold District located 156 miles (251 km) outside Reno, Nevada, USA. Management has been mandated to focus on safe, mining friendly jurisdictions where government regulations are supportive of mining operations. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its 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. On Behalf of the Board of Giant Mining Corp. "David Greenway" David C. Greenway President & CEO For further information, please contact: Joel Warawa VP of Corporate Communications E: info@giantminingcorp.com P: 1 (855) 475-0745 VISIT OUR WEBSITE FOR MORE DETAILS www.giantminingcorp.com LIKE AND FOLLOW Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn DOWNLOAD INVESTOR INFORMATION Click Here Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains certain statements that may be deemed "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 Giant Mining Corp. 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 forward looking statements. Forward looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of Giant Mining Corp. management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by law, Giant Mining Corp. undertakes no obligation to update these forward-looking statements in the event that management's beliefs, estimates or opinions, or other factors, should change. ### Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved. Vancouver, July 8, 2024 - Silver Elephant Mining Corp. (TSX: ELEF) (OTC Pink: SILEF) (FSE: 1P2) ("Silver Elephant" or the "Company") is pleased to announce it intends to begin phase one mining of sulphide materials this year at its Paca silver project in Potosi department in Bolivia. The company has completed design for a phase one underground mine plan at Paca aimed at extracting approximately 10,000 tonnes of mineralized materials. The objective is to generate cashflow, and verify the Paca resource model. The Paca sulphide project is outside the of scope of the oxide sales and purchase agreement and master services agreement with Andean Precious Metals Corp. ("Andean") detailed in the news release dated September 12, 2023. Phase one of the project plan is expected to last approximately 5 months, beginning in September 2024, starting with the development of a 367-meter tunnel at level 0 with dimensions of 2.4 meters height x 2.5 meters width at a 1% inclination into the Paca dome mineralization. The total length of the tunnel will cross an estimated waste section of 160 meters and mineral section of 207 meters. The tunnel will provide access to the mineralized materials, which will be mined using the shrinkage stoping method. The two stopes are designed with approximate dimensions of 30 meters length x 20 meters height x 4 meters width at a targeted peak extraction rate of 150 tonnes per day from November 2024 to January of 2025. The expected average grade of extracted and sorted sulphide materials is 412 g/t Ag, 1.09% Pb, 0.38% Zn based on diamond drill holes at Paca and internally developed mine model. This material is contained within the Paca Resource estimate Several examples of high-grade intercepts within the engineered mineralized mining zone include: Hole ID From m To m Length m True Width m Ag g/t Pb % Zn % PND004 86 97 11 7.78 481 0.47 0.2 PND008 47 63 16 11.31 507 1.14 0.57 PND008 111.9 127 15.1 10.68 424 1.96 2.65 PND023 125 157 32 26.21 437 1.69 1 PND092 38 52 14 9.90 522 0.77 0.09 PND110 61 72 11 7.78 715 2.14 210 The full drill hole assay results have previously been released on SEDAR. Capital Expenditure, Processing, and Concentrate Sales The company owns the necessary underground mining equipment that is warehoused near Paca at the historic Pulacayo mine site. This will be used during phase one mining and will enable minimal startup procurement cost. The equipment inventory was stored there after the trial mining at Pulacayo by the previous operator in 2012. During Phase one, the Company will truck the mined materials from Paca to Potosi town for toll-milling. Potosi is located about 180 km to the east by paved road. The Company is finalizing agreements with custom mill facilities in Potosi to toll process mineralized materials to produce silver-bearing zinc and lead concentrates. The concentrates will then be sold to one of several major commodity traders active in Potosi. Tunnel development is expected to start in September with modest capital expenditure of under $200,000 on equipment refurbishment, labor, and consumables. The toll milling and revenue generation is forecast to start in November . The successful execution of the phase one plan could lead to full scale Paca open pit sulphide mining in 2025, in conjunction with Paca oxide operation, working in collaboration with Andean. Potosi Region Potosi town district hosts the Cerro Rico silver deposit and is home to about 100 privately owned, small-sized processing facilities (ranging from 50 to 500 tonnes per day capacity) that produce zinc and lead concentrates sold to many active commodity traders. Potosi department is one of most active silver producing region in the world. Majority of Bolivia's annual 40 million oz silver production came from Potosi department. About Pulacayo-Paca The Pulacayo - Paca silver-zinc-lead project, located in southern Bolivia, is situated near major mining projects operated by Andean Precious Metals Corp. (San Bartolome), Pan American Silver Corp. (San Vicente), and San Cristobal Mining Inc. (San Cristobal). The Paca project hosts a high grade silver resource according to a technical report by Mercator Geological Services, dated effective October 13, 2020 titled "Mineral Resource Estimate Technical Report for the Pulacayo Project, Potosi Department Antonnio Quijarro Province Bolivia" (the "Technical Report"). The report detailed 1.81 million tons of indicated resources with a grade of 256g/t Ag, 1.22% Pb, and 1.22% Zn (95% of its resources being within 100m from the surface). Additionally, it reported 190,000 tons of inferred resources grading 338g/t Ag, 0.98% Pb, and 0.61% Zn. Notably, the deposit remains open for expansion to the east, west, and at depth beyond the current resource definition boundaries. The mineral resource estimate from the Technical Report is as follows: Paca Zone Category Tonnes Ag g/t Ag Moz Zn% Pb % Phase 1 Oxide In Pit Indicated 800,000 231 5.9 - - Inferred 235,000 159 1.2 - - Phase 2 Sulphide In Pit Indicated 1,810,000 256 14.9 1.22 1.22 Inferred 190,000 338 2.1 0.61 0.98 Oxide resources are based on a Pit-constrained estimate using a 90 g/t Ag cutoff. Sulphide resources are based on a pit-constrained estimate using a 200 g/t Ag Eq cutoff. Ag Eq = Silver Equivalent (Recovered) = (Ag g/t*89.2%)+((Pb%*(US$0.95/lb. Pb/14.583 Troy oz./lb./US$17 per Troy oz. Ag)*(10,000*91.9%))+((Zn%*(US$1.16/lb. Zn/14.583 Troy oz./lb./US$17 per Troy oz. Ag)*(10,000*82.9%)). Sulphide zone metal recoveries of 89.2% for Ag, 91.9% for Pb, and 82.9% for Zn were used in the Silver Equivalent (Recovered) equation and reflect metallurgical testing results disclosed previously for the Pulacayo Deposit. Matthew Harrington P. Geo. is the independent Qualified Person for the resource estimate. The Technical Report was effective October 13, 2020 and is available under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. This news release includes an estimate of mineral resources as disclosed in the Technical Report. Mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9008/215700_166ae8dd54ebb925_001full.jpg To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit: https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/9008/215700_166ae8dd54ebb925_002full.jpg QA/QC An industry standard Quality Assurance/Quality Control program was used during the various drill campaigns. All core and other samples were split with half being bagged, labelled and shipped directly to the laboratory. The other 50% split is retained in a secure facility. Both standards and blanks were inserted at regular intervals within each sample batch prior to shipment to the laboratory. These comprised 3-5% (depending on the phase of the drill campaign) of analyzed material. For further details, the reader is referred to the N.I. 43-101 cited above. Qualified Person The technical contents of this news release have been prepared under the supervision of Bill Pincus, who is an independent consultant of the Company. Mr. Pincus is a qualified person as defined by the guidelines of NI 43-101. About Silver Elephant Mining Corp. Silver Elephant is a silver mining company, with its flagship Pulacayo-Paca silver project in production since October 2023 in Bolivia. Further information on Silver Elephant can be found at www.silverelef.com. SILVER ELEPHANT MINING CORP. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "John Lee" CEO For more information about Silver Elephant, please contact Investor Relations: +1.604.569.3661 ext. 101 info@silverelef.com www.silverelef.com FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION 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, are forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such forward-looking statements, which reflect management's expectations regarding the Company's future growth, results of operations, performance, business prospects and opportunities, 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. Forward-looking information in this news release include statements regarding the potential of the drilling results disclosed in this news release, and whether current interpretations of drilling results will be confirmed by future work. Forward-looking statements are based on expectations and reasonable assumptions by management as of the date of this news release, and are subject to risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied herein, including the results of any future drilling campaigns which may differ from the results expected by management, changes in the Company's exploration plans, commodity prices, supply and demand, the fact that mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability, the Company's requirements for additional capital, and general economic and market conditions. There can be no assurance that actual results will be consistent with any forward-looking statements included herein. Readers are cautioned that all forward-looking statements in this news release are made as of the date of this news release. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements in this news release to reflect circumstances or events that occur after the date of this news release, except as required by applicable securities laws. About Silver Elephant Mining Corp. Silver Elephant is a silver mining company, with its flagship Pulacayo-Paca silver project in production since October 2023 in Bolivia. Further information on Silver Elephant can be found at www.silverelef.com. SILVER ELEPHANT MINING CORP. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "John Lee" Executive Chairman For more information about Silver Elephant, please contact Investor Relations: +1.604.569.3661 ext. 101 info@silverelef.com www.silverelef.com Neither the TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215700 MANZINI Wisdom is like a rock; solid and unshakeable. Reverend Mfanaleni Mkhatshwa of the Sharpe Memorial Church of the Nazarene in Manzini, imparted this biblical message from Mathew 7: 24, to the recently-appointed National Commissioner (NATCOM) of Police, Vusi Manoma Masango. Surrounded by elders and clergy, the newly-appointed NATCOM, Masango, heard Reverend Mkhatshwas stirring words in the sanctuary of the Nazarene Church, his spiritual home, yesterday. Encircled At the altar of the church, the spiritual community encircled the newly-appointed NATCOM, forming a support of prayer and divine blessing. Reverend Mkhatshwa and the church elders enveloped Masango in a cocoon of faith, imploring the Almighty to guide and strengthen him in his new role. With the echoes of Matthew 7:24 reverberating within, this moment of devotion cast radiance over Masangos journey as the nations top cop. In fervent prayer, Reverend Mkhatshwa implored Gods glory to grant Masango with wisdom and leadership, ensuring that those he serves will listen and trust him. The Sharpe Memorial Church pledged unwavering support to Masango and the nation, vowing to lift the country in prayer. Meanwhile, during the sermon, Reverend Mkhatshwa shared the Scripture of Matthew 7:24, comparing the security of a house built on solid rock to the durability of wise leadership. He urged Masango to build his new role as NATCOM on a foundation of strength and integrity, weathering the storms ahead with the same resilience as a house built on a solid rock. As the clergyman delved deeper into the theme of building a strong foundation, he hypothesised the most critical factor in the churchs endurance when faced with storms: A rock-solid foundation. He alluded to that the church, like a mighty fortress, could withstand the tempests of life with a strong foundation, mirroring the power of a solid foundation in Masangos new role. Tribulations Even the mightiest kingdoms, such as ancient Israel, were not immune to the battering of trials and tribulations, Reverend Mkhatshwa reminded his congregation. He preached that from relentless foreign invasions to internal strife, the empires of old weathered the storms of conflict and chaos, with their survival often hinging on the strength of their foundations. Even the mightiest kingdoms can crumble if their foundation is not solid. We must all be like lightning arresters, diverting the danger and protecting our kingdoms from harm, Reverend Mkhatshwa preached. He drew parallels between ancient empires and modern leadership. With his words, the clergyman imparted a message to the newly-appointed NATCOM, Masango, to serve as a bastion of stability, deflecting turmoil and ensuring the safety and longevity of the nation.The man of God further shared that Abraham, abiding by Gods will in Genesis 22, erected an altar on Mount Moriah, the foundation stone at its base. Cornerstone According to the clergyman, this rock, revered by Christians, is said to be the very place where God created man. He said this altar served as the cornerstone of Abrahams faith, symbolising the steadfastness and strength of a foundation built on divine principles.The Sharpe Memorial Church, like a proud parent, offered its warmest congratulations to Masango as he embarked on his new role as NATCOM. The community of the Sharpe Memorial Church of the Nazarene, with Reverend Mkhatshwa at the helm, imparted a message to construct a foundation rooted in the unshakeable bedrock of faith and steadfastness, just as Abraham did on Mount Moriah. VANCOUVER, July 8, 2024 - Finlay Minerals Ltd. (TSXV: FYL) (OTCQB: FYMNF) ("Finlay" or the "Company") reports that all matters set before the Annual General and Special Meeting of Shareholders of the Company held on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 (the "Meeting") were approved by the shareholders. An aggregate of 71,401,894 common shares of the Company ("Common Shares") were voted representing 51.70% of the issued and outstanding Common Shares as at the Record Date of May 22, 2024. The six nominees for the Board of Directors were elected at the Meeting and they are: John A. Barakso, Robert F. Brown, Alvin W. Jackson, Ilona Barakso Lindsay, David A. Schwartz, and Kristina Walcott. Additionally, the reappointment of De Visser Gray LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants, as auditors for the Company and the Company's 10% Rolling Stock Option Plan were approved by shareholders. In addition, the Board of Directors at a Board meeting following the Meeting also re-appointed the following officers for a further year: Robert F. Brown President & Chief Executive Officer Gord Steblin Chief Financial Officer David Schwartz Corporate Secretary Wade Barnes Vice President, Exploration Ilona B. Lindsay Vice President, Corporate Relations. About Finlay Minerals Ltd. Finlay is a TSXV company focused on exploration for base and precious metal deposits on its four properties in northern British Columbia and trades under the symbol "FYL" on the TSXV and under the symbol "FYMNF" on the OTCQB. For further information and details, especially on our newly acquired high-grade copper & silver SAY Property, please visit the Company's website at www.finlayminerals.com On behalf of the Board of Directors, Robert F. Brown, P. Eng. President, CEO & Director 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 Information: This news release includes certain "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements in this news release that address events or developments that we expect to occur in the future are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts and are generally, although not always, identified by words such as "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "project", "target", "potential", "schedule", "forecast", "budget", "estimate", "intend" or "believe" and similar expressions or their negative connotations, or that events or conditions "will", "would", "may", "could", "should" or "might" occur. All such forward-looking statements are based on the opinions and estimates of management as of the date such statements are made. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements regarding, among others, corporate plans. Although Finlay 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 forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include market prices, exploration successes, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. These forward-looking statements are based on a number of assumptions including, among other things, assumptions regarding general business and economic conditions, the timing and receipt of regulatory and governmental approvals, the ability of Finlay and other parties to satisfy stock exchange and other regulatory requirements in a timely manner, the availability of financing for Finlay's proposed transactions and programs on reasonable terms, and the ability of third-party service providers to deliver services in a timely manner. 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. Finlay does not assume any obligation to update or revise its forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. SOURCE Finlay Minerals Ltd. Vancouver, July 8, 2024 - CopAur Minerals Inc. (TSXV: CPAU) (OTCQX: COPAF) ("CopAur" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has signed a non-binding indicative term sheet with Nevada Sunrise Metals Corp. ("Nevada Sunrise") to acquire Nevada Sunrise's 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Mountain Gold Project in Nevada ("Kinsley Project"). If the transaction is completed CopAur will own 100% of the Kinsley Project. The indicative term sheet outlines a potential transaction whereby CopAur will acquire Nevada Sunrises' 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project in consideration of the payment of CDN$475,000 and the issuance of 1,000,000 common shares of CopAur. The shares will be deposited in escrow and will be released in successive releases of 250,000 shares once every calendar quarter commencing after expiry of the four-month statutory hold period after the closing date. The terms are indicative, and the final terms are subject to the negotiation and completion of a definitive agreement on terms acceptable to CopAur and Nevada Sunrise. The transaction will be subject to several conditions including CopAur arranging a financing in the amount of a minimum of CDN$475,000, completion of satisfactory due diligence and the fulfilment of various closing conditions, including acceptance by the TSXV. Chief executive officer Jeremy Yaseniuk stated: "Acquiring the remaining 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project will provide us with full control over the project and the ability to concentrate our efforts on advancing this exciting project. We completed reverse circulation and diamond core drilling program in late 2023 at Kinsley Mountain within the Main Pit North area located one kilometre southeast of the Western Flank Zone which intersected high grade near-surface oxide gold intercepts with the gold hosting Dunderberg shale 75 metres outside the current resource pit shell providing opportunities for near pit resource expansion. We now hope to initiate the integrated exploration data analysis to further advance the understanding of the Kinsley Project mineralization that will increase the efficiency and robustness of future exploration, targeting resource definition and development work." The Kinsley Project hosts current mineral resources that CopAur is working to upgrade and expand. The Kinsley Project was a historical past producer that yielded 138,000 ounces of near-surface open-pit oxide gold between 1995 and 1999. A technical report on the Kinsley Project titled "Technical Report of the Kinsley Project, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, U.S.A.", dated June 21, 2021, with an effective date of May 5, 2021, prepared by Michael M. Gustin and Gary L. Simmons, is available for review under New Placer Dome Gold Corp.'s issuer profile on SEDAR+. About CopAur CopAur is an exploration company focused on developing projects within the emerging, mineral-rich mining regions of Nevada. The Company is backed by a dynamic and experienced team of resource professionals advancing its projects in Nevada with the flagship project being Kinsley Mountain gold property, a Carlin-style project located 90 kilometres south of the Long Canyon mine (currently in production under the Newmont/Barrick joint venture, Nevada Gold Mines). Qualified Person The scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Kristopher J. Raffle, P.Geo. (British Columbia), principal and consultant, of APEX Geoscience Ltd. of Edmonton, Alta., and a qualified person as defined in National Instrument 43-101 (Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects). For more information, please contact: CopAur Minerals Inc. Jeremy Yaseniuk, Chief Executive Officer & Director Tel: +1 (604) 773-1467 Email: jeremyy@CopAur.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. The securities under the financing referred to in this news release have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act, or the securities laws of any state of the United States and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, "U.S. persons" (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to an exemption from such registration requirements. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of any of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. Forward-Looking Information This news release contains forward-looking statements. These statements relate to future events or the Company's future performance including obtaining the necessary regulatory approvals for and completion of a definitive agreement with Nevada Sunrise to purchase its 18.74% ownership interest in the Kinsley Project. All such statements involve substantial known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results to vary from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements including negotiation and finalization of a definitive agreement and the satisfaction of all closing conditions to complete the transaction, including a condition for CopAur to raise sufficient financing for the transaction, completion of due diligence and the parties obtaining TSXV approval. Forward-Looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties, they should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and they will not necessarily be accurate indications of whether or not such results will be achieved. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated due to a number of factors and risks. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the Company believes are reasonable assumptions on the date of this news release, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date hereof and the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revised any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required under applicable securities regulations. Not for distribution to U.S. news wire services or dissemination in the United States To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/215665 VANCOUVER, July 8, 2024 - Nevada Sunrise Metals Corp. (TSXV: NEV) (OTCBB: NVSGF) ("Nevada Sunrise" or the "Company") announced today that it has signed a non-binding, indicative term sheet with CopAur Minerals Inc. ("CopAur") for CopAur to acquire Nevada Sunrise's remaining ownership interest in the Kinsley Mountain Gold Project in Nevada ("Kinsley Mountain"). If the transaction is completed, CopAur will own 100% of Kinsley Mountain. The indicative term sheet outlines a potential transaction whereby CopAur would acquire Nevada Sunrises' 18.74% ownership interest in Kinsley Mountain in consideration of the payment of CDN$475,000 and the issuance of 1,000,000 common shares of CopAur (the "Shares"). The Shares would be deposited in escrow and released in successive releases of 250,000 Shares once every calendar quarter commencing after expiry of the four-month statutory hold period following the closing date. The terms of the transaction are indicative and the final terms are subject to the negotiation and completion of a definitive agreement on terms acceptable to Nevada Sunrise and CopAur. The transaction is subject to a number of conditions including CopAur arranging a financing in the amount of a minimum of CDN$475,000, completion of satisfactory due diligence, and the fulfilment of various closing conditions, including acceptance by the TSX Venture Exchange. About Kinsley Mountain Kinsley Mountain was a historical past producer that yielded 138,000 ounces of near-surface, open-pit oxide gold between 1995 and 1999, and currently hosts a compliant National Instrument 43-101 mineral resource. A technical report on Kinsley Mountain entitled "Technical Report of the Kinsley Project, Elko and White Pine Counties, Nevada, U.S.A.", dated June 21, 2021, with an effective date of May 5, 2021, prepared by Michael M. Gustin and Gary L. Simmons, is available for review under New Placer Dome Gold Corp.'s issuer profile on sedarplus.ca About Nevada Sunrise Nevada Sunrise is a junior mineral exploration company with a strong technical team based in Vancouver, BC, Canada, that holds interests in lithium, gold and copper exploration projects located in the State of Nevada, USA. Nevada Sunrise owns 100% interests in the Gemini, Jackson Wash and Badlands lithium projects, all of which are located in the Lida Valley in Esmeralda County, NV, and in the Pelican lithium project in Saskatchewan, Canada. The Company owns Nevada Water Right Permit 86863, also located in the Lida Valley basin, near Gold Point, NV. Nevada Sunrise has the right to earn a 100% interest in the Coronado Copper Project, located approximately 48 kilometers (30 miles) southeast of Winnemucca, NV. The Company owns an 18.74% interest in the Kinsley Mountain Gold Project near Wendover, NV, in a joint venture with CopAur, which is now the subject of a potential transaction between Nevada Sunrise and CopAur. FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS This release may contain 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 and include disclosure of anticipated exploration activities. 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 forward looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date such statements were made. The Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Such factors include, among others, risks related to: the completion of the potential transaction with CopAur Minerals Inc. for the purchase of the Company's remaining participating interest in the Kinsley Mountain Gold Project joint venture; reliance on technical information provided by third parties on any of our exploration properties; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; current economic conditions; future prices of commodities; possible variations in grade or recovery rates; failure of equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; the failure of contracted parties to perform; labor disputes and other risks of the mining industry; delays due to pandemic; delays in obtaining governmental approvals, financing or in the completion of exploration, as well as those factors discussed in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the Six Months Ending March 31, 2024, which is available under Company's SEDAR profile at www.sedar.com. Although Nevada Sunrise has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events or results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Nevada Sunrise disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE Nevada Sunrise Metals Corporation MEDELLIN, July 8, 2024 - Mineros S.A. (TSX: MSA) (MINEROS:CB) ("Mineros" or the "Company") plans to release its second quarter 2024 financial and operating results on Wednesday, August 14, 2024. Senior management will host a conference call on Thursday, August 15, 2024, at 9:00 AM Eastern Daylight Time (8:00 AM Colombian Standard Time). Please register here to join us. About Mineros S.A. Mineros is a Latin American gold mining company headquartered in Medellin, Colombia. The Company has a diversified asset base, with mines in Colombia and Nicaragua and a pipeline of development and exploration projects throughout the region. The board of directors and management of Mineros have extensive experience in mining, corporate development, finance and sustainability. Mineros has a long track record of maximizing shareholder value and delivering solid annual dividends. For almost 50 years Mineros has operated with a focus on safety and sustainability at all its operations. Mineros' common shares are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "MSA", and on the Colombia Stock Exchange under the symbol "MINEROS". View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/mineros-sa-provides-notice-of-second-quarter-2024-conference-call-302190983.html SOURCE Mineros S.A. Vancouver, July 8, 2024 - Gitennes Exploration Inc. ("Gitennes" or the "Company") - (TSXV : GIT) announces a consolidation of its common shares (the "Consolidation") on the basis of one (1) post-Consolidation common share for every ten (10) pre-Consolidation common shares. As of the date of this news release, the Company has 68,547,122 common shares issued and outstanding and the Company expects that it will have approximately 6,854,712 common shares issued and outstanding on a post-Consolidation basis. The number of post-consolidated common shares to be received will be rounded up to the nearest whole number for fractions of 0.5 or greater or rounded down to the nearest whole number for fractions of less than 0.5, and each shareholder will hold the same percentage of common shares outstanding as such shareholder held immediately prior to the Consolidation. Pursuant to the provisions of the Business Corporations Act (British Columbia) and the Articles of the Company, the Consolidation was approved by way of resolution passed by the board of directors of the Company. The Consolidation is subject to TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") approval. The Company anticipates that the consolidated shares will commence trading on a post-Consolidated basis on a date to be determined in consultation with the Exchange, which date will be announced in a subsequent news release once confirmed. The Company's name and trading symbol will remain unchanged. Gitennes is undertaking the Consolidation to be in a better position to attract capital to advance its projects and to enter into potential property transactions. About Gitennes Exploration Inc. Gitennes is in the business of exploring for and advancing mineral properties. The Company currently has two properties in the Sept Iles region of Quebec where the Company is exploring for nickel, REE, niobium and tantalum and three gold properties in the Chapais-Chibougamau area of Quebec: New Mosher, JMW and Maxwell and a 1.5% Net Smelter Return royalty on the 18-million-ounce Urumalqui Silver Project in Peru. All properties are 100% owned by Gitennes except for New Mosher which is under option and Gitennes can earn an initial 70% and has the right to increase its ownership to 85%. For further information on the Company, readers are referred to the Company's website at www.gitennes.com and its Canadian regulatory filings on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Gitennes Exploration Inc. "Ken Booth" Ken Booth President For further information, please contact: Ken Booth Phone: 604-682-7970 Email: info@gitennes.com Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information This news release includes certain statements that constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws and U.S. securities legislation, including the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein, including, without limitation, statements concerning the Consolidation, the Company's expectation that it will be successful in enacting its business plans, and the future business, operations and financial performance and condition of the Company, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Often, but not always, forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "will", "pro forma", "plans", "expects", "may", "should", "budget", "schedules", estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "potential" or variations of such words including negative variations thereof and phrases that refer to certain actions, events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation, the receipt of any necessary regulatory or corporate approvals in connection with the Consolidation, market fundamentals will result in sustained precious metals demand and prices, the receipt of any necessary permits, licenses and regulatory approvals in connection with the future exploration and development of the Company's projects in a timely manner, the availability of financing on suitable terms for the exploration and development of the Company's projects and the Company's ability to comply with environmental, health and safety laws. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements by the Company are not guarantees of future results or performance, and that actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors including risks and uncertainties relating to exploration and development and actual results of exploration activities; the ability of the Company to obtain additional financing; delays in obtaining governmental and regulatory approvals (including TSX Venture Exchange approval of the Consolidation), permits or financing; the fact that the Company's interests in certain of its mineral properties are only options and there is no guarantee that the interests, if earned, will be certain; financial condition and results of operations; the need to comply with environmental and governmental regulations; potential defects in title to the Company's properties; changes in general economic conditions; fluctuations in the prices of commodities and precious metals; operating hazards and risks; environmental issues and liabilities; risks related to joint venture operations; and competition and other risks and uncertainties of the mining industry. Readers should consider all of the information set forth herein and should review the Company's periodic reports filed from time-to-time with Canadian securities regulators. These reports and the Company's filings are available on the Company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and, except as otherwise required by law, the Company undertakes no obligation to update the forward-looking statements contained herein, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in these forward-looking statements. Not for distribution to United States newswire services or for release, publication, distribution or dissemination directly, or indirectly, in whole or in part, in or into the United States. Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved. The Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies (AIATSIS) has officially unveiled the AIATSIS Centre for Australian Languages and the 'Our Languages Keep Us Strong' program, which is dedicated to protecting and preserving Indigenous Australian cultures and knowledge. The centre and program are proudly supported by Rio Tinto, which in 2022 committed A$10 million over five years towards their establishment and implementation. Since its inception in 2023, 'Our Languages Keep Us Strong' has made significant progress towards its key objectives of supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to strengthen their languages locally and increase national and international understanding of the value of Australia's first languages. AIATSIS Interim Chief Executive Officer, Leonard Hill said language is critical in preserving cultural identity. "AIATSIS is dedicated to community-led language revitalisation efforts, and I firmly believe that our key objectives, including consistent baseline documentation, community-based revitalisation, support for teaching and learning, evidence-based monitoring, and fostering collaboration among language communities, can pave the way for Indigenous cultures to thrive." Rio Tinto Chief Executive, Australia, Kellie Parker said "The launch of the AIATSIS Centre for Australian Languages is a significant milestone in the ongoing effort to preserve and celebrate the linguistic diversity of Australia's First Peoples. "AIATSIS plays a vital role in preserving Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge and cultures, ensuring their recognition, respect and celebration. "Through community-driven initiatives, AIATSIS, is paving the way for a future where Indigenous languages continue to thrive, ensuring that the rich tapestry of Indigenous culture endures for future generations. "Rio Tinto's support for this and other initiatives is part of our 'Living Languages Living Cultures program' which invests in preserving, reviving, and celebrating Indigenous cultures in Australia." The AIATSIS Centre for Australian Languages was officially launched at the 2024 AIATSIS Summit in Naarm (Melbourne) last month. Note to editors: AIATSIS is located on Ngunnawal Country in Canberra and is Australia's only national cultural institution solely dedicated to preserving and celebrating the diverse history, cultures, and heritage of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. Established in 1964, AIATSIS has protected Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples culture and heritage by preserving and caring for a vast collection of over 1 million items encompassing film, photographs, audio recordings, art, objects, printed materials, teachings, and more. The AIATSIS Centre for Australian Languages is a program of initiatives, projects and activities, rather than a physical centre. In 2023, Rio Tinto launched the Living Languages Living Culture (LLLC) program as part of its commitment to find better ways of working with communities and Indigenous Peoples. This initiative in Australia is focused on the preservation and revitalisation of traditional language and culture. Through work nationally and locally, the program aims to promote a deeper connection to Country, raise awareness, and provide crucial support to Indigenous communities. Educational initiatives, language immersion, and cultural programs are focus areas of this effort to revitalise and celebrate Indigenous languages and cultures. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708208515/en/ Contact Please direct all enquiries to media.enquiries@riotinto.com Media Relations, Australia Matt Chambers M +61 433 525 739 Jesse Riseborough M +61 436 653 412 Alyesha Anderson M +61 434 868 118 Michelle Lee M +61 458 609 322 Rio Tinto Plc 6 St James's Square London SW1Y 4AD United Kingdom T +44 20 7781 2000 Registered in England No. 719885 Rio Tinto Ltd. Level 43, 120 Collins Street Melbourne 3000 Australia T +61 3 9283 3333 Registered in Australia ABN 96 004 458 404 riotinto.com Category: General Almonty Industries Inc. ("Almonty" or the "Company") (TSX: AII / ASX: AII / OTCQX: ALMTF / Frankfurt: ALI) is pleased to announce that on the 3rd of July, 2024, Kim Jin-tae, the Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, toured Almonty's tungsten mine redevelopment site in Sangdong-eup, Yeongwol county, South Korea. Governor Kim was briefed on the redevelopment status of Almonty's Sangdong Mine with Choi Myung-seo, the County Mayor of Yeongwol, and toured 1.3 km of the main transport portals built by Almonty. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708772704/en/ Sangdong Site Visit by Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and County Mayor of Yeongwol - July 2024 (Photo: Business Wire) At the site, Governor Kim stated, "The Sangdong Tungsten Mine, which has been closed for over 30 years, is coming back to life. I am very pleased that tungsten production will revive the economy of the abandoned mine area and strengthen resource security." Ryu woo-jong, a Vice President of Almonty's wholly-owned subsidiary, Almonty Korea Tungsten Corporation, ("AKTC") said, "AKTC will not only mine and sell concentrate tungsten, boasting the largest reserve and highest grade of any single mine globally, but also plans to complete a tungsten oxide production plant in Yeongwol by 2027 to establish a domestic tungsten product pipeline." Mr Ryu Woo-Jong added that since acquiring the mining rights to the Sangdong Mine in 2015, nearly 130 billion KRW (equivalent of approximately US$94 million) has been invested in its redevelopment. "An additional 50 billion KRW (equivalent of approximately US$36 million) will be invested by the first half of 2025, resulting in an economic impact of over 500 billion KRW (equivalent of approximately US$360 million) within Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province and the creation of up to 1,800 jobs (directly and indirectly)." Once the Sangdong processing plant, which is currently being constructed by Almonty, is completed, around 65% WO3 high-grade tungsten concentrate will be produced in Sangdong Mine shortly. However, until Almonty completes the tungsten oxide plant in Yeongwol, the tungsten concentrate produced from the Sangdong Tungsten Mine will be exported abroad to be processed into tungsten oxide needed by domestic South Korean companies for use in semiconductor and secondary battery production, and then re-imported to South Korea. About Almonty The principal business of Toronto, Canada-based Almonty Industries Inc. is the mining, processing and shipping of tungsten concentrate from its Los Santos Mine in western Spain and its Panasqueira mine in Portugal as well as the development of its Sangdong tungsten mine in Gangwon Province, South Korea and the development of the Valtreixal tin/tungsten project in northwestern Spain. The Los Santos Mine was acquired by Almonty in September 2011 and is located approximately 50 kilometres from Salamanca in western Spain and produces tungsten concentrate. The Panasqueira mine, which has been in production since 1896, is located approximately 260 kilometres northeast of Lisbon, Portugal, was acquired in January 2016 and produces tungsten concentrate. The Sangdong mine, which was historically one of the largest tungsten mines in the world and one of the few long-life, high-grade tungsten deposits outside of China, was acquired in September 2015 through the acquisition of a 100% interest in Woulfe Mining Corp. Almonty owns 100% of the Valtreixal tin-tungsten project in north- western Spain. Further information about Almonty's activities may be found at www.almonty.com and under Almonty's profile at www.sedar.com. Legal Notice The release, publication, or distribution of this announcement in certain jurisdictions may be restricted by law and therefore persons in such jurisdictions into which this announcement is released, published, or distributed should inform themselves about and observe such restrictions. Neither the TSX nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Disclaimer for Forward-Looking Information 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. These statements and information are based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and reflect Almonty's current expectations. 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 Almonty to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, including but not limited to: any specific risks relating to fluctuations in the price of ammonium para tungstate ("APT") from which the sale price of Almonty's tungsten concentrate is derived, actual results of mining and exploration activities, environmental, economic and political risks of the jurisdictions in which Almonty's operations are located and changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, forecasts and assessments relating to Almonty's business, credit and liquidity risks, hedging risk, competition in the mining industry, risks related to the market price of Almonty's shares, the ability of Almonty to retain key management employees or procure the services of skilled and experienced personnel, risks related to claims and legal proceedings against Almonty and any of its operating mines, risks relating to unknown defects and impairments, risks related to the adequacy of internal control over financial reporting, risks related to governmental regulations, including environmental regulations, risks related to international operations of Almonty, risks relating to exploration, development and operations at Almonty's tungsten mines, the ability of Almonty to obtain and maintain necessary permits, the ability of Almonty to comply with applicable laws, regulations and permitting requirements, lack of suitable infrastructure and employees to support Almonty's mining operations, uncertainty in the accuracy of mineral reserves and mineral resources estimates, production estimates from Almonty's mining operations, inability to replace and expand mineral reserves, uncertainties related to title and indigenous rights with respect to mineral properties owned directly or indirectly by Almonty, the ability of Almonty to obtain adequate financing, the ability of Almonty to complete permitting, construction, development and expansion, challenges related to global financial conditions, risks related to future sales or issuance of equity securities, differences in the interpretation or application of tax laws and regulations or accounting policies and rules and acceptance of the TSX of the listing of Almonty shares on the TSX. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions management believes to be reasonable, including but not limited to, no material adverse change in the market price of ammonium para tungstate (APT), the continuing ability to fund or obtain funding for outstanding commitments, expectations regarding the resolution of legal and tax matters, no negative change to applicable laws, the ability to secure local contractors, employees and assistance as and when required and on reasonable terms, and such other assumptions and factors as are set out herein. Although Almonty has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause results, level of activity, performance or achievements not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate and even if events or results described in the forward-looking statements are realized or substantially realized, there can be no assurance that they will have the expected consequences to, or effects on, Almonty. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and are cautioned that actual outcomes may vary. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. Almonty cautions that the foregoing list of material factors is not exhaustive. When relying on Almonty's forward-looking statements and information to make decisions, investors and others should carefully consider the foregoing factors and other uncertainties and potential events. Almonty has also assumed that material factors will not cause any forward-looking statements and information to differ materially from actual results or events. However, the list of these factors is not exhaustive and is subject to change and there can be no assurance that such assumptions will reflect the actual outcome of such items or factors. THE FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION CONTAINED IN THIS PRESS RELEASE REPRESENTS THE EXPECTATIONS OF ALMONTY 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 ALMONTY MAY ELECT TO, IT DOES NOT UNDERTAKE TO UPDATE THIS INFORMATION AT ANY PARTICULAR TIME EXCEPT AS REQUIRED IN ACCORDANCE WITH APPLICABLE LAWS. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240708772704/en/ Contact Lewis Black Chairman, President and CEO +1 647 438-9766 info@almonty.com MBABANE - SwaziMed has reassured its members not to panic following the decision by private doctors to stop accepting SwaziMed medical aid from July 23. SwaziMed Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Peter Simelane urged members not to be worried as they were working on mitigating factors to deal with the issue. Simelane said they were putting measures in place to deal with the issue and it would be communicated to the members, accordingly. The private doctors, through the Eswatini Private Doctors Association (EPDA), announced that SwaziMed members would be required to pay for outpatient consultations and professional fees upfront in cash, with the option to seek reimbursement from the medical aid fund thereafter. The decision comes against the backdrop of another statement where EPDA informed members of the public, especially members of the three country's medical aid schemes; namely SwaziMed, Oracle, and Lidwala, that requiring members of these medical aid schemes to pay cash for consultation and minor procedures was rescinded. EPDA said this was because of the positive and friendly negotiations and agreements reached with Oracle and Lidwala managements, while the SwaziMed Board, to which the association appealed, was actively looking into the matter. EPDA further stated that the negotiations with medical aid schemes aimed to have Service Level Agreements (SLAs) that would improve the quality, access and equity of health services to members, in line with the Ministry of Health Universal Health Coverage Strategy. An impeccable source within the medical aid scheme told this publication that this resolution did not involve all private doctors, but only a few. The source said this was reportedly advocated by some foreign doctors, which leaves a lot of questions about the survival of local doctors. dding, the source told this publication that the doctors needed to be reminded about their practice numbers issued by SwaziMed. The source explained that the practice numbers allowed them to accept medical aid in the country. According to the source, the doctors who formed part of the alleged resolution risk having their practice numbers revoked by SwaziMed and that would affect their survival. How will they live going forward if they do not have the practice numbers? the source questioned. Furthermore, the source took a swipe at the doctors association, alleging that it was an illegal body that was not registered with government. The source told this publication that within government, there was the Medical and Dental Council which grants licences to doctors to operate in the country. The source mentioned that there was also a Medical and Dental Association, which is a legal body formed and registered with government to represent doctors. According to the source, there was no other association for doctors.The source stated that the association said to be representing private doctors was allegedly a union, which was illegal and mostly included foreign doctors. SwaziMed is a Section 21 company, registered as a non-profit making open-scheme which was formed in 1980. Membership cards are accepted by all local service providers (hospitals, doctors and most pharmacies) and widely accepted in South Africa. The scheme is self-administered. MBABANE - In a significant breakthrough, the police have recovered four top-of-the-range hijacked vehicles, thanks to a tip-off from an anonymous informant. Following police investigations, it was discovered that the vehicles were allegedly linked to the matter where a 37-year-old liSwati was arrested by officers from the South African Police Service (SAPS), Ekurhuleni Metro Police Department, and the Road Traffic Management Corporation (RTMC), last week. The informant is said to have called the police after seeing Eswatini registration plates matching the description of one of the cars at a garage displayed in a previous edition of the Times of Eswatini, following the arrest made by SAPS. Acting swiftly on the information, officers from Lukhozi raided the garage in Ezulwini and discovered the hidden cars. Investigations The discovered cars are a Ford Ranger, BMW X3, BMW 320 and a Renault.The suspect is known to this publication, but cannot be revealed as investigations are ongoing. Investigations by the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) revealed that the cars found at the garage were allegedly hijacked in South Africa and smuggled into the country. The cars are currently kept at Lobamba Police Station. The garage owner confirmed that the cars were towed by the police on suspicion that they were stolen. He said the cars were brought to the garage sometime back. He explained that the cars were brought to him for engine and gearbox repairs. When asked if he knew that the vehicles were stolen, he said he did not know anything, but was assisting a customer with his cars. The garage owner explained that he did not ask if a car was stolen or not when assisting a customer.Adding, he mentioned that he called the owners about what had transpired and they said they would visit the police themselves. In the initial matter, the operation was initiated after the team of officers from SAPS received information about a syndicate that allegedly hijacks and steals vehicles in South Africa and smuggles them into Eswatini. Acting on this intelligence, the team raided a house in Kibler Park, south of Johannesburg. Upon arrival, the police are said to have also discovered four vehicles in the yard: a Toyota Fortuner reportedly hijacked in Jeppe, an Isuzu bakkie hijacked in Heidelberg, a tampered BMW, and a Land Rover Discovery. It was said that these findings were vital in linking the vehicles to the hijacking operations. Meanwhile, Acting Chief Police Information and Communications Officer Assistant Superintendent Nosipho Mnguni confirmed that four cars were found at the garage in Ezulwini and investigations were ongoing. During the arrest of the liSwati by the SAPS, inside the house where he was found, the police discovered various tools and documents pointing to the syndicates operations. Police found multiple Eswatini registration plates, car registration documents from Eswatini, homemade vehicle identification numbers (VINs), and stencils used for printing the VINs. Items These items are reportedly vital in establishing the extent of the illegal activities. In a statement issued by SAPS, Lieutenant Colonel Masondo, stated that the 37-year-old liSwati, who was present in the house, was arrested and charged with possession of hijacked motor vehicles. Lieutenant Colonel Masondo indicated that more arrests were imminent as the investigation continues to unfold. In another case, a week ago, there was an exchange of gunfire at Shewula, as members of the Umbutfo Eswatini Defence Force (UEDF) recovered four vehicles, with South African registration numbers, which were in the process of being smuggled into Mozambique. The vehicles were a white Toyota Prado registration CTJ 015 MP, white Toyota Fortuner registered KXN 571 MP, white Prado registered KVF 938 MP and a maroon Toyota Legend, with plate number KNF 329 MP. The individuals who are suspected to be part of the hijacking syndicate operating between South Africa, Eswatini and Mozambique, reportedly fled the scene, leaving behind the exhibits. Meanwhile, around March, soldiers manning the borderline recovered two cars, a Toyota Prado valued at E600 000 and a Toyota Fortuner valued at E600 000. Both cars had South African registration plates and were allegedly being smuggled into the country. The duo of Mciniseli Matimba (48) of Siyendle and Vusi Jele (45) of Zombodze were apprehended by soldiers as they allegedly tried to drive into the country. One car (Prado) had already been smuggled into the country as it was found around Sidwala. It was stolen on March 22, 2024, while the Fortuner was stolen on March 24, 2024 and was discovered around Sicunusa. A few days ago we shared camera samples that we took with the Realme 13 Pro+ (which is yet to be fully unveiled). Those werent the only photos we took as the venue shifted to a river cruise, but only after the sun went down a perfect opportunity to see if the cameras hold up in the dark as well. Heres a look at the zoom range of the Realme 13 Pro+. We start with the main camera at 24mm and 49mm, then switch over to the telephoto lens at 73mm and 144mm. Realme 13 Pro+ camera samples: 24mm 49mm 73mm 144mm A good telephoto lens is vital for such outings the zoom with your feet advice doesnt apply. Here are some more photos shot at 73mm: Realme 13 Pro+ tele camera samples (73mm) The tele lens is good for taking portraits of people too as it provides good separation of the subject from the background. Realme 13 Pro+ camera samples Note that the fourth image above was taken with the 24mm main camera. The stunning background is part of the reason why tourists visit Bangkok, lets have a closer look. Realme 13 Pro+ tele camera samples: 73mm 144mm The brightly-lit ships pass under brightly-lit bridges and buildings, which puts a lot of stress on the imaging hardware and image processing algorithms. Realme 13 Pro+ camera samples: 24mm 73mm 24mm 73mm Sometimes, a scene fits better when shooting in portrait orientation. Here are a few more shots: Realme 13 Pro+ camera samples: 73mm 73mm 24mm As a reminder, the Realme 13 Pro+ will be the first to feature Sonys new LYT-701 sensor (which is in the main camera). It also features a LYT-600 behind the 73mm tele lens, there is a 16mm ultra wide camera on board too. This event was focused on Realmes work on bringing high-quality mobile cameras at an affordable price through the Realme Number series. The Realme 13 Pro and 13 Pro+ will have other headlining features, but the company is keeping those under wraps for now. A full reveal is coming soon. Xiaomi will launch Mix Fold 4 and Mix Flip foldables this month, revealed Lei Jun. The founder and CEO of the company announced online that the phones will be the first devices to come out of the new Xiaomi Smart Factory in Changping, Beijing. The facility is 81,000 sq.m. and will be able to produce 10 million flagship phones per year. Xiaomi made an investment of CNY 2.4 billion (about $330 million), and the company went into detail on Weibo about what exactly was improved to make this factory so special. The plant has what Jun calls intelligent manufacturing platform. It can make independent decisions and execute them to improve processes. Xiaomi explained in detail that this includes diagnosing equipment issues and even making automated purchases of raw materials and components. There are 3.5 weeks until the end of this month, meaning we should soon start getting teasers for the new Fold 4 that is reportedly going global. We don't know whether the same will happen to the Mix Flip, which is going to be Xiaomi's first clamshell foldable. Source Nonprofit organization Humanities Guahan on Monday announced the opening of its 2024 Community Grant Cycle, providing an excellent opportunity for local nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher learning, and local government entities to secure financial support for humanities programs that engage and empower public audiences. Applicants are invited to apply for grants of up to $15,000 for humanities programming. Through its continued partnership with the National Endowment for the Humanities, Humanities Guahan is reaffirming its dedication to fostering cultural enrichment, community engagement, and critical dialogue. Humanities programs eligible for the grant cycle may include but are not limited to: Lectures, seminars, conferences, workshops, film or book discussion series, panel discussions, interpretive exhibits, permanent and travelling fairs, festivals, tours, and media productions encompassing publications, radio, television programming, film, and video. Applicants are encouraged to explore innovative program formats encouraging discussions among diverse audiences. Important dates: Grant cycle opens July 19 Submission deadline: Aug. 23 at 4 p.m. ChST Notification of award: October 2024 Project period: Oct. 31, 2024 to Oct. 31, 2025 Applications and grant guidelines will be available on the Humanities Guahan website at www.humanitiesguahan.org/programs/community-grants. Eligibility Nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, and local government entities in Guam are eligible to apply for a grant. Individuals, ad hoc groups, and for-profit organizations are not eligible. Applicants must apply for a Unique Entity Identifier from the System for Award Management by the application deadline. This federal requirement, which replaced the DUNS number as of April 4, 2022, can be obtained at https://sam.gov/content/entity-registration. Humanities Guahan celebrates the humanities vast spectrum, encompassing history, modern and classical languages, literature, law, philosophy, comparative religion, ethics, and the history, criticism, and theory of the arts. The organization embraces interdisciplinary areas such as Pacific studies, CHamoru studies, Micronesian studies, Asian studies, American studies, women and gender studies, ethnic studies, folklore, and folklife. Additionally, the organization welcomes humanities projects that offer perspectives on current political, social, or economic issues. Humanities Guahan is a nonprofit organization committed to supporting the people of Guam through foundational support and educational programs. Its mission is to foster community engagement and dialogue, inspire critical thinking, celebrate diversity, and enhance the quality of life for island residents through the transformative power of humanities. For further details or inquiries, contact info@humanitiesguahan.org. Rebuilding Simon Sanchez High School in Yigo inches forward, with the Department of Public Works announcement that it is now negotiating with the top-ranked bidder for construction manager. DPW on Monday said SSFM International Inc. submitted the top-ranked proposal for professional construction management of the new Sanchez High project. A construction management contract is an integral part of moving construction of a new Yigo campus. DPW is in charge of rebuilding Sanchez High. Its request for proposals for professional construction management services for the school construction closed on Feb. 27. In April, a protest was filed by one of the private vendors. According to DPW, SSFM International Inc. demonstrated a clear ability to meet the government of Guams requirements. We are eager to move forward with SSFM International, Inc. and begin the next step of this important process, DPW Director Vince Arriola said in a release. A construction manager is needed to oversee the school construction because DPW does not have the staff to oversee the various technical pieces of the construction, from structural to mechanical and electrical work. Designs are done on a new home for the northern students but Arriola has said it would be irresponsible for a project of this magnitude to move forward without a construction manager. As the top-ranked offeror, SSFM International is now invited to submit its fee proposal within seven days and will engage in contract negotiations with DPW. This step marks a critical milestone in the construction of the new Simon Sanchez High School, which aims to provide students with a modern, safe, and conducive learning environment, DPW said. Other offerors also received notice of their respective ranks. Should negotiation with the current bidder prove unsuccessful, procurement law allows negotiations to continue with the second-ranked offeror, DPW added. Sanchez High had been in a deteriorating state for years. Typhoon Mawar rendered the school unsafe, and the school was closed. While the Yigo campus remains closed, Sanchez High students had to attend double-session classes at John F. Kennedy High School in Tamuning. Students and parents have been advocating to rebuild Simon Sanchez, saying the students struggle sharing the Tamuning campus with JFK High School. Temporary campusIn the meantime, local officials have been trying to figure out where to put Sanchez students while a new school is being built. The Guam Department of Education is looking to get Sanchez Sharks out of double-session classes with JFK High School in Tamuning and into a temporary campus by Christmas break. Education Superintendent Erik Swanson has estimated it will take at least three years to rebuild a permanent Simon Sanchez campus. The unfinished Tumon Bay Mall is now in the running as a temporary campus option. The other option is the installation of modular, temporary campus units on Guam Housing Corp. land in Yigo. Officials have said they support whatever option gets the students out of double-session classes quicker. It will cost an estimated $25 million a year for GDOE to lease the Tumon property, at $5 million a year over an expected lease term of five to seven years, according to cost estimates Swanson sent to the Guam Recovery Office. The cost to build modular units on 15 acres of GHC property across the old campus will cost $17.2 million, plus more for site and civil work. Swanson reported to the education board that both options are viable, but the final determination will depend on zoning permissions and whether the Federal Emergency Management Agency approves funding for the classrooms. Senators on Monday engaged in heated debate over how much land is planned to be used to build a shrine honoring CHamoru ancestors at Ypao Point in Tamuning because local law allows only up to 5 acres, but now officials are eyeing a total of 14 acres. Some senators said the questionable added acreage could take away from a proposed site of a new Guam Memorial Hospital. Vice Speaker Tina Muna Barnes Bill 264-37 seeks to appropriate $5 million from excess fiscal 2024 general fund revenues to the Department of Parks and Recreation to build the Naftan Manaina-ta Shrine. The shrine is long overdue and has been something the Legislature has pushed for since 1992, the vice speaker said on Monday. Around 3,000 CHamoru ancestral remains will be reburied in the planned shrine at Ypao Point. Senators, however, questioned how officials were able to go from the maximum of 5 acres set out in law to now 14 acres. Public Law 33-204, passed in 2016, sets out the land available for the shrine. It allows for a minimum of 2 acres and a maximum of 5 acres. Senators called in officials from the Department of Land Management, Guam State Historic Preservation Office, CHamoru Land Trust Commission and Department of CHamoru Affairs to answer questions on the bill. Officials told senators up to 14 acres of land, nearly half of it is cliff line, would be part of the shrines footprint and buffer zone. Huge land taking Sen. Joanne Brown said this is a huge land taking and questioned how 9 acres was added. Were being asked now to put up $5 million of the peoples money to fund this facility and somehow we got an additional 9 acres taken that was never authorized, she said. The senator said she has a problem with that and had misgivings about appropriating the $5 million until they get the issue squared away. DLM Director Joseph Borja said it was based on the architect and the surveyor who were interpreting how the law was written. The law calls for an appropriate buffer zone and requires the parcel to include any geodetic triangulation survey monuments, and it needs to be contiguous to the Sagan Kotturan Chamoru, Borja said. Several times, Borja told senators that the extra land is for the Naftan shrine and not being used for anything else. He also shared at one point during the session that the extra space was to allow the shrine to keep its serenity in case of future development in the area. But several senators said the previous Legislature that authorized how much land would be used was clear. They specified between two and no more than five and now thats multiplied into 14, Brown said. The additional acres impact the CHamoru Land Trust because its one of their most valuable properties, she said. Other senators questioned how 9 acres could be justified as a buffer zone. Speaker Therese Terlaje said based on her reading of the law, the buffer zone is included in the up to 5 acres allowed for the shrine. She asked whether the attorney general was asked for a legal opinion on the law. Does 5 acres mean 14 acres? Or does it mean 5 acres? I havent seen any AG opinion, Terlaje said. Sen. Chris Barnett said the extra acreage seems like the interpretation of what the appropriate buffer would be. He said the footprint of the shrine seemed to grow in an effort to make the surrounding land smaller and to make the proposition of building a new hospital less feasible. Barnett has led an effort to require a new public hospital to be built in the same area. But the governor has maintained that the best location for a new GMH and medical complex is the Barrigada-Mangilao area. It kind of looks like a land grab, Barnett said. He said he doesnt know where they got the authority to add the additional acres as a buffer. Sen. Telo Taitague said the area could be where the new hospital will be built, and the shrine only requires 2 acres. She questioned why the shrine needed to have so much property. Its questionable why you have such a huge area thats not being utilized at all, but yet its still blocked off, she said. During the afternoon session, State Historic Preservation Officer Patrick Lujan, who was at the session in the morning, was not available for senators to ask questions. The speaker moved to recess until Lujan is able to appear before senators to answer their questions. Session resumes at 9 a.m. Tuesday to continue discussing the bill. Hezbollah official killed in Israeli airstrike in southern Lebanon Jerusalem, July 8 (UNI) A Hezbollah official was killed and another individual wounded early Monday in an Israeli airstrike targeting a car and motorcycle in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese military sources. The sources, who requested anonymity, reported that an Israeli drone launched three separate volleys, each consisting of two air-to-surface missiles, at a car and motorcycle in Qlaileh, near the southwestern city of Tyre. They said the strike killed the motorcyclist and injured the car's driver, both of whom were rushed by ambulance to the Italian Hospital in Tyre. With her coronation, 80th Guam Liberation Queen Layla Cabrini Delgado Espinals reign has begun. But its more than just the crown, the queen from Mangilao said. I am going to use the platform to spread positivity as much as possible. Its not necessarily about winning; its about how much hard work you put into it, said Espinal, whos inspired by her love for children and community service. She also emphasized the importance of community support. On Sunday night, the Mayors Council of Guam hosted the splendid 80th Liberation Queen coronation at Hilton Guam Resort and Spa. The event, filled with cultural performances and heartfelt remarks, also saw Aaliya Monique Benin, from Santa Rita-Sumai, crowned as the Royal Princess, the runner-up to the Liberation Queen. The other princesses who were crowned that night: Mara Reese Perez Mendiola of Tamuning Patricia Rose Leon Guerrero of Piti Nevaeh Rae McDonald Finona of Dededo Jianna Sadie Gutierrez of Asan-Maina As this years liberation queen, you will have opportunities to implement initiatives that affect our island, our culture, and our people. Use this occasion to commemorate the true meaning of our freedom from oppression. And to the five other beautiful CHamoru women in this contest, you have made your mark in liberation history. Let this be the commencement of a lifelong journey to be CHamoru women of honor, strength, love, and purpose, MCOG President and Piti Mayor Jesse Alig said in his welcoming remarks. Gov. Lou A. Leon Guerrero highlighted the role of the Liberation queen and princesses as ambassadors of Chamorro values. This tradition gives honor to our women so they can be ambassadors of our values, ambassadors of our principles. Ambassadors in generosity, respect, and many other great values that we hold very truly and dearly to us to show who we are as the Chamorro people, the governor said. Malaea Leon Guerrero, the 79th Liberation queen, offered advice to the new queen and princess. The number one thing is to have fun with what theyre doing and to do it as a team. Just to embrace their roles, she said. Benin, the newly crowned Royal princess, expressed her excitement about the journey ahead. I have learned so much already. I cant wait to grow my knowledge within the community. My group of girls is so lovely to work with, she said. The coronation festivities began with a buffet where dignitaries, family members, and supporters gathered, followed by cultural performances by Guma Rasan Acho Latte. The night was filled with lively music, vibrant dances, and a strong sense of community pride from the different families residing in different villages. The Liberation Day Queen contest, which began in 1948, remains a cherished tradition on Guam, symbolizing the resilience and cultural pride of the CHamoru people. As Espinal steps into her role as the 80th Liberation queen, the island can look forward to the positive impact she will bring to the community. Haiti - UN : Russia and China criticize the USA for the flow of arms and ammunition to Haiti During the meeting of the United Nations (UN) Security Council last week, the crisis faced by Haiti, its political transition and the Kenyan international mission were discussed. Furthermore, all the countries present reaffirmed their support for the cause. Some, like France, have announced an increase in their humanitarian aid of more than $13 million intended to fight food insecurity and malnutrition in Haiti. On the other hand, Russia and China have taken a stand, ensuring that illegal weapons and ammunition continue to arrive from Miami to Haiti. "We ask the United States to improve controls and exchange information to stop the supply," said the Chinese representative. "The arms embargo does not prevent illicit arrivals from the United States. If it had wanted, Washington could have put an end to this issue and it did not do so," lamented the Russian representation which holds the rotating presidency of the Council, criticizing the United States for not having done so about it. S/ HaitiLibre Indonesia calls for decisive UN action in response to Israel's attack on school in Gaza Jakarta, July 8 (UNI) Indonesia on Monday called on the United Nations Security Council and nations backing Israel to take immediate and decisive action in response to Israel's operations in Palestine, particularly after the recent assault on the al-Jaouni school. Through its official social media platform, the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry strongly condemned the attack on the school in the Nuseirat refugee camp, operated by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency in central Gaza. The ministry referred to the attack as "barbaric." Leopold Aschenbrenner looks a bit like the villain of a Bravo photo love story from the 90s, blonde quiff, broad smile. But the scientist, who originally comes from Germany, is above all a high-flyer: according to his LinkedIn profile, Aschenbrenner graduated from Columbia University in the USA at 19, top of his class. After a few jobs in research and investment, Aschenbrenner joined OpenAI in 2023 in the Superalignment department. This is the team that deals with the security of superintelligence. One and a half years and a few squabbles at the AI company later, Aschenbrenner was made redundant. Anzeige Shortly afterward, the economist published a 165-page essay that is currently attracting a lot of attention. Aschenbrenner is apparently one of those people who can be described as AI ultras. He assumes, for example, that in just one or two years, AI will be smarter than most college graduates. By the end of the decade, he says, AI will be smarter than all of us, including Aschenbrenner himself. "We will have a superintelligence, in the true meaning of that word," he writes, for example. It also sounds a little dubious when he writes about "The Project", which he capitalizes. This project could either lead to a race with the Chinese Communist Party or to "total war". Reasons for Aschenbrenner's dismissal from OpenAI This concern is also said to have been one of the reasons why Aschenbrenner was kicked out of OpenAI. In a podcast, he said that there had been a security incident at OpenAI, after which he compiled a memo that he claims to have shared with some members of the board. The memo was about the possible theft of "important algorithmic secrets from foreign actors", writes Business Insider. The HR department described worrying about espionage by the Chinese Communist Party as "racist and unconstructive" and warned him. In addition, according to Aschenbrenner, he was accused of passing on confidential information. This allegedly involved a brainstorming document that he shared with scientists to get their opinion. Sharing is probably also the exciting thing about the essay. Aschenbrenner is in contact with various tech entrepreneurs, employees and investors in San Francisco and Silicon Valley. In his essay, you can read about how some of these people see the future, what they talk about - and what mindset prevails among them. While some scientists assume that it will be a long time before AI is truly intelligent and reliable, Aschenbrenner believes that the next breakthrough is just around the corner. This is although he himself writes that "the magic of deep learning is that it simply works". Other experts call this magic a "black box" because no one is quite sure how and why it works so well. And that's why it's also clear to many that progress will not necessarily be linear. Meta's head of AI, Naila Murray, for example, has said that she sees clear limits to large language models and that scaling does not reflect the intelligence that we humans have. And even if AI continues to make great progress, there are limiting factors: energy and data. Anzeige Where does the energy for AI come from? Aschenbrenner is also clear when it comes to the resources that AI needs. He believes that by the end of the decade, individual training clusters will consume more than 20 percent of all the electricity generated in the USA. Nvidia's soaring stock market and sales are just the beginning, he says. "Trillions of dollars of investment will produce hundreds of millions of GPUs per year", the essay says. "Where can I find 10GW? (Power for the $100B+, trending 2028 cluster) is a popular topic of conversation in SF," says Aschenbrenner. He calculates the demand and investments in detail. Aschenbrenner says, "Surprisingly, even 100GW clusters are easy to implement. Aschenbrenner is relying on natural gas, saying that only around 1200 new boreholes would be needed. For comparison: According to EnBW, the total net output of all generation plants in Germany is around 252.8 gigawatts (GW). Aschenbrenner's calculations also include the fact that OpenAI is continuously increasing in value. While the company was worth one billion US dollars in August 2023, it was already worth two billion US dollars in February 2024. Aschenbrenner therefore expects a valuation of ten billion US dollars by the end of 2024 or early 2025. And he writes: without there being a new "next generation model". Bill Gates also recently commented on the subject of energy. His calculations are also typical of Silicon Valley. Gates believes that what AI will consume, it will recoup. Namely, AI algorithms will lead to savings through better calculations and progress. OpenAI's CEO Sam Altman is already investing in a start-up that relies on fusion power plants. There are said to be talks with OpenAI about contracts to purchase the energy that does not yet exist. Helion has even already signed contracts with Microsoft. The power plant in the state of Washington is expected to be up and running by 2028. According to his own website, Aschenbrenner himself has now founded an investment company that, of course, specializes in AI. He may therefore also benefit if the hype continues and expectations remain high. Incidentally, in Aschenbrenner's vision, the data that AI needs comes from robots. Built by robots, in factories created by robots. (emw) The statement was approved by a vote of 15 for and 2 against, with Fatim Diarra (Greens) and Anna Kontula (LA) appending a dissenting opinion. THE PARLIAMENTS Constitutional Law Committee on Friday unveiled its second statement on a government bill for a border security act, reiterating its view that the much-disputed act can be enacted as a temporary special act. The Constitutional Law Committee re-examined the bill after it had been amended by the Parliaments Administration Committee. With these amendments by the Administration Committee, the bill can be processed in accordance with the procedure set forth in section 73 of the constitution as a limited derogation of the constitution, Heikki Vestman (NCP), the chairperson of the Constitutional Law Committee, stated to YLE on Friday. The Constitutional Law Committee also asked the Administration Committee to make two further adjustments to the final bill: one pertaining to information used to re-assess the cases of migrants and the other to the criteria for entering applicants into the asylum procedure after a re-assessment. Vestman said to the public broadcasting company that the committee believes the official conducting the re-assessment should have access to all available information and should be able to use his or her discretion to determine what information is relevant for the decision. For this reason, the committee concluded that the Administration Committee should revise the provision prohibiting border officials from taking new information into account in the re-assessment, he told. The bill was sent back to the Administration Committee at the behest of the Social Democratic Party. With the Green League and Left Alliance voicing their reservations about the bill, the opposition party is in a position to decide the fate of the bill. Some of its members have confirmed they intend to vote against the bill. We cant unilaterally reject international treaties and willingly violate our EU commitments, Timo Harakka (SDP) stated to YLE on Wednesday. Unfortunately this bill wont improve security in a way thatd prevent attacks to Finland by the terrorist state thats Russia or even curb them significantly. Members of Parliament have to declare the bill as urgent by a five-sixths majority and pass it by a two-thirds majority. The Administration Committee asked the Constitutional Law Committee earlier last week to re-examine a section of the bill related to the right of migrants who have been denied entry to appeal against the decision. The bill is designed to provide the government with additional tools to respond to influence campaigns that utilise migrants in an attempt to destabilise Finland, such as that staged last autumn by Russia. It would enable the government to respond to such campaigns by temporarily suspending the reception of asylum applications in designated areas of the national border and authorising border guards to turn away migrants they deem not to be in need of international protection. Legal experts have widely warned that the bill violates the constitution, EU law and international human rights obligations, expressing their dismay at the position taken by the Constitutional Law Committee. The bill has drawn criticism also from opposition lawmakers, international organisations, senior border guard officials and the research community. The Administration Committee will convene to discuss the bill on today, making a final vote possible later this week. The Social Democratic Party was demanding that the bill be revised to, among other things, consolidate the role of parliament in invoking the act and clarify the provisions regarding the right to appeal. Chairperson Antti Lindtman has stated that the opposition party is satisfied with the revisions made by the Administration Committee. Aleksi Teivainen HT Rotary Club honors Breakfast Club hosts as 'Community Heroes' Mark Warwick and Paige Posey accept Community Heroes Award from Rotary Club President Karolyn Killian. The Rotary Club of Hendersonville honored WTZQ radio station owners and Breakfast Club hosts Paige Posey and Mark Warwick with its Community Hero Award at its annual club banquet on June 27, citing the couples unwavering commitment to making their community a better place. View the Slideshow "I have witnessed firsthand how much these two give their all to building our community by using their skills, passion and enthusiasm," outgoing Club President Karolyn Killian said. "Both Mark and Paige are immensely talented and could be anywhere in the world sharing their talents, yet they choose to live here." Pisgah Legal leader to retire after four decades After 41 years working for justice for disadvantaged people in Western North Carolina at nonprofit Pisgah Legal Services, Executive Director Jim Barrett will be celebrated at a retirement party at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, July 18, at Highland Brewing Company, 12 Old Charlotte Highway, in Asheville. So far, more than 300 local community leaders and supporters have registered to attend. The retirement event is free thanks to generous sponsors, but registration is required at pisgahlegal.org/jim. I am incredibly grateful to have had the privilege of working at Pisgah Legal for 41 years, and leading the organization for 31 of those years, Barrett said. I have witnessed firsthand the difference that free legal aid can make in the lives of our clients, and I am immensely proud of the work we have accomplished together. I leave the organization with a sense of fulfillment and optimism for its future. Contributions are being made in his honor to The Jim Barrett Fund for Justice, which will be part of the much-needed permanent Pisgah Legal Services endowment to sustain and help secure the nonprofits future. Executive director of the anti-poverty nonprofit since 1993, Barrett first came to Pisgah Legal as a Reginald Heber Smith Fellow in 1983 and worked for the organization as a staff attorney for 10 years before leading the agency. Formed in 1978, PLS in 1983 assisted fewer than a thousand people per year with 15 staff members serving six counties. Under Barretts leadership, Pisgah Legal has grown to a staff of 130 serving more than 23,500 clients in WNC last year. The staff includes 35 attorneys whose poverty law efforts are combined with free legal assistance from 250 active volunteer attorneys. With incredible community support, the organization has expanded to include 16 different programs and an array of social services to work with clients to help them stop abuse, stabilize housing, escape poverty, or in many cases, to cope with living on fixed incomes due to age or disabilities. Staff members include social workers, health insurance navigators, tax credit advocates and Medicaid ombudsmen. Nearly 100 non-attorney volunteers help the organization achieve its mission. Iran cautions Israel against attacking Lebanon Tehran, July 8 (UNI) Iran will not hesitate to protect the people of Lebanon in the event of Israel's reckless behaviour, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Naser Kanaani said on Monday. "Iran sees its duty as supporting Lebanon, its security, its government, the people, and the resistance... and will not hesitate to protect the Lebanese people. Naturally, the Zionist regime should understand that any reckless actions in the region, especially in relation to Lebanon, will have consequences," Kanaani was quoted as saying by Iranian broadcaster SNN. Pisgah Legal names new executive director Jackie Kiger Jaclyn Jackie Kiger has been promoted from chief operations officers to become the new executive director of Pisgah Legal Service, the nonprofit legal aid agency announced Monday, marking the first time in three decades someone other than Jim Barrett will lead the effort. Barrett is retiring after 41 years of serving the nonprofit, which assists more than 23,000 people in Western North Carolina each year. We are thrilled to welcome Jackie as our new executive director," John Noor, president of the PLS Board of Directors and a leader of the search effort, said in a news release. "She brings experience, passion and commitment to the work of Pisgah Legal Services. We are very fortunate to benefit from the leadership she has already exemplified as Pisgah Legals chief operations officer, her strong working relationship with the staff, her well-established local connections, and her years of experience as a dedicated and compassionate attorney representing people in need. As executive director," Kiger said, "I will offer my full enthusiasm, zealous advocacy and genuine dedication to championing Pisgah Legal Services so that we may continue to increase access to justice and improve the lives of thousands of local people in our region each year. I have worked closely with Jim Barrett for years and have a unique understanding of the way Pisgah Legal operates, thus allowing me to step seamlessly into this role and support the stability of the organization for our staff and our clients. Kiger joined PLS in 2010 as a public benefits and housing attorney and in 2013 helped implement the organizations Affordable Care Act Health Justice Enrollment Program. In 2014 she was promoted to managing attorney to oversee PLS' health justice, public benefits and immigration work. Kiger obtained her undergraduate degree in psychology from Duquesne University, a master of social work from UNC at Chapel Hill and a law degree from John Marshall Law School in Atlanta. Kiger has served as chief operations officer at Pisgah Legal Services since 2019. Her first day serving as Pisgah Legal's executive director will be Aug. 3. After visit to region, Edwards warns Putin may next target Baltics U.S. Rep. Chuck Edwards (second from left) poses with Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna and visiting delegation of the U.S. House Appropriations Committee. U.S. Congressman Chuck Edwards, a member of the House Appropriations State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Subcommittee, warned following a visit to the Baltic states Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania and Poland that the region could be the next target for Putin's "reign of terror." During my visit with these NATO nations, I witnessed firsthand the growing anxiety that is building as Putin continues to take as much territory as he can access," he said. "His reign of terror continues to expand from Ukraine, as Russia is now suspected of committing state-sponsored terrorist activities and an intensified propaganda campaign in the Baltics. Putin has in as much said the Baltics are next." After returning from Ukraine in April, I helped pass the Ukraine Security Supplemental Appropriations Act and, most recently, the FY25 State Foreign Operations bill to assist our regional partners as they counter Russias encroachment," he added. "We must continue to strengthen our alliance with NATO. When America leads on the global stage, the world is a safer place. Since the end of World War II, the United States and Europe have forged a partnership built on our democratic histories and similar economic interests. The 27-member European Union states and the United States are the worlds major global traders, and the 32-member North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is the alliance designed to address our common foreign policy challenges and defense concerns. During Edwards foreign relations trip, he heard from senior government officials in the Baltic states and Poland about the importance of the Baltic Security Initiative (BSI) in the next five years. The BSI, a security cooperation agreement with our partners in the Baltics, is one of the largest and most focused investments that the U.S. has made in the region. In the FY25 defense appropriations bill, the House included and passed $228 million for the BSI. All three Baltic states have fulfilled NATOs target of spending at least 2 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) on defense for several years. They have already met or made a commitment to increase their contributions to 3 percent of GDP. As Russia prepares for a long-term confrontation with NATO, including making major investments in its armed forces and increasing its military capabilities westward, its goal is to sustain its war in Ukraine. In as few as three to five years, Russia is expected to militarily test NATO, particularly the Baltic states. It is critical that the gaps in NATOs capabilities to defend the Baltic region are addressed while also strengthening the Baltic states abilities to defend themselves. While the predominant goal is to deter Russia from attacking the Baltic states, it must be stopped from any encroachment into NATO territory. ### A WOMAN has launched an online petition calling for the speed limit on a section of a Henley road to be reduced. Simone Brown says the current 60mph limit outside the Highlands Park development, off Greys Road, is too high as its an area used by families and children walking to schools in the town. She is urging Oxfordshire County Council, the highways authority, to reduce the speed limit to 30mph from the junction of Elizabeth Road to beyond the junction with Highlands Lane. Ms Brown said: The speed limit is unsuitable for such a residential area, posing significant risk to the safety of pedestrians, particularly those journeying to Valley Road School. Recent data collected by the Road Safety Foundation (UK) suggests that a reduced speed limit, particularly in high-risk areas like ours, can drastically decrease the likelihood of traffic-related accidents. The council needs to consider a significant reduction in the speed limit in this residential area, thus safeguarding our community and ensuring the safety of our children. Highlands Park comprises 191 properties with 131 more proposed as part of phase two of the development, which was built by Crest Nicholson. The petition has attracted 214 signatures so far. For more information and to sign it, visit https://tiny url.com/2unnx3c6 THE headteacher of Sonning Common Primary School is to retire. Chris Hirst, who joined the school in Grove Road in 2009, is to step down at the end of the school year later this month. Deputy head Rachel Salmons will take over. Kidmore End Primary School has also appointed a new headteacher. Claire Spankie has taken over from Martina Parsons. A RETIRED detective who spent 33 years in the police, mostly working undercover to tackled the drugs trade, has written a novel that draws on his experiences. Will Strang, 71, who lives near Caversham, wrote Red Box: Hunting the Drug Traffickers, partly as a legacy for his family but also to provide a realistic insight into life in the police. The story is based upon a live drug trafficking operation in the Home Counties, with the action taking place across Reading, London and Cornwall. It is written from multiple perspectives: the investigators, analysts and intelligence teams but also the street dealers, the distributors and the importers. As the organised crime groups try to make money and avoid being traced, the intelligence teams watch and wait patiently, biding their time. Mr Strang, who is married with grown-up children, says: Its exciting for me but a little bit scary because suddenly youre revealing your inner thoughts and feelings to the world. The book was something Ive always wanted to do but it was a really strange concept because Ive done thousands of reports on all sorts of things which are generally factual, so a chronological relay of events leading up to something. This isnt something factual that youre plucking from somewhere else and putting it into a report. Youre actually letting your mind wander and see where youre going. There was this nagging feeling that I should put down my experiences in a book but in a fictional way without referring to actual investigations or cases. My wife said, Ooh, you must write it down and the children were going, Yes, yes, do it, so I started and found it quite therapeutic and interesting. I know the systems, I know how people think and I could base the characters in the book on individuals Ive known and dealt with. When I have a conversation I know exactly how they are going to react because I know the individual, although the names in the book are different obviously. Mr Strang joined the police in 1973 and ended his days of service with Thames Valley Police in 2006. He said: I started on the streets of Reading as a Pc walking round with a helmet and cape and then went on to drugs. Ive worked all over the country and during that time Ive been arrested four times and three of those times it was intended. I was put in the cells to continue the persona, so if possible they would arrest the people concerned without identifying me. So Id be arrested, the process would go through, they would admit their part and I would then disappear into the ether and they would never know who I was. I suppose over the period, Ive spoken to and interviewed hundreds if not thousands of people whove been involved at every level, from the highest level to the heroin addicts and crack addicts at the bottom level. I ended up as a detective chief inspector gathering intelligence. One reason he wanted to write about his experiences was to present a realistic perspective. Mr Strang says: Police series and films and books are sensationalist and they bear no resemblance to what actually happens on the ground. There was a programme that my wife was watching and this beautiful actress is on call and she goes out to a murder. She gets a call, blah blah blah, middle of the night, dead body etc, and shes tip-toeing down this muddy track in high heels and I just think, No, it just would not happen. Practicality kicks in and you wear trousers and boots and wellies. The book is fiction but the events that occur in it are as they would occur in real life. When I finished it and put it to bed, I thought, Right, okay, its done. Its the knowledge that when Im gone, that my great grandchildren, great, great grandchildren, whoever, will look at the book and go, That book was written by my great, great grandfather. To have something tangible that you can touch and read and experience and has connections with your relatives, your ancestors, is really lovely to my mind. He spent some time on call as a detective inspector in the Reading area, including Henley, and remembers several key moments. Mr Strang says: I was a hostage negotiator, so I kept a little go-bag with a wash kit, boxers and bits and pieces, so that whenever I was called in the early hours, invariably at one oclock in the blimmin morning, I would just pick up the bag and go. When I bought drugs [undercover], we used to go to an old hotel in Henley, the Imperial. I bought quite a few bits and pieces in the Imperial, which was a pub then. In October 1993, there was a Provisional IRA bombing at Reading station. I was on cover and it was at about seven or eight in the morning and they had put a bomb in the toilet cistern of the loos, which were straddled on platform 4 and 5, I think . There was a station employee whose sole job was to go round and check bins and everything for devices. He was so fastidious that he went into the ladies loo, lifted the cistern lid, saw the IED, which was Semtex, detonators and whatever, lifted it out of the cistern and walked through the toilet, through the waiting area, on to platform 4, placed it on the platform and then they evacuated the station. And then the army came and disrupted it. Because they stopped all the trains and whatever, no one was injured, but I always thought that by his actions, he saved dozens of lives, and for what he did, he should have got something substantive. There was another device that they planted where the Metal Box building used to be on Caversham Road. The IRA detonated that and then there was another device in Basingstoke. The warning from the Provisional IRA came in after we found the device to say, Theres a bomb on the line between Basingstoke and Reading and they used a code word, so we would have stopped the trains and then there would have been a build-up of people both at Reading and at Basingstoke. The devices would have detonated and they would have killed dozens and then we would have responded. The secondary device, which was on a gantry on the railway on the Paddington side of the station, would have detonated, which would have disrupted our recovery efforts and it would have been utter carnage. I just cant even think about why people would do that. The actions of that security guard, doing his job fastidiously and taking the risk and saving so many lives, were just awesome. Red Box: Hunting the Drug Traffickers is published by Troubador in paperback (9.99). For more information, visit willstrang.co.uk or troubador.co.uk Henley Symphony Orchestra summer concert St Marys Church, Henley Saturday, June 29 HENLEY Symphony Orchestras concert on Saturday evening included three interesting and contrasting orchestral pieces. The first two were written in the 19th century and conformed to classical expectations. Edvard Griegs well-known Peer Gynt Suite, written in 1875, was followed by Webers Clarinet Concerto No.2 in E flat major, premiered in 1813. These were an interesting foil for the third piece, Shostakovichs challenging Ninth Symphony. The masterful conductor was Jacques Cohen and the fabulous solo clarinettist Emma Johnson. Grieg, a Norwegian composer, created the Peer Gynt Suite from the incidental music he had written for Ibsens play of the same name. This was composed at a time of political activism as Norway sought independence from Sweden, ambitions supported by Grieg. The five contrasting pieces in the suite tell a somewhat rambling adventure story that includes a brides abduction, a mothers death, an Arab chieftain and, of course, the Hall of a Mountain King. Morning was played lyrically with the strings improving in cohesion and with beautiful contributions from the wind section. The slow and controlled playing in Ases Death was effective. As the piece progressed, the players sensitive, muted playing under the conductors control led to an impressive diminuendo. For me, the second item of the programme was definitely the highlight of the evening. Johnson is an eminent and popular clarinettist with an impressive CV and Webers Clarinet Concerto No 2 in E flat major was the perfect showcase for her extraordinary skill and musicality. It has three movements, Allegro, Romanza and Andante con Alla Polacca, a fiery dance performed with great technique and style. There is a startling clarinet entry on a high F which immediately drops three octaves. This dramatic entry heralded Johnsons virtuosic performance, covering an enormous range on the instrument, fast scaled and arpeggio runs, trills, ornaments and lyrical playing. Throughout the technical brilliant fireworks, she maintained a beautiful tone and created a warm connection with the audience. All movements were played with great panache, with a smile, and her performance with the orchestra was greeted with well-earned rapturous applause. After the interval, Shostakovichs complex Symphony No. 9 in E flat major was an interesting choice. He was asked to write this symphony to celebrate Russias victory over the Nazi army during the Second World War. Russias achievements during the war were significant but in helping to defeat the Nazis, it is thought that between 10 and 20 million Russians were killed, the largest number of casualties of any country. The symphony premiered in 1945 and at first, the work was praised but then some observers started to suggest that this music, which is far from triumphal, reflected not Russias victory but Shostakovichs negative view of Stalin. It was not performed again until after Stalins death. The first movement conveys victory through march-like music. However, Shostakovich was aware of the horrendous cost of peoples lives and although the piccolo bounces along, discordant notes start to appear. The second movement, Moderato, is characterised by some beautiful, haunting tunes that create calm, respectful and reflective parts, mourning the lost Russians. In the nippy third movement things started to get a bit wild before calmer passages that included a lovely solo bassoon against the murmuring strings. The fourth slow and thoughtful part precedes the most challenging passages before the abrupt end. This was a demanding piece which Henley Symphony Orchestra tackled with relish, urged along by their excellent conductor. A magnificent ending to an enjoyable evening. Susan Edwards S Korean author Han Kang wins Nobel Prize in Literature 10 Oct 2024 | 6:50 PM Stockholm, Oct 10 (UNI) South Korean author Han Kang has been awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature, the Swedish Academy announced on Thursday. see more.. 28 killed in Israeli airstrike on school in central Gaza 10 Oct 2024 | 5:44 PM Gaza/Jerusalem, Oct 10 (UNI) At least 28 Palestinians were killed and more than 54 others injured Thursday afternoon in an Israeli airstrike on a school sheltering displaced persons in the central Gaza Strip, said the Palestinian Health Ministry. see more.. Ex-Bangladeshi MP Mohibur Rahman sent to judicial custody 10 Oct 2024 | 5:04 PM Dhaka, Oct 10 (UNI) Bangladesh's former Member of Parliament from Sunamganj-5 Constituency Mohibur Rahman Manik has been sent to judicial custody till his bail plea hearing is held next Monday, media reports said. see more.. ASEAN leaders, ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly highlight promoting regional connectivity 10 Oct 2024 | 4:28 PM Vietnam, Oct 10 (UNI) Leaders from the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) met to discuss several key issues aimed at strengthening connectivity and resilience within the ASEAN community. see more.. By Njeri Mwangi in Kilifi county & Tamasin Ford in London, BBC Africa Eye Monday July 8, 2024 Farmer Tambala Jefwa was left with one eye after an assault BBC Africa Eye investigates a shocking spate of elderly people accused of witchcraft then murdered along Kenyas Kilifi coast, and discovers the true motives behind the killings. Seventy-four-year-old Tambala Jefwa stares vacantly out of his one remaining eye as his wife, Sidi, gently removes his shirt. She takes his head in her hands showing what happened in another attack. They had to pull the scalp back and sew it together. Mr Jefwa was accused of being a witch and has been attacked twice in his home, 80km (50 miles) inland from the coastal town of Malindi. The first left him without an eye. The second nearly killed him. The couple own more than 30 acres of land where they grow maize and raise a few chickens. There has been a dispute with family members over boundaries. They believe this was the real reason Mr Jefwa was almost killed, not that people genuinely believed he was a witch. I was left for dead. I lost so much blood. I dont know why they attacked me, but it can only be the land, says Mr Jefwa. Belief in witchcraft and superstition is common in many countries. But in parts of Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and South Africa, it can be used to justify killing elderly people to take their land. A report called, The Aged, on Edge, by Kenyan human rights organisation Haki Yetu says one elderly person is murdered along the Kilifi coast every week in the name of witchcraft. Its programme officer, Julius Wanyama, says many families believe it is one of their own who orders the killing. They use the word witchcraft as a justification because they will get public sympathy. And people will say: If he was a witch, it is good you have killed him. Few people in this region have title deeds for their land. Without a will, they rely on passing it down customarily through the family. Mr Wanyama says seven out of 10 of the killings are elderly men because land ownership and inheritance lie with them. Historically people here in Kilifi do not have [land] documentation. The only document they have is the narrative from these elderly people. That is why mostly men are being killed, because once you kill them, then you have removed the obstacle, says Mr Wanyama. About an hours drive from the Jefwa family land is a rescue centre for the elderly run by the charity, Malindi District Association. It is home to around 30 elderly people who have been attacked and are unable to go back to their own land. Sixty-three-year-old Katana Chara, who looks much older than his years, has been here for around 12 months. He had to move to the centre after he was attacked with a machete in his bedroom in April 2023. One hand was cut off at the wrist, the other just above the elbow. He can no longer work and needs help for the most basic tasks, from feeding and washing to dressing himself. I know the person who cut my hands, but we have never met face to face since, he says. Mr Chara was accused of being a witch over the death of another mans child, but believes the real reason he was attacked was because of his six acres of land. I dont have anything to do with witchcraft. I have one piece of land and it is at the seafront. It is a big piece of land. Many of Mr Charas family members were questioned over the attack but no-one was ever prosecuted. Activist Mr Wanyama has been trying to get justice for him. Very few people have been charged on the allegations of killings of elderly. And thats why I think even the key people who are involved in killing, they feel they are free. After months of investigating, BBC Africa Eye managed to track down an ex-hitman who claims to have killed around 20 people. He says the minimum he got paid for each murder was 50,000 Kenyan shillings around $400 (310). If someone kills an old person, know that their family paid for it. It must be their family, he tells BBC Africa Eye. Pushed on how and why he thought it was his right to take someones life, he responds: I may have done something bad because I was given the job and it is me that killed, but according to laws, according to God, the person who sent me is the guilty one. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights presented a document to the United Nations in February 2023 stating: Witch burning, killings, and physical attacks are rife in regions such as Kisii in western Kenya and Kilifi county in coastal Kenya. It went on to say that younger family members seeking to acquire family land is a key motivating factor behind the killings. It said the attacks and killings increased during periods of drought and famine when sources of income become scarce. Mr Wanyama says killings which use accusations of witchcraft to justify land grabs have become a national disaster It started as a regional issue, but now it has escalated... If we dont address it, then we are losing our archives of the elderly. Those are the only live archives we can believe. In traditional African culture, the elderly are revered for their wisdom and knowledge. In Kilifi, it is the reverse. Old people are so fearful of becoming a target, many dye their hair in an attempt to look younger. It is rare for someone in this region to survive after being accused of witchcraft. While Mr Chara is safe now he lives at the rescue centre for the elderly, for men like Mr Jefwa there is real fear that whoever tried to murder him will come back. Leo (23rd July to 22nd August) Daily Horoscope Prediction says, A fortune waits for you Leo Daily Horoscope Today, July 09, 2024. Share emotions with the lover to make the relationship stronger. The love life will be intact and officially you will see chances to grow in your career. Handle money carefully to make crucial decisions. You are good in health. Keep the love life creative today. Handle the professional pressure with a confident smile. There will be prosperity today and your health will also be good. Leo Love Horoscope Today Share emotions with the lover to make the relationship stronger. Some love affairs will see positive changes today. Females who had trouble at home over the love affair will see the support of parents today. Be a patient listener and keep the lover in a good mood. You both may plan a romantic dinner or late-night drive that will add fun to the relationship. Married Leos will see the interference of a third person which should be avoided at any cost. Leo Career Horoscope Today You may receive recognition for performance and may also get an increment. If you are keen on switching jobs, you can prepare for it as the day is good for that. Some professionals will travel to the client's office while business developers, architects, lawyers, academicians, and media persons will have a tight schedule. Businessmen will be successful in gaining new contracts, especially from the government. New partnerships will also work out in your favor. Leo Money Horoscope Today Wealth will come in and you may also buy or sell a property. The second half of the day is good to buy a vehicle but ensure you have saved for the rainy day. There can be financial disputes today in domestic life. Avoid arguments related to money with a sibling as this can get out of hand. Businessmen will succeed in raising funds through promoters and this will help in enhancing the business. Leo Health Horoscope Today You need to be careful about your health. Minor breath-related issues may come up. Those who have diabetes must avoid all aerated drinks and alcohol. Instead consume more veggies and fruits along with more natural supplements. You should also be careful while riding a two-wheeler. Some females will have allergies and may require medical attention. Leo Sign Attributes Strength: Generous, Loyal, Energetic, Enthusiastic Generous, Loyal, Energetic, Enthusiastic Weakness: Arrogant, Luxury seeker, Careless, and Self-complacent Arrogant, Luxury seeker, Careless, and Self-complacent Symbol: Lion Lion Element: Fire Fire Body Part : Heart & Spine : Heart & Spine Sign Ruler : Sun : Sun Lucky Day : Sunday : Sunday Lucky Color: Golden Golden Lucky Number : 19 : 19 Lucky Stone: Ruby Leo Sign Compatibility Chart Natural affinity: Aries, Gemini, Libra, Sagittarius Good compatibility: Leo, Aquarius Fair compatibility: Cancer, Virgo, Capricorn, Pisces Less compatibility: Taurus, Scorpio By: Dr. J. N. Pandey Vedic Astrology & Vastu Expert E-mail: djnpandey@gmail.com Phone: 9811107060 (WhatsApp Only) For decades, the smooth richness of Cadburys, Fabelle, Lindt, Nestle and Amul have been synonymous with chocolates in India. These familiar brands often laden with sugar, vanilla, palm oil and other additives may be enjoyable, but they do not really reflect the full potential of the cacao bean. In recent years, a quiet revolution has been underway. Artisanal chocolate companies have been changing the way Indians experience these confections, and are building a new narrative around chocolates. Hyderabad-based Manam Chocolate is at the forefront of this change. Enough chocolate to satisfy your soul (Daniel DSouza) For the discerning palate, craft chocolates are utterly different from mass-produced ones. Made in small batches, with meticulous attention to detail at every step of the process, they are unique preparations. On a recent visit to the Manam Chocolate factory in Telangana, I escaped into a world of unadulterated bliss; one that recalled Roald Dahls classic Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. At the Manam Chocolate Karkhana in upmarket Banjara Hills, which invites visitors to witness the magic of chocolate-making first-hand and also attend chocolate-making-and-tasting workshops, I was welcomed by the intoxicating aroma of freshly-roasted cacao beans, and saw velvety-smooth chocolate being poured into gleaming moulds. At Manams Chocolate Karkhana in Banjara Hills (Daniel DSouza) Manam, which means We or Us in Telugu, brings together farmers, fermenters, chocolate-makers, and storytellers. Chaitanya Muppala, the founder and CEO, reveals that while the company intends to celebrate the countrys rich cacao heritage, it also incorporates ingredients from around the world. The possibilities are limitless. The Malt Chocolate Truffles are infused with a 43% malted milk single-origin West Godavari cacao while Blueberry Dragees is coated in yogurt, creamy white chocolate and toasted sesame. The Caramelized Cacao Nib Chocolate Brownie is made with 82% dark chocolate from single-origin Dominican Republic beans. At the first-floor factory at Banjara Hills, each of the humming machines were in different stages of producing cacao butter and creating luscious treats. The display at the retail hub in front showcased handcrafted delights including decorated bonbons, delicate truffles, rich chocolate bars and chocolate-based desserts and ice-creams. At the cosy cafe, visitors participated in workshops and guided tastings. The whole establishment is a testament to what happens when passion and cacao beans meet! Muppala says his journey began with a passion to elevate the Indian chocolate experience. He recognised the existing market was dominated by large corporations that prioritise consistency and volume. In India, they extract the fat and send it to their European counterparts where there are laws on how much cacao-fat chocolate needs to have for it to be called chocolate. Theres no such law in India and, therefore, cacao fat is replaced by vegetable oil or palm oil. India imports 70% of its cacao. Yet, if you look at the import-export numbers, cacao is highly disregarded and comes under cashew nut and cocoa. All the cacao that comes to India is from the Ivory Coast in Ghana, and its poorly fermented. This practice not only dilutes the rich chocolate experience but also undermines the potential of Indian cacao, which, when treated with care, can rival the finest beans from around the world. Thats why we came up with a system that allows us a much nuanced, state-of-the-art post-harvest processing, he says revealing that in 2018, inspired by his fathers company, Almond House, which is known for selling sweets and confectionery, he began mulling over his chocolate venture. Cacao on a farm in the West Godavari district (Hashim Badani) Craft chocolate in India is still at a nascent stage. Mupalla elaborates on fine and flavour cacao or premium cacao. Its a definition by the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO), an umbrella organisation for premium cacao based on various factors like genetics or origin. Countries lobby the ICCO to get their cacao listed under fine and flavoured cacao so they can sell it at premium prices. I subscribe to a definition of what we do: fine-flavoured cacao, which is defined by the International Institute of Chocolate and Cacao Tasting (IICCT). We are attempting to seize that market, and our estimate is that its about 10,000 million tonnes. The cacao is fermented at the Distinct Origins (sister company of Manam Chocolate in Hyderabad) fermentary at Tadikalapudi in Andhra Pradeshs West Godavari district. Here, women labourers extract beans from pods. The wet beans are fermented in large-sized wooden boxes. Each box is filled with 300 kg of wet beans and lined with banana leaves. This is where the team also attempts some creative fermentation, using various fruit pulps to create interesting results with mango-ginger, regional mangoes, and banana. The beans are then sun-dried and sifted by hand with broken ones being discarded, small beans separated from the big ones and stored separately. The stored beans are left to sit for 30 to 60 days to de-infest and then for another year to age. This allows the beans to mature in flavour. This process is exclusive to Distinct Origins; we borrowed this idea from pulses, says Mupalla, who is also the countrys first Level 3 Certified Chocolate Taster from the International Institute of Chocolate and Cacao Tasting (IICCT), USA. Manam Chocolate offers Indian and international origin series, single-farm series tablets, infusion bars, and others. Manam Farm Tablet No. 3 (68% Dark) owes its origin to the farm of GVS Prasad, one of Manams first farmer members. Chaitanya Mupalla, founder of Manam (Daksh Chindalia) India now has a considerable number of farms growing cacao. They are mostly concentrated in the southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala with West Godavari in Andhra being the largest grower in the country. The quality of cacao beans produced in Andhra is comparable to the worlds best-quality beans produced in Ghana. The West Godavari district region has been growing cacao as an intercrop with coconut, arecanut, and several other spices. A large part of these farms supply cacao beans to MNCs that produce chocolates. Around 150 farms are supplying high-quality cacao to Distinct Origins. We have partnered with these farmers to grow good-quality cacao. It is gradually becoming a cacao-growing region, with more and more farmers joining in, seeing the rich dividends this exotic crop brings, says Mupalla. Signature Blend Tablet No. 3 (43% milk chocolate), a series by Manam, which recently won the International Chocolate Award, instituted by the IICCT, is made with cacao sourced from farmers in the Ben Tre and Lam Dong provinces of Vietnam. Its debut collection, the Indian Craft Chocolate Edition 2023, features over 300 unique products across 50 categories including signature tablets, bonbons, barks, fudge, clusters, macarons, giandujas, spreads, cakes, pastries, viennoiserie, and more. The company is already planning a robust expansion with high-street stores and travel retail outlets set to open soon. Finally, Indians can indulge their craving for superior chocolate that isnt mass produced. The perfect excuse to extend World Chocolate Day celebrations to include the rest of the week. Shireen Quadri is the editor of The Punch Magazine Anthology of New Writing: Select Short Stories by Women Writers. India may make changes to its new electric vehicle (EV) policy to incentivise automakers that have already invested previously, the Economic Times reported, citing unnamed people in the know. HT couldnt independently verify the report. A view of a public electric vehicle (EV) charging plaza in New Delhi, India (Sanchit Khanna/HT) Also Read: India-UK FTA 2nd round talks this month: Whiskey, EVs, lamb meat, and chocolates The policy currently only supports fresh and new investments. The new changes may be announced in the 2024 union budget which will be unveiled on 23 July. Why is the government potentially making changes to the EV policy? This development comes when US EV maker Tesla still hasnt committed to building a factory in India. Also Read: India faces techno-colonialism with its data: Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal The government may consider investments in both EVs as well as vehicles powered by internal combustion engines (ICE), with about half a dozen carmakers such as Volkswagen-Skoda, Hyundai-Kia and VinFast having expressed interest in the new policy called the Scheme for Manufacturing of Electric Cars (SMEC), according to the report. What are the details of the SMEC? The government has said that it would allow imports of completely built up (CBU) EVs with a minimum cost, insurance, and freight value of $35,000 at 15% import duty for up to five years. But this is provided the company invests at least $500 million into the building of new plants Also Read: Why Elon Musk is against getting an MBA: 6 steps to get hired by Musk Initially restricting the SMEC for solely brand new EV plant investments was aimed to assess how much the companies were able to localise vehicle components. The scheme states that companies are required to build EVs with at least 25% of components sourced locally. This limit will increase to 50% by the fifth year of the investment, the report read. Blackstone has been in talks with Delhi and Nagpur-based members of the Agrawal family for acquiring up to 76 percent stake in Haldiram's. Blackstone has been in talks with the snack maker along with consortium partners Abu Dhabi Investment Authority and Singapores GIC for the last few months. Moneycontrol reported citing people in the know that differences over valuation of the business have delayed the negotiations. A view shows packets of snacks on the shelves inside a Haldiram's restaurant in Mumbai, India.(Reuters) But the talks are now gaining momentum over the last few weeks as one source told the outlet, There has been a lot of back and forth with the family members over the valuation of the business. Also the family is not looking at giving away a 76 percent controlling stake, which the private equity investors wanted, and want to retain a larger share of the business. Some family members would like to sell only a 51 per cent stake but the current discussions with Blackstone are likely to see a stake sale of closer to 74 per cent." This comes as Bloomberg reported last month that the Agarwal family is evaluating a potential public listing of the business as bids from private equity investors did not meet familys expectation. Haldiram's had also received bids from PE firm Bain & Co. and Temasek Holdings, the report claimed. The company's Delhi-based business Haldiram Snacks Pvt Ltd- which gets 85% from sales in FMCG business and 15% from its restaurant business- reported revenue of 6,377 crore in FY23 and profit of 593 crore. Meanwhile, the Nagpur business, Haldiram Foods International Pvt Ltd, reported a revenue of 5,974 store and a profit of 794 crore in FY23 as per Crisil. Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of 737 Max jetliners after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years, the Justice Department said Sunday night. An American Airlines Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight from Los Angeles approaches for landing at Reagan National Airport.(REUTERS) Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice this week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors accused the American aerospace giant of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements for it. The plea deal, which still must receive the approval of a federal judge to take effect, calls for Boeing to pay an additional $243.6 million fine. That was the same amount it paid under the 2021 settlement that the Justice Department said the company breached. An independent monitor would be named to oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes, which killed all 346 passengers and crew members aboard two new Max jets. It does not give Boeing immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, a Justice Department official said. The deal also does not cover any current or former Boeing officials, only the corporation. In a court filing Sunday night, the Justice Department said it expected to file the written plea agreement with the court by July 19. Federal prosecutors alleged Boeing committed conspiracy to defraud the government by misleading regulators about a flight-control system that was implicated in the crashes, which took place in Indonesia in October 2018 and in Ethiopia less five months later. As part of the January 2021 settlement, the Justice Department said it would not prosecute Boeing on the charge if the company complied with certain conditions for three years. Prosecutors last month alleged Boeing had breached the terms of that agreement. The companys guilty plea will be entered in U.S. District Court in Texas. The judge overseeing the case, who has criticized what he called Boeings egregious criminal conduct, could accept the plea and the sentence that prosecutors offered with it or he could reject the agreement, likely leading to new negotiations between the Justice Department and Boeing. Relatives of the people who died in the crashes were briefed on the plea offer a week ago and at the time said they would ask the judge to reject it. U.S. agencies can use a criminal conviction as grounds to exclude companies from doing business with the government for a set amount of time. Boeing is an important contractor of the Defense Department and NASA. The case goes back to the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The Lion Air pilots in the first crash did not know about flight-control software that could push the nose of the plane down without their input. The pilots for Ethiopian Airlines knew about it but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in older 737s, and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years. Boeing, which blamed two low-level employees for misleading the regulators, tried to put the crashes behind it. After grounding Max jets for 20 months, regulators let them fly again after the Boeing reduced the power of the flight software. Max jets logged thousands of safe flights and orders from airlines picked up, increasing to about 750 in 2021, about 700 more in 2022 and nearly 1,000 in 2023. The company based in Arlington, Virginia, has dozens of airline customers spanning the globe. The best customers for the 737 Max include Southwest, United, American, Alaska, Ryanair and flydubai. By Neha Arora India to get coking coal from Mongolia on trial basis in July, sources say NEW DELHI, - India will import coking coal from Mongolia on a trial basis from later this month, two sources familiar with the matter said, as New Delhi seeks to diversify imports of the key steelmaking raw material to cut over-reliance on Australia. Steelmakers including JSW Steel and the state-owned Steel Authority of India are poised to receive coking coal shipments from Mongolia after months of negotiations, said the sources, who did not wish to be named in line with official rules. India's Ministry of Steel, JSW Steel, and SAIL did not immediately respond to Reuters emails seeking comments. JSW Steel is expected to receive around 30,000 metric tons of coking coal from Mongolia and SAIL is likely to get 3,000 to 5,000 metric tons, the sources said. For JSW Steel, this would be the second such shipment after 2021, when India's biggest steel maker bought 8,000 metric tons of coking coal from Mongolia, the sources said. The supplies would come to India via Chinese ports, but Indian authorities do not think New Delhi should entirely rely on China for steady supplies of coking coal from Mongolia, the sources said. Relations between India and China have been tense since the biggest military confrontation in decades on their disputed Himalayan border killed 20 Indian and at least four Chinese soldiers in June 2020. Thousands of troops remain mobilised on each side. India is trying to figure out alternate routes for the supplies of Mongolian coking coal to India, the sources said, without giving details. Indian mills have asked the government to step in and help work out the routes that would ensure regular supplies of coking coal from Mongolia, which offers superior grades, they added. Without a viable and dependable route, Mongolia, rich in mineral resources, struggles to sell raw materials to countries such as India. Some Indian companies are also looking at either acquiring or leasing coal and copper assets in Mongolia. Indian steel companies consume around 70 million metric tons of coking coal annually, and imports constitute around 85% of the country's total requirements. Steel mills in India, the world's second-biggest crude steel producer, have struggled with volatile supplies of coking coal from Australia, which normally accounts for more than half of India's annual imports. Indian steelmakers have stepped up coking coal imports from Russia in recent months to take advantage of cheaper prices - a result of Western sanctions targeting Moscow for the war in Ukraine. During the first half of 2024, Russia emerged as India's third-biggest supplier of coking coal by selling it 3.3 million metric tons, data from commodities consultancy BigMint showed. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Billionaire philanthropist Melinda French Gates shared the best lesson that she learned from Charlie Munger who died last year at 99. At a commencement speech in Stanford University, Melinda French Gates said that Charlie Munger was amazing at offering life advice as well as managing Berkshire Hathaway. She said, Charlie famously said that the highest form which civilization can reach is a seamless web of deserved trust. Totally reliable people, correctly trusting each other. What a thing to aspire to. US philanthropist Melinda French Gates speaks during a panel at the annual spring meetings at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) headquarters in Washington, DC.(AFP) As a society, we arent always set up to feel responsibility for the person whos next to us or the person whos on the other side of a divide or a debate. But we need each other. No matter who you are, there will be moments in your journey when you need to be carried or when someone else will need you to carry them," she added. Reminiscing how this advice helped her, Melinda French Gates shared the story of a close friend whom she comforted when her young husband died of cancer. This friend helped Melinda when her marriage with Bill Gates ended after 27 years, she shared. Yes, you are graduating into a broken world, but it is community that rebuilds things. Youve already started building that community here, and together is how youll make the broken things whole again," she said. Moscow/New Delhi, July 8 (UNI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on Monday evening to a ceremonial welcome. PM Modi said he is looking forward to further deepening the bilateral Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation, during his summit talks with President Vladimir Putin. PM Modi was received by First Deputy PM Denis Manturov at the airport. In a post on X, the PM said: Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people. The Russian Foreign Ministry in a post on social media showed PM Modi alighting from the plane, and posted a welcome message. Prime Minister of the Republic of India Narendra Modi arrives in Moscow on an official visit. Welcome, Excellency! #RussiaIndia #DruzhbaDosti The MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal in a post on X said: PM @narendramodi lands in Moscow for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Warmly received by First Deputy PM Denis Manturov of Russia at the airport. PM is set to hold substantive discussions with President Vladimir Putin to take forward the special partnership between the two countries. He will also interact with the Indian community in Russia. President Putin is set to host a private dinner for Prime Minister Modi later in the night. On Tuesday, Prime Minister is to interact with the Indian community in Russia. He will lay a wreath at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Kremlin. Later, he will visit the Rosatom Pavilion at the exhibition venue in Moscow. At the Kremlin, the two leaders will hold restricted level talks, followed by delegation level talks. The 22nd annual summit between India and Russia will provide an opportunity to the two leaders to review the whole range of bilateral issues, including defence, trade linkages, investment ties, energy cooperation, Science and Technology, education, culture, and people-to-people exchanges. They would also share perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest. They would also assess the status of bilateral engagements in groupings such as BRICS, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, G20, East Asia Summit, and the UN. UNI RN Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang worked as a busboy at a restaurant years before co-founding his company which is now worth over $3.1 trillion. The tech boss conceived the idea for Nvidia in the same booth where he once cleaned tables, washed dishes as well as toilets, he shared. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang present NVIDIA Blackwell platform at an event ahead of the COMPUTEX forum, in Taipei, Taiwan.(Reuters) Reflecting on his humble beginnings and how they have shaped his leadership, Jensen Huang said, "No task is beneath me because, remember, I used to be a dishwasher [and] I used to clean toilets. Ive cleaned more toilets than all of you combined and some of them you just cant unsee." But everyone should have the willingness to tackle any job if it helps his employees and improves the company, he asserted, adding, If you send me something and want my input, and I can be of service to you, Ive made a contribution. Talking about how he attempts to be a more hands-on boss, Jensen Huang is described as demanding and a perfectionist" by Nvidia employees whom he asks to email him their five most important tasks weekly and sometimes visits their desks to discuss projects. The billionaire believes in showing his reasoning for suggestions as he explained, "I show people how to reason through things all the time: strategy, forecasting, problem-solving. Youre empowering people all over the place." Leadership is more about empowering employees to succeed, he said. The job of any good CEO is to lead others to achieve greatness, inspire, empower, and support them. The management team exists to serve all the other people in the company, he emphasized. Elon Musk praised Jensen Huang and said in a post on X (formerly Twitter), ""Absolutely the right attitude. During the toilet paper shortages of Covid, I was making sure that our factories and offices had toilet paper!" SpiceJet airline passengers travelling between Kolkata and Bengaluru on Sunday had a harrowing experience after the flight was delayed multiple times. The users took to social media and expressed their frustration. Kolkata - Bengaluru SpiceJet flyers stuck at airport after flight gets delayed Also Read - 2nd suspected dengue death reported in Bengaluru; Dr CN Manjunath calls for medical emergency: Report A user named Amitabha Saha wrote, Flying in SpiceJet has become a nightmare. My daughter flying to Bengaluru from Kolkata today by SG 8532 has got rescheduled thrice since this morning. The flight that was supposed to leave at 2 PM is now scheduled to fly at 6.05 PM. All plans have gone haywire. Saha also said he is worried about his daughters arrival as she will travel alone. Since she will travel alone for the first time, we booked her on this flight thinking she will reach in daylight as Bengaluru airport is far from the city. Now we're worried about her safety as she's going to travel late at night alone, he added. Another user, Arnav Acharya, said, My flight from CCU-BLR got delayed four times after checking in for four and a half hours. Please cancel and refund my money immediately. There is no value and respect for your customer's time. Also Read - Bengaluru to get second airport: Where and when will it open for public? Meanwhile, the airline has apologised to its customers and clarified that the delay in operating aircraft in Bengaluru led to the situation. The delay resulted from a technical issue encountered during the aircrafts previous rotation in Delhi, which was promptly addressed before it departed for Bengaluru, a SpiceJet spokesperson is quoted as saying by The Hindu. Similar incidents happened in Delhi-Bengaluru flight of SpiceJet as it got delayed multiple times and passengers were stuck at the airport overnight. Three months after Rattandeep Singh, a former chief of militant outfit Bhindranwale Tiger Force of Khalistan (BTFK), was shot dead in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (formerly Nawanshahr) district, the Jalandhar police on Monday arrested key assailant Simranjit Bablu, who is a member of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI). Rattandeep Singh, a former chief of militant outfit Bhindranwale Tiger Force of Khalistan (BTFK), was shot dead in Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar (formerly Nawanshahr) district on April 3, 2024. (HT file photo) The counter-intelligence team, Jalandhar, has apprehended key assailant Simranjeet Bablu, a member of the BKI, who was involved in the fatal shooting of former terrorist Rattandeep Singh in SBS Nagar on April 3, 2024, Punjab Police chief Gaurav Yadav posted on X. He said the module was operated by Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Singh Rinda and US-based gangster Gopi Nawanshehria. Police also recovered sophisticated weapons along with a cache of ammunition. Rattandeep, who hails from Haryanas Karnal, was killed by unidentified assailants in SBS Nagars Balachaur town while he was sitting in his car along with his nephew Gurpreet Singh. Soon after the incident, gangster Gopi Nawanshahria took to social media to claim responsibility for the killing. DGP Yadav said Simranjit Bablu was arrested after a brief encounter on the outskirts of Jalandhar city. He sustained bullet injuries on the legs as he attempted to escape from police custody. He said the police team, led by AIG, counter intelligence, Navjot Singh Mahal was taking the accused to the place near Wadala on the Jalandhar-Nakodar road, where he claimed to have hidden the pistol used to murder Rattandeep. On reaching the location, the accused tried to escape from police custody after pushing a police official.The CI Jalandhar team opened fire to stop him from fleeing, said the DGP, adding that the accused was taken to the nearest hospital. Police teams recovered two sophisticated weapons, including a .32 Webley revolver and a .32 pistol, along with a magazine and 19 cartridges from his possession. Preliminary investigation showed Simranjit was working on the directions of Rinda and Nawanshehria, who tasked him and another assailant, Jaspreet Singh, alias Jassi Kulam, to carry out the targeted killing of former militant Rattandeep Singh to create panic in society. Kulam managed to flee abroad after committing the crime, Yadav said. He said the arrested accused is a hardcore criminal and faces several cases pertaining to murder, attempt to murder and the Arms Act. He was involved in the assassination of an ASI from Amritsar police, he added. Rattandeep served jail term for violent past A one-time hardcore militant, Rattandeep was the prime suspect in the bomb blast in the parking area of the old passport office in Sector 34, Chandigarh, on June 30, 1999, in which four people were injured. He owned the scooter used for carrying the bomb. The BTFK militant was behind the blast on the railway bridge in Panipat the same year and had planted an improvised explosive device (IED) on the Shahbad-Markanda bridge in 1998. He was an accused in the arms recoveries in Jind district in 1996 and 2000. Though Haryana Police arrested him in August 1999, he managed to escape. He was the kingpin of a group of militants who planted explosives in a vehicle near Circuit House in Amritsar in May 2010. He had smuggled the consignment of weapons and explosives from across the border. A state special operations cell (SSOC) of Punjab Police finally arrested Rattandeep from the outskirts of Gorakhpur in eastern Uttar Pradesh on September 17, 2014. He was carrying a Pakistani passport and identity card in the name of Hussain Sheikh Zahid. An official said Rattandeep was a Pakistan-based militant, who had been living there since 1993. He visited India to carry out terror strikes. Jailed for his terror links, Rattandeep was released in 2019 after he completed his term. Since then, he had been staying with his family in Karnal as no case was pending against him. The six terrorists who were killed in two separate encounters in Kulgam district were identified as locals, with police saying the terrorists had been using sophisticated concrete hideouts in the Chanigam and Modergam villages for months. Security forces recovered AK 47 Rifles, an IED from the terrorists hideouts in Jammu and Kashmir. (Waseem Andrabi/HT) Apart from Ak 47 Rifles, a powerful Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was also recovered from the encounter spot at Chinniagam. The six terrorists, police said, were named in several cases in Kulgam and neighbouring Shopian districts before terming the operation a big success for forces and a setback to Hizbul Mujahideen. Commander 1 sector Rashtriya Rifles Brigadier Prathiv Raj Chauhan said they had received information about the presence of terrorists in the area for quite some time. We activated our sources and surveillance devices and kept this area under constant watch. On June 6, we got accurate information about their presence in Chanigam and around 3 pm the cordon was in place. An hour later, one of our jawans saw four people moving in pherans, which was unusual. It was suspicious given the hot weather. Our soldiers challenged them, which resulted in an encounter, during which one of our jawans lost his life. In the 24-hour long encounter, four terrorists were killed. HT graphics Chauhan said four terrorists killed in the operation were identified as Yawar Bashir Dar, Zahid Dar, Shakeel Wani and Touqeer Ahmad Rather, Adding, We also recovered a six kg IED which was detonated on the spot. Two soldiers, including a para commando, were also killed in the operation, which was one of the biggest in Kashmir this year. Deputy inspector general of police (DIG) Javid Ahmad Mattoo said, Two terrorists were killed in an operation at Modergam. One was identified as Adil who was an A category terrorist and involved in many cases in different police stations, he said, adding that the other four terrorists were killed in the second operation at Chanigam. Also Read | Editorial: In the Kulgam encounter, signs of ground shifting The DIG said terrorists were using sophisticated hideouts in both cases. In Chanigam, Yawar Dar had constructed an underground hideout in his own house and terrorists had been using that for months. At another place, a mason, Mushtaq Ali, had constructed a hideout in his house, which was concealed behind a big wardrobe, he said, adding that both the hideouts were concrete and had been in use for months. The 15-day campaigning for the Jalandhar West assembly bypoll ended on Monday with political parties making a last ditch effort to woo voters for the July 10 election. The political parties made a last ditch effort to woo voters for the July 10 bypoll. Addressing his last rally, chief minister Bhagwant Singh Mann termed Jalandhar as his karambhoomi (land/area of action) and promised that he would clear everything related to its development. He reiterated that AAP candidate Mohinder Bhagat, if elected, would be made minister. Without naming BJP candidate Sheetal Angural, who had resigned as an AAP MLA a few months ago necessitating the bypoll, the CM said, A corrupt person resigned on his own. Now, Jalandhar will get an honest MLA. Lets win this election for Arvind Kejriwal while he is in jail in a false case fighting against the dictators. The Congress carried out a 2-km foot march. Partys state chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring said the Punjab government and its CM had failed in ensuring development. Be it drug menace, law and order, education or healthcare, everything has deteriorated in the past two years. Even during the byelections, there has been immense misuse of power by AAP. Votes are being bought by the AAP government, he alleged. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa said, The people know the AAP government has ruined the state. Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar highlighted poor law and order, mentioning incidents of attacks, robberies and extortion calls. The lack of will power to understand issues of the state and do something constructive is the hallmark of the CM, Jakhar said. As many as 15 candidates are in fray, including Congress Surinder Kaur, AAPs Mohinder Bhagat, BJPs Sheetal Angural and Shiromani Akali Dals Surjit Kaur. The campaigning witnessed opposition parties highlighting corruption, lawlessness, betting and lottery, drug, unemployment, use of muscle power while the ruling party banked upon free electricity and 43,000 jobs, etc to woo voters. CM Mann, who had shifted to his rented accommodation here, remained the one-man show for the party as he addressed nearly 24 rallies and gatherings besides meetings industrialists, traders and employees unions. For the Congress, Warring, Bajwa and Jalandhar MP Charanjit Singh Channi were at the forefront, targeting the government continuously. Senior BJP leaders camped in the city, hoping to retain the partys stronghold. Meanwhile, district electoral officer (DEO) Himanshu Aggarwal led a flag march of armed forces. The aim is to bolster the voters confidence and ensure a secure environment. The law and order would be strictly maintained, he said. As many 700 police personnel and three companies of the Border Security Force will be deployed in the constituency. At sensitive booths, extra arrangements of paramilitary will be in place. Six days after the Vigilance Bureau (VB) registered a first-information report (FIR) against an assistant sub-inspector, the accused surrendered on Monday. Accused was posted at Division Number 5 police station. (HT Photo) The accused ASI, Charanjit Singh, was deputed at the Division Number 5 police station and had allegedly demanded and accepted a bribe of 2.7 lakh from a hotelier. A case was registered against the ASI following a complaint on the anti-corruption line by Kamaljit Ahuja, owner of Hotel Taj. The complainant alleged in his online complaint that the accused ASI had obtained illegal gratification under threat from him for adding sections 307 and 379-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against his family members in a case already registered against them. He alleged that the accused was demanding more bribe money from him. The VB officials said that during verification of this complaint, the allegations were found to be correct as they were supported by oral evidence and a recording of a conversation between the complainant and suspect ASI Charanjit Singh. As per enquiry, prima facie, it was proven that bribe money of 2.7 lakh had been taken by ASI Charanjit Singh in the name of the station-house officer (SHO) of the police station and has also demanded a bribe of 2 lakh per month for allowing the complainant to run his hotel smoothly, a state VB spokesperson said. A case under the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered against ASI Charanjit Singh at the VB police station, Ludhiana range. The accused was on the run since the case was registered. After the bureau mounted pressure on him, the accused surrendered on Monday, the spokesperson added. The role of the SHO concerned and any other officials will be examined during the investigation, the spokesperson said. The Amritsar commissionerate police busted an inter-state organised crime syndicate with the arrest of its kingpin and four members from a flat in Kharar, Punjab director general of police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Monday. The Amritsar commissionerate police busted an inter-state organised crime syndicate with the arrest of its kingpin and four members from a flat in Kharar, Punjab DGP Gaurav Yadav said on Monday. (Representational photo) The kingpin of the syndicate has been identified as Jai Sharma, alias Sukha Pistol Ambarsarya, a resident of Prem Nagar in Amritsar, while, four members have been identified as Nikhil Sharma, alias Lala of Sandhu Colony in Amritsar, Moni of Kot Khalsa in Amritsar, Arpit Thakur and Karan Sharma, both residents of Naina Devi in Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh. Sukha Pistol has a criminal history with seven cases pertaining to the Arms Act, snatching and theft registered against him. Police teams recovered two .32-bore pistols along with three magazines and eight cartridges from them. Yadav said following reliable inputs that accused Sukha Pistol along with his accomplices had gone to Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh to procure illicit weapons, teams from the Civil Lines police station in Amritsar started keeping a vigil on their movements. On their return from Madhya Pradesh, the police teams pinpointed their location in Kharar, he said. Acting swiftly, police teams under the supervision of ADCP City-2 Abhimanyu Rana conducted a raid at a flat and arrested all accused. They recovered two pistols along with ammunition, the DGP said. Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused were planning to attack members of a rival gang. They were booked under the Section 111 (organised crime) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 25(7) of the Arms Act. Commissioner of police (CP), Amritsar, Ranjit Singh Dhillon said that this syndicate was engaged in criminal activities, including theft, snatching and arms trafficking. Investigation is on to trace the forward and backward linkages of the module and also to identify the Madhya Pradesh-based arm smugglers. More arrests and recoveries are expected. Members of farmers organisations raised slogans against the Central government outside the residences of 13 Lok Sabha MPs of Punjab, urging the latter to raise the issues concerning farmers in the Parliament. Farmers raise slogans against the Central government outside the residence of MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla in Amritsar. (AFP) The call was given by the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha and Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (non-political), which are spearheading the agitation at the Shambu border, as per which demonstrations were to be held outside the residences of the recently elected non-BJP MPs and copies of their memorandum was to be handed over to them. In a statement issued here, farmer leaders Sarwan Singh Pandher and Jagjit Singh Dallewal said memoranda were given to MPs in 12 states of the country. At the residence of Khadoor Sahib MP Amritpal Singh in Jallupur Khera village, his father Tarsem Singh received the memorandum. Similarly, a group of farmers gathered at the residence of Amritsar MP Gurjeet Singh Aujla. Their demands include enactment of a minimum support price guarantee Act, giving employment to people for 200 days under the MGNREGA scheme and increasing daily wage to 700, waiver of farmers debt and protecting rights of tribal people. New Delhi Bibhav Kumar on May 20, following his arrest. (File photo) Delhi Police on Monday opposed before the Delhi high court a plea filed by Bibhav Kumar, aide of chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, challenging his arrest and remand in connection with the alleged assault of Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal, arguing that there were not only positive evidence but also material circumstances pointing towards the justifiability of the arrest. A bench of justice Neena Bansal Krishna reserved its verdict on Kumars petition. Senior advocate Sanjay Jain, representing Delhi Police, asserted that police complied with all parameters of arrest while arresting Kumar. These include supply of arrest memo, grounds of arrest and informing Kumars wife about the same. Refuting allegations of hasty arrest, Jain contended that the police officers arrested Kumar on May 18, after the investigating officer visited the site of the incident on May 17, ascertained Kumars presence at the site, found video recordings leaked to media and his mobile phones formatted. He was not arrested in haste. Had he been arrested in haste, the police would have arrested him in Mumbai. When the police visited the site on 17th, it was found that he was there and certain video recording was missing, telephone was formatted, video recording leaked to the media was also missing. There was positive evidence available and there were material circumstances pointing towards the justifiability of arrest. All parameters of valid arrest are there in this case. Grounds of arrest, good, bad or ugly were communicated to him (Kumar), Jain submitted. Kejriwals key aide approached the Delhi high court two days after the city court denied him bail in the case on the grounds that allegations made by Maliwal had to be taken at their face value. On May 27, the city court noted that a mere delay in registering the first information report (FIR) would not have much impact on the case as the injuries were apparent in the MLC (medico-legal certificate) after four days. Taking note of the nascent stage of the investigation, the judge noted that the apprehension of influencing the witnesses or tampering with the evidence could not be ruled out. Kumars petition before the high court painted a picture that his arrest was hasty, circumvented his rights, was not in compliance with the provisions of Section 41A of the CrPC, which mandates police to issue notice to the person accused of committing an offence before arrest without a warrant and law laid down in Arnesh Kumar v State of Bihar. In the Arnesh Kumar case, the Supreme Court formulated guidelines to prevent unnecessary arrests. The plea underscored that he was apprehended during the pendency of certain legal matters concerning him, including an application requesting compliance with Section 41A and an anticipatory bail application, and without considering his May 17 complaint. Besides challenging his arrest, Kumar also sought compensation for his illegal arrest and initiation of departmental action against erring officials involved in the decision to arrest him. On July 1, the high court issued notice in Kumars plea, rejecting Delhi Polices objections on the maintainability of the petition. A bench of justice Swarana Kanta Sharma relied on the Supreme Courts verdict in the Radha Krishan Industries v State of HP (2021), observing that Kumar, while challenging his arrest on the ground of non-compliance of Section 41A, CrPC, has specifically alleged breach of his fundamental rights by the state/police. In the Radha Krishan Industries case, the Supreme Court ruled that a writ petition before the high court, irrespective of the existence of an alternative remedy, would be maintainable if it was filed for enforcement of fundamental rights. Representing Kumar, senior advocate N Hariharan and advocates Rajat Bhardwaj and Mohd Irshad contended that police picked up their client illegally from Kejriwals residence despite Kumar agreeing to cooperate with the investigation. Hariharan contended that the police arrested his client in violation of Section 41A of the CrPC, during the arguments of his anticipatory bail application, to purely defeat its purpose. The senior lawyer further underscored that there was neither a necessity to arrest his client nor a possibility of Kumar tampering with evidence, as the same was seized by police prior to his arrest. Kumar was apprehended by Delhi Police on May 18 and formally arrested amid the hearing of his anticipatory bail plea. The following day, he was remanded in police custody for five days and later sent to judicial custody. On May 20, the court rejected Kumars bail plea and on May 21, he was remanded in police custody for three more days. The case pertains to allegations made by AAP Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal, who claimed Kumar assaulted her at the CMs residence on May 13. Based on Maliwals complaint, police filed an FIR on charges of attempted culpable homicide, assault with intent to disrobe, wrongful restraint, criminal intimidation and insulting the modesty of a woman. In the FIR, Maliwal alleged that Bibhav Kumar slapped her seven to eight times without provocation at the CMs residence on May 13, when she went to meet Kejriwal. He slapped her, kicked her in the chest and pelvis, and deliberately pulled up her shirt, Maliwal alleged. Kumar, in turn, filed a complaint alleging unauthorised entry by Maliwal. New Delhi Fogging will be intensified in Delhi. (HT Archive) Health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Monday directed officials to intensify fogging and sanitation campaigns in dengue-prone areas, and asked chiefs of Delhi government hospitals to take necessary measures to take necessary measures to ensure the availability of medicines and beds for dengue patients in hospitals. The minister also asked hospitals to ensure mosquito nets are provided to dengue patients and prompt attention is given to patients visiting with symptoms of dengue. The minister issued the directions in a multi-department meeting at the Delhi secretariat. This was the second meeting held within a week, with the last meeting held on Saturday, given that Delhi has logged 246 cases of dengue in the first half of the year, which is over twice last years count. Bharadwaj also warned hospitals and officers concerned about negligence in fighting vector-borne diseases, threatening strict action in case of a violation. In a statement, the ministers office said officials attending the meeting apprised the minister of measures taken for dengue patients, such as making separate treatment arrangements, reserving beds, and setting up isolation areas for dengue and malaria patients to ensure the disease does not spread. Dengue has largely been associated with the monsoon, with mosquito breeding spiking between June and September, when stagnant water provides the optimal conditions for the Aedes mosquitoes, the carriers of the dengue virus. Cases typically spike between July and November, and the worst dengue outbreak was in 2015, when the city logged 15,867 cases and 60 deaths an unusual spike fuelled by a virulent strain. In the meeting, it was also decided that the health department would run awareness campaigns. Saurabh Bharadwaj also issued instructions to the department officials to run awareness campaigns to identify the symptoms of dengue and malaria and to prevent it. The health minister also directed all hospitals to put up information about the symptoms to identify diseases like dengue and malaria in their respective hospitals, so that the patients coming to the hospital get adequate information in this regard. The minister also suggested that health department officials take the help of media and social media to run awareness campaigns, the ministers office said. The awareness campaign will also be run in schools. The minister directed officials of all hospitals present in the meeting to formulate rules to deal with serious diseases like dengue and malaria in their hospitals and ensure that those rules are strictly followed regularly, the ministers office said. Commander of UK Strategic Command and Commander and Director of Overseas Bases visit General Sir James Hockenhull KBE ADC, the Commander of UK Strategic Command and Dr Sam Griffiths, Director Overseas Bases, recently made a visit to British Forces Gibraltar. The visit was a great opportunity for the recently appointed Dr Griffiths to meet BF Gibraltar personnel, as well as a useful follow up to Gen Hockenhulls previous visit in 2022. The visit included office calls with His Excellency the Governor of Gibraltar, Lieutenant General Sir Ben Bathurst KCVO, CBE, the Chief Minister of Gibraltar, the Hon Fabian Picardo KC, and Commander British Forces, Commodore Tom Guy, before being given a tour around His Majestys Naval Base, accompanying the Royal Navy Gibraltar Squadron on the water, engaging with the Gibraltar Defence Police, being briefed by the Royal Gibraltar Regiment, paying a flying visit to RAF Gibraltar and engaging with the full range of personnel who make up British Forces Gibraltar, both military and civilian. Commodore Tom Guy said: This visit was an invaluable opportunity to update General Hockenhull and the newly appointed Director of Overseas Bases, Dr Sam Griffiths, and showcase the great potential that British Forces Gibraltar has to offer, and to discuss future opportunities. A team of experts from the Delhi forest and wildlife department on Monday visited the National Zoological Park, informally known as the Delhi zoo, to assess the health of the lone African elephant there. (HT Photo) The development comes after zoo officials said that the elephant has come into musth a state of aggression where increased reproductive hormones are released and sought assistance to tranquillise it. A similar spell on musth in September 2023 had led to the elephant, named Shankar by the zoo, breaking a boundary wall of its enclosure, injuring itself and hurting a zookeeper in the process. The animal has since largely been kept chained. On Monday, zoo director Sanjeet Kumar said they sought the assistance of the forest department so that the animal does not hurt itself, zoo staff, or visitors in another bout of aggression. A veterinary team from the Delhi zoo and the forest department monitored and assessed Shankars health on Monday. It is under observation, and based on necessary requirements and its condition, the veterinary team will take a call on whether it needs to be tranquilised, said Kumar, adding that the zoo has also begun the process to strengthen the boundary wall of the animals enclosure. Shankar and a female African elephant, named Bombai, were brought to the Capital in 1998 as diplomatic gifts from Zimbabwe. However, Bombai died in 2005, and Shankar has been the lone African elephant in the zoo in the nearly two decades since. In 2022, a teenager filed a petition in the Delhi high court, pleading that Shankar be released and rehabilitated elsewhere, citing poor living conditions at the zoo. The plea was later dismissed, with the high court asking the Central Zoo Authority to look into the possibility of bringing a female partner for Shankar. A zoo official, on condition of anonymity, said that the continued chaining up of the animal has only added to its aggression. On Monday, the chains were shifted from one leg to another. However, the animal is rarely let out into its enclosure, the official said. The chaining of Shankar for long periods and its condition at the zoo came under the scanner of the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA). In a letter sent to the Delhi Zoo, dated June 20, WAZA sought details of how long the animal is kept chained and if it has been kept chained since September 2023. Kumar did not comment on the letter, or whether the zoo responded to WAZA. New Delhi Police solved the blind murder case through technical analysis and intelligence network. (Getty Images) A 48-year-old man and his two cousins were arrested for allegedly murdering a 38-year-old man for not returning 2.5 lakh he had borrowed from the suspect a few months ago, police said on Monday. The murder took place in a parking lot near the Old Delhi Railway Station in the wee hours of Friday, they said. Police said the trio invited the victim, Gaurav Thakur, to the parking lot, drank liquor with him and shot him in the neck with two countrymade guns they procured for the purpose. The prime accused was identified as Chandarpal Bhati, and the others as Vinay Bhati,24, and Ombir Singh Bhati,36. Chanderpal and Vinay reside in Sahibabad, Ghaziabad, and Ombir in Bulandshahr, all in Uttar Pradesh. Chandarpal roped in Ombir for the crime and the latter shot Thakur in the neck, deputy commissioner of police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena said. DCP Meena said that on Friday, a caller to the Kotwali police station informed that his relative was shot at the Dangal Maidan parking lot, following which a police team found the victim bleeding on a cot. They rushed him to a hospital in the vicinity, but he was declared dead on admission. A case of murder and firing was registered under Section 103 (1)/3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and sections 25/27 of the Arms Act. Since it was a blind murder case, police and district special staff checked footage from 35 CCTV cameras and through informers, ascertained that Thakur was last seen with Chandarpal and his cousins on Thursday night. The three became suspects in the case and were arrested from Delhis Seemapuri and Shahibabad in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday. Their interrogation led to the recovery of the firearms and a car that were used in the crime, Meena said. An investigator, not wanting to be named, said: When Chandarpal felt he wouldnt get his money back, he hatched Thakurs murder plan and roped in his two cousins. The Kerala government has dismissed 108 police officers from service for their involvement in criminal activities since 2016, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on Monday. On the allegations of a rise in goon and mafia violence in the state, Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan said such gangs are constantly monitored by the intelligence wing,(Hindustan Times) Answering a question raised in the state Assembly on the action taken against the officers with criminal backgrounds, he said such officials are being closely monitored. ALSO READ | BJP will soon form government in Bengal and Kerala: Tripura CM Manik Saha "From 2016 to May 31, 2024, 108 police officials were dismissed from the service for their involvement in criminal activities. The officials involved in corruption, anti-social activities, mafia relations are being closely monitored, and directions have been issued to take stern action against such people," Vijayan said. On the allegations of a rise in goon and mafia violence in the state, he said such gangs are constantly monitored by the intelligence wing, and a Special Action Group against Organised Crime (SAGOC) has been formed to counter them. Lauding the intelligence wing, Vijayan, who also handles the Home Department, said they were able to detect the political and communal attacks and threats and handle them to maintain peace in the state. He also said that soon after the political murders which were reported from Alappuzha and Palakkad, the intelligence wing of the police took the necessary steps to maintain a peaceful atmosphere in the state. Designed to blend traditional Sanskrit learning with contemporary civil services preparation, the Central Sanskrit University (CSU) has announced the launch of a pioneering academic programme, the BA Hons (Sanskrit) and Civil Services Studies, scheduled to commence from the session 2024-25 on its Lucknow and Jaipur campuses. Central Sanskrit University Lucknow Campus. (HT FILE) This initiative aims to cater to students interested in both subjects. Admission to the BA Hons (Sanskrit) and Civil Services Studies programme will be conducted through a non-CUET (Central Universities Entrance Test) route. The registration for the course has begun from July 5 and will end on July 12 with a registration fee of 100, said Sarvanarayana Jha, director of CSU, Lucknow. In all there will be 110 seats with 55 each in Lucknow and Jaipur campus. This multidisciplinary approach is strategically designed to equip students with comprehensive knowledge essential for preparation of successful careers like UPSC and various State Public Service Commission exams. The medium of instruction for Sanskrit-related subjects will be Sanskrit itself, while English or Hindi will be used for other subjects, providing students with a bilingual accessibility. Prospective candidates must fulfill specific eligibility criteria to apply for the programme. Holders of Uttar Madhyama (Prak Shastri, Upa-Shastri or 10+2 or equivalent in any discipline), or any equivalent examination from a recognized bodies or institution, or equivalent from CBSE or any State Board of School Education are eligible. The course fee for the first, third, fifth, seventh semester will be 30,700 for General/OBC and 18,450 for SC/ST/Persons With Disabilities/CW. Similarly, for the the second, fourth, sixth and eighth semester it will be 28,500 for General/OBC and 16,250 for SC/ST/PWD/CW. Students taking admission in the session 2024-25 will also be given up to 50% discount in fees and scholarship will be given to all as per the rules.. There is a hostel facility for students on the campus itself. Due to limited seats, hostel allotment will be done on the basis of merit list. University spokesperson and assistant professor Neeraj Tiwari said that 55 seats were fixed in the four-year course. As per UGC guidelines, the medium would be Sanskrit, English or Hindi. The Sanskrit and Civil Services Studies programme would be of 208 credits in four years (eight semesters).--Inputs from Sharmistha Shivhare Self-styled godman Suraj Pal, known to his followers as Bhole Baba or Narayan Hari Sakar, was booked at Agras Shahganj police station in 2000 for making false claims of bringing a dead teen girl back to life. Sural Pal, who has an ashram in Kedar Nagar area of Agra, claimed to bring a dead girl back to life. (For Representation) He was arrested after his followers pelted police with stones, said Tejveer Singh, a retired deputy SP, who was the inspector incharge of Shahganj police station at that time. Hathras stampede: 34 get statements recorded before judicial commission A 15-year-old girl had died on March 18, 2000. Sural Pal, who has an ashram in Kedar Nagar area of Agra, claimed to bring the girl back to life. He and his followers took the deceased girl at Malka Chabutra crematorium for exhibiting his magical powers, he said. A crowd had also assembled. When things started going out of control, police intervened and asked Sural Pal to stop but his followers turned violent and pelted police with stones. Seven people, including Sural Pal, were arrested and booked under the Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954, at Shahganj police station of Agra, he added. However, Sural Pal was later acquitted in the matter by a court order. Mumbai, Mumbai Police have issued a Look Out Circular against a 24-year-old man, who was allegedly driving a BMW car which fatally knocked down a woman in Worli area, an official said on Monday. Worli hit and run case BMW car standing at premises of worli police station and police official inspecting car at parking stand of worli police station, at Worli, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, July 07, 2024. (Photo by Bhushan Koyande/HT Photo) The accused is the son of a Shiv Sena leader from neighbouring Palghar district. Kaveri Nakhwa , resident of Worli Koliwada, was going with her husband Pradeep on the arterial Dr Annie Besant Road when the luxury car, allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, crashed it into the couple's two-wheeler at around 5.30 am on Sunday, according to the police. The car dragged the woman for more than 2 km, a police official said. She was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival. After the accident, the accused fled towards the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. He left the car and his driver Rajrishi Bidawat, who was sitting next to him, near Kala Nagar in Bandra area and ran away, the official said. Mihir's father Rajesh Shah and Bidawat were later arrested by the Worli police on Sunday for allegedly helping Mihir escape after the accident, the official said. Rajesh Shah is a Shiv Sena leader from Palghar. The official said the car is owned by Rajesh Shah. "As there was a possibility of Mihir Shah fleeing the country, the Mumbai Police on Sunday evening issued an LOC against him," the official said. The police have launched a search for the accused and formed six teams to trace him, he said. Police suspect Mihir was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident as he was spotted at a bar in Juhu area here a few hours before the incident, the official said. The police have also found a bill of 18,000 of the bar and are verifying it, the official said without elaborating. The CCTV footage of the bar is also being examined, he said. The two arrested persons will be produced before a local court later in the day, he added. The accused persons have been booked under various sections, including 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita , according to the police. Speaking about the incident, Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena head Eknath Shinde on Sunday said law was equal for everyone and no one would be spared. Asked if the man involved in the accident was a Shiv Sena leader's son, the CM said, "The law is equal for all and the government sees every case in the same way. There will be no separate rule for this accident. Everything will be done as per the law." "The police will not shield anyone. The Mumbai accident is unfortunate. I have spoken to the police department to take strict action," he added. Shiv Sena MLA Aaditya Thackeray, who represents the Worli assembly constituency, in a post on X on Sunday said, "I will not go into the political leanings of Mr Shah, the accused of the hit and run, but I hope the police will act swiftly to catch the accused and bring him to justice. Hopefully there will be no political refuge by the regime." This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Mumbai, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday took stock of the heavy rain situation in Mumbai by chairing a meeting at Mantralaya and visiting the control room of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation . HT Image Some areas in Mumbai received more than 300 mm of rainfall in just six hours ending at 7 AM, causing inundation of roads and low-lying areas. Services of local trains on Central Railway routes were severely affected due to the accumulation of water on tracks, while out-station trains are running behind schedule. At Mantralaya, state minister for Relief and Rehabilitation and Disaster Management Anil Patil was also present. After attending the meeting at Mantralaya, Shinde went to the disaster department control room at the civic headquarters and reviewed the situation. He was accompanied by guardian ministers for Mumbai and Mumbai suburbs Deepak Kesarkar and Mangal Prabhat Lodha, respectively, their cabinet colleague Girish Mahajan, state chief secretary Sujata Saunik, Municipal commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, and senior IAS officer IS Chahal. The chief minister was apprised of the situation by civic officials. In view of heavy rains and a high tide warning, the civic body appealed to citizens not to believe in rumours and dial its control numbers for emergency help. BMC's disaster management control room was keeping an eye on all the happenings and all senior officials and ward-level staffers are on the field, the civic body said. In the 24 hours ending at 8 am on Monday, the island city recorded an average of 115.63 mm rainfall, while the eastern and western parts of Mumbai received 168.68 mm and 165.93 mm rain, respectively, an official said. In eastern Mumbai, Govandi recorded the highest 315.6 mm rainfall, followed by 314.5 mm at Powai, while in western parts, Malpa Dongri in Andheri received the highest 292.2 mm rainfall followed by 278.2 mm at Chakala. In the island city, Pratiksha Nagar got 220.2 mm of rainfall, followed by 185.8 mm in Sewri Koliwada. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Gurugram: Residents living in societies built along the Dwarka Expressway, on Sunday, protested against the Municipal Corporation of Gurugrams (MCG) decision to start dumping and processing fresh waste from the Dwarka Expressway at a site in the middle of residential sector 103. The site where the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram wants to start dumping and processing fresh waste from Dwarka Expressway in Gurugram. (Parveen Kumar/HT PHOTO) They argued that this move reflects a lack of vision by the Haryana government authorities towards waste management and will directly impact the health of residents in numerous societies and nearby villages. All RWAs of the Dwarka Expressway protested against this unplanned move by the Haryana government. Farmers, residents, home buyers, investors, village Panchayats took part in the protest. The protest, organized under the banner of the Dwarka Expressway Gurugram Development Association (DXP-GDA), saw over one thousand participants, including children, women, senior citizens and working professionals voicing their opposition to the proposed dumping site. The DXP-GDA represents the interests of all societies and villages along the Dwarka Expressway and New Gurugram, and they said that the protests would grow if the decision was not withdrawn. The protesters raised several key concerns, including the repeated attempts to undermine the sectors along Dwarka Expressway and New Gurugram, marking this as the third such effort in recent years. Sunil Sareen, a resident of Sector 102 said that all residential societies and gated complexes in the area are mandated to maintain zero discharge facilities to independently manage their waste and contribute to a cleaner environment. The proposed facility poses significant health and environmental risks, including increased pollution, foul odours and potential groundwater contamination due to the high-water table, which is approximately 5 feet in the area. There will be an adverse impact on future developments, such as the nearly complete 750-bed Maa Sheetla Mata Medical Hospital and Research Centre and the Chaudhary Charan Singh Agricultural University, which would be negatively affected by the waste processing facility, he said. Navdeep Singh, a resident of Sector 104, Dwarka Expressway, said that MCGs negligence in implementing proper waste management practices is not only illegal but also a threat to our safety and health. Moreover, the protesters argued that the MCGs decision contradicts the Central governments investment of 9,500 crore to develop a world-class Dwarka Expressway, a project led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make the area comparable to Singapore. Despite this significant investment, the proposed waste dumping site threatens to degrade the area and undermine its development. In response to the protest, the DXP-GDA handed over a letter to the Deputy Commissioner and MCG Commissioner, with a copy to the chief minister of Haryana, expressing their grave concerns and demanding the halting of the proposed dumping site. Over 3,000 people also raised their concerns through an online signature campaign initiated by the DXP-GDA. Children participating in the protest highlighted the potential pollution and its adverse effects on their health and the environment. MCG joint commissioner Naresh Kumar said that they had already finalized the spot and the decision can only be reversed by higher authorities. Due to this protest, we are unable to start the new project. We cannot ask other districts to process the waste of Gurugram. The citys waste will be processed in the city itself. If residents have an issue, then they should segregate and ensure they are bulk waste generators (BWG). According to the Solid Waste Management Rules, 2016, the BWGs should have a composting plant to compost their wet waste and dry waste should be recycled, he said. A group of armed militants attacked police at Phaiton village in Tamenglong district of Manipur on Monday, a few hours before the arrival of Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, in the violence-hit state. The Manipur police said no casualties were reported during the incident; however, the front mirror of the fire tender was damaged. (Representational image) Phaiton in Tamenglong district is a bordering village of Jiribam districts Gularthol village, which is about 6-7 kilometres away from the Jiribam police station. According to the Jiribam police, a piece of information was received at around 3am on Monday that a police outpost established at Phaiton village had been set on fire by some unknown miscreants. Acting on the information, the district police along with a fire tender team rushed to the spot. However, armed miscreants who were already stationed at Phaiton village opened fire towards the forces. The forces also retaliated from inside the Casspir. The armed miscreants used lathode bombs against the forces. The exchange of fire continued for several minutes. A combined team of Assam Rifles (AR) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) also rushed to the spot and conducted a search operation in the area along the Phaiton hills. At around 5am, the firing stopped, and the combined team apprehended two suspects from Phaiton village along with some weapons. The two apprehended persons were handed over to Tamenglong district police for further verification. No casualties were reported during the incident; however, the front mirror of the fire tender was damaged. The Jiribam police said the incident might not be related to Rahul Gandhis visit to the district. Since May 3 last year, the violence in Manipur has led to the killing of over 200 people and displacement of over 60,000 people. Many people are still missing. The violence had been relatively quiet for about 2-3 months; however, it reignited after a 59-year-old man was found killed in Jiribam district on June 6. Recently, some unknown miscreants had set ablaze a police outpost established at Phaiton village. The National Capital Region Transport Corporation (NCRTC) managing director, Shalabh Goyal, inspected the Regional Rapid Transit System (RRTS) corridor from Meerut South Station to Sarai Kale Khan Station in Delhi on Monday. He was accompanied by the NCRTC director and other officials. NCRTC managing director Shalabh Goyal inspecting the RRTS corridor (HT Photo) The inspection began at Meerut South Station on Monday afternoon, where construction has been completed, and Namo Bharat trains will soon commence operations. Goyal examined the stations operational preparations and reviewed parking facilities. Meerut Metro will also start from this station, enhancing convenience for residents travelling from Meerut South to Modipuram. The station features three platforms: two for Namo Bharat trains and one for Meerut Metro. An 8 km section from Modi Nagar North Station to Meerut South will soon be opened to the public, allowing residents to reach Ghaziabad from Meerut South in minutes. Currently, trial runs for Namo Bharat trains are on between Modi Nagar North and Meerut South stations. During the inspection, he interacted with the station controllers, train operators, and other operational staff to understand their daily challenges. He experienced passenger-centric facilities such as push buttons, PSD, stretcher space, and the trains high speed. He praised the cleanliness of the stations and urged officials to continuously improve cleanliness standards. Currently, Namo Bharat trains operate across eight stations in the 34 km section from Sahibabad to Modi Nagar North. With the upcoming commencement of services from Modi Nagar North to Meerut South, the operational section will extend to 42 km including 9 RRTS stations. The Delhi section of the RRTS corridor spans 14 km, with 9 km elevated and 5 km underground. The underground section includes the construction of Anand Vihar Station. The viaduct construction in the Delhi section is complete, and the three under-construction stations are nearing completion. Efforts to integrate these stations with other transport modes are also underway. by Azadeh Amirsadri In the late 1960s and early 70s, my maternal grandmother spent a lot of time in the United States. She would return to Iran, her suitcase filled with presents like candy and fruity bubble gum for her grandchildren, and pretty shirts and dresses for our mom. She also brought back a part of her daily American life: cartons of red Winston cigarettes, Crest toothpaste, hand and face creams with English writings on the bottles, and Dial Soap in that beautiful saffron gold color that was unlike any soap I had seen or smelled before. Our soaps in Iran were usually either flower scented and over perfumed, or green and organic because of the local olive oil used to make them. Everyone valued the green soaps, but I just wanted the American gold soap. I would watch her put the soap back in a plastic container after her shower to keep it from drying and when she was away from her room, I would go open the plastic container and smell the magic of that gold bar of soap. In the summer of 1975, when I was 16 years old and a rising junior in high school, I fell in love with a young man who was a college student. We had a standing date every Thursday where he was off from his internship at an architectural firm and didnt have to attend classes at the university; and me, damn any class that was going to stand in my way of keeping me away from him. Every Wednesday evening, I would take my grandmothers soap, go in the shower and rub my body with that gold Dial. The next day, I skipped school to hang out with him, first in parks and coffee shops, eventually graduating to stairwells where we would kiss frantically, but faced the danger of getting caught. Then when he finally could afford it, he bought a Citroen Deux-Chevaux, and would pick me up from school where we had the whole city of Tehran to ourselves. Wed go to dark restaurants that were so popular in the 1970s where you could make out under the cover of semi- darkness, especially after over tipping the doorman. Wed go outside the city and walk around talking about our scorching love and how no one has ever known this type of love, no one ever will and how lucky we were to have created this magical connection. My Thursdays during the school year were wrapped in the loving perfume of his sweet words and the faint scent of my grandmothers American soap. Another thing my grandmother talked about was the food in America; specifically, bubble gum, cheeseburgers and ice cream sundaes. On summer evenings, as we were sleeping on the flat rooftop of our house where we could catch a breeze in the dry oppressive summer heat of Tehran, my grandmother would tell us about Americans with big cars, driving for a long time to go to a park or to climb a mountain and once there, they would eat a cheeseburger, hang out and drive back home. I imagined guys with long hair, wearing jeans, and women wearing brightly colored sleeveless dresses with red lipstick on, laughing in their cars with open widows and the wind in their hair. The best part of the stories though were the detailed descriptions of things I could not even imagine, like banana splits. My grandmother, who was very good at stretching these tales, told us about ice cream in America. Not a cone or even a dish, but a long boat of a dish, with a banana cut lengthwise in half, with three different types of ice cream, all in a store where they were so many choices of flavor that choosing three would take a very long time, yet it was all acceptable and no one rushed you. As my sisters and I laid there, holding our breaths trying to simply imagine such glory, she would describe how the toppings were added, one by one, all crowned with whipped cream and cherries. I had seen pictures of such delights and imagined them to be an out of this world experience. She said banana splits were better than Cafe Glace, our favorite iced coffee and ice cream drink, because you could chose any flavor you wanted or combine flavors. As we asked for more details, shed just laugh and go to her bedroom, leaving us hungry for more and telling us she will share more with us the following day. When I left Iran for the United States in 1976, one of the nuns in my Catholic school told me it would be Americas bicentennial celebration. She was the only American nun we had and unlike the other European nuns who wore long habits, she wore a knee length one and there was something light about her demeanor. Maybe it was her age, or just who she was. She said I was so lucky to be going to America and participating in the bicentennial festivities. I was 17 years old and had no idea what she was talking about. Iran had celebrated 2500 years of royal history a few years before, so 200 years didnt make much sense to me. I was more interested in the cheeseburgers and banana splits than any bicentennials. My then husband and I would go to the Navy commissary every weekend. I would dress up very nicely, wear my wedding jewelry, put on lavender eye shadow and lipstick that matched my purple dress and go to lunch at McDonalds after grocery shopping. Wed each get a Big Mac meal with a coke and as Id sit there watching people and children in and out of the restaurant, Id marvel at my luck for being able to eat this amazing food that my grandmother talked about. I missed my sisters a lot though and wanted them to be with me, experiencing this joy I was experiencing. The banana splits I eventually had never tasted as good as the ones my grandmother talked about. Her descriptions and my imagination were way better than the reality, as things usually are. The soap though is still as good. My daughter and her family were visiting two years ago from California and my son-in-law went and got me some fancy soaps in cute crafty paper as a gift after he took a shower at my house and decided I needed to upgrade my bathing routine. After they left, I brought my own Dial soap back into circulation because the smell gives me that distant feeling of being pampered, naughty and oh so in love. The Eastern Nagaland Peoples Organisation (ENPO) has announced a temporary suspension of the public emergency imposed by it in the tribal areas under six eastern districts of Nagaland. The public emergency was declared on March 5, 2024 across Mon, Tuensang, Kiphire, Longleng, Noklak and Shamator districts. ENPO said the decision to suspend its call was taken during an executive council meeting held on July 3 at its headquarters in Tuensang. (File) The organisation, in a notice, said the decision to suspend its call was taken during an executive council meeting held on July 3 at its headquarters in Tuensang. According to ENPO, the step to suspend the public emergency was a measure aimed at fostering mutual understanding and pursuing a peaceful resolution regarding the creation of autonomous Frontier Nagaland Territory (FNT) by the Government of India. It, however, said the suspension is subject to review in the event of compelling circumstances. The ENPO has been demanding a separate Frontier Nagaland state as early as 2010 over development deficit in its area. Although the initial demand was for creation of a separate state Frontier Nagaland carved out from the present-day Nagaland, the Centres representatives from Union Home Ministry led by advisor (northeast) AK Mishra in 2022 negotiated for an alternative arrangement- autonomy for the region. The ENPO, which represents the Chang, Khiamniungan, Konyak, Phom, Sangtam, Tikhir, Yimkhiung and eastern Sumi communities, has a standing resolution from February to abstain from central or state election till issues regarding the creation of FNT is resolved. Based on this resolution, the people of the six districts have not participated in the April Lok Sabha elections and the recently concluded state urban local body (ULB) polls. There are 20 assembly constituencies and 14 town councils in the eastern region. Meanwhile, reacting to media reports on chief minister Neiphiu Rio saying the state government was mulling to nominate members to the ULBs in the eastern districts, ENPO said the people of the region did not participate in the ULB polls, therefore the question of appointing nominees to the ULBs of eastern Nagaland does not arise. At least seven bodies have been recovered, so far, from the site of a five-storey building collapse in Surat district of Gujarat, police said on Sunday, adding that three people, including two owners of the building, have booked on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder while one of them has been arrested. JCB machines remove the debris after a four-storey building collapsed in Surat on Sunday. (ANI Photo) The eight-year-old Kailash Raj Residency, which was in a dilapidated condition and located in Sachin Pali village of Surat, collapsed at around 2.30 pm on Saturday amid incessant rain in the region for several days. As per the FIR, the dilapidated building was mostly vacant as the earlier occupants had left due to the danger it posed. Around six of the flats were occupied, mostly by those who worked in factories in the area. Sachin GIDC police station inspector Jignesh Chaudhari said a team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), two teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police personnel and fire brigade were involved in the overnight rescue operation. A total of eight people got buried under the collapsed structure, and only one was rescued alive, he added. Police have identified the six deceased as Hiraman Kevat (40), Abhishek (35), Brijesh God (50), Shivpujan Kevat (26), Anmol Harijan (17), Parvesh Kevat (21), and Lalji Kevat (40) all textile workers from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. An FIR has been registered against three people building owners Raj Kakadiya and his mother Ramilaben Kakadiya and one Ashwin Vekariya, who collected rent from the occupants under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder), said Chaudhari, adding that Vekariya has been arrested and efforts are underway to nab the two other two accused. Raj Kakadiya is currently in the US, while police are on the lookout for his mother, he said. According to the Surat Police, the building was in a dilapidated condition for a long time, and residents had complained about water leakage and cracks. The residents/tenants had repeatedly complained about this to Ashwin Vekariya. The Surat Municipal Corporation had issued warnings against residing in the building due to potential danger. Despite this, the building owners and Ashwinbhai Vekariya, who was responsible for rent collection and building maintenance, continued to rent out flats and collect rent without carrying out necessary repairs, it said. Surat district collector Dr Sourabh Pardhi, however, said that he was unaware of any such notice being issued, but the SMC had issued a notice to the buildings owner for strengthening the building as part of pre-monsoon checks on April 26 this year. The building was constructed in 2016. It was then part of the gram panchayat and it came under Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA) in 2020. The lady who was rescued recounted the incident and said it felt like an earthquake. Prima facie, it looks like there was an issue with one of the pillars and that the building had collapsed from one side as a result, he said. Tension prevailed at Achkachawapur Abdalpur Khas village under Soraon police station of trans-Ganga area here on Monday, a day after the murder of Apna Dal (S) leader Indrajeet Patel following which a heavy force has been deployed here. (Pic for representation) On Monday, the family members of the accused Sarvesh Singh Patel left the village after locking their home. The body of Indrajeet was handed over to his family members after postmortem examination, but his kin were adamant on performing the last rites only after receiving assurance on compensation and land on lease to them. Senior police and administrative officials were pacifying the kin of the deceased till reports last came in. Meanwhile, the accused Sarvesh Singh Patel was produced before the court on Monday and has been sent to jail, police officials said. Apna Dal (S) leader Indrajeet Patel, 27, was shot dead by his neighbour Sarvesh Singh Patel early on Sunday morning in a dispute over some agricultural land. The accused who was present close to the crime scene with two semi-automatic pistols threatened to shoot himself if cops attempted to catch him. However, he was arrested after an exercise of two hours. Indrajeet aka Monu Patel was a member of legal cell of Apna Dal (S) and was pursuing LLB from a college. On Sunday morning, Indrajeet had left home to bring tractor for ploughing when Sarvesh shot him dead in the head from close range. Heavy force was deployed in the village following tension between both families. Many villagers and local leaders assembled at the house of Indrajeet and supported their demands for compensation and land lease. DCP trans-Ganga Abhishek Bharti said force has been deployed at the village as a precautionary measure. The situation remained peaceful in the village on Monday, he added. Accused bought pistols from truck driver Questioning from the accused Sarvesh revealed that he purchased the automatic pistols from a truck driver of Jharkhand. Sarvesh used to work at a petrol pump earlier where he met a truck driver of Jharkhand. The driver sold him two semi-automatic pistols made in Munger for 20,000 each. A book of puzzles I recently consulted contains an elementary version of a puzzle that has appeared in Problematics earlier (Puzzle #70.1, January 1, 2024). Since you have already the tougher version, there is no point trying the simpler one now. The reason for bringing this up, however, is that I think the solution printed in the book is wrong. Representational image. It runs like this: In a group of people, some always speak the truth and some always lie. Four of them sit in a circle. To each one, we ask: Is the person on your left truthful or a liar? Each one replies: A liar! The puzzle is to determine which ones are truthful and which ones are liars, and the book concludes that the first and third are truthful and the other two are liars. I think, however, that the puzzle is indeterminate. With an even number of people, all we can conclude is that the truth-tellers and liars are sitting alternately. So, either the first and third are truthful and the other two are liars, or the first and third and liars are liars and the other two are truthful. Please let me know if there is anything I have missed here. Onward to our next puzzle, which is again about people who always lie and others who never do. #Puzzle 98.1 Meet a group of five people, each of whom either always tells the truth or always lies. We do not know how many of the five are truthful and how many are liars, but both kinds exist in the group. To find out, you ask one of them: Are you truthful? Yes, she replies. It was a wasted question, of course. So you ask the second person: How many of you are truthful? Two, including myself, he replies. Another man butts in: There are three liars among us. Glad to be making progress, you turn to the fourth person, a woman. Does this group include more liars or more truthful persons? The liars outnumber the truthful, she mourns. She lies, says the fifth, also a woman. The truthful outnumber the liars. Who is what? #Puzzle 98.2 A magician turns his back and asks a member of his audience to roll three dice. He proceeds to give the following instructions: 1. Double the number on the first die and add 5. 2. Multiply the sum by 5. 3. To this total add the number of the second die. 4. Multiply the new total by 10. 5. Add the number on the third die and tell me the grand total. The moment the spectator gives the total, the magician announces the number on each die. How is it done? MAILBOX: LAST WEEKS SOLVERS #Puzzle 97.1 Solutions to Puzzle 97.1. Hi Kabir, Hope I understood the problem correctly. Treating it as a set of concentric circles, the difference between the distance travelled by the head of the dinosaur and the distance travelled by the head of the human is equal to the difference between the circumferences of the respective circles. So the extra distance travelled by the dinosaurs head is 2(18 1.8) = 2 x 16.2 = 101.78m. One doesnt need the circumference of the Earth to calculate this. Dr Sunita Gupta, Delhi #Puzzle 97.2 Hi Kabir, a b = x a b = y The smallest values of a and b satisfying the above integer equations are 10 and 6. 10 6 = 64 = 4 10 6 = 784 = 28 This could be found manually by exploring the values in the range 1 to 10 using just an Excel spreadsheet. Interestingly, the next higher pair of values is 640 and 384. This, of course, required a program to explore. 640 384 = 262144 = 64 640 384 = 205520896 = 14336 In retrospect, it can be seen that this pair of values can be obtained by multiplying the earlier pair by 64, the smallest integer (greater than 1) that is both a perfect square and a perfect cube. This observation implies the existence of infinitely many solutions. Professor Anshul Kumar, Delhi *** The smallest numbers satisfying the equations would be a = 10 and b = 6. This is assuming that a value of 0 is not acceptable. If it is ok, the values a = 1 and b = 0 would also satisfy the conditions. Kanwarjit Singh, Chief Commissioner of Income-Tax (retired) Strictly speaking, a value of 0 should not have been acceptable. But since this was not specified in the original puzzle, I am accepting the solution (1, 0) from a couple of readers who did not mention (10, 6). Solved both puzzles: Dr Sunita Gupta (Delhi), Professor Anshul Kumar (Delhi), Kanwarjit Singh (Chief Commissioner of Income-Tax, retired), Sanjay S (Coimbatore), Avanti Kashikar (Mumbai), YK Munjal (Delhi), Akshay Bakhai (Mumbai), Harshit Arora (IIT Delhi), Sampath Kumar V (Coimbatore), Yadvendra Somra (Sonipat), Ajay Ashok (Mumbai) Solved #Puzzle 97.2: Shishir Gupta (Indore) Problematics will be back next week. Please send in your replies by Friday noon to problematics@hindustantimes.com. Karnataka SSLC Supply Result 2024 Live: The Karnataka School Examination and Assessment Board or KSEAB has declared Karnataka SSLC Supply Result 2024 today, July 10, 2024 on the official website of Karnataka results at karresults.nic.in. All appeared students can check Karnataka SSLC supplementary results by entering their registration number and date of birth....Read More Direct link to check Karnataka SSLC Supply Result 2024 This year, Karnataka SSLC supplementary examination was conducted from June 14 to June 21, 2024. As per the new system, there will be three exams each year, namely exams 1, 2, and 3. The supplementary examination has been renamed as exam 2. The steps given below can be followed for all candidates to check their KSEAB 10th exam 2 results. How to check Karnataka SSLC supplementary results? Visit the official website of Karnataka Board at kseab.karnataka.gov.in. Click on Karnataka SSLC Supplementary Result 2024 link available on the home page. Enter the login details and click on submit. Your result will be displayed on the screen. Check the result and download the page. Keep a hard copy of the same for further need. Karnataka SSLC examination result was announced on May 9, 2024. This year the overall pass percentage is 73.40%. This year, a total of 859967 appeared for the examination out of which 631204 candidates passed. SSLC examination commenced on March 25 and ended on April 6, 2024. Follow the blog for latest updates on results, date and time, direct link and more. NEET UG 2024 Supreme Court Hearing Live: The Supreme Court on Monday, after hearing pleas against alleged irregularities in the conduct of NEET UG 2024 exam, directed the National Testing Agency (NTA) to make full disclosure in three aspects when the paper leak first took place, the manner in which question papers were disseminated and the time duration between the occurrence of the leak and the actual conduct of the exam....Read More CJI DY Chandrachud said that paper leak is an admitted fact, and it is beyond doubt that the integrity of the exam has been compromised. The next hearing will take place on Thursday. The Supreme Court bench, also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra heard petitioners who asked for a re-test and cancellation of the previous result alleging the paper was leaked. The sanctity of several national-level entrance examinations conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), including the NEET UG, is in question amid allegations of paper leaks and other malpractices. In separate affidavits, the centre and the NTA showed unwillingness to scrap the exam and hold a re-examination. In their responses, they have said the CBI has taken over the cases registered in different states. "It is also submitted that at the same time, in the absence of any proof of any large-scale breach of confidentiality in a pan-India examination, it would not be rational to scrap the entire examination and the results already declared," the Centre said. "Scrapping the exam in entirety would seriously jeopardise the lakhs of honest candidates who attempted the question paper in 2024," the Education ministry said. The NTA, in its separate affidavit, said, "The cancellation of the entire examination on the basis of the aforesaid factor, would be hugely counterproductive and significantly harmful to the larger public interest, especially to the career prospects of the qualified candidates." The claim of "mass malpractice" during the exam is completely unfounded, misleading, and lacks any basis, it added. The government also informed that it has formed a high-level panel of experts to suggest effective measures for conducting transparent, smooth and fair examinations by the NTA. (With inputs from Abraham Thomas and PTI) Check live updates on the Supreme Court hearing of the NEET UG result cancellation and re-exam pleas below. The Supreme Court on Monday said that the paper leak in the conduct of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) UG 2024 was an admitted fact, and hinted at a re-examination for wrongdoers. The top court that began hearing a series of petitions today concerning the re-conduct of the NEET UG also directed the NTA to fully disclose and provide clarity in three aspects: The Supreme Court was schedule to hear a series of petitions concerning the re-conduct of NEET UG 2024. (ANI file image) When the leak of question papers had first taken place The manner in which question papers leaked were disseminated. Time duration between occurrence of leak and actual conduct of exam which took place at 2 pm on May 5 In its hearing, the court announced the appointment of a nodal counsel akin to CB matters as well as directed Centre to distribute a detailed schedule of dates. The apex court sought for a status report be filed by the CBI investigating officer indicating status of investigation from the material that has come to light during investigation. It further asked the Centre and NTA is whether it was feasible to use data analytics either within Cyber Forensics unit or any expert agency to b to identify suspect cases Pledging to request records from CBI, the Solicitor General proposed the next hearing be scheduled for Thursday, that is on July 11. Supreme Court hearing on NEET UG live updates The petitions were heard by a bench consisting of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, along with Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra. Notably, the hearing comes days after a plea was filed in the top court seeking a fresh exam, originally held on May 5, on the grounds of alleged question paper leak and other malpractices. The court on June 20 sought responses from the Centre and the NTA on the petition on a slew of petitions, including those seeking the scrapping of the NEET-UG and a court-monitored probe. Also read: NEET MDS Counselling 2024: Choice filling ends today, Round 1 seat allotment result on July 10 Consequently, the Union Government and the National Testing Agency (NTA) told the apex court that scrapping NEET UG 2024 would jeopardize lakhs of honest candidates in the absence of any proof of large-scale breach of confidentiality. The affidavit filed through the Ministry of Education stated that it would not be rational to scrap the entire examination. The results were already declared without proof of any large-scale breach of confidentiality in a pan-India examination. It was on June 4 when the uproar began following the declaration of results wherein as many as 67 candidates achieved perfect scores 720 an uncommon phenomenon in this history of the exam. What was even more surprising was that a few among the 67 candidates belonged to the same examination center raising suspicions. The NTA in its recent response to the Supreme Court asserted that the performance of students at the questioned centers is neither abnormally high nor significantly different from the national average. It also highlighted that the present case does not involve a systematic failure across the entire examination process. Also read: NEET UG counselling 2024 expected to begin by end of July, hint official sources; no date notified so far Meanwhile, the events that followed shook the education sector of the country from its core from the multiple arrests of individuals (including NEET aspirants) by the Bihar Police for the paper leak to the leakage of the UGC NET 2024 another crucial examination held by the NTA, on the darknet, things only went downhill. More key entrance exams such as the NEET PG and joint CSIR UGC NET 2024 were postponed, much to the disappointment of candidates. The alleged failure of the NTA to hold the examinations in a systematic manner was not only limited to protests by students - it transcended into a political fireball with opposition parties coming down heavily on the Prime Minister Modi-led central government. Amid the outrage, the Centre replaced the director general of NTA on June 22 and appointed Pradeep Singh Kharola as the agencys new chief. Furthermore, a high-level panel was also formed by the Centre on June 25, chaired by ISRO chief K Radhakrishnan. The Panel is tasked to give its recommendations to the education ministry within the next 2 months on the reform in the mechanism of the examination process, improvement in data security protocols, and structure and functioning of the NTA. Not just this, the government also brought in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a comprehensive investigation into the alleged malpractices and probe the entire gamut of alleged irregularities, including conspiracy, cheating, impersonation, and breach of trust. Several arrests and detentions have been made so far by the CBI in connection with the case. Worth mentioning here, the NTA had conducted a re-examination for 1,563 candidates on June 23, who were given grace marks due to loss of time during the originally scheduled NEET UG exam on May 5. The exam was held after the Centre had told the Supreme Court on June 13 of its proposal to conduct the re-exam and withdraw the scorecards issued to the candidates who were given grace marks. Strangely, out of the 1,563 candidates, only 813 candidates took the re-examination, while the rest opted to retain their scores without the grace marks. It may be mentioned here that the Supreme Court in an earlier hearing on June 18 had emphasized the need for maintaining the integrity of the examination process. The apex court had underscored the importance of thoroughly dealing with even 0.01% negligence on the part of NTA in conducting the NEET-UG 2024. Himachal Pradesh University has declared HPU Result 2024. The results have been declared for UG, PG courses and is available to all the candidates on the official website of HP University at hpuniv.ac.in. HPU Result 2024: UG, PG results for March-April exams out, direct link here (Getty Images/iStockphoto) The results have been declared for B.Sc Nursing, M.Sc Botany, M.Sc Chemistry, MBBS, M.Sc Microbiology, BDS and others. All the candidates who want to check the results can follow the steps given below. HPU Result 2024: How to check Visit the official website of HP University at hpuniv.ac.in. Click on results link. A new page will open where candidates will have to click on HPU Result 2024 link available on the page. Click on the course link and a new page will open. Enter the login details and click on submit. Your result will be displayed on the screen. Check the result and download the page. Keep a hard copy of the same for further need. For more related details candidates can check the official website of HP University. An MBA degree has long been viewed as the golden ticket to land the job you want, with MBA programs focusing on equipping students with essential business knowledge and skills. However, recent times have seen a massive shift in both the educational and business landscape, and gradually, the attrition rate has spiked among MBA graduates. MBA programs often focus on theories, strategies, and the framework of the subject taught. While this provides ample theoretical knowledge, it falls short in real-life application, resulting in graduates finding it challenging to function in the workplace.(Pixabay) According to a recent report by Deloitte titled Campus Workforce Trends 2024, the pan-India attrition rates for recruits and employees with one and two years of experience stands at 21%, 26%, and 28%, respectively. The million-dollar question is, why? The answer lies in the glaring gap between classroom instruction and practical demands. This article will explore why the gap exists and what can be done to solve it and minimise attrition rates among MBA graduates. Understanding the mismatch As the nature of jobs changes, educational institutions need to follow suit. MBA programs often focus on theories, strategies, and the framework of the subject taught. While this provides ample theoretical knowledge, it falls short in real-life application, resulting in graduates finding it challenging to function in the workplace. Hands-on learning through internships and live projects can help students understand their interests better and prepare them for practical challenges. The knowledge gap As per Unstop Talent Report 2024, 82% of HR professionals believe a significant skill gap exists among students. In contrast, 91% of students feel their coursework is adequate. This gap underscores the rising need to ensure educational institutions are aligned with industry expectations. Given that companies often look for candidates who can adapt and thrive in the workplace with minimal on-the-job training, the misalignment of the curriculum and the real-world requirements results in MBA graduates falling short. Addressing GenZ expectations GenZ accounts for around 2 billion of the global population and is expected to make up nearly 40% of the workforce soon. Companies are welcoming more GenZ professionals into their teams. However, to reduce attrition rates, its essential to understand the GenZ psyche better. Often, GenZ professionals value inclusion in large and impactful projects where their ideas and voices are heard. Changing policies to involve them in meaningful work can significantly enhance their engagement and retention. From an educational standpoint, GenZ students often look to enhance their learning through technology and hands-on experiences where they can interact with like-minded peers. They also seek fulfilling learning experiences rather than studying solely for grades. So, it is crucial to ensure that the lessons and knowledge imparted are meaningful and will provide enriching learning experiences. A greater emphasis on skills It was found that over 88% of HR professionals prefer evaluating students based on skill sets rather than degrees alone. Engaging students through competitions and challenges allows them to be assessed on their ideas, skills, and quick thinkingqualities essential in a professional setting. This approach aligns with the industrys move towards a skills-based evaluation, which reduces bias and promotes fairness. Going beyond the curriculum To succeed in the real world, students must go beyond only learning their course curriculum. Regularly engaging with mentors, alumni, or peers can provide valuable insights into preparing for placements and understanding industry demands. Participating in masterclasses from industry professionals can offer practical knowledge and strategies for excelling in their chosen fields. Innovative retention strategies Deloittes Campus Workforce Trends 2024 report showed companies need to recalibrate their approach for better retention, especially given the high MBA graduate attrition rates. In todays competitive market, implementing innovative practices is essential to retain top talent. Despite higher attrition rates, 70% of organisations actively seek MBA graduates, reflecting their importance in business success. The study also indicates a 5.2% CAGR in compensation for MBA graduates over five years, underscoring their value. Bottomline Bridging the gap between MBA education and real-world requirements requires a concerted effort from educational institutions, students, and organisations. Implementing an innovative approach and ensuring enriching, meaningful experiences will reduce attrition rates and pave the way for sustained success for graduates and businesses. (Author Ankit Aggarwal is Founder and CEO of Unstop. Views expressed are personal.) The Ministry of Education is gearing up to release the latest edition of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) Rankings, an annual exercise where universities and other educational institutes across India are ranked based on significant parameters. The NIRF Rankings 2024 will be the ninth edition of the yearly task carried out by the Ministry. NIRF Rankings 2024 to be released soon. Check out the methodology through which universities are ranked. (Screenshot: nirfindia.org) Now, what exactly are these rankings and what is the methodology behind chalking out the best educational institutions? The NIRF ranking methodology draws from the overall recommendations understanding arrived at by a Core Committee set up by the Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD), to identify the broad parameters for ranking various universities and institutions. There are a total of five parameters, each with its sub-heads. The ranking methodology as per NIRF: The ranking Methodology is based on developing a set of metrics for ranking of academic institutions, based on the parameters agreed upon by the core committee. Each ranking parameter and its sub-heads have a weight assigned to it. While ranking, an attempt is made to identify relevant data needed to measure the performance score under each sub-head. In other words, only those data are identified that are easily provided by the institution or are easy to obtain from third-party sources and easily verifiable wherever needed, thereby making the process transparent. A suitable metric is proposed based on this data which computes a score under each sub-head. The sub-head scores are then added to obtain scores for each parameter. The overall score is then computed based on the weights allotted to each head. The score can be a maximum value of 100. The institutions are then ranked based on their scores. Also read: NIRF 2024: IIT Madras tops rankings for 6th straight year, IISc Bengaluru adjudged best university The five crucial parameters and their sub-heads: 1. Teaching, Learning, and Resources (Marks 100, Weightage 0.30) Student Strength including Doctoral Students (SS) Faculty-student ratio with emphasis on permanent faculty (FSR) Combined metric for Faculty with PhD (or equivalent) and Experience (FQE) Financial Resources and their Utilisation (FRU) 2. Research and Professional Practices (Marks 100, Weightage 0.30) Combined metric for Publications (PU) Combined metric for Quality of Publications (QP) IPR and Patents: Published and Granted (IPR) Footprint of Projects and Professional Practice (FPPP) 3. Graduation Outcomes (Marks 100, Weightage 0.20) Metric for University Examinations (GUE) Metric for Number of Ph.D. Students Graduated (GPHD) 4. Outreach and Inclusivity (Marks 100, Weightage 0.10) Percentage of Students from Other States/Countries (Region Diversity RD) Percentage of Women (Women Diversity WD) Economically and Socially Challenged Students (ESCS) Facilities for Physically Challenged Students (PCS) Perception (PR) Ranking 5.Perception (Marks 100, Weightage 0.10) Academic Peers and Employers (PR) Also read: NIRF Rankings 2024: AIIMS New Delhi remains top medical college in India, check five best colleges for medical studies CATEGORIES: The NIRF Rankings are given in the following categories: Overall Universities Colleges Research Institutions Engineering Management Pharmacy Medical Dental Law Architecture and Planning Agriculture and Allied Sectors Innovation NIRF 2023 HIGHLIGHTS: Last year, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras secured the top position in the overall category, followed by IISc Bangalore which secured the second position, and IIT Delhi at third. IIT Madras got a score of 86.69% and emerged at the top place for the fifth time in 2023. In the Medical category, AIIMS Delhi topped the list, whereas IIM Ahmedabad topped in the Management category. IIT Madras was the topper in the Engineering category. It now remains to be seen which institution will be ranked number one in the latest edition. by Eric J. Weiner One always has exaggerated ideas about what one doesnt know. Albert Camus From a Deweyan perspective, public educations central role in a democracy is to provide the conditions for students to learn the skills, knowledge, and habits of mind that are essential for democratic life. For Dewey, democracy is a form of associated living among heterogeneous peoples and therefore requires students to learn how to understand, interrogate, evaluate, and manage conflicts, big and small, democratically. The ability to evaluate, understand, and resolve our conflicts peacefully and respectfully are an important index of democracys health and viability. Just as the health of a nation can be measured by how well its children fare, the health of a nations democracy can be measured, in part, by how well it teaches its children. Constrained by constitutional principles of justice, liberty, and rights, educating future generations to be able and willing to live democratically means that schools must stop privileging safe spaces over brave spaces and help students lean into the most difficult and challenging conflicts of the day. Conflicts should not be avoided and our students should not be protected from them. On the contrary, they are a vital pedagogical and curricular resource for developing syncretic knowledge and cultural literacies; an opportunity for dialectical and intersectional thinking; offer a check against coercive and indoctrinating pedagogies from both the left and right; and make the learning experience democratic, meaningful, and transformative. Mirroring its societal context, schools today at all levels are politicized and polarized to a degree where democratic education is seen by many as a luxury we can no longer afford to practice because of the threat of authoritarianism. They believe that the drift toward some embryonic form of American authoritarianism demands a hard stop when it comes to teaching about issues from different conservative heterodox perspectives. These include White Christian Nationalism, MAGA, and other anti-democratic/pro-authoritarian ideologies and their associated ideas, practices, and policies about everything from immigration to abortion. For others, ironically, democratic education represents a threat to American Exceptionalism. They see democratic education as a form of leftist indoctrination and therefore believe it must be policed, disciplined, and restrained. For these folks, American democracy has reached its tipping point in which its excesses have overwhelmed its value as a check against monarchy, communism and totalitarianism. Both sides reject democratic education as a way forward, choosing instead to double-down on the politicization of education in the name of freedom. But their conception and practice of freedom is negative in that it is driven essentially by fear, avoidance and escape. Politicization of education is a tool wielded by those who fear that their ideas wont hold up under critique. In short, politicization is the process in which knowledge is explicitly self-interested and power and truth are cynically linked and indistinguishable. Learning becomes a zero-sum game in which a small disagreement can become a reason for a total dismissal or cancellation of an entire body of work. Throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater reflects a growing anti-intellectualism among educators and scholars of all stripes; it is animated by a general refusal to take a complex accounting of conflicting viewpoints across the ideological spectrum of ideas and cultural practices. The learning environment of a politicized classroomLeft or Rightis rigidly ideological, anti-intellectual, coercive, and dogmatic. This turns the classroom into a war room; education into training and schooling; teaching into coercion; learning into indoctrination; assessment into a tool of discipline and punishment; students into ideological foot soldiers; deskilled teachers into technicians; explanation into justification and/or rationalization; and administrators into bureaucrats. The consequences for such theater, as philosopher Stuart Mills argues, go far beyond what or how our students learn, distorting knowledge itself: Those who have never thrown themselves into the mental position of those who think differently from them do not, in any proper sense of the word, know the doctrine which they themselves profess. Within the politicized classroom, hegemony is the goal instead of the problem. Politicization in schools takes many different forms. One popular initiative first designed by the Left, but soon co-opted by the radicalized Right, is in the creation of safe spaces in schools. It appears we are all snowflakes now. Safe spaces are typically animated by a demand for trigger warnings when controversial topics or language might be used; opt-out choices for course materials and discussions; the demand for, and creation of comfort zones before engaging in critical dialogues; and censorious demands on materials, language, tone/voice, and the body. Any kind of teaching or curriculum that might make a student feel uncomfortable is removed from the classroom. This desire for safe spaces is understandable as so many people, especially but not exclusively people from marginalized and/or under-represented groups, feel like victims and have been victimized because of their race, class, gender, sexuality, and/or disability. For others, safe spaces must be policed because some students, when learning about the troubling truths of the countrys history, might see themselves represented by the perpetrators of a variety of horrors that contributed to the nations economic power and caste-like system of racial hierarchy. They need safe spaces in order to feel, well, safe. Safe from what, we might ask? Physical violence? Symbolic violence? Words? Ideas? Disturbing images? Troubling thoughts? Aggressive peers? Coercive teachers? In the educational context, safe spaces are meant to protect students from any knowledge that they determine, in any way, is offensive and threatening. Policed silences are the oxygen of ignorance and fear. And safe spaces, above all else, are defined by what cant be said out loud. Another problem with safe spaces is that one students or tribes safe space is another students or tribes repressed space. Safe spaces are a tribal response to conflict, not a democratic one. They are exclusive and normative formations that help people avoid conflicts that arise from their differences, not lean into them. By contrast, American democracy requires that citizens are able to work through their differences in a way that is respectful, principled and reasonable. Teachers need, by extension, to create brave spaces so that their heterogeneous students can be courageous in the face of heterodox ideas. By creating brave spaces for our students, we give them opportunities to be courageous, learn the skills and habits of mind that democracies demand, and stop seeing themselves as victims with no individual or collective power to confront and challenge, through debate and dialogue, those who have views that might be repellent to them. They should have the opportunity to consider historical truths that are disturbing because they challenge what they might have learned at home or in other private educational settings. This is the learning environment of a political classroom as opposed to a politicized classroom. It is democratic and associative, public, empathetic, compassionate, epistemologically curious, ethically constrained, morally grounded, and cognizant of the hegemony of official power. However uncomfortable that prospect is in our age of politicization and polarization, it is what is required if we hope to use education as a tool against the rising tide of authoritarianism on one hand and against the excesses of democracy on the other. In the classroom, brave spaces are animated by what Michel Foucault referred to in his critique of polemics as reciprocal elucidation. In such a setting, The rights of each person are in some sense immanent in the discussionThe person asking the questions is merely exercising the right that has been given him: to remain unconvinced, to perceive a contradiction, to require more information, to emphasize different postulates, to point out faulty reasoning, and so on. Within the serious play of reciprocal elucidation, social, political, and cultural conflicts provide an opportunity for deep and critical learning and teaching. Creating brave spaces for our students to engage in reciprocal elucidation about controversial and taboo ideas is a rejection of coercive and one-sided curriculum and pedagogy, but is also a rejection of balance and neutrality in schools. Balance, writes Stanley Fish, is a political, not an academic requirement; it looks not to the intellectual interest of a proposed topic, but to the political interest of appeasing various constituencies. The move from politicization to the political therefore is neither neutrality nor balance, but a pedagogical and curricular commitment to a kind of radical epistemological curiosity. An even more democratically radical suggestion comes from those who argue that we should not just be teaching about oppositional, controversial or marginal discourses, but we should be teaching, when possible, with those people who actually hold these views. We can see this being put into practice to varying degrees at places like the Program on Intergroup Relations (https://igr.umich.edu/) and the Heterodox Academy (https://heterodoxacademy.org/), although its fair to assume that many teachers/professors are designing their curriculum and pedagogies to reflect this deep level of democratic practice in their classes. In practice this might mean facilitating open debates in which students are both observers and participants in critical dialogues, communities of inquiry, and discussions over conflicting viewpoints, conflicting methods of analysis, conflicting theories of interpretation, and conflicting approaches to framing and solving problems. This allows, as Henry Giroux has pointed out many times, teachers and students to ask: What counts as social knowledge? How is this knowledge produced and legitimized? Whose interests does this knowledge serve? Who has access to this knowledge? How is this knowledge distributed and reproduced in the classroom? These kinds of critical questions help decouple power from knowledge and encourage the development of what C. Wright Mills called the sociological imagination. Within the democratic classroom, consensus is not the goal, nor is persuasion. This approach to teaching emphasizes both the how and why of thinking and knowledge. i.e., teachers do not tell students what to think, but shows them, through reasoned debate, analysis and inquiry, how and why thought-leaders in various fields and from various perspectives, come to think about the things they do while teaching students to use various discursive tools of knowledge and language in debates and during facilitated dialogues. What does it say about the future of democracy when teachers and students choose safety over courage, security over agency, negative freedom over positive freedom, comfort over power, and silence over dialogue? During these times of intense and explicit politicization, one of the most important things we can do as educators is design, through our pedagogy and curriculum, the world we want to see for ourselves and our children. Policing learning and teaching in the name of safety only makes the us more fearful and less likely to deal with our fears peacefully. The Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology (TIET) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with NVIDIA to establish the Thapar School of Advanced AI & Data Science (TSAAI). Thapar Institute of Engineering & Technology (TIET) and NVIDA have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish the Thapar School of Advanced AI & Data Science (TSAAI). (Representative image) The MoU, signed on July 5, envisages setting the institution with technical support from the NVIDIA AI University program. As per a press release issued by the institute, TSAAI will be established at TIET's Patiala campus to offer a comprehensive range of academic programs, research opportunities, and innovation projects to empower both students and faculty with essential AI skills and knowledge. Also read: Student loan for studying abroad: From eligibility criteria to top providers in India, here are 5 thing you must know Dr Padmakumar Nair, Director of Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology, expressed his delight at the opportunity to establish the AI school, in technical collaboration with NVIDIA. He said, It will not only bridge the gap in AI expertise but also pave the way for cutting-edge research and innovation in this transformative field. This also establishes our vision of providing education that creates future-ready students. Vishal Dhupar, Managing Director of Asia South at NVIDIA highlighted that the Thapar Institute will integrate cutting-edge NVIDIA technologies to cultivate a new generation of AI experts across India. Also read: Certificate Programme in Project Management, IITD: Unleash your efficiency by mastering project management The release informed that TIET will set up a state-of-the-art AI infrastructure leveraging NVIDIA DGX systems with NVIDIA H100 Tensor Core GPUs, NVIDIA A100 Tensor Core GPUs, and the NVIDIA AI Enterprise software platform for the development and deployment of generative AI. The data center will offer 227 petaflops of AI performance with nearly 8 terabytes of GPU memory. As per the release, TIET is setting up edge computing infrastructure with 500 Jetson Nano developer kits to build up the startup ecosystem, in a bid to turn graduates into job creators from job seekers. The AI university program seeks to offer a comprehensive range of courses, labs, research opportunities, and innovation projects to empower both students and faculty with essential AI skills and knowledge. Also read: NIRF Rankings 2024: How are Indias best universities ranked? Heres everything you need to know Furthermore, by the academic year 2024-2025, the TIET aims to set up the infrastructure and make it ready to support a full undergraduate AI degree program, AI mandatory/elective courses across all disciplines, technical training for faculty and staff, research collaborations, and establishment of an AI startup ecosystem powered by NVIDIA edge computing. The institute also seeks to ensure all graduates are AI literate in 2-4 years. Here are a few objectives of TSAAI: Develop a new undergraduate engineering program in AI (B.E. in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning) years. Offer AI elective courses across all programs to ensure all students are AI literate. Launch a masters program in AI, ML, and DS targeting working professionals. Provide professional development courses for industry professionals seeking AI training. Learners of TIET will receive nine credits of AI training, irrespective of the program. Train identified faculty in the NVIDIA Deep Learning Institute (DLI) Ambassador Program. DLI workshops are to be conducted for identified students and faculty members. (For more information, visit the official website.) After a doctor on social media criticised Samantha as a "health and science illiterate" for sharing alternative health treatments, the actor called him rude. At that time, Ricky had shown his support to the doctor in Samanthas comment section. Ricky slams Samantha When Hindustan Times reached out to Ricky, he opined that he was shocked and a tad disappointed to see Samantha propagating dangerous medical practices. A medical procedure was being advocated by a celebrity with tremendous influence. It was going into dangerous territory because this particular medical treatment could also be life threatening. It was quite irresponsible (on her part), simply because she is talking about something that is life threatening, Ricky tells us. He continues, There are a lot of people who are constantly looking for alternative medicine sources, because they think that traditional medicine sources do not work. They can be very impressionable, especially when a celebrity endorses something. Thats why it's very important for regulations to be executed very strongly so that celebrities absolutely refrain from endorsing any kind of medical procedure. Why defend In fact, Ricky was perplexed when he saw her defending her initial post. I am not naive enough to go about strongly advocating a treatment. I merely suggested with good intention because of all that I have faced and learnt in the last couple of years, Samantha said in her clarification note. The global musical artist was left shocked when he read the post, and notes, When you double down on it, it makes it worse. For me, advocating the practice was bad, but it wasn't as bad as the fact that she was defending it. She was trying to slyly put down the doctor who called her out. It didnt make sense to me She is the one with influence, and she is the one advocating it. So, she is the one who needs to be called out. And she is the same person who advocates sugary drinks and processed food for dogs Endorsing those things is fine, but don't call yourself a person who is trying to advocate for health, he stresses. Stricter rules Here, Ricky puts light on the need to have stricter implementation of rules and regulations to keep a check on the same. The regulations are already in place where they lay down what a person cant endorse. Now, it needs to be executed very strongly. That is how people will avoid casually doling out medical advice, which could be harmful for a patient, he ends. More about the issue Samantha, who has been open about her battle with Myositis diagnosis, had recently shared about the benefits of hydrogen peroxide nebulisation, but the doctor, whose real name is Dr Abby Philips and goes by the social media handle The Liver Doc, had slammed the actor for sharing misinformation with her fans. Samantha had shared a picture of herself using a nebuliser. Before taking medication for a common viral, consider trying an alternative approach. One option is to nebulise with a mixture of Hydrogen peroxide and distilled water. Works like magic. Avoid unnecessary use of pills, she wrote on Instagram. The Liver Doc reacted to the share by calling her a health and science illiterate. Later, Samantha clarified and said her post was not a paid endorsement but she will be more careful in future. It would have been kind and compassionate of him had he not been so provocative with his words, especially the bit where he suggests that I should be thrown in prison. Never mind. I suppose it goes with the territory of being a celebrity, she wrote. Academy Award-nominated actress Margot Robbie is reportedly expecting her first child with her husband, film producer Tom Ackerley. The news comes after photos surfaced of Robbie vacationing in Italy, sparking speculation about a baby bump. Multiple sources have since confirmed the pregnancy to People magazine. The couple are yet to address the report. Robbie and Ackerley got married in 2016, in an intimate ceremony in Australia's Byron Bay. Tom Ackerley, left, and Margot Robbie arrive at the Oscars on Sunday, March 10, 2024, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.(Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) Margot Robbie pregnant with her first child Margot Robbie and Tom Ackerley, who have been married for eight years after a meeting on the set of a World War II drama in 2013, have always been private about their relationship. The couple was spotted enjoying a romantic boat ride in Lake Como, Italy, where she flaunted her baby bump in photos obtained by Daily Mail. The Barbie star was spotted vacationing in Italy Photos captured her in a white crop top that revealed a baby bump, along with a stylish oversized blazer. Black, low-rise pants completed her outfit, and she accessorised with a cream purse and gold earrings. Her husband, Tom Ackerley, opted for a more casual look with a beige shirt and brown pants. The filmmaker was spotted taking care of his pregnant wife onto a yacht as they enjoyed a scenic boat ride. Also read: Justin Bieber looked 'happiest ever' as he performed at Ambani's event in India amid expecting first baby Margot Robbie and Tom Ackerley The Suicide Squad star met her now-husband Tom Ackerley in 2013 on the set of the movie Suite Francaise. Their connection blossomed into a two-year romance before they decided to get married. In a 2016 Vogue interview, Robbie described their relationship as a happy surprise, playfully calling Ackerley "the best-looking guy in London." Their bond started as a friendship, and they even co-founded a production company, LuckyChap. Among the A-list films the company has produced, Barbie is one of them. Also read: Queen of Tears' Kim Ji Won for Dior? Brand sparks confusion with ambassador announcement, deletes post later Speaking to Sunday Times about her marriage with Robbie, Ackerley mentioned how they spend 24 hours a day [together]," he said. Its seamless. We dont have a toggle on, toggle off. Its all become one thing. Opening up about how she fell head over heels for her husband, the actress recalled in her Vogue interview back in 2016, "I was the ultimate single gal. The idea of relationships made me want to vomit. And then this crept up on me. We were friends for so long. I was always in love with him, but I thought, Oh, he would never love me back. Dont make it weird, Margot. Dont be stupid and tell him that you like him. And then it happened, and I was like, 'Of course were together. This makes so much sense, the way nothing has ever made sense before. Some of the most intriguing romances in Hollywood history have been the ones involving a relatively large age-gap. While memes about Leonardo DiCaprio and his fixation over 20-year-old women keep rolling out, many have found love even in such unconventional equations. In this piece, we have listed some of the top male Hollywood stars with partners who are decades younger. Brad Pitt and Bradley Cooper are both dating much younger women. 1. Leonardo DiCaprio The latest 25-year-old model in DiCaprios life, who is 49, is Vittoria Ceretti, with whom he has been linked since August 2023, when they were spotted enjoying time together in Santa Barbara, California. They reportedly met at the Cannes Film Festival, during the premiere of Killers of the Flower Moon, in May 2023. Despite certain rumours about their engagement, owing to a sparkly diamond ring worn by the Italian model on that finger, insider sources have denied such claims, mentioning that they enjoy each others company and are getting to know each other on a deeper level. 2. Brad Pitt The Fight Club actor, 60, has been dating jewellery designer Ines de Ramon, 31, since late 2022. After his divorce from Angelina Jolie, he was seen with several other women, including Emily Ratajkowski. The couple was first spotted together in November 2022, enjoying a Bono concert in LA, after the designer and her husband, The Vampire Diaries alum, Paul Wesley, quietly separated earlier that year. PEOPLE magazine reports that the two were introduced to one another by a mutual friend. At the LA premiere of Pitts film Babylon, the couple was seen mingling with other invitees, often with their arms around each other. Fast forward to 2024, Ramon is said to have moved in with the actor and they are quite happy together. 3. Bradley Cooper Bradley Cooper, 49, has been romantically involved with supermodel Gigi Hadid, 29, since 2023. The actor known for his role in A Star is Born, was first spotted with Hadid in October 2023, dining together at Via Carota in New York Citys West Village. The couple was first spotted kissing in March 2024, at dinner with Hadids friends, Queer Eye's Tan France and Antoni Porowski. What started as a casual fling, considering their busy lives and the fact that both the stars have children with previous partners, has evolved into a more serious relationship in recent times. 4. Al Pacino The 84-year-old movie star went viral when his rep revealed to US Weekly that he was expecting his first child (his fourth overall) with girlfriend Noor Alfallah, 30, back in May 2023. They were first spotted together at Felix Trattoria, Los Angeles, in April 2022. They welcomed baby boy, Roman Pacino, in June 2023, but Alfallah soon filed a request for sole custody, with reasonable visitation for Pacino. This led to rumours of a split, but they confirmed that they are still together and have reached an agreement regarding custody over their son. 5. Robert De Niro De Niro, 80, has been in a more or less private relationship with 65-year-old martial arts instructor, Tiffany Chen, since 2021. They were reported to have first linked at the set of The Intern in 2015, during which period the Taxi Driver actor was still married to Grace Hightower, whom he divorced in 2018. The pair were spotted together on a European vacation, in 2021, but have been quite low-key about their romance. In May 2023, they welcomed their first child together, Gia (De Niros seventh). Despite internet outrage, the actor claimed that it was a planned pregnancy. 6. Tobey Maguire Much like DiCaprio, the Spider-Man star is notorious for dating women much younger women and the newest addition to his list is 20-year-old model, Lily Chee. The actor, 49, was seen together with Chee at Michael Rubins White Party, celebrating Fourth of July, which is one of New Yorks most star-studded social events. Their viral pictures from the party have taken the internet by storm but there is no official confirmation about their relationship from either of the two. Tobey Maguire was spotted with actor Lily Chee at the glamorous White Party on the Fourth of July. The 49-year-old Spider-Man actor was seen with his arm around the 20-year-old model-actor at Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin's annual Independence Day party in the Hamptons, New York. (Also read: Sydney Sweeney has a crush on Leonardo DiCaprio. Twitter says she's too old) Tobey Maguire attended the Independence Day bash with 20-year-old actor Lily Chee. Tobey Maguire Lily Chee at Independence Day bash The rumored couple wore matching all-white outfits to the summer bash. The event was also attended by Machine Gun Kelly, Megan Fox, Drake, Megan Thee Stallion, Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Tom Brady, Rob Gronkowski, C.J. Stroud, Quavo, Druski, Megan Thee Stallion, GloRilla, Emily Ratajkowski, Lil Wayne, and others. Lily also too to her Instagram handle and poster her solo as well as group pictures with those present at the party. Internet reacts to Tobey Maguire's rumoured girlfriend Although the duo has not yet commented on their relationship official, internet came up with shocked reactions. A section of users compared Toby with his The Great Gatsby co-star and BFF Leonardo DiCaprio due to the age differences with their rumoured girlfriends. While others pointed out how often female actors get trolled as compared to men. A fan commented, Yet people are so quick to bully any woman who dates someone 9-10 years their junior. Priyanka got bullied so bad, still does for marrying Nick. So twisted and unjust for women! About Tobey Maguire Tobey has been unmarried since 2016, when he and his former wife Jennifer Meyer said they were splitting up after nine years of marriage. They first met in 2003 and got married in 2007. They have two children together, Ruby, 17, and Otis, 15. In 2023, Tobey appeared in an episode of Extrapolations on Apple TV+. Before that, he was in the 2022 film Babylon and played Peter Parker again in 2021's Spider-Man: No Way Home alongside Tom Holland and Andrew Garfield. Lily Chee's acting career Lily has acted in a 2016 episode of Netflix's superhero series - Daredevil and has made appearances in The Other Two, New Amsterdam, Zoe Valentine, and Chicken Girls. She was most recently seen in the short film Nothing, Except Everything. Ice Spice showed support for her friend and pop icon Taylor Swift during a music festival in Austria on Sunday. During her set at the Rolling Loud Europe Festival, the 24-year-old rapper clapped back at haters for booing Karma, her 2023 remix track with Swift. Ice Spice had the perfect response for audience members who booed at Taylor Swift's song Ice Spice defends Taylor Swift from haters In a video clip of the incident that has been making rounds on the internet, the crowd can be seen putting up thumbs-down gestures and booing Swift's song. Despite the disrespect from the audience, Ice Spice kept her calm and threw shade at them by blowing a kiss. ALSO READ: Jennifer Lopez posts her old breakup song amid Ben Affleck divorce rumours As the video clip of the incident at the music festival went viral on social media, fans praised Ice Spice for standing up for Swift. One fan wrote on X, formerly Twitter, this is how you end haters. One more fan said, mother is unbothered as she should, while another wrote, Ice kept it classy cuz theyre weird for that.. Karma was originally released as the third single from Swift's 2022 album, Midnights. She teamed up with the Deli rapper for a remix version of the song, which was released a year later. Collaborating with Ice Spice on Karma was one of the most natural things, Swift said at the time. ALSO READ: RHONJ star Teresa Giudice blasted for worst Photoshop fail in Larsa Pippen birthday post The Cruel Summer hitmaker continued, She reached out through her team, just kind of saying, Hey, Ice has been a big fan of Taylors since she was a little kid, would love to collaborate if that was ever something that came about. I had been listening to her nonstop, like getting ready for my tour, I was just listening to Ice Spice constantly. So I immediately got her number and said, Hey, would you wanna do your version of Karma? Do you relate to this? So she jumped in headfirst, she added. After Sai Dharam Tej, Manchu Manoj and Nara Rohith called out well-known YouTuber Praneeth Hanumantu for joking about pedophilia, Kartikeya and Sudheer Babu apologise for collaborating with him in the past. The YouTuber had alluded to an inappropriate relationship between a father and daughter, and the actors talked about how they felt. (Also Read: FIR filed on YouTuber for pedophilia joke after Sai Dharam Tej's post; Manchu Manoj, Nara Rohith also call him out) Kartikeya and Sudheer Babu have collaborated with Praneeth Hanumanthu in the past. Karthikeya, Sudheer Babu apologise After sharing a statement on how content should not be about pulling each other down but instead focused on growing and helping others grow Kartikeya addressed the fact that he collaborated with Praneeth in the past. He also stated that while he was shocked by the questions he was asked by Praneeth and his team during promotions, he didnt want to make a scene. Kartikeya wrote on X (formerly Twitter), And yes i should not have been part of it, I had to do the interview as one of the job responsibilities as a lead actor trying to make his film reach to wider audience but i had no intentions of encouraging such content but sadly i had to be part of it and i feel bad for that, Here on i will be really careful on who am giving interviews to and lets all together not encourage such content. Sudheer apologised for casting Praneeth in his recent film Harom Hara, claiming he had no knowledge of the pathetic creature this man was and stating that he feel(s) so disgusted. He added, I couldn't even dare to go through the entirety social media has exposed about him. Those things are not even worth our puke but they should have our attention at this hour. We should make sure these sick minds shouldn't have a platform for the filth they wanna spread. This isn't freedom of speech by any means. The issue Sai was the first actor from Tollywood to raise his voice against a joke Praneeth made while talking in a live session with other YouTubers. People were miffed when he crossed a line while discussing a reel, alluding to incestuous abuse between a father and his young daughter. Praneeth grew to fame by making off-colour jokes and Tollywood actors have often collaborated with him while promoting their films in the past. Meanwhile, Adivi Sesh requested people not to share the video of Praneeth to curb its circulation on the internet. He wrote on X, Not in my wildest dreams did I imagine that people would be capable of such horrible things. Its clear that the highest ministers of the two states have been notified of this, and I hope they will take strict action. Meanwhile, I REQUEST not to continue sharing that video or their other videos while discussing/tweeting what happened. Telangana DGP Ravi Gupta shared on X that an FIR has been filed on Praneeth at the Telangana State Cyber Security Bureau (TGCSB). Kushal Tandon slams the makers The actor, who participated in the seventh season of Bigg Boss, took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to express his dismay about the whole slap incident. He wondered why no action was taken against Armaan for getting violent in the show. This is so weird , Bigg Boss OTT is goin to dogs already. But seriously makers a slap is allowed ? And you are now allowed to call some one sunder if she is married? Ye kaunsa jurm jain boss (what crime is this)? he questioned. The actor added, That a**h*** who slapped should be out or else, every one should slap everyone. About the slap incident Contestants Armaan and Vishal recently engaged in a fight, which resulted in Armaan slapping Vishal. It all started when Vishal told fellow contestant Lovekesh Kataria that he finds Armaan's wife, Kritika Malik, beautiful. Later, when Armaan finds about the same, he goes to confront Vishal. In a clip, which has been released on social media, Armaan is seen rushing towards Vishal, asking, Ek baat bta, teri aadat abhi se aisi hai ya pehle aisi thi? (Tell me one thing, have you always had this habit or is it recent?) Then, Vishal clarifies, Maine us way me nahi bola tha. (I didn't mean it that way.) Later, Armaan turns to Lovekesh and says, Aaj yeh mere gharwalo ke liye bola, kal tere liye bolega (Today he spoke about my family, tomorrow he will talk about yours). Vishal goes on to ask Lovekesh, Kya bola tha tere kaan me bas itna bata? (What did I say in your ear, just tell that). Lovekesh responds, Tumne mere kaan me bola tha ki mujhe bhabhi bahut achi lagti hai. (You said in my ear that you find sister-in-law very nice). The clip then shows Armaan and Vishal engaging in a physical spat, where Armaan slaps Vishal. Later the clip shows Vishal enraged, asking, Maara kaise? (How dare you hit me?) Kushals BB past Many Bigg Boss fans would remember that Kushal, known for his stints in TV shows such as Beyhadh, Bebaakee, Ek Hazaron Main Meri Behna Hai, was himself ousted from the show for getting violent. During the show, Kushal garnered a lot of attention for his bond with actor Gauahar Khan. At one point, the actor got into a physical fight with VJ Andy for making a demeaning joke about Gauahar, following which he was thrown out of the house. However, Kushal was brought back into the house after Gauahar had threatened to leave the show. Leading South Korean actor Song Joong Ki of Vincenzo fame confirmed that he and his wife, British actress Katy Louise Saunders, are preparing for the arrival of a new addition to their family. Song Joong Ki and wife at sister's wedding ceremony. On Monday, Jul 8, 2024, the Descendants of the Sun stars agency, HighZium Studio, happily announced, Actor Song Joong Ki is becoming a father of two. His agency also released a statement via South Korea's Star News: Song Joong-ki and his wife are pregnant with their second child. It is difficult to confirm the timing of birth or the gender of the child as these are private matters. Also read | Queen of Tears' Kim Ji Won for Dior? Brand sparks confusion with ambassador announcement, deletes post later Following their January 2023 marriage, Song and Saunders welcomed their first son in June 2023. Song was previously married to his Descendants of the Sun co-star, Song Hye Kyo. The Reborn Rich actor has refrained from sharing his second babys sex. Hes renowned for essentially keeping his personal life out of the spotlight. Social media is already abuzz with celebrations of the good news for their favourite actor. Song Joong Ki opened up about the arrival of his first-born Contrarily, Song emotionally shared the good news with his fans the first time around by sharing a snap of his first child last year. I finally met my baby here in Rome, my wifes hometown. He is a healthy son. I am so grateful that both the baby and mom are healthy and happy, and I am taking care of my family very happily, he said at the time. Also read | It's Ateez's Golden Hour on Billboard's World Albums chart; Twice's Nayeon, Seventeen, and more Kpop hits rule at top Expressing his hearty happiness, he added, I think this is the most precious gift that has come to my wife and I, whose biggest dream has been to have a happy family for the rest of our lives. I think this good day has come thanks to the support of many people. Thank you. The beloved actor also spoke about embracing parenthood and opening his heart to his first child in a multicultural household. I cannot believe that I have become a father I talk to him in Korean, you know, my English isnt that good. My wife and I have talked about it, too. Well figure out how the three of us will communicate, Koreaboo reported. The Swiss Peace Summit, formally known as the Summit on Peace in Ukraine, recently last month at the picturesque Burgenstock Resort, represents another chapter in the ongoing quest for peace in Ukraine. Hosted by Swiss President Viola Amherd, the summit aimed to advance dialogue on achieving lasting peace in Ukraine amidst its ongoing conflict with Russia. Convened on June 15-16, 2024, this summit brought together representatives from around the globe, reflecting a collective desire to address the persistent conflict that has plagued Ukraine since Russia's invasion in 2022. This photograph shows the Swiss flag set among the flags of the other countries during a plenary session at the Summit on peace in Ukraine, at the luxury Burgenstock resort, near Lucerne. (Photo by URS FLUEELER / POOL / AFP)(AFP) Under the neutral and conciliatory umbrella of Switzerland, 92 nations and several international organisations gathered to discuss a pathway to peace. Swiss President Viola Amherd underscored Switzerlands long-standing tradition of promoting dialogue and peace, which was evident in the summit's focus on key issues like nuclear security, food security, and humanitarian concerns. The summit culminated in a joint communique that reaffirmed the participating countries' commitment to Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity. This document emphasised the safe operation of Ukrainian nuclear facilities, condemned attacks on maritime and port infrastructures, and demanded the release of prisoners and the return of Ukrainian civilians detained by Russia. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, addressing the summit, reiterated his willingness to engage in peace talks, contingent upon the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukrainian territories. This steadfast stance highlights a broader dilemma: peace cannot be achieved through one-sided concessions. The insistence on territorial integrity as the cornerstone of any peace agreement is not merely a diplomatic stance but a fundamental assertion of Ukraines right to sovereignty and self-determination. While many western nations echoed this sentiment, there was notable ambivalence among some developing countries. This division reflects the complex geopolitical landscape and underscores the challenge of building a cohesive international response to the conflict. A glaring aspect of the summit was the absence of Russia. This exclusion, whether by design or by choice, casts a significant shadow over the efficacy of the dialogue. The Kremlin dismissed the summit as futile without its involvement, underscoring the deep divide that continues to hinder progress toward peace. True resolution requires all parties, especially those at the heart of the conflict, to be part of the conversation. Peace talks that exclude key stakeholders may bolster international support for Ukraine but fall short of bringing an end to hostilities. India's position at the Swiss Peace Summit was emblematic of its broader diplomatic strategy. Traditionally, India has maintained a nuanced stance on the Ukraine conflict, advocating for peace while also balancing its strategic ties with Russia. At the summit, India emphasised the importance of dialogue and diplomacy, urging both Ukraine and Russia to find a mutually acceptable solution. However, India stopped short of endorsing the joint communique, reflecting its cautious approach to international conflicts where it seeks to avoid alienating key partners. India's non-endorsement of the communique underscores its pragmatic diplomacy. The country has consistently advocated for respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity of nations, yet it remains wary of taking sides in conflicts that could disrupt its strategic relationships. This approach allows India to maintain a delicate balance between supporting international norms and safeguarding its national interests, especially its longstanding ties with Russia, which include defence and energy partnerships. As the summit concluded, there was a commitment to actionable steps. Zelenskyy announced the formation of specialised working groups to develop concrete measures toward peace, potentially setting the stage for a second summit, possibly hosted by Saudi Arabia. This future dialogue aims to build on the foundations laid in Switzerland, fostering further international engagement and support for Ukraine. While the Swiss Peace Summit may not have brought immediate breakthroughs, it set a crucial precedent for continued international efforts toward peace. It highlighted the necessity of sustained dialogue and the importance of a unified global stance on fundamental principles like sovereignty and human rights. Yet, as we commend the summit's symbolic successes, we must remain vigilant against complacency. True peace in Ukraine demands persistent, pragmatic engagement and the difficult process of negotiation and compromise. The worlds leaders must strive not just for declarations of intent but for actionable steps towards lasting peace. The Swiss Peace Summit may shine as a beacon of hope, but its light must be guided toward tangible outcomes. Only then can we say that such gatherings are more than diplomatic rituals but genuine steps toward ending one of the most grievous conflicts of our time. This article is authored by Ananya Raj Kakoti and Gunwant Singh, scholars, international relations, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. by Laurence Peterson Truth is what your contemporaries let you get away with. Richard Rorty Truth is nothing but a bad excuse for a poor imagination. Unknown Some things in life are very hard to give up. For me, I hope in a most singular manner, it is bullshit. I have spent nearly twenty years reading whatever literature I can find on what bullshit might be. Since the publication of Professor Harry Frankfurts On Bullshit (Princeton University Press, 2005) as a book, his view, in a way almost unknown in philosophy, has generated absolutely no strongly dissenting accounts in the score of years that have elapsed since its publication. As I write these lines, I have before me a Wired piece from June 19th, 2024, Perplexity Is a Bullshit Machine, which itself links to another piece, published a mere 11 days earlier in Ethics and Information Technology, called ChatGPT Is Bullshit. Both articles pretty much ratify Frankfurts view of bullshit in a wholesale manner, which suggests to me that Frankfurts original position maintains its utter dominance in discussions of bullshit, and retains a vigorous wider relevance up to the present day. In my mind, there is something unusual, something exaggerated about the bullshit phenomenon that says something unique about the way we all live today. In this piece, I would like to attempt to subject Frankfurts view to a more fundamental critique than any I have seen in the last twenty years. The peculiar volume hit the shelves early in 2005. Miniature in size, the $10.00, 67-page book, hard bound in somber colors and featuring an imposing font, immediately elicited in my mind associations with a prayer book or perhaps a modern edition of a long-venerated tome, rather like those put out as part of the Loeb Classical Library series or something. Naturally, this was intended by the marketing people, who, I suspect, were trying to playfully juxtapose the books status as being one put out by Princeton University Press with the decidedly lowbrow nature of the topic, in the hope that some consumers might be strongly attracted by the idea of pursuing a literary discussion of something that they would only with difficulty be able to type into Google or social media. And who knows? Maybe the book could serve as an accessible introduction to philosophy for generations more likely to look at philosophy as an archaic practice, like wearing neckties, than a possible guide in the artif thats what anyone would want to call it anymoreof living. Anyway, the book created something of a sensation at the time, with gushing reviews coming fast and furious, like one from Germanys Welt am Sonntag, which acclaimed Frankfurt as no less than someone who leads a campaign against the heedless association of speech and truth, and this gem from Brian Appleyard from The Sunday Times, calling the book a model of what philosophy can and should doa small and highly provocative masterpiece. But Frankfurt, in the interview mentioned above, confessed to embarrassment because he had not been very happy with the article when it had been originally published in the eighties in a literary magazine. Very early on, a picture started to form in my mind, not of a theoretical breakthrough, but of a kind of literary, if not socio-cultural act of purging or pre-emptive redemption. According to this view, modern society, especially much of its educated class, is choking on its own capacity to manufacture and consume PR, propaganda, legalese, marketing, advertising, bureaucratese, jargon of all sorts, scams, spin and everyday dissimulation, and finds itself desperately seeking a savior to deliver it; but Frankfurt, far from seeking or acknowledging even a forerunner role like John the Baptists, resembles more the title character from Monty Pythons Life of Brian, heralded by crowds of benighted souls who insist on investing the words he himself looks back upon with a kind of quizzical suspicion with all the trappings of divine revelation. Frankfurt begins his discussion by recognizing the existence of bullshit as a phenomenon worthy of philosophical investigation, both on account of its ubiquity and its peculiar intentional stance: as a form of communication in which concern with the truth is not so much effectively denied, as in the case of lying, as simply considered a matter of indifference by the speaker. He attempts to structure his inquiry by appealing to hints of it in the literature, from a piece on humbug by Max Black, and an anecdote about Wittgenstein, in which thoughts about the curious interplay of intentions involves misrepresentation that stops short of lying; (p.9) and this leads Frankfurt to the essential distinction that takes him beyond his distinguished predecessors to provide a first step in the development of what might be called an autonomous theory of bullshit. This involves specifying exactly what it is that distinguishes lying from bullshit: the bullshitter offers a description of a certain state of affairs without submitting to the constraints which the endeavor to provide an accurate representation of reality imposes; this, in turn, is why [the bullshitter] cannot be regarded as lying; for she does not presume to know the truth, and therefore she cannot be deliberately promulgating a position she knows to be false. Hence [i]t is just this lack of connection to a concern with truththis indifference to how things really are-that I regard as the essence of bullshit. (pages 33-4) Now this is an interesting thought, and immediately suggests-to me, anyway-the posing of another question if we are to understand things like the conditions under which we are motivated, if not compelled, to tolerate bullshit, or even actively produce it ourselves. This sort of treatment would take us away from the inquiry in a much better position than if we stay satisfied with a merely insightful definition. The second question is as follows: why and under what circumstances do we tend to feel pressured to adopt or adapt ourselves to this curious communicative strategy, even and especially when we feel enraged or violated by doing so, as so often and obviously happens? Unfortunately, Frankfurt goes of target at this point in his treatment of the issue, tangentially considering issues of etymology (bull, bull sessions, bullshit artist) before returning to what differentiates the bullshitter from the liar. On page 62 he actually confronts the question of why there is so much bullshit, and makes the point that: [b]ullshit is unavoidable whenever circumstances require someone to talk without knowing what he is talking about. Thus the production of bullshit is stimulated whenever a persons obligations or opportunities to speak about some topic exceed his knowledge of the facts that are relevant to the topic. (p.63) He then notes that this discrepancy is common in public life, where people are impelledwhether by their own propensities or the demands of othersto speak extensively about matters of which they are to some degree ignorant, before briefly considering sources of skepticism regarding an objective reality like Postmodernism, or the contemporary proliferation of bullshit(p.64). But none of these discussions, in my view, provides anything close to theoretical construction; they serve as mere commentary hearkening back to what has been said before. And thats it: Frankfurt has given us some insight into what bullshit is, and seems to be the first person to explicitly recognize that this is something that philosophy-not to mention the wider culture-must articulate an understanding of, only to stop as soon as he touches on questions which might allow us to comprehend not just what it is, but why its so pervasive in our lives, often drives us so crazy, and is, hence, so important to us in the first place. And this is because Frankfurt does not seem ready to look seriously beyond the intention of the bullshitter to consider what it is about our social relations themselves that makes bullshitting an attractive option in so many varied settings. Consequently, what seems required, first and foremost, is a kind of critique of what we may perhaps playfully call, pure bullshit. The place to begin such an inquiry, I would venture, is by taking on the position of the person or persons being bullshitted, or who believe they are being so treated. Frankfurt does acknowledge the existence of a power-play in the final pages of his essay; but what is the basis of that power? And who, exactly, is worse off for it, or, at least, must exit the encounter feeling like s/he is in a subordinate position, carrying all the emotional baggage that entails? What seems to make bullshit so exasperating is precisely the reliance of the bullshitter on accepted (though not necessarily well understood) norms, laws and conventions that effectively protect the bullshitter from objection, even and especially when such a reliance clearly clashes with different beliefs of the bullshitter that should also be clearly evident to the wider community, not just the person/s being bullshitted. And I would submit that the thing that provides the word with the emotive power of forbidden fruit, and installs it in its rightful place as one of the languages most cherished obscenities, consists in the fact that it is felt that there are no effective means of appeal which might allow the contested statement-or deed-to be challenged. In consequence, we are forced to walk away from situations we find somehow unsatisfactory without enjoying recourse to any more developed discursive or more binding devices to tease or tear out of the statement, deed or outcome, more acceptable ones, or simply a better explanation why we must ultimately submit in the first place. Indeed, it is worse than this: we feel that these means are, to a not insignificant degree, already available; and that we must submit precisely on occasions when clear-cut conventions or rules should automatically generate objections from the wider community of listeners or witnesses surrounding us. It is this visceral sense of casually enforced rules and subsequent illegitimate isolation from a community who, according to their own publicized standards of behavior and communication, would seem to be committed to an enthusiastic hearing of our objections, that seems to characterize bullshit and take it out of the realm of normal discourse and provide it with the emotional power that has always been the wellspring of the profane. Ultimately, it seems that an identification of the posture of the bullshitter as being indifferent towards truth can only be a preliminary first step in getting to the heart of the matter where bullshit is concerned: there must be a subsequent establishment of what makes this motivation sensible and effective in real social settings if any account of bullshit is to be set in motion coming from the direction of Frankfurts efforts. It is precisely because the bullshitter can be so aggressively and manifestly confident that the truth condition of her/his statements will not be investigated, or deeds interrogated, or that adverse consequences cannot follow upon conclusion of such efforts, that the bullshitter can possibly feel at all indifferent to the truth Frankfurt speaks of; the social setting provides the indispensable condition for the attitude towards truth; and no account of bullshit can be considered complete before that has been holistically integrated into said account. And this assertion can be supported when we consider cases in which the aforementioned appeal confronts the potentially considerable obstacle that is our own powerlessness, lethargy or indifference: even when we simply could not be bothered to rebuke the bullshitter ourselves, and may have the power to do so, we still feel a sense of grievance inasmuch as we have had to, often unnecessarily, be subjected to the whole pantomime in the first place; we feel that someone in the community should have put a stop to the whole thing before it reached the point it did. But if what I just wrote can be said to adequately capture the sense of violation we feel when we are the victims of bullshit, what can explain why, in turn, we so often employ it ourselves? One reason, of course, is that bullshit can often be an effective means of countering, well, bullshit. There are many instances in life in which we feel we are unjustly called upon to provide rationalizations which we know will never be adequate, sometimes because we do not know the answers ourselves, but feel we are right, or at least on the right track. On other occasions, we know we possess neither the time, nor can expect the appropriate level of attention from likely listeners, or are too tired or depressed to give what we feel nears an appropriate account of what we ourselves have said or done. Under these circumstances, the simple indifference towards truth that Frankfurt designates as capturing the essence of bullshit shows its inadequacy to the point of potential inversion: in these cases, who exactly is being indifferent to the truth? The listener? The speaker? Both? Everybody? Such cases are not only many, but might constitute by far the majority of instances: how often do we just say alright when someone asks how we are, when the fact that the interlocutors ultimate indifference, not to mention our own inability to articulate what is of frustratingly vital importance to us, results in yet another occasion for sorrow and disappointment? On such occasions it is as difficult to separate the bullshitter from the bullshitted as it is to unravel the hag from the beauty in the famous Rorschach sketch. Indeed, I would venture that we can all acknowledge the existence of a liberatory bullshit: we all know, and content producers of various sorts have made a fortune depicting, how the fast-talkers and yarn spinners always attract their sweethearts, almost always against the latters will. There is something irresistible about being able, in some small way, to convincingly render-if only for a couple of seconds, and in a harmless way-that the factors that condition the day-to day reality that oppresses us are trivial, uninteresting and even not worthy of our humanity, singularly unable to represent our existential predicament. And here bullshit often serves as the reliable palliative, far from always, in a harmful way, producing a potentially destructive indifference to those very conditions that Frankfurt indicts. For reasons of space, I must conclude this piece here. I intend in future to expand upon the kind of bare-bones treatment of my subject in future installments, where I hope to write about the shifting roles bullshit is playing in our society, and I will suggest that the act of calling bullshits fundamental role as a defense mechanism in our culture is being chipped away at to the point of becoming obsolete. But, until then, anyway, I retain, I hope more or less contentedly, my grip on something I just wont give up. Neetu Kapoor is currently vacationing in Switzerland with daughter Riddhima Kapoor Sahni, son-in-law Bharat Sahni and granddaughter Samara. Riddhima updated her Instagram handle with glimpses from her mother's midnight birthday celebrations from the exotic location. Neetu Kapoor's top family moments with Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor and Raha Kapoor as she turns 66 Neetu Kapoor and daughter Riddhima Kapoor Sahni in Switzerland(Instagram) Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt were missing from this intimate family affair, presumably busy with their pressing professional commitments. That being said, Neetu has never let go of any opportunity to shower love on the duo as well as her younger granddaughter Raha Kapoor. Here's taking a look at some of their warmest family moments which played out in front of the public. Neetu Kapoor has no qualms in openly favouring her daughter-in-law over her son, as she has made evident time and again in jest. Not long after Ranbir and Alia tied the knot on April 14, 2022, Neetu's appearance on the sets of a popular reality television show, saw her affirm how she would only want the house to run as per Alia's whims and not Ranbir's. In August last year, Alia did her family proud as she was felicitated with a National Film Award for her work in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). Though Alia chose to take husband Ranbir along with her to witness the precious moment, Neetu was among the first few to shower love on her 'bahu rani'. "So so proud of you @aliaabhatt for your first national award god bless", she wrote. Neetu Kapoor congratulates Alia Bhatt on her National Award win(Instagram) Not long back in February of this year, Alia Bhatt stepped out to grab some lunch with mother-in-law Neetu Kapoor. The duo were accompanied by Alia's mother Soni Razdan and sister Shaheen Bhatt. As the group of ladies concluded their outing bidding adieu to each other, Neetu's particularly endearing gesture towards Alia as she squished her cheeks had the internet obsessing over their adorable bond for days to come. Take a look at the moment here. Back in November 2022, Alia introduced her daughter to the world as Raha Kapoor with a picture of her and Ranbir coddling their baby against a backdrop of her very own F.C. Barcelona jersey framed over her cot. In the caption to the post, Alia revealed it was Neetu who had christened Raha. An excerpt from her caption read, "The name Raha (chosen by her wise and wonderful Dadi) has so many beautiful meanings". While Neetu and Alia's warm bond is rather evident, it still does not compare to the love the birthday girl has for granddaughter Raha. During her appearance on the eighth season of Koffee with Karan, Neetu let the audiences in on the fun-spirited rivalry she shares with Alia when it comes to competing for the little one's affections. Neetu revealed that while she was constantly trying to get Raha to say 'Papa', Soni Razdan and Alia were trying to get her to say 'Mumma', a "mini battle" which Alia eventually won. "So, I went the other day to the house and Alia says, Oh, by the way, she said mumma.' So, I said, she didn't say mumma but she said mum-mum. So, don't be so happy", quipped Neetu in the episode. When it comes to Ranbir, Neetu has rarely ever let go of any opportunity to let the world know how proud she is of her son. While she has repeatedly praised him on the professional front, she is equally in awe of his emotional intelligence. In a 2011 interview with Firstpost, Neetu opened up about going through a rough patch in her marriage with the late Rishi Kapoor when Ranbir was all of 15-years old. She revealed how she weathered that time owing to the fact that her son was her sounding board and "best friend" through it all. She said, "I think he must have been 15 or so, when Rishi and I went through a really bad patch...I would sit with Ranbir and talk to him. For hours, I would tell him all I felt was right and wrong with my marriage, try to explain it all to him. I think he was my best friend then, my only confidant". Cut to now, Neetu continues to be in awe of Ranbir as he has seamlessly transitioned into the role of a rather "hands-on-father". During her appearance on an episode of the The Great Indian Kapil Show, Neetu reflected how Ranbir's reserved persona is something only for the public. At home, his face lights up at the very sight of Raha. As a matter of fact, Neetu even went so far as to say that Ranbir is a significantly better father than Rishi Kapoor. Being filmy, runs in the Kapoor khandaan's blood, not a surprise at all given their stellar legacy in cinema. In a previous interview, Ranbir had revealed that his first paycheck amounted to a humble 250 following his stint as an assistant director on Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Black (2005). Once he received it he marched straight up to his mother, placing it at her feet. While Ranbir acknowledged how he was living out one of his filmy dreams in the moment, Neetu was touched beyond words with her eyes welling up. We wish Neetu Kapoor a very Happy Birthday! Three more suspects were arrested on Sunday taking the total to 11, for the murder of Bahujan Samaj partys (BSP) Tamil Nadu president K Armstrong, a senior police officer investigating the case said on condition of anonymity. BSP chief Mayawati pays last respects to the president of BSPs Tamil Nadu unit, K Armstrong, in Chennai. (ANI) Amidst the claims of a political conspiracy and BSPs allegations that the real culprits have not been arrested, the officer said that their investigation represents only one motive. Based on the preliminary investigation, the primary motive to murder Armstrong is to avenge the killing of Arcot Suresh last year, the officer said. On August 18 last year Arcot Suresh, alias V Suresh who had 30 cases against him including five for murder was killed by a five-member gang in Chennai. After 52-year-old Armstrong was murdered on the night of June 5 near his residence in Chennai, eight people surrendered to the police, including Sureshs brother Ponnai Balu. The accused had suspected Armstrongs role in Sureshs murder, police said. The connection between Armstrong, an advocate, a ward councilor and a known Dalit voice, and high profile criminal Suresh which police are probing is a financial scam, a second officer said. Depositors lost money worth 2,500 crores to Chennai-based Aarudhra Gold Trading Pvt Ltd between 2020 and 2022 in the scam which came to be known as the Aarudhra gold scam. The interpol had detained the managing director of Aarudhra Gold in Abu Dhabi in December 2023 after the economic offenses wing had arrested 10 accused in 2020. Armstrong had represented a few depositors and demanded they be repaid while Suresh was on the side of the gold trading company, police said. The Chennai police had arrested Suresh in 2014 but he was absconding after he went out on bail. In 2021, Suresh was arrested during a statewide crackdown, called Storming Operation, which was ordered following four beheadings in Tamil Nadu in September 2021, said a third police official who was part of the operation. Three of these were suspected to be revenge killings. Suresh, 43, was also the main accused in a 2015 murder case that happened in front of a city court in Chennai. Something appears to have transpired when Arcot Suresh was in prison, said Sandeep Rai Rathore, greater Chennai commissioner of police, while addressing a press conference on July 6. We are looking into the murder of Arcot Suresh again to ascertain Armstrong had a role in it. The police did not receive any information on threats to Armstrong, Rathore said, adding he had been acquitted from all seven pending cases against him. Earlier, he [Armstrong] was a history-sheeter, and then the court closed the cases against him, said the police commissioner. On the financial scam, the commissioner said that they were investigating all possible angles. Those arrested so far are- Sureshs brother Ponnai V Balu (39), Gokul, Vijay, Sivasakti, D Ramu (38), K Thiruvengatam (33), S Thirumalai (45), D Selvaraj (48), G Arul (33), K Manivannan (25) and J Santosh (22). Balu and Thirumalai have eight and seven cases against them. Police have categorised Thirumalai as a history sheeter for having a long criminal record. Among the accused, three of them were dressed as food delivery agents when they approached Armstrong around 7pm near his house, which was under construction in the city. They attacked him with sickles and knives. A zomato T-shirt, a zomato bag, three bikes, and seven blood-stained weapons have also been seized from them. The accused have been remanded in judicial custody until July 18. Armstrong succumbed to his injuries at Apollo hospitals. BSP chief Mayawati who was in Chennai on Sunday for Armstrongs funeral, demanded a CBI probe. The way he was killed shows there is nothing called law and order in Tamil Nadu, she said. The real culprits who killed him have not been nabbed. Ruling DMKs ally Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK-formerly the Dalit panthers of India) also supported her statement that the real culprits are yet to be named. As of now, this is the motive, and the accused have been arrested based on preliminary investigation, CCTV footage, and mobile phone locations. There is no other progress, the second officer quoted above said. The Union power ministry needs to reconsider its stance on pushing for more dams on rivers and boosting hydropower capacity in Arunachal Pradesh, civil society groups such as Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum, Dibang Resistance and North East Human Rights urged on Monday. Arunachal Pradesh governor KT Parnaik and Union minister Manohar Lal Khattar in Itanagar on Monday.(HT_PRINT) They expressed concern about the 11,000 MW Upper Siang Multipurpose Storage project in the light of its possible adverse environmental repercussions. Anti-dam activist and lawyer Ebo Mili was detained on Monday in view of power minister ML Khattars visit to Itanagar, some alleged, declining to be named. As locals of Upper Siang, members of the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum (SIFF) and concerned citizens of Arunachal Pradesh, we stand united against this project for several compelling reasons, the activists said in a letter to Khattar. Also Read | Cloudburst triggers landslides, flood-like situation in Itanagar The state police cited information from reliable sources to contend Mili was likely to disrupt the public meeting involving chief minister Pema Khandu and Union ministers on Monday. There were also indications that other members of state-based anti-dam organisations, such as the Siang Indigenous Farmers Forum, were likely to join him in this endeavour, police said. To maintain public order and prevent any untoward incidents, a prayer was submitted to the Executive Magistrate, Itanagar, to bind down the aforementioned individuals (Ebo Mili and Dugge Apang, another activist) under Section 128 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), the statement said. The prayer was granted, and the individuals were then bound down. They have been released after the legal formalities. This preventive action was taken to maintain public order. The recent Teesta dam breakage in Sikkim on October 4, 2023 serves as a reminder of the potential risks associated with large-scale hydroelectric projects, the activists based in the northeastern state said. We cannot afford to ignore these lessons. It also highlights the negligence on part of Developers like NHPC (state-owned National Hydroelectric Power Corporation), the letter said. It is important to highlight that the dam-induced floods in Assam has devastated the public downstream. Assam flood relief has become a mere act of damage control instead of implementing real change-oriented solution, which is to stop hydropower exploitation of rivers upstream in Arunachal Pradesh. Also Read | Manipur: Over 20,000 people affected, 3500 houses damaged due to heavy rainfall On the night of October 3, the Lhonak glacial lake burst triggered a flash flood that killed at least 92 people. It is one of the largest and fastest growing proglacial lakes in Sikkim and is among the 11 large glacial lakes monitored by the Central Water Commission. Global temperatures are rising, leading to the formation of new glacial lakes. Arunachal Pradesh, with its more than a thousand lakes, is particularly vulnerable, the letter said. The Dibang valley, home to the 2,880 MW Dibang Multi-Purpose Dam and the 3,097 MW Etalin Hydro Project, faces increased risks due to climate-induced changes. HT has reached out for a comment from the power ministry on the memorandum from the activists. Rather than exploiting our rivers further, we advocate for sustainable alternatives such as solar and wind energy. We also insist that the government support small (and) medium social enterprises for rights-based energy partnership with indigenous people, the activists said. The Arunachal Pradesh State Hydropower Policy 2008 must be amended to suit the interest of the people of the State rather than Transnational Corporations and exploitative profit only oriented companies. A warm welcome to Honble Union Minister of Power and Housing and Urban Affairs, Shri Manohar Lal Khattar Ji, to Arunachal Pradesh. A significant moment for our state, as we continue to strengthen our collaborative efforts towards development and progress. We look forward to fruitful discussions and innovative initiatives that will benefit the people of Arunachal Pradesh, Khandu wrote in a post on X. As per studies, there has been a 25% increase in GLOF events in the last two decades and empirical data show that extreme and severe flash floods in India increased by almost 40% over last half a decade. With the climate already being changed and extreme events becoming new normal, it is imperative to conduct and integrate hyper-granular carrying capacity assessments across the fragile ecosystems especially when large infrastructure like dams are proposed. Adhering to principles of risk assessments can avert the probable extent of loss and damage to lives, livelihoods, ecosystems and avoid these adaptation strategies from becoming mal adaptation. Any further delay will turn this crisis-in-making into a disaster, said Abinash Mohanty, Sector Head Climate Change and Sustainability, IPE-Global- an international development organisation. Delhis air quality remained satisfactory at 10am on Monday with an average air quality index (AQI) of 56, the same as it was at 4 pm on Sunday, amid chances of isolated drizzle in parts of the National Capital Region. This is so far Delhis lowest AQI since September 11 last year when it was 53 (satisfactory) Delhi recorded a minimum temperature of 25.6C on Monday. (HT PHOTO) The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said no significant rain was likely until the weekend. No rain was recorded at any IMD weather station in the 24 hours ending 8:30am on Monday. Delhi has received limited scattered rainfall in July despite the onset of the monsoon even as the city got 228.1mm in a single day on June 28. A monthly rainfall of just 10.4mm was recorded until Monday. In July, the average monthly rainfall is 209.7mm. Last year, 384.6mm rain was recorded in the month. Private weather forecasting company Skymet vice president Mahesh Palawat said the monsoon trough was expected to remain away from Delhi thus leading to a relatively dry spell. The trough is currently south of Delhi and with a cyclonic circulation developing near Madhya Pradesh, we may see more rain activity in Central India and little to no rain in Delhi until July 10. After that, the trough may move closer to Delhi again and may lead to a slight increase in rain activity again, he said. Delhis recorded a minimum temperature of 25.6C on Monday, or two degrees below normal, compared to 26.2C on Sunday. The mercury was expected to hover around 35C on Monday while it went up to 35.8C a day earlier. The torrential rainfall in Uttara Kannada district has triggered landslides and mudslides, with large mud mounds and trees posing additional threats to the hill adjacent to national highway (NH) 66 along the Mirjana-Sirsi road in Kumta taluk, officials said on Sunday. Torrential rainfall has triggered landslides and mudslides on the national highway 66 along the Mirjana-Sirsi road in Kumta taluk . (HT) Day after the India Meteorological Centre (IMD) issued a four-day orange alert on Saturday, Karwar in Uttara Kannada district experienced. IMD predicted daily rainfall between 105 to 204 mm until July 10, with a slight decrease expected from July 11. Honnavara tahsildar, Raviraj Dikshit , told HT that the heavy rainfall led to landslides on NNH 66 near Colonel Hill on Saturday in Honnavar Taluk. Continuous rain caused landslides and mudslides onto the road from Karwar to Honnavar, prompting the police department to enforce one-way traffic. The PWD staff has cleared the debris, but the incident remains a concern for local authorities, he said. In Dakshina Kannada district, 23 victims took shelter in the Kavoor relief centre near Mangaluru, while 19 were accommodated in the Subramanya relief centre. In Honnavara taluk, we opened two relief centres on Saturday, of which one centre housed 37 people while another accommodated 22 people, Uttara Kannada additional deputy commissioner Prakash Rajput told HT on Sunday. Two national disaster response force (NDRF) teams are camping in Karwar, equipped with boats and ropes to assist during calamities. However, no holiday has been declared for schools and colleges for Monday till today (Sunday). We will decide on Monday morning on the matter after seeing the weather. The IMD issued an orange alert in coastal areas until July 10, he added. According to officials familiar with the matter, the local authorities are mobilising emergency response teams, monitoring at-risk areas, and preparing for potential evacuations if necessary. The persistently severe weather conditions underscore the need for vigilance and prompt action to ensure public safety and minimise the impact of the ongoing deluge. The continued downpour has heightened the risk of landslides on the national highway, with large mud mounds and trees posing additional threats. In Bhaskere village in Honnavara taluk, the relentless rainfall has submerged 500 acres of areca nut crops, leaving a farmer devastated by the loss of crops worth crores of rupees. The rivulet next to Bhaskere village is also overflowing, threatening to flood 200 houses. Further exacerbating the situation, a tree fell on Karwar-Ballari NH 63 at Arabail Ghat in Yallapur taluk, temporarily disrupting traffic. The road has since been cleared, allowing traffic to resume. In Chendia gram panchayat of Karwar taluk, residents of Idur, Chendia, are facing severe hardships due to flooding, officials said. Unscientific bridge work from the seabird naval base has led to water blocking hundreds of acres of agricultural land and flooding more than 40 houses. Before the bridges construction, rainwater would flow easily to the sea without causing such issues. The residents have appealed to the Uttara Kannada district administration for an immediate resolution. The coastal areas of Uttara Kannada, Dakshina Kannada, and Udupi have been battered by widespread rain for the past week, and the threat of flooding persists. The IMD has predicted more rain for the next four to five days. Rivers in the district are overflowing, and the coastal areas are experiencing violent sea conditions with big waves crashing onto the shore. Low-lying areas have been flooded, and the fear among residents remains unabated. Water from the Gangavali, Aghanashini, and Sharavati rivers is entering inhabited areas during high tide, adding to the residents woes, the officials said. The body of a 28-year-old delivery man, who went missing on Friday, was retrieved from a stormwater drain on Sunday morning, a senior police officer aware of the matter said. The deceased lost control of his vehicle near the Jnanabharati metro station, collided with a road divider, and fell into the stormwater drain (File photo) The officer said the incident took place at 10.30pm when the deceased, identified as Hemanth Kumar, who used to work at an online transport company porter, was allegedly going towards Batarayanapura from Jnanabharati on Mysore road on his two-wheeler. He allegedly lost control of his vehicle near the Jnanabharati metro station, collided with a road divider, and fell into the stormwater drain. Upon receiving notification of the incident, authorities, including the police and fire brigade, initiated a search operation immediately. A missing person case was registered at the Jnanabharati police station. Jnanabharati police station inspector N Ravi said: We conducted searches along with fire brigade personnel throughout Friday night and on Saturday. However, due to the rising water levels and swift currents in the canal because of rainfall, our efforts were hindered. On Sunday morning, the body was finally recovered just 25 feet away from the accident site, approximately 2 km downstream from where he fell, he said. We have initiated an investigation into the circumstances surrounding this tragic accident, he added. Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha on Monday filed a default bail application before the Delhi Rouse Avenue Court, citing that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed an incomplete chargesheet even after the 60-day investigation period has elapsed. Kavithas judicial custody was extended by Rose Avenue Court until July 18 in a corruption case. (ANI) The application of the 46-year-old politician is scheduled for a hearing at 2pm. Kavithas judicial custody was extended by the Rouse Avenue Court on July 5 until July 18 in connection with a corruption case probed by the CBI. She was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from Tihar jail on April 11. The agency initially had questioned her about WhatsApp chats recovered from co-accused Buchi Babus phone and documents related to a land deal. Read: Rahul Gandhi in Manipur: Congress MP to meet displaced persons in violence-hit state | Full schedule The BRS leader, who is the daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao was first arrested by the Enforcement Directorate at her home in Banjara Hills in Hyderabad on March 15. According to the federal agencys investigation, Kavitha allegedly conspired with top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including jailed Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, to secure advantages in the liquor policy. Earlier on July 1, the Delhi High Court had rejected Kavithas bail pleas in two cases involving corruption and money laundering related to the liquor policy case. A bench led by justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, who had reserved the decision on the bail pleas on May 28, dismissed the petitions. K Kavitha had appealed against the trial courts May 6 decision, which denied her bail applications in both the CBIs corruption case and the EDs money-laundering case. Kavithas lawyer argued that among the 50 accused in the excise case, she is the only woman, emphasising that the law treats women differently and urged the court to grant her bail accordingly. However, the CBI and ED countered Kavithas bail pleas, asserting that she holds significant influence that could potentially sway witnesses. Bengaluru, A chargesheet in the Renukaswamy murder case, in which Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, his friend Pavithra Gowda and 15 others are accused, would be filed after gathering sufficient evidence, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said on Monday. All the accused are currently under judicial custody till July 18. According to police sources, 33-year-old Renukaswamy, a fan of the actor, had sent obscene messages to Gowda, which enraged Darshan, allegedly leading to his murder. His body was found near a stormwater drain next to an apartment in Sumanahalli here on June 9. "Accused have been arrested, investigation is on, evidence is being collected, after that chargesheet will be filed. Can it be fast forwarded just because the media says?" Parameshwara told reporters in response to a question. "There are procedures, after collecting sufficient evidence, a chargesheet will be filed. I have already said that there is no need to protect anyone in this case, and it will not be done," he said. Raghavendra, one of the accused who is part of Darshan's fan club in Chitradurga, had brought Renukaswamy to a shed in R R Nagar here, on the pretext that the actor wanted to meet him. It was in this shed that he was allegedly tortured and murdered on June 8. According to the post-mortem report, Renukaswamy, a native of Chitradurga, died due to shock and haemorrhage as a result of multiple blunt injuries. Police sources said Pavithra, who is accused number one, was the "major cause" for Renukaswamys murder, claiming that it has been proved from the probe that she instigated other accused, conspired with them, and took part in the crime. Chargesheet in Renukaswamy murder case after gathering sufficient evidence: Home Minister A Arun, Chennai's new Commissioner of Police, on Monday asserted that he will bring rowdies to their knees as he took charge as the city's new police chief following the departure of Sandeep Rai Rathore, who was transferred earlier in the day, in the wake of the brutal killing of a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader last week. IPS Officer A Arun (Image: DD News) The criminal elements will be taught in a way they understand, Arun told reporters in an interaction shortly after taking charge. The senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer was then asked if encounters could be expected. There is no such things as an encounter, he responded, adding that regular and professional policing' will bring down criminal activities in Tamil Nadu's capital city. The new Commissioner of Police also assured that he will take action against corrupt activities in the police department. Law and order maintenance, prevention of crimes, and proper investigation of crimes, and curbing rowdyism, are my priorities, Arun said. He further assured that he will get a good name for the state government and chief minister MK Stalin. Also Read: Edapaddi Palaniswami flays MK Stalin after Chennai top cop transferred Also, while the IPS officer did not speak much on the murder of K Armstrong, the BSP's Tamil Nadu unit chief, he cited statistics to claim that there has been a decline in murder cases in Chennai, and across the state. We will see if there were lapses and take action accordingly, he stated when asked if there was prior intelligence of threat to the life of the slain politician. Prior to his appointment as Chennai's Commissioner of Police, A Arun was serving as the city's Additional Director General (ADGP), Law and Order. Meanwhile, Sandeep Rai Rathore, the former's predecessor, has been made DGP, Police Training College, with additional charge as ADGP/Director of the Tamil Nadu Police Academy. (With PTI inputs) Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, who was sworn in last week, won the trust vote in the state assembly on Monday, July 8, with a comfortable majority of 45 MLAs in his favour. Hemant Soren took oath as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand, at Raj Bhavan in Ranchi on Thursday(ANI) Following this, the Hemant Soren cabinet will be expanding the Cabinet, Congress leader and Poreyahat MLA Pradeep Yadav told the media. The JMM alliance currently has 45 MLAs27 from JMM, 17 from Congress, and one from RJDin the 81-member Jharkhand assembly. Meanwhile, the BJP has a total of 24 MLAs. After the Lok Sabha elections, the number of MLAs in the Jharkhand assembly was reduced as some became MPs, while others either resigned or were expelled. The current strength of the 81-member Jharkhand assembly is 76. The total strength of the house has also decreased, reducing the half-way mark to 38. Soren was sworn in as Jharkhand chief minister on July 4, a day after Champai Soren stepped down from the post months ahead of the assembly election. Today is July 4. On Jan 31, from the same place, I conveyed a message to you all on how the opposition has conspired against me. They were successful. For five months, they tried to keep me inside the jail by different means. We took the legal path, and people supported us, Soren had said before taking the oath. This came just a few days after Hemant was released on bail in money laundering charges in connection with an alleged land racket in the state capital. He was the second chief minister to be arrested by the federal agency barely months before the Lok Sabha elections on January 31. Minutes before his arrest, Hemant resigned as the chief minister and passed on the baton to Champai Soren. Champai, a loyalist of Hemant and a close associate of the former Jharkhand CM's father Shibu Soren, took charge as the CM on February 2. While Hemant was in jail, his party, JMM, won three Lok Sabha seats - two more than its tally in 2019. In 2019, JMM fought the assembly elections in alliance with the Congress and RJD and got a comfortable majority with forty-seven seats in the 81-member house. JMM won 30 seats, while Congress and RJD secured 16 and one seat, respectively, in the state elections. (With inputs from agencies) by O. Del Fabbro Burgenstock, near lake Lucerne, June 15-16, 2024. Switzerland has organized a peace summit to address the war in Ukraine. Many countries participate, but the aggressor, Russia, was not invited. The main topics of discussion that Switzerland and Ukraine have listed are nuclear and food safety, as well as humanitarian aspects. In regard to the latter, still today, thousands of Ukrainian Prisoners of War (POWs) and civilians are imprisoned in modern Russian concentration camps, thousands of Ukrainian children have been kidnapped and brought to Russian territory. Russia is violating the Geneva Conventions in many ways. In the shadow of the summit and the high profile visitors from around the world, a group of mostly women has traveled from Ukraine to Lucerne to raise awareness to their issue: the unlawful and unrightful conviction of members of the Azov Brigade, the defenders of Mariupol in the steel plant, Azovstal. These women form one body and together they defend their cause: to bring their loved ones back home. We are here to tell the whole world what Russia is doing with Ukraine, our husbands and sons, Anna says.[1] Anna is the fiance of a 26 year old POW, Bohdan. For more than 80 days, without any supplies or medical help, Bohdan helped defend Azovstal, until his unit was ordered to surrender to the Russians in May 2022. Ever since, Anna has not heard from Bohdan. In Russia, Ukrainian POWs are deprived of communication with the outside world a violation of the Geneva Conventions. The only way to get information about their fiances, husbands, and sons is to scroll endlessly through official Russian Telegram channels. Thats how Anna found out that her husband has been sentenced two times: in November 2023, he was sentenced to 24 years for the destruction of civilian infrastructure, and in March 2024, he was sentenced to 28 years for murdering a civilian. These sentences are a violation of the Geneva Conventions, because Bohdan is a POW, and cannot be put on trial as a civilian. Moreover, Bohdans health is deteriorating. While defending Azovstal, his left hand was injured, and ever since being captured, he has not received medical help yet another violation of the Geneva Conventions. All this is brought to Annas attention, because one of Bohdans friends was freed in a prisoner exchange in May 2023. The friend told Anna that Bohdans hand is still ulcerating and completely dysfunctional. Thats why it is important to not just talk about POWs in general, but also the unjustly convicted of the Azov Brigade, Anna concludes. Another violation of the Geneva Conventions is torture. Olena is the wife of 28 year old Danylo. In July 2024, they were married three years, but they only had a year and half of actual family life. Ever since, Danylo has spent more than two years in captivity. The last time she saw him was three days before the war began. The last time she was in contact with him, was two days before he left Azovstal in May 2022. He said: everything will be alright, dont be afraid, you will not hear from me for 3-4 months, because I will be in war captivity. But Olena never heard from him again. In August 2022 a freed POW told her that Danylo is so haggard that he is barely recognizable. Prisoners are deprived of food, beaten, electroshocked in interrogation and so on. The ICRC is not allowed to check on them, thats why we came to Switzerland to shout it out to the world. My hope is that the prisoners can come home, and that I can hug him and lead a normal family life, Olena says in tears. Similarly to Olena, Maria saw in a video how her 30 year old son, Andriy, is nothing but skin and bones. It was very difficult to watch. She has recorded the video, but only watched it once. The video shows a Russian journalist, interviewing Andriy, who stands half-naked in front of the camera, while he is asked about his Nazi and fascist tattoos yet another violation of the Geneva Conventions, for, it is prohibited to turn POWs into subjects of public curiosity. The fate of Marias son raises the controversial topic of the nationalist and far-right background of the Azov Brigade. For the Russians it is easy prey, because it fits their narrative of denazification of Ukraine an absurdity given the fact that Russia has become more and more authoritarian and fascist itself under Putins grand narrative of Eurasianism, a development, Timothy Snyder has named schizo-fascism: A fascist branding others as fascists.[2] It is not only the evident torture and humiliation that makes such videos so shocking to watch, but also the fact that some Azov soldiers indeed have Nazi tattoos. At the beginning of its history, some of the volunteers of the Azov Brigade showcased typical behavior of fascist militias, that is, trying to influence politics by force and violence with the accompanying fascist symbolisms. But ever since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the nationalistic Azov Brigade has been integrated into common Ukrainian patriotism last but not least, also because the Brigade has been part of the Ukrainian National Guard since 2014. Recently, the political scientist Joshua Holzer articulated the difference between nationalism and patriotism: nationalism is a persons affinity for those who share the same history, culture, language, or religion. Nationalism is exclusive, it boosts one identity group in favor of others.[3] Contrarily, patriotism is the devotion to ones fatherland, ones country of origin. It encompasses the devotion to the country as a whole, including all the people who live within it. Although nobody can know about the mentality of each and every person of this Brigade, Azov has become, through the Russian aggression, part of the patriotic movement in Ukraine. Today, Azov is one of the many places for those who want to defend their home. In Ukraine, it has become a public symbol of resistance to the Russian aggression, heroes, who were ordered to surrender in Mariupol. When Andriy was sentenced for a second time just like Annas fiance, Bohdan he shared the courtroom with Sofias 24 year old son, Yura. This year is his third birthday in confinement, Sofia tells me. She last saw her son on December 6, 2021. In March 2022, came the last text message. Two years later, in March 2024, she saw him in a courtroom in Donetsk, but where her son was taken after the courtroom appearance remains unknown. As already mentioned, Sofia, Olena, Anna, and all the others get their information from a Telegram channel called Sledkom (). In Russian, the name refers to the Investigative Committee of Russia. I read that channel every day, says Diana, whose husband has been sentenced to 25 years for the murder of a civilian. Sledkom is Russias anti-corruption agency. It answers directly to the president of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin, and inspects police forces, combats police corruption and misconduct, and also investigates local authorities and federal governmental bodies. In other words, no one is safe from Sledkoms investigations, as Russian expert Mark Galeotti wrote in 2010: judges, prosecutors, parliamentarians, even Siloviki from the military and apparently the FSB Russias Federal Security Service, the former KGB.[4] Thousands of investigators and prosecutors thus have the decision power to open up criminal cases. They are the Kremlins law-enforcement, Putins watchdog, a power vertical in the Russian system. Sledkoms director, Alexander Bastrykin, is an old friend of Putins, a former classmate from Leningrad State University. The initial idea of Sledkom was to break the tight connections between circles of criminals, businesspeople, and politicians in the provinces of Russia. Law-enforcement was supposed to be brought more into the grips of the president. In August 2022, the Russian Supreme Court designated the Azov Brigade as a terrorist organization, allowing them to open up criminal cases, for example of terrorism, against Azov Brigade members, and thus not treating them as POWs. It is precisely these mass convictions of Azov Brigade prisoners that are happening now, and that Sofia, Olena, Anna and Diana are witnessing, while doomscrolling on Sledkoms Telegram channel. After having surrendered, most of the Azov Brigade POWs were brought to a prisoner camp next to the city of Olenivka, in Donetsk region. On July 29, 2022, a mysterious explosion in the penal colony killed over 50 prisoners and left more than a hundred injured. Russia never allowed the ICRC to go onsite and check what happened. A report from the United Nations from March 2023 suggests Russian culpability. The UN also rejects Russias claim that the cause of the explosion was an Ukrainian HIMARS rocket. Investigations by the Kyiv Independent have shown that many causalities have not obtained medical help, and that Azov Brigade POWs were deliberately gathered on the site where the explosion happened.[5] Nataliyas son, 28 year old Alexander, was injured by the explosion at Olenivka. He had burnt legs and splitters in his hands. Alexanders wife was also in Olenivka, even though she is a civilian. Nataliya knows that Alexander has survived, because in November 2023, she saw on Sledkoms Telegram channel, how her son got sentenced to 25 years of camp imprisonment for murder, but nobody knows where he is right now. Nataliyas husband, Georgiy, highlights that Russia is a terror organization itself, but by making the Azov Brigade a terror organization, they can charge others of their own crimes. For example, the complete destruction of Mariupol through bombardment. Schizo-Terrorism. Russia accuses our sons and husbands with the crimes they have committed themselves. They killed civilians by the numbers. Georgiy and Nataliya stayed in Mariupol until Mid-March 2022, they know firsthand what happened in the city. The Oscar-winning movie 20 Days In Mariupol documents the total destruction of the city and the killing of civilians, including children. A documentary by Arte shows how Putins bombardment by air, sea, and land first tested and used in Syria has continued in Ukraine.[6] Todays Mariupol is yesterdays Homs and Aleppo. We had no electricity, no gas, no water, no food, no medicine, no heating, no communication. The stores were closed, ambulances could not be called, people died of their injuries in the streets, no windows in hospitals, doctors have worked beyond their capacity without a break, Nataliya explains. On March 2, 2022, their building was hit by a grenade. They survived because they hid in the basement. We had no information whatsoever of the outside world. Information became accessible during the first cease-fire, when they could leave the basement and get radio reception. Aid convoys were not let into the city. We had only our own provisions to eat once a day. We were looking for firewood and water to cook. Many civilians died during that search. Many civilians tried to leave the city but were sent to camps and put in war captivity. Thats why so many civilians are imprisoned in Russia. These are all war crimes. Uncertainties and personal loss make it difficult to maintain hope. Alinas 24 year old son, Mykola, has been sentenced to 22 years for terrorism. I follow every trace, every hope, I do everything in order to be heard. We came to Switzerland in the hope that someone dares to put pressure on Russia, to release the prisoners and to create public awareness. But the result stays the same, nobody comes home. Since three years nothing has changed. We are active, but nobody is listening. Then, Sofia adds: Since May 2023, not one single Azov Brigade soldier has been set free. They are convinced that Russia is not freeing them, because they are the most motivated soldiers. Once freed, they would return to the frontline and fight, Sofia and Georgiy say. If hope is difficult to maintain individually, collectively it is possible. During the intense fighting in Mariupol, when Kateryna had trouble finding out where her 25 year old son Anatoly was, she started to look for others who also have relatives in the Azov Brigade. It was Sofia who told Kateryna that Anatoly was still alive. Today, they all share a private Telegram channel for information exchange: who was seen where, when, and in what condition. Complete self-organization. On April 23, 2022, Kateryna spoke for the last time to her son. A little later, she saw a Russian video in which Anatoly is seen handing over his weapon in front of Azovstal. Then, he was put on a truck. He was very thin, with a long beard and hair, but he seemed in good health. On January 2, 2023, a freed POW called Kateryna to tell her that he was imprisoned with her son in Taganrog. Since then, she has no news. We are making campaigns to raise the attention to POWs. It started in April 2022 in Kyiv. Nobody in the world knows what is happening in Ukraine. Since last year, we are also travelling abroad to Poland and now Switzerland. It is also an information war with Russia. The peace summit at lake Lucerne is something they want to believe in, not by true conviction, but more because it is yet another option to get their loved ones back home. Obviously, their hate for the Russians is enormous. But they do not think that Ukraine should treat Russian POWs in the same manner as Russia is treating the Ukrainians. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth? No, Ukrainians should respect the Geneva Conventions. Nobody has the right to behave like Russia does, says Kateryna. The situation seems helpless, but the fight continues. We advocate for our relatives just like they have fought for our freedom and Ukraine as a country, Kateryna continues. Sofia adds: My husband went to war after our son has been imprisoned, and my brother is fighting too. My nephew died a couple of months ago near Kupyansk. These women, who are waiting and fighting for their sons and husbands to come home are all I have left. Anna says: We share the same experience, fate has brought us together, thats why we support each other. And if all that does not help, then there is still fate, love, hope, and God. Kateryna concludes: Only by making the public aware of the fate of our relatives can we bring them back. Initially, we thought that imprisonment meant survival, but even this has to be questioned now. The unjustly convicted cannot be forgotten. [1] Names in this article have been changed to protect the privacy of the individuals involved. [2] Timothy Snyder. 2018. The Road to Unfreedom, Russia, Europe, America, Crown, New York. [3] Joshua Holzer. June 28, 2023. What is the Difference between Nationalism and Patriotism?. Retrieved on July 5, 2024: https://theconversation.com/what-is-the-difference-between-nationalism-and-patriotism-208170. [4] Mark Galeotti. October 5, 2010. The Investigations Committee not so much Russias FBI, more a Kremlin Watchdog. Retrieved on July 5, 2024: https://inmoscowsshadows.wordpress.com/2010/10/05/the-investigations-committee-not-so-much-russias-fbi-more-a-kremlin-watchdog/. [5] Yevheniia Motorevska, Vitalii Havura. December 7, 2023. Inside a Prison where Russia Tortured Ukrainian POWs. Investigation by the Kyiv Independent. Retrieved on July 5, 2024: https://kyivindependent.com/inside-a-prison-where-russia-tortured-ukrainian-pows-investigation-by-the-kyiv-independent/. [6] Edith Bouvier. 2022. Syrien, Russlands Testlabor?. Retrieved on July 5, 2024: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vJArCT2N72w. AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat Congress (GPCC) on Monday criticised the state government for the hike in the fees for undergraduate medical courses offered by colleges run by the state-funded Gujarat Medical Education Research Society (GMERS). (X/Shaktisinhgohil) Gujarat Congress president Shaktisinh Gohil said the massive fee hike flies in the face of the governments decision to establish GMERS 14 years ago to provide affordable medical education GMERS raised the annual fee for undergraduate medical courses offered by its 13 medical colleges by 66% from 3.3 lakh to 5.5 lakh per annum for state and all-India quota seats, by 87% from 9.07 lakh to 17 lakh for management quota seats and by 13% from $22,000 to $25,000 for NRI seats. Gohil said the steep hike contradicts the very purpose for which GMERS was founded and would make medical education inaccessible to the weaker sections of society. If this fee hike is not rolled back, we will protest at every level, be it taking to the streets or raising the issue in the Parliament, Gohil, a Rajya Sabha member, said. GMERS announced a similar fee hike in 2023 ahead of admissions for medical colleges. The government was, however, forced to roll back the increase following protests. Gujarats 13 GMERS medical colleges have 2,100 medical seats. Of these, 75% of seats are reserved for the state quota, 10% for the management quota and the remaining 15% for the NRI quota. Thus, across GMERS medical colleges, there are 1,500 state quota seats, 75 all India quota seats, 210 management quota seats and 315 NRI quota seats. Vacant NRI quota seats are converted to management quota seats. For five GMERS colleges Rajpipla, Navsari, Porbandar, Godhra and Morbi which have 75 seats each, 60% of funds come from the Centre and 40% from the state govt. All the other GMERS colleges are fully funded by the state govt. Earlier this month, the Gujarat chapter of Indian Medical Association wrote asked chief minister Bhupendra Patel to withdraw the fee hike, which it said, would bring GMERS fees on par with private medical colleges. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) executive president was arrested on January 31 by the Enforcement Directorate in its money laundering probe in an alleged land scam. During the hearing in the high court on June 28, the ED counsel had argued that if Hemant Soren was released on bail, he might commit a similar offence and referred to cases against ED officers in the SC/ST police station. In its order, the Jharkhand high court had said,""Though the conduct of the petitioner has been sought to be highlighted by the Enforcement Directorate on account of the First Information Report instituted by the petitioner against the officials of the ED, but on an overall conspectus of the case, there is no likelihood of the petitioner committing a similar nature of offence." Soren has denied any wrongdoing and has alleged political conspiracy against him. "I was falsely implicated. A conspiracy was hatched against me and I was forced to spend five months in jail. I respect the judiciary. The court delivered its order and I am out (on bail). But the judicial process is long," Soren had said on the day he was granted bail. I have stepped out of my home for the first time post my release to address you on Hul Diwas. It is a day of inspiration for all of us. Like the Santhal uprising against the British, we declare Hul rebellion to drive out feudal forces not only from Jharkhand but across the country," the chief minister had said few days ago. An investigation team, formed by the Goa government, on Sunday visited the halted Kalasa-Banduri irrigation project in Kanakumbi, Belagavi district, to inspect the ongoing project work in the Mahadayi river basin, officials familiar with the matter said. The visit came amid strong opposition from pro-Kannada organisations. The eight-member PRAWAH team inspected around a dozen project sites under heavy police protection (HT) The eight-member progressive river authority for welfare and harmony (PRAWAH) team inspected around a dozen project sites under heavy police protection. Over a hundred police personnel were deployed in Kanakumbi village to ensure the safety of the team, one of the official said. Belagavi SP Bhimashankar Guled said: Due to the opposition from Kannada factions, we provided protection to the visiting team. He said that despite the threat, no protests were staged during the teams visit. We ensured protection for the Goa team given the potential threat from Kannada organisations. Meanwhile, the Kannada organisations voiced concerns that the team, comprising members from Goa, would produce a biased report. They urged the central government not to consider the teams findings and warned of statewide protests if the teams visit was not prevented. We regret our government not prohibiting this non-constitutional teams inspection of the halted Kalasa-Banduri project, said Ashok Chandaragi, convenor of the Kannada organisations steering committee. He called for the Karnataka government to establish its own fact-finding committee to counter Goas perceived violation of the Mahadayi water sharing tribunals rulings. Union minister Pralhad Joshi, representing the Hubballi-Dharwad constituency, dismissed the significance of the visit, stating that the report would not be taken seriously. The assignment of this team by the Goa CM is merely a distraction for Goans. The committee lacks constitutional authority, he asserted. Belagavi BJP MP and former Karnataka chief minister Jagadish Shetter called the visit as unofficial and not impacting the tribunals proceedings. The teams visit and subsequent report should not be taken seriously, he said. The team is scheduled to visit Mahadayi river water project sites in Maharashtra and Goa later this week, intending to submit its report to the central government rather than to the Mahadayi water sharing dispute tribunal. Ashok Chandaragi informed HT that the tribunal, led by Justice JM Panchal, had allocated 3.90 TMC ft of water to Karnataka from the Mahadayi river in April 2018. This decision was upheld by the Supreme Court on February 20, 2020, despite a challenge from the Goa government. The central water resources commissions revised report in 2022 allowed Karnataka to use 1.78 TMC ft from the Kalasa unit of the river for drinking water purposes, exempting certain forest and environmental regulations to facilitate project development. Goa chief minister Pramodh Savant recently said in a post on X that the teams report would significantly impact the Mahadayi river water-sharing issue among Goa, Karnataka, and Maharashtra. At least 40 people, including several school children, were injured after a bus in which they were travelling overturned in Haryana's Panchkula district on Monday morning. The incident took place near Naulata village of Pinjore town. Haryana roadways bus overturns in Panchkula, over 40 school children injured(Representational image) The exact number of children injured in the accident has not been identified yet. The injured persons have been admitted to Pinjore Hospital and Sector 6 Civil Hospital in Panchkula for treatment. In a video doing rounds on social media, several injured school children can be seen being treated at a hospital. According to the police, the accident was caused due to overspeeding by the bus driver. Along with this, since the bus was filled beyond its capacity with passengers, overloading and poor road conditions have also been attributed as additional reasons for the accident, reported news agency ANI. Meanwhile, Congress MLA Pradeep Choudhary of Kalka assembly constituency in Panchkula said an investigation has been initiated. Further details are awaited. Last week, four people were killed, and two more were critically injured when the car in which they were travelling rear-ended a truck on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) expressway near Farrukhnagar. The incident took place around 2 pm on July 2 when a family of six was returning from Haridwar to Hasampur village in Rajasthan's Sikar district via Gurugram after immersing the ashes of their father in the Ganga. According to the police, the truck and the car were moving at a speed of about 90-100kmph. Either one of the drivers suddenly changed lanes, or the truck slowed down, resulting in the accident, the police said. While the truck driver fled from the spot, both the vehicles were seized from the expressway. (With inputs from ANI, PTI) NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Monday for his first visit to the country in almost five years, during which he will hold extensive talks with President Vladimir Putin to take stock of bilateral ties and chart a roadmap for future cooperation. Prime Minister Narendra Modi receives a guard of honour upon his arrival at the airport in Moscow on July 8. (X/PMOIndia) The two leaders last met in September 2022 on the margins of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan, months after Russia invaded Ukraine, triggering Western sanctions that complicated the relationship between New Delhi and Moscow. It was at that meeting that Modi nudged Putin to end the conflict, declaring that todays era is not of war. On his arrival at Moscows Vnukovo-II VIP airport, PM Modi was received by first deputy prime minister Denis Manturov and accorded a tri-services guard of honour. Manturov is senior to the deputy prime minister who received Chinese President Xi Jinping on a recent visit to Moscow, and accompanied PM Modi from the airport to his hotel, people familiar with the matter said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was received by first deputy prime minister of Russia, Denis Manturov upon his arrival at the airport in Moscow on July 8(X/@narendramodi/PTI) Ahead of holding the 22nd India-Russia Summit on Tuesday, Putin would host Modi for a private meeting and dinner at his dacha or country home in the suburb of Novo-Ogaryovo on Monday night a rare honour reserved by the Russian president for only a handful of visiting leaders. The people said this would be an opportunity for the two leaders, away from the public glare, to focus on more sensitive issues on the agenda, such as the Ukraine conflict and its fallout, and the repatriation of Indian nationals recruited into the Russian Army. In a statement issued on his departure from New Delhi, Modi said he looked forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. He added: We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, Modi said. On Tuesday, Modis engagements will begin with an interaction with the Indian community. He will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Kremlin, and then visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow highlighting the latest advances in nuclear energy. As part of the annual summit, Modi and Putin will hold restricted discussions, which will be followed by delegation-level talks. In a marked departure from the convention of Indian prime ministers beginning a fresh term with a visit within the neighbourhood, PM Modi chose Russia as the destination for his first bilateral trip in his third term, weeks after travelling to Italy for the outreach session of the G7 Summit. The move is being seen in diplomatic circles as an assertion of Indias policy of strategic autonomy in its foreign policy and the importance attached by New Delhi to its relations with Moscow. External affairs minister S Jaishankar has said the annual summit, last held in 2021, will be an opportunity for Modi and Putin to hold direct talks on crucial issues such as the imbalance in two-way trade. While India and Russia had set a bilateral trade target of $30 billion by 2025, the figure ballooned to $65.7 billion in 2023-24, largely on the back of Indias purchases of discounted Russian crude after the imposition of Western sanctions and a price cap. Trade is skewed completely in Russias favour, with Indian exports worth less than $5 billion. The people said the Indian side is expected to press Russia to expand and diversify its imports, and the two sides will also focus on streamlining payments in national currencies and overcoming the restrictions caused by Western sanctions on Russias banking system. The early discharge of Indian nationals misled into the service of the Russian Army is also expected to figure in the discussions, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra said. Though the exact number of Indians serving with the Russian military is not known, it is estimated to range from 30 to 45. Following the death of four Indians on the frontlines of the war with Ukraine, India sought a verified stop to further recruitment by the Russian Army. However, India will continue to walk the diplomatic tightrope on the issue of Ukraine. At almost the same time that Modi and Putin will hold their summit, US President Joe Biden will host leaders of the 32 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to commemorate 75 years of the alliance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who met Modi on the sidelines of the G7 Summit last month, has been invited to the meet in Washington. From Russia, Modi will travel to Austria, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the country in more than four decades. He said he will meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer for discussions to take the bilateral partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development. Modi added, Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism. Modi and Nehammer will also exchange views with business leaders from both countries to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. He will also interact with the Indian community in Austria. New Delhi: A Canadian media report that the countrys former defence minister, Harjit Sajjan, put the Afghan Sikh community on a priority evacuation list ahead of other Canadian nationals and Afghans linked to Canada after the fall of Kabul have evoked interest on Raisina Hill. The reason is that explains some of the unexpected last-minute hurdles that the Indian evacuation mission faced in August 2021, exposing the Hindu and Sikh minorities to peril at the Kabul airport, according to people aware of the matter. IAF's C-17 Globemaster was used for 2021 evacuation from Kabul It was ostensibly due to the unanticipated instructions of the Canadian Sikh minister, whose father was said to be on board of the World Sikh Organisation, that the Indian evacuation flight was delayed from Kabul airport, where chaos was unfolding after the fall of the Afghan capital to the Taliban on August 15, 2021, the people added. The report in Canadas Globe & Mail last week said that Sajjan specifically relayed information about the immediate evacuation of Afghan Sikhs who were otherwise not on the Canadian military radar. To be sure, Sajjan, who is currently the minister of emergency preparedness in the Justin Trudeau cabinet, has denied the allegations. Guru Granth Sahib from Kabul According to highly placed government Indian officials who asked not to be named, the evacuation process of an Afghan Sikh group (the numbers vary from 22 to 40) from the Karte Parwan Gurdwara in Kabul to the airport was scheduled on August 20-21 night. The evacuation process under Operation Devi Shakti was complex as the bus carrying the evacuees had to be rolled out in a security convoy through heavily armed check posts manned by sundry militias, while the Kabul airport was under the control of the exiting US forces. During the operation, much to the chagrin of Indian officials manning operations from Delhi and the Kabul airport, instead of reaching the airport directly to board the IAF C-17 Globemaster aircraft to Delhi, the Afghan Sikh group deviated from the agreed plan and moved directly to the Canadian mission in Kabul. This, it now emerges, was because Harjit Sajjan had given instructions to the Karte Parwan group through a Canada-based Sikh NGO that the Afghan Sikhs would be taken to Canada. Simultaneously, instructions were also issued to Canadian Special Forces that Afghan Sikhs would have to be evacuated on priority over Canadian nationals and those Afghans who had helped Canada as part of occupation forces in Afghanistan. With landing slots at a highest premium at the Kabul airport and a worsening security situation, the Indian missions in Delhi and Kabul were worried about the security of the Afghan Sikh group as it had not made it to the airport at the scheduled time and was incommunicado for over two hours. When Indian officials at airport enquired about the whereabouts of the Karte Parwan group, they were told that the Justin Trudeau government had given assurances to the Afghan-Sikh community that they would be evacuated to Canada from Kabul. This led to delay in the departure of the scheduled evacuation flight to Delhi as Indians awaited the arrival of the Karte Parwan group, putting the lives of other evacuees at high risk at a time when bullets, missiles and bombs were flying in Kabul. However, to the dismay of the Sikh group, they could not be evacuated by the Trudeau government despite assurances, and this group again approached the Narendra Modi government for evacuation. The group, which included a former woman Afghan MP, was evacuated in a C-17 heavy lift aircraft on August 22, 2021, the officials cited in the second instance said. Under Operation Devi Shakti, India evacuated a total of 669 people from Afghanistan including 206 Afghan Hindu and Sikh minority community members. The government operated a total of seven flights between August 16, 2021 and December 10, 2021 and also evacuated 15 foreign nationals on IAF aircraft operating from Delhi and the Ayni airbase in Tajikistan. On August 23, 2021, three copies (swaroops) of the holy Guru Granth Sahib were brought to India from gurdwaras in Kabul, and on December 10, 2021, two swaroops of the Sikh scripture as well as some ancient Hindu manuscripts were brought to India along with several Afghan Sikh and Hindu evacuees. As the roof collapsed at Delhi airport leading to distribution of flights from T1 to the other two terminals, the On Time Performance took a beating. While once there have been allegations and counter allegations on OTP in Indian skies, it has been silently sliding over the last many months and passengers have been at the receiving end with no solution in sight. Most frequent fliers have a delayed flight to report and surprisingly, IndiGo - once the torchbearer of OTP has seen its OTP sliding down. A plane takes off from the Indira Gandhi International Airport where a canopy collapsed on vehicles parked at Terminal- 1 amid heavy rain, in New Delhi, Friday. (HT_PRINT) May marked the seven straight months since IndiGo - Indias largest carrier by fleet and market share, topped the On Time Performance rankings. On-Time was its USP over a decade ago when it was a budding airline. Similarly, Air India - which topped the On Time Performance charts a few months after privatisation in what looked like a promising start towards an early turnaround is no more leading them. While over a quarter of the passengers see delayed flights from metros, the worrisome part is that the absolute number of passengers who are impacted by delayed flights has gone up over the years. Sample this, in May 2024, IndiGo recorded an OTP of 72.8% at four metro airports while Air India was 68.4%. IndiGos OTP was 81% in February 2020 and 90.3% last May. This means that 27.2% of IndiGos departures from the four metro cities viz. Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Hyderabad were delayed in May 2024 as compared to only 9.7% delays in May 2023. IndiGo has grown leaps and bounds from pre-COVID to post-COVID. In May 2024, it had an average of 643 daily domestic departures from the four airports for which OTP is counted. This number stood at 590 pre COVID and 633 in May 2023. The seats on offer has also increased with 103,188 daily seats on offering February 2019 compared to 124,930 seats now, shows data shared by Cirium, an aviation analytics company. What does that mean? IndiGo had an average of little over 160 delayed departures each day from the four metro airports. This translates into over 30,000 passengers who are impacted daily by IndiGo alone. How is the data measured? While India has over 100 operational airports, the DGCA releases the data measured at four private airports Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Hyderabad to arrive at an average before releasing it to the public. The flip side of the data is that flights which neither originate nor terminate at any of these four airports are not published. Typically, a larger network means - more connecting passengers and a delayed flight means further chaos in the network, in terms of rebooking or holding flights. What has also changed over the years is the security apparatus not allowing ramp to ramp transfer for connecting passengers, leading to potential delays. Delays beyond two hours are disproportionate In May 2024, 46902 passengers of IndiGo experienced delays of over two hours, shows the data released by the regulator. Last year this number was 51,865. Interestingly, Air India which is much smaller than IndiGo when it comes to domestic operations saw 50,605 domestic passengers impacted by delays of over two hours in May 2024. SpiceJet which is nearly as similar in size as Akasa Air saw 26,184 passengers impacted by delays beyond two hours while Akasa Air saw only 3715 passengers who were impacted. Tail Note How is IndiGo reacting to it? Going by the numbers, it looks like it isnt. In 2009, the airline came up with a TVC focused on being on time. The TVC, in which the airline tried to portray that it runs like a well-oiled machine, got plenty of traction. On-time is a wonderful thing was the central message of that commercial. Marred by groundings, high utilisation of aircraft and stretched with infrastructure issues, the airline has not made efforts to rise up the OTP charts, now occupied by Akasa Air in six of the last seven months. Akasa Air has much lower utilisation but it has 55.8% of its flights which originate at one of the four airports, compared to 37.6% of IndiGo - making the tracking percentage much higher. The On-Time is a wonderful thing advertisement ends on a nationalistic mode When we get our work done on time, we become the worlds most powerful economy on-time. The promise of an on-time landing continued in its next advertisement in 2011, when the airline launched a broad-way style musical at the time of starting international flights. As it prepares for induction of widebody aircraft in 2027, it will have passengers connecting not just from the length and breadth of the country but also from across oceans and that means more complex operations than what they are today. Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde said on Monday he was deeply alarmed by the rising number of hit-and-run cases in the state and pointed out that it is intolerable for the powerful and influential to misuse their status to manipulate the system. Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde said he has zero tolerance for injustice. (Praful Gangurde/ HT Photo) (HT PHOTO) Shindes statement came day after a woman identified as Kaveri Nakhwa, 45, was mowed down by a luxury car that hit the bike, she was riding with her husband on Sunday in Mumbais Worli. I am deeply alarmed by the rise in hit-and-run incidents in Maharashtra. It is intolerable that the powerful and influential misuse their status to manipulate the system. Such miscarriages of justice will not be tolerated by my Government, wrote Eknath Shinde on X (formerly Twitter). The lives of ordinary citizens are precious to us. I have directed the State Police department to handle these cases with the utmost seriousness and ensure justice is served. In addition, we are implementing stricter laws and harsher penalties for hit-and-run offenders, he added. Assuring action will be taken against the guilty, the Maharashtra chief minister said that he has zero tolerance for injustice. No one, whether rich, influential, or the offspring of bureaucrats or ministers, affiliated with any party, will have immunity as long as I am the Chief Minister of the State. I have zero tolerance for injustice. Let it be clear: my administration stands firmly with the victims and their families. We are committed to creating a safer Maharashtra for all its citizens. Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra, Vijay Wadettiwar, said the egos of ruling party leaders have grown. They believe they can act with impunity. Law and order has deteriorated. The police and administration are not proactive. If there were a strong deterrent from law enforcement, incidents like the Mumbai car incident wouldn't occur. People lack fear, he added. On May 19, a Porsche car driven by a teenager, allegedly under the influence of alcohol, crashed into a bike in Pune citys Kalyani Nagar area, resulting in the deaths of two techies. Subsequently, the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB) ordered that the minor be placed under the care and supervision of his parents and grandfather. The board also directed him to write a 300-word essay on road safety as part of his rehabilitation process. Last month, the minor was released from the observation home after the Bombay High Court held that the orders remanding him to the facility were illegal. He has now submitted a 300-word essay on road safety complying with the bail conditions of the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB). Pradeep Nakhwa, the husband of 45-year-old woman who was killed by speeding BMW allegedly driven by a Shiv Sena leader's son in Mumbai's Worli area, has demanded stringent punishment to the accused. I demand that the manner in which he dragged my wife through his car, I will drag him the same way, Pradeep Nakhwa, who sustained injuries in the accident, told ANI. ALSO READ: Mumbai BMW hit-and-run: CCTV footage shows absconding Mihir Shah; look out circular issued Mihir Shah, the son of Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, is absconding after the car he was allegedly driving hit the couple from behind in Worli on Sunday morning. Police personnel inspect a BMW car that ran over two people riding a bike, at Worli Police Station in Mumbai on Sunday. One woman died and one person injured in the accident. (ANI) Pradeep Nakhwa recalled the events which led to the death of his wife Kaveri in the accident. According to him, the couple was returning from Crawford Market on Sunday after purchasing fish when their bike was hit from behind. His wife was riding pillion. "We were riding at a speed of 30 to 35 kilometres per hour when a speeding car hit us from behind. Due to the impact, we landed on the bonnet of the car," he told PTI. According to Pradeep Nakhwa, the driver of the car pressed the brake and he fell off. But his wife was trapped under the front wheel. The husband claimed he tried to stop the car by banging the bonnet, but the driver did not stop and dragged his wife towards the (Worli-end) of the sea link. "I strated running behind the car asking the driver to stop. Had he stopped the car, my wife could have been saved," he added. "I have two children. We lost everything. My wife is gone, but the accused should get stringent punishment for the accident," Pradeep Nakhwa said. A look out notice has been issued against 24-year-old Mihir Shah, while his father Rajesh Shah was granted bail by a local court. During the remand hearing in the court, the police said that the Sena leader instructed his son to escape from the spot after the incident. (With PTI inputs) A Metropolitan Magistrate court in Dadar Sewri on Monday granted a provisional cash bail to Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, the father of accused Mihir Shah, on payment of 15,000, ANI reported. Mumbai: A damaged BMW car, which was allegedly involved in an accident that killed a woman, parked at Worli Police Station, in Mumbai, Sunday, July 7, 2024. (PTI) Earlier, the accused's father had applied for bail immediately after the same court sent him to 14-day judicial custody. His driver, Rajrushi Bidawat was sent to one day in police custody. They were arrested for aiding Mihir Shah, who was involved in a hit-and-run incident in Worli that resulted in a woman's death, in fleeing from the scene. A woman died on Sunday morning in Mumbai's Worli area when her two-wheeler was hit by a BMW, police said. The car was allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, the son of a leader from CM Eknath Shinde's Shiv Sena, who is still at large. Shah and Bidawat were returning home from a long drive at Marine Drive. Father made several calls to Mihir Shah after accident Worli Police said on Monday that Rajesh Shah, the father of Mihir Shah, the accused in a hit-and-run case that killed a woman, made several calls to his 24-year-old son after the accident. ALSO READ- BMW accident in Mumbai: Who is Mihir Shah, Shiv Sena leader's absconding son? Before the incident, Mihir had been partying at a pub in Juhu with friends. Police have taken statements from three friends who were with him that night. Mumbai Police has formed 14 teams to find Mihir Shah, who has been absconding since the car he was allegedly driving hit a scooter on Dr. Annie Besant Road in Worli. A lookout notice has been issued for Mihir, who is currently absconding. ALSO READ- The Pune between the Porsche and Pulsar How a BMW Killed a Woman in Worli Kaveri Nakhwa, 45, was riding with her husband Pradip on Annie Besant Road when the driver of a luxury car lost control around 5:30 am, according to Worli police. Kaveri fell onto the road and was declared dead upon arrival at the hospital. Her husband was treated and later discharged. This is a developing story. Please get back to check for updates by Ed Simon But then again, what has the whale to say? wondered Ishmael in Herman Melvilles 1851 novel Moby-Dick, therefore the whale has no voice, but this isnt accurate. Sperm whales of which Melvilles titular white whale is one have an intricate series of clicks and bellows that if not language per se, certainly seem like communication, albeit in a manner foreign to human experience. Furthermore, not only do sperm whales, humpback whales, blue whales, dolphins and other members of the cetacean family make noise, they are capable of imitative sounds, of repeating complex strings of noises songs and clicks of varying pitch and duration back to each other. Thats an ability that, to varying degrees, is not just the purview of whales, but of seals and birds, bats and humans (but notably not some of our closest primate cousins, who though capable of understanding us are unable to vocally repeat what weve said). Now, a landmark study written by research teams at Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California at Berkely have been able to deploy complex machine learning technologies for the first time in untangling the genetic basis for language acquisition across tremendously varied types of animals. The Bill and Melinda Gates Center at CMU doesnt much feel like Ishmaels ship The Pequod, but it turns out to be the perfect place to, if not discuss what the whale has to say, at least how the whale is saying it (and how bats, seals, and people are saying what they have to as well). Appearing more like a tech campus in Palo Alto than Pittsburgh, with an impressive central spiraling staircase whose shape is equal parts Frank Lloyd Wright and DNAs double helix, the Gates Center is where I met team leader and professor of computational biology Dr. Andreas Pfenning who is the lead author on the study published in Science, the flagship journal of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Pfenning explained to me how beyond traditional anatomical and behavioral approaches, the CMU and Berkey study opens up studying animal communication from a genetic perspective. The interdisciplinary field of computational biology, a growing field which Pfenning is a prominent researcher within, applies digital technologies to analyze biological data in ways that would have been impossible even a few years ago. What Pfennings team in Pittsburgh and Dr. Michael Yarstev in California did was to apply artificial intelligence technology to analyze and in some cases predict function across the genomes of 222 species, including varieties of bats, whales, and primates, who are all capable of being able to imitate complex sounds, discovering that even where their genomes might be radically different, the portions of the genomes which are involved in vocal communication are deployed in similar ways, an example of convergent evolution. Whales and bats are obviously far apart on the evolutionary tree, and they vocalize for a variety of reasons, be it social cohesion, echolocation, or communication. But despite these variations in why they make such sounds, the segments of their genome associated with these abilities functions in the same way. There are a variety of implications to this discovery, from being able to eventually fully understand the development of language in human beings to elucidating a variety of conditions related to language acquisition, including autism. For example, Pfennings CMU-based tech startup Snail Biosciences is beginning to adapt this research to aid in development of targeted gene therapies. Yet one of the most innovative aspects of the study wasnt just what the teams uncovered, but how they uncovered it. Pfenning noted that machine learning was used in analyzing massive amounts of data, not just genetic, but also behavior, cellular, and neural information about the individual species in questions, but most impressively they were able to deploy artificial intelligence to predict the outcome of difficult experiments that typically take years to conduct in animals like various whale species without having to use the actual remains of such a creature itself. There is, as Pfenning said, an ethical component to being able to dissect a simulated brain, noting that even beyond the logistical difficulty of experimenting on whales, this new computational method also allows researchers access the detailed features of the biology of some endangered species for the first time. A good thing to, for across that chasm of difference between bats and seals, whales and humans, the unlikeliest new intelligence of computers have been able to discover more thats similar than might have once been supposed, though even Melville could recognize in the whale a kindred creature both ponderous and profound, adding of the animal Oh! happy that the world is such an excellent listener! Talker too. *** Ed Simon is the editor of Belt Magazine, an emeritus staff-writer for The Millions, and a columnist at 3 Quarks Daily. The author of over a dozen books, his upcoming title Relic will be released by Bloomsbury Academic in January as part of their Object Lessons series, while Devils Contract: The History of the Faustian Bargain will be released by Melville House in July of 2024. Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case: A CCTV camera footage of Mihir Shah, the main accused absconding over a deadly BMW car crash in Mumbai's Worli, leaving a pub with four of his friends in a Mercedes car before the accident has surfaced online. According to the Mumbai Police, Mihir Shah the son of Rajesh Shah, the deputy leader of Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde, in Palghar changed the car later and was driving the BMW while his driver was in the passenger seat. The Mumbai Police suspects that Mihir Shah, who did not pursue education after studying till Class 10, was drunk at that time. The CCTV camera footage has surfaced even as the Mumbai Police has issued a Look Out Circular (LOC) against Mihir Shah (24), who was allegedly driving the BMW car which rammed a couple on a scooter in Worli on Sunday, July 7, killing a 45-year-old woman who was riding pillion with her husband. Watch the video here: The police suspect that Mihir Shah, who did not pursue education after studying till Class 10, was drunk at that time. Kaveri Nakhwa was dragged for 2 km by BMW car Kaveri Nakhwa (45), resident of Worli Koliwada, was going with her husband Pradeep on the arterial Dr Annie Besant Road when the luxury car, allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, crashed it into the couple's two-wheeler at around 5.30am on Sunday, according to the police. The car dragged the woman for more than 2 km, news agerncy PTI quoted a police official as saying. She was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival. After the accident, the accused fled towards the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. He left the car and his driver Rajrishi Bidawat, who was sitting next to him, near Kala Nagar in Bandra area and ran away, the official said, PTI added. Mihir Shah's father Rajesh Shah, driver arrested Mihir Shah's father Rajesh Shah and Bidawat were later arrested by the Worli Police on Sunday for allegedly helping Mihir Shah escape after the accident, the official said. Rajesh Shah is a Shiv Sena leader from Palghar. The official said the car is owned by Rajesh Shah. "As there was a possibility of Mihir Shah fleeing the country, the Mumbai Police on Sunday evening issued an LOC against him," the official said. The police have launched a search for the accused and formed six teams to trace him, he said. Police suspect Mihir was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident as he was spotted at a bar in Juhu area here a few hours before the incident, the official said. The police have also found a bill of 18,000 of the bar and are verifying it, the official said without elaborating. The CCTV camera footage of the bar is also being examined, he said. The two arrested persons will be produced before a local court later in the day, he added. The accused persons have been booked under various sections, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), according to the police. What Eknath Shinde said Speaking about the incident, Maharashtra chief minister and Shiv Sena head Eknath Shinde on Sunday said law was equal for everyone and no one would be spared. (With inputs from PTI) Over 300mm of rainfall over six hours from 1am to 7am in parts of Mumbai on Monday flooded low-lying areas in the countrys financial capital, disrupted suburban trains, and forced the closure of schools and colleges. In 24 hours ending 8.30am on Monday, Santacruz weather station recorded 268mm of rainfall. (HT PHOTO) Water logging slowed traffic movement at places such as south-bound elevated airport road, King Circle Matunga, Kurla depot, Dadar TT, Hindmata Junction, Ram Nagar Subway (Vakola) Andheri Sunway SV Road, and Sakkar Chowk-Wadala. Trains were running on the main line. However, due to heavy rains and water logging between Bhandup and Nahur, trains were run by clamping and padlocking. Clamping completed at 06.45am. Harbour line services were running normally. Officials said high-capacity water pumps were being utilised to drain water and railways staff were monitoring the situation to keep Mumbais lifeline running. Suburban trains were running up to 10 minutes late as the water was above track level between Matunga Road and Dadar even at least five trains were cancelled. Due to water logging, train services on the mainline between Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus to Thane were suspended briefly on the fast line. Harbour line services were temporarily suspended due to water logging at Chunnabhati. Over 10-15 lawmakers, including minister Anil Patil, were stuck in a train due to rain near Kurla. Patil and lawmaker Amol Mitkari later got down from the train and walked to the closest road. Regional Meteorological Centre scientist Sushma Nair said an offshore trough along the Gujarat to north Kerala coast, which strengthened along the north Konkan coast around midnight, led to the heavy rainfall. According to a nowcast for Mumbai valid for three hours until 1pm, moderate spells of rainfall were expected in the city and suburbs. Heavy rainfall was likely at isolated places over the next 24 hours. India Metrological Department (IMD) recorded 170mm of rain between 2.30am to 5.30am at the Santacruz observatory, the baseline weather station for the city. In 24 hours ending 8.30am on Monday, Santacruz weather station recorded 268mm, and Colaba 84mm of rainfall. Thane recorded 119mm of rain. In some places, rainfall crossed 150mm. Vikhroli received 184mm of rainfall, Dahisar 181mm, Ram Mandir 178mm, Chembur 190mm, Sion 205mm, Matunga 159mm, and Byculla 128mm. IMD said heavy to very heavy rainfall was expected in Mumbai apart from a 4.40 m high tide at 1:57pm. Opposition Congress leader Balasaheb Thorat blamed poor work for the water logging that brought the city to a standstill. Poor work of nullah cleaning and absence of precautionary steps has put the people in hardship. There are no elected representatives in the civic body and it has worsened the situation. Chief minister Eknath Shinde said he has ordered all agencies to expedite work and that he expected relief for people soon. He said that too much rain in a short duration led to the situation. NEET UG 2024 Hearing Highlights: The Supreme Court said on Monday that if the integrity of the NEET-UG 2024 medical entrance exam is compromised and its question paper leaked through social media, a re-test must be considered. Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, leading the bench, further said that if the leak occurred via platforms like Telegram, WhatsApp, or other electronic means, it could rapidly disseminate. A bench consisting of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, along with Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra heard the matter and posted it for next hearing on Thursday....Read More Recently, the Centra and the National Testing Agency (NTA), responsible for conducting the NEET examination, recently told the Supreme Court that scrapping the exam would be "counterproductive" and "seriously jeopardise" lakhs of honest candidates in the absence of any proof of large-scale breach of confidentiality. The NEET UG 2024 examination was conducted across hundreds of centres in India on May 5, and the results of the same were declared on June 4, ten days ahead of schedule. The NTA awarded full marks in the exam to dozens of students, with 67 toppers for the medical exam this year. This raised protests and echoes of a NEET re-test by students and organisations, alleging irregularities in the marking system used by NTA. Many students also alleged paper leak in multiple centres, saying that most of the toppers and high-scorers belonged to one specific region or exam centre. The Centre and the NTA on June 13 told the court that they had cancelled the grace marks awarded to 1,563 candidates. They were given the option to either take a re-test or forgo the compensatory marks awarded for loss of time. The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that bail conditions enabling the police to constantly track an accuseds movements and invade their privacy are unconstitutional. A bench of Justices AS Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan emphasised that such conditions infringe on the right to privacy. (HT photo) This decision came while setting aside a bail condition that required the accused to share their Google Maps location with the police. A bench of Justices AS Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan emphasised that such conditions infringe on the right to privacy. The bench also held that no court can impose bail conditions that frustrate the purpose of granting bail itself. We have said in the judgment that here cant be a bail condition that defeats the purpose of the bail itself... although it was told to us that Google pin is innocuous, we have said that no condition can be imposed that can virtually peep into the private life of accused, said justice Oka, reading out the judgment. The detailed judgment will be out later in the day. The judgment marks an important clarification, as various courts, including different benches of the Supreme Court, have previously imposed the sharing of Google Maps pins as a bail condition. Also Read: Sharing Google location cant be ground for granting bail, says SC During a previous hearing of the matter in April, the bench had disapproved of this practice. Ultimately, its technology. We dont know how it will be used. But this condition should not be imposed. It (Google Maps pin) cant be a condition of bail, said the bench on April 29, adding that the primary function of a location pin is navigation or location identification, which may not effectively monitor compliance with bail terms and could be misused. This ruling stems from a petition challenging a Delhi high court order that granted bail to a Nigerian national, an accused in a case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. The high court had set two stringent conditions: the accused had to drop a Google Maps pin to ensure their location was available to the investigating officer, and the Nigerian high commission had to assure that the accused would not leave the country and would appear before the trial court as required. In July 2023, the Supreme Court had expressed concerns that the condition of sharing a Google Maps pin could prima facie affect the privacy rights of the accused under Article 21 of the Constitution. The court remarked that tracking an accuseds movements after they have been granted bail with reasonable conditions could undermine their right to privacy. Subsequently, in August 2023, the Supreme Court directed the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to file an affidavit detailing the technical aspects and consequences of using a Google Maps pin. MeitYs affidavit, filed in February, did not provide a comprehensive explanation of the technical aspects or the extent of surveillance involved. Instead, it suggested that Google India Pvt Ltd would be better placed to provide these details. Following this, the court asked Google India to file an affidavit explaining the technology behind Google Maps pins and the scope of surveillance it enables. In April, the Supreme Court had indicated its intention to pass a judgment to end the practice of requiring accused persons to share their Google Maps locations as a bail condition. During a hearing, the bench stressed that such a condition could infringe the individuals right to privacy and be misused. Google Indias submissions stated that a location pin is innocuous and primarily a tool for navigation, further supporting the argument against its use for monitoring bail conditions. Todays ruling by the Supreme Court not only sets aside the two stringent bail conditions but also grants interim bail to the accused in the NDPS case. This decision is a significant step in safeguarding the privacy rights of individuals while ensuring that bail conditions remain reasonable and just. The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Union government to frame a model policy on menstrual leaves for women employees after deliberation with states and other parties involved. Supreme Court of India pointed out that granting menstrual leaves may be counterproductive and have "detrimental" effect on women with companies not choosing to employ them (File) A bench comprising Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said this is a matter of policy and it not an issue courts need to look into, news agency PTI reported. ALSO READ | Chandigarh: PU committee accepts proposal for menstrual leave for female students The bench also pointed out that granting menstrual leaves may be counterproductive and have detrimental effect on women with companies not choosing to employ them. How will the leave encourage more women to be part of the workforce, the court asked the petitioner and said mandating such leave will lead to women being shunned from the workforce...we do not want that, the bench said. ALSO READ | TISS students body demands period leave The bench also permitted lawyer Rakesh Khanna, appearing for petitioner and lawyer Shailendra Tripathi to move the secretary of the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, reported PTI. The bench requested the secretary of the ministry of women and child development to considered the matter and come to an answer after discussing with various stakeholders to identify whether a model policy can be framed. The court also clarified that states are free to take steps in this regard and they won't be affected by the Centre's consultation process. Earlier in February, SC rejected a PIL which had aimed to make it mandatory for all states to grant menstrual leaves for female students and working women. The court refused to entertain this plea citing a similar reason, saying that it fall under the policy domain of the government, reported TOI. The senior lawyer said that the Centre has taken no decisions regarding this matter as of yet, reported PTI. Despite the absence of a mandatory menstrual leave system implemented by the government, several companies such as Zomato, Bjyus, Swiggy, Magzter among others offers menstrual leaves to its employees, according to a News18 report. (with inputs from news agencies) Law and order situation cannot be handled only by transferring an officer, ex-Tamil Nadu chief minister Edapaddi K Palaniswami said on Monday, hours after the state government transferred Chennai's Police Commissioner. AIADMK general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS). (HT File Photo) IPS officer Sandeep Rai Rathore was transferred days after the murder of K Armstrong, the Tamil Nadu unit president of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP). A Arun has been appointed as the new chief of the city police. Law and order can be guarded only by ensuring proper governance. The chief minister himself holds the portfolio of the police departmenthad he led the department efficiently, law and order could have been maintained well, Palaniswami, general secretary of the opposition AIADMK, told reporters. Calling chief minister MK Stalin puppet' and 'inept, Palaniswami alleged that not giving complete freedom to the police has led to failure in maintaining law and order. The former CM further claimed that under the Stalin-led ruling DMK, the police department has been unable to function 'independently.' This is reason for the prevalence of drugs and for crimes including murders, dacoity, and robbery. Not a single day passes without a murder, the AIADMK leader added. Tamil Nadu's Leader of the Opposition also reiterated that there is no safety for anyone including political leaders in the state. Speaking on the K Armstrong murder case, Palaniswami remarked that the actual perpetrators are yet to be arrested. People surrenderedthey were not arrested. It is the government's duty to clear the air, he demanded. (With PTI inputs) Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Monday for his first visit to the country in almost five years, and people familiar with the matter said his talks with President Vladimir Putin will focus on issues ranging from bilateral economic cooperation to the conflict in Ukraine. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russia's President Vladimir Putin walk during their meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence near Moscow, Russia July 8, 2024.(Reuters) The two leaders last met in September 2022 on the margins of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan, months after Russia invaded Ukraine and against the backdrop of Western sanctions that complicated the relationship between New Delhi and Moscow. It was at that meeting that Modi nudged Putin to end the conflict, declaring that todays era is not of war. On his arrival at Moscows Vnukovo-II VIP airport, Modi was received by first deputy prime minister Denis Manturov and accorded a tri-services guard of honour. Manturov is senior to the deputy prime minister who received Chinese President Xi Jinping on a recent visit to Moscow, and he accompanied Modi from the airport to his hotel, the people cited above said. Ahead of holding the 22nd India-Russia Summit on Tuesday, Putin hosted Modi for a private meeting and dinner at his dacha or country home in the suburb of Novo-Ogaryovo on Monday night a rare honour reserved by the Russian president for only a handful of visiting leaders. The people said this would be an opportunity for the two leaders, away from the public glare, to focus on more sensitive issues on the agenda, such as the Ukraine conflict and its fallout, and the repatriation of Indian nationals recruited into the Russian Army. The focus of the visit, the people said, is the economic agenda, including cooperation in energy, trade, manufacturing and fertilisers. At the same time, in the context of the war in Ukraine, one of the people cited above said that the Indian side will emphasise that a solution cannot be found on the battlefield. In a statement issued on his departure from New Delhi, Modi said he looked forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. He added: We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, Modi said. On Tuesday, Modis engagements will begin with an interaction with the Indian community. He will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Kremlin, and then visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow highlighting the latest advances in nuclear energy. As part of the annual summit, Modi and Putin will hold restricted discussions, which will be followed by delegation-level talks. In this pool photograph distributed by the Russian state agency Sputnik, Russia's President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visit the stable during an informal meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence, outside Moscow, on July 8, 2024.(AFP) In a marked departure from the convention of Indian prime ministers beginning a fresh term with a visit within the neighbourhood, Modi chose Russia as the destination for his first bilateral trip in his third term, weeks after travelling to Italy for the outreach session of the G7 Summit. The move is being seen in diplomatic circles as an assertion of Indias policy of strategic autonomy in its foreign policy and the importance attached by New Delhi to its relations with Moscow. External affairs minister S Jaishankar has said the annual summit, last held in 2021, will be an opportunity for Modi and Putin to hold direct talks on crucial issues such as the imbalance in two-way trade. While India and Russia had set a bilateral trade target of $30 billion by 2025, the figure ballooned to $65.7 billion in 2023-24, largely on the back of Indias purchases of discounted Russian crude after the imposition of Western sanctions and a price cap. Trade is skewed completely in Russias favour, with Indian exports worth less than $5 billion. The people said the Indian side is expected to press Russia to expand and diversify its imports, and the two sides will also focus on streamlining payments in national currencies and overcoming the restrictions caused by Western sanctions on Russias banking system. The early discharge of Indian nationals misled into the service of the Russian Army is also expected to figure in the discussions, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra said. Though the exact number of Indians serving with the Russian military is not known, it is estimated to range from 30 to 45. Following the death of four Indians on the frontlines of the war with Ukraine, India sought a verified stop to further recruitment by the Russian Army. However, India will continue to walk the diplomatic tightrope on the issue of Ukraine. At almost the same time that Modi and Putin will hold their summit, US President Joe Biden will host leaders of the 32 members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) to commemorate 75 years of the alliance. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who met Modi on the sidelines of the G7 Summit last month, has been invited to the meet in Washington. From Russia, Modi will travel to Austria, becoming the first Indian premier to visit the country in more than four decades. He said he will meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer for discussions to take the bilateral partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development. Modi added, Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism. Modi and Nehammer will also exchange views with business leaders from both countries to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. He will also interact with the Indian community in Austria. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Moscow, kickstarting his two-day state visit of Russia and then Austria. The prime minister was accorded a guard of honour upon his arrival at the airport in Moscow. Modi was received by 1st Deputy Prime Minister (1st DPM) of Russia, Denis Manturov. Manturov is senior to the Deputy Prime Minister who received Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Russia. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is accorded guard of honour at Moscow airport.(X/ANI) The 1st DPM Manturov will also accompany PM Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car. Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries, the prime minister had posted on X ahead of departure to Russia. ALSO READ: PM Narendra Modi's Russia visit: Ukraine war on agenda for talks with President Putin It is Prime Minister Modi's first visit to Russia in five years. He had attended an economic summit in the Russian city of Vladivostok way back in 2019. It is also Modi's first Russia visit since the outbreak of Ukraine war in 2022. During the 22nd India-Russia annual summit on Tuesday, Modi and Russian president Vladimir Putin are expected to explore ways to further expand bilateral relations in diverse areas, including trade, energy and defence. The annual summit between the Prime Minister of India and the President of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. So far, 21 annual summits have taken place alternatively in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi. Putin had visited India to attend the summit. Putin, as head of the Russian state, has visited India nine times. Prime Minister Modi and President Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. Today's era is not of war, Modi had told Putin, pressing for an end to the conflict in Ukraine. The prime minister has held several telephonic conversations with Putin and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. India has not yet condemned Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and it has been maintaining that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. From Russia, Modi will travel to Austria on Tuesday in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to that country in over 40 years. Leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should visit Manipur, which has been on the boil since ethnic violence erupted last year. I feel that it is important that the Prime Minister come here, listen to the people of Manipur, try & understand what is going on in Manipur. After all, Manipur is a proud state of the Indian Union...even if there was no tragedy, the Prime Minister should have come to Manipur, Gandhi said at a press conference in Imphal. ALSO READ: Gunfight ahead of Rahul Gandhis Manipur visit; 2 apprehended Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi meets with the victims of Manipur violence, at a relief camp in Moirang on Monday. (ANI) In this huge tragedy, I request the Prime Minister to take 1-2 days of his time and just come and listen to the people of Manipur. It will comfort the people of Manipur. We are, as the Congress party, ready to support anything that would improve the situation here, the Congress leader, who met the victims at relief camps in the north eastern state, was quoted by ANI as saying. Recalling his visit to the strife-torn state, Gandhi said,"It's the third time I have come here since the problem started and it has been a tremendous tragedy. I was expecting some improvement in the situation but I was disappointed to see that the situation is still nowhere near what it should be." I visited the camps and heard the people there, heard their pain. I came here to listen to them, to build confidence in them and as somebody who is in the opposition, to try and apply pressure on the govt so that it acts. Here, the need of the hour is peace. Violence is hurting everybody, the Congress MP said. Thousands of families have been harmed, properties have been destroyed, family members have been killed and I have never seen anywhere in India what is going on here. The State is completely split in two and it is a tragedy for everybody involved. I want to tell all the people of Manipur, I come here as your brother, I come here as somebody who wants to help you, who wants to work with you to bring back peace in Manipur, he added. Violence erupted in Manipur on May 3 last year following clashes during a rally organised by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category. What PM Modi said on Manipur in Parliament? Last week in Rajya Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had said instances of violence had declined in Manipur. He added that the reopening of schools, offices, and establishments in the state is a sign of normalcy being restored. (With PTI, ANI inputs) Ahead of his visit to Moscow, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he is looking forward to reviewing the bilateral cooperation between India and Russia with his friend Vladimir Putin. The prime minister also hailed the privileged and special strategic partnership between the two countries, and how it has advanced over the last 10 years. Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin (Photo by Sanjeev Verma/ Hindustan Times) (Sanjeev Verma/HT PHOTO) PM Modi said in a statement, I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin." PM Modi is scheduled to meet Putin on Tuesday, on his visit to Russia after five years. Special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, the prime minister said, ahead of his visit to Moscow. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia, PM Modi said in his departure statement. While speaking on his visit to Austria, PM Modi said, Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner, and we share ideals of democracy and pluralism. I look forward to discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new areas," he added. PM Modi, who described Austria as as India's "steadfast and reliable partner", will be interacting with President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer during his visit to the European country. "This is the first visit of an Indian prime minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others," he said. PM Modi's visit to Russia comes in the midst of the ongoing war in Ukraine, which has complicated the relationship between the longtime allies and pushed Russia closer to Indias rival China. India till now has not condemned the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war but has maintained its stance for the peaceful resolution of the conflict. (With inputs from PTI) by Jeroen van Baar Jonathan Haidt knows how to be a contrarian. In 2015, the NYU Stern social psychology professor founded Heterodox Academy, an organization that aims to bring viewpoint diversity to college campuses. He wrote an Atlantic article and book entitled The coddling of the American mind, in which he claimed that trigger warnings and safe spaces at colleges are making liberal students weaker rather than preparing them for the real world. With this work he gave words, authority, and attention to commonsense intuitions about oversensitive leftist youth that appeared to be widespread in the population. This was not his original expertise (he rose to fame studying moral psychology) but he skillfully took up the mantle. When I was a postdoctoral researcher at Brown University, often considered the wokest Ivy, Haidt was kind enough to drop by and tell us what we were doing wrong. He gave a talk (to a full house, of course) about how universities had to choose between Truth and Social Justice as their ultimate goal. In Haidts view, universities cannot do both, as the two goals fundamentally contradict each other. And he was very happy to push the point that universities like Brown were, in fact, claiming to do both. (When I joined Haidts lunch group after the event, I found him amiable and brilliant, if aloof; a professor to look up to.) All this made many in the academy very uncomfortable. Haidt publicly denounced the world he came fromhes been a professor since the early 1990sand scrutinized universities at a time when Truth and Expert Knowledge were already under attack. Whats more, Haidt actively exposed weaknesses that academics did not want to think about just yet. Haidt is like the friend who tells you youre overreacting before youre ready to hear it. And he fulfils that role with the glee of the kid who always wins in debate class. This year, Haidt is back with a new tale, one of teenage mental health and the technological transformation of society. And again, though gaining widespread support in the public eye, he is eliciting criticism and annoyed glances from academics. I, too, felt an itch toward his new book The Anxious Generation even before reading it. Having studied population mental health in the Netherlands for the past three years, I was well aware of the uptick in psychiatric symptoms among teenagers, but I also knew how complicated the story was. So why would a social psychologist who works on moral psychology at a business school be the best person to understand and buck the trend? Before I answer this question, let me briefly summarize Haidts point. The book argues that the last few decades have seen a shift from play-based childhood to phone-based childhood. Generation Z (born after 1995) has experienced parental overprotection in the real world and a deluge of harmful information and connectivity online. This has led to phone addiction, loneliness, and a generally fearful demeanor that feeds anxiety and depression. And look, Haidt says, in 2012, just when smartphones with front-facing cameras became a thing, the lines of mental illness in teenagers started bending upwards! Moreover, in experiments where kids disable their social media apps for a few weeks, they end up feeling better. Ergo, social media have caused mental illness and need to be forbidden under 16 years of age. This line of argumentation has raised fair criticism from experts. University of California, Irvine professor Candice Odgers, a developmental psychologist, wrote a stern review for the journal Nature. She argued that the evidence for mental health impacts of social media is mixed and blurry, for instance because distressed youth have distinct usage patterns on these sites. NYU statistics lecturer Aaron Brown wrote a piece for Reason.com in which he argues that most of the studies in Haidts lengthy reference list are unreliable. Of course, Haidt has struck back on his popular Substack blog After Babel, arguing that his evidence is, in fact, sound. There are other points of contention about the book, such as flaws in mental health measurement and the lumping together of video games with social media. There are, in fact, endless points for argument, as the entire scientific of developmental psychology is still chewing on the question why teens feel so bad these days. As I will show below, though, all this academic chatter is largely irrelevant for the impact this book has in the public eye. Another issue with the book is that it is not, in fact, entirely written by Haidt. The early chapters on mental health are based on literature reviews coordinated by research assistant Zach Rausch, who describes himself as Lead Researcher for The Anxious Generation. The part on childrearing was co-written with Leonore Skenazy, author of the 2009 book Free-range kids. As Haidt admits in chapter 9, some of the sections on rolling back overprotection and increasing play are in a voice different from [his]. Throughout the book, Haidt draws on publications by him and his allies on After Babel, where he also logs his progress toward his next book, Life after Babel. This continues the trend he started with The coddling, which he co-wrote with lawyer and activist Greg Lukianoff. To his credit, Haidt is very transparent about the origins of his texts. I like the idea of writing books collectively and testing out ideas online before publishing them. But it does change how the book appears to the reader. The cover just says Jonathan Haidt and lists him as a professor, so people trust him. But while the public perceives this book as a tome from an expert professor backed by heaps and heaps of research (as one Amazon reviewer wrote), it is actually written by a mix of people with various backgrounds, none of whom are field experts, and who do not always follow the principles of rigorous epidemiological research. Putting together these puzzle pieces of criticism and mild misleading, it dawned on me. This book is not a careful study of psychiatric epidemiology, and we should not evaluate it as such. Instead, it is a social critique that emanates from a school of thought best described as Haidtism. Looking at it like this, I actually found a lot to like about the book. According to Haidtism, society is suffering from a loss of structure. We are atomized individuals whose lack of connection and meaning leaves us living at a lower spiritual plane (see chapter 8, the best part of The anxious generation and likely a clue to Life after Babel). Its a refrain that many writers have had great success with in recent years, from enfant terrible of French fiction Michel Houellebecq to conservative commentator David Brooks. Right-wing politicians like the Dutch electoral victor Geert Wilders are turning precisely this feeling of atomization into rage against newcomers, immigrants, who have unjustly come to symbolize the loss of connection. In truth, a lack of common purpose and shared destiny are tearing apart the fabric of society, even in the most ethnically homogeneous countries in the world (e.g. Japan). When viewed in this light, social media simply happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time. As Haidt explains well, social contact online is characterized by being one-to-many and asynchronous, as opposed to the intimate and immediate interactions of the physical world. In this way, social media symbolize and effectuate, but did not cause, the loss of societal structure and connectedness. Haidt even invokes atomization by pulling from Emile Durkheim, the legendary sociologist who claimed that the loss of social integration led to rising suicide rates in early-twentieth-century France. (In an elegant mirroring of todays debate, this claim was later undermined by findings that properly integrated Catholics were less likely to report suicide, which they considered a sin.) So should we blame social media for the mental health crisis, or are they but a symptom of an underlying trend of atomization that may also cause mental health problems? We dont know, but it also doesnt really matter. Because since Haidts new argument hits home with so many commonsense intuitions about whats wrong with societyit is hard to look at a train car full of phone-mesmerized zombies and not feel sadyou cant help but agree with him. Do many teenagers suffer from psychiatric symptoms? Yes. Do social media make our lives worse, all told? Yes. The fact that the former does not necessarily follow from the latter is irrelevant: we are outraged at the phones and want things to change. The strongest signal that Haidts data dont matter that much is that there is one massive oversight in the book. At the end of the prologue, Haidt claims that adults in Gen X and prior generations have not experienced much of a rise in clinical depression or anxiety disorders since 2010. This notionvaguely stated but central to the books argument about teenage-specific issuesis simply false. The Netherlands Institute of Mental Health, my former employer, runs a gold-standard representative survey of psychiatric disorders in the Dutch population every 12 years. Between 2007-2009 and 2019-2022, the share of adults over 35 years of age who had a psychiatric disorder in the twelve months before measurement rose by a whopping 34%. The fact that Haidt missed this was a big clue to my understanding of The anxious generation. This is not a humble study of mental illness; it is a social critique that harnesses an explosive cocktail of a badly understood health problem, concerns about kids these days, and widespread disappointment with the way our society functions. With that, lets return to our original question. Why is Haidt the right person to tell this tale? The answer is that what Haidt lacks in field expertise, he makes up in his ability to convince and unite people around shared goals. Academics often fail to act for fear of overstepping, and Haidt does not fall into that trap. But his bravado comes at a cost. Being a social critique that poses as an academic tome, the book manages to zigzag through lines of scrutiny. Critique it on its implications, and people will point to the scores of academic citations in the back. Critique it on its academic merit, and Haidt will say we should act anyway because its better to be safe than sorry. For what its worth, I agree with some of the tenets of Haidtism. I believe society would be much better off if people hung out together and trusted each other more. I believe capitalism pushes us to see our neighbors as competitors and direct our energy toward work and consumption rather than communal connection. However, I do not believe that banning social media will make much of a dent. At the base of it, social integration requires a mutual need and the relinquishing of a modicum of freedom to the collective. As long as we are unwilling to do that, we will keep sliding into loneliness and depression for a little while longer. Perhaps Life after Babel, due for release in 2025, will present some solutions. July 9, 2024 1:17 AM IST Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed PM Modi at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a "private engagement" during which he praised the visiting Indian leader for the work he has done for the country's progress, reports PTI. I would like to congratulate you on your reelection as prime minister. I think this is not an accident, but the result of your work over many years, Putin told Modi as they held an informal meeting in a residence outside Moscow. You have your own ideas. You are a very energetic person, able to achieve results in the interests of India and the Indian people, Putin said. The result is obvious. India firmly ranks as the worlds third-largest economy, Putin was quoted as saying by the state-run Tass news agency. New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will have one-on-one private dinners with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 8 and with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer the next day to protect Indias energy security and secure clean and green technologies from Moscow and Vienna respectively. The last dinner cum private PM Modi had with President Putin in the Kremlin in 2015 extended into the early hours of the next morning and this time the Indian PM is being hosted at the private residence of the Russian President. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian Vladimir Putin. While PM Modi will be physically conferred the Order of St Andrew the Apostle the First, the highest state decoration by Russian Federation, the visit to Moscow assumes significance as India seeks to deepen as well as strengthen its energy ties with the Federation with Europe procuring energy supplies from West Asia at higher prices due to Ukraine war. India will also be looking at various routes including the Arctic route to evacuate energy from Russia as well as investing more money into the energy sector of the Federation. However, the key discussion between the two leaders will be on the Ukraine war as the long drawn war continues to destabilize the global markets and security situation. Given that PM Modi has first-hand view of the G-7 leaders on the Ukraine war during the Italy summit last month, he will be able to impress upon President Putin the futility of carrying on a long drawn campaign and urge him to return to the negotiating table. PM Modi is one of the few global leaders who have an excellent personal equation with the Russian leader and both have mutual respect for each other. While PM Modi will ask President Putin to put an end to recruitment of Indians to fight the war against Ukraine, he will also seek to deepen cooperation with Russia in the field of Space and Nuclear Energy. India is seeking to activate Kudankulam Reactors III and IV with the help of Russia in the next two years and begin work on Reactor V and VI for the 6000 MW plant. India is also looking for Russian help in Gaganyaan space mission to send Indian astronauts into space and back apart from future establishment of a space station as well as landing on the moon. After visiting the Rosatom exhibition, showcasing Russian nuclear technology, in Moscow with President Putin, PM Modi will fly to Vienna to have a private dialogue with the Austrian Chancellor on July 9 evening. Despite PM Modi being the first Indian PM to visit Vienna after 1983, Austrian has a deep connection with India historically with Indologist Joseph Tieffenhaler 1740 travelogue (cartographer of Ganges) quoted in the Supreme Court judgement in the Ayodhya Ramjanambhoomi case. Tieffenhaler was a Jesuit missionary, reportedly proficient in Arabic, Persian and Sanskrit, who travels between 1743 to 1785 were recorded and his visit to Ayodhya was made available in the course of trial in French. The English translation was provided by the Government in pursuance of the order of the High Court. With Austria part of EU and non-NATO country, the Ukraine war will be the centerpiece of dialogue between the two leaders as both countries can play a role in putting an end to the conflict, which has serious economic ramifications on the Global South. While Austrian companies are playing a huge role in Indian infrastructure in tunneling through frozen and glaciated mountains in the north, Vienna is also a leader in clean and green technologies like conversion of used cooking oil into green fuel. If the focus of the Russian visit is energy and the Ukraine war, the trip to Vienna is all about high technology and the role of centrist powers in dispute resolution. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, reached Manipur on Monday and visited reliefs camp in Jibram and Churachandpur districts to interact with people displaced by the ethnic violence between the Meiteis and the Kuki-Zos, which began on May 3 last year. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi meeting family affected by Manipur violence at Moirang last year. (AICC) According to the schedule, the Congress leader will also visit a relief camp in Moirang. This is Gandhis first visit to the strife-torn state since being elected as the Lok Sabha MP from Uttar Pradeshs Rae Bareli in the recent general election. He is also scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at the Raj Bhavan at 6 pm. After the ethnic violence broke out in the state, Rahul Gandhi previously made two visits to the region. During the recent Parliament session, opposition INDIA bloc members interrupted Prime Minister Narendra Modis address on July 2, chanting Justice for Manipur. Similar scenes occurred in the Rajya Sabha during the Prime Ministers reply to the debate on the motion of thanks on the Presidents address. Read: Indias Afghan Sikh 2021 evacuation plan was nixed by Canadian antics In his speech, the Prime Minister mentioned efforts to bring peace to Manipur, with 11,000 FIRs filed and 500 arrests made. He noted that incidents of violence are decreasing, indicating potential for peace. Violence erupted in Jiribam on June 6 after a Meitei farmer, Soibam Sarat Singh, was found dead with injuries on his neck. The situation according to officials had further escalated after claims that a person from the Kuki-Zo community had gone missing. Jiribam lies along Manipurs border with Assam, and the NH-37 passes through the district, making it critical for allowing essential supplies to reach the rest of the state. Before his visit to Manipur, Rahul Gandhi met flood affected victims in Silchar, Assam. He urged the Centre to extend all possible help and support to the state immediately. Around 22.70 lakh people in 28 districts of Assam have been affected by the floods, with 78 people killed due to floods, landslides, and storms this year. The leader of opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha and Congress MP, Rahul Gandhi on Monday met people displaced from Manipurs Jiribam district who are taking shelter in Assam. Rahul Gandhi interacting with inmates of a relief camp of displaced Manipur residents in Assams Cachar district. (Biswa Kalyan Purkayastha | HT photo) Gandhi reached Silchar airport at around 10am and went to Hmarkhawlien area of Cachars Lakhipur to meet people staying at a relief camp at Thalai. During his brief visit, he spoke to the people staying there and assured them of raising their issues in Parliement. The displaced people also submitted a memorandum to Gandhi on the issues affecting them. Also Read:Rahul Gandhi met train drivers brought from outside? Unions counter Railways Around 1,700 residents of Jiribam in Manipur had entered neighbouring Assam last month following a fresh spurt of violence in the state affected by ethnic clashes. Following his trip to the relief camp, Gandhi will travel by road to Jiribam in Manipur where he will visit the relief camp at Jiribam Higher Secondary School. From there, he will return to Silchar by road and take a special flight to Manipur capital Imphal. On reaching Imphal, he will travel to Churachandpur district by road and visit the relief camp at Mandap at Tuibong. Later in the day, he will travel by road to Meitei-dominated Moirang and visit another relief camp at Phubala High school. Gandhi will go to Imphal where he will meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at Raj Bhavan. The Mumbai police on Monday filed chargesheet in the case of firing outside actor Salman Khan in a special court against nine people, including Lawrence Bishnoi, a gangster already in jail. Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi (L) and Bollywood actor Salman Khan The 1,735-page charge sheet, against six arrested accused and three fugitives, submitted by the crime branch in a special MCOCA court, includes three volumes of investigative documents. It encompasses statements from 46 witnesses, statements recorded under section 164 of CrPC, and confessional statements under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). Additionally, it includes 22 panchanamas and technical evidence. ALSO READ- Haryana: Gangsters mother accidentally consumes poison, dies The incident involved two motorcycle-borne assailants firing five rounds outside Khan's Galaxy Apartment in Bandra during the early hours of April 14. Mumbai police had confirmed that the audio recovered from one of the arrested suspects in the shooting outside Salman Khan's home matched the voice of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's brother, Anmol Bishnoi. The police sent the audio from the suspect's phone to a forensic lab for verification. ALSO READ- Anmol Bishnois voice confirmed': Police on firing incident outside Salman Khan's house Anmol, who resides in Canada and is the brother of jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, has claimed responsibility for the incident. ALSO READ- Bishnois video call to Pak gangster goes viral; police say not from Gujarat jail Previously, police reported that Anmol Bishnoi, brother of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, played a crucial role in motivating the shooters. He facilitated the delivery of weapons in Panvel on March 15, 2024, and provided them with details about the target, instructing them to carry out the shooting at the actor's residence. ALSO READ- Govt protecting Lawrence Bishnoi, claims Moose Walas father after his video from jail goes viral The planned shooting was executed according to Anmol's instructions, and the shooters were paid a total of 3 lakh for their involvement. Sandeshkhali case hearing: The Supreme Court dismissed the West Bengal government's appeal against a Calcutta high court order directing Central Bureau of Investigation or CBI enquiry into allegations of land-grabbing and sexual assault in Sandeshkhali. A bomb squad team of the National Security Guard arrive after CBI recovered weapons in a case related to the violence against ED officials at Agarhati village in Sandeshkhali. (ANI file) "Why should the state be interested in protecting someone?" a bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan observed, adding that on the last date of hearing, the counsel appearing for the West Bengal government said the matter be adjourned after the apex court asked this specific query. "Thank you. Dismissed," the bench said. The top court was hearing the state government's plea challenging the Calcutta high court's April 10 order. While hearing the plea on April 29, the Supreme Court asked the West Bengal government as to why the state should come in as a petitioner for protecting the interest of some private individuals. In its plea before the apex court, the state government said the Calcutta high court's order demoralised the entire state machinery, including the police force. The CBI is already investigating the case of attack on the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials in Sandeshkhali and has registered three FIRs related to incidents on January 5. Noting that the investigation will be monitored by the court, the Calcutta high court directed the CBI to file a comprehensive report on the alleged illegal conversion of agricultural land into water bodies for pisciculture after conducting a thorough inspection of revenue records and physical inspection of land alleged to have been converted. The high court also directed the CBI to investigate allegations of crimes against women and land grabbing in Sandeshkhali and submit a comprehensive report to it on the next date of hearing. What's the Sandeshkhali case? Sandeshkhali, a village in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district, had been in a political storm after villagers, mostly women, came out on the streets against the ruling Trinamool Congress and its strongman Sheikh Shahjahan, accusing him and his aides of land-grab and sexual assault under coercion. He was later arrested. Both Bharatiya Janata Party and Trinamool Congress have been levelling charges against each other over Sandeshkhali. Prime Minister Narendra Modi also spoke on the matter of the reported beating of a couple in public by a group of people allegedly associated with a political party in West Bengal's Uttar Dinajpur. (With inputs from PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday pulled up the West Bengal government for not doing anything in the incidents related to land grabbing and sexual assault involving Trinamool Congress leaders in Sandeshkhali and dismissed a petition filed by the state challenging an order of the Calcutta high court transferring probe into 43 cases to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Supreme Court of India. (File) A bench of justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan said, All these cases are related to Sandeshkhali. This is not an omnibus order. You do not do anything by arresting the accused. Dismissing the states appeal challenging the April 10 order, the bench added that the remarks made by the high court against the states probe into the cases will not influence the investigating agency in its ongoing probe. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for the West Bengal government informed the court that while the high court could have asked CBI to probe the alleged attack against the officials of Enforcement Directorate (ED) during their probe into the ration scam, there was no rationale to transfer the ration scam probe to the CBI. It cant be a general blanket direction to probe all cases, Singhvi said. He pointed out that the state had probed the ration scam along with other cases involving sexual assault and land grabbing and submitted 42 charge sheets and hence, no ground was made out to transfer the cases to CBI. The court observed, Why should the state be interested in protected private individuals, as it questioned the state as to when the accused involved in the cases were arrested. The court had sought this information when the matter was last heard on April 29. On that date too, the top court had questioned the states intent to protect the accused, including TMC local leader Shahjahan Sheikh. Singhvi appeared even on the previous date and submitted that the high court had made comments on the states conduct, against which the appeal was filed. Senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, also appearing for the state said, There are comments against the state which is unfair even when the state has taken all possible action. The high court had directed CBI to probe allegations of sexual assault and land grabbing against TMC leaders including Shahjahan Sheikh and submit a comprehensive report to it. Sandeshkhali, comprising 16 village panchayat areas in North 24 Parganas district, has been witnessing tensions since January 5, when an Enforcement Directorate team, which went to raid Shahjahan Sheikhs house in connection with a money-laundering case, was attacked by a mob. Shahjahan was arrested in February even as villagers led by local women, who alleged sexual assault by him, and others held protests. Shahjahan has been booked for various offences under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including gangrape (Section 376D) and attempt to murder (Section 307) by the state police. against alleged sexual assault and exploitation by local TMC leaders. Besides Sheikh, other local TMC leaders including Shibaprasad Hazra and Uttam Sardar, who are zila parishad members and close aides of Shahjahan, have also been arrested in connection with the complaints by the villagers. The high court order passed by a bench of chief justice TS Sivagnanam and justice Hiranmay Bhattacharya said, It goes without saying that CBI shall have the power to require any person, organisation, government authority, police authorities, quasi governmental authorities, NGOs, public spirited persons and others who may be genuinely interested in the matter to furnish information on such point or matters, as in its opinion may be useful for, or relevant to the subject matter. The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice in response to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Uttar Pradesh governments appeals challenging the October 2023 Allahabad high court order acquitting Surendra Koli in the case involving cannibalism, rape, and murder of girls between 2005 and 2007 in Noidas Nithari. Surendra Koli and Mohinder Singh Pandher. (PTI/File) The high court reversed a trial courts judgment convicting Koli in 13 of the 16 cases. Kolis employer Moninder Singh Pandher was convicted in two cases. The CBI took up the probe of the case in 2007. The trial court acquitted the accused in three out of the 16 cases. A bench of justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan issued the notice and listed the petitions along with a pending appeal of the father of one of the victims challenging the high court order. Solicitor-general Tushar Mehta, who appeared for CBI, said the accused is a serial killer and the case is gruesome involving cannibalism. He added Koli lured small girls, killed them, and ate them. The trial court awarded death sentence and the HC [high court] acquitted. As per the prosecution, Koli enticed the victims on one pretext or the other before raping and killing them. It said he would chop the bodies, eat the torso, and throw the skull clothes and remaining part of the bodies in a drain. Police recovered 16 skulls, clothes, and slippers of the victims near the drain. The high court said that the investigation was botched up and basic norms of collecting evidence were violated. It appears to us that the investigation opted for the easy course of implicating a poor servant of the house by demonising him, without taking due care of probing more serious aspects of possible involvement of organised activity of organ trading. Pandher was sentenced in two of the cases. The Supreme Court in 2011 confirmed capital punishment for Koli in one of the cases. The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to hear a plea by the Delhi Police to cancel the bail granted to killers of TV journalist Soumya Viswanathan and issued notice to the four accused sentenced to life imprisonment for the incident of 2008. Madhavi Viswanathan, the mother of journalist Soumya Viswanathan. (HT Archive) A bench of justices Bela M Trivedi and SC Sharma issued notice on the plea filed by the police challenging the order passed by the Delhi high court on February 12. Additional solicitor general (ASG) SV Raju, appearing for the Delhi Police, informed the bench that the petition filed by the victims mother Madhavi Viswanathan has already been entertained by the court in April and sought the present appeals to be heard along with it. The bench sought responses of the four accused on why the high courts order should not be set aside and tagged it with the pending appeal of the mother, expected to be heard on July 15. The high court order had suspended the sentence of the four accused Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Baljeet Singh Malik and Ajay Kumar while granting them bail pending the outcome of their appeals that challenged their conviction and sentence. The special court which convicted them on November 26, 2023, gave two life terms under Section 302 (murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 3(1)(i) (committing organised crime resulting in death) of the Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA), with the sentences to run consecutively. There was a fifth convict Ajay Sethi, who was sentenced to three years of simple imprisonment under Section 411 (dishonestly receiving stolen property) of the IPC. The high courts order acknowledged the fact that the accused had undergone 14 years in custody. However, the Delhi Police and the victims mother argued that this was a case of double life imprisonment and the accused were members of an organised crime who committed similar crimes. The HC order was also challenged on the ground that it failed to consider the aspect that the convicts will indulge in further crimes if let out on bail as no unique conditions were imposed while granting them release. Soumya Viswanathan was killed without any apparent cause or provocation and the four men had killed another young woman, Jigisha, nearly six months after Soumya, employed with a prominent English news channel, was fatally shot on September 30, 2008, while driving home from work in south Delhi. Jigisha, an operations manager with Hewitt Associates in Noida, was strangled to death on March 18, 2009, by the same men. In July 2016, the accused were convicted by a trial court for Jigishas murder, but the death sentence awarded to two of them Kapoor and Shukla was commuted to life sentence by the Delhi high court in 2018. The court upheld the life imprisonment of the third convict, Malik. The Supreme Court on Monday ordered the constitution of a search and selection committee to resolve the impasse between the West Bengal government and Governor CV Ananda Bose over the appointment of vice-chancellors (VCs) of universities in the state. The committees recommendations, endorsed by the chairperson (justice Uday U Lalit), will be presented to the CM. (Representative file photo) A bench of justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan ordered the committees formation within two weeks, noting that both the state and the office of the governor agreed on the constitution of the committee for appointing VCs in at least seven universities in West Bengal that functioned without full-time VCs. The committee will be headed by former Chief Justice of India Uday U Lalit, said the bench, adding it will comprise five members who will prepare a panel of three names, listed alphabetically, for each universitys VC appointment. Leaving it to the former CJI to have separate or joint selection committees for the universities where VCs are to be appointed, the court directed that the entire selection process be completed in three months. Also Read: Bengal looks to make CM chancellor of its varsities The committees recommendations, endorsed by the chairperson (justice Lalit), will be presented to the chief minister (CM). If the CM finds any candidate unsuitable, the supporting material and remarks will be forwarded to the chancellor (governor) within two weeks, directed the bench. According to the court order, the CM is entitled to recommend the shortlisted names in order of preference to the chancellor, who will appoint the VCs from the empanelled names as recommended by the former. Should the governor have reservations about the candidates or the CMs remarks, the bench held, he may file his own opinion, supported by material and reasons. Once the governor approves the names, the states concerned department must notify the appointment within one week of receiving the approval. The Court also stipulated that it would make the final decision if either party objects to the shortlisted names and the objections are not mutually resolved. The expenses of the committee will be borne by the state, with former CJI Lalit receiving 3 lakh per effective meeting of the committee. The bench was hearing a petition filed by the West Bengal government, challenging the June 2023 judgment of the Calcutta high court that had upheld the interim vice-chancellor appointments made by Governor Bose in 13 universities, in his capacity as the chancellor of the institutions. There are 36 universities in the state. Earlier this year, in April, the Court was informed that the governor had agreed to fill six vacancies of VCs from the list recommended by the West Bengal government. Additionally, the Court asked the state government to send recommendations for the remaining vacancies. During subsequent hearings, the Court had warned both parties that it would appoint the VCs if they failed to do so amicably. This warning came after the Chancellor rejected seven out of fifteen candidates proposed by the State for VC appointments and did not consider the rest. On May 18, the Court ordered the appointment of the remaining eight persons within one week and directed the state government to send about twelve to fifteen names of eminent persons for reconsideration by the Chancellor to fill the seven vacant positions. Finally, noting that both parties agreed on the constitution of a Search Committee for appointing VCs in the remaining universities, the Court ordered the committees formation This Supreme Courts intervention is part of a broader pattern of conflicts between governors and state governments, particularly in states ruled by non-BJP parties. Disputes over the passage of bills, appointment of key authorities and other governance issues have frequently brought state administrations and governors into conflict, requiring the top court to step in. The elected governments of Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Telangana and Punjab, all ruled by parties opposed to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which runs the Union government, have alleged that Governors are exceeding their constitutional remit by refusing to sign off on legislations and behaving like agents of the Centre. All these states have approached the Supreme Court, which issued pertinent directions to the governors offices for not withholding the bills or other legislative businesses of the cabinet that hamper the working of a democratically elected government in the state. In a major boost for the Sharad Pawar-led faction of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday gave it permission to accept donations, keeping in mind the upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra, likely to be held in October. Election Commission of India (MINT FILE PHOTO) The development came on a day when an eight-member delegation of NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar), led by the veteran politician's daughter and Lok Sabha member from Baramati, Supriya Sule, met officials of the poll panel. The delegation requested the ECI to certify the status of the party so that it can receive voluntary donations from the public. Sule is also the working president of the NCP (SP). The party has been authorised to accept any amount of contribution voluntarily offered to it by any person or company other than a government company, under the relevant sections of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, which govern the contribution to all political parties, the Election Commission said in a statement. The authorisation to accept donations will be applicable until the final disposition of the petition in the Supreme Court against the Election Commission's decision, the statement added. In July last year, the Nationalist Congress Party, founded in June 1999 by Sharad Pawar, PA Sangma, and Tariq Anwar, after they were expelled from the Congress, got split into two factions following a rebellion by Ajit Pawar, Sharad's nephew. Subsequently, the national poll body recognised the Ajit group as the real NCP and gave it the original party's symbol, the clock, while the Sharad group was allowed to use the name NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) after the ex-Maharashtra chief minister, and the tutari (trumpet) as its symbol. In the Supreme Court, Sharad Pwar has challenged the recognition of the Ajit faction as the real NCP.' (With PTI inputs) New Delhi, The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine the pleas filed by Delhi Police challenging the high court's order granting bail to four convicts, who were sentenced to life imprisonment in the murder case of TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan. Soumya Vishwanathan murder case: SC seeks reply of convicts on Delhi Polices pleas against bail A bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma issued notice on the four pleas filed by Delhi Police and tagged them with the pending petition of Vishwanathan's mother against the bail granted to the four convicts. At the outset, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, appearing for Delhi Police informed the court that since a notice has already been issued by the apex court, all the pleas be tagged. The bench issued notice and tagged the pleas with the pending matter. The high court had on February 12 suspended the sentence of Ravi Kapoor, Amit Shukla, Baljeet Singh Malik and Ajay Kumar till the pendency of their appeals challenging their conviction and sentence and enlarged them on bail. The high court had noted that the convicts have been in custody for over 14 years. On April 22, the apex court had agreed to examine the plea filed by Vishwanathan's mother against the bail granted to the four convicts. It had issued notices to Delhi Police and the four convicts on Madhavi Vishwanathan's petition. Vishwanathan, who worked with a leading English news channel, was shot dead in the early hours of September 30, 2008 on Nelson Mandela Marg in south Delhi while she was returning home from work in her car. A special court had on November 25 last year awarded two life terms to Kapoor, Shukla, Malik and Kumar under section 302 of the Indian Penal Code and section 3 of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act . The court had made it clear that the sentences will run "consecutively". The fifth convict, Ajay Sethi, was handed down three years of simple imprisonment under section 411 of the IPC. He was sentenced to the period already undergone in custody during the trial. While sentencing Kapoor, Shukla, Malik and Kumar to double life imprisonment, the trial court had also imposed a fine of 1.25 lakh on each of them. It had imposed a fine of 7.25 lakh on Sethi. Out of the four convicts, Kapoor, Shukla and Malik were also convicted for killing IT professional Jigisha Ghosh. According to the prosecution, the trio later confessed to police they were also behind Vishwanathan's murder, and the weapon used for killing her was recovered from their possession. Delhi Police had said the motive behind Vishwanathan's killing was robbery. The trial court had awarded death penalty to Kapoor and Shukla and sentenced Malik to life imprisonment in the 2009 Jigisha Ghosh murder case. However, the death sentence was commuted to life imprisonment by the high court. The high court upheld Malik's life sentence. According to the prosecution, Kapoor shot Vishwanathan with a country-made pistol while chasing her car to rob her. Shukla, Kumar and Malik were also with Kapoor. Police recovered the car used in the murder from Sethi. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. The Supreme Court will reopen today to an exciting week after its summer vacation, as crucial verdicts are expected on significant cases. Among these are Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwals plea challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in the Delhi excise policy case, the West Bengal governments lawsuit questioning the Centre over alleged misuse of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and the fate of yoga guru Baba Ramdev in a contempt case against him and Patanjali Ayurved over misleading advertisements. The Supreme Court of India. (PTI File Photo) On Monday, 19 judgments will be pronounced by various benches of the top court, which had reserved orders before the court closed for vacations on May 17. More judgments are expected in the coming days as several constitution benches of the top court, sitting in combinations of 5, 7, and 9 judges, had concluded hearings earlier this year on significant issues impacting the political, social, and economic landscape of the country. During the 50-day vacation, which serves as an opportunity for judges to introspect, research, and write judgments, many crucial decisions were prepared. These include judgments on constitution bench cases involving the validity of citizenship rights for illegal migrants from Bangladesh, the minority status of Aligarh Muslim University, sub-classification of scheduled castes and tribes for reservation, Centre-state disputes over taxing mineral rights and regulating industrial alcohol, and the states power to take over private property under Article 39(b) of the Constitution of India. There are 899 cases listed before the top court on Monday, with a key hearing on the NEET-UG examination listed before a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, along with justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra. The Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA) have been asked to explain allegations of paper leaks, malpractices, and the award of grace marks, with demands for the cancellation of NEET results and a stay on counselling. Another crucial hearing involves the Nithari killings that took place between 2005 and 2007 in Uttar Pradesh. The CBI has questioned the Allahabad high courts verdict acquitting Surender Koli and Moninder Singh Pandher of rape and murder charges. This case will be taken up by a bench of justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan. Significant verdicts expected this week include the petition filed by Arvind Kejriwal questioning his arrest by the ED in the Delhi liquor policy case and the West Bengal governments suit against the Centre for alleged misuse of the CBI. Additionally, the top court will decide on a contempt petition against Baba Ramdev and Patanjali Ayurveds Balkrishna for misleading advertisements. The Supreme Court is also scheduled to hear two contempt petitions against the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for the felling of nearly 1,100 trees in Delhi ridge area without prior court permission. The court will also review petitions against its decision refusing to allow same-sex marriages. As the court resumes regular operations, it is worth noting the significant work done during the summer break. The colonial legacy of long summer vacations continues, but for the first time, a record 20 benches were set up during the nearly two-month break this year, exhausting the list of cases with the consent of counsel for parties. During the summer vacations of 2023 and 2024, 2,261 and 4,160 cases, respectively, were listed before the vacation benches, showing a near three-fold increase in case disposal compared to data from 2017. In the 2023 summer break, the SC disposed of 751 cases, which increased to 1,170 in 2024. The vacation benches also issued notices in 1,157 matters during the summer break this year, reflecting the Supreme Courts continuous effort to address pending cases and deliver timely justice. Chief Justice of India Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud has consistently highlighted the rigorous work schedule of SC judges, who handle between 40 and 60 cases daily from 10.30am to 4pm, with additional work required to prepare for the next days hearings. At an event in Prayagraj in February, the CJI had addressed the criticism surrounding the summer break saying people dont understand that judges work all seven days of the week, including weekends that are used for research and writing judgments, legal aid camps and administrative work. During his address at Cambridge University last month, justice Chandrachud explained how it was important for Supreme Court judges to take time and reflect on larger constitutional issues posed to them. On May 1, justice BR Gavai had said: People who criticise us for having long vacations do not know that we do not have a holiday on Saturdays and Sundays. These days are filled with conferences and other assignments... We also get the time to write long judgments during vacations. Presiding over a vacation bench, justice Dipankar Datta too addressed criticism about the top courts schedule and work hours, turning the spotlight back on the Centre, highlighting that those in governance who question the judiciarys efficiency and vacations should first ensure that the Union governments appeals are filed in a timely manner. It is unfortunate that despite judges putting in so much, it is said that we work for a few hours and have long vacations. There was a recent article about us... What are we doing here, burning the midnight oil even during vacations, justices Datta said on May 22. The judge was apparently referencing a recent article by Sanjeev Sanyal, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modis economic advisory council. Sanyal had called for judicial reforms, arguing that judges work fewer hours and enjoy long vacations. The Tamil Nadu government on Monday transferred Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police Sandeep Rai Rathore, days after the brutal killing of Tamil Nadu Bahujan Samaj Party Chief K Armstrong in the city, news agency PTI reported. Sandeep Rai Rathore(Sandeep Rai Rathore (X)) Sandeep Rai Rathore will be replaced by senior IPS officer A Arun, who is currently the additional director general of Police (ADGP), Law and Order. Also read | 3 more suspects arrested in BSP leader Armstrongs murder case According to an order issued by the home department's principal secretary P Amudha, A Arun was being posted as the ADGP/commissioner of police, Greater Chennai by downgrading the post of Sandeep Rai Rathore, IPS. He will now be appointed as DGP, Police Training College, Chennai, which is currently headed by Rajeev Kumar, IPS. Senior IPS officer Davidson Devasirvatham, ADGP will now take over as ADGP of Law and order in place of Arun. Home department is headed by Tamil Nadu Chief minister MK Stalin. Rathore's statement that number of murder cases in Chennai has reduced compared to last year had become controversial. Armstrong was hacked to death on Friday by six men who masked as his supporters. The attackers fled the scene on bikes after committing the crime. Police probing the murder have arrested eleven men so far in relation to the crime. Officials said the crime could be a revenge murder, linked to the killing of a gangster Arcot Suresh, who was killed a year ago, allegedly on the instructions of Armstrong. BSP chief Mayawati who visited Chennai to pay her last respects to the slain BSP leader demanded a CBI investigation into the murder. She also alleged that real culprits behind the crime have not been arrested by the Tamil Nadu police. Also read | Madras HC denies permission for Armstrong's burial at BSP office in Chennai "I urge the state government, especially the CM, to ensure law and order in the state. The weaker sections, in particular, should feel safe. Had the government been serious, the accused would have been arrested. Since that is not the case, we urge the state government to refer the case to the CBI," she said. Opposition parties like the AIADMK and the BJP have been blaming the ruling DMK for failing to maintain law and order in the state. (With PTI inputs) Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin on Monday constituted a one-man commission to recommend amendments to the three new criminal laws at the state level, including a change of name, on Monday. * Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin speaks during the Tamil Nadu Assembly session in Chennai (PTI) Retired Madra high court judge M Sathyanarayanan will submit his report to the state government within in a month, the government said in a statement. The three lawsBharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam, which replaced the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, and the Indian Evidence Act, came into effect on July 1. This Committee after consulting the Bar Associations and other stakeholders at the state level will suggest the State amendments to the new acts within a month, the Tamil nadu government said. Also Read | Abolish NEET exam or grant exemption to Tamil Nadu: DMK demands in Rajya Sabha The government criticized the passage of these laws, stating they were enacted without proper discussion, without hearing the States views and have been named in Sanskrit against provisions of the Constitution. Protests and agitations are taking place against these three acts all over the country. Without hearing the view of the Members of Parliament, who reflect the peoples views, the Union government has passed these new laws without discussion in haste during December 2023 after suspending 146 Members of Parliament. Stalin constituted the commission following a meeting with the states top officials including water resources minister Duraimurugan, advocate general P S Raman, chief secretary Shiv Das Meena, home secretary P Amudha and DGP Shankar Jiwal. Amidst the DMK led governments opposition to the implementation of the new laws, the Tamil Nadu police has been following the changes. Also Read | Replacing IPC with Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita not a welcome change: Amartya Sen The Federation of Bar Associations of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, representing more than 265 bar associations under the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Pondicherry, welcomed the development, We may be given an opportunity to submit our suggestions, before the one-man commission for necessary and suitable state amendments in the interest of the public, said V Mariappan, chairman of the federation. On July 4, It had written to the CM seeking to permanently defer the implementation and make suitable state amendments. The practising advocates want to see changes such as retaining the old English names, retaining the chronological order of the sections and to remove procedural and technical difficulties in the new Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (originally CrPC). The Madras High Court on July 3 had directed the Union government to respond to a plea challenging the Hindi/Sanskrit names of the three new criminal laws as unconstitutional. A Bench of acting Chief Justice R Mahadevan and Justice Mohammed Shaffiq however declined to stay the operation of the new laws. The writ petition was filed by lawyer B Ramkumar Adityan who stated that Hindi is not the mother tongue of 56.37% of Indians but Hindi and Sanskrit names have been given to such important legislations. Before its implementation, on June 18, Stalin had written to Union home minister Amit Shah requesting the Union Government to review the new enactments of changing the names and to consider views of all the States and other key stakeholders and withhold the enactments already notified. Last week, the Karnataka government also announced that it would start the process of amending the three new penal laws after consulting experts. Five soldiers were killed and five others were injured after terrorists ambushed an army truck in Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua district on Monday afternoon, said officials. The six injured soldiers have been shifted to a military hospital. The attack unfolded around 3.30pm at Badnota village of Loi Malhar in Billawar tehsil. (Representative image) The attack unfolded around 3.30pm at Badnota village of Loi Malhar in Billawar tehsil. The village is 120km from Kathua district headquarters and is located along the districts boundary with the adjoining Doda district. An army truck was ambushed by armed terrorists in Badnota village of Loi Malhar area in Billawar on Monday afternoon. The terrorists, believed to be two to three in numbers, first lobbed a grenade and then resorted to firing from automatic weapons. At least four soldiers were killed and six others injured in the ambush, said a police officer, who declined to be named. The army is yet to issue a statement on the attack. Earlier, a statement issued by police said, Exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces in the Machhedi area of Kathua district. Two Army personnel injured. Massive search operation has been launched. After attacking the army truck, terrorists fled into the nearby forest. Additional reinforcements have been rushed to the area and a search operation has been launched to track down the attackers, it said. There was intermittent exchange of fire between the security forces and the terrorists till filing of this report. The terrorists were believed to have recently infiltrated from across the international border and were moving to the higher reaches. The army vehicle was on a routine patrol on the Machhedi-Kindli-Malhar road. AGARTALA: TIPRA Motha party founder on Sunday advocated mandatory registration of all contractors and labourers operating in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) with provisions to charge higher registration fees from contractors and labourers from outside the state. TIPRA Motha Party founder Pradyot Kishore Debbarma floated the plan in a post on Facebook (PTI FILE) We have to ensure that local people get more preference. We have enough people who are capable of doing work. Huge companies are hiring people from outside, even for small jobs, Debbarma said in a post on Facebook on Sunday. Our local people have been denied various opportunities, and I am going to seek legal opinion in this matter, he said in the post. Debbarma founded the TIPRA Motha, a regional political party, in 2021 with the agenda of creation of Greater Tipraland, a separate state for the tribals living in the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC) and other northeastern states like Assam, Mizoram and also parts of neighbouring country Bangladesh. Within two months of its formation, the party came to power in the 30-member TTAADC (28 members are elected and two are nominated). TTAADC covers 70% of Tripuras geographical area and nearly one-third of its population. Earlier this year, TIPRA Motha tied up with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) after the signing of a tripartite agreement with the Government of India and Tripura government for an honourable solution to the problems of tribals. In his post on Facebook, the royal scion elaborated on the plan for mandatory registration, saying migrant workers coming from outside the TTAADC areas would have to apply for labour licence. When any labour is brought from outside of the #TTAADC area or from the state, they must pay more for registration, he said. For ST (Scheduled Tribes), there should be minimal or no charge to encourage trade and commerce. For others, there should be a fee. We have to follow Atmanirbhar Policy in the #TTAADC, he said. Villagers in the Devadurga range forest limits of Raichur district killed a leopard on Sunday hours after it injured four villagers, forest officials familiar with the matter said. The forest department will take action against the people who killed the leopard under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972 (File photo) One of the officials said the leopard injured a villager while he was going to defecate in the fields in Karadigudda village in the morning. When the villager raised an alarm, three people rushed to his aid and attempted to scare away the big cat. However, the leopard attacked these three villagers, injuring them as well. The injured people, identified as Ranganath Nayak (30), Papanna Raju (35), N Ramu Gowda (26), and B Nagaraj (28), all residents of Karadigudda, were admitted to Devadurga taluk government hospital for treatment and are currently undergoing medical care. Upon hearing about the leopards presence, hundreds of villagers from Karadigudda and surrounding areas rushed to the site. Despite notifying the forest department, the villagers began to search for the animal in the forest, armed with sticks and stones, the official said. Raichur district deputy conservator of forests (DCF) B Praveen said: The forest officials were informed by villagers around 9:30 am on Sunday about the sighting of the leopard. It first attacked Ranganatha Nayak around 8am. After receiving information about the incident, the Devadurga range forest officer rushed to the spot with a cage and net by 10 am. We even called veterinary doctors and sharpshooters to locate the leopard. However, thousands of people gathered at the spot, thus, hindering our efforts, he said. During the search, the leopard reappeared, when the villagers attacked the leopard with sticks and stones, ultimately killing it. Though the forest department staff and police reached the spot soon, they were unable to save the animal due to the number of people attacking it. They tried to control the crowd, including using mild lathi charge but the situation remained chaotic, the official said. The official said that the forest department had initiated an operation to capture the leopard after the morning attack. However, the animal managed to evade the capture at that time. At around 4.30 pm, villagers killed the animal as neither we nor the police could control the mob. We will conduct an autopsy on Monday and initiate action against the people who killed the animal under the Wildlife Protection Act of 1972. The leopard was about 5 years old, male, and there were no reports of leopard menace in the village earlier, the DCF added. Ostankino Tower, the tallest standing structure in Europe was illuminated with Indian tricolour on Monday to celebrate Prime Minister Narendra Modi's arrival in Russia. Rising to 1,771 feet (540m), the Ostankino TV Tower is the worlds 4th tallest and Europes highest of its kind, reported PTI. Modi was welcomed by Russia's 1st deputy prime minister Denis Manturov and was given a guard of honour upon his arrival at the Moscow airport. Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people, the prime minister said in a post on X. Modi's arrival kicks off his two-day foreign visit to Russia and Austria. Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries, Modi posted on X ahead of flying to Russia. This is Modi's first visit to Russia since five years. It is also his first visit to Russia since the outbreak of Russia-Ukraine conflict. According to an HT report, Modi and Putin are set to review the relations between the two nations and discuss their views on the current day global matter. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, in an interview with Russias state-run VGTRK television channel said, The agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as wellWe are expecting a very important and full-fledged visit, which is so crucial for Russian-Indian relations." Apart from a private meeting and lunch with Putin, Modi will be also be participating in interactions with diplomats and will also be visiting an exhibition centre in the VDNKH Complex, Rosatom Pavilion. He will also address the Indian community in Russia. On Tuesday, Modi will travel to Austria, marking the first visit by an Indian prime minister to the country in more than 40 years. (with inputs from news agencies) Dengue fever is rising in many parts of the country and it is a concerning health issue. Bengaluru reported its second suspected dengue death a day ago. Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne tropical disease that starts around three to fourteen days after the start of the infection. The most common symptoms of Dengue fever are vomiting, high fever, muscle and joint pain, body rashes and headache. When not treated properly in time, dengue fever can turn fatal. Dengue fever is spread by many species of female mosquitoes of the Aedes Genus. Mosquitoes breed in stagnant and dirty water. When we take proper precautions, we can prevent the spread of dengue fever and keep ourselves safe. Here are a few precautionary measures we can take. When not treated properly in time, dengue fever can turn fatal. (HT Photos) Remove standing water: Standing water is the perfect breeding space for mosquitoes, which can further carry the dengue virus and infect people around. It is important to keep an eye out for any kind of stagnant water near us, and ensure that we remove it for our own safety. ALSO READ: What is Dengue? Empty unused water containers: When water containers are left open in an open space, it can collect water during the rains and turn into breeding grounds for mosquitoes. We should be conscious of unused water containers around us and empty them regularly. Keep drains clean and clear: We should take care of the drainage system around our house and regularly ensure to clean and clear them of waste. We can also call the concerned authorities and clean the drains around us, especially during the monsoon season, when drains tend to overflow. ALSO READ: Dengue cases in India on a rise: Health Ministry issues statement to control the surge Use mosquito repellents: In case we see a surge of mosquitoes around us, we should use proper mosquito repellents and try to keep ourselves safe. Home mosquito control: We can call the home mosquito control to get rid of mosquitoes effectively. We should ensure to keep our home safe of dengue virus and other infections, especially during the monsoon season. What is the best mattress to buy? Which mattress type will suit my body? How do I pick from the range of options available in the market? What is the best mattress brand? Should I go for a hybrid mattress or a spring mattress? What size mattress should I pick? Choose the best mattress for sleeping in India thats perfect for your body type. Are these questions causing a hindrance in your mattress selection process? Indeed, the right mattress can make a huge difference in your sleep schedule, helping you sleep soundly and wake up refreshed, free from body aches caused by bad posture. But the question is - how to find the best mattress? In this guide, we'll walk you through all the different types of mattresses, help you figure out which one suits your needs best, and give you tips on what to look for when shopping. Plus, we'll share our top picks from some of the best mattress brands. Before we proceed further, lets understand the types of mattresses available in the market. Types of mattresses Innerspring mattresses An innerspring mattress is one of the oldest and most common types of mattresses. It uses metal coils made of steel to provide support. On top of the steel coil base, there are layers of fibre padding made from materials like cotton, wool, foam, or a mix of both. There are two important types of innerspring mattresses, namely, open coil and pocket springs. Open coil mattresses, also known as Bonnell mattresses, feature a traditional spring system where rows of hourglass-shaped coils are interconnected. Pocket spring mattresses feature individual springs encased in fabric pockets. Each spring moves independently, offering tailored support and reducing motion transfer. Who should buy an innerspring mattress? This mattress is ideal for back and stomach sleepers, as it provides good spine support. What to look for while buying an innerspring mattress? If you are planning to buy an innerspring mattress, check out the coil gauge and coil count. The coil gauge is the measure of the thickness of the wire used to make a mattress coil. It should be between 12-15 since the lower the number of coils, the firmer and more supportive the mattress would be. A good innerspring mattress should have at least 300 coils. You can also opt for a pocketed coil mattress, where each spring is individually wrapped for extra support. Check out the best innerspring open coil mattress on Amazon Amore Medico 8 Inch Eurotop Bonnell Spring Memory foam mattresses Memory foam mattresses are made from layers of foam, offering a unique "sinking" or "cradling" sensation. These mattresses have multiple layers of foam and typically feature firmer foam at the bottom for support and softer foam on top for comfort. Who should buy a memory foam mattress? These mattresses are excellent for pressure relief, as they help align the spine and alleviate stress on the shoulders and hips. Memory foam mattresses are ideal for side sleepers and those who need extra pressure relief and support. What to look for while buying a memory foam mattress? When buying a memory foam mattress, consider foam density for durability, firmness level based on sleeping position, and mattress thickness for support. Look for features like temperature regulation, motion isolation, and edge support. Check out the best memory foam mattress on Amazon Wakefit Mattress ShapeSense Orthopaedic Classic Memory Foam Mattress Latex mattresses Latex mattresses are a natural bedding option crafted from rubber tree sap. Unlike memory foam, they offer a firmer, more responsive feel without the sinking sensation. It comes in two types, Dunlop and Talalay. Dunlop is denser, while Talalay is softer, catering to different preferences. Who should buy a latex mattress? Latex mattresses are beneficial for relieving discomfort in the back and joints. It is also perfect for individuals who are prone to allergies. What to look for when buying a latex mattress? Choose between Dunlop and Talalay latex. Dunlop is denser and firmer, while Talalay is softer and offers more buoyancy. Besides, you can opt for natural latex sourced from rubber trees for eco-friendliness and durability Check out the best latex mattress on Amazon SleepyCat Latex Mattress Hybrid mattresses A hybrid mattress combines the benefits of both spring and foam layers, offering exceptional comfort and support. Ideal for those seeking superior comfort and bounce, it contours to the body shape with its foam layers, providing a plush sleeping experience. The pocket springs embedded within add a luxurious feel and effectively relieve pressure points, making it suitable for alleviating body pain. What to look for while buying a hybrid mattress? When buying a hybrid mattress, prioritise a blend of foam and pocketed coils for comfort and support. Check firmness levels, breathability, edge support, and warranty for durability and satisfaction. Who should buy a hybrid mattress? A hybrid mattress is perfect for all types of sleepers. Moreover, it is perfect for people who suffer back pain. Check out the best hybrid mattress on Amazon Emma Hybrid Mattress Also read: Best Natural latex mattresses: Top 7 picks for a comfortable and healthy sleep Pros and cons of different mattress types Mattress Type Pros Cons Innerspring Affordable, springy and bouncy feeling, familiar to consumers May need replacement sooner, may make squeaking sounds Memory Foam Provides motion isolation, available in many price ranges, supports the spine, adapts to body contours Traps heat, does not provide very firm support Latex Available in its natural form, does not trap heat, resistant to mould and dust mites, prevents allergies More expensive than regular mattresses, may have motion transfer Hybrid No motion transfer, more breathable, provides tailored support to the body Some mattresses may trap heat, may be expensive Now that you are familiar with the types of mattresses, lets find out how to buy the right mattress for sleeping. How to pick the best mattress in India? Choosing the best mattress for sleeping in India involves considering a lot of factors. From comfort and support to durability and budget, heres a checklist you need at your disposal while shopping for a mattress in India. 1. What are the three mattress firmness levels? Mattress firmness refers to how soft or firm a mattress feels. With numerous options available, understanding how firmness impacts sleep quality helps in choosing the right mattress. Mattresses are rated on a scale from 1 to 10, from very soft to very hard, based on materials and support. They typically fall into three categories: soft, medium, and firm, each offering different levels of comfort and support tailored to individual preferences and needs. 2. What are the most common sleeping positions? Your preferred sleeping position plays a crucial role in determining the best mattress that meets all your needs. Back sleepers: If you are a back sleeper, you need a mattress that supports the natural curve of the spine, typically preferring medium to firm mattresses. Side sleepers: Side sleepers require a mattress that cushions the shoulders and hips to align the spine, usually opting for softer to medium mattresses. Stomach sleepers: The best mattress for stomach sleepers is a firmer mattress that prevents the lower back from sinking, maintaining spinal alignment. Combination sleepers: These sleepers are people who switch positions throughout the night. These individuals should look for a mattress that balances support and comfort across various sleeping postures. Also read: Best mattresses for side sleepers: Top 10 picks for better blood circulation and reduced discomfort 3. Sleeping positions and recommended mattress firmness levels What mattress firmness level will suit you the best? It depends on your preferred sleeping position. Check out the recommended sleeping positions for various firmness levels of mattresses. Mattress types Firmness level Sleeping positions Memory foam Soft to medium Side sleepers Latex Medium Combination sleepers Hybrid Medium Combination sleepers Innerspering Medium to firm Stomach sleepers, Back sleepers 4. Choosing the right mattress size Choosing the right mattress size is a crucial first step when buying a mattress. First, decide if you'll be sleeping alone or with a partner. If you're solo, a single-size mattress could be ideal. For those with a partner, consider larger options like double, queen, or king-size mattresses. Next, explore the different mattress sizes in India, single, double, queen, and king, to see which fits your needs best. You can visit a store or tally the dimensions of the bed and the mattress online to understand how each size will fit in your bedroom and complement your space without feeling cramped. Before making a final decision, measure your bedroom to ensure your chosen mattress size fits comfortably. Consider factors like doorways, furniture placement, and space to move around, ensuring your mattress suits your lifestyle and enhances your sleep experience. 5. Mattress materials We studied the 4 types of mattress materials above, now you need to identify which one is right for you considering your health conditions like allergies and body pains. Memory foam offers excellent support by moulding to your body and reducing motion transfer, though it can retain heat. Innerspring mattresses provide a bouncy feel and good airflow, but may have a shorter lifespan. Latex mattresses are durable and hypoallergenic but tend to be more expensive. Hybrid mattresses combine features of memory foam or latex with innerspring for optimal comfort, yet they often come with a higher price tag. 6. Considering allergies and breathability of the mattress material If you have allergies or prefer staying cool while you sleep, choosing the right mattress materials is crucial. Opt for hypoallergenic mattresses that resist dust mites, mould, and allergens, promoting a cleaner and healthier sleep environment. Look for the best cooling mattresses with breathable materials like latex or gel-infused memory foam, which enhance air circulation to prevent heat and moisture build-up. These features ensure you stay cool and comfortable, especially in warm weather, for a restful night's sleep every time. 7. Durability and lifespan of the mattress The durability and lifespan of mattresses vary depending on several factors including the type of mattress, quality of materials, and usage. On an average: Innerspring Mattresses: Typically last about 7-10 years. Memory Foam Mattresses: Can last around 10-15 years. Latex Mattresses: Known for durability, often lasting 15 years or more. Hybrid Mattresses: Similar to memory foam or latex, generally lasting 10-15 years. Proper care, such as using a mattress protector and rotating the mattress regularly, can extend its lifespan. Also read: Best spring mattresses in India: Top 10 picks for a relaxed sleep 8. Budget: Cheap and best mattress When budgeting for a new mattress, start by determining your spending limit to streamline your search. Compare prices across various mattress types to gauge affordability. Strike a balance between quality and cost, which means you need a cheap and best mattress. Therefore, prioritise durability and comfort within your budget. Explore financing options or payment plans if finances are tight, offered by many mattress retailers to ease the purchase. Keep an eye out for deals and discounts, which can make your dream mattress more affordable. By following these steps, you can find a mattress that meets your needs without overspending. How to find the right mattress according to your body size? Heres a quick reference to match your body type and weight with suitable mattress types for optimal comfort and support. Mattress Type Body Type Recommended Body Weight Coir Mattress Petite <100 Kgs Memory Foam Mattress Average 50 to <100 Kgs Spring Mattress Plus-Size >100 Kgs Memory Foam Mattress Plus-Size >80 Kgs Bonded Foam Mattress Plus-Size >100 Kgs Latex Mattress Any Can be used by all body types Choosing from the best mattress brands in India Some of the best mattress brands in India are Wakefit, Duroflex, Sleepwell, The Sleep Company, Kurl On, Sleepy Head, Springtek, Emma, Flo Wakefit: Known for affordable, ergonomic mattresses designed for superior comfort and support. Duroflex: Offers a wide range of durable mattresses with advanced sleep technology for various sleep preferences. SleepyCat: Renowned for its extensive range of comfortable and durable mattresses catering to diverse sleep needs. The Sleep Company: Innovates with advanced materials for luxurious comfort and optimal sleep experiences. Kurl-On: Provides mattresses known for durability and support, catering to both residential and institutional needs. Sleepyhead: Offers premium mattresses with a focus on comfort and innovative sleep solutions. Springtek: Specialises in mattresses crafted with high-quality materials for excellent support and comfort. Emma: Globally recognised for its award-winning mattresses, combining comfort and advanced technology. Flo: Offers mattresses designed for superior spinal alignment and pressure relief, ensuring restful sleep. Also read: Emma mattresses: Comfort meets convenience with our top 6 picks Which is the best mattress in India? Check out the best mattresses for sleeping in India from top mattress brands! Best mattresses in India 2024 1. Wakefit ShapeSense Orthopedic Classic Memory Foam Mattress The Wakefit ShapeSense Orthopedic Classic Memory Foam Mattress is one of the best mattresses in king-size. It is a medium-firm mattress measuring 78x72x6 inches. Made with high-quality memory foam, it adapts to your body shape without sagging. The breathable premium fabric cover can be machine-washed. This mattress is the best mattress for side sleepers and back sleepers, providing excellent back support and comfort. With a 10-year warranty, its designed to last and ensure restful sleep for adults. Wakefit mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers are impressed with the support, value, fit, and performance of the mattress. They note that it provides excellent support throughout the night, offers great value for money, and adjusts well to body shape. They also praise its quality, pain relief, and comfort. However, opinions on firmness are mixed. 2. Sleepyhead Flip - Dual Sided High Density Foam Mattress The Sleepyhead Flip Dual Sided High Density Foam Mattress (78x60x5 inches, Queen Size) offers two comfort options in one. One side is soft and plush, this is the best mattress for side sleepers who love gentle cushioning. The other side is firm, ideal for back sleepers needing proper support. Made with high-density foam, it provides low motion transfer and breathability for a comfortable nights sleep. With a 7-year warranty and soft knit fabric that removes body humidity, this mattress suits all ages and sleeping preferences. Sleepyhead mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers like the mattress's size, comfort, support, value, and ease of use. It fits perfectly, and offers good cushioning and support. 3. Wakefit Elevate Pocket Spring Mattress The Wakefit Elevate Pocket Spring Mattress with Memory Foam (78x72x10 inches, King Size) is medium soft and bouncy, perfect for those who love a balance of softness and support. Its pocket springs reduce motion transfer, making it ideal for couples. The memory foam provides contouring comfort, while the breathable, hypoallergenic materials ensure a healthy sleep environment. With a 10-year warranty and features like a tear-resistant, removable cover, this mattress suits adults looking for a durable and comfortable sleep solution. Ideal for all sleeping positions, it offers great support and comfort for a restful night's sleep. Wakefit mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers appreciate the mattress's quality, value, and bounce. They mention it's worth the price, has the right firmness, and looks good. 4. Emma Hybrid Mattress Emma Mattress is one of the most sought-after mattress brands off late. The Emma Hybrid Mattress (72x72 inches, 8-inch height) is Europe's most awarded mattress, now available in India. It offers firm, orthopaedic support with memory foam and Aeroflex springs, perfect for adults needing precise support and temperature regulation. The Coolgel-infused memory foam and breathable Airgocell help maintain an ideal sleep temperature, ensuring deep, restful sleep. The pocketed coils reduce motion transfer, making it suitable for light sleepers. Built with premium materials, this durable mattress supports all body types and sleep positions, backed by a 12-year warranty for lasting comfort and peace of mind. Emma mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers find the mattress comfortable, calling it a cheap and best mattress option available in India. They mention smooth, light sleep but some question the quality. 5. SleepyCat Latex Mattress Looking for the best latex mattress? The SleepyCat Latex Mattress (Queen Size, 78x60x6 inches) combines firm, orthopaedic support with advanced materials. The top layer features latex with Pinhole technology for optimal airflow and firmness, while the open-cell memory foam base provides 5-zone orthopaedic support. Covered in breathable bamboo fabric, this hybrid mattress is the best mattress for sleeping in India. Ideal for adults, its firm support is perfect for those seeking orthopaedic benefits. The mattress is durable and comes with a 10-year warranty, making it a reliable choice for long-lasting comfort. SleepyCat mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers like the mattress's quality, comfort, fit, and heating. They mention its construction, excellent support, pain relief, and perfect bed fit. 6. Sleepwell Ortho Mattress The Sleepwell Ortho Mattress (Single Bed Size, 72x36x5 inches) features Impressions Memory Foam for extra plush comfort and orthopaedic support. It utilises high-density foam and quilted foam quilting for durability and pressure relief. Covered in polycotton with a purple hue, it's designed for adults seeking snug comfort and ventilation. It is the best mattress for single sleepers, especially those needing orthopaedic benefits, with a 5-year warranty for peace of mind. Sleepwell mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers have addressed Sleepwell as one of the best mattress brands in India and appreciate the mattress's quality, value, and comfort. They find it well-packed, very comfortable, and worth the money. 7. Kurl-On Mattress | Dual Roll Pack Mattress The Kurl-On Dual Roll Pack Mattress (Queen Size, 72x60x6 inches) offers versatility with reversible soft and firm sides, ideal for adapting to different comfort preferences. Constructed with high resilience (HR) foam, it features a non-static, hypoallergenic, and breathable fabric cover. Designed for adults seeking firm support, it ensures comfort and ease of movement, making it suitable for varied sleep needs and environments. Kurl-On mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers appreciate the mattress's comfort, value, and quality. They note its high-quality materials, adequate cushioning, and dual-sided firmness. However, opinions vary on the fit. 8. ATOOTFUSION Soft Cotton Grey Colour Foldable Mattress The ATOOTFUSION Soft Cotton Grey Colour Foldable Mattress (Single, 72 x 36 inches) offers firm support with a plush feel, ideal for students in hostels or PG accommodations. It features 100% recyclable hypoallergenic cotton inside and a breathable upholstery cotton cover. This rollable, orthopaedic mattress is fire-retardant, air-ventilated, and designed for comfort and natural filling, ensuring a restful sleep experience. It is one of the best foldable mattresses in India. Atootfusion mattress reviews: What are buyers saying on Amazon? Buyers appreciate the mattress's comfort, weight, and quality, noting it's cosy, light, and portable. However, some criticise its size, stitching, and thickness, finding it too small and thin, and disliking the material. Top 3 features of the best mattresses in India 2024 Mattress brand Type of mattress Ideal for sleeping position Warranty Sleepyhead Flip Foam Construction Side sleepers 7 Years Wakefit Spring Mattress Innerspring, Foam Construction All sleep positions 10 Years Emma Hybrid Mattress Hybrid (Memory Foam, Aeroflex Springs) All sleep positions 12 Years SleepyCat Latex Mattress Latex Foam All sleep positions 10 Years Sleepwell Ortho Mattress Foam Construction Back and side sleepers 5 Years Kurl-On Dual Roll Pack Mattress Foam Construction All sleep positions Not specified ATOOTFUSION Foldable Mattress Cotton Quilt Students, hostel use 6 Months FAQs on best mattresses in India What mattress type is best for back pain? Memory foam mattresses are best for back pains. They are favoured for their ability to contour to the body's shape, providing excellent support and relieving pressure points that contribute to back discomfort. Hybrid mattresses, combining memory foam with innerspring coils, offer a balance of comfort and support, ideal for those needing both cushioning and responsiveness. Latex mattresses are another option known for their durability, responsiveness, and natural breathability, contributing to spinal alignment. Opting for a medium-firm to firm mattress can generally provide better support, promoting proper back alignment and potentially reducing pain. Also read: Best orthopaedic mattresses: Top 10 options to relieve back pain What is an orthopaedic mattress? An orthopaedic mattress is designed to provide support for the joints, back, and overall body posture. These mattresses are typically firmer than standard mattresses and aim to promote proper spinal alignment during sleep. They are crafted using materials that offer robust support, such as high-density foam, latex, or pocketed coils. Best orthopaedic mattresses are often recommended for individuals with back pain or those seeking additional support for their spine. By maintaining proper alignment and distributing body weight evenly, these mattresses can help alleviate pressure points and reduce discomfort, contributing to better sleep quality and overall well-being. What is motion transfer, and how does it affect sleep? Motion transfer refers to the amount of movement felt from one side of the mattress to the other when someone shifts positions or gets in and out of bed. It can significantly impact sleep quality, especially for couples sharing a bed. When a mattress has poor motion isolation, movements such as tossing and turning or getting up can cause disturbances that transfer across the mattress. This can lead to interrupted sleep, as the movements can wake up the other person. On the other hand, mattresses with good motion isolation absorb and minimise these movements, preventing them from disturbing the other person. Memory foam and latex mattresses are known for their excellent motion isolation properties due to their ability to absorb and distribute movement. How often should I replace my mattress? Ideally, mattresses should be replaced every 7-10 years, depending on the type and quality. Signs like sagging, discomfort, or reduced support indicate it might be time for a new one. Similar articles you may like to read Best Memory Foam Mattresses: Top 10 picks for a comfortable sleep Best bed mattresses for a restful sleep: Top 10 picks that comfortable and supportive Best latex mattresses in India to buy: Top 8 resilient options that spell comfort Best foldable mattresses: Top 10 picks for ultimate comfort and convenience Best double bed mattresses: Top 7 picks to upkeep your sleep At Hindustan Times, we help you stay up-to-date with the latest trends and products. Hindustan Times 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. Scientists have uncovered over 5,000 genetic variations that allow some malignancies to grow, as well as a possible therapeutic target for treating or even preventing these cancers from arising. The study evaluated the health effects of genetic alterations in BAP1, a 'tumour defence' gene.(Shutterstock) Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and the University of Cambridge evaluated the health effects of genetic alterations in BAP1, a 'tumour defence' gene. They discovered that almost one-fifth of these potential mutations were pathogenic, considerably raising the likelihood of developing malignancies of the eye, lung lining, brain, skin, and kidney. Gene variants of cancer: The findings, published in Nature Genetics, are freely available so that they can be immediately used by doctors to help diagnose patients and choose the most effective therapies for them1. Importantly, as all possible variants were assessed, the findings benefit individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds, who have historically been underrepresented in genetics research. ALSO READ: Cancer treatment: Things you didn't know about chemotherapy The team also uncovered a link between certain disruptive BAP1 variants and higher levels of IGF-1, a hormone and growth factor. This discovery opens the door to developing new drugs that could inhibit these harmful effects, potentially slowing down or preventing the progression of certain cancers. The BAP1 protein acts as a powerful tumour suppressor in the body, protecting against cancers of the eye, lung lining, brain, skin, and kidney. Inherited variants that disrupt the protein can increase a person's lifetime risk of developing these cancers by up to 50 per cent2, typically occurring around middle age. ALSO READ: Salt may increase stomach cancer risk by 40 percent: Heres the connection Detecting these variants early through genetic screening can guide preventative measures, greatly enhance treatment effectiveness and improve quality of life for individuals affected. However, until now, there has been limited understanding of which specific genetic changes in BAP1 to look out for, especially for rare variants that cause it to malfunction and fuel cancer growth. Researchers from the Sanger Institute, and their collaborators at The Institute of Cancer Research and the University of Cambridge tested all 18,108 possible DNA changes in the BAP1 gene by artificially altering the genetic code of human cells grown in a dish, in a process known as 'saturation genome editing'. They identified that 5,665 of these changes were harmful and disrupted the protein's protective effects3. Analysis of UK Biobank data confirmed that individuals carrying these harmful BAP1 variants are over ten per cent more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than the general population. The team also discovered that people with harmful BAP1 variants have elevated levels of IGF-1 in their blood, a hormone linked to both cancer growth and brain development. Even individuals without cancer showed these elevated levels, suggesting that IGF-1 could be a target for new treatments to slow down or prevent certain cancers. Further analysis revealed harmful BAP1 variants and higher IGF-1 levels were linked to worse outcomes in uveal melanoma patients, highlighting the potential for IGF-1 inhibitors in cancer therapy. Notably, the technique profiles all possible BAP1 variants from diverse populations, not only those prevalent in European clinical records, helping to address the underrepresentation of non-European populations in genetic studies. ALSO READ: What is anal cancer? Dr Andrew Waters, first author of the study at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: "Previous approaches for studying how variants effect function in genes have been on a very small scale, or exclude important contexts that may contribute to how they behave. Our approach provides a true picture of gene behaviour, enabling larger and more complex studies of genetic variation4. This opens up new possibilities for understanding how these changes drive disease." Professor Clare Turnbull, clinical lead of the study, Professor of Translational Cancer Genetics at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Consultant in Clinical Cancer Genetics at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation, said, "This research could mean more accurate interpretation of genetic tests, earlier diagnoses and improved outcomes for patients and their families." Dr David Adams, senior author of the study at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said, "We want to ensure that life-saving genetic insights are accessible and relevant to all people, regardless of their ancestry. Our aim is to apply this technique to a wider range of genes, potentially covering the entire human genome in the next decade with the Atlas of Variant Effects." (ANI) From the roof of his abandoned hotel, Alexei Vereshchagin remained certain that tourists would one day sip cocktails up there as they enjoyed the lakeside view of Priozersk -- a former secret city in central Kazakhstan. Due to a lack of investment, Vereshchagin has been renovating the hotel alone -- including putting in new windows in each of the 150 rooms, one by one. This mammoth task is likely to take years. The hotel's former Cyrillic-lettered sign saying "Hotel Russia" has been removed and is now gathering dust on the roof alongside a rusty portrait of Vladimir Lenin. Once a secret city, Priozersk aims to shine as a tourism destination with new developments and coastal projects.(Photo by Ruslan PRYANIKOV / AFP) "I want there to be a beautiful hotel in the centre of the city, like in the Soviet era. So I am restoring it, little by little," recounted Vereshchagin, a Soviet Army veteran. Once the hotel is renovated, ordinary tourists will be able to stay near Lake Balkhash's shores with its "magnificent views", Vereshchagin said. The development of a thriving tourism sector in Priozersk would mark a dramatic change of fortune for the once-closed city, long unmarked on maps because of secretive military sites. The Sary-Shagan missile range was built in 1956 to test anti-ballistic weapons systems, and a portion of the range is still leased by the Russian government, Priozersk's mayor Mansur Akhmetov told AFP. Walking around the town of 15,000, reminders of its Cold War heyday are everywhere. Replicas of the S-75 surface-to-air missiles tested in Priozersk have been placed in the city centre and at its entrance, along with fading posters praising the "glory of the anti-missile shield of the Fatherland". Beaches and bases Several sites dotted across the sprawling testing range on an arid steppe have been abandoned, and are now guarded by the likes of resident Ivan Sabitov. Sabitov, a Kazakh civilian, now whiles away the time watching over empty missile silos, dismantled radars and rocket fairings with his dog. "These Soviet installations are destroyed, but other bases are still active," said the 61-year-old with a weathered face. Russian troops from the Strategic Missile Forces -- which helps manage the Kremlin's nuclear arsenal -- are still stationed in the area and sometimes swim in Lake Balkhash in the evening with their families. Russia claims to have "infrastructure developed around Priozersk to test strategic defence equipment", including intercontinental ballistic missiles. Despite the presence of Russian bases, Priozersk's mayor is trying to transform the city into a seaside resort. This project is in line with President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev's desire to develop the country's tourism sector, which represents just 3.2 percent of its GDP. "We are going to redevelop the entire coastline, so that pedestrians can walk along it. We also plan to build hotels and organise efforts to clean the beaches," said Akhmetov of his ambitious plans. Budding tourism Priozersk is already home to a smattering of small hotels that mostly host fishermen and a trickle of tourists during the first days of summer. "Even if the town seems partly abandoned, Lake Balkhash is magnificent. I enjoy the warm water and the sand on the beach," said Olga Ryapolova, a Russian tourist from Siberia who "hopes to come back" to Priozersk soon. Upon closer inspection, the picturesque lake contrasts with the desolation elsewhere. A disused cement factory still stands near the lake's shores, which Mayor Akhmetov hopes to one day demolish. But on the only road leading to the end of the peninsula, stands a new hotel: "The Golden Sands". This four-star spa was built in 2016 and has become a welcome source of jobs, with its 120 employees. "In Priozersk, jobs are scarce, and mainly linked to the army. My mother is a soldier, I was a police officer," said the spa's receptionist Aizhan Musina. "But my salary (around 250 euros) was too small, so I came to work here," Musina said, adding that she now makes roughly 370 euros ($400) a month. Musina was born in Priozersk when the city was still sealed off from the public. She has long been waiting for her hometown to open up to tourists. "I hope that our city will gain fame, and that people will know that we have such a beautiful spa," Musina told AFP. It is a matter of political irony that the current imbroglio in France was triggered by President Emmanuel Macron, who called for snap legislative elections. When asked what made him do it, Macron responded by saying he wanted to seek clarification from the electorate following the heavy defeat his party suffered in the European elections. Well, Macron has now obtained the clarification he so desperately sought: France remains a bitterly divided nation between three blocs i.e. the Left parties constituting the New Popular Front, Macrons centrist and other parties, and Marine Le Pens National Rally. None of the three blocs have anywhere close to an absolute majority. Participants wave French national tricolors during an election night rally following the first results of the second round of France's legislative election at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024. (Photo by Emmanuel Dunand / AFP) (AFP) Predictably, French voters have returned a fractured verdict in the legislative elections held on June 30 and July 7 resulting in a hung parliament. But the real surprise was that the New Popular Front came first in terms of votes secured in the second and final round of legislative elections. The far-Right National Rally, expected to come first, finished third because of a monumental effort by the rest of the political parties ganging up against it in the form of a Republican Front. In practice, this meant that well over 200 candidates belonging to the far-Left and centre-Right parties withdrew from the race so that they did not split the votes. Le Pen and her party will certainly feel cheated, but her ultimate prize remains the presidential elections due in three years when she hopes to make a bid for Macrons position as President of the French Republic. Macron is now left with two options: One, he could call on the largest grouping in parliament i.e. the New Popular Front (from the Left) to form a coalition government. If that fails, he could appoint a technocratic government to tide over a period of one year after which fresh legislative elections can be called again. Either way, France enters an extremely unstable period in its political history. The New Popular Fronts agenda is quite radical. It talks of reducing the retirement age, increasing minimum wages, reintroducing wealth tax and increasing corporate tax. Frances budget deficit and public debt, already high at 5.5% and 110% of Gross Domestic Product, will increase exponentially, bringing it into direct conflict with Brussels. The timing of the French elections could not be worse because the geopolitical situation in the world is fraught, to put it mildly. The war in Ukraine rages on, the conflict in Gaza shows no sign of abating and the situation in the East and South China Sea, not to mention the Taiwan Strait, is becoming more alarming by the day. All this against the backdrop of an internally divided America, a disruptive Russia and an assertive China. As has been pointed out by observers, France is not just any country in Europe. It is the second largest economy in the European Union (EU), but really the first in political terms if you consider its UNSC membership, its nuclear deterrence, and its indispensable role in the European project. So, political uncertainty in France will have profound ramifications in the EU and beyond. First, the political turbulence in France combined with the travails of the ruling coalition in Germany, makes the EU geopolitically weak. This is supremely ironic, considering that the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in 2019 that she wanted a strong geopolitical European Commission. That idea is now dead in the water. Along with the possibility, nay probability, of Donald Trump becoming United States president, the EU has never been this divided in recent times. China and Russia cannot but be thrilled. We are between two world orders. The progress towards a multipolar world order has been uneven and messy. With an EU that is geopolitically weak, this becomes even more messy and difficult. India, which is a strong proponent of a multipolar world, may see its strategic space shrink further because of this. With France and Germany facing internal political turmoil, the famous Franco-German motor will sputter with negative implications for the EUs foreign and security policy. Serious differences between France and Brussels could come to the fore, especially on issues such as budget deficit and public debt. This is particularly true with the tax and spend agenda of the New Popular Front. Where does all of this leave Macron? Macron has still three years left as president. He has let it be known that he is not resigning as president and will continue till2027 when his current term ends. The trouble is he has to appoint a prime minister from the coalition of Left parties in which case the arrangement known as cohabitation kicks in. Given the differences between Macrons party manifesto and the one put out by the New Popular Front, it is hard to see how there can be a meeting of minds. Even at the best of times, France is a difficult country to govern and to reform. With a hung parliament and possible cohabitation, France has clearly entered a period of political limbo. Mohan Kumar is a former Indian ambassador to France and currently dean/professor at OP Jindal Global University. The views expressed are personal A dog set its house on fire in the United States recently after accidentally turning the oven on while the homeowners were asleep. The family and their pet were saved after the owners got an alert on their Apple HomePod, which sent them a "High Heat" notice. The episode was caught on camera placed in the kitchen. A pet dog set its house on fire by mistake in Colorado, US. (Facebook/Colorado Springs Fire Department) The incident took place late last month in Colorado at around 4:40 am, when the owners were fast asleep. The Colorado Springs Fire Department shared a video on Facebook of the house fire caused by the dog. The clip has over 10,000 views on the platform. The kitchen camera shows the curious dog standing upright on the countertop and accidentally switching on the oven, which had a few boxes on top. The boxes quickly caught fire, setting the house ablaze. The second footage shows the room filled with fire and smoke, the fire alarm blaring in the background. The owners were alerted and woken up by their Apple HomePod which sent them a High Heat notification. One of the men in the house managed to extinguish the fire before calling the fire department. A crew, Engine 23, was dispatched upon being alerted on the fire. On arrival, the fire department personnel noticed that there was no visible smoke or flame but upon further investigation, they saw the video recorded in the kitchen. The owner was taken to a local hospital to get treated for smoke inhalation. No other injuries to the family members or the pet were reported. The Colorado Springs Fire Department advised people to always have functional smoke alarms both inside and outside every sleeping area and every floor of the house. This is a good reminder to always have working smoke alarms inside and outside every sleeping area and on every floor of the home, ensure all combustibles are away from your stovetop/oven, and know two ways out of every room in your home in the event of a fire, the department said. Internet slams home owners for neglect A Facebook user, Lana, commented, Should not put flammables on any cooktop gas or electrics. Pets trying to get stuff up there turning on ranges and starting fires is a common insurance claim unfortunately. BBC News shared the same footage on Instagram this week. Artist Nova Tugce Kizilet said, A child at home can do the same at home.So an adults job is to cut off the gas when they are not using the stove! If you don't turn off the gas valve of the stove, with a lighter from the automatic pull, a child can run it and burn the house down. Its not about burning the pet. The topic should be about evaluating the behavior of the adults who neglect to take precautions even when there are children at home." Aother user joked, Lesson learned: don't ask your dog to prepare breakfast for you. Just before her flight's takeoff in Australia, a woman of Indian origin died on a Qantas flight. On June 20, Manpreet Kaur, 24, was getting ready to take off from Melbourne to Delhi for the first time in four years. However, not long after boarding the aircraft at Tullamarine Airport, Kaur experienced a medical incident and passed away due to tuberculosis, as per reports. Indian-origin woman, 24, died on Delhi-bound Qantas flight. After Kaur got on the plane, Ravinder Singh, a retired Army officer who was visiting family in Australia, saw her for the first time as he was settling into his seat. He recounted his experience with Kaur and shared it with NewsAU. "I was sitting next to her on the Qantas flight from Melbourne to Delhi and was actually the last person to talk to her. When I boarded the plane, she was already seated in the aisle. I was in the window, so I asked if she could please get up so I could occupy my seat. I noticed that she began scrolling through photos on her mobile phone and stopped at a photograph of an elderly couple. I asked if they were her parents. She smiled and nodded and kept staring at it," Singh told NewsAU. (Also Read: Dead man at internet cafe goes unnoticed for 30 hours, investigation underway) When the plane was ready to takeoff, he noticed that Kaur had placed her head on the seat in front and set down her phone. At that moment, he realised something was off. Her head just moved towards me Singh said, "She was wearing her seatbelt and leaned forward to rest her head on the seat in front. As the plane was preparing for takeoff, I wanted to alert her to sit upright. But the plane jerked and I expected her to wake up. But instead, her head just moved towards me. I got the attention of a flight attention and told her that this woman does not seem very well. She checked her pulse and after that, the reaction of the cabin crew was very commendable. They tried their best to revive her. She was then evacuated by medical staff." He also mentioned that the incident still "haunts him" and his "heart breaks for her family who would have been looking forward to seeing her after a long time." Dr Cyriac Abby Philips, who goes by The Liver Doc on social media, took to X to share his reaction to a viral podcast where Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath discussed the liquor industry in India with Abhishek Khaitan, Minakshi Singh, Shuchir Suri, and Suraj Shenai. Philips slammed Kamath and accused him of glorifying the business of alcohol by equating it to good healthcare intervention. Further, he talked about treating patients with alcohol use disorder and related acute liver disease on an almost daily basis. Liver Doc took to X to slam Nikhil Kamath for a viral podcast showing the billionaire in conversation with others about the liquor industry in India. (X/@theliverdr, YouTube/@nikhil.kamath) So far so good. Alcohol is good business, a business that leech out others life. It rakes in money for governments through taxation & monopoly; and fattens the bank accounts of those behind the industry (like this round table group) and makes barons out of those who sell well, the Liver Doc wrote. But when these businessmen, start glorifying their business of alcohol by equating it to good healthcare intervention, it goes definitely into the realm of health misinformation, which is why, I have to keep discussing this absolutely garbage myth that alcohol in moderation is good for you and the absolute nonsense disclaimer to support that myth, which they call drink responsibly, he posted. Furthermore, he expressed that To claim drinking alcohol in moderation is good, is actually a crime. Patients and families struggle to make ends meet for proper healthcare because alcohol use destroyed their life savings. And by the time they find the funds to get things going, the patient is already on the ventilator and in multiple organ failure, he wrote while talking about treating patients for alcohol-related health issues. In the following lines, he spoke about how alcohol affects a persons body and instances of drunk driving that caused horrific accidents. Podcast discussions like these are helping no one here. Please, do something that actually helps people out here. Do something good for the society, instead of goofing up like this. No one asked for this absolute bonkers of a podcast topic. Irresponsible. The whole team, he added as a part of his X post. Take a look at his share here: A few days earlier, the Liver Doc reacted to a post by Samantha Ruth Prabhu where she recommended hydrogen peroxide nebulisation to treat viral infections. He slammed the actor and called her health and science illiterate. The actor later shared an explainer about her post, but Liver Doc reacted to it by accusing her of playing the victim card and endorsing more alternative practices. As of now, Nikhil Kamath has not responded to Liver Doc's post. This copy will be updated if and when the billionaire decides to share his perspective. Singapore's High Commissioner to India, Simon Wong, shared a special post to celebrate World Biryani Day. He shared visuals that show him cooking this delicious dish. Along with his post on X, he asked people which Indian state has the best version of biryani. The image shows Singapore's envoy to India, Simon Wong, cooking biryani. (X/@SGinIndia) Namaste India! Happy World Biryani Day! My first attempt at making biryani. Tell me which state has the best biryani and I will make a visit. Bon appetite. HC Wong, he wrote. The video shared shows him cooking biryani. As he removes the lid of the handi, he says, smelling great. As he continues cooking the dish, he says, Ok, what you need to do is give it a good stir so that all the ingredients are meshed up nicely together. I think this is doing good. Towards the end of the video he says, Success, I suppose in the first attempt and looks at the camera with a smile on his face. The video finishes with him saying, Enjoy and thank you. He also shared two photos showing the items he cooked. Take a look at this post on biryani here: Since being shared, the post has collected more than 12,000 views. The share has further accumulated nearly 800 likes. People posted varied comments while reacting to the share. What did X users say about this post on biryani? An X user praised, Super stuff, his excellency. Another added, Wow, all that for one person! A third joined and posted, Wow, that looks amazing! All biryanis are delicious, and I can recommend Avadh dum biryani. Another joined, I think you are falling in love with Indian cuisine. Some of our X users had a good laugh at the idea of asking which state has the best biryani. One individual joked, Which state? Never ask this question! This can even start a war? Lol. Simon Wong was appointed the High Commissioner to the Republic of India in 2020. According to the official website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Singapore, he was Singapores Trade Representative to Taiwan from July 2015 to January 2020. In 1990, he graduated from the National University of Singapore with a Bachelor of Social Science in Sociology (Honours). The same year, he joined the Singapore Foreign Service. Later in 1998, he got a Master of Arts in East Asian Studies from Cornell University. A woman took to X to share her thoughts on quality of life in India and the US. She expressed that he used to think that getting groceries delivered at home or affordable house help made for a luxurious life in India. However, after visiting the US, she claimed that clean air or good roads make for a real quality of life. Expectedly, her post has created chatter with people who support or disagree with her. A woman's post on quality of life in India and the US has created chatter on X. (Unsplash/littlej1428, Ferdinand Stohr) Day 11 today in the US and heres a thought I had yesterday evening. It might trigger some of you. But if online text with somebodys opinion triggers you, that's a space you should totally work on and protect for your own energy , X user Niharikaa Kaur Sodhi wrote. Then she listed the things that she thought made up for her luxurious life in India - quick food deliveries, 10 min grocery delivery, and affordable household help. However, after her visit to the US, she said that she realised basic things like clean air, ongoing electricity, availability of water, plenty of greenery, and good roads are the real quality of life. She then wrote more about her thoughts on the quality of life in both countries. Anyhoo, perhaps its my definition of quality of life and luxury that has changed. I dont know if Ill ever attain any of the above. But its definitely a thought in my head, she wrote and concluded her post. Take a look at the India vs US post here: Since being shared, the post has collected nearly 3.8 lakh views. In addition, the post has further accumulated more than 2,800 likes. People posted varied comments while reacting to the share. What did X users say about this X post on quality of life between India and the US? 100 percent agree. It takes courage to voice this opinion. Civic sense is a highly underrated attribute, posted an X user. You can get such life if you move 50 kms away from any city in India, suggested another. Both places have their plus and minus. You usually cannot have everything in one place, expressed a third. Small correction - nobody walks to the grocery stores in the US (assuming you live in suburbs where 90% of the people live), commented a fourth. A fifth person wrote, Whenever I want, I can go to the US or the UK as a tourist and enjoy, but for those who stay put, they miss what life in India is! What are your thoughts on this India vs US post? By Renju Jose and Alasdair Pal Australia imposes night curfew in outback town after violence SYDNEY, - Australian police ordered three nights of curfew on Monday in the outback tourist town of Alice Springs after several incidents of violence, including an alleged assault on four off-duty police officers. Northern Territory Police Commissioner Michael Murphy said "significant harm and civil disturbances" had occurred over the last 72 hours in Alice Springs. The officers were attacked when they were walking home and it was not immediately known if the offenders identified them as police, Murphy told reporters. The curfew will be in force from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. local time. Under new laws introduced in May, the police commissioner has the power to impose lockdowns for three days to control any violent incidents, and can ask the government for an extension. "If I believe an extension is required I will put that in writing ... about the reasons why I think that should occur," he said. A two-week youth curfew was declared in March in Alice Springs after a mass brawl involving 150 people. Community leaders have long identified alcohol abuse as a major factor behind violence. "The offending in Alice Springs over the last few days has been unacceptable," the territory's chief minister, Eva Lawler, told a news conference on Monday. "The curfew will provide police extra powers to get on top of the situation on the ground in Alice Springs. "This is exactly why my government passed curfew legislation in May." Alice Springs, a remote town in Australia's vast outback region some 2,000 km northwest of Sydney, is the gateway to major tourist attractions including the giant red sandstone monolith of Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock. Around a fifth of the town's population are Indigenous Australians, who have been historically marginalised since the continent was colonised by Great Britain in the late 18th century. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Experts have weighed in on why they believe UFOs target high-speed planes, warheads and nuclear reactors. This comes after several posts on the internet appeared to show UFOs flying near such objects. Do UFOs target high-speed planes, warheads and nuclear reactors (Pixabay - representational image) British Airways aired an ad for their Concorde flight in 1976, in which a UFO-like object was seen darting toward the aircraft, appearing to analyse the plane and then drifting away. The unconfirmed UFO appearance has now resurfaced on Reddit's UFOs subchannel, prompting conversations. Other incidents include sightings at the Queen's Jubilee in 2022, when the monarch was honoured by a cadre of nine fighter jets. As the aircrafts spewed smoke, an unidentified disc was spotted near it. What the object was remains unclear. In another incident, several UFOs allegedly appeared bove Japan's Fukushima lab after its 2011 nuclear disaster. Such behaviour has already been analysed by experts as proof that whatever the object up there is, it is concerned about us, especially considering the prospect of blowing ourselves up with nuclear weapons. UFO activity and nuclear devices and sites have had a connection ever since the Atom Bomb was invented in 1945. Many theories about such UFO behaviour have surfaced in the past. Investigative journalist George Knapp has told History.com now, All of the nuclear facilities Los Alamos, Livermore, Sandia, Savannah River all had dramatic incidents where these unknown craft appeared over the facilities and nobody knew where they were from or what they were doing there. Lue Elizondo, former head of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program, agreed that there seems to be a lot of correlation between nuclear sites and UFO appearances. Back in 2010, independent researcher Robert Hastings, who has been working toward full government disclosure of UAP activity, said, Declassified US government documents and witness testimony from former or retired US military personnel confirm beyond any doubt the reality of ongoing UFO incursions at nuclear weapons sites. New research A new research, comprising three studies, has now claimed that although UFOs were initially interested in the production of nuclear weapons, they were later spotted around silos and bomber bases. The research was carried out by retired US Air Force staff sergeant Larry Hancock, and a data analyst affiliate with Harvard's UFO-hunting Galileo Project, Ian Porritt. You would see this interest at silos when they were being installed before the activity would drop off, Porritt told the Daily Mail in the past. He added that UFOs later became much more intrusive in their approach of ICBM bases. They're very low altitude, they penetrate the security perimeters of the base, Porritt said. Two Air Force veterans told the outlet in the past that in June 2023, they testified to the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) that their nuclear warheads were turned off by UFOs. In a similar incident back in 1964, former US Air Force First lieutenant Robert Jacobs said a UFO deactivated an unarmed warhead. In an interview in 2000, Jacobs said, Now remember, all this stuff is flying at several thousand miles an hour. So this thing fires a beam of light at the warhead, hits it, and then it moves up fires another beam of light goes down and fires another beam of light, and then flies out the way it came in. And the warhead tumbles out of space. He added that he was instructed to never speak of this encounter again. There have also been instances where UAPs followed fighter jets. In 2004, Navy veteran fighter pilot Commander David Fravor allegedly saw a 'giant Tic Tac' UFO. Considering the similarities between all these incidents, it seems as though there surely is a connection. The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas on Monday accused Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of obstructing negotiations for a truce and hostage release in Gaza as mediators again push for a deal. In this combination image, Hamas' leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, speaks on April 13, 2022, in Gaza City, left, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks on June 18, 2024, in Tel Aviv.(AP) The devastating war in the Palestinian territory has raged for nine months, but back-and-forth negotiations, which have lasted nearly as long, have failed to bring it to an end. In a statement, Hamas said the Israeli prime minister "continues to place more obstacles in front of the negotiations". The group accused Netanyahu of escalating "his aggression and crimes against our people" in what it said were "attempts to forcibly displace them in order to thwart all efforts to reach an agreement". Hamas said in a separate statement that its Qatar-based political leader Ismail Haniyeh said he had made "urgent contact" with mediators over events in Gaza. Also Read | Efforts to secure Gaza ceasefire and hostage release gain momentum It said Haniyeh had warned that the "catastrophic consequences of what is happening in Gaza," could "reset the negotiation process to square one". As heavy battles raged in Gaza City on Monday, the Israeli military expanded its evacuation order in the territory's north, causing thousands of Palestinians to flee. Netanyahu's office reiterated in a statement on Sunday that "any deal will allow Israel to return (to Gaza) and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved". With the exception of a one-week truce in November, during which 80 Israeli hostages were freed in exchange for 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons, talks have repeatedly foundered over differences between the parties. Also Read | Dangerous skin diseases spreading among children in Gaza Mediators Egypt and Qatar were due to host new meetings this week, according to officials. A source with knowledge of the talks told AFP on Monday that US and Israeli intelligence chiefs would travel to Doha for negotiations. CIA director William Burns and the head of Israel's Mossad David Barnea "are travelling to Doha on Wednesday", the source said adding they would meet with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani. Ahead of the new talks, Hamas signalled it would drop its insistence on a "complete" ceasefire, a demand Israel has repeatedly rejected. In its statement on Monday, the militant group said it had shown "flexibility and positivity to facilitate reaching an agreement" and urged mediators to end what it called "Netanyahu's tricks and crimes". csp/dcp Hand in hand, Fiorella Turchkeim and Andrea Ordonez attend a makeshift mass for LGBTQ people in the garage of a house in El Salvador's capital. In Bukele's El Salvador, shrinking space for sexual diversity Here, the couple say, they do not fear discrimination in a society they feel is becoming increasingly hostile to sexual diversity under President Nayib Bukele. Under a crucifix hanging below a row of rainbow flags, about 15 members of the LGBTQ community chant, receive communion and listen to passages from the Bible. "It's a safe space where I can go with my partner, be welcomed without being judged," Turchkeim, a 30-year-old psychologist, told AFP of the "respite" from rising intolerance. Bukele has adopted an ever-more socially-conservative approach since his re-election in February to a second five-year term thanks to his brutal war on criminal gangs. Before he was elected the first time in 2019, Bukele claimed to support the demands of the LGBTQ community. Now, he describes them as "unnatural, anti-God, anti-family," said Luis Chavez, the gay pastor at the Santa Maria Magdalena Community church, which was set up a few years ago and operates out of an NGO-owned house. Last month, Bukele fired 300 culture ministry employees for promoting what he said were "agendas" incompatible with his government's vision of what constitutes a "traditional family." Days earlier, the ministry had approved the presentation of an LGBTQ play at the National Theatre, which was abruptly cancelled after its first performance. LGBTQ people increasingly find themselves "in a vulnerable situation," Chavez told AFP. Shortly after his re-election victory, Bukele, along with Argentina's right-wing President Javier Milei, attended a gathering of conservatives in the United States that applauded former president Donald Trump. The same month, El Salvador's education ministry withdrew all references to alternative gender perspectives from school textbooks a move criticized by human rights groups. Bukele is entering "this small club of ultra-right mega-reactionary politicians," independent Salvadoran anthropologist Juan Martinez told AFP. In February, the health ministry eliminated a facility for people from the LGBTQ community to receive HIV/AIDS prevention services "free from stigma and discrimination," activist Aranza Santos told AFP. "Religious discourse is a tool that many politicians have used to hide other important things that are happening in our society," said Chavez. "So I believe that we are simply being used to make the population look the other way, and leave aside the real social problems that exist in the country, the increase in the cost of the basic food basket, the problems of state corruption," added Chavez. According to the Organization of Salvadoran Women for Peace, 2023 figures showed that eight out of 10 LGBTQ people in the country suffer "discrimination based on their sexual orientation" or preference. In 2021, Bukele ruled out changing the constitution to allow same-sex marriage or elective abortion. And the following year, according to Human Rights Watch, El Salvador suspended its membership of a UN body working on protecting LGBTQ people from violence and discrimination. The government has not responded to AFP's requests for comment. Turchkeim and Ordonez, a 30-year-old pharmacist, have been partners for two years but their families do not accept their relationship. "To avoid problems," Ordonez told AFP, they do not show affection in public in the Catholic majority country. A few years ago, she recalled, she was excluded from a church choir after the director described her lesbianism "an aberration." "It was a shock to discover there was no room for me," Ordonez said. According to Grecia Villalobos of the Comcavis Trans rights group, the government and a conservative part of Salvadoran society "want to deny our existence." "We have to raise our voice, demand and fight for our rights," she told AFP. But the fight may be a long one. Turchkeim and Ordonez plan to marry next year, but will have to travel to Costa Rica where same-sex unions have been legal since 2020 to do so. "We would like it to be here, but of course... it's very difficult," Turchkeim said. ob/mis/nn/mlr/bjt This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Iran's president-elect Masoud Pezeshkian on Monday reaffirmed the Islamic republic's support for Lebanon's Hezbollah group and condemned Israel's actions against Palestinians. TOPSHOT - Iran's newly-elected President Masoud Pezeshkian (C) visits the shrine of the Islamic Republic's founder Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in the south of Tehran on July 6, 2024. Pezeshkian, who advocates improved ties with the West, on July 6 won a runoff presidential election against ultraconservative Saeed Jalili, the interior ministry said. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)(AFP) The statement, issued to Hezbollah's chief Hassan Nasrallah on the IRNA official news agency, was one of the first foreign policy comments from Pezeshkian since his victory in Friday's presidential election runoff. Tehran provides financial and military support to Hezbollah, which was created at the initiative of Iran's Revolutionary Guards after arch-foe Israel overran Beirut in 1982 during Lebanon's civil war. In a reference to Hezbollah and allied groups, Pezeshkian said: "The support of the resistance is rooted in the fundamental policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran." He said he was confident the "resistance movement" would stop its arch-foe Israel's "warmongering and criminal policies" in Gaza, where Israel has for nine months been at war with Hezbollah's Palestinian ally, Hamas. Since the war in Gaza began, Hezbollah and Israel have exchanged near-daily fire over Lebanon's border, triggering global alarm about the potential for all-out war as fighting escalates. Earlier Monday, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Nasser Kanani said Tehran "will not hesitate to support the Lebanese nation" and Israel "must be aware of the consequences of any adventurous action in the region, especially towards Lebanon." Reformist Pezeshkian defeated ultraconservative Saeed Jalili, a former nuclear negotiator, in the election which was brought forward after the death of president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash. After the vote, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz said the election result was a "clear message of demand for change and opposition" from the Iranian people. On Saturday Nasrallah congratulated Pezeshkian on his election victory and emphasised Tehran's role as a "strong" supporter of regional "resistance" groups. The Shiite Muslim movement is a key part of the Axis of Resistance -- an alliance of pro-Iran armed movements that oppose Israel and the United States. The alliance also includes Yemen's Huthi rebels and fighters in Iraq, as well as Hamas. FOR six kilometres the road is a dusty moonscape without a hint of civilian life. The Netzarim corridor, as Israel calls it, slices across Gazas narrow waist, from its border with Israel to its Mediterranean coast. The buildings on both sides have been pancaked into piles of rubble. As a convoy bounces along the rutted track, there are no Palestinians in sight, only Israeli soldiers and army vehicles and a constant swirl of grit. And then there is a dazzle of blue: the corridor ends at the sea, and the hulking steel pier that America spent $230m to install on Gazas shore. An American boat carrying American soldiers and journalist sails near the Trident Pier, a temporary pier to deliver aid, off the Gaza Strip, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, near the Gaza coast, June 25, 2024. REUTERS/Amir Cohen TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY(REUTERS) In March, when Joe Biden announced the pier, he made it sound straightforward. Gaza had a problem with hunger. America had a whizzy solution; a modular floating causeway that its army would haul halfway around the world and assemble in the Mediterranean. It would, the president said, provide a massive increase in aid. Listen to our podcast about Gazas aid pier The reality was more complicated. The pier was finished on May 16th but was soon damaged by rough seas. It was operational for just two of its first six weeks. When The Economist visited the pier on June 25th, the first journalists to see it from inside Gaza, it was working again: two landing craft unloaded their cargo in just over an hour. Lorries drove off the vessels and down a causeway made of interlocking steel segments. They delivered pallets to a staging area, an expanse of beach flattened by the Israeli army and surrounded by berms and concrete barriers. The Pentagon says the pier has delivered over 6,200 tonnes of aid this way since it was first installed, equal to 25 to 30 lorries a daynot trivial, but far short of the 150 a day that America promised. Still, the pier is just one piece of a larger aid operation. Supplies are also entering through Kerem Shalom, the main commercial crossing in the south, and via three land crossings in the north. Were trying to create different places of entry in order to have less friction, says Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, an Israeli army spokesman. This spring, briefly, aid workers said things were improving. In March the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), a UN-backed initiative that measures hunger, said that hundreds of thousands of people in northern Gaza would face famine within two months. But its latest study, published on June 25th, found that famine had been avoided, albeit temporarily, by a big increase in aid deliveries since March. The good news ends there. The IPC said that 495,000 Gazans (almost 25% of the population) still face catastrophic levels of hunger. More than half of Gazans have sold their clothes to buy food; one in five goes entire days and nights without eating. The staging areas next to the American-built pier have two sets of gates. Lorries coming from the pier use those on the west side, next to the sea, to deposit their cargo. The eastern gates are for Palestinian drivers arriving to pick up aid. But the Israeli army says no one has come through those ones for two weeks, and that 7,000 pallets of aid (mostly food) have piled up in the staging areas. Your correspondents saw long rows of them, most bearing the logo of the World Food Programme (WFP). Aid is getting into Gazabut no one is distributing it. Israel blames Hamas for the delays. The group has repeatedly attacked the pier and Kerem Shalom, periodically halting aid deliveries from there. The distribution problem is something hard to manage, says Mr Hagari. The international community has to make more of an effort. Aid workers say much the same about Israel. On June 25th the UN warned that it would suspend its operations in Gaza unless the Israeli army co-ordinates more with them. Sending a convoy to pick up supplies involves many delays, often in areas with spotty communication and nearby fighting. Were going to ask for the green light to move that empty truck to a waypoint, and then wait for the green light to move to another waypoint, says Matthew Hollingworth of the WFP. Your 12-hour days have one hour of action. Many Palestinians are sceptical of the pier. On June 8th Israeli troops freed four hostages being held by Hamas a few kilometres away. A video filmed by an Israeli soldier showed them being brought to a helicopter near the pier and then evacuated from Gaza. It has fuelled conspiracy theories that America built the pier for military purposes rather than to deliver aid. At Kerem Shalom, where aid has been piling up for weeks, Mr Hollingworth likens the stretch of the main road leading away from the crossing to something out of a Mad Max film: Any truck that goes is going to lose its wing mirrors, people will try to smash the windscreen, people will try to get in. Much of the violence is the work of criminal gangs using aid lorries to smuggle cigarettes (now costing up to $25 each) into the enclave. Neither the Israeli army nor Hamas make the road safe. The UN insists that only a lasting truce will solve the humanitarian crisis. That does not look imminent. On June 23rd Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said he was willing to make a partial deal to release some of the hostages in Gaza. But we are obligated to continue the war after a pause, he added in an interview with a right-wing Israeli network. His comments sparked anger in Israel, because he seemed to be abandoning many of the hostages. They also upset officials in Washington because in May Mr Biden endorsed a proposal that could end the war for good. A day later Mr Netanyahu seemed to backtrack, saying he was still committed to Mr Bidens suggested deal. The back-and-forth was typical of a prime minister who has long wavered on whether to make a hostage deal, as most Israelis want, or continue the war, as his right-wing supporters demand. Hamas, for its part, wants firmer guarantees that the deal will end the war permanently. Like his plan for the pier, Mr Bidens efforts at diplomacy are crashing into a hard reality. Sign up to the Middle East Dispatch, a weekly newsletter that keeps you in the loop on a fascinating, complex and consequential part of the world. Read all our coverage of the war between Israel and Hamas 2023, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com Leaders of NATO's 32 member countries meet this week in Washington for a summit of the transatlantic security alliance, with further support for Ukraine in the war against Russia's invasion high on their agenda. A Ukrainian national flag is pictured in front of the NATO emblem(REUTERS file photo) Here is what Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy - who has been invited to attend the summit - can expect from the July 9-11 gathering, according to NATO officials and diplomats. WILL NATO INVITE UKRAINE TO BECOME A MEMBER AT THE SUMMIT? No. NATO takes decisions by consensus and there is no agreement among its 32 members to extend an invitation while Ukraine is at war. However, many NATO members - particularly those from Eastern Europe - want to signal that Kyiv is moving closer to membership. At a summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, last year, NATO leaders declared that "Ukraines future is in NATO" and reaffirmed their commitment to a statement in Bucharest in 2008 that Kyiv would join the alliance. This year, many NATO countries want to state that Ukraine's path to membership is "irreversible". But alliance members are still wrangling over the summit declaration, including over how much to emphasize that Ukraine has to complete reforms, such as crackdowns on corruption, before it could join. Diplomats say the United States and Germany are among the countries most wary of going further on membership at this stage. If Ukraine joins NATO, other members would be obliged to come to its assistance if it was attacked by Russia, under the alliance's Article 5 mutual defence clause. In an interview with Time magazine published last month, U.S. President Joe Biden said peace in Ukraine would mean making sure Russia could never attack the country again. But, he said, "it doesn't mean NATO, they are part of NATO" - dampening Ukraine's hopes of entering the alliance any time soon. He also noted he had previously said he was not "prepared to support the NATOization of Ukraine". However, officials say NATO will unveil a package of measures at the summit to help Ukraine, which it will present as a "bridge to membership". Also read | The NATO Summit brings it closer to the Indo-Pacific WHAT WILL BE IN THE PACKAGE? It will include a pledge of continued financial support and a move by NATO to take over the coordination of arms supplies and training of Ukraine's forces. NATO as an organization does not supply arms to Ukraine directly but many of its members are among Kyiv's biggest weapons providers. The United States, possibly joined by other allies, is expected to announce more weapons for Ukraine at the summit, including Patriot air defence systems. WHAT WILL THE FINANCIAL PLEDGE BE? Leaders are expected to endorse an agreement struck between NATO allies last week to provide 40 billion euros of military aid to Ukraine in the coming year, two Western European diplomats told Reuters. The alliance says this matches the amount given annually since Russia's 2022 invasion. The pact includes a provision to re-evaluate allied contributions at future NATO summits, according to one of the diplomats. NATO members "will aim to meet this pledge through proportionate contributions", the agreement said. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg had suggested a five-year commitment of 100 billion euros. But multiple allies objected, saying their budget rules did not allow such a long-term commitment or that they could not pledge on behalf of future governments. WHAT WILL NATO COORDINATE? The alliance has agreed to take over much of the coordination of arms deliveries from the U.S.-led Ukraine Defence Contact Group, an ad-hoc coalition of some 50 nations, also called the Ramstein group, named after a U.S. air base in Germany, where it first met. This gives NATO a more direct role in the war against Russia's invasion while stopping well short of committing its own forces. The alliance will also coordinate the training of Ukrainian forces, much of which is done by the European Union and Britain. Some diplomats see the move as a way to guard against any attempt by Donald Trump - if he wins November's U.S. presidential election - to stop military aid for Ukraine. By putting coordination under a NATO umbrella, alliance military staff have more autonomy to get on with the job without direct political involvement. But this would have a limited effect, as the U.S. is NATO's dominant power and provides the majority of weaponry to Ukraine. So if Washington wanted to slash Western aid to Kyiv, it would still be able to do so. Stoltenberg has said the effort will be run from a U.S. base in Wiesbaden, Germany, commanded by a three-star general and involve nearly 700 personnel. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has maintained close ties to Russia, has secured an opt-out from the initiative. Its name has also been contentious. Germany objected to it being called a "mission", arguing this could be seen as implying NATO will send troops to Ukraine. It is currently known as NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine, or NSATU for short. Keir Starmer made his first visit as UK prime minister to Northern Ireland on Monday, with hopes high on both sides of the political divide that relations will improve after years of Brexit turmoil. New PM Starmer meets Northern Ireland's leaders during UK tour Starmer, whose centre-left Labour party won last week's UK general election, briefly met the leaders of Northern Ireland's power-sharing executive at the Stormont parliament buildings early on Monday. He held talks with First Minister Michelle O'Neill, of the pro-Irish unity Sinn Fein party, and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly, of the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party , as he continues a whistlestop tour of the UK. The Labour leader was due in Cardiff later on Monday, where he will meet party allies who head the devolved administration there. In Northern Ireland, both main parties expect Starmer to bring greater stability and closer engagement, as well as patch up relations with Dublin. "There's cautious optimism about the new government across the board, but for different reasons," James Pow, a politics lecturer at Queen's University Belfast, told AFP. At last Thursday's election, Sinn Fein held on to its seven seats to become the largest Northern Ireland party in the UK parliament in London. It overtook its main DUP rival, which lost three of its eight seats, two of them to rival unionist parties. Analysts see the result as allowing Sinn Fein, which does not take up its seats in the House of Commons because it opposes British sovereignty in Northern Ireland, to claim continued momentum towards an eventual referendum, or "border poll", on Irish unity. The party, the former political wing of the paramilitary IRA during the Troubles the three-decade sectarian conflict over British rule in Northern Ireland is also the largest at council level and in the devolved Northern Ireland assembly. On Friday, Sinn Fein's leader Mary Lou McDonald urged the new Labour government to embrace "impartiality" and accept the right for constitutional change. But Pow said "the fundamentals haven't changed", pointing to roughly equal combined vote share at the election between nationalist and unionist parties. Starmer and his newly appointed Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn, "won't feel forced to put a border poll on the agenda, at most some pressure to outline procedural criteria for a poll to take place". Ireland's prime minister Simon Harris has warmly welcomed Starmer's win and already accepted an invitation to visit Downing Street on July 17. Both he and Starmer are determined to "reset and strengthen" bilateral relations, Harris said. Pro-UK unionists have historically allied with the UK Conservative party and been wary of Labour, but few are shedding any tears over the Conservatives' defeat last week after 14 years in power. Starmer "is somebody we have a good relationship with", said DUP leader Gavin Robinson, calling Labour's win an "extraordinary" outcome. Post-Brexit trading rules agreed to by the DUP are seen by some unionists as erecting a de facto "sea border" between the British mainland and the province, and undermining Northern Ireland's place in the wider UK. Among unionists there is "hope that Starmer might prioritise tighter alignment with the EU, which could in turn mitigate the impact of the sea border, if not remove it," Pow said. One of the few concrete pledges related to Northern Ireland in Labour's manifesto was the scrapping of a controversial "Legacy Act" that prompted Dublin to sue London at the European Court of Human Rights. The law, which came into effect in May, halted inquests into Troubles-era crimes, including many that allegedly involved British security forces, and granted conditional immunity to perpetrators. "There's no wriggle room on that, Labour has to remove it," Jon Tonge, a politics professor at Liverpool University, told AFP. Starmer, a former police human rights advisor in Northern Ireland, "represents stability and a genuine desire to bring harmony" to the UK-Ireland and UK-EU relationships, in contrast to his Conservative predecessors, Belfast-based commentator Alex Kane said. The Anglo-Irish relationship "not only deteriorated but almost reached total breakdown" during the fractious Brexit negotiations with the European Union, as well as over the Troubles legacy issue, he added. pmu-jj/bc This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. The creation of a Sahel confederation on Saturday plunged West Africa into an unprecedented crisis that could threaten the free movement of people and goods in the region. New Sahel bloc leaves West Africa more divided than ever Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali joined together to create the "Confederation of Sahel States" which will comprise some 72 million people. The three countries said in January they were cutting ties with the Economic Community of West African States an organisation they accused of being manipulated by France, their former colonial ruler. On the eve of ECOWAS's 50th anniversary, the bloc seems powerless to bring the Sahel countries back into its fold. The first tensions arose in 2020 and 2021 after the coups that brought Colonel Assimi Goita to power in Mali. At the time, ECOWAS imposed heavy trade and financial sanctions on Bamako and suspended Mali from its membership. The lifting of these sanctions in 2022 was not enough to warm relations especially as Bamako found an ally in neighbouring Burkina Faso, where two coups took place in 2022, and Niger, where a military leader took over last July. For ECOWAS, Niger's coup was one coup too many. It not only imposed sanctions against Niamey but also threatened military intervention for several weeks to restore deposed president Mohamed Bazoum. This was enough to set the Sahel military governments on edge for good, as they have made sovereignty a cardinal point of their governance and accused ECOWAS of being subservient to France on which they have all turned their backs. In January, all three announced they were leaving the West African organisation and on Saturday formalised their divorce by joining forces, despite the lifting of sanctions against Niamey in February. On Sunday, ECOWAS warned against the "diplomatic and political isolation" of AES countries and the loss of millions of euros in investment. Another concern is the worsening insecurity in the region, which is plagued by recurrent jihadist violence. AES countries have long criticised ECOWAS for not helping them enough in the face of this scourge, and in March they set up their own joint force. But the most concrete consequence could concern the free movement of goods and people within the region. On Sunday, the head of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Alieu Touray, warned that nationals of AES countries could in future have to apply for visas to travel to the rest of the region and face obstacles to the free establishment of businesses. For Nigerien lawyer and political analyst Mahaman Bachar, this threat will not be enough to curb "the AES's desire to distance itself from ECOWAS", and "reciprocity" could be imposed by the Sahel countries. "This would be the beginning of the break-up of the West African sub-regional institution and would be contrary to the ideals of the African Union," said Nigerien finance expert Boubacar Kado. On Saturday, Niger's General Abdourahamane Tiani was quite clear on the subject. "Our peoples have irrevocably turned their backs on ECOWAS," he said. The three AES countries although deprived of access to the sea believe they can be self-sufficient within their confederation, pooling their resources in most of the key sectors of the economy. As far as ECOWAS is concerned, there is no question of giving up. Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye visited Burkina Faso and Mali in May and was appointed on Sunday as mediator with the AES countries. "We cannot stand idly by. Our responsibility is to work to bring positions closer together, to reconcile them, to ensure that there can be a forum for dialogue", he said Sunday. Faye called for "everything possible to be done to avoid the withdrawal of the three sister countries". Ivorian political analyst Arthur Banga said Faye "has the freshness of a newly elected politician and certain connections in terms of revolution and change. He still has a tiny chance, but the trend is towards a break". Nigerien lawyer and political analyst Bachar said negotiations will no longer be about returning to ECOWAS "but rather about how to salvage the furniture, how to establish mutually respectful relations between ECOWAS and the AES, which is now an entity in its own right". At its summit on Sunday, the West African organisation acknowledged the risk of its "disintegration". Burkina, Niger and Mali represent a market of 72 million inhabitants, almost a fifth of the regional bloc's population. "ECOWAS has seen members leave in the past, like Mauritania . Even with 12 countries, it remains powerful, notably with Nigeria, the most populous country in Africa, and Ivory Coast and Senegal," major economies in the region, Banga said. pid-bh/bam/nmc/imm AES CORPORATION This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. 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Royal experts claimed that Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are more fantastically interested in money than Prince William and Kate Middleton or, per se, actual people. Royal expert slams Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's focus on personal gain, contrasting it with Prince William and Kate Middleton's genuine desire to make a positive impact(AFP) This comes ahead of a new ITV documentary highlighting Prince William's long-term commitment to addressing homelessness in the UK. The upcoming program will showcase the Prince of Wales and his involvement with the Homewards initiative. Director Leo Burley revealed that the documentary team has been following Prince William and The Royal Foundation through the first year of the Homewards programme and noted that those involved have appreciated William and Homewards are placing on the UK's homelessness crisis. ALSO READ| Prince Harry knows Prince William would never forgive him for what he did Prince William wants to help, not just show of Speaking to GB News, royal biographer Angela Levin emphasized Prince William's dedication to the cause, saying, We mustn't forget that in 2009, he slept out in the street to see for himself what it was like. And he also helps people who are selling the Big Issue magazine, and added, He wants to do this so badly because of his mother. She took them to see people who were homeless. Levin added that William aims to get his children involved in these charitable efforts and has allocated funds from his and Princess Catherine's foundation to support homelessness initiatives. Isabel Webster, host of GB News, shared her perspective on the new documentary, suggesting it exemplifies the kind of work Prince Harry and Meghan Markle should have pursued. She stated, This is an example of what the Duke and Duchess of Sussex should have done when making a TV documentary, going behind the scenes and doing something noble and worthwhile rather than complaining. This would be the Prince and Princess of Wales showing that they're making a difference, she added. Levin concurred with Webster, praising William and Catherine's efforts: That's what they're doing, they're doing everything they can in so many different ways to help the country and people who need help. ALSO READ| Why can't Prince William and Prince George fly together on the same plane? A decade-old royal rule can explain this She criticized, Unfortunately, Harry and Meghan do everything that will help them and give them money. They're fantastically interested in money and not actual people. When I went around with Harry when I was doing his biography, he was marvellous with ex-military people, wonderful with them. But Meghan is very awkward. She's not used to talking to people like that, and I don't think she wants to. So that's very difficult. Their idea is to show off and be wonderful, whereas William and Catherine's is to help, Levin then recalled. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle may soon grovel their way back to the Royal Family as their position seems scattered in so many different directions among the royals. Criticism of royal family hindering Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's reconciliation, expert suggests. REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs/File Photo(REUTERS) The Sussexes relocated to the US in 2020 after stepping down from royal duties, and after moving to California, their ventures have faced significant challenges, leading to speculation about their future. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's US business dealings are falling apart Kinsey Schofield, founder and host of the To Di For Daily podcast, told Daily Express US, Harry and Meghan already have a rocky reputation when it comes to their business dealings in the states. She then elaborated, They do not have a good history when it comes to collaboration. ALSO READ| Prince Harry and Meghan Markle more interested in money than Prince William and Kate Middleton Schofield suggested that if their current endeavours fail, particularly with Netflix, Harry will need to make significant amends. She told Daily Express US through a mail, Harry will inevitably have to apologize to reclaim his proximity to the royal family. This poor history is particularly evident in their high-profile deals, including their recent tell-all tour, which was considered a disaster, and their failed Spotify contract. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle face a make-or-break moment with their Netflix contract The Duke and Duchess of Sussex face a make-or-break moment with their Netflix contract. Schofield emphasized the stakes, saying, Netflix is make or break. If Harry and Meghan's Netflix contract falls through... the Sussexes will have to resort to grovelling back to the British royal family. Schofield revealed that the couple went through multiple producers for their six-part Netflix docuseries, with Meghan reportedly trying to distance herself from the final product when speaking to Variety magazine. This caused discontent among those who worked on the series. ALSO READ| Prince Harry knows Prince William would never forgive him for what he did You saw Archewell audio employees lash out on social media because they wanted proper credit, Schofield said. The couple's approach has also led to alienation within their organization. Schofield observed, Harry and Meghan are going in so many different directions and honestly alienating a lot of employees in their wake. Aside from Invictus, its his only valuable quality. If they continue to burn industry bridges they will have to grovel back. Prince Harry has not shied away from expressing his feelings about the Royal Family, including his tenuous relationships with his difficult brother, Prince William, and his weary father, King Charles III. Prince Harry flew more than 5,000 miles to see his father after King Charles III was diagnosed with cancer back in February. But he did not see his estranged brother, William, during the visit that lasted scarcely 24 hours. (AP Photo/Martin Meissner, File)(AP) The Duke of Sussex's tell-all memoir, Spare, and numerous TV interviews, along with a Netflix docuseries, Harry and Meghan, have revealed bombshell revelations about private family moments and intense disputes. Spare details numerous conflicts, such as disagreements over his wife, Meghan Markle and clashes with William's wife and Princess of Wales, Kate Middleton, over issues ranging from lip gloss to baby brain comments. The Duke of Sussex also alleged that in 2019, Prince William attacked him and knocked him on the floor over some arguments involving Meghan. The elder Prince allegedly called the duchess difficult, rude, and abrasive. ALSO READ| Prince Harry is bored in California as difficult Meghan Markle makes it impossible for him to Prince Harry has indicated that much more was left unsaid. He told The Telegraph that he had removed many portions of the book to protect his brother and father. It could have been two books, put it that way, he remarked. And the hard bit was taking things out. There are some things that have happened, especially between me and my brother, and to some extent between me and my father, that I just don't want the world to know. Because I don't think they would ever forgive me. King Charles reportedly snubbed Prince Harry during May visit Royal expert Tom Quinn told The Mirror UK the bond between the brothers is severely strained: Harry's visit to the UK has done nothing to repair royal relations Harry has been very publicly snubbed by his father and brother. [William] says nothing. It is as if Harry no longer exists. There's been no obvious criticism from either side, but the silence from William is deafening. During his brief visit to the UK for the Invictus Games in early May, Prince Harry did not meet with Charles due to the monarch's full schedule. However, later reports suggested that Charles had offered his son a place to stay, hoping for some time together. Harry, however, chose to stay in a hotel instead. ALSO READ| Prince Harry willing to move on, Meghan Markle eager to have heart-to-heart with royal family: report According to a friend of the monarch, Charles was understandably wary of meeting Harry due to the intense media scrutiny surrounding their relationship. The insider told The Times, It's all very sad. While it is true that the King is understandably wary about meeting with Harry, given the publicity circus that seems to surround all such visits, he did of course agree to see his son at the most vulnerable moment of his illness [in February], and at very short notice. Russian missiles killed at least seven people and struck a childrens hospital in the Ukarinian capital, Kyiv, Monday, while another attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed at least 10. Children wait near the site of Okhmatdyt childrens hospital hit by Russian missiles, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, July 8, 2024. Russian missiles have killed at least seven people and struck a childrens hospital in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, authorities say. (AP Photo/Evgeniy Maloletka)(AP) The Russian barrage targeted five Ukrainian cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, hitting apartment buildings and public infrastructure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post. At least 20 people were killed and around 50 people were injured across the country in the Monday morning onslaught, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. In Kryvyi Rih, 31 people were injured in addition to the 10 deaths in what the head of city administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said was a massive missile attack. Explosions were also reported by local officials in Ukraines central Dnipropetrovsk region. At the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital in Kyiv, rescuers were searching for people under the rubble of a partially collapsed wing of the facility, Zelenskyy said, adding that the number of casualties was not yet known. "It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, Zelenskyy said on social media. The attack comes on the eve of a three-day NATO summit in Washington, which will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since World War II. A two-story building at the children's hospital was partly destroyed. On the hospitals main 10-story building, windows and doors were blown out and walls were blackened. Medical personnel and local people helped shift the rubble as they searched for children and medical workers who could be trapped underneath. Volunteers formed a line, passing stones and debris to each other. Smoke still rose from the building, and volunteers and emergency crews worked in protective masks. It was the heaviest Russian bombardment of Kyiv in almost four months. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. The Kinzhal flies at 10 times the speed of sound, making it hard to intercept. City buildings shook from the blasts. An entire section of a residential multistory building in one district of Kyiv was destroyed, officials said. The Kyiv city administration reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in a handful of Kyiv areas, starting fires. Thick plumes of smoke rose from several Kyiv neighborhoods. The head of Ukraines presidential office, Andrii Yermak, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the citys streets. Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klitschko said official assessments of the attack's consequences were still being carried out. Washington: US President Joe Biden, who remains the presumptive Democratic nominee for the 2024 elections, told his party colleagues on Monday that he is firmly committed to staying in the race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump. US President Joe Biden and First lady Jill Biden walk to the White House in Washington, DC, on Sunday, as they return after attending campaign events in Pennsylvania. (AFP) As concerns about the viability of his candidacy have persisted and grown, Biden, in a letter to Democrats who returned to the US Congress after the July 4th recess, claimed that he was aware of the responsibilities that came with the job and believed he was the best person to beat Donald Trump and it was time to look ahead. Biden also sought to end the debate about the Democratic ticket. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. The Democratic Party is mired in turmoil after the first presidential debate between Biden and Trump on June 27, when Bidens age-related vulnerabilities came into sharp focus. The President struggled to complete his thoughts and sentences; he appeared physically frail; he was unable to either defend his record or rebut Trump effectively. His performance confirmed not just the suspicions of critics about his health. It also persuaded sympathisers that Biden may neither be the best person to compete against only a slightly younger but far more energetic Trump, but it may also be difficult to ask, in good faith, voters to trust Biden with the presidency for four more years. Most polls conducted after the debate have seen Trumps lead increase, and an overwhelming number of respondents, including Democrats, say that Biden is too old to run for the job. To counter the perception, Biden participated in campaign rallies and fundraisers, gave a set of interviews, and attended a Black church congregation in the swing state of Pennsylvania on Sunday. While the President has sought to explain away his debate performance by attributing it to a bad night and general fatigue, and insisted that only the Lord Almighty can get him to quit, it hasnt allayed concerns among Democrats. Over the weekend, House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries held a call with senior Democrats, four of whom were reported to have said that it was time for Biden to go. In the Senate, the head of the Senate intelligence committee Mark Warner who is also the co-chair of the India caucus has attempted to get other Senators together to persuade Biden to leave. But the President, his family and his close aides believe that he continues to both retain the support of the Democratic base including Black and working class voters and that Biden is best placed to defeat Trump. Those concerned about the messy transition to another candidate, or the fact that Vice-President Kamala Harris may not be able to compete with Trump either, have also supported Bidens candidacy. In his letter, Biden said that he had engaged in extensive conversations with both Democratic leaders and voters in the past ten days and understood that their concerns came from a place of affection and regard for his public service but then reiterated that he wont have run if he didnt think he was the best person to defeat Trump. Biden also sought to underline the legitimacy of the primary process that had made him the presumptive nominee. I received over 14 million votesI have nearly 3,900 delegates. Biden didnt mention that his dominance also came from the fact that he was the incumbent and the party rarely chooses to challenge a sitting president seeking a second term. He, however, said that the process and voters mattered and he owed it to Democratic Party voters who had placed their faith and trust in him to run. It was their decision to make. Not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals, no matter how well-intentioned. Biden then touted his record in office to claim that he was confident of beating Trump. Even Stephen King is voting for Trump, Elon Musk was quick to celebrate on social media after the famed author called for Presiden Joe Biden to step down from his re-election bid. Stephen King says Joe Biden has been a good president but it's time for him to step down from his re-election bid. On Monday, July 7, the American author, dubbed the King of Horror," took to his X/Twitter feed, sending a clear message to the POTUS. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election. King's tweet went viral on the microblogging platform within hours of going live. His plea to the commander-in-chief comes amid the long stretch of criticism against him, questioning if hes fit to run for office. Irrespective of the storytellers latest claims, it doesnt seem as if hes switched his political affiliations. Also read | Biden scrutiny blows up: Instructions 'on how to enter and exit a room planned in advance; White House on defence Stephen King's Trump tirade explored Exactly a day ago, he blasted the Project 2025 vision, per which The Heritage Foundation proposed to install Republican loyalists at every level of federal departments if Trump wins the November election. Trump's cronies are planning what amounts to a fascist state, and the Supreme Court is clearing the way for them. This should concern conservatives as well as liberals, he tweeted on July 7 in response to a post that said, You really need to be more bothered by Project 2025 than the debate. Kings post from today, addressed to Biden, has already overtaken his previous Trump tweet, having garnered 1.1 million views at the time of writing. The latter still stands a step behind with 905.5K views. Earlier this month, he blasted the Supreme Court for allowing Trump some immunity from prosecution. Last Monday, the US Supreme Court ruled that ex-presidents have immunity for only official acts conducted while in office. This ruling followed the ongoing developments around the election interference case, as Trump, 78, is accused of attempting to sabotage the 2020 general election. Also read | Bombshell Democrats memo unravels contingency plan, 'We need to act. Now'; includes Taylor and Oprah Vehemently against the decision, King tweeted, In the name of "originalism," Trump's Supreme Court has taken a wrecking ball to the Constitution. An hour later, he shared a follow-up post on the same day, Thanks to the Supreme Court, the next president will have the powers of a king. Conversely, Elon Musk maintains his pro-Trump outlook It looks like Musks selective observation completely overlooked Kings previous anti-Trump remarks. As the IT writer comes up to hold the sitting president accountable, Musk inevitably misconstrued it as his support for Trump. A month ago, the Wall Street Journal exclusively reported that the Tesla boss and Trump have already discussed a possible advisory role for the former if the Republican nominee is re-elected. As for Musks own social media activity, he recently took a jab at the 81-year-old commander-in-chief, insinuating that the US hasnt had a president for a while. Real question since we obviously havent had one for a while lmao, Musk tweeted, reposting a screenshot The New York Times article, headlined Does America Need a President? Over the past year, the Biden White House residence has reportedly seen frequent visits from a Parkinson's specialist, as records indicate at least nine consultations. This revelation comes amid a major shakeup in the presidential race, with mounting pressure on the POTUS to consider stepping aside. Multiple reports suggest that concerns about President Joe Biden's declining physical and cognitive health add weight to these consultations, raising questions about information the party may be concealing. President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School in Madison, Wis., Friday, July 5, 2024, as Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers watches. (AP) Top neurologists visited President Biden frequently According to the New York Post, a top Washington D.C.-based neurologist, renowned for expertise in Parkinsons disease, met with President Bidens personal doctor at the White House earlier this year. The records of this meeting, examined by the outlet, show regular meetings between the neurologist and Dr. Kevin O'Connor, in addition to two other doctors, at the White House Medical Centre on January 17. his development follows Biden dodging several questions about undergoing an independent medical assessment during an interview with ABC. Moreover, the visitor's record shows that Cannard has made eight trips to the White House since August 2023 and just once before 2023. Seven of these visits, including one in late March, involved discussions with Megan Nasworthy, who acts as an intermediary between Walter Reed and the White House. (Cannard has worked with Walter Reed for almost 20 years). Also read: Joe Biden's family wants to settle old scores following blunder after blunder by key staff: report The meeting which took place between the top experts also included Dr. John E. Atwood, a cardiologist from Walter Reed. These gatherings probably focused on President Biden's health, considering Dr. O'Connor's main role in managing it. As per Post, Canard has served as a neurology specialist supporting the White House Medical Unit, since 2012. Biden rules out the suggestion to take independent health assessment The president's campaign for a second term has been overshadowed by a series of public gaffes and concerning physical behaviours, which have not escaped public or media scrutiny during recent appearances. His raspy voice and constant fumbling while mixing up the facts have even led to a silent revolt in the party itself. Yet, the prez declined to get independently assessed and show the result to the public ahead of the election stating, Why the hell would I take a test? I get a cognitive test every day. Also read: Anarchy on streets of Paris ahead of Olympics, political paralysis hits France after election result shocks nation These issues have emboldened opposition leader Donald Trump to criticise the presidents ability to continue in office. Although Dr. O'Connor has given President Biden a thumbs-up for his health during his yearly check-up, there are still concerns about the president's mental fitness. Claims from people like Rep. Ronny Jackson suggest that there might be attempts to hide the president's worsening health condition. I believe he and Jill Biden have led the cover up. Kevin OConnor is like a son to Jill Biden she loves him. Its crazy. Kevin OConnor was in that job on day one of the Biden administration because they knew they could trust Kevin to say and do anything that needed to be said or done and cover up whatever needed to be covered up. He is part of the Biden family, he said earlier. Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to two horrific crashes of 737 Max jetliners. This comes after the government stated that the company violated an agreement that had been protecting it from prosecution for over three years, according to the Justice Department. The guilty plea will be entered in US District Court in Texas. Boeing agrees to plead guilty to criminal fraud charge stemming from two 737 Max crashes (REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/File Photo)(REUTERS) Boeing was given a choice by federal prosecutors this week it could either plead guilty and pay a fine as part of its sentence, or face trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the US. The company was accused by prosecutors of deceiving regulators who had approved the plane and the pilot-training requirements. "We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms," Boeing said in a statement to ABC News Monday, July 7. As part of the agreement, Boeing will have to pay the maximum statutory fine, and will be required to invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs. However, the deal is not final yet and will need the approval of a federal judge to take effect. The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by the company before the crashes, and does not provide immunity for other incidents. The deal covers only the corporation, and not any current or former Boeing officials. What are the victims families saying? The families of the victims of the 2018 and 2019 crashes are unhappy with the development. They have reportedly said they might oppose the plea agreement. They have stated that they must be given an opportunity to file their opposition with the court, a court filing in US District Court in Fort Worth, Texas, has revealed. The DOJ's court filing says that the parties are "proceeding expeditiously to document and memorialize the terms and understandings into a written plea agreement and expect to file the agreement with the Court by no later than July 19, 2024. Some 189 people were killed when the Lion Air jet a Boeing 737 MAX 8 plunged into the Java Sea off Indonesia in October 2018. Just five months later, another Boeing 737 MAX 8 Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed near Addis Ababa airport six minutes after the plane took off. All 157 people on board died. This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died, said a statement from Paul Cassell, a law professor of University of Utah who represents many family members of the victims of the crashes, according to CNN. This deceptive and generous deal is clearly not in the public interest, Cassell added. Amid growing calls to drop out of the race, Joe Biden had yet another awkward moment in a Philadelphia church. The 81-year-old president, during a campaign stop in Pennsylvania, sat in a trance for about 25 seconds after the pastor asked everyone to stand up. Concerns grow as Joe Biden sits in trance at Philly church after pastor told everyone to stand up (REUTERS/Nathan Howard)(REUTERS) This comes days after the presidents disastrous presidential debate performance against Donald Trump, during which he froze, misspoke and stared blankly. Biden is no stranger to gaffes on stage. However, Biden received a warm welcome at Mt. Airy Church of God in Christ in Northwest Philadelphia. In a speech at the church, he said his goal is to "unite America again. "I've been doing this a long time, and I honest to God have never been more optimistic about America's future... if we stick together," Biden told nearly 300 congregants in attendance. "We have to bring dignity and hope back in America." A CBS News source has said that after the debate, Biden told campaign staff that he has no intention to bow out. "Let me say this as clearly as I possibly can and as simply and straightforward as I can: I am running. I'm the nominee of the Democratic Party. No one's pushing me out. I'm not leaving," the president said, according to one source. Hes unfit to serve Meanwhile, in the comment section of the above video, X users expressed their concerns about Biden yet again. Can't even figure out whether or not he is supposed to stand up. He has the nuclear codes? Even a Democrat would have to see a problem here, one user commented. He has dementia and palsy. Hes unfit to serve, another user claimed. He's so completely lost, one user said, while another wrote, It's incredible that they keep up the deception. Everytime I see him he looks confused and scared, one user wrote, while another said, Ugh. This is painful. Unreal. He is completely gone, one user wrote. A driver had to be rescued from a Utah mountain after following a shortcut suggested by Google Maps. Wasatch County Search and Rescue teams saved a stranded driver who followed Google Maps' directions to a remote area on Strawberry Peak.(Wasatch County Search & Rescue) The 23-year-old man, whose identity has not been disclosed, found himself stranded in the Strawberry area late Thursday night. Wasatch County Search and Rescue teams responded to the emergency call at midnight and spent three hours rescuing the driver from his predicament. The man was stuck in his Toyota Tercel on the west side of Strawberry Peak. Images taken by the rescue team show the blue car on a rugged dirt trail, highlighting the challenging conditions the rescue teams faced. They had to use all-terrain vehicles to reach the stranded driver. According to the rescuers, the man ended up on the mountain due to a shortcut recommended by Google Maps. ALSO READ| Boy, 2, tragically dies after accidentally shooting self at Walmart parking lot Wasatch County Search and Rescue posted on social media, 911 Dispatch Center received a call from a stranded motorist. The 23-year-old male was stuck in his Toyota Tercel on the west side of Strawberry Peak. This was the shortcut that Google recommended between Springville and Vernal. The driver was uninjured but required transport off the mountain. SAR teams responded and rendered assistance, the statement added. This is not new with Google Maps Google Maps has caused similar problems for drivers in Utah from time to time. Emery County Sheriff Tyson Huntington told ABC4 that his office receives multiple calls each month from stranded motorists on a remote road on East Mountain. He explained, Weve had a problem with people traveling into Utah and theyll put just Utah into their Google search and it leads them to this remote area of our county. ALSO READ| Russian missile attack on children hospital in Ukraine kills over 20; many children feared buried Sheriff Huntington noted that in every instance, search and rescue teams successfully assisted the stranded motorists and their vehicles. However, due to the frequency of these incidents, the sheriff's office reached out to Google to address the problematic routing. Weve had to take those steps to try to be able to mitigate the problems, but we havent had any luck with Google until today, Huntington said earlier. Emery County Sheriff is happy and super excited with Google's swift response The most severe case involved an 18-wheel semi-truck with a trailer that got stuck in the mud after its GPS directed the driver onto the remote road. Following this, the sheriff's department and a news outlet contacted Google, which promptly responded. A Google spokesperson explained the companys approach to updating maps, saying, We use multiple sources to update the map including contributions from the community, information from local authorities, along with Street View and satellite imagery. We've updated this route on our map and it should be reflected in the coming days. ALSO READ| Do UFOs target high-speed planes, warheads and nuclear reactors? Experts weigh in Huntington replied back with relief and satisfaction, saying they were super excited when Google took action. Were happy that [travelers] wont run into that problem anymore, it wont damage their vehicles or cause problems, and then were able to keep our resources in the most populous areas of our county, he expressed. Tropical Storm Beryl unleashed heavy rains and powerful winds along the Texas coast on Monday, knocking out power to more than 2 million homes and businesses and flooding streets with fast-rising waters as first responders raced to rescue stranded residents. City of Galveston workers clear debris from Beryl from the West End of the seawall in Galveston, Texas, on Monday, July 8, 2024. Tropical Storm Beryl was unleashing heavy rains and powerful winds along the Texas coast, knocking out power to more than 2 million homes and businesses and flooding streets with fast-rising waters. (Jennifer Reynolds/The Galveston County Daily News via AP)(AP) Beryl had already cut a deadly path through parts of Mexico and the Caribbean before making a turn, sweeping ashore as a Category 1 hurricane in Texas early Monday, then later weakening to a tropical storm. At least two people were killed. The National Hurricane Center said damaging winds and flash flooding will continue as Beryl continues pushing inland. More than 2 million homes and businesses in the Houston area were without electricity, CenterPoint Energy officials said. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who is acting governor while Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is out of the country, said crews cannot get out to restore it until the wind dies down. Residents without power were doing their best. We havent really slept, said Eva Costancio as she gazed at a large tree that had fallen across electric lines in her neighborhood in the Houston suburb of Rosenberg. Costancio, 67, said she had been without power for about four hours Monday and worried that food in her refrigerator would be spoiled. We are struggling to have food and losing that food would be difficult, she said. High waters quickly closed streets. In flood-weary Houston, where previous storms had already washed out neighborhoods, television stations on Monday broadcast the dramatic rescue of a man who had climbed to the roof of his pickup truck after it got trapped in fast-flowing waters. Emergency crews used an extension ladder from a fire truck to drop him a life preserver and a tether before moving him to dry land. Houston officials said they had performed at least 15 high-water rescues and more were ongoing. First responders are putting their lives at risk. Thats what theyre trained for. Its working, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said. Houston was under a flash-flood warning for most of the morning as heavy rain continued to soak the city. Flood warnings also were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast, where a powerful storm surge pushed water ashore, and further inland as heavy rain continued to fall. Rosenberg police also noted that one of their high-water vehicles was hit by a falling tree while returning from a rescue, and they urged people to stay off the roads. Video footage showed heavy street flooding in the barrier island city of Galveston. Two people were killed after trees fell on their houses: a man in the Houston suburb of Humble and a woman in Harris County, authorities said. Hundreds of trees fell in the county, crushing vehicles and damaging homes, said Precinct 4 County Constable Mark Herman. Patrick warned that flooding could last for days and the storm continues to dump rain onto already saturated ground. This is not a one-day event, he said. Beryl and the widespread power outages were just the latest weather blows for Houston, where nearly 1 million people lost power when deadly storms ripped through the area in May, killed eight people and brought much of the city to a standstill. Javier Mejia was one of about 20 people who gathered near the pickup truck rescue site in Houston to take pictures of other submerged vehicles. If you dont have a way through, youre going to get stuck like that, Mejia said. Having experienced previous storms in Houston, Mejia stocked up on food and water before Beryl hit, but forgot gas for his portable generator. He planned to spend the day looking for some. I dont want it to go bad. But if not, we can just fire up the grill, Mejia said. President Joe Biden was getting regular updates on the storm after it made landfall, the White House said. The U.S. Coast Guard and FEMA had prepared search and rescue teams, and FEMA collected bottled water, meals, tarps and electric generators in case they are needed. In the Texas coastal city of Freeport, Patti Richardson said she was riding out the the storm in her 123-year-old house. We are sitting in the middle of it. It sounds like we are in a train station, its that loud and has been about four hours. Were just hoping everything holds together, Richardson said. You can feel the house shaking. ... Its freaky. More than 1,000 flights have been canceled at Houstons two airports, according to tracking data from FlightAware. The earliest storm to develop into a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic, Beryl caused at least 11 deaths as it passed through the Caribbean on its way to Texas. The storm ripped off doors, windows and roofs with devastating winds and storm surge fueled by the Atlantics record warmth. Three times during its one week of life, Beryl has gained 35 mph (56 kph) in wind speed in 24 hours or less, the official weather service definition of rapid intensification. Beryls explosive growth into an unprecedented early whopper of a storm indicates the hot water of the Atlantic and Caribbean and what the Atlantic hurricane belt can expect for the rest of the storm season, experts said. In Louisiana, heavy bands of rain are expected all day Monday and the risk is going to be for that heavy rainfall and potential for flash flooding, National Weather Service meteorologist Donald Jones said in a Monday morning Facebook Live briefing. Meteorologists in Louisiana are watching for lingering rainbands, which could drop copious amounts of rain wherever they materialize, as well as quick, spin-up tornadoes, said Donald Jones, a National Weather Service meteorologist in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Its just a matter of exactly where thats going to be, Jones said. Thats very difficult to predict more than maybe an hour or so in advance. Beryl battered Mexico as a Category 2 hurricane last week, toppling trees but causing no injuries or deaths before weakening to a tropical storm as it moved across the Yucatan Peninsula. Before hitting Mexico, Beryl wrought destruction in Jamaica, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Three people were reported dead in Grenada, three in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, three in Venezuela and two in Jamaica. There have reportedly been tensions between the Biden family and some of Joe Bidens staff in the days following the presidents disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump. A source has now told NBC that members of Bidens close family were unhappy by what they believed was the staffs failure to prepare the president for the debate, and have looked to settle old scores. Joe Biden's family wants to settle old scores following blunder after blunder by key staff (Photo by Chris Kleponis / AFP)(AFP) The family has witnessed blunder after blunder I believe the family has witnessed blunder after blunder by key staff personnel and the debate is likely the straw that broke the camel's back, the source said. Post-debate, the supposed loyal staff, instead of taking responsibility, pointed the finger back at the president and said: 'His fault.' I can think of no other singular action that would agitate the Biden family more. Over the past week, Biden was visited by his sister Valerie Owens, son Hunter Biden and his wife Melissa Cohen. However, one aide believes the presidents family was unhelpful. The debate fiasco has opened up a lane for the family to surpass staff and start helping out their father and brother who they love dearly, the person said. Meanwhile, a recent report by The New York Times said that Bidens family has urged him to stay in the race despite calls for him to drop out. Insiders claimed, previously too, that the presidents family members are not pleased with his staff, including White House senior adviser Dunn, her husband Bob Bauer, and Ron Klain, the former White House chief of staff who is known to have run the preparations. But one source claimed that Biden himself is not upset and still has faith in his staff. Another source said Bidens wife, Jill, did not criticise the staff either. However, a White House official also dismissed claims that Bidens family members were upset with the staff. Meanwhile, Biden is reportedly determined to stay in the race. He has even vowed to return to the stage for a second debate against Trump. One cant help but wonder how the ever-deepening rift between Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton came to be. Its no news that the estranged sisters-in-law have struggled to build a friendship. Despite the two women joining the Firm as non-aristocratic outsiders, they never found themselves on the same page of the conversation. Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle are seen together.(File) Akin to Markle becoming the target of the British press' dart game, Kate was also referred to as a commoner marrying into royalty. Even with shared grounds for their unity, there's seemingly no love lost between them. Making matters worse, Markles May 2018 wedding with Prince Harry reportedly became the ground for her ultimate bitter fallout with the Princess of Wales. Emerging reports incriminated Meghan Markles cruel words about Middletons daughter, Princess Charlotte, reduced Princess Kate to tears, thereby, cementing the distance between them. Also read | Prince Harry and Meghan Markle more interested in money than Prince William and Kate Middleton What happened between Meghan Markle and Kate Middleton? At the heels of Meghan and Harrys wedding, the years reports excessively painted the Duchess of Sussex as the one who lit the fuse, leaving Middleton in tears over an issue with bridesmaids dresses. Contradicting these initial claims, it was later clarified that it was, in fact, Meghan who was reduced to tears. Prince Harry consequently confirmed that the Princess eventually sent flowers to express her apology. Royal author Tom Bower fanned the fire by turning the picture upside down in his book, Revenge: Meghan, Harry and the War between the Windsors. Therein, he quoted unnamed sources, claiming Markle compared Princess Charlotte unfavourably to her best friend Jessica Mulroneys daughter (Ivy). DailyMailOnline also reported that Bowers book illustrated a sympathetic outlook towards Middleton, who had been tired after her third childs (Prince Louis) birth. As the Princess youngest child arrived in April, weeks ahead of the 2018 wedding, she was reportedly too fatigued to raise arms against Meghan, debating whether bridesmaids should wear tights. Royal protocol highlighted they should. Also read | Biden has been a fine president, but: Stephen King calls for him to step down after slamming Trump's fascist vision However, the duchess had decided that her bridesmaids would not wear them, and her then-pal Jessica Mulroney supported her decision. On top of that, the Duchess and Princess were reportedly at loggerheads over Princess Charlottes dress. Middleton declared it too short and anyway did not fit, Bowers book states. Kate seemingly couldnt deal with Markles failure to compromise in the situation. Meghan Markle explains her side of the story Three years after the wedding, the Duchess of Sussex turned the tables on the story by presenting her point of view in an interview with Oprah Winfrey alongside her husband. [Kate] was upset about something, but she owned it, and she apologised. And she bought me flowers A few days before the wedding, she was upset about something pertaining - yes, the issue was correct - about flower girl dresses, and it made me cry, and it really hurt my feelings, Meghan Markle explained. "And I thought, in the context of everything else that was going on in those days leading to the wedding, that it didn't make sense to not be just doing whatever everyone else was doing, which was trying to be supportive, knowing what was going on with my dad and whatnot. Nevertheless, Meghan didnt deem it a confrontation. I dont think its fair to her to get into the details of that, because she apologised, Meghan concluded. By Joyce Lee and Ju-min Park North Korea's Kim Yo Jong accuses S.Korean leader of using tensions as political distraction SEOUL, - Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, accused South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol of generating tensions on the Korean peninsula to divert attention from problems at home, state media said on Monday. Tensions between the two Koreas are running high after Pyongyang signed a mutual defence pact with Russia and sent trash-filled balloons over to South Korea in response to South Korean activists' balloon launches with anti-North Korea leaflets. "Yoon and his group, plunged into the worst ruling crisis, are attempting an 'emergency escape' through the platform of ever-escalating tensions," Kim Yo Jong said, according to KCNA. She cited an online petition calling for Yoon to be impeached, with more than 1 million signatures. Seoul's unification ministry handling inter-Korean affairs expressed regret over Kim's remarks condemning Yoon. "The North Korean regime which...turns a blind eye to people's livelihoods and oppresses basic human rights should reflect on itself," Koo Byoung-sam, a spokesperson for the ministry, told a briefing. Kim Yo Jong also called South's recent firing drills near the border an "inexcusable and explicit provocation". The South Korean military resumed live-fire artillery drills near the western maritime border in late June, the first time since 2018. Last month, South Korea said it would suspend a military agreement signed with North Korea in 2018 aimed at easing tensions, in protest against North Korea's trash balloon launches. Kim said that in case North Korea judges its own sovereignty as violated, its armed forces will immediately carry out their duty according to the constitution. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Three Columbia University administrators have been removed from their positions following the revelation of text messages that allegedly included antisemitic tropes during a forum on Jewish issues in May. Columbia University said it has placed three administrators on leave while it investigates allegations that they exchanged unprofessional text messages while attending a panel discussion about antisemitism on campus. (AP Photo/Andres Kudacki, File)(AP) According to a letter sent by Columbia officials to the university community on Monday, these administrators remain employed by the university but are on indefinite leave and will not return to their previous roles. University officials face backlash for unacceptable and deeply upsetting comments Nemat Shafik, the president of Columbia University, condemned the sentiments expressed in the text messages as unacceptable and deeply upsetting. She stated that they showed a lack of seriousness about the concerns and experiences of the Jewish community and emphasized that the messages were "antithetical to our universitys values and standards." The incident gained attention after a conservative website published photos of the text messages about a month ago. This came amid ongoing unrest at Columbia over the war in Gaza, with pro-Palestinian demonstrations leading to arrests and the cancellation of the universitys main commencement ceremony due to security concerns. ALSO READ| Three Columbia University deans placed on leave over disparaging texts amid antisemitism panel The administrators involved are Cristen Kromm, formerly the dean of undergraduate student life; Matthew Patashnick, formerly the associate dean for student and family support; and Susan Chang-Kim, formerly the vice dean and chief administrative officer. They have not responded to requests for comment. Josef Sorett, the dean of Columbia College, also participated in the text exchange but will remain in his position. University Provost Angela V. Olinto stated, Dean Sorett and I will work together to mend relationships, repair trust, and rebuild accountability. Dr. Sorett acknowledged in a letter to the Columbia community that the texts suggested a dismissiveness regarding the impact of rising antisemitism and commitment to higher standards of professionalism. Columbia University announces anti-discrimination training amid 'Textgate' fallout Columbia University announced mandatory anti-discrimination training, including a focus on antisemitism, for all students, faculty, and staff starting this fall. This measure is part of the fallout from the incident, which some alumni have dubbed Textgate. The controversy originated from a panel discussion titled Jewish Life on Campus: Past, Present and Future, held on May 31 during Columbia's reunion weekend. In response to a panelists comments, Dr. Patashnick texted, "Huge fundraising potential," while Ms. Kromm sent vomit emojis. Dr. Sorett replied LMAO to a snarky remark by Ms. Chang-Kim about Mr. Cohen. ALSO READ| CDC warns new Covid variant KP.3 will continue increasing in US; Check symptoms The panel included Brian Cohen, the executive director of Columbia/Barnard Hillel, and David Schizer, the former dean of the law school and chair of the universitys antisemitism task force. The administrators were in the audience, and their text messages were photographed by a person sitting behind Ms. Chang-Kim. The Washington Free Beacon, a conservative website, later published these images. Biologists in Florida were amazed after a fish with an unusual crooked spine was caught. FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute recently published a photo of a biologist holding the fish. Unusual fish with crooked spine caught in Florida waters (FWC Fish and Wildlife Research Institute/Facebook) The fish was caught at Silver Glen Springs, which is an idyllic spring in Ocala National Forest. According to officials, it weighed 10.6 pounds and measured 2.7 feet long. The Facebook posts caption about the Crooked Gar reads, We got another interesting one for ya. Our biologists captured this longnose gar (Lepisosteus osseus) while conducting an electrofishing survey in Silver Glen Springs. Unlike the bull shark with a spinal deformity that we shared a few weeks ago, this fish likely got its interesting shape from a spinal injury at some point in its life. Still, the fish was 2.7 feet long and weighed over 10.6lbs! With their razor-sharp teeth and armor-like scales, longnose gar may look scary, but they are no threat to humans, and they play an important role as an apex predator in many of Floridas freshwater ecosystems, it adds. What is the longnose gar? According to Florida Museum of Natural History, these fish are distinctive for their elongated, torpedo-shaped bodies and their overly long snouts which are nearly twice the length of their heads and filled with a row of sharp teeth. Their scales are notably thick and overlapping. The website says that these fish are formidable ambush predators in the slow moving rivers, bayous and reservoirs of Eastern United States. They can manage to survive in low oxygen and higher salinity water compared to other fish due to their ability to gulp air whenever necessary. These fish are commercially fished for in Arkansas, and are viewed in some areas as a nuisance fish that eat sportfish. The website added that the longnose gar is an important apex predator in many ecosystems, and it is important in helping prevent other species from overpopulating habitats. A father-son trip may not happen as Prince William, and Prince George is not allowed to travel on the same plane. But why? Britain's Prince George, right, reacts as he watches the play with his father Prince William .(AP) There's a royal rule when Prince George will turn 12 in 2025, a royal travel rule will be enforced on him. There is an important royal custom in place to secure the future of the monarchy by restricting who can travel together on the same plane, per The Mirror UK. The rule has been there for decades. This kind of rule may be morbid but practical. At 10 years old, George is the eldest child of Prince William and Kate Middleton, and he is second in line to the British throne. His younger sister, Princess Charlotte, follows as third in the line of succession. Born on July 22, 2013, George will celebrate his 11th birthday this month. ALSO READ| Prince George set to make huge sacrifice to secure future of monarchy A decade old Royal Family's travel rule in play A longstanding royal rule restricts which members of the royal family can travel together on the same plane. Currently, Prince William, Prince George, and Princess Charlotte are permitted to travel together. However, this arrangement is expected to change when George turns 12 in July 2025. Graham Laurie, King Charles's former pilot, explained that this rule led to Prince William traveling separately from his father after turning 12 in 1994. Laurie recounted to OK!, We flew all four: the Prince, the Princess, Prince William and Prince Harry, up until Prince William was 12 years old. After that, he had to have a separate aircraft and we could only fly all four together when they were young with the written permission of Her Majesty. When William became 12, he would fly normally in a 125 from Northolt and we would fly the 146 out with the other three on. Royals and plane crash The rule serves to increase the level of security of the royal heirs. While it can be done with the consent of the monarch, such exceptions are frowned upon, mainly to avoid future crises of succession in the event of the monarchs death in a plane crash. Historically, three royals have perished in plane crashes: Prince Philip's sister, Princess Cecilie, in 1937; the late Queen's uncle, Prince George, Duke of Kent, in 1942; and her cousin, Prince William of Gloucester, in 1972. ALSO READ| Prince Harry knows Prince William would never forgive him for what he did Now it seems like Prince George will soon be required to fly on a different plane from Prince William, Kate Middleton, and his younger siblings, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. It remains possible that Prince William might fly separately, allowing George to travel with his mother and siblings. Plus, the arrangements could see the Prince of Wales travelling with either Charlotte or Louis, or both, while George flies with Kate. UNITED NATIONS Yemens Houthi rebels could free a political leader with ties to the internationally recognized government who has been detained for nearly a decade, under a preliminary prisoner swap deal announced by the United Nations on Monday. Yemen's Houthi rebels could free a rival political leader held incommunicado since 2015, UN says Mohamed Qahtan is the leader of the Sunni Islamist Islah party, which is aligned with the Saudi Arabia-backed government, and he has been held incommunicado by the Iranian-backed Houthis since 2015, the United Nations said. The office of U.N. special envoy Hans Grundberg convened a meeting in Oman with the International Committee of the Red Cross over the weekend to facilitate talks centered on a prisoner exchange, in accordance with the 2018 Stockholm Agreement, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The two Yemeni sides agreed to meet to discuss the final list of who will be released and the details of Qahtans release, Dujarric said, without providing details on the potential agreement. Qahtans release has been a point of contention for years, Dujarric said. In addition to Qahtan, the Houthi rebels have detained at least 45 Yemeni employees of U.N. agencies, diplomatic missions, private companies and other organizations. Grundberg urged the parties to agree on more releases and also repeated a demand for the immediate and unconditional release of U.N. personnel, aid workers and others detained in the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa who continue to be held incommunicado, Dujarric said. At a U.N. Security Council meeting Monday, U.S. deputy ambassador Stephanie Sullivan called for the detainees immediate release. The detention of U.N. and NGO staff directly and negatively affects the ability of these organizations to provide humanitarian aid, she said. Yemen has been engulfed in civil war since 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen and forced the internationally recognized government to flee from Sanaa. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of government forces, and in time the conflict turned into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The war has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the worlds worst humanitarian disasters. Since November, the Houthis have attacked shipping in nearby waters, saying they aim to pressure Israel to halt its war in Gaza. The Houthis have targeted more than 60 vessels with missiles and drones, killing a total of four sailors. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text. Former Trump administration hard-line anti-immigrant aide Stephen Miller has angrily denied any involvement with the controversial right-wing Project 2025 plan for America after he appeared in a promotional spot posted by Project 2025 and its creator the Heritage Foundation. Miller railed on Twitter at the Biden campaign, which revealed the spot, that its candidate has "pudding for brains" and that his part of the video was advice to students on skill-building and had nothing to do with Project 2025. "But keep hoaxing, losers," he added with the attitude for which he was infamous in the White House. The spot promotes Project 2025's "Presidential Administration Academy" for training future leaders. I know youre upset because your candidate has soft pudding for brains, but thats not a recruitment ad. A while back I made a video for students on how to build skills. I have never been involved with Project 2025, not one word. But keep hoaxing, losers. Hoaxes are all you have. https://t.co/FpVnIfYL0B Stephen Miller (@StephenM) July 6, 2024 The 887-page Project 2025 is intended to be executed under the next conservative president. It was created by the right-wing Heritage Foundation think tank with the participation of some 17 members of Trump's White House. It calls for several massive changes, including moving to quickly execute prisoners on death row, launching a further crackdown on the LGBTQ community and women's reproductive rights and the "elimination of the administrative state," including shutting down the federal Department of Education, which Trump has pitched at his rallies. As many as 50,000 federal workers would be classified as political appointees, fired, and replaced wit conservative loyalists under the plan. Like Miller, Trump insisted Friday that he has never had any involvement with Project 2025, nor knows "nothing about" it. Critics pointed out that he apparently knows enough about it to also object to some aspects of it, which he didn't detail. I know nothing about Project 2025. I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of the things theyre saying and some of the things theyre saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them. Donald Trump Donald J. Trump Posts From His Truth Social (@TrumpDailyPosts) July 5, 2024 "What is he talking about?" President Joe Biden asked on social media after Trump's claims. "Trump is lying about Project 2025. It's his people and his plan." Trump's project will "destroy America," said Biden, who's currently facing pressure to drop out of the presidential race over his disastrous June 27 debate performance. "If you don't believe me, google it." In a subsequent statement, Biden called Project 2025 "extreme and dangerous" and said it "should scare every single American." Two of three people listed as the team behind the manifesto are former Trump administration officials, as are the authors of many chapters. They include former trade adviser Peter Navarro, who's serving a four-month prison term for contempt of Congress in connection with the House select committee's investigation of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol by Trump supporters. Trump's campaign press secretary Karoline Leavitt also appears in the Project 2025 video with Miller, and has referred to the plan as "Trump's Project 2025." So, Trump has no idea his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, is moonlighting & did a promo for "Trumps Project 2025" that is promoted by his Super PAC. Dozens of Heritage Foundation employees went to work for his administration. They brag out Trump doing their bidding. pic.twitter.com/D8rziw3rZx Fly Sistah (@Fly_Sistah) July 5, 2024 Trump spoke out about Project 2025 shortly after controversial comments by Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts which appeared to threaten bloodshed if the left doesn't fall in line with a "second American Revolution" presaged in Project 2025 This revolution will only "remain bloodless if the left allows it to be," Roberts warned in an interview. "We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless, if the left allows it to be." ~ Kevin Roberts of the Heritage Foundation on July 2, 2024. Happy 4th! pic.twitter.com/K4RcU85a0u Christopher Tackett (cjtackett on ) (@cjtackett) July 4, 2024 Roberts also noted in a speech at a Trump rally in Nashville that the former president gets "full credit" for creating Project 2025 and will enact it if he wins the election. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg refused Sunday to comment on member nations' trust in President Joe Biden's fitness for the White House following his disastrous debate with Donald Trump, saying it wasn't appropriate for him to do so. "I just met President Biden in the Oval Office a couple of weeks ago," Stoltenberg said on "Face the Nation" on CBS News. "And that was a good and productive meeting where we prepared all the important decisions we'll make here on defense." When pressed on the issue again by host Robert Costa, he repeated: "We had a good, we had a productive, meeting. And of course, there is no way to make these big decisions ... without having a strong US leadership." Asked for a yes or no answer on NATO's trust in Biden, Stoltenberg deferred, saying he didn't want to become a "domestic debater." "I think it's important for NATO to stay out of that kind of domestic discussion," Stoltenberg explained. "They're of course important for the United States, but NATO should not be part of it," he added. NATO's 75th Summit is kicks off in Washington, D.C., Tuesday. Former NATO supreme allied commander Gen. Wesley Clark warned that member nations of the defense alliance are "very, very concerned" about continued U.S. commitment and Ukraine protection if Donald Trump wins the White House. They're particularly worried about "dangerous" talk from Trump indicating that his administration won't back up Ukraine in its war against the Russian invasion, or possibly any war in Europe, Clark said in a podcast for The Hill on Friday. "They don't trust him. They don't understand why he's saying this. They think it might have something to do with his relationship with [Russian President] Vladimir Putin," Clark said. "They're concerned, really worried, because, for us, NATO is an ocean away. For them, Russia is next door." NATO's 75th Summit kicks off Tueday in Washington, D.C. NATO Secretary General Jen Stoltenberg on "Face the Nation" on CBS News Sunday dodged questions about NATO members' trust in President Joe Biden's competence in the wake of his troubling debate with Donald Trump, saying he didn't want to get involved in domestic politics. Clark''s comments on Trump begn at 31:00 in the Hill podcast below: Hordes of French voters delivered a surprise defeat to the country's far right and gave leftist candidates the most seats in the National Assembly but not an outright majority, leading pollsters said Sunday. The projected results of the snap elections mean centrist President Emmanuel Macron has lost control of parliament and faces the prospect of a new prime minister opposed to most of his domestic policies, according to the Associated Press. Various polling organizations said the New Popular Front coalition which comprises hard leftists, Socialists and Greens normally at odds with each other would win 172 to 215 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, Reuters reported. Macron's centrist Together alliance was expected to place second, with 150 to 180 seats, followed by the far right National Rally party, with 115 to 155 seats. The pollsters' projections are generally reliable, Reuters said. Turnout for Sunday's second and final round of voting was remarkably high, with 59.7% of eligible voters arriving at the polls three hour before they closed, the most recorded at that time since 1981. The outcome marked a huge setback for the National Rally party, which was projected to easily place first before opposition deal-making led scores of leftist candidates to withdraw from their races. That forced head-to-head faceoffs between individual leftists and National Rally candidates, who failed to score a victory but still won more seats than their party has ever held. National Rally member Jordan Bardella, who was slated to become the country's youngest prime minister if his party won a majority, called the political machinations a "disgraceful alliance" that he said would paralyze the French government. "I say tonight with gravity that depriving millions of French people of the possibility of seeing their ideas brought to power will never be a viable destiny for France," the 28-year-old warned during a somber speech to supporters. Bardella also accused Macron, who called for the elections after his party was trounced last month during voting for the European Parliament, of "pushing France into uncertainty and instability." France Unbowed party founder Jean-Luc Melenchon, the most prominent leftist leader in the New Popular Front, called the results of the bitterlly fought elections an "immense relief for a majority of people in our country." In a statement, Marcon's office said he would wait before making any decisions on a new government and would ensure that the "sovereign choice of the French people will be respected." The new National Assembly is scheduled to convene on July 18, just days before the start of the Olympic Games in Paris. The sister of an Alabama man who vanished on July 4th and found dead two days later has revealed disturbing details about what she says were his boyfriend's bizarre behavior during the initial search. Deundray Cottrell, 31, was reported missing nearly two days before police discovered his body on July 6 in a Birmingham neighborhood, close to where he had disappeared. According to Alabama police, Julian Morris, 31, Cottrell's boyfriend, has been identified as a person of interest in his death. HELP LOCATE BPD needs your help locating Julian Taylor Morris in relation to the Missing Person Investigation / Death Investigation of Deundray Cottrell. Julian Morris 31 years old B/M 5'6" 160 Pounds pic.twitter.com/tRTJvIRU5W Bhampolice (@BhamPolice) July 6, 2024 Investigators believe that Morris was the last person to see Cottrell alive on July 4th, before his body was found several days later. Family members told Channel 2's Elizabeth Rawlins that they suspect they know what happened over the holiday weekend. Angelica Cottrell, the victim's sister said that Deundray's sister, told WSB-TV that "it was definitely confirmed today that my brother was murdered." She explained that her brother and Morris drove from Atlanta to Birmingham to celebrate the holiday with her and her family. "My children started to pop fireworks, and because my brother had his dog with him, he was gonna run into the house real quick and go and check on the dog," Angelica said. She stated that Morris was the one who alerted her to her brother's disappearance, claiming he had jumped off her patio balcony. "He told us that when he jumped, he bounced, got up, jumped the fence, and took off running," she said, adding that his reaction and behavior were very bizarre, notin, "While we looked, Julian didn't." "At one point when everybody was searching, Julian had fixed a plate and was sitting there eating, and he looked at me and said, Omg, the food is so good." Presuming that Morris might be withholding more than he was letting on, Angelica ordered him to leave and find somewhere else to stay. "Julian knows everything, and he made a point to keep reminding me throughout his rants that he was a marine," she said. The police are searching for Morris. There is currently a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to his arrest. President Biden has remained steadfast in his previously announced commitment to staying in the 2024 race with a firm letter to lawmakers despite mounting calls from within his own party to drop out. In a letter to Hill Democrats Monday morning, Biden doubled down, unequivocally stating he would continue on as the party's planned nominee. "I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," he wrote. Four senior Democrats spoke on a private call with Democratic leadership not even a full 24 hours before the president's statement, with claims Biden should step aside, according to Politico. As Congress returns from the July Fourth recess, Biden and his campaign have been working to play down lawmakers' concerns about his viability as a candidate following universally scathing criticism of his debate performance against Donald Trump. Lawmakers are not hiding their reservations as to whether Biden will be able to beat Trump come November or serve another four years in office. Several Democrats have publicly called on the president to step down, with those numbers only expected to rise. A Texas congressman and a representative from Maine became the first elected Democrats to call for President Biden to abandon his reelection bid. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, cited Biden's performance during the presidential debate. Later the same day, Representative Jared Golden of Maine publicly declared he had no confidence in Biden, also citing the President's 'poor performance' at the debate. The billionaire co-founder of LinkedIn has made a multi-million-dollar investment in the Smartmatic electronic voting company in part to help bolster its defamation lawsuit against Fox News over election fraud claims. "Smartmatic built a global business by using technology to better engage citizens, regardless of party or ideology, by making voting simple and trustworthy," new investor Reid Hoffman told The Washington Post in an article Monday. "After Donald Trump lost in 2020, however, Smartmatic became a target of the defamatory campaign to overturn his defeat." Hoffman adviser Dmitri Mehlhorn told the Post that the investment backs Hoffman's desire to "support the role of the legal system in arbitrating fact from fiction." This was a "way to provide capital that would allow the truth to be found in the courts," he told the newspaper. "This case is a great case," brought by a "great company," he added. In response to the investment boost and the ongoing battle with Fox, Smartmatic CEO Antonio Mugica boasted that the company's technology has been used to count 7 billion votes on 6 continents with "zero security breaches. Voters, candidates and election officials in all of those elections are watching to see if we still stand up for the truth against lies. Rest assured, we do," Mugica added. Smartmatic last year sued both Fox News and Newsmax over baseless claims of vote fraud, first launched by Donald Trump. The attack, backed by no evidence and driven by politics, has harmed the company, the suit charges. "They have no evidence to support their attacks on Smartmatic because there is no evidence. This campaign was designed to defame Smartmatic and undermine legitimately conducted elections," Mugica said when the suit was filed. Smartmatic last month subpoenaed four Fox Corporation board members for questioning in the ongoing suit. Another news operation that had been included in the Smartmatic suit, OAN, settled with the company earlier this year. Details of the settlement were not released. Voting machine company Dominion last year reached a massive $787.5 million settlement in its defamation action against Fox for touting election rigging claims that executives and news stars including Tucker Carlson and Sean Hannity knew to be false, revealed by communications obtained by Dominion. One Fox Corp. vice president called the vote rigging claims "MIND BLOWINGLY NUTS." Russia missile strikes against Ukraine damaged the main children's hospital in Kyiv and killed at least 36 people across the country on Monday during the deadliest wave of air attacks in months. The daylight attack on the Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital left parents dazed and sobbing as they held their babies outside, Reuters reported. "It was scary. I couldn't breathe, I was trying to cover (my baby). I was trying to cover him with this cloth so that he could breathe," Svitlana Kravchenko, 33, said. A photo posted on social media by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy showed a woman holding a bloody baby while apparently surrounded by hospital workers, including a man with blood on his face and neck. . , . . , , pic.twitter.com/YQ4NK2qUrA Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 During a news conference in Poland, where he and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a military pact, Zelenskyy vowed to strike back at Russia. "We will retaliate against these people, we will deliver a powerful response from our side to Russia, for sure. The question to our partners is: can they respond?" he said. The United Nations Security Council plans to meet Tuesday at the request of Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States, Reuters said, citing unidentified diplomats. Ukraine's prosecutor general said he discussed the attacks with International Criminal Court Prosecutor Karim Khan, and said his office would share evidence with the ICC. Russia's Defense Ministry, which has repeatedly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, acknowledged carrying out strikes against what it called defense industry targets and aviation bases in Ukraine, Reuters said. The death toll in Kyiv was 22, including two children, with 82 wounded during attacks that came two hours apart, Reuters said. Eleven people were killed and 64 wounded in the Dnipropetrovsk region and three were killed when missiles hit an industrial building in the eastern town of Pokrovsk. The Ukrainian government declared that Tuesday would be a national day of mourning for the victims. A video posted online showed a missile falling from the sky toward the children's hospital, followed by a large explosion, Reuters said. The Security Service of Ukraine identified the weapon as a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile and a Ukrainian air force spokesperson, Col. Yuri Ignat, said the missiles that struck Monday flew at extremely low altitudes. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Monday's attack was one of the largest of the war, with damage reported in seven districts across the city, and power company DTEK said three three electricity substations and networks were damaged. Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre sparred with reporters during a seemingly tense press briefing Monday as they grilled her over reports of a Parkinson's disease expert's numerous visits to The White House in the past year. Jean-Pierre grew visibly flustered while continuing to field questions on President Joe Biden's health and his mental fitness to serve a second term, following last month's debate fiasco now coupled with reports neurologist Dr. Kevin Cannard visited The White House eight times in eight months. Citing visitor logs, The New York Times reported Cannard, an expert in Parkinson's, paid monthly visits from July 2023 to March 2024, noting records of more recent visits, if any, would not be available till later this year. Jean-Pierre confirmed Biden has met with a neurologist three times over the past three years as part of his annual physical exams, however she would not verify the physician's name or details of the visits, citing security reasons. Her answers or lack thereof did not sit well with CBS News correspondent Ed O'Keefe, and he grew ostensibly agitated. His reaction prompted Jean-Pierre to verbally reprimand his "aggressive way" and demand from him "a little respect." "We're getting miffed around here about how information is shared with the press corps," O'Keefe shot back, accusing Jean-Pierre of having to "come back and clean up" her answers during press briefings. "It doesn't matter how hard you push me. It doesn't matter how angry you get with me," she scolded O'Keefe. "I'm not going to confirm a name. It doesn't matter if it's even in the log. I am not going to do that from here." "To give you some answers here has the President been treated for Parkinson's: no. Is he being treated for Parkinson's: no, he's not. Is he taking medication for Parkinson's: no," affirmed Jean-Pierre. "I will say, when the President gets knocked down, he gets back up. This is quintessential Joe Biden, and there are a long list of other congressional members who have shown their support for this President." Several Democratic politicians have called on Biden to quit his reelection campaign following his catastrophic debate performance in June, however in a letter to Democrats Monday, Biden vowed he remains "firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump." Fairmont Hotels & Resorts, a world-renowned luxury hotel brand within the Accor group, has partnered with SOL Properties, a leading developer in the UAE, to launch a standout private residence development, Fairmont Residences Solara Tower Dubai. Redefining luxury real estate in Downtown Dubai, the project is currently underway and is scheduled for completion by Q3 of 2027. Fairmont Residences Solara Tower Dubai combines Fairmont's distinguished brand standards and global reputation in luxury hospitality with SOL Properties' vast expertise in luxury real estate to establish new benchmarks in upscale urban living. The development will include meticulously designed spaces, blending elegance and timeless opulence. With a wide array of spacious layouts and custom amenities, these residences represent the pinnacle of luxury lifestyle for today and tomorrow, with expansive terraces offering breathtaking views of the Burj Khalifa and the exquisite Dubai Fountain. In response to the evolving demands of urban homeowners, the residential project promises a suite of premium amenities and services. Residence owners will have exclusive access to Fairmont's wide range of integrated amenities, which include gourmet restaurants, private swimming pool, fitness centre, spa and wellness centre, offering a resort-like experience within the confines of their own home. The project exemplifies the ongoing expansion and appeal of luxury living in Dubai, with the luxury residential real estate market projected to grow by more than 8 percent by 2029. Opening as the premiere luxury real estate in Downtown Dubai, Faimont Solara Tower reinforces Dubai's demand as a global destination, attracting high-net-worth individuals and investors seeking to diversify their portfolios with the city's strategic location and investor-friendly regulations. Fairmont Residences Solara Tower Dubai joins a portfolio of 16 Fairmont-branded residences, each a sanctuary with the luxury of Fairmont and the privacy of home, from Mayakoba in Mexico, Rabat and Marrakech in Morocco, to Los Angeles in the USA. Globally renowned for the brand's expertise in luxury residential, Fairmont has another 22 projects in the pipeline. The project is supported by Accor One Living, an industry-first platform focused on the design and operation of innovative mixed-use hospitality solutions for a new generation of investors and homeowners. Hotel website Hotels are set to easily rake in well over a billion dollars in taxpayer funds for turning their buildings into migrant shelters. Of the 193 migrant shelters being used by the city to house 65,300 individuals, 153 or nearly 80% are hotels, motels or inns, according to an internal document obtained by The Post. New York City is spending, on average, $160 per hotel room to house migrants, officials said, although some operators reportedly have banked more than $300 a night per room since migrants first began being bussed up from the southern border in spring 2022. The taxpayer tab for daily migrant shelter costs overall is $352 per household, according to the city. Through May 31, of the estimated $4.88 billion spent on the migrant crisis, $1.98 billion went toward housing, which includes the costs for hotels but also other shelters such as the sprawling tent cities at Floyd Bennett Field and Randalls Island, according to the Office of Management and Budget. Among the more staggering migrant shelter contracts is a $5.13 million-a-month deal between the 1,331-room Row NYC hotel in Midtown Manhattan and the citys Health + Hospitals agency, according to its June board of directors report. The Crowne Plaza JFK in South Jamaica, Queens, meanwhile, landed a $2 million a month deal for use of its 335 rooms, the report noted. Read the full article at nypost.com ROCKVILLE, Maryland Arch Amenities Group, a full-service, global provider of wellness, amenity management and meeting services for commercial and residential properties, hotels, private clubs and pools, today announced the appointment of travel and hospitality veteran Michael Leahy as chief financial officer. Michael Leahy is a resourceful finance and team leader with an analytical approach to problem-solving and the ability to effectively communicate and coordinate efforts across all levels of an organization to achieve key deliverables. He will support each of our businesses as a strong financial partner. Steven Rudnitsky, Arch chairman Leahy previously was senior vice president and head of finance, accounting, HR and IT for Kost Inc. /Go New York Tours Inc., where he managed a team of 12 professionals, supported the companys business leaders with decision-support analytics and led the financial data insight, forecasting and planning and analysis processes. From 2019 to 2020, he served American Express Global Business Travel as vice president of finance meetings and events & global supplier revenue, responsible for a global team of 70 finance and accounting professionals. He held several positions with Starwood Hotels & Resorts from 2000 to 2017, including vice president of finance & strategy central services, loyalty and partnerships. Leahy established MCL Partners LLC in 2017 to provide finance and accounting support to small and medium businesses. He is a certified public accountant and graduate of Iona University, New Rochelle, New York, where he earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree. From 2007 to 2018, he volunteered as treasurer and board member of MetroPool Inc., White Plains, New York. About Arch Amenities Group Arch Amenities Group, based in Rockville, Maryland, is a leading provider of amenity management, hospitality consulting and recruiting services for commercial and residential properties, hotels, spas, private clubs and pools. Arch provides preopening and sustaining strategy and support for leading wellness and amenity spaces in the United States and across the globe. Arch is a portfolio company of private equity firm CI Capital Partners. Rich Roberts RDR PR LLC 717-685-9003 View source During the second annual Sustainable Investing Forum, EHL Hospitality Business School hosted industry players to discuss the state of sustainable finance. A wide range of topics was addressed, and salient discussions centered on the reality of incorporating economic, social and governance (ESG) criteria into investment decisions. Industry players, including pension fund managers, academics and doctoral students, elucidated current issues surrounding ESG investing. The courts as a way to fight climate change The day-long event, held on June 10, was kicked off by two students pursuing their PhD. From EPFL, Alice Eliet-Doillet discussed her dissertation, which looks at the impact climate lawsuits have against firms. When litigation is brought against a firm, her research shows that sophisticated investors pick up on this information, and the firm makes subsequent changes to its corporate policies. This can include divesting assets that pollute, such as power plants. Lawsuits reveal, according to her findings, the climate risks to which a firm is exposed. However, only about 50 such cases have been brought before the courts in the United States since 2012. Is sustainable investing a mirage? For economists, public policy is the best way to resolve societal issues, such as climate change. This sacrosanct principle is taken for gospel, but Anna Vasileva, a PhD candidate at the University of Zurich, challenged the assertion that the rise of sustainable investing (SI) is unquestionably the best way to resolve climate change. Does SI crowd out support for individual political solutions and regulations? Her findings dispelled this notion: the option to invest climate-consciously does not crowd out individual political engagement or costly efforts to advance formal policy . It is notas SI is sometimes derideda dangerous placebo. The participants in the room would have more to say on that subject as the day progressed. Family firms pollute less Transitioning to the events academic session, Nicolas Eugster, currently with the University of Queensland but with roots in the University of Fribourg, examined the relationship between family firms and carbon emissions. He defines family firms as companies where the founder or a member of the founding family is either a director, an officer or a holder of more than 5% of the firms equity. He reminded participants that family firms account for half of global GDP and two-thirds of employment in the world. They also pollute less than other firms, indeed 10% less. This gap has widened since the 2015 Paris Climate Accord. Why? The papers conclusions were somewhatinconclusive. Governance structure (e.g., board characteristics) as well as Research and Development (e.g., green patents) seem to play a role. Dr. Eugster opened the floor to solicit ideas about what could be causing this relationship. M&A can stir stakeholder contention This years event perfectly reflected the linguistic balance in Switzerland. From the Universita della Svizzera Italiana, Ana Kurtanidze, examined stakeholder reactions to merger and acquisition decisions. When a firm takes over another firm, stakeholders are often harmed (e.g., layoffs, the value of investors holdings is watered down, etc.), and they sometimes speak out in the media or through boycotts, protests, etc. This often leads to broader scrutiny as the firms day-to-day operations are put under a microscope. This unwanted attention can lead to consequences that are far more serious than the initial issue (i.e., the hostile takeover). Her paper also cites examples of when a takeover is positively welcomed by the subsumed company and its employees. Pessimism reigns: Rosy ESG ratings, greenwashing, overcapitalization The Sustainable Investing Forum, organized by finance professors at the EHL Hospitality Business School, handed the floor to three keynote speakers, who struck a more negative tone with regard to SI. Dr. Laurent Fresard of the Universita della Svizzera Italiana asserted that green firms already receive sufficient volumes of capital and that more doesnt make them any greener. When the market reduces the cost of capital for green firms and increases that of brown firms, this creates a wedge or greenium. According to his research, a greenium (albeit a very small one) does indeed exist. However, investment managers do not perceive this greenium. Dr. Fresard cited the example of a classic capital allocation dilemma: renovating an old building or constructing a new, greener one. Installing a heat pump or double-glazing windows may not be as flashy (or marketable) as a new building, but it is more effective. He asked participants rhetorically: What is more important to firms: having an impact or patting themselves on the back? ESG isworse than doing nothing Dr. Kornelia Fabisik of the University of Bern added a Swiss German accent to the days proceedings. The title of her presentation was blunt: ESG ratings are worse than you think. Human beings, she stated, like easy solutions. ESG is an overly simplistic, one-size-fits-all solution to an extremely complex problem, she said. Listed companies can sell their emissions to private equity firms and thus boost their ESG scores in one particularly egregious example. Again, instead of closing their dirty assets, such as power plants, firms can merely sell them. This contributes to the ESG mirage. She cited the 11-15% drop in emissions after the 2015 Paris Agreement, but this was because of divestment, not cleaner business activities. Unlike the CDS market (credit default swap), there are no market-based consequences for erroneous ESG scores. Dr. Fabisik exclaimed: No one says, Hey! Those ESG scores were way off! There must be consequences! and the firm gets off scot-free. Better datasets, simplification of ESG criteria, and governmental regulations are some ways the ESG rating process could be improved, although it is a tricky situation , she admitted. Greenwashing is the new norm Hailing from the University of Lausanne, Dr. Garen Markarian, the most local of the presenters, sounded equally pessimistic as he enthusiastically launched into his presentation entitled Can we stop greenwashing? . He attacked the sources of the information that constitute ESG ratings, which include firms annual reports, less-than-thorough audits, etc. Moreover, when asked about their methodology or sources, ESG raters hide behind the cloak of corporate secrecy. Dr. Markarian went on to list particularly unsavory examples of corporate hypocrisy, including oil giants (BP, Exxon, etc.) that were forced to walk back climate pledges (e.g., zero carbon promises, etc.) after purchasing shale oil producers (i.e., frackers) for billions of dollars. To finish, he implored asset managers to be skeptical with regard to so-called audits that attest to corporate claims of being green. Finishing with wine Fear not! The daylong event finished on a high note. The guest speaker for the closing session was Matt Goldklang, a climate scientist at Man Group (an alternative asset management group), who joined the conference from New York City via Teams. His work consists in identifying areas around the world that are at risk of extreme weather events. A wine enthusiast, he has identified wine-producing regions, including northern Italy and wide swaths of France, that are particularly vulnerable to drought while others have higher adaptive capacity. Befitting a hospitality-oriented institution, the event concluded with a wine tasting where two reds from the same winery (in Switzerlands Valais canton) but from different vintages were tasted (the 2021, which was a cool and damp year, was pitted against the 2022, a hot and sunny growing season). Participants were asked which differences they could taste in the two vintages. As Mr. Goldklang said, Wine is a record keeper, memorializing time (i.e., weather conditions during a particular year) and space (i.e., a vineyards specific terroir). Both time and space are stored in the flavor of the wine. Held on EHLs Lausanne campus, the 2024 Sustainable Investing Forum was the perfect occasion for participants to take a day to have a frank discussion about the latest in responsible investing: what is working and, perhaps more importantly, what is not. EHL Hospitality Business School Communications Department +41 21 785 1354 EHL View source An interesting question raised by my industry friend Fabian Bartnick! Some in the industry believe that the era of the traditional comp sets are no longer relevant because of the rising hyper competition. Here is my take. I believe monitoring your traditional competitive set (comp set) still provides value, but you should broaden your horizon and acknowledge that there other forces at play here. Today, every hotel in the world has not one, but THREE categories of direct competitors that should be taken into account in your revenue management practices: Official Comp Set: This is your traditional comp set, included in the property's dSTAR Report by STR or rate shopping report by Fornova. These reports provide real value by benchmarking how well your property is performing against the official competition. Digital Comp Set: These are properties that dominate the search engine results pages (SERPs) on the search engines for keyword terms that are very relevant to your property's product. Your digital competitors are all the properties with comparable to your property core services and amenities that rank on top or above your property in the search engines. Most likely these properties are not part of your official comp set. Ex. Google: which are the hotels listed on page one of Googles SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages) when you search for your hotel category in your destination Ex. Boutique hotels in downtown Houston or 4-star hotels near Times Square Manhattan. The hotels listed there are your true digital comp set. Ultimately, travel consumers are the ones who decide who are your propertys true competitors; your comp set should not be decided arbitrarily by the owner or the GM. Since Google owns the Dreaming and Planning Phases of the Digital Customer Journey, and more recently is increasing very aggressively its presence in the Booking Phase, you are losing more potential guests to your digital competitors than to your dSTAR comp set. Vacation Rental Competitors: Today short-term rentals satisfy 1/4 of accommodation demand. In addition to monitoring and benchmarking your classic and digital competitors, you should monitor closely Airbnb's, Vrbo's and other vacation rental properties in your market. Research and identify the rental properties in your neighborhood, and what are their typical amenities and features. Introduce weekly and monthly rates for both rooms and suites. A weekly rate is NOT a daily rate multiplied by seven. A monthly rate is NOT a nightly rate multiplied by 30! Make sure that your CRS, WBE (Website Booking Engine) and Channel Manager can support weekly and monthly rates. Create an Airbnb product emphasizing the value and additional complimentary services guests will experience by booking the hotel at a comparable price, including free breakfast, connected rooms, parking, swimming pool, WiFi, luggage storage, etc. Max Starkov NYU View source The experts came together at Phocuswright Europe to talk about travel tech trends around the world, things like generative artificial intelligence, machine learning and the metaverse. So it might have seemed jarring when one of the panelists on Center Stage defined travel in terms that evoke photo prints taped into paper scrapbooks. It [travel] is a memory industry, proclaimed Wolfgang Krips, the senior vice president for corporate strategy at Amadeus IT Group. Were creating memories. But Krips wasnt looking back when Phocuswright managing director and co-moderator Pete Comeau asked panelists to share a tech trend that most excited them; Krips was looking ahead way ahead. The future of travel could be very much that you dont travel at all, and that you basically create only memories, Krips said. It would obviously be in the far future. It would solve a lot of problems with respect to sustainability and overtourism and stuff like that because you just dont go there. The line drew a wave of laughter across the auditorium in Barcelona, and Krips pressed on, warming to his role of provoking the audience of travel professionals to deeper thinking on the issue. Its a bit funny, he conceded, but if you think about it, during the pandemic, for instance, I interviewed a local city guide who did city tours in Madrid. And the guy said he did all of his tours virtually. So it is possible. Fellow panelist Karen Bolda, the senior vice president of product and technology at Expedia Group, doubted this was a future she could embrace. I would definitely say travel includes memories, but for me theres also that human interaction, that human touch, she said. I think every person I encounter, I encounter a part of their memories and a part of their background, and I think that changes me in a bigger way. Bolda also had the distant future in mind when she offered the tech trend that most excites her, one inspired by thoughts of her children and the need for sustainable travel. When you think about clean energy, more efficient jet fuel, all of these were going to keep traveling, obviously. We want to travel. Travel changes the world, she said. So how do we do that while also protecting the environment for our future, for our childrens future? And also, one thing I love about it is really immersing yourself and supporting local destinations, local travel and really having authentic experiences, and I think those go together well. The third panelist, Inaki Uriz, CEO at travel tech subscription specialist Caravelo, spoke of a greener future that still featured in-person travel so long as he doesnt have to drive himself. Im a big believer and Im really excited about autonomous vehicles, Uriz said. I think that has huge potential to change the way we not only travel but live, to be honest with you. Its going to change the relationship we have with property of cars and other things. Every single time I walk down the street and I see all those machines lining up just doing nothing all this waste, I think ideally, at some point, well get rid of. Theres a lot of room for making cities better, getting efficiencies. And I dont like driving, so I guess Im hoping this comes sooner rather than later. Every new piece of technology, it solves one problem and suddenly it uncovers or exposes a whole different set of problems that you wouldnt have imagined before. Karen Bolda - Expedia Group The conversation turned less speculative when co-moderator Siew Hoon Yeoh, founder of WebinTravel and editorial director of Northstar Travel Group Asia, pressed panelists to talk about the industrys biggest challenges. Uriz spoke of the difficulty of keeping up with new tech advancements, especially at a smaller startup. On the one hand, you have to go very fast, otherwise youre going to be left behind. If you dont jump on the AI revolution or whatever it is, others are going to overtake you, he said. Now, in parallel, you have to deliver good quality product, enterprise ready, very safe, very secure, very reliable. How do you make those two things work? Thats a challenge I think we all face. Krips pointed to harnessing data, especially customer content, within a swiftly changing regulatory environment. Part of my department is the corporate incubator, he said. We have one very, very promising initiative that completely fell flat on its face because we werent able to manage the customer content and everything that goes with it in order to make this whole stuff compliant. Bolda cited a mix of issues, starting with the dual-edged sword of new tech. Every new piece of technology, it solves one problem and suddenly it uncovers or exposes a whole different set of problems that you wouldnt have imagined before, she said. Things like security, privacy, government regulations. They didnt exist before. Its a new challenge. She was just warming up. Bolda said the cost of investing and implementing AI or machine learning initiatives is another consideration. A third? Customer expectations. The way that youre using a new technology, youve got to use it in a way so that youre helping to simplify the experience for your traveler, she said. Youre making it better and not making it more frustrating. And I think that can be a challenge because some people like more human interaction and some people like less. The panelists also discussed what tech trends they see as the most hyped and under-hyped; the potential for more airlines offering flight subscriptions; things humans do better than machines; the parts of their jobs they wish they could automate; and other problems they wish tech would solve. This article originally appeared on PhocusWire. Mariano Formariz - Image Credit Marriott Incoming General Manager, Food & Beverage Director and Executive Chef Announced to lead the property The San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino announced the appointment of a General Manager, Food & Beverage Director and Executive Chef to its leadership team. Mariano Formariz Appointed General Manager Mariano Formariz joins the San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino as the new General Manager. With an esteemed career spanning over 25 years, Mariano has demonstrated unparalleled dedication and passion for the hospitality sector with extensive leadership experience across multiple brands in Latin America. He began his journey with Marriott in 1998 and has since held significant roles including General Manager and Complex General Manager in his home country Argentina. Mariano's most recent role was Area General Manager for Peru, overseeing Sheraton Lima Historic Center, JW Lima, JW El Convento Cusco, and Courtyard Lima Miraflores. In his new role, Mariano will oversee the property's day-to-day operations and elevate the visitor experience, including staff management and deployment, strategic planning, budgeting, and sales and marketing for the resort. Javier Escola Named Food & Beverage Director Javier Escola assumes the position of Director of Food & Beverage at the San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino. With a strong focus on customer satisfaction and operational efficiency, Javier brings extensive experience from leading hospitality establishments around the world. Prior to joining the San Juan Marriott, Javier held the role of Director of Food & Beverage in a well-respected hotel in Qatar. He also served as Director of Food & Beverage at Sheraton La Caleta Resort & Spa in Tenerife, Spain. Romeo Penacino Appointed Executive Chef San Juan Marriott Resort & Stellaris Casino welcomes Romeo Penacino as Executive Chef, bringing over 20 years of culinary excellence and leadership in the hospitality industry. Romeo has a proven track record of enhancing revenue, driving profitability, and fostering employee engagement. His career spans across various esteemed establishments including the Grand Cayman Marriott Resort and Aruba Marriott Complex. What is the best way for guests to get from Cebu City Mactan Intl Airport to Castle Peak Hotel? Getting from Cebu City Mactan Intl Airport to Castle Peak Hotel can be as easy as renting a car at the airports rental desk for, on average, $27/day in Cebu City. Luckily, Castle Peak Hotel has parking on site for guests who choose this method of transportation. Taking a taxi or rideshare service from the nearest airport, Cebu City Mactan Intl Airport, to your hotel is often the most cost effective transportation solution. Four kittens born at the shelter that will be up for adoption once they're old enough. NORTH ADAMS, Mass. The nonprofit No Paws Left Behind animal shelter was overflowing visitors, balloons and donated supplies at Saturday's open house. North County's first animal shelter is operating out of the city's municipal shelter on Hodges Cross Road. "We're very excited for this to open," said Mayor Jennifer Macksey. "It's been a very underutilized space." The space office, supply room, kennels for cats and dogs and a secure transport entrance was created inside the Department of Public Service's building several years ago through a grant. The location was perfect for No Paws, a successor to the Eleanor Sonsini Animal Shelter in Pittsfield. Manager Noelle Howland had been in charge of Sonsini when it closed last summer and launched a fund drive to try to keep shelter open in some form. "I wanted it to be in North Adams," said Howland, who lives in the city. "I wanted to do that, this is the first shelter North Adams has had. ... "I feel like I waited so long for it to happen and then it came before I knew it and I was like, oh, we're doing it." The nonprofit is renting the space for a nominal fee of $200 a month and plus utilities. In return, it will handle any strays that are picked up by Police Officer Matthew Reynolds, the animal control officer, and will assist in the animals' care. The shelter doesn't open to the public for another week staff will be training this week and caring for any animals brought in by authorities but it already has some occupants. Several cats are in the quarantine room including a young mom who had four babies after being brought in. The open house was well attended with residents arriving to tour the facility and ask questions about its operation. The nonprofit was taking donations and also had a table of merchandise to raise funds. Naureen Collins arrived with a pile of dog beds to add to the bags and boxes of food, treats and litter. "I've been taking rescues in all my life and I've had dogs from huge to little tiny and I have a little tiny one now," she said. "So I had been saving all this stuff forever hoping that there would be some place up in Northern Berkshire that I could bring them and make use of them." Collins said another shelter has been desperately needed since Sonsini closed. "The Humane Society is great but it's far away and this is closer and it gives us an opportunity to help some more animals that are in need," she said. "I'm thrilled that this is here, because we need it. We need a place for the strays to go and for people to be able to not have to travel that far." Collins said her daughter is a dog lover, too, and is hoping to volunteer. Howland said the shelter is taking applications for volunteers and fosters "One of [the board members] is going to handle a lot of the volunteers for me," said Howland. "So she will make up the schedule for me so that way she takes off something on my plate." The shelter is only for cats and dogs but Howland says she will be prepared for limited emergency intakes of small animals through the police. Other animals or those from outside the state or region will not be accepted. Police will be in charge of returning strays to their owners; if no animal is claimed within 10 days, the shelter will take over and place them up for adoption. Howland said she has a good relationship with Berkshire Humane Society in Pittsfield (which had some representatives come to the open house) and will be working with Greylock Animal Hospital, which has some members on the shelter's board. The shelter will also be accepting more donations of litter, food (Purina Pro preferred) and treats. Also, said Howland, "a lot of cleaning supplies because we go through them like crazy." Donated items can be dropped at the shelter or donations can be made through the website . The shelter posted a list of what it can and can't accept. "We're very excited to partner with No Paws Left Behind because we need the support for the ACO to care for the animals we take," said the mayor. New Fairview Hospital Leadershp Announced GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. Berkshire Health Systems (BHS) has announced that Anthony Scibelli has been named a system vice president and the Chief Operating Officer of BHS's Fairview Hospital following a months-long, nation-wide search. Scibelli, currently the Vice President of Operations and Chief Administrative Officer at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, will begin his new leadership role at Fairview in early September. Emmett Schuster, Interim Vice President of Fairview, will be present to support the hospital during the transitional period. "Fairview Hospital plays an integral role in making South County a better, healthier place for all something we are very proud to support and celebrate," said Darlene Rodowicz, President and CEO of BHS. "It was important to our system that we appoint a thoughtful and dedicated leader who can guide our five-star Fairview Hospital during this pivotal time in healthcare, when we are facing ever-greater challenges and ever-greater opportunities." Alec Belman, MD, Chief of Staff at Fairview and member of the search committee explained, "Tony stood out among a competitive group of candidates, not only for his deep expertise in hospital operations and administration, but also for his collaborative and dynamic leadership style." Doreen Hutchinson, RN, Vice President and Chief Nurse at Fairview added, "We are thrilled that, with Tony, we have found a healthcare leader whose experience, knowledge, and skills are a perfect match for Fairview Hospital." For the past 10 years, Scibelli has served as Vice President of Operations and Chief Administrative Officer at Cooley Dickinson Health Care in Northampton. Previously, he held several senior leadership positions with Utica, NY-based Faxton-St. Luke's Healthcare, eventually becoming Senior Vice President of Human Resources, Support Services and Post-Acute Operations following a merger with Mohawk Valley Health Systems. "Fairview has an outstanding reputation as a hospital and as a community partner," said Scibelli. "I am excited to be joining such a dedicated team and look forward to working together to further enhance the important role that Fairview Hospital plays within the community's system of care." Scibelli earned a Master of Business Administration at SUNY University of Albany. He has a Master of Science in Training and Development from Lesley University in Cambridge, MA, and a bachelor's degree from Worcester State University. He serves as an adjunct instructor at Elms College. In the community, Scibelli is an active volunteer and board member with organizations including the Lighthouse School, the Franklin and Hampshire County Regional Employment Board, Greenfield Community College, and the Northampton Survival Center. iciHaiti - Mexico : A lottery ticket commemorates 95 years of diplomatic relations with Haiti The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Lottery unveiled the lottery ticket for draw #3935, which commemorates 95 years of diplomatic relations between Mexico and Haiti based on cooperation, humanitarian aid and socio-cultural exchanges. The unveiling of the note was chaired by the Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Latin America and the Caribbean, Imanol Belausteguigoitia Reyes who recalled that the first contact between Mexico and Haiti dates back to 1816, when General Francisco Javier Mina traveled to Haiti to discuss Mexican independence. Marco Antonio Mena, the Director of the National Lottery, said the lottery tickets commemorate important events in Mexican history. The design highlights the friendship between the two nations and is the work of a Haitian-Mexican family. IH/ iciHaiti iciHaiti - Humanitarian : 6 informal NGOs legally recognized The Ministry of Planning and External Cooperation, via its Directorate for Coordination of the Activities of Non-Governmental Organizations (DCAONG), proceeded to the official delivery of Joint Communiques to 6 NGOs which had been working in Haiti informally for several years. Recognized NGOs : "Annavan Ayiti"; Haiti 1; Panos Institute (PI); Center for Training and Research in Psycho-social Support (CEFRAPS); Center for Refuge and Development of Children of Haiti (CRDEH); Economic Search and Rescue (SAR-ESAR). In her speech Bernice Kavanagh, Director of the DCAONG expressed her gratitude to the leaders of these NGOs for their commitment alongside state authorities, aimed at improving the living conditions of the population. Wilfrid Trenqrd, Director General of the Ministry congratulated the representatives of the 6 organizations who respected the formalities provided for by the decree of September 14, 1989 governing the establishment, creation and operation of development aid organizations in Haiti. He encouraged these legally recognized development aid actors to work effectively to achieve their objectives in harmony with the State and to coordinate their actions with those of public authorities in order to provide lasting solutions to the priority needs of the population. NGO leaders expressed their satisfaction with the organization of this ceremony and promised to respect their commitments by scrupulously following the established regulations. IH/ iciHaiti 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 daughter of Nobel Laureate, Alice Munro, has revealed that she was sexually abused by her stepfather, and that the late author chose to stay with the perpetrator as she loved him too much. Munro published more than a dozen collections of short stories often set in her native Huron County in rural southwestern Ontario. Her stories explored complex human themes like desire, mother-daughter relationships and moral conflict. The writers daughter, Andrea Robin Skinner, said she was first sexually assaulted by Munros second husband Gerald Fremlin when she was aged nine, in a new essay for the Toronto Star. Fremlin, in his 50s at the time, climbed into Skinners bed while she was sleeping and continued to abuse her over the years and into her teens. He exposed himself during car rides, told Skinner about little girls in the neighbourhood he liked and candidly discussed her mothers sexual needs. She shared the incident with her stepbrother Andrew, and the news eventually reached her father James, who chose not to take any further action. Munro was seemingly unaware of the abuse or her husbands proclivities, until former friends of Fremlin told the author that he had exposed himself to their 14-year-old daughter. Skinner was 11 at the time, and Fremlin reassured Munro that her daughter was not his type. He proceeded to describe the current societal culture as prudish, even suggesting that it had been considered normal for children to learn about sex by engaging with sex with adults in the past. Munro is said not to have reacted at all. Meanwhile, her daughter, reeling from the effects of the abuse, went on to develop bulimia, insomnia and migraines and was forced to drop out of university as the condition took over her life. But finally, in her mid-20s, she was moved to share the truth with her mother after Munro appeared affected by a short story about a woman who commits suicide following sexual abuse by her stepfather. Why didnt she tell her mother? she asked me. A month later, inspired by her reaction to the story, I wrote her a letter finally telling her what had happened to me, wrote Skinner. An excerpt from the letter to her mother at the time reads, I have been carrying a secret for sixteen years. Gerry abused me sexually when I was nine-years-old when you were in China. When you told me about that story in Marine Life, I wanted to cry and hold you and thank you and TELL YOU. I have been afraid all my life that you would blame me for what happened. Munro is said to have stayed with her husband after the revelation ( PA ) However, Munro reacted exactly as I had feared she would, as if she had learned of an infidelity. Skinner continued, She called my sister Sheila, told her she was leaving Fremlin, and flew to her condo in Comox, BC. I visited her there and was overwhelmed by her sense of injury to herself. She believed my father had made us keep the secret in order to humiliate her. She then told me about other children Fremlin had friendships with, emphasising her own sense that she, personally, had been betrayed. Following the incident being made public, Fremlin is said to have threatened to kill her if she went to the police, and wrote letters to her family, blaming her for the abuse. Munro was renowned for her short story collections ( AFP via Getty Images ) He described my nine-year-old self as a homewrecker, and said my familys failure to intervene suggested they agreed with him, she continued. He said his stepdaughter had invaded my bedroom for sexual adventure and that her claim that she was scared was simply a lie. He is said to have written, Andrea has brought ruin to two people who love each other If the worst comes to worst I intend to go public. I will make available for publication a number of photographs, notably some taken at my cabin near Ottawa which are extremely eloquent one of Andrea in my underwear shorts Meanwhile, Skinner was left heartbroken by her mothers decision to stay with her husband. She said that she had been told too late, she loved him too much, and that our misogynistic culture was to blame if I expected her to deny her own needs, sacrifice for her children, and make up for the failings of men. She was adamant that whatever had happened was between me and my stepfather. It had nothing to do with her. An interview with Munro in the New York Times, in which Munro referred affectionately to her husband and her close relationship with her three daughters, pushed Skinner to report the incident to the police in 2005. Fremlin, 80, was charged with indecent assault against Skinner and pleaded guilty. He received a suspended sentence and two years probation. He was also ordered by the court to avoid any contact with children under the age of 14 for two years. Munro stayed with her partner until he died in 2013. She passed away earlier this year. I also wanted this story, my story, to become part of the stories people tell about my mother. I never wanted to see another interview, biography or event that didnt wrestle with the reality of what had happened to me, and with the fact that my mother, confronted with the truth of what had happened, chose to stay with, and protect, my abuser, wrote Skinner on her decision to speak out about the abuse. As for my relationship with my mother, I never reconciled with her. I made no demands on myself to mend things or forgive her. I grieved the loss of her, and that was an important part of my healing. If you are a child and you need help because something has happened to you, you can call the NSPCC free of charge on 0800 1111. You can also call the NSPCC if you are an adult and you are worried about a child, on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adults on 0808 801 0331. 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 Joe Biden has lost crucial support in the form of Hollywood star and Democratic donor Rob Reiner, who has urged him to step down from his presidential re-election bid. On Sunday (7 July), the director of films including Stand by Me, This is Spinal Tap and When Harry Met Sally shared his unexpected and candid view on the party leader, whose capability has been thrown into question in recent months. Biden is taking on Donald Trump in the 2024 US election and, despite multiple calls from party supporters, including Lost co-creator Damon Lindelof and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, to withdraw from the race, he has held firm in his belief he is the person to keep Trump from returning to office. However, 77-year-old Wolf of Wall Street actor Reiner, who has been a loyal Biden supporter until now, is unconvinced. The filmmaker wrote on social media that he believes Biden might be making a Trump victory inevitable. Reiner hosted a fundraising event for vice president Kamala Harris just days after Bidens rambling during a CNN debate with Trump led to widespread concern. He called on the president to stop f***ing around in a surprise statement on X/Twitter. Reiner wrote: If the Convicted Felon wins, we lose our Democracy. Joe Biden has effectively served US with honour, decency, and dignity. Its time for Joe Biden to step down. open image in gallery Rob Reiner no longer supports Joe Biden as president ( Getty Images ) Biden has brushed off concern over his debate performance, attributing the blame to exhaustion and telling Democrats he is in it to win it. Reports claim that Harris acknowledged at Reiners fundraiser that the debate was not Bidens finest hour, but pointed out that, regardless of peoples stance on the president, Trump remains a threat to our democracy. In June, late night host John Oliver explained why a second presidential term for Trump would be far, far worse than his first. Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days New subscribers only. 8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled Try for free open image in gallery Rob Reiner has called upon Joe Biden to step down as president ( X/Twitter ) As evidence, the Last Week Tonight presenter highlighted Project 2025, which is a blueprint for Trumps presidency spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation and Trumps former aides and allies. The movement is essentially a wishlist for his administration with plans to expand his executive authority and replace civil servants with ideologically aligned appointees. As reported by The Independent, it would also give Trump unprecedented executive authority over federal agencies and open the door for Trump loyalists to weaponise the government against his rivals. Oliver described the blueprint as a conservative LinkedIn, stating: Its essentially an open audition for people who might want a new job because they lost their old one on January 6 for some reason in reference to the attack on the Capitol building conducted by Trump supporters in 2021. 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 Jonathan Jacob Meijer says he didnt mean to become The Man with 1000 Kids. For a start, the Dutch sperm donor at the centre of Netflixs unsettling new three-part docuseries disputes the figure in the title, claiming the real number of donor children hes helped bring into the world is closer to 600. In the show, the 42-year-old former high school teacher and Crypto trader is portrayed as a zealot determined to spread his seed as far and wide as possible. Mothers from all over the world, who have been having his children since 2007, speak out against him. I never had the idea to have 100 children or 500 children, he tells me, speaking down the line from the Netherlands. It happened step by step. Many donors want to be in the news, but for me if nobody knew about me that would be absolutely fine. Now they do know about me, so I want to explain my side of the story. Meijers journey to become one of the worlds most prolific sperm donors began when he was at college, where he got talking to a friend who was unable to have children of his own. He was the first person to put the idea of sperm donation in my mind, recalls Meijer. A period of introspection followed, as he weighed up how becoming a donor could change his life. A year later in 2007, aged 25, he signed up at a sperm bank. At first it was really great, he remembers. I knew that the people who got my sample would be super happy, and theyd create a family. Thats something meaningful and real. As he became more at ease with the idea of being a donor, he began to see it as a shame that he had to remain anonymous. I thought it was a pity I couldnt meet people and see the smiles on their faces, he says. Then I read about websites where you could donate privately, and I realised it was something I wanted to do as well. It felt more complete to me. He posted adverts with photographs showing off his long, blonde hair, on Dutch websites where women sought out sperm donors, explaining who he was and his motivations. Right from the start, he says the response was overwhelming. From the moment I put up the advertisement, an hour later there were four or five emails already. That would go on the whole day, he explains. People think I had this plan from the start, but I thought Id maybe help one or two people. Instead, he says he found himself filtering through masses of responses. I know people think Im crazy and that I help too much, but in my opinion I was super selective, he says. People really dont understand the shortage of donors. Soon he was paying private visits to women all over the country, then the world. Many were in lesbian relationships, or single, or in a relationship with an infertile partner. Typically he would provide sperm donations in a plastic cup, although sometimes he had sex with the women himself. He didnt ask for payment beyond asking that his travel expenses be covered, and after he stopped donating at clinics he would also ask recipients to cover the cost of his STD tests. He acknowledges that it didnt take long before he was hooked on the feeling helping create families gave him. Sometimes I would think: Its a lot [of children], maybe you should stop but then Id get a new message saying: Wow, you are really the donor weve been looking for, he says. I found it hard to say no. Youre the guy that comes along with the winning lottery ticket, thats the feeling you bring these people. Its something magical. Meijer may have started with the best of intentions, but as the number of his donations ballooned he began lying to potential new recipients about the full extent of his offspring. Natalie, a lesbian mother who has a donor son with Meijer, told The Independent that he informed her in 2010 that he wanted to help five families, and that I would be number three. She later learned the true figure was much higher, and similar stories are told by several other mothers in The Man with 1000 Kids. When I press him about misleading these women, Meijer grows evasive. Sometimes I think I got too carried away, he says. I should have told myself that [a smaller number of children] is fine. It would be best if I had been open, but I chose to follow the international guidelines. He argues unconvincingly that his actions were no worse than the rules in place at commercial donor operations. At the big sperm banks like Cryos, their guideline is not to inform the recipient about the amount of times one donor has been used, he says. I decided for myself that if the clinics are not informing the parents then I wouldnt either, but I understand why people feel like it wasnt the best approach. open image in gallery Donor mothers Suzanne and Natalie appearing in Netflixs The Man with 1000 Kids' ( Netflix ) Meijers deceptiveness could be seriously dangerous due to the risks of psychological distress, incest or inbreeding between half-siblings who have no idea theyre related. In 2017, these fears led the Dutch Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecology to blacklist him as a donor after learning he had fathered at least 102 children via multiple Dutch clinics. That was in breach of guidelines in the Netherlands stipulating that sperm donors should not father more than 25 children. Other countries have their own rules: the UK cap is 10 families (of unlimited children), while in Germany the limit is 15 children. There is little overarching international regulation. Meijer says he accepts that inbreeding is a concern, but believes his critics are over-exaggerating the likelihood. It comes down to if [my donor children] would run into somebody that they dont know, and they can always ask, he says. All the children know that theyre from a donor and they know my name. Its a little thing that they have to be aware of. Are you from a donor, and is your donor Jonathan? 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 He says he stopped donating sperm to new recipients, of his own volition, in 2019. He came to the decision, in part, because he wants to focus on having children of his own. Four years later, a Dutch court ordered him to stop donating sperm, destroy any held by clinics and imposed a 100,000 fine for any future infraction, although it makes allowance for mothers who want biological siblings for their donor kids. I respect the verdict, says Meijer. I will definitely sue the hell out of the whole Netflix crew Meijer says he declined to participate in The Man with 1000 Kids because its not in the best interest of the donor children. I think its really capitalising on these families, who were infertile or just wanted to have families, he says. Theyre good people, lovely people, and now people will ask them: Oh, is your child one from the 1,000 donor doc? Is the doc going to do any good for the children? He hasnt yet seen the series, and denies several of the major accusations levelled against him when I put them to him. He says he never competed with fellow donors over who could get the most people pregnant, claiming he had never even shared the number of children he has with anyone. He outright denies perhaps the most shocking accusation in the series, that he and another donor named Leon mixed their sperm together before giving it to a recipient in order to see whose would win. Is that in the documentary? he asks incredulously. No, thats total slander. Its insane. Why would I do that? Why should anyone do that? If its in the documentary, be prepared, I will definitely sue the hell out of the whole Netflix crew. He also denies donating to a sperm bank in Kenya, or posting on donor groups as the Lion of Mombasa. I dont have contact with these guys, he says. I dont want anything to do with these idiots. When I ask him about the donor named Anthony who wrote that he wanted to donate sperm in Kenya in order to bleach Africa, hes outraged. Thats just disgusting, says Meijer. I distance myself a million miles from this guy. Hes horrible. Ive heard that these right-wing guys want to spread the white gene or something, all this crap. open image in gallery Jonathan Jacob Meijer: I assume [my family] think: Okay, you could have stopped way earlier!' ( Jonathan Jacob Meijer ) Meijer maintains that his motivations couldnt be further from that. People can think about me what they want, and maybe I didnt do everything perfect. I agree, I could have been better, but theres also a reality to consider, he says. If you look at Cryos, theres only 200 active donors for the whole world. The demand is only increasing. They should make it easier for a man to become a donor, instead of saying you need to be ashamed. Until there are more male donors to go around, its almost inevitable that demand will drive ever larger biological families. People say that I have a lot [of children], and I say: But look around. Would your brother be a donor, or your husband? They say no, of course he would not! Well thats why donors help so much. Meijer knows what its like to grow up in a big family, at least by conventional standards. He is one of eight siblings, so I cant help but wonder how they and his parents all felt when they heard about their massively overgrown family tree. I hear Meijer inhale sharply. Thats a difficult question! He says. I think some find it very difficult. Others think: OK, you did something great. I have to say, this was the hardest thing for me to decide. They also become sort of grandfathers, grandmothers, uncles, aunties. I also changed their lives. Did they struggle to get their heads around the numbers? Yeah, he says. I assume they also think: OK, you could have stopped way earlier! Today, Meijers eldest donor children are 17 years old, finishing high school and going off to university. His youngest are barely out of nappies. It was good that I stopped in 2019, definitely, he says. It was, in my opinion, a bit late, but it was hard to stop. He knows that hes been portrayed as a man addicted to having children, but he insists thats not true. I dont think addiction is a good word for it, but if I was addicted to anything it was to being valuable to people and having a great time with them, he says. Now, looking back, I can say that I should have set more boundaries for myself, and realised when I was reaching my limits. I shouldnt have waited until people started to scream and shout at me. The Man with 1000 Kids is available to stream on Netflix If youre travelling abroad and want to stream The Man with 1000 Kids then you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN roundup is here to help: get the best VPN deals on the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider. Close The Bachelorette Season 21 trailer 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 Season 21 of The Bachelorette gets underway tonight with ex-Bachelor contestant Jenn Tran in the drivers seat. Once again hosted by Jesse Palmer, episode one will unfold at a new mansion as Jenn meets the 25 men who will fight for her attention over the next 10 weeks. According to an official logline, this latest season will see the Bachelorette and her suitors travel to Australia, New Zealand and beyond. Jenn was announced as the first-ever Asian American lead of the popular ABC dating series in March following her elimination from Joey Graziadeis season of The Bachelor. The 26-year-old physician assistant student based in Miami competed against a record-breaking number of 32 women for Graziadeis heart, making it to episode seven before being eliminated. Tran is a sweet and compassionate woman who has dedicated her life to helping others, her official Bachelorette bio states. When shes not studying, the 26-year-old fan favorite loves reading, paddleboarding and traveling whenever she has the chance. Season 21 of The Bachelorette premieres tonight on ABC at 8pm ET, with new episodes airing weekly. You can watch episodes the next day on Hulu. 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 Great British Bake Off has paid tribute to contestant Dawn Hollyoak who died peacefully aged 61, according to an announcement on Saturday (6 July). The news was shared via her Instagram account. A baker from Bedfordshire, Hollyoak had been working as an IT manager before joining the BBC competitions 2022 series. She appeared in seven episodes of season 13, and made it through till the sixth round. Its with a heavy heart we announce the passing of our star baker Dawn, began the post, which announced the news of her death. Not only a wonderfully talented baker but first and foremost an amazing mother, grandmother, wife and friend, it continued. Dawn passed away peacefully surrounded by her family. We will miss her forever, but promise to continue her baking legacy! GBBO paid tribute to Hollyoak, as the official social media account shared a picture of the baker, alongside a caption, We are deeply saddened by the passing of Dawn Hollyoak. Dawn brought so much joy and beautiful baking to the Tent in 2022. Our condolences go out to her family and friends. Dawns daughter, Belinda, commented on the post thanking the show. open image in gallery Hollyoak died peacefully surrounded by loved ones ( Instagram/@thebakerdawn ) Thank you for giving our wonderful mum the opportunity of a lifetime, she wrote. We were able to share our mum with the world. She was simply the best. Dr Rahul Mandal, who won the show in 2018, shared his condolences as he wrote: It is so heartbreaking to hear it. Dawn was amazing and will be in our heart always. Sending lots of love to Dawns family. 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 People shared their sympathies in the comment section of the post, including Carole Edwards, who was a fellow contestant on the same series. I will miss my friend terribly, a beautiful and talented lady inside and out, fly high my friend, life just wont be the same to you, she wrote. Sending all my love to the family. Xx. Judge Paul Hollywood was also among the many people to comment. The longtime baking judge added: Im so sorry to hear that, send my love to the family a lovely lady x. One fan wrote, Oh Im devastated to hear this. We just rewatched this season a few weeks ago and I was particularly touched by Dawns enduring spirit, resilience, humor, and zest for life. My love to her family and friends. Thank you so much for sharing her with all of us. 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 Aircraft arriving at Delhis main airport swallow large quantities of dust, which may accumulate over time and put their engines at serious risk of wear and tear, a new study has warned. The research, which is yet to be peer-reviewed, suggests moving more flights at the Indira Gandhi International Airport to a night-time schedule to reduce engine dust ingestion by about a third. Dust and sand are dangerous to aircraft because dust melts to form glassy deposits on blades or hard mineral crusts inside engines. The crusts disrupt airflow and cause overheating resulting in accelerated engine wear, Claire Ryder, the lead author of the study from the University of Reading in the UK, said. Although the amount of dust ingested per flight is not huge, the amounts quickly add up. A plane consuming five grams of dust per arrival and departure will eat 10kg of dust over 1,000 flights. Researchers analysed about two decades of satellite and atmospheric data to calculate the dust ingested by planes at some of the worlds busiest airports. The study, to be published this week in the journal Natural Hazards, reveals that the largest quantities of dust are ingested by planes at airports close to the Sahara desert and in the Middle East and north India during dust storms. Atmospheric mineral dust aerosol constitutes a threat to aircraft engines from deterioration of internal components, scientists warned. Delhi airport roof collapses killing one and injuring eight Aircraft landing in Delhi during summer ingest the most dust, gathering an average of 6.6g per arrival and over 4g on departure, according to the study. This is followed by flights landing in Nigers Niamey at 4.7g per arrival and in Dubai at 4.3g. Researchers also found that aircraft tend to ingest more dust as they hover above these airports waiting for permission to land. Waiting to land for 10-15 minutes at a one-kilometre altitude can lead to more dust ingestion than during the take-off and climb phases of a flight, researchers said. open image in gallery Aircraft line up to take off during heavy air pollution at the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi on 27 October 2023 ( AFP via Getty ) At the Delhi airport during summer, holding at 1km altitude contributes 50 per cent of total dust ingestion, researchers found. Shifting flight landing at Delhi and Dubai to nighttime can reduce engine dust ingestion by nearly a third. Researchers predict that climate change may lead to an even dustier world as temperatures rise and deserts expand. But current climate models do not provide a consensus on this as dust emissions depend on several factors, including rainfall, soil moisture, surface wind patterns, and vegetation cover. Somwati Devi, 60, wanted prosperity for her family: jobs for her four sons and good marriage prospects for her daughters. With her husband unemployed and unable to lift them out of poverty, she became a devotee of Bhole Baba in the hope of divine intervention. But on 2 July, she was one of 121 people killed in a stampede at a prayer meeting organised by spiritual leader, who reinvented himself as a religious figure after retiring as a police constable. Her blind faith has killed her, her son Brijesh Kumar, 32, tells The Independent. She just wanted some stability and success for all of her eight children. Ravi Kumar, 30, saw how the disaster began after dropping off his uncle at the gathering in Hathras, in northern Indias most populous state of Uttar Pradesh. After the congregation was over, people ran after him (Bhole Baba) to collect the soil that his feet touched in the hope that their fortunes might change, he tells The Independent. Since there was rainfall, people slipped on top of each other, he says. It resulted in one of the deadliest stampedes the country has seen. open image in gallery The site of the gathering in Phulrai village in Hathras where the stampede took place, killing over 120 people ( Namita Singh/The Independent ) Speaking from his home in Patiali, a village in Hathras not far from the scene of the stampede, Brijesh Kumar describes the moment he found out about the unfolding tragedy. I received a call saying that my mother is unconscious but she is breathing, Kumar says. But someone else snatched the phone saying she is dead. As soon as I heard, I left for the hospital in Etah (district), where I was told she had passed away. But I was not allowed to touch her, see whether she had a slow beating heart, or if she had a pulse. She was put in a room with 20-25 dead people. I dont even know whether she was alive when I reached there or if she was left to die with others. We have not been given any reason for how she died, even though they have done the post-mortem, Kumar says. He holds the state administration, the organisers of the event, and the self-styled godman responsible for the stampede. open image in gallery Brijesh Kumar, 32, claims his mother was alive after the stampede ( Namita Singh/ The Independent ) What kind of religious preacher is he, if he could not prevent the stampede and on top of that ran from the spot, asks Brijesh Kumars sister, Mangesh Bhoj, 40. He should have shown his power. Then was the time. Police say the organisers had permission for a gathering of 80,000 people but around 250,000 turned up. Why were additional forces not called when the number of people crossed the limit? Why was there no first aid? Why were there no ambulances in place? Many could have been saved, says Kumars brother-in-law Vikram Bhoj, as he calls for police to take action against those involved in organising the gathering. There were just 40 police personnel at the site, he alleges, as he asks: Do you think it is enough to manage a crowd of 250,000 people? The Independent approached the Hathras police headquarters but was told that the officer in charge of the investigation was not available for interview. Bhole Baba has not been arrested, and could not be reached by The Independent prior to publication. Police have detained six of his aides involved in organising the event, and a man described as the main organiser surrendered to police. I have faith that anyone who created the chaos will not be spared, said Bhole Baba in a statement to news agency ANI, as he blamed the stampede on anti-social elements. open image in gallery Hari Om, 53, at the Bhole Baba Ashram in Patiali ( Namita Singh/ The Independent ) A three-member judicial commission team has been formed to investigate any administrative lapses that may have contributed to the tragedy. In the initial days of his rise to fame, Bhole Baba claimed he could bring the dead back to life and even tried to take away the body of a 16-year-old girl from a crematorium, promising a miracle for her family, police told Reuters. Authorities intervened and the matter was closed. Born Suraj Pal, Bhole Baba whose name loosely translates to innocent spiritual guide has unexplained wealth, including a sprawling network of 24 ashrams, a fleet of luxury cars and assets, which are estimated to cost at least Rs1bn (93m). His empire is overseen by Shri Narayan Hari Sakar Charitable Trust, reported the Hindustan Times, citing police sources. He maintains a significant following despite reports that he left the police due to a 1997 allegation of sexual assault. News channel NDTV reported that the case saw him serve jail time, after which he reinvented himself as a spiritual leader. He has denied being fired from the police, and tells his supporters he took voluntary retirement. open image in gallery Vinod Kumars family cremating his wife and mother, after they died in the stampede. The daughter was buried, as per tradition for underage girls in their community ( Supplied by Vinod Kumars family ) Usually appearing clad in a white three-piece suit, tie, and fashionable glasses, Bhole Babas appearance means he stands out among a sea of preachers in Indias crowded divinity scene. The case against him is fake, says one of his followers, speaking close to his ashram in Patiali. Hari Om, 53, lives in Bhole Babas ashram along with 25 other people, spread over hundreds of acres. I became his devotee about 12 years ago, Mr Om says. There are seven to eight rooms on one side where the ashram residents live, while there are several handpumps on the other side, where devotees and aides bathe. The ashram is otherwise relatively empty, and devoid of modern day conveniences. In the verandah are pineapple, lemon and mango trees some bearing fruit. There is not a single picture of Bhole Baba in the ashram, but his name flashes in red on a hoarding hanging on a school building, which Mr Om says is run by a charitable trust. open image in gallery A portrait of former police constable-turned-Hindu preacher Bhole Baba is displayed on the terrace of his ashram at Bichhawan village in Mainpuri district, in Indias Uttar Pradesh state on 4 July 2024 ( AFP via Getty Images ) We were facing issues, says Mr Om, speaking of how his family came to follow the preacher. With a little prodding, he elaborates, Demons and ghosts used to possess my children. We went to different religious gurus but nothing could be done. But since the time I became his devotee, my children have been doing well, they are all educated, are married and have jobs, he says. On being asked if he ever went to a doctor to get the children checked for medical issues, he says: Doctors can only treat diseases, not paranormal activities. But when we took our children to other gurus, they just took money and we were never cured. Karishma Rajkumar, 24, lives close to the ashram in Patiali and says she has been associated with the preacher since birth. We are leading a fine life and are healthy and hearty, she says, attributing this to Bhloe Babas influence. On being asked if she holds him responsible for the stampede, she says, How is it Bhole Babas fault? He wanted the congregation of only 80,000 people. If thrice the number come and participate, such a thing will happen. How is he responsible for this? open image in gallery Devotees of Bhole Baba waiting around his ashram in Patiali ( Namita Singh/ The Independent ) Ravi Kumar, the stampede witness, tells The Independent: The poor people, who seldom have luck in their favour and often struggle because of government apathy, are of the belief that Bhole Baba could help alleviate their pain. You cannot blame them for hoping that their life condition might improve or diseases might go away, he says. Vinod Singh lost his daughter, wife and mother to the stampede, and says he blames Bhole Baba for what happened to his family. The 45-year-old from Sokhna village had to cremate eight-year-old Bhoomi, his 40-year-old wife Raj Kumari and his 70-year-old mother Jaimanti Devi all in one day last Wednesday. open image in gallery Vinod Singh, lost his daughter, wife and mother in the stampede in Hathras on 2 July ( Namita Singh/ The Independent ) They had all gone to attend the Satsang religious congregation addressed by the preacher. During the stampede, the three of them got separated. Singh was about 175km away in Bareilly on a job hunt when the stampede happened, and he received a phone call from home. He made his way back as fast as he could, but his younger brother ran straight to the scene and was able to find the body of Bhoomi, who was being put in an ambulance. She was dead, Singh recalls tearfully. The family had no idea what happened to his mother until midnight, when a neighbour admitted to a different hospital in the city of Agra spotted spotted her body being carried away, confirming the familys worst fears. Our home is destroyed now. There is no one left. My daughter, wife and mother are all gone now. I do not know what to do. In one day I had to cremate three pieces of my heart. I say that such a congregation should be shut down altogether. They are so poorly organised. If it can happen at our house, to us, then it can happen to anyone else. 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 Modi has arrived in Russia for his first one-to-one summit with Vladimir Putin since the Russian leader launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It is a hugely symbolic choice of destination for Modis first bilateral visit since being sworn in for his third term as prime minister, and one that the Kremlin has gloated about as making the West jealous. Modi is also breaking away from a tradition that normally sees Indian prime ministers start their term with a first visit to neighbouring South Asian countries like Sri Lanka, the Maldives or Bhutan. And it reflects Indias growing confidence in its ability to play both sides in the East-West divide that has grown dramatically since Russia began waging war on Ukraine. Modi will follow up his visit to Moscow with one to Austria, which has backed Ukraines bid to join the EU and provided it hundreds of millions of euros in humanitarian aid. Putin and Modi were scheduled to hold informal talks over dinner on Monday night before a day of meetings on Tuesday. Indias foreign ministry said they would discuss the multiple geopolitical challenges that the world has been facing, and that the visit showed the two countries continue to enjoy resilient ties. Embarking on the plane to Russia on Monday, Modi said he will review all aspects of bilateral cooperation with Mr Putin and seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. open image in gallery File Russian president Vladimir Putin, right, and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi pose for a photo shaking hands prior to their talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on 16 September 2022. ( AP ) Putin, who is making a concerted effort to showcase the support of his allies to legitimise his war and counter Western efforts to cast him as a pariah on the international stage, said no topics will be off limits between the two leaders, according to the Kremlin. The Indian government has neither condemned nor condoned Russias invasion of Ukraine, and while Modi made his first foreign trip of his third term to join the G7 in Italy last month, he then skipped a Western-led Ukraine peace summit hosted by Switzerland. India was represented at those talks by its ambassador and did not sign a joint communique at the end of the meeting, insisting that Russia must be involved in negotiations. Harsh V Pant, professor of international relations at Kings College London, tells The Independent that a Putin-Modi meeting was long overdue given the way geopolitical tectonic plates are shifting as a result of Ukraine. There is a rich history to India-Russia relations, with Delhi having relied heavily on Moscow for arms imports for many decades. Since the Ukraine war began India has also bought huge volumes of cheap Russian oil after the US and European countries imposed sanctions, helping Putin fill his war chest. open image in gallery Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky (C-L) meeting Modi during a bilateral meeting in Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy, 14 June 2024 ( EPA ) Yet India has been uncomfortable with how close Putin has drawn to China, its major Asian rival with whom it has frosty border relations. And India has also been forced to diversify away from Russian arms given Moscows military commitments in Ukraine, buying more from the US, Israel, France and Italy. These talks will be about how to build the India-Russia relationship as, whatever it might seem from the outside, it is not as healthy as it seems, says Pant. It is a new world. India does not have a very robust economic partnership with Russia. So of course the strategic realities are changing. India would like to understand and engage with Russia on its own terms. With this trip, India is sending a clear signal to the US that it will hedge its bets on defence purchases, just as the US is doing by once again opening the doors to China. The [potential] gains for India from this summit are significant in comparison to [those for] Russia, Dr Rafiq Dossani, a senior economist at the Rand Corporation think-tank, tells The Independent. By properly playing its hand, it can position itself as a power worth more than China, whose relations with Europe have taken a beating because of its stance. This can allow India to be the prime broker of a peace in Ukraine down the road, he says. India will also seek to maintain its steady supply of Russian energy as it seeks to pivot from its dependency on the volatile Middle East market and other sources like Venezuela, he says. Analysts say India will also seek reassurances when it comes to arms cooperation, with Indias military still operating with large volumes of Russian hardware. Defence cooperation will clearly be a priority area, says Chietigj Bajpaee, senior South Asia research fellow at Chatham House. Weve seen some delay in the deliveries of spare parts ... following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he said. I believe both countries are due to conclude a military logistics agreement, which would pave the way for more defence exchanges. For Russia, the optics of the visit are likely to be more important than any tangible outcomes. As well as multiple recent meetings with Chinas Xi Jinping, the Russian president has visited North Korea and then Vietnam to project the image of a world leader who still enjoys international backing. Modis visit to Moscow is the most significant achievement yet in that campaign, Pant argues, as India is both an important counterweight to China within the Asia-Pacific while also enjoying robust ties with the West. Putins efforts to court India indicate that Russia seeks to demonstrate resilience against Western isolation and assert its independence in managing relations with China, Mr Pant explains. I dont think Russia wants to be perceived as a junior partner of China. By engaging robustly with India, Russia signals to China its desire to maintain its own distinct space. With Russia increasingly isolated from the West, it risks being seen as subordinate to China, a perception it likely wants to avoid. 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 Rohingya teenager in Bangladesh has been killed and two others were hospitalised with injuries after being hit by a mortar shell fired from Myanmar. Mohammad Zubair, 18, and others were crab fishing in the Naf River near the Myanmar border when they were hit by a shell fired from the other side, Mohammad Osman Gani, officer-in-charge of Teknaf police station, told the Dhaka Tribune. Zubair succumbed to his injuries on the way to the hospital, while the other two were transferred to Chittagong Medical College Hospital for treatment. Mr Gani said authorities were investigating whether the incident took place during their attempt to cross the border and that it was not known who carried out the attack. This is the second such incident of cross-border shelling in two years since another teenager died in 2022 after a shell fired from Myanmar exploded in Bangladesh. At the time Bangladesh said it would lodge a strong protest with Myanmar over the incident. open image in gallery People of Maungdaw township of Myanmar are seen from the Teknaf area of Bangladesh, at the Myanmar-Bangladesh border ( REUTERS ) More than 650,000 Rohingya Muslims who fled from Myanmar's Rakhine state during a military crackdown in 2017 live in overcrowded camps in southern Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar. The latest bout of aggravated fighting between the Arakan Army (AA), an armed group of the Rakhine ethnic minority seeking autonomy from the central government, and the Myanmar junta has once again displaced tens of thousands in Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh. Thomas Andrews, a UN special rapporteur, last week said the crisis in Rakhine was "terrifying" and people were at risk of facing "genocidal violence" similar to what the community suffered eight years ago. The violence in Rakhine escalated in November last year when the AA ended a ceasefire which had largely held since a military coup wrested power from the government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. As fighting rages in western Myanmar near the Maungdaw border of Myanmar, the sounds of explosions and airstrikes have created panic among local residents. The war in Myanmar across the river has been going on for the past six to seven months, bringing fear into our lives, said Nur Hossain, a 55-year-old fisherman. The deafening sounds of shells have become a regular occurrence, and sometimes we even see warplanes. Today, we saw airstrikes again. The escalating violence has spurred some Rohingya Muslims to flee into Bangladesh, even as Dhaka insists it cannot accept more refugees from the neighbour. "Some people have managed to enter Bangladesh in various ways and have taken refuge in different places," said Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, the Bangladesh official tasked with refugee relief and repatriation. He added: "I believe some people are being allowed to enter unofficially." The AA has captured nine key towns in the coastal province and pursued its offensive to take more territory in a nationwide struggle that has left the junta at its weakest since the coup. In May, the UN human rights office warned of frightening and disturbing reports about fresh violence in Rakhine, pointing to attacks on Rohingya civilians by both the military and the AA. Liz Throssell, a spokesperson for the UN agency, highlighted the burning of the town of Buthidaung, air strikes, shootings at unarmed fleeing villagers, beheadings and disappearances in the northern part of Rakhine in recent weeks. Some of the most serious allegations concern incidents of killing of Rohingya civilians and the burning of their property," she 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 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 court in Indonesia has sentenced an Australian man to six months of medical rehabilitation after finding him guilty of possessing methamphetamine on the tourist island of Bali. Troy Andrew Smith, from Port Lincoln in South Australia state, was arrested April 30 after police raided his hotel in Legian, a popular tourist spot near Kuta Beach, and seized 3.15 grams (0.1 ounce) of crystal methamphetamine inside a toothpaste container from his room. Police found a further 0.4 grams of the drug, along with a bong and a lighter in his desk drawer. His earlier charge of drug trafficking was dropped, it would've carried the death penalty. The arrest followed a tip that Smith had received a suspicious package containing toothpaste by mail from Australia. Under Indonesias tough drug laws, he faces up to 12 years in prison if found guilty. Smith sat silently as a panel of three judges at Denpasar District Court handed down the punishment. The judges also ordered the time he has already served rehabilitation since he was arrested to be deducted from his sentence, meaning he will be free in several months. Australian Troy Smith, right, walks after his verdict trial at Denpasar district court in Bali, Indonesia on Thursday, July 4 ( AP ) The defendant did commit a criminal offense of misuse class I narcotics for personal use, said Presiding Judge Ketut Suarta, What he has done is counter the government's efforts to fight drug trafficking. Prosecutors had sought an eight-month medical rehabilitation for Smith, but the judges said they reduced the penalty because Smith regretted his acts and promised to reform. During the trial that began two weeks ago, the 49-year-old accountant told the court that he ordered the drugs from a man in Australia three weeks before his arrest and that he regretted his actions and apologized. He said that he had used meth routinely daily to reduce depression and anxiety since 2020. Authorities reduced the initial charge of drug trafficking, which carries a possible death penalty, to the less serious charge of drug use after a police drug assessment team determined he was merely a drug user. After the judges read out the sentence, both prosecutors and Smiths lawyers said that they accepted the verdict and will not appeal. Troy Smith (R) of Australia sits in a courtroom waiting for the announcement of his verdict in a trial at the Denpasar district court, in Denpasar, Bali, Indonesia, 04 July 2024. ( EPA ) Smith expressed his gratitude to both his Indonesian and Australian lawyers, his mother and sister, for their help and support when speaking to reporters after the sentence hearing. Thank you to Tracy, whose love I lay down every single day, Smith said, referring to his new wife. He was on a honeymoon in Bali when he was arrested. Indonesia has very strict drug laws and convicted traffickers can be executed by a firing squad. More than 150 people are on death row, mostly for drug crimes, and about a third of them are foreigners. Eighteen people convicted of drug-related offenses have been executed under current President Joko Widodo, who took office in 2014. 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 dozen people were killed after heavy rainfall triggered a landslide at an illegal gold mine on Indonesias Sulawesi island on Sunday. Five people had been rescued but 18 were still trapped in the mine in the remote Bone Bolango region of Gorontalo province, local authorities said on Monday. Nearly 35 villagers were searching for grains of gold in a small traditional pit mine when the landslide hit and buried them, Afifuddin Ilahude, a spokesperson for Gorontalos search and rescue agency, said. He said rescue work was hampered by heavy rain and blocked roads covered with thick mud and debris. Indonesias disaster management agency said the landslide also damaged several houses and a bridge. It warned of more rain in Gorontalo province on Monday and Tuesday and urged residents to stay vigilant. open image in gallery Photo made available by Indonesias disaster management agency shows people searching for the landslide victims in Gorontalo on 7 July 2024 ( EPA ) We have deployed 164 personnel from the national rescue team, police and military, to search for the missing people, Heriyanto, head of the local rescue agency, was quoted as saying by Reuters. He said rescue workers had to walk 20km to reach the landslide site as the roads were covered in thick mud and the rain wouldnt relent. open image in gallery Photo made available by Indonesias disaster management agency shows people searching for the landslide victims in Gorontalo on 7 July 2024 ( EPA ) We will try to use an excavator once its possible, Mr Heriyanto, identified by only his first name, said. In May, flash floods and landslides sparked by torrential rain killed over 50 people in Indonesias West Sumatra province. 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 }} Online retail firm Huddled has taken control of surplus beauty product seller Boop Beauty. London-listed Huddled, which owns Discount Dragon, said it has bought a 75% controlling stake in Boop. It told shareholders on Monday morning it will pay an undisclosed modest sum, with a commitment to inject further capital for growth. Boop is an online, direct-to-consumer retailer which specialises in the sale of surplus beauty and cosmetic products. The Boop business concept is fantastic and sits perfectly with the Huddled circular economy strategy. It was clear that Huddled could provide Boop with some key ingredients- more stock, marketing and fulfilment - to drive growth Martin Higginson, Huddled The business was founded by former LOreal in-house lawyer Yasmine Amr and delivered 558 orders in the second quarter of 2024 with limited capital at its disposal. Boop Beautys online store has been taken offline to be integrated into Huddled Group, with a relaunch due in early September. Martin Higginson, chief executive officer of Huddled, said: We are thrilled to be working with Yasmine. The Boop business concept is fantastic and sits perfectly with the Huddled circular economy strategy. Boop had set out to tackle this serious issue and a growing number of brands have already embraced the concept. The investment from Huddled will allow me to accelerate the vision I had for Boop Boop founder Yasmine Amr It was clear that Huddled could provide Boop with some key ingredients- more stock, marketing and fulfilment to drive growth. Ms Amr, founder of Boop, said: Boop had set out to tackle this serious issue and a growing number of brands have already embraced the concept. The investment from Huddled will allow me to accelerate the vision I had for Boop Im excited to be working with the Huddled team to drive the business forward. Huddled shares were 1% higher in early trading on Monday. Sign up to the Independent Climate email for the latest advice on saving the planet Get our free Climate email Get our free Climate email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Six rhinos are among at least 129 animals killed in severe flooding at one of Indias best-known wildlife reserves. Devastating floods triggered by torrential rains over the past few weeks have led to growing concern for residents of Assams Kaziranga park, famous for its large population of rhinos. Assam is battling its worst flooding since 2017, when more than 300 wild animals died at Kaziranga. The greater one-horned rhinoceros, Rhinoceros unicornis, is found in just nine protected areas in Nepal and India, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature. In India, the species is listed under the vulnerable category. In its annual State of the Rhino report released in September 2023, the International Rhino Foundation said the population of the greater one-horned rhino in India and Nepal had increased to more than 4,000. There were only about 200 left in 1904. Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma shared a picture of a stranded rhino calf in the park and said he had instructed its immediate rescue. The floods have affected humans and animals alike, he said, and Team Assam is working round the clock to aid everyone. Rescue workers have saved 96 animals so far, News18 reported. Assam, along with eastern India, is flooded almost every year as rains swell the mighty Brahmaputra river and its tributaries. But this years floods have been particularly severe, impacting over 2.1 million people across 28 districts of the state. At least 78 people have died. The states disaster management agency said over 386,000 people were currently sheltering in 515 relief camps. Although water levels in the Brahmaputra had fallen in recent days, the agency said, the flood situation was still severe. The chief minister attributed the floods primarily to the breaching of eight embankments and heavy rains in the upstream state of Arunachal Pradesh. No human intervention can stop it, he said. The Brahmaputra flows 1,280km through Assam before entering Bangladesh. It is one of 13 major rivers currently flowing above the danger level in northeast India. 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 Margot Robbie is reportedly pregnant with her first baby. The 34-year-old Barbie actor and her husband, actor and film producer Tom Ackerley, 34, are expecting their first child together, multiple sources told People. The couple, who were married in 2016 have yet to speak out about the news. The Independent has reached out to representatives for the couple for comment. open image in gallery Margot Robbie reportedly expecting first baby with husband Tom Ackerley ( Getty Images ) Robbie and Ackerly first met back in 2013 while they were filming Suite Francaise, a Second World War romantic drama, in Belgium. At the time Robbie was still rising to fame as an actor and Ackerly was the films assistant director. One year later, they launched a production company together called LuckyChap which has gone on to produce major movies including Birds of Prey and Barbie, both of which starred Robbie in the lead role. The two are known for keeping their personal lives private. Their engagement was never announced and they were married in a secret ceremony in Byron Bay, Australia. The Suicide Squad actor told Vogue back in May 2016 that her relationship with the best-looking guy in London was unexpected. I was the ultimate single gal. The idea of relationships made me want to vomit, she said. And then this crept up on me. We were friends for so long. I was always in love with him. Robbie continued: But I thought, Oh, he would never love me back. Dont make it weird, Margot. Dont be stupid and tell him that you like him. And then it happened, and I was like, Of course were together. This makes so much sense, the way nothing has ever made sense before. Robbie has previously voiced her annoyance at being continuously asked in interviews when she would be having children. It made me really angry; how dare some old guy dictate what I can and cant do when it comes to motherhood or my own body? she said back in 2019 toRadio Times. Unfortunately, its a conversation were still having. Im so angry that theres this social contract, she added. Youre married, now have a baby. Dont presume. Ill do what Im going to do. Recently, the couple opened up about their relationship in an interview with The Times. When asked whether or not they argue at home, Acklerley explained that their most common fight is over chocolate biscuits and whether Tim Tams or Penguins are better. He added that he wished there was more of a sporting rivalry between Australia and the UK, noting that he feels like an honorary Aussie while Margot feels like an honorary Brit. They also revealed that when both of them arent working, they spend 24 hours a day together. Its seamless, Ackerley said. We dont have a toggle on, toggle off. Its all become one thing. 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 Teresa Giudice laughed off her Photoshop fail in a photo with Larsa Pippen. On July 6, the 52-year-old Real Housewives of New Jersey star posted a Photoshopped picture of herself and Pippen posing in bikinis in honor of the latters 50th birthday. In the photo, Giudice had tried to cut out the pairs figures and superimpose them onto a beach backdrop, with laughably bad results. In the posts comment section, many of Giudices 2.3 million followers poked fun at the reality stars obvious Photoshop failure. One person wrote, Its giving Zoom background. This is the kind of beach trip I can afford! another added, while somebody else commented: Winner of the worst photo edit. Others jokingly wrote that two of Giudices daughters Gia, 23, and Milania, 18 should come to her rescue. They wrote: Milania or Gia come help ur mom edit. Along with her eldest daughters, the reality star shares daughters Gabriella, 19, and Audriana, 14 with ex-husband Joe Giudice. Fans also began posting their Photoshopped versions of the photo, taking her and Pippen worldwide, and placing them in far-flung locations like the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt, and Buckingham Palace in England. They also jokingly superimposed the pairs figures on images of popular reality TV locations like the Love Island villa and Bluestone Manor, the home of former Real Housewives of New York star Dorinda Medley. Giudice began to gleefully repost these fan-made versions of her photo on her Instagram Story. Meanwhile, podcast host Christian Gray Snow took the meme to the next level by creating a carousel post showing a collection of more fan-made creations featuring the reality TV duo posing everywhere from the Eiffel Tower to the Great Wall of China. Snow cheekily captioned the post: Larsa & Tre Round the World. In his comment section, Giudice wrote, Love it. Giudice will star in the 14th season of RHoNJ, having been a part of the Housewives franchise since its first season in 2009, but didnt film the show when she was behind bars serving 11 months of her 15-month sentence for bankruptcy fraud. On 29 July 2013, Teresa and Joe were indicted on 39 counts of federal fraud charges including conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, bank fraud, making false statements on loan applications and bankruptcy fraud. The charges came after the US government took note of their exorbitant displays of wealth, despite applying for loans before the show debuted and later filing for bankruptcy during the show. Unlike Teresa, Joe served 41 months and was released three years later. After 20 years of marriage, the pair filed for divorce in 2019 and finalized their separation in 2020. Because he was the only Italian native of the pair, the disgraced businessman was deported from the US following his sentence and now resides in the Bahamas. 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 }} Senegals President Basirou Diomaye Faye, Africa's youngest, is suddenly faced with a huge challenge of reuniting a weakened regional bloc that is older than him. The 44-year-old Faye was tasked on Sunday with getting the military junta-ruled Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso back to ECOWAS at the bloc's summit in Nigerias capital Abuja. The three nations left ECOWAS and formed their own alliance after the military takeovers fractured their relations with West African neighbors. As a peace envoy supported by Togolese President Faure Essozimna Gnassingbe, Faye is seen as possibly the best among heads of state for a mission to try to woo the three nations back to the fold of regional cooperation. Beyond the appeal of security and economic collaboration, ECOWAS's goodwill has waned in recent years, said Afolabi Adekaiyaoja, a research analyst with the West Africa-focused Centre for Democracy and Development. But the new role offers Faye an opportunity to possibly seek reforms for "a more sustainable and self-reliant ECOWAS, Adekaiyaoja said. Faye also represents the opposite of what the three military leaders claim they are against. He had not been elected when ECOWAS, founded in 1975, imposed the severe sanctions on Niger following a coup last July. Niger cited the sanctions as one of the reasons for leaving the bloc. Also, Faye's victory in an April election that was certified as credible stood in contrast to rigged polls in the region. At home, Faye is reviewing the old ties that the junta leaders claim have stifled West Africa's development, though Senegal remains a key ally for the West. Under Faye's leadership, Senegalese officials are renegotiating contracts with foreign operators in the country and, according to Finance Minister Abdourahmane Sarr, are aiming to free ourselves from the ties of dependency in our public policies. It is exactly what the junta wants to hear, analysts say. Since ousting the democratic governments of Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger, the generals have severed military and economic ties with traditional Western partners such as the U.S. and France, saying they had not benefited their countries. The shift has opened the window for Russia to expand its footprint in the region. Like the other heads of state, he (Faye) claims sovereignty and a break with the old order, said Seidik Abba, a Sahel specialist and president of the International Center for Reflection for Studies. Age is also not just a number in the case of Faye, a former tax inspector. Even as the youngest president in Africa, he is still older than three of the four current military leaders in the region. At Sunday's ECOWAS meeting in Nigeria, Faye was still among the youngest. Sitting across him was Ghana President Ghana Nana Akufo-Addo, who at 80 is just four years younger than Fayes father. When he visited Nigeria in May, the Senegalese leader touted his age as an asset that can help open a window for dialogue with the neighbors. Faye's task to dialogue with the three countries would still not be easy, according to Abba, the Sahel specialist. He said the three have wider concerns about the operations of ECOWAS, which they say faces interference from foreign countries like France, their former colonial ruler. There is also a question of how much freedom Faye and the Togolese president would have in their role as envoys under an ECOWAS that has just reelected Nigerian President Bola Tinubu as its chairman. Their success would depend on how best the different leaders can coordinate and agree on the issues, said Adekaiyaoja from the Centre for Democracy and Development. 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 shooting at a block party in Detroit left two people dead and more than a dozen wounded, capping a violent holiday weekend in the U.S. that also saw mass shootings in Kentucky and Chicago. More than 100 people were shot in Chicago, 19 of them fatally, over the long Independence Day weekend, when there is often a spike in violence. One mass shooting Thursday in a neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, left two women and an 8-year-old boy dead. Two other children were also critically injured. We cannot take our eyes off the ball, Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling said at a Monday news conference. We cannot stop thinking about the people who have been victimized by this crime. City officials announced plans for an emergency resource center to open Monday evening for people struggling with trauma, while Mayor Brandon Johnson blamed the pervasive violence on years of disinvestment and poverty, particularly in the city's Black neighborhoods. Johnson, who took office last year, said Chicago has not received enough federal resources for victims and that he recently renewed a request for help. The four-day weekend in Chicago saw a spike in violence compared with the same time period last year when 11 people were killed and more than 60 wounded. We are losing a piece of the soul of Chicago, Johnson said at the news conference. We will not let criminal activity ruin and harm our city. In Detroit, two people were fatally shot and at least 19 were injured at a block party on the city's east side early Sunday, according to authorities. Detroit police planned a news conference Monday to announce new safety strategies for block parties. Shootings during the holiday weekend also took place in California and Kentucky, where police say four people were killed and three others wounded in an early morning shooting during a party at a home. The shooting suspect later died after fleeing the home in Florence, Kentucky, and driving into a ditch during a police chase, authorities said. Florence is a city of about 36,000 people located about 12 miles (19 kilometers) south of Cincinnati, Ohio. ___ Callahan reported from Indianapolis. 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 doctor whose evidence was instrumental in convicting Britains most prolific child killer Lucy Letby has revealed he is being targeted by her supporters. Neonatal expert Dewi Evans said he has been compared to the Nazi doctor Josef Mengele and that vexatious complaints have been made about him to the General Medical Council (GMC) since he appeared in court to give evidence for prosecutors. He is now urging police to investigate 25 more incidents potentially link to Letby. The 34-year-old nurse was last week handed her fifteenth whole life order for killing seven babies and trying to murder seven more while she was working on a specialist unit at Countess of Chester Hospital. The moment Lucy Letby was arrested ( PA Media ) Despite her numerous convictions following a year-long trial at Manchester Crown Court in 2023, her case has attracted worldwide attention as the public struggled to fathom how an outwardly friendly and well-liked nurse could commit such unspeakable crimes. All of the evidence in the trial - including crucial reports and testimony from Mr Evans - has been closely scrutinised by online sleuths many of whom are convinced of Letbys innocence. The publication of a 12,000-word New Yorker article examining his evidence had to be temporarily blocked for UK readers as it threatened to prejudice a retrial for one count of attempted murder after jurors could not reach a verdict in the first trial. Last week, a second jury found her guilty on that count. Now the consultant paediatrician has revealed how his reputation has been picked apart in online chat rooms as he claims supporters have chosen to shoot the messenger. Retired consultant paediatrician Dewi Evans has spoken of how he has been targeted by Letbys supporters ( PA Archive ) Speaking to The Sunday Times, Mr Evans said: My generation of consultant paediatricians have had this our whole careers, where we have to put our heads above the parapet to say this child or that child is the victim of inflicted injury, and the reaction is, Oh no its not, we cant believe it. Because you have to accept this has happened in the care of parents, or in this case a nurse. So therefore denial is the natural response to these shocking disclosures. In this case, Letby is a young, white, English nurse from a reputable, normal background. So its not surprising that some people respond to the fact that she has been found guilty of killing babies by saying it hasnt happened. It becomes about shooting the messenger which, in this case, is me. He also revealed he has written to police urging them to investigate 25 more incidents linked to Letby while she was nursing. I believe we need to be absolutely sure they were not placed in harms way at any time during their stay at the neonatal unit in Chester, Evans wrote in a letter sent in September to Paul Hughes, the detective superintendent in charge of the continuing inquiry into Letby. Letby was convicted at a retrial of the attempted murder of a baby girl in her care (Cheshire Constabulary/PA) ( PA Media ) Cheshire Constabulary is still investigating Letbys career and reviewing all her contacts with patients. A separate corporate manslaughter investigation at the hospital also remains ongoing. A public inquiry, which starts in September, will examine the wider fallout, interrogating hospital managers about the way they handled doctors concerns. In his letter urging the police to investigate further incidents, Mr Evans highlighted the case of a three-day-old child who died after a breathing tube was found dislodged and another case involving suspected insulin poisoning. You have a baby that is nice and stable and that suddenly changed out of the blue when she was on duty, Mr Evans said. As Jack Frost [the fictional television detective in A Touch of Frost] once said: I dont believe in coincidences. 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 }} Emily Thornberry has said she is sorry and surprised in a public outburst after not being appointed to a senior ministerial post by Sir Keir Starmer. Ms Thornberry, who served as shadow attorney general when Labour was in opposition, is one of the few members of Labours top team not to receive the equivalent role in government following the general election. Instead, barrister Richard Hermer KC was chosen for the brief, which is not a Cabinet role, although he will attend Cabinet meetings. Mr Hermer will be ennobled, sitting in the House of Lords to fulfil his Government duties. In a statement shared on X, formerly Twitter, three days after the new Attorney General was appointed, Ms Thornberry shared her disappointment. She spoke of her record of eight-and-a-half unbroken years in the shadow cabinet, a longer record of service than anyone else in that time, and listed her work setting out Labours policies on tackling fraud and supporting sexual harassment whistleblowers among her achievements. Ms Thornberry added: I am very sorry and surprised not to be able to continue that work in Government, but I wish all my brilliant colleagues well, and I know that Richard Hermer KC a much more accomplished lawyer than I could ever hope to be will do an outstanding job as Attorney General. Then-shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry and Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn walk together after observing a silence to mark Armistice Day outside Islington Town Hall in November 2019 (Jonathan Brady/PA) ( PA Archive ) Nothing in the personal disappointment I feel can detract from the amazing and historic victory that all of us in the Labour movement worked together to win last week, and the chance that we now have to change our country for the better. I will continue giving my unstinting loyalty to our Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, as he leads that work, as I have done since he became leader, and I look forward to supporting his Government in every way I can in the years to come. Ms Thornberry was one of the 36 MPs who nominated Jeremy Corbyn in the 2015 party leadership race. She went on to serve in several senior opposition roles when the now-independent MP for Islington North led the Labour Party, including as his effective second-in-command. Ms Thornberry has had a history of gaffes on the front lines of Labour politics. She has previously apologised after busting herself for speeding, posting a picture of the speedometer in a Toyota Prius she was driving to Labours 2022 conference at 81mph. And she quit the shadow cabinet in 2014 after posting a picture of a house in Rochester, Kent, adorned with England flags and with a large white van parked outside. Alongside the tweet, sent while canvassing in a 2014 by-election, she said: Image from Rochester. She was accused of snobbery by the man whose house she pictured, and former Labour leader Ed Miliband said it was condescending and disrespectful. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Morning Headlines email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A council that introduced a four-day week for staff is reaping the benefits according to research, after finding increased employee motivation and health. The change also looks to have led to taxpayers of South Cambridgeshire District Council profiting from faster planning decisions, emergency house repairs and complaints handling. The local authority brought in the trial for staff to do 100 per cent of the work in 80 per cent of the time in January 2023, before it was later expanded to cover waste services. The scheme, introduced by the Lib Dem-run council, was criticised by the Conservative government with the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities calling on it to cease the trial. But after deciding to continue, the council has now published an independent report which it said shows the brave and pioneering trial has clearly been a success. The four-day working week trial was introduced by South Cambridgeshire District Council in January 2023 ( Getty Images/iStockphoto ) The report further found staff turnover had reduced by 39 per cent, while there was also a 53 per cent rise in the average number of applications for roles. Positions traditionally hard to recruit for particularly in waste services were filled, including 10 previously held by agency staff that gave the council an annual saving of 483,000 in agency costs. Surveys for the report, conducted by academics at the universities of Cambridge and Salford, found significant increases in employee commitment, mental and physical health and motivation. However, the survey did find more than a third of employees worked more than the agreed hours, with the majority working an additional two to three hours a week. On council performance, the report found the number of complaints fell by almost 10 per cent. Mystery shopper calls to the councils customer service centre found 96 per cent of call-takers were able to answer enquiries to a high standard well above the average benchmark score of 68 per cent. The time to make a decision on planning applications fell by 1.5 weeks compared to before the trial, while three per cent more emergency repairs for housing were completed within 24 hours during the trial. Joe Ryle, director of the 4 Day Week Campaign, said: These results prove once and for all that a four-day week with no loss of pay absolutely can succeed in a local government setting. Not only has work-life balance dramatically improved but so has the performance of the council. With a more sympathetic Labour government now in place, there is a huge opportunity for councils and organisations across the public sector to start planning for a four-day working week. Latest government figures show productivity in the UK has historically grown by two per cent per year, but since the 2008 recession it has risen more slowly. The UK had the fourth highest GDP per hour worked of the G7 countries in 2022, but was around 16 per cent behind the US and Germany. Four-day weeks have been seen as a solution by some employers, although the way they are run can be different, with some keeping the same number of hours across the week, but in fewer days. Asda recently scrapped its scheme after staff complained that 11-hour shifts were leaving them exhausted. However at South Cambridgeshire Council, where full-time staff taking part in the trial see their hours reduced to 32 hours a week, lead council member for resource John Williams told The Guardian the trial had been a success. He said: Coupled with the hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayer money that we have saved, improved recruitment and retention and positives around health and wellbeing, this brave and pioneering trial has clearly been a success. We know we cannot compete on salary alone and have needed to find bold new ways of tackling our recruitment and retention issues. The study covered 15 months of the four-day week trial and made adjustments for the impact of Covid-19 although the authors said in a caveat that it could not be proven that the trial solely caused the benefits laid out. 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 woman claimed she was scammed by fraudsters pretending to be Hollywood actor Kevin Costner on Facebook. Eileen Leeks, 63, said she had joined a page dedicated to the Yellowstone star when things took a sinister turn on the social media website. She received a message claiming that if she purchased Apple vouchers, she would have the opportunity to meet the 69-year-old actor, who she is a big fan of. Ms Leeks told BBC Radio Suffolk that after being nagged she gave in. But then she said the scammers brazenly asked her for more money by pretending she had been conned by someone else, and actually needed to pay 1,000 for a VIP membership card to meet the actor. I was getting nagged and then I gave in because they were saying you wont meet him unless you get the Apple cards, so I bought two at 100 each, she said. I then got a message back saying I had been scammed and [in order to actually meet Mr Costner] I would have to buy a VIP membership card for over 1,000. I thought, youre joking hes a millionaire. Ms Leeks said she spent 200 on two Apple vouchers believing it would secure a meeting with Kevin Costner ( Eileen Leeks ) She said the next part of the scam saw her receive a video call from someone who, at first, appeared to be the actor himself. Ms Leeks, who lives in Felixstowe, Suffolk, and is unemployed, said: His face was moving and thats why I thought it was really him. He was sitting in a chair in his office and he was moving. He said, This is Kevin Costner and you have been scammed. His management team then got hold of me and said its not him, and people were using his face and voice to scam people. The victim forked out the money for expensive vouchers in a bid to meet her Hollywood idol ( ABC/ Jimmy Kimmel Live ) Ms Leeks said she reported the scam - although it is not known whether this was to Mr Costners team or Facebook - but even then, the fraudsters did not leave her alone. They contacted her yet again, offering her a job and a flat in the US. I thought, I dont believe this, what on earth is going on? she said. If fans think they are going to get a job in America and an apartment and they get all the way over there then they will lose an awful lot. I am unemployed and Ive lost a lot of money, so I am not very happy. The Independent has reached out to a representative for Facebook for comment. 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 midwife who won the lottery is still delivering babies more than a decade after becoming a millionaire. Ruth Breen, 45, was on her lunch break in work at the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary, Wigan, when she checked her emails and discovered she had won 1 million on the EuroMillions. Some 10 years later, the mother-of-one is still working for the NHS, although she has enjoyed splashing out on holidays to destinations such as Dubai, St Lucia and Mauritius. An awful lot has changed in the past 10 years but then again, not so much, she said. The win came at the most perfect time ever. It allowed me to reduce my working hours, giving me a much better work-life balance. Im really lucky that I only work part-time. Thats enabled me to spend much more time with my daughter doing fun mum things instead of working flat out for a really really busy service. Weve had great holidays, but weve tried to keep our feet on the ground and I think working really helps me to do that. Ms Breen was on her lunch break when discovered she had won 1 million on the EuroMillions. ( Dave Kendall/National Lottery /PA Wire ) Ms Breen also wanted to continue working as an example to her daughter, who was 11 when she won. The universe gifted me something incredible but you cant take it for granted, not everybodys that lucky. she added. The community midwife now arrives at her visits in a BMW X3, saying the need for boot space prevented her from driving a sportier model, and her first purchase following the win was a pair of Jimmy Choos. She said: I nearly cried when I was paying for them in Selfridges because I couldnt believe I was actually able to purchase this and I had the money to do it. It was a little bit overwhelming. That collections a little bit bigger now, I dont cry as much any more! Ms Breen still lives in the house she bought just before her win and says most of the new mothers she works with are unaware they are being looked after by a millionaire. I dont introduce myself and say: Oh by the way I won a million quid 10 years ago. The vast majority of people havent got a clue and thats the way I like it, she said. Im treated just like any other midwife by patients and staff. To mark the 10-year anniversary of her win, Ms Breen has been supporting charity The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan. Ms Breen has been supporting charity The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan ( Anthony Devlin/PA Wire ) She said: We all know theres a cost-of-living crisis thats been going on for quite some time and babies dont come cheap. Not everybody is fortunate enough to be able to just go out and spend however much on all the equipment theyre going to need to make sure the babys got somewhere safe to sleep at night or that theyve got sterilising equipment to make sure the bottles and teats theyre using, if they choose to bottle feed, are safe and clean. Alison Wakefield, who set up the baby bank in 2022 after having her youngest child, said: Without our support wed have babies that were sleeping on the floor, they wouldnt have a safe space to sleep, wed have them sleeping in drawers, wed have babies using nappies more than once. Its an essential service that is definitely needed. Without us people would be going without and babies would be going without. 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 family of a father-of-two have spoken of their devastation after he was stabbed to death in broad daylight in Walthamstow. Josh McKay, 33, died after a knife injury in Lea Bridge Road, east London, at 3pm on Saturday. His family released a picture of the father in sunglasses, smiling and holding a parrot. They said in a statement through police: The heart of our family has stopped beating. The world is less bright without his beautiful smile. The Metropolitan Police arrested a 38-year-old woman on suspicion of assisting an offender. She remains in custody. Mr McKay died after the stabbing in Lea Bridge Road, Walthamstow, east London ( Google Maps ) DCI Linda Bradley from the Mets Specialist Crime Command said: We are continuing to carry out extensive enquiries, including a review of CCTV footage, and our colleagues from the local policing team remain in the area, she added. However, we still need your help. Two children have been left without a father. If you saw anything, or have information regarding the person who killed Josh, please do the right thing and call us, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously. Labour MP Stella Creasy urged witnesses to the henious attack to come forward. I urge everyone to refrain from speculating as a way of respecting his family who are deeply grieving their loss, she wrote on X. A post-mortem examination will be held in due course and formal identification will take place. Acting superintendent Jack Callaghan previously said: Our thoughts are with this mans family and friends as they struggle to come to terms with their loss. We know that this violent attack will have caused a lot of concern in the local community, and we share that concern. You can expect to see officers in the area over the coming days and I would encourage you to speak with them. We are doing everything we can to support the investigation in order to find the person responsible. Information can be provided via: https://mipp.police.uk/operation/01MPS24W62-PO1 You can also call police via 101 quoting reference CAD 4049/06Jul. To remain anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. 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 }} Following Labours landslide general election victory, Sir Keir Starmers new government has wasted no time in signalling its intentions to improve upon the current Brexit deal negotiated by Boris Johnson. In a visit to Edinburgh on Sunday, the new prime minister said work had already begun to build closer ties with the European Union as he told reporters that we can get a much better deal than the botched deal that Boris Johnson saddled the UK with. Writing in The Local Europe, foreign secretary David Lammy who could attend the September meeting of the EU foreign affairs council added that the new government would reset relations with Europe as a reliable partner, a dependable ally and a good neighbour. And Irish prime minister Simon Harris said Brussels would be willing to offer the UK a new deal on post-Brexit issues, suggesting there was space to work more closely with Britain as he pledged that Ireland would be an ally in any negotiations. Here The Independent takes a look at what Labour has said about different aspects of the UKs relationship with the EU. Freedom of movement Following the UKs departure from the EU, the rights of British to travel and work within the bloc and vice versa were restricted. This has had a huge impact on the music, travel and other industries, while passport queues could be set to get even worse in the months ahead if Brussels implements its much-delayed automated EU Entry/Exit system, which will see biometric photos and fingerprints required for Britons to enter into the Schengen area. Britons rights to work in the EU have been restricted ( Getty ) The new business secretary Jonathan Reynolds has said that removing certain barriers to trade makes sense, such as the completely sensible idea of Britain and the EU recognising each others professional qualifications. If you are in the creative industries youve really suffered in your ability to move around the European Union in terms of the restrictions on that. These are practical things, Mr Reynolds told Sky News on Sunday after the general election. And in his piece for The Local Europe, Mr Lammy wrote: We must do more to champion the ties between our people and our culture, pointing to holidays, family ties, school and student exchanges, the arts, and sport. But pressed on free movement of people, Mr Reynolds said: Were not open to the free movement of people, that is something that is part of membership of the European Union and, as I said, were not revisiting that. Keir Starmer and David Lammy have spoken of wanting to reset the UKs relationship with the EU ( PA Archive ) Defence and security While the UK and EU continued to cooperate on security in some respects post-Brexit, a House of Lords committee warned last year of significant losses in capability, including lost access to the EUs largest security database and more than a dozen member states ceasing to extradite suspects to the UK. Speaking to reporters in Edinburgh, Sir Keir suggested that an improved relationship with Brussels means closer ties in relation to research and development, and closer ties in relation to defence and security. Mr Lammy has said that the governments proposal for an ambitious and broad-ranging UK-EU security pact would seek to underpin closer co-operation between us. In its manifesto, Labour pledged to seek a new security agreement with the EU to ensure access to real-time intelligence and enable our policing teams to lead joint investigations with their European counterparts. On defence, the party pledged: Our commitment to Nato as the cornerstone of European and global security is unshakeable. We will be confident in our status outside of the EU, but a leading nation in Europe once again, with an improved and ambitious relationship with our European partners. Sir Keir Starmer will fly to Washington this week for a Nato summit ( Stefan Rousseau/PA ) Rejoining the single market While the Trade and Co-operation Agreement struck in 2020 has allowed tariff-free trade with the EU, trade barriers are still higher than prior to Brexit driving up the price of food and other goods, while frequently causing delays at the border. But on the eve of the general election, Sir Keir said he could not see the UK rejoining the European single market or customs union in his lifetime. He added: Ive been really clear about not rejoining the EU, the single market, or the customs union, or returning to freedom of movement. Ive been equally clear that I do think we can get a better deal than the botched deal we got under Boris Johnson on the trading front, on research and development, and on security. On the issue of trade, Sir Keir suggested in September that a Labour government would seek to remain aligned with EU rules striking a different tone to proponents of Brexit who hailed the potential for divergence as a key Brexit benefit. Sir Keir said: Actually we dont want to diverge, we dont want to lower standards, we dont want to rip up environmental standards, working standards for people that work, food standards and all the rest of it. 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 }} David Cameron has stepped back from frontline politics after last weeks election defeat but will keep his House of Lords seat for life. He was given a peerage last November so that Rishi Sunak could make him his foreign secretary. But the former PM has tendered his resignation and will not serve in the shadow cabinet now that the party is out of government. Also quitting is party chair Richard Holden, who has been blamed by many for the depth of his partys defeat. He has faced accusations that he stitched up a safe seat for himself when he should have been saving other MPs a charge he denies. The Independent has been told that Tory MPs started texting Mr Holden at 4am on Friday morning asking why he had yet to tender his resignation. Former foreign secretary David Cameron has tendered his resignation ( PA Wire ) Rishi Sunak will remain the leader of the Conservatives interim shadow cabinet until his replacement is appointed. He stepped down last week in the wake of the election result. The party has named Jeremy Hunt, who narrowly held his seat on Thursday, its shadow chancellor, with James Cleverly given the shadow home secretary role, mirroring the portfolios they held in government. Former deputy foreign secretary Andrew Mitchell will become the shadow foreign secretary, while Richard Fuller, the former economic secretary to the Treasury, has been made the new chair of the Conservative Party. Leadership frontrunner Kemi Badenoch has been shifted to the role of shadow levelling-up secretary, while Kevin Hollinrake will shadow her former business secretary post. During the campaign, Mr Hollinrake said there was no doubt that exporting to the EU had been made more difficult by Brexit. Remarkably, when asked about Mr Hollinrakes comments, Mr Sunak agreed, saying: Of course, when you leave the single market and the customs union, that is going to change our trading relationships. Richard Holden has been blamed by many for the depth of his partys defeat ( Sky News ) Mr Fuller said in a statement: The Conservative Party has had a difficult election, and it is important that we regroup and reflect on these results. We should also challenge ourselves candidly and deeply on the strengths of the Conservative Party across the country, and outline where improvements can be made. I am honoured to be asked to act as interim chairman of the Conservative Party, and to be working alongside colleagues in the shadow cabinet. United as a party, we will be ready and able to hold this new Labour government to account every step of the way. The Tories won just 121 seats last Thursday, their worst result in the partys 190-year history, as millions of their voters switched to Labour, the Lib Dems or Nigel Farages Reform, or did not vote at all. On Monday, Mr Hollinrake suggested that a leadership race could drag on until the end of the year, adding: I dont think there is any rush. 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 }} Keir Starmer will face his first international test just days after becoming prime minister as he meets President Biden and other world leaders at the Nato summit in Washington. The Labour leader will try to reassure the nuclear alliance of his partys unshakeable support under his leadership. The meeting comes two years after his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn said he hoped organisations like Nato could be ultimately disbanded and said they could create greater danger in the world. The new prime minster will also restate the UKs commitment to Ukraine at a time when questions are being asked about US support, amid turmoil over the looming presidential election. Sir Keirs first face-to-face meeting with President Biden risks being overshadowed by calls for the 81-year-old to pull out of the race for the White House. A disastrous showing in a televised election debate 10 days ago has left senior Democrats fearful their candidate risks losing disastrously to Donald Trump. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer speaks during a press conference on Saturday (Claudia Greco, PA) The possible return of the former president, who has openly questioned continued backing for both Ukraine and Nato, is set to cast a shadow over the meeting. Nato leaders are also facing political uncertainty in Europe, where the decision of President Macron to call a snap election appears to have backfired for the French leader. Russias attack on a childrens hospital in Ukraine is set to add extra urgency to the organisations discussions on the war there. The summit, designed to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Natos founding, will be the first since Sweden joined the alliance after Russias invasion of Ukraine. Labours defence secretary John Healy has already visited the war-torn country, in a move designed to emphasis the UKs backing is for the long haul. Sir Keir also spoke to Volodymyr Zelensky on his first day in office and with the Ukrainian leader also set to be in Washington the two leaders could hold talks. It would not be the first time the two men have met. They chatted during last months D-Day event after the then prime minister Rishi Sunak infamously left early to return home for an interview with ITV. President Joe Biden is facing calls to pull out of the race ( EPA ) Sir Keir also spoke to President Biden on his first day in the job. The American leader told him there was no doubt the special relationship between the UK and the US would continue as he congratulated him on a hell of a victory. He added: There's no doubt under your leadership our two countries are going to continue the special relationship. We're working together on just about every issue, supporting Ukraine, managing the competition with China, advancing cooperation in the Indo-Pacific with AUKUS." In Washington, the PM is expected to be joined by foreign secretary David Lammy as well as the Mr Healey and Nick Thomas-Symonds, the minister for Europe. In his first press conference as PM on Saturday, Sir Keir said: "It is for me to be absolutely clear that the first duty of my government is security and defence, to make clear our unshakeable support of Nato." People and medical staff gather to help after Russian missile hit the countrys main children hospital Okhmadit in Kyiv ( AP ) Labour's manifesto pledges to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence "as soon as we can". On Sunday, Mr Lammy wrote in an article on the Local Europe website : "Next week, the Prime Minister, the Defence Secretary and I will travel to Washington for the Nato summit. "Seventy-five years ago, my political hero and former Labour foreign secretary, Ernest Bevin, was pivotal to forming the alliance ... he would have been delighted to see Nato grow larger over the years with Germany, Poland and now Sweden all joining the most successful defensive alliance in history. "This Government's commitment to the alliance is unshakeable, just as it was in Bevin's time. I will be discussing this weekend how Nato allies can go further in investing in our tightly connected defence industries and providing Ukraine with its own clear path to joining our alliance." 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 }} Rachel Reeves has ditched the Conservatives absurd onshore windfarm ban in a bid to reboot the economy, claiming the new Labour governments economic inheritance was the worst since the Second World War. The chancellor has ordered civil servants to compile a dossier on the state of the economy after 14 years of Tory rule. In a speech at the Treasury, she said she had repeatedly warned about the dire state of the public finances during the general election and what I have seen in the past 72 hours has only confirmed that. Our economy has been held back by decisions deferred and decisions delayed political self-interest put ahead of the national interest, she said. Ms Reeves also pointed out: Public sector workers faced difficult choices on pay She is prepared for short-term political pain to fix Britains finances Housebuilding targets will involve building on some green belt and its boundaries will be reviewed Councils will be given newly restored mandatory targets in the drive to build 1.5 million homes Labour will not use its large majority to renege on tax promises. New Treasury analysis shows the economy would be 140bn bigger had it grown at the OECD average since 2010 She also said Labour would look at whether to class onshore wind as a nationally significant infrastructure a move that would allow large farms to get planning approval more quickly. Only a small number of onshore wind farms have been built since David Camerons government introduced restrictions in 2015 ( PA Archive ) Be in no doubt we are going to get Britain building again. We are going to get Britains economy growing again, the chancellor vowed, adding: As of today, we are ending the absurd ban on new onshore wind in England. She added: We must acknowledge that trade-offs always exist. Any development may have environmental consequences, place pressure on services and rouse voices of local opposition, but we will not succumb to a status quo which responds to the existence of trade-offs by always saying no. The move was welcomed by the energy sector and environmental campaigners. Under the previous rules, onshore wind was treated differently from other developments effectively stopping schemes going ahead if there were any objections. Labour had said it would overturn the ban within weeks if it came to power. Chancellor Rachel Reeves made the announcement during a speech at the Treasury in London, to an audience of leading business figures ( Jonathan Brady/PA Wire ) The party wants to double onshore wind as part of its plans to transition to more clean energy by 2030. One of the cheapest forms of new power, it can cut dependence on expensive gas and help slash climate emissions, according to experts. Energy UKs chief executive Emma Pinchbeck said: Its excellent to see the new government prioritise planning reforms as a key enabler for economic growth and enhancing our energy security. Unblocking the planning system, removing the de facto ban to double onshore wind and ensuring adequate resourcing for planning authorities are crucial steps the industry has long been calling for, she said. But she warned that the previous ban had significantly reduced the pipeline for new developments. Industry body RenewableUKs chief executive Dan McGrail said that lifting the ban was long overdue and were delighted that Labour has made this one of its first priorities in office. This shows that the new government is determined to act fast to tackle some of the longstanding barriers which have held the UK back on developing vital new clean energy infrastructure. He said public support for onshore wind was sky-high, with 78 per cent in favour of the technology in official polling. Modern turbines were more efficient and powerful than older wind farms, he added. Alethea Warrington, senior campaigner at climate charity Possible, described the announcement as a really positive step forward for our climate, our economy, and our energy bills. "This is a sensible, practical move which reflects the UK publics strong support for onshore wind, which goes across political parties and every constituency. Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at Friends of the Earth, said that although much of the designated green belt bordering towns and cities isnt exactly a haven for wildlife, it does serve a vital purpose in preventing urban sprawl and that building on it should be a last resort. 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 }} Britains new history making chancellor Rachel Reeves will warn that she must make difficult decisions to fix the foundations of the economy as she gives her first speech as chancellor today. The UKs first female chancellor in 803 years of the office existing, is set to deliver a speech to business leaders from some of Britains most pioneering industries including its financial services and green industries in central London. They are due to hear Ms Reeves vow to fix the foundations of our economy so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of our country better off and claim that Tory decisions meant the economy failed to grow by 10 billion for each of their 14 years in charge. The new chancellor wants to waste no time and start off on the front foot as she pushes ahead with what she believes will be a high growth agenda for the UK economy. Rachel Reeves will claim the Tories left a 140bn economic black hole ( AP ) But already, she is facing demands from Britains leading union, Unite, to borrow much more to invest in British industry. Added to that her warning about difficult decisions will come less than two days after new prime minister Sir Keir Starmer failed to rule out more tax increases in his first Downing Street press conference over the weekend. Observers will be watching to see if there will be movement on increasing levies like fuel duty, capital gains tax or council tax banding which Labour refused to rule out during the election campaign. The Tories controversially claimed that Labours plans would result in a tax hike of 2,000 per household although this figure was disowned by the most senior civil servant in the Treasury. Ms Reeves is due to say: Last week, the British people voted for change. And over the past 72 hours I have begun the work necessary to deliver on that mandate. Our manifesto was clear: Sustained economic growth is the only route to improving the prosperity of our country and the living standards of working people. Where governments have been unwilling to take the difficult decisions to deliver growth or have waited too long to act I will deliver. It is now a national mission. There is no time to waste. This morning I want to outline the first steps this new government has taken to fix the foundations of our economy, so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of our country better off. Ms Reeves will try to pin the blame of economic failure on the last 14 years of Conservative led governments as she sets out her plans. She will claim that lost opportunities have meant the UK economy is 140 billion smaller than it should be. She is expected to say: We face the legacy of fourteen years of chaos and economic irresponsibility. New Treasury analysis I requested over the weekend exposed the opportunities lost from this failure. Had the UK economy grown at the average rate of OECD economies since 2010, it would have been over 140 billion larger. This could have brought in an additional 58 billion in tax revenues last year alone to sustain our public services. It falls to this new Government to fix the foundations. 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 }} The new education secretary has pledged to recruit thousands of teachers just days after Labour took power in a landslide victory. Bridget Phillipson announced on Monday that the Department of Education (DfE) will begin work on delivering the governments pledge to recruit 6,500 new teachers. As one of her first steps in post, the education secretary will write to all sector workforces to make clear the valuable role they will play in the Labour governments agenda. Ms Phillipson will hold a reception with key education stakeholders later this week, as well as making it a priority to meet with teaching unions in the coming days. Bridget Phillipson is the new education secretary ( AFP/Getty ) She said: From day one, we are delivering the change this country demands and putting education back at the forefront of national life. We will work urgently to recruit thousands of brilliant new teachers and reset the relationship between government and the education workforce. For too long the teaching profession has been talked down, sidelined and denigrated. I have made it my first priority to write today to the people at the centre of making change happen: our workforces. I want all children to have the best life chances which means recruiting and keeping great teachers in our classrooms today is the first step in that mission. The Department for Education (DfE) will also resume and expand its teacher recruitment campaign, Every Lesson Shapes a Life, as well as restarting its further education recruitment campaign, Share Your Skills. The government said it hopes to reset the relationship with the education sector and transform the image of teaching, in an attempt to recruit new teachers and retain those already in classrooms. The Department of Education will begin work on delivering the governments pledge to recruit 6,500 new teachers ( PA Wire ) Recruitment targets for initial teacher training courses were missed in 10 subjects in 2022/23, according to the Education Committee, with maths, physics and religious education among the subjects affected. According to the committee, many current teachers singled out excessive workloads rather than pay as the biggest factor pushing them to leave the sector. In the DfEs 2022 Working Lives of Teachers survey, 92% of participating teachers cited workload as a reason to quit the profession, while 57% cited pay. Pupil behaviour has also worsened since the pandemic, according to a recent report by the Education Committee, which can discourage people from becoming teachers and make existing teachers think about leaving the profession. The Every Lesson Shapes a Life campaign directs potential candidates to the governments teacher recruitment website, where they will be able to access support and advice from a dedicated contact centre and a national programme of events. 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 }} The new Labour government will not appoint a dedicated veterans minister to the cabinet, it has been revealed. On Monday, prime minister Sir Keir Starmer announced 19 new ministerial appointments to his cabinet, which met for the first time at the weekend following Thursdays landslide general election victory. No 10 told The Independent that, instead of a separate minister being appointed, defence secretary John Healey would be representing veterans at the top table. Its understood that Downing Street will appoint a veterans minister outside the cabinet, who will run the Office for Veterans Affairs with oversight from Mr Healey. The minister for veterans affairs a post last occupied by ousted Tory Johnny Mercer held responsibilities in government including veterans issues and Afghan personnel accommodation. The CEO of the Help for Heroes charity, James Needham, told The Independent he was disappointed that there would not be a dedicated veterans minister sitting in the cabinet. The cabinet met for the first time on Saturday after Labours landslide general election victory ( The Sun/PA ) But he added: We hope John Healey and his team will continue to work with Help for Heroes and other charities to deliver the support our armed forces community deserves. We will continue to campaign for a review of the medical discharge process and to end the barriers to fair compensation and benefits for veterans. We receive consistent testimony from those we support that these processes are not fair or working properly, and many would be shocked by the way in which our service people and their families are treated. Mark Atkinson, director general of the Royal British Legion (RBL), said: The new government should show by its actions that it is effectively meeting the needs and improving the lives of the armed forces community: serving personnel, veterans, the bereaved and their families. We are pleased that the government, in their manifesto, committed to applying the Armed Forces Covenant in law to every part of government, and we look forward to working with ministers across the range of departments that serve our community. RBL will seek reassurances that any changes do not signal a reduction in support or priority, but that they will result in improved coordination and delivery for the entire armed forces community. The lack of a veterans minister sitting in Sir Keirs cabinet first came to light through a recording of Fred Thomas, the new MP for Plymouth Moor View who is also a veteran, at a hustings event before the election. Asked if there was going to be a veterans minister, Mr Thomas, who was contesting the seat against Mr Mercer, said: Let me answer very clearly. No, because it hasnt helped veterans that much. So I talk to veterans the whole time, I am one myself, and what is affecting veterans massively I think we all know this to be true: there is no single issue. Its the fact that were having to pay more. Its the fact that people cant get jobs. Its the fact the economy has tanked. Johnny Mercer, the last veterans minister, took to X to voice his concern over the lack of an appointment ( Getty ) So when you go out to work, and you do your work and you come back, and life is that much harder. You know youre struggling to put food on the table, [as are] a lot of people in [Plymouth] unfortunately; that is not helped by an Office for Veterans Affairs, Im afraid not. So what we need to do is take a more holistic option, and to answer your question, that is what were going to do. Were going to take a more holistic approach to this. Mr Mercer, an army veteran who served three tours in Afghanistan, held the post of veterans minister from 2022 to 2024. He claimed that the role helped to deliver programmes including Operation Fortitude, a government-funded hotline that aims to end homelessness among veterans, and Operation Courage, an NHS mental health specialist service. On X/Twitter, Mr Mercer wrote: You will note already that, despite his explicit personal promises in the election campaign, Keir Starmer has not appointed a veterans minister to his cabinet. If you understand what veterans need from their government, this matters very much. Those now in power, paraded around by Starmer for their various military experiences, must mark themselves on how they too now actually change the lives of those who need them in the serving and veteran community. 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 }} Nearly 1,000 homes in informal settlements in Cape Town, South Africa, have been destroyed by gale-force winds, displacing around 4,000 people, authorities and an aid organization said as the city braces for a week of damaging storms. South African weather authorities said Monday that Cape Town and surrounding areas are expected to be hit by multiple cold fronts until at least Friday, bringing torrential rain, strong winds, flooding and possible mudslides. City authorities also warned of storm surges and high waves along the coastline and asked people to stay away from the beachfront. Cape Town's disaster coordination team has been on alert since last Thursday, when the first front arrived. The worst-hit areas are expected to be the poor, informal settlements on the edge of South Africa's second biggest city. Thousands have been displaced in the township of Khayelitsha on the outskirts of Cape Town after strong winds destroyed homes and other structures. The Gift of the Givers local aid organization said it provided 10,000 meals and 3,000 blankets to displaced people in Khayelitsha over the weekend. The city is doing all it can to address the impacts as quickly as possible, the City of Cape Town said. Other areas have been flooded and the weather has caused power outages in more than 30 suburbs, the city said. It said it is monitoring dam levels to ensure they don't overflow and would consider a controlled release of some water with more heavy rain expected this week. Cape Town, on the southwest tip of Africa, is often hit by cold fronts coming in from the Atlantic Ocean during its winter months in the middle of the year. They are especially damaging for informal settlements. 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 }} Makayla Pithan Trumbo had been wearing a beautiful necklace containing her mothers ashes for eight months when she received a frantic phone call last year from her sisters. Something was happening at Return to Nature funeral home, the Colorado funeral home theyd hired to make arrangements after their beloved mothers February death, they told her. There was a big police presence at the property in Penrose, Makaylas sisters continued, and reports of bodies that had been stored improperly. Makayla, at first, didnt worry, reasoning that too much time had passed since her mothers death for her remains to have been caught up in the scandal. The family had also used Return to Nature firstly following the death of her uncle, then the traumatic 2020 stillbirth of Makaylas nephew Parker. For three years, her sister Haylea had kept a shadow box in her living room containing Parkers urn, his blanket and ultrasound photos. As news began to trickle out that nearly 200 bodies had been found amidst horrendous conditions, however, the former certified nursing assistant began doing the math, calculating that remains had likely been kept for significant periods of time. And she couldnt get those images out of her head. Ive experienced a lot of deaths and seeing what a human body looks like when they first die, Makayla, 24, tells The Independent. So I just couldnt wrap my head around what that building must be like, with all of these different bodies in there and there are different decomposition levels. Her mind then turned to the necklace shed been devotedly wearing since the death of her 66-year-old mom, Karan Lea Blue, a loving grandmother of 24 who unfailingly called each of her six children every single morning and every single night. I took it off immediately, because what is in here? Is it someone elses loved ones? Is it just concrete? she says. Because if these people are sick enough to do this, how much sicker can they be? What could they have done to this necklace? The loved ones of Colorado woman Karan Lea Blue, who passed away in February 2023 at the age of 66, were horrified to learn her remains had been improperly stored at the funeral home theyd hired -- and the fate of her stillborn grandson remains in question ( Makayla Pithan Trumbo ) Her mothers remains, it would turn out, were among those left to languish unceremoniously at Return to Nature. Her uncle, thankfully, had been properly cremated. Her sister is still waiting for answers and confirmation regarding the fate of her stillborn baby as criminal and civil actions continue in the wake of the horrifying discovery. It just kept getting worse and worse and worse, Makayla says forcing the family to grieve over and over, news reports of the gruesome finds serving as a constant reminder of loss. That grief and horror was compounded by revelations that state oversight of Return to Nature and the funeral industry in general had been practically nonexistent. Funeral homes did not require a license or training to run and were not regularly or adequately monitored. If you look at all these other little businesses out here, like salons even have regulations and food places and stuff like that, she says. So you think that someone that is handling dead bodies, someone that is handling biohazard material, should have very strict protocols and should be having regular checks. There is federal regulation of the funeral home industry, but that applies mostly to the financial end of the businesses. The rest is left up to the states individually, and Colorado until last month was among the most hands-off. Every state has their own kind of needs and goals and what they think is important so we try to not really push down and dictate, Christopher Farmer, general counsel for the National Funeral Directors Association, tells The Independent. We have recommendations, we have kind of proposed model laws but we respect the autonomy of the state. A hearse and van sit outside the Return to Nature Funeral Home on October 6, 2023, in Penrose, Colorado; the owners were arrested after authorities discovered nearly 200 decaying bodies at the property ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) In Colorados case, nearly anyone, essentially, could open up a funeral home; neither a degree nor a high school diploma was required. Unlike nearly every other state, Colorado didnt license funeral directors or require some certification, The Denver Post reported earlier this year. State officials havent regularly inspected funeral homes and only devoted one-quarter of one full-time position to regulate 220 funeral homes and 77 crematories. Colorado was, if not the, probably the most lax in the country, said Farmer, noting the potential for those bad actors and bad things to happen. The Return to Nature scandal was neither the first nor last in recent years highlighting the pitfalls of the states dearth of regulation with offenses ranging from selling body parts to stashing bodies and cremains in residential crannies. When legislation sunsetted four decades ago, new rules were never implemented and the recent scandals called blaring attention to the consequences. No one wants to talk about death or dying; [that], is why legislators avoid changing the law at all within the death care industry, State Rep Matthew Soper, who helped spearhead the new rules, tells The Independent. And never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would be the leader in death care and funeral home reform in Colorado I certainly did not want to be an expert in all things death and dying. Soper was introduced to Colorados lax regulation after attending a memorial service for victims of another funeral home scandal this one centering around illegal body brokering. The mother and daughter operators of that business, Sunset Mesa Funeral Home in Montrose, were arrested in 2020 and are currently serving federal prison sentences. Return to Nature owners Carre and Jon Halford face both federal and state charges after the gruesome find ( AP ) I was shocked, Soper says. I could not believe how few rules there were in this space. The Sunset Mesa case had been particularly egregious. Megan Hess, then 46, was sentenced last year to 20 years in prison as part of a plea deal; her mother, 69-year-old Shirley Koch, was sentenced to 15 years after pleading guilty to one count of mail fraud and aiding and abetting. The pair, from 2010 through 2018, stole the bodies or body parts of hundreds of victims, and then sold those remains to victims purchasing the remains for body broker services, the US Attorneys Office said in a press release announcing the sentences. Hess, it continued, would meet promise to complete cremation services and return cremains to loved ones but instead the Sunset Mesa operator and others would harvest body parts from, or prepare the entire bodies of, the decedents for sale in body broker services. Soper liaised with many families devastated by the Sunset Mesa case, recalling: Almost every victim described it the same way and that was as a second death. More Colorado families, however, were destined to suffer that same re-victimization. In February 2020, the mother of a stillborn boy contacted authorities to report that shed been given more ashes than could fit in an infant-sized urn by a funeral home operated by Shannon Kent, then the Lake County coroner. It would be only one of an avalanche of problems associated with a string of homes operated by Kent and his wife, Staci, in Colorado mountain towns; authorities searching the home discovered everything from foul smells and leaking bodily fluids to unlabeled cremains and animal remains. Karan Lea Blue, 66, was a beloved grandmother of 24 and mother of six who checked on her children every day; her loved ones had picked out special necklaces containing her ashes -- but had to order a whole new cremation and new jewelry after her remains were discovered improperly stored more than half a year after her death ( Makayla Pithan Trumbo ) Both Kents were arrested and charged with abuse of a corpse and misconduct related to their handling of the body of a truck driver, 42-year-old Viktor Akubuo, whose remains were left for months on end in a coffin. After two mistrials, they were eventually both found not guilty. Shannon Kent pleaded guilty to two counts of unlawful cremation in December 2022 and was sentenced to six months in jail. As part of a plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed 12 other charges, including five counts of abuse of a corpse. Staci Kent pleaded guilty last year to one count of unlawful act of cremation, was fined $5,000 and sentenced to one year of probation. During the same time period, however, bad operators a little further south were mishandling loved ones remains in Penrose though their misdeeds would only be uncovered after neighbors reported a foul smell coming from the property last October. Investigating authorities encountered stacks of partially covered human remains, bodily fluids several inches deep on the floor, and flies and maggots throughout the building, The AP reported. Twenty-three of the bodies had death dates from 2019 and 61 were from 2020, FBI agent Andrew Cohen testified in January with remains including adults, infants and fetuses. Return to Natures owners, Carie and Jon Hallford, were arrested in November in Oklahoma and subsequently each charged in Colorado with approximately 190 counts of abuse of a corpse, five counts of theft, four counts of money laundering and over 50 counts of forgery. Republican Colorado State Rep. Matt Soper and Democratic Sen. Dylan Roberts appear at a March news conference to unveil bipartisan legislation to license funeral home professionals in Colorado; Soper tells The Independent that, when he first began delving into the issue, I could not believe how few rules there were in this space ( Associated Press ) Prosecutors revealed texts in court between the owners in which one suggested disposing of bodies by digging a big hole and treating them with lye or setting them on fire, according to The AP. The Hallfords next court date is scheduled for next week, when they are expected to either enter pleas of not guilty or possibly accept a plea deal that would see both serve approximately 20 years in prison. They also, however, face federal charges, pleading not guilty last year to 15 counts of wire fraud. As the horrors in Penrose were coming to light earlier this year, however, yet another funeral home scandal hit the news. The body of a 62-year-old woman was discovered in a hearse, strapped to a gurney and covered by a blanket, during the February court-ordered eviction of a rental home in the Denver suburb of Littleton, where authorities also discovered the remains of about 30 people. Miles Harford, the 33-year-old former owner of Apollo Funeral and Cremation Services which lost its license in 2022 was arrested and faces felony forgery and abuse of a corpse charges; his arraignment is scheduled for August. Colorado lawmakers, faced with an avalanche of embarrassing scandals, finally acted. Governor Jared Polis signed two new bills into law in May, bringing the state more in line with the rest of the country. One requires regulators to routinely inspect funeral homes and give them more enforcement power. Another implements licensing for funeral directors and other workers in the industry. They would need to pass background checks and a national exam while possessing degrees and work experience. The changes certainly feel satisfying, Soper tells The Independent. It feels like the culmination of a legislative lifetimes worth of work have completely reformed the industry, both criminal laws, business laws, civil laws and regulatory laws, to be able to really save the industry in Colorado and to prevent future victims. Loved ones of Karan Lea Blue, pictured, were already grieving when the scandal hit and not only traumatized them but served as a constant reminder of loss, her daughter tells The Independent , adding:I just hope that rules and regulations are put into place and they realize that, even though that person is not in that body anymore, it still affects the people that loved them ( Makayla Pithan Trumbo ) Countless families, meanwhile like Makayla mourning her mom Karan continue to grapple with the pain lax regulations caused them. She was identified pretty quickly; we were able to get her remains from the coroners office, and we had one of the other funeral homes that were offering to do the cremation for free complete the proper cremation, Makayla tells The Independent, reiterating how Karan was the backbone of our family.. And we all got new necklaces, and we got a new scatter urn, because were going to be spreading her ashes. The family wants to spread her ashes in Gunnison, a beautiful stretch of Colorado where Karans father was a guide and outfitter and presided over thousands of acres. They were hoping to make the journey in August but will likely postpone until next year because theres a lot of fresh feelings with the criminal case and now the federal case and everything else. I feel like I just lost my mom all over again, she says, choking up as she calls her mother the center of everything. Her sister Haylea, meanwhile, remains in limbo about the remains of her stillborn son. They really just dont have an answer for her, Makayla says. So we dont know where his body is at. Makayla is part of a Facebook group for the hundreds if not thousands of loved ones impacted by the Colorado funeral home scandal, but says she isnt ready yet to reach out to other families who continue to live the same nightmare. I just hope that rules and regulations are put into place and they realize that, even though that person is not in that body anymore, it still affects the people that loved them, she tells The Independent. Because that was their vessel here while they were on Earth, and it still has a lot of meaning behind it. 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 }} Boeing will plead guilty to a fraud charge in order to avoid a criminal trial over two fatal 737 MAX crashes, in a deal which the families of the victims have criticised as a slap on the wrist. The company has agreed to pay a fine of $243.6m to resolve a US Justice Department investigation into two incidents in Indonesia and Ethiopia over a five-month period in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people, the government said in a court filing on Sunday. The settlement, which still requires a judges approval, drew swift criticism from victims families who wanted Boeing to face a trial and suffer harsher financial consequences. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice last week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The American aerospace giant is accused of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and its pilot training requirements. The Justice Departments investigation has deepened an ongoing crisis engulfing Boeing since a mid-flight window blow-out in January exposed continuing safety and quality issues at the planemaker. A guilty plea potentially threatens the companys ability to secure lucrative government contracts with the likes of the US Defense Department and Nasa, although it could seek waivers. But it spares the planemaker a contentious trial that could have exposed the companys decisions ahead of the fatal crashes to even greater public scrutiny. The deal is nothing more than a slap on the wrist, said Erin Applebaum, a lawyer at Kreindler & Kreindler LLP representing some of the victims relatives. Lawyers for some of the victims families said they planned to press Judge Reed OConnor, who has been overseeing the case, to reject the deal. In a separate document filed to the court, they cited Judge OConnors statement in a February 2023 ruling that Boeings crime may properly be considered the deadliest corporate crime in US history. A Boeing spokesperson confirmed it had reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department. As part of the deal, the planemaker agreed to spend at least $455m over the next three years to boost safety and compliance programmes. Boeings board will also have to meet with relatives of those killed in the MAX crashes, the filing said. And the deal imposes an independent monitor, who will have to file public progress reports annually, to oversee the firms compliance. Boeing will be on probation during the monitors three-year term. The plea deal only covers wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes, which killed all 346 passengers and crew members aboard two new Max jets. It does not give Boeing immunity for other incidents, including the one where a window panel blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, a Justice Department official said. Additional reporting by agencies 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 }} At least 100 people were shot in Chicago over the Fourth of July holiday weekend, including 19 people who died from their injuries, according to police. The shootings happened between 6 p.m. on July 3 and 6 a.m. on July 7, according to the Chicago Police Major Incident Notifications system. Two more people were shot on July 7. Among those killed during the weekend shootings was an 8-year-old boy. He was shot alongside two other boys, ages 5 and 8, according to Chicago police. In two separate incidents, eight people between the ages of 18 and 74 were shot and seven people between the ages of 15 to 40 years old were shot. The 40-year-old died from their injuries, according to police. Erica Pinkerton told ABC 7 in Chicago that she grew up with the 74-year-old woman who was shot, and said she is tired of the violence. They dont bother nobody. They are the sweetest ladies you will ever want to meet, Pinkerton told the outlet. We dont know how to enjoy each other, because were so bitter and cold inside, towards one another and towards ourselves. Its a startling 27 percent increase in shootings over the same time span in 2023 in which at least 73 people were shot, 11 fatally, during the holiday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Police on the scene of a shooting in Chicagos Little Italy neighborhood during the Fourth of July weekend. There were at least 100 shot across Chicago over the holiday ( FOX32 ) Mayor Brandon Johnson released a statement addressing the violence on Friday. We are devastated by the recent violence that has left our city in a state of grief and we extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and communities impacted by these recent events, Johnson said in the statement. The City of Chicago is committed to ensuring the safety of all residents and visitors. The city had canceled time off for officers to maximize presence and ensure prompt incident response, and activated an emergency services assistance center to provide support to people in the community and would hold a community rally Friday afternoon to promote bonding, support, and healing, according to Johnson. Police Superintendent Larry Snelling also spoke on the spate of shootings during the holidays, according to ABC 7. We have to really stop and think about the mindset of someone who will shoot a child, a helpless child an unarmed mother and think that thats okay. And go about their days, Snelling said. Those people have to be taken off the street. They have to be put away if were not doing that. Then were failing other families. 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 }} GoFundMe campaigns have been launched for three of the young adults who were killed and one who was injured at a shooting during house party in Kentucky over the weekend. Shane Miller, 20; Hayden Rybicki, 20; Delaney Eary, 19; and Melissa Parrett, 44, were gunned down at the Florence residence after the suspected gunman, 21-year-old Chase Garvey showed up to the party uninvited and began shooting, according to Florence Police Department Chief Jeff Mallery. Police said Garvey, who was known to others at the gathering, then turned the gun on himself. A GoFundMe for Shane Miller described him as a kind and sweet person that is loved dearly. Im the aunt of an amazing person who was shot and killed, Sheryl Beatty wrote in the campaign. He was at a birthday party when a person came with a gun. The person shot and killed 4. The family needs money to pay for the funeral of my wonderful 20-year-old nephew. Another campaign is raising money for Missy Parretts family after the 44-year-old was killed in the shooting. Another member of the family, Chloe, was in ICU in a stable condition but still fighting for her life, according to the organizer, who wrote that this senseless act happened on Brendons 21st birthday pool party. Brendon is also part of the family, according to the campaign. Delaney Earys loved ones created a GoFundMe reaching out for support in honoring Delaneys memory. Any contribution, no matter how small, will help them through this difficult time, the campaign read. Thank you for your compassion, kindness, and generosity. A campaign has also been created for Claire Smith, who was severely injured in the shooting. The young adult is in the ICU but expected to make a full recovery. The fund is to relieve any financial burden she will face in the coming months. Chase Garvey, the alleged shooter, was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead ( Hamilton County Jail ) Police responded to a call just before 3am on Saturday morning for an active shooting at a home in Florence, Kentucky, where a group of friends were celebrating a birthday. When they arrived on the scene, law enforcement found seven people suffering from gunshot wounds. Four of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene, according to CNN. The three wounded victims were taken for treatment at a hospital, where they are listed as critical but stable. The gunman fled the scene of the shooting in a car, then drove his vehicle into a ditch. When officers approached the vehicle, they found the suspect suffering from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, police said. Garvey was taken to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead. Mallery said Garvey had previously been convicted of a sex crime. In 2021, he was arrested and charged with the rape of a 13-year-old girl in a parking lot. He was sentenced to five years of probation after entering a guilty plea for unlawful transaction with a minor in the second degree, according to court records. Florence police said they are still investigating the motive for the attack. 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 }} One glistening day, three teenagers stumbled across a suitcase along the rocky shores of Seattles Alki Beach. The inquisitive trio hoped to find something of value as they eagerly unzipped the black bag before setting cameras rolling for a TikTok video. As they hauled the bag from the body of water, instead of treasure, they found the case was stuffed full of rotting human remains. Last week saw the return of Netflixs hit true crime series Worst Roommate Ever. In the final episode of its second season, viewers were introduced to Michael Lee Dudley. The warm-humoured, unassuming looking 66-year-old looked, by all appearances, a committed Washington Airbnb owner. Hed previously volunteered to drive one renter to a job interview and cared for anothers pets he himself was smitten with his dog, Duke. But Dudley, who has since earned the sobriquet The Lethal Landlord, was actually a killer. In late 2019, Jessica Lewis, 35, and her boyfriend Austin Weener, 27, rented one of Dudleys rooms in Burien. By the following summer, the couple had vanished without a trace. Michael Lee Dudley was sentenced to over four decades in prison ( Netflix ) On June 9 2020, a neighbor said they heard a mans voice pleading for his life as gunshots rang out, according to court documents. When police arrived at the scene, Dudley refused to open the door. The couple had gotten into a spat with the landlord over unpaid rent, prosecutors said. The tenants were dismembered and their body parts squeezed into the suitcase. Ten days after the murder, the three teens discovered the remains. Austin Weener was 27 years old, Jessica Lewis was 35 ( Netflix ) The gruesome video was posted on TikTok and went viral, quickly garnering more than 30 million views. After the discovery, police obtained a search warrant at Dudleys property where Lewis and Weener had been staying. There, authorities discovered freshly covered bullet holes and traces of blood. Dudley was arrested on August 19 2020 on suspicion of murder, and charged five days later. Dudley was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder in April 2023 ( Netflix ) His ex-girlfriend of 14-years Marlys Gordon spoke out alleging that he once ricocheted her head off a patio floor with a gun in his hand, local news station King5 News reported. Lewis aunt Gina Jaschke also claimed on Worst Roommate Ever that Dudley had previously held her niece at gunpoint, killed animals as threats and placed a tracker on her car. On April 7 2023, Dudley was found guilty of two counts of second-degree murder. He will now likely spend the rest of his days behind bars, after he was sentenced to 46 years in prison. He is currently serving his time at Washington State Penitentiary and will not be eligible for parole until the age of 104. 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 shirtless passenger was arrested after running across the airport tarmac in Los Angeles and toward a plane. The incident occurred around 6am Saturday after the man, who was experiencing a mental health crisis, became irate and managed to escape Terminal 4. He then ran out onto the airfield at Los Angeles International Airport, Police Captain Karla Rodriguez with the Los Angeles Airport Police Department told CBS. The airport police say they responded and a use of force occurred to take the man into custody. In cell phone footage obtained by KCAL, the shirtless man, who has not been named by authorities, could be seen sprinting near an American Airlines aircraft with an officer running behind him. Once the man reaches a JetBlue aircraft, the officer catches up with the passenger and tackles on the airports tarmac. The man was arrested for battery against a police officer and was taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation, Rodriguez said. A similar incident occurred in February at LAX, after a man left through one of the security doors at the Tom Bradley International Terminal and started to sprint near a runway. When officers tried to detain him, the suspect did not cooperate, so they had to use less-than-lethal force to take him into custody, according to ABC7. The suspect in the February inccident suffered minor injuries and was taken to hospital. A shirtless passenger was seen sprinting across the tarmac at the Los Angeles airport and toward a plane. ( Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) Saturdays Los Angeles incident comes less than a month after an innocent elderly woman was knocked out and left unconscious at LAX during a violent road rage fight. Jasan Givens Sr. and another man, whom police have not identified, were in a fight outside the airport around 9:30am on May 31 when the two men chased each other into a drop-off lane. The unidentified elderly woman was checking her luggage on the curb as the fight continued in her direction. Dramatic video from LAX security cameras shows the woman innocently standing near the curb when the two men come running over and knock her down, causing her to immediately hit the ground and lose consciousness. Los Angeles Fire Department paramedics transported the woman to the hospital in critical condition. The innocent bystander has since been released from the hospital, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. 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 }} Daelena Mackay was a student full of life and looking to follow in her fathers footsteps as an actor. But in May, she was found hanging from a red scarf in her Los Angeles apartment just one month before her 21st birthday. For weeks, her body sat in a mortuary after the countys medical examiner ruled her death a suicide. Her father, Dwayne Adway, a veteran Hollywood actor who has appeared in hit television shows CSI, NYPD Blue, and Soul Plane, has since cast his doubt over the cause of his daughters death and said the family is looking for truth and justice. Her mom, Elaine Mackay, also insisted that her daughter had suspicious injuries. After finding Mackay in her El Centro Hollywood bathroom on May 23, a man claiming to be her boyfriend said he desperately attempted to revive her as he called 911, police said. Those attempts failed, and she was pronouncd dead by paramedics just after midnight. The boyfriend said he left the apartment at approximately 8pm following an argument and returned to find her dead, according to the police report. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner did not perform an autopsy. The medical examiner told The Independent that an external examination conducted on May 25 and the circumstances surrounding the death of the 20-year-old were conclusive. The case remains open, it confirmed. But Mackays family isnt satisified, and Adway said he intends to apply pressure to the Los Angeles Police Department to dig further into his daughters case, he told the New York Post. They are dead set on staying where they are and not looking more into the case. This seems to be happening a lot in LA with black and brown girls who die and are written off as suicides, he said. Dwayne Adway said that he wants to apply pressure on the LAPD to investigate the case further ( Getty Images ) Adway told the outlet that he has met the man who called 911 the day of his daughters death and said he had concerns about his behavior. Mackays mother claimed that the purported partner was not the same as her her daughters long-term off-and-on boyfriend in Texas, she told the Mail. The heartbroken mom has also shared her disdain about the lack of a thorough post-mortem examination on her daughters body. She claimed that she was left with no choice but to examine her body herself. Her body tells a different story than what police are telling us, with bruises and bleeding from two puncture wounds approximately an inch apart that go from the front of her body straight through to the back and other bleeding, she told the outlet. Mackay also maintains that her daughter saw a therapist the day prior to her death, adding that there was zero clinical indication of depression or suicide, that my daughter was full of life. Adway contended that an autopsy is not likely to shed more light on the cause of his daughters death but he continues to press authorities to pursue further action. I am seeking a full investigation from LAPD in hopes of finding the truth and justice, he told NBC Los Angeles. Adway said that he consulted with two private forensic pathologists and claimed they told him that there is no doubt that his daughter was strangled. However, their autopsy results would not differ from the medical examiners. The issue is not that she was strangled, but the manner in which she was strangled is the question, Adway told the Post. The Independent has reached out to the LAPD about whether theyve decided to investigate Mackays death further. If you are experiencing feelings of distress and isolation, or are struggling to cope, The Samaritans offers support; you can speak to someone for free over the phone, in confidence, on 116 123 (UK and ROI), email jo@samaritans.org, or visit the Samaritans website to find details of your nearest branch.If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call National Suicide Prevention Helpline on 1-800-273-TALK (8255). The Helpline is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you. 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 masked gunman stormed a New York City McDonalds and opened fire on two children before fleeing the scene. The shooter entered the Bronx-based fast food restaurant at approximately 9.51pm ET on Saturday evening at 2516 White Plains Road, according to the New York Police Department (NYPD). A volley of six bullets struck a 12-year-old male in the back and the left leg, and a 13-year-old boy in the left thigh. Police responded to a 911 call, finding the wounded victims outside the McDonalds, authorities said. The gunman was shrouded in all-black attire along with a black medical mask when the man entered the premises. The boys were the intended targets of the shooter, NYPD sources told CBS. Authorities are still looking for the perpetrator, who fled the scene on foot on Mace Avenue. No arrests have been made. The shooting took place at 9.48pm on Saturday, an hour before the restaurant closed ( FNTV ) Both children were whisked by ambulance a mile down the road to Jacobi Medical Center where they are receiving treatment for their wounds. The NYPD confirmed to The Independent that the boys are in a stable condition. Detectives spent the entire evening gleaning evidence at the McDonalds and investigators began speaking with employees as of Sunday morning. The motivations behind the attack remain unclear. The number of shooting incidents in New York City are down more than seven per cent so far this year compared with 2023, according to the latest NYPD figures. However, shooting incidents in the Bronx are up by nearly one per cent compared with last year. Its not the first time this year a McDonalds has been at the center of a shooting in the Bronx. On April 15, two men were shot outside the eatery at 4am on East 149th Street and Morris Avenue in the residential neighbourhood of Mott Haven, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. One of the men, Adrian Mendoza, 24, was struck in the head and body by six bullets and was pronounced dead at Lincoln Hospital. The other man, Jhombeyker Bisbal, 31, was shot in the torso and was taken to hospital in critical condition. Police are asking for anyone with any information on the incident to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477). 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 }} Disturbing details laid out in the case against a North Carolina mother accused of killing two of her five children reveal that she allegedly forced one of her other children to help dismember their siblings bodies and said she would pin the murders on them if necessary. Avantae Deven, 63, of Fayetteville, was arrested on June 23 and charged in the death of her daughter, London Deven, and the disappearance of her son, Blake Deven, who is presumed dead, according to Fayetteville Police. The children had been missing for years although authorities were unaware. All five of her children were adopted. Two sets of human remains were found in a barrel in the backyard of an Autryville home in April. One set was determined to be London. The other remains are undergoing further testing, but according to court records obtained by The Fayetteville Observer, they preliminarily appear to belong to Blake. Blaming her other kids Deven allegedly forced one of the other children to buy the tools and dismember their siblings bodies, according to court records. She is accused of telling the child who allegedly helped her: If this ever gets found out, you need to take the blame because I will get the death penalty and because of your age you wont get in trouble if you take the blame. When the Department of Social Services got involved, Deven got nervous and recruited a family friend to impersonate her son during a home visit, according to the court records that cite the individuals interview with police. Blake went missing first Fayetteville Police only learned about Blakes disappearance in late 2023 when another one of her children, who was a teenager, called 911 threatening to kill himself, prompting officers to respond to the home. Avantae Devens mug shot after her arrest ( Fayetteville Police Department ) He had not seen his brother Blake in five years and that the last time he saw Blake, he had a broken arm and that he is now dead, according to the arrest report. Lead investigator Sgt. Jeff Locklear told reporters last week that investigators were able to confirm that Blake had been missing since 2017, when he was 10 years old. However, he was not reported missing by his mother until January 2024. Deven told police she last saw her son in 2022 when he was allegedly leaving for a Buddhist retreat. Investigators say evidence collected indicates that Blake was starved and abused until his body could no longer take the inhumane treatment and his health began to fail in 2017, according to court records. He became lethargic and eventually lost consciousness, but his mother refused to get help for Blake and he ultimately died. Disposing of his remains Deven allegedly hatched a plan to dispose of the boys remains and then forced one of Blakes siblings to buy the tools needed to dismember his body. Blake Deven, who went missing in 2017 when he was just 10 years old ( FBI ) It is alleged that Deven then incinerated Blakes remains in a burn barrel in the backyard of the Eichelberger Drive home and removed any evidence of the boys death from the home, according to the affidavit. Avantae developed a plan to hide Blakes remains, and she forced another person in the household to participate, he added. They dismembered him and burned his remains. Londons short life During the course of their investigation of Blakes disappearance, police discovered the death of London Deven, who was last seen alive in 2019. After the family moved to a house on Berriedale Drive, one of the children fled the state, but later returned and asked about London. According to the court records, Deven told them: I had to put her in a mental institution. But on April 10, Fayetteville police found a metal burn barrel that contained partial human skeletal remains of two children. One set was confirmed to be London Deven, according to the North Carolina Office of the Chief Medical Examiner. London Deven was last seen alive in 2019 ( FBI ) According to the warrant, investigators recovered surveillance video of Deven with the two remaining adopted children in her care at an area Walmart purchasing a red cooler, in which the record suggests Londons remains were found. The abuse allegations Police and the Department of Social Services (DSS) interviewed the three surviving children who all gave graphic details of the horrific treatment they allegedly endured, which included being malnourished and physically abused while being trapped in a small, dark room with only a plastic container to use as a bathroom. Deven kept them in small rooms in complete darkness at times, Locklear said. They were given little or no food, they could earn nourishment through doing paperwork. That meant they had to write hundreds of paragraphs to apologize for misbehavior. It is alleged some of the children were also beaten to the point of needing medical care but were only given natural cures like honey. When the children misbehaved, they were allegedly forced to do paperwork which consisted of writing hundreds and frequently thousands of sentences and paragraphs apologizing for some misdeed they had supposedly done. Deven is charged with two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of child abuse causing serious bodily injury, two counts of destroying human remains/concealing an unnatural death and one count of kidnapping. She remains in the Cumberland County jail where she is being held without bail. 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 Georgia toddler has died after accidentally shooting himself in a Walmart parking lot as his parents were shopping just feet away. Nakyzi Odums, 2, was left alone in the car on the afternoon of July 3 while his parents were buying fireworks at a nearby stand, according to local news outlet WALB. Witnesses told police that Nakyzis parents heard the gunshot and ran back to their car where they found the boy had shot himself in the chest. The child was rushed to the hospital in Douglas, Georgia, and later transferred to a trauma center in Jacksonville, Florida, where he died on Saturday, police said in a Facebook post. Douglas Police Chief Brannen Pruette said investigators are trying to figure out how the toddler got a hold of the gun. Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident, he said. Witnesses said Nakyzi was sitting in the front seat of the car, and that the gun may have been in the side of the car door, WALB reported. Nakyzi Odums, 2, died after accidentally shooting himself in a Georgia Walmarts parking lot ( GoFundMe ) Youre allowed to have a gun in the car, but when theres a child involved, you need to make sure that the gun is secure so that the child doesnt have access to it, Pruette said, addressing the theory. Its unclear if the parents identified by family as Sam Odums and Laileighauna Parks will face charges in the incident. They are not listed in recent arrest reports viewed by The Independent. Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident, police said. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time. The childs grandmother Candi Brinson has created a GoFundMe for the family to help pay for the burial and to allow his parents to grieve properly. She described Nakyzi as a boy who smiled brightly, laughed wholeheartedly [and] loved unconditionally. 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 }} Red Roof Inn, one of the largest budget hotel chains in America, is set to face lawsuits from hundreds of sex trafficking victims who claim the company turned a blind eye and profited from their abuse for years. An investigation by The Independent has found that at least 42 federal lawsuits are underway against the hotel chain and its franchisees. Hundreds more victims are in the process of filing legal action, according to attorneys working on their cases. The victims, some of whom were underage at the time, accuse the company of allowing its rooms to be rented on a grand scale to sex traffickers who forced them into commercial sex work and controlled nearly every aspect of their lives. They claim the signs of their trafficking were so obvious they could not have been missed by the company. The lawsuits are littered with references to malnourished and underage girls and women under the control of pimps who conducted their business in front of hotel staff, renting numerous hotel rooms where male customers came and went, night after night. The lawsuits, and those yet to be filed, span the length and breadth of the country, across 39 states and at least 117 Red Roof Inn hotels. As part of this investigation, The Independent has plotted those locations on a map to show the scale and spread of the alleged incidents. The lawsuits also revealed that a senior Red Roof Inn employee joked about the presence of pimps and hos at one of the hotels under his management. Steven Babin, an attorney who is representing close to 1,000 sex trafficking victims in cases involving Red Roof Inn, told The Independent that sex trafficking had reached an epidemic level across the hotel chain, and estimated the true number of victims to be in the many thousands. Sex trafficking is the crime of using force, fraud or coercion to induce another individual to sell sex. Red Roof Inn intentionally ignored the problem of human sex trafficking in its hotels and completely failed to put any meaningful policies and procedures in place. Instead, their focus was on one thing: money, he claimed. Red Roof Inn is only one hotel chain among many facing similar allegations, but a trial in which the company is defending itself against 11 alleged victims of sex trafficking in Atlanta, Georgia, made history last month as the first of its kind against a national hotel chain. That trial offered a rare and disturbing close-up view of how trafficking operations were run from two Red Roof Inn hotels in the city, and precisely what the company knew. I still have scars The Atlanta courtroom fell silent as Tiffeny entered. She was visibly pregnant and nervous as she took her seat in the witness box. Over the course of the next hour, she described in detail how she was brutally trafficked at a Red Roof Inn hotel when she was 17 by two men named Bless and Bags, between December 2010 and May 2011. We had to take customers morning, lunch, dinner, midnight, after club hours, she told the court, at times breaking into tears. It was just around the clock. We had to make a quota of a minimum $1,000 a day if we wanted to eat. Tiffeny and the rest of the plaintiffs filed their lawsuits under a 2008 law that allows victims of sex trafficking to seek civil damages against any entity or individual that knowingly profited from the trafficking activities. Her testimony was historic: She is the first victim of sex trafficking to ever testify at a trial seeking damages from a national hotel chain accused of profiting from the crime. They were told about it, their employees knew about it, the front desk people knew about it, housekeeping, everybody knew about it Jonathan Tonge, attorney for the 11 plaintiffs in the Atlanta case Eight days into the trial, Red Roof Inn agreed to an undisclosed settlement with the victims. But even though the trial was cut short, the testimony shone a light on what sex trafficking conducted from hotels really looks like. Tiffeny described how the pimps would travel in groups and gather in the parking lot of the hotel to coordinate customers while the women worked inside the rooms. Her trafficker would decide when she slept and when she ate, although she said she didnt remember much eating. If she refused to see a customer or disobeyed him she would be choked or beaten. Throughout this time, she said no Red Roof Inn employees ever asked if she needed help. Should they have? the attorney for the plaintiffs asked during the trial. I think its just pretty suspicious to see teenage girls dressed in club wear at 9:00, 10:00 in the morning paying for a hotel room during the week, she replied. The harrowing court testimony continued with Melissa, who was trafficked in 2015 and 2016 after dropping out of college. She described being forced to have sex with eight men a day, for days at a time at the Red Roof Inn. She spoke about witnessing a pregnant woman being beaten to a bloody pulp by her trafficker in the bathroom and how housekeeping staff came each morning to remove garbage cans filled with condoms and bloody towels. Its hard to explain because I had to be so numb to the experience, she said. Having random people inside of me every single day, and the pain that my body had to go through of having sex every it never stopped. It did not stop. Alexa was 17 years old and in a relationship with her trafficker before he threatened her family with violence if she did not obey him. She has scars on her forehead and her midsection from violence meted out against her by him. She testified that she was forced to get a tattoo of an eye on her leg a brand her trafficker used to claim ownership of her. The Red Roof Inn was chosen by the trafficker because of its lax attitude towards what was going on," she said. If things were slow, she could go out into the parking lot to find dates and bring them back to her room. The Smyrna Red Roof Inn, where some of the plaintiffs in the Atlanta trial say they were trafficked. ( Google ) Each of the victims who testified that day told a similar story. The trafficking was so blatant, they argued, that Red Roof Inn employees could not have missed it. Dozens of lawsuits filed against Red Roof Inn across the US and reviewed by The Independent tell a similar story. In each of the cases, women were allegedly lured or pressured into a situation where traffickers controlled every aspect of their lives, where they were abused and trafficked for months at a time. In one lawsuit centered on a Red Roof Inn in Kentucky, a 16-year-old girl said she was forced to have sex with at least 10-12 paying customers a day at the hotel, while enduring brutal physical abuse, rape, exploitation, psychological torment, kidnapping, and imprisonment. If these girls and women are being trafficked at a hotel, you will see the malnourished body, the way that they are dressed, the demeanor in which they walk, the lack of eye contact Anique Whitmore, expert witness at the Atlanta trial Another victim was trafficked for three years at Red Roof Inn hotels in Washington, DC, and Maryland, where she claimed staff witnessed her physically and verbally abused by her captors in public areas of the hotel. Yet another woman, who was trafficked for three years at a Red Roof Inn in Reynoldsburg, Ohio, said in her lawsuit that she encountered many of the same hotel staff repeatedly. Those employees witnessed her trafficker being frequently violent with her and loud sounds of abuse could often be heard from the room, the lawsuit alleges. The hotel chain, which has some 624 properties across the US, has repeatedly denied that it ignored sex trafficking at its hotels. In some of the cases, Red Roof Inn cast doubt on victims claims that they had been trafficked at all. During cross-examination in the Atlanta trial, the defense team highlighted instances where they argued that the women were able to escape from their traffickers and subsequently went back to them. The warning signs The testimonies of the plaintiffs in the Atlanta case, and in lawsuits across the country, leave little doubt that sex trafficking took place at Red Roof Inn hotels. But the question at the center of all of these lawsuits is whether the hotel chain should be held liable for it especially when the location in question was owned by a franchisee. Red Roof Inn has been moving further towards the franchise model in recent years by reducing the number of properties it owns directly. Because no cases had gone to trial, it was unclear how that might impact liability. But in denying a summary judgment motion in the Atlanta trial, the judge agreed with an earlier court ruling that said the evidence shows that the Red Roof Defendants and their employees were aware that they were profiting from renting rooms to those pimps and prostitutes, and that even after the Atlanta location in question was sold to a franchisee, there is evidence that the Red Roof Defendants continued to participate in this venture, although to a lesser degree. Red Roof Inn contends that trafficking is by its very nature an illicit activity, conducted in secret. For that reason, the company has argued that it could not be expected to identify it, and therefore should not be held responsible. But experts in the Atlanta case testified that although much of the control exerted over sex trafficking victims is psychological, there are clear red flags. Anique Whitmore, an expert witness in the Atlanta trial who has trained police departments across Georgia on how to recognize trafficking, said the crime is often clear enough so that you can see it with a naked eye. These are women, men, children who are being forced into selling their bodies for sex. That money is handed over to somebody, and you receive zero. Your compensation might be some french fries the next day, she told the court. If girls and women are being trafficked at a hotel, you will see the malnourished body, the way that they are dressed, the demeanor in which they walk, the lack of eye contact the inability to have their own voice and speak without permission, she said. To be frank, youd be quite ignorant if you didnt see it, she added. The victims lawyers contend that the scale of prostitution was so great across Red Roof Inn properties that by turning a blind eye, the company created the conditions for sex trafficking to take place. Anyone who set foot on the Smyrna and Buckhead Red Roof Inn properties witnessed an open-air prostitution market, the Atlanta lawsuit claimed. It added that those hotels did not just tolerate prostitution, they knowingly chose to profit from it. my pimps and hos love them some snacks to go with their smokes Jay Moyer, then-regional vice president of operations for Red Roof Inn Alan Borowsky, an attorney who has taken on dozens of cases relating to sex trafficking at Red Roof Inn, told The Independent that the scale and signs of prostitution were so obvious that the law required action to be taken. Even if you have an instance where sex trafficking may not be outwardly distinguishable from non-coerced sex work, you still have situations where clearly there is some type of commercial sex venture, and it can be discovered through the course of reasonable expectations of observation and investigation that a sex trafficking venture is afoot, he said. And thats where the liability comes in, he said. Tonge, the lawyer in the Atlanta case, put it succinctly: If you get rid of all prostitution, then you get rid of all sex trafficking. So just do that. The claims of widespread prostitution are supported by testimony from former staff and reviews of the hotels posted online by customers. An analysis of customer reviews of Red Roof Inn hotels by The Independent found that customers mentioned prostitution at 176 properties. This information is publicly available, and evidence presented in the trial showed that Red Roof Inn employed an outside company to monitor reviews. The reviews, the content of which could not be verified by The Independent, show that customers saw visible signs of prostitution at Red Roof Inn locations across the country for years. Aaron, a former night manager at several Red Roof Inn hotels, told The Independent prostitution was heavy at the locations where he worked. While I was with Red Roof, all three of the properties had problems with prostitution, he said in a phone interview. Aaron said he didnt knowingly witness any sex trafficking, but the scenes he described fit the description of a sex trafficking operation. They would bring girls in, he said, referring to the men who were managing the operation. Theyd be there two weeks, sometimes. And then theyd send those girls away and bring in some more. Aaron added that the men who appeared to be running the operation would sometimes pay for the rooms, rather than the girls themselves. Like other employees who were cited in the lawsuits, he said he received no training on how to identify sex trafficking from Red Roof Inn and that the company prioritized profits over everything else. Its heads in beds, he said. They want every door sold. They dont care how you do it. Your manager has that pressure of having to do that consistently, so if you can get prostitutes and drug dealers to come in there and keep them in order, youre selling out. My pimps and hos It wasnt just the hotel staff that knew about the sex trafficking, but all the way up the Red Roof Inn corporate management chain, according to the lawsuits. The Atlanta lawsuits contained depositions and internal communications between hotel staff and corporate Red Roof Inn employees that attorneys for the plaintiffs argue show a clear awareness that sex trafficking was taking place. In one email, Jay Moyer, the then-regional vice president of operations responsible for both Atlanta hotels, joked about a vending machine being introduced to one of the properties, writing that my pimps and hos love them some snacks to go with their smokes. Moyer claimed in a deposition that he was quoting customer reviews, but lawyers for the plaintiffs said that even if that were true, the email confirms that he was aware that the [...] property regularly rented rooms to suspected prostitutes and pimps, which would also indicate knowledge of sex trafficking. Numerous former Red Roof Inn employees testified in depositions that they passed their concerns about prostitution and sex trafficking to Moyer and other managers. The law says you dont have to be Superman, you dont have to go rescue trafficking victims to follow the law, you dont have to send traffickers to jail. You just need to exercise reasonable diligence to not make money from human trafficking Steven Babin, an attorney with hundreds of clients who claim to have been victims of sex trafficking at Red Roof Inn Vanessa Cole, a general manager at one of the hotels between 2011 and 2012, said in her deposition that prostitution was a consistent problem that she reported up the chain, including to Moyer. She said Moyer responded by saying: yes, we understand we have to, you know, clean up the place, but we also need to sell rooms. Another former employee, Michael Thomas, testified that Moyer told him to book suspected sex workers in the back of the hotel, where they would be less visible to other guests. On at least one occasion, reports of sex trafficking made their way to the president of the company, Andy Alexander. In December 2015, a former board member of an international anti-trafficking organization, Michele Sarkisian, called Alexander to tell him a known sex trafficker was trafficking women at one of the Atlanta hotels, according to the Atlanta lawsuit. Red Roof Inn did not disclose what action they took in response. Employees at both Atlanta hotels testified that they did not receive any training on safety and security, prostitution or sex trafficking during the time in question. The company introduced sex trafficking training in August 2014, but it was only for general managers. A lot of people dont have the power to stop trafficking, but when youre a multi-million dollar corporation with control or at least significant influence over the place where people are being trafficked, you can, and should, be held liable if you consciously disregard the safety of others Emma Hetherington, director of the Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation (CEASE) Clinic Jonathan Tonge, an attorney for the 11 victims in the Atlanta case, told The Independent that the entire company knew women were being trafficked. What we accuse them of doing is just blatantly allowing not just prostitution, but sex trafficking. They were told about it, their employees knew about it, the front desk people knew about it, housekeeping, everybody knew about it, he said. And because of that our clients got hurt. Our clients were trafficked there because Red Roof allowed sex trafficking, he alleged. According to Babin, Red Roof Inn had significant knowledge of sex trafficking at its properties, and what they did with that knowledge is the key question here. The law says you dont have to be Superman, you dont have to go rescue trafficking victims to follow the law, you dont have to send traffickers to jail. You just need to exercise reasonable diligence to not make money from human trafficking, he said. A reckoning The rise of the internet moved prostitution, and with it sex trafficking, from the streets to hotels and behind closed doors. An estimated 80 percent of sex trafficking takes place at hotels today. Anti-trafficking signs with phone numbers for hotlines for people to report suspected trafficking are now routinely hung up in hotel rooms. Red Roof Inn itself conceded during the trial that hotels are on the frontline of combating sex trafficking, but it didnt introduce training for years after the problem was widespread. Following the settlement in the Atlanta case, Red Roof Inn said in a statement that it denies all allegations and condemns prostitution and sex trafficking in all forms. It also claimed to have taken steps to mitigate criminal activity at Red Roof properties, without clarifying further. Emma Hetherington, director of the Wilbanks Child Endangerment and Sexual Exploitation (CEASE) Clinic and an associate professor at the University of Georgia School of Law, attended the Atlanta trial for seven days and concluded that the company failed to respond in a reasonable or appropriate manner to the many reports of sex trafficking. A sign displaying the phone number for the National Human Trafficking Hotline on the back of a door at a New York City hotel. ( Richard Hall / The Independent ) A lot of people dont have the power to stop trafficking, but when youre a multimillion-dollar corporation with control or at least significant influence over the place where people are being trafficked, you can, and should, be held liable if you consciously disregard the safety of others, she added. A verdict in the trial would have answered key questions about the legal liability of national hotel chains and sex trafficking. Although the exact terms of the settlement in the Atlanta case are confidential, Hetherington said the very fact it got to trial is a step forward for the 11 victims who testified. Most survivors never get their day in court, Hetherington said. Several of the survivors described feeling relieved after testifying, being able to get a good nights sleep for the first time in years, and feeling free for the first time. Civil lawsuits can be a powerful vehicle for healing and can provide a sense of empowerment for people whose autonomy and self-worth were stolen from them. Babin, the Ohio lawyer with almost 1,000 cases, also believes the trial demonstrated progress. Trials no matter what will help you determine the value of a case. Trials win, lose or draw show that the cases have facts that are sufficient to get to trial, he said. Babin said he foresees a reckoning for the hotel industry for its involvement in sex trafficking. The industry has stuck their head in the sand for a very, very long time. They knew that this was gonna come. At conferences, way before any cases were filed, they were alluding to the fact that they might one day actually have to take responsibility for whats going on in these hotels, he said. One of the big hotel chains will end up going bankrupt as a result of this litigation. And they deserve way worse. This article was made possible by the generosity of our readers. If you would like to support future special reports and investigations, please make a contribution. If you or someone you know is experiencing human trafficking and is in need of support, contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline by calling 1-888-373-7888, by texting 233733, or online via webchat at humantraffickinghotline.org . The hotline operates 24/7 and help is available in 200 languages. All calls are confidential. 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 a view of the US coastal city of Galveston as it prepares for Tropical Storm Beryl which could grow into a category 2 hurricane on Monday 8 July. Beryl strengthened as it neared the Texas coast on Sunday, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said, forcing the closure of major oil ports, flight cancellations and a warning it would be a deadly storm for communities hit. The earliest category 5 hurricane on record last week swept through Jamaica, Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, toppling buildings and power lines and killing at least 11 people. It weakened after its deadly trail of destruction across the Caribbean, but strengthened into a category 1 hurricane as it crossed the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. By the time it reaches landfall near Houston on Monday it could be a category 2 storm. Additional strengthening is expected before landfall on the Texas coast, the NHC said in its latest advisory. Acting Governor Patrick on Sunday declared 120 counties to be disaster areas ahead of the storm and warned Beryl will be a deadly storm for people who are directly in that path. School systems - including the states largest in Houston - said they would be closed as the storm approached. Airlines canceled hundreds of flights, and officials ordered a smattering of evacuations in beach towns. 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 a view of downtown Houston and Galveston as Texas prepares for Hurricane Beryl, which could grow into a category 2 hurricane on Monday 8 July. The storm is hurtling towards the state with maximum sustained winds of 80mph (130km/h). Beryl, which left a trail of destruction this week in the Caribbean, killing at least 11 people, is now a category 1 hurricane and may strengthen into a category 2 by landfall on Monday, the US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. School systems - including the states largest in Houston - said they would be closed as the storm approached. Airlines also cancelled hundreds of flights, and officials ordered a smattering of evacuations in beach towns. Closures of major oil-shipping ports around Corpus Christi, Galveston and Houston ahead of the storm could disrupt crude oil exports, shipments of crude to refineries, and motor fuel from the plants. Most of the northern Gulfs offshore oil and gas production is east of Beryls forecast track. Close Hurricane Beryl on path for Yucatan Peninsula, Gulf of Mexico 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 }} Eight people have died, and millions more in Texas could be left without power for days while Beryl moves northeast. After making landfall in the United States as a Category 1 hurricane on the coast of Matagorda on Monday morning, Beryl was downgraded to Tropical Storm then to a Depression and now as a post-tropical cyclone as it traversed inland across eastern Texas, bringing heavy rainfall, strong winds and life-threatening conditions. Around eight people are believed to be dead as a result of the storm, including seven in Texas and one in Louisiana. This includes a civilian employee of the Houston Police Department, who was killed when he was trapped in flood waters under a highway overpass, Houston Mayor John Whitmire said. More than 2.2 million customers were without power around Houston, the nations fourth-largest city, after Beryl blew through, according to CenterPoint Energy. Acting Texas Governor Dan Patrick said the electric company was bringing in additional workers to help restore power more quickly. Beryl has already left a trail of destruction as a Category 5 hurricane through Mexico and the Caribbean. Parts of the Midwest could see tornadoes, while the northeastern US could be hit with flash floods. 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 motorcyclist died from extreme heat while riding through Californias Death Valley National Park after temperatures reached a scorching 128 degrees, according to park officials. A group of six motorcyclists were driving on Saturday afternoon through Badwater Basin the lowest point in North America when the unnamed motorcyclist began suffering from heat exposure, officials said. The coroner will determine the specific cause of death. A second motorcyclist was taken to the hospital in Las Vegas to be treated for severe heat illness, while the four others were treated at the scene. Due to the high temperatures, emergency medical flight helicopters were unable to respond, as they cannot generally fly safely over 120 degrees, officials stated. The tragedy occurred as temperatures at the time climbed to 128 degrees surpassing the record high for that day of 127 degrees. The temperature also teetered on breaking a century-old record-high for the region of 134 degrees. A sign warns visitors of extreme heat danger at Badwater Basin. Several motorcyclists had to be treated on Saturday for heat exposure ( Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Yesterday it was 128 degrees, which was a record high for that day in Death Valley, park ranger Nichole Andler told the Los Angeles Times. These folks were traveling through on motorcycles, and most likely they didnt have adequate cooling. The National Park Service issued an extreme summer heat alert as temperatures are soaring to over 100 degrees. Minimize time outside in heat. Do not hike after 10 am. Drink plenty of water. Travel prepared to survive; cell phones do not work in most of the park, park officials said. High heat like this can pose real threats to your health, said Superintendent Mike Reynolds. While this is a very exciting time to experience potential world record setting temperatures in Death Valley, we encourage visitors to choose their activities carefully, avoiding prolonged periods of time outside of an air-conditioned vehicle or building when temperatures are this high. 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 }} While the Fourth of July holiday marks the high point of summer for many US students, it meant something a little different for thousands of kids in North Carolinas Wake County: the last weekend of summer break. In 37 middle and elementary schools in the district, home to the city of Raleigh, Monday, July 8, marked the first day of school, part of a year-round schedule that eschews the traditional lengthy summer break in favor of four nine-week quarters, with smaller breaks in between. Were not sure what the year-round is going to bring, but were excited," one district parent, whose child is entering year-round schooling for the first time, told local news station ABC 11. The district has spent decades experimenting with year-round calendars and is still split on where it stands. A majority of students are still on the traditional calendar, and wont be back in school until August 27. The divide reflects the larger trend in the US, where districts and states have swung back and forth adopting, then dropping, then re-adopting year-round school plans, most recently during a wave of renewed interest during the pandemic. Schools first began experimenting with this format in the l960s and 70s, in growing communities like Hayward, California, and Valley View, Illinois, which were absorbing high numbers of students whose families were leaving cities in favor of suburban neighborhoods. Proponents argue that year-round calendars make more efficient use of school resources, and prevent learning loss over long summer breaks. "We were looking primarily at our summer learning loss from the last few years. So, the research shows students were falling back two to three years in their math and reading," Adrian Bustillos, chief transformation officer of Aldine Independent School District in Texas, told Fox News last year, as his district shifted to a revised calendar. "When we look at our data, there is essentially no learning loss. There is a slight dip, but nothing compared to years in the past. Such policies caught on particularly in high-growth areas like Clark County, home of Las Vegas, whose school population grew by 60 percent, to 160,000 students, between 2000 and 2019, and Wake County, where late 2000s projections assumed the school system would grow by 5,000 students a year. However, these experiments never quite caught on with the wider country, and only represented about four percent of US schools by 2020, after declining for the previous 20 years. And the evidence isnt compelling that year-round calendars really boost educational achievement, Paul T. von Hippel a public policy professor at the University of Texas at Austin, wrote last year in Education Next. They have been tried and tested for over 50 years, and rigorous research on nearly one thousand public schools in the United States has found that they dont raise academic achievement, he wrote. Meanwhile, they needlessly complicate life for working parents and teachers. Still, the pandemic seems to have boosted interest in year-round calendars. As of last school year, a quarter of the school districts in South Carolina had switched to year-round calendars, while Washington state used some of its pandemic funding to explore shifting to such a system across more than 40 school districts. In Mississippi, meanwhile, nearly a quarter of districts began using such a calendar as of the 2023-2024 school year. Beyond what some see as a lack of concrete scholarly evidence about the benefits of year-round school calendars, others cite problems such as difficulties finding child care, depriving kids of the chance to get summer jobs, families having children on different calendars, and difficulty having enough time to prepare for standardized tests in their opposition. And in places like Wake County, at least two middle schools may switch back to a traditional calendar, facing a lack of the kind of student growth once projected for the area. Operating multi-track year-round schools at such a low level puts a lot of strain on the district in order to fund the additional positions that are not earned, Assistant Superintendent Glenn Carrozza told a school board facilities committee in June. Continued over the issue suggests that, as it has for decades, year-round schools will remain something between a trend and a fixture. As Katy Rouse, an economist who has studied year-round schools, once told The Wall Street Journal, Some things like summer vacation are institutionalized. When its the way its always been, its hard to change. 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 }} President Joe Biden is attempting to head off calls for him to step aside with a defiant letter to congressional Democrats, in which he says exiting the race would be an affront to democracy. Bidens missive, which he released publicly on his X account on Monday ahead of Congresss return to Washington, opens with a declaration that he is firmly committed to remaining a candidate in this years presidential election and to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump. The president also said he has conducted what he described as extensive conversations with party leaders, elected officials and rank-and-file congressional Democrats as well as Democratic voters in the 10-plus days since his vacant, rambling performance at his first debate with Trump left members of his party shocked and frightened of the possibility that the 81-year-old president is not up to the task of campaigning for a second term. I have heard the concerns that people have their good faith fears and worries about what is at stake in this election. I am not blind to them, he wrote. He added: I can respond to all this by saying clearly and unequivocally: I wouldn't be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024. Biden echoed his claim that calls for him to stand aside are anti-democratic with a surprise phone-in to MSNBCs Morning Joe, in which he told anchors Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski that so-called regular voters overwhelmingly want him to stay in the race. I went out and wanted to make sure that there wasnt any slippage at all ... with the average voter, I dont care what the millionaires think, he said. He also said he did not care what big names or other media figures think about his continued viability as a candidate. I can respond to all this by saying clearly and unequivocally: I wouldnt be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024 ( AP ) They were wrong in 2020. They were wrong in 2022 about the red wave. They were wrong in 2024. Come out with me and watch people react, he said. He also told the MSNBC hosts: Im not going to explain any more about what I should or shouldnt do. I am running, and said that anyone who wants to stop him should come at him during the Democratic nominating convention in August. In his letter to Democrats, Biden justified his refusal to even consider stepping aside in favor of vice-president Kamala Harris or another candidate because Democratic voters chose him in the primary. This was a process open to anyone who wanted to run. Only three people chose to challenge me. One fared so badly that he left the primaries to run as an independent. Another attacked me for being too old and was soundly defeated. The voters of the Democratic Party have voted. They have chosen me to be the nominee of the party, Biden said. Do we now just say this process didn't matter? That the voters don't have a say? I decline to do that, he added. Continuing, Biden said he possesses a deep obligation to the faith and the trust the voters of the Democratic Party and stressed that it was the decision of voters not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals to make him the nominee of the party despite the largely token opposition to his candidacy. The voters and the voters alone decide the nominee of the Democratic Party. How can we stand for democracy in our nation if we ignore it in our own party? I cannot do that. I will not do that, he said. The presidents defiant letter comes less than 24 hours after several high-profile Democratic in the House including House Judiciary Committee ranking member Jerry Nadler reportedly called for him to exit the race during an all-caucus Zoom call on Sunday. Other deep-pocketed Democrat donors have called on Biden to stand aside as well and have suggested they will withhold campaign contributions until the president withdraws his candidacy. 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 }} After weeks of mounting pressure from within his own party, Joe Biden has now announced that he is dropping out of the 2024 presidential race. In a letter posted on X on Sunday, the president said that it has been the greatest honor of my life to serve as your President and that, though he intended to seek reelection, he now believes it is in the best interest of my party and the country for me to stand down and to focus solely on fulfilling my duties as President for the remainder of my term. I believe today what I always have: that there is nothing America cant do - when we do it together. We just have to remember we are the United States of America, he said. In a follow-up post, he endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to replace him on top of the Democratic partys ticket. Bidens announcement came after 37 Democratic and Independent lawmakers, including five senators, publicly called on him to drop out of the race for the White House while Barack Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and other prominent Democrats privately expressed their doubts he could continue as the partys candidate. Here are the 37 lawmakers who publicly called for the president to stand aside: Biden reaffirmed his commitment to his re-election bid on Monday in a letter he shared on his X account ( EPA ) 1: Lloyd Doggett Texas Doggett, 77, became the first senior party member to break rank on July 2 and call for Biden to give up the Democratic ticket to make way for a new generation of leaders. It came just days after the presidents disaster debate performance against Donald Trump on June 27, which thrust his mental fitness under the spotlight. 2. Raul Grijalva Arizona A day after Doggett called for Biden to step down as nominee, Grijalva did the same. His rationale: Democrats need to be able to put up a fight against Trump, he told The New York Times. What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race, the 76-year-old said. 3. Seth Moulton Massachusetts On July 3, Moulton, 45, raised alarm bells that Biden would lose out to Trump come November. By Thursday he released a fully fledged statement calling for the president to bow out. After praising the presidents service to the country, he urged Biden to step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump, he said in an interview with WBUR. Later he said the president had failed to recognize him at a D-Day event in June. 4. Mike Quigley Illinois Quigley, 65, spoke with MSNBC following Bidens ABC interview on the evening of July 5 where he declared only the Lord almighty could usher him away from office. Quigley retracted his support for Biden and called for him to step aside. The only thing that you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this, he told host Chris Hayes. 5. Angie Craig Minnesota Bidens ABC interview was also a nail-in-coffin moment for Craig, 52, who gave the call on July 6. She maintained that she respected the incumbent president, however, she does not believe he will be able to beat Trump come election time. If we truly believe that Donald Trump and Maga Republicans must be stopped, there is only a small window left to make sure we have a candidate best equipped to make the case and win, she said. 6. Adam Smith Washington After privately calling for Bidens resignation on Sunday, 59-year-old Smith finally declared that the president should drop out in a CNN interview on July 8. He cited the inability of the incumbent to hammer home the partys message to be the tipping point. Heres the thing, we have an incredibly strong message the president has shown he is not capable of delivering that message, he told the outlet. Smith also said he grew tired of the White Houses be quiet, fall in line message, which he added isnt working. 7. Mikie Sherrill New Jersey Sherrill, 52, joined the chorus of congressional Democrats calling on the president to step down to allow another person to run for the nomination on July 9. I am asking that he declare that he wont run for reelection and will help lead us through a process toward a new nominee, she said in a statement. The representative said the consequences of a Trump presidency are too grave to stay silent. 8. Pat Ryan New York On July 10, New York Representative Pat Ryan added to the growing list of Democratic House members to call on Biden to step aside. As one of the most vulnerable incumbents in the Democratic caucus, Ryan told The New York Times that Id be doing a grave disservice if I said he was the best candidate to serve this fall. He added: For the good of our country, for my two young kids, Im asking Joe Biden to step aside in the upcoming election and deliver on the promise to be a bridge to a new generation of leaders. 9. Earl Blumenauer Oregon Representative Earl Blumenauer, 75, is the latest House Democrat to call for Biden to withdraw from the race for the White House on July 11. After giving praise to the president for his unprecedented achievements, he delivered a damning final blow in a statement on Wednesday. While this is a decision for the president and the first lady, I hope they will come to the conclusion that I and others have: President Biden should not be the Democratic presidential nominee, he said. 10. Ed Case Hawaii Hawaii Democrat Rep Ed Case of Hawaii called for Biden to drop out on July 11. My guidepost is what is the best way forward for our country. I do not believe President Biden should continue his candidacy for re-election as President, Case says. 11. Brad Schneider Illinois Representative Brad Schneider of Illinois, a leading New Democrats member, says Joe Biden should heroically pass the torch to a new generation of leadership. In a statement released on July 11, before listing Bidens accomplishments, he writes: If the history books were to be closed today, he would unquestionably be recorded as one of our great presidents. I fear if he fails to make the right choice, our democracy will hang in the balance. 12. Greg Stanton Arizona One of Bidens earliest 2020 supporters says it is time for him to step aside, Democrat Congressman Greg Stanton, who represents Arizonas 4th district and was formerly the mayor of Phoenix, added his name to the roster of lawmakers calling on Joe Biden to drop out for a younger generation of candidate. He wrote on X: I was one of President Biden's earliest supporters in 2020, and I'm proud of the progress we've made for Arizona. However the stakes in this election could not be higher. For our country's sake, it is time for the President to pass the torch to a new generation of leaders. 13. Peter Welch Vermont The first senator to come forward, Welch wrote in an op-ed in The Washington Post that the stakes could not be higher in this years presidential race against Trump and that valid questions raised following the presidents diastrous debate performance could not be ignored or dismissed. I understand why President Biden wants to run. He saved us from Donald Trump once and wants to do it again. But he needs to reassess whether he is the best candidate to do so, he wrote. In my view, he is not. For the good of the country, Im calling on President Biden to withdraw from the race. 14. Hillary Scholten Michigan Rep Hillary Scholten of Michigan also came out against a continued Biden candidacy on July 11. She wrote on X alongside a full statement: President Joe Biden has served his country well, but for the sake of our democracy, he must pass the torch to a new candidate for the 2024 election. 15. Jim Himes Connecticut Seconds after Biden finished speaking at his post-Nato summit solo press conference, at which he at times stumbled, Rep Jim Himes the lead Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee joined the calls for the president not to run again. He wrote on X: Joe Bidens record of public service is unrivaled. His accomplishments are immense. His legacy as a great president is secure. He must not risk that legacy, those accomplishments and American democracy to soldier on in the face of the horrors promised by Donald Trump. 16. Scott Peters California Also responding to Bidens NATO press conference was the San Diego representative, who shared a statement in which he said: Today I ask President Biden to withdraw from the presidential campaign. Peters argued that the stakes are high, and we are on a losing course and added: My conscience requires me to speak up and put loyalty to the country and to democracy ahead of my great affection for, and loyalty to, the president and those around him. The debate raised real concern among elected leaders, supporters, and voters that the president will not be able to wage a winning campaign. This was not a blip. And while the Biden campaign claims the post-debate national polls remain relatively unchanged, polling in the swing states has worsened alarmingly. Peters concluded: We must find a candidate from our deep bench of talent who can defeat Donald Trump... [who] must be selected through a fair and transparent process. 17. Eric Sorensen Illinois Aslo issuing a statement after Bidens Nato presser was the Illinois Democrat, who represents parts of Rockford, Bloomington-Normal, Peoria and the Illinois side of the Quad Cities region. In a post on X, Sorensen wrote: President Joe Biden is a good man who has spent the bulk of his life in service to our country. His work has been devoted to growing the middle class and building opportunity for all people. In 2020, Joe Biden ran for president with the purpose of putting country over party. Today, I am asking him to do that again. It is more important than ever that our neighbors have a candidate for president who will communicate a positive vision for every person in this country. Someone who can demonstrate the strength and wisdom needed to lead us through the worst storms. A leader who will stand up to the present threats against democracy. I believe our best days are still ahead. And today, I am hopeful President Biden will step aside in his campaign for president. 18. Brittany Pettersen Colorado The freshman representative became the 18th congressional Democrat to call on the president to drop out. In a statement on July 12, he said: Joe Biden saved our country once, and Im joining the growing number of people in my district and across the country to ask him to do it again. Please pass the torch to one of our many capable Democratic leaders so we have the best chance to defeat Donald Trump, who is the greatest threat to the foundation of this country that we have ever faced. 19. Mike Levin California On Friday 12 July, the battleground Democrat became the fifth member to call on Biden to go since his Thursday press conference at the end of the NATO summit. First, let me say that President Biden has been an outstanding leader, not only of our nation, but of the entire free world. Making this statement is not easy, Levin said. He added: I have deep respect for President Bidens five plus decades of public service and incredible appreciation for the work weve done together these last three and a half years. But I believe the time has come for President Biden to pass the torch. Once again, our national mettle must be forged in the crucible of history. It is time to move forward. With a new leader. Together. 20. Adam Schiff California The high-ranking California Democrat, who is running for a Senate seat this fall, told The Los Angeles Times that while the choice to withdraw from the campaign is President Bidens alone, it is time for him to pass the torch. Schiff added that he would support whoever replaced Biden should he step down. A second Trump presidency will undermine the very foundation of our democracy, and I have serious concerns about whether the President can defeat Donald Trump in November. 21. Jon Tester Montana A senator whose seat is looking extremely vulnerable right now, Tester came forward publicly to call on Biden to make way on July 18. I have worked with President Biden when it has made Montana stronger, and Ive never been afraid to stand up to him when he is wrong, he wrote in a statement posted to X. And while I appreciate his commitment to public service and our country, I believe President Biden should not seek reelection to another term. 22. Sean Casten Illinois Representative Sean Casten penned an op-ed that appeared in The Chicago Tribune on July 19 calling on the president to pass the torch. It is with a heavy heart and much personal reflection that I am therefore calling on Joe Biden to pass the torch to a new generation, Casten wrote. To manage an exit with all the dignity and decency that has guided his half-century of public service. To cement his legacy as the president who saved our democracy in 2020 and handed it off to trusted hands in 2024 who could carry his legacy forward. 23. Jim Costa California The California Democrat told CBS Thursday that it is time for Biden to leave the race and said that more Democrats may follow. I am proud of the work we have done to pass monumental legislation that is leading to the first real investments in our communities in decades, he wrote in a statement. For the good of the country, I think it is time for the President to pass the torch to the next generation to carry on the legacy he started. 24-27. Jared Huffman California; Marc Veasey Texas; Chuy Garcia Illinois; Marc Pocan Wisconsin In a joint message to Biden Friday morning, Representative Huffman and three other congressional Democrats called on the president to step aside from the race. Mr. President, with great admiration for you personally, sincere respect for your decades of public service and patriotic leadership, and deep appreciation for everything we have accomplished together during your presidency, it is now time for you to pass the torch to a new generation of Democratic leaders, they wrote. We must have the reality that widespread public concerns about your age and fitness are jeopardizing what should be a winning campaign Passing the torch would fundamentally change the trajectory of the campaign. 28. Martin Heinrich New Mexico The New Mexico Democrat became the third senator to call on Biden to drop out of the race, writing in a statement Friday that while the decision to withdraw from the campaign is President Bidens alone, I believe it is in the best interests of our country for him to step aside. The return of Donald Trump to the White House poses an existential danger to our democracy. We can defeat him in November, and we need a candidate who can do that. 29. Greg Landsman Ohio Democrat Greg Landsman, who represents Ohios first congressional district, joined the growing chorus of lawmakers Friday calling on Biden to drop out. Landsman wrote on X: After weeks of consideration and hundreds of conversations with constituents, I have come to the conclusion that Joe Biden is no longer the best person to make that case. I respect Joe Biden. He saved our democracy in 2020. He cares deeply about our country, he cares deeply about our democracy, he cares deeply about freedom, and he cares deeply about working people, he added. It is time for President Biden to step aside and allow us to nominate a new leader who can reliably and consistently make the case against Donald Trump and make the case for the future of America. 30. Zoe Lofgren California Representative Zoe Lofgren, a close Bay Area ally of Nancy Pelosi who served as a member of the January 6 committee, joined Democrats Friday urging the president to step aside. In a letter sent to Biden, Lofgren wrote your candidacy is on a trajectory to lose the White House and potentially impact crucial House and Senate races down the ballot. I urge you to step aside from our Partys nomination to allow another Democratic candidate to compete against and beat Donald Trump in the November election. 31. Kathy Castor Florida Representative Kathy Castor, the former chair of the House select committee on the climate crisis, joined the growing list on Friday. I think its an exciting time to possibly pass the torch, Castor told local outlet WFLA. Kamala Harris is a fighter and I have full confidence in her, she continued. 32. Betty McCollum Minnesota Representative Betty McCollum called for Biden to drop out of the race and called for Kamala Harris to run alongside Minnesota Governor Tim Walz. Winning in November and defeating Trumps dangerous, hate-filled agenda must be Democrats sole focus, McCollum said, per local outlet Fox 9. To give Democrats a strong, viable path to winning the White House, I am calling upon President Biden to release his delegates and empower Vice-President Harris to step forward to become the Democratic nominee for President. If she becomes our Democratic nominee, Vice-President Harris will need a strong Midwestern running-mate and I encourage her and the Democratic delegates to consider a successful leader who has been a teacher, soldier, football coach, former-member of Congress, and a proven winner Minnesotas Gov. Tim Walz. 33. Morgan McGarvey Kentucky Representative Morgan McGarvey praised Bidens policy record but said the president should not be our nominee in November. But the stakes of this election are too high and we cant risk the focus of the campaign being anything other than Donald Trump, his MAGA extremists, and the mega-wealthy dark money donors who are prepared to destroy our path toward a more perfect union with Trumps Project 2025, McGarvey said in a statement. Project 2025 a blueprint for Trumps presidency spearheaded by the Heritage Foundation and more than a dozen former Trump administration officials is essentially a wishlist for his future administration. The 900-page document includes plans to expand his executive authority, replace civil servants with ideologically aligned appointees, crush abortion rights and impose an anti-immigrant agenda. 34. Gabe Vasquez New Mexico Representative Gabe Vasquez was among the 13 lawmakers who called for Biden to step down on July 19 alone. President Joe Biden is an honorable public servant who has dedicated his career to bettering the lives of all Americans, Vasquez said in a statement. However, I believe too many of our fundamental freedoms and the wellbeing of our nation are at risk under a Trum presidency and President Biden should step aside to give Democrats the best opportunity to win this November, he continued. 35. Sherrod Brown Ohio Sherrod Brown is now the fourth Democratic senator to call on the president to quit the 2024 race. Over the last few weeks, Ive heard from Ohioans on important issues, such as how to continue to grow jobs in our state, give law enforcement the resources to crack down on fentanyl, protect Social Security and Medicare from cuts, and prevent the ongoing efforts to impose a national abortion ban, Brown told NBC News. I agree with the many Ohioans who have reached out to me, Brown continued. At this critical time, our full attention must return to these important issues. I think the President should end his campaign. 36. Mark Takano California Representative Mark Takano echoed rhetoric used by many of his Democratic colleagues, calling on Biden to pass the torth to his vice president. President Bidens greatest accomplishment remains saving democracy in 2020. He can and must do so again in 2024by passing the torch to Vice President Harris as the Democratic Party Presidential nominee, Takano said. It has become clear to me that the demands of a modern campaign are now best met by the Vice President, who can seamlessly transition into the role of our partys standard bearer. 37. Joe Manchin West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, a Democrat for many years before switching to Independent in 2024, called on Biden to drop out on July 21. He announced last year he will not seek re-election after finishing his term. I came to the decision with a heavy heart that its time to pass the torch to a new generation, Manchin said. Manchin is the fifth senator to make this plea. Gustaf Kilander, Oliver OConnell, Joe Sommerlad and Katie Hawkinson contributed to this report 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 }} With world leaders converging on Washington for the NATO annual summit, the White Houses top national security spokesperson isnt aware of any concerns among members regarding President Bidens capacity to serve amid questions over his performance at last months presidential debate. National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby denied Bidens condition is even a topic of conversation among NATO members when pressed on the matter on the eve of the alliances yearly gathering one that will mark three-quarters of a century since the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty. I think the question presupposes the notion that they need to be reassured of American leadership and President Biden's commitment, and I don't believe that's the case, he said at a Monday briefing. Kirby was asked if Biden has a plan for reassuring allies that hes up to the job after multiple members of his own party have called for him to stand down from his re-election bid in favor of a younger candidate. We're not picking up any signs of that from our allies at all, Kirby continued, adding that allies are excited about the annual summit. John Kirby says the matter of Bidens capacity to lead hasnt come up among NATO members ( Getty Images ) Pressed further on whether there have been any conversations with allies to reassure them of Bidens capacity to lead, Kirby flatly denied that any had taken place. I'm not aware of any such conversations that have been had. Certainly none with us and here at the White House and with our staff, he said. Kirby also told reporters that Bidens performance at the debate nearly two weeks ago - where he appeared to freeze, lose his train of thought on multiple occasions and failed to make a case for his capacity to win and serve out a second term - was not reflective of the man and the leader and the commander in chief who Kirby, a retired US Navy admiral, had spent many, many hours with over the last two and a half years. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Please enter a valid email address Please enter a valid email address SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Thanks for signing up to the Inside Washington email {{ #verifyErrors }} {{ message }} {{ /verifyErrors }} {{ ^verifyErrors }} Something went wrong. Please try again later {{ /verifyErrors }} A former US Army doctor specializing in movement disorders visited the White House multiple times to perform neurological exams on President Joe Biden as part of his annual physical, Physician to the President Dr. Kevin OConnor said in a memo shared Monday. The memo to White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre was released hours after a contentious press briefing during which Jean-Pierre flatly denied that Biden is being treated for, or has been diagnosed with, the neurological disorder Parkinsons disease. Reporters had pressed her on why logs showed that Dr. Kevin Cannard, a specialist who is a movement disorders fellow at Emory University, had visited the White House on multiple occasions. OConnor said in his letter that Canards visits to the White House clinic were part of an extremely detailed neurological examination, which Biden underwent during his January 2024 exam at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. Seeing patients at the White House is something that Dr. Cannard has been doing for a dozen years. Dr Cannard was chosen for this responsibility not because he is a movement disorder specialist, but because he is a highly trained and highly regarded neurologist here at Walter Reed and across the Military Health System, with a very wide expertise which makes him flexible to see a variety of patients and problems, OConnor wrote. OConnor also said Cannard has been the specialist who examined Biden during each of the annual physicals he has undergone since taking office in January 2021, and noted that Cannards findings have been made public each time. He added that Cannard also regularly visits the White House Medical Clinic in support of the thousands of active-duty members assigned in support of White House operations, including many military personnel who experience neurological issues related to their service. We value the contributions he has made across the many patients he has treated in support of the White House and its personnel over the years, he said. On Monday, Jean-Pierre was insistant that Biden has never been treated for Parkinsons disease, as questions about his mental fitness continue to swirl following his disastrous debate performance against former President Donald Trump. Has the president been treated for Parkinsons? No. Is he being treated for Parkinsons? No, hes not. Is he taking medication for Parkinsons? No, she said after a heated back-and-forth with reporters. Cannards name was listed in the White House visitor logs, which are public records released by the Biden administration on a regular basis, but Jean-Pierre declined to confirm whether hed even been at the White House for any reason, citing what she described as security concerns and privacy concerns for the hundreds of military personnel who work on the White House campus and receive care through the White House Medical Unit. Im not going to confirm a name. It doesnt matter if its even in the log. I am not going to do that from here. That is not something I am going to do, said Jean-Pierre, who said Biden has seen a neurologist on three occasions in conjunction with his annual physical, and said the documentation the White House has released after each of those physicals is in line with medical information released under the George W Bush and Obama administrations. But I am not going to devolve somebodys name or confirm someone ... It doesnt matter how hard you push me. It doesnt matter how angry you get with me from here. Im just not going to do that. It is inappropriate. It is not acceptable. So Im not going to do it, she said. Concerns regarding Bidens health and mental acuity come after the presidents dismal debate performance in Atlanta on June 27. During the debate, Biden appeared confused and frail, losing his train of thought at times and speaking with a raspy voice. Cannards LinkedIn page states that he has supported the White House Medical Unit for more than 12 years and his profile on a site for health professionals called Doximity states that he was a neurology consultant to the White House Medical Unit and the physician to the president between 2012 and 2022. Obama administration records reveal that Cannard visited the White House 10 times in 2012, four times in 2013, and once in 2014, according to The New York Times. Cannard met with OConnor on January 17 this year, as well as Walter Reed cardiologist Dr John Atwood, as well as another person at the White House residence clinic, according to the logs. Biden had his annual physical on February 28, after which OConnor said there were no findings consistent with Parkinsons or other neurological disorders. A wide variety of specialists from the Walter Reed system visit the White House complex to treat the thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds, White House spokesperson Andrew Bates said in a statement to The Times.Bates did not address the visits by Cannard directly but said that Biden has been seen by a neurologist once a year during his annual physical. That examination has found no sign of Parkinsons and he is not being treated for it, the spokesperson said. During Bidens time in office, there have been no neurologist visits besides the one for his physical per year, three in total, Bates added. 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 }} As Joe Biden struggles to convince his fellow Democrats that he remains the right man to take on Donald Trump in November following his disastrous debate performance in Atlanta last month, two party insiders have proposed a novel blitz primary process for choosing his successor. Rosa Brooks and Ted Dintersmith, a Georgetown University law professor and venture capitalist respectively, began circulating a memo to wealthy party donors and members of the Biden administration and campaign on July 2 in which they outline their plan for replacing the 81-year-old president as the Democratic nominee. The duos scheme, first reported by Semafor, would require Biden to voluntarily announce his decision to step aside by delivering a speech for the ages later this month, which, the memos authors believe, would see him hailed as a modern-day George Washington, not an octogenarian clinging to power with a 37 percent approval rating. Under the plan, the president doing so with the full support of his vice president Kamala Harris would trigger a new primary process in which a fresh slate of contenders would be given a few days to put themselves forward as candidates before delegates to the Democratic National Convention whittle the list down to just six names. The sextet would then begin running positive-only campaigns in the month ahead of the party convention in Chicago, Illinois, from August 19-22, which would be punctuated by weekly forums at which they would be interviewed by prominent, politically-sympathetic celebrities, with Taylor Swift, Oprah Winfrey, Michelle Obama and Stephen Colbert among the names touted in the memo, a gambit intended to generate as much social media excitement as possible. Finally, delegates would cast their votes at the Chicago convention, with the winner announced at its finale to great fanfare and unveiled on stage by Biden, Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. We can limp to shameful, avoidable democracy-ending defeat. Or Democrats can make this Our Finest Hour, the memo implores its readers. While we hope for help from Lord Almighty, the Lord helps those who help themselves. We need to act. Now. Taylor Swift performing on stage in Ireland the day after the presidents debate disaster ( Liam McBurney/PA ) Brooks and Dintersmith are under no illusions about the possibility of their vision becoming a reality, however, adding: Will it happen? Probably not, absent a timely decision by party leaders, including President Biden, who truly put country first. Yes, President Biden has served his country with distinction for five decades. Yes, this honorable man deserves our respect, gratitude, and admiration. But not our blind loyalty. America desperately wants an uplifting choice. Brooks and Dintersmith have since laughed at media characterisations of themselves as power players but say their proposal has received a positive response from most people to whom they have shown it. Oprah Winfrey at the 55th Annual NAACP Awards in Los Angeles, California ( Kevin Winter/Getty ) The former told CNBC that the reaction has gone, in a few days from, Oh, this would be so great if only it could happen, but it probably cant, to Why cant it? Theres only one problem with their blitz primary dream: Joe Biden. The president has continued to insist that he is going nowhere, saying as much at an Independence Day speech at the White House, in his Friday night reset interview on ABC with George Stephanopoulos, on the campaign trail in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania over the weekend, in a letter to congressional Democrats on Monday and again in a phone-in with MSNBCs Morning Joe. The Biden campaign has responded to Brooks and Dintersmiths suggestion by pointing to the commander-in-chiefs remarks in Wisconsin, when he emphatically declared: Im not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three-and-a-half years of work. Im staying in the race, and I will beat Donald Trump. President Joe Biden speaks at a church service at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia on Sunday July 7 2024 ( Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP ) But, despite his best efforts, speculation about Bidens well-being refuses to die down after his freeze-out on the CNN debate stage on June 27 sent shockwaves through the Democratic establishment. The president looked stiff, frail and lacking in energy that night and spoke in a hoarse, rasping voice, even losing his train of thought at several points, as a gloating Trump appeared vindicated, having argued for months that his opponent was too elderly to handle another five years in the Oval Office. While the White House insisted Biden was simply suffering from a cold and the night was a blip, Democrats fretted privately about his chances of beating the Republican and began naming Harris and state governors Gavin Newsom and Gretchen Whitmer, among others, as possible contenders to take his place as their 2024 nominee. Five members of the House of Representatives have since publicly called for Biden to drop out while many more have voiced their concerns in private with the president, who remains as obstinate as ever in the face of a challenge and appears to be being encouraged by his family to keep on swinging. 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 Republican National Committee is not explicitly endorsing a federal ban on abortion in its current platform as the party conforms to the whims of former President Donald Trump. While Trump has been concerned about the political impact that the issue may have on Republicans, the platform change is a move that anti-abortion activists have been arguing against. The platform does, however, invoke the 14th Amendment to suggest that fetuses are guaranteed rights, and supports a ban on late term abortion, which is not a medical term. An RNC committee adopted a draft platform on Monday that states Republicans will protect and defend a vote of the people, from within the states, on the issue of life. The platform will be finalized next week following a vote of the full convention. A landmark Supreme Court decision in June 2022 overturned Roe v Wade, which enshrined a constitutional right to abortion care. The decision effectively left the legality of abortions up to individual states. We proudly stand for families and Life, the RNC platform section on abortion goes on to state. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights. That stance brings the platform in line with Trumps approach to abortion. He has often bragged about appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe but has also shared his concerns about the electoral implications that the issue may have for Republicans. The platform states: After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments). Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S., April 2, 2024. The Republican Party has now adopted a platform abandoning federal limits on abortion ( REUTERS ) Anti-abortion activists have praised the decision to include language about the 14th Amendment, which Republican lawmakers argue should gaurantee fetal personhood, or the idea that a fetus is guaranteed rights, which abortion rights advocates warn could open the door to more sweeping anti-abortion laws. In 2016, the RNC platform included a 20-week federal limit on abortion or argued that states should pass the Human Life Amendment, which states that the Constitution should be amended to state that life starts at conception. The new text was handed to the RNCs platform committee on Monday. Trump wrote and edited part of the 16-page draft, according to Politico. The new draft platform is noticeably shorter than the current version. Anti-abortion groups are still backing the new platform despite the revised language and the lack of a federal limit. Some groups have argued that the federal limit is no longer needed, even though some Democratic-led states allow abortion at a later stage than 20 weeks. The CEO of Americans United for Life, John Mize, told Politico that weve got to change hearts and minds on this issue before we get to a point where we can begin looking at federal legislation. He added: A 20-week ban, thats like 5 percent of abortions. It doesnt really move the needle. But Republicans have argued for a federal ban for decades. Its the first time in 40 years that the party is not pushing a federal limit. One Republican delegate told the outlet, The RNC is doing this process behind closed doors because they know that the Republican grassroots would never go for this establishment RINO bulls***. The RNC is now functioning as an arm of the Trump campaign after the former president replaced former Chair Ronna McDaniel with former North Carolina Republican Party chair and election denier Michael Whatley, and made his daughter-in-law Lara Trump co-chair. Social conservatives now fear that the party is set to take a step back from the hardline anti-abortion stance it has held for years. Anti-abortion leaders have been urging the Trump campaign to not abandon federal limits, and they shared their anger at efforts to control the platform committee process, such as removing two anti-abortion delegates from the RNC panel. One anti-abortion leader told Politico that the Trump campaign was sacrificing the pro-life cause for political expediency. The change comes after Trump faced criticism from Democrats as President Joe Bidens campaign emphasized that his predecessor nominated half of the Republican majority on the Supreme Court that overturned Roe two years ago. The Independent has contacted the Trump campaign for comment. When reached for comment, the RNC referred back to a press release in which Whatley and Lara Trump said that the platform is a bold roadmap that will undo the devastating damage that Joe Bidens far-left policies have done to this country, power President Trump to a historic victory in November, and Make America Great Again. DNC national press secretary Emilia Rowland said in a statement that Trump and his team overhauled the Republican platform process to keep the public and the press in the dark. She went on to accuse the former president of wanting a national abortion ban. 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 usual barrage of anti-Biden tweets found an unlikely ally this week in her political nemesis, Democrat Adam Frisch who nearly unseated her two years ago and who called this week for the president to withdraw from the race. Only in politics is stating the obvious rarely done, Frisch said in a video posted Tuesday on his social media accounts and in a statement. It has been clear to me for some time and the debate only reinforced it neither candidate should be running for President. We need a President that can unite America to realize our nations unlimited potential. We deserve better, he said. President Biden should do whats best for the country and withdraw from the race. I thank President Biden for his years of service, but the path ahead requires a new generation of leadership to take our country forward. Frisch was weighing in on Bidens universally-panned performance during last weeks debate against former president Donald Trump which Boebert took great delight in blistering on social media. Forget the election, how is he even able to carry on as President? she posted after the debate on X, where she often attacks Sleepy Joe. Democrats need to stop acting like they didnt know Biden was cognitively shot until the debate, the unwavering MAGA acolyte wrote on Wednesday. Everyone with two eyes knew. You actually didnt even need eyes ... just ears. This has been obvious since he ran from the basement! A former independent, Frisch has been heavily touting his moderate credentials (I am not focused on Team Democrat or Team Republican, but Team CD3, he likes to say) since his first campaign against Boebert in 2022. It ended up being the closest race in the nation; the loudmouth conservative incumbent won during a recount by just 546 votes. Republican Rep. Lauren Boebert, a fierce MAGA acolyte and Biden critic, currently represents Colorados third congressional district and won the Republican primary last week in the fourth district across the state ( AP ) Frischs robust 2024 rematch campaign was widely seen as the congresswomans reason for abandoning Colorados third congressional district in favor of a more conservative one on the other side of the state. She sailed to victory in last weeks primary as the Republican candidate in the fourth congressional district, which the party is expected to win by a landslide in November given the right-leaning voting trends of the heavily agricultural constituency. Back in CD3, however, former Aspen city councilman Frisch is again the Democratic candidate and hell face Republican Jeff Hurd in November after the Grand Junction attorney won his primary last week. Hurds campaign was muted in comparison to the style of his predecessor, and it was the father-of-fives first run for office. Grand Junction attorney Jeff Hurd, left, with his wife and five children, won the Republican primary in Boeberts old district after she abandoned her re-election campaign at the end of last year ( Jeff Hurd ) Western Slope voters, with unaffiliateds making up the largest bloc, will now choose between two far less bombastic candidates after four years of Boebert scandals and controversies. I would like personally congratulate Jeff Hurd, Frisch wrote after the primaries. My hat goes off to anyone who is willing to stand up to represent their country and community. Its unfortunate, however, that both political parties often cater to the extremes and prioritize party loyalty over the best interest of the country ... I wont be a yes man for either party. 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, told The Independent on the day of the primary. Some like it; some will continue to like it. But I think, by and large, most rural Coloradans were ready to move on. 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 }} Marjorie Taylor Greenes patriotic Fourth of July social media post blew up in her face after she butchered seemingly basic facts. The Georgia representative took to X with high-hopes of giving users a history lesson on Friday. By Monday afternoon, the post had garnered over 2.3 million views and a tirade of teasing comments, with some outlining the importance that kids stay in school. The average age of the signers of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 was 44 years old, but more than a dozen were 35 or younger, she wrote to her 3.3 million followers. While by todays standards it appears an impressive feat, the average life expectancy across the US in 1776 was between the ages of 35 and 38. But Greenes worst gaffe was yet to come. She continued to list eight founding fathers and their ages 248 years ago: Thomas Jefferson, 33, John Hancock, 39, James Madison, 25, Alexander Hamilton, 21, James Monroe, 18, Aaron Burr, 20, Paul Revere, 41, George Washington, 44. Of those listed in the post, only Jefferson and Hancock signed the Declaration of Independence. The average age of the signers of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 was 44 years old, but more than a dozen were 35 or younger: Thomas Jefferson: 33 John Hancock: 39 James Madison: 25 Alexander Hamilton: 21 James Monroe: 18 Aaron Burr: 20 Paul Revere: 41 George Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (@RepMTG) July 5, 2024 Just hours later, the Republican lawmaker was bombarded with comments about her mistake, along with a community note that said six of the eight figures she had listed did not sign the document. James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe, Aaron Burr, Paul Revere, and George Washington were not signers of the Declaration of Independence, it read. X users seized on the opportunity to point out Greenes inaccuracies. 75% of the signers of the Declaration of Independence listed here by Marjorie Taylor Greene did not actually sign the document, one user wrote, adding that it was a reminder for kids to stay in school. You got a majority of names wrong. How are you in congress!!??? We need a civics test to run for government, read another scathing reply. Despite the mockery for her factually inaccurate post, Greene has decided to keep it on her X feed. It wasnt her only Independence Day themed social media post to rub users the wrong way. In another post, she reminded Americans to stand strong against tyranny, which resulted in some X users accusing her of gaslighting. 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 }} Medical adviser. Podcast host. Brand ambassador. Rudy Giulianis alleged girlfriend. Maria Ryan has gone by many titles in recent years all the while remaining in the disgraced New York City mayors orbit. Shes touted his personal coffee brand, co-hosted radio shows with him, and even emailed Trump campaign officials about his salary as the former presidents personal attorney. Now, Giulianis high-profile bankruptcy case has thrust her into the spotlight yet again, with his creditors calling out payments to Ryan, whom theyve deemed his girlfriend a title that the pair continue to vehemently deny. So what do we know about the former hospital executive and staunch Giuliani ally? Giulianis girlfriend Lawyers for Giulianis bankruptcy creditors have repeatedly described Ryan as the former mayors girlfriend in filings, alleging shes been given unauthorized payments to clear her credit card statements. But those in their inner circle have denied a romantic relationship, insisting theyre just friends and business partners. Michael Ragusa, Giulianis head of security, told The Independent last month that Ryan is Mayor Giulianis business partner and nothing more. He continued: Any reports of her being his girlfriend are false rumors made up by the mayors enemies to damage his reputation and anyone associated with him. Ryan talking on her now-cancelled show on 77WABC ( @MariaRyanNH / X ) The relationship rumors have persisted for years. In 2018, the New York Daily News reported that the pair were spotted together at a New Hampshire resort as Giuliani was in the middle of a divorce from his third wife, Judith Nathan. Giuliani told the newspaper he met with his good friend Ryan for business purposes. Ryan, who was married at the time and appears to still be, decried the accusation as being politically motivated, telling Business NH Magazine: A small group of us went to dinner and thats where it ends. But in a recorded conversation with his former employee Noelle Dunphy, Giuliani spoke at length about his relationship with Ryan, claiming theyd had a two-year affair but shed never leave her husband. The recording was included as evidence in an ongoing sexual assault case brought by Dunphy against Giuliani in 2019. The transcript captured Giuliani, apparently speaking about Ryan, telling Dunphy: She has this tremendous connection to her family, and she loves me. But she cant leave her family, including her husband. In addition to the fact that its been all this time and shes going to leave him, leave him, leave him shes still there, the former mayor continued. I get along with him better than she does. Americas Mayor Live featuring Rudy Giuliani and Maria Ryan ( Americas Mayor Live ) Giuliani recalled Ryan asking him about a hypothetical scenario involving her husband, Robert Ryan: If we get married, could Bob live could Bob live with us? You seem the two of you seem to get along so well. He then confessed: Weve had this, like, affair for two years and Im friendly with her husband. After the transcripts release, Giulianis lawyer accused Dunphys lawyers of deliberately leaving off parts of the conversation where Giuliani acknowledges her husband knowing about the relationship. The transcript was a blatant attempt to embarrass Giuliani, according to his lawyer who also filed a motion to strike it from the court record. The Independent emailed Giulianis spokesperson for comment on the transcripts. Ryan did not comment on The Independents inquiry about their relationship. Doctor Im Dr Maria, Ryan declared in a May 14 video promoting Rudy Coffee, the former mayors new line of self-branded coffee. An X user took issue with her title, accusing her of not being a real doctor (MD, DO, ND). I most certainly am a real PhD doctor and a board certified nurse practitioner, she fumed in response. Therefore I can practice independently to diagnose, treat, prescribe etc. Do not defame me, since you dont even know me. Perhaps you need a good quality coffee. Maria Ryan promoting Rudy Coffee ( @MariaRyanNH / X ) It wasnt the first time Ryan has touted her doctorate degree. Ryan goes by Dr Maria on X, where she has denounced the coronavirus vaccine and lauded hydroxychloroquine as a Covid-19 treatment. Shes also told the judge in Giulianis bankruptcy case in a June 15 letter that she, Dr Maria Ryan, was the former mayors medical director and advisor. While Ryan has dedicated decades to medicine she is a licensed nurse practitioner and served as the CEO of a hospital she is not a medical doctor. Her resume states that she obtained a PhD from Warren National University, a now-defunct unaccredited school that used to be named Kennedy-Western. In 2004, a Senate Committee on Governmental Affairs hearing focused on Kennedy-Western University described it as an unaccredited school with academic requirements that fail to meet the standards of legitimate institutions. In 2009 her graduation year the university shut down after the Wyoming Department of Education revoked its registration. Ryan addressed her alma maters lack of accreditation to Enterprise business magazine in 2017, joking the program simply gave structure to everything she had already learned through her work experience. I hate to say this, but I dont know what more it could teach me, she said. She defended her degree, telling The Independent: All four of my degrees are legitimate. When I started at [Warren National], it was accredited and my state recognizes it. The Council for Higher Education Accreditation said otherwise, tellingThe Independent: There is no information that indicates Warren National University was ever accredited by a recognized accreditor of CHEA or the US Department of Education. Giulianis business associate Ryan who resigned from her role as CEO of New Hampshires Cottage Hospital in 2021 has indicated she is deeply invested in Giulianis business affairs and has worked alongside him for several years. In her letter to the bankruptcy judge, Ryan wrote that she was hired in 2018 for a brief assignment as a consultant for the consulting firm Giuliani Partners. That same year, she was hired by Giuliani Communications, LLC in a full-time capacity to oversee the structure and to forward the companys mission in the media space. She has remained there since. More recently, Ryan has gotten into the media business with Giuliani. After their WABC radio show was canceled in May, she announced a TV gig that was set to launch on June 25 on FrankSpeech a broadcast channel run by MyPillows Mike Lindell. Maria Ryan smiling at Rudy Giuliani during an episode aired on Newsmax ( @RudyGiuliani / X ) Bankruptcy Ryans name cropped up repeatedly during a June 17 hearing in the former mayors bankruptcy case. Documents show that Giuliani paid off Ryans credit card statements, which bankruptcy creditors took issue with, accusing the former mayor of spending money meant for his estate on her. She clarified to the judge in her letter that the money that Giuliani paid was a reimbursement. She explained that because Giuliani Communications was a fledgling business, both she and Giuliani would use their own cash to fund it. Ryan wrote: At times I would use my credit card, or my personal money to help Mayor Rudy Giuliani with groceries, medicine or other bills. The Mayor would reimburse me, using his retirement fund. Ryan has been subpoenaed in the case although she denies ever having been served. She tried to evade the process server by closing the door on May 14, according to creditors, who are now threatening to hold her in contempt for not producing documents ahead of the June 4 deadline. 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 }} More than 15 years ago, the late Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid defiantly said, I dont work for Barack Obama. I work with him. Blunt as that may be, Reid explained something few people understand about politics: Even if members of Congress share a party with the president, they are not his employees. They are his partners, and sometimes, their interests may diverge. Now, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries are living that lesson, as President Joe Biden faces mounting calls from congressional Democrats to step aside in favor of a potentially more viable candidate in the 2024 election. For his part, Biden indicated yet again on Monday that he has no plans to go quietly, urging his fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill to get with the program in a forceful letter. In short, Biden insisted hes running this race to the end, and beating Donald Trump. This, of course, comes after Bidens abysmal performance in the first presidential debate against Trump last month, which sent Democrats into a full panic. At least 11 House Democrats have now called on Biden to step aside, including Minnesota Representative Angie Craig, who told The Independent immediately after the debate that she was still processing what happened. By the weekend, she had processed enough and said Biden needed to call it quits. Craigs announcement hits different than some of the others, as shes the first Democrat from a battleground district to make the call. In 2018, she beat an incumbent Republican who represented a district in the suburbs of the Twin Cities that had voted for Hillary Clinton. Last year, during the final vote that made Mike Johnson speaker of the House, she said happy anniversary to my wife, before throwing her support behind Jeffries to protest Johnsons anti-LGBTQ+ politics. All of this poses a conundrum for Jeffries and Schumer. Together with Biden, they are the top Democrats in Washington, and they have typically worked in tandem with the president. But Jeffries and Schumers fealty is ultimately not to the president but to members of Congress, whom they must ensure win re-election. They also need to pick off vulnerable Republicans and open seats to grow their caucus. So far, Schumer has not seen an open revolt by senior Democratic senators, likely out of deference to Biden as a former member of the Club of 100. But hes undoubtedly readying himself for it. Schumer has a track record of pleasing every faction of his caucus from Joe Manchin to Bernie Sanders and everyone in between over the past two years. Similarly, with Senators Jon Tester of Montana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio running for re-election, he understands that some senators will need to create distance from an unpopular president if they are to have any chance at winning. Jeffries, 54, has a more unique challenge. Indeed, Jeffries essentially inherited the job from Nancy Pelosi, who like Biden is an octagenarian, after she said that it was time to pass the torch to a new generation after the 2022 midterms. Jeffriess ascent proved Democrats were serious about fresh faces. So far, hes essentially served as a speaker-in-waiting. In all 18 votes for speaker in the 118th Congress, Democrats unanimously supported him, which showed strength contrasted with the bickering of House Republicans. The GOPs slim majority in the House also meant that Jeffries provided enough Democrats on key votes on everything from the debt ceiling to keeping the government open to expelling George Santos to passing aid for Ukraine and Israel to saving Johnson from a motion to vacate. This moment for Jeffries is different. So far, he has not had to choose between his members interests and the presidents. Normally, leaders allow their most endangered members to break from the president. As long as they win, everything will be worked out. Jeffries knows Republicans will do whatever they can to tie Democrats to Bidens age and questions about whether he can continue serving as president. Indeed, they already have. An outpouring of Democrats calling on Biden to step aside will ultimately weaken the top of the ticket, which in turn weakens other frontline members, who will then try to distance themselves from the president as well. All of this will in turn make it harder for Jeffries to achieve his ultimate goal: to take the speakers gavel from Johnson, his occasional rival and otherwise business partner. But he will need to strike the perfect balance if he is ever to strike the gavel to call for votes himself. Congressional leaders of the presidents party play an important role. In 1974, a coterie of Republicans visited Richard Nixon amid Watergate and told him that he needed to step aside. Similarly, if the number of fed up Democrats reaches a fever pitch and it risks their chance to flip the House, Jeffries will have the unenviable job of telling Biden to go away to protect his employer: House Democrats. Or he will have to deliver the bad news to his caucus that Biden is staying and they will need to do whatever they can to survive. Either way, this next week will test the youngest Democratic leaders mettle. 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 man is in hospital after a reported shark attack on a remote beach in western Australia. Ambulance services rushed to Fourteen Mile Beach, a picturesque spot on Western Australias northwest coast, at about 11am on Monday following the reports of a shark attack. When they arrived, they found a male victim who had been mauled by an unknown species of shark. It is believed he had been spearfishing when the attack happened. The victim was then rushed to a nursing post for treatment at Coral Bay about 25 miles north. A Western Australia country health service spokesperson said the man was in a stable condition. A member of the public said later they had spotted an unknown species of shark five metres offshore in the area. Tracker SharkSmart also reported that a shark of similar length had been spotted off the coast of nearby Exmouth just 10 minutes before the attack. Attack happened south of Coral Bay on WA coast ( Getty ) The incident came after the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development issued shark advice earlier on Monday when a whale carcass was spotted floating near Point Cloates, about 39 miles north of where the shark bite happened. Swimmers near Fourteen Mile Beach have now also been urged to take additional caution when near the coast and to be aware of any signage and beach closures. Shark attacks are not particularly common in the area; one local said after this latest attack that it was only the third or fourth off Fourteen Mile Beach in decades. But in April, a man was bitten by a shark at the Bombie surfing spot near Exmouth, about 105 miles to the north. 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 }} Human rights activists on Monday accused Belarusian authorities of setting unacceptable conditions for the release of political prisoners, including writing public statements admitting their guilt and repenting. The accusation comes just days after President Alexander Lukashenko promised to release those who are seriously ill and those who were swept up during the 2020 mass protests against his rule. The number of those freed so far has reached at least 18, according to activists, among them opposition party leader Ryhor Kastusiou who is suffering from a severe form of cancer. The United States and the European Union have welcomed the release of some political prisoners but called on Belarus to free all those jailed during the 2020 protests. Some were released under an amnesty while others were pardoned. Those who were pardoned had to publicly admit their guilt. Some political prisoners have refused to write such a letter as they do not believe they are guilty, the Viasna human rights center said. There are currently 1,420 political prisoners behind bars in Belarus, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski. Of those, more than 200 people are seriously ill and require medical care, Viasna said. Viasnas Pavel Sapelka said that dozens, not hundreds of political prisoners were released following Lukashenko's July 3 announcement and suggested that authorities have already filled up empty jail cells with new political prisoners. Lukashenko has suppressed the opposition and independent media since coming to power in 1994. The disputed results of the 2020 presidential election allowed him to win a sixth term and sparked protests that were the largest and longest in the countrys history. Authorities responded harshly, arresting some 35,000 people; many prominent opposition figures were jailed and others fled the country. Activists say authorities have created conditions akin to torture in prisons, depriving political prisoners of medical care, transfers and meetings with lawyers and relatives. Despite the hellish conditions of detention in prison, some famous Belarusians did not admit guilt, did not publicly repent and ask Lukashenko for mercy, Sapelka 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 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 }} Hypersonic missiles have been fired in another deadly Russian barrage across Ukraine - killing at least 41 people, injuring dozens more and destroying a childrens hospital. The Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital was reduced to rubble as part of the attack, which Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitchsko warned was one of the worst the capital had suffered since Russias full-scale invasion in 2022. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, the daylight attacks included Kinzhal (Dagger) hypersonic ballistic missiles, which fly at up to 8,000mph around 10 times the speed of sound making them difficult to intercept. Follow latest updates on Ukraine-Russia war as Kyiv reels from deadly strike by Putins forces Russia has used hypersonic missiles since the earliest stages of the conflict, claiming to have destroyed a fuel depot in the Black Sea city of Mykolaiv and an underground ammunition store in western Ivano-Frankivsk in the opening skirmishes. Moscow is also believed to have used its newly completed Zircon missile in February. But armed with growing numbers of Patriot air defence systems, Ukraine has had successes in shooting down Russias hypersonic missiles, significantly undermining Vladimir Putins claims of their supremacy. Hypersonic missiles, like the Kinzhal rockets deployed by the Russian Air Force, are thought to represent the next generation of arms because they can move at such exceptionally high velocities. By comparison, a subsonic cruise missile like the US Air Forces Tomahawk rocket moves at a relatively sluggish 550mph. Kinzhals are typically carried by MiG-31K fighter jets and can hit targets as far away as 1,250 miles. Their speed, mid-flight manoeuvrability and ability to fly at low altitudes makes them difficult to track using radar on the ground, and therefore near-impossible to stop. Kyiv mayor Vitalii Klitschko shows a Kh-47 Kinzhal Russian hypersonic missile warhead, shot down by a Ukrainian Air Defence unit ( Reuters ) Perhaps most alarmingly, the Kinzhal can carry a nuclear warhead as well as a conventional explosive, a strategy it has been feared Russia could resort to as its war in Ukraine becomes more desperate and drawn-out than expected due to the heroic resistance put up by the locals. Military analyst Pavel Felgenhauer, however, has argued that the weapons will make little difference on the ground and that their true value is giving a certain psychological and propaganda effect. In other words, inspiring terror. Mr Putin has boasted of Russias investment in such invincible weaponry, justifying doing so as a response to what he considers to be Nato military expansion on his countrys doorstep in Eastern Europe, the same line of thinking that has led to the present war. The US and China are said to be working on their own hypersonic rockets, as are the navies of Britain and France, which are understood to have been collaborating on one known as Perseus since 2011, although it is not expected to enter service for another eight years. Russian MiG-31K jets carry Kh-47M2 Kinzhal ballistic missiles ( AP Photo ) In 2022, Australia, the UK and US, together known as the Aukus nations, announced that they plan to expand their military pact to collaborate on the development of hypersonic missiles and anti-hypersonic weapons. Then-prime ministers Scott Morrison and Boris Johnson joined US president Joe Biden in issuing a joint statement saying the three partner countries would commence new trilateral cooperation on hypersonics and counter-hypersonics, and electronic warfare capabilities, as well as to expand information sharing and to deepen co-operation on defence innovation. They added: These initiatives will add to our existing efforts to deepen cooperation on cyber capabilities, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies, and additional undersea capabilities. The Aukus deal was initially signed in September 2021 to concentrate on nuclear submarine development with a wary eye on potential Chinese aggression in the Pacific, but the focus has now shifted towards the threat posed by Russia in the wake of its invasion. In light of Russias unprovoked, unjustified, and unlawful invasion of Ukraine, we reiterated our unwavering commitment to an international system that respects human rights, the rule of law, and the peaceful resolution of disputes free from coercion, the leaders 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 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 Chinese military has begun joint drills in Belarus that are being held over the next 11 days in Brest, close to the border with Nato state Poland. The joint military exercises by two of Russias most important allies come after Belarus became the 10th member of the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) during its 24th meeting of heads of council in Astana, Kazakhstan. Belaruss government said the drills will allow the laying of a foundation for further development of Belarusian-Chinese relations in the field of joint training of troops. China described it as anti-terrorist training, and said the drills were according to an annual plan and consensus. This is the first time in six years that China has sent military personnel to Belarus for such exercises, with their last bilateral joint drills taking place in China. Both countries also participated in Russias Vostok multilateral exercise in August 2022. Last August, China and Belarus agreed to conduct more joint military drills following a meeting between Chinas then defence chief Li Shangfu and Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk. Photos released by the Belarusian defence ministry showed Chinas Peoples Liberation Army troops arriving in Belarus on a Chinese Y-20 strategic transport aircraft. Brest is located less than 5km (3.1 miles) from the border with Poland, a member state of both the EU and Nato and a significant ally of Ukraine since Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. Brest is also only 50km away from Ukraine itself. Martin Sebena, a lecturer at the University of Hong Kong who specialises in China-Europe relations, said the timing and location of the drills mean they are likely to be seen as further signalling of Chinese support for Russia and its allies in Europe. He told the South China Morning Post: The exercise will overlap with the Nato summit and takes place on the border where Belarus for many months has weaponised migrant flows to pressure Poland and by extension, the EU and Nato. Natos summit is scheduled to be held in Washington between 9-11 July. Mr Sebena said: It adds two extra layers to the Polish perception. First, the Poles have been reducing train transport from China via the Malaszewicze hub [near Brest] in fears of it being used for tariff circumvention, while China has worked hard to increase train-based overland trade from western China to Europe with this hub being basically the only place where those trains enter through the EU. Second, the Polish president has recently been warmly welcomed in China, and since the Poles will see this exercise as directed at them, hence questions are arising in Poland about how genuine the Chinese side was. Chinese state-run media said the countrys forces also took part in a military parade in Minsk, the Belarusian capital, last Wednesday, marking the 80th anniversary of Belarusian liberation. I believe that thanks to the efforts of both sides, China-Belarus relations will continue to demonstrate robust growth and make substantial progress, Chinese president Xi Jinping said at the SCO summit in Astana where he also met with the Belarusian president. Mr Lukashenko is one of Mr Putins most faithful allies, and the two have exchanged several visits even as many nations have shunned Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine, the most recent being a two-day trip by Mr Putin to Minsk last month. Mr Lukashenko named a new military chief during the visit, signalling continued alignment with Russia. Major General Pavel Muraveyka, who was appointed as chief of Belaruss General Staff and as first deputy defence minister, is known for publicly threatening neighbouring Nato members Poland and Lithuania. Russias deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus further solidifies their strategic partnership, with implications for regional security and Nato relations, experts say. In 2023, Russia moved some of its tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. Muraveykos appointment is an open challenge to the West and a desire to show Putin Minsks complete loyalty and willingness to maintain a strategic partnership with Russia, independent Belarusian analyst Valer Karbalevich told the Associated Press last month. The deployment of Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus does not leave Lukashenko a strategic choice, turns him into a hostage of the Kremlin and firmly binds Minsk to Moscows policies, Mr Karbalevich said. Mr Putin travelled to China in May for his second visit in just six months, reflecting closer alignment between the two nations amid increasing Western scrutiny and sanctions. The China-Russia relationship today is hard-earned, and the two sides need to cherish and nurture it, Mr Xi told Mr Putin as the leaders met in Beijing. China is willing to ... jointly achieve the development and rejuvenation of our respective countries, and work together to uphold fairness and justice in the world. There are also increasing concerns that China may be considering providing military assistance to Russia, which US officials warn would have serious consequences. 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 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 }} France's president Emmanuel Macron has rejected the resignation of prime minister Gabriel Attal, calling on him to stay on as the country faces weeks of political instability in the wake of a snap election that resulted in a hung parliament. A left-wing alliance was the surprise winner in the vote, called by Emmanuel Macron a month ago in the wake of a humiliating defeat to Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) in European elections. RN won the first round of the French vote late last month, but tactical voting put paid to their ambitions of taking control of parliament. The leftist New Popular Front (NFP) alliance won 182 seats in the 577-seat, Macron's centrist alliance 168 and RN and allies 143, Interior Ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. Other media had slightly different counts, and final numbers will depend partly on individual parliamentarians joining different groupings. With no single group securing a working majority, the outcome heralded a period of volatility before the Paris Olympics and raised uncertainty among investors about who would run the euro zone's second largest economy. "It's not going to be simple, no, it's not going to be easy, and no, it's not going to be comfortable," said Green party leader Marine Tondelier. "It's going to take a bit of time." Possibilities include the left forming a minority government and the cobbling together of an unwieldy coalition of parties with almost no common ground. Mr Attal, a centrist and ally of Macron, tendered his resignation but was told he is needed. "The president has asked Gabriel Attal to remain prime minister for the time being in order to ensure the country's stability," Mr Macron's office said. A fragmented parliament will make it hard for anyone to push through a domestic agenda and is likely to weaken France's role in the European Union and further afield. "The most immediate risk is a financial crisis and France's economic decline," said the current finance minister, Bruno Le Maire. The NFP, hastily assembled for this election to try to unify the left-wing vote against the far right, has no single leader and did not say before the election who would be its pick for prime minister. Ms Tondelier is one of several potential candidates among NFP figures. She told France Inter radio the next prime minister could be from the hard-left France Unbowed party, the Greens or the Socialists, the three largest parties in the alliance. There appeared to be no consensus on big questions such as whether the bloc should seek support from other forces such as Macron's centrists. Olivier Faure, the Socialist leader, told France Info radio he expected the parties to agree on a plan this week, but sidestepped a question on whether the NFP would be prepared to negotiate a deal with Macron's centrist camp. France Unbowed's divisive firebrand leader Jean-Luc Melenchon has ruled out any deal with centrists. Manuel Bompard, also from France Unbowed, told France 2 TV: "The president must appoint as prime minister someone from the New Popular Front to implement the NFP's programme, the whole programme and nothing but the programme." The left-wing bloc, whose main proposals include reversing Mr Macron's pension reform and capping prices of key goods, will need some kind of agreement with lawmakers from outside the bloc if they are to govern. The NFP's programme, which if implemented would be likely to further strain France's overstretched public finances, was viewed negatively by financial markets before the election. Some prominent centrists said they were ready to work on a pact but would not work with France Unbowed, which many French centrists consider as extreme as the RN. Mr Macron looks unlikely to be able to drive policy again, though he had already pushed through much of his agenda including increasing the pension age, a move that caused street protests, and a divisive immigration bill. For Le Pen's RN, the result was a huge disappointment as opinion polls had for weeks projected it would win. The left and centrist alliances cooperated after the first round of voting last week by pulling scores of candidates from three-way races to avoid splitting the anti-RN vote. Le Pen, the party's likely candidate for the 2027 presidential election, said Sunday's ballot had sown the seeds for future victory. With 32 per cent of the votes, the RN won more votes than any other single party on Sunday but alliances, tactical voting and its own mistakes prevented it winning. Adelaide Zulfikarpasic, of BVA Xsight pollsters, questioned the RN's preparedness and said some voters had found it "a little scary". In Boulogne-sur-Mer, in northern France, 61-year old retired fisherman Denis Dewet, drawing parallels with presidential elections said: "It's because France doesn't like the extremes." Reuters Close Hundreds Celebrate In Paris As Far-right Loses Sway In Election Day Exit Poll 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 }} French president Emmanuel Macron has refused the resignation of the countrys prime minister Gabriel Attal, asking him to stay on as the country faces weeks of political instability after a shock snap election result. A left-wing alliance called New Popular Front won the most seats, with Mr Macrons centrist grouping coming second. That pushed Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) into third, but with no party holding a majority. Le Pens party won the first round of the election late last month, but tactical voting with more than 200 candidates, mostly from the left-wing alliance and the centrists, dropping out so as not to split the anti-RN vote. Mr Attal had offered his resignation in the wake of the result, but Mr Macron has said he needs to stay on for now to ensure the stability of the country as the deal-making begins. It comes as France's economic minister, Bruno Le Maire, faced three major risks over the political deadlock. He said the immediate risk was a "financial crisis and economic decline". The other two are an "ideological fracture of the nation and a parliament full of scattered ideas from sides all with different agendas. 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 a view of the French National Assembly on Monday 8 July after surprise election results. France faces a hung parliament and the prospect of taxing negotiations to form a government, after a left-wing surge blocked Marine Le Pens quest to bring the far right to power. The leftist New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the dominant force in the National Assembly after Sundays election, but with no single group securing a working majority the possibilities include the NFP forming a minority government or the building of a broad, unwieldy coalition. Results delivered a stinging blow to president Emmanuel Macron and leaves the euro zones second largest economy in limbo, heralding a period of political instability just weeks before Paris hosts the Olympic Games. Mr Macron ended up with a hugely fragmented parliament, in what is set to weaken Frances role in the European Union and further afield, and make it hard for anyone to push through a domestic agenda. The left won 182 seats, Macrons centrist alliance 168 and Le Pens National Rally and allies 143, interior ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. 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 }} Britains new defence secretary was forced to take cover in a bomb shelter during his first trip to Ukraine since assuming the cabinet position. John Healey, who was in the southern city of Odesa to hold meetings with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky, presidential advisor Andriy Yermak and defence minister Rustem Umeriv, announced a new weapons package for Kyiv during his visit. But he was forced to conclude his meeting in a bomb shelter after air raid sirens rang out in the southern city. Mr Healey said talks continued in the basement shelter for around 35 minutes before he and Mr Umerov were given the all clear. He was also pictured with Mr Zelensky being shown around a military hospital and taking part in a remembrance service on the countrys annual navy day. Mr Healey and the Chief of the Defence Staff, Admiral Sir Tony Radakin, met Ukrainian officials (AS1 Leah Jones/PA) ( PA Media ) Mr Healey announced later that Britain will provide extra weapons to Ukraine and fast-track efforts to deliver previously committed military support. The Ministry of Defence said Mr Healey has directed officials to ensure a package of support pledged in April by the last government should be delivered in full within the next 100 days. The full details of what was included in the new package are: a quarter of a million of 50 calibre ammunition, 90 anti-armour Brimstone missiles, 50 small military boats to support river and coastal operations, 40 de-mining vehicles, 10 AS-90 artillery guns, 61 bulldozers to help build defensive positions; and support for previously gifted AS-90s, including 32 new barrels and critical spares which will help Ukraine fire another 60,000 155mm rounds The incident came two days before a deadly attack on a hospital in Kyiv ( EPA ) The announcements came after foreign secretary David Lammy said UK military, economic, political and diplomatic support for Ukraine will remain ironclad under the Labour government. The UK has provided more than 7.6 billion of military assistance to Ukraine since Russias invasion in 2022. Mr Healey said: As the new defence secretary, I will ensure that we reinvigorate Britains support by stepping up supplies of vital military aid. Our commitment to stand with the Ukrainian people is absolute, as is our resolve to confront Russian aggression and pursue Putin for his war crimes. This government is steadfast in our commitment to continue supplying military assistance and will stand shoulder to shoulder with our Ukrainian friends for as long as it takes. Mr Healeys predecessor Grant Shapps aborted a visit to Odesa in March over fears about missile strikes. Mr Shapps later claimed Vladimir Putin had come perilously close to essentially assassinating two western leaders after a Russian missile fell just half a mile from Greeces PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis during his earlier meeting with Mr Zelensky in the southern city. 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 }} Rescuers picked through the rubble of a childrens hospital in Kyiv after it was hit by one of dozens of Russian missiles in the heaviest and deadliest wave of airstrikes on the city in almost four months. At least 41 civilians, including three children, were killed in the strike, Ukrainian officials said as the death toll surged in the early hours of Tuesday. Parents fled with babies and sick youngsters after a daylight aerial attack on the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital that Ukrainian officials described as genocide. It was scary. I couldnt breathe, I was trying to cover [my baby], said Svitlana Kravchenko, 33. I was trying to cover him with this cloth so that he could breathe. Follow live updates here The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) will meet on Tuesday to discuss the horror, which came on the eve of a three-day Nato summit in Washington that will look at how to reassure Ukrainians that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since the Second World War. Kyiv declared a day of mourning on Tuesday in the wake of one of the worst air attacks in the Russian invasion and the deadliest in four months. Children were wheeled off their wards and into the streets after the attack ( Reuters ) Vladimir Putins forces launched the hypersonic missile barrage at five Ukrainian cities, hitting seven of the capitals 10 districts along with Kryvyi Rih, Dnipro and Pokrovsk. Ukraines Air Force said it had intercepted 30 missiles out of a total 38 fired. On Monday evening, Ukraines president Volodymyr Zelensky said at least 37 civilians were killed and more than 170 wounded. The missiles tore through parts of Ukraine and damaged nearly 100 buildings. In total, nearly 100 facilities were damaged, including a childrens hospital, ordinary houses, kindergartens, a maternity hospital, a college, and a business center. The rubble is still being cleared at these sites, Mr Zelensky said. The Russian terrorists must answer for this, he wrote. Being concerned does not stop terror. Condolences are not a weapon. At the hospital, a search was underway for victims under the rubble of a partially collapsed, two-storey wing of the facility. In the main 10-storey building, windows and doors were blown out and walls were blackened. Blood was splattered on the floor in one room. The intensive care unit, operating theatres and oncology departments all sustained damage. At the time of the strike, three heart operations were being performed, and debris from the explosion entered patients open chests. The hospital lost water, light and oxygen in the attack, and the patients were transferred to other facilities. An adviser to Volodymyr Zelensky shared this image of a child caught up in the horror ( Ukraine Presidents Office ) Rescuers formed a line, passing bricks and other debris to each other as they sifted through rubble. Smoke rose from the building, and volunteers and emergency crews worked in protective masks. Some mothers carried children away on their backs. A few hours after the initial strike, another air raid siren sent many of them hurrying to the hospitals shelter. Led by a torch through the shelters dark corridors, mothers carried their bandaged children in their arms, and medical workers pushed other patients on trolleys. Volunteers handed out sweets to try to calm the children. Marina Ploskonos said her four-year-old son had spinal surgery last week. My child is terrified, she cried. This shouldnt be happening, its a childrens hospital. Andriy Yermak, chief of staff to Mr Zelensky, said the attack was carried out by Russian terrorists. It is a terror that the world must see and respond to, he said. This is genocide. Daria Herasymchuk, an adviser to Mr Zelensky, told The Independent: Today they have destroyed many families. Mothers and fathers will not return to their children in the evening, and children will not finish their books of life. Okhmatdyt operated for 130 years before the missile strike reduced its central Kyiv site to rubble ( AFP/Getty ) Have you ever heard a child screaming under the rubble? I have never heard anything more terrible! How long can the world just talk? Every country must act now. Ukraines defence minister, Rustem Umerov, urged allies to provide more air defence technology. The missiles launched by Russian forces on Monday were flying at extremely low altitudes, said Ukrainian Air Force representative Colonel Yuri Ignat. This was a fresh tactic deployed by Russian forces, making it more difficult to repel Russian attacks as Moscows forces kept enhancing their bombardment tactics, he said. Enemy missiles are equipped with additional means, including radar and thermal traps, Ignat wrote on Facebook. The Kremlin said Kyivs claim that Russia had targeted the hospital was absolutely untrue. It said the destruction was caused by Ukrainian air defence missiles. Ukraines security service said it had found wreckage from a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile at the site, and opened proceedings on war crime charges. The Kh-101 is an air-launched missile that flies low to avoid detection by radar. Frantic rescue efforts ensued as the death toll climbed in Kyiv ( Reuters ) Hospitals and other medical facilities are protected from military strikes under international law unless they are being used for military operations. The International Criminal Courts founding charter says it is a war crime to intentionally attack buildings dedicated to religion, education, art, science or charitable purposes, historic monuments, hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military objectives. The UNSC meeting was requested by Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States. We will call out Russias cowardly and depraved attack on the hospital, said Britains ambassador to the UN, Barbara Woodward. A woman carries a girl from the Okhmatdyt hospital ( AFP/Getty ) In Kyivs Shevchenkivskyi district, at least three bodies were pulled from a partially destroyed residential building as emergency crews searched for survivors. The powerful blast wave scorched nearby buildings, shattered windows and flung a dog into a nearby yard, resident Halina Sichievka said. Now we dont have anything in our apartment, no windows, no doors, nothing. Nothing at all, the 28-year-old said. Ukraines military said the bombardment included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, which are among the most advanced Russian weapons. They fly at 10 times the speed of sound, making them hard to intercept. AP and Reuters contributed to this report For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails 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 most notable thing about the Mercosur trade bloc's meetings on Sunday in Paraguay was an absence that of Argentine President Javier Milei. With the Argentine populist skipping the summit to star at a right-wing rally in Brazil, South America's biggest trade bloc politically divided, notoriously slow-moving and beset by backsliding faces an uncertain future. Milei has advocated for pulling Argentina, a leader of the alliance, out of the agreement altogether. Overseeing preparations for the presidential summit kicking off Monday after initial meetings, President Santiago Pena of Paraguay the bloc's rotating chair set low expectations for what would be accomplished. I hope that this summit we are going to hold on Monday will be an opportunity to reflect, at a time when Mercosur is clearly not going through its best moment, Pena told journalists from Paraguay's capital of Asuncion, where 33 years ago the presidents of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay signed the revolutionary free-trade treaty that soon became Mercosur. In 1991, as countries across Latin America were shaking off military dictatorships and opening up to free-market ideas, the formation of Mercosur, a customs union of once-estranged neighbors, signaled a regional breakthrough that sent capital surging across borders. But over recent decades, experts say, protectionism and political volatility have scuppered high hopes. The bloc has put up more barriers than it has broken down. The group's common external tariff is riddled with exceptions. Outside South America, the bloc has struck just two free trade deals, with Egypt and Israel. The fact that the countries produce similar goods, mostly agricultural, hasn't helped matters. Trade within the bloc remains low, hovering around some 15% of its members' total commerce. These countries could be 5,000 miles apart and still do the trade that theyre doing at the moment, said Christopher Ecclestone, a strategist with investment bank Hallgarten & Company. Its not the best idea for a free trade area if youre all producing the same things at the same prices. Politically powerful industries in Brazil and Argentina, the continents two biggest economies, long have dominated deal-making in the bloc, stirring consternation among their smaller partners that increasingly feel shunted to the sidelines. In 2021, the bloc hit a new low point when Uruguay announced that it would seek a deal with China outside the bloc. Mercosur's founding treaty forbade such bilateral agreements extra sales for Uruguay would come at the expense of producers in Brazil and Argentina. Uruguays president, Luis Lacalle Pou, who has staked his economic legacy on opening up to China, said Mercosur has held his country hostage. Incensed over the breach of solidarity, Brazil announced it would pursue a broader trade deal with China on behalf of the bloc. But diplomats on Sunday reported no progress in those negotiations. Paraguay's strained ties with Beijing over its recognition of Taiwan complicates matters. For the last 20 years, the bloc has also sought to finalize a free-trade agreement with the European Union to no avail. Argentines have criticized the draft deal as unfairly favoring Brazil. European countries, particularly France, have also opposed it. Ill tell you, honestly, I dont see the conditions for it, President Pena said of a prospective deal. Although there was some optimistic chatter in the conference room Sunday about future deals with the United Arab Emirates, South Korea and Japan, experts have warned that the bloc's reputation for torturous yearslong negotiations could throw cold water on things. Now, President Mileis shocking decision to skip the annual summit and a critical chance to thaw relations with his ideological foe, left-wing Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has exacerbated internal discord. The last time an Argentine president bailed on a Mercosur meeting was in 2001, when then-President Fernando de la Rua had the excuse of an unprecedented financial disaster. Although libertarian President Milei advocates free trade, he has bashed Mercosur as defective," a challenge to his free-market overhaul of Argentinas spiraling economy. Under his left-leaning Peronist predecessors as left-wing political parties dominated other Latin American countries Mercosur took on a political dimension, a sort of rival project to Washington's free trade agenda. With Milei shattering that consensus, it remains unclear whether other countries will follow Argentinas example. Uruguay holds presidential elections in October. This kind of attitude, previously from Brazil (under hard-right former President Jair Bolsonaro) and now from Argentina, weakens Mercosur as a whole, said Juan Gabriel Tokatlian, professor of international relations at the University Torcuato Di Tella in Buenos Aires. Of Milei's absence, he added: This is a serious problem. Argentina's top diplomat on Sunday chimed in during meetings with thinly veiled criticism, going so far as to raise the possibility of the bloc breaking apart. Argentina is promoting a new foreign economic policy, strategically focused on freedom, Argentine Foreign Minister Diana Mondino told her counterparts in Paraguay. If it's not possible to advance as Mercosur, lets think about the possibility of having bilateral agreements." Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira shot back that he still places stock in regional cooperation to achieve prosperity. We must work constantly and constructively to strengthen and not to diminish Mercosur's institutions," he said. Even as critics call Mercosur a relic of the past, the bloc is growing for the first time in years. During Monday's summit, presidents will ratify Bolivia as the fifth full member of the alliance. It means being part of an important space for regional integration, said socialist President Luis Arce of Bolivia ahead of his Paraguay visit, his first foreign trip since Bolivias alleged military coup attempt. Claims by Milei that President Arce himself orchestrated the coup which he repeated onstage before a cheering crowd in southern Brazil Sunday have sparked a political firestorm. ___ Associated Press writers Isabel DeBre in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Gabriela Sa Pessoa in Sao Paulo, Brazil, contributed to this report. France has voted to reject the far right, with a left wing coalition becoming the largest party in a hung parliament. In a dramatic turnaround on Sunday night, Marine Le Pen was dealt a bitter blow as her far-right National Rally (RN) failed to capitalise on a strong performance in the first round of voting in late June, with tactical voting dropping the party into third place. It was the large gains that RN made in recent European parliamentary elections which spooked centrist president Emmanuel Macron into calling this snap parliamentary election. Pollsters had widely expected National Rally to emerge as the largest party in Frances National Assembly, with most voters focused on the question of whether the far right could succeed in winning the majority needed to deliver the countrys first such government since the Nazi occupation. People attend a gathering following the second round results of France's legislative election at Republique Square in Paris ( AFP/Getty ) Instead, it was the leftist New Popular Front comprising the Socialists, Greens, Communists and Jean-Luc Melenchons far-left France Unbowed (LFI) which was projected to have won the most seats. The left won 182 seats in the 577-seat chamber, Mr Macron's centrist alliance 168 and Le Pen's National Rally (RN) and allies 143, interior ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. Celebrations broke out when an exit poll showed a similar picture after polls closed at 8pm local time, with relief washing over those on the left and in the centre of French politics. Although the expected victory for the left is also a blow to Mr Macron. The exit polls have proven accurate in past elections and if the results are confirmed on Monday, it will spell intense uncertainty ahead for the European Unions second-largest economy with the potential for serious political deadlock if no viable ruling group or coalition emerges in parliament. Follow our live blog for the latest updates Following the lefts projected victory, prime minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would tender his resignation to Mr Macron. The Elysee Palace said the president himself will wait for the full picture to emerge in parliament before taking the necessary next decisions, but that he will respect the choice of French people. France appears to be in uncharted territory, with no group expected to come close to securing the 289 seats needed for an absolute majority. Protesters clash with police in Paris after news broke of shock exit polls result ( Getty ) The results mean Mr Macron is likely to be saddled with a parliament stacked with hostile MPs for the final three years of his presidency, with Mr Melenchon declaring immediately after the exit poll that Mr Macron should invite his coalition to form a government. Describing the projections as an immense relief for a majority of people in our country, Mr Melenchon said: The will of the people must be strictly respected... the defeat of the president and his coalition is clearly confirmed. But Mr Macrons interior minister Gerald Darminin shot back that no one can say they have won this legislative election, especially not Mr Melenchon. The surprise results come after the New Popular Front entered into a reluctant agreement with Mr Macrons centrist Together grouping, which saw them stand down 132 and 83 candidates respectively this week in order to present a single challenger to far-right candidates in this second and final round of voting. The republican front is a mechanism used successfully historically against the far right under Frances two-round voting system, which sees candidates with 12.5 per cent of the vote progress to the second round. In a sombre speech after polls closed, Ms Le Pens protege Jordan Bardella who had his sights set on becoming prime minister denounced the political manoeuvring that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations. Marine Le Pen and her protege Jordan Bardella blamed the republican front for denting the far-right vote ( AP ) Tonight, by deliberately taking the responsibility to paralyse our institutions, Emmanuel Macron... is consequently depriving the French people of any responses to their daily problems for many months to come, Mr Bardella said. Mr Macron took even his own allies by surprise in calling the snap election last month, after the anti-immigration National Rally made huge gains in European elections with the president taking a huge gamble that French voters would block the far right as they have in the past. While Mr Macron appears to have succeeded in momentarily defusing the far-right threat, millions of voters on both the left and right of Frances increasingly polarised political landscape are likely to have seized on his surprise decision as an opportunity to vent their anger and sideline the centrist president. France now faces the prospect of weeks of political machinations to determine who will be prime minister and lead the national assembly. And Mr Macron faces the prospect of leading the country alongside a prime minister opposed to most of his domestic policies. Fireworks go off in Republique Plaza after the exit poll results ( AP ) Unlike other countries in Europe more accustomed to coalition governments, France does not have a tradition of politicians from rival political camps coming together to form a working majority. Prolonged instability could increase suggestions from his opponents that Mr Macron should cut short his second and last term. The French constitution prevents him from dissolving parliament again in the next 12 months, removing that as a route to giving France greater clarity. Mr Melenchons alliance partners struck a conciliatory tone, with Socialist leader Raphael Glucksmann acknowledging: Were ahead, but were in a divided parliament... so were going to have to act like grown-ups. Were going to have to talk, to discuss, to engage in dialogue... The balance of power has shifted in parliament... and theres going to be a fundamental change of political culture. Oliver Faure, the Socialist first secretary, said: The RN had made the choice of dividing French citizens from one another. We have to restore the country on a clear basis and the New Popular Front must take the lead in this new chapter of our history. 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 }} Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Monday he expects the upcoming NATO summit to provide specific steps to strengthen his country's air defenses against Russia, hours after a Russian missile attack killed at least 28 people in various locations, including a children's hospital in Kyiv. Zelenskyy met with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw to discuss further support for Ukraine from NATO, as well as signing a bilateral cooperation and defense document. We would like to see greater resolve in our partners and hear resolute responses to these attacks," Zelenskyy told a joint news conference, stressing that Ukraine will take its own retaliatory steps. Zelenskyy stopped in Warsaw en route to a NATO summit which begins Tuesday in Washington, marking the Western defense alliances 75th anniversary. Leaders are expected to discuss ways of providing reliable long-term security aid and military training for Ukraine more than two years after Russia's invasion. At the start of the press conference with Tusk, Zelenskyy asked those gathered to observe a moment of silence for the victims. Tusk offered every available form of help for the children evacuated from the bombed hospital. The two leaders signed a cooperation and defense agreement that spells out Poland's continued support for Ukraine in defense, especially air defense, energy security for Ukraine, and Poland's participation in reconstruction. A legion of Ukrainian volunteers currently abroad is to be trained in Poland with the aim of joining the defense effort on Ukraine's soil, Zelenskyy said. At the NATO summit Poland will be represented by President Andrzej Duda, who was scheduled to meet with Zelenskyy later Monday. Poland is among the staunchest supporters of Ukraine and has offered some $4 billion in military equipment, training and other items for defense. It is also offering humanitarian, political and economic support. An initiative likely to be endorsed at the three-day summit is NATO taking more responsibility for coordinating training and military and financial assistance for Ukraines forces, instead of the U.S. Europeans also are talking about giving Ukrainians a greater presence within NATO bodies, though theres no consensus yet on Ukraine joining the alliance. 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 }} Indias prime minister begins a two-day visit to Russia on Monday, his first since Moscow launched its invasion of Ukraine, a war that has complicated the relationship between the longtime partners and pushed Russia closer to Indias rival China. Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit will include a meeting with President Vladimir Putin, whom he last saw in Russia in 2019, in the far eastern port of Vladivostok. The two leaders also met in person in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization bloc. Russia has had strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhis importance as a key trading partner for Moscow has grown since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. China and India have become key buyers of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies that shut most Western markets off to Russian exports. Under Modis leadership, India has avoided condemning Russias war in Ukraine while emphasizing the need for a peaceful settlement. The partnership between Moscow and New Delhi has become fraught, however, since Russia started developing closer ties with Indias main rival, China, because of the hostilities in Ukraine. Modi notably stayed away last week from the most recent summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, in Kazakhstan. Chietigj Bajpaee, senior South Asia research fellow at the U.K.-based Chatham House, said India is becoming increasingly estranged from forums in which Russia and China play a prominent role. This is evident in Indias relatively low key presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization last year, and now the decision by Modi not to attend this years summit," Bajpaee said. A confrontation in June 2020 along the disputed China-India border dramatically altered their already touchy relationship as the rival troops fought with rocks, clubs and fists. At least 20 Indian soldiers and four Chinese soldiers were killed. Tensions have since persisted despite talks. Those tensions have seeped into how New Delhi looks at Moscow. Russias relations with China have been a matter of some concern for India in the context of Chinese increased assertiveness in the region, D. Bala Venkatesh Verma, a former Indian ambassador to Russia, told The Associated Press. But Modi also will seek to continue close relations with Russia, an important trading partner and major defense supplier for India. Since Western sanctions blocked Russian oil exports after the start of the Ukraine war, India has become a key buyer of Russian oil. It now gets more than 40% of its oil imports from Russia, according to analysts. India is also strongly dependent on Russia for military supplies, but with Moscow's supply line hit by the fighting in Ukraine, India has been diversifying its defense procurements, buying more from the U.S., Israel, France and Italy. Defense cooperation will clearly be a priority area, Bajpaee said, adding that 60% of India's military equipment and systems is still of Russian origin. We've seen some delay in the deliveries of spare parts ... following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he said. "I believe both countries are due to conclude a military logistics agreement, which would pave the way for more defense exchanges. India has adopted a neutral stance, neither condemning nor condoning Russias war on Ukraine, and has called for negotiations to end the fighting. That in turn has bolstered Putin's efforts to counter what he calls the Wests domination of global affairs. Facing an arrest warrant by the International Criminal Court for actions over the war in Ukraine, Putins foreign travel has been relatively sparse in recent years, so Modis trip could help the Russian leader boost his image. We kind of see Putin going on a nostalgia trip you know, he was in Vietnam, he was in North Korea, said Theresa Fallon, an analyst at the Center for Russia, Europe, Asia Studies. In my view, hes trying to demonstrate that hes not a vassal to China, that he has options, that Russia is still a great power. Alexander Gabuev, head of the Carnegie Russia Eurasia Center, said that Putin's interactions on the world stage show he is far from isolated and that Russia is not a country to be discounted. Trade development also will figure strongly in the talks, particularly intentions to develop a maritime corridor between Indias major port of Chennai and Vladivostok, the gateway to Russias Far East. India-Russia trade has seen a sharp increase, touching close to $65 billion in the 2023-24 financial year, due to strong energy cooperation, Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra told reporters Friday. Imports from Russia touched $60 billion and exports from India $4 billion in the 2023-24 financial year, Kwatra said. Indias financial year runs from April to March. He said India was trying to correct the trade imbalance with Russia by increasing its exports. India's top exports to Russia include drugs and pharmaceutical products, telecom instruments, iron and steel, marine products and machinery. Its top imports from Russia include crude oil and petroleum products, coal and coke, pearls, precious and semi-precious stones, fertilizer, vegetable oil, gold and silver. ___ Pathi reported from New Delhi and Heintz from Tallinn, Estonia. Associated Press writer Ashok Sharma in New Delhi contributed to this report. For free real time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox sign up to our breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails Sign up to our free breaking news emails 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 number of people have been injured after an Iranian warship capsized and sank during repairs at a port, according to the countrys state-run media. The incident involved the Sahand, a 1,300-tonne naval frigate, and took place in Bandar Abbas, a southern port near the Strait of Hormuz. A report in the IRNA news agency said the ship became unbalanced after taking on water while being repaired at the wharf. Several people sustained minor injuries in the incident and were taken to hospital, IRNA said, citing the Iranian armys news portal. The navy said there was a possibility that the frigate could be rebalanced since the incident occurred in shallow water. Social media images showed the Sahand tilted on its side. Named after a northern Iranian mountain, the Sahand took six years to build and was launched into the Persian Gulf in December 2018. The ship was equipped with surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft batteries, and advanced radar systems. Reports suggested that since its construction, the ship had been upgraded with new radar, medium-range air-defence missiles, and additional anti-ship missiles, potentially affecting its stability. This is the third incident of an Iranian warship sinking in the past six years the Damavand sank in the Caspian Sea in January 2018 after hitting a breakwater, and the Kharg sank in June 2021 following a fire in the Gulf of Oman. 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 Israeli army invoked its controversial Hannibal Directive during the 7 October Hamas attack, according to a report, a measure that has the potential to increase risks to civilian lives. The directive was created by the Israeli military in the 1980s as an operating procedure designed to prevent the kidnap of soldiers by whatever means necessary, even if that comes at the expense of the lives of civilian hostages. It has previously been blamed for possible war crimes, encouraging excessive or indiscriminate fire, and was formally discontinued in 2016. But the protocol was invoked at three military facilities attacked by Hamas last year, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported, citing testimonies of army officers and soldiers. Hamas launched a surprise attack on southern Israel in the early hours of 7 October, reportedly killing 1,139 people and taking more than 250 others hostage. Israel has since killed nearly 38,000 Palestinians in a ground and air assault on Gaza, according to the territorys Hamas-run health ministry, and displaced almost 90 per cent of its 2.3 million population. UN officials say another 500 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank, where Benjamin Netanyahus government recently approved the construction of another 5,300 Jewish homes on occupied Palestinian land. While Haaertz said its investigation could not confirm if and how many Israeli soldiers and civilians were struck by their own military under the Hannibal protocol, it said the cumulative data indicates that many of the kidnapped people were at risk, exposed to Israeli gunfire, even if they were not the target. As the attack unfolded, the paper reported, the military ordered that not a single vehicle can return to Gaza while making decisions based on limited and unverified information. The military was unaware of the extent of the kidnapping but knew that many people were involved, it added. The testimonies of army officers suggested that the procedure was employed in a widespread manner, starting at 7.18am local time shortly after a barrage of rockets was fired at Israel. The armys divisional headquarters issued a Hannibal at Erez order and dispatched the unmanned assault drone Zik after an observation post at Yiftah reported a kidnapping at the Erez border crossing. The Hannibal Directive was also deployed at the Reim army base and the Nahal Oz outpost, Haaretz said. This did not prevent the kidnapping of seven of them or the killing of 15 other spotters as well as 38 other soldiers, the paper added. At 11.22am local time, the military issued another order not to allow any vehicle to return to Gaza despite being aware that they could be carrying kidnapped civilians or soldiers. There was no case in which a vehicle carrying kidnapped people was knowingly attacked but you couldnt really know if there were any such people in a vehicle, a source in the armys Southern Command told the newspaper. I cant say there was a clear instruction, but everyone knew what it meant to not let any vehicles return to Gaza. At 2pm, all Israeli forces were ordered not to exit border communities towards the west. The instruction was meant to turn the area around the border fence into a killing zone, closing it off toward the west, the source said. In the evening, Brigadier General Barak Hiram, commander of the 99th division, ordered a tank to fire on a home in Kibbutz Beeri where Hamas fighters were holding 14 Israelis hostage. All but one of them were killed. A UN investigation last month found that the Israeli military killed at least 14 of its citizens during the 7 October attack. The Israeli military had begun conducting internal investigations of what transpired on 7 October and the preceding period, a spokesperson told the newspaper. The aim of these investigations is to learn and to draw lessons which could be used in continuing the battle, the spokesperson said. When these investigations are concluded, the results will be presented to the public with transparency. The Independent has contacted the IDF for comment. This article was amended on 24 July 2024. It originally said that the Israeli government had approved the construction of another 5,300 settlements on occupied land, but this was inaccurate. The approval was for 5,300 homes. 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 Passengers flying to and from the UKs two busiest airports on the biggest airlines have once again endured dozens of cancellations, blamed on air-traffic control (ATC) delays and bad weather across Europe. Both easyJet at London Gatwick and British Airways at London Heathrow grounded 32 short-haul flights each. EasyJets cancellations including flights to and from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice, as well as two round-trips to Belfast International and Edinburgh. One passenger, Tom McCarthy, wrote on X: To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace! Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation! It appears compensation will not be paid to passengers. A typical easyJet message to cancelled passengers reads: Were sorry that your flight has been cancelled. This is due to air traffic control restrictions. The disruption to your flight is outside of our control and is considered to be an extraordinary circumstance. Airlines can avoid paying out hundreds of pounds in compensation if they can demonstrate the cause of cancellations or long delays was beyond their control. At Heathrow, British Airways cancelled two round-trips to Rome as well as services to Naples, Barcelona and Larnaca in Cyprus. At least 10,000 passengers on easyJet and British Airways are waking up where they did not expect to be. Under European air passengers rights rules, carriers must provide hotels, meals and alternative flights as soon as possible. Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines weve had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule, a spokesperson for British Airways said We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today. The Independent has also asked easyJet to comment on the cancellations, which follow hundreds of grounded flights the previous weekend. At each of the UKs third- and fourth-largest airports, Manchester and London Stansted, only a single flight was cancelled: an easyJet service to Copenhagen and an A-Jet departure to Ankara respectively. Hundreds of other flights were delayed across the UK and Europe. Europes biggest budget airline, Ryanair, made no UK cancellations. But the carrier has condemned what it calls unacceptable delays due to repeated air-traffic control staff shortages across Europe In a statement on its website it apologies to passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today Monday 8 Jul which are affecting all European airlines. ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5 per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated staff shortages. Ryanair says one in six of its first wave departures 579 early flights was delayed due to staff shortage. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable, Ryanair says. French police dispersed election night crowds in Paris and Nantes with tear gas on Sunday evening, even though gatherings were largely peaceful across the country. In the capitals Place de la Republique, people had been chanting and marching with flairs but dispersed rapidly when riot police launched tear gas canisters at the edges of the gathering. The same approached was used in the western city of Nantes, a flashpoint for left-wing activism, where police fired tear gas at demonstrators. A left-wing alliance has become the biggest force in Frances parliament after tactical voting brought a shock win over the far-right National Rally. A former Tory minister has suggested there was little appetite for a Labour government at the general election. Kevin Hollinrake, the former postal affairs minister, told Good Morning Britain that the Conservatives will be in good shape to challenge Sir Keir Starmer come 2029. One very good thing for us, in terms of the result from last week, was that there was very little appetite for a Labour government, he said. There is very little appetite for Keir Starmer. GMB host Susanna Reid suggested Mr Hollinrakes claim was remarkable as she pointed out Labour won a huge landslide. A major children's hospital in Kyiv has been hit by a missile strike, following a Russian barrage that killed at least 36 people. Footage obtained by Reuters showed rescue teams digging through the rubble of the Okhmatdyt hospital in the late hours of 8 July. More than 150 people were injured in the strikes, which targeted five major Ukrainian cities. Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky said the nation would take revenge. Russia has denied targeting civilian facilities, and claimed that the damage was caused by Ukranian air-defence missiles. No evidence has been provided by Russia for that claim. A new study of 32 European countries shows that workers in Ireland on a 60,000 salary do better in take-home pay than most European counterparts Irish workers get more take home pay from a 60,000 salary than in two thirds of European countries, a new employment survey shows. The research, taken across 32 countries by the Irish employment outsourcing company Boundless, shows that someone in Ireland takes home 43,203 from a 60,000 salary, behind a UK workers 46,236 from the same salary. The survey also shows that Ireland is the sixth cheapest country to employ someone on a 60,000 salary, with employers paying an average of an extra 6,630 to do so. It is more expensive to employ a UK worker on 60,000, costing employers 67,099. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 Boundless employs people on behalf of its customers in 25 countries. It obtained the data from internal salary calculators in collaboration with local payroll partners in each country. The figures include applicable regional legal and economic conditions. The most take home pay for a 60,000 salary in any Auropean country is Bulgaria, where workers get to keep 51,239. The most heavily taxed is Iceland, where just 30,525 from a 60,000 salary is given in net pay. Portugal, often touted as a desirable remote working location, is one of the most heavily taxed countries, with just 33,800 available in net pay from a typical 60,000 salary. For employers, the most affordable European country is Lithuania, which costs 61,074 for a 60,000 salary. The most expensive for employers is Austria, which costs 88,618 for a 60,000 salary. Ireland and the UK are both in the top ten lowest employer costs out of the 32 countries surveyed, and are in the top 10 for the most net income to workers from a 60,000 salary. The report shows the two English-speaking countries make a lot of financial sense for companies building distributed teams in Europe, said Dee Coakley, CEO of Boundless. The lower employment costs free up a lot of room in the budget. "From an employee perspective, there's also a financial draw. The higher take-home pay, compared to other European countries, could make a real difference in buying power and lifestyle. While living expenses are higher in the UK and Ireland than some other parts of Europe, the numbers still show some appealing financial perks for workers and businesses when compared to countries such as Portugal, Austria or France." Britvic has been bottling Ballygowan at Newcastle West in Limerick for 35 years Danish drinks giant Carlsberg has agreed to acquire Ballygowan owner Britvic in a deal that values the drinks group at around 3.3bn (3.9bn). In a statement today, UK-headquartered Britvic said that it will recommend the acquisition to its shareholders. The offer of 13.15 per share is an increase from previous offers from the Danish brewer. Last month, the board of the soft drink maker rejected two bids of 12.50 per share and 12 per share from Carlsberg. Britvic currently produces 39 brands, which are sold in 100 countries. This includes the TK Lemonade, Mi Wadi and Ballygowan brands in Ireland. Britvic employs 360 people across the island of Ireland. It is the top domestic producer of soft drinks in Ireland, as well in the top 2 soft drinks companies by volume operating here. It has also operated a manufacturing site in Ballyfermot for the past 50 years. The company also runs a Ballygowan bottling site in Newcastle West, Limerick for the past 35 years. Carlsberg noted that it currently has no local presence in Ireland. As a result, Carlsberg will retain Britvics Irish operations on an as-is basis following the acquisition. In the UK, the Danish company plans to create a single integrated company, which will be known as Carlsberg Britvic. The proposed transaction creates an enlarged international group that is well-placed to capture the growth opportunities in multiple drinks sectors, Britvics non-executive chair Ian Durant said. "With this transaction, we are combining Britvic's high-quality soft drinks portfolio with Carlsberg's strong beer portfolio and route-to-market capabilities, creating an enhanced proposition across the UK and markets in Western Europe, added Carlsberg chief executive Jacob Aarup-Andersen. Airlines including Air Canada, JetBlue and Etihad among carriers that fail to secure all takeoff and landings slots they requested for winter The cap placed on the number of airline seats available through Dublin Airport this winter has seen airlines forced to scale back their ambitions at the gateway during the season. Low-cost carrier Jet2 which hasnt previously operated out of Dublin was among the carriers that sought takeoff and landing slots at the airport, which it didnt get. The UK carrier operates to sun and ski destinations from airports across Britain and Northern Ireland. Aer Lingus, Ryanair, Etihad, JetBlue, Air Canada and LuxAir also sought additional slots that they didnt receive, as efforts are made to ensure Dublin Airport doesnt breach its 32 million annual passenger cap. Earlier this year, the Irish Aviation Authority placed a cap of 14.4m on the number of seats that can be available at Dublin Airport for the winter period, which runs from late October to March. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 A winter slot coordination report from UK-based Airport Coordination Ltd which manages slot allocations for dozens of airports around the world confirms that just under 14.4m airline seats have been allocated for Dublin Airport in the upcoming period. Thats 793,000 fewer than during the previous winter. The only carriers to secure additional or first-time slots they sought during the period were Lufthansa, FedEx, and DHL Air UK. The report shows that other airlines that sought extra slots included Chinese carrier Hainan, Tap Air Portugal, Turkish Airlines, Iberia Express and United Airlines. Airlines sometimes apply for slots that even if they awarded, dont ultimately avail of, however. Ryanair and Aer Lingus are the biggest operators at Dublin Airport, which is controlled by the DAA. The report shows that Aer Lingus was awarded 85pc of the slots it sought, while Ryanair received 85.6pc. Etihad was awarded just half the slots it sought, while Air Canada received 57pc. In submissions to the IAA earlier this year, Ryanair had said the regulators plan to limit available seats out of Dublin during the winter period would artificially constrain the airports capacity despite having a new runway and other infrastructure enhancements. Artificially constraining capacity at Irelands main international gateway would unfairly deprive airlines and passengers at Dublin Airport of the benefit of their recent substantial contribution to capital projects at the airport, while reducing competition, damaging economic growth, tourism and employment in Ireland, said Ryanairs director of network optimisation, Michael Healy, in a submission. A planning condition attached almost 20 years ago to the construction of Dublin Airports T2 capped the total amount of passenger traffic at the gateway to 32 million a year. Aer Lingus told the regulator that the process for determining [slot] coordination parameters at Dublin Airport is not the appropriate mechanism to give effect to the planning conditions and also exacerbates the harm caused to carriers operating at Dublin Airport. DAA chief executive Kenny Jacobs warned the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Transport last month that Dublin Airport remains in danger of breaching its 32 million annual passenger cap this year despite its best efforts to ensure it doesnt happen. He said that US airline Breeze is among the carriers that wanted to launch services to Dublin, but couldnt due to the passenger cap. Bad bank helped to transform region and now plans commercial space and 150 residential units on the prime site The triangular piece of land, foreground, was the last strip that Nama had a stake in The National Asset Management Agency (Nama) has disposed of its last equity interest in Dublins docklands, an area it has helped to transform over the last decade. The States bad bank has sold the leasehold to a triangular site at the confluence of the Dodder and Liffey rivers in Grand Canal Dock. While Nama held the leasehold over a portion of the 0.57 hectares, Waterways Ireland had the freehold over all of it. Nama has now sold its leasehold for an undisclosed amount, but said to be market value, to the north-south body. A spokeswoman for Waterways Ireland said it wouldnt be making a comment on the matter. According to Namas recently published annual report, the intention is to provide 56 sq ft of commercial space and 150 residential units on the site, subject to planning permission. The disposal marks the end of Namas involvement in the area, which the former finance minister Michael Noonan once said represented a unique opportunity for the agency and the taxpayer. Speaking in 2014, Mr Noonan said it was rare for such swathes of prime water-front land in a modern city to be undeveloped, and for a state organisation to own it. He declared: Nama now has the opportunity to bring this area to life and create a Dublin Docklands that will rival the likes of Canary Wharf, Bostons Seaport and Singapores Marina Bay. Nama originally held an interest in 75pc of the 22 hectares of undeveloped land in the Dublin Docklands Strategic Development Zone, which was designated in 2012, allowing fast-tracked planned. The zone included sites previously controlled by Harry Crosbie and Treasury Holdings. The agency also controlled many of the existing buildings in the zone, mostly office blocks. Nama entered into joint ventures with several private-equity firms to redevelop the most important sites. According to its annual report, Nama is taking the credit for being vital in driving and facilitating the development of the docklands area. It says completed Nama projects in the zone contributed 2.6 million sq ft of commercial space and 606 residential units, on what were previously derelict or brownfield sites. Among the landmark developments are the redevelopment of the Bolands Mill site, the 11-storey Benson Building, and Capital Dock, a 22-storey mixed-use development. The agency is due to finish all its operations by the end of 2025. The last 1pc of docklands real estate in which it had an interest proved tricky to dispose of. A report by the Comptroller & Auditor General in 2023 said a provisional agreement to sell the site had been reached between Nama and Waterways Ireland and is awaiting approval from its sponsoring Department and the North-South Ministerial Council. In an appearance before an Oireachtas committee, Nama chief executive Brendan McDonagh said his agency was hoping for a joint sale with Waterways Ireland, but it needs North-South approval, and obviously that is an issue at present. At the time Stormont was suspended, and there had been no plenary meeting of the North-South ministerial Council since July 2021. These meetings have now resumed, and a north-south ministerial council inland waterways meeting was held in Clones last month. Partner content The PSSF fund has been designed to help early-stage businesses that are close to having a minimum viable product (MVP). Photo: Getty Enterprise Ireland is committed to supporting Irish companies at every stage of their journey, and that includes helping to address some of the challenges that can arise in the early days. Founders often cite access to funding as being one of the most common challenges at that pivotal, early stage of their businesss development, and Enterprise Ireland is aiming to address that with our Pre-Seed Start Fund (PSSF) offer. This fund has been designed to help early-stage businesses that are close to having a minimum viable product (MVP) to achieve commercial and technical milestones on their journey to becoming fully operational. These could include securing a trial customer, or developing some additional features to get another customer. Anyone with an early-stage manufacturing or traded services business can apply for the PSSF. Its not competitive, meaning applications are assessed on their merits rather than against other ideas. And, vitally, the fund is available all year round with no deadlines, so it is there when you are ready to apply. PSSF can often be a bridge for those startups that are still early stage but need investment to help move to the next PSSF funding comes in the form of convertible loan notes, worth up to 50,000 or 100,000. The recipient only has to match funding to the tune of 10pc, so they have to put in 5,000 or 10,000 themselves. Enterprise Ireland doesnt take equity at this point, and there is no value put on the company. The loan can be converted to equity later or it can be repaid. The Pre-Seed Start Fund has proven to be successful and positive for many, and in 2023 alone more than 70 entrepreneurs were approved for funding under this support. They included Emma Meehan, founder of Precision Sports, Miriam Savage from Elevre Medical and Loretto Callaghan from Vzarii Therapeutics. PSSF can often be a bridge for those startups that are still early stage but need investment to help move to the next and a large proportion of successful applications for PSSF have come from New Frontiers programme alumni. Increasing the opportunities for women entrepreneurs and women in management is a strong focus for Enterprise Ireland, and we have been championing this agenda since 2011 when only 7pc of the start-ups Enterprise Ireland invested in were led by women by 2023, that figure rose to 29pc. The PSSF support can typically run for between 12 and 18 months Fostering diversity in entrepreneurship is part of the remit of the PSSF, and Enterprise Ireland is committed to supporting a robust ecosystem which utilises the skills, ambition and talent of a diverse population. True innovation thrives when diversity is fully embraced, as different perspectives can often uncover innovative solutions to complex challenges. In addition to funding, successful PSSF applicants also have access to peer-to-peer support and networking, an experienced Enterprise Ireland Development Adviser in their sector, mentoring sessions and in-depth market research. The PSSF support can typically run for between 12 and 18 months, and for many it provides the next step for their journey with Enterprise Ireland. The PSSF is open for applications throughout the year, and applicants are immediately connected with their local Business Innovation Centre, where they are invited to register for an innovation workshop. Anna-Marie Turley is Department Manager, Entrepreneurship & HPSU Operations, Enterprise Ireland Steve Dempsey: The EU is laying down the law but big tech doesnt see compliance as a badge of honour Americas wild-west approach to tech regulation means Europe must be the adult in the room Margrethe Vestager, European Commissioner for Competition. Photo: Getty Steve Dempsey Sun 7 Jul 2024 at 03:30 European institutions are becoming increasingly intolerant of big techs wild-west practices. Fans at the Bob Dylan concert in Slane Castle, Co Meath, 08/07/1984 (Part of the Independent Newspapers Ireland/NLI Collection). (Photo by Independent News and Media/Getty Images) Damage done by Rioters at the Bob Dylan concert in Slane Castle, Co Meath, 08/07/1984 (Part of the Independent Newspapers Ireland/NLI Collection). (Photo by Independent News and Media/Getty Images) Bob Dylan on stage during his concert at Slane Castle, Co Meath in 1984 (Part of the Independent Newspapers Ireland/NLI Collection). A mob sparked a riot in the quiet streets of Slane just hours before Bob Dylan took to the stage at Slane Castle 40 years ago today. The music legend was set to play the iconic venue on July 8, 1984, as concertgoers descended on the small, quiet village in Co Meath ahead of his first Irish show in almost two decades. Reports point to a row in a pub as the catalyst for bizarre violence that broke out just before midnight on July 7, when a crowd followed those being arrested to the local garda station. There were reportedly fewer than two dozen gardai on duty that night, when a crowd surrounded the station for over an hour, throwing rocks and missiles at the windows and later at gardai who attempted to disperse the group of around 40 revellers. Bob Dylan at Slane in July 1984 The same number of gardai were on duty the night before the Rolling Stones took to the stage in Slane just two years prior, with more set to arrive on the day of the concert. Varying reports put the ultimate figure of the crowds involved in battles with gardai in the hundreds, with some noting there were up to 600 and another describing 1,000 besieging the station that night. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 A witness said gardai used bread boards and milk crates as riot shields before reinforcements arrived from surrounding towns, when a baton charge brought the crowd under control about 3am. Three vehicles were burnt out during the unprecedented scenes in the small town and many were hospitalised with injuries, including eight gardai. Reporters and local residents described a reign of terror setting in over the village that night, with many believing too much alcohol lead to the mob wreaking havoc on the local area. The Irish Independent described the weekend of terror on the front page of the paper on July 9, detailing the additional security in place for the concert in the aftermath of the battle of Slane which saw youths fight among themselves, hurl rocks and bottles at gardai and loot shops in the village. Gardai banned all sales of alcohol in the village after 5pm on the day of the gig, despite a late-night extension previously being granted to publicans ahead of the occasion. People were screaming and running, with one witness telling RTE the events were like the Brixton riots. Windows of local businesses and homes were smashed and broken glass covered the main street before a major clean-up operation took place to pave the way for Dylan. "The Rolling Stones was a teddy bears picnic in comparison to what happened here last night, that people were actually afraid in their own homes, had to barricade their doors with furniture. They feared for the safety of their children, said local publican Michael Kelly, who described the scenes in the town as disgusting in an interview with RTE reporter Joe OBrien. "We dont want this type of element in our village. The Irish Examiner described the village as a sea of broken glass and empty beer cans in the aftermath of the incident as a senior garda laid blame largely on cider and drugs for the outburst. Coverage of the riot made it as far as the pages of The New York Times in the days that followed, which told how villagers cleared the wreckage ahead of the Dylan concert at an ancient battle site. More than 40,000 people attended the gig, with Slane Castle owner Henry Mountcharles describing the violence as appalling in the aftermath and admitting it would prompt him to consider the future of concerts at the venue. Despite the scenes the night before, Dylan played a memorable gig on the iconic grounds and was at one point joined on stage by Van Morrison and later by U2 frontman Bono, who improvised a verse to Blowin In the Wind when he was brought on stage for a duet. Mater Hospital cardiologist says children need to be targeted from an early age to encourage healthy habits Expert said the main problem with energy drinks is their high sugar content. Photo: Getty Two young men suffered cardiac arrest following excessive consumption of energy drinks, it has emerged sparking fresh calls for a ban on their sale to children. While the UK looks close to banning energy drinks for under-16s, it appears this country is lagging behind. In Ireland, it is currently at the discretion of shops if they sell energy drinks to children or not. Mater Hospital cardiologist Professor Joseph Galvin said: Weve come across two patients who had cardiac arrests after drinking large amounts of energy drinks. They were dead and needed to be shocked back. They had drunk very large amounts of energy drinks. One of the patients is in his early 20s and the other in his mid-20s. Primary school deputy principal advocates for banning of energy drinks in Irish schools Prof Galvin said one of the men had drunk between eight to 10 cans of an energy drink and a litre of a fizzy drink. I think people can build up their tolerance to a certain amount. But if they take more, they could potentially get into trouble, Prof Galvin said. It is rare that this would happen and a lot of people will tolerate the drinks and not have a problem, but some of us are prone to heart problems and we might not know. I find it hard to say anything particularly good about the drinks. Companies are profiting from energy drinks when evidence shows theyre harming children and young peoples health. This is unacceptable. Prof Galvin said he would favour energy drinks being banned for children. At the very least, he believes there should be health warnings visible on every drink can and bottle. He said the real problem with the energy drinks is the high sugar content. He said this causes obesity, which can lead to health problems such as diabetes and heart issues. Yes, I think we should ban them, he said. You see patients with atrial fibrillation (heart rhythm disturbance), which has been brought on by high blood pressure, shortness of breath and fluid retention, due to poor heart function. A huge amount of that is brought on by obesity in patients who weigh 120 to 140 kg and who are short of breath. The professor said children needed to be targeted from an early age to learn how to eat healthily. The Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) is calling for a mandatory ban on energy drinks for under-18s in order to protect childrens health. The charity is also lobbying for improved labelling of energy drinks, with appropriate health warnings to be considered, along with restrictions on marketing and price promotions. There should also be greater efforts to promote water as the drink of choice among children, the charity stated. Evidence relating to the impact of energy drinks on children and young peoples health suggested the effects of these drinks are more significant and broader than previously understood, it said. It added there is, in particular, negative outcomes for childrens mental health in addition to physical health. Energy drinks are marketed to children and young people as a way to improve energy and performance, but research suggests they are actually doing more harm than good. Companies are profiting from energy drinks when evidence shows theyre harming children and young peoples health. This is unacceptable. While some retailers enforce their own voluntary sales restriction, there is no monitoring or enforcement of whether this is being upheld in practice at store level, and nor does this include all retailers. Meanwhile, these drinks are still readily available at many corner shops and convenience stores, which are often favoured by young people themselves, including on their way to and from school. The charity said a level playing field needed to be created across all retailers in order to protect our children and young peoples health and well-being. Galway University Hospital heart consultant, Professor Sherif Sultan, said energy drinks contain large amounts of sugar, ranging from 21g to 34g per ounce, primarily in the form of sucrose, glucose or high fructose corn syrup. High sugar intake increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes, said Prof Sultan. Studies have shown that energy drinks can increase heart rate and blood pressure. Overconsumption can lead to severe cardiac issues such as ventricular arrhythmias, myocardial infarction and arterial dilatation. Prof Sultan stopped short of calling for a ban, however, stating: Education and proper labelling are vital strategies to mitigate these risks without the need for outright bans. By fostering awareness and promoting healthier alternatives, we can better protect public health and well-being. Aileen McGloin, director of nutrition at Safefood, said when the health body carried out research into energy drinks several years ago, there wasnt enough evidence to ban the drinks for children. Water and milk are the key drinks we recommend for children, and fruit juice as one portion of fruit. Dr McGloin, who was appointed in 2022, said she had not had any political enquiries on the matter. My understanding is its not being considered here, or I dont know that it is, said Dr McGloin. Every two years we update a widget on our website that shows the levels of sugar and caffeine in different energy drinks. Its a useful resource for the public. We always encourage people to have drinks that are low in sugar. Weve been doing that for decades. Weve highlighted over the years the high level of sugar in drinks. Water and milk are the key drinks we recommend for children, and fruit juice as one portion of fruit. Our messages dont change. These have never been good drinks, we wouldnt recommend them. But when we looked at the evidence of the latest report, there wasnt enough evidence to ban them at this point. But we can certainly restrict it. The Irish Independent asked several major stores about their policies on selling energy drinks to children. Aldi Ireland was the only retailer to confirm it had implemented an outright ban on the sale of the drinks to children. John Curtin, group buying director at Aldi Ireland, said: Aldi was the first retailer in Ireland to ban the sale of energy drinks to under 16-year-olds in 2018. This applies to drinks with more than 150mg of caffeine per litre. We introduced this age restriction in response to the growing concern about the consumption of energy drinks among young people and their effects on mental and physical health. A Lidl Ireland spokesperson said: At present, there are no age constraints on the sale of energy drinks at Lidl. The spokesperson said Lidl Ireland takes its responsibility on the sale of prohibited or restricted products seriously and is vigilant in adhering and updating our policies in line with government guidance and legislation. Were also acutely aware that as a family retailer of our size and influence, we have a responsibility to drive progress with regards to shopping behaviours and healthy nutrition for families. A Tesco Ireland spokesperson said: We continue to monitor industry developments on this issue closely and look forward to working with key stakeholders and other retailers. The Department of Health was asked for a response. Reacting to proposals for a ban for under-16s in the UK, where most supermarkets have chosen to do so voluntarily, the British Soft Drinks Association last month urged any move to restrict energy drinks to be "evidence based" and said: In line with and in the spirit of our own long-standing Code of Practice, BSDA members do not market or promote the sale of energy drinks to under 16s and label all high-caffeine beverages as not recommended for children, so we welcomed the move by retailers to voluntarily restrict sales to under 16s." A hotel guest was arrested for hurling abuse at a night porter when he returned from a great night out at a concert in Dublin. James Hofler (53), who had too much to drink, was not being let back into the hotel when he got out of order, his defence said. We thank them for their bravery Rape Crisis Centre pays tribute to survivors of rapist taxi driver Raymond Shorten Chief Executive, Rachel Morrogh said the public now wants reassurance from Government that the safeguards that are in place for their safety are optimal, resourced and working. Raymond Shorten Eimear Dodd Tue 9 Jul 2024 at 06:44 Dublin Rape Crisis Centre CEO Rachel Morrogh has thanked the women who were raped by Dublin taxi driver Raymond Shorten for coming forward, describing him as a predator who raped young and vulnerable people who trusted him. Walter Mitty pilot who flew 8.4m of cocaine into Ireland linked to west Dublin gang The Family Gilchrist, who was jailed for 11-and-a-half years last week, told gardai he got involved after two men called to his home and threatened him Tim Gilchrist Alan Sherry Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 09:40 The 8.4m worth of cocaine flown into Longford by a Walter Mitty pilot is believed to have been destined for the west Dublin gang known as The Family. Senior UK consultant surgeon who was tasked by Childrens Health Ireland to undertake the audit in April resigned from the process a month later An external audit of hip surgeries on children at Dublin hospitals run by Childrens Health Ireland (CHI), and, at the National Orthopaedic Hospital Cappagh (NOHC), has been sanctioned after concerns relating to criteria for the surgeries were raised in a protected disclosure, CHI and NOHC said. It has also emerged that a senior NHS consultant surgeon who was tasked by CHI to undertake the audit in April this year, resigned from the process a month later, claiming CHI failed to pay him. He also cited concerns about a lack of clarity and confusion regarding the direction he received from CHI. The NHS consultant, in a letter addressed to CHIs chief medical officer, Allan Goldman, and dated May 31 this year, reminded Mr Goldman that he had explained that concerns were raised about over operating on children or potentially unnecessary operations which had led to the audit. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 7th In the letter, the external reviewer explains that his hourly fees were previously agreed but that as of of today's date, eight weeks into the process, I have not received any of these or payment for work done. The reviewer told Mr Goldman that he is concerned about the direction the audit is taking and says what should have been a simple audit to see if there was any concern has expanded into the review of the whole practice of hip dysplasia in Ireland. This is not a solitary surgeon's responsibility. In the UK, the type of review that I seem to be doing inadvertently, is done by at least two or more surgeons assisted by a legal representative and usually requested through and backed by the Royal College of Surgeons, wrote the expert consultant. I feel the breadth of what you have asked me has been too wide and can expose me as a single surgeon, he added. The reviewer goes on to state that he has previously submitted an invoice of 40 hours plus another 8 hours work, none of which have been remunerated I am formally stepping down from this post. When asked if the external reviewer had been paid, CHI did not reply, however it confirmed that, while the previous clinician due to carry out the work decided to leave the process, Children's Health Ireland has secured the service of an alternative independent expert in the area to support completion of the audit, supervised by the Clinical Director. In a joint response on Friday evening ahead of a separate article appearing on The Ditch website on Saturday, Childrens Health Ireland and NOHC said the clinical audit of Development Dysplasia of the Hip (DDH) procedures on infants at Temple Street, Crumlin, and NOHC, will commence in the coming weeks, and we expect it to be completed by the autumn. The statement continued: Childrens Health Ireland has been made aware through the protected disclosure process of a concern relating to the threshold criteria being used for surgical intervention in relation to development dysplasia of the hip (DDH). In accordance with the protected disclosure legislation, the matter is being examined. Surgery to correct DDH is carried out in CHI at Temple Street, CHI at Crumlin and National Orthopaedic Hospital Cappagh (NOHC). When comparing the numbers of these surgeries carried out on each site, initial figures indicate that CHI at Temple Street and NOHC carry out a larger number, when compared to CHI at Crumlin. It is yet to be determined if this is due to different referral patterns, a backlog of cases, or other factors. Therefore, this clinical audit is for quality assurance, and will seek to ensure that indications used for this type of surgery in CHI and NOHC are in line with international standards, as well as improving our service. The joint statement indicated that, although concerns had been expressed about surgical indications for DDH procedures, it is important to note that this clinical audit was not commissioned due to any reports of surgical complications or any reports of negative outcomes or incidents from these surgeries. Developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH) is a condition where the "ball and socket" joint of the hip does not properly form in babies and young children. Infants diagnosed with DDH early in life are usually treated with a fabric splint called a Pavlik harness, however surgery may be needed to correct the issue. CHI/NOHC replied that a clinical audit is a clinically-led quality improvement process that seeks to improve patient care and outcomes through systematic review of care against explicit criteria and acting to improve care when standards are not met. In 2021, consultant orthopaedic surgeon Connor Green of Temple Street Childrens Hospital told an Oireachtas Health Committee hearing that children with orthopaedic conditions live in daily pain, thus losing their education, losing their future and making Ireland a lesser place. Mr Green said there was no universal screening for stable hip dysplasia, a silent condition which if left untreated accounts for 40pc of total hip replacements under the age of 50. The lack of this service is contributing to more significant future surgery and economic burden on the sate, he said. Sometimes you see children with energy drinks at 8.34am and then they crash later in the day. There is no regulation Primary school deputy principal is seeing first-hand the detrimental effects these drinks are having on children Primary school deputy principal advocates for banning of energy drinks in Irish schools Z_000_506_417 Laura Lynott Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 03:30 David Fagan, deputy principal of St Laurence OTooles National School in inner-city Dublin, is concerned with how children are consuming energy drinks in the morning, then crashing later in the day. Childhood sexual abuse is too much of a burden for one person to carry for their whole lives. Speaking out has freed us Sisters Hannah Saunders and Caroline Saunders Tyrrell were sexually abused as children, and keeping this secret cast a suffocating shadow over their lives. In one of Julys most-read articles, the sisters told how revealing the truth, first to each other, then to their partners and beloved family, was the first step towards healing Sisters Caroline Saunders Tyrrell and Hannah Saunders told their story in one of July's most-read articles. Liadan Hynes Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 03:30 Ten years ago, when both sisters were living in London, Caroline Saunders Tyrrell phoned her younger sister Hannah Saunders one evening and asked her to come over. I panic called her and said I need to talk to you, Caroline recalls now. Krakow is a characterful and charming city break in Europe and it wont cost the earth. Heres our insider guide to getting the most out of a visit... As one of Europe's oldest cities, Krakow has tonnes of historical beauty to offer, but it doesn't stop there. With our travel tips you'll deviate from the beaten path, but at the same time won't miss any of the city's most famous attractions. Three must-sees in Krakow Krakow's Christmas markets The Old City All roads in Krakow seem to lead to the Main Square, the heart of the old city. As one of the largest medieval market squares in Europe, its home to many historical attractions think of St. Mary's Basilica, the Town Hall Tower and the Cloth Hall, for example. Its also here that its gorgeous Christmas markets are held. Afterwards, follow the royal route with its starting point at the Florians Church, winding past the most famous attractions and don't forget Florianska Street and Grodzak Street. A nice place to satisfy an appetite? Pierogarnia Krakowiacy for pierogies or Polish dumplings, or Zaczyn for local pastries with coffee. mariacki.com Wawel Castle Legends about dragons, heroes and kings inhabit this castle complex, which was the main residence of the Polish royal family for five centuries. Today, its a castle museum with a phenomenal view of the Vistula River, where you can relive the atmosphere of yesteryear in the cathedral, the royal gardens, the dragon cave, the armoury and the state chambers. Large parts can be visited for free, but for the full experience you need to purchase a ticket. As an alternative, enjoy a drink or meal with a view of the castle from the terrace of Cafe Manggha. wawel.krakow.pl, manggha.pl Auschwitz & Birkenau If you set foot on Polish soil, its hard to ignore Auschwitz and Birkenau. The concentration camps are about an hour-and-a-halfs drive from Krakow (though bear in mind that they can be an upsetting visit, and taking children under the age of 14 is not recommended). There are many buses every day, making traveling on your own certainly feasible, and you can also book an organised day excursion. auschwitz.org Three hidden gems in Krakow Browsing the markets in Kazimierz. photo: Getty Kazimierz The old Jewish district of Kazimierz is knitted with charming alleys, numerous wall paintings and atmospheric bars and eateries. Mosey through the alley of Jozefa St. Yes, where a scene from Schindler's List was filmed, visit the oldest European synagogue and enjoy the local specialty zapiekanka or pizza roll on Plac Nowy square. Thirsty? You can find zingy cocktails In the bars Singer (ul. Estery 20) and Alchemia (alchemia.com.pl). Zakrzowek Lake Looking to cool off during hot summer days? Then head to Zakrzowek Lake, just a 20-minute walk from the centre. The clear blue lagoon with its steep rock walls is largely fenced, but the beach and several swimming pools are freely accessible. Get there early during warm weather, however due to the limited number of visitors, long queues can arise. Weekday mornings are best. Schindler's Factory Youll discover even more sobering war stories in the former factory of Oskar Schindler, who saved many of his Jewish employees from death in the concentration camps. The permanent exhibition gives a good idea of what things were like in Krakow under the Nazi occupation. schindlers-factory-tickets.com Three travel hacks in Krakow Planty park in Krakow. Photo: Michal Krakowiak / Getty Free visits to museums Many museums can be visited for free on certain days of the week. Usually on Monday or Tuesday. Make sure that you reserve your ticket well in advance, because the free tickets are often limited in number. This also applies to paid tickets. The key is to be quick. Take the tram In the old city you are best off on foot, but if you want to discover other districts, the tram is best (running from 5am to 11pm). You can buy tickets at the stops, on the trams themselves with cash or via the JakDojade app. Don't forget to validate the ticket as soon as you get on - to avoid fines and note that the city is divided into three zones, which determine the price (you can check this on the city maps at the payment machines). Night buses run at regular intervals later on, while the night trams only run once an hour. mpk.krakow.pl, jakdojade.pl Smoking and drinking in public Drinking in public areas is prohibited and public drunkenness is not tolerated by law enforcement. Smoking in public is also not allowed, and there are hefty fines for it. Three great places to eat in Krakow Kuchnia U Babci Maliny In Poland, milk bars are remnants of a Communist past. This is one of the most famous in Krakow. Don't expect gastronomic frills, but you've come to the right place for a traditional meal at a very affordable price. kuchniaubabcimaliny.pl Halicka bar and restaurant Foodies will enjoy a pit stop in this Instagram-worthy hotspot in the centrally located Puro Hotel. You can sip a delicious cocktail in the bar or enjoy a refined tasting in the restaurant. On the menu? Local dishes with an international twist. purohotel.pl Cyrano de Bergerac Refined French cuisine and a fairytale setting in a medieval cellar are the order of the day at this popular restaurant, which has already attracted local celebs. cyranodebergerac.com.pl Three great places to stay in Krakow - Meininger Krakow Centrum With its modern rooms and dormitories, Meininger Krakow Centrum is a cross between a hotel and a hostel. Located right in the centre. meininger-hotels.com - New Port Hotel In this unique hotel on the water you can drift off to sleep with a beautiful view of the Vistula River and the city behind it. The city centre is within walking distance. newporthotel.pl - The Bonerowski Palace Would you like to stay in luxury in a hotel with a view of the city's historic market square? Look no further. The Bonerowski Palace is your perfect base in the old part of the city. palacebonerowski.pl After dark in Krakow Vodka Cafe Bar Polish nightlife is accompanied by vodka. Lots of vodka. And thats exactly what youll find in Wodka Cafe Bar in the old city centre. Expect one of the smallest bars in the city with an extensive range of no fewer than a hundred different vodka flavours. Instagram: @wodkacafebar Prozak 2.0 In this underground nightclub, techno and house lovers can party until the early hours. Its spread over two floors in various rooms where local and international DJs perform. Instagram: @prozakdwazero Spolem Deluxe No pumping beats, just pop music from the seventies, eighties and nineties in an interior that catapults you back to Communist times. You can escape the hustle and bustle of the dance floor in the separate bar area. Instagram: @spolemdeluxe Follow to find out more @krakowfood.kati - tasty places to eat, tipped by local foodie, Kati Pachecka @dawnykrakow - historical facts from a city guide @krakowhello - great sights and tips from a local Best time to visit Krakow The weather in Krakow is at its most pleasant from May to September. If you want to avoid the big crowds, definitely avoid July and August, however. In winter, the citys Christmas markets are among the most intimate and atmospheric in Europe. Get there Krakows airport is 17km outside the city centre, with trains running between to Krakow Gowny (the main station in the Old Town) and taking about 20 minutes. Ryanair flies from Dublin Airport and Belfast International to Krakow. ryanair.com Premium property boasts 120 rooms and a restaurant, with owners eyeing up further projects in Northern Ireland An international hotel brand that revitalises older properties has arrived in Belfast. The former Radisson Blu in the Gasworks has now been badged as voco, which is owned by IHG Hotels and Resorts. This is the first voco location on the island of Ireland. Last year, the venue was acquired by Irish company Cliste Hospitality, which has invested 3.6m in refurbishing the property. It said the work has given it a stylish look and exceptional facilities with 120 premium guest bedrooms, a new ground-floor bar, Pomo restaurant, and outdoor terrace. Theres also an event space with six rooms for meetings and small gatherings. The Radisson Blu was snapped up by Cliste and its hotel operating arm iNua Collection after going on sale for 16m. Cliste said it was scoping out other acquisitions in Northern Ireland. The bar of voco Belfast As iNua Collections first hotel in Northern Ireland, it joins 13 venues on the island such as Kilkennys Hibernian, Dublin ONE, Tullamore Court in the Midlands and Radisson Blu in Limerick, Sligo, Athlone and Cork. Voco is now offering rooms starting at 130. A launch event last week was attended by around 200 guests, including Tourism NI and the NI Hotels Federation. The exterior of voco Belfast Joanna Kurowska, managing director of UK and Ireland operations for IHG, said voco was its premium brand. Voco was designed by us in 2018 to respond to the growing need of conversion market, and this hotel is a perfect example of something that lends itself very well to spaces that need a conversion and that need new life breathed into them, she said. Thats exactly what happened here. If you knew the hotel before the colour scheme, the way it looked, the way it felt and the sense of arrival that was so different than it is today. Reception desk at voco Belfast Ms Kurowska said the hotel will target the corporate and leisure markets, but wont have a star rating. Its perfect as its so close to the city centre, she added. We call it premium as we dont really use stars. Theyre just one way of describing the market, but we segment the market by using the terms standard, premium and luxury. "Premium means its in the middle between the luxury space and the standard space. Its all about the experience and quality of service. Downstairs in voco Belfast The tourism industry in Northern Ireland had been nervously anticipating the impact of the additional visa requirement from the UK Home Office, known as the Electronic Travel Authorisation. But with a Labour government, its hoped that concept will be dropped. Ms Kurowska said: What weve seen between the Republic and UK is that the trend of this market is immense, and people will always travel across the border for natural reasons and for obvious reasons. There are so many historical, economic, family links and nothings going to break that. Workspace and meeting area in voco Beflast Mairea Doyle Balfe, executive director of corporate development for Cliste Hospitality, said the company saw great potential in Belfast. Belfast is a very young city, we can see theres lots of development so it presented a great opportunity for us, she said. Were continuing to look at properties across Northern Ireland. We would certainly like to get another two or three in the next couple of years. It has beautiful countryside, youve got the coast, youve got the Sperrin Mountains and Mourne Mountains and we see that there are opportunities. We look forward to becoming a significant part of the community in the city and we will continue to look for further opportunities to expand our presence in Northern Ireland. IHG Hotels & Resorts is one of the worlds biggest hotel companies with more than 6,000 international locations. Other brands in the group, such as Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Crowne Plaza, already have a presence in Belfast through partnerships with Andras House. Pomo Restaurant in voco Belfast The interior design of voco Belfast was carried out by ODonnell ONeill Design to achieve what the hotel described as a property that feels upscale, but with a laid-back spirit somewhere reliable, but different. The fit-out was carried out by Pure Fitout. The decor features pops of colour and pattern, creative lighting, textured tiling and some quirky but comfortable furniture. The bedrooms have tech-friendly features like smart TVs and fast wi-fi. Danielle McGinley, director of sales and marketing at voco Belfast, said: Its an exciting time to open such a stylish new offering in a city that really appreciates style. It has been a pleasure to work together with our partners to ensure that voco Belfast stands out as a distinctive destination for guests to enjoy. Ramesh Ponnuru: Republicans dont like being pressed on it, so its vital to keep asking them who won 2020 election Lorraine Courtney: Infusion of youth is welcome in Dail, but it would be error to sideline experience Parliament is losing a wealth of experience and know-how I hope its not a signal that we have lost respect for the value of older peoples insights Simon Harris is the youngest leader to ever hold the office of Taoiseach at the age of 37. His predecessor Leo Varadkar previously held that particular record. Photo: Getty Lorraine Courtney Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 03:30 Welcome to Dail Eireann, where weve decided to re-enact Logans Run and no one over a certain age is safe. If you havent noticed, theres a worrying number of older TDs heading for the door, leaving a trail of political wisdom in their wake. The new CEO joined the cheese and dairy nutrient supplier company in 1989 Michael Harte has been appointed as the new Dairygold Chief Executive. Photo by Gerard McCarthy A west Cork man said that it is a huge honour to be appointed as the new chief executive of Dairygold. Michael Harte, who comes from a farming background in Timoleague and currently resides in Douglas, was announced as Dairygold Co-Operative Societys new chief executive on Monday. It is a huge honour for me to be appointed as Chief Executive of Dairygold, a strong, well-invested and globally competitive business. It is an exciting time to take on the role, as the industry faces opportunities and challenges, from which we must maximise the sustainable returns for all stakeholders, Mr Hate said. In addition, I am committed to realising the full potential of Dairygolds Health and Nutrition Business, following the acquisition of Vita Actives in 2023. I am looking forward to working with the Board, the Committees, our Members, our Senior Leadership Team, and all Employees to deliver on our strategic ambitions, to create value for our farming families across Munster and all our stakeholders. Mr Harte was serving as interim chief executive of the company previous to his selection and has been a member of Dairygolds senior leadership team since being appointed Chief Financial Officer in 2006. Sean O'Brien congratulates Michael Harte, the new chief executive of Dairygold. The Cork man, who is a chartered management accountant, joined Dairygold in 1989 after graduating from UL with a degree in Business Studies and prior to becoming CFO, he held various senior finance roles in the organisation, overseeing its growth and transformation over the last decade. He is also a Board Member of the Cork Chamber of Commerce and a Member of the Cork GAA Audit and Risk Committee. Welcoming the appointment, Dairygold Chairperson, Sean OBrien said that he was very pleased to appoint someone of Mr Hartes calibre as chief executive. Michael has extensive knowledge and experience of Dairygold and the Industry. He is a trusted leader who has demonstrated excellent leadership and negotiation skills, as well as having a collaborative partnership approach, which makes him ideally suited for the role, Mr OBrien said. His commercial and operational acumen has seen him consistently deliver strong financial performances, and achieve strategic objectives, including acquisitions, which have helped contribute to the Societys significant growth, with its Turnover tripling from approximately 0.5 billion in 2006, to 1.5 billion today. Michael is someone with a passion for the co-operative ethos, which underpins Dairygolds strategic purpose and Im confident that he has the attributes and capabilities to lead the organisation, to deliver on its strategic objectives, ensuring the continued sustainable success for the Societys Members, Employees and other stakeholders. On behalf of the Dairygold Board, our General and Regional Committees, our Shareholders and Employees, I congratulate Michael on his appointment as Dairygold Chief Executive and wish him every success in his new role. The skeletal remains found on the site in Ballyfermot A total of 32 ancient human remains have been identified so far at a medieval site in Ballyfermot. Dublin City Council (DCC) is currently undertaking an archaeological excavation of the remains of a large double enclosure at the former De La Salle monastery and primary school site in Ballyfermot. The excavation is being inspected by the councils archaeology section bi-weekly, with the latest inspection taking place on June 17. It has been reported by the archaeological team in DCC that initial evidence suggests the site was a cemetery settlement in use during the second half of the first millennium, which is around 500 AD to 1000 AD. The land is currently in the middle of a large construction project, with Dwyer Nolan Developments Ltd building 839 housing units. Work has paused several times over the last year as archaeological finds, including those of human remains, have been discovered, amid calls by local representatives and heritage groups for discoveries to be catalogued. Thirty-two human remains have been discovered and lifted to date, with the council saying the next step for the team is to excavate and record the western half of the inner enclosure ditch and burial area. The former De La Salle primary school in Ballyfermot, which closed in 2019. Pic: Mark Condren Councillor Daithi Doolan was given the latest information following a question to the Chief Executive Richard Shakespeare on a report of the human remains and other historic artefacts found on the site. I have continued to raise the significance of this site. I contacted Dublin City Council several months ago, raising the issue and calling on them to protect and make the findings public, he said. Every effort must be made to ensure a full excavation is carried out and everything of historical importance is documented and recorded. The local historic society must also be notified and included in the process. It is hugely important that the developers are not allowed to simply concrete over Ballyfermots history. This is local history, and it needs to be recorded, protected, and respected, he added. Extra security measures were put in place at the site in Ballyfermot late last month after videos circulated on social media showing people attempting to interfere with skeletal remains on the site. A second video showed someone lifting a cover off the remains and touching its teeth. The actions were criticised by local politicians and the National Museum of Ireland called for people to stop sharing and remove the video. Adrian McGarry was remanded on bail to appear back at a sitting of Mullingar District Court later this month. A man has appeared in court accused of deliberately setting fire to a car in a midlands village, causing thousands of euros worth of damage in the process. Adrian McGarry, of 4 Annally Park, Longford came before a sitting of Mullingar District Court charged with criminal damage at Hillside, Finea, Westmeath on March 15, 2021. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 The accused, who wore a grey tracksuit and hoodie, stood impassively in the body of the court as details surrounding the case were heard before Judge Bernadette Owens. Sgt Sandra Keane said gardai were alerted to a report of a Renault Clio which had been set on fire during the early hours of the morning. The cost to the damage to the vehicle, it was revealed, amounted to 3,500. CCTV footage of the incident was captured and examined, contents of which identified a male acting alone shortly before the car was found on fire. Follow Independent Westmeath on Facebook Despite no suspect having been identified as a result of those initial inquiries, items seized at the scene later managed to establish a DNA profile which was matched to the accused. Sgt Keane said McGarry was arrested, but made no admissions to detectives during his period of detention. Adrian McGarry. Judge Bernadette Owens accepted jurisdiction, meaning the case could be dealt with in the District Court. The court was told disclosure of State evidence in relation to the case had been forwarded to McGarrys defence team earlier this year. Judge Owens remanded McGarry on bail to a sitting of Mullingar District Court on July 18 when a plea or date for hearing is expected to be made clear. Monaghan County Council Cathaoirleach, Cllr Cathy Bennett has said urgent State backed financial support is needed to upgrade the N2 Ardee to Castleblayney road. Senior government officials are facing mounting calls to provide funding in order to fast-track the upgrading of the N2 Ardee to Castleblayney road scheme. Government bosses have been accused of completely underfunding county Monaghan amid fears one of its most dangerous stretches of carriageways could take years before its upgrade is complete. The N2 Ardee to Castleblayney road has been readily viewed as being one of the countys most hazardous stretches with no fewer than 17 fatalities having been recorded over the past ten years. Both Monaghan and Louth county councils have been working in tandem alongside Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII) to upgrade the existing route since 2018. Follow Independent Monaghan on Facebook Funding shortfalls, however, led to its suspension with no State backed financial allocation being made available in 2024. In a parliamentary response to a question tabled by Cavan-Monaghan Sinn Fein TD Matt Carthy, Transport Minister Eamon Ryan refused to be drawn on providing a timeline as to when work on the project would recommence. While it was not possible to provide an allocation the the N2 Ardee to South of Castleblayney bypass road scheme, it remains part of the NDP (National Development Plan 2021-2030), and as with all NDP projects will be considered for funding in future years, he said. Monaghan County Council Cathaoirleach, Cllr Cathy Bennett has said urgent State backed financial support is needed to upgrade the N2 Ardee to Castleblayney road. Those remarks were ones which drew a terse reaction from county Monaghans newly elected Cathaoirleach Cllr Cathy Bennett. The Sinn Fein local politician said the need for decisive State intervention to upgrade one of Monaghans most precarious sections of road was unmistakably palpable. Our roads have been underfunded for a long period of time and we are still getting the same allocation as we were nearly ten years ago, she stormed. We have been constantly been asking the Government for more resources but specifically in relation to the N2 because it is such a dangerous road. The Government needs to step up to the mark and actually fund it. It is loose change what is being given and we need to be properly funded and we need proper roads in county Monaghan. "It is a very dangerous road and dangerous stretch of road that is completely underfunded by government. Margot Robbie poses at the red carpet before the 10th Annual Breakthrough Prize Awards and Ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles, California, on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images) The 34-year-old Barbie actor and her husband, actor and film producer Tom Ackerley, 34, are expecting their first child together, multiple sources told People. The couple, who were married in 2016 have yet to speak out about the news. The Independent has reached out to representatives for the couple for comment. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 Robbie and Ackerly first met back in 2013 while they were filming Suite Francaise, a Second World War romantic drama, in Belgium. At the time Robbie was still rising to fame as an actor and Ackerly was the films assistant director. One year later, they launched a production company together called LuckyChap which has gone on to produce major movies including Birds of Prey and Barbie, both of which starred Robbie in the lead role. The two are known for keeping their personal lives private. Their engagement was never announced and they were married in a secret ceremony in Byron Bay, Australia. The Suicide Squad actor told Vogue back in May 2016 that her relationship with the best-looking guy in London was unexpected. I was the ultimate single gal. The idea of relationships made me want to vomit, she said. And then this crept up on me. We were friends for so long. I was always in love with him. Robbie continued: But I thought, Oh, he would never love me back. Dont make it weird, Margot. Dont be stupid and tell him that you like him. And then it happened, and I was like, Of course were together. This makes so much sense, the way nothing has ever made sense before. Robbie has previously voiced her annoyance at being continuously asked in interviews when she would be having children. It made me really angry; how dare some old guy dictate what I can and cant do when it comes to motherhood or my own body? she said back in 2019 to Radio Times. Unfortunately, its a conversation were still having. Im so angry that theres this social contract, she added. Youre married, now have a baby. Dont presume. Ill do what Im going to do. Recently, the couple opened up about their relationship in an interview with The Times. When asked whether or not they argue at home, Acklerley explained that their most common fight is over chocolate biscuits and whether Tim Tams or Penguins are better. He added that he wished there was more of a sporting rivalry between Australia and the UK, noting that he feels like an honorary Aussie while Margot feels like an honorary Brit. They also revealed that when both of them arent working, they spend 24 hours a day together. Its seamless, Ackerley said. We dont have a toggle on, toggle off. Its all become one thing. The broadcaster wed her partner, whose identity she keeps private, got married at Courtmacsherry in West Cork on Friday after getting engaged in Connemara last year. She took to Instagram on Saturday to share a sweet black and white photo from her big day which showed the happy couple walking down the aisle arm in arm while Zara stunned in a structured white gown. Today's News in 90 Seconds - July 8th 2024 The post was accompanied by a quote from American poet E.E. Cummings from his poem I Carry Your Heart with Me. It reads: Here is the deepest secret nobody knows, (here is the root of the root and the bud of the bud, and the sky of the sky of a tree called life; which grows, higher than soul can hope or mind can hide) and this is the wonder thats keeping the stars apart, I carry your heart, I carry it in my heart. 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 Zaras Virgin Media colleagues Muireann OConnell and Paul Quinn were in attendance, while her The Group Chat podcast co-hosts Richard Chambers and Gavan Reilly also scrubbed up for the big day. The presenter had previously shared that she was a very "chilled" bride, although she admitted she underestimated how much planning goes into a wedding ceremony. Were so excited and were really enjoying planning everything. If you asked anyone who knows me they would say Im a very chilled bride but a very disorganised bride! she told VIP Magazine prior to tying the knot. I underestimated how much work organising a wedding was, I was a bit delusional, but how are you supposed to know if you havent done it before?" I have a few things left to organise. But well get there. The wedding is this summer, so its very soon. I should probably be a bit more on top of things. But itll all be fine! Were looking forward to a great day together, everything will come together and Im excited. US President Joe Biden is standing firm against calls for him to drop his candidacy for a second term, calling for an end to the intra-party drama that has torn apart the Democrats. latest | Russian missile attack on multiple cities kills 29, hits children's hospital Russia missile attacks kill at least 29 across UkraineMissile hits children's hospital in capital Kyiv, officials sayUkraine's President Zelenskiy says more than 40 missiles firedMissiles damaged infrastructure, commercial and residential buildings People walk near Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024. REUTERS/Gleb Garanich Olena Harmash and Max Hunder Mon 8 Jul 2024 at 13:52 Russia rained missiles down on cities across Ukraine in broad daylight on Monday morning, killing at least 29 civilians and badly damaging Kyiv's main children's hospital in the deadliest air strike in months, officials said. Senior House politicians meeting to discuss candidacy An embattled US president Joe Biden faced escalating pressure yesterday from fellow Democrats worried about his candidacy, concerns he aimed to ease with campaign stops in the battleground state of Pennsylvania. Mr Biden (81) has faced growing calls to end his re-election bid after a halting performance in a June 27 debate with Republican Donald Trump (78) raised questions about his ability to do the job for another four years. He has vowed to stay in the race, dismissing calls for him to drop out as nonsense in a fundraising email on Saturday. Photo courtesy: X/@PMOIndia New Delhi/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a three-day tour to Russia and Austria on Monday. The Prime Minister will conclude his trip on July 10. PM @narendramodi emplanes for two-nation visit to Russia and Austria. pic.twitter.com/BYKgrpjja3 PMO India (@PMOIndia) July 8, 2024 Earlier, Modi had posted on X, "Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. "I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 In his departure statement, the Prime Minister said, "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." Indian envoy to Russia Vinay Kumar has said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's upcoming visit to the country will remain 'very significant'. Speaking to ANI, Vinay Kumar stated that the visit of PM Modi is "very important" for the two leaders to exchange views on developments in bilateral ties and discuss other regional and important issues of mutual interest. He noted said the two nations have the tradition of annual exchange of summit-level meetings between the Russian President and Indian Prime Minister and added that the last one took place in 2021. Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video Imphal/IBNS: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi visited a relief camp set up at a school in Manipur 's Jiribam in his first visit to the violence-hit state after becoming the Leader of Opposition. Gandhi is also scheduled to visit relief camps in Churachandpur and Moirang during his state visit. More than 200 people died and about 50,000 others displaced after the ethnic clash between the Meiteis and Kukis broke out in Manipur on May 3, 2023. #WATCH | Congress MP Rahul Gandhi today visited a relief camp set up at Jiribham Higher Secondary School during his visit to Manipur pic.twitter.com/AtcAZb5ZvI ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 The outbreak of violence in Manipur can be traced back to the 'Tribal Solidarity March' initiated by the All Tribal Students' Union of Manipur (ATSUM). The march was organized as a form of protest against the demand to include the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe (ST) category, which was prompted by a directive from the Manipur High Court on April 19. The march served as a catalyst for the subsequent escalation of violence in the region. Approximately 53 percent of the population in Manipur comprises Meiteis, residing predominantly in the Imphal Valley, while the remaining 40 percent consists of tribal communities such as Kukis, residing primarily in the hill districts surrounding the Valley. Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from YouTube video New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court on Monday rapped the West Bengal government over the Sandeshkhali case where suspended Trinamool Congress leader Sheikh Shahjahan is accused of sexual assault and land grab in the island of the state. The top court has upheld the Calcutta High Court's order of a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the allegations levelled against Shahjahan by several women from Sandeshkhali. The Supreme Court rapped the state government saying as quoted by Hindustan Times, "Why should the state be interested in protecting someone?" What is the Sandeshkhali incident? On January 5, the ED officials reached Shahjahan's residence to quiz him in connection with the ration distribution scam, in which erstwhile state Food and Supplies Minister Jyotipriya Mallick is already in jail. In quite an unanticipated reaction, the ED officials were attacked allegedly by Shahjahan's followers who were in huge numbers and were forced to flee the spot boarding a vehicle of a news organisation. Shahjahan- the head of an administrative block in Sandeshkhali- was an aide of Mallick, who is accused of diverting a huge sum of money from the food distribution system. After Shahjahan went absconding from Sandeshkhali, a few women came out in protests against the leader accusing him of land grabbing for over a decade. The protests escalated in February when a large of number of women with brooms, sticks gathered to demand the arrest of Shahjahan accusing him of sexual abuse. Several women with most of them covering their faces accused Shahjahan and his aides of calling them to the local party office at odd hours. Some accused the TMC leaders of sexual abuse. Police nabbed Shahjahan only after the Calcutta High Court cleared no stay was put on his arrest in connection with the January 5 incident, a claim put forward by the TMC top brass, a party which is at loggerheads with the BJP which runs the Centre. TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee had claimed police could not arrest Shahjahan due to a stay order by the Calcutta High Court. The claim was outrightly rejected by the high court. Photo Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons While hearing a batch of petitions regarding the re-examination of NEET-UG 2024, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud on Monday said the leak of the medical examination entrance paper is an 'admitted fact'. He stated that before making a decision to hold a re-examination, 'we must be conscious of the extent of the leak as we are dealing with 23 lakh students', reported India Today. A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, is reviewing as many as 38 petitions related to the exam. Also Read: Those behind NEET paper leak incident will not be spared by the government, says Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Rajya Sabha The NEET-UG exam, taken by nearly 24 lakh aspiring medical students, was held on May 5, and the results were released on June 4. Despite the National Testing Agency (NTA)'s efforts to manage the situation, allegations of a widespread leak continued with protests and legal actions nationwide. The Supreme Court also got involved, slamming the NTA for its handling of the issue. Photo Courtesy: IBNS File At least two army personnel were injured when terrorists attacked their vehicle in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district on Monday. The injured people were rushed to hospital for treatment. Sources told India Today that terrorists fired at the army vehicle from the top of a hill. A massive search and cordon operation has been launched in the region after the attack, they said. Terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir is witnessing an uptick in recent times. Photo Courtesy: PMO India X page Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said he is looking forward to taking partnership with Austria to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. This is the first visit by an Indian PM to the country in 40 years. "I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others," he said. He said: "Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria who is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct." Modi said he will meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer during his visit to the country. Modi will also visit Russia to attend the 22nd Annual Summit. Also Read: PM Modi embarks on a three-day trip to Russia and Austria "The Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges," he said. Modi left India for his visit to Austria and Russia on Monday. Photo Courtesy: Randhir Jaiswal X page Indian PM Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Monday for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit where he will hold substantive discussions with President Vladimir Putin. MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X: "PM @narendramodi lands in Moscow for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit." Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people. pic.twitter.com/oUE1aC00EN Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Modi was received by First Deputy PM Denis Manturov of Russia after he arrived in the airport. "PM is set to hold substantive discussions with President Vladimir Putin to take forward the special partnership between the two countries. He will also interact with the Indian community in Russia," Jaiswal said. After visiting Russia, Modi is scheduled to visit Austria. Photo courtesy: IBNS File Srinagar/IBNS: Four Army personnel were killed and six received injuries after terrorists attacked a military convoy in the remote Machedi area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua district on Monday afternoon. The Army vehicles were on a routine patrol on the Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road when the terrorists opened fire on them about 150 km from Kathua. The injured have been shifted to a hospital for treatment. After the initial attack, terrorists threw a grenade and then opened fire. The security forces retaliated but the terrorists fled into the nearby forest, media reports said. Reinforcements were then rushed to the spot and a search op was launched to nab the terrorists. Officials said there is intermittent firing going on between the terrorists and the security forces. Reacting to the attack, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi said the answer to the continuous terrorist attacks has to be strict action, not "hollow speeches and false promises". In a post on X, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said, "Deeply anguished at the martyrdom of our four brave Indian Army soldiers in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua. Six jawans are also injured." "We unequivocally condemn this cowardly terror attack on the Army convey in the strongest possible terms," the Congress chief added. Deeply anguished at the martyrdom of our 4 brave Indian Army soldiers in a terror attack in Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua. 6 Jawans are also injured. We unequivocally condemn this cowardly terror attack on the Army convey in the strongest possible terms. This is the fifth Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) July 8, 2024 This is the second attack on the Indian Army in the Jammu region in the past 48 hours. On Sunday an Army camp in Rajouri district was attacked. One soldier was injured. Monday's attack came 24 hours after six terrorists were killed across two separate encounters in J&K's Kulgam district. The encounters, which began on Saturday, also claimed the lives of two soldiers, including a para-trooper, while another soldier sustained injuries In a recent statement, Hyrbyair Marri, a prominent Baloch political figure based in the United Kingdom, has vehemently criticised Pakistans military operation, Azm-e-Istehkam, ongoing in the Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces. Marri, an ardent advocate for Baloch independence, has alleged that the operation is being executed under the directives of China to safeguard its economic interests within Pakistan. Marris critique did not stop there; he accused the operation of perpetuating Punjabi hegemony at the expense of causing chaos and death in the regions of Balochistan and Pashtunistan. He expressed profound concern over the role of Pashtuns in the Pakistani military, suggesting that they are being manipulated to stifle their own peoples aspirations for autonomy and self-determination. Marri urged Pashtuns to reconsider their participation in the Pakistani army, emphasizing the need to protect their homeland, Pashtunistan, over serving what he termed as Pakistani interests. The military operation Azm-e-Istehkam has ignited widespread condemnation from both Baloch and Pashtun communities, who have a long history of resisting Islamabads authority. These communities have consistently voiced grievances regarding their sovereignty and rights, which they feel are being overlooked by the central government. The regions of Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa have been hotspots of unrest for years, particularly in the face of extensive Chinese investments as part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project. Local populations have shown significant opposition to these Chinese investments, citing concerns over sovereignty and the displacement of local communities. This resistance was starkly highlighted by a recent attack on a convoy of Chinese engineers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, resulting in multiple casualties and underscoring the severe security risks faced by Chinese nationals in the region. The security of Chinese interests in Pakistan was a focal point during recent high-level discussions between Pakistani and Chinese officials, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Army Chief General Asim Munir. Senior Chinese official Liu Jianchao emphasized the critical need to protect Chinese investments and personnel in Pakistan. As tensions escalate, social media has become a platform for raising international awareness, with hashtags like #ExpansionistChinaInstigatingBalochAndPashtunGenocide and #StopBalochAndPashtunGenocide gaining significant traction. These hashtags reflect the growing global attention and concern regarding the ongoing situation in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The situation remains highly fluid as various stakeholders navigate the intricate geopolitical dynamics amidst continued resistance and security challenges in these volatile regions. The international community watches closely as the conflict evolves, hoping for a resolution that respects the rights and aspirations of the local populations. (Photo and text courtesy: Khalsavox.com) Photo Courtesy: Unsplash A fire broke out at the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) building in Karachi on Monday which led to the suspension of trading activity, media reports said. The fire was brought under control. According to Sindh Rescue 1122 spokesperson Hassaan Khan, no loss of life has been reported, reported Dawn News. The fire initially broke out on the fourth floor of the Ali Habib Trading Company building on I.I. Chundrigar Road, Khan told the newspaper. He added that the cooling process of the building had begun as fire brigades reached the spot. He added that one snorkel and a total of six fire brigades had reached the building to extinguish the fire. Photo Courtesy: Unsplash An unidentified individuals gunned down a police constable in Pakha Ghulam area on the outskirts of Pakistan's Peshawar city on Saturday, media reports said. The attackers escaped the spot following the attack. Police told The Express Tribune that Constable Ihtesham Khan Durrani, a resident of Pakha Ghulam, had visited his cousins residence in Akbarpura, Nowshera along with his friend Umair at 11 oclock on Friday night. Unidentified men attacked him near his home when he was returning to his residence at 3 am in the morning. According to the preliminary investigation by the police, the deceased had been hit by a bullet from behind, read the Pakistani newspaper. Dhoomam starring Fahadh Faasil opened to mixed reactions from both viewers and critics. OTT viewers were able to binge-watch the movie after it ended its theatrical run. Many Telugu fans were demanding for the Telugu version of Dhoomam to eventually debut on OTT, since the film's release on the streaming service in several other languages. Now, after a long wait, Dhoomam is finally releasing in Telugu on OTT. Scroll down to know details. Where to watch Dhoomam in Telugu? Aha has bagged the digital rights of Fahadh Faasil's Dhoomam in Telugu. When to watch Dhoomam in Telugu? Dhoomam will stream in Telugu on 11th July 2024. Who all star in Dhoomam? Fahadh Faasil as Avinash "Avi" Aparna Balamurali as Diya Roshan Mathew as Siddharth "Sid" Vineeth as Praveen Anu Mohan as Satya Achyuth Kumar as CI K. Prakash Vijay Menon as Ajay Varma Dhoomam Plot Dhoomam synopsis reads, A marketing head pitches an idea for an anti-smoking awareness advertisement that indirectly encourages people to smoke. Later, he and his wife are held hostage and forced to perform dangerous tasks. Also read: Dhoomam OTT Release Date: When And Where To Watch Fahadh Faasil's Psychological Thriller Fahadh Faasil talks about Dhoomam As per a report published in Onmanorama, Fahadh Faasil talked about how Dhoomam failed to impress the audience. He said, "Some things are not meant to be made into cinema. They are beyond people's understanding. These stories and concepts may sound good when you hear it and seem like a good cinematic opportunity, but they don't work when you try to make it into his movie." Fahadh Faasil also talked about Dhoomam promoting smoking. As per the same report, he said, "I am a smoker myself, so I am not someone to tell people not to smoke. The intention was to make people aware of the existing system, where a tobacco company is owned by 70 per cent by the Life Insurance Corporation," he explained. For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment. World Population Day is observed every year on July 11 to highlight global population issues, including population control. The United Nations states that rising population impacts economic development, employment, income distribution, poverty, and social protection. It also affects access to healthcare, education, housing, sanitation, water, food, and energy. Policymakers need accurate population data to address these needs sustainably. Established by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in 1989, following the Day of Five Billion in 1987, World Population Day highlights the urgency of population issues. In December 1990, the United Nations General Assembly decided to continue observing this day to raise awareness about population impacts on the environment and development. Since July 11, 1990, World Population Day has been celebrated globally. The Importance of World Population Day World Population Day plays a vital role in bringing attention to population dynamics and their effects on socioeconomic development, environmental sustainability, and individual well-being. It serves as a platform for governments, organizations, and individuals to engage in discussions and take action. The event encourages the implementation of policies and programs that support sustainable development and the well-being of all individuals. World Population Day History The Governing Council of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) established World Population Day in 1989. The inspiration for this observance came from the public interest in 'Five Billion Day,' the date on which the worlds population reached an estimated five billion. Recognizing the need for awareness about population issues, the United Nations General Assembly decided in December 1990 to continue observing World Population Day every year on July 11. Today, the worlds population has reached nearly 7.9 billion, highlighting the rapid increase and the necessity for continued awareness and action. World Population Day 2024 Theme World Population Day 2024 | Photo: Freepik The theme for World Population Day 2024 is "To leave no one behind, count everyone". As the theme of this years World Population Day reminds us, investing in data collection is important to understanding problems, tailoring solutions, and driving progress. So is finance. I urge countries to make the most of the Summit of the Future this year to unleash affordable capital for sustainable development. - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres What does the World Population Day 2024 theme mean? Over the past thirty years, societies worldwide have significantly improved how they gather, analyze, and use population data. New figures, categorized by age, ethnicity, gender, and more, now better reflect our diverse communities. These advancements have greatly enhanced global healthcare delivery, improving sexual and reproductive health and empowering individuals to make informed choices. New technologies now allow for more detailed and timely measurements of people's experiences. However, marginalized communities are still underrepresented in data, impacting their lives and well-being. World Population Day 2024 is a time to question who remains uncounted and why and to consider the cost to individuals, societies, and global efforts to leave no one behind. It is also a call to ensure our data systems capture the full range of human diversity, allowing everyone to be seen, exercise their human rights, and reach their full potential. To uphold the rights and choices of those on society's margins, we must include them in our data because everyone counts. Our human tapestry is only as strong as its weakest thread. When data systems work for the marginalized, they benefit everyone, accelerating progress for all. Why Celebrate World Population Day? World Population Day is celebrated to focus on the importance of population issues and to educate people about the impact of overpopulation. Overpopulation can cause severe problems such as environmental degradation, public health challenges, and strain on resources. Raising awareness about these issues is crucial for fostering discussions and finding solutions. The Significance of World Population Day The significance of World Population Day lies in its ability to highlight the impact of population dynamics on various aspects of life. It brings attention to the challenges and opportunities presented by a growing population and encourages proactive measures to address these issues. The day emphasizes the importance of reproductive rights, family planning, and sustainable development to ensure a better future for all. World Population Day 2024 Quotes Here are some inspirational quotes to use for World Population Day 2024: "Our population and our use of the resources of this planet are growing exponentially, along with our technical ability to change the environment for good or ill." Stephen Hawking "The greatest threat to human existence is our inability to control our own numbers." Isaac Asimov "Sustainable development is the pathway to the future we want for all. It offers a framework to generate economic growth, achieve social justice, exercise environmental stewardship, and strengthen governance." Ban Ki-moon Addressing Overpopulation in India Overpopulation is a critical concern in India. Since gaining independence in 1947, India's population has grown from 336 million to 1.5 billion. This rapid growth has led to issues such as public health challenges, poverty, and limited access to healthcare. World Population Day serves as a reminder of the need to address these concerns through effective policies and programs. Speech for World Population Day 2024 Good morning, everyone. Today, we gather to observe World Population Day, celebrated each year on July 11. This day aims to raise awareness about global population issues and how they affect our society. Established by the United Nations, this important event highlights the need to address concerns such as reproductive health, family planning, gender equality, and sustainable development. World Population Day provides a platform for governments, organizations, and individuals to discuss and take action on population-related challenges and opportunities. Through this observance, the United Nations encourages understanding, collaboration, and innovative solutions to ensure a sustainable future for all countries. Over the years, World Population Day has been crucial in raising awareness, advocating for reproductive rights, and promoting policies and programs that support sustainable development and the well-being of all individuals. The significance of this day lies in its ability to spark discussions about how population dynamics impact socioeconomic development, environmental sustainability, and individual well-being. It reminds us that our growing population presents both challenges and opportunities that require our proactive measures. Have you ever heard the term population explosion? It refers to the sudden increase in the total number of people in the world, which puts greater pressure on our resources. Many developing nations, like India, face this threat due to rapid population growth. Overpopulation has become a serious concern, affecting a nations overall condition in multiple ways. On World Population Day, it is essential to raise awareness about this issue. What causes population explosion? One major reason is the increase in birth rate. The birth rate is the number of individuals born in a particular population over a given period. A high birth rate significantly contributes to the growth of a nations total population. Another key factor is the decrease in the death rate. The death rate is the number of individual deaths in a particular population over a given period. Advances in medical technologies have greatly reduced the death rate. Fewer people are dying due to lack of medical support, which contributes to population growth. Poverty and low living standards also play a role in the increasing population. The number of poor people in the world is much higher than the number of rich ones. If we do not take timely measures, the world population will continue to grow to a point where Mother Nature can no longer support life on earth. World Population Growth: As per the official website of the UN, The world population took hundreds of thousands of years to reach 1 billion, but in just about 200 years, it increased sevenfold. In 2011, the global population hit 7 billion. By 2021, it was nearly 7.9 billion and is expected to grow to around 8.5 billion by 2030, 9.7 billion by 2050, and 10.9 billion by 2100. This rapid growth is mainly due to more people surviving to reproductive age, changes in fertility rates, increased urbanization, and faster migration. These trends will significantly impact future generations. In recent decades, there have been significant changes in fertility rates and life expectancy. In the early 1970s, women had an average of 4.5 children each, but by 2015, the global average had dropped to below 2.5 children per woman. Meanwhile, global life expectancy rose from 64.6 years in the early 1990s to 72.6 years in 2019. Urbanization and migration have also increased. In 2007, for the first time, more people lived in urban areas than in rural ones. By 2050, about 66 percent of the world population will live in cities. These major trends affect many areas, including economic development, employment, income distribution, poverty, and social protections. They also influence efforts to provide universal access to healthcare, education, housing, sanitation, water, food, and energy. Policymakers need to understand the current and future population dynamics to address these needs sustainably. For more informative articles on historical and upcoming events from around the world, please visit Indiatimes Events. Finding a job in today's challenging market, whether in India or abroad, can be incredibly tough. With opportunities scarce and competition fierce, repeated rejections can be disheartening for any job seeker. However, one individual's response to being turned down too many times took a turn that was both hilarious and slightly unsettling. The applicant, frustrated by the seemingly endless job rejections, decided to confirm a vacancy in a rather unorthodox mannerby attending a funeral. The application letter, shared on Instagram by @the.potential.dropout, revealed the applicant's audacious strategy. In the letter, the job seeker explained they were applying for the role of an accountant following the passing of the company's previous accountant. Frustration had mounted as company after company claimed there were no openings. So when the applicant heard about the unfortunate death of the company's accountant, they decided to attend the funeral to verify the vacancy personally. Job opportunity The Instagram post included the letter, where the applicant boldly stated, "I have caught you red-handed and you have no excuse." They even attached the former accountants obituary as proof of the vacancy, concluding with the assertive remark, "You can't swerve me this time. Give me the job." This unusual approach quickly went viral, sparking a mix of reactions online. "One commenter asked, "I need to know what the starting salary was to get kid this ambitious," to which the original poster responded, "It's not the good salary, it's the bad job market." Representative image/ Masterfile Another noted, "Idk, 'give me the job' sounds like a threat to me." Another commenter joked, "If he doesn't get the job there's gonna be another vacancy." Someone else remarked, "Attaching the obituary is crazy!" Another quipped, "Finally, an accountant that I can let in on my psychotic activities outside of workI may need him to run some numbers on outside projects for a higher wage, of course." One observer pointed out, "Both 'Thank you' and 'yours truly' at the end makes it seem like a demand rather than a request." Another user humorously remarked, "'I heard the good news about his death'lmao." The post not only highlighted the applicant's extreme measures but also sparked a wider conversation about the lengths to which job seekers might go in a tough market. For more information on exams, results and careers, please visit Indiatimes Education. Nikhil Kamath, co-founder of Zerodha, serves as a source of inspiration for numerous individuals. His journey to success offers optimism to aspiring entrepreneurs globally. As his business expands at a rapid pace, he remains committed to empowering deserving individuals. Through various initiatives, the 37-year-old actively supports promising ideas by providing both mentorship and financial assistance. On the personal front, Kamath has invested in several companies. On his WTF podcast, the 37-year-old recently revealed that he has made a massive investment in a liquor company. It is none other than Lalit Khaitan's Radico Khaitan which makes Magic Moments vodka, 8PM Whisky, Old Admiral brandy and Rampur single malt among others. indiatimes Nikhil has 1.7-1.7 percent stake in the company In his podcast titled 'WTF, Alcohol is a $70B Business in India?' on Youtube, he said, Ive never spoken about it publicly I think it (the stake) is 1.6-1.7%". He mentioned that the stake, valued at approximately Rs 400 crore, was acquired through transactions on the open market. He added, We have Rs 400 crore of Abhisheks stock Radico, which is a great investment for me, so dont blame me for being a bit nicer to him." Nikhil's podcast featured Abhishek Khaitan, who serves as the Managing Director of Radico Khaitan, along with Minakshi Singh, co-founder of SideCar, Shuchir Suri, co-founder of Gin Explorer's Club, and Suraj Shenai, founder of Goa Brewing Co. Meanwhile, Radico Khaitan is overseen by Lalit Khaitan, who holds the positions of chairman and managing director. As of July 5, the company has a market capitalization of Rs 22,949 crore. Also Read: Meet Lalit Khaitan, the visionary billionaire behind 8PM whisky, magic moments and Rs 3,200 crore growth Nikhil Kamath, a 37-year-old co-founder of Zerodha | Photo: BCCL All you need to know about the company Radico Khaitan Originally focused on bottling, Radico Khaitan got into bulk alcohol production before making a strategic move into branded beverages in 1997, influenced by the arrival of Lalit Khaitan's perceptive son, Abhishek, within the company. In its competitive landscape, Radico Khaitan faces significant rivalry from United Spirits, a Diageo-owned subsidiary once led by the charismatic liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya. It also contends with niche producers like Stilldistilling Spirits India from Goa, renowned for Maka Zai rum, and Third Eye Distillery Holdings, creators of Stranger & Sons gin. You can watch the full podcast here: The Greek Ministry of National Defense announced that Greek Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Polychronis Koulouris will host Turkish Fleet Commander Vice Admiral Kadir Yildiz on July 8-9, 2024, as part of ongoing confidence-building measures between the two countries. The Turkish Fleet Commander will also pay a courtesy visit to the Chief of the Hellenic Navy General Staff, Vice Admiral Dimitrios-Eleftherios Katara, during this time. The meeting signals a positive step towards improving relations between Greece and Turkey. iefimerida.gr A federal high court in Abuja has dismissed a cybercrime case against Agba Jalingo, the publisher of CrossRiverWatch. On August 19, 2022, Jalingo was apprehended by police at his Lagos home and was taken to Abuja. He was arrested in response to a petition brought by Frank Ayades wife, Elizabeth, for defamation of character. Advertisement Frank is the brother of Cross River States former governor, Ben Ayade. Jalingo was remanded in prison in March 2023 after being charged with two counts of false publication against Elizabeth. The publisher pleaded not guilty to all allegations. READ MORE: KWAM 1 Calls For Peace, Tells Dammy Krane To Drop Beef With Davido The offences were alleged to violate Section 24(1)b of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015. Joyce Abdulmalik, the presiding judge, dismissed Jalingos complaint during Mondays court session. Jalingo was arrested and charged in 2019 after publishing an article alleging that Ayade approved and diverted N500 million from the states microfinance bank. Jalingo was charged with conspiracy, terrorism, treasonable felony, and attempting to overthrow the state government. He was granted bail after being detained for 174 days. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has asked the International Criminal Police Organization (INTERPOL) in three North African countries to watchlist former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello. As stated by The Nation, it was learnt that the decision by the EFCC to watchlist Bello in Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria was based on credible intelligence. Other countries where the ex-Governor is put on the watchlist are Egypt, Libya and Sudan. Advertisement Sources in the anti-graft agency said many option are on the table in dealing with the Bello situation, which include but not limited to storming the Kogi State Government House in Lokoja, where the ex-governor is believed to be hiding. The watch-list was activated ahead of the July 17th expected appearance of the former Governor before a Federal High Court in Abuja. Bello is facing a 19-count charge for alleged money laundering, breach of trust and misappropriation of public funds of about N80.2billion. Having denied the allegation, he has consistently failed to appear before the trial Judge, Justice Emeka Nwite on June 13th and June 27th. READ ALSO: Alleged Money Laundering: Transfer My Case With EFCC To Kogi Yahaya Bello Begs Court At the last hearing, he filed an application for the transfer of his trial to the Federal High Court, Lokoja. Speaking on the situation, the EFCC source said: Ahead of the next hearing of the case, EFCC has activated many options, including taking a concrete action to watch-list Bello in North Africa. We are aware of a botched exit to Morocco via Cameroon. We are determined to stop him from going on exile. From Singapore, the EFCC Executive Chairman, Mr. Ola Olukoyede was in Tunisia where he delivered a paper at a session on illicit financial flows. Thereafter, he had a meeting with all the Heads of INTERPOL in North Africa on the intelligence on the ex-governor. He formally asked INTERPOL to place Bello on Red Alert in all North African countries and it was accepted. The watch-list has taken immediate effect. He will be arrested in any part of North Africa. We took this step because we are suspecting that he had been bidding time not to be available for arraignment. We expect Bello to be in court to prove his innocence. EFCC has to do its work to avoid bad precedent. The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority stated on Monday that a containerised truck killed a female rider in the states Sifax inward Iganmu Bridge region. According to reports, the truck driver lost control of the vehicle while in motion and the truck fell on a female biker while descending the Bridge. Adebayo Taofiq, Director of LASTMAs Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, confirmed this in a statement posted on the authoritys official X handle. Advertisement The statement partly read, Early this morning, operatives of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and other emergency responders recovered the body of a female biker trapped under a loaded containerised truck in Lagos. Preliminary investigations revealed that the truck driver, who was speeding, lost control and caused the truck to fall on the female biker. The driver fled the scene upon realising the severity of the accident. The Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Transportation, Sola Giwa, confirmed that the incident occurred at approximately 6:15 am, noting that immediately after the incident, LASTMA personnel called in other emergency responders including the LASEMA Response Unit (LRU), for a rescue operation. READ MORE: Nollywood Actor Chinedu Ikedieze, Known As Aki, Welcomes Baby Boy With Wife According to Giwa, the deceaseds body was taken away by the Lagos State Ambulance Service. At the same time, the containerised truck was evacuated to make room for free vehicular traffic on Iganmu Bridge. He also stated that police officers have been sent to provide protection throughout the rescue operation. The governors adviser expressed sympathy for the deceaseds family and warned truck drivers to adhere to speed limits both within and outside the state. He also asked motorcycle operators, both commercial and private, to follow traffic laws and regulations outlined in the Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law of 2018. SEE BELOW: Veteran Fuji musician Wasiu Ayinde, also known as KWAM 1 De Ultimate, has ordered Dammy Krane to halt his current feud with Davido. KWAM1 made the call during a live performance in the United States that was shared on Instagram Sunday. It should be noted Dammy Krane took to social media last week to accuse Davido, the DMW CEO, of being involved in the death of his late friend, Tagbo, who passed away on his birthday in 2017. Advertisement However, KWAM1 intervened in the ongoing fight, calling for peace. READ MORE: Imade Wont Be A Child Forever, Shell See I Fought For Her Davido Responds To Sophia Momodus Counter-Affidavit Addressing the issue KWAM1 said; I want to send a message to my son, Dammy Krane, that he should end the fight with Davido. I, Wasiu Ayinde, have given this order. I dont want to hear anything from any of you again. None of you will die. SEE VIDEO: A Lagos State Sexual Offences and Domestic Violence Court, sentenced, security guard, identified as David Jackson, to life imprisonment for defiling a 7-year-old neighbours daughter. Mr. David, who is said to be 72 years old, was jailed for life after Justice Abiola Soladoye held that the prosecution had proved the three ingredients of defilement against the convict. Justice Soladoye, in her judgment, held that the survivor was seven years old at the time of the incident but she was eight years when she testified before the court and identified Jackson as a gateman in one of the houses on her street. Advertisement The prosecuting counsel, Ms Abimbola Abolade, had called three witnesses while the convict testified as a sole witness. The prosecutor submitted that the convict committed the offence May 16, 2022, on Oyedele Close, Ojodu, Berger in Lagos. The Judge said: The facts of the case were that a brother of the survivor sent her on an errand on the day of the incident and when she passed and greeted the defendant, Jackson, he dragged her inside the room and when she shouted, he used his handkerchief to cover her mouth. The testimony of the survivor was clear, consistent and coherent under cross-examination. The second prosecution witness was a teacher who identified that the survivor was her student and she testified that one of her classmate had reported to her that the survivor was not feeling well and she was walking in a funny way. Justice Soladoye also said that the teacher invited the parents of the survivor but they did not come around, hence she reported the case and the survivor was referred to the Mirabel Medical Centre in Ikeja and the medical report from the center was forwarded to the police. The court, in its judgment, also held that the testimony of the survivors father was credible and was also corroborated with the evidence of the other two prosecution witnesses. READ MORE: Lagos Court Sentences Two Men To Death For Robbery The judge held that attempts of the convict to shy away from the charge did not hold water. She said, The father of the survivor who testified, identified the defendant as a security guard around his neighborhood and said he was with his wife, who was ill in the hospital when the incident happened. The testimonies of the prosecution witnesses were credible, convincing, compelling and the prosecution proved the case of defilement against the defendant. First, the survivor was a child as she came to the court to testify, secondly the defendant had sexual intercourse with her and there was no consent as the survivor is a minor The defendant is consequently found guilty as charged for defilement of a 7-year old child contrary to Section 137 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos state 2015 and he is hereby sentenced to life imprisonment. The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Universities and Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions have issued a directive to their members across the country to mobilise for a nationwide protest. INFORMATION NIGERIA reports that the development is coming, following a recent breakdown of dialogue between the Ministers of Education and Labour, and the Joint Action Committee of the two bodies. In a circular released to all branch chairmen of the two unions and made available to the media in Abuja on Sunday, the unions said that the protest would commence on July 9, 2024, across the state chapters of the federation, and a national protest in Abuja on July 18. Advertisement The circular was jointly signed by the General Secretary of NASU and the National President of SSANU, Peters Adeyemi, and Mohammed Ibrahim, respectively. The circular reads: The National body of the Joint Action Committee of NASU and SSANU met on Thursday, 4th July 2024, to appraise and take a position on the current situation in respect of the withheld four months salaries and other grievances of our members in University and Inter-University Centres. Similarly, the National JAC, on invitation, met with the Minister of Education; Honourable Minister of State for Education; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Education; other top officials of the Ministry and National Universities Commission. Unfortunately, the engagement with the Minister of Education has not shown any convincing commitment to the payment of the withheld salaries and resolutions of other pending grievances of JAC of the two unions. It is also disheartening that the JAC was also at the Federal Ministry of Labour & Employment, and as usual, the Honourable Minister of State was not on seat to receive us, as we were informed that she had an urgent call from the villa. The Permanent Secretary who stood in for her could not make any commitment on the issues raised. READ MORE: We Dont Want Another Strike NANS, Parents Beg FG, ASUU, SSANU, NASU In view of this disappointment and failure of government to address grievances of NASU and SSANU, JAC has decided on a series of Industrial actions which include the following; All branches of NASU and SSANU should mandatorily hold a general meeting on Monday, 8th July, 2024 to sensitise members on the insensitivity of government to our plights. A one-day protest should be held on Tuesday, 9th July 2024, at each branch simultaneously. Every branch should ensure that all members fully participate in the protest and that the media is adequately mobilized. A national protest will be held in Abuja on Thursday, 18th July 2024, after which JAC will meet to announce a date when the strike action will commence. Further information will be communicated appropriately. Thank you for your anticipated cooperation in this regard. Some yet to be identified gunmen, reportedly opened fire on a patrol vehicle, killing three vigilance operatives and a passerby at Umuaka Community in Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State. It was gathered that the unfortunate incident occurred near Afor Umuaka Market and Hilltop Primary School at about 7:20p.m on Sunday night. A community leader, who pleaded anonymity, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria, on Monday, described the attack as a devastating ambush. Advertisement The source disclosed that the people of the community and neighbouring communities had been under siege by gunmen and terrorising the area in recent times. He said: The destruction of terror camps in Orsu LGA and other parts of the state forced them to move to Ezioha Community. Their unchallenged activities led to the abduction of no fewer than 10 persons within the last six weeks. READ MORE: Lady Kills Lover Over Internet Fraud Proceeds In Imo No ransom demanded, no dead body found, yet all of them have been missing since then. What happened yesterday night was a continuation of their onslaught. Confirming the incident to newsmen on Monday, the state police commands spokesperson, Henry Okoye, said that a tactical squad had been deployed to append the attackers. Okoye said: The Commissioner of Police Imo State Command, CP Aboki Danjuma, has strongly condemned the attack and gruesome murder of the vigilante personnel of the Umuaka Autonomous Community by gunmen on Sunday evening, 7/07/2024. In the wake of the tragic incident that claimed the lives of three gallant vigilantes who were on routine crime prevention patrol and a passerby, the Commissioner of Police has deployed the Commands Tactical Squad with the available operational resources to go all out in synergy with other security agencies and hunt down the hoodlums responsible for the dastardly act. CP Aboki Danjuma expressed sadness over the unfortunate incident and vowed that the command will leave no stone unturned in ensuring that the perpetrators are all arrested and brought to justice. He empathized with the families of the deceased victims and prayed for the repose of their souls. The Simon Ekpa-led Biafran Republic Government in-Exile (BRGIE), says South-East Governors and leaders in the region should desist from negotiating for the release of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra. Ekpa, known as the Prime Minister of BRGIE, who disclosed this in a statement on Sunday via X also warned them against negotiating for Biafra declaration. Advertisement This comes as South-East Governors, lawmakers, other groups and former Anambra Governor, Peter Obi called for the release of Kanu as a panacea to peace in the region. BRGIE however warned the Governors and the leaders against such negotiation, claiming that they lacked legitimacy. According to him, it was only BRGIE that had the legitimate right to call for the release of Kanu and Biafra declaration. READ ALSO: Stop Politicising Nnamdi Kanus Release, MASSOB Tells SEast Govs He noted that those parading in the name of negotiating for Nnamdi Kanus release were sabotaging Biafra liberation. Those selfish politicians and traditional rulers who are now jumping up and shouting negotiation with Nigeria after sabotaging the Biafra liberation are warned never to speak again. The warning will not come again; none of you have the mandate to speak for Mazi Nnamdi Kanu or Biafrans. We will not allow anyone to negotiate anything from tonight (Sunday). The Biafra Republic Government In Exile remains the only legitimate entity to do that. Those selfish individuals now taking center stage and shouting negotiations should stay away. Biafrans are not joking, he posted. In a highly-anticipated federal ruling on July 3, US District Court Judge Ada Brown determined that the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) did not have the authority to issue a nationwide ban of non-compete agreements. Although the judges decision was preliminary, employment lawyers watching the case agree that the FTC non-compete move is effectively dead. Brown, of the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas, said that she would issue a final ruling on Aug. 30, the day before the FTC ban was slated to take effect. But based on the strong wording of her preliminary decision, there seemed little doubt that she would ultimately block the ban. The case will likely be appealed to the US Supreme Court, but that courts recent decision setting aside the so-called Chevron deference makes observers doubt that the court wont support the FTC block. Susan Seidelman, who directed "Desperately Seeking Susan" in the 1980s, now has a book: "Desperately Seeking Something: A Memoir About Movies, Mothers and Material Girls." Read more In 1985, Susan Seidelman directed the romantic comedy Desperately Seeking Susan, about a bored suburban housewife, played by Rosanna Arquette, mistaken for an edgy rocker named Susan, portrayed by Madonna. At the time, the Material Girl wasnt a household name and women working behind movie cameras were an anomaly. There were hardly any women directing Hollywood films, Seidelman, 72, reminisced in a video interview from her Lambertville living room. Her trademark black hair is now ash blond and falls softly past her shoulders. Seidelmans voice is raspy, her vibe is funky, and she sits squarely in her agency, giving full credit to her Philly spunk that back in the day helped her become a female force in the male-driven movie industry. Advertisement From the beginning, I thought: If Im gonna make movies, I dont want to try to imitate guys. I wanted to tell stories through my lens. That became my mission. In the dozens of movies and television shows Seidelman has directed including the pilot episode of HBOs Sex and the City the leading ladies were a lot like her, young women who grew up in cookie cutter cul-de-sacs and moved to New York to escape their parents prying eyes and paralyzing judgment. Seidelman was born in Northeast Philly, grew up in the Huntingdon Valley suburbs, and moved to New York in 1973 to attend NYU film school as she searched for good times, bright lights, and a sense of self. First, there was Wren (Susan Berman), the Jersey teenager who runs away to join a New York punk band in Smithereens, followed by Desperately Seeking Susans Roberta (Arquette). In the 1989 film She-Devil, Ruth (Roseanne Barr) is a spurned housewife who takes revenge on romance writer Mary (Meryl Streep) after Mary steals her husband. Her cinematic work helped set the prototype for the suburban girl who blossoms into a bold, independent, vulnerable woman. It also opened doors for female directors who would come after her, from Sofia Coppola to Ava DuVernay. There is an element of magic, transformation, and reinvention in all of my movies, Seidelman said. Its my hope that I empowered other women through the course of their lifes journey in my work. Seidelman reflects on her nearly half century in film in Desperately Seeking Something: A Memoir about Movies, Mothers, and Material Girls released by St. Martins Press in late June. While Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, Pat Benatar, and Klymaxx were writing the music about rebellious women who came of age in the era of sex, drugs, and rock and roll, Seidelman put their dreams on screen. In her memoir, she walks us through Philly of the early 1960s when Jerry Blavats The Discophonic Scene started dance crazes and good girls went to Strawbridges for panty hose and miniskirts to wear on afternoon dates at the Willow Grove Park carousel. If you grew up in Philadelphia, you knew how to dance, Seidelman said, moving her shoulders to the music in her head as she smiled on camera. Her father moved the family to a development in Huntingdon Valley in 1965 when his hardware business took off, a homogenous world inhabited mostly by people who wanted to live among, people like us, Seidelman wrote. It provided a safety net that could also feel like a noose. Seidelman described herself as an artsy kid who wanted to color outside the lines. She was a troublemaker who went to wild parties. Her father didnt approve of her life choices. There were good girls and bad girls and very little in between, Seidelman said. When my father called me a slut, he was basically saying you are a bad girl and we need to fix you, you need to fix yourself. Still, she believed in her self-worth and enrolled in Drexel University in 1969 to major in fashion. She took one film class, and dedicated the rest of her life to the art of filmmaking. In 1973 she started film school at NYUs Tisch School of the Arts, and produced a short film that was nominated for a Student Academy Award. Desperately Seeking Something began as notes on Seidelmans smartphone, reflections of a woman on the cusp of 70 trying to survive the pandemic. I was approaching this game-changing age and I felt like I was living in a sci-fi movie, Seidelman said. The fast-moving chapters named after Top 40 songs from the 20th century read like scenes knitted together. She matter-of-factly shares details of Madonna and Arquettes rocky on-set relationship, tells about how her ambition was shaped by a terrible breakup, and how she survived her own Me-Too moment. She weaves in her perspective and marvels how technology whether its social media or Vimeo would have made her life look different. Seidelman writes with pride about opening doors for female directors, yet she laments being at the mercy of male reviewers who objected to her point of view. She points to a review of the 1987 film Making Mr. Right, starring Ann Magnuson and John Malkovich. Critics panned the film because, Seidelman wrote, they objected to the idea of a woman abandoning human men to find satisfaction with a programmable sexbot. Such is the plight of the female trailblazer who must crawl so the woman behind her can fly. Seidelmans parting words: When you are feeling down on yourself, take your powerlessness and turn it into power. Kick some butt and prove that you can do it. An apprentice at the Sheet Metal Workers Training Center of Local Union 19 in South Philadelphia helps a camper bend a sheet of metal during a workshop. Read more Young girls wearing yellow safety vests and white hard hats gathered on a recent Monday morning around work stations at the Sheet Metal Workers Training Center of Local Union 19 in South Philadelphia. One by one, they took turns with large machines bending sheets of metal into distinct shapes until they had each built their own toolbox. Amid a nationwide need for workers in construction and a lack of gender diversity in the industry, the girls are participating in a camp aimed at exposing them to the trades. This summer, the girls camp, which is in its 15th year and hosts students entering seventh through 12th grades, is expanding from one cohort in South Philly, to include another session based out of Northeast Philadelphia. Advertisement Last year we thought we were missing a lot of girls, Mary Gaffney, president of NAWIC Philadelphia Foundation which runs the camp, said of the camps growth this year. A lot of the trades are in Northeast Philadelphia, and we just thought we were missing them and we were. Over 90 girls will learn about the trades of electricians, carpenters, and more this year compared to 38 girls last year. The growth of the camp comes at a time when some additional 501,000 workers are needed to meet the construction industrys demand this year, the Associated Builders and Contractors, a national trade industry association, estimated in January. Meanwhile, women continue to represent a small percentage of the workforce, which includes jobs such as carpenters, electricians, and pipe layers, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That number has grown over the last 10 years from 2.8% in 2003 to 4.3% in 2023. Theres a stigma still attached to working with your hands, Gaffney said. I think its changing a little bit at this point. Theres more information out there for the parents to come and look at the trades, and Im hoping that its changing a little bit for the females in the area. Many girls participating in the camp dont yet know if they want a career in the industry, but theyre curious to learn more, said Gaffney. Most of the schools in the Philadelphia area dont teach shop, and so boys and girls arent being exposed, she said. What were looking for is girls to get more in the trades because theyre lacking in the trades. The expansion of the camp this year to two locations comes as vocational-focused community colleges have seen a 16% increase in the number of students enrolled in 2023, the Wall Street Journal reported in April. The increase is also at a time when GenZers are sharing their experiences of working in construction on TikTok amid the reality that new hires in the field can make more than entry-level positions in accounting, the journal reports. The median pay of a sheet metal worker in 2023 was $58,780 annually, according to BLS data, and the typical level of education for entry-level positions in the field was a high school diploma. The camp in Philadelphia, which is free for the girls, runs in two sessions from June 17 to Aug. 8 and provides campers with boots, gloves, a hard hat, and a backpack with tools including a hammer, flashlight, and a level. They get tools that theyll always use in their household, said Gaffney. Throughout their time at the camp, the girls visit trade training centers, local unions, and job sites in the Philadelphia area to gain insight and learn skills. Some 75 volunteers from various industries are participating in the camp, Gaffney said, and the goal is for the girls to meet other women in the trades. Around 9:30 one Monday morning in June, some 40 girls sat around round tables and took notes in an auditorium listening to explanations of what sheet metal work entails, and how they could apply to become apprentices with Local 19. Natasha Scott Lawson, who has been with Local 19 for 26 years and is a recruiter and trustee for the organization, wants to recruit more women. After the auditorium presentation, she led a group of girls on a tour of the facilities, including a computer room where design work happens and an area where apprentices learn about servicing heaters and air conditioners. A lot of women think they cant do it, Scott Lawson said. A lot of women, they dont want to get dirty; they like to keep their nails done. I keep my nails done. You can still be a girlie girl and do construction. Some 57 workers out of 3,982 members at Local 19 are women, including retirees, apprentices, as well as production and residential workers, said Scott Lawson. When she joined some 26 years ago, she remembers seeing about five women at her union meetings. Getting more women into the construction workforce has recently been a matter of federal attention. In 2022, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo announced an initiative that aims to double the amount of women in the construction workforce within 10 years. This May, she called on industry leaders to pledge to create more opportunities for women in the field. Locally, one company investing in the future of women in construction is NEST, a business based in part out of South Jersey, which is sponsoring the Philly girls camp with a $5,000 donation this year. The company manages commercial real estate, contracting providers for labor, including for plumbing and electrical needs. CEO Rob Almond says that while the workforce shortage started to become more evident right before the pandemic, it became a bigger problem for his business in 2021, which he refers to as the toughest year of his career. Outside of a lot of more people not wanting to work, our providers were saying, I cant find enough skilled labor to take the jobs that we wanted to give them, he said. While the situation is getting better now compared to 2021, there continues to be a need in the industry, said Almond, who recently helped launch an advisory council, which is spreading awareness about the trades. He also had a daughter during the pandemic. I would love to see her in a hard hat if she wants to do it, he said. Its a shame that it hasnt been that perception for such a long time, but I dont care who you are, if you want to do it, theres an opportunity for you. Collingswood Mayor Jim Maley in the Water Tower Area Revitalization Project site of the borough's downtown. The towers will stay under the plan, but two apartment buildings, a parking garage, and a public space will replace the surface parking lots that cover much of the 1.8-acre site. Read more A preliminary proposal to construct a pair of mid-rise apartment buildings behind a lively stretch of businesses on Haddon Avenue aims to add population density, boost foot traffic, and create new public space in downtown Collingswood. The Water Tower Area Revitalization Project is an effort to redesign and repurpose 1.8 acres of borough-owned land between Irvin and Collings Avenues. The site includes Collingswoods public works facilities but is mostly a bleak jumble of parking lots. Its mix of one- and two-way street traffic, angled as well as parallel parking, make it a challenge for drivers, cyclists, and pedestrians. And it looks terrible, said Cindy Schreiber, who owns a shop called Clutter Vintage, a block west on Haddon Avenue. Advertisement A group of developers led by Tantum Real Estate in Jersey City and Pennrose in Philadelphia seek to construct a six-story building near Irvin that would offer 95 market-rate rental units and a five-story building close to Collings that would have 60 affordable apartments for seniors. Structured and covered parking at the two buildings, and elsewhere on the site, would total 259 spaces. Its a big project that will provide stability and sustainability to the downtown, said Mayor Jim Maley, who stewarded the far larger Lumberyard mixed-use development on the 600 block of Haddon in the early 2000s. The borough council selected the Tantum-Pennrose proposal from six responses to a request for qualifications it published in January. The choice reflected approaches outlined in a 2007 study of downtowns potential as a transit-oriented development hub as well as in the Heart of Collingswood design plan of 2003. Under the proposal, the Collingswood Farmers Market, which draws thousands of Saturday morning visitors, will remain where it is. The Collingswood Bike Share is housed in the soon-to-be demolished Department of Public Works garage and will have to move, but program director Tom Messick said borough officials have said a new location will be found. Meanwhile, the public works operations are being relocated to new facilities under construction at Sloan and Park Avenues. And the two pale-blue water towers that are a local landmark will become the focal point of a landscaped public gathering space. Collingswood has had a wonderful revitalization story. Its got its own buzz, its own draw. Theres a lot going on, said Debra Tantleff, founding principal of Tantum real estate. This incredible piece of property is right in downtown, with incredible mass transit. she said. Its an opportunity for someone like me and my partners to help maximize the opportunities there. Collingswood has everything you want in the recipe for dynamic, mixed-use development. Parking, the perennial issue About 140 people attended public presentations by the developers in May and June, with many voicing concerns about how much public parking will remain on the site and how the construction disruptions will be handled. Some business owners on the west side of the 700 block of Haddon Avenue worry that large delivery trucks will not be able to use their back entrances, while others doubt the promised public parking spaces in the garage at the larger apartment building will be a reality. While Maley said demolition is not part of the plan, some property owners whose buildings back up to the Water Tower site say theyre worried about an idea that has been floated to create a wider and more prominent pedestrian connection between the avenue and the Water Tower site. Brett Ainsworth, owner of the Retrospect building on the 700 block as well as the weekly newspaper he and his wife, Susan, publish there, has urged on his front page that their vintage structure and a neighboring business be spared. Demolition has been contemplated before, and the mayor hasnt been willing to make a commitment to keep this block intact, he said. Demolition would ruin the architectural integrity of the block and create a gap in it for no real gain. Said longtime Collingswood Realtor and property owner Pat Siervo, who owns the building adjacent to Ainsworths: There was an earlier proposal that called for demolition, but the proposal on the table now does not. But its early on in the process, and no firm decisions have been made, so no one knows exactly whats going to happen. Ciervo also said that real estate professionals regard the 700 block as a prime location and one of the reasons is the public parking in the back. Asked about the amount of parking being planned for a site two blocks from the Collingswood PATCO Station, Lindsey Ferguson, the boroughs director of community and business development, said reducing car dependency is a goal. But she pointed out that most patrons of downtown restaurants who dont live in town or anywhere near a PATCO station have little choice but to drive. More feet on the street needed Downtown Collingswood was slowly but steadily fading until pioneer restaurants like Villa Barone set up shop and others followed on the avenue, which has long since become a regional destination. Much of the redevelopment was propelled by small businesses like Clutter Vintage and locally owned restaurants. Since the pandemic, the well-known Tortilla Press closed but has been replaced by newcomer Paloma, and a number of others have debuted as well. I love our restaurants, but the avenue needs more retail, particularly on the stretch west of Collings, Schreiber said. READ MORE: Ever-evolving Collingswood considers whether liquor licenses could bolster its business district Some shop owners on the east end of Haddon also said pedestrian traffic can be sparse, particularly early in the week. They note that the borough has only a handful of office buildings and lacks large employers downtown. Maley said incremental growth is welcome but pointed out that large projects, such as the Lumberyard, can help downtown get to the next level. The Lumberyards mix of condominiums, apartments, offices, and retail space, has made a difference, he said. And the Water Tower redevelopment will yield a similar benefit by having people living on the avenue who are oriented toward the avenue. Said Schreiber: Lets build up the town. In a federal lawsuit alleging that Par Funding defrauded investors, a court-appointed receiver has taken control of the assets of Par founders Joseph LaForte (center) and his wife, Lisa McElhone. Here (clockwise from top left) are items that the receiver took over and listed for sale, along with millions more in cash: a building at 300 Market St. in Philadelphia, bought for $4.4 million and approved to sell for $3.25 million; their $333,000 yacht; two Swiss watches, initially worth $154,000; a painting bought for $739,000; an $184,000 Bentley ; a building at 135-137 N. Third St in Philadelphia bought for $6.6 million and sold for $5.6 million; their $8 million jet, which the federal government seized but has not transferred to the receiver; and their $2.4 million estate in Haverford, sold for $3.34 million. A hearing on July 12 will review initial plans for the use of money raised from these and other assets to pay defrauded investors Read more Par Funding, the Philadelphia small-business lender taken over by a court-ordered receiver four years ago, operated as a Ponzi scheme that paid investors phony profits unwittingly funded by newer investors, a federal judge has ruled. Judge Rodolfo Ruiz, based in Florida, scheduled a Zoom hearing for July 12 at 3 p.m. to review initial plans for distributing the money. The June 26 ruling comes nearly four years after the Securities and Exchange Commission filed civil fraud charges against its founders. Advertisement Ruizs decision clears the way for a plan to start repaying investors who lost money in the scheme from 2012 to 2020. Claims approved by receiver Ryan Stumphauzer, appointed by Judge Ruiz in 2020 to recover lost funds from Par and its owners, total more than the assets so far collected to pay them. The exact number of victims is hard to gauge since dozens of the investors listed by the receiver are funds that are themselves composed of multiple investors. Ruizs order largely endorses the receivers recommendations filed last spring. Ruiz rejected most of the 40 objections filed by investment sales people, financiers, investors, and others who had demanded a share of the cash, properties, and luxury goods taken from Par founder Joe LaForte and his wife, Lisa McElhone, and assets collected from other Par officials by the receiver. Ruiz ruled a few large claims from others may also deserve to be paid. By designating Par a Ponzi scheme, Ruiz also made it easier for the receiver to deduct payments longtime investors received from Par before 2020, from the amount they may now collect. The effect of the ruling is to pay less to longtime Par investors who collected interest from the company, and more to recent investors who got little or nothing from Par. LaForte, McElhone, Par chief financial officer Joseph Cole Barleta, and investment salesmen who ran their own firms promoting Par investments earlier agreed not to contest SEC allegations that they failed to warn investors about LaFortes criminal past, falsely claimed the investments were insured, and exaggerated loan payment rates from Pars risky borrowers, who typically could not get loans from mainstream lenders. According to Ruizs order, Par meets common definitions of a Ponzi scheme because investors were misled into sending their money to Par by its practice of sending monthly interest payments that yielded far more than bank deposits or other insured investments. Those payments were funded, not by successful loans to business borrowers as the company and its salespeople promised, but by money from newer investors, in order to keep the fraud running. The fraudulent payments began when Par started doing business in 2012, and ended in 2020, the judge found. Par stopped making interest payments and sending back principal as promised, in March of that year. Par attorneys offered to resume much lower interest payments to investors who agreed not to sue. Par lawyers blamed the default on the nationwide drop in business activity due to COVID restrictions, an explanation the court later rejected. All payments had ended by June of that year; the company was seized and put into receivership in late July. While Par claimed it was profitable before the government stepped in, and even paid income taxes, the companys actual loan collections were insufficient to cover expenses, and it lost money every year, leaving it with a net cash deficit of $301 million, Ruiz wrote in his order. Pars LaForte, Cole Barleta, head loan collector James LaForte, and two of their accountants separately face criminal conspiracy and other federal criminal charges at a trial scheduled in Philadelphia this fall. James LaForte, the founders brother, is a convicted felon who federal prosecutors in New York say is a member of the Gambino criminal organization. McElhone pleaded guilty to wire fraud and faces sentencing in August. Prosecutors had accused her of dodging $40 million in federal income taxes between 2013 and 2021. Here are estimates for the value of victims claims and the assets available to pay for them, drawn from Ruizs order and from the receivers financial reports: The majority of Par investors, including those whose investments were made in funds overseen by fund servicer Camaplan, have filed valid claims worth $223 million. Additional claims that Ruiz said have validity including $18 million claimed by the Chelebar family, owners of Rainbow Shops stores, a fraction of the total they invested with Par; $10 million to certain Par borrowers, including receivers for bankrupt Ridgeway Trailers Inc.; $8 million to Cole Barletas business partner, William Bromley, and his company, Capital Source 2000; and a few smaller creditors. The money the receiver has collected to pay these claims include $152 million in cash and proceeds from the sale of most of the 25 buildings and other assets the government collected from Par owners since 2020, as of the last accounting on April 30. The receiver is also owed $24 million by Par borrowers whose debts havent yet been paid or written off; and $29 million for companies controlled by the defendants, which the government says were wrongly paid with Par funds that should have stayed with the business. But the receivers accountants warn those latter debts may prove uncollectible. The receiver hopes to get a refund for $10.5 million Par paid in taxes on its phony income. Judge Ruiz has also approved a settlement with Eckert Seamans and former partner John Pauciulo, who set up investment funds used by hundreds of Par investors. Among them were clients of Dean Vagnozzi, who as a King of Prussia insurance agent advertised on radio station KYW and conservative talk radio for investments he said provided good alternatives to the stock market. The settlement was negotiated with the law firm and its insurers for $45 million including $37 million for the investors, and $7 million for lawyers representing Vagnozzi and others who argued they were due a share of the Eckert money and investors in other funds Pauciulo helped prepare, including a fraudulent anti-drug software company called Fallcatcher. But that settlement was left dead on arrival by the Supreme Courts recent Perdue decision, which makes it harder to make settlements with corporate defendants that exclude other potential claims, said George Bochetto, Vagnozzis lawyer. He said he expected additional talks between Eckerts insurers and claimants attorneys before any settlement is reached. A hearing into the Eckert settlement is scheduled for Aug. 13. New Jersey public schools are suspending Black and Hispanic students at a higher rate than white students, according to a new state report. This report, looking at the 2022-23 school year, is the first time the state has released demographic data for district- and school-level discipline. Schools were required to submit the data to the state under a law that took effect this year. Previously, only statewide data were available. Advertisement Its important that we get the data so we are not guessing, said State Sen. Andrew Zwicker (D., Somerset), the bills sponsor. Now we have the data. It is clearly showing that there is a racial disparity in disciplinary action. The findings largely follow national trends that have shown disproportionate discipline for some students of color compared with the same actions committed by their white peers. Although Black students constitute only 15.5% of the states student population, they account for 29.8% of referrals from schools to law enforcement, and 28.9% of arrests in schools, according to the Department of Education. Joe Johnson, policy counsel for ACLU-NJ, attributes the disparity to racial bias. There are at least a dozen New Jersey cases alleging discriminatory discipline under investigation by the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights. Johnson said he was troubled by the reports finding that Black students were not only suspended more often, but also reported to law enforcement. Nearly half of the more than 10,000 incidents statewide reported to police were not mandatory referrals, such as assaults and weapons offenses, and resulted in 552 arrests, the report found. In an ideal world, the police would only be involved when they are required, said Johnson, who pushed for the demographics law. There is work to be done to determine why there are so many referrals. According to the report, 61,132 students total were suspended at least once, with 44,261 getting an out-of-school suspension. Most suspended students were suspended once for less than a week of school, although many were suspended several times. According to statewide figures, 9% of Black students were suspended in the 2022-23 school year, a share more than three times higher than the 2.7% of white students suspended. More than 4% of Hispanic students and 1.2% of Asian and Pacific Islander students were suspended statewide. (District-level and school-level data are available at the Department of Educations website.) Some of the South Jersey districts with the largest disparities between white and Black or Hispanic students included Collingswood, Haddon Township, Cherry Hill, Haddon Heights, Palmyra, Mount Laurel, Clayton, Moorestown, Glassboro, Lumberton, Rancocas, and Cinnaminson. At Collingswood Public Schools, a district that made headlines in the spring when high school students allegedly organized a white student union, the percentage of Black students suspended was 7.2 times higher than white students, with 19.5% of Black students suspended and only 2.7% of white students suspended, an Inquirer analysis found of the 2022-23 report. The percentage of Hispanic students suspended (5.9%) was 2.2 times higher than white students. The school had an overall rate of 6.5%, or 146, of its students suspended. READ MORE: Collingswood High School students under investigation for harassment, intimidation, bullying incident Said Mary Anne Degenhart, cofounder of Embracing Race, a Collingswood-based group that organizes conversations about race: Surprised and disappointed. I cant say shocked, Degenhart said. Collingswood Superintendent Fred McDowell said the Camden County district has restructured its leadership team and created a position for a director of school culture who aligns social-emotional learning. The district also plans to develop a restorative practices conduct guide. We seek to reimagine our current practices and behavioral responses with a restorative lens to maximize the time all students are in class, McDowell said in a statement. READ MORE: Bullying in N.J. schools has jumped to its highest level ever, state report finds Naimah Howard, a mother in Gloucester County who fought to get her daughter readmitted to Kingsway Regional High School after she was given a long-term suspension, welcomed the report. Her daughter, who is Black, was suspended the entire 2023-24 school year. Black students at the district were suspended at a rate 3.3 times higher than white students in 2022-23, according to the report. Howard has contended her daughter, Sania Anderson, was viewed as a threat to the school community. It definitely confirms what I already knew, Howard said. I felt she was excluded because she is Black. Kingsway officials did not return a request to comment on the report. At Clayton Public School District, where the percentage of Black students (4%) suspended was 4.4 times the percentage of white students (0.9%), Superintendent Nick Koutsogiannis acknowledged that the data suggests disparities in disciplinary actions, and this is not something we take lightly. The district recently received a grant to expand counseling services and provide more professional development for staff. We are committed to taking concrete actions to address these disparities and to ensure that our discipline policies are fair and just for all students, Koutsogiannis said in a statement. Black students at Haddon Heights are 5.3 times more likely to be suspended than white students, according to the report. Haddon Heights Superintendent Carla Bittner said the districts strategic plan includes a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, and the system continues to make changes to reflect those efforts, including removing traditional barriers for students who are interested in taking honors and AP courses. Rancocas Valley Regional High School District saw 14.3% of its students suspended in 2022-23, with Black students suspended 3.4 times the percentage that white students were suspended, and Hispanic students suspended 3.1 times the percentage of white students. Superintendent Christopher Heilig cautioned against using the demographics to compare schools. The numbers fail to present a full picture of the climate and culture of every school, he said. We fear that a summary report of this data creates dangerous misperceptions about the state of many of our New Jersey schools and the intentions of our educators and, ultimately, threatens support for and progress of many initiatives in motion to address equity, Heilig said. Heilig said his district, based in Mount Holly, has stepped up efforts in recent years to improve equity and has worked with focus groups that include students who may feel underrepresented. The district is among 15 nationwide to participate in a collaboration by the National Center for Safe Supportive Schools to promote equity and student well-being, he said. Here are some other takeaways from the School Safety and Discipline Report: Boys were five times more likely than girls to be restrained or secluded. For the first time, state law requires districts to provide information on the use of physical restraint and seclusion techniques, which Johnson called an eye-opener. According to the report, 2,470 students, mostly those with disabilities, were subjected to restraint or seclusion at least once. The report said restraint or seclusions should not be used as disciplinary action, but may be appropriate if a students behavior poses an imminent danger to the student or others. The report provides information on how many students were restrained, secluded or both. READ MORE: After a N.J. kindergartner was filmed barricaded behind a gym mat, his mother wants an investigation According to the report, male students were five times more likely than female students to be subjected to restraint or seclusion. Although more white students were restrained or secluded than any other racial group, a greater proportion of Black students were subjected to restraint or seclusion. Preschoolers through second graders were more likely to be restrained or secluded than other students. A large portion of harassment and bullying incidents happened in middle schools. Most harassment, intimidation and bullying (HIB) incidents occurred on school grounds with nearly half of the 9,011 occurrences experienced in middle schools, the report said. Schools are imposing disciplinary action other than suspension for HIB offenders, the report said. The most common remedial action for offenders and victims is counseling, the report said. READ MORE: An 11-year-old who died by suicide was relentlessly bullied at her South Jersey school, a lawsuit says Asian and Black students were more likely than other students to be targeted because of their race, the report said, as well as students with disabilities, and those targeted because of their gender identity and expression, the report said. The state urged districts to review their data and take proactive steps. The ACLU plans to push to have the discipline demographics included in the states annual school performance report issued for every district, to make it readily available to the public as mandated by the law, Johnson said. The state urged districts to review their disciplinary action and compare the findings to state-level results to consider whether any proactive steps are needed. Johnson said districts should examine how their policies have contributed to the racial disparities. In a statement, a spokesman for New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said the state plans to continue to work with schools and take enforcement action if necessary to ensure that disciplinary policies and practices do not discriminate against students based on race, national origin, or any other protected characteristic. The office issued a guide last August on steps schools should take to ensure that their policies treat all students fairly. If you have wide disparities in discipline based on race, you have a real problem in your district, Zwicker said. No matter what, its unacceptable. You need to do better. Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital in Darby is one of Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic's four hospitals in the Philadelphia region. The others are Nazareth Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia, St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, and St. Francis Hospital in Wilmington. Read more Talks hit a wall during a contract negotiation last year between Trinity Health Mid-Atlantic and the private-equity-backed radiology group that served three of Trinitys hospitals. They said, Were done. Were going to give you 30 days notice unless you agree to our terms, Trinity CEO Jim Woodward recalled in an interview. They had no care of what the impact would be on the communities we serve. Advertisement That experience convinced Woodward that Trinity a nonprofit owned by one of the nations largest Catholic health systems should move away from private-equity-backed companies that really had their shareholders interest in mind. In radiology, that happened last week. A new local practice called Mid Atlantic Radiology Consultants replaced the PE-backed practice at Nazareth Hospital in Northeast Philadelphia, St. Mary Medical Center in Langhorne, and St. Francis Hospital in Wilmington. The new practice grew out of a nine-member independent practice at Trinitys Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital in Darby. Health-care turmoil The founding of Mid Atlantic Radiology reflects more than shifting attitudes by some health systems from private-equity practices. It also shows the impact of hospital consolidation on the relatively few remaining independent physicians in the Philadelphia region. About half of Mid Atlantics 30 physicians came from the Radiology Group of Abington, which had been at Jefferson Abington Hospital. Jefferson Health tends to employ its radiologists, said Oleg Teytelboym, a radiologist who is president of Mid Atlantic Radiology. The Abington group was not able to sustain itself at Abington. Last year, they made the decision to close the group, Teytelboym said. Some started working for Jefferson. Others took jobs with other health systems. The remainder joined Mid Atlantic, he said. Trinitys path to Mid Atlantic started when its previous radiology provider was sold to a national, private-equity-backed practice. The relationship changed, Woodward said, declining to name the group. There was less focus on strategic partnership, less focus on the quality of patient care, he said. There was also a substantial divide between that group and what Teytelboyms practice was doing at Mercy Fitzgerald, Woodward said. Trinity has invested in Mid Atlantic, and no outside investors were brought in. The relationship between Trinity and the radiology practice is exclusive for both sides. The partners will consider opportunities to jointly invest in freestanding imaging centers, Woodward said. Teytelboym, who chairs Mercy Fitzgeralds radiology department, emphasized that Mid Atlantic is an academically oriented private practice and will bring some of the most advanced imaging available in the region to Trinitys hospitals. We are doing clinical research, publishing, presenting at the national and international conferences, he said. At Crozer, a radiology group disbands The entrance of Mid Atlantic into the market comes as another local radiology group has bowed out. Delaware Countys Southeast Radiology Ltd., which had provided radiology services to Crozer Health for more than 40 years, has disbanded effective June 30. Crozer declined to say last week what group it is using to replace Southeast Radiology. Adam Geer, Philadelphia's chief public safety director, attends a news conference on Jan. 30. He is the first person to hold the role. Read more A prosecutors routine is grueling in a city like Philadelphia, and Adam Geer lived every inch of it. To know a heinous crime well enough to prosecute it means understanding all aspects of a case: interviewing a traumatized child victim, studying paperwork that reduces humans to cadavers, watching footage of the moment a bullet pierces a body. Over and over again. Advertisement Geer prosecuted sexual assaults and homicides for years and remembers the moment he realized it was time for something new. While delivering a closing argument in a case about a 7-year-old who fell to his death between subway cars while selling candy on a moving train, Geer began crying. That was three years ago. He moved on to something closer to a bureaucrats life, bringing his intimate view of crime to the inspector generals office. Today, hes the citys chief public safety director a new role at the top of the administration, created to improve cooperation among public safety leaders. It was a precipitous rise for the 43-year-old Geer. When Mayor Cherelle L. Parker announced his nomination in December, many in City Hall had never heard of him. Hed spent most of his career as a line prosecutor. When he worked in the Office of the Inspector General, monitoring the citys public safety programs, at times he struggled to land meetings with political players. In an administration stacked with officials who had standing relationships with Parker or were well established in City Hall, Geers background sets him apart, and it shows in the way he navigates his new role. When City Council passed controversial legislation last year requiring the mayor hire a chief public safety director, the idea was the person would oversee the administrative side of the police, fire, and prisons departments. Some critics asked: Would it just add another personality to the citys public safety leadership? Create a power struggle? Thats not how its worked out. Parker has positioned Geer and Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel as equals Bethel responsible for the police, and Geer in charge of everything else, such as services for victims and antiviolence programming. Both play key roles in major initiatives, including the plan to dismantle the Kensington drug market, but their lanes are clear. I remember some folks thinking that there would be a schism between the two, Parker said in an interview. But thats not what you get when we all go in a room. You get consummate professionals. Judge Charles Ehrlich, who formerly supervised Geer in the District Attorneys Office, said his background in the trenches should lend him credibility in the new administration. He gets the system, Ehrlich said, and I think thats very important in trying to make the kind of changes that the administration is trying to do. My soul quickly took over Geer grew up in a suburb outside Albany, N.Y., in one of his neighborhoods only Black families. His Jamaican American mother was a social worker hell-bent on building a life around helping people, and Geer felt like his choices in life were to become either a doctor or a lawyer. He was a self-described people person, so law school it was. Geer landed in Philadelphia two decades ago to attend Temples James E. Beasley School of Law and stayed. His first job at the District Attorneys Office was under Lynne Abraham, once dubbed the deadliest DA because of how often her office sought the death penalty. Geer was against capital punishment but wanted to advocate for crime victims. Rather than following a path to the homicide unit, he landed on the family violence and sexual assault team, routinely prosecuting domestic violence cases. In 2011, Geer left the District Attorneys Office and spent about four years at a couple of big law firms working on insurance and personal injury cases. That let him pay down his student loans. But he felt pulled back to public service. You have to be driven by money to do that work, he said. My soul quickly took over. Geer spent another six years as a prosecutor under former District Attorney Seth Williams and then under current DA Larry Krasner. He worked cases in municipal court, major crimes, and then landed in the homicide unit. For about a year, he simultaneously oversaw diversity, equity, and inclusion efforts in the office. In the aftermath of the 2020 Minneapolis police murder of George Floyd, which set off a wave of protests and a national conversation about the role of policing, former Mayor Jim Kenneys administration added a new job to the Office of the Inspector General, a unique unit inside city government responsible for investigating the executive branch. The hope was that person would improve public trust in local law enforcement. It was right around the time Geer was ready to leave the prosecutors office. Inspector General Alexander DeSantis said it was a perfect fit. He was looking for someone who wasnt an ideologue someone who wouldnt necessarily come in and suggest disbanding the police department, but someone who could find gaps in how the department serves the community and make recommendations on how to fill them. Over several years, Geer conducted investigations and drew up reports some public, others not about issues ranging from hiring practices to injured-on-duty cops to cleaning up crime scenes. He wrote an op-ed in 2022 saying the city should repeal its residency requirement for police to bolster the ranks, a law Parker had championed when she was in City Council. He was one of the first voices in the police oversight space sort of saying, we have to, to some extent, build the police department up, DeSantis said. He was a moderate voice internally and had a lot of success. Geer said there were challenges. Being in the inspector generals office means keeping distance from the decision-makers. When he tried to set up meetings to learn about bureaucratic functions, he was at times denied. People questioned his motives. I was just one person with the power of the pen, he said. Today, he reports directly to the mayor and advises her on public safety, her No. 1 priority. How hes reshaping public safety functions Having a point person in City Hall who works on public safety isnt entirely new. Former Mayor Michael Nutter had appointed a deputy mayor for public safety who later became chief of staff. Mayor Jim Kenneys head of public safety programs reported to the managing director, not the mayor. Geers role is codified in the citys Home Rule Charter, a document thats akin to a constitution. He is by law one of the mayors closest advisers, confirmed by City Council, unanimously. Geer now leads the citys violence intervention programs, victim advocacy, and a grant-making initiative that doles out money to grassroots organizations. The latter program was pitched as a potential solution to the gun violence crisis but was criticized by the city controller as a rushed process that resulted in delayed payments and confusion. Geer said his office will include new roles to improve public trust in the programs and support of community-based antiviolence groups, including a director of performance management. Those who have watched Geer through his first six months say his impact is clear. Years ago, at the height of some of this violence, people couldnt be in the same room and work together, said Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr. I think Geer is now the straw the stirs the drink. Or, as Geer would describe it, just a people person. Former labor leader Johnny Dougherty arrives at the federal courthouse in Center City Philadelphia in April. Read more READING Local 98 has a message for its former leader, John Dougherty: Pay up. The 5,000-member electricians union is asking a federal judge to order Dougherty and his former second-in-command, ex-union president Brian Burrows, to reimburse it for more than $1.5 million in legal expenses it says it incurred during the federal investigation that led to the pairs convictions on embezzlement charges. Advertisement But Dougherty and Burrows maintained at a Monday hearing in federal court that they shouldnt be stuck with the bill. You just cant throw your hands in the air and say were going to pay all these lawyers, Burrows attorney, Thomas A. Bergstrom, argued before U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl. The dispute comes as Dougherty faces a sentencing hearing Thursday in which prosecutors are expected to urge a judge to put him behind bars for up to 14 years. It also further underscores the growing rift that has erupted between Dougherty and the current leadership of Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, the union he transformed over nearly three decades into the most politically powerful labor union in the state. READ MORE: Prosecutors will seek up to 14 years for labor leader Johnny Doc at his sentencing next week on bribery and embezzlement charges Schmehl did not rule on the matter Monday, instead giving the attorneys more time to file additional arguments and noting that the complex nature of the legal fee request will take longer to sort out and wont be resolved by Doughertys sentencing date. The judge has previously said he feels that its important that the union get its assets back. In all, Dougherty, Burrows, and five codefendants have been convicted of stealing more than $600,000 between 2010 and 2016, which they spent on everything from home renovations, travel, and pricey restaurant meals to more mundane purchases like groceries and home goods. As each has faced sentencing so far, Schmehl has ordered them all to repay the union for what they stole. So far, those restitution payments have amounted to nearly $129,000 in reimbursements to Local 98. During Mondays hearing, Schmehl said Burrows had agreed to pay Local 98 around $455,000 for the money he stole from union coffers. The government has suggested that Dougherty return around $591,000. But the union maintains those sums dont account for the hundreds of thousands of dollars it has also spent dealing with the investigation. As soon as Local 98 became aware of the probe after a series of 2016 FBI raids, the union circled the wagons, its attorney William T. Josem said in recent court filings. The executive board of Local 98 and its apprentice-training program voted to cover the cost of attorneys for those under investigation and potential witnesses who were members of the union and who might be called to testify before grand juries or at Doughertys eventual trials. Fees for those lawyers as well as work by a team of attorneys and outside auditors responding to what Josem described as a series of broad grand jury subpoenas for documents added up quickly. For example, Doughertys daughter Tara Chupka who at the time was working as in-house counsel for Local 98 had frequent contact with the government during the investigation preparing responses to authorities subpoena requests. Dougherty, Josem said, recommended she hire John M. Pease, a white-collar defense lawyer from the Philadelphia firm Morgan Lewis, to represent her a choice that resulted in bills to the union of more than $127,000. Likewise, legal representation for Local 98s office manager, Lisa Ketterlinus, who testified for the government at Dougherty and Burrows 2023 trial, cost Local 98 nearly $132,000. Burrows son and fellow union member Bryan Burrows racked up roughly $5,750 in legal expenses, according to union accounting. Many witnesses were granted immunity, and most were not eager to meet with federal investigators, Assistant U.S. Attorney Frank Costello told the judge, who asked for a list of those witnesses.. And the legal bills only grew, Josem said, when the government subpoenaed six years worth of records from a third-party union auditor, which later billed Local 98 for producing millions of pages of documents to federal investigators. In court Monday, Josem said he was reticent to second guess what all of those lawyers had billed Local 98 for their services. In all, he added, their bills amounted to more than $1.5 million to the union, its apprentice program and its benefit funds. Local 98 and its members, the victims in this proceeding, expended substantial sums in connection with the investigation, the lawyer wrote in recent filings. Restitution for those sums clearly falls within the parameters of what convicted defendants can be ordered to pay, he added. But Doughertys attorney, Greg Pagano called it a very slippery slope for his client to be forced to pay the legal bills of the dozens of witnesses involved in his prosecution. He asked how the union could differentiate between legal services provided to union witnesses involved in the embezzlement case and those who were also involved in a 2021 trial that ended with Doughertys conviction on bribery charges alongside former City Councilmember Bobby Henon, for which Local 98 is not seeking reimbursement. Many officials for whom the union hired lawyers played a role in both of those trials, Pagano said. To be Solomon-esque in a case like this is difficult if not impossible, he said. READ MORE: Two years after taking over for John Dougherty, Local 98s new leader says the union has hit the reset button Burrows, meanwhile, who was sentenced to four years in prison last month, accused Local 98 of now looking to double dip. His lawyer contended that Local 98 had already been reimbursed for some of the legal costs of the investigation through a legal settlement with its insurer last year, the details of which remain confidential. Its totally out of control, Bergstrom said. The judge countered: You know why they want it, they didnt make it out of thin air. Welcome back, court watchers, to another edition of the Inside Johnny Docs Trial newsletter. The long July Fourth weekend is over, but were gearing up for another round of fireworks in court this week. And by its end, John Dougherty, once considered a kingmaker in the worlds of organized labor and politics in Pennsylvania, will likely be preparing for prison. Advertisement Dougherty, 64, faces sentencing Thursday on bribery and embezzlement charges nearly eight years after the investigation by federal authorities into his leadership at Local 98 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers burst into public view with a series of 2016 FBI raids. But before he learns his fate, there are court battles looming over how much time behind bars he deserves and how much money he should have to pay back to the union he led for nearly three decades. Theres also been a string of other significant developments since this newsletter last showed up in your inbox. Lets get to it. Jeremy Roebuck and Oona Goodin-Smith (@jeremyrroebuck, @oonagoodinsmith, insidejohnnydoc@inquirer.com) If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here. Do you have a question about the trial? Email us back and we might answer it in our next newsletter. The briefing Prosecutors are urging U.S. District Judge Jeffrey L. Schmehl to put Dougherty behind bars for up to 14 years and order him to help pay more than $2.1 million to his former union. In a filing Friday, they said his crimes had inflicted immeasurable harm upon Local 98 and the City of Philadelphia. Former Local 98 president Brian Burrows who was convicted alongside Dougherty in last years union embezzlement trial was sentenced to four years in prison last month. In court, Burrows was less than apologetic for his crimes. Local 98 maintains Burrows and Dougherty owe the union more than $1 million for legal expenses it racked up as a result of their crimes. Thats in addition to the more than $570,000 they were convicted of draining from union coffers. Prosecutors are backing the unions demand that its ex-leaders pay up. Meanwhile, Doughertys chances of overturning his 2021 bribery conviction have grown slimmer. A federal appeals court in May rejected arguments from his codefendant, former Philadelphia City Councilmember Bobby Henon, that theyd been wrongfully convicted. And prosecutors still havent said whether theyre going to retry Dougherty and his nephew Greg Fiocca in an extortion case that ended in a deadlocked jury and mistrial in April. One juror told The Inquirer that 11 of the panels 12 members had wanted to acquit. Hopefully, the juror said in an interview, that insight into the stalled deliberations will save some people some time. Breaking it down: How much prison time will Dougherty get? Its the question thats hung over Doughertys head since his conviction on bribery charges three years ago. It surfaced once more after another jury found him and Burrows guilty in their embezzlement trial last year. And as each of the ex-union chiefs codefendants have faced sentencing this year, its been asked again and again. Just how much prison time will Dougherty get? On Friday, prosecutors filed their recommendation with the judge: Anywhere from 11 to 14 years. Thats more than three times the stiffest sentence Schmehl has handed down so far for any of Doughertys six codefendants in his bribery and embezzlement cases. Were still waiting for Doughertys camp to file its suggestion with the court. But the punishments the judge has crafted for the others could offer some insight into what he will ultimately decide. Consistently, Schmehl has given Doughertys codefendants less time than what prosecutors recommended. In Henons case, the government sought up to 10 years; Schmehl gave him 3. They asked for at least four years and nine months for Burrows; he got four instead. The government pushed for roughly two years for Michael Neill, Local 98s former head of apprentice training; Schmehl cut that number in half. And though the unions political director Marita Crawford could have gone to prison for up to six months if prosecutors had their way, the judge let her off with 15 days in prison followed by house arrest. Its possible Schmehl will follow that same pattern and cut Dougherty a break. But as the unions top official and the only Local 98 leader to be convicted in both the bribery and embezzlement cases, he should expect more than the four years in prison Schmehl gave Burrows last month. Well have to wait until Thursday to find out just how much more. By the numbers: The restitution question Its not just prison time Dougherty is facing. Like all of his codefendants in the embezzlement scheme, the ex-union chief will be ordered to pay Local 98 back for the hundreds of thousands of dollars they stole. And its likely to be a hefty financial hit. The union also wants Dougherty and Burrows to reimburse it for more than $1.5 million in legal fees it says it was forced to spend as a result of their crimes. Burrows is pushing back and presumably Dougherty, who has not yet responded to the unions request in court, will, too. Schmehl has scheduled a hearing Monday to hash out the issue. In the meantime, lets break down the numbers: $2,116,629.99: The total amount the government says Dougherty and his codefendants owe to Local 98 for the money they stole as well as legal fees. $1,525,288.75: What Local 98 says it was forced to spend on lawyers during the eight-year investigation of Doughertys and Burrows crimes. $591,341: The amount prosecutors say Dougherty, Burrows, and others stole from and should have to pay back to Local 98 for home repairs, pricey dinners, travel, and mundane purchases like groceries and home goods. $128,503: The total that four other convicted codefendants Neill, the former head of the unions apprentice training program; ex-Local 98 political director Crawford; and Dougherty assistants Niko Rodriguez and Brian Fiocca have been ordered to pay in restitution to the union so far. What we heard in court Its very important that the union get its assets back. Schmehl, at Burrows sentencing hearing last month Courtroom scene Every defendant gets an opportunity to address the judge at a sentencing hearing before punishment is announced. Its an opportunity to show remorse or apologize and potentially influence the eventual sentence. When Neill was sentenced earlier this year, he apologized to Local 98 members, saying, Im sorry for what I put you through with my bad choices. Crawford acknowledged her mistake, telling the judge: I alone take responsibility. At his sentencing last month, Burrows took a different approach. Rather than directly address his crimes or offer any apologies, he instead embarked on a meandering, 45-minute monologue featuring printed charts that he said explained all the ways hed left Local 98s members better off despite the money hed been convicted of stealing from them. He helped build Local 98s health and pension funds, he told Schmehl, increased union profit sharing, and worked to bolster health benefits for his union members. That wasnt by luck, he said of the thousands of dollars that had gone back into the pockets of Local 98s members under his leadership. Eventually, as Burrows remarks closed in on an hour, Schmehl urged him to use a little less detail in his lengthy recap of his career. As Burrows began to wrap up, his attorney, Thomas A. Bergstrom, whispered in his ear. I accept the jurys decision, Burrows added, telling the judge that when he was 21 years old, he sat on a jury himself. I took my chances in the jury system, and Ill take whatevers given to me. Im not trying to hide it. Assistant U.S. Attorney Bea Witzleben later called the ex-union presidents apparent lack of contrition disturbing. 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, she said. I did not hear Mr. Burrows apologize. Well be listening closely as Dougherty who has repeatedly maintained his innocence and lamented his choice not to testify at either of his trials gets his chance to speak directly to the judge this week. The legal lens Next on the docket July 8: The judge will consider the governments push to force Dougherty and Burrows to repay $1.6 million to their former union at a hearing in Reading. July 11: Dougherty faces sentencing in Reading for his bribery and embezzlement convictions. Aug. 13: Burrows is scheduled to report to prison to begin serving his four-year sentence. Aug. 20: Contractor-turned-star government witness Anthony Massa faces sentencing for billing Local 98 for home repairs worth more than $380,000 at the houses of Dougherty, his family members, and his fellow Local 98 officials. Sept. 16: The scheduled date for Doughertys retrial on extortion charges alongside nephew Greg Fiocca that is, if the government decides to proceed. As always, well bring you the latest from court during Doughertys sentencing and beyond. Check inquirer.com this week for full coverage of the proceedings, and well see you again in your inbox next week. 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. Philadelphia Police Commissioner Kevin Bethel (left), District Attorney Larry Krasner (center), and Adam N. Geer, the citys chief public safety director (right), at news conference in January. Read more Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter Hi, Philly. Stay safe out there: Its set to be a brutally hot few days. Temps on this sunny Monday are expected to hit the mid-90s. Adam Geer, once a relatively unknown prosecutor, became the citys first chief public safety officer earlier this year. Can he earn Philadelphians trust and help the Parker administration more effectively fight one of its most intractable challenges? Advertisement And other Northeast U.S. cities have brought municipal workers back to the office just not every day, like Phillys mayor wants. A week before a strict in-person mandate is set to take effect, we have the story on what hybrid work policies look like elsewhere. Heres what you need to know to start your week. Julie Zeglen (morningnewsletter@inquirer.com) If someone forwarded you this email, sign up for free here. Philadelphias chief public safety officer, Adam Geer, is tasked with advising Mayor Cherelle L. Parker on one of her top priorities. Hes also the first person to hold the title and you might not have heard of him before he was nominated to the job in December. Who is Geer: The former prosecutor is a New York native who has worked under several Philly district attorneys, including current DA Larry Krasner. In his last role with the Office of the Inspector General, he was tasked with holding the citys public safety programs accountable. What the role means: Think of Geer as the yin to Police Commissioner Kevin Bethels yang. Bethel manages the police force, while Geer oversees the admin side of the police, fire, and prisons departments, including services for crime victims and antiviolence programming. Case in point: Geer was on the scene of the Parker administrations first coordinated Kensington sweep in May after Bethels officers dismantled a homeless encampment. What insiders say: His peers and bosses describe Geer as ego-free, a moderate voice, and someone who can convene people on opposing sides of a contentious issue via their shared goals. Will that mean success in the difficult job of improving cooperation among public safety leaders and boosting public trust? City Hall reporter Anna Orso digs in. If the mayor has her way, municipal employees will be working from their Center City offices five days a week starting July 15. Parker faces fierce pushback and a lawsuit from the union representing thousands of city workers aiming to halt the mandate. But if they fail, next week Philadelphia would become the only city in the Northeast with such a strict return-to-office policy. Baltimore, D.C., Pittsburgh and Boston all allow at least some municipal employees to work remotely one to two days a week. New York City is the only nearby city thats ordered employees into the office five days a week, but Mayor Eric Adams walked back that plan last year. Now, much of the workforce can work from home two days a week. Part of why NYCs plans changed? To counter worker shortages which Philadelphia also faces, as a fifth of its municipal jobs lay vacant. Anna Orso and Jake Blumgart have more details on each citys hybrid policies, and where Philly fits. What you should know today Trivia time Philadelphia celebrated a new holiday last week, exactly 248 years after one of the countrys Founding Fathers predicted it. What was it called? A) Second Continental Congress Day B) Red, White, & Blue To-Do C) Signing Day D) Shews, Games, Sports, Guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations Think you know? Check your answer. What were... Testing: How well we know our Philly medical firsts. Touring: Battleship New Jersey, post-$10 million facelift. Tecting: Ourselves from tick-borne illnesses, which are on the rise. Unscramble the anagram The Philly-born director and Drexel alum behind Desperately Seeking Susan. ELISSA MUNDANES Email us if you know the answer. Well select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Bob Centonze, who solved Sundays anagram: Caleb Martin. The Sixers reportedly finalized a multiyear, free-agent contract for $32 million with the former Heat forward over the weekend. Photo of the day The East Broad Top Railroad in Central Pennsylvania is one of the last remaining narrow-gauge rail lines in the United States and began serving passengers in 1873. Reporter Jason Nark has the story of its revival. Your only in Philly story Think back to the night that changed your life that could only happen in Philly, a true example of the Philly spirit, the time you finally felt like you belonged in Philly if youre not a lifer, something that made you fall in love with Philly all over again or proud to be from here if you are. Then email it to us for a chance to be featured in the Monday edition of this newsletter. This only in Philly story comes from reader Nilmini Klur, who describes a hankering that will sound familiar to most anyone in the region: In June 2019, my son graduated high school. I had lived in Philly for 20 years but still considered myself a New Yorker. My son and I took a trip to Japan and China. On the way back from the airport, late at night, I absolutely had to stop at Wawa. Thats when I knew I was a Philadelphian, with a son born and bred here. Thanks for starting your week with The Inquirer. Enjoy your Monday. 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. A copy of the Ten Commandments in stone hangs near the Pickens County Courthouse in Jasper, Ga. Displaying the commandments has never been the ubiquitous practice that conservatives imagine, Jonathan Zimmerman writes. Read more Once upon a time, public schools respected religion. They taught the Bible and posted the Ten Commandments. Then big bad liberals came along and took God out of the schools. And the rest, as they say, is history. Thats what right-wingers want you to think, but theyre wrong. In earlier eras, religious instruction wasnt nearly as common as they say. And when it did happen, it was promoted by political liberals as well as conservatives. Advertisement Youre unlikely to hear that from Republicans in Louisiana who recently pushed through a law requiring the posting of the Ten Commandments in all classrooms or in Oklahoma, where the GOP superintendent of education ordered schools to teach the Bible in grades five through 12. Theyve got their story, and theyre sticking to it. According to the Louisiana measure, the Ten Commandments were a prominent part of American public education for more than three centuries. No, they werent. True, as the law notes, the Ten Commandments were included in the New England Primer and McGuffeys Reader in the colonial period and in the 1800s. But James Madison never claimed that the whole future of our new nation rests upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern ourselves according to the principles of the Ten Commandments, as the measure also says. According to the editors of Madisons papers, theres no record of him making that statement. Its a hoax, which Louisiana has now enshrined into law. And in 1927, a poll by the Methodist Episcopal Church showed that most Americans couldnt name more than five of the commandments; the only one people identified consistently was the prohibition on adultery. What they knew came less from schools which had long abandoned McGuffeys Reader than from pop-culture adaptations like Cecil B. DeMilles 1923 blockbuster film, The Ten Commandments. DeMille released a glitzy new version of the movie in the 1950s, which also witnessed the first broadscale efforts to require the posting of the Ten Commandments in American classrooms. If the commandments had been such a longtime feature of schools, as the Louisiana law claims, we wouldnt have needed mandates to display them 70 years ago. Ditto for Bible reading, which was hardly the ubiquitous practice conservatives imagine. Responding to an 1896 questionnaire, Nevadas school superintendent wrote that there is not one school in the State where the Bible is read. Of 26 school districts replying to the survey in California, 19 reported no Bible reading. In the 1950s, advocates said that religious teaching would help distinguish America from the Soviet Union and Godless Communism. School districts stepped up Bible instruction in the 1950s, just as they did with the posting of the Ten Commandments. In the midst of the Cold War, advocates said that religious teaching would help distinguish America from the Soviet Union and Godless Communism. During these same years, a similar rationale inspired Congress to add In God We Trust to our currency and Under God to the Pledge of Allegiance. But some citizens supported religious instruction as a way of fighting injustice at home, not just threats from abroad. Thats why African Americans lined up to watch DeMilles The Ten Commandments, which depicted Moses liberating Jews from slavery in Egypt. The film is the Voice of the Minorities trying to be heard, one Black observer wrote. Take your family so that the story of the struggle will never grow dim. In segregated Black schools, chapel services reminded students about the Bibles message of freedom for all. Likewise, white civil rights supporters said that lessons from Scripture would help liberate young people from the mental stockades of racial injustice, as a North Carolina Bible teacher wrote. This coalition fell apart in the 1960s, when the U.S. Supreme Court barred school-sponsored prayer and Bible reading. Fearful of eroding the authority of the court on matters like voting rights and housing discrimination, liberals retreated from religion in schools. That ceded the issue to conservatives, who have been braying for the Ten Commandments and Bible reading ever since. To get around obvious constitutional objections, Republican advocates for the Louisiana and Oklahoma measures have gamely argued that their efforts have a secular purpose to teach the role of these texts in American history rather than a religious one. Ironically, the measures distort that same history. And their true purpose was more accurately captured by the GOPs putative presidential nominee, Donald Trump. I LOVE THE TEN COMMANDMENTS IN PUBLIC SCHOOLS, Trump tweeted, in support of the Louisiana law. THIS MAY BE, IN FACT, THE FIRST MAJOR STEP IN THE REVIVAL OF RELIGION, WHICH IS DESPERATELY NEEDED IN OUR COUNTRY. BRING BACK TTC! Several parents have already sued to block the Louisiana measure on exactly those grounds: It promotes a distinct religion, in a nation thats not supposed to establish one. Although the Supreme Court struck down a similar law in Kentucky in 1980, the current court has signaled greater support for religious expression in the public sphere. Instead of creating ironclad rules, the court says it will follow history and tradition. But religious instruction is not as traditional as many of us suppose. Now is the time to remember that history, rather than reinventing a past we never had. Thats the only way to create a more just and fair future for all Americans, no matter what faith they might practice. Jonathan Zimmerman teaches education and history at the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of Whose America?: Culture Wars in the Public Schools and eight other books. President Joe Biden speaks from the pulpit at Mt Airy Church of God in Christ Sunday, July 7, 2024. U.S. Senator Bob Casey and Mayor Cherelle L. Parker are seated at right. Read more President Joe Biden came to Philadelphia on Sunday for his first visit since his lackluster June 27 debate. Bidens appearances in Philly, and later in the day in Harrisburg, drew the attention of a few protesters while highlighting visible support from top Democratic leaders in the Commonwealth, and showing off Bidens comfort in places of worship. Advertisement The visit was one in a series of public appearances scheduled in the aftermath of the debate. Before stopping in Pennsylvania, the president held a rally in Madison, Wisconsin and was interviewed by ABCs George Stephanopoulos his first televised interview since the debate. Here are some key takeaways from Bidens Sunday visit. Friendly protesters Its not often that campaign events are met with opposition that is actually friendly. At former President Donald Trumps rally in Philadelphia in June, for example, the protesters gathered outside The Liacouras Center had nothing nice to say. But in this case, a small group of individuals stood outside the Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in up to 95 degree weather, to tell Biden that its time to withdraw from the race. In one instance, Peter Lehu from Mount Airy held a sign that said Thank you Joe, but time to go. The appreciation and respect for Biden coexists with many Democrats fears that Bidens presence in the race will lead to a second Trump presidency. Most people inside the church on Sunday seemed to be in support of Biden continuing his bid. The small group of protesters joins a growing cohort of Democratic officials calling for Biden to drop out of the race after his debate performance. Wayne Eastman, of Orange, New Jersey, held a 2024-2025 calendar with the words Pass the torch written on it. He said that he was inspired to protest after seeing individuals in Wisconsin hold similar signs outside of Bidens appearance there. He added that he isnt particularly invigorated to vote, but found some excitement in the names that have been thrown around to replace Biden if he does leave the race. The other names Ive heard, like Gov. [Josh] Shapiro, Vice President Kamala Harris, and Gov. Gavin Newsom, sign me up, Eastman said. This is an all-hands on deck thing for the Democratic Party. Weve got to figure this out. Pa. officials remain loyal Bidens visit to Pennsylvania brought out visible support from top state and city leaders even as Democratic leaders from other states called on him to cease his campaign. Senators Bob Casey and John Fetterman were among the first to greet Biden once he landed in Philadelphia on Sunday. The two senators have vocalized their support for the president even as their congressional colleagues even those in the Pennsylvania Democratic Congressional delegation reveal worries about Bidens electability. Mayor Cherelle L. Parker also joined leaders to welcome Biden at the airport. Parker, a strong surrogate for Biden, attended his State of the Union address as a guest in March and has joined him at other previous outings. After his stop at the church and a campaign office in Manayunk, Biden made a visit to Harrisburg where he eventually met with Gov. Josh Shapiro at Denim Coffee. Shapiro has offered many clear statements of support for the president, though he was one of the first to acknowledge Bidens bad debate performance. Shapiro has been floated as a name to potentially replace Biden as the Democratic nominee should Biden drop out of the race, but its unlikely. The visible and outward support of Biden from prominent Democrats in the state could prove crucial in November as Pennsylvania remains a critical battleground state that the president is currently losing to Trump by approximately 3 percentage points. Biden has made it clear that winning the state in 2020 is what sent him to the White House. Church is a place to feel the love Biden has made it no secret that he strongly values his Catholic faith. Even before Sundays visit to the West Oak Lane church to feel the love, Biden has been a regular churchgoer and has previously spoken at or campaigned in other places of worship. Biden spoke at Saint John Baptist Church, a predominantly Black church, in Columbia, South Carolina in January ahead of the primary there. He discussed his faith and attended the service with Rep. Jim Clyburn (D., South Carolina), whose support was mainly responsible for Biden securing the nomination in 2020. On March, 1 2020, Biden spoke at a worship event at the Brown Chapel AME Church in Selma, Alabama. Thats why its not entirely shocking that Biden delivered prepared remarks at the lectern and received words of encouragement from preachers on Sunday, days after he said only the Lord Almighty could convince him to drop out of the election. Staff writer Earl Hopkins contributed to this article. Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump talks to supporters during a campaign rally at The Liacouras Center on June 22, 2024. Read more MILWAUKEE The Republican National Committee moved Monday to adopt a party platform that reflects former President Donald Trumps position opposing a federal abortion ban and ceding limits to states, omitting the explicit basis for a national ban for the first time in 40 years. Trump imposed his priorities on the RNCs platform committee as he seeks to steer clear during his campaign of strict abortion language, even while taking credit for setting up the 2022 reversal of Roe v. Wade by the Supreme Court. Trump appointed three of the six justices who voted in the majority to overturn the 1973 precedent that established a national right to have an abortion. Advertisement The scaled-down platform just 16 pages and with limited specifics on many key Republican issues reflects a desire by the Trump campaign to avoid giving Democrats more material for their warnings about the former presidents intentions if he wins back the White House. President Joe Bidens campaign has repeatedly highlighted the Project 2025 document produced by Trump allies as well as Trumps own promises to impose wide-ranging tariffs, replace thousands of government workers with party loyalists and stage the largest deportation operation in U.S. history. READ MORE: Theres only one key issue where Pa. voters trust Joe Biden over Donald Trump: Abortion The policy document sticks to the partys longstanding principle that the Constitution extends rights to fetuses, but removes language maintaining support for an amendment to the Constitution and legislation to make clear that the Fourteenth Amendments protections apply to children before birth, a passage in the party platform first included in 1984. It asserts, We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied life or liberty without due process. The document also noted that the states are, therefore, free to pass laws protecting those rights. The abortion language was first reported by The New York Times. Anti-abortion advocates who had criticized the Trump campaigns efforts leading up to the platform committees meeting largely fell in line Monday. Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of SBA Pro-Life America, praised the committee for reaffirming its commitment to protect unborn life through the 14th Amendment. Dannenfelser stopped short of endorsing the documents reflection of Trumps view that the matter rests entirely with states. Under the 14th Amendment, it is Congress that enacts and enforces its provisions. The platform committee began its meeting Monday, a week before the start of the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin where Trump is scheduled to accept his third straight nomination for president. The platform is a statement of first principles traditionally written by party activists. In 2016, the platform included an endorsement of a 20-week national ban. Trump had supported federal legislation in 2018 that would have banned abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy, though the measure fell short of the necessary support in the Senate. Trump this year has faced months of Democratic criticism over abortion as Bidens reelection campaign has highlighted that Trump nominated half of the Supreme Court majority that struck down the nationwide right to abortion in 2022. In promoting the platform document, the campaign released a statement highlighting 20 issues it addresses, including immigration, the economy, energy, taxes and crime, but omitted any mention of abortion in the subject titles. Among the vocal abortion opponents on the platform committee, some say the aspiration of a federal ban on abortion after a certain stage in pregnancy must remain a party principle, even if its not an immediately attainable policy or one that necessarily helps the Trump campaign in November. I see that as problematic. We still need these principles clearly stated. Some of these battles are not over, said Iowa state Rep. Brad Sherman, a platform committee member who supported Trumps winning Iowa caucus campaign in January and also supports a federal limit on abortion. Conservative activists who were accustomed to having a seat at the table fumed beforehand over what they said was a secretive process for selecting committee members and the meeting taking place behind closed doors. For 40 years, the Republican Party and the GOP platform have massively benefitted from an open and transparent process, said Tim Chapman, the incoming president of Advancing American Freedom, a foundation headed by Trumps former Vice President Mike Pence. Trumps campaign has sought to reshape the Republican National Committee into a campaign vessel. It signaled in a memo last month from senior campaign advisers Chris LaCivita and Susie Wiles that textbook-long platforms ... are scrutinized and intentionally misrepresented by our political opponents. Trump ally Russ Vought is serving as the policy director of the Republican Partys platform writing committee while also leading the effort to draft the 180-day agenda for Project 2025, a sweeping proposal for remaking government that Trump said Friday he knew nothing about despite having several former aides involved. After the 2022 midterm elections, Trump blamed Republicans who held strict anti-abortion positions for the partys failure to secure a larger House majority. He has since been critical of the most stringent abortion bans in individual states. An AP-NORC poll conducted in June 2023 found that about two-thirds of Americans think abortion should be legal in all or most cases. The poll also found that 6 in 10 Americans think Congress should pass a law guaranteeing access to legal abortion nationwide. WASHINGTON President Joe Biden stood firm Monday against calls for him to drop his reelection candidacy and called for an end to the intraparty drama that has torn apart Democrats since his dismal debate performance last month, as key lawmakers expressed support for him to remain in the 2024 presidential race. As anxious congressional Democrats returned to Washington weighing whether to work to revive his campaign or to try to edge him out, Biden sent them an open letter aiming to silence their skepticism of his fitness to lead the country for another four years. He insisted he wasnt leaving the race and stressed that the party has one job, which is to defeat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. Advertisement After a week of false starts, a coordinated effort by Biden and his campaign to shore up Democratic support appeared to be paying off, though he had by no means silenced his doubters. By late Monday, a sudden rush of public support from Democrats emerged or at least some tempering of criticism as Biden allies appeared to be trying to overpower the public and private voices calling on him to step aside. Biden wrote in the two-page letter that the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. READ MORE: Could Josh Shapiro replace Joe Biden? Unlikely but heres what all the buzz is about. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election, Biden said in the letter, distributed by his reelection campaign. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Biden followed up the letter with a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe show, in which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Biden said. He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Trump. Later, Biden joined a call with members of his national finance committee, while first lady Jill Biden campaigned for her husband in a three-state swing focused on engaging veterans and military families. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, she told a military crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina. Thats the decision that hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in, too. Democratic voters are split on whether Biden should remain the Democratic Partys nominee for president, or whether there should be a different Democratic nominee, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll. On Capitol Hill, more prominent voices lined up behind Biden, including the chair of the Houses Congressional Progressive Caucus, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, who was not ready to cast aside the president, saying that the threat of a second Trump presidency remains too high. Yet one of the most endangered Democrats this election cycle, Sen. Jon Tester of Montana, said in a statement, President Biden has got to prove to the American people including me that hes up to the job for another four years. READ MORE: Save democracy: Gavin Newsom stumps for Biden in Bucks County amid panic over the presidents competency However, Bidens letter left some House Democrats, who want to hear directly from Biden himself, furious, according to one House aide granted anonymity to discuss the situation. Lawmakers particularly bristled at being cast as out of touch with voters since representatives in particular have been home in their districts listening to voters. Biden met virtually Monday with the Congressional Black Caucus one of his staunchest blocs of supporters in Congress for 30 minutes. He told the group about his policy proposals for a second term, expressed gratitude to members for their support and repeatedly criticized Trump, according to a person familiar with the call and granted anonymity. While not every member of the Black caucus spoke up, no one spoke out against the president, the person said. Biden is also expected to meet this week with members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Jayapal. READ MORE: In desperate need of a boost, President Biden went to a Philly church to feel the love Meanwhile, press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Biden had undergone three neurological exams while in the White House as part of his annual physical exams and no more and said the president has not been diagnosed with or treated for Parkinsons. The drama is playing out with just over a month until the Democratic National Convention and just a week before Republicans gather in Milwaukee to renominate Trump as their presidential pick. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., part of a newer generation of progressive lawmakers, said she backed Biden and expressed worry that Democrats were taking their eye off defeating Trump. Were losing the plot here, she said. Another prominent voice in the Congressional Black Caucus, Rep. Maxine Waters of California, said those opposing Biden can speak for themselves or what they want to do, but I know what Im doing because Im a big Biden supporter. And Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, the top Democrat on the Energy and Commerce Committee, said: Im tired of all this speculation. I just want to concentrate on the fact that we have to defeat Trump. Trump, for his part, predicted that Biden would remain in the race. It looks to me like he may very well stay in, he told Fox News Channels Sean Hannity on Monday. Hes got an ego and he doesnt want to quit. He doesnt want to do that. House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries, who has publicly stood by Biden even as he weighs how to address the concerns of many in his conference, said same answer Monday after an evening meeting the Capitol when asked if he supported Biden. At the same time, other House Democrats almost ran from questions. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich., told reporters as she exited a leadership meeting that she was off to another meeting about the Great Lakes, and a group of House Democrats, including Reps. Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Lauren Underwood of Illinois, changed the subject, declining to answer question as they ducked into an elevator. Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the top Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, went public Monday with his call for Biden to step aside, saying it would be a mistake if Biden continues his campaign. Im calling on President Biden to step down, Smith said on social media. READ MORE: Joe Biden hopes these Pa. social media influencers can help him win in November Bidens allies said they expected more direct engagement from the president with lawmakers like the CBC virtual meeting as he scrambles to shore up his candidacy. On a call Saturday with his campaign co-chairs, Biden repeatedly asked them who else needs to hear from him, who else he needs to engage with and who still has unanswered questions or concerns, according to Sen. Chris Coons, D-Del. He is out there doing his job as a candidate and doing his job as president, Coons said. Rep. Annie Kuster of New Hampshire, the chair of the New Democrat Coalition, has asked House leadership to invite Biden to speak to the entire Democratic caucus. If the presidents going to stay in the race, then help us respond to questions from our constituents, she said. And its so much easier to say, I was with him. Rep. Nanette Barragan of California, the chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, who supports Biden and campaigned recent with the first lady in Pennsylvania, said Biden should talk to as many members as possible. Senators returning to Washington Monday were generally reluctant to criticize Biden, and many said they were waiting for the Democratic caucus meeting on Tuesday to hear concerns. It was still unclear if any Senate Democrats would publicly call for Biden to go, even as many have expressed deep concerns in private conversations over the last 10 days. He ran an excellent campaign, and hes been an excellent president, said Colorado Sen. Michael Bennet. And I think what everybody is trying to satisfy is thats the same trajectory and path that were on today. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer would not answer questions about Bidens reelection as he entered the Capitol on Monday, but he told reporters, As Ive said before, Im for Joe. Another Democrat, Sen. Alex Padilla of California, said it was time to quit the hand-wringing and get back to door knocking. While some deep-pocketed donors may be showing discomfort, strategists working on House and Senate races said they have posted record fundraising as donors view congressional Democrats as a firewall and last line of defense against Trump. Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker wants the citys municipal workforce back in the office five days a week on July 15. A union that represents thousands of city employees is asking a judge to halt the mandate before it takes effect. Read more Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker wants the citys municipal workforce back in the office five days a week beginning July 15. The mandate is one of Parkers signature policies and one she seeks to impose unilaterally without negotiating with municipal unions a decision that resulted in a lawsuit that will be argued on Thursday in the Court of Common Pleas. Advertisement If Parkers mandate is enacted, it will make Philadelphia the only major city in the northeastern United States to require municipal workers to work from the office five days a week. Boston, Washington, Baltimore, and Pittsburgh have never tried to eliminate hybrid work schedules. Eric Adams administration in New York City abandoned the effort to do so after a year and a half. (His press office did not respond to a request for comment.) The real issue was hiring for municipal jobs, particularly attorneys and tech people, said Gale Brewer, a New York City Council member who held hearings on hybrid work for the municipal workforce. They could go to any law firm or any technology company and work hybrid. So why in the world would they come work for the city for less money? Since the pandemic, most city governments have struggled to fill vacant positions in the midst of a tight labor market. Currently, one in five jobs in Philadelphias municipal workforce is vacant, and similar numbers prevail in other cities. Opponents of Parkers mandate say they fear that it will make the crisis worse. Parker, however, insists that returning to full time in the office is an equity issue because the majority of city workers do not have the ability to work from home. And she argues that return-to-office will boost city services and help restore downtowns fortunes. Virtual work and work from home limits the full realization of Mayor Parkers promise to the people of Philadelphia of a government everyone can see, touch and feel, said Camille Duchaussee, Parkers Chief Administrative Officer. In person work builds relationships, gives opportunities to network informally, and engage in unscheduled meetings. This will benefit City employees, residents, service delivery, and help resolve equity challenges. Before COVID-19, most cities required workers to be in the office five days a week. Then every worker who was able to work from home adopted a fully remote schedule during the first year of the pandemic. In the last two years, however, hybrid schedules have become the norm for office workers. Peer cities have maintained hybrid options for workers and, in some cases, expanded them. Only New York tried what Parker is attempting, and it did not last. The hybrid scheduling of peer cities Some of Philadelphias peer cities have also sought to establish a post-pandemic norm this year. In Baltimore, Mayor Brandon Scott moved to standardize the citys telework policy beginning in January. The city estimates that 3,000 of 12,000 municipal workers are affected. City workers are now required to be in the office at least three days a week, although the details are worked out between individual departments and their staffs. Agencies have flexibility to determine whether or not they provide access to those two telework days, said Faith P. Leach, Baltimores chief administrative officer. So if there are challenges with performance, or if they are customer-facing roles, then the agencies can determine that those teams or individuals are required in the office five days a week. Leach said the new hybrid work policy wasnt negotiated with the unions officially, but they were briefed on the mayors plans and their feedback was taken into account before the policy was rolled out. In Washington, Mayor Muriel Bowser reduced the number of telework days available this year, as well. Previously, the city allowed office workers to operate out of their homes two days a week, but in March, the local government reduced it to only one day of teleworking allowed. In Pittsburgh, the majority of the city workforce reports in-person, though some departments are following a hybrid plan that allows staffers to work remotely two days a week, a city spokesperson said. And in Boston, officials implemented a formal hybrid work policy in early 2023 that allows for some employees to work remotely two days a week with their department heads approval. Under the 12-page policy, supervisors are empowered to require that workers be in the office on specific days of the week. Employees must pay for their own internet, and their hybrid work schedule is not to be used as a substitute for dependent care, meaning that theyre expected to obtain adequate child or elder care. Earlier this year, Boston Mayor Michelle Wus administration negotiated with the citys locals of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees to expand work options further, including giving employees the opportunity of a four-day work week, so long as they put in the same amount of hours that they would in a five-day workweek. In an era of hybrid work for office-based employees, the city is committed to offer the same kind of flexibility for our frontline workers, Wus office said in a statement. New York Citys five day-a-week in-office campaign New York City first ordered its workers into the office five days a week in late 2021 under Mayor Bill DeBlasio. When Eric Adams took over in 2022, he doubled down on anti-remote work rhetoric, and in June of that year sent all city employees a reminder that the in-office order was mandatory. All city employees should be advised that ... you are required to report to work in person for every scheduled workday, and hybrid schedules of any kind are not permitted, Adams letter read. But a year later, Adams walked back his hardball stance. In June 2023, the Wall Street Journal reported that the mayor had negotiated a plan with municipal employees to allow more than a quarter of the workforce to work from home two days a week. Details would be left up to individual agencies to determine, although the Building Department was declared an early adopter in part to salve severe worker shortages. The developers were so, so, so upset because they were waiting six or seven months [for project approval], remembers Brewer, the New York City Council member. That agency was decimated. Its improved a little [since hybrid work was readopted]. But we lost a year of hiring. We lost expertise. Treatment can go ahead for any member with a booking, and in some cases for some months after termination of an agreement with the hospital, if that occurs, he said. We greatly appreciate the talent pool and expertise of Acrisure Res facultative team, their capabilities for handling complex structured facultative placements, and their access to global markets, all of which will undoubtedly benefit us. It's a source of great excitement to collaborate with the reinsurance division of the world's fastest-growing independent broker. We're delighted to formalize our fruitful working relationship, Medina said. The opening of this branch reinforces our commitment to the Chinese market and to continue increasing our services in Asia, a continent in which MAPFRE RE has a direct presence in addition to China in the Philippines, Japan, Malaysia and Singapore, said Miguel Rosa (pictured above), CEO of MAPFRE RE. Second point, it's very innovative. Why? Because we are data-based, because we are technology-based, she said. Besides all the jobs that we offer such as claims or underwriting or, client facing positions, you also have now flurries of jobs in technology, data governance, data management, and all of this, which is bringing us a different level of challenge attracting those people because we may have strong brands in the core activities and jobs that we have historically, but we're not so known and attractive compared to the big technology companies. He has held the role of head of corporate development, strategy and mergers and acquisitions since June 2021. He has also held several leadership roles within the firm such as chief financial officer of global operations and a senior position in capital strategy. The leading political risk underwriters have been more cautious in their underwriting approach, especially with respect to large limits, over the last 12 to 18 months, she explained. And thats due to factors such as risk concentrations, elevated tensions between China and Taiwan, ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and other countries, and increased claims activity. When I think about the upcoming elections in the US, there still could be some instability in US relations around the world because the world [is] more fractured now [and] could continue to be so. Who is Travis Leonard? Company literature described Leonard as highly regarded and deeply qualified. He has experience working across global markets having most recently been the CFO at Hostess Brands, until its sale to JM Smucker Co back in November last year. Before that, Leonards roles included working as the CFO for the medical segment of Cardinal Health, holding a leadership position within Kraft Foods, including a posting in Brazil, and starting his career in financial and economic consultancy with Arthur Anderson. We are looking forward to working with SiriusPoint. With SiriusPoints experience of working with both carrier divisions and (managing general agents), their backing will be a vital part of the execution of Tara Hills growth and profitability, he said. I think that goes back to looking at every part of their job and looking at their complete job description to say what part does safety play in that and there is a part that safety plays in that, and then those managers need to understand that they need to build relationships with the employees that they are overseeing, and they need to communicate what the expectations are for safety, he said. Insurer GEICO has agreed to pay $6 million to settle claims by auto damage claims adjusters who allege the insurer failed to pay them for all hours they worked off-the-clock. The settlement affects 806 adjusters countrywide who worked for GEICO from 2020 to 2023. Each will receive an average net payment of $4819.17, after attorneys fees, administrative costs and other deductions. The settlement addresses two similar cases brought in federal district courts in New York and Maryland. The settlement has been approved in Maryland court; approval is pending in the New court. The cases allege GEICO violated the Fair Labor Standards Act (FSLA) and various state laws. Among other rights, the FSLA promises requires employers pay time-and-a-half overtime pay when they work more than 40 hours a week. The adjusters in both cases assert that adjusters are typically scheduled to work 7.75 hours per day, five days per week, for a total of approximately 38.75 hours per week. However, they say GEICO regularly required adjusters to work additional hours beyond this scheduled time while off the-clock in order to satisfy the insurers claims productivity, customer service, and other metrics. The plaintiffs allege that they were not permitted to record overtime and that doing so would negatively impact their scores on GEICOs performance metrics. They said supervisors discouraged overtime to save on labor expenses and often issued blanket prohibitions that barred any overtime at all. They maintain that GEICO knew or should have known that such unpaid work was occurring. GEICO has denied liability, arguing that adjusters were responsible for submitting their hours worked and verifying the accuracy of all hours including any overtime and that they were paid for all hours submitted. If the adjusters worked extra hours without GEICOs knowledge, it had no way of discerning the unpaid time, the insurer argued. GEICO also disputed the appropriateness of collective treatment of all of the adjusters in the class actions, contending that the collective covers adjusters that work in disparate settings. GEICO is also in the process of settling a separate case in federal court in New Jersey for $1.9 million over its alleged failure to pay claimants transfer fees on total loss claims. The state of New Jersey imposes a number of regulatory fees associated with the titling or registration of a vehicle. The title transfer fee is $60.00 and the registration transfer fee is $4.50. Topics Auto Claims A Delaware judge on Tuesday refused to dismiss a lawsuit involving the death of a mentally ill woman who was killed by a state trooper in 2021 after she fired a shotgun at him. Raymond Rooks contends that state police used excessive force in shooting his 51-year-old sister, Kelly Rooks, and that they violated her rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act and the federal Rehabilitation Act. At a hearing earlier this year, Deputy Attorney General Nicholas Picollelli Jr. argued that police did not intentionally discriminate against Rooks, and that the lawsuit does not allege any pattern or practice of troopers mistreating people with disabilities. He also argued that the police agency and its senior staff cannot be held vicariously liable for the actions of the officers involved in the shooting. And he contended that police are entitled to qualified immunity from liability for actions taken in their official capacities. In his ruling, Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Clark noted that, when considering a motion to dismiss, the court must accept the factual allegations in a lawsuit as true and draw all reasonable inferences in favor of the plaintiff. He also noted that, under Delaware law, an allegation in state court can survive a motion to dismiss if it is deemed reasonably conceivable, a less rigorous threshold than the plausibility pleading standard in federal court. The lawsuit accuses Trooper Dean Johnson of using excessive force in shooting Rooks. It also claims two other troopers on the scene failed to intervene to prevent Johnson from shooting her. The complaint also seeks to hold Delaware State Police and its executive staff liable for the actions of the officers, claiming that the police agency has failed to properly train officers on how to deal with emotionally disturbed people. The only claim Clark dismissed was a failure-to-intervene claim against Cpl. Brandon Yencer. A similar claim against Trooper Jermaine Cannon, while not plausible, is nevertheless conceivable, and thus survives a motion to dismiss, he said. Patrick Gallagher, an attorney for Raymond Rooks, argued at a March hearing that troopers knew Rooks was mentally unstable, given several previous interactions they had had with her in the days leading up to the shooting. Instead of trying to de-escalate the situation, however, the troopers were angry, hostile and aggressive when they arrived, Gallagher alleged. It was never a call for police. It was a call for medical help, he said. According to the complaint, Rooks suffered from bipolar disorder, and an increase in the dosage of lithium she was taking shortly before the shooting was making her more depressed, more anxious, and more paranoid. A report by the state attorney generals office concluded that Johnson was justified in using deadly force against Rooks after she asked, Which one of you pigs wants to die tonight? raised a shotgun toward Johnson and fired. The report concluded that Johnson reasonably felt in fear for his life and the lives of others when he shot Rooks. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Legislation Law Enforcement Frances business elite is anxious about volatile politics, inexperienced policymakers, street protests and a possible wave of bankruptcies in the coming months, executives meeting in Provence said ahead of Sundays parliamentary election. Corporate leaders gathered on Friday and Saturday in the southern city of Aix-en-Provence for Frances annual answer to Davos have been among the main beneficiaries of President Emmanuel Macrons pro-business reforms since he was first elected in 2017. Far right and left-wing parties want to roll back some of Macrons reforms, ranging from raising the retirement age to scrapping a wealth tax on financial assets. Voters are set to derail his drive to ease taxes and other constraints on business when as it is widely expected they hand Macrons party a decisive defeat in an election that polls suggest will give the far right the most seats in parliament. We are very concerned about whats going to happen, Ross McInnes, chairman of aerospace company Safran, told Reuters. Whatever the political configuration that will come out of Sundays vote, we are probably at the end of a reform cycle that started ten years ago. While business leaders tip-toed around the topic of the election in the public panels, they did not conceal their anxiety on the sidelines over the rise of both the far-right and the far-left. The far-right National Rally (RN) will likely fall short of an absolute majority, leaving other parties to figure out whether a coalition can be formed to govern, which is unprecedented in modern France and would likely be unstable. Nothing good ever comes from chaos. I dont know whats going to happen, but this is a country that has seen social unrest before, the head of a large French industrial group said. Inexperienced Leaders Business leaders voiced concern that politicians standing at the gates of power lacked experience steering the euro zones second largest economy while they also balked at the prospect that Frances already considerable tax burden could grow under the left-wing alliance. RN leader Jordan Bardella, 28, could become Frances youngest prime minister if the party wins a majority in Sundays election. The political uncertainty has already driven up Frances cost of borrowing as bond investors demanded the highest risk premiums over equivalent German debt in 12 years after Macron called the snap election last month. Meanwhile, corporate investors in the real economy are also apprehensive about the political and economic outlook. Weve continued to take investment decisions over the past weeks, including in France. But clearly if we had had to make a really major investment decision, we probably would have waited to have better visibility, said Mathias Burghardt, CEO of Ardian France, a private equity firm. With no sign the political volatility will subside anytime soon, the higher financing costs could soon feed through to French companies just as they are preparing to roll over ultra-low-cost loans from the COVID era at higher rates, executives said. That creates a scenario where we expect corporate defaults to continue to rise in France beyond what could have been if such a political disruption didnt happen, Ana Boata, head of economic research at the trade credit insurance arm of Allianz, told Reuters. Macrons pro-business reform drive often jarred with voters, sparking sometimes violent street protests like the yellow vest movement of 2018 or marches last year against an overhaul of the retirement system. Though he won a second term in 2022, Macron has also failed to connect with many voters, who see him as a product of the closely intertwined political and business elites that run the country. The anti-immigration, Eurosceptic RN has proposed to roll back Macrons 2023 increase in the retirement age to 64 from 62 and cut taxes on energy, saying these measures would be paid for by slashing welfare spending benefiting immigrants. Meanwhile the left-wing Popular Front alliances tax-and-spend program would bring back a wealth tax and raise the minimum wage by 14% while also scrapping Macrons pensions reform. A minority government would be constrained by the risk of votes of no confidence, likely making it less able to move ahead with new legislation. Beyond the possibility of a hamstrung government, business leaders also worried about the knock-on impact RNs anti-immigrant policies are likely to have on Frances future workforce. Demographics show us that we need to attract talent, said McInnes. This country has been sustained by immigration for 300 years. (Reporting by Leigh Thomas and Helen Reid; editing by Clelia Oziel) Photograph: Copies of the Venus of Milo showing six sporting disciplines on July 3, 2024 in preparation for the Olympics. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus) Ardonagh Advisory has acquired Rollinson Smith Insurance Brokers (RSIB), a UK community broker that operates in the Shropshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands and North Wales regions with significant reach in London as well as other areas of the country. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. RSIB was founded in 1974 and offers commercial and personal lines, with core products that include fleet, motor trade and commercial combined. RSIBs team of 26 operates from Telford, with an additional office in Colwyn Bay, Conwy, serving clients in North Wales. Managing Director Chris Hartley will continue to lead the business. Rollinson Smith is a fitting example of the kind of high-quality regional broker we seek to bring into Ardonagh Advisory. Chris and team are set to both expand our geographical reach in the Midlands and complement our existing service propositions, commented Phil Bayles, Ardonagh Advisory chief commercial officer. Having celebrated 50 years of trading, the Ardonagh Advisory platform is the ideal home for the next chapter of Rollinson Smith, Hartley said. It brings significant opportunities for our longstanding team to grow and collaborate as part of a globally recognised broking collective and in turn deliver the very best service to clients across Shropshire, Staffordshire, West Midlands and North Wales. Ardonagh Advisory Broking Holdings is The Ardonagh Groups SME broking platform comprised of Bravo Networks, Footman James, Hera Indemnity, Geo Underwriting, Lorega, Towergate, Towergate Health & Protection, Thompson & Bryan and Usay Compare brands. Ardonagh Group, the London-based independent insurance distribution platform, has a combined workforce of more than 10,000 colleagues and a network spanning 200-plus locations in more than 30 countries. Source: Ardonagh Group Topics Mergers & Acquisitions Agencies TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A former reporter for a weekly Kansas newspaper has agreed to accept $235,000 to settle part of her federal lawsuit over a police raid on the paper that made a small community the focus of a national debate over press freedoms. The settlement removed the former police chief in Marion from the lawsuit filed by former Marion County Record reporter Deb Gruver, but it doesnt apply to two other officials she sued over the raid: the Marion County sheriff and the countys prosecutor. Gruvers lawsuit is among five federal lawsuits filed over the raid against the city, the county and eight current or former elected officials or law enforcement officers. Gruvers attorney did not immediately respond to emails Friday seeking comment. An attorney for the city, its insurance company, the former chief and others declined to comment but released a copy of the June 25 settlement agreement after the Record filed an open records request. He also provided a copy to The Associated Press. Former Police Chief Gideon Cody led the Aug. 11, 2023, raid on the newspapers office, the home of publisher Eric Meyer and the home of a then-city council member who had been critical of the then-mayor. Marion is a city of about 1,900 people set among rolling prairie hills about 150 miles (241 kilometers) southwest of Kansas City, Missouri, and the Record is known for its aggressive coverage of local government. At the time, Cody said he had evidence that the newspaper, reporter Phyllis Zorn and the city council member had committed identity theft or other computer crimes in obtaining information about a local business owners driving record. All of his targets said they did nothing illegal, and no charges were ever filed. A federal lawsuit filed by Meyer and the newspaper alleges that the raid caused the death the next day of his 98-year-old mother, who lived with him, and he and the papers attorney have suggested that the raid was Codys response to the paper investigating his background. Cody seized Grubers personal cellphone and had her desk searched; she had no connection to the driving record but was looking into Codys past. The raid sparked national outrage, and Cody resigned as chief in early October, less than two months after the raid. Legal experts have said the raid likely violated state or federal laws. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Lawsuits Law Enforcement Kansas Tropical Storm Beryl is gaining strength as it lumbers toward the south Texas coast, and is expected to become a hurricane again before it makes landfall early Monday morning. The storm was about 165 miles (266 kilometers) southeast of Corpus Christi, Texas, with top speeds of about 65 miles per hour, according a US National Hurricane Center forecast at 2 p.m. in New York. A hurricane warning is in effect for the Texas coast from Baffin Bay northward to San Luis Pass. While Beryl which topped out as a Category 5 storm in the Caribbean last week weakened as it passed across the Yucatan Peninsula on Friday, its now churning across the Gulf of Mexico, where unusually warm waters are helping it regain strength. The track of the storm has been shifting to the north, and its likely to make landfall between Corpus Christi and Galveston Island, drenching the area with as much as 10 inches (25 centimeters) of rain and creating a life threatening storm surge. Its still a tropical storm as we speak, but it will be a hurricane, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick said during a briefing Sunday. It will be a deadly storm for people who are in its path. Surface temperatures in the Gulf are above average for this time of year, helping the storm strengthen. Even though its still a tropical storm, Patrick said it may reach Category 2 strength before landfall, which would require wind speeds of at least 96 miles per hour. The environment is allowing it to strengthen, said Frank Pereira, a meteorologist with the US Weather Prediction Center. The concern now as it makes landfall across the state is going to be the storm surge. Beryls hurricane-force winds may drive as much as 6 feet (1.8 meters) of water onto parts of the coast as it bears down on Texas, where a state of emergency has been declared in 121 counties. Read more: Gas Supply Down Sharply at Freeport LNG Ahead of Beryl Patrick urged people in Texas to take shelter before the storm arrives, and to use caution if they must venture outside. Beryl caused devastation last week as it ripped through the Caribbean and Mexico and caused nine deaths. We dont want No. 10 to be in Texas, he said. Copyright 2024 Bloomberg. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Texas Hurricane BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry announced last week that Jay Grymes, the chief meteorologist for WAFB-TV in Baton Rouge, will serve as the new state climatologist. Among responsibilities in his role, Grymes will be tasked with monitoring Louisianas climate and archiving data. The position is especially important in a state that consistently faces threats during hurricane seasons, officials said. During a press conference Wednesday, Grymes said Louisiana will likely be spared from Hurricane Beryl, a powerful Category 4 storm that has killed at least six people and caused significant damage in the southeast Caribbean. However, he warned Louisiana will likely feel the impacts of a named storm this hurricane season, which goes until November. Beryl is not going to be a threat for Louisiana, but this is going to be a very active season, Grymes said. Grymes will be working with the Governors Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness in an expanded role to serve the state as a weather specialist. Employing the state climatologist through the Governors Office ensures one concise weather voice coming from the state. This is especially important with the unpredictable weather Louisiana routinely experiences, Landry said in a press release. According to the governors office, Grymes has more than 30 years of experience in the field of weather and climate. In addition to his work at WAFB-TV, Grymes served as the state climatologist from 1991 to 2003. He also served as a consultant for the states Department of Justice and Department of Environmental Quality, as well as the Louisiana State Police. Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Catastrophe Natural Disasters Louisiana Hurricane The Florida property-casualty insurance industry, having seen wins and losses at the appellate court level in recent years, will soon have a familiar face on the bench that hears appeals for part of litigation-heavy south Florida. Gov. Ron DeSantis last week announced that he has appointed Miami insurance defense attorney Kansas Gooden, a former president of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association, who has been involved in some high-profile cases, to the 3rd District Court of Appeals. A majority of civil cases in Florida implicate insurance in some way, Gooden said in an email last week. My civil trial and appellate practice often involved insurance contracts, regulation, and indemnity. I know my knowledge of the law in these areas will be helpful to me and my new colleagues on the bench. Gooden, appellate practice leader with the Boyd & Jenerette regional law firm, was nominated by the 3rd District Judicial Nominating Commission, whose members are appointed by the governor. She will fill the vacancy left when Judge Eric Hendon, a former public defender and prosecutor, died in February. Gooden is a member of the Federalist Society. She earned her bachelors degree from James Madison University and her law degree from St. Thomas University. As president of the Florida Defense Lawyers Association in 2022, Gooden is credited with reviving the associations amicus curiae committee, a colleague told Law.com. The committee has penned many friend of the court briefs, often on the side of insurers. One of those amicus briefs was written in a prominent case that ended in a significant Florida Supreme Court decision in March. Gooden co-wrote the brief for FDLA, arguing that a well-known bar in Tallahassee, which had served alcohol to a driver, should be allowed a comparative fault provision, sharing fault with others involved in an accident. The court agreed. Other significant cases Gooden worked on include: Suarez Trucking FL Corp. vs. Souders, 2022. The Florida Supreme Court resolved a conflict on when a settlement agreement arises. The court ruled that the text of the state statute provides that filing the notice of acceptance creates the contract. Gooden represented Suarez Trucking. Allstate Insurance vs. Ray, 2022. The 2nd District Court of Appeals partly overturned a lower courts ruling that Allstate must produce information from its employees personnel files and other privileged documents. The trial court must first hold a private review of the files, the appellate judges said. Gooden represented Allstate. Boozer vs. Stalley, 2014. Floridas 5th District Court of Appeals overturned a 21-year-old precedent and applied the plain text of the attorney-client privilege statute. The judges held that an insured did not waive her attorney-client privilege with her defense lawyer upon the injured partys filing of a bad-faith suit. Gooden represented Emily Boozer, who was involved in an automobile accident and was covered by Allstate Insurance policies. Topics Florida Tom Gallagher, an eminence grise or elder statesman of the Florida property insurance world and current chief operating officer for Peoples Trust Insurance Co., now has another job to put on his resume: board member for the Florida Insurance Guaranty Association. Floridas chief financial officer, Jimmy Patronis, announced last week that he had appointed Gallagher to the FIGA Board of Directors, filling a vacancy left after a previous board members term had expired. The board now has seven members, and can have as many as nine. FIGA, which handles claims left behind by insolvent insurers and must occasionally issue bonds and raise assessments on insurers to pay for those claims, has seen its oversight go through some significant changes in the last two months. The executive director for the past two years, Corey Neal, stepped down in May to become executive vice president at SageSure. Four FIGA board members also left after their terms were completed, and four new members have now been appointed. In a career that spans five decades, Gallagher, 80, has served as state treasurer, chief financial officer, insurance commissioner (1989 to 1995 and again from 2001 to 2003), and as a state legislator. He also was state education commissioner. Gallagher helped start an insurance agency in 2008 and has been a consultant for Colodny Fass, a law firm that specializes in insurance litigation and regulation matters. He joined Deerfield Beach-based Peoples Trust in in 2017, the company noted. Related: Patronis Names GEICO Claims Director to FIGA Board, Giving Board an Auto Insurance Rep Topics Florida A.J. Gallagher An ancient tree from India is now thriving in groves where citrus trees once flourished in Florida, and could help provide the nation with renewable energy. As large parts of the Sunshine States once-famous citrus industry have all but dried up over the past two decades because of two fatal diseases, greening and citrus canker, some farmers are turning to the pongamia tree, a climate-resilient tree with the potential to produce plant-based proteins and a sustainable biofuel. For years, pongamia has been used for shade trees, producing legumes little brown beans that are so bitter wild hogs wont even eat them. But unlike the orange and grapefruit trees that long occupied these rural Florida groves northwest of West Palm Beach, pongamia trees dont need much attention. Pongamia trees also dont need fertilizer or pesticides. They flourish in drought or rainy conditions. And they dont require teams of workers to pick the beans. A machine simply shakes the tiny beans from the branches when they are ready to harvest. Terviva, a San Francisco-based company founded in 2010 by Naveen Sikka, then uses its patented process to remove the biopesticides that cause the bitter taste, making the beans suitable for food production. Florida offers a rare opportunity for both Terviva and former citrus farmers. The historical decline of the citrus industry has left farmers without a crop that can grow profitably on hundreds of thousands of acres, and there needs to be a very scalable replacement, very soon, Sikka told The Associated Press. Pongamia is the perfect fit. What is the pongamia tree? The pongamia is a wild tree native to India, Southeast Asia and Australia. The legume is now being used to produce several products, including Panova culinary oil and protein, which are featured ingredient in Alohas Kona protein bars. The company also makes protein flour. The legumes also produce oil that can be used as a biofuel, largely for aviation, which leaves a very low carbon footprint, said Ron Edwards, chairman of Tervivas board of directors and a long-time Florida citrus grower. Related: Investing in Climate Resilience Really Pays Off, Allstate Study Shows Turning a wild tree into a domestic one hasnt been easy, Edwards said. There are no books to read on it, either, because no one else has ever done it, he said. Bees and other pollinators feast on the pongamias flowers, supporting local biodiversity, Edwards said. An acre of the trees can potentially provide the same amount of oil as four acres of soy beans, he added. Whats left after the oil is removed from the pongamia bean is a very high-grade protein that can be used as a substitute in baking and smoothies and all kinds of other plant-based protein products, Edwards said. Theres a lot of potential for the food industry and the oil and petroleum industry. Why Florida? We know pongamia grows well in Florida, and the end markets for the oil and protein that come from the pongamia beans biofuel, feed, and food ingredients are enormous, Sikka said. So farmers can now reduce their costs and more closely align to the leading edge of sustainable farming practices. At a nursery near Fort Pierce, workers skilled in pongamia grafting techniques affix a portion of the mother tree to a pongamia rootstock, which ensures the genetics and desired characteristics of the mother tree are perpetuated in all of Tervivas trees. Pongamia vs. citrus Citrus had been Floridas premier crop for years until disease caught up with it starting in the 1990s with citrus canker and later greening. Citrus canker, a bacterial disease, is not harmful to humans, but it causes lesions on the fruit, stems and leaves. Eventually, it makes the trees unproductive. Citrus greening, also known as Huanglongbing, slowly kills trees and degrades the fruit, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Greening has spread throughout Florida since 2005, devastating countless groves and reducing citrus production by 75%. The disease has spread to Louisiana, Texas and California. Hurricane Ian caused about $1.8 billion in damages to Floridas agriculture in September 2023, hitting the citrus industry at the beginning of its growing season. Disease and climate issues have also affected most of the worlds top citrus-producing countries. For example, this years harvest in Brazil the worlds largest exporter of orange juice is forecast to be the worst in 36 years because of flooding and drought, according to a forecast by Fundecitrus, a citrus growers organization in Sao Paulo state. But climate and disease have little effect on pongamia trees, the companys officials said. Its just tough, a jungle-tested tree Edwards said. It stands up to a lot of abuse with very little caretaking. Pongamia also grows well in Hawaii, where it now thrives on land previously used for sugarcane. What are citrus farmers saying? John Olson, who owns Circle O Ranch, west of Fort Pierce, has replaced his grapefruit groves with 215 acres (87.01 hectares) of pongamia trees. We went through all the ups and downs of citrus and eventually because of greening, abandoned citrus production, Olson said. For the most part, the citrus industry has died in Florida. While the grapefruit grove was modest, it was common for a grove that size to be profitable in the 1980s and 1990s, Olson said. Edwards said farmers used various sprays to kill the insect that was spreading the disease. Eventually, the cost of taking care of citrus trees became too risky. Thats when he decided to go a different route. What attracted me to pongamia was the fact that one it can repurpose fallow land that was citrus and is now lying dormant, he said. From an ecological point of view, its very attractive because it can replace some of the oils and vegetable proteins that are now being generated by things like palm oil, which is environmentally a much more damaging crop. What about biofuel? In December 2023, Terviva signed an agreement with Mitsubishi Corporation to provide biofuel feedstock that can be converted into biodiesel, renewable diesel and sustainable aviation fuel. Our partnership with Mitsubishi is off to a great start, Sikka said, noting that the company coordinates closely with Mitsubishi on tree plantings and product development and sales. Tervivas progress has accelerated thanks to Mitsubishis expertise and leadership around the globe on all facets of Tervivas business. What food products does pongamia produce? The research is ongoing, but Edwards said they have made really good graham crackers in addition to the table oil and other plant-based protein products, including flour and protein bars. Pongamia offers an alternative to soybean and yellow pea protein if you dont want your protein to come from meat, he said. Top photo: Elisabeth Beagle, Tervivas director of tree operations, places a newly grafted pongamia tree in a high- humidity greenhouse at the companys nursery, Thursday, June 6, 2024, in Fort Pierce. The tree produces a legume that is now being used to produce several products, including Panova table oil, Kona protein bars and protein flour. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier) Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Topics Florida Weather-related catastrophes are increasing in frequency and intensity, and billion-dollar disasters are becoming the norm. The U.S. averages about 10 disasters costing more than $1 billion each year. Investing in resilience and preparedness wont prevent these losses, but they can significantly reduce them. For every dollar spent on climate resilience and preparedness, communities save $13 in damages, cleanup costs and economic impact, according to a new economic study by Allstate, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. The study analyzed models of 25 disaster scenarios ranging in damage and cleanup costs from $1 billion to $130 billion in communities across the country. The results show that investments in resilience and preparedness can substantially reduce the economic costs associated with disasters, preserving millions of jobs, reducing the number of people displaced from their homes and helping local economies rebound faster. Each scenario we modeled demonstrates that investing in resilience has remarkable benefits for communities, said Marty Durbin, senior vice president of policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. This important study helps identify opportunities to reduce the economic costs of natural disasters, including job loss, lost income, reduced economic activity and loss of workforce. For example, the study found that $10.8 billion of investment in resilience and preparedness for a Category 4 hurricane hitting Miami would prevent the loss of about 184,000 jobs and save about $26 billion in GDP and $17 billion in earned income for residents. Without those investments, the city would lose 361,000 jobs, $46 billion in GDP and $29 billion in income. Other model examples include investing $833 million to prepare for a major earthquake in San Diego, which would save about 38,000 jobs, $5.8 billion of GDP and $3.3 billion in income; while $83 million of investments to prepare for a serious tornado hitting Nashville would save more than 5,300 jobs, $683 million in GDP and $464 million in income. The study revealed that communities that invest in preparedness will benefit even if a disaster doesnt hit. In the Cat 4 hurricane scenario above, the investments would help Miami create more than 126,000 jobs, increase production by close to $13 billion and grow income by more than $8.5 billion. The report also offered examples of resiliency investments that communities, businesses and families can make, such as: Green infrastructure to manage stormwater runoff and protect floodplains. Wetlands restoration to allow natural areas to store excess water. Barrier walls, floodgates and levees to prevent floodwaters from harming structures. Enhanced evacuation routes for floods or hurricanes. Elevated electrical systems and appliances above potential flood levels. Fire-resistant roofing or landscaping. Its critical that government and business decision-makers at every level understand how such investments can improve the safety and strengthen the resiliency of their communities, said Marc DeCourcey, SVP at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Methodology Seven types of natural disasters were analyzed to determine the economic impact of resilience and preparedness measures: hurricanes, large storms, earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires, and droughts and heatwaves. A variety of methods were used to calculate the destruction caused by these disasters and their economic impacts. This article was produced by Carrier Management, Insurance Journals sister publication. Photo: An example of flood protection. (Adobe Stock images.) VANCOUVER, British Columbia - July 8, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) GREAT ATLANTIC RESOURCES CORP. (TSXV:GR; FRA: PH02) (the "Company" or "Great Atlantic") is pleased to announce its wholly owned subsidiary, Golden Promise Mines Inc., has completed a trenching program during June at its Golden Promise Gold Property, located in central Newfoundland. The program was completed in the southwest region of the property in an area of gold soil anomalies and rock samples containing anomalous levels of gold. Rock samples have been collected, the analytical results pending. Trench No. 1 "We are pleased to announce the successful completion of our trenching program at the Golden Promise Gold Property. The preliminary findings are promising, and we are eagerly awaiting the analytical results of the rock samples. Our commitment to exploring and developing mineral assets in Atlantic Canada remains steadfast, and this program represents a significant step forward in unlocking the potential of our Golden Promise Gold Property." - Christopher R. Anderson, President, CEO & Director, Great Atlantic Resources Corp. An excavator completed Trenches No. 1 and 2, exposing bedrock. A third small trench was hand trenched exposing bedrock (this trench could not be accessed by the excavator). Bedrock in both excavated trenches has been geologically mapped and rock samples have been collected, both from boulders in the glacial till and from exposed bedrock in the two trenches. Sulfide mineralization was noted in all 13 samples collected to date, consisting mainly of pyrite. Copper mineralization in the form of chalcopyrite +/- malachite was noted in some samples. This news is paid advertisement/ news disseminated on behalf of/issued on behalf of Great Atlantic Resources Trench No. 2 Work Malachite in boulder from Trench No. 2 The rock samples have been submitted to Eastern Analytical Ltd. for gold and multi-element analysis. The analytical results are pending as of the date of this news release. The trenches are within Mineral Licence No. 036105M. Trenches No. 1 and 2 tested areas of gold soil anomalies up to 77 parts per billion (ppb) gold. These two trenches also tested areas of rock samples (outcrop and glacial float boulders) which yielded anomalous gold values including 0.44, 0.57 and 1.04 grams / tonne gold. The soil and rock samples were collected by Great Atlantic during 2018-2023 programs (see Company news releases for exploration is this region). The Golden Promise Property hosts gold bearing quartz veins in various regions of the property including the Jaclyn Zone quartz vein systems, Shawn's Shot quartz vein, Otter Brook occurrence, Linda / Snow White quartz vein system and the Gabbro Zone occurrence. The June 2024 trenching program was conducted approximately 3.5 to 4.0 kilometers northeast of Linda / Snow White gold bearing quartz vein system. The Golden Promise Gold Property is the largest and most advanced of eight central Newfoundland gold properties owned by Golden Promise Mines Inc. and located within the Exploits Subzone of the Newfoundland Dunnage Zone. One of these properties (Golden Trust) is located within one kilometer of the Valentine Gold Mine of Calibre Mining Corp. which is also located within the Exploits Subzone. Readers are warned that mineralization at the Valentine Gold Mine is not necessarily indicative of mineralization at the Golden Promise Property or any of the other central Newfoundland gold properties of Golden Promise Mines Inc. David Martin, P.Geo. (New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador), a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101 and VP Exploration for Great Atlantic, is responsible for the technical information contained in this News Release. On Behalf of the board of directors "Christopher R Anderson" Mr. Christopher R. Anderson President CEO Director 604-488-3900 - Office Investor Relations: 1-416-628-1560 IR @ GreatAtlanticResources.com About Great Atlantic Resources Corp.: Great Atlantic Resources Corp. is a Canadian exploration company focused on the discovery and development of mineral assets in the resource-rich and sovereign risk-free realm of Atlantic Canada, one of the number one mining regions of the world. Great Atlantic is currently surging forward building the company utilizing a Project Generation model, with a special focus on the most critical elements on the planet that are prominent in Atlantic Canada, Gold, Copper, Zinc, Nickel, Cobalt, Antimony and Tungsten. This press release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts, that address future exploration drilling, exploration activities and events or developments that the Company expects, 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 or developments may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include exploitation and exploration successes, continued availability of financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. 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. Great Atlantic Resource Corp. 888 Dunsmuir Street - Suite 888, Vancouver, B.C., V6C 3K4 Great Atlantic Resource Corp. (TSXV: GR) is a featured mining stock on Investorideas.com More info on GR at Investorideas.com Visit: https://www.investorideas.com/CO/GR/ Disclaimer/Disclosure: GREAT ATLANTIC RESOURCES CORP. (TSXV.GR) is a paid featured mining stock on Investor Ideas. More info:Our site does not make recommendations for purchases or sale of stocks, services or products. Nothing on our sites should be construed as an offer or solicitation to buy or sell products or securities. All investing involves risk and possible losses. This site is currently compensated for news publication and distribution, social media and marketing, content creation and more. Contact management and IR of each company directly regarding specific questions. More disclaimer and disclosure 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 Nicki Minaj has pulled out of a festival in Romania hours before she was scheduled to perform because of planned protests in the area causing safety concerns. The US rapper, 41, said as a mother she had to make sound decisions so that she made it home to her son and her team returned to their families. She was scheduled to perform on the main stage at Saga Festival on Sunday in Bucharest from 10.55pm to 12.10am local time. It comes after the star's concert at Malahide Castle on Saturday night, which left Irish fans feeling "very disappointed". The Super Bass singer was reportedly 90 minutes late and performed at the venue for a total of 45 minutes. Gates opened at 4pm with Minaj expected to take to the stage after 8pm. However, concertgoers said she did not make an appearance until 10pm, with many attendees sharing the events of the evening on social media. After every storm comes a beautiful rainbow.. when #NickiMinaj was onstage she was Phenomenal but being 90 minutes late, skipping so many songs from the setlist and rushing the show just was not ok. I love Nicki but I amdriving home to #belfast very disappointed. #dublin pic.twitter.com/YKPBYvWISC Gary Duffy (@GaryDuffy4991) July 6, 2024 Minaj announced that she was pulling out of the festival in Romania in a post to X, formerly Twitter, writing: Out of concern for the wellbeing of our team and myself, I have been advised by my security detail not to travel to Romanias festival tonight due to safety concerns regarding protests in the area. I look forward to seeing you all at another time. As a mom, I have to make sure Im making sound decisions for me to make it home to my son and for my team to make it home to their families. To not heed the advice of security at this time is simply not what I think I should be doing. I love you and thank you for your understanding and support. The US star, who has a son with her husband Kenneth Petty, added that she is very excited to return to London for another headline show at Wireless Festival on Friday. The gates at her 2022 Wireless appearance had to be closed early because of overcrowding issues, leaving some fans disappointed as they were denied entry despite having a ticket. Minaj later organised a spontaneous meet and greet at Cafe Koko in Camden for the following day to make it up to fans, but that was also plagued with issues. She initially told her millions of Instagram followers that she would arrive at midday, this was later pushed back to 2pm and when she tried to enter the venue just before 6pm police had to form a wall around her as masses of fans rushed to see her and she was escorted away before entering the venue. Her latest cancellation also comes after she pulled out of a show in Amsterdam last month following on from her arrest at the citys airport the weekend previous on suspicion of trying to take soft drugs out of the country. The delay from the arrest forced her to miss her show at Manchesters Co-op Live Arena that was due to take place that evening, with the concert later being rescheduled. A judge has warned of a tsunami about to reach shore as a report highlights a shortage of special care placements for vulnerable children. The latest publication from the Child Law Project (CLP) contains 70 reports, arising out of court hearings attended in the first half of this year by reporters from the project. One relates to a teenager who, it was alleged, was raped while in the care of Tusla and who was believed to have been sexually trafficked across Ireland. On one occasion, she was found two hours away from her placement after she made a call at 11pm to her guardian ad litem to say she had no idea where she was. Although her case had been in court over 10 times, there was no special care bed available for the teenager, who had the cognitive ability of a 10-year-old child. An accommodation unit was eventually secured for her in Britain. A judge described her case as shocking and the worst case I have ever come across. The volume highlights that three out of the 15 cases in the first High Court special care list after the court Christmas vacation related to children where special care orders had been made a number of weeks previously but where no special care beds were available for them. A judge expressed concern about what would we do when someone has to explain where a child who should have been in special care commits suicide or dies as a result of the conduct that meant they should be in special care? He said: I dont know why those in the CFA [Tusla, the child and family agency] are not dealing with this as a crisis situation. This is a tsunami about to reach shore and nothing is being done. In another case, during the review of a special care order made four weeks earlier for a teenage boy, the court heard that there was no bed available and no immediate prospect of a bed. The court heard that the teenager was found to have had shop vouchers and expensive clothing, which raised the concern that he was already being exploited. The judge said: This is a scandalous situation to exist and in large measure the situation and the crisis is going completely under the radar on a national level due to the in camera nature of these proceedings. Meanwhile, the volume also raises concerns about the availability of foster and residential care for children. In one such case, a judge made a series of one-week extensions to interim care orders because of the lack of appropriate placements for five siblings. Normally extensions are for 28 days. The judge said the situation was unacceptable and appalling and that the children could have grounds for a future civil action against the State for negligence. CLP chief executive Maria Corbett, warned: The lack of suitable care placements is having a domino effect that risks collapsing the care system. The knock-on effects of a lack of appropriate placements are compounding existing difficulties for children and staff and so we fear the system has begun to unravel. The knock-on effects of a dearth of placements include [Tusla] delaying applications to take children into care and continuing to use unregulated or unsuitable emergency placements. Many children are experiencing multiple placement moves, often over a short period of time, despite stability being a known key ingredient for a successful outcome to care. Urgent action across government is needed to halt this spiral of poor practice and to build trust in the care system. The publication is the last volume to be published by the CLP under a three-year grant from the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration, and Youth, which expires in October this year. The project has been running for the past 11 years. "All is changed here and changing" Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald told the new British prime minister when he visited Stormont on Monday. Ms McDonald said that following the Labour party's comprehensive win over the Conservatives in last week's UK elections, there is an opportunity to foster positive relations between Britain and Ireland. Speaking after her meeting with Keir Starmer, she said the difference between working with the Tories and Labour "has the potential to be as the daylight is to the dark". The party leader spoke about creating a better future for those in the North and said Sinn Fein is "very, very conscious that we have an obligation to work constructively and in partnership for everybody". Sinn Fein called for an early meeting between the Finance Minister Caoimhe Archibald and the UK's new Chancellor of the Exchequer to discuss cuts to public services. First Minister Michelle O'Neill said Sinn Fein used its meeting with Mr Starmer to make a case for fair funding to invest in health, education, and public services. The issue of funding for Casement Park was also raised with concerns mounting that without it Belfast may miss out on hosting the five matches earmarked for the stadium in summer 2028. (Left to right) Sinn Fein's Pat Cullen, First Minister of Northern Ireland Michelle O'Neill, Sinn Fein's President Mary Lou McDonald and John Finucane in the Great Hall of Parliament Buildings at Stormont on Monday. Photo: Liam McBurney/PA "We emphasised the urgent need for funding to build Casement Park enabling us to host Euro 2028 and seize what is a momentous occasion for our people and economy," said Ms O'Neill. Mr Starmer was called on to remain true to his commitment to repeal the Legacy Act which Ms O'Neill said "has failed victims and survivors". He has been emphasising the importance of Northern Ireland and said he hoped that his visit on his third day as leader would be taken as a "clear statement of intent". In an address after Monday's meetings, Mr Starmer echoed language used by Taoiseach Simon Harris and Tanaiste Micheal Martin saying the new Labour government offers the chance to reset relationships. Mr Starmer did not go into detail about what was discussed at Monday's meetings with Stormont leaders but said that all issues raised with him would be dealt with in a constructive and collaborative manner. Prime Minister Keir Starmer was called on to remain true to his commitment to repeal the Legacy Act which Ms O'Neill said "has failed victims and survivors". Photo:: Liam McBurney/PA Responding to questions about a potential border poll during his time in office, Mr Starmer said: "This is provided for by the Good Friday Agreement, the framework is set out and I am absolutely committed to the Good Friday Agreement. "Today is a recommitment to that and to the approach and the role of the UK Government in that as the honest broker." In terms of the EU and the Protocol, Mr Starmer said he believes a better deal than the "botched" one made by Boris Johnson can be negotiated. The British prime minister was also urged to call for an immediate ceasefire in Palestine as the Israeli air and ground offensive has killed more than 38,000 people in the Gaza Strip, according to the health ministry in Gaza. Almost 20 years after it was first proposed, legislation to regulate domestic and international surrogacy has finally been passed. The landmark Assisted Human Reproduction Bill provides for and will regulate domestic and international surrogacy, where one parent has a genetic link to the child. There were emotional scenes outside the Dail last week as families gathered to celebrate the bills passage and the long-campaigned for recognition that it brings. However, not everyone is happy. In particular, future intending parents and same-sex couples say the legislation excludes them and promised amendments must be delivered. Once President Michael D Higgins signs the bill into law, parents of children born through surrogacy can apply for parental recognition for the first time. The legislation will give retrospective parentage to mothers who have had their baby born by a gestational carrier (surrogate). Up until now, the biological father of the baby born via surrogate was recognised as the only legal parent here. Second parents, such as the mother or a second father were only entitled to guardianship under Irish law. However, concerns have been raised by intending parents, in particular same-sex couples, because the legislation requires the surrogate to be habitually resident in the country where the programme has been entered into by both parties. Lauragh and Oisin Goggin from Wexford pictured last year when their son Christopher was 17 months old. Picture: Patrick Browne In non-streamline countries such as Cyprus and Armenia that offer surrogacy, the surrogate is contracted to travel to that destination for the duration of the programme, including the pregnancy and birth, which means that couples going to these countries will not be covered. Seamus Kearney Martone, chairperson for Irish Gay Dads, told the Irish Examiner the new legislation has left them out in the cold: The LGBTQ community feels profoundly let down by the Government. This time [Pride Month], which is meant to celebrate inclusivity and progress, has been marred by policies and actions that fail to protect and support our diverse families. Despite years of advocacy and the ongoing fight for equality, the Governments recent decisions have left many feeling excluded and marginalised. This betrayal is particularly poignant now, as we should be celebrating our achievements and looking forward to a more inclusive future. Some examples of Irish couples who are not properly provided for by this legislation include those who have children born through surrogacy but were not living in Ireland at the time of the birth. Additionally, the ban on commercial surrogacy will affect our community, as it means the USA, one of the most ethical countries for surrogacy, will no longer be an option. In addition to those concerns, fears have also been raised for embryo transfers during the interim period which is the time between the enactment of the bill and the establishment of the regulatory body. The regulatory body will ensure ethical and legal surrogacies for Irish families and their babies, both here and abroad. Brian Dowling and Arthur Gourounlian welcoming their second child. Picture: bprdowling/Instagram Currently there is no legislation in place for the interim period between now and the regulatory body being established. That means the person who transfers an embryo during that time will have no claim to parentage under the retrospective declaration of parentage. They will also not be able to claim parentage under the regulatory body because it does not exist yet, however it is due to be established in 2025. Intending parents are now calling for clarity for this time period. Sam Bengtson and her husband Jason Carrig from Dublin have been trying for a baby via surrogacy, using their own genetic material, for four years but have not been successful. Sam fears that if a pregnancy happens prior to clarification of the intending parents current position in Irish law, that they will be left in a legal limbo. Its emotionally taxing on us Sam told the Irish Examiner. We need some details clarified because we are concerned that we are being left behind. The concern now is as intending parents, what does the law offer our family? This needs urgent clarification. I am delighted for the parents who can claim retrospective parentage, but we also need to be protected. Stephen Donnelly, the health minister, has promised to publish supplementary amendments to the current bill which will allow for discretion in these specific areas. Annette Hickey, solicitor specialising in surrogacy/fertility law, told the Irish Examiner: The minister has brought through the legislation and kept his word and enacted it before the summer recess. There has been continual engagement with advocacy groups in order to ensure that the legislation meets with requirements and criteria. There were some amendments that he wasnt able to put into this legislation, but they will be put into supplementary amended bill which will be published in September. He said, the authority is going to be established in early 2025 and that we are the first country internationally to introduce the regulatory authority. There is a certain level of worry amongst intending parents, but each application will be made to the authority when it is established on a case-by-case basis. I do believe the minister has been listening to the concerns raised by the advocacy groups and is actively working on those concerns. There is disappointment there, [it] was such a significant day, we went from having no legislation at all, and that was acknowledged but the issues raised by the same sex couples and other concerns, including when a marriage breaks down. They are in the September bill which must be enacted as soon as possible. It is disappointing for intending parents but it is a step in the right direction and a lot of work has to be done. There are no statistics for the number of children living in Ireland who have been born via surrogacy. However, once the area is legalised and a regulatory body is established, statistics and registrations here will be available. Lauragh Goggins and her husband Oisin from Co Wexford have successful gone through the surrogacy process and are hopeful of a second baby. Lauragh told the Irish Examiner: As an intended parent who is covered by this legislation, I am thrilled that great progress has been made. However, I am heartbroken and devastated for the parents left behind. I know the minister had made promises for September but until its in black and white signed sealed and delivered to Michael D Higgins, they are just that promises. Ms Goggins already has a son, Christopher, who was born via surrogacy in Ukraine. The mother of one who has type 1 diabetes was facing several medical challenges if she was to fall pregnant. Following lengthy medical tests and advice, the couple believed the risks of carrying a baby were too extreme. Baby Christopher arrived in to the world in October 2021, and Lauragh was in the hospital for his birth with their surrogate who remains part of their family to this day. However, Oisin is Christophers legal parent and Lauragh was only permitted to apply for legal guardianship here after two years. She is not recognised as the childs mother in Ireland currently and her mother who has passed away, was also a legal stranger to her grandson. Lauragh told the Irish Examiner: So that means he would have been taxed if she left him anything. The change in law means that Lauragh will be able to apply for parentage. The health minister said that his department is working with the Irish Courts to begin receiving applications as soon as possible. Mr Donnelly said: My hope is that we can narrow it down to just a few months. I have asked my officials to do everything they can to have the regulatory authority up and running by the end of this year. Let us say it will be up and running in January and the Courts Service is able to hear the first cases in September or October, or as soon as possible at any rate. The interim period would be the time between those two dates and further consideration will be given to that in the upcoming bill. On Friday night, having been through a six-week campaign, a largely sleepless election night, and the intense pressures of his first day as prime minister, you could have forgiven Keir Starmer for taking some time off. Instead, just before 8pm, rather than preparing to watch as I was, Portugal v France, he was making his first calls to his new counterparts as heads of government. And among those first few calls was one to Simon Harris. This is because our relationship with Ireland is unique, given our deep shared interest in Northern Ireland, a shared land border and Common Travel Area; but also because its a relationship that is particularly important today in the wider context, given the challenging world around us. The prime minister regards the Good Friday Agreement as the greatest achievement of the last Labour government and as a central priority for the new government he will lead. He and his Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn, worked with the government to help secure the Windsor Framework, and cross-party acceptance for it in Northern Ireland. Those efforts wouldnt have succeeded without the Irish Government and that partnership between London and Dublin is one the new British government wants to renew, as Hilary Benn and David Lammy, the new foreign secretary, told the Tanaiste in their initial calls on Friday evening. Northern Ireland needs stability and long-term certainty. We will work to improve public services, public finances, and economic growth. For growth in particular, partnership with Ireland, the EU, and US, is crucial. On the legacy of the Troubles, we will return to the principles of the Stormont House Agreement with Ireland, to find a way forward which commands support across communities. Read More Ireland will not immediately drop case against UK over Legacy Act Taoiseach We will be unequivocally committed to the European Convention on Human Rights, because its integral to the Good Friday Agreement, but also because its fundamental to the values and interests of our wider foreign policy. Over the last decade, the world has grown more volatile and insecure. Populism, disinformation, and intolerance are on the march. War has returned to Europe. The prime minister heads to Washington to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Nato, which the first post-war Labour government was proud to help create. I know from my own time as the UK lead negotiator in Nato how central our ideas, values, and forces can be to the alliance. We will invest heavily in Nato and European security. We seek an ambitious relationship with our European partners, including resetting the relationship with the EU. As the Labour partys manifesto made clear: There will be no return to the single market, the customs union, or freedom of movement. Instead, we will work to improve the UKs trade and investment relationship with the EU, including by seeking to negotiate a veterinary agreement to prevent unnecessary border checks, which would greatly help the implementation of the Windsor Framework. We will seek an ambitious UK-EU security pact. I was engaged on this as one of our ambassadors to the EU in the early stages of the Brexit process and we can see great potential in working with the EU on security broadly defined, embracing health and energy, as well as foreign, security, and defence policy. We will prioritise promotion and protection of multilateral institutions, which are struggling under the strain of new global challenges. We will use our position in Nato, the UN, G7, G20, and the Commonwealth to address the threats we face, and to uphold human rights and international law. No country has done more to damage the rules-based order than Putins Russia. Our military, financial, diplomatic and political support for Ukraine will remain steadfast. We will support efforts to hold Russia to account for its illegal war. On China, we will bring a long-term and strategic approach to managing our relations. We will cooperate where we can, compete where we need to, and challenge where we must. Read More UK prime minister Keir Starmer names his cabinet after vowing to rebuild trust in politics Diplomacy, like charity, begins at home. To be effective internationally you need to be economically strong at home. Ireland is an exemplar. So the new governments first mission will be to grow our economy. We will work to attract foreign direct investment into the UK and expand markets for British exporters. Ireland, one of our top six trading partners, will be crucial to this endeavour. A central part of that co-operation can be joint action to accelerate the climate transition and build energy independence and interdependence. After Keir Starmer came to Dublin as leader of the opposition almost exactly two years ago, he wrote to thank me for helping with his visit. In his letter he described the relationship between the UK and Ireland as profound and unique. It was heartening but not surprising to hear the Taoiseach and Tanaiste reciprocate this warmth in their public and private remarks on Friday. As a new week and indeed a new era starts, Im more than even confident that a deep and special partnership will be taken forward with energy in the weeks and months to come. The New Popular Front (NFP), a left-green alliance dominated by Jean-Luc Melenchons radical left Unbowed France (LFI), has emerged as the shock winner of Frances snap election, with 182 MPs in the 577-seat assembly. President Emmanuel Macrons centrist Together coalition will have 163 deputies, while Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) and its allies, who last week were eyeing a majority, have 143. While the winner was a surprise, the result is as expected: a hung parliament of three opposing blocs with hugely different platforms and no tradition of working together and, under the terms of Frances constitution, no new elections for a year. So, with Macron having promised not to step down until presidential elections in 2027, whats likely to happen next? Heres a look at the options. Could NFP hope to form a government? Against all expectations, the NFP alliance of LFI, the Socialist party (PS), Greens and Communists, will be the largest force in parliament, but is still a long way from the 289 seats required for an absolute majority. Melenchon, a veteran firebrand, on Sunday demanded Macron appoint a prime minister from the alliance and implement the entirety of the NFPs programme. Others, including in his coalition, said that with no majority the leftist bloc would be forced to negotiate. Frances constitution allows the president to choose whoever he wants as prime minister. In practice, because parliament can force the resignation of the government, the head of state invariably chooses someone who will be acceptable to the assembly. Normally that would be someone from the largest bloc in parliament but appointing a radical left prime minister would run the risk of repeated no-confidence votes backed not just by the centre right and far right, but possibly from the presidents camp too. Can a governing coalition be formed? Unlike many continental European countries, France has had no experience of broad coalitions since the chaotic days of the Fourth Republic, but several figures from the left and centre have previously suggested it could be a solution to a hung parliament. The former prime minister Edouard Philippe, the longstanding Macron ally Francois Bayrou and the Greens leader Marine Tondelier were among those to say last week an anti-RN coalition, from the moderate left to the centre right, could unite around a basic legislative programme. On Sunday, several said something similar would also now be needed. We are in a divided assembly; we have to behave like adults, said Raphael Glucksmann, who led the Socialist list in the European elections. Parliament must be the heart of power in France. French President Emmanuel Macron could consider appointing a technocratic government, of the kind familiar to countries such as Italy, made up of experts such as economists, senior civil servants, academics, diplomats and business or trade union leaders. Photo: AP/Thibault Camus Nobody had won, Bayrou noted, adding that the days of an absolute majority are over and it would be up to everyone to sit at a table, and accept their responsibilities. The PS leader, Olivier Faure, said the vote must open the way to a real re-founding. Much will depend on LFIs willingness to compromise and on the moderate lefts response if Melenchons party refuses to play ball. The hard-left party has long said it would only ever enter government in order to implement our policies, and no one elses. Many of Macrons centrists, meanwhile, have said they will not enter an alliance with LFI. Early estimates suggested it may be possible that an alliance between Macrons forces, the PS, the Greens and a few others could scrape the slimmest of majorities. But experts say a mainstream coalition, while possible in principle, would be hard to build given the parties diverging positions on issues such as tax, pensions and green investment. It could also be vulnerable to censure motions backed by both LFI and the RN. Its a nice idea on paper, but theres a huge gap between whats possible and whats actually achievable, said Bertrand Mathieu, a constitutional law expert at the Sorbonne University in Paris. And its programme could envisage only a bare minimum. Ad hoc alliances, a technocratic government: what else is possible? Rather than attempt to put together a formal coalition government, the outgoing prime minister, Gabriel Attal, suggested last week that mainstream parties could form different ad hoc alliances to vote through individual pieces of legislation. Macron has tried this strategy since losing his majority in 2022 but with limited success, having to resort on numerous occasions to special constitutional powers such as the unpopular article 49.3 to push legislation through without a parliamentary vote. The president could also consider appointing a technocratic government, of the kind familiar to countries such as Italy, made up of experts such as economists, senior civil servants, academics, diplomats and business or trade union leaders. France has no experience of such governments. Jean-Philippe Derosier, a constitutionalist at Lille University, said there was no institutional definition of them either, so it would be a normal government, free to act as it wishes as long as it has parliaments backing. Finally, Macron could ask Attal who on Sunday said he would hand in his resignation to stay on at the head of some form of caretaker government. What are the likely consequences of all this? Whatever is agreed (or not), it seems likely that France is heading for a lengthy spell of political uncertainty and instability, potentially characterised by at best a minimum of legislative progress, and at worst by parliamentary deadlock. Dominique Reynie, a political scientist, said a bare-bones government might be no bad thing, portraying it as a government of reparation that might steady the ship and try to fix whats not working for a population tired of political upsets. But others have warned that the far-right RN and perhaps Melenchons LFI would portray any stopgap solutions as a plot by the political elites to deprive them of power, leading to an even more destructive presidential election campaign in 2027. Macron has so far ruled out resigning before that date, but it may become more likely if complete paralysis prevails. France today has rejected rule by the far right, said Mujtaba Rahman of the Eurasia Group consultancy. But the results point to deadlock and paralysis, even if the left has outperformed expectations while the far right has seriously underperformed. Read More Political paralysis looms as French vote splits among left, centre and far right - Guardian Nato leaders will have much to celebrate when they gather in Washington for the alliances 75th anniversary this week. Sweden will be welcomed to its first summit as a Nato ally. The leaders will also note progress on defence budgets in 2024, 23 of the 32 allies will meet Natos target of spending 2% of their GDP on defence. The summit will be the last for the alliances long-serving secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg. The well-qualified Mark Rutte, former prime minister of the Netherlands, will move into his office in October. Stoltenberg has indicated the summit will have three main topics: Ukraine, deterrence and defence, and global partnerships. Each was a priority at the Vilnius summit 12 months ago. Washington will, according to former Nato spokesperson Oana Lungescu, be a consolidation summit. Nato has cultivated global partners since the early 2000s, and focus has turned recently to the Indo-Pacific. American and to a lesser degree, British and French military commitment to countries in the region is considerable. But it is not channelled via Nato. The alliance has low-level bilateral partnerships with Australia, Japan, New Zealand and South Korea (the so-called IP4). Inviting the IP4 leaders to the summit is an act of diplomatic solidarity, showing that Nato is aligned with Americas Pacific allies and partners in the strategic competition with China. Ukraine On Ukraine, expect few surprises. Germany and the US remain sceptical of the feasibility of Ukraines ambition to join the alliance. The Biden administration has held fast to the view that a country at war cannot accede to Nato. Old arguments that Ukraine needs to stamp out corruption have also been resurrected, though this appears churlish. The EU, which places much higher regard on anti-corruption efforts, officially opened accession talks with Ukraine (and Moldova) in late June. And the recent entrants to Nato, North Macedonia and Montenegro, are hardly paragons of clean government. Pre-summit discussions have been more about metaphors than substance at Washington, Ukraine is likely to be offered a strong bridge to membership (at Vilnius it was simply a path). None of this has gone down well in Kyiv. Ukraines president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has already taken a swipe at the US for its timidity. En route to Vilnius last year, he caused a diplomatic incident by labelling Natos stance on Ukraine as absurd. Wanting to iron out the Washington summit script, Stoltenberg held talks with Zelensky last week at Nato headquarters. There was no press statement. Zelensky could well turn up at the summit willing to shoot from the lip again. However, that possibility may be narrowed by other initiatives on the table. Nato defence ministers have already agreed to a new package dubbed Nato Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (Nsatu). Based in Wiesbaden, Germany and under direct Nato command, Nsatu is intended to bring greater co-ordination to the various ad hoc capability and training packages being provided to Ukraine. Ukraines president, Volodymyr Zelensky, has already taken a swipe at the US for its timidity. En route to Vilnius last year, he caused a diplomatic incident by labelling Natos stance on Ukraine as 'absurd'. Photo: AP/Laurent Cipriani But Nsatu will not replace the Ramstein format the main, US-led conduit of co-ordinated arms deliveries to Ukraine, so named for the air base in Germany at which much of the military aid is assembled. Arms supplied to Ukraine are a national prerogative, and so susceptible to the foibles of domestic politics. Worries over the USs long-term commitment to Ukraine, should Donald Trump win the November presidential election, have focused minds. In April, Stoltenberg proposed a $100bn five-year fund for Ukraine, but that level of ambition has bitten the dust. Few allies, even Ukraines supporters, want to commit such a large sum upfront. What remains is a $40bn one-year Nato package to arm Ukraine (Natos current Comprehensive Assistance Package is limited to training and non-lethal equipment). Hungary, Natos foremost Ukraine sceptic, has already indicated it will opt out of any such plan. Deterrence and defence On deterrence and defence, expect a stocktake of recent efforts. Since Russias annexation of Crimea in 2014, Nato has re-oriented itself towards collective defence and away from out-of-area missions. At the Madrid summit in July 2022, Nato agreed a new force model, while at Vilnius it signed off a family of plans for Europes defence against Russia, and a defence production action plan to boost armaments production. Nato, according to one recent analysis, is ready to fight tonight if necessary. Its less clear for how long. Allied armed forces may be attracting more money, but many (including the British) still lack the resources and personnel to wage a protracted, large-scale conventional war. The 2% guideline is seemingly insufficient but no consensus exists in Nato to raise it. How to pivot Nato away from its dependence on the US, meanwhile, remains a topic few (other than the mercurial French president Emmanuel Macron) seem willing to address. One pragmatic route forward greater Nato-EU co-operation is unlikely to figure highly at the summit, since Natos non-EU members, not least the UK and Turkey, have little interest in that. So, the Washington summit is hedged with low expectations. Natos next summit will be in The Hague in June 2025. By then, Trump could be in the White House and Nato in the cross-hairs of a renewed bout of transatlantic turmoil. If so, the consolidation achieved at Washington will be seen by Natos supporters less as a disappointment, more as a mark of progress. Read More Chinese leader calls on world powers to help Russia and Ukraine resume dialogue During these warmer months, theres truly nothing comparable to the great Irish outdoors. Now is the perfect time to get out there and explore it all for yourself and if youre looking for unique outdoor experiences that allow you to do just that, youll find none better than Limerick Greenway! The route attracts thousands of visitors from Ireland and all across the world each year, and its not hard to see why. Stretching 40km through beautiful West Limerick, this scenic off road experience boasts rich heritage, biodiversity and the best local hospitality along the way. Whether youre looking for a family adventure, a romantic couples activity or a bit of solo me time to take in the serene surroundings; theres no limit to how you can choose to travel the route with cyclists, runners and walkers all welcome on Limerick Greenway. The greenway was designed with mobility in mind, making it safe and suitable for users of all abilities and ages to visit and enjoy. Whether youre looking for a family adventure, a romantic couples activity or a bit of me time to take in the serene surroundings, Limerick Greenway has it all! Since its opening, the route has drawn in more than 1.5 million visits and this summer theres more for them to enjoy than ever before! Limerick Greenway is continuing to enhance visitor facilities throughout 2024, maintaining its current world-class offering while also providing something new to create a different kind of energy. Limerick Greenway was designed with mobility in mind, making it safe and suitable for users of all abilities and ages to visit and enjoy. The greenway follows the old Limerick to Kerry railway line through rural West Limerick landscape, and incorporates five visitor hubs located at Rathkeale, Ardagh, Newcastle West, Barnagh and Abbeyfeale, providing excellent visitor facilities. Visitors can start their journey at Rathkeale and do the full 40km route as far as Abbeyfeale; or can choose to join in at any of the entry points located along the way. Visitors young and old, and of any and all mobility levels, are guaranteed to enjoy themselves. Visitors also have the option to extend their journey by 10km from Abbeyfeale across the Limerick-Kerry border and onto Listowel, thanks to the Limerick Greenway connection with the Kingdom of Kerry Greenways. Plan your route on Limerick Greenway by using the map here. Local businesses along Limerick Greenway adding to the experience Located under an hour from Kerry, Clare and Shannon Airport, under two hours from Galway and less than three hours from Dublin, West Limerick is the perfect place to explore and use as a base for any Irish break. When you have finished your Limerick Greenway adventure, you can head to any of the nearby towns to sit back and relax or continue your action-packed adventure. Top things to do near Limerick Greenway Sonas Health Foods Located 1.6km from Newcastle West Limerick Greenway Carpark, in the heart of Newcastle West town, Sonas Health Foods offers an array of local produce, wholesome foods, natural remedies and restorative tonics, with protein balls and coffee that are to die for!. Wild Encounters Mini Zoo Located just over 10km from Newcastle West Limerick Greenway Carpark, Wild Encounters is a small, zoo-licenced animal facility. Its home to a range of exotic and domestic animals, many of which have joined as ex-pets from the exotic pet trade. The Ardagh Chalice At Ardagh Greenway Hub Carpark on Limerick Greenway, visitors can revel in the history of the Ardagh Chalice, one of the greatest treasures of the early Irish Church. It is part of a hoard of objects found in the 19th century and is replicated by a wooden sculpture outside the Old Station House at the Hub. Greenway Glamping Looking for somewhere to stay that is a little different? Greenway Glamping in Templeglantine is your answer. Located less than 700 metres from the Limerick Greenway Carpark in Templeglantine, and with a third pod added to their two existing pods in recent weeks, embrace the unexpected and book a stay here. Abbeyfeale Greenway extension On the way to Abbeyfeale along the greenway, just after Templeglantine, the tranquil woodland of Tullig Wood is the ideal place to take a breath, relax in a peaceful environment and enjoy the scenery. Abbeyfeale is where you will find the final hub on Limerick Greenway and from here, visitors can travel to Listowel along the Kingdom of Kerry Greenways. Make unforgettable memories together on the impossibly idyllic greenway. Limerick City and County Council continues to enhance visitor facilities on Limerick Greenway, as more and more people are choosing the recreational outdoor amenity along the old Limerick to Kerry railway line as their go-to activity. For more information, including bike hire, amenities and itineraries visit limerickgreenway.ie or follow Limerick Greenways official Facebook and Instagram channels. Final results say a coalition of the French left has won the most seats in legislative elections. The leftist coalition has taken the most seats in parliament with 182 well short of the 289 needed to control the National Assembly. President Emmanuel Macrons centrists have 168 seats. Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally have 143 seats after leading in the first round. Mr Macron will have to form alliances to run the government with France facing the prospect of a hung parliament and political paralysis. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he plans to resign, but will remain in the post during the upcoming Paris Olympics and for as long as needed. The most prominent of the leftist coalitions leaders, Jean-Luc Melenchon, said it is ready to govern. There will likely be weeks of intense political negotiations to choose a new prime minister and form a government. People react to the projection of results for the second round of the legislative elections in Nantes, western France (Jeremias Gonzalez/AP) In Pariss Stalingrad square, supporters on the left cheered and applauded as projections showing the alliance ahead flashed up on a giant screen. Cries of joy also rang out in Republique plaza in eastern Paris, with people spontaneously hugging strangers and several minutes of non-stop applause after the projections landed. Mr Macrons office said the president would wait for the new National Assembly to organise itself before making any decisions. Ms Le Pens far right drastically increased the number of seats it holds in parliament but fell far short of expectations. The president of Frances far-right National Rally claimed historic gains for the party and blamed Mr Macron for pushing France into uncertainty and instability. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal leaving a polling booth earlier on Sunday (Alain Jocard, pool via AP) In a sombre speech after the second-round legislative election, Jordan Bardella denounced the political manoeuvring that led the National Rally to fall far short of expectations. An unprecedented number of candidates who qualified for the runoff stepped aside to allow an opponent to go head-to-head with the National Rally candidate, increasing the chances of defeating them. Tonight, by deliberately taking the responsibility to paralyse our institutions, Emmanuel Macron is consequently depriving the French people of any responses to their daily problems for many months to come, Mr Bardella said. Far-right National Rally party leader Marine Le Pen speaks to reporters (Louise Delmotte/AP) The timing of Frances leap into the political unknown could hardly be worse: With the Paris Olympics opening in less than three weeks, the country will be grappling with domestic instability when the eyes of the world are upon it. For 46-year-old Mr Macrons centrists, the legislative elections have turned into a fiasco. He stunned France, and many in his own government, by dissolving parliaments lower house, the National Assembly, after the far right surged in French voting for the European elections. Mr Macron argued that sending voters back to the ballot boxes would provide France with clarification. The president was gambling that with Frances fate in their hands, voters might shift from the far right and left and return to mainstream parties closer to the centre where Mr Macron found much of the support that won him the presidency in 2017 and again in 2022. That, he hoped, would fortify his presidency for his remaining three years in office. But rather than rally behind him, millions of voters on both the left and right of Frances increasingly polarised political landscape seized on his surprise decision as an opportunity to vent their anger and possibly sideline Mr Macron, by saddling him with a parliament that could now largely be filled with politicians hostile both to him and, in particular, his pro-business policies. A hung parliament with no single bloc coming close to getting the 289 seats needed for an absolute majority in the National Assembly, the more powerful of Frances two legislative chambers, would be unknown territory for modern France and usher in political turmoil. Japan and the Philippines have signed a key defence pact which the deployment of Japanese forces for joint military exercises. The two Asian nations are now building an alliance as they both face an increasingly assertive China. Mondays Reciprocal Access Agreement, which similarly allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, was signed by Philippines defence secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese foreign minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Junior. Philippine and Japanese officials said it would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures. Chinese Coast Guard hold knives and machetes as they approach Philippine troops on a resupply mission in the Second Thomas Shoal at the disputed South China Sea in June 17, 2024 (Armed Forces of the Philippines/AP) The Philippine government said in a statement that Mr Kamikawa and Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara are in Manila to hold talks with their counterparts on ways to further deepen relations. Japans defence pact with the Philippines is its first in Asia. It signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain last year. Many of Japans Asian neighbours, including the Philippines, were under Japanese aggression until its defeat in the Second World War. Japans efforts to bolster its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue but the two countries have steadily deepened defence and security ties. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishidas moves dovetail with President Marcoss effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. The busy sea passage is a key global trade route that has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but is also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. Japan has had a long-standing territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea, while Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an axe aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic face-off in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Philippines strongly protested against the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded one million dollars (780,345) for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Chinese President Xi Jinping has called on world powers to help Russia and Ukraine resume direct dialogue and negotiations during a meeting with Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban, state broadcaster CCTV said. Mr Orban made a surprise visit to China after similar trips last week to Russia and Ukraine to discuss prospects for a peaceful settlement in Ukraine. The Hungarian leader praised Chinas constructive and important initiatives for achieving peace and described Beijing as a stabilising force amid global turbulence, according to CCTV. Besides Russia and Ukraine, the end of the war depends on the decision of three world powers, the United States, the European Union and China, Mr Orban wrote in a Facebook post showing him shaking hands with Mr Xi. #China is a key power in creating the conditions for #peace in the #RussiaUkraineWar. This is why I came to meet with President Xi in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest. #HU24EU #peacemission pic.twitter.com/6UcFkb4ynQ Orban Viktor (@PM_ViktorOrban) July 8, 2024 Mr Orban met with Mr Xi just two months ago when he hosted the Chinese leader in Hungary as part of a three-country European tour that also included stops in France and Serbia, which unlike the other two is not a member of the European Union or Nato. Hungary under Mr Orban has built substantial political and economic ties with China. The European nation hosts a number of Chinese electric vehicle battery facilities, and in December it announced that Chinese EV manufacturing giant BYD will open its first European EV production factory in the south of the country. Peace mission 3.0 is how Mr Orban captioned a picture posted early on Monday on the X social media platform depicting him after having stepped off his plane in Beijing. He was greeted by Chinese vice minister of foreign affairs Hua Chunying and other officials. The previously unannounced visit comes on the heels of similar trips last week to Moscow and Kyiv, where he proposed that Ukraine consider agreeing to an immediate ceasefire with Russia. His visit to Moscow drew condemnation from Kyiv and European leaders. The number of countries that can talk to both warring sides is diminishing, Mr Orban said. Hungary is slowly becoming the only country in Europe that can speak to everyone. Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the EU at the start of July and Russian President Vladimir Putin suggested Mr Orban had come to Moscow as a top representative of the European Council. Several top European officials dismissed that suggestion and said Mr Orban had no mandate for anything beyond a discussion about bilateral relations. The Hungarian Prime Minister, widely seen as having the warmest relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin among EU leaders, has routinely blocked, delayed or watered down EU efforts to assist Kyiv and impose sanctions on Moscow for its actions in Ukraine. He has long argued for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine but without outlining what that might mean for the countrys territorial integrity or future security. That posture has frustrated Hungarys EU and Nato allies, who have denounced Russias actions as a breach of international law and a threat to the security of countries in Eastern Europe. Russian missiles killed at least seven people and struck a childrens hospital in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv, on Monday, while another attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed at least 10. The Russian barrage targeted five Ukrainian cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, hitting apartment buildings and public infrastructure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post. At least 20 people were killed and around 50 people were injured across the country in the Monday morning onslaught, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said. In Kryvyi Rih, 31 people were injured in addition to the 10 deaths in what the head of city administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said was a massive missile attack. Explosions were also reported by local officials in Ukraines central Dnipropetrovsk region. At the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital in Kyiv, rescuers were searching for people under the rubble of a partially collapsed wing of the facility, Zelenskyy said, adding that the number of casualties was not yet known. Explosions were felt and heard across Kyiv (AP) Tanaiste Micheal Martin said he was "appalled" at the attacks. In a post on X, he wrote: "Appalled at Russias attacks on Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv & across Ukraine, with many killed & wounded. A state that commits war crimes by targeting sick children using hypersonic missiles has no interest in peace We will #StandWithUkraine for as long as it takes The Kyiv city administration reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in a handful of Kyiv areas, with fires breaking out. Thick plumes of smoke could be seen rising from several parts of the capital. The head of Ukraines presidential office, Andrii Yermal, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the citys streets. He claimed the Russian military deliberately targeted the hospital. They purposefully attacked the children today, Mr Yermak said in a Telegram post. Seven people have been killed and 25 injured in the attack just in Kyiv, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said in a statement. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said official assessments of the attacks consequences are still being carried out. Explosions were also reported by local officials in Ukraines central Dnipropetrovsk region. The attack came on the eve of a three-day Nato summit in Washington, which will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since the Second World War. French president Emmanuel Macron has refused the resignation of the countrys prime minister, asking him to remain temporarily as the head of the government after chaotic election results left the government in limbo. Voters split the legislature on the left, centre and far right, leaving no faction even close to the majority needed to form a government. The results from Sundays vote raised the risk of political paralysis for the European Unions second-largest economy. Mr Macron had gambled on his decision to call snap elections giving France a moment of clarification, but the outcome showed the opposite, less than three weeks before the start of the Paris Olympics. Frances main share index opened with a dip, but quickly recovered, possibly because markets had feared an outright victory for the far right or the leftist coalition. Prime minister Gabriel Attal had said he would remain in office if needed, but offered his resignation on Monday morning. Mr Macron, who appointed him just seven months ago, immediately asked Mr Attal to stay on to ensure the stability of the country. The day before, Mr Attal made clear that he disagreed with Mr Macrons decision to call the surprise elections. The results of two rounds of voting left no obvious path to form a government for either the leftist coalition that came in first, Mr Macrons centrist alliance, or the far right. Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Moscow to begin a two-day visit, his first since Russia sent troops into Ukraine. Mr Modi is set to have dinner with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday, to be followed by talks. The Indian leader last travelled to Russia in 2019, when he attended a forum in the far eastern port of Vladivostok and met Mr Putin. The leaders also saw each other in September 2022 in Uzbekistan, at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation bloc. A memorable welcome in Moscow! I thank the Indian community for their affection. pic.twitter.com/acTHlLQ3Rs Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Mr Modi posted photos of his arrival in Moscow on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter, saying in both Russian and English that he was looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people, he wrote. Russia has had strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhis importance as a key trading partner for Moscow has grown since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. China and India have become key buyers of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies that shut most Western markets off to Russian exports. Under Mr Modis leadership, India has avoided condemning Russias military action in Ukraine. (Photo : Unsplash/Anastasiia Chepinska) A Biden's rule that prohibits gender-affirming discrimination in healthcare is temporarily blocked by a US Judge, as factors protecting transgender people are being weighed from all sides. The Controversial Healthcare Protection Healthcare protections based on gender identity were initially implemented during the Obama administration but were subsequently removed under former President Donald Trump. In 2021 and 2022, President Joe Biden issued an executive order that directs entities that receive federal funds, including Medicaid programs, to implement measures aimed at safeguarding transgender individuals from discrimination. However, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced significant revisions to Section 1557 in May, a non-discrimination provision of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) slated to take effect on Friday, expanding the scope of the Affordable Care Act rule, encompassing discrimination based on "sex stereotypes, sexual orientation, gender identity, and sex characteristics," which left conservative states enraged, Reuters reported. READ ALSO: Four Trans Candidates Omits Deadnames, Calling it "Hollow" for Ohio House Election Disqualification Oppositions Being Weighed from All Sides Republican attorneys general from Tennessee and other states, primarily in the South and Midwest, contended that the new rule implementation under Medicaid or other federal health programs would impose financial burdens on their states or could result in the loss of federal funding when they fail to comply. Fifteen GOP-led states, including Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Virginia, and West Virginia, filed a federal lawsuit against the Biden administration in June, arguing that the new rule replaces their health regulations with a system that prioritizes HHS's adherence to gender ideology over medical facts, ABC News reported. According to the lawsuit of the opposing states, the rule would mandate their Medicaid programs, which cover low-income residents, to fund treatments such as hormones and surgeries for transgender individuals, including minors, which has long been prohibited by many Republican-led states, commonly referred to as gender-affirming care. Senior U.S. District Judge Louis Guirola expressed confidence that the Republican states will likely prevail in their legal challenge, asserting that the administration had exceeded its authority by interpreting "sex" in federal law to encompass gender identity in his preliminary order on Wednesday. Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti, alongside Mississippi Attorney General Lynn Fitch, asserted in a statement that a federal court had rejected the Biden administration's effort to mandate every healthcare provider in the U.S. adopt an extreme version of gender ideology. Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign, criticized the ruling, stating that the ruling is not only morally wrong but also bad policy and that everyone should have access to necessary medical care to support their health and overall well-being. In a court filing, HHS argued that the states' concerns were "speculative" and emphasized that the rule does not supersede doctors' medical judgment. The filing contended that the states were not justified in seeking an injunction to block the rule as they were not facing immediate enforcement actions. 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 : Unsplash/Tingey Injury Law Firm ) A federal judge partially blocked the Federal Trade Commission's (FTC) rule on Wednesday that would prohibit agreements often signed by employees to refrain from joining competitors or starting competing businesses, following opposition from business and trade groups. FTC's Non-Compete AgreementsAccording to the FTC, roughly 30 million U.S. workers are subject to non-compete agreements, which restrict competition, contravene U.S. antitrust laws, and limit wages and worker mobility. To end this, the Democratic-controlled agency voted 3-2 to approve a ban on non-compete agreements, which FTC Chair Lina M. Khan believes could create over 8,500 new startups annually, an FTC press release said. California, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Oklahoma are among the states that have already implemented bans on non-compete agreements, and twelve other states have enacted laws restricting their use. READ ALSO: Ready to Sign Your Employment Agreement? Spot These Five Important Points in Your Contract Opposition to The Non-compete Agreements Ryan LLC, a tax services firm based in Dallas, filed a lawsuit to block the rule, accusing the FTC of exceeding its statutory authority by categorizing all non-compete agreements as unfair and anti-competitive shortly after the FTC voted narrowly to ban non-compete agreements for nearly all workers in the United States. The opposition was supported by various organizations representing various American businesses, including the Business Roundtable, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and the Texas Association of Business. In a written decision, U.S. District Judge Ada Brown in Dallas stated that the FTC did not have the authority to establish broad rules that prohibit practices it considers unfair methods of competition, Reuters reported. Brown, appointed by Republican President Donald Trump, halted the FTC from enforcing the rule against a coalition of business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and tax service firm Ryan, declining their request for a nationwide injunction, citing uncertainty about its appropriateness, and committed to issuing a final ruling by August 30, shortly before the rule's implementation date. FTC spokesman Douglas Farrar emphasized the agency's confidence in its authority to implement the rule, advocating for eliminating unlawful non-compete agreements, which reduce innovation, hinder economic growth, trap workers, and compromise economic freedom for Americans, NPR News reported. Daryl Joseffer, chief counsel of the Chamber's litigation arm, characterized the ruling as a significant victory in the Chamber's opposition to government interference in business decisions, arguing that the FTC's comprehensive prohibition of non-compete agreements exceeds the agency's constitutional and statutory authority. In their lawsuits, Ryan and the Chamber assert that the FTC lacked the authority to implement the ban on non-compete agreements, arguing that Congress granted the agency only limited powers to make rules. On Wednesday, Brown expressed skepticism about the rule's validity, stating that the FTC had not adequately justified the broad and almost complete ban on non-compete agreements. Brown criticized the rule for imposing a uniform approach without a specified end date, which, in her view, failed to establish a logical connection between the findings and the decision made. RELATED ARTICLE: US Chamber of Commerce Sues FTC, Cites Economic Implications on Banning Noncompete Agreements 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Unsplash/Photo by Christina @ wocintechchat.com) With a vast generational cohort comprising the workforce today, ever wonder why Gen Z is the only group that is dubbed the most difficult generation to work with? Who are The Gen Zers in The Workforce? Generation Z members, who were born between 1997 and 2012, are poised to become the largest workforce cohort by the end of 2035. According to a recent poll by Redfield & Wilton Strategies for Newsweek, US adults perceive their Gen Z colleagues as challenging to work with, with 40% of respondents, including Gen Zers themselves, identifying Gen Z as the most difficult generation to work with. However, Gen Z only wants to prioritize work-life balance over traditional workplace expectations, confidently voicing their concerns and advocating for workplace issues that need to be acknowledged. Gen Zers Challenging The Norm While their outspokenness unsettles some leaders, it can also be a valuable asset for these young professionals in the workforce, Dr. Benjamin Granger, chief workplace psychologist at Qualtrics, said. Gen Z's most significant strength lies in their inclination to challenge the status quo more than previous generations, which is where workplace innovation and creativity happen. Young adults challenging workplace norms set by older generations has been a long-standing trend, but according to Granger, Gen Z approaches these conversations differently. READ ALSO: Younger Generations Stepping Up Their Game: You Gotta be "Corporate Flirting" to Get Ahead at Work Gen Zers Social and Environmental Responsibility One of Gen Z's defining characteristics is their strong sense of social and environmental responsibility. They actively advocate for equitable and sustainable workplaces, pushing employers to take more responsibility for their impact on employees and society as a whole. When younger employees encourage organizations to move beyond corporate neutrality and embrace values openly, it often results in more streamlined processes, increased employee satisfaction, and improved products. Research indicates that displaying a proactive attitude and speaking up is generally associated with favorable career outcomes, such as an increased likelihood of promotion and stronger relationships with colleagues. However, executives may not always react positively to such feedback, as they could be frustrated by employees challenging long-standing norms. To reduce negative consequences that may result from speaking up, Granger advises younger professionals to thoroughly research before raising an issue. Assess whether managers or colleagues can feasibly act on suggestions, considering time and resource limitations, or evaluate if such input can contribute to team or organizational success rather than solely benefiting oneself. Leaders Should Spearhead The Change Leaders should foster an environment where feedback is not only encouraged but actively sought for these conversations to become genuinely effective. Engaging in giving and receiving feedback can unlock previously undiscovered aspects of oneself and foster professional growth. According to a Gallup survey, employees who regularly receive meaningful feedback are 80% more likely to be engaged at work. Gen Zers are driving their growth by actively embracing and initiating these conversations, Granger adds. RELATED ARTICLE: Common Workplace Myths About Gen Zers That Are Worth Busting 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. A record of 70.9 million people will travel this week for Independence Day, making it the busiest holiday ever in history. However, some employees do not request for paid time off (PTO) or leave. New Harris Poll research involving 1,274 US workers indicated that over half of all millennials and Gen Z employees quiet vacationed during the July 4th holiday week took days off without asking for time off in an official way. This is expected to remain consistent through this years holiday season. Always Being Available Pressures According to Tim Osiecki, director of thought leadership and trends at The Harris Poll, young professionals are reluctant to request PTO because they feel compelled to be constantly available and productive, even during a holiday week. Gen Xers and millennials might also resort to silent vacations as an alternative to dealing with fewer leaves of absence due to burnout from working more hours. "Employees aren't trying to deceive or shirk their responsibilities," Osiecki adds. "They're simply trying to find a way to balance their need for rest with the demands of their jobs" One of The Least Productive Weeks of The Year This year, July 4 falls on a Thursday sandwiched between two working days which exacerbates the already-existing productivity dip around this public holiday. The Harris Poll showed that slightly above half (53%) of Generation Z and millennial respondents claimed that they hardly do anything at all on July 4. There are few other times each year when more people travel than around Independence Day; however, only one out of ten companies surveyed shut down operations for the entire workweek surrounding July 4th. Most Gen Zs and millennial staff believe having the full week off would enable them to be more productive, work harder, and take on greater responsibilities in their current positions. This small tradeoff might help increase the level of focus of individuals during one of the least productive seasons of the year, Mr. Osiecki remarks. READ ALSO: Telephonophobia: Understanding Why Gen Zers Have Phone Anxiety A Red Flag for a Bad Workplace Culture Osiecki said that if workers need to slink away from the office, it's a red flag that the company doesn't have a supportive culture and has no effective PTO system. Employees especially younger ones are scared to ask for time off. In another Harris Poll survey, half of workers admitted they worry about requesting time off. Gen Z respondents were 58%, while millennials were 61%. Many Americans said they wished their bosses understood the importance of taking breaks from work. "Managers need to recognize that 'quiet vacationing' isn't a passive trend, but a symptom of a larger issue: employees feeling uncomfortable or unsupported in taking time off," asserts Osiecki. "It signals that there might be a lack of trust or communication breakdown between managers and their teams." Getting Over The Summer Slump with Good PTO Policies During summertime, when temperatures rise, most organizations experience a summer slump longer holidays, shorter days at work, decreased productivity, or lower team spirit. According to Osiecki, bosses can improve productivity over this period by re-evaluating their policies on paid time off, especially those that apply during major leave times such as July. Employers can offer creative PTO benefits, such as scheduling company-wide week-long breaks at key holidays, legislating a specific number of days off, or giving employees floating holidays for use throughout the year. Managers should also set a good example by giving clear guidelines on how to request time off, treating themselves like ordinary employees when it comes to PTO, and supporting their staff whenever they ask for leave. The advantages of building a supportive vacation policy extend long past the summer holiday period, Osiecki notes. He said that it's understandable if workers need to rest and that respecting this will make them more loyal and productive. RELATED ARTICLE: Gen Zers at Work: The Greatest Strength of the 'Most Difficult' Generation to Deal With 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Unsplash/Emiliano Vittoriosi ) The presidential debate that happened on Thursday has indeed stirred different reactions online about who people should support. Mark Cuban, renowned for his business and television ventures, introduced his innovative approach on X, which went viral for asking artificial intelligence to analyze the candidates' performances based on a transcript of the televised debate aired from CNN's Atlanta studio. In the post, Cuban said: "I cut and paste a transcript of the debate into ChatGPT and asked it who it would hire for a job." Cuban wanted to assess Joe Biden and Donald Trump for a hypothetical employment scenario based on their communication skills, clarity, problem-solving abilities, and overall professionalism. Here's what the AI assessment highlighted from a hiring perspective: READ ALSO: Trump-Biden Showdown 2024: Trump Leaning Into Falsehoods, Biden's 'Raspy' Condition Draws Most Attention Joe Biden's AI Assessment: The Pros and Cons As pros, ChatGPT highlighted Joe Biden's 'extensive experience' in public service, which underscores his deep understanding of governmental processes and leadership roles, and his 'empathy and social awareness,' which focuses on community impact. However, ChatGPT highlighted Biden's 'lack of coherence and clarity,' appearing fragmented and unclear during the debate, and his tendency to veer off-topic and provide disjointed and consistent answers as cons. Donal Trump's AI Assessment: The Pros and Cons Donald Trump's pros include his 'assertiveness and confidence' in communication, which is a strong leadership quality, and his 'economic focus,' underscoring his prioritization of financial performance and business acumen. However, ChatGPT criticized Trump's excessive use of 'hyperbole and exaggeration,' coupled with grandiose claims that might raise concerns about his reliability in conveying accurate information. It also criticized his 'lack of specifics' in offering detailed plans or specific solutions. According to ChatGPT, while both candidates exhibit strengths, neither fully embodies all the ideal qualities one might seek in a professional setting based solely on the debate transcript. Biden's empathy and experience are commendable, yet his communication challenges raise concerns. Trump's confidence and economic focus are notable, but his tendency towards exaggeration and lack of specifics present issues. Therefore, based solely on their debate performance, the post reads, making a definitive hiring decision for either candidate would be difficult without additional evaluation of their professional capabilities and how well they fit specific job requirements. Since it was shared on Sunday, Cuban's post has garnered over 3.3 million views. Cuban As A Biden Supporter Cubans have long been known as supporters of Biden. The entrepreneur told the Fort Worth Star-Telegram in March that he would always choose Biden, even if Trump were "being given last rites." During Biden's 2020 campaign, Cuban, who gained fame as an investor on the ABC reality show Shark Tank, characterized Biden as "the right choice for business," pointing to Trump's "botched" response to the coronavirus pandemic which resulted in economic instability, CNBC reported. In another X post, Cuban said he would still choose Biden regardless, for he is the ethical candidate who consistently upholds his oath and prioritizes the country over personal interests. RELATED ARTICLE: Hiring Bias: Does Removing the Graduation Year from My Resume Affect My Job Application? 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Unsplash/Rubaitul Azad ) The European Commission asked Amazon to provide further details regarding the steps it has taken to adhere to its obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), a law requiring large companies to combat harmful content on their websites and establish standards for advertising transparency. Amazon's DSA Compliance According to Reuters, Amazon was instructed to provide comprehensive information on how it complies with the transparency requirements for recommender systems until July 26. An Amazon spokesperson said the company was reviewing the EU's request and collaborating closely with the European Commission, as it shares the objective of establishing a secure, consistent, and trustworthy shopping environment. READ ALSO: Meta Faces Another Legal EU Probe Over Breach of Digital Services Act on Child Safety The European Union's Digital Services Act The European Union's comprehensive new digital privacy protection law took effect on August 25, marking a significant shift for Big Tech in Europe. The Digital Services Act (DSA), introduced alongside the Digital Markets Act (DMA), was part of the European Union's comprehensive regulatory framework for big tech. Quartz reported that it mandates major technology companies take greater responsibility in addressing illegal and harmful content on their platforms. While the DMA targets antitrust reform among major tech firms, the DSA prioritizes individual user protection and aims to prevent the spread of harmful content and misinformation online. Companies that the EU identified as subject to the DSA include Amazon, Google, Alibaba, and Wikipedia. Thierry Breton, the European Commissioner of the Internal Market, emphasized in a video posted to Twitter that the DSA aims to safeguard free speech from arbitrary decisions while protecting citizens and democracies against illegal content. Amazon Trying to Overturn EU Compliance Last Year Digwatch reported that last year, the European Commission classified Amazon Store as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) under the Digital Services Act (DSA), requiring it to make detailed online advertising data publicly accessible. Amazon initially sought to overturn this decision in the General Court of the European Union and requested interim measures. As a result, the President of the Court temporarily suspended the requirement, prompting the Commission to appeal to the highest court in Europe, which is the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), which later overturned the General Court's previous order and mandated Amazon to disclose its platform's advertisements information in a publicly accessible archive. In the ruling, the Vice-President of the Court of Justice recognized Amazon's arguments that the EU law requiring public access to their advertising repository could infringe on their privacy rights and business freedom. However, the judge concluded that delaying the Digital Services Act (DSA) objectives due to Amazon's appeal could hinder the regulation's goals of establishing a unified Digital Single Market, which might result in an online environment that compromises fundamental rights. Therefore, the judge determined that the EU's legislative interests outweigh Amazon's concerns, leading to the denial of the suspension request. RELATED ARTICLE: EU Suspecting DMA Non-Compliance, Probes Tech Giants Apple, Google, Meta in a Regulatory Battle 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. (Photo : Unsplash/Maggie Yap ) Deb Gruver, a former Marion County Record reporter, has agreed to accept $235,000 as a settlement for a lawsuit that stemmed from a police raid that sparked national outrage from a small community in Kansas. The Controversial Raid in Marion Spearheaded by former Police Chief Gideon Cody on August 11, 2023, the raid targeted the newspaper's office, publisher Eric Meyer's residence, and the residence of a former city council member. Marion is a town of approximately 1,900 residents nestled in rolling prairie hills about 150 miles southwest of Kansas City, Missouri. It is home to the Record, which was known for its bold coverage of local government affairs. Cody claimed to possess evidence suggesting that the newspaper, reporter Phyllis Zorn, and the city council member engaged in identity theft or other computer-related crimes to access a local business owner's driving records. However, all individuals denied wrongdoing, and no charges were ultimately filed. The lawsuit asserts that the newspaper and its journalists committed no illegal acts, alleging that the search warrants were invalid and motivated by officials' long-standing grievances against the publication. Legal experts also argue that the police raid on the newspaper likely violated either a federal privacy law or a state lawdesigned to protect journalists from being compelled to disclose sources or surrender unpublished material to law enforcement, the AP News reported. The Settlement Freeing Police Chief Cody The settlement only resolved the claims against the former police chief in Marion but not with the Marion County sheriff and the county's prosecutor. Gruver's lawsuit is one of five federal lawsuits filed against the city, the county, and eight current or former elected officials or law enforcement officers related to the raid. Gruver's attorney did not respond to emails seeking comment on Friday. An attorney representing the city, its insurance company, the former chief, and others declined to comment but released a copy of the June 25 settlement agreement after the Record filed an open records request and provided a copy to The Associated Press. READ ALSO: Inappropriate Remarks and Misconduct of Police Seminar Trainers Exposed, Marked as "Deeply Troubling" and Unacceptable by State Comptroller The lawsuit, which was filed by the parent company of the Marion County Record and Eric Meyer, its editor, and publisher, alleges the city of Marion, the Marion County Commission, and five current and former local officials of violating their rights to a free press and protection from unreasonable searches under the US Constitution. The lawsuit also informs the defendants that Meyer and the newspaper intend to add additional claims, including allegations that officials were responsible for Meyer's mother's death after the raids. Footage captures the 98-year-old mother of Meyer confronting police officers during a raid on her home, where she can be heard demanding, "Leave my house!" has sparked national scrutiny. The raids on the newspaper and the homes of the Meyers and a City Council member took place on August 11, while Joan Meyer passed away the following day, which her son believed to be due to the extreme stress she suffered from the raid. RELATED ARTICLE: Ohio Landlord Fined $200,000 for Sexually Harassing Female Tenants, Barred from Renting Properties Again 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Have you ever been stuck in a situation where you became too overwhelmed by a problem and could not make even one decision? What is Analysis-Paralysis? You could be suffering from 'analysis paralysis', a term used informally to describe the state of being unable to decide because of excessive overthinking. When an individual is faced with multiple variables, they endlessly research solutions rather than taking action and making a choice. Analysis-paralysis theory was supported in 2000 when psychologists Sheena Iyengar and Mark Lepper conducted a study about consumer decision-making, where consumers were about 10 times more likely to purchase jam from thetable with fewer six types of options compared to the one with 24 options, their findings reveal. Their theory suggests that making decisions, even seemingly small ones like buying a jar of jam, consumes mental energy. The more choices consumers have to analyze and compare, the greater the mental effort required. As a result, it becomes easier for individuals to avoid making a purchase altogether rather than navigating a complex array of options. READ ALSO: Show Up Without an Ask: An Ultimate Guide to Make Networking Successful and Lasting The Socratic Questioning Effective leadership demands decisive action, according to CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch. Individuals across all career levels frequently encounter challenges in decision-making, often becoming immobilized by an "analysis-paralysis" mindset, as she discussed on LinkedIn's "This is Working" podcast and video series. People naturally gravitate toward those who can make firm decisions. According to Lynch, you have to know what direction you are heading to if you want to lead. As for herself, she uses the Socratic method towards her employees, who often encounter indecision, asking them what they think and what actions they would choose if they had to decide immediately. This method forces them to make decisive action most of the time, Lynch asserted. The teachings of the Greek philosopher Socrates are from where Socrates' method was derived. It revolves around responding to open-ended questions that help individuals uncover answers independently. This is supported by clinical and forensic psychologist Dr. Leslie Dobson, who defines Socratic questioning as a communication technique that allows one person to stimulate another's thinking using open-ended questions. These questions are designed to gently challenge individuals outside their comfort zone and encourage them to reflect on their thoughts, behaviors, and feelings, building awareness and empowering them to feel more in control. This approach can enhance self-awareness, potentially leading to increased creativity and productivity, as suggested by Yale University philosophy and psychology professor Tamar Gendler. Rather than aiming to solve everything in one go, Socratic questioning helps her discern the next direction to proceed. The 4 Stages of Socratic Questioning The four stages of Socratic questioning, also referred to as "guided discovery," are structured in four distinct phases, according to DeepMind. (Photo : Unsplash/Bryan Angelo) According to Reuters, retail giant Amazon may soon need to officially acknowledge the GMB trade union at its Coventry warehouse in Britain, as workers are slated to cast their ballots on Monday. Amazon has consistently worked to discourage employees from organizing unions, which was the case 20 years ago and remains true today. Marcus Courtney, a longtime labor advocate who attempted to unionize call center workers at Amazon in the early 2000s, shared this with CNBC. Amazon has long been known for traditionally opposing unionization, opting to address employee concerns directly rather than through unions until workers at one of its New York warehouses successfully compelled the company to recognize a trade union in the US for the first time in 2022. The First Time Amazon is Negotiating with Union Outside of The US While Amazon is hailed as one of the top ten private sector employers in the UK, with a 75,000-strong workforce, Coventry warehouse workers in central England have been embroiled in a pay and union recognition dispute for over a year. According to Amazon, their employees can decide whether to join a union, and they regularly assess their pay structures to ensure competitive wages and benefits. Amazon Coventry warehouse workers will vote on Monday to finally let GMB represent them. If approved, it will be the first time Amazon has negotiated with a union regarding pay, hours, and holiday arrangements outside of the United States, as reported by Reuters. Two main factors will determine the outcome of the ballot. First, at least 40% of employees in the bargaining unit must participate in the vote, regardless of their union membership status. If this threshold is not reached, the ballot fails. Second, if the 40% threshold is met, the outcome will be decided by a simple majority of the votes cast. Amazon Workers Casting Ballot on Monday The GMB will organize protests at Amazon warehouses across the UK as the voting process commences, including outside Amazon's London head office, with more than 3,000 workers to participate in the ballot. The union said that results are anticipated by mid-July. Workers have united due to Amazon's alleged low wages and unsafe working conditions. They seek fair pay and safe working conditions, which they believe are fundamental rights, GMB national officer Andy Prendergast said in a statement. READ ALSO: Amazon Labor Union Affiliates with Teamsters, Seeks to Have "More Resources and Strength" in Numbers Amazon's Stance on The Company's Culture Amazon believes its employees have always had the choice to join a union and is committed to regular communication and direct engagement with its workforce. According to a spokesperson, Amazon regularly evaluates their employees' compensation to ensure competitive wages and benefits, having their minimum wage of 12.30 increase to 13 per hour, depending on the location, which marks a 20% increase over two years and a 50% increase since 2018. Amazon also offers comprehensive benefits, a positive work environment, and career growth opportunities, which contribute to why individuals choose to work at Amazon, whether it is their first job, a seasonal position, or a chance to advance their careers. RELATED ARTICLE: Compass Coffee Accused of Manipulating Workers Headcount, Schedules to Rig an Upcoming Union Election 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. Son of Kinahan Crime Group Associate Extradited to UK on Gun Charges The son of a high-ranking member of the Kinahan organized crime group has been extradited from Spain to the UK Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) Rasha Khatib, Martin McKee and Salim Yusuf, The Lancet calculate that 186,000 or more people may be killed* by the Israeli total war on Gaza, about 8% of the population. If you do not see this study reported on your cable news channel, you may conclude that the corporation that owns it is complicit in genocide. One of the papers authors, Martin McKee, is a member of the editorial board of the Israel Journal of Health Policy Research and of the International Advisory Committee of the Israel National Institute for Health Policy Research. Although McKee says he is writing solely in a personal capacity, I think we may conclude that some members of the professional Israeli public health community have their hair on fire about the prosecution of the Gaza War. The Gaza Ministry of Health now says that over 38,000 Palestinians have been killed by the Israelis. As The Lancet notes, the World Health Organization and even the Israeli intelligence services accept these figures. Since the Israeli Air Force has dropped as many as five hundred two-thousand-pound bombs and by now has destroyed or damaged a majority of the buildings in the Gaza Strip, it is likely that at least 10,000 uncounted dead are under the rubble. The 38,000 dead are the result of what is called direct gathering of the figures. Initially the dead were identified and reported by hospitals. As Israel has reduced the ability of hospitals to function by its attacks on them, this direct reporting has continued, but hospitals began being unable in some cases to send along identification, though they could confirm the reception of the corpses. Some dishonest observers suggested that this inability to know the names of the dead somehow made the numbers less reliable, but the World Health Organization refuted this allegation. The dead are in makeshift morgues still gradually being identified. Al Jazeera English Video: Dozens killed across Gaza as Israels war enters 10th month Indirect counting of the dead attempts to calculate the missing people using statistical methods. Sometimes public health experts have attempted to interview people to collect data on dead family members and friends, and then projected totals based on these surveys. That method is not available in Gaza, where the Israeli authorities will not permit journalists and other observers, and where it is dangerous to be because there are no real safe zones, with those regions declared safe zones often having been bombed. Muhammad Jawad et al., in a survey of 118 unique armed conflicts affecting 102 countries from 1990 to 2017 found that they produced an average of 19.2 battle-related deaths per 100,000 population (54.7 for those in war as opposed to minor conflict). There were in addition an average of 311 excess deaths per 100,000 population from causes other than being immediately killed by a bomb or bullet. So, 16 civilians died of starvation, communicable, maternal, neonatal, and nutritional diseases and injuries, for every direct death in combat. And this seems important, in the Jawad et al. study: Effect estimates were disproportionately larger for children aged under 5 years, regardless of the cause of death. Gaza had some 350,000 children under 5. UNICEF reported in May, 9 out of 10 children under 5 in Gaza are suffering from one or more infectious diseases. Levels of acute watery diarrhea are 20 times higher than typical. Already last March, 1 in 3 children under 2 were acutely malnourished, a condition that produces permanent cognitive and emotional damage. The Lancet authors used a much smaller multiplier, of four indirect deaths for each direct death. Based on the death toll known when the paper was written, they arrived at 186,000 dead for this war over the coming months. They admit that the estimate of four indirect deaths for every direct one is conservative, so the number could be substantially greater. Khatib et al. point out that public health officials as early as last February were predicting 90,000 deaths, at least, by August 6 if the war escalated and an epidemic broke out. There certainly has been a vast escalation, with a full bore Israeli attack on Rafah during the past two months, the last of the so-called safe zones, to which over a million people had been displaced. The Lancet authors make these points: A ceasefire is required without a seconds delay. Medical supplies, food, and clean water must be flowed into the Strip immediately. The scale and character of the suffering in this conflict must be documented. That is important for establishing historical accountability and for estimating the full cost of this war. Such documentation is, moreover, legally required of Israel by the January 26, 2024 ruling on interim measures by the International Court of Justice as part of its deliberations on whether Israel is committing genocide, to which Israel has not been responsive. Furthermore, these data will be crucial for post-war recovery, restoring infrastructure, and planning humanitarian aid. I have pointed out that given the definition of famine and the identification of 500,000 Palestinians in Gaza as being in a stage 5 famine zone, nearly 20,000 Palestinians could be starving each month. If the zone were defined by only 20% of it seeing that level of death, then that would still be 5,000 dead of famine each month, on top of those killed by bombs and airstrikes and those falling ill to rampant disease, malnutrition and dehydration. The Lancet study is consistent with total deaths of nearly 21,000 a month, though, again, this is a conservative estimate. *Note, thanks to a kind comment by Jeffrey Sachs at Columbia, I have slightly revised this essay to reflect that The Lancet piece is not saying that 186,000 are already dead but that this is a not implausible death toll out of the war over the coming months. VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Soma Gold Corp. (TSXV: SOMA) (WKN: A2P4DU) (OTC: SMAGF) (the "Company" or "Soma") announces a temporary suspension of mining and processing activities at its el Bagre mine and mill in Antioquia, Colombia, due to a community blockade. This action by the local community has restricted access for employees and supplies, leading to a Care and Maintenance status for the site. The blockade began on Wednesday, July 3, driven by community frustration over delays in local road maintenance and paving. Despite ongoing efforts by Soma and municipal authorities to address these concerns through a cost-sharing plan for paving approximately 3.5 km of regional road, the community has expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of progress. Soma has successfully negotiated with the community to allow access for critical supplies, security, and maintenance crews, ensuring essential operations continue. Discussions between all parties are ongoing, with a mutual goal of resolving the situation promptly. Soma recently completed a planned maintenance shutdown of the el Bagre mill, which included a successful rebuild of the ball mill. Operations resumed on schedule in late June. Q2 2024 gold production was 6,590 AuEq ounces, with 7,209 AuEq ounces sold. Total AuEq ounces sold for the first half of the year amounted to 14,233, representing 99.7% of the planned 14,277 AuEq ounces for the period. Geoff Hampson, Soma's President and CEO, states, "We are actively collaborating with the local community and are confident that a solution will be achieved in the coming days. While the blockade has caused a temporary production halt, we anticipate accessing a higher-grade area of the mine in the second half of the year and remain optimistic about meeting our full-year production targets at Cordero." ABOUT SOMA GOLD Soma Gold Corp. (TSXV: SOMA) is a mining company focused on gold production and exploration. The Company owns two adjacent mining properties in Antioquia, Colombia with a combined milling capacity of 675 tpd. (Permitted for 1,400 tpd). The El Bagre Mill is currently operating and producing. Internally generated funds are being used to finance a regional exploration program. With a solid commitment to sustainability and community engagement, Soma Gold Corp. is dedicated to achieving excellence in all aspects of its operations. The Company also owns an exploration property near Tucuma, Para State, Brazil that is currently under option to Ero Copper Corp. On behalf of the Board of Directors "Geoff Hampson" Chief Executive Officer and President Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. All statements, analysis and other information contained in this press release about anticipated future events or results constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to business and economic risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results of operations to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and opinions of management at the date the statements are made. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements even if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - GT Resources Inc. (TSXV: GT) (OTCQB: CGTRF) (FSE: 7N1) (the "Company" or "GT Resources") is pleased to announce drilling of the Electromagnetic ("EM") targets at the Canalask Nickel-Copper Project is now underway. "The first drill hole is well underway and is targeting a ~1000m x 400m EM Maxwell plate in the feeder dyke, proximal to the Historic Resource Estimate containing 1.35% nickel in 400kt (while abundant, copper was not historically reported). Given the strong EM response that we have, our target is massive sulphide (copper-nickel) mineralization in the main body of the feeder dyke," stated Derrick Weyrauch, President and CEO. Plans include drilling up to 2,000 meters plus conducting downhole EM surveys to locate massive nickel-copper sulphide mineralization (see news release January 16, 2024). Figure 1 - Drill setup on the first drill pad of the 2024 drill program. Figure 2 - Drill setup on the first drill pad of the 2024 drill program. Exploration Target The "White River Intrusive Complex" (WRIC) is a favourable setting for magmatic nickel-copper sulphide mineralization and is considered a "feeder system" with a high volume of magma flow. As evidenced by the abundance of magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE showings at the base of the WRIC and the discovery of the nickel-rich Canalask footwall deposit, the project hosts strong potential for both "magmatic feeder-type" basal deposits and "epigenetic footwall-type" footwall deposits. The geological setting draws comparison to the world-class Norilsk Ni-Cu-PGE camp. Figure 3. Isometric view new looking southwest of the modelled ultramafic dyke (purple) and modelled Maxwell plate (yellow) from the 2023 ground EM survey and position of historic drill holes including VQ-7 which is located near the upper northeast corner of the plate. Insert map in the upper left is a stylized cross section illustrating the exploration target consisting of massive magmatic sulphides located at the base of the ultramafic dyke. Canalask Historical Resource Estimate Readers are cautioned that the Company has not attempted to verify the historic mineral resource estimate and therefore readers should not place any reliance on the historical estimate. A qualified person has not done sufficient work to classify the historical estimate as a current mineral resource. The Company is not treating the historical estimate as current mineral resource. Qualified Person The technical information in this release has been reviewed and verified by Neil Pettigrew, M.Sc., P. Geo., Vice President of Exploration and a director of the Company and the Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. About GT Resources Inc. With a focus on climate change risks and opportunities, GT Resources Inc.'s (TSXV: GT) strategy is to discover and ultimately produce critical Green Transportation Metals, including but not limited to sulphide nickel, copper, palladium, platinum and cobalt. A Canadian mineral exploration and development company, GT Resources is advancing district scale deposits in Canada and Finland. The Lantinen Koillismaa (LK) Project in north-central Finland, is a PGE-copper-nickel project that has existing NI43-101 Mineral Resources, while both the Tyko and Canalask high-grade nickel-copper projects are located in Ontario and the Yukon, Canada, respectively. Our strategy includes delivering Net-Zero Greenhouse Gas ("GHG") emissions considering the full life cycle of exploration, development, mining activities and that of the metals we strive to produce. Follow GT Resources on LinkedIn, Twitter, and at www.gtresourcesinc.com. ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD "Derrick Weyrauch" President & CEO, Director For further information contact: Derrick Weyrauch, President & CEO Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Market Regulator (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 is not an offer or a solicitation of an offer of securities for sale in the United States of America. The common shares of GT Resources Inc. have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or an applicable exemption from registration. Information set forth in this press release may contain forward-looking statements. Forward-Looking statements are statements that relate to future, not past events. In this context, forward-looking statements often address a company's expected future business and financial performance, and often contain words such as "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect", and "intend", statements that an action or event "may", "might", "could", "should", or "will" be taken or occur, or other similar expressions. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause our actual results, performance or achievements, or other future events, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such factors include, among others, risks associated with project development; the need for additional financing; operational risks associated with mining and mineral processing; fluctuations in mineral and commodity prices; title matters; environmental liability claims and insurance; reliance on key personnel; the absence of dividends; competition; dilution; the volatility of our common share price and volume; and the impact of governmental entities. Forward-Looking statements are made based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date that statements are made and the Company undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking statements if these beliefs, estimates and opinions or other circumstances should change. Investors are cautioned against attributing undue certainty to forward-looking statements. Cabacal mine area drilling intersects local gold zone with 2.7 m @ 12.3 g/t Au from 65.0m LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Meridian Mining UK. S (TSX:MNO) (Frankfurt/Tradegate:2MM) (OTCQX:MRRDF) ("Meridian" or the "Company") is pleased to announce multiple intersections of strong Cu-Au-Ag mineralization (Table 1) from the ongoing drill programs at both the advanced Cabacal Cu-Au-Ag project ("Cabacal") and the Santa Helena Cu-Au-Ag & Zn project ("Santa Helena"). Both deposits are part of the 50km Cabacal VMS belt in Mato Grosso, Brazil. Drilling at Santa Helena has returned multiple intercepts of high-grade mineralization from shallow open-pitable depths. These include: CD-500: 14.3m @ 3.7 g/t AuEq from 49.0m, with a higher grade zone of 3.0m @ 8.2 g/t AuEq from 50.2m, CD-497: 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m, and CD-479: 6.0m @ 3.5 g/t AuEq from37.3m ("Figure 1"). The infill drilling at Cabacal includes results from the mine, and results from the Cabacal Northwest Extension ("CNWE"). Highlights from the mine area include CD-481: 2.7m @ 12.3 g/t AuEq from 65.0m, and CD-495: 7.1m @ 2.1 g/t AuEq from 52.9m ("Figure 2"). These results are part of the Cabacal's Preliminary Feasibility Study's ("PFS") drill program, now completed. Exploration and infill drilling continues at Santa Helena and Cabacal respectively and further assays are pending. Highlights Reported Today Strong results continue to reinforce the potential of Santa Helena as the next open pit target for the hub and spoke development strategy of the Cabacal VMS belt. Shallow high-grade Cu-Au-Ag & Zn mineralization at Santa Helena continues to be intercepted: CD-500 returns 14.3m @ 3.7 g/t AuEq from 49.0m, including 3.0m @ 8.2 g/t AuEq from 50.2m; CD-497 returns 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m, including 3.2m @ 11.0 g/t AuEq from 42.0m; CD-479 returns 6.0m @ 3.5 g/t AuEq from 37.3m, including 2.4m @ 5.9 g/t AuEq from 40.9m; Drilling at Cabacal defines more mineralization with highlights including: CD-481 returns 2.7m @ 12.3 g/t AuEq* from 65.0m; CD-495 returns 7.1m @ 2.1 g/t AuEq from 52.9m; and CD-484 returns 10.9m @ 1.6 g/t AuEq from 81.2m. *See technical note for separate AuEq equations for Santa Helena and Cabacal. Mr. Gilbert Clark, CEO, comments: "As we advance Brazil's largest and one of South America's most prospective and under-explored copper-gold & silver VMS belts, our 500th hole has delivered another high-grade mineralized intercept from the Santa Helena deposit, where resource and metallurgical programs continue. Cabacal's PFS program has now moved into the detailed engineering phase. Additional time was needed to complete the PFS's resource and technical programs, required to further improve the quality of the datasets, resulting in pushing the reporting to early Q1 2025. Near mine exploration and drilling programs continue; activities with further results are pending. Our development of the advanced Cabacal project positions the Company to emerge as Brazil's next near-term copper-gold & silver producer during a period of renewed investor interest in base and precious metals." Santa Helena Update The Santa Helena mine is located 10km to the southeast of Cabacal and is the first satellite deposit being developed as part of a hub and spoke strategy by the Company. The deposit is composed of a 1km zone of massive to semi massive sulphides hosting Cu-Au-Ag & Zn mineralization that is open along strike, which was partially mined in the mid 2000's. Drilling continues at Santa Helena with two rigs deployed. The ongoing release of results is now accelerating from the 2024 drill campaign ("Table 1"). Following initial results reported last month, with CD-4721 returning 12.9m @ 2.2g/t AuEq from 24.1m, new results that have now been reported include: CD-500: 14.3m @ 3.7g/t AuEq (0.4g/t Au, 0.4% Cu, 28.9g/t Ag & 6.3% Zn) from 49.0m; including: 3.0m @ 8.2g/t AuEq (1.1g/t Au, 1.4% Cu, 63.8g/t Ag & 12.2% Zn) from 50.2m; CD-497: 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq (1.7g/t Au, 2.3% Cu, 46.7g/t Ag & 6.3% Zn) from 41.2m; including: 3.2m @ 11.0g/t AuEq (2.3g/t Au, 3.7% Cu, 68.7g/t Ag & 9.6% Zn) from 42.0m; and CD-479 : 6.0m @ 3.5g/t AuEq (1.4g/t Au, 1.1% Cu, 21.7g/t Ag & 2.4% Zn) from 37.3m; including: 2.4m @ 5.9g/t AuEq (1.7g/t Au, 1.8% Cu, 41.2g/t Ag & 5.0% Zn) from 40.9m. Figure 1: Santa Helena results location map. The results continue to consolidate the resource potential of the western sector of the deposit. CD-500 is located down-dip from an earlier hole, CD-336, which returned 30.7m @ 1.1g/t AuEq (0.4g/t Au, 0.3% Cu, 4.0g/t Ag & 1.1% Zn) from 6.0m, including 5.7m @ 2.2g/t AuEq (1.4g/t Au, 0.6% Cu, 4.9g/t Ag & 0.5% Zn) from 6.0m)2. The intersection confirms a robust footprint of high-grade mineralization up dip from the western limits of historical underground mine development. 1 Meridian Mining News Release of June 11, 2024 CD-497 is located ~170m east-southeast of CD-500 , and down-dip from CD-416, which returned 16.6m @ 2.1g/t AuEq from 41.4m, including 6.8m @ 3.3g/t AuEq3. The new high-grade result of 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m continues to show continuity in the strike and the down-dip extent of the undeveloped VMS horizon. CD-479 traced the VMS horizon in undeveloped up-dip positions further east along strike again, positioned 150m from CD-497, and returned a shallow intersection of 6.0m @ 3.5g/t AuEq from 37.3m, consolidating a position intersected in neighbouring holes to the west (CD-421, CD-416, CD-360; "Figure 1"). Results from CD-489 appear to be more in the footwall roots of the system (10.0m @ 0.5g/t AuEq from 25.1m; 14.6m @ 0.4g/t AuEq from 37.9m; Table 1). CD-482, drilled to the north from CD-479's position, intersected a number of lower grade zones, including 2.7m @ 2.6 g/t AuEq from 35.8m. The position of the latest drilling platforms and results have been sent to the Company's geophysical consultancy, Core Geophysics, to design Bore-Hole Electromagnetic ("BHEM") survey programs, to assist in the modelling of the sulphide horizon hosting the Cu-Au-Ag and Zn mineralization. Drilling indicates a steeper geometry of the sulphide horizon to the north, in a position that may not have been well targeted by historical drilling. The BHEM programs are scheduled to commence shortly. On the completion of Santa Helena's inaugural resource program, the drilling will focus on the open "step-out" mineralization to the east, towards the adjoining Alamo prospect. Cabacal Update Further drill results continue to be delivered from the Company's programs at the advanced Cabacal mine ("Figure 2), including holes from the Northwest Extension ("CNWE") and the mine area's Southern Copper Zone ("SCZ"). Recent drilling has included results from positions where a proportion of historical data has only been partially preserved, or not recovered. Results from the earlier phase of this confirmation program included CD-470, which returned 16.0m @ 12.5g/t AuEq from 53.3m, including 6.4m @ 30.6g/t AuEq4, and CD-483, which returned 10.1m @ 2.1g/t AuEq from 9.4m5. Additional holes have targeted a range of positions and expected grade distributions. Highlights from the recent drilling in and along strike from the mine area include: CD-481 (SCZ; twin of JUSPD-424): 2.7m @ 12.3g/t AuEq (12.3g/t Au & 2.4g/t Ag) from 65.0m (gold only zone); 8.8m @ 0.6g/t AuEq (0.2g/t Au, 0.3% Cu & 0.9g/t Ag) from 72.2m; CD-484 (CNWE infill): 10.9m @ 1.6g/t AuEq (0.6g/t Au, 0.7% Cu & 2.9g/t Ag) from 81.2m; CD-485 (SCZ extension; twin of JUSPD-567): 3.8m @ 2.0g/t AuEq (0.3g/t Au, 1.2% Cu & 5.1g/t Ag) from 18.7m; 8.1m @ 1.6g/t AuEq (1.4g/t Au, 0.2% Cu & 0.1g/t Ag) from 45.7m; 8.0m @ 1.2g/t AuEq (0.6g/t Au, 0.4% Cu & 0.9g/t Ag) from 56.5m; CD-486 (SCZ; twin of JUSPD-180): 10.7m @ 0.8g/t AuEq (0.7g/t Au, 0.1% Cu & 0.5g/t Ag) from 45.0m; 17.9m @ 1.0g/t AuEq (0.7g/t Au, 0.2% Cu & 1.0g/t Ag) from 57.7m; CD-487 (ECZ extension; twin of JUSPD-565); 15.3m @ 1.1g/t AuEq (0.3g/t Au, 0.5% Cu & 1.9g/t Ag) from 44.5m; CD-495 (SCZ extension; twin of JUSPD-557); 7.1m @ 2.1g/t AuEq (0.8g/t Au, 0.9% Cu & 1.7g/t Ag) from 52.9m; and 9.8m @ 1.4g/t AuEq (0.3g/t Au, 0.8% Cu & 7.4g/t Ag) from 63.5m. 2 Meridian Mining News Release of November 14, 2023. 3 Meridian Mining News Release of January 10, 2024. 4 Meridian Mining News release of May 07, 2024. 5 Meridian Mining News release of June 11, 2024. Figure 2: Cabacal results location map. Drill results have been provided to the Company's resource consultant to review, and work is underway to update geological surfaces based on the drill results to date. Results demonstrate good spans of copper-gold and gold-only mineralization both in and along strike from the historical mine development. Cabacal PFS Update The Cabacal PFS program has now moved into the detailed engineering phase, as the PFS drilling and metallurgical programs are largely completed. Drilling will continue to target internal infill, and open areas of mineralization, which will be used in the subsequent technical and economic studies. In order to maximise the quality of the dataset for the PFS, the in-fill resource drill program, metallurgical and geotechnical programs have taken longer to complete than initially forecast. Unexpected difficulties in drilling out the northwestern most limb of the PEA resource, due to the topography, drill azimuths and angles, impacted the scheduled meterage advancement in the later part of Q2. This has combined to push back the PFS's reporting until early Q1 2025. About Meridian Meridian Mining is focused on: The development and exploration of the advanced stage Cabacal VMS goldcopper project; The initial resource definition at the second high-grade VMS asset at Santa Helena as first stage of Hub and Spoke development strategy; Regional scale exploration of the Cabacal VMS belt to expand the Hub and Spoke strategy; and Exploration in the Jauru & Araputanga Greenstone belts (the above all located in the State of Mato Grosso, Brazil). The Preliminary Economic Assessment technical report (the "PEA Technical Report") dated March 30, 2023, entitled: "Cabacal Gold-Copper Project NI 43-101 Technical Report and Preliminary Economic Assessment, Mato Grosso, Brazil" outlines a base case after-tax NPV5 of USD 573 million and 58.4% IRR from a pre-production capital cost of USD 180 million, leading to capital repayment in 10.6 months (assuming metals price scenario of USD 1,650 per ounces of gold, USD 3.59 per pound of copper, and USD 21.35 per ounce of silver). Cabacal has a low All-in-Sustaining-Cost of USD 671 per ounce gold equivalent for the first five years, driven by high metallurgical recovery, a low life-of-mine strip ratio of 2.1:1, and the low operating cost environment of Brazil. The Cabacal Mineral Resource estimate consists of Indicated resources of 52.9 million tonnes at 0.6g/t gold, 0.3% copper and 1.4g/t silver and Inferred resources of 10.3 million tonnes at 0.7g/t gold, 0.2% copper & 1.1g/t silver (at a 0.3 g/t gold equivalent cut-off grade). Santa Helena mine area generated an initial Exploration Target with a tonnage range of 3.2 -7.2 Mt grading between 3.0 - 3.2g/t AuEq*, which gives a potential high-grade metal inventory range of between 306,000 to 763,000 AuEq ounces, located within 10km of the proposed Cabacal mill site. Readers are encouraged to read the PEA Technical Report in its entirety. The PEA Technical Report may be found on the Company's website at www.meridianmining.co and under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The qualified persons for the PEA Technical Report are: Robert Raponi (P. Eng), Principal Metallurgist with Ausenco Engineering), Scott Elfen (P. E.), Global Lead Geotechnical and Civil Services with Ausenco Engineering), Simon Tear (PGeo, EurGeol), Principal Geological Consultant of H&SC, Marcelo Batelochi, (MAusIMM, CP Geo), Geological Consultant of MB Geologia Ltda, Joseph Keane (Mineral Processing Engineer; P.E), of SGS, and Guilherme Gomides Ferreira (Mine Engineer MAIG) of GE21 Consultoria Mineral. On behalf of the Board of Directors of Meridian Mining UK S Mr. Gilbert Clark - CEO and Director Meridian Mining UK S Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Ph: +1 778 715-6410 (BST) Stay up to date by subscribing for news alerts here: https://meridianmining.co/contact/ Follow Meridian on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MeridianMining Further information can be found at: www.meridianmining.co Technical Notes Samples have been analysed at ALS laboratory in Lima, Peru. Samples are dried, crushed with 70% passing 85% passing 200m. Routine gold analyses have been conducted by AuAA24 (fire assay of a 50g charge with AAS finish). Highgrade samples (>10g/t Au) are repeated with a gravimetric finish (AuGRA22), and base metal analysis by methods ME-ICP61 and OG62 (four acid digest with ICP-AES finish). Visible gold intervals are sampled by metallic screen fire assay method AuSCR21. Samples are held in the Company's secure facilities until dispatched and delivered by staff and commercial couriers to the laboratory. Pulps and coarse rejects are retained and returned to the Company for storage. The Company submits a range of quality control samples, including blanks and gold and polymetallic standards supplied by Rocklabs, ITAK and OREAS, supplementing laboratory quality control procedures. Approximately 5% of archived samples are sent for umpire laboratory analysis, including any lots exhibiting QAQC outliers after discussion with the laboratory. In BP Minerals sampling, gold was analysed historically by fire assay and base metals by three acid digest and ICP finish at the Nomos laboratory in Rio de Janeiro. Silver was analysed by aqua regia digest with an atomic absorption finish. True width is considered to be 80-90% of intersection width. Assay figures and intervals are rounded to 1 decimal place. Gold equivalents for Cabacal are calculated as: AuEq(g/t) = (Au(g/t) * %Recovery) + (1.492*(Cu% * %Recovery)) + (0.013*(Ag(g/t) * %Recovery)), where: Au_recovery_ppm = 5.4368ln(Au_Grade_ppm)+88.856 Cu_recovery_pct = 2.0006ln(Cu_Grade_pct)+94.686 Ag_recovery_ppm = 13.342ln(Ag_Grade_ppm)+71.037 Recoveries based on 2022 metallurgical testwork on core submitted to SGS Lakefield Gold equivalents for Santa Helena are based on metallurgical recoveries from the historical resource calculation, updated with pricing forecasts aligned with the Cabacal PEA. AuEq (g/t) = (Au_(g/t) * 65%Recovery) + (1.492*Cu(%) * 89%Recovery) + (0.474*Zn% * 89%Recovery)) + (0.013Ag(g/t) * 61%Recovery)). Qualified Person Mr. Erich Marques, B.Sc., MAIG, Chief Geologist of Meridian Mining and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed, and verified the technical information in this news release. FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS Some statements in this news release contain forward-looking information or forward-looking statements for the purposes of applicable securities laws. These statements address future events and conditions and so involve inherent risks and uncertainties, as disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in Meridian's most recent Annual Information Form filed on www.sedarplus.ca. While these factors and assumptions are considered reasonable by Meridian, in light of management's experience and perception of current conditions and expected developments, Meridian can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Meridian disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or results or otherwise. Table 1: Assay results reported in this release. Santa Helena Cabacal MONTREAL, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Cerro de Pasco Resources Inc. (CSE: CDPR) (OTCPK: GPPRF) (FRA: N8HP) (CDPR or the Corporation) is pleased to announce the closing of its previously announced non-brokered private placement, for total aggregate gross proceeds of $3,298,000 (the "Offering"). CDPR issued 32,980,000 units of the Corporation ("Units") at a price of $0.10 per Unit, each consisting of one common share (a "Common Share") and one Common Share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles its holder to purchase one Common Share at an exercise price of $0.15 per Common Share for a period of 24 months, subject to acceleration in certain circumstances (see news release dated June 27, 2024 for details). Eric Sprott, a new insider of the Corporation, acquired 20,000,000 Units under the Offering through 2176423 Ontario Ltd., a corporation beneficially owned by him. 2176423 Ontario Ltd. also acquired 17,000,000 Common Shares from an existing shareholder of the Corporation through a share purchase agreement. Mr. Sprott now beneficially owns or controls 37,000,000 Common Shares and 20,000,000 Warrants, representing approximately 9.0% of the outstanding Common Shares on a non-diluted basis and 13.3% on a partially diluted basis assuming the exercise of such Warrants. These securities were acquired by Mr. Sprott for investment purposes. Mr. Sprott has a long-term view of the investment and may increase or decrease his beneficial ownership of or control over the Corporations securities in the future, whether in the open market, by privately negotiated agreements or otherwise, subject to a number of factors, including general market conditions and business opportunities. Mr. Guy Goulet, CEO of Cerro de Pasco commented, We are pleased to close this critical funding round and in parallel delighted to welcome Mr. Sprott as an investor into Cerro de Pasco Resources. We look forward to moving ahead with drilling activities at the Quiulacocha Tailings Project in late July, with the objective of producing a master plan for reprocessing the entire Quiulacocha tailings resource. A copy of the early warning report with respect to the foregoing will appear on Cerro de Pascos profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and may also be obtained by calling Mr. Sprotts office at (416) 945- 3294 (2176423 Ontario Ltd., 1106-7 King Street East, Toronto Ontario M5C 3C5). The net proceeds from the Offering will be used for drilling and general working capital. All securities issued in connection with the Offering are subject to a statutory hold period ending four-month-and-one-day from the date of their issuance, in accordance with applicable securities laws. The securities issued under the Offering 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 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, United States persons absent registration or any applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of any offer to buy securities in the United States, nor in any other jurisdiction. The Quiulacocha Tailings CDPR is the titleholder of the concession located in Peru called El Metalurgista, which grants it the right to explore and exploit the Quiulacocha Tailings located within its assigned area. The enforceability of these rights has been formally confirmed by the General Mining Bureau of Peruvian Ministry of Energy and Mines. The Quiulacocha Tailings Storage Facility covers approximately 115 hectares and is estimated to hold approximately 75 million tonnes of material processed from the 1920s to 1990s. The Quiulacocha Tailings Storage Facility is comprised of processing residues that came from the Cerro de Pasco open pit and underground mine. Noteworthy reports indicate an estimated 458 million ounces of silver equivalent across silver, zinc, copper, lead and gold within the tailings. There is also evidence of additional valuable metals such as germanium, tellurium, indium, and gallium; this resource has not been confirmed yet. Initially, these tailings resulted from the mining of 16+ million tonnes of copper-silver-gold mineralization with reported historical grades of up to 10% Cu, 4 g/t Au and over 300 g/t Ag and later from the mining of 58+ million tonnes of zinc-lead-silver mineralized material with average historical grades of 7.41% Zn, 2.77% Pb and 90.33 g/t Ag. With minimal mining costs due to surface-level material and current reprocessing capacity at adjacent plants, CDPR's Quiulacocha Project stands out as one of Peru's key mining initiatives. This endeavor not only promises economic benefits but also aims to restore the environment and create employment opportunities, aligning with the local community's needs. Technical Information Mr. Jorge Lozano, MMSAQP and Chief Operating Officer for CDPR, has reviewed and approved the scientific and technical information contained in this news release. Mr. Lozano is a Qualified Person for the purposes of reporting in compliance with National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects. About Cerro de Pasco Resources Cerro de Pasco Resources is a mining company, with the goal to become the next mid-tier producer in Peru. CDPR is focused on the development of its principal 100% owned asset, the El Metalurgista mining concession, comprising mineral tailings and stockpiles extracted from the Cerro de Pasco open pit mine in Central Peru. The Corporations approach at El Metalurgista entails the reprocessing and environmental remediation of mining waste and the creation of numerous opportunities in a circular economy. Forward-Looking Statements and Disclaimer Certain information contained herein may constitute forward-looking information under Canadian securities legislation. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified using forward-looking terminology such as plans, seeks, expects, estimates, intends, anticipates, believes, could, might, likely or variations of such words, or statements that certain actions, events or results may, will, could, would, might, will be taken, occur, be achieved or other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements, including the expectations of CDPRs management regarding the use of net proceeds raised under the Offering as well as the business and the expansion and growth of CDPRs operations, are based on CDPRs estimates and are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of CDPR to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or forward-looking information. Forward-looking statements are subject to business and economic factors and uncertainties and other factors, that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements, including the relevant assumptions and risks factors set out in CDPRs public documents, available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. 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. Although CDPR believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements and forward-looking information. Except where required by applicable law, CDPR disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Further Information Guy Goulet, CEO Telephone: +1-579-476-7000 Mobile: +1-514-294-7000 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Cerro de Pasco Resources Inc. 203 22 Lafleur Av. N Saint-Sauveur, Quebec J0R 1R0 Vancouver, British Columbia, July 8, 2024 TheNewswire Manning Ventures Inc. (the Company or Manning) (CSE: MANN; Frankfurt: 1H5) is pleased to announce it has received all geochemical analysis from ALS Global for the soil geochemistry program conducted on the 896.3 Ha (2,215 acres) Copper Hill project located 40 kms northeast of Hawthorne, Nevada, USA. The soil geochemistry program consisted of collecting 216 samples along north-south lines trending lines spaced 90 meters (300 feet) apart with samples collect at stations spaced 60 meters (200 feet) apart. In addition to the Laboratorys internal QA/QC procedures a program of inserting Certified Referenced Material ("CRM") into the sampling stream was employed. The program was designed to test for and expand on the copper skarn mineralization that occurs at Copper Hill. This geochemical data was compiled with the recent Gravity and historic Magnetic data to aid the company in defining suitable targets to be tested by diamond drilling. The results of the geochemistry survey identified two board geochemical anomalous trends. On the northern portion of the grid a prominent east-west zone anomalous in iron, copper and gold, and in the southwestern portion of the grid a prominent northwesterly trending zone, anomalous in Tungsten, Molybdenum and Arsenic. Together these anomalous zones form a broad Halo encircling the mountain called Copper Hill. The northern portion of the grid shows a broad east-west trending zone that is anomalous in copper, iron and gold. This trend extends for 800 meters east-west and is up to 200 meters wide. The zone is sub parallel with a number of interpreted structural lineaments identified by earlier magnetics surveys. The second anomalous trend occurs on the southwestern portion of the grid where tungsten, molybdenum and arsenic appear more concentrated in a northwesterly trending zone parallel to the interpreted structural lineaments. The company is encouraged by the results of the geochemical survey as this data enhances its understanding of the skarn mineralization occurring there. Image 1: Copper ppm in soils-preliminary data, Copper Hill Project, Nevada, USA The Company is currently planning a first phase drill program at Copper Hill and anticipates announcing details shortly. Image 2: Location of Copper Hill, Walker Lane Trend, Nevada, USA About the Copper Hill Project Located within the prolific Walker Lane trend in southern Nevada, Copper Hill is situated one of the premier jurisdictions for precious metals mining in the world. Historic endowment within Walker Lane includes 50Moz Au, 700Moz Ag, and 4Mt Cu. Copper Hill hosts copper-gold-molybdenum mineralization in both porphyry and skarn styled deposits in Mineral County, Nevada. The property consists of 108 mineral claims covering an area of 893-ha, located 22 miles north of Hawthorne, Nevada and is accessible using well-maintained County Roads. The Project is centered on a Jurassic Age quartz monzonite porphyry intruding Triassic age Luning Limestone. The claims cover 2.3 sq miles and are 33 miles east of the Yerington Copper District which hosts the Yerington Copper Mine (Anaconda 1952-1978), Ann Mason Deposit, Bear Deposit, MacArthur Deposit, and the Pumpkin Hollow Mine. Historically at Copper Hill, reported high-grade copper was mined from underground shafts from skarn and porphyry-copper styled mineralization at the Copper Mountain Mine. Between 1914 to 1926 mining from the Copper Mountain Mine produced an estimated 1,000,000 pounds of copper from shallow underground workings. Historic reporting from the period of production describes ore zones of contact skarn- type and porphyry-type mineralization with shipping grades ranging from 3.5 to 11.0% copper*. *Historic Mining information was summarized from an Unpublished Report on the Carson Sink Area, Nevada by F.C. Schrader, U.S. Geological Survey (Field work 1911-1920) 1947. Manning Ventures cautions investors that the historic exploration and production information is believed to be accurate but has not been verified by a qualified person. The Copper Hill mineralizing system forms a topographic high surrounded and partially covered by younger volcanic rocks. Mineralization identified at Copper Hill are bornite, chalcocite, chalcopyrite, chrysocolla, copper-native, covellite, cuprite, gold, malachite, molybdenite, silver, sphalerite (rare), and tetrahedrite. The Copper Mountain area was explored between 1959 to 1979 by Idaho Minning Corp. and Walker-Martel who conducted ground geophysics, underground mapping, prospecting and reported 6000 feet of Rotary drilling. Since that time ground magnetics were conducted in 2007. Rock sampling collected at this time returned values from select samples of 7.2% and 12.7% copper and 1.06 g/t gold and 1.19 g/t gold respectively. The target being sought at Copper Hill is a porphyry styled copper-molybdenum-gold deposit. Warren Robb P.Geo., is the designated Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and is responsible for the technical information contained in this release. About Manning Manning Ventures is a mineral exploration and development company focused metals and materials critical to the growing Energy Metals space. Mannings project portfolio is focused on Copper in Nevada, Lithium/Copper in Ontario and Quebec, and multiple Iron Ore projects in Quebec. For further information contact: Manning Ventures Inc. Alex Klenman - CEO Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Telephone: (604) 681-0084 www.manning-ventures.com FORWARD LOOKING STATEMENTS The Canadian Securities Exchange does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this news release. Certain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation), including, without limitation, the Companys payment of the Exercise Price during the Option Term, the granting of the net smelter return royalty to the Optionor, and the Companys payment of the annual minimum payments to the Optionor. These statements address future events and conditions and, as such, involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance, or achievements expressed or implied by the statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date those statements are made. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause the actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include regulatory actions, market prices, and continued availability of capital and financing, and general economic, market or business conditions. Investors are cautioned that any such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs, estimates and opinions of the Company's management on the date the statements are made. Except as required by applicable law, the Company assumes no obligation to update or to publicly announce the results of any change to any forward-looking statement contained or incorporated by reference herein to reflect actual results, future events or developments, changes in assumptions, or changes in other factors affecting the forward-looking statements. If the Company updates any forward-looking statement(s), no inference should be drawn that it will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements. Drilling at T11 Target intersects four significant sulphide-rich intervals VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Bravo Mining Corp. (TSX.V: BRVO) (OTCQX: BRVMF), ("Bravo" or the "Company") has received assay results from the two drills hole at the "T5" target, and intersected sulphide mineralization in drilling at the "T11" electromagnetic ("EM") target at its 100% owned Luanga Project ("Luanga") which includes the Luanga palladium + platinum + rhodium + gold + nickel deposit, in the Carajas Mineral Province, Brazil. "Bore-Hole EM (BHEM) is now progressing on all holes at EM target T5. This will better define the orientation of mineralization ahead of drill testing. Whilst it was anticipated from the lesser amounts of copper mineralization in DDH2405T003 that grade may not be as high as assay results from previous holes, this intersect extends the higher-grade copper-gold mineralization over a significant area. Target T5 therefore remains open along strike and depth which is interpreted to be very promising" said Luis Azevedo, Chairman and CEO. "Drilling also continues to advance other targets within the portfolio of EM anomalies. At T11, drilling of BHEM anomalies has intersected multiple zones of sulphide mineralization and while this is also very encouraging, we are still at early stage of these discoveries with a regular flow of exciting news expected in near future" he said. Hole DDH2405T003 at T5 Target, located 50m west and along strike of previously reported high-grade hole DDH2405T002, intersected 5.2m of semi-massive/breccia hosted copper sulphide mineralization grading 3.1% Cu and 1.1g/t Au (Figure 2). Copper-gold mineralization at T5 Target remains open at depth and along strike. BHEM surveys at T5 is in progress, including holes DDH2405T003, 04, 05 and 06 which will position Bravo for the August drill program. At T11, drill hole DDH2411T002 intersected four significant sulphide-rich intervals within a broader alteration zone. Pyrrhotite > pentlandite >> chalcopyrite is present as patches/veins, locally massive to semi-massive textures (Figure 1. Assays pending). BHEM in progress. Figure 1: Massive sulphide mineralization in DDH2411T002 at T11 (224.1m to 224.4m downhole). Open along strike and at depth. Exploration Drilling Update Assay results have been received from diamond drill holes DDH2405T003 and DDH2405T005 at the T5 target, located 1km east of the Luanga PGM Deposit. Drill hole DDH2405T006 has also been completed and intersected strong alteration interpreted to be proximal to the mineralization (assays pending). BHEM was completed on the pilot hole (DDH2311T001) at HeliTEM target "T11". BHEM anomalies defined from this drill hole indicated that the targets were deeper, below the drill hole. These refined targets were then successfully tested by DDH2411T002, which intersected sulphide mineralization. Together, this drilling of HeliTEM and BHEM anomalies comprises a total of 1,179 metres. Bravo continues to conduct systematic first-pass drilling, coupled with BHEM, on the priority EM conductors identified by the HeliTEM survey. Although these modelled HeliTEM conductors have a lower degree of locational accuracy, they are sufficiently defined to position first-pass drilling proximal to the conductor's location. From there, BHEM provides more precise location of EM anomalies for drill testing. Of the 17 priority EM anomalies identified in the HeliTEM survey (see press release September 11, 2023), Bravo had narrowed this list to 11 high priority conductors that warranted follow-up drilling of predominantly off-hole BHEM conductors. T5, T6, T16 and now T11 are four of these 11 HeliTEM targets. T5 Target Figure 2 shows the mineralization intersected in DDH2405T003 at the T5 target (Figure 5), located 50m west and along strike of previously reported high-grade copper-gold mineralization in hole DDH2405T002 (see press release May 28, 2023) which intercepted 11.48m at 14.3% Cu, 3.3g/t Au including 2.9m at 22.9% Cu, 3.6g/t Au. Figure 2: Breccia copper sulphides in DH2405T003 (158.9 162.5m shown). Drill hole DDH2405T003 (Figure 3) intersected 5.2m (grading 3.1% Cu, 1.1g/t Au) of breccia-hosted copper sulphide mineralization, at the T5 target. Like hole DDH2405T002, located 50m to the east, mineralization is interpreted to be consistent with typical copper/gold mineralization seen in the Carajas Mineral Province, and unrelated to the Luanga PGM+Au+Ni Deposit. DDH2405T006 (Figure 3. Assays pending) has been completed down-dip of (below) hole DH2405T002, intersecting significant hydrothermal alteration consistent with that expected proximal (close) to the mineralization. Drilling is paused while BHEM (Figure 4) is completed on drill holes DDH2405T003, DDH2405T004, DDH2405T005 and DDH2405T006 to better establish the dip/plunge of mineralization before the next round of drilling. DDH2405T005, located up dip of (above) DDH2405T002 (Figure 3), intersected weathered mineralization in the oxidized zone, where mineralization is interpreted to be weathered away. T5 mineralization remains open along strike, and down dip. BHEM surveying is in progress (Figure 4). Figure 3: Off-hole conductors at T5 generated from DDH2405T001. Location of drill holes DDH2405T003, DDH2405T005 and DDH2405T006. Figure 4: BHEM survey team in operation at the T5 Target drill holes DDH2405T003, DDH2405T004, DDH2405T005 and DDH2405T006. T11 Target The T11 target is located proximal to the ultramafic footwall of the Central Sector of the Luanga PGM+Au+Ni deposit. The pilot drill hole (DDH2311T001, Figure 5) targeting the HeliTEM anomaly was shown to be too shallow and was drilled up-dip of the EM conductors which were subsequently better defined by BHEM to be deeper. DDH2411T002 (Figure 5) targeted the center of this group of 10 conductors at a more appropriate depth, successfully intersecting four zones of mineralization within an approximately 190m wide hydrothermal alteration zone. Figure 6 shows the intersected mineralization, which consists of four sulphide-rich intervals within the hydrothermal alteration system. Mineralization presents as patches and veins, locally reaching massive (Figure 1) to semi-massive textures. The main sulphide paragenesis is pyrrhotite > pentlandite (Ni sulphide) >> chalcopyrite (Cu sulphide), thus generating a strong EM response made up of multiple conductors, which present as the four sulphide-rich zones intersected. Assays are pending. Figure 5: Off-hole conductors at T11 generated from DDH2411T001. Location of drill holes DDH2411T001 and 002 At 96m depth drill hole DDH2411T002 intersects the ultramafic footwall of the Luanga deposit, intersecting an Fe-Ca alteration system which consists of magnetite, grunerite, hornblende, actinolite, biotite and almandine. This mineralogical assemblage is similar to other IOCG-style mineralized systems that occur within the Carajas Mineral Province, and is likely unrelated to the primary Luanga PGM deposit mineralization which is at a stratigraphically higher level. BHEM will be completed on DDH2411T002 prior to commencing follow-up drilling. Figure 6: DDH2411T002 Sulphide mineralization patches and veins, locally reaching massive/semi-massive (215m to 230m shown). Drill Results Status Update A total of 304 drill holes have been completed to date by Bravo, for 65,113 metres, including 8 metallurgical holes (not subject to routine assaying). Results have been reported for 252 Bravo drill holes to date. Assay results for 44 Bravo drill holes that have been completed are currently outstanding (excluding the metallurgical holes). Bravo plans to extend the current EM drilling program from 3,000m to 8,000m, to continue drilling testing and follow up drilling of EM anomalies. Complete Table of Recent Intercepts. HOLE-ID Target From (m) To (m) Thickness (m) Cu (%) Sulphide Au (g/t) TYPE DDH2405T003 T5 157.91 163.10 5.19 3.10 1.12 FR DDH2405T005 T5 43.50 48.50 5.00 0.59 0.19 FR DDH2411T001 T11 No Significant Result Notes: All 'From', 'To' depths, and 'Thicknesses' are downhole. Based on the limited drilling data available, the true thickness of mineralization is currently unknown. Type: FR = Fresh Rock. Recovery methods and results will differ based on the type of mineralization. * Bravo's Copper/nickel grades are sulphide, and do not include non-recoverable silicates. Figure 7: Location of Bravo Drilling at the T5 and T11 targets, reported in this News Release About Bravo Mining Corp. Bravo is a Canadian and Brazil-based mineral exploration and development company focused on advancing its Luanga Project in the world-class Carajas Mineral Province of Brazil Bravo is the most active explorer in Carajas. The team, comprising local and international geologists, has a proven track record of PGM, nickel, and copper discoveries in the region. They have successfully taken a past IOCG greenfield project from resource definition to development and production in Carajas. The Luanga Project is situated on mature freehold farming land and benefits from being in a location close to operating mines and a mining-experienced workforce, with excellent access and proximity to existing infrastructure, including road, rail, and clean renewable hydro grid power. A fully funded 63,000m infill, step out and exploration drilling and trenching program is well advanced for 2024. Bravo's current Environmental, Social and Governance activities includes planting more than 30,000 high-value trees in the project area, hiring and contracting locally, and ensuring protection of the environment during its exploration activities. Technical Disclosure Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Simon Mottram, F.AusIMM (Fellow Australia Institute of Mining and Metallurgy), President of Bravo Mining Corp. who serves as the Company's "qualified person" as defined in National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101"). Mr. Mottram has verified the technical data and opinions contained in this news release. For further information about Bravo, please visit www.bravomining.com or contact: Luis Azevedo, Chairman and CEO or Alex Penha, EVP Corporate Development T: +1-416-509-0583 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. 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 information which is not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking information is characterized by words such as "very", "encouraging", "promising", "exciting", "priority", "successfully", "discovery", "strong EM response", variants of these words and other similar words, phrases, or statements that certain events or conditions "may" or "will" occur. This news release contains forward-looking information pertaining to the Company's ongoing drill program and the results thereof; the potential for new and/or different styles of mineralization in some areas, such as IOCG-style, the presence of which is publicly well documented in the Carajas mineral province; whether or not the mineralization interested at T5 and/or T11 is in fact IOCG-style, some variant of such or another style of mineralization; the potential continuity of mineralization between holes; the grades and implications of unassayed holes; the visual and XRF identification of minerals in the core; whether the mineralization at T5 and T11 is open to expansion or not; whether the other anomalies are related to mineralization; and the Company's plans in respect thereof. Forward-looking information involves risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events, results, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from such forward-looking information include, but are not limited to, unexpected results from exploration programs, changes in the state of equity and debt markets, fluctuations in commodity prices, delays in obtaining required regulatory or governmental approvals, environmental risks, limitations on insurance coverage; and other risks and uncertainties involved in the mineral exploration and development industry. Forward-looking information in this news release is based on the opinions and assumptions of management considered reasonable as of the date hereof, including, but not limited to, the assumption that the assay results confirm that the interpreted along strike and up and down dip; that activities will not be adversely disrupted or impeded by regulatory, political, community, economic, environmental and/or healthy and safety risks; that the Luanga Project will not be materially affected by potential supply chain disruptions; and general business and economic conditions will not change in a materially adverse manner. Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking information in this news release are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on such information. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information, other than as required by applicable securities laws. Schedule 1: Drill Hole Collar Details HOLE-ID Company East (m) North (m) RL (m) Datum Depth (m) Azimuth Dip Area DDH2405T003 Bravo 660800.010 9343224.570 195.120 SIRGAS2000_UTM_22S 180.20 180.00 -60.00 T5 Target DDH2405T005 Bravo 660850.000 9343175.020 194.850 SIRGAS2000_UTM_22S 125.05 180.00 -60.00 T5 Target DDH2405T006 Bravo 660850.030 9343284.780 188.240 SIRGAS2000_UTM_22S 350.75 180.00 -60.00 T5 Target DDH2311T001 Bravo 659829.736 9341203.238 180.447 SIRGAS2000_UTM_22S 233.70 330.00 -60.00 T11 Target DDH2411T002 Bravo 659859.870 9341160.210 178.870 SIRGAS2000_UTM_22S 288.90 330.00 -60.00 T11 Target Schedule 2: Assay Methodologies and QAQC Samples follow a chain of custody between collection, processing, and delivery to the SGS Geosol laboratory in Parauapebas, state of Para, Brazil. The drill core is delivered to the core shack at Bravo's Luanga site facilities and processed by geologists who insert certified reference materials, blanks, and duplicates into the sampling sequence. Drill core is half cut and placed in secured polyurethane bags, then in security-sealed sacks before being delivered directly from the Luanga site facilities to the Parauapebas SGS Geosol laboratory by Bravo staff. Additional information about the methodology can be found on the SGS Geosol website (SGS) in their analytical guides. Information regarding preparation and analysis of historic drill core is also presented in the table below, where the information is known. Quality Assurance and Quality Control ("QAQC") is maintained internally at the lab through rigorous use of internal certified reference materials, blanks, and duplicates. An additional QAQC program is administered by Bravo using certified reference materials, duplicate samples and blank samples that are blindly inserted into the sample batch. If a QAQC sample returns an unacceptable value an investigation into the results is triggered and when deemed necessary, the samples that were tested in the batch with the failed QAQC sample are re-tested. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Zodiac Gold Inc. (TSXV: ZAU) ("Zodiac Gold" or the "Company"), a West-African gold exploration company, is pleased to announce that it has closed the second tranche of its private placement (the "Offering") for gross proceeds of approximately CAD$506,560.00 (the "Second Tranche"), as previously announced on May 6, May 23, and June 25, 2024. The Company intends to use the net proceeds from the Offering to continue exploration and drilling at its flagship Todi Gold Project in the Republic of Liberia, West Africa and for working capital purposes. In the Second Tranche the Company issued 5,065,600 units of the Company (the "Units") at a price of CAD$0.10 per Unit. Each Unit consists of one common share of the Company (a "Common Share") and one common share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to acquire one Common Share (a "Warrant Share") at a price of CAD$0.20 per Warrant Share for a period of 24 months following the closing date of the Second Tranche. The Company paid finder's fees to certain finders, consisting of a cash fee of $17,150 and 171,500 finder warrants (the "Finder Warrants") pursuant to the Second Tranche. Each Finder Warrant entitles the holder to acquire one Unit at a price of CAD$0.10 per share for a period of 24 months from the date of issuance. Each Finder Warrant is comprised of one Common Share and one Warrant. Due to increased demand, the Company has further increased the size of the Offering from CAD$1.2 million to CAD$1.4 million, which is subject to TSXV approval. The Company expects to close on the balance of the Offering on or before July 15, 2024. All securities issued pursuant to the Second Tranche, including Common Shares issuable upon the exercise of Warrants, are and will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day after the date of closing of the Second Tranche. The Offering remains subject to TSXV final approval. The securities described herein 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 accordingly, may not be offered or sold within the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities requirements or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any securities in any jurisdiction. Insider Participation Certain directors of the Company have acquired Units under the Offering. Such participation is considered to be a "related party transaction" as defined under the policies of the TSXV and Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company is relying on exemptions from the minority shareholder approval and formal valuation requirements applicable to the related-party transactions under sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a), respectively, of MI 61-101, as neither the fair market value of the Units acquired by the participating directors nor the consideration to be paid by such directors 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 Second Tranche, which the Company deems reasonable in the circumstances in order to close the Offering in an expeditious manner. About Zodiac Gold Zodiac Gold Inc. (TSXV: ZAU) is a West-African gold exploration company focused on its flagship Todi Project situated in Liberia-an underexplored, politically stable, mining-friendly jurisdiction hosting several large-scale gold deposits. Strategically positioned along the fertile Todi Shear Zone, Zodiac Gold is developing a district-scale gold opportunity covering a vast 2,316 km2 land package. The project has undergone de-risking, showcasing proven gold occurrences at both surface and depth, with five drill-ready targets and high-grade gold intercepts. For further information, please visit the Zodiac Gold website at www.zodiac-gold.com or contact: David Kol President & CEO This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Forward-Looking Information This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. Forward-Looking statements include predictions, projections, and forecasts and are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "forecast", "expect", "potential", "project", "target", "schedule", "budget" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions and includes the negatives thereof. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this release, including, without limitation, statements regarding the Company's planned exploration programs and drill programs and potential significance of results are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Forward-Looking statements are based on a number of material factors and assumptions. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from Company's expectations include actual 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, uninsured risks, regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of personnel, materials, and equipment on a timely basis, accidents or equipment breakdowns, 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. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual actions, events, or results to differ from those described in forward-looking statements, there may be other factors that cause such actions, events, or results to differ materially from those anticipated. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, and accordingly readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The securities described herein have not been, and will not be, registered under the United States Securities Act, or any state securities laws, and accordingly may not be offered or sold within the United States except in compliance with the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities requirements or pursuant to exemptions therefrom. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy any securities in any jurisdiction. 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. Kamoa-Kakula produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate in Q2 2024 First concentrate from the Phase 3 concentrator achieved on June 10, 2024, ramp up to steady state expected in Q3 2024 DRC power grid infrastructure upgrades continue, as well as phased roll-out of on-site, backup generation capacity Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2024 financial results and host conference call for investors on July 31 Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of the Congo--(Newsfile Corp. - July 8, 2024) - Ivanhoe Mines (TSX: IVN) (OTCQX: IVPAF) Executive Co-Chair Robert Friedland and President Marna Cloete announced today that the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) produced 100,812 tonnes of copper in concentrate during the second quarter of 2024 and 186,925 tonnes of copper in the first half of 2024. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator is expected to ramp up to steady-state production in the third quarter, increasing annualized copper production capacity to over 600,000 tonnes. Ivanhoe Mines maintains its 2024 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula at between 440,000 to 490,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 1 and 2 concentrators milled approximately 2.3 million tonnes of ore during the second quarter at an average feed grade of 5.3% copper. Copper production from the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators was 99,706 tonnes during the quarter, at an average flotation recovery rate of 87.0%, exceeding the Phase 1 and 2 concentrator design recovery rate of 86.0%. Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator, which was recently completed months ahead of schedule, produced its first concentrate on June 10, 2024, and is undergoing the completion of hot commissioning. Since June 10, the Phase 3 concentrator has produced 1,100 tonnes of copper in concentrate. As of June 30, 2024, a total of 4.82 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.26% copper is stored in surface run-of-mine (ROM) stockpiles at Kamoa-Kakula. This includes 2.31 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 3.72% at Kakula and 2.51 million tonnes of ore at an average grade of 2.85% at Kamoa and Kansoko. The stockpiled ore, from the Kamoa and Kansoko mines, contains over 70,000 tonnes of copper and is being used for the hot commissioning and ramp-up of the new Phase 3 concentrator. (L-R) Kamoa Copper's Magloire Kashiba, Mine Managerial Lead; Dodo Mbay, Executive Head of Concentrators; and, Fabrice Nkomba, Mining Superintendent, holding the first batch of copper concentrate from the Phase 3 Concentrator. The bank of Larox filters with the first batch of concentrate produced by the Phase 3 concentrator on the left. The Phase 3 concentrator processes ore exclusively from the adjacent Kamoa and Kansoko underground mines. Dusk over the Phase 3 concentrator, which was recently completed months ahead of schedule. The Phase 3 concentrator and adjacent Kamoa and Kansoko underground mines are located approximately 10 kilometres to the north of the Phase 1 and 2 concentrators and smelter construction site. Stabilizing grid power improving mining rates and head grade As mentioned in the company's 2024 first quarter results on April 30, 2024, Kamoa Copper continues to work closely with the DRC's state-owned power company, La Societe Nationale d'Electricite (SNEL), to deliver solutions for the identified causes of instability experienced across the southern DRC's grid infrastructure since late 2022. The project work, funded by Kamoa Copper, commenced in March 2024 and is expected to be completed by late 2025. The funding is assigned to increasing transmission capacity and improving the reliability of the grid. Compared with previous quarters, production and mining head grades notably increased in the second quarter due to the improved stability of grid-supplied power. Improved grid stability allowed the underground crews to mine the higher-grade areas of the Kakula Mine, which are less accessible when power is unstable due to reduced underground water pumping availability. Since mid-March, grid power to Kamoa-Kakula has been supplemented by imported power via the Zambian interconnector. Currently, 55 megawatts (MW) of power is being imported from Zambia and Mozambique. Subject to capacity availability, Kamoa-Kakula's executive team are targeting up to 100 MW to be imported by year-end. As a redundancy measure, Kamoa Copper's engineering team continues to expand on-site backup generation capacity to ensure there will be full on-site backup for the Phase 1, 2 and 3 operations. On-site backup-power generation capacity is on schedule to increase to over 200 MW by the end of 2024. An additional 72 MW of new generation capacity has recently been delivered to site. Installation and commissioning of the new generators is expected to be complete in early August, increasing the total on-site generation capacity to 135 MW. ProMarks and Trafigura sign MOU with the Angolan government to build a 2,000 MW high-voltage "interconnector" to supply hydro-powered electricity in DRC and Zambia. On July 4, 2024, Trafigura Group of Geneva, Switzerland and ProMarks of Luanda, Angola signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Government of Angola to study the technical and economic viability of building a 2,000 MW high-voltage electricity "interconnector" (a high-voltage direct current transmission line) to export surplus green electricity to the DRC Copperbelt and Zambia. The project enables electricity generated by hydroelectric dams located in the north of Angola to be connected to the Southern Africa Power Pool. A joint venture will be formed between ProMarks and Trafigura to develop, finance, construct and operate the electricity "interconnector". The project is intended to be financed through a combination of equity capital and third-party debt. Planning, approvals and construction would take around four years after the final investment decision is made. See link to the full press release made by Trafigura: https://www.trafigura.com/news-and-insights/press-releases/2024/promarks-and-trafigura-sign-mou-with-the-angolan-government/ Ivanhoe Mines to issue Q2 2024 financial results and host conference call for investors on July 31 Ivanhoe Mines will report its Q2 2024 financial results, and a detailed update on its operations, before the market opens on Wednesday, July 31, 2024. The company will hold an investor conference call to discuss the Q2 2024 financial results on the same day. Details of the call will be shared closer to the date. An audio webcast recording of the conference call, together with supporting presentation slides, will be available on Ivanhoe Mines' website at www.ivanhoemines.com. After issuance, the Financial Statements and Management's Discussion and Analysis will be available at www.ivanhoemines.com and www.sedarplus.ca. Qualified Persons Disclosures of a scientific or technical nature at the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Steve Amos, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Amos is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is Ivanhoe Mines' Executive Vice President, Projects. Mr. Amos has verified the technical data disclosed in this news release. Other disclosures of a scientific or technical nature regarding the stockpiles in this news release have been reviewed and approved by Joshua Chitambala, who is considered, by virtue of his education, experience and professional association, a Qualified Person under the terms of NI 43-101. Mr. Chitambala is not considered independent under NI 43-101 as he is the Resource Manager for Ivanhoe Mines. Mr. Chitambala has verified the other technical data regarding the surface stockpiles disclosed in this news release. Ivanhoe has prepared an independent, NI 43-101-compliant technical report for the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, which is available on the company's website and under the company's SEDAR profile at www.sedarplus.ca: Kamoa-Kakula Integrated Development Plan 2023 Technical Report dated March 6, 2023, prepared by OreWin Pty Ltd.; China Nerin Engineering Co. Ltd.; DRA Global; Epoch Resources; Golder Associates Africa; Metso Outotec Oyj; Paterson and Cooke; SRK Consulting Ltd.; and The MSA Group. The technical report includes relevant information regarding the assumptions, parameters and methods of the mineral resource estimates on the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex cited in this news release, as well as information regarding data verification, exploration procedures and other matters relevant to the scientific and technical disclosure contained in this news release. About Ivanhoe Mines Ivanhoe Mines is a Canadian mining company focused on advancing its three principal projects in Southern Africa; the expansion of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC, the construction of the tier-one Platreef palladium-nickel-platinum-rhodium-copper-gold project in South Africa; and the restart of production at the ultra-high-grade Kipushi zinc-copper-germanium-silver mine, also in the DRC. Ivanhoe Mines also is exploring across circa 1,808 km2 of highly prospective, 60-100% owned exploration licences in the Western Forelands, located adjacent to the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex in the DRC. Ivanhoe is exploring for new sedimentary copper discoveries, as well as expanding and further defining its high-grade Makoko, Kiala, and Kitoko copper discoveries as the company's next major development projects. Information contact Follow Robert Friedland (@robert_ivanhoe) and Ivanhoe Mines (@IvanhoeMines_) on X. Investors Vancouver: Matthew Keevil +1.604.558.1034 London: Tommy Horton +44 7866 913 207 Media Tanya Todd +1.604.331.9834 Website: www.ivanhoemines.com Forward-looking statements Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the company, its projects, or industry results, to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information. Such statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "expect", "believe", "plan", "anticipate", "estimate", "scheduled", "forecast", "predict" and other similar terminology, or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information or statements. These statements reflect the company's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this news release. Such statements include, without limitation: (i) statements that Kamoa-Kakula's Phase 3 concentrator is expected to ramp up to steady-state production in the third quarter, increasing annualized copper production capacity to over 600,000 tonnes; (ii) statements regarding the company's maintain 2024 annual production guidance for Kamoa-Kakula being between 440,000 to 490,000 tonnes of copper in concentrate, (iii) statements regarding expectations that project work by SNEL to deliver solutions for the identified grid instability are expected to be completed in late 2025; (iv) statements that backup power generation at Kamoa-Kakula is scheduled to increase to over 200 MW by the end of 2024 and that installation and commissioning of the new generators is expected to be complete in early August, which will increase the total on-site generation capacity to 135 MW; and (v) statements regarding the MOU between Trafigura and ProMarks, including that a joint venture will be formed between ProMarks and Trafigura to develop, finance, construct and operate the electricity interconnector to export surplus green electricity from Angola to the DRC Copperbelt and Zambia. Furthermore, concerning this specific forward-looking information concerning the operation and development of the Kamoa-Kakula Copper Complex, the company has based its assumptions and analysis on certain factors that are inherently uncertain. Uncertainties include: (i) the adequacy of infrastructure; (ii) geological characteristics; (iii) metallurgical characteristics of the mineralization; (iv) the ability to develop adequate processing capacity; (v) the price of copper; (vi) the availability of equipment and facilities necessary to complete development and exploration; (vii) the cost of consumables and mining and processing equipment; (viii) unforeseen technological and engineering problems; (ix) accidents or acts of sabotage or terrorism; (x) currency fluctuations; (xi) changes in regulations; (xii) the compliance by joint venture partners with terms of agreements; (xiii) the availability and productivity of skilled labour; (xiv) the regulation of the mining industry by various governmental agencies; (xv) the ability to raise sufficient capital to develop such projects; (xvi) changes in project scope or design; (xvii) recoveries, mining rates and grade; (xviii) political factors; (xviii) water inflow into the mine and its potential effect on mining operations, and (xix) the consistency and availability of electric power. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether such results will be achieved. Many factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to, the factors discussed above and under the "Risk Factors" heading in the company's MD&A for the three months ended March 31, 2024, in the company's current annual information form, and elsewhere in this news release, as well as unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based upon what management of the company believes are reasonable assumptions, the company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release and are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. Subject to applicable securities laws, the company does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this press release. The company's actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of the factors outlined in the "Risk Factors" section of the company's MD&A for the three-month year ended March 31, 2024, in the company's current annual information and elsewhere in this news release. ROUYN-NORANDA, Quebec, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GLOBEX MINING ENTERPRISES INC. (GMX Toronto Stock Exchange, G1MN Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Berlin, Munich, Tradegate, Lang & Schwarz, LS Exchange, TTMzero, Dusseldorf and Quotrix Dusseldorf Stock Exchanges and GLBXF OTCQX International in the US) wishes to inform shareholders that, through a transaction with IAMGOLD Corporation (IAMGOLD, IMG-TSX, IAG-NYSE), Globex has acquired two gold projects located in the Abitibi West area of Quebec. Globex has acquired the former Eldrich Gold Mine (also called Pierre Beauchemin Gold Mine) northwest of Rouyn-Noranda and the Porcupine West Gold property, west of the town of Duparquet, Quebec. The transaction saw Globex acquiring these two properties in exchange for Globexs Rich Lake (base-metals) and Lac a lEau Jaune (gold) properties. Both Globex and IAMGOLD retain a one percent (1%) Net Smelter Royalty in their respective traded properties. The two additional royalties on Rich Lake and Lac a lEau Jaune bring Globexs royalty portfolio total to 105. No cash or shares were issued as part of the transaction. Eldrich Gold Mine The Eldrich Gold Mine is located 14 km northwest of Rouyn-Noranda and consists of 8 claims totalling 235.55 ha. Between 1955 and 1962, 652,400 t grading 4.8 g/t Au (100,679 oz. Au) was mined from 7 levels to a depth of 309 m (1,015 ft). In 1987, Cambior reported a resource of 1,433,100 t grading 5.3 g/t Au (244,195 oz Au). Mining began in 1989 and terminated in 1993. Remaining resources are reported as 213,317 t grading 5.8 g/t (39,788 oz Au) using cut-offs of 4 g/t Au and 30 g/t Au. (Note: In 1988, the gold price declined from a high of $483.00 per ounce to a low of $395.00 per ounce, finishing the year at $410.00 per ounce while a Cambior Profitability Study anticipated a price of $560.00 per ounce). Considering the 6X increase in the price of gold since the 1988 study, Globex considers that a fresh look at the exploration and economic potential of the mine property is very much warranted. It is worth noting that the area of the mine has not been drilled to any large extent below the 10th level (+/- 500 m). We consider that there is significant potential to depth as well as beyond the mine workings both to the north and south where historical drilling returned multiple ore grade gold intersections such as 7.46 g/t Au over 15.6 m and 6.53 g/t Au over 41,8 m and 4.36 g/t Au over 15 m in the Bounder Hill B Zone and 3.95 g/t Au over 38.0 m, 4.67 g/t Au over 51.0 m, 5.60 g/t Au over 40.3 m and 16.17 g/t Au over 7.0 m in the Boulder Hill A Zone, both located on strike north of the mine (note: lengths reported are core lengths from drilling undertaken between 1947 and 1953 as well as in 1974). Gold mineralization at the Eldrich Mine follows a north-northeast trend and dips 35o to 45o SE. Mineralization is associated with pyrite in four major rock types: meta-trondhjemite, meta-tonalite, hybrid rocks and meta-diorite, all spatially distributed as a series of sub-horizontal tabular sills that form a genetically related group. Porcupine West Property The Porcupine West property is located in Hebecourt Township, Quebec west of the town of Duparquet and consists of 89 claims totalling 4,711.27 hectares covering over 14 kilometres of the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break. Compiled data indicates that 355 drill holes totalling 52,339 m have been undertaken on the property including 153 RC Till holes. The average hole length is 270 m and the longest hole 1,122 m. A goodly number of geophysical surveys have been undertaken on the property including AEM and AMAG, IP, Ground EM and Mag as well as BeepMat surveys. Gold mineralization has been encountered at many locations along the +14km property strike length. Two areas were more intensely drilled including the Nemrod Zone over a strike length of 1.6 km and width of 280 m and the Structure 71 Zone consisting of numerous lenses, the Main Lenses being 200 m long and 2.5 m wide and tested to 120 m depth showing thicknesses of between 1.5 m and 5.6 m. Other lenses #2, #3 and #4 report gold values between 2 g/t Au and 6.7 g/t Au over varying widths of up to 3m. Globex considers that there is much potential untested on the property especially at depth and in structures both parallel and cross cutting to the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break. Mineralization consists principally of pyrite and minor arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite in bleach zones (K 2 O depletion and Na 2 O enrichment) crosscutting basalt. A historical resource of 195,300 t grading 5.2 g/t Au is reported, 156,630t grading 5.1 g/t Au being within the Main Lens. Several other areas on the property, such as the Hebecourt Lake and St-Francois occurrences, also report gold values. These areas have seen less drilling than the two previously mentioned areas. Acquiring +14 km of the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break positioned between the Beattie and Donchester Gold Mines to the east and Harker-Halloway Gold Mines to the west and the Eldrich Gold Mine northwest of Rouyn-Noranda, adds significant, prospective land positions to the gold asset base of Globex. Note: All technical and historical information disclosed in this press release is from data provided to Globex by IAMGOLD Corporation and Quebec government Sigeom files. Globex has not yet undertaken an in-depth study of all of the available technical data. This press release was written by Jack Stoch, P. Geo., President and CEO of Globex in his capacity as a Qualified Person (Q.P.) under NI 43-101. We Seek Safe Harbour. Foreign Private Issuer 12g3 2(b) CUSIP Number 379900 50 9 LEI 529900XYUKGG3LF9PY95 For further information, contact: Jack Stoch, P.Geo., Acc.Dir. President & CEO Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. 86, 14th Street Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec Canada J9X 2J1 Tel.: 819.797.5242 Fax: 819.797.1470 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. www.globexmining.com Forward Looking Statements: Except for historical information, this news release may contain certain forward looking statements. These statements may involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity and performance to be materially different from the expectations and projections of Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. (Globex). No assurance can be given that any events anticipated by the forward-looking information will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits Globex will derive therefrom. A more detailed discussion of the risks is available in the Annual Information Form filed by Globex on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Rights violations against civilians in conflict zones in Ethiopia have become more widespread, the national rights watchdog said in a report on Friday, denouncing extrajudicial killings and kidnappings. Despite the end of the brutal two-year war in the northern region of Tigray in November 2022, there are still a myriad of conflicts in the country, including in the Amhara and Oromia regions. "Human rights violations against civilians in the context of armed conflict are still concerning and in effect have become more widespread," the Ethiopia Human Rights Commission (ECHR) said in its annual report. The state-affiliated but independent body said displaced people, particularly women, children, the elderly and those with disabilities were particularly vulnerable. "Extrajudicial killings of civilians continue to be a concern in areas affected by ongoing or past armed conflicts and, in some cases, outside a context of conflict," it said. It also highlighted a "growing problem of kidnapping of civilians, including for ransom, as a grave concern in both Amhara and Oromia regions". Self-defence militias in Amhara known as Fano, which had fought alongside federal troops in the war against Tigrayan rebels, turned against them last year after the government of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced it was dissolving regional forces. However, the EHRC hailed the federal government's adoption in April of a "transitional justice policy" intended to resolve past grievances, violence and abuses in a bid to reconcile a deeply divided Ethiopia. This process, it said, "should be victim-centred, credible and transparent, and meet international standards and human rights principles". The EHRC's outgoing chief Daniel Bekele -- who is leaving after a five-year term -- said that the country remains "in the middle of a human rights crisis" because of the ongoing conflicts. "Unfortunately, the last few years has been a time of serious human rights crisis in Ethiopia, some of which may amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity," he told AFP in an interview on the sidelines of the launch of the report. But Bekele said he was proud of the fact that "we have successfully built a genuinely independent, credible, both locally and internationally accepted national human rights institution". Representatives from Sudan's army-aligned government refused to meet face-to-face with key civilian politicians at a conference in Cairo to discuss an end to the country's 15-month war. The conference in Egypt was meant to "initiate a Sudanese-Sudanese national dialogue" to "unify perspectives" for an end to the war between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, Egyptian foreign minister Badr Abdelaty said. But government officials, including deputy chairman of the ruling transitional council Malik Agar, finance minister Gibril Ibrahim and Darfur governor Mini Minawi, refused to sit down with former prime minister Abdalla Hamdok and his Taqadum civilian bloc, according to sources on both sides. They accused the politicians of being a front for the RSF, sources close to both Agar and Hamdok told AFP. Hamdok was ousted as prime minister in a 2021 coup by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo, then allies. The Abu Dhabi-based former premier remains Sudan's foremost civilian politician, but has been accused of cozying up to the paramilitaries, which in turn is accused of atrocities including crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing. In January, Hamdok and Daglo met in Addis Ababa and signed a joint declaration to work towards an end to the war. On Saturday, the pro-army camp demanded Taqadum "condemn the RSF's atrocities and dissolve their partnership with the militia," a source close to Agar told AFP, requesting anonymity because he was not authorised to speak to the media. Taqadum spokesperson Bakry Eljack told AFP the bloc has "always condemned atrocities from both sides" and denied that "Taqadum is the political wing of the RSF". A source close to Minawi said the pro-army camp had only attended the conference "as a courtesy to Egypt", a key ally of Burhan. The war has so far killed tens of thousands of people, forced over nine million to flee their homes, and created what the United Nations says is one of the worst humanitarian crises in recent memory. Attempts at mediation between the two sides -- including by Saudi Arabia, the US and the African Union -- have repeatedly floundered. The US has signalled the potential resumption of talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah, but the fighting shows no signs of abating as the RSF gains ground and pushes further into the country's army-controlled east. US special envoy to Sudan Tom Perriello told AFP on Saturday that though the two political groups did not meet face to face, Cairo proved it was possible to "bring together key players from across the political spectrum". Over the past four years, the German judiciary has realized a number of premieres in the field of universal jurisdiction: the first trial dealing with Syrian state torture as a crime against humanity, the first trial to define the Islamic State's (IS) attack on Yazidis in Iraq as a genocide, and the first trial to hold a member of the Gambian killing squad, the Junglers, accountable. But being the first also means sometimes going forward without a clear path and making mistakes on the way. The trials in Koblenz, Frankfurt, Celle, and other German cities have exposed shortcomings in the German Code of Crimes Against International Law (CCAIL) that has never been changed since its introduction more than 20 years ago. Through trial and error, it has become clear that several amendments are needed if Germany wants to use universal jurisdiction as a meaningful tool against the most serious international crimes. In 2023, inspired not only by past trials but perhaps mostly by the war in Ukraine and the potential for legal intervention, the German ministry of justice set out to close gaps in criminal liability and strengthen the rights of victims of crimes against international law, as Justice Minister Marco Buschmann proclaimed upon presenting the draft law about a year ago. Now, in June 2024, the German parliament passed the reform law. The changes have indeed strengthened victims rights and dealt with some of the most criticized issues of the past years, such as translation and recording, or the definition of enforced disappearances. Victims rights representatives, however, argue that the reforms do not go far enough, and that some of them even restrict the participation of those seeking justice. A step forward for translation and recording Looking at the main changes of the CCAIL reform means revisiting Germanys most prominent universal jurisdiction trials of the past years. Every part of the reform is connected to issues and debates that emerged through one or more of these trials. One of the biggest points of criticism has been the lack of translation and recording. Media representatives and civil society were not able to follow the proceedings if they did not speak German. And no one outside the courtroom in Germany could follow the trial, since German trials are usually not filmed nor recorded. This meant that affected communities around the world had extremely limited access to the trials that concerned crimes in their countries, by and against their fellow citizens. This absence of access undermined the potential of legal accountability to facilitate political and societal transformation processes. For how can a society heal, learn, move forward from conflict, when justice is done in a far off place in a foreign language? The new CCAIL states that courts may allow recordings of proceedings of outstanding contemporary significance. Before the reform, that significance had to be connected to Germany, while now a historical significance for Syria, Gambia or any other country would suffice. Courts may also allow media representatives who do not speak German to make use of whispered interpretation or to access existing interpretation that is usually provided for the witnesses, plaintiffs and defendants. This was a huge point of conflict during the Koblenz trial, where Syrian journalists and trial observers filed two complaints trying to gain access to the court-provided translation service. The Federal Court of Justice (Bundesgerichtshof BGH), Germanys highest court of civil and criminal jurisdiction, finally decided that accredited journalists should be allowed to listen to the translation via headsets, but the deadline for accreditation had long passed at that point... After the reform, translation access will be available to media representatives, but not to the public. Still, these two changes regarding translations and recordings are a major victory for all those who have been fighting for easier access over the past years. The law says that courts may allow recordings and access to translation, which leaves the decision at the discretion of the judges. We would have preferred a more definite wording in the legal text, says lawyer Patrick Kroker from the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), who has represented victims in the Syria and Gambia trials. But he is not too worried, since the explanatory addition to the law clarifies that recording and translation should be the norm, provided there are no important reasons to the contrary. They are afraid of the technical issues, believes Kroker. And in case a witness is intimidated by the recording, they need a way to opt out. Kroker, who participated in the reform negotiations as an expert, observed that those who are part of or close to the judiciary were trying to streamline these processes as much as possible, while those focused on outreach and advocacy [such as the ECCHR] tried to go further. Facilitating prosecution of enforced disappearances and sexual violence Another major change relates to the crime of enforced disappearance, that has long been underrepresented in German law. Until recently, it was not part of national law at all, despite Germanys obligations since 2009 under the UN convention against enforced disappearances. The CCAIL did define the crime of enforced disappearance, but required that someone had made a formal inquiry into the whereabouts of the disappeared person without receiving that information from the authorities in charge. But hardly anyone would dare to formally inquire into the whereabouts of a disappeared person in a dictatorship like Syria, because that, as many witnesses have described, would most probably lead to their own arrest, torture, or even death. As a consequence, the crime of enforced disappearance was not charged at all during the Al-Khatib trial, even though all of the victims had been forcibly disappeared prior to their incarceration and torture, and it had become clear throughout the hearings that the total lack of knowledge on the whereabouts of loved ones was among the most painful experiences Syrians went and still go through under the Assad regime. And yet, the prosecution knew that it would be near impossible to prove this crime, due to the requirement of a formal inquiry. In future trials, this will not be an obstacle anymore. Most of the commentators of the reform praised two further changes in the law: first, the crime of sexual violence as a war crime and crime against humanity was adjusted to comply with the Rome Statute. This meant, among other details, that sexual slavery has been included and the term sexual coercion has been replaced by sexual assault. In addition, persecution on grounds of sexual orientation has been defined as a crime against humanity. Secondly, the law now clarifies that foreign state officials cannot invoke functional immunity when charged with international crimes by the German judiciary. In practice, this was already the case before: based on customary international law, the authorities justified the right to prosecute state officials regardless of their rank. Still, in 2021 and again in 2024, the German Federal Court had to step in to decide that an Afghan and a Syrian national could, in fact, be prosecuted for alleged international crimes. From now on, the law provides certainty. Easier access for plaintiffs, but less rights? While some changes are clearly for the better, others are more controversial. With this reform, victims of crimes against international law are now able to join proceedings as plaintiffs, which comes with the right to legal assistance and psychosocial support. Joint plaintiffs did participate in past trials, but they were not admitted as victims of crimes against humanity or genocide, but as victims of the crimes against national law that coincided, such as homicide, rape or severe deprivation of liberty. But even though this will change in the future, the new law holds quite a few restrictions. They opened the gates for plaintiffs to join these trials, but limited their possibilities on the inside, says Kroker. For example, plaintiffs will not have the right to hold closing statements, although the court may still allow them to do so. Looking back at the Koblenz trial, it seems that those personal statements were one of the most important parts of the trial for many of the plaintiffs, a crucial step in their healing journey. It remains to be seen, how strict courts will be when it comes to letting victims speak. In addition, the new law forces joint plaintiffs to share one lawyer, if they were injured within the same circumstances of life. This could, for example, mean being victims of the same crime against humanity, or being women and victims of sexual violence, etc. In Koblenz, this could have meant that one lawyer would have had to represent around twenty plaintiffs. This could make the work of victims lawyers like Kroker very difficult, he said. According to him, this step was inspired by the system of common legal representatives at the International Criminal Court; but lawyers in Germany will not have the budget to hire a whole team to support them, he worries. Finally, not all crimes defined in the CCAIL qualify victims to become joint plaintiffs. It is incomprehensible why the entitlement to become a joint plaintiff in relation to international crimes has been additionally restricted, writes ECCHR lawyer Isabelle Hassfurther. The right to join proceedings is made dependent on the fact that the victims rights have been violated in specific legal interests, namely their lives, their rights to physical integrity, freedom or to religious, sexual or reproductive self-determination or, as a child, [their] right to undisturbed physical or mental development. This requirement not only excludes victims of psychological torture, but also victims of racial and gender-based discrimination, she says. We would have hoped for less restrictions regarding the representation of joint plaintiffs and their procedural rights, says Member of Parliament Helge Limburg, who negotiated the reform as a representative of the Green Party, adding that the judiciary, on the other hand, wanted to avoid lengthy trials. In the end, we reached a compromise that takes into account the worries of the judiciary regarding the manageability of international trials, as well as the interests of the victims to be heard and to participate individually. A successful reform, undermined by double standards? Despite a number of shortcomings, Kroker, Limburg, Hassfurther, and other politicians and lawyers see the reform as a success. With this reform, we bolster up our German judiciary that has played a leading role internationally in the implementation of universal jurisdiction over the past few years, says judge and Member of Parliament Sonja Eichwede, who took part in the negotiations on behalf of the German Social Democratic Party (SPD). However, with Germanys recent reluctance to support international proceedings with regards to the war in Gaza, it remains to be seen if the country will be able to keep up that leading role. It must remain a central concern to ensure the equal application of the law to all and to counteract double standards, writes Isabelle Hassfurther. The ECCHR lawyer worries that the legitimacy of the international criminal proceedings that German courts will conduct in the future in application of the new law could be compromised. Because what has not changed through the reform, is that the German justice ministry has the right to influence the Federal Prosecutors decisions on which crimes to investigate. Political considerations are admissible. When the alleged perpetrators are not present or expected to be present in Germany, these decisions can hardly be reviewed or challenged by courts. This has often been criticized but was not debated at all throughout the CCAIL reform. Park Seo Joon is slated to return to the small screen with an interesting K-drama, following his successful Hollywood debut through the MCU's "The Marvels." In an exclusive report by TV Daily, Park Seo Joon was selected to headline the romance drama "Waiting for Kyeong Do." Park Seo Joon Returns With New Romance K-Drama Slated to appear as the main protagonist, viewers will get to see Park Seo Joon in an upcoming romance series. While his character is yet to be announced, his new K-drama "Waiting for Kyeong Do" will be helmed by "King the Land" and "Reflection of You" director Lim Hyun Woo and written by Yoo Young Ah, the genius behind "Thirty-Nine" and "Encounter." As the drama completes its cast lineup, "Waiting for Kyeong Do" is in talks to be aired on JTBC. Meanwhile, the upcoming romance series is his follow-up project after "Gyeongseong Creature" parts 1 and 2 with Han So Hee. In addition to this, he also appeared in "The Marvels," which is his first international project. In the MCU series, Park Seo Joon took on the character of Prince Yan, the alien royalty from Aladna. "The Marvels" also showcased how Prince Yan got entangled in a "marriage of convenience" with Captain Marvel, a.k.a. Carol Danvers, played by Brie Larson. Park Seo Joon Responds to 'The Marvels' Controversy Amid the hype surrounding Park Seo Joon's MCU debut, fans noticed the South Korean star's short screen time. Due to this, a post has gone viral after the user pointed out the actor's limited air time as Prince Yan. Per various outlets, a post titled "Park Seo Joon's Screen Time On The Marvels" garnered the attention of netizens as it highlighted the actor's total screen time, appearing only in 2 minutes and 47 seconds. Fans criticized MCU for putting the South Korean star in several promos but ended up appearing only in less than 3 minutes. As Park Seo Joon's "The Marvel" appearance sparks controversy, the South Korean star responds to the issue, explaining the reason behind his short stint in the MCU installment. According to Park Seo Joon, the scenes only showed the connection between his characters, Prince Yan and Carol Denver, delivering a significant portrayal of who Captain Marvel is. "I think Aladna and Prince Yan are the place and the figures that are important for showing the growth of Carol Danvers. Some might think my part in the movie is too short, but I believe it plays a crucial part in the overall narrative of The Marvels," he said, as mentioned by a media outlet. For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars. KDramaStars owns this article Written by Geca Flores Pro-Palestinian protesters say they decided to end a nearly two-month encampment at the University of Waterloo campus. A University of Waterloo sign is shown in Waterloo, Ont., on June 28, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nick Iwanyshyn Kennesaw State alum finding success at intersection of AI and animals KENNESAW, Ga. | Jul 8, 2024 Emerson Smith knew he wanted to build his own company, he just didnt always know what problem he could end up solving. After graduating from Kennesaw State Universitys Coles College of Business in 2018, Smith tested a few business ideas before heading to Silicon Valley in California, working in software sales and development. It was there, while absorbing the in-demand technical knowledge that a lightbulb went off in his head, and HappyDoc an AI assistant helping veterinarians drastically reduce the time it takes to complete their legally required record-keeping was born. We capitalized on artificial intelligence and have built a product that just wouldnt have been possible five years ago, he said. The AI is like having an assistant transcribing the conversation, pulling keywords, and placing them in the correct spaces in a vets medical records while the vet meets with clients. Thats time that those vets can be at home with their families instead of the office. In some cases, it can turn three hours into 10 minutes. Last year, Smith returned to KSU to seek the guidance of the experts at the Coles College and Shore Entrepreneurship Center. During his visit, the centers staff quickly recognized they could help, and soon, Smith received a $15,000 investment from the Mookerji Innovation Fund. Later, the company received a second $15,000 investment. At this stage of HappyDocs development, $15,000 maybe wouldnt move the needle so much, but when I received that money, it was critical to building the company, Smith said. That critical investment helped the company show significant potential to change the veterinary industry. In February, only a month after the official launch of the app, Smiths company received more than $500,000 in investment in a 24-hour period, and Smiths next goal is to hit $3 million. Likewise, the company has grown to serve more than 1,000 veterinarians. Greg Quinet, the Shore Entrepreneurship Centers executive director, said Smith is a perfect example of the kinds of companies the center and the Mookerji Innovation Fund aim to produce. The center vets business and product proposals from students and alumni and, if they meet certain criteria, provide seed money for early marketing, publicity, software development, customer acquisition, and more. Were aiming to have an outcome-driven center. We want companies started, registered with the state, and the whole goal is move them through a milestone funding process that sets them up for outside capital investment. Thats exactly what Emersons done, said Quinet, noting that KSU has assisted 30 companies with seed money in the last three years. Quinet recalled Smiths tenacity during his college years and shortly after, when he was searching for a business idea to pursue. Smith has remained laser-focused on the goal of building a company from the ground up, and he hasnt let naysayers or obstacles stand in his way, Quinet said. As hard as hes worked to get HappyDoc up and running, Smith says he owes a debt of gratitude to KSU and the Shore Center. There were things that we needed that we didnt have the money for, and the Center took a leap of faith on us, Smith said. I have so much respect for KSU, my professors and the people there who helped me develop into the person I am today. When its my time, I plan to give back to KSU in the same way it gave to me. Story by Thomas Hartwell Photo by Judith Pishnery Related Stories A leader in innovative teaching and learning, Kennesaw State University offers undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees to its more than 47,000 students. Kennesaw State is a member of the University System of Georgia with 11 academic colleges. The universitys vibrant campus culture, diverse population, strong global ties and entrepreneurial spirit draw students from throughout the country and the world. Kennesaw State is a Carnegie-designated doctoral research institution (R2), placing it among an elite group of only 7 percent of U.S. colleges and universities with an R1 or R2 status. For more information, visit kennesaw.edu. Sunday, July 07, 2024 - President Joe Biden made several perplexing statements during a recent radio interview, raising additional concerns among Democrats. These concerns are heightened because the interviewer disclosed that Biden had received the questions in advance. Andrea Lawful-Sanders, the host of "The Source" on WURD, appeared on CNN Saturday morning following her interview with Biden earlier in the weekend. The interview has gone viral due to Biden's jumbled responses. Lawful Sanders' remarks have only intensified the scrutiny surrounding the president's performance. In the interview, Biden mixed up his words multiple times, including a moment where he mistakenly referred to himself as the "first Black woman to serve with a Black president." This gaffe is particularly concerning for Democrats who are still recovering from his poor debate performance last week. Lawful-Sanders noted that she found the situation especially troubling since the White House had provided her with questions to ask Biden, yet he still struggled with his responses. The New York Post reported a discrepancy, with a Biden campaign spokesperson claiming that while they provided talking points, they did not supply the exact questions, leading to a "she said, they said" scenario. Biden's recent slip-ups have added to the growing chorus of concerns about his competency. Figures ranging from former Congressman Tim Ryan to renowned journalist Carl Bernstein have expressed alarm over Biden's mental acuity, highlighting the increasing scrutiny the president faces. Sunday, July 07, 2024 - Former Manchester United forward, Louis Saha has advised his former club to go all out and sign Napoli striker, Victor Osimhen this summer. Osimhen has been linked with a number of European heavyweights after his displays for Napoli in the last two seasons. Osimhen scored 26 goals in 32 league appearances as the Partenopei claimed the Scudetto in the 2022/23 season then last season scored 15 times in 25 outings for the former Serie A champions. Saha, an icon for United, stated that he would like to see Osimhen move to Old Trafford as he has all the qualities to succeed. My dream summer signing would be Victor Osimhen from Napoli, Saha told Gambling Zone. He would really fit the bill at Old Trafford. If I were them, Id be doing everything to try and get him from Napoli. Id love to see him in a United shirt next season. His attitude, his work rate, he is so good in front of goal. He has a belief and confidence that reminds me of David Trezeguet or Ruud van Nistelrooy, strikers who attract the ball to their feet. Proper strikers are dying, but its easy to see that Osimhen is one of them. Monday, July 8, 2024 - Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna has found himself on the wrong side of the streets after voting in favour of an amendment to the Conflict-of-Interest Bill, 2023. This was after it emerged that Sifuna was among the 25 senators who okayed the amendment moved in the Upper House by Narok senator Ledama Olekina. Olekina sought to have state officials allowed to do business with the government directly. Sifuna was among the supporters of the amendment to the Conflict-of-Interest Bill, 2023. The Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) came out strongly blasting the lawmakers for what it said was suppressing its effort to combat graft. Following the 25 senators' bipartisan approval of the bill in May this year, it was sent to the National Assembly for consensus before President William Ruto's assent. If enacted, the new law would allow, among others, governors, senators, MPs, Cabinet Secretaries, and parastatal seniors to transact business with the state without the obligation of accountability, and in the process enhance corruption in government. Kenyans took offense at Sifuna given that he has constantly carried himself as a people's political and social crusader who has always advocated against corruption in government. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Nairobi Woman Representative, Esther Passaris, has shared her thoughts about the ongoing Gen Z protests in the country that have shaken President William Ruto's administration. Commonly known as Gen Z, they have been demonstrating for the past three weeks, accusing President William Ruto's administration of empty promises, corruption, and ignoring the suffering mwananchi. Reacting to the protests, Passaris urged Gen Z to be patient and give President William Ruto time to implement his promises. Passaris urged Gen Z not to resort to burning Kenya, but to give the President time to transform the economy. This is what Passaris wrote on her X. GEN Z are impatient. They want radical changes. I am certain burning Kenya is not one of them. They are mad. Its justified. Change is never easy. Change is inevitable. I have confidence that @WilliamsRutowill do right by this Generation. Let us remind our children patience is a virtue and To err is human. To forgive divine. We have to respect the Constitution and work together to enhance the rule of law. My desire is #peaceoveranarchy #loveoverhate #forgivenessovervengeance, Passaris stated. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Dreaded Haitian Gang Leader Jimmy Cherizier, alias Barbecue, is now scared of the Kenyan police despite vowing to kill them all after President William Ruto deployed them. This is after he announced his surrender, saying he doesnt want to fight Rutos troops anymore. According to reports, Barbecue told Haitian interim Prime Minister Garry Conille that he would lay down his arms to initiate a national dialogue to restore peace. The gang leader, wearing a maroon jacket and glasses, made the announcement, looking different from his usual appearance. His tone and gestures were quite different as he repeated the call for dialogue with the Haitian government. We have decided to publicly announce that our strategy of laying down arms to facilitate national dialogue and promote peace is already written in black and white on our agenda, said Barbecue. We are ready to elect a credible and coherent Haitian citizen in the diaspora to facilitate the dialogue to end this mafia war and facilitate the road to peace in the country, he added. He alleged that too many divisions, disagreements, and conflicts among local actors and the economic mafia drove the country to the current situation. He called on Interim Prime Minister Garry Conille, to take advantage of the national dialogue to end the war and bring peace to the whole country. According to him, only through national dialogue will the Haitian state be able to regain control of the countrys territories, as required by the current constitution. We want peace because we want to destroy war. We want dialogue because we want peace. All those who do not want dialogue have participated in the war, the gang leader suggested. He urged Conille's administration to focus on the real solution: a national dialogue in which every Haitian, without discrimination, has the right to speak. This is what the mafias do not want. They dont want dialogue because they want to continue the war, Barbecue stated. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - A 42-Year-Old man found trafficking 146kg of bhang along the Kisii-Migori highway was yesterday arrested, after a hot pursuit by Kisii law enforcers who had gotten wind of his illicit trade. Having mounted a roadblock at the Iyabe Bomokora area, the officers intercepted a Toyota Land Cruiser TX Reg. No. KDG 508E with two occupants. But whose driver sped off as the officers closed in for a search. The move prompted a hot chase, but not for long as the Prado got stuck in a ditch to the disappointment of the determined occupants. Even so, the driver managed to scamper into nearby thickets and holed up. Not so lucky though for Collins Otieno, who was cornered and helped to a police car alongside six sacks of bhang that were found stashed in their vehicle. Another motor vehicle plate KDL 841X was also found concealed in a carrier bag. The suspect was escorted to Suneka Police Station for further processing, while the seized narcotics and the motor vehicle were detained at Kisii Central Police Station as exhibits. The pursuit of the escapee is ongoing. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Sunday, July 07, 2024 - A mum has been jailed after killing her newborn daughter by throwing the infant out a window because she "thought a baby would ruin her career," a court heard. Katarina Jovanovic, 28, was sentenced to seven-and-a-half years after being convicted of manslaughter. Katarina was a top lawyer for Porsche, from Lauffen am Neckar, Baden-Wuerttemberg State, Germany. She faced a judge at the Heilbronn District Court on Wednesday, July 3. Jovanovic secretly gave birth at home on September 12, 2023, before hurling the baby from her flat window, the court heard. The newborn, who was just minutes old, fell almost four meters into the road below and suffered a shattered skull. Traumatised passersby found her shortly after the horror unfolded and cops raced to the scene. Prosecutors told the court how Jovanovic believed having a child would ruin her career as an executive in the luxury car manufacturer's legal department. They told the court she deliberately kept her pregnancy a secret from colleagues and neighbours. Public prosecutor Mareike Hafendoerfer said: "The accused was not prepared to put her life plans, especially her professional advancement, on hold for a child. "That was her decision when the baby was born, and as a result, the criteria for a murder conviction are fulfilled." Jovanovic's lawyers claimed their client had accidentally dropped the baby after giving birth alone at home. They argued she had not realised she had been pregnant. Defence attorney Malte Hoech, 53, said: "It is a drama that affects me personally. My client did not even know that she was pregnant. "When she suddenly held the bloody baby in her hands, she was in an exceptional psychological situation. "It was an accident, she dropped the baby. How the child ended up over the windowsill remains to be determined." The court accepted the manslaughter charge and Jovanovic was jailed for seven-and-a-half years. Her lawyers claim they plan to appeal the verdict after fighting for a sentence of just three years. Neighbours previously told local media they did not realise Jovanovic was pregnant. One said: "Nobody noticed that the woman was pregnant. Recently she had changed and was no longer talking to us. "We thought she was stressed at work." Monday, July 8, 2024 - Popular social media influencer Kelin Monari, popularly known as Osama Otero, is reportedly on holiday after State House officials led by Dennis Itumbi and Hussein Mohammed bribed him to host President William Ruto on his X Space on Friday. Otero had initially asked X users to boycott Ruto's Space and instead join his parallel engagement on the same platform. The President then joined Otero's Space alongside State House Spokesperson Hussein Mohammed. A section of Kenyans on X turned the heat on Otero alleging that he had betrayed them. It is alleged that Osama received a hefty bribe from State House to betray Gen Zs and side with the oppressors. He is currently on holiday as his fellow youth continue to fight for better governance. See photo. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Monday, July 8, 2024 - Mathira Member of Parliament, Eric Wamumbi, has admitted the existence of a rift between him and Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua. The admission came even as he dismissed claims of frustrating efforts to combat illicit brew in parts of Mt Kenya. Without revealing more about the differences, Wamumbi instead asked Gachagua to make it public, saying it had nothing to do with the closure of bars in Karatina as alleged. It is true there is a rift between the Deputy president and I. He should say the truth, and nothing but the truth, he said. It is about something bigger than that, he stated. The response by the legislators follows an assertion by Gachagua that some officers from the Ministry of Interior allegedly thwarted the fight against illicit brew in the region. He spoke Sunday during a church service at Kiamariga PEFA Church in Mathira. Wamumbi is among the young politicians who are being used by President William Rutos operatives to fight Gachagua who is the most senior politician in the Mt Kenya region. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Former Prime Minister Raila Odinga has been spotted dining with President William Rutos men despite pretending to be supporting the Gen Z protests that have shaken the Kenya Kwanza Alliance regime. Over the weekend, Raila was among a high-powered Kenya government delegation that went to Zanzibar for the East Africa Community (EAC) ministerial meeting. According to a communique issued by the Kenya government, Raila, who is eying the African Union Commission's chairperson's seat, will engage EAC ministers on various matters of regional interest, including enhanced regional cooperation and advancing the AU agenda for continental integration and development. Against the backdrop of Zanzibars scenic beauty, these constructive dialogues aim to fortify bonds among East African nations and enhance the AUs capacity to effectively address regional and global challenges, a statement reads in parts. Prime Cabinet Secretary (CS) Musalia Mudavadi and the Kenyan delegation will also be attending the event. Raila attended the event as he continued to condemn Ruto for the killing of young men and women who have been demonstrating in the country for the past three weeks. The young protestors have been calling for the resignation of Ruto over bad governance, corruption, and bureaucracy. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Wiper Leader Kalonzo Musyoka has slammed President William Ruto for his continued lies during his State of the Nation address. Taking on his X account, Kalonzo questioned why Ruto claimed to have started the conversation on issues affecting the young people when clearly, he hadnt; a move that forced the Gen Zs to the streets to demand for his immediate resignation. According to Kalonzo, Ruto has no shame since he keeps lying when people are hurting. Ruto like Voldemort and Pinocchio, has no sense of shame. Surely, how can you possibly claim to have started the issue conversation ati four years ago? Kalonzo posed. At the same time, the former vice president urged Ruto to take responsibility for the deaths of Kenyans during the protests and those who suffered injuries. He also asked the Head of State to fire the Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome. Also, take full responsibility for the 41 deaths and hundreds of injuries suffered by peaceful Gen Z protesters and sack Inspector General of Police Japheth Koome now, Kalonzo stated. Speaking on Friday at State House Nairobi President Ruto said the nation was finally discussing issues that affect the country instead of political formations, personalities, and tribes. If you go back to my Twitter account, I made a commitment to the country in 2019, and 2020 that the conversation in Kenya is going to change it is not going to be about personalities, positions, or tribes, it is going to be about issues. "Today that situation is true that we are having a conversation about issues in our country, Ruto stated. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 President William Ruto has moved to appease the masses even as the Gen Zs continue to revolt against him and his government. This is after he reduced the importation rate for Mitumba by more than half This was communicated through the EAC Gazette published on June 30, which details approved measures on import duty rates in the EAC Common External Tariff (CET). Initially, the importation of Mitumba was subjected to a CET rate of 35 per cent or USD0.4/Kg or whichever is higher. Kenya to stay application of the EAC CET rate and apply a duty rate of 35 per cent or USD0.20/Kg whichever is higher for one year, the Gazette explained Kenyas new directive on worn-out clothes. This means that the rate has been reduced from Ksh51 to Ksh26 in the new directive offering a reprieve to importers. This means Kenya will have the most favourable terms to import Mitumba among all East African Community (EAC) countries. According to EAC, the new rates will be applicable for the 2024/25 financial year before being subjected to another revision. In 2022 shortly after assuming power, the Kenya Kwanza administration signaled a willingness to ban Mitumba importation. The then Cabinet Secretary of Trade Moses Kuria had remarked that this was the best way to empower local garment manufacturers. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - President William Ruto made a phone call to his United Arab Emirates (UAE) counterpart Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan as things get thick at home over the Gen Zs revolution. According to reports, the two discussed the partnership between the two countries, with Ruto lauding the UAE President for the initiatives he had put in place to support Kenyans and boost the country toward progress and sustainable development. Additionally, Ruto emphasized that Kenya was committed to enhancing and strengthening its relations with the UAE and expanding cooperation in various fields. The Heads of State delved into different opportunities that signal development for both nations. They were focused on achieving a sustainable and thriving economy for their citizens. Some of the areas of discussion included; renewable energy, technology, economy, trade, and infrastructure. On his part, the UAE President explained the importance of strengthening relations with African states. This includes; supporting all efforts to achieve development, stability, and peace. He emphasized that this would benefit all Africans. Ruto has in the past explained that Kenya and the UAE's partnership aims to increase the country's exports from the current Ksh34.6 billion. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 The Government of President William Ruto issued an update on Haiti deployment even as a video emerged showing Kenya Police guarding the US Embassy in Haiti at the expense of their mission which is to deal with the dreaded gangs and bring peace in the Caribbean nation. In a statement, Inspector General of Police Japhet Koome stated that after the completion of pre-deployment training for 400 officers, the first batch of 200 officers arrived in Haiti on June 25 He disclosed that upon arrival, the officers were warmly welcomed before embarking on joint operational, logistical, and induction training with their Haitian National Police counterparts. Koome further intimated that the Prime Minister of Haiti, Garry Conille, officially welcomed the Kenyan team at their base camp while expressing his support for the mission. The team arrived in Port-au-Prince Haiti on 25 June 2024 and embarked on joint operational, logistical and induction training with their Haitian National Police counterparts. "The Prime Minister of Haiti, Garry Conille, while officially welcoming the Kenyan team at their base camp expressed his unwavering support for the Multinational Security Support Mission," Koome remarked. Additionally, the police IG disclosed that the Haitian Prime Minister called for the deployment of additional Kenyan police officers. "During the security brief to the UN Security Council this week, the Prime Minister called for the deployment of additional Kenyan police officers in Haiti, expressing his optimism that MSS team will control the gangs, Koome added. Koome noted that the Special Representative of the Secretary-General and Head of the UN Integrated Office in Haiti, Maria Isabel Salvador, commended Kenya for accepting to lead the mission. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, January 8, 2024 - An outspoken United Democratic Alliance (UDA) Member of Parliament has urged President William Ruto to scrap the senate and reduce the salaries of members of Parliament so that Kenya can live within its means. Speaking on Saturday, North Imenti MP Raheem Dawood said Ruto must do something drastic to reduce the high wages in the country. Dawood said if Ruto scraps the senate and reduces the salaries of MPs, he will save billions that will be channeled into critical dockets like Health and education. Scrap the senate and reduce our salaries to a manageable level Mr President, Dawood said. For several weeks, the country has witnessed anti-government protests largely spearheaded by Gen Z, comprising university and college students. Gen Z has been urging the President to tackle corruption in his administration instead of overtaxing Kenyans to pay state officers high salaries and allowances. MPs have been earning over Sh 1 million, but Gen Z wants their salaries reduced to Sh 200,000 per month, with the rest of the money redirected to important sectors like Health and Education. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - ODM leader Raila Odinga accompanied Ministry of Interior Principal Secretary Raymond Omollo to Zanzibar where he made a case for his African Union Commission chairmanship bid at the East African Community (EAC) Ministerial Retreat on Peace and Security. Raila took time to explain to the EAC Ministers why he wanted to be the next AU Commission chairperson. I am Africa and based on my experience over the years, I have the ability to go to this institution and transform it, said Raila Top on his agenda if elected to succeed Moussa Faki, Raila indicated he wants to promote peace and security initiatives in the continent which he singled out as the most important feature for development. There can be no development without peace. AU has a Peace Fund but that peace fund has not been properly developed. Some countries make contributions but it is still very little. We need to expand that fund so that Africans can be able to deal with issues of conflict in the continent themselves, he added. Railas visit to Zanzibar in the company of PS Omollo comes even as Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua accuses senior security officers from the Ministry of Interior of undermining him. Speaking in a church service on Sunday, Gachagua claimed that security officers from the Interior docket were sabotaging his fight against alcoholism in the Mt Kenya region. See photos of Raila globetrotting with PS Omollo. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Monday, July 8, 2024 A Kenyan police officer who was among those sent for a peacekeeping mission in Haiti has exuded confidence in defeating the dreaded gangs who recently threatened to attack them. The police officer in a clip stated that he was not afraid of the gangs who had declared war against the multinational peacekeepers. He clarified that the sole purpose of their mission in the war-torn country was not to engage in war but to restore much-needed peace. Afraid of what? Gangs? Do they want us to fight? No, we are not afraid of the gangs, said the confident officers. We are here to bring peace not to fight. You want us to fight? Thats enough for today, the officer added before walking away flanked by his colleagues. The officers could be captured manning the American Embassy where more than 20 people including some Haitian police officers were killed. The police officer's comments come against the backdrop of the recent comments by gang leader Jimmy Cherizier, alias Barbecue, who vowed to fight the Kenya police officers. In a viral video, Barbecue could be heard rallying his members, urging them to fire on the Kenyan contingent who were manning the streets of Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prince. According to Barbecue, the Kenyan police were invaders, vowing to fight the officers even if it meant dying on the battlefield. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna and Narok Senator Ledama Olekina faced public backlash after their joint effort to pass an amendment to the Conflict-of-Interest Bill. Ledama tabled an amendment in the Senate to allow state officials to do business directly with the government, which could enhance corruption and bad governance. In May, Sifuna was among the 25 senators who passed the amendment, which was then referred to the National Assembly for approval before President William Ruto's assent. Their actions angered Kenyans, who questioned their integrity since they had previously criticized the current regime for bad governance. The rage by Kenyans came after the Ethics and Anti-Corruption Commission (EACC) came out all guns blazing at the Senate which it accused of crippling its fight against corruption. But in their defense, the two senators accused the EACC of misleading the public. According to Sifuna, the anti-graft body was still at liberty to prosecute anyone implicated in a conflict of interest, the new law notwithstanding. "Outrage is good lakini can we agree that it needs to be informed outrage. "The EACC is over-sensationalizing the Senate Amendments to cover their own failures. "The law in Kenya still gives the commission power to prosecute anyone for conflict. Ill find time to explain the amendments we voted for. One by one," said Sifuna. On his part, Ledama faulted the EACC for what he said was its ineffective fight against corruption. The senator suggested the anti-graft agency had failed in its mandate and was thus seeking scapegoats to cover for the failures. "EACC is doing what they do best! Talk, talk, and talk about nothing let them continue exposing their fakeness! They seem to be high on meth, but soon they will come down!" he said. The bill's initial contents barred any public officer from dealing with a state entity in a contractual relationship for the supply of goods, services, or works. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Suba North Member of Parliament, Millie Odhiambo, stole the show at the Carnivore Simba Saloon on Saturday during an event dubbed Queens of The Nile Reunion, a colourful event that brought together women in different professionals to wine, dine, and network. The 57-year-old veteran politician proved that age is just a number after she took to the stage and showcased her dancing skills. The self-proclaimed bad girl shook her flexible waist while dancing to Ohangla and gave other women who were younger than her a run for their money. Millie Odhiambo is known to be a fun-loving woman and an Ohangla fanatic. Watch the video. The Kenyan DAILY POST. Monday, July 8, 2024 - Narok County Senator, Ledama Ole Kina and his Nairobi counterpart, Edwin Sifuna, have shocked Kenyans after they supported the Conflict of Interest Bill 2023 that will allow state officers to compete in government tenders The Bill, which originated from the Cabinet, was considered by the National Assembly before it was sent to the Senate. Despite pretending to be reformists, Ole Kina and Sifuna supported the retrogressive bill that would allow state houses to compete for government tenders with ordinary mwananchi. Kisii Senator Richard Onyonka said the Bill as passed by the Senate amounts to handing the corrupt an open cheque to loot public funds with abandon. The lawmaker said he voted against the radical amendments that crippled the fight against corruption. "I voted NO for the Conflict of Interest Bill because it was to abet corruption. "Passing the bill with the amendments therein was simply conniving with the corrupt in legalizing graft. " State Officers and their families must not be allowed to do business with the government," Onyonka said. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Thousands of youth staged a surprise march in the Nairobi Central Business District (CBD) on Sunday night after the Uhuru Park Shujaaz Memorial Concert and caught the police off-guard. Hundreds of those who attended the concert at Uhuru Park converged in the Central Business District where they chanted songs in honour of the fallen heroes and sang revolution songs. Areas around the Tom Mboya statue and National Archives were the central areas where most of the youth gathered while honouring their peers who lost their lives at the height of the anti-Finance Bill 2024 protests. Police were compelled to watch from a distance as the protesters went on with their business in Nairobi City centre. Nairobi Area Police Commander intervened and pleaded with the youthful protesters to go home after instructing anti-riot police officers to avoid provoking them. They had a dialogue with the police commander and agreed to disperse for home peacefully. A video shared on social media shows the protesters shaking hands with the police commander and gifting him a jerrican of milk. Watch videos. After youthful protesters stage a surprise protest match in CBD, Nairobi commanding officer asked deployed anti riot officers to stay far away.He walked into the huge crowd for dialogue. He explained & asked them to retreat and they all agreed. He was gifted a jerrican of Milk. pic.twitter.com/qBDF3tkamM Chris Sambu (@the_sambu) July 7, 2024 Nairobi area commanding officer intervenes as protesters dialogue and agree to disperse for home peacefully! He's ordered no officers should come close to the youthful protesters chanting! pic.twitter.com/VJKTWCUkTv Chris Sambu (@the_sambu) July 7, 2024 The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - A renowned political analyst has revealed how President William Ruto could turn the Gen Z protests into a blessing in disguise by engineering radical and sweeping changes in his administration to assuage public displeasure. In an interview with one of the local dailies, Political analyst and lecturer, Prof Gitile Naituli, said the president can seize the opportunity presented by the Gen Z protesters to prove his critics wrong and turn around his legacy. The moment has been presented to him (Ruto) to have a great legacy and to become the best President that the country ever had," Naituli said The don noted Ruto has a golden opportunity to even deliver a lean and efficient cabinet for Kenya. Ruto can hide behind the demands by Gen Z to fix the governments mess for good, get a competent cabinet and aggressively go for looted money," he said. There are reports that the Head of state might seize the moment to kick out some of his allies from key state offices whose appointments triggered an uproar among Kenyans over fears of incompetence. A radical purge before would have triggered uproar from regions of affected officers with others hiding behind their tribes to shield themselves from government changes. The Kenyan DAILY POST Monday, July 8, 2024 - Renowned Nairobi lawyer, Ahmednasir Abdullahi, has reacted after Narok County Senator Ledama Ole Kina supported the Conflict of Interest Amendment Bill 2023 that will allow state officers to compete in government tenders. The lawmakers, led by Ole Kina and Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna, deleted at least 20 clauses and amended more than 15 others, overhauling the state-backed Bill that sought to tame the runaway graft. The amendments have triggered furious reactions from a section of politicians and anti-graft crusaders, warning that the move amounts to a clawback in the war against corruption. Ahmednasir termed the bill as a huge setback in fighting corruption since state officers will be awarding themselves government tenders. Indeed, it is a big deal. When you see the amendments you introduced to the bill, you must appreciate that you killed it off completely. "You allowed politicians and powerful people like yourself to win tenders using the office one's occupy. "What you did was terrible and is a huge setback in the fight against corruption. "My good Senator, take responsibility for this sad, calamitous and historic blunder you committed, Ahmednasir told Ole Kina on X. The Kenyan DAILY POST Sunday, July 07, 2024 - A top neurologist in Washington D.C, USA met with President Bidens personal doctor at the White House earlier this year, a new report by the NY Post, claims. According to the publication, it saw visitor logs showing that Dr. Kevin Cannard, a Parkinsons disease expert at Walter Reed Medical Center, met with Dr. Kevin OConnor (Biden's personal doctor), and two others at the White House residence clinic on January 17. The revelation comes as questions continue to mount about the 81-year-old presidents mental health in the wake of his debate gaffe last week with former US President Donald Trump. Dr. John E. Atwood, a cardiologist working at Walter Reed Medical Center, was also in the 5 P.M. meeting, the NY Post claims the White House visitor logs show. The fourth person has not been identified in the logs from that day, when Biden was at the White House and hosted House and Senate leaders to press them for more Ukraine funding, according to his official schedule. Cannard is a big name in the medical field of Parkinsons and has worked at Walter Reed for nearly 20 years. Since 2012, he has served as the neurology specialist supporting the White House Medical Unit, according to his LinkedIn. His most recent paper was published in August 2023 in the journal Parkinsonism & Related Disorders and focuses on the early-stage of the crippling disease. Since Bidens health is OConnors number one responsibility, it is highly likely the meeting was about the president, according to Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Tx), the doctor for both Presidents Obama and Trump. Its highly likely they were talking about Biden, Jackson told The Post. He should only be [regularly] treating the president and the first family. OConnor has been Bidens official physician since he took office in January 2021 and is in daily contact with the president. Monday, July 8, 2024 - Former Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka has called for Saba Saba Day to be declared a national holiday. Speaking in Meru Town on Sunday, Kalonzo, who is also the Wiper Democratic Movement leader, argued that the day should be gazetted as a national holiday to celebrate different individuals who fought for the country's democracy. "Saba Saba should be a National Holiday to celebrate the heroes who fought democratic space in Kenya," Kalonzo stated. Saba Saba Day is commemorated yearly to relinquish memories of July 7, 1990, when nationwide protests took place in Kenya to demand multiparty democracy. On that historic day, Kenya witnessed the largest nationwide protests, summoned by leaders including Masinde Muliro, Martin Shikuku, and the Young Turks James Orengo, Gitobu Imanyara, and Paul Muite. The young people were mainly university students led by various political leaders. The Kenyan DAILY POST Following a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month, criminal barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. Protests will take place tomorrow (Tuesday) in Kilkenny City and 15 other courthouses nationwide where criminal cases were due to be heard on the day, including the Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin; Ennis, Co Clare; Washington Street, Cork; Tralee, Co Kerry; Naas, Co Kildare; Limerick City; Castlebar, Co Mayo; Longford town; Trim, Co Meath; Sligo town; Clonmel, Co Tipperary; Bray, Co Wicklow; Waterford City; Wexford town. Read also:Kilkenny TD says reforms 'decimated local government' This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme. Following the first withdrawal on October 3rd 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10th 2023. FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS, CLICK HERE However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of FEMPI-era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored. This is despite a Government commissioned review in 2018 acknowledging that the reversal of the cuts was justified given the level of reform and flexibilities delivered by the profession. Sara Phelan SC, Chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland said that 'it is with regret that we have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again'. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice," she said. "The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. "This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now." Sean Guerin SC, Chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee said that 'the impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice'. "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society ," he added. "Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected." The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday July 9, Monday July 15, and Wednesday July 24. FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS, CLICK HERE Criminal barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. It follows a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses, including Kilkenny city. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme". Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10. However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored, say the Council of The Bar of Ireland. Sara Phelan SC, chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland, said it is with regret that they have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice. The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. Sean Guerin SC, chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee, said it has been acknowledged in Government that there is "no good reason" why fees of criminal barristers shouldnt be restored. "Yet eight months on from a commitment to establish a process reviewing the fees, no meaningful progress has been made. The impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice. "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society. Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected, said Mr Guerin. The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday, July 9, Monday, July 15, and Wednesday, July 24. ICS Mortgages has announced reductions to its Buy-to-Let variable rate mortgage products. The new variable rates will come into effect on August 1, 2024, reflecting what it says is its "commitment to supporting landlords and property investors with competitive mortgage options." "Effective from the 1st August 2024, our Buy-to-Let variable rates will see a reduction of 0.15%. "We will continue to monitor these rates." Ray McMahon, Chief Commercial Officer at ICS Mortgages, announced, "We are pleased to introduce these lower rates, demonstrating our ongoing dedication to delivering value to our customers. Lowering the Buy-to-Let variable rate helps us support property investors and landlords in providing essential services. READ NEXT: Weather expert verdict on Ireland being hit by 33C sun blast and Met Eireann latest "ICS Mortgages continues to offer outstanding service and flexible features and todays announcement of a variable rate cut is in addition to our recent Owner Occupier rate reductions underscoring our continuous efforts to provide flexible mortgage products. "Whether through our direct channel or our wide-reaching network of independent mortgage brokers, we are dedicated to providing exceptional mortgage solutions. "As well as these rate reductions, at ICS Mortgages we continue to innovate our product suite accompanied by regular rate reviews." The National Library of Ireland has announced the availability of The Michael Barron Papers, tracking Kilkenny man Dr Michael Barrons life and work as a social justice activist over the past number of decades. The papers, which are available in person at the library and through the digital archive which now contains the website Michael Barron, is a varied collection of research, toolkits, personal writing, newspaper articles, opinion pieces, campaign strategy, planning notes and reflections and ephemeral materials such as bags and badges. Dr Michael Barron, who hails from Glenmore, said: I am particularly happy that the National Library have chosen to announce the availability of The Michael Barron Papers during Pride season. As a gay person and activist I have spent most of my life advocating for LGBTQ Liberation and much of this work is now available at the Library. "This year is also the 21st birthday of BeLonG To , the LGBTQ youth advocacy organisation, which I co-founded, so making these papers available is a kind of coming of age for us all." While the story of social change in Ireland is often told through landmark events, these materials also tell a story of what happened between such events. They tell a story of work and long term strategy that created the conditions that enabled the big events to take place. They tell an untold story of the pursuit of Equality for LGBTQ+ young people over decades, and how this work in turn changed Ireland for all LGBTQ+ people. Dr Barron continued: Much of my current work is about promoting a society that we can all belong to and tackling rising hatred towards minority communities. This has been a frightening year for our LGBTQ+ community with intimidation and violence, driven by far right ideology, reaching horrible levels. Recent violence in the Phoenix Park and attacks on our streets show that we all all of Irish society need to rally together with a razor sharp commitment to preventing the far right from taking hold. I share these papers on the basis that they can be useful. This position - Above All, Be Useful - has always guided my approach to social justice and I hope these papers will be useful to researchers, students and anyone interested in activism for social justice. As we live in alarming times we need opportunities for intergenerational learning, and we need the hope that springs from knowing that this is not the first time we have faced many of todays challenges. "The materials relating to my time advocating for LGBTQ+ young people at BeLonG To talk to how we changed the public narrative and public policy towards LGBTQ+ young people in Ireland. The materials here detail the strategies used to change how LGBTQ+ young people felt about themselves, and in order to do this, how we set about changing how Ireland treated LGBTQ+ young people. This includes materials from multiple campaigns, including Aoife Kellehers TV documentary Growing Up Gay (2010) which brought the lives of LGBTQ youth into most living rooms in the country, and the BeLonG To Yes campaign for Marriage Equality which invited the country to Change forever what it means to grow up LGBTQ+ in Ireland. Also included in the archive is a catalogue of Dr Barrons engagement with the government during this time and how LGBTQ+ young people went from being unmentionable in public policy to being placed front and centre in too many policies to mention. As well as this, the papers tell the story of the movement for the separation of church and state in Ireland during the first two decades of the Twenty First Century. Dr Barron concluded: Its been a huge privilege to work with so many extraordinary people during the period covered in these papers - with young people who navigated the world with such grace and with fellow activists who fought the good fight. We have so much more to do, and I really hope these papers will be useful in our ongoing battle for liberation for all You have permission to edit this article. Edit Close AI film-making tools: game-changer or novelty? By KTimes On July 3, at the Webtoon Convergence Center in Wonmi District, Bucheon City, Ahn Young-jin, CEO of Movie Photo, was creating a film. I didnt know AI could produce this level of video quality. I was initially skeptical about AI films, but now I see a lot of potential, Ahn said. I joined to criticize, but my perspective completely changed," he added. It was part of the BIFAN+AI Filmmaking Workshop at the 28th Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, which began on July 2, where Ahn was working with three colleagues. The team, named Last Train, created a film about giant insects attacking humans due to global warming, with the survivors attempting to board the last train to colder regions. Titled "Snowpiercer: Last Train," the scenario and casting were completed the day before, and they spent the third day "filming" at a desk using the newly released AI video production program Runway G3. The workshop attracted around 600 applicants, thereby doubling the original 30 slots to 60. Participants included many in their 20s and 30s, such as students from the Korea National University of Arts, as well as mid-career filmmakers like An. Director Jung Ji-young, 78, known for "Broken Arrow" (2012) and "Boys" (2023), also participated. The 60 participants were divided into 16 teams, each creating a short film in 48 hours using AI technology. These 16 films will be screened at Bucheon Art Bunker B39 until July 14. Significant transformation in film industry within just 5 years AI films have the potential to revolutionize the film industry. The creation of a 2-minute sci-fi film, "Snowpiercer: Last Train," without extensive manpower or lengthy CGI work, highlights the efficiency AI brings, potentially reducing costs and production times. American AI film director Dave Clark, a workshop instructor, said that the young Tom Hanks in Robert Zemeckiss new film "Here" is entirely created with AI, marking the beginning of a transformation in Hollywood. Clark is the only AI film director in the Directors Guild of America. Director Kang Je-gyu also predicted significant changes in the film industry within five years, saying, AI presents tremendous opportunities and risks. However, AI films still face challenges. Generated scenes have limitations, and the "uncanny valley" effect (the eerie sensation when a humanoid object appears almost, but not quite, human) remains a significant hurdle. Director Jung Ji-young said, AI still produces errors, so it cannot be fully relied upon yet. It can serve as a supplementary tool, generating scenes to replace additional filming. Real challenge lies with humans, not AI AI films not only alter the structure of the film industry but also raise legal and ethical issues. The BIFAN+AI International Conference, held from July 5-7 at the Bucheon Art Center, addressed these concerns with 22 lectures and discussions, each attracting full attendance. A notable session on July 6, titled "How AI Will Change the Film Industry," focused on the legal and ethical issues of AI films. Anna Bulakh, an ethics officer from the Ukrainian AI voice synthesis software company Respeecher, emphasized the importance of three words when dealing with AI: trust, control and creativity. "It is crucial to create an environment where AI can be controlled to protect portrait rights and intellectual property rights while still producing creative content," she said. Oh Sang-joon, CEO of AI webtoon production platform Dreamers, also said, AI can help us imagine a more diverse and rich world. The misuse of data or unauthorized use of voices is a human error, not an AI one. This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff of The Korea Times. By Yi Whan-woo An increasing number of companies in Korea are opting to delist from the stock market since the introduction earlier this year of the Corporate Value-up Program by financial regulators aimed at boosting undervalued stocks. The decision of listed companies to exit, according to experts, Monday, comes as they find it increasingly challenging to meet the obligations outlined in the program. These responsibilities, however, are designed to ultimately benefit companies by enhancing their appeal to investors. In that sense, the Corporate Value-up Program is backfiring on listed firms, said Kim Kyu-shik, director of the Korean Corporate Governance Forum, which monitors the transparency of stock market activities by corporations. According to the Financial Supervisory Services (FSS) electronic disclosure system, a total of seven companies so far this year have either completed or are close to buying back a sufficient ratio of the shares they issued so that they can leave the stock market and go private. The group includes three companies from the benchmark KOSPI Shinsung Tongsang, Lock & Lock, and SsangYong C&E and four from the secondary Kosdaq Daeyang Paper, Jeisys Medical, ConnectWave, and TLI. "Such a high number of companies in just over six months is surprisingly higher than in the past," Kim noted, highlighting that this figure equals the total number of voluntarily delisted companies from 2022 to 2023 combined. Hong Ki-hoon, a business administration professor at Hongik University, suggested that the seven firms this year "must have felt pressured" by increased obligations related to disclosures and shareholder returns outlined in the Corporate Value-up Program. In the context of the stock market, a disclosure refers to the public release of all pertinent company information. This transparency enables investors to make well-informed decisions regarding their investments. Under the program, the rule regarding disclosures was strengthened to enhance corporate governance. This initiative is aimed at addressing the "Korea discount," a phenomenon where stocks in Korea are consistently undervalued compared to their global peers. The program also seeks to enhance shareholder returns in Korea to address the issue of the Korea discount. "The purpose of the program is highly valued, but at the same time, it seems to be providing some shareholders with an excuse to make excessive demands," the professor said. He said shareholder activism, although unsuccessful, was witnessed during the general meetings of shareholders of several companies this spring. The activism mentioned involves shareholders using equity stakes in a corporation to put pressure on management. The pressure may increase in the years to come as enhanced shareholder returns are pursued under the Corporate Value-up Program, the professor said. Asking not to be named, a stock market analyst speculated that more listed companies may be tempted to leave the stock market in the coming years unless financial regulators come up with favorable measures for them. Young Koreans shun government jobs due to low wages By Yi Whan-woo Entry-level civil servants in Korea are receiving about 160,000 won ($115) more than the minimum wage on average in their monthly salaries for their first year on the job, according to data, Monday. The data released by the Korean Government Employees Union comes as civil service jobs are no longer considered attractive to Millennials and Gen Z, despite previously being coveted for lifetime job security. The data showed the monthly wage paid to first-year grade 9 civil servants averaged 2.22 million won this year. That included a base salary of 1.87 million won plus extra expenses to carry out duties, such as a meal allowance of 140,000 won. Grade 9 is the lowest in a nine-level system for government employees. The 2.22 million won was 161,260 won more than 2.06 million won, which a salaried worker can earn at least per month under the years legal minimum hourly wage of 9,860 won. The wage gap between first-year grade 9 civil servants and minimum wage workers will diminish further when tax is deducted, the union said. Civil servants have been earning less pay than employees of leading private businesses. In the past, however, young jobseekers competed intensively in entry-level civil service exams as they would not get fired once hired. A relatively better work-life balance than the private sector was also a reason behind the popularity of entry-level civil service jobs. The competition has weakened drastically in recent years as private companies are increasingly pursuing work-life balance. According to the Ministry of Personnel Management, the competition rate for the grade 9 exam this year was 21.8 to 1, the lowest since 1992. The rate has been falling for eight years straight since 2016 when it was 53.8 to 1. By Yoon Ja-young Hana Financial Group announced on Monday the launch of the third edition of the Hana Digital Power On project, which aims to nurture young digital talent to drive the country's financial innovation. The project is hosted by Hana Financial Group and sponsored by the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS), Google, Amazon Web Services, Microsoft and SK Telecom. The previous two years of the Digital Power On project proved that the brilliant ideas of young people, when combined with an excellent educational environment, bring about outcomes that surpass those of the older generation, FSS Governor Lee Bok-hyun said at the launch ceremony at Hana Financial Group's headquarters in Seoul. I hope that Hana Financial Groups investment in young people will continue to nurture excellent digital finance talent, he added. The competitiveness of digital finance is determined by digital talent, and the life and death of a company lies in nurturing of such talent, Hana Financial Group Chairman Ham Young-joo said. We promise our best efforts to help the participants of this project grow into future digital talent. We hope that you will grow through this project to meet us again as our colleagues who will determine the future of Hana Financial Group. Following the launch ceremony, the Digital New Technology Competition was held to select the final participants for the project from among 20 teams. They suggested innovative finance-digital convergence ideas using new digital technology: AI, blockchain, the cloud and data. The final participating teams selected through the competition will be provided with intensive training so that they can gain professional knowledge and experience. They will also participate in the hackathon competition with SK Telecom to solidify their own ideas and develop them into prototypes. Those with excellent outcomes will be offered a total of 30 million won in prize money as well as a special field trip to global IT companies and fintech firms in the U.K., which is at the center of the global financial market. Those applying for jobs at Hana Financial Group in the future will also be given preferential benefits. North Korea's state media highlighted the country's leader Kim Jong-un's major military achievements Monday, the 30th anniversary of the death of state founder Kim Il-sung, in a move seen aimed at intensifying the personality cult for the current leader. There have been no media reports of Kim Jong-un visiting the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of the current leader's father, Kim Jong-il, and grandfather, Kim Il-sung, lie in state. Since taking office in late 2011, the North's leader Kim has visited the mausoleum every time on the death anniversaries of the national founder, except in 2018. Kim Il-sung died of heart failure on July 8, 1994, at age 82, opening the way for his son, Kim Jong-il, to take over in communism's first hereditary succession of power. The Rodong Sinmun, the North's main newspaper, carried reports commemorating Kim Il-sung's death on its front and other pages. But it also lauded Kim Jong-un's major military accomplishments, saying he has succeeded in bolstering the "self-reliant military capability," a feat that had not been achieved under the former leaders. Kim Il-sung is long known as the role model for Kim Jong-un, whose hair and fashion style were reminiscent of those of his grandfather. But North Korea appears to be reinforcing the personality cult for the current leader in recent months as a sole ruler warranting people's respect. A pin featuring the solitary portrait of Kim Jong-un was officially seen for the first time on June 30, when it was attached to the suit jackets of all North Korean officials attending a plenary meeting of the ruling Workers' Party. The portraits of the North's incumbent leader were seen hung side by side with those of his two late predecessors on the wall of a classroom at a newly built school for party officials in May. This year, North Korea also began referring to Kim Il-sung's birthday as just "415" instead of the Day of the Sun in an apparent move to refrain from excessively extolling the late state founder. Kim Il-sung's birthday, April 15, has been revered as the Day of the Sun in North Korea since 1997 and celebrated as one of the country's most important national holidays, along with the birthday of his late son and successor Kim Jong-il in February. South Korea's unification ministry said North Korea held a five-day mourning period in 1994, when the national founder died. Since then, the country has held mourning events at various social levels around the anniversaries. Last year, North Korea's state media carried reports of Kim Jong-un's visit to the mausoleum to pay his respect to his late grandfather but did not release any related photos or footage in a rare move. (Yonhap) Calls grow for education on arrival for drone-carrying tourists By KTimes Unauthorized drone flights in no-fly zones are straining the police's administrative resources. Recently, many individuals contacted by police over piloting these drones have been foreign tourists, often unaware of the regulations. This situation highlights the need for pre-entry education on drone usage. The Aviation Safety Act has required all drone pilots, except those using toy drones under 250 grams, to obtain a mandatory pilot qualification since 2021. This includes hobby and leisure drones weighing between 250 grams and 2 kilograms. Although there is no need to take a separate test as required for higher qualifications, a 6-hour training course must be completed. Additionally, even qualified pilots cannot fly drones in no-fly zones such as downtown Seoul, the demilitarized zone, nuclear power plants or within a 9.3 km radius of airports without prior approval from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport. Violations can result in fines of up to 3 million won ($2,300). Despite these regulations, the number of unauthorized drone flights is increasing. According to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, illegal drone flights in Seoul have risen from 98 cases in 2020 to 130 in 2021, 210 in 2022 and 345 last year, an average annual increase of 52 percent. A major issue is that every time an unauthorized drone is reported, not only the local police but also security teams from district police stations must respond to rule out any potential terrorism threats. However, upon arrival, they often find that these drones pose no security threat, leaving the responding officers frustrated. Most of the individuals are foreign tourists attempting to capture aerial views of Seoul with their drones, according to the police. "Due to heightened vigilance following the balloon incidents from North Korea, we respond seriously to every report, but this is wasting our administrative resources," said a security team leader at a district police station. Popular tourist spots like Itaewon and Namsan Tower, despite being no-fly zones due to their proximity to the presidential office in Yongsan District, are often unknowingly frequented by tourists flying drones. Notices in multiple languages A police officer from a police station in Yongsan District, Seoul said, "Earlier this year, we received two to three reports daily from areas like Itaewon and Hangang Park, causing 'drone neurosis' among us. The fatigue among officers responding to foreign tourists' drone flights is significant, raising concerns about our ability to handle real emergencies effectively." Penalizing foreign tourists for unauthorized drone flights is also challenging. Often, by the time police arrive, the drones or their operators have disappeared. Even when identified later, tourists frequently move to different jurisdictions or leave the country, complicating enforcement. Measures recommended by police to alleviate the issue include educating tourists upon entry into the country and installing conspicuous signage at major tourist sites. Another police officer said, "Tourists carrying drones should be informed of relevant regulations by immigration officers upon arrival." Kim Ki-won, a professor of military studies at Daekyeung University, said, "Unlike other countries, Korea's military and security facilities are close to urban areas. It's essential to place no-fly signs and broadcast announcements in multiple languages at major tourist spots to ensure tourists are aware of the restrictions." This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff of The Korea Times. Health ministry shifts focus to filling medical labor void with new recruitment for next semester By Jung Min-ho The government has decided to drop all punitive measures against striking trainee doctors as it refocuses efforts on swiftly restoring the operation of medical services disrupted by their absences nationwide for months. The Ministry of Health and Welfare said Monday that it shelved its plan to enforce penalties, including the suspensions of their medical licenses, on more than 12,000 trainee doctors for their refusal to comply with its order to return to work. This would put an end to a nearly five-month standoff between the trainee doctors and the ministry, which refused to approve the resignations of those who left hospitals in protest of its decision to increase the nation's medical school admissions quota. Considering the current state of medical services as well as proposals from hospitals where trainee doctors work, we decided today not to take any administrative action against them regardless of whether they return to work or not, Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong told reporters at a briefing room situated in the Government Complex in central Seoul. The announcement comes as the ministry is shifting its focus to filling the big labor void left by those trainees with new ones. Within two months, hospitals are expected to begin taking steps to recruit resident physicians for the new semester. Ministry officials are hoping that a sufficient number of new trainees will help normalize operations at 211 hospitals, which have been partially paralyzed as a result of the collective action taken by more than 13,000 trainee doctors who walked out of their workplaces. Only several hundred of them have so far returned to work after the ministry threatened strong measures against their unlawful actions. In an effort to entice back to hospitals the doctors who decided to drop out midway through their training programs, the ministry plans to revise administrative rules to allow them to continue their programs without having to start all over. The government will give special favors to returning junior doctors regarding their training, as well as to those who opt to apply again for training courses in September, Cho said. We have come to this decision after concluding that it would benefit the public more as it would provide additional trainee physicians when they are needed to minimize (the inconvenience caused by) the medical service vacuum for urgent, severe patients. He urged the hospitals to complete the resignation process for all trainee doctors who insist on leaving and finalize the number of vacancies by next Monday. He also reiterated his promises to improve their working conditions possibly by cutting work hours to a maximum of 60 hours a week from 80 hours and to introduce more programs to enhance the quality of their education. The trainee doctors walkout has profoundly disrupted the operations of their hospitals, which heavily rely on their labor for everyday work, from emergency room management to surgery. To add fuel to the fire, a considerable number of medical school professors said they would join the trainee students in protest against the expanded admissions quota by reducing their work hours, with some offering to resign. Many have criticized the ministry for its unilateral decision to increase the quota, which would certainly intensify competition among physicians and sap their average incomes. But despite their opposition, the government finalized an admissions quota hike of some 1,500 students for medical schools next year in an effort to address the shortage of doctors. President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to embark on a trip to the United States on Monday to attend a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Washington, where he will address concerns over deepening defense cooperation between North Korea and Russia. Yoon will visit Washington from Wednesday and Thursday to meet with NATO leaders for discussions on the ongoing war in Ukraine and enhancing cooperation between the transatlantic security alliance and the Indo-Pacific region. South Korea was invited to the NATO summit for the third consecutive year as one of four Indo-Pacific partners, dubbed IP4, which also includes Japan, Australia and New Zealand. "We will send a strong message regarding the military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, and discuss ways to enhance cooperation among NATO allies and IP4," Principal Deputy National Security Adviser Kim Tae-hyo said in a briefing Friday. Stakes are high for this year's summit as South Korea has said it would consider sending weapons to Ukraine in a warning to Russian President Vladimir Putin's signing of a mutual defense treaty with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during their summit last month. On Wednesday, Yoon will have a series of bilateral talks with his counterparts from the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland and Norway as well as NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. Possible bilateral summits with the U.S. and Japan as well as a trilateral one have yet to be arranged. Later Wednesday, Yoon and first lady Kim Keon Hee will attend a welcome dinner hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden at the White House. On Thursday, Yoon is scheduled to join a session of NATO allies and partners and hold a four-way meeting with leaders from Indo-Pacific partner nations to discuss security cooperation. Yoon also plans to speak at a NATO public forum, an event co-hosted by NATO and five think tanks from Europe and the U.S. Ahead of the summit, Yoon will stop in Hawaii on Monday and Tuesday for a security briefing at the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command and a meeting with Korean residents on the island. "His visit to the Indo-Pacific Command will demonstrate the strong alliance between South Korea and the U.S., and provide an opportunity to elevate the bilateral cooperation for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region," Kim said. The U.S.-led joint maritime exercise, Rim of the Pacific Exercise, has been under way in Hawaii since late June, involving 29 countries, including South Korea. (Yonhap) Korea and the United States are set to hold a set of meetings in Seoul later this week to discuss environmental cooperation, Seoul's foreign ministry said Monday. Officials from the two countries will convene meetings of the Environmental Affairs Council (EAC) and Environmental Cooperation Commission (ECC), two key bodies established to enhance bilateral environmental collaborations, the ministry said. The meetings will take place Thursday. The EAC was established under the environmental chapter of the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement, which came into effect in 2012, while the ECC is anchored in the Environmental Cooperation Agreement signed in January 2012. At the EAC meeting, participants will assess the status of existing policies and explore opportunities for collaboration in multilateral forums, such as the World Trade Organization and the Group of 20 (G20) major economies. During the ECC meeting, both sides are expected to discuss cooperation on various environmental issues, review the progress of major ongoing cooperative projects and exchange ideas on new initiatives. It will be the first time in five years that the meetings are held, following the last session in Washington, D.C., in 2019. (Yonhap) Forum addresses ways to deepen cooperation following revival of trilateral summit By Lee Hyo-jin Korea, China and Japan should set up security dialogues and hotlines to advance cooperation in the domain of security, an area where they currently lag, former Korean Ambassador to Japan Shin Kak-soo said, Monday. It is true that cooperation in political and security fields (between Korea, China and Japan) lags far behind those in other fields such as economy, the environment, culture and people-to-people exchanges, Shin said in his keynote speech during the NEAR Korea-China-Japan Seoul Process forum. "We should nurture a culture of dialogue and seek an avenue for the peaceful settlement of disputes," he said. On that point, the former envoy proposed that the three countries should launch security dialogue channels as well as hotlines to alleviate mistrust and prevent accidental flare-ups. He also suggested opening communication channels among top military leaders, with a platform of retired generals as its prelude. "We should start low-level confidence-building measures and move on to higher-level confidence-building measures depending on the progress made," Shin added. The forum, organized by the NEAR Foundation, a Seoul-based private think tank specializing in Northeast Asia, brought together pundits from the three countries. This was the sixth edition since its launch in 2016 and the first in-person meeting in four years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Held under the theme A Roadmap for Sustainable Peace and Prosperity in Northeast Asia, this years event focused on ways to deepen cooperation by leveraging the momentum from the recentSeoul-Beijing-Tokyo trilateral summit held in Seoul on May 27. The summit, held after a four-and-a-half-year hiatus, signaled a revival of long-stalled dialogue between the three Asian neighbors. However, it failed to resolve differing stances on security issues, such as Pyongyangs military threats and tensions in the Taiwan Strait. During Monday's forum, Justin Yifu Lin, dean of Peking University's Institute of New Structural Economics and former vice president of the World Bank, asserted that the U.S. is adopting a military strategy in its "pivot to the Asia Pacific." He claimed this strategy aims to build a military alliance to encircle China, thereby stirring up tensions in the Taiwan Strait and the South China Sea. The U.S. also uses ideology to encourage countries to take sides and break ties with China, Lin said, stressing that such actions create an unfavorable regional environment for Korea and Japan as well. On the economic front, experts called for a swift launch of discussions to resume the second stage of the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations, as agreed at the May 27 summit. Ijuin Atsushi, lead economist at the Japan Center for Economic Research, believes that the trade pact among the three Asian nations should exceed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) in scope and quality. RCEP is an FTA among 15 Asia-Pacific nations, including Korea, China and Japan. Considering that we already have RCEP, which includes Japan, China, and Korea, a three-way FTA will not carry significant meaning unless it involves deeper-level trade agreements," Ijuin said. He added, "FTA negotiations often involve conflicting economic interests, so I don't expect the process to be smooth. But I believe these issues can be addressed through a series of high-level meetings involving leaders and senior officials. By Kwak Yeon-soo President Yoon Suk Yeol warned Russia against deepening military cooperation with North Korea, emphasizing that Moscow should adopt a "sensible" approach in choosing between the two Koreas based on its own interests, according to Reuters, Monday. He also reiterated the stance that South Korea's decision on whether to provide arms to Ukraine hinges on Russia's actions and decisions. Yoons remarks came ahead of his planned visit to Washington to attend a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, where he is expected to talk about the heightened threats posed by Russia and North Korea. Tensions have heightened on the Korean Peninsula after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a comprehensive strategic partnership agreement in June, which involves providing mutual defense assistance in case either side faces an armed attack. Pyongyang renewed its support for Russia's war against Ukraine, saying, "We will always be on the side of the Russian army in the war of justice." North Korea is clearly a menace to the international society," Yoon said in an interview with Reuters. I hope that Russia will sensibly decide which side the South or the North is more important and necessary for its own interests." He added, "The future of ROK-Russia relations depends entirely on Russia's actions." ROK is an acronym of South Korea's official name, the Republic of Korea. Since Kim and Putin's previous summit in September last year, North Korea has allegedly been supplying Russia with ammunition and weapons. These supplies are purportedly used in Russia's conflict against Ukraine, exchanged for technological assistance for North Korea's space program. Both countries have denied engaging in such deals. In response to the enhanced military ties between Russia and North Korea, South Korea has said it would reconsider its earlier stance not to provide lethal weapons to Ukraine. Yoon reiterated this position, saying that depends on the level and substance of military cooperation between Russia and North Korea. He said the military cooperation could include areas such as arms deals, transfers of military technology and assistance with strategic materials. Yoon also expressed regret that Russia, once a supporter of U.N. sanctions against North Korea as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, is now seen as posing a threat to security on the Korean Peninsula by violating these sanctions. He warned that there would be a clearly "negative" impact on South Korea's relations with Russia if these violations continue. The South Korean leader will visit Washington from Wednesday to Thursday to take part in the NATO summit, becoming the first leader of the South to participate in the high-stakes meeting for the third year in a row. The presidential office said Yoon will hold bilateral talks with more than five NATO member nations, including the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland and Norway, and attend a banquet hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday. On Thursday, he will meet with the leaders of Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, the other Indo-Pacific Partners 4 (IP4) countries engaged with NATO. He will also participate in a summit involving NATO members and IP4 countries and deliver a speech at the NATO Public Forum. During the meetings, Yoon is expected to emphasize to NATO and IP4 members that Moscow's ties with Pyongyang could present more than just threats to Seoul. "Military cooperation between Russia and North Korea poses a distinct threat and grave challenge to peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and in Europe," Yoon told Reuters. Yoon is expected to discuss ways to bolster security ties with the U.S., Japan, and other NATO allies in response to the increasing military cooperation between Russia and North Korea. Russia hopes to maintain "safe lines" in its bilateral relations with South Korea and work to improve ties despite the current chill, its top envoy to Seoul said Monday. Russian Ambassador Georgy Zinoviev made the remarks at a Seoul event marking the two countries' shared history, throughout which he noted Russia has been a neighbor that has worked to act in consideration of South Korea's interests. "Our country was a constructive force genuinely interested in Korea's autonomy and independence. Russia continuously pursued this line after establishing de facto diplomatic relations," Zinoviev said at the opening ceremony of an exhibition marking the 140th anniversary of the signing of the first bilateral treaty. "Russia did not act against Korea's interests, instead it tried to defend them in every possible way," he said. Zinoviev's remarks came at a time when Seoul-Moscow relations remain frayed over Moscow's tightening relationship with North Korea, with a focus on military cooperation. The bilateral ties further chilled after Russian President Vladimir Putin's recent visit to Pyongyang last month for talks with the North's leader Kim Jong-un, during which they signed a treaty pledging mutual military assistance in case of an armed attack on either of them. "We hope that our relations will maintain the safe lines and develop in a better direction," he said, adding that he is making every effort to create positive momentum. Zinoviev accused the West of "discrediting" his country in the wrong way, as they have been so in history, calling for an "objective" view of the present for the future of the bilateral ties. "We witness attempts to discredit Russia, present its actions in a false light," he said, confirming afterwards that he meant the Western media and politicians. "Sometime in the future, we could see more an objective view on Russia's actions, both in the past and in the present," Zinoviev said. The exhibition, co-hosted by the Russian Embassy in Seoul, features historical materials and archives related to Korea-Russia relations between the late 19th and early 20th century, including reproduced paintings by Jang Seung-eop, a renowned Korean painter from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). The two paintings, unveiled to the public for the first time, are part of his artwork that Joseon's King Gojong presented to then Russian Emperor Nicholas II for his coronation in 1896. The exhibition will run from July 8 to Aug. 31 at the Appenzeller Noble Memorial Museum in central Seoul. (Yonhap) By Bereket Alemayehu Raul Ugalde Leon is a Mexican painter, silversmith, scuba diving instructor and chef who has lived in Korea for over eight years. Starting this week, the multitalented artist is having his first Korea solo exhibition, titled Recreation in the far east, at Art & Adventure, a gallery in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province. The exhibition opens Tuesday with an opening reception at 6 p.m. and runs until July 16. For this exhibition, he showcases 22 of his artworks depicting the Caribbean Sea and other maritime settings around Mexico, as well as landscapes from around Korea. Moving to Korea in 2018, Leon now runs Que Rico, a Mexican restaurant in Pyeongtaek near U.S. Army Garrison Humphreys. He said that, although he has had several different jobs, he has never stopped working as an artist. For that matter, anyone who visits the restaurant for the first time would realize that its also an artist's studio with various artworks and working space. His studio at the restaurant is only open on Mondays and Tuesdays. In his artists statement, he describes cooking as a divine voyage. "To heed the inner calling of youth, each of us must forge our unique path. For me, it began with Mexico an origin that parallels my dedication to Mexican cuisine," he said. "Cooking tacos and tortas becomes a metaphorical voyage akin to sailing toward a diving adventure. During moments of respite, I delve into pigments and materials, exploring the depths of art, and striving to uncover new reefs of artistic creation. During an interview on Sunday, he told The Korea Times, The calling for an artist normally is when you are young." After 25 years as a scuba diving instructor in the waters off Cozumel Island in the Caribbean Sea and the Yucatan Peninsula in southeastern Mexico, he depicted the sea in his vivid paintings, probably to keep his memorable passion for diving. His colorful artworks featuring sunset views and various sea-changing images over time show a deep affection for the sea, which has been both his workplace and the subject of his art for decades. He can also paint Korean landscapes, continuing his passion on the other side of the planet from his homeland. He explained that his decades of work in the Caribbean Sea included working as a diving instructor, commercial diving, coral reef rescue missions and a year spent on videography documentation under the water. In describing his life in Korea, he said that painting has been the most serious part of his life here in the last three or four years, along with a love for cooking. But he has been unable to continue his passion for jewelry design, despite majoring in silverwork at the National Institute of Fine Arts in Mexico. He said that opening a silversmith laboratory in Korea isnt easy. Instead, he started painting during the pandemic. Janice Heo, founder and director of Art & Adventure, strives to make an international art community by hosting various art events and gallery tours around Pyeongtaek and Seoul. She told The Korea Times that conversations with Leon, who is always full of new ideas, give her joy. He makes paint materials of various colors by himself with minerals collected from the soil, cuts wood by himself and tells me stories about his new work," she said. "Explore the vibrant world of artist Raul, Born in Mexico, who is not only a talented jewelry designer but also a passionate painter ... Raul's art reflects his deep-seated love for both the Caribbean Sea of his homeland and the picturesque landscapes he encounters in Korea. Join us at his latest exhibition where you'll immerse yourself in stunning paintings capturing the essence of summer seas and the ever-changing skies. Discover how Raul's art continues to flourish, bridging cultures and capturing moments in vibrant colors and textures. Art & Adventure gallery is open Tuesdays to Saturdays, 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. For further information follow @jnc015 on Instagram or join the Art&Adventure Facebook group. Bereket Alemayehu is an Ethiopian photo artist, social activist and writer based in Seoul. He's also the co-founder of Hanokers, a refugee-led social initiative and freelance contributor for Pressenza Press Agency. The Air Force will participate in the Australia-led Pitch Black multinational exercise beginning this week, officials said Monday, as Korea seeks to sharpen joint operational capabilities and deepen cooperation with participating nations. Six F-15K fighters and some 100 troops will join the biennial exercise that will run at an Australian military air base in the northern city of Darwin from Friday through Aug. 2, according to the Air Force. Three KC-330 tanker aircraft and three C-130 aircraft will first depart for the exercise Monday ahead of the deployment of the F-15K fighters from an air base in Daegu on Wednesday, it added. This year's exercise is set to bring together some 130 aircraft from 16 nations, including the U.S. F-22, Italy's F-35B, France's Rafale and India's SU-30MKI fighters, the Air Force said. Korea first took part in the biennial exercise in 2022, deploying six KF-16 fighter jets. (Yonhap) Korea's military is considering buying Polish drones, government officials said Monday, amid growing bilateral arms industry ties. Korea's defense authorities plan to send a delegation to Poland soon to inspect Poland's unmanned aerial vehicles and evaluate their suitability for operations on the Korean Peninsula, according to the officials. Warsaw is said to have requested Seoul for the purchase of its homegrown weapons systems during Defense Minister Shin Won-sik's visit to the country last month. The military has been interested in Poland's unmanned aerial vehicles in light of the growing importance of the assets in modern combat. Poland's "Warmate" suicide drone has been used by Ukraine in its war against Russia. "As Poland's drones are currently used in actual combat, (we) will review whether there are areas that can be utilized by our military," a defense ministry official said. The move comes after Poland signed major deals with Korean defense companies in 2022 to purchase various weapons systems, including FA-50 jets, K2 tanks, K9 self-propelled howitzers and Chunmoo rocket artillery systems. "Demand for small-sized unmanned aerial vehicles in our military has grown, and Poland has bought a lot of our weapons," a government official said. "If there is an aircraft type that our military wants, then it would be a good match." Korea has made efforts to step up the use of unmanned assets, launching the Drone Operations Command in September last year. (Yonhap) South Korea and the United States will hold their fifth round of negotiations this week on sharing the costs for stationing the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), the foreign ministry said Monday. The latest round of talks on the Special Measures Agreement will take place in Seoul from Wednesday to Friday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The fourth round of talks was held in late June. The allies launched the negotiations in April, earlier than expected, amid speculation that Seoul wants an early deal to avoid tough bargaining with Washington in case former President Donald Trump returns to the White House. "The government plans to participate in the talks under the position that the cost sharing should be at a reasonable level in order to maintain a stable environment for the stationing of the USFK and to bolster the combined defense posture," a foreign ministry official said. (Yonhap) Police decided Monday not to charge a Marine division commander accused of responsibility in last year's death of a young solider during a search operation for flood victims, only referring six other officers to the prosecution for indictment. The result of the politically sensitive investigation came a year after the then 20-year-old Marine conscript, surnamed Chae, was swept away by a torrent during a search for missing downpour victims in the southeastern county of Yecheon on July 19 last year. He was found dead half a day later. The death sparked national outrage over initial findings that conscripts, including Chae, were mobilized for the risky search mission to comb through a swollen, torrential and muddy stream without proper safety gear, such as life jackets or ropes, resulting in Chae's death. On Monday, the Gyeongbuk Provincial Police Agency in Andong, near Yecheon, announced that it has decided to forward six military field commanders, including the commander of Chae's battalion and another battalion chief, to the prosecution on charges of professional negligence resulting in death. The six people did not include Lim Seong-geun, the commander of the Marine Corps 1st Division at the time of the accident, who is at the center of alleged interference in the military's initial inquiry into Chae's death. Police concluded that the direct cause of the death lay in a battalion commander's arbitrary decision to change the order for conscripts to enter the stream at waist-deep instead of the initial command to remain at boot-high levels. Police determined that Lim was not responsible for the risky operation, as the accused battalion chief was not under his direct command, and Lim did not have operational control over the search, thus he had no obligation to assess risks from the search beforehand. "Unclear directions for the search, combined with a lack of communication, influenced" the battalion commander's arbitrary decision to change directions, said Kim Hyeong-ryul, the chief investigator at the regional police agency. The interference allegation surfaced after former chief Marine investigator Col. Park Jung-hun, who led the inquiry, drew up a report accusing Lim and seven other military officials of being responsible for Chae's death. Park then submitted the report to the police for criminal procedures following confirmation from the then defense minister. The report was, however, immediately retrieved from the police by the defense ministry, while Park was subsequently dismissed as chief Marine investigator and placed under a military investigation for alleged disobedience. Park has claimed he was informed that the retrieval was due to President Yoon Suk Yeol's "fury" over the inquiry result accusing military commanders. Currently, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials is also conducting a separate investigation into alleged interference by the presidential office and the defense ministry in the military's primary inquiry into Chae's death. The presidential office said it respects the result of the police investigation. "It seems that the substantial truth uncovered by the police is quite different from the suspicions that have been raised so far," a senior presidential official told reporters. "We hope the CIO will promptly wrap up the investigation and clarify the facts." Last week, the opposition-controlled National Assembly passed a bill mandating a special counsel investigation into those allegations amid fierce protests from the ruling People Power Party. Another similar bill, championed by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea, initially passed through the previous National Assembly but was scrapped in a revote after Yoon Suk Yeol vetoed it. Yoon is widely expected to once again exercise his veto power against the bill as the ruling People Power Party denounced it as an "unconstitutional" bill that was railroaded by the main opposition Democratic Party. "It wouldn't take long (for the president) to decide on the reconsideration of the bill," the presidential official said. (Yonhap) Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul said Monday that South Korea's economic cooperation with many U.S. states has laid an important foundation for the stability and development of bilateral relations. Cho made the remark during a meeting with Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who was visiting Seoul this week, and expressed hope that the "mutually beneficial" partnership with Texas will further strengthen going forward, the foreign ministry said in a release. Noting the importance of South Korea as the No. 1 foreign investor in Texas, Abbott hoped that the two sides will be able to deepen cooperation not only in semiconductors and energy, but also other areas vital to the future, such as artificial intelligence and space, according to the ministry. Cho asked for state-level policy support for South Korean companies based in Texas in a way that it will help reduce uncertainties and create a predictable business environment. As of April, some 270 South Korean companies had their business operations in Texas, including Samsung Electronics, which is currently building a $17 billion chip plant in Taylor. While discussing regional situations, including North Korea, Abbott told the minister that, regardless of which administration takes office, it will be difficult for the United States to tolerate the North's continued provocations that threaten the international community, according to the ministry. (Yonhap) By Lee Hae-rin An online debate has emerged over the 800,000 won ($579) body transportation fee that was charged to the bereaved family of one of the victims of a deadly car crash on July 1 that claimed nine lives in central Seoul. A post titled Is it correct that the victims family pays for the recovery of the scene of the City Hall disaster? was uploaded on an online community called Bobae Dream, Friday. The online user, who claimed to be an acquaintance of one of the bereaved families, wrote, During the funeral period, a bill for 800,000 won was delivered to the bereaved family for the transporting of the body and on-site recovery expenses from the time of the accident. Is it right for the bereaved family to pay (the bill) after going through such a tragic accident that they had no choice in? the writer wrote, questioning whether it is right to claim payment, particularly during a period of mourning. According to a local news report, a private company that recovered and transported the body from the accident site to the location of the funeral issued the bill to the bereaved family after the accident last Monday. At the time, the private company transported the body instead of an ambulance due to internal regulations of the fire authorities that prioritize ambulances to transport emergency patients and prohibit the transportation of deceased persons. Public opinion is divided over the validity of the expense claim. Some expressed it is regrettable yet inevitable, as an online commentator replied, Its heartbreaking, but there is a due procedure. The insurance company pays for it anyway, not the bereaved family. Others agreed, This is inevitable. But others argued the expense claim lacks legitimacy. How can you charge the victim for on-site medical treatment recovery of the accident? Its right to demand the perpetrator to pay for it, an online user wrote. It feels kind of weird because money seems to come before life, another wrote. When a commenter asked how the payment went, the writer said, I was told that the bereaved family made the payment. I told them to keep the receipt and transfer details just in case. However, the online comment has since been deleted. At around 9:27 p.m. on July 1, a sedan driven by a 68-year-old darted in the wrong direction for some 200 meters up a one-way road near Seoul City Hall, crashing into two other cars before hitting pedestrians on the sidewalk near the intersection there. Nine people were killed and seven were injured in the devastating accident. The driver of the vehicle is under police investigation after being charged with professional negligence resulting in death under the Special Act on Handling of Traffic Accidents. Prosecutors indicted two men Monday on charges of defaming President Yoon Suk Yeol in a media interview allegedly engineered to discredit him as a presidential candidate. The indictment of Kim Man-bae, a journalist-turned-property developer, and journalist Shin Hak-lim came more than two years following a news report in March of 2022, falsely suggesting Yoon's involvement in a high-profile development corruption scandal. The interview, conducted in September 2021, was published by Shin's news outlet, Newstapa, just three days before the presidential election, in which Yoon was elected president. Prosecutors charged Kim with paying Shin 165 million won ($119,181) under the pretext of book purchases in exchange for publishing the "fake" interview, allegedly engineered to aid Yoon's presidential rival and main opposition leader, Lee Jae-myung, in winning the election. Both Kim and Shin have denied any intention to influence the presidential election, saying the interview was just a private conversation. The Seoul Central District Prosecutors Office indicted Kim and Shin under physical detention on charges of bribery, defamation, anti-graft violations and concealment of criminal proceeds. (Yonhap) The ruling People Power Party (PPP) on Monday publicly proposed that President Yoon Suk Yeol veto a bill mandating a special counsel investigation into the military's response to a Marine's death. PPP floor leader Choo Kyung-ho made the appeal during an emergency committee meeting, saying that his party cannot accept such an "unconstitutional" bill that was railroaded by the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). "We strongly ask that the president exercise his veto rights on the special counsel probe bill that is filled with constitutional violations and was passed without bipartisan agreement," Choo said. He warned the PPP will have no choice but to request that Yoon use his veto rights if the DPK pushes through any flawed bills without agreement with the ruling party. The bill, which passed the National Assembly last week, calls for the appointment of a special counsel to look into allegations of interference in the Marine Corps' internal investigation into circumstances surrounding the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun during a search mission for downpour victims in July 2023. A similar bill was scrapped during the previous Assembly after Yoon vetoed it. (Yonhap) Tensions between former ruling party chief Han Dong-hoon and the presidential office have surfaced again following allegations Han snubbed text messages from first lady Kim Keon Hee early this year, a development that threatens to consume the party's national convention just weeks away. Han, who served as interim leader of the ruling People Power Party (PPP) ahead of the April 10 general elections, reportedly ignored five Telegram messages the first lady sent to him in January to offer to resolve a controversy at the time over her alleged illegal acceptance of a luxury bag in 2022. Kim wrote in the text messages that she was sorry for causing trouble ahead of the elections and would make a public apology over the handbag issue if the party considered it necessary, according to the people who revealed the existence of the texts during a CBS radio broadcast Thursday. Han, now one of four candidates running to become the new PPP leader through the July 23 national convention, has denied any wrongdoing, saying he delivered his stance on the need for an apology through "official channels," such as the presidential chief of staff and the senior presidential secretary for political affairs. "Wouldn't it be strange even if I did respond (to the first lady's text)?" he said during a KBS interview Friday. "I have had a strong belief throughout my years in public service that areas such as personal relationships should have no involvement in carrying out my official duties." Han claimed the contents of the text messages were modified, as he recalled the first lady's point was that there were "various circumstances" that prevented her from apologizing. He further cast the revelation of the text messages as an attempt to meddle in the national convention, as rival candidates have immediately seized on the controversy to attack Han, arguing his actions contributed to the PPP's crushing defeat in the general elections. Won Hee-ryong, a candidate who served as land minister under President Yoon Suk Yeol, wrote on Facebook on Sunday that Han should disclose the text messages or apologize. Na Kyung-won, another candidate, said Saturday that Han made a clear mistake that effectively hurt the party. Yoon Sang-hyun, also a candidate for PPP chief, said Han should have responded to the text messages and worked to resolve the handbag scandal together with the first lady, who was the person who created the controversy. Amid the intensifying debate, the presidential office responded Sunday by strongly rejecting any suggestions of meddling in the campaign. "The presidential office has never meddled or intervened in the People Power Party's national convention election process, and it will remain that way," a senior presidential official said. "We especially urge each candidate and their campaigns to pay attention to not drag the presidential office into the election." Meanwhile, a group of pro-Yoon members of the PPP reportedly considered circulating a petition and holding a press conference Sunday to demand Han's withdrawal from the race. They later canceled the plan after the PPP election management committee warned of a "firm response to actions that undermine party harmony." "Please do not cancel the petition after being taken aback by bad public opinion but just do it like last time," Han wrote on Facebook on Sunday, referring to when dozens of PPP lawmakers signed a petition ahead of last year's PPP leadership election that ultimately forced Na Kyung-won, who was also a candidate then, to withdraw. This is not the first time Yoon and Han have seemingly clashed over issues related to the first lady and elections. In January, Han was asked by the presidential office to resign as party interim chief following tensions between the two over how to handle the luxury bag allegations and the party's candidate nomination process for the April general elections. Han rejected the request, and he and the president were later seen visiting the site of a market fire together in a public display of reconciliation. Han had been considered one of Yoon's closest confidants from their time as prosecutors and served as Yoon's first justice minister, with critics even calling him Yoon's "avatar," before their relations ultimately soured over the handbag scandal and other sensitive issues. (Yonhap) Truth game intensifies among PPP leadership candidates By Anna J. Park Controversy surrounding private Telegram messages sent by first lady Kim Keon Hee to former ruling People Power Party (PPP) interim leader Han Dong-hoon in January has escalated into a significant issue, overshadowing the ruling party's national convention scheduled later this month, according to political pundits, Monday. The story dates back to January when public support for the PPP and the presidential office plummeted ahead of the April general election, due to mounting allegations that the first lady had accepted a luxury handbag as a gift in 2022. According to media reports and political circles, Kim sent Telegram text messages to Han expressing regret for the trouble caused ahead of the election campaigns. She also indicated her willingness to issue a public apology regarding the handbag issue if deemed necessary by the party. Kim sent a total of five messages to Han between January 15 and January 25, but did not receive any response. But Han, while acknowledging that he "read the messages but did not reply to them," claimed that they did not clearly convey Kim's willingness to issue a public apology. "I recall her text messages were emphasizing various circumstances that would make issuing a public apology difficult," Han said during an interview with KBS on Friday, when asked if he had received the text messages from Kim in January. "By January, I had already publicly and officially requested an apology from Kim, which led to an uncomfortable situation," Han added. With Han denying the publicly reported content of the messages, the situation has now evolved into a credibility dispute. The pro-Yoon faction asserts that "Kim clearly expressed her intention to apologize," while Han's side argues that "it was not intended as an apology." In addition to the conflict over the content of the messages, there are other unanswered questions, such as who initially leaked the story and what motivations were behind it. One political commentator, known to be close to Han's aides, argued that the leak could have been orchestrated by Kim to undermine Han's candidacy in the party leadership race at the national convention later this month. "It could be the first lady intended for the private messages to become public. Otherwise, it raises questions about who would have the capability to hack and disclose such messages," Chin Jung-kwon, a special professor at Kwangwoon University, wrote on his Facebook. "It is reasonable to speculate that the faction at risk of losing political influence urged Kim to do this," Chin added, calling the act an attempt to "intervene" in the national convention. Some political observers even speculate that the story about the text messages was intentionally made public by the president himself. Local media outlets earlier reported that the controversy surrounding the text messages began when a pro-Yoon lawmaker showed the entire contents to several lawmakers. A PPP lawmaker said on condition of anonymity, "Among those who saw the message at the time, some lawmakers said that there are phrases that could lead one to infer that President Yoon sent the message to the pro-Yoon lawmaker." As the situation takes center stage at the ruling party's national convention, concerns are mounting that the controversy over the text messages may overshadow constructive policy debates and discussions on the party's vision for innovation. Meanwhile, the presidential office has been distancing itself from the controversy. "The presidential office has not intervened or interfered in any way in the election process of the national convention of the PPP, and will continue to refrain from doing so in the future," a senior official at the presidential office said. "The presidential office is awaiting the decisions of party members and the public, and we will faithfully adhere to the mandates expressed by them through the outcomes of the national convention." By Esther Kim Taipei, Taiwan One Monday morning, 200 audience members settled their seats for a sold-out "K-Family Affairs" (in Korean "Aeguksonyeo"), a feature documentary, director Nam Arum's first, about her family, their patriotic zeal and disillusionment with South Korean democracy. It was screened by the Taiwan International Documentary Festival (TIDF), a superb, if underrated, film festival held biannually. TIDF flew Nam and others from countries like Argentina, Myanmar, Iran and Indonesia for screenings followed by Q&A. "K-Family Affairs'' won the Jury Prize for Asian Voices. Born December 1993, Nam Arums birthday shared with a twin sister younger by a few minutes landed on the day that South Korean democracy truly began, she says: the trial of Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo. Her mom, a feminist, was overjoyed by the coincidence. Her father, an activist broadcast journalist in university, was cheered by this auspicious start. An early adopter of the video camera, he filmed the girls every coo, smile and birthday. Every five years, the presidential democratic election took place on her birthday. His home videos are cut with radio and television news broadcasts. She waves the flag and sings the national anthem. Democracy was a gift, the best gift she thought she could ever receive. She'd inherited the ideals of her parents, members of the 386 generation who strove for democracy. Her parents met as university students. They both shared ambitions to change the world: Boy meets girl; boy interviews girl for the school newspaper; they start dating; then get married; and the rest is history. Except not quite. After her fathers military service, he joined the government as a civil servant, determined to change the system from the inside out. He'd become like the rest, her mother cautioned, just another suit. He countered, As long as I have a girlfriend like you, I won't become like them. Famous last words, perhaps. From there on, Nam narrates and observes him change as a bureaucrat with a hand in the political tumult of each administration, and his completely close-lipped stance on government affairs. The starkest moment of conflict occurs with the Sewol ferry disaster. Her father had been shunted from the Bureau of Public Affairs to Youth Affairs and finally to the Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries when the Sewol ferry disaster hit. Nam Arum was a high school student. Her mother, a crisis counselor and committed feminist, knew where she stood but Arum didn't. While her classmates and her mother stood outside protesting the very office building where her father went to work, she kept silent, unable to outright reject her father and his public service. She says, "Though at the time I couldn't say anything, I gathered my letters and diaries, so even though I said nothing then, perhaps I was still making this documentary without making it." After Sewol, her father was effectively promoted and shipped off to the presidential office then known as the Blue House to work under the Park Geun-hye administration. Despite her attempts to cajole him into making a political statement for or against the government on camera, he firmly refuses to consent to interview. In a poignant scene where she chases after him on his morning office commute as he walks to work and swipes his pass key, he says the president probably couldn't sleep. The echoes of protesters bounce off the mountains too loudly into the Blue House. The film covers a lot of ground. Surface treatment of protests after protest, the Sewol ferry disaster, the Candlelit demonstrations, the #MeToo movement. The director documents her participation in the MeToo movement, an exhausting campaign to depose a professor whod sexually assaulted students. Hes given a slap on the wrist with three months probation. Her first-hand run-in with changing an entrenched system seems sadly representative. Over footage of happy children playing in the water fountains of Gwanghwamun Square, she questions the state of South Korean democracy: This square where hundreds of thousands gathered to protest Park Geun-hye was razed and renovated. Protests there are illegal. She and her mom express their deep disillusionment with each election. For a foreign audience, the significance of the Sewol ferry disaster may not quite translate. The national tragedy, prompting an outpouring of grief and outrage, became the galvanizing symbol for impeaching the president. Why? Perhaps if she'd voiced her questions about her father's role in the mishandling of the disaster, her awful struggle to confront and ask him, the film would've been stronger. An interesting companion film might be the Zainichi film director Yang Yonghi's Pyongyang trilogy, which also documents her rocky relationship with her parents' tragic, unflagging patriotism to North Korea as ethnic Koreans living in Japan. A lively Q&A followed the showing. Nam shared the wholly positive feedback shed received. Her mother became a minor celebrity in South Korea, and her younger sister regretted not appearing in the film more. Her father did not comment. But above all, he did not intervene in her making it. "If I don't say anything, then the problems in Korean society might get to the point I couldn't make documentaries," Nam said. Once my dad retires from working for the government, I want to make a similar work. I hope we can meet again in Taiwan." Esther Kim is a freelance writer based in Taiwan. She was a senior manager at the Asian American Writers Workshop in New York and Tilted Axis Press in London and a publicist at Columbia University Press. She writes about culture and the Koreas. Samsungs record profits call for strategic reinforcement Boosted by a recovery in the semiconductor industry, Samsung Electronics achieved an operating profit of 10.4 trillion won ($7.52 billion) in the second quarter of this year, constituting an earnings surprise. The figure not only marks a 14.5-fold surge in operating profit from a year ago, it also surpasses the Korean tech giant's earnings for all of last year. It is the first time Samsung posted more than 10 trillion won in operating profit since the third quarter of 2022. The recent boom can be largely credited to a significant increase in demand for DRAM chips, driven by the thriving AI sector. Coupled with steady increases in the prices of related products like NAND flash memory, the semiconductor sector has been driven to achieve higher levels of performance. Analysts predict this boom in the memory chip sector to persist for some time, potentially enabling Samsung to achieve an operating profit of up to 12 trillion won in the third quarter. Prompted by the brisk sales, the nations entire economy has also shown signs of recovery, as seen in the benchmark KOSPIs recent bullish trend. Besides Samsung, other domestic electronics companies have also been faring well. LG Electronics, for instance, achieved an operating profit of more than 1 trillion won in the second quarter, up 60 percent from a year earlier. SK hynix is also expected to announce an earnings surprise soon, powered by the thriving high-bandwidth memory (HBM) business. The outstanding earnings performances of the tech titans are energizing the national economy, contributing to a current account balance of $8.92 billion in May, which was the largest amount in 32 months. The recent positive development in Koreas economy, led by the semiconductor industry, is highly encouraging. However, it seems premature to pop the champagne, considering the rapidly evolving global semiconductor competition. Major countries like the United States, Japan and European nations are aggressively striving to maintain their competitive edge, investing tens of trillions of won to bolster their chip industries. Additionally, they are offering various forms of assistance to domestic firms, including deregulatory measures. Korea has long held the top position globally in the memory chip sector. However, fierce competition from international rivals has significantly altered this landscape. In response to the escalating demand from major global companies like Nvidia, Samsung has unveiled plans to establish a dedicated unit to manufacture HBM. This move aims to capitalize on the burgeoning market for these products, particularly crucial for AI applications. Notably, profitability in the HBM unit surpasses that of DRAM, underscoring its strategic importance in the semiconductor industry. Samsung has also been desperate to catch up with TSMC of Taiwan in the foundry sector. Currently, Samsung accounts for 11.3 percent of that market, compared to TSMCs 61.2 percent. Samsung has recently been focusing on buttressing the foundry business by establishing plants in Korea and the United States. The semiconductor industry requires a huge amount of investments, and the companies can sustain their competitiveness by pouring large proportions of their profits into research and development. Last year, Samsung Electronics saw a record deficit of 15 trillion won at its chip unit due to a sluggish memory business. This means the company should not be complacent about its recent performance and should maintain a high level of vigilance. The Yoon Suk Yeol administration needs to accelerate efforts to fulfill its commitment to establish the world's largest semiconductor cluster in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province. This includes developing essential infrastructure such as industrial water supply, roads, and ensuring an adequate pool of skilled workers. The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) deserves recognition for introducing a semiconductor special bill that proposes raising the tax exemption rate for investors from the current 15 percent to 25 percent. Now, the government and lawmakers should combine their efforts to nurture the semiconductor industry, the critical mainstay industry of Korea Inc. By Lee Jong-eun On June 19, Russias President Vladimir Putin traveled to North Korea for a one-day summit with the reclusive nation's leader Kim Jong-un. At the summit, the two leaders signed a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty, which included a clause committing the two countries to provide immediate military assistance if either side is in a state of war. After the summit, Putin expressed openness to advancing military and technical cooperation with the DPRK. South Korea responded by warning that Russias sending sophisticated weapons or assisting the Norths nuclear and ballistic missile program would be crossing a red line for South Korea. South Koreas National Security Adviser Chang Ho-jin warned that to counter Russia-North Korea military cooperation, South Korea would consider providing military aid directly to Ukraine. Putin, however, responded with his warning: South Korea would be making a big mistake by supplying weapons to Ukraine, motivating Russia to take actions unfavorable to the South Korean government. Since then, a diplomatic stand-off has persisted between Russia and South Korea. So far, each side has refrained from taking the actions threatened by the other: Russia has not provided advanced military technology to North Korea, and South Korea has not supplied arms directly to Ukraine. For Russia, providing advanced nuclear and missile technology to the North presents three key dilemmas. The first is the fairness of the exchange. Providing Russias sophisticated military technology in return for North Koreas conventional, often low-quality arms may disproportionately benefit North Korea. The second dilemma concerns the reliability of the North as a strategic partner. Receiving advanced military technology might embolden the North to further destabilize Northeast Asia's geopolitical security without consulting Russia. Putins reluctance to describe the Russia-North Korean relationship as an alliance and his assertion that Russia will only defend the North in case of aggression against it might reflect Russias reservations about the Pyongyangs unpredictable actions. The third dilemma involves Russias relations with the strategically more important China. China might view Russias increased support for North Korea, especially in nuclear and missile development, as encouraging provocations that threaten regional stability and strengthen the rival U.S.-led alliance in Northeast Asia. China has, in fact, distanced itself from being described as part of a trilateral partnership with Russia and North Korea. South Korea also faces risks in following through on its threat to supply weapons to Ukraine. Firstly, the South Korean government risks deteriorating its relationship further with Russia, with whom it has sought to build a strong economic partnership since the end of the Cold War. Secondly, the South Korean government risks exacerbating domestic political polarization. While the South Korean public has generally supported providing humanitarian aid to Ukraine, sending military assistance has been more controversial. Consequently, the Yoon government may face political opposition, with critics arguing that it jeopardizes South Koreas security by excessively intervening in overseas conflicts. Though Russia and South Korea have so far displayed caution in crossing each others red lines due to the risks accompanying such actions, a major challenge is that the two countries are more likely to cross the orange line, more limited actions that are still unfavorable to the others strategic interests. Prompted by urgent requests from the United States and Europe, South Korea may expand its indirect involvement in Ukraines and Europes security, such as exporting arms to countries providing direct military aid to Ukraine. Russia may enhance its cooperation with the North to upgrade Pyongyang's conventional military capabilities (such as munitions rockets, and drones), as this will benefit Russia by improving the quality of the North's conventional arms. Russia and South Korea will likely face the dilemma of tolerating others' actions that fall short of explicitly violating the red line warning. Will Russia tolerate South Koreas indirect involvement in the Russia-Ukraine War? Will South Korea tolerate Russias assistance upgrading the Norths conventional military capability? If either Russia or South Korea attempts retaliation against the others actions, it risks escalation of bilateral conflict. Mutual hostility and distrust may eventually motivate the two countries to risk direct confrontation in Europe and Northeast Asia. For South Korea, the challenging decision lies in whether to counter all aspects of the Moscow-Pyongyang partnership, risking escalated conflict with Russia, or to tolerate a limited partnership, provided it doesn't involve nuclear collaboration. Each response has pros and cons, but South Korea risks greater strategic vulnerability from exchanging retaliation with Russia. While South Korea's direct military aid to Ukraine is unlikely to alter the dynamics of the Russia-Ukraine War significantly, Russia's advanced military and technological support to North Korea could considerably affect the nuclear balance and deterrence in Northeast Asia. What should be South Koreas response? South Korea should continue to warn Russia of the consequences of providing excessive military support to the North while reassuring South Koreas intent to limit involvement in the Russia-Ukraine War. Additionally, South Korea should reach an implicit understanding with Russia that limited bilateral conflict is inevitable in the current geopolitical context. Just as South Korea cannot ignore its geopolitical ties with the West, Russia cannot refrain from leveraging its strategic partnership with North Korea. Paradoxically, maintaining mutual restraint to uphold the "red lines" may require tolerating "orange-level" tensions between Russia and South Korea. Finally, the United States should support South Korea's efforts to apply credible pressures and reassurances on Russia. For the U.S. geopolitical strategy, preventing Russias advancement of the North's nuclear capability is of greater strategic importance than South Korea's direct arms supply to Ukraine. By supporting South Korea in maintaining mutual red lines with Russia, the U.S. achieves sacrifice the skin, to preserve the bone in containing the geopolitical challenges from revisionist states such as Russia and North Korea. Lee Jong-eun is an assistant professor of political science at North Greenville University. By Ko Dong-hwan The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries has been repeatedly omitting the nation's easternmost islets of Dokdo from its annual policy reports to President Yoon Suk Yeol since his inauguration in May 2022, according to a lawmaker, Monday. Rep. Lim Mi-ae of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea said that since the Yoon administration came into power, there has been no mention of Dokdo in the ministry's policy reports to the president as well as materials for his public policy dialogue. According to the lawmaker, under the 2017-22 liberal Moon Jae-in administration the ministry referred to Dokdo in its policy reports on 39 occasions. Compared with past conservative governments, the ministry's reports to the Park Geun-hye administration from 2013 to 2017 made reference to Dokdo 26 times and it did so 28 times under the 2008-13 Lee Myung-bak administration, Lim added. Rep. Lim said that Dokdo is Koreas critical maritime territory and it must be reflected through the ministrys reports to the presidential office, given that the Japanese government has made a groundless claim to the islets. The oceans ministry is responsible for safeguarding the countrys maritime sovereignty, she said. Has the ministry sided with President Yoons submissive stance toward Japan and thrown away its role to protect Dokdo? In response, the ministry stated its firm belief that Dokdo is Korean territory based on historical and geological evidence and international laws. Weve been executing a scientific search on Dokdo and carrying out education on safety, management and promotion of the island, the ministry said in a statement. Based on the countrys Act on the Sustainable Use of Dokdo since 2014, weve been submitting reports regarding the policy to the National Assembly every year. Workers warn of additional walkouts unless demands are met By Nam Hyun-woo The biggest labor union at Samsung Electronics initiated a three-day strike on Monday, threatening to disrupt the company's chip manufacturing lines unless management agrees to a wage hike and higher incentives. This marks the first strike by unionized workers in the tech giant's 55-year history. The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU) claimed that about 4,000 unionized workers from Samsung's plants nationwide participated in a rally at the company's Hwaseong Campus in Gyeonggi Province. Police estimated that approximately 3,000 union members were present at the rally. According to its own survey, the union reported that a total of 6,540 members expressed their intention to participate in the strike. They emphasized that disruptions in manufacturing are anticipated, with over 5,000 members from facility, manufacturing, and development divisions joining the strike. The comments seem to address market expectations that the walkout is unlikely to cause significant disruptions in the chipmaker's operations, largely because most manufacturing lines are automated. The union said that it may launch another strike for an undetermined period, unless management responds to the unions demand. Since January, the union has been pressing management for a higher wage increase rate for all members, fulfillment of promises regarding paid leave, and improvements to incentive criteria. With negotiations at an impasse, the union announced on May 29 that it would launch a strike. The NSEU has some 30,000 members, accounting for 24 percent of all Samsung employees. Among the union members, about 80 percent work at the device solutions division, which manufactures semiconductors. By Lee Min-hyung Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is set to ask Samsung, LG and a group of Korean companies for more investments in the Lone Star State during his visit to Seoul this week, in a move to strengthen strategic ties with local cutting-edge tech players, according to industry officials, Monday. Abbott arrived here, Sunday, as part of his 10-day business trip to three Asian countries, which also includes Taiwan and Japan. His first visit to Korea comes amid the nations growing economic importance to the state. According to data from the state government, Korea topped the list among nations that made the largest foreign direct investment in Texas over the past decade. Korean firms invested a total of $20.59 billion (28.44 trillion won) during that period. Korea is also Texas fourth-largest trading partner. The governor will meet with key executives from major Korean conglomerates so as to attract more investment from them. Samsung Electronics is building a semiconductor manufacturing facility in Taylor, Texas, with an initial investment of $17 billion. The company aims to expand this investment to $40 billion by 2030. LG Electronics is also another key partner for Texas, with the Korean electronics firm manufacturing chargers for electric vehicles at a factory in Fort Worth, Texas. Abbott will also hold talks with executives from Korean Air and Doosan Group for future business partnerships, in an effort to attract more investment from them. A group of Korean firms invests in Texas in the fields of steelmaking, energy, semiconductors, aviation and space industries. On Monday, he attended a meeting hosted by the Korea International Trade Association (KITA), as part of his official schedule here. He expressed gratitude for the continuous investment of Korean firms in Texas and pledged to further enhance trade relations. Korea is an important economic partner that has a common ground with Texas, as both of them achieved growth and prosperity under the knowledge-based economies, the governor said. We will activate trade between the two regions by strengthening partnerships with the Korean trade association and businesspeople here. Last week, the trade organization also opened its new office in Dallas, one of Texas' major cities, with a view to helping more Korean firms expand their footing in the emerging industrial hub in Texas. The governor is also scheduled to visit Samsung Electronics major chip manufacturing hub in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, Tuesday, and will be briefed about the firms production lines and product lineups. Texas partnership with Samsung remains solid, demonstrated by Abbotts participation in the opening ceremony of Samsung Highway last month. The highway is a four-lane road aimed at improving business logistics there. At that time, he reiterated the state governments unwavering willingness to boost further ties with Samsung. Abbott also underlined Texas plans to provide more incentives and opportunities to companies in state-of-the-art tech areas. Texas will particularly offer more opportunities to companies doing businesses in cutting-edge manufacturing sectors, such as semiconductors, and other emerging industries, he said. I want to deepen not just economic, but cultural partnerships by meeting with businesspeople and government officials. A coalition of the French left that quickly banded together to beat a surging far right in legislative elections won the most seats in parliament but not a majority, according to polling projections Sunday, a stunning outcome that threatens to plunge the country into political and economic turmoil. The projections put President Emmanuel Macrons centrist alliance in second, no longer in control of parliament, and the bruised far right in third. With no bloc securing a clear majority, France faces uncertainty that could rattle markets and its economy, the European Union's second-largest, and cast a shadow of political instability over the Paris Olympics opening in less than three weeks. Final results are not expected until late Sunday or early Monday in the highly volatile snap election that redrew the political map of France even before votes were cast, galvanizing parties on the left to put differences aside and join together when Macron announced just four weeks ago that he was dissolving parliament and calling the election, in a huge gamble that the president hoped would shore up his centrist alliance. It does not appear to have paid off for the deeply unpopular president. Projections forecast that his alliance would no longer be the largest single group in parliament, possibly by a long way. The National Rally party of Marine Le Pen greatly increased the number of seats it holds, but fell far short of its hopes of securing an absolute majority that would have given France its first far-right government since World War II. In Paris Stalingrad square, supporters on the left cheered and applauded as projections showing the alliance ahead flashed up on a giant screen. Cries of joy also rang out in Republique plaza in eastern Paris, with people spontaneously hugging strangers and several minutes of nonstop applause after the projections landed. Jordan Bardella , Le Pen's 28-year-old protege who'd been hoping to become prime minister, rued that the outcome of the vote throws France into the arms of the extreme left. The most prominent of the leftist coalition's leaders, Jean-Luc Melenchon, urged Macron to invite the New Popular Front coalition to form a government. The alliance, he said, is ready to govern." The projections, if confirmed by official counts, will spell intense uncertainty for a pillar of the European Union, with no clarity about who might become prime minister and the prospect that Macron will be forced to govern alongside someone opposed to most of his domestic policies. The results will influence the war in Ukraine , global diplomacy and Europes economic stability. The polling projections are based on the actual vote count in select constituencies. They offer a range of the number of seats each party is likely to win and are usually reliable, if not exact. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he would resign but also that he would remain on an interim basis during the Olympics or for as long as needed, given that there could be weeks of negotiations to choose a new premier. In a statement from his office, Macron indicated that he wouldnt be rushed into inviting a potential prime minister to form a government. It said he was watching as results come in and would wait for the new National Assembly to take shape before taking the necessary decisions, all while respecting the sovereign choice of the French. A hung parliament with no single bloc coming close to getting the 289 seats needed for an absolute majority in the National Assembly, the more powerful of Frances two legislative chambers, would be unknown territory for modern France. Unlike other countries in Europe that are more accustomed to coalition governments, France doesnt have a tradition of lawmakers from rival political camps coming together to form a majority. Macron stunned France, and many in his own government, by dissolving parliament after the far right surged in French voting for the European elections in June. Macron argued that sending voters back to the ballot boxes would provide France with clarification. The president was hoping that with Frances fate in their hands, voters might shift from the far right and left and return to mainstream parties closer to the center where Macron found much of the support that won him the presidency in 2017 and again in 2022. That, he hoped, would fortify his presidency for his remaining three years in office. But rather than rally behind him, millions of voters seized on his surprise decision as an opportunity to vent their anger. In last weekends first round of balloting, voters backed candidates from the National Rally, in even greater numbers than in voting for the European Parliament. The coalition of parties on the left took second and his centrist alliance was a distant third. The sharp polarization of French politics especially in this torrid and quick campaign is sure to complicate any coalition-building effort. Racism and antisemitism marred the electoral campaign, along with Russian disinformation campaigns , and more than 50 candidates reported being physically attacked highly unusual for France. The government said it deployed 30,000 police for Sundays runoff vote an indication of both the high stakes and concerns that a far-right victory, or even no clear win for any bloc, could trigger protests. Any cobbled-together majority risks being fragile, vulnerable to no-confidence votes that could cause it to fall. Prolonged instability could increase suggestions from his opponents that Macron should cut short his second and last term. The French Constitution prevents him from dissolving parliament again in the next 12 months, barring that as a route to possibly give France greater clarity. (AP) Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike easily won a third four-year term as head of Japan's influential capital in a closely watched vote Sunday, the city's residents apparently happy with her governance that included providing childcare subsidies and holding the Olympics during the coronavirus pandemic. The vote was also seen as a test for Prime Minister Fumio Kishidas governing party, which supports Koike , the first woman to lead the Tokyo city government. Tokyo, a city of 13.5 million people with outsized political and cultural power and a budget equaling some nations, is one of Japans most influential political posts. A record 55 candidates challenged Koike, and one of the top contenders was also a woman a liberal-leaning former lawmaker who uses only her first name, Renho, and was backed by opposition parties. Minutes after exit polls projecting her victory, Koike showed up at her campaign headquarters in Tokyo and celebrated by thanking the voters who chose her. I believe the voters gave me a mandate for my accomplishment in the past eight years, Koike said. She pledged to push for more reforms and support for Tokyo residents. I'm fully aware of my heavy responsibility, she said. I will tackle my third term with all my body and soul. A win by Koike is a relief for Kishidas conservative governing party, which she has long been affiliated with. Kishidas Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner, Komeito, unofficially backed her campaign. But in separate supplementary elections for Tokyo's metropolitan assembly that were eclipsed by the governor's vote, LDP lost in six of the eight districts where it fielded its own candidates, underscoring still harsh public response to the partys corruption scandal. Renho, running as an independent but supported by the main opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan and the Japanese Communist Party, criticized Koikes ties with Kishidas party, which has been hit by a widespread slush fund scandal. A victory for Renho would have been a major setback for Kishidas chances in the party's leadership vote in September. LDP acting secretary general Tomomi Inada, in an interview with NHK television, welcomed Koike's victory as a positive development for the governing party, but stressed the need for the LDP to firmly push its own reforms. While the two high-profile women gathered national attention, Shinji Ishimaru, a former mayor of Akitakata town in Hiroshima prefecture, was seen to have gained popularity among young voters. The main issues in the campaign included measures to improve the economy, disaster resilience for Tokyo and low birth numbers. When Japans national fertility rate fell to a record low 1.2 babies per woman last year, Tokyo's 0.99 rate was the lowest for the country. Koikes policies focused on providing subsidies for married parents expecting babies and those raising children. Renho called for increased support for young people to address their concerns about jobs and financial stability, arguing that would help improve prospects for marrying and having families. Another focus of attention was a controversial redevelopment of Tokyos beloved park area, Jingu Gaien, which Koike approved but later faced criticism over its lack of transparency and suspected environmental impact. The final vote count by the election administration commission showed Koike got more than 2.9 million votes, way ahead of Ishimaru in second with 1.66 million and Renho in third with 1.28 million. Koike , a stylish and media savvy former TV newscaster, was first elected to parliament in 1992 at age 40. She served in a number of key Cabinet posts, including environment and defense ministers, as part of the long-reining Liberal Democratic Party. Renho, known for voicing sharp questions in parliament, was born to a Japanese mother and Taiwanese father and doesn't use her family name. A former model and newscaster, she was elected to parliament in 2004 and served as administrative reform minister in the government led by the now-defunct Democratic Party of Japan. (AP) Any Gaza ceasefire deal must allow Israel to resume fighting until its objectives are met, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday, as talks over a U.S. plan aimed at ending the nine-month-old war were expected to restart. Five days after Hamas accepted a key part of the plan, two officials from the Palestinian militant group said the group was awaiting Israel's response to its latest proposal. Netanyahu was scheduled to hold consultations late on Sunday on the next steps in negotiating the three-phase plan that was presented in May by U.S. President Joe Biden and is being mediated by Qatar and Egypt. It aims to end the war and free around 120 Israeli hostages being held in Gaza. Hamas has dropped a key demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before it would sign an agreement. Instead, it said it would allow negotiations to achieve that throughout the six-week first phase, a Hamas source told Reuters on Saturday on condition of anonymity. But Netanyahu said he insisted the deal must not prevent Israel from resuming fighting until its war objectives are met. Those goals were defined at the start of the war as dismantling Hamas' military and governing capabilities, as well as returning the hostages. "The plan that has been agreed to by Israel and which has been welcomed by President Biden will allow Israel to return hostages without infringing on the other objectives of the war," Netanyahu said. The deal, he said, must also prohibit weapons smuggling to Hamas via the Gaza-Egypt border and should not allow for thousands of armed militants to return to northern Gaza. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns is to meet with the Qatari prime minister and the Israeli and Egyptian intelligence chiefs on Wednesday in Doha, said a source familiar with the issue who asked not to be further identified. Burns is also expected to visit Cairo this week, along with an Israeli delegation, Egypt's Al Qahera News TV reported on Sunday, citing a high-ranking source. There was no letup in fighting inside Gaza, where late on Sunday the Israeli military renewed orders for residents and displaced families in several districts in Gaza City to leave their homes. Some residents said they were surprised by the sounds of tank shells and gunfire from Israeli drones, as some managed to flee and others were trapped at home. "This is the sixth time we have been displaced, we dont know where we should go. To be honest, I dont know. I have a three-story building and now it was hit, I just got the news," a displaced woman who asked not to be identified told Reuters in Gaza City. "My husband is an amputee and he is stuck in Shejaiya. We have heard no news about him," she said. Palestinian health officials later said an Israeli air strike on a house in Jabalia on the northern edge of the Gaza Strip had killed at least 10 people, with many wounded and others still missing. The new talks follow months of failed attempts to reach a ceasefire in stop-start negotiations that several times led nowhere after Washington said a deal was close. A Palestinian official close to the talks said the proposal could lead to a framework agreement if embraced by Israel and would end the war. "We have left our response with the mediators and are waiting to hear the occupation's response," one of the two Hamas officials told Reuters, asking not to be identified. Another Palestinian official with knowledge of the ceasefire deliberations said Israel was in talks with the Qataris and that a response was expected within days. Protests in Israel In Israel, protesters took to the streets across the country to press the government to agree to the Gaza ceasefire deal, which would bring back hostages still being held in Gaza. They blocked rush-hour traffic at major intersections across the country, picketed politicians' houses and briefly set fire to tires on the main Tel Aviv-Jerusalem highway before police cleared the way. In Gaza, Palestinian health officials said at least 15 people were killed in Israeli strikes. Among them were Ehab Al-Ghussein, the Hamas-appointed deputy minister of labor whose wife and children were killed in May, and three other people killed in a strike at a church-run school in western Gaza City sheltering families, Hamas media and the Civil Emergency Service said. The Israeli military said that after it took steps to minimize the risk of civilians being harmed there, it struck militants hiding in the school and a nearby weapon-making facility. In central and northern areas of Rafah, on the southern Gaza border with Egypt, Israeli tanks deepened their raids. Health officials there said they had recovered three bodies of Palestinians killed by Israeli fire. The Israeli military said its forces had killed 30 Palestinian gunmen in Rafah in the past day, and that one of its soldiers was killed in combat. In Shejaia, an eastern suburb of Gaza City, the military said its forces had killed several gunmen and located weapons and explosives. It published a drone video showing gunmen, some appearing to be wounded or dead, in a house. Reuters could not immediately verify the video. The conflict was triggered on Oct. 7 when fighters led by Hamas, which controlled Gaza, attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. More than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military onslaught, according to Gaza health officials, and the coastal enclave has largely been reduced to rubble. (Reuters) Palestinians on Monday fled heavy battles in Gaza City as the Israeli military expanded an evacuation order and mediators intensified efforts to end the nine-month war between Israel and Hamas militants. But the Islamist movement's political chief warned that developments on the ground could threaten talks, even as mediators Egypt and Qatar were due to host new meetings this week, according to officials. Israeli troops and tanks pushed into parts of Gaza City, in the territory's north, and battled Palestinian militants who said they deployed explosives along with rocket and mortar fire against the Israeli forces. Hamas's armed wing, the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades, described the Gaza City combat as "the most intense in months". The United Nations said tens of thousands of people were affected by the evacuation orders. Witnesses said messages on loudspeakers urged civilians to leave Gaza City's Al-Daraj and Al-Tuffah neighbourhoods. Women carried the smallest children in their arms, while those old enough lugged backpacks or walked with bags slung over their shoulders through dusty streets already devastated by fighting in the war's earliest days. The Israeli military called on Palestinians to leave parts of Gaza City's west, expanding its evacuation zone in the territory's biggest city with the third order in less than two weeks. "Where do we go?" Abdullah Khammash asked in the street after fleeing Gaza City's Rimal neighbourhood. "They tell us to leave this area and go to another area, and then they come from that area." The military ordered Gaza City's Al-Ahli Arab Hospital evacuated after "a large amount of firing from drones" nearby on Sunday, the Episcopal Church's Jerusalem Diocese said in a statement, adding that the facility was now "out of operation". Only a minority of Gaza's hospitals are even partly functioning, the UN says, and the newly displaced face "critical levels" of needs such as safe drinking water. The war started 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 seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom remain in Gaza, including 42 the military says are dead. Israel responded with a military offensive that has killed at least 38,193 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to data from the territory's health ministry. The toll includes at least 40 deaths over the previous 24 hours, it said. Diplomatic efforts to halt the fighting aim for an initial six-week ceasefire that would see some hostages in Gaza freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails, but talks would continue for a comprehensive deal to end the war. Hamas has signalled it would drop its insistence on a "complete" ceasefire, a demand Israel has repeatedly rejected. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office reiterated in a statement that "any deal will allow Israel to return and fight until all the goals of the war are achieved". - Evacuation order - The military said Israeli forces were carrying out a "counterterrorism operation" against Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants in the area of the Gaza City headquarters of the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, which had no immediate comment. In Gaza City's Shujaiya district, subject to evacuation orders since June 27 and where battles have raged for nearly two weeks, the military said it had "eliminated dozens" of militants including in air strikes. Israel in early January said it had dismantled Hamas's "military framework" in northern Gaza, but militants have since regrouped -- underscoring the difficulty of destroying the group, which Netanyahu says is one of the goals. A Hamas statement on Monday accused Netanyahu of trying to thwart an agreement. While the Islamist movement "demonstrates flexibility... Netanyahu continues to place more obstacles in front of the negotiations, escalates his aggression and crimes against our people" to derail a deal, the statement said. The Qatar-based political chief of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, said he had made "urgent contact" with mediators over events in Gaza which could "reset the negotiation process to square one", a Hamas statement said. Israeli protesters have also accused Netanyahu of prolonging the war. They have stepped up their rallies, gathering in the tens of thousands to demand a hostage release deal and new elections. Opposition leader Yair Lapid said Monday that a hostage deal "has to take place" and has support from "a large majority of the people". Israel's President Isaac Herzog made a similar comment a day earlier. Netanyahu's hard-right political allies have threatened to leave the government if he agrees to stop the fighting before Hamas is eliminated. Egypt's state-linked Al-Qahera News said Cairo would host Israeli and US delegations in the latest effort to reach a truce. A source with knowledge of the talks told AFP that US and Israeli intelligence chiefs would travel to Doha on Wednesday for discussions on a ceasefire deal, adding that they would meet with Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani. Alongside the Gaza war, Israel has exchanged near daily cross-border fire with Hamas's Lebanese ally, the Iran-backed Hezbollah. Those exchanges have intensified, raising fears of a wider, all-out war. On Monday, the Israeli military said an air strike had killed a Hezbollah operative in southern Lebanon. Hezbollah also announced the fighter's death, without elaborating. Israel's military later reported that around 24 projectiles had been fired towards Israel from Lebanon. burs-tw/it/js Marine Le Pen's party on Monday united with the camp of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to form a new far-right bloc in the EU parliament, a day after suffering a surprise defeat in French elections. Jordan Bardella, Le Pen's 28-year-old lieutenant and chief of her National Rally (RN) party, will take the reins of the Patriots for Europe group, French lawmaker Jean-Paul Garraud said at its public launch in Brussels. With 84 members from 12 countries -- the largest contingent being the RN with 30 lawmakers -- the new group overtakes Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right bloc to become the third-biggest force in the European Parliament. "Our long-term goal is to change European Union policymaking," Kinga Gal, a member of Orban's Fidesz party named as Bardella's first vice-president, told reporters. "Our new group will work to preserve Europe's Indo-Christian roots, will strive for the strongest protection of Europe's external borders... and will work for a strong and competitive Europe," she said. Founded by Orban just over a week ago, the group becomes the parliament's third-largest bloc, after the conservative European People's Party (EPP) of European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and the Socialists & Democrats. French voters relegated the anti-immigration RN to third spot in legislative elections on Sunday despite opinion polls and a first-round vote suggesting it was on track to come first. France's left-wing New Popular Front came top but failed to win enough seats for an overall majority. Bardella, who sits in the EU parliament, had vowed late Sunday that his party's lawmakers would "play fully their role in a big group that will weigh on the balance of power in Europe". One of his six vice presidents of the new grouping is an Italian general, Roberto Vannacci, who was suspended from the army in February after writing a book claiming gay people were not "normal" and saying a black Italian volleyball player's features "do not represent Italian-ness". The RN has also had past financial and ideological ties with Russia, to which Orban remains defiantly friendly. "Maybe they should call it the Russian Patriots, seeing the support Viktor Orban's party gives to Vladimir Putin," said Greens MEP Terry Reintke. - EU election fallout - Far-right parties did well in several countries in EU parliament elections a month ago, with the RN trouncing French President Emmanuel Macron's centrist camp by such a margin he felt compelled to call a snap election. But in the EU legislature, the far-right remains splintered. Previously, the biggest faction was the European Conservatives and Reformists, dominated by the Brothers of Italy party of Meloni, who has toned down her previous euroscepticism in power. The other previous main grouping was the Identity and Democracy party, which the RN held sway over and which took a more anti-EU stance. Hungary's Fidesz, which left the EPP in 2021 just before it was about to be kicked out, had been seeking alliances to promote its nationalist and populist policies. On June 30, Orban announced the launch of his Patriots of Europe vehicle to build such a grouping. Austria's far-right Freedom Party (FPOe) and the centrist ANO of former Czech prime minister Andrej Babis signed up immediately. Five other parties -- the Party for Freedom (PVV) of Dutch anti-Islam firebrand Geert Wilders, Portugal's far-right Chega party, Spain's Vox, the Danish People's Party and the Flemish nationalist pro-independence Vlaams Belang -- subsequently followed suit. Matteo Salvini, who heads Italy's League, announced Monday his party too was ready to join, hailing the formation of the Patriots for Europe as "determinant to change the future of this Europe". "It's a patriotic movement that we brought to life, and I think it is going to do a lot of good for Europe," Harald Vilimsky of Austria's FPOe told the launch event. rmb-jug/ec/jxb A secretary to a high-ranking Walt Disney Co. executive thought she and her boyfriend were about to pull off an alleged insider-trading scheme and she wanted to celebrate with a Stella McCartney handbag from Neiman Marcus. Here is the bag that you are going to get for me, Bonnie Jean Hoxie, a secretary for Zenia Mucha, Disneys head of corporate communications, allegedly wrote in an e-mail to her boyfriend this month. After the boyfriend, Yonni Sebbag, replied that they may reap a windfall from their plot, Hoxie added to her wish list, according to court documents. In that case, I also love love [sic] these shoes, she wrote. Their alleged caper never got off the ground as the hedge fund managers to whom the pair thought they were selling inside information on Disneys quarterly earnings were actually undercover FBI agents on a sting operation. Federal authorities arrested the couple early Wednesday morning and charged them with criminal wire fraud in what experts described as one of the more ham-handed attempts at insider trading in memory. Disneys top comedians could not have written a better insider-trading script, said Jacob Frenkel, a former prosecutor now at Shulman Rogers Gandal Pordy & Ecker in Rockville, Md. Hoxie, 33, and Sebbag, 29, both of L.A., were each charged with one count of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud and wire fraud. They face up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud charge and up to five years on the conspiracy charge. Hoxie, who appeared composed during her arraignment in federal court in Los Angeles on Wednesday afternoon, was released on $50,000 bail and ordered to appear June 3 in federal court in Manhattan, N.Y. Sebbag, speaking in heavily accented English, was deemed a flight risk and ordered detained by Judge Patrick Walsh. The hearing was for bail purposes only, and pleas were not entered. Neither the defendants nor their lawyers commented on the charges. Disney issued a statement saying it is cooperating with the investigation. Insider-trading networks are typically close-knit groups that go to great lengths to shield their activities. Hoxie and Sebbag, by contrast, allegedly sent anonymous letters offering early peeks at earnings reports to nearly three dozen hedge funds, which promptly tipped off the authorities. This is the insider trading equivalent of the bank robber who drops off the demand note and comes back in an hour to pick up the money, said Robert A. Mintz, a former federal prosecutor who is a partner at McCarter & English in Newark, N.J. Its mind-boggling that somebody would even try to get away with something like this. The FBI set up a meeting May 14 in which agents posing as hedge fund traders gave Sebbag $15,000 as payment for a 107-page confidential document on Disneys quarterly earnings. The arrest shocked Hoxies father, who said her Disney job was the best one shed had in a decade of living in Los Angeles. It cant be for financial reasons that I could understand. Its got to be, for lack of a better word, for love or a relationship with this guy, said Patrick Hoxie, contacted in Jackson, Mich. She lives in a dinky apartment, drives an old car. She has a real basic lifestyle. The alleged scheme is spelled out in a series of e-mail messages released by the Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission. Sebbag told undercover agents that he was looking to build a strong business relationship and that I dont think we will get caught if we stay discrete [sic] and careful. In a meeting arranged by the agents, Sebbag allegedly said he wanted to make a lot of money and asked for their guidance in opening an offshore bank account to avoid detection. He told the agents he didnt want to go to jail, the SEC said. Other e-mails show the tensions that arose when Hoxie couldnt get Disneys earnings report as quickly as Sebbag wanted. What would you suggest I do, she wrote to him. If I could wave my magic wand and give you what you want I would. However, since that is not going to happen I suggest you call on you inner Buddhist and CHILL out. To prove his legitimacy, Sebbag proffered the tip that Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger was in serious and advanced negotiations with two private equity firms to sell the ABC network. Disney issued a rare statement, saying any reference to conversations about the sale of ABC were and are false. The e-mail exchange came four days after Disneys annual shareholders meeting March 11, where Iger was asked if he would ever contemplate selling ABC or its news division. The executive responded that there are no guarantees in terms of what will remain part of our company, sparking speculation that the network might be on the block. At the time, a network spokesman said the comments had been misinterpreted, and that the network was not for sale. As insider-trading cases go, this was an easy one to crack, experts said. Most criminals make stupid mistakes, said Seth Taube, a former SEC enforcement lawyer now at Baker Botts in New York. But some are stupider than others, and this one ranks pretty high on that scale. walter.hamilton@latimes.com dawn.chmielewski@latimes.com On 5 July Venezuelas Attorney Generalannounced an investigation into new threats of magnicide against Presidentahead of the 28 July presidential election. End of preview - This article contains approximately 398 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options On 6 July Argentinas Presidenttravelled to Brazil to meet right-wing allies. End of preview - This article contains approximately 610 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options Early this morning (8 July) Argentinas President, Economy Ministerand Cabinet Chiefpromulgated the Ley de Bases , or omnibus bill of reforms, and an associated fiscal reform bill which were given final approval by the lower chamber of congress at the end of June. End of preview - This article contains approximately 348 words. Subscribers: Log in now to read the full article Not a Subscriber? Choose from one of the following options The island, named Sint Maarten by Dutch Europeans after the Roman Saint, was originally called "Soualiga" or "Oualichi" by its first inhabitants, the Amerindians, meaning "land of salt" and "land of brave and beautiful women." Though the Amerindians no longer live there, the spirit of bravery and beauty persists, says St.Maarten. These names and others in Caribbean geography suggest early African presence in the region before European arrival. On his second voyage, Christopher Columbus allegedly sighted the island and named it Santa Maria la Redonda. Confusion among Spanish, British, French, Danish, and Swedish factions ensued over its identity, as Columbus's maps were inaccurate. READ NEXT: Sint Maarten Favorite Dishes The History of Saint Martin: From Spanish Occupation to the Treaty of Concordia The name "Antilles" for Caribbean islands originates from the Spanish term "Islas Inutiles," meaning useless islands. Spanish occupation led to the demise of the Caribs, Arawaks, and Tainos. Other Europeans followed, often through force or treaties, further reducing local populations. In 1620, the Dutch explored Santa Maria la Redonda (later Saint Martin), attracted by its salt reserves amid ongoing conflicts with the Spanish. The Spanish erected defensive structures like Fort Amsterdam to protect their interests. After expelling French and Dutch settlers in 1633, the Spanish left in 1647. They returned in 1648 but failed to destroy Dutch and French establishments. Instead of fighting, French and Dutch settlers peacefully agreed to share the island, formalizing this in the Treaty of Concordia on March 23, 1648. This agreement, signed on Mont des Accords, established the unique border that divides Saint Martin today. Evolution of St. Maarten: From Autonomy to Recovery Sint Maarten joined the Netherlands Antilles in 1954 and became autonomous within the Kingdom of the Netherlands in 2010, according to VISIT. Tourism boomed in the 1960s, earning the nickname "the Friendly Island" and attracting celebrities. The Heineken Regatta became a highlight by 1980. Hurricane Luis devastated the island in 1995, but recovery efforts were swift. In 2006, the French side, St. Martin, gained special status within France. The dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles in 2010 confirmed St. Maarten's autonomy. Hurricane Irma caused major damage in 2017, but within two years, the island rebuilt many of its hotels and regained its status as a top Caribbean cruise port. The Friendly Island: Sint Maarten's Traditions and Cultural Diversity Sint Maarten, known as the "Friendly Island" for its hospitality and open trade, has a tradition of neighbors helping each other since the Treaty of Concordia, often with house-building parties. This spirit has grown into a thriving hospitality sector fueled by economic and population growth driven by immigration. Home to over 130 nationalities on just 37 square kilometers, Sint Maarten boasts a vibrant mix of cultures that enrich its Caribbean tapestry. This diversity shines in the island's culinary arts, music, and dance scenes, shaped by interactions among people from diverse backgrounds. Throughout the year, Sint Maarten celebrates its culture with events like Carnival in April and Sint Maarten Day on November 11. Local venues such as clubs, restaurants, and beach bars host live performances by bands, dancers, and artists. At the same time, vibrant visual arts adorn galleries and walls in Philipsburg. In the island's diverse community, you'll hear S'Maatin English, a unique blend of metaphors, Caribbean rhythms, and Dutch, French, and Papiamentu influences. Expressions like 'By bus 11' for 'walking' reflect its unique linguistic fusion, borrowing from Dutch, French, and Papiamentu influences. READ MORE: History-Rich Places You Should Visit in Paraguay This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Ross Key WATCH: 2 Countries, 1 Tiny Island! Saint Martin, A Brief History! - From Family Tree Nuts, History & Genealogy Service After going after gangs, El Salvador President Nayib Bukele announced he is going after price gougers next. During a speech on Friday, he threatened to use his infamously heavy-handed anti-gang crackdown tactics to go after them. Bukele's tactics in going after El Salvador's dangerous and infamous street gangs, such as MS-13 and Barrio-18, are notoriously harsh, with arrests being made without warrants and human rights experts already decrying his actions in the treatment of suspected gang members, both actual gangers and those suspected of being gangers but were arrested because they fall on a certain demographic of young men from a poor community, usually with tattoos. In his speech, the president blamed a recent steep rise in the prices for food items and other basic goods on these price gougers and vowed that they would be subjected to the same treatment as members of the country's most infamous gangs. "I am going to issue a call, like we did to the gangs at the start of 2019," he stated during his speech. "We told them either stop killing people or don't complain about what happens afterward." "Well, I'm going to issue a message to the importers, distributors, and food wholesalers: stop abusing the people of El Salvador, or don't complain about what happens afterward," he added before warning that "we are not playing around" and his threats were not a smokescreen. He then stated that he wants the prices to go down by tomorrow "or there are going to be problems." He may actually do this because of the emergency powers granted to him by the country's massively pro-Bukele Congress. READ MORE: Honduras Emulating El Salvador with Gang Crackdown, Massive 20,000-Capacity Prison El Salvador President Launches Zero Leisure Plan to Put Inmates to Work As for the gang members who have been rounded up en masse in El Salvador, President Nayib Bukele says he is planning to put them to work with his new project called "Zero Leisure," which aims to have these prisoners support themselves. According to MSN, the prisoners must work to support themselves, such as growing crops, raising animals, or working in bakeries. Bukele claims that these activities save the state money, which no longer has to pay for the upkeep of prisoners. It would also rehabilitate them in theory, as well as teach them skills that can help them find a job after release. El Salvador's LGBTQ Community in a 'Vulnerable Situation' Due to Nayib Bukele Policies Meanwhile, Bukele, who promised solidarity with the LGBTQ community in El Salvador, may also be the one responsible for additional discrimination against them, according to the Tico Times. This is all due to the president embracing more conservative leanings. Bukele recently dismissed 300 employees from the Ministry of Culture for promoting "agendas" incompatible with his government's vision, which has been described as a defense of "the traditional family," "faith," and "life." The ministry also canceled a presentation of an LGBT play at the National Theater. This left the country's LGBTQ citizens in a vulnerable situation." READ MORE: El Salvador Gang Crackdown: At Least 241 Dead in Prisons Since Nayib Bukele Began His Campaign Vs. Gangs This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: President Orders Surprise Corruption Probe On All Of His Own Ministers | El Salvador | Nayib Bukele - Hindustan Times The Vatican announced that it has excommunicated the priest who served as its top diplomat to the US, with Pope Francis banishing former Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who has been increasingly becoming pro-Donald Trump and causing a schism in the Roman Catholic Church with his extremist right-wing and culture war views. Vigano previously served as the Vatican's Ambassador to the United States from 2011 to 2016. He was formally accused last month of schism, which is described as "the refusal of submission to the Supreme Pontiff or of communion with the members of the Church subject to him." It is regarded as one of the most serious offenses in canon law. According to The Daily Beast, Vigano had been one of Pope Francis's biggest critics within the Roman Catholic Church as he refused to recognize the Argentinian pontiff's authority for years, often attacking him in public forums. "His public statements manifesting his refusal to recognize and submit to the Supreme Pontiff, his rejection of communion with the members of the Church subject to him, and of the legitimacy and magisterial authority of the Second Vatican Council are well known," a press release from the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith read. This confirms that the former Archbishop has been found guilty of his crimes. Pope Francis has gone after the ultra-conservative and far-right Roman Catholics in the United States, previously blasting them as having "a very, strong, organized, reactionary attitude," accusing them last year of replacing faith with "ideologies." Vigano has become more and more infamous amid the radicalization of many Catholics in the US, calling for the pope to resign and accusing him of being a "servant of Satan." He has also been a very vocal supporter of Donald Trump, the convicted felon former US president who was found liable for rape and caused an insurrection on January 6. READ MORE: Pope Francis Sides With Peru Villagers Whose Lands Are Getting Stolen by a Catholic Group What Would Excommunication Mean for Pope Francis Critic Carlo Maria Vigano? With his excommunication, Vigano is now formally outside communion with the Church. This means the former Vatican ambassador to the United States cannot celebrate or receive its sacraments. His excommunication is considered a "medicinal" penalty and is declared in the hope those who incurred it would repent and come back into communion. The Vatican can lift Vigano's excommunication, according to the Associated Press. However, the former archbishop, whose rhetoric has been amplified on Catholic social media and by like-minded far-right bloggers on both sides of the Atlantic, has so far been unrepentant. Pope Francis Says World's Democracies Are 'Not in Good Health' Meanwhile, Pope Francis himself expressed concern about the state of the world's democracies during a visit to the northern Italian city of Trieste, according to The Sun. "Let's be honest: in today's world, democracy is not in good health," he said during his speech, stressing the importance of participation in democratic processes, such as voting, adding that "Indifference is a cancer for democracy." READ MORE: Argentina Rightwing President Javier Milei Hugs Man He Called a 'Filthy Leftist,' Pope Francis This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: BREAKING NEWS | Former US nuncio excommunicated & found guilty of schism - ROME REPORTS in English During the WWE Money in the Bank premium live event in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, John Cena dropped a bombshell announcing his retirement. He then clarified during the post-event press conference that he plans to retire after his final match, which would be during Wrestlemania 41 in Las Vegas, Nevada next year. He was introduced before the Toronto crowd by the city's own WWE legend, Trish Stratus, and everybody was surprised by his sudden appearance as he was not scheduled to be there. Instead, the man who used to be the "Doctor of Thugganomics" thanked the crowd for their years of support before announcing his retirement. The 16-time WWE champion did not reveal much during his surprise in-ring segment, but he did bring up a banner that said "LAST," hinting at his plans. Cena did say that he would reveal more details about his plans during the post-event press conference, which he did. During that press conference, John Cena revealed that he will be participating not just in Wrestlemania 41, but also in next year's Royal Rumble and Elimination Chamber premium live events. However, he did not reveal if he would appear in either of those matches nor was it made clear if his retirement match would serve as one of Wrestlemania 41's two main events. It is also unclear who he will be wrestling during the "Show of Shows," as speculations range from him putting over an up-and-coming wrestler or renewing his rivalry with Randy Orton in a fitting final match. WWE Superstars Vying To Be John Cena's Next Opponent on Social Media After John Cena announced his retirement, several superstars took to social media to call him out and challenge him to a match as one of his final opponents before he finally retires or to be the one to finally retire at Wrestlemania 41. READ MORE: Damian Priest: From Homeless to 1st Puerto Rican WWE Champion Since Pedro Morales "GIVE ME CENA!!!!" tweeted the Nigerian Giant, Omos. Meanwhile, Baron Corbin tagged Cena in his challenge, tweeting, "Not gonna lie... I want some!" "Big match John can get this work," tweeted Australian big man Big Bronson Reed in his challenge to the retiring WWE legend, while Grayson Waller, who has had his run-ins with the man who cannot be seen, tweeted a photo of himself in the ring with John Cena from last year's Money in the Bank with the caption, "Before you leave......." Meanwhile, What Culture Wrestling's Simon Miller speculated that it might indeed be Randy Orton who would be Cena's final opponent. The two had a very storied rivalry through the years and he says that Orton would be a fitting final opponent for "Big Match John." John Cena Avoids Questions Regarding Vince McMahon During that same press conference after Money in the Bank, there were several questions thrown regarding former WWE chairman Vince McMahon, who is the center of a sex scandal where he is currently being sued by a former WWE employee for sexual abuse. One of these questions was aimed at McMahon's former golden goose, John Cena. "Surely an uncomfortable question," Cena answered. "And, man, I really would much rather talk about what is ahead of us," adding that he has been honest about his opinion toward the disgraced former WWE executive. In a previous interview with the Associated Press, Cena stated, "When you love somebody, you take them as imperfectly perfect as they are. We all make mistakes, we all have poor decisions. Lord knows I've made my collection of poor choices. That doesn't mean I'm not going to love somebody. There's no way I can go on record and say I don't love Vince McMahon." READ MORE: Latino WWE Superstars Who Will Breakout in 2024 This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: John Cena announces he will retire in 2025: Money in the Bank 2024 highlights - WWE A violent outburst early Sunday at a block party in Detroit, Michigan, has left the community reeling, with two fatalities and 20 injuries reported, underscoring ongoing concerns over public safety during holiday weekends. According to Michigan State Police and Detroit Police Department reports, the shooting occurred Sunday morning on Detroit's east side at a residential block hosting a block party. Initial reports from Michigan State Police indicated that two individuals lost their lives in the gunfire, with another 20 sustaining injuries of varying severity, according to the Independent. Among the victims were a 20-year-old woman and a 21-year-old man. The woman was tragically pronounced dead at the scene, while the man succumbed to his injuries at a nearby hospital. Additionally, a 17-year-old girl remains in critical condition, 13 others are in serious but temporary condition, and three are reported to be in stable condition, as detailed by local news sources. The suspect, a 22-year-old man, was shot in the leg at some point during the attack and was taken into custody. Investigations are actively ongoing by Michigan State Police and the Detroit Police Department. READ NEXT: Michigan State Rep. Neil Friske Arrested Following Altercation Involving Gun and Stripper Response from City Officials Detroit, Michigan, Mayor Mike Duggan expressed profound grief over the incident, describing it as heartbreaking for the city and stressing the urgent need for enhanced safety measures at public gatherings, CBS News reports. Mayor Duggan, in conjunction with Police Chief James White, plans to announce a comprehensive strategy to address violence specifically associated with block parties during an upcoming press conference scheduled for Monday. City Councilman Scott Benson, who resides near the site of the block party shooting, voiced deep concern and disbelief over the violence, particularly questioning the presence of firearms at community events. Community leaders and concerned residents have echoed calls for immediate action to ensure the safety of public gatherings. Investigation and Community Response Authorities have refrained from releasing the identities of the victims or any potential suspects involved in the block party shooting. The investigation is actively supported by Michigan State Police's Homicide Task Force, which continues to gather evidence and witness testimonies to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the incident, AP News noted. In response to the tragedy, the Detroit Police Department intends to implement new guidelines governing block parties, designed to bolster security measures and prevent future occurrences of violence. These measures are part of broader efforts aimed at curbing gun violence and fostering a safer environment within community settings. The tragic block party shooting in Detroit, Michigan, conforms as a stark reminder of the challenges faced by communities nationwide during holiday weekends, where increased social gatherings often coincide with spikes in violent incidents. As city officials and law enforcement agencies collaborate to address the aftermath of this incident, there is an urgent call for stricter safety protocols and community engagement to foster safer public environments. The forthcoming briefing by Mayor Duggan and Police Chief White is anticipated to provide further insights into planned initiatives to enhance public safety and mitigate the risk of violence at community events. READ MORE: Fireworks Mishap in Utah Injures Multiple People During Fourth of July Festivities This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Ross Key WATCH: 2 dead, 19 injured in shooting on Detroit's east side - From CBS Detroit It looks like former New York City mayor and recently-disbarred lawyer Rudy Giuliani, has thrown his former client, Donald Trump, under the bus in a court filing for his bankruptcy case, with the former Trump attorney saying that the former president and convicted felon has not paid him for legal services he rendered for him. Court documents have shown that the disgraced former mayor had sought a $2 million payment from Donald Trump "any number of times" during a bankruptcy deposition. In that deposition, it was revealed that the Trump Campaign's officials have ignored the numerous invoices he has sent. However, he did reveal that they only ever paid his expenses. These court documents were revealed after Giuliani lost a $148 million lawsuit and was recently disbarred as a lawyer for his repeated lies while working as a lawyer for Donald Trump. As it turned out, he was not even paid for rendering the work, which led to his disbarment. In order to pay for that $148 million court loss he incurred in relation to a lawsuit from two Georgia election workers after he alleged that they were helping winner Joe Biden cheat, Giuliani's attorneys have announced that he wanted to liquidate his assets. However, according to Newsweek, the lawyers for his creditors have strongly opposed the move, saying that "Giuliani is making his application just as the creditors are applying for full disclosure of his undisclosed assets." In addition, they are also seeking to appoint a trustee to oversee Giuliani's finances. What Rudy Giuliani Said in His Bankruptcy Deposition As for the court documents that showed Giuliani saying Trump did not pay him, he told attorney Andrea Schwartz of the Office of the United States Trustee that Trump appealed to him to join the campaign as soon as the election was over. The deposition may be damaging for the former president. READ MORE: Rudy Giuliani Mugshot Taken, Pays Bond Over Arizona Fake Electors Case "Once I took over, it was my understanding that I would be paid by the campaign for my legal work and my expenses would be paid. "When we submitted the invoice for payment, they just paid the expenses, not all, but most of the expenses. But they never paid the legal fees," he told the trustee. "We have for any number of times asked to be paid. Expenses were paid. And we haven't been paid," added the former mayor. Rudy Giuliani Disbarred for Election Interference on Behalf of Donald Trump It has been a bad week for Giuliani, who was also disbarred by the New York state Supreme Court for his part in Donald Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 elections, a job that, as the recently-released court documents showed, he was not really paid for. "The seriousness of (Giuliani's) misconduct cannot be overstated," wrote the New York Supreme Court justices in their decision. "(Giuliani) flagrantly misused his prominent position as the personal attorney for former President Trump and his campaign, through which (he) repeatedly and intentionally made false statements, some of which were perjurious, to the federal court, state lawmakers, the public, the (Attorney Grievance Committee), and this Court concerning the 2020 Presidential election, in which he baselessly attacked and undermined the integrity of this country's electoral process." As CNN noted, Giuliani had previously been suspended from practicing law in New York for the same reason. A spokesperson for the former mayor and Trump lawyer has condemned the ruling. READ MORE: Rudy Giuliani Radio Show Canceled, Selling New York City Home Soon After This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Giuliani Throws Trump Under The Bus During Bankruptcy Proceedings - Farron Balanced Controversial Georgia Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is currently getting ridiculed for getting her basic US history wrong as she only got two out of eight of the people who signed the Declaration of Independence correct. The lawmaker who claimed that Jewish space lasers caused the California wildfires recently listed the g individuals who signed the Declaration of Independence. However, as historians pointed out to her, she got six of them wrong but did get a measly two right. "The average age of the signers of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776 was 44 years old, but more than a dozen were 35 or younger: Thomas Jefferson: 33 John Hancock: 39 James Madison: 25 Alexander Hamilton: 21 James Monroe: 18 Aaron Burr: 20 Paul Revere: 41 George Washington: 44," she said. The statement immediately garnered corrections and ridicule all over social media. "James Madison, Alexander Hamilton, James Monroe, Aaron Burr, Paul Revere, and George Washington were not signers of the Declaration of Independence," a reader-added context on X read on her tweet. As expected, this led to a lot of ridicule from commenters. "Marjorie Taylor Greene being completely wrong about history (AGAIN) aside... Claiming that the average age of the signers of the Declaration of Independence was 44 is NOT a flex when the Founders life expectancy was only 64 years," wrote a retired teacher, @MamaSissieSays, on the replies. "Ok - who else does moron Marge think signed the Declaration of Independence? Best answer wins a free peach tree dish. Go!" another wrote, while another tweet read, Keep in mind ladies and gentlemen. That Marjorie Taylor Greene is a US Representative. Whose salary is paid for by taxpayers. STOP ELECTING STUPID PEOPLE." Marjorie Taylor Greene Also Got Fact-Checked Regarding 2020 Georgia Elections Greene, a MAGA Republican and ally to the former president and convicted felon Donald Trump, was also repeatedly fact-checked for her recent comments regarding the 2020 presidential election, where she claimed Trump won Georgia. READ MORE: Steve Bannon Surrenders and Goes to Prison; He and Marjorie Taylor Greene Get Savagely Heckled "Yesterday's enthusiasm for President Trump on Lake Allatoona was unmatched!!" she said last Sunday. "I know he won Georgia in 2020, and after yesterday, I know he's going to win Georgia again in 2024!" The tweet did not go well for her again. "You have nowhere near the supporters you did 4 years ago. Not even close. And, you're bragging about 30 boats when you used to have hundreds? Again, all these 'flex' photos are just showing us in real time how little there are left in your MAGA world," one user pointed out. "You get ratioed on social media. You literally get chased out of town wherever you go. Your opponent is making friends with your constituents." Marjorie Taylor Greene Recently Slammed by Former Trump Official for Memorial Day Bikini Pic Greene, who is often called "MAGA Karen" and "Bleach Blonde Bad Built Butch Body," was not just getting slammed by critics on social media for getting her basic US history and facts wrong but also for vacationing in Costa Rica during Memorial Day, and by a former Trump official no less. According to MSN, Greene was in Costa Rica with her boyfriend, former RSBN anchor Brian Glenn, for memorial Day, However, she was blasted by former Trump assistant deputy and MAGA Republican host Sebastian Gorka for making Memorial Day all about herself for posting the bikini pics while other Georgia officials were meeting with veterans. "Wow. Making Memorial Day about you? And posting a bikini shoot because it's your birthday? Unbelievable," said Gorka. READ MORE: Marjorie Taylor Greene Was Inspiration for Character Firecracker, Says 'The Boys' Showrunner This article is owned by Latin Post. Written by: Rick Martin WATCH: Marjorie Taylor Greene Tries to Pull a Fast One, IMMEDIATELY Face-Plants - Rebel HQ Q: Whats all this news about people being overprescribed statins? Maybe I can go off of mine! Explain, please. -- Rachel K., Chicago A: This information sounds confusing -- but its actually based on improved evaluations of your heart disease risk that now include your ZIP code and factors such as kidney disease, obesity and poor blood sugar control. Plus, the risk is (finally) calculated separately for men and women. Those are all part of PREVENT, a 2023 heart disease risk calculator developed by the American Heart Association. It upgrades the 2013 guidelines that are currently in use. According to the study in JAMA Internal Medicine, when researchers looked at heart health data on more than 3,700 adults ages 40 to 75, they found that the new risk evaluation tool said that 40% fewer folks need statins than the older guidelines indicated. That means the number of folks taking statins might drop from around 45 million to 28 million. Another benefit of the PREVENT evaluation? It showed that most people who would be recommended to take statins are not taking them! So this is one more opportunity for folks who need protection from heart disease to obtain it. As for whether or not you can go off of your statin, thats up to you and your doctor. But dont go off suddenly without permission. Theres a risk of a rebound heart attack and inflammatory conditions. You may want to have your blood lipids (apolipoprotein B, LDL triglycerides) measured and evaluated using PREVENT guidelines. Then, talk with your doctor about your family history of heart disease and other risk factors (diabetes? obesity? chronic stress?), so you can develop a plan for your heart health. That would include physical activity, upgraded nutritional habits, stress management, a healthy sleep routine -- and perhaps an anti-inflammatory statin. For more help using lifestyle to control heart health, tune into the research-backed advice in the free newsletter at LongevityPlaybook.com and the information at www.iherb.com/blog/heart-health. * * * Dr. Mike Roizen is the founder of www.longevityplaybook.com, and Dr. Mehmet Oz is global advisor to www.iHerb.com, the worlds leading online health store. Roizen and Oz are chief wellness officer emeritus at Cleveland Clinic and professor emeritus at Columbia University, respectively. (c)2024 Michael Roizen, M.D. Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc. Ireland and Laois are continuing to see a spike in Covid cases this summer, with 21 recorded cases in Laois in the past week. The number only represents the few cases that get tested, as the HSE now advises people that a test is generally not required. Laois has more cases than 10 other counties. They including in the Midlands: Offaly at 15 cases, Carlow at 16, Meath with 20 and Wicklow with 11 cases. 1,108 cases were recorded last week in Ireland, according to figures from the Health Protection Surveillance Centre. All of them were in hospitals, nursing homes, residential institutions, longstay units or healthcare units. One third of those cases were hospitalised, 387 patients. One was placed in intensive care. The figure has not been as high since December 2023, when it hit a peak of 1,193 cases. However is is less than 1% of the number of cases at the very peak of the pandemic, when over 129,000 new cases were recorded in a week in January 2022. The current advice from the HSE is that "you do not need a COVID-19 test unless a GP or healthcare worker advises you to have one. Phone your GP if you have symptoms of COVID-19 and you feel very unwell or have an underlying condition that puts you at higher risk of severe disease. Your GP may ask you to have a COVID-19 test." The HSE has reminded the public that the disease is still circulating. "Indicators of COVID-19 circulation are continuing to increase. This latest wave is a reminder that COVID-19 continues to circulate throughout the year and still causes a substantial burden on the population and our health services when circulation is high. "Ongoing vigilance for symptoms of COVID-19 and taking steps to prevent spread, in both the community and in healthcare settings, remain important to protect those most vulnerable for severe COVID-19 disease. "The JN.1 COVID-19 variant is currently the predominant variant in Ireland and globally. There is no evidence of a new SARS-CoV-2 variant associated with more severe disease. However, as in previous waves, when COVID-19 circulation increases, some level of increase in people experiencing severe disease does follow. "Increased circulation in the community also results in an increase in outbreaks in nursing homes, hospitals and other healthcare settings putting vulnerable patients at risk of infection." For advice on preventing the spread of COVID-19 and what to do if you have symptoms go to: https://www2.hse.ie/conditions/covid19/preventing-the-spread/. A Laois father and grandfather who never left his family wanting for anything during a life working hard in agriculture was remembered fondly at his funeral Mass after losing his life suddenly in a farm accident on the Laois Offaly border. The life of Kevin Carroll was remembered with love his Requiem Mass in Clonaslee on Monday, July 8 just days after he lost his life in an incident on farmland near Portarlington in the Garryhinch area on Thursday, July 4. Mourners lined the pews of St Manmans Church, Clonaslee, to pay their final respects to the Laois man, who "never liked to sit down", in the words of chief celebrant Fr Thomas O'Reilly. A single framed photograph of Kevin sat perched on top of a coffin. A string of symbols in recognition of the Laois man's life were offered up by his grandchildren. Among them included the Farmers Journal, a piece of timber and a tractor, which was "essential to Kevin's life. "But it was arguably the moving sentiments espoused by Kevin's son John which struck the most emotional chord with members of the congregation. MORE BELOW PICTURE. John spoke on behalf of himself and his sister Vanessa while their mother and Kevin's wife Teresa watched the live stream of the service from her nursing home room. "We were very lucky to have Kevin as a father, although we didn't have much we didn't want for anything. He worked very hard. Although the last few days have been difficult we have enjoyed reminiscing. We can take great comfort in knowing he died doing what he loved. We always knew he was only a phone call away. "We wish to thank the emergency services and guards who are here today who gave great comfort. We are so lucky to live in a community with such fantastic people," he said. Kevin passed away just days after the Embrace FARM organisation held its annual ecumenical service in Abbeyleix. Embrace FARM was founded in Laois in 2014 and remembers those who have lost their lives, have been injured, supports survivors of farm accidents. This year's service was held on Sunday, June 30 in the Most Holy Rosary Catholic Church in Abbeyleix and was also broadcast nationally on RTE One on Sunday, July 7. The poignant ceremony saw deceased loved ones from across the island of Ireland remembered individually during the service in the roll call. Kevin's name will be added to the list of those remembered in next year's service. Through their new charitable status, Embrace FARM offers several networking and fundraising events for the people they support in their network as well as growing awareness for the organisation within the agri-sector. The late Kevin Carroll is survived by wife Teresa, son John and daughter Vanessa, daughter-in-law Fiona, son-in-law Martin, grandchildren Alex, Kaylee, Callum, Maeve and Lucy, extended family, relatives, neighbours and friends. His remains removed after his funeral to Newlands Cross Crematorium for cremation. The Health and Safety Authority are investigating the incident which is understood to have happened when hay was being loaded. There is no July heatwave in sight for Laois, just more downpours, and the next one will see Tuesday written off for going to the bog or hanging out washing. Met Eireann has issued a Status Yellow - Rain warning for the whole of Leinster, as well as Cavan, Monaghan, Leitrim, Roscommon, Tipperary, Waterford. "Rain becoming persistent and heavy at times. "Potential Impacts: Localised flooding, Difficult travelling conditions, Poor visibility". The warning kicks in at 4am this Tuesday morning, July 9 and is in place for a full 24 hours, up to to 4am Wednesday morning. There is better news for next weekend however. Friday will be "mostly dry with a mix of cloud and sunny spells with just a few light showers about. Highest temperatures of 15 to 20 degrees in mostly light northerly breezes. Current indications suggest that high pressure will continue to dominate next weekend bringing a mix of cloud and sunny spells with light winds and just a few showers." A Dublin taxi driver who raped two young women in separate incidents in 2022 has also been convicted of raping a seven-year-old girl over a decade ago. Raymond Shorten (50) with addresses in Melrose Crescent, Clondalkin and in Rathfarnham was convicted in May of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault in 2012 of the young girl. Shorten was 37 at the time. The now 20-year-old woman indicated she wished for Shorten to be named, but to retain her anonymity. The Central Criminal Court heard Shorten was known to her family at the time. The offending came to light after the girl left a handwritten note on her grandmother's pillow in 2020 saying that Shorten had sexually abused her. She was interviewed by specialist gardai in early 2021. The court heard today (Monday, July 8) that Shorten raped the young girl for the first time in the days after her mother's funeral. She was seven or eight when the second rape occurred. Shorten later sexually assaulted the girl in a car by touching her leg inappropriately. Shorten denied any wrongdoing when he was interviewed by gardai in 2021. He described the first incident of rape as '110 per cent lies' and said he was 'mystified' by the allegations. Shorten gave evidence in his own defence during this trial and denied the allegations, saying they were a 'total fabrication.' Shorten was convicted of two counts of rape and one of anal rape by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last month and is due to be sentenced in relation to these charges later this month. He has eight previous convictions, including five for road traffic offences. A victim impact statement was read to the court by prosecuting counsel Gerardine Small SC. The young woman said she was 'severely taken advantage of' by Shorten, whom she never liked. She said 'he always creeped me out' and she didn't want to go near him. She said she was terrified and didn't understand what was happening. "One part of me knew what he done to me was not right and couldnt be right, but another part thought it must be right because why else would an adult man do that to a seven-year-old," she said. The woman described the effect of the abuse on her, including issues with sleep, self-harm, suicidal ideation and strong emotional outbursts when she was younger. She said she felt angry about the sexual abuse but couldn't comprehend what had happened to her. She said she was terrified to be left alone with a male teacher, in case 'they'd do the same with me.' She said it was only when she started sex education in school at the age of 14 that she realised what Shorten did to her was wrong. She outlined suffering with panic attacks in recent years, describing 'weeks where I would have one panic attack every 20 minutes. I thought I was going to die.' She said she was relieved when she was told the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had decided to prosecute Shorten but was terrified of the process. She said when Shorten was convicted, she felt she'd 'finally found the beginning of the end.' She said Shorten 'should have protected me, not abused me.' Ms Small told the court that the DPP's view is that the case falls into the more serious category for sentencing, meriting a headline sentence of between 10 and 15 years. She noted the aggravating features include the age difference between Shorten and the girl, and her young age and vulnerability at the time. Lorcan Staines SC, defending, said his client does not accept responsibility for the offences. Counsel said Shorten has a long work history, initially in a factory, then as a milkman before working as a taxi driver. Shorten is a father of seven children and hopes to rebuild his relationship with them in future. He has also lost his marriage and relationship with his parents. Shorten has been working in the prison laundry while in custody and is on an enhanced prisoner regime. Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo adjourned this case for finalisaton on July 19. Three days later on July 22, Shorten is due to be sentenced in relation to the three taxi rape charges. Shorten had pleaded not guilty to the rape and anal rape of a 19-year-old woman on June 26, 2022 and to the rape of another woman, then aged 20, a couple of months later on August 9. Each young woman separately found themselves in a taxi after a night out socialising and drinking in Dublin City Centre, where they were raped by the driver, Shorten. ADDITIONAL DETAILS The court heard that Shorten raped the girl for the first time in the days following her mother's funeral. The assault took place in a bathroom at her family home and Shorten put his hand over the girl's mouth so she couldn't scream. She hit her head on a radiator during the incident and was sore and bleeding in its aftermath. Shorten raped her again on a bed when she was seven or eight years old. She described feeling sore and uncomfortable during the incident and recalled it took place at night-time as the lights were on. He sexually assaulted her on another occasion while in a car. The court heard the girl screamed and he stopped. Shorten was voluntarily interviewed by gardai in June 2020. He denied the allegations saying: "oh my god, that is 110 per cent a lie" in relation to the first incident of rape. He denied he had ever been at the girl's family home and said the allegation was 'horrendous.' He said the second rape was 'pure, made-up lies.' He said 'he was mystified by the whole lot' and thought it was a 'wind-up' when gardai contacted him. Mr Staines noted his client has been in custody since August 2022 and asked the court to consider backdating any sentence to the earliest point of time. Minister Roderic OGorman has pledged to win votes in all areas of Ireland as he took over as leader of the Green Party. Mr OGorman said the party was proud of its achievements in government, but were also very realistic about the challenges ahead. The Green Party leadership contest was triggered after Eamon Ryan announced he was standing down after 13 years at the helm, and would not be contesting the next general election. Mr Ryan made the announcement after the Green Party lost both its MEPs and half its council seats in the European and local elections. This was after its coalition partners, Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, remained the largest parties in local government. Mr OGorman, the Minister for Children and Integration, and Minister of State Senator Pippa Hackett both put their names forward to succeed Mr Ryan. At a press event in Bewleys Cafe in Dublin city on Monday, it was announced that Mr OGorman had won 52% of the votes of 1,896 Green Party members who cast their votes between July 4-7. He won 72 more votes than Ms Hackett. As leader, I want us to hold our seats, I want us to grow our seats, Mr OGorman said as he set out his vision for the party. This is a challenge, but in the Green Party, weve never been afraid of the challenge. I want to win in every part of Ireland, because only by winning votes, by winning seats, do we have the capacity to implement those vital policies, we have to be out there fighting for every number one, fighting for every preference. I believe people vote for the Green Party because they know we can be counted on to get stuck in, to actually deliver. Thats what weve done. Thats what were continuing to do. Asked what would be different between his leadership and Mr Ryans, Mr OGorman said he would make it very clear to the public what immediate steps the party is taking to meet targets and to tackle daily non-climate challenges people face. I feel too often the public dont see that the Green Party have answers to those questions I believe we do, but I feel too often the public dont see the challenges that people face every day are of concern to the Green Party. He said he didnt believe the Green Party was divided after the tight result, which he said was due to Ms Hacketts strong campaign. He also said that votes within the party were often close: Our party chair vote was very tight, our last leadership election was very tight, and we didnt have a divided party after that either. He said he was happy to work with other TDs with different views to his, but said he would push the partys views forward: I will take the approach that Ive always taken: in that when I can work with someone Ill work with them. But if somebody is saying something that is wrong, if someone is saying something I disagree with politically, I will strongly advocate for the position that I believe in. And if someone is saying something that is factually wrong, I will never be afraid to call that out. Too often, when we hear debates in Dail Eireann, but particularly debates on the issues of migration, the degree (that) stuff is being made up is deeply, deeply frustrating and I wont be afraid to call that out. We have to deal with serious issues in our country migration is a serious topic that we have to engage with, there are many others but it has to be on the basis of reality, it has to be on the basis of fact. It cant be on the basis of oh this one thing I saw on Facebook one time, which unfortunately too often is the standard of debate that we see in Dail Eireann. He said he was deeply humbled and deeply grateful to become leader and paid tribute to Mr Ryan and deputy leader Catherine Martin, who he said had guided our party back from our lowest point in 2011 back into the Dail, back into government. Congratulations to @rodericogorman on his election as leader of the Green Party. Leading your party is a great honour and privilege. I look forward to working with you. There is much to do. A word of thanks too to @EamonRyan for his leadership. Simon Harris TD (@SimonHarrisTD) July 8, 2024 He said there would not be a reshuffle of the Green Party ministers, meaning that Mr Ryan will remain as Transport Minister and Ms Martin will keep the Media and Sport portfolio. He thanked his family, his husband Ray, and members of the Green Party for their support. The partys membership has not yet cast their vote for the next deputy leader of the party. Green Party TD Neasa Hourigan and Senator Roisin Garvey are seeking election to the role, while Minister of State Ossian Smyth pulled out of the contest. Mr Smyth said he believed it is best that the deputy leader is female given that the leader of the party is a man. Kildare TV star Brian Dowling and is RTE Dancing With The Stars judge husband Arthur Gourounlian have announced the godparents of their second daughter, Blue Amar Rose. Big Brother winner Brian took to Instagram over the weekend to share the news that sister Aoife, who was Blu's surrogate, will be her godmother. He also shared that good pal and TV chef Donal Skehan who be godfather to their second daughter who was born in June. Brian posted: "The votes have been counted and verified by an independent adjudicator. Arthur & I are absolutely delighted that Aoife Dowling (@effidy_dowling_) has said yes to being Blus Godmother & Donal Skehan (@donalskehan) has agreed to take on the role of Godfather. READ NEXT: Residents near Croke Park fume over 'vile' act by hurling fans at the weekend "We adore both Aoife and Donal. They will make a fabulous pair of Godparents and provide Blu with so much love, support and of course, a little bit of spoiling. In fact, they will give @pipsy_pie & @simonjonespr a run for their money in the Godparents department. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Brian Dowling Gourounlian (@bprdowling) "Arthur & I are truly blessed when it comes to the Godparents we have for both our daughters but also the love and encouragement we receive from all our family and friends is priceless. It really does take a village, people." Donal Skehan was one of the first to comment, saying: "Already in LOVE! Blu we got you!" Arthur and Brian welcomed Blu last month as sister to Blake who was born in 2022. Brian's sister Aoife acted as surrogate for both Blake and Blu. Over 2,000 additional homes in Leitrim can now avail of a high-speed broadband connection, National Broadband Ireland (NBI) has confirmed. NBI, the company delivering the new future-proofed, high-speed Fibre-to-the-Home network under the National Broadband Plan on behalf of the Government, has said that over 2,200 Leitrim properties in its Keshcarrigan deployment area can now avail of a high-speed fibre broadband connection. The area covers the rural surrounds of Keshcarrigan, Drumshanbo and Fenagh. A total of 12,000 premises in Co Leitrim are included in the States Intervention Area, which will see NBI deliver minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second to homes, businesses, farms, and schools. As the biggest investment in rural Ireland since rural electrification, Co Leitrim will receive 46M of Government investment under the National Broadband Plan. There are 2,214 Leitrim premises in the Keshcarrigan deployment area that can now join the NBI network. National Broadband Ireland is calling on people living nearby to visit nbi.ie/map/ and enter their Eircode to see if they are ready to connect. There are 3,743 homes, businesses, and farms in County Leitrim that can order or pre-order high-speed, reliable broadband with 704 connections made to the NBI network so far. Network build works are also continuing across Leitrim with works in progress for over 2,500 premises near Manorhamilton, which are due to be connected by the end of this year. Additionally, close to 1,200 premises in the Bundoran deployment area near Kinlough will be able to avail of NBIs fibre broadband in early 2025. Signing up to the NBI email notifications at https://nbi.ie/eoi/ is the easiest way to get the most up-to-date status of premises during the rollout and when premises will be ready for order. Peter Hendrick, Chief Executive Officer, National Broadband Ireland, said: We are delighted to announce that over 2,200 Leitrim premises near Keshcarrigan can now order high-speed broadband services through the NBI network. This will enable those who connect to experience the life-changing benefits of high-speed broadband with minimum speeds of 500 megabits per second. "There are over 3,700 homes, businesses and farms ready to connect in rural areas in County Leitrim. This includes over 900 premises near Carrick-On-Shannon. We would encourage people living in those areas to visit nbi.ie to see if they can place an order for a high-speed connection on the NBI network. !We are working hard on the ground to progress other areas of the county through engineering survey, design and construction phases. We are encouraging Leitrim residents to visit the NBI website to check their Eircode and sign up for updates," he said. As a wholesale network operator, NBI does not sell fibre broadband directly to end users, rather it enables services from a range of broadband providers or Retail Service Providers (RSPs). As a wholesale provider, NBI will make the new Fibre-to-the-Home network available to all RSPs operating in the Intervention Area. Some 72 RSPs have already signed up to sell services on the NBI network and 68 are certified as ready to start providing connections as of today. To see the retail broadband providers that are currently licensed to sell on the NBI network, visit NBI.ie/buy. National Broadband Ireland contractors have been on the ground across the country and over 284,722 premises nationwide can order or pre-order broadband on the NBI network so far. A refuge for victims of domestic and gender-based violence is needed in Leitrim, the Dail has heard. During a debate on gender-based violence in Dail Eireann, Sligo Leitrim TD Marian Harkin called on the Minister for Justice to provide funding for the establishment of a refuge for victims of domestic and gender-based violence in Leitrim. She also asked the Minister to speed up progress on the planned development of a refuge in Sligo. "Minister, while I recognise some good work has been done in the context of supporting victims of domestic violence, in the part of the country that I represent, Sligo, Leitrim and Roscommon, there is no woman's refuge. I know you are working on establishing a domestic violence refuge in Sligo, but there is an urgent need for it to be in place as soon as possible. "It is equally important that we see plans for a refuge in Leitrim, Ms Harkin said. The Istanbul Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence recommends at least one family refuge place per 10,000 population. In Ireland that means we should have about 512 refuge places nationally. Your plan is for 280 places by 2026, we need to increase those numbers and we must ensure that counties like Leitrim are included. Leitrim has a population of over 35,000 people which means that at least four family refuge places should be available in the county. Finally, Minister, while the provision of refuge places is crucial, it is but a tiny piece of the jigsaw puzzle. We need support for the range of services provided to the 95% of victims and their families who will never go to a refuge centre. Organisations like DVAS in Sligo Leitrim are just excellent at providing those services so I'm hoping to see extra resources in budget 2025," Deputy Harkin said. Motorola Solutions Announces New Global R&D Centre in Ireland Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) today announced it is opening a new Research and Development Centre in Cork, Ireland, expected to generate 200 highly skilled jobs. The team will be focused on designing software for the company's comprehensive land mobile radio (LMR) portfolio, with plans for expansion across other technologies in the future. Following investments of more than $12 billion in R&D and acquisitions over the past decade, Motorola Solutions' ecosystem of technologies is centred on safety and security, with LMR representing a foundational core. The company has deployed more than 13,000 LMR networks worldwide, trusted by governments and enterprises for highly secure communications designed to work in the most extreme conditions. Modernised with broadband and advanced data applications, LMR remains at the forefront of providing public safety agencies with the communications they rely on and need. "Decade after decade, the durability of our mission-critical LMR technology helps protect those who protect us all," said Greg Brown, chairman and CEO, Motorola Solutions. "Our new centre in Cork will contribute to advancing our future vision for LMR, while building upon the collective impact of our more than 20,000 employees who are innovating what's next for our customers around the world." The investment is supported by the Irish Government through IDA Ireland. "Motorola Solutions is an iconic American company known for its work over many decades to support public safety and first responders," said U.S. Ambassador to Ireland, Claire D. Cronin. "Today's announcement of its new Research and Development Centre in Cork marks a significant step forward in the company's commitment to Ireland and in further expanding its innovation footprint in technology that plays a vital role around the world to help keep people safe, today and in the future. It also recognizes the highly skilled talent in Ireland and further bolsters the strong trade and investment relationships between the United States and Ireland." The new R&D Centre, planned for Cork's vibrant city centre, complements Motorola Solutions' existing footprint in Ireland, which is focused on delivering the emergency services' secure communications network, Ireland's National Digital Radio Service. "It's fantastic news that Motorola Solutions has chosen Cork City for their new global R&D Centre," said Peter Burke TD, Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment. "Regional investment is a priority for Government and the creation of 200 highly skilled jobs in R&D is a significant boost for the region. The new Centre will be a welcome addition to the already thriving city centre and will provide exciting new work opportunities for technology talent. It is encouraging to see new investments in R&D technologies, which is very much in line with our National AI and Digital strategies. I want to thank Motorola Solutions for their continued investment in Ireland and I wish all the team the best with this new venture." The company embraces a people-first philosophy and encourages its 20,000+ employees to share their unique perspectives to influence new ideas, tackle challenges and make an impact. The team in Cork will join a global force of talent focused on developing communications, video security, access control, artificial intelligence and command centre technologies to help address the growing scale of safety and security challenges. Motorola Solutions' communications portfolio is hallmarked by a history of firsts, including the first car radio, the Apollo missions, and introduction of the APX NEXT smart radio, that brought broadband applications to a two-way radio. With more than $850 million invested in R&D in 2023, employees are enabled to design ingenious solutions that play an essential role in people's lives. Details about the centre and role opportunities can be found here: https://www.motorolasolutions.com/en_xu/about/careers/cork-ireland.html About Motorola Solutions Motorola Solutions is solving for safer. We build and connect technologies to help protect people, property and places. Our solutions enable the collaboration between public safety agencies and enterprises that's critical for a proactive approach to safety and security. Learn more about how we're solving for safer communities, safer schools, safer hospitals, safer businesses ? safer everywhere ? at www.motorolasolutions.com. Motorola Solutions Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable federal securities law. These statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and generally include words such as "believes," "expects," "intends," "anticipates," "estimates" and similar expressions. The company can give no assurance that any actual or future results or events discussed in these statements will be achieved. Any forward-looking statements represent the company's views only as of today and should not be relied upon as representing the company's views as of any subsequent date. Readers are cautioned that such forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties that could cause the company's actual results or events discussed in these statements to differ materially from the statements contained in this release. Such forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, Motorola Solutions' expectations for its new R&D Centre, its ability to design software for the land mobile radio portfolio and to attract the talent to design the software. Motorola Solutions cautions the reader that the risks and uncertainties below, as well as those in Part I Item 1A of Motorola Solutions' 2023 Annual Report on Form 10-K and in its other SEC filings available for free on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov and on Motorola Solutions' website at www.motorolasolutions.com, could cause Motorola Solutions' actual results or events discussed in these statements to differ materially from those estimated or predicted in the forward-looking statements. Many of these risks and uncertainties cannot be controlled by Motorola Solutions and factors that may impact forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, Motorola Solutions' ability to attract the necessary talent and design the software for the land mobile radio portfolio. Motorola Solutions undertakes no obligation to publicly update any forward-looking statement or risk factor, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. 7 july 2024 at 19:10 News published onand distributed by: Syngenta and Intrinsyx Bio to Offer New Biological Solution to Boost Crops' Nutrient Use Efficiency Syngenta Biologicals, a leader in cutting-edge agricultural biological solutions and Intrinsyx Bio, a Silicon Valley biotech company that promotes sustainable agriculture, today announced a collaboration to bring a novel biological solution to agricultural markets globally. The collaboration will boost farmers' access to a custom selection of Intrinsyx Bio's proprietary endophyte formulations. Endophytes ? small microorganisms that colonize in plants ? fix atmospheric nitrogen directly into the plant, increasing the availability and uptake of key nutrients such as phosphorus and micronutrients that are important for plant health. This reduces the need for synthetic fertilizers, offering farmers greater flexibility in their nutrient management strategies while lowering the environmental impact of farming. Formulations will be offered as seed treatment and foliar application in key agricultural crops. "This collaboration reflects Syngenta's commitment to transforming the future of agriculture, with innovations that improve the sustainability of farming," said Jonathan Brown, Global Head of Syngenta Biologicals and Seedcare. "We're particularly excited to offer a broad range of formulations that will help farmers take the care of young plants to the next level, while protecting the health of their soil." "This agreement represents another opportunity to expand the reach of our ?biology that works.' Partnering with Syngenta allows farmers around the world to benefit from endophytes proven mode of action and extensive field testing that improves nutrient use efficiency and increases crop yields," said Greg Thompson, CEO of Intrinsyx Bio. Syngenta has been investing significantly in strengthening its portfolio of biological solutions for both plant and seed health. Since its acquisition of Valagro in 2020, it has continued to invest heavily in research and development, while expanding its portfolio of cutting-edge biological solutions through various commercial and research collaborations. These efforts also reflect Syngenta's commitment to helping agriculture achieve higher yields with lower environmental impact ? a core pillar of Syngenta Group's Sustainability Priorities. About Syngenta Crop Protection Syngenta Crop Protection is a leader in agricultural innovation, bringing breakthrough technologies and solutions that enable farmers to grow productively and sustainably. We offer a leading portfolio of crop protection solutions for plant and soil health, as well as digital solutions that transform the decision-making capabilities of farmers. Our 18,300 employees serve to advance agriculture in more than 90 countries around the world. Syngenta Crop Protection is headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, and is part of the Syngenta Group. Follow us on X (@Syngenta, @SyngentaUS), and on LinkedIn. About Intrinsyx Bio Intrinsyx Bio is a Silicon Valley biotech company that partners with the world's leading global agricultural companies to promote sustainable agriculture and deliver biology that works. Through the use of naturally occurring endophytes, Intrinsyx Bio enables farmers to improve nutrient uptake, enhance plant health, and increase crop yields while reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers. www.intrinsyxbio.com Syngenta's Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This document may contain forward-looking statements, which can be identified by terminology such as ?expect', ?would', ?will', ?potential', ?plans', ?prospects', ?estimated', ?aiming', ?on track' and similar expressions. Such statements may be subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially from these statements. For Syngenta, such risks and uncertainties include risks relating to legal proceedings, regulatory approvals, new product development, increasing competition, customer credit risk, general economic and market conditions, compliance and remediation, intellectual property rights, implementation of organizational changes, impairment of intangible assets, consumer perceptions of genetically modified crops and organisms or crop protection chemicals, climatic variations, fluctuations in exchange rates and/or commodity prices, single source supply arrangements, political uncertainty, natural disasters, and breaches of data security or other disruptions of information technology. Syngenta assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, changed assumptions or other factors. 2024 Syngenta. Rosentalstrasse 67, 4058 Basel, Switzerland. 8 july 2024 at 05:05 News published onand distributed by: Vantage Markets elevates Copy Trading with Multi-Currency and Multi-Account Type support PORT VILA, Vanuatu, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Leading multi-asset broker, Vantage Markets (Vantage), is thrilled to announce a series of exciting enhancements to its Vantage App, aimed at revolutionising the copy trading experience. These new features, designed to offer greater flexibility and accessibility, are set to empower traders at all levels. Vantage Copy Trading now boasts support for a diverse range of currencies, including EUR, HKD, INR, JPY, US Cents, and USD. This expansion is a game-changer, allowing traders from different regions to participate and diversify their portfolios in their preferred currency. This is coupled with the support for 55 global deposit methods, including credit cards, and bank transfers, to ensure users can fund their accounts with their preferred method. In addition, Vantage has also introduced multi-account type support to its Copy Trading feature. Users can now copy trade interchangeably between different account types seamlessly. For instance, a copier with a Standard STP account could choose to copy a signal provider using a Swap-free RAW ECN account, even when both users trade in a different currency. This enhancement further breaks down barriers and ensures traders can align their copy trading activities with any signal provider of their choice, enabling them to select providers based on their preferred trading styles and strategies. These moves are in line with Vantage's continuous effort to democratise access to copy trading, starting with its lowered minimum deposit requirements to US$50, and a further streamlining of its sign up process. "At Vantage, we are committed to making trading accessible to everyone, and our Vantage App aims to refine and elevate the user experience, offering both flexibility and powerful tools in one comprehensive platform," says Lian J, User Growth Director. "Our new multi-currency support and multiple account types are designed to further break down any geographical and technical barriers for traders, empowering traders to follow and learn from any seasoned trader they choose, supporting accessibility across all experience levels." "One of our biggest goals of the year is to help our mobile clients develop an instinct for the financial markets and our platform in a shorter time," she added. "With the enhancements to the UI and the launch of various account types, we believe it will streamline our clients journey to capture market opportunities." Discover the enhanced Vantage App and its powerful copy trading features today. About Vantage Vantage Markets (or Vantage) is a multi-asset broker offering clients access to a nimble and powerful service for trading Contracts for Difference (CFDs) products, including Forex, Commodities, Indices, Shares, ETFs, and Bonds. With over 13 years of market experience, Vantage transcends the role of broker, providing a trusted trading ecosystem, an award-winning mobile trading app , and a user-friendly trading platform that empowers clients to seize trading opportunities. Download the Vantage App on App Store or Google Play. trade smarter @vantage Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2454666/Image.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2299654/Vantage_Foundation_Logo.jpg 8 july 2024 at 05:05 News published onand distributed by: NOTICE OF ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING CHINA YUCHAI INTERNATIONAL LIMITED SINGAPORE, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- To all Shareholders NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Annual General Meeting (the "Meeting") of CHINA YUCHAI INTERNATIONAL LIMITED (NYSE: CYD) (the "Company") will be held at Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel Singapore, 392 Havelock Road, Singapore 169663 on Wednesday, August 7, 2024, at 9.00 a.m. (Singapore Time) for the following purposes: As Ordinary Business 1. To receive and adopt the audited financial statements and independent auditors' report for the financial year ended December 31, 2023. 2. To approve an increase in the limit of the Directors' fees as set out in Bye-law 10(11) of the Bye-laws of the Company from US$250,000 to US$552,384 for the financial year ended December 31, 2023 (Directors' fees paid for the financial year ended December 31, 2022 was US$540,000). 3. To re-elect the following Directors retiring pursuant to Bye-law 4(2) of the Bye-laws of the Company to hold office until the next annual general meeting of the Company: (i) Mr. Kwek Leng Peck (ii) Mr. Gan Khai Choon (iii) Mr. Stephen Ho Kiam Kong (iv) Mr. Hoh Weng Ming (v) Mr. Li Hanyang (vi) Mr. Wu Qiwei (vii) Mr. Xie Tao (viii) Mr. Neo Poh Kiat (ix) Mr. Wong Hong Wai 4. To authorize the Board of Directors to appoint up to the maximum of 11 Directors or such maximum number as determined from time to time by the shareholders in general meeting to fill any vacancies on the Board. 5. To re-appoint Ernst & Young LLP as independent auditors of the Company and to authorize the Audit Committee to fix their remuneration. By Order of the Board Hoh Weng Ming President July 8, 2024 Important Notes: 1. By resolution of the Board, only Members entered in the Register of Members of the Company at the close of business on June 21, 2024, U.S. Eastern Time are entitled to receive notice of and to attend and vote at the Meeting. 2. A Member is entitled to appoint one or more proxies to attend the Meeting and vote in his stead. 3. A proxy need not be a Member of the Company. 4. Members are encouraged to vote in advance by internet, telephone or by mail per the instructions on the proxy form not less than 48 hours before the time appointed for the Meeting. Beneficial owners of shares held in street name will need to follow the instructions provided by the broker, bank or other nominee that holds their shares. 5. If a proxy is appointed, the proxy form and the power of attorney or other authority (if any) under which it is signed, must be lodged with the Company at 16 Raffles Quay, #26-00 Hong Leong Building, Singapore 048581, Republic of Singapore OR to Vote Processing, c/o Broadridge, 51 Mercedes Way, Edgewood, NY 11717 not less than 48 hours before the time appointed for the Meeting, that is no later than 9.00 a.m. on Monday, August 5, 2024, Singapore Time or 9.00 p.m. on Sunday, August 4, 2024, U.S. Eastern Time. 6. Pursuant to the Bye-laws of the Company, no resolution of Members may be passed without the affirmative vote of the Special Share cast by the holder of the Special Share. For more information: Investor Relations Kevin Theiss Tel: +1-212-510-8922 Email: [email protected] SOURCE China Yuchai International Limited 8 july 2024 at 06:00 News published onand distributed by: Molson Coors Beverage Company to Webcast 2024 Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call Molson Coors Beverage Company (NYSE: TAP, TAP.A; TSX: TPX.B, TPX.A) will host a webcast of the company's 2024 Second Quarter Earnings Conference Call with investors and financial analysts at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time (6:30 a.m. Mountain Time) on Tuesday, August 6, 2024. The company will release earnings at approximately 6:30 a.m. Eastern Time on the same day. The webcast will be accessible via the Investor Relations page of the Molson Coors Beverage Company website, ir.molsoncoors.com. An online replay of the earnings call webcast is expected to be posted within two hours following the live webcast and will be available until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on November 6, 2024. Overview of Molson Coors Beverage Company For over two centuries, Molson Coors Beverage Company has been brewing beverages that unite people to celebrate all life's moments. From our core power brands Coors Light, Miller Lite, Coors Banquet, Molson Canadian, Carling and O?ujsko to our above premium brands including Madri, Staropramen, Blue Moon Belgian White and Leinenkugel's Summer Shandy, to our economy and value brands like Miller High Life and Keystone, Molson Coors produces many beloved and iconic beer brands. While Molson Coors' history is rooted in beer, Molson Coors offers a modern portfolio that expands beyond the beer aisle as well, including flavored beverages like Vizzy Hard Seltzer, spirits like Five Trail whiskey as well as non-alcoholic beverages. Molson Coors Beverage Company is a publicly traded company that operates through its Americas and EMEA&APAC reporting segments and is traded on the New York Stock Exchange and Toronto Stock Exchange. Our Imprint strategy is focused on People & Planet initiatives that support our commitment to raising industry standards and leaving a positive imprint on our employees, consumers, communities, and the environment. To learn more about Molson Coors Beverage Company, visit molsoncoors.com, MolsonCoorsOurImprint.com, or on Twitter though @MolsonCoors. About Molson Coors Canada Inc. Molson Coors Canada Inc. (MCCI) is a subsidiary of Molson Coors Beverage Company (MCBC). MCCI Class A and Class B exchangeable shares offer substantially the same economic and voting rights as the respective classes of common shares of MCBC, as described in MCBC's annual proxy statement and annual report on Form 10-K filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The trustee holder of the special Class A voting stock and the special Class B voting stock has the right to cast a number of votes equal to the number of then outstanding Class A exchangeable shares and Class B exchangeable shares, respectively. 8 july 2024 at 07:35 News published onand distributed by: Grid Battery Metals Exploration Team Prepares for its Third Phase of the 2024 Exploration Plan on the Clayton Valley Lithium Project Grid Battery Metals Inc. (the "Company" or "Grid") (TSXV:CELL)(OTCQB:EVKRF)(FRA:NMK2) announces its results from its second phase of exploration and its plans for the third phase of its spring/summer exploration program at its Clayton Valley Lithium Property near Silver Peak, Nevada, which includes a four-hole drill program planned for September 2024. At the Clayton Valley Lithium Project, the infill soil sampling exploration work performed by Rangefront Geological ("Rangefront") and supervised by Rangefront Geologist / Company Qualified Person Steven McMillin P.G., has now been completed and results have come back from the assay lab. Infill Soil Samples Results (Clayton Valley Lithium Project) Mr. Tim Fernback, Grid President & CEO states "These results, together with the Company's recently completed magnetotelluric (MT) geophysics survey, are geological techniques that should help predict geological structure and possible locations for lithium accumulation within claystone and brine at depth." Proposed Drill Locations (Clayton Valley Lithium Project) MT Geophysics Results (Clayton Valley Lithium Project) - 500m MT depth slice Mr. Steven McMillin P.G. comments "A major northeast fault interpreted from gravity bisects the claim block and is best apparent in the 500m slice even though the slice is below the basin floor. This suggests that the fault may be a fluid conduit at depth. Three drill holes in the south were selected by our team based on the combination of geophysics data and soil sample data that point to possible lithium accumulation within claystone and brine. The hole located at the north of the property has no significant soil signature as it is buried by alluvium, but it has a low-resistivity anomaly with a significant depth extent. A claystone dominant host for lithium is hypothesized at this location. Tim Fernback, Grid President & CEO comments "Now that the soil sampling, geophysical survey programs and 3D Leapfrog model of the subsurface are now complete at Clayton Valley, we have identified these four drilling targets to test for the depth and extent of lithium bearing brine and claystone. We are very excited about the results to date on the property and look forward to our drilling program later this year." About Rangefront Geological Elko Nevada-based Rangefront Geological has combined in-depth expertise with cutting-edge technology to provide mining consulting services, contract labor, field crew services, and vehicular support to the mining industry. With services available across North America, Rangefront works closely with its clients to provide high-quality mineral exploration services. Qualified Person Mr. Steven McMillin, P.G. is a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 and has approved the technical information contained within this news release. About Grid Battery Metals Inc. Grid Battery Metals Inc. is a Canadian based exploration company whose primary listing is on the TSX Venture Exchange. The Company's maintains a focus on exploration for high value battery metals required for the electric vehicle (EV) market. www.gridbatterymetals.com. About Texas Springs Property The Company owns a 100% interest in the Texas Spring Property which consists of mineral lode claims located in Elko County, Nevada. The Property is in the Granite Range southeast of Jackpot, Nevada, about 73 km north-northeast of Wells, Nevada. The target is a lithium clay deposit in volcanic tuff and tuffaceous sediments of the Humbolt Formation. A Phase 1 exploration program at the Texas Springs Property (Fall 2023) yielded average lithium grades of 2010 ppm, applying a 1,000 ppm cut-off, and up to 5,610 ppm Lithium. The Texas Spring property adjoins the southern border of the Nevada North Lithium Project - owned by Surge Battery Metals Inc. ("Surge") (TSXV: NILI, OTC: NILIF) and comprised of 725 mineral claims. Surge's first round of drilling identified strongly mineralized lithium bearing clays. The average lithium content within all near surface clay zones intersected in the 2022 drilling program, applying a 1000 ppm cut-off, was 3254 ppm. (Press release March 29, 2023). More recent results have shown higher grade lithium up to 8070 ppm on this property after initial drilling (Press release September 12, 2023). Our exploration results are on-trend with these results. About Clayton Valley Lithium Project The Company owns a 100% interest in 113 lithium lode and placer claims covering over 640 hectares in Clayton Valley. Clayton Valley is a down-dropped closed basin formed by the Miocene age Great Basin extension and is still active due to movement along the Walker Lane structural zone. As a result, the basin has preserved multiple layers of lithium bearing volcanic ash, resulting from multiple eruptive events over the past 6 million years including eruptions from the 700,000-year-old Long Valley Caldera system and related events. These ash layers are thought to contribute to the lithium brines extracted by Albemarle and are also likely involved in the formation of the exposed lithium rich clay deposits on the east side of Clayton Valley. Volt Canyon Lithium Property The Company owns a 100% interest in 80 placer claims covering approximately 635 hectares of alluvial sediments and clays located 122 km northeast of Tonopah, Nevada. On Behalf of the Board of Directors "Tim Fernback" Tim Fernback, President & CEO Contact Information: Email: [email protected] Phone: 604- 428-5690 Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release may contain forward-looking statements which include, but are not limited to, comments that involve future events and conditions, which are subject to various risks and uncertainties. Except for statements of historical facts, comments that address resource potential, upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt and security of mineral property titles, availability of funds, and others are forward-looking. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results may vary materially from those statements. General business conditions are factors that could cause actual results to vary materially from forward-looking statements. It should be noted that results from any adjacent property(s) are not an indication of what may be found on the Company's property(s). SOURCE: Grid Battery Metals Inc. 8 july 2024 at 07:30 View the original press release on accesswire.comNews published onand distributed by: BrightSpire Capital, Inc. Announces Second Quarter 2024 Earnings Release and Conference Call Dates BrightSpire Capital, Inc. (NYSE: BRSP) ("BrightSpire Capital" or the "Company") today announced it will release second quarter 2024 financial results on Tuesday, July 30, 2024, after the market closes. The Company will conduct a conference call to discuss the results on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, at 10:00 a.m. ET / 7:00 a.m. PT. To participate in the event by telephone, please dial (877) 407-0784 ten minutes prior to the start time (to allow time for registration). International callers should dial (201) 689-8560. The call will also be broadcast live over the Internet and can be accessed on the ?Shareholders' section of the Company's website at www.brightspire.com. A webcast of the call will be available for 90 days on the Company's website. For those unable to participate during the live call, a replay will be available starting July 31, 2024, at 12:00 p.m. ET / 9:00 a.m. PT, through August 7, 2024, at 11:59 p.m. ET / 8:59 p.m. PT. To access the replay, dial (844) 512-2921 and use conference ID code 13746975. International callers should dial (412) 317-6671 and enter the same conference ID. About BrightSpire Capital, Inc. BrightSpire Capital, Inc. (NYSE: BRSP) is internally managed and one of the largest publicly traded commercial real estate (CRE) credit REITs, focused on originating, acquiring, financing and managing a diversified portfolio consisting primarily of CRE debt investments and net leased properties predominantly in the United States. CRE debt investments primarily consist of first mortgage loans, which we expect to be the primary investment strategy. BrightSpire Capital is organized as a Maryland corporation and taxed as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. For additional information regarding the Company and its management and business, please refer to www.brightspire.com. 8 july 2024 at 08:35 News published onand distributed by: Globex Acquires Two More Highly Prospective Gold Properties ROUYN-NORANDA, Quebec, July 08, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- GLOBEX MINING ENTERPRISES INC. (GMX ? Toronto Stock Exchange, G1MN ? Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Berlin, Munich, Tradegate, Lang & Schwarz, LS Exchange, TTMzero, Dusseldorf and Quotrix Dusseldorf Stock Exchanges and GLBXF ? OTCQX International in the US) wishes to inform shareholders that, through a transaction with IAMGOLD Corporation ("IAMGOLD", IMG-TSX, IAG-NYSE), Globex has acquired two gold projects located in the Abitibi West area of Quebec. Globex has acquired the former Eldrich Gold Mine (also called Pierre Beauchemin Gold Mine) northwest of Rouyn-Noranda and the Porcupine West Gold property, west of the town of Duparquet, Quebec. The transaction saw Globex acquiring these two properties in exchange for Globex's Rich Lake (base-metals) and Lac a l'Eau Jaune (gold) properties. Both Globex and IAMGOLD retain a one percent (1%) Net Smelter Royalty in their respective traded properties. The two additional royalties on Rich Lake and Lac a l'Eau Jaune bring Globex's royalty portfolio total to 105. No cash or shares were issued as part of the transaction. Eldrich Gold Mine The Eldrich Gold Mine is located 14 km northwest of Rouyn-Noranda and consists of 8 claims totalling 235.55 ha. Between 1955 and 1962, 652,400 t grading 4.8 g/t Au (100,679 oz. Au) was mined from 7 levels to a depth of 309 m (1,015 ft). In 1987, Cambior reported a resource of 1,433,100 t grading 5.3 g/t Au (244,195 oz Au). Mining began in 1989 and terminated in 1993. Remaining resources are reported as 213,317 t grading 5.8 g/t (39,788 oz Au) using cut-offs of 4 g/t Au and 30 g/t Au. (Note: In 1988, the gold price declined from a high of $483.00 per ounce to a low of $395.00 per ounce, finishing the year at $410.00 per ounce while a Cambior Profitability Study anticipated a price of $560.00 per ounce). Considering the 6X increase in the price of gold since the 1988 study, Globex considers that a fresh look at the exploration and economic potential of the mine property is very much warranted. It is worth noting that the area of the mine has not been drilled to any large extent below the 10th level (+/- 500 m). We consider that there is significant potential to depth as well as beyond the mine workings both to the north and south where historical drilling returned multiple ore grade gold intersections such as 7.46 g/t Au over 15.6 m and 6.53 g/t Au over 41,8 m and 4.36 g/t Au over 15 m in the Bounder Hill B Zone and 3.95 g/t Au over 38.0 m, 4.67 g/t Au over 51.0 m, 5.60 g/t Au over 40.3 m and 16.17 g/t Au over 7.0 m in the Boulder Hill A Zone, both located on strike north of the mine (note: lengths reported are core lengths from drilling undertaken between 1947 and 1953 as well as in 1974). Gold mineralization at the Eldrich Mine follows a north-northeast trend and dips 35o to 45o SE. Mineralization is associated with pyrite in four major rock types: meta-trondhjemite, meta-tonalite, hybrid rocks and meta-diorite, all spatially distributed as a series of sub-horizontal tabular sills that form a genetically related group. Porcupine West Property The Porcupine West property is located in Hebecourt Township, Quebec west of the town of Duparquet and consists of 89 claims totalling 4,711.27 hectares covering over 14 kilometres of the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break. Compiled data indicates that 355 drill holes totalling 52,339 m have been undertaken on the property including 153 RC Till holes. The average hole length is 270 m and the longest hole 1,122 m. A goodly number of geophysical surveys have been undertaken on the property including AEM and AMAG, IP, Ground EM and Mag as well as BeepMat surveys. Gold mineralization has been encountered at many locations along the +14km property strike length. Two areas were more intensely drilled including the Nemrod Zone over a strike length of 1.6 km and width of 280 m and the Structure 71 Zone consisting of numerous lenses, the Main Lenses being 200 m long and 2.5 m wide and tested to 120 m depth showing thicknesses of between 1.5 m and 5.6 m. Other lenses #2, #3 and #4 report gold values between 2 g/t Au and 6.7 g/t Au over varying widths of up to 3m. Globex considers that there is much potential untested on the property especially at depth and in structures both parallel and cross cutting to the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break. Mineralization consists principally of pyrite and minor arsenopyrite and chalcopyrite in bleach zones (K 2 O depletion and Na 2 O enrichment) crosscutting basalt. A historical resource of 195,300 t grading 5.2 g/t Au is reported, 156,630t grading 5.1 g/t Au being within the Main Lens. Several other areas on the property, such as the Hebecourt Lake and St-Francois occurrences, also report gold values. These areas have seen less drilling than the two previously mentioned areas. Acquiring +14 km of the gold localizing Porcupine-Destor Break positioned between the Beattie and Donchester Gold Mines to the east and Harker-Halloway Gold Mines to the west and the Eldrich Gold Mine northwest of Rouyn-Noranda, adds significant, prospective land positions to the gold asset base of Globex. Note: All technical and historical information disclosed in this press release is from data provided to Globex by IAMGOLD Corporation and Quebec government Sigeom files. Globex has not yet undertaken an in-depth study of all of the available technical data. This press release was written by Jack Stoch, P. Geo., President and CEO of Globex in his capacity as a Qualified Person (Q.P.) under NI 43-101. We Seek Safe Harbour. Foreign Private Issuer 12g3 ? 2(b) CUSIP Number 379900 50 9 LEI 529900XYUKGG3LF9PY95 For further information, contact: Jack Stoch, P.Geo., Acc.Dir. President & CEO Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. 86, 14th Street Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec Canada J9X 2J1 Tel.: 819.797.5242 Fax: 819.797.1470 [email protected] www.globexmining.com Forward Looking Statements: Except for historical information, this news release may contain certain "forward looking statements". These statements may involve a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity and performance to be materially different from the expectations and projections of Globex Mining Enterprises Inc. ("Globex"). No assurance can be given that any events anticipated by the forward-looking information will transpire or occur, or if any of them do so, what benefits Globex will derive therefrom. A more detailed discussion of the risks is available in the "Annual Information Form" filed by Globex on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. 8 july 2024 at 09:00 News published onand distributed by: Boomi Bolsters API Management Offering With New API Control Plane for Centralized Discovery, Management, and Governance Boomitm, the intelligent integration and automation leader, today announced the launch of the Boomi API Control Plane ? providing enterprises with a centralized platform to discover, manage, and govern all APIs across their organizations for accelerated business innovation, improved developer productivity, and stronger API governance. Utilizing the recently acquired federated API management business from APIIDA, the Boomi API Control Plane bolsters Boomi's existing API Management solution, allowing users to discover all APIs in one place, including "shadow APIs" that may exist outside the purview of IT. By bringing these shadow APIs under control, organizations can increase API consumption throughout the enterprise, driving new efficiencies and opportunities for innovation. "APIs are the backbone of modern digital transformation, yet managing them across various platforms remains a significant challenge for many organizations. Unlike other APIM vendors, Boomi provides a federated API management approach that is truly vendor-independent, enabling organizations to utilize existing on-premises and cloud API runtimes effectively while addressing API sprawl," said Ed Macosky, Chief Product and Technology Officer at Boomi. "With the Boomi API Control Plane, we are setting a new standard for API management by offering an integrated, holistic solution that simplifies operations, strengthens governance, and accelerates innovation." Industry analysts have highlighted the growing necessity for federated API management solutions. "Organizations increasingly need federated API management to handle the complex and diverse API landscapes that span multiple environments and platforms," said Shari Lava, Senior Research Director, AI and Automation at IDC. "A centralized, federated approach can enable consistent governance, security, and monitoring across all APIs, reducing risks and enhancing operational efficiency." Key Features of Boomi API Control Plane: Centralized API Discovery: Discover all APIs within an organization from a single location, bring shadow APIs under control, and increase API consumption to drive business innovation. Discover all APIs within an organization from a single location, bring shadow APIs under control, and increase API consumption to drive business innovation. Simplified API Management Across Gateways: Enhance productivity with a consistent developer experience, gain insights into API performance and usage, and extend the value of existing on-premises and cloud investments. Enhance productivity with a consistent developer experience, gain insights into API performance and usage, and extend the value of existing on-premises and cloud investments. Strengthened API Governance: Ensure consistent policies across all platforms, reduce the risk of data breaches, and streamline security audits, making compliance simpler and more efficient. Additional Resources Take a free interactive API Management Maturity Assessment to better understand where your organization stands when it comes to managing APIs Read the technical blog on Boomi API Control Plane Follow Boomi on X (Twitter), LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube About Boomi Boomi powers the future of business with intelligent integration and automation. As a category-leading, global software as a service (SaaS) company, Boomi celebrates more than 20,000 global customers and a worldwide network of 800 partners. Organizations turn to Boomi's award-winning platform to connect their applications, data, and people to accelerate digital transformation. For more information, visit boomi.com. 2024 Boomi, LP. Boomi, the ?B' logo, and Boomiverse are trademarks of Boomi, LP or its subsidiaries or affiliates. All rights reserved. Other names or marks may be the trademarks of their respective owners. 8 july 2024 at 09:05 News published onand distributed by: Avangrid, Town of Barnstable Reaffirm Host Community Agreement for New England Wind 1 Project Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR), a leading sustainable energy company and member of the Iberdrola Group, today announced that the company and the Town of Barnstable have reaffirmed the Host Community Agreement (HCA) for the New England Wind 1 offshore wind project landing at Craigville Beach through a side agreement entered into by Park City Wind LLC and the Town. The side agreement, a supplement to the original HCA signed by Park City Wind and the town in May 2022, was announced at a Barnstable Town Council meeting on Thursday, June 27, 2024. The side agreement serves as a complement to the HCA, providing additional financial and supportive benefits to the Town building on the original agreement. "Avangrid is proud of its productive and longstanding working relationship with the Town of Barnstable, and we are pleased to reaffirm the Host Community Agreement that ensures the Town and the entire region will benefit from the development of our New England Wind 1 project," said Avangrid CEO Pedro Azagra. "As we continue construction on our nation-leading Vineyard Wind 1 project and advance New England Wind 1, we look forward to continued collaboration with the Town and our many valued stakeholders throughout the region." "I am pleased that the Town of Barnstable will receive additional protections and benefits under this agreement with the New England Wind 1 project," said State Senator Julian Cyr (D-Truro). "Barnstable has led the nation in the advancement of a clean energy future powered by offshore wind. I'm particularly encouraged by the alignment of the next phase of Barnstable's sewer plan with the New England Wind 1 project, saving the Town the cost of repaving the newly sewered roadway that instead will be repaved by the wind project following their work." In March 2024, Avangrid submitted multiple proposals for the New England Wind projects to the Massachusetts-Rhode Island-Connecticut Multi-State Procurement for Offshore Wind. The states are anticipated to announce selected projects from the competitive procurement in August 2024. The side agreement provides further certainty for New England Wind 1, an exceptionally advanced and shovel-ready project that is prepared to begin construction as soon as 2025. The side agreement provides several additional direct benefits to the Town of Barnstable, community mitigation efforts towards future construction of the New England Wind 1 project, and robust health and safety measures for construction and operation of the project. Through the new agreement, Avangrid will provide $16M in a Host Community Payment to the Town within sixty days of the project's financial close, accelerating the original payment schedule that was to take place over a 20-year period. The side agreement also provides for Avangrid to pay the Town an additional $5.5 million payment for post construction streetscaping; an additional $2.4 million to help defray the Town's sewer construction costs; and a $500,000 donation to the Barnstable High School Environmental Science and Technology Lab. Avangrid will also reimburse local businesses and cultural institutions impacted by construction of the project's onshore utility infrastructure. The agreement provides detailed information on the future construction of New England Wind 1, including Avangrid's commitment to fully repave all public roadways associated with onshore construction, and to work closely with the Town on coordinated construction through the Centerville Historic District following thorough stakeholder engagement with Barnstable residents and business owners. New England Wind 1 offers extraordinary certainty and viability. In addition to securing its interconnection and advancing critical grid upgrades, in April 2024 the Department of the Interior announced a Record of Decision (ROD) approving the project, with approval of the project's Construction and Operations Plan anticipated for July 2024. The ROD builds on the project's complete state, regional, and local permitting, as well as a signed a Project Labor Agreement with the Massachusetts Building Trades. If selected in the current competitive procurement, the project can begin construction as soon as next year and achieve commercial operations before the end of the decade, helping achieve ambitious 2030 state climate targets set by the New England states. New England Wind 1 also offers transformational economic opportunities for the region, including catalyzing a new staging and assembly port in Salem; bringing an offshore wind davit crane manufacturer to New Bedford, Massachusetts; locating Operations and Maintenance facilities in Bridgeport, Connecticut and New Bedford; and delivering an offshore wind training hub with Survival Systems USA at the Port of Davisville in North Kingstown, Rhode Island. New England Wind 1 offers enough clean, reliable energy to power approximately 400,000 homes and reduce emissions equivalent to taking 300,000 gasoline-based cars off the road annually. The project will create more than 4,400 full-time equivalent jobs, and bring $3 billion of direct investment to the region. In June 2024, Avangrid announced that it placed 10 turbines into production for the nation-leading Vineyard Wind 1 project, making Vineyard Wind 1 the largest operating offshore wind farm in United States. Vineyard Wind began offshore construction in late 2022, achieved steel-in-the-water in June 2023, and completed the nation's first offshore substation in July 2023. Construction flows through the New Bedford Marine Commerce Terminal. In July 2021, Vineyard Wind signed the first Project Labor Agreement for an offshore wind project in the United States, which outlined the creation of 500 union jobs through the project. In December 2023, project shareholders announced that Vineyard Wind 1 has delivered nearly double of its commitment through the PLA by creating 937 union jobs through two years of construction. An 806-megawatt project located 15 miles off the coast of Martha's Vineyard, Vineyard Wind will generate electricity for more than 400,000 homes and businesses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, create 3,600 Full Time Equivalent (FTE) job years, save customers $1.4 billion over the first 20 years of operation, and is expected to reduce carbon emissions by more than 1.6 million metric tons per year, the equivalent of taking 325,000 cars off the road annually. About Avangrid: Avangrid, Inc. (NYSE: AGR) aspires to be the leading sustainable energy company in the United States. Headquartered in Orange, CT with approximately $45 billion in assets and operations in 24 U.S. states, Avangrid has two primary lines of business: networks and renewables. Through its networks business, Avangrid owns and operates eight electric and natural gas utilities, serving more than 3.3 million customers in New York and New England. Through its renewables business, Avangrid owns and operates a portfolio of renewable energy generation facilities across the United States. Avangrid employs approximately 8,000 people and has been recognized by JUST Capital as one of the JUST 100 companies ? a ranking of America's best corporate citizens ? in 2024 for the fourth consecutive year. In 2024, Avangrid ranked first among utilities and 12 overall. The company supports the U.N.'s Sustainable Development Goals and was named among the World's Most Ethical Companies in 2024 for the sixth consecutive year by the Ethisphere Institute. Avangrid is a member of the group of companies controlled by Iberdrola, S.A. For more information, visit www.avangrid.com. 8 july 2024 at 11:35 News published onand distributed by: Canadian Coast Guard begins 2024 Arctic Summer Season YELLOWKNIFE, NT, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - The Canadian Coast Guard's (CCG) annual Arctic summer operational season is underway. In total, seven CCG icebreakers are scheduled to deploy from June into November to support northern communities, operational and program commitments, and sovereignty in the Arctic. June 16 ? CCGS Amundsen departed Quebec City, QC , for icebreaking in Frobisher Bay and Hudson Strait, and science led by Amundsen Science. ? CCGS departed , for icebreaking in Frobisher Bay and Hudson Strait, and science led by Amundsen Science. June 20 - CCGS Des Groseilliers departed Quebec City, QC , for icebreaking, refueling the Killiniq communication station and the remote Eureka weather station, commissioning aids to navigation in the Hudson Strait, and Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) surveys. - CCGS departed , for icebreaking, refueling the Killiniq communication station and the remote Eureka weather station, commissioning aids to navigation in the Hudson Strait, and Canadian Hydrographic Service (CHS) surveys. July 1 ? CCGS Pierre Radisson departed Quebec City, QC , for icebreaking, science missions and Operation Pacer Goose , the annual resupply of U.S. Pituffik Space Base in Greenland . ? CCGS departed , for icebreaking, science missions and , the annual resupply of U.S. Pituffik Space Base in . July 10 ? CCGS Henry Larsen departs St John's, N.L. , for icebreaking in the western Arctic and CHS surveys in Hudson Bay . ? CCGS departs , for icebreaking in the western Arctic and CHS surveys in . July 10 ? CCGS Vincent Massey departs Quebec City, QC , for icebreaking in the eastern and central Arctic. ? CCGS departs , for icebreaking in the eastern and central Arctic. July 13 ? CCGS Jean Goodwill departs Dartmouth, N.S. , for icebreaking in the Low and High Arctic. ? CCGS departs , for icebreaking in the Low and High Arctic. August 14 ? CCGS Louis S. St-Laurent departs St. John's, N.L. , for icebreaking and the Joint Ocean Ice Study scientific mission in the Beaufort Sea. CCG ships and their dedicated crews are ready to assist the shipping industry during the annual Arctic resupply. Safe and efficient navigation in Arctic waters is maintained throughout the shipping season by providing daily updates on ice conditions and operations, as well as ice escorts, when needed, to industry and partners. CCG's seasonal Marine Communication and Traffic Services (MCTS) centre in Iqaluit, NU, opened on May 17, 2024. In the Arctic, MCTS officers play a crucial role in ensuring safe navigation in the region; they respond to maritime distress calls, manage the Northern Canada Vessel Traffic Services Zone Regulations (NORDREG), broadcast weather and ice information, and provide navigational warnings. MCTS Iqaluit will remain open until mid-December 2024, at which time NORDREG services will be provided by the MCTS centre in Les Escoumins, QC, until the Iqaluit centre reopens in 2025. Throughout the summer season, federal government and academic researchers, scientists, and hydrographers will join CCG ships to carry out new and ongoing scientific projects and hydrographic surveys. CCG will also carry out joint training operations with national and international Arctic partners. As schedules and opportunities permit, crews will engage in training and equipment familiarization with Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliaries, such as search and rescue, and marine environmental and hazards response activities. Such opportunities allow crews and communities to build relationships and exchange maritime knowledge. The Government of Canada is committed to maritime safety, providing essential services to mariners, and ensuring the health and safety of all Canadians. The CCG's annual Arctic icebreaking season allows the safe and efficient movement of vessels and goods in northern waters, which is key to community resupply. CCG's presence in Canada's North also provides key services, such as search and rescue, support for scientific research, marine communications and traffic services, aids to navigation, and marine environmental and hazards response. The Compliance and Enforcement program will continue to monitor vessels that may pose hazards and will continue to work with owners to ensure risks are mitigated. Quick Facts: The CCG's Arctic Marine Response Station in Rankin Inlet, NU , reopened on June 21, 2024 , to provide local maritime search and rescue services during the summer season. The Arctic Marine Response Station first opened in 2018 under the Oceans Protection Plan, establishing it as the first Canadian Coast Guard search and rescue facility in the Arctic. , reopened on , to provide local maritime search and rescue services during the summer season. The Arctic Marine Response Station first opened in 2018 under the Oceans Protection Plan, establishing it as the first Canadian Coast Guard search and rescue facility in the Arctic. The CCG Marine Environmental and Hazards Response and Compliance and Enforcement teams maintain a permanent, full-time presence in the Arctic, with bases in Iqaluit, Nunavut , and Yellowknife and Hay River, Northwest Territories . , and and . The CCG works closely and trains with communities and the Canadian Coast Guard Auxiliary across the Arctic in search and rescue efforts. The Auxiliary are an essential part of the search and rescue system in the Arctic, with trained personnel who have extensive knowledge of specific risks in local waterways and areas across the region. Auxiliary units enhance capacity and capability for search and rescue in the Arctic. Navigational products released by the CHS provide essential maritime information to support safe and efficient navigation in the Arctic. This year, CHS hydrographers will sail aboard four CCG icebreakers to conduct survey work and increase the amount of sea floor surveyed in the Arctic. Related Products Associated Links: Stay Connected: Follow the Canadian Coast Guard on X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. SOURCE Canadian Coast Guard 8 july 2024 at 12:20 News published onand distributed by: CRIMINAL barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. It follows a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses, including at Mulgrave Street in Limerick city. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme". Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10. However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored, say the Council of The Bar of Ireland. Sara Phelan SC, chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland, said it is with regret that they have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice. The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. READ MORE: EXCLUSIVE: Threat to kidnap Cathal Crotty and make him 'suffer' Sean Guerin SC, chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee, said it has been acknowledged in Government that there is "no good reason" why fees of criminal barristers shouldnt be restored. "Yet eight months on from a commitment to establish a process reviewing the fees, no meaningful progress has been made. The impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice. "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society. Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected, said Mr Guerin. The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday, July 9, Monday, July 15, and Wednesday, July 24. THE CASE against a particularly brazen serial shoplifter has been adjourned to allow the woman deal with her addiction issues. Pauline Casey, aged 44, of St Munchins Street, St Marys Park, Limerick city appeared before Judge Dermot Sheehan at Limerick Circuit Criminal Court. Prosecuting barrister John OSullivan, instructed by State solicitor Padraig Mawe, said the reason the case is being heard in the circuit court and not the district court is because Ms Casey is a significant and longstanding recidivist. She has pleaded guilty to a series of thefts between September 20, 2021 and April 21, 2022. The total financial loss is 1,319.39, said Mr OSullivan, who outlined the offences to Judge Sheean with the assistance of Garda Darragh OShea. The court heard Ms Casey stole a charity box from Supermacs on the Ballysimon Road, household appliances from Garveys SuperValu in Grove Island and a number of thefts of cosmetics from Boots on William Street. Mr OSullivan asked Garda OShea if any of the property was recovered? No, said Garda OShea. The prosecuting barrister said Ms Casey is well known to gardai as a serial shoplifter. I am aware of drugs and alcohol issues. She has a serious drug addiction. She is well known to security guards. Efforts have been made to bar her from shops. When she was granted bail an order was made on her to stay away from Limerick city centre. She has 143 previous convictions, said Mr OSullivan. These include thefts, possession and sale or supply of drugs, public order, threatening / insulting / abusive behaviour and assault causing harm. Mr OSullivan asked Garda OShea if the series of thefts were particularly brazen? Yes. No effort was made to conceal her appearance, said Garda OShea, who added Ms Casey was easily identifiable on CCTV. Erin OHagan, barrister for Ms Casey, said her client has pleaded guilty, it is her first time in the circuit court and is a lady who has struggled with addiction for many years. The barrister said the accused has four children and her eldest is expecting a child. Ms OHagan said Ms Casey had overcome her addiction and did not come to garda attention for a period of time. The court heard Ms Casey had advised women in Coolmine and Adapt but unfortunately found herself back in addiction. Nobody was more disappointed than Ms Casey, said Ms OHagan. READ MORE: Armed patrols in Limerick town due to rival families feuding Judge Dermot Sheehan said he was not going to deal with the matter on the day. He said there is a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. She needs to go to the Probation Service and start reengaging to deal with her addiction issues. She will shortly be a grandmother. She does not appreciate the seriousness of the situation, said Judge Sheehan. The judge said he cant make any promises regarding not imposing a custodial sentence but will see what steps she has made to reform herself and deal with her addiction issues. Judge Sheehan reaffirmed Ms Caseys bail conditions of not committing any offences and staying out of the city centre. The case was adjourned. A FATHER-OF-FOUR who devoted his life to helping raise funds and awareness to help others was cruelly cut down in his prime by cancer. Micheal Sheridan, of Hospital and formerly of Cavan, passed away on June 4 - just a week after turning 51. He was diagnosed with stage 4 bowel cancer last November. The CEO of Mercy University Hospital Foundation in Cork is sadly missed by loving wife Claire, their four young sons Eanna, aged 19, Rian, 17, Finn, 13, Caelan, 8, his mother Marie, extended family and many, many friends. Micheals whole career and life centred around helping and supporting others. His primary degree was a Bachelor of Arts in Maynooth University and in later life completed a Masters at the Smurfit Graduate Business School in UCD. During his time in Maynooth college he became the welfare officer and vice president of the Students' Union. The welfare of others was a constant theme in his career. His first job was fundraising for the ISPCC. Micheal then became the first employee of the Mercy University Hospital Foundation, built it up and became CEO. Three years were spent as CEO at Irelands first and only charity air ambulance (now known as Critical) before returning to the Mercy in January this year. Micheal is pictured below with John Creedon. In his career he needed to be in a role where he was making a difference and people were being impacted in a positive way, thats what motivated him, said his wife Claire. He felt a deep sense of responsibility in his roles and was dedicated to the cause. This is epitomised by Micheal attending a board meeting a week before his passing. He was fighting with every ounce of strength he had just to be able to get out of bed in the final weeks and days of his illness. We don't know how he put one foot in front of the other but he did it until he literally couldn't do it anymore, said Claire. A statement on behalf of Mercy University Hospital Foundations board of directors and the entire fundraising team, said while no words can adequately express our deep sorrow at losing our leader, the foundations team is profoundly grateful for having had the opportunity to know, work with, and learn from Micheal. Having worked in the not-for-profit sector in Ireland for over 25 years, Micheal was always passionate about the role that charities play in improving the lives of people across the island of Ireland. He has had a huge impact across all of the many organisations and projects he was involved in, and leaves behind a tremendous legacy of positivity and change, reads the tribute. Micheals most important legacy of all is his and Claires four boys. He was always hands on as a dad. He loved the bones of the boys and they all knew they were loved, which was important. He was a big man for hugs and kisses and not afraid to say I love you, said Claire. Micheal attended youngest son Caelan's Holy Communion three weeks before he died. Despite how unwell and tired Micheal felt he was determined that Caelan would have a happy day. Those photos and memories of the day will be treasured. The boys all got to spend time with their dad at his bedside in his final days. They got to tell him one last time that they loved him before he passed away, and he told all of them he loved them as well. He told them that he was proud of them, and he wanted them to continue on the journey they were on, and not let what happened to him throw them off course. He told them to grow up to be good human beings - that's what was important to him, said Claire, who has lost her soulmate. We met in college and every step of the way in life, we've done it together. We really, really miss him because we just loved to be around him. He was their dad and he was their friend. He was my husband and he was my friend, said Claire. READ MORE: Urgent appeal for blood donors across Limerick She wished to thank Mercy University Hospital and all the doctors and nurses who took amazing care of him throughout his treatment and at the end of his life. When Micheal was diagnosed with cancer we chose to have a positive outlook. We were going to fight it. He really fought it with everything he had and the Mercy hospital, the team treating Micheal did everything they could. We couldnt have asked for more and I am forever grateful for everything they did for Micheal and our family. In a cruel twist of fate, Micheal ended up using the psycho-oncology services of the Mercy Cancer Care Centre that he envisioned and started work on seven years ago. The centre opened its doors in March this year and is Irelands only psychologist led cancer care centre, providing psychological care and emotional support to cancer patients. He was very proud when the Cancer Care Centre opened its doors and had so many plans for the future that he was excited about, its just so unfair, said Claire. A GoFundMe page has been set up entitled The Sheridan Family Education Fund to support his sons' education in the coming years and if people want to say thank you to a man who gave so much and asked so little please click here May he rest in peace. THE MID-WEST Hospital Campaign (MWHC) has announced that it will be represented in the next general election by activist Melanie Sheehan Cleary in the Limerick City constituency. Melanie is a mother-of-six children, including Eve Cleary who died in 2019 hours after she was discharged from University Hospital Limerick. Earlier this year Eves family settled a High Court action over her death with the HSE and UHL who expressed sincere condolences and deep regret. The campaign is still considering its options on whether to run candidates in the Clare and Tipperary constituencies. A spokesperson for MWHC in Limerick, Charlotte Keane said: We have tried protests, lobbying our public reps, petitions to Oireachtas committees but its clear that the vested interests behind the decision to downgrade our A&Es in 2009 still hold sway. The politicians arent listening to us. To this day, still not one elected TD in Limerick city supports the re-opening of Ennis, Nenagh and St Johns A&Es. We warned them in February of 2020 at our protest outside St Johns Hospital that we would come to Dublin if they didnt re-open our A&Es. This is us following up on that pledge. Speaking after her selection as the Mid-West Hospital Campaign general election candidate, Melanie said she was never political or active in this way before Eve died. "I thought that her death would be the catalyst for change, but nothing happened afterwards. Instead, more families have had to suffer as we did. Eve spent 17 hours on a trolley in UHLs emergency department after she hurt herself slipping and falling on a footpath. A few hours after she was eventually admitted to a ward, she was discharged and told to go home and rest. Less than four hours later she suffered a cardiac arrest, caused by a blood clot that had travelled into her lung. Eve was just 21. I have written to everyone since Eve died including the previous minister for health, and current Taoiseach but nobody seems to want to act. Sometimes you wonder if this was happening in Dublin and not in Limerick, would it be allowed to continue?" said Melanie. She said Fianna Fail and Fine Gael have "clearly committed to a path which in effect means the undermining of our public health system". "We always understood that it would take a lot of effort to force them into a U-turn, and we were prepared to put that work in. Unfortunately, it seems that Sinn Fein have committed to not rocking the boat on issues such as this in case it might present a barrier to coalition with one of those parties after an election. We say that the evidence is overwhelming for the urgent need to restore emergency services in the Mid-West. We do not accept that there is any clinical argument that justifies the piling up of people on trolleys in UHL and any further delay will cost lives. READ MORE: Barristers to hold protest in Limerick as they strike for a second time over pay The Garryowen native who is now living in Corbally went on to say that people might dismiss this as a single-issue campaign, but "we will make no apology for making every effort to put this crisis at the top of the national agenda". "We have been ignored for far too long! We will have other positions that we will put forward, but the main thing Id say is we are not going to accept the re-opening of our A&Es at the expense of any other community. We are not for robbing Peter to pay Paul. We are demanding a restoration of services here and will support others fighting for the same. That goes for the nurses fighting for pay restoration and the ambulance workers who are looking for union recognition. We think the health workers on the frontline are absolute heroes and deserve to be treated as such by the government. The health services workforce is very diverse and we oppose any attempt to sow division between communities. Anyone looking to get involved with our campaign will agree to a pledge that they also oppose racism and division. LIMERICK City and County Council has extended its heartfelt commiserations to the Limerick senior hurlers, John Kiely and his backroom team, following their valiant effort in the All-Ireland semi-final against Cork. The team displayed remarkable spirit and dedication throughout the match, and while the result was not in our favour, their performance has made us all proud, they said Mayor John Moran expressed his deep appreciation for the team's hard work and dedication. Of course, we share the teams disappointment but lets not forget the immense joy we have shared thanks to their hard work and dedication over the years. "They have brought immense pride to Limerick, and we are grateful for their unwavering commitment and sportsmanship. They will no doubt be back. The teams achievements have been amazing and we will celebrate that with a mayoral reception for them all," said the mayor. READ MORE: PICTURES: Limerick hurling fans treated to epic battle against Cork in All-Ireland semi-final Director General of Limerick City and County Council, Dr Pat Daly also commended the team's efforts. "The Limerick senior hurlers have given us countless moments of joy and pride. Their passion for the sport and determination to succeed are truly inspiring. While the outcome today was not what we hoped for, the spirit and tenacity shown by our players will always be remembered and celebrated. "As we reflect on this season, we also extend our best wishes to our neighbours, Cork and Clare, as they prepare to compete in the All-Ireland final on July 21," said Mr Daly. Mayor Moran concluded: "We wish Cork and Clare the very best in the final. It promises to be an exciting match, and we look forward to seeing great sportsmanship and competition from both teams." With rumours of a possible change in Manipur leadership months into the ethnic clashes that tore through the state, Chief Minister Biren Singh said some of his partys MLAs have rubbish talked about his resignation. The chief minister admitted that some of his party MLAs, and its allies were in Delhi, but their visit have no connection with his term in office. Reports that a section of MLAs, from the BJP and its allies, Naga People's Front (NPF), National People's Party (NPP) and JDU, pushing for Biren Singh to resign, have been doing the rounds. In addition, there have been several efforts to convince the BJP to replace Biren Singh since he assumed power in 2017, sources told NDTV. The efforts had steamed up following the violent ethnic clashes that plagued Manipur since May 2023, but have not yielded any significant result till date. The only change? BJP lost both of Manipurs seats to the Congress in Lok Sabha Elections 2024. Nothing to do with a resignation On Friday, Biren Singh said there had been a meeting with NDA allies, and it was decided that a memorandum for lasting peace in Manipur would be submitted to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Around 35 MLAs were present when the memorandum was signed. he said, the MLAs had entrusted him with the job of securing an appointment with Modi: But since the Parliament is on and things are so hectic, I thought why should I disturb? When the meeting happens, I will also go. But some people have gone ahead. This has nothing to do with a resignation, said Biren Singh. Also Read | Manipur violence: Amit Shah says MHA will talk to both Meiteis and Kukis The chief minister further expressed his gratitude to Modi,as Manipur had been put on the list of priorities during the first 100 days of the new NDA term. Manipur after abki baar 400 paar The Manipur miasma has been raised again by the opposition after it gained its voice by stopping the BJP short of its landmark campaign of abki baar 400 paar( The BJP had expected to cross 400 this time) Currently, the INDIA alliance has 232 members in the Lok Sabha and the BJP has 240, with allies making up the rest of the NDA's 293. The Adani group will spend $9 billion to build manufacturing and transportation infrastructure for the first phase of its ambitious green hydrogen venture, pivotal to the conglomerates business aspirations and crucial to the worlds third most polluted countrys net-zero transition. Once production gets under way, Adani group will hire specialized ships to export what will be the worlds cheapest green hydrogen and its derivatives to Europe and some Asian countries, three people directly aware of the conglomerates plans said on condition of anonymity. "This is the most decisive entry into green hydrogen being planned by any group in the country," one of the three people said. In the first phase, Adani plans to achieve a capacity of 1 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of green hydrogen, which is produced by breaking down water in an electrolyzer using renewable power. Adani Group, through Adani New Industries Ltd., is working on one of the most ambitious green hydrogen projects in India from the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat. The group is in the first stage. Around $4 billion will be invested for setting up the manufacturing components and equipment needed to operate the plants, stacks and balance of plant (BoP) in the production cycle. This is the most critical part of the cycle. Once it is ready, it can support the next two phases too with some degree of expansion," the person added. Adani's potential rivals in green hydrogen include Larsen and Toubro Ltd, Indian Oil Corp. Ltd, Acme group and Oil India Ltd. Green hydrogen has become the chosen route for many countries' climate roadmaps and net-zero pledges, as they look to eventually stop burning fossil fuels to generate energy or produce other chemicals. A stack" is an assembly of electrolyser-based fuel cells, which acts as a unit that produces electricity. It is the core working element in an electrolyzer-based power plant. A single stack consists of hundreds of fuel cells. The company aims to minimize the cost of green hydrogen equipment by making them in-house as much as possible, the three people said. The $9 billion green hydrogen plan includes a $5 billion investment in manufacturing and operating electrolyzers. There will be 4-5 different stages. The plan is to quickly develop mtpa in the next 2-3 years and take it up from there to 1 mtpa. During this phase, the full chain for a 5GW electrolyzer manufacturing capacity planned may need an investment of $4.5-5 billion," the second person said. An email sent to Adani group remained unanswered till press time. The first phase will be based on alkaline electrolyzers, composed of electrodes with a porous separator and an alkaline electrolyte. Alkaline electrolysrers typically have a maximum power input of 30 kW. To produce one kg of hydrogen, at least nine kg of water is required with a total of 50-55 kWH of electrical unit. At a later stage, Adani plans to manufacture electrolyzers based on anion exchange membrane as well, which has higher operational flexibility and better efficiency as compared to alkaline. Eventually, Adani group aims to manufacture over 17.5GW of electrolysers, according to the three persons. Adani New Industries, which contributed 9% of the groups total income in FY24, has established 4GW capacity of solar cell and module manufacturing, 2GW of ingot-wafer manufacturing and 1.5GW capacity of wind manufacturing. The capex also include building a Balance of Plant (BoP), an auxiliary set-up of machinery and components within a power plant, which is required to keep energy generation stable and safe. This becomes critical since hydrogen is far more explosive than other fuels. The Adani group, plans to use its own ports on the west coast of India to transport green hydrogen and its derivatives and off-takes to other countries in Europe and Asia by ships that will be specially designed, said the third person. Adani operates the countrys largest private port in Gujarat. Transportation of green hydrogen is an elaborate task that needs a separate focus," said the third person, adding the special ships which are being designed may cost $300-400 million each. He said green hydrogen needs to be liquefied and cooled below -240 degree Celsius to transport it in bulk. Adani wont build or operate those ships at this stage," said the third person. There are specialized ship-makers for this, which will be used by Adani as well. The number of ships will depend specifically on the amount of orders for green hydrogen or its off-takes or derivatives that Adani receives from offshore markets post production. Currently, very few companies are designing such ships. Such type of cargo is currently not readily available in the market," said the third person. In September, Adani formed a joint venture with Japans Kowa Group to sell its green hydrogen and other derivatives in Japan, Taiwan and Hawaii. The group is in discussions with several other key players in Japan, Korea, Singapore and Europe for selling products that comes as off-takes from green hydrogen," said the second person. The end users of green hydrogen will mostly be government and municipal entities. It can be used for operating city buses, trains, metro and so on," added the third person. Adanis green hydrogen business is expected to create 7,500-10,00 new jobs, according to the first two persons. Alongside, it may create further employment externally, especially in the logistics sector," said the first person. At Adani, the port infrastructure for loading and discharging terminals meant for green hydrogen and its off-takes are being made ready. These are like Petronets LNG terminals. We have to use cryogenic liquid carrier tanks for transporting green hydrogen. The off-takes can be carried by conventional ships. This space itself will create many new jobs externally," said the third person. Adani is expecting to do significant business making and selling green hydrogen and its derivatives and off-takes including ammonia and urea. The group wants to attain a 5.6 mtpa target in producing green ammonia and other such derivatives by 2030, which could be further used to produce fertilizers and methanol. The groups Mundra port will export the off-take products to Europe, Singapore, Japan and Korea. The green hydrogen plan being critical to their future plans, according to the two persons, in the next two years the group looks to increase its ingot, wafer, solar modules and cells manufacturing capacities to 10 GW each, which will be crucial in the production of green hydrogen. The two persons said the group will manufacture electrolyzers based on both alkaline and anion exchange membrane technologies. As per International Energy Agency, by 2030, the total hydrogen demand globally is estimated to increase by 1.5 times to reach more than 150 mtpa, with nearly 30% of it from new applications. Currently, the country depends on grey hydrogen, with over 6.5 mtpa in annual consumption. Most of this is used by the countrys fertilizer and refining companies. By planning to invest $5 billion in electrolyzer manufacturing, Adani group aims to capture this market by 2030, by when the countrys hydrogen demand may nearly double to around 11 mtpa due to rising demand from existing firms and across emerging sectors. To be sure, to boost its electrolyzer production capacity based on alkaline technology, Adani has forged multiple tie-ups with technology providers such as Australias Cavendish Renewable Technology and Italys HyDep (Hydrogen for Development of Environmental Projects s.r.l.) Adani has completed its design for prototype for alkaline electrolyzers. In its latest presentation a fortnight ago, Adani group said it plans to commission the first complete electrolyzer manufacturing facility by 2025. Besides, the group is developing a supply chain for achieving 90% indigenization of electrolyzers, which will be key to the groups commitment to keep green hydrogen cost less than $1 per kg as compared to $4-5 per kg globally now. Emphasizing on his $50 billion green hydrogen investment plan, Gautam Adani, in his address to the shareholders in the latest annual report said the group has identified the components of its six types of capital, within which the financial capital component included a strong balance sheet, funds allocation and capital management approach. While saying this, Adani mentioned this financial capital as the main driver of the groups incubation strategy, green hydrogen journey, and efficient project execution. Adani group has earmarked $100 billion in investments to transition to green energy-related capabilities by 2030. This includes building an integrated green hydrogen ecosystem, encompassing three giga factories to develop 10 GW solar panels, 5 GW wind turbines and 5 GW hydrogen electrolysers and expanding the overall portfolio of Adani renewables to 50 GW. At present, the total electrolyser manufacturing capacity is estimated to be barely 2GW-4GW per annum globally, while India alone will require over 30GW electrolyser installation capacity and over 100 GW renewable capacity by 2030 for production of its planned 5MTPA of green hydrogen, according to the two persons. The government has earlier said that by 2030, at least 40% of hydrogen consumption in the country should be met by green hydrogen, while India becomes the global hub for production, usage and export of green hydrogen and its derivatives. Adani is also competing with other industrial powerhouses to capitalize on this domestic demand. Rival Larsen and Toubro Ltd in August 2022 commissioned a 380kW alkaline electrolyser-based (45kg/day) green hydrogen plant at its engineering complex in Hazira. State-run GAIL is in the process of implementing a 4.3 tonnes per day green hydrogen plant in Madhya Pradesh, which is expected to be commissioned shortly. Indian Oil Corp. Ltd is about to implement a 5KTPA and 2KTPA green hydrogen plants at its Mathura and Panipat refineries, respectively. ACME Group has already set up an integrated pilot project for green hydrogen and green ammonia plant at Bikaner in Rajasthan, which can save about 4,400 tonnes per annum of carbon dioxide emissions. State-owned crude oil and natural gas production firm Oil India Ltd has commissioned a 99.999% pure green hydrogen pilot plant with an installed capacity of 10kg per day at its Jorhat Pump Station in Assam in April 2022. Bandhan Bank's board of directors have approved the appointment of Ratan Kumar Kesh as the interim Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank to join the office on July 10, according to a Bombay Stock Exchange filing dated July 6. The Kolkata-based lender's board of directors has approved the tenure of three months for Kesh as the interim MD and CEO of the bank. Kesh has been a part of the bank's management as an Executive Director and the Chief Operating Officer. Also Read | Kotak Mahindra Bank probing if Kingdon Capital hid Hindenburg links Chandra Sekhar Ghosh, the MD and CEO of Bandhan Bank is going to step down from the managerial role on July 9, according to the company's filing. I have developed this institution from scratch to this position. And my involvement has been totally operational now. So I need now to take some strategic role at the holding company level, not at the board level at the bank, said Chandra Sekhar Ghosh, the founder and current MD and CEO of Bandhan Bank in an analyst call on July 8. Mint reported earlier quoting a banking analyst that Ghosh's resignation was inconsistent with the board's decision to approve the extension of his tenure. The bank's board has approved the reappointment in November 2023 but the Reserve Bank of India has not cleared it. Ratan Kumar Kesh has expertise in Operations, Technology, Transaction Banking, Product, Affluent Banking, Operations Risk, Enterprise Governance, Intelligent Automation, Digital, Cx and Organization Transformation, according to the company. Also Read | Payments processor NCR Voyix explores sale of digital banking unit, sources say Bandhan Bank shares closed 0.07 per cent high at 204.45 on July 8, as compared to 204.30 after the market closed on Friday, July 5th. Bandhan Bank launched an array of enhanced trade products on July 8, according to an exchange filing. The products are aimed at increasing confidence in global transactions, said the report. Boeing agreed to plead guilty to misleading air-safety regulators in the run-up to two deadly 737 MAX crashes, a stunning concession that would brand the worlds biggest aerospace company a felon. Boeing will formally acknowledge guilt and accept fresh punishment over its dealings with the Federal Aviation Administration before two 737 MAX crashes that killed 346 people, according to a late Sunday court filing. As part of a plea to one count of conspiracy to defraud the U.S., prosecutors have asked the company to pay a second $244 million criminal fine and spend $455 million over the next three years to improve its compliance and safety programs. Boeing also must hire an independent monitor for three years to oversee those improvements. A court still needs to sign off on the plea agreement. Pleading guilty creates business challenges for Boeing. Companies with felony convictions can be suspended or barred as defense contractors. Boeing is expected to seek a waiver from that consequence. The company was awarded Defense Department contracts last year valued at $22.8 billion, according to federal data. Also as part of the plea agreement, Boeings board of directors agreed to meet with victims family members. The plea deal falls short of what families of the MAX crash victims had wanted. They had asked federal prosecutors to seek a fine as high as about $25 billion, prosecute Boeing at trial without concessions, and pursue other charges against the company and executives they believe are responsible for the crashes. Justice Department officials have told the families they faced various legal hurdles, including a statute of limitations and a lack of evidence to prove alternative charges such as manslaughter beyond a reasonable doubt. An earlier attempt to prosecute a Boeing employee over the allegations failed at trial. The company faces three years of court-supervised probation during which it could face additional penalties if it fails to comply with the terms. The decision was disclosed in a filing by the Justice Department in federal court in Fort Worth, Texas. Prosecutors asked the court to schedule a hearing in July on the plea agreement. Write to Dave Michaels at dave.michaels@wsj.com, Sharon Terlep at sharon.terlep@wsj.com and Andrew Tangel at andrew.tangel@wsj.com LONDON (AP) British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is seeking to reset relations at home and abroad. During a visit Sunday to Edinburgh, that he billed as an immediate reset with the regional governments of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, Starmer said he would also seek to improve the U.K.'s botched trade deal with the European Union. "I do think that we can get a much better deal than the botched deal that (former Prime Minister) Boris Johnson saddled the U.K. with, he said in reference to the pact negotiated after Brexit. Starmer said there were many discussions ahead to strengthen trading, research and defense ties with the EU. But he said those talks had begun as his top diplomat made his first visit abroad to Germany, Poland and Sweden. With two of Starmer's ministers in Europe ahead of a NATO meeting next week, the premier made a point of visiting the leaders of the regional governments in the U.K. following his partys landslide victory last week. Starmer, who said he has a mandate to do politics differently, met with Scottish First Minister John Swinney in an effort to turn disagreement into cooperation. We will serve every single person in Scotland, Starmer told a group of enthusiastic supporters. Performance, self-interest: theyre the politics of the past. The politics of this Labour government of 2024 is about public service, restoring standards of making sure that we always, always have in our minds eye the people who elected us into government. While each of the devolved nations in the U.K. elects members to the House of Commons in London, they also have their own regional parliaments. Starmers Labour Party trounced Swinneys Scottish National Party for seats in Parliament. But the SNP, which has pushed for Scottish independence, still holds a majority at Holyrood, the Scottish parliament. Swinney said after meeting the prime minister that he believed there's an opportunity to work together to make a difference for the Scottish people. The trip to build better working relations across the U.K. comes as Starmer's government faces a mountain of problems. The Labour government inherited a wobbly economy that left Britons struggling to pay bills after global economic woes and fiscal missteps. It also faces a public disenchanted after 14 years of chaotic Conservative rule and fiscal austerity that hollowed out public services, including the revered National Health Service, which Starmer has declared broken. Starmer said he wants to transfer power from the bureaucratic halls of government in London to leaders who know whats best for their communities. After his two-day tour, he'll return to England, where he plans to meet with regional mayors, saying he would engage with politicians regardless of their party. Theres no monopoly on good ideas, he said Im not a tribal political. Starmer continued to speak with other world leaders, having separate calls with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. He spoke with both about his priorities for a cease-fire in the Gaza Strip, the return of hostages to Israel, and an increase in humanitarian aid, a spokesperson said. He told Abbas that the recognition of a Palestinian state as part of a peace process was the undeniable right of Palestinians and told Netanyahu it was important to ensure the long-term conditions for a two-state solution, including ensuring financial means for Abbas' Palestinian Authority to operate effectively. Labour's initial refusal to call for a ceasefire last year is blamed for costing it support and some seats in Thursday's election. In advance of Starmer's attendance Tuesday at a NATO meeting in Washington, Foreign Secretary David Lammy reiterated an unshakeable commitment to the alliance during his first trip abroad. Lammy said that the U.K. government would tighten relations with the European Union and remains ironclad in its support for Ukraine. European security will be this governments foreign and defense priority," Lammy said in Poland. Russias barbaric invasion has made clear the need for us to do more to strengthen our own defenses. However, Lammy reiterated Starmer's pledge not to rejoin the EU single market after British voters in 2016 voted to break from the political and economic union. Let us put the Brexit years behind us," Lammy told The Observer. We are not going to rejoin the single market and the customs union but there is much that we can do together. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said Sunday on Sky News that the U.K. should look for ways to improve trade with the EU and that removing some trade barriers was sensible. But he said the Labour government was not open to the free movement of people that was required as a member of the union. Meanwhile, Defense Secretary John Healey met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Odessa and said the U.K. would provide a new package of support to Ukraine, including more artillery guns and nearly 100 Brimstone missiles. Bengaluru/Mumbai: Early investors in HR technology platform Darwinbox, including Lightspeed Ventures and Endiya Partners, may sell all or part of their stakes in the company as part of a secondary funding round, three people familiar with the matter told Mint . Some early-stage investors are looking to cash out and have given soft mandates to bankers to look for buyers," one of them said, adding that these investors may be looking to sell their stakes at a discount of 10-15%. Other early investors including Peak XV Partners and StartupXseed may exit the company completely, depending on the contours of the deal, another person said. StartupXseed, which is currently sitting at the end of its fund lifecycle, invested in Darwinbox in 2017 and has already sold part of its stake. Also read: Innovation will be key differentiator in SaaS In a secondary transaction, shareholders sell their stakes to other existing or new investors, and no new capital is injected into the company. Secondary transactions generally take place at a discount to the primary shares. Darwinbox was valued at $1 billion when it raised $72 million in a Series D funding round led by Technology Crossover Ventures (TCV) in 2022, earning its unicorn taga private company valued at or more than a billion dollars. In January 2023, the company raised an undisclosed amount from Microsoft and Stata Bank of India at the same valuation, as part of an extended Series D round. Spokespersons for Peak XV, Lightspeed, Endiya, Darwinbox and StartupXseed did not respond to Mints queries. The SaaS slowdown In November 2022, Darwinboxs co-founder Rohit Chennamaneni said the company aimed to become profitable and go public by 2025. But software-as-a-service (SaaS) firms have seen their growth slow and valuation multiples taper in recent years as clients have slashed budgets and turned cautious amid a sluggish global economy. This, along with delayed sales cycles and the growing availability of artificial intelligence-related solutions, has forced many SaaS startupsincluding Yellow.ai, SpotDraft and Plotlineto experiment with new pricing models. Many early-stage investors want to take some money off the table and return capital to their LPs (limited partners). There are a lot of secondary transactions happening in SaaS companies," said the second person mentioned above. In a June 2023 report, management consulting firm Zinnov and venture capital firm Chiratae Ventures slashed their revenue projections for Indian SaaS startups from $100 billion to $26 billion by 2026. Last year, Indian SaaS startups were able to raise a total of only $1.2 billion from investors amid an extended funding winter. In 2022, they had raised $4.5 billion, and $7 billion in the year prior, show data provided by Tracxn. Also read: Why investors are wary of SaaS startups, apart from rock-bottom valuations In FY23, Darwinboxs operating revenue nearly doubled to 224 crore from the previous year, but its loss more than doubled to 158 crore, according to several media reports. The company's financials for FY24 aren't yet available. The company receives the bulk of its revenue from Southeast Asia and India. It has a presence in Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand, and also has offices in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and the US, according to reports. Founded in 2015 by Jayant Paleti, Chennamaneni and Chaitanya Peddi, Darwinbox helps companies with their human resource needs across recruitment, onboarding, attendance, leave, payroll and people analytics. Its clients include BigBasket, PineLabs, IIFL Finance, Makemytrip, and Unacademy, according to the companys website. (Bloomberg) -- Oil steadied ahead of reports from OPEC and the IEA this week that will shed light on global crude balances, with traders also tracking Tropical Storm Beryls path as it approaches Texas. Brent crude traded below $87 a barrel after four weeks of gains, with West Texas Intermediate above $83. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and the International Energy Agency present monthly market snapshots this week, as does the US Energy Information Administration. Tropical Storm Beryl is expected to rapidly strengthen as it nears the Texan coast on Monday, with oil companies adjusting operations as it bears down on the state. The system was last 135 miles (217 kilometers) east-southeast of Corpus Christi and hurricane warnings are in effect. Oil touched the highest level since late-April last week as expectations for higher demand and lower stockpiles over the summer months pushed prices higher. While the rally has faced some resistance from signs of weakness in China, the largest crude importer, wider market expectations for US interest-rate cuts have helped to buoy risk assets, including commodities. Money managers increased their net-long positions on Brent for a fourth week. Widely watched metrics point to a solid market. Brents prompt spread the difference between its two nearest contracts was 88 cents a barrel in backwardation, a bullish pattern. It was less than half that a month ago. On the geopolitical front, reformist Masoud Pezeshkian was voted in as Irans president, seeking to restart talks with the US over a landmark nuclear deal. Elsewhere, a shock legislative election result in France saw the left-wing coalition winning, while in the US, pressure continues to mount for Joe Biden to quit the race for president. To get Bloombergs Energy Daily newsletter into your inbox, click here. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Samsung Electronics Co. workers are expected to walk off assembly lines Monday, beginning the biggest organized labor action in the South Korean conglomerates half-century history. The largest union at the nations biggest company has spent the past few weeks preparing for the three-day walkout, after negotiations over pay and vacation time collapsed last month. This envisioned action marks an escalation from a single-day strike in early June the first in Samsungs 55 years of existence. Its intended to send a message by disrupting production at one of the companys most advanced chip facilities, union leaders say. Goal is to disrupt production The labor union aims to gather up to 5,000 people for rallies outside Samsungs semiconductor plants in Hwaseong, about 38 kilometers (24 miles) south of Seoul, at 11 a.m. on Monday, Lee Hyun-kuk, deputy secretary-general of the union, told Bloomberg News on Friday. Its unclear how many workers will actually walk off the job, and markets have so far remained calm. Still, the risk is that the unprecedented action at Samsung may hurt the countrys best-known and wealthiest corporate name and spur similar responses across the tech industry. Our goal for this walkout is to disrupt production, said union leader Son Woo-mok. For Samsung, it can ill-afford turmoil within its ranks or production snarls at a critical time. Its now pulling out the stops to convince Nvidia Corp. to use its high-end AI memory chips a prerequisite for staking a larger claim on a booming AI market. In May, it abruptly replaced the head of its semiconductor division, which since 2023 has seen SK Hynix Inc. dominate the crucial high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, chip arena. This week, Samsungs preparing to unveil new foldable phones and watches as well as a smart ring in Paris ahead of the Olympics, in an attempt to forestall a challenge from Apple Inc. on its global market lead. In Samsungs favor however is an anticipated rebound in global memory and electronics demand from historic post-Covid era depths: the company on Friday posted a 15-fold surge in earnings, but off a very low 2023 base. Representatives for Samsung declined to comment on Friday. Time of strike critical The timing of this strike is particularly critical as it coincides with ongoing semiconductor supply chain challenges, said Billy Leung, an investment strategist at Global X Management Co., a member of the Mirae Asset Financial Group. Samsung accounts for about 20% of the global DRAM market and around 40% of NAND flash, which is used in smartphones and servers. Any disruption in Samsungs operations could have a ripple effect. Samsung Electronics has long avoided the kind of ground-up turmoil thats plagued many of Koreas leading companies from Hyundai Motor Co. to Ssangyong Motor Co. Labor action in the past has occasionally turned violent. Analysts have credited Samsungs tight control of labor activism as a reason for its success, helping the company dominate the electronics sector from its perch in Suwon for well over a decade. Lee Kun Hee, late chairman of Samsung and father of current leader Jay Y. Lee, went to great lengths to prevent unions from forming. Also Read | Adani plans $9 bn capex to kickstart green hydrogen biz Now, the National Samsung Electronics Union the largest of the tech giants several unions with some 28,000-plus workers says its escalating things because of a breakdown in pay talks, after initially seeking a less dramatic resolution. Union leaders spent weeks encouraging members to join in the impending maneuver. Samsung on Thursday tried to deflate that endeavor by announcing first-half performance-related bonuses for semiconductor staff, but the maximum 75% of monthly salaries they promised fell short of a full-months payout typical in the past. What's being disputed? At the heart of the dispute now are higher wages and additional paid leave for the 28,000-plus union members. Union leaders last week changed their demands to include the entire cohort after initially saying they wanted a bigger salary increase for around 855 staff who didnt agree to a 3% annual basic pay hike. Other issues include bonuses tied to Samsungs excess profit, which chip workers didnt receive last year when their unit lost about 15 trillion won. They fear they may get left out again this year even if the division returns to profit, according to union leaders. Samsung calculates those bonuses via a complex formula that deducts cost of capital from operating profit, adjusted for taxes on a cash basis. The union said its asking the company to simply use operating profit like some of its peers or to be more transparent in how it determines those numbers. Cash-strapped airline SpiceJet has not deposited Employees' Provident Fund contributions of its 11,581 staff for the last two and a half years, according to the Employees Provident Fund Organisation's (EPFO) response to CNBC-TV18's RTI query. The EPFO confirmed that the airline had not deposited its provident fund dues since January 2022, according to the report. "The last deposition period of PF contribution by the establishment is for the wage period January 2022 in respect of 11,581 employees," the EPFO said in response to the RTI query, as per the report. The provident fund organisation also stated that they issued notices and summons under Section 7A of the EPF and MP Act 1952 against the airline for not depositing its contributions. Also Read | Aviation ministry trying to boost air cargo volumes, talking to industry The incident highlights the airline's need for funds. Mint reported earlier about the airline's plans to raise 2,250 crore to reduce its debts and payments. In an earlier response to CNBC-TV18, SpiceJet said the company had been clearing dues with a few months' lag. CNBC-TV18 got the response when it found out that SpiceJet owed PF dues since December 2021, but the brand discredited the information then. In its response, SpiceJet denied the information and said, "This information is again wrong and misleading. We have cleared the dues of our employees and are regularly depositing PF which has a lag of a few months." Also Read | General provident fund rate unchanged at 7.1% for Q2 2024 The EPFO warned companies in March 2024 about penalties that they have to pay in case of non-compliance in PF deposits. The corporates may have to pay 25 per cent more, for a default of more than six months. The cash-strapped airline is going through turbulent times thanks to the legal wrangles over multiple non-compliances. SpiceJet has not yet responded to the latest PF deposit delay issue, stated CNBC-TV18. Also Read | Delhi Airport: All SpiceJet flights to operate from T3 till October 26 Despite the litigation issues, the airline has plans to expand its network including connecting Ayodhya and Lakshwadeep, according to its CEO Ajay Singh, who announced this in the 39th annual general meeting of the airline in January 2024. Ola founder and CEO Bhavish Aggarwal has likened the operations by tech giants to the historical exploitation by the British East India Company, and introduced the term "techno-colonialism" to describe how India's data is exported, processed abroad, and then sold back to the country, ANI reported. Aggarwal's concerns about data exploitation Aggarwal drew parallels between the British East India Company's exploitation of Indian resources and the current data practices of international tech companies. He highlighted that India produces 20 per cent of the world's data, yet the benefits are largely reaped by foreign entities. "Only one-tenth of that (data) is stored in India. 90 per cent is exported to global data centres, largely owned by big techs," he noted. It is processed into AI, brought back into India, and sold to us in dollars, ANI reported quoting Aggarwal. Also Read | Indian Railway Finance Corporation Share Price Live blog for 08 Jul 2024 Aggarwal compared this to the historical context, drawing parallels with the exploitation of India's resources by the East India Company. This is exactly what happened 200 years ago with the East India Company. They used to export cotton and bring clothes from abroad. Now we're exporting data and bringing intelligence from abroad Techno-colonialism," as quoted by news agency ANI Call for self-reliance in technology Emphasising the need for India to develop its own technological solutions based on indigenous value systems, Aggarwal cited examples like digital public infrastructure. When I see the future of AI, we have a uniquely Indian idea called digital public infrastructure," he said. UPI is an example of that. ONDC is an example of that, as quoted by news agency ANI. Also Read | IRCON Share Price Live blog for 08 Jul 2024 Aggarwal stressed that in the realm of AI, data ownership should reside with the creators. He also highlighted the importance of acknowledging the origin of content and data creators, per the ANI report. In 2019, Uniqode raised its fifth round of funding at a valuation of about 105 crore. The cloud-based technology venture that converts standard websites into mobile-ready versions, started in 2009 as Mobstac. It had raised its first seed venture capital funding at a valuation of 7.7 crore, led by Accel and Mumbai Angels, with Blume Ventures joining in a secondary sale of shares later that year. For about a decade between the two rounds, existing investors kept ploughing in capital every few years to keep the ball rolling, with no new names joining Uniqodes cap table. It was only in 2023 that the company raised a $25 million Series A round, led by San Francisco-based Telescope Partners, at a valuation of 1,155 crore, giving an exit to some of its early investors, including Blume Ventures. Uniqode is not alone. Startups in India often rely on their early investors to help them bridge the death valleya period in the life of a startup in which it has begun operations but has not yet generated revenue. Historically, it had been limited to the early stages because startups would have very little to show for in terms of revenue and profits to attract new investors. But that changed after the funding frenzy of 2021 and 2022. Mammoth startups seek bailouts As the startup ecosystems funding well began drying up towards the end of 2022, many startups have had to stretch the funds from their last raise that happened over 24 months ago. Even as startups work on improving their unit economics, and chase profitability to grow into their last round valuation, the funds in the bank are now on the brink of exhaustion for many. A short runway haunts startups as they fail to gather enough interest from new investors to write a cheque. Also read | Forensic auditors at startup doors as edgy investors look to fix issues early Even good companies richly valued in the prior rounds are not able to convince new investors to come and join the cap table at either that price or people are taking advantage of the desperation and are demanding to undercut prices by 50%. A startup valued at $600 million would be offered a $30 million term sheet, but it will be at a valuation of $300 million. Thats the big shift," Karthik Reddy, co-founder and managing partner at Blume Ventures, told Mint. With investors still cautious on valuations, even high-valued late-stage companies now find themselves returning to their existing investors, seeking to extend lifelines in the form of bridge funding rounds. Bridge rounds are comparatively shorter rounds that do not ideally give more than two to three quarters of runway to startups. However, for founders not wanting to get their startups valued at todays metrics, in addition to longer deal closure timelines, with increased scrutiny and caution in taking newer bets among investors, bridge rounds have become the best bets for them, investors told Mint. Bridges in 2024 and 2023 This comes at a time when private equity and venture capital funding for Indian startups shot up in June to its highest monthly level in the last two years, buoyed by increased growth-stage deals, Mint reported earlier. To be sure, a majority of these deals are led by internal investors of the company, notable examples being the $665 million in quick-commerce firm Zepto, $120 million in beauty platform Purplle and $24 million in customer onboarding platform Rocketlane. In fact, four out of the top five funding rounds in 2024 were led by internal investors, according to data by Venture Intelligence. In situations like these, with investors confident about the companys prospects and wanting to increase their stake at a higher valuation, startups are typically open to announce the round. The rounds happening now, shooting funding up, are ones that are announced as they are upside bridge rounds, not the ones which happened to save the company from shutting down, at flat valuations. These are companies who want a funding topup because there is an expectation of a substantially bigger round or an IPO (initial public offering), coming in," said Anirudh Damani, managing partner, Artha Venture Fund. Also read | Silver lining for Indian startups as monthly funding shoots highest since June However, since 2022, many bridge rounds have remained unannounced. The last couple of years, theres been quite a bit of silent internal rounds that have happened," said Anurag Ramdasan, a partner at 3one4 Capital. In some cases, like some founders in our portfolio have told us that now they dont want to do anything that brings attention to them, hence opting out of announcing funding rounds." Ramdasan noted that startups also often choose not to announce funding rounds when they involve bailouts due to short runways, or small bridge rounds, with no incentive to disclose these rounds. Another reason to not disclose bridge funding is when internal investors cut down the valuation. Investors dilemma This, however, is a rarity. Many investors opt to fund through convertible notes not pricing the round at all, as a down round might impact risk perception and confidence in the company for the following rounds. This makes bridge rounds more common for companies that have had lacklustre performance in the recent past. Sometimes if there is general consensus that the company has grossly underperformed, if the company is degrowing and you give a down round, its a fair thing to do," said Ramdasan. Recently, down rounds happened in case of startups like Meeshos funding in May that valued it 20% lower from last round at $3.9 billion, Udaans funding in December that valued it at $2 billion, down from $3.2 earlier, and PharmEasys funding in March this year reportedly at a massive valuation haircut of nearly 90% at $710 million. Meanwhile, with investors focused on stabilizing their portfolio companies, the likelihood of newer bets has gone down, also impacting the number of external rounds. Read more | NBFCs tap the rush for student loans in the middle of the pyramid Startups looking for shorter bridges, hence, do not see external investors participating in the round, let alone leading them. As the lead, Im also doing due diligence on the company. Doing all that work for just 1% ownership (in a short bridge round) isnt worth it. Personally, it only makes sense if Im leading with double-digit ownership, but the company doesnt need that much money," said Ramdasan. He noted that if a startup is progressing towards better unit economics and profitability, an external investor might demand an additional ownership with secondary sale of shares, along with a shorter primary round. However, if the company is moving towards profitability, existing investors would have little incentive to sell, Ramdasan added. Existing investors want to sell secondaries currently only of a company which is either not doing well, or if they are really at the end of their financial cycles who have to desperately sell," he added. Budget 2024: As India prepares for the Union Budget 2024-25, a research report by the State Bank of India (SBI) has highlighted the need to revamp the agricultural sector's Minimum Support Price (MSP) mechanism. The report identifies key shortcomings of the MSP system, including its tendency to disincentivize private investment, narrow focus on specific crops, and negative impact on export competitiveness. What does the SBI report recommend? The MSP is intended to ensure farmers receive a minimum price for their crops, protecting them from market volatility. However, the SBI report, released on July 8, revealed that while MSP benefits around 1.6 crore farmers, it also creates economic distortions. The mechanism disincentivized private investment, focused on a narrow range of crops, and hindered export competitiveness, leading to costly trade disputes. The fiscal impact is substantial, with MSP-related expenditures reaching 3.4 lakh crore in FY23. Currently, the government procures mainly wheat and rice, which constitute only 6 per cent of the total agricultural output. In contrast, significant segments such as livestock, vegetables, and fruits, representing a combined 71 per cent of agricultural output, receive inadequate support. Livestock alone accounts for 30.7 per cent of the agricultural output but falls outside the MSP's protective scope. The SBI report suggests several innovative alternatives to address these issues. One proposal is to require private entities to purchase crops at or above MSP, thus alleviating the fiscal burden on the government. Additionally, encouraging crop diversification and promoting high-value, climate-resilient crops could enhance farmers' income and ensure a more balanced agricultural output. Also Read | Rail Vikas Nigam share price Today Live Updates : Rail Vikas Nigam Stocks on the Rise Today The report also recommended introducing a Livelihood Credit Card (LCC) and establishing a comprehensive Credit Guarantee Fund for agri and allied Sectors. These measures aim to boost rural demand and streamline credit flow, more effectively addressing the financial needs of small and marginal farmers. A holistic approach to agricultural value chain financing is crucial. This included increased public investment in agricultural infrastructure and developing robust marketing frameworks. The agricultural sector can unlock significant value and drive sustainable growth by focusing on end-to-end activitiesfarming, aggregating, grading, sorting, warehousing, and retailing. The report emphasizes the need for a comprehensive Credit Guarantee Fund Trust for Agriculture and Allied Sectors (CGFT-AAS) with a capital outlay of around 11,320 crore over five years. Also Read | Happiest Minds Technologies share price Today Live Updates : Happiest Minds Technologies Faces Bearish Trading Day NEW DELHI : Private companies spending lakhs of rupees on training their employees may receive an additional boost in the upcoming budget to ensure their workers are skilled enough to be among the world's finest. The finance ministry is evaluating a proposal to incentivise private companies to train and upgrade the skills of their workers, two officials aware of the development told Mint. The incentives may include tax benefits, financial assistance, or preference in government contracts to bidders with a higher percentage of skilled and certified workforce, one of them said. The proposals originated from the ministries of labour and employment, and skill development and entrepreneurship, along with government bodies such as the National Productivity Council, the officials said, requesting not to be named. The plan is to facilitate a collaborative effort between the government and industry to ensure that Indias workforce is future-ready. Private stakeholders train their workers at their own expense and for their own use, but skilled workers generally dont stay long and often switch to different companies," the second official said. The proposed incentive scheme will not only help in reducing the widening gap in skilled manpower but also create a pool of skilled workers available for their units. Mint reported in May that the government was looking to create a high-quality skilled workforce for the world", aiming to cater to a projected demand for millions of jobs in developed economies over the next five years. The finance, labour and skill development ministries did not immediately reply to queries. Global opportunities A 'Global Skill Gap Study' prepared by the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) reveals a growing demand for Indian talent across diverse sectors worldwide. Official projections indicate that 3.58 million job openings will be available in 16 countries, including the US, the UK, Canada, Singapore, and the UAE. Saudi Arabia and the UAE were projected to have the highest job openings for Indian workers over the next five years, at 1 million each, according to NSDC. The US is expected to have 390,000 potential jobs, followed by Canada and Qatar with 320,000 each, and Kuwait with 223,000. Also read: India needs a data-driven strategy to plug skill development gaps The study highlighted a significant demand for skilled workforce in the healthcare, manufacturing and information technology sectors across Europe, Asia and Australia. With a young population, India has a significant opportunity to leverage its demographic advantage and create a high-quality skilled workforce for global markets, NSDC said in its study. About 65% of Indians are below the age of 35, and the share of working-age population (between 15 and 59 years) is set to increase from 62% to 68% by 2030, it added. Horses for courses Industries have been encouraged to train a surplus of workers to build a skilled workforce capable of meeting both domestic and global demands," said Ashwani Mahajan, a member of Delhi Productivity Council. The incentivization scheme will be beneficial for the industry and will bridge the gap between the demand and supply of skilled manpower." Upgrading skills would involve refining the skills of workers to meet the specific standards and practices of the respective industry or country they want to work in. For example, an electrician or a pathology lab technician would need to be updated about the latest requirements of the country they want to work in. Also read: Government committed to developing skills among youth: Nirmala Sitharama In today's rapidly evolving business landscape, it is crucial for the government to incentivize industry-led initiatives for skilling workers. By offering tax breaks or other financial benefits to companies that invest in training their workforce, the government can create a win-win situation," said Ajay Rao, founder and chief executive of Emiza Inc., a Mumbai-based warehousing company providing third-party logistics services. Companies will be more inclined to develop their employees' skill sets, leading to a more productive and competitive workforce. This, in turn, will fuel economic growth and innovation," Rao added. Also read: Electronics, EV makers bank on apprentices to bridge skill gap; boost stipends Industry bodies have been lobbying for increased support from the government to upskill workers, said Aditya Ghosh, chairman, CII national committee on skill development and livelihood, and co-founder of Akasa Airlines. The Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) is working with the government to create a positive skills ecosystem. We have recommended to the government that greater weight be given in all government contracts to bidders with a higher percentage of skilled and certified workforce," Ghosh said. Additionally, to enhance the international mobility of Indian youth, we emphasise the need for mutual recognition of standards for new and emerging job roles." Mumbai: Two of Indias largest banksHDFC Bank and Bank of Barodareported sequential decline in loans and deposits in the June quarter of FY25, in what could be the beginning of a potential slowing down of the remarkable pace of business growth seen last fiscal. Banks define business as the aggregate of loans and deposits. The quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) decline at these two banks occurred even as their smaller peers like Federal Bank and IndusInd Bank posted q-o-q growth in both loans and deposits, albeit lower than their year-on-year (y-o-y) growth numbers. These were part of provisional numbers released on the stock exchanges. Down q-o-q, but up y-o-y HDFC Banks total deposits was practically stagnant at 23.8 trillion in April-June on a q-o-q basis. This was led by a 5% sequential decline in current and savings account (Casa) deposits to 8.6 trillion. On the other hand, gross loans and advances at the end of the quarter shrunk 0.8% to 24.9 trillion as on 30 June. However, on a y-o-y basis, both loans and deposits of HDFC Bank were higher compared to last year by 52.6% and 24.4%, respectively. Erstwhile mortgage lender HDFC Ltd had merged with its subsidiary, HDFC Bank, on 1 July and so the June quarter of FY24 did not have the merged entitys business numbers. Seemingly disappointed with the provisional numbers, investors dumped HDFC Bank shares last Friday, which closed 4.55% down from its previous close. What probably added to the rout was a Bloomberg report on Friday that said the bank was planning to sell some loans amid heightened regulatory scrutiny on the nations lenders as their credit growth surges, citing people familiar with the matter. Also read | Indian banks are rising on global stage, but investors are yet to join the party Meanwhile, at Bank of Baroda (BoB), domestic deposits were down 2% q-o-q to 11 trillion as on 30 June, and domestic loans were down 1.8% to 8.8 trillion. However, just like HDFC Bank, y-o-y growth was up for BoBdeposits and loans were up 5.3% and 8.5%, respectively, in the June quarter. Debadatta Chand, BoB's chief executive, had earlier given a 2024-25 guidance of 10-12% growth in deposits with a focus on Casa and retail term deposits. On loans, the state-owned bank has set a target of 12-14% growth, Chand had told analysts on 10 May. Analysts at Sanford C. Bernstein (India) said that although deposit growth at HDFC Bank was higher than the system deposit growth rate, it was lower than the growth rate required of around 18-20% y-o-y for an accelerated normalization of the banks liability profile". Also read | HDFC Bank stock grabs investor interest on likely MSCI flow Following the merger with HDFC, the bank was saddled with high-cost debt, which it planned to replace by aggressively adding deposits. A tempering of deposit growth would impede that plan. A slower loan growth was in line with expectations and would have helped the margins, if only the deposit growth was higher," they said in a note to clients on 4 July. The Casa Decline According to Suresh Ganapathy, managing director and head of financial services research at Macquarie Capital, HDFC Banks Casa decline was on account of seasonality and higher short-term flows coming towards the end of Q4 FY24. The bank reported 4.6% q-o-q average deposit growth (average over the three months), which although appears decent, the average number is not available for all peers and thus not comparable. Further, historical average deposit balances for HDFC Bank are not available, making it difficult to compare average deposit growth," said Ganapathy in a note on 4 July. Other experts point to changes in how people save as a reason why banks are finding it hard to woo depositors. SBI Capital Markets (SBI Caps) wrote in a report last week that structural changes in savings patterns are impacting the quality and quantity of deposits available to sustain credit growth. The report said that not only the quantity, but also the quality of deposits is declining. Over 70% of incremental deposits (Mar 2024 vs Mar 2023) were term deposits, leading to a steady decline in Casa. The share of fickle bulk deposits59% of depositsis surging," it said, adding that it expects deposits to grow 10-12% y-o-y in FY25, lagging credit growth, owing to structural trends coupled with a big base of FY24, which was helped by return of 2,000 denomination notes. China has added Shanghai to a list of top-tier cities allowing the use of driverless robotaxis in which no safety supervisors are present, part of the countrys efforts to take the global lead in autonomous driving and commercialize the technology. Shanghai officials said over the weekend that in parts of the city, residents can now book free rides in robotaxis of four companiesinternet search giant Baidu, SAIC Motor-owned Saike Technology and self-driving startups Pony.ai and Auto X. The taxis are driverless and dont have supervisors physically present in the car, with the companies approved to offer services through Jan. 4. The testing area covers 205 kilometers of roads in Shanghais Pudong district, Pony.ai said in a WeChat post. Shanghais move follows similar initiatives in three other major Chinese cities since late 2022 to allow trial runs of robotaxis without safety operators. Beijing, Shenzhen and Guangzhou have all started charging fees for the use of robotaxis in some cases, a step further in commercializing auto-driving in a country where dozens of companies are working on refining the technology and applying it on Chinese roads. Chinas first testing of robotaxis without safety operators started in the cities of Wuhan and Chongqing in August 2022. It may still take longer to see large-scale commercialization of robotaxis in China, but approval [from major cities] is an important step in granting these companies access to test their technology and access road data," said Angus Chan, an auto analyst at Bocom International. CCB International analyst Qu Ke said Chinas autonomous-driving industry is racing to compete against top players in the United States. Tesla is planning to launch robotaxi services in August, while Alphabet-backed Waymo recently expanded services in San Francisco. Tesla and Waymo have conducted massive trials on the [U.S.] West coast," Qu said, adding that China cant be inactive and wait when U.S. companies have already made their move." Thats why were seeing more cities [in China] opening up their roads," he said. Write to Jiahui Huang at Jiahui.Huang@wsj.com There have been only a handful of ages of new materials in the history of humankindceramics, steel and plastics come to mindand we are now on the cusp of the next one: composites. When we talk of composites, were speaking about such things as the carbon-fiber ones in wind turbines, race cars and the Boeing 787. Such materials have the advantage of being far lighter than the metal parts they typically replace, while being just as strong, and requiring fewer resources to make. Materials scientists have had limited success making composites affordable and accessible for decades, or possibly millenniatechnically, they were invented by the Mesopotamians. The labor-intensive nature of their manufacturing has made them expensive, which has limited their application to a handful of areas where their advantages outweigh their costs, such as the aerospace industry. Now, thanks to new manufacturing techniques that can churn out composite parts quickly and cheaply, all of that is changing, and the results could be both profound and exciting. Modern composites, starting with Bakelite, were pioneered in the early part of the 20th century. Other composites were invented at a steady pace, and the industry began to hit its stride in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when automated processes for turning things like carbon fiber into giant structures like airplane bodies and windmill blades reached maturity. In just the past couple of years, a number of startups have developed processes for creating all sorts of small objects from composites, in a way that is fast and inexpensive. These include Berkeley, Calif.-based Arris Composites, 9T Labs in Zurich, Orbital Composites in Silicon Valley, and others. Shifting substantial portions of what we make and use from steel and plastic to compositeswhich are amalgamations of a variety of fibers, embedded in a variety of plasticscould bring new kinds of transportation, more terrifying weapons of war, and lighter and more durable smartphones, wearables and other consumer electronics. All of that is possible because composites, while they have their challenges, are often able to perform just as well as high-strength metal parts, but with a fraction of the weight. Composites are the reason modern jetliners are so fuel-efficient, and the entire wind-power industry would be impossible without enormous turbine blades made from composites. Its one thing to make airplanes out of compositesBoeing pioneered this technology with its 787, on which nearly every visible surface is in fact made of a carbon-fiber composite. Its quite another to mass-produce smaller composite parts of the kind that we typically make out of titanium or other metals, such as the bolts and brackets that hold a 787 together. As with other pioneering manufacturing technologies, such as 3-D printing, bringing composites into the mainstream is more of an evolutionary process than a revolutionary one. Today, you can buy consumer products made with ultralight, ultrastrong parts from Arris and 9T Labs, including Brooks running shoes, spokes for bicycle wheels, and luxury watches. But whats coming is even more interesting: Arriss technology is being tested by Airbus to replace metal brackets inside its planes and by Singapore-based ST Engineering, which performs a substantial fraction of the repairs on airplanes in the U.S. 9T Labs is also working on aerospace applications, and by the end of the year it hopes at least one of its customers will be ready to announce bicycles made with its parts. Orbital Composites, meanwhile, has a handful of contracts with the U.S. military to develop its composites-manufacturing process for satellites, rockets, drones and hypersonic aircraft. Making the shell of a Formula One car, or the frame of a high-end competition bicycle, remains a labor-intensive process, says 9T Labs Chief Executive Martin Eichenhofer. The goal of his company, and of others in his industry, is to take all of the intensive and skilled manual labor out of the process, and to make it as automated as making metal and plastic parts has been for decades. To achieve that level of automation, the manufacturing process used by companies like Arris and 9T Labs is quite different from the one airplane and wind-turbine makers use, says Jeff Sloan, publisher of Composites World, which covers the industry. Arris shapes carbon fibers using a process that resembles wire bendingimagine how something like a coat hanger is madesays CEO Riley Reese. Then, those shaped fibers are put into a resin, and the resulting form is put into a custom mold that applies heat and pressure to further compress, shape and strengthen the part. 9T Labs uses a similar process, but starts by using additive manufacturing" (similar to 3-D printing) to lay down narrow strips of carbon fiber into a particular shape, and then molding it in a way similar to Arriss process, says Eichenhofer. Orbital Composites is using substantially different processes, says CEO Amolak Badesha. Using off-the-shelf industrial robots with custom print heads that spit out carbon fiber, the company 3-D prints shapes in a process that resembles Harolds purple crayon, for those familiar with the childrens book. The difference is that while Harold could draw in three dimensions any shape he liked, Orbital uses removable molds to support its carbon-fiber shapes as theyre being printed. The sheer variety of the automated approaches used by these three companies is typical of the fragmented composites-manufacturing industry. It also shows that there are many possible paths to success for these companies, which are exploring a fundamental new way to make stuffjust as, in another era, many companies developed methods of injection-molding plastics, or forging and machining metal. While composites might seem like a futuristic technology, in many ways, they hark back to millions of years of human and even pre-human material technology. Wood, after all, is the original composite material, as its composed of long and short fibers glued together by other substancesmuch like modern synthetic composites are often made up of carbon fiber held together by epoxy resins. Wood was a chief enabler of the success of our species, and it exhibits many of the advantages and disadvantages of composites. Wood is light, strong, able to withstand both compression and tension, and is easily worked into other forms. But it can also split along axes that line up with its grain. Similarly, composites can suffer a number of failures, including splitting between their layers. By far the biggest challenge with new composites technologies, says Jeremy Koh, head of advanced-materials solutions at ST Engineering, is that over time, they can break down because of fatigue. His company is currently experimenting with composite replacements for titanium bolts in airplanes, made with Arriss manufacturing process. Initial tests have shown that these composite bolts perform just as well as metal ones when theyre new. At the same time, theyre lighter, easier to make, potentially cheaper, and not subject to geopolitical supply chain issues linked to the worlds dominant suppliers of titanium, Russia and China. Koh wont know how well these composite bolts will perform over time until his company runs the kinds of repeated torture tests that are required to certify such parts. Other applications of these new composites wont take as long to come to marketespecially for consumer products. Arris is in talks with at least one company about the use of their composites in virtual reality headsets, where weight has been a major barrier to adoption. Further out, its possible that someday we might be able to buy smartphones made of composites instead of metal. The same goes for automobiles. But this also depends on the kind of inertia that even the best tech cant overcomeconsumers associate metal with quality, says Reese, even if its not actually the strongest, lightest or best material for a given application. Write to Christopher Mims at christopher.mims@wsj.com Mumbai Police on Monday filed a chargesheet against gangster Lawrence Bishnoialready in jailand eight other members of his gang in a special court in connection with the firing at Bollywood actor Salman Khan's home in Bandra on April 14, 2024. The Mumbai crime branch submitted 1,735-page chargesheet against six already arrested accused and three wanted persons in the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime (MCOC) court. The chargesheet included various investigation documents incorporated in three volumes, PTI reported citing an official. The evidence includes statements of 46 witnesses and statements of witnesses under section 164 of CrPC recorded before the magistrate, the report said. The confessional statements under the MCOC Act, a total of 22 panchanamas, and technical evidence are also part of the chargesheet documents. Gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, his brother Anmol Bishnoi and key gang member Rohit Godhara are wanted accused in the case. Mumbai Police has also recorded the statements of Salman Khan and his brother Arbaaz to corroborate the sequence of events, and their statements have also been included in the chargesheet. Salman Khan, in his statement, said that on that fateful day, he woke up to the sound of gunshots when two motorcycle riders opened fire outside his residence at Galaxy Apartments in the Bandra area of Mumbai. The actor recounted that the sound of a bullet which hit his flat's balcony woke him up: I went to the balcony to check and looked outside but did not see anyone, Salman said. The Bollywood actor also informed the Mumbai police that his life was in danger. The probe revealed that Salman Khan was at home on the day of the firing and had slept late after attending a party. New Delhi: The government is likely to allow electric vehicle (EV) makers to benefit from a new policy that was announced this March, even if their investments were made earlier, according to two officials aware of the development. Such a move would benefit Vietnam's EV maker VinFast, which had announced in January that it would build an EV plant in India, the first official cited above said on condition of anonymity, adding that the new policy may attract a few more global EV makers to manufacture in India. The cut-off date to be included in the new policy is likely to be some month of 2023", and a formal announcement is likely by August, the first official said. Currently, the Centre is preparing standard operating procedures (SOPs) and rules to implement the new EV policy. As per the original guidelines announced in March 2024, only companies investing in greenfield facilities for manufacturing EVs from the date of approval under the scheme within the next three years would be eligible for incentives. An email sent to the heavy industries ministry was unanswered till press time. Accommodating VinFast In January, Vietnamese EV maker VinFast Auto Ltd announced a plan to build a manufacturing facility in Tamil Nadu at an investment of $2 billion, with an initial investment of $500 million. The officials cited above said that a change in the cut-off date under the new EV policy can make Vinfast eligible to claim incentives for its investments. Analysts say such a move would send a positive signal to foreign investors. It demonstrates the government's commitment to foster a business-friendly environment by being flexible and responsive to the needs of potential investors," said Saket Mehra, partner and automotive sector leader at Grant Thornton Bharat, adding that it highlights Indias willingness to adapt policies to facilitate significant investments. This move is likely to build confidence among other global EV manufacturers, showcasing India as a proactive and supportive market for substantial industrial ventures," said Mehra. Under the EV policy, the government had announced it will also allow imports of completely built-up electric cars that have a minimum cost, insurance and freight value of $35,000 at 15% import duty for a period of five years, if companies make a minimum investment of $500 million to start local manufacturing. The Tesla factor While India wanted to attract US electric car major Tesla to manufacture in India, the Elon Musk-led company is unlikely to announce plans to manufacture in the country for now. The second official cited earlier said that one of the reasons for Tesla's India venture not working out is that the company wanted to import from China for the first five years as its capacity in China is under-utilised. India is against any import from China but would have agreed to it if the imported units were to come from Europe or the US," the second official said, also on condition of anonymity. Not just VinFast Despite Tesla giving India a miss, the government expects two to three more global players to take the benefit of the EV policy and announce manufacturing plans in India. We expect the interest to come from at least three players and there could be more," the first official said. "The plan is to call for applications from interested parties from September, and announce the beneficiaries by December this year." Mehra also said he expects the policy to generate significant interest from both established and emerging players in the global EV market. Oil prices dipped on Monday after four weeks of gains, as concerns over supply disruptions eased amid hopes for a ceasefire deal in Gaza. However, the potential impact of Hurricane Beryl on supplies limited the decline. By 12:30 GMT, Brent crude futures had fallen 42 cents, or 0.5%, to $86.12 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped 52 cents, or 0.63%, to $82.64 a barrel. Also Read | Global instability drives gold prices up; will countries return to gold standard "Crude oil exhibited significant volatility, slipping from its highs amid ceasefire talks between Israel and Gaza. The Israeli Prime Ministers office announced on Friday that the head of Israels Mossad had returned from Doha after an initial meeting with Gaza mediators. They are attempting to reach a ceasefire and hostage release deal, with negotiations set to resume next week. Following this news, the risk premium on crude oil eased in the international markets. Also, crude oil prices declined due to downbeat U.S. job data and increased concerns about oil demand. However, a weaker dollar index and stronger euro and pound sterling supported prices at lower levels. We expect crude oil prices to remain volatile in todays session. Crude oil has support at $82.10-81.50 and resistance at $83.24-83.70," said Rahul Kalantri, VP Commodities, Mehta Equities Ltd. What's weighing on crude oil prices? Negotiations for a U.S.-proposed ceasefire to end the nine-month-old conflict in Gaza are currently underway, with Qatar and Egypt acting as mediators. Meanwhile, in the U.S., Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Matagorda, Texas on Monday. In preparation for the hurricane, the ports of Corpus Christi, Houston, Galveston, Freeport, and Texas City closed on Sunday. Texas is the largest producer of oil and natural gas in the U.S. Port closures could temporarily halt crude and liquefied natural gas exports, disrupt oil shipments to refineries, and affect motor fuel deliveries from those facilities, according to analysts. WTI rose by 2.1% last week after Energy Information Administration data revealed a decline in crude and refined product stockpiles for the week ending June 28. IG's Sycamore noted a strong possibility of another significant weekly draw in U.S. oil inventories amid peak driving season. Hyundai Motor India IPO: The most recent study from InCred Research Services Private Ltd noted that Hyundai Motor India IPO expands investment opportunities in the underdeveloped Indian auto sector and aims to offer value growth while volume growth appears to be modest. Even if the business is smaller than the leader's, profit margin and return on capital employed (RoCE) are nonetheless favourable. After accounting for a modified royalty rate, increased warranty, and decreased research and development (R&D), they decrease. The long-term value gap between the Hyundai Group and its international counterparts is reason for worry. So, whether the IPO commands a premium or discount to Maruti is a bigger question believes InCred. Since FY09, Hyundai Motor India has been the country's second-largest original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in the passenger vehicle (PV) industry. From FY05 to FY22, it was the biggest exporter of PVs from India. IPO at premium or discount? Through an offer for sale of shares, the promoter intends to sell a 17.50% ownership holding in the company. InCred believes that the transaction is a component of the Korea enterprise's value creation exercise, which began in 2023, given that the substantial cash position on its balance sheet is for self-funding business requirements. Even if it is assumed that 15-20% of Hyundai Korea's value may come from group investments, the company consistently has a large discount of 2348% on P/E and P/BV values when compared to its worldwide counterparts. This substantial discount cannot be ignored in the context of the Indian entity's IPO valuation. Will Indian investors excitement drive the value unlocking for Hyundai global? According to InCred, the Nifty Auto Index has consistently increased, outperforming the wider Nifty index by a significant margin, with an incredible 68% return for the last year and an 18% return over the last three months. As a result, the Nifty Auto one-year forward P/E increased, surpassing the 10-year mean level and becoming somewhat closer to +1 standard deviation (SD). The new listing presents an opportunity given the interest that investors have shown in auto stocks. Why does Hyundai traditionally trade at a deep discount to peers? Despite its success in capturing market share in the global automobile industry for SUVs and, more lately, EVs, Hyundai has lagged behind in terms of valuation globally. The substantial non-core interests owned by the listed company, such as Kia Motors, Hyundai E&C, Hyundai Wia, Hyundai Rotem, and others, might be partly to blame for the steep discount compared to worldwide rivals. These investments make up about 15-20% of the market cap valuation when taking into account a 30% discount to the market value of the holding company. But a large gap in its valuation to global peers at 23-48% is a cause of concern, which requires Hyundai Motors India managements explanation and a walk-the- talk on shareholder-friendly policies. Especially where Suzuki Japan leads the peers in the valuation pack, Hyundai and Kia Korea consistently have been at the lowest end of peers, added InCred. Hyundai traditionally trade at a deep discount to peers Maruti Suzukis valuation at risk from alternative options? The Hyundai IPO in CY24 and the Tata Motors vehicle division demerger in CY25F, according to InCred's analysis, would enhance investment options in the under-penetratedautomobile sector. Given Maruti Suzuki's ambitious capacity build-up strategy and its efforts to provide its finest and most appropriate goods to India at a scalable level, InCred believes that Maruti Suzuki's competitive advantage will endure. Maruti Suzuki, over the decades, has built niche products with a large moat, ex-Eritga, Eco, Wagon R and CNG variants, which keeps it ahead of the competition. Short-term challenges from new powertrain technology, we feel, will be addressed with EVs soon to ease investors concerns and sustain the premium valuation of Maruti Suzuki, said InCred in its report. Mumbai: Bears have flocked to the derivatives counter of HDFC Bank after the lender reported slower loan growth and flat deposit growth in the June quarter last week. A Bloomberg report about the bank considering a sale of part of its loan portfolio to rein in a surging credit -deposit ratio growth added to the blues. The active futures contract witnessed open interest (OI)outstanding positionsrising 9.43% as the stock slumped 4.57% to 1,648.10 on Friday, hurt largely by the quarterly business update a day earlier. A rise in OI accompanied by a fall in price indicates bearish sentiment. However, the extent of bearishness was underscored by heavy selling of the atthe -money (ATM) call option expiring on 25 July. A sale of ATM calls implies that the option seller doesn't expect a stock to rise from current market price and this would lead to a fall in the option's price, enabling him to pocket part of the premia paid by the option buyer. As HDFC Bank's share ended down at 1,648.10, traders doubled down on sales of the 1,650 call option. For context, out of a total OI of 9,317 contracts, 8020 contracts were added on Friday alone. "Huge sale of ATM calls implies bearish sentiment," said U.R. Bhat, co-founder of Alfaniti Fintech, while declining to comment specifically on the HDFC Bank stock. The stock hit a 52-week high of 1,794 on 3 July following reports that the counter could see $3-4 billion of incremental flows from passive trackers of the MSCI Emerging Markets Index due a doubling of its weight on the index in the 13 August review by index provider MSCI. The stock had risen 31.6% from a 52-week low of 1,363.55 on 14 February to 1,794 on 3 July. From there, it fell 8% to Friday's close of 1,648.10, on a marginal slowdown in loan growth during the previous quarter and report of the part sale of loan portfolio. Ambareesh Baliga, independent market analyst, expects the stock to correct another 50 -100 at the most, implying a potential 3-6% fall further from Friday's level. "I don't think it will be a big correction as analysts might be pencilling a revision in earnings estimates for Q1FY25 post the business update," he said. However, Baliga warned that if the actual earnings for Q1 (on 20 July) end below the revised earnings estimates, the stock could re-test the February low, which was on account of net interest margin disappointment in the December quarter. S.K. Joshi, ED, Khambatta Securities, said the pain of the merger of HDFC into the lender could last for a "few more years " but added he doesn't expect a "big correction" after Friday's fall despite huge bearish bets being raised on the counter. Active options expiring on 25 July -- three concurrent option chain contracts are liquid with the front-month chain being the most active and the mid and far months being the least active -- show 1600 level to be strong support and 1700 a stiff resistance for now. Sources said that post the merger of HDFC in July last year, attracting depositors was a challenge for HDFC Bank as the erstwhile housing finance company could offer more competitive rates to term depositors as its deposits were not subject to statutory liquidity ratio (18%) and cash reserve ratio (4.5%) requirements unlike those of a bank. With the merger having taken effect, this advantage is absent and like other lenders HDFC Bank was also grappling with deposit growth lagging credit growth. While mutual funds raised their stake to 24.83% in the June quarter from 23.17% in the March quarter, FIIs pared theirs marginally to 47.17% from 47.83% and retail investors to 11.78% from 12.70% over the same period. Among MFs, Kotak Mutual Fund's name with 1.3% stake figured in the June shareholding data on BSE. SBI MF, HDFC MF, ICICI Pru MF, UTI MF and Nippon India MF are other funds owning the bank shares. As of June-end, the bank had an 11.95% weight on Nifty, followed by Reliance Industries (9.98%) and ICICI Bank (7.95%). A sharp move on the counter could impact the Nifty, too. Stock market today: GRM Overseas share price attracted strong buying interest from the stock market bulls during Monday deals. The FMCG company has declared foraying into the Georgian market and expanding its overseas business. Today, the GRM Overseas share price opened with an upside gap at 203.99 and touched an intraday high of 210 apiece on NSE. While climbing to this intraday high, the FMCG stock came close to its lifetime high of 230.40 per share. GRM Overseas news In its latest exchange filing, GRM Overseas informed the Indian stock market exchanges about its overseas business expansion. The company stated, "GRM Overseas, one of the leading Indian basmati rice exporters and India's leading food FMCG, is pleased to announce that GRM has entered into an agreement with DIPLOMAT GEORGIA to place its own brand of basmati rice 'Tanoush" through DIPLOMAT Distribution Channels. This move is a strategic one, as it opens up a new and promising market for us in Georgia. 'Tanoush' basmati rice will be available in 1 kg, 5kg, and 20 kg pack sizes." As per the terms of the agreement, Diplomat Georgia will be the exclusive distributor of GRM Overseas products in Georgia for two years. Diplomat Group also has a presence in Israel, Cyprus, and New Zealand. Commenting on the distribution agreement, Atul Garg, Chairman & MD, GRM Overseas, said, The distribution agreement with Diplomat Georgia is a significant step towards further strengthening our global markets. Diplomat Georgia brings with it a robust distribution network and capabilities, which will help us further strengthen our presence in that region. The collaboration is strategically important for us, as it will further boost our brand awareness and customer base. GRM has developed a market for its rice in 42 countries, thereby achieving the title of the 3rd leading Rice Exporter in India. Our three rice processing units back this strong market presence with an overall annual production capacity of 4,40,800 MT based out of Panipat (Haryana), Naultha (Haryana) and Gandhidham (Gujarat). Additionally, the Company has a warehousing facility of 1.75 Lakhs sq ft space adjacent to the Gandhidham plant facilitating speedy shipments from Kandla and Mundra ports. This robust infrastructure and market reach position us for continued growth and success. Real estate stock TARC has given exponential returns in the long term as well as recently. The stock has surged almost 545 percent in 3 years from 36.30 to currently trade at 234.35. Meanwhile, it has rallied over 258 in the last 1 year and over 72 percent in 2024 YTD. The stock hit its record high of 234.35 in intra-day deals today, July 8. It has now skyrocketed almost 272 percent from its 52-week low of 63.06, hit on July 12, 2023. Despite such an excellent performance, domestic brokerage house Ambit Capital sees more upside in the stock going ahead. It has initiated coverage on the stock with a buy call and a target price of 325, implying a potential upside of 39 percent. Ambit Capital highlighted that TARC, leveraging its 50-year legacy and extensive land holdings exceeding 500 acres, aims to establish itself as a leading luxury housing developer in the NCR region. Emphasising on innovation, inspiration, and execution (3Is), TARC seeks to enhance its brand presence in the trust-sensitive NCR residential real estate market. Strategic architectural developments and partnerships, including with Bain, coupled with prime land parcels, are expected to drive pre-sales of over 15,000 crore from FY25 to FY27, it noted. Moreover, with a strong free cash flow from its legacy land bank, TARC plans to strengthen its balance sheet by reducing its debt; the debt-to-equity ratio is projected to decrease to 0.1x in FY25 from 1x in FY24, it predicted. Ambit also pointed out that TARC's trajectory mirrors that of DLF in the early 2000s, positioning it as a structural player in real estate compounding over the next two decades. Also Read | Dharmesh Shah recommends these two stocks to buy today However, risks include execution challenges, delays in approvals, and scaling up of the team, it warned. March quarter earnings TARC announced a significant downturn in its financial performance for Q4 FY24, reporting a net loss of 51.73 crore compared to a profit of 1.52 crore in the same period last year. Consolidated revenue plummeted by 92 percent year-on-year to 10.36 crore. The company also posted an operating EBITDA loss of 4.11 crore, contrasting with an operating EBITDA of 38 crore in Q4 FY23. For the full FY24, TARC reported a net loss of 77 crore, a stark contrast to the net profit of 20 crore in the previous fiscal year. Total consolidated revenue for FY24 declined by 68 percent year-on-year to 121.40 crore, with operating EBITDA decreasing by 70.70 percent year-on-year to 46.56 crore. Ambit Capital's investment rationale for TARC revolves around its strategic advantages and growth potential: Prime Land Holdings and Luxury Focus: TARC leverages its extensive land bank exceeding 500 acres in NCR, positioning itself uniquely. Partnering with renowned contractors like Arabian Construction Company enhances margins, supports strong free cash flow from legacy land, and aims for debt retirement by FY26, stated the brokerage. Opportunity in NCR Market: As per the brokerage, despite NCR's dominance in India's top city markets, there exists a trust deficit in developers. This creates opportunities for new entrants like TARC alongside established giants. Emerging developers such as Signature Global, TARC, and Max Estates are poised to capitalise on this evolving landscape. Strategic Assets and Architectural Focus: Ambit pointed out that with a five-decade legacy as a landowner, TARC scores high on strategic assets. Recent enhancements in architecture, bolstered by global partnerships with architects and consultants, position TARC to establish a lasting legacy in Delhi's undersupplied market. Also Read | Rushil Decor shares jump 7% after after announcement of stock split record date Mirrors DLF's Transformative Journey: According to Ambit, similar to DLF's early days acquiring prime land in Delhi, including Model Town and South Extension, TARC boasts a substantial land bank of over 500 acres and a legacy spanning five decades. Positioned to excel in luxury residential projects, TARC aims to emulate DLF's success by expanding beyond land ownership. This includes venturing into infrastructure development, navigating approvals, and managing construction. Diversifying into commercial and retail sectors alongside residential projects underscores TARC's strategy to unlock growth potential. With a robust foundation and strategic evolution, TARC is poised to follow DLF's path to becoming a key player in the Delhi NCR real estate landscape, it explained. De-leveraging and Growth Strategy: TARC plans significant project launches worth 15000 crore from FY25 to FY27. Successful project deliveries and ongoing launches are expected to drive re-rating, it said. Valuations, currently at 4.3x one-year forward price-to-book, offer a 7 percent discount to peers and are poised for re-rating with scale. The debt-to-equity ratio is projected to decrease from 1x in FY24 to 0.1x by FY25, with TARC aiming for a net cash-positive position by FY26E, further noted the brokerage. Also Read | Rushil Decor shares jump 7% after after announcement of stock split record date The Indian stock market benchmark indices Sensex and Nifty 50 are likely to see a muted opening on Monday amid mixed global cues. The trends on Gift Nifty also indicate a tepid start for the Indian benchmark index. The Gift Nifty was trading flat at around 24,385 level. On Friday, the domestic equity benchmark indices ended mixed amid selling in heavyweights. The Sensex eased 53.07 points to close at 79,996.60, while the Nifty 50 settled 21.70 points, or 0.09%, higher at 24,323.85. Also Read | Indian stock market: 8 key things that changed for market over weekend Nifty 50 formed a reasonable bullish candle on the daily chart after opening lower and with minor upper and lower shadow. Technically, this market action signals formation of a bullish counterattack type candle pattern, which signals possible comeback of bulls after a small dip. Previously, a similar type of formation on 24th June has resulted in a sustainable upmove for the subsequent week. This is a positive indication, said Nagaraj Shetti, Senior Technical Research Analyst at HDFC Securities. He believes the underlying trend of Nifty continues to be positive and there is a possibility of an upside breakout hurdle around 24,400 - 24,500 levels in the next few sessions. Heres what to expect from Nifty 50 and Bank Nifty today: Nifty 50 Prediction Nifty 50 index witnessed buy on dips action on July 5 and closed on a sharp intraday upside recovery note. After the initial weakness on Friday, Put writers returned heavily. The 24,200 level witnessed heavy writing on the put side, marking a short-term support for Nifty. The last-hour spike in the Nifty shows the resilience of the bullish trend. This strength is likely to prevail in the market until it breaks below 24,200 decisively. A fall below 24,200 might induce profit booking in the market, said Rupak De, Senior Technical Analyst, LKP Securities. VLA Ambala, Co-Founder of Stock Market Today noted that in Fridays market session, the Nifty formed a Bullish Marubozu pattern on the daily chart which indicates strong buying interest throughout the day. The RSI reading showed 71 daily, 74 weekly, and 79 monthly indicating that the market is in an overbought zone. For swing traders, I would suggest hedging their positions and considering any dips between 5-12% as a healthy buying opportunity as the underlying trend remains bullish. Stocks with monopoly qualities should be focused, as they might outperform this week, Ambala said. According to her, Nifty is expected to find support between 24,180 and 24,050 levels, with expected resistance between 24,350 and 24,450 levels. Bank Nifty Bank Nifty index fell 443 points to close at 52,660 on Friday, forming a small-bodied bullish candlestick pattern with a long lower shadow on the daily chart. The Bank Nifty index witnessed a volatile trading session, mainly declining due to a fall in HDFC Bank. The index is currently stuck in a range with resistance visible at 53,000 - 53,200, where aggressive call writing is observed, and support at the 52,300 - 52,100 zone. The index needs to break decisively on either side for trending moves, said Kunal Shah, Senior Technical & Derivative Analyst at LKP Securities. However, within the range, the view remains bullish, and declines should be utilized to buy the index, Shah added. Rahul Ghose, CEO of Hedged.in noted that the Bank Nifty Index saw increased writing of the call OI (Open Interest) at 52,500 levels & the short covering of the put OI at 53,000 levels, indicating Bank Nifty likely to trade in a narrow range for the week. The Bank Nifty PCR opened at 1.06 levels and dropped to 0.69 levels in the first half of the session & traded steadily around that throughout the day on Friday, indicating this index has fading momentum at the resistance zone, however at lower levels value buying is emerging. Market participants must exercise extreme caution on the long side especially seeing the price action emerging out of HDFC Bank in the past few days, Ghose said. Paytm share price: Following a 6 per cent rise in the previous session, Paytm shares surged almost 10 per cent in intraday trade on BSE on Monday, July 8. Shares of One 97 Communications, the parent of Paytm, opened at 437.55 against its previous close of 436.60 and jumped nearly 10 per cent to the level of 479.70 in an otherwise weak market. Finally, the One 97 Communications stock ended 8.12 per cent higher at 472.05 apiece. Equity benchmark Sensex closed 0.05 per cent down at 779,960.38. Paytm share price have been on a gaining spree since June this year. After four consecutive months of selloff, the stock rose over 11 per cent last month and in July so far, it has already clocked a gain of over 17 per cent. From February to May this year, the stock suffered a massive loss of about 53 per cent after the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) directed it to close its payments bank arm, Paytm Payments Bank (PPBL), from March 15 due to non-compliance with KYC norms and other mandated processes. The 52-week high level of Paytm stock is 998.30, which it hit on October 20 last year. The stock plumbed its 52-week low of 310 on May 9 this year. Why are Paytm shares skyrocketing? According to experts, the fresh interest in Paytm share price could be attributed to value buying by investors after the company's founder and MD Vijay Shekhar Sharma sounded upbeat about the company's growth prospects. Commenting on the Paytm crisis at the 7th JITO Incubation and Innovation Fund (JIIF) Foundation Day event on July 6, Sharma said Paytm was like a daughter who met with an accident and is in ICU now. At a professional level, I would rather say we should have done better; there is no secret about it. We should have understood betterand we had responsibilities, we should have fulfilled, much better waywe learnt the lesson, he said. As media reported widely, Sharma sounded optimistic about the company's growth prospects and said he aspires to make Paytm a $100 billion company. Paytm reported a fall in revenue to 2,399 crore from 2,465 crore in Q4 FY23 from the year earlier. Losses widened to 551 crore, from 168 crore in Q4 FY23 from the previous year, largely due to writing off 227 crore on its investment in the Paytm Payments Bank Ltd, in which it holds 49 per cent. Brokerage firm StoxBox said the stock had shown potential trend reversal patterns, making it a compelling buy at current levels. According to the brokerage firm, Paytm's wide reach enables it to generate revenue from merchants and consumers and allows cross-selling opportunities. The brokerage believes constant improvement in operating leverage will continue to drive Paytm's profitability. "Paytm expects to achieve breakeven in EBITDA FY25 and is well ahead of its guidance. However, due to temporary disruption in operating metrics, there will be an incremental EBITDA impact of 100 crore 150 crore in Q1FY25. The company is confident of meaningful improvement from Q2FY25, as the company restarted certain paused products and achieved steady growth in operating metrics," said StoxBox. Technical factors Technical experts pointed out that the fresh interest in Paytm shares could be attributed to technical factors. Jigar S. Patel, Senior Manager of Equity Research at Anand Rathi Share and Stock Brokers, underscored that recently, Paytm stock demonstrated a bullish divergence on the weekly chart, suggesting a potential reversal from a downtrend to an uptrend. This divergence is characterised by the price action rising above the 21-day exponential moving average (EMA), further reinforcing the trend change signal. Patel further pointed out that a bullish divergence occurs when the price forms lower lows, but the underlying indicator, such as the Relative Strength Index (RSI), forms higher lows. This indicates that the downward momentum is weakening, and a reversal may be imminent. "On the weekly chart, Paytm has also formed a double bottom pattern, a classic technical formation that typically signals the end of a downtrend and the start of an upward move. This pattern adds credibility to the potential for a trend reversal. Given these technical signals, buying Paytm stock in the range of 465-475 is recommended, with a target of 530, representing a potential upside. To manage risk, a stop-loss should be set near 439 on a daily closing basis," said Patel. Paytm share price technical chart Mandar Bhojane, an equity research analyst at Choice Broking, observed that the stock has recently broken out of an inverted head-and-shoulder pattern on the weekly and daily charts, with a significant increase in trading volume indicating a potential breakout. Bhojane believes that if the price halves above the 480 level, it may reach short-term targets of 530 and 565. "Immediate support level for the stock is at 430. These levels can be considered as opportunities to buy on dips. The Relative Strength Index (RSI) currently stands at 73.7 and is trending upward, indicating increasing buying momentum," Bhojane pointed out. "Considering the technical analysis and the current market conditions, Paytm appears to present an appealing buying opportunity for those aiming for a 530 and 565 price target, provided that appropriate risk management measures are in place," said Bhojane. Bhojane advises setting a stop loss at 390 to protect investment in case of an unexpected market reversal. Read all market-related news here Disclaimer: The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts, experts, and brokerage firms, not Mint. We advise investors to consult certified experts before making any investment decisions. Also Read | FMCG stock jumps 8% after announcement of overseas business expansion F&O ban list: The National Stock Exchange (NSE) banned trading in six stocks on Monday, July 8, 2024, in the futures and options (F&O) segment as they exceeded 95% of the market-wide position limit (MWPL). However, these stocks will be available for trading in the cash market. The NSE updates the list of securities in the F&O ban for trade every day. F&O ban list today Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, Bandhan Bank, GNFC, Hindustan Copper, India Cements, and Piramal Enterprises are the six stocks on the NSE's F&O ban list for July 8. The National Stock Exchange (NSE) said the derivative contracts in the mentioned securities crossed 95% of the market-wide position limit and have been placed in the stock exchange's ban period. Also Read | Buy or sell: Sumeet Bagadia recommends three stocks to buy on Monday All clients/members shall trade in the derivative contracts of said security only to decrease their positions through offsetting positions. Any increase in open positions shall attract appropriate penal and disciplinary action," the NSE statement said. No new positions are allowed when the stock exchanges place F&O contracts in a particular stock in the F&O ban period. On July 5, the broader NSE benchmark Nifty advanced further to settle at an all-time high for the third straight session, while the BSE gauge Sensex retreated from the record to slip below the 80k mark, as investors were indecisive at the current levels. In a volatile session, the broader NSE Nifty continued its record-breaking run and inched up 21.70 points or 0.09 per cent to close at its lifetime high of 24,323.85, helped by fag-end buying on select counters. The 30-share BSE Sensex dropped 53.07 points or 0.07 per cent to settle at 79,996.60, indicating market indecisiveness. On a weekly basis, the BSE Sensex jumped 963.87 points or 1.21 per cent, and Nifty gained 313.25 points. Suddenly something A single from the Delhi-based rock band Peter Cat Recording Co.s new album Beta is a beautiful, sensitive, irreverent ode to grief. Suddenly, which dropped last week, is about band frontman Suryakant Sawhneys father, who died when he was a teenager, and about coping with profound loss. The music video, directed by Sawhney and his partner Surabhi Tandon, was shot in Goa, and its languid, slo-mo visuals of a boat making its way through the backwaters are intercut with a close-up of Sawhneys mothers face, registering her reactions to the song when she hears it for the first time. I hadnt heard much of Peter Cats music before, but have heard Suddenly on loop ever since; there is something compelling about its lo-fi beats and unadorned lyrics. The full album releases on 9 August. Shrabonti Bagchi Strap it on Although it is a bit of a norm for dive watches to come on stainless steel bracelets, when people actually wear them in the sea, they tend to swap out the bracelet for either a Nato strap or a tropic rubber. In fact, the latter has been a mainstay for divers both recreational and technical since the 1960s, primarily because rubberand especially FKM rubberis a supple, hardy and corrosion-resistant material from which to craft a watch strap. And because such straps are vented, tropic straps are especially useful in extremely humid environments. Ive got four such straps now, from a variety of companies, in a variety of colours. Great to look at, cheap and extremely comfortable. Bibek Bhattacharya Also read: Lounge Loves: Wimbledon ASMR, Rainy day ramen bowls and more Peated to Perfection Whiskies and single malts are not my drinks of choice. They are a bit too heavy for muggy Mumbai summers and rains. But earlier this week, I tasted a homegrown, mildly peated single malt that changed my mind. It could easily be my drink of choice on a rain-soaked evening. Crazy Cock Dhua has aromas of bacon and tastes of ripe fruit that whet the appetite for more. It is made by Maharashtras Southseas Distilleries and is available in Goa, Maharashtra and Haryana for now. Although a dram like this calls for a bonfire, it will pair well with roasted butta (corn), a mainstay during the rains in the city. With a well-rounded body and long finish, I prefer to have it without ice to absorb every flavour note. Jahnabee Borah On 28 June, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) proposed a new measure to improve transparency in mutual fund performance: the mandatory disclosure of risk-adjusted returns using the information ratio. While this aims to provide investors with a clearer picture of fund performance, some experts are concerned it might lead to information overload for retail investors. The key question, therefore, is whether this new metric will genuinely help investors make better and informed decisions or just complicate the landscape further. The information ratio measures a fund's outperformance against a benchmark, divided by the volatility of this outperformance. This metric aims to convey not just outperformance but also its consistency. The Sebi's move aims to address a discrepancy in traditional or existing measures, wherein past one- or three-year returns often fail to capture the associated risks, leading investors to sometimes choose funds based solely on recent performances. For instance, consider two funds: Fund A and Fund B. Fund A has delivered consistent, moderate returns over five years, while Fund B has shown spectacular returns in the last year. Investors might gravitate towards Fund B due to its impressive recent performance, unaware that its higher returns come with higher risk, implying significantly higher volatility and potential for substantial losses during market downturns. Therefore, it's essential to evaluate the risks taken to generate returns, ensuring the fund's risk level aligns with an investor's risk appetite and financial goals, and safeguarding financial stability. View Full Image While the sharpe ratio compares an investment's return to the risk-free rate, the information ratio compares it to a benchmark, Most fund houses use the sharpe ratio to measure risk-adjusted returns, showing how much excess return you make for the extra volatility endured. It is calculated by taking portfolio returns minus the risk-free rate and dividing it by the standard deviation of portfolio returns. However, Sebi's consultation paper proposes using the information ratio instead as the measure for risk adjusted returns. Unlike the sharpe ratio, which compares an investment's return to the risk-free rate, the information ratio compares it to a benchmark, providing a more specific measure of a manager's performance relative to an index. According to industry experts, the information ratio offers a clearer picture of a fund manager's skill. It's a welcome step and information ratio is important as it helps compare the consistency of returns of a mutual fumd (MF) scheme with other schemes or benchmarks on a risk adjusted basis. The higher the ratio the better is the consistency of return" said Abhishek Kumar, a Sebi-registered investment advisor (RIA) It helps in settling the debate about active versus passive fund management, as using this ratio one can identify how much of alpha return over benchmark return is consistently generated by a fund manager for a given level of risk by bringing in tracking error into the picture instead of just calculating the alpha return using tracking difference," he added. Nirav karkera, head of research at Fisdom, said standardising the calculation on the information ratio will bring uniformity, ensuring all mutual funds use the same method to measure and report their risk-adjusted returns. A key objective that this ratio could achieve is bringing in uniformity in the way risk-adjustment metrics are computed. This will enable effective comparison across schemes and empower more informed decision making." But, how will this impact you? The introduction of the information ratio is expected to impact investors in varied ways across different segments. For retail investors, there are concerns about information overload. Vidya Bala co-founder of PrimeInvestor, said the addition of the information ratio to existing metrics, such as the Sharpe ratio, might confuse retail investors. Providing an information ratio on top of Sharpe can simply become information overload for a retail investor." Besides, retail investors might find it challenging to interpret and use the information ratio effectively without adequate financial literacy. To address this, an initial period of adjustment and learning may be required for this segment. We prefer a simple percentage of times that a fund beats its benchmark using rolling returns," she added. According to a section of experts, informed and seasoned investors are however likely to benefit significantly from the introduction of the information ratio. Abhishek Kumar, a Sebi-registered investment advisor, underscored the ability to compare the consistency of a mutual fund's returns with other schemes or benchmarks on a risk-adjusted basis. "The higher the ratio, the better the consistency of return." This ratio provides a more nuanced view of a fund's performance, aiding in making more informed decisions and fine-tuning their investment strategies, he added. For fund houses, the adoption of the information ratio may lead to a shift in portfolio management approaches. Niranjan Avasthi, head of product and marketing at Edelweiss Asset Management Ltd, said the information ratio is a valuable metric for assessing risk-adjusted returns. "It measures the fund's excess return over a benchmark relative to the volatility of those returns." Fund managers might be incentivized to optimise their strategies to improve their information ratio, potentially leading to more prudent risk management and better performance for investors. Overall, this move by Sebi could enhance transparency and drive a higher standard of fund management within the industry," Avasthi added. While the impact of the information ratio may vary across different investor segments, its introduction is expected to enhance the overall transparency and facilitate better decision-making. If you admire renowned investors who often discuss the distinction between value and price, the concept of investing in value funds might already be familiar to you. The underlying logic is straightforward: These stocks are perceived as undervalued, and it may take time for the market to recognize their potential. Once their true worth is realized, these companies stocks can experience significant appreciation, yielding substantial returns. Rather than simply seeking stocks priced below their intrinsic value, you might be inclined to allocate a portion of your earnings to value-oriented mutual funds. For the uninitiated, value mutual funds are a category of equity mutual funds that focus on investing in stocks considered to be undervalued relative to their intrinsic worth. Because these stocks may require time to appreciate, these funds are often seen as suitable for long-term investors. These funds are overseen by portfolio managers who utilize value investing techniques to pinpoint stocks that may be overlooked by the market yet hold promise for substantial long-term growth. Value mutual funds known for their inherent value Value funds typically focus on companies operating in mature industries or experiencing periods of sluggish growth. These companies may not attract growth investors interest at the moment, yet value investors see them as having the potential to deliver robust returns over extended periods. Some of the best value funds that have indeed added value to investors portfolios are illustrated in the table below Name of the fund 5-year returns (in %) 10-year returns (in %) JM Value Fund 27.67 20.28 HSBC Value Fund 25.51 19.86 Bandhan Sterling Value Fund 25.36 18.56 Nippon India Value Fund 24.66 18.08 Tata Equity PE Fund 22.65 17.84 Source: AMFI (As of July 05, 2024) Why choose value-oriented mutual funds? Investors seeking diversification in their investment portfolios often choose value funds because these funds invest in a collection of value stocks, thereby spreading out risk. This approach contrasts with selecting individual stocks, where the performance of a single company can have a substantial impact on your entire investment. Value-oriented mutual funds can provide several advantages to investors, such as: Potential for increased returns : Value stocks have the potential to exceed market performance as their true value becomes more widely recognized by investors. : Value stocks have the potential to exceed market performance as their true value becomes more widely recognized by investors. Reduced volatility: Value stocks generally exhibit lower volatility compared to growth stocks, making them attractive to risk-averse investors. Also Read | These seven value mutual funds beat benchmark index in past 10 years Beware of the risks involved Nevertheless, every investment, particularly in the stock market, carries its inherent risks. Similarly, value investing is not exempt from these risks. Some of the risks associated with value-oriented mutual funds include: (Bloomberg) -- The World Economic Forum and its founder Klaus Schwab were sued for racial and pregnancy discrimination by a Black employee based in New York. The Forum, best known for its annual Davos gathering of political and business leaders, told policy expert Topaz Smith her job was being eliminated immediately when she returned from maternity leave. It replaced her with a non-pregnant White woman earlier this year, according to the lawsuit filed Monday in federal court in Manhattan. The legal action follows a June report in The Wall Street Journal that detailed a workplace culture of hostility toward women and Black people, and included Smiths allegations. While its disappointing to see such false claims being made, now that these matters are in court, the frivolity and falsity of these claims will become evident, Yann Zopf, a spokesperson for WEF, said in a statement. The lawsuit alleges that the Forum discriminated systematically against its Black employees and tended to keep Black employees away from Davos. Smith attended public sessions she organized for the conference in Switzerland via video after the WEF declined to pay for her travel costs, according to the suit. Smith, who had begun transitioning to a more client-facing role before her maternity leave, also alleges that new role never panned out. When she came back, she was instead offered a temporary, six-month assignment, which she is currently completing. The position was just a maneuver to try to convince Smith to move on without holding the Forum accountable for its obvious discrimination, according to the suit. The WEF announced in May that Schwab, 86, is stepping down from active leadership of the organization and transitioning to a non-executive role by January. The case is Smith v. World Economic Forum LLC, 24-05150, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan). (Updates with WEF spokespersons comment.) More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Jammu and Kashmir terror attacks: Following recent counter-insurgency operations in the Kulgam and Chinigham areas, an Indian Army convoy was attacked by terrorists in the Machedi area of the Kathua district on Monday. Five army personnel were killed and six were injured in the exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces. A massive search operation has been launched, informed the Jammu and Kashmir Police. As per the officials, the area in Jammu and Kashmir where the attack took place falls under the 9th Corps of the Indian Army. "After firing by terrorists, our troops also retaliated. More details are awaited," defence officials said. Meanwhile, after six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan also mentioned that, during the operation, one Army personnel also sacrificed his life. Also Read | Soldier killed amid encounter in Kulgam district of Jammu and Kashmir In the Chinigham operation, our soldier Prabhakar Praveen made the supreme sacrifice for the nation. We had been monitoring movements in this area for several days with the help of all agencies and Army surveillance devices. On July 6, we received information about terrorist movements in the Chinigham area. Around 4 pm, one of our soldiers noted the movement. When we challenged them, they started firing, and our parties responded fully, during which one of our soldiers was martyred. After concluding the operation, we found and promptly destroyed an IED weighing approximately 6 kg, keeping collateral damage in mind, he said. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a "spike" in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralised in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain had said. On the Kulgam encounter, Javed Ahmad Matoo, DIG South Kashmir, had said that in two joint operations conducted from July 6 to 7, two terrorists were killed. The Mumbai Police issued a lookout circular against Mihir Shah on Monday for his role in Sunday's hit-and-run accident. The 24-year-old allegedly crashed into a two-wheeler, killing a 45-year-old woman who was the pillion rider on the bike in the Worli area while driving a BMW car. Police have formed at least 14 teams to nab the absconding youth, who also happens to be the son of a Shiv Sena leader (CM Eknath Shinde faction) from the neighbouring Palghar district. According to the police, Mihir Shah had visited a pub in the Juhu area of Mumbai with his friends before the incident. Officials have already recorded the statements of three of his friends. The police also said that the accused had spoken to his father (Rajesh Shah) on the phone several times after the accident. The police detained Rajesh Shah and another individual on Sunday for failing to cooperate with them. A BMW car ran over two people riding a bike. The woman died in the incident, and the other person was injured. The incident took place at 5:30 am when the couple riding a bike were passing in front of the Atria Mall in Worli, a statement from the Mumbai Police explained. The couple, who belonged to the fishing community, were returning after buying fish at the Crawford market. The husband managed to jump off the bonnet of the speeding vehicle, but Kaveri, his wife, could not do so as she was carrying a heavy load. According to police reports, she was dragged for 100 meters by the car and suffered serious injuries. Police reports said that both were rushed to Nair Hospital, but Kaveri succumbed to her injuries. The official statement added, The driver fled the spot with his car. The incident in Worli comes less than two months after the Pune Porsche case that saw a 17-year-old boy ram his Porsche car into a motorbike, allegedly under the influence of alcohol. The case resulted in the deaths of two software engineers. Yet another fresh hit-and-run case was reported from Pune late on Sunday night. An unidentified vehicle hit a 43-year-old policeman's motorcycle in the Pimpri Chinchwad area, resulting in his death. Chief Minister Eknath Shinde touched upon the spate of hit-and-run cases on Monday, insisting that no individual would go unpunished as long as he was at the helm of affairs. No one, whether rich, influential or the offspring of bureaucrats or ministers affiliated with any party, will have immunity as long as I am the Chief Minister of the State. I have zero tolerance for injustice, he wrote in a social media post. Mumbai hit-and-run: The Mumbai police have launched a massive manhunt for Mihir Shah, the 24-year-old son of Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah. Mihir has been on the run since a fatal car accident involving a BMW he was driving, which resulted in the death of a woman and injured her husband. Mumbai came to a standstill on Monday morning after several areas received more than 300 mm of rainfall in just six hours. The downpour continued through the day inundating many low-lying areas and impacting vehicular movement. Local train services were also affected due to waterlogging on the tracks. Traffic has resumed on all roads. Senior BMC officials are present at all waterlogging-prone spots in the city. The State Disaster Management Authority, NDRF, BMC are on alert. Traffic is running on Eastern and Western highways and all railway lines. NDRF teams have reached all three coastal districts in the state. Army, Navy and Air Force are also on alert, Chief Minister Eknath Shinde assured late on Monday afternoon. "Both the services of the Central railway - on the mainline and harbour line are proceeding as per their schedules...We have suffered a disruption at Nahur and Chunabhatti Station of the Harbour Line. Normalcy has been restored to all the local services...We have deployed additional RPF manpower and commercial department manpower...These employees will be helping Indian Railways and Central Railway in proper management of the crowd and prevention of any untoward incident," added Central Railway CPRO Swapnil Dhanraj Nila. What is the current status of local train services? Central Railway trains resumed service on Monday afternoon after being suspended for several hours due to waterlogging. According to an update shared on its social media handle, trains are now running on all four corridors central, harbour, trans-harbour and the Belapur/Nerul-Kharkopar line. Local media reports however indicated that several trains from Thane to Karjat and Kasara have been cancelled. Numerous fast trains to Ambernath and Kalyan are also running 15-20 minutes late. Meanwhile Western Railways said that train services were now running smoothly with a delay of up to 10 minutes. Uttarakhand's Jyotir Math in-charge, Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati, defended Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's recent speech in the Lok Sabha, saying that Hinduism was not about spreading fear, hatred, and falsehoods. In a video on X, Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati said, When I heard that Rahul Gandhi had made anti-Hindu remarks, I saw his entire video and found out that he has not said anything wrong. Rahul Gandhi is absolutely right when he said that there is no place for violence in the Hindu religion. Saraswati further continued, saying, Spreading their half-truths by editing their speeches is a crime, and such people should be punished, whether they are from a newspaper or a channel. Saraswati clarified that Rahul Gandhi directed his statement towards a Centre-led party and not towards Hinduism. Later, Gandhi clarified that his statement was directed at the party led by the Centre, alleging that they are promoting violence under the guise of religion, Saraswati added. Earlier on July 2, Rahul Gandhi's remarks came during a discussion on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address to a joint sitting of Parliament. It is not just one religion that talks about courage. In fact, all our religions talk about courageShivji says daro mat, darao mat, shows the abhay mudra (the right hand held upright with the palm facing outwards), talks about ahimsa, Gandhi said while pointing towards the BJP MPs. Congress leader further said that the BJP and the ruling party were not the sole representatives of Hinduism. The remarks made by the Congress MP sparked significant protests from members of the ruling benches. Rahul Gandhi's criticism of the BJP, suggesting it doesn't speak for all Hindus, had members of the ruling party reacting strongly. In response, Rahul Gandhi clarified that his remarks were specifically aimed at the BJP. He emphasized that the BJP, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), or Prime Minister Modi do not represent the entirety of Hindu society. (Bloomberg) -- Javier Mileis efforts to forge alliances with right-wing allies across Europe reveal a hard truth about his presidency: Back in a Latin America dominated by leftists, the libertarian Argentine is all alone. This weekend, he visited Brazil with designs on sparking a far-right resurgence that will give him friends closer to home. Milei headlined a conservative rally in southern Brazil on Sunday alongside right-wing former President Jair Bolsonaro, the biggest gamble yet on an unorthodox foreign policy approach thats already blown up Argentinas relations with Spain. The trip threatened to turn his feud with leftist leader Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva into a full-blown crisis, and any fallout with Brazil Argentinas top trade parter would risk spilling over to the already-battered economy Milei is attempting to resuscitate. But Milei decided not to take risks. For fewer than 20 minutes he read a speech in which, as usual, he contrasted socialism with capitalism. He made no mention of Lula and quoted Brazil in just two moments: When he said that censorship and oppression are beginning to happen in the country and during a defense of Bolsonaro. Look at the judicial persecution suffered by our friend Jair Bolsonaro here in Brazil, he told a euphoric audience at a convention center in Balneario Camboriu. The visit was also the latest sign that Milei is betting on a total reorientation of global politics. With sluggish economies taking a toll on leaders like Lula and Chiles Gabriel Boric, the Argentine is positioning himself at the vanguard of a movement aiming to swing Latin America back to the right. Milei received a heros welcome at CPAC Brazil an offshoot of the annual Conservative Political Action Conference in the US where Bolsonaros allies and supporters see him as an inspiration for their battle against Lula. Mileis speech on Sunday set an attendance record at the convention center, but there were still empty chairs. At the entrance, booths sold books by conservative authors along with Bolsonaro-themed merchandise that ranged from mugs to shirts, notebooks and even wine. Anti-abortion stickers were handed out and a Brazilian Milei lookalike posed for photos with attendees. During his speech Saturday, Bolsonaro said the right-wing must walk together to get stronger. Speakers repeated Mileis motto long live freedom, dammit! to the delight of the audience, which shouted Bolsonaro back! and applauded every time Lula was criticized. Brazils next presidential election isnt until 2026, but the right is targeting October municipal contests for a show of strength. Still recovering from Bolsonaros defeat and subsequent eight-year ban from seeking office, the movement has begun to hitch itself to Milei, seeing his self-described anarcho-capitalist efforts to rebuild the Argentine economy as fuel for their own arguments against Lulas leftist approach. Milei is a serious threat to Lulas power project, since Argentinas positive economic results, even obtained at high social costs, can be used as political-ideological propaganda by Lulas main opponents in Brazil, said Uria Fancelli, a Brazilian international relations specialist and expert on populism. Jose Antonio Kast, a far-right former lawmaker in Chile who lost to Boric three years ago, also spoke at CPAC Brazil. With Borics popularity slipping and Chilean voters swinging sharply back to the right last year, Kast is now angling for a rematch with the young leftist in 2025. Rallying with rivals of his global counterparts has become a regular occurrence for Milei, who endorsed Donald Trump during a February US trip that included no scheduled meetings with US President Joe Biden or other White House officials. In May, he provoked the ire of socialist Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez by attending an event for the far-right Vox party just ahead of European parliamentary elections. That strategy carries substantial risk, as Lula can attest. The dispute between the neighboring leaders kicked off during the Argentine election, when Lula sent a team of campaign veterans to work for Mileis opponent. Relations with Milei who called the Brazilian a communist during the race have only soured further since. Mercosur No-Show So far, that hasnt dented long-standing trade and economic ties. Brazil sent an emergency shipment of natural gas to Argentina amid a winter shortage. Talks between the governments over the construction of pipelines to import gas from Argentinas resource-rich Vaca Muerta region have also continued amid the spat. But Brazils patience appears to be wearing thin. Milei canceled plans to attend Mondays summit of Mercosur leaders in Paraguay, the latest signal that the customs bloc of which Argentina and Brazil are the two largest members has fallen down his list of priorities. This absence doesnt change the summit, but politically its regrettable, Ambassador Gisela Padovan, secretary for Latin America and the Caribbean at Brazils foreign ministry, told reporters last week. Lula, meanwhile, was keeping a close eye on Mileis foray into his backyard. The Argentines criticism of Sanchez during his May trip to Madrid led Spain to yank its ambassador from Buenos Aires, a diplomatic crisis that still hasnt been resolved. Brazilian officials have discussed the possibility of summoning the countrys ambassador to Argentina back to Brasilia for consultations as a potential response to any speech or actions it deems offensive, according to two people familiar with the situation who requested anonymity to discuss internal matters. Such a move remains unlikely, the people said. But that it is even under consideration is a sign that the continued provocations could soon pose real threats to relations between South Americas two largest economies. The last thing you want is to fight with your main trade partner, said Lucas Romero, the director of Synopsis, a political consultancy firm in Buenos Aires. Thats whats so incomprehensible about this conflict. --With assistance from Simone Iglesias. (Updated with details of Mileis visit, speech in Brazil) More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com PM Modi Russia visit: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on Monday, July 8, 2024, for a two-day official visit to Russia. During his visit, he will hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. This visit marks PM Modi's first trip to Russia in nearly five years, following his last visit in 2019 to attend an economic conclave in Vladivostok. The Indian Prime Minister was received by the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Manturov. Notably, Manturov is senior to the Deputy Prime Minister who received the Chinese President during his visit to Russia. In a rare gesture, Manturov will accompany PM Modi to the Calton Hotel in Moscow from the airport in the same car. Also Read | PM Modi in Russia: Jairam Ramesh poses 3 questions to prime minister India's Ambassador to Russia, Vinay Kumar, welcomed PM Modi at the airport. After arriving at Moscow airport, PM Modi received the Guard of Honour. PM Modi will hold summit talks with President Vladimir Putin to review all aspects of bilateral ties and explore opportunities to boost further cooperation in sectors like trade, energy and defence. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries. I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia, PM Modi said. The special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges, the prime minister added. PM Modi is set to have dinner with the Russian President on Monday, followed by talks. Both leaders met in person in September 2022 in Uzbekistan at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization bloc summit. Neither Prince Harry nor his wife Meghan Markle attended the wedding of the Dukes friend, Hugh Grosvenor. Grosvenor is also the godfather of Harrys son, Archie. Prince William, meanwhile, served at the wedding as an usher. As Harry apparently stays away from his old life, a Royal expert has said that there is a reason why he does that. Harry is increasingly bored and looking back across the Atlantic where most of his army and school friends still live and whom he never sees because they wont visit him in the States because they find Meghan difficult, Tom Quinn told The Mirror. Quinn earlier mentioned that Harry avoided seeing his friends as they belong to the "pre-Meghan" period of his life he dislikes. Harry's friends, according to Quinn, feel betrayed due to his unorthodox depiction of military service in his memoir "Spare". Harry's friends dislike Meghan and blame her for turning Harry into "Harry the Hippy", Quinn said. Also Read | If Prince Harry and Meghan Markle return, UK taxpayers will have to pay for it The truth is that Harry has reinvented himself in a way that just doesnt work for his family or for friends from the past when he was a very different character, Quinn added. Harry looking for a UK property Earlier in 2024, Harry renounced his British residency and declared the United States as his new home. This change happened on the same day he and his wife vacated Frogmore Cottage. Harry-Meghan were left with no home in the UK. However, it is believed that Harry is searching for a new home in the UK. Grant Harrold, King Charles former butler, has told the NY Post that Harry has been considering buying properties in his home country. Its something that hes wanted and been thinking about. Now hes probably made the decision thats what he wants, Harrold said. Love for liquor in India is at another level, and what if it is served free by a parliamentarian at a party! You heard it right. A month after winning the Lok Sabha elections 2024, Chikkaballapur BJP MP K Sudhakar hosted a party from the Chikkballapur constituency. And guess what, he allegedly served and distributed alcohol openly to people. Also Read | GST Council set to amend alcohol tax laws, enable dispute settlement A video surfaced recently where people could be seen standing in long queues to collect the alcohol bottles brought in by trucks and that too in the presence of the police. Here's the video: Earlier, Chikkaballapur MP K Sudhakar wrote a letter to the police department and sought security deployment. He even mentioned alcohol would be served at the party. "From 12.30 pm, the stage event will begin, and food and alcohol arrangements will be made," India Today quoted an official letter from the BJP leader to the police department as saying. Bangalore Rural Superintendent of Police CK Baba even told organisers not to serve alcohol at the event. He also issued a warning that violations would result in legal action. "The Police department had placed restrictions and told the organisers not to serve alcohol at the event. They were also told that cases would be booked if they violated the conditions. However, they took permission from the Excise Department to serve alcohol," IT quoted him as saying. However, alcohol was served at the party and people flocked to fetch it. Also Read | Breaching THIS liquor storage limit in Delhi and Mumbai can land you in trouble In the Lok Sabha elections 2024, Sudhakar defeated Congress candidate MS Raksha Ramaiah by a margin of more than 1.5 lakh votes from the Chikkaballapur constituency. Being one of the 28 Lok Sabha seats in the southern state of Karnataka, Chikkaballapur is the constituency came into existence in 1977 following the reorganisation of the Indian states. In the second phase of Lok Sabha polls on 26 April, Chikkaballapur went to the polls and registered a 77 per cent voter turnout. President Joe Biden sought to quell Democratic infighting about his presidential campaign, saying he was determined to remain in the race and challenging dissenters to end talk of his removal from the ballot. I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden wrote in a two-page letter addressed to Democratic lawmakers and released by his campaign. Biden sent the letter, made an unscheduled call-in appearance on MSNBC and spoke to donors on Monday as members of Congress returned to Washington for the first time since his debate performance set off a panic about his ability to defeat Trump and serve another four years. We cant waste any more time being distracted, the president said on a previously scheduled call with his financial backers, alongside Maryland Governor Wes Moore and campaign chair Jennifer OMalley Dillon. Over the weekend, some prominent House Democrats said privately they want Biden, 81, to step aside. The presidents letter makes clear he will not go quietly giving Democrats concerned about his campaign a choice between a drawn-out power struggle or uniting behind a candidate they believe will lead them to defeat. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end, Biden wrote in his letter. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party and defeat Donald Trump. At least nine House Democrats have said they believe Biden should no longer be their presidential nominee, including some senior party members who made their stance known on Sunday on a private virtual call organized by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Biden on MSNBCs Morning Joe said he was frustrated by leaks of discontent and challenged Democrats who want another candidate to mount a battle at the partys convention in August. The president said his rallies in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania over the past few days gave him confidence people want him to remain in the race. Any of these guys who dont think I should run, run against me. Go ahead. Run for president. Challenge me at the convention, Biden said. The president also brushed aside concern from high-dollar donors, saying hes focused on what rank-and-file Democrats and average voters believe. Biden pointed to grassroots fundraising numbers, suggesting that support could help sustain his campaign I dont care what the millionaires think, Biden said on MSNBC. I want their support but thats not the reason Im running. Defiant President The president chalked up the discord to a frenzy driven by the news media and wealthy supporters, saying they were ignoring a primary process that elected him the Democratic nominee. But that defiant attitude is likely to only fuel concerns among his skeptics that Biden is not taking seriously the biggest political crisis that has faced his presidency. Calls for the president to end his campaign only grew after his ABC News interview on Friday sparked further worry that Biden had not grasped the peril facing his reelection bid, which also threatens to hinder Democrats efforts to win the House and Senate. The bottom line is, were not going anywhere. Im not going anywhere, the president said. I wanted to make sure that I was right that the average voter out there still wants Joe Biden. And Im confident that they do. Biden and his team have said he plans to move forward with travel to Michigan, Texas and Nevada after hosting the NATO summit this week in Washington, while continuing to speak with Democratic officials. In the aftermath of the debate, a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult poll showed Biden with his best showing yet in seven battleground states, but also trailing Trump by 2 percentage points across those states. Biden would still lose the Electoral College if the results held. With assistance from Hadriana Lowenkron, Stephanie Lai and Eric Martin. Russia rained missiles down on cities across Ukraine in broad daylight on Monday morning, killing at least 29 civilians and badly damaging Kyiv's main children's hospital in the deadliest air strike in months, officials said. Hundreds of people rushed to clear debris at the hospital, where windows had been smashed and panels ripped off. Parents holding babies walked in the street outside, dazed and sobbing after the rare daylight aerial attack. "It was scary. I couldn't breathe, I was trying to cover (my baby). I was trying to cover him with this cloth so that he could breathe," Svitlana Kravchenko, 33, told Reuters. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said Russia fired more than 40 missiles, damaging residential and commercial buildings and infrastructure in Kyiv, his home city of Kryvyi Rih, the central city of Dnipro and two eastern cities. Ten people were killed and 35 wounded in the main wave of attacks on Kyiv, authorities said. Some two hours later, debris from another missile attack hit a different hospital in Kyiv, killing four more and injuring three more, the emergency services said. Eleven were confirmed dead in Kryvyi Rih and over 40 wounded, the emergency services said. Three people had been killed in the eastern town of Pokrovsk where missiles hit an industrial facility, the regional governor said. One person was also killed in the city of Dnipro, officials said. "The whole world must act as decisively as it can to put an end to Russian air strikes. Murder - this is what Putin brings. Only together we can achieve true peace and security," Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram. The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces had carried out strikes on defence industry targets and aviation bases in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, although its attacks have killed thousands of civilians since it launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The attack came a day before leaders of NATO countries were due to begin a three-day summit of the military alliance that Zelenskiy is expected to attend with the war in Ukraine one of the focuses. "This callous aggression - a total disregard for human life, jeopardizing European & Transatlantic security - is why leaders will make significant security commitments to Ukraine this week," the U.S. ambassador to Kyiv, Bridget Brink, posted on X. Plea for Defences Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said Ukraine still lacked enough air defences and urged Kyiv's allies to supply more systems promptly to help protect its cities and infrastructure from regular Russian aerial attacks. The power grid has already sustained so much damage from targeted Russian air strikes that began in March that electricity cuts have become widespread and the whirring sound of backup power generators in the streets has become ubiquitous. DTEK, Ukraine's largest private power producer, said three electricity substations and electricity networks had been damaged in the capital. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack on the capital was one of the largest of the war. "We heard an explosion, then we were showered with debris, Svitlana told Reuters after she and her husband Viktor, emerged from a shelter at the hospital with their two-month-old baby. The baby was unharmed, but Svitlana had suffered cuts, and their car was totally buried under the rubble of the destroyed building across the courtyard from the main ward. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will meet Chinas leader in Beijing, a trip that comes after his controversial sitdown with Vladimir Putin. Orban and Xi Jinping would have in-depth communication on issues of common concern, the Foreign Ministry in Beijing said in a statement on Monday. Orban took over the EUs six-month rotating presidency on July 1. On Friday, Orban met with Putin in Moscow on a self-styled peace mission, triggering condemnation from European Union leaders who said he had no mandate to represent the bloc on matters like the war in Ukraine. After Kyiv and Moscow, we have arrived in Beijing, for the third stop of our peace mission, Orban said on his Facebook page, which included an image of smiling officials at the airport. Speaking alongside the Russian leader after talks, Orban presented himself as uniquely positioned to mediate on the war. The Kremlin said afterward that there was no progress on Ukraine. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz excoriated Orban over his unannounced trip to Moscow, prompting Hungary to tell German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock that she wasnt welcome to visit. Baerbock was scheduled to meet her Hungarian counterpart in Budapest on Monday. Beijing has sought to portray itself as mostly neutral since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. Yet it has developed a deep alliance with Moscow as part of what Xi and Putin termed a no limits friendship. Trade between the two countries reached a record $240 billion in 2023. Japan expects corporate bond issuers to start adding investor protection as it pushes the use of covenants, opening the way for lower-rated companies to enter the debt market. A working group led by the Japan Securities Dealers Association finished a series of monthly meetings in June that discussed details of applying covenants to local corporate notes with lower ratings. The group agreed on applying Change of Control clauses and reporting covenants on bonds of BBB and lower, while keeping conditions flexible, according to an official at JSDA. The former clauses protect investors when theres a shift in company ownership, while the latter oblige issuers to notify investors when the likelihood of default rises. The discussion of covenants in the Japanese credit market resurfaced after investors became frustrated with a lack of protection on a debt default by hotel chain Unizo Holdings last year. JSDAs goal is to first apply covenants on lower rated companies in order to encourage them to sell bonds, diversifying the market and providing a wider range of investment opportunities. We want to lower the bar for investors to buy bonds from lower rated companies by providing covenants, Yoshiko Nishimura, senior general manager of the bonds and financial products division at JSDA, said in an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday. While Nishimura said that she hopes all lower rated companies to carry such covenants, there are some flexible measures that can be taken, she said. While the securities association would like to see all bonds rated BBB and below have Change of Control clauses, there may be exceptions, she said. For instance, if the investor is protected in a different way such as providing a debt administrator or giving collateral in place of Change of Control, the notes may not necessarily need to have that clause, Nishimura added. JSDA will compile and announce a report later this month, and working groups consisting of underwriters will further discuss details from September onward, she said. Several influential congressional Democrats said privately on Sunday they want Joe Biden to step aside as the partys White House nominee, as the US president enters a pivotal week for his teetering reelection campaign. The latest defections include several Democratic leaders of House committees, a signal that even some party stalwarts in Congress want a new person at the top of the ticket following Bidens stumbling debate against Donald Trump last month. The defections include Jerrold Nadler and Joe Morelle of New York; Adam Smith of Washington; and Mark Takano of California, according to people familiar with the discussion. The members expressed their views in a private virtual call on Sunday afternoon organized by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. That amounts to a total of nine House Democrats who have called for Biden to step aside. The fallout from Bidens June 27 showing against Trump continues to reverberate. The incumbent president has been defiant against calls for him to step aside, repeatedly saying that he has no plans to suspend his reelection campaign. But this week presents fresh challenges as Biden hosts members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Washington and members of Congress return to the Capitol after largely being away since the debate. Most, if not all, of the participants in the call with Jeffries are Democrats not facing much danger of losing their November campaigns. Their posts atop congressional panels reflect, in part, their seniority and relative reelection security. Many have worked with Biden in some capacity over his nearly five decades in government. Senior Democrats, including Richie Neal of Massachusetts and Don Beyer of Virginia, said in statements after the meeting that they want Biden to stay in the race. A regularly scheduled meeting with all House Democrats set for Tuesday morning will be more telling of the sentiment across the caucus, and will include those members facing competitive reelection contests and who fear down-ballot repercussions from Biden voter fallout. Panic is more pronounced in the House than in the Senate, because Democrats in that chamber had high hopes of taking the majority prior to the debate. Jeffries spokesman declined to comment on the meeting, saying it was a private call. Democrats Doubt Several leading Democrats also spoke publicly Sunday in televised interviews: None directly called for Biden to leave the race, but they questioned whether he should go forward. The performance on the debate stage, I think, rightfully raised questions, Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, said on NBCs Meet the Press. He should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. It should not be even close, Schiff added. And theres only one reason it is close, and thats the presidents age. A reported meeting that was being arranged for Monday by Senator Mark Warner of Virginia so Senate Democrats could discuss their support of Biden remaining on the presidential ticket isnt going to occur, a person familiar with Warners thinking said Sunday. The person said the meeting was never actually scheduled, but that the idea was floated to have a private, in-person conversation. Once the idea of this gathering was publicly reported, the meeting became impossible, the person said. Instead, Senate Democrats will talk Tuesday during their regular caucus. The internal party struggle is playing out as Biden himself works to right his campaign, trying to convince voters at home and foreign leaders of his fitness to serve another four years. Biden starting Tuesday is hosting a summit of NATO leaders and officials, some of whom expressed their worries about the presidents age and attentiveness privately during the Group of Seven meeting in Rome last month. The wars in Gaza and Ukraine heighten the pressure, given the US role in corralling allies. Biden raised the stakes of the meeting in his ABC News interview on Friday, effectively saying that he should be judged on his ongoing efforts to reassert Americas place on the world stage. Campaign Efforts The president is also stepping up his campaign to show renewed vigor. Hes visited two battleground states in recent days, Wisconsin on Friday, and then made stops on Sunday in must-win Pennsylvania, the state where he was born but which a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult Poll shows him trailing by seven percentage points. If it wasnt for Biden, Trump would be at the White House and he would be campaigning for his third term, said Senator John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania Democrat who noted he also had a difficult debate after suffering a stroke and went on to win his race. He expressed his strong support at a Biden event with campaign workers in Philadelphia. I know I dont look like Im 40 years old, Biden joked at the Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, a Black congregation in Philadelphia. All kidding aside, you know Ive been doing this a long time, and honest to God, Ive never been more optimistic about Americas future. He later traveled to an event in the Pennsylvania capital of Harrisburg. Starting July 15, after the NATO summit, Biden will go to Austin to mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, then to Las Vegas to address the NAACP Convention and the UnidosUS Annual Conference, according to a White House official. The Las Vegas events target Black and Latino voters, two key constituencies. Despite the defections, Tevi Troy, senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and former senior White House official for the George W. Bush administration, said he questions this premise of growing pressure because Im not sure thats the case. The Biden people have set it up in such a way its very hard to get rid of him unless he chooses to. And hes not gonna choose to, unless people he trusts tell him to step down. And the people he trusts are in positions that are dependent on him being there, Troy said. * Hurricane Beryl makes landfall near Texas * Gaza ceasefire plan under way, being mediated by Qatar & Egypt * French election to leave parliament divided By Scott DiSavino July 8 - Oil prices settled down about 1% to a one-week low on Monday as Hurricane Beryl shut U.S. refineries and ports along the Gulf of Mexico, and on hopes a possible ceasefire deal in Gaza could reduce worries about global crude supply disruptions. Brent futures fell 79 cents, or 0.9%, to settle at $85.75 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude fell 83 cents, or 1.0%, to settle at $82.33. Hurricane Beryl lashed Texas with strong winds and heavy rain as it churned inland. Oil ports closed, hundreds of flights were canceled and over 2.7 million homes and businesses lost power. Texas produces the most oil and natural gas of any U.S. state. "Some de-risking flows this morning are partially responsible for the move down, as hedges placed ahead of Beryls landfall were unwound due to crude oil facilities sustaining relatively little damage in affected areas," analysts at energy consulting firm Gelber and Associates said in a note. In the Middle East, talks over a U.S. ceasefire plan to end the nine-month-old war in Gaza are under way and being mediated by Qatar and Egypt. "The complex is starting the week out under significant downside price pressure prompted by optimism regarding a Gaza ceasefire as ongoing negotiations appear to be seeing progress," analysts at energy advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. Elsewhere, investors were watching for how elections in the UK, France and Iran over the past week would affect geopolitics and energy policies. The French left said it wanted to run the government but conceded talks would be tough and take time, after Sunday's election thwarted the far right's quest for power and delivered a hung parliament. In the U.S., President Joe Biden said he would not abandon his reelection campaign as he sought to stave off a possible revolt from fellow Democrats who worry the party could lose the White House and Congress in the Nov. 5 U.S. election. In Asia, imports of crude oil ticked lower in the first half of 2024 from the same period last year, due largely to lower arrivals in China, the world's biggest oil importer. In India, the world's third biggest oil consumer, fuel consumption rose by 2.6% year-on-year to 19.99 million metric tons in June from a year earlier. In Germany, exports fell more than expected in May due to weak demand from China, the U.S. and European countries. In Kazakhstan, the energy ministry said it will compensate for oil output exceeding its OPEC quota in the first half of this year by September 2025. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries along with its allies, a group known as OPEC , has already extended most of its oil output cuts into 2025. Those output cuts have led analysts to forecast supply deficits in the third quarter as transportation and demand for air-conditioning during the summer eat into fuel stockpiles. Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is stepping up his fight against Donald Trump, with his pro-choice group buying billboard ads in the city that will host the Republican National Convention next week. The campaign seeks to associate Trump and the RNC with the reversal of Roe v. Wade, which led to abortion bans and restrictions in many states. The ads, located near major highways and downtown Milwaukee, were purchased by Think Big America, an organization focused on protecting abortion rights and founded by the billionaire governor last year. Pritzker has turned Illinois into an oasis for reproductive care in the Midwest, and vowed to do whatever he can to keep Trump out of the White House. The governor, who is seen as a potential presidential candidate, has remained mostly silent as more of his fellow Democrats call for President Joe Biden to step aside from the race. The billboards near Wisconsins largest city were placed early this month and will be up through the convention, according to Christina Amestoy, a spokeswoman for Think Big America. One of them reads: MAGA extremists are in town this week to nominate a president who wants a national abortion ban. Stop them. Vote. Thanks to Donald Trump and his allies, access to contraception, IVF, and all reproductive health care is now at risk, Amestoy said in a statement. Whenever a woman is denied the care she needs, remember: MAGA extremists did this to women and were not going to let voters forget it. The RNC didnt respond to a request for comment. Milwaukee made headlines last month when Trump called it a horrible city. He later clarified he was referring to crime rates. The city, which regularly votes for Democratic candidates both locally and nationally, will host the RNC from July 15-18. Pritzkers pro-choice group placed two of the billboards at the I-94 and I-43 highways coming into Milwaukee, which is 100 miles from Chicago, where the Democratic National Convention will take place in August. The third ad is about a mile-and-a-half away from Fiserv Forum, which will host the Republican event. With assistance from Sam Hall. India batted for dialogue and diplomacy between Ukraine and Russia on Monday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi headed towards Moscow. The senior politician is slated to hold talks with Vladimir Putin on Tuesday as part of a bilateral summit. The solution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict cannot be found on the battleground. It is also the view of the global south and naturally needs to have both parties for the resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy, news agency ANI quoted Indian government sources as saying. The war between the two countries entered its third year in February with no clear end in sight. It will also be a key point of discussion as Joe Biden hosts world leaders for the NATO summit this week in the US. PM Modi arrived in Russia on Monday afternoon for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He was received at the airport by First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and accorded a ceremonial welcome. Members of the Indian diaspora had gathered to welcome PM Modi at his hotel. According to an update shared by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Modi and Putin will start talking around noon on Tuesday. The two leaders are however not expected to make any statements to the press after their meeting. "Around noon, Putin and Modi will start talking. We expect that there will be a private conversation, as well as Russian-Indian talks over an official breakfast, the state-owned TASS news agency quoted Dmitry Peskov as saying. Tomorrow, PM Modi has a packed schedule. He will be attending the 22nd Annual Summit and will have delegation-level talks. He will meet the Indian community, will address the Indian community members and also visit Rosatom (State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom) and exhibition space, added MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. Fiscal prudence, along with the implementation of difficult reforms to modernize the economy, has been the hallmark of this government. In its third term in power, it could further focus on some of its priorities, such as a productive workforce and the competitiveness of Indian products and services. The Union Budget will need to create fiscal space for supporting these priorities while at the same time continuing with fiscal consolidation. The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has made its recommendations keeping these priorities in mind. For fiscal consolidation, the practice of publishing deficit indicators for the medium term in the Union Budget should be revived, offering medium to long-term visibility on the governments fiscal planning. The Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act could also be reviewed and updated, as suggested by the 15th Finance Commission. A robust fiscal framework would be positive for Indias credit rating. The recent upgrade in S&Ps outlook for Indias credit rating was based on the countrys robust economic growth, significant enhancements in the quality of government expenditure and the administrations commitment to fiscal consolidation. While pursuing fiscal consolidation, the government needs to enhance its expenditure in critical areas which would boost productivity. The need of the hour would be to boost the countrys focus on health and education by increasing public spending on schools/colleges and hospitals. CII has recommended that the combined (Centre plus states) expenditure on healthcare be stepped up to 3% of GDP by 2030-31, while spending on education be increased to 6% of GDP. This would not only make peoples lives more comfortable, but also improve productivity across the economy. As far as budget calculations go, a choice of consolidation versus spending has received much attention in view of the windfall received by the government in terms of a large dividend from the Reserve Bank of India. A dividend of 2.1 trillion received in May 2024 has significantly eased the governments fiscal constraint for the fiscal year 2024-25. CII has recommended that a part of this windfall be used for boosting capital spending by 25% over the revised figure for 2023-24. This would help maintain the upward trajectory of public capital expenditure and help crowd in private investment. The government may look at raising money through disinvestment and asset monetization. It is likely that setting an achievable target is difficult, since the outcome is dependent on market forces that are not always predictable. CII has therefore recommended that a demand-based approach be followed for the selection of public sector enterprises (PSEs) to be divested by the government. Based on investor interest, the government should come up with a medium-term schedule for PSE disinvestment, say for the next three years. The governments asset monetization programme can be intensified by providing support to ministries and state governments on aspects such as identification of assets, regulatory design and execution. A dedicated cell either in the Niti Aayog or ministry of finance can be set up for this purpose. The receipts from disinvestment and asset monetization should be used to either retire debt or create new assets. To create fiscal space for stepping up expenditure on critical areas, the government will need to enhance tax collections. As a proportion of GDP, the Centres gross tax revenue has remained around 11.5% for the last four years. According to the 15th Finance Commission, Indias total tax collections (Central and states combined) are around 4 percentage points below their potential. The time is now ripe to increase tax buoyancy through rationalization and simplification of the tax structure, wherever possible. Since its introduction in 2017, the Goods and Services Tax (GST) has considerably simplified the tax structure by using the principle of One Nation, One Tax. However, this tax regime is still beset with a plethora of rates and exemptions, leaving considerable scope for simplification. CII has recommended a move towards a three-rate structure along with a moderation in rates. Also, goods and services that are currently outside the ambit of GST, such as petroleum products and electricity, should be brought in. Given that these are widely used inputs, the availability of input credit would immediately reduce the cost of doing business. While the Union Budget cannot implement GST reforms, it can give directional guidance to the GST Council on this issue. These actions would go a long way in preventing leakage and ensuring buoyancy of revenues. Also in need of simplification are Indias customs tariffs, which need to move to more competitive levels. CII has recommended that a graded roadmap be announced to rationalize duty rates over time, so that domestic manufacturers have time to adjust. Further, continuous improvements are required in compliance procedures as well as dispute resolution and grievance redressal. Measures to facilitate the ease of doing business along with simplification of tax structures would greatly improve tax buoyancy. Following the surge in government expenditure during 2020-21, when the country was affected by the covid pandemic, the government has had its task cut out in getting the fiscal deficit in control. Indeed, it has made remarkable progress in reducing the deficit from 9.2%of GDP in 2020-21 to 5.6% in 2023-24, a reduction of 3.6 percentage points in a matter of three years. Going forward, a considered view needs to be taken on the pace of deficit reduction, so that the countrys need for fiscal consolidation is balanced with the need to support economic growth. Keir Starmer finally has the mandate and credentials to shake off the historical burden which has dogged ties between India and Britains Labour Party since the 1930s, a long arc that began with the jaundiced view taken of Mahatma Gandhi by Ramsay MacDonald, Labours first elected prime minister, and terminated in former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyns apparent positions on Indian policy. Starmer, who took his Labour Party to a historic landslide win in Britains Parliamentary elections, now has the tailwind to re-imagine Londons ties with India, which is the worlds fastest growing major economy and gaining heft. Mutual ties need not be burdened by the weight of MacDonaldism, which viewed the Congress Partys call for independence through imperialist lenses. It should also not be held hostage to constituency pandering, as was the case when a former Labour foreign secretary abandoned objectivity in the UKs foreign policy towards India to please a section of voters. Our bilateral engagement is robust and multi-faceted, spanning trade and economy, defence and security, climate change, science and technology, among other fields. Two areas that could benefit both nations need renewed focus. The first is trade ties, which should be strengthened through a free trade agreement (FTA) that has been in the works for some time now. After 14 rounds, talks remain inconclusive; senior British trade negotiators unsuccessfully tried a last gasp" attempt in January 2024 before elections began in both India and the UK. Former Tory prime minister Boris Johnson had spiritedly promised to wrap the deal by Diwali 2022, but is unlikely to be finalized by even this Diwali, given that Londons new regime will need time to grasp details. But hope springs eternal, and, going by comments made by Labour representatives, the agreement may well get signed by next Diwali. Thankfully, the Starmer government seems to have invested considerable hope in the FTA materializing. While some sticking points have held it up, no whiff of MacDonaldism should get a chance to stymie the pact. Starmers finance minister Rachel Reeves has inherited a sluggish economy laden with debt; she should view the FTA as a stepping stone to a comprehensive agreement that will help revive investments and jobs. One possible way of achieving that is offering Britain as a gateway to European markets, allowing Indian businesses to take advantage of the UK-EU trade deal of 2021. The secondunexploredarea of cooperation lies in jointly reviving multilateralism and multilateral institutions. Since 2004, London has consistently backed Indias claim to permanent membership of the UN Security Council. But there are many other areas in which both nations seem to have adopted conflicting stands. Britain, which has traditionally sided with industrialized countries on certain issues, would do well to review its stance to boost its own economy. One example is trade in agriculture, in which Britain has unfailingly joined the chorus of rich nations against farmer subsidies in poor economies, while unconscionably ignoring higher farm subsidies in advanced. The other area is climate-change talks, in which the UK, again, has let the principle of fairness down: while launching broadsides against developing nations, it overlooked the Wests excess emissions. Starmer now has a popular mandate to shed all vestiges of distasteful MacDonaldism from India-UK ties. Markets have been hitting new highs almost every week and the total wealth in equity assets has also risen to all-time highs. Not surprisingly, promoters are set for record stock dilution. As per media reports, promoters of over 200 companies have cumulatively sold stock worth around $4 billion in the last two months alone, taking advantage of richer valuations and cashing-in on the equity they hold. In this context, it is pertinent to note that the market capitalization of public sector undertakings (PSUs) has almost doubled from about $404 billion in 2022-23 to $804 billion currently. To put this number in context, total budgeted expenditure in the 2024-25 interim budget is about $560 billion. PSUs have attained record high returns on equity and PSU profits are expected to be around 2% of gross domestic product (GDP). Almost every PSU and public sector bank (PSB) stock has seen a humongous rally, with these stocks significantly outperforming their private peers as well as the market. This must be a rather pleasant outcome for the Government of India, which, as a promoter in a different class altogether, has reaped the benefits so far in the form of chunky dividends, but needs far more money to create infrastructure, generate jobs and strengthen economic engines. Not very long ago, the country was trapped in a vicious cycle of a twin-balance-sheet crisis, with the finances of corporates and banks both under stress. PSBs were reeling under a mountain of non-performing loans, with a few even being technically bankrupt. This prompted the government to initiate measures such as its 4Rs strategy of recognizing non-performing assets (NPAs) transparently, resolving and recovering value from stressed accounts, recapitalizing banks and reforming banks through an agenda of PSB reforms. Governance moves, capital infusion and bank mergers helped restore their financial health, though it took huge dollops of taxpayer money (over $35 billion) and plenty of time to heal balance sheets. But it eventually helped improve confidence, shore up their capital base and reduce operational costs. The big turnaround in PSU fortunes has been rewarded with the sharp rally in their stock prices and presents a ripe opportunity for the monetization of government stakes and putting the money back to work productively in the economy. The rally should also be attributed to massive governmental efforts that improved PSU financial performance. Monetization will help the fisc and generate resources to build growth-supportive infrastructure assets, a process that is known to have a high multiplier effect and create jobs in larger numbersa key imperative in the current context. Moreover, it will also improve liquidity in markets. We have seen a surge in market capitalization, but public shareholding in PSU stocks has remained low. This scenario provides an opportunity for state-held listed entities that still havent met the market regulators minimum public shareholding (MPS) norm to comply. The governments stake in many PSBs exceeds 75%, although Sebi requires the proportion to be reduced below that mark. In fact, a few banks such as Indian Overseas Bank, UCO Bank and Central Bank of India have state shareholdings as high as 96%, 95% and 93%, respectively. There are well known difficulties involved in the disinvestment process, including the involvement of multiple stakeholders, extended regulatory processes, global economic volatility, political opposition and accusations of the family silver being sold off. To overcome these challenges, market experts point out other ways of offloading stakes. For example, using the offer-for-sale (OFS) mechanism available to promoters, which could entail shorter time periods if done through a special window at stock exchanges. The government could also consider selling chunky stakes via block deals. Or it could explore selling small quantities in the secondary market. Of the $50 billion odd that has been raised in the last 10 years from divestments, $37.5 billion came from minority stake sales. The government has set a divestment target of about $6 billion for 2024-25, which is 67% higher than its revised target of $3.6 billion for 2023-24. Note, the governments miscellaneous capital receipts," which include realizations from disinvestment and other forms of asset monetization, exceeded the revised estimate of $3.4 billion in 2023-24, of which proceeds from disinvestment totalled $1.95 billion. Interestingly, the interim budget did not classify disinvestment receipts as a separate head under the broad category of miscellaneous capital receipts. While this may be a procedural or classification shift, Indias strategy to generate resources needs a quick qualitative swing to seize the moment. The Centre should not be content with just PSU dividends. Its revitalization of these entities was hard-earned. Stakes need to be sold. The government would also do well to use this as a signalling device to affirm the economic principle that the government should not be in the business of running businesses, especially non-strategic ones. These are the authors personal views. Asked last week by CBS Newss Major Garrett whether President Biden had the vigor and mental capability" to continue serving, Anthony Fauci equivocated: In my interactions with him, I have no doubt." Did the former National Institutes of Health leader find anything medically alarming about the presidents debate performance? I think it would be inappropriate to say that, Major, because when youre just looking at someone on a one-shot basis, you just dont know what could happen." Still, Dr. Fauci couldnt help but wonder: Did he have a bad cold, you know? Did he take an antihistamine to make him, you know, groggy, or what have you?" He declined to answer his own questions because it would be unfair and inappropriate to try and diagnose something from just a 90-minute clip." The presidents debate stumbles looked to him like a bad night." Never mind that the 90-minute debate wasnt a clip," or that the presidents confusion wasnt a one-shot" incident. But who you gonna believe, Dr. Fauci or your lying eyes and ears? Dr. Faucis feeble attempt to explain away the presidents mental fog is another illustration of why Americans dont trust the supposed experts. They dissemble when it suits their political purposes and frequently disparage anyone who dares challenge their deceptions. They have done so with Mr. Bidens cognitive troubles, as they did with Covid lockdowns, school shutdowns, mask mandates and the virus lab-leak theory. The list goes on. Mr. Bidens increasing slips over the years have been apparent to anyone paying attention. Yet when conservatives have pointed them out, medical experts, marshaled by the liberal media, have played them down. Before the first Trump-Biden 2020 debate, Fox News commentator Brit Hume noted that the Democratic nominee, then 77, appeared to be losing it mentally. I dont think theres any doubt Bidens senile, but that doesnt mean its going to show up tonight," he said. Elderly people experiencing memory loss and other problems associated with age can go for periods, for hours at a time and be just fine." Mr. Hume was right. Mr. Biden managed to remain cool and coherent during the 2020 debate, even as Mr. Trump huffed and puffed. PolitiFact later published a fact check" of Mr. Humes remark, citing experts in the health care of older people." One called his characterization of Mr. Biden a shameful display of ageism and ignorance." But sure enough, Mr. Bidens stumbles became more frequent with time. Last June the president bizarrely pronounced plans to build a railroad from the Pacific all the way across the Indian Ocean." In two separate incidents the same month, he mistakenly referred to Ukraine as Iraq. The press ignored such blunders until special counsel Robert Hurs report in February on Mr. Bidens handling of classified documents. Defending his decision not to bring charges, Mr. Hur observed the president was a well-meaning, elderly man with a poor memory" who in interviews couldnt recall when his term as vice president ended, nor when his son died. In a press conference after the Hur reports release, Mr. Biden referred to Egyptian president Abdel Fattah Al Sisi as the president of Mexico." Days before he had confused former German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron with dead predecessors. Cue the experts. Short-term memory declines with age, but wisdom can increase because the individual has a greater backlog of experiences and different situations as to what is the best thing to do," Thomas Wisniewski, an Alzheimers specialist at NYU Langone Health, told NBC. Mr. Bidens memory issues highlighted in the media are not so much cases of forgetting as they are of difficulties in the articulation of facts and knowledge," UC Davis psychology professor Charan Ranganath wrote in a New York Times op-ed. Mr. Bidens mistaking world leaders names? A byproduct of his stutter, which demands prefrontal resources" to manage. Such disavowals increased with Mr. Bidens lapses. Massachusetts Institute of Technology neuroscience professor Earl Miller told the Washington Post in May that the really important thing to keep in mind is that the older brains a wiser brain." After Mr. Bidens floundering debate, two Yale University professors, Jeffrey Sonnenfeld and Harlan Krumholz, posited in a Newsweek op-ed that the most probable explanation" was a side effect of cold medications." Mr. Sonnenfeld, a management professor, in 2021 convened a meeting of CEOs to denounce Georgias election integrity law. Remember how the liberal media sought to discredit lockdown contrarians because they werent epidemiologists? Now, the media gives a megaphone to any arm-chair expert who proffers an alternative explanation to the obvious for Mr. Bidens debate debacle. The press is belatedly starting to acknowledge Mr. Bidens frailties now that theyve become impossible to conceal from Americansjust as it did the damage of school shutdowns. Perhaps Democrats could persuade Dr. Fauci to diagnose the president with long Covid, which would let him step aside and blame Mr. Trump for his incapacity. As leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization gather this week in Washington to mark the alliances 75th anniversary, they must reassert its relevance. Donald Trump said in the presidential debate last month that without his pressure on European allies to increase defense spending, NATO risked going out of business." Mr. Trumps critics, including many Europeans, say they worry the alliance might unravel if he returns to the White House. NATOs primary purposeto keep the Soviet Union out," as its first secretary general Lord Hastings Ismay put itis as important as ever. For pro-American Eastern Europeans, distrustful of their complacent peers in Germany, France or Spain, Ismays second imperativeto keep the Americans in"is a matter of survival. In a report for the American Enterprise Institute, Giselle Donnelly, Iulia Joja and I argue that American leadership in NATO isnt an act of charity. Peace and security in Europe have always been vital to U.S. interests. Our nation fought two world wars on European soil precisely because we saw domination of Eurasia by our adversaries as unacceptable. As for Berlin and others not paying their fair share, remember that according to Ismay, NATOs third purpose was to keep the Germans down." The enduring fecklessness of Germanys political elites is a testament to NATOs success in solving what in the 1950s loomed large as the German question." Nobody is likely to ask the U.S. to come to the defense of Germany. If a future president Trump decided to tell Chancellor Olaf Scholz that his country had been expelled from the allianceif that were possiblethe geopolitical consequences wouldnt be catastrophic. Countries that do need defending, from Finland in the north to Romania in the south, remain committed to the alliance and to their security, spending well above the target 2% of gross domestic product on defense. Many members, including Lithuania and the Czech Republic, share Washingtons concerns about China and the Indo-Pacific. To stay relevant, NATO must strengthen its deterrent posture on the Eastern flank, which it can do at little cost to the U.S. Poland and the Baltic states should be brought into the alliances nuclear-sharing system and Polish F-35 jets should be certified to carry nuclear missiles. The war in Ukraine is an important test. A Ukrainian defeat would make NATOs job much harder and much more expensive, placing Russian forces on Polands, Slovakias, Hungarys, and Romanias doorstep and setting in motion a refugee wave without parallel in modern history. The solution isnt simply to spend more on military assistance to Ukraine. NATO also should remove the myriad restrictionssuch as denying important long-range systems to Kyiv and prohibiting targeting Russias hinterlandsthat force Ukraine to fight the war with one hand tied behind its back. People on both sides of the Atlantic want to see peace. However, the only path to a durable peace lies in securing Ukraines future through NATO membership as soon as the war is finished. This must be part of a wider strategy of rolling back Russias influence in Eastern Europe and Central Asia, made all the more important by the threat of Iran and the rise of China. China is integral to the threat to U.S. power in Asia and the Indo-Pacific, the Middle East and Europe. Beijing is investing heavily in Irans petrochemical industry, helping bankroll a regime that sponsors Houthi rebels along with terrorist organizations that threaten Israel. In Georgia, another country that will need NATO membership sooner or later to deter Russia, China just acquired a deep-sea port in Anaklia that will give Beijing a new path to European markets. That is what happens when Washington leaves a friendly country in geopolitical limbo. Both Mr. Bidens lethargy and Mr. Trumps transactional attitude toward NATO are inadequate responses to the challenge that America is facing in the form of a coordinated coalition of revisionists in Beijing, Moscow and Tehran. Business as usual is a recipe for catastrophe, as is the temptation to assess alliances primarily on their ledgers. The tasks of pushing against Russia in Eastern Europe, Iran in the Middle East and China globally are all connected. Washington cant succeed if it tries to deal with them in isolation. NATO and the trans-Atlantic relationship are central to Americas role as the worlds leading superpower. It would be a tragedy for Americans if the incumbent or his Republican challenger squandered this asset. Mr. Rohac is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. In a result that took France wholly by surprise, the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP), dominated by Jean-Luc Melenchon, looks poised to become the biggest bloc in parliament after final-round voting at legislative elections closed on July 7th. Projections by Ipsos, based on early results, gave the NFP 171-187 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly. This would still be far short of the 289 seats needed to control the lower house. Voters have returned a badly hung parliament, and France is now set for a period of uncertainty and political manoeuvring as the country tries to learn how to act as many other European countries already do, and forge a majority coalition. View Full Image Graphic: The Economist The results contained surprises all round. Marine Le Pens hard-right National Rally and friends, which polls had suggested would top voting, is on course to become only the third-biggest parliamentary bloc. Ipsos suggested that they would secure 134-152 seats. This represents a big jump from the 88 the RN held in the outgoing parliament, and shows how far it has travelled from its days as a fringe pariah outfit to a near-respectable party backed by a big chunk of French voters. But it will be a disappointment to Ms Le Pen, who wanted a majority, and Jordan Bardella, her 28-year-old protege, who had hoped to become the next prime minister. For President Emmanuel Macron, who called this election against the advice of his close allies, the result will come as something of a relief. Ipsos projections suggest that Ensemble, his centrist coalition, will hold on to 152-163 seats, down from the 250 it held in the outgoing parliament. Though painful, this is not quite the calamity that had been widely expected. His bloc looks likely to become the second-biggest, slightly ahead of the RN, and his group of deputies could now hold the key either to forming a governing coalition or to keeping a minority left-wing government in power. On election night, Mr Melenchon, a hard-left firebrand and former Trotskyist, was the first to take to the stage and, triumphantly, declare victory. He called on Mr Macron to invite the NFP to try to form a government, insisting that its radical electoral programme would be put in place. This promises, among other things, to increase the minimum wage by 14%, bring back the wealth tax and cap energy prices. Offering support for an independent Palestinian state, the alliance did particularly well in a belt in and around north-eastern Paris and other big multicultural cities. Mr Melenchon recently dismissed antisemitic acts in France as residual", worrying French Jews. There is now likely to be much internal squabbling between the four parties that make up the alliance: Mr Melenchons Unsubmissive France (LFI), the Socialists, Communists and Greens. Before the election result, the alliance had been incapable of putting forward a single candidate for the job of prime minister. Plenty of figures within the NFP are deeply unhappy with Mr Melenchons self-promoting dominance, and are itching to sideline him. The Socialists look set to have a similar number of seats to LFI, and could well insist that they take the lead instead, which would make it much easier to form a coalition with the centrists. Among the Socialist members who will sit in the new assembly is none other than Francois Hollande, the former president who was once Mr Macrons boss. One lesson from this vote is that a solid majority of the French still rejects the hard right. After first-round voting, polls had suggested that, under Frances first-past-the-post electoral system, the RN had a chance of winning a majority of seats. But a tactical effort by both Mr Macrons Ensemble and the left-wing alliance to withdraw third-placed candidates in over 200 constituencies helped to avoid splitting the anti-RN vote. This was laborious, fractious and in some cases painful; but it seems to have worked. To the indignation of Mr Bardella, who denounced an alliance of dishonour", it turned the vote in many constituencies into a referendum on the RNwhich could store up problems for the future among its voters, who will feel robbed of victory by a stitch-up by the Paris elite. Under the French constitution, it is now up to the president to name a prime minister. Political convention suggests that Mr Macron will ask the biggest parliamentary bloc to do this, which looks likely to be the NFP. According to a source in the presidency, however, Mr Macron thinks the results do not clearly show who could govern". A minority government could fall, thanks to a no-confidence vote, at the first hurdle. His best hope is that there could be an alternative parliamentary effort to put together a coalition that pulls the moderate left and Greens away from Mr Melenchons crew and teams up with the centre. France, however, unlike Germany, Italy and many other European countries, has no experience of forging the compromise agreements needed for governing coalitions to stick. The three blocs that will make up the new assembly dislike each other intensely, and distrust each other even more. Given such uncertainty, Mr Macron may well ask the 35-year-old Gabriel Attal, his current prime minister, who said he would offer his resignation to the president on Monday, to continue as a caretaker while talks take place. This arrangement could last for much of the summer period, including during the Paris Olympic Games, which begin on July 26th. France seems to have pulled back from the brink; but it is still heading for the unknown. 2024, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com President Joe Biden, in a letter to congressional Democrats, stood firm against calls for him to drop his candidacy and called for an end to the intraparty drama that has torn apart Democrats since his dismal public debate performance. Biden's efforts to shore up a deeply anxious Democratic Party came Monday as lawmakers returned to Washington confronting a choice: Decide whether to work to revive his campaign or try to edge out the party leader, a make-or-break time for his reelection and their own political futures. Biden wrote in the two-page letter that the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. He stressed that the party has one job, which is to defeat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election, Biden said in the letter, distributed by his reelection campaign. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Anxiety is running high as top-ranking Democratic lawmakers are joining calls for Biden to step aside despite his defiance. At the same time, some of the presidents most staunch supporters are redoubling the fight for Bidens presidency, insisting theres no one better to beat Trump in what many see as among the most important elections of a lifetime. Biden followed up the letter with a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe show, on which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Biden said. He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Trump. Later, Biden joined a call with members of his national finance committee, while first lady Jill Biden campaigned for her husband in a three-state swing focused on engaging veterans and military families. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, she told a military crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina. Thats the decision that hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in, too." Democratic voters are split on whether Biden should remain the Democratic Partys nominee for president, or whether there should be a different Democratic nominee, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll. As lawmakers weigh whether Biden should stay or go, there appear to be no easy answers. Its a tenuous and highly volatile juncture for the presidents party. Democrats who have worked alongside Biden for years if not decades and cherished his life's work on policy priorities are now entertaining uncomfortable questions about his political future. And it's unfolding as Biden hosts world leaders for the NATO summit this week in Washington. Time is not on their side, almost a month from the Democratic National Convention and just a week before Republicans gather in Milwaukee to renominate Trump as their presidential pick. Many Democrats are arguing the attention needs to be focused not on Biden but on the former president's felony conviction in the hush money case and pending federal charges in his effort to overturn the 2020 election. It's what Biden himself might call an inflection point. As he defiantly says he will only step aside if the Lord almighty comes and tells him to, Democrats in the House and Senate are deciding how hard they want to fight the president to change his course, or if they want to change course at all. In an effort to get on the same page, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is convening lawmakers for private meetings before he shows his own preference, according to a person familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to discuss it. He planned to gather on Monday some Democrats whose bids for reelection are most vulnerable. A private call Sunday including some 15 top House committee members exposed the deepening divide as at least four more Democrats Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state and Rep. Mark Takano of California privately said Biden should step aside. Nadler, as one of the more senior members on the call, was the first person to say that Biden should step aside, according to a person familiar with the call who was granted anonymity to discuss it. He did so aware of his seniority and that it would allow others to join him. Many others on the call raised concerns about Bidens capability and chance of winning reelection, even if they stopped short of saying Biden should step out of the race. Still other members, including Rep. Maxine Waters of California and Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia, both leaders in the Congressional Black Caucus, spoke forcefully in support of Biden, as did Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee. And several lawmakers appeared frustrated that leadership was not providing direction or a path forward, according to people familiar with the call. One Democratic lawmaker said regardless of the decision, the situation has to end now, one of the people said. Neal said afterward that the bottom line is Biden beat Trump in 2020 and hell do it again in November. The upheaval also is testing a new generation of leaders, headed by Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both New Yorkers have refrained from publicly directing lawmakers on a path forward as they balance diverse opinions in their ranks. Behind the scenes is Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who continues to field calls from lawmakers seeking advice about the situation, and is widely viewed as the one to watch for any ultimate decision on Biden's future because of her proximity to the president and vote-counting skills in party politics. Pelosi spoke up last week, saying Biden's debate performance raised legitimate questions he needed to answer, but she has remained supportive of the president. And Biden called her last week when he reached out to other party leaders. When Biden's prime-time ABC interview on Friday appeared to do little to calm worried Democrats, and some said made the situation worse, Pelosi stepped forward to publicly praise Biden on social media as a great President who continues to deliver for Americas kitchen table. She added, "and we're not done yet! Also Read | Biden vs Kamala Harris: Republicans mull who has a better chance against Trump Schumer has kept a lower profile throughout the ordeal but will convene Democratic senators Tuesday for their weekly lunch when senators are certain to air many views. One Democrat, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, had intended to gather senators Monday to discuss Biden privately, but a person familiar with his thinking said those conversations will take place in Tuesdays regular caucus luncheon with all Democratic senators. Another Democrat, Sen. Alex Padilla of California, said it was time to quit the hand-wringing and get back to door knocking. Padilla spoke with Biden over the weekend, and urged his campaign to let Joe be Joe. Given the debate, I think the campaign has no choice, Padilla said Sunday, explaining that Biden needs to hold town halls and unscripted events to show voters the Joe Biden that most people in America have come to know and love. While some deep-pocketed donors may be showing discomfort, strategists working on House and Senate races said they have posted record fundraising as donors view congressional Democrats as a firewall and last line of defense against Trump. The Congress posed three questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, July 8, as he embarked on his visit to Russia, the first since the Ukraine war broke out. The opposition party asked whether the relationship between India and Russia has cooled off under Prime Minister Modi's leadership. "I have raised three questions to the non-biological PM. Dr Manmohan Singh and Putin and the Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev had met 16 times in 10 years. Putin and Modi have met 11 times. So does this mean some cooling of relations between Russia and India? That's the first question, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X. The Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament (MP) claimed that Indias imports from Russia are almost $46 billion while the exports stand at about $3.5 billion. This is a completely unsustainable trade deficit. So what is the non-biological PM doing? Ramesh said wondering if the PM would raise the issue of this unsustainable trade deficit during his Russia visit. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Russia this afternoon for a two-day official visit. He will be in Moscow at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Russian state channel VGTRK that PM Modis schedule in Moscow is expected to be extensive. He added that the two leaders would be able to have informal talks. WASHINGTONDonald Trump has provoked U.S. allies for years, questioning NATOs relevance, demanding greater financial contributions and recently musing about the possibility of not protecting members who arent paying enough for defense. Now, with members of the alliance and other U.S. partners converging on Washington this week to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, heads of state are scrambling to find a common language with the Republican presidential candidate whose chances of winning in November have grown, according to the latest poll numbers. Their most urgent concerns are over Ukraine: Trump has declared he would single-handedly end the war by forcing Kyiv and Moscow into a peace deal before he is even sworn into office. With Moscow demanding that Ukraine forgo eventual NATO membership and cede swaths of its territory, some alliance members fear that Trump could try to bully Kyiv into a capitulation or might not continue sending the weapons necessary for Ukraines military to keep fighting. Polish President Andrzej Duda, who traveled to Trump Tower in New York City in April for a two-and-a-half-hour meeting with the former president, told The Wall Street Journal that he spoke about the strategic importance of Ukraine. Duda declined to go into details about the dinner, other than to say they dined on tasty steak." I presented my point of view to him, my assessment of the situation," he said, adding that he had successfully worked with Trump during his time in the White House. Such outreach by foreign officials has become common, said Keith Kellogg, a retired three-star Army general who served as the national-security adviser to then-Vice President Pence and earlier held senior positions in Trumps National Security Council. Kellogg doesnt speak for Trump or the presidents campaign, but as a former and potentially future member of Trumps inner circle, he has been a much sought-after interlocutor. Since last November we have had over 160 contacts with foreign officials," said Kellogg, who is part of the America First Policy Institute, which promotes Trumps foreign policy. Those reaching out include ambassadors, foreign ministers and defense ministers, he added. We talk to all of them," he said. Simply put, politically they are hedging their bets." Trumps penchant for unpredictability has made the job of outreach by governments more challenging, particularly because the campaign hasnt officially designated specific people to represent Trump on foreign policy. With limited insight into who will influence him in a new cabinet, some countries are leveraging whatever contacts they have, or are reaching out to Trump himself. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz invited key pro-Trump legislators to dine with him during his visit to Washington in January and the following month at the Munich Security Conference, a global geopolitics forum. His most senior aide, Wolfgang Schmidt, minister of the chancellery, has been traveling to Washington several times a year since Russia invaded Ukraine. Apart from his official dealings with the Biden administration, Schmidt has been building a network among Trump backers that includes donors, legislators and former Trump administration officials. But personal rapport between leaders might not be enough to overcome flare-ups with Trump over NATO, whose members are moving this week to reaffirm its long-term goal to bring Ukraine into the alliance. A senior Biden administration official said Friday that the NATO summit communique will include very strong signals of Allied support for Ukraine on its path to Euro-Atlantic integration." Trump, by contrast, blamed Western promises to bring Ukraine into the alliance for provoking Russia to invade the country in the first place. I think thats really why this war started," he said during a June interview with the All-In" podcast. During his debate with President Biden, Trump said that if he were elected in November he would have the war settled before he even took office on Jan. 20. Trump didnt provide details on how he plans to bring an end to the conflict, though he said he wouldnt accept Russian President Vladimir Putins territorial demands. But Kellogg spelled out one possible way, which would mark a radical break with the alliances current strategy. Under Biden, the U.S. and NATO have provided military support to Ukraine on an open-ended basis, hoping Ukrainian gains on the battlefield would enable Kyiv to pursue what it considers to be an acceptable solution. In contrast, Kellogg and Fred Fleitz, the former chief of staff of Trumps National Security Council, wrote in a paper published by the America First Policy Institute that the U.S. should press for a cease-fire, take NATO membership for Ukraine off the table for an extended period and then push Kyiv and Russia to negotiate a peace to stop the fighting. You turn to Ukraine and say, If you dont support this kind of deal, then our support dries up, " Kellogg said. You turn to the Russians and say, If you dont support a negotiated deal, then we will give Ukraine everything militarily that the United States has not provided in massive numbers. " Putin said last week that he welcomed Trumps talk about seeking a settlement to end the fighting in Ukraine, though he said he didnt know any details of his plan. Trump supporters say the former presidents broader goal is to strengthen alliances by encouraging laggards to boost their contributions. But John Bolton, who served as Trumps national-security adviser from 2018 to 2019, said Trump thought about withdrawing from NATO as president and might do so if re-elected. I think it laughable to say he is trying to reform NATO," Bolton said. He doesnt understand what collective defense alliances are. He believes essentially that we are providing defense services for these allies, and theyre not paying enough." Foreign officials outside of NATO are also building ties with Trump and his inner circle in the hope of influencing or at least blunting his future decisions on fractious issues over trade and national security. Japan, whose prime minister is expected to attend the NATO summit along with other partners, wants to ensure Trump doesnt put tariffs on its goods and maintains the U.S.-Japanese alliance. It has centered its outreach around former Prime Minister Taro Aso, 83 years old, who was Japans finance minister during the Trump administration. Aso, who currently holds the No. 2 post in the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, spent time with the former president in Trump Tower in April. Japans former national-security adviser, Shigeru Kitamura, has a business relationship with his counterpoint in the Trump administration, Robert C. OBrien. The men each run their own consulting firms, which have a strategic partnership. I think weve established pretty good personal relationships," Kitamura said. Australia, whose deputy prime minister plans to attend the summit, has already taken steps that appear to prepare for Trumps possible return. Former Prime Minister Scott Morrison met with Trump in May, sparking speculation that he could be Australias next U.S. ambassador if his center-right Liberal Party returns to power in coming elections. Even Mexico is trying to forge personal ties. A Trump victory could pose a challenge to Mexicos first female and Jewish president, Claudia Sheinbaum, a leftist academic who is to take office in October. While Trump was able to establish a solid working relationship with departing nationalist President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, Trump and Sheinbaum are unlikely to develop such personal affinity, current and former Mexican officials say. A telling sign that the incoming Sheinbaum administration is getting ready for a potential Trump victory is that she has named former Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard as the countrys future economy minister. Ebrard, who led talks with the Trump administration when the U.S. threatened to impose 25% tariffs, will serve as a top negotiator for the review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement scheduled for 2026. Still, personal ties can only go so far, and European leaders are worried about the NATO alliance as well as their relations with Washington, said Tony Housh, head of the American Chamber of Commerce in Poland. Warsaws military spending is well above the NATO average at more than 4% of GDP. Poland also has signed $50 billion of U.S. arms contracts over the past two years and has agreed with Westinghouse on a $20 billion nuclear-power plant, the countrys first. If Poland has good ties with Washington, thats important, but it still needs to bring the rest of Europe along with it to ensure its security," Housh said. The U.S., by itself, isnt enough." Peter Landers and Chieko Tsuneoka in Tokyo, Thomas Grove, Karolina Jeznach and Sharon Weinberger in Warsaw, Bojan Pancevski in Berlin, Mike Cherney in Sydney, and Santiago Perez in Mexico City contributed to this article. Write to Michael R. Gordon at michael.gordon@wsj.com and Alan Cullison at alan.cullison@wsj.com Preteens and teens across the country have ditched their crafts, videogames and toys, embracing antiaging and other beauty products, and parents are concerned. Some of the most popular products contain active ingredients such as retinol and glycolic acid, which can thin the top layer of the skin and cause peeling and irritation. While long-term impacts are still being studied, most children have a healthy skin barrier that becomes easily disrupted when using harsh topicals, according to dermatologists. Some girls have reported getting rashes after using such creams and serums; others say they have gotten sunburned more easily. No child was talking about alpha hydroxy acid before the pandemic," said Leah Ansell, the dermatologist invited to talk to the Girl Scouts in the New York suburb, referring to an active ingredient found in some products. Now, everyone is talking about specific skin-care ingredients. Its a worrying and surprising trend." Girls in their preteens and early teens have helped fuel a renaissance in the $430 billion global beauty market. Dubbed Sephora Kids," they follow influencers on TikTok and YouTube who post get ready with me" videos touting antiaging creams and serums. American teens spend an average of $339 a year on beauty products, according to Piper Sandler Companies semiannual Taking Stock With Teens" survey, the highest average recorded since 2018. The survey didnt break out the amount spent on specific types of beauty products, such as antiaging creams and serums. Retailers and product makers generally say they advise preteens and early teens to stick to gentler products. They have largely resisted efforts to mandate product warnings or age requirements. The warning debate Earlier this year, California assemblymember Alex Lee introduced a bill that would require warnings or age verification for antiaging products. The legislation was quashed at the appropriations-committee level. Lee said he is considering his next steps. During the hearing for the bill, then-10-year-old Scarlett Goddard-Strahan testified that she began using products that had antiwrinkling and brightening propertiesso that she wouldnt look old, no offense"after listening to influencers on TikTok and YouTube. She started getting burns and bumps after using them. I wanted glowy skin, and instead I have red, itchy skin," Goddard-Strahan told the committee. Beauty retailers Sephora and Ulta Beauty, along with owners of popular brands such as the Ordinary, Drunk Elephant and Glow Recipe, dont market antiaging products to younger customers in stores or on their websites. They have said preteens and younger teenagers should stay away from products with these ingredients. Sephora, a favorite destination for tweens, referred questions to the Personal Care Products Council, a trade association that includes hundreds of cosmetics and skin-care brands as well as chains such as Sephora and Ulta. The group said that it supports dermatologists views that antiaging products are unnecessary for preteens and teens and that they should look for mild cleansers, hydrating moisturizers and protective sunscreens. The trade group has said it would be largely impossible" to enforce any age requirements on products. Ulta said it recommends younger customers avoid retinols and active ingredients and instead reach for gentler alternatives. It said it looks to brands to provide age recommendations. Some companies have highlighted potential risks for younger customers. The Ordinary, owned by Estee Lauder, in February put out an Instagram post titled Teens, you dont need ten steps," recommending teens avoid ingredients like retinoids and alpha hydroxy acids at the start of your skincare journey." The social-media effect Bubble Skincare has a line on some of its product pages for formulas with higher levels of active ingredients, such as its Moon Walk Gentle Exfoliating Serum, that says it is recommended for those ages 14 and up. If you are younger than 14, talk to a dermatologist before using Moon Walk," the product description page says. Shai Eisenman, Bubbles founder and chief executive, said the brand has a responsibility to educate its customers about the risks of using active ingredients before they are necessary. Eisenman said that since Bubble launched in 2020, she has noticed younger and younger girls flocking to social media to tout their skin-care routines, many featuring products with highly active ingredients. The shift sparked discussions with Bubbles development team about how best to include age guidelines on their product. When the company launched its Moon Walk serum six months ago, it added the warning to the website and to TikTok advertisements for the products with an overview of age recommendations for the full product line. I dont want to see anyone doing anything that could potentially damage their skin," Eisenman said. Drunk Elephant, the colorfully packaged line owned by Japanese beauty giant Shiseido that is popular with younger customers, has no such warnings on its pages for specific products. In response to one of the frequently asked questions, Can Drunk Elephant be used by children?" the answer says: Not every product in our line should be used by younger fans, 12 and under. In general, we do not recommend using products containing high concentration of active ingredients, which address concerns that arent present at such an age." Safety is always our top priority," a Drunk Elephant spokesperson said. Glow Recipes Watermelon Glow PHA + BHA Pore-Tight Toner says on its website page that the product is suitable for all skin types and ages. You may wish to consult a dermatologist before using actives on young skin," it says. Glow Recipe didnt reply to requests for comment. Kathryn Kirchoff-Torres, a neurologist who leads a seventh-grade Girl Scout troop that attended Ansells presentation, has been concerned about how social-media marketing to tweens and teens contains little factual information on skin care that is healthy and safe. She has noticed it sometimes seems to have inflated claims from paid spokespeople. Its a field even we as adults find challenging to navigate," said Kirchoff-Torres, who has a teenage daughter. We wanted a science-based resource for our girls to have, so theyre not just buying items in order to fit in or to follow trends." CMF is all geared up to launch its first ever smartphone in India and global markets today. The CMF Phone 1 will likely be the most budget-friendly device from Nothing and may compete with the likes of OnePlus Nord CE 4 Lite, Vivo T3, iQOO Z9 and Realme P1. When and where to watch CMF Phone 1 launch? CMF Phone 1 will be launched at 2:30 PM today, and it is likely to be streamed live via the company's social media handles and YouTube channel. CMF Phone 1 expected specs: Rumours suggest that the CMF Phone 1 will feature a 6.7-inch Full HD+ LTPS AMOLED display with a peak brightness of 2000 nits (800 nits in high brightness mode) and a variable refresh rate of up to 120Hz. The upcoming Nothing is likely to have an IP52 rating for splash and dust resistance and an in-display fingerprint sensor. The smartphone will be powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 chipset with support for up to 8GB of RAM and up to 128GB of storage. There could also be support for expandable 2TB storage via the microSD card slot. In terms of optics, the phone is expected to come with a 50MP primary sensor and a depth sensor. The CMF Phone 1 could come with a 5,000mAh battery with support for 33W fast charging. It is likely to run on Nothing OS 2.5 based on Android 14, with promised support for 2 years of OS updates and 3 years of security patches. CMF Phone 1 expected price: Tipster Yogesh Brar had earlier suggested that the CMF Phone 1 will be priced at 15,999 for the 6GB RAM/128GB storage variant and 17,999 for the 8GB RAM/128GB storage variant. Now, a leaked screenshot has started doing the rounds on social media suggesting that the 17,999 variant of the Phone 1 could be available at an effective price of 14,999 as part of the launch offers. Milestone Alert! Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world Click here to know more. 3.6 Crore Indians visited in a single day choosing us as India's undisputed platform for General Election Results. Explore the latest updates here! PARIS : A new European rocket is poised to blast into space with a mission officials here say is vitally important: reducing the regions reliance on Elon Musk and SpaceX. Europes satellites and military intelligence have come to depend on the U.S. company after delays and malfunctions left the continent unable to get to orbit with its own rockets. Officials fear that dependence could extend to the battlefield: SpaceXs Starlink internet service has been crucial for Ukraine to fight off Russia, fanning worries in Europe that its armies might also need Musk for satellite communications in a war. Governments say the Ariane 6 rocket, operated by the European consortium Arianespace, will begin to change that equation. It is set to lift off from French Guiana on Tuesday, Europes first rocket to launch in a year. Clearly, we must deliver. We must restore autonomous access to space" for Europe, Stephane Israel, chief executive of Arianespace, said in an interview. With European rockets stuck on the ground, SpaceX stepped in to fill the void. Its Falcon 9 rocket has launched all of Europes most important satellites over the past year, including two that were supposed to be handled by Arianespace. The most recent blow came last month when Europes weather-satellite agency canceled a contract to launch next year with Ariane 6 and hired SpaceX instead. The decision left European space officials crestfallen, with the head of the French space agency saying: How far will we, Europeans, go in our naivety?" SpaceX is the leading U.S. space company, handling important missions for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and military. American officials laud its prowess, but many say they dont want to overly rely on any single contractor. NASA, for example, has hired Boeing to conduct regular astronaut flights to and from the International Space Station, in addition to SpaceX. Boeings first such mission was launched last month after delays and has faced technical challenges. The rise of SpaceX has upended Europes rocket industry and its champion, Arianespace, which used to lead the world in commercial launch services. SpaceXs mastery of reusable rocket technology has left Arianespace struggling to compete on price and more than a decade behind with its own reusable rocket. Arianespaces Israel has said Ariane 6 will offer prices that are competitive with SpaceXs current rockets and that its new, expendable vehicle offers advantages for customers. Musk brushed aside arguments for single-use rockets in remarks to a European tech conference in May. Any rocket that is not at least partly reusable has no competitive chance," he said. European nations are divided on how to respond to the rise of SpaceX. The French government is the biggest backer of Arianespace and is aiming to keep the consortium in business amid doubts in Germany that it is still worth subsidizing. French officials say they fear the continent would be happy to let SpaceX keep launching for Europe. ArianeGroup, Arianespaces parent company, is vital to what France calls its strategic autonomy because it has a military arm that provides the rocket technology for Frances nuclear arsenal. In a sign of its commitment to Arianespace, France has refused to use SpaceX to launch a military surveillance satellite that was supposed to lift off on the new rocket in 2021. The military is waiting to launch the satellite on the first operating flight of Ariane 6, French officials said. By contrast, Germany has used SpaceX, even for its most sensitive military-intelligence satellites. The company launched two of those in December. SpaceX, with its reusable Falcon rockets and cheap prices, appeals to Berlins impulse to keep government spending in check. Germany has also pushed European governments to hold a competition for European companies to design new launchersand possible competitors to Arianespace. France and other countries agreed in October last year, in exchange for Berlin pledging to continue funding Arianespace for the next few years. German officials say they prefer to use European launchers, but they also take into account price and service. The Germans are not committed to Ariane, they just want access to space," said Marco Fuchs, chief executive of the German satellite manufacturer OHB, which has also started its own rocket company. European concerns about relying on SpaceX extend beyond rockets. In Ukraine, Starlink has become the backbone of Ukrainian battlefield communications. That helped spur European governments to plan their own low-Earth orbit satellite constellation to provide battlefield communications in close to real time. A consortium of European companies including Airbus, Thales and OHB is aiming to win a multibillion-euro contract with the European Union to build and operate the constellation. Earlier this year, SpaceX executives met European lawmakers and proposed the company launch those satellites while seeking other business with Europe. They want to work with the Europeans, and I said, very good, but there are things that are sovereign where we cant work together," said Christophe Grudler, a French member of the European Parliament who leads discussions on space policy. We favor launches from Europe, except in times of extreme difficulty." A spokesman for SpaceX didnt respond to a request for comment. The Ariane 6 rocket that Arianespace will attempt to launch for the first time Tuesday towers nearly 200 feet tall on the launchpad and uses powerful engines and side boosters to lift off with its cargo. It is designed to fly a range of missions, including lofting big satellites deeper into space and flights to orbits closer to Earth. The Ariane 6 is the successor to a rocket that started flying more than 25 years ago and gained a strong following among commercial-satellite customers. By 2007, Arianespace used the older rocket, called Ariane 5, to control more than half of the market for communications and other civilian satellite launches. In 2021, Ariane 5 delivered one of NASAs most important spacecraftthe expensive and groundbreaking James Webb Space Telescopeto orbit. The final Ariane 5 mission occurred a year ago, leaving Europe without a major rocket because the Ariane 6 was delayed by technical challenges that are common when developing new rockets. Europe had planned to rely on Russias Soyuz rocket to help fill the gap, but Moscow ended space cooperation with Europe after the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Meanwhile, SpaceX has cut into Arianespaces market share by aggressively pitching launches to commercial-satellite companies and offering lower prices. SpaceX also continues to draw in government customers too. Eumetsat, the European weather-satellite agency, stunned space officials in the bloc when it said last month it would shift a cutting-edge weather satellite from an Ariane 6 rocket to a SpaceX. The mission had long been planned. A Eumetsat official said in June the group made the shift because of exceptional circumstances but didnt otherwise explain the move. A spokeswoman for the organization declined to comment. Nevertheless, Arianespaces Israel said the Ariane 6 will be busy. It doesnt have any open launch slots for a couple of years, he said. Customers include institutions in Europe and Amazon.com, which bought 18 Ariane 6 launches for its planned satellite network. But first, Tuesdays launch needs to go smoothly, which often isnt the case for a rockets maiden flight. In 1996, the first launch of Ariane 5 exploded shortly after liftoff. If problems emerge, French officials fear Germany might throw more business to SpaceX and pull back from Arianespace. And Europes access to space would still depend almost completely on Musk. Ariane 6 is certainly not the best product on the market today," said Helene Huby, chief executive of the Exploration Company, a French designer of space capsules. There is a need for more competition, and we have nothing else for the time being. So this is all the more important that it succeeds." Write to Matthew Dalton at Matthew.Dalton@wsj.com and Micah Maidenberg at micah.maidenberg@wsj.com Dmall Completes CSRC Registration for Hong Kong IPO, Chinese Digital Retail Service Provider Supported by Tencent Holdings and Lenovo Group, Dmall is a digital retail services provider who has finished registering with Chinas securities regulator for an overseas initial public offer (IPO), therefore opening the path for a stock sale in Hong Kong. For the Shenzhen-based business, this represents a big turning point since it wants to use the capital markets for more growth. Friday the material was revealed on the website of the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC). Dmall intends to market up to 86 million Hong Kong shares. Should the company fail to complete the listing within 12 months, the CSRC states it will have to re-register. Dmall had formerly applied for listings on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange in 2023 and 2022. From this IPO, insiders project Dmall might generate about US$500 million. Following a recovery in equities and a pledge by the CSRC to support foreign listings by Chinese companies, Dmall is the most recent mainland-based company to profit on the higher demand for new shares on Asias fourth-largest stock market. Though progress has since somewhat slowed, the benchmark Hang Seng Index entered a bull market in May. Established in 2015 by Zhang Wenzhong, who also runs the supermarket operator Wumart, Dmall focuses in the digital transformation of physical stores, hence improving operational efficiency and consumer experience. Currently using the companys technologies are more than 600 customers, including well-known companies like Metro and Lawson. For example, Dmalls system lets consumers easily scan a QR code to trace supply-chain trip of fresh vegetables including live fish and sustainability indicators. Dmall grew into Hong Kong in 2020 under DFI Retail Groupformerly Dairy Farm Holdingsas a major client. Self-service machines installed in DFIs Wellcome and Market Place grocery chainswhich have gained popularity among local customershave been made possible in great part by Dmalls technologies. Last year, Dmall built its headquarters at Hong Kongs Cyberport business park. Marcus Spurrell, CEO of Dmall, said in an interview with the Posts Morning Studio in January that when our founder started the company in 2015, he envisioned it becoming a global enterprise spreading its technology outside China. Thanks to its free-trade policies, open culture, and legal system, Hong Kong is the perfect starting point for us not only in Asia but also worldwide. The IPO is supposed to enable Dmall increase its profile outside of Asia. From individual markets including Hong Kong, Macau, Cambodia, and Singapore, the company already makes yearly profits beyond 100 million yuan (US$13.75 million). Dmall is also apparently in talks with numerous big European stores. Dmall is still hopeful about its future even though last year it posted a loss of 655 million yuan and Wumart and its associates provide most of its revenue. Most likely, the IPO money will support more development and global expansion. Six businesses are scheduled to begin trading in Hong Kong this week, the busiest week since December and a sign of fundraising activity recovering. Data provided by the London Stock Exchange Group shows, however, capital raised via IPOs in Hong Kong fell to a two-decade low of US$1.5 billion in the first half of this year. Shayne Heffernan Organised by IFA, a strong representation of farmers and industry stakeholders attended the farm of David and Roisin Fay on the banks of Lough Ennell, Co Westmeath to learn more about the Farming for Water EIP, a new European Innovative Partnership Programme (AGRI) project, funded by the Department of Agriculture Food and the Marine and the Department of Housing, Planning and Local Government, which focuses on-farm interventions or measures designed to protect, preserve, and improve water quality. Speakers included Joan Martin, Assistant Project Manager and David Webster, Teagasc Agricultural Sustainability Support and Advisory Programme (ASSAP) advisor, and David Fay, farmer. Joan Martin outlined how participation in the EIP isnt an open call at the present time, and that a tiered hierarchy within the priority areas for action identified in the second cycle of the river basin management plan are being prioritised for entry, but will progress to the third cycle areas for action once finalised in the forthcoming months. The locations of these can be found on the Environmental Protection Agencys website (www.catchments.ie) or check with your local ASSAP advisor. Although in its infancy, the EIP is garnering strong interest among farmers, and any farmer within a catchment area interested in getting involved is asked to contact their local ASSAP for further information. More farmers will be coming on board in the coming months. PICTURES | On yer bike in Longford! Great fun and a super turnout for Kenagh fundraising cycle With no limit to farmer payment; no mandatory measure (other than Rainwater Management Plan); and funding towards the costs of up to 41 measures (within certain parameters) and willingness to fund additional site-specific bespoke measures, the level of interest among farmers is unsurprising. The ASSAP advisor will recommend what measures are applicable to the farm based on the EPAs pollution impaction potential maps. Demonstrating some of these measures on-farm, David Webster re-iterated that this EIP is not about supplementary income - it is about water quality; doing the right thing; and getting the right measure in the right place. The more measures implemented, the more the farmer gets paid, but the Rainwater Management Plan is key. It shows how water flows on the farm, on the land, and where individual measures will be most effective, targeting the reduction of nutrient loadings to water courses. PICTURES | Reflecting on yesteryears in Longford: Convent of Mercy Class of 1974 enjoy reunion in Lanesboro Attendees were introduced to the opportunity of collective and targeted action involving a local project which almost eradicated completely the incidence of E. Coli in bathing waters which had been an issue in the years previous and threatened the closure of the bathing water. Interventions involving E. Coli and Phosphate can be more immediate perhaps within a year - however for Nitrates it can take a little longer to see the benefit of actions taken. John Curran IFA National Rural Development Chair said, The Farming for Water EIP model has huge potential to get farmer buy-in and improve water quality throughout the country. The need for targeted action is obvious, and the day of finger-pointing is done. Its about the collective, and the sum of individual targeted actions that will turn the dial at the end of the day. We all have to buy into this. We have seen on the Fay farm that small tweaks to management practices and/or investments can make a big difference. Its about awareness, know-how and having the right measure in the right place at the right time, unique to the individual site, coupled with tangible support and direction. PICTURES | Informative and successful Teagasc walk on the land of award winning Longford farmer What farmer would not close off water drinking points for example, when the cost of fencing and an alternative water source is provided. Its a win-win. But, as seen with this EIP, being properly resourced in terms of finance and know-how, is key too. Lets have more of that please, for more and more farmers around the country, he added. Criminal barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. It follows a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses, including Longford town. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme". Also read: Ballymahon Twinning Group to host inaugural Bastille Day celebrations on Sunday, July 14 Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10. However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored, say the Council of The Bar of Ireland. Sara Phelan SC, chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland, said it is with regret that they have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice. The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. Also read: ALDI sourced 12 million of locally produced food and drink from Longford based suppliers "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. Sean Guerin SC, chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee, said it has been acknowledged in Government that there is "no good reason" why fees of criminal barristers shouldnt be restored. "Yet eight months on from a commitment to establish a process reviewing the fees, no meaningful progress has been made. The impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice. Also read: Witness appeal following fatal Ballymahon road traffic collision "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society. Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected, said Mr Guerin. The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday, July 9, Monday, July 15, and Wednesday, July 24. Also read: Carey and Duggan inspire Clonguish young guns to Longford Leader Cup glory at Killoes expense Local News By Chris Boyle Published: July 08 2024 This fun and educational tour takes you to multiple historic sites, bringing participants back to our Towns colonial roots and its role in Americas formative years, said Town Clerk LaMarca. Oyster Bay Town Clerk Richard LaMarca announces that residents interested in local history are invited to embark on a journey through time with a guided walking tour of historic Oyster Bay, where echoes of the past meet footsteps in the present. Raynham Hall Museum, located at 30 West Main Street in the hamlet of Oyster Bay, offers a two-hour, historic walk through Oyster Bay, spanning 1.5 miles. This fun and educational tour takes you to multiple historic sites, bringing participants back to our Towns colonial roots and its role in Americas formative years, said Town Clerk LaMarca. From the spiritual Fort Hill Cemetery to the waterfront that once bustled with oyster harvesting and pirates, these tours offer a rich tapestry of tales, including those of notable figures like George Washingtons spy, Robert Townsend, and Theodore Roosevelt. Whether youre a history buff or simply seeking a picturesque walk, Oyster Bays Historic Walking Tour is a delightful blend of education and leisure. Historic Walking Tours are offered Saturday, July 20th, September 14th, October 5th and October 12th, from 10am to 12pm from Raynham Hall Museum, 30 West Main Street, Oyster Bay. Tours are offered for $25 ($20 for museum members) through Raynham Hall. The Historic Walking Tour through Oyster Bay was developed with the help of Margo Arceri, Culper Spy Ring historian and Three Village Historical Society Tri-Spy Tours founder. For more information, visit Historic Oyster Bay Walking Tours. Community, Charity & Cause By Chris Boyle Published: July 08 2024 Segev is a survivor and hero of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist assault and invasion of Israel. Nassau County Legislator Seth I. Koslow (D Merrick) joined the community in welcoming Ron Segev, a survivor and hero of the Oct. 7 Hamas terrorist assault and invasion of Israel, to an audience of more than 100 gathered at the Merrick Jewish Centre on Wednesday, June 5. Local News By Chris Boyle Published: July 08 2024 Bus Companies Will Invest Up to $2 Million to Electrify Buses and Curb Air Pollution from Excessive Idling in Low-Income Communities and Communities of Color. New York Attorney General Letitia James today announced settlements with four school bus companies to stop illegal excessive idling at their bus yards in communities of color and low-income communities in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and on Staten Island. The companiesConsolidated Bus, Inc. (Consolidated), Logan Bus Company (Logan), Pioneer Transportation Co. (Pioneer), and Total Transportation Corp. (Total)will each be required to invest up to $2 million to purchase new electric buses or electrify some of their current fleet. The Office of the Attorney General (OAG) alleges that these four companies violated New York laws by allowing school buses to idle for extended periods of time at their bus yards. Emissions from buses and cars are the largest contributor to air pollution in New York, and excessive idling endangers the health of surrounding communities. By contrast, the new electric buses will not emit any air pollutants. The companies will also install automatic idling shut-off timers on their remaining traditional buses and implement anti-idling training for drivers. "School bus companies play an important role in getting children to and from school safely, but they should be able to do so without polluting our communities, said Attorney General James. New Yorkers are already suffering the health consequences of air pollution, and these bus companies all operate bus yards in low-income communities and communities of color that are already bearing the disproportionate impacts of this pollution. We must do everything we can to protect the health of our children and our planet, and my office will always fight against environmental injustice. Data provided by the fleet management system that the New York City Department of Education (NYCDOE) has installed on all New York City school buses indicated that the companies had all repeatedly exceeded idling limits. The data revealed thousands of instances of excessive idling by Consolidated, Logan, Pioneer, and Total at their bus yards. Most of these bus yards, which are in Brooklyn, Queens, the Bronx, and on Staten Island, are located in areas identified by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) as potential environmental justice areas, or neighborhoods that are disproportionately impacted by environmental harms such as air pollution. The companies bus yards are sometimes clustered together in these neighborhoods, which exacerbates their negative impacts on the surrounding community. New York law prohibits idling for over five minutes, while New York City law prohibits idling for more than three minutes, or one minute when the vehicle is near a school building. The OAG investigation focused on instances of idling for periods of more than two hours in the early morning to rule out instances where extended idling might be allowed under the law due to other circumstances, such as traffic or picking up and dropping off students. Emissions from cars, trucks, and buses are one of the leading sources of air pollution in New York state. Idling is a significant source of these emissions, with an estimated 130,000 tons of carbon dioxide emitted in New York City alone each year. Emissions from diesel-powered vehicles like buses are particularly harmful to the communities surrounding bus yards because they emit fine particulate matter that has been linked to numerous problems, including asthma, cancer, and heart disease. The health impacts of air pollution are disproportionately felt in low-income communities and communities of color in New York City, which are often home to bus yards and other high-emission facilities like power plants located in close proximity to residential neighborhoods. Children in Central Brooklyn, the South Bronx, and Upper Manhattanwhich are predominantly low-income communities and communities of colorare three times more likely than children in other areas of the city to be diagnosed with asthma. Depending on the number of alleged instances of illegal idling, the companies will each invest at least $300,000 and up to $2 million to purchase new electric school buses or repower existing traditional school buses, which involves removing the vehicles internal combustion engine and replacing it with an electric drive system. The companies will also implement mandatory training for all bus drivers to reduce unnecessary excessive idling at bus yards. New York Citys low-income communities and communities of color continue to be overburdened by pollution, causing serious ongoing harm to residents health, said Eddie Bautista, Executive Director at New York City Environmental Justice Alliance. Excessive idling and other vehicle emissions are major contributors to this pollution, spewing dangerous contaminants into our air and fueling the climate crisis. We applaud Attorney General James for fighting for healthy air in our communities by holding these school bus companies accountable for illegal idling and speeding their transition into a clean electric bus fleet. We applaud Attorney General James for continuing to fight to reduce tailpipe emissions in Hunts Point and across the city. These school bus companies that continue to illegally idle dump harmful pollution into the air that fuels asthma and other lung diseases in our communities, said Dariella Rodriguez, Director of Community Development at THE POINT CDC. This settlement sends a clear message to these companies that they cannot continue to ignore the law and that school buses cannot continue to be associated with pollution and respiratory diseases. School buses carry our children and should be a symbol of a thriving future for them, not air pollution and asthma. Idling school buses spew carcinogenic diesel exhaust into the air and childrens lungs, and they also exacerbate the ever-worsening climate crisis, said Alok Disa, Senior Research and Policy Analyst at Earthjustice. But electrifying these fleets, with buses that are available today, presents a viable and effective clean energy solution, one that will improve public health and help move us closer to an emissions-free transportation sector in line with our states climate plan. We commend the Attorney General for accelerating this transition and taking action to benefit schoolchildren and communities across the city. This settlement shows how critical the city's strong idling laws are to protecting the health of children and communities, especially disadvantaged communities, said Suhali Mendez, Policy and Legislative Coordinator at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest. We commend Attorney General James' office for accelerating the process of electrification and for mandating anti-idling shut-off timers to better protect the communities that house these large depots. This matter is being handled by Affirmative Section Chief Yueh-ru Chu and Assistant Attorney General Andrew G. Frank of the Environmental Protection Bureau under the supervision of Deputy Bureau Chief Monica Wagner and Bureau Chief Lemuel M. Srolovic. The Environmental Protection Bureau is part of the Division for Social Justice, which is led by Chief Deputy Attorney General Meghan Faux and overseen by First Deputy Attorney General Jennifer Levy. Bill and Joe catch up on headlines related to the war in Gaza and the additional Iranian-backed conflicts at Israeli borders, including a status update on the latest round of hostage negotiations, action in the West Bank, and how Israel should handle Tehrans noose-tightening. They also discuss the recent sighting of a top Hezbollah military official and specially designated global terrorist at the funeral of a Hezbollah commander. Powered by RedCircle Joe Truzman is a research analyst at FDD's Long War Journal focused primarily on Palestinian militant groups and Hezbollah. Bill Roggio is a Senior Fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and the Editor of FDD's Long War Journal. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant viewing Lebanon during meetings with IDF troops on Mount Hermon. (Ariel Hermoni/Israel Ministry of Defense photo) On July 7, Hezbollah launched several rounds of rockets and anti-tank missiles at Israel, wounding at least four people. Two of those injured, including an American citizen, suffered serious wounds. The attacks followed several days of escalating clashes. On July 4, Hezbollah launched more than 200 rockets and 20 drones at Israel, killing an IDF soldier. The Iranian-backed terrorist group followed these attacks up with the escalation on July 7. In both cases, Hezbollah claimed to be retaliating for Israel killing senior Hezbollah commanders in Lebanon. As Hezbollah ramped up its attacks on Israel, Israeli Minister of Defense Yoav Gallant visited IDF troops in an armored brigade on Mount Hermon, the mountain at the northern end of the Golan Heights. These are critical days in terms of exercising our power against an enemy that only responds to force. Even if we reach an agreement in the southern arena, we will continue fighting here, until we bring Hezbollah to reach an agreement and ensure the safe return of Israels northern communities to their homes, Gallant said. Gallant added that Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorist groups in Lebanon have lost 450 fighters since clashes began on the border on October 8, 2023. These casualties include the deaths of 15 Hezbollah commanders at the brigade level of the terrorist group, including three of Hezbollahs division commanders. The Ministry of Defense assesses that this total represents 50 percent of Hezbollahs senior commanders of these ranks in southern Lebanon. Gallant has said several times during the war that even if there is a ceasefire in Gaza, the IDF may continue strikes against Hezbollah. Hezbollah has explicitly linked its attacks with the war in Gaza, essentially claiming it will stop the attacks if there is a ceasefire. Gallants visit followed days of increasing tensions. On July 6, Hezbollah launched several drones at northern Israel, targeting areas near the city of Kiryat Shmona. The city was evacuated in October when Hezbollahs attacks began, and it is mostly a ghost town today. The drone attacks set off sirens, and the IDF said it intercepted one of the drones. Two other drones crossed from Lebanon fell in an open area in Beit Hillel, the IDF said on July 6. Hezbollah claimed to have targeted an IDF artillery position. No one was injured in the attack, according to the IDF. The same day as the drone attacks, Israel carried out an airstrike that killed Maytham Mustafa Al-Ataar, who the IDF described as a key operative in Hezbollahs Aerial Defense Unit. The airstrike took place in the Baalbek area of Lebanon, around 70 miles north of the Israeli border. Israel accused Al-Ataar of the planning and carrying out of numerous terror attacks against the State of Israel and stated he traveled to Iran numerous times to gain knowledge and assisted in building up the Hezbollah terrorist organisations force and arsenal of Iranian weapons. Hezbollah took responsibility for launching a barrage of rockets in response, according to Iranian state media. On July 7, Hezbollah began its attacks at around 10 am, and sirens sounded in 20 Israeli communities west of the Sea of Galilee. Most of these communities are Arab and Druze villages and towns. Hezbollah claimed it was targeting an IDF base with the rockets. The attacks took place around 20 miles inside Israel, much deeper than most Hezbollah targets. Israeli air defenses intercepted approximately 20 of the projectiles, but one rocket wounded a farmer. The Iranian-backed group followed up the morning attack three hours later with a rocket barrage targeting Mount Meron, the tallest mountain in the Galilee. The group has often targeted an IDF air traffic control site on the mountain in the past nine months. Hezbollah took responsibility for the attack in a statement to Al-Mayadeen media, a pro-Iranian website. The group claimed it targeted an espionage site near the border, using appropriate weapons, Hezbollah terminology for what it sees as proportional attacks on Israel. The group often hits the border region with rockets, drones, and anti-tank missiles, claiming to target mostly military sites. In the afternoon, Hezbollah hit the border community of Zarit with two anti-tank missiles. The IDF initially said one soldier was lightly wounded. The IDF also published footage of one of the attacks showing Hezbollah launching an anti-tank missile from the Lebanese border town of Ayta Ash Shab. The Hezbollah terrorist organization continues to embed its military assets inside civilian areas in Lebanon and use them as human shields in its terrorist attacks against Israel, the IDF said. Israels Ynet reported that a 31-year-old American citizen was seriously injured in the anti-tank missile attack in Zarit. The injured US citizen is an employee of a civilian company, which either sold or donated drones to reservists serving at the Lebanese border, and company employees arrived, apparently without permission, to instruct the soldiers on how to use the drones and to install some of the systems, according to Ynet. The harm to the American citizen appeared to raise eyebrows in the pro-Iranian camp because Al-Mayadeen noted that it is still unclear what an American was doing in this area, which is a closed military [area]. According to CNN reporting on a statement by the Galilee Medical Center, which is treating the injured US citizen, the 31-year-old man suffered shrapnel injuries to his upper body, and his condition is worsening. Two others, a soldier and a civilian, were hospitalized in a surgical department after being injured by Hezbollahs missiles. 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). An Israeli tank of the 7th Armored Brigade operating in Shejaiya. (IDF photo) The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) launched a new operation in portions of Gaza City on July 8. A raid by troops from the IDFs 99th Division targeted several neighborhoods that fan out from Gazas old city and center toward the west and south. Hamas has returned to many communities in northern Gaza around Gaza City, and the IDF carried out similar raids in Jabaliya in May and Shejaiya in late June. The IDF said in a statement that overnight, following intelligence indicating the presence of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorist infrastructure, operatives, weapons, and investigation and detention rooms in the area of Gaza City, including in the UNRWA headquarters, the IDF and ISA began a counterterrorism operation in the area. Hamas has used a large number of UN facilities in Gaza, and the IDF has targeted some of them in precision air strikes over the last two months. In February, Israeli forces uncovered a computer and data center used by Hamas in an underground tunnel below a UNRWA headquarters in the Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City. Palestinian media reported that the raid began in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood west of Gaza City. The IDF called on residents to leave the area and head south toward the Mawasi humanitarian zone in southern Gaza. Tel al-Hawa is near the IDF-controlled Netzarim Corridor that stretches across Gaza. It is not far from the Mediterranean coastline and borders another neighborhood called Zaytun, where the IDF has carried out several operations since February to clear the area of terrorists. The IDF map published online indicates that residents were called upon to flee across the Netzarim Corridor, passing through IDF checkpoints. A defined route will be opened to facilitate the evacuation of uninvolved civilians from the area, the IDF said. The IDF specified that its troops had operated in the area in the past in order to eliminate terrorists and destroy an underground tunnel route below the compound. The operation in Gaza City began amid recent hostage and ceasefire talks in which Hamas appeared to be more flexible in its demands. In the past 24 hours, the Israeli military has intensified its offensive operations in the northern Gaza Strip. This effort aims to increase direct military pressure on Hamas to become more flexible and advance in negotiations for the release of hostages, Israels Ynet media noted in an analysis. The raid also comes amid reports that Hamas is recruiting more fighters to its ranks. Although the group has suffered losses to most of its battalions and may have lost more than half its fighters since its October 7 attack, it has reportedly recruited new members over the last nine months. As the IDF moves from the Netzarim Corridor north into Gaza Citys neighborhoods, a separate operation is continuing in Shejaiya, south of Gaza City. The Shejaiya raid began on the evening of June 27. The IDFs 7th Armored Brigade, along with elements of the 98th Division, continue to clear terrorist infrastructure in the area. The IDF said in a statement that it raided and destroyed a combat compound and a command and control center of Hamas terrorists located in schools and a clinic that were converted from civilian use to terrorist purposes. The forces found weapons, including pistols, rifles, and machine guns, as well as UNRWA uniforms, indicating terrorists may have been disguising themselves as humanitarian workers. Photos of the weapons found showed many in varying degrees of disrepair, possibly indicating that the militants have less access to weaponry than they did in the past. 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). After several years of minor refreshes, a new report claims the Apple Watch is headed for one of its most significant updates this fall. In the latest edition of his Power On newsletter, Bloomberg analyst Mark Gurman predicts that the Apple Watch Series 10 (or X depending on how Apple wants to brand it), headed for launch in fall 2024, will see a raft of notable changes as the company celebrates the devices milestone anniversary. These will include larger screens, thinner bodies, and a new processor chip designed to work better with AI when Apple is ready to bring Apple Intelligence to the wrist. Both versions of the Series 10codenamed N217 and N218will get bigger screens, Gurman writes. The change means Series 10 shoppers will be able to pick a screen thats about as large as the one found on the Apple Watch Ultra. But unlike the Apple Watch Ultra, the Series 10 wont become bulkier to accommodate the larger screens. In fact it will be slimmer than the previous generation (although presumably it will still occupy a larger area on the wrist). The design, Gurman claims, is unlikely to look much different in other ways, so we can expect the same curved screen corners, bezel width, button layout, and so on, but the bigger screen and thinner chassis alone represent a major update. Not that the screen bump and chassis slimming are not the only changes; there will also be a new processor. The Series 10 and Ultra 3 which will accompany it, are both set to feature a chip which could lay the groundwork for some AI enhancements down the road, Gurman writes. For now, the Apple Watch is the only major Apple product to be excluded from the Apple Intelligence project (and isnt that a shame?) but when the time comes, this processor will give the device the hardware capabilities to handle AI tasks. Apple introduced a quad-core Neural Engine for the Apple Watch with the S9 chip in the Apple Watch Series 9 and Ultra 2, which allowed the watch to process machine learning tasks up to twice as fast, when compared with Apple Watch Series 8. Hoped-for health upgrades, meanwhile, seem likely to be pushed back to a later model. Gurman says efforts to develop monitors to detect high blood pressure and sleep apnea have not gone smoothly with Apple running into some serious snags. But those upgrades are still in the works and Apple is determined to Its worth noting that these are not entirely new theories; the newsletters weekly nature means Gurman often sums up and adds depth to existing rumors rather than breaking new ground. The Ultra-sized screen and slim chassis, for example, were revealed in a leak last month. The idea of the Series 10 getting an AI-ready processor is a new one, I believe, but the writer himself acknowledges that this is not certain: note that word could. Were expecting to see Apple Watch Series 10, Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3rd generation, running watchOS 11, launch in September 2024 at the companys Glowtime event (see how to watch the September event). If youre in the market for a new Apple Watch, see our Apple Watch buying guide, round-up of the best Apple Watch deals, and advice on whether you should buy Apple Watch now or wait. You might also be interested in what other new Apple products are coming this year, and when is the next Apple event. Dengue grips India's southern state Karnataka, Delhi too registers 240 cases Xinhua) 14:18, July 07, 2024 NEW DELHI, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Dengue has gripped several parts of India's southern state of Karnataka, even as nearly seven persons were suspected to have died due to the viral disease and over 7,000 cases registered, confirmed a state health department official. Over 1,000 cases were registered in the state capital Bengaluru alone. Among the districts severely affected by dengue were Hassan, Chikmagalur, Bengaluru and Mysore. Considering the rising number of dengue cases, federal lawmaker from the Bengaluru Rural constituency and noted cardiologist C.N. Manjunath urged the state government to declare dengue as a "state medical emergency." He warned that if the breeding of mosquitoes was not contained, it could also lead to Chikungunya, Zika, and other harmful diseases. Media reports quoted the lawmaker as saying, "The cases are soaring close to 7,000 in the state with about six to seven deaths. Hassan, Chikmagalur, Bengaluru, and Mysore, among other districts, are seeing a steep rise in dengue cases. The government has to declare a state medical emergency to control the infection." Meanwhile, the country's capital city New Delhi was too witnessing a dengue outbreak, even as a total of 240 cases had been registered till Saturday night. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Kou Jie) A traditional European bakery with a long history in Central Massachusetts is looking to stay true to its roots as it opens its second location in one of Bostons trendiest areas: Newbury Street. I really want to grow into the community in Boston, Nathan Nguyen, one of the owners of The Black Rose Bakery in Westborough, told MassLive. Bostons a big part of my life, said Nguyen, who used to work in the city and visits often to see friends. Its always had a spot in my heart, and I just think that its just a great place to move to. The new Black Rose Bakery is expected to open at 303 Newbury St. at the end of July or early August, Nguyen said. The new location will serve everything from the bakerys signature cookies and cannolis to mini-pastries and cakes. Specific to the Boston bakery will be sandwiches and drinks such as bubble tea, coffee and espresso. The new store will also have indoor and outdoor seating, unlike its original location. Its a way more modern space, Nguyen said. Our store here is more European-esque, if you will. So were a little more fitting to the younger college students, just the whole family, tourist crowd. Its a little bit of everything. While the bakery will occupy one of Bostons trendiest neighborhoods, Nguyen said the new Black Rose will stay true to its traditional European fare, which his family has worked hard to master. That has a lot of sentimental value to our family, Nguyen said, adding that moving to Boston will be a great way to get the name out. Nguyens aunt, Long Rocheford, who has been a baker since he was a baby, began her baking journey in 1998 at Gerardo Sarlis bakery, Black Rose Bakerys website reads. Rocheford would go on to study French pastries in Chicago and Europe before coming back to Massachusetts to continue her work with Sarli. After seven years, Sarli handed the Westborough bakery to Rocheford in 2022. Rocheford then named the bakery after her mother, Rose, thus The Black Rose was born. Last year, Nguyen asked his aunt about opening another store in Boston, and she gave him her blessing. Looking further down the road, Nguyen has hopes the family can open another Black Rose Bakery in either the Seaport or Fenway neighborhoods of Boston. The abduction and discovery of 9-year-old Charlotte Sena made national news last October. Now, Senas photo is being used in Facebook posts popping up in groups from Northampton to Melbourne, Australia, all using the same text describing a fictional missing person. A post in the group Northampton sale created on July 4 garnered 28,000 shares. Another was posted in the group Accommodation in Melbourne on Monday. Yet another, in the group Van Buren County, MI Buy Sell and Trade, has been shared 13,000 times since it was posted on July 3. Each of the posts uses the same language 13-year-old Charlotte Sena has been missing for 48 hours after she left her friends home. Unfortunately, there is still no sign of her. We are asking for the communitys help. Please, if you can spare some time & join us to help organise [sic] a community-wide search for Charlotte. Additionally, we kindly ask everyone to check their sheds, garages, and any other outer buildings or share this post on any sites that helps also. Police have been notified! The post provides an accurate description of Sena 4 feet 6 inches tall, roughly 90 pounds and wearing an orange tie-dye Pokemon shirt, dark blue pants, black Crocs and gray bike helmet. But the girl is not missing and was found last October after an intense search in Gansevoort, New York. In a similar case, photos of a 2-year-old boy with cuts all over his face were used in what the Better Business Bureau called a bait and switch scam. In those scams, the scammer changes the original post to a deceptive rental ad or sometimes to a link pointing to a survey that guarantees a cash prize, the BBB reported. Boston police have identified 40-year-old Jamaica Plain resident Warren Julien as the man killed in a shooting near a Roxbury park early Friday morning. Officers were called to 618 Shawmut Ave. shortly after 1:30 a.m. for a report that a person had been shot, Boston police said previously. At the scene, they found Julien with life-threatening gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital where he was declared dead. A 17-year-old boy was shot and killed in Lawrence late Saturday night and investigators are asking for the publics help in locating anyone with information about the incident, Essex County District Attorney Paul Tuckers office said. Lawrence police went to the area of Brook Street around 9:47 p.m. on Saturday. When they arrived, they found the 17-year-old, whose name was not immediately released, with gunshot wounds, Tuckers office said in a statement. The teen was treated by paramedics at the scene before being taken to Lawrence General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Lawrence police and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to Tuckers office are investigating the shooting. Tucker and Lawrence Police Chief Melix Bonilla asked anyone that may have information pertaining to this incident to come forward. A 26-year-old resident from Marthas Vineyard linked to a series of South Shore stabbings and a Connecticut homicide is being held without bail related to criminal charges in Plymouth District Court. A dangerousness hearing held Monday resulted in district court Judge Julie Bernard ordering Jared Ravizza held without bail as charges against him proceed. Ravizza faces one count of armed assault to murder, two counts of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon and one count of indecent exposure related to a pair of stabbings in May. Authorities from the office of Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz said that on May 25, at about 6:52 p.m., police were called about two McDonalds employees who were stabbed at a Route 3 rest area in Plymouth. A 21-year-old woman and a 28-year-old man were brought to separate hospitals due to the stabbings, authorities said. Surveillance video from McDonalds showed that Ravizza reached through the drive-through window and stabbed the male victim with a large knife. He then left the drive-through, returned to the restaurant on foot, and stabbed the female victim, authorities said. Last week, Connecticut State Police issued an arrest warrant for Ravizza and the department previously confirmed that he was a suspect in the murder of Bruce Feldman, 70, who was killed at a home in Deep River before the stabbing spree on May 25. Authorities also identified Ravizza as a suspect in the stabbing of four girls at AMCs Braintree location on the same day as the Plymouth stabbings. Ravizza faces four counts each of armed assault with intent to murder and assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in Quincy District Court. Ravizza would have to be extradited to Connecticut to be charged there, so given his active cases in Massachusetts, it is unclear when that would happen, Connecticut State Police told MassLive last week. Their investigation into Feldmans death is active and ongoing. Ravizza has been detained at Bridgewater State Hospital since May 28 when a Plymouth District Court judge ordered him held while mental health professionals determine whether he is competent enough to stand trial. On July 1, a Plymouth District Court judge again ordered that Ravizzas mental health evaluation be extended and that he be held at Bridgewater State Hospital while this continues, court records show. A 27-year-old man was shot and killed in a Lawrence park early Monday morning the second fatal shooting in the city in just over 24 hours, Essex County District Attorney Paul Tuckers office announced. Lawrence police went to Riverfront State Park on Everett Street around 12:18 a.m. Monday, where they found a 27-year-old man with a gunshot wound to the head. The man, whose name was not immediately released, was pronounced dead at the scene, Tucker and Lawrence Police Chief Melix Bonilla said in a statement. The Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to Tuckers office is investigating the shooting along with Lawrence police. Trooper Michael Proctor will be suspended without pay after a duty status hearing on Monday in the aftermath of unprofessional text messages revealed in a high-profile murder trial. Proctor, the lead investigator in Karen Read murder case, admitted to sending unprofessional and derogatory text messages about Read during his investigation. The texts were revealed last month during her murder trial. A board of three commissioned officers recommended Proctors suspension without pay and Colonel John Mawn accepted the boards recommendation making it effective immediately, according to a state police statement. Hours after Reads mistrial last Monday, state police announced he was relieved of duty and transferred out of the detective unit assigned to the Norfolk County District Attorney Michael Morrisseys Office. An internal affairs investigation into Proctor remains ongoing, state police said. At the conclusion of an internal affairs investigation, state police may pursue charges that would be adjudicated by a State Police Trial Board, a police spokesperson said. State police transferred Proctor to Troop H in South Boston to an administrative role but he remains ineligible to work, state police said. Read, 44, of Mansfield, was charged with the murder of her Boston police officer boyfriend John OKeefe, 46. She pleaded not guilty and the prosecution said shortly after the mistrial they intend to retry Read. Judge Beverly Cannone set a July 22 hearing date for the next steps. Just weeks after elbow surgery, Red Sox starter Lucas Giolito went public with his plans to try the unthinkable. In an appearance on The Chris Rose Rotation podcast in April, Giolito who underwent an internal bracing procedure to repair a damaged ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his pitching elbow on March 13 said he planned to try to return by the end of the 2024 season. Three months later, Giolito is ready to concede thats not going to happen. Unsurprisingly, the Red Sox training staff put the kibosh on Giolitos aggressive plan and has him fully focused on trying to get back for Opening Day in 2025. They shut that down, Giolito said, smiling, during a lengthy conversation with MassLive last week in Miami. I tried to convince them. I tried to bring the idea up and its just not in the cards. I think its always good to set lofty goals, but with the rehab and everything, Im going to be in a better position. The teams going to be in a better position to rehab through this year and then get ramped up and ready for a full season next year. That Giolito (as expected) will miss the entirety of 2024 doesnt mean hes not making progress. Saturday marks the four-month mark since he went under the knife and he continues to receive treatment on his elbow while strengthening his shoulder. If all goes well, the right-hander said, hell be able to start playing catch by the end of July, marking an important first step on the road back. Working with the training staff, its been fantastic, Giolito said. Its just making sure to stay motivated every day. Hitting each little goal and looking forward to the next major step, which will be beginning my throwing program. Were doing a lot of work on my shoulder. Obviously, letting this thing heal and doing whatever work for the forearm and the whole area surrounding the elbow. But a lot of that is just letting everything sink in. A lot of work for the shoulder, getting the shoulder in a really good spot so that when I come back throwing and start ramping up again we are already a step ahead of where I was before because we have so much time afforded to us now. BetMGM BET UP TO $1,500! BONUS BET REFUND AFTER A LOSS CLAIM OFFER Promo code: MASS150 STATES: AZ, CO, IA, IL, IN, KS, LA, MD, MI, NJ, OH, PA, TN, VA. Visit BetMGM.com for Terms and Conditions. 21 years of age or older to wager. MA Only. New Customer Offer. All promotions are subject to qualification and eligibility requirements. Rewards issued as non-withdrawable bonus bets. Bonus bets expire 7 days from issuance. In Partnership with MGM Springfield. Play it smart from the start with GameSense. GameSenseMA.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-327-5050 or visit gamblinghelplinema.org. US Promotional Offers not available in New York. Its hard to envision Giolitos Red Sox career getting off to a worse start than it did during spring training. After signing a complicated one-year, $19 million deal with Boston in late December, he arrived in Fort Myers looking like the veteran leader of an unproven pitching staff who, at the very least, would provide plenty of innings after logging at least 161 in every full season since 2018. Just two starts (and 4 innings) into his exhibition season, Giolitos elbow started barking and he underwent an MRI that revealed ligament damage. He avoided Tommy John surgery (a full UCL reconstruction) but still had the internal brace procedure. His 2024 season was over before it started. Giolitos deal includes a player option for 2025 valued at $19 million that was basically built in as insurance were he to get hurt or struggle significantly this season. Thatll now be a no-brainer decision after a year off and Giolito will have been guaranteed $37 million over two years despite the injury. For Giolito, its a positive that he wont have to face the uncertainty of free agency again after a lost season. But the situation still comes with its natural regrets. The contract is a tough one because if Im getting paid this much money, I want to be contributing, which Im not doing this year. So thats definitely a tough pill to swallow, he said. At the same time, thats the way it is. It just gives me that motivation to really get prepared and be ready to go for next season and have a good, full, healthy season coming back off of this. Thats why were putting the work in now. I like to live in the present so as far as contract stuff is concerned, thats the last thing on my mind. Giolito, who turns 30 on Sunday, was expected to be one of the leaders of a young team. With more than six years of major league service under his belt, he has more experience than just four members of Bostons pitching staff (Kenley Jansen, Liam Hendriks, Chase Anderson and Chris Martin). With that responsibility in mind, Giolito instead of going to Fenway South or home to California has remained in Boston while rehabbing and has been present at Fenway Park for home games this season. Last week, he traveled with the team in a move manager Alex Cora jokingly said was motivated by a desire to visit two fun cities in Miami and New York. While hes getting healthy, Giolito has an open invitation to be around the team as much as possible and hes making an impact even while sidelined. Hes a good guy and obviously he understands what it takes to be a big leaguer, to be a starter and to post every five days, Cora said. We were talking about workload the other day. He was a little surprised I took Kutter (Crawford) out (after 72 pitches) Tuesday and we talked about where were at inning-wise and what were trying to accomplish with these guys. Hes engaged. He goes and watches bullpen and talks to (pitching coaches Andrew Bailey and Kevin Walker). Obviously, not having him, it sucks. But at the same time, having the person and the big leaguer is very important for us. Being around the team has also benefited Giolito, who has been one of baseballs workhorses over the last few years and has had trouble coming to grips with his new reality in 2024. When youre in that full-year rehab process, its really easy to get caught up in it and you can get caught up in your own feelings and what youre doing and the monotony of rehab work, Giolito said. Guys can start to feel isolated from the team or feel like youre not part of the team. I think that its important to do everything you can to maintain that identity of being a really good teammate even when youre not able to contribute on the field. Just going through day-to-day rehab, taking a step back, seeing the game from a different perspective, its really made me appreciate the privilege it is to compete and compete at this level, he added. Ive been doing it for a long time not as long as some other guys in this room but Ive been doing it for a long time. I wouldnt say I was taking it for granted, but Id been healthy for so long and pitching for so long that I was like, This is normal. This is my life. To have it taken away for a full season, Im really developing an appreciation for what I get to do for a living, like on a whole other level. Even without Giolito anchoring things, the Red Sox rotation has performed well throughout the first half. Led by All-Star Tanner Houck, the group has combined to post the seventh-best rotation ERA (3.60) in baseball a major reason why the club is 49-40 with six games to go before the All-Star break. With a front row seat, Giolito has come away impressed. I feel like a lot of the time Im just trying to get out of the way because theyre pitching so freaking well, he said. Seeing the young talent and seeing these guys start to really come into their own, I cant wait to be a part of it next year and just do everything I can to help us win games next year. It just fuels that fire to put that hard work in and come back strong next year. I really cant wait to compete and pitch again. For now, Giolito will continue to rehab his arm in hopes of beginning to ramp up soon. His legs are getting a workout, too, as he gets to know the city hell call home at least through 2025. Been walking around (Boston) a bunch. Its a fun city to walk around for sure, Giolito said. Really enjoy the North End. The Italian food and pastries, eating cannolis and whatnot. Its a really beautiful city. My girlfriend and I are enjoying it immensely. And then obviously going to Fenway and watching these games at Fenway, its the best place. Its the best ballpark in America. Best atmosphere to play in. So again, I cant wait until next season. Springfield police arrested a fugitive wanted in Pennsylvania after he fired a handgun while riding a scooter down a city street Saturday morning, according to police. Springfield resident Christian Ayala-Pellot, 28, is facing 11 charges including fugitive from justice, leaving the scene of property damage, malicious destruction of property, giving police a false name, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a building and disorderly conduct, Springfield police said in a Monday press release. On Saturday around 11 a.m., Springfield police officers heard gunfire coming from the intersection of Allen and Alberta Streets, police said. Witnesses told police that a suspect who was later identified as Ayala-Pellot had fired a gun while riding a scooter. GREENFIELD Months after Taaniel Herberger-Brown was arrested at Albany International Airport in New York, he was extradited to Massachusetts on Monday and will be arraigned a murder charge on Tuesday, the Northwestern District Attorneys Office announced. In April, Herberger-Brown was arrested by the Albany County Sheriffs Office after police found the body of Christopher Hairston, 35, in a Chapman Street apartment that Herberger-Brown had recently left in Greenfield. NORTHAMPTON Prosecutors have offered dispositions to defendants who were arrested during the University of Massachusetts Amherst protests earlier this spring that could help get their charges dismissed, officials said Monday. Four of the 130 people who were arrested in May have agreed to a four-month diversion program an incentive for people to stay out of trouble so that their charges can be dropped, according to a statement from the Northwestern District Attorneys Office. Prosecutors came to these dispositions by reviewing hundreds of hours of police body camera footage, according to the statement. The charges left intact for protesters were in keeping with their behavior at the time of arrests, said Northwestern District Attorney David E. Sullivan in the statement. WESTFIELD The City Council meeting that would have normally been held on the first Thursday of the month was rescheduled from July 4 to this Monday, July 8, at 7 p.m. in City Council Chambers. Councilors will be asked to accept more than $1 million in state grants for the citys 911 dispatch center, in part to cover expenses related to its 2022 expansion to cover dispatching for Southwick, as well. The grants are from the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security State 911 Department in the amounts of $1,040,343 to reimburse personnel and operating costs; $28,919 to cover fees associated with 911 training courses and maintenance of the skill and testing software; $492,500 for transition and equipment expenses to serve Southwicks dispatching needs; and $2,888 for the current medical protocol system card sets. Trade between Africa and the Caribbean could rise to $1.8 billion per year by 2028 if value addition, trade facilitation and improved logistics are prioritized, according to new research by the International Trade Centre (ITC) and African Export-Import Bank. Current bilateral trade in goods between the two regions is worth $729 million. These preliminary findings were released in Nassau, the Bahamas, as part of the launch of the ITC-Afreximbank Strengthening AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment project during the 31st Afreximbank Annual Meetings and the third AfriCaribbean Trade and Investment Forum (ACTIF). The research shows that the travel and transport sectors offered the greatest potential contribution to that growth, making up two-thirds of the potential services trade between the two regions. These latest findings also show that, in the goods segment, minerals and metals; wood, paper, rubber and plastics; processed food and animal feed are the three most important sectors. The objective of the project is to boost trade and investment in Africa and the Caribbean, and to enhance cooperation between the private sectors of the two regions. Following this launch, Afreximbank and ITC will develop in-depth profiles of sectors in the two regions to map out these five promising value chains and identify barriers to, and requirements for, growth. The results of this analysis will be featured in a comprehensive report that will be published at the Fourth ACTIF in 2025. Prof. Benedict Oramah, President and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Afreximbank, reacting to the findings, said: The report confirms the vast Africa-Caribbean trade and investment opportunities that remain untapped. It provides a strong validation of Afreximbanks Caribbean Strategy. With a project pipeline of $2.5 billion and an investment pipeline worth $1.5 billion, the Bank has demonstrated its commitment to realizing opportunities across the two regions. The productive collaboration between Afreximbank and ITC is a testament to this, as it aims to bridge the knowledge gap and build capacity among small and medium-sized enterprises, which are critical for the growth of Africa-Caribbean trade and investment. ITC Executive Director Pamela Coke-Hamilton said: Small businesses can be among the first to drive and benefit from increased trade between these two regions, as they form the backbone of both African and Caribbean economies. There are huge growth opportunities if the right sectors are prioritized for development and investment. Turning potential into exports ITC data shows that Africa and the Caribbean despite a shared history and rich cultural ties export less than 3% to each other. Exports levels were low even before the global impact of COVID-19, conflict and climate change: Over the past decade, the share of bilateral exports has never surpassed 6%. Where trade is happening between the two regions, it is highly concentrated in a few key products. For example, more than half of Africas exports to the Caribbean are mineral primary products, with crude oil being the leading export ($232 million, 27% of total). As for Caribbean exports to Africa, a fertilizer produced in Trinidad and Tobago called anhydrous ammonia makes up nearly half of all exports to Africa ($423 million, 49% of total). Tackling trade challenges To increase trade between the two regions, there are two key issues to tackle: High tariffs (especially on processed goods) and weak logistics. Bilateral tariffs tend to be higher than those charged to exporters from other trading partners. Tariffs also increase with the level of processing, which discourages transformation of products into value-added goods for export. Lowering tariffs benefits both regions by providing greater variety to consumers at a lower cost and allows the regions to specialize in sectors they are competitive in. As for trade logistics, performance is significantly lower in Africa and the Caribbean compared to other regions (World Bank LPI) (http://apo-opa.co/4crZDay). Streamlining the flow of goods and information can allow increased market access and foster trade. Trade agreements are one solution to lower trade costs between the two regions. As part of the new project, ITC will analyse how different tariff liberalization and non-tariff measures harmonization scenarios may increase trade at the country and product levels. Strengthening partnerships The project will contribute to implementation of the memorandum of understanding between ITC and Afreximbank and build upon the cooperation on the How to Export with the AfCFTA Training Programme, South Sudan National Export and Investment Strategy, Pan-African Fashion Alliance, and the Pan-African Private Sector Trade and Investment Committee Survey. Hershey, the American chocolate giant, has reached a major milestone in its quest for more sustainable and equitable cocoa supply chains. The company has announced incentive payments to over 1,400 farmers as part of its flagship Income Accelerator program, an innovative five-year initiative aimed at radically transforming the living conditions of cocoa farmers. A massive commitment to Ivorian farming communities The deployment of this large-scale program began in April 2023 in Abidjan, the heart of Ivory Coasts economic capital. With a total budget of $40 million (about 24 billion CFA francs), it has already positively impacted more than 1,800 households in three key production areas: Duekoue, Guiberoua, and Bonon. The official launch ceremony held on April 24, 2023, brought together high-ranking personalities, including Kone Brahima Yves, Director General of the Coffee-Cocoa Council, and Jason Reiman, Senior Vice President and Chief Supply Chain Officer at Hershey. The Income Accelerator represents a decisive turning point in our long-term commitment to sustainably transform the lives of cocoa farmers and their children, said Jason Reiman. By directly paying incentives to farmers, we are creating a virtuous circle that stimulates productivity, improves incomes, and strengthens community resilience. This initiative has been enthusiastically received by Ivorian authorities. Kone Brahima Yves emphasized the importance of such partnerships: I thank you for the collaboration between partners and assure you that whenever there are projects aimed at improving the decent income of producers, the Coffee-Cocoa Council will support you. We are together to make this program successful because improving the income of cocoa-producing households in Cote dIvoire has always been our fight. Through the participation of the Coffee-Cocoa Council in the Steering Committee, the project ensures its alignment with the Ivorian Governments National Strategy for Sustainable Cocoa (SNCD), which prioritizes improving cocoa farmers incomes. A comprehensive action plan for multiplied incomes To break the vicious cycle of poverty among producers, Hershey is banking on a 360 approach aimed at removing all barriers to economic development: In-depth agricultural diagnosis (21 criteria) for resilient and sustainable production Co-construction of tailor-made business plans with agronomic experts Dedicated training in financial management, entrepreneurship, and skills development Support for village savings and credit associations (200 strengthened, 350 new ones created) Extensive reforestation and agroforestry program to regenerate terroirs Incentive cash transfers of $100 to $600 (60,000 to 365,000 CFA francs) to reward achievement of objectives. Empowering communities for sustainable impact Beyond field support, Hershey places farmers at the heart of the dynamic. A Learning Advisory Committee under the aegis of the Coffee-Cocoa Council has been set up to strengthen public-private dialogue. Simeon Oulai, a cocoa farmer in Duekoue, shares his enthusiasm: The first payment received in March was a very pleasant surprise! I quickly reinvested this unexpected windfall in my plantation. But this program goes far beyond the financial aspect the training gives us the keys to boost our production while preserving our environment. Thierry Kouassi, group administrator at the Allah Kabo cooperative in Duekoue, highlights the programs ripple effect: The excitement is palpable! Even initially reluctant producers are now knocking on our door, impressed by the concrete results. The extension of the project to more producers from 2025 is excellent news for our entire community. This initiative illustrates Hersheys ongoing commitment to ethical supply chains and shared prosperity for the communities that feed the world. The Government of the Republic of Zimbabwe has received an insurance payout of US$ 16. 8 million following its participation in the African Risk Capacity (ARC) Group disaster financing mechanism, designed to help African Union (AU) member states plan, prepare and better respond to extreme weather events. The payout comes at a time when the country is facing severe food insecurity following a prolonged dry spell largely triggered by the prevailing El Nino conditions in the region. The fund will be used to support recovery efforts and help the government reach the most affected populations. Severe crop failures were experienced around the country because of the drought. According to Africa RiskView, ARCs technical software for early warning and monitoring, just over 4.7 million people were affected, triggering the payouts. Through the Replica programme, a strategy which allows humanitarian actors to purchase insurance policies on behalf of a country, Replica partners, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and Start Network received payouts of US$6 million and USD$8 million respectively. The combined payouts will complement in-country recovery efforts and help communities and governments to better respond to and recover from climate-related shocks. Speaking during the payout ceremony, H.E Mthuli Ncube, Zimbabwes Finance Minister, said, This payout ceremonies marks a monumental occasion in our joint endeavours to mitigate the negative impacts of climate change and solidify our nations resilience to this threat. The payout will help 509 000 vulnerable households in 27 districts, and our goal is to reach and cover even more people in the coming seasons. The payouts, made by ARC Limited (ARC Ltd.), the insurance affiliate of the ARC Group responsible for risk pooling and transfer, will help the affected populations to recover from a failed 2023/2024 agricultural season. Insurance taken out with ARC Ltd avails predictable finance to facilitate response to disaster events. I commend the Government of Zimbabwe for their prudent decision to collaborate with the ARC Group to mitigate the impacts of drought in the country. Today, we gather to showcase ARCs interventions to this historic and unprecedented drought in the history of the country, said H.E. Dr Anthony Mothae Maruping, ARC Group Chairperson. We are honoured to stand with the Government of Zimbabwe and our partner organisations during this time of crisis, said Lesley Ndlovu, CEO of ARC Ltd. The impact of such disaster events goes beyond the immediate socio-economic costs and compounds the vulnerability of many farming communities. The insurance payouts are testament of the value of the ARC instrument in facilitating early response. We are deeply concerned by the severe drought that is affecting Zimbabwe and the suffering it is causing, we are grateful to our donors for enabling our support for the ARC Replica programme. We value the strong collaboration with ARC Ltd. and the Government of Zimbabwe in jointly tackling this emergency. Alongside Start Network members, we are committed to effectively serving the people of Zimbabwe through these challenging times. Said Anna Farina, Start Networks Head of Crisis Anticipation and Risk Financing. Individuals and communities who contribute the least to the climate crisis are bearing the brunt of its impacts, with limited means to cope, said Lola Castro, acting WFP regional director for southern Africa. Through pre-arranged financing triggered by pre-identified risk parameters, ARC Replica offers timely humanitarian assistance that can limit the impact of a crisis. The ARC payout is a vital lifeline for communities in Zimbabwe facing the devastating impacts of the El-Nino-induced drought. This time support will enable us to provide essential food assistance and prevent negative coping strategies, ensuring that vulnerable populations can withstand the difficult circumstances, said Francesca Erdelmann, WFP Country Office and Representative for Zimbabwe. The Final Implementation Plan, developed as part of the ARC contingency planning process, will guide the use of the payout, and assist millions of people in the affected regions. Zimbabwe will the payout to support relief efforts and rebuild livelihoods while WFP and Start Network will use the disbursement received to support this response. The southern African region received less than 20% of its typical rainfall, resulting in one of the driest growing seasons. The impact on the agricultural sector has been devastating, said Ibrahima Cheikh Diong, UN Assistant Secretary General and ARC Group Director General. The ARC Group stands with the Government of Zimbabwe that continues to demonstrate its willingness to strengthen its preparedness to respond to such catastrophes, he continued. Zimbabwes participation in ARC climate risk insurance was made possible by an insurance premium paid in part by the government, with premium support contribution from the Swiss Agency for Development and Corporation (SDC); the KfW Premium Finance Facility; and the Africa Disaster Risk Financing Programme Multi-Donor Trust Fund (ADRiFi-MDTF). The ADRiFi-MDTF is a framework developed as a collaboration between the African Development Bank and the ARC Group. The world of work, post- pandemic has seen massive transformation driven by trends in Information Technology (IT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). These advancements have led to a 360- approach in how businesses across various industries operate. In Central and West Africa, Nestle continues to drive these technological advancements across its operations in over twenty-five countries. The company has recently launched an internal initiative dubbed DIGITAL BAR. This program is part of efforts to enhance employee knowledge in Information Technology tools and equip teams with the right skills to make their work efficient and effective. The Digital Bar is a platform for employees to ask question to the IT teams and seek clarification for any challenges they have. Without a doubt, the digital revolution is in motion and employees must take advantage of the opportunities to be digitally savvy and have more of analytical knowledge and understanding. That way, they are better prepared!. Mauricio Alarcon, Market Head, Nestle Central and West Africa. At the global level, Nestle has been focusing on using artificial intelligence, cloud-based mobile applications, big data, to digitally transform its operations. As of 2023, the annual IT spending of Nestle was estimated at $1.4 billion. Nestle Central and West Africa is a beneficiary of this spending earmarked for technology transformation, leading to the development of AI tools for employees. Upskilling employees through Digital Bar While the Digital Bar seeks to upskill employee knowledge in new technology trends, it is also to provide real time solutions across the various CWAR sites. There are tools readily available to functions cutting across supply chain, finance, HR, communications, marketing, sales, and manufacturing. Some of the tools include Viva Insights, Synthesia, Co-Pilot, Mural, Teams, Outlook, SharePoint, Power Bi, NesGPT. The Digital Bar which opens every last Friday of every month across Nestle CWAR sites and is expected to help address the IT concerns of employees while equipping them with the requisite digital skills to make use of the existing platforms. These tools are helping employees to leverage artificial intelligence, embrace automation and effectively utilize data in their line of work from the factory to the office. If you do not leverage AI, you will surely be left behind! This is why we encourage everyone to take advantage of the opportunities that AI and digital tools present to have an efficient and improved work life, Frank Osei-Karikari, Head of IT, Nestle CWAR. The digital revolution scene keeps evolving and businesses in Central and West Africa must remain up to date with the trends, providing advanced solutions to improve employee and consumer experience. Female rap superstar Nicki Minaj has sunk her starship with Irish fans following a sh*t show gig in Dublin over the weekend. Fans were left furious following the disgraceful show in Dublins Malahide Castle on Saturday July 6, which saw Nicki arrive late and leave fans to wait in torrential rain for 90 minutes. The 41-year-old US rapper performed for less than an hour. In those 45 minutes, she reportedly lip synced, fought with her own DJ and had five outfit changes. This is the first time since 2015 that Nicki Minaj returned to Ireland. Tickets for her Pink Friday 2 World Tour cost around 100, which Irish fans are now demanding full refunds for. Carlow influencer Lauren Whelan was among those who attended the gig and expressed to her followers that it was a waste of money. Other angered ticket holders took to social media to brand the concert as the worst ever, with one outraged fan saying: Im still not over how much of a sh*t show Nicki Minaj was in Dublin last night. To disappoint fans who have been obsessed with her music for years. Cant even call that a performance, it was so awful. Another said: People need to realise this woman hates her Irish fans, while someone else said Doesnt feel that I got what we paid for at all. HUGE DISAPPOINTMENT. Shortly after the complete disaster of a gig in Malahide Castle, the rap star cancelled her follow-up gig in Bucharest, Romania due to safety concerns. Criminal barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. It follows a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses, including Castlebar. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme". Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10 percent restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10. However, even after this 10 percent was restored, the full range of Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored, say the Council of The Bar of Ireland. Sara Phelan SC, chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland, said it is with regret that they have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice. The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. Sean Guerin SC, chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee, said it has been acknowledged in Government that there is "no good reason" why fees of criminal barristers shouldnt be restored. "Yet eight months on from a commitment to establish a process reviewing the fees, no meaningful progress has been made. The impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice. "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society. Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected, said Mr Guerin. The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday, July 9; Monday, July 15, and Wednesday, July 24. Pamex Limited will participate in a Spinathon challenge in the Castlebar headquarters. On Thursday July 11, the team at Pamex Limited will participate in the challenge, virtually travelling from their headquarters in Castlebar to the AADI headquarters in Little Island, Cork. This event supports Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland, a charity very dear to the company Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland provides incredible support to children with autism and their families across Ireland. A spokesperson for the company said: At Pamex LTD, some of our treasured colleagues have loved ones living with autism, which is why we have chosen to support this charity in honour of our work family, and the autism community. With several activities and free admission from 9am to 4pm, the fundraiser is a day for the whole family. From raffles and face painting, to an ice-cream van and bake sale, there is so much going on at the Spinathon. Flyer for the fundraiser The marketing and sales company founded in 1995, Pamex Limited promotes, sells and distributes pharmaceutical products. With their headquarters in Castlebar, the company isn't shy to give back to the community, having raised 10,000 for Cancer Care West earlier this year. Autism Assistance Dogs Ireland aims to open a whole new world of opportunity and possibility for children with autism and their families.Additionally, they are committed to raising autism awareness, understanding and inclusion within the community. For more information, see Pamex Ltds facebook page. by Sarah Mahoney @mahoney_sarah, July 8, 2024 Kind is introducing its first ad campaign under chief marketing officer Osher Hoberman, who oversaw the attention-getting Youre not you when youre hungry ads for Snickers. Themed All Kinds of Good, the effort reflects plenty of new thinking for the Mars-owned snack bar company, including different target consumers, a clarified sense of purpose and a healthy dose of humor. Hoberman tells Marketing Daily what strategic changes are baked into the new work. Marketing Daily: This is a funny spot, with comedians Atsuko Okatsuka playing an awkward brain, and Eric Wareheim playing an equally awkward stomach, hooking up at an extraordinarily awkward school dance. Before telling us why youve gone the humor route again, update us on whom youre trying to reach and why. advertisement advertisement Osher Hoberman: I started in this role about nine months ago. Ive been with Mars for 20 years, and I led the acquisition of the Kind business in 2017. The Kind brand is also about 20 years old but had lost its distinctiveness. I want to carve out a distinctive role that transcends healthy bars and pushes the brand further into healthy snacking. The strategy is that consumers should never have to choose between something that tastes good, feels good, and does good. We want to move the brand from being a healthy bar among many healthy bars to some very ownable consumer truth for the brand. We also wanted a deeper understanding of what consumers want from their snacks, and we identified two cohorts. First, reliant parents -- younger, busy people who look to snacks as a nutritious hack for the family. They want convenience, nutrition and great taste, whether for school lunches or family road trips. Second, weve got a group we call Young and Hungry: Gen Z and millennials. Most of their caloric intake comes from snacks versus main meals, and they look for snacks they can trust with functional enhancements. What threaded these two groups and all the other cohorts we looked at is this tension. They want to feel good and not worry. There is this constant tug of war that manifests itself in the stomach, craving something delicious, and the brain, which is telling us that we should eat better. Marketing Daily: And why is that so right for Kind, unlike other brands? Hoberman: Most of our top-selling items have a touch of decadence or indulgence -- chocolate, a drizzle of caramel, and sometimes some peanut butter. They provide emotional enjoyment, and there are real ingredients, which are good for you. Marketing Daily: That leads us to the dance between brain and stomach. Hoberman: Yes. Getting there took multiple months, working with Energy BBDO. We played a bit with characters -- Mars has had great success with M&Ms, for example. And weve also brought interesting creative constructs to life with celebrities, as I've done in the past with Snickers. And these two comedians are so talented and endearingly awkward, Marketing Daily: Whats the media plan? Hoberman: It will run on TV and online, with a significant social buy on Meta, Snapchat and TikTok. Were doing digital out-of-home for the first time and some audio on Spotify. We've got a branded integration with Seth Meyers, and some creative is running on retail media channels. Marketing Daily: What metrics are you watching most closely? Hoberman: Id love to sell more Kind products. However, a key objective of this campaign is to grow the category. We owe it to our retail partners. We want to be great category advisors. For us, it's also about driving household penetration, recruiting new users and making sure the category is relevant for consumers. If we do that, we will win. Our retail partners will win. All boats will rise with the tide. Marketing Daily: Im curious. Some might say nine months is a long time to get your first campaign out there. Hoberman: Yes. It took us longer because this brand has evolved uniquely compared to others in the Mars portfolio. It was founder-led for a long time, and like many of the insurgent brands of the past 15 years or so, the brand narrative was very much rooted in the founder. As they change hands -- in this case, to a multinational -- you need to carefully migrate from the founder story. Then we became a very product-based brand, leaning heavily on ingredient profiles. And all points of distinction start to blur. And while we were a very purposeful brand, we werent purpose-led. Marketing Daily: Explain that, please. Hoberman: Kindness is so broad that it took the brand in many fragmented directions. Messaging was inconsistent and diluted. We expressed kindness with frontline workers, in underserved communities, and in geopolitical topics. It all ended up meaning very little to the consumer. Marketing Daily: What will it mean to them now? Hoberman: The campaign is called All Kinds of Good, not Brain versus Stomach, because going forward, we will be focused on our real food proposition. Nourishment helps communities thrive and people prosper, and not every community has the same access to the nourishment they need. We'll bring Does Good to life by providing delicious, nutrient-rich food and snacks to underserved communities across America. Were super-proud of this. Marketing Daily: This may sound cynical, but is focusing on hunger in underserved communities playing it safe? This is certainly a bad time for a large company to talk about being kind to people of color or the LGBTQ community. Were you feeling under fire when you decided to make hunger your singular purpose? Hoberman: No, and I would argue Im almost in blessed situation. The name of our business is Kind. Its not our purpose but our belief system. It's how we behave, engage with consumers, and enroll our team members. That's how we refer to our employees. There is a role for us to play in kindness to every community. Marketing Daily: Its interesting to see this backlash against purpose after so many companies and their CMOs have invested heavily in inclusivity. One activist shareholder can threaten to sue, and companies have to decide whether to back off their commitments. Hoberman: Yes, companies like Mars, with a global footprint, can find it particularly difficult to navigate. A set of constituents in one market may have one set of expectations for you, and those in a different geographic market may have different requirements. Staying true to your values and maintaining authenticity sometimes becomes difficult because of the varying geopolitical tensions and pressures. And Kind cant divorce itself from that reality, because we are part of Mars. by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, July 8, 2024 Index Exchange product team members last week outlined the reasons they believe Google's Privacy Sandbox in its current form poses "major risks to publishers and the overall programmatic ecosystem." Supply-side platform findings from tests of Protected Audience (PA) and Topics Privacy Sandbox APIs were shared with its customers and partners, as well as with Google Chrome and the UK Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The data revealed in a blog post suggests millions of Sandbox impressions can be purchased and delivered, but questions and issues must be addressed. For example, data on attribution or measurement does not exist -- areas that the company hopes to evaluate with partners in the future. advertisement advertisement And while Googles delayed plans to fully deprecate third-party cookies give advertisers time to continue tests and for Google to address concerns, the effect on CPMs surfaced as the issue of greatest concern. We are encouraged to see companies building with the Privacy Sandbox and other privacy enhancing technologies, but its not possible to predict publisher performance based on effectiveness of a single buying platform, as publishers typically work with dozens of demand sources, a Google spokesperson said in an email sent in June to address the IAB findings. The spokesperson wrote that Google expects performance numbers to evolve, and they currently dont reflect how the overall ecosystem will perform in a true marketplace -- which will nor exist until adoption expands alongside third-party cookieless traffic. We look forward to the ecosystem continuing to share valuable insights and feature requests for Chrome and the industry, he wrote. Latency has been shown to be a significant issue, with 28% more latency for Privacy Sandbox auctions compared to others. This latency is primarily due to the requirement for Google to be the top Seller in protective audience auctions, which in turn requires all non-Google bids to be processed by Google Ad Manager (GAM) before an auction can proceed. All auction participants must also wait for Google to finalize the winning bid. Latency could be reduced, Index Exchange said, by allowing other publishers and ad exchanges to compete directly in a client-side auction via prebid, creating a more level playing field and speeding up web transactions significantly. Most worrisome, however, is the 33% decline in CPMs on Sandbox-enabled impressions compared with impressions where a third-party cookie was present -- compared with 36% lower CPMs in impressions without both Sandbox and cookies. While Sandbox APIs did help fuel about a 3% increase, they did not close the gap with the available features set. It appears that the level of adoption will not prevent significant revenue consequences for publishers, according to Index Exchange. Others have also said that with Privacy Sandbox current limitations it may yet be an effective tool for general use, but may become too costly for technology companies to implement. There are major risks to publishers, and the overall programmatic ecosystem the industry must address to make it easier and more efficient to scale. Index Exchange has been collecting performance data around the Topics API -- the topics most often seen. The company in April released a Topics reporting feature to share insights, but it's still unclear how useful observed topics are to marketers to inform bidding or optimize campaigns. In a study, Adobe found that brands have become less reliant on cookies, with 49% saying their company's marketing strategy still depends on this data, compared with 75% in 2022. Still, only 60% of brands said they feel "mostly" or very prepared for the deprecation of third-party cookies, down from 78% in 2022. More than one in three marketers also said the deprecation of third-party cookies has negatively impacted the company's ability to track, target and measure consumer engagement, which coincides with Index Exchange findings. With brands relying less on third-party cookies but also feeling less prepared, there are unmet needs from organizations and technologies. Adobe conducted the survey, fielding about 2,841 marketers in the U.S., Australia, France, Germany, India, Japan and the U.K. to learn more about how company leaders are preparing for success in a world without third-party cookies. The study also found that 78% of brands have adopted a customer data platform (CDP). While building a first-party data strategy often is successful, scale can be limited. Brands still need the ability to execute key use cases for which they relied on third-party cookies, such as discovering new audiences for prospecting and acquisition, and enriching data for increased personalization. by Laurie Sullivan @lauriesullivan, July 8, 2024 Microsoft has been hit with a series of embarrassing hacks that have exposed a variety of customer data. Now the company reportedly will require its China-based staff to only use iPhones, rather than Android, for work. The mandate becomes effective in September. Through an internal memo, Microsoft informed hundreds of employees they will need to verify their identities through the Microsoft Authenticator password manager and Identity Pass app. "Microsoft Authenticator and Identity Pass apps are officially available on the Apple and Google Play stores," a Microsoft spokesperson told Media Daily News. "Due to the lack of availability of Google Mobile Services in this region, we look to offer employees a means of accessing these required apps, such as an iOS device. Employees will receive an iPhone 15. Mobile phones from Xiaomi, Huawei, Redmi, OnePlus, and Oppo will no longer be allowed. Many have developed their own platform. Google Play, an app store for Androids, is not available in China. advertisement advertisement The order is part of the companys Secure Future Initiative that Microsoft Security Executive Vice President Charlie Bell said is designed to curb identity-focused espionage and criminal operators targeting enterprises in response to a rise in cyberattacks. Microsoft reportedly will block Android devices from accessing its corporate platform because Googles mobile services are not available in China, Bloomberg initially reported. Russian hackers breached Microsoft's corporate email systems in January, and by February a third-party cybersecurity firm accessed internal Microsoft data on an Azure cloud server that did not have a password. In May the company said it would tie its executive compensation to successful cybersecurity strategies. The approach would pay top business leaders for protecting company, client and government data. Following a steady stream of hacks, Microsoft notified the US Agency for Global Media -- an independent federal agency that provides news and information in countries where the press is restricted -- a few months ago that some of its data may have been stolen, a spokesperson said in an emailed statement to Bloomberg, which reported that no security or personally identifiable sensitive data was compromised. by Sarah Mahoney @mahoney_sarah, July 8, 2024 Ulta recently unveiled its latest report on the state of the beauty business, revealing that Generation Alpha -- kids born after 2010 -- now begin experimenting with beauty products at age 8. And while 77% of parents of these young consumers say they think thats normal, it is substantially younger than Generation Z, whose girls took their first steps into beauty and treatment products at age 12.6, and boys at 13.4. The research, part of Ultas Joy Project, indicates that Gen Alpha boys are just as intrigued with beauty and personal care products as girls, with 30% of males saying they are "very interested" in beauty and personal care products. While many are still little enough to ride in car seats, Ulta says these Gen Alpha shoppers have strong opinions and brand preferences, and 97% agree that skincare is self-care. advertisement advertisement Popular Get ready with me videos on YouTube and TikTok are fueling the trend, and pediatric health experts are alarmed about whats come to be called the Sephora Tween invasion." They note many of these kids are purchasing skincare products designed to prevent aging, with ingredients meant for people who are decades older. As a result, doctors worry about everything from skin irritation to encouraging ageism. Family physicians can help tweens and families decipher the potential risks of these products and recognize the dangers of unrealistic beauty ideals, writes Jennifer Middleton, MD, MPH, in a blog post on the American Academy of Family Physicians website. Having a healthier attitude about aging can lead to healthier lifestyle choices. Prioritizing a positive self-identity for girls, beginning even at very young ages, enables them to question societys impossible standards for womens appearance. Experts also believe the trend contributes to stigma about good and bad skin and may encourage ageism. Ulta acknowledges mixed perceptions but says the research shows this earlier experimentation is positive for mental health. We believe beauty is a force for good, for all, says Michelle Crossan-Matos, chief marketing officer. Beauty has always played a role in many peoples lives as a form of self-care, self-expression, and joy. Some of my fondest, early memories were of watching my mother practice her beauty rituals, which she eventually passed on to me and me onto my children, she says in an email to Marketing Daily. This act of joy and connection is a normal part of growing up, and we found that it can also help kids establish a healthy relationship with beauty and a positive self-imageespecially when knowledge is being shared through trusted sources like parents and siblings. She points out Ultas research finds that parents and peers influence product selection, with 79% of parents saying they want to play an active role in their beauty discovery. Parents also find beauty as a way to bond with their children. Whether prepubescent beauty routines are good for kids or not, they are boosting the beauty industry. Circana, the market research company, recently reported that millennial households earning $100,000 or more with kids spent 10% more on beauty products than those without kids. And those households increased their purchasing frequency by more than 15%. As part of the new report, Ulta Beauty is kicking off #JoyForward, an effort to spread 10 million moments of joy with the worlds longest compliment chain. Working with beauty brands E.L.F. Cosmetics, Polite Society and Beekman 1802, as well as influencers and store associates, its inviting fans to share about the people in their lives and what makes them beautiful inside and out. Ulta is also spreading joy through digital promotion on Ulta Beauty-owned channels, a custom TikTok filter, and paid sponsorships with iHeart Media and Spotify. Store associates are helping by handing out joy cards, pins and stickers. The point, says Crossan-Matos, is that beauty can be rooted in joy no matter how old a person is. Our report reveals that 93% of teens and adults believe that they, personally, deserve to experience joy and happiness in their lifeand beauty discovery helps fuel feelings of joy, with 77% of all generations agreeing that maintaining a beauty or wellness routine helps them feel more joy on a day-to-day basis. These youngest customers find joy through beauty as a part of self-expression, and 91% believe beauty is about looking and feeling good more than it is about appearance. Say 'no' to cancer-causing talc: Cornstarch-based powders could be one of the best alternatives to talcum powder. #talcumpowder #carcinogens #cancerrisk Advertisement Is It Safe to Use Talcum Powder? Trusted Source Talcum Powder and Cancer Go to source Trusted Source Advertisement Does Talcum Powder Cause Ovarian Cancer? Trusted Source Perineal Use of Talcum Powder and Endometrial Cancer Risk Go to source Trusted Source Advertisement Best Alternative to Talcum Powder Talcum Powder and Cancer - ( https://www.cancer.org/cancer/risk-prevention/chemicals/talcum-powder-and-cancer.html) Perineal Use of Talcum Powder and Endometrial Cancer Risk - ( https://aacrjournals.org/cebp/article/19/5/1269/67782/Perineal-Use-of-Talcum-Powder-and-Endometrial) Recently, talcum powder is classified as probably carcinogen ( cancer -causing) to humans by the World Health Organization's cancer agency, the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), is a significant development in the ongoing debate about the safety of talc, said Dr. Salil Patkar, Consultant-Medical Oncology, Fortis Hiranandani Hospital, Vashi (Navi Mumbai).According to the doctor, the use of talcum powder is widespread, and many people are unaware of the potential risks associated with it ()."While the evidence is not yet conclusive, it is essential to err on the side of caution when it comes to public health ," told Patkar."The link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer is plausible, as talc particles can travel through the reproductive system and cause inflammation and damage to the ovaries. This inflammation can increase the risk of cancer," he added.The cancer agency classified talc ason the basis of a combination of limited evidence for cancer in humans (for ovarian cancer), sufficient evidence for cancer in experimental animals, and strong mechanistic evidence that talc exhibits key characteristics of carcinogens in human primary cells and experimental systems.According to the agency, numerous studies showed an increase in the incidence of ovarian cancer in humans self-reporting the use of body powder in the perineal region ().An increased rate of ovarian cancer was also observed in studies looking at occupational exposure of women exposed to talc in the pulp and paper industry, it added.Patkar mentioned that it is crucial for individuals, especially women, to be aware of the potential risks associated with talcum powder use."Alternative products, such as, can be used instead. Additionally, manufacturers should take responsibility for informing consumers about the potential risks and providing safer alternatives," he said.Based on the current evidence, the doctor suggested that it is essential to exercise caution and consider "the potential risks associated with talcum powder use".Source-IANS The incoming government could begin kickstarting growth in its first 100 days by partnering with the logistics sector to develop Labours promised industrial strategy, as logistics can boost productivity for all areas of UK PLC, according to business group Logistics UK. With Labour registering a victory in the General Election, the business group has outlined how, with the right policies, the logistics sector is key to driving economic growth and, as one of the UKs largest employers, deliver skilled roles and break down barriers to opportunity. Logistics underpins all sectors of the economy to deliver for households, businesses and public services, every day, explains Logistics UKs Chief Executive David Wells OBE, and is a major sector in its own right, employing 8% of the UK workforce. As a result, logistics is ideally placed to help the new government to get the economy moving again, providing its needs can be accommodated in the new governments industrial strategy. If our members are to help get the new government off to the best possible start and give the economy a vital boost, it is essential that the Labour administration supports the logistics sector to drive the growth the country so desperately needs. Efficient, cost-effective logistics is critical to every single part of the UKs economy and our sector is poised to work in partnership with the new government to establish the infrastructure, decarbonisation, skills, innovation and trade policies that will get the country building again. By involving our members in the development of the planned industrial strategy and the governments missions, we are confident that logistics can deliver productivity gains to supercharge the economy by up to 8 billion a year*. It is vital that we power up the country while reestablishing the UKs industrial strength in a clean, green manner. At the same time, we must work with government to provide the roles that will engage and excite the next generation of logistics talent and future-proof the UKs supply chain to support trade both at home and abroad. Logistics UK remains committed to raising the profile and importance of the sector by encouraging the new government to establish the public-private partnership with the industry which was included in the business groups Manifesto asks. As Wells continues, this will encourage legislators to consider the needs of logistics businesses as an integral part of all business decision making. Logistics has a critical role to play in kickstarting growth, he asserts. It is vital that the new administration involves our industry in all areas of Whitehall decision-making on the economy, through the appointment of a dedicated minister for logistics and supply chain our sectors role and needs should be an integral part of all plans. This will ensure that our industry can facilitate and support the economic development the country needs to return to growth. A former employee at Robins Air Force Base in Georgia has been arrested by the federal government and is accused of obstructing an investigation into a deadly 2017 aircraft crash in Mississippi that killed 15 Marines and one sailor. James Michael Fisher, 67, was arrested July 2, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Mississippi. The former propulsion engineer with the base's C-130 program was living in Portugal at the time of the indictment, which was issued by a federal grand jury. While court documents in Mississippi were not immediately available Monday, a press release from the U.S. attorney's office alleged that the former Robins Air Force Base employee "knowingly concealed key engineering documents from criminal investigators and made materially false statements to criminal investigators about his past engineering decisions." Read Next: NATO Chief Sidesteps Questions on Biden's Fitness to Lead Alliance Against Putin The federal government added that Fisher "engaged in a pattern of conduct intended to avoid scrutiny for his past engineering decisions related to why the crash may have occurred." The former Robins Air Force Base employee was arrested in Florida last week, according to federal court documents filed in the Middle District of Florida. Fisher surrendered three passports and was let out on $10,000 bond. Fisher did not return a phone call and text messages Monday afternoon at a number associated with him. Additionally, a Florida attorney representing him did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Military.com. A spokesperson from the U.S. attorney's office in the Northern District of Mississippi told Military.com that Fisher is set to be arraigned Wednesday. Fisher's arrest comes nearly seven years to the day after the July 10, 2017, crash. The Marine Corps KC-130 with the call sign "Yanky 72" was carrying 15 Marines and one Navy sailor on board when it went down in a soybean field in Leflore County, Mississippi. While flying to California at 20,000 feet in the air, a propeller blade came loose, which "initiated the catastrophic sequence of events resulting in the midair breakup of the aircraft and its uncontrollable descent and ultimate destruction," the Marine Corps crash investigation published in a 2018 report detailed. It remains one of the deadliest crashes in that service's history. "Neither the aircrew nor anybody aboard the KC-130T could have prevented or altered the ultimate outcome after such a failure," the report detailed. WATCH: Yanky 72 Mishap Animation The report also stated that the propeller blade, which was deteriorating, was not repaired in 2011 when it was supposed to be. "The investigation concluded that the failure to remediate the corrosion pitting and intergranular cracking was due to deficiencies in the propeller blade overhaul process at [Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex, or WR-ALC], which existed in 2011 and continued up until the shutdown of the WR-ALC propeller blade overhaul process in the fall of 2017," the crash report detailed. Fisher faces two charges relating to false statements and two charges relating to obstruction of justice. He could potentially face a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison if convicted. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, and Naval Criminal Investigative Service are all investigating the case, according to the news release. In 2018, a memorial was established near the crash site to remember the 16 service members, and a stretch of U.S. Highway 82 in Leflore County, Mississippi, was renamed "Yanky 72 Memorial Highway" as well. Editor's note: This story was updated Monday afternoon with new information from court documents. Related: Corps Identifies 16 Troops Killed in Tragic KC-130 Crash Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two crashes of 737 Max jetliners that killed 346 people, the Justice Department said late Sunday, after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice last week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors accused the American aerospace giant of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements for it. The plea deal, which still must receive the approval of a federal judge to take effect, calls for Boeing to pay an additional $243.6 million fine. That was the same amount it paid under the 2021 settlement that the Justice Department said the company breached. An independent monitor would be named to oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The deal also requires Boeing to invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs. The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia, which killed all 346 passengers and crew members aboard two new Max jets. It does not give Boeing immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon in January, a Justice Department official said. The deal also does not cover any current or former Boeing officials, only the corporation. In a statement, Boeing confirmed it had reached the deal with the Justice Department but had no further comment. In a filing Sunday night, the Justice Department said it expected to submit the written plea agreement with a U.S. District Court in Texas by July 19. Lawyers for some of the relatives of those who died in the two crashes have said they will ask the judge to reject the agreement. This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died. Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeings crime are being hidden, said Paul Cassell, a lawyer for some of the families. Federal prosecutors alleged Boeing committed conspiracy to defraud the government by misleading regulators about a flight-control system that was implicated in the crashes, which took place than less five months apart. As part of the January 2021 settlement, the Justice Department said it would not prosecute Boeing on the charge if the company complied with certain conditions for three years. Prosecutors last month alleged Boeing had breached the terms of that agreement. U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor, who has overseen the case from the beginning, has criticized what he called Boeings egregious criminal conduct. O'Connor could accept the plea and the sentence that prosecutors offered with it or he could reject the agreement, likely leading to new negotiations between the Justice Department and Boeing. The case goes back to the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The Lion Air pilots in the first crash did not know about flight-control software that could push the nose of the plane down without their input. The pilots for Ethiopian Airlines knew about it but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in older 737s, and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years. Boeing, which blamed two low-level employees for misleading the regulators, tried to put the crashes behind it. After grounding Max jets for 20 months, regulators let them fly again after the company reduced the power of the flight software. Max jets logged thousands of safe flights and orders from airlines picked up, increasing to about 750 in 2021, about 700 more in 2022 and nearly 1,000 in 2023. That changed in January, when a panel covering an unused emergency exit blew off a Max during the Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon. Pilots landed the 737 Max safely and no one was seriously injured, but the incident led to closer scrutiny of the company. The Justice Department opened a new investigation, the FBI told passengers on the Alaska plane that they might be victims of a crime and the FAA said it was stepping up oversight of Boeing. A criminal conviction could jeopardize Boeings status as a federal contractor, according to some legal experts. The plea announced Sunday does not address that question, leaving it to each government agency whether to bar Boeing. The Air Force cited compelling national interest in letting Boeing continue competing for contracts after the company paid a $615 million fine in 2006 to settle criminal and civil charges, including that it used information stolen from a rival to win a space-launch contract. The company based in Arlington, Virginia, has 170,000 employees and dozens of airline customers spanning the globe. The best customers for the 737 Max include Southwest, United, American, Alaska, Ryanair and flydubai. But 37% of its revenue last year came from U.S. government contracts. Most of it was defense work, including military sales that Washington arranged for other countries. Boeing also makes a capsule for NASA. Two astronauts will remain at the International Space Station longer than expected while Boeing and NASA engineers troubleshoot problems with the propulsion system used to maneuver the capsule. Even some Boeing critics have worried about crippling a key defense contractor. We want Boeing to succeed, Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said during a Senate hearing last month on what he termed the companys broken safety culture. Boeing needs to succeed for the sake of the jobs it provides, for the sake of local economies it supports, for the sake of the American traveling public, for the sake of our military. Relatives of the Max crash victims have pushed for a criminal trial that might illuminate what people inside Boeing knew about deceiving the FAA. They also want the Justice Department to prosecute top Boeing officials, not just the company. Boeing has paid fines many a time, and it doesnt seem to make any change, said Ike Riffel of Redding, California, whose sons Melvin and Bennett died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. When people start going to prison, thats when you are going to see a change. At a recent Senate hearing, Boeing CEO David Calhoun defended the companys safety record after turning and apologizing to Max crash victims relatives seated in the rows behind him for the grief that we have caused. Hours before the hearing, the Senate investigations subcommittee released a 204-page report with new allegations from a whistleblower who said he worried that defective parts could be going into 737s. The whistleblower was the latest in a string of current and former Boeing employees who have raised safety concerns about the company and claimed they faced retaliation as a result. ___ Koenig reported from Dallas. Richer reported from Boston. The Navy has relieved the commanding officer of the expeditionary mobile base ship USS Hershel "Woody" Williams two months after the vessel briefly ran aground outside of the African country of Gabon, a Navy statement announced Monday. Capt. Lenard Mitchell, the commander of the Williams' "Gold" crew, was relieved by Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee, the commander of U.S. 6th Fleet, "due to a loss of confidence in his ability to command." The Navy's statement added that "the relief occurred as a result of an investigation into the soft grounding" of the Williams near the port of Libreville, Gabon, on May 9 and, "while the investigation is still open, sufficient findings of fact emerged during the investigation to warrant the relief of the commanding officer." Read Next: Feds Arrest Former Air Force Base Engineer in Connection to Deadly Mississippi KC-130 Crash in 2017 Typically, the Navy is quick to remove a ship's commander after a grounding -- usually moving within days or, at most, a week or two. When the cruiser USS Port Royal ran aground on a shoal off the coast of Honolulu in 2009, the Navy waited around four days -- until the ship was free -- to relieve its commander. When the USS Howard suffered a soft grounding near the Indonesian island of Bali on Aug. 10, 2023, the Navy relieved its skipper, Cmdr. Kenji Igawa, just nine days later. In 2014, the Navy took about two weeks to fire the commander of a frigate -- the USS Taylor -- that ran aground in the Black Sea. When Military.com asked Navy officials in the weeks after the Williams' grounding why Mitchell had not been relieved, no one was able to offer an explanation. The Navy's statement also did not explain why this relief took almost two months. The Navy said that Mitchell will be temporarily assigned to Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic, while Capt. Michael Concannon will assume the duties of interim commanding officer aboard the Williams. The Williams is currently deployed to the waters off Africa and "there is no impact to the command's mission or schedule due to the relief," the statement noted. Mitchell is now the ninth commander to be fired for a "loss of the trust and confidence" that the Navy has publicly acknowledged. A total of 13 commanders have now been relieved this year, though not all for losses of confidence. Navy officials have said that commanders can also be relieved for medical reasons or ask to be relieved themselves. Navy officials have previously said the sea service relieved 15 commanding officers in 2023 over a loss in confidence. There are currently around 1,600 commanding officers in the active-duty Navy across all communities. Since the start of 2024, the Navy has fired three of its commanders over drunk driving incidents. Two were submarine skippers, and one was a SEAL commodore. In January, the Navy fired Capt. Geoffry Patterson -- the commander of the USS Georgia's blue crew -- after he was arrested early on Jan. 9 for driving under the influence and improper lane change. Similarly, Capt. Richard Zaszewski, formerly commodore of Navy Special Warfare Group Eight, was arrested Jan. 19 for driving with a blood alcohol content between 0.15% and 0.2% -- though that incident wasn't made public until March. Finally, Capt. Kurt Balagna, who was the commander of the USS Ohio sub's gold crew, was also arrested in March by Washington state police for driving with a blood alcohol content of around 0.24%. Two of the nine fired Navy commanders were chaplains assigned to the Coast Guard: Capt. Daniel Mode, the Coast Guard's top chaplain who had served in that position since 2022, and Cmdr. Cristiano DeSousa, the Seventh District chaplain in Miami. Related: Navy Relieved 12 Commanders in 6 Months -- Including 3 Firings that Were Never Publicly Announced Troops at Colorado Space Force Base Will Have to Bring Their Own To-Go Boxes for Dining Hall While the initiative is aimed at reducing waste on base, the spokesperson added that they hope it will give troops on base... A battle named Checkpoint Pasta might seem funny, considering it was fought by Italian troops, but there's nothing funny about being outnumbered and surrounded in Somalia. The story of the Italians who fought their way out of warlord Mohamed Farrah Aidid's complex ambush in July 1993 is one of incredible bravery and perseverance. "Black Hawk Down," both the book and its 2001 film adaptation, forever enshrined Mogadishu in U.S. military history. The losses of four Black Hawks and the U.S. Army's efforts to recover the remains of the fallen (and one prisoner of war) during Operation Gothic Serpent led to the most intense close combat U.S. troops had seen since the Vietnam War. For the Italian Army, it had been much, much longer. Italy contributed more than 4,000 troops to the United Nations intervention in Somalia, UNISOM II. Ater the United States, the Italians were the second-largest contingent in the country and maintained relatively good relations with the locals. But by the time of the "Black Hawk Down" incident, that relationship broke down. The Italians could have warned the Americans how quickly a routine mission could go wrong there. Just three months before the U.S. launched Gothic Serpent against Mohamed Farrah Aidid, Italian soldiers were fighting for their lives against his massive militia. (Ministero della Difesa) In 1993, Somalia was in the second year of its ongoing civil war. Like the other countries involved in UNISOM II, Italy deployed its troops to support the U.N. in distributing aid and relief while trying to foster reconciliation between the warring factions and saw some shining successes. On July 2, 1993, 500 Italian troops and two columns of armored vehicles met at Haliwa, a neighborhood just north of the capital, on a mission to search and confiscate weapons. Named Operation Kangaroo 11, it was a mission they'd conducted many times since deploying to Somalia. This time, however, the search was aided by a hundred Somali policemen. What the Italians didn't know was that the police were loyal to a rival, Ali Mahdi Muhammad. When the locals saw Muhammad's men, they immediately believed they were about to be attacked. The search area was 2,800 square meters, bisected by a crossroads, between two checkpoints, Ferro and Pasta (so named because of an old Barilla pasta factory nearby). It began around 6 in the morning and started off like normal. Weapons were found, arrests were made and the Italian commanders met with local leaders to explain what was happening. Around 7:40 a.m., fires began burning in the area, and a crowd of Somalis began protesting and throwing stones. Italian Gen. Bruno Loi, seeing tires throw up heavy smoke, decided it was time to end the operation. While the Italians spent three hours that morning conducting their search, Aidid's militia was mobilizing. The two Italian armored columns left the area, and as Alfa column headed toward the Old Port, Bravo column moved toward the Italian base at Balad -- but Alfa's withdrawal was blocked near Checkpoint Pasta. Cut off by barricades of overturned cars, burning tires and old furniture, Italian paratroopers in VCC-1s armored personnel carriers were swarmed by women and children. It wasn't long before the shooting started. Behind the women and children, Aidid's militia began firing on the Italians with AK-47s and RPG-7s. The Italian Army began its first armed combat in 50 years. Two detachments of paratroopers went on the offensive, raiding Somali dugouts, houses and sniper positions with hand grenades. With the besieged column surrounded by women and children throwing stones, Aidid's militia began shooting from behind the crowd as small arms fire rained down on the Italians from the windows in the buildings above. Bravo column, with M60 tanks, Fiat 6614 armored cars and B1 Centauro tank destroyers, had almost reached the Italian base at Balad when it learned about what was happening at Checkpoint Pasta. Volunteers from the column immediately reversed course and began the 20-kilometer race back to Mogadishu. Colour Sergeant Major Stefano Paolicchi was hit by sniper fire as they moved, becoming Italy's first combat casualty since World War II. Back at Pasta, one of the VCC-1s was hit by a rocket-propelled grenade, disabling it and killing paratrooper Pasquale Baccaro while forcing the Italians out of their relative safety. The paratroopers took positions to defend the wounded as the VCC-1s returned fire using their .50-caliber onboard guns and MG-42s. Aidid's militia started raining mortar fire down on the Italians from their positions inside the pasta factory. The two sides were just 65 feet away from each other, firing a "blizzard" of bullets that filled the square near Pasta. By this time, the entire neighborhood was in upheaval. New barricades were going up, and more Somalis were rushing toward the intersection. The paratroopers knew they were trapped and that Aidid's men were trying to surround them, so they started kicking in doors and clearing houses and roofs one by one. In the square below, the vehicles arranged themselves to form an effective crossfire. The VCC-1 hit by the RPG was restarted amid the fighting and the wounded were reloaded and moved from harm's way, but no real help could come. The fighting was too intense for a medevac, and ambulances' routes were blocked by the barricades. It was also too intense for the Italians' A-129 Mangusta helicopters to provide air support. When the Somalis captured two of their VM-90 combat vehicles, the helicopters were finally allowed to fire, but only destroy the stolen vehicles and prevent the militia from turning their .50-caliber machine guns on the Italians. By 11 a.m., the Italians turned their attention to the pasta factory and began to pour .50-caliber ammunition into it. Accurate fire and grenades from the Italians, even though they were mostly in the open in the middle of a crossroads, began to take its toll on the militia. The Italians had larger-caliber weapons, such as those of the M60 tanks and the Fiat 6614s, but were not allowed to use them due to the international rules of engagement, which required a proportional response and deference to civilian safety. It was M60 tank rounds from Bravo column that finally allowed the Italians to disengage at 1 p.m., narrowly avoiding an all-out battle with the entire city. (Ministero della Difesa) After the last Italian armored vehicle left the area, American Cobra gunships signaled the area as a "five-minute kill zone," which meant everything still remaining in the area of Checkpoint Pasta would be declared an enemy and shot by the Cobras. The Cobras gave the Italians plenty of space to head back to their bases. Sometime later, the Italians learned Aidid changed his hiding place every night, and they had almost stumbled upon him in that neighborhood. The Battle of Checkpoint Pasta was only supposed to be a diversion to allow him to escape. The two sides fought for about four hours before the Italians returned to their bases. Amazingly, only three Italians were killed and 23 were wounded, while Aidid's men suffered an estimated 100 killed and 400 wounded. Want to Learn More About Military Life? Whether you're thinking of joining the military, looking for post-military careers or keeping up with military life and benefits, Military.com has you covered. Subscribe to Military.com to have military news, updates and resources delivered directly to your inbox. TRAVERSE CITY, MI - If youre a whiskey fan who loves being the first to try new sips, then this years Cherry Whiskey Fest might have double the fun for you. Traverse City Whiskey Co. is hosting its fifth-annual Cherry Whiskey Fest on Saturday, July 13. The festival will begin at noon at The Stillhouse, 201 E. 14th St. Tickets are $35 at the door, or you can find them at a lower price on the website here. Tickets include a Barrel Proof Cherry Whiskey sample, a cocktail and a special whiskey glass. Ticket holders will also be entered into a raffle for a VIP Experience. This years event, which celebrates all things cherry, also kicks off the release of TCWCs award-winning Barrel Proof Cherry Whiskey, staff said. Plus, for the first time, a special nine-year single barrel cherry whiskey (a.k.a the Heritage Edition), is available exclusively to attendees. Traverse City Whiskey Co. is hosting its summer Cherry Whiskey Fest this weekend. Image provided by the Traverse City Whiskey Co.Traverse City Whiskey Co. There will food trucks on site. The live music lineup includes the Bootstrap Boys and the Whiskey Charmers. The small-batch distillerys team is celebrating two releases at this festival. Fans of Traverse City Whiskey Co. have come to expect its signature whiskeys like its Lakeside Peach, Michigan Apple and North Coast Rye. The company also produces a line of Whiskey Highball seltzers and its Barrel Proof Whiskey collection. The 6th annual Barrel Proof Cherry Whiskey will be the one released at this weekends festival. Our core Barrel Proof Cherry Whiskey remains a standout, blending several hand-selected barrels to create a perfectly balanced and robust flavor profile, the production team said. Crafted with the freshest cherries from our orchard, this whiskey captures the essence of Northern Michigan in every sip. Then comes the exclusive sips: The festival will offer its new 9-Year Heritage Edition release. This unique offering features two single barrels, each aged for an impressive nine years, and then infused with fresh, local cherries. This limited edition boasts an unparalleled depth and complexity, showcasing the meticulous craftsmanship and vibrant cherry notes that define our whiskey. Coming for the weekend? Check out all the places to stay in and around Traverse City and scoop up a package deal on the Traverse City Tourism website here. DETROIT, MI President Joe Biden this week will visit Detroit, with his reelection campaign in a much different state than the last time he rallied support there. Biden campaign officials said the president plans to campaign in Detroit Friday, July 12. Details about his stop in the Motor City were not provided. The Democrat was in another election swing state Pennsylvania on Sunday, urging his supporters to stay unified despite intensifying questions about his ability to serve a second term. Those questions largely surfaced following a televised debate against Donald Trump last month, when Bidens performance worried supporters and energized the hopes of his Republican opponent. As Congress prepares to resume this week, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries convened top committee lawmakers on Sunday, July 7, to assess their views. Several Democratic committee leaders, including Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut and Rep. Mark Takano of California, said privately that Biden should step aside, according to two people familiar with the meeting and granted anonymity to discuss it. But other top Democrats, including members of the influential Congressional Black Caucus, argued just as forcefully that Biden remain the partys choice. The conversation was wide ranging, with the committee leaders sharing various views on the situation, but there was no unanimity on what should be done, the people said. Biden was personally calling lawmakers through the weekend. He also joined a call with campaign surrogates and reiterated that he has no plans to leave the race. Instead, the president pledged to campaign harder going forward and to step up his political travel, according to two people who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. His planned visit to Michigan would mark the fourth campaign stop there during the 2024 election cycle. Three of the four visits were in Detroit. His last Michigan visit also was in Detroit, in late May, when he served as the keynote speaker at the Detroit branch of the NAACPs 69th Annual Fight for Freedom Fund dinner. Two months earlier, Biden rallied support during a campaign stop in Saginaw County, considered one of the key swing counties within Michigan. Biden first rallied Michigan voters this year in Detroit, three weeks before he won the states February presidential primary election for Democrats. Some of his top surrogates, meanwhile, have familiarized themselves with Michigan as recently as last week, when both California Gov. Gavin Newsom and First Lady Jill Biden made stops across the state. The Associated Press contributed to this report. DETROIT -- Officials in Detroit say they are implementing several new techniques to deal with an ongoing problem involving illegal block parties popping up across the city. The response comes after two people were killed and 19 others were shot at a block party in the early hours Sunday morning. Mayor Mike Duggan, Detroit Police Chief James White and Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy were on hand during a press conference Monday to announce the coordinated effort to crack down on the issue. Duggan said the continuing problem threatens to undo years of progress thats been made in cracking down on violence in the city. ANN ARBOR, MI An Ann Arbor-area seat in the Michigan House of Representatives is up for grabs and two Democrats are competing for it in the Aug. 6 primary. Democratic voters in District 33 have a choice between Morgan Foreman and Rima Mohammad. Rep. Felicia Brabec, D-Pittsfield Township, is stepping down and backing Foreman to replace her. Foreman, a training support specialist at Eastern Michigan University, was Brabecs director of constituent services. Mohammad is an Ann Arbor school board member and University of Michigan College of Pharmacy professor. The winner of the August primary will face Republican Jason Rogers in the November general election, though the district is heavily Democratic. It includes much of the southern half of Ann Arbor and stretches southwest into other parts of Washtenaw County, including Saline. Brabec won the seat with over 75% of the vote in 2022. MLive/The Ann Arbor News has partnered with the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan Education Fund to provide the Vote411.org voter guide. In responses to the voter guide questionnaire, the candidates discussed why theyre running and weighed in on topics such as education, the environment and resident retention. Note: All responses in the voter guide were submitted directly by the candidate and have not been edited by the League of Women Voters, except for necessary cuts if a reply exceeded character limitations. Spelling and grammar were not corrected. Publication of candidate statements and opinions is solely in the interest of public service and should NOT be considered as an endorsement. The League never supports or opposes any candidates or political parties. GENERAL BIO QUESTION: Why are you running for the Michigan State Legislature? Foreman: Im running for state legislature to continue my commitment to service and advocacy. Growing up in Southeast Michigan, inspired by my community, I learned the values of hard work and giving back. As an educator in Ypsilanti Schools and MEA member, I saw the transformative power of education. At the Student Advocacy Center, I empowered residents through nonpartisan Get Out the Vote efforts. Serving on the Washtenaw County Democratic Party Committee and former Treasurer of its Black Caucus, Working as a legislative staffer I championed critical issues. I aim to fight for healthcare, education, senior care and representing my communitys voices. Mohammad: Im running for Michigan State Representative because I want to ensure that we make all decisions by fostering community involvement through transparency and inclusiveness. As a healthcare worker, Ive seen the challenges in our healthcare system and its impact on patients. As a school board member and educator, Ive seen the challenges our educational system has on our school community. As a child of refugees, I know how racism and inequities can impact people at their core. I made it my mission to give back to the community. I will continue to strongly advocate to ensure that voices of marginalized communities are heard and represented. EDUCATION: What should Michigan do to provide an equitable, quality public education for all while addressing the current teacher shortage. Foreman: To ensure equitable, quality public education and address teacher shortages in Michigan, the state should increase teacher salaries and benefits, provide incentives for hard-to-staff areas, and expand alternative certification pathways. Long-term strategies include investing in teacher education programs, offering robust mentorship and professional development, improving working conditions, and fostering community and parental engagement. Policy changes should focus on equitable funding distribution, reducing reliance on local property taxes, and advocating for supportive legislation to improve teacher retention and student outcomes. Mohammad: As a former refugee, education was a crucial factor to rise out of poverty. As a professor and school board member, I understand the importance of supporting public education. We must offer every child a path to success. We must ensure continued expansion of pre-k capacity and support robust enrollment programs. We must attract and retain talent in our schools through incentivizing educators to join and stay in our schools. We must improve education outcomes, especially in marginalized students. Im committed to advocating for policies that prioritize public education, ensuring every child in Michigan has access to a world class education. ENVIRONMENT: What do you see as the states role, if any, in mitigating the impact of climate change? Foreman: The states role in mitigating climate change involves implementing policies to reduce emissions, promote sustainability, and prepare for climate impacts. Key actions include enforcing regulations on emissions, supporting renewable energy development, and investing in public transportation and green infrastructure. The state should incentivize energy-efficient buildings and sustainable urban planning, raise public awareness, and encourage carbon footprint reduction. Collaborating with local governments and businesses, developing climate action plans, and investing in resilient infrastructure are also crucial. Michigan can lead in this space. Mohammad: I will strongly support the funding of clean energy projects and programs that incentivize clean energy expansion. I also believe that reducing the carbon output of buildings and transportation is crucial and it is important and necessary to work with workers and community partners such as local government, local organizations, especially of underserved communities, employers, schools and universities to develop policies to address environmental and sustainable needs. These needs are all connected to all members of the community which stresses the importance of including these members in the decision making and implementation process. RESIDENT RETENTION: What actions/proposals, if any, do you support to retain residents in our state? Foreman: To attract and retain residents in Michigan, the state can focus on key strategies outlined in the Growing Michigan Together Councils report. These include fostering job creation in tech, manufacturing, and green energy sectors, and offering incentives for business expansion. Enhancing education, healthcare, and public safety will improve quality of life, alongside developing affordable housing. Improving transportation and digital infrastructure supports modern living, while promoting community engagement creates vibrant neighborhoods. These efforts aim to make Michigan a desirable place to live, work, and thrive. Mohammad: Residents are struggling to afford living in Michigan which is driving them out of our state. These trends are unacceptable and need to be addressed. I will advocate for more funding and incentives to help increase affordable housing, especially areas where vulnerable and marginalized families are being pushed out due to housing costs. I will advocate for increasing minimum wage to $15 per hour to ensure that all workers are making a livable and fair wage. I will advocate to control price gouging and increasing prices of basic essentials. Vulnerable and marginalized communities are most impacted and we need to address these inequities. WATCH CANDIDATE FORUM: Foreman and Mohammad also took part in a virtual candidate forum hosted by the League of Women Voters of Washtenaw County. Watch the video. Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Ann Arbor daily newsletter. ANN ARBOR, MI Thousands of Ann Arbor voters now have absentee ballots in hand for the Aug. 6 primary, but as far as City Council races theres only one contest to decide. Council Member Jen Eyer, D-4th Ward, faces a repeat challenge from Democrat Mozhgan Savabieasfahani in the ward that covers southwest Ann Arbor. In the rest of the citys wards, other council candidates are running unopposed. The two 4th Ward contenders last faced off in a three-way primary in 2020 when Eyer ousted then-incumbent Jack Eaton with 61% of the vote, while Savabieasfahani netted 10%. Ann Arbor's ward boundaries.City of Ann Arbor MLive/The Ann Arbor News has partnered with the nonpartisan League of Women Voters of Michigan Education Fund to provide the Vote411.org voter guide. In responses to the voter guide questionnaire, the candidates discussed their experience and qualifications, top goals, the issue of growth and density, and more. Note: All responses in the voter guide were submitted directly by the candidate and have not been edited by the League of Women Voters, except for necessary cuts if a reply exceeded character limitations. Spelling and grammar were not corrected. Publication of candidate statements and opinions is solely in the interest of public service and should NOT be considered as an endorsement. The League never supports or opposes any candidates or political parties. What in your education and experience make you the best qualified candidate for this position? Eyer: I have over twenty years of experience serving my community and an extensive record of policy and leadership experience. I have developed the strong relationships with local, state, and federal officials and community leaders necessary to achieve robust multi-agency action to address Ann Arbors most pressing issues and win funding for those priorities. I ran for Ann Arbor City Council in 2020 because voters were hungry for change in our community. My career in public policy, communication, and community outreach made me a good fit for the job. I was elected in November 2020. During my time in office, my colleagues and I have led Ann Arbor forward on a number of fronts, including affordable housing, climate action, diversity, equity and inclusion, transportation, workers rights, renters rights, and more. Im proud of what weve accomplished so far, but there is so much more to do. Thats why Im running for re-election in 2024. Savabieasfahani: My education and experience have equipped me to fight for our human rights, our labor rights, & our environmental rights. I am an award-winning environmental toxicologist, a former Assistant Professor of Environmental Sciences, and the former managing editor of a global health journal. I have published over thirty environmental toxicology studies in scientific journals and have gained worldwide media attention for my work in that field. I have campaigned in Ann Arbor City Council for an immediate city cleanup of the Gelman dioxane contamination, and against the racist Stand Your Ground shoot-to-kill laws, and for massive reparations, and for 10% Black enrollment at the University of Michigan, and for a resolution against military aid to Israel, which is committing a Holocaust in Gaza. I believe that academic and real-world experience qualifies me for City Council. The above things are not just promises. I have already fought for those things in City Council, and I will not stop. What are your goals should you be elected and how will you work to accomplish them with limited resources? Eyer: Addressing our housing, affordability, and climate crises are the most pressing issues facing our community, and if I am re-elected, they will be my continued priorities. The problems we face today werent created overnight; theyre the result of decades of local, state, and federal policies. We need to continue addressing these critical quality-of-life issues through continued advocacy for our renters and further changes to our zoning and development priorities to build sustainably and efficiently along our transit corridors. Additionally, we must continue to work towards Ann Arbors aggressive A2Zero goals to create a carbon-neutral and sustainable future for our community while maintaining the exceptional city services our residents expect and deserve. Savabieasfahani: * Immediate city cleanup of the Gelman dioxane contamination of our water before its too late. * A City Council resolution against military aid to Israel. Its unconscionable that Council is stonewalling that resolution, with over 40,000 Palestinians dead, after so easily approving a Ukraine resolution. * A minimum survival wage for all workers in Ann Arbor, at least $20 an hour. * Make all new housing good quality affordable housing, owned by the public, with the option to buy. I will do my best to stop City Council from making Ann Arbor into a gated community of luxury housing that jacks up everyones rent. * A resolution telling Congress to repeal the Taft-Hartley Act, which shackles unionization and keeps you underpaid and powerless. * Use every lever of power to force U of M to keep its commitment to 10% Black enrollment. * Expand Future Corps job placement and paid-for college education to every young person. * Accelerate reparations to Black Ann Arbor now. What would you like to see happen with growth and density in Ann Arbor in the next ten years? Eyer: The trend of increased inequality in housing is not inevitable or acceptable. It is the result of decades of local, state, and federal policies that have benefited a wealthy few and left the vast majority behind. Addressing our housing affordability crisis is my top priority in my second term, and I have already taken significant actions to address this issue. Our housing crisis was caused by a housing shortage coupled with high demand. While we work to build city-owned affordable housing, we also must support the new construction of housing at all income levels. Over the next four years on council, I will continue to advocate for responsible, sustainable growth. We must prioritize development along our transit corridors and ensure that all who work here and want to live here can afford to do so. Building up and changing our restrictive zoning laws will help keep Ann Arbor open and welcoming for all. Savabieasfahani: My vision for Ann Arbor is largely reflected in this 2024 article from the Guardian: The social housing secret: how Vienna became the worlds most livable city; In the Austrian capital, renters pay a third of what their counterparts do in London, Paris or Dublin. How is it possible? There is no reason why Ann Arbor cant have dense urban development in which housing is overwhelmingly affordable, high-quality, publicly-owned, walkable, full of green parkland, and with public transit everywhere. Vienna has already done it. The City Councils current model, of filling our last bits of land with luxury homes, will create a perpetual motion machine of rich voters and high rents, fueled by overflowing campaign slush funds to keep elections unaffordable and therefore uncontested. That is whats squeezing out the working population, with an even harsher impact on Black Ann Arbor, whose percentage of the population is plummeting. It doesnt have to be that way. How do you plan to communicate with the residents in your ward? Eyer: Through my time on council, I have worked hard to make myself available and accountable to the community. This has been through regular community outreach, including coffee hours, newsletters, and direct contact via phone/email. I have proudly stood up for my community, as demonstrated through my voting record on council, and will continue to do so over the next four years. Additionally, I will meet many neighbors at their doors this summer to hear directly from them about the work weve been doing. Savabieasfahani: I will be meeting my constituents in-person, before and after every single City Council meeting and work session. They will know, for the first time, that the City Council chambers belong to them. Residents will also know that I will meet with them all over Ward Four at their convenience, in addition to texting, emailing, and telephoning. They will not have to dig out coffee hour details from social media. Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Ann Arbor daily newsletter. WASHTENAW COUNTY, MI -- A woman found dead in rural Washtenaw County has been identified as a tourist from Brazil. Suzan Christian Barbosa Ferreira, 42, was found dead Sunday, June 30, by passersby in the 7700 block of Earhart Road in Northfield Township. She had been traveling in parts of North Carolina and Michigan, according to her sister Renata Santana, 45. Northfield Township police have declined to comment on the investigation or confirm Ferreira was the woman found. Santana said her sister had been identified using dental records. Ferreira, of Minas Gerais in Brazil, had been in the U.S. for roughly a month, Santana wrote in an email. Her family became concerned after they stopped hearing from her on June 23, which Santana said was unusual. Ferreira had been scheduled to visit her sister in the United Kingdom. She would have been with us by now, Santana said. A GoFundMe to cover funeral expenses and the cost of getting Ferreiras body to Brazil has raised roughly 1,500, or just under $2,000, as of Monday, July 8. Read more: A sickening and shocking discovery: Body in Northfield Township found by neighbor on walk Ferreiras body was found by a couple walking in the area near Six Mile Road, north of Ann Arbor and east of Whitmore Lake around 9:30 a.m. on June 30. They said they were initially drawn to the area by a smell and thought a deer had been hit. They immediately called police upon finding Ferreira. It was really a sickening and shocking discovery, said Deb Rondon, one of the two people who found Ferreira. Ferreira was naked when she was discovered, Rondon said. The incident has shaken neighbors, who have expressed concern that the remoteness of the area means there will be little camera evidence that could identify a suspect. Its just weird, said area resident Penny Riley, 63. Nothing like this has ever happened. Police said they hope to release more information in the coming days. Our family in Brazil, especially our mother, is devastated at her passing, as in August she would have been back in Brazil, Santana said. She wants Suzans body back in Brazil to say her final goodbye. Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page, the Ypsilanti-area news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Ann Arbor daily newsletter. KENT COUNTY, MI -- City dwellers looking to beat the heat dont have to go far to find a free beach, swimming, boating and fishing area near Grand Rapids. Versluis Park in Plainfield Township has no entry fee and is open daily from 8 a.m.-9:30 p.m. all summer, until hours change in September. Located at 3650 Versluis Park NE, the park is a 20-minute drive from downtown Grand Rapids. The parking lot leads straight away into a picnic, playground and beach area. The parks main feature is its 50-acre man-made lake parallel to the Grand River. RELATED: Grand Rapids offering $5 kayak rentals, monthly free paddles this summer Versluis Lake is open for kayaking, paddleboarding and boating. The designated swim area keeps swimmers apart from boaters and anglers. The fishing pier is accessible for anglers of all ages and abilities. A large variety of fish are found in Versluis Lake including bluegill, carp, catfish, crappies, gar and northern pike, large mouth, small mouth and rock bass, sunfish and walleye, according to the Plainfield Township Parks and Recreation website. RELATED: 5 things to do at West Michigans largest urban park Park activities include two playgrounds, horseshoes, volleyball and a one-mile paved walking trail. Along the water are large pavilion areas as well as picnic areas throughout including a barbecue grill. The picnic areas and pavilions can be used for gatherings but alcohol and pets are prohibited at Versluis Park. SAGINAW, MI Nearly two years after two teens were slashed and stabbed in the halls of Bridgeport High School, a peer has pleaded guilty-as-charged to being their knife-wielding assailant. However, he may avoid having a criminal record if he stays on the straight and narrow. Louie J. Miller Jr., 20, on June 24 appeared before visiting Saginaw County Circuit Judge Harry P. Gill and pleaded guilty to felonious assault, carrying a concealed weapon, and possessing a weapon in a weapon-free school zone. The first two charges are four- and five-year felonies, respectively, while the third count is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 93 days in jail and a $2,000 fine. LANSING, MI Homeowners associations across Michigan just lost the right to block energy efficiency elements in their neighborhoods like rooftop solar panels. Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signed legislation today, July 8, 2024, that was previously adopted by both the state House and Senate to invalidate any HOA provisions against a litany of energy efficiency home improvements. The law covers a range of both high- and low-tech home upgrades from rooftop solar panels and home EV chargers to clothes lines and rain barrels. HOA officials also cant require fees to install energy efficiencies, nor demand post-installation reports or monitor homeowners energy usage, under the new law. The bill sponsor said the governors signing of this bill makes it easier for homeowners to make updates to their homes to save on their energy bills. Simply put, Michigan homeowners shouldnt face artificial barriers to lowering their energy consumption, saving more of their hard-earned money and helping to keep Michigans environment healthy, said Rep. Ranjeev Puri, D-Canton, in a statement. In addition to solar panels, EV chargers, clothes lines and rain barrels, the law additionally covers air source heat pumps, ground source heat pumps, reflective roofing, energy-efficient appliances, windows and insulation, solar water heaters. HOAs can no longer block homeowners from installing these elements. Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer delivers her 2024 State of the State address at the Michigan Capitol Building in Lansing on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024.Jacob Hamilton | MLive.com Whitmer said signing this legislation into state law is a part of working to make a real difference in peoples lives. Last year, Puri told fellow representatives that each of the outlined upgrades has been prevented by an HOA within Michigan often in his district and his constituents have not been happy about it. The dilemma came up during every coffee hour he hosted, Puri said. In November last year, the Democrat-controlled state House passed the bill 56-54 along party lines. The situated repeated itself last month when the Democrat-controlled state Senate passed the bill 20-18 along party lines. The new state law creates a new act called the Homeowners Energy Policy Act. It will take effect in 90 days. Related articles: HOAs could not block rooftop solar, home EV charging even clothes lines under new bill Renewable wave energy project to launch on Beaver Island Nuclear energy on fast track with national bill; Michigan to benefit Scorching weather and its location far from downtown Beijing are not proving to be obstacles to people's enthusiasm for admiring the brilliance of ancient cultures. Over the last two weekends, visitors have had to stand in long lines for hours on end to enter the Capital Museum East Branch to see artifacts from remarkable Bronze Age civilizations that flourished over 3,000 years in present-day Sichuan province. The widely anticipated exhibition, Unveiling Sanxingdui and Jinsha of Ancient Shu Civilization, which opened on June 27 and which will run through to Oct 10, has placed 265 artifacts on display and shows the efforts over the last century to decode a distant past. The Sanxingdui site in Guanghan was discovered in the 1920s, but what really amazed the world was the milestone 1986 discovery of two pits, presumably used for sacrificial ceremonies. Exotic-looking bronze masks, statues and gold artifacts ushered people into a world full of romance and imagination. The Jinsha site, discovered in 2001 in the provincial capital of Chengdu, is famed for its exquisite bronze, jade, stone relics and numerous ivory tusks. Thanks to the two sites, ancient Shu civilization was able to emerge from mythology and literature to yield its treasures and character. "Through tireless exploration and the generational efforts of archaeologists, the image of ancient Shu civilization, represented by the Sanxingdui and Jinsha cultures, is becoming increasingly clear," says Gao Hongqing, curator of the exhibition. Nevertheless, the open-ended explanations on the artifacts on display demonstrate that the ongoing exploration of ancient Shu civilization still has a way to go. As the bronze masks, human figures with protruding eyes, bronze wheel, and gold scepter on display show, the groundbreaking 1986 discovery at Sanxingdui leaves many issues unanswered. A new round of excavations between 2020 and 2022, which revealed six more "sacrificial pits", raised even more questions. Tang Fei, deputy director of the Sichuan Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute, says that about 60 of the exhibits in the ongoing display come from this new round of excavation, which led to the unearthing of more than 17,000 artifacts, including 4,800 that were mostly intact. The bronze statue, depicting a man kneeling, twisting his body and clasping his hands together, was widely covered by the media after it was found in Sanxingdui in 2021, but visitors to the exhibition in Beijing may still wonder what exotic ceremony he is involved in. Another bronze statue, with the body of a dragon, head of a tiger, and a bird resting on the base, also arouses curiosity about its use. "Visitors can develop their own explanations," Gao says. "They may even inspire our own studies, as well." Yu Jian, deputy director of the Sanxingdui Museum, says the ongoing exhibition displays the new mindset toward artifact restoration, as even damaged items can convey a great deal of information. Despite their initially strange appearance, the Shu artifacts also demonstrate close links and frequent interaction with other regions in the rest of modern-day China, particularly in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, Gao says. For example, a jade cong, a square tube with a circular bore, is typical of both Sanxingdui and Jinsha, but can be traced back to the Liangzhu Culture, which existed 5,300 to 4,300 years ago in modern-day Zhejiang province, nearly 2,000 kilometers away. Some bronze vessels from the sites also feature elements typical of the central Shang Dynasty (16th century-11th century BC). "They provide significant evidence for a profound understanding of the diverse and integrated origins and development of Chinese civilization," Gao says. "Regarding Sanxingdui and Jinsha, what moves us so deeply is not only the beauty, awe and mystery of the objects, but also the people themselves and their rich expression of self through materials like bronze, gold and jade," he says. "This expression embodies the commonality of the era and the individuality of regional culture blending tradition with innovation." The Beijing event is the third major exhibition of recently excavated artifacts from Sanxingdui outside its home, after exhibitions in Hong Kong and Shanghai. It also lifts the curtain on a series of exhibitions tracing early-stage Chinese civilizations at the Capital Museum. You are already a Moneycontrol Pro user. OK OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Korean superstar Ma Dong-seok to play an antagonist in Prabhas's 25 film Spirit? Follow us on: Ranveer Singh expresses gratitude as he enters "Act Two", shares Dazzling look from Anant-Radhika's sangeet Follow us on: Renukaswamy murder: Darshan, Pavithra Gowda and other accused used SIM cards registered under different names Namita S Kalla is a senior journalist who writes about different aspects of modern life that include lifestyle, health, fashion, beauty, and entertainment. 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 Bengaluru leads in electric vehicle sales this year; Tata Tiago.ev tops in major cities OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Adani Green plans $9 billion infrastructure spend on green hydrogen in Phase one: Report OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All RKN Enterprises sells 12.65% stake in Godrej Industries for Rs 3,803 crore under settlement plan Follow us on: Delhi HC releases Rs 80 crore security by Ashneer Grover, Madhuri Jain after they return to India from US Follow us on: India will fail to plug jobs gap even with 7% growth, Citi says Follow us on: Indian Oil JV firm to raise up to Rs 1,200 crore to finance CBG plant projects OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Akums Drugs, Gold Plus Glass, Ceigall India, Orient Technologies get Sebi nod to float IPO Follow us on: Bhavish Aggarwal on Ola Electric IPO launch: 'Still a bunch of steps to go through...'' OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Low-cost airline Air Kerala, brainchild of Dubai-based businessmen, gets NOC from Govt Among emerging market sector funds, technology funds are receiving inflows at the strongest pace since January 2024. Global liquidity flows, as shown by EPFRs Fund Flows and Allocations Data, reveal that India-dedicated flows have slowed to a 12-week low of $153 million in the week ended July 5 even as long-only funds continue to report strong inflows. This is, however, a significant fall from the average weekly inflows of $1 billion post the general election results last month. According to Elara Capital's Global Liquidity Tracker report, which analysed the EPFR data, India-dedicated funds have not seen Are you a PRO subscriber? Sign In Moneycontrol's Pro Panorama October 8 edition: China's economics first policy before geopolitical chaos, sectoral and thematic fun... A strategy to benefit from sideways movement in Coal India *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All PC Jeweller stock locked in 10% upper circuit after PNB greenlights one time settlement proposal July 08, 2024 / 16:17 IST Indian benchmark indices ended flat in the volatile session on July 8. At close, the Sensex was down 36.22 points or 0.05 percent at 79,960.38, and the Nifty was down 3.30 points or 0.01 percent at 24,320.50 We wrap up today's edition of the Moneycontrol live market blog, and will be back tomorrow morning with all the latest updates and alerts. Please visit https://www.moneycontrol.com/markets/global-indices for all the global market action. Follow us on: Air India looking to hire 20 more foreign commanders as it expands widebody fleet Jinit Parmar is a correspondent based out of Mumbai covering the banking sector, fintechs, NBFCs, insurance and more, tweets @jinitparmar10 Manish M. Suvarna is Senior Correspondent at Moneycontrol. He writes on the Indian money markets, RBI, Banks and NBFCs. He tweets at @manishsuvarna15. Contact: Manish.Suvarna@nw18.com Follow us on: ITR filing 2023-24: How to maximise rent tax benefits, steer clear of pitfalls to avoid I-T notices Are you a PRO subscriber? Sign In The markets have so far shrugged off the possibility of a serious escalation of the war in the Middle East Moneycontrol's Pro Panorama October 8 edition: China's economics first policy before geopolitical chaos, sectoral and thematic fun... Titan Company s (CMP: Rs 3,273; market cap: Rs 290,528 crore) revenue performance in Q1FY2025 was lower-than-expected, with an overall growth of 9 percent in the standalone business. As per the business update, the key jewellery business growth was in single digit (domestic business grew 8 percent YoY). Highlights - Quarterly performance largely backed by improved realisations - Medium-term triggers China plus and protectionist measures for tyre industry - Valuations not inexpensive; but improved medium-term outlook *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Follow us on: 'Why should state be interested in protecting someone?' SC on Bengal's Sandeshkhali plea OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Rift widens as Congress blames AAP for Lok Sabha debacle in Delhi Follow us on: Delhi HC seeks views from Tihar, ED on Kejriwal plea for legal consultation over 35 cases Follow us on: Eye on 2027 UP polls: Congress's 'smart move' to build on Lok Sabha gains Follow us on: Kathua Terror Attack: Five soldiers killed, six injured in Jammu and Kashmir ambush Swati Das is an independent journalist covering Tamil Nadu politics, and is based in Chennai. Follow us on: Looking forward to review all aspects of India-Russia ties with President Vladimir Putin: PM Modi OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Mumbai BMW accident: Victim's husband says accused kept driving, 'dragged wife for kilometres' Follow us on: Nothing much has changed since my earlier visits: Rahul Gandhi during his Manipur visit PM Modi Russia Visit Highlights: Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a significant two-day visit to Moscow starting Monday, July 8, at the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin. In his tweet, PM Modi highlighted the growth of the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia over the past decade, highlighting advancements in energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges. "I am embarking on an official visit to the Russian Federation for the 22nd Annual Summit and my first-ever visit to the Republic of Austria over the next three days," he tweeted. This visit marks a pivotal moment as it is Modi's first trip to Russia since the country's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. His last visit in 2019 saw him attend an economic conclave in Vladivostok. OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All President Droupadi Murmu asks people to take 'smaller, local steps' to protect environment Follow us on: 'Stronger ties will....': PM Modi on 1st visit to Russia since Ukraine invasion OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Vladimir Putin, Narendra Modi to hold both private, extended talks on Tuesday: Kremlin Follow us on: We seek to play supportive role for peaceful, stable region: PM Modi ahead of Russia visit Follow us on: 'Zero tolerance for...': Eknath Shinde condemns rise in hit-and-run cases in Maharashtra Arun Anand has authored two books on the RSS. His X handle is @ArunAnandLive. Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication. Follow us on: PM Modi goes to Moscow while Rahul Gandhi heads for Assam, Manipur: Congress Best cities to find a job in the US Follow us on: How to solve the problem of deepfake pornography? Code Dependent author Madhumita Murgia says regulation is key Follow us on: Liver Doc slams Nikhil Kamath for glorifying 'business of alcohol' in his podcast: 'It's a crime' Follow us on: Boeing to plead guilty in US probe of fatal 737 MAX crashes, says DOJ official OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All NATO summit hosted by Joe Biden to show strong support for Ukraine Follow us on: No decision to end moratorium on foreign research vessels on Sri Lanka's EEZ: FM Ali Sabry OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Who is Jean-Luc Melenchon? far-left leader defiant after French victory OTHERS OTHERS Follow us on: My Account or or Hello, Login All Surprising discovery by NASA an unexpected X & C-shaped structures spotted in Earth's upper atmosphere 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 BEIJING, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping's just-concluded trip to Central Asia is significant for guiding the direction of the development of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), deepening China's good-neighborly relations with regional countries, and promoting the substantial advancement of building a community with a shared future among neighboring countries, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, made the remarks during a press briefing on Xi's attendance at the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO in Astana, and state visits to Kazakhstan and Tajikistan this week. President Xi attended the meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO as well as the SCO+ meeting, and pointed out that the SCO stands on the right side of history, fairness and justice, and is of great significance to the world, Wang said. The Chinese president called on the SCO, which is faced with new situations and challenges, to ensure security, safeguard development rights, consolidate the strength of unity, and strive to build a shared home featuring solidarity and mutual trust, peace and tranquility, prosperity and development, good-neighborliness and friendship, as well as fairness and justice, Wang said. While briefing on Xi's visit to Kazakhstan, Wang said the heads of state of China and Kazakhstan reaffirmed their strong political will to promote the building of a China-Kazakhstan community with a shared future, and made new plans to usher in a new "golden 30 years" of bilateral relations. China remains steadfast in its commitment to the China-Kazakhstan friendship, in its resolve to advance cooperation across the board, in its determination to continue mutual support on issues concerning each other's core interests, and in its confidence in both countries realizing their development goals, Wang added. While briefing on Xi's visit to Tajikistan, Wang noted the Chinese president has met with Tajik President Emomali Rahmon 15 times since the beginning of the new era, saying that during Xi's state visit this time, the two heads of state announced the establishment of a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the new era between China and Tajikistan, and the joint building of a community with a shared future from a higher starting point. President Rahmon has said repeatedly that China is a great neighbor of Tajikistan, Wang noted, adding that Xi's visit this time is another important milestone in Tajikistan-China relations. During Xi's state visit to Tajikistan, he not only attended the inauguration of a parliament building and a government building aided by China with President Rahmon, but also awarded the "Friendship Medal," China's highest state honor for foreigners, to Rahmon, Wang said. During his attendance at the SCO summit in Astana, Xi also held intensive bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other foreign leaders participating in the summit, Wang noted. The leaders of various countries have expressed their hope to learn from China's governance experience and accelerate the modernization process of their countries, Wang said. They have clearly stated that they firmly abide by the one-China principle and oppose any form of "Taiwan independence," Wang said, adding that the leaders also highly commended the proposition of building a community with a shared future for mankind and a series of global initiatives proposed by Xi. STF Sheering Fire map 7-8-2024 View Photo Tuolumne County, CA The Sheering Fire burning in the Stanislaus National Forest west of the Clavey River in Tuolumne County has grown to 528 acres, while the containment remains steady at 12 percent. On Monday morning (6/8), forest fire officials relayed that on Sunday (6/7) firefighters ignited vegetation between the fire line, off of Forest Road 3N01, to the slowly progressing fires northeast edge, securing the line and adding around 34 acres of fire growth. They added, An unmanned aerial system or drone continues to be used to detect areas of high intensity and scattered heat within the perimeter and identify heavy fuels that could carry fire beyond its current footprint. Additionally, on the fires western edge, containment was gained after firefighters completed a hose lay and mop-up, extinguishing hotspots, falling hazardous trees, and removing burning material along Forest Road 2N85. Along Forest Road 3N01, fire crews continue to hold and monitor the eastern containment line. The most challenging portion of the fire in the southern perimeter above Lost Creek continues to be scouted and assessed for opportunities to place primary fire line. Due to topography, heavy fuels and excessive dead trees from the 2013 Rim Fire, this location is difficult for firefighters to access, and a strategy that prevents risking firefighter safety is the top priority, according to forest fire officials. Dozers have constructed and continue to improve a contingency line on the ridge above Lost Creek. Forest fire officials provided this information regarding weather, smoke conditions, and fire restrictions: Weather & Fire Behavior: In areas where the fire is active, especially in the northeast perimeter of the fire, fire behavior continues to be low to moderate, with a slow rate of spread. Red Flag warnings remain in place for locations north of the fire area; very hot and dry conditions are expected over the fire area. Above-average temperatures will continue throughout the week, with poor humidity recovery across the fire area. Winds will be out of the northeast, up to 6 mph. Smoke Conditions: Although this fire has not produced notable smoke for several days, this region may experience occasional smoke and unhealthy conditions from a combination of burning fires in central California. Fire Restrictions: There are currently no fire restrictions on the Stanislaus National Forest; however, please check before you go, as fire restrictions periodically change throughout the year and vary from area to area. We remind all forest visitors that responsible fire use is crucial, and unpermitted fires can lead to devastating wildfires, endangering lives, property, and landscapes. Everyone is required to obtain a campfire permit to have fires in dispersed campsites. Two firefighters have suffered minor injuries battling the blaze. Total resources on scene included 174 personnel, 7 engines, 5 hand crews, 1 dozer, 1 water tender, and 1 helicopter. Conor here: Following the unraveling of the mass rape claims, it now looks like the fact that Israel killed many of its own citizens on Oct. 7 is beginning to leak out into the mainstream media. Of course, many have pointed this out for months and were vilified as antisemitic conspiracy theorists for doing so. Nine months later, Haaretz confirms what was reported by @intifada (https://t.co/MXsCvqZTJz) and then @TheGrayzoneNews (https://t.co/A9J1uRNvX7) back in October: Israel invoked the Hannibal Directive and killed its own citizens on Oct. 7th. The handful of independent https://t.co/3l5P6YOfZ7 Aaron Mate (@aaronjmate) July 7, 2024 Some even lost their jobs: Five months ago, I laid out, in detail, evidence that Israel was intentionally killing its own citizens aka the Hannibal Directive. In the clip below, I strenuosity advocated for Israeli hostages who reportedly were being killed by Israel. I was later fired after being accused https://t.co/QPjONXksuO pic.twitter.com/zoVLI6r9a3 Briahna Joy Gray (@briebriejoy) July 7, 2024 The Washington Post ran a whole hit piece on Electronic Intifada and others like The Grayzone back in January. While its a positive to see Haaretz finally report on the Hannibal Directive, its about seven months too late. And one wonders how the WaPo hit piece was used to suppress the reach of conspiracy theories. As Electronic Intifada pointed out at the time: The Washington Posts attack on The Electronic Intifada indicates the frustration Israel and its cheerleaders in the US media feel because they have been unsuccessful in imposing Israels version of events. With First Amendment protections for free speech still strong in the United States, direct censorship of publications is not an option. So there has emerged a nexus among governments, think tanks funded by governments and arms manufacturers, and big tech companies aiming to control what we can all say online. The Washington Post article is therefore likely to be used by Israel lobby groups to pressure big tech firms to suppress the reach of journalists who challenge Israels lies, under the banner of fighting supposed disinformation. Will the State Department still pretend it knows nothing? INCREDIBLE: In response to questioning by @samhusseini about Israels Hannibal Directive particularly regarding its use on Oct 7 and/or against US citizens Miller claims that hes NEVER HEARD OF IT! Miller: I am not familiar in any way with either that supposed directive pic.twitter.com/lndfHR0bkB Decensored News (@decensorednews) June 25, 2024 Will WaPo issue an apology? Thats unfortunately probably about as likely as news of the Hannibal Directive in Haaretz having any effect on Israels ongoing destruction of Gaza. As of the time of this post Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu continues to insist that any Gaza ceasefire deal must allow Israel to resume fighting until its objectives are met. By Jake Johnson is a senior editor and staff writer for Common Dreams. The Israeli newspaper Haaretzreported Sunday that Israels military repeatedly employed a protocol known as the Hannibal Directive during the October 7 Hamas-led attack in an attempt to prevent the kidnapping of Israeli soldierseven if it meant putting the lives of army captives and civilians at risk. Haaretz found based on documents and interviews with soldiers and senior Israeli officers that Hannibalan operational order developed in 1986 that directs the use of force to prevent soldiers being taken into captivity by enemy militantswas used at three army facilities infiltrated by Hamas, potentially endangering civilians as well. During the first hours of the Hamas-led attack, according to Haaretz, Israeli soldiers were given an order: Not a single vehicle can return to Gaza. At this point, the IDF was not aware of the extent of kidnapping along the Gaza border, but it did know that many people were involved, the newspaper continued. Thus, it was entirely clear what that message meant, and what the fate of some of the kidnapped people would be. The full text of the Hannibal Directive has never been published. But according to a Haaretz story about the directive from more than two decades ago, part of it states that during an abduction, the major mission is to rescue our soldiers from the abductors even at the price of harming or wounding our soldiers. Light-arms fire is to be used in order to bring the abductors to the ground or to stop them, it adds. If the vehicle or the abductors do not stop, single-shot (sniper) fire should be aimed at them, deliberately, in order to hit the abductors, even if this means hitting our soldiers. In any event, everything will be done to stop the vehicle and not allow it to escape. Israeli authorities have acknowledged multiple incidents of our forces firing on our forces on October 7. In April, Israels military said that one of the hostages taken by Hamas militants during the October attack was likely killed by Israeli helicopter fire. But the IDF, which has killed more than 38,000 people in Gaza since October 7, has declined to say whether Hannibal was used during the Hamas-led attack. Haaretz stressed Sunday that it does not know whether or how many civilians and soldiers were hit due to these procedures, but the cumulative data indicates that many of the kidnapped people were at risk, exposed to Israeli gunfire, even if they were not the target. The first of the known uses of the Hannibal Directive on October 7 came when an observation post at the Yiftah outpost reported that someone had been kidnapped at the Erez border crossing, adjacent to the IDFs liaison office, Haaretz reported. Hannibal at Erez came the command from divisional headquarters, dispatch a Zik. The Zik is an unmanned assault drone, and the meaning of this command was clear, the newspaper found. The directive was employed at least two additional times during the attack, according to Haaretz, which cited one unnamed source in Israels Southern Command as saying that the countrys forces were instructed to turn the area around the border fence into a killing zone, closing it off toward the west. The newspaper continued: One case in which it is known that civilians were hit, a case that received wide coverage, took place in the house of Pessi Cohen at Kibbutz Beeri. Fourteen hostages were held in the house as the IDF attacked it, with 13 of them killed. In the coming weeks, the IDF is expected to publish the results of its investigation of the incident, which will answer the question of whether Brig. Gen. Barak Hiram, the commander of Division 99 who was in charge of operations in Beeri on October 7, was employing the Hannibal procedure. Did he order the tank to move ahead even at the cost of civilian casualties, as he stated in an interview he gave later to The New York Times? Haaretzs reporting comes weeks after a United Nations investigation concluded that the IDF had likely applied the Hannibal Directive on October 7, killing more than a dozen Israeli civilians. Its just my brain: Biden defends health as Dem. governors call for his resignation The New York Times published a bombshell scoop Thursday, signaling the end is near for President Joe Biden as an increasing number of Democrats are abandoning ship. (Article by Ken Silva republished from HeadlineUSA.com) The Timess Thursday piece detailed a meeting Biden had with Democratic governors, where he told them he needs to get more sleep and work fewer hours, including curtailing events after 8 p.m. He described his extensive foreign travel in the weeks before the debate, something that the White House and his allies have in recent days cited as the reason for his halting performance during the debate, the Times reported, citing unnamed sources who were in the meeting. Initially, Mr. Bidens campaign blamed a cold, putting out word about midway through the debate amid a series of social media posts questioning why Mr. Biden was struggling. Perhaps the most shocking part of the article was Bidens defense of his health. He reportedly told the governors that its just my brain. Some governors reportedly took the comment as a joke, but others werent so sure. Either way, Biden apparently didnt convince the governors that he should still be running. Multiple governors who participated in the meeting expressed dismay afterward that there had been little debate about whether Mr. Biden should continue his 2024 presidential campaign, the Times reported. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, for example, reportedly told Biden in the meeting that hes received a groundswell of wishes from various people that Biden would end his campaign. Maine and New Mexicos governors also voiced concerns. Ms. Mills said that people didnt think Mr. Biden was up to running, and Ms. Lujan Grisham said she was worried that the president could lose her state, the Times added. Despite all that negative feedback, Biden seems intent on remaining in the race. The fact that Mr. Biden began the conversation with the governors by declaring that he was continuing on left some participants feeling that any further discussion about the state of play was chilled, the Times reported. Read more at: HeadlineUSA.com Silver lining: War with Russia is making Ukraine a world leader in AUTONOMOUS DRONE technology In the midst of its ongoing conflict with Russia, Ukraine has become a world leader in the development of autonomous drone technology Autonomous drones are unmanned aerial vehicles capable of "autonomous" flight, or flying without the need of a human pilot. These drones instead rely on artificial intelligence and other technologies to carry out their tasks with minimal human supervision. (Related: Ukraine claims to be developing "unstoppable" AI-controlled drones that can attack targets on the battlefield.) These AI-driven drones, which can identify and pursue targets without human intervention, are being tested and deployed on the battlefield. This has sparked both hopes for military success and concerns over ethical implications. According to a report by the New York Times, the areas around Kyiv have become a testing ground for this innovative technology. Vyriy, a Ukrainian startup at the forefront of autonomous drone development, is spearheading this technological race. Their drones are designed to precisely lock onto and follow targets, representing a significant advancement in the weaponization of consumer technology. Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Digital Transformation Mykhailo Fedorov highlighted the importance of these innovations, stating, We need maximum automation. These technologies are fundamental to our victory. The Ukrainian government is investing in companies like Vyriy to speed up production, recognizing the strategic edge these systems could provide against Russian forces. 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 effort extends beyond Vyriy as other companies, such as Saker, are adapting AI technologies originally developed for non-military purposes, such as fruit sorting, to create advanced targeting systems. Saker's CEO who remains anonymous due to fear of retaliation by Russia emphasized the durability and accuracy of their technology: "It resists wind. It resists jamming. You just have to be precise with what you're going to hit." Autonomous drones could be exploited by terrorists Two significant features of Ukraine's advancements in autonomous drones is their cost-effectiveness and accessibility. Many of these autonomous weapons are built using commercially available components and open-source software. However, this accessibility raises concerns about the potential for misuse, including fears that such technology could be exploited for terrorist activities. On the global stage, the ethical implications of autonomous weapons are a major concern. Stuart Russell, an AI scientist at the University of California, Berkeley, has cautioned about the risks of widespread availability of these weapons, suggesting they could lead to a new form of mass destruction that is both inexpensive and scalable. Human rights groups and United Nations officials are advocating for regulations on autonomous weapons to prevent an uncontrollable global arms race. For Ukrainian forces, however, ethical considerations are secondary to the urgent need for survival and success in the conflict. Innovations extend beyond aerial drones; companies like DevDroid are developing autonomous gun turrets capable of tracking and engaging targets from a distance. Yurii Klontsak, a 23-year-old reservist, underscored the importance of these technologies: "I understood this was the only way, if not to win this war, then to at least hold our positions." The rapid advancements in this field have attracted international attention and investment. Eric Schmidt, former CEO of Google, has founded a firm named D3 to invest in battlefield technologies emerging from Ukraine. This influx of capital and expertise is accelerating innovation, enabling Ukrainian companies to progress faster than many of their global counterparts. Although current autonomous weapon systems still require human intervention for firing decisions, the technology is advancing quickly. Companies like Swarmer are developing systems that allow a single operator to control multiple drones simultaneously for bombing and reconnaissance missions. Swarmer's founder, Serhii Kupriienko, envisions a future where drone pilots can manage "five or 10 drones at the same time." As Ukraine continues to advance in autonomous warfare technology, the world watches with a mix of admiration and concern. These developments not only promise to alter the dynamics of the current conflict but also raise profound questions about the future of warfare and the ethical use of AI in combat. Watch this episode of the "Health Ranger Report" as Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, interviews Zach Vorhies on the rise of AI and its use in the development of drone technology. This video is from the Health Ranger Report channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Military analyst: Zelensky established drone unit in Ukrainian Armed Forces to SWINDLE MORE MONEY. Russia unveils new ANTI-DRONE ROBOT named "Wall-E." Ukrainian DRONE SWARMS target four Russian oil refineries in largest drone attack yet. Ukraine unleashes KAMIKAZE drone boats against Russian ships in the Black Sea. U.S. military and contractors are exploiting Ukraine conflict to test AI-powered military technology. Sources include: YourNews.com DroneII.com NYTimes.com Brighteon.com Key Democrat donors threatening to PULL THE PLUG on party if Biden doesnt resign: How stupid do they think we are? The Democrat Party is imploding on itself as key donors threaten to shut the whole thing down unless Joe Biden resigns and agrees not to run on the 2024 presidential ticket. According to reports, Biden's embarrassingly feeble debate performance has unleashed an intra-party revolt with one side demanding that Biden be replaced with someone else. "For Biden's own good and the good of the country, he should step aside immediately," said former hedge fund manager and major Democratic donor Whitney Tilson who in recent years has flushed more than $300,000 into Democrat coffers. "The fact that it has now been three days and Biden has done nothing to reassure us confirms my worst fears." At a recent New York fundraiser appearance following the debate, Biden read a simple 15-minute speech off a teleprompter before leaving the event without taking any questions. "Doing that for the next five months is not going to be enough," said a fundraiser guest about Biden's dismal presentation and bizarre behavior during his speech. (Related: House Speaker Mike Johnson wants Biden removed from office immediately.) Democrats are eating their own in panicked post-debate frenzy Democratic National Committee (DNC) chairman Jaime Harrison and Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez held a conference call with various members of the DNC after the fact for damage control and cleanup. "The call was akin to a rah-rah speech," said North Carolina party member John Verdejo about the call, which conveniently failed to address the "elephant in the room," i.e., Biden's inability to speak clearly when addressing the nation. 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. Others were even more upset at the refusal of the conference call organizers to admit that there is anything wrong with Biden when there obviously is something wrong with Biden. "On every metric that matters, data shows [the debate] did nothing to change the American people's perception," claimed Jen O'Malley Dillon, chair of the Biden-Harris 2024 campaign, in a memo that almost nobody is accepting as truth. "The data!?" tweeted Mike LaRosa, the former press secretary to First Lady Jill Biden. "If there is data that counters the impact of what we all saw then WHERE THE HELL IS IT???" "They're p***ing on our legs and telling us it's raining," added Tilson about the lunacy of the official DNC line. "It's insulting. How stupid do they think we are?" A CBS News / YouGov poll conducted in the 48-hour period following the debate found that a shocking 72 percent of registered voters no longer believe that Biden has the "mental and cognitive health to serve as president." This is up from 65 percent back in early June. As all of this was happening, Biden remained "holed up" at Camp David with his family whom he gathered with right after the debate for a fashion photoshoot with celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz. Upon returning to the White House later that evening after the photoshoot, Biden made brief comments about the Supreme Court's presidential immunity ruling before leaving the podium, once again without taking any questions. "Are you going to drop out?" one reporter was heard yelling at Biden from the press pool, to which Biden did not respond. One member of the House of Representatives commented that everyone in Congress is now "waiting to see what the president is going to do and say" in order to figure out how to proceed. "I think the president himself needs to be doing some major reach-out to congressional leaders," the member added. "The donors are the canaries in the political coal mine," added Brett Bruen, a former Obama White House adviser. "As polls in the last day have indicated, there are reverberations from Biden's performance up and down the ticket." The notion that it gets messy if Biden steps aside overlooks the fact that it's already a big mess." Curious who will win the 2024 election? Find out more at Rigged.news. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk NaturalNews.com Donald Trumps sentencing in hush money case DELAYED until September 18, right before election Sentencing for Donald Trump's 34-count hush money conviction is delayed after Judge Juan Merchan notified both Trump's attorneys and the Manhattan District Attorney's (DA) office that the original July 11 sentencing date will not work. Originally scheduled to occur just days before the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, Trump's sentencing will now take place on September 18, just days before the November 5 election. The Manhattan DA's office affirmed that it will not oppose Merchan's delayed sentencing decision, which was influenced by Trump's attorneys who have also moved to file a motion to overturn Trump's hush money verdict entirely. Trump's attorneys sent a letter to Merchan requesting that his conviction be set aside and his sentencing delayed following the Supreme Court's blockbuster immunity ruling, which essentially vindicates Trump of all wrongdoing in an official capacity during his time in the White House. Merchan plans to release a final decision in the case on September 6. Depending on which direction that goes, Trump's sentencing would then take place on September 18 as is currently planned. (Related: Since Democrats know they can't beat Trump fair and square, they want to kill him.) Will Trump remain free? In a statement following the Supreme Court decision, Trump claimed that it "totally dismantled most of the charges against me." The Manhattan DA's office commented that it rejects the possibility of Trump's conviction being voided due to the Supreme Court ruling. "Although we believe defendant's arguments to be without merit, we do not oppose his request for leave to file and his putative request to adjourn sentencing pending determination of his motion," commented assistant district attorney Joshua Steinglass. 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 Manhattan DA's office is requesting two weeks from Trump's lawyers to file paperwork as part of its response, which Merchan accepted. The deadline for the response is July 24. According to Chief Justice John Roberts, the separation of powers delineated in the U.S. Constitution "entitles a former president to absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for actions within his conclusive and preclusive constitutional authority." "And he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for all his official acts," Roberts added. "There is no immunity for unofficial acts." In the comments, someone pointed out that of greater importance is the problem of insider trading, which is a cross-party thing that occurs both with Democrats and Republicans. "This is one of the biggest reasons the media oscillates between focusing on Biden, then focusing on Trump," responded another about how the media is doing its part to keep Americans divided and distracted from the issues that really matter. "If the masses were to agree on the matter that no politicians should be allowed to insider trade, this is one of the darlings our corrupt leaders might lose." Another called for the entire case against Trump to be vacated because of Merchan's irregular and improper behavior following his appointment as the presiding judge. "There are crystal clear 5th, 6th and 14th Amendment violations committed by the court and prosecution in this case," responded another. "There are also evidentiary violations from the testimonies of both Daniels and Cohen." "Bragg and Merchan know this case will lose on appeal before the Supreme Court decision," suggested another. "Now it will be gutted along with the J6 case." "They contorted laws to make up crimes. They gambled and lost big time. Now it's up to Merchan what will he do? To go against a prosecutor's request would be very odd. Seeing as this case was orchestrated by multiple players, I'm sure they decided this together. Joe Biden forced this immunity issue with his lawfare against his political opponent." The latest news about Trump's third bid for the presidency in 2024 can be found at Trump.news. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk NaturalNews.com Iran pledges ALL-OUT SUPPORT to Hezbollah if Israel invades Lebanon An adviser to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has warned that Iran and the "axis of resistance" would provide all the support it can to Hezbollah if Israel begins an all-out attack against the group in Lebanon. Kamal Kharazi, member of the Expediency Discernment Council and foreign affairs adviser to Khamenei, said Iran was "not interested" in a regional war and asked the United States to apply pressure on Israel to prevent an invasion of southern Lebanon. Israeli political and military leaders have repeatedly threatened to invade Lebanon in recent months for Hezbollah's participation in the current conflicts between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Some of the threats include destroying Beirut in the way the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has destroyed Gaza. The IDF has even authorized a war plan for an invasion of Lebanon. Hezbollah has exchanged cross-border fire with Israel almost daily since Oct. 8, one day after Tel Aviv's war on Gaza began. The conflicts has remained mostly limited to areas close to the border between Israel and Lebanon. When asked if Iran would support Hezbollah militarily in the event of a full-scale war with Israel, Kharazi stated, "All Lebanese people, Arab countries, and members of the axis of resistance will support Lebanon against Israel." Iran to mobilize "Axis of Resistance" to defend Lebanon The so-called "Axis of Resistance" is an informal grouping made up of Palestinian militant groups Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Gaza, the Houthi movement (formally Ansar Allah) in northern Yemen, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Iran's own Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. All of these groups heavily rely on political and material support from Iran and would no doubt come to Hezbollah's aid should Lebanon be invaded. 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. "There would be a chance of expansion of the war to the whole region, in which all countries, including Iran, would become engaged. In that situation, we would have no choice but to support Hezbollah by all means," Kharazi said. "The expansion of war is not in the interest of anyone not Iran or the U.S." In reply to Israeli threats of a full-blown invasion, Iran's latest mission to the United Nations warned of an "obliterating war," stating "all options" were on the agenda. (Related: If Israel attacks Lebanon, Iran says it will respond with obliterating war) Tensions between Iran, the U.S. and Israel have risen since the Oct. 7 attack of Hamas and Israel's retaliatory assault in Gaza, with Iranian-supported militant groups launching attacks against the Jewish state and American soldiers in the region. Aside from Hezbollah trading cross-border fire with Israel, Houthi rebels in Yemen have attacked ships in the Red Sea and launched drones and missiles at Israel, and Shia militants in Iraq and Syria have assaulted American troops and fired projectiles at Israel. Iran and Israel also started missile attacks against each other in April which marked the first direct Iranian assault against Israel from its own soil. Nonetheless, both sides wanted to de-escalate the tension, with the separate attacks deemed calibrated and creating limited destruction. However, fears of a full-blown Israel-Hezbollah war have increased in the last few weeks amidst growing aggressive rhetoric from both camps, bringing up worries in the West about how Iran would respond. Another Iranian official said Iran would be doubtful to instantly target Israel, instead assembling the organization of Iran-supported militant groups over the region that compose the axis of resistance. Follow IsraelCollapse.com for more news about the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. Watch the video below about Israel preparing for war with Hezbollah and an invasion of Lebanon. This video is from the TrendingNews channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Israel OKs plans for ALL-OUT WAR in Lebanon to wipe out Hezbollah. Pentagon chief recommends avoiding Israel-Hezbollah war but sends fighter jets to Israel anyway. Israeli military approves plan for invasion of southern Lebanon and new offensive against Hezbollah. Expert warns Hezbollah attack on power infrastructure could make Israel uninhabitable within 3 days. Sources include: TheCradle.co FT.com Brighteon.com Israel to invade Lebanon before August, German media giant claims If all goes according to plan, Israel's next phase of war involves invading Lebanon in the second half of July to fight Hezbollah. As Israel and Lebanon continue to trade fire across their shared border, German newspaper Bild, citing diplomatic sources, claims that Israel will proceed with a full-scale invasion of Lebanon unless Hezbollah stops attacking northern Israel. Israel is also demanding that Hezbollah withdraw from Israel's northern border region to areas beyond the Litani River, which is probably a tall order. The Litani River is located about 18 miles north of the Israel-Lebanon border, which means Israel wants Hezbollah to move substantially further away from where its forces are currently perched along Israel's northern border. In order for Israeli citizens who fled the area to ever be able to return home, Hezbollah's presence will need to be dealt with, Israel says about its planned response to the situation later this month. (Related: Did you know that Israel recently seized equipment from the Associated Press [AP] to punish the news wire for questioning its genocide in Gaza?) Hezbollah won't stop attacking Israel unless there's a ceasefire in Gaza Hezbollah has its own conditions as well. Unless Israel agrees to stop committing genocide in Gaza, Hezbollah plans to continue bombing northern Israel, its officials said. Israel, meanwhile, is indicating that its plan is to agree to a ceasefire in Gaza so that troops and other resources can be redeployed to northern Israel to fight Hezbollah. The fighting is not going to stop any time soon, in other words. 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. United States officials claim they are doing everything they can to try to stop any escalation of the situation in Lebanon. However, the U.S. will support Israel no matter what happens, including by funding and arming Israel to wage war on Hezbollah in Lebanon. To prove its Israel First position, Washington sent an amphibious assault ship to the Middle East last week in a show of force against Israel's enemies. The ship will also be used to evacuate Americans from Lebanon should the need arise. Israel continues to hint that it does not have the resources necessary to fight two wars at the same time: one in Gaza and the other in Lebanon. This means one of two things: Israel will mostly pull out of Gaza and redirect its efforts to Lebanon or it will demand that the U.S., meaning U.S. taxpayers, foot the bill for whatever it demands in order to "win." Israeli journalist Alon Ben David reported that Israel's losses in Gaza are so significant that the Jewish state is "not currently ready for a broad campaign in Lebanon." Over the past nine months since the war in Gaza began on October 7, Israel saw more than 500 of its armored vehicles incur significant damage from the Palestinian resistance. Even worse are Israel's ammunition stores, which are all but depleted. It is precisely because Israel is running out of weapons, bullets and troops that Netanyahu is freaking out at the U.S. for reportedly "withholding" some arms shipments. Netanyahu says these withholdings are the reason why he cannot launch a second military campaign in Lebanon. What Israel launched in Gaza in the aftermath of October 7 was supposed to only last "a few weeks." Now, nearly an entire pregnancy term later, the war is still raging and Israel is planning to launch a second one against Lebanon. "They are tired, physically and mentally," David wrote about Israeli troops. "If we call them to occupy southern Lebanon, they will be there but they will not be at their best." Will the situation between Israel and Lebanon escalate this summer? Find out more at Prophecy.news. Sources for this article include: Antiwar.com NaturalNews.com TheCradle.co New Zealand government announces livestock genetic engineering initiatives As genetically engineered food continues to take over grocery store shelves in the U.S. and other places, many consumers are seeking more natural food sources. One country that is known for distancing itself from genetic engineering is New Zealand, but all that is about to change thanks to some new government initiatives. The New Zealand government has announced that it will be making decisions about lifting the ban on genetic engineering in the next three months, paving the way for the usage of gene technology in agriculture, among other sectors. Dr. Guy Hatchard, who previously served as a senior manager for global food testing and safety company Genetic ID, explained how this could affect consumers and its a lot worse than many people think. He pointed to the U.S., where intense lobbying on the part of the biotechnology industry has let businesses operate largely unchecked, making it easy for people to experiment with genome editing; this same attitude and lack of regulation, he notes, created a situation where American scientists were able to divert U.S. government grants to Wuhan to build lethal coronaviruses. One area where the use of biotechnology is being explored in NZ is livestock. So far, at least $195 million has been devoted to research on how to reduce ruminant methane emissions, with a further $400 million pledged by the NZ government to fund ongoing research on measures such as feed additives, genetically engineered grasses, pills and vaccines. Apparently, it doesn't matter to them that animals have been producing methane naturally via their digestive processes for thousands of years and the planet hasnt overheated yet. 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. And while the government emphasized that these efforts would be safe, few people trust such claims after seeing the death and illness their safe vaccines brought on the population. An entire industry including universities and biotech companies complete with unaccountable and highly paid board members, CEOs, etc. has already been born, all holding out their hands to the government to secure a never-ending income stream for biotechnology experimentation. This industry is born out of the vague promises of gene dreamers that it will be safe and effective and the discredited notion that animal methane emissions are at the heart of climate change, Dr. Hatchard wrote. The government there has also set up an RNA Platform that will be used to support opportunities in the country in areas such as human and animal health, building on global progress in RNA technologies, including mRNA vaccines. They have already approved investments into applying mRNA vaccines to livestock to address problems such as Bovine Viral Diarrhea (BVD). What could possibly go wrong? Consumers dont want genetically modified food As Dr. Hatchard points out, this is hardly the win for New Zealand that the government wants people to believe it is. People do not want to eat food that has altered genes, as evidenced by the embarrassing failures of artificial meat companies. Last year, Beyond Meat lost $53 million in the second quarter and saw its U.S. revenue drop 40%, while rival Impossible Foods cut 20% of its workforce as Americans rejected Frankenfoods en masse. Yet the NZ government seems to think that biotechnology animals who boast a low methane profile will be in high demand among international customers. His experience has been the opposite; when he worked at Genetic ID, he saw just how deep the publics suspicions of genetically modified food run, to the point where it can only really be sold in high volumes in places where there are no requirements to label it. Our export partners are buying our agricultural products relying on our clean green grass-fed image. Why throw that away? he asked. Theyre also talking about emissions reduction technology helping them reduce their agricultural emissions by 30 percent by 2030, which is a remarkably short time frame. Dr. Hatchard pointed out the parallel to another hasty initiative, the warp speed COVID-19 vaccine program that prioritized getting the products out at the expense of safety and efficacy and look where that got us. Sources for this article include: Expose-News.com NYPost.com State Farm, Californias largest insurer, threatens to leave unless state allows policy price hikes of 50% or more The insurance industry is waging war on California's state government over home insurance rates. State Farm, California's largest insurer, is threatening to leave the state unless its Department of Insurance allows the company to raise home insurance rates for millions of residents. Competitors Allstate and Farmers Direct have made similar moves in recent months by limiting coverage in California or leaving the state entirely due to the government's insurance rate caps. State Farm and the others claim that climate change is causing more disasters that require rate hikes of 50 percent or more. Many Californians no longer have home insurance coverage at all because insurers are fleeing the state in protest and there are no alternatives. State Farm General has issued an ultimatum for all of California. The company wants to hike homeowner rates by 30 percent, condominium rates by 36 percent, and renter rates by a whopping 52 percent and unless this is allowed, State Farm will leave the Golden State. "This has the potential to affect millions of California consumers and the integrity of our residential property insurance market," commented insurance commissioner Ricardo Lara, who says he is determined to "get to the bottom" of State Farm's financial situation. "State Farm General's latest rate filings raise serious questions about its financial condition," Lara added about the number-one insurance firm in the United States. (Related: Major insurance companies are adding exclusions to policy coverage for riots, insurrection, war.) 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. Is State Farm struggling financially to survive? The next step is to hold a rate hearing to allow Lara's commission to hear from members of the public about the proposed rate changes. After that, the commission will make a decision that could take months to finalize. Right now, the average amount of time it takes for the commission to approve or deny requests is 180 days. Some cases are taking even longer than that due to the number of large fires California has seen in recent years. The Department of Insurance in California has already approved two rate hike increase requests from State Farm, which resulted in some state residents seeing massive policy increases. The first hike was 6.9 percent at the start of the year followed by another 20 percent hike in March. Now, State Farm is requesting a third rate hike even though the company is supposedly worth around $143.2 billion as of 2021. "At the time, the firm was generating some $87.6 billion in yearly revenue, and this past February, it issued a statement saying its net income for the previous year was an impressive $1.2 billion," reported the UK's Daily Mail Online. "That was up more than 100 percent from the year before, when the Illinois based insurance provider raked in $588 million in income. Still, such a move usually signals an insurance carrier is struggling." In one of its requests, State Farm claimed that the purpose of its request is to restore its financial condition, providing the following statement: "If the variance is denied, further deterioration of surplus is anticipated." State Farm further stated that it is currently "working toward its long-term sustainability in California," this suggesting that the company is facing financial problems. Back in March, State Farm dropped 72,000 of its California customers, this just one week after being granted permission to jack up policy rates in the state by 20 percent. Farmers Direct Insurance fled California in 2023, which followed Allstate's departure in 2022. Should California roll out new rules to help these carriers mitigate their risks, some could end up returning. Once the economy really starts to freefall, insurance companies won't want to cover anyone anywhere. Find out more at Collapse.news. Sources for this article include: DailyMail.co.uk NaturalNews.com Ukraine rushing to recruit PRISONERS to fight on the frontlines as troops dwindle Ukraine is reportedly rushing to recruit prisoners from the country's jails to fight against Russia as troop numbers decline. Citing the German newspaper Die Welt, Remix News reported that the Ukrainian Armed Forces (AFU) has turned to prisons to replenish its troop numbers. The Ukrainian Ministry of Justice (MJU) told the German outlet that since May, 2,800 prisoners have been released and are now serving as soldiers. Ukrainian Justice Minister Denis Malyuska added that a total of 10,000 to 20,000 prisoners both men and women could join the AFU as part of this recruitment program. The AFU's prison recruitment program was made possible by a law adopted by the Verkhovna Rada Ukraine's unicameral parliament in May and signed by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in the same month. Under the law, prisoners can be released on parole early to join the AFU under contract. However, the law lists several exceptions. Those convicted of premeditated murder, sexual violence, drug trafficking and production and crimes against national security are prohibited from military service under the program. Lawmaker Yaroslav Zheleznyak also mentioned that other members of the Verkhovna Rada and top officials who were imprisoned for corruption are also barred. The final version of the bill signed by Zelensky also prohibited prisoners convicted of involuntary manslaughter while in a state of intoxication from being recruited. "Since the start of the war, Ukraine has lost hundreds of thousands of soldiers who have been killed or wounded. In addition to a shortage of modern fighter jets and ammunition, a shortage of soldiers is a central problem for Ukraine's war effort," Remix News mentioned. According to Die Welt, the fact that the AFU is already recruiting from prisons shows the seriousness of the issue and highlights its continued inability to fill the gaps. (Related: Ukraine RUNNING OUT of soldiers to fight Russia.) 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. Prisoners want to return as heroes Remix News cited Prison No. 14 in the southwestern Ukrainian city of Odesa as one of many correctional facilities where the AFU has been looking to recruit reinforcements since May. Volunteers have been promised proper training for the frontline and a monthly salary of around 100,000 hryvnias ($2,463) the same as the standard military salary in Ukraine. Those deployed in assault brigades at the front earn a slightly bigger salary of roughly 120,500 hryvnias ($2,968.90). According to Ukrainian Deputy Justice Minister Olena Vysotska, interest in the prison recruitment program has exceeded early expectations. "A lot of the motivation comes from [inmates] wanting to return home a hero, and not to return home from prison," she told the Associated Press (AP). "Prisoners can get the conditional release after an interview, medical exam and a review of their conviction," the AP continued. "After screening, paroled inmates are rushed to basic training at camps where they learn how to handle weapons and other combat fundamentals. Training is completed later once they join the individual units." Twenty-seven-year-old Ernest Volvach, who is serving a two-year sentence for robbery, wants to take up the offer. He works in the kitchen at the penal colony in Ukraine's Dnipropetrovsk region but has expressed his desire to "do something for Ukraine" ever since the Russia-Ukraine war broke out in February 2022. "It's stupid to sit here doing nothing," he said. "Now, [the opportunity to enlist has] appeared." "The use of released criminals in this war is nothing new, [as] Russia has been replenishing its own ranks with prisoners," Remix News pointed out. "In the battle for the eastern Ukrainian town of Bakhmut alone, thousands of convicts were seriously wounded or killed in 2023." But Ukrainian officials are keen to draw a distinction between their program and recruitment in Russia of convicts to serve in the notorious Wagner mercenary group. Those fighters typically have been funneled to the deadliest battles, but the Ukrainian program aims to integrate the inmates into regular Ukrainian frontline units. Visit UkraineWitness.com for similar stories. Watch this video of a Ukrainian with mental disabilities being drafted to fight against Russia, showing Kyiv's desperation. This video is from the I AM A PERSON channel on Brighteon.com. More related stories: Ukraine suspends visa renewals for military-aged Ukrainians living overseas as punishment for NOT DYING in battle with Russia. Ukrainian generals warn that Kyiv's reserve forces are DEPLETED as Russian forces advance in Kharkiv. Kyiv to penalize, block bank accounts of draft dodgers amid serious shortage of soldiers. High schoolers in Ukraine must now undergo mandatory military firearms training. Young male Ukrainians hide in their homes after fears of forced conscription. Sources include: RMX.news Yahoo.com APNews.com Brighteon.com Creepy supercomputers run by lab-grown human BRAINS unveiled by WEF-funded scientists If you thought some aspects of AIs capabilities were creepy, brace yourself for FinalSpark's new Neuroplatform that is run by lab-grown human brains. The Swiss tech startup is selling access to biocomputers that use a series of small lab-grown human brains for power, which means they only need a fraction of the energy required to power a traditional computer. Not surprisingly, the scientists work is being funded by the globalists at the World Economic Forum. The new bioprocessing Neuroplatform is powered by these tiny brains, with as many as 16 of them working together to power it. It has already been adopted by nine institutions and is being lauded for its ability to save energy. The company boasts that 16 of these lab-created brains use a million times less power than the traditional silicon chips that power such systems. Neuroplatform combines hardware, software and biology, and it is considered wetware because it involves a biological component. It relies on a setup of Multi-Electrode Arrays (MEAs) that are used to house the 3D masses of brain tissue, with each MEA holding four lab-grown brains interfaced with eight electrodes that both stimulate them and record their data processing. Enslaved little brains subjected to punishment before being worked to death However, the fact that these little human brains have been essentially enslaved to run the platform is being largely glossed over. It can be a difficult concept to grasp because its so far outside the realm of traditional computing, but the fact remains that thousands of living neurons make up these brains and are being kept alive using a microfluidics system that supplies water and nutrients for the cells. 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. They are calling these brain cells organoids, and they are trained to perform the desired tasks with a reward and punishment system. When they act as expected, they are given dopamine as a reward, which is the human neurotransmitter behind pleasure and addiction, while the organoids are exposed to more chaotic stimuli, like irregular electrical activity, when those training them want to punish them essentially torturing these little brains into obedience. FinalSpark wants their scary technology to serve as the main energy source for AI given the huge energy inputs required to train and run the technology. Interesting Engineering notes: According to Final Sparks estimates, training the popular large language model GPT-3 that powered ChatGPT in its initial days alone consumed 10 GWh of energy. This is a whopping 6,000 times more energy than an average European city consumes in an entire year. Replacing silicon chips with bioprocessors could lead to drastic energy savings. Another complication here is the fact these mini brains are constantly dying and need to be replaced. The scientists have been improving their lifespans; while they used to die within hours, they can now survive for 100 days before being essentially worked to death. Although the platforms creators maintain that the mini brains are not sentient, this type of endeavor is worrying on so many different levels, and its easy to see where all this could be headed. In fact, FinalSpark openly shares their unsettling vision for overtaking nature on their website, declaring: Were growing neurons in cell cultures and making great progress in their use as computing power. Creating large networks is challenging and yet, our bio lab is actively working towards replicating and surpassing nature's success with limitless potential for enhancing life on earth. The possibilities are very exciting. Of course, it's hard to imagine who could be more excited about these "possibilities" than the World Economic Forum. Sources for this article include: InterestingEngineering.com TuzaraPost.SubStack.com Americans with commute plans should consider the latest weather forecasts next week due to potentially severe thunderstorms, causing flash floods and damaging winds. Considering the weather outlook, commuters should keep updated with the latest advisories and information. While some areas could experience unusual heat, homeowners should watch out for the following weather concerns: Damaging winds Flash floods Heavy rains Thunderstorms People with travel plans should stay updated with the latest flood watch and severe thunderstorm advisories to stay safe from weather conditions. Weather in the Eastern and Midwest US: Where Will Poor Weather Outlook Unload? In the latest weather forecasts, a severe thunderstorm potential and heavy rains are likely in parts of Texas and Oklahoma. Houses in low-lying areas or flood-prone are considered vulnerable to possible flooding rainfall concerns. In the Mid-South and other parts of Texas, homeowners should watch out for flooding risks, flash floods, and urban flooding in the Mid-South, according to a weather outlook for July 6 to July 11. The impacts of Tropical Cyclone Beryl would help bring challenging weather conditions. In addition, residents in the Midwest and Eastern U.S. should watch out for the following weather concerns: Gusty winds Hail Lightning Thunderstorms On Monday, homeowners should stay alert for the following weather risks: Flash floods Isolated damaging winds While the rain is beneficial for drought-stricken areas, homeowners should keep away from challenging weather conditions. According to the weather report, areas at risk are the following: Suffolk Asheville Atlanta Macon Montgomery Macon Dothan Savannah Jacksonville Charleston Fayetteville In New York, the forecast warns of a dense fog outlook and chances of showers in other areas. The chance of rainfall can help ease the recent unusual heat in the region during this astronomical summer. Last weekend, severe storms threatened parts of Denver, Amarillo, Oklahoma City, Gainsville, Wichita, and Kansas City. Residents were advised of the risks of the following weather risks: Flash floods Localized damaging winds Isolated tornadoes Also Read: Iowa, Minnesota Weather Forecasts: Round of Heavy Rains Likely to Bring Flooding, Flash Flood This Week Where Will Challenging Heat Unload This Week? A weather report published on July 7 warns of widespread hazardous heat in portions of the western U.S. Residents should watch out for record-breaking heat, leading to the following health risks: Heat stroke Heat stress Heat fatigue The forecast explains that record heat is expected to expand in the following areas: California Oregon Washington Great Basin Arizona Mid-July can likely unleash unusual heat in parts of the country, especially in the western U.S. Considering the potential concerns of prolonged heat, it is best to keep updated with the latest weather information and heat advisories in the west of U.S. In addition, limiting outdoor plans is recommended this week, particularly for vulnerable populations. Related Article: Southwestern U.S. Weather Forecast: Severe Thunderstorms, Unusual Heat Likely to Unload This Upcoming Independence Day For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News. A study done by the team from University of Queensland shows that humpback whales that migrate off the east coast of Australia experienced a decrease in stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. Lower Cortisol Level In an unparalleled period of human activity change, researchers at UQ's School of the Environment, led by Dr. Jake Linsky, conducted a study out of the Moreton Bay Research Station to assess the health of the species. Between 2020-2021, the condition of East Australian humpback whales within the waters surrounding Minjerribah or North Stradbroke Island was assessed by checking drones' photos and blubber samples. Linsky explained that they wanted to assess the health of this population, which has recovered from historic whaling in one of the best ways possible. The drone was used to measure the size of the whale and their body condition. "These are essential indicators of energy stores used during their long annual migration and intense breeding period," Dr. Linsky said. Moreover, whales were confronted by the researchers in small boats so as to take minor skin and blubber samples from their sides whereby said samples were scrutinized for hormones and gene expressions related to stress, energy stores, and immune competence. During the year 2021, the level of cortisol for whales was significantly under the one recorded in 2020 as shown by the lab results. It might argue that such a shift in physiology implies lower environmental pressures during a time span of two years. The claim for establishing marine protected areas and introducing tougher laws on shipping and pollution is based on the decrease in cortisol levels that was observed. Read Also: Humpback Whales Ignore Boat Noise but Sing Louder in Windy Conditions Indicator Of Antarctic Ecosystems During this time, a number of events occurred that probably influenced the results, such as the environment changing into La Nina and the significant adjustments made to human activities during the pandemic. An additional theory suggested by our gene expression data is that the whales might have been reacting to a drop in pollution in their far-off feeding areas. The findings of the survey support the theory that similar alterations in response to stress took place in the Southern Ocean, for similar changes in whale stress hormones were detected in earlier research from the other side of Antarctica. The study has demonstrated that migrating whales serve as good indicators of the quality of the marine ecosystems in the Antarctic. While humpback whales in eastern Australia have shown the remarkable ability to adapt to environmental changes, the study points out that it is necessary to minimize human influence so as to allow these animals to continue thriving in rapidly changing waters. Linsky mentioned that by observing and providing important details on how other endangered whale groups might be saved, experts will assure the health and stability of humpback whales along the coast of eastern Australia. The study further argued on the importance of international collaboration in marine conservation due to the fact that migratory species, such as humpback whales, travel long distances across the ocean. It added that it is important to work together to ensure that these animals get some place safe. This is critical for them to have any chances in such a world where things keep on changing. Related Article: Two Humpback Whales Caught in Shark Nets Off the Queensland Coast During a Whale Migration Hurricane Beryl made landfall along the Texas coast in the early morning (local time) of Monday, July 8, killing at least three people in Houston, Texas. The National Weather Service (NWS) reported that Beryl brought life-threatening weather hazards such as hurricane-force winds and dangerous marine conditions, including storm surges and rip currents. The Texas landfall came several days after Beryl wreaked havoc across Mexico and the Caribbean region. Beryl's arrival caused the delay and cancellation of multiple flights across the region, as well as widespread power outages, based on latest updates surrounding the first storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season. Weather forecasts show that the category 1 storm will bring multiple hazards across Texas on Monday. In the next few days, the hurricane will continue to move in a northeast pattern over the mainland United States. Hurricane Beryl Texas Landfall On Monday, the NWS' Weather Prediction Center (WPC) reported that Hurricane Beryl made the Texas landfall and is expected to bring life-threatening risks, especially along the north-central Gulf Coast area. Coastal flooding and damaging winds will be the primary threats posed by the Atlantic hurricane, in addition to heavy rain and a few tornadoes that the region is facing, according to the weather service. In its office in Houston, Texas, the NWS said that 3 to 6 inches of rainfall has been reported in the city, causing some areas to be submerged in flash flooding. Due to this hazard, the local weather authority advised drivers to avoid flooded roads or streets. In addition, Beryl also caused more than 1,000 flight cancellations in airports across Houston as of early Monday, according to the flight-monitoring website FlightAware. In Freeport, Texas, the Houston weather office also warned of damaging wind gusts of 94 miles per hour in the city, posing a risk to high-rise apartment buildings. Furthermore, water rescues and power outages affecting at least 1.5 million people were also reported as the hurricane battered through Texas. On the other hand, the US weather agency also issued a tornado warning for multiple counties across the Ark-La-Tex region. Also Read: Climate Change Alter Hurricane Pattern, Made Beryl Storm Dangerous Hurricane Beryl Weather Hazards In addition to the mentioned weather hazards earlier, Hurricane Beryl is expected to bring life-threatening coastal erosion along the Texas coast, ranging from Mesquite Bay to Sabin Pass, including Galveston Bay and Matagorda Bay. This is according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC) which stated that a "hurricane warning" is in effect in areas from Mesquite Bay to Port Bolivar as of Monday. One of the three fatalities confirmed in Houston died after a tree fell on the roof of his home. Last week, Beryl killed a total of at least 11 people when it wreaked havoc across the Caribbean region, including Jamaica and the Cayman Islands before heading towards the Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Later this week, the NHC is projecting that Beryl will head towards the Northeast US. Related Article: Intensifying Beryl Weather Forecast: Texas Braces for Landfall, Flooding Rainfall Sorry, something doesn't look right. Something seems unusual about your device or browser. Please contact support. Netanyahu insists on Gaza ceasefire deal allowing resumption of military operations I sraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that he would only agree to a ceasefire deal with Hamas if it allows Israel to resume its military operations in Gaza following the release of hostages. As international mediators prepare for upcoming talks in Cairo to advance negotiations, Netanyahu on Sunday outlined five non-negotiable conditions to end the nine-month conflict. He emphasised that any agreement must permit Israel to continue its operations in Gaza "until all the goals of the war have been met", Xinhua news agency reported. Netanyahu also insisted that the deal must prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza from Egypt and prohibit the return of "thousands of armed Hamas militants" to northern Gaza. Addressing the issue of hostages, Netanyahu pledged to secure the release of as many hostages as possible from Gaza, where over 100 individuals are still held captive, some feared dead. Also on Sunday, Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant affirmed that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will maintain its operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, even if a ceasefire agreement is reached in Gaza. Gallant said the conflict in Gaza and on the northern border with Hezbollah are "two separate sectors," clarifying that Israel would not be bound by development in Gaza unless Hezbollah also reached an agreement with Israel. Netanyahu insists on Gaza ceasefire deal allowing resumption of military operations Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Margot Robbie set to welcome her first child with husband Tom Ackerley ' Barbie' star Margot Robbie is all set to welcome her first baby with her filmmaker-actor husband, Tom Ackerley. Several sources have confirmed that the 34-year-old actress and her husband are expecting their first child, reports People.com. According to DailyMail.com, the actress flaunted her blooming baby bump as she carefully boarded a boat during a holiday at Lake Como with her husband on Sunday. Margot wore a cropped white T-shirt that exposed her stomach, paired with black trousers, a black blazer, and a cream leather bag. The actress was assisted by her husband, who gave his hand out for her to hold. The couple first met in 2013 on the set of the World War II drama 'Suite Francaise', where he was an assistant director, and she was acting. They married in December 2016 during a private ceremony in Australia's Byron Bay, having never announced their engagement before the wedding. Margot and Ackerley were friends first and worked together at their production company, LuckyChap, on a four-person producing team that also includes Robbie's childhood friend Sophia Kerr and Josey McNamara. The company has produced several films and television series, including 'I, Tonya', 'Birds of Prey', and 'Barbie', all of which starred Robbie. Margot Robbie set to welcome her first child with husband Tom Ackerley Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! Downpour, high tide forces all educational institutions to shut in Mumbai, Raigad W ith more heavy rain expected during the afternoon on Monday and a big high tide in the Arabian Sea, all schools, colleges and other educational institutions were ordered shut for the day in Mumbai and Raigad districts. The BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had ordered shutting all schools and colleges for the first session in the morning and later even shut the afternoon sessions for Mumbai after the city was clobbered with over 300 mm rains in just six hours from 1.00 a.m. onwards. A short while ago, the Raigad authorities also ordered a days closure of all educational institutions as rain continued to batter the district since midnight, and other districts in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region are likely to follow suit. Besides the downpour, there will be a big high tide at 1.57 p.m. measuring 4.40 metres high, and the combined effect of the two could pose serious hazards to students and citizens, particularly in the coastal or hilly areas. The famed capital of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Raigad Fort was pounded with torrential rain and large quantities of water gushed down the 1737 steps leading to the hilltop, some 1,356 metres up, scaring many visitors, while the Raigad Ropeway services have also been suspended. Downpour, high tide forces all educational institutions to shut in Mumbai, Raigad Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! President Droupadi Murmu takes stroll on pristine Puri beach T he President of India Droupadi Murmu who is in Puri on the occasion of the annual Rath Yatra festival, turned meditative while taking a stroll at the sea beach of Puri on Monday. Sharing her divine experience on the official X handle, the President said: There are places that bring us in closer touch with the essence of life and remind us that we are part of nature. Mountains, forests, rivers and seashores appeal to something deep within us. As I walked along the seashore today, I felt a communion with the surroundings the gentle wind, the roar of the waves, and the immense expanse of water. It was a meditative experience. She said that she experienced a profound inner peace after having the darshan of Lord Jagannath during the Rath Yatra on Sunday. And I am not alone in having such an experience; all of us can feel that way when we encounter something that is far larger than us, that sustains us and that makes our lives meaningful, the President said. She further added that human beings have lost connection with Mother Nature and are engaged in its exploitation for their own short-term gains. The result is for all to see. This summer, many parts of India suffered a terrible series of heatwaves. Extreme weather events have become more frequent around the globe in recent years. The situation is projected to be far worse in the decades to come, wrote Murmu. The President also noted that more than seventy per cent of the surface of the earth is made up of oceans, and global warming is leading to a rise in global sea levels, threatening to submerge coastal areas. She said that the oceans and the wide variety of flora and fauna found there have suffered heavily due to different kinds of pollution. Fortunately, people living in natures lap have sustained traditions that can show us the way. Inhabitants of coastal areas, for example, know the language of the winds and waves of the sea. Following our ancestors, they worship the sea as God, the President wrote on X. There are two ways, I believe, to meet the challenge of protection and conservation of the environment; broader steps that can come from governments and international organisations, and smaller, local steps that we can take as citizens. The two are, of course, complementary. Let us pledge to do what we can do individually, locally for the sake of a better tomorrow. We owe it to our children, added President Murmu. The President who is on a four-day visit to Odisha, on Sunday, participated in the Rath Yatra celebrations. President Droupadi Murmu takes stroll on pristine Puri beach Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! French President Macron rejects his PM Attal's resignation F rench President Emmanuel Macron rejected Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation on Monday after the ruling party failed to secure a majority in the snap legislative elections, French news channel BFMTV reported. Macron has asked Attal to remain as prime minister "for the moment" to ensure the country's stability, BFMTV reported, citing the presidential office, the Elysee, reports Xinhua news agency. In the two rounds of legislative elections held on June 30 and July 7, Macron's centrist coalition finished second with 163 seats, trailing the left-wing parties' alliance, the New Popular Front (NFP), which secured a relative majority with 182 seats in the 577-member National Assembly. The French president announced the dissolution of the National Assembly on June 9 and called for new legislative elections after his Renaissance party coalition suffered a heavy defeat in the European Parliament elections. French President Macron rejects his PM Attal's resignation Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! PM Modi received by Russia's first Deputy PM, is it a signal to China? P rime Minister Narendra Modi, on his arrival in Russia, was accorded guard of honour at VNUKOVO II International Airport on Monday afternoon. The itinerary of PM Modis two-day trip to Russia includes dinner with the Russian President, interaction with the Indian diaspora and the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit, where the two leaders will discuss many issues of global interest. What has caught the attention of global experts is the extra attention and grand welcome given to PM Modi during his arrival in Russia. PM Modi was received by Russias first Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and in a rare gesture, he also accompanied the Indian PM from the airport to the hotel in the same car. Notably, Chinese Premier Xi Jinping on his recent visit to Russia was received by the Russian Deputy Prime Minister, who ranks lower in seniority with the first Deputy PM. This gesture of providing a red-carpet welcome to the Indian PM by Russias highest-ranking official, just below President Putin himself, sends a clear message about the importance that Russia places on its ties with India. For the unversed, India and Russia ties have weathered many storms in the past and the friendship between two nations has only grown robust and stronger than ever. On the economic front, Russia has been the biggest arms supplier to India for decades. After its military conflict with Ukraine, India remained one of the biggest buyers of discounted Russian oil, there adding to its earnings and revenue. While India and Russia participate in the 22th Annual Summit, the world media including the Chinese will have their eyes fixed on the meeting's outcome and conclusions. Russia, like any other country, may not have been explicit in categorising its ties with neighbouring nations, in terms of preference but it's first-hand welcome to Indian PM reiterates the amount of confidence and trust it puts in its relations with India despite the fast-changing global landscape. This assumes greater significance in light of the fact that India has lately diversified its defence ties with the Western powers, hoping not to remain dependent on one nation for weapons import. PM Modi received by Russia's first Deputy PM, is it a signal to China? Post your comments Found this article helpful? Spread the word and support us! In a recent study published in the journal PLOS Biology, researchers in France investigated the cellular function and antiviral role of human SAMD9L and its paralog SAMD9 (short for sterile alpha motif domain-containing proteins 9 and 9-like) in HIV-1 (short for human immunodeficiency virus 1) restriction. They found that interferon (IFN)-stimulated human SAMD9L inhibits HIV-1 and primate lentiviruses in late replication phases, impacting viral translation and endosomal trafficking, while paralog SAMD9 enhances HIV-1 replication. Study: SAMD9L acts as an antiviral factor against HIV-1 and primate lentiviruses by restricting viral and cellular translation. Image Credit: NIAID Background SAMD9 and SAMD9L are paralogous genes (genes separated by a gene duplication event) encoding large proteins involved in critical cellular processes such as cell division, protein translation, stress responses, apoptosis, and endosomal trafficking. Genetic variants of SAMD9 are linked to MIRAGE (myelodysplasia, infection, restriction of growth, adrenal hypoplasia, genital phenotypes, and enteropathy), while SAMD9L variants cause neurological and hematological disorders like ataxia-pancytopenia and SAMD9L-associated autoinflammatory disease. SAMD9 and SAMD9L act as restriction factors for poxviruses by repressing viral translation. However, their role in restricting other viruses, such as HIV-1, remains largely unexplored. HIV-1, a major cause of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), continues to be a significant public health issue. Identifying host proteins that inhibit HIV-1 and understanding their involvement in cellular functions can inform the development of new therapeutic targets against viral infections and genetic diseases. Therefore, in the present study, researchers examined the cellular roles and antiviral functions of SAMD9 and SAMD9L in restricting the replication of HIV-1 and certain other viruses. About the study SAMD9L was identified as influenced by CRISPR (clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats) screening in its impact on HIV-1 and other lentiviruses. Four HIV-1 clones were studied in 293T cells, and virus yield was measured using TZM-bl cells. SAMD9L's impact was further examined on HIV-2, simian lentiviruses (SIVagm.Tan1, SIVmac), gammaretrovirus (MLV or murine leukemia virus), and RNA (ribonucleic acid) viruses MOPV (mopeia virus) and VSV (vesicular stomatitis virus). Gag proteins were quantified with ELISA, and Env and Gag were analyzed with Western blot. Viral RNA and host RNA levels were monitored with RT-qPCR (quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction). SAMD9L's effect on Gag maturation was assessed with the drugs saquinavir and indinavir. Early lentiviral replication was tested with single-round HIV-1 and SIVmac pseudotyped with VSVg. SAMD9L expression was examined under basal and IFN-I-stimulated conditions across cell lines and validated in primary cells. Using shRNA (short hairpin RNA), SAMD9L was silenced in IFN-I-stimulated HeLaP4P5 cells, and HIV-1 replication was tested with different strains. SAMD9 and SAMD9L structure was analyzed using bioinformatics tools. The effect of mutations (SAMD9L-E198A/D243A and chSAMD9L-D237A) was assessed on HIV-1 and SIVagm.Tan1. The effect of a gain-of-function mutation in SAMD9L (SAMD9L-F886Lfs*11) was tested on MLV and MOPV. Results and discussion SAMD9L was found to inhibit HIV-1 infectious virus yield, while SAMD9 was found to enhance it. SAMD9L was found to strongly restrict HIV-1 transmitted/founder strains in a dose-dependent manner, independent of coreceptor use. SAMD9L also restricted HIV-2, SIVagm.Tan1 and SIVmac but did not affect MLV, MOPV, or VSV, indicating a specific antiviral effect on lentiviruses. SAMD9L significantly reduced Gag levels in viral supernatant. SAMD9L was found to decrease Gag and Env protein expression, contrasting with SAMD9's enhancing effect. SAMD9 and SAMD9L did not affect HIV-1 RNA species or host cell RNA levels, suggesting a posttranscriptional mechanism. SAMD9L inhibited Gag p55 even under protease inhibitor treatment, indicating a prematuration effect. SAMD9L did not impact early lentiviral replication phases, suggesting specificity towards late replication. Under IFN-I stimulation, endogenous SAMD9L expression was detectable in various cell lines, confirming SAMD9L as an interferon-stimulated gene. Knockdown of SAMD9L resulted in a significant three-fold increase in HIV-1 replication compared to control cells. This showed that IFN-stimulated SAMD9L restricted HIV-1 replication, demonstrating its functional relevance as an antiviral factor. Further, a Schlafen (SLFN)-like active site within SAMD9L was found to be essential for its antilentiviral function across mammalian species. Mutating E198/D243 was found to abolish SAMD9L's ability to inhibit cellular protein synthesis. These findings highlight the critical role of the SLFN-like active site in SAMD9L's regulation of both cellular and viral protein production. Additionally, Western blot analysis revealed the viral-specific interactions of SAMD9L. While lentiviruses were found to be sensitive to both wild-type and gain-of-function SAMD9L, MLV and MOPV exhibited varied sensitivity to SAMD9L, enhanced by gain-of-function mutation. Overall, the study identified SAMD9L as a novel antiviral factor that restricts HIV-1 and other lentiviruses through an SLFN ribonuclease site, highlighting its unique role in antiviral innate immunity. However, the study could not address the physiological relevance of SAMD9L on the host side due to the inability to obtain a knockout of endogenous SAMD9L in specific T-cells, likely due to toxicity. SAMD9L restricts lentiviral protein production. (A) Experimental setup. (B) Relative viral production of diverse primate lentiviruses, as measured by ELISA p24 (for HIV-1 strains) or p27 (for HIV-2 and SIVs) in the supernatant of producer cells with SAMD9L, normalized to the control. (C) Western blot analyses of SAMD9L and HIV-1 Env and Gag proteins in the viral producer cells and in the supernatant for 2 HIV-1 T/F strains. Quantification is provided for Env and Gag p55 protein expression, normalized to the total proteins in the cell fraction, and expressed as fold difference compared to the control (normalized to 1). (D) Similar to C in the context of increasing amounts of SAMD9 and SAMD9L. Quantification is provided for gp160 and Gag p24 protein expressions normalized to Tubulin and expressed as fold-difference compared to the control (normalized to 1). Statistics: **, p-value < 0.01; *, p-value < 0.05; ns, p-value > 0.05. Conclusion In conclusion, the findings suggest potential therapeutic targets for HIV-1 and related viral infections and extend SAMD9L's known antiviral defense beyond poxviruses. Additionally, the findings offer insights into genetic diseases linked to SAMD9L mutations, informing and calling for future studies on their cellular and antiviral effects. Shift work sleep disorder (SWSD) and shift work have previously been shown to affect the secretion of several hormones and neurotransmitters associated with premature ejaculation (PE). However, there remains a lack of research on the specific influence of SWSD and shift work on PE. A recent BMC Public Health study explores the relationship between SWSD, shift work, and PE. Study: The association between shift work, shift work sleep disorders and premature ejaculation in male workers. Image Credit: KANGWANS / Shutterstock.com Shift work and male reproductive health To increase productivity, an increasing number of factories have adopted a 24-hour shift work system. Certain occupations, such as police officers and nurses, also require 24-hour staffing. Individual circadian rhythms can be disrupted if individuals alternate between day and night shifts, with these workers more likely to suffer from SWSD. SWSD is characterized by insomnia, sleepiness, or both and has various adverse effects on the affected individual's physical and mental health. The adverse effect of SWSD in males includes lower testosterone levels and an increased risk of hypogonadism, which has been associated with PE and negatively affects both reproductive capacity and erectile function. To date, there remains a lack of research on the impact of sleep disturbances and shift work on PE and male ejaculatory regulation. About the study The current study's researchers hypothesized that sleep disturbances and shift work indirectly influence the onset of PE through the secretion of central neurotransmitters and increase the risk of other diseases. The current study builds upon previous studies reporting that PE is influenced by various hormones and neurotransmitters, including dopamine and serotonin, which are, in turn, affected by the duration and rhythm of sleep. A representative sample of 1,239 individuals from multiple regions in China were recruited to participate in the study between April and October 2023. The sample comprised 399 shift workers, 148 reported having SWSD, and 840 non-shift workers. A SWSD questionnaire was used to assess participants' sleep quality. Premature Ejaculation Diagnostic Tool (PEDT) and the International Inventory of Erectile Function (IIEF-5) scores were also used to evaluate ejaculatory control and erectile function, respectively. Linear regression models were used to estimate and account for confounding factors to identify specific risk factors associated with PE. Study findings Higher PEDT scores confirmed the hypothesis that men working in shifts, particularly those suffering from SWSD, were more likely to report PE issues as compared to non-shift workers. Shift work of less than one year did not significantly impact PE, whereas shift work of more than one year significantly increased the risk of PE, with this effect much stronger after three years of shift work. Young men were more likely to be involved in shift work as compared to older or middle-aged men. This observation increases concerns about the reproductive health of young men engaged in shift work and suffering from SWSD. Several risk factors were identified for PE, including less than six hours of sleep each day, anxiety, depression, frequent alcohol use, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, and erectile dysfunction. PE was also more likely to occur in overweight men and those older than 45 years. A multifactorial regression analysis was used to integrate all risk factors with clinical realities to accurately quantify each risk factor's impact on PE. Variables such as the aforementioned PE risk factors were included to construct a nomogram to forecast PE incidents. In the future, clinicians could use this highly specific and sensitive model to assign risk scores to patients. Mechanisms involved in SWSD and PE Metabolic changes may lead to psychological and mental disorders, which influence central neurotransmitter secretion. Neurotransmitter secretion and circadian rhythms may also be affected by SWSD and shift work. SWSD and shift work negatively impact insulin and glucagon secretion, which interrupts metabolic homeostasis and increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases, many of which were also risk factors for PE. SWSD and shift work may also impact steroid hormone changes in the body, increase the risk of hypogonadism, and potentially impair erectile function, all of which are biological changes that can directly or indirectly affect the development of PE. Nevertheless, additional research is needed to elucidate the mechanisms by which sleep disorders affect PE. Conclusions The study findings confirm the negative impact of SWSD and shift work on PE, with the risks of PE increasing as the duration of shift work rises. One limitation of the current study is the use of the SWSD questionnaire to assess participants' sleep quality, which may be less accurate than objective polysomnographic monitoring results. The researchers also did not consider the effect of various physical and chemical factors individuals are exposed to during shift work. Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a 'band-aid' or plaster that measures body 'biomarkers' that can indicate health or disease through sweat, paving the way for a new non-invasive and effective way for patients to monitor their health. Human sweat contains biomarkers such as glucose, lactate and urea that indicate various health conditions and can be collected in a non-invasive and painless manner, making it ideal for daily monitoring, said the team of NTU researchers at the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (EEE). Diabetic patients typically use an invasive finger prick test to self-monitor blood glucose levels. Patients have to prick their fingers to collect a small drop of blood on a strip before inserting it into a portable glucose meter for a reading. An alternative is sensor-based monitoring devices, which are expensive and rigid and must be attached to the patient's skin over prolonged periods. By encapsulating a microlaser in liquid crystal droplets and embedding the liquid within a soft hydrogel film, the NTU team created a compact and flexible light-based sensing device - like a plaster which can provide highly accurate biomarker readings within minutes. Nanyang Assistant Professor Chen Yu-Cheng at the School of EEE and Director of the Centre for Biodevices and Bioinformatics at NTU said, "Our innovation represents a non-invasive, quick and effective way for diabetic patients to monitor their health. By combining a microlaser with a soft hydrogel film, we have demonstrated the feasibility of a wearable laser to provide a more pleasant health monitoring experience for patients." The NTU research team said that their innovation supports healthcare in Singapore and globally, where diabetes is rising in prevalence. In Singapore, over 400,000 Singaporeans live with the disease, with the number projected to surpass one million by 2050. The innovation, reported in the journal Analytical Chemistry, aligns with the University's research pillar of NTU 2025, a five-year strategic plan that aims to leverage innovative research to benefit society and the health of the population. Detecting multiple biomarkers The NTU team created their plaster device by embedding microlasers in liquid crystal droplets. The microlasers are customised to pick up three different types of biomarkers (lactate, glucose, urea). A different coloured liquid crystal dot on the plaster distinguishes each biomarker. When sweat interacts with the plaster, the amount of light emitted by the microlasers fluctuates based on the concentration of biomarkers present. To read the biomarker levels, users shine a light source on the plaster, and the light emitted from the microlaser sensors is analysed and translated using a mobile application. In real-live experiments, the plaster successfully picked up tiny fluctuations of glucose, lactate and urea levels in sweat down to 0.001 millimetre (mm), which is 100 times better than current similar technology. The NTU team believes their innovation to be the first reported wearable sensing device that is capable of measuring multiple biomarkers in sweat with ultra-high sensitivity and dynamic range. The sensitivity enables tracking of a dynamic range (low to high) in biomarkers levels, which provide comprehensive information on patients' health, say the team. Our device is capable of detecting both the high and low range of biomarkers levels. This is particularly beneficial for diabetic patients as current similar health monitoring devices focus on tracking only high glucose levels, but not abnormal or low glucose levels, which may indicate other health complications. In comparison, our device will provide a clearer picture of the users' health condition with a variety of readings captured." Nie Ningyuan, first author of the study, NTU PhD candidate Commenting as an independent expert, Dr Lin Chun-Hsien, MD, Physician of National Taiwan University Hospital, Taiwan, said: "Diabetic patients need to frequently monitor their blood glucose level for their safety, for example, to avoid hypoglycaemia, which is a condition where blood sugar level drops too low. As an endocrinologist, I often come across patients who fear pain and bleeding when using the finger prick test. I am hopeful that this laser-based, non-invasive wearable device developed by the NTU Singapore team can provide a more convenient and effective way to monitor patients' blood glucose. Its ability to measure other biomarkers is also an added bonus, which will offer more health data to the benefit of both patients and physicians." For their next steps, the research team plans to fine-tune the microlaser sensors to detect a wider variety of substances, including drugs and other chemicals found in sweat. Over 5,000 genetic variants that enable certain cancers to thrive have been identified by scientists, along with a potential therapeutic target to treat or even prevent these cancers from developing. Researchers from the Wellcome Sanger Institute, and their collaborators at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and the University of Cambridge assessed the health impact of all possible genetic changes in the tumor protection gene, BAP1. They found around a fifth of these possible changes were pathogenic, significantly increasing the risk of developing cancers of the eye, lung lining, brain, skin, and kidney. The findings, published today (5 July) in Nature Genetics, are freely available so that they can be immediately used by doctors to help diagnose patients and choose the most effective therapies for them. Importantly, as all possible variants were assessed, the findings benefit individuals from diverse ethnic backgrounds, who have historically been underrepresented in genetics research. The team also uncovered a link between certain disruptive BAP1 variants and higher levels of IGF-1, a hormone and growth factor. This discovery opens the door to developing new drugs that could inhibit these harmful effects, potentially slowing down or preventing the progression of certain cancers. The BAP1 protein acts as a powerful tumor suppressor in the body, protecting against cancers of the eye, lung lining, brain, skin, and kidney. Inherited variants that disrupt the protein can increase a person's lifetime risk of developing these cancers by up to 50 per cent, typically occurring around middle age. Detecting these variants early through genetic screening can guide preventative measures, greatly enhance treatment effectiveness and improve quality of life for individuals affected. However, until now, there has been limited understanding of which specific genetic changes in BAP1 to look out for, especially for rare variants that cause it to malfunction and fuel cancer growth. Researchers from the Sanger Institute, and their collaborators at The Institute of Cancer Research and the University of Cambridge tested 18,108 DNA changes in the BAP1 gene by artificially altering the genetic code of human cells grown in a dish, in a process known as saturation genome editing. They identified that 5,665 of these changes were harmful and disrupted the proteins protective effects. Analysis of UK Biobank data confirmed that individuals carrying these harmful BAP1 variants are over ten per cent more likely to be diagnosed with cancer than the general population. The team also discovered that people with harmful BAP1 variants have elevated levels of IGF-1 in their blood, a hormone linked to both cancer growth and brain development. Even individuals without cancer showed these elevated levels, suggesting that IGF-1 could be a target for new treatments to slow down or prevent certain cancers. Further analysis revealed harmful BAP1 variants and higher IGF-1 levels were linked to worse outcomes in uveal melanoma patients, highlighting the potential for IGF-1 inhibitors in cancer therapy. Notably, the technique profiles all possible BAP1 variants from diverse populations, not only those prevalent in European clinical records, helping to address the underrepresentation of non-European populations in genetic studies. Previous approaches for studying how variants effect function in genes have been on a very small scale, or exclude important contexts that may contribute to how they behave. Our approach provides a true picture of gene behavior, enabling larger and more complex studies of genetic variation. This opens up new possibilities for understanding how these changes drive disease. Dr Andrew Waters, first study author, Wellcome Sanger Institute Professor Clare Turnbull, clinical lead of the study, Professor of Translational Cancer Genetics at The Institute of Cancer Research, London, and Consultant in Clinical Cancer Genetics at The Royal Marsden NHS Foundation, said: This research could mean more accurate interpretation of genetic tests, earlier diagnoses and improved outcomes for patients and their families. Dr David Adams, senior author of the study at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said: We want to ensure that life-saving genetic insights are accessible and relevant to all people, regardless of their ancestry. Our aim is to apply this technique to a wider range of genes, potentially covering the entire human genome in the next decade with the Atlas of Variant Effects. Monocytes, a special type of white blood cell, secrete cytokines as inflammatory messengers that are crucial for an appropriate immune response. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn have now discovered that platelets, also known as thrombocytes, communicate with monocytes and increase their inflammatory capacity. By understanding the platelet-monocyte interaction, they hope to improve the treatment of immune disorders and associated diseases. The results of the study have now been published in the renowned journal "EMBO Molecular Medicine" and will be featured on the cover of August issue. Monocytes are white blood cells, known as leukocytes. They are an important part of the innate immune system and contribute to host defense in the blood by secreting large quantities of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Abnormal activity of monocytes leads to hyperinflammation, i.e. very severe inflammation, as well as life-threatening cytokine storms. On the other hand, disturbed monocyte function is associated with "immune paralysis". In this condition, the immune system's ability to fight off invaders such as viruses and bacteria is inhibited. This increases susceptibility to infections. "It is therefore crucial to understand how the functions of monocytes are regulated," says senior and corresponding author Prof. Dr. Bernardo Franklin from the Institute of Innate Immunity at the UKB and the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSensation2 at the University of Bonn, explaining the motivation to investigate the role of platelets in the regulation of monocyte-induced inflammation. Platelets as a central checkpoint in immune defense Platelets play a central role in blood clotting, but are also thought to perform important functions in the immune system. Prof. Franklin's research team has already identified platelets as an important regulator of inflammation. They now report that a low platelet count in the rare blood disorder immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) or the artificial removal of platelets from healthy monocytes results in "immunoparalysis". This is characterized by a disturbed cytokine reaction and is an immunological challenge. "Remarkably, supplementing monocytes with fresh platelets reverses this condition and restores the monocyte cytokine response," says corresponding and co-first author Dr. Ibrahim Hawwari, a postdoctoral fellow of the University of Bonn at the Institute of Innate Immunity at the UKB. The Bonn researchers discovered that the pro-inflammatory signals, including NF-B and p38 MAPK, propagate from platelets to monocytes and maintain their inflammatory capacity. Platelet vesicles as an extended arm of platelets control this intercellular communication." Lukas Ronagel, co-first author, PhD student ot the University of Bonn at the Institute of Innate Immunity of the UKB The results of the study point to a new intercellular communication mechanism in which platelets regulate monocyte function. "Clinically, this suggests potential therapeutic strategies to counteract monocyte immune paralysis in conditions such as ITP and other inflammatory diseases with the addition of platelets," says Prof. Franklin, who hopes that an understanding of platelet-monocyte interactions will lead to improved treatment of immune disorders and related diseases. Promotional events sponsored by the pharmaceutical industry which target health professionals responsible for prescribing medications, such as physicians and nurse practitioners, are a key component of promotional campaigns for new drugs and devices. While these events are familiar to health professionals, there is little transparency around their scale and impact. A new study by Quinn Grundy, an assistant professor at the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing, finds that in the United States, over one million industry sponsored events took place in 2022, a staggering amount in one of the largest pharmaceutical markets in the world. In the paper published in the JAMA Health Forum, the authors looked at the ten pharmaceutical and medical device products with the most industry-sponsored dinner events and found that there were over 16,000 dinners, sponsored by seven companies. Of these ten products, the analysis found that in two cases, there were more dinner events targeted towards nurse practitioners than physicians, indicating their importance as prescribers in the pharmaceutical market. "Identifying over one million of these events in one year alone and their tendency to be for specific products, should give us pause, and indicate that we need to understand the prevalence of these events from a systems perspective, considering their impact on prescribing practices," says Grundy, who is also the Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre in Governance, Accountability, and Transparency in the Pharmaceutical Sector. Grundy notes that there is already large body of evidence on the relationship between payments and physician prescribing outcomes. Receipt of industry payments, including low-value payments for food and beverage, is often associated with physicians prescribing higher quantities of promoted and higher cost drugs, such as brand name drugs over generics. The Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments database was established under the Affordable Care Act in 2012 in the hopes of creating greater transparency around the relationships between clinicians and the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Grundy was able to examine Open Payments records of payments from pharmaceutical and device companies to clinicians for food and beverage and to link these across matching variables to identify and quantify in-person sponsored events for specific products. Excluding conferences, and virtual events, the numbers indicated that these industry-sponsored events were quite wide-spread, across various states. What this shows she says, is that while individual health professionals may only attend a few of these events, pharmaceutical companies are sponsoring hundreds of them nationwide. Understanding the scope and scale of promotional campaigns suggests these dinners, for example, are not isolated events, but part of a strategic program of communication. When you think of the number of events and the number of health professionals attending these events, what emerges is a picture of a campaign that is able, at a national scale, to amplify perspectives about a promoted drug that are likely favorable to the sponsor." Quinn Grundy, assistant professor at the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing The study did not reveal a particular pattern in terms of the types of products that were more likely to be promoted using industry sponsored events, though there was evidence that two of the top ten products, both mental health-oriented drugs, had more events for nurse practitioners than physicians. In 2021, the first data on industry payments to prescribing nurses was released in the United States. Grundy says, this was an important and positive step towards transparency. "I hope that it sparks some conversations in professional circles about how to interact with industry in ways that are in the best interests of population health," says Grundy. Canada is far behind in terms of transparency: there is currently no data or mechanism that requires pharmaceutical or device companies to report payments to physicians or nurse practitioners. This study is part of a multi-phase projects that aims to analyze the new data on industry payments to advanced practice nurses in the U.S. and Grundy is hopeful that it will continue to lead to more research and discussion on best practices in prescribing. Whether its more sleep or more exercise, simple lifestyle changes may reduce the risk of dementia. Now, a new program from the University of South Australia in collaboration with research partners at Onkaparinga Council and ACH group is helping older Australians make healthier choices to reduce their risk of dementia. Running over 12 weeks, UniSAs Small Steps program will support people aged 65 years and over to make small, incremental changes to their lifestyle choices to improve sleep, reduce sitting time and increase physical activity. UniSA researcher Dr Catherine Yandell says the program hopes to provide participants with genuine insights into their sleep and movement as it relates to dementia risk. Maintaining an active and healthy lifestyle is essential to reduce the risk of dementia later in life, yet few older adults meet current activity guidelines, and even fewer continue them in the long term, Dr Yandell says. Part of the problem is that many programs are not individualized to support people to integrate new healthy behaviors into their daily lives. In our research, we found that people need access to evidence-based information and individualized support to help them make healthier choices about dementia risk factors. Thats why weve worked with older adults to co-create Small Steps. This program is all about providing the support and motivation that older adults need to increase their activity, improve their sleep quality, and boost their lifestyles. Using a Fitbit, participants will automatically track their physical activity, sleep habits, sleep quality, and personal motivation. We will also assess their memory and thinking skills both before and after the program. They will then work with our team to develop individualized programs that encourage them to sit less, move more and sleep better. For older adults, the Australian Government recommends seven to eight hours of sleep, 30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity (at least five times a week) and breaking up sitting time by getting up and moving regularly. Project lead and healthy ageing expert, UniSAs Associate Professor Ashleigh Smith, says the Small Steps program will help participants assess and visualize the benefits of swapping one behavior for another for example, swapping out TV time for walking their dog. The Small Steps program aims to support behavior change by allowing participants to adjust the activities they want to change while keeping those that they cannot, or prefer not, to change, Assoc Prof Smith says. Encouraging and supporting older adults to improve their lifestyles is our first goal. But beyond this were hoping to see whether this may support improved thinking and memory skills. Ashleigh Smith, Associate Professor, UniSA The UniSA research team is now looking to enrol people 65+ years old in the Onkaparinga, Marion, and Yankalilla Council areas. As Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is set to present the Union Budget 2024-25 on July 23, there are demands coming in from various sections. This Budget, the central government employee union has also sent a proposal to the Cabinet Secretary comprising 7 demands, including the immediate constitution of the 8th Pay Commission and the release of the 18-month arrears of the COVID-19 period. In a letter to the Cabinet Secretary on July 6, the Confederation of Central Govt Employees and Workers has made several demands ahead of the Budget 2024: 1) Immediate Constitution of the 8th Pay Commission. 2) Scrap the New Pension Scheme (NPS), and Restore the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) for all employees. 3) To release the 18-month DA/ DR which was frozen during the COVID-19 pandemic to employees and pensioners, restoration of commuted part of pension after 12 years instead of 15 years at present. 4) Remove the 5 per cent ceiling on the compassionate appointments, grant compassionate appointments to all the wards/ dependents of the deceased employee. 5) Full up all vacant posts of all the cadres in all departments, stop outsourcing and contractorisation in government departments. 6) Ensure the democratic functioning of association/ federations as per provisions of JCM mechanism. (A) Grant recognition to associations/ federations which are pending, withdraw the de-recognition orders of Postal Group C Union, NFPE, ISROSA. (B) Stop imposition of Rule 15 1(c) on service association/ federations. 7) Regularise casual, contractual labourers and GDS employees, grant equal status to employees of autonomous bodies to that of CG employees. For these demands, the confederation will also conduct a demonstration on July 19 during the lunch hours. We want the implementation of the 8th Pay Commission from January 2026. For this, the commission has to be constituted immediately, said S B Yadav, general secretary of the Confederation. Upcoming DA Hike Under 7th Pay Commission The central government is likely to announce the DA hike for the existing 7th Pay Commission employees in the first half of September, which will become effective retrospectively from July 1, 2024. Employees expect a 3-4 per cent hike in the upcoming DA hike. On asked if the government can increase DA further despite the 50 per cent threshold of DA as a percentage of the basic pay, a labour affairs expert said, Yes, the government can increase the DA more than 50 per cent also. In the 4th Pay Commission, the DA had reached as high as 170 per cent. However, the government gave interim relief as well. Income Tax Return Verification Process: After you file your Income Tax Return (ITR) in India, verification is a crucial step to complete the process. The Income Tax Department offers several methods for verifying your ITR. ITR Filing Last Date 2024: The last date for filing an ITR for the financial year 2023-24 (assessment year 2024-25) is Wednesday, July 31, 2024, for most individual taxpayers whose accounts are not subject to audit. Why ITR Verification Is Mandatory? ITR verification is a critical step to ensure the authenticity and validity of the tax return, enabling the Income Tax Department to process returns efficiently, prevent fraud, and maintain an accurate and secure tax system. Also Read: Budget 2024: Income Tax Standard Deduction For Salaried Employees May Rise To Rs 1 Lakh Heres a list of various ways to verify your ITR: 1. E-Verification using Aadhaar OTP -Link your Aadhaar with your PAN. -Ensure your mobile number is registered with Aadhaar. -Select the option for Aadhaar OTP under the e-verification methods. -An OTP will be sent to your registered mobile number. -Enter the OTP on the e-filing portal to complete the verification. 2. E-Verification using Net Banking -Log in to your banks net banking portal. -Look for the option to e-verify ITR, usually under the tax section. -Select the relevant ITR form and proceed. -You will be redirected to the e-filing portal, and your ITR will be automatically verified. 3. E-Verification using Bank Account -Pre-validate your bank account on the e-filing portal. -Select the bank account option under e-verification methods. -An Electronic Verification Code (EVC) will be generated and sent to your registered mobile number. -Enter the EVC on the portal to complete the verification. 4. E-Verification using Demat Account -Pre-validate your Demat account on the e-filing portal. -Select the Demat account option under e-verification methods. -An EVC will be generated and sent to your registered mobile number. -Enter the EVC on the portal to complete the verification. 5. E-Verification using ATM -Visit an ATM of a bank that provides this service. -Swipe your ATM card and select the option to generate an EVC for income tax filing. -The EVC will be sent to your registered mobile number. -Enter the EVC on the e-filing portal to complete the verification. 6. Verification using a Digital Signature Certificate (DSC) -Obtain a DSC from a certified vendor. -Register the DSC on the e-filing portal. -Attach the DSC file while filing the ITR. -The ITR will be automatically verified upon submission. 7. Physical Verification by Sending ITR-V to CPC, Bengaluru -If you cannot use any of the electronic verification methods, you can physically verify your ITR. -Download the ITR-V (Acknowledgment) from the e-filing portal. -Sign the ITR-V in blue ink. -Send the signed ITR-V to the Centralized Processing Center (CPC) in Bengaluru via ordinary post or speed post within 30 days of filing the ITR. The address is: Centralized Processing Center, Income Tax Department, Bengaluru 560500, Karnataka, India. Important Points to Remember: You must verify your ITR within 30 days of filing. The Income Tax Department website provides a guide on how to e-verify your return using any of these methods https://www.incometax.gov.in/iec/foportal/help/e-filing-e-verify-your-return-faq. Verifying your ITR electronically is instant and preferred over the physical method of mailing the ITR-V form. Steps to Download ITR-V -Log in to the e-filing portal https://www.incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in. -Go to the View Returns/Forms section. -Download the ITR-V for the relevant assessment year. Ensure all contact details, especially mobile numbers and email addresses, are correctly updated in your profile on the e-filing portal. Shares of Rail Vikas Nigam (RVNL) and Indian Railway Finance Corporation (IRFC) rallied 15.5 per cent and 9 per cent to their new all-time highs of Rs 567 and Rs 206 respectively on BSE in Mondays trade ahead of the Union Budget, where the focus is likely to be on infrastructure investment. Meanwhile, the shares of other railway companies also soared high to touch their new peaks today. Shares of Texmaco Rail & Engineering rose 8.3 per cent to its new 52-week high of Rs 295.65, while those of RailTel surged 7.5 per cent to its new peak at Rs 559.35. Ircon International and Oriental Rail Infrastructure shares also jumped up to 6.64 per cent to their new highs while RITES shares went up by 4.5 per cent on BSE to the days high of Rs 797. Vaishnavs announcement of the production of 50 new Amrit Bharat Trains a high-speed and luxury train service added to the rally in railway stocks. Expectations of special focus on the railway infrastructure in the Union Budget have helped push the stocks higher. The government is focusing on improving the railway infrastructure and ensuring faster development and completion of tracks, rail electrification, rolling stock manufacturing and delivery of passenger freight services. Narendra Modi governments focus on infrastructure building, especially through domestic manufacturing in sectors such as railways, defence, and power has boosted stocks from these spaces in last few years. Now, with BJP-led NDA retaining power for a third term, investors are hopeful of policy continuity. In an earlier note, Goldman Sachs had said that it expects continued thrust on infrastructure creation through the development of railways. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will be presenting the Union Budget that will lay the roadmap of Modi 3.0 on July 23 in Lok Sabha. The Parliamentary session for the Budget will commence on July 22 and continue till August 22. In the last year, railway stocks have benefited their investors by giving multibagger returns. IRFC has given returns of 505 per cent. RVNL and RailTel have gained over 300 per cent on charts while Ircon International, Texmaco Rail and Oriental Rail Infrastructure have increased by over 200 per cent. Meanwhile, RITES shares have increased by 104 per cent in the same time period. Menstrual Leave for Women: The Supreme Court on Monday directed the central government to frame a model policy on menstrual leave for women employees by holding consultations with states and other stakeholders. A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said the issue related to policy and was not an issue for the courts to look into. The bench also permitted lawyer Rakesh Khanna, appearing for petitioner and lawyer Shailendra Tripathi, to move the secretary of the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati. We request the secretary to look into the matter at the policy level and take a decision after consulting all stakeholders and see if a model policy can be framed, it ordered. The court made it clear that the consultation process of the Centre will not come in the way of states if they take any steps in this regard. Companies That Already Offer Menstrual Leave Several companies in India have implemented menstrual leave policies to support their female employees. Some of the notable companies are: Zomato: Offers up to 10 days of paid period leave annually for female and transgender employees to help reduce menstrual stigma. Byjus: Provides menstrual leave to support female employees. Swiggy: Recently introduced a similar policy to ensure a more inclusive work environment. Magzter: A digital magazine platform offering paid period leave. Orient Electric: Recently introduced menstrual leave to combat stigma and create an inclusive environment. Culture Machine: Allows female employees to take a day off on the first day of their period. Gozoop Online Pvt Ltd: A digital media company offering paid leave on the first day of menstruation and a work-from-home option. iVIPANAN: A digital marketing company providing 12 days of period leave per year. IndustryARC: Allows women to take a day or two off but requires them to compensate for the leave later. Wet and Dry Personal Care: Provides two days off each month based on medical recommendations. What Supreme Court Said Moreover, such a decision from a court on granting such leave to women may prove to be counterproductive and detrimental to the cause as employers may avoid employing them. How will the leave encourage more women to be part of the workforce, the court asked the petitioner and said mandating such leave will lead to women being shunned from the workforce. we do not want that, the bench said This is actually a government policy aspect and not for the courts to look into, it said. Petitioner says that a representation was submitted to the Centre in May 2023. Since the issues raise multifarious objectives of state policy, there is no reason for this court to intervene in light of our previous order, it said. The top court had earlier disposed of a plea seeking menstrual pain leave for women students and working women across the country. It had then said that since the issue falls under the policy domain, a representation can be made to the Centre. The senior lawyer said that till date no decision has been taken by the Centre. (With Inputs from PTI) Citing Forbes, the World of Statistics has published a list of countries with the highest number of billionaires. The USA tops this list, with India also featured among the top countries. The top 10 countries include the United States, China, India, Germany, Russia, Italy, Brazil, Hong Kong SAR, Canada and the United Kingdom. As the originator and exporter of consumer capitalism, it is unsurprising that the United States hosts a substantial number of billionaires. The United States is home to 813 billionaires, the highest number globally. Neighbouring China ranks second with 406 billionaires. India holds the third position, with a total of 200 billionaires. Germany ranks fourth in the world in terms of the number of billionaires, with a total of 132. Russia is fifth on the list, with 120 billionaires. Following Russia are Italy with 73 billionaires, Brazil with 69, Hong Kong SAR with 67, Canada with 67, and the United Kingdom with 55 billionaires. Countries with the most billionaires:1. United States: 8132. China: 4063. India: 2004. Germany: 1325. Russia: 1206. Italy: 737. Brazil: 698. Hong Kong SAR: 679. Canada: 6710. United Kingdom: 5511. France: 5312. Taiwan: 5113. World of Statistics (@stats_feed) July 6, 2024 Those 40 countries of the world, where most billionaires live United States 813 billionaires China 406 billionaires India 200 billionaires Germany 132 billionaires Russia 120 billionaires Italy 73 billionaires Brazil 69 billionaires Hong Kong SAR 67 billionaires Canada 67 billionaires United Kingdom 55 billionaires France- 53 billionaires Taiwan- 51 billionaires Australia- 48 billionaires Sweden- 43 billionaires Switzerland- 41 billionaires Japan- 41 billionaires Singapore- 39 billionaires Israel- 36 billionaires South Korea- 36 billionaires Indonesia- 35 billionaires Spain- 29 billionaires Turkey- 27 billionaires Thailand- 26 billionaires Mexico- 22 billionaires Malaysia- 17 billionaires Philippines- 16 billionaires Netherlands- 14 billionaires Norway- 12 billionaires Czech Republic- 11 billionaires Ireland- 11 billionaires Cyprus- 10 billionaires Greece- 10 billionaires Belgium- 10 billionaires Austria- 9 billionaires Denmark- 9 billionaires Poland- 8 billionaires Finland- 7 billionaires Chile- 6 billionaires Kazakhstan- 6 billionaires Vietnam- 6 billionaires The size of a countrys economy is a clear indicator of its propensity to have a larger number of high-net-worth individuals. Nine of the top 12 countries with the largest wealthy populations also rank among the top 10 countries by gross domestic product (GDP). However, Switzerland and Singapore are notable exceptions, performing exceptionally well due to their status as offshore financial centres. Their tax benefits, asset protection and privacy attract wealthy individuals at a higher rate. For smaller countries, attracting external wealth can significantly boost economic activity. Ali Merchant recently opened up about his journey in the industry. In an interview, Ali looked back at his journey and recalled the time when he was forced to sell his car because he could not afford to pay the EMIs. Ali Merchant told IANS, I had to sell my car as I couldnt afford the EMI, and there was a point when I had only 50k left in my account and all my savings were over. He added the crisis impacted him badly at the time, but he dedicated himself to learning music and DJing for three to four years. To improve his acting skills, he watched a lot of theatre plays to unlearn all that he had learned while working on TV. Ali also shared the most important lessons he learned from taking that road. The actor mentioned that he understood the importance of listening to ones heart and that the mind will always put you in doubt, leading you to make a safer decision. In performing arts, always follow your heart, Ali added. The actor stated that once he started DJing professionally, he travelled a lot and learned about different cultures and people. This helped him understand realistic acting better. He added, Watching a lot of world cinema helped me connect the dots, and when I finished my first film, I felt my decision to leave TV was right. Ali Merchant mentioned that he was quite satisfied, and eagerly waiting for his film to release so that he can approach people he wants to work with in the future. While the title of Alis upcoming film is still under wraps, it is reportedly being produced by Nawazuddin Siddiquis brother, Faizuddin Siddiqui. Ali Merchant has been a part of serials like Ambar Dhara, Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai, Bandini, and Sadda Haq, among others. He was also seen hosting the popular celebrity dance show Nach Baliye 4. Frances politics seems out of gear. The parliamentary election results have quite unexpectedly given most number of seats to the coalition of Left parties, though it failed to win a majority. Marine Le Penns far-right National Rally, which was a winner in the first round of voting, has taken a beating in the final results. Despite winning the most seats, the New Popular Front (NFP) a coalition of several parties ranging from the far-left to the more moderate Socialists and the Ecologists , cannot form the government as it has failed to win an absolute majority. French President Emmanuel Macron dissolved the countrys National Assembly and called for an early election after his party lost in the European Union elections last month. What Were the Results? The NPF won 182 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly, making it the largest group but falling short of the 289 seats required for absolute majority, according to the French Interior Ministry. President Emmanuel Macrons centrist Ensemble alliance, which had slumped to a dismal third in the first round of voting last Sunday, mounted a strong recovery to win 163 seats. Despite leading after the first round of votes, Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) party and its allies won 143 seats. After the first round, more than 300 seats went to a three-way run-off between Ensemble, the NFP and the RN. By Tuesday, more than 200 centrist and left-wing candidates withdrew from the second round, in a bid to avoid splitting the vote. The RNs strong performance in the first round stirred concerns that France might end up electing its first far-right government since the collaborationist Vichy regime of World War II. What Next? With the Paris Olympics looming, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who plans to offer his resignation, said he was ready to stay at his post as long as duty demands. Macron has three years remaining on his presidential term. Our country is facing an unprecedented political situation and is preparing to welcome the world in a few weeks, said Prime Minister Gabriel Attal. When Macron flies to Washington for a summit this week of the NATO alliance, he will leave a country with no clear idea who may be its next prime minister and facing the prospect that the president may be obliged to share power with a politician deeply opposed to his policies. Will There Be A Coalition? After parliamentary elections, the French president appoints a prime minister from the party that won the most seats. In most ordinary situation, the candidate is from the presidents own party. But this time, Macron faces the prospect of having to appoint a figure from the left-wing coalition, known as a cohabitation arrangement. France has never seen a post-election coalition, which is quite common in northern European parliamentary democracies like Germany or the Netherlands. Its Fifth Republic was designed in 1958 by war hero Charles de Gaulle to give large, stable parliamentary majorities to presidents and that has created a confrontational political culture with no tradition of consensus and compromises. Jean-Luc Melenchon, leader of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), ruled out a broad coalition of parties, and said Macron had a duty to call on the leftist alliance to rule. In the centrist camp, Macrons party head, Stephane Sejourne, said he was ready to work with mainstream parties but ruled out any deal with Melenchons LFI. Former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe also ruled out any deal with the hard-left party. Macron himself said he will wait for the new assembly to have found some structure to decide his next move. In his role as guarantor of our institutions, the president will ensure that the sovereign choice of the French people is respected, the Elysee said in a statement. If No Agreement Can Be Found? The constitution says Macron cannot call new parliamentary elections for another 12 months. But he can decide who to ask to form a government. Whoever he picks faces a no-confidence vote in the National Assembly, which will convene for 15 days on July 18. Another possibility is a government of technocrats that would manage day-to-day affairs but not oversee structural changes. It was not clear the left-wing bloc would support this scenario, which would still require the backing of parliament. Macrons Gamble Backfired Although the snap elections were meant to give Macron some boost after the EU defeat, but Sundays results have shown that far-right is a reality and is stronger than before now, ahead of the 2027 presidential race. Before the snap election, Macron commanded the largest group in parliament. Now, he will likely have to work with an opposition politician as prime minister. His authority at home and credibility abroad have been damaged, according to an article by Politico. Edouard Philippe, Frances former prime minister and an ally of Macron, said Macrons gamble had further complicated the situation. The truth is that none of the political blocs in the assembly has a majority on its own to govern. The dissolution of the assembly, which was intended as a clarification, has instead led to great vagueness, he said Sunday evening, as quoted by CNN. (With inputs from agencies) After Rajasthan, Karnataka has become the second state to regulate the social security and welfare of platform-based gig workers by creation of a board, welfare fund and grievance cell. The Karnataka Platform Based Gig Workers (Social Security and Welfare) Bill, 2024 (Draft), which was published by the state government, is likely to be tabled in the Monsoon Session of the Assembly later this month. The Karnataka labour department has placed the Bill in the public domain to call for objections to the proposed law before it is placed before the legislature for passage. What Does The Bill Intend To Do? According to the draft bill, a gig worker is a person who performs a work or participates in a work arrangement that results in a given rate of payment, based on terms and conditions laid down in such a contract and includes all piece-rate work, and whose work is sourced through a platform, in the services specified in Schedule-1. One of the main objectives of the proposed Bill is to protect the rights of platform-based gig workers, to place obligations on aggregators in relation to social security, occupational health and safety The proposed Bill also intends to bring transparency in automated monitoring and decision-making systems, to provide dispute resolution mechanisms, to establish a welfare board and create a welfare fund for platform-based gig workers, to register platform-based gig workers and aggregators in the state. The proposed Bill was a promise made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi ahead of the Karnataka Assembly elections 2023. A 2022 NITI Aayog report estimates that India will have 23.5 million gig workers by 2029-30. Around 2 lakh gig workers work with platforms such as Swiggy, Zomato, Uber, Ola, Urban Company, Porter, Dunzo, Amazon, Flipkart and so on in Bengaluru alone reportedly. How Will The Bill Protect The Rights Of Gig Workers? In terms of social security, occupational health and safety of workers, the new draft bill aims to introduce safeguards against dismissals, bring in a two-level grievance redressal mechanism for workers, and more transparency with regards to automated monitoring and decision-making systems deployed by the aggregators. According to the draft Bill, the contract between the gig workers and the aggregators should contain grounds on which the contract could be terminated by the aggregators. It also stipulates that the aggregator shall not terminate a worker without giving valid reasons in writing and prior notice of 14 days. The Bill empowers the state to review the framework of worker contracts. The state government shall publish sector specific guidelines for contracts from time to time. The state government may review contract templates sent by aggregators, on request, in order to ensure fair contracts with platform-based gig workers, the Bill states. Why Is The Bill Important? Gig workers often face arbitrary terminations and instances of blacklisting without hearing out their side of the story. Often, platforms enact these through automated monitoring and decision-making systems which track the work and earnings of the gig worker, record customer feedback, and make decisions accordingly. Workers have pointed out that such systems are heavily skewed in favour of the customers and pleasing them for higher ratings. What Are The Loopholes In The Bill? Experts have raised a few shortcomings in the Bill. For example, unlike the Rajasthans law, the Karnataka Bill fails to mention digitally-mediated, labelling or even home-based services. This could lead to artificial distinctions rather than shared needs around welfare protections. The draft Bill does not clearly mention if it will protect the rights of warehouse workers because they fail to meet the criteria of workers engaged with platforms. This needs to be addressed especially considering the recent grievances raised by Amazon India warehouse workers that have been acknowledged by the National Human Rights Commission as well as the UNI Global Union. The Karnataka draft Bill does not mention or direct companies to recognise gig worker unions, an issue that has been a part of workers demands. Unlike the Rajasthan gig worker law, the Karnataka draft Bill does not impose any duties on aggregators and primary employers. Actor Samatha Ruth Prabhu has been slammed for advocating hydrogen peroxide nebulisation on Instagram for a viral infection instead of using medicines. Before taking medication for a common viral, consider trying an alternative approach, Samantha wrote. One option is to nebulize with a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and distilled water. Works like magic. Avoid unnecessary use of pills, she added. Her post drew reactions from experts and medical practitioners, including Dr Abby Philips, who is popularly know as TheLiverDoc on X. Dr Philips criticised the actor for spreading misinformation. I have been fighting medical/health misinformation for the longest time and it just does not seem to end. I have come to understand that the only way to fight medical misinformation is to consistently speak about it and make examples of people who mislead and misinform, TheLiverDoc had posted on social media. Several hours after The Liver Docs scathing remarks, Samantha shared a three-page statement explaining that she shared it with good intentions and not to harm anyone. Further, she defended herself saying that her doctor with 25 years of experience suggested it to her. She said, without naming TheLiverDoc, that he should have targeted her doctor and had a debate with him instead of passing such harsh comments. Who Said What? In another post, TheLiverDoc called the actor a serial offender in the context of healthcare misinformation. The reason why doctors like me have to spend (waste) time from our busy schedules to fight misinformation online is because it is peddled by large influential celebrity accounts that have no regard for public health, he said on X. Three-time Grammy Award winner and environmentalist Ricky Kej supported The Liver Doc, and wrote one cannot play with peoples lives with advice, which is half-baked. Samantha Ruth Prabhu also received a lot of support from her friends and fans on Instagram. Varun Dhawan, Rhea Chakraborty, Lakshmi Manchu and several others support her. This is not for the first time that Samantha Ruth Prabhu and TheLiverDoc have engaged in a war of words. Earlier, he called her out for promoting dandelion roots for liver detoxification with a guest on her health podcast on YouTube. The actor has in the past posted on alternative medicines and treatments on social media. What is Hydrogen Peroxide Nebulisation? Hydrogen peroxide nebulisation involves inhaling a mist of diluted hydrogen peroxide through a nebulizer, a device commonly used to deliver medication directly into the lungs for conditions like asthma. Hydrogen peroxide, composed of hydrogen and oxygen, is an antiseptic used as an oxidising and disinfecting agent in various applications. This chemical compound is found in bleaches, dyes, antiseptics, and disinfectants. According to the Agency of Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, when the highly concentrated chemical compound is nebulised and inhaled it can lead to the production of harmful by-products or gases that damage the lungs and cause inflammation in the airways. What are the Risks Involved? Inhalation of vapors, mists or aerosols from concentrated solutions of hydrogen peroxide can cause significant morbidity. Because it is nearly odourless and non-irritating except at high concentrations, persons may not be aware of its presence. No odour threshold was located for hydrogen peroxide. Detection of odour does not provide adequate warning of hazardous concentrations. Hydrogen peroxide vapour is heavier than air and may cause asphyxiation in enclosed, poorly ventilated or low-lying areas, according to US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Inhalation of hydrogen peroxide mist can lead to chemical pneumonitis, a condition where the lungs become inflamed due to exposure to irritants or chemicals. This can result in symptoms such as shortness of breath, chest pain and coughing up blood. Being a reactive chemical compound, hydrogen peroxide nebulization can lead to the production of harmful by-products or gases that can further irritate the respiratory system. Dr Roohi Pirzada, a General Physician based in Mumbai explains in Only My Health, Hydrogen Peroxide is cytotoxic, meaning it can kill cells. Inhaling hydrogen peroxide can lead to cellular damage and death within the respiratory system, particularly affecting the delicate cells lining the lungs, as quoted by The Firstpost. When Doctors Opposed Hydrogen Peroxide Nebulizer During Covid Medical practitioners had strongly advised against inhaling a mixture of hydrogen peroxide and saline solution as a home remedy for Covid-19 or pneumonia. Anyone who would use a nebulizer during a viral infection, doctors recommended to use solutions that typically include medications such as bronchodilators or corticosteroids that are formulated for safe inhalation. Individuals with pre-existing respiratory conditions such as asthma, COPD, or allergies are vulnerable to the effects of irritants like hydrogen peroxide and should avoid its use in a nebulizer altogether. According to Cambridge University Hospitals, saline nebulisers help to thin down the secretion, which makes it easier to cough up and swallow. It can mitigate the functional signs of threatening pulmonary obstruction and treat mild respiratory problems, according to a study published in the journal, Physiological Research. It is always safe to consult a doctor for diagnosis and effective treatment. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday as he embarks on his first bilateral visit to Moscow after assuming office for the third time, signifying the importance of ties between both the countries. The 22nd India-Russia Summit is being held in Moscow in the backdrop of the Ukraine war. The 21st summit was held in New Delhi in 2021, just before Putin launched special operations on Ukraine. Since then, the two leaders met just once, at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Uzbekistan, where PM Modi had stated that this was not the end of war. The current summit also comes amidst Russias growing dependence on China as a result of the war. This concerns New Delhi given the tensions along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). What Is The Agenda of This Summit? The two leaders will review the broad spectrum of bilateral relations and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest, as confirmed by the Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi on July 4. Other topics could include trade and energy, space cooperation for Gangayaan and defence supplies. There are concerns about the fallout on defence deliveries and spares from Russia. While an attempt to Make in India has made headway (Russian assault rifles and the India-Russia BrahMos missile), concerns over the reliability of supplies and the payments issue will need discussion, as per a report by The Hindu. The recruitment of Indians by the Russian army could be another issue discussed in the meeting, officials hinted. Four Indians have been killed and 10 have returned, but another 40 are believed to be still in Russia. New Delhi has asked for their early discharge, and the issue is expected to be discussed during Modis visit. On July 6, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the agenda for Prime Minister Modis visit will be extensive, with opportunities for both formal discussions and informal talks between the leaders. Highlighting the strategic nature of Russian-Indian relations, Peskov emphasised the importance of the upcoming visit, describing it as very important and full-fledged. How Modi Maintained Balance Between Russia And West Modis visit to Russia on July 8-9 comes in the backdrop of the NATO Summit in Washington on July 9, where Biden has called world leaders in a show of strength for the transatlantic groupings 75th anniversary. PM Modi had attended the G7 summit outreach in Italy last month and met Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and later sending an official delegation to the Peace Conference in Switzerland in an attempt to strike a balance in geopolitics. Why is Russia Important to India? Diplomacy: Russia has remained committed to support India at several international forums, especially at UNSC, on the issue related to Kashmir. When Article 370 was abrogated in 2019, Moscow declared unequivocal position that it was Indias internal matter. It stated that the parties involved will not allow a new aggravation of the situation in the region as a result of the decision. Both India and Russia have cooperated at BRICS, RIC, SCO and G20 on issues of mutual concerns. Russia also supported Indias bid for a UNSC permanent seat, and the inclusion of India in various non-proliferation regimes. It also played an important role in defusing tensions between India and China during the Doklam crisis of 2017 and the Galwan crisis of 2020, according to The Times of India and The Hindu. Economy: Russia was Indias 25th largest trading partner in 2021-22 with $13 billion. Russias overall investment in India of about $14 billion includes the $13 billion by Rosneft for Essar Oil. This deal is the biggest outbound investment for Russia and the largest FDI investment in India, as per an article by The Economic Times. Before the war, the bilateral trade target was set at $30 billion by 2025. However, bilateral trade reached an all-time high of $65.70 billion in FY 2023-24, according to data from the Department of Commerce. India also acquired a 26% stake in Russias Vankor oilfield, while a consortium of Oil India (OIL), Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Bharat PetroResources (BPRL) has acquired a 23.9% stake in the field, as per The Economic Times. Defence: Indias 60-70% of defence equipment is estimated to be of Russia and Soviet origin. According to a SIPRI report, Russia remains Indias biggest arms supplier, though its share of Indian defence imports decreased from 62% to 45% between 2017 and 2022. Russia is followed by France and US at 29% and 11%, respectively, as the largest defence suppliers to India. Russia is likely to remain an important partner for a few more decades given India has signed agreements for the supply of S400 Triumf Air Defence Missile System, MiG-29 fighter aircraft, Kamov helicopters, Su-30MKI fighters, AK-203 assault rifles, and Brahmos supersonic cruise missile. The INS Vikramaditya, one of the Indian Navys two aircraft carriers, is the former Soviet and Russia warship Admiral Gorshkov. India has tried to look beyond Russia, with steady diversification to the US, Israel, France and South Korea. The US-China Factor Russia-China relations have been progressing since the early 2000s as they settled their long-standing border dispute. With Chinas economic expansion, demand for Russian raw materials including hydrocarbons have given some boost to their relations. Both countries shared opposition to Western dominance and a common quest for a multipolar world have also made them come closer. China has also refused to call out Russia for its actions in Ukraine, according to BBC. India-China ties saw a near normalization in 1990s through bilateral agreements in 1993 and 1996 on maintaining peace and tranquility in the border areas. However, irritants emerged in the relations with Chinas assertiveness in its neighbourhood, along with the launch of Belt and Road Initiative and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor in 2013; border clashes in 2014, 2017 and 2020; its rejection of Indias NSG bid; and its intervention in the UNSC on the Kashmir issue. In the aftermath of the Crimea crisis in 2014 and the Ukraine war in 2022, India has been cautious in maintaining a balance between the US and Russia, with the former working to isolate Moscow. India has opposed initiatives such as expulsion of Russia from G20 and refused to join the sanctions regime, despite the threat of secondary sanctions under Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA). In an initiative aimed at promoting bael cultivation among farmers, the Agricultural Technology Management Agency (ATMA) in Begusarai, Bihar, has announced free training sessions for farmers. Known for its medicinal properties and revered as an ancient fruit of India, bael holds significant cultural and health importance. According to reports, the upcoming program will train farmers in efficient bael cultivation techniques and the training would be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis. Interested farmers are encouraged to apply at the ATMA office by the end of July. Ajit Kumar, the director of Begusarai ATMA, informed Local 18 that thirty local farmers from Begusarai will be selected to undergo training at Acharya Narendra Dev Agriculture and Technology University in Ayodhya, renowned nationwide for its expertise in vine cultivation. Following this training, the government plans to provide bael plants at subsidised rates. Adding to this, a local shopkeeper in Begusarai mentioned that they typically sell bael and its juice from Jharkhand and other states, which are costly and offer lower margins. With local production in Begusarai, bael prices are expected to decrease, benefiting both shopkeepers and farmers alike in terms of cost savings. Acknowledging the historical relevance of bael across the country, Kumar emphasised the suitability of soil in Begusarai for its production. The training initiative aimed to boost bael cultivation among local farmers, stated Kumar, adding that the initiative was part of efforts by ATMA to leverage Begusarais agricultural potential, particularly in fruit cultivation. Farmers participating in the program would benefit from comprehensive training sessions, facilitating increased bael production and economic returns. We aim to equip 30 selected farmers with the necessary skills, stated Kumar. The training would cover various aspects of bael cultivation, ensuring participants are well-prepared to enhance their agricultural practices. For further details and applications, interested farmers are advised to visit the ATMA office in Begusarai. The program underscores the local administrations commitment to promoting sustainable agriculture and enhancing farmers livelihoods through skill development initiatives. The CCTV footage of the accused in the Worli hit and run case has been accessed by CNN-News18. A lookout notice has also been issued against Mihir Shah, the accused. The footage shows Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) leaders son Mihir Shah getting into a car with his friends outside a bar just before his BMW car hit a couple on Sunday, leaving the woman dead. The footage shows him sitting inside the car on the passenger seat. In the CCTV video, it could be seen that Mihir Shah did not sit behind the wheel in the car. However, it is not clear whether the car seen in the footage is the BMW that hit the couple. CNN-News18 has also accessed the bill from the night and found that the accused and his friend had gone to Juhus Global Tapas Bar and had paid a total bill of Rs 18,730. #BreakingNews | #Worli hit and run case: CCTV footage of Shinde Sena leaders son Mihir Shah accessed, he is seen getting into the car outside Juhu bar@kotakyesha shares more details#MumbaiHitAndRun #BMW | @kritsween pic.twitter.com/NbZYuUcxbP News18 (@CNNnews18) July 7, 2024 Heres an image of the bill accessed by CNN-News18 Worli hit and run case: Rajesh Shahs driver, Rajrishi Rajendrasingh Bidawat, has also been arrested as Bidawat was present allegedly inside the car at the time of accident@kritsween | #Mumbai #WorliHitAndRunCase pic.twitter.com/CWJZgYIyTx News18 (@CNNnews18) July 7, 2024 Shiv Sena Leader Arrested While Mihir remained absconding, a lookout notice has been issued against him and twelve police teams have been formed to nab him. Mihirs father and Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah was arrested on Sunday along with his driver Rajrishi Rajendrasingh Bidawat. Bidawat was allegedly present inside the car at the time of accident. Rajesh Shah allegedly helped accused Mihir Shah escape and several attempts were made to destroy evidence. The arrest came after a case was registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita sections relating to culpable homicide not amounting to murder, rash driving and destruction of evidence, among others. What Happened on Sunday? At around 5:25 am on Sunday morning, Mihir allegedly rammed his BMW into a scooter, killing a 45-year-old woman named Kaveri and injuring her husband Pradip Nakhwa, aged 50. As per media reports, the BMW was later found in an abandoned state in Kala Nagar in the Bandra East area. According to police, Mihir left his car in Bandra before running away in an auto-rickshaw. His companion, Rajrishi Bidawat also took an auto-rickshaw and came to Borivali after the crash. Greater Chennai Police Commissioner Sandeep Rai Rathore has been transferred to the position of Director at the Tamil Nadu Police Training College, just three days after the brutal murder of the state Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief K. Armstrong by armed assailants. Rathores role has been assumed by senior IPS officer A. Arun, who previously served as the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Law and Order, according to an order issued by Principal Secretary P. Amudha of the Home (SC) Department on Monday. Simultaneously, senior IPS officer S. Davidson Devasirvatham has been appointed as the new ADGP, Law and Order. ADGP/Commissioner of Police, Greater Chennai Police vice Dr Sandeep Rai Rathore, IPS by downgrading the post of DGP/CoP.., the order stated. Tamil Nadu BSP leader Armstrong was hacked to death by six bike-borne men near his house in Perambur, Chennai, on July 5. He was immediately rushed to a private hospital but was declared dead on arrival. The Greater Chennai police investigating Armstrongs murder have linked it to the revenge killing of gangster Arcot Suresh, who was allegedly murdered in August last year over gang rivalry. BSP supremo and former UP chief minister Mayawati, who paid homage to her murdered party colleague on Sunday, demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the killing to ensure justice for the family. The family of the deceased had approached the Madras High Court seeking permission to bury Armstrongs mortal remains at the BSP office in Chennai. However, the court rejected their plea and permitted the interment at a property belonging to the departed leaders relative in nearby Tiruvallur. The Enforcement Directorate on Monday moved to the Supreme Court challenging the High Court order that granted bail to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. The ED said that the High Courts order is illegal and that their observations are prejudiced. The investigative agency has further said that the court has erred in saying that there is no prima facie against Soren. Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was granted bail on June 28 by the High Court in a land scam case. The high court had on June 13 reserved its decision on Sorens bail plea. Bail has been granted to Soren. The court has held that prima facie he is not guilty of the offence and there is no likelihood of the petitioner committing an offence when on bail, Sorens senior counsel Arunabh Chowdhury told PTI. During the hearing, EDs counsel SV Raju argued that if Soren is released on bail, he would commit a similar offence. Soren, the executive president of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on January 31 in connection with its investigation into the money laundering case. Antibiotics Augmentin, Monocef, liver herbal supplement Liv 52 and oral rehydration Electral are the top-selling drugs for June, data shows. With the arrival of the monsoon season, theres an uptick in respiratory and gut infections, resulting in higher sales of antibiotics, digestive aids, and oral rehydration solutions. Also, the heat wave which continued in the first half of June pushed the sales of oral rehydration solutions including Electral. According to the report by market research firm AIOCD-Pharmarack, with the onset of monsoon across the subcontinent, there was a rise seen in sales of drugs related to respiratory, anti-infective, anti-malaria and gastrointestinal in June. Data shows that the incremental sales of Augmentin stood at Rs 22 crore, which means the sales in June this year when compared to sales in June, last year were Rs 22 cr more. Similarly, sales of Liv 52 were Rs 14 crore more and Electrals sales were Rs 13.5 crore more than last June. The report, Pharma Monitor, said that drugs used in the treatment of viral infections, fevers, and vector-borne diseases along with drugs used for treating general weakness and body aches also performed well in June. The report also said that an increased number of pollen allergy cases reported in June led to demand for anti-allergic medications along with anti-histamines, nasal decongestants and antitussive or cough-suppressing preparations. Doctors diagnose UTI, Typhoid, Gut Infections and More Doctors told News18 that Augmentin and Monocef are the two most commonly prescribed broad-spectrum antibiotics, and thats the reason why their volumes of sale are high. According to Dr Sumit Ray, medical director at Holy Family Hospital, New Delhi, Monocef, probably prescribed predominantly for gut infections, typhoid and urinary tract infection (UTI), would have high sales, during the hot months, due to an increased possibility of these infections. Similarly, Ray explained that Liv 52 is supposedly an Ayurvedic preparation that supposedly helps the liver, and is prescribed for these reasons as we are a country obsessed with our gut and our liver. He explained that electral is a form of oral rehydration therapy, and the sales would have increased during the severe heat waves across the country in June. Similarly, Dr Rajeev Jayadevan, a senior consultant gastroenterologist and former President of the Indian Medical Association, Cochin added that Augmentin can be used in respiratory, urinary and ear infections caused by bacteria that produce the enzyme beta-lactamase, which enables them to escape the basic antibiotic, ampicillin. With respiratory illnesses on the rise over the past few years and bacteria becoming resistant to conventional antibiotics, doctors are now having to use more powerful antibiotics to save their patients, Jayadevan said. He highlighted Monocef as an antibiotic injection which is generally given in hospital settings. Its active ingredient is ceftriaxone, a third generation cephalosporin which is used in people who are admitted to hospital with a wide range of bacterial infections, he said. Five army personnel have been killed and four injured after an Indian Army convoy was attacked by terrorists in Machedi area of Kathua district in Jammu and Kashmir on Monday. The area falls under the 9 Corps of the Indian Army. After firing by terrorists, our troops also retaliated, as per defence officials. The terrorists hurled a grenade and opened fire targeting Army vehicles which were on a routine patrol on the Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road at around 3.30 pm near Badnota village in Lohai Malhar, 150 km from Kathua town. Security forces retaliated but the terrorists fled into the nearby forest, the officials said, adding an intermittent exchange of firing was going on between the terrorists and security forces when the last reports were received. They said reinforcements have been rushed to the area to neutralise the terrorists, who are believed to have recently infiltrated from across the border and were moving to the higher reaches. The four troopers who have been injured were in the vehicle which came under grenade attack and firing by the terrorists, an official said. They said the injured were shifted to a military hospital, where the condition of two of them was stated to be critical. This was the second major incident in Kathua district in the past four weeks. Leaders React To Terrorist Attack Minister of State for the Ministry of Science and Technology Dr Jitendra Singh expressed his condolences for the deadly attack and said that the Joint police & para military operation is on. My heart goes out to the brave heart soldiers martyred in the ongoing #Kathua encounter. I am in constant touch with the authorities. Joint police & para military operation is on. My sincere appeal to1/2 Dr Jitendra Singh (@DrJitendraSingh) July 8, 2024 Rajya Sabha MP and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Priyanka Chaturvedi took to her official X account and said that this was the 5th terror attack since the start of the NDAs third term. 5th terror attack since the start of third term. We have lost another 4 of our brave warriors. Home Minister Prime Minister NSA Defense Minister https://t.co/js0FdlbwKq Priyanka Chaturvedi (@priyankac19) July 8, 2024 Former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Ghulam Nabi Azad strongly condemned the ambush on the army vehicle by terrorists in Kathua, that resulted in the tragic loss of four jawans. The rise in terrorism in Jammu province is deeply concerning, he said. Deeply saddened and strongly condemn the ambush on an army vehicle by terrorists in Kathua, resulting in the tragic loss of four jawans and injuries to six others. The rise in terrorism in Jammu province is deeply concerning. Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured and Ghulam Nabi Azad (@ghulamnazad) July 8, 2024 Jammu Kashmir National Conference leader Omar Abdullah also condemned the attack and expressed his heartfelt condolences to the families. Terrible news from Kathua. Its a very bad day when you lose four brave army personnel in the line of duty. I condemn the attack unequivocally and send my heartfelt condolences to the families. I hope the injured make a swift & complete recovery. https://t.co/HmtJajTChx Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) July 8, 2024 Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party President Mehbooba Mufti condemned the terror attack in Kathua that claimed the lives of four soldiers and called it tragic and equally shocking. Condemn the terror attack in Kathua that claimed the lives of four soldiers. Tragic & equally shocking that they are losing their lives in the line of duty in places where one found little to no trace of militancy before 2019. Tells you all there is to know about the current https://t.co/dNRoORWeD7 Mehbooba Mufti (@MehboobaMufti) July 8, 2024 (with PTI inputs) The fruits of success are best enjoyed when one has toiled their way to it from humble origins. This article documents the success of one such individual from the rural interiors of West Bengal, Vishwarup Saha, hailing from Shantipur in the Nadia district of the state, who has achieved remarkable success by securing the eighth position in India in an entrance examination. Currently, he serves as a scientist specialising in nuclear medicine at the Department of Atomic Energy under the Government of India. Vishwarup Saha, originally from Shantipur near the river, has been granted the opportunity to conduct research in nuclear medicine under the auspices of the Government of Indias Department of Atomic Energy. This achievement not only signifies his dedication to research but also guarantees a prominent role within the government, marking it as a significant central government position. His eighth rank in the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) underscores his academic prowess and promises a concurrent career path. Before this achievement, Vishwarup had previously ranked 101st in the nationwide NET examination. As a top performer, he had opportunities for interviews and admissions at prestigious institutions like IIT Kanpur, Mumbai Institute of Technology and IISc Bengaluru. However, his passion for nuclear research led him to pursue opportunities at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre. In 2024, he also received a scholarship abroad at Kyoto and Cairo Universities due to his keen interest in nuclear studies and his research aspirations at the Atomic Research Centre. Vishwarups educational journey began at Shantipur Municipal High School, followed by Kalyani Universitys affiliated Chakdaha College where he pursued a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, securing the second position within the university. He holds great respect and appreciation for all the teachers who supported him, especially those from Shantipur, with whom he maintains regular contact. Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Russia is significant, as it could help India gain access to other countries and markets, according to government sources. PM Modi, during his visit to official visit to Moscow on July 8 and 9, will meet Russian President Vladimir Putin. Modis visit comes at the invitation of Putin for the 22nd India-Russia summit. This visit marks Modis first trip to Russia in nearly five years and notably his first since Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. His last visit was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in Vladivostok, a city in Russias Far East. ALSO READ | Putin To Meet PM Modi In Moscow As Kremlin Describes India-Russia Ties Traditionally Friendly The Kremlins announcement of the visit highlights the nature of the traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations", which the two leaders plan to further develop. Other topics include current issues of the international and regional agenda", Russian news agency TASS reported. HOW IT COULD BE WIN-WIN FOR BOTH INDIA, RUSSIA According to government sources, in Modi regime, India has diversified its international relationships and trade partners, to reduce its dependence on any country. In the current scenario, Russia has been an important partner for India in areas such as defence and energy. Indias growing economic and strategic interests lie in expanding its connections with other regions. With Russias cooperation, India could gain access to: Central Asia through the North-South Transport Corridor Eastern Europe and the EU through Russias trade agreements Africa, where Russia has been increasing its presence The Indian side wants good relations with Russia and India will tap into these opportunities without being solely dependent on Russia itself, said sources. NSA Ajit Doval has also done ground work and has been continuously meeting his Russian counterpart and Putin. Meanwhile, Russia, which is facing international sanctions and isolation, needs partners like India to maintain its global influence and economic relevance, sources added. ALSO READ | Full-Fledged Visit By PM Modi Crucial For Russia-India Ties: Kremlin In this situation, Putin may need India more which could be used keeping Indian interest as top priority. India also understands Russian tension with the USA and to balance that they need India and Indian side will definitely seek Russian leverage on China to ease out the tension at LAC. GOVT SOURCES ON KEY AREAS WHERE RUSSIAN SUPPORT MATTERS Indias efforts to bypass the US sanctions on Iran by signing a deal on the Port of Chabahar. Russias concerns about Indias growing defence self-sufficiency and acquisition of Western weapons and technology. The brain drain from Russia, which allows India to hire Russian tech personnel without oversight from the Russian government. The potential for Russia to offer prospective agreements to India to avoid loss of revenue and influence. The various geopolitical issues that will likely be discussed, including the war in Ukraine, economic concerns in Africa, and the resolution of the Gaza conflict. Commenting on PM Modis visit, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday stated that Indias economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously" at the leadership level. He also emphasised that it presents a great opportunity" for Modi and Putin to engage in direct dialogue. It is a way of taking stock of any relationshipone of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendouslyat the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other," Jaishankar told news agency ANI. China and Tajikistan established diplomatic ties in 1992 and advanced their relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2017. In 2023, the two countries announced the building of a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity, and mutual benefit. Tajikistan is one of China's closest partners in Belt and Road cooperation. It was the first to sign a cooperation MOU with China on the Silk Road Economic Belt. Tajikistan is located in the southeast of Central Asia, with a mountainous area exceeding 90% of its total area. Heavy rains in Mumbai have led to disruptions not just in road and rail traffic but in air traffic as well. After a days pause on Monday, runway operations at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) resumed on Tuesday. Due to the heavy showers, several flights were diverted, and over 50 were canceled on Monday. As per the latest update from the Mumbai airport authorities, heavy rains and low visibility led to the suspension of runway operations from 2:22 am to 3:40 am on Monday. At least 27 flights were diverted due to this suspension. Meanwhile, 51 flights were cancelled to and from Mumbai till 11 am on Monday, the CSMIA told CNBC-TV18. A total of 42 IndiGo flights were cancelled, which included 22 arrivals and 20 departures, 6 Air India flights (3 arrivals and 3 departures) were cancelled, 2 Air India Express flights were cancelled and 1 Qatar Airways departure was cancelled on Sunday night due to an FDTL issue. Mumbai Airport (@CSMIA_Official) to CNBC-TV18 51 flights cancelled to and from Mumbai till 11 AM 42 flights of @IndiGo6E cancelled 22 arrivals and 20 departures 6 @airindia flights cancelled 3 Arrivals and 3 departures 2 @AirIndiaX flights cancelled , 1 pic.twitter.com/SwqXrdSSLo CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18News) July 8, 2024 Flights that were scheduled to land in Mumbai were diverted to other places like Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Indore. The airport authorities said that priority was being given to arrivals, and consequential changes that were made to accommodate diverted flights, delaying departures. Travel Advisory For Passengers The CSMIA also asked passengers to check their flight status in advance. In light of the inclement weather and forecast of heavy to very heavy rains, Mumbai Airport advises all the passengers to check their flight status with their respective airlines and leave for the airport a little earlier, CSMIA posted on X (previously Twitter). In light of the inclement weather and forecast of heavy to very heavy rains, #MumbaiAirport advises all the passengers to check their flight status with their respective airlines and leave for the airport a little earlier. #PassengerAdvisory #GatewayToGoodness #Travel #Safety pic.twitter.com/pIRK52MRFr CSMIA (@CSMIA_Official) July 8, 2024 Travel advisories were also issued by airlines including IndiGo and SpiceJet as flights scheduled to land in Mumbai were diverted. #6ETravelAdvisory: Due to weather and subsequent air traffic congestion, flights to/from #Mumbai are impacted. Do keep a tab on your flight status at https://t.co/CjwsVzFov0. To explore alternate flights or request a full refund, visit https://t.co/ucmaFEO80X. https://t.co/QOMwUyHZZ7 IndiGo (@IndiGo6E) July 7, 2024 #WeatherUpdate: Due to bad weather (heavy rain) in Mumbai (BOM), all departures/arrivals and their consequential flights may get affected. Passengers are requested to keep a check on their flight status via https://t.co/VkU7yLjZly. SpiceJet (@flyspicejet) July 8, 2024 #WeatherUpdate: Due to bad weather (heavy rain) in Mumbai (BOM), all departures/arrivals and their consequential flights may get affected. Passengers are requested to keep a check on their flight status via https://t.co/VkU7yLjZly. SpiceJet (@flyspicejet) July 8, 2024 Passengers Woes Passengers took to social media to post about issues being faced by them due to operations getting hampered at Mumbai airport. Chose a great night to take a 11:30 pm flight from Bangalore to Mumbai. In crazy thunderstorms pilot couldnt land in Mumbai terminal, so took us to Ahmedabad. Reaching there found that Ahmedabad airport is maxd out so took us to Indore, where we finally landed. I thought chalo god wanted me to have poha for breakfast. But no such luck, we stayed inside, as re-fueling happened and waited for Mumbai weather to get better. Took off at 5 and finally landed in Mumbai at 6 and got out of plane at 7. Felt like a Shawshank Redemption moment tbh (sic), standup comedian Abhijit Ganguly posted on X. Chose a great night to take a 11:30 pm flight from Bangalore to Mumbai. In crazy thunderstorms pilot couldnt land in Mumbai terminal, so took us to Ahmedabad. Reaching there found that Ahmedabad airport is maxd out so took us to Indore, where we finally landed. I thought chalo Abijit Ganguly (@AbijitG) July 8, 2024 An X user asked people to leave for airport early due to waterlogging at powai L&T junction. For those heading to the @CSMIA_Official pls leave home early. Waterlogging in andheri and surrounding areas, making it diff to access the airport. Inside roads too waterlogged. Powai L&T junction too is under water and even if you take the seepz road, doesnt help #Mumbairains pic.twitter.com/8l98ywM8xl Ameya (@ameya_naik) July 8, 2024 Mumbai has been witnessing heavy rains since Sunday. All schools and colleges were shut as waterlogging was reported from several areas. The movement of local trains was also disrupted due to waterlogging on railway tracks. Heavy rain lashed Mumbai on Monday, hitting local train services and flight operations, prompting Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to review the situation. The rain mayhem led to the inundation of several low-lying areas in Mumbai, impacting vehicular movement, while all schools in city, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts remained shut. ALSO READ | Mumbai Rains LIVE Updates HERE Deputy CM Ajit Pawar posted on X: Mumbai received 300 mm of rain in six hours last night. This is 10% of Mumbais annual rainfall. Like cities in India and around the world, Mumbai is also suffering from climate change. We should build infrastructure in Mumbai and Maharashtra keeping in view the future environmental problems due to climate change. We should take appropriate steps to face drought, flood, storm 365 days a year. Along with that, we should also try to avoid such problems. Mumbai is likely to continue getting heavy rain even on July 9, with the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) issuing a red alert for the city for Monday evening. Mumbaikars have been asked to avoid stepping out of home and dial 1916, the contact number of the Main Control Room of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), for help or any official information. 300 . . . Ajit Pawar (@AjitPawarSpeaks) July 8, 2024 A look at the troubles faced by Mumbaikars and the forecast and preparedness for Tuesday: HOW MUCH DID IT RAIN? The India Meteorological Department (IMD) in Mumbai recorded more than 268 mm at the main weather station in Santa Cruz between 8.30 pm on Sunday (July 7) and 8.30 am on Monday with at least 300 mm between 1 am and 7 am (six hours) at some weather stations. Overall, Mumbai receives around 2,300 mm rainfall on average in the entire monsoon season between June and September.Powai Lake has begun overflowing, a civic official said. In the 24-hour period ending at 8 am on Monday, the island city recorded an average 115.63 mm rainfall, while the eastern and western parts of Mumbai received 168.68 mm and 165.93 mm rain, respectively, an official said. In eastern Mumbai, Govandi recorded the highest 315.6 mm rainfall, followed by 314.5 mm at Powai, while in western parts, Malpa Dongri in Andheri received the highest 292.2 mm rainfall followed by 278.2 mm at Chakala. In the island city, Pratiksha Nagar got 220.2 mm rainfall, followed by 185.8 mm in Sewri Koliwada.The BMC said it was monitoring the situation with commissioner Bhushan Gagrani marking his attendance from the disaster control room. Emergency personnel and officers, along with the emergency control room are stationed at various locations in Mumbai and are keeping an eye on all developments. All deputy commissioners, assistant commissioners, and other systems of the corporation are active at various locations, the BMC said. TRAINS: Train services on the fast line of the Central Railways (CR) main corridor between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in south Mumbai and neighbouring Thane were suspended for a few hours due to waterlogging at various places and later resumed, officials said. Water on the tracks forced railway authorities to cancel some long-distance trains, while visuals from across the city showed suburban passenger trains, Mumbais lifeline, halted on inundated tracks. The Harbour corridor services were also suspended temporarily due to waterlogging at Chunnabhati. The Western Railway said suburban trains were running up to 10 minutes late because water was above the track level between Matunga Road and Dadar due to heavy showers. Commuters complained the suburban services were running late. There was heavy rush of commuters at various stations and in trains. The CR officials said due to heavy rain and high tide in Mumbai, local train movement in the suburban section was affected and asked people to avoid travelling unless unavoidable. #MumbaiRains: Historic rainfall recorded, streets waterlogged, vehicles stranded, Orange Alert issued; IMD predicts more showersTake a look at some ground reports and defining images#MumbaiWeather #NationAt5 | @kritsween pic.twitter.com/4tCuvPE1GD News18 (@CNNnews18) July 8, 2024 SCHOOLS, MU: After cancelling the first session of schools in the morning, the civic body also declared a holiday for the second half. Amid heavy rain in Mumbai, Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation declares a holiday for the second session of schools today. A holiday was declared for the first session of schools in the morning, it said. The Mumbai University also rescheduled all the examinations for the Centre for Distance and Online Education (CDOE, formerly IDOL) scheduled in the first half from 11 am and 2 pm. The new dates for these exams is July 13. AIR TRAFFIC: Heavy rain and low visibility led to the suspension of runway operations at the Mumbai airport from 2.22 am to 3.40 am on Monday and the cancellation of 50 flights, according to sources. More than 250 flights were delayed and at least 30 cancelled at the citys airport, the website of tracking service Flightradar24 showed. ROADS: A spokesperson of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking in the morning said at least 40 bus routes in the city and suburbs were either diverted or curtailed due to waterlogging. Commuters waded through knee-deep water that partially submerged vehicles in many areas, as traffic piled up on the citys Eastern and Western Express highways. There was heavy waterlogging in Chunnabhati, Sion, Kurla, Matunga Road, Dadar, Wadala, Bhandup, Vile Parle and Kings Circle with large crowds at railway stations in these areas, as train services were delayed or suspended on the central, harbour and western lines. LANDSLIDE, RAIGAD HILL CHAOS, BRIDGE WASHED AWAY: In neighbouring Thane district, a landslide occurred on a hillock, which led to residents of four houses being evacuated, while 54 people were rescued after their houses were inundated, civic officials said. In Thane district, a bridge was washed away. At least 275 houses in different areas suffered damages and around 20 vehicles were swept away, the Thane district administration said in a release.Police and other district authorities evacuated several tourists and trekkers stranded at the Raigad hill fort following heavy rains, officials said. MANTRALAYA AND MINISTERS: Both Houses of the Maharashtra legislature were adjourned as many members and officials could not reach the Vidhan Bhavan. Maharashtra Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation and Disaster Management Anil Patil and NCP MLC Amol Mitkari alighted from the Howrah-Mumbai train and walked on tracks for some distance, a video of which went viral.CM Eknath Shinde took stock of the heavy rain situation by chairing a meeting at the Mantralaya and visiting the BMC control room. WATER STOCK THE SILVER LINING: However, the silver lining amid record heavy rainfall is Mumbais useful water stock in reservoirs increased by 4% in just 24 hours, hinting the city may not see water crisis in the near term. Although the stock reached 18.73% on July 8, the water level in these reservoirs is still below historically when it was at 21.57% in July 2023 and 25.94% in 2022. The collective water stock in the seven reservoirs has now been recorded to be at 2,71,147 million litres, as of 6 am on July 8. Seven reservoirs that supply water to Mumbai include Bhatsa, Upper Vaitarna, Middle Vaitarna, Tansa, Modak Sagar, Vihar and Tulsi. #MumbaiMonsoonMayhem: News18s @GrihaAtul takes through the visuals of Mumbai rains as several parts of the city remain inundated with water. Rail affected as tracks remain submerged. @KotakYesha shares more!#Mumbai #MumbaiRains #Waterlogging pic.twitter.com/sjnZ5sbbNU News18 (@CNNnews18) July 8, 2024 ANIMALS DISPLACED: More than 30 animals, birds and reptiles were rescued in Mumbai and surrounding districts as heavy rains pounded the region, a forest official said on Monday. Cases of lost and abandoned pets, strays, and domestic animals were also reported, along with wildlife distress calls from the city and suburbs, said Santosh Bhagane from the Mumbai range rescue team of the forest department. We have received more than 60 distress calls in 24 hours and rescued more than 30 animals, birds and reptiles from Mumbai and surrounding districts of Thane, Raigad and Palghar, said Pawan Sharma, founder and president of RAWW (Resqink Association for Wildlife Welfare) and the honorary wildlife warden with the forest department. FOR TUESDAY: The weather body has predicted heavy rain in Mumbai, over Konkan and Ghat regions of central Maharashtra on July 9, 11 and 12. Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) have been deployed in heavily waterlogged and flooded areas of the city like Kurla and Andheri among others as well as suburbs like Thane and Vasai (Palghar). Rescue and relief teams have been deployed in Mahad (Raigad), Chiplun (Ratnagiri), Kolhapur, Sangli, Satara, Sindhudurg and Nagpur to avert any untoward incident and respond to a flood-like situation. Teams of the National Disaster Response Force have been deployed in Kurla and Ghatkopar areas of Mumbai and in other parts of Maharashtra. With Agency Inputs News18 Network, Indias largest news network, on Monday launched Project One Tree, a movement aiming to mobilize every Indian to plant a tree as a measure against climate change. This marquee movement seeks to raise awareness about environmental conservation and foster collective action towards a greener, more sustainable future. Indias growth trajectory in the past decade has been truly remarkable. Led by the vison of PM Narendra Modi and a slew of initiatives and policies which have focused on rapid progress and development, India has truly emerged as an economic powerhouse. India is poised to become one of the worlds largest economies in the decades to come and the government has been putting continued efforts to champion this growth. India is following a sustainable and inclusive development model, leaving no one behind. In keeping with its sustainable development goals (SDGs) and commitments, the government has been promoting sustainability across all fronts of development and urbanisation. Through eight national missions, the government is focusing on solar energy, energy efficiency, water management, sustainable agriculture, and the Himalayan ecosystem. Project One Tree, a movement to restore our planets green cover and ensure a sustainable future for all. Together, lets fight climate change and sow the seed for a healthier world. Join News18 Network and let each one of us plant one and remember to nurture nature. pic.twitter.com/AOoE3iL6hO News18 (@CNNnews18) July 8, 2024 In addition to the work that government has been doing, it is the responsibility of each of us to watch our carbon footprints, to monitor our consumption patterns, to care for the Earth our only home and for each other, in helping safeguard the future for ourselves, our children, for flora and fauna and for our biodiversity. Its imperative that we leave the world in a better condition than the one we received it in. And that requires commitment and effort; for the small efforts of today will lead to a giant leap together. The Dwindling Green Patch & Its Impact Indias has 24.62% total forest cover Between 2000 and 2023, India lost 2.33 million hectares of tree cover India has experienced intense heatwaves This summer temperatures soared above 50C Several regions in India face severe water scarcity 49% of Indias districts experiencing deficient rainfall in June 2024 Flash floods in India increased by almost 35% since 2019 54.40% of forests in India are exposed to occasional fires As climate change begins to impact us more than ever, it has become vital for each one of us to help repair the damage that humankind has done to the planet. Hence, it is the duty of each one of us to plant one tree. As our planet faces unprecedented ecological threats, Project One Tree stands as a beacon of hope, emphasizing the urgent need for collective action in nurturing our natural surroundings. PRESIDENT MURMUS MESSAGE Delivering a special message on the occasion of the initiatives launch, President of India Droupadi Murmu spoke about the significance of championing Project One Tree to combat environmental challenges. President Murmu shared her vision on fostering a greener and more sustainable future, inviting each of us to contribute towards this noble cause. I congratulate all of you for this great effort being made towards the protection of the environment. Today, we are all facing the serious problem of climate change. A few days ago, we saw the devastating effects of heatwave. The harmful effects of this challenge are visible in all the areas related to society, economy, peoples health and environment in the country and the world. These not only affect the pace of development, but also lead to many problems in various areas, she said. Therefore, it is very important that through collective efforts, strong and permanent solutions are found, which are suitable to face the challenge of climate change Trees improve the quality of air by providing oxygen, protect water and soil, and also provide shelter to living beings. I urge the citizens to plant at least one tree. If crores of people of the country plant trees, then it will prove to be very effective for environmental protection. It is the responsibility of every person, every community. Come, let us plant at least one tree each. I again appreciate you for this initiative. It is extremely praiseworthy to see a united front on such an important issue and the progress towards a solution. I hope that such efforts will inspire the people of our country, especially children, to adopt sustainable living, she added. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to visit Moscow on Monday for an official visit, during which he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, with the Kremlin describing the relations between the two nations as traditionally friendly. PM Modis visit comes at the invitation of Putin for the 22nd India-Russia summit, scheduled for July 8 and 9. This visit marks PM Modis first trip to Russia in nearly five years and notably his first since Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. His last visit was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in Vladivostok, a city in Russias Far East. The Kremlins announcement of the visit highlights the nature of the traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, which the two leaders plan to further develop. Other topics of the conversation, including current issues of the international and regional agenda, Russian news agency TASS reported. In an interview on Sunday, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said the agenda for PM Modis visit will be extensive, with opportunities for both formal discussions and informal talks between the leaders. Obviously, the agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as well, Peskov stated. West Closely Monitoring Modis Visit Highlighting the strategic nature of Russian-Indian relations, Peskov emphasised the importance of the upcoming visit, describing it as very important and full-fledged. We are expecting a very important and full-fledged visit, which is so crucial for Russian-Indian relations, he was quoted as saying by the news agency. Peskov also stated that the West is jealous and closely monitoring PM Modis upcoming visit to Russia. They are jealous that means they are closely monitoring it. Their close monitoring means they attach great importance to it. And they are not mistaken, there is something to attach great importance to, Peskov stated. Great Opportunity For Modi & Putin To Talk Directly Commenting on PM Modis visit, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on Monday stated that Indias economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously at the leadership level. He also emphasised that it presents a great opportunity for PM Modi and Russian President Putin to engage in direct dialogue. It is a way of taking stock of any relationshipone of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendouslyat the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other, Jaishankar told news agency ANI. #WATCH | On PM Modis visit to Russia, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar says, There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are 2 countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. pic.twitter.com/kyImZnmm2h ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 The annual summit between the Indian Prime Minister and the Russian President serves as the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two nations, with 21 previous summits having alternated between India and Russia. The last summit took place on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi, during Russian President Putins visit to India. (With inputs from agencies) Pradeep Nakhwa, the husband of Kaveri Nakhwa who was killed in a BMW car hit-and-run incident in Mumbai, on Monday demanded stringent punishment for the accused and said his wife could have been saved if the driver stopped the car on time. The victims husband said his wife could have been saved if the driver, son of Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, had stopped the car adding that he will drag the accused the same he dragged his wife. I asked him to stop, yet he didnt stop; he ran away. She (the deceased) must have been in so much pain. Everyone knows this but no one is doing anything. There is no one for the poor, said Pradeep speaking to PTI. VIDEO | Mumbai BMW hit-and-run case: I asked him to stop, yet he didnt stop; he ran away. She (the deceased) must have been in so much pain. Everyone knows this but no one is doing anything. There is no one for the poor, says Pradeep Liladhar Nakhwa, husband of deceased Kaveri pic.twitter.com/jMKLlPzHrZ Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) July 9, 2024 He also recounted the fateful day when the couple was returning from Crawford Market on Sunday morning after purchasing fish when their two-wheeler was struck from behind by a speeding car at around 5:30 am. Kaveri Nakhwa, who died in the deadly crash, was riding a pillion. We were riding at a speed of 30 to 35 kilometres per hour when a speeding car hit us from behind. Due to the impact, we landed on the bonnet of the car, Pradeep Nakhwa, who also sustained injuries, told PTI. The driver pressed the brake, causing me to fall off, but my wife was trapped under the front wheel, he recounted. Pradeep said he tried to stop the car by banging the bonnet, but the driver did not stop and dragged my wife towards the (Worli-end) of the sea link. I started running behind the car asking the driver to stop. Had he stopped the car, my wife could have been saved, he said. I have two children. We lost everything. My wife is gone, but the accused should get stringent punishment for the accident, Pradeep Nakhwa said, his voice filled with grief and anger. The car was driven by a 24-year-old youth who was the owner of the car while another individual was seated beside him, he claimed. According to Mumbai police, the car was allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, son of ruling Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah, who is on the run. The BMW dragged the woman for more than 2 km. She was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival. Victim Was Dragged by Mihir, Family Driver Drove Car Over Her The probe into the BMW hit-and-run case has found that victim Kaveri Nakhwa was run over by accused Rajrishi Bidawat just before Bandra Worli Sea Link after being dragged there by main accused Mihir Shah as the two fled, an official said. The official further said Mihir Shahs father took an active part in ensuring his sons escape and also had plans to tow away the offending vehicle. After she was dragged from Worli, Mihir and Bidawat stopped the car just before BWSL and removed the woman who had got entangled in the vehicles tyre. Bidawat then took the drivers seat and ran the car over the victim while reversing. They then fled, the official said. Mihir Shah was allegedly driving the BMW car which fatally knocked down Kaveri Nakhwa (45) and injured her husband Pradeep while the couple was on their two-wheeler in Mumbais Worli area Sunday morning, police said. Bidawat was the other occupant of the luxury car. Six Teams Formed To Find Absconding Accused Mumbai police have formed six teams to nab the 24-year-old son of a ruling Shiv Sena leader after a BMW car the youth was driving crashed into a scooter, killing a woman and injuring her husband, an official said. A Look Out Circular (LOC) has also been put out against Mihir Shah, an official said on Monday. Police suspect that Mihir was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident as he was spotted at a bar in the Juhu area here a few hours before the incident, the official said. Police have arrested the car owner Rajesh Shah and the driver Rajrishi Bidawat for allegedly helping Mihir escape after the accident. A Mumbai court on Monday granted bail to Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah in the BMW hit-and-run case. The Maharashtra leader was granted provisional cash bail of Rs 15,000 by the Sewree Court. The Shah familys driver, Rajrishi Bidawat, also an accused in the case, was sent to police custody till Tuesday by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (Sewree court) S P Bhosale. This comes a day after the same court remanded Rajesh Shah in a 14-day judicial custody in the BMW hit-and-run case, in which his son is also an accused and currently absconding. The Sena leaders son, Mihir Shah (24), was allegedly driving the BMW car which fatally knocked down a woman, Kaveri Nakhwa (45), and injured her husband Pradeep while the couple was on their two-wheeler in Mumbais Worli area on Sunday morning, police said. Rajesh Shah, who owns the car, and Bidawat, who was in the luxury vehicle at the time of the accident, were arrested on Sunday for allegedly helping Mihir escape after the crash, and they were produced before the court on Monday. The police have booked all three under a range of charges, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder. Police Forms 6 Teams To Find Main Accused The politicians son Mihir Shah was still absconding and the police formed six teams to arrest him. A Look Out Circular (LOC) has also been put out against Mihir Shah to prevent him from fleeing the country. The deceased Kaveri Nakhwa was going with her husband Pradip on the arterial Annie Besant Road in Worli when the luxury cars driver lost control of the vehicle and crashed it into the couples two-wheeler around 5.30 am on Sunday. After the accident, the accused fled towards the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. Mihir Shah left the car and his driver Bidawat, who was sitting next to him, near Kala Nagar in Bandra and escaped. As the monsoons hit the country providing much-needed respite from the extreme heat, the rainy season also brings forth a host of water-borne diseases like the rise of Zika virus. The cases of Zika virus have been reported from several parts of the country and the Centre has alerted states asking them to keep a constant check. People need to exercise caution and keep themselves aware about the spread of the virus and what can be done if infected. Tips to Follow if Affected by Zika Virus It is important to not panic and seek medical attention immediately at the right time. Unnecessary delays can cause complications. One should not self-medicate any illness and undertake all the relevant measures to stay protected and safe. Dos and donts People detected with the virus must should stay indoors, take rest as much as possible and drink plenty of fluids. Pregnant women should not travel, especially to infected areas. The only way to prevent infection from the Zika virus is to reduce the risk of being bitten by a mosquito. People should sure that all pots and buckets around them are emptied so that mosquitoes cannot breed in such stagnant water. Precautions To Undertake Make sure doors and windows are closed, especially if you live in an area where mosquitoes are prevalent. Wear full-sleeved clothes, especially when going outdoors and for children who go out to play.Apply mosquito/ insect repellents Try to avoid outside food as much as possible and consume fresh homemade food. Ensure your home and indoor spaces are well ventilated. Avoid touching your nose and mouth with your hand, especially after coming from outside. Try to avoid visiting crowded places especially if you have a weak immune system. Always maintain basic hygiene and wash your hands as frequently as possible. First Death in Karnataka After Man Tests Positive of Zika Virus Few days ago, a 74-year-old man in Karnatakas Shivamogga district died after being tested positive for Zika virus. The doctors however are yet to ascertain whether his death was directly caused by the virus as the patient had comorbidities. As per media reports, the patient was admitted to a private hospital on June 18 and after testing his blood and urine samples, the hospital referred the results to McGann Hospital. Experts at the hospital went through the samples and forwarded them to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Bengaluru for a final report. The NIV report confirmed that the patient was infected with Zika virus on June 21 and since then, he was under treatment. Rise in Cases Among Pregnant Women The resurgence of Zika virus has sparked concern among residents in Pune after six new cases were reported in the district. Health officials confirmed that among the reported cases, two were pregnant women, which further intensified worries about potential complications. One of the affected, a 28-year-old woman from Erandwane, tested positive on Friday, June 28, with another 12-week pregnant woman also confirmed infected on Monday, July 1. Fortunately, both women are currently asymptomatic. States have been requested to instruct the health facilities in the affected areas or those catering to cases from affected areas to screen pregnant women for Zika, monitor the growth of the fetus of expecting mothers who have tested positive for the infection and act as per Central government guidelines. KERALA LOTTERY WIN WIN W-777 RESULT ON MONDAY, JULY 8, LIVE UPDATES: The Kerala State Lottery Department has announced the results of the Win-Win W-777 lucky draw for Monday, July 8. Check the Full List of Winning Numbers below. ALSO READ: Kerala Lottery Result Today LIVE: Akshaya AK-660 WINNERS for July 14, 2024 (DECLARED); Heres Full List! FULL LIST OF WINNING NUMBERS FOR WIN WIN W-777 WINNING NUMBERS FOR CONSOLATION PRIZE WORTH RS 8,000 ARE WN 918331 WO 918331 WP 918331 WR 918331 WS 918331 WU 918331 WV 918331 WW 918331 WX 918331 WY 918331 WZ 918331 WINNING NUMBER FOR 1ST PRIZE WORTH RS 75 LAKH IS WT 918331 (KAYAMKULAM) Agent Name: AJITH V S Agency No.: A 5301 WINNING NUMBER FOR 2ND PRIZE WORTH RS 5 LAKH IS WY 380898 (MALAPPURAM) WINNING NUMBER FOR 3RD PRIZE WORTH RS 1 LAKH ARE WN 199611 (KOTTAYAM) WO 654546 (CHITTUR) WP 464400 (ERNAKULAM) WR 587425 (WAYANADU) WS 508562 (IRINJALAKUDA) WT 773632 (ATTINGAL) WU 256232 (ERNAKULAM) WV 138587 (ERNAKULAM) WW 527796 (KARUNAGAPALLY) WX 859895 (ADIMALY) WY 474941 (ALAPPUZHA) WZ 960233 (KOTTAYAM) WINNING NUMBERS FOR 4TH PRIZE WORTH RS 5,000 ARE 0112 0847 1177 1276 1379 2437 3698 4382 5094 5212 6153 6871 7418 7559 7655 8122 8284 8733 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 5TH PRIZE WORTH RS 2,000 ARE 0268 1882 2202 3281 5828 6072 6286 6447 9717 9850 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 6TH PRIZE WORTH RS 1,000 ARE 0556 0628 2355 2687 3013 3880 4197 4469 5817 7217 8449 8628 9227 9286 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 7TH PRIZE WORTH RS 500 ARE 0008 0164 0220 0275 0361 0564 0818 0996 1337 1429 1434 1439 1520 1665 1735 1829 2061 2184 2312 2507 2660 2833 2955 3107 3117 3311 3421 3472 3538 3576 3689 3765 3800 3936 3973 4019 4052 4102 4391 4394 4551 4565 4578 4851 5093 5242 5354 5491 5510 5587 5605 5673 5757 5963 6328 6346 6350 6413 6546 6817 6839 6884 6920 7018 7108 7120 7446 7480 7753 7820 8199 8311 8411 8415 8533 8669 8874 9139 9215 9364 9427 9623 WINNING NUMBERS FOR 8TH PRIZE WORTH RS 100 ARE 0037 0109 0428 0547 0551 0856 1013 1073 1310 1317 1378 1554 1630 1643 1661 1800 1912 2045 2109 2115 2130 2216 2433 2469 2487 2537 2655 2688 2784 2813 2876 2938 3015 3062 3111 3180 3182 3255 3320 3348 3361 3379 3479 3484 3534 3588 3784 3837 3851 3885 4034 4075 4081 4275 4351 4370 4543 4788 4832 4990 5045 5086 5091 5328 5434 5485 5532 5540 5601 5625 5767 5824 5855 5958 5995 5996 6014 6077 6126 6214 6290 6308 6309 6339 6367 6424 6464 6545 6584 6601 6709 6739 6876 6923 7009 7082 7128 7162 7270 7317 7411 7503 7609 7676 7775 7817 7830 7865 7886 7957 8003 8189 8222 8410 8543 8686 8921 9405 9415 9429 9452 9487 9744 9835 9901 9997 WIN WIN W-776 LOTTERY: PRIZE STRUCTURE 1st Prize: Rs 75 Lakh 2nd Prize: Rs. 5 Lakh 3rd Prize: Rs. 1 Lakh 4th Prize: Rs. 5,000 5th Prize: Rs. 2,000 6th Prize: Rs. 1,000 7th Prize: Rs. 500 Consolation Prize: Rs. 8,000 HOW TO CHECK THE WIN-WIN W- 777 RESULTS? To view the WIN-WIN W-777 lottery results, players can visit the Kerala Lottery Departments official website i.e., www.keralalottery.info. You can also verify the results by visiting the Kerala Government Gazette office. Participants can also connect with the Kerala Lottery Departments official channel for additional details. HOW TO CLAIM YOUR PRIZE MONEY? To check the status of their ticket number, players can compare their lottery numbers with the winning numbers published in the Kerala Government Gazette. A match indicates a win. The winner should claim their prize at the Kerala Lottery head office in Thiruvananthapuram within 30 days of the results being announced. To complete the verification process, winners must present their winning ticket and a valid form of identification. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED TO CLAIM PRIZE MONEY? Be sure to make a photocopy of the winning ticket and self-attest both sides. Two passport-sized photos verified by a Gazette officer. A copy of the PAN card with the participants signature. Fill out the online award money receipt form and affix a revenue stamp before submitting it. Identity documents such as PAN, Aadhaar, voter ID, and ration cards. HOW TO DOWNLOAD A PDF WITH A FULL LIST OF WINNING NUMBERS? Visit the website of the Kerala Lottery Department: www.keralalotteries.info or keralalotteryresult.net. Click on the Win-Win W-777 Result link. Proceed to view the complete list of the winning numbers. Find and click the download link on the webpage. Click to obtain the W-777 lottery results in PDF format. KERALA LOTTERY: WEEKLY DRAW MONDAY: Win Win First prize Rs 75 lakh TUESDAY: Sthree Sakthi First prize Rs 75 lakh WEDNESDAY: Fifty Fifty First prize Rs 1 crore THURSDAY: Karunya Plus First prize Rs 80 lakh FRIDAY: Nirmal First prize Rs 70 lakh SATURDAY: Karunya First prize Rs 80 lakh SUNDAY: Akshaya First prize Rs 70 lakh KERALA BUMPER LOTTERIES January: Xmas New Year Lottery March: Summer Bumper Lottery May: Vishu Bumper Lottery July: Monsoon Bumper Lottery September: Thiruvonam Bumper Lottery November: Pooja Bumper Lottery. KERALA MONSOON BUMPER BR-98 DRAW ON JULY 31; FIRST PRIZE RS 10 CRORE! Ticket Price: Rs 250 Lucky Draw on 31 July 2024 First Prize: Rs 10 crore Second Prize: Rs 1 crore (five winners) Third Prize: Rs 10 lakh (five winners) The Kerala State Lottery Department will conduct the Monsoon Bumper BR-98 draw on July 31 at 2 PM. You can win up to Rs 10 crore in rewards with a ticket costing Rs 250. Five winners in this draw will share the second prize of Rs 10 lakh, and another five winners will share the third prize of Rs 5 lakh. Tickets for the following five seriesMB, MC, MD, ME, and MAare available for purchase at any state-approved venue. Kerala Monsoon Bumper BR-98 Lottery Prize Structure On a sunny Friday afternoon a few weeks ago, a local guide named Haseena took the lead to show us around an abandoned village situated by the banks of the Arabian Gulf. At first, you would see empty houses, left in ruins, sitting there soaking in the sun while the sea kissed its deserted shores. Youd expect an eerie feeling to run past you. But that afternoon, the village felt different, it felt like it was ready to tell us the tale of Al Jazeera Al Hamra. Popularly known as the abandoned village resting between the red mountains and the sea, Al Jazeera Al Hamra has an incorrect reputation of being a ghost town. On the contrary, our guide explained, that the village was abandoned in the late 1960s due to rapid changes in the pearl harvesting law in the country. But how did the pearl harvest bring about such a drastic change in a village? Lets take you on a quick trip down Al Jazeera Al Hamras history. What is Al Jazeera Al Hamra? Al Jazeera Al Hamra was a thriving village until the 1960s. Owing to the proximity to the sea, the village predominantly housed deep divers who would go deep into the sea to hunt for the best pearls. The village was called Al Jazeera Al Hamra after a local tribe called Zaab that occupied the village. The village was home to pearl merchants, sea captains, fishermen, and their families. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village (@aljazeeraalhamra) Our guide, during the tour, revealed that the sizes of the houses revealed the status of a pearl harvester. The bigger the house, the more popular the pearl harvester. She also informed us that while the village predominantly housed divers, there was one person who wasnt a part of the diver community but was a trader. Owning the biggest house in the village, the merchant would help fishers and pearl harvesters get a good deal on their finds. British Connection with Al Jazeera Al Hamra: The village played a vital role when the Britishers invaded the country in the 1800s. The Englishmen tried to march into the country via the Gulf Sea. They attacked the ports but the village stood as a strong barrier between the country and the Brits during the war. Why did the fishermen, and pearl harvesters vacate the Al Jazeera Al Hamra? Following the discovery of oil in Arab countries, pearl merchants and divers began to lose their livelihoods. As a result, in the years between 1968 and 1971, the villagers began to migrate out of Al Jazeera Al Hamra. Soon, all that was left of the village were empty houses. Why Should You Visit Al Jazeera Al Hamra? Al Jazeera Al Hamra houses the remarkable history of the Northern regions of the United Arab Emirates. The deserted village has preserved the architecture of the centuries-old homes, that feature sun-dried corals, fossilised beach rock, date palm trunks, layers of seashells for drainage, and rooms that could give the rental apartments in Mumbai a run for their money, and mosque, a portion of which dates back to the 1500s. At the time of reporting, the Al Jazeera Al Hamra village is on the UNESCO World Heritage Cultural tentative list. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Al Jazeera Al Hamra Heritage Village (@aljazeeraalhamra) Best Time To Visit: The best time to visit the Al Jazeera Al Hamra is between October and April. They are open from Tuesday to Sunday, from 9:00AM 5:00PM. American actor Kevin Bacon, known for films like Footloose, The Following and more, has been grabbing a lot of limelight for his latest work. The actor is being praised for his role in director Ti Wests latest slasher horror film, MaXXXine. It is reportedly the final film in the trilogy. In the film, Bacon plays a private detective named John Labat while his co-star Mia Goth returns to her role as Maxine Minx. The actor recently opened up about how he had prepared himself for his role in the film. He shared that he had worked with the films director on ideas for his character, noting that he likes taking big swings. Bacon added that Ti West had given him the liberty to develop his character. In a recent interview with Vanity Fair, The Sleepers actor spilt some beans regarding his collaboration with West. He said West had asked him to go as far as possible, with his character of John Babat, assuring him that if they went too far with the look, dialect, or performance, he would help tone it down. Ti West is the type of person and director who is confident enough to be comfortable collaborating, so we started banging around some ideas, Bacon said while reflecting on the process and how he prepared. The director, in an interview with the British Film Institute, had discussed the casting process of Kevin Bacon in MaXXXine. West said that he had been an admirer of Bacons acting for a long time and the actor too had been a fan of his film. West added that before working together, the duo had never met. West, also known for The Pearl, further said Bacon had responded right away, and we got on the phone and really hit it off, as soon as he had sent the script of the film to the actor. Bacon was interested in taking on a role that was different from what he typically did, something a little more outside the box which allowed him to push his acting abilities further. He was excited about the opportunity because he had never played a private eye, added West. MaXXXine was released in the theatres on July 3. The film revolves around Maxine Minx(Mia Goth), a budding actress and adult film star in 1980s Hollywood, who finally gets her big break. However, she has a disturbing past and something threatens to reveal it to the world. After back-to-back successes, Kriti Sanon adds yet another feather to her cap by being the first Indian actress to be at F1 in Silverstone. She took to her social media and shared a video from the event, today. While expressing her excitement about being at the F1 for the first time, she also wished luck to Max and Checo. Sharing the photos, she wrote, WHAT A DAY! WHAT AN EXPERIENCE!! My first race ever, that too at the home of F1, Silverstone! And what a race!!! Thank you @pepejeansindia @pepejeans for these unforgettable memories! @f1. With an exciting array of projects, Kriti Sanon is surely gonna light screens on fire ahead her next onscreen performance will be Do Patti her maiden production house project! Kriti Sanon has had a prolific career, balancing commercial blockbusters with meaningful cinema. However, the one film she holds close to her heart is Mimi, a project that not only won audiences hearts but also earned her the prestigious National Award for her brilliant acting prowess. Reflecting on her journey post Mimi, Kriti recently opened up about how the film was a turning point in her career and personal growth. In a recent interview, Kriti shared her thoughts on how Mimi has impacted her life. There are some films that kind of open you up. A sort of release happens and, suddenly, you discover a little more about yourself. I think that happened with Mimi, she revealed. Kriti further elaborated on her experience, saying, Whenever you imagine a trailer of your life, you know that particular shot that has to be there. It was one of those moments. That film was one I was extremely passionate about. It gave me a lot to do as an actor and the satisfaction that I felt after performing was on another level altogether. While Kritis acting talent continue to shine, she is also making significant strides as a creative force in Bollywood. This year, she is set to turn producer with Do Patti, a project that promises to push the boundaries of storytelling and creativity. With veteran actress Kajol on board and under her production house Blue Butterfly Films, Kriti is poised to make a substantial impact on the industry as a producer. Sonakshi Sinhas husband, Zaheer Iqbal, recently shared a heartwarming monochrome photo of the couple, an unseen picture, weeks after their wedding. In the caption, he recalled a moment from 2017, and wrote that he knew right then it was meant to be forever. Sonakshi, who had previously closed her Instagram comments to avoid trolling due to their interfaith marriage, has now reopened the comments section. Sharing the photo, Zaheer wrote in the caption, This day This moment This feeling I knew its FOREVER #2017. Taking to the comments section, Sonakshi wrote, My jaan!!! Still singing to each other may it never stop. Sonakshi Sinha recently married her long-time boyfriend, Zaheer Iqbal, and has moved into a new luxury apartment in Bandra, Mumbai. Meanwhile, two weeks after the wedding, she posted new photos from the intimate celebrations, showing her hugging her mother, Poonam Sinha, and father, veteran actor Shatrughan Sinha, on Sunday afternoon. In the caption, she wrote that she is missing her parents a lot today and recalled how emotional her mother became upon realising that her daughter would be moving out after marriage. Sonakshi also reminded herself that it is just a 25-minute drive from her new home in Bandra to her familys house in Juhu. After dating for several years, Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal are finally married. The lovebirds tied the knot in an intimate ceremony in the presence of their close friends and family. The first photos from their wedding, have instantly became viral on the internet. But Sonakshi was quick to disable comments on the special post, in all likelihood, to avoid negativity and unnecessary trolling. Days after tying the knot, Sonakshi and Zaheer soaked up the romance on their honeymoon. Last week, Sonakshi shared a couple of dreamy photos on her Instagram stories. One photo showed the newlyweds taking a sweet selfie in a pool, basking in the sunset. In another photo, Sonakshi was sitting on the pools edge with Zaheer holding her. South Korean actor Song Joong Ki is expecting his second child with his wife, Katy Louise Saunders. The actor confirmed the good news through his agency, HighZium Studio. Song Joong Ki welcomed his first child, a son, in June 2023. This time around, the Vincenzo star has refrained from sharing the gender of his second baby and his wifes due date. Song Joong Ki was previously married to Song Hye Kyo. In a statement to Star News, Song Joong Kis agency said, Song Joong-ki and his wife are pregnant with their second child. It is difficult to confirm the timing of birth or the gender of the child as these are private matters. The news has left fans celebrating. Many took to X and send their love to the actor. Song Joong Ki is extremely private about his personal life. However, when his first child was born last year, the actor shared a rare glimpse of the little one along with a note to fans. I finally met my baby here in Rome, my wifes hometown. He is a healthy son. I am so grateful that both the baby and mom are healthy and happy, and I am taking care of my family very happily, he said, when he welcomed his child. I think this is the most precious gift that has come to my wife and I, whose biggest dream has been to have a happy family for the rest of our lives. I think this good day has come thanks to the support of many people. Thank you, he added. The actor met former British actress Katy Louise Saunders years after his divorce from Song Hye Kyo and fell in love. Song Joong Ki surprised fans in January last year by announcing his wedding to Katy and revealing that they are expecting their first baby together. We naturally dreamed of creating a happy family together. We have put in much effort to keep each others promises, and we are sincerely thankful as a new life has come to us, he said at the time. Congratulations, Song Joong-ki! Almost every year Mumbai momentarily comes to a standstill during monsoon after rains disrupt the insufficiently maintained city infrastructure. Waterlogging puts traffic at a halt. Something like this happened on Monday when the city saw its highest spell of rainfall in 24 hours since 2019. Mumbais Santacruz Observatory recorded 268 mm of rainfall on Monday morning. The Andheri subway got submerged in water and was closed. Film director Vivek Agnihotri reshared a video of a clogged Andheri subway and criticised the government. He wrote, I have lived in Mumbai for 30 years. Everything sarkari fails but this subway never fails to flood. Its so stubborn that despite every governments promises to solve it, it doesnt yield. Citizens suffer, they die, but who are they anyway but mere statistics? I have lived in Mumbai for 30 years. Everything sarkari fails but this subway never fails to flood. Its so stubborn that despite every governments promises to solve it, it doesnt yield.Citizens suffer, they die, but who are they anyway but mere statistics? https://t.co/dMQe0ne5A4 Vivek Ranjan Agnihotri (@vivekagnihotri) July 8, 2024 This post prompted a discussion about whether or not Mumbai should have subways to begin with. An X user wrote, I keep saying subways are a bad idea in India. We need overpasses to avoid such situations. Keep my fingers crossed for the underground Metro coming up. I keep saying ..subways are bad idea in India.. we need overpasses to avoid such situations.. Keep my fingers crossed for the underground Metro coming up Quicksand (@Mayur_MTech) July 8, 2024 Another person commented, Sir, its an engineering problem. Subways are clogged by water. From day one Im not in favour of subways.. but flyovers. India has seasons and rainfall will clog subways for sure. No amount of water pumping can solve it. Sir.. it's engineering problem.. subways..are clogged by water..From day1 I m not in favour of subways.. but flyovers.India has seasons. And rain fall will clogged subways..for https://t.co/YGK9LLcIHm amount of water pumping can solve it. Harsha (@HarshaHalasur) July 8, 2024 A Mumbai resident shared, I have seen yearly flooding of this subway from my school days in the 70s. Frankly, unless we lift the subway by 20ft, which practically means no subway, flooding is unavoidable. I have seen yearly flooding of this subway from my school days in 70's. Frankly unless we lift the subway by 20ft ,which practically means no subway ,flooding is unavoidable. Patrakar Fakekar (@patrkarpaid) July 8, 2024 Criticising the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for poor urban planning and not preparing the city for expected monsoon, an X user wrote, Mumbai BMC is the richest municipality in Asia then why do we face such a situation every monsoon? Because of corrupt practices & non political will & most importantly people dont want their environment habitat clean as much as their houses. Mumbai BMC is most richest Municipal in Asia then why we face such situation every monsoon ?Because all Corrupt practices & non political will & most importantly People dont want their environment habitat clean as much as their houses (Homes) Prasad (@Prasad26913145) July 8, 2024 In light of Mondays downpour, all schools and colleges were instructed to remain shut. Scores of flights to and from Mumbai were also cancelled or postponed. Almost all local train lines were disrupted. A Western Railway spokesperson told the media, High capacity water pumps are being utilised to drain water away from the railway tracks to ensure a smooth commute for Mumbaikars. Neetu Kapoor is one of the most popular veteran actresses today. Her son, Rabir Kapoor is a massive superstar, especially after delivering Animal last year. While Ranbir has always made Neetu proud with his work, the sight of him keeping his first paycheck at her feet made the actress tear up. Ranbir had previously told Mashable India, My first paycheck was 250 that I got while assisting on Prem Granth. Like a good boy, I went to my mothers room and I put it on her feet. She looked at it and she started crying. It was one of those filmy moments that I performed. Neetu Kapoor is celebrating her 66th birthday with her daughter Riddhima Kapoor amid the Swiss mountains. She is currently on holiday with Riddhima, her husband and her daughter. While Neetu rang in her birthday, Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt were missing from the vacation. Last year, when the actress celebrated her birthday in Italy, Ranbir had joined the family soiree while Alia couldnt attend. This year, in a video shared by Riddhima on her Instagram story, Neetu could be seen joining in as her family sang the birthday song for her. She celebrated with a special dessert and a sparkler. Riddhima also shared a mother-daughter photo with Neetu and wrote, Just us girls enjoying our bubbly. Love and only love. Happy birthday my mommykins. Riddhima also shared a photo with Neetu and Samaira, capturing three generations of Kapoor women. Neetu Kapoor started her career as a child artist at the age of 8. During that period, she started working in films like Dus Lakh, Do Dooni Chaar and Do Kaliyan. Every film she worked in was a hit. Her song Bachche Mann Ke Sachhe also became quite popular. Her film Do Kaliyan made her popular and fame came at a very early stage in her life. Neetu made her acting comeback last year with Jugjugg Jeeyo opposite Anil Kapoor. Meanwhile, as for Ranbir Kapoor, after Sandeep Reddy Vangas smashing hit, Animal, the actor is shooting for Nitesh Tiwaris Ramayana. He will also be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Love and War with Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal. Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely, wrote the Victorian historian-aristocrat Lord Acton in a letter to an Anglican bishop nearly 140 years ago. But a more apt aphorism for our times would be power tends to isolate and absolute power isolates absolutely. A look at what is happening in the US appears to underline this truth, with President Joe Biden stubbornly refusing to see the writing on the wall, if not in the ballot box. As if his train wreck of a debate with former President and current challenger for the White House Donald Trump was not enough to convince all but the most obtuse that Biden is past his sell-by date, he has followed it up with almost equally dismal interviews with a TV channel and a couple of radio shows. He was not as zoned out in those interviews as in the debate, but he did not come across having the wherewithalmental acuityto last another four years. Even when the TV interviewer gave him openings to show he is aware of what he is up against, Biden refused to play ball. He said that short of God Almighty asking him to step aside, he would continue his re-election campaign, no matter who or how many in his party try to convince him (and his family) to step aside, on the basis of a flood of opinion polls showing he was trailing Trump by a wide margin. Is geriatric incomprehension? Or the effect of isolation? India has recently seen that opinion pollsand even exit pollscan be totally off mark, in toto. So Bidens campaign managers and family can mistrust them. But the surveys are not always wrong. In the just-concluded UK elections, opinion and exit polls were bang on target, to the extent of getting the exact Labour Party tally right. If Indias pollsters were suffering from the same disconnect that affects politicians, their western counterparts clearly are not that isolated. But Biden has dispelled all talk of contrary opinion polls and plummeting approval ratings as the surveys by his campaign apparently do not corroborate what all other polls have been showing for the past year. But if the media and the Democratic Party managers do believe the polls, why have they taken so long to sound the alarm? Did they believe that Trump would be stymied by convictions, leaving the field open even for a much-diminished Biden to win? With apologies to Robert Burns, did their best laid plans go awry because six judges of the US Supreme Court threw an unexpected legal curve ball by defining Presidential immunity? Is that why both the US media and the Democratic Party have suddenly discovered Bidens acuity issues only now? The timing certainly points to that, which should make the American public wary henceforth of believing anything else they sayor do not, as the case may be. Even for the lay American voter, including the ones who cannot stand Trump, Biden does not seem to be all there. The innocuous questions asked in the ABC interview had stings in their tails that Biden missed, like the one asking if he would submit to a mental acuity test by an independent panel and make the results public. By agreeing, he would admit earlier doctors were not reliable; by not agreeing he would risk voters thinking he would fail such a test. Biden obviously did not agree to a test, thereby harking back to the damaging opinion in the report by Robert Hur, the special prosecutor who investigated whether Biden had kept official documents in his private home in Delaware after he had demitted office as Vice President. Hur concluded in his report made public in February that Biden could not be tried as he was a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with poor memory. Biden had ignored the report. Hur had uncovered evidence that Biden had wilfully retained and disclosed classified materials after his vice-presidency when he was a private citizen but felt it would be difficult to convince a jury that they should convict himby then a former president well into his Eightiesof a serious felony that requires a mental state of wilfulness. As Biden only announced his re-election bid two months after the report, Hur obviously presumed he would retire. After that report, and certainly after Biden threw his hat in the ring again, some Democrats showed concern about his fitness, mental and physical, especially considering incidents of him tripping, falling off a bicycle, fumbling and freezing. But that fell on deaf earsincluding in the US media which was focussed only on Trumps trials and travails for months. That points to the malaise of isolation and deafness spreading among the four pillars of democracy in the US. The US media is now defending itself by indicating the Biden camp was not open to probes. But as one media oldtimer pointed out, does the press need permission to investigate anyone? Biden rarely meets the media; only Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan held fewer press meets. In his first two years Biden had only 54 press interactions, Trump had 202 and Barack Obama had 275. Why did the media fall in with this arrangement? To save him his blushes? And why did the Democratic Party not mull a Plan B long before Bidens debacle on TV? Why are they scrambling to convene meetings to identify alternatives now? Some have even been suddenly talking up Kamala Harris as a worthy stand-in, while others are pushing for turning the Democratic National Convention in August into a compressed primary to decide on Who Else But Biden. Why should voters accept a new candidate just three months before Voting Day? That Biden and his family are living in a bubble, unable or unwilling to see his frailty is obvious. It is not the first time that the White House has acted as a sound-proof room. They also seem unaware that the internet is rife with videos of his discernible decline: Biden 2019 is shockingly different from Biden 2024. In the age of information, it is hard to isolate the people from the truth about a politician, but politicians can still become isolated from the people, it seems. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was expected to visit Russia in 2024 for the annual summit, a practice that got interrupted by Covid-19 and the Ukraine conflict. The annual summits have been a feature of India-Russia ties since the year 2000 when Putin assumed power. If in 2024, too, the practice of annual summits had not been resumed, it would have sent a political signal that the two countries were indeed drifting apart. It would have given rise to speculation that India might be yielding to Western pressure to reduce the visibility of its ties with Russia at the highest level, or that India was conveying its own concerns about the strengthening of Russia-China strategic ties which had cast doubt in its mind on Russias reliability as a special and privileged strategic partner, now that after the Galwan episode Indias ties with China have foundered, with the armed forces of the two countries confronting each other on the border in Ladakh. The question has arisen whether Russias growing dependence on China would leave it open to pressure from the latter to withhold arms supplies and spares to India in the event of a wider India-China conflict in the future. Some commentators in India have argued that Russia is a declining power with an uncertain future and that India should therefore strengthen its ties with the West where its true interests lie in terms of economic growth, foreign investment, access to advanced technologies, defence modernisation, democracy links, educational opportunities, diasporic connections, and so on. In this view, India should give up fence-sitting and choose sides more openly. Our media and think tanks generally promote this thinking. Our business community, which is obviously much more linked to the West than to Russia, is not active enough in promoting stronger economic ties with Russia. The reality is that Russia is important to us bilaterally, regionally and internationally. It has stood by us since the mid-1950s when we were under great pressure by the West politically and economically, and indeed, strategically. It provided us with real defence muscle, participated in laying the foundations of our heavy industry, and engaged in space and nuclear cooperation with us. Russia has shared sensitive technologies with us, unlike the West which has imposed technology denial sanctions on us for decades. Russia has never sanctioned us, unlike the Western countries. Russia is the only country which is collaborating with us currently in setting up nuclear power plants. Expanding our nuclear power sector is becoming more pressing in light of climate change issues. Cooperation in the area of nuclear modular reactors could well be considered. Russia, even after the collapse of the Soviet Union, remains the worlds biggest country, with enormous natural resources, self-sufficient in hydrocarbons and food, a formidable nuclear power with powerful delivery systems, a permanent member of the Security Council, with a great tradition of diplomacy, and so on. How many countries in the world have such assets? Should we distance ourselves from such a country? What is our gain in doing that? Russia may have been weakened after the collapse of the Soviet Union, but it still is a formidable international player. As part of broadening the base of our diplomacy to increase our global profile and influence, we are reaching out to a whole host of countries which individually do not play any significant international role, do not possess an array of resources, are not a source of technologies or major investments. What would be the logic then to draw away from Russia? It is wrong to describe our ties with Russia as legacy ties. The sense in which this word is used is equivocal. In reality, these ties continue to serve our interests in many important ways. Russia remains our biggest defence partner even as we diversify. (In fact, even in Soviet times, we procured major defence items from the West, excluding the US, and so diversity in defence supplies is not a new policy). With the end of the Cold War, geopolitical changes, a major reversal of US policies on India, the emergence of Israel as a defence partner, French readiness to engage us in sensitive defence cooperation, many platforms or niche technologies that Russia cannot supply, diversification has been a pragmatic process. In any case, over-dependence in any context is not a good option. PM Modis Moscow visit will be an occasion to take stock of our existing and future defence cooperation in the context of Russias preoccupation with the proxy war in Ukraine. Lack of contiguity, inadequate connectivity, transportation handicaps, lack of knowledge of each others markets and even relative lack of interest, institutional handicaps, and the Westward orientation of Russian business until now explain why trade between the two countries has been limited. Today, with Russia under financial sanctions, and its trade ties with the West largely collapsing, including oil and gas trade, Russia has turned eastwards, towards China in a major way but also towards India. Russia has now become the biggest supplier of oil to India and its fertiliser exports to India have grown manifold. Indian exports to Russia have also registered some increase. These positive gains have to be consolidated. Payment issues have to be addressed because of the Wests financial sanctions. Connectivity has to be improved with a fuller operation of the International North-South Transport Corridor. These issues will obviously be on the agenda of Putin-Modi talks. In the regional context, India and Russia have reason to coordinate thinking and approaches to Afghanistan under the Taliban. Russia is opening up more to the Taliban than India. As part of consolidating countries in this region, including Pakistan, in formats that would weaken US influence, Russias approach may not be identical to ours, especially with regard to Pakistan. In a broader geopolitical context, India and Russia need to harmonise thinking on BRICS expansion. Too large an expansion may give the impression of fostering multipolarity but it can risk making the grouping ineffectual. India and Russia support multipolarity, but Russias objectives are more directly anti-US than those of India. Russia is locked in a very major confrontation with the US, whereas Indias ties with the US have greatly improved. But India too wants a dilution of the Wests hegemony, as without it the reform of international institutions and India and other non-Western powers playing a greater role in global governance will not be possible. India also has to manage the Russia-India-China triangle which is now tilted against India with the phenomenal increase in Chinas power, especially economic, and the Russia-China so-called no limits partnership. This partnership is not directed at India but India has to take cognisance of it. Russia, in a bow to China, is against the Indo-Pacific concept and the Quad, which it sees as bloc politics pursued by the US. India, with Chinas territorial expansionism and its policies in our neighbourhood in mind, calls Quad a public good and is invested in the Indo-Pacific concept. These different perceptions of India and Russia are part of the geopolitical conflicts and power shifts that are occurring and are not fundamental to their ties. If India would have a need for strategic room vis-a-vis the US in preserving its traditional ties with Russia, the same consideration would give it similar room vis-a-vis China too. One can assume that Russia would also not want to become over-dependent on China, it would be concerned about Chinas ambitions to form a G2 with the US at some stage, and in this context, Russia would need India as the biggest Asian power after China and one that is on a growth path as a balancing partner. Kanwal Sibal is a former Indian Foreign Secretary. He was Indias Ambassador to Turkey, Egypt, France and Russia. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. The persistent threats by high-ranking Pakistani officials and ministers to target terrorist groups inside Afghanistan have raised the spectre of further destabilisation in the region. For a country that has struggled to contain the menace of terrorism within its borders, Pakistans military-dominated establishment often obfuscates its shortcomings by blaming the Afghan Taliban and accusing it of providing sanctuary to terrorist groups targeting Pakistan. But this convenient excuse to make Afghanistan a scapegoat has failed to address the root causes of Pakistans internal security woes. In fact, these threats mark a misdirected escalation in Islamabads approach to dealing with terrorism. Such actions have further strained the already fragile relations between Islamabad and Kabul. With an exponential surge in terrorist violence in the country, Pakistans federal government, under pressure from China, whose five nationals were killed in one such incident on March 26, announced its latest counterterrorism operation, Azm-i-Istehkam (Strong Resolve for Stability) on June 22. A press release from Pakistans Prime Ministers Office (PMO), affirmed that this reinvigorated and re-energised military campaign will integrate and synergise multiple lines of effort to combat the menaces of extremism and terrorism in a comprehensive and decisive manner. This was followed by Defence Minister Khwaja Asifs declaration of June 27 emphasising in no uncertain terms that Islamabad would not hesitate targeting terrorist groups inside Afghanistan as part of this counterterrorism push. Operation Azm-i-Istehkam is the latest in a series of military campaigns by the Pakistani state to root out terrorism from the country. In 2014, Pakistan launched its first large-scale counterterrorism operation, Zarb-e-Azb, or Sword of Prophet Muhammad, against various extremist groups such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) in its North Waziristan region. While it displaced nearly a million people and led to hundreds of civilian deaths, Pakistan claimed to have succeeded in dismantling the terror ecosystem and eliminating over 3,500 terrorists. Despite these claims, the operation failed to address the root causes of extremism in the country, allowing the TTP and other groups to regain strength swiftly and engage in anti-state violence. Following Zarb-e-Azb, the Pakistan Army initiated Operation Radd-ul-Fasaad, or Rejection of Strife, to consolidate its gains. However, the recurrent terrorist attacks indicated that the campaign did little to dismantle the terror ecosystem in the country, allowing the terrorists to operate with relative impunity. The problem with these operations has been their unilateral militaristic approaches to the issues that demand multipronged engagement, something Pakistani authorities seem unwilling to adopt. The Pakistani governments strategy took a more complex turn in August 2021, when it supported the Afghan Taliban in ousting the Republican Government of Afghanistan to establish an Islamic Emirate. The belief was that a friendly regime in Kabul would help contain terrorism away from Pakistans borders while providing it with a strategic depth to counter regional powers like India and Iran. This expectation, however, proved to be very short-lived and highly delusional as it did not bring any security dividend to Pakistan. Instead, it appears to have further contributed to Pakistans internal security vows. The Afghan Taliban, sharing ideological ties with the TTP, have little incentive to act against their ideological brothers and credible allies who had fought alongside them against American forces. As such, it has disregarded Islamabads calls for undertaking military action against TTP, especially after the breakdown of a ceasefire between the Pakistan Army and TTP in November 2022. Ever since, Pakistan has witnessed an exponential surge in terrorist attacks resulting in over 2300 deaths of Pakistani security forces, as claimed by the countrys federal government. Ever since, Pakistan has repeatedly blamed the Afghan Taliban for providing safe sanctuary to TTP militants, asserting that these groups have consistently used Afghan territory to launch terror attacks inside Pakistani territory, accusations that Kabul has repeatedly denied. Interestingly, the Afghan Taliban has accused Pakistans spy agency, Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), of patronising Islamic State Khorasan (ISK), a group which has emerged as the biggest security challenge for the Afghan government and conducted dozens of terrorist attacks inside Afghanistan. With an unprecedented surge in terrorist attacks in March 2024 wherein seven Pakistani soldiers were killed, including a Lieutenant Colonel and a Captain rank officer, Islamabad went on to conduct cross-border air strikes inside Afghanistan on March 18, 2024, demonstrating the level of distrust between Kabul and Islamabad. The Pakistan authorities claimed to have killed eight terrorists in the Paktika and Khost provinces along the Pakistan border in its air strikes. Afghan Taliban condemned the air strikes as an outright violation of Afghani territory, warning Islamabad that such transgressions could lead to dire consequences which will not be in control of Pakistan, even as it mobilised its forces along the Durand Line. Kabul has consistently denied its support for the Pakistani Taliban. It has reasoned that instead of blaming Afghanistan for its failure to control violent incidents, it would better serve Islamabad to look inward and address its internal fissures. As such, Pakistans threats to repeat such actions not only risk violating international norms but could also ignite a broader conflict in an already volatile region. The potential for cross-border counterterrorism operations raises several critical questions. First and foremost, can Pakistan achieve its security objectives without further destabilising the region? While targeting militant groups in Afghanistan may yield short-term gains, it will provoke retaliatory attacks and deepen the cycle of violence as has been demonstrated by its earlier military campaigns. It seems that Pakistani authorities in their bid to appease China, at whose behest Operation Azm-i-Istehkam is being conducted, are unwilling to address the root cause of instability in the country. Moreover, the projection of external threat is an attempt to cover up the failure of Pakistani security forces which have for years engaged in counter-terrorism measures and yet not succeeded in ending this menace from the country. It is highly unlikely that the Afghan government will view any such incursions and Islamabads constant badgering with kindness amidst its own security predicaments. Therefore, as Pakistan initiates yet another military campaign, it should remember that any cross-border misadventure in Afghanistan is fraught with risks that could further destabilize an already fragile region. Shehbaz Sharifs government would do Pakistan a favour by refraining from such hawkish measures. Pakistan should realise that the path to the countrys lasting security and stability lies not in military transgressions but in holistically addressing the root cause of terrorism in the country which has Islamic radicalisation at the core. Pakistan must tread carefully as it is getting embroiled in a conflict that it cannot control. As a result, regional stability and security would also suffer a great deal as collateral damage. 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 those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views. In the aftermath of the Lok Sabha elections in Delhi, internal conflict in the Congress has come to light. A report submitted by a fact-finding committee to the Congress President reveals that the partys candidates hold the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) responsible for their electoral defeat. Taking note of these findings, the Congress has decided not to pursue an alliance with the AAP for the upcoming Delhi and Haryana assembly elections. ALSO READ | No Scope For Congress-AAP Alliance In Delhi & Haryana, But INDIA Bloc To Fight Together In Jharkhand, Maharashtra Three Congress candidates Udit Raj, JP Aggarwal, and Kanhaiya Kumar asserted that the AAP did not support their campaigns or facilitate vote transfers in their favour. These candidates conveyed to the committee that they had anticipated the AAPs backing would be crucial to securing their victory. Congress leader Udit Raj said, The AAP declared their candidates in February and started campaigning. We announced our candidates by March. Despite AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal telling the party workers to campaign for us, they didnt. I think they were of the opinion that immediately after the Lok Sabha election, there is Delhi assembly election in less than 10 months. Asking for votes for the Congress will bring down their chances in the Delhi assembly elections. Not just the AAP, even some local leaders within the Congress were against their own candidate. They maligned my image, which made me lose a seat which I had a chance to win." THE RIFT WITHIN CONGRESS CAMP However, the committees observations suggest a deeper issue in the Congress camp. It was noted that the candidates reliance on the AAPs support alienated the Congress cadre. Party workers were reportedly displeased with the expectation that the AAP would ensure their success, leading to lack of enthusiasm and engagement in the campaign efforts. This dissatisfaction among Congress workers appears to have significantly impacted the partys performance in the elections. The over-dependence on the AAPs support not only failed to yield the desired results, but also caused rifts within the partys own ranks, further diminishing their chances at the polls. ASSEMBLY POLL POSITION The strategic decision for Delhi and Haryana assembly elections aims to prevent similar internal conflicts and looks to strengthen the partys campaign efforts. By choosing to go solo, the Congress hopes to revitalise its grassroots support and re-engage its cadre, ensuring that the partys campaign is driven by its own resources and efforts rather than relying on external alliances. ALSO READ | We Are Not In Permanent Marriage: Arvind Kejriwal On Alliance With Congress As the assembly elections approach, the Congresss decision to go it alone will be a critical test of its ability to recover from the Lok Sabha debacle and reassert itself as a significant political force in Delhi and Haryana. The coming months will reveal whether this strategy pays off and how it reshapes the political landscape in these regions. The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday allowed the Nationalist Congress Party Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) to accept voluntary contributions from public in view of the upcoming Maharashtra assembly elections. The party had requested the Commission to issue a communication/certificate recording the status of the party for the purpose of accepting voluntary contributions. The ECI, in its communication on July 8, has authorised the party to accept any amount of contribution voluntarily offered to it by any person or company other than a government company. The ECI hereby authorises, on an interim basis, Nationalist Congress Party- Sharadchandra Pawar to accept any amount of contribution voluntarily offered to it by any person or company other than a Government companyFurther, this authorization is incumbent upon the Nationalist Congress Party- Sharadchandra Pawar to be in compliance with the conditions stated in Section 29 B and. Section 29 C of Representation of People Act, 1951 which governs the contribution to all political parties, the letter added. All political parties have to disclose the contributions they received above Rs 20,000 in a financial year to the poll body. The communication was issued after an eight-member delegation of the NCP-SP party led by their working President Supriya Sule met the Commission on Monday at Nirvachan Sadan. The poll body also said that this authorisation to the party/group to accept contribution for ensuring elections would remain applicable in the period till the final disposal of the petition SLP (C) 4248 of 2024 in the Supreme Court and would, thereafter, be dealt accordingly. In February, ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, the poll body announced the Ajit Pawar faction as the real NCP, while asking the partys founder Sharad Pawar to look for a new name for his outfit ahead of the Rajya Sabha polls in Maharashtra. The other faction then came up with the name NCP-SP. However, Sharad Pawar challenged the ECIs decision to grant the official clock symbol of the NCP to Ajit Pawars group. The matter is still sub-judice. As in its last order, in March, the Ajit Pawar faction was asked by the court to declare in newspapers that the allocation of clock symbol is sub-judice before the apex court. The assembly polls in Maharashtra are scheduled to be held in October-November this year. In the last fortnight, the Congress party has tried to set two political narratives. One, that 293 seats for the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is a moral defeat for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) which fell to 240 seats. Two, Rahul Gandhi said that the BJPs loss in Faizabad, under which Ayodhya falls, was the defeat of the Ram Janmabhoomi movement. Both these arguments seem rather exaggerated. Lets start with the second narrative first. The BJP lost the Faizabad Lok Sabha seat by a margin of around 55,000 votes, as the partys two-time MP Lallu Singh lost to Samajwadi Partys (SP) Awadhesh Prasad who since has been given a front-row seat on the opposition benches to rub it in the face of the BJP. The Opposition has called it as Ayodhya ki Jeet and Rahul Gandhi has now said the Ram Janmabhoomi movement has been defeated in Ayodhya by the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) group in these polls. ALSO READ | PM Modi In Rajya Sabha: Election Results Boosted Capital Markets, Generated Enthusiasm In World Firstly, the seat is the Faizabad Lok Sabha seat, and not Ayodhya. There are five assembly segments in this Lok Sabha seat, one of them being Ayodhya. And the BJP, in fact, secured more votes that the opposition in the Ayodhya assembly segment, while it lost in the other four. So Ayodhya did vote for the BJP. Also, this is not the first time that the Faizabad Lok Sabha seat has been lost by the BJP. Nirmal Khatri of the Congress had won it in 2009, and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) won it in 2004. The Faizabad Lok Sabha, in fact, has always been closely contested and has a complex caste matrix of Dalits, OBCs and Muslims. After winning by 2.82 lakh votes in 2014 in the Modi wave, Lallu Singh won by only 65,000 votes in 2019 as the SP and Congress had contested separately and the latter polled around 54,000 votes. The anti-incumbency against Singh was visible then too. This time, the SP and Congress came together to pit local Dalit MLA Awadhesh Prasad against him. The BJP committed the blunder of putting up Singh again and not changing its candidate, while Singh, with his statement that the Constitution will be changed", made Dalit voters turn against him, contributing to Awadheshs win. Clearly, it has nothing to do with either the Ram Temple or the Ram Janmabhoomi movement as the BJP still polled more votes than the SP in Ayodhya assembly segment. Why it lost in three other assembly segments that it won in 2022 is, in fact, the BJPs big concern. MORAL DEFEAT? A BJP insider drew an analogy to question the Congress claim that the BJP suffered a moral defeat in these elections. When Manmohan Singh returned to power in 2009 with 206 seats for the Congress, everyone said Singh is King. Then how can Modi coming back for a third term with 240 seats for the BJP be termed as a moral defeat? The Congress itself is just at 99 seats, far lesser that 145 seats it won in 2004 to form a coalition government," the BJP leader said. With 233 MPs, the INDIA grouping is formidable, but far off from the majority mark of 272 seats in Parliament and wont be able to dislodge the government, even if either of the two big NDA partners, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) (16 seats) or Janata Dal United (JDU) (12 seats) leaves the BJPs hand. Former UPA Minister P Chidambaram, in his column with The Indian Express, wrote as much, saying that the INDIA bloc is not in a position to defeat the government", adding that the JDU and TDP would bide their time for now. ALSO READ | Yes, Ours Is A One-Third Government: PM Modis Take On Congress Charge In Rajya Sabha Speech In his detailed speech in Parliament in the Monsoon session, PM Narendra Modi pointed out that even the 99 seats that the Congress has won is largely due to its allies, as the seats mostly came from states where the Congress fought as a minor partner. Modi said that in straight contests with the BJP, the Congress strike rate was only 26%, but in states where they were junior partners, their strike rate was 50%. In 16 states where the Congress fought alone, its vote share had plunged. In short, the PM said it was the Congress which needed to deeply self-introspect its loss in these elections instead of being delusional about a moral victory. But no one in the Congress has taken any responsibility for the third loss, and rather only point at the BJP dropping to 240 seats from 303 in the last term. Mistaking this setback for Modi as a decisive one could be fatal for the Congress. Modi has been known to make strong comebacks. One may see some big moves soon. The JMM-led government in Jharkhand headed by Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday won the vote of confidence in the assembly amid a walkout by opposition members. A total of 45 MLAs, including nominated member Josheph P Galastaun, voted in favour of the confidence motion. BJP and AJSU legislators walked out of the House as headcount for voting started. The BJP-led opposition has 24 legislators of the saffron party and three of the AJSU Party. Earlier, BJP legislators trooped into the well seeking Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahtos permission to allow MLA Bhanu Pratap Sahi to speak, which was turned down by the Speaker. Seventy-five MLAs were present in the assembly during the voting. Independent legislator Saryu Roy abstained from voting. The ruling alliance comprises the JMM, Congress and the RJD while it is supported from outside by the lone CPI (ML) Liberation legislator. After the Lok Sabha elections, the strength of the JMM-led alliance has been reduced to 45 MLAs in the 81-member House, with 27 of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, 17 of the Congress and one of the Rashtriya Janata Dal. Two JMM MLAs Nalin Soren and Joba Majhi are now parliamentarians, while Jama legislator Sita Soren resigned to contest the Lok Sabha elections on a BJP ticket. The JMM expelled two more legislators Bishunpur MLA Chamra Linda and Boriyo MLA Lobin Hembrom from the party. Similarly, the BJPs strength in the assembly has reduced to 24, as two of its MLAs Dhulu Mahto (Baghmara) and Manish Jaiswal (Hazaribag) are now MPs. The saffron party expelled Mandu MLA Jaiprakash Bhai Patel after he joined the Congress. The current strength of the 81-member Jharkhand Assembly is 76. The ruling JMM-Congress-RJD alliance had handed over a support list of 44 MLAs to the Governor when Hemant Soren staked his claim to form the government on July 3. Hemant Soren, the JMM executive president, was sworn in as the 13th chief minister of the state on July 4, a day after his predecessor Champai Soren stepped down from the post. Hemant Soren was released from jail on June 28 after the Jharkhand High Court granted bail to him in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. He had resigned as the chief minister, shortly before his arrest on January 31 by the Enforcement Directorate. Ola has given up on Google Maps for navigation of cabs and other services in the country and it will be using its in-house Ola Maps service from now. Ola like many other navigation-centric platforms has relied on Google Maps to run its features such as cabs, delivery and more. Ola Maps will be taking over those duties for the company, which it says is going to offer better and faster navigation for its cabs and other services. Ola is also opening the Maps API open to developers so that other platforms can look at integrating the feature for their own services. Most of our apps like Zomato, Uber and even shopping apps need location access to track your details and deliver the cab, food or grocery right at your doorsteps. Ola Maps is hoping to become the make-in-India Google Maps rival for all these platforms in the country. Ola Maps Takes On Google Maps Why The Change? Ola has worked on its in-house Maps service and replaced it with Google Maps for multiple reasons. Bhavish Aggarwal, CEO, Ola claims that by making this move, his company is already going to save Rs 100 crore every year. He even points out in a post on X that the platform has cut their cost to zero by switching to Ola Maps. He mentions that you can access the new avatar of Ola app by updating right away which gets you connected to its in-house Ola Maps service. Ola also says that it will be sharing a detailed blog post to explain how Ola Maps has been built in-house using open source materials. The Ola chief also confirmed that Ola Maps will soon offer new features like street view, indoor images along with 3D and drone maps among others. Google Maps Many Challengers But One Winner? This isnt the first time Google Maps is facing a domestic challenger in the country. MapMyIndia has done well to become a strong alternative to Googles service by offering a localised touch and features that are more in tune with the needs of our roads and overall driving culture. Ola has recently moved away from Microsoft Azure for its operations and this move to ditch Google Maps is significant. Having said that, it is all good by making the news for these changes but vital that perseveres using the in-house services for the long term and continue to give consumers more options. Mumbai and its surrounding areas were drenched as rain poured down in torrents over the past 24 hours, leading to widespread waterlogging and chaos in suburban train services. The downpour wreaked havoc, causing delays for officegoers and servicemen who found themselves stranded in waterlogged streets. Amidst the challenging situation, a journalist couldnt help but express her gratitude to two heroic taxi drivers who came to her aid, showcasing the undying spirit of Mumbai even amidst the turmoil. Sharing her experience on X, Latha Venkatesh, the executive director of CNBC-TV18, wrote, Deeply grateful to 2 taxidrivers who helped out in the rains today. She recounted how the first driver rescued her and three others stranded outside Sion Hospital and took them to Plaza, refusing any payment. I had to force a 100 rupee note. He forced me to take back Rs50, she shared. Also Read: Mumbai Rains: Memes Flood the Internet as Heavy Downpour Waterlogs the City She continued, Another cabbie drove me from Plaza to worli. Meter read Rs 91. I gave a 100 and requested him not to return change. Again he forced me to take back Rs10, she wrote, ending on a touching note: Such humaneness and honesty, from people who can less afford it! God bless! Deeply grateful to 2 taxidrivers who helped out in the rains today. One, at Sion hospital picked me along with 3 other distressed stranded passerbys a & took us to Plaza. Refused to take money. I had to force a 100 rupee note. He forced me to take back Rs50. 1/2 Latha Venkatesh (@latha_venkatesh) July 8, 2024 The post quickly went viral, drawing heartfelt comments from the public. One user wrote, These people are true angels. Mumbai works because its people want it to work. Another echoed, Taxi drivers of Mumbai are very good. I have experienced same kind of feelings many times in mumbai. A third remarked, Must admit Mumbai is a unique city in this regard! Humanity at its best! I wish such culture is replicated at Delhi NCR, Chennai specifically. A fourth compared it to Bengaluru, stating, Why is it that cabbies in mumbai are so honest & in blr so dishonest? in bangalore auto guys will not use the meteres and typically easily will charge u 1.5x of normal fares. and 2-3x when its raining heavily. generally ive seen in mumbai they will hand back 2-3rs of change also. Also Read: Not Mumbai Spirit: Women Dangerously Hanging Outside Local During Commute Raises Concern In the midst of chaos and adversity, these stories of kindness and honesty shine brightly, reminding us of the indomitable spirit that keeps Mumbai moving forward. American YouTuber MrBeast or Jimmy Donaldson, has easily become one of the most beloved YouTubers today, thanks to his slew of charitable projects. In 2020, Jimmy Donaldson started Beast Philanthropy, a charitable organisation that undertakes elaborate social work projects. Most recently, they shared a video in which Jimmy Donaldson detailed how they rebuilt an under-resourced Zambian village in Africa that had suffered major damage after a storm. They collaborated with Dora Moono Nyambo, a woman in Zambia who fosters 300 kids. They first found out about Dora Moono Nyambos work when she tagged them in a TikTok video. A year ago, the Beast Philanthropy team worked with Dora and built a solar array that provided the village with electricity. A year later they once again got in touch with her and undertook more community projects. They repaired one of the kids dormitories that lost its roof following a massive storm. The Beast Philanthropy team and Dora then built a deep properly maintained well that ensured a steady supply of clean water. Together with CURE International, they treated a young girl named Beauty, who was suffering from gangrene before her situation could turn fatal. To make sure that Dora and her foster kids do not have to rely on wood or charcoal to cook food, the charity gave them stoves. When Dora wrecked her car in an accident, Beast Philanthropy arranged a new car for her. Another long-term change created by Beast Philanthropy was installing a Starlink internet router that connected the village with reliable internet. All of these milestones were documented in a 10-minute long video that was shared on YouTube on June 7. In the comments, many people showered praises on MrBeast and Dora for their work. A YouTube user commented, Crazy how a YouTuber is doing more to the people than their own governments and billionaires around the world. Glad Jimmy made it this far. We Made the right person famous. I remember the times when Jimmy used to count numbers and was talking about having a million subscribers. Now look at him now, going around the world helping entire villages and doing so much for the people. May we see the day Jimmy reaches a billion subscribers he deserves it the MOST!" Another person observed, I love the fact that he also employs people in the same country to do the job, also indirectly improving the standard of living for those builders and their children. You inspire me, man, may god bless you." Pennsylvania has many historic downtowns to explore, beautiful natural sites that have to be seen to be believed, and even ghost towns that could be the setting of a horror novel. Unfortunately, Centralia is one of the latter. The town of Centralia was once a symbol of Pennsylvanias mining success. Despite its small population of about 1,000, Centralia became a mining hub, thanks to its coal deposits. In 1962, a fire broke out in Centralias coal mines that has not been extinguished to this day. People still live in many ghost towns across the US, including Centralia, though perhaps not for long. As the underground fires ate through the mine tunnels, the town began to crumble, crack, and release dangerous carbon monoxide and other gases into the air. Now the town itself is cut off from automobile traffic and more deserted than ever and yes, Centralia is still burning. Today, visitors must do a bit of walking to get to the town of Centralia. The Graffiti Highway, part of Route 61, was once the main attraction entering Centralia but has since been covered with dirt to discourage vandalism and visitors coming here for the wrong reasons. Additionally, visitors should be aware that this is not a typical trip to a ghost town. It is estimated that the fires beneath Centralia will burn for at least 500 years, if not longer, meaning the ground will be unstable for some time. Throughout the town, visitors will see signs warning of this danger and warning them to beware of particularly dangerous spots or turn back. In the early 1990s, people fled the town and all properties were repossessed, but at least five residents remained until 2020. Since the fires are not expected to stop any time soon, the remaining residents can continue to live in Centralia until they die, at which point their property would also be subject to repossession. The population initially declined due to the increasing danger posed by the citys carbon monoxide levels and the instability of the ground it sits on. There are still some things in the city that have been left behind and remain virtually untouched. Apple is the dream workplace for many, who aspire to make it big in the tech world. The company draws the best talent from around the world. Like all big things, Apples team also had a humble beginning. One of the first talents hired by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was Chris Espinosa who had been working with the US-based company since he was just 14. He formally joined the company in 1977 as a full-time employee. Chris Espinosa first met Steve Jobs at Byte Shop, the first personal computer retailer shop. He then went on to befriend Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak and Steve Jobs despite getting warned by his teachers at the Homestead High School, where they all had been students. In an interview for Making the Macintosh, an online documentation project about the history of the Macintosh computer, Chris Espinosa described his early work with Apple. He said, I worked there after school through high school. I wrote some of the early technical documentation for some products like ApplePlot, the graphics tablet. Chris Espinosa was retained as a staff at Apple even when he left to study at the University of California, Berkeley. He then became employee number 8 at the company. Chris told the Making the Macintosh project that he got the eighth number because Mike Scott, the first CEO of Apple, wanted to be number seven. The number one or two were either Steve Wozniak or Steve Jobs. Mike Markkula, the first angel investor of Apple was employee number three. In the lore of Apple Inc., the first single-digit employees of the company have become the stuff of legends. Chris Espinosa shared how despite the initial success Apple was running on a shoestring budget. He recalled that his first role included giving potential customers demonstrations of their products. People had this misconception that at Apple Computer they could come and be greeted by a receptionist, and a sales representative might talk to them, and there would be a showroom where they could see machines. Instead, theyd walk into something that was a cross between the Bronx Zoo and the New York Stock Exchange, he said. Over the years, Chris Espinosa retained his position as a senior Apple employee despite the leadership changes. Today, he is 62 and still at Apple. Chris Espinosa is a frequent speaker at Apples Worldwide Developers Conference and represents the company on various platforms. Actor Eddie Hassell portrayed him in the 2013 film, Jobs. Mumbai was pounded by relentless rain early this morning, with some areas receiving over 300 mm of rainfall in just six hours from 1 am to 7 am. The heavy downpour led to the diversion and cancellation of several trains, as reported by Central Railways. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is tirelessly working to alleviate waterlogging throughout the city. As a result, commuters faced daunting challenges getting to their workplaces, with widespread train delays affecting all parts of the city. However, amidst these trials, social media emerged as a beacon of fun. Memes flooded timelines, offering comic relief to Mumbaikars and reminding them theyre not alone in their rain-soaked struggles. #MumbaiRains has been trending since Monday morning, with X bursting with hilarious content and on-the-ground footage. Check out the viral memes: Just came across this on m-indicator chat.. Proof that #MumbaiRains are not always romantic pic.twitter.com/QqK1cCJHrt Sagarika Choudhary (@Sagarikasc) July 8, 2024 Mumbaikars going to the office pic.twitter.com/AS6LXNwT3D Abhishek (@MSDianAbhiii) July 8, 2024 #MumbaiRainsMumbaikar during rain going to office:Ghar se nikalte hi Kuch dur chalte hi pic.twitter.com/SMafoG1Pra Abdullah (@abdul_tweets03) July 8, 2024 Seems I am going to be all alone at work today #MumbaiRains , office staff be like pic.twitter.com/NsKPbWn0nb Cold Brew (@ManojG7) July 8, 2024 When its raining heavily, but you have got the instructions to reach office on time #MumbaiRains pic.twitter.com/VjCWgNlG9A Ishu (@iamishiita__) July 8, 2024 The India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued an orange alert for Mumbai, Thane, Palghar, and the Konkan region, warning of continued heavy rainfall and potential flooding. Vikhrolis Veer Savarkar Marg Municipal School and MCMCR Powai recorded the highest rainfall, surpassing 315 mm in the past 24 hours. In response to the worsening conditions, authorities took proactive measures. All government, private, and municipal schools and colleges were ordered to remain closed, ensuring the safety of students and staff amid the inclement weather. Also Read: Mumbais Jaadu Ki Jhappi: Anand Mahindras Post On Indias Victory Parade Draws Surya Kumar Yadavs Attention Meanwhile, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) experienced disruptions in flight operations due to weather-related congestion and reduced visibility. Airlines cautioned passengers to check their flight statuses, anticipating delays and cancellations. The Mumbai bus network, operated by BEST (Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport), also faced challenges with many routes diverted to avoid waterlogged areas. It is well-established that regular exercise contributes significantly to overall health. In addition to enhancing cardiovascular health, bone density and muscular strength, several experts suggest that regular physical activity can also strengthen the brain. Neuroscientist and dean of New York University (NYU) College of Arts and Science, Dr Wendy Suzuki, believes that people should engage in physical activity as frequently as possible to maintain excellent brain function. Physical activity is so powerful for our brain, she remarked in a recent MasterClass series in which neuroscientists and psychiatrists shared brain-health tips. Dr Wendy Suzuki also has a favourite form of workout which she believes is optimal for brain health. This great form of workout drew me back into exercise after years of sitting on the couch. It is called intenSati, she told CNBC Make It. The first part is derived from intention while Sati is a Pali word that denotes mindfulness or awareness, reports add. What Is IntenSati Workout? IntenSati, which was developed by American spiritual and fitness trainer Patricia Moreno in 2002, entails exercising your body while speaking affirmations out loud. According to the official website of intenSati, this workout combines high-energy cardio moves with high-emotion mantras to leave you feeling elevated, connected and strong. Dr. Wendy Suzuki has highlighted that expressing positive affirmations aloud can significantly impact ones general mood, attitude and outlook on life. Furthermore, a recent study conducted at the University of California Berkeley urged 135 undergraduate students to speak compassionate things to themselves for 20 seconds per day, followed by compassionate touch, such as resting a hand on their heart. After a month of consistent practice, students reported feeling less stressed and experiencing changes in their mental health, as per the report in CNBC Make It. But whatever the form of workout that you do, any time of day that you can work out is the best time of day to workout because our lives are so busy, Dr Wendy Suzuki said in the publication. Americas Got Talent (AGT) is grabbing attention this season for its brilliant contestants. Last week, 10-year-old Maya Neelakantan amazed the judges with her guitar cover of Papa Roachs Last Resort and earned praise from Anand Mahindra, Chairman of Mahindra & Mahindra. Now, another young talent, 9-year-old Pranysqa Mishra, has taken the spotlight. Her rendition of Tina Turners River Deep, Mountain High wowed not only the judges, Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, Heidi Klum and Howie Mandel but Mahindra as well. Klum was so impressed that she honoured Mishra with the Golden Buzzer. Sharing the video on X, Mahindra shared how Mishras singing skills left him astonished and emotional. The business tycoon wrote, What on earth is going on? For the second time, within the past two weeks, a young, VERY young, woman of Indian origin has rocked the stage at AGT with raw talent that is simply astonishing. With skills acquired in indigenous American genres of music. Rock & Gospel. Pranysqa Mishra is just NINE years old. Damn, I had tears too when they called her grandmother. Yes, Americas got talent indeed and a lot of it is coming from India." What on earth is going on??For the second time, within the past two weeks, a youngVERY youngwoman of Indian origin has rocked the stage at @AGT with raw talent that is simply astonishing. With skills acquired in indigenous American genres of music. Rock & Gospel. Pranysqa pic.twitter.com/2plEj8EXVs anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) July 8, 2024 Reacting to the post, a user wrote, Simply marvellous voice she had, and the level of confidence was literally mesmerising." Simply marvellous voice she had, and the level of confidence was literally mesmerising. This confidence shows the true nature of free spirit. Entire ecosystem is responsible to nurture a free spirit. Family, friends, community, schools are part of this ecosystem. I would take Prashant Prakash (@prashant_98765) July 8, 2024 Another shared, Its amazing to see such young talent shine on such a big stage. Her mastery of rock and gospel at just nine years old is truly inspiring." It's incredible, right? Pranysqa Mishra's performance was absolutely breathtaking. It's amazing to see such young talent shine on such a big stage. Her mastery of rock and gospel at just nine years old is truly inspiring. Moments like this show how diverse and boundless talent Daily Dealzs (@dailydealzs) July 8, 2024 She is just 9 years old and received The GOLDEN BUZZER," a comment read. She is just 9 years old and received The GOLDEN BUZZER Ranjeet Singh (@ranjeetsmile) July 8, 2024 Another wrote, AGT is trying to diversify its audience and expand its TRP." It means only one thing. That AGt is trying to diversify its audience and expand its TRP. The talent was always there. Platforms are decided by returns on investment vrk (@veranolluvia) July 8, 2024 An individual shared, One of my favourite songs too. If only Ms Turner were alive to hear this." Damn! One of my favourite songs too. If only Ms Turner were alive to hear this. Vinay Rao (@wizardofid) July 8, 2024 One more added, Absolutely gobsmacked. What a voice and how she throws it." Absolutely gobsmacked! What a voice and how she throws it!! Spectacular performance. Go girl Deepika Diwan (@DeepikaDiwan) July 8, 2024 Before Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara and Howie Mandel could speak about Pranysqa Mishras performance, Heidi Klum sharing her opinion said, I did not expect that, we expect a lot of things but I did not expect that. You know what Im going to do now because I honestly dont want to hear what Howie, Simon or Sophia has to say. I want you to call your grandmother and say that Heidi Klum pushed a golden buzzer for you." Heidi Klum, fulfilling her promise, called Pranysqa Mishras grandmother backstage, which left her teary-eyed. Meanwhile, apart from Tina Turner, the 9-year-old, talking with Americas Got Talent judge, Simon Cowell said her other favourite artists are Aretha Franklin and Whitney Houston. Law enforcement agencies often take it upon themselves to urge people against making reels when they are driving or travelling in public transport. In an interesting turn of events, two police policemen from the Uttar Pradesh force were suspended after they posted reels with a property dealer. The policemen were in their uniforms when they made the video, which suggests that they were on duty at the time of making the video. The suspended policemen were stationed at Ghaziabads Ankur Vihar police station. They were identified as Dharmendra Sharma and Ritesh Kumar, posted at Ghaziabad. The property dealer has been identified as Sartaz. The video that got them suspended showed Sartaz getting out of his SUV and shaking hands with the two uniformed policemen. During the video, the trio parked their two SUVs in the middle of the road. This video was recently shared on X by journalist Priya Singh. She wrote, The inspector got suspended due to the reel, and the property dealer was arrested. The reel was being made by parking the car on the highway. The case is said to be from Ghaziabad, UP. An X user commented on the video, Folks, respect your uniform. It itself is a source of pride. Folks, respect your uniform. It itself is a source of pride. Ashwini Kumar (@AshwiniKumar1_) July 7, 2024 Another person wrote, Its good. Nowadays even IAS officers do less work and make more reels. They all have created YouTube channels. IAS YOUTUBE JusticeLaw (@LyfJus) July 7, 2024 The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Rural) Vivek Chand Yadav told PTI, When the matter came to our knowledge, the two sub-inspectors were suspended for violating police rules and a departmental inquiry was ordered against them. An FIR under Section 351 (criminal intimidation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita was also lodged against Sartaz and he was arrested on Friday. The Indian Express reported that the accused cops went to the property dealers office located at Tronica City in Ghaziabads Loni Circle to make the video with him. While the Uttar Pradesh policemen were reprimanded for making the video, one cop from Mumbai police is lauded for his dancing talent. Policeman Amol Kamble has over four lakh Instagram followers thanks to his brilliant dance skills. The senior cop told Hindustan Times, I spend my weekends practising dance and making videos. Even on days when I get free from work a little early, I visit a dance studio and practice. My family supports me and even the [police] department. That said, I never let my work suffer. Industrialist Anand Mahindra shared a video on the social media platform X, featuring a groundbreaking technology that could transform the healthcare industry. This innovation is a game changer for medical professionals, as it minimises the discomfort and struggle of detecting veins during blood checkups. The video shared by the business tycoon highlights how veins become visible as even mild pressure is applied to the patients hand under infrared, making the process smoother and less painful. Lauding the technology, Mahindra shared that such simple and clever inventions enhance our medical experiences and overall quality of life. Since the footage was shared on X, social media users couldnt stop praising the innovation and replied with positive feedback. Sharing the clip, Mahindra wrote, Using infrared light to locate veins. Saving the pain from repeated attempts to find a vein when drawing blood. Its often the smallest, least glamorous inventions which significantly improve our medical experience and hence, the quality of our lives. Using infrared light to locate veins. Saving the pain from repeated attempts to find a vein when drawing blood. Its often the smallest, least glamorous inventions which significantly improve our medical experience and hence, the quality of our lives pic.twitter.com/XgZI8Bcf2m anand mahindra (@anandmahindra) July 6, 2024 The video has gone viral, garnering over 9 Lakh views. Reacting to the clip, a user wrote, We need this Tech at local blood test centres, last year, my yearly check-up nurse did four punctures in my hands. We need this Tech at local blood test centers; last year, my yearly check-up nurse did four punctures in my hands. Rakesh Parmar (@iTheRakeshP) July 6, 2024 Another wondered, I feel the angle of entering the vein is the most important factor determining repeated attempts. As someone who has made use of vein viewer, I feel the angle of entering the vein is the most important factor determining repeated attempts It looks fancy and all but after the novelty wears off we go back to the traditional method of cannulating under direct vision and the pic.twitter.com/xRvjxVcOig Dr Sanjog (@san86jog) July 6, 2024 I wish this would be soon available and affordable in India, a comment read. Oh How I wish this would be soon available and affordable in India.especially for our little thalassemia warriors who have to undergo venepuncture every 2-3 weeks kiddiologist (@kiddo_doctor) July 7, 2024 Another wrote, It simply doesnt work, might look glamorous and easy but the angle and branches makes it more difficult and confusing. It simply doesn't work..might look glamorous and easy but the angle and branches makes it more difficult and confusing than the routine gd standard method kali prathap (@LKP_kaliprathap) July 7, 2024 An individual shared, Learnt about a similar tool in Singapore when my 3 year old was going through her routine medication. Learnt about a similar tool in Singapore when my 3 YO was going through her routine medication. That tool also helped to find veins quickly and no additional prics. Vimal (@vimal_rajpal) July 7, 2024 One more added, Awesome this helps many. I cried when they were doing multiple attempts for my 2-year-old baby in a reputed hospital. Awesome this helps many I cried when they were doing multiple attempts for my 2yrs old baby in a reputed hospital.. But this should be available for lesser cost and should be adopted by all hospitals. Deva Raj (@dev_raju) July 6, 2024 This isnt the first time such innovative technology has received praise online. A few years ago, Medtra Innovative Technologies from Kochi, founded by Rajesh Nair and Saj Sulaiman, developed a device called Veineux. This device uses augmented reality (AR) to locate veins. According to Rajesh, their device has proven useful in hospitals, health centres and laboratories. In a conversation with Your Story, Rajesh shared, Our aim is to deliver cost effective yet advanced healthcare devices to the public, especially the rural people. That is where we stand. We have a social cause. Reportedly, Veineux could also be helpful for patients who require regular injections at home. She worries Republican donors, has name recognition, and Democratic Party heavyweights are beginning to line up behind her. Vice President Kamala Harris would be President Joe Bidens natural successor if he bowed to growing pressure and stepped aside as the Democratic candidate in the 2024 election, top Democrats say. Now party donors, activists and officials are asking: Does she have a better chance than Biden of beating Donald Trump? Biden has said repeatedly he is staying in the race. Harris, 59, a former U.S. senator and California attorney general, would be the first woman to be president of the United States if she becomes the partys nominee and prevails in the Nov. 5 election. She is the first African American and Asian person to serve as vice president. Her 3-1/2 year White House tenure has been characterized by a lackluster start, staff turnover, and early policy portfolios including migration from Central America that did not produce major successes. As recently as last year, many inside the White House and the Biden campaign team privately worried Harris was a liability for the campaign. The situation has changed significantly since then, Democratic officials have said, as she stepped forward on abortion rights and courted young voters. She is proud to be his running mate and looks forward to serving at his side for four more years, the Biden Harris campaign told Reuters. SOME POLLS FAVOR HARRIS Recent polls suggest Harris could do better than Biden against Trump, the Republican candidate, although she would face a tight contest. A CNN poll released on July 2 found voters favor Trump over Biden by six percentage points, or 49% to 43%. Harris also trailed Trump, 47% to 45%, within the margin of error. It also found independents back Harris 43%-40% over Trump, and moderate voters of both parties prefer her 51-39%. A Reuters/Ipsos poll after last weeks televised debate between Trump and a faltering Biden found Harris and Trump were nearly tied, with 42% supporting her and 43% backing him. Only former first lady Michelle Obama, who has never expressed any interest in joining the race, polled higher among possible alternatives to Biden. Internal polling shared by the Biden campaign after the debate shows Harris with the same odds as Biden of beating Trump, with 45% of voters saying they would vote for her versus 48% for Trump. Influential Democrats including U.S. Representative Jim Clyburn, who was key to Bidens 2020 win; Rep. Gregory Meeks, a New York congressman and senior member of the Congressional Black Caucus; and Summer Lee, a House Democrat from Pennsylvania have signaled Harris would be the best option to lead the ticket if Biden chooses to step aside. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries has also privately signaled the same to lawmakers, a Congressional aide said. Harris is taken so seriously, two Republican donors told Reuters they would prefer for Trump to face Biden than her. I would prefer Biden to stay in place, rather than be replaced by Harris, said Pauline Lee, a fundraiser for Trump in Nevada after the June 27 debate, who said she thought Biden had proved himself to be incompetent. And some on Wall Street, an important Democratic fundraising center, are starting to indicate a preference. Biden is already behind Trump, and is unlikely to be able to overcome that gap given where his campaign is currently. Having VP Harris likely improves Democrats odds of taking the White House, said Sonu Varghese, global macro strategist at Carson Group, a financial services company, after the debate. Theres potentially more upside for her chances than Bidens at this point. A majority of Americans see Harris in a negative light, as they do both men running for president. Polling outlet Five Thirty Eight said 37.1% of voters approve of Harris and 49.6% disapprove. Those numbers compare to 36.9% and 57.1% for Biden, and 38.6% and 53.6% for Trump. WOMEN, BLACK VOTERS, GAZA Since the Supreme Court repealed womens constitutional right to abortion in 2022, Harris has become the Biden administrations foremost voice on reproductive rights, an issue Democrats are betting on to help them win the 2024 election. Some Democrats believe Harris could energize Democratic-leaning groups whose enthusiasm for Biden has faded, including Black voters, young voters and those who do not approve of Bidens handling of the Israel-Hamas war. She would energize the Black, brown, and Asian Pacific members of our coalition she would immediately pull the dispirited youth of our country back into the fold, said Tim Ryan, a former Democratic Congressman from Ohio, in a recent op-ed. Democratic and Republican suburban women may also be more comfortable with her then Trump or Biden, he said. As vice president, Harriss public Israel strategy is identical to Bidens, although she was the first senior leader of the U.S. government to call for a ceasefire in March. Simply swapping out the candidate does not address the central concern of the movement, said Abbas Alawieh, a member of the national Uncommitted movement that withheld votes for Biden in the primary based on his support of Israel. If Biden were to step aside, there could be a competition between other Democrats to become the nominee. If the party were then to choose another candidate over Harris, some Democrats say it could lose the support of many Black voters who were critical to Bidens election win in 2020. There is no alternative besides Kamala Harris, said Adrianne Shropshire, executive director of Black voter outreach group BlackPAC. If the Democratic Party thinks that they have problems now with their base being confused Jump over the Black woman, the vice president, and I dont think the Democratic Party actually recovers. LEFT-LEANING, TARGETED ATTACKS However, Harris may struggle to reel in moderate Democrats and the independent voters who like Bidens centrist policies, some Democratic donors said. Both parties seek independents to help pull them over the finishing line in presidential elections. Her greatest weakness is that her public brand has been associated with the far-left wing of the Democratic Party and the left wing of the Democratic party cannot win a national election, said Dmitri Mehlhorn, a fundraiser and adviser to LinkedIn co-founder and Democratic megadonor Reid Hoffman. That is the challenge that she will have to overcome if she is the nominee. Harris would take over money raised by the Biden campaign and inherit campaign infrastructure, a critical advantage with just four months before election day on Nov. 5. But any Democratic campaign still needs to raise hundreds of millions of dollars more before November to be successful, strategists say. And there, Harris could be a liability. I can tell you we have a really tough time raising money for her said a source at the Democratic National Committee. As a presidential candidate ahead of the 2020 election, Harris lagged Biden in raising money. She dropped out of the race in December 2019, the same month her campaign reported $39.3 million in total contributions. Bidens campaign reported $60.9 million in the same period. However, Bidens campaign raised a record $48 million in the 24 hours after he named Harris as his running mate in 2020. Harriss prosecutorial background could shine in a head-to-head debate against Trump, some Democrats said. She is incredibly focused and forceful and smart, and if she prosecutes the case against the criminality of Donald Trump, she will rip him apart, said Mehlhorn. Republican attacks on Harris are ramping up as she has been floated as a possible Biden replacement. Conservative talking heads are re-circulating criticism leveled at her during the 2020 race, including from some Democrats, that Harris laughs too much, that she is untested, and unqualified. On July 6 the New York Post, owned by the conservative News Corp, ran a column headlined America may soon be subjected to the countrys first DEI president: Kamala Harris, that said her political rise was because of her partys diversity, equity and inclusion stranglehold. Kelly Dittmar, a political science professor at Rutgers University, said the attacks are part of a long history of objectifying and denigrating women of color in politics. Unfortunately the reliance on both racist and sexist attacks and tropes against women running for office is historically common and persists to this day, said Dittmar. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Vladimir Putin on Monday as he arrived for his first trip to Moscow since the start of Russias invasion of Ukraine. The bonhomie between two leaders was on full display as they shared a warm hug and firm handshake before heading for tea at Putins Novo-Ogaryovo residence. During his interaction with Modi, Putin heaped praises on the Indian PM, saying he has devoted his whole life for public service and he is doing good for India. The Russian president also congratulated the Indian PM on his re-election and said he is happy to him in Moscow. You have great energy and you are doing good for India. I congratulate on your re-election for third time. This is because of your work. You have devoted your whole life for public service, the Russian President told Modi during a private engagement. Most important is 23 million kids are born every year in India. This means Indians plan for their future. This means that Indians are secure of their future. I am very happy to see you, he added. The Indian PM said that India has reaffirmed trust in his governments policies for the nation. He also expressed gratitude to Putin for inviting him to Russia for the talks. Indian election was very important. 65 crore people have voted. After around 60 years, third time a government has been elected. This was earlier done by Nehru and this time I have been blessed by my countrys people. It is good to come to a friends house. You (Putin) invited me to have dinner and chat with me, Modi said. This is Modis his first to Russia in his third term as the prime minister. Gratitude to President Putin for hosting me at Novo-Ogaryovo this evening. Looking forward to our talks tomorrow as well, which will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia. pic.twitter.com/eDdgDr0USZ Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Modi on Monday began a two-day high-profile visit to Russia to hold summit talks with President Vladimir Putin. He was received at the Moscow airport by Russian first deputy minister Denis Manturov (who also had received Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Russia earlier) and also received a Guard of Honour at the airport. Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people. pic.twitter.com/oUE1aC00EN Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 After landing in Moscow, PM Modi said that deeper ties between New Delhi and Moscow will benefit people of both nations. Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people, PM Modi said. Manturov also accompanied PM Modi in the same car to his hotel from the airport where Russians singing bhajan, performing Indian dance forms and members of the Indian diaspora spanning across all age groups warmly greeted him. PM Modi will be residing at the Carlton Hotel in Moscow during his first trip to Russia since 2019. The annual summit between the Indian Prime Minister and the Russian President is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. The annual summits are held alternatively in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021 in New Delhi. President Putin had visited India to attend the summit. After concluding his engagements in Russia on July 9, PM Modi will leave for Austria in the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in over 40 years. (with inputs from PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modis relationship with Russia is longstanding and storied and as he visits Moscow for summit-level talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Modi Archives, a website that narrates the life journey of PM Narendra Modi, shared how he strengthened ties between both countries from the time he was Gujarat chief minister. Modi Archives on its X (formerly Twitter) page shared photos and stories listing the steps PM Modi had taken to build closer ties with Russia. The longstanding relationship between India and Russia has deep historical roots, significantly strengthened by Prime Minister @narendramodi during his tenure as Chief Minister of Gujarat.Narendra Modi's first visit to #Russia was on November 6, 2001, when he was the Chief pic.twitter.com/E0fBxhMip0 Modi Archive (@modiarchive) July 8, 2024 In the post, the website highlighted that PM Modi first visited Russia as part of a former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayees delegation in November 2001. Narendra Modis first visit to Russia was on November 6, 2001, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat and accompanied former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to Moscow for the India-Russia Summit with President Vladimir Putin, Modi Archives said, sharing a photo from the event. It said that PM Modi has fond memories of the visit and in 2019 at an event he recalled how President Putins hospitality, where the Russian leader treated him with great respect despite being from a small state and relatively new to the international stage, which in turn opened the doors to a lasting friendship. Gujarat-Astrakhan Ties The post also highlighted that PM Modi, during his tenure as Gujarat chief minister, developed close ties with the government of Astrakhan, a Russian province. During his visit to Russia, he signed a protocol pact for cooperation between his state, Gujarat, and the Russian province, Astrakhan, where both states agreed to work together in the petroleum and hydrocarbon, trade, science and technology, education, tourism and cultural sectors. He revisited the region in 2006 and met with the governor of the region at the time, Alexander Zhilkin, and extended the protocol pact for cooperation for another five years. Modis Presentation In Russian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2009 left Russian businessmen stunned when he delivered a presentation in Russian at an energy conference held in Moscow. Russian businessmen attending the 9th Russian Oil and Gas Week conference were left stunned when a lawmaker from the Indian state of Gujarat was presenting in Russian. The person who was making the presentation was none other than Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was invited to deliver the keynote address at the 9th Russian Oil and Gas Week conference. Narendra Modi was then the chief minister of Gujarat and had visited Russia to also attend the 4th International Energy Week conference. In 2009, he was invited to address the 4th International Energy Week and deliver a keynote at the 9th Russian Oil and Gas Week conference. CM Modi stumped the Russian businessmen by giving the presentation in Russian! Modi Archives, a website that narrates the life journey of PM Narendra Modi, said in a social media post on X. The post was shared as Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for Moscow to hold a bilateral meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Russian President Vladimir Putin has invited him for the 22nd India-Russia summit, scheduled for July 8 and 9. I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia, PM Modi said in an official statement. This visit marks PM Modis first trip to Russia in nearly five years and his first since Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. His last visit was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in the Russian far-east region of Vladivostok. The Kremlin in its announcement underscored the traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations and said that both leaders will aim to further enhance these ties. It said that both leaders will discuss current issues of the international and regional agenda, according to a report by Russian news agency TASS. Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Russia and his talks with President Vladimir Putin will focus on bilateral trade and economic ties and in some new areas of scientific and technological research, the Indian Ambassador to Russia has said, expressing confidence that the talks will yield tangible outcomes in many areas. Prime Minister Modi will be in Moscow from July 8 to 9 at the invitation of President Putin for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. It will be Modis first visit to Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The two leaders will review the entire range of multifaceted relations between the two countries and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest, the Ministry of External Affairs said in New Delhi on Thursday while announcing the high-level visit starting on Monday. Speaking to PTI Videos on Modis visit, Indian Ambassador to Russia Vinay Kumar said that extensive dialogue on trade, economic and investment cooperation and connectivity will be a key focus of discussions during Modis visit. This is a part of annual summits that the two countries have and hence the agenda would be an entire range of issues in our bilateral relationship, Kumar said. Asked about likely decisions in the areas of energy and defence, Kumar said We have a set of documents that we are working on. Some of those agreements relate to trade and economic ties and also in some new areas of connectivity, and scientific and technological research. So I expect that we would have tangible outcomes in many of these areas. Kumar agreed that trade imbalance remained a major area that needed to be addressed, and the matter is likely to be discussed during the prime ministers visit. An uptick in bilateral trade has created a situation of significant deficit for India, he said while expressing hope that some decisions are likely to address the issue. So we will be discussing these issues and also work on expanding the trade basket, commodity-wise as well as volume-wise. Some new areas of exports include agricultural and processed food products, automobile components, engineering goods, and pharmaceuticals, he said. This will be Modis first visit to Russia in nearly five years. His last visit to Russia was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in the Far East city of Vladivostok. The annual summit between the Prime Minister of India and the President of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. So far, 21 annual summits have taken place alternately in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi. President Vladimir Putin had visited India to attend the summit. Indias import of discounted Russian crude oil has also gone up significantly notwithstanding the G7 price cap and increasing disquiet over the procurement in many Western capitals. As per figures of the Department of Commerce, in FY 2023-24, bilateral trade has reached an all-time high of USD 65.70 billion, according to the Indian Embassy, Russia. Major items of export from India include pharmaceuticals, organic chemicals, electrical machinery and mechanical appliances, iron & steel, while major items of import from Russia include oil and petroleum products, fertilizers, mineral resources, precious stones and metals, vegetable oils, etc. Stepakhno Genaddy, Deputy Speaker of Russias Murmansk Region (Arctic) said India can be a major player in tapping the economic potential of the resource-rich Arctic region. He highlighted the importance of India-Russia friendship, emphasising Indias focus on building up projects in the Russian Arctic. The Russian Arctic is very important for many countries. For us also it is very important. It is interesting for us that India and China can be good partners for the Arctic. But India is slightly slow in this because China is building many things in the Arctic, India is slow so India should focus on this because we have a lot of oil and gas in the Arctic zone. Eighty per cent of oil and gas is in our region because it will be interesting, Genaddy told PTI. In an attempt to enhance bilateral trade relations and cultural exchanges between India and Russia, Genaddy said, We are already working on the project going to begin from Murmansk, Northern seaport to Mumbai which is already announced. Now we have sent one train with coal from Murmansk to India. I want India to take the Arctic as a serious project. An Indian industrialist in Russia urges the early opening of the Chabahar route for trade with Russia. R Chakrapani, an industrialist involved in the petrochemical business, has urged swift operationalisation of the Chabahar route for benefits to trade between India, Iran, and Russia. He expressed hopes for some special concessions to incentivize stakeholders to use the North-South Transport Corridor. As industrialists in Russia, we expect the Chabahar route to start very fast and we give some special concessions for those engaged in this corridor, including specific export benefits in India and Russia, he said. The Chabahar port in Iran, developed by India, is expected to facilitate trade with Russia and other Central Asian countries. Meanwhile, students in Russia hope Modis visit will result in stronger ties with Moscow. Students of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration hope the bilateral talks between India and Russia will strengthen ties between the two nations. It is a big day for us. We hope that the relationship between India and Russia will be much stronger. We have a long history between our countries and a successful relationship. In the news we will see some updates about our relationship, about new steps, a Russian student said. Terming PM Modis visit to Russia a sign of a new era of friendship between Russia and India, a Russian student said, We are all waiting for this visit. All the students are fascinated by this opportunity to establish good relations for future business, development between two countries and development of business interaction. I hope this will become a new era of friendship between Russia and India. I think Prime Minister Modis visit is unique. Right now we need this visit very much because if you look at the trade pot, we have just seen it is more than USD 65 million, it has gone up so much. So it is going to give us new results, more cooperation in the field of business, education and other areas which is coming up and I am just looking forward to it, Dr Mitali Mitra, Director for the Pan Asian MBA programme. The Ostankino TV tower, a prominent Moscow landmark, was lit up in the colours of the flags of India and Russia on Monday to mark Prime Minister Narendra Modis two-day high-profile visit to Russia where he will hold summit-level talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Indian Tricolour Lights Up Moscow's Ostankino Tower The Tallest Free-Standing Structure In Europe In Tribute To PM Modi's State Visit#ModiInRussia pic.twitter.com/FRx5YTXf6w RT_India (@RT_India_news) July 8, 2024 The Ostankino TV Tower is the worlds 4th tallest and Europes highest and rises to 540 metres (1,771 feet). It was built in 1967 by the famous Soviet engineer, Nikolai Nikitin. The Ostankino TV Tower is a renowned symbol of Russian broadcasting and is the highest free-standing building in Russia. It is also a must-visit destination in Moscow for people travelling to the Russian capital. Earlier, Modi was received at the airport by Russias First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. He was accorded a ceremonial welcome. The Russian first deputy minister also accompanied the Indian prime minister to his hotel from the airport in the same car, officials said. Modi was also accorded a grand welcome by the Indian community on his arrival to the Russian capital. A memorable welcome in Moscow! I thank the Indian community for their affection, the prime minister posted on X along with a series of photographs. It is Modis first trip to Russia since 2019, the first after the start of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 and the first in Modis third term as the prime minister. (with inputs from PTI) Whether President Biden will try to stay on the job is the question on many people's minds. A radio station host who interviewed the president on Wednesday has lost her own job as a result. Philadelphia radio station WURD on Sunday said that it and host Andrea Lawful-Sanders "mutually agreed to part ways" after she interviewed Biden using questions that had been provided by his campaign. More: One of the largest wildfires currently burning in California has Michael Jackson's former home in its sights. The Lake Fire, which has grown to more than 18,000 acres since it broke out Friday afternoon, is burning in southern California's Santa Barbara County near Los Olivos, and along with more than a dozen vineyards and wineries, that area is also home to Neverland Ranch, the Los Angeles Times reports. The King of Pop envisioned the 2,700-acre property as a private theme park for entertaining children, Newsweek reported in 2019. As such, it featured its own train, several rides, a zoo, and a 50-seat movie theater. Jackson was accused of sexually abusing children at the ranch, and stopped staying there after he was acquitted of child molestation in 2005, the New York Post reports. A group of six motorcyclists riding through a portion of Death Valley National Park experienced a lethal emergency Saturday amid record-breaking heat. One member of the group died from heat exposure and another was transported to Las Vegas and hospitalized with "severe heat illness," while the others were treated at the scene, KLAS reports. Emergency medical flight helicopters couldn't respond because they generally can't safely operate in temperatures above 120 degrees Fahrenheit, ABC 7 reports. On Saturday and Sunday Death Valley hit 128 degrees Fahrenheit, beating the previous record high temperature of 127. "High heat like this can pose real threats to your health," the national park's superintendent said in a statement. "While this is a very exciting time to experience potential world record-setting temperatures in Death Valley, we encourage visitors to choose their activities carefully, avoiding prolonged periods of time outside of an air-conditioned vehicle or building when temperatures are this high." The statement warned that the heavy safety gear necessary for motorcycle riding adds to the danger, and that heat illness and injury can build up over the course of multiple days and have a cumulative effect. The group was traveling through Badwater Basin, an area that includes North America's lowest point at 282 feet below sea level, per NPS. Death Valley lies mostly in California, but portions of it are in Nevada. (More Death Valley National Park stories.) Nearly three years after cinematographer Halyna Hutchins was shot and killed on the New Mexico set of Rust, Alec Baldwin is going on trial over her death. Jury selection begins Tuesday, with opening statements expected Wednesday, and the projected end the following Friday, reports the AP. A last-minute ruling dealt the prosecution a major setback on Monday. Here are the essential things to know: What is Baldwin charged with? Felony involuntary manslaughter. If a jury unanimously convicts him, he could get 18 months in prison. Baldwin was pointing a revolver at Hutchins during a rehearsal when the gun went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin says he pulled back the hammerbut not the triggerand the gun fired. It has never been determined who brought the live rounds to the set. Rust armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to the same 18 months in prison Baldwin faces. Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two crashes of 737 Max jetliners that killed 346 people after the government determined the company violated a 2021 settlement agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years, the Justice Department said Sunday night. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice last week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors accused the American aerospace giant of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements for it. The plea deal, which still must receive the approval of a federal judge to take effect, calls for Boeing to pay an additional $243.6 million fine, the AP reports. That was the same amount it paid under the 2021 settlement that the Justice Department said the company breached. An independent monitor would be named to oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The deal also requires Boeing to invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs. The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes, which killed all 346 passengers and crew members aboard two new Max jets. It does not give Boeing immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, a Justice Department official said. The deal also does not cover any current or former Boeing officials, only the corporation. (Families of the crash victims are said to vehemently oppose the "sweetheart" deal.) After a surprising turn in France's snap elections that kept the far-right National Rally out of power, but with no faction in complete control of the government, President Emmanuel Macron made moves on Monday to attempt to create some structure as the dust settles. First order of the day: Macron refused to accept the resignation of Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who'd only been in the role for seven months, "to ensure the stability of the country," per the AP, which cites "a government in limbo." Macron himself is slated to stay in office for three more years. More on the elections and what's next for France: Official results: In first place, with just over 180 seats nabbed in France's National Assembly, is the leftist New Popular Front, per results released Monday. Macron's centrist alliance came in with 160-plus seats, while Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally picked up more than 140 seatsenough for only a third-place finish, but with far more than the 89 seats it won in 2022, when it had its best run ever. To control the 577-seat body, a party would've had to win 289 seats. For nearly 100 years, Australia's Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary has set out to protect koalas. It opened in 1927 in response to the practice of culling the animals for their fur at the timeand it's now putting an end to a practice it has long espoused: koala cuddling. The BBC reports the Brisbane sanctuary will no longer offer "koala hold experiences," a move made in response to "increasingly strong visitor feedback" against the cuddling and in support of more educational offerings and "close-up" experiences that don't involve touching them. The sanctuary has in the past hosted big names like Taylor Swift , Roger Federer , and Vladimir Putin, who've posed with the creatures in their arms. The Washington Post explains that in the wild, koalas are solitary creatures who spend most of their time asleep in order to stockpile energy for digesting the tough eucalyptus leaves they subsist on. As such, critics say subjecting them to cuddles is cruel and stressful. While some Australian states have long banned the practice, Queensland, where Lone Pine is located, isn't one of them and says it doesn't intend to change that stance. It does, however, have some rules in placeamong them, that koalas can only be cuddled by tourists for a max of 30 minutes a day and 180 minutes per week. A rep for World Animal Protection, which has been pushing Queensland to change its mind, notes koala cuddling isn't what you might expect in one way: Their fur is actually scratchy, not soft. (More koala stories.) The legendary Antikythera shipwreck off the coast of Greece has yielded all kinds of fascinating finds over the years, from statues to a mysterious mechanism described as an "ancient computer." Now, a new analysis has yielded another surprise at the sitea second shipwreck, reports Ancient Origins . Researchers discovered the remains of a wooden hull "beneath the crushed cargo it was carrying," according to the Greek Ministry of Culture, as translated at CBS News . At this point, the discovery appears to raise questions rather than answer them about the Antikythera wreck, which took place more than 2,000 years ago in unknown circumstances. "Was there only one ship involved in this ancient maritime tragedy?" asks the ministry. "How exactly did the wreck happen? Did the human remains recovered in recent years belong to passengers or crew members?" All will be explored in future expeditions and in further analysis of the second wreck and other objects recovered in a May expedition to the site off the Greek island of Antikythera. The newly discovered wreck is about 650 feet away from the original, raising the possibility the ships were traveling together, per Fox News. (More Antikythera stories.) TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune www.newsofbahrain.com The fourth edition of the Bahrain Film Festival has concluded its call for entries, receiving a total of 481 films from 23 Arab countries. The festival's official competition will present entries across five main categories: short narrative films, short documentaries, animation films, Bahraini films, and student films. The selection committee, presided over by renowned Bahraini writer and media personality Dr. Perween Habib, will begin the evaluation process today, Saturday, 6 July 2024. Joining Dr. Habib on the distinguished panel are Saudi director Reem Al Bayat, Saudi director and artist Dr. Hakim Jumaa, Emirati director Nawaf Al Janahi, and the French cultural attache in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The fourth iteration of the festival, bearing the theme "We Celebrate the Art of Filmmaking," is scheduled to take place in November as part of the "Manama, Capital of Arab Media" event, organised by the Bahrain Film Club in partnership with the Ministry of Information. The festival is anticipated to attract extensive participation from Arab and Gulf filmmakers. Beyond the film screenings, the fourth Bahrain Film Festival will offer specialised workshops and seminars designed to enhance the experience of young individuals keen on the cinematic arts. The festival has sustained its success over the past three editions, serving as a platform for Bahraini talent and facilitating artistic exchange between diverse nations and cultures. The previous edition of the festival, held under the patronage of H.E. Dr. Ramzan bin Abdullah Al-Noaimi, Minister of Information, and under the theme "Celebrating the Art of Filmmaking," featured 117 short Arab films in competition. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com Initiatives launched by Tamkeen in revolutionizing the health sector will bring about a significant qualitative shift in the Kingdoms health system, MP Dr. Maryam Al Dhaen said. Detailing the scope of the initiatives, the MP said they focus on the development and training of national cadres in the health sector. These programmes will provide support to over 700 Bahraini doctors and nurses through five main initiatives. Key components include covering the costs for Bahraini doctors to obtain board certifications, supporting the wages of doctors working in the private sector during their training period, and facilitating the enrolment of Bahraini doctors in medical fellowship programs abroad. Additionally, the initiatives aim to support the graduation of Bahraini students with bachelors degrees in nursing and assist Bahraini nurses in obtaining specialized qualifications in various fields of nursing, the MP said. These initiatives will make Bahraini cadres the best choice for employment in the private health sector, said Dr. Al-Dhaen. Through rigorous training and professional development, we aim to enhance the quality of healthcare in Bahrain, ensuring that our national medical workforce is well-equipped to meet the community's health needs. Dr. Al-Dhaen lauded the dedication of His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, in driving initiatives that increase employment opportunities for Bahraini doctors and elevate their professional standards. She also commended the efforts of Tamkeen in launching this extensive programme package, the largest of its kind, and expressed gratitude to His Highness Shaikh Isa bin Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Isa bin Salman Educational Charitable Trust and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tamkeen. This initiative epitomizes the spirit of partnership within the Bahrain team, opening up promising horizons for Bahraini youth who are medical and nursing graduates, Dr. AlDhaen noted. It offers significant opportunities for creating quality jobs within one of the Kingdoms most prominent and promising sectors. Looking ahead, Dr. Al-Dhaen expressed her aspirations for Bahrain to maintain its leadership in the National Genome Programme, aimed at establishing a comprehensive database to monitor and prevent genetic diseases. She also highlighted the importance of expanding the use of modern technologies and robotics in medicine, positioning Bahrain as a pioneer in the Arabian Gulf in utilising medical robots in isolation wards. We anticipate the broadening of artificial intelligence applications in health services, Dr. Al-Dhaen continued. Through collaboration with global experts, emerging technologies like AI, biotechnology, materials science, and robotics can significantly advance the medical sector. Promoting innovation and scientific research in medicine will enhance patient care and healthcare services in Bahrain and worldwide. TDT | Manama The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com With people living longer and leading healthier lives, shouldnt they also work a bit longer? Their valuable experience and skillsshouldnt the country benefit from those a bit longer, rather than sending them off the grid? An intriguing question, isnt it? However, when a person like Jamal Fakhro, who holds one of the top positions in the Kingdoms bicameral legislature, throws such a question into the spotlight, it is worth a discussion. Sparking a new debate, he wrote on his handle on platform X: With life expectancy surpassing 80 years in most, if not all, GCC countries, it is time to reconsider the retirement age. Many European countries have already raised their retirement age to over 62 years, and in some, like Germany, it has even reached 67 years. Its worth noting that the life expectancy in Bahrain and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries is notably high. As of recent data, Bahrains life expectancy is approximately 78.6 years. Other GCC countries also have high life expectancies: Qatar at 80.2 years, the United Arab Emirates at 78.2 years, Kuwait at 78.5 years, Saudi Arabia at 75.8 years, and Oman at 77.4 years. These figures reflect the significant advancements in healthcare and living standards across the region. So, the pressing question is: what actions should be taken? Proponents highlight Bahrains demographic profile, economic conditions, and social dynamics, arguing that the benefits are numerous. Experts believe that as life expectancy increases, raising the retirement age can help ensure the sustainability of pension systems by reducing the number of years pensions are paid out. Older individuals bring valuable experience and skills to the workforce, contributing positively to the economy. An older workforce also means a lower dependency ratio, easing the financial burden on the working-age population. Additionally, extending the working years allows individuals to accumulate more savings, leading to greater financial security in retirement. However, not everyone is on board with this idea. Hamad AlDoy, a member of the Council of Representatives, came forward criticizing Fakhro for the tweet. Raise pensions, not age: Al-Doy Rejecting the idea, he argues that the focus should ideally be on enhancing the rights and conditions of retirees, rather than making them work more. He argues that its now time to raise their pensions, stating that pensioners currently receive a paltry amount. Al-Doy noted it is concerning to know that a Bahraini pensioner now receives only 300 dinars after contributing a lifetime of service to the Kingdom. Restore bonus: Jameel Hassan Jameel Mulla Hassan, another parliament member, has a different take on the issue. He calls on Fakhro to instead work towards restoring the 3% bonus for pensioners, considering the high oil prices. Hassan also emphasizes the importance of offering quality healthcare services to pensioners. He proposes enhancing the quality of life for retirees across the Gulf by reducing or eliminating various government fees they face and providing them with a broader selection of healthcare providers. Impact on society: Dr AlBuainain In his response, Dr. Ahmed AlBuainain pointed out that such a move, like raising the pension age, should be done only after considering several crucial factors, including the quality of work life, the level of health services, and the needs of the labour market, as everything is interconnected. He warns: Ultimately, it will bring about a significant impact on society, whether positive or negative. Comprehensive analysis must Experts say any decision to raise the retirement age in Bahrain should be based on a comprehensive analysis of these factors. It may be beneficial to implement gradual changes and provide support systems, such as retraining programs and healthcare services, to ease the transition for the aging workforce. AFP | Kathmandu The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com Lashing rains in Nepal causing flash floods and landslides have killed at least 14 people across the country, with disaster teams searching for nine missing, police said yesterday. Flooding in neighbouring India, as well as in downstream Bangladesh, has also caused widespread damage and impacted millions. Police are working with other agencies and locals to find the missing people, Nepalese police spokesman Dan Bahadur Karki told AFP. Those killed and missing are in multiple locations. Monsoon rains from June to September bring widespread death and destruction every year across South Asia, but the numbers of fatal floods and landslides have increased in recent years. Experts say climate change and increased road construction are exacerbating the problem. Parts of Nepal have been receiving heavy rainfall since Thursday, prompting disaster authorities in the Himalayan nation to warn of flash floods in multiple rivers. His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa on Monday congratulated His Excellency Mr. Masoud Pezeshkian, the President-elect of Iran, and Sir Keir Starmer, the newly-elected Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. Chairing the weekly Cabinet meeting at Gudaibiya Palace, attended by His Royal Highness Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the Crown Prince and Prime Minister, His Majesty the King congratulated His Excellency Mr. Masoud Pezeshkian and emphasized the interest of the Kingdom of Bahrain in establishing normal relations based on cooperation with the Islamic Republic of Iran. His Majesty also congratulated Sir Keir Starmer on his appointment as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, wishing him success in leading his country towards further progress and prosperity. New Hijri Year Wishes for Arab world His Majesty extended his congratulations to the people of Bahrain and the Arab and Islamic nations on the advent of the new Hijri year 1446, praying to Allah Almighty for a year of security and prosperity for the Arab and Islamic nations, and for continued progress and development for the Kingdom of Bahrain and its people. Building Peace His Majesty the King commended the efforts of the national committee responsible for coordinating and following up on the implementation of Bahrain's initiatives submitted to the 33rd Arab Summit, aimed at further strengthening joint Arab action. HM the King reaffirmed Bahrain's commitment to building bridges of cooperation with all countries to contribute to peace, security, and stability in the region. His Majesty highlighted the development and progress achieved by the Kingdom of Bahrain and the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council, noting the advanced level of services and living standards have attained on a global scale. Cooperation for development His Majesty stressed that while Bahrain safeguards its interests and those of the world in the region, it is incumbent upon global friends and partners to consider the regions circumstances and challenges. HM the King urged them to stand with the region with clarity and commitment to avert threats, confront destructive hegemonic policies, and adopt comprehensive strategic cooperation agreements in security, economy, and development. Unite for Peace His Majesty the King underscored the importance of renouncing differences, uniting, and pursuing peace and good neighbourliness in bilateral and regional relations, avoiding policies of aggression and proxy wars, and ensuring that decisions are made in self-interest and solidarity to face challenges that threaten regional stability, such as the situation in the occupied Gaza Strip, threats to navigation in the Red Sea, and emerging threats. Bahrain is for all Bahrainis His Majesty the King asserted that Bahrain is for all Bahrainis, and their unity and cohesion as one family is a source of strength and pride for the nation. His Majesty said that true citizenship in Bahrain is a driving force for the nation's advancement and prosperity, rooted in authentic Bahraini values, customs, and shared principles that strengthen national identity and preserve the social fabric of coexistence, harmony, and human tolerance. His Majesty emphasised the significance of upholding Bahrain's values and traditions, deeply rooted in the rich cultural heritage of Arab and Islamic values. His Majesty added that the prestigious status of the Arab nation, with a history rooted in true Islam, respect for the Abrahamic faith, and pride in its heritage and morals. His Majesty highlighted the Arab nation's vital and positive role in the region and the world, being a major source of energy and a hub for global trade connections. Citizens key partners in development His Majesty emphasised that Bahraini citizens are key partners in driving the Kingdom's development across various sectors. In this regard, HM the King highlighted the importance of investing in Bahraini citizens and closely monitoring the implementation of major development projects to ensure their positive impact on citizens' well-being and to create promising opportunities. Orders support for successful observance of Ashoora On the occasion of the commemoration of Ashoora, His Majesty instructed the relevant authorities to ensure all necessary preparations and support for the successful observance of Ashoora. His Majesty underscored Bahrain's culture of openness and tolerance, qualities that have long defined the Bahraini society and rendered the Kingdom an oasis of fraternity, peace, development, and achievement. Action plan to preserve Bahraini identity Furthermore, His Majesty directed the formulation of an action plan to preserve Bahrain's historical and cultural identity, the completion of the Muharraq City Development Plan, and launching a comprehensive plan for the redevelopment of the historic Manama Souq area while preserving its character, and addressing the infrastructure needs of historic areas. Ensuring food security His Majesty emphasised the importance of implementing plans and projects to enhance food security, support national products, preserve wildlife, and develop Bahrain's fisheries wealth. Commends HRH CPs efforts His Majesty praised the unwavering efforts of HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister in advancing national action and achievements across various fields through constant oversight of government and developmental activities. His Majesty acknowledged the ongoing efforts of all members of Team Bahrain, whose contributions from their respective positions have led to the Kingdoms achievements at multiple levels. HRH CP thanks HM King HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister expressed gratitude to His Majesty the King for his appreciation of the efforts made by all members of Team Bahrain. HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister noted that this recognition from His Majesty the King is a source of pride and responsibility to continue fulfilling HM the King's aspirations. HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister highlighted the commitment of ministries and government agencies to implement His Majesty's directives to develop Bahrain's cities while preserving their historical and cultural identity, to ensure the success of the commemoration of Ashoora, and to execute various plans and projects to enhance food security, support national products, and preserve wildlife. HRH the Crown Prince and Prime Minister affirmed that government agencies are always honoured to implement His Majesty's directives, contributing to Bahrain's development goals and progress across various levels. VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - CareSpan Health, Inc. (TSXV: CSPN) ("CareSpan" or the "Company") a digital healthcare company focusing on primary care and mental health through its provider networks American-APN and American-Med Psych, and its "Clinic-in-the-Cloud" integrated digital care platform, announces its audited consolidated financial results for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 and unaudited results for the three-month period ended March 31, 2024. The Company also provides an update on the CTO (as defined herein). All amounts are expressed in this press release are in United States dollars. Update on Cease Trade Order On June 12, 2024, the Company filed, together with the applicable fees, its audited financial statements for the year ended December 31, 2022, related management's discussion and analysis, and the certification of annual filings for the period ended December 31, 2023. On June 24, 2024, the Company filed, together with the applicable fees, its interim financial statements for the three-month period ended March 31, 2024, related management's discussion and analysis, and the certification of interim filings for the period ended March 31, 2024. The Company has submitted an application to the TSX Venture Exchange (the "Exchange") to reinstate trading of the common shares of the Company on the Exchange. The Exchange has confirmed that trading of the Common Shares will resume on July 10, 2024. 2023 Financial Highlights Revenue : CareSpan reported total revenue of $2.52 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, a decrease from $4.54 million for 2022. The decline was primarily due to a strategic shift from low-margin to higher-margin business contracts. Operating Expenses : Operating expenses decreased to $4.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 from $8.17 million for 2022; a significant portion of the cost reduction was due to a decrease in payments to practices as that portion of the Company's business decreased and its focus shifted to higher margin contracts. There was also a significant decrease in labor costs, information technology costs, and general administrative expenses for the 2023 year. "In 2023, we made strategic decisions to pivot our business model towards higher-margin SaaS offerings and contracts serving U.S. military veterans," stated Darrell Messersmith, Chief Executive Officer of CareSpan. "This transition necessitated a deliberate, strategic shift from low-margin to higher-margin engagements that we anticipate will improve revenue quality in the long-term. With this focus implemented during the year 2023, we are confident in our ability to drive long-term value." Detailed Look Revenue : CareSpan reported a decrease in annual revenue to $2.52 million for the period ended December 31, 2023, down from $4.54 million for 2022. The decline in revenue was primarily attributed to a programmed decrease in the Company's provider network business that was not yielding the expected margins. During the past year, the Company's shift was a strategic realignment to focus to support third party contracts with the VA, involving medical examinations for returning veterans and reservists. This business segment has growth potential and improved margins for CareSpan. The Company dedicated its resources to the recruitment of providers for these contracts in 2023 and Q1 2024. These providers are subject to typical stringent credentialing requirements and processes that takes multiple months to complete. The Company has started to generate network growth through contracting new providers in 2023, as providers became credentialed and are expecting the realization of revenue to continue during 2024 and beyond. Operating Expenses : As the Company pivoted and transitioned its business, revenue from the prior provider network business declined as new business from U.S. military contracts started to increase. During this transition phase, as overall revenue declined, the Company effectively managed operating expenses, which decreased to $4.6 million in 2023 from $8.17 million in 2022. This reduction reflects ongoing efforts to enhance cost efficiency across the organization. Q1 2024 Financial Highlights Revenue : CareSpan reported total revenue of $969,675 for the three-month period ended March 31, 2024, compared to $904,191 in revenue for the three month period ended March 31, 2023. Net Income : The Company achieved a net income of $439,971 for Q1 2024 compared to a net loss of $520,002 in Q1 2023. This turnaround is largely due to the sale of our remaining interest in CareSpan Asia Inc. ("CareSpan Asia"), effective cost management, and the continued strategic pivot towards higher-margin engagements. CareSpan sold its remaining 15% interest in CareSpan Asia (the "CareSpan Asia Transaction"), resulting in gross proceeds of $988,475. The CareSpan Asia Transaction, included the sale of the shares of CareSpan Asia and technology to CareSpan Asia for use in the Philippines and certain other Southeast Asian countries, in consideration for a cash payment and CareSpan to receive by the end of 2024, a modernized version of the CareSpan platform currently under development by CareSpan Asia. The CareSpan Asia Transaction contributed significantly to the net income of the Company during Q1 2024. The sale generated revenue of $729,116 from the technology transfer and $36,364 from the sale of shares. Additionally, $133,390 was repaid from advances previously written off in 2022, and $38,475 was received for services provided to CareSpan Asia. Operating Expenses : Operating expenses were significantly reduced to $528,704 in Q1 2024, down from $1,424,193 in Q1 2023, demonstrating our commitment to enhancing operational efficiency through cost containment, focus on revenue-enhancing projects, and a reduction in payments to practices and provider network business. Strategic Initiatives and Partnerships U.S. Military Contracts : As a critical part of the company's shift to higher margin business, we continue to expand our network of providers performing medical examinations for U.S. military veterans and reservists. With over 30 contracted providers to date and more expected to sign in the coming weeks, revenue from this line of business is expected to experience significant growth as more providers complete credentialing and begin accepting appointments. While the Company has encountered delays in realizing higher-margin revenue from VA medical exams and new SaaS business ventures to date, the expansion of the PACT Act1 is expected to significantly increase the volume of contracted VA medical exams, creating substantial opportunities for providers like CareSpan. Beyond the VA medical exams, the Company is optimistic about its SaaS opportunities in the chronic care and managed care markets, leveraging developments recently completed with its relationship with Golden Care Solutions ("Golden Care"). The Company has expanded licensing and completed the development of additional features through the relationship with Golden Care, a national medical practice that collaborates with other practices and providers nationwide to provide comprehensive preventive services built on annual wellness visits, remote patient monitoring, and chronic care management. By leveraging technologies and collaborative care models, the Company is empowering practices nationwide to deliver more proactive, personalized, and value-based care, ensuring better health outcomes and new revenue opportunities. Additionally, ongoing regulatory support for digital health solutions continues to reinforce CareSpan's market position. This collaboration with Golden Care for preventive services including Annual Wellness Visits, Remote Patient Monitoring, and Chronic Care Management is expected to be a key growth factor for the Company in 2024. CareSpan is in strategic talks with a potential artificial intelligence partner to integrate advanced artificial intelligence capabilities into its digital healthcare platform. This collaboration aims to enhance synergies, bring higher operational efficiencies, and advanced clinical decision to support CareSpan's customers. Update on ChopraX Transaction Further to its press release on November 7, 2023, the Company and the Chopra team are still intent on collaborating around the Chopra Whole Person Care brand to deliver integrative medicine using the CareSpan platform; but as of the date hereof, there are no material updates with respect to the anticipated closing of the proposed transaction between the parties nor updates on the contemplated concurrent financing. About CareSpan Health, Inc. CareSpan is a healthcare technology and services company. CareSpan, with its office in British Columbia, is the parent company of the CareSpan group, which holds a 100% interest in its operating subsidiary, CareSpan Holdings, Inc., a Delaware incorporated company. CareSpan's proprietary 'Clinic-in-the Cloud' is a clinical workflow driven platform designed by doctors that integrates remote patient monitoring, diagnostic tools, the patient's electronic health record, care collaboration capabilities, patient engagement and e-prescribing and lab ordering. CareSpan's platform seamlessly supports both in-person and virtual/telehealth care. CareSpan is using this platform combined with essential business services to build provider networks across the U.S. that deliver primary and chronic care, and urgent care as well as behavioral health care. Forward-Looking Statements This news contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements") which reflect the current expectations of management of the company's future growth, results of operations, performance, and business prospects and opportunities, including the statements made above with respect to: (i) the resumption of trading of the Common Shares; (ii) the expected generation of higher margin business; (iii) contracting of new providers on the Company's platform; (iv) expected benefits of the PACT Act; (v) anticipated trends as in technology and SaaS business ventures that could have a positive act on the Company and its partnerships; (vi) discussions with an artificial intelligence partner and the potential benefits to the Company; and (vii) the intention of CareSpan and Chopra to work together. Forward-looking statements are frequently, but not always, identified by words such as "may", "would", "could", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "predict", "potential for", "intend" and similar expressions or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although these words may not be present in all forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on management's assumptions as at the date of the forward-looking statements are provided, including but not limited to the following: the ability of the Company to execute its growth plans; the Company's ability to sign-up new providers; the ability of Company's management to deploy capital in an efficient and profitable manner; the market being receptive to such product offering from the Company; no adverse changes in the applicable regulatory environment of the Company; and Company's ability to sufficiently capture opportunities to grow profitably. Though management believes that its assumptions are reasonable in the circumstances, forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from all or any of the future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by forward-looking statements. Risk factors that could cause the Company's actual results, performance, or achievements to differ from the forward-looking statements in this news release include, but may not be limited to: general market and economic risk; the ability of the Company's management to execute its strategy; the Company's ability to allocate capital in an efficient manner; the Company may never reach profitability and has a history of losses; risk of dilution and further share issuances to raise capital; Golden Care's and Chopra's respective brands maintain a positive association with wellness; the profitability of military health contracts; consumer demand for remote patient monitoring in the United States; reliance on key personnel and management; unexpected or adverse regulatory changes in the healthcare space. These factors should be considered carefully, and prospective investors should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. Although the forward-looking statements contained in the news release are based upon what management currently believes to be reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure prospective investors that actual results, performance or achievements will be consistent with these forward-looking statements. Except as required by law, the Company expressly disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Service Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE CareSpan Health, Inc. Contact Information: Contact: Leslie Markow, CFO, Email: [email protected], Telephone: (888) 337-5889, https://www.carespanhealth.com Integrated campaign by Lifelong Crush for Kelseys Original Roadhouse embodies a Roadtrip vibe - even in the restaurant itself. VAUGHAN, ON, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - As we hit mid summer, Kelseys Original Roadhouse is encouraging Canadians to make the most of road trip season in their new "That Kelseys Roadtrip Feeling" integrated campaign. Launching with television and high-impact OOH this week, the new campaign developed by Lifelong Crush aims to connect the exhilarating feeling you get on a roadtrip with good friends, crisp drinks, savory food, fond memories - and the wind in your hair. The new campaign developed for Kelseys by Lifelong Crush aims to connect the exhilarating feeling you get on a roadtrip with good friends, crisp drinks, savory food, fond memories - and the wind in your hair. (CNW Group/Kelseys Original Roadhouse) "At Kelseys, we aim to give guests a feeling that the Roadhouse is a welcoming place for everyone, where you can come in and enjoy the ride," says Shannon Lawler, Chief Operating Officer for Kelseys Original Roadhouse. "We wanted to lean into that relaxed roadtrip feeling and apply it to the everyday" adds Dina Ricco, Sr. Brand Manager. The spot includes key elements including the voice of TSN's Rod Smith, the longstanding voice of the brand, and the classic retro-funk song, "Real Good Feeling" by Bobby Byrd as the soundtrack for the summer, reflecting the nostalgic roots and relaxed vibe of Kelseys Original Roadhouse. "Enjoying that sense of everyday adventure is important for people, and we wanted to capture how this spirit thrives at Kelseys" said Christina Yu, Partner, and Chief Creative Officer at Lifelong Crush. Further campaign support will be rolling out in other media, including fun out-of-home activations on classic road-tripping routes that mirror the video concept showcasing the wind-blown-hair and campaign tagline "that Kelseys Roadtrip Feeling". By leveraging their in-house editorial expertise and strong collaborations with trusted production partners, Merchant, and Divisn Post, Lifelong Crush was able to shoot multiple spots in a single day, effectively bundling budgets and resources to provide exceptional value. About Kelsey's Original Roadhouse Kelseys is Canada's Original Roadhouse, since 1978. With over 65 locations across Canada primarily in Ontario, as well as Moncton, New Brunswick, and St. Johns, Newfoundland. Inspired by the uninhibited spirit of road-tripping and the classic roadhouse, the rules are different at Kelseys. It's where you go to eat how you want to eat, drink what you want to drink and be who you want to be. It's where you fuel your adventurous spirit that craves something a little different - a little more original. Kelseys Original Roadhouse. Original is our Middle name. For more information about the Kelseys Original Roadhouse brand story, and our local restaurants and initiatives, visit us at www.kelseys.ca . About Recipe Founded in 1883, RECIPE Unlimited Corporation is Canada's largest full-service restaurant company. The Company franchises and/or operates some of the most recognized brands in the country including Swiss Chalet, Harvey's, St-Hubert, The Keg, Montana's, Kelseys, East Side Mario's, New York Fries, Bier Markt, The Landing Group of Restaurants, Original Joe's, State & Main, Elephant & Castle, The Burger's Priest, The Pickle Barrel, Marigolds & Onions, Blanco Cantina, Anejo, and Fresh Kitchen + Juice Bar. RECIPE's iconic brands have established the organization as a nationally recognized franchisor of choice. More information about the Company is available at www.recipeunlimited.com. About Lifelong Crush: Lifelong Crush is a multidisciplinary creative agency focused on heightening brand relevancy, impact and effectiveness through diverse work that harnesses a cultural beat. With a passion for results, we elevate the relationship consumers hold with brands to drive long term performance trough unconstrained ideas that create lasting impressions for brands. We're creating consumer crushes for all kinds of clients including Asahi Canada, Dairy Farmers of Ontario, Everest Funeral Concierge, Fever-Tree Canada, Kelseys Original Roadhouse, Kicking Horse Coffee, Plan International Canada and Scarborough Health Network Foundation. SOURCE Kelseys Original Roadhouse Media Inquiries: Agency: Nadine Lamanna, [email protected], 647-458-8174; Client: Shannon Lawler, [email protected], (416) 988 -6231 MONTREAL, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. (Novartis) today announced the launch of a new health equity initiative, aimed at addressing health disparities and promoting equitable healthcare for Canadians. In this open call for ideas, Novartis will award $500,000 CAD to non-profit projects focused on improving health equity in three pivotal areas: social/cultural inclusivity of care, health literacy and education, and the promotion of health support for immigrants to Canada. Despite a publicly funded healthcare system, access to timely and appropriate care still is challenging for many individuals in Canada.1 Novartis is committed to changing this by funding innovative ideas and approaches that challenge the status quo and improve the overall health and well-being of Canadians. Improving health equity requires reducing socioeconomic disparities, promoting culturally sensitive care, enhancing access to health services and addressing the specific needs of marginalized populations. "Our commitment extends beyond the traditional boundaries of healthcare, and we are working with underserved groups, non-profit organizations and communities to deliver meaningful and sustainable change within Canadian society," says Mark Vineis, Country President Novartis Canada. "By embracing the power of cross-sector collaboration, we can create a paradigm shift towards a more inclusive and equitable healthcare system for all Canadians." To build skills and capacity to develop the Novartis Health Equity Initiative, Novartis consulted and received training from Equity Mobilizing Partnerships in Community (EMPaCT) an innovative, award-winning model of patient and community engagement housed at Women's College Hospital, Toronto, Canada. Through a series of upskilling workshops, EMPaCT instructed on key concepts and practices identified as critical to run a successful health equity-focused community investment program, and to orient and equip staff on the competencies to design an inclusive grant program. EMPaCT acts as a catalyst for positive change by providing timely recommendations to projects so that they can increase health equity. In a collective statement, the co-founders of EMPaCT, scientist Dr. Ambreen Sayani and patient partner Alies Maybee, commented that, "we need to include diverse people with a variety of lived/living experiences to create meaningful change in our society." How to apply for funding Novartis Canada warmly welcomes all organizations that share their passion for advancing health equity to apply for funding and is committed to uniting and leading a paradigm shift towards a more inclusive and fair healthcare system one that benefits every individual in Canada. To find out more information about the initiative and apply for funding, please visit https://www.novartis.com/ca-en/esg/novartis-health-equity-initiative. All applications must be received before 11:59 p.m. PT on September 15, 2024. About Novartis Novartis is a focused innovative medicines company. Every day, we work to reimagine medicine to improve and extend people's lives so that patients, healthcare professionals and societies are empowered in the face of serious disease. Our medicines reach more than 250 million people worldwide. Reimagine medicine with us: Visit us at https://www.novartis.com and connect with us on LinkedIn, Facebook, X/Twitter and Instagram. In Canada, Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. employs approximately 600 people to serve the evolving needs of patients and the healthcare system and invests over $30 million in R&D yearly in the country. For more information visit www.novartis.ca. MLR ID FA-11223687 References _________________________________ 1 Statistics Canada, 2023. Access to health care. SOURCE Novartis Pharmaceuticals Canada Inc. Media Contact information: Rosa D'Acunti, Communications & Engagement Head, E-mail: [email protected], +1 514-633-7873 VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Soma Gold Corp. (TSXV: SOMA) (WKN: A2P4DU) (OTC: SMAGF) (the "Company" or "Soma") announces a temporary suspension of mining and processing activities at its el Bagre mine and mill in Antioquia, Colombia, due to a community blockade. This action by the local community has restricted access for employees and supplies, leading to a Care and Maintenance status for the site. The blockade began on Wednesday, July 3, driven by community frustration over delays in local road maintenance and paving. Despite ongoing efforts by Soma and municipal authorities to address these concerns through a cost-sharing plan for paving approximately 3.5 km of regional road, the community has expressed dissatisfaction with the pace of progress. Soma has successfully negotiated with the community to allow access for critical supplies, security, and maintenance crews, ensuring essential operations continue. Discussions between all parties are ongoing, with a mutual goal of resolving the situation promptly. Soma recently completed a planned maintenance shutdown of the el Bagre mill, which included a successful rebuild of the ball mill. Operations resumed on schedule in late June. Q2 2024 gold production was 6,590 AuEq ounces, with 7,209 AuEq ounces sold. Total AuEq ounces sold for the first half of the year amounted to 14,233, representing 99.7% of the planned 14,277 AuEq ounces for the period. Geoff Hampson, Soma's President and CEO, states, "We are actively collaborating with the local community and are confident that a solution will be achieved in the coming days. While the blockade has caused a temporary production halt, we anticipate accessing a higher-grade area of the mine in the second half of the year and remain optimistic about meeting our full-year production targets at Cordero." ABOUT SOMA GOLD Soma Gold Corp. (TSXV: SOMA) is a mining company focused on gold production and exploration. The Company owns two adjacent mining properties in Antioquia, Colombia with a combined milling capacity of 675 tpd. (Permitted for 1,400 tpd). The El Bagre Mill is currently operating and producing. Internally generated funds are being used to finance a regional exploration program. With a solid commitment to sustainability and community engagement, Soma Gold Corp. is dedicated to achieving excellence in all aspects of its operations. The Company also owns an exploration property near Tucuma, Para State, Brazil that is currently under option to Ero Copper Corp. On behalf of the Board of Directors "Geoff Hampson" Chief Executive Officer and President Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. All statements, analysis and other information contained in this press release about anticipated future events or results constitute forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by the use of words such as "seek", "anticipate", "believe", "plan", "estimate", "expect" and "intend" and statements that an event or result "may", "will", "should", "could" or "might" occur or be achieved and other similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are subject to business and economic risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results of operations to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on estimates and opinions of management at the date the statements are made. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements even if circumstances or management's estimates or opinions should change except as required by applicable laws. Investors should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. SOURCE Soma Gold Corp. For further information, please contact Andrea Laird, telephone: +1-604-259-0302 This Camp Day on July 17 , 100 per cent of the proceeds from every hot coffee and iced coffee sold at Tim Hortons restaurants across Canada and in the United States are donated to Tim Hortons Foundation Camps to help underserved youth reach their full potential. , 100 per cent of the proceeds from every hot coffee and iced coffee sold at Tim Hortons restaurants across Canada and in the United States are donated to Tim Hortons Foundation Camps to help underserved youth reach their full potential. Tim Hortons, Tims restaurant owners, and guests have collectively raised over $250 million through Camp Day since 1991! Starting TODAY, Tims guests can also support Tim Hortons Foundation Camps by purchasing a Camp Day bracelet for $3 or a Donation Badge for $2 , with net proceeds donated to Tims Camps. TORONTO, July 8, 2024 /CNW/ - Tim Hortons Camp Day is back on July 17 with 100 per cent of proceeds from all hot and iced coffee sales donated to Tim Hortons Foundation Camps! The mission for Tim Hortons Foundation Camps is to provide life-changing opportunities for underserved youth to help them reach their full potential. Over 320,000 youth have been supported through multi-year development programs in the foundation's 50-year history. Tim Hortons Camp Day is back on July 17 with 100% of proceeds from hot and iced coffees donated to Tim Hortons Foundation Camps! (CNW Group/Tim Hortons) "We're thrilled to be celebrating the 50th anniversary of Tim Hortons Foundation Camps this Camp Day and the incredible impact that the foundation has had in empowering and inspiring so many deserving young people year after year," says Axel Schwan, President of Tim Hortons. "The growth opportunities and experiences delivered at our seven Tims Camps would not be possible without the support and generosity of Tims restaurant owners and Tims guests who have made the annual Camp Day campaign a phenomenal success. I encourage everyone to join us on July 17 and purchase a hot or iced coffee to help make an impact in the lives of young people who deserve every opportunity to succeed." Camp Day was kickstarted in 1987 by 58 restaurant owners in Atlantic Canada who donated 24 hours of sales to the Tim Horton Children's Camp in Tatamagouche, N.S. The initiative expanded to all Tim Hortons restaurants across Canada in 1991. Tim Hortons, Tims restaurant owners and guests have collectively raised over $12.7 million on Camp Day last year and a total of over $250 million has been raised since 1991. "Camp Day is the Foundation's most important fundraiser of the year. Thanks to the dedication of restaurant owners and their guests, we are able to continue empowering youth, and help them build the futures they envision for themselves," says Caroline Barham, President of Tim Hortons Foundation Camps and Tim Hortons restaurant owner. "I am proud to be a part of something so special, so impactful, and so FUN. And that's really, what this day is all about. Seeing and feeling the collective power of the Tim Hortons community. One coffee at a time!" "Camp provided me with the confidence early in my adolescence to take on challenges, develop lifelong friendships, and pursue my ambitions," says Brandon Hayashi, former Tims Camper. "Spending time immersed in nature at Tim Hortons Foundation Camps deepened my connection to the environment, fostering an appreciation for the natural world that continues to inspire me today. The confidence I gained in interacting with peers and mentors at camp laid the groundwork for developing the essential skills I need to work alongside my patients, a critical aspect of my journey in medical school." How to support Tim Hortons Foundation Camps on Camp Day: 100 per cent of the proceeds from all hot and iced coffee sales are donated to Tim Hortons Foundation Camps. It's a great day to size up your order and treat your family and friends to a coffee! Order a Tim Hortons Take 12 to share with co-workers, friends and family. A Tim Hortons Take 12 includes 12 small coffees along with cups, dairy and sweeteners. Guests can also fill out a pre-order form in advance for Tim Hortons Take 12s so their whole work team or family can support Camp Day together! Starting today, Tims guests can start supporting Tim Hortons Foundation Camps by purchasing a Camp Day bracelet for $3 , or a $2 Donation Badge, with net proceeds supporting Tims Camps . , or a Donation Badge, with net proceeds supporting . Round Up on the Tim Hortons mobile app to support Tims Camps . To round up your order to the nearest 10 cents , open your Tims app, tap on 'Community', and turn on the Round Up toggle. You can also ask a Tim Hortons team member to round up your order to the nearest dollar. . To round up your order to the nearest , open your Tims app, tap on 'Community', and turn on the Round Up toggle. You can also ask a Tim Hortons team member to round up your order to the nearest dollar. Guests will also be able to order a Camp Day donut at participating restaurants in Canada for $2 , with 100 per cent of the proceeds supporting Tims Camps . for , with 100 per cent of the proceeds supporting . Make a one-time or monthly donation online any time at www.timscamps.com. About Tim Hortons In 1964, the first Tim Hortons restaurant in Hamilton, Ontario opened its doors and Canadians have been ordering Tim Hortons iconic Original Blend coffee, Double-Double coffees, Donuts and Timbits in the years since. Over nearly 60 years, Tim Hortons has captured the hearts and taste buds of Canadians and has become synonymous with serving Canada's favourite coffee. Tim Hortons is Canada's largest restaurant chain operating in the quick service industry with nearly 4,000 restaurants across the country. More than a coffee and bake shop, Tim Hortons is part of the Canadian fabric and guests can enjoy hot and cold specialty beverages including lattes, cappuccinos and espressos, teas and our famous Iced Capps alongside delicious breakfast, sandwiches, wraps, soups and more. Tim Hortons has more than 5,700 restaurants in Canada, the United States and around the world. For more information on Tim Hortons visit TimHortons.ca. SOURCE Tim Hortons [email protected] Here is my analysis of human versus automated driving today and the level to be much safer than human in the future and why failed disengagements would have a low percentage being fatal. A truly much safer autonomous driving system would eventually cross over where interventions would be more dangerous than non-intervention. Think of the bad human passenger harassing the better human chauffeur. Self driving and robotaxi Interventions are when human drivers takeover from AI driving systems. China regs, Waymo and Cruise use remote drivers. China requires 1 human monitor per 3 cars. Tesla operation on highways with Autopilot are already eight times safer than human. Tesla recorded one crash for every 7.63 million miles driven with Autopilot engaged. Tesla human drivers not using Autopilot, there was one crash for every 955,000 miles driven. Tesla will only replace autopilot with FSD for highway driving when FSD is statistically much superior to Autopilot. Tesla FSD/Autopilot is already about eight times safer for highway driving than humans in the same vehicle. Tesla vehicles have superior passive safety systems. Failed Interventions (where humans miss potentially correcting for the self diving system) most of the time would not lead a crash. Even failed critical interventions would not result in a injury crash. About 1 in 200 human car crashes result in fatality. About 1 in 5 result in injury. 1.2 million deaths worldwide, 50 million injuries each year globally. About 10-20 trillion miles driven. 3 trillion in the USA. In the USA, 1 collision per 600k miles. Humans in San Francisco had the highest rate of crashes where an injury was reported with 5.55 incidents per million miles, which was approximately three times higher than the national average. Human drivers in San Francisco have reported injury crashes every 180,000 miles. There is a non-injury or injury crash about every 30,000 to 40,000 miles in San Francisco. Swiss Re study of Waymo demonstrated: An 85% reduction or 6.8 times lower crash rate involving any injury, from minor to severe and fatal cases (0.41 incidence per million miles for the Waymo Driver vs 2.78 for the human benchmark) A 57% reduction or 2.3 times lower police-reported crash rate (2.1 incidence per million miles for the Waymo Driver vs. 4.85 for the human benchmark) Waymo has 1 disengagement every 17000 miles but one injury incident every 2 million miles or so. Waymo has a police reported crash every 476000 miles vs every 206,000 miles for humans. Waymo has an injury crash every 2.44 million miles vs every 360,000 miles for humans. This is data adjusted for the San Francisco, Phoenix areas and mix of highway and road driving performed by Waymo. Tesla FSD is now mimicking the best drivers which means avoiding almost all dangerous situations entirely. With new AI, voice commands will be possible. Passenger will be able to give voice commands to override and request a safe pause in operation aka pull over or to inform that they perceive and incident. What are the types of disengagements for Tesla FSD? Mostly Lane issue, wrong speed, maps, another vehicle. This is sampled from crowd sourced data at Teslafsdtracker.com. An In 2023, Ars Technica Author read through every crash report Waymo and Cruise filed in California in 2022, as well as reports each company filed about the performance of their driverless vehicles (with no safety drivers) prior to 2023. In total, the two companies reported 102 crashes involving driverless vehicles. That may sound like a lot, but they happened over roughly 6 million miles of driving. That works out to one crash for every 60,000 miles, which is about five years of driving for a typical human motorist. In addition to the statistics maintained by the California OTS, the California Highway Patrols Statewide Integrated Traffic Record System (SWITRS) also compiles car accident statistics. The SWITRS 2019 annual report, which is the most current report available, shows that there were 187,211 car wrecks involving an injury. How many car accidents happen a day in California? The answer may not be knowable, but this statistic shows that there are more than 500 injury crashes a day in California. In addition, SWITRS recorded 3,737 people killed as the result of 3,438 total fatality wrecks. The 187,211 injury crashes resulted in 269,031 people being hurt in accidents. All told, there were 190,649 car accidents in California in 2019 that resulted in either an injury or a death. Another 279,899 crashes resulted in only property damage. These numbers give an answer to those who want to know what percentage of car accidents are fatal in California. Just about 0.7 percent of all traffic collisions result in a fatality. Back in February, 2023, Waymo released a report celebrating its first million miles of fully driverless operation, which mostly occurred in the suburbs of Phoenix. Waymos autonomous vehicles (AVs) experienced 20 crashes during those first million miles. Waymo without driver in car but remote, Intervention every 17k miles in hypermapped zones with Lidar. 1 crash every 50k miles. The vast majority of the collisions were low speed and were due to human error of the other vehicles or because of illegal human activity like spinning donuts in large intersections. As of June 28, 2024, the California DMV has received 722 Autonomous Vehicle Collision Reports. Here is a link to the California autonomous vehicle disengagement reports. Here are statistics on Waymo and Cruise robotaxi crashes. Tom Fowler, the bassist for Frank Zappa, Mothers of Invention and Ray Charles, died on Tuesday, July 2 due to complications from aneurysm he suffered the previous week. He was 73. Engineer and producer Dennis Moody shared the news and wrote a tribute for Fowler in a post on Facebook. Tom Fowler. One of the most creative, intelligent, and wackiest people Ive ever met, Moody wrote in the caption with a photo of him posing with Fowler. Tom played bass on a half dozen Frank Zappa albums, and as well of the last 10 years with Ray Charles. I met Tom and his brother Walt when I was 20 years old. He and I remained friends forever, touring the world and making lots of incredible music. Tom passed away yesterday from complications of an aneurysm he suffered last week. He will be truly missed. Condolences to his wife Kai and the rest of his family. Tom Fowler. One of the most creative, intelligent, and wackiest people Ive ever met. Tom played bass on a half dozen... Posted by Dennis Moody on Wednesday, July 3, 2024 Arthur Barrow, who was the bassist for Frank Zappa in the late 70s and early 80s, also shared a tribute of Fowler in a Facebook post. So sad to report another big loss in the Zappa community. Tom Fowler left us yesterday, July 2, 2024. He was a hero to... Posted by Arthur Barrow on Wednesday, July 3, 2024 He was a hero to me, Barrow wrote in the caption of Fowler posing with a woman assumed to be a fan. The first time I heard Echidnas I almost fell over when he played the big 5/16 lick on the bass! I had no idea that a clumsy bass could do such a thing! He was an inspiration for me to buy a bass and start practicing. I have known him since about 1976. RIP old friend missing you very much. Fowler was born on June 10, 1951 in Salt Lake City, Utah, and played the violin at early age before eventually switching over to bass. He made his debut working with Zappa on 1973s Over-Nite Sensation, which also featured his brother, Bruce Fowler, on the trombone. Fowler played the bass for Zappa albums throughout the rest of the 70s until 1978s Studio Tan. Fowler played bass for other artists like George Duke, Jean-Luc Ponty and Steve Hackett as well as jazz fusion band, Air Pocket, which featured his brothers Bruce, Walt and Steve. He also played with Ray Charles from 1993 to 2004 and worked on his final studio album, Genius Loves Company, which was posthumously released and won the Grammy Award for Album of the Year in 2005. More music coverage Saleah Blancaflor may be reached at sblancaflor@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @saleyley and Instagram. Stephen King has seen enough. The prolific writer has called on Joe Biden to drop out of the race against Donald Trump, who he often criticizes on social media. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election. King posted to X. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election. Stephen King (@StephenKing) July 8, 2024 Anxiety is running high as top-ranking Democratic lawmakers are joining calls for Biden to step aside despite his defiance. At the same time, some of the presidents most staunch supporters are redoubling the fight for Bidens presidency, insisting theres no one better to beat Trump in what many see as among the most important elections of a lifetime. On Monday morning, Biden called into MSNBCs Morning Joe show, on which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Biden said. He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Trump. Later, Biden joined a call with members of his national finance committee, while First Lady Jill Biden campaigned for her husband in a three-state swing focused on engaging veterans and military families. Democratic voters are split on whether Biden should remain the Democratic Partys nominee for president, or whether there should be a different Democratic nominee, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll. 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. Investigators are looking for tips from the public in the fatal shootings of two people that occurred in 1973. On April 19 around 4 a.m., John Sabbatino, 27, of New Brunswick, was found dead near Otis and Grove avenues in Edison, the Union County Prosecutors Office said in a news release. About three hours later, the body of Jeanne Biondo, 37, of East Brunswick, was found in a parked car behind the DMV inspection station in Plainfield, officials said. Both victims died from gunshot wounds. Authorities have called the two deaths a double homicide, but did not say how or why they believe they are connected. The locations of the two deaths are about six miles apart. HARBIN, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Tourists visiting Harbin, China's "Ice City" in its northernmost Heilongjiang Province, now have a new attraction to explore, namely an indoor ice and snow theme park that opened on Saturday. With a construction area of 23,800 square meters, the park has clinched the Guinness World Record as the world's largest indoor ice and snow theme park. According to the park manager, the facility features nine themed areas showcasing lifelike ice sculptures illuminated by colorful lighting. The theme park maintains a constant temperature to accommodate visitors throughout the year. The park will complement Harbin Ice-Snow World, a landmark outdoor ice and snow theme park covering 810,000 square meters, thereby transforming Harbin into an all-season resort destination. Harbin, with its cold winters, is celebrated for its annual ice and snow festival. The Harbin Ice-Snow World received an average of over 30,000 visitors daily last winter. Enditem Just three days after a visit to Moscow that infuriated his European allies, Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary sprung another surprise on Monday by turning up in Beijing for previously unannounced talks with Chinas leader, Xi Jinping, that featured promises to strengthen their countries robust relationship. The visit to China, planned in secret like his trip on Friday to Moscow to meet President Vladimir V. Putin, is likely to intensify criticism in the European Union that the Hungarian leader is courting authoritarian leaders in defiance of the blocs stated foreign policy goals. In May, Mr. Orban had given Mr. Xi a red-carpet welcome in Budapest, the Hungarian capital, bolstering Chinas efforts to restore its influence in Europe at a time when the European Union as a whole is trying to contain the reach of a country it views as a systemic rival. Chinas official summary of their meeting on Monday in Beijing said they discussed their ideas to end the war in Ukraine, where both governments favor terms that Ukraine rejects as tilted toward Russia. Its among the longest tenures of any director of an arts organization. The choreographer John Neumeier has been running the Hamburg Ballet for 51 years, transforming it from a provincial opera house troupe into an international vehicle for his work a prolific mix of abstract and storytelling ballets that draws fervent audiences at home and abroad. On Sunday, Neumeier will take his final bow as director, at the companys annual end-of-season Nijinsky Gala, at which extracts from 13 of his works will be performed. After that the Argentine choreographer Demis Volpi will step into the role of artistic director. Neumeier is 85, which might seem like a decent age to retire. But choosing to go was difficult for him. It was a rational decision, not an emotional one, he said hesitantly in an interview in April at his home, a light-filled, early 20th-century villa in a quiet suburb of Hamburg. Trim and dapper in sneakers and a plaid shirt, Neumeier speaks with quiet focus and still moves with a dancers ease. Boeing agreed on Sunday to plead guilty to a felony charge of conspiring to defraud the federal government over two fatal crashes of the 737 Max in 2018 and 2019, according to a late-night court filing. In the deal with the Justice Department, outlined in part in the court filing, Boeing also agreed to pay a $487.2 million fine the maximum allowed by law and invest at least $455 million over the next three years to strengthen its compliance and safety programs. The company will be put on probation, supervised by the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Texas, for three years. As part of the probation, the Justice Department will appoint an independent compliance monitor who will make sure that safety measures are in place and followed, submitting annual reports to the government. The company will face additional penalties if any of the terms are violated. The companys board of directors will also be required to meet with crash victims families. The decision by Boeing to plead guilty is significant because the company has not been convicted of a federal felony in decades. In the filing, the department described the charge of conspiring to defraud the federal government as the most serious readily provable offense. Boeings announcement on Sunday that it had agreed to plead guilty to a federal criminal charge as part of a deal with the Justice Department was the culmination of a yearslong crisis involving the companys 737 Max plane. The agreement may help Boeing put to rest a federal case stemming from two fatal crashes of the 737 Max in 2018 and 2019. But the deal is not the final word on that saga and may have little impact on other problems, including questions about the companys production quality that were brought to light when a panel blew out of a Max jet during a January flight. Heres what else to know about Boeings deal with federal prosecutors and other challenges the company is dealing with. For as long as students at colleges across the United States have protested the war in Gaza, theyve drawn the fury of some of the financial worlds mightiest figures investors, lawyers and bankers who have flexed their financial power over universities, toppling school leaders in the process. It didnt stop the students. The protests intensified this year until campuses emptied out for the summer. Now, a prominent Wall Street law firm is taking a more direct approach with protesters. Sullivan & Cromwell, a 145-year-old firm that has counted Goldman Sachs and Amazon among its clients, says that, for job applicants, participation in a protest on campus or off could be a disqualifying factor. The firm is scrutinizing students behavior with the help of a background check company, looking at their involvement with pro-Palestinian student groups, scouring social media and reviewing news reports and footage from protests. It is looking for explicit instances of antisemitism as well as statements and slogans it has deemed to be triggering to Jews, said Joseph C. Shenker, a leader of Sullivan & Cromwell. A judge in New Mexico ruled on Monday that Alec Baldwins role as a producer of the film Rust was not relevant to his upcoming trial for involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of its cinematographer in 2021, dealing a setback to the prosecution. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer of the First Judicial District in New Mexico ruled that prosecutors could not argue that Mr. Baldwins role as a member of the films production team he was one of its producers in addition to being its leading man had made him more culpable for the death of the films cinematographer, Halyna Hutchins. It was a blow to the prosecution, which had sought to make Mr. Baldwins role as a producer part of their case. As the producer he has the power to control safety on set, and there was a tremendous lack of safety on this set, one of the prosecutors, Erlinda O. Johnson, argued in court earlier on Monday. Mr. Baldwins defense has disputed that, saying that as a member of the production team he was involved in creative matters, but that others had authority over hiring and budgets. Robert Menendezs Senate career is very likely to end this year regardless of the outcome of his corruption trial. But the verdict may determine exactly how. If Mr. Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat, is found guilty, he will face intense pressure to resign before his term is up or risk a potential expulsion vote by his Senate colleagues. If a jury acquits him or cannot reach a verdict, Mr. Menendez has indicated he could run for another term this fall as a political independent. But his chances of success would be slim, especially after his own party already chose a popular congressman as its nominee to succeed him. Mr. Menendez has been in a similar situation before. His 2017 trial in a separate corruption case ended with a hung jury. After prosecutors decided not to retry him, the senator successfully ran for re-election the next year. But fellow Democrats say it is hard to know exactly how Mr. Menendez, 70, will respond to a verdict this time around. He has insisted on his innocence since prosecutors charged him last fall in a vast bribery scheme involving gold bars, aid to Egypt and accusations of meddling in criminal prosecutions. He has rebuffed calls to resign from nearly every major Democrat in New Jersey. And at trial, his lawyers have indicated they are prepared to appeal if necessary. If the jury returns a guilty verdict, Mr. Menendez could conceivably refuse to step down until his appeal is heard. Doing so would most likely create pressure on his fellow senators especially Democrats facing difficult elections this fall to hold an expulsion vote. The bar for expulsion is high, requiring a two-thirds vote. The chamber has expelled only 15 members in its history, though others have resigned when faced with a possible expulsion vote. Democrats will face a different bind if Mr. Menendez is not convicted. Some suspect that his vows to run for re-election have been about raising money for his legal defense, rather than an earnest indication of his plans. But if he did follow through, the result could jeopardize the partys hold on a crucial New Jersey seat at a time when Republicans already have a good shot at retaking Senate control. Given his weak standing in polls, there is little chance Mr. Menendez could actually win, but he could siphon away enough support from the Democratic nominee, Representative Andy Kim, to risk tipping the race to Republicans. When this Supreme Court term began last October, one of the more intriguing predictions from commentators was that Justice Amy Coney Barrett entering her third full term on the court would come out of her shell and emerge as the courts new swing justice, casting the decisive vote in the most divisive cases. The commentators got half of that right: Theres little doubt, in looking at the oral arguments the court has conducted and the decisions it has handed down over the past nine months, that Justice Barrett has found her voice and has easily become the most interesting justice. Her questions at argument are penetrating; the analysis in her written opinions spares no one in its detail. The second part of that prediction didnt come true, though. Justice Barrett did side with some or all of the three Democratic appointees in several of the terms most important cases but her fellow conservatives seldom joined her. Indeed, while Justice Barrett was establishing her principled independence in the middle of the court, the other five Republican appointees moved only further to the right. When the majority in the Colorado ballot disqualification case went further than necessary, and the Democratic appointees called them out for doing so, there was Justice Barrett writing separately to chastise all of her colleagues for failing to send a unified message to the country. When Justice Clarence Thomas took too wooden an approach to assessing historical practice and tradition in a trademark case, there was Justice Barrett pushing back in an important concurrence that was joined by Justice Elena Kagan and in part by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson. To the Editor: Re No, I Dont Want to Protest, by Pamela Paul (column, June 21): I often enjoy Pamela Pauls well-expressed and proud contrarian views. However, in this column she not only declares, almost boastfully, that she happily avoids protest participation, but also seems to disparage the value and effectiveness of protests. Protesting, after all, is a central part of Americas historical legacy. As Ms. Paul acknowledges, we live in a country born of protest. Was not the Revolutionary War our grand protest against Britains oppressive colonial rule? My guess is that Ms. Paul disapproves of the recent student encampments protesting Israels aggressive actions in Gaza. (I dont, by the way.) But what does she think of the sit-ins and marches led by Martin Luther King and others in the 1950s and 1960s against Jim Crow in the South? Or the unions that organized the movement for better pay and workers rights in the 1930s? Or the women who led the demonstrations in the early 20th century for womens right to vote? It is all well and good that Ms. Paul chooses not to join protesters that is, of course, her right. She should take pains, though, to respect and perhaps even be impressed by the earnest Americans who decide for moral and/or political reasons to demonstrate for causes that may very well produce a better world. Who belongs onstage at an international theater festival? Its a thorny question for programmers with limited spots to fill. Already-famous artists bring predictable box-office returns, yet the picture of the world they offer rarely extends beyond a small group of countries. The Avignon Festival, in France, is lucky to be able to go off the beaten track. Every summer, it pulls a large audience that comes to experience a city filled to the brim with theater, rather than individual productions. Artists in the official lineup typically play to sold-out crowds regardless of their reputation, and many Avignon directors have taken this as their cue to experiment. And this years edition, with the Portuguese theater-maker Tiago Rodrigues at the helm, seemed to go even further. Of the 38 artists in the lineup, over half were new to Avignon, and many were unknown in France. As the first week of the festival unfolded, the spotlight shone repeatedly on amateurs and artists from countries rarely represented on the biggest European stages. Some, like the former prison inmates from South America who star in Lola Ariass The Days Outside (Los Dias Afuera), performed at the Opera Grand Avignon, directly expressed their disbelief at being there from the stage. One performer showed a tattoo of the Eiffel Tower on her body, explaining that it had been her dream to see France and now, she said after a quiet pause during the show, she had. Good evening. Tonight, were taking a look at the strategy behind President Bidens efforts to steady his candidacy. And Im covering a new ad campaign from Republicans who want to defeat Trump. The latest developments An expert on Parkinsons disease visited the White House eight times in eight months, including at least once for a meeting with President Bidens physician. Biden told his biggest donors he is staying in the presidential race. Jill Biden, the first lady, emphasized to voters in several states that her husband was all in on his campaign. A defiant President Biden sent a simple message on Monday to the detractors who say he needs to bow out of the presidential race: Bring it. Any of these guys that dont think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention, Biden said while calling into MSNBCs Morning Joe show, all but daring the Democrats who have been complaining about his electability since his disastrous debate performance to stand up and do something about it. Biden has been roundly criticized not just for his halting debate performance but also for moving too slowly to acknowledge and quell the hailstorm of doubts about his fitness to campaign and serve another four years. He is now rolling out a more aggressive playbook to try to shut down talk of his being shoved aside as the Democratic presidential nominee. Ask yourself: Who do you want in the White House the man proud to overturn Roe v. Wade, or the president fighting for your rights? the ads narrator says. Social conservatives have long sought more rigid restrictions on abortion nationwide, but these measures have been a losing issue for Republicans in federal, state and local races since 2022. Mr. Trump has also tried to tread more lightly on abortion. He said at the debate that, rather than having a nationwide ban, he hoped individual states would decide on abortion rights. The ad is aimed at addressing one of Mr. Bidens weak spots in the debate, when he gave a muddled response on the issue, and since then he has used campaign speeches to redouble his promise to restore Roe v. Wade if he is re-elected, one of his campaigns most enduring policy pledges. Mr. Bidens campaign, under intense scrutiny after his debate performance, has sought to keep the focus on Mr. Trump. It has been releasing social media posts, a website and ads about Mr. Trump and Project 2025, a Republican policy playbook assembled by the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation and like-minded groups. The playbook proposes a radical overhaul of the federal government including a rejection of the idea of abortion as health care. The Biden camps push focuses on how a second Trump term would significantly curtail liberties. Project 2025 is not a part of Mr. Trumps campaign platform, and he claimed no knowledge of the project last week. But the project was written or supported by a host of close Trump allies and former Trump administration officials, some of whom work for the former president. Jill Biden, the first lady, echoed President Biden on Monday in his the-discussion-is-over position that he would stay in the presidential race. While Mr. Biden stared down his own party back in Washington and called into a preferred television show, MSNBCs Morning Joe, to reiterate that he was staying in the race, Dr. Biden said as much during a one day, three-state campaign swing in North Carolina, Florida and Georgia. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, Dr. Biden told a crowd at a brewery in Wilmington, N.C. Thats the decision hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in too. I know you are too or you wouldnt be here today. And with four more years, Joe will continue to fight for you. Her stops were officially about shoring up support for her husband among military families and tying it to Joining Forces, an initiative Dr. Biden has championed since she was second lady in the Obama administration. But the whirlwind trip was just as much about reassuring shaken supporters of her husband that both Bidens were still campaigning to win. Donald J. Trump told officials on Monday that he supports a new Republican Party platform, one that reflects the presumptive nominees new position on abortion rights and slims down policy specifics across all areas of government. The new platform, as described to The New York Times by people briefed on it, cements Mr. Trumps ideological takeover of the G.O.P. The platform is even more nationalistic, more protectionist and less socially conservative than the 2016 Republican platform that was duplicated in the 2020 election. Mr. Trump, who has had the draft for several days, called into a meeting of party officials on Monday and said that he supports it. The document overwhelmingly was approved during a vote by the platform committee on Monday, passing 84 to 18, according to a person briefed on the matter. The abortion section has been softened. There is no longer a reference to traditional marriage as between one man and one woman. And there is no longer an emphasis on reducing the national debt, only a brief line about slashing wasteful government spending. The White House briefing room devolved into shouting on Monday as the press secretary, Karine Jean-Pierre, repeatedly dodged and refused to answer questions about the presidents health, and whether visits to the White House by a Parkinsons doctor were about the president. Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center who specializes in movement disorders, visited the White House eight times in eight months, according to official visitor logs. At 9:40 p.m. Monday, the White House physician, Dr. Kevin OConnor, released a statement saying that President Biden has not seen a neurologist outside of his annual physical and implying that most of Dr. Cannards visits were related to treating other people who work at the White House. But at the daily briefing on Monday afternoon, Ms. Jean-Pierre refused to talk about Dr. Cannard or to acknowledge his visits to the White House, even after The New York Times and other news organizations reported on the logs. She cited unexplained security reasons and at other times said that the doctor deserved a measure of privacy, even though the White House had already released his name and made the visits public. A blistering heat wave is believed to have killed four people in the Portland, Ore., area, officials said on Monday, and is expected to push temperatures into the triple digits this week across the Western United States, from Washington to Arizona. The medical examiners office in Multnomah County, Ore., which includes Portland, said that heat was suspected in three deaths in the county between Friday and Sunday, after record temperatures scorched the region. A fourth person, who was transported to a Portland hospital from outside the county, also died from an illness that was believed to be heat-related. The heat wave was expected to bring more sweltering weather to the southern parts of Arizona, Nevada and California, where daily temperatures were expected to rise to well above 110 degrees. The stifling conditions were expected to last through the workweek, according to the National Weather Service, and temperatures could run 15 to 30 degrees above average in some parts. The heat wave has already shattered records across interior California and in Las Vegas. In Death Valley, Calif., temperatures reached 127 degrees on Friday, a record for the date, and then 128 on Saturday and 129 on Sunday. A motorcyclist who was visiting Death Valley National Park died from heat exposure on Saturday, and another was treated for severe heat illness. Trey Cunningham found those first few phone calls excruciating. He has spent his life learning to keep his cool while out on the track, under intense pressure, in the glare of the crowd. But as he waited in the quiet for his family and his friends to pick up, waited to tell them he is gay, he found himself dripping with sweat. It was, he said, the scariest thing Ive ever done. He went through with it, at age 20, for much the same reason he is discussing it publicly now, five years later. There is a technique that Cunningham has long used in his training. We say our goals out loud, he said. If theres something we want to achieve, we say it. Putting something in words makes it real. That Cunningham one of the leading high hurdlers in the world is ready, and willing, to do that does not make him unique. He is not the first elite athlete, or even the first top American runner, to discuss their sexuality. As one of the few active male athletes who have been comfortable enough to come out, Cunningham is, though, still a rarity. There are lots of people who are in this weird space, he said. Theyre not out. But it is kind of understood. Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India arrived in Moscow on Monday to meet with President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia, a visit that signals the Indian leaders determination to stick to his own diplomatic path even as the West continues to isolate Moscow over its war on Ukraine. For Mr. Putin, Mr. Modis visit will be a way for Russia to show that the Kremlin continues to have a strong partnership with India, despite Indias deepening relationship with the United States. Indias purchases of discounted Russian petroleum have helped fill Russias coffers depleted by international sanctions over the war, and Russia has sought to cast India as a partner in reshaping the Western-dominated global order. This is the first visit to Russia by Mr. Modi in five years. He arrived to a red-carpet welcome at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, where he was met by a Russian military band, as well the first deputy prime minister, Denis V. Manturov. In a message posted on the social platform X after his arrival, Mr. Modi said he looked forward to deepening the special and strategic partnership between India and Russia, noting that stronger ties will greatly benefit our people. Frances left-wing parties surged unexpectedly in nationwide legislative elections on Sunday, denying the nationalist, anti-immigration National Rally party a majority in the lower house of Parliament. But official results showed that no party or bloc had secured an absolute majority, leaving one of Europes largest countries headed for gridlock or political instability. Here are five takeaways from the election. Big Surprise No. 1 There were two big surprises as France voted for a new Parliament in snap elections, neither one foreseen by pundits, pollsters or prognosticators. The biggest was the triumph of the New Popular Front, a coalition of left-wing parties that is now the dominant force in a bloc of about 190 lawmakers and that has emerged as the lower houses leading political group. Support for left-wing parties surged unexpectedly in nationwide legislative elections on Sunday, pushing the nationalist, anti-immigration National Rally into third place. The electoral map showed enduring divisions with Paris and its suburbs voting for the left and center, and the regions in the far north and south along the Mediterranean voting for the far right. The countrys political outlook appeared more muddled than before, with three large political blocs, each with a vastly different vision and plan for the country. I could not not help, Dr. Kolodka said when we spoke hours after I photographed him helping remove debris from the missile strike in Ukraine on Monday. Its my hospital, my people. Im a doctor. But first he needed help himself. Dr. Kolodka had been in the middle of performing cleft-lip surgery when the air-raid sirens went off at Ohmatdyt. Unable to stop working, the operating team plowed ahead until the explosion. His forehead lacerated, Dr. Kolodka went to a colleague to have the wound stitched up and then went outside to help, he told me in a phone conversation. The hospital was hit during a large-scale Russian bombardment that killed at least 20 people in cities across Ukraine on Monday. Russia said it had been targeting military facilities, but at the hospital, one doctor and another adult were killed, local officials said, and at least 16 other people were injured, seven of them children. A two-story medical building about 150 yards from the main hospital sustained the most extensive damage, with the structure completely collapsed. When the sirens went off, medical workers placed those patients who could be moved into hallways, away from the windows. But after the explosion, one doctor recalled seeing scores of badly injured people staggering through the halls. Images from inside the hospital showed bloodstained hallways, collapsed ceilings and destroyed operating rooms. A woman could be seen carrying a small child covered in dust and blood near the entrance. Dr. Kolodka, 30, who has worked at Ohmatdyt for a little over three years, said the infant girl he had been operating on was doing well. In the end, though, the surgery had to be halted after the power went out. Doctors used a manual respirator to keep the girl breathing, and then she was moved to another hospital so the procedure could be completed. A Russian military court found a playwright and a theater director guilty of justifying terrorism on Monday, sentencing them to six years in prison each in a case that critics say is the latest chilling example of the crackdown on free speech since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The playwright, Svetlana Petriychuk, 44, and the director, Yevgenia Berkovich, 39, are both acclaimed members of the Russian theater world and have been in custody since May 2023. In addition to the six-year sentences, exactly the time frame requested by prosecutors, both women will be banned from administering websites for three years following their release. The play Ms. Petriychuk wrote and Ms. Berkovich staged, Finist the Brave Falcon, is an adaptation of a classic fairy tale of the same name, interwoven with the stories of women baited online by men into joining the Islamic State. It is loosely based on the true stories of thousands of women from across Russia and the former Soviet Union who were recruited by ISIS terrorists. The main character of the play returns to Russia feeling betrayed and disappointed by the man who lured her there, only to be sentenced to prison as a terrorist herself. The prosecutor, Ekaterina Denisova, insisted that Ms. Petriychuk holds extremely aggressive Islamic ideologies and formed a positive opinion of ISIS, according to the Russian outlet RBK, and that Ms. Berkovich holds ideological convictions related to the justification and propaganda of terrorism. Ukraines largest childrens hospital was destroyed by a Russian missile on Monday, shaking Kyiv, the capital, with images of bloodied and injured children, and sending hundreds racing to the scene to help clear twisted metal and smashed concrete in a desperate search for survivors. The hospital strike was part of a barrage of bombings by Moscow across the country, including one of its deadliest assaults on Kyiv since the first months of the war. At least 38 people were killed across the country, including 27 in Kyiv. More than 100 people were injured. The Ukrainian air force said it shot down 30 out of the 38 missiles launched by Russia during the attack, which began in the midmorning. The attack was massive, combined with the use of aerial, ballistic and cruise missiles, said Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv military administration. The missiles flew at the capital in waves and from different directions. At the hospital, one doctor and another adult were killed and at least 10 more people were injured, including seven children, local officials said. At least three children were pulled from the rubble, Ukraines emergency services agency said. The judge overseeing Alec Baldwins involuntary manslaughter trial dismissed the case on Friday after the actors lawyers accused the state of withholding evidence that could have been relevant to how live ammunition reached the set of the Rust movie, leading to the fatal shooting of its cinematographer. After Mr. Baldwins lawyers called for dismissal of the case, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer sent the jury home for the weekend, and the prosecution and defense began questioning witnesses who may have insight into the new evidence: rounds of ammunition that were turned in to the police several months ago. On Thursday, the defense revealed while questioning a crime scene technician that a retired police officer had turned in the rounds, which he thought to be linked to the Rust set. Judge Marlowe Sommer ordered that the rounds be brought into the courtroom, and she took the unusual step of getting up from her bench and examining the rounds herself. A once politically far-fetched question can President Biden be replaced at the top of the Democratic Party presidential ticket has taken on new urgency after Mr. Bidens halting debate performance in late June against former President Donald J. Trump. The short answer is yes assuming Mr. Biden decides on his own to step aside. But if Mr. Biden decides not to step aside, the short answer is probably no. Either way, the process would be complicated and would open the door to political upheaval between now and when Democratic delegates gather to vote for a nominee at their convention in August. Mr. Biden has the power to leave the race and release all the pledged delegates he has accumulated 3,894 of 3,937 committed so far, according to a tally by The Associated Press during his march to the nomination. If he were to do so, those delegates would be free to vote for whomever they chose. That would lead to an open convention, a rarity in modern American politics. Durandal, a mythical sword that had been lodged in a rock wall in the French village of Rocamadour for the last 1,300 years, has suddenly disappeared, presumably stolen. Durandal was often described as the French equivalent of the much more famous Excalibur, King Arthurs legendary sword. Legend has it that an angel gave Durandal to the Holy Roman Emperor Charlemagne, who in turn entrusted it to his faithful knight, Roland. It is mentioned in the 11th-century poem The Song of Roland, which claims that its magical power came from containing the tooth of St Peter, the blood of St Basil, and the hair of St Denis. Roland is said to have tried to break his trusty sword after being wounded at the battle of Roncevaux Pass, to keep it from falling into the hands of the Saracens. However, Durandal was indestructible, so instead he hurled it towards the sky, and the sword landed in a giant rock, where it allegedly remained ever since. Until recently, anyway Photo: Patrick Clenet/Wikimedia Commons No one seems to know what happened to the legendary sword Durandal. Despite being chained to a rock 32 feet above ground, the legendary sword simply disappeared one day, most likely stolen. It is a heavy blow for the French village whose fate was intertwined with the legendary sword. Now, everyone is hoping that the sword is retrieved so everything can go back to the way it was. Rocamadour feels its been robbed of a part of itself, but even if its a legend, the destinies of our village and this sword are entwined, Mayor Dominique Lenfant told French newspaper La Depeche. Were going to miss Durandal. Its been part of Rocamadour for centuries, and theres not a guide who doesnt point it out when he visits. Locals are now hoping that their precious relic is returned to its rightful place, in the rock wall it was thrown at by Roland, either by the misguided thieves or the local authorities. A number of Offaly-based SPAR stores were honoured at the recent SPAR 365 Standards Customer Care Programme for achieving exceptional standards in retailing. The awards ceremony was held in Lawlors Hotel, in Naas in Co Kildare and was hosted by BWG Foods, owners and operators of the SPAR brand in Ireland. The Offaly stores who received a SPAR 365 Retailing Standards Award are Pat and Una McDonagh, McDonaghs SPAR Barack Obama Plaza; Aidan Healy, Healys SPAR Cloghan; Ben and Mary Sweeney, Sweeneys SPAR, St Marys Road, Edenderry; SPAR Corrib Oil Ferbane This years SPAR 365 Awards, held in association with independent bodies Solution Management Associates (SMA) and Lloyds Register Quality Assurance LRQA, recognise those SPAR stores who have excelled during the year across all areas of store. In winning these awards, the SPAR stores were independently assessed across a range of criteria including customer service through SMA as well as a robust Food Safety and Hygiene audit conducted by LRQA. These exemplary SPAR retailers received their award in recognition of their commitment to implementing Best practice store standards throughout their store, thereby providing an excellent customer experience to their local community. Congratulating the winners, Colin Donnelly, SPAR Sales Director, said: The SPAR 365 Standards Customer Care Programme recognise those Retailers who, through their ongoing commitment to outstanding retail standards and customer service, continue to set the benchmark for the SPAR brand and the Retail Marketplace overall. I congratulate all the SPAR winners from Offaly. Their efforts have been truly outstanding and this recognition is very well-deserved. Offaly Senator Pippa Hackett has narrowly missed out on being elected as the new leader of the Green Party. The leadership election for the party followed the resignation of Eamon Ryan from the position. Just two candidates went forward for election with Roderic O'Gorman also nominated to fill the post. The result of the membership vote has been announced and Roderic O'Gorman prevailed by 948 votes to 912. The result was announced at a party gathering in Bewleys Cafe, Grafton Street. He becomes the fourth leader of the Green Part Roderic OGorman was elected as a TD in February 2020 and soon was appointed as Minister for Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth. Pippa Hackett was elected to Offaly County Council in the Edenderry Electoral Area in 2019. Having missed out on election to the Dail in the Laois/Offaly constituency in 2020, she took a seat in the Seanad and has served as a Minister of State at the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine since June 2020. Speaking after the result was announced, Minister Hackett said, "well, I gave it a good shot! I want to thank sincerely every Green Party member who voted for me, as well as the amazing team of people who helped me during the leadership campaign. Im humbled by the many messages of support I have received over the past few weeks from people inside and outside the Party. I want to wish Roderic and his leadership team the very best, and I look forward to working alongside him for the remainder of this term in Government and into the future, as we get on with the vital work of delivering a fairer society that places the protection of our natural world at the heart of everything we do. New party leader Minister OGorman said, I am honoured to have been elected as Leader of the Green Party. I want to thank members for their support and for their participation in this election, and thank Pippa for bringing key issues to the fore. We are absolutely the stronger for having had this election. I know she cares as deeply about the Party as I do, and I look forward to continuing to work closely with her. Over the last four years, the Green Party has done exactly what we said we would we have delivered. On ambitions in climate and the environment, protecting nature, in supporting children and families, backing the arts and culture. We can be proud of our partys record for people in all parts of Ireland. We now need to demonstrate to everyone that Green Party policies are focused on the challenges of today every bit as much as those of tomorrow. Our solutions - on climate, transport, housing, support for families benefit everyone on this island. That job starts today. A man who faced a number of driving charges at Longford District Court had his case adjourned, pending a community service report. Shanks Kaunda, who is now living in Killeshandra and previously resided in Scotshouse, Co. Monaghan, was found to have committed a number of driving offences in Rathcronan, Granard on May 14, 2024. Sgt Mark Mahon told the court that on that date, Gardai stopped the man at a checkpoint. Mr Kaunda produced a driving licence, but it was from South Africa and he had no Irish driving licence. He was also found to have no car insurance. The court was told that he had 17 previous convictions, including some for having no car insurance. He had been previously disqualified from driving. His solicitor, Ms Brid Mimnagh, told the court that her client accepts that he is very much at risk. READ NEXT: Residents near Croke Park fume over 'vile' act by hurling fans at the weekend He is looking for mercy. He is a pastor in his church and looks after a number of churches, she stated. She went on to say that there was a letter available from her defendants landlord. He was working as a self-employed sales agent. On the day, my client was driving because a child of one of his parishioners had died. The references for him are extensive. They set out a man who has worked extensively for his community. He knows that he is at very significant risk and he is asking to avoid a prison sentence, Ms Mimnagh told the court. Judge Owens told Mr Kauna that she wouldnt be making any promises. She adjourned the case until September 17, with a community service report being prepared in the meantime. The image reads 'A fully modified Mustang'. The chassis is a riot of colours. The Mustang has an exhaust system which emits fumes and a deafening sound. Wide tyres protrude out of wheel arches. This was featured in an auto show in a college in Manjeri. Another image shows the driver's cabin of a tourist bus lit up with dazzling multi-coloured lights. YouTuber Sanju Techy's pool inside an SUV seems just one of the extravagant, audacious ways of flouting norms the Motor Vehicles department (MVD) has been dealing with especially in the past two months. Read More: Akash Thillankery rides through Wayanad on unregistered modified jeep; MVD initiates probe A raft of clips and images of modified vehicles with a huge fan following on social media platforms, including that of Mustang and tourist buses, has caught the attention of Kerala High Court in the past few months triggering a series of orders. The controversy surrounding violations by popular YouTuber Sanju Techy and repeated court interventions have underscored broader concerns regarding road safety and the legality of vehicle alterations in the state. Referring to the incident involving Sanju, Alappuzha Regional Transport Officer (RTO) A K Dilu said that a major accident was narrowly avoided. He highlighted the potential consequences if the modified vehicle had lost control and collided with another vehicle, causing a short circuit and leading to a catastrophic accident with casualties. MVD suspended Sanju's driving license. Photo: Screengrab/ Manorama News Where the line is drawn MVD's crackdown on violations has also stirred up a debate on extent of awareness and on the need to draw a line. Abraham Tharakan, owner of AT Carmodz in Thiruvananthapuram, specifically points out the ban on bull bars in India, contrasting this with their legal status in Australia where they are designed for airbag compatibility. He challenges the rationale behind India's prohibition, suggesting a reassessment based on practical safety considerations. He also suggests a model similar to Sri Lanka's, where modifications are permitted with additional taxes. Tharakan also raises concerns about the prohibition of glass headlights in India, where plastic headlights are required, yet the latest Mahindra Thar model features glass headlights. He questions how this approval was granted despite the ban. However, MVD officials said that ARAI (Automotive Research Association of India) certifies glass lamps after thorough research and testing. ''Car manufacturers cannot introduce a vehicle based solely on their preferences; they must comply with ARAI's certification process,'' the officials said. Bus owner Arshad Cocktail said that often the staff of government department choose buses with platforms, attractive lights, and sound systems for departmental outings. While there are blatant attempts at violations, awareness is a key factor, officials said. Section 52 of the Motor Vehicle Act outlines the permissible alterations to a motor vehicle, which can only be made after obtaining prior permission from the registering authority. Depending on the vehicle variant, users may alter the engine, change the colour, modify the fuel system, and so on. Colour alterations are permitted for vehicles without a colour code, such as cars, two-wheelers, and goods vehicles, except for colours like military green and police blue. All alterations must be recorded in the RC book. Although no comprehensive manual exists on vehicle modification, the transport commissioner periodically issues guidelines, according to MVD Inspector Dileep Kumar. All relevant information can be accessed on the MVD Kerala official website and Parivahan.com. Apart from this, the MVD promotes 'modification literacy' by disseminating awareness content on social media platforms. In addition to raising awareness, MVD officials monitor social media platforms for instances of youngsters flaunting their modified vehicles and engaging in dangerous driving stunts. Dileep Kumar said that most of these cases involve 18-year-olds seeking attention on social media. Consequently, action is taken against such activities.People can also alert officials about such incidents through Facebook or WhatsApp. Minor, permissible modifications can be carried out by authorised agencies in Kerala, including body workshops and retrofit centres, which adhere to the regulations. However, some small-scale workshops conduct illegal modifications, officials said. Why Transport Commissioner wrote to Youtube In May 2024, the HC noted that despite directives, contract carriages are being used in public places, which are fitted with after-market multi-coloured LED/laser/neon lights/flashlights, etc., which are capable of dazzling the drivers of the oncoming vehicles, pedestrians and other road users. Screenshots of such videos were also produced in the court. It further noted that video contents of unauthorised alterations and even the use of such vehicles in public places are being uploaded on online video platforms like 'YouTube', by the registered owners of such vehicles or vloggers. Such videos are being recorded even inside the driver cabin of contract carriages, heavy goods vehicles and other motor vehicles, while the vehicle is moving, disturbing the concentration of the driver while driving, thereby posing a potential threat to the safety of other road users. The sharp observations from the court had an effect. In June, the Transport Commissioner addressed a letter to the YouTube Moderation Team, pointing out that the video contents promoting risky and rash driving, showcasing altered or modified vehicles, which not only violate the legal standards but also posing significant safety threat, is influential among the youth, encouraging dangerous behaviour and fostering a culture of non-compliance with the traffic laws. The Road Safety Commissioner has already addressed the Director of Public Instructions and also the Director of Collegiate Education regarding auto show and similar activities on college campuses using the vehicles with unauthorised fittings and modification, posing threat to the safety of the students and also against the use of contract carriages with unauthorised fittings for the study tour, etc of the students. The Deputy Solicitor General of India-in-charge also told the court in June that the video clips that appeared on online media were forwarded to the Ministry of Road transport and Highways and is awaiting instructions from the ministry. "I see my role as an opportunity to serve as a visible and vocal advocate for the LGBTQIA+ community in our neighborhood." - Greg Wright, President North Hollywood West Neighborhood Council (Image by North Hollywood West Neighborhood Council) Details DMCA As part of the City of Los Angeles' celebration of Pride Month, the Department of Neighborhood Empowerment introduced LGBTQIA+ leaders from across the Neighborhood Council system. When interviewed for this series Greg Wright, President of the North Hollywood West Neighborhood Council, stated he works "to create a welcoming and inclusive environment within the Council and our broader community". He also stressed the need to foster "respectful dialogue [to ensure] that LGBTQIA+ voices are heard and valued". Wright's leadership is significant because his neighborhood includes Saticoy Elementary School. Last year this school was the site of a violent protest against a Pride celebration where members of the LGBTQIA+ and their allies were anything but welcomed on the streets of North Hollywood. As young elementary school students were escorted through the crowd to attend class they were subjected to homophobic slurs. A mob descended on a member of the trans community threatening their safety as they stood on a public sidewalk. A person holding a pride flag fought to hold on as the protestors tried to rip it from her hands. Unfortunately, Wright's support of the LGBTQIA+ community is not shared by all of his fellow Board Members. Business Representative Adriana Gomez sent the following email to Eunisses Hernandez, Chair of the Los Angeles City Council's Neighborhoods and Community Enrichment Committee: I am a daughter of Mexican immigrants and mother to a beautiful daughter. I was born in the San Fernando Valley and I raised a family here as well. I have seen first hand the increased pressure from a small group of aggressive activists in the LGTBQ+ community who have hijacked our education system in the name of equity and inclusion. Our classrooms have become a battleground for these activists to push an agenda that has no place in the schools, where math, reading, science and history should be our main focus. Children are not able to grasp the ideologies being pushed by adults fighting their own mental health. Being inclusive and diverse does not mean introducing children to sex or gender ideologies that they cannot understand at such an early age. It also does not mean providing oversexualized material to children in the name of inclusion. I kindly ask that you consider the children's well being over the feelings of activists and keep the classrooms as a place where children can learn age appropriate material and not LGTBQ+ ideologies that are not inclusive, but divisive at its core. As we celebrate Pride Month, let's remember that the current movement is no longer about equality, but instead it is about a small group of people fighting for power over schools, social media, politics and family values. We live in an amazing city where diversity is our norm. We welcome everyone with open arms, but please leave our children and schools alone. -- Adriana Gomez NC NoHo West Board Chair, Planning & Land Use Committee Budget Advocate Board Representative Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. Consider it strangely (in)appropriate that, among the things Donald Trump and Joe Biden hardly discussed (including climate change) at their debate, they did face off over" yes, Afghanistan! You remember Afghanistan, right? Biden said that Trump "didn't do anything about that," and Trump, in his usual incoherently hyperbolic fashion, responded, "He was so bad with Afghanistan. It was such a horrible embarrassment. Most embarrassing moment in the history of our country that when Putin watched that and he saw the incompetence" No general got fired for the most embarrassing moment in the history of our country, Afghanistan, where we left billions of dollars of equipment behind. We lost 13 beautiful soldiers and 38 soldiers were obliterated." To which Biden replied, "You ever heard so much malarkey in my whole life?" Uh" Do you even remember Afghanistan? You know, the land George W. Bush and crew invaded soon after the 9/11 attacks; the place this country's military then fought in until, just short of 20 -- yes, 20! -- years later, when, as the Taliban won ever more victories and the Afghan military that the U.S. had trained began to collapse, the Trump administration launched a chaotic process of not-quite-withdrawal, all too fitting for that disaster of a war that Joe Biden ended with the deaths of those 13 U.S. troops and (as ever) untold numbers of Afghans. It was, in truth, a horrifically appropriate conclusion to the first of America's terrifyingly and terrorizingly disastrous wars on terror. And now, in some eerie sense, you might consider the Afghan war -- in fact, all of America's wars on terror -- to be coming home to roost in a genuinely disturbing fashion, thanks in significant part to the man whom TomDispatch regular Andrea Mazzarino labels the Fifth Horseman of the Apocalypse -- and yes, there is something potentially apocalyptic about this bump stock of a moment in America. Tom War and Famine America's War on Terror and the Wasting of Our Democracy By Andrea Mazzarino Many war stories end with hunger wreaking havoc on significant portions of a population. In Christian theology, the Biblical "four horses of the apocalypse," believed by many in early modern Europe to presage the end of the world, symbolized invasion, armed conflict, and famine followed by death. They suggest the degree to which people have long recognized how violence causes starvation. Armed conflict disrupts food supplies as warring factions divert resources to arms production and their militaries while destroying the kinds of infrastructure that enable societies to feed themselves. Governments, too, sometimes use starvation as a weapon of war. (Sound familiar? I'm not going to point fingers here because most of us can undoubtedly recall recent examples.) As someone who has studied Russian culture and history for decades, I think of Nazi Germany's nearly three-year siege of the city of Leningrad, which stands out for the estimated 630,000 people the Germans killed slowly and intentionally thanks to starvation and related causes. Those few Russians I know who survived that war as young children still live with psychological trauma, stunted growth, and gastrointestinal problems. Their struggles, even in old age, are a constant reminder to me of war's ripple effects over time. Some 20-25 million people died from starvation in World War II, including many millions in Asia. In fact, some scholars believe that hunger was the primary cause of death in that war. We've been taught since childhood that war is mainly about troops fighting, no matter that we live in a world in which most military funding actually has little to do with people. Instead, war treasure chests go disproportionately into arms production rather than troops and (more importantly) their wider communities at home. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence and autonomous weapons are being developed with little or no ethical oversight or regulation, potentially removing many soldiers from future battlefields but not from the disastrous psychological scars of war. Meanwhile, in war zones themselves, among civilians, the long-term effects of armed conflict play out on the bodies of those with the least say over whether or not we go to war to begin with, its indirect costs including the possibility of long-term starvation (now increasingly rampant in Gaza). Today, armed conflict is the most significant cause of hunger. According to the United Nations' World Food Program, 70% of the inhabitants of war- or violence-affected regions don't get enough to eat, although our global interconnectedness means that none of us are immune from high food, fuel, and fertilizer prices and war's supply-chain interruptions. Americans have experienced the impact of Ukraine's war when it comes to fuel and grain prices, but in regions like sub-Saharan Africa, which depend significantly on Eastern European foodstuffs and fuel, the conflict has sparked widespread hunger. Consider it a particularly cruel feature of modern warfare that people who may not even know about wars being fought elsewhere can still end up bearing the wounds on their bodies. America's Post-9/11 Forever Wars As one of the co-founders of the Costs of War Project at Brown University, I often think about the largely unrecognized but far-reaching impact of America's post-9/11 war on terror (still playing out in dozens of countries around the world). Most of the college students who made news this spring protesting U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza hadn't even been born when, after the 9/11 attacks, this country first embarked on our decades-long forever wars in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan, and all too many other places. By our count at the Costs of War Project, those wars directly killed nearly one million people in combat, including some 432,000 civilians (and still counting!), and indirectly millions more. Our forever wars began long before local journalists in war zones first started to post bombings and so many other gruesome visions of the costs of war, including starvation, on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, and other social media sites, as they did during the first days of the Russian bombing of Kyiv and, as I write, Israel's seemingly never-ending assault on Gaza. Those journalists haven't been fettered by the U.S. military's embed programs, which initially hamstrung war reporters trying to offer anything but a sanitized version of the war on terror. In other words, Americans have, at least recently, been able to witness the crimes and horrors other militaries commit in their war zones (just not our own). And yet the human rights violations and destruction of infrastructure from the all-American war on terror were every bit as impactful as what's now playing out before our eyes. We just didn't see the destruction or slow-motion degradation of roads and bridges over which food was distributed; the drone attacks that killed Afghan farmers; the slow contamination of agriculture in war zones thanks, in part, to American missiles and rockets; the sewage runoff from U.S. bases; the bombings in everyday areas like crowded Iraqi marketplaces that made grocery shopping a potentially deadly affair; and the displacement and impoverishment of hundreds of thousands of Pakistanis because of U.S.-led drone attacks -- to take just a few of so many examples. Of course, these aren't problems as easily captured in a single picture, no less a video, as hospitals full of starving children or the flattened cities of the Gaza Strip. America's longest war in Afghanistan deepened that country's poverty, decimating what existed of its agriculture and food distribution systems, while displacing millions. And the effects continue: 92% of Afghans are still food insecure and nearly 3 in 10 Afghan children will face acute malnutrition this year. Next Page 1 | 2 | 3 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Land-use and the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions related to the management and use of land resources are considered one of the key drivers of climate change. Especially agriculture, but also forestry, contribute to about a quarter of total global GHG emissions. As arable farming land increases, habitats are destroyed, and biodiversity loss can be observed. Against this background, the EU-funded research project Europe-LAND works towards the development of more sustainable GLENDALE, CA - July 5, 2024 - Lawyers for Justice, PC, experts in employment law in Glendale, CA, are offering legal services to prospective clients who may be currently dealing with issues with their current employer regarding their wages and hours. The staff of Lawyers for Justice, PC knows that every employee in the state of California deserves to be compensated accordingly for their work, even if their employers don't (Johannesburg, South Africa, June 25, 2024) - A small group of students from the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) have been invited to attend the summer courses of the HBCU-Africa Correspondents Corps (HBCU-ACC). The selected students are currently participating in two HBCU-ACC courses: Expert Commentary and Global Public Relations. HBCU-Africa Correspondents Corps The HBCU-ACC is an ongoing initiative of the Center for African Studies at Howard University. It aims to provide In an alarming case that threatens the future and life of a 9-year-old boy, Arsen Iskakov, a Nassau County, NY court has ordered his deportation to Kazakhstan. Judge Ayesha Brantley, family court judge running on the Democratic ticket, has ordered a minor child legally residing and attending school in New York be ripped away from his mother and deported to the Russian alley, non-Hague country of Kazakhstan to live with Dear Annie: My friend and I are part of a very small percentage of upcoming high schoolers who are without Snapchat. Socially, this can be very difficult, as it is hard to communicate with friends and even girls because everything is run through Snapchat nowadays. In this post-Covid world, and after the tech boom, everything is run through social media; however, the big social platform is Snapchat. For example, when we were at a school dance, my friend and I were left alone as everyone was communicating on Snapchat. Most people in our grade already know almost all of the girls in our grade. Now, I know we could just receive phone numbers to text, or even Gmail, but the majority of people have chosen to use Snapchat, as it provides funny filters and, most of all, the ability to delete texts. Another feature that enhances its value is the ability to tell when someone screen records or to find friends using maps. This type of communication has brought many more people to Snapchat and helps explain its growth. Now, how should we communicate with others our age, and how should we be able to stay socially friendly with everyone even though no one communicates with us via text or phone calls? -- Stuck on Snapchat Dear Stuck on Snapchat: Thank you for your letter. It brings up a very important point. While it might feel like you and your friend are alone in not having Snapchat, you are not! There is a huge and very important movement going on to educate parents, teachers and, frankly, everyone on the dangers of social media, especially on the brain development of preteens and teenagers. Within the last few weeks, the U.S. Surgeon General has called on Congress to require warning labels on social media platforms for their effects on young peoples lives, similar to those now mandatory on cigarette boxes. In the 1950s, smoking was everywhere -- until we found out that it caused lung cancer. Today, very few young people smoke because of the known health dangers. When we know better, we do better, and now we are all learning about the harm of social media on young brains in particular. Bestselling author Jonathan Haidt wrote the book The Anxious Generation, which addresses this issue. He hits the nail on the head. It is a wonderful book filled with data and, most importantly, solutions! By not participating in Snapchat, youre participating in the collective action that Haidt is asking of your generation. Your real friends will like you the same with or without Snapchat. While it may appear that Snapchat has taken over communication, and I know that is hard for you, deeper connections are created through shared experiences and conversation -- and you will have more time for them. By not participating in Snapchat, you create more opportunities to interact with the real world around you, opening up moments for creativity and learning. Trust me, youll thank your parents later for keeping you off Snapchat now. Dear Readers: I would love to hear from other middle school, high school or even college-age students who dont have social media and can provide tips on how they navigate the social impact. I would also love to hear from students who love their social media accounts and all the positive ways that they have benefited their lives! Send your questions for Annie Lane to dearannie@creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2023 CREATORS.COM DEAR PEOPLES PHARMACY: As a nurse for decades, I have seen numerous episodes of negative statin experiences. Most often, the prescribing physician refuses to entertain the possibility of statins as the cause, though when given a doctor-approved statin holiday, many patients become pain-free and resume normal activity. One patient with a total cholesterol level of 98 read your article on the danger of extremely low cholesterol. The physicians response was: The lower, the better. A short time later, the patient died of a hemorrhagic stroke, as your article had warned. Reactions to statins can ruin lives, even if some doctors refuse to believe the reactions are serious. A. You have raised one of the most controversial topics in cardiovascular medicine. Most experts are in agreement that lowering LDL cholesterol reduces the risk of ischemic strokes (those caused by blood clots in the brain). But they dont agree about how using statins to lower LDL cholesterol affects the risk of hemorrhagic strokes (those caused by bleeding in the brain). The most recent meta-analysis reviewed 33 statin trials (Journal of the American Heart Association, Feb. 20, 2024). The authors reported a small increased relative risk (17%) for bleeding strokes among people taking statins to lower their LDL cholesterol. An accompanying editorial emphasizes that ... the fear of HS [hemorrhagic stroke] risk should not preclude statin use if clinically indicated. You can learn more about the pros and cons of statins and other ways of managing cardiovascular risk in our eGuide to Cholesterol Control & Heart Health. This online resource can be found under the Health eGuides tab at www.PeoplesPharmacy.com. Q. Ive had trouble at times with irritation under the breast and in the groin area. Thanks to your website, I found a great remedy -- topical milk of magnesia. I use it as a deodorant, and I think it works better than name-brand deodorants. I just use the hair dryer after applying it, so it doesnt run. I do the same for the area under my breasts daily. No more irritation! A. Under-breast rash has a fancy medical name: inframammary intertrigo. It is usually associated with skin folds where sweat can accumulate and encourage the overgrowth of yeast. Magnesium hydroxide (milk of magnesia) does not stop sweating as antiperspirants do. However, it does control odor if used in the armpits. We suspect that it may alter the balance of microbes on the skin. That might discourage the fungus that causes irritation. Q. Reading your article about medicines that are risky in hot weather helped me make sense of my experience. I often feel too hot and have trouble with sweating. Because I have fibromyalgia, chronic pain syndrome and arthritis, I have been taking gabapentin and amitriptyline as well as some other meds. Even in the depths of winter, I can be found with few bedclothes on because I feel too hot! It drives my partner mad as he feels the cold intensely. What do I need to know about these drugs in the summer? A. Antidepressants like amitriptyline are especially troublesome in hot weather because their anticholinergic activity reduces sweating. That is the primary way the body stays cooler, especially when it is hot and humid. Reducing perspiration makes hot weather riskier. Please do NOT stop any of your medications suddenly. That could precipitate unpleasant withdrawal symptoms. Your best strategy would be to stay out of the sun and try to keep as cool as possible. * * * In their column, Joe and Teresa Graedon answer letters from readers. Write to them in care of King Features, 628 Virginia Drive, Orlando, FL 32803, or email them via their website: www.PeoplesPharmacy.com. Their newest book is Top Screwups Doctors Make and How to Avoid Them. (c) 2024 King Features Syndicate, Inc. Police on Wednesday arrested a suspect in the case of the downtown Portland churchs stolen tabernacle. Portland State University police arrested 33-year-old Jacob C. Blanchard on allegations of burglary and trespassing and booked him into the Multnomah County Detention Center. He was released Friday, jail records show. The tabernacle a gold-painted, ornamented box important to parishioners at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church was stolen from church property in late May, police said. Also stolen was the holy object inside. Both were recovered in June. Blanchard was cited for meth possession in April and last August, court records show. He was twice convicted of theft in Washington County in 2021. Beth Slovic is a deputy editor on the public safety and breaking news team. Reach her at 503-221-8551 or bslovic@oregonian.com. Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com/subscribe. Silvia Xiong, 21, was clubbing with her friends in Southeast Portland early Sunday morning when police said dozens of bullets were fired nearby in a drive-by shooting on Southeast Ninth Avenue that killed one and injured a teen. Xiong didnt hear the shots over the music at the Sandy Boulevard sports bar Jackies, but she saw the commotion after returning to the area near her parked car around 1:30 a.m. She and her friend Jasmine Nguyen found the area completely taped off by police, and they eventually had to get a ride home. Later on Sunday, Xiong and Nguyen drove back to the Buckman neighborhood to retrieve Xiongs car. Nguyen said she wasnt fearful and plans to come back to the area next weekend. Xiong said the violence will remain in the back of her head, although she also plans to come back next weekend, too. Ill have to think twice, she said. Both examined the damage to Xiongs sedan. One bullet went through the left passenger door. Another lodged near the fuel door. Something else, possibly a third bullet, appeared to pierce the driver-side window, fragmenting the glass. Silvia Xiong's window is pictured shattered after something, possibly a bullet, impacted it July 7. Dozens of shots left holes in cars and buildings around Southeast Ninth Avenue. One person was killed and one teen was injured in the shooting.David Nunez Other bullet marks pocked a nearby building, exposing white concrete behind black paint. Blood, gauze and a medical bag also littered the area as visitors just down the street at the Jupiter Hotel carried on, unaware that anything had happened overnight. Police said a preliminary investigation suggested a person or people fired from a moving car toward a group on the sidewalk in the 100 block of Southeast Ninth Avenue just south of East Burnside Street. Dozens of bullets were fired, police said. But its unclear if they all came from the car. Several parked cars were also struck, police said. Police said they havent made any arrests and that no suspects were on the scene when they arrived after 1:11 a.m. Police ask anyone with information about the shooting who police have not interviewed to contact Detective Jeff Pontius at Jeffery.Pontius@police.portlandoregon.gov 503-823-0433, or Detective Steve Gandy at Stephen.Gandy@police.portlandoregon.gov, 503-823-0449 and reference case number 24-168326. Andrew Miller covers business news. Reach him at amiller@oregonian.com or 971-803-2954. A woman was stabbed to death and a man injured in Vancouver on Sunday, the Vancouver Police Department said. Officers arrived in the 1000 block of Southeast 160th Avenue at around 7:45 p.m. after receiving reports that a man had stabbed a woman and then stabbed himself. The woman was declared dead at the scene, and the man was taken to a local hospital, according to police. The mans condition is not known. Police said the man and the woman, whose names havent been released, were known to one another and there are no outstanding suspects. Police have provided no additional details. A homicide investigation is underway. -- The Oregonian/OregonLive; dperry@oregonian.com Amid warm summer days and record-breaking heat waves, the prospect of a snowy Christmas season may seem further away than ever. However, when it comes to celebrating the cherished holiday, nothing can diminish the joyful ideation that is Christmas in July. Though Hallmark movie schedules often dominate the headlines, this midyear celebration reportedly started at a North Carolina girls summer camp in 1933. Whether youre a longtime lover of Christmas or just looking for a reason to spread some cheer, Oregon offers plenty of ways to embrace the festive spirit even in the heat of summer. Albany Toy Runs Christmas in July Get into the gift-giving spirit with a toy run hosted by Deluxe Brewing and Sinister Distilling on July 12 in Albany. The free event will feature a donation drive, a raffle fundraiser and live outdoor music 4-9 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys for children of all ages. Monetary donations will also be accepted. Drop off donations at Deluxe Brewing during open business hours July 6-12. First hosted in 1983 by The Association for Motorcyclists of Oregon, the Albany Toy Run is an annual event organized by local motorcyclists to bring Christmas joy to Albany area children. Christmas in July at Sunnyside Grange Sunnyside Grange is hosting a Christmas in July Bazaar from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. July 13 in Clackamas. Explore local booths showcasing a variety of artisan goods, delicious food and an array of gifts ideal for early Christmas shoppers. Enjoy the atmosphere, connect with local artisans and find the perfect presents for loved ones months ahead of the holiday rush. Christmas in July in Monroe The third annual Christmas in July festival will bring snow, Santa and Buddy the Elf to the tri-county area where Benton, Linn and Lane counties intersect on July 20. The event is organized by the year-round Christmas store The Christmas Junction and the Monroe Art Association. From 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., downtown Monroe will be transformed into a winter wonderland, complete with local crafters offering handmade ornaments, festive gifts and holiday treats for the whole family. Christmas in July Monkless Brasserie Bend restaurant and taproom Monkless Belgian Ales is celebrating Christmas half-birthday on July 25 with a keg of their Belgian Winter Ale, Friars Festivus. Brewed during the cold months, the blend is the perfect balance between spicy and sweet with aromas of lemon and dark fruit and a complex avor prole of caramel, clove and a slight malty sweetness according to the Monkless Belgian Ales website. The festivities also will feature their chefs stuffing croquettes, paired with cranberry sauce and homemade gravy. The Grand Mercantile in Salem From 9 a.m.-2 p.m. July 27, Salems Historic Grand Theatre and Event Center will be transformed for Christmas in July, also known as winter holiday preparedness day. The shopping event will feature local vendors selling everything from home decor to holiday treats. Stay updated on event details and vendor previews by following Lisa Walters Events on Facebook. The Winter Market in Portland On July 27, from 11 a.m. - 8 p.m, The Winter Market is throwing a Christmas in July celebration at the Goat Blocks on S.E. 11th Ave. in Portland. This event will feature dozens of local makers and artists, live DJs and performances by Tabor Dance. The market is partnered with Fracture Brewing to provide cold brews, adding a refreshing touch to the festive shopping experience. Attendees can also visit the immersive light museum, Hopscotch, located next door, for a discounted rate. Holiday Pet Portrait Fundraiser in Beaverton A Holiday Pet Portrait Fundraiser will take place at Mutts Coffee in Beaverton on July 26, from 2 to 5 p.m. Proceeds will benefit Angels with Misplaced Wings, a rescue sanctuary that takes in dogs and other farm animals with special needs. Coffee, food and dog holiday sweaters will be available for purchase during the event. Phido Photography will be taking pet portraits in 5- to 10-minute sessions. Sessions start at $80 for 1 pet, $25 extra per additional pet from the same household. The price includes either an 8x10 print or $80 print credit. Reserve a spot by reaching out to phidophotography@gmail.com. Hallmark Christmas in July If none of these in-person events scratch that Christmas itch, you can also celebrate solo with Hallmarks annual Christmas in July programming every Saturday this month. Featuring fan favorites alongside new movies, the month-long celebration is already in full swing. Find the full schedule here. Year-round Christmas stores Lastl, shop at year-round Christmas stores throughout Oregon. Look for special sales and promotions running throughout the month at locations in Mount Angel, Lincoln City, Monroe and Gold Beach. Read more about Oregons year-round Christmas stores here. Chiara Profenna covers religion, faith and cultural connections. Reach her at 503-221-4327; cprofenna@oregonian.com or @chiara_profenna The Oregonian/OregonLive receives support from the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust to bring readers stories on religion, faith and cultural connections in Oregon. The Oregonian/OregonLive is solely responsible for all content. The Supreme Court recently overturned a 9th Circuit decision barring West Coast cities from imposing penalties on homeless populations unless alternatives were offered, (Supreme Court reverses Oregon homelessness case, finds Grants Pass public camping laws arent cruel and unusual, June 28). This decision serves one important purpose for Portland: it returns us to the same federal guidelines governing cities like Boston and New York. It does not overrule HB 3115 or our local camping guidelines. It also does not change our moral obligations. We must provide shelter or approved campsite options to people who are homeless. We need to provide public assistance to this population. I believe our mental health and drug treatment services are inadequate. Those who are attempting to avoid losing housing, and those who need a hand in returning to housing, deserve our help. A high temperature of 128 F (53.3 C) was recorded Saturday and Sunday at Death Valley National Park in eastern California, where a visitor died Saturday from heat exposure and another person was hospitalized, officials said. The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists riding through the Badwater Basin area amid scorching weather, the park said in a statement. The person who died was not identified. The other motorcyclist was transported to a Las Vegas hospital for severe heat illness, the statement said. Due to the high temperatures, emergency medical helicopters were unable to respond, as the aircraft cannot generally fly safely over 120 F (48.8 C), officials said. The other four members of the party were treated at the scene. While this is a very exciting time to experience potential world record setting temperatures in Death Valley, we encourage visitors to choose their activities carefully, avoiding prolonged periods of time outside of an air-conditioned vehicle or building when temperatures are this high, said park Superintendent Mike Reynolds. Officials warned that heat illness and injury are cumulative and can build over the course of a day or days. Besides not being able to cool down while riding due to high ambient air temperatures, experiencing Death Valley by motorcycle when it is this hot is further challenged by the necessary heavy safety gear worn to reduce injuries during an accident, the park statement said. The soaring temperatures didnt faze Chris Kinsel, a Death Valley visitor who said it was like Christmas day for me to be there on a record-breaking day. Kinsel said he and his wife typically come to the park during the winter, when its still plenty warm but thats nothing compared with being at one of the hottest places on Earth in July. Death Valley during the summer has always been a bucket list thing for me. For most of my life, Ive wanted to come out here in summertime, said Kinsel, who was visiting Death Valleys Badwater Basin area from Las Vegas. Kinsel said he planned to go to the parks visitor center to have his photo taken next to the digital sign displaying the current temperature. Some of you, and perhaps many of you, may be familiar with the name of Sir Edward Elgar. Even if youre not, youve almost certainly heard his Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1 in D (1901) especially the part that comes in at about the two-minute mark in this recording. There were several Pomp and Circumstance marches, and the Enigma Variations, and a host of other compositions. And yet, although he certainly ranks among the greatest of English composers, Sir Edward (1857-1934) was apparently quite shy and deeply modest. So when, at a point late in the life of Queen Victoria (d. 1901), the monarch invited Elgar to some sort of event at Buckingham Palace, he waited until the last possible moment to respond. And then he declined the invitation, saying that he felt that the distinguished aristocrats gathered at the event would not wish it to be ruined by the presence of a mere piano tuners son and his wife. Perhaps its because Im American and perhaps its because were living in a distinctly egalitarian age, but I find such a response at least in the way he expressed it; not necessarily his disinterest in attending some sort of formal royal cocktail party, since I dont enjoy such events either quite mystifying. Sir Edward Elgar should not have felt himself outclassed in the presence of a mere bunch of aristocrats who had inherited money and titles from ancestors centuries before ancestors who, in many cases, were essentially buccaneers, extortionists, and gang leaders. Instead, in my judgment, it was Lord Nondescript, Lady Lacktalent, and Sir Reginald Bland who should have been the people feeling outclassed by a man whose music is still played and admired, who had risen to his stature by dint of talent and hard work. By contrast, they are by and large forgotten, except as dusty entries in Burkes Peerage. And, in a sense, justly so. Speaking of dusty, Im reminded of a story out of pre-Islamic Arabia. I know that Ive told it here before, but I like it and Im going to tell it again. One of the great poets of the Arabic tradition is Antarah b. Shaddad, or Antar (AD 525-608). He was the son, it is said, of a Bedouin chieftain and an Ethiopian slave. True, she had been a princess, but now she was a slave, and her son was half black. He didnt have the status of a freeborn Arab in that society. There came a time when his fathers tribe was engaged in a fierce battle with a rival tribe, and the rivals were gaining the upper hand. Antarah was standing on a ridge overlooking the fight and, as he had been charged to do, minding the camels of the warriors. Finally, one of his half brothers made it up the ridge and begged him to join the fight. It has to be understood that the half brothers had long been among those who had mocked Antarah for his half-slave origin. But, of course, now the situation was desperate; they needed his help. Sorry, Antarah responded. Im a slave and a slaves son. Im not worthy to fight alongside you. Okay! came the reply. Youre free now! Please join us! Antarah waded into the fight and, as you might expect, routed the enemy. Eventually, his exploits in battle won him the epithet of the Bedouin Achilles. But the story Im really after is this one: Some years later, another Arabian aristocrat, encountering Antarah, mocked him as a person lacking a distinguished lineage. By this time, though, Antarah had achieved renown both as a warrior and as a poet. And his response to the man reproaching him is classic: You, he told him, represent the end of your noble line. I represent the beginning of mine. When the Sadducees and Pharisees came to John the Baptist, secure in the nobility of their descent, he told them Think not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, that God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham (Matthew 3:9). I think that this short article, which (as you can easily see) was plainly retrieved from the Christopher Hitchens Memorial How Religion Poisons Everything File, is worthy of particular attention: Are congregations the key to stemming Americas rising tide of polarization? Dr. Rebecca Glazier argues in a new book that when people and places of faith get involved in their communities, it makes for a stronger society and healthier democracy But that certainly doesnt exhaust the Hitchens File. Not by a long shot! Consider these three chilling accounts, for example: Entrepreneur Is Transforming Sanitation in a Peru Town: With help from the Church and Water For People, one woman is helping families have better bathrooms in Cascas, Peru Elder Paul B. Pieper Speaks at Unite with the Children of Sudan Event in Nairobi: Elder Pieper joins government and NGO leaders to address the needs of Sudanese children affected by war This Hitchens File item is something that Im hoping to see: Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot FILM SYNOPSIS:The fight for kids begins July 4. Inspired by the powerful true story, Sound of Hope: The Story of Possum Trot, follows Donna and Reverend Martin as they ignite a fire in the hearts of their rural church to embrace kids in the foster system that nobody else would take. By doing the impossibleadopting 77 childrenthis East Texas community proved that, with real, determined love, the battle for Americas most vulnerable can be won. And heres a 2014 article to which Im sure I called attention way back then, but which I ran across again yesterday while looking for something else. Its still worth a look: The Mormon Advantage: Leaving theology aside, what can we learn from the Mormons? And, finally, there is material in this article that is, at a bare minimum, adjacent to the ever-flowing Hitchens File: New Church buildings spur invitations, celebrations in Nigeria and Ghana: Open house programs allow the community to learn more about the Church in Choba and Jos, Nigeria, and Kumasi, Ghana Anti-Catholic Reformed Protestant apologist James Swan is again trying to make polemical and rhetorical hay out of a supposed dispute between myself and a fellow Catholic lay apologist; in this instance, my very good friend, Gary Michuta. He calls this post, Why the Canon Is Closed According to Roman Catholic Apologists, and Why the Canon is Not Closed According to Roman Catholic Apologists (3-14-12). Here is most of it: You cant make this stuff up: The Canon is closed: Scripture was Scripture before the canon was declared. Vatican I and Vatican II both state this. The canon is not Scripture itself, but the authoritative list of biblical books. Thus, there is no difficulty in saying Scripture existed before the canon was declared. Indeed, this was necessarily the case, since declaring a list of biblical books presupposes that there are biblical books to be listed! The point of the canon was to end dispute once and for all as to which books are part of the Bible, since some didnt accept various books, and others thought books were Scripture that were not (as later determined by councils and popes and general consensus). I would say that many Christians largely knew what books were part of Scripture, but not exactly or with precision, and thats where the Churchs declarations were important and necessary: to remove any remaining doubt and make it more certain what books were in the Bible.[source] [a Facebook post of mine, dated 3-13-12] The canon is open: The fourth question of the Capita Dubitationum asked whether those books that were not included in Trents list, but were included in the Latin Vulgate (e.g. The Book of Esdras, 4 Ezra, and 3 Maccabees), should be rejected by a Conciliar decree, or should they be passed over in silence. Only three Fathers voted for an explicit rejection. Forty-two voted that the status of these books should be passed over in silence. Eight bishops did not vote. The majority won, and Trent deliberately withheld any explicit decision on these books. The question of Esdras canonical status was left theoretically open. [Gary Michuta, Why Catholic Bibles are Bigger (Michigan: Grotto Press, 2007), pp. 240-241]. All that is required here is for me to further clarify that the books that were declared by Trent certainly are part of the canon of Scripture (all doubt is removed about those, for those who accept Catholic conciliar authority); and the books that were not declared upon at all there (including [I] Esdras), are theoretically open, as Gary put it. Since Gary is the leading Catholic apologist today on the topic of the canon, I gladly yield to his opinion. Having now done that, there is no contradiction between us, since we agree. That said, its a pretty minor textual issue that were discussing with regard to Esdras, as will be seen when we examine it more closely. *** Please Hit Subscribe! If you have received benefit from this or any of my other 4,600+ articles, please follow this blog by signing up (with your email address) on the sidebar to the right (you may have to scroll down a bit), above where there is an icon bar, Sign Me Up!: to receive notice when I post a new blog article. This is the equivalent of subscribing to a YouTube channel. Please also consider following me on Twitter / X and purchasing one or more of my 55 books. All of this helps me get more exposure, and (however little!) more income for my full-time apologetics work. Thanks so much and happy reading! *** Esdras is almost all simply a reiteration of parts of 2 Chronicles, Ezra, and Nehemiah. The great Protestant scholar F. F. Bruce gives it short shrift in his book, The Canon of Scripture (Downers Grove, Illinois, InterVarsity Press, 1988, p. 47), describing it as a variant Greek edition of the history from 2 Chron. 35:1 to Neh. 8:13). Michuta adds: Only a short section of this book (Esdras 3:1-5:6) contains unique material. Most of the book is a repetition of 2 Chronicles, Ezra, or Nehemiah (Ibid., p. 239). Encyclopaedia Britannica (First Book of Esdras) summarizes more specifically: The work is textually more closely related to the Old Testament than other books of the Apocrypha, for it traces portions of Israels history from 621 BC to 444 BC by summarizing II Chronicles 35:136:23, the whole of the canonical Book of Ezra, and Nehemiah 7:738:12. So what is the nature of the unique portion? The same article opines: The only new material is the Tale of the Three Guardsmen, a Persian folk story that was slightly altered to fit a Jewish context. The method used in compiling I Esdras is uncertain, especially because of numerous historical inconsistencies and errors; in several instances it also alters biblical texts. Were talking about two chapters and six verses of a third (93 verses, about 2211 words, and about 2.8 pages in my RSV): that are different from other portions of the Old Testament agreed upon by all. Wikipedia (1 Esdras) adds: Many Protestant and Catholic scholars assign no historical value to the sections of the book not duplicated in EzraNehemiah. None of this information predictably , was included in Swans little potshot. It didnt fit the plan and goal, you see. If thats scholarly consensus today, it looks like Trent was right on the money almost 500 years ago, and acted wisely and correctly in passing over making a declaration about the canonicity of Esdras. Lastly, the Wikipedia article provides a handy summary of the overlap of Esdras and other books (I modified the order a bit): II Chr. 35 = I Esd. 1:1-33 II Chr. 36 = I Esd. 1:34-58 Ezr. 1 = I Esd. 2:1-14 Ezr. 2 = I Esd. 5:7-46 Ezr. 3 = I Esd. 5:47-65 Ezr. 4:1-5 = I Esd. 5:66-73 [Ezra 4:6 is not found in Esdras] Ezr. 4:7-24 = I Esd. 2:15-30a Ezr. 5 = I Esd. 6:1-22 Ezr. 6 = I Esd. 6:23 7 Ezr. 7 = I Esd. 8:1-27 Ezr. 8 = I Esd. 8:28-67 Ezr. 9 = I Esd. 8:68-90 Ezr. 10 = I Esd. 8:91-9:36 Neh. 7:73-8:12 = I Esd. 9:37-55 Swans post, seen in this light, is what Shakespeare described in Macbeth: a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing. * *** In his article, Roman Catholic Confusion on Contraception in the Bible (3-15-12), anti-Catholic Reformed Protestant apologist James Swan observed: You cant make this stuff up: Genesis 38 is about contraception: Bottom line is that God killed Onan for some reason. The only plausible reason we have from the text itself is contraception. A straightforward reading of the text lends itself readily to that interpretation (though not absolutely of logical necessity).[source] Genesis 38 is not about contraception: In the case of Onan, you are right that the common Catholic reliance on this passage as a proof text against contraception or masturbation is a weak one and wrong-headed [Source: Mark Shea. What Does it Mean to Say Jesus has Fulfilled the Old Covenant?]. Swans point, as always, is to mock and scorn Catholicism and Catholics. Here he finds two Catholic apologists (the first one, myself, unnamed by him as usual), disagreeing on the interpretation of Genesis 38 and the Onan incident with regard to contraception, and so he thinks this is some sort of argument against Catholicism, as if individuals Catholics dont have disagreements on exegesis, just as all Christian groups do. I contend that Mark Shea is simply wrong, and unacquainted with the relevant facts. First of all, he is in effect accusing a pope in a very high-level papal encyclical on the topic of contraception and St. Augustine of using weak one and wrong-headed reasoning concerning this issue. In Casti Connubii (On Christian Marriage), issued by Pope Pius XI on 31 December 1930 (the precursor to the famous Humanae Vitae of 1968), he wrote: 55. Small wonder, therefore, if Holy Writ bears witness that the Divine Majesty regards with greatest detestation this horrible crime and at times has punished it with death. As St. Augustine notes, Intercourse even with ones legitimate wife is unlawful and wicked where the conception of the offspring is prevented. Onan, the son of Juda, did this and the Lord killed him for it. [Footnote 45: St. August., De coniug. adult., lib. II, n. 12, Gen, XXXVlll, 8-10.] In Catholicism, when the choice in a disagreement comes down to a lay apologist vs. a pope in an encyclical along with St. Augustine, virtually any serious, observant Catholic would yield to the reasoning of the pope and the person widely considered the greatest Church father. I would hope that Mark Shea would do so, if he were shown this. I certainly would, if I took this view and discovered this passage. As it turns out, I was correct, and in line with the Bible, the Church fathers, Protestant tradition all the way up to 1930, and the Catholic Church. Ive written at least five times about Onan, if anyone wants to better understand my position on this: Why Did God Kill Onan? (Bible and Contraception) [2-9-04] Dialogue: Why Did God Kill Onan? (Contraception) [2-13-04] Biblical Data Against Contraception: Onans Sin and Punishment: a Concise Catholic Argument [3-7-14] Bible vs. Contraception: Onans Sin and Punishment [National Catholic Register, 5-30-17] Steve Hays, Onan, Bible Commentary, & Contraception [1-11-07, 2-28-14; revised & expanded on 12-14-21] The Protestant New Bible Dictionary (J. D. Douglas, editor, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans Pub. Co., 1962), in the article, Marriage, written by the editor, J. D. Douglas, states that Onan . . . took steps to avoid a full consummation of the union, thus displeasing the Lord, who slew him (p. 910). Douglas appears to contend that Onan was killed for the contraceptive act, not disobedience to the levirate law. The Eerdmans Bible Dictionary (Allen C. Myers, Grand Rapids, Michigan: Eerdmans, 1987; English revision of Bijbelse Encyclopedie, edited by W. H. Gispen, Kampen, Netherlands: J. H. Kok, revised edition, 1975; translated by Raymond C. Togtman and Ralph W. Vunderink) concurs: Onans tactic of withdrawing before ejaculation . . . costs him his life. (p. 653) [W]henever Onan and Tamar had intercourse he would spill his sperm on the ground to prevent her from conceiving; for this the Lord slew him. (p. 781) In its article on Levirate Law, we are also informed that the brother had the option of refusing to take his sister-in-law in levirate marriage (p. 652). The logic is apparent: if refusal alone was not grounds to be killed by God or by capital punishment, then there must have been something in the way Onan refused which was the cause. Genesis 38:9 undeniably establishes that Onan utilized the withdrawal method: probably the form of contraception most used throughout history. God clearly didnt approve of it and judged him as a result. Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament (Lutheran) also concurs in its view on this passage: This act not only betrayed a want of affection to his brother, combined with a despicable covetousness for his possession and inheritance, but was also a sin against the divine institution of marriage and its object, and was therefore punished by Jehovah with sudden death. *** Please Hit Subscribe! If you have received benefit from this or any of my other 4,600+ articles, please follow this blog by signing up (with your email address) on the sidebar to the right (you may have to scroll down a bit), above where there is an icon bar, Sign Me Up!: to receive notice when I post a new blog article. This is the equivalent of subscribing to a YouTube channel. Please also consider following me on Twitter / X and purchasing one or more of my 55 books. All of this helps me get more exposure, and (however little!) more income for my full-time apologetics work. Thanks so much and happy reading! *** Since all Protestants thought contraception was an impermissible sin and evil until 1930, when the Anglicans first permitted it in hard cases only, its easy to find them supporting my interpretation as well. Hence, John Calvin, commenting on the Onan passage, wrote: And the thing which he did displeased the LORD. Less neatly the Jews speak about this matter. I will contend myself with briefly mentioning this, as far as the sense of shame allows to discuss it. It is a horrible thing to pour out seed besides the intercourse of man and woman. Deliberately avoiding the intercourse, so that the seed drops on the ground, is double horrible. For this means that one quenches the hope of his family, and kills the son, which could be expected, before he is born. This wickedness is now as severely as is possible condemned by the Spirit, through Moses, that Onan, as it were, through a violent and untimely birth, tore away the seed of his brother out the womb, and as cruel as shamefully has thrown on the earth. Moreover he thus has, as much as was in his power, tried to destroy a part of the human race. When a woman in some way drives away the seed out the womb, through aids, then this is rightly seen as an unforgivable crime. Onan was guilty of a similar crime, by defiling the earth with his seed, so that Tamar would not receive a future inheritor. Martin Luther used even stronger language in condemning Onan and interpreting the passage as a condemnation of the contraceptive mentality: Onan must have been a malicious and incorrigible scoundrel. This is a most disgraceful sin. It is far more atrocious than incest and adultery. We call it unchastity, yes, a Sodomitic sin. For Onan goes in to her; that is, he lies with her and copulates, and when it comes to the point of insemination, spills the semen, lest the woman conceive. Surely at such a time the order of nature established by God in procreation should be followed . . . He was inflamed with the basest spite and hatred . . . Consequently, he deserved to be killed by God. He committed an evil deed. Therefore God punished him . . . That worthless fellow . . . preferred polluting himself with a most disgraceful sin to raising up offspring for his brother. (Lectures on Genesis: Chapters 38-44; 1544; in Luthers Works, Vol. 7, 20-21) For more about Luthers views on this topic, see: Luther and Calvin Opposed Contraception and Fewer Children is Better Thinking (2-21-04; published at National Catholic Register, 9-13-17). For an overview of the early Church on this issue, see: Contraception: Early Church Teaching (William Klimon) [1998], and What the Early Church Believed: Contraception and Sterilization (Catholic Answers). As Jesus said to the Pharisees: If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, We see, your guilt remains (Jn 9:41, RSV). * *** Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr. Alex Ampaabeng has reiterated Ghana's unwavering dedication to regional integration and cooperation within the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). During the Mid-Year ECOWAS Council of Ministers Meetings in Abuja, Nigeria, Dr. Ampaabeng emphasized the importance of collaborative efforts among member states to achieve collective objectives. "We are committed to working closely with our ECOWAS counterparts to foster deeper integration and enhance economic cooperation," Dr. Ampaabeng said. Ghana's active participation and advocacy for inclusive regional policies highlight its role as a key partner in shaping the future of West African economic integration, he added. Dr. Alex Ampaabeng led Ghanas delegation on behalf of the Minister for Finance, Dr. Mohammed Amin Adam. The discussions at the meetings underscored the significance of joint initiatives aimed at bolstering trade, infrastructure development, and policy harmonization among member states. The meetings convened Hon. Ministers responsible for Finance, Foreign Affairs, and Regional Integration from across the ECOWAS sub-region, providing a platform to assess the community's mid-year performance reports and strategize on advancing regional economic goals. The event, held in Abuja, served as a pivotal moment for ECOWAS member states to reaffirm their collective resolve towards regional stability and economic growth. As discussions concluded, delegates expressed optimism about the prospects of intensified cooperation and renewed commitments towards achieving sustainable development goals across the ECOWAS region. Source: Ghanaweb.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 Director of Telecel Cash and Digital Transformation, Philip Amoateng, has advocated for competitive collaboration between FinTech firms and banks as the best approach to accelerating financial inclusion in Ghana. In a refreshing departure from the typical competitive nature of business, Mr. Amoateng believes combining the decades-long trust in traditional banks and the growing power and convenience of FinTech platforms will exponentially grow the financial services sector and help capture unbanked target markets. Speaking in a plenary discussion at the Ministry of Finances Ghana Financial Inclusion Conference on the subject FinTech, Digital Services and Mobile Money: Competition or Collaboration, Mr. Amoateng said, Real financial inclusion requires us to break out of our silos and work together to expand financial services to millions who are currently excluded from the traditional finance system. Mr. Amoatengs remarks come at a time when technological progress and innovation have catapulted the fintech sector from the fringes to the forefront of financial services. FinTech investments are growing exponentially across the continent with a projected $230 billion in revenues by 2025, according to McKinsey. Commending the Bank of Ghana for its policy and regulatory support of FinTech integration in the finance sector, Mr Amoateng believes the real test as at now is to push innovation beyond FinTech platforms and serve marginalised people in remote areas through community collaboration and co-sharing. Telcos are doing more for financial inclusion with about 19 million Ghanaians having mobile money wallets as compared to people with bank accounts which are significantly less. Imagine the impact if FinTech and banks joined forces to expand networks in rural areas. We could create a financial lifeline for millions of unbanked people who are not in the financial system, Mr. Amoateng said. Collaborative mechanisms are needed to help achieve this. Other panellists gave concerted submissions calling for the protection of ethics and trust in finance, digital literacy for more people, innovative disruption, and complementary collaboration between FinTech companies and banks in the finance space. Explaining why collaboration should take precedence over competition, Mr. Amoateng highlighted that while competition has driven the FinTech sector forward, there's more merit to exploring cross-collaborations. With interoperability, the industry can work together to create a more inclusive financial landscape. The Ghana Financial Inclusion Conference centred on speeches, presentations and discussions on policy changes, regulatory frameworks, and emerging technologies that can accelerate financial inclusion for all Ghanaians. 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 Vice President and flagbearer of the NPP, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia has proposed the adoption of mobile money as a common payment system in Africa in order to address trade barriers and other financial challenges on the African continent. Addressing African participants at an Interoperability Symposium in Accra on Friday organized by Africa Prosperity Network (APN), Dr. Bawumia pointed out age-long challenges associated with inter-African trade such as low rate of trading among Africans, low export rate, difficult and slow payment system, pressure on foreign exchange, among others. To address these, Dr. Bawumia proposed the adoption of a mobile money interoperability payment system for Africa which he said would be seamless and boost trade among Africans. "Trade payments and relationships are currently hampered by inadequate settlement systems which result in high costs, limited access, slow processing speeds and a lack of transparency. Dr. Bawumia further said "making mobile money interoperable across borders (Africa) would allow our citizens to trade seamlessly", however, he added, a strong political will is required to make it a reality. "Without political will, it is not likely to be achieved. It takes a lot of effort to bring stakeholders together on a common platform", he said. Dr. Bawumia later wrote on his Facebook wall how mobile money interoperability payment system could become a common currency for trade in Africa, referencing Ghana's successful implementation of this payment system as a case study for Africa. Read Dr. Bawumias post below: I was the keynote speaker for the opening session of the Africa Prosperity Network Conference held in Accra today. This session of the conference seeks to explore the partnerships and possibilities of intra-Africa continental mobile money interoperability. The theme underscores Ghana's leading role in ensuring triangular mobile money interoperability that ensures seamless financial transactions across telcos, bank accounts, and e-zwich platforms. Ghana's successful implementation of a comprehensive mobile money interoperability, which is unique on the continent, will become handy as the rest of Africa strives to pursue a similar course. For me, having continental mobile money interoperability will ultimately achieve, to a greater extent, the objectives of a common currency without necessarily having a common currency in Africa. We should aim at pursuing this on an incremental basis. This does not require pursuing the elusive macroeconomic convergence criteria by the West African Monetary Zone countries for example but rather the implementation of digital payments convergence criteria. Just a few countries like Ghana, Nigeria and Cote dIvoire can start and we can proceed incrementally. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Ghana Police Service has arrested suspect Judith Trisy, identified as one of the people who attacked the Ayawaso West Wuogon office of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on 7th July 2024. The suspect is in custody assisting the investigation while efforts are ongoing to get the remaining suspects arrested. The incident has heightened tension in the constituency before the December 7, general election. The police in a statement said they would arrest all offenders after ensuring maximum protection before, during and after the election period. We would like to assure the public that the perpetrators will be arrested to face justice. Police said. 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 The 2024 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC) on "Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence" hosted by the Smale Institute for Mathematics & Computation(Smale Institute) concluded successfully at the Shanghai Expo Center on Thursday. The conference was chaired by Xuan Xiaohua, founder of Shanghai-based Unidt and executive dean of SIMC, and attended by distinguished mathematicians such as Manuel Blum, an emeritus professor at the School of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University and recipient of the Turing Award; Jose A. Carrillo, an applied mathematics professor at Oxford University; Michael Bronstein, a professor of artificial intelligence at DeepMind, Oxford University. Laurent Lafforgue, a mathematics professor emeritus at the French Institute for Advanced Study (IHES) and winner of the Fields Medal, participated in the round-table discussion via online platforms, while Zhang Ying, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology, attended the meeting and delivered a speech. These top global mathematicians and scientists engaged in deep discussions on topics such as the mathematical foundations of machine learning and artificial intelligence, algorithmic research in artificial intelligence, AI for Science, and AI for Math, jointly exploring the latest research achievements and future development trends in the fields of mathematics and artificial intelligence. Artificial Intelligence has permeated every corner of life, enhancing the efficiency of modern human society to an unprecedented level and bringing numerous conveniences and benefits. However, AI still faces a series of theoretical and practical challenges, for which reason the conference also focused on topics such as "What are some good mathematical models for cutting-edge research areas like Artificial General Intelligence (AGI), the emergence of large models, and conscious intelligence? What are the limits of intelligence?" It delved into how existing mathematical models drive the development of AI and large models, exploring the bidirectional promotion and mutual development between mathematics and artificial intelligence. David Barber pointed out that there is a vast gap between the purity and clarity of mathematics and the complexity of human reasoning, language, knowledge, and artificial intelligence. He emphasized that using mathematical models to drive AI and make it better understand human language is a challenging yet potentially rewarding task. At the same time, he optimistically stated that existing statistics and logical reasoning have already laid a solid foundation for the development of AI, believing that more precise and efficient mathematical models will assist in the advancement of AI in the future. Jin Shi, dean of Institute of Natural Science, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, said that an ideal mathematical model should perfectly integrate domain knowledge and physical laws, as such a model can more effectively solve complex problems. When discussing "the limits of intelligence," Michael Bronstein pointed out that the current progress in artificial intelligence is seen by humans today as we viewed science fiction novels fantasizing about the present ten years ago. Although we have witnessed significant advancements in AI today, it still feels somewhat different. He emphasized that the limits of artificial intelligence are like the new goals that humans constantly pursue and set; it is a dynamic, ever-changing process with no end. Everything in the world has duality, and behind the mutually beneficial relationship between mathematics and artificial intelligence, there may also be hidden risks. When the audience at the event expressed confusion about this issue, Professor Manuel Blum noted that humanity might one day perish, but the advent of artificial intelligence is not necessarily an inevitable push towards this fate. On the contrary, AI could be the key to helping humans avoid risks. Oluwole Daniel Makinde, head of Applied Mathematics Department, University of the North in South Africa agreed with this view, believing that we should adopt a positive and optimistic attitude, trusting that artificial intelligence will bring us innovation. Zhang Ying, director of the Shanghai Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology, represented the Shanghai municipal government to congratulate and welcome mathematicians from around the world to Shanghai for the 2024 World Artificial Intelligence Conference and the "Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence" academic conference. Zhang emphasized that mathematics is a critical force driving technological innovation. Given the inseparable close connection between mathematics and artificial intelligence, the government attaches great importance to the application and development of artificial intelligence, as well as the relationship and driving force between mathematics and artificial intelligence. This is not only an important background for the successful organization of this "Mathematics and Artificial Intelligence" academic conference but also the root of the high hopes placed on this conference by the organizers. Womens low participation and under-representation in governance and public service has been a lingering phenomenon the world over. Indeed, gender inequality cannot be an exclusively womens concern but should be considered as a human rights issue, the promotion of which is acknowledged as a condition or situation that inures to the benefit of society as a whole. Gender equality and increased equitable female political participation is considered indispensable for a peaceful and sustainable development. The implementation of strategies for bridging the gender gap in order to achieve equal representation of women and men in public decision-making has been a challenge in Ghana as well, with institutional obstacles and negative structural or outmoded socio-cultural attitudes and practices working against them. Minimum threshold The minimum threshold of 30 per cent representation of women in political decision-making circles or public office, mandated by the United Nations (UN), has not been realised in Ghana and under the circumstances, an Affirmative Action (AA) or gender equality Law presents itself as the most authentic or legitimate weapon, if not instrument, for expanding womens participation in governance, public and even private life. In an attempt to dismantle the institutional barriers and to foster and facilitate changes in the socio-cultural attitudes and practices that undermine or impede womens aspirations to public decision-making in order to promote and enhance social cohesion and national progress and development, the global Conferences on Women in Mexico (1975), Denmark (1980) and Beijing (1995) demanded the involvement of women in all spheres of public endeavour. It is indisputable that in a predominantly patriarchal society such as Ghana, the absence of interventions in the form of quotas for women, the contributions of a critical minority will elude the country at all levels of national development. Notwithstanding the significant strides made in the fields of education, health and economics in terms of gender justice or gender equity, gender inequality remains a formidable hindrance to womens emancipation, hence the need for measures and targeted approaches to readjust the imbalance. In other words, while AA has made some impact, particularly in improving the male female ratio in primary education, evidence shows that it has failed to promote increased women's representation in political and public life. Motivated by the principle that each citizen shares an equal right to self-development and that both women and men with equal abilities deserve equal opportunities and emboldened by the demands of the Global Conferences on Women, the Government of Ghana, in 1998, developed an Affirmative Action policy guideline that called for at least 40 per cent of representation of women in appointments to the public service and boards, among others. Gender Equality Bill Consequently, an AA Bill, designed to help eliminate gender inequalities, was drafted, with inputs by the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, and approved by Cabinet for passage into Law. The Bill, which is currently before Parliament, if it becomes Law, is expected to bridge the gap between men and women in Ghana. The AA Bill seeks a 50/50 per cent representation and participation of both women and men in governance, public positions of power and all decision-making processes of state. It also requires all sectors to reserve a percentage of their employment for women. Political parties are also to be encouraged to adopt voluntary party quotas to promote womens participation in party politics. The Bill mandates all public institutions to adopt gender policies, including recruitment policies, aimed at achieving a balanced structuring of those institutions in terms of gender. The Bill also proposes that a person who insults a woman for vying for public office shall be liable for prosecution. Clause 38 of the bill provides that, a person who victimizes, obstructs or exerts undue influence and submits a female politician to verbal attack, among others, commits an offence. The passage of the gender equality Bill is critical to womens participation and representation as it provides for sanctions for non-compliance and its provisions extend to the private sector as well. It is a temporary measure that seeks to correct injustices and the exclusion of women over the years. Womens inclusion and participation by means of an AA Law has enhanced the development of countries which adopted the law. The passage of the AA or Gender Equality Bill into Law is, therefore, long overdue and it is welcome news that the Bill is one of the items to be considered by the 4th session of the 8th Parliament of the 4th Republic. We hope the Bill, if passed into Law, will not suffer the same fate as the Anti Witchcraft and the Proper Human Sexual Rights Law. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Daasebre Oduro Akenten II Denkyira Nifahene Abuakwahene who also serves as the acting President of the Denkyira traditional council has accused the Queen Mother of Denkyira, Nana Ama Ayensua Saara III of misconduct and usurping his powers as a divisional chief ( Abuakwahene). In a press conference held at his palace in Buabinso - Denkyira Abuakwa, Daasebre Oduro Akenten served notice that the conduct of the Denkyirahemaa in the various divisions has the potential to result in a lot of family disputes, fights and in some cases bloodshed. He again reiterated the importance of the divisions stressing that the Divisional Chiefs make up the Denkyira divisional council and without the divisions, there is no Denkyira. Be again berated Nana Ama Ayensua Saara III for usurping his powers as AbuakwaHene, NifaHene and Acting president of Denkyira Traditional Council. Citing an instance, Daasebre Oduro Akenten said " Every Chief and Obaapanin (sub queens) comes to Nifahene and Nifahemaa for Boatie before they are enstooled but now Denkyirahemaa has started taking my position from me as the Divisional Chief(AbuakwaHene) to take the Boatie ( money and drinks) from my sub-divisional Chiefs and maapaninfo to be enstooled" This behaviour of DenkyiraHemaa he said cannot be countenance adding that the Divisional Chiefs have been patient enough but not anymore. Going further the Abuakwahene and acting President Of Denkyira Traditional Council said when there are any issues in the divisions, the Divisional Chief must settle them, until the matter escalates then, it's referred to the traditional council but in their case, before they realize, the matter has been sent to Denkyira Hemaa. "No one calls the Divisional Chief for his opinion, all of sudden a judgement has been passed. This misconduct of Denkyirahemaa in our various divisions is bringing a lot of acrimony in my case in Abuakwa, I have 13 towns under me and three of them have troubles in them because of DenkyiraHemaa". Plans to illegally enstool Kyekyewerehene According to the Abuakwahene, currently, preparations are underway for the continuation of the enstoolment of the Denkyira Kyekyewere (Nyameso stool) on Monday 8th July 2024 at Kyekyewere under the command and protection from Denkyira Hemaa Nana Ama Ayensuaa Saara lll. He said even though the case is in court and there is an Injunction on it, they intend to go ahead with the enstoolment. "We are hoping that they will listen to the court otherwise things can go very wrong here. As the Acting President of Denkyira Traditional Council, Nifahene and leader of Abuakwaman with the help of my people we will do anything necessary to prevent any enstoolment in Kyekyewere and AkyemKrom without my approval", he cautioned. The Acting President Of Denkyira Traditional Council however appealed to the Regional and National Traditional Council as well as the Minister for Chieftancy Affairs and the President of Ghana to quickly step in to address the impasse. Reacting to the allegations, the Denkyirahemaa Nana Ama Ayensua Saara III refuted the allegations through her spokesperson Lawyer Emmanuel Kojo Nana. In an interview, the spokesperson said the allegations were unfounded stressing that if the Abuakwahene had issues with Denkyirahemaa he should have gone to the right forum, the Regional House of Chiefs and not the Media. He again said Denkyirahemaa is not behind the swearing of Denkyira Kyekyewerehene on Monday, 8th July 2024 as alleged by Daasebre Oduro Akenten. He said Denkyirahemaa has no hand in it and said since the situation is in court, she will allow the courts to pronounce judgment on the issue. The spokesperson further appealed to the public to disregard the allegation that the Denkyirahemaa Nana Ama Ayensua Saara III is involved in politics. He said the allegations are unfounded since the Queen mother has always stayed clear of politics and has no backing from the present government. Source: Sampson Manu, Contributor 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 Bishop of the Northern Accra Diocese (NAD) of the Methodist Church Ghana, Right Reverend Professor Joseph M.Y. Edusa-Eyison, has called on Christians not to relent in supporting the work of God. He particularly urged members of the Methodist church to always consider donating some of their property to the church for the sustenance of the word. He also appealed to the elderly members of the church to consider allocating some portions of their property in their wills to the church stressing that such good deeds would be remembered years after their departure from earth. Event Rt Rev. Edusa-Eyison made the call during a sermon at the Immanuel Methodist Society at the Airport East Circuit of the Northern Accra Diocese. It formed part of his last pastoral visit to the Circuit as he prepared to bow out of office in September this year marking the end of his 6-year service as Bishop of the Northern Accra Diocese. The clergyman also used the occasion to lay the Foundation Stone for the construction of an estimated GH18.5 million multi-purpose Chapel for the Immanuel Methodist Society. The Immanuel Methodist Society was carved out of the Calvary Methodist Church at Adabraka, Accra in 1994 and worshipped for some time at the Association International and Englebert Schools in the Airport Residential Area before it moved to its present abode in the Regimanuel Gray Estate, off the Spintex road. Winning souls Rt Rev. Edusa-Eyison urged the congregation to continually carry out evangelism and discipleship activities to win more souls for Christ with special attention to the development of the youth because they were the future of the Church. He expressed his gratitude to the Airport East Circuit for its support and cooperation during his administration and prayed that the circuit as an organisation would display even more dedication to the in-coming Bishop, Very Rev. Andrew Mbeah-Baiden and the in-coming Lay Chairman, Dr Senyo Adjei for the good of the Diocese. The Superintendent Minister of the Airport East Circuit, Very Rev. Dr Jacob W. French, commended the NAD Bishop for his leadership as the Dioceses first Bishop and for successfully ensuring that it strived towards being a model for all others. Project The Chairman of the Building Committee of the Immanuel Methodist Society, Kwesi Abbey Sam, said since the building was launched in July 2023, about 55 per cent of work on the first phase had been completed. He said construction of the 1,500-seater complex had been divided into two phases and is expected to be completed in July 2025 adding that the tender cost of the complex was GH18.5 million with the first phase estimated at GH 6,739,000.00. In addition, a member of the Building Committee, Godfrey Ewool, said the building had an underground basement with parking for 30 cars, Church Hall, choir vestry, ministry, an infirmary, superintendent ministers office, sound control/media room, committee rooms, administration office, stewards office, choir and singing band practice rooms among others. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Dennis Miracles has refuted claims about the collapse of banks under the Nana Addo administration. According to him, the claims that President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo collapsed banks when he assumed office is untrue, adding nothing like that has ever happened under this regime. The Director of Local Government Services at the Office of the President, contributing to Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" panel discussion programme, emphasized that the collapse of the financial sector rather occurred under the reign of John Dramani Mahama and President Nana Addo's action salvaged the sector. He asserted; "it was never true that Nana Akufo-Addo collapsed the banks. In fact, no bank was collapsed", stressing "what was done was merger". Listen to his full submissions 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 Manhyia South constituency chairman of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Richard Adjei Mensah Ofori Atta, has said the rise of Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh to become presidential running mate is a testament that the party rewards dedication, honesty and hard work. He said Dr Opoku Prempeh, alias Napo, the MP for Manhyia South, has exhibited these traits since he entered politics. It is no wonder that Dr Mahamudu Bawumia chose him as his running mate, which the National Council of the party overwhelmingly endorsed. Speaking on Okay FMs Ade Akye Abia morning show on Friday, July 5, 2024, Mr Ofori Atta a.k.a. Tom Tom therefore encouraged all party members, no matter where they find themselves to take lessons from the Napo example. No matter where you find yourself in the party, even at the grassroots, try to work hard, embrace and help others so that when an opportunity comes you will be considered, he urged party members. Future of Ghana Describing the running mate as a great choice, Tom Tom said there is no doubt that the Bawumia-Opoku Prempeh ticket represents the future of Ghana. I am very sure that the pair will lead the NPP to victory in the elections, " he added. Ashanti Region With the running mate coming from the partys stronghold of Ashanti Region, Tom Tom said the region will show massive gratitude to the NPP in the elections. Luckily, we have a committed and workaholic regional chairman in the person of Chairman Wontumi. Everybody knows his hard work, especially his tremendous contributions that led to the NPP securing a historic victory from opposition in 2016, as well as the victory of 2020. Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh is also a household name in the region due to his delivery as a politician especially at the grassroots. So if you have two such great leaders in your stronghold, there is no doubt that their combined efforts will pay off." Glorious day The Manhyia South constituency chairman described Thursdays endorsement of Dr Opoku Prempeh as a glorious day for the NPP. As someone who has moved with him for many years, I can say without any shred of equivocation that he is a good man.The dream that our flagbearer, Dr Mahamudu Bawumia had regarding his choice of running mate came true. As the chairman of the constituency, I feel really proud but it is a victory for the NPP as a whole. Assertive personality Tom Tom again said everyone who has come close to Napo will attest to his humility and openness. Unfortunately, in Ghana, anybody who is brave and assertive is misconstrued as being arrogant. But, anyone who has come close to Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh will attest to his humility. At both the ministries of education and energy, his story has been very positive. He has helped many people in the party, no wonder many party members were rooting for him to become the running mate. 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 Executive Forum (YEF) Ashanti, of the New Patriotic Party congratulates Hon. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh as the Vice Presidential Candidate. Following the concluded National Council meeting of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) on the nomination of Hon. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh (NAPO) as the Running Mate to our Presidential Candidate, Dr. Mahamadu Bawumia, the Executive Forum (YEF) Ashanti, wishes to congratulate you on your confirmation by the National Council of the Party. Pursuit for political leadership calls for intensive persuasion to the population towards winning their support to our dream positions; this you have done and won the hearts of the members of the fraternity and many more Ghanaians. Your reconciliatory tone in your acceptance and maiden press release after you were confirmed has even encouraged us more after you affirmed that it was a process and not enmity. As a party, we look forward to seeing a united party in your hands as you have always strived to keep and a stronger campaign to break the 8 to continue the future proper management of our country that opens up more opportunities for businesses. As a group of professionals and business magnates with an established, comprehensive and recognizable leadership structure of the party; we have always asserted and reiterated our support to the party flag bearer and his running mate; we therefore promise you our total support as the Vice Presidential Candidate and Vice President in waiting and we wish you well as you take over the very challenging but possible roles to break the 8. On behalf of the Executive Forum, Ashanti, I congratulate you Mr. Vice President in waiting!. IT IS POSSIBLE BREAKING THE 8 YEF! YEF! YEF! Signed. Chairman, YEF, Ashanti Source: The Executive Forum (YEF) 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 Chairman of Parliaments ad hoc committee that probed the IGP leaked tape saga, Samuel Atta Akyea, has dismissed allegations of bias. The Abuakwa South Member of Parliament said he has no reason to disgrace the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Dr George Akuffo Dampare or any of the officers who appeared before the committee. The committee is reportedly divided over the final report as it was signed by all seven members except the Chairman. On the back of this, lead counsel for IGP Dampare, Kwame Gyan claimed Mr. Atta Akyea, who should remain neutral, has shown bias and has his own agenda. He cited the Chairmans behaviour following the release of the Committees report as evidence supporting his suspicions. Mr Gyan stated that, the IGP has been vindicated and that any attempts by the Chairman to tarnish his reputation will not succeed. However, reacting to the claims on Asempa FM Friday, Mr. Atta Akyea said he has no time to do evil. I really wish I wouldnt comment on this out of respect for the Speaker but they should enjoy. The tape was not my invention so how can I change the fact or overhaul the truth? So that if Im no longer in parliament and the case is revisited, I will tarnish my reputation? What is the dividend for me to disgrace the IGP? People should think. I dont see what I will gain in perpetuating evil. He hasnt offended me or chased after my wife so why I will hurt him? I leave everything to God, else things will not turn out well, he said. According to him, he only as the Chairman suggested for certain things to be done but there was no consensus. If as a Chairman, I suggest that we should do something and people disagree and want to make the report public without my signature, then that is it. Why else will the Speaker ask us to go back? he quizzed. Source: adomonline.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 Member of Parliament for the opposition National Democratic Congress for Cape Coast South, Kweku Ricketts-Hagan, has mounted a spirited defense for Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, who, some have described as arrogant. In a panel discussion on JoyNews flagship program, Newsfile, on Saturday, 6th July, 2024, the NDC MP said that sentiments that NAPO, as Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh is popularly called, is arrogant are not the case. He said that if one gets to know NAPO well, the person will come to appreciate the fact that he is a fantastic person. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh is a fantastic person if you get to know him well. He is very assertive and can be bold at times, but that cannot be an attribute of arrogance in the real sense of the word. He is very fantastic if you ask me the MP stated. He also indicated that Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh is an intellectual who engages in intellectual arguments, and that, he posited, can never be understood as arrogance. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh is all about intellectual debates he stated. Sampson Lardy, the host of the program, also had this to say about Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh. Matthew Opoku Prempeh has strong views to express on topics tabled for discussion. He makes his points strongly and would make sure he sends them across no matter what. That cant be described as arrogance in any dictionary. Legal practitioner, Kofi Bentil, a panelist on the show, in his view, said that what constitutes arrogance to some Ghanaians does not qualify for same. In Ghana, if you are assertive, you are tagged arrogant, if you are bold, it is arrogance. When you are well organized, you are described as arrogant, etc. He said that though he has made certain pronouncements in the past which didnt go down well with some people, that should not be the yardstick for the job Matthew Opoku Prempeh is expected to perform as Vice President if the NPP wins the 2024 elections. The argument should be, can he do the job? Does he have the track record? I would say Yes because the two critical ministries entrusted to him fared very well. He implemented Free SHS successfully and handled affairs at the Energy Ministry very well. The arrogance argument doesnt come in at all. He is results oriented, and, to me, thats more important the Vice President of IMANI Africa stated. The National Executive Council (NEC) of the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) has concertedly approved Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh as the running mate for Dr Mahamudu Bawumia for the 2024 general elections. The National Council endorsed the decision on Thursday after earlier meetings with the National Executive Council, and the National Steering Committee of the party. Dr. Matthew Opoku Prempeh, popularly known as NAPO, is also the Member of Parliament for Manhyia South in the Ashanti Region and former Education Minister and currently the Energy Minister. The party highlighted that Dr Opoku Prempeh meets all the criteria for the running mate position, which led to his unanimous approval. 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 His Excellency, John Dramani Mahama, the flagbearer of the National Democratic Congress (NDC), has reiterated his commitment of ensuring that no member of his government will be allowed to buy any state assets. According to John Mahama, the increasing surge in politicians purchasing public assets is very alarming, hence, his pledge to put a stop to the menace that has characterised the Nana Addo/Bawumia led government. Former President Mahama made this known during a meeting with the members of the press on Sunday, July 7, 2024 in Accra. John Mahamas comments follows a recent public uproar on the alleged sale of state properties by some politicians, most of whom are affiliates of the ruling New Patriotic party (NPP). He indicated that, Appointees and public office holders must change their attitudes. That is what we are going to insist on that people that we appoint are modest people, they are humble, they will open up to the people, and theyll do the things that will make the lives of our young people better. And so were gonna hold them to a higher criteria of service. You must not go and buy state property. He added that, anyone serving in his government will not be allowed to buy a state asset. He stated, Anybody serving in my government will not be allowed to buy a state asset. Nobody serving in my government will buy a state asset. Vehicles or cars or buildings or land or anything, nobody serving in our government will be allowed to buy a state asset. According to Mr. Mahama, it is expedient to protect state properties from persons with ill intentions towards the progress of the country. He, therefore, called on Ghanaians to vote him into power come December 7 to effect all the promises he has made to Ghanaians. "The time for change is now. A vote for Mahama and the NDC is a vote that will transform the living conditions of Ghanaians". 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 By NICOLAS VAUX-MONTAGNY and MARYCLAIRE DALE, Associated Press LYON, France (AP) A French court ruled on Monday that the American man accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, So I raped you, can be extradited to the United States. Ian Cleary, 31, of Saratoga, California, was detained in April in the city of Metz in northeastern France after a three-year search. He has been held in custody pending extradition proceedings since his arrest. The Court of Appeal in Metz said that Cleary can be extradited. When asked if he wished to be extradited or not, in line with French law, Cleary refused, prosecutors said in a statement Monday. His refusal may delay the extradition process, but it wont stop it. The ruling is final. Clearys case is now the responsibility of the French Justice Ministry, which must prepare and submit the extradition order for the French prime minister. While he awaits the prime ministers signature, Cleary remains detained in France. Justice Ministry officials didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. This wanted poster provided by the U.S. Marshals shows Ian Cleary, of Saratoga, Calif. (U.S. Marshals via AP)AP Cleary had been the subject of an international search since authorities in Pennsylvania issued a 2021 felony warrant in the case weeks after an Associated Press story detailed the reluctance of local prosecutors to pursue campus sex crimes. The arrest warrant accuses Cleary of stalking an 18-year-old Gettysburg College student at a party, sneaking into her dorm and sexually assaulting her while she texted friends for help. He was a 20-year-old Gettysburg student at the time, but didnt return to campus. The Gettysburg accuser, Shannon Keeler, had a rape exam done the same day she was assaulted in 2013. She gathered witnesses and evidence and spent years urging officials to file charges. She went to authorities again in 2021 after discovering the Facebook messages that seemed to come from Clearys account. So I raped you, the sender had written in a string of messages. Ill never do it to anyone ever again. I need to hear your voice. Ill pray for you. The AP doesnt typically identify sexual assault victims without their permission, which Keeler has granted. The accusers lawyer in Pennsylvania, reached on Monday, declined to comment on the development. According to the June 2021 warrant, police verified that the Facebook account used to send the messages belonged to Ian Cleary. Adams County District Attorney Brian Sinnett, who filed it, declined to comment on developments when reached Monday. After leaving Gettysburg, Cleary earned undergraduate and graduate degrees from Santa Clara University, near his family home in California, worked for Tesla, and then moved to France for several years, according to his website, which describes his self-published medieval fiction. Shannon Keeler poses for a portrait April 7, 2021. AP File Photo Keeler, originally from Moorestown, New Jersey, stayed on to graduate from Gettysburg and help lead the womens lacrosse team to a national title. By 2023, two years after the warrant was filed, Keeler and her lawyers wondered how he was avoiding capture in the age of digital tracking. The U.S. Marshals Service thought he was likely overseas and on the move, even as he was the subject of an Interpol alert called a red notice. Across the U.S., very few campus rapes are prosecuted, both because victims fear going to police and prosecutors hesitate to bring cases that can be hard to win, the AP investigation found. Keeler, when the warrant was issued, said she was grateful, but knew it only happened because I went public with my story, which no survivor should have to do in order to obtain justice. Judy Belushi Pisano, a former actress, producer and widow of John Belushi, has died at the age of 73. She died after a long battle with cancer. The news was announced by the late comedians official social media pages. Today, our hearts are heavy as we say goodbye to our sweet Judy, a post on Instagram on Saturday read. Her unwavering dedication and creative genius alongside Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi gave birth to The Blue Brothers, a timeless testament to the power of music and laughter. The news was also published in the MV Times, a news outlet that covers Marthas Vineyard, where Pisano spent much of her later years. Pisano met Belushi in high school in Wheaton, Illinois. They were married from 1973 up until 1982, when he died from a drug overdose. She then remarried in 1990 to Victor Pisano before filing for divorce in 2010. In the years following Johns passing in 1982, Judy honored his life and championed his legacy and Blues Brothers brand, the post continued. As we bid farewell, we pledge to continue her work, ensuring that Johns legacy, and the Blues Brothers will never fade. There was no one like her. Judy made everyone feel loved. She was nonjudgmental, light, funny and pure. You could be truly yourself around her, that alone was a gift. The Belushi and Pisano families will carry your love in their hearts forever. After Belushis death, she devoted much of her life to honoring his memory, and she was even involved in the 2020 Showtime documentary John Belushi. She worked alongside Belushi as an actress on The Blues Brothers and National Lampoons Animal House. She also had roles in Nothing Lasts Forever and All Downhill From Here, and served as a producer on The Best of John Belushi and John Belushi: Dancing on the Edge. She was also working on a Blues Brothers television series, according to IMDb. The MV Times also mentioned that she was active in the arts and held a fundraiser for Marthas Vineyard Community Services with a screening of John Belushi: Dancing on the Edge and another screening for Marthas Vineyard Playhouse with a Daniel Aykroyd show. The former actress is survived by her children and grandchildren. Michael Jacksons Neverland Ranch is just one mile away from the raging Lake Fire in Southern California, according to multiple reports. KTLA reported Sunday that the Lake Fire has ravaged more than 13,000 acres in just a couple of days. The 2,700 acre Neverland Ranch, where the late Jackson famously lived from 1988 until 2005 is now in close proximity. The New York Times reported that the evacuation area includes the ranch property, which is about 150 miles outside of Los Angeles. The site said that there have been no fatalities, injuries or structural damage reported thus far. It cited Kenichi Haskett, a public information office for Cal Fire, as saying that Neverland Ranch was in immediate danger as of Sunday. The site said that the ranch was rebranded in 2020 as the Sycamore Valley Ranch and sold for $22 million to billionaire investor Ronald W. Burke. The Times reported that more than 750 firefighters are currently battling the blaze. Jackson died in 2009 at the age of 50. By Brian P.D. Hannon, The Associated Press The crew of a NASA mission to Mars emerged from their craft after a yearlong voyage that never left Earth. The four volunteer crew members spent more than 12 months inside NASAs first simulated Mars environment at Johnson Space Center in Houston, coming out of the artificial alien environment Saturday around 5 p.m. Kelly Haston, Anca Selariu, Ross Brockwell and Nathan Jones entered the 3D-printed habitat on June 25, 2023, as the maiden crew of the space agencys Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog project. Haston, the mission commander, began with a simple, Hello. Its actually just so wonderful to be able to say hello to you all, she said. In this image made from video provided by NASA, NASA Deputy Director Flight Missions Kjell Lindgren, center, speaks in front of the crew members of the first CHAPEA mission, from left to right, Kelly Haston, Ross Brockwell, Nathan Jones, and Anca Selariu, after they emerged from their craft, Saturday, July 6, 2024, at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. (NASA via AP)AP Jones, a physician and the mission medical officer, said their 378 days in confinement went by quickly. The quartet lived and worked inside the space of 1,700 square feet (157 square meters) to simulate a mission to the red planet, the fourth from the sun and a frequent focus of discussion among scientists and sci-fi fans alike concerning a possible voyage taking humans beyond our moon. The first CHAPEA crew focused on establishing possible conditions for future Mars operations through simulated spacewalks, dubbed Marswalks, as well as growing and harvesting vegetables to supplement their provisions and maintaining the habitat and their equipment. They also worked through challenges a real Mars crew would be expected to experience including limited resources, isolation and delays in communication of up to 22 minutes with their home planet on the other side of the habitats walls, NASA said. In this image made from video provided by NASA, Anca Selariu, a crew member of the first CHAPEA mission, speaks in front of other members, from left to right, Kelly Haston, Ross Brockwell, and Nathan Jones, Saturday, July 6, 2024, at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. (NASA via AP)AP Two additional CHAPEA missions are planned and crews will continue conducting simulated spacewalks and gathering data on factors related to physical and behavioral health and performance, NASA said. Steve Koerner, deputy director of Johnson Space Center, said most of the first crews experimentation focused on nutrition and how that affected their performance. The work was crucial science as we prepare to send people on to the red planet, he said. Theyve been separated from their families, placed on a carefully prescribed meal plan and undergone a lot of observation, Koerner said. Mars is our goal, he said, calling the project an important step in Americas intent to be a leader in the global space exploration effort. Emerging after a knock on the habitats door by Kjell Lindgren, an astronaut and the deputy director of flight operations, the four volunteers spoke of the gratitude they had for each other and those who waited patiently outside, as well as lessons learned about a prospective manned mission to Mars and life on Earth. In this image made from video provided by NASA, the crew members of the first CHAPEA mission, Kelly Haston, third right, Ross Brockwell, center, Nathan Jones, left, and Anca Selariu, not in photo, emerge from their craft, Saturday, July 6, 2024, at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. (NASA via AP)AP Brockwell, the crews flight engineer, said the mission showed him the importance of living sustainably for the benefit of everyone on Earth. Im very grateful to have had this incredible opportunity to live for a year within the spirit of planetary adventure towards an exciting future, and Im grateful for the chance to live the idea that we must utilise resources no faster than they can be replenished and produce waste no faster than they can be processed back into resources, Brockwell said. We cannot live, dream, create or explore on any significant timeframe if we dont live these principles, but if we do, we can achieve and sustain amazing and inspiring things like exploring other worlds, he said. Science officer Anca Selariu said she had been asked many times why there is a fixation on Mars. Why go to Mars? Because its possible, she said. Because space can unite and bring out the best in us. Because its one defining step that Earthlings will take to light the way into the next centuries. The body of a teen found along the shoreline of the Ohio River over a year ago has now been identified. The Wellsville Police Department in Ohio identified the remains as those of JayShawn Fountain, 17, of Wilkins Township, Allegheny County, according to reports from TribLive and WTAE. Police said they originally discovered the body along the shores of the Ohio River in Wellsville on April 5, 2023. The Cuyahoga County Coroners Office initially estimated that Fountains body was between 30 and 40 years old. Police said they werent able to identify him through DNA or fingerprints. It is not yet known how officials were able to positively identify the body. Fountain had been missing since Feb. 24, 2023. Officials said he never returned home from Propel Braddock Hills High School in Pittsburgh. His book bag was found in Wilkinsburg, where he was known to switch buses after school, WTAE reported. President Joe Biden addressed a packed house of Democratic supporters, including state representatives, during a stop Sunday afternoon at the AFSCME Council 13 building in Harrisburg. Biden was met with frequent chants of four more years from an enthusiastic crowd who got the chance to shake hands and speak with the president after he made remarks, which lasted a little more than 5 minutes. Meeting him was wonderful, attendee Gloria Martin-Roberts said. I dont care about his age. I care about the economy, I care about whether my grandchildren and great-grandchildren are going to have a future in this country and Joe Biden is protecting those things I care about. AFSCME has officially endorsed Biden for more than a year, as have multiple other unions. Martin-Roberts, 76, is the interim director of Harrisburgs Department of Building and Housing Development and a former city council president. Her sentiments echoed what many in the crowd were feeling. They cheered as Biden reminded everyone of his Scranton roots and his wifes Philadelphian roots. Every time I come back to Pennsylvania, I feel like Im coming home, Biden said during his brief remarks Biden called for higher taxes on billionaires and corporations and said the country should spend the extra income on childcare and elder care. He also doubled down on his pro-union stance following his decision not to speak to members of the nations largest teachers union in Philly this weekend after its administrative employees went on strike, saying he wouldnt cross picket lines. I make no apologies for being the most pro-union president in American history, Biden said. When unions do well, the entire economy and everybody who is non-union does better. Biden visited Harrisburg after a morning stop at a Philadelphia church. He was joined at the AFSCME building by U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis, who made a rousing speech in support of the Presidents reelection campaign. I want my daughter to have the same rights that her mother came into the world with, and have the same ability to live in America, free, Davis said. I trust Joe Biden with my daughters future, so what we need to do as Democrats, we need to not worry, we need to work. It was a message that he and Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who was absent from the event but met with Biden later, have been consistently touting after Bidens debate performance. Most attendees at the event did not seem concerned about his age. Ive been in political office, and Ive run for political office and its exhausting, Martin-Roberts said. I didnt have any concerns after the debate, and seeing him in person strengthened that. A group of three teenagers from the Pennsylvania High School Democrats attended the event and said they werent concerned about Bidens age. He will turn 82 on Nov. 20. Im confident that the Biden administration will accomplish what they say, and Im feeling confident in the candidate we have, Pennsylvania High School Democrats Chair Erin DeSantis, 17, said. Its important to remember that its not just one person youre voting for, but the Supreme Court is on the ballot. DeSantis will be able to vote in the next election, but the other two members of the group, Gibson OMealy, 16, and Mette Faden, 15, wont. They still support Biden and said they think that their lives were better under his term than when former president Donald Trump was in office. Only one attendee who spoke to PennLive believed Biden should step down. Marcia Hajduk, a former Harrisburg Area Community College professor, said that while she would support the Democratic nominee, she would prefer someone other than Biden. I wake up feeling sick every day knowing that Trump is ahead in the polls, Hajduk said. My faith would be strengthened if Biden was graceful enough to say he would be an adviser to whoever runs and let someone else be the president. Hajduk was concerned about four more years of a Biden presidency, especially under what she views as a lack of support for Vice President Kamala Harris. Others felt the opposite. I believe if Biden felt he couldnt do the job, hed get out of office for the country, Nikki Beyer, chair of the Northern York Democratic Club, said. I will support him, but if he wanted to step down, I think it should be Kamala [Harris] simply because shes the vice president. Terry Lawson, a canvasser from Steelton, said he believes Biden could protect Americas constitution. Everyone is talking about Shapiro and [California Gov. Gavin] Newsom, Lawson said. Their time isnt yet. Right now, our constitution is strong and the only way it can be broken is if you dont vote. Multiple Harrisburg city council members and Pennsylvania state legislators were at the event, including Rep. Justin Fleming, D-Dauphin County. Fleming expressed his unwavering support for Biden and noted that the President has access to the best healthcare professionals in the world. The Harrisburg stop was part of a larger Biden campaign in the important swing state of Pennsylvania after Newsom campaigned on both sides of the state on Friday and Saturday. After what was described as a thorough search of the Pennsylvania Capitol building, authorities said they do not believe the threat that caused the building to be evacuated on Saturday was credible. In a statement Sunday, the Pennsylvania Capitol Police said that following a comprehensive search, capitol police, federal, state, and local authorities determined there was no credible threat and the buildings were cleared to reopen. By Michael A. MacDowell Now that some of the smoke has cleared from the comments of three Ivy League college presidents before a congressional committee, it is time to reconsider what is happening to higher education in America. WWEs Monday Night Raw stays north of the border for tonights edition at Canadian Tire Centre in Kanata, Canada. The event will be the first in the aftermath of Saturdays Money In The Bank premium show in Toronto. Monday Night Raw is scheduled to start at 8 p.m. ET with TV coverage on USA Network and streaming on-demand. As the first show to follow Money In The Bank, the July 8 edition of Monday Night Raw will have fallout from those storylines on a night where Tiffany Stratton snagged the briefcase in the womens Money in the Bank match and Drew McIntyre won it on the mens side. Jey Uso, who nearly got the briefcase first, will wrestle tonight on Raw against Chad Gable after spoiling Gables own shot at winning Money in the Bank on Saturday night. WWE Monday Night Raw When: Monday, July 8 at 8 p.m. ET Where: Canadian Tire Centre, Kanata, Canada TV channel: USA Network Live streams: FuboTV (free trial) | DirecTV Stream (free trial) | SlingTV (50% off 1st month) Among the highlights that the WWE has shared for tonights match schedule on Monday Night Raw, the following five matches are expected to be on the docket: Jey Uso vs. Chad Gable Lyra Valkyria, Katana Chance and Kayden Carter vs. Damage CTRLs Iyo Sky, Kairi Sane and Dakota Kai Carlito, Finn Balor and JD McDonagh vs. Awesome Truth (R-Truth and The Miz) and Braun Strowman Dominik Mysterio and Liv Morgan vs. Rey Mysterio and Zelina Vega Monday Night Raw is set for an 8 p.m. ET start (7 p.m. CT) on USA Network. Live streams are available from FuboTV (free trial), DirecTV Stream (free trial) and SlingTV (50% off 1st month). As Glenn Frey once sang, the heat is on. The National Weather Service in State College has extended a heat advisory from noon today until 8 p.m. Tuesday for Adams, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lancaster, Lebanon, Perry, and York counties. The initial advisory was scheduled to end at 8 p.m. today. Heat index values of 100 to 104 are expected for the region, the National Weather Service says, and warns that the hot temperatures and high humidity could cause heat illnesses. Heat is once again in the cards for us. A Heat Advisory has been issued for portions of central PA. This advisory is in effect from noon today through 8PM Tuesday. It's possible this advisory will get extended into Wednesday with confidence in prolonged heat increasing.#PAwx pic.twitter.com/YjE3DmIgxI NWS State College (@NWSStateCollege) July 8, 2024 The National Weather Service said on social media that theres a chance the heat advisory could be extended into Wednesday. In addition, a code orange air quality alert is in effect today. A code orange alert means that air pollution concentrations in the region might become unhealthy for such sensitive groups as children, people suffering from asthma, heart disease or other lung diseases, and the elderly. Those affected should avoid strenuous activity or exercising outdoors. The high temperatures will continue into the week, although Wednesday and Thursday will see a chance of thunderstorms. Temperatures, however, arent expected to go down until Friday, which will also see a chance of thunderstorms. Heres the current five-day forecast, courtesy of AccuWeather: Today: High of 96. Low of 76. Hot. Tuesday: High of 98. Low of 77. Hot Wednesday: High of 90. Low of 76. Mostly cloudy with thunderstorms. Thursday: High of 90. Low of 74. Partly sunny with thunderstorms. Friday: High of 81. Low of 70. Intermittent clouds. By Christopher Weber and Margery A. Beck, The Associated Press LOS ANGELES A long-running heat wave that has already shattered previous records across the U.S. persisted on Sunday, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that caused the death of a motorcyclist in Death Valley and holding the East in its hot and humid grip. An excessive heat warning the National Weather Services highest alert was in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10% of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest tied or broke previous heat records. That was certainly the case over the weekend: Many areas in Northern California surpassed 110 degrees (43.3 C), with the city of Redding topping out at a record 119 (48.3 C). Phoenix set a new daily record Sunday for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 92 F (33.3 C). A high temperature of 128 F (53.3 C) was recorded Sunday at Death Valley National Park in eastern California, where a visitor died from heat exposure and another person was hospitalized, officials said. The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists riding through the Badwater Basin area amid scorching weather, the park said in a statement. The person who died was not identified. The other motorcyclist was transported to a hospital in Las Vegas for severe heat illness, the statement said. The other four members of the party were treated at the scene. High heat like this can pose real threats to your health, said park Superintendent Mike Reynolds. The soaring temperatures didnt faze Chris Kinsel, a visitor who said it was like Christmas day for me to be at Death Valley on a record-breaking day. Kinsel said he and his wife typically come to the park during the winter, when its still plenty warm but thats nothing compared with being at one of the hottest places on Earth in July. Death Valley during the summer has always been a bucket list thing for me. For most of my life, Ive wanted to come out here in summertime, said Kinsel, who was visiting Death Valleys Badwater Basin area from Las Vegas. Kinsel said he planned to go to the parks visitor center to have his photo taken next to the digital sign displaying the current temperature. Across the desert in Nevada, Natasha Ivory took four of her eight children to a water park in Mount Charleston, outside Las Vegas, which on Sunday set a record high of 119 F (48.3 C). Sherri Thompson, with her chihuahua 14-year-old Kiwahi, waits in her vehicle for the Cook Plaza cooling center to open on Friday, July 5, 2024, in Gresham, Ore. Thompson has lived in her car for three years, and can only run its air conditioning for about 20 minutes at a time as it causes the engine to overheat. A heat wave is spreading across Wester U.S., the national Weather Service said, sending many residents in search of a cool haven from the dangerously high temperatures. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)AP Theyre having a ball, Ivory told Fox5 Vegas said. Im going to get wet too. Its too hot not to. Jill Workman Anderson also was at Mount Charleston, taking her dog for a short hike and enjoying the view. We can look out and see the desert, she said. It was also 30 degrees cooler than northwest Las Vegas, where we live. Triple-digit temperatures were common across Oregon, where several records were toppled including in Salem, where on Sunday it hit 103 F (39.4 C), topping the 99 F (37.2 C) mark set in 1960. On the more-humid East Coast, temperatures above 100 degrees were widespread, though no excessive heat advisories were in effect for Sunday. Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors, read a weather service advisory for the Baltimore area. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Heat records shattered across the Southwest Rare heat advisories were extended even into higher elevations including around Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, with the weather service in Reno, Nevada, warning of major heat risk impacts, even in the mountains. How hot are we talking? Well, high temperatures across (western Nevada and northeastern California) wont get below 100 degrees (37.8 C) until next weekend, the service posted online. And unfortunately, there wont be much relief overnight either. More extreme highs are in the near forecast, including possibly 130 F (54.4 C) around midweek at Furnace Creek, California, in Death Valley. The hottest temperature ever officially recorded on Earth was 134 F (56.67 C) in July 1913 in Death Valley, though some experts dispute that measurement and say the real record was 130 F (54.4 C), recorded there in July 2021. A water-dropping helicopter drops on flames from the advancing Lake Fire in Los Olivos, Calif., Saturday, July 6, 2024. (AP Photo/Eric Thayer)AP Tracy Housley, a native of Manchester, England, said she decided to drive from her hotel in Las Vegas to Death Valley after hearing on the radio that temperatures could approach record levels. We just thought, lets be there for that, Housley said Sunday. Lets go for the experience. Deaths are starting to mount In Arizonas Maricopa County, which encompasses Phoenix, there have been at least 13 confirmed heat-related deaths this year, along with more than 160 other deaths suspected of being related to heat that are still under investigation, according to a recent report. That does not include the death of a 10-year-old boy last week in Phoenix who suffered a heat-related medical event while hiking with family at South Mountain Park and Preserve, according to police. California wildfires fanned by low humidity, high temperatures In California, crews worked in sweltering conditions to battle a series of wildfires across the state. In Santa Barbara County, northwest of Los Angeles, the growing Lake Fire had scorched more than 25 square miles (66.5 square kilometers) of dry grass, brush and timber after breaking out Friday. There was no containment by Sunday. The blaze was burning through mostly uninhabited wildland, but some rural homes were under evacuation orders. A person cools off during the Waterfront Blues Festival on Friday, July 5, 2024, in Portland, Ore. A slow-moving and potentially record-setting heat wave is spreading across the Western U.S., sending many residents in search of a cool haven from the dangerously high temperatures. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)AP Festival revelers meet the heat with cold water and shade At the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon, music fans coped by drinking cold water, seeking shade or freshening up under water misters. Organizers of the weekend revelries also advertised free access to air conditioning in a nearby hotel. Angelica Quiroz, 31, kept her scarf and hat wet and applied sunscreen. Definitely a difference between the shade and the sun, Quiroz said Friday. But when youre in the sun, it feels like youre cooking. Beck reported from Omaha, Nebraska. Associated Press videographer Ty ONeil in Death Valley National Park, and writer Walter Berry in Phoenix contributed to this report. Khossein Kokhestani of Ukraine has taken a well-deserved victory here at PokerStars Eureka Hamburg Main Event, taking home the trophy from Casino Schenefeld and the sum of 110,070 after defeating Nicklas Delhi in a short heads-up showdown, who is consoled with the prize of 68,750 for his deep run. Final Table Results Place Player Country Prize (EUR) 1 Khossein Kokhestani Ukraine 110,070 2 Nicklas Delhi Denmark 68,750 3 Stan Van Dijk Netherlands 49,110 4 Simone Demasi Italy 37,780 5 Sergej Schumacher Germany 29060 6 Jonas Stechbarth Germany 22,350 7 Tim Werner Germany 17,190 8 Timo Schmiedeke Germany 13,230 9 Rens Buijs Belgium 10,610 Final Day Recap 19 players returned for Day 3, and the two short-stacks, PokerStars Qualifier Philipp Ruthard and Andre Hegendorf, were the first players to depart in the first level of the day. Philipp Ruthard The two table redraw was made when another short-stack Yves Thalmann exited and from there the knockouts slowed in pace considerably. The final table was ultimately set when Ercan Atmaca four-bet jammed with a middling suited ace in a cutoff versus button spot against Day 3 chip leader Stan Van Dijk, but ran into his opponent's ace-king. In what became a marathon final table, there would be an hour of play before Belgian Rens Buijs was the first player to bust, his ace-high being usurped by Tim Werner's king-queen. Rens Buijs A further two hours of play then took place before Timo Schmiedeke lost a flip against Nicklas Dehli to depart in eighth, while Werner exited when he ran into Kokhestani's pocket kings. Dehli also disposed of Jonas Stechbarth in sixth after he woke up with aces following his opponent's open-jam. Going into the final five Dehli had a considerable chip advantage over his remaining opponents, and he leveraged it fully, opening a lot of hands and attempting to apply pressure where he could, best shown by putting Stan Van Dijk in the blender on a four-card flush board. Unbelievably, Dehli woke up with aces again against Sergej Schumacher's pocket queens, and that meant the German departed in fifth place. Sergej Schumacher Dehli also accounted for Simone Demasi in fourth as his rampage continued, after Demasi jammed the button and Dehli looked him up with an ace and held. Simone Demasi Brief deal discussions were then held, but play resumed. The first piece of bad news came Dehli's way for a while when he lost a flip against Khossein Kokhestani, who had only shortly before doubled-up Van Dijk. Three-handed play was cagey, with chips being traded back and forth, but with Dehli and Kokhestani always holding a lead over Van Dijk. That changed when Van Dijk doubled through Dehli with trip kings. After some more trading of chips, Van Dijk then doubled through Kokhestani with quad deuces, as did Dehli when he had Kokhestani's king-seven dominated. By now the three were very close in stacks. Van Dijk sustained some damage when Dehli doubled through him with ace-high versus king-high. Dehli eventually knocked out Van Dijk after he had been left with crumbs when Kokhestani flopped the world with king-four suited and had Van Dijk drawing dead on the turn. Kokhestani came into heads-up with a 2:1 advantage and it was over quickly after the money went in preflop when Kokhestani had a dominating jack, and the kicker proved crucial, giving him the trophy and his first major title. Winner's Reaction Kokhestani, who prefers to be known as Amir rather than Khossein, was understandably emotional after his victory and what appears to be his first recorded live cash. "I am so so happy, I've been working very hard for this the last ten years or so, always trying to work on my game and learn from my mistakes. Poker players dream of winning a tournament like this, so I can't really believe its happened to me. I've always been someone who worked hard, so just for that to pay off is crazy, I'm very happy." That concludes PokerNews coverage of this tremendous event, be sure to stay tuned for our coverage of tournaments around the world. Action folded around to Jimmy D'Ambrosio in the small blind and he limped before calling a raise to 3,000 from Henry Chan in the big blind. "You know I'm gonna lead out on any flop right," joked D'Ambrosio as the two friends from a Chicago home game prepared to battle in a heads-up pot. D'Ambrosio kept his word following the 4510 flop by tossing 3,500 into the middle. Chan stuck around to see a turn. The Ax turn saw D'Ambrosio slow down, checking to Chan, who bet 10,000. With a "not today Henry" D'Ambrosio moved all in with the covering stack. Chan called off for his remaining 32,000 to put himself at risk. Henry Chan: 5x4x Jimmy D'Ambrosio: 32 D'Ambrosio had turned the wheel to leave Chan needing to fill up to survive. The 9 river kept the straight best to send last year's 31st place finisher out short of the money while propelling D'Ambrosio up the chip counts. The late-night conclusion of the $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em Freezeout saw the 82nd gold bracelet of the 2024 World Series of Poker awarded at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. This two-day event attracted an impressive sum of 1,424 unique entries, generating a total prize pool of $1,253,120. It was Aditya Agarwal who managed to beat this mammoth field to claim the first WSOP gold bracelet of this inaugural World Series event, alongside the first-place prize of $189,661. Event #82: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em Final Table Results Rank Player Country Prize 1 Aditya Agarwal India $189,661 2 Augusto Hagen Argentina $126,424 3 Jesse Wigan United Kingdom $90,584 4 Suhail Khan United States $65,731 5 Alexander Holtz United States $48,313 6 Frank Lagodich United States $35,975 7 Tengqi Zhan China $27,143 8 Robert Macri United States $20,754 9 Lucas Regier United States $16,085 10 Nick Kocman United States $12,639 Winner Reaction Although this was a career-first bracelet win for Agarwal, it was certainly no accident, as he explained. I've been a professional, I think, for twenty years now. I'll be turning forty this year, and I've played in the World Series every year since I was twenty-one! In addition, Agarwal humbly thanked the rail that supported him into the early hours of the morning. Theyre more than my friends; theyre my students. I would like to give a shout-out to them. They have definitely helped me be the player I am. This feels good. It's been a rough summer. So this definitely feels good. Aditya Agarwal Tournament Action This freezeout tournament nested itself perfectly among the World Series schedule, so those whose fortune may have already run out in the Main Event could try their luck once more at bracelet glory. Alternatively, those who didnt fancy a break from the felt could potentially have found a bag on Day 1d of the Main Event and still had time to register this Day 1 late after the conclusion play. That was exactly the choice made by many players in the early hours of the morning, including the likes of Mike Holtz, David Peters, Dara O'Kearney, Frank Lagodich and more. Although this gamble saw a few contenders' $1,000 evaporate in only a few hands, the likes of Holtz (205th), OKearney (143rd), and Peters (76th) quickly converted their short stacks into additional WSOP cash on their already impressive poker resumes. Mike Holtz $25k Fansty Draft Sweats Notable names to run deep in this event included $25k Fantasy players Wing Po Liu, Chance Kornuth and James Collopy who crashed out in 61st, 32nd and 27th, respectively. Kornuth seemingly dominated proceedings on Day 1, having bagged the third biggest stack in the room for the restart of play this afternoon. Kornuths experience in both high-stakes events and big-field MTTs allowed him to effectively pressure his opponents maintain his monster stack. However, it wasnt to be for the American professional as Antonio Thompson became the beneficiary of Kornuths stack late into Level 24. Chance Kornuth Kornuths finish was just eclipsed by Collopys exit in 27th place. Although he may have managed to navigate this large field, Collopys departure was unfortunately not on his own terms; his short stack was forced all in by the posting of the big blind, eventually seeing the remainder of his chips in the hands of Jiaze Li. Final Table Action It took thirteen levels to whittle down the 214 players that returned to the felt this afternoon to a final table of ten. All remaining finalists had locked up a score of $12,639, but the first-place prize of $189,661 consumed the attention of both the players and their rails alike. The dream of bracelet glory was quickly over for both Nick Kocman and Lucas Regier, who finished in tenth and ninth place, respectively. Both players got their money in as underdogs and couldn't improve against either of their opponents; their final chips only served to aid the deep runs of both Suhail Khan and Lagodich, who claimed the remainder of their respective stacks. Nick Kocman The next to hit the felt was Robert Macri, whose short stack shove was quickly swallowed by the pocket kings of Agarwal, ending his deep run in eighth place. It wasnt long before Agarwal woke up with another premium holding as he faced a second short stack jam; this time Tengqi Zhan did the hard work for him, shoving his remaining chips straight into the ace-king of Agarwal to score back-to-back eliminations. Lagodich came into the final table as one of the most decorated players left in the field, however, a river hero-call gone wrong saw Jesse Wigans straight send him to the rail in sixth place. Lagodich registered this freezeout late last night after bagging Day 1d of the Main Event and seamlessly converted his ten big blind stack into the third WSOP final table of his career. Alongside a score of $48,313, Lagoditch earned himself a slightly earlier than-planned rest before returning to the felt in just a few hours to compete on Day 2d of the Main Event. Frank Lagodich Both Agarwal and Wigan werent done on their rampage as each scored an additional tally on their knock-out charts, dispatching Alexander Holtz and Suhail Khan, respectively, in fifth and fourth places. However, Agarwal came out on top in this race as Wigan became his next victim; a classic tournament flip saw Agarwal the victor and Wigan exit to the rail to trigger heads-up play. A dominating chip lead saw heads-up play over in a matter of hands. Agarwal was behind preflop, but momentum was on his side; a rivered gutshot saw him take the last pot and the trophy. That wraps up the coverage of Event #82: $1,000 No-Limit Hold'em. Be sure to stick with PokerNews for all the coverage of the rest of the 2024 World Series of Poker at the Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. Welcome back to PokerNews, the official media partner of the 2024 World Series of Poker and home of live updates from all bracelet events. Today sees the Day 1b of Event #84: $600 Ultra Stack No-Limit Hold'em here at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. This three-day event gets underway at 2 p.m. local time, with late registration open for 12 levels. This event allows for two reentries per flight. There will be 20-minute breaks every three levels, with a 60-minute dinner break at the end of Level 12 (~8:40 p.m.). The starting stack is 60,000 chips, with the plan to play 20 levels of 30 minutes each. For the surviving players, Day 2 resumes at 1 p.m. local time on Tuesday, July 9, and plays 17 40-minute levels or down to five players, whichever comes first. Day 3 is when a winner will be determined. This is only the second edition of the Ultra Stack, which debuted at the 2023 WSOP. Last years event garnered a field of 7,207 entries generating a prize pool of $3,675,570. The winner was Joseph Roh, who defeated Denny Lee heads-up to win $401,250 and his first WSOP bracelet. Day 1a saw a yet-to-be-confirmed number of entrants take to the felt, and only 284 progress. Michael Bell turned his 60,000 starting stack into 2,635,000, almost 750,000 more chips than Lee Clark (1,620,000) in second place. Anyone wishing to climb into the top ten must accumulate at least 1,400,000 chips by the close of play. Popular Belgian grinder Kenny Hallaert (pictured) made it through Day 1a with 665,000 chips as he hunts what would be his first bracelet. Hallaert has almost $5.5 million in live cashes Planning on playing this event? PokerNews activates MyStack for every WSOP event, regardless of that tournament's buy-in, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting MyStack is a free poker tool that puts you in control of your chip counts on our live reporting pages. Once you have created a free PokerNews account, you can use MyStack to update your chip counts in real time; hopefully, your stack will continue increasing throughout the event! PokerNews traditional coverage of this event starts on Day 2. Why not use MyStack to update your friends and family back home if you're playing on Day 1b? Become a Bigger Part of the Action With MyStack What Else is Happening at the 2024 WSOP? Scott Seiver Welcome back to PokerNews, the official media partner of the 2024 World Series of Poker and home of live updates from all bracelet events. Today sees the start of Event #85: $1,000 Flip & Go No-Limit Hold'em Presented by GGPoker here at Horseshoe and Paris Las Vegas. This two-day event gets underway at 10 a.m. local time, with late registration open all day. This event allows for unlimited reentry. Players may enter multiple Single Table Flip & Gos on the day of the event but can only qualify for the restart once and may not reenter after qualifying. The first hand of each flight is played crazy pineapple style, where players discard one of their hole cards after the flop, and everyone is all-in with one player advancing per table. It is then followed by a standard tournament structure played as no-limt holdem. If there is a split on the first hand, play will continue with all existing players being all in each hand until only one player remains. Win your table and you are in the money. Restart for all remaining players at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, July 9. The starting stack is 20,000 chips, and flips will run continuously until a final flip is announced toward the end of the day. Day 2 resumes at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, July 9 and plays down to a winner. Last years event attracted a field of 1,022 entries generating a prize pool of $1,182,810. The winner was Dong Meng who defeated "Westside" Wesley Fei heads-up to win $160,490 and his first WSOP bracelet. I feel surreal You know, Im just really excited," said Meng. "Im very grateful for this opportunity, and I know a lot of people [who wish they were competing] couldnt be here, so I feel very fortunate. Year Entries Winner Country Payout 2023 1,022 Dong Meng United States $160,490 2022 1,329 Christopher Chatman United States $187,770 Planning on playing this event? PokerNews activates MyStack for every WSOP event, regardless of that tournament's buy-in, allowing you to directly adjust your chip counts in our live reporting MyStack is a free poker tool that puts you in control of your chip counts on our live reporting pages. Once you have created a free PokerNews account, you can use MyStack to update your chip counts in real time; hopefully, your stack will continue increasing throughout the event! Become a Bigger Part of the Action With MyStack What Else is Happening at the 2024 WSOP? Scott Seiver Brandon Fish explained the impact of a hate crime by imagining graffiti scribbled on a wall. In one situation, a smiley face is spray-painted under a bridge or on a bathroom stall. In the other, a swastika stains the entrance of a synagogue. "The impact of those crimes is dramatically different," said Fish, who works as the director of community relations for the Charleston Jewish Federation. "The motivation for those crimes is dramatically different, and the impact of getting a swastika on a synagogue is to strike fear into the hearts of that entire Jewish community." By 2019, when Fish helped start the Stamp Out Hate Coalition, states across the country had passed hate crime legislation that established higher penalties for crimes fueled by bias against a demographic. The organization was created to unite faith groups, businesses and organizations to push for a bill in South Carolina. Five years have passed. South Carolina has yet to pass a hate crime law. It's one of two states left without such legislation and not for a lack of effort in the Statehouse. The Clementa C. Pinckney Hate Crimes Act continues to be introduced and gain traction, even passing twice in the House. Still, it has never passed the state Senate. Fish said the state's inaction sends a message. "We always like to say that hate crimes are different than regular crimes because they're message crimes," Fish said. "They're intended to send a message to an entire community that you aren't safe or you aren't welcome, and I think that sometimes what we choose to put into our laws or refuse to put into our laws also sends a message." It's a message South Carolina municipalities are attempting to change as many increasingly take the efforts into their own hands. Across the state, 15 municipalities have passed local hate crime ordinances and pushed back against concerns that hate crime legislation would erode free speech or lessen punishment for crimes not motivated by hate. Nine of the cities and towns that have passed laws do so just this year. Craig Massey of Wadmalaw lost his father to Alzheimers disease long before he joined a statewide bicycle ride in 2019 to raise money for research into fighting the disease. But when he rides, his father is still with him because Massey talks to him about what is going on in his life, his career moves and everything else. I tell him that I miss him, Massey, 65, said. The Alzheimers Association Ride to End ALZ South Carolina, a three-day, 255-mile ride across the state, will be held July 12-14. About 400 cyclists will begin in Simpsonville in the Upstate and end in Mount Pleasant, with riders raising money for research along the way. Over its 16 years so far, the ride has brought in more than $6.4 million. This year it willalso include Christopher Weber, the associations director of global science, who is coming to ride the last leg. He is coming in on the heels of good news: the U.S. Food and Drug Administration just approved a new drug to treat the disease. The FDA announced on July 2 it was giving Fast Track approval of donanemab, marketed as Kisunla, for those with mild dementia or cognitive impairment. The IV drug appears to attack the protein plaques and tangles that accumulate in the brains of Alzheimers patients and are thought to lead to cell death and memory loss. After 18 months on the drug, those receiving it had 35 percent less decline on memory tests and rating scales compared to those receiving a placebo and were 39 percent less likely to move into the next worsening phase of the disease, according to manufacturer Eli Lilly. Like another drug approved last year, Leqembi, the new drug appears to clear the amyloid protein clumps in the brain significantly, with patients seeing an average of 84 percent removed. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? Read moreSmith Says: Sleepless nights bring questions COLUMBIA Drafting a budget in South Carolina is all about ritual. After months of quiet toil, the governor outlines his spending priorities for the year each January and lobbies members of the House and Senate on some of the finer points of his recommendations in a policy-laden State of the State address. The House and Senate takes the governor's budget and goes in a direction they want and control, eventually battling out the finer points in droll conference committee hearings and closed-door spending discussions. Eventually, the governor signs it and everyone goes home. It's a tested formula, and one that has generally been without serious issues. One budget season ritual, though the doling out of legislator-requested earmarks has drawn a particular amount of scrutiny in recent years. Budget earmarks are one-time expenditures in the yearly spending plan, typically committed to various small projects around the state. They can run the gamut, from closing funding gaps on various infrastructure projects to financing a big community service project run by a nonprofit. But the process of sending out those dollars, critics say, is rife with issues. Until just a few years ago, few people knew what the money was actually going toward, until Gov. Henry McMaster signed an executive order requiring lawmakers to submit detailed reports outlining exactly how the money would be spent. Most of the money tends to go to the most powerful or longest-tenured members of leadership. And there is no real criteria for what an appropriate use for those discretionary dollars are, meaning most of the requests will ultimately be approved. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 12:00:21 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 433 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 /Apex Critical Metals Corp. (CSE:APXC)(OTCQB:APXCF) ("Apex" or the "Company"), is pleased to announce that it has entered into investor relations agreements with Rumble Strip Media Inc. ("Rumble") to enhance it's investor awareness. Pursuant to the agreement, Rumble will provide certain social media, marketing and consulting services to Apex in consideration for an upfront payment of CAD$300,000 to Rumble. The services provided by Rumble may include investor relations activities within the meaning of applicable securities laws and the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange. Rumble and its principals are arm's length to the Company and, to the knowledge of the Company, Rumble does not own, control, or direct any securities of the Company.About Apex Critical Metals Corp.Apex Critical Metals Corp.is a Canadian exploration company specializing in the acquisition and development of high potential rare earth elements (REE's) and niobium properties. Apex Critical Metals is publicly listed on the CSE, and its common shares currently trade under the symbol "APXC".On Behalf of the Board of Directors APEX CRITICAL METALS CORP.,Sean CharlandChief Executive OfficerTel: 604.681.1568Email: info@ apexcriticalmetals.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.CAUTIONARY STATEMENT REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING INFORMATION:This news release may contain "forward-looking statements" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking statements consist of statements that are not purely historical, including any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Forward-looking statements in this news release include statements with respect to the Offering including, the closing date of the Offering, the potential participation of insiders in the Offering and the anticipated use of proceeds of the Offering. Forward-looking statements are subject to various known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results, performance or developments to differ materially from those contained in the statements, including risks related to factors beyond the control of the Company, including, but not limited to, the receipt of regulatory approval for the Offering, if required. 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. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by law.SOURCE: Apex Critical Metals Corp. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 15:00:26 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 445 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Au Pair USA by InterExchange, the leading not-for-profit au pair agency, is proud to announce the program's 35th anniversary - a major milestone and a testament to the demand for international au pair childcare with a strong cultural component.Au Pair Agency Since its founding in 1989, Au Pair USA has strived to raise the bar for what families and au pairs can expect from this exciting cultural exchange. During this time, the company has built an alumni network of more than 35,000 international au pairs, as well as helped provide safe and reliable in-home care for over 100,000 American children.Today, families are busier than ever, and high-quality childcare can be incredibly difficult to find. On the heels of its 35th anniversary, Au Pair USA looks forward to continuing the agency's work in the U.S. market and increasing access to au pair childcare. With recent expansions, Au Pair USA now serves families in 20 states across the U.S., including New York, New Jersey, California, Texas, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Virginia, and Washington D.C.Au Pair USA, as one of the first American au pair agencies to qualify as a designated visa sponsor by the U.S. Department of State, has been instrumental in facilitating a rich cultural exchange. The agency has been honored to support international au pairs from more than 40 countries, connecting them with host families, overseeing their visa process and travels, and providing orientation and ongoing resources during their stay.As a founding member of the International Au Pair Association (IAPA), Au Pair USA by InterExchange has helped to develop international standards for all parties involved in au pair exchanges. They have also worked to spread awareness of the benefits of au pairs, particularly regarding the unique cultural experience au pairs offer host families and the invaluable relationships that can develop between families and au pairs.In its fourth decade of service, Au Pair USA is committed to making the au pair process as smooth as possible for host families. Looking ahead, the agency will continue to streamline its service, simplifying the process and removing the hurdles that can keep families from getting the type of care they desire for their children. This includes offering free online family profiles, virtual placement interviews, and year-round arrival dates, as well as handling all pre-arrival details for au pairs.Interested readers can visit www.aupairusa.org to learn more about Au Pair USA's services and mission. For more information on becoming a host family for an international au pair, visit www.aupairusa.org/hosting-an-au-pair Contact InformationJordan Paynejpayne@ interexchange.org SOURCE: Au Pair USAView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 14:00:57 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 505 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Veteran Industry Leader Bob Rosetta Joins ApTask Global Workforce Board as Strategic AdvisorISELIN, NJ / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / ApTask Global Workforce is excited to announce the appointment of Bob Rosetta as a strategic advisor to its board, spearheading client engagement initiatives. With a distinguished career spanning over three decades, Bob brings unparalleled expertise in strategy, workforce optimization, information technology, strategic sourcing, and procurement.A Visionary Leader in Global Transformation Bob Rosetta is a highly accomplished global transformation leader known for driving sustainable change and creating tangible results in complex business environments. His diverse skill set encompasses category management, expense management, contract negotiation, supplier management, and people development. Bob's strategic insights and leadership have consistently delivered substantial business and operational value.Proven Track Record of Success As the Managing Director, Global Head of Resource Management Organization, and Chief Procurement Officer at Citigroup, Bob managed a $19 billion addressable supply chain spend supporting Citi's operations across more than 100 countries. He integrated six functional areas into a new division, improving organizational alignment with business divisions, enhancing talent recruitment, upskilling talent, and achieving significant efficiency gains.His commitment to supplier diversity and sustainability resulted in an 85% increase in spend with diverse suppliers. Additionally, Bob's efforts in risk management reduced the supply base by 15%, significantly decreasing costs and mitigating third-party risks.Expertise in Workforce Optimization Bob's leadership extended to workforce optimization, overseeing strategies for Citigroup's 300,000+ staff across all products, functions, and regions. He managed diverse labor sources, including direct employees, captive solution centers, contingent labor, and strategic vendor alliances. Bob's visionary approach led to the creation of the Smart Automation Center, promoting process reengineering through Robotics Process Automation (RPA) and Artificial Intelligence. He successfully transitioned 50% of resources to service centers, optimizing costs and operational efficiency.Driving Innovation and Sustainable Solutions Bob has demonstrated a passion for driving innovation, fostering talent development, and implementing sustainable solutions throughout his career. His expertise in strategic technology sourcing, business process outsourcing, and creating workforce strategies has delivered exceptional results. Bob has successfully implemented offshore sourcing strategies, established captive centers in various locations, and implemented global Vendor Management Offices (VMOs) to streamline operations and achieve substantial cost savings.Educational Background and Professional Affiliations Bob holds a Bachelor of Science in Management Information Systems from Empire State College in Albany, NY. He served as a member of the Board of Directors for Citi Software & Technology Services Ltd. in Shanghai and Citi Toronto Ltd and was a member of the Women's Leadership Network Executive Steering Committee.ApTask Global Workforce Welcomes Bob Rosetta "We are thrilled to have Bob Rosetta join our board as a strategic advisor," said Eddie Bright Jr, Global CEO of ApTask Global Workforce. "Bob's extensive experience in global transformation and strategic sourcing will be invaluable as we continue to enhance our client engagement strategies and deliver innovative workforce solutions." For more information about ApTask Global Workforce and Bob Rosetta, please visit www.aptask.com Contact InformationMedia Relationsmediarelations@ aptask.com 7323558000SOURCE: ApTask Global WorkforceView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 23:50:10 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 434 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Iconic actor, musician, and activist Corey Feldman is pleased to announce the surprise digital re-release of his 2015 album "Angelic 2 The Core," marking its 10-year anniversary. The album, which has been off streaming platforms for several months, returns under Feldman's new distribution deal with CiFi Records, a division of SONY Orchard.In adapting to the modern streaming landscape, Feldman has edited out some of the skits originally created for the full play CD of the double album. This adjustment aims to enhance the listener's experience, focusing more directly on the music itself. Fans can now enjoy a refreshed version of the album, featuring the legendary duet "Seamless" with Fred Durst, which has been highly anticipated by fans since its initial release."This re-release is a celebration of both artistic growth and a tribute to the fans who have supported 'Angelic 2 The Core' over the years," said Feldman.Simultaneously, Feldman is gearing up for his much-anticipated "Loserville" tour, set to kick off on July 16th, 2024, at Somerset Amphitheater in Wisconsin. The tour, featuring Limp Bizkit alongside noted artists Bones, N8NOFACE, and Riff Raff, promises to be a highlight of the summer concert season with major venues across North America on the itinerary, including the iconic Glen Helen Amphitheater in San Bernardino.Fans can catch Corey Feldman live on tour and experience the re-release of "Angelic 2 The Core" on all digital platforms starting today.For tour dates and more information on VIP meet and greet opportunities, visitwww.coreyfeldman.net LOSERVILLE 2024 TOUR DATES:07/16 - Somerset, WI @ Somerset Amphitheater *07/18 - St. Louis, MO @ Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre STL *07/20 - Tinley Park, IL @ Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre *07/21 - Noblesville, IN @ Ruoff Music Center *07/23 - Clarkston, MI @ Pine Knob Music Theatre *07/24 - Toronto, ON @ Budweiser Stage *07/26 - Bethel, NY @ Bethel Woods Center for the Arts *07/28 - Bristow, VA @ Jiffy Lube Live *07/30 - Holmdel, NJ @ PNC Bank Arts Center *07/31 - Mansfield, MA @ Xfinity Center *08/02 - Charlotte, NC @ PNC Music Pavilion *08/04 - Alpharetta, GA @ Ameris Bank Amphitheatre *08/06 - West Palm Beach, FL @ iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre *08/07 - Tampa, FL @ MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre *08/09 - Pelham, AL @ Oak Mountain Amphitheatre *08/11 - Houston, TX @ The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion *08/13 - Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion *08/15 - Albuquerque, NM @ Isleta Amphitheater *08/16 - Phoenix, AZ @ Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre *08/18 - Salt Lake City, UT @ USANA Amphitheatre *08/20 - Auburn, WA @ White River Amphitheatre *08/21 - Ridgefield, WA @ RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater *08/23 - Concord, CA @ Toyota Pavilion at Concord *08/24 - San Bernardino, CA @ Glen Helen Amphitheater *MEDIA CONTACT: Samantha WaranchE-mail: samantha@ c-360.agency SOURCE: Truth 22 Productions PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 20:45:10 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 525 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 BARRIE, ON / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Public art has the power to transform routine urban environments into vibrant, engaging spaces. This transformative ability was recently showcased in Barrie, Ontario, through a unique initiative by EyJay Inc., the art company headed by celebrated abstract artist Ali Jammal, widely known as AJ. By transforming a mundane traffic cabinet box into an eye-catching piece of art, AJ has added a splash of creativity and color to the everyday streetscape.Innovative Urban BeautificationIn January 2023, EyJay Inc. embarked on a creative project that involved revamping a traffic cabinet box, a common yet overlooked urban element, located at a bustling intersection in Barrie. AJ applied his renowned artistic skills to dress the box in vibrant colors and abstract patterns, coated with a glossy, resin finish that catches and reflects sunlight. This artistic intervention transforms the box throughout the day, depending on the light and the viewer's perspective, turning a functional object into a source of visual delight.Impact on Local Community and BusinessThe transformation has been met with enthusiasm from both residents and visitors, who appreciate the unexpected encounter with art in an ordinary setting. This project has not only beautified the area but also stimulated local interest in public art and urban aesthetics. Business owners nearby have noted an uptick in foot traffic, as the art piece attracts attention and draws more visitors to the area, proving that artistic projects can also serve as economic catalysts in city centers.A Model for Cities EverywhereEyJay Inc.'s work in Barrie serves as a stellar example of how integrating art into public infrastructure can enhance the character and appeal of urban spaces. The project exemplifies a successful blend of utility and beauty, demonstrating that even small-scale interventions can significantly enrich a city's cultural and economic vitality. It also underscores the potential for other cities to adopt similar initiatives, using art to improve urban environments and resident engagement.Future Prospects for Urban Art IntegrationThe success of the Barrie project positions EyJay Inc. as a pioneer in the field of urban art integration, suggesting a bright future for similar initiatives both within and beyond Barrie. As cities continue to seek innovative ways to enhance urban appeal and stimulate economic activity, projects like this one offer a blueprint for how art can play a crucial role in urban development and revitalization.ConclusionEyJay Inc.'s initiative in Barrie highlights the significant role that art can play in enriching urban life, enhancing community engagement, and supporting local economies. As more cities recognize the value of integrating art into public spaces, initiatives like AJ's traffic cabinet project may become a new norm, adding color and life to the urban landscapes of tomorrow.This project not only showcases the potential of art to transform everyday environments but also positions EyJay Inc. at the forefront of discussions on urban design and community development, marking it as a key player in the evolving intersection of art, business, and urban planning on platforms like Yahoo Finance.Media details:Company name - Eyjay Inc.Contact person - Ali JammalWebsite - https://eyjayinc.com/City & Country - Barrie, CanadaSOURCE: Eyjay Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 18:45:50 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 596 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / On July 8, 2024, HTX Ventures announced its sponsorship of the LSDFI Summit, a side event of the ECC conference in Brussels. Hosted by Tenderize, the LSDFI Summit is scheduled to take place this week on Monday (July 8).According to reports, the LSDFI Summit is a crucial gathering that brings together leading figures in the DeFi space to discuss the latest technological breakthroughs and emerging industry trends. HTX Ventures, as one of the main sponsors of this event, also participated in the roundtable discussions, sharing its perspectives on the future of liquid restaking and the development of DeFi. HTX Ventures has always been committed to supporting and promoting the development of innovative technologies, with the LSDFI domain being one of its key strategic focuses.Furthermore, Kelp DAO, Lombard, and Tomo, projects backed by HTX Ventures, will also make appearances at the event as sponsors. Kelp DAO is one of the leading liquid restaking protocols with $850M+ in assets under management across 45,000+ restakers. It facilitates liquid restaking for native ETH and LST across both the Ethereum mainnet and eight Layer 2 networks. Lombard is developing a Bitcoin restaking protocol designed to transform Bitcoin from a static store of value into a dynamic and productive financial asset. The goal is to contribute to the growth of the Web3 ecosystem. Tomo, an all-in-one Web3 social app, transforms users' online presence into a universal social wallet, fostering genuine, spam-free connections and financial incentives.HTX Ventures is honored to support the LSDFI Summit alongside these exceptional projects. It looks forward to engaging with industry peers at the summit to discuss the future of LSDFI and DeFi. This collaborative effort will allow all participants to explore the future direction of LSDFI and DeFi more broadly, exchange valuable insights, and foster innovation that facilitates the development of the entire industry. Collaborating with its investment department, HTX is dedicated to actively monitoring and supporting the development of the LSDFI and DeFi sectors. It will provide professional guidance, consulting services, an extensive resource network, liquidity pools, and a user base for portfolio projects.About HTX VenturesHTX Ventures, the global investment division of HTX, integrates investment, incubation, and research to identify the best and brightest teams worldwide. With a decade-long history as an industry pioneer, HTX Ventures excels at identifying cutting-edge technologies and emerging business models within the sector. To foster growth within the blockchain ecosystem, we provide comprehensive support to projects, including financing, resources, and strategic advice.HTX Ventures currently backs over 300 projects spanning multiple blockchain sectors, with select high-quality initiatives already trading on the HTX exchange. Furthermore, as one of the most active Fund of Funds (FOF) investors, HTX Ventures collaboratively forges the blockchain ecosystem alongside premier global blockchain funds, including Dragonfly, Bankless Ventures, Gitcoin, Figment, and Animoca.Visit us here.Contact DetailsEEglo-media@ htx-inc.com Company WebsiteAbout HTX VenturesHTX Ventures, the global investment division of HTX, integrates investment, incubation, and research to identify the best and brightest teams worldwide.With a decade-long history as an industry pioneer, HTX Ventures excels at identifying cutting-edge technologies and emerging business models within the sector. To foster growth within the blockchain ecosystem, we provide comprehensive support to projects, including financing, resources, and strategic advice.HTX Ventures presently backs over 200 projects spanning multiple blockchain sectors, with select high-quality initiatives already trading on the HTX exchange. Furthermore, as one of the most vigorous Fund of Funds (FOF) investors, HTX Ventures collaboratively forges the blockchain ecosystem alongside premier global blockchain funds, including IVC, Shima, and Animoca.SOURCE: HTX VENTURES PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 18:35:26 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 558 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SINGAPORE / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / To enhance the liquidity and the ecosystem for Bitcoin, HTX Ventures, the global investment arm of the cryptocurrency exchange HTX, has announced a strategic investment in Lombard. Lombard is a restaking protocol poised to catalyze growth across the Web3 ecosystem by transforming Bitcoin from a static store of value into a productive financial asset.Lombard builds its restaking product on top of the Bitcoin staking protocol Babylon, which allows individuals to use Bitcoin to secure other proof-of-stake networks. Lombard increases liquidity for staked BTC by issuing LBTC, a liquid and yield-bearing representation of BTC. LBTC can move seamlessly across chains and decentralized finance (DeFi) platforms as collateral without compromising security. LBTC will soon be integrated into the most popular DeFi protocols on the Ethereum Mainnet before launching on widely used Layer 2 (L2) chains later this year."Liquid restaking is the next revolution for the Bitcoin Ecosystem, and Lombard is the project driving this transformation," said Edward, Managing Partner at HTX Ventures. "Lombard is rapidly expanding to onboard the LBTC token onto major ecosystems and DeFi protocols. This will enable Bitcoin to be lent, borrowed, and traded, unlocking tremendous utility for Bitcoin holders and revitalizing the BTC ecosystem. HTX Ventures is incredibly excited to partner with Lombard to empower Bitcoin holders and the broader BTC ecosystem." "We are delighted to have HTX Ventures for investing in the development of LBTC as a new core primitive. LBTC will unlock a massive amount of net-new capital into the ecosystem and bring new liquidity and users to DeFi protocols and exchange platforms. HTX Ventures shares Lombard's mission to accelerate on-chain finance and we look forward to building on these synergies to accelerate the growth of LBTC," said Jacob Phillips, Co-founder, Lombard.LBTC will soon be accessible to all and supported by all chains and DeFi protocols. Join theLBTC Waitlistfor exclusive access to LBTC and rewards for early participation.About LombardNamed after the historic Lombard Street in London - a hub of financial activity since the Middle Ages - Lombard symbolizes a place where all participants are connected to opportunity. By adopting the Lombard name, we rebuild its legacy on digital blocks, transforming it into a modern nexus of innovation and connectivity.Founded in April 2024, Lombard is dedicated to unlocking Bitcoin's potential as a dynamic financial tool by connecting it to DeFi. We are a diverse team of DeFi natives, working with technology and infrastructure partners towards a shared, ecosystem-driven mission to collectively onboard Bitcoin to DeFi.About HTX VenturesHTX Ventures, the global investment division of HTX, integrates investment, incubation, and research to identify the best and brightest teams worldwide. With a decade-long history as an industry pioneer, HTX Ventures excels at identifying cutting-edge technologies and emerging business models within the sector. To foster growth within the blockchain ecosystem, we provide comprehensive support to projects, including financing, resources, and strategic advice.HTX Ventures currently backs over 300 projects spanning multiple blockchain sectors, with select high-quality initiatives already trading on the HTX exchange. Furthermore, as one of the most active Fund of Funds (FOF) investors, HTX Ventures collaboratively forges the blockchain ecosystem alongside premier global blockchain funds, including Dragonfly, Bankless Ventures, Gitcoin, Figment, and Animoca. Visit us here.Contact DetailsEE glo-media@ htx-inc.com Company Website https://www.htx.com/en-us/ventures SOURCE: HTX VENTURES PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 22:00:25 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 638 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Acquisition to Further Accelerate Inspire11's AI-Driven Innovation and Delivery Velocity.CHICAGO, IL / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Inspire11, a renowned business and technology consulting firm centered on value creation, is thrilled to announce the acquisition of Integral, an innovative software engineering company. This strategic investment will further accelerate Inspire11's AI and software engineering growth, reinforcing its commitment to excellence and client success.Inspire11 AI Teams Collage of Inspire11 Team Members and Products"We are thrilled to welcome Integral's talented team to the Inspire11 family," said Alban Mehmeti, CEO and Co-Founder of Inspire11. He continued, "The growing demand from leading organizations to work with Inspire11 is truly humbling. We attribute this demand to our unwavering focus on innovation and value creation in everything we do. This approach has resonated strongly in the market, and our clients are realizing the value firsthand." "It's a breath of fresh air for our clients and partners," said Hans Nelson, President and Co-Founder of Inspire11. "Unlike traditional consulting firms that thrive on added complexity and require ongoing payments for large teams, we focus on velocity, quality and sustainability. We aim to leave clients in the best possible position, generating ongoing value and then move on to the next big opportunity to help them tackle." Integral's AI, software engineering and product management expertise will bolster Inspire11's proprietary 11x Delivery Methodology. The 11x methodology is a powerful, agile delivery approach that harnesses multi-disciplinary teams to achieve up to 11 times the velocity of standard teams by prioritizing high-value tasks, automating processes and minimizing inefficiencies. Integral's team and capabilities will drive even greater velocity and quality in delivering solutions, ensuring clients achieve their goals faster and more effectively."AI isn't just a capability for us," added Mehmeti, "it's a core element of our DNA. It's a cross-functional enhancer that amplifies the value of everything we offer. With the addition of Integral's advanced engineering capabilities, we are set to catapult the growth of our AI-driven solutions and further solidify our position as industry leaders." The acquisition of Integral underscores Inspire11's dedication to staying at the forefront of technological advancements, creating meaningful opportunities for its people and delivering unparalleled value to its clients. The Integral team brings extensive experience driving transformation alongside leading organizations such as Ford Motor Company, Honda Motor Company, THOR Industries and Airstream, Rocket Mortgage, Auto Approve and more."This is extremely exciting for the team and me at Integral," said Ashok Sivanand, CEO of Integral. He continued, "It significantly expands our opportunities to serve our clients better and foster growth for our people. The alignment of our vision, culture and core values made us a natural fit. Our team's innovative spirit and talent pairs perfectly with Inspire11's ability to push boundaries, lead change and inspire those around them to achieve new heights." This partnership will empower Inspire11 to continue disrupting the consulting landscape and leverage cutting-edge technologies and innovative approaches to solve complex challenges. For more information, please visit Inspire11's website.About Inspire11:Inspire11 is an award-winning modern business and technology consulting firm that partners with clients to drive transformative change through innovation and technology. With a focus on value creation, Inspire11 leverages its proprietary 11x Delivery Methodology to deliver high-quality, efficient, and sustainable solutions that enable clients to achieve their strategic objectives. With operations in 5 US markets (and growing), global delivery, and an exclusive network of talent in the Balkans, Inspire11 has been recognized as an Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Company for five years running and a Best Workplace among other notable recognitions. Its home page is www.inspire11.com Contact InformationLaura SundbergChief Marketing Officermarketing@ inspire11.com Related VideoSOURCE: Inspire11View the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 16:02:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 361 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LEBANON, OH / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 /Fecon, LLC, a leading manufacturer of forestry mulching equipment and related products, is pleased to announce the appointment of Jeff Stanley as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO). Jeff, who has an illustrious career spanning over 19 years at Fecon, brings a wealth of experience and proven leadership to his new role.Jeff Stanley, CCO, Fecon, LLC Photo of Jeff Stanley, CCO of Fecon, LLCJeff Stanley has been a cornerstone of Fecon's success, demonstrating a steadfast commitment to innovation and excellence. His journey with Fecon began in 2005, and he has since held several key positions of increasing responsibility within the company.Before joining Fecon, Jeff served as an engineer at FINN Corporation for nine years, where he honed his skills and expertise in engineering and product development. He holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET) from the University of Cincinnati and a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from Xavier University."I am thrilled to step into the role of Chief Commercial Officer at Fecon," said Jeff Stanley. "I look forward to working with our talented team to drive growth, enhance our product offerings, and continue to meet the evolving needs of our customers." Jeff's extensive experience in engineering, product development, and operations positions him uniquely to lead Fecon's commercial strategies and initiatives. His innovative mindset and strategic vision have been instrumental in Fecon's growth and success. As CCO, Jeff will oversee Fecon's commercial operations, including sales, marketing, and customer relations, in addition to product development, ensuring that the company continues to deliver top-tier products and services to its clients worldwide."We are excited to welcome Jeff into this new role," said Fecon CEO Robert Dieckman. "His deep understanding of our industry and his leadership abilities make him the ideal person to guide our commercial efforts and drive Fecon's continued success." Fecon, LLC is committed to innovation, quality, and customer satisfaction. With Jeff Stanley as CCO, the company is poised for continued growth and success in the forestry equipment and land management industries.Contact InformationJohn MajorExecutive Director, Marketingjmajor@ fecon.com 5132289332SOURCE: Fecon, LLCView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 03:36:49 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 394 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW ORLEANS, LA / ACCESSWIRE / July 7, 2024 / Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC ("KSF") and KSF partner, former Attorney General of Louisiana, Charles C. Foti, Jr., remind investors that they have until August 12, 2024to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW), if they purchased the Company's shares between July 25, 2023 and April 3, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the District of Idaho.What You May DoIf you purchased shares of Lamb Weston 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-lw/ to learn more. If you wish to serve as a lead plaintiff in this class action, you must petition the Court byAugust 12, 2024 .About the LawsuitLamb Weston and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.On April 4, 2024, the Company disclosed that it had experienced significant problems with its transition to a new Enterprise Resource Planning ("ERP") software system, which caused the Company to lose $135 million in sales during the third quarter of fiscal 2024 and necessitated a $330 million reduction to its sales guidance for the full fiscal year.On this news, the price of Lamb Weston's shares fell by $19.59 per share, or over 19%.The case is Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund v. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc., No. 24-cv-282.About Kahn Swick & Foti, LLCKSF, whose partners include former Louisiana Attorney General Charles C. Foti, Jr., is one of the nation's 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:Kahn Swick & Foti, LLCLewis Kahn, Managing Partner lewis.kahn@ksfcounsel.com 1-877-515-18501100 Poydras St., Suite 960New Orleans, LA 70163SOURCE: Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 19:10:48 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 814 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Launchpool is excited to announce a strategic partnership with the XDC Network, aimed at empowering select teams building on the XDC Network to raise capital through the Launchpool ecosystem. This collaboration will provide these teams with access to a community of project ambassadors as well as the combined networks of experienced advisors and builders from both Launchpool and XDC Network.About XDC NetworkXDC Network is a pioneering, carbon-neutral, and EVM-compatible Layer 1 blockchain, renowned for its enterprise-grade capabilities for RWA, Tokenization, TradeFinance and DePIN applications. Leveraging a unique XinFin Delegated Proof of Stake (XDPoS) consensus mechanism, it achieves remarkable transaction speeds of 2 seconds and over 2000 TPS, with minimal gas fees (around $0.0001). Designed for interoperability and compliance with ISO 20022 financial messaging standards, the XDC Network excels in facilitating Trade Finance, payment Processing, and Real-World Asset (RWA) tokenization. Its robust, scalable, and efficient platform underscores a commitment to innovation, making it a preferred choice for businesses seeking advanced blockchain solutions.About LaunchpoolLaunchpool operates within a comprehensive ecosystem that encompasses selection, incubation, acceleration, and launch phases, advocating for an egalitarian approach. By valuing all project stakeholder groups equally, Launchpool leverages their collective strengths and aligns their incentives. This approach significantly enhances traditional blockchain fundraising strategies, often fragmented and misaligned. Allocations in private rounds are guaranteed by the platform's native currency $LPOOL, and are accessible only through KYC.Since 2021, Launchpool's community has funded over 40 projects, with over $40 million USD, and 8 incubated projects (pre-MVP), raising approximately $5 million USD. Launchpool has collaborated with top funds, including Alphabit Digital Currency Fund, and was core to the launch of the first Techstars web3 accelerator in Europe.Scope of the PartnershipThe scope of the partnership between Launchpool and XDC Network includes both an ecosystem partnership and an acceleration program.Ecosystem Partnership: Launchpool and XDC Network will collaborate strategically. XDC Network will facilitate introductions to projects being accelerated or incubated through joint programs with XDC Network and partners. These projects must be ready to raise a community VC round from Launchpool in the form of pre-public or public offerings and will undergo a thorough due diligence process. The partnership will also feature co-marketing activities, with a focus on education and awareness.Acceleration Program: The program will be Europe-centric. To qualify, startups must have raised at least $100k in an initial Angel/Pre-seed round with a valuation under US $20 million, be prepared for a token launch within six months, and have at least one Tech CoFounder or Technical Partner. Additionally, startups must be willing to use 25%-50% of the investment amount for token deployment, listing on CoinMarketCap, and liquidity on exchanges, pair their native token against XDC or FXD (a US$ stablecoin over-collateralized with XDC), and be built exclusively on XDC Network for the launch. Projects previously incubated by Launchpool via Launchpool Labs will be shortlisted if they meet these criteria.Grants: XDC will consider providing grants for projects that integrate the XDC chain. Projects successfully deploying functional products on the XDC Network (Mainnet) will be eligible for a $10,000 grant. Additionally, will expedite access to demo day, connecting them with XDC's network of venture capitalists. (Subject to DD and approval by XDC Network). The grant is only open to the projects that apply to the program via Launchpool.Quotes from Both PartnersLaunchpool: "We are thrilled to partner with XDC Network to bring forward a seamless and efficient ecosystem for web3 projects. This partnership will leverage the strengths of both Launchpool and XDC Network to support innovative teams and provide funding opportunities for our community. We aim to support projects that are building or integrating with XDC's tech stack. This is our first technology centric partnership for 2024, and an opportunity to advance blockchain development. It goes without saying that working with Sonny, we're excited to see this program launched and managed by women of web3". - Roxana Nasoi, CEO at Launchpool.XDC Network: "At XDC Network, we are thrilled to partner with Launchpool for their acceleration program. This collaboration highlights the key benefits of building on the XDC Network, including unparalleled support from a robust VC network for co-investment opportunities alongside XDC's own investments. Our ecosystem offers comprehensive technical support, extensive visibility through CoinMarketCap and exchange listings, and strategic partnerships with leading accelerators like Tenity, Plug and Play, and Brinc. We are committed to investing in innovative dApps and fostering growth in the blockchain space in the coming years." - Sonny Mohanty, Head of Ventures Ecosystem at XDC Network.A more in-depth overview of the partnership, including details about its debut cohort, will be announced in due time. Stay tuned for updates and join us in celebrating this exciting new chapter for both Launchpool and XDC Network.For more information, please visit Launchpool ( Launchpool.xyz) and XDC Network ( XinFin.org) Media Contact:Launchpool:Georgia Rooneypr@ launchpool.xyz XDC Network:Nadar Sureshsuresh@ xinfin.org SOURCE: Launchpool PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 02:08:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 437 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 The right renovation project could unlock a home's full potential and Liberty has personal loan solutions to help Australian property owners make improvements sooner.MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / July 7, 2024 / Cost of construction was one of the key topics discussed at the recent launch of the Housing Industry Association (HIA) Kitchen and Bathroom Report.HIA Chief Economist Tim Reardon said that the cost of a new kitchen and bathroom is continuing to rise due to higher construction costs.According to non-bank lender Liberty, personal loans could provide fast access to funds allowing homeowners to complete renovations that transform their homes - including the kitchen and bathroom.Manager Group Communications, Kate Jenkinson says a personal loan could help bring home improvement projects to life amid current high construction costs in Australia."We understand home renovations can be a substantial undertaking, and not everyone has sufficient savings to support such projects," Ms Jenkinson said.The non-bank lender says their personal loans can be used to update bathrooms, remodel kitchens, or improve outdoor areas by building enhancements such as decking."With a personal loan, borrowers could cover the costs of materials, labour, and other expenses related to a home renovation project," Ms Jenkinson said."These changes all potentially add value to a home and could be a major point of difference if the house is sold in the future." Personal loans offer flexibility for homeowners allowing them to create their dream home sooner.The consistency of fixed repayments also helps to make budgeting easier, which is especially beneficial if a borrower is also balancing a mortgage.Liberty provides speedy turn-around times and an easy online application process so borrowers can access funds faster."At Liberty, our free-thinking loans offer flexibility and are personalised to a borrower's unique situation," Ms Jenkinson said."We're here to help Australians reach their major lending goals and get financial." About Liberty As one of Australia's leading non-bank lenders, Liberty offers innovative solutions to support customers with greater choice. Over more than 26 years, this free-thinking approach to loan solutions has seen more than 850,000 customers across a wide range of home, car, business and personal loans, as well as SMSF lending and insurance products. Liberty remains the only non-bank lender with an investment-grade credit rating offering custom and prime solutions to help more people get financial.Approved applicants only. Lending criteria apply. Fees and charges are payable. Liberty Financial Pty Ltd ACN 077 248 983 and Secure Funding Pty Ltd ABN 25 081 982 87 2 Australian Credit Licence 388133, together trading as Liberty Financial.Contact Kate JenkinsonManager - Group CommunicationsP: +61 3 8635 8888E: mediaenquiries@ liberty.com.au SOURCE: Liberty PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 12:30:33 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1033 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Cabacal mine area drilling intersects local gold zone with 2.7 m @ 12.3 g/t Au from 65.0mLONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Meridian Mining UK. S (TSX:MNO)(Frankfurt/Tradegate:2MM)(OTCQX:MRRDF) ("Meridian" or the "Company") is pleased to announce multiple intersections of strong Cu-Au-Ag mineralization (Table 1) from the ongoing drill programs at both the advanced Cabacal Cu-Au-Ag project ("Cabacal") and the Santa Helena Cu-Au-Ag & Zn project ("Santa Helena"). Both deposits are part of the 50km Cabacal VMS belt in Mato Grosso, Brazil.Drilling at Santa Helena has returned multiple intercepts of high-grade mineralization from shallow open-pitable depths. These include: CD-500: 14.3m @ 3.7 g/t AuEq from 49.0m, with a higher grade zone of 3.0m @ 8.2 g/t AuEq from 50.2m, CD-497: 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m, and CD-479: 6.0m @ 3.5 g/t AuEq from37.3m ("Figure 1").The infill drilling at Cabacal includes results from the mine, and results from the Cabacal Northwest Extension ("CNWE"). Highlights from the mine area include CD-481: 2.7m @ 12.3 g/t AuEq from 65.0m, and CD-495: 7.1m @ 2.1 g/t AuEq from 52.9m ("Figure 2"). These results are part of the Cabacal's Preliminary Feasibility Study's ("PFS") drill program, now completed.Exploration and infill drilling continues at Santa Helena and Cabacal respectively and further assays are pending.Highlights Reported TodayStrong results continue to reinforce the potential of Santa Helena as the next open pit target for the hub and spoke development strategy of the Cabacal VMS belt. Shallow high-grade Cu-Au-Ag & Zn mineralization at Santa Helena continues to be intercepted:CD-500 returns 14.3m @ 3.7 g/t AuEq from 49.0m, including 3.0m @ 8.2 g/t AuEq from 50.2m;CD-497 returns 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m, including 3.2m @ 11.0 g/t AuEq from 42.0m;CD-479 returns 6.0m @ 3.5 g/t AuEq from 37.3m, including 2.4m @ 5.9 g/t AuEq from 40.9m;Drilling at Cabacal defines more mineralization with highlights including:CD-481 returns 2.7m @ 12.3 g/t AuEq* from 65.0m;CD-495 returns 7.1m @ 2.1 g/t AuEq from 52.9m; andCD-484 returns 10.9m @ 1.6 g/t AuEq from 81.2m.*See technical note for separate AuEq equations for Santa Helena and Cabacal.Mr. Gilbert Clark, CEO, comments: "As we advance Brazil's largest and one of South America's most prospective and under-explored copper-gold & silver VMS belts, our 500th hole has delivered another high-grade mineralized intercept from the Santa Helena deposit, where resource and metallurgical programs continue. Cabacal's PFS program has now moved into the detailed engineering phase. Additional time was needed to complete the PFS's resource and technical programs, required to further improve the quality of the datasets, resulting in pushing the reporting to early Q1 2025. Near mine exploration and drilling programs continue; activities with further results are pending. Our development of the advanced Cabacal project positions the Company to emerge as Brazil's next near-term copper-gold & silver producer during a period of renewed investor interest in base and precious metals." Santa Helena UpdateThe Santa Helena mine is located 10km to the southeast of Cabacal and is the first satellite deposit being developed as part of a hub and spoke strategy by the Company. The deposit is composed of a 1km zone of massive to semi massive sulphides hosting Cu-Au-Ag & Zn mineralization that is open along strike, which was partially mined in the mid 2000's. Drilling continues at Santa Helena with two rigs deployed. The ongoing release of results is now accelerating from the 2024 drill campaign ("Table 1"). Following initial results reported last month, with CD-4721 returning 12.9m @ 2.2g/t AuEq from 24.1m, new results that have now been reported include:CD-500: 14.3m @ 3.7g/t AuEq (0.4g/t Au, 0.4% Cu, 28.9g/t Ag & 6.3% Zn) from 49.0m; including:3.0m @ 8.2g/t AuEq (1.1g/t Au, 1.4% Cu, 63.8g/t Ag & 12.2% Zn) from 50.2m;CD-497: 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq (1.7g/t Au, 2.3% Cu, 46.7g/t Ag & 6.3% Zn) from 41.2m; including:3.2m @ 11.0g/t AuEq (2.3g/t Au, 3.7% Cu, 68.7g/t Ag & 9.6% Zn) from 42.0m; andCD-479: 6.0m @ 3.5g/t AuEq (1.4g/t Au, 1.1% Cu, 21.7g/t Ag & 2.4% Zn) from 37.3m; including:2.4m @ 5.9g/t AuEq (1.7g/t Au, 1.8% Cu, 41.2g/t Ag & 5.0% Zn) from 40.9m.Figure 1: Santa Helena results location map. The results continue to consolidate the resource potential of the western sector of the deposit. CD-500 is located down-dip from an earlier hole, CD-336, which returned 30.7m @ 1.1g/t AuEq (0.4g/t Au, 0.3% Cu, 4.0g/t Ag & 1.1% Zn) from 6.0m, including 5.7m @ 2.2g/t AuEq (1.4g/t Au, 0.6% Cu, 4.9g/t Ag & 0.5% Zn) from 6.0m)2. The intersection confirms a robust footprint of high-grade mineralization up dip from the western limits of historical underground mine development.1 Meridian Mining News Release of June 11, 2024CD-497 is located ~170m east-southeast of CD-500 , and down-dip from CD-416, which returned 16.6m @ 2.1g/t AuEq from 41.4m, including 6.8m @ 3.3g/t AuEq3. The new high-grade result of 5.1m @ 7.2 g/t AuEq from 41.2m continues to show continuity in the strike and the down-dip extent of the undeveloped VMS horizon.CD-479 traced the VMS horizon in undeveloped up-dip positions further east along strike again, positioned 150m from CD-497, and returned a shallow intersection of 6.0m @ 3.5g/t AuEq from 37.3m, consolidating a position intersected in neighbouring holes to the west (CD-421, CD-416, CD-360; "Figure 1"). Results from CD-489 appear to be more in the footwall roots of the system (10.0m @ 0.5g/t AuEq from 25.1m; 14.6m @ 0.4g/t AuEq from 37.9m; Table 1). CD-482, drilled to the north from CD-479's position, intersected a number of lower grade zones, including 2.7m @ 2.6 g/t AuEq from 35.8m.The position of the latest drilling platforms and results have been sent to the Company's geophysical consultancy, Core Geophysics, to design Bore-Hole Electromagnetic ("BHEM") survey programs, to assist in the modelling of the sulphide horizon hosting the Cu-Au-Ag and Zn mineralization. Drilling indicates a steeper geometry of the sulphide horizon to the north, in a position that may not have been well targeted by historical drilling. The BHEM programs are scheduled to commence shortly. On the completion of Santa Helena's inaugural resource program, the drilling will focus on the open "step-out" mineralization to the e PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 12:00:33 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 789 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Duane Boise, President of MMJ BioPharma Cultivation, stated, "I think most Americans want judges who don't mind telling the truth and don't mind saying we're wrong. Unlike the DEA's arrogant attitude of, if we make a mistake, we won't be called on it, however MMJ is doing exactly that. The most immature thing you can do is say, 'no, no, I didn't make a mistake.' The mature thing to do, that all adults learn to do in this country is to say, 'oops, that was a mistake. I'm going to fix it. I'm sorry.'" WASHINGTON, D.C., 3683 / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / In a recent landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 40-year-old Chevron doctrine, which historically granted federal agencies significant leeway in interpreting ambiguous statutes. This ruling has profound implications for regulatory bodies, including the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and will affect ongoing cases such as MMJ BioPharma Cultivation's legal battle against the DEA.UNDERSTANDING CHEVRON DEFERENCEThe Chevron case from 1984 involved the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the interpretation of "stationary source" under the Clean Air Act, which was ambiguous in its definition. The Supreme Court at the time decided that courts should defer to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes, provided the interpretation was reasonable. This deference allowed agencies like theDEA to wield significant power in making and enforcing rules based on their interpretations of statutory ambiguities.IMPACT OF THE SUPREME COURT'S LATEST DECISIONThe Supreme Court's recent ruling challenges this deference, particularly affecting how agencies like the DEA operate. In the specific case of MMJ BioPharma Cultivation, this decision could invalidate the DEA's use of administrative law judges (ALJs) and push for DEA actions to be handled in federal courts, ensuring the right to a jury trial as emphasized in the Jarkesy v. SEC case.MMJ BIOPHARMA CULTIVATION VRS DEAMMJ BioPharma Cultivation has faced prolonged delays from the DEA in obtaining a Bulk Manufacturing registration for growing pharmaceutical-grade marijuana. The company's president, Duane Boise, and its legal team argue that the DEA's internal processes andadministrative rulings have unfairly hindered their research and development efforts.HISTORICAL CONTEXT: CHEVRON and DEA ADMINISTRATIVE LAWHistorically, the Chevron doctrine allowed agencies to interpret ambiguous statutory provisions, effectively making them judge, jury, and executioner. This approach often resulted in courts deferring to the agencies' expertise in complex scientific and technical matters. However, critics argue that this deference led to regulatory overreach and diminished the role of courts in interpreting laws.MODERN CHALLENGES: THE FISHERMAN'S CASEA recent case involving fishermen in the Pacific underscores the implications of Chevron deference. The agency required fishermen to have federal observers on their boats to monitor catches, an intrusion that also mandated the fishermen to bear the costs. The statute was silent on who should pay for these observers, but the agency's interpretation imposed the financial burden on the fishermen, demonstrating how agencies could exploit statutory ambiguities to their advantage.IMPLICATIONS FOR DEAWith Chevron deference now curtailed, agencies like the DEA will face increased legal challenges. Tim Moynahan, MMJ's chair, emphasized that the companies can now argue that theDEA's restrictive policies lack statutory backing and challenge them in federal courts.BROADER IMPACT ON CANNABIS POLICYThe ruling also affects broader cannabis policy, particularly therescheduling of marijuana under federal law . Josh Schiller of Boies Schiller noted that this decision could lead to more legal challenges against rescheduling efforts, potentially stalling progress. Boies expressed concerns that the DEA would adopt a more cautious approach, slowing down regulatory changes and impacting the cannabis industry's growth.Duane Boise, President of MMJ BioPharma Cultivation, stated, "I think most Americans want judges who don't mind telling the truth and don't mind saying we're wrong. Unlike the DEA's arrigant attitude of , if we make a mistake, we won't be called on it, however MMJ is doing exactly that. The most immature thing you can do is say, 'no, no, I didn't make a mistake.' The mature thing to do, that all adults learn to do in this country is to say, 'oops, that was a mistake. I'm going to fix it. I'm sorry.'" DEA ADMINISTRATIVE LAW SHIFTThe Supreme Court's decision to limit Chevron deference marks a significant shift in administrative law, reasserting the role of federal courts in interpreting statutes and curbing the DEA's overreach. For MMJ BioPharma Cultivation, this ruling provides a new legal pathway to challenge the DEA's anti-marijuana research policies and seek a fairer regulatory environment. The decision heralds a potential transformation in how the DEA operates, ensuring greater judicial oversight and adherence to statutory intent.MMJ is Represented by Attorney Megan Sheahan and AssociatesCONTACT: Madison Hisey media@ mmjih.com 203-231-8583SOURCE: MMJ BioPharma Cultivation PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 12:00:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 823 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / PJX Resources Inc. ("PJX" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the British Columbia Government has issued a 5 year permit to drill on PJX's Dewdney Trail Property located near Cranbrook, BC. This Summer and Fall, PJX plans to drill, for the first time, Sullivan style and grade zinc-lead-silver mineralisation discovered late last year on the Dewdney Trail Property.John Keating, President of PJX, commented, "This is the first time in 130 years that this style and grade of mineralisation has been discovered outside of the Sullivan deposit area. The mineralisation was discovered at surface by prospecting and is about 200 m from an historical mine road. We are excited to now have the permit to drill and test these areas with high mineral potential." PJX's New Discovery Potential Background PJX owns 100% of the mineral rights to multiple properties totaling over 680 km of mineral claims in the Sullivan Mining District of Southeastern British Columbia, Canada. Exploration in late 2023 discovered boulders and outcrop of Sullivan deposit style and grade mineralisation on PJX's Dewdney Trail Property that is over 150 km in size. The zinc, lead, silver, and other critical metal mineralisation discovered at surface on the Dewdney Trail Property is magnetic and appears to be associated with a strong to moderate magnetic airborne geophysical anomaly that can be traced for approximately 1.6 km. The mineralisation and geophysical anomaly have never been drilled.Annual and Special Meeting Results The Company is also pleased to announce the results of its annual and special meeting (the "Meeting") of shareholders, which was held on Tuesday, June 18, 2024. The Meeting was held, in part, to deliver the annual audited financial statements and related management's discussion and analysis of the Company, fix and appoint the directors of the Company, appoint the Company's auditors, and approve both the Company's Share Incentive Plan and Shareholder Rights Plan, all as set out in the Management Information Circular that was delivered to shareholders in advance of the Meeting.A total of 77,707,985 common shares were represented at the Meeting either in person or by proxy, representing approximately 44.6% of the issued and outstanding shares of the Company. All resolutions were passed by the shareholders of the Company.About PJX Resources Inc.PJX is a mineral exploration company focused on building shareholder value and community opportunity through the exploration and development of mineral resources with a focus on gold, silver and base metals (zinc, lead, copper, nickel). PJX's properties are located in the historical Sullivan Mine District and Vulcan Gold Belt near Cranbrook and Kimberley, British Columbia.Please refer to our web site http://www.pjxresources.com for additional information.FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT: Linda Brennan, Chief Financial Officer(416) 799-9205 info@ pjxresources.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking InformationThe information in this news release has been prepared as at the date noted above. Certain statements in this news release, referred to herein as "forward-looking statements", constitute "forward-looking statements" under the provisions of Canadian provincial securities laws. These statements can be identified by the use of words such as "expected", "may", "will" or similar terms.Forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon a number of factors and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by PJX Resources Inc. as of the date of such statements, are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties and contingencies. Many factors, known and unknown, could cause actual results to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date made. Except as otherwise required by law, PJX Resources Inc. expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or revisions to any such statements to reflect any change in PJX Resources Inc.'s expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based.Cautionary Note to US Investors: This news release may contain information about adjacent properties on which PJX Resources Inc. has no right to explore or mine. We advise U.S. investors that the SEC's mining guidelines strictly prohibit information of this type in documents filed with the SEC. U.S. investors are cautioned that mineral deposits on adjacent properties are not indicative of mineral deposits on our properties. This news release may contain forward-looking statements including but not limited to comments regarding the timing and content of upcoming work programs, geological interpretations, receipt of property titles, potential mineral recovery processes, etc. Forward-looking statements address future events and conditions and therefore involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially from those currently anticipated in such statements.Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: PJX Resources Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 09:05:30 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1063 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Highlights:8 new spodumene-bearing pegmatite discoveries have been confirmed as mineralized, for a total of 15 spodumene pegmatite zones on the Cisco Property thus far.41 samples of the CO1 to CO15 outcrop groups ranged in grade up to 4.31% Li2O,averaging 1.80% Li2O.VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 /Q2 Metals Corp. ( TSX.V:QTWO)(OTCQB:QUEXF)(FSE:458) ("Q2" or the "Company") is pleased to announce analytical results from the ongoing 2024 mapping and sampling field program at the Cisco Lithium Property (the "Property" or the "Cisco Property"). The Cisco Property is located within the greater Nemaska traditional territory of the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec, Canada, proximal to the Billy Diamond Highway and 150 kilometres ("km") north of the town of Matagami and railway.Initial field work including mapping and rock sampling was undertaken by the Company to provide guidance on the extent of the lithium mineralization at the Cisco Property. Field crews began the program at the CO1 Zone where the vendors of the Cisco Property initially sampled and drilled in 2022/2023 and have since expanded throughout the Property. To date, a total of 76 pegmatite samples collected and assayed have resulted in the confirmation of eight (8) new spodumene discoveries for a total of 15 spodumene pegmatite zones on the Cisco Property thus far."The sampling results have confirmed the presence of lithium in each of the 15 outcrop zones, giving us the confidence to expand our drilling in a systematic manner to the south of the recently announced holes drilled towards CO3," said Neil McCallum, Q2 Metals VP of Exploration. "In the short amount of time that we've been working at Cisco, I am very encouraged by the surface and drilling results and I believe the Cisco Property is already showing signs of being an industry leading project." The sampling and mapping of the Cisco Property has resulted in a wide-spread group of mineralized outcrops; CO1 to CO15. The results are summarized in Table 1.Table 1. Summary of Cisco Pegmatite ZonesThe size of individual outcrops varies, from 1-2 metres ("m") wide, up to 20 m wide. In most cases, the contacts with the bounding host-rock are not visible, being beneath till/vegetation cover. Additional work will be needed to fully understand their true surface expression and drilling is planned to test the subsurface extent of mineralization. Drill holes CS24-011 to CS24-014 (see July 3rd, 2024 press release) confirmed the continuation of mineralization between outcrop zones CO1 to CO3, and the Company is confident in continuing its drill program to the south of CO3. Surface mineralization at CO3 is characterized by 4 samples averaging 1.73% Li2O and 224ppm Ta2O5. South of CO3, lies the outcrop area CO8 characterized by 4 samples averaging 1.89% Li2O and 93ppm Ta2O5.Figure 1. Extent of mineralized spodumene pegmatite mineralized zones at Cisco PropertyAnalytical results of the sampling field work has outlined a potential new area of interest located southwest of CO15, with up to 0.15% Li2O and 177ppm Ta2O5 in outcrop ( Figure 1) as well as a boulder sample located north of the CO2 reporting 0.73% Li2O. Further work will be conducted in these areas in the coming weeks to understand their significance. This brings the size of the Company's priority area of interest to 1.1 by 3.5 km.Many of the sampled outcrops contain anomalous geochemistry (Ta2O5 > 100ppm, Rb > 1,000ppm, Cs > 100ppm) in the absence of significant lithium and will also be a focus for follow up in the coming weeks.Table 2. List of Analytical Results of all samples at CO1 to CO15, and other lithium enriched samplesAbout the Cisco PropertyThe Cisco Property is comprised of 222 mineral claims and is 11,374 hectares in size. It is located less than 10 km east of the Billy Diamond Highway, and is approximately 150 km north of Matagami, a small town that contains the closest rail link to much of James Bay. The Property lies within the greater Nemaska Community lands of the Eeyou Istchee Territory, James Bay, Quebec.The Property is situated along the Frotet Evans Greenstone Belt, comprised of a volcanic package dominated by mafic to felsic metavolcanic rocks, of the southern James Bay Lithium District, the same belt that hosts the Sirmac and Moblan lithium deposits, located 130 km and 180 km away, respectively.Sampling, Analytical Methods and QA/QC ProtocolsAll rock samples collected and drill core samples were shipped to SGS Canada's preparation facility in Val D'Or, Quebec, for standard sample preparation (code PRP92) which includes drying at 105C, crush to 90% passing 2 mm, riffle split 500 g, and pulverize 85% passing 75 microns. The pulps will be shipped by air to SGS Canada's laboratory in Burnaby, BC, where the samples will be homogenized and subsequently analyzed for multi-element (including Li and Ta) using sodium peroxide fusion with ICP-AES/MS finish (code GE_ICM91A50).A Quality Assurance / Quality Control protocol following industry best practices was incorporated into the sampling program.Management cautions that prospecting surface rock samples and associated results, as discussed herein, are selective by nature and therefore may not necessarily be fully representative of the mineralized horizon sampled.Qualified PersonNeil McCallum, B.Sc., P.Geol, is a registered permit holder with the Ordre des Geologues du Quebec and Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, and has reviewed the technical information in this news release. Mr. McCallum is a director and VP Exploration for Q2.About Q2 Metals CorpQ2 Metals is a Canadian mineral exploration company focused on unlocking its portfolio of lithium projects in the Eeyou Istchee James Bay region of Quebec, Canada, that includes both its 100-per-cent-owned Mia Lithium Property and the Cisco Lithium Property.The Cisco lithium property is located approximately 150 km north of Matagami, Quebec, and is comprised of 222 mineral claims totalling 11,374 hectares in size. The property has district-scale potential with an already identified mineralized zone and a discovery drill result of 115.4 metres of 1.40 percent lithium oxide (hole CS-23-05), cumulatively in five separate pegmatites.The Company's exploration advancement at its 8,668-hectare flagship Mia lithium property is focused on the more than 10-kilometre-long Mia trend which is host to both the Mia 1 and Mia 2 lithium occurrences and 11 other mineralized zones along trend.FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:Alicia MilnePresident & CEOAlicia@ Q2metals.com Jason McBrideCorporate CommunicationsJason@ Q2metals.com Tel PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 23:40:09 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 769 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Sanaka Samarasinha Explains the Importance of Food Safety as a Public Health MeasureLOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Sanaka Samarasinha, a veteran United Nations leader with over 25 years of experience, highlights the importance of food safety as a fundamental public health measure. His extensive career spans over 40 countries and reflects a deep commitment to sustainable development, governance, and human rights, making him a vocal advocate for robust food safety practices.The Crucial Role of Food SafetyAccess to sufficient safe food, Samarasinha says, is essential for sustaining life and promoting good health. He adds that foodborne illnesses, which are often invisible to the naked eye, are caused by bacteria, viruses, parasites, or chemical substances entering the body through contaminated food or water. These illnesses, Samarasinha notes, pose a significant threat to public health, with an estimated 600 million cases of foodborne illnesses annually. From his experience, food safety ensures that food remains safe at every stage of the food chain-from production to harvest, processing, storage, distribution, preparation, and consumption.The Alarming Impact of Foodborne IllnessesSanaka Samarasinha's take on the need to prioritize food security is not without basis. It is backed by solid statistics on the many illnesses that can be attributed directly to unsafe food. Unsafe food is a threat to human health and economies, disproportionately affecting vulnerable and marginalized populations, including women, children, those affected by conflict, and migrants.Data shows that about 420,000 people worldwide die each year after consuming contaminated food, with children under the age of five bearing 40% of this burden, resulting in approximately 125,000 deaths annually. These figures, Samarasinha says, highlight the urgent need for comprehensive food safety measures to protect public health.World Food Safety Day: Raising Awareness and Inspiring ActionDuring the World Food Safety Day, observed on June 7, Sanaka Samarasinha took the opportunity to draw attention to the urgent need for food safety. He aimed to inspire action in preventing, detecting, and managing foodborne risks. Facilitated by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the World Food Safety Day serves as an opportunity to strengthen efforts to ensure food safety. Samarasinha reminded the world of the need to mainstream food safety in the public agenda and reduce the global burden of foodborne diseases.Everyone Has a Role in Food SafetyThe slogan for World Food Safety Day, "Food safety, everyone's business," he said, emphasizes that everyone involved in the food chain-from growers, processors, and transporters to sellers, preparers, and consumers-has a role to play in maintaining food safety. He added that compliance with global food standards, establishing effective regulatory food control systems, providing access to clean water, applying good agricultural practices, and strengthening food safety management systems by food business operators are crucial steps in ensuring food safety.Food Safety as a Shared ResponsibilitySamarasinha also took the opportunity on World Food Safety Day to remind world leaders that food safety is a shared responsibility that involves governments, producers, and consumers. He said governments are tasked with creating and enforcing food safety regulations, while producers must adhere to best practices in food production and handling. Consumers, Sanaka Samarasinha noted, also play a vital role by making informed choices and practicing safe food handling at home. To quote him, "Through collective efforts, foodborne illnesses can be significantly reduced, improving public health outcomes globally." The Global Effort Towards Food SafetyImproving food safety, Samarasinha said, requires a concerted global effort. Through initiatives like World Food Safety Day, WHO and FAO should work tirelessly to mainstream food safety in the public agenda and reduce the burden of foodborne diseases globally. He said that by raising awareness and promoting action-oriented campaigns, these organizations can ensure that food safety becomes a priority for all nations.Sanaka Samarasinha's Commitment to Food SafetySanaka Samarasinha's career has been marked by his ability to navigate complex political landscapes and drive transformative initiatives. During his tenure as the UN Resident Coordinator in the Pacific (2018-2023), he oversaw 31 UN agencies and responded to natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic. His leadership in mobilizing resources and conducting high-level political dialogues resulted in significant advancements in sustainable development across the region, including efforts to improve food security and safety.In Belarus, from 2013 to 2018, Samarasinha facilitated groundbreaking dialogues on democratic governance and human rights, contributing to establishing national action plans and ratifying fundamental conventions. His innovative campaigns, such as the #UN70BelarusExpress, drove local ownership of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and fostered inclusive development, including food safety and public health.Contact:Media Contact: Sanaka Samarasinha sanakasamarasinha@ mail.com SOURCE: Sanaka Samarasinha PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 18:02:04 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 512 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Scailyte appoints Tim Foley as Chief Business Officer, Jean-Pierre Rosat as Executive Chair, and Darrin Crisitello as member of the BoDBASEL, SWITZERLAND / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Scailyte, a pioneer in single-cell and AI-driven biomarker discovery, is proud to announce the addition of three new members to its leadership team and BoD as the company continues to grow its business and to expand its presence in North America.Scailyte has appointed Tim Foley, based in Chicago, as its new Chief Business Officer. With two decades of experience in strategic leadership roles at Takeda and Astellas, as well as emerging AI/ML life science startups, Tim is a renowned veteran in the industry and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise. His proven track record of successfully leading strategic initiatives, combined with his commitment to biomarker-driven drug development, makes him the ideal leader of Scailyte's growth strategy. His strategic vision and hands-on approach will play a vital role in propelling Scailyte to new heights.Dr. Jean-Pierre Rosat, based in Switzerland, and General Partner at 4FOX ventures, becomes Executive Chair and will support the company with fundraising and strategic initiatives. Jean-Pierre has a strong scientific background and was a serial medtech entrepreneur with multiple exits for two decades. In 2017 Jean-Pierre co-founded a medtech and AI-focused venture fund based in Switzerland and has been driving multiple investments in the past seven years.Additionally, Scailyte is welcoming Darrin Crisitello, based in the USA and Chief Commercial Officer of Quanterix, to the company's Board of Directors. Darrin is an experienced commercial executive in the diagnostics and life science industry. Before joining the diagnostics company Quanterix, Darrin has driven the commercial growth of Mission Bio, Natera and Color Health, launching multiple genetic testing products, as well as the first DNA-based single-cell sequencing platform.Scailyte expresses its immense gratitude to Pascal Koenig and Anna Sumarey who have been invaluable members of the company's board for their exceptional contributions to Scailyte. Their exemplary leadership, valuable insights, and vast experience have been instrumental in shaping the company strategy and have significantly advanced Scailyte's mission.Peter Nestorov, Co-Founder and CEO of Scailyte, comments: "In the past two years, Scailyte has gained solid commercial traction and I am very excited about having Tim Foley and Darrin Crisitello, two experienced commercial leaders devoted to precision medicine, join Scailyte to drive and support our commercial growth. Further, I am delighted to work alongside our new Executive Chair, Jean-Pierre Rosat, with whom I share the passion of building and growing innovative life science companies." The company remains committed to advancing the field of precision medicine with single-cell multi-omics analysis, artificial intelligence, and a dedication to high quality and value for the patients.About ScailyteScailyte is a leading biomarker and companion diagnostics company. It leverages its AI-driven translational platform and single-cell multi-omics data to identify ultra-sensitive biomarker signatures and cell functionality states. The performance of ScaiVision has been demonstrated in multiple projects with Biotech, Pharma and academic partners.Contact InformationPeter NestorovFounder & CEOcontact@ scailyte.com SOURCE: Scailyte AGView the original press release on newswire.com PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 12:50:27 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1009 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY AND TAIPEI, TAIWAN / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / SUIC Worldwide Holdings (SUIC" or the "Company") (OTC PINK:SUIC) today announced a shareholder letter from its CEO, Hank Wang.Dear SUIC Worldwide Holdings Shareholders, Partners, and Family:I am delighted to share with you the progress and vision of SUIC Worldwide Holdings as we continue our journey to empower enterprises with cutting-edge technology and innovative financing solutions. Our mission is to invest in promising private and public enterprises, helping them to develop and expand their products and services through the strategic use of advanced technologies such as the Internet of Things (IoT), cloud computing, mobile payments, Big Data, blockchain, and artificial intelligence (AI).At SUIC, we provide specialized consulting services to assist small and micro-cap companies, which often face challenges in accessing capital, in successfully navigating the public markets. Leveraging our management team's expertise in risk management and exit planning, intense research and development capabilities, and a global network of investments and professionals, we accelerate the development and commercialization of our clients' products and services.Our commitment to research and development and venture financing uniquely positions us to support private enterprises by focusing on businesses that adopt core technologies to enhance and streamline existing processes and establish new and revolutionary business models. This approach exposes our shareholders to the diverse applications of advanced services across various economic sectors and enables our customers to benefit from our diversified portfolio of technologies.SUIC plays a significant role as the principal operating partner and primary shareholder of Beneway USA Group Ltd. This strategic partnership allows us to implement long-term strategies to tap into growth opportunities within the Asian and US markets, thereby contributing to our overall growth and expansion plans.Our subsidiary, i.Hart Group operates 150 global franchised locations, primarily in Asia. i.Hart offers a variety of brands and products, including Monga Taiwan-style Fried Chicken, cloud kitchen management, dumplings, flower tea drinks, and more. We are excited about the positive developments expected to boost Beneway USA's IPO activity, further enhancing our capabilities and proprietary B2B2C system.i.Hart GroupSUIC Worldwide Holdings' i.Hart Group is poised to unlock significant growth opportunities across the Asian and U.S. markets. These regions represent most of the global food market, a sector poised for continued expansion driven by population growth and increased expenditure.At the beginning of this year, i.Hart Group operated 150 global franchised locations under various brands, including Monga Taiwan-style fried chicken, flower tea drinks, cloud kitchen management, AI smart machines, hot pot, and more. Since then, we have signed franchise authorization agreements to see the number of franchised stores in Asia grow to 200 by year-end and over 1000 within the next five years. We aim to integrate more successful brands into our Asian and U.S. portfolios, complementing our leading brand, Monga Fried Chicken.We are pleased to announce that SUIC and i.Hart Group has signed additional franchise authorizations in China and Japan. These franchise authorizations include opening a new store in the Hong Kong-Macau area, a co-branding agreement with 7-Eleven Group Taiwan, and a franchise development plan rollout in China. Statista projects the size of Asia's food market to reach $4.46 trillion in 2024 against a global market size of $9.13 trillion. With the region's population expected to grow by about 250 million people by 2030 and expenditure anticipated to more than double to $8 trillion, these regions represent a massive opportunity for i.Hart Group.To support this expansion, we have entered into significant agreements. In February, SUIC and i.Hart signed a co-branding agreement with 7-Eleven Group Taiwan (operated by President Chain Store Corporation) to grow the Monga Fried Chicken brand. This agreement granted 7-Eleven Group Taiwan exclusive rights to use Monga Fried Chicken's trademarks and logos and its manufacturing, distribution, sales, and marketing assets within Taiwan. This partnership effectively integrates Monga Fried Chicken into over 6,800 7-Eleven stores in Taiwan and connects us to 7-Eleven's international network of stores.SUIC Worldwide Holdings CEO Hank Wang has delineated the company's strategic vision and growth milestones in a shareholder letter. The company aims to empower enterprises with cutting-edge technology and innovative financing solutions. They offer specialized consulting services to assist small and micro-cap companies in accessing capital and supporting private and public businesses. SUIC is committed to research and development and venture financing and is the principal operating partner and primary shareholder of Beneway USA Group Ltd. Its subsidiary, i.Hart Group is positioned to unlock substantial growth opportunities across the Asian and U.S. markets, with additional franchise authorizations in China and Japan already in place. The same month, we celebrated the grand opening of the fourth Monga Taiwan-style fried Chicken store in Hong Kong-Macau. i.Hart Group also launched a franchise development plan in China, initially teaming up with partners in the Chinese province of Fujian to open Monga Fried Chicken stores in six major cities. This plan, which is part of our larger expansion strategy, has the potential to significantly increase our market presence in China and boost our growth in the region.In April, i.Hart Group extended its commitment to increasing the number of Monga Fried Chicken stores in Asia by signing franchise authorizations with partners in the Chinese province of Shandong and Japan. As a result, i.Hart Group now has a presence in 11 countries and operates 95 Monga Fried Chicken stores. This number will grow as our new partners open additional stores.For instance, the franchisee in Shandong, China's second-largest province, has committed to opening 10 Monga Fried Chicken stores in the first year and 300 stores within the subsequent five years. Additionally, we are organizing an operating and franchising team in the U.S. to further our expansion efforts.Our venture financing and support company, through its i.Hart Group and Boom Fintech subsidiaries have entered agreements that set the stage for significant growth. Recently, i.Hart Group signed a brand cooperation agreement with 7-Eleven, which will promote long-term growth and open doors for more cooperation with U.S. brands.For its part, Boom Fintech, which PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 19:32:57 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 331 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / The Schall Law Firm, a national shareholder rights litigation firm, announces that it is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. ("Arbor" or "the Company") (NYSE:ABR) for violations of the securities laws.The investigation focuses on whether the Company issued false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose information pertinent to investors. Arbor is the subject of a report issued by Viceroy Research November 17, 2023, titled, ""Arbor Realty Trust - Slumlord Millionaires." According to the report, "Arbor's high-risk multifamily bridge loans, which comprise substantially all of its asset book, are going bad fast The end is near." Viceroy Research then issued a follow up report on December 5, 2023, titled "Arbor - Jacksonville Case Study." In the second report, Viceroy Research claims that the Company's "entire loan book is distressed and underlying collateral is vastly overstated." Based on this news, shares of Arbor fell by more than 5% over the next two trading sessions.If you are a shareholder who suffered a loss, click here to participate.We also encourage you to contact Brian Schall of the Schall Law Firm, 2049 Century Park East, Suite 2460, Los Angeles, CA 90067, at 310-301-3335, to discuss your rights free of charge. You can also reach us through the firm's website at www.schallfirm.com , or by email at bschall@ schallfirm.com The class in this case has not yet been certified, and until certification occurs, you are not represented by an attorney. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member.The Schall Law Firm represents investors around the world and specializes in securities class action lawsuits and shareholder rights litigation.This press release may be considered Attorney Advertising in some jurisdictions under the applicable law and rules of ethics.CONTACT: The Schall Law FirmBrian Schall, Esq.310-301-3335 info@ schallfirm.comwww.schallfirm.com SOURCE: The Schall Law Firm PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 20:15:49 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 653 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / TPT Global Tech, Inc. (OTC PINK:TPTW) ( www.tptglobaltech.com or the "Company"), a leading innovator in the telecommunications and technology industries, is pleased to announce American Tower Plaintiffs and the Company and its subsidiary TPT Speedconnect, Inc ("TPT SpeedConnect") signing of a Release and Settlement Agreement, effective June 25, 2024, including a Confession of Judgement. This agreement resolves disputes related to telecommunications tower leases and licenses between the parties.Under the terms of the agreement, American Tower Plaintiffs have terminated fifty-one (51) licenses and reaffirmed eleven (11) licenses. The Company and TPT Speedconnect have agreed to a Settlement Payment of $1,085,000.00, which includes rent and attorneys' fees owed to the American Tower Plaintiffs and related tower removal costs. As part of the Settlement Agreement, the Company and TPT Speedconnect are financially responsible for the removal of its telecommunication equipment off of the American Tower Plaintiffs 51 towers which could cost upwards of $1,000,000. A Confession of Judgement was agreed to for any unpaid amounts up to $2,085,000 under the Settlement Agreement not paid by December 31, 2024. Full details on the Settlement Agreement can be found in the Company's latest Form S-1 filing.The Company will list any unpaid amounts under the Settlement Payment as debt owed to ATC TOWER SERVICES LLC on the Company's uplisting Form S-1 filing with the SEC, and will make the payment from proceeds of its securities issuance, in compliance with Federal securities laws.This agreement marks a significant resolution of all disputes between the parties, signaling a positive path forward for both American Tower Plaintiffs and TPT Speedconnect.Stephen Thomas, CEO of TPT Global Tech, commented on the agreement, stating, "This Settlement agreement with American Towers is a positive step forward for both companies and I am pleased that ATC has agreed to participate in our cash allocation from our uplisting to major US Stock exchange as we continue reduce debt." About TPT Global TechTPT Global Tech, Inc. is a technology holding company based in San Diego, California. It was formed as the successor of two U.S. corporations, Ally Pharma US and TPT Global, Inc. The Company operates in various sectors including media, telecommunications, Smart City Real Estate Development, and the launch of the first super App, VuMe Live technology platform.As a media content delivery hub, TPT Global Tech utilizes its own proprietary global digital media TV and telecommunications infrastructure platform. They offer software as a service (SaaS), technology platform as a service (PAAS), and cloud-based unified communication as a service (UCaaS) solutions to businesses worldwide. Their UCaaS services enable businesses of all sizes to access the latest voice, data, media, and collaboration features.Forward-Looking StatementsThis press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of various provisions of the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, commonly identified by such terms as "believes," "looking ahead," "anticipates," "estimates" and other terms with similar meaning. Specifically, statements about the Company's plans for accelerated growth, improved profitability, future business partners, M&A activity, new service offerings, and pursuit of new markets are forward-looking statements. Although the company believes that the assumptions upon which its forward-looking statements are based are reasonable, it can give no assurance that these assumptions will prove to be correct. Such forward-looking statements should not be construed as fact. The information contained in such statements is beyond the ability of the Company to control, and in many cases, the Company cannot predict what factors would cause results to differ materially from those indicated in such statements. All forward-looking statements in the press release are expressly qualified by these cautionary statements and by reference to the underlying assumptions.For more information about TPT Global Tech and its subsidiaries, please visit www.tptglobaltech.com For media or Investment inquiries, please contact: Rick@ tptglobaltech.com SOURCE: TPT Global Tech, Inc. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 14:30:29 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 459 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / Trans Canada Gold Corp. (TSX-V:TTG)(OTCQB:RCTRF) ("Trans Canada" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has strengthened its land position, and signed an additional lease agreement to complement a recently completed the purchase of two strategic land and lease acquisitions pursuant to an AMI ("Area of Mutual Interest") in a Farmout Agreement ("Farmout") dated November 1, 2022. The Operator has completed, signed and secured a strategic surface lease and is now permitting its new multilateral well for a summer start for drilling. This new multilateral well is expected to contact over 3000 meters of oil reservoir in the General Petroleum sand.Commented President & CEO Tim Coupland, "With the signing of the most recent lease agreement, and with the completion of the land acquisition pursuant to an AMI, drilling pre-planning, pre-purchasing of drilling equipment such as drill casing, pipe, tanks, is in full progress, and we expect drilling to be right on schedule for mid/late summer. With global oil prices remaining high, and the new Canadian TMX pipeline now fully operational, oil prices are forecasted to remain steady, this will in turn will allow the Company to pursue additional multilateral drilling opportunities and new property acquisitions." ABOUT TRANS CANADA GOLD CORP. - OIL AND GAS PRODUCTION/REVENUE PRODUCING WELLSThe Company is a discovery focused Oil & Gas Resource Development and Mineral Exploration Company that is currently focused on developing and drilling its' production of conventional heavy oil exploration properties, increasing production capabilities, and increasing future oil production revenues through responsible exploration. The Company identifies, acquires and finances with its working interest partners, the ongoing development of oil and gas assets primarily situated in Alberta Canada. The Company has qualified Senior exploration management and Geological teams of professionals, seasoned in exploration production, field exploration and drilling. The Company currently works with Croverro Energy Ltd., who has demonstrated proficiency, expected of an experienced oil and gas technical team that has proven oil production, and revenue success with large multi-lateral wells currently under their supervision. The Company has the necessary manpower in place to develop its natural resource properties and manage its production properties. The Company is committed to minimizing risk through selective property acquisitions, and responsible exploration drilling, and maximizing long term petroleum and natural gas resource assets.FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:Tim Coupland, President and CEOTrans Canada Gold Corp.Tel: (604) 681-3131 astar@ telus.comwww.transcanadagold.com orChristian Timmins, DirectorTrans Canada Gold Corp.Tel: (403) 597-3410Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider, (as the term is defined in the Policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: Trans Canada Gold Corp. PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 21:00:32 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 629 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 WARSAW, POLAND / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 /DevKit, a leading EU-based software development company recognized on the Clutch #100 list, is expanding to North America. DevKit.agency helps businesses achieve their full IT potential across various industries, including FinTech, eCommerce, logistics, booking, and healthcare, by delivering robust software products tailored to each client's specific needs.Businesses that invest in robust and scalable AI software gain a leading market position. AI-powered software solutions can help automate time-consuming tasks, personalize interactions, and extract valuable insights from data to make better decisions. DevKit utilizes the latest AI technology and offers clients from Europe, Asia, and now North America a comprehensive suite of services to meet any business's requirements.How to Navigate the Software Landscape and Find the Right Solutions in 2024?DevKit understands that not every organization requires a full-time development team. While almost all companies need their own IT products, it often makes no sense to assemble a team when creating and maintaining just one website or application. That's why DevKit offers a wide range of IT outsourcing services with many customization options:Custom Software Development: DevKit's specialists with proven tech experience will handle your software development tasks or project work: enhancing your current products or building them from scratch.Staff Augmentation: If a business needs technical expertise or specific skills for an ongoing project, the staff augmentation option allows access to a pool of highly skilled software engineers, data scientists, data architects, and more on a contract basis. The best option to complement your team with a few strong specialists.Dedicated Team: Companies can invest in an expert dedicated team that will work alongside the in-house team and integrate complex features into ongoing projects. Alternatively, with DevKit you can assemble an outsourced dedicated team to handle all your development tasks at full.By offering both dedicated team and staff augmentation services, DevKit provides clients with the flexibility to choose the most suitable approach. They can integrate AI and ML technologies into existing projects with a dedicated team and scale technical capabilities as needed with the staff augmentation option.The Perfect Combination of Human Skills and TechnologyEven in the age of AI and ML technologies, DevKit understands that human expertise remains essential. The experienced team combines technical skills with a deep understanding of industry challenges. With this unique combination, DevKit delivers solutions that are both technically and strategically aligned with clients' business goals. With Devkit's solutions now available in the North American market, customers from the US and Canada can get a piece of European top-notch software development talent.The company's CEO, Bogdan Ivanov, stated, "We hear our clients and help them achieve results and gain a competitive advantage. We don't just provide tools and services - we give the knowledge and support to use them effectively." Beyond Services Lies a Strategic Partnership DevKit.agency offers individual services and creates AI/ML-fueled products that can be customized and scaled to meet the unique needs of each business. Businesses that partner with DevKit reap numerous benefits, allowing them to focus on key activities and achieve their long-term goals.Achieve your software vision with custom development from scratch, access expert staff on-demand, or choose dedicated teams for ongoing support to build scalable software solutions, optimize budgets, and adjust team size based on project needs.About DevKitFounded in 2020, DevKit has become an established leader in the IT development space. With a team of over 70 experts providing custom software development, staff augmentation, and dedicated team services, DevKit serves businesses of all sizes - from small startups to large companies. A 100% team engagement score guarantees that every project benefits from solid expertise and dedicated team commitment.Media Details:Company Name: DevKit Company Press Contact: Sergii MaksymenkoContact Email: hi@ devkit.agencyCompany Website: https://www.devkit.agency/ SOURCE: DevKit PR-Inside.com: 2024-07-08 15:00:34 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 464 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / July 8, 2024 / National plaintiffs law firm Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP encourages investors in Vestis Corporation ("Vestis" or the "Company") (NYSE:VSTS) who suffered losses from purchasing Vestis common stock between October 2, 2023 and May 1, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"), to contact us immediately regarding a pending securities class action against Vestis. The deadline to apply to be lead plaintiff is July 16, 2024.Class Period: October 2, 2023 - May 1, 2024Lead Plaintiff Motion Deadline: July 16, 2024Case information: lieffcabraser.com/securities/vestis Contact us: Email or text investorinfo@ lchb.com or call 1-800-541-7358Vestis is a uniform services provider that provides rental uniforms and workplace supplies to businesses throughout the United States and Canada. The Company used to operate as the Uniform Services division of Aramark, a food and facilities services provider, until it was spun off as an independent publicly traded company in September 2023.The action alleges that during the Class Period, Vestis misrepresented and failed to disclose materially adverse facts regarding the Company's operations, including that: (i) Aramark had not invested sufficiently in its Uniform Services division prior to the spinoff of Vestis, and (ii) as a result, the Company had experienced services gaps and was not in a position to meet the growth projections that defendants touted.On May 2, 2024, before the market closed, Vestis released disappointing financial results for the second quarter of fiscal year 2024. The Company lowered its outlook for fiscal year 2024, reporting projected revenue growth of negative 1% to 0%. During the Company's earnings conference call with analysts and investors held later that day, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, defendant Kimberly Scott, said that "service gaps have driven price sensitivity." Analysts were surprised by the Company's announcements, including a JP Morgan analyst who remarked, "[a]s you had articulated, your plan had been just a couple of months ago for a targeted area price increase, and then you pivoted to a price decrease." On this news, Vestis's common stock price fell $8.31 per share, or 45%, from its closing price of $18.47 per share on May 1, 2024, to close at $10.16 per share on May 2, 2024, on unusually heavy trading volume.About Lieff CabraserLieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP, with over 125 attorneys in offices in San Francisco, New York, Nashville, and Munich, Germany, is an internationally-recognized law firm committed to advancing the rights of investors and promoting corporate responsibility. Repeatedly recognized as a "Plaintiffs' Powerhouse" by Law360, Lieff Cabraser has litigated some of the most important civil cases in the United States, and has assisted clients in recovering over $129 billion in verdicts and settlements. For over 50 years, Lieff Cabraser has remained committed to ensuring access to justice for all.Source/ContactSharon LeeLieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein, LLP415 956-1000 slee@ lchb.com SOURCE: Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein Motorists and commuters are currently groaning under the harsh conditions caused by the fuel scarcity situation across Abuja, Nigerias capital city. The scarcity, which began last Thursday, continued on Monday. The crisis has already impacted the transport sector in the city, with commercial transporters already adjusting their fares upward. A PREMIUM TIMES correspondent who monitored the situation found that transport fares jumped by at least 20 per cent, depending on the routes. A random survey of petrol stations within the city showed that the prices ranged between N670 and N800 Monday morning while the retail outlets of the NNPC continued to sell the product for N617 per litre. When this reporter visited petrol stations on Monday morning, anxious motorists scrambled for fuel. Most motorists who could not bear to stay in queues at the filling stations found an alternative in the emergency roadside fuel hawkers. But this came at a higher cost of about N10,000 N12,000 for a 10-litre jerry can. 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 queue around the NNPC retail station in the Central Area District resulted in a traffic gridlock in the area. A commercial motorist, Mustaphar Mailafiya, said it was better to wait at the NNPC station than to be exploited by people who sell at exorbitant prices. All the filling stations visited in Kubwa were not selling the product. The TotalEnergies filling station in Wuse Zone 1, TotalEnergies filling station in Wuse Zone 2 junction by customs and Azman Oil and Gas Nig Ltd in Wuse Zone 5 were opened, but officials said the stations had no petrol stock. At Saddi Kamil filling station, NNPC, Shafa and Salbas Oil and Gas Nig Ltd along Lugbe, Airport Road, there was a huge crowd at the stations Monday morning. Shema Petroleum Limited, along Lugbe Airport Road, was opened, but the station was not selling the product, while Bovas, along Lugbe Airport Road, was under lock and key. When PREMIUM TIMES visited the Conoil filling station opposite the NNPC Tower, the queues stretched for about one kilometre to the end of the National Bureau of Statistics office. One of the motorists, who gave his name as Kenny, said his tank was already empty and could not afford to buy from hawkers. This thing is not funny again. We are fed up because we have to queue for a long time to get petrol, he said. A car owner, Adeyemi Folorunso, said he had been in the queue for almost an hour waiting to purchase the product. The current situation is bad for an ordinary person. How can you wake up very early just to come and queue up for fuel? You can see how bad it is when you spend all your time in the station. Let me use this opportunity to call on President Bola Tinubu to bring the renewed hope he promised to us, we are suffering, and all we need is permanent hope, he said. The fuel scarcity has forced residents to adopt new ways to manage the situation. A civil servant, Mathias Ewaoche, lamented that he hardly drives his car to far distances due to the difficulty of getting fuel. Since Friday, I have been managing the fuel in my car. I must tell you that throughout the weekend, being Saturday and Sunday, I did not even drive the car, he said. In Lugbe, a civil servant, Adelani John, said the scarcity had affected fares and further worsened the already bad economic situation for individuals. I have been standing here for a while now, and all the private cars I saw said from this Berger junction in Lugbe to secretariat is N500, something that I used to enter for N400 before. It is also difficult to get commercial vehicles as most of them are stuck in one fuel station, he added. An okada rider, who simply identified himself as Guntau, said he bought three litres of fuel from a black market dealer at N3,000. Mr Guntau said he had to increase the fare to N200 per drop so he could make a profit. If you are going to anywhere that is a bit closer, like this place where you are standing (Berger junction) to Lugbe Zone 6 you will pay N200 instead of N150, and if you are going to Zone 9, you will pay N300, he told this reporter. NNPC speaks The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), which imports nearly all the volumes of petrol that come into Nigeria, said logistics challenges and flooding caused the fuel queues seen in the FCT and some parts of the country. Olufemi Soneye, the chief corporate communications officer of the NNPC Ltd, in a statement on Monday, explained that the adverse weather condition affected berthing at jetties, truck load-outs and transportation of products to filling stations, causing a disruption in station supply logistics. The NNPC Ltd wishes to state that the fuel queues seen in the FCT and some parts of the country were a result of disruption of ship-to-ship (STS) transfer of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, between Mother Vessels and Daughter Vessels resulting from a recent thunderstorm. The adverse weather condition has also affected berthing at jetties, truck load-outs and transportation of products to filling stations, causing a disruption in station supply logistics, Mr Soneye said. He further explained that due to the flammability of petroleum products and in compliance with the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) regulations, it was impossible to load petrol during rainstorms and lightning. Adherence to these regulations is mandatory as any deviation could pose a severe danger to the trucks, filling stations and human lives. READ ALSO: Fuel queues resurface in Abuja Similarly, he said the development was compounded by consequential flooding of truck routes, which has constrained the movement of PMS from the coastal corridors to the Federal Capital, Abuja. According to him, the NNPC Ltd is working with relevant stakeholders to resolve the logistics challenges and restore a seamless supply of petrol to affected areas. Already, loading has commenced in areas where these challenges have subsided, and we are hoping the situation will continue to improve in the coming days and full normalcy will be restored, he added. The NNPC also called on motorists to avoid panic buying and hoarding petroleum products. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Boeing, an American aerospace company, has agreed to plead guilty to criminal fraud conspiracy charges stemming from two fatal crashes involving its 737 Max planes that killed 346 passengers and crew members in 2018 and 2019. The decision by the company came after the US Department of Justice (DoJ) ruled that the company violated a deal meant to reform amidst safety concerns. The plane maker had also agreed to pay a criminal fine of $243.6m (190m), the DoJ said on Monday. According to a BBC report, the settlement must now be approved by a US judge. However, some families of the victims of the ill-fated aircraft five years ago have criticised the decision, describing it as a sweetheart deal that would allow Boeing to avoid full responsibility for the fatalities recorded during the crashes. Crisis Boeing has faced criticism over its safety record since the incident of the two near-identical crashes involving 737 Max aircraft in 2018 and 2019. In late October 2018, a Boeing 737 Max plane operated by Indonesias Lion Air crashed shortly after take-off, killing all 189 people on board. A few months later, in 2019, another Boeing 737 Max plane operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed, killing all 157 passengers and crew members onboard. A Nigerian professor, Pius Adesanmi, was among the victims of the ill-fated plane. 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 Adesanmi, who held Nigerian and Canadian citizenship, was a columnist and editorial board member at PREMIUM TIMES and other Nigerian media platforms. These incidents led to the global grounding of the plane for over a year. In 2021, it was reported that prosecutors charged Boeing with one count of conspiracy to defraud regulators, alleging it had deceived the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about its MCAS flight control system, which was implicated in both crashes. That year, Boeing also agreed to pay $2.5 billion to resolve the matter, including a $243 million criminal penalty and $500 million to a victims fund. The deal was said to have outraged family members, who alleged that they were not consulted on the terms and have called for the company to stand trial. It was eventually agreed that Boeing would not be prosecuted if the company paid a penalty and completed three years of increased monitoring and reporting. However, the pressure on Boeing intensified after an unused door blew out of a Boeing 737 Max Alaska Airlines in January shortly after take-off, forcing the plane to land abruptly. Although no fatalities were recorded, it intensified scrutiny over how much progress Boeing had made in improving its safety and quality record. Amid a deepening crisis over Boeings safety record, its Chief Executive, Dave Calhoun, was forced to announce his resignation by the end of this year, while Boeing also said that the head of its commercial airline division will retire immediately and its chairman will not stand for re-election. In May, the DoJ said it found Boeing had violated the terms of the agreement, opening up the possibility of prosecution. Comments This sweetheart deal fails to recognise that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died, Paul Cassell, a lawyer representing some families of people killed on the 2018 and 2019 flights, was quoted as saying. Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DoJ, the deadly consequences of Boeings crime are being hidden. Reject this inappropriate plea and simply set the matter for a public trial so that all the facts surrounding the case will be aired in a fair and open forum before a jury, Mr Cassell said. He also urged the DoJ in June to fine Boeing more than $24 billion. In his reaction, Ed Pierson, executive director of the Foundation for Aviation Safety and a former senior manager at Boeing, described the plea as seriously disappointing and a terrible deal for justice. Instead of holding individuals accountable, theyre just basically giving them another get out of jail free card, he said. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Organisers of Soyinka at 90 Birthday Essay Competition, The Wole Soyinka International Cultural Exchange (WSICE), have announced the 90 finalists for the 2024 essay competition for senior secondary school students. The essay competition is one of the many activities to celebrate Mr Soyinka, who turns 90 on 13 July. Over the past 15 years, the competition has received over 10,000 entries from students aged 12-17. This year, the students wrote on the theme The Many Lives of an Irrepressible Patriot, Humanist & Rights Activist. A press statement released by WSICE on Monday said 90 finalists were chosen for their exceptional writing skills, creativity, and insightful perspectives. Teju Kareem, the executive producer of WSICE, also announced that this years scholarship prizes and gifts will exceed N10 million. Giving details of how the 90 finalists were chosen, WSICE, in its statement, noted that the students were evaluated by a panel of judges based on originality, coherence, depth of analysis, and relevance to the theme. 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 all 90 finalists have distinguished themselves, the judges will still determine the top three entries to recognise the most outstanding contributions. Other activities Meanwhile, Mr Soyinkas 90th birthday will be marked with a series of events, which will take place from 13 to 16 July in Nigeria and 19 to 27 July in London. An advocacy session will be held in collaboration with the Nigeria Academy of Letters (NAL) on 11 July at the University of Lagos. Also on 13 July at the June 12 Cultural Centre in Abeokuta, a theatrical presentation titled The Noble Warrior Eni Ogun, written by Aiyeko-ooto Onadele and produced by Adubiifa Network Company in collaboration with WSICE, will be showcased. The play explores themes of bravery and struggle, resonating with Mr Soyinkas legacy. Additionally, from 12-14 July and 19-21 July, Live Theatre Lagos will stage Soyinkas classic play The Lion and the Jewel at various venues in Lagos. Mr Soyinka, born 13 July 1934, is a renowned Nigerian playwright, novelist, poet, and essayist. In 1986, he became the first sub-Saharan African awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Catholic Diocese of Sokoto has confirmed the release of a reverend father, Mikah Sulaiman, who was kidnapped at his residence in Zamfara State last month. The Dioceses spokesperson, Pascal Salifu, in a statement on Sunday, said Mr Suleiman is currently receiving necessary care and support. The parish priest of St. Raymond Catholic Church Damba, Gusau, Zamfara State, was kidnapped at his residence in Gusau, the state capital. We are overjoyed to announce the safe release of Fr Mikah Suleiman, who was kidnapped on 22/06/2024. We extend our heartfelt gratitude to God for His protection and to everyone who offered prayers and support during this challenging time Our thanks also go to the authorities and all involved in securing Fr Mikahs release. He is currently receiving the necessary care and support, the statement stated. The police had said that they had deployed personnel to rescue the priest, who was kidnapped around 3 a.m. at his residence in the Damba area of Gusau where he stayed alone. 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 Two ministers of government, and other sundry commentators have taken us to the cleaners over our story on the Samoa Agreement in particular, and some other reports published earlier. We have followed with attention what these government officials said, and left unsaid, and we will publish that in full, for the records. We have also acknowledged lapses in our reporting on this particular matter, pointed out to us by professional colleagues, and we will review and take appropriate measures. As our editors understood it, the Samoa Agreement signed by Nigeria has expanded the definition of gender rights, from the traditional male-female, to a new norm, captured by the term LGBTQ (Lesbian; Bi-sexual, Gay, Transgender and Queer). That is the crux of the matter. If the agreement does not aim at promoting such new orientation, widely accepted in Western countries, then we are wrong in our interpretation. We will readily apologise both to the government and to the public for crying wolf. We expect that those qualified, by training and experience, to make such a judgement, will weigh into the matter and we will as usual, publish all sides in the discussion, including that of the government. We wish to add that in this story, as in others over the last 26 years, the Daily Trust tried to be guided by public interest. It is also important for us to clarify some of the insinuations by the information minister about other stories that Daily Trust had done. First, the statement that our newspaper had given a banner headline to a baseless accusation that the Government was working on citing foreign military bases in the country. Nothing could be further from the truth. We only reported in the Daily Trust of Sunday, 5th May, 2024, details of an open letter by six scholars and activists urging the president and the National Assembly to reject any bid to cite United States of America and French military bases within Nigeria. Also, the minister said Daily Trust concocted and popularised a lie that the Federal Government had renamed the Murtala Muhammed Expressway in Abuja to Wole Soyinka Way. We did publish two opinion articles in Daily Trust of Wednesday and Saturday, June 12 and 15, 2024, in which the opinion writers raised concerns over alleged renaming of the Murtala Muhammed Way, Abuja, after Wole Soyinka. 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 recall that the information ministers press statement on that matter, which was issued on the 17th of June, 2024, with the headline Abujas Murtala Muhammed Way NOT Renamed after Soyinka-FG, was reported generously in our online and offline platforms. We wish to reiterate that we are an impartial media outlet. Since 1998, we have operated under six different governments, with the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration being the seventh. Throughout this period, we have consistently demonstrated a high level of impartiality in our reportage. Maryam Aminu Bello, Esq Company Secretary/Legal Adviser Media Trust Group Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has said a total of 32,836 Nigerians who participated in the 2024 pilgrimage have been airlifted from Saudi Arabia. The commission said the pilgrims were from 13 states as well as from the military. It disclosed this in a statement on Monday by its Spokesperson, Fatima Usara. A total of 65,000 Nigerians participated in this years Hajj rituals while 13 of them died during the pilgrimage. Mrs Usara said the number of those airlifted so far represents 64 per cent of the total pilgrims that participated in the pilgrimage from Nigeria. This represents 64 per cent of pilgrims that have been airlifted back to the country after 16 days, compared to arrival into the Kingdom in the first phase at 60.2 per cent when 30,599 pilgrims were transported by this time. This shows positive progress with 77 flights compared to 73 flights recorded during the first leg. 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 States that have concluded airlift include Bauchi, Kaduna, Osun, Lagos, Borno, Ogun, Benue, Armed Forces, Kogi, Nasarawa, Edo, Yobe, Plateau, and Oyo. Slated to conclude airlift by Tuesday are Kano, and Ondo while FCT, Abuja will convey its last set of pilgrims today July 8. Ekiti will hopefully conclude its airlift by the 10th of this month. States that commenced airlift today being among the last batch to arrive the Kingdom are Adamawa, Gombe, while Jigawa, Katsina, and Taraba are about to start movement back to their destinations within the week, she said. Mrs Usara said NAHCON is working towards concluding the airlift of Nigerian pilgrims by the end of the week, marking the final stage of a seamless and successful hajj. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Troops of Sector 2 Joint Task Force, North-East Operation Hadin Kai, have foiled an attempt by Boko Haram insurgents to vandalise power towers in Kasesa near Damaturu. The troops achieved the feat in collaboration with hunter groups in the state. The acting Assistant Director of the Army Public Relations Headquarters of the sector, Naziru Shehu, disclosed this to journalists in Damaturu on Sunday. He said combined troops of Combat Team (CT) 7 of 27 Task Force Brigade conducted the operation on Saturday after receiving credible intelligence on the planned sabotage. On receipt of credible intelligence of BHT activities, troops swiftly laid a successful ambush on the terrorists. The terrorists abandoned a Toyota Corolla, 8 prepared Improvised Explosive Devices (IED), detonating cables, 2 damaged tyres as well as trade test card/certificate after the troops brought heavy volume of fire on them, Mr Shehu said. The spokesman said the Chief of Army Staff, Taoreed Lagbaja, and Theatre Commander, Joint Task Force Operation Hadin Kai, W Shaibu, have commended the residents for their cooperation. 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 urged the public to remain vigilant and always provide credible information to the security agencies on the movements of suspected persons in the areas. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The federal government on Thursday opposed a bill seeking to provide a legal framework for the mining, production and exportation of bitumen in the country. The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, gave the governments position at a public hearing organised by the Senate Committee on Solid Minerals Development at the National Assembly complex, Abuja. Mr Alake, represented by Emma Oganiru, argued that the bill is unnecessary, inconsistent with global best practices, and would increase the cost of governance. The bill, sponsored by Jimoh Ibrahim, the senator for Ondo South senatorial district, passed a second reading last November and was referred to the committee for further legislative action. During the public hearing, the minister said creating a commission to regulate a single mineral resource could set a challenging precedent, leading other regions to demand similar commissions for their local minerals. Mr Alake also noted that the federal government is already planning to propose a bill to establish the Nigeria Solid Minerals Corporation, which would oversee the development of mineral resources such as gold, limestone, iron ore, bitumen and others. Mr Ibrahim, while speaking at the public hearing, noted that the global Bitumen market is valued at $110 billion and projected to reach $146.59 billion by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of four per cent. Over 277 guns around the National Assembly Ondo South senator , at plenary on Wednesday, said there were over 277 guns within the National Assembly and the Presidential Villa. The senator was contributing to a motion sponsored by the Senate Chief Whip, Ali Ndume, on recent bombings in Gwoza town of Borno State. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Insight into the Mambilla Power Project Mr Ibrahim explained that an application on his mobile phone can detect the number of guns around his location. He did not, however, mention those bearing the guns. During plenary on Thursday, senators discussed comprehensively the reasons behind the failure of the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project. The 3,050 MW hydroelectric power project is located in Kakara village of Taraba State, North-eastern Nigeria. It was initiated by a Chinese company, CGGC, at a total cost of $5.9 billion. Based on the existing agreement, the company will fund 85 per cent of the project while the Nigerian government will fund the remaining 15 per cent, equivalent to $868.8 million. When completed, it will be the largest power-generating installation in the country and one of the largest hydroelectric power stations in Africa. But successive governments have refused to commit the 15 per cent funding. Among the senators who spoke on why the project has not been completed were Danjuma Goje (Gombe Central, Ahmed Lawan (Yobe North)*, Aminu Tambuwal ( PDP, Sokoto South), Victor Umeh (LP Anambra Central) and Sani Musa (APC, Niger East). Senate probes NNPC on adulterated fuel importation The Senate on Wednesday constituted a 15-member committee to unravel the circumstances surrounding the persistent importation of hazardous petroleum products by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL). The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the committees composition during the plenary. Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, is the committee chairman. Other members are Asuquo Ekpeyong (Cross River), Abdullahi Yahaya (Kebbi), Tahir Monguno (Borno) Olamilekan Adeola (Ogun) Diket Plang (Plateau) and Abdul Ningi (Bauchi), Khabeeb Mustapha (Jigawa), Ipanibo Banigo (Rivers), Adams Oshiomhole (Edo), Adetokunbo Abiru (Lagos), Osita Izunaso (Imo), Sahabi Yau (Zamfara), Olajide Ipinsagba (Ondo) and Ekong Sampson (Akwa-Ibom).The resolution to investigate the importation of hazardous petroleum products was a sequel to a motion sponsored by Mr Ekpeyong. In the motion, Mr Ekpeyong expressed displeasure with the persistent importation of contaminated fuel into the country.The senator said 12 cargoes conveying 660kt of diesel were exported by refineries to offshore Lome, Togo, Nigeria and some West African countries on 16 June. He noted that the petroleum products are below the standard quality of Nigeria and have been circulated across the markets. Mr Ekpeyong warned against the consequences of contaminated fuel on vehicles and generators. Borno bombing and security chiefs The Senate on Wednesday rejected a motion to stop service chiefs from diverting funds meant for the procurement of ammunition to the construction of universities and other unprioritised projects. The upper chamber, however, condemned the suicide bombings in Gwoza, Borno State on Saturday. It also observed a minute silence in honour of those who lost their lives in the attack. The resolutions followed a motion sponsored by the Senate Chief Whip, Ali Ndume, calling on the upper chamber of the National Assembly to sympathise with the people of Gwoza town for the bombing incidents. Mr Ndume (APC, Borno South), while presenting his motion, said about 32 people were killed in the attack and several others injured. He said the attack had raised concerns about the security situation in the region and the safety of the people. The whip, therefore, demanded that the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) provide relief materials to victims of the attacks. He also urged the federal government to direct various security agencies in the country to deploy technology in the fight against insurgency and secure hotspots inhabited by the insurgents, namely, the Lake Chad Region, Sambisa Forest, and the Mandara Mountains, respectively. Mr Ndume requested a minute silence in honour of those who lost their lives in the attack. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The appeal court in London, the United Kingdom, has upheld the conviction and jailing of a Nigerian man, Damilola Ogundeyin, for his involvement in a cocaine trafficking operation. Mr Ogundeyin, 41, participated in a large-scale cocaine operation in the United Kingdom in 2022. The man, with a history of a previous criminal conviction, was convicted of a cocaine crime in July last year. The Crown Court in Croydon, London, subsequently sentenced him last December. Judge Elizabeth Lowe of the Crown Court sentenced Mr Ogundeyin to nine years in jail for transferring cocaine to another person in a slick operation that took place in July 2022. Dissatisfied with the nine-year jail term sentence, Mr Ogundeyin filed an appeal before the Criminal Division of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales in London. In June, the appeal court affirmed Mr Ogundeyins conviction, but commuted his nine years jail time to seven years. Offence Mr Ogundeyin was caught participating in a cocaine operation in North-West London on 29 July 2022. 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 Prosecutors said he held three 1-kilogramme blocks of high-purity cocaine with a wholesale value of 90,000 and a street value of 300,000 at his home. It was alleged that he was expecting significant financial gain for doing so. The prosecutors noted that Mr Ogundeyin, of Beaufort Park Estate in Colindale, North West London, played the role of a middleman in the operation an associate delivered the cocaine to him and he transferred the cocaine to one Lyanne Kandler-Dick. The drugs were seized from Ms Kandler-Dicks car by the police less than 30 minutes after she left the address of Mr Ogundeyin on 29 July 2022. Ms Kandler-Dick has since pleaded guilty to the supply of Class A drugs found in her vehicle and to other drug-related offences. She was sentenced to six years and nine months imprisonment. During the trial, the prosecution established no phone calls or messages between Ms Kandler-Dick and Mr Ogundeyin throughout the operation. The lack of direct communication between them, the prosecutor said, implied that a third party higher up the drug chain directed those storing and transporting the drugs, as well as co-ordinating where the supplier should meet and when. On his part, Mr Ogundeyin argued that the package he gave to Ms Kandler-Dick was delivered to his home the previous day by an associate who had asked him to hand it over the following day. He said he was returning from Nigeria when the package was delivered to his London home. He also told the court that he was merely a courier, keeper or storer as he knew nothing of the contents or the drug supply operation. Initial sentencing Prosecutors established at trial that Mr Ogundeyin had a significant role as a middleman. They alleged that he held the drugs at his address and subsequently transferred them to Ms Kandler-Dick with the expectation of substantial financial gain for doing so. The prosecution said this offence fell towards the top of the category 2 significant role range. This categorisation provided a starting point for eight years custody and a range of six and a half to ten years. On his part, Mr Ogundeyin submitted that he fell into the lesser role category, where the starting point is five years custody, with a range of three and a half to seven years. In sentencing him, the judge concluded that he was close to the source of supply, adding that it was evident from what was observed by the officers that he was trusted with large amounts of a valuable and risky commodity. She rejected his submission that he was not aware of the package and was merely a courier, keeper or storer. She dismissed another of the convicts submissions that there was no proven financial gain. The judge concluded that the volume of drugs involved placed the offence at the top of category 2. She also assessed the convicts role as significant rather than the lesser role contended for by his counsel. This categorisation allowed the judge to impose on him a sentence starting from eight years custody within and a range of six and a half to ten years. She concluded that the offence was aggravated by the nature and fact of the applicants previous convictions. She did not accept that a document called an Admission and Contrition Statement amounted to genuine remorse. Mr Ogundeyin had also submitted a letter from his nine-year-old son pleading for leniency. However, the judge said it reflected poorly on the applicant and demonstrated his willingness to do anything to save his skin without considering the welfare of his child. However, the judge considered the impact that the inevitable prison sentence would have on all three of the convicts young children, as well as his sister and his mother, who was in poor health. She arrived at a final sentence of nine years imprisonment. Fresh sentence Mr Ogundeyin lodged his appeal against the sentence four days late. Therefore, he had to apply for an extension of time. Additionally, he submitted three grounds of appeal to challenge the sentence. Firstly, he argued through his lawyer that the judges starting point was too high by placing his offence under the category 2 significant role. Secondly, he argued that too much weight or emphasis was placed on his previous conviction. Thirdly, he stressed that insufficient credit was given for Mr Ogundeyins mitigation. Lord Justice Mark Warby led the three-member bench of the Court of Appeal, which had Mary Stacey and John Lodge as members. Ms Stacey read the courts judgement. After reviewing the appeal, the court held that the case was arguable and, therefore, granted the appellant leave to prosecute the appeal. Reviewing the substance of the appeal, the appeal court also commuted the sentence from nine years imprisonment to seven years. The court noted that it was established during the trial that the appellants reward was more than limited, implying that his participation in the crime was of a lesser role. The court also accepted the appellants lawyers submission that the volume and purity of the drugs supplied were not sufficient to safely infer an awareness and understanding of the scale of the operation. Therefore, the court agreed that the judge should have placed the appellants offending into a category 2 lesser role, with the correspondingly lower starting point and range of allowable sentence. However, the court also said the judge was right to place the offence on top of the range, considering the aggravating features, namely the quantity and purity of the drugs, the professionalism of the operation, and the lack of vulnerability or any sense of naivety or exploitation of the appellant himself. This was not, for example, a case of a drug user being involved to fund his own habit, the court said. It said the mitigation was very limited and the judge was also entitled to be sceptical about the so-called Admission and Contrition Statement. She was entitled not to make any downward adjustment to the top of the range for the category 2 lesser role, the appeal court ruled. Therefore, the court partially granted Mr Ogundeyins appeal by commuting the sentence imposed by the lower court. Accordingly, we allow appeal to this extent. We quash the sentence of nine years imprisonment and substitute for it a sentence of seven years imprisonment, the three-judge panel of the court ruled. Past conviction Mr Ogundeyin was previously convicted mainly of dishonesty, driving and being in possession of weapons. In the case, Mr Ogundeyin was convicted of false imprisonment, causing grievous bodily harm with intent and causing others to engage in sexual activity without their consent, according to the trial records relied on This case happened in 2007 when Mr Ogundeyin was involved in a kidnap and horrific torture and humiliation of two men said to have owed a drug debt of 5,000. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Agitation for additional state in South-east resurfaces The move to get an additional state for the South-east region received another boost with the introduction of the Etiti State creation bill on Tuesday during plenary. The bill, jointly sponsored by Amobi Ogah (LP, Abia), Miriam Onuoha (APC, Imo), Kama Nkemkama (LP, Ebonyi), Chinwe Nnabuife (YPP, Anambra), and Anayo Onwuegbu (LP, Enugu), seeks to amend the constitution by carving out a new state from Abia, Enugu, Anambra, Ebonyi and Imo states. This proposal came a few weeks after Ikenga Ugochinyere (PDP, Imo) introduced a bill seeking the creation of Orlu State in the same region. For years, there has been agitation for the creation of additional states in the South-east to give the region the same number as all the other regions, except the North-west. However, there is no consensus on how to create the additional state. In the past, there were proposals for Orashi State from Imo and Anambra states, including Njaba from the present Imo State, the excision of Aba State from Abia State, and Adada State from Enugu State. Old members vs new members Often, division in the Green Chamber follows political party lines or regional affiliations. However, there is now a new division returning members vs new members. While the legislature values seniority (ranking), the new members have one advantage in the current 10th House numerical strength. Over 70 per cent of the members of the lower chamber of the National Assembly are new. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later This tension between the old and new members came to the fore last week when a member, Cyril Hart, accused the Deputy Speaker of the House, Ben Kalu, of favouring old members during deliberations at plenary. Mr Hart, a Peoples Democratic Party member from Rivers State, confronted Mr Kalu who presided over the session, accusing him of bias during a debate on the floor of the House. This is what you always do. You need to allow first-timers to make their contributions, Mr Hart said, as his colleagues cheered him on with applause. Despite the deputy speakers explanation, the lawmakers staged a walkout, which obviously embarrassed the presiding officer. Its unclear if any action will be taken against the lawmaker for staging the walkout. Call for sack of political appointees in security sector Insecurity once again dominated the debate on the floor of the House last week as the lawmakers spent hours debating the twin bombings that rocked Borno State. From the debate, it was easy to deduce that the lawmakers are tired of the lingering security challenges in the country. During the debate, Abdussamad Dasuki, a PDP lawmaker from Sokoto State, asked President Bola Tinubu to take action against his political appointees in the security sector. He said many of them have failed to deliver despite being from the northern parts of the country. In the last year that we got inaugurated into this House, there have been too many incidents. We had a jailbreak; nobody has been sacked. People are killed; nobody has been sacked. It is high time we found somebody responsible. The earlier we look for a scapegoat, the better. These guys have not lived up to expectations. Every single day we have a minimum of three security motions and lives are lost. Its high time we came up with a resolution. We have a lot of these resolutions. I think more than 50 per cent of the resolutions of the 10th Assembly are security-related. So lets find the culprit. We have our committees that are living up to expectations. They can research this. They can look at those who have not done what is expected of them, and somebody should be held responsible, he said. Reps panel convenes dialogue on E-Governance Bill The House of Representatives Committee on Digital and Information Communication Technology is set to hold a hearing on an E-Governance Bill. The Chairman of the Committee, Adedeji Olajide (PDP, Oyo), announced the hearing in a statement released on Saturday. Mr Olajide said the hearing on the bill, which is currently in the two chambers, will be held on Tuesday at the National Assembly Complex. He stated that the hearing would be a joint effort between the House and Senate Committees on ICT and Cybercrimes. Transparency and Open NASS Last week, the House of Representatives held a two-day summit on the open parliament and promoting citizens engagement in legislative and governance processes. The summit, held at the National Assembly Complex, had in attendance the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, former Speaker Yakubu Dogara, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited, Mele Kyari, and many others. With this Open NASS summit, Nigerians would expect their legislators to open the finances of the National Assembly to the public as advised by Mr Dogara. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print One person has died, and another is missing as a boat carrying traders capsised on Sunday in Jigawa State. Per the police spokesperson in the state, Lawan Adam, 20 traders were travelling from Kwalgai in Auyo Local Government Area to neighbouring Hadin in Kaugama council when the boat capsised. Mr Adam said local divers and the police rescued most of the victims after responding swiftly to a report of the accident. The rescue team was able to rescue eighteen (18) passengers alive, while two (2) female passengers were still searching, Mr Adam said. He said one of two missing persons, identified as Habiba Ado,18, of Kwalgai community, was later alive but died at a hospital in Auyo. The police spokesperson said preliminary findings revealed that the accident was primarily caused by powerful waves and overloading that led to the driver losing control of the canoe. Efforts were being intensified to rescue the remaining missing woman while the rescued victims were all rushed to the hospital for medical attention, the police spokesperson 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 Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print A leftwing alliance has become the most significant force in the French parliament after tactical voting held back the far right, but won an absolute majority, the Guardian reports. Results of Sundays second-round election show that the leftwing New Popular Front (NPF) won 182 seats, followed by President Emmanuel Macrons centrist Together Alliance with 163 and the far right in a distant third with 143 seats. In the first round of the election, the far right and its allies forged a commanding lead but were ultimately held back by massive tactical voting to prevent them from winning enough seats to form a government. Although the left alliance won the most seats, it was more than 100 seats short of an absolute majority. Amid a high turnout estimated at about 67 per cent, no single party won an absolute majority of 289 seats and the ability to form a government. The parliament is likely to be divided into three blocs: the left, centrists and the far right, according to the Guardian analysis. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, who is part of Macrons alliance, said he would resign on Monday. However, President Macron has asked him to remain in office for now. But it remains unclear who will succeed Mr Attal. Tonight, a new era begins, the Guardian quoted him, adding that Frances destiny would play out more than ever in parliament. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later I know that, in the light of tonights results, a lot of French people feel uncertainty about the future because no majority has emerged. Our country is in an unprecedented political situation and is preparing to welcome the world [at the Olympics] in a few weeks. I will stay in my role as long as duty requires. Mr Macron will now have to work with a divided parliament but this election doesnt directly affect his job he has three years left of his presidential term. The presidents office said Mr Macron is awaiting the full results of all 577 constituencies before taking the necessary decisions. In his role as guarantor of our institutions, the president will ensure that the sovereign choice of the French people is respected, it said. On Sunday, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hailed Frances rejection of the far right. He welcomed the shock result alongside this weeks UK general election, where the centre-left Labour party achieved a landslide, saying both countries have said YES to progress and social progress and NO to going back on rights and freedoms. US Senator Bernie Sanders also congratulated the French left for taking on right-wing extremism and winning. Brazils president, Luiz da Silva, congratulated the NFP, tweeting that he was very happy with the demonstration of greatness and maturity that saw leftist and centrist political forces unite to prevent the election of the far right. He wrote: This result, as well as the victory of the Labour party in the United Kingdom, reinforces the importance of dialogue between progressive segments in defence of democracy and social justice. They should serve as an inspiration for South America. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Nigerian police have arrested three dismissed officers in Enugu State for allegedly hijacking a truck carrying 40,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol. The Force spokesperson, Muyiwa Adejobi, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday. Mr Adejobi, an assistant commissioner of police, said the dismissed officers allegedly hijacked the truck on 29 May along the Ohodo-Opi Road in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of Enugu State. Viral video clip A video clip which had gone viral recently surfaced online and showed five crime suspects being interrogated by unidentified police operatives. Two of the suspects John Okoro and Onyeka were heard in the clip claiming to be commercial bus drivers contracted to drive other suspects to where a crude oil truck was parked. Mr Okoro claimed he is from Ugbene-Ajima, a community in Uzo-Uwani Local Government Area of Enugu State. The other suspects, James Mamah and Otache Egbe, claimed to be police operatives attached to Obosi Divisional Police Headquarters, Anambra State. Article Page with Financial Support Promotion Nigerians need credible journalism. Help us report it. Support journalism driven by facts, created by Nigerians for Nigerians. Our thorough, researched reporting relies on the support of readers like you. Help us maintain free and accessible news for all with a small donation. Every contribution guarantees that we can keep delivering important stories no paywalls, just quality journalism. SUPPORT NOW x Do this later Mr Mamah, a police sergeant, hails from Amufie Community in Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area of Enugu State, while Mr Egbe, who claimed to be an inspector, hails from Benue State. The suspects also claimed that they and others escorted the truck from an unnamed location to the Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of the state. Mr Mamah claimed that he and his colleagues collected the two AK-47 rifles, a Beretta pistol and four magazines recovered from them. The suspect claimed they collected the arms and ammunition from the Obosi Divisional Police Headquarters. He claimed he was not aware of army uniforms recovered from them. One of the suspects did not identify himself in the clip. Some of the suspects claimed an accomplice, Kingsley Eze, had fled. An unidentified police officer was heard saying the suspects were arrested by a combined team of police operatives and a vigilante service, Neighbourhood Watch Group members in the area. Theyre dismissed officers But in the Sunday statement, Mr Adejobi said contrary to their claims, some of the arrested suspects are dismissed police operatives. The spokesperson said the suspects allegedly stole the petrol truck and abducted the truck driver and the truck assistant. These individuals were apprehended after a meticulous operation which led to the rescue of the abducted driver and the motor boy, he said. Motor boy is Nigerian slang for a truck assistant. Mr Adejobi identified the dismissed officers arrested during the operation as Solomon Abah, Messrs Egbe and Mamah. The investigation led to the recovery of significant exhibits, including two AK-47 rifles, 105 rounds of ammunition, and various security uniforms. The apprehended suspects have confessed to their crimes and are under investigation by the Enugu State Criminal Investigation Department, with ongoing efforts to recover the stolen PMS, Mr Adejobi stated. The suspects will soon appear in court for prosecution. READ ALSO: Jigawa Police Command loses three senior officers in 14 days He said the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, has reiterated the commitment of the Nigeria Police Force to collaborate with all Nigerians in crime-fighting. Mr Egbetokun also warned individuals engaging in criminal activities to stop immediately or face prosecution. The IGP urged Nigerians to support the police in their efforts to maintain safety and security across the country. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has expressed concerns over the spike in the number of cases of violations reported in June. For the month of June, we have received an unprecedented number of 106,604 complaints. This increase is disturbing but not unexpected, said the Executive Secretary of the NHRC, Anthony Ojukwu, during the sixth edition of the commissions dashboard meeting at the commissions headquarters in Abuja on Monday. He attributed the surge in the number of complaints received to growing awareness among citizens nationwide and lauded the media for bringing the commissions activities to light. He described this as a positive development and a statement of all stakeholders concerted efforts. He said this underscored the impact of targeted interventions and collaboration efforts in safeguarding the rights of the most vulnerable population. Issues in focus Presenting the dashboard report, the senior human rights adviser to the NHRCs commission, Hilary Ogbonna, identified child rights as one of the most pressing emerging issues. Mr Ogbonna explained that the commission is focused on child rights because of the vulnerability and helplessness of children to be able to cater for themselves. 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, For children who are facing the issues of right to survival and development, they are also likely to face other and serially human rights issues including child marriage, child labour, sexual abuse, right to education being abridged and finally abandonment. To tackle child rights violations, he said the commission was collaborating with civil society organisations and all stakeholders for the provision of shelters to children facing abandonment. He further emphasised educating parents to take up responsibilities for their wards. He said child abandonment has worsened due to economic hardship in the country. Complaints from regions The report indicated that North-central has the highest number of reported cases of human rights violations for June. It attributed the surge in reported cases in the region to two factors. Firstly, it noted that the Federal Capital Territory(FCT), Abuja, which is located in the region, has two collection centres for human rights complaints the Abuja metropolitan office and the commissions headquarters. The second factor is the recent mass child-marriage case in Niger State, another North-central state. There were also reports of cases of extra-judicial killings and police attacks in Kebbi, Kwara, Plateau states. In March 2024, PREMIUM TIMES reported a case of police attack in the FCT after a hawker was killed by security operatives Meanwhile, the South-east witnessed the lowest number of reported cases in the month under focus. The number of cases recorded in each of the six geopolitical zones of the country is as follows: South-east 9,164; South-west 18,458, South-south 21,603; North-east 12,907, North-west 15,101 and North-central 29,462. The report also showed that rights violations associated with kidnapping and killings continued to top the chart in Katsina, Niger and Borno states. A recent suicide bombing attack claimed the lives of over 30 people in Borno State. It was also indicated that Edo State faced violations of human rights due to the activities of cultism. There were two attacks on law enforcement agents and infrastructure in Ebonyi State, particularly police stations. The NHRCs review of the first half of the year indicated a decline in kidnappings in June, while May and March were the peak months of the most reported cases of human rights violation in the country. Mob action, jungle justice The commission reported cases of mob action over alleged blasphemy in Bauchi State, killing on the grounds of infidelity in Ondo State and a man stabbing his wifes lover in Ogun State. Mr Ogbonna said that the commission is committed to stemming the tide of mob action and jungle justice cases in the country. He reaffirmed the efforts of the commission in upholding a wide range of fundamental human rights, including the right to life, personal liberty, right of older persons, sexual gender-based rights, womens rights, child rights, access to justice, right to freedom of religion, labour rights, right to freedom from discrimination and right to a suitable environment. READ ALSO: NHRC receives 268 cases of alleged rights violations in 4 months in Kaduna Mr Ojukwu called on relevant players and actors to protect human rights. He also stressed the importance of the monthly dashboard meetings, saying they have been helping to spotlight the challenges and identify key trends and issues in the communities. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Chief Judge of the Federal High Court, John Tsoho, has faulted former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bellos application for transfer of his money laundering trial from Abuja to the Lokoja division of the court. In a letter dated 2 July, the Chief Judge gave reasons why the trial cannot be transferred to Lokoja, the capital of Mr Bellos home state. Citing a pending appeal regarding the request for the transfer, Mr Tsoho said it is improper to preempt the decision of the Court of Appeal. The Chief Judge said he had reviewed the arguments of both the defence and the prosecution in support of and against the request to come to his conclusion. He maintained that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was right to file the case in the Abuja division of the court. The main complaint in the case borders on alleged conversion and transfer of funds of Kogi State to Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), to purchase property through acts of concealment, the letter signed by Special Assistant to the Chief Judge, Joshua Ibrahim-Aji, read in part. The letter noted that the law permits filing the charge either in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, or Lokoja, the offence(s) having been allegedly partly committed in both places. 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 Excerpts from the letter addressed to defence lawyers Abdulwahab Muhammed and Musa Yakubu, both Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) were shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Monday. Bellos repeated snubbing of court PREMIUM TIMES reported how Mr Bello snubbed the Federal High Court in Abuja in June, stalling, for the fifth time, his scheduled arraignment for the N80.2 billion money laundering charges pending against him. Instead of appearing in court, the former governor sent his lawyers to request the transfer of the case to the courts division in Lokoja. Mr Bello, who left office as governor of Kogi State in January, faces 19 counts of money laundering involving over N80 billion allegedly diverted from the coffers of Kogi State during his time as governor. EFCC filed the charges after Mr Bello left office and lost his immunity from criminal prosecution. However, the agency has not been able to bring him to court. Before the last proceedings he snubbed, Mr Bello had avoided court sessions scheduled for his arraignment on 18 April, 23 April, 10 May, and 13 June. During the last proceedings in June, one of Mr Bellos lawyers, Adeola Adedipe, a SAN, informed the trial judge, Emeka Nwite, of the defence teams application seeking the transfer of the trial to Lokoja. Mr Adedipe told the judge that the defence team had sent a letter to the courts Chief Judge to order the transfer. He said the request was based on the defence teams belief that Lokoja is a more suitable territorial jurisdiction to hear the matter. Why trial cant be transferred Faulting the request in a letter from his office, thr Chief Judge said the case at hand was distinguishable from the one in the judicial authorities, including Ibori v Federal Republic of Nigeria (2008), relied on by the defence. The Chief Judge pointed out the prosecutions key arguments in support of filing the case in the FCT, Abuja. He also recalled that the defence in a related case involving Mr Bellos nephew, Daudu Bello, and another one had raised in futility a similar application before the trial judge in the Abuja division. The prosecution has shown with documentary evidence that two criminal charges in the same scheme of alleged fraud leading to the charge against the defendant were earlier filed and are being tried in the Federal High Court, Abuja, in Charge No. FHC/ABJ/CR/550/22 F. R. N. v. 1. Ali Bello, 2. Dauda Suleiman; and F. R. N. v. 1. Ali Bello, 2. Abba Daudu, 3. Yakubu Siyaka Adabenege, 4. Iyadi Sadat. In both charges, a formal application was made for their transfer to Lokoja, but the Court, in a considered ruling, refused the application. The ruling has not been set aside and cannot be reversed by administrative fiat, the letter added. It also pointed out the need to wait for the decision of the Court of Appeal in Abuja concerning the request. There is documentary evidence of a pending appeal in Yahaya Adoza Bello v. F. R. N. filed on 17/05/2024, wherein the Defendant as Appellant has sought a consequential order remitting the case to the Chief Judge for reassignment, the letter read. It added, It is not proper to take any step that will be tantamount to pre-empting the outcome of the appeal. Take request for transfer of case before trial judge However, despite his strongly expressed stance against transferring the case from Abuja to the Lagos division of the court, the Chief Judge advised Mr Bells legal team to present the request before the trial judge for adjudication. He said since the main issue raised is jurisdictional in nature and will be more appropriately decided by the court, the matter should therefore be presented in open court. At the last proceedings on 27 June, the trial judge, Mr Nwite, fixed 17 July for further hearing in the case. Charges In the charges pending in court, EFCC accused Mr Bello, his nephew Ali Bello, Dauda Suleiman and Abdulsalam Hudu (said to still be at large) of conspiring to convert the total sum of N80.2 billion public funds to personal use in February 2016. The commission alleged that Mr Bello and others reasonably ought to have known that the money forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity criminal breach of trust. EFCC also alleged in another count that Mr Bello, between 26 July 2021 and 6 April 2022 in Abuja, aided a firm, E-Traders International Limited, to conceal the aggregate sum of over N3 billion (N3,081,804,654) in account number 1451458080 domiciled in Access Bank Plc. The anti-graft agency has faced difficulties bringing Mr Bello to court for arraignment. Earlier on 17 April, the judge issued a warrant of arrest against the former governor. However, an attempt by EFCC operatives to arrest Mr Bello based on the arrest warrant that day was obstructed by the police officers attached to his house at Wuse Zone 4, Abuja. The anti-graft agency has since declared Mr Bello wanted. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The FCT Police Command said it has arrested one Shuaibu Yushau, who allegedly attempted suicide by climbing a radio mast on Monday to protest the harsh economic condition in the country. In a statement on Monday evening by its spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, the command said it got a distress call from concerned Nigerians prompting it to mobilise its personnel to the location to arrest Mr Yushau. Following a distress call from concerned citizens about a young man who climbed a very high mast with a placard at ASO Radio in Katampe at about 09:10 a.m, the operatives of the FCT Police Command swiftly mobilised to the location. With much professional persuasions from the police operatives, the man later identified as Shuaibu Alhaji Yushau was prevented from taking his own life. He claimed to have been observing the mast for about a week before deciding to climb it. Suspect is presently in police custody and in a stable condition, Ms Adeh said. The protest Channels TV reported that the man threatened to sacrifice his life for the solution to the countrys dire economic situation. In the note he wrote and left on the ground before climbing the mast, Mr Shuaibu made various demands, which he said would alleviate the hardship in the country. Some of the demands include the restoration of fuel subsidy and declaration of state of emergency in some northern states. 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 note reads: On behalf of fellow Nigerians, I demand the following: Government should return fuel subsidy. Government should declare a state of emergency in Zamfara, Sokoto, Kebbi, Katsina, Kaduna, Niger, and Borno on insecurity matters and take immediate action to clear terrorism in the above listed states and the country at large. Government should open borders for food importation in order to eradicate food shortages in the country. Government should immediately respond to the problem of out-of-school children, which is increasing rapidly. These are the major Nigerian problems, and Im ready to sacrifice my life for the solution to them. I am calling for fellow Nigerians to join me on this riot. In September 2018, a 28-year-old man, Nurudeen Liyasu, also climbed a telecommunication mast in Abuja, to protest the poor economy in the country at the time. See the mans note below Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja has fixed 17 July for ruling on former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor Godwin Emefieles application for the release of his passport to enable him to travel abroad for medical treatment. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which is prosecuting Mr Emefiele on corruption charges before the court, opposed the application during a hearing on Monday. EFCCs Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, issued a press statement regarding the hearing. The commission accuses Mr Emefiele in 20 amended counts of conferment of corrupt advantages, conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, forgery, and obtaining about $6.23 million belonging to the Nigerian government by false pretence. Mr Emefiele, governor of the CBN for nearly a decade, faces corruption charges in separate trials in Abuja and Lagos. The cases were instituted against him after President Bola Tinubu removed him from office in June 2023. He has denied all the charges preferred against him in the separate trials. The FCT High Court judge overseeing Mr Emefieles trial in Abuja, Hamza Muazu, ordered the seizure of his passport as part of his bail conditions after his arraignment in November last year. 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 Overseas travel application At the last proceedings in June, Mr Enefieles lawyer, Mathew Burkaa, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, informed the judge of the defendants medical trip application. The judge adjourned the hearing of the application till Monday (today), On Monday, the former CBN governor, through another of his lawyers, Labi Lawal, urged the court to release his passport, previously seized as part of his bail conditions, to enable him to travel to the United Kingdom for medical treatment. However, the prosecution counsel, Muhammad Omeiza, argued that no medical report was presented to the court demonstrating that Mr Emefiele was suffering from an ailment that could not be treated in Nigeria. He said the defence did not present any medical report showing that an ailment plagued Mr Emefiele. He said there was also no evidence to show that his ailment cannot be treated locally in Nigeria. He also stated that Mr Emefiele posed a flight risk due to his connections with co-conspirators abroad and ongoing trials in three different courts. However, the defence counsel faulted the prosecutions arguments as speculative. He said an international red alert could ensure Mr Emefieles return if he did not comply after the medical trip. After listening to both sides, Mr Muazu fixed 16 July for ruling on the application. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Egungun be careful! The social media is awash with contending covens of hate casting spells on gullible youth to join forces for the Ultimate Uprising, the one that will end all uprisings. The last time I checked, there were still many people languishing in the gulag on account of the last #EndSARS protest. But for continued efforts by conscientious activists like Shehu Sani, Femi Falana and several civil society groups, those in jail would have been completely forgotten by now. A masquerade (egungun) must hearken to the warnings of his guide if he is to make it back to base safely. He could take liberties in the alleyways and rural roads, but when the procession is heading towards the expressway, where vehicles zip along at breakneck speed, the masquerade must be attentive to the instructions of his guide, lest an auto accident reduce him to just another orthopaedic casualty, a humiliating climbdown from the Olympian heights of ancestor-hood. Thus, when Fuji musician, Abass Obesere, in his unique sassy style, sang, Egungun be careful, na express you dey go, the song quickly caught on, serving as a warning, not just to masquerades who are revered as representatives of the ancestors, but also to the general society. When the choreographed pandemonium of the procession appears to have developed a racy kind of velocity, even without self exertion, perhaps the cavalcade is heading downhill! Mirage Living in Nigeria and having to experience the same foibles that catapult us backwards to the starting blocks, while our co-runners are breasting the tape, is an extreme sport of sorts. One republic comes, one republic goes, what was once considered a prospect becomes a mirage, with successive generations of leaders outdeviling their predecessors. Flagellated by the harmattan of lean times, we are suffocated by the choking deja vus of knowing that we have passed through this valley of the shadow of want before and shall do so till Kingdom come. Unlike the great American civil rights activist, Fannie Lou Hamer, it appears we can never be sick and tired of being sick and tired. Egungun be careful! The social media is awash with contending covens of hate casting spells on gullible youth to join forces for the Ultimate Uprising, the one that will end all uprisings. The last time I checked, there were still many people languishing in the gulag on account of the last #EndSARS protest. But for continued efforts by conscientious activists like Shehu Sani, Femi Falana and several civil society groups, those in jail would have been completely forgotten by now. 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 July, in the heat of claims and counter-claims by many interested parties, Amnesty International challenged the Lagos State government to disclose the identities of 103 #EndSARS victims allegedly billed for mass burial after three years in the morgue. The protest which had started as a rage against police brutality, eventually became politicised and weaponised by those fighting for the political soul of the nation. While that unfinished business was inherited by the Tinubu administration and efforts are ongoing to secure the release of those still in jail, those who thrive in conditions of guaranteed confusion have been cloning posters and protest materials pinched from Kenya, urging Nigerian youths to emulate their Kenyan counterparts. In terms of how we can make our country better, I am completely open to any kind of developmental ideas that we can use to help our people conquer current challenges and live a better life. In Nigeria, as in many other places, political parties are mere alphabets. Watch what they do; not what they say. Any idiot can write a manifesto. What matters if how the power of representative democracy is deployed. Strange I find that campaign strange because, while any group can influence another irrespective of size, Nigerian youths have always demonstrated the capacity to do their own thing their own way at their own chosen time. They did not need any external stimulus to reject the Anglo-Nigerian Defence Pact that was negotiated between the Nigerian government and the United Kingdom in 1958, signed in 1960 and abrogated in 1962, due to public protests led by Nigerian students. Egungun be careful. The wanton looting, arson, maiming and savagery that attended the Kenyan protests were not part of the agenda of the organisers. The day after, when Nairobis central business district was no longer recognisable, it became clear that some other dark forces had also come to the party. The irony is that no society can make progress without a culture of protests, disputations and vigorous intellectual intercourse. Last month, we celebrated the remarkable events of June 12, 1993, because it was the day a new Nigeria was born and then strangled at birth. Such savagery! We had not only protested; we had made the country ungovernable! Every season has its own costume. We should not confuse harmattan with winter. In terms of how we can make our country better, I am completely open to any kind of developmental ideas that we can use to help our people conquer current challenges and live a better life. In Nigeria, as in many other places, political parties are mere alphabets. Watch what they do; not what they say. Any idiot can write a manifesto. What matters if how the power of representative democracy is deployed. Our people have the capacity to recognise good governance when they see it. Egungun be careful! The headlong rush of Nigerias First Republic towards perdition was not unpredictable. It was just that the main actors were too steeped in their happy-go-lucky ways and couldnt spare the time to notice what the streets were saying. Titanic Doyin Okupe may not exactly fit your description of a principled politician. The more uncharitable of his critics say hes a political harlot committed only to the ideology of the oesophagus. However fair is fair, in contrast with some of his peers, Okupe is a qualified medical doctor and could have a day job if he so chooses. I have learnt not to look at the messenger in the Nigerian public space. It is the message that counts. Egungun be careful! When the bata drum becomes too stridently loud, pola-pola, it may be about to burst. Hear Ola Rotimi: When the tortoise is going on a senseless journey and you say to the tortoise, brother tortoise, brother tortoise, when will you be wise and come back home; eehn! The tortoise will say: Not until Ive been disgraced. The other day, Okupe was at his most lucid when he compared the Nigerian situation with the last revelry on the Titanic before the unsinkable ship sank. The Titanic was a big ship with many floors. The top deck was the very definition of luxury. The lower decks were packed with lower class people that werent even counted when planning for lifeboats. When the Titanic started sinking, water started filling up from under the ship, in the lower decks where the lower class passengers were. While those in the lower floors were struggling and dying, those in the first class cabins on the higher floors had no idea that their end was near. They were making merry in the grand ballroom with champagne and fine dining, still living the lie that their ship was unsinkable. They looked around them at all the luxurious fittings and despite all the signs that they were in trouble, they just didnt get it. The band continued to play until the very end. Okupes punchline was that Nigeria was in trouble; those at the bottom know it, while those at the top think its business as usual. In these circumstances, you would expect that the government would deliberately cultivate a broad base of friends and collaborators to help bridge the perception gap between what the government claims to be doing and what the people think it is doing. Unfortunately, what we have here is that the man appointed by the president to administer the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, does not have the temperament to be a team player. If he continues like this, he will surely win more enemies for President Tinubu. Pola-Pola Telling Senator Ireti Kingibe who disagreed with his cement and mortar mentality to go and hug a transformer is the kind of lingo that area boys in Mushin or Onitsha main market would use. It is an infra dig for a minister of the federal republic. And to think that Senate President Akpabio then went ahead at the occasion of the flag-off of the construction of a bus terminal (see how low we have sunk) to orally throw the concerned senator under the bus! Gladly, I hear that the same Akpabio is now cobbling together some kind of truce mechanism. Egungun be careful! When the bata drum becomes too stridently loud, pola-pola, it may be about to burst. Hear Ola Rotimi: When the tortoise is going on a senseless journey and you say to the tortoise, brother tortoise, brother tortoise, when will you be wise and come back home; eehn! The tortoise will say: Not until Ive been disgraced. Wole Olaoye is a Public Relations consultant and veteran journalist. He can be reached on wole.olaoye@gmail.com, Twitter: @wole_olaoye; Instagram: woleola2021. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Where then did we get these journalists from hell? Men and women who have made the ruining of genuine ministries and marriages their primary agenda, or dont you know the damages that are caused the body of Christ when you go to the rooftop of social media to expose the sins of your brother? Is that what the Bible teaches us to do when a fellow brother fails or falls? Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God Day and night, has been cast down. (Revelations 12:10). There is a clear cut difference between genuine children and servants of God and full blown agents of darkness. These two categories of people arent treated the same way. Demons are cast out. Brethren are loved. Nowhere in the scripture is it taught or practiced that Gods children, who make mistakes or even sin intentionally, must be publicly shamed and humiliated into repentance. The ultimate goal of every restoration process is to bring people back to the place of repentance in an environment of love. This was exactly what Jesus displayed in the story of Zacchaeus, in Luke 19. Zacchaeus was a sinner, a very corrupt man. Jesus walked up to him as he hung on that Sycamore tree, and showered him with love. And Jesus said to him, Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham (Luke 19:9). That was what broke this man. Could you imagine that if when Jesus approached Zacchaeus, in the company of thousands of people, He shouted at him, Stupid man, come down from the tree. Everybody, come and see this thief of a man who has robbed you of your taxes. Had that happened, this mans story would have been different. But, Jesus approach was to model love for the body, and to pave the path of restoration for those who would need to repent of their sins. The same approach was used for the woman who was caught in the very act of adultery (John 8:4). The fall of a genuine brother or sister in the Lord is the fall of a portion of the body of Christ, and we are all directly or indirectly affected and impacted. Dont allow envy and jealousy to mislead you into using your platform to shoot down a fallen soldier. We must fight together or fall together. I am committed to the former. And Jesus said to her, Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more. (John 8:11). 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 fact, its still the same approach he uses when dealing with unbelievers. The process must be built on love. Our corrections must be founded and based on love. The Bible isnt silent about this at all. Hear what Apostle Paul said in one of his epistles: But, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the headChrist (Ephesians 4:15). Where then did we get these journalists from hell? Men and women who have made the ruining of genuine ministries and marriages their primary agenda, or dont you know the damages that are caused the body of Christ when you go to the rooftop of social media to expose the sins of your brother? Is that what the Bible teaches us to do when a fellow brother fails or falls? The fall of a genuine brother or sister in the Lord is the fall of a portion of the body of Christ, and we are all directly or indirectly affected and impacted. Dont allow envy and jealousy to mislead you into using your platform to shoot down a fallen soldier. We must fight together or fall together. I am committed to the former. You cant love the gospel more than the one who died for the gospel. If He has recommended love as His preferred principle for promoting repentance in people, doing it otherwise is not from God. We dont filter our actions through the lenses of the kingdom, by asking love-based questions like, what is the consequences of what Im pushing to the public on the body of Christ? We dont see the failure or the fall of a genuine servant of God as an attack against the entire body. And when you rush to social media to celebrate the fall of a member of the body, you are actually celebrating your own fall; you just didnt know. The focus of this article are the genuine brothers and sisters in the body of Christ who fail or fall into sin, willingly or mistakenly. I am also focusing on genuine servants of God who fail the test of morality and authentic Christian character, willingly or mistakenly. We all know who a genuine believer is; it is by their fruits. False servants of God dont make mistakes when they steal money; they are thieves by nature. The scope of this article doesnt cover false ministers who are out to destroy lives or fake Christians who have no relationship with Jesus. There is a massive difference between how we respond to the failures of fellow brethren and those of full blown agents of the devil, who have no place in the kingdom of God, except they give their lives to Jesus. The sad reality here is that many of us dont know anything about the kingdom or about the body of Christ. We dont filter our actions through the lenses of the kingdom, by asking love-based questions like, what is the consequences of what Im pushing to the public on the body of Christ? We dont see the failure or the fall of a genuine servant of God as an attack against the entire body. And when you rush to social media to celebrate the fall of a member of the body, you are actually celebrating your own fall; you just didnt know. Satan has just deceived you to think that that person who has just failed has failed for himself. That is the carnal assessment of the situation from the devils perspective. But from Gods perspective, which is a superior perspective, when one member is sick, the entire body carries the weight of this pain. Apostle Paul spent quite some time to explain how we function as members of the same body. And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honoured, all the members rejoice with it. (1 Corinthians 12:26). To be continued Ayo Akerele is the senior pastor of Rhema Assembly and the founder of the Voice of the Watchmen in Ontario, Canada. He can be reached through ayoakerele@gmail.com. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Somehow, lately, it appears that governors from both regions have found their mojo and courage to rise to the challenge, and that deserves examination and commendation. The source of this new energy and focus is unknown. One thing is clear: the Federal Government has done its best to redeem the situation, but its best is not good enough. It just did not know how to deal with the situation beyond a military-centric option In the past ten years, the South-East and North-East geopolitical zones, more than the other geopolitical zones in Nigeria, have been sites of experiments on insecurity and militia reign. Either terrorists, kidnappers or militias were testing the will of the government to see how long it would take for a determined state to take charge, or it was just a playground of absurdity. The result is known. Political leadership and the elite failed the people irredeemably. Admittedly, insecurity on a national scale abhors partitioning. The factors at play in a place may owe their origins to factors emanating from a totally different region, but there is good reason to focus on the two zones. In the zones, the persistent violence has had three distinct features: first, the impunity with which Boko Haram and its affiliates, and unknown gunmen, have been allowed to operate; second, the helplessness of the residents; and third, the seeming indifference of the political elite. These defining features fuel existential anger among the people. Somehow, lately, it appears that governors from both regions have found their mojo and courage to rise to the challenge, and that deserves examination and commendation. The source of this new energy and focus is unknown. One thing is clear: the Federal Government has done its best to redeem the situation, but its best is not good enough. It just did not know how to deal with the situation beyond a military-centric option, and the military deserves commendation for the successes they have recorded so far. Both regions had never been safe places for residents and businesses until recently. The connection between concrete development and the decimation of militia-led insecurity and the related complications has long been established as a theoretical and practical fact. This has been lacking over the years in both regions. Save for a few cases, there has been a substantial disconnect between the peoples development aspirations and the areas government. Actual development, especially education, helps fight violence, terrorism, and their like. Lately, we have begun to see development programmes in a handful of states in both regions, which is impacting and reducing insecurity in the areas. Besides, the people, too, are beginning to resist the domination of their areas by non-state actors. Community leaders are now more involved in intelligence gathering. The locals have started organising themselves into quasi-security formations and are beginning to be the first points of resistance, even before the organised formal security apparatus of the state is involved. This calls for more synergy between the informal and formal security structures and systems in these areas for better operations. The fight against insecurity is becoming local, and interestingly the public sphere and media framing of the conflicts as banditry and criminality, rather than the fight for freedom, self-determination, or religious zealotry, is helping matters. I sincerely think that even the perpetrators recognise the impact of this new approach and have turned to symbols of the state for their attacks to legitimise their acts as actions against the state, when they are not. Also, there is greater need for the peoples sensitisation to the fact that these non-state actors purportedly fighting for unknown causes are not doing so for the collective interest of the locals. Instead, the locals in their various communities are the casualties of the needless violence and murderous orgies meted out on them. This new consciousness must be harnessed efficiently to the advantage of the communities. The fight against insecurity is becoming local, and interestingly the public sphere and media framing of the conflicts as banditry and criminality, rather than the fight for freedom, self-determination, or religious zealotry, is helping matters. I sincerely think that even the perpetrators recognise the impact of this new approach and have turned to symbols of the state for their attacks to legitimise their acts as actions against the state, when they are not. 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 There is a temptation to believe that the experiences of insecurity in the North-East and South-East are scams and cash cows for interested parties, due to their persistence and nature. In addition, there is a general belief that the security establishment deployed to secure the South-East has found collaboration with criminals and conflict merchants to exploit the separatist agitation. In the North-East, we also find that the Sahelian jihadist insurgency has been escalated by socioeconomic pressures from the most impoverished states in the nation. The South-East represents a false agitation for self-determination, whereas the North-Easts insurgency is neither ideological nor religious. Both cases involve ordinary criminals acting as agitators and religious zealots. The criminal colonisation of both regions for an extended period is horrible and disastrous. The political and traditional establishments of both geopolitical zones, led by the governors and National Assembly members, must band together, seek support from wherever possible, and bring these tragedies, which are economically strangulating and socially demoralising, to a stop. Tomorrow is too late. Recent attacks have shown the ruthlessness of these criminals and demonstrated unequivocally the need to exorcise this evil and madness from our communities. A pattern is beginning to emerge: shoot-and-run attacks on soft targets and the targeting of military/police personnel to instill fear in the people. Unknown gunmen, who were said to have been enforcing the sit-at-home directive of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), on opened fire on a military checkpoint in Obikabia junction in Aba on the 21st of May, killing five soldiers. The response of the state government was decisive. The least we expected from the federal security apparatus was to fish out these culprits and use them to demonstrate the new vigour of fighting the criminals posing as agitators. We seem to have lost this opportunity to prove a point. This equally applies to the recent twin bombing in Gwoza, Borno State. In Ebonyi State a few weeks ago, gunmen invaded Ishieke Divisional Police Headquarters and started firing sporadic shots. They killed and maimed people, although the report shows that five of the gunmen were killed. Hours before the attack in Ebonyi, gunmen wreaked havoc in Okigwe Local Government Area of Imo State, where they killed six people. A few days later, gunmen killed two police operatives and injured two others in Aba, the commercial hub of Abia State. Between 22 and 26 May, a non-state armed group attacked communities in Gujba local government area of Yobe State. The incident displaced 732 households and resulted in three fatalities and 12 injuries. Among the affected were 2,720 children, 1,038 women, and 976 men. These incidences are ongoing, and the casualties are increasing daily. There is a need to quickly optimise the power of collaborative strategy between the federal security apparatus, the emerging regional security architecture, state governments, and communities. We must all work together, irrespective of geopolitical zones, to create a better future for the affected communities, states, and regions. Conflicts have their place in the agitation for change. However, as we see in these and other regions, permanent conflict will only reduce the affected areas to barbarism and push them further away from modernity. On the issue of historical injustices, especially in the South_East, unfortunately the Federal Government of Nigeria, since 2015, has not addressed the grievances; it has just looked away. However, the elite of the South-East have realised that there is a need to change their strategy. One of the manifestations of this is the resolution by the South-East Governors, supported by members of the National Assembly from the zone, to approach the president to release Nnamdi Kanu. Governors of the South-East had earlier resolved to fight insecurity decisively in the region, individually and collectively, in partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria and other stakeholders. Though the details of how they intend to fight insecurity are scanty, at least they have found their voice. As Chief Security Officers of their respective states, governors must demonstrate significant commitment to confronting perpetrators of violence and resolving the core causes of insecurity in their states and, by extension, the geopolitical zone. The sign that governors appreciate the enormity of the challenge is there. The next logical step is to confront the monster from its roots. The battle is not just kinetic in nature but also to win the hearts and minds of people, both the perpetrators and their victims. The perpetrators of these heinous crimes are often community members who are known to the local people. The ideological prism, which has held many people hostage to support the call for Islamic militancy or Biafra romanticism, resonates with people who are disenchanted or dissatisfied with the existing system. This is rooted in deep-seated anger against a system they feel is holding them hostage and from perceived development. I am sure that when we enable good governance and leadership that brings about the dividends of democracy, such as economic and infrastructural development, social justice, and the rule of law, the level of agitation will reduce, and people will have little reason to want to upturn the system. It is time the states address the interconnected concerns of unemployment, poverty, bad governance, injustice, resource competitiveness, and the development of an inclusive society. Effective governance at the state and grassroots levels is critical to resolving the issue of extreme violence and criminality in the Nigerian society. Regional cooperation among states and between states and the centre is beginning to bear fruits, albeit only in terms of the psychological effect and public perception. We must all work together, irrespective of geopolitical zones, to create a better future for the affected communities, states, and regions. Conflicts have their place in the agitation for change. However, as we see in these and other regions, permanent conflict will only reduce the affected areas to barbarism and push them further away from modernity. Dakuku Peterside is a public sector turnaround expert, leadership coach, public policy analyst and columnist. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal has received the Distinguished Award for project innovation. The award which was bestowed on him at the Nigeria Excellence in Public Service (NEAPS) award followed the numerous projects initiated and completed by his administration within one year in office. The Nigeria Excellence in Public Service, NEAPS awards is an initiative of the private sector and the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF). A statement by the spokesperson of the Zamfara governor, Sulaiman Bala Idris, said that the NEAPS award ceremony was held on Saturday at the State House Conference Centre. The statement added that the presidential award was presented to Governor Lawal by Vice President Kashim Shettima who represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Yesterday, Governor Dauda Lawal was honoured with the Nigeria Excellence in Public Service (NEAPS) award for his courageous efforts to drive positive change, advocate for a more democratic society, and effectively reform governmental institutions. The nomination letter from the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation explained that the Zamfara governor was chosen for the prestigious award for project innovation. The presidential award was given to recognise the Zamfara state governments efforts in initiating and completing several projects within one year. 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 his post-award remarks, Mr Lawal expressed appreciation for the award, stating that it would serve as an encouragement for further efforts in rescuing and rebuilding Zamfara State. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print PREMIUM TIMES can report that Nigerian Muslim leaders have taken a stance to protect the Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, from any form of disrespect by the Sokoto State Government. At a 2nd July meeting in Abuja, the General Purpose Committee (GPC) of the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) reiterated its absolute confidence in the organisations President General and Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, for his exemplary leadership and committed service to Islam and the Nigerian Muslim Ummah. Sources at the meeting told PREMIUM TIMES that members then vowed to do everything that is legal, legitimate, and reasonable to protect Sultan Abubakar from any form of humiliation and disrespect by any individual, group, or government. The committee, chaired by the NSCIA Secretary-General, Ishaq Oloyede, a professor, said that any iota of disrespect to the NSCIA leadership in the country would henceforth be considered a direct affront to the Islamic faith and its followers. PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the committee is reacting to recent developments regarding the Sokoto State Governments perceived disrespect of the Sultan. Last month, the Sokoto government submitted a bill to the states House of Assembly seeking to amend legislation on the appointment of traditional rulers in the state. If passed into law, the bill would, among other things, strip the Sultan of the power to appoint kingmakers and district heads without government approval. Some said the move was disrespectful to Sultan Abubakar. There have also been speculations that the Sokoto government was planning to depose the Sultan the way one of his predecessors, Ibrahim Dasuki, was removed from office in 1996 during the military government of Sani Abacha. 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 state government dismissed those concerns as efforts by mischief makers to embarrass it. The administration added that the governments relationship with the Sultanate Council has always been cordial and would remain so. As the President-General of the NSCIA, the Sultan of Sokoto is the number one leader of all Nigerian Muslims. Therefore, at the meeting on 2 July, members of the General Purpose Committee (GPC) of the NSCIA strongly advised government and political leaders at all levels to continue to accord the traditional institution and its holders the due respect that they deserve, especially where such is combined with Islamic leadership. This is to ensure the protection of our cultural and religious heritage for sustainable peace and national development, the committee resolved. The Sultan was not present at the General Purpose Committee meeting led by Secretary General Oloyede. When PREMIUM TIMES contacted Mr Oloyede on Sunday to confirm the meetings details, he simply said the committee would issue a communique soon. But some attendees at the gathering said participants fumed at the Sokoto governments treatment of the countrys pre-eminent Muslim leader and vowed to mobilise faithful nationwide to confront the administration should it fail to back down on its plot against Sultan Abubakar. The Sokoto State government should realise that the Sultan is not just a traditional ruler; he is a religious figure of national and international repute, one attendee said, asking not to be named because he had no permission to discuss deliberations at the meeting with journalists. We will not allow anyone to humiliate him in any way when he has done nothing wrong. NSCIA salutes Sultan Abubakar Earlier, the Expanded General Purpose Committee (EGPC) of the NSCIA expressed its support for the Sultan and applauded his bridge-building efforts across regional and religious divides for national peace and cohesion. The EGPC meeting, which was held on 30 June and attended by most of its members, was presided over by the Sultan and the two Deputy Presidents-General: the Shehu of Borno, Abubakar El-Kanemi, and Alhaji Rasaki Oladejo. ALSO READ: Sokoto govt speaks on alleged plan to dethrone Sultan Prominent among the traditional rulers at the meeting were the Emir of Zazzau, Ahmed Nuhu Bamalli; Etsu Nupe, Yahaya Abubakar; Emir of Kazaure, Najib Adamu; and Emir of Gummi, Justice Lawal Gummi. Other members at the well-attended meeting included present and past senior members of both the bench and the bar, current and former ministers, heads of agencies, both private and public, captains of industries and respected scholars at the various strata of the educational system. At the end of the meeting, the EGPC discussed the perceived disrespect of Sultan Abubakar by authorities in his home state of Sokoto. But to avoid the Sultan being a judge in his own case, the matter was referred to the NSCIAs GPC led by Secretary General Oloyede. That body then met on 2 July, resolving to resist any disrespect to the leadership of the Muslim Ummah by anyone or authority. PREMIUM TIMES learnt that the NSCIA will release the communique of its deliberation on the matter in the days ahead. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print At least 22 residents, including men, women and children, were abducted in a night raid by terrorists in Runka, Safana area of Katsina State on Saturday. In a separate incident in neighbouring Zamfara State late on Sunday, terrorists killed two security guards and kidnapped one person when they attacked the house of a famous businessman in the Gusau city centre on Sunday. Sulaiman Ishaq, whose brother Salim was kidnapped in the Zamfara incident, said, Surprisingly, the bandits drove on their motorcycles deep into the city centre and attacked our house in Kofar Jange. The bandits shot down two of our watchmen who tried to repel them, after which they gained access into the house and took away our brother. Kofar Jange is one of the oldest communities in the Zamfara capital, Gusau. In the last few months, terrorists, locally called bandits, have launched attacks on different communities in Gusau. However, previous attacks occurred on the Gusau outskirts, unlike on Sunday. Many people have been killed and kidnapped in the earlier attacks. House-to-house search in Katsina In the Runka attack in Katsina, PREMIUM TIMES gathered from residents that the terrorists stormed the community around 1:00 a.m. 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 Both the local government chairperson, Abdullahi Sani, and the House of Assembly deputy speaker, Abduljalal Runka, confirmed the attack to journalists in Katsina on Saturday. The terrorists stormed the village when residents were asleep. The terrorists took security agents in the area unaware and infiltrated Runka community when people were sleeping. The terrorists made strategic plans and took over all exit and entry routes of the community, thereby making it hard for security agents to support the residents. The attack was tragic and well planned because the terrorists conducted house-to-house searches and took away 22 residents, including men, women and children. In one house, the terrorists took away 13 people, Mr Runka said. Mr Sani, the council chairman, said several residents who fled the community immediately after the attack have returned but weve confirmed that 22 people are still not accounted for. Runka shares boundaries with the Rugu forest, which makes the community vulnerable to terror attacks. Zamfara and Katsina are some of the states in the north-west battling a decade-long terrorism that has led to the death and displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Various terror groups operate in the region despite the efforts of security agencies. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The police in Jigawa on Monday confirmed that two persons lost their lives, while 18 others were rescued in a boat mishap that occurred in the state. The state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Lawan Shiisu, confirmed this in a statement on Monday in Dutse. Mr Shiisu explained that the command received the report about the incident which occurred on Sunday in Kwalgai village, Auyo Local Government Area, at about 10 p.m. He said that the canoe capsized on its way to Hadin village in the same LGA. Mr Shiisu added that about 20 passengers were on board the boat when the incident occurred. On Sunday at about 2200hrs, the command received an incident report by the Divisional Police Officer of Auyo Division, that a group of marketers from Kwalgwai village in Auyo LGA numbering about 20, both males and females boarded a canoe. The canoe was said to have capsized while travelling across the Kwalgai River toward Hadin village within the same LGA, the PPRO 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 According to him, in an attempt to save the victims, divers, fishermen, and good Samaritans were swiftly notified, while a police team led by the DPO raced to the scene. Mr Shisu disclosed that the team was able to rescue 18 passengers alive, while two others, all females, went missing. Subsequently, today at about 6 a.m., the body of one of the missing female passengers, identified as Habiba Ado of Kwalgai village, was recovered. The victim, aged 18, was quickly conveyed to Auyo hospital, but was confirmed dead by a medical doctor on duty, he said. The PPRO said that preliminary investigation revealed that the accident was primarily caused by powerful waves and overloading to the extent that the driver was unable to steer the canoe. According to him, efforts were being intensified to recover the missing victim. He added that all the rescued victims were taken to the hospital for medical attention. (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Police Command in Jigawa says that three of its Senior Officers have died due to illnesses in the last two weeks. Lawan Shiisu, the commands Public Relations Officer, disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Dutse. Mr Shiisu said that the officers died between 22 June and 5 July. According to him, those who died included Salisu Salisu-Mudi (a superintendent of police), a Patrol and Guard from Babura Division, who died at the Federal Medical Centre, Katsina on June 22. Others, he said, included Asabe Muhammad (an assistant superintendent of police), the second-in-command of the Gender Desk Office of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), who died on Wednesday. He added that the command also lost the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of Yankwaahi Division, Muhammad Salihu-Koko (a chief superintendent of police), who died on Friday. Mr Shiisu said that the command has commiserated with the families and loved ones of the deceased and prayed for the repose of their souls. 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 (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Recently, the Haike Commerce Roundtable (Germany Session) was held in Shanghai. Following previous sessions in Beijing and Xiamen, this event, hosted by the Anhui Provincial Department of Commerce, has become a distinctive brand for Anhui's investment promotion efforts. At the event, 14 German-funded enterprises and business associations participated in the matchmaking and exchange activities. Most of these enterprises are leaders or hidden champions in the manufacturing and manufacturing services sectors, representing the high standards of German manufacturing. Participants included Evonik China, Voith, Festo (China) Ltd., and CLAAS. Among them, Evonik China is a global leader in specialty chemicals and a Fortune 500 company; Voith is a leader and hidden champion in the paper, energy, drive, and industrial services industries; Festo (China) Ltd. is a hidden champion providing comprehensive solutions in pneumatic and electric technology for factory and process automation. The meeting noted that Germany is a traditional manufacturing powerhouse, with numerous world-leading companies in automotive, smart manufacturing, high-end equipment, biopharmaceuticals, and new materials. Anhui is vigorously developing its ten emerging industries, including automotive, photovoltaic new energy and intelligent equipment manufacturing, presenting significant cooperation potential with Germany. Currently, Germany is Anhui's most important economic and trade partner in Europe. In 2023, the trade volume of goods between Anhui and Germany reached 19.6 billion yuan, and from January to May this year, it amounted to 8.7 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 15.6%. Additionally, Anhui is one of the key provinces for German investment in China, with over 110 German enterprises, including Volkswagen, Continental, ZF, and Bombardier, investing and operating in Anhui. At present, Anhui is accelerating its level of opening up with a focus on industrial openness and is willing to deepen practical cooperation with foreign enterprises, including German companies. Anhui aims to jointly develop emerging industries, explore international markets, build a favorable business environment, and achieve win-win development in broader fields and at higher levels. Source: Hefei Evening News A Federal High Court in Abuja on Monday discharged and acquitted a Nigerian publisher, Agba Jalingo, of cybercrime. Mr Jalingo, who publishes an online newspaper, CrossRiverWatch, was prosecuted by the Nigeria police over a 30 June 2022 Facebook post in which he alleged that Alami Ayade, the wife to the younger brother of the former governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade, contracted someone to write law examination for her at the Nigerian Law School, Abuja. The article was also published on CrossRiverWatch, the police said. The police arrested Mr Jalingo in August 2022 after laying siege for hours at his Lagos residence. Mr Jalingo was arraigned in 2023 before Justice Zainab Abubakar of the Federal High Court, Abuja, who remanded him at the Medium Security Custodial Center, Kuje. The court later granted him bail. Discharged and acquitted The CrossRiverWatch broke the news on Monday morning about the Federal High Court judgment which reportedly discharged and acquitted Mr Jalingo of cybercrime. The judge, Joyce Abdulmalik, found Mr Jalingo not guilty of the crimes the police accused him of, according to a report by the newspaper. 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 Jalingo told PREMIUM TIMES, Monday afternoon, that he was very happy with the court judgment. I was being persecuted, not prosecuted, he said. When the prosecution finished their case, we (had) entered a no-case submission, so the court ruled today that they (the prosecution) only came to waste the time of the court, he said. This case had given me sleepless nights because there are many things that I wanted to do which I couldnt. Mr Jalingo said following the advice of a respected traditional ruler and other people in Cross River, he had sought an out-of-court settlement with Mrs Ayade, including visiting her to beg her over the matter, but she refused. I am very happy that the court has given this judgment. This judgment is a victory for the Nigerian media because this is a law that has been used to harass those of us who are journalists, he added. PREMIUM TIMES asked Mr Jalingo if he was certain about the contentious issues in his article against Mrs Ayade. I was (certain), he retorted. I couldnt go out there and lie against anybody. PREMIUM TIMES could not immediately reach Mrs Ayade for her comment. Mr Jalingo is not new to criminal prosecution over his journalism work. He was arrested in August 2019 and incarcerated for about 179 days in Calabar, charged with terrorism, treasonable felony, and cybercrime for accusing the then Governor Ayade of diverting N500 million belonging to Cross River State. Amnesty International in Nigeria had declared the journalist a prisoner of conscience and had accused the Nigerian government of manipulating the nations justice system against him. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print Gunmen have killed three vigilante operatives in Umuaka, a community in Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State, Nigerias south-east. The incident happened on Sunday evening, PREMIUM TIMES gathered. Residents told this newspaper that the vigilante operatives were conducting a patrol in a bus in the community when the gunmen ambushed them at a market. The gunmen laid ambush and suddenly started shooting at the vigilant members who were patrolling our community, one of the residents, who asked not to be named, said. The resident added that during the encounter, a stray bullet hit a passerby who died on the spot. Police speak on the incident The police in Imo State have confirmed the incident. The police spokesperson in the state, Henry Okoye, in a statement on Monday morning, said the Commissioner of Police in Imo, Aboki Danjuma, has condemned the killing of the vigilante operatives and the passersby. 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 Okoye, an assistant superintendent of police, said Mr Danjuma had deployed the police tactical squad in the state to track down the killers. The spokesperson said police operatives will carry out the operation in collaboration with other security agencies. He said the police commissioner has also condoled with the families of the deceased and prayed for the repose of their souls. Worsening insecurity Like other states in Nigerias south-east, security has deteriorated in Imo State with frequent attacks by armed persons. The attacks often target security agencies, government officials, and facilities. The latest attack occurred less than two weeks after gunmen killed six people in Okigwe Local Government Area of Imo State. The Okigwe killing happened on 26 June. The Nigerian government has accused the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) of being responsible for the deadly attacks in the region. However, the group has repeatedly denied their involvement in the attacks. IPOB is a group leading agitation for an independent state of Biafra which it wants carved out from the south-east and some parts of the south-south Nigeria. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Association of Table Water Producers of Nigeria (ATWAP), Ogun State Chapter, says over 20 per cent of its members shut down production between January to June due to poor infrastructure. The Ogun State Chairman of ATWAP, Babatunde Lawal, spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Ota, Ogun. According to Mr Lawal, the affected members were unable to continue production due to a lack of critical infrastructure, which hampered their business. He identified bad roads, poor power supply and some government policies as challenges that impeded the effective distribution of their product. He said that some of the challenges, such as increased fuel prices and a general hike in the cost of raw materials, also resulted in increased vehicle repair costs and production costs in the long run. We are appealing to the state and federal governments to redouble their efforts towards providing an enabling environment for businesses to thrive, he said. Mr Lawal emphasised the need for the provision of critical infrastructure because any firm or business that shuts down would automatically downsize all its employees, thus leading to an increased unemployment rate. 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 (NAN) Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print The Traffic Monitoring and Investigation Unit (TMI) of the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation has apprehended 22 vehicles in a recent enforcement drive, involving a crack-down on illegal activities that compromise traffic management and safety. In a statement on Monday by the ministrys Deputy Director of Public Affairs, Bolanle Ogunlola, she said the vehicles were apprehended for traffic offences. The offences include illegal conversion of lay-bys and walkways into motor parks, unauthorised stopping on highways, indiscriminate parking, and the use of lay-bys, and walkways as showrooms by car dealers, among other violations. She noted that places including Ikeja, Ogba, Billings Way and Berger were targeted by the members of the taskforce, to improve traffic management and road safety in those areas. The statement also quoted the Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, as having promised that the Traffic Monitoring and Investigation Unit (TMI) will continue to monitor and apprehend violators daily to maintain a free flow of traffic and safeguard motorists. Mr Osiyemi reiterated that the enforcement operations will target both commercial and private vehicles that violate Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law 2018. He commended the task force for their efforts in combating illegal activities of transport operators, and encouraged residents to comply with regulations to avoid penalties. 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 urged them to also contribute to a safer, more orderly traffic system. Share this: Twitter Facebook WhatsApp Telegram LinkedIn Email Print 5 a Day with Vitamin Plant LONDON, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- "Roll up, roll up!" plants@work is here. plants@work invites all plant enthusiasts to visit their market stall installation high-lighting the 5-a-day benefits houseplants bring to our work environment. The association's pop-up market stall appeared at Theale Business Park showing off the five plants in the running for 2024 Favourite Houseplant which will be announced later this week. Various research has shown that plants Market Stall: Embrace Vitamin Plant for a Balanced Life Improve your mood Reduce headaches by 45% Reduce tiredness by 32% Reduce stress levels by 50% And clean the air Take a leaf out of nature's book and indulge in your daily dose of Vitamin Plant your mind, body and spirit will thank you for it! The stall certainly caused interest, as designer, Ian Drummond, of Ian Drummond Botanical Designs with Shirley and James Smith of Botanica Nurseries created an eye-catching display and were all available for a chat and to answer questions from those who work at Theale Business Park. Ian said, "Ficus elastica, Strelitzia, Dracaena marginata, Croton and Scindapsus are our choice for 5 a Day to 'Embrace Vitamin Plant for a Balanced Life'. These plants offer a great selection for the various office, restaurant and hotel spaces that our members are asked to decorate." Shirley commented, "A market stall is a great way to show off the range of plants that plants@work members offer to clients for their office or other spaces and explain all the benefits of having them around you." Kenneth Freeman of Purposeful Places and plants@work Chairman who felt the market stall was a valuable way to support the 5 a day message for this year's National plants@work Week. "Theale Business Park exemplifies the modern workplace environment, and we have received a warm welcome here and are grateful for the opportunity of speaking to those who work here. We invite our members to set up their own market stalls during this week. This event is a great opportunity to promote interior landscaping by engaging with office workers and encouraging them to add new green companions to their desks." Join us from 8 12 July and beyond to celebrate the amazing benefits that plants bring us all. www.plantsatwork.org.uk Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2455021/Market_Stall.jpg NEW YORK, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Young adults Joey, Andy, Sam, Emma, and Natasha are best friends who do everything together. But if they want to become roommates, they will have to forgo any of the government benefits to which they are entitled as individuals with developmental disabilities. No such rule exists for other protected groups, such as veterans or senior citizens. Families for Disability Rights urges New York to address this issue. Twenty-five years ago, the Supreme Court issued a landmark ruling known as the Olmstead Decision. Olmstead was meant to usher in a new era of opportunities for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities, allowing people to transition into more inclusive environments, if they choose to and were deemed ready by medical professionals. While New York's Office for People with Developmental Disabilities celebrates Olmstead's silver jubilee, the State continues to enact policies that misinterpret the ruling's intent. In New York State, the above-mentioned five friends with special needs do not have the right to choose where they live and with whom. Olmstead centers on individual choice. The reality in New York veers away from this. Imagine being told you can no longer enjoy your morning coffee at your quiet kitchen table because it is not "inclusive" enough. Instead, you must now go every morning to a bustling coffee shop on the corner. This analogy captures the essence of the current situation New York policies force people into more inclusive settings without considering personal preference. To make matters worse, New York continues to push for managed care for people with developmental disabilities. This shift would take decision-making power away from individuals and hand it over to Managed Care Organizations whose primary focus is cost reduction rather than providing the individual with autonomy or meeting their needs. One positive sign has been the appointment of Kim Hill as NY's Chief Disability Officer. Ms. Hill actively encourages community and advocate participation in the process of crafting the next Olmstead report. Unfortunately, in the meantime, state policies continue to move in the wrong direction, eroding individual choice with each passing month. This anniversary should serve as a call to action. Let's put pressure on the State to actually honor the Olmstead Decision and the self-determination it was meant to uphold. SOURCE Families for Disability Rights WESTFORD, Mass., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to SkyQuest, the global Automotive Blockchain Market size was valued at USD 643 Million in 2022 and is poised to grow from USD 848 Million in 2023 to USD 7727 Million by 2031, at a CAGR of 31.82% during the forecast period (2024-2031). With rising venture capital (VC) financing, new types of technology providers are expected to come into the market. On the other hand, it is anticipated that programmable blockchain technology platform of a new generation will be invented. Moving on to the prediction duration, we foresee that ICOs, Cryptocurrencies, and Blockchain-as-a-Service (BaaS) will drive market growth by providing immutability and transparency in any transaction held using the decentralized ledger technology as well as making businesses more efficient via benefits such as reduced lifetime costs and quick operations. This automotive solution which utilizes blockchain would securely and reliably connect end users, Car-sharing firms, with self-driving or artificially intelligent cars. Download a detailed overview: https://www.skyquestt.com/sample-request/automotive-blockchain-market Automotive Blockchain Market Overview: Report Coverage Details Market Revenue in 2023 $848 Million Estimated Value by 2031 $7727 Million Growth Rate Poised to grow at a CAGR of 31.82% Forecast Period 20242031 Forecast Units Value (USD Million) Report Coverage Revenue Forecast, Competitive Landscape, Growth Factors, and Trends Segments Covered Application, Providers and Mobility Type Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa, Latin America Report Highlights Enhance Experience in Supply Chain Management Key Market Opportunities Increasing Crypto Currency Market Capital Key Market Drivers Expansion of Automobile Industries Segments covered in Automotive Blockchain Market are as follows: Application Smart Contract, Supply Chain, Financing, Mobility Solutions, and Others Providers Middleware Provider, Infrastructure & Protocols Provider, and Application & Solution Provider Mobility Type Personal Mobility, Shared Mobility, and Commercial Mobility Request Free Customization of this report: https://www.skyquestt.com/speak-with-analyst/automotive-blockchain-market Reinventing the Automotive Industry with Enhanced Transparency and Efficiency By improving transparency, security, and efficiency in a variety of applications, including supply chain management, car history tracking, and autonomous vehicle communication, blockchain technology is completely changing the global automobile industry. It is crucial for lowering fraud, enhancing data integrity, and stimulating creativity throughout the automobile industry. Implementing blockchain technology into the automotive supply chain ensures traceability, transparency and trust among stakeholders through secure recording of transactions and data exchanges. Blockchain technology is necessary for cutting down on counterfeit car parts and making logistics more efficient as well as enabling sharing live information in the global automotive industry, amongst other things. This improves efficiency and satisfaction levels on behalf of clients. Blockchain applications make vehicle sharing, ride-hailing and autonomous vehicle management that much simpler within automotive industry mobility solutions. The innovation effectuates lower prices and grants improved overall experiences in global mobility through enabling secure transactions, fostering data integrity and supporting seamless peer-to-peer interactions. Efficiency and trust between networked mobility providers is promoted by this. View report summary and Table of Contents (TOC): https://www.skyquestt.com/report/automotive-blockchain-market Blockchain's Role in Innovating Ride-Hailing and Autonomous Vehicle Solutions Services such as ride-hailing, vehicle sharing, and autonomous vehicle management are made better by blockchain ensuring reliable transaction security and smooth interaction. If one needs to achieve an increase in novelty, reduction in costs with better consumer satisfaction and utilization of globally linked mobility solutions, then these elements must be considered. Blockchain-enabled shared mobility maximises car-sharing services by guaranteeing safe transactions and open record-keeping. Adeptly facilitating effective resource utilization; enhances confidence between users and service providers and lowers operating expenses. this is an invention essential for making urban travel more sustainable and accessible hence influencing future global mobility solutions. Blockchain technology is fueling the revolution of both logistics and fleet management through secure transactions, operational efficiency optimization, and enhanced data transparency in commercial mobility. It plays a crucial role in reducing costs, improving supply chain reliability, and meeting regulatory requirements, thereby transforming commercial transportation services globally with enhanced trust and accountability. Venture Capital's Influence, the Rise of Transparent and Securing Efficient Mobility Solutions By improving transparency, security, and operational efficiency across a range of applications like supply chain management, vehicle history tracking, and mobility solutions like ride-hailing and autonomous vehicle management, blockchain technology is revolutionising the global automotive sector. In the car industry blockchain reduces fraud, improves data integrity and boosts innovation via safe transactions and transparent record-keeping. The results it yields vary from fewer fake parts, shorter supply chains through to improved customer service and sustainable urban mobility. Venture funding is expected to drive the development of innovative blockchain solutions, leading to further breakthroughs that will transform the global vehicle management, sharing, and operation landscape. Related Report: Blockchain Market Blockchain as a Service Market Blockchain in Healthcare Market Cryptocurrency Market Blockchain In Manufacturing Market About Us: SkyQuest is an IP focused Research and Investment Bank and Accelerator of Technology and assets. We provide access to technologies, markets and finance across sectors viz. Life Sciences, CleanTech, AgriTech, NanoTech and Information & Communication Technology. We work closely with innovators, inventors, innovation seekers, entrepreneurs, companies and investors alike in leveraging external sources of R&D. Moreover, we help them in optimizing the economic potential of their intellectual assets. Our experiences with innovation management and commercialization has expanded our reach across North America, Europe, ASEAN and Asia Pacific. Contact: Mr. Jagraj Singh SkyQuest Technology 1 Apache Way, Westford, Massachusetts 01886 USA (+1) 351-333-4748 Email: [email protected] Visit Our Website: https://www.skyquestt.com/ Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2446095/SkyQuest_Logo.jpg SOURCE SkyQuest Technology The Brands Partner on Quintessentially Californian Lifestyle Capsule IRVINE, Calif., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Birdwell, the American beach brand known for handmade, premium boardshorts that stand the test of time, is proudly partnering with Pendleton Woolen Mills, another heritage brand, on a collaborative summer capsule, available now. The limited-edition collection features thoughtful designs for men and women produced with veneration for timeless California surf style. Birdwell x Pendleton Woolen Mills Terry Poncho in PWM Brown. (Photo courtesy of Birdwell) Each item features Pendleton's distinct "Rancho Arroyo" diamond motif, which represents Southern California's Lopez Lake, located amongst the sage scrub and oak woodland of the Los Padres National Forest. "Reverence for the authentic reproduction of heritage patterns on new modern silhouettes is the foundation for this collection," said Eric Crane, CEO of Birdwell. "The opportunity to join two classic American brands, and celebrate timeless design and our shared history in West Coast culture was too good to pass up. Birdwell and Pendleton is a match made of shared values of quality, authenticity, and dedication to true craftsmanship." The collection includes the following key swim, clothing, and accessory styles: Birdie Boardshorts in "PWM Turquoise:" The classic Birdie is a mid-length, 4-way stretch boardshort that allows for mobility and flex without sacrificing durability. Crafted in the Pendleton Woolen Mills turquoise colorway with its Rancho Arroyo pattern, using Birdwell's standard post-consumer recycled material. This boardshort is offered in separate cuts for men and women, yet built with comfort, function, and sustainability in mind for everyone. Wright Short in "PWM Turquoise:" The Wright is Birdwell's active leisure short, designed for surfing, swimming, running, Netflix binging, sleeping, and all activities in between. Crafted in the Pendleton turquoise colorway with a pattern of the Rancho Arroyo motif, the style is created using Birdwell's standard post-consumer recycled material. Terry Poncho in "PWM Brown:" This wearable hooded towel poncho in Pendleton Woolen Mills Brown and the Rancho Arroyo print, is meant to be worn after a surf, or a dip in the pool, hot tub or lake. Thick, ultra-plush cotton jacquard is sheared to velvety softness outside, with absorbent loops inside. Diamond T-shirt: A 100% cotton heavyweight t-shirt featuring the Rancho Arroyo graphic. Diamond Snapback in "PWM Brown:" A one-size-fits-all, 5-panel cotton twill snapback hat with an embroidered Rancho Arroyo diamond. "We are thrilled to be launching this collaboration with Birdwell, a brand that shares our values of creating products with enduring quality and timeless style," said Peter Bishop, Executive Vice President of Merchandising and Design at Pendleton Woolen Mills. "When designing this collection, the Birdwell and Pendleton teams aligned on the patterns and colors as a nod to our shared vision of California surf culture." The Birdwell x Pendleton Woolen Mills' collection retails between $50 and $99.50. The line is available on the Birdwell and Pendleton websites, as well as brick-and-mortar Pendleton retail locations. For more information and to shop the collection, please visit www.birdwell.com or www.pendleton-usa.com and follow @birdwellbeachbritches and @pendletonwm on Instagram for updates. ABOUT BIRDWELL: Since 1961, Birdwell has hand-made boardshorts of enduring quality and timeless style out of the sunny beach towns of Orange County, California. A pillar brand in authentic American beach culture, Birdwell sets the bar in its craftsmanship of dynamic boardshorts for surfers and other ocean lovers. More than sixty years on, the company sells a variety of elevated lifestyle goods for men and women, including its cult-followed shorts and other coastal apparel, as well as essential beach accessories. For more information and to view current collections, visit www.birdwell.com. ABOUT PENDLETON WOOLEN MILLS: Pendleton Woolen Mills is a heritage, lifestyle brand and the leader in wool blankets, apparel and accessories, tracing its weaving roots in Oregon to 1863. Headquartered in Portland, Oregon, Pendleton weaves its iconic designs in two of America's remaining woolen mills located in Pendleton, Oregon and Washougal, Washington. With six generations of family ownership, Pendleton is focused on their "Warranted to Be a Pendleton" legacy, creating quality lifestyle products with timeless classic styling. Pendleton products are available at Pendleton stores across the US, select retailers worldwide, and on pendleton-usa.com. Press Contact: Shout Public Relations Erika Klein / Francesca Ressa [email protected] / [email protected] SOURCE Birdwell NEW YORK, July 8, 2024 Bank of Montreal (TSX:BMO)(NYSE:BMO) today announced that it intends to redeem all of the outstanding securities in each of the series set forth in the following table (collectively, the "Affected Securities"): * The table above provides, for each of the Affected Securities, which are identified by their names, a hyperlink to the relevant pricing supplement. Hyperlinks to the applicable base prospectus and prospectus supplement are contained in such pricing supplements. Capitalized terms used but not defined herein shall have the meanings ascribed to such terms in the relevant pricing supplement for the Affected Securities. The ETNs are senior, unsecured obligations of BMO, and are subject to BMO's credit risk. With respect to each series of Affected Securities, the Call Settlement Amount payable on the Call Settlement Date will be calculated as specified in the relevant pricing supplement, as applicable, for the Affected Securities. BMO will pay the applicable Call Settlement Amount to investors holding Affected Securities on the applicable Call Settlement Date. BMO intends to send a notice of redemption to holders of the Affected Securities on July 11, 2024. For each series of Affected Securities, the Call Settlement Amount will equal the arithmetic mean of the closing Indicative Note Values on each Index Business Day in the related Call Measurement Period. The Call Measurement Period is expected to consist of the following five trading days: July 12, 2024, July 15, 2024, July 16, 2024, July 17, 2024 and July 18, 2024. Each series of Affected Securities will be delisted from the NYSE Arca exchange prior to the open of trading on the Call Settlement Date. Holders of the Affected Securities may choose to continue to hold their securities until the Call Settlement Date, or may choose to sell or redeem their Affected Securities on or prior to July 11, 2024, in accordance with the terms of the Affected Securities. BMO has announced the waiver of the minimum early redemption size for each of the Affected Securities. Prior to the waiver, holders of the Affected Securities were required to redeem at least 25,000 ETNs at one time in order to exercise their right to redeem them. None of the other ETNs that BMO has previously issued are affected by this announcement. In particular, as to the redemption of NRGU and NRGD, please note that BMO's exchange traded notes linked to the Solactive MicroSectors Energy Index (ticker symbols "WTIU" and "WTID") will remain outstanding. BMO does not intend to issue or register any additional Affected Securities on or after the date of this press release. BMO and its affiliates also intend to suspend any further sales from inventory of the Affected Securities on July 11, 2024. The market value of these securities may be influenced by, among other things, supply and demand for the Affected Securities. It is possible that the suspension of any further sales of the Affected Securities by BMO may influence the market value of the Affected Securities and the liquidity of the market for the Affected Securities, potentially leading to insufficient supply, and causing the Affected Securities to trade at a premium above their closing or intraday indicative value. Any such premium may subsequently decrease at any time and for any reason without warning, resulting in financial loss to investors who paid this premium when they acquired their Affected Securities. Investors who purchase the Affected Securities at any time prior to the Call Settlement Date for an amount that is greater than the applicable Call Settlement Amount that they will receive on the Call Settlement Date will suffer a loss on their investment. Furthermore, investors who sell the Affected Securities at any time prior to delisting for an amount that is less than the applicable Call Settlement Amount they would have received on the Call Settlement Date will also suffer a loss. In either case, such losses could be significant. Investors will not receive any other compensation or amount for the loss of the investment opportunity of holding the Affected Securities. Bank of Montreal, the issuer of the securities described in this document, has filed a registration statement (including a pricing supplement, prospectus supplement and prospectus) with the SEC regarding each of these securities. Please read those documents and the other documents relating to these securities that Bank of Montreal has filed with the SEC for more complete information about Bank of Montreal and the applicable securities. These documents may be obtained without cost by visiting EDGAR on the SEC website at www.sec.gov. Alternatively, Bank of Montreal, and any agent or dealer that participated in the offering of the Affected Securities, will arrange to send the applicable pricing supplement, the prospectus supplement and the prospectus if so requested by calling toll-free at 1-877-369-5412. About BMO Financial Group BMO Financial Group is the eighth largest bank in North America by assets, with total assets of $1.4 trillion as of April 30, 2024. Serving customers for 200 years and counting, BMO is a diverse team of highly engaged employees providing a broad range of personal and commercial banking, wealth management, global markets and investment banking products and services to 13 million customers across Canada, the United States, and in select markets globally. Driven by a single purpose, to Boldly Grow the Good in business and life, BMO is committed to driving positive change in the world, and making progress for a thriving economy, sustainable future, and inclusive society. SOURCE BMO Financial Group SINGAPORE, July 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- From 3 to 5 July 2024, The Honourable the Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon led a delegation from the Supreme Court of Singapore on a visit to the Supreme Court of Brunei Darussalam. Last July, the Chief Justice of Brunei Darussalam, The Honourable Dato Seri Paduka Steven Chong Wan Oon visited the Singapore Courts. During Chief Justice Chong's visit to Singapore, the two Chief Justices held an in-person bilateral meeting, and a Memorandum of Understanding to promote bilateral judicial cooperation between the two judiciaries was signed. During Chief Justice Menon's visit to Brunei Darussalam, the two Chief Justices discussed how judicial cooperation between the Singapore and Brunei judiciaries could be further enhanced. Chief Justice Menon also met with Brunei Darussalam's Attorney General, Yang Berhormat Datin Paduka Dayang Hajah Nor Hashimah binti Haji Mohammed Taib. Chief Justice Menon delivered a speech to the Brunei judiciary on "The Role of an Effective and Efficient Judiciary in Promoting Economic Development The Singapore Perspective" during the visit. In the speech, he shared the Singapore perspective on the role of the judiciary in promoting and supporting economic development on three levels. First, by deciding individual cases in a way that is sensitive to commercial realities and responsive to new developments in the wider operating environment; second, by providing efficient and appropriate dispute resolution mechanisms; and third, by supporting the broader transnational system of commercial justice that provides a sound legal framework for transnational commercial activity. Justice Kannan Ramesh, who was part of the Singapore delegation, briefed Bruneian stakeholders and government agencies on Singapore's insolvency and restructuring regime. He spoke about Singapore's experience in reforming and modernising Singapore's legal frameworks for insolvency and restructuring, and in particular on Singapore's adoption of the UNCITRAL Model Law on Cross-Border Insolvency, and on the development of the Judicial Insolvency Network's Guidelines and Modalities. Chief Justice Menon said: "I am deeply grateful for the warm and generous welcome extended to the Singapore delegation by Chief Justice Chong and the Brunei judiciary. The discussions we have had will be invaluable in helping both judiciaries understand one another's experiences and perspectives better. This visit has deepened the ties between our two judiciaries and has paved the way for enhanced judicial cooperation." Visit News and speeches (judiciary.gov.sg) for more details. SOURCE Supreme Court of Singapore CHICAGO, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global Cloud FinOps Market will grow from USD 13.5 billion in 2024 to USD 23.3 billion by 2029 at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.4% during the forecast period, according to a new report by MarketsandMarkets. Cloud FinOps solutions are critical for small industries to deal with the overall and optimal management of expenses within the cloud environment. The cost of the cloud is perhaps one of the most critical ways small businesses can control their expenditure as it goes straight to their profit and loss account. Cloud FinOps tools enable customers to monitor usage and understand trends, find and prevent waste, and receive recommendations for improvements unique to their business. This allows small businesses to deploy resources wisely, develop facilities that meet the demands, and avert situations where the company is charged more than it can afford. Browse in-depth TOC on "Cloud FinOps Market" 270 Tables 60 Figures 260 Pages Download PDF Brochure @ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/pdfdownloadNew.asp?id=197106360 Scope of the Report Report Metrics Details Market size available for years 20192029 Base year considered 2023 Forecast period 20242029 Forecast units Value (USD Billion) Segments Covered Offering, Application, Organization Size, Service Model, Deployment Model, and Vertical Geographies Covered North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East Africa, and Latin America Companies Covered Some of the significant Cloud FinOps Market vendors are AWS (US), Microsoft (US), IBM (US), Google (US), Oracle (US), Hitachi (Japan), VMware (US), ServiceNow (US), Datadog (US), Lumen Technologies (US), and Flexera (US). Future trends in Cloud FinOps for small industries are as follows: There is a high likelihood that cost management processes will be further automated through AI and machine learning in the near future. This will improve the ability of predictive analysis and help businesses make better estimates of what they should expect to spend in the future. Furthermore, there is a growing trend to implement FinOps practices as a part of the DevOps process to help spread the culture of cost responsibility. In conclusion, as cloud adoption increases across small industries, Cloud FinOps solutions will refine the availability of improved and advanced tools and techniques to enhance businesses' financial performance and competency in the digital environment. Request Sample Pages@ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/requestsampleNew.asp?id=197106360 The services segment is expected to capture the highest CAGR during the forecast period by offering segment. The offering segment of the Cloud FinOps Market is segmented into solutions and services. The services segment accounted for the highest CAGR during the forecasted period. The services segment includes managed and professional services, which play a crucial role in facilitating the adoption of FinOps practices among enterprises in the Cloud FinOps Market. Professional services offer strategic guidance, consulting, and implementation support to help organizations assess their current cloud spending, develop FinOps strategies, and optimize their cloud financial management processes. These services may include cloud cost analysis, architecture design, tool selection, and training programs to empower teams with the necessary skills and knowledge. On the other hand, Managed services provide ongoing support and operational assistance to ensure the effective execution of FinOps practices. This includes continuous monitoring of cloud usage, cost optimization recommendations, performance analysis, and governance enforcement. Together, Managed and Professional services enable enterprises to maximize the value of their cloud investments, control costs, and drive financial accountability in their cloud operations. Based on the solution, the native solutions segment is expected to hold the largest market share during the forecast period. The Cloud FinOps Market, by solution, is segmented into native solutions and third-party solutions. It is expected that during the forecast period, the native solutions segment is expected to hold the largest market size and share in the Cloud FinOps Market. Native solutions in the Cloud FinOps Market refer to built-in cost management and optimization tools provided by major cloud services providers such as AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud. These native solutions offer comprehensive capabilities for monitoring, analyzing, and optimizing cloud spending, allowing organizations to manage their cloud resources and control costs efficiently. With features such as cost allocation tagging, budgeting, reserved instance management, and recommendation engines, these providers empower users to maximize the value of their cloud investments while ensuring financial accountability. As the primary native solutions providers, AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud play a pivotal role in shaping the landscape of Cloud FinOps. Inquire Before Buying@ https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Enquiry_Before_BuyingNew.asp?id=197106360 Native solutions offer advantages for FinOps teams by providing seamless integration with cloud provider services, ensuring optimal compatibility and high performance. These tools streamline setup and configuration processes, reducing implementation time and effort. Cost efficiency is another key benefit, as native tools are often included in the platform pricing or offered for free. They also adhere to the cloud provider's security and compliance standards, enhancing overall security. With up-to-date features and comprehensive insights, native tools enable better decision-making and resource optimization, ensuring FinOps teams remain current with the latest advancements and best practices from the cloud provider. North America is projected to hold the largest market share during the forecast period. By region, North America is projected to hold the most market share in the worldwide Cloud FinOps Market in 2024, and this pattern is anticipated to be valid throughout the forecast period. North America, which includes the US and Canada, leads the way in the Cloud FinOps Market, showcasing the most advanced levels in cloud utilization and financial operations incorporation. Several key FinOps solution providers, such as VMware, Apptio, and Flexera, are based in this area and are crucial in driving the market forward. These leading players provide robust platforms that effectively combine cloud cost management, financial responsibility, and operational efficiency, making them essential allies for organizations looking to enhance their cloud spending. The increased use of North America's multi-cloud and hybrid cloud setups requires advanced FinOps techniques to handle challenges and guarantee cost-effectiveness on various cloud services. The area's high-tech infrastructure and many tech-savvy businesses help boost the expansion and complexity of the Cloud FinOps Market. The fast pace of digital transformation, driven by the necessity for companies to remain competitive in a technology-focused environment, significantly influences the Cloud FinOps Market in North America. This change has resulted in higher cloud usage, as businesses use cloud services for increased scalability, flexibility, and innovation. This change also presents obstacles in controlling cloud expenses, leading to a need for efficient FinOps strategies. The regulatory landscape requires strict financial responsibility and transparency regarding spending on cloud services. These rules require companies to implement FinOps frameworks to guarantee adherence and enhance the efficiency of their cloud finances. As a result, North America is projected to have the largest market share in the worldwide Cloud FinOps Market due to its high rates of adoption and the vital function of FinOps in attaining cost-effective and value-centered cloud operations. Top Key Companies in Cloud FinOps Market: Some of the significant cloud FinOps vendors include AWS (US), Microsoft (US), IBM (US), Google (US), Oracle (US), Hitachi (Japan), VMware (US), ServiceNow (US), Datadog (US), Lumen Technologies (US), and Flexera (US). Browse Adjacent Markets: Cloud Computing Market Research Reports & Consulting Related Reports: Visual Cloud Market - Global Forecast to 2029 Cloud ITSM Market - Global Forecast to 2029 Spatial Computing Market - Global Forecast to 2028 Public Cloud Market - Global Forecast to 2027 Cloud Advertising Market- Global Forecast to 2026 Get access to the latest updates on Cloud FinOps Companies and Cloud FinOps Industry 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/2297424/MarketsandMarkets_Logo.jpg SOURCE MarketsandMarkets CORALVILLE, Iowa, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- CQ Medical, the new global leader in patient radiotherapy positioning and healthcare innovations that advance human care, will exhibit its innovative and patented solutions during the AAPM Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, July 21-25. CQ Medical marks a pivotal transformation for CIVCO Radiotherapy and Qfix, who joined forces in October 2022. CQ Medical is derived from the company's Care Quotient: IQ + EQ = CQ. It follows their philosophy of applying intelligence and empathy to everything they make and do. The company encourages attendees to visit booth #619 to see how two legacy companies are integrating their market-leading solutions, uniquely combining medical technology with patient empathy, to help achieve better patient outcomes. SBRT Immobilization Solutions, including the new Body Pro-Lok ONEBridge compatible with Alta CQ has combined two best-in-class products to create one remarkable SBRT positioning solution. The market-leading ONEBridge fits most patients, immobilizing and improving positioning and respiratory restriction for more accurate treatment. Current Alta Multipurpose Device users can upgrade their respiratory compression systems with the Body Pro-Lok ONEBridge. Symphony Imaging, Treatment & Transfer Solutions Symphony solutions facilitate smooth patient transfers between imaging modalities and treatment or procedure platforms without repositioning the patient. Visit the company to learn about their innovations with the Lithotomy AirShuttle for brachytherapy and the Alta AirShuttle for Adaptive customized cancer care workflow solutions. SRS Immobilization Solutions The Encompass and Solstice SRS Immobilization Systems are highly advanced, non-invasive solutions designed for precisely targeted brain, head, and neck treatments. The Encompass is validated for HyperArc and provides setup confidence and comfort with the Integrated Shim system. Solstice features unique variable pitch capability, increasing setup and treatment flexibility. BioXmark Liquid Fiducial Marker (manufactured by Nanovi) The liquid nature of BioXmark enables the implantation of multiple markers of varying sizes in the same uninterrupted procedure. Sticky and soft markers form that adapt to surrounding soft tissue, providing exceptional positional stability and visibility. Thermoplastics including Fibreplast and Integrated Shim CQ offers various thermoplastic options, including Fibreplast, a premium proprietary thermoplastic that is more rigid and shrinks less than standard thermoplastic. The Integrated Shim feature, which increases workflow efficiencies and patient comfort, allows for customizable immobilization. Proton Solutions, including Pediatric Options CQ has set a standard in proton therapy solutions with a range of market-leading couchtops, head & neck immobilization, and additional disease site positioning solutions, including a complete pediatric offering. About CQ Medical CQ Medical is the global leader in developing high-quality, innovative, patient-centric radiotherapy and cancer therapy solutions. With primary locations in Iowa and Pennsylvania and employees worldwide, the company has more than 80 years of combined experience bringing advanced hardware and consumables for patient immobilization and positioning, fiducial markers, couchtops, and patient care products to the market. Visit CQmedical.com for more information. For further information, please contact: Shelli Locklear, Director of Marketing, at +1 319.248.6619 or [email protected] COPYRIGHT 2024. This press release contains information about products that may or may not be available in particular countries. These products may not be licensed in accordance with Canadian law. Each country has specific laws and regulations governing the commercialization of medical devices and the communication of information regarding medical devices in printed and digital media. Products appearing in this press release or on our website may or may not have received approval, clearance, or marketing authorization by a governmental regulatory body in any particular country or may have received approval, clearance, or marketing authorization for different indications and restrictions in different countries or may be for investigational use only. BoS, Fibreplast, Symphony and Qfix are registered trademarks of Qfix. AirShuttle, Alta, Encompass, and Integrated Shim are trademarks of Qfix. CIVCO is a registered trademark of CIVCO Medical Solutions. CIVCO Radiotherapy, CIVCO RT, Body Pro-Lok ONE, ONEBridge, and Solstice are trademarks of Medtec LLC. BioXmark is a registered trademark of Nanovi A/S. HyperArc is a trademark of Varian Medical Systems. CQ2024D195 Rev. 0 SOURCE CQ Medical DUBAI, UAE, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Wego, the number 1 travel app and the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), is thrilled to announce its strategic partnership with the Jordan Tourism Board, aimed at promoting the diverse and captivating travel offerings of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. Spectacular view of two beautiful camels in front of Al Khazneh (The Treasury) at Petra. Petra is a historical and archaeological city in southern Jordan. Jordan is renowned for its rich history, stunning landscapes, and warm hospitality, making it a sought-after destination for travelers seeking unique and unforgettable experiences. Through this collaboration, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board are committed to showcasing the country's myriad attractions, from the ancient wonders of Petra and Jerash to the natural wonders of the Dead Sea and Wadi Rum. "Wego is excited to partner with the Jordan Tourism Board to highlight the beauty and cultural richness of Jordan to travelers worldwide," said Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Business Officer, Wego. "Jordan offers a wide range of experiences for every type of traveler, from history enthusiasts to adventure seekers. We look forward to working closely with the Jordan Tourism Board to inspire travelers to explore all that Jordan has to offer." As part of the partnership, Wego users will have access to exclusive travel deals, curated itineraries, and insider tips to help them plan their perfect trip to Jordan. Whether travelers are interested in exploring ancient ruins, embarking on a desert adventure, or simply indulging in the country's delectable cuisine, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board are dedicated to providing them with the resources they need to make their Jordanian adventure a memorable one. Through joint marketing initiatives, social media campaigns, and promotional activities, Wego and the Jordan Tourism Board will work together to raise awareness about Jordan as a premier travel destination and inspire travelers to explore its hidden treasures. About Wego Wego is the number 1 travel app and the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). It provides award-winning travel search websites and top-ranked mobile apps for travelers living in the Asia Pacific and the Middle East regions. Wego harnesses powerful yet simple to use technology that automates the process of searching and comparing results from hundreds of airlines, hotels, and online travel agency websites. Wego presents an unbiased comparison of all travel products and prices offered in the marketplace by merchants, both local and global, and enables shoppers to quickly find the best deal and place to book whether it is from an airline or hotel directly or with a third-party aggregator website. The company was founded in 2005 and is dual headquartered in Dubai and Singapore with regional operations in Bangalore, Riyadh, Cairo, Lahore, and Kuala Lumpur. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2454482/Wego.jpg SOURCE Wego NEW YORK, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Ad Council announced today that Walt Disney Company CEO Bob Iger will be receiving the organization's Award for Public Service at its Public Service Award Dinner on December 5, 2024, at the Glasshouse in New York City. "Under Bob's leadership, Disney has continued its longstanding commitment to public service and social impact. Bob is a role model for so many in the industry and we look forward to celebrating his legacy of outstanding corporate citizenship," said Lisa Sherman, President and CEO of the Ad Council. Bob Iger served as CEO and Chairman of The Walt Disney Company from 2005 to 2020, then as Executive Chairman and Chairman of the Board before his return as CEO in 2022. During his tenure, he has expanded Disney's portfolio through strategic acquisitions including Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm and 21st Century Fox. Iger's management earned Disney recognition as one of Forbes' "Most Reputable Companies" and Fortune's "World's Most Admired Companies." Recognized as one of the world's influential business leaders, Iger has received numerous accolades, including being named TIME's Businessperson of the Year in 2019. He currently serves on the boards of the 9/11 Memorial & Museum and Bloomberg Philanthropies, and is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Under Iger's leadership, Disney has deepened its relationship with numerous organizations that support the wellbeing of children, particularly those facing critical illness. In 2018, Iger announced a global commitment of $100 million to help reimagine the patient experience in children's hospitals, committing a mix of financial support, products and services. Additionally, through Disney's collaboration with Make-A-Wish, the company has helped grant more than 155,000 life-changing wishes for children since the first wish was granted more than 40 years ago at Disneyland Resort. "It's an honor to be recognized by the Ad Council and I am immensely proud of the positive impact Disney has on people and communities around the world," said Iger. "Our company, like our storytelling, has always been a force for good. We believe that nothing is more important than supporting the well-being of children, which is why we are so committed to bringing joy and inspiration to those who need it most." Bringing together leaders at the intersection of media, marketing, advertising, and technology, the Ad Council's Annual Public Service Award Dinner is the organization's largest fundraising event, with the last Annual Dinner in 2023 raising more than $8.1M to support the Ad Council's national social impact programs. Previous recipients of the Ad Council's Award for Public Service include Chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase Jamie Dimon, Walmart CEO Doug McMillon, Verizon Chairman and CEO Hans Vestberg, former Chairman and CEO of Johnson & Johnson Alex Gorsky, former Chairman and CEO of IBM Ginni Rometty and former CEO of PepsiCo Indra Nooyi. This year's event will be co-chaired by the Chair and Vice Chair of the Ad Council's Board of Directors Tara Walpert Levy, VP, Americas at YouTube and Rita Ferro, President, Global Advertising at The Walt Disney Company. To learn more about the event and to purchase tables or tickets, please visit the event's website. THE AD COUNCIL The Ad Council convenes creative storytellers to educate, unite and uplift audiences by opening hearts, inspiring action and accelerating change around the most pressing issues in America. Since the non-profit's founding, the organization and its partners in advertising, media, marketing and tech have been behind some of the country's most iconic social impact campaigns Smokey Bear, A Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Waste, Love Has No Labels, Tear the Paper Ceiling and many more. With a current focus on mental health, gun safety, the opioid epidemic, skill-based hiring and other critical issues, the Ad Council's national campaigns encompass advertising and media content, ground game and community efforts, trusted messenger and influencer engagement, and employer programs, among other innovative strategies to move the needle on the most important issues of the day. To learn more or get involved, visit AdCouncil.org, join the Ad Council's communities on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and Twitter, and view campaign creative on YouTube. SOURCE The Ad Council Has Received Overwhelmingly Supportive Feedback about Call for Leadership Change Responds to Company's Adoption of Shareholder-Unfriendly "Poison Pill" Reiterates Measures Necessary to Improve Performance Letter is available at StrongerSouthwest.com WEST PALM BEACH, Fla., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Elliott Investment Management L.P. (and its affiliates, "Elliott"), today sent a letter to the Board of Southwest Airlines Co. (NYSE: LUV) (the "Company" or "Southwest") summarizing the feedback received and key events that have occurred since the publication last month of Elliott's initial letter and presentation calling for leadership change. According to the letter, the feedback Elliott has received is overwhelmingly consistent with its perspective that the Company's performance is unacceptable and leadership change is required to return Southwest to its once-leading position in the industry. Elliott noted that the actions of Southwest's Board of Directors and management team since its Stronger Southwest materials were published have only solidified the case for leadership change. According to the letter, these actions included adopting an antiquated and shareholder-unfriendly "poison pill" to prevent Elliott from increasing its stake above 12.5% on July 3, and appointing a new director to the Board today who appears to have been chosen in part due to his support for the Company's status-quo leadership and plan. These actions demonstrate how profoundly out of touch Southwest's Board has become with shareholder sentiment and with the reality of the situation, said the letter. It is crucial, Elliott wrote, that the Board understand that Southwest's leadership has already lost the trust of its shareholders, and that shareholders simply do not believe this Board and management team are capable of devising and executing a bold new plan to turn around Southwest. Elliott again outlined the following path to a higher-performing future for Southwest: Enhance the Board of Directors Upgrade Leadership Undertake a Comprehensive Business Review Elliott indicated that it is open to collaborating with the Board on a path forward, but absent alignment Elliott intends to move expeditiously to give shareholders a direct say on the necessary leadership changes. The letter can be downloaded at StrongerSouthwest.com. The full text of the letter follows: July 8, 2024 The Board of Directors Southwest Airlines Co. 2702 Love Field Drive Dallas, Texas 75235 Dear Members of the Board, We write to you again on behalf of Elliott Associates, L.P. and Elliott International, L.P. (together, with its affiliates, "Elliott" or "we"). The purpose of today's letter is to summarize the feedback we have received and the key events that have occurred since the publication last month of our letter and presentation on the urgent need for leadership change at Southwest Airlines ("Southwest" or the "Company"). Since publishing our views on June 10, we've had the opportunity to engage with shareholders, equity research analysts, industry executives and current and former employees. Many new institutions and individuals have reached out to us, providing us with new sources of insight and information, and this trend is continuing. The feedback has been overwhelmingly consistent with our perspective that the Company's performance is unacceptable and that leadership change is required to return Southwest to its once-leading position in the industry. The actions of Southwest's Board and management team since we published our views have only solidified the case for leadership change: On June 26 , Southwest announced significantly reduced unit revenue guidance for the second quarter, continuing its disappointing trend of industry-lagging revenue performance (which appears to have become a habit). This announcement marked the eighth guidance reduction in the last 18 months. On July 3 , this Board put its own self-interest ahead of the Company's by pursuing the entrenchment strategy of adopting an antiquated and shareholder-unfriendly "poison pill" to prevent Elliott from increasing its stake above 12.5%. And today, the Board announced that it had appointed a handpicked new director in a clear attempt to entrench itself and the current management team, thereby expanding the size of the current Board to 15 members. Among the criteria for selecting this new director was clearly that he would be supportive of Southwest's current leadership and status-quo approach, as he noted in the announcement that he was "look[ing] forward to supporting the Company's strategic direction." These actions and in particular the adoption of the "poison pill" demonstrate how profoundly out of touch Southwest's Board has become with shareholder sentiment and with the reality of the situation. Contrary to the Company's statements, Elliott is not seeking control of Southwest. Quite simply, we are seeking to strengthen oversight, upgrade management and improve Company performance. Preventing shareholders who do not support the Company's failed leadership and oversight from purchasing additional stock reflects exceptionally poor governance and underscores the immediate need for accountability at Southwest. This is the worst kind of governance a shield for failure and a sword for nothing except the fees of advisers who propose these anti-shareholder devices. In light of these actions, we have become increasingly concerned by the "self-help" half-measures that the Board appears to be contemplating and adopting, none of which will do anything to allay the lost credibility of Southwest's management. Elliott does not make calls for leadership change lightly or without regard to potential consequences. In this instance, given the long record of falling short and the deep loss of confidence in Southwest's leadership among shareholders and other constituents, it is simply untenable for the same Board and management team to continue to lead Southwest. Shareholder Feedback Supports Leadership Change The feedback we have received since releasing our materials on June 10 underscores a profound lack of confidence in Southwest's leadership, strategy and performance, and has reinforced our conclusion that Board and leadership change is necessary to put Southwest on the right path. Since the release of our letter, we have spoken with numerous shareholders representing a significant percentage of Southwest's shareholder base. While these conversations have been confidential, we can characterize the sentiments expressed by these shareholders as being overwhelmingly supportive of leadership change. This was well illustrated by the public support for our campaign offered by Southwest shareholder Artisan Partners on June 12, when it called on the Board to "reconstitute itself and upgrade the Company's leadership such that it can objectively assess the best path forward for Southwest's shareholders, employees, and customers. We believe this process needs to commence immediately." Other conversations echoed the feedback we received in the shareholder survey we commissioned before publishing our views. Below, we have included a representative sample of perspectives shared by some of Southwest's largest investors as part of the survey, with such sentiments having been confirmed in our most recent discussions: "The CEO is a headwind to a turnaround. Firing him is the tailwind." Top 10 Active Shareholder "I would rate them as the worst-performing management team in the airlines. This was a Company that has destroyed more value based on their own inaction than anyone else in the industry. They need to go." Top 10 Active Shareholder "They need a new look across the board and you are only going to get that with [a CEO] who is not from Southwest This is a classic example of where a disruptor stayed in the original model as the industry passed them by and now they have a problem." Top 10 Active Shareholder "I have zero confidence this team can get this right and certainly not in the timeframe that is needed. I rarely call for wholesale change at a company, but that is what is needed here." Top 10 Active Shareholder "Having the current CEO drive the process for a new strategy is not a good idea. I think that means we get glacial change and even if they say they are going to become SpaceX there is still going to be a fairly material overhang in the stock because of skepticism about the execution. This is a good time for the change." Top 10 Active Shareholder "Would you ever see anyone issue a press release that says '35 year veteran of the company to drive significant strategic, operational and financial turnaround,' which is what you would have to believe is possible if you think that Bob Jordan is the right CEO. You need a really different leader to right the ship." Top 10 Active Shareholder "I don't think this is the right CEO to lead the company and I would view his removal positively Is this the leader you think is able to lead the company into the transformational change that is needed? I don't think so and I am not sure other investors do either. I would be surprised if they did." Top 10 Active Shareholder "So it is really [the CEO] has not done a good job running the company and what they have in front of them is considerably different than the job he came into, so this really is a natural time for a leadership succession. The Street would be widely supportive of a change." Top 10 Active Shareholder (emphasis added) In short, shareholders are demanding change now, and Elliott remains committed to providing them with a clear choice between continued industry-lagging performance under an incumbent leadership team that has repeatedly failed to deliver on its promises, versus fundamental leadership change involving new and proven airline industry executives capable of returning Southwest to its rightful place as an industry leader. Other Constituents Have Also Expressed Deep Concerns with Southwest's Leadership In addition to hearing from shareholders, we have received feedback on our views both publicly and privately from some of Southwest's employees. For an illustrative example of the feedback we've heard, consider the sentiments expressed by SWAPA's leadership on July 1: "We see the numbers, not just every quarter when we have the board meeting here, but we know where the trajectory has been. Then actually when we meet with Bob Jordan and Andrew Watterson, we bring these concerns up We have years of disdain from leadership, and that's how labor has been treated I mentioned the word disdain before and I'm going to say it again because that's the only way that really we can describe how labor has been treated and SWAPA and our data-driven analysis has been treated. It's been disregarded. And here we are with an activist investor basically saying everything we've said Right now we just can't [get behind the Company] because we're again disdained and there's very little concern right now at the C-suite, you know, outside of their jobs. There's not a concern for the employees. And that's something we can never forget and really won't." SWAPA Leadership, The SWAPA Number Podcast (July 1) In addition to this sort of public commentary, we have also received a deluge of unsolicited private expressions of support from individuals representing themselves as current and former employees of Southwest many of whom were in strong agreement with our analysis of the Company's recent performance and our calls for change: "I'm a retired Southwest Captain and I couldn't agree with you more on the next steps for Southwest When I started at Southwest in 1997, it was 'us against the world!' Now it's every man for himself as our famous culture is dying a slow, painful death. I believe it can be fixed, and I'm hoping you and your group can make it happen." Former Employee "Not only do I have a vested interest in the success of the company (my SWA stock has lost over half of its value) but I have spent 50% of my life flying and working for a company that was once the envy of every other airline operating in the world. Without any doubt I agree that a new leadership team is needed." Current Employee "As a SWA employee of more than 23 years, I am in complete agreement with your analysis. I have been screaming this for 15 years." Current Employee "I am a former 21 year employee retiree and stock holder of SWA who completely agrees with your perspective of current senior management at SWA. [Bob Jordan] has driven the airline into the ground. Thank you for taking a bold stance and insisting on making some changes." Former Employee This candid feedback is only a small sample of what we have received so far. We believe sentiment regarding Southwest's Board and management is particularly negative among these constituents because, in their view, Southwest's leadership has ignored their feedback for years and stood idly by as the Company's performance deteriorated. The Path Forward While it appears that the Company is now finally considering certain piecemeal changes in the face of public pressure from Elliott, it is crucial that the Board understand that Southwest's leadership has already lost the trust of its shareholders. Following years of complacency and to paraphrase the Company's own words in announcing its latest failure to meet guidance a total inability to adapt to the complexity of the current airline operating environment, shareholders simply do not believe this Board and management team are capable of devising and executing a bold new plan to turn around Southwest. In fact, one of the biggest risks we see to Southwest in the short term would be the announcement by the Board of a package of half-measures with the objective of further entrenching itself and avoiding more fundamental change such as, for example, replacing the current CEO without running a comprehensive search process. Such unilateral measures, developed hurriedly and lacking the buy-in of shareholders, are the very definition of "short-term thinking" and will inevitably lead to worse performance over time. Simply put, investors do not want to see a new plan from the same leadership team whose record at the Company has been one of failure. They want new leaders who will bring outside perspectives and proven expertise to the task of preserving all that was great about Southwest while charting a higher-performing future for the airline. We are calling on the Board to collaborate on the following changes to strengthen oversight and select the best new CEO to lead the Company into the future: 1. Board Changes : Elliott has identified a number of highly qualified former airline executives and other industry leaders with relevant experience who are eager to serve on Southwest's Board. These individuals are independent from Elliott and have a demonstrated track record of value creation in their former roles. We believe each would be highly additive to the Board, and unlike the individual added to the Board today, their appointment would not be conditioned on support for the status-quo leadership and plan. Rather, they would join the Board with an open mind and would evaluate the business and its leadership without any preconceived commitments or allegiances. The Company should immediately begin the process of working with us to reconstitute the Board to include these leaders. We believe shareholders will strongly agree that these individuals' expertise stands in stark contrast to the existing Board's demonstrated lack of independence and relevant experience, which has resulted in years of deteriorating performance with no accountability for management. Additionally, as we have conveyed to you, we believe the role of Executive Chairman should be retired and Southwest should appoint an independent chair from outside the Company. 2. Upgraded Leadership : The Company should immediately announce a CEO transition and select an interim CEO who can earn the trust of investors. This person could be one of the newly appointed Board members. Following a reconstitution of the Board, Southwest should form a CEO search committee composed of both new and existing directors to lead a search for the best candidate to become Southwest's next CEO. We believe the new CEO should be sourced from external candidates and possess relevant airline or other transportation industry experience, strong operational capabilities and a demonstrated track record. 3. Comprehensive Business Review : Following a Board refresh and the appointment of a highly qualified and credible new CEO, Southwest would be well positioned to develop and execute a new strategy to restore the airline to industry-leading performance. This comprehensive business review should be led by a new Board-level Business Review Committee. We believe that fresh perspectives, operational excellence and an openness to evaluating all options are imperative to Southwest's future success. As one of the Southwest's largest investors, Elliott is focused on the sustainable, long-term success of the Company. This Board, however, refuses to hold itself and the management team accountable for the long-term value destruction endured by Southwest's shareholders. Indeed, the "poison pill" announced on July 3 indicates that this Board feels it needs protection from the Company's owners, rather than to earn their support. It is tantamount to an admission of failure. Entrenchment maneuvers by the Board like this "poison pill" and the unilateral appointment of a new director handpicked by the Company's incumbent leaders to support the status quo will not be effective in the face of the deep shareholder frustration that exists today. We are open to collaborating with the Board on a path forward consistent with the framework outlined above, but absent alignment, we intend to move expeditiously to give shareholders a direct say on the necessary leadership changes. We are committed to realizing the substantial opportunity of improving Southwest's performance with an updated strategy guided by accomplished, best-in-class industry executives and leaders. Based on the feedback we have received to date, we believe our fellow shareholders will be equally committed to supporting that new direction. We will make ourselves available at your earliest convenience for further discussions. Sincerely, John Pike Partner Bobby Xu Portfolio Manager 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. New Location at 3838 N Ravenswood Integrates Luxury Living and State-of-the-Art Flexible Workspace CHICAGO, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Expansive, a leader in flexible workspace solutions, is proud to announce the grand opening of its newest location: Expansive North Center at 3838 N Ravenswood Ave. This innovative development epitomizes the live-work-thrive ethos, seamlessly integrating luxury apartments and cutting-edge office spaces within The Opus Chicago , co-developed by Landrosh Development and Macon Construction . This location joins a powerful nationwide network of 40+ Expansive Workspace locations including five others in Chicago: 100 S State , 73 W Monroe , 318 W Adams , 211 W Wacker , and 405 W Superior . "This collaboration fosters innovation and creativity, as well as creates a vibrant environment where residents can thrive both personally and professionally. Together, we are building a community that exemplifies the best of integrated living in a beautiful mixed use property, where life is enhanced and opportunities flourish," says Expansive Founder & CEO, Bill Bennett. A Premier Live-Work-Thrive Community with Prime Accessibility Nestled in a walkable, tree-lined residential neighborhood between Lincoln Square and Roscoe Village, this prime location is only 1.5 miles from Wrigley Field, offering excellent access to many of Chicago's iconic attractions, services, and destinations. Exceptional Workspace Solutions The first two floors of the building are dedicated to modern, flexible workspaces designed to cultivate productivity and community. Featuring private offices with contemporary finishes, expansive windows, and charming exposed red brick, this space caters to businesses of all sizes. Key amenities include: Private Offices and Suites : Modern, fully-equipped private offices for individuals and teams. : Modern, fully-equipped for individuals and teams. Coworking Spaces : Beautiful community lounge with coworking areas and unlimited coffee/tea. : Beautiful community lounge with areas and unlimited coffee/tea. Corporate Meeting Space : Versatile spaces ideal for meetings , conferences, and collaboration. : Versatile spaces ideal for , conferences, and collaboration. Outdoor Terrace : A serene outdoor area perfect for working or taking breaks. : A serene outdoor area perfect for working or taking breaks. Fitness Center : On-site fitness facilities to promote a healthy lifestyle. : On-site fitness facilities to promote a healthy lifestyle. Rooftop Event Space: Stunning rooftop area that overlooks the Chicago skyline, perfect for social gatherings and networking events . Luxury Living at The Opus Chicago Above the dynamic workspace, The Opus Chicago offers luxury apartments designed to elevate your lifestyle, offering refinement and exclusivity in a space that seamlessly combines aesthetics with functionality, featuring: Exceptional Spaces : Spacious layouts and contemporary finishes, providing a versatile canvas perfect for customization. : Spacious layouts and contemporary finishes, providing a versatile canvas perfect for customization. Upscale Design : A residence where style meets substance. : A residence where style meets substance. Unparalleled Tenant Amenities: Creating a resort-like experience right at home. Residents can enjoy the convenience of living steps away from their workspace, enhancing their work-life balance and fostering a close-knit community. Join Us for a Grand Opening Celebration Expansive North Center and The Opus invite professionals, entrepreneurs, and businesses to experience this innovative live-work-thrive community during our upcoming Grand Opening event on July 11th from 4-7 PM. For more information about flexible workspace options visit expansive.com or call 877.301.6217. To inquire about The Opus Chicago apartments, please visit theopuschicago.com or contact 312.764.1047. About Expansive Expansive Workspace creates workspace where people and companies thrive. The nation's premier owner-operator of flexible workspace solutions, it develops and operates nearly 4 million square feet of workspace for owned properties and landlord partners. Expansive's workspace strategists help individual and enterprise clients find comfortable, convenient, and affordable office and event solutions for teams of all sizes. Visit one of our 40+ locations across 32 U.S. cities and start thriving today! Media Contact: [email protected] SOURCE Expansive SEOUL, South Korea, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Korean skincare brand CNP Laboratory, founded by dermatologists from Cha and Park Dermatology, is garnering attention on Amazon in the United States. With interest in Korean skincare surging recently, CNP's flagship lip mask product, Propolis Lipcerin, has gone viral on TikTok, leading to its launch on the US Amazon market. Get Up to 30% off on Amazons Best -Selling Lip Butter, CNP Propolis Lipcerin Cha and Park Dermatology, the foundation of CNP, started in the 1990s and has grown into a large dermatology chain with 22 branches across Korea. In 2000, CNP Cosmetics was established by dermatologists from Cha and Park, aiming to provide safe and effective skincare solutions for home use. Leveraging years of clinical experience and precise formulation, CNP strives to offer solutions that promote healthy skin from its foundation. CNP's Propolis Ampoule is known for its unique ability to provide glass skin and a healthy glow. Since its release in 2005, it has sold over 6 million bottles and has consistently ranked as the top-selling product in the online sales of Olive Young, a famous health and beauty store in South Korea. The CNP Propolis Lipcerin, which features propolis as its key ingredient, is currently ranked as the number one product in the Lip Butter category on Amazon US. The CNP Lipcerin will go on a 30% discount during Amazon's Prime Day in July, making it an excellent opportunity for customers to try this popular Korean lip care product. The launch of CNP on Amazon US is expected to serve as a platform to showcase Korean skincare technology globally and establish CNP as a leading skincare brand rooted in dermatological expertise. About CNP Laboratory Since 2000, CNP Laboratory has established itself as a derma-cosmetic brand that combines extensive dermatological clinical experience guided by the philosophy that "true beauty starts with healthy skin". CNP Laboratory's dermatologists have been producing high-quality products based on their long-term clinical expertise and scientific medical knowledge. Today, CNP Laboratory is a leading brand in Korea, recognized for its exceptional efficacy and is the recipient of numerous industry and consumer awards. Find out more here. About LG H&H Founded in 1947 in Korea, LG Household & Health Care (LG H&H) is a leading household goods and cosmetics manufacturer. As an innovative and customer-centric marketing company, LG H&H continually reinvents itself. Over its 75-year history, LG H&H has played a crucial role in making everyday life healthier and more beautiful for its customers. After creating Korea's first cosmetics and personal hygiene products, LG H&H established itself as an industry leader in Asia before expanding into the North American market. LG H&H is committed to relentless growth and innovation, striving to produce the best products that meet the ever-changing beauty and lifestyle needs of its customers. In 2014, LG Household & Health Care acquired CNP Cosmetics, and since then, CNP has established itself as a leading brand in the dermocosmetics market. SOURCE CNP Laboratory Growing demand for high-speed industrial, commercial and residential construction is anticipated to boost the growth in the global pipes market. Also, need for wastewater management in industrial and municipal sectors is surging. This is resulting in governments spending hefty amounts on new pipeline installations as well as operation and maintenance of water and wastewater management. NEWARK, Del., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The pipe market is anticipated to be valued at USD 146.38 billion by 2024. The market valuation is estimated to be USD 238.67 billion by 2034, projected at a CAGR of 5.01%. Rising urbanization, population growth, and industrialization necessitate the construction of new residential, commercial, and industrial facilities, fueling demand for pipes across various sectors. Infrastructure initiatives such as road construction, water supply networks, sewage systems, and oil and gas pipelines contribute significantly to the market growth. The residential infrastructure sector largely remains supported by low lending rates, strong demand for bigger homes, and low housing inventory. As the infrastructure and oil and gas industry continues to grow, the demand for piping system will continue to rise. This has also led to an increase in online sales of pipes. Request Your Sample Report Now! https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-14917 One key threat facing the pipe market is the volatility of raw material prices. Fluctuations in the prices of metals, plastics, and other materials used in pipe manufacturing can impact manufacturers production costs and profit margins. Geopolitical tensions, trade disputes, and disruptions in the global supply chain can exacerbate price volatility, posing challenges for market players in managing costs and maintaining competitiveness. An opportunity for the pipe market lies in adopting sustainable and eco-friendly piping materials. With increasing environmental concerns and regulatory pressures to reduce carbon emissions and promote sustainability, a growing demand for pipes made from recycled materials, composite materials, and other eco-friendly alternatives is growing. Companies investing in research and development to innovate sustainable piping solutions stand to capitalize on this trend and gain a competitive advantage in the market. The integration of advanced technologies such as IoT (Internet of Things) and AI (Artificial Intelligence) in pipe manufacturing and monitoring processes presents opportunities for market players to enhance product performance, efficiency, and safety, thus meeting the evolving needs of customers and industry. Which are the Key Opportunities for the Global Pipes Manufacturers? Governments across emerging regions are launching multiple infrastructure projects in order to strengthen commercial infrastructure. This in turn is expected to provide opportunities for public-private partnership infrastructure projects in the region which will thereby boost the sales of the pipes. Moreover, GCC countries are gradually shifting their focus towards developing into services driven economies. This shift in focus is expected to promote commercial infrastructure activities in the region and create opportunities for infrastructure -related investments giving opportunity to increase sale of pipes. Key Takeaways from the Market Study Under material, the metal segment is accounted to hold a market share of 67.73% in 2024. The United Kingdom is estimated to register at a CAGR of 5.79% by 2034. is estimated to register at a CAGR of 5.79% by 2034. China experiences significant growth, projected at a CAGR of 7.78% by 2034. experiences significant growth, projected at a CAGR of 7.78% by 2034. Based on diameter, the metals of 100 to 200 mm segment is accounted to hold a market share of 14.56% in 2024. "The increasing demand for urbanization, population growth, and industrialization continue, the need for pipes to facilitate the transportation of fluids and gases remains essential, thereby propelling market growth," Says Nikhil Kaitwade (Associate Vice President at Future Market Insights, Inc.) Competitive Landscape In the competitive landscape of the pipe market, numerous manufacturers, distributors, and suppliers compete based on factors such as product quality, pricing, geographical reach, and customer service. Key players continuously innovate to enhance their product portfolios, production efficiency, and market presence. Adherence to regulatory standards and sustainability initiatives also influence competitiveness in the market. Some of the key developments are: In December 2021 , North American Pipe Corporation, under Westlake Chemical Corporation, introduced advanced molecularly oriented polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes with reduced carbon footprint, offering eco-friendly water main solutions. , North American Pipe Corporation, under Westlake Chemical Corporation, introduced advanced molecularly oriented polyvinyl chloride (PVC) pipes with reduced carbon footprint, offering eco-friendly water main solutions. In July 2022 , Pipelife Austria Gmbh & Co KG collaborated with raw material supplier Inovyn to produce PVC sewage pipes entirely devoid of fossil fuels. These pipes were intended for a sustainable construction initiative in Gothenburg, Sweden , reflecting a commitment to eco-friendly practices and reducing environmental impact. Get the Insights You Need Connect with Sales to Secure Your Copy of Report: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/checkout/14917 Why is Italy Considered to be a Lucrative Market for Pipes Manufacturers? Italy pipes industry is set to register 6.44% CAGR by the end of the forecast period. In the context of deteriorating residential and commercial infrastructure demand, the growth in crude oil and petroleum industry and rising infrastructure spending is expected to boost infrastructure industry. As part of corona-recovery packages, Western European countries are planning significant investment in infrastructure developments, alongside some regulatory adjustment for quicker and more flexible infrastructure planning systems. This is expected to positively impact the pipes market in Europe. Top Key Players in the Pipe Market Aliaxis Group Sekisui Chemical Co. Ltd Orbia Advance Corp Astral Polytechnik Ltd Geberit AG Finolex Industries Ltd. Formosa Plastic Corporation Nan Ya Plastics Corp. Advanced Drainage Systems Incorporated Polypipe Group Plc AGRU Kunststofftechnik Gesellschaft M.B.H More Valuable Insights Available Future Market Insights offers an unbiased global pipes market analysis, providing historical data from 2019 to 2023 and forecast statistics from 2024 to 2034 To understand market opportunities, the pipes market is segmented based on Material Type [Plastic (PVC, CPVC, HDPE, LDPE, PP, ABS, Fiberglass), Metal, Composite], Diameter [Plastic (Up to 50mm, 50-100mm, 100-200mm, 200-400mm, 400-700mm, Above 700mm), Metal (Up to 50mm, 50-100mm, 100-200mm, 200-400mm, 400-700mm, Above 700mm), Composite (Up to 50mm, 50-100mm, 100-200mm, 200-400mm)], and Region (North America, Latin America, Western Europe, Eastern Europe, South Asia and Pacific, East Asia, and the Middle East and Africa). Report Preview: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/pipes-market About the Industrial Automation Division at Future Market Insights The industrial automation team at Future Market Insights offers expert analysis, time-efficient research, and strategic recommendations to provide authentic insights and accurate results to help clients worldwide. With over 100+ reports and one million+ data points, the team has analyzed the industry lucidly in 50+ countries for over a decade. The team briefly analyzes key trends, including competitive landscape, profit margin, and research development efforts. Authored by: 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 FMI's Extensive Coverage in the Industrial Automation Domain: Global demand for pipe inspection robots is expected to rise at a CAGR of 15.8% to USD 13 Billion in 2033. The sales of pipe flanges market is anticipated to achieve a CAGR of 4.1% during the forecast period, reaching a valuation exceeding USD 6,907.0 million by 2033. The global pipeline monitoring system market value is moving toward achieving a valuation of USD 30,463.4 million by 2034. Sales of transformer monitoring systems are proficient to attain the worth and strike USD 7,646.39 million by 2034. The portable filtration system market demand is set to progress at a CAGR of 5.4% through 2034. The market value is slated to increase from USD 720.7 million in 2024 to USD 1.2 billion by 2034. The pallet pooling market size is anticipated to reach USD 14.49 billion by 2034. The market is further expected to surge at a CAGR of 6.1% during the forecast period 2024 to 2034. The offshore wind market growth is projected to grow at a CAGR of 21.4% from 2024 to 2034. The market is expected to rise from USD 46.6 billion in 2024 to USD 325 billion by 2034. Over the forecast period 2024 to 2034, global gravity conveyor system demand is anticipated to rise at 5.2% CAGR. Total market value is predicted to increase from USD 484.5 million in 2024 to USD 804.4 million in 2034. The laminated busbar market is anticipated to reach USD 2.2 billion by 2034. The market is further expected to surge at a CAGR of 7.1% during the forecast period 2024 to 2034. Over the forecast period 2024 to 2034, explosion-proof motor demand is anticipated to rise at 4.4% CAGR. Total market value is predicted to increase from USD 3,602.2 million in 2024 to USD 5,540.8 million in 2034. 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 United Kingdom, the United States, and India. FMI's latest market research reports and industry analysis helps 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: [email protected] Website: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com LinkedIn| Twitter| Blogs | YouTube Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1197648/3531122/FMI_Logo.jpg SOURCE Future Market Insights ICEYE and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine sign a Memorandum of Cooperation HELSINKI, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ICEYE, the global leader in Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite operations for Earth Observation, and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine have signed a Memorandum of Cooperation to further strengthen their cooperation in remote sensing of the Earth in the interest of Ukraine's national security and defense. Memorandum of Cooperation between ICEYE, owner and operator of the worlds largest SAR satellite constellation, and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine strengthens cooperation on space defense. The Memorandum of Cooperation builds on ICEYE's unwavering support for the Government of Ukraine since 2022. In the Memorandum, ICEYE continues to constantly ensure that the imagery captured pertinent to Ukraine's territory is used in the interests of ensuring the security and defense of Ukraine in conditions of armed aggression and not shared in any circumstance with hostile countries or entities. The Memorandum also outlines ICEYE's and Ukraine's Ministry of Defense partnering to strengthen Ukraine's space defense capabilities even further and provide SAR expertise to support defense activities. The Memorandum focuses on advancing remote sensing technology, improving data use for security, and supporting Ukraine's integration into the global space economy. In August 2022, ICEYE announced signing a contract with the Serhiy Prytula Charity Foundation to provide the Government of Ukraine with ICEYE's SAR satellite imaging capabilities. As part of the agreement, one of ICEYE's SAR satellites is designated for the Government of Ukraine's use over the region. In addition, ICEYE provides access to its constellation of SAR satellites, allowing the Ukrainian Armed Forces to receive radar satellite imagery on critical locations with a high revisit frequency. "Cooperation with ICEYE and the signing of the memorandum will enhance our intelligence work. I'm grateful to the company for its commitment to values and the Ukrainian people. I support the intention to limit space imaging over the territory of Ukraine. We must protect the country on land, in the air, at sea, and in space," commented Deputy Minister of Defense Kateryna Chernohorenko on the signing of the memorandum. Oleksandra Ustinova, Head of Ukraine's Parliamentary Commission on Arms, commented: "I plead with all satellite companies to follow ICEYE's lead in not selling imagery to Russia. ICEYE has been an important partner for Ukraine in providing satellite data responsibly. We are grateful that they are taking the technological lead within the industry to help protect Ukraine from Russian aggression. ICEYE's modern technologies will be able to provide Ukraine with an advantage on the battlefield and far beyond enemy lines. I foresee this cooperation to strengthen with time and that together, we will engage in new defense space projects, directing Ukraine toward building a highly technological sovereign space capability." "ICEYE has been working closely with the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine from Day 1 to support and help Ukraine in building space defense capabilities. In line with our vision to improve life on Earth by becoming the global source of truth in Earth Observation, we take pride in our efforts to provide objective, actionable data and technological support to Ukraine. The use of new, ground-breaking technology will continue to add significant value to the Government of Ukraine," said Rafal Modrzewski, CEO and Co-founder of ICEYE. "As an operator of highly advanced space capabilities and as a supplier of geospatial intelligence, we believe that we have a responsibility to prevent the misuse of our services against Ukraine," continued Rafal Modrzewski, "We ask our peers to stand with us and Ukraine in this approach against unwarranted foreign aggression." Owning and operating the world's largest SAR satellite constellation, ICEYE delivers proven and reliable Earth Observation data and solutions. At any given time, most of the Earth is covered in clouds or darkness. Unlike traditional Earth observation satellites, ICEYE's small radar imaging satellites can form high-resolution images of areas of the Earth in daylight, at night, and through cloud cover. In other words, they can collect images and data from any part of the Earth multiple times a day, with the necessary reliability for critical decision-making. About ICEYE ICEYE delivers unparalleled persistent monitoring capabilities to detect and respond to changes in any location on Earth, faster and more accurately than ever before. Owning the world's largest synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite constellation, ICEYE provides objective, near real-time insights, ensuring that customers have unmatched access to actionable data, day or night, even in challenging environmental conditions. As a trusted partner to governments and commercial industries, ICEYE delivers intelligence in sectors such as insurance, natural catastrophe response and recovery, security, maritime monitoring, and finance, enabling decision-making that contributes to community resilience and sustainable development. ICEYE operates internationally with offices in Finland, Poland, Spain, the UK, and the US. We have more than 700 employees, inspired by the shared vision of improving life on Earth by becoming the global source of truth in Earth Observation. Media contact: [email protected] Visit www.iceye.com and follow ICEYE on LinkedIn and X for the latest updates and insights. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2455318/ICEYE_constellation.jpg Partnership With Successful Italian Karting Chain Delivers an Impressive Milestone During K1 Speed's Historic Anniversary MILAN, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- K1 Speed, the world's largest go-kart racing operator, is thrilled to announce a strategic partnership with Italy's successful indoor kart racing chain, Hollywood Kart, to expand its international footprint to ten countries and 100 locations. This landmark announcement coincides with the 20th anniversary of K1 Speed's first location opening in Carlsbad, California. K1 Speed is well-known for their indoor go-kart racing experience. Their Italian all-electric go-karts can reach speeds of up to 45 miles per hour, the fastest in the industry. Over the coming months, Hollywood Kart's six existing locations in Milan, Rome, Udine, Erba, Catania, and Marcianise will rebrand as K1 Speed locations. Additionally, a seventh location, K1 Speed Turin, is set to open in late September, with more locations already in the early development phases. This partnership unites two couples who have created indoor electric karting companies with enormous reputation and prestige in their home countries. "When Susan and I met Massimiliano and Martine Giurgola from Hollywood Kart, it just made sense to join forces as we share many of the same values and goals," says CEO and Co-Founder, David Danglard. "We are immensely proud of this partnership and to expand into Italy, such a beautiful country that's world-famous for its legendary cars, historic racing circuits, and immensely passionate motorsport fans." "We are similar in so many ways; I think it might be destiny that the four of us were brought together," says Massimiliano Giurgola, CEO and Co-Founder of Hollywood Kart. "Of course we can't help but chuckle at the irony: a Southern Californian company with Italian karts is teaming up with an Italian company that has a Southern Californian name. It was truly meant to be!" For more information about K1 Speed, visit www.k1speed.com . For more information about Hollywood Kart, visit www.hollywoodkart.it . ABOUT K1 SPEED Founded by David and Susan Danglard in 2003, K1 Speed is the largest indoor electric kart racing brand in the world. The company's 100 kart racing centers span 30 states and 10 countries. K1 Speed pioneered electric indoor kart racing in America and appeals to a broad consumer base, including men and women of all ages. The company targets arrive-and-drive customers, private parties and corporate events. In addition to electric karting, K1 Speed centers offer food and beverage options through its onsite Paddock Lounge concept, racing simulators, arcade games, race gear, racing leagues and championship events. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2453814/K1_Speed_Indoor_Go_Kart_Racing.jpg VALLETTA, Malta, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Kindred Group plc will publish its interim report for the second quarter 2024 on Wednesday 24 July 2024 at 07.30 (CEST). In connection with this, Kindred Group's CEO Nils Anden and Interim CFO Patrick Kortman will host a web presentation in English at 10.00 (CEST) which is webcasted live on https://www.kindredgroup.com/Q22024. To access the telephone conference in connection with the presentation, please register at https://conference.financialhearings.com/teleconference/?id=50047081. After registration you will be provided a phone number and a conference ID to access the conference. Please call in well in advance for registration. There will be an opportunity to ask questions after the presentation. For more information: Linda Lyth, Investor Relations Manager, +46 767 681 337 [email protected] This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com https://news.cision.com/kindred-group/r/kindred-group-s-q2-report-2024-and-invitation-to-conference-call,c4012454 The following files are available for download: https://mb.cision.com/Main/824/4012454/2906068.pdf Press release - Invitation to Q2 presentation 24 July 2024 https://news.cision.com/kindred-group/i/kindred-,c3318197 Kindred Augmented reality headset gives surgeons "x-ray vision" during procedures for accurate and personalized implant placement while keeping their eyes on their patients HACKENSACK, N.J., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- New Jersey Brain and Spine (NJBS) is now offering a new standard of advanced spine surgery to patients state-wide. Two NJBS surgeons have recently become New Jersey's first physicians to successfully treat patients with new technology, which allows surgeons to see anatomy as if they have "x-ray vision." In December 2023, Patrick A. Roth, MD, and Roy D. Vingan, MD, both neurosurgeons and co-founders of the NJBS practice, successfully performed spine surgeries using the Augmedics xvision Spine System. The FDA-cleared system is the first augmented reality (AR) navigation system to be used in surgery for both open and minimally invasive spine implant procedures. Nationally, the system has been used to help treat more than 6,500 patients in 24 states. The cutting-edge technology allows surgeons to keep their eyes directly on the patient, lending better visualization, control and accuracy during procedures. "Augmented reality allows us to advance what we can see inside the spine with pinpoint accuracy to apply various forms of instrumentation in the least invasive way. It is a navigation tool that gives us information in the operating room that is deeper than an x-ray, said Dr. Vingan. "It's kind of a wow moment, like looking through a telescope and seeing the stars. Suddenly, the world is open to you in a different way." The xvision Spine System is different from other available image guidance systems, as it keeps the surgeon's focus directly on the patient at all times, rather than a distant screen that displays the patient's anatomy. The new system is designed to revolutionize how surgery is done by giving surgeons better control and visualization, which may lead to easier, faster and safer surgeries. The xvision Spine System consists of a transparent near-eye-display headset and all elements of a traditional navigation system. It accurately determines the position of surgical tools, in real-time, and superimposes them on the patient's CT data. The navigation data is then projected onto the surgeon's retina using the headset, allowing him or her to simultaneously look at both the patient and the navigation data. "We are extremely proud to be the first surgeons to offer this amazing technology to residents of New Jersey," said Dr. Patrick Roth. "The accuracy is phenomenal. In each case we have performed, the accuracy has been right on the money. You get the added accuracy along with tactile feedback. For patients, this means smaller exposures, less pain, and greater precision. It also enhances safety for everyone in the operating room by reducing radiation exposure ." In minimally invasive procedures, 3D anatomy visualization technology allows surgeons to accurately guide instruments and implants intraoperatively, in real time, while looking directly at the patient. Using the xvision Spine System may also reduce surgeon exposure to radiation during the procedure. Since the first surgery using the Augmedics technology, New Jersey Brain and Spine surgeons have used the technology with 41 patients. "We believe that one of the strengths of our practice is that the surgeons have the flexibility to contextualize, improvise, and think outside of the box. We can lean in to advances and provide the very best care available," Dr. Roth noted. About New Jersey Brain and Spine New Jersey Brain and Spine is the area's premier neurosurgery practice for the treatment of complex brain and spine conditions. Our team of highly specialized neurosurgeons, orthopedists, neurologists and physiatrists are among the most highly trained and experienced in the country, and our patient outcomes are among the best in the nation. Leaders in their field and respective subspecialties, NJBS physicians begin with conservative care and extend to highly advanced, minimally invasive procedures as needed, achieving unparalleled outcomes when treating complex neurosurgical conditions, including strokes, aneurysms, brain and spine tumors, spine pain and disorders, and movement disorders such as Parkinson's disease. We perform more complex neurosurgical procedures than any other practice in the region, yet we view surgery as a last resort and always recommend the most conservative treatment appropriate for your situation. For more information, visit njbrainandspine.com. About Augmedics Augmedics (Chicago) pioneers cutting-edge augmented reality technologies to improve surgical outcomes. The company's revolutionary xvision Spine System allows surgeons to see patients' anatomy as if they have "x-ray vision" and accurately navigate instruments and implants during spine procedures. The first-of-its-kind, FDA-cleared xvision has been used to treat over 6,500 patients and implant more than 35,000 pedicle screws across 24 US states. Augmedics has received numerous awards and honors and was recently named a 2023 Chicago Inno Fire Award Blazer Winner, a distinguishment given to just 5 companies changing Chicago's tech scene for the better. To learn more or schedule an xvision demo, visit www.augmedics.com. For More Information: John Gonda [email protected] 616.309.4888 SOURCE New Jersey Brain and Spine ROCKVILLE, Md. and SUZHOU, China, July 7, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Ascentage Pharma (6855.HK), a global biopharmaceutical company engaged in discovering, developing and commercializing both first- and best-in-class therapies for hematological malignancies, announced today that its novel BCR-ABL1 tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI), olverembatinib, has been approved by the Pharmaceutical Administration Bureau (ISAF) of the Macau Special Administrative Region (SAR) of the People's Republic of China for the treatment of adult patients with tyrosine kinase inhibitors (TKI)-resistant chronic-phase chronic myeloid leukemia (CML-CP) or accelerated-phase CML (CML-AP) harboring the T315I mutation; and adult patients with CML-CP resistant to and/or intolerant of first-and second-generation TKIs. This approval marks another major milestone for olverembatinib following initial approvals granted to the drug in the Chinese mainland for the above indications. Olverembatinib, a novel drug developed by Ascentage Pharma with support from the National Major New Drug Development program, is the first third-generation BCR-ABL1 inhibitor approved by China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). As a potential global best-in-class drug that can effectively target BCR-ABL1 and a spectrum of BCR-ABL1 mutants, including the T315I mutation, clinical trial results of olverembatinib have already been included in the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines for the management of CML.[1] Olverembatinib is being jointly commercialized in China by Ascentage Pharma and Innovent Biologics. All lead drug candidates are being studied as they are an investigational drug and not approved in the US. "Olverembatinib has the potential to be a global best-in-class drug. We are glad that the drug is set to benefit patients with CML in Macau, China, with the approval marking another major milestone in the clinical development of olverembatinib," said Dr. Dajun Yang, Chairman and CEO of Ascentage Pharma. "Since its inception, Ascentage Pharma has steadfastly committed to its mission of addressing unmet clinical needs in China and around the world. We are confident that over time, olverembatinib and our other investigational drugs will bring greater benefits to more patients globally." Reference: 1. Shah N, Bhatia R, Altman JK et al. NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) Chronic Myeloid Leukemia Version 2.2024 (December 5, 2023). Available from: https://www.nccn.org/professionals/physician_gls/pdf/cml.pdf. About Ascentage Pharma Ascentage Pharma (6855.HK) is a fully integrated global biopharmaceutical company engaged in discovering, developing and commercializing both first-in-class and best-in-class therapies to address global unmet medical needs primarily in hematological malignancies. On October 28, 2019, Ascentage Pharma was listed on the Main Board of the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited with the stock code 6855.HK. The company has built a pipeline of 9 clinical-stage drug candidates, including novel, highly potent Bcl-2 and dual Bcl-2/Bcl-xL inhibitors, as well as candidates aimed at IAP and MDM2-p53 pathways, and next-generation TKIs. Ascentage Pharma is also the only company in the world with active clinical programs targeting all three known classes of key apoptosis regulators. The company is conducting more than 40 clinical trials, including 6 global registrational Phase III studies, in the US, Australia, Europe, and China. Olverembatinib, the company's first lead asset developed for the treatment of drug-resistant chronic myeloid leukemia (CML) and the company's first approved product in China, has been granted Priority Review Designations and Breakthrough Therapy Designations by the Center for Drug Evaluation (CDE) of China National Medical Products Administration (NMPA). To date, the drug had been included into the China National Reimbursement Drug List (NRDL). Furthermore, olverembatinib has been granted Orphan Drug Designations (ODDs) and a Fast Track Designation (FTD) by the US FDA, and an Orphan Designation by the EMA of the EU. To date, Ascentage Pharma has obtained a total of 16 ODDs from the US FDA and 1 Orphan Designation from the EMA of the EU for 4 of the company's investigational drug candidates. Leveraging its robust R&D capabilities, Ascentage Pharma has built a portfolio of global intellectual property rights and entered into global partnerships with numerous leveraging its robust R&D capabilities, Ascentage Pharma has built a portfolio of global intellectual property rights and entered into global partnerships with numerous leading biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies such as Takeda, AstraZeneca, Merck, Pfizer and Innovent ; and research and development relationships with leading research institutions such as Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Mayo Clinic, MD Anderson Cancer Center, National Cancer Institute and the University of Michigan. The company has built a talented team with global experience in the discovery and development of innovative drugs and is setting up its world-class commercial manufacturing and Sales & Marketing teams. One pivotal aim of Ascentage Pharma is to continuously strengthen its R&D capabilities and accelerate its clinical development programs, in order to fulfil its mission of addressing unmet clinical needs in China and around the world for the benefit of more patients. Forward-Looking Statements The forward-looking statements made in this article relate only to the events or information as of the date on which the statements are made in this article. Except as required by law, Ascentage Pharma undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, after the date on which the statements are made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events. You should read this article completely and with the understanding that our actual future results or performance may be materially different from what we expect. In this article, statements of, or references to, our intentions and expectations or those of any of our Directors or our Company are made as of the date of this article. Any of these intentions and expectations may alter in light of future development. SOURCE Ascentage Pharma MediaTek's market share in 5G smartphones rose to 29.2% in 1Q24, up from 22.8% in 1Q23, while Qualcomm Snapdragon's share decreased from 31.2% to 26.5% over the same period. Figure 1 illustrates MediaTek leading followed by Apple and Snapdragon. Other chipset manufacturers, such as Exynos, Google, Kirin and UniSoC collectively account for 17% of shipments. This share has increased in the past year driven by Kirin's growth, particularly with the Huawei Mate 60 Pro and Nova 12 series. Following HiSilicon's announcement to cease Kirin chipset production from September 15, 2020, amid ongoing trade tensions between Huawei and the United States, the Kirin 9000s chipset concluded its production in August 2023. MediaTek's expansion over Snapdragon in the 5G smartphone market is largely attributed to the increasing availability of phones priced under $250 equipped with 5G chipsets a segment dominated by MediaTek. According to figure 2, shipments of 5G smartphones below $250 surged by 62%, from 38.7 million in 1Q23 to 62.8 million in 1Q24. This has particularly favored MediaTek, as it is the preferred choice in this price range for 5G phones, while Snapdragon leads in mid-range 5G phones and Apple dominates the premium segment. Over the past three years, as most chipset makers shifted from producing 4G to 5G chipsets, UniSoC has capitalized on the opportunity to increase its share in the declining 4G market. UniSoC is now MediaTek's primary competitor in this sector. During this period, Apple, Exynos and Snapdragon underwent significant transitions in their chipset portfolios, focusing heavily on 5G technology. For instance, Exynos reduced its reliance on 4G chipsets from 77% of smartphone shipments in 1Q21 to just 1% in 1Q24. In comparison, MediaTek continues to use 4G chipsets for over 50% of its shipments. Aaron West, Senior Analyst in Omdia's Smartphone group explains: "The smartphone chipset industry is primarily shaped by two major trends: the widespread adoption of 5G and the expanding low-end segment. As 5G technology becomes more affordable and is integrated into smartphones priced below $250, MediaTek stands to benefit the most. Conversely, on-device AI capabilities are becoming increasingly important to smartphone OEMs, with Snapdragon emerging as a key innovator and preferred choice for premium devices." ABOUT OMDIA Omdia, part of Informa Tech, is a technology research and advisory group. Our deep knowledge of tech markets combined with our actionable insights empower organizations to make smart growth decisions. Contact: Fasiha Khan [email protected] SOURCE Omdia Student-designed uniforms focus on performance, brand heritage, and increased comfort for women Orkin Pros ATLANTA, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Orkin and SCADpro today announced their recent partnership resulting in the rollout of new Orkin uniforms for more than 10,000 employees. The new shirt features a poly spandex blend material that is breathable and stretches for comfort while working. The Orkin Marketing team approached the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) to engage SCADpro, the university's collaborative innovation studio that generates business solutions for the world's most influential brands, with a design challenge to reimagine the company's uniforms. The SCADpro team consisted of 16 talented students and two faculty leads representing top-ranked SCAD degree programs, including fashion, fashion marketing and management, graphic design, art history, animation, illustration, film and television, luxury and brand management, and more. The students worked in two groups, a graphics team and fashion team, to effectively meet the needs of the design brief. The updated uniforms are anchored in white, red, and black with classic khaki a return to a classic color palette inspired by Orkin's brand identity and heritage. The uniforms have changed in fit, form, and functionality, but have maintained a professional look as part of Orkin's core values. The execution of these design efforts was informed by the team's in-depth understanding of the need to improve utility and fabric choices to make Orkin Pros, specifically women, more comfortable and productive on the job. "The opportunity to work with Orkin allowed SCAD students to see their thoughtful work launch into the world and positively impact both the consumer and employee experience," said Paul Stonick, vice-president of SCADpro. "By implementing strategies in areas including textile sourcing, corporate social responsibility, and integrated marketing, students successfully delivered the Orkin uniform to look professional and represent Orkin's tradition and storied background." "We are proud to have partnered with SCADpro to reimagine the iconic Orkin uniform that is professional, practical, and cost effective," said Pat Chrzanowski, President Orkin USA. "Our new Orkin Pro uniforms are just that a modern take on the iconic Orkin residential and commercial uniforms, while retaining our brand's values and strong visual identity." New Uniform Design The new uniform design was focused on updating the traditional Orkin uniform by elevating and modernizing the design. This shirt design, although simple in concept, is an updated design to the current Orkin uniform. The shirt is more comfortable and functional while maintaining the traditional and recognizable elements of the current design. Uniform Shirt The new shirt features a poly spandex blend material that is breathable and stretches for comfort while working. The residential shirt's red epaulets have been updated to red shoulder stripes for a more modern look. The shirt design also includes one pocket with a pen holder, which offers more utility. The new design also features darting on the women's shirts to improve fit. Uniform Pants Orkin's uniform pants were updated with performance fabric that offers wrinkle resistance and a four-way stretch for comfort and mobility. The new pants also provide breathability in summer months. The design features a device pocket on one side and cargo pocket on the other, on both men's and women's pants. The pants pockets were also moved to the front for a more modern look. On the women's pants, elastic has been added in the back waist to improve fit, while maintaining a flat front look. The new design also features a belt made of nylon woven with a locking slide for improved fit, a more modern look, and increased durability. From the beginning, the goal for the new Orkin uniform was to stay true to the heritage of the Orkin brand, from top to bottom, while making it more comfortable and better meeting the needs of every Orkin Pro. The new uniform design has minor silhouette changes; but is elevated with more sophisticated and versatile textile choices and thoughtful utility details. About Orkin, LLC Founded in 1901, Atlanta-based Orkin aspires to be the world's best service company. As an industry leader in essential pest control services, Orkin offers protection against termite damage, rodents, and insects, providing a safe place for people to live, work, and play. Orkin has more than 360 owned-and-operated branch offices and more than 45 franchise locations in the U.S. and international franchises and subsidiaries in Canada, Europe, Central America, South America, the Caribbean, the Middle East, Asia, the Mediterranean, Africa, and Mexico. Through its values of safety, integrity, innovation, professionalism, and empathy, Orkin is committed to protecting public health by helping prevent and control pests as well as educating consumers on the potential health risks posed by these pests. As such, since 2020, Orkin has partnered with the American Red Cross to inform the public about the health threats of mosquitoes while boosting our country's blood supply through monetary contributions and blood donations. Orkin is committed to hiring the world's best to deliver the peace of mind only a service-minded Orkin Pro can provide. Learn more about careers at Orkin [link: careers.orkin.com/orkin]. Visit Orkin.com for additional information. Orkin is a wholly owned subsidiary of Rollins Inc. (NYSE: ROL). Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn. About SCADpro SCADpro is the Savannah College of Art and Design's collaborative innovation studio that generates business solutions for the world's most influential brands. SCADpro is recognized as the preeminent university partner in higher education and among design agencies worldwide. Unlike other agencies and university programs, SCADpro invites clients to engage in every step of the ideation and creative process and to work directly with student designers, professors, and alumni focused on clients' desired outcomes. For more information on SCADpro, visit scad.edu/scadpro. SCAD: The University for Creative Careers SCAD is a private, nonprofit, accredited university, offering 100 graduate and undergraduate degree programs across locations in Atlanta and Savannah, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and online via SCADnow. SCAD enrolls more than 17,500 undergraduate and graduate students from more than 120 countries. The future-minded SCAD curriculum engages professional-level technology and myriad advanced learning resources, affording students opportunities for internships, professional certifications, and real-world assignments with corporate partners through SCADpro, the university's renowned research lab and prototype generator. SCAD has earned top rankings for degree programs in interior design, architecture, film, fashion, digital media, and more. Career success is woven into every fiber of the university, resulting in a superior alumni employment rate. A 2023 study found that 99% of SCAD graduates were employed, pursuing further education, or both within 10 months of graduation. SCAD provides students and alumni with ongoing career support through personal coaching, alumni programs, a professional presentation studio, and more. Visit scad.edu. SOURCE Orkin, LLC Green Energy Cooperation Deepens Between China and The Republic of Cote d'Ivoire BEIJING, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Power Construction Corporation of China ("POWERCHINA" or "the Company") announced that the first unit of the Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station project on the Sassandra River in the Republic of Cote d'Ivoire's Soubre province, constructed by the Company, successfully completed a 72-hour trial operation on June 5, 2024, achieving grid connection and power generation ahead of schedule and officially entering commercial operations. This success will expedite economic and social development in Cote d'Ivoire by balancing income and expenditure in the power sector, significantly improving the livelihoods of residents. POWERCHINA's Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station in Cote d'Ivoire Achieves Early Grid Connection and Power Generation with First Unit Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station Project is located downstream from the POWERCHINA-completed Soubre Hydropower Station. It is the second power station undertaken by the Company along the quickly developed Sassandra River Basin. The power station is equipped with three cross-flow units with a total installed capacity of 112.9MW and a storage capacity of 82 million cubic meters. The dam is 4.2 kilometers long with a maximum height of approximately 18.58 meters. Since the project officially started in August 2021, the on-site team has overcome multiple challenges and successfully promoted the implementation of the project, adding clean electricity to Cote d'Ivoire. Once put into full operation, the Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station project will further exert huge economic and social benefits. The project will help Cote d'Ivoire achieve its dual carbon emission reduction goals and generate additional energy to support neighboring countries. By providing surplus electricity, the country will enhance its role as a key energy provider in West Africa, benefiting the entire region. Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station General Manager, Mr. Noumory Sidibe, commented: "This is a key project in the implementation of Cote d'Ivoire's clean energy development strategy that will make a positive contribution to the expansion of the country's power supply and foreign exports." Governor KONE also expressed satisfaction with the project's progress, noting that the completion of the Gribo-Popoli Hydropower Station will make Soubre Province a source of pride for the entire nation. The Gribo-Popoli project integrates deeply with the local community, focusing on large-scale construction and providing significant assistance. The project team has repaired roads and built primary schools, fostering close ties with residents. The repaired road section, crucial for its high traffic, connects St. Mary's medical Clinic and the Total Energy gas station. Previously severely damaged, the repair has greatly enhanced convenience and safety for the community. Looking ahead, POWERCHINA is continuing to bring more clean energy to the African region and achieve mutually beneficial results in an increased number of areas. About POWERCHINA Founded in 2011, Power Construction Corporation of China (POWERCHINA) is a leading construction group specializing in investment and financing, planning and design, engineering construction, equipment manufacturing, and operation management. The company ranked 105th among the Fortune 500 in the year 2023. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2455460/image.jpg Sunrise continues to leverage its highly scalable operating platform to capture market share and bring highly personalized lifestyle, wellness, and care services to North America's aging population. MCLEAN, Va., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Sunrise Senior Living, a pioneer in personalized senior living services for the last 40 years, is pleased to announce it has successfully added 13 senior living communities to its growing North American portfolio, which continues to serve three distinct consumer segments: luxury, premium and middle market. Additional strategic community additions are expected to be announced throughout the third quarter of 2024. This robust growth stems from both establishing new strategic owner relationships seeking long-term, programmatic growth with Sunrise, as well as incremental growth with existing partners with interest to expand their relationship given the Company's excellent track record of strong operating performance. In recent weeks, Sunrise has assumed operations of the following portfolios: A new joint venture ownership interest where Sunrise leveraged its strong balance sheet and simultaneously assumed management of two, high-quality communities in the dense suburbs of Chicago that expands the Company's core premium assisted living and memory care services in an existing, high-performing market. leveraged its strong balance sheet and simultaneously assumed management of two, high-quality communities in the dense suburbs of that expands the Company's core premium assisted living and memory care services in an existing, high-performing market. A managed portfolio currently comprising eight independent living communities providing valuable services at an affordable price point in the greater Rocky Mountain area, with three additional communities anticipated to close in the coming weeks. Additionally, Sunrise continues to grow its ground-up development pipeline, most recently opening brand new lease-up communities in highly protected submarkets across Northern and Southern California Sunrise of Cupertino and Sunrise of Oceanside, respectively. Two additional communities, Sunrise of Killarney and Sunrise at Lonsdale Square, are slated to open in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada this summer. Looking ahead, Sunrise anticipates unveiling the Company's first premium segment assisted living and memory care community in the greater Miami, Florida area Sunrise of Coral Gables by the end of 2024. "With an industry-leading, highly scalable operating platform, a proven track record of compelling value creation for our owners, and incredibly robust consumer demand for our distinctive, personalized senior living offering, Sunrise is in significant growth mode backed by the confidence of both new and existing investors to manage, acquire, and develop senior living communities across the luxury, premium, and middle-market segments," said Jack R. Callison, Jr., chief executive officer for Sunrise. "Our approach to gain a deep understanding of each submarket we operate in combined with the unique needs of the various consumer segments we serve allows us to customize specific offerings to cultivate interest in diverse consumer-facing products, all backed by the strong, dynamic support of Sunrise's team of senior living and hospitality experts." Sunrise's growing North American portfolio of communities is supported by a fully integrated, diverse team of subject matter experts in core functions that include design, development & construction, asset management, real estate acquisitions, capital markets, financial performance & data analytics, human resources, and strategic marketing. The Company's investment in people, process, and information technology facilitates access to a differentiated and proven approach, offering owners a highly scalable and reliable operating platform that adapts to individual community demands across North America's most desirable senior living sub-markets. For more information about Sunrise Senior Living, visit sunriseseniorliving.com. About Sunrise Senior Living Founded in 1981, Sunrise Senior Living is credited with establishing the modern era of senior living. Each Sunrise community is dedicated to delivering a personalized approach to senior living where every aspect of the services and environment is built around the specific wants and needs of the individual seniors that call the community home. From purposefully created and thoughtful design, to engaging programming and lifestyle activities and best-in-class quality of care that evolves with the needs of each senior, Sunrise's industry-leading innovation is built upon its mission to champion quality of life for all seniors. Celebrating 40 years, Sunrise operates more than 240 communities in the United States and Canada serving more than 20,000 residents. With more than 20,000 highly trained team members, Sunrise offers a full range of personalized services, including independent living, assisted living, care for individuals with Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia, as well as nursing and rehabilitative services. Contact: Heather Hunter, 870-230-9500, [email protected] SOURCE Sunrise Senior Living Beaumont, Texas firm launching nationwide rare coins and precious metals marketing endeavor with 1st American Coin and 1st National Reserve BEAUMONT, Texas, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Nationally-known Universal Coin & Bullion, Ltd. (www.UniversalCoin.com) of Beaumont, Texas has announced a new strategic marketing venture with two other Beaumont rare coin and precious metals dealers, 1st American Coin, Ltd. and 1st National Reserve, Ltd. All three companies are Better Business Bureau accredited and members in good standing of other consumer protection and education organizations such as the National Coin and Bullion Association. "Gold, silver, and high-quality rare coins have performed exceptionally well in recent years." Post this Mike Fuljenz, president of Universal Coin & Bullion. "Gold, silver, and high-quality rare coins have performed exceptionally well in recent years. This joint venture will strengthen all three companies by combining resources and providing unparalleled benefits for our existing and future customers," stated Dr. Mike Fuljenz, president of Universal Coin and Bullion. "We will soon launch a large, nationwide marketing campaign including television, print, radio, and other media," he explained. The 25,000-member American Numismatic Association named Fuljenz the Dealer of the Year in 2021 and presented him with its highest award for distinguished service in 2023. He has also been honored by the prestigious Professional Numismatists Guild for his successful efforts to combat fraud in the rare coins and precious metals marketplace. His free, weekly Metals Market Report (www.MikeFuljenz.com) has won numerous awards from the Southeast Texas Press Club and the Numismatic Literary Guild. "Of course, I'm very excited about this new joint venture and what it means for the three companies and for current and future customers," said Fuljenz, the senior numismatic expert for the three companies. "It also will mean better performance for our recommendations to clients and create more demand for our customers' coins. We can increase our market impact for better acquisition options for numismatic and bullion products. "In addition, this will enhance our expertise, research and development while sharing technology resources and improvements to provide new cutting-edge services for collectors and investors." For decades, 1st American, 1st National and Universal Coin and Bullion have been accredited with an A+ rating by the Better Business Bureau and are recognized among the most trusted dealers in numismatics and precious metals. Combined the three companies have assisted more than 500,000 clients and transacted over $2.2 billion in precious metals and rare coin sales. Although 1st American and 1st National will begin doing business as Universal Coin & Bullion, the three companies will continue to operate as separate legal entities. For additional information, visit www.UniversalCoin.com, call 800-822-4653, or email [email protected]. SOURCE Universal Coin & Bullion Seasoned finance executive Mr. Adrian Lim is promoted to the role of Wishpond's Chief Financial Officer. VANCOUVER, BC, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Wishpond Technologies Ltd. (TSXV: WISH) (OTCQX: WPNDF) (the "Company" or "Wishpond"), a provider of marketing-focused online business solutions, is pleased to announce the appointment of Adrian Lim as Chief Financial Officer (CFO), effective immediately. Reporting directly to Mr. Ali Tajskandar, CEO of Wishpond, Mr. Lim will have responsibility for all finance, accounting, financial reporting, audit, tax, and capital planning functions. Mr. Lim assumes the CFO role from David Pais who has been the company's CFO for the past 2 years. The appointment of Mr. Lim remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange. Mr. Ali Tajskandar, CEO of Wishpond, commented, "We are delighted to promote Mr. Lim to Wishpond's executive team as our new CFO. Mr. Lim's robust background in finance with a Big Four firm, coupled with his leadership roles as Finance Manager and Group Financial Controller at Wishpond, will be instrumental as we navigate Wishpond's next phase of strategic growth and innovation. I also want to extend my heartfelt gratitude to David Pais, who has served as our CFO since January 2022, playing a crucial role at an unprecedented time. We deeply appreciate David Pais' dedication and contributions and wish him all the best in his future endeavors." Mr. Lim brings extensive financial leadership experience to his new role as Chief Financial Officer at Wishpond. Previously serving as Group Financial Controller for over three years at the Company, Mr. Lim played a pivotal role in guiding the Company through the multiple acquisitions and growth following the Company going public in December 2020. Before joining Wishpond, Mr. Lim honed his skills in the Assurance Practice at Ernst & Young LLP in Seattle, WA, specializing in leading public company audits and transactions across technology, biotech, and Fortune 500 sectors. He also gained valuable financial experience while at BDO Canada LLP in Vancouver, BC. Mr. Lim holds a BCom from the University of British Columbia, has a CPA designation from CPABC, and has completed the CPA examination in the United States. Mr. Lim commented, "Having been a part of the team since 2020, I have witnessed firsthand the incredible impact our solutions have on empowering entrepreneurs to achieve online success. Wishpond's innovative offerings and commitment to delivering comprehensive marketing solutions have always inspired me. My background in accounting with a global accounting firm, coupled with my tenure at Wishpond, has equipped me to enhance and execute Wishpond's financial strategy. I am thrilled to take on the role of CFO and look forward to expanding my responsibilities at Wishpond." Ali Tajskandar Chief Executive Officer Wishpond Technologies Ltd. About Wishpond Technologies Ltd. Based out of Vancouver, British Columbia, Wishpond is a provider of marketing-focused online business solutions. Wishpond is a leading provider of digital marketing solutions that empower entrepreneurs to achieve success online. The Company's Propel IQ platform offers an "all-in-one" marketing suite that provides companies with marketing, promotion, lead generation, ad management, referral marketing, sales conversion and outbound sales automation capabilities in one integrated platform. Wishpond replaces disparate marketing solutions with an easy-to-use product, for a fraction of the cost. Wishpond serves over 4,000 customers who are primarily small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) in a wide variety of industries. The Company has developed cutting-edge marketing technology solutions, including an AI powered website builder, an AI email automation tool, an AI Sales Agent and continues to add new AI enabled features and applications. The Company employs a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) business model where most of the Company's revenue is subscription-based recurring revenue which provides excellent revenue predictability and cash flow visibility. Wishpond is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker "WISH", and on the OTCQX Best Market under the ticker "WPNDF". For further information, visit: www.wishpond.com . Forward-Looking Statements This press release may contain certain forward-looking information and statements ("forward-looking information") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation, that are not based on historical fact, including, without limitation, statements relating to the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange in relation to the appointment of Mr. Lim, and statements containing the words "believes", "anticipates", "plans", "intends", "will", "should", "expects", "continue", "estimate", "forecasts", "schedule" and other similar expressions. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Actual results and developments may differ materially from those contemplated by these statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to comment analyses, expectations or statements made by third-parties in respect of the Company, its securities, or financial or operating results (as applicable). Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in forward-looking information in this press release are reasonable, such forward-looking information has been based on expectations, factors and assumptions concerning future events which may prove to be inaccurate and are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, certain of which are beyond the Company's control, including, but not limited to, risks associated with the protection of intellectual property of the Company, risks relating to the successful performance and integration of Mr. Lim to the executive team of the Company, and the risk factors discussed in the public disclosure documents of the Company that are available through SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. The forward-looking information contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement and are made as of the date hereof. The Company disclaims any intention and has no obligation or responsibility, except as required by law, to update or revise any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. SOURCE Wishpond Technologies Ltd. Lawsuit loan company restarts funding on YDC sex abuse cases effective immediately, despite the state of New Hampshire challenging the legality of the landmark verdict. CONCORD, N.H., July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Legal-Bay, The Pre Settlement Funding Company, announced today that the landmark $38MM verdict against the New Hampshire Youth Detention Center (YDC) is most likely headed back to the courts on appeal. A jury initially awarded the damages to lead plaintiff David Meehan for the sexual abuse violations he endured at YDC in the 1990s. Parties are due back in court on July 15 to file additional motions and make oral arguments. However, based on the state's unwillingness to accept the judge's proposal, the most likely scenario is a retrial. For victims of sexual abuse, having to go through a retrial forces them to relive their trauma all over again. At stake for the state and its taxpayers is a large award that could be paid out from state coffers. Possible appeals could throw the entire class of claimants in jeopardy if they do not opt into the settlement. A positive for opt-ins is a new bill signed into law by New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu just last month which will increase the awards, offering larger compensation to the plaintiffs. The bill adds $60MM to the settlement fund while also extending the deadline for victims to file suit against their abusers. Chris Janish, CEO of Legal Bay, had this to say, "Legal-Bay was the first funding company to support victims of the YDC sex abuse litigation, and with the news of increased state legislative aid coming for opt-in clients only, we are initiating our YDC sexual abuse funding again immediately. Due to our close relationship with the entire class, we are refraining from further comment on the direction of the litigation at this time, but can state unequivocally that we continue to support all victims and their pursuit of justice." If you're a lawyer or plaintiff involved in an active sexual abuse lawsuit of any kind and need an immediate cash advance against an impending lawsuit settlement, please visit Legal-Bay HERE or call toll-free at 877.571.0405. Legal-Bay reports that the New Hampshire YDC litigation has approximately 1500 cases filed to date. When Legal-Bay began funding early onwhen no other company wouldthere were just eight plaintiffs. The company says the other victims have David Meehan and Rus Rilee to thank for their courage to take on the state in what has become one of the most egregious criminal and civil violations of children's rights in U.S. History. It doesn't end there, though, as YDC is not an isolated problem. Litigations all over the country are emerging, and the psychological damage inflicted upon so many is beyond what normal society can even comprehend. Legal-Bay is at the forefront of each and every one of these litigations, doing their best to support the victims to get their lives back in order and help them receive justice. And it isn't only about the money for Legal-Bay; it is about the compassion to believe plaintiffs when they relay their accounts about what happened to them, to let them know that someone is in their corner. Legal Bay's loan for settlement funding programs are designed to provide immediate cash in advance of a plaintiff's anticipated monetary award. While it's common to refer to these legal funding requests as settlement loans, loans for settlements, lawsuit loans, loans for lawsuits, etc., the "lawsuit loan" funds are, in fact, non-recourse. That means there's no risk when it comes to loans in lawsuit settlements because there is no obligation to repay the money if the recipient loses their case. Therefore, terms like settlement loan, loans for lawsuit, loans on settlement, or lawsuit loan funds don't necessarily apply, as the "loan on lawsuit" isn't really a loan at all, but rather a stress-free cash advance. Legal-Bay is known to many as the best legal funding company in the nation when it comes to sexual abuse funding, and one of the best lawsuit loan companies overall for their knowledgeable staff, low rates, and quick turnaround, sometimes within 24-48 hours once all documents have been received. To apply right now for a loan settlement program, please visit the company's website HERE or call toll-free at: 877.571.0405 where agents are standing by to answer any questions. SOURCE Legal-Bay, LLC If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here Jerusalem, July 8 : Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has stated that he would only agree to a ceasefire deal with Hamas if it allows Israel to resume its military operations in Gaza following the release of hostages. As international mediators prepare for upcoming talks in Cairo to advance negotiations, Netanyahu on Sunday outlined five non-negotiable conditions to end the nine-month conflict. He emphasised that any agreement must permit Israel to continue its operations in Gaza "until all the goals of the war have been met", Xinhua news agency reported. Netanyahu also insisted that the deal must prevent Hamas from smuggling weapons into Gaza from Egypt and prohibit the return of "thousands of armed Hamas militants" to northern Gaza. Addressing the issue of hostages, Netanyahu pledged to secure the release of as many hostages as possible from Gaza, where over 100 individuals are still held captive, some feared dead. Also on Sunday, Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant affirmed that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) will maintain its operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon, even if a ceasefire agreement is reached in Gaza. Gallant said the conflict in Gaza and on the northern border with Hezbollah are "two separate sectors," clarifying that Israel would not be bound by development in Gaza unless Hezbollah also reached an agreement with Israel. Beirut, July 8 : Hezbollah has said that it attacked with drones at Israel's technical and electronic reconnaissance centre in Mount Hermon, north of Golan Heights, in response to Israel's killing of a senior Hezbollah member on Saturday. The well-equipped centre was set on fire, and its targeted devices were destroyed in the air attack by "successive squadrons of assault drones", the Lebanese military group said in a statement on Sunday. The group said the centre in Mount Hermon was targeted for the first time since the 1973 Arab-Israeli war, and the operation is considered the largest by Hezbollah's air force since October 8, 2023, Xinhua news agency reported. Lebanese military sources told the news agency that the Lebanese army positions monitored the launch of several drones on Sunday afternoon from the Lebanese side to Israel, some of which had been intercepted by the Iron Dome system and Israeli warplanes. On Saturday, the Israeli military killed Hezbollah commander Maysam Al-Attar in a drone strike on the city of Baalbek, eastern Lebanon. Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on October 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with a surprise attack by Gaza-ruling Palestinian faction Hamas into Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon. San Francisco, July 8 : A mass shooting in the US city of Detroit on Sunday left at least two people dead and 19 people wounded, according to preliminary information from the Michigan State Police. The state police, which is assisting the Detroit Police Department in the investigation, said in a tweet on Sunday that no one has been taken into custody regarding the incident. The victims have been taken to St. John Hospital, Xinhua news agency reported, citing local media. Detroit reported another shooting on June 1, when four people were shot at a block party attended by more than 100 people. Paris, July 8 : The far-right's stab at power in France, buoyed by its strong showing in the first round of the parliamentary elections, seems to have fallen apart as the leftist coalition is projected to win the maximum seats, as per exit polls released after the close of polling in the second round on Sunday, though no bloc will get a majority. All the major TV channels were predicting a victory for the left combination New Popular Front (NPF - as per its French name), while the far-right National Rally seems to have slumped to third place, behind President Emmanuel Macron's Ensemble alliance. As per the Ipsos-Talan poll for France Televisions and Radio France, the NPF is projected to gather 170-190 seats, Ensemble 150-170, and the National Rally 130-150. The Republicans could scoop up 50-70 and the remaining will go to the other left and other smaller parties. 289 is the majority mark in the 577-member National Assembly. However, the picture will be clearer on Monday only when the results are formally announced after counting of votes. There was jubilation in the camp of the NFP, a combination of Socialists, Ecologists, Communists and France Unbowed (LFI), formed as a united force against the far-right after President Macron called the snap parliamentary election last month. Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the radical left France Unbowed, the largest in the left-wing coalition, claimed victory, terming the result "the outcome of a magnificent mobilisation effort". "The President has to bow and admit this is a defeat... the Prime Minister needs to leave. The President has the power and the duty to call the NFP to govern," he added. "The NFP is ready," he adds. On the other hand, the mood was subdued in the headquarters of the National Rally, where its PM hopeful Jordan Bardella could not mask his disappointment even as he sought to portray a positive position, citing the increase in the strength of the party. Marine Le Pen, who co-leads the National Rally with Bardella, was more defiant, saying that her party's "victory has only been delayed", and she "sees the seeds of tomorrow's victory in today's result", the BBC reported. President Macron will be "analysing" the results before taking any next steps, the President's office said in a statement, adding he will "respect the choice of the French people". Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said that he would submit his resignation to the President on Monday. "Tonight, although Ensemble has won three times the number of seats than had been predicted, we don't have a majority. And so, tomorrow morning, I will hand in my resignation to the President of the Republic," he told reporters at this official residence. Lucknow, July 8 : A 12-year-old boy died after suffering gunshot injuries in Krishna Nagar locality in Lucknow, said officials here. The incident happened on Sunday night. Police said that according to preliminary information, the victim, Shiva Singh, was playing with the rifle belonging to his maternal uncle, Sanjay Singh, at his rented accommodation in the Prem Nagar area when it fired. "Sanjay Singh, originally from Jalaun and currently seeking employment as a security guard in the city, had come to stay with his brother-in-law Balbir Singh, who serves in the Army and resides in Prem Nagar," said DCP (South Zone) Tej Pratap Singh. DCP Tej Pratap Singh said that according to the preliminary probe based on statements from family members, Sanjay had left the loaded rifle in the room and gone to the market to purchase vegetables. Shiva found the firearm and inadvertently discharged it, resulting in a bullet piercing his stomach. On hearing the gunshot, Shiva's sisters Renu and Neetu rushed to his aid, along with neighbours, and rushed him to Lok Bandhu Hospital. He was transferred to the trauma centre at KGMU where doctors pronounced him dead. ADCP (South Zone) Shashank Singh said, "We have dispatched a field unit and a senior officer to the crime scene for examination. The rifle has been confiscated and sent to the forensic laboratory for analysis." Islamabad, July 8 : A Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) officer was killed in a terrorist attack in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi, police officials said. CTD Deputy Inspector General Asif Aijaz Shaikh told the press on Sunday that unknown terrorists riding a motorcycle sprayed bullets at a senior CTD officer when he was visiting his friend in the Karimabad area of Karachi, critically injuring him and a security guard, reports Xinhua news agency. The injured CTD officer succumbed to his injuries on the way to a nearby hospital, said the official, adding that the attackers promptly fled the scene. Police said that it was a targeted attack on the CTD personnel, and the attackers opened fire after he came out of his bullet-proof vehicle. Chandigarh, July 8 : In an intelligence-led operation, Punjab Police's Counter Intelligence of Jalandhar has apprehended key assailant, Simranjeet Bablu, a member of the Babbar Khalsa International (BKI) involved in the fatal shooting of a former terrorist, Rattandeep Singh, on April 3 in SBS Nagar, Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav said on Monday. "The module was operated by Pakistan-based terrorist Harwinder Rinda and USA-based Gopi Nawanshehria," he wrote on X. Sophisticated weapons along with a huge cache of ammunition were recovered and further investigations have been ongoing, he added. Meanwhile, in two search operations, a Pakistani drone and a packet of heroin were recovered, the Border Security Force (BSF) said. The first recovery of the Pakistani drone took place in Wan village in Tarn Taran district, and the second recovery of 250 grams of heroin took place in Rorawala village in Amritsar district. The recovered drone has been identified as a China-made DJI Mavic 3 classic. Reliable input and prompt response of BSF troops once again succeeded in thwarting the nefarious designs of cross-border smugglers, said officials. Los Angeles, July 8 : 'Barbie' star Margot Robbie is all set to welcome her first baby with her filmmaker-actor husband, Tom Ackerley. Several sources have confirmed that the 34-year-old actress and her husband are expecting their first child, reports People.com. According to DailyMail.com, the actress flaunted her blooming baby bump as she carefully boarded a boat during a holiday at Lake Como with her husband on Sunday. Margot wore a cropped white T-shirt that exposed her stomach, paired with black trousers, a black blazer, and a cream leather bag. The actress was assisted by her husband, who gave his hand out for her to hold. The couple first met in 2013 on the set of the World War II drama 'Suite FranAaise', where he was an assistant director, and she was acting. They married in December 2016 during a private ceremony in Australia's Byron Bay, having never announced their engagement before the wedding. Margot and Ackerley were friends first and worked together at their production company, LuckyChap, on a four-person producing team that also includes Robbie's childhood friend Sophia Kerr and Josey McNamara. The company has produced several films and television series, including 'I, Tonya', 'Birds of Prey', and 'Barbie', all of which starred Robbie. Ulan Bator, July 8 : Another Mongolian opposition party, the Hun Party, announced on Monday that it has agreed to form a coalition government with the ruling Mongolian People's Party (MPP). "People may wonder why we, the opposition, are choosing to form a coalition government with the ruling party. We aim to foster a culture of stability and collaborative governance," Togmid Dorjkhand, Chairman of the Hun Party, said in a statement, reports Xinhua news agency. "However, we will engage in debates at the parliament level. At the government level, the Hun Party accepts the proposal to form a coalition government, emphasising the need to move beyond partisan bickering and advance the country's major projects." The MPP secured a narrow margin of victory in the parliamentary elections held on June 28, winning 68 of the 126 seats up for grabs, while the Democratic Party (DP) obtained 42 seats. The Hun Party secured eight seats, with the Civil Will-Green Party and the National Coalition each securing four seats. The ruling party has proposed the formation of a coalition government with the main opposition: the Democratic Party and the Hun Party. On Sunday, the DP announced that it had accepted the ruling party's proposal to form a coalition government. In May 2023, the Asian country's parliament, also known as the State Great Khural, passed amendments increasing the number of legislators from 76 to 126. The elections were conducted under a mixed electoral system, with 78 legislators elected through majority representation and 48 through proportional representation. The Asian country's parliament operates under a unicameral system with a four-year term. New Delhi, July 8 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday embarked on a three-day official visit to Russia and Austria. In the first leg of his visit, PM Modi will be in Moscow for the 22nd Annual Summit between India and Russia and before departing he said he was looking forward to meeting his friend President Vladimir Putin. Posting on his X handle, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." In his departure statement, the PM said, "The Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges." "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM added. Prime Minister is scheduled to arrive in Moscow late afternoon. President Putin will host a private dinner for PM Modi on Monday night. On Tuesday, PM Modi's interactions would include an interface with the Indian community in Russia. As part of programming elements, the PM will also lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier in the Kremlin. And thereafter, he will visit the Rosatom Pavilion at the exhibition venue in Moscow. These engagements will be followed by a restricted-level talk between the two leaders, which will then be followed by delegation-level talks led by PM Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Prime Minister will depart Moscow for Vienna on Tuesday afternoon. In Austria, PM Modi will meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. "Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism. This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others," the PM said. "Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct," the PM added. Mumbai, July 8 : Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has heaped praise on the work done by filmmakers and artists, calling it "so awe-inspiring." Mumbai, July 8 (IANS) Megastar Amitabh Bachchan has heaped praise on the work done by filmmakers and artists, calling it "so awe-inspiring." The cine icon, who is currently being lauded for his impeccable performance as Ashwatthama in the latest release, 'Kalki 2898 AD', took to his blog to share his thoughts. "The dexterity of the work done by filmmakers, the performances of the artists, the work on the Production and presentation, all so awe-inspiring," he wrote. The thespian expressed that creativity has an unending life. "Yes, inspiring be the right form, for there is so much to imbibe... creativity has an unending infinite value and life .. each day and hour is a learning graph... to observe to search to inhabit the creation and be in mode of its representation... ALL..." The legendary star, who religiously meets his fans outside his home in Mumbai, also talked about how the love coming his way makes him emotional. The icon shared some pictures from the gates of Jalsa, his home in Mumbai, where a sea of fans gathered to catch a glimpse of their favourite star. "The outpouring is so emotional... words fall short of expression on the presence of all that come to my humble home .. may all the goodness be within you all and may the grace of the Almighty ever be you," he said. On July 7, it was reported that 'Kalki 2898 AD', which is directed by Nag Ashwin and set in the post-apocalyptic world of 2898 AD, is inching towards the Rs 1,000 crore mark globally. Apart from Amitabh, the film also stars Kamal Haasan and Deepika Padukone in pivotal roles. Kolkata, July 8 : Names of two more Trinamool Congress local leaders have been included in the supplementary charge sheet filed by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) earlier this month at a special NIA court in Kolkata in connection with the Bhupatinagar blast. The explosion in East Midnapore District of West Bengal in December 2022 killed three persons. With the inclusion of Manab Kumar Parua and Nabakumar Panda, the total number of people named in the charge sheet has gone up to eight. Apart from public works executive officer Parua in East Midnapore District and the partyas Patashpur chief Panda, three of the other six named in the charge sheet are local Trinamool Congress leaders in East Midnapore District Panchanan Gharai, Manobrata Jana and Balai Charan Maity. Also named in the charge sheet are the three persons killed in the blast, namely Raj Kumar Manna, Biswajit Gayen and Buddhadeb Manna who were also local Trinamool Congress activists in East Midnapore. All of them were shown as accused in the charge sheet after investigation revealed their involvement in the criminal conspiracy related to the bomb blast. They were booked under various Sections of the earlier Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Explosive Substances (ED) Act. To recall, the NIA sleuths and the accompanying Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) personnel were attacked by local Trinamool Congress activists in April this year while they were returning to Kolkata after arresting Maity and Jana. The windscreen of the NIAas vehicle was also smashed and one officer was injured. After the blast the West Bengal police started the investigation in the matter, later the probe was handed over to NIA following a Calcutta High Court. The NIA took over the investigation on June 4, 2023. Lucknow, July 8 : The BJP in Uttar Pradesh will now adopt a more offensive posture on issues related to Dalits in order to counter the opposition narrative. The party sees this as a reason for the shifting of Dalit voters from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the recently concluded Lok Sabha polls and the lack of Dalit leadership in Uttar Pradesh. At a meeting of the party's SC cell with national general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh here on Sunday evening, the media cell of the party was instructed to be more offensive during TV debates and counter every narrative of the opposition with facts. Santhosh, in separate meetings with prominent leaders of the SC Morcha of the BJP and the party's media cell, also discussed the party's internal assessment of the Lok Sabha polls, and it was concluded that Dalit voters, apart from Jatavs, who were with the BJP in the 2019 polls, had shifted to the INDIA bloc this time. Santhosh tried to find out the reasons for this shift while interacting with the party's Dalit leaders. During the meeting, Santhosh stressed that the BJP's SC Morcha and Dalit leaders should make all-out efforts to bring back Dalits into the party fold. Asim Arun, social welfare minister in the state government, said, "In the meeting, it was discussed what else could be done for the deprived community. We were asked to give suggestions on this issue. The BJP is working for the deprived, but strategies are being prepared to also include those who are still excluded. The meeting discussed how they can be further improved." Santhosh also asked the SC Morcha to dispel the misconception spread by the opposition regarding reservation and change in the Constitution. During campaigning for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, BJP's slogan 'Ab ki baar, 400 par' was used by the opposition to drive home the point that BJP would change the Constitution and revoke reservations if it won 400 seats and formed the government at the Centre. Gulab Devi, secondary education minister in the state government, said: "Dalits are getting maximum benefits when it comes to free ration. Another community which does not think in good terms for the BJP is also getting the maximum benefit of the free ration scheme." She added that Dalits were not angry with the BJP. Former BJP MP from Barabanki Priyanka Rawat said the opposition misled people on the issue of reservation. Santhosh pointed out that circumstances had changed after the Lok Sabha election. "Opposition is more offensive now and you (media cell) will have to counter every narrative (of the opposition) with facts," Santhosh said. He pointed out that news channels' outlook towards the BJP had also changed somewhat after the 2024 Lok Sabha election. In this changed scenario, the party's media cell would have to counter every propaganda of the opposition with facts. Kadapa : , July 8 (IANS) Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Friday paid tributes to his father and former chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh, late YS Rajasekhara Reddy on his 75rd birth anniversary. Accompanied by his mother YS Vijayamma, wife YS Bharathi and other family members, YSR Congress Party President, Jagan Mohan Reddy laid a wreath on the late leader's grave at YSR Ghat at Idupulapaya in YSR Kadapa District. They participated in the special prayers conducted on the occasion and sat in silence for a few minutes. YSR Congress MPs, MLAs, MLCs and other leaders also paid tributes to YSR, as the late leader was popularly known. Jagan Mohan Reddy took to X to pay rich tributes to his father. He wrote that YSR's birth anniversary was a festive day and that millions of families were remembering him. "YSR Congress workers, leaders and fans are going ahead with service activities on your birth anniversary. The path you have shown for the welfare of the people is our mainstay. The discipline you have followed throughout your life, the hard work you have done and the courage you have shown in politics are the way for us. We will continue our efforts till the end to realize your dreams and achieve the goal of the welfare of crores of families," wrote Jagan Mohan Reddy. YSR's daughter and state Congress President, YS Sharmila Reddy also paid tributes to the late leader at his grave. Vijayamma was also present on the occasion. Sharmila was accompanied by her son, daughter-in-law and other family members. Sharmila and Jagan Mohan Reddy have been separately attending YSR's birth and death anniversary events at YSR Ghat ever since differences cropped up between them after he became the Chief Minister in 2019. YSR Congress suffered a crushing defeat in the recent Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Sharmila, who is trying to claim the legacy of YSR, became President of state Congress early this year after merging YSR Telangana Party with the Congress. "I believe your 75th birthday is splendidly celebrated in heaven Pa. Thank you for all the love you showered on me. Will cherish it close to my heart forever and promise to hold on to your roots, your ideology and your legacy," wrote Sharmila in her tributes on X. Sharmila is holding a meeting in Vijayawada later in the day to mark YSR's birth anniversary. Telangana Chief Minister, A Revanth Reddy, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and other Congress leaders are scheduled to attend the meeting. YSR was the chief minister of undivided Andhra Pradesh from 2004 to 2009. The Congress leader died in a helicopter crash on September 2, 2009, a few months after he led the Congress party to its second-consecutive electoral victory. Jagan Reddy, who was then a Congress MP, later parted ways with the Congress and floated YSR Congress Party. Jaipur, July 8 : The government schools in Rajasthan are set to celebrate January 22 as the Ramlala Pran Pratishtha Day after the date was included in the list of annual festival days of the state's Education department. The Rajasthan School Education Council recently made this addition to its calendar which mentions the dates of festivals and days to be celebrated in the schools. This calendar does not specify how this day has to be celebrated and what the students will have to do on this day. However, the calendar shares general directions on how these festivals or days should be celebrated. The first tip says that there should be discussion regarding these days, that students should be informed about the significance of the day and drawings should be made by students depicting the significance of the particular day. School Education Minister Madan Dilawar launched this calendar three days ago, his office confirmed to IANS. As per the calendar, the students will also celebrate Raksha Bandhan in school where students shall tie Raksha Sutra to each other a day before the festival. This year Raksha Bandhan is on August 19 which is Monday, the festival will, therefore, be celebrated on Saturday (August 17) in the schools. Silchar : , July 8 (IANS) Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi who was in Assam on Monday to take stock of the flood situation, said that the extreme devastation caused by flooding in the state was heartbreaking. The LoP met a delegation of Assam Congress led by state President Bhupen Kumar Borah. The delegation apprised him of the flood situation in the state. Gandhi in a post on X handle said, "The extreme devastation caused by flooding in Assam is heartbreaking - with innocent children like 8-year-old Avinash being taken away from us. My heartfelt condolences to all the bereaved families across the state." Quoting the Assam Congress leaders, he said that over 60 people died in the current Assam floods while over 53,000 people were displaced and 24 lakh people were affected. "These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJP's double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam," Gandhi said. He said: "Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision - proper relief, rehabilitation, and compensation in the short term, and a pan-Northeast water management authority to do everything necessary to control floods in the long term." "I stand with the people of Assam, I am their soldier in Parliament, and I urge the Central govt to extend all possible help and support to the State expeditiously." Later, Gandhi visited Manipur's Jiribam district, where fresh violence occurred after the killing of 59-year-old Soibam Saratkumar Singh, a farmer, on June 6, and met the inmates of the relief camps. Congress sources said that the LoP interacted with the inmates in the relief camps where people took shelter after the Jiribam violence broke out. An indefinite curfew was promulgated and a huge contingent of the central paramilitary forces and state commando battalions were deployed to deal with the ethnic violence in Jiribam district, a mixed populated area adjoining southern Assam. New Delhi, July 8 : About 73 per cent of Indian organisations plan to harness generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) within the next 12 months to enhance security measures and align IT objectives with broader business goals, a new report said on Monday. However, only 8 per cent of organisations showed high confidence in effectively implementing GenAI technologies, according to the exposure management company Tenable. "Despite the rise of AI, many Indian businesses are still developing their technology maturity and often lack the resources or skills needed to properly create, train, and implement AI, as well as maintain high standards of data governance," said Nigel Ng, Senior VP, Tenable APJ. The report surveyed 826 IT and cybersecurity professionals, including 52 Indian respondents conducted in October 2023. Moreover, the report identified two major challenges hindering Indian organisations from utilising or optimising AI technologies -- a lack of technological maturity (71 per cent) and uncertainty about the applicability of AI within their operations (54 per cent). An aspect of concern highlighted by the report was the perception of GenAI as a greater security threat than an opportunity among 40 per cent of Indian organisations. Internal misuse of GenAI emerged as a major concern, with 67 per cent expressing worry about potential misuse within their organisations. Additionally, 60 per cent said that providing sensitive data to open-source GenAI puts them at risk of intellectual property theft. Despite facing significant challenges in adopting AI technologies, cybersecurity and IT leaders in India were optimistic about the potential benefits of GenAI. Around 31 per cent believe GenAI can enhance preventive threat response, 42 per cent think it can automate security measures, and 40 per cent feel it can improve actionability, according to the report. "The future holds great promise in leveraging GenAI's evolutionary capabilities for preventive cybersecurity measures. This shift moves the needle on merging IT and security objectives and places importance on prioritising AI governance and using the technology responsibly," Ng said. New Delhi, July 8 : The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea filed by the West Bengal government challenging the court-monitored CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) probe into land grabbing and extortion cases in Sandeshkhali. A bench presided over by Justice BR Gavai declined to interfere with the order of the Calcutta High Court directing the CBI to commence its probe in the matter after creating a special investigation team (SIT) for that purpose. In an earlier hearing, the top court had raised eyebrows on the filing of the special leave petition (SLP) by the state government and questioned it for protecting the "interests of some private individuals". Explaining the stance of the state government, senior advocate Jaideep Gupta said that the plea was filed against certain findings and "unfair comments" contained in the impugned order of the high court. At this, the top court had said, "You can go to the high court and ask for expunging of the remarks if you are aggrieved." It had adjourned the hearing till July, clarifying that the pendency of the petition before the Supreme Court will not be used for "any purposes", including prolonging of proceedings pending before the Calcutta High Court. In an order passed in the second week of April, a division bench of Chief Justice T. S. Sivagnanam and Justice Hiranmay Bhattacharyya had asked the investigative agency to submit a detailed report to the high court following which the latter will decide on the next course of action. It had directed the CBI to open a separate portal and email through which the victims in Sandeshkhali can register their complaints relating to illegal land grabbing and extortion, adding that the Central agency will maintain absolute secrecy with regard to the identity of the complainants. It had ordered the district administration in North 24 Parganas including the district magistrate and the district police superintendent to identify the sensitive pockets at Sandeshkhali and install CCTVs. The district administration was also directed by the high court to properly illuminate the streets at Sandeshkhali. Several public interest litigations (PILs) were filed before the Calcutta High Court in connection with illegal land grabbing and extortion at Sandeshkhali, where the main accused was a section of the local Trinamool Congress leaders led by the now-suspended ruling party leader Sheikh Shahjahan. Earlier in March, the Supreme Court had dismissed the plea filed by the state government challenging the CBI probe into the attack on ED and CAPF teams at Sandeshkhali in North 24 Parganas District on January 5. However, it had ordered to expunge the adverse observations made against the West Bengal Police and the state government in the impugned judgment of the Calcutta High Court. New Delhi, July 8 : Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, who is behind bars in the alleged liquor policy scam for around 16 months, urged the Supreme Court on Monday to list his pleas seeking bail. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Sisodia, submitted before a bench presided over by CJI DY Chandrachud that the top court last month had granted liberty to revive the special leave petitions challenging the denial of bail. "The Supreme Court had granted liberty to list it after the 3rd of July. It is a revival because the court kept the matter in abeyance," said Singhvi, adding that July 23 is shown as the tentative date of listing and an email seeking urgent listing of application seeking revival of bail pleas has also been sent to the registry. At this, CJI Chandrachud said, "I will attend the email the moment we rise. It will not be deleted." Last month, the apex court had disposed of Sisodia's plea seeking bail in corruption and money laundering cases after Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta, the second highest law officer of the Centre, made an undertaking that the final charge sheet/complaint in the liquor policy case would be filed by July 3. Earlier, the Delhi High Court had denied bail to the senior AAP leader, saying that he failed to pass the triple test for grant of bail in the corruption case and the twin conditions required under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. A bench of Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma of the High Court, however, clarified that he could continue to meet his ailing wife every week, on the same terms as set earlier by the trial court. In March, the Supreme Court dismissed the curative petitions filed by Sisodia against the dismissal of his review pleas against its 2023 verdict denying him bail in connection with the liquor policy case. In its judgment delivered on October 30, 2023, the top court denied bail to Sisodia but said that if the trial proceeds slowly in the next three months, he may apply for bail afresh. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja of Rouse Avenue Court had on April 30, refused to grant bail to Sisodia who was seeking regular bail a second time. During the trial court's decision to deny bail, it was noted that delays in the case proceedings were largely due to actions attributable to Sisodia himself, dismissing his claims of undue delay. Meanwhile, a Delhi court last week extended till July 15 the judicial custody of Sisodia in the excise policy case being probed by the ED. Moscow, July 8 : Russia stopped an attempt by the Ukrainian special services to organise a hijack of a Russian Tu-22M3 strategic bomber abroad, local media reported on Monday, citing Federal Security Service (FSB). TASS news agency quoted an FSB statement as saying that the agency also found the involvement of NATO special services in preparing and implementing the operation. The Ukrainian intelligence planned to recruit a Russian military pilot for a monetary reward and the promise of Italian citizenship to persuade him to fly and land the missile carrier in Ukraine, reports Xinhua news agency, citing the FSB statement. During the operation, the Russian counterintelligence also received information that helped to deliver a fire strike at a Ukrainian air base, it said. The Tu-22M3 is a long-range supersonic missile carrier bomber with variable-sweep wings designed to strike sea and land targets with guided missiles and bombs. It can carry both nuclear and conventional bombs and missiles. Ulan Bator, July 8 : The ruling Mongolian People's Party (MPP), the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), and the Hun Party, meaning "Person" in Mongolian, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday to form a coalition government, following regular parliamentary elections held on June 28. In the ninth parliamentary elections, the MPP secured a narrow margin of victory, winning 68 of the 126 seats, while the DP obtained 42 seats. The Hun Party secured eight seats, with the Civil Will-Green Party and the National Coalition each securing four seats, reported Xinhua news agency. The decision to form a coalition government aims to swiftly address Mongolia's development challenges, consider the critical international relations and geopolitical situation, and emphasise national unity, according to the parties. After signing the MoU, Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene, Mongolian Prime Minister and chairman of the MPP said, "Our country's government has had an average life expectancy of 1.5 years, and development policy planning has been unstable since 1990. Many projects that have been initiated remain unfinished and undergo continuous changes without reaching completion." "The memorandum aims to change this situation, quickly solve the problems of development, and send a message to foreign investors that Mongolia is a more stable and trustworthy country," he said. Luvsannyam Gantumur, chairman of the DP, affirmed their coalition participation with a focus on economic growth, livelihood improvement, a healthy business environment, and individual freedoms. Togmid Dorjkhand, leader of the Hun Party, expressed his confidence that Mongolian politics, especially at the government level, is now adopting a completely new attitude, culture, and structure. "Over the past 30 years, our country has operated under a two-party system marked by excessive partisanship and mutual blackmailing, which has resulted in lost development opportunities. Today's decision prioritises the interests of the country over those of individuals and parties," said Dorjkhand. In May 2023, the Asian country's parliament, also known as the State Great Khural, passed amendments increasing the number of legislators from 76 to 126. The elections were conducted under a mixed electoral system, with 78 legislators elected through majority representation and 48 through proportional representation. The Asian country's parliament operates under a unicameral system with a four-year term. Manila, July 8 : Philippine troops killed two suspected rebels in a clash early Monday in Masbate province, southeast of Manila, a spokesperson for the Philippine military said. Major Frank Roldan of the Philippine Army said the two New People's Army (NPA) insurgents were killed in a 15-minute fighting that broke out before 7 a.m. local time in Esperanza town, reports Xinhua news agency. He added that four rebels fled the encounter site, leaving behind their dead companies. The troops recovered an M653 rifle, a calibre 38 revolver, and other personal belongings of the rebels. No government soldier was killed or wounded in the clash. NPA rebels have been fighting the government troops since 1969. Despite the decreasing number of fighters, NPA rebels concentrate their attacks on rural areas and have skirmishes with the military. Military data showed that the NPA's personnel strength has declined since its peak of around 25,000 armed members in the 1980s. Bengaluru, July 8 : Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara, on Monday, said that there is no need for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the Mysore Urban Development Authority (MUDA) scam alleging involvement of Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. Addressing the media, Parameshwara said: "We will not try to hush up any scam. We are an open book; there is nothing hidden. CM Siddaramaiah has clarified the matter, and there is no need to make statements about it repeatedly." "There is no necessity for the government to form an SIT to probe the MUDA land scam. There is also no necessity to hand over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Chief Minister has clarified the issue, and there is no necessity to probe the matter," he reiterated. Dismissing the talks of the high command being upset about the Congress infighting over the post of the Chief Minister and issuing gag orders, the Minister stated that nothing of that sort has happened. "I had gone to New Delhi with CM Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar. The high command appreciated our performance and sent us back. No other instructions were given during the meeting. They have told us that we are doing a good job," Parameshwara said. When asked about BJP MLA Basanagouda R. Patil Yatnal's letter to the Central government to stop guarantee schemes alleging that they are ruining the state economy, Parameshwara stated: "Let the Central government get back to us; we will see about it. We are chosen by the people to govern the state. The people have not elected them (BJP)." "The people have given a mandate for BJP to govern at the Centre. They will administer as the Central government, and we will govern here. It is MLA Yatnal's opinion. We have taken measures to help people while also keeping a healthy economy in mind," Parameshwara maintained. "If guarantees create issues, resolving those issues is our responsibility. The amount of Rs 56,000 crore that we spend on guarantees, we will handle the consequences. We don't want their guidance and direction in that regard," Parameshwara said. Responding to a question whether the Central government could issue directions regarding the guarantees, the Karnataka Home Minister said: "Let them issue directions. We will see." "That is why I mentioned that people have elected us to rule and not them. On what basis would the Central government give directions?" Parameshwara questioned. Reacting to Union Minister Pralhad Joshi's statement about the state government being financially incapable of purchasing rice from the Centre, Parameshwara stated: "Let the Union Minister and the Central government write a letter in this regard, and they will know how we will respond to it." He further mentioned that CM Siddaramaiah has called a meeting of officers to understand the issues faced by people in all districts. Additionally, the meeting will also assess how the officers have successfully implemented the government's programmes and how they are responding to the grievances of the people, according to the minister. "The meeting will start today, and discussions will be taken up regarding all departments and reviewed," he added. "The objective is to motivate the administration to work efficiently, and the meeting has been called to encourage them to take up the works of the people and deliver a more people-friendly administration," he emphasised. Bengaluru, July 8 : Commenting on the sensational fan murder case that took place exactly one month ago (June 8) involving jailed Kannada superstar Darshan Thoogudeepa, Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara on Monday stated that sufficient evidence is being collected and the police will file a charge sheet against actor Darshan and others. Addressing the media persons, Parameshwara stated that after the case came to light, over the course of one month, all the accused have been arrested, evidence is being collected, and the police will file a charge sheet against them. "We can't fast-forward things. There is a laid down procedure for it. Sufficient evidence will be collected, and a charge sheet will be filed. There is no need to protect or save anyone in this case," he emphasised. The gruesome murder of Renukaswamy took place on June 8 in Bengaluru. He was kidnapped from his hometown, Chitradurga, brought to Bengaluru, kept in a shed, and tortured to death. After the murder, his body was disposed of in a gutter. The incident came to light after the security personnel of a private apartment saw the body being dragged by a pack of dogs. Renukaswamy is survived by aged parents, a pregnant wife and a sister. When the police began the investigation, four of the accused surrendered to the police, claiming responsibility for the murder over a financial matter. After Kamakshipalya police interrogated them, the involvement of actor Darshan, his 'partner' Pavithra Gowda, and others came to light. It was revealed that the accused had brutally hacked Renukaswamy to death for sending obscene messages to Pavithra Gowda. Actor Darshan and 15 others were remanded to judicial custody until July 18. San Francisco, July 8 : A team of researchers from the US-based University of North Carolina has identified a potential treatment for a rare genetic disorder -- 'Angelman syndrome', a new study said on Monday. Angelman syndrome is caused by mutations in the maternally inherited UBE3A gene and is characterised by poor muscle control, limited speech, epilepsy, and intellectual disabilities, explained researchers in the study published in the journal Nature Communications. Ben Philpot, PhD, the Kenan Distinguished Professor at the UNC School of Medicine, and his lab have identified a small molecule that could be safe, non-invasively delivered, and capable of 'turning on' the dormant paternally-inherited UBE3A gene copy brain-wide, which would lead to proper protein and cell function, amounting to a kind of gene therapy for individuals with Angelman syndrome. "This compound we identified has shown to have excellent uptake in the developing brains of animal models," said Philpot, who is a leading expert on Angelman syndrome. As per researchers, UBE3A helps regulate the levels of important proteins; missing a working copy leads to severe disruptions in brain development. The researchers screened over 2,800 small molecules to determine if one could potently turn on paternal UBE3A in mouse models with Angelman syndrome. They found that a compound -- (S)-PHA533533, which was previously developed as an anti-tumour agent, caused neurons to express a fluorescent glow that rivalled that induced by topotecan, meaning that its effect was potent enough to successfully turn on paternal UBE3A. Researchers were able to confirm the same results using induced pluripotent stem cells derived from humans with Angelman syndrome, indicating that this compound has clinical potential, the study mentioned. In addition, they observed that (S)-PHA533533 has excellent bioavailability in the developing brain, meaning it travels to its target with ease and sticks around. "We were able to show that (S)-PHA533533 had better uptake and that the same small molecule could be translated in human-derived neural cells, which is a huge finding," said Hanna Vihma, PhD, and first author of the study. Mumbai, July 8 : Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday asked the Opposition not to do politics on water logging in Mumbai due to heavy rains as it is the time to conduct relief operations and rescue those trapped in the water logging. Shinde, who visited the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation control room, said that BMC, Railway Department, Disaster Management Department and NDRF teams are working in close coordination to carry out necessary measures to drain the water from the waterlogged places in Mumbai. Shinde said that schools have been closed as a safety measure. He appealed to the citizens not to venture out of their homes unnecessarily as the weather bureau has announced an Orange Alert at the Konkan coast for the next 24 hours. He said, "BMC will soon start 7 pumping stations including Morgan and Mahul pumping stations to drain out water and the carrying capacity of Mithi and Poisar rivers will be increased. BMC will also put flood gates so during high tide the sea water would not flow into the rivers." "BMC has taken action against encroachments in these areas. There is a need to widen the rivers and canals. BMC will take up these works soon. BMC is going to install pumps and floodgates at various places so that water gathered after the heavy rains can be drained into the sea. Due to floodgates, seawater will not enter the city, even during high tide," added Shinde. He further stated that BMC has constructed holding tanks at Hindmata and Milan Subway which has helped to address the issue of water logging in these areas. He added such holding tanks will be constructed elsewhere too. Besides, the micro tunnelling done below the railway tracks has been instrumental in tackling the water logging. Shinde said that heavy rains were also reported in the coastal districts adding that he has reviewed the situation from the state Disaster Management Control room. Hubballi, : July 8 (IANS) An incident of a schoolboy being attacked for talking to a girl at school was reported from Hubballi in Karnataka on Monday. Police Commissioner for Hubballi and Dharwad, N. Shashikumar, said that a video of a gang of five to six members attacking a schoolboy had gone viral on social media. He said that the incident caused concern among schools, colleges, and parents. "Considering the seriousness of the situation, action has been initiated. The investigation was taken up following a complaint by the principal of the school," he said. Police Commissioner Shashikumar said that the investigation revealed that the victim was attacked for talking to a school girl after arguments between the victim and others. "Those who attacked him are students of different schools and colleges. Four accused have been booked under the Juvenile Justice Act, and legal action against a 19-year-old nursing college student has been taken," he said. He said that a meeting was held with the students, principals, and parents of the accused and directions have been issued to educate the boys not to indulge in any crime in the future. "The Hubballi-Dharwad Police Commissionerate has directed all schools and colleges within the limits of the Hubballi and Dharwad twin cities to install CCTV cameras. They have also been told to contact the police if any untoward incidents takes place," the Police Commissioner said. Police said that the victim was questioned by the gang about why he was talking to the girl and when arguments broke out between them, the gang attacked him. "They rained blows on the victim and kicked him. The video of the incident went viral on social media, creating panic among parents, teachers, and the student community," the police said. mka/dan --IANS Seoul, July 8 : Russia hopes to maintain "safe lines" in its bilateral relations with South Korea and work to improve ties despite the current chill, its top envoy to Seoul said on Monday. Russian Ambassador Georgy Zinoviev made the remarks at a Seoul event marking the shared history of the two countries, throughout which he noted Russia has been a neighbour that has worked to act in consideration of South Korea's interests, reports Yonhap news agency. "Our country was a constructive force genuinely interested in Korea's autonomy and independence. Russia continuously pursued this line after establishing de facto diplomatic relations," Zinoviev said at the opening ceremony of an exhibition marking the 140th anniversary of the signing of the first bilateral treaty. "Russia did not act against Korea's interests, instead it tried to defend them in every possible way," he said. Zinoviev's remarks came at a time when Seoul-Moscow relations remain frayed over Moscow's tightening relationship with North Korea, with a focus on military cooperation. The bilateral ties further chilled after Russian President Vladimir Putin's recent visit to Pyongyang last month for talks with the North's leader Kim Jong-un, during which they signed a treaty pledging mutual military assistance in case of an armed attack on either of them. "We hope that our relations will maintain the safe lines and develop in a better direction," he said, adding that he is making every effort to create positive momentum. Zinoviev accused the West of "discrediting" his country in the wrong way, as they have been so in history, calling for an "objective" view of the present for the future of the bilateral ties. "We witness attempts to discredit Russia, present its actions in a false light," he said, confirming afterwards that he meant the Western media and politicians. "Sometime in the future, we could see more of an objective view on Russia's actions, both in the past and in the present," Zinoviev said. The exhibition, co-hosted by the Russian Embassy in Seoul, features historical materials and archives related to Korea-Russia relations between the late 19th and early 20th century, including reproduced paintings by Jang Seung-eop, a renowned Korean painter from the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). The two paintings, unveiled to the public for the first time, are part of his artwork that Joseon's King Gojong presented to then-Russian Emperor Nicholas II for his coronation in 1896. The exhibition will run from July 8 to August 31 at the Appenzeller Noble Memorial Museum in central Seoul. Bengaluru, July 8 : Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday lashed out at the state's Deputy Commissioners (DCs) and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), reminding them that they are not maharajas but public servants and warning them that if the spread of dengue cases is not contained, higher officers will also be held responsible for negligence and apathy. Addressing the meeting of DCs and CEOs at the Conference Hall of the Vidhana Soudha here, he said: "If Deputy Commissioners feel that they are maharajas, development and progress are not possible. Both politicians and bureaucrats are public servants, and with this in mind, they should serve the people." He said that the work on containing dengue cases should be taken up on a war footing and the DCs and District Health Officers (DHOs) must work in coordination with taluk-level officers and act swiftly. Until now, action has been initiated against lower-rung officers for negligence and apathy and from now on, action will be taken against senior officers, Siddaramaiah said. aMany deaths were reported from the consumption of contaminated water. If these cases recur, action will be initiated against senior officers," he stressed. aKarnataka is a model state in good governance, and there is a responsibility on everyone to uphold this honour. I am receiving 15,000 to 20,000 petitions during public grievance meetings. If the officers had looked into them, I would not have received such a huge number of petitions. The DCs and CEOs who attend public grievance meetings are merely endorsing the complaint copies. Are you here to do just this?" the CM said. However, Siddaramaiah said: "I have not called this meeting to criticise officers. This is a review meeting." Jammu, July 8 : Two army soldiers were injured on Monday in firing by the terrorists in J&K's Kathua district. "Two army soldiers sustained injuries in the initial firing by the terrorists. The injured soldiers have been shifted to the hospital for treatment," an official said. He said that the terrorists attacked an army vehicle in the Barmora village, 52 kms from Kathua town. He said that Cordon & Search Operation (CASO) is now underway in the area. Security forces have been aggressively going against the terrorists in order to destroy the terror ecosystem in the UT. Six terrorists were killed in the two-day-long twin encounters in the Kulgam district of the Kashmir Valley. The operation in Kulgam district ended on Sunday afternoon. Paris, July 8 : French President Emmanuel Macron rejected Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation on Monday after the ruling party failed to secure a majority in the snap legislative elections, French news channel BFMTV reported. Macron has asked Attal to remain as prime minister "for the moment" to ensure the country's stability, BFMTV reported, citing the presidential office, the Elysee, reports Xinhua news agency. In the two rounds of legislative elections held on June 30 and July 7, Macron's centrist coalition finished second with 163 seats, trailing the left-wing parties' alliance, the New Popular Front (NFP), which secured a relative majority with 182 seats in the 577-member National Assembly. The French president announced the dissolution of the National Assembly on June 9 and called for new legislative elections after his Renaissance party coalition suffered a heavy defeat in the European Parliament elections. Los Angeles, July 8 : A persistent heat wave is shattering temperature records across the Western United States, putting millions of people under extreme heat warnings and fueling dangerous wildfires that forced evacuations in several states. Nearly 75 million people, primarily in the West, are under some form of extreme heat advisory on Sunday as a powerful heat dome hovers over the region, according to the National Weather Service, which has issued excessive heat warnings stretching from Arizona and Nevada through California and northward into Oregon and Washington, reports Xinhua news agency. On Sunday, Las Vegas, Nevada, experienced a new all-time high temperature of 48.9 degrees Celsius, surpassing its previous record by three degrees, the National Weather Service Las Vegas said in a post on social media X, formerly Twitter. The record was officially recorded at Harry Reid International Airport. California's Death Valley, known for its extreme temperatures, reached 53.9 degrees Celsius on Sunday. The day before, a high temperature of 53.3 degrees Celsius was recorded at Death Valley National Park, where a visitor died from heat exposure and another was hospitalised for severe heat-related illness, according to a report by NBC News. Other cities across the region also saw their record books rewritten. Palm Springs, California, reached a blistering 51.1 degrees Celsius on Friday, the hottest temperature ever recorded in the town. This surpassed the previous record of 50.6 degrees Celsius, set four times before, most recently in 2021. The extreme temperatures are not limited to desert areas. Sacramento, California's capital, has experienced temperatures over 40.6 degrees Celsius for three consecutive days, while inland areas of Monterey County, typically cooled by the nearby Pacific Ocean, have seen temperatures soar well over 43.3 degrees Celsius. The extreme heat was fueled by a strong ridge of high pressure parked over Central California. This weather pattern prevents hot air near the surface from rising higher in the atmosphere, effectively trapping the heat and creating a "heat dome" effect. As the region swelters, the risk of wildfires has dramatically increased. Officials across Western states warned that the combination of extreme heat and winds had spawned many new wildfires in the past week. One significant blaze, the French Fire in Mariposa County, California, began on Thursday near Yosemite National Park. By Sunday night, it had burned through 908 acres (3.67 square kilometers) and was 55 per cent contained, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. In California's Santa Barbara County, firefighters are battling the Lake Fire, which exploded over the weekend to more than 13,000 acres. As of Sunday morning, it was only 8 per cent contained. The blaze is threatening homes in the area, including Michael Jackson's former Neverland Ranch. Further north, crews are combating the Royal Fire, which burned in the Tahoe National Forest Sunday night. Forest service officials have reported that the fire was located in remote and rugged terrain, presenting significant challenges for firefighting operations. The heat wave and associated wildfires have prompted evacuations in multiple counties across California, including Santa Barbara, Placer, Tuolumne, Mariposa, Fresno and Butte counties. As the heat wave continues, authorities are continuing to urge residents to take precautions. These include staying adequately hydrated, minimising outdoor activities during the hottest times of the day, and never leaving children or pets unattended in vehicles. Climate experts warned that extreme heat events are expected to increase in frequency and intensity due to climate change. Gurugram, July 8 : The cyber crime teams of Gurugram Police have arrested 28 cyber criminals including six women who defrauded people in 10,472 complaints worth Rs 38.25 crore, police said. According to the police, after reviewing the data of mobile phones and SIM cards recovered from the accused by the police from the Indian Cybercrime Coordinate Center (I4C), it was found that the accused were involved in fraud of about Rs 38.25 crore and around 10,472 complaints were registered against them across India. In connection with this, out of 10,472 complaints, 540 were converted into cases which were registered across India. Out of 540 cases, 26 cases were registered against them in different cyber crime police stations in Gurugram. "The accused used to defraud people in the name of investing in share market, task-based job, online loans, online ticket booking and offered lucrative offers to the victims and duped them," Priyanshu Diwan, ACP (South) said. The police also recovered Rs 27,000 and 15 mobile phones, 95 SIM cards and three laptops used in the crime. Further action is being taken regularly on the information obtained by examining the devices recovered from the arrested cyber fraudsters by the police, he said. Abir Chatterjee looks fierce in his cop avatar in 'Bohurupi' first look. Image Source: IANS News Mumbai, July 8 : The first look of Bengali actor Abir Chatterjee from the upcoming film 'Bohurupi' was unveiled on Monday. In the poster, the actor can be seen in the avatar of a cop who fires a gun and engages in a chase. 'Bohurupi' is directed by the director duo Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukherjee. Talking about the film, Abir Chatterjee said, "Working with Windows feels like returning home; it's always a pleasure to collaborate with Shibu Da & Nandita Di. 'Bohurupi' presents many challenges being based on a true story." He added, "When movies draw from real-life events, there's a greater responsibility to portray the characters as accurately as possible on the big screen. I'm eagerly looking forward to 'Bohurupi' this Pujo season. This is just the first glimpse; there's much more in store. I hope the audience shows the same love they did for 'Rakhtabeej'." Produced by Windows Production House, 'Bohurupi' is set to release on Pujo. Meanwhile, Nandita Roy and Shiboprosad Mukherjee also have 'Aamar Boss' up for release. The film marks the return of veteran actress Rakhee Gulzar's return to Bengali cinema. The film, which was initially slated to release in June this year, will now be released around Christmas this year. Moscow, July 8 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow late Monday afternoon, kicking off a two-day visit to Russia -- his first to the country since 2019 and first to its capital after 2015. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues," PM Modi said in his departure statement before leaving New Delhi. He spotlighted that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Prime Minister Modi last visited Russia for the 20th India-Russia Bilateral Summit held on the sidelines of the 5th Eastern Economic Summit -- where he was the guest of honour -- at Vladivostok in September 2019. A lot has changed in the region since then, especially after the start of the Russia-Ukraine war in 2022. However, the India-Russia Special and Privileged Partnership has remained resilient in the wake of multiple geopolitical challenges that the world has been facing. New Delhi has maintained a steady relationship with Moscow even as PM Modi repeatedly asserted that no solution can ever be arrived at the cost of human lives and that escalation of hostilities and violence is in no one's interest. "We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region," mentioned PM's departure statement on Monday. Wit the Russian President hosting a private dinner for Prime Minister Modi later in the evening, the two leaders are expected to discuss a range of issues of regional and global importance of mutual interest. On Tuesday, PM Modi will interact with the vibrant Indian community in Russia, lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Kremlin and thereafter visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow. These engagements will be followed by a restricted-level talk between PM Modi and President Putin, which will then be followed by delegation-level talks. "The issue of early discharge of Indian nationals who have been misled into the service of the Russian army is also expected to figure in the discussions. Other areas of interest would also include cooperation across the range of areas," Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said last week. He highlighted that the India-Russia bilateral trade has seen a sharp increase in 2023-24 and has since touched close to $65 billion, primarily due to strong energy cooperation between the two countries. "We also have growing investment ties between the two countries, including in the field of energy, banking, railways, and steel. These are the growing areas of our investment partnership. Russia also remains an important partner for India's energy security and defence. In the area of nuclear energy, Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant units 1 and 2 have already become operational. And the work is progressing on units 3 and 6," said the Indian Foreign Secretary. All eyes will also be focused on the growing defence cooperation between the two countries as they continue to work closely across a full range of its sub-domains. "Both sides are currently working on a series of outcome documents, which would be the result of the summit," Kwatra stated last week. After concluding his Moscow visit, PM Modi will travel to Austria on Tuesday which will be the first ever visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 41 years. Yogi govt to establish 'Mitra Van' in Nepal and border states of UP. Image Source: IANS News Lucknow, July 8 : The Uttar Pradesh government is set to target self-sufficiency in the pulses' production in the next three to four years. Uttar Pradesh has witnessed a record 36 per cent increase in pulses production in 2023-24 compared to 2016-17, rising from 2.394 million metric tonnes to 3.255 million metric tonnes. To further increase the area under pulse cultivation and enhance yield per hectare, the Yogi government is providing comprehensive assistance to farmers with support from the central government, said a government spokesperson. Besides, the Yogi government has prepared an action plan focusing on tur, urd, and moong to boost the pulses' production in the state. As part of this initiative, 27,200 hectares of crop demonstrations will be conducted under the National Food Security Mission Scheme. Additionally, targets have been set to distribute 31,553 quintals of seeds and produce 27,356 quintals of certified seeds under the Pulses National Food Security Mission Scheme. Fourteen seed hubs have also been established to produce 21,000 quintals of seeds, strengthening the system. Like last year, mini kits of other pulse crops, such as moong and urd, will also be distributed to the farmers. The government has reiterated its commitment to purchasing pulses from farmers at the MSP and setting the MSP for these crops higher than other crops. The government's strategy includes developing model pulse villages in the strategically significant Bundelkhand districts, which are renowned for their pulse production. These districts include Banda, Mahoba, Jalaun, Chitrakoot, and Lalitpur. It is noteworthy that Uttar Pradesh is India's largest producer and consumer of pulses. However, the state currently produces only half of its consumption needs. The strategy aims to increase the yield per hectare from 14 to 16 quintals within the stipulated timeframe, targeting a total yield of 3 million tonnes. Additionally, approximately 175,000 hectares of pulse crops are planned. To achieve this, the government will provide seeds of improved and high-yielding varieties of traditional pulse crops, with demonstrations by progressive farmers. A large number of free seed mini kits will also be distributed to farmers, a process that is already ongoing. Furthermore, the focus will be on crops like moong and urad, which have shorter maturation periods. Mixed cropping of these pulses will also be promoted. The government is now placing a significant emphasis on nutritional security, a step beyond mere food security. In this initiative, pulse crops will be pivotal. Pulses, being the primary source of protein for the general population, especially vegetarians, are of utmost importance. As a crucial protein source, pulses are indispensable for the health of the general populace, particularly the poor. Furthermore, pulse crops, with their nitrogen-fixing properties, are beneficial for soil health. New Delhi, July 8 : Congress MP and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi met flood victims in Assam and visited a couple of relief camps in Manipur on Monday. Congress used the opportunity to lash out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and claimed that he didn't pay a single visit to the strife-torn Manipur while Rahul Gandhi was heading to the state for the third time to assuage the concerns of people living in relief camps. However, Assam Water Resources Minister Pijush Hazarika raised a red flag and also cautioned the media over the dissemination of a 'fake agenda' over Rahul Gandhi's visit to refugee camps. He stated that Rahul Gandhi didn't visit any flood relief camp or any flood-affected areas in Assam, as was projected by some scribes and certain social media handles. "Members of the media are requested to kindly verify WhatsApp forwards, social media information/propaganda before posting," the Assam Minister wrote on X. His warning came on the back of a tweet by a journalist Tamal Saha, who supposedly runs a YouTube channel. "Rahul Gandhi with the victims of Assam Floods at Hmar relief camp in Fulertal in Assam. More than 70 people have lost their lives, lakhs rendered homeless," the scribe posted, sharing photos of Rahul Gandhi with flood-affected families. Today, Rahul Gandhi visited relief camps in Manipur's Jiribram, and Churachandpur districts and interacted with the inmates there, displaced by the year-long ethnic violence. Congress and its leaders have been sharing photos of Rahul Gandhi's outreach to Assam flood victims as well as the displaced population of Manipur, highlighting how such a humane gesture was providing succour to people in distress. However, what apparently led to this confusion or conspiracy, whichever way it is seen, is because of Rahul Gandhi's itinerary shared by the grand old party's X handle, this morning. It clearly stated that the LoP would start off his visit to two states by first visiting a relief camp at Thalai, a youth care centre in Fulertal of Assam. Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also left for a three-day trip to Russia and Austria this morning. Congress was quick to take a dig at the Prime Minister over this as Jairam Ramesh said, "Prime Minister goes to Moscow while Rahul Gandhi heads for Assam and Manipur." Mumbai, July 8 : The RBI on Monday announced that it has cancelled the licenses of two non-banking financial companies (NBFCs) for violating its guidelines. The NBFCs include Polytex India Ltd, based in Mumbai, and Finserv India Ltd which operates out of Banjara Hills in Hyderabad. The RBI said Polytex India Ltd has violated RBI guidelines on the code of conduct in outsourcing financial services by outsourcing its core decision-making functions related to client sourcing, Know Your Customer (KYC) verification, credit appraisal, loan disbursal, loan recovery, follow-up with borrowers and attending and resolving complaints from borrowers. While outsourcing the activities related to lending, Polytex earned a fixed fee from its service provider, whereas the service provider earned the interest charged on the borrower on these loans and in some cases at exorbitant rates in violation of Fair Practice Code (FPC) Guidelines issued by RBI. In the case of Finserv India Ltd, RBI said the company has violated the guidelines on the code of conduct in outsourcing the financial services in its digital lending operations by outsourcing its core decision-making functions such as credit appraisal, loan sanctioning as well as KYC verification process to the service provider. The company has also violated RBI guidelines on data confidentiality and security of customer information by providing complete access to customer data to the service provider. Besides, the company has violated RBI guidelines on the Fair Practices Code by not providing a copy of the loan agreement and sanction letter in vernacular language to its customers. Moscow, July 8 : Hundreds of people, including from the vibrant Indian community in Russia, lined up on both sides of the road as Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled from the airport to his hotel in Moscow, on Monday. Prime Minister Modi arrived to a ceremonial welcome at the Vnukovo-II International Airport in what is his first visit to the Russian capital since 2015. He was received by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. Members of the Indian diaspora, waiting to catch a glimpse of PM Modi, were seen gathered in huge numbers as the PM's motorcade drove through the Red Square. At the hotel, the Indian community gave a rousing reception to PM Modi who last visited Russia for the 20th India-Russia Bilateral Summit held on the sidelines of the 5th Eastern Economic Summit - where he was the guest of honour - at Vladivostok in September 2019. As people danced and waved the Indian flag, Prime Minister Modi interacted with a few in the gathering while getting inside the building. Russian President Vladimir Putin will be hosting a private dinner for PM Modi later in the evening with the two leaders expected to discuss a range of issues of regional and global importance of mutual interest. On Tuesday, PM Modi will interact with the Indian community in Russia, lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Kremlin and thereafter visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow. These engagements will precede a restricted-level talk between PM Modi and President Putin, which will then be followed by delegation-level talks. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues," PM Modi said in his departure statement before leaving New Delhi. He spotlighted that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Kolkata, July 8 : West Bengal Education Minister Bratya Basu on Monday welcomed the Supreme Court's (SC) verdict on the appointment of Vice Chancellors for different state-run universities in West Bengal. SC said that the search committee will be headed by the former Chief Justice of India, U.U. Lalit which will be constituted in two weeks. The said search committee will recommend three names to the Chief Minister of West Bengal, who will select one from the three names, who will select one and recommend the same to the Chancellor of the university concerned, who is traditionally the Governor of the state. Welcoming the order of the Supreme Court, the state Education Minister said that the apex court order has upheld the contention of the state government regarding the constitutionality of appointing vice-chancellors by the Governor instead of the democratically elected head of the state. "In the order, the apex court has instructed the search-cum- selection committee, to recommend a panel of three names alphabetically for each university to the Chief Minister, who will then recommend the panel according to her preference to the chancellor recording her opinion, if any, against any name. The Chancellor will then appoint the vice-chancellor. This is again the victory for democracy," said Basu. The issue of vice-chancellors' appointments for state universities had been a prolonged issue of tension between the Raj Bhavan and the state government. The state government had been constantly opposing the move by Governor C.V. Ananda Bose for the appointment of interim vice-chancellors for many state universities. On the other hand, the state government had been accused of appointing vice-chancellors, breaching selection norms. Imphal, July 8 : The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), an apex body of tribals in Manipur, on Monday urged Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi for an immediate political solution to the ethnic hostilities. LoP Rahul Gandhi on Monday visited relief camps in Manipur's Jiribam and Churachandpur districts, where thousands of violence-hit people have taken refuge after the ethnic strife and interacted with them. In Churachandpur, a delegation of ITLF leaders led by its Chairman Pagin Haokip and General Secretary Muan Tombing met the LoP and submitted a memorandum demanding an immediate political solution "to break the cycle of violence and atrocities in Manipur." "Clearly, the Kuki-Zo minority will never again be able to live a dignified and safe life in Manipur, given the extent of bloodshed and the radicalisation by the majority society," the memorandum said. The ITLF leaders told MP Rahul Gandhi that in order to achieve their socio-economic and political goals, the political settlement stipulated in the Congress party's manifesto must be fulfilled. The ITLF said that there has been no improvement in the security situation following over a year of killings and displacements, and citizens continue to face daily danger of death. "A year after the violence began, Kuki-Zo homes and properties are still being set on fire and destroyed. To date, almost 7,000 homes have been demolished, nearly 200 Kuki-Zo have lost their lives, over 360 places of worship were destroyed and about 20,000 have become homeless." The tribal body said that as a minority community with fewer numbers and even fewer resources to protect themselves, they are under constant threat of being attacked by militant groups like Arambai Tenggol and the proscribed UNLF, who have access to a large arsenal of weapons bought from across the border or looted from state armories. "All commodities, even essentials, have been prohibited from entering the Kuki-Zo areas for more than a year. Frequently, even simple medical supplies like cotton swabs run out. This has negatively impacted the quality of life of the Kuki-Zo people. The condition of our internally displaced people is not up to par, with frequent lack of relief materials and amenities," the memorandum said. It said that due to the loss of connectivity, the tribals have to travel over 350 kms to the nearest airport, which is in Lengpui in Mizoram. Central competitive examinations and emergency medical care suffer serious consequences as a result, the ITLF said, adding that helicopter services are not reliable due to limited seats and frequent flight cancellations. The memorandum said that as the Kuki-Zo community youths are unable to travel to the state capital, the Meitei-controlled state government is using this opportunity to conduct mass job recruitments causing many job opportunities to have been lost for the Kuki-Zo, showing that the state government is openly partisan. Students have also been adversely affected, especially those in technical lines, as all major centres of learning and all head offices are located in the capital, the ITLF said. LoP Rahul Gandhi earlier on Monday visited Manipur's Jiribam District, where fresh violence occurred after the killing of 59-year-old Soibam Saratkumar Singh, a farmer, on June 6, and met the people in the relief camps. Congress sources said that the LoP interacted with the people who took shelter in the relief camps after the Jiribam violence broke out. An indefinite curfew was promulgated and a huge contingent of the central paramilitary forces and state commando battalions were deployed to deal with the ethnic violence in Jiribam District, a mixed populated area adjoining southern Assam. Manipur's two Lok Sabha MPs, both from the Congress -- Angomcha Bimol Akoijam (Inner Manipur) and Alfred Kanngam S Arthur (Outer Manipur (ST) and other senior party leaders including AICC General Secretary, KC Venugopal accompanied LoP Rahul Gandhi. In Australia, crocodiles are growing in population and physical size. One Aussie fisherman explains what he thinks is behind the trend. An Australian fisherman says better management from cattle stations in parts of the Kimberley in WA's far north could protect their livestock from hungry crocodiles. Source: Rodney Fischer An Australian fisherman is calling for "proper management" from cattle stations in parts of the country's far north to better protect their livestock, as hungry crocodiles in the area hunt domestic cows as prey. Western Australian man Rodney Fischer lives in the remote region of East Kimberley in the very top of the state. He works for a not-for-profit community development organisation that helps locals find meaningful employment, but in his downtime, the avid photographer also gets close and personal with some of Australia's rarest and gnarliest creatures. He shared a "magnificent" image this week showing a large saltwater crocodile drag a calf through waters in the area, saying he "had the pleasure of catching up with 'Mr Jones' on the weekend". "This pic shows his immense size as he proudly showed off his recent kill," Fischer said. Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, the local said the image represented the fact cattle stations in the region are losing big bucks in livestock as a result of wandering cows being snatched by hungry crocodiles. Fischer said he comes across cow carcasses at the water's edge, having been killed by crocodiles, who often wait a couple of days to devour the animals. Source: Rodney Fischer Hundreds of thousands in livestock lost to hungry crocs each year "They lose about three cows a day or 1,000 per year, which is worth about $800,000," Fischer told Yahoo. Though that figure may seem steep, Australia is in fact actually home to some of the world's most expensive cattle. Pregnant cows that were three years ago worth $1,200 now have a $2,000 price tag, while heifers have gone from $350 a head to $800 in the same time span, according to reports. "A fence would cost half that and last a few years, so yeah, property management from stations would be a win-win for all," Fischer suggested. He said wild crocs killing domestic cows is all too prevalent in the area, personally having spotted cow carcasses on riverbanks and along the water's edge. Fischer said the "endless supply" of cattle in the area is in part responsible for the animals' growing size. Rodney Fischer says crocs feeding on cattle might be behind their growing size. Source: Getty Crocodile population growing in line with their physical size In Australia, crocodile numbers are on the rise across the board after populations sunk to dire levels back in the '70s. The gradual increase has now prompted authorities to warn locals and visitors to be careful, especially since the average size of the predators has also grown. The Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions (DBCA) recently conducted a survey across East Kimberley rivers including the King, Ord and Berkerly rivers to examine and "track the recovery of crocodiles" after historical overharvesting but the results aren't too surprising says Fischer. Fischer, who frequents the Ord River near Wyndham, suggests the saltwater crocodile population in Australia found in NT, WA and Far North Queensland is "just getting back to a healthy amount" after becoming protected in the 70s. Before that, crocodiles were regularly killed and their eggs taken en masse for their skin. While female crocs tend to be smaller, usually a maximum length of about three or three-and-a-half metres, the average male is about 4.2 metres, Fischer said. But he's often seeing them much, much bigger and there's reason for that too. It's these crocs Fischer claims people are seeing regularly. "But it depends on the food supply too," he said. "Here on the Ord River, there's an endless supply of cattle. So the crocodiles are getting big quicker at a younger age." Issue wreaking havoc in other parts of Australia Meanwhile, farmers in other parts of the country say the issue of crocodiles consuming cattle is costing them hundreds of thousands. The Mary River in the Northern Territory is one of the most heavily crocodile-populated waterways in the world. Adrian Phillips, manager at the Annaburroo Station in the Northern Territory, 100 kilometres east of Darwin, says he loses up to two per cent of his cattle herd, or more than 100 head per year to the hungry reptiles. "I've got a hand-held wand and I've run it over a few of the crocs that we've caught, and when it reads a tag it beeps," Phillips told the ABC, adding that the issue cost him $100,000 in 2017. "[This time] it just kept beeping beep beep, beep beep, beep beep there's three tags. That's three tags from a right ear in that one croc so how many cattle has he fed on [where] he hasn't eaten a right ear? He had consumed $5,000 worth of beef that I know of." Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Kolkata, July 8 : As information came out about West Bengal Governor C.V. Ananda Bose recommending disciplinary action against two senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officers of the state cadre to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs,a political slugfest broke out over the possible outcome of the complaint. In the complaint, the Governor has reportedly accused the IPS officers -- Kolkata police commissioner Vineet Kumar Goyal and deputy commissioner (central division) of the city police Indira Mukherjee of pursuing a police complaint filed against the Governor by a woman temporary staffer of the Raj Bhavan a couple of months back. Raj Bhavan insiders said that since pursuing the complaint is a violation of Article 361 (2) and (3) of the Constitution which bars the state police from investigating any complaint against a Governor during his term in office, the Governor has recommended disciplinary action against these officers mainly responsible for pursuing the matter. The Governor has filed a defamation suit against Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and some Trinamool Congress leaders over the latter's derogatory comments onr this matter. The hearing is scheduled for July 10. Bharatiya Janata Party leaders here have welcomed the complaint by the Governor on the grounds that the police officers are expected to follow the provisions of the Constitution and not go by the directions of the ruling party. "So if the Union government takes any disciplinary action against the two IPS officers for overlooking the constitutional provisions there will be nothing wrong in that," said state BJP leader and the party's former national secretary Rahul Sinha. The leaders of the ruling Trinamool Congress have pointed out that the police has already clarified that the investigation in the matter is not against anyone but on the merits of the complaint by the Raj Bhavan staff. Meanwhile, bureaucratic circles too are not quite sure of the possible impact of the complaint. "It is right that generally the Union government takes action against any all-India service official bypassing the state government. However, at the same time the Department of Personnel & Training, which is under the Union ministry of personnel, public grievances and pensions, has the final word regarding the service matters of all-India service officers. So we will have to adopt a wait and watch policy," said a retired additional chief secretary of the state government. Mumbai, July 8 : The Mumbai concert of the Canadian music producer, Deadmau5 has been cancelled. The show was supposed to be held on July 12. However, given Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the city, the event has been cancelled. Deadmau5 mainly produces progressive house and electro-house music, though he also produces and DJs other genres of electronic music, including techno. He has received six Grammy Award nominations for his work. The organisers of the show, Sunburn, announced the cancellation of the concert. They said: "The Honourable Prime Minister of India is visiting the city around the scheduled event date, and therefore the planned venue is no longer available for use as per directives issued by the relevant authorities." Deadmau5, who last came to India, as part of a three-city Sunburn Arena tour in March 2014, was supposed to perform at the Nesco Centre in the Goregaon area of Mumbai. The organisers have said that all tickets will be refunded in full. They also said that they would work "to try and find a window to bring deadmau5 back to India soon." New Delhi, July 8 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on his arrival in Russia, was accorded guard of honour at VNUKOVO - II International Airport on Monday afternoon. New Delhi, July 8 (IANS) Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on his arrival in Russia, was accorded guard of honour at VNUKOVO a" II International Airport on Monday afternoon. The itinerary of PM Modias two-day trip to Russia includes dinner with the Russian President, interaction with the Indian diaspora and the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit, where the two leaders will discuss many issues of global interest. What has caught the attention of global experts is the aextra attentiona and grand welcome given to PM Modi during his arrival in Russia. PM Modi was received by Russiaas first Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and in a rare gesture, he also accompanied the Indian PM from the airport to the hotel in the same car. Notably, Chinese Premier Xi Jinping on his recent visit to Russia was received by the Russian Deputy Prime Minister, who ranks lower in seniority with the first Deputy PM. This gesture of providing a red-carpet welcome to the Indian PM by Russiaas highest-ranking official, just below President Putin himself, sends a clear message about the importance that Russia places on its ties with India. For the unversed, India and Russia ties have weathered many storms in the past and the friendship between two nations has only grown robust and stronger than ever. On the economic front, Russia has been the biggest arms supplier to India for decades. After its military conflict with Ukraine, India remained one of the biggest buyers of discounted Russian oil, there adding to its earnings and revenue. While India and Russia participate in the 22th Annual Summit, the world media including the Chinese will have their eyes fixed on the meeting's outcome and conclusions. Russia, like any other country, may not have been explicit in categorising its ties with neighbouring nations, in terms of preference but it's first-handa welcome to Indian PM reiterates the amount of confidence and trust it puts in its relations with India despite the fast-changing global landscape. This assumes greater significance in light of the fact that India has lately diversified its defence ties with the Western powers, hoping not to remain dependent on one nation for weapons import. Jammu, July 8 : Four army soldiers were injured on Monday when terrorists attacked army vehicles in J&K's Kathua district. Officials said the terrorists threw a grenade and then opened automatic fire on army vehicles that were on routine patrol duty on Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road at 3.30 pm in Kathua district today. "The attack by terrorists occurred near Badnota village, which is 150 Kms away from Kathua town", officials said. Earlier, officials had said the place of the terrorist attack was 52 kms away from Kathua town. The security forces retaliated, but reports indicate that the terrorists escaped from the spot. A massive CASO (Cordon & Search Operation) was started in the area after the injured soldiers were removed to the hospital for treatment, officials added. Doctors at the hospital said the condition of two of the injured soldiers is critical. Officials said that reinforcements have been rushed to the place to augment the strength of the security forces so that the terrorists responsible for the attack are traced. Monday's attack is the second major terror-related incident in Kathua district in the past four weeks. Two terrorists and a CRPF jawan were killed in a gunfight during a search and cordon operation on June 12 and June 14 in the Hiranagar area of Kathia district. A major terror attack on innocent pilgrims occurred on June 9 in the Reasi district of Jammu division in which terrorists fired at a pilgrim bus returning from Shiv-Khori temple. The terrorists killed the driver of the bus and kept firing at the bus after it fell into a gorge. Nine pilgrims were killed in that attack and 44 others were injured. J&K DGP, R.R.Swain has said that a group of foreign terrorists is active in the hilly Poonch, Rajouri and adjacent districts who are taking advantage of the terrain and remoteness of the area. Security forces have launched an aggressive campaign against the terrorists. On July 6 and July 7, six terrorists and 2 army soldiers were killed in two encounters between the holed-up terrorists in the Kulgam district of the Valley. --IANS sq/dan New Delhi, July 8 : A French President, seeking a parliament more aligned with his ideology and programme of action, took the gamble by dissolving it prematurely for fresh elections - and ended up with a left-wing government that championed its own schemes and hampered his course. Emmanuel Macron in 2024? No, it was Jacques Chirac in 1997. Though the era and circumstances are different, but like Chirac, Macron is not going to have an easy time. As the dust settles on the snap parliamentary election that Macron called in a rather desperate gambit, the predictions of a sweep by the far-right National Rally have dissipated as it did not match its show in the EU Parliament elections and the first round of the French elections. However, the the triumph of the hard left over the far-right is scarcely an outcome that he could have wanted. While no bloc - the far-right, the hard-left-led National Popular Front, or Macron's own Ensemble is even remotely close to a majority in the 577-member National Assembly, forming the new government will be a complex task, as it involves a lot of wheeling and dealing. But the strikingly different ideological makeup of all the three major blocs makes any alliance difficult and its functioning and longevity doubtful. If it ends in a Left-led government, as the NFP (as per its French name) demanded as it became the singest-largest bloc, it is not going to be easy for Macron in the country's fourth spell of "cohabitation" - where different parties hold the presidency and the sway in the parliament. In a last-ditch effort to ward off the far-right, Macron's Centrists entered into a tacit alliance of convenience with the second-placed hard-left ensemble, with several third-placed candidates of both blocs quitting in various places so as to prevent division of votes and set up one-to-one contests against the National Rally in the second round. The gambit did succeed in its primary aim of stopping what seemed an unstoppable march to power by Marine Le Pen and the youthful Jordan Bardella's co-led National Rally but ended up benefitting the Left more than it did Macron and his party. And the two forces may have struck up a tactical - and ultimately successful - alliance, there is no love lost between the two parties as the NFP partners are trenchant critics of Macron's policies on the raised retirement age, and tax cuts, among others. And any hopes that the arrangement could carry on into the new Assembly was dispelled by the remarks of Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of the radical left France Unbowed, the largest in the left-wing coalition, following the exit polls on Sunday. Terming the result "the outcome of a magnificent mobilisation effort", he said: "The President has to bow and admit this is a defeat... the Prime Minister needs to leave. The President has the power and the duty to call the NFP to govern." On the other hand, Macron had, in the runup to the polls, declared that the victory of either the far-right or the hard-left could ignite "a civil war" in the country. The NFP is not a monolithic bloc too, being a combination of Socialists, Ecologists, Communists and France Unbowed (LFI) and others, including some Trotskyite elements, which have plenty of policy disagreements with each other but came together as a united force against the far-right after Macron called the snap parliamentary election last month. However, whether it will remain a cohesive unit remains to be seen. Time will tell whether the NFP's stab at power succeeds - and how it fares, but amid the resurgence of the Left and the setback to the far-right, what the National Rally called a "delayed victory" and fulminated at the "dishonourable" Left-Macronist alliance that stymied it, the ultimate loss is of Macron. Smarting from National Rally's emphatic victory in the European Parliament elections in June, he largely unilaterally decided to call snap parliamentary elections, seemingly leaving his government taken aback - as per their glazed expressions in a photo of the cabinet meeting. He had reportedly likened his move to throwing "an unpinned grenade at their (far-right's) feet". His action may have succeeded partially, insofar, as it has stymied the National Rally, but Macron ended up facing a blowback from an entire direction entirely. He may have staved off the far-right with the left but cannot play the same game again in a different variant, given the livid attitude of the National Rally. President Chirac "cohabited" with Premier Lionel Jospin's Socialist government for 5 years. Macron, who has asserted that he will remain President for the rest of his term (till 2027), will have to "cohabit" for at least a year, for under the Constitution, another election cannot be called till then. (Vikas Datta can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in) New Delhi, July 8 : Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met the British High Commissioner to India Lindy Cameron here on Monday and extended her greetings to the newly-elected government in the U.K. as well as to the newly-appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves. New Delhi, July 8 (IANS) Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met the British High Commissioner to India Lindy Cameron here on Monday and extended her greetings to the newly-elected government in the U.K. as well as to the newly-appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves. The Finance Minister reaffirmed India's commitment to taking forward economic and financial collaboration for the mutual benefit of both countries. The UK High Commissioner said, "Very grateful to Finance Minister Sitharaman for finding time for an introductory call in the middle of her intense budget preparations." "Delighted, and both now have powerful women as Finance Ministers!" Cameron remarked. Newly-elected British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Saturday welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership on key global challenges as both leaders spoke over the phone following Friday's results of the UK general elections which handed the Labour Party a landslide victory. The two leaders discussed the importance of the living bridge between the UK and India, the 2030 roadmap, and agreed that there was a wide range of areas across defence and security, critical and emerging technology, and climate change for the two countries to deepen cooperation on. "Discussing the Free Trade Agreement, the UK Prime Minister said he stood ready to conclude a deal that worked for both sides," Starmer's office stated. As both leaders agreed to work towards the early conclusion of a mutually beneficial India-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA), PM Modi also extended an invitation to Keir Starmer for an early visit to India. PM Modi congratulated Starmer on his and the Labour Party's "remarkable victory" in the general elections. "Pleased to speak with Keir Starmer. Congratulated him on being elected as the Prime Minister of the UK. We remain committed to deepening Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and robust India-UK economic ties for the progress and prosperity of our peoples and global good," PM Modi posted on X after the call. "Appreciating the positive contributions of the Indian community in the social, economic, and political development of the UK. The two sides agreed to continue to promote close people-to-people ties. Both leaders agreed to remain in touch," the Indian Prime Minister's Office (PMO) said in a statement. Kolkata, July 8 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, on Monday, claimed that the renewal of the Indo-Bangladesh Farakka Treaty (1996) - which is set to expire in 2026 - will not only impact West Bengal but also the neighbouring statement of Bihar. "If the Farakka Treaty is renewed Bihar will also be equally affected by floods like West Bengal. It is unfortunate that the main stakeholders like the West Bengal government were not consulted by the Union government before taking any decision on the treaty," the Chief Minister told media persons. The Chief Minister also criticised the Union government for carrying forward talks with Bangladesh for Teesta River water sharing. "If Teesta River water is shared with Bangladesh, then there will be drinking water scarcity in different parts of North Bengal," the Chief Minister said. She also launched a scathing attack against the Union and neighbouring Sikkim governments and held them responsible for the frequent flood situations in North Bengal. "The Union government should have monitored the installation of hydro-power projects in Sikkim. The people of North Bengal are suffering now because of that. Even the Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar districts are flooded every year by water flowing in from neighbouring Bhutan. The Union government has been neglecting these issues for a long time," the Chief Minister said. Chief Minister last month wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting the latter not to take decisions on Farakka Treaty renewal or Teesta River water sharing without consulting the West Bengal government. "The interest of the people in West Bengal is paramount which should not be compromised at any cost," the letter added. Moscow, July 8 : Moscow's Ostankino Tower, the tallest in Europe, glowed in the tricolour hues of the Indian flag on Monday as Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his landmark two-day visit to the country. The Indian flag was projected onto one of Russia's most recognisable symbols in a symbolic gesture of PM Modi's first visit to the country's capital since 2015. The structure, which stands at 540 meters, was the tallest free-standing tower in the world at the time of its construction and is currently operated by the Russian Television and Radio Broadcasting Network (RTRS). In addition to distributing television and radio signals, it attracts lakhs of tourists from all over the world, every year. Earlier, Prime Minister Modi arrived to a ceremonial welcome at the Vnukovo-II International Airport and was received by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov who also accompanied him to the hotel in a rare diplomatic gesture signifying the deep-rooted ties between the two countries. Hundreds of people, including from the vibrant Indian community in Russia, lined up on both sides of the road as PM Modi's motorcade drove through the Red Square. At the hotel, the Indian community gave Prime Minister Modi a rousing reception who had last visited Russia for the 20th India-Russia Bilateral Summit held on the sidelines of the 5th Eastern Economic Summit - where he was the guest of honour - at Vladivostok in September 2019. Russian President Vladimir Putin will be hosting a private dinner for PM Modi later in the evening with the two leaders expected to discuss a range of issues of regional and global importance of mutual interest. Hyderabad, July 8 : Tension prevailed at the office of Telangana School Education Commissioner here on Monday as job aspirants and students staged a protest, demanding the government to postpone the District Selection Committee (DSC) exam for recruitment of teachers. Holding placards and raising slogans, they tried to lay siege to the office, triggering tension. Police personnel tried to disperse the protestors, but as they continued the protest, they were detained. Some of the protestors were physically lifted to the waiting police vehicles and shifted to different police stations. The DSC exam to fill the posts of over 11,000 teachers in government schools is scheduled from July 17 to August 5. Candidates said they recently appeared in the exams for hostel welfare and Division Accounts Officers (DAOs) exams conducted by the Telangana Public Service Commission. They said due to a series of competitive exams, they are not getting the time to prepare for the exams. They demanded that the government should conduct the DSC for 25,000 posts. The candidates also urged the government to appoint Vidya Volunteers till the process for appointment of teachers is completed. The state government had issued the DSC notification in February to fill the posts of 11,062 teachers in various categories. The Computer-Based Recruitment Test (CBRT) will be conducted online at Mahabubnagar, Rangareddy, Hyderabad, Medak, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Karimnagar, Warangal, Khammam, Nalgonda, and Sangareddy. The notification for Mega DSC is part of the Congress governmentas efforts to fulfil its promise on job recruitment. It has promised to fill 2 lakh posts in the department by the end of 2024. The unemployed and students have been protesting for the last few weeks in support of their demands including postponement of the DSC. On the demand for postponing the DSC, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had given the assurance that the government will hold discussions with the TGPSC and the Education Department about the exam dates and take a decision. New Delhi, July 8 : The Union Cabinet has given the go-ahead for India to sign the Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ) agreement or the High Seas Treaty under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the Ministry of Earth Sciences said on Monday. The BBNJ Agreement will allow India to enhance its strategic presence in areas beyond the country's EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone). "This landmark decision marks a significant step towards the conservation and sustainable utilisation of marine biological diversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction. Often referred to as the 'High Seas', areas beyond national jurisdiction are the global common oceans open to all for internationally lawful purposes such as navigation, overflight, laying submarine cables and pipelines, etc. The Ministry of Earth Sciences will spearhead the country's implementation of the BBNJ Agreement," according to the official statement. Jitendra Singh, Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Earth Sciences said: "India remains committed and proactive to the global cause of environmental conservation and sustainable development. We will be signing the BBNJ Agreement and are propitious of subsequently ratifying it through the necessary legislative processes".The government is aligned to scientific progress, strengthening international collaboration, and promoting governance, transparency, accountability, and the rule of law." The Cabinet meeting was held on July 2. The BBNJ Agreement, or the 'High Seas Treaty', is an international treaty under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). It aims to address the growing concerns over the long-term protection of marine biodiversity in the high seas. It sets precise mechanisms for the sustainable use of marine biological diversity through international cooperation and coordination. Parties cannot claim or exercise sovereign rights over marine resources derived from the high seas and ensure fair and equitable sharing of benefits. It follows an inclusive, integrated, ecosystem-centric approach based on the precautionary principle and promotes using traditional knowledge and the best available scientific knowledge. It helps minimise impacts on the marine environment through area-based management tools and establishes rules for conducting environmental impact assessments. It would also contribute to achieving several SDGs, particularly SDG14 (Life Below Water). M Ravichandran, Secretary, MoES, elaborating on the benefits for India, said: "The BBNJ Agreement allows us to enhance our strategic presence in areas beyond our EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone), which is very promising. In addition to shared monetary benefits, it will further strengthen our marine conservation efforts and collaborations, open newer avenues for scientific research and development, access to samples, sequences and information, capacity building and technology transfer, etc., not just for us but for the benefit of the entire humankind". The BBNJ Agreement will be the third implementation agreement under UNCLOS if and when it enters into force, alongside its sister implementation agreements: the 1994 Part XI Implementation Agreement (which addresses the exploration and extraction of mineral resources in the international seabed area) and the 1995 UN Fish Stocks Agreement (which addresses the conservation and management of straddling and highly migratory fish stocks). UNCLOS was adopted on December 10, 1982, and came into force on November 16, 1994. It is crucial for the environmental protection of the seas and addressing maritime boundaries, rights to marine resources, and dispute resolution. It establishes the International Seabed Authority to regulate mining and related activities on the ocean floor beyond national jurisdiction. As of today, more than 160 countries have ratified UNCLOS. It is vital to maintaining order, equity, and fairness in using the world's oceans. The BBNJ Agreement was agreed upon in March 2023 and is open for signature for two years starting September 2023. It will be an international legally binding treaty after it enters force 120 days after the 60th ratification, acceptance, approval or accession. As of June 2024, 91 countries have signed the BBNJ Agreement, and eight Parties have ratified it. BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- For Jamie and Liliana, a couple who traveled to the southwest Chinese city of Chengdu from Australia, using Alipay for payment was an experience as unique as strolling through the historic Kuanzhai Alley. "The payment went through so quickly. It's very convenient," said Liliana, who usually pays through cash or with credit cards when traveling. Liliana is among many foreign visitors who have benefited from China's commitment to facilitating mobile payments for foreigners. Years of rapid growth have made China a front-runner in mobile payment. The penetration rate for mobile payments in the country reached 86 percent, the highest in the world, by the end of 2023. However, the widespread use of mobile payment also poses hurdles for first-time visitors to China. Foreign visitors relying on bank cards and cash may encounter difficulties during payment processes, as street vendors or small-scale service providers often prefer mobile payment to cash or international credit cards. Taking note of this phenomenon, the Chinese government has rolled out multiple measures to help foreigners enjoy a hassle-free payment environment in China akin to that enjoyed by locals. Thanks to simplified mobile payments for foreigners, visitors like Liliana can now easily bind overseas bank cards with Alipay or Tenpay, two major payment apps in China. In the first half of the year, the number of foreign card transactions through mobile payment platforms increased 6.65 times from a year ago to nearly 37.4 million, and the total transaction volume increased 8.03 times to 5.42 billion yuan (about 760.29 million U.S. dollars), according to data from Chinese online payment clearing house NetsUnion Clearing Corporation. Major payment platforms have been guided by China's central bank to raise the single transaction limit for overseas travelers using mobile payments from 1,000 dollars to 5,000 dollars and increase the annual cumulative transaction limit from 10,000 dollars to 50,000 dollars. Today, more and more foreign visitors are relishing the experience of navigating China on a mobile phone. A recent survey conducted by Beijing Foreign Studies University on 714 foreign tourists from 103 countries found that 86 percent of the respondents who have visited China believe that the payment experience has become more convenient. Most of them have used mobile payment. From the commercial district near the Jiefang Monument in the "mountain city" of Chongqing to the bustling Chunxi Road in Chengdu, Isaac used his phone to pay for everything he needed, such as food, drinks, accommodation and tickets. The university student from Singapore said he was surprised to be able to use digital wallets from Singapore to pay for tickets for high-speed trains and subways in China. Since the beginning of the year, CHAGEE, a famous China-chic tea beverage brand, has received many more foreign customers, said Chen Xiaoming, general manager of the brand's Sichuan subsidiary. Many foreign customers are happy to learn they can use digital wallets from their home countries. NetsUnion Clearing Corporation's data showed that more than 28.75 million transactions were made using foreign digital wallets in the first half of the year, amounting to 5.32 billion yuan. Alipay currently accepts 12 foreign digital wallets from nine countries and regions, including Singapore, Thailand and the Republic of Korea. It wasn't until the sunlight changed that a local man spotted a 'great browning' parching trees on a nearby hillside. Now he sees it everywhere. A 'great browning' has been documented in Western Australia (left) and Tasmania (right) Source: Joe Fontaine/Sean Tooker A great browning is spreading across Australia's hills. Forest covering tens of thousands of hectares of land is losing its vibrant green colouring as it is deprived of moisture due to dry, unseasonal weather. Photographs showing parched eucalypts along Australias southwest coast were the first sign something was wrong. Now its been revealed the problem has jumped across the Great Australian Bight. Areas of Tasmania are now a big concern for Dr Joe Fontaine, a forestry sciences expert at Murdoch University. Its been a dry autumn with warmer than normal temperatures. And these wet forests that people thought were invulnerable, are starting to turn brown, he told Yahoo News. There are also signs old trees are dying in South Australia, making some experts concerned three states could be impacted. Shock as signs of ginger tree syndrome discovered Residents living close to the Huon Valley are also worried. One of them is bush regenerator Sean Tooker, who has documented the rapid change since he first noticed it two months ago. I was driving home from work, and the sunlight hit the western slopes of the ridge that follows the valley, and I saw all these large areas of forest that had dried off in patches, he told Yahoo. I was shocked. And I wondered why I hadnt seen it before. Related: 'No escape' as invisible ocean killer spreads across planet It wasnt just the eucalypts that were browning in Tasmania, grasses and shrubs were also affected. Source: Sean Tooker After noticing the browning, Tooker drove around forests south of Hobart documenting what he saw. I just saw more of it even in shaded south-facing gullies with what were once wet forests, trees had expired. And it was trees of all ages, it didnt matter if they were saplings or mature, he said. Then east of Huonville, down the Channel Highway, I saw that actually everything was dying, not just the eucalypts. The shrub layer and down into the grasses too. The strangest thing was that all the trees were fully intact, and hadnt lost any leaves. But they looked completely dead. But it wasnt until he drove further east to the Tasman Peninsula that he realised the full horror of the problem. It was there that extremely old trees were heavily bleeding from long vertical cracks, succumbing to an ailment called ginger tree syndrome a condition affecting eucalypts, often following extreme heat events. More important stories about plants Massive 'die back' under investigation Tasmanias Department of Natural Resources and Environment Tasmania (NRE Tas) told Yahoo it was aware of reports about tree dieback in Tasmania, including in the Huon Valley. It appears that the recent reports of dieback are a result of dry weather conditions, it said. NRE Tas has been liaising with other land managers and organisations on possible actions and options to better understand the extent of the dieback. Separately there have been reports from South Australias Barossa Valley that trees there are also showing signs of ginger tree syndrome. Images from the Barossa Valley show eucalypts with symptoms consistent with ginger tree syndrome. Source: Cat Walker Why 'great browning' of trees is like 'mass bleaching' of coral Since Yahoo first reported on the problem in Western Australia, the situation has worsened. After we spoke in April, the region experienced its hottest May on record. So the die-off continued at pace until the end of the month until we finally got decent rain, Fontaine told Yahoo. Its too early to tell how many of the trees have died. Fontaine thinks it wont be until October, that well be able to see whether they sprout with new growth. The Bureau of Meteorology's long-term forecast between July and September is for above average rainfall for central and eastern Australia. And Rainfall is expected to be within the typical seasonal range across most of northern Australia, Western Australia and Victoria. But because climate change is leading to more frequent extreme weather, including sustained hot and dry periods, Fontaine worries some forests wont adapt. He sees the problem mirrored at the other end of the country in Queensland, where coral is being hammered by increased numbers of mass bleaching events. Just look at the Great Barrier Reef, its the same exact story. We thought it just happened once in 1998, he said. And now its happened six times in the last two decades. So unfortunately I think its going to happen again. Love Australia's weird and wonderful environment? Get our new newsletter showcasing the weeks best stories. New Delhi, July 8 : The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Centre to mull the formation of a menstrual leave policy after consulting all stakeholders, including the state governments. A bench, headed by CJI D.Y. Chandrachud, asked the PIL litigant to move a representation before the Secretary of the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development with a copy to Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati. Disposing of the plea, the Bench, also comprising Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said: "We request the Secretary, Union Ministry of Women and Child Development to look into the matter. After due consultation with all stakeholders, both the Union and the States shall consider whether it is feasible to frame a model policy on menstrual leave." The apex court cautioned that mandating menstrual leave policy might stop employers from hiring women at the workplace, clarifying its order will not come into the way of framing independent policy by the state government. "This menstrual leave policy is purely a 'policy issue' to be considered at the governmental level," it remarked. The petitioner submitted that many private organisations in the country have brought menstrual leave policies on their own and worldwide, including the UK, China, Japan, Taiwan, Indonesia, South Korea, Spain, and Zambia, such a policy is already in place. The plea, filed through advocate Shashank Singh, said that the 'menstrual status' of a woman is not only a right personal and intrinsic to her privacy but is required to be treated without discrimination and with dignity. "This would require the State to come out with such measures which provide the required relief to a woman during menstrual pain so that she is able to cope up with the suffering and protect her personal right with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution." In December last year, then Union Women and Child Development Minister Smriti Irani, in a statement in Rajya Sabha, said that menstruation does not call for a specific policy for granting paid leave. Bhopal, July 8 : In a significant development, a Maoist carrying a bounty of Rs 14 lakh was killed during an encounter with security forces in Madhya Pradesh's Balaghat, while the search for others is underway, police said on Monday. The encounter took place under the Hatta police station when the security forces (Hawk force of MP Police) were carrying out a search operation on the basis of input received regarding the presence of Maoists in the region. During a search operation, security forces noticed a group of people dressed in white clothes were trying to hide themselves. When the security forces tried to stop them, they started firing and ran away. The deceased Maoist has been identified as Ukas alias Sohan (30), a resident of the Maoist-hit Sukma district in the neighbouring state of Chhattisgarh. He has been carrying out Maoist activities in the Bhoramdev region for the last several years. Additional Director General (ADG) of Police Jaydeep Prasad said that an alert has already been issued as input was received about the presence of some more Maoists who are planning for a big attack on security forces and the search operations are being carried out. "The dead Maoist (Sohan) has been carrying out Maoist activities since 2013 in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. He was an expert in operating explosive devices to attack security personnel. He was wanted in Madhya Pradesh since 2019 and a reward of Rs 14 lakh was announced against him since then," Prasad said in a press conference here in Bhopal. Prasad added that the gunning down of wanted Sohan came as a major breakthrough for Madhya Pradesh Police. "MP Police have killed more than 20 Maoists carrying a bounty of more than 3.5 crore in the past two years, including two hardcore Maoists in April this year," he added. Patna, July 8 : Amid the severe flood threat in West Champaran, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar inspected the Valmiki Nagar Gandak barrage on Monday and gave instructions to the officials to implement preventive measures. The Chief Minister also inspected the Gandak Barrage Control Room and sought information on various issues regarding floods from the officers. Accompanied by Water Resource Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary, the Chief Minister conducted an aerial survey of the flood-affected Gopalganj and West Champaran districts before reaching the Valmiki Nagar Gandak Barrage. He inspected the water level at gate number 5 of the barrage and subsequently visited the guest house and the new International Convention Center. In a review meeting with officials from the water resource and disaster management departments, the Chief Minister emphasised the importance of ensuring the safety of embankments and the distribution of food packets, polythene sheets, and fodder for cattle. The monsoon is active in Nepal and North Bihar and has led to increased water levels in several rivers, including Narayani in Nepal, Gandak, Burhi Gandak, Bagmati, Kosi, Masan, Kamla Balan and others. Torrential rains over the past week have already led to floodwaters entering residential areas in several districts, forcing residents of low-lying areas to seek refuge in higher places. Mumbai, July 8 : Days after the presentation of the Rs 6,12,293 crore budget for 2024-25, the MahaYuti government in Maharashtra will present supplementary demands of Rs 94,000 crore plus during the ongoing Monsoon session, mainly to finance the implementation of a slew of freebies and sops in the run-up to the Assembly elections slated for September-October. The state cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, gave its approval after Finance Secretary Saurabh Vijay put up the Finance Departmentas proposal in this regard. The supplementary demands will be necessitated as the government will badly need money to allocate funds for populist schemes worth Rs 96,000 crore announced in the budget. These schemes will be financed after the state legislature passes the supplementary demands. Various schemes to be funded included Mukhamantri Ladki Bahin Yojana (Rs 46,000 crore), free higher education for girls (Rs 2,000 crore), Mukhyamantri Yuva Karyaprashikshan Yojana (Rs 10,000 crore), free electricity to farmers for agricultural pumps up to 7.5 horsepower capacity (Rs 14,761 crore) and few small and big schemes for various sections (Rs 20,000-25,000 crore). The governmentas move to table supplementary demands comes when Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar has projected a revenue deficit of Rs 20,051 crore and a fiscal deficit of Rs 1.10 lakh crore in the budget for 2024-25. He has also estimated the stateas public debt stock to increase to Rs 7.82 lakh crore in 2024-25 against Rs 7.11 lakh crore. The revenue deficit is expected to be 0.47 per cent of the gross state domestic product (GSDP) while the fiscal deficit will be 2.59 per cent of the GSDP in 2024-25. Both are way below the 3 per cent limit of the GSDP as mandated by the Fiscal Responsibility and Budget Management Act (FRBM). A senior minister said: "The government is making all efforts to adhere to the Finance Commissionas recommendations and provisions of the FRBM Act. However, in the wake of supplementary demands of Rs 94,000 crore plus for the implementation of several schemes, the state's fiscal deficit is expected to cross the 3 per cent limit of the GSDP and it may surge to a record 4.87 per cent, which will be for the first time in the state. However, the government is capable of tackling the situation as it is bullish about its rapidly rising tax revenue." However, another minister admitted that if the fiscal deficit crosses 3 per cent of the GSDP, then it may seriously impact the government's cash flow which will bring many constraints in borrowing money from the market. "The government will have to focus on fiscal management in such a situation to avoid fiscal distress ahead of the coming Assembly election. This will certainly be a major challenge," he asserted. (Sanjay Jog can be contacted at sanjay.j@ians.in) Thiruvananthapuram, July 8 : The UK is exploring avenues for joint ventures in technological innovation in the Kerala IT ecosystem and thereby strengthening partnership with India in the tech sector, said Joshua Bamford, Head of Tech and Innovation, British High Commission in India, on Monday. Leading a UK delegation to Technopark here, Bamford said the visit to India's first IT Park had been "incredibly insightful". The delegation interacted with Col Sanjeev Nair (Retd), CEO, Technopark, and discussed potential collaboration opportunities at the Park. Among other officials who took part in the discussion included Christi Thomas, Senior Technology and Innovation Adviser, British Deputy High Commission, Bengaluru. Bamford said the discussions they had with the CEO of Technopark and CEO of Toonz Animation underscored the vast potential for collaboration between the UK and Kerala in the technology and innovation sectors. "We are excited about the possibilities of this partnership and look forward to leveraging our combined strengths to drive forward groundbreaking advancements in artificial intelligence, future telecoms and other tech domains," said Bamford. Col Sanjeev Nair (Retd), CEO, Technopark, said the visit of the UK delegation marks a significant step towards fostering stronger ties and cooperative initiatives between the UK and Indian tech ecosystems. Aizawl, July 8 : Mizoram Home Minister K. Sapdanga has apologised to over 33,000 Myanmar refugees, sheltering in the state since February 2021, for not being able to meet their all needs adequately, citing the state's limited resources. Addressing an event here on Sunday night, he said that the people of Mizoram consider the refugees as brothers and sisters of the Mizos. Sapdanga, who also holds the Disaster Management portfolio, recounted his first visit to the refugee camps along the Mizoram-Myanmar border and his interaction with the refugees. He expressed his sadness at the troubles of those who had fled their homes along with the children and ailing persons. "You have taken shelter in Mizoram, what we call aJerusalem of all the Mizosa, as you have no other option. But we are trying to help, though our resources are limited," he said. The Minister appealed for cooperation from all sections of people, including the refugees, to deal with the drug menace in Mizoram, particularly among youths. He expressed hope that the ethnic Myanmar nationals would achieve the freedom they are fighting for. Adviser to the Chief Minister (Political) Lalmuanpuia Punte urged unity among all Chin tribal ethnic groups in their fight to overthrow the military junta and restore democracy in Myanmar, particularly in the Chin state of the neighbouring country. Over 33,000 Myanmarese took shelter in Mizoram in different phases after the military takeover there in February 2021. Besides the Myanmar nationals, over 15,000 Bangladeshi tribals, belonging to the Bawm community, took shelter in Mizoram since November 2022. The Bangladeshi refugees from Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT) of southeast Bangladesh fled from their villages and sought refuge in Mizoram after an offensive by the Bangladeshi Army against the insurgent group Kuki-Chin National Army (KNA). Around 10,000 people including women and children belonging to Kuki-Zomi tribes, have also taken shelter in Mizoram after the ethnic violence broke out in neighbouring Manipur in May last year. The Kuki-Zomi-Chin tribes in Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Manipur share ethnic ties, and cultural and linguistic similarities with the Mizo people. Most refugees stay in rented accommodation and the homes of their relatives or friends, while others live in relief camps across the border state, which shares a 510-km-long unfenced border with Myanmar and 318 km with Bangladesh. The present Zoram People's Movement (ZPM) government and the previous Mizo National Front (MNF) government have sought financial assistance from the Centre for the relief and shelter of the Myanmar, Bangladeshi, and Manipur refugees. Chief Minister Lalduhoma on Saturday discussed the Bangladeshi refugee issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi and reportedly told him that the state government is reluctant to push back the refugees. An official of Mizoram Chief Ministeras Office (CMO) said that the Chief Minister, during the meeting with the Prime Minister at his residence in New Delhi, apprised him that the Bangladeshi refugees, taking shelter in the state belong to the Bawm community, one of the ethnic Mizo tribes. Many more tribals from CHT of the same community are also trying to enter Mizoram, he told the Prime Minister. Bengaluru, July 8 : Karnataka BJP MLA Bharat Shetty on Monday stirred a major controversy, saying the Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi should be locked up and slapped inside the Parliament for his alleged anti-Hindu remarks. "LoP Rahul Gandhi should be locked up and slapped inside Parliament. This act will lead to the filing of seven to eight FIRs. If LoP Rahul Gandhi comes to Mangaluru city, we will arrange the same for him," MLA Shetty said. He said that LoP Rahul Gandhi was holding a picture of the Hindu god Shiva. "That madman does not know that if Lord Shiva opened his third eye, he (LoP) would turn into ashes. They have adopted an anti-Hindu policy. It is evident that LoP Rahul Gandhi is a madman. He thinks that Hindus will quietly listen to whatever he says about them. If he 'barks' in Parliament, the local leaders will start wagging their tails here," Shetty said. He said it is BJP's duty to protect Hindu religion and institutions. "The Congress has begun to convey that Hindus and Hindutva are different. Hindus will face danger in the future because of such leaders. They will create a situation where Hindus will not step out of their houses," he said. He alleged that LoP Rahul Gandhi will turn into a secular person when he visits Kerala and he will become an atheist in Tamil Nadu. "When he comes to Gujarat, LoP Rahul Gandhi becomes an ardent devotee of Lord Shiva," he alleged. He said that after getting only 99 Lok Sabha seats in the general election, LoP Rahul Gandhi is claiming to have made a great achievement. "Shivaji and Maharana Pratap were born in the Hindu community. We will take out weapons whenever there is a need. We know very well how to retaliate after worshipping the weapons. LoP Rahul Gandhi will be alright after a tight slap inside Parliament," he said. Imphal, July 8 : Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Monday after visiting camps in Manipur, once again urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the violence ravaged state and announced that Congress is ready to do whatever possible to restore peace in the northeastern state. After visiting relief camps in Jiribam and Churachandpur districts and meeting Governor Anusuiya Uikey, LoP Rahul Gandhi said that the Prime Minister should come to the state for a day or two days and listen to the affected people of Manipur. "Even if there is no violence, the Prime Minister should come to Manipur to know its problem and issues," LoP Rahul Gandhi told the media before leaving the state for Lucknow. He said that the Indian government must reach out to violence-hit people and embrace them to restore peace. "We are ready to support whatever possible to restore peace in Manipur. The state needs to get out of the suffering. Violence and hatred would not solve the crisis. I am ready to visit Manipur five times, ten times to support the people of Manipur." Referring to his discussion with the Governor, LoP Rahul Gandhi said that he is not happy with the situation in Manipur and 'we expressed our displeasure to the Governor'. "I told the Governor that I was expecting some improvement in the Manipur situation but I am quite disappointed that it is still no way near what it should be. I do not want to politicise the Manipur issue, this is not our intention at all," the LoP Rahul Gandhi said and remarked that there was a tremendous tragedy for everybody in Manipur. He said that he came to Manipur once again to listen to the affected people and to build their confidence. "As in the opposition party, we try to pressurise the government to normalise the situation. The need of the hour is peace, violence hurts everyone, thousands of people are affected, many are killed, and huge numbers of property are destroyed. I have never seen such a situation anywhere in India," LoP Rahul Gandhi said. Noting that the state was completely divided in ethnic lines, the LoP said that he came to Manipur as the brother of the people of the state. The LoP left for Imphal airport after his brief media briefing in the Congress Bhavan and refused to take any questions from the media. On Monday, LoP Rahul Gandhi first visited a relief camp in Jiribam, where fresh violence occurred after the killing of 59-year-old Soibam Saratkumar Singh, a farmer, on June 6, and met the inmates of the relief camps. State Congress president Keisham Meghachandra Singh, who accompanied LoP Rahul Gandhi, said that the inmates at the Jiribam camp told the LoP about the horrific experiences they went through. A girl told LoP Rahul Gandhi that neither Prime Minister Narendra Modi nor Chief Minister N Biren Singh had come to visit Jiribam and she also urged the LoP to highlight their plight in the Parliament, Meghachandra told the media. From Jiribam, the LoP came to Imphal via Silchar (Assam) and visited a relief camp in Tuibong village in Churachandpur district. There also the LoP interacted with inmates. Hundreds of men and women greeted LoP Rahul Gandhi both in Jiribam and Churachandpur and women wept while talking to him, the state Congress president said. He said that LoP Rahul Gandhi's visit firstly provided a moral boost and support to violence-hit people in Manipur and on the other hand to assess the situation on the ground by the LoP himself. "His visit reflects the Congress' commitment to deal with the concerns of those affected by the ethnic violence," Meghachandra said. Monday's visit was the third visit of LoP Rahul Gandhi to the northeastern state after the ethnic violence broke out in the state in May last year. The LoP visited Manipur in June 2023 and also for the start of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra on January 14. Ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki-Zo tribal communities since May last year claimed more than 220 lives and injured over a thousand in Manipur besides destroying a large number of government and private properties and religious structures. Madison: President of the United States Joe Biden gestures to the crowd as he delivers remarks at a campaign rally at Sherman Middle School. Image Source: IANS News Washington, July 8 : US President Joe Biden on Monday called upon Democratic lawmakers "to end" the heated debate over his candidacy for re-election, triggered by his disastrous debate, saying in a letter to them that "I am firmly committed to staying in this race". Bidenas letter seeks to quell a revolt brewing among Democratic lawmakers. Four senior members of the House of Representatives - Jerry Nadler, Adam Smith, Mark Takano, and Joe Morelle - on Monday joined growing calls for him to step aside, taking the total to nine. Senate Democrats are meeting later in the day to talk about Bidenas candidacy later on Monday as called by Mark Warner. The party turmoil entered the second week on Monday at the same time as NATO leaders are gathering here in Washington DC for their annual summit. Allies will be keeping an eye on the embattled American Presidentas domestic troubles as they discuss threats posed individually and collectively as a group by Russia, China, and Iran. The Democratic party has been riven by a bitter debate triggered by his weak performance in the first presidential debate against former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, on June 27. Some Democrats think he seemed not only incapable of defeating Trump in the election but also governing the country for the next four years, if he wins a second term. They have called for him to make way for someone younger and healthier. Vice-President Kamala Harris is a leading contender. But President Biden is not going anywhere. "Despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," he wrote in the letter. "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end." In a call to a morning talk show, Biden threw a challenge to those "party elites" who have been calling for his ouster to contest against him for the party nomination at the convention in Chicago. "Iam getting so frustrated by the elites, Iam not talking about you guys, but about the elite in the party, who a know so much more," Biden said, adding "challenge me at the convention". Biden reminded lawmakers in the letter that he won the party nomination with 14 million votes, which was 87 per cent of the votes cast, and won nearly 3,000 party delegates (who will elect the nominee formally at the convention). "This was a process open to anyone who wanted to run. Only three people chose to challenge me. One fared so badly that he left the primaries to run as an independent. Another attacked me for being too old and was soundly defeated. The voters of the Democratic Party have voted. They have chosen me to be the nominee of the party," he wrote. "Do we now just say this process didn't matter? That the voters don't have a say? I decline to do that." Mumbai, July 8 : Maharashtra government will table a Model Prisons and Correctional Services Bill, 2024 on the line of the Centre's Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act, 2023 during the ongoing monsoon session of the state legislature. The state cabinet chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde gave its approval at its meeting held on Monday. The proposed bill will cover various aspects of prison management including security, safety, scientific and technological interventions, segregation of prisoners, special provision for women inmates, taking appropriate action against criminal activities of prisoners in the prison, grant of parole and furlough to prisoners, their education, vocational training and skill development. It will also have provisions with regard to the reformation, rehabilitation and integration of prisoners into society. A senior state government functionary said that the prison being a state subject, the Centre had asked to enact suitable legislation along the lines of the Model Prisons and Correctional Services Act, 2023. "The bill's objective is to carry out administrative and technological reforms in prisons and also implement welfare programmes for prisoners and aftercare and rehabilitation services," he said. He added that the Union Home Affairs Ministry is providing necessary support and guidance to the state for efficient management of prisons in their jurisdictions. According to the state government's data, there are about 41,075 inmates in 60 jails against the combined capacity of 24,722 inmates in Maharashtra as of January 31, 2023. Of the 41,075 inmates, 39,504 were men, 1,556 women, and 15 trans-genders. Of them, 7,949 were convicts, 32,917 undertrials, and 209 detainees. There were also a total of 606 foreign inmates in the jails The jail occupancy in the state was 136.19 per cent in 2017, 148.93 per cent in 2018, 152.72 per cent in 2019, 128.70 per cent in 2020 and 148.80 in 2021. In 2021, Maharashtra stood seventh in the country in terms of occupancy rate. (Sanjay Jog can be contacted at sanjay.j@ians.in) The 42-year-old left her Ballarat residence early in the afternoon of May 30 with her black cat in a carrier. Her whereabouts remain unknown. Missing mum Renee, 42, from Ballarat, was last seen ringing a home's doorbell and asking for clothing and water on June 2. Source: Victoria Police Concerning CCTV of an Aussie woman missing for more than a month has been released by police. Footage of Renee was last captured on a Ballarat, Victoria homes security camera at about 6am on June 2 four days after she disappeared from her home 20km away. The 42-year-old, whose last name has been withheld, left her Warrenheip residence early in the afternoon of May 30 with her black cat, named Shadow, in a cat carrier. Footage shows her walking briskly in the rain with a backpack over her shoulders and pet in hand. Days later, a dishevelled Renee rang the doorbell at a home on the other side of Ballarat in the suburb of Lucas and spoke to a resident inside, asking for clothing and water before leaving. Video shows the 42-year-old placing a grey, hooded jumper over her head as she crouches down on the front porch. Shadow was later found left outside the house. Renee's whereabouts remain unknown. Missing woman may be confused, avoiding people Police and family members are worried for Renees welfare as she has a medical condition and has been missing for an extended period of time. Renee left her home on May 30 with her cat in a carrier. She was last seen wearing a grey, hooded jumper. Source: Victoria Police Investigators said they do not believe there are any suspicious circumstances surrounding her disappearance, but fear she may be confused and is possibly deliberately trying to avoid people. The mum hasnt accessed her bank accounts in over a month, furthering their worries, police said. Renee is described as being Caucasian, of slim build, about 170cm tall with blonde hair. Anyone with information on her whereabouts is urged to contact Ballarat Police Station on (03) 5336 6000. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Bhopal, July 8 : On the last day of the campaign for by-election in the Amarwara assembly seat of Chhindwara on Monday, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav slammed the Congress, accusing it of running a narrative to "divide" the Hindu community for their vote bank policy. Bhopal, July 8 (IANS) On the last day of the campaign for by-election in the Amarwara assembly seat of Chhindwara on Monday, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav slammed the Congress, accusing it of running a narrative to "divide" the Hindu community for their vote bank policy. Addressing a public gathering in Amarwara, the Chief Minister said that the Congress leaders sitting in Delhi compare Hindu community with "terrorists". They also question why sadhu-sanyasi (priests) support the BJP's ideology. "Sadhu-Sanyasi gives blessings to the BJP because we respect them. Our culture is to respect priests like God and in return, we receive blessings from them. Congress leaders compare the Hindu community with terrorists, but their (Congress) plan to divide the people won't be successful," the Chief Minister said. He also expressed confidence in winning the Amarwara by-election scheduled to take place on July 10. The Chief Minister said the BJP will win Amarwara like it won Chhindwara Lok Sabha seat recently. "The way people are responding to the BJP's development works, I am sure that we will win Amarwara like Chhindwara Lok Sabha," he added. The by-poll in Amarwara was necessitated after Congress MLA Kamlesh Shah resigned from the Assembly and party's primary membership and joined the BJP ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. Shah has won the Amarwara seat for three consecutive terms, and the BJP has fielded him as its candidate for by-poll. The Congress has fielded a new candidate - Dheernsha Invati to take on the BJP's Kamlesh Shah. The Congress under the leadership of its new state head Jitu Patwari carried out an aggressive campaign in Amarwara. The result of the by-election will be announced on July 13. Amaravati, July 8 : Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy said on Monday that Andhra Pradesh has no opposition as Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Jan Sena leader and Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and opposition YSR Congress leader Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy are all on the side of the BJP. He said state Congress president Y. S. Sharmila is the only opposition who will fight on behalf of the people. Addressing a meeting organised by Sharmila in Mangalagiri to pay tributes to her father and former Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy (YSR) on his 75th birth anniversary, he said: "The BJP is in power in Andhra Pradesh. BJP means Babu, Jagan and Pawan. There is no opposition in Andhra Pradesh. Babu, Jagan and Pawan are all supporters of PM Modi." He predicted that Congress will come to power in Andhra Pradesh in 2029 and Rahul Gandhi will become the Prime Minister of the country. "Those who take forward YSR's aspirations are only the true heirs. Those who are doing politics in the name of YSR are not his successors," he said in an apparent attack on YSR's son and former Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy. Revanth Reddy said though 15 years have passed since the passing away of YSR, people remember the great leader. The departed Congress leader left an indelible mark and he will remain in the hearts of the poor forever, he said. "YSR 's absence is visible in Telugu states. The Congress leader maintained a huge fan following in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana," he said. Revanth Reddy revealed that when he was a member of the Legislative Council (in undivided Andhra Pradesh), he used to be well prepared to speak to draw the attention of then CM YSR. "YSR also encouraged me by answering my questions in the House. He strongly believed that the leadership would be strengthened only when the newcomers were encouraged. Leaders should learn from YSR how to respect the opposition leaders," he said. The Chief Minister said YSR was known for standing by his word and never going back on it. "People will support the struggle by the leaders at the right time. Today, Sharmila is playing the role which YSR played in 1999," he said. Stating that he came to the meeting along with Cabinet colleagues to extend full support to Sharmila, he said: "Some people are talking about a by-election to the Kadapa Parliamentary seat. I am ready to campaign for Sharmila if there is a by-election." Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, and ministers Ponnam Prabhakar and P. Srinivas Reddy also addressed the meeting. London, July 8 : Lorenzo Musetti of Italy overcame French lucky loser Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in four sets to storm into his maiden quarterfinal of a major and was joined by top Australian Alex De Minaur, who too advanced to the last-eight stage of men's singles for the first time at Wimbledon 2024 on Monday. The Italian reached the last eight of men's singles at a major for the first time at Wimbledon, where he ended the superb run of Perricard with a 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 victory in a Round of 16 clash at Court No. 2. On No. 1 Court, de Minaur advanced to the last-eight stage at Wimbledon for the first time by beating another French player, Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 in an entertaining clash. Mpetshi Perricard was celebrating his 21st birthday and entered the match high in confidence. The big-serving Frenchman defeated Sebastian Korda, Yoshihito Nishioka, and Emil Ruusuvuori en route to his first fourth-round appearance at a major, hitting 105 aces across his first three matches. The Lyon champion was unable to fire at his best level against Musetti in the pairas first ATP head-to-head meeting. The 25th seed broke Mpetshi Perricardas serve five times and was the more consistent in the baseline exchanges, committing just eight unforced errors compared to 42 from his opponent. With his two-hour, five-minute win on No. 2 Court, Musetti joined World No. 1 Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals. It is the first time in history that multiple Italian men have reached the last eight at SW19, with Musetti becoming just the seventh Italian man in history to advance to that stage. The 22-year-old will next face Alexander Zverev or Taylor Fritz on Wednesday. The 6 feet 8-inch Mpetshi Perricard, who hit several serves above 145mph during his run, was aiming to become the first lucky loser to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final. He is up 14 spots to No. 44 in the ATP Live Rankings. De Minaur storms into quarters The ninth seed De Minaur produced an intense performance to outlast Fils, scampering around the court to hang in, before turning the tables with his flat groundstrokes. The 25-year-old recovered from squandering a 4-2 lead in the third set to eventually finish the job in four, avenging his defeat to the 20-year-old in April in Barcelona. De Minaur has reached consecutive major quarterfinals, having fallen to Alexander Zverev in the last eight at Roland Garros. He will aim to go one step further and reach his first Grand Slam semifinal when he takes on Novak Djokovic or Holger Rune on Wednesday. Last month, De Minaur won his second grass-court tour-level title in as-Hertogenbosch. With his run to the quarters in west London, he has climbed one spot to sixth in the ATP Live Race To Turin. The Australian is aiming to make his debut at the Nitto ATP Finals in November. Fils was competing in the fourth round at a major for the first time. The World No. 34 moved past Dominic Stricker and Hubert Hurkacz before he survived in five sets against Roman Safiullin. Baramulla :Army soldiers moving towards ongoing encounter site at Malwaa villages of Baramulla district in Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday April 21,2022.(Photo: Nisar Malik /IANS). Image Source: IANS News Jammu, July 8 : Another soldier injured in the terrorist attack on an army convoy in J&K's Kathua on Monday, succumbed to his injuries in the hospital, taking to five the toll of soldiers killed in the dastardly attack. An official said a JCO was among the five martyred army soldiers. Para commandos were airdropped in the area after the terror attack to trace and hunt down the terrorists. Officials said the terrorists threw a grenade and then opened automatic fire on army vehicles that were on routine patrol duty on Machedi-Kindli-Malhar road in Kathua at 3.30 p.m. "The attack by terrorists occurred near Badnota village, which is 150 km away from Kathua town," officials said. Earlier, officials had said the place of the terrorist attack was 52 km away from Kathua town. The security forces retaliated, but reports indicate that the terrorists escaped from the spot. "Ten army soldiers were injured in this terrorist attack. The injured were shifted to the hospital where five soldiers succumbed to critical injuries. Five injured soldiers are being treated at the hospital," an official said A massive CASO (Cordon & Search Operation) was started in the area. Officials said that reinforcements have been rushed to the place to augment the strength of the security forces so that the terrorists responsible for the attack are traced. Monday's attack is the second major terror-related incident in Kathua district in the past 4 weeks. Two terrorists and a CRPF jawan were killed in a gunfight during a search and cordon operation on June 12 and June 14 in the Hiranagar area of the district. A major terror attack on innocent pilgrims occurred on June 9 in the Reasi district of Jammu division in which terrorists fired at a pilgrim bus returning from Shiv-Khori temple. The terrorists killed the driver of the bus and kept firing at the bus after it fell into a gorge. Nine pilgrims were killed in that attack and 44 others were injured. J&K DGP, R.R.Swain has said that a group of foreign terrorists is active in the hilly Poonch, Rajouri and adjacent districts who are taking advantage of the terrain and remoteness of the area. Security forces have launched an aggressive campaign against the terrorists. On July 6 and July 7, six terrorists and 2 soldiers were killed in two encounters between the holed-up terrorists in the Kulgam district of the Kashmir Valley. New Delhi, July 8 : Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday hosted Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence for a 'private engagement'. "PM Modi welcomed by President Vladimir Putin of Russia at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a private engagement," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal wrote on X. He said that the meeting was between two close friends and trusted partners. "An occasion for the two leaders to cherish & celebrate friendship," the Spokesperson said. Earlier, PM Modi arrived to a ceremonial welcome at the Vnukovo-II International Airport in what is his first visit to the Russian capital since 2015. He was received by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. On Tuesday, PM Modi will interact with the Indian community in Russia, lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Kremlin and thereafter visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow. These engagements will precede a restricted level talk between the PM Modi and President Putin, which will then be followed by delegation-level talks. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues," PM Modi said in his departure statement before leaving New Delhi. He spotlighted that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Opening up of space market by govt to private players provides opportunities: DST. Image Source: IANS News New Delhi, July 8 : The government's opening up of the space market for private players provided an opportunity in the sector, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) said on Monday. New Delhi, July 8 (IANS) The government's opening up of the space market for private players provided an opportunity in the sector, the Department of Science and Technology (DST) said on Monday. A two-stage orbital launch vehicle called Agnibaan powered by Indiaas first patented single-piece 3D-printed semi-cryogenic engines, developed and incubated at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras, was launched on May 30. The launch vehicle has been developed by space tech startup Agnikul, incubated at the IIT Madras Incubation Cell, and showcased in a startup expo during DSTas Startup Utsav in August 2022. The startup works out of the National Centre for Combustion Research and Development (NCCRD) at IIT Madras which is supported by the DST. "Working out of NCCRD, the Chennai-based startup has developed a range of technologies that can improve the reliability of space engines and speed up their manufacturing, making it easier to organise space missions," the DST said. The startup has successfully launched its first inaugural mission -- Agnibaan SOrTeD (Agnibaan Sub-Orbital Technology Demonstrator), a single-stage vehicle propelled by a single semi-cryogenic pressure-fed engine which has been used for Agnibaan. This endeavour took place from India's first private launchpad at SDSC SHAR. NCCRD has been the training ground for Agnikul, where they learnt the intricacies of building a rocket and this helped the startup figure out the technology in the initial phases. Another Technology Innovation Hub (TIH) funded by DST, Pravartak Technologies from IIT Madras became their partners for developing and commercialising technologies for space and deep space, the department mentioned. "They used the technologies they had developed to start manufacturing the engines at the companyas additive manufacturing facility at IIT Madras Research Park," it said. The DSTas TBI (Technology Business Incubator) supported startup established India's first private launchpad along with a Mission Control Centre at Sriharikota range. The DST mentioned that the launch of Agnibaan SorTeD helped achieve the world's first flight with a single-piece patented rocket engine. Jaipur, July 8 : Jaipur Municipal Corporation Greater on Monday announced that meat shops operating without commercial lease deed in Jaipur city (Greater Area) will be closed. The Mayor of Municipal Corporation Greater Saumya Gurjar said that only those shops will be given new licenses or renewal of license, which have the commercial lease of the property (shop). It was also decided to dispose of the pending lease applications in the Municipal Corporation within a month. Various points including the adoption of a simplification process regarding drain cleaning, door-to-door garbage collection system, night sweeping user charges, and fire NOC among others were also discussed during the meeting. The Mayor said that action should be taken against illegal meat shops and licenses will be given only on commercial leases, meat shops will not be operated in kiosks and residential areas, along with this, license renewal will also be given only on commercial leases. She added that it is mandatory to write Jhatka and Halal outside meat shops. Mumbai, July 8 : In a major relief, the Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday allowed the Sharad Pawar-led NCP SP to accept donations under section 29 B of the Representation of People Act. ECI gave its ruling after hearing on NCP SP's plea. NCP SP Working President Supriya Sule welcomed the ECI's order saying that the party is now allowed to accept donations under Section 29 B of the Representation of People Act. "The people blessed us by seeing the manner in which Sharad Pawar's party was taken away. Assembly elections will be held in the state soon. For this, the party had requested the ECI to register NCP SP as a separate political party under the Representation of the People Act, 1951 to raise funds. The Election Commission had a hearing on this today. After the hearing the ECI has allowed the NCP SP to accept donations under Section 29B," she added. "After having considered your letters, the ECI hereby authorises, on an interim basis, Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar to accept any amount of contribution voluntarily offered to it by any person or company other than a government company," said the ECI in its order. Sule said that ECI has assured to look into its plea to not to give a trumpet symbol to anyone where the symbol of a trumpeter is there. Her plea was important as NCP-SP hit severely in Dindori and Satara in particular where the candidates with a trumpet contested the election against party nominees with a symbol of a trumpeter. Mumbai, July 8 : A team of the Election Commission of India on Monday reviewed the preparations for the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections with the state Chief Electoral Officer S. Chockalingam, the Municipal Commissioners of Mumbai, Thane and Palghar, Commissioners of Police, and District Collectors. The Assembly elections are likely to be held in September-October this year. According to a state government release, the presentation was made to the visiting ECI team on the work done by the District Collectors and District Election Officers during the Lok Sabha elections. The ECI team instructed the state and district officials regarding the work to be done for the ensuing Assembly elections. It asked the District Collectors to set up polling stations in high-rise buildings and group cooperative housing societies with more than 200 homes in cities in a bid to increase the voting turnout. The other instructions include undertaking a drive to update the voters list and a special short revision programme of the voters list to reduce a few names and include new voter names, setting up new polling stations, and the printing and distribution of voter cards. The ECI team gave information with regard to the required manpower, EVMs, and VVPATs for the upcoming elections. Bengaluru, July 8 : Bengaluru Police launched a hunt for a youth who was indulged in the obscene act of exposing his private part to college girls in broad daylight. Police said that they received a complaint from college girls along with evidence. The incident was reported on the busy VV Puram Road in Bengaluru. "This stretch of road is used by a large number of female students studying in reputed colleges in the vicinity," the police said. According to the complaint, the miscreant arrived on a bike with his face covered. He then parked his vehicle on a public road and, in full public view, while sitting on his scooter, opened the zip of his pants and exposed himself in front of the college girls. When the girls raised an alarm, the miscreant quickly vanished from the spot. The girls, who have experienced this harassment repeatedly, made a video of the accused and lodged a complaint with the VV Puram police in Bengaluru. The police have registered the case and have started to gather information about the accused. They have also obtained the registration number of the two-wheeler. Further investigation into the case is underway. Mumbai, July 9 : Days after its announcement by Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar in the budget for 2024-25, the Maharashtra government on Monday issued a government resolution (GR) granting a 100 per cent fee waiver, instead of the existing 50 per cent, in professional courses to girls from the OBC, EWS, and SEBC categories. This initiative aims to empower girls whose parents' income is Rs 8 lakh or less annually. As per the GR issued by the state Higher and Technical Education Department, the scheme will be implemented from the academic year 2024-25. The state cabinet has given its approval for bearing the additional burden of Rs 906.05 crore. The Higher and Technical Department has said that the government decision was necessitated as currently only 36 per cent of girls opt for professional courses. It is expected that this decision will encourage more girls to enrol in courses such as nursing, MBBS, MBA, BMM, BMS, BCA, and others. Further, it is also expected that the scheme will help girls to pursue higher education which they may not have done for want of money. The GR will be applicable to the girls studying in government colleges, non-grant government and partially run on government grant colleges or permanently run without government grant colleges, polytechnic, public universities and deemed universities. Shiv Sena spokesperson and partyas women wing coordinator Susiben Shah hailed the governmentas move, saying: "Once again, CM has demonstrated that this government is committed to serving the common man." New Delhi, July 9 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Russian President Vladimir Putin, during a 'private engagement' at his official residence, that his only goal is to serve the people of India. "You have dedicated your entire life to serving the Indian people, and people feel it," the Russian President told the Prime Minister to which PM Modi responded by saying, "You are right, I have only one goal - my country, the people of India." Earlier, PM Modi was welcomed by President Putin at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a 'private engagement'. President Putin told the Prime Minister, "Esteemed Prime Minister! Dear friend! Good afternoon again, I am very glad to see you. We will have official conversations tomorrow, but today, in this homely environment, we can calmly talk about probably the same issues but unofficially." President Putin, while talking about Novo-Ogaryovo, said, "This is the official residence where I live. On one side are the complexes where I work with colleagues. On the other side are the utility rooms and the block where I live. You and I were there today." Congratulation PM Modi on his third term, President Putin said: "But first I would like to congratulate you on your re-election as Prime Minister. I think this is not accidental, but the result of your work over many years at the head of the Indian government. You have your own ideas, you are a very energetic person, you know how to achieve results in the interests of India and the Indian people. And the result is obvious: India confidently ranks third in the world in terms of economy. Probably, now it is the largest country in the world in terms of population - 1.4 billion people." President Putin told Prime Minister Modi that the most important thing is that there are 23 million births per year. Even for a country like India, this is still a lot. "This is the highest figure in the world. These are not just numbers, this means that people are planning their families, their lives, the planning horizon is expanding. And this means that they feel confident, they feel a certain stability, which is very important. Firstly, I congratulate you on this, and secondly, I want to say once again that I am very glad to see you." The Prime Minister Modi responded by saying: "To visit a friend at home is, of course, a great joy. You invited me to your home. I want to thank you for creating such an interesting program [of the visit], for your warm words. I am very grateful. "You are right, yes, the elections in India were very important and huge in scale. India is the largest democracy, it is considered the "mother of democracy", and about 650 million people voted in these elections. For the first time in the last 60 years, the government was elected for the third time in a row. The first time [this was done] was by the first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, he was elected for the third time, and after 60 years I got this opportunity. The people of India gave me this chance - to serve the Motherland," the Prime Minister said. PM Modi added: "The people of India who gave me this mandate I have served for 10 years in the government and my principle is to reform, implement and transform. So the people of India voted for this principle and I am confident that in my third term I will work three times harder." Baghdad, July 9 : Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani met with visiting US Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defence Daniel Shapiro to discuss ending the US-led coalition mission fighting the Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq. The Prime Minister's media office said on Monday that the talks focused on procedures for ending the international coalition mission and strengthening bilateral relations between Iraq and the US, Xinhua news agency reported. The meeting also touched on regional issues, with al-Sudani raising concerns about the "suffering of the Palestinian people" and the difficulties of delivering humanitarian aid. He reportedly criticised the international community for not pressuring Israel to halt its actions. Shapiro, according to the statement, emphasised the importance of Iraq's role in regional stability and highlighted the need for continued communication and cooperation in areas like military equipment, security, and enhancing Iraqi forces' capabilities. The meeting follows an agreement in January between Iraq and the US to establish a joint Higher Military Commission tasked with overseeing the coalition's withdrawal. The Iraqi authorities report that the commission has convened on multiple occasions to develop a plan for troop redeployment. Baghdad, July 9 : Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities has announced the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the US and other countries. The recovered items include a bronze figurine and eight metal boxes containing ancient skeletons, the Ministry said on Monday in a statement. These artifacts were originally smuggled from the Nimrud archaeological site in Nineveh province to Los Angeles in the 1990s, Xinhua news agency reported. The Ministry highlighted the role played by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani's visit to the US in April in securing the return of these artifacts. The Ministry also announced the return of many artifacts of different eras that had been smuggled to countries such as Jordan, Norway, Germany, and Britain. The Ministry emphasised its commitment to tracking down and reclaiming smuggled Iraqi antiquities scattered across the globe. These efforts aim to preserve this cultural heritage and prevent further tampering or vandalism. A significant number of Iraqi antiquities and archaeological sites were looted or destroyed following the 2003 US invasion. On May 23, Russian missiles targeted the Factor Druk printing plant, one of the largest such plants in Europe and a crucial printer for the Ukrainian publishing industry. The attack killed seven employees at the plant and rendered one shop of the factory inoperable, with heavy damage throughout the building, forcing the plant to suspend operations. The fallout from the attack, some six weeks later, includes a delay in shipping books and an unexpected rise in prices in Ukraine. Factor Druk's losses, including destroyed and damaged equipment, are estimated to exceed $8.5 million USD, with approximately 100,000 books also destroyed. Tetiana Hryniuk, CEO of Factor Druk, told Ukrainian publishing news service Chytomo that the company is seeking help from foreign donors and searching for used equipment while placing orders with equipment manufacturers. She estimated that even at an expedited pace, it may take as many as six months to restore full operations. That the printer has continued to operate throughout the war may come as a surprise. Russian attacks on Kharkiv, the printing center of Ukraine and home to many publishing houses, in the early months of the war saw damage to the House of Printing and the logistics center of the Ranok publishing house. Printers, including Unisoft and Hurov and Co., were also targeted and damaged. In all, Russian attacks have damaged the offices and warehouses of some 20 Ukrainian publishing houses. The challenge posed by any slowdown at Factor Druk to the Ukrainian publishing industry cannot be overstated: it produced approximately 10 million books annuallya third of all books printed in Ukraineand was a primary supplier for several leading Ukrainian publishing houses. The educational sector has been especially impacted, as the printer was responsible for producing 40% of the countrys school textbooks. Oleksandr Popovych, director of Unisoft, described the impact of the attack "significant and very personal" for his team. "We're all grieving because many Factor Druk employees had family ties to our factory workers," Popvych said. The human toll of the attack is particularly devastating for an industry already facing shortages of skilled professionals. "The loss of human life is the most devastating aspect of this tragedy, Viktor Kruglov, director of Ranok publishing house, said. While equipment can be replaced, the people who lost their lives in the strike are irreplaceable." Kruglov predicted that ongoing Russian attacks will only contribute to further production delays. Ranok lost some $200,000 worth of inventory in the attack; Vivat, a publishing house owned by the same conglomerate as Factor Druk, lost some 83,000 printed books. Help for the Ukrainian publishing industry has been coming from all corners of the globe, particularly the United States, where the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) plans to allocate funds for printing textbooks. Billionaire Howard G. Buffett, a vocal supporter of Ukraine, announced plans to donate to the factorys recovery, while the George Sorosbacked International Renaissance Foundation supported the factory with a grant following the attack. The Ukrainian publishing industry has been on frontlines of both the physical and cultural war with Russia. Russia has spent decades working to undermine the use of the Ukrainian language and the publishing industry that supported it. Accordingly, the government of Ukraine has also gone to lengths to ensure that it remains intact throughout the war and has recently passed several measures to support it. Among the efforts are a law, passed last month, that offers rent subsidies for bookstores and issues book certificates to 18-year-olds. Book certificates, which are valued at 908 Ukrainian hryvnia ($22.50), can be used top purchase books in a manner similar to other culture voucher programs in France, Germany, and Spain. We will not only support the publishing industry, but also popularize Ukrainian books," said MP Yevhenia Kravchuk, one of the legislators responsible for the law. Tailte Tours of Ireland has donated 1,600 worth of enamel badges to Donegal Railway Heritage Centre where they will be sold to raise funds for the centre. The donation continues Tailte Tours commitment to supporting heritage railway groups in Ireland. The badges depict the original County Donegal Railway steam locomotive No.2 Blanche which was built in 1881, withdrawn in 1905, and scrapped in 1909. This is the third fund time that Tailte Tours has donated fundraising badges, with similar donations made last year to the Downpatrick & County Down Railway and the Cavan & Leitrim Railway. Funding for the badges came from funds raised during Tailtes railtours and similar events around Ireland, and they will be available to buy from the museums shop in Donegal town, and on the Donegal Railway Heritage Centre website at www.donegalrailway.com Tailte Tours is named after Great Southern Railway 800 Class No. 802 Tailte, one of Irelands largest steam locomotives built for the Belfast to Dublin, and later Cork, Enterprise services. Tailte Tours is not a commercial organisation but is a voluntary-led committee formed in 2022 that organises mainline rail tours and bus tours to places of railway interest to raise funds and awareness for Irelands smaller railway heritage groups. The most recent tour was The Hills of Donegal Tour last Saturday, 6th July by bus to Oakfield Park for a trip behind the 15 gauge tank engine Duchess of Difflin, Irelands first new-build steam locomotive. The next stop was Donegal town and a visit to the County Donegal Railway Heritage Centre. Highlights here included No.5 Drumboe, an original County Donegal Railways Joint Committee locomotive, and a working steam engine simulator. RailAdvent members benefit from a discount on the groups tours, and further information about the group and their tours can be found at www.tailtetours.com 2600 class units in Kent Station, Cork during Tailte Tours tour from Cork to Waterford. // Credit: Tailte Tours 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. 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Photograph: ANI Photos Indias trade deficit with Russia continued to widen for the second consecutive year to $57 billion in the financial year 2023-24 (FY24), with Moscow becoming New Delhis largest source of crude oil imports. All eyes will now be on Prime Minister Narendra Modis visit to Russia during July 8-9, where he is set to meet President Vladimir Putin. This will be Modis first visit to the Kremlin since the Russia-Ukraine conflict began over two years ago. Trade and economic issues, including a trade balance in favour of Russia, non tariff barriers and payments and logistics-related issues are likely to be taken up during the visit. Ahead of the official visit, foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra had said that the issue of imbalanced trade will be a priority for India during discussions with Russia. Russia till now is Indias second-largest import partner after China during FY24, up from fourth and 19th in FY23 and FY22, respectively. Trade deficit with Russia is also the second highest, after China, commerce department data showed. The growth in outbound shipments from India has been slow, despite continued discussions between New Delhi and the Kremlin to give a push to exports to Russia. Exports to Russia saw a decent 35.6 per cent growth, although in terms of value, the outbound shipments were worth $4.26 billion only. On the other hand, the value of imports $61.24 billion was 14 times higher compared to exports during 2023-24. The imports from Russia grew by nearly 33 per cent during FY24 compared to the same time period a year ago. Of the $61.24 billion imports from Russia, one-third of the value of goods imported was of crude oil, amid the commodity being sold at a discount. India-Russia bilateral trade has seen a sharp increase in FY24. "It has since touched close to $65 billion, primarily due to strong energy cooperation between India and Russia. "With Indian exports of $4 billion and imports being close to $60 billion, trade remains imbalanced. This is a matter of priority in our discussions with the Russian side, Kwatra had said at a press briefing on Friday. Exporters said sorting out the logistics as well as payments system in local currencies can boost Indias exports to Russia. Ajay Sahai, director-general (D-G) and chief executive officer (CEO), Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), said exports have started rising although on a low base. However, the main challenge exporters have been facing is logistics issues. "There are not many shipping lines transporting goods to Russia (due to fear of sanction). "But with the new trade route via Chabahar, exporters issues may be addressed, Sahai said. He added that both the countries are also looking to establish the Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor. Rupee trade (between Russia and India) payments have started to show results. "If a free trade agreement (FTA) is signed at this point of time, we will be getting better market access and become more competitive, he said. An FTA with Eurasian Economic Union Russian Federation, Kazakhstan, Belarus, Armenia and Kyrgyzstan has also been under discussion for some time. However, negotiations are yet to be launched officially. Exporters said a trade agreement with Eurasia will be beneficial as these nations industries dont compete with each other. In seeking visa approvals for engineers from China, the company has reasoned that India lacks the expertise to set up such a solar facility. IMAGE: Workers install solar panels at Adani Green Energy Ltd's Khavda Renewable Energy Park in Khavda, April 12, 2024. Photograph: Amit Dave/Reuters The Adani Group's solar manufacturing business is learnt to have sought the Union government's approval to bring close to 30 engineers from China. These engineers could help build a robust and indigenous supply chain of solar equipment for the infrastructure-to-mining conglomerate. The company, in its submissions, has mentioned eight foreign partners -- all from China -- which are original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and supply chain vendors. According to the documents reviewed by Business Standard, the company has imported Chinese equipment worth Rs 591 crore (Rs 5.91 billion) in the financial year 2021-2022 and Rs 180 crore (Rs 1.8 billion) in 2022-2023. Mundra Solar Technology Ltd (MSTL), the solar manufacturing unit run by Adani Solar, has a target to build 10 gigawatt (Gw) of integrated solar manufacturing capacity by 2027. The factory is being set up in Kutch, Gujarat, at an investment of Rs 25,114 crore (Rs 251.14 billion), according to the company's communication with the government. MSTL is also a winner under the Centre's production linked incentive (PLI) scheme. Under the PLI scheme, it will set up 4 Gw of solar module manufacturing. Its ingot, wafer, and cell (components of solar module/panel) manufacturing is non-PLI. In February, Adani Solar sought visas for 15 Chinese nationals to be employed in its solar manufacturing unit. In March, it requested visas to 13 more Chinese nationals. These engineers are employed with Chinese solar supply chain vendors of Adani Solar. In its submission to the ministry of new and renewable energy (MNRE), the nodal ministry for solar PLI, seeking approval for foreign vendors and executives, the company has referred to its solar business as part of the Make in India initiative. A detailed questionnaire sent to the spokespersons of the Adani Group and MNRE remained unanswered till print time. Sources said the request is under process. The eight Chinese vendors listed by Adani Solar are engaged in manufacturing of silicone cells, photoelectric equipment, wafer making, semiconductor and similar equipment required for setting up solar equipment supply chain. The engineers from these firms would help Adani set up product units, ramp up production in existing units and train the Indian staff. The duration of their stay in India ranges from six months to one year. In seeking visa approvals for engineers from China, the company has reasoned that India lacks the expertise to set up such a solar facility. 'The solar manufacturing project is being set up and executed for the first time in India and we don't have experts for the same. Therefore, we need experts for plant setup, installing, testing and commissioning,' said the submission by Adani Solar. It has, however, said that the company guarantees that these executives would be employed for a brief period, will train Indian staff and leave before the stipulated period. MNRE has also endorsed Adani's request to the ministry of external affairs. 'OM dated 14.02.2024, this ministry has forwarded details of 15 Chinese nationals w.r.t MSTL's project under PLI scheme, along with other prescribed documents, for further necessary action,' said a letter dated March 2024 to the ministry of external affairs. Now MSTL, beneficiary under PLI scheme of high efficiency solar PV modules has forwarded the details of 13 additional Chinese nationals, in the format as prescribed, with a request for facilitation of business visa for these persons who are required for manufacturing project by MSTL, under the PLI scheme,' the letter added. The Galwan clash in 2020 was a turning point in India-China relations, adversely impacting business ties as well. Since then, they have imposed visa and travel restrictions on the people of the two countries. Almost all solar PLI winners including Reliance Industries have listed supply chain partners and service providers from China, with some of them mentioning more than 50 Chinese vendors. These companies have applied for exemption on visa for these vendor partners and approval for importing technology from China. Industry watchers pointed out that as Adani is relying on equipment from Chinese vendors, this requires them to have engineers from these suppliers to execute and also train the Indian staff in operating and maintaining the machines. Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com New Delhi has reached out to Moscow while waiting for a new president in Washington. New Delhi knows well that in international relations, there are no permanent friends or foes, only permanent national interests, points out Rup Narayan Das. IMAGE: Modi in a bilateral meeting with the President of Russia, Vladimir Putin, in Samarkand, September 16, 2022. Photograph: ANI Photo Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Russia on July 8th and 9th to participate in the 22nd India-Russia summit in Moscow. The summit has strategic significance on many counts. Prime Minister Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin are meeting for the first time after their electoral victories and consolidation of power in their respective countries giving stability and continuity of bilateral relations. This is Modi's first visit abroad after becoming prime minister of the country for the third time. This is suggestive of the strategic importance that India attaches to Russia. The meeting is taking place on the heels of the meeting between External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov on the margins of the SCO meeting in Astana last week, where they discussed a plethora of issues including the ensuing summit between Modi and Putin. The visit is an occasion to ruminate India's triangular strategic engagement with both Russia and the USA and how they intercede with each other. Although bilateral relationships like the India-US or India-Russia relations have their own dynamics and strategic imperatives, in the triangular relationship among and between the three, the law of inverse variation seems to surface at times, reflecting the dynamics of India's multi-alignment with Russia and the USA. It is, of course, quite a challenge for India to strike a fine balance and maintain equi-proximity. After the end of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Soviet Union, India has moved quite a distance in forging a 'strategic and global partnership' with the USA. This has aroused some consternation in Moscow. Ever since Independence, particularly after the Bangladesh War in 1971, India and Russia have enjoyed a robust relationship in spite of occasional hiccups. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi exchanges greetings with US President Joe Biden during the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, September 0, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo While the China factor has impelled greater India-US defence cooperation, the USA in the past had sided with India's adversaries China and Pakistan much to India's chagrin. Although the rhetoric of 'shared values' is often alluded to in the narrative of the India-US tango, Washington is more guided by the dynamics of its 'military-industrial complex' invoking the China threat. It is as truer about India as about Taiwan, Ukraine, Afghanistan and elsewhere in the world. For India, the China threat is not only real, but also persistent. The arms industry paradigm is equally true in case of Russia, but India has a different experience, nay rather an unhappy experience with the USA unlike Russia. Shared values didn't prevent the USA from siding and arming Pakistan against India during the Cold War. It abandoned Taiwan and reached out to China, it deployed the 7th Fleet to the Bay of Bengal during the 1971 War. It imposed sanctions on India after its nuclear explosions in 1974 and 1998. There were no such aberrations in the tested and trusted relations between India and the Soviet Union/Russia, in spite of the two nations having divergent political systems. Russia has understood and taken in its stride India's multi-alignment including its engagement with the USA and the Quad. The Russian approach to Quad has been in sync with that of China which views Quad as an Asian NATO. Unlike the USA which propels India against China, Russia nudges India and China to resolve contentious issues bilaterally offering its own facilitation like a catalyst. IMAGE: External Affairs Minister Dr Subrahmanyam Jaishankar with Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meeting in Astana, July 3, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo Significantly, Prime Minister Modi's visit to Russia is taking place at a time when there is a perceptible discordant note in India-US relations. The US stance on the alleged attempts to kill Khalistani terrorist Gurupatwant Singh Pannun on American soil has created a discordant note in Indian government and political circles. Similarly, the Modi government has not taken kindly to the US state department's remarks on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's arrest. In the latest irritant in the bilateral relations between India and the USA is the US state department's report on India relating to religious freedom in the country. New Delhi has rejected the report dubbing it as 'vote bank considerations' in international relations. It won't be an exaggeration to say these reports fall short of grey zone tactics. True, in the complex and dynamic bilateral relations between the two countries such issues will die down sooner than later at a time when the USA is passing through a long drawn electoral process. New Delhi has reached out to Moscow while waiting for a new president to be elected in Washington. IMAGE: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with Dr Jaishankar, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ahead of the 5th India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi, November 10, 2023. Photograph: ANI Photo New Delhi knows well that in international relations, there are no permanent friends or foes, only permanent national interests. Fully understanding the imperative and wisdom of not putting all the eggs in one basket, India has diversified its arms imports while promoting indigenisation of arms production. According to a recent report of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, India has considerably reduced its purchases from its largest arms supplier Russia in the last 15 years. Between 2009 and 2013 India imported 76% of its defence equipment from Russia, in the period 2019 and 2023, Russia's share of India's arms import was reduced to 36%. That is why the two nations are putting more emphasis on increasing bilateral trade in other sectors of the economy including energy and connectivity. India's oil imports from Russia in the wake of the Ukraine crisis in spite of sanctions by the US and the West has helped in the buoyancy of the Russian economy. India's nuanced stance on the Ukraine issue both at the UN and at the G-20 summit in Delhi in September 2023 has also earned Moscow's goodwill. A strong Russia is in India's interest and a stronger India is in the interest of regional and global peace. 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 The Indian community in Russia are eagerly waiting for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Moscow and will be seeking his support to build a Hindu temple in the country, a new Indian school building and the availability of more direct flights to India. IMAGE: The First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Manturov receives Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he arrives in Moscow, on Monday. Photograph: ANI Photo Prime Minister Modi will be in Moscow from July 8 to 9 at the invitation of President Putin for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit to be held on Tuesday. Indian diaspora members in Russia expressed excitement over PM Modi's visit to Russia while talking to PTI Videos in Moscow. The diaspora members also expressed their wish for a Hindu temple, a new Indian school building and the availability of more flights to India. "There are few things which remain missing in the society. For example, we would demand a Hindu temple through Prime Minister Modi. There are a few troubles with airlines as only Aeroflot works. If any other airline like Air India operates flights to Russia, then the frequency will increase along with the availability of seats," Rakesh Kumar Srivastava, an Indian from Patna living in Russia said. With Hinduism spreading in Russia in recent years and the number of Indians growing, the community is feeling the necessity of having a Hindu temple in the country to meet their spiritual needs. "We have only one hope from Prime Minister Modi that something should be done for the Indian diaspora so that the diaspora students receive good education, and the schools should be strengthened. And the Indian diaspora which is importing goods from India is facing few troubles, they should also be looked into so that the India-Russia relations are strengthened further," Dilip Kumar Minglani, another Indian living in Russia said. "Because I am a mother, I wish for a new building for the Indian school. The current building is quite old and if we get a new building then the future of the students will be secure," Pojja Chandra, an Indian hailing from Uttar Pradesh and living in Russia said. An Indian doctor in Russia has urged Prime Minister Modi to seek recognition for Ayurvedic medicines in Russia. M Mathew, an Ayurvedic doctor in Moscow said that Ayurveda is not recognised as an approved medicinal system in Russia and urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to raise this issue with Russian authorities during his visit. "Even though it's a huge market, we are handicapped in one way because Ayurveda is not recognised as an approved medicinal system in Russia. So, I humbly request our prime minister, when he is visiting Moscow, to raise this issue with Russian authorities and obtain approval from the Health Department of the Russian Federation for Ayurveda as an alternative medicine," he said. Dr Matthew said that if approved, it will boost the Ayurvedic pharmacy sector in India. "This will enable us to sell many products and enhance our business volume as well," the doctor from Kerala said. Also, many Russian women dressed in Punjabi attire were seen performing Bhangra in front of the iconic Red Square in Moscow ahead of Modi's Russia visit. Pramod Kumar, an Indian living in Russia said, "Every year we organise events during Baisakhi. Teams of Bhangra and Gidda come here and we have also taught the same to Russian boys and girls. We want to strengthen India-Russia relations, we want to strengthen the same and we are working day in day out on this." A Russian woman participating in performing Bhangra said Modi's visit will further strengthen India-Russia ties. "Our main aim is that we are trying to strengthen cultural ties between India and Russia, we are promoting Indian culture and festivals. Sometimes we also travel to India to exchange culture between us and India. We are happy that Prime Minister Modi is coming, our relations will become stronger. It is a great occasion and it makes us happy," Milana, one of the dance performers said. "It is a very big event that he (Prime Minister Modi) is coming here. We have been preparing for this event for many days, we will be happy to see him here. I learnt a little bit of Hindi so I can tell that I will be happy to meet PM Modi," Natalia, said another dance performer. The Mumbai police on Monday filed a chargesheet in a special court against six arrested accused and three wanted persons, including jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi, in connection with the firing at Bollywood actor Salman Khan's residence in Bandra in April. IMAGE: Police and forensic team collect evidence after two unidentified people opened fire outside the house of Bollywood actor Salman Khan, at Bandra in Mumbai on Sunday, April 14, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo The 1,735-page chargesheet was filed by the crime branch in a special MCOC court. It included various investigation documents incorporated in three volumes, an official said. The evidence includes statements of 46 witnesses and statements of witnesses under section 164 of CrPC recorded before the magistrate, he said. The confessional statements under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, a total of 22 panchanamas, and technical evidence are also part of the charge sheet documents, he said. Two motorcycle-borne men fired five rounds outside Khan's Galaxy Apartment in Bandra in the early hours of April 14. The Mumbai police on Monday found itself in a spot with the application of a provision of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita in the BMW-hit-and-run incident, among the first high-profile cases under the newly-introduced law that replaced the British-era Indian Penal Code. IMAGE: Police personnel inspect a BMW car that ran over two people riding a bike, at Worli Police Station in Mumbai, July 7, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo A woman was killed and her husband injured in Worli early Sunday morning after their two-wheeler was hit from the rear by a BMW, which was being allegedly driven by the son of Palghar Shiv Sena leader Rajesh Shah. Shah, his absconding son and main accused Mihir Shah as well as their family driver Rajrishi Bidawat were charged under provisions of BNS, including sections 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) and 238 (destruction of evidence). During the remand hearing of Rajesh Shah earlier in the day, chief metropolitan magistrate SP Bhosale, among other queries, posed questions to the investigating officer on the rationale behind applying Section 105 of the new law. When the IO and other police personnel started fumbling with answers, the magistrate passed a copy of the BNS and asked them to go through the section in question. The court then asked the prosecution to take a five-minute break and answer its queries. However, even after the break, the police could not come up with a concrete response to the magistrate's queries. The court was adjourned again, but with the magistrate's remarks that the police ought to do their "homework" and come prepared. Fifteen minutes later, the prosecution submitted a handwritten note terming it as additional remand, which the court took on record and the hearing resumed. Chief metropolitan magistrate (Sewree) SP Bhosale remanded Rajesh Shah in 14-day judicial custody and sent Bidawat to one-day police custody. Rajesh Shah was remanded in judicial custody after the court observed that Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) did not apply to him. The defence, represented by advocate Sudhir Bhardwaj said the charge of culpable homicide was not applicable on Rajesh Shah since he was not driving the car nor was he present at the spot. Rajesh Shah was later granted bail. Beijing (Gasgoo)- On July 5, Chinese smart automotive solution supplier Desay SV held the groundbreaking ceremony for its new smart factory in Linares, Andalusia, Spain. The factory is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 and will begin supplying products in the fields of smart cockpits and smart driving to customers in 2026. Photo credit: Desay SV The initial production focus will be on in-car display products. This new facility will enable Desay SV to respond to the demands of the European and surrounding markets with shorter delivery times and faster service.In his speech, Desay SV Chairman Gao Dapeng highlighted the significance of this new factory as an important step in the company's globalization strategy. He emphasized that Desay SV will leverage Spains geographic advantages and its own service experience and technical expertise to contribute to the prosperity of the automotive industry in Europe. Desay SV aims to collaborate closely with upstream and downstream partners in Europe, a hub of technological innovation and brand building. Spain holds a crucial position in the global automotive industry, consistently ranking among the top ten vehicle producers worldwide for over three decades. With a robust industrial foundation and a wealth of technical talent, Spain has become a leading nation in the manufacture of new energy vehicles in Europe. The establishment of Desay SVs new factory in Europe aligns with the companys customer-centric philosophy, further integrating it into the global automotive supply chain and enhancing the safety and efficiency of this network. The Tamil Nadu government on Monday replaced Sandeep Rai Rathore with senior IPS officer A Arun as Chennai police Commissioner, days after the killing of Bahujan Samaj Party leader K Armstrong. IMAGE: BSP chief Mayawati pays last respects to the mortal remains of Tamil Nadu party president K Armstrong, in Chennai, July 7, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo Arun took over as police chief and vowed to bring rowdies to their knees and said rowdy elements would be taught 'in the language they understand.' Just after the high-profile transfer, Leader of Opposition Edappadi K Palaniswami said that merely by transferring an official, law and order maintenance cannot become efficient. Law and order could be handled well only by giving 'full freedom' to the police department, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam general secretary said and slammed Chief Minister MK Stalin over the issue. Speaking to reporters in Salem, Palaniswami said that only by making sure proper governance, law and order could be upheld. It is the Chief Minister who holds the portfolio of police department and had he led the department efficiently, law and order could have been maintained well. However, he is a 'puppet Chief Minister, an inept CM,' and there is no complete freedom for police officials and hence they could not properly maintain law and order, the former Chief Minister alleged. Only by giving a free hand to the police department, law and order could be maintained well and rowdy elements shall be reined in, Palaniswami said. A government order said Rathore has been now appointed DGP, Police Training College, Chennai vice Rajeev Kumar, IPS. Before his current posting, Arun was additional director general of police (ADGP), law and order. Senior IPS officer S Davidson Devasirvatham, ADGP, headquarters, Chennai is ADGP, law and order, vice Arun. Outlining his priorities, the new city police chief, Arun, in an interaction with reporters here said that criminal elements would be 'taught' in a way they understand. Asked if 'encounters' could be expected, he said there is no such thing as 'encounter,' and added that rowdy elements will be taught 'in the language they understand.' Regular and professional policing will bring down all crimes, he emphasised. Notably, he assured action against corrupt activities within the police department like 'Katta panchayats' (Kangaroo courts). Law and order maintenance, prevention of crimes and proper probe into incidence of crimes and curbing rowdyism are priorities, he said. To a question on the killing of Armstrong, he declined to comment. Asked about the claims of prior intelligence on threat to the life of the BSP leader and inaction, he assured action in the event of lapses. The monsoon spelt mayhem in several parts of the country on Monday, particularly Mumbai where local train services and flight operations were hit and everyday life disrupted as well as Assam that was grappling with floods yet again. IMAGE: Vehicles wade through a waterlogged King Circle area after heavy rains, in Mumbai on Monday. Photograph: ANI Photo As Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde stepped in to review the situation in the state capital and other parts and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi visited a flood relief camp at Fulertal in Assam's Cachar district, the hill states of Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh as well as the desert state of Rajasthan also bore the brunt of heavy rains. The rain mayhem led to the inundation of several low-lying areas in Mumbai, impacting vehicular movement, while all schools in the city, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg districts remained shut. Both Houses of the Maharashtra legislature were adjourned as many members and officials could not reach the Vidhan Bhavan due to the downpour. IMAGE: A local train runs on a waterlogged track after heavy rainfall in Chunabhatti area of Mumbai. Photograph: ANI Photo Maharashtra Minister for Relief and Rehabilitation and Disaster Management Anil Patil and Nationalist Congress Party MLC Amol Mitkari alighted from the Howrah-Mumbai train and walked on the tracks for some distance, a video of which went viral. Chief Minister Shinde took stock of the heavy rain situation by chairing a meeting at the Mantralaya and visiting the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) control room. Train services on the fast line of the Central Railway's (CR) main corridor between Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) in south Mumbai and neighbouring Thane were suspended for a few hours due to waterlogging at various places and later resumed, officials said. The CR officials asked people to avoid travelling unless unavoidable. Heavy rain and low visibility led to the suspension of runway operations at the Mumbai airport from 2.22 am to 3.40 am on Monday and the cancellation of 50 flights, according to sources. IMAGE: Severely waterlogged streets in the Chunabhatti area. Photograph: ANI Photo A spokesperson of the Brihanmumbai Electric Supply and Transport (BEST) undertaking in the morning said at least 40 bus routes in Mumbai city and suburbs were either diverted or curtailed due to waterlogging. In neighbouring Thane district, a landslide occurred on a hillock, which led to residents of four houses being evacuated, while 54 people were rescued after their houses were inundated, civic officials said. At least 275 houses in different areas suffered damages and around 20 vehicles were swept away, the Thane district administration said in a release. Teams of the National Disaster Response Force have been deployed in Kurla and Ghatkopar areas of Mumbai and in other parts of Maharashtra. Incessant rain also lashed Goa for the third consecutive day, inundating several low-lying areas in the coastal state. IMAGE: Vehicles wade through a waterlogged road after heavy rainfall in Mumbai. Photograph: ANI Photo Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi visited Assam, which is grappling with floods, saying that he stands with the people of the state and is their 'soldier in Parliament'. He urged the Centre to extend all possible help and support to the state immediately. 'I stand with the people of Assam, I am their soldier in Parliament, and I urge the central government to extend all possible help and support to the state expeditiously,' Gandhi posted on 'X', after visiting the flood relief camp at Fulertal. Gandhi said Assam Congress leaders apprised him of the situation on the ground where over 24 lakh people have been affected, 53,000 and above people displaced and more than 60 people lost their lives. IMAGE: Students wade through a waterlogged road to go back to their homes as schools closed after heavy rains, in Mumbai. Photograph: ANI Photo Meanwhile, at least 131 wild animals have died so far in the Kaziranga National Park while 96 others have been rescued, an official said. The park is experiencing the worst-ever deluge in recent years with the previous large-scale devastation occurring in 2017 when over 350 wildlife died in the flood waters and in vehicle hits while migrating through animal corridors to the highlands. In neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh, surface communication to several districts was disrupted by landslides triggered by rains, officials said. In Uttarakhand, incessant rain resulted in flooding rivers in the Kumaon region, blocking hundreds of rural motorable roads and leaving several villages in Champawat and Udham Singh Nagar districts heavily waterlogged. However, the Char Dham Yatra resumed on Monday after remaining suspended for a day given the Met Office's prediction of heavy rain following an improvement in the weather in the Garhwal region. IMAGE: A delivery person rides an electric scooter in a waterlogged subway after heavy rains in Mumbai. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters The Kali, Gori and Saryu rivers in Pithoragarh, which received 125.50 mm rainfall, were flowing close to the danger mark while more than 200 rural motorable roads across the state were blocked by debris from landslides, the State Emergency Operation Centre in Dehradun said. Heavy waterlogging in the Purnagiri division of Champawat district, besides Khatima and Sitarganj in Udham Singh Nagar district, prompted police, National Disaster Response Force and State Disaster Response Force personnel. The release of water from dams in Uttarakhand and widespread rainfall in river catchment areas caused severe flooding in several districts in the Terai region and the plains of Uttar Pradesh. IMAGE: A boy clings to an auto rickshaw on a waterlogged street in Mumbai. Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters Many villages in Pilibhit, Lakhimpur, Kushinagar, Balrampur, Shravasti and Gond districts have been affected by floods due to widespread rainfall in river catchment areas and the release of dam water. A National Disaster Response Force team is working with the help of 32 boats to take the affected people to safety, it said. Rain in parts of Himachal Pradesh triggered landslides, prompting the authorities to close more than 70 roads, including a national highway. Heavy rains lashed several parts of Rajasthan with Bandikui in Dausa district recording the maximum rainfall in the last 24 hours, officials said. Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday visited a relief camp in Manipur's Churachandpur district and interacted with inmates there. IMAGES: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his visit at a relief camp in Manipur. Photographs: ANI Photo People displaced by the ethnic violence in the northeastern state are staying in those relief camps. Gandhi who is accompanied by senior Congress leaders talked to the people staying in the relief camps and listened to their problems. "Rahul Gandhi's visit aims at providing support to people and to assess the situation on the ground. His visit reflects the party's commitment to address the concerns of those affected by the recent violence," state Congres president Keisham Meghachandra told reporters. The former Congress president visited another relief camp in Jiribam district earlier in the day. "His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause," the Congress said in a post on X. Ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki communities since May last year claimed more than 200 lives in Manipur. Meanwhile, the Congress attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying while it will be Rahul Gandhi's third visit to Manipur since violence broke out in May last year, the PM has neither found the time nor even had the inclination to visit the state for even a few hours. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Today, the non-biological PM goes to Moscow while the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha heads for Assam and Manipur." "Of course, the drumbeaters of the non-biological PM have claimed that he stopped the Russia-Ukraine war for some time. Presumably, this Moscow trip will lead to even more bizarre claims," he said. This is Rahul Gandhi's third visit to Manipur ever since the "state blew up" fourteen months ago, Ramesh said. "The non-biological PM has not found the time nor even had the inclination to visit Manipur even for a few hours after the grave crisis erupted on May 3rd, 2023, " he said. "He (Modi) has not even met the CM of the state - who happens to be from his own party - and other political leaders of the state, including MLAs and MPs," Ramesh said. Modi is visiting Russia on July 8 and 9 at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin to hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Gandhi visited Manipur in June 2023 and also for the start of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra earlier this year. Initiating the debate on behalf of the opposition in the Lower House of Parliament on the Motion of Thanks for the President's address in the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha last week, Gandhi had accused the BJP-led government of pushing Manipur into a "civil war" due to its policies and politics. The Congress leader had also criticised Prime Minister Modi for not visiting the state since ethnic violence broke out there. Gandhi had alleged that the government is behaving as if nothing has happened in Manipur. "You have immersed Manipur into a civil war. Manipur has been burnt by you, your policies and your politics," he had said. Replying to a debate in the Rajya Sabha on the Motion of Thanks for the President's address, Prime Minister Modi had said the Centre was working with the state government and others to restore normalcy in the state. He had said that more than 500 people have been arrested and over 11,000 FIRs have been registered in Manipur. Modi had further said Manipur was facing a flood situation as well and the Centre has dispatched two teams of the National Disaster Response Force to the state. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday night welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a "private engagement" during which he praised the visiting Indian leader for the work he has done for the country's progress. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin during a conversation in Novo-Ogaryovo, Russia, July 8, 2024. Photograph: Sputnik/Sergei Bobylyov/Pool via Reuters I would like to congratulate you on your reelection as prime minister. I think this is not an accident, but the result of your work over many years, Putin told Modi as they held an informal meeting in a residence outside Moscow. You have your own ideas. You are a very energetic person, able to achieve results in the interests of India and the Indian people, Putin said. The result is obvious. India firmly ranks as the world's third-largest economy, Putin was quoted as saying by the state-run Tass news agency. Putin said Prime Minister Modi has devoted his entire life to serving his people and they can feel it. IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: @PMOIndia/X As the two heads of state held an informal meeting over a cup of tea at the official residence outside Moscow, Modi recollected the recent elections in his country, saying that the people of India gave him a chance to serve the Motherland. You have devoted your entire life to serving the Indian people, and they can feel it, Putin replied. You are right, I have only one goal: It is the people and my country, the prime minister said with a smile, the Tass report said. Later, President Putin and Prime Minister Modi took a stroll around Putin's residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. "The Russian leader showed his Indian guest around the residence and gave him a drive in an electric car. Most of the time they spoke via interpreters. However, when they left the car and were walking to the garden they had a brief tete-a-tete conversation, probably in English," according to a separate Tass report. IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters In a post on X, Prime Minister Modi expressed his gratitude to President Putin for hosting him at Novo-Ogaryovo. "Looking forward to our talks tomorrow as well, which will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia," he said. Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs described the private event as a "meeting of two close friends and trusted partners." "PM @narendramodi welcomed by President Vladimir Putin of Russia at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a private engagement," it said, sharing some photographs of the meeting. It is an occasion for the two leaders to cherish & celebrate India-Russia friendship, it said. IMAGE: Kindly note that this image has been posted for representational purposes only. Photograph: Sputnik/Gavriil Grigorov/Pool via Reuters In his first trip since the start of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, Modi on Monday travelled to Russia to hold summit talks with Putin on Tuesday -- a visit that is being seen as having a wider geopolitical context and signalling. Shortly after landing in Moscow, Modi said he is looking forward to deepening bilateral partnership in futuristic areas and that stronger ties between India and Russia will "greatly benefit our people". India seeks to play a "supportive role" for a peaceful and stable region, the prime minister said in his departure statement. Modi was received at the Vnukovo-II airport by Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. India seeks to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday as he embarked on a high-profile visit to Russia to hold summit talks with President Vladimir Putin amid the conflict in Ukraine. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for a three-day official visit to Russia and Austria, in New Delhi on Monday. Photograph: ANI Photo It is Modi's first trip to Russia since 2019 and the first since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. After concluding his engagements in Russia on July 9, Modi will leave for Austria in the first visit by an Indian prime minister to that country in over 40 years. Modi and Putin are set explore ways to further expand bilateral relations in diverse areas, including trade, energy and defence, at the 22nd India-Russia annual summit on Tuesday. 'The special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past 10 years, including in areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges,' Modi said in his departure statement. 'I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues,' he said. 'We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region,' he said without making any specific references. The prime minister said the visit will also provide him an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. In a post on 'X', Modi said: 'Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship.' On his trip to Austria on July 9 to 10, the prime minister described the country as India's 'steadfast and reliable partner'. 'In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer,' Modi said. 'Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism. 'This is the first visit of an Indian prime minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others,' he said. Modi said he was looking forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. 'I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct,' he said. Ahead of Modi's visit to Moscow, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the agenda will be 'extensive'. The annual summit between the prime minister of India and the president of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. The annual summits are held alternatively in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021 in New Delhi. President Putin had visited India to attend the summit. The summit saw both sides sealing 28 MoUs and agreements besides coming out with a joint statement titled 'India-Russia Partnership for Peace, Progress and Prosperity'. Prime Minister Modi and President Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. In the meeting, Modi had famously pressed Putin to end the conflict in Ukraine saying, 'Today's era is not of war'. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Modi has held several telephonic conversations with Putin and Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In reflection of its strong friendship with Russia, India has not yet condemned Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and it has been maintaining that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. President Vladimir Putin will hold extensive talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday, both one-on-one and with delegations, a top Russian official said on Monday. IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi being welcomed by President Vladimir Putin at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a private engagement, Moscow, Russia, July 8, 2024. Photograph: Courtesy MEA India on X "Around noon, Putin and Modi will start talking. We expect that there will be a private conversation, as well as Russian-Indian talks over an official breakfast, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by the state-owned TASS news agency. On Tuesday, Modi will co-chair the 22nd India-Russia annual summit with President Putin. The two leaders, however, will not make any statements to the press afterwards, the Kremlin spokesman added. "No joint communication with the media is foreseen," he said. "But we expect an extended exchange of views at both the private and extended sessions, which will largely compensate for the lack of statements to the media." Although the economic agenda will take a "principal position" at the summit, Prime Minister Modi is likely to convey to President Putin that "a solution can't be found on the battlefield" regarding the ongoing conflict with Ukraine, sources said. "Solution can't be found on the battlefield. This is also based on interactions, especially with the global south," an official source said, regarding the Ukraine-Russia conflict, emphasising that this view is likely to be conveyed during the summit. Sources underlined that India has held this point of view "right from the beginning." Prime Minister Modi will hold in-person meetings with President Putin for 8-9 hours during his nearly 24-hour stay in Russia, they said. Sources emphasised that the economic agenda is the "principal agenda" of the summit. The Indian side has come up with specific ideas to narrow the trade imbalance, which has risen due to a significant increase in energy imports from Russia over the last two years. "There is a set of things we have identified across a range of areas such as consumables, pharmaceuticals, consumer goods, etc. Even services and a few things in the digital space we can offer. Each one of these is a very significant idea, and they will come up in discussions," a source explained. Speaking about the Indians recruited for the Russia-Ukraine conflict, sources said that India will raise the issue in the strongest terms. "We want the expeditious discharge of Indians fighting in the Ukrainian conflict from the Russian military," a source said. At least four Indians have been killed so far, and about 35-50 recruits are believed to be in the Army, sources said. Ten Indians have been allowed to return from the conflict. Prime Minister Modi will be conferred with Russia's highest state decoration, the Order of St. Andrew, on Tuesday. It was announced in 2019. Speaking about Putin and Modi's expected informal meeting later this evening, the Kremlin spokesman did not clarify where exactly it will take place. He also did not mention Ukraine in the upcoming talks. "Before the meeting takes place, it is hardly possible to talk about it. We will keep you informed on all the details, the Kremlin spokesman said. "Today, the leaders will speak informally and the official part of the visit - official talks - will take place tomorrow," he said. When asked whether Moscow has prepared any surprises for the Indian leader, the Kremlin spokesman said, "Our task is not to prepare surprises but to create an atmosphere for a substantive conversation." Modi arrived here on Monday on his first trip to Russia since the start of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine. The focus of the 22nd India-Russia annual summit is likely to be boosting bilateral cooperation in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment and people-to-people exchanges. The Ukraine conflict is set to figure in the discussions. It is Modi's first trip to Russia since 2019, the first after the start of the Ukraine conflict in February 2022 and the first in Modi's third term as the prime minister. The annual summit between the prime minister of India and the president of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. The annual summits are held alternatively in India and Russia. The last summit was held on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi. President Putin had visited India to attend the summit. Don't miss the big stories. Like us on Facebook. Flor Diaz Smith is president of the Vermont School Boards Association. The opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of Vermont News & Media. Brattleboro, VT (05301) Today Sunshine and clouds mixed. High 56F. Winds NW at 10 to 15 mph.. Tonight Mainly clear. Low 38F. Winds NW at 5 to 10 mph. BRATTLEBORO If you're coming by the Royal Diner on a Friday evening for ice cream or a smash burger and fries, you might find yourself walki 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. Beijing city plans to include autonomous vehicles in ride-hailing services The city of Beijing is set to legislate autonomous vehicle operation. The city plans to allow autonomous cars for public transportation, ride-hailing, and car rentals, addressing key issues to provide clear regulations for Level 3 and above autonomous vehicles. Pony.ai Robotaxi in Beijing; photo credit: Pony.ai DEEPAL S07 to feature Huawei's Qiankun ADS SE system On July 8, Changan Automobiles new energy vehicle brand DEEPAL announced that the S07 model (successor to the S7) will be equipped with Huawei's Qiankun ADS SE intelligent driving system, supporting NCA intelligent navigation and automatic parking. Liaoning province aims to build fast-charging stations in at least 60% expressway service areas by 2025 Liaoning province released an action plan to improve air quality and promote clean vehicles. By 2025, fast-charging stations will cover at least 60% of the expressway service areas in the province, and 70% of bulk cargo transportation will utilize clean methods. Nissan reports June sales of 52,852 vehicles in China On July 8, Nissan Motor announced its sales performance for June 2024 in China, revealing a total of 52,852 units sold across its passenger and light commercial vehicle segments, which tumbled 23.56% from a year ago. XPENGs 1,000th self-operated supercharging station goes live in Wuhan On July 7, Chinese electric vehicle maker XPENG announced the addition of 104 new charging stations to its network in June 2024, which includes 56 self-operated stations and 48 third-party free stations. These stations, offering free charging for XPENG owners, cover 29 cities including Shenzhen, Nanjing, Xian, and Chongqing. BYD puts 2025 Dolphin BEV model onto market, starting at 998,000 yuan On July 8, Chinese new energy vehicle maker BYD officially put the 2025 Dolphin all-electric vehicle model onto the market. Priced between 99,800 yuan and 129,800 yuan, the 2025 Dolphin offers enhanced features and improved range without an increase in price. Cumulative deliveries of Li Autos Li L7 surpass 200,000 units On July 8, Chinese new energy vehicle maker Li Auto announced that deliveries of its Li L7 SUV has surpassed 200,000 units in just 16 months. SAIC Motor faces 25.92% YoY drop in June auto sales In June, SAIC Motor sold a total of 300,545 vehicles, marking a year-on-year drop of 25.92%. Of the vehicles sold in the past month, 93,422 units were new energy vehicles (NEVs), up 8.8% from a year ago, according to the companys report. Desay SV breaks ground on new smart factory in Spain On July 5, Chinese smart automotive solution supplier Desay SV held the groundbreaking ceremony for its new smart factory in Linares, Andalusia, Spain. The factory is expected to be completed by the end of 2025 and will begin supplying products in the fields of smart cockpits and smart driving to customers in 2026. AutoXs RoboTaxis allowed for unmanned passenger transport service in Shanghai On July 4, during the 2024 World Artificial Intelligence Conference (WAIC), autonomous driving tech firm AutoX's RoboTaxi received Shanghai's first fully unmanned passenger transport permit, marking another significant achievement after obtaining Shanghai's initial fully driverless road test license in 2023. Christchurch City Council has added $13.7 million to its draft long term plan budget in 2025 to be brought back to 2024 to address funding shortfalls in its digital programme. Key project activity included an information management transformation programme, an SAP improvement programme focusing on asset management and a data network upgrade. A new intranet, dubbed The Hub and Sharepoint online were also launched in May. Due to the prior year approvals for the capital programme for digital, it was identified that there would be a shortfall in the digital capital programme funding for 23/24, council general manager of finance, risk and performance Bede Carran told Reseller News. To address this the digital capital budget was re-phased to maintain delivery of agreed projects, he said. Digital had delivered according to the re-forecasted spend of $24.2 million. A project called best practice procurement also appears to have hit some technical difficulties, according to records of June committee meetings. Nine years after a nationwide operation targeting rights attorneys, their lives have yet to return to normal. Human rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang and his wife Li Wenzu sit in the dark after power was cut off to their apartment, June 20, 2023, in Beijing. Nine years after the mass arrest of China's most prominent human rights lawyers in a nationwide police operation, the authorities are now including lawyers in Hong Kong in their politically motivated prosecutions, according to a statement from dozens of rights groups. "Human rights lawyers defend the full spectrum of civil society," the Chinese Human Rights Lawyers Concern Group said in a statement that was also signed by more than 60 other rights organizations. "They accompany and empower the most vulnerable against land evictions, discrimination, health scandals, or extralegal detention," it said. "They embody the promise of rule of law and hold the government accountable." "They ensure that no one is left behind," the statement said, marking the arrests, detention and harassment of more than 300 rights lawyers, public interest law firm staff and rights activists across China starting on July 9, 2015. Since that operation, the authorities haven't let up, and have now extended the crackdown to Hong Kong, despite promising to maintain the city's traditional freedoms and judicial independence, the groups said. "We are ... concerned that the Hong Kong authorities are following a similar path," the rights groups, which included the New York-based Human Rights Watch and PEN America, said, citing the cases of rights lawyers Chow Hang-tung, Albert Ho and Margaret Ng, who are all behind bars awaiting trial on "national security" charges. And in mainland China, many of the lawyers who were targeted have since had their business licenses revoked, preventing them from earning a living, while many served lengthy jail terms for "subversion," often after years in incommunicado, pretrial detention. Huge turning point "The July 9, 2015, crackdown was a huge turning point in my life," Wang Quanzhang told RFA Mandarin in an interview on Monday. "My career as a lawyer was interrupted." Even after their release from prison, rights attorneys and their families are still harassed by the authorities, often subjected to repeated evictions and the denial of educational opportunities for their children. Anti-Chinese Communist Party activists rally for the immediate release of Human Rights lawyer Gao Zhisheng on the 5th anniversary of his arrest, in front of the Chinese Consulate, Aug. 13, 2022, in Los Angeles. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP) "The power of the state infiltrated our family, affected our lives, and distorted them," Wang said. "Following my release, I have been constantly forced to move house, forced out of Beijing, and my kid has been forced out of school." "This has been disastrous, and caused no end of trouble. We can't live normal lives like other people," he said, adding that he has taken some comfort from international voices of support, although they may be powerless to change the outcome for him and his family. Rights lawyers in China have defended Uyghurs, Tibetans and Hong Kongers, members of religious minorities and the LGBTQ+ community, feminists, journalists and political dissidents, the statement from the rights groups said. While acquittals are highly unlikely, independently minded defense attorneys once played a huge role in bringing such cases to international attention. They have largely now been replaced in the criminal justice system by government-appointed lawyers who are barred from speaking to the media, according to the statement, which was also signed by the International Campaign for Tibet and the Uyghur Human Rights Project. Vulnerable to torture Rights lawyers are also vulnerable to torture during detention, the statement said, citing the cases of lawyer-turned-dissident Xu Zhiyong, rights attorney Ding Jiaxi and rights lawyer Chang Weiping. "We remain deeply concerned at the Chinese governments increasing use of exit bans to impede human rights lawyers and activists from leaving the country, sometimes to visit a critically ill relative," the statement said, citing the cases of Li Heping and Tang Jitian. Forced evictions are also affecting lawyers' families, the statement said, citing 13 forced evictions of rights lawyer Wang Quanzhang and his family since his release from prison in November 2022. A human rights lawyer who asked to use the pseudonym Lu Qiang for fear of reprisals said that while not all human rights attorneys have been treated as badly as Wang, many remain under surveillance to this day. "They haven't let up on the surveillance in nine years," Lu said. "You could say it's everywhere -- once they stopped me near the embassy district and the police told me to get in their car, then drove me back two hours to my home. They're still secretly watching us." "Even if we're not in a smaller prison, we're still in a big prison." Chinese human rights lawyer Yu Pinjian said the point of marking the 2015 crackdown was to acknowledge the huge price paid by rights lawyers and their families. "The July 9, 2015, incident tore away the veil so people could see the totalitarian government for what it is," Yu said. "Since then, it has been tough being a human rights lawyer." "There's a high price to pay for speaking out against injustice." Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster. Philippines Secretary of Defense Gilberto Teodoro (3rd L), Philippines Secretary of Foreign Affairs Enrique Manalo (2nd L), Japans Defense Minister Minoru Kihara (3rd R) and Japans Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (2nd R) hold a 2+2 meeting at a hotel in Manila on July 8, 2024. UPDATED on July 8, 2024 at 11:56 a.m. E.T. The Philippines and Japan signed a defense pact Monday that will allow troops to be deployed in each others country, a landmark agreement seen as a counterweight to Chinas growing assertiveness in the South China Sea. Filipino Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa signed the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) at a ceremony in Manila witnessed by Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. Japans foreign and defense ministers were in the Philippine capital for so-called two-plus-two meetings with their Filipino counterparts. The RAA serves as a framework for security operations and training between the two nations, including joint military drills and maritime patrols in South China Sea waters claimed by Beijing but that lie within the Philippines exclusive economic zone. Japan has pursued similar agreements with a handful of countries, such as the United Kingdom and Australia, but this is a first in Asia. It also signifies the first time Japanese troops will be allowed to return to Philippine soil since the Imperial armys occupation during World War II. Speaking after the signing, Kamikawa hailed the pact as a great achievement that would help maintain and strengthen a free and open international order based on the rule of law. Teodoro said the deal was a step forward for the region and would add another layer to bilateral and defense relations. It would also help uphold the essence, principles, and concepts of international law particularly UNCLOS (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), he said. Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations were strategically important for Japan, as they are situated at a key junction of its sea-lanes. He added Japan was keen to deepen trilateral and quadrilateral ties, with the Philippines, United States and Australia. Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo (left) and Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro (right) meet with their Japanese counterparts in Manila on July 8, 2024. (Jojo Rinoza/BenarNews) The signing of the RAA comes amid escalating tensions between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea. On June 17, Filipino officials said China Coast Guard personnel, armed with pikes and machetes, punctured Philippine boats and seized firearms during a resupply mission to an outpost on Second Thomas Shoal. One Filipino sailor lost a finger in the clash, the third such encounter this year in which Philippine personnel have been hurt. On Monday, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo thanked Japan for standing by the Philippines in its maritime dispute with China. He also praised Tokyo for supporting the rules-based international order, including a 2016 international arbitration ruling that found China had violated Manilas sovereign rights in its exclusive economic zone. Amidst the backdrop of the geopolitical situation in this and other regions, which has put the stability and predictability of the rules-based international order under stress, we discussed global and regional issues of common concern, Manalo said during the two-plus-two meetings. Chester Cabalza, president of International Development and Security Cooperation, a Philippine think-tank, said the defense deal was groundbreaking and would serve as a counterweight to China in the region. The significance of the military pact enlivens the agility and deterrence of Manila with the quantum leap support of a strategic and technologically advanced neighbor like Japan, Cabalza told BenarNews. Don McLain Gill, a political analyst at the international studies department of De La Salle University, said the agreement would act as an independent stabilizing force. At the same time, it would be compatible with U.S. efforts to form a network of alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. Japan has played a significant role in crafting a more robust framework for Manila-Tokyo ties, and Japan has also demonstrated its steadfast commitment in being the Philippines major economic and defense partner, he said. In a scenario where the U.S. may dial down its support for Manila, our partnership with Japan is likely to remain steadfast and consistent. Following the signing of the RAA, China reiterated that bilateral cooperation should not target third parties. The exchange and cooperation between countries should not undermine the mutual understanding and trust between other countries in the region. It should not threaten regional peace and stability, target any third party, or harm the interests of any third party, foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said in a news briefing on Monday, when asked about Chinas reaction to the Manila-Tokyo defense pact. The Asia-Pacific region does not need any military bloc, still less groupings that incite bloc confrontation or a new Cold War, he said. He also reminded Japan of its aggression and colonial rule over the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries during World War II. Manila has a similar defense deal with Washington, the 1999 Visiting Forces Agreement, which sets the terms under which American military personnel can operate on Philippine soil. The U.S. now has access to nine military bases across the archipelago and has pledged U.S. $100 million for upgrades. Jojo Rinoza and Gerard Carreon contributed to this report from Manila. BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated online news organization. Update changes headline and adds more context. North Korean leader Kim Jong Uns powerful sister on Monday denounced South Koreas resumption of live-fire artillery drills near the border as suicidal hysteria and warned of possible military action. The South has conducted live-fire artillery drills near the land and sea borders in recent weeks after its suspension last month of an inter-Korean military tension reduction agreement. The 2018 pact included setting up a land buffer zone, where artillery drills and regiment-level field maneuvers were suspended, and maritime buffer zones, where artillery firing and naval drills were banned. RELATED STORIES South Korea to resume border military activity after suspending inter-Korean pact South Korea to suspend inter-Korean military pact over trash balloons Clear to everyone is the riskiness of the above-said reckless live ammunition firing drills of the ROK army coming nearer to the border of the DPRK, Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by the Norths state-run Korean Central News Agency. The ROK, or the Republic of Korea, is South Koreas official name, while the DPRK refers to that of North Korea, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea. Calling South Koreas live-fire drills suicidal hysteria, Kim warned of the possibility of military action against any act that North Korea regards as provocative. In case it is judged according to our criteria that they violated the sovereignty of the DPRK and committed an act tantamount to a declaration of war, our armed forces will immediately carry out its mission and duty assigned by the DPRK Constitution. Kim added that the South has been destabilizing regional security, saying that President Yoon Suk Yeol was attempting an emergency escape from a domestic political crisis by raising tensions on the peninsula with provocative acts in border areas. In response, South Koreas defense ministry spokesman said the drills were a normal activity within South Koreas jurisdiction, adding that they would be carried out according to plan. Edited by Mike Firn. A Myanmar military helicopter carries the national flag over a parade to mark Independence Day in the capital, Naypyidaw, on Jan. 4, 2023. Shipments of aviation fuel are reaching Myanmar despite calls to deprive its military of the resources needed to carry out unlawful air strikes against insurgents battling to end army rule, international human rights group Amnesty International said on Monday. The London-based group announced on Jan. 30 its researchers had documented new ways that the junta was skirting sanctions with aviation fuel shipped directly from Vietnam to Myanmar at least seven times in 2023. The group said the pattern had continued with at least two and probably three shipments of aviation fuel reaching Myanmar between January and June. As with the previous shipments identified by Amnesty International in January, the fuel was bought and sold multiple times before reaching the last leg of its trip in Vietnam ahead of shipment to Myanmar, the group said in a report. RELATED STORIES Airstrike targets insurgent meeting in Myanmar, 16 killed UN rights envoy urges action to stop Myanmar's access to weapons, funds Junta military preparations point to brutal next phase in Myanmar conflict Myanmar has been in bloody turmoil since the military ousted an elected government in early 2021, ending a decade of tentative reforms. Democracy activists have taken up arms and linked up with autonomy-seeking ethnic minority insurgents, and together they have made significant advances against junta forces in several parts of the country this year. But the insurgents have few effective weapons with which to defend themselves against air attacks. The U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar said last month that military airstrikes against civilian targets had increased five-fold in the first half of this year even though the United States and Britain announced sanctions against companies that import jet fuel to the junta in August last year. Amnesty International said that in two instances this year a Chinese-owned oil tanker transported jet fuel from Vietnam to Myanmar and fuel traders based in Singapore appeared to have played a role in the supply chain. Like the 2023 shipments, the 2024 shipments involved multiple purchases and resales of the same fuel, making it hard to trace the original supplier, the rights group added. The Myanmar military is relying on the very same Chinese vessel and Vietnamese companies to import its aviation fuel, despite Amnesty International having already exposed that reckless supply chain, said Agnes Callamard, secretary general of Amnesty International. It is a raw display of both the sheer impunity with which the Myanmar military is operating, and the utter complicity of the states responsible, including Vietnam, China and Singapore. Radio Free Asia was not able to contact Myanmars junta spokesman for comment. The junta has said it does not intentionally target civilians. Edited by Taejun Kang and Mike Firn. More than 750 junta soldiers were killed during the capture of two bases, the group claimed. Soldiers from the Arakan Army pose in front of Rakhine states recently captured Thandwe Airport on July 5, 2024. Ethnic minority insurgents seized two junta bases in Myanmars west and killed more than 750 soldiers, the group said in a statement, as its fighters close in on the main town in the west of Rakhine state, and make advances in the south. Radio Free Asia was not able to independently verify the Arakan Armys report of advances and casualties among the junta forces it is battling, but residents of both regions have been reporting heavy fighting for weeks, as the insurgents advance towards Maungdaw town and to the south, battle for control of Thandwe town. RFA tried to contact Rakhine states junta spokesperson, Hla Thein, to check on the situation but he did not respond by the time of publication. The Arakan Army, which has been fighting the military regime for territory in Myanmars Rakhine and Chin states, has captured 10 townships since late last year, part of a series of setbacks the junta that seized power in a 2021 coup has suffered in different regions. RELATED STORIES Ethnic rebels seize airport in Myanmar beach town MSF aid group withdraws from Myanmar's west, citing violence and restrictions Myanmar rebels claim junta outpost on Bangladesh border In June, the Arakan Army, or AA, told civilians to evacuate Maungdaw township, a trade hub on the border with Bangladesh, where fighting had been escalating for weeks. The AA captured a border guard camp near Maungdaw town on Saturday at around noon, killing more than 350 junta troops and seizing weapons, the group said in a statement. A resident told Radio Free Asia on Monday that fighting had since moved closer to Maungdaw as the AA attempted to capture the last base in the area, known as the No. 5 border guard post. Civilians in the city said they were afraid of getting caught up in the approaching fighting. "Junta soldiers and some Muslim armed men trained by them have been stationed near the town's mosque, said one resident who declined to be identified for security reasons. I don't know what will happen. Were watching the situation carefully. One civilian was killed and several were wounded when an artillery shell exploded on Saturday, residents said. The other main battle in Rakhine state has been taking place over the town of Thandwe, about 350 km (217 miles) southwest of Maungdaw. The AA said in a statement on Saturday it captured the headquarters of the No. 566 Light Infantry Battalion and nearby junta camps in the Thandwe area on June 27, including one at Thandwe Airport. Residents of the area, home to one of Myanmar's main beach resorts, had earlier reported that the airport had fallen to the AA on June 23. The AA said its fighters had killed about 400 junta troops and seized weapons and ammunition during the clashes in the Thandwe area. There had been casualties for the AA, the group said, but it did not give details. The rebels are trying to capture the juntas last main base in the area, the headquarters of the No. 55 Light Infantry Battalion, the group said, adding that junta forces from some 10 nearby bases were mounting a defense of the area by land and sea. The AA said it was trying to cut off the juntas main headquarters in four Rakhine state townships, including Danyawaddy Naval Base in Kyaukphyu and the Western Regional Military Headquarters in the town of Ann. Danyawaddy is part of the Kyaukphyu deep sea port complex and a special economic zone that is being developed by China. The development is due to include energy pipelines that will stretch across Myanmar to the Chinese border. Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Mike Firn. Read the full story on Backfire News Chevy Silverado Chase Comes To Shocking End As Madison County deputies struggle to stop a fleeing Chevy Silverado, the decision is made to call in the big guns. Those are, of course, Arkansas State Police. Two troopers in the area line up on the shoulder of the two-lane rural highway in the beginning of this pulse-pounding dashcam video, ready to pounce once the suspect speeds by. Drug dealer in a BMW cant handle running from the cops. Our camera car assumes primary in the pursuit and quickly catches up with the suspects truck. Considering its an older Silverado and theres a huge toolbox in the bed, its understandable why the trooper gains on him like a cheetah. ADVERTISEMENT The big question, though, is why deputies struggled to stop this guy? Was it that they have more stringent pursuit policies or slower cruisers? Even though the trooper quickly gets into position to do a PIT maneuver, this suspect wont make things easy. He starts shaking the trucks rear like an exotic dancer, making getting a lock on him to PIT unadvisable. As the trooper backs off, the Silverado cuts right in front of his cruiser. As the trooper sets up to get even with the trucks rear quarter panel again, the suspect sees the play and starts cutting back and forth on the now four-lane road, again making the maneuver risky if not impossible to pull off. Not too long after that, the suspect flips the tables on the troopers and deputies, slamming on his brakes and making a sudden U-turn. While he gets behind the one trooper, the secondary is on him like white on rice almost instantly, so the suspect goes back to cutting hard left and right. Realizing he needs to get off the highway as more cops line the side street intersections, he makes a sudden left. The truck cant stick the tight turn, so it veers off to the right shoulder on the secondary road, hits a bump, goes airborne, and slams into a utility pole as sparks shoot out. Its a shocking end to a gripping chase, but once again ASP gets its man. Image via Police Pursuits/YouTube The whereabouts of Thich Minh Tue are still unknown after he went missing for a second time. Screenshot from a video of the rock said to resemble Thich Minh Tue. Vietnamese authorities have fined two social media users for posting videos of a rock said to resemble barefoot monk Thich Minh Tue. Tue, whose real name is Le Anh Tu, became a social media sensation in May when influencers documented his journey across Vietnam on TikTok and other social media platforms. On July 4, police in An Giang province, along with Vietnams Department of Cyber Security and High-Tech Crime Prevention, said they had fined two people the equivalent of US$200 each for their YouTube posts. They said two men identified only as HVT, 32, from Kien Giang province, and TTH, 40, from An Giang province posted videos on their accounts of the monk-like rock. Authorities said the clips of the huge rock on a forested slope violated a decree on regulations on administrative sanctions for violations in the fields of post, telecommunications, radio frequencies, information technology and electronic transactions. However, they added that since they were first offenses, the two men had confessed and their families faced difficult circumstances, they were only fined VND 5 million each. RELATED STORIES California congressman raises case of missing 'monk' Vietnam's barefoot monk Thich Minh Tue leaves parents' home How TikTok made a barefoot Vietnamese monk go viral Tues whereabouts are not known, prompting concern at home and abroad. On July 1, his brother wrote to police in Gia Lai province, asking if they knew what had happened to him. After nearly 20 days, the family was completely unaware of Minh Tues mental and health condition, so our family in particular and many beloved Buddhists in the country and internationally are very confused and worried, the brother said in his letter. Vietnamese media reported that Tue had voluntarily chosen to retreat from the public eye. Tue, 43, dresses and acts like a monk but the Vietnam Buddhist Sangha, says he is not part of the state-sanctioned religious group. Translated by RFA Vietnamese. Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang. After the Taliban's de facto government cut ties with a number of diplomatic missions operated abroad by diplomats loyal to the ousted Afghan republic, the British and Norwegian authorities have opted to shut down Afghan embassies on their soil. Both Oslo and London say their decisions in no way represent official recognition of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan, which no country recognizes due to concerns over a woeful human rights record and other failures to live up to promises it made before seizing power in August 2021. But experts say the embassy closures are likely to pave the way for more engagement with the Taliban, which controls all of Afghanistan's territory and has increased its hold on power. Diplomats who served the former Afghan government were left in limbo when the Taliban took control, but remained open for business in some Western states and continued to assist Afghan citizens. The window on their operations began to close when the Taliban announced in July that it was cutting ties with 14 such missions in Western countries and that it would not accept any consular documents they processed, a critical source of funding to keep them running. Many of the consular services, such as verification of identity documents or police clearance, offered by the embassies do require a degree of cooperation from the country's government because diplomatic missions might not be able to access all government data. This month, the British Foreign Office announced that it was shutting down the Afghan Embassy in London, explaining to RFE/RL on September 9 that the decision was made after the "dismissal of its staff by the Taliban." Norway quickly followed suit, announcing that the Afghan Embassy in Oslo would be shut down on September 12. Both the British and Norwegian governments have indicated that the move does not amount to a formal recognition of the Taliban's hard-line government. And the embassy buildings, which are Afghanistan's properties, will be eventually handed over to a "recognized" government of Afghanistan. But Hameed Hakimi, an Afghanistan expert, says the decisions to shut the embassies can be taken as "reality setting in" that the Taliban is "unlikely to be replaced in the immediate future." And for the Taliban, he says, it creates an opportunity to argue that its rule is being acknowledged, even without formal recognition. "The Taliban can use this to their advantage in their pursuit of claiming legitimacy with the Afghans and internationally," said Hakimi, an associate fellow at London's Chatham House think tank. More than a dozen countries, mostly Afghanistan's neighbors, already operate embassies in Kabul, and some have accredited Taliban diplomats. The Taliban government also partially controls diplomatic missions in some countries, and has established working relations with Afghan diplomatic missions in the Czech Republic, Spain, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, and the Afghan Consulate in Munich. The missions operating in Western countries staffed by diplomats appointed by the previous government are the outlier. Hakimi said that if all those missions are shut down, it "truly signifies the closure of the chapter of the Afghan Islamic Republic." The Afghan Islamic Republic, as it was formally known, emerged soon after a U.S.-led military alliance toppled the Taliban government in November 2001 following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. Nearly two decades later, the internationally recognized Afghan republic collapsed as the Taliban seized power in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The Taliban, meanwhile, recreated its brutal emirate from the 1990s by imposing harsh bans and discriminatory laws that resulted in widespread human rights violations. Afghan women and girls are deprived of education and employment in most sectors and lack fundamental freedoms. These Taliban policies have so far kept its government from being officially recognized. This absence of recognition has complicated engagement with the Taliban government on important issues, such as humanitarian aid, and made it difficult for the estimated 2 million Afghans living in Western countries to access consular services. Graeme Smith, a senior Afghanistan analyst at the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, says Western governments might be acting on the UN special coordinator's recommendation to facilitate the processing of documentation for Afghans abroad. In his report endorsed by the UN Security Council in December 2023, Feridun Sinirlioglu, the UN special coordinator for Afghanistan, called for better cooperation between the Taliban regime and the outside world to ensure that Afghans can obtain the paperwork they need to continue with their daily lives. "Afghans have been suffering in limbo without clarity about where to go when they need identity papers or travel documents," Smith said, describing how Afghans who still do not have travel documents from another country suffer from the lack of consular services. "The steps we are witnessing now may represent practical efforts by some governments" to remedy the situation, Smith said. The challenge remains, he said, to ensure that efforts "aimed at pressuring the regime do not sabotage the lives and livelihoods of Afghans." Many Western capitals are also grappling with the complex issue of what to do with Afghan asylum seekers whose applications were rejected. Last month, Germany deported 28 Afghan men convicted of crimes in the country to Kabul, with Qatar playing an intermediary role in securing the Taliban's cooperation in accepting the returning Afghans. Smith said that some countries "are discovering the usefulness" of having a consular presence "connected to the authorities in Kabul" if they need to arrange the return of Afghan migrants. "But it's unclear if that motivated the recent closures," he said. Both Britain and Norway have not said anything about whether they will allow the Taliban government to offer consular services in London and Oslo. The fates of the Afghan Embassy in Berlin and consulate in Bonn are not clear, although the consulate in Munich is likely to remain open because it cooperates with the Taliban government on consular services. In London, Afghanistan expert Hakimi said the closure could create an "opportunity for the Taliban to lobby with the Western countries" and allow its representatives to at least run counselor services. These Afghan diplomatic missions can remain closed indefinitely, similar to what happened in the United States, where the Afghan Embassy and two consulates have been closed since March 2002. The Afghan Embassy in Canada offers remote consular services to Afghans living in the United States. In Norway, Afghans have mixed feelings about their embassy's closure. Sima Nouri, an Afghan woman living in Oslo, is worried over how her compatriots will now access consular services. "There is a possibility that the process of forced deportation of Afghan refugees will begin," she told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. "This process, however, must be stopped." Mina Rafiq, another Afghan woman in Norway, prefers shutting the embassy down to cooperating with the Taliban. "This might work to the advantage of Afghan asylum seekers," she said, "because the Norwegian government will now have to give them necessary documents." A court in Belarus opened the trial of Natallya Malets on a charge of facilitating extremist activities as the government of authoritarian ruler Alyaksandr Lukashenka shows no signs of letting up in its campaign to crush any perceived signs of dissent. The Brest regional court in the country's west on July 8 launched the trial of the 63-year-old Malets, who is accused of wiring cash 125 times to political prisoners. If found guilty, she faces up to six years in prison. Last year, Malets was handed an 18-month parole-like sentence on a charge of "insulting a representative of law enforcement." Human right groups have recognized her as a political prisoner. Meanwhile, the Hrodna regional court on July 8 started the trial in absentia of journalist Ales Kirkevich on the same charge of facilitating extremist activities. It remains unclear what Kirkevich did to be charged with the offense. 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. Since mass protests in 2020 challenged the official result of a presidential election where Lukashenka was announced the winner -- many in Belarus and abroad say the vote was rigged -- Belarusian authorities have launched a sometimes deadly crackdown on independent journalists, activists, opposition politicians, and democratic institutions. Over the weekend, the Brest regional court sentenced Iryna Pahadayeva to three years in prison, saying the 55-yrear-old activist wired cash to jailed political prisoners 32 times. Pahadayeva was arrested in May and her state of health has dramatically worsened while in custody, as she suffers from issues related to high blood pressure. Human right groups have recognized her as a political prisoner. The same court is currently trying another activist, Iryna Bandarenka, on the same charge. Bandarenka is accused of sending cash to political prisoners and bringing parcels to them while they were held in a detention center in Brest. The Vyasna human rights group said on July 8 that 18 political prisoners, including four women, had been released since last week after Lukashenka signed a law on mass amnesty. According to Vyasna, some political prisoners refused to accept the amnesty after they were required to write a letter to Lukashenka asking him personally for clemency. Lukashenka, 69, has been in power since 1994. He has tightened his grip on the country since the August 2020 election by arresting -- sometimes violently -- more than 35,000 people. Fearing for their safety, most opposition members have fled the country. The West has refused to recognize the results of the election and does not consider Lukashenka to be the country's legitimate leader. Many countries have imposed sanctions against Lukashenka's regime in response to the suppression of dissent in the country. U.S. President Joe Biden emphasized the need for a diplomatic arrangement for the return of both Lebanese and Israeli civilians to their homes on both sides of the Israeli-Lebanese border in a call on October 9 with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said. Biden also condemned Irans ballistic missile attack against Israel on October 1, a White House statement said. Biden "affirmed Israels 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. Biden spoke with Netanyahu earlier about Israel's plans to retaliate against Iran for a missile attack last week, according to statements from both the White House and the Israeli prime minister's office on October 9. The White House statement said Biden and Netanyahu "agreed to remain in close contact over the coming days both directly and through their national security teams." The call comes amid escalating tensions between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah, an armed group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon. The Middle East has been on edge awaiting Israel's expected response to Iran's largely ineffective missile attack, which Tehran carried out in retaliation for Israel's escalation in Lebanon, including the assassination of Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a video published on Israeli media that Israel's response "will be deadly, precise, and above all surprising." Biden last week said he would not support Israel striking Iranian nuclear sites as part of its retaliation. He also said that, if he were in Israel's shoes, he would think about alternatives to striking Iranian oil fields. Israel has faced calls by the United States and other allies to accept a cease-fire deal in Gaza and Lebanon but has said it will continue its military operations until Israelis are safe. U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller warned on October 9 that Israel must avoid conducting military operations in Lebanon like those it has conducted in Gaza. "I'm making very clear that there should be no kind of military action in Lebanon that looks anything like Gaza and leaves a result anything like Gaza," Miller told journalists. The White House statement said Biden and Netanyahu discussed the urgent need to renew diplomacy to release the hostages held by Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the EU. Biden also discussed the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the White House said. Israels bombardment of central and northern Gaza in recent days has killed dozens of people and trapped thousands in their homes, Palestinian officials said. Hezbollah, a 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 call between Biden and Netanyahu took place as Israeli forces stepped up their ground offensive against Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon. On October 9, Hezbollah said in a statement that its fighters had used artillery and rockets against Israeli troops near the Lebanese border village of Labbouneh. In a separate statement, the group said it engaged in combat with Israeli forces as they "attempted to infiltrate the border town of Blida" in southeast Lebanon. The Israeli Army said early on October 9 that it had intercepted two projectiles fired from Lebanon as air-raid alarms sounded in and around Caesarea, a coastal city south of Haifa. The latest fighting comes as fears grow of a larger conflict in the region after Israel also claimed that the successor to Nasrallah has likely been "eliminated." Gallant said on October 8 that Hezbollah was an "organization without a head" and there's no one left to make decisions. Netanyahu later echoed those comments, saying, "We've degraded Hezbollah's capabilities." "We took out thousands of terrorists, including Nasrallah himself and Nasrallah's replacement, and the replacement of the replacement," Netanyahu said. Hashem Safieddine, a top Hezbollah official and a cousin of Nasrallah, was widely expected to be named to the group's top position, but his whereabouts and condition remain unknown since an October 2 Israeli strike on a suspected Hezbollah leadership meeting. Hezbollah has not commented on Safieddine's fate, although unidentified members have told various media that the group had lost contact with him since the attack. Safieddine has been declared a global terrorist by the United States. The National Rally (RN) failed not only to secure an outright majority in the second round of parliamentary voting in France on July 7 but finished third, contrary to predictions that the far-right party was on the cusp of snatching power, given its strong showing in the first round of voting. However, the pendulum has swung to the other end of the political spectrum, with the leftist alliance New Popular Front (NFP) emerging as the single strongest force but falling far short of securing a parliamentary majority. If the results are confirmed, it would likely lead to a hung parliament, underscoring just how polarized French society is. France is now navigating uncharted territory, analysts say. 'No One Saw This One Coming' The NFP is expected to win the most seats, between 172 and 198. President Emmanuel Macron's centrist bloc, Ensemble, is predicted to finish second with between 152 to 169 seats, followed by RN in third on an estimated 143 seats. "Its fair to say no one saw this one coming," RFE/RL's Europe Editor Rikard Jozwiak said. After RN emerged from the first round of voting as the leading party, centrist and leftist parties agreed to withdraw 221 candidates, including 83 from Macron's political group and 132 from the NPF, in order to avoid three-way runoffs. The two rounds of the French elections have a different purpose, says Jacques Rupnik, director of research at CERI (the Center for International Studies and Research) at Sciences-Po in Paris. "In the first round, you vote for the candidate you prefer. But in the second round, you vote not necessarily for, but mainly against who you don't want to get into parliament," Rupnik told RFE/RL. Stopping the National Rally was the highest priority for many voters and that explains the momentum that was created between the two rounds. Will New Prime Minister Be From The Left? Jean-Luc Melenchon, the firebrand leader of the far-left France Unbowed (LFI) and head of the NFP coalition, has demanded that the left be given the chance to form a government. Indeed, convention suggests that Macron should invite a politician from the largest grouping to take on the role. Gabriel Attal, the current prime minister, has said that he will tender his resignation, but he opened the door to heading a caretaker government during the Paris Olympic Games, which begin on July 26. Macron will probably explore all options before eventually nominating a prime minister from the leftist coalition. One option is to try to split the leftist alliance, which is fractured and banded together only after Macron called the snap elections. The NFP brings together the previously deeply divided Socialists, greens, communists, and the hard-left France Unbowed in one camp. Another option would be "a government of experts" not linked to political parties. However, it would still need the endorsement of a majority in the National Assembly. Rupnik says that the left would likely not favor a so-called government of experts, insisting they won the election and are eager to move forward on their program. "The left-wing program is totally unimplementable because it promises so many things that don't have the slightest chance to be implemented. The coffers are empty," Rupnik added. While the loss of the far right provides may be a relief to investors, they are also probably not relieved with the left set to enter government with economic plans that could unwind many of Macron's pro-market reforms. 'Macron Weakened But Not Out' Macron will be attending the upcoming landmark NATO summit in Washington as a weakened figure, and France has been left without a stable ruling majority less than three weeks before Paris hosts the Olympics. "I would say Macron is weakened, he is down, but not out," said Rupnik adding that despite the domestic instability, foreign policy should remain stable. There are some caveats if the leftist alliance will be a part of the government. Namely, the NFP is divided over some foreign policy issues like the Melenchon party's refusal to declare Hamas a terrorist group. End Of the National Rally? Le Pen, who plans to launch a fourth bid for the presidency in 2027, claimed that "the tide is rising" and the National Rally's victory had only been "delayed". If no party is able to cobble together a viable government, according to the country's constitution, early elections could be called for a year from now. The National Rally, as the strongest opposition grouping in parliament, could utilize the political disarray to build support for the next elections. When it comes to the presidential elections in 2027, Macron won't be eligible to run and has yet to groom a successor. So, the question is who might challenge Marine Le Pen? "There is a big sigh of relief for now. But the problem doesn't go away," Rupnik said. Frances far-right National Rally party failed to secure a majority in parliamentary elections on July 7 after being relegated to third place behind centrists and a left-wing alliance. Some in France's Afghan community expressed relief that the National Rally won't be in power to implement its anti-immigration platform that could have limited family reunions for refugees. A hung parliament could mean lots of political uncertainty ahead, but without a far-right majority President Emmanuel Macron is expected to be able to maintain France's support for Ukraine. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing as a continuation of what he calls "Peace mission 3.0" but Hungary's Western partners have angrily called strictly bilateral initiatives centering around the ongoing war in Ukraine. The meetings have followed Hungary's assumption of the EU Council presidency on July 1, and EU officials have emphasized that Orban is not representing the bloc. Orban defended his unannounced visit to China to discuss the Russia-Ukraine conflict by saying, "#China is a key power in creating the conditions for #peace in the #RussiaUkraineWar," adding, "This is why I came to meet with President Xi in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest." Orban's China trip follows a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 5 and a trip to present a mysterious peace proposal to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on July 2. Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here. The Beijing stopover also comes one day before NATO leaders including Orban gather in Washington for a summit marking the transatlantic military alliance's 75th anniversary with the Western response to Russia's unprovoked invasion of Ukraine high on the agenda. Xi emerged from the meeting with Orban saying of the Ukrainian war that "The international community should create conditions and provide assistance for the two sides to resume direct dialogue and negotiations." The Chinese leader has condemned the conflict but diplomatically backed Putin, with whom Xi formed a "no-limits" partnership in the weeks before the full-scale Russian invasion began in February 2022. "Only when all major powers exert positive energy rather than negative energy can the dawn of a cease-fire in this conflict appear as soon as possible," Xi said. Chinese state television said in a readout of the meeting with Orban that "The current focus is to abide by the three principles of 'no spillover of the battlefield, no escalation of the war, and no fueling of the flames by all parties' to cool down the situation as soon as possible." Like both of his previous trips, Orban's China visit has come as a surprise. Hungary's EU partners have reacted furiously to the seemingly uncoordinated shuttle diplomacy, which Orban on landing in Beijing referred to on social platform X as "Peace mission 3.0." A day earlier, Germany's Foreign Ministry said it was "astonished" by Hungary's cancellation of a planned foreign ministers' meeting scheduled for Budapest on July 8. It said on July 5 that Brussels and Budapest needed a "serious and honest" discussion following the Putin meeting. Budapest cited "an unforeseen change" in Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto's calendar in postponing the meeting with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock. After Orban arrived in Moscow on July 5, EU foreign affairs chief Josep Borrell said that "Prime Minister Orban has not received any mandate from the EU Council to visit Moscow." He said the visit "takes place, exclusively, in the framework of the bilateral relations between Hungary and Russia." Orban has acknowledged that the rotating, six-month EU Presidency that Hungary now holds has no authority to represent the bloc in talks or negotiations. "Even if the rotating EU-Presidency has no mandate to negotiate on behalf of the EU, we cannot sit back and wait for the war to miraculously end," Orban tweeted. "We will serve as an important tool in making the first steps towards #peace. This is what our peace mission is about." Orban has whipped up fears of an escalating conflict in recent Hungarian elections, seemingly adopted Kremlin talking points, and accused many in the West of warmongering in response to Russia's invasion. In Kyiv on July 2, Orban presented Zelenskiy with a cease-fire proposal he said was aimed at pausing the fighting. He declined to give details but said he asked Zelenskiy "whether it was possible to take a break, to stop the firing, and then continue the negotiations." Zelenskiy did not express his opinion on the proposal during the briefing with reporters, but a spokesman for the president said later on July 2 that Zelenskiy gave Orban an opportunity to air his thoughts. Chinese President Xi visited Hungary in May in the latest sign of growing diplomatic and economic ties between Beijing and Budapest. With reporting by Reuters and AFP A new right-wing alliance announced recently by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been accredited in the European Parliament with French National Rally (RN) leader Jordan Bardella as its chairman, a spokesman for the Hungarian leader said via social media on July 8. The registration of the Patriots For Europe grouping followed posts earlier in the day by Orban spokesman Zoltan Kovacs saying Bardella and Marine Le Pen's RN and the Italian Lega party led by Matteo Salvini would join. "PatriotsforEurope has been officially accredited as the new defining right-wing political group of the [European Parliament]," Kovacs tweeted under the phrase "historic moment." "Our political group will start its journey with [Bardella] as chairman and [Fidesz] MEP Kinga Gal as the first vice-chairman," he added. Such groupings require a minimum of 23 representatives from at least seven EU member states. The additions of the French and Italians after commitments from Danes, Spaniards, Czechs, and Austrians, and others suggested they could have quickly become the third-largest faction in the European legislative chamber. "With 84 representatives from 12 countries our alliance of European patriots will fight for the future and sovereignty of the European people!" Kovacs said. Le Pen's party colleagues had reportedly signaled their intention to join the Orban-backed grouping ahead of her national-populist party's third-place finish in French national elections in which the political left and right teamed up to beat back the surging RN's hopes of a win. "This new right-wing faction could become the third-largest in the European Parliament," Orban spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said earlier. Kovacs also tweeted that the Patriots For Europe "continues to grow with the addition of Italy's Lega party" led by Matteo Salvini. Salvini confirmed Lega's participation, saying on social media that "after a lot of work, the large Patriots group is born together with the Lega in Brussels, which will be decisive in changing the future of this Europe." Orban announced the Patriots for Europe alliance in Vienna on June 30 alongside Austrian Freedom Party (FPO) President Herbert Kickl and billionaire former Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis, who heads the Czech ANO party. Orban vowed that it would "quickly" dominate the European political right. Salvini estimated that the Patriots have attracted 80 members, which would outpace the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) Party group led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Lega's domestic ally. But Germany's far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party said it would not join the Patriots for Europe. Orban's right-wing Fidesz party has been isolated in the European Parliament since quitting the center-right European Peoples Party (EPP) group under threat of expulsion in 2021. Elections in early June for the European Parliament showed big gains for Europe's far right, although Fidesz suffered a setback amid a challenge from party defector Peter Magyar and his center-right Tisza Party. The Hungarian prime minister has talked openly about his plans to turn the country from a democracy into an "illiberal state," and the government has taken control of much of Hungary's print and broadcast media. Orban has hammered Brussels as his government imposed controversial laws on LGBT speech and clashed with the bloc over perceived backsliding on democratic and media freedoms. He has also cozied up to Moscow diplomatically and economically while resisting EU and other sanctions imposed on Russia to punish its unprovoked full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 and refusing to join NATO and other Western efforts to help arm Kyiv. His self-described "peace mission" since Hungary took up the rotating six-month EU Council presidency has angered EU leaders, who quickly spoke out to say Orban did not represent the bloc in any potential negotiations about Russia's ongoing invasion of Ukraine. An Israeli strike on a school in the Gaza Strip killed at least 27 people on October 10, 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 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. 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. Biden spoke with Netanyahu earlier about Israel's plans to retaliate against Iran for a missile attack last week, according to statements from both the White House and the Israeli prime minister's office on October 9. The White House statement said Biden and Netanyahu "agreed to remain in close contact over the coming days both directly and through their national security teams." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on July 8 that Viktor Orban could not mediate between Russia and Ukraine to end Moscows full-scale invasion as the Hungarian prime minister traveled to Beijing on a continuation of what he calls "peace mission 3.0." Orban's meetings in Beijing followed visits to Kyiv and Moscow last week following Hungary's assumption of the EU Council presidency on July 1, but EU and U.S. officials have emphasized that Orban is not representing the bloc. Live Briefing: Russia's Invasion Of Ukraine RFE/RL's Live Briefing gives you all of the latest developments on Russia's full-scale invasion, Kyiv's counteroffensive, Western military aid, global reaction, and the plight of civilians. For all of RFE/RL's coverage of the war in Ukraine, click here. In a letter to European Council President Charles Michel dated July 5 and seen by RFE/RL, Orban said, based on his talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, he believes there is now a greater chance for a positive reception on all possible proposals for a cease-fire and for a road map to peace talks. But Mike Carpenter, senior adviser for Europe with the White House National Security Council, said Orbans meeting with Putin was not helpful. I dont think [Orbans visit to Moscow] is going to support Ukraine and its efforts at finding peace or Ukraines sovereignty or territorial integrity, Carpenter said on July 8 at a briefing as United States prepares for the opening of a NATO summit on July 9. Michel said last week that the EU's rotating presidency "has no mandate to engage with Russia on behalf of the EU" and reiterated the EU's position that Russia is the aggressor in the war in Ukraine. Orban claimed in his letter that leadership by the United States is limited due to the ongoing presidential election campaign. Therefore, he said the EU can expect no proposals from the United States in the coming months and Brussels should consider launching a European initiative. Speaking at a news conference in Poland, Zelenskiy said only powerful countries with armed forces much stronger than Russia's could manage to arrange peace talks. "Are there many such countries around the world? Not many. I believe the U.S., and China are such countries. And the EU, not one country, but the whole EU. This could really be an intermediary mission," Zelenskiy said. He added that Kyiv remains open to proposals from other countries on how to shape the path to peace, but they should align with the Ukrainian vision, in particular a 10-point peace plan, Zelenskiy added. Zelenskiy has insisted that Ukraine's territorial integrity -- backed in multiple UN votes and a Ukrainian-initiated Global Peace Summit in Switzerland last month -- must be the foundation of any peace deal. Putin has said conditions for ending the war include Kyiv renouncing its desire to join NATO and ceding Crimea and four other occupied regions of Ukraine. Orban told Michel in his letter that he did not put forth any proposal and did not articulate any opinion on behalf of the European Council or the European Union. He said that, with regard to the peace formula presented by Zelenskiy, Putin again pointed out that Russia still considers relevant the document handed over during peace talks in April 2022 in Turkey, especially the part that specifies international security guarantees to be granted to Ukraine. Orbans letter also said Putins interpretation of the situation on the front line differs substantially from that of Zelenskiys. The Russian leader believes that time is not on the side of Ukraine but on the side of the Russian forces. Putin made no reference to Russian casualties but said Russia estimates that Ukraines losses and casualties are between 40,000 and 50,000 soldiers per month, according to Orban. Therefore, Putin was surprised that Zelenskiy rejected a temporary cease-fire, Orban said. Russia is ready to consider any cease-fire proposal that does not serve the hidden relocation and reorganization of Ukrainian forces, Orbans letter said. Ukraine does not release data on casualties, but Zelenskiy said on February 25 that 31,000 Ukrainian soldiers had died in the war to that point and rejected Moscow's much higher estimates of Ukrainian losses. Orbans letter also referred to a Chinese-Brazilian peace proposal that is under consideration by the Russian side. China has been promoting the six-point peace plan, which proposes an international peace conference "at a proper time" and calls for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia. Moscow is ready to exchange views on it, provided that the framework of the peace talks is appropriate, he said. The summit in Switzerland considered Ukraines proposal for peace, and Kyiv hopes to hold a second summit later this year. China did not attend the first meeting. After Orban's meeting with Xi in Beijing, he wrote a separate letter to Michel in which he said the talks "confirmed that Chinas peace policy that is based on the principles of no expansion, no escalation, and no provocation will remain in place for the foreseeable future." Orban told Michel that Xi considers it highly likely that the next round of international peace talks will take place before the end of the year. He added that Beijing understands that the precondition for this is the participation of both sides and said the Chinese interpret a statement by Zelenskiy that the meeting will be organized with the participation of Russia "as an official commitment to this effect." With reporting by Reuters Joe Biden and Mike Francesa However bad you think last months debate against Donald Trump went for President Joe Biden, Mike Francesa probably thinks it was worse. Bidens performance against Trump in the first presidential debate of the 2024 election cycle was underwhelming at best and a self-induced career assassination at worst. Actually, Francesa thought it was even worse, believing Biden would have been better off attempting to assassinate himself with a gunshot wound to his shoulder. He is not someone running for the presidency; he is the President of the United States! Take that into account. Its already his job. Hes already beaten Trump once, Francesa said regarding the prospect of Biden quitting the race. In his heart, he thinks he can beat him again even though we all know after that performance, the odds of him beating Trump without some miracle right now is really slim. Francesa said that barring some illness or injury to Biden, he thinks theres only about a 30 percent chance that the current president will step down. And if Biden does step down, Francesa believes Kamala Harris will have to be the nominee, believing she would split the Democratic Party if they try to supersede her. Biden is now fighting for his very political life and a decided underdog. Thats the ramifications of the debate, which was the worst singlecar wreck doesnt do it justice, Francesa said. If he took a gun and shot himself in the shoulder, it wouldve been less painful. Thats how bad it was. Whoa. Thats pretty bad. This is the type of political commentary Francesa has been promising for years. And while theres some obvious hyperbole with this hot take, it does depict the type of hole Biden dug himself in the wake of last months debate. But to be clear, Biden taking a gun and shooting himself would have been much worse than rambling and stuttering on live TV. [The Mike Francesa Podcast] Jonathan McCambridge, PA UK prime minister Sir Keir Starmer has said he is committed to the principles of the Good Friday Agreement when considering the possibility of a referendum on Irish unity. His remarks came as Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald repeated her prediction that there would be a Border poll by 2030, adding the issue of Irish reunification has has never been more alive. However, DUP leader Gavin Robinson said there was no mood in Northern Ireland for engaging in a never-ending, repetitive psychodrama about a Border poll. Keir Starmer leaves Parliament Buildings at Stormont, Belfast (Liam McBurney/PA) Mr Starmer met with political parties at Stormont on Monday. Ms McDonald, whose party last week emerged as the North's largest party at Westminster following the UK General Election, said she used her meeting to urge Mr Starmer not to bury his head in the sand on the question of Irish unity. The Good Friday Agreement sets out that the UK's current Northern Ireland secretary can call a Border poll when he or she believes a majority of people in the region support a change to the constitutional status. Mr Starmer has previously stated that the issue of a united Ireland is not on his horizon and at the weekend the UK's new Northern Ireland secretary, Hilary Benn, said he believed the prospect of a vote on Irish unity is off into the distance. Asked about the potential of a Border poll when he spoke to the media, Mr Starmer said: This is provided for by the Good Friday Agreement, the framework is set out, and I am absolutely committed to the Good Friday Agreement. Today is a recommitment to that and to the approach and the role of the UK government in that as the honest broker. I am the Prime Minister for the whole of the UK, elected into office just a few days ago. But to reaffirm the importance of the principles of the Good Friday Agreement is part and parcel of why I am here today. Ms McDonald said last weeks election result reflected again that all is changed here and changing. She said: We have reiterated our view to the Prime Minister that it is foolhardy to bury your head in the sand on this question. We have reminded him that the provision for referendums is at the very heart of the Good Friday Agreement. Yes, we need to see progress on this, yes we need if people talk about conditions for a referendum, lets have clarity on what is meant by that. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed as he was asked about a border poll by 2030 (Liam McBurney/PA) This is a question that needs to be addressed by all of us. Asked if she was still aiming for a unity referendum to be held by 2030, the Sinn Fein president said: Yes, yes it is. She added: As we get into the detail of all of this with the British government, as they set out their own thinking, I hope increasingly that they will amplify their points and offer more clarity as to what they mean when they say the condition is met, when it becomes apparent, well what makes this apparent? How does this become manifest to their way of thinking? We look forward to engaging with that, but what we can say without fear of contradiction is that the issue of reunification and referendums has never been more alive in Irish political discourse right across the island. DUP leader Gavin Robinson laughed when the 2030 date was put to him. He said: We have heard plenty like that before and were still waiting. Mr Robinson added: Keir Starmer is a unionist, Keir Starmer is somebody who has indicated a Border poll is not on the horizon. Anybody who studies the outcome of the election on Thursday will see that the combined unionist vote still outstrips the combined nationalist vote. There is no mood for constitutional change, but more than that, there is no mood for engaging in this never-ending, repetitive psychodrama when it is not where the people are. Mumbai Rains Latest News: Few trains cancelled amid heavy rainfall Mumbai experienced heavy rainfall over the past 24 hours Mumbai Rains Latest News: Mumbai experienced heavy rainfall over the past 24 hours that caused waterlogging, long traffic jams, and disruptions to local train services and flight operations. According to Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), in a six-hour span from 1 am to 7 am on Monday, various parts of Mumbai received over 300 mm of rainfall. Due to the heavy rainfall, the BMC declared a holiday in all BMC, Government, and Private schools in Mumbai. Advertisement It is also pertinent to inform you that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has forecasted heavy to very heavy rainfall in Mumbai for Monday. The residents have been advised not to believe in rumors and to only step out, if necessary. Also, there's a delay in the train due to heavy rain in Mumbai due to which Mumbai local train services were impacted due to heavy rains and the water level was above the tracks between Matunga road and Dadar. To drain the water from the track, there is a high-capacity water pump available, ensuring a smoother commute for Mumbai residents, the railway said. Due to water logging, the following trains were cancelled in the Mumbai division, Central Railways said. Advertisement - 12110 (MMR-CSMT) JCO 08.07.2024 - 11010 (PUNE-CSMT) JCO 08.07.2024 - 12124 (PUNE CSMT DECCAN QUEEN) JCO 08.07.2024 - 11007 (CSMT - PUNE DECCAN) JCO 08.07.2024 - 12127 (CSMT-PUNE INTERCITY EXP) JCO 08.07.2024 (For more news apart from Mumbai Rains Latest News, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman) Curious Case of An Indian Netas Qualification The flip flops of Smriti Iranis claims about her education are similar to the twists and turns of TV industry plots where she has come from Chandigarh 15th April'2019: Let us visualise a scenario. An employer hires a person, and asks for the educational records, and other required documents before appointing. The person in question submits an affidavit claiming a graduate degree, and gets the job. A few years later, while renewing the contract, another such declaration is required, and the employee submits the declaration again. Only this time, the employer finds out, that the earlier declaration made by the employer, of being a graduate are false, and that person is a first-year drop-out. What do you think must have happened? Yes! You are right in thinking that the said employees services were terminated. At least that is what happens in a normal day-to-day scenario. But not in our political scenario. In our political scenario, a person who lies about educational qualifications while contesting for the highest sanctorum of democracy, the Parliament, is alleviated to the rank of a Union Minister. Advertisement Smriti Irani The above scenario matches what happened in the case of former HRD minister and present Textile Minister Smriti Zubin Irani. It was in the year 2004, that Smriti Irani, while submitting her nomination from Chandni Chowk in new Delhi, had claimed in her affidavit that she had done her Bachelor of Arts (BA) from Delhi University in 1996, via School of Open Learning (Correspondence). The problem here is not her education, but her later claims, and the questions on its authenticity. In 2011, while filing her nomination for Rajya Sabha from Gujrat, Smriti Irani claimed in her affidavit that her highest qualification was Bachelor of Commerce Part I, from Delhi University School of Open Learning. Her consequent affidavits submitted while filing nomination for Lok Sabha election 2019 from Amethi state a slightly different fact, where she states her qualification as Bachelor of Commerce Part I (Three-year degree course not completed) through the School of Open Learning (Correspondence), University of Delhi in 1994. Advertisement Is her qualification complete or incomplete? At an event organised by India Today, The India Today Woman Summit in reply to a question asked by a journalist, about discrepancies in her affidavits submitted to EC, she vehemently claimed that she had a degree from Yale University which she could show all the people who call her uneducated and shut them up. She said that Yale celebrated her leadership capacities in that degree. Yes, Smriti Irani is that employee of the People of India, who produced a fake affidavit while applying for her job at the Parliament. Even after so many disclosures, she continues to remain on the job. Given any other normal scenario, this would not have been possible. But in the politics of our nation, anything and everything is possible. After submitting her conflicting affidavits, the conflicts which are highlighted are many. Is her qualification complete or incomplete? Advertisement Smriti Irani finally admits she is not a graduate The minister has been asked this question on various occasions, but has very conveniently avoided answering. Has she studied Arts (according to her affidavit in 2004) or Commerce (according to her affidavits following 2011)? Smriti Irani and BJP have easily passed the buck on to other incidents of politicians lying about their qualifications. But the most important question is, is there any accountability and ownership of politicians playing around with the laws and rules? And an even bigger question is, can a person who has never been to a college, and has regularly lied about her qualification, be appointed as in-charge of an important ministry like Human Resource Development, which decides all policy matters on higher education in the nation. Her ability can be judged from the fact that she thinks a 6 day crash course in a foreign university is equal to a degree from the same. Can an employee of the People of India, who has lied her way through, stay on the job? Should the employer forgive an employee of such a blunder which is akin to a moral crime? Advertisement -Ravijot Kaur Taiwan will on Tuesday release June figures for imports, exports and trade balance, highlighting a modest day for Asia-Pacific economic activity. Imports are expected to jump 15.0 percent on year after adding 0.6 percent in May. Exports are called higher by an annual 11.5 percent after gaining 3.5 percent in the previous month. The trade surplus is pegged at $6.66 billion, up from $6.05 billion a month earlier. Indonesia will provide May data for retail sales; in April, sales were down 2.7 percent on year. Japan will see June numbers for money stock, with M2 expected to climb 2.0 percent on year - up from 1.9 percent a month earlier. Australia will see July results for the consumer sentiment index from Westpac and June figures for confidence from NAB. In June, the Westpac index was up 1.7 percent, while the NAB business confidence index had a score of -3 in May. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. Foreign trade from Germany and investor confidence from the euro area are the top economic news due on Monday. At 2.00 am ET, Destatis is scheduled to issue Germany's foreign trade data for May. The trade surplus is expected to fall to EUR 20.3 billion from EUR 22.1 billion in April. In the meantime, industrial output data is due from Sweden. At 3.00 am ET, the Czech Statistical Office releases industrial output and foreign trade figures. Industrial output is expected to drop 0.6 percent annually in May after easing 0.4 percent in April. At 4.30 am ET, Eurozone Sentix investor confidence survey results are due. Economists forecast the investor sentiment index to fall to -0.6 in July from 0.3 in June. Gain the edge with RTTNews Economic Calendar. Updated in real-time, explore RTTNews Economic Calendar today For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. Germany's exports declined for the first time in three months in May as demand from China and the United States weakened, data published by Destatis showed on Monday. Exports posted a monthly fall of 3.6 percent, in contrast to the 1.7 percent increase in April. At the same time, imports declined more deeply by 6.6 percent, reversing a 1.2 percent rise in April. As a result, the trade surplus rose unexpectedly to EUR 24.9 billion from EUR 22.2 billion in the previous month. The surplus was seen at EUR 20.3 billion. Exports to the United States and China declined 2.9 percent and 10.2 percent, respectively. Meanwhile, imports from China grew 1.7 percent and that from the US gained 4.6 percent. Exports to the member states of the EU slid 2.5 percent and imports from these countries slid 8.9 percent. Year-on-year, exports decreased 3.8 percent after a 12.3 percent gain in April. Similarly, imports were down 10.0 percent following April's 6.4 percent increase. As the annual decline in imports exceeded the fall in exports, the trade surplus totaled EUR 22.0 billion in May, which was higher than the EUR 15.1 billion surplus logged in the same period last year. Track market moving Economic Events that impact Commodities, Stock, and Forex by using realtime RTTNews Economic Calendar this week. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Economic News What parts of the world are seeing the best (and worst) economic performances lately? Click here to check out our Econ Scorecard and find out! See up-to-the-moment rankings for the best and worst performers in GDP, unemployment rate, inflation and much more. Curis Inc. (CRIS), a biotechnology company developing novel therapies for slowing or preventing the progression of cancer and prolonging life, has several important clinical trial milestones lined up for the end of this year. The company's lead drug candidate is Emavusertib, a first-in class IRAK4 inhibitor in phase I/II clinical studies in leukemia and lymphoma, dubbed TakeAim Leukemia and TakeAim Lymphoma. IRAK4, or interleukin-1 receptor-associated kinase 4, is said to play a crucial role in triggering inflammation, oncogenesis, and survival of cancer cells. According to studies, IRAK4 inhibition has demonstrated anti-tumor effects in preclinical cancer models. According to the company, initial phase I/II clinical data of Emavusertib demonstrated single-agent anti-cancer activity in Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL), with potential for broader application in combination with standard of care. In the TakeAim Lymphoma trial, Emavusertib is not only being evaluated as monotherapy but also in combination with AbbVie's *Ibrutinib for non-Hodgkin's lymphoma subtypes including primary CNS lymphoma (PCNSL) patients. *Ibrutinib is approved in the indications of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, Waldenstrom Macroglobulinemia, and Graft-versus-host disease. The initial Emavusertib/Ibrutinib combination data from the TakeAim Lymphoma study, reported last December, demonstrated a manageable and acceptable safety profile, according to the company. The updated combination study data from the TakeAim Lymphoma trial in patients with R/R PCNSL is expected in late-2024. A phase I trial of Emavusertib in combination with *Azacitidine and Venetoclax in Acute Myeloid Leukemia patients is also ongoing, with initial safety data from the study anticipated in late 2024. (*Azacitidine plus Venetoclax is a standard of care for newly diagnosed AML infit for intensive induction chemotherapy. Financial Numbers For the first quarter ended March 31, 2024, Curis reported a net loss of $11.9 million or $2.05 per share compared to a net loss of $11.6 million or $2.39 per share for the same period in 2023. Currently, the company does not generate any revenues from its direct sale of products. But it recognizes royalty revenues related to Genentech/Roche's sales of Erivedge. Erivedge, which was approved by the FDA in January 2012, for the treatment of patients with advanced basal cell carcinoma, is commercialized by Genentech and Roche under a 2003 collaboration agreement between Curis and Genentech. This drug is also approved in the European Union and in several other countries worldwide. Revenues for the first quarter of 2024 were $2.1 million compared to $2.3 million in the year-ago quarter. Revenues for both periods consist of royalty revenues from Genentech/Roche's sales of Erivedge. Cash Position Curis ended March 31, 2024, with cash, cash equivalents and investments of $40.7 million. CRIS has traded in a range of $0.38 to $17.49 in the last 1 year. The stock closed Friday's (July 5, 2024) trading at $6.38, up 2.08%. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News Britain's new Foreign Secretary David Lammy has promised that the new government under Prime Minister Keir Starmer will reset relations with Europe as a reliable partner, a dependable ally and a good neighbor. In an article published in The Local Europe ahead of his trip to Germany, Poland and Sweden, the Foreign Secretary said he looks forward to Britain reconnecting with European neighbors, working even more closely together to tackle shared challenges. "I will be explaining to my new fellow foreign ministers how our new government's proposal for an ambitious and broad-ranging UK-EU Security Pact would underpin closer cooperation between us, enshrining a new geopolitical partnership. I also look forward to hearing their ideas for how we can rebuild trust and reset the relationship between the UK and the EU." He made it clear that the most immediate of the challenges facing Europe is Ukraine, and European security will be the Labor government's foreign and defense priority. He is set to travel to Washington for the NATO Summit this week, along with the Prime Minister and the Defense Secretary. Lammy said that as Europe's energy networks are "so closely connected, together, we must invest in the industries of the future and deliver sustained economic growth for all." Referring to his Caribbean heritage. Lammy called himself a "transatlanticist." For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News President Joe Biden will travel to Texas and Nevada next week to attend a number of events, the White House announced. On July 15, the President will commemorate the 60th Anniversary of the Civil Rights Act during a visit to the LBJ Presidential Library in Austin. The next day, Biden will deliver remarks at the NAACP National Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada, where he will discuss his Administration's commitment to advancing racial justice and equity for all Americans, including Black Americans. On July 17, the President will deliver remarks at the UnidosUS Annual Conference on "the Biden Administration's historic accomplishments including lowering prescription drug costs for America's seniors, lowering the Latino uninsured rate, and creating a Latino small boom," the White House said. For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com Business News [L-R] Dr Rudolph Erasmus, President of the SAIP; Mr Takalani Nemaungani, Acting Director General at the Department of Science and Innovation, Dr Kwezi Mzilikazi, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Strategic Partnerships at Rhodes University; and Prof Makaiko Chithambo, Head of Physics. By Siya Hobo The 68th Annual Conference of the South African Institute of Physics (SAIP) was held at Rhodes University between 1-5 July 2024, and brought together students, professionals, educators, and government officials. The conference commenced with a welcome address by Dr Kwezi Mzilikazi, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Research, Innovation, and Strategic Partnerships at Rhodes University, who set the stage by highlighting the conference's crucial role in promoting cutting-edge research and facilitating a vibrant exchange of ideas among participants. Attendees were reminded of Rhodes University's historical legacy as the birthplace of South Africa's first email, symbolising a tradition of innovation that continues to inspire breakthroughs in physics and beyond. In her opening remarks, Dr Mzilikazi underscored the conference's alignment with Rhodes University's commitment to academic excellence and community engagement. She outlined the conference's agenda, which showcases groundbreaking research and includes initiatives aimed at empowering the next generation of physicists through educational programs and gender diversity initiatives within the field. Dr Rudolph Erasmus, President of the SAIP, echoed these sentiments, expressing enthusiasm for the conference as a hub for scientific discourse and collaboration. With a robust agenda covering diverse topics such as astrophysics, condensed matter physics, and theoretical research, the conference provides a fertile ground for researchers to explore new frontiers and challenge existing paradigms. The keynote addresses was given by the Acting Director General at the Department of Science and Innovation, Mr Takalani Nemaungani, reaffirming government support for scientific research and innovation. His presence underscored the importance of fostering a conducive environment for physics research, teaching and application in South Africa, setting a promising trajectory for future advancements in the field. A notable highlight of the conference was the active participation of students and early-career researchers, reflecting a keen interest in pushing the boundaries of physics research. Sessions dedicated to showcasing research findings from postgraduate and doctoral studies provide a platform for young scientists to present their work, engage in mentorship opportunities, and contribute to the discourse on emerging trends in physics. Presentations from invited speakers covered such subjects as quantum computing, materials science, and the Earths magnetic anomaly. There were two ancillary activities namely, a winter school on defects in solids as well as a teacher development workshop intended to improve the teaching ca[ability of High school teachers in the Eastern Cape. Beyond academic sessions, the conference fosters networking opportunities and collaborative partnerships among attendees. These interactions not only facilitate interdisciplinary collaborations but also explore avenues for leveraging physics to address regional socio-economic challenges, demonstrating the transformative potential of scientific research in society. Dr Erasmus commended the organisers, led by the Head of Physics, Prof Makaiko Chithambo, for their meticulous planning and execution, recognising their efforts to ensure a seamless and impactful conference experience. He encouraged attendees to actively participate in division meetings and contribute to shaping the future agenda of the SAIP, underscoring the importance of collective engagement in advancing the institute's mission. The annual SAIP conference exemplifies a commitment to innovation and collaboration, marking it as a pivotal moment for the physics community in South Africa. As Rhodes University continues its 120-year legacy of excellence, events like these reaffirm its role as a beacon for scientific advancement and academic achievement. For more information about SAIP, please go to: https://www.saip.org.za/about-us/ MG Motor India invited us to take part in the 2024 MG Experience Drive Over a period of 3 days, we drove the Hector SUV in some of the most scenic and challenging terrains in this country Pigeons cooed, people walked, workers gathered, and street vendors opened their stalls along the empty roads. In the misty mornings of New Delhi, we started our drive with new MG Hector SUV from MG Moti Nagar dealership. With chai, biscuits, and sandwiches at the micro-Cafe in the showroom, we planned our route to Narkanda, dubbed Heaven on Earth. Journey Highlights: From Murthal to Rupnagar Before the traffic picked up, the MG team flagged us off, heading towards the famous and crowded Amrik Sukhdev Dhaba in Murthal, Haryana. It was a relaxed 90-minute journey, during which we explored the new MG Hector, similar to the first model but with some differences. Comfort and Convenience: Exploring the MG Hector Right from the start, the Hector felt comfortable and safe. We loaded our luggage and arranged our snacks and water in the storage compartments, ready for our journey. The cars ample space was perfect for all our gear, including mounts and accessories for our phones and cameras. After a delicious breakfast at the dhaba, we continued on the highway towards Chandigarh, heading for the foothills of Himachal. The Hector handled the smooth NH-1 tarmac effortlessly, which was great for our post-breakfast lethargy. We used the automatic indicators and cruise control, letting the MG show its convenience and sophistication. Exploring Himachal: From Rupnagar to Jibhi After about five hours, we stopped for lunch at the Heritage Haveli near Rupnagar, enjoying more food with fellow journalists. Then, we departed for Jibhi via Mandi, a five-hour journey through twisting roads and exciting tunnels. By 10:30 PM, our convoy reached Bradhi Resorts in Jibhi. Parking the Hector in the narrow basement was easy thanks to the 360-degree cameras, even in the dark. We had a late dinner and went straight to bed. After a restful sleep in the cool Himachal air, we woke up to a breathtaking view. We quickly got ready, had breakfast, and drove out of the basement, testing the hill hold assist feature. Enjoying the Journey: Stops and Sightseeing Soon, we encountered a stream-crossing on the Ghiaghi Sajwar Road between Kullu and Banjar. We stopped to admire the Hector and took some photos. We even drank the fresh stream water, which was an amazing experience. Exploring Local Culture: Jalori Pass Banjar Aut Road The second day was filled with stops along stream and river crossings, including a significant one on the Jalori Pass Banjar Aut Road. We spent over two hours here, enjoying the scenery and eating local fruits like cherries, peaches, and apricots. Final Destinations: Narkanda and Hatu Peak Our journey was smooth and enjoyable, with the Hector proving to be a reliable and comfortable travel companion. Before sunset, we reached Narkanda and checked in at the Piyush Residency, which offered stunning views of the Himalayan valleys. Farewell to Himachal: Return Journey via Hatu Peak The next morning, we headed to Hatu Peak, taking in more breathtaking views and visiting the Hatu Mata Temple. We took numerous photos before heading to Chandigarh for our return flights, avoiding the chaotic situation in Delhi. Conclusion: Hector, the Ideal Travel Companion On the way back, we navigated tight winding roads with numerous bottlenecks, but the Hectors 360 cameras made it manageable. Overall, the 3-day journey with four adults, 6-8 luggage cases, and various travel essentials proved the MG Hector to be an excellent holiday car. It handled different terrains and climates effortlessly, making it a trustworthy travel partner. Sen. Jon Tester spoke out for the first time Monday about President Joe Biden's debate performance, making the Montana senator one of the latest Democrats to weigh in on the feasibility of Biden's candidacy. Biden's performance in the June 27 debate raised questions about the president's mental acuity and left Democrats panicking. The fallout has prompted some Democrats to call for an end to his candidacy, some to explicitly stand by the president and others, like Tester, asking that the president do more to demonstrate he's capable of holding the office. "President Biden has got to prove to the American people including me that he's up to the job for another four years," Tester said in a statement to KULR8. "Meanwhile, Ill continue to do what Ive always done: Stand up to President Biden when hes wrong and protect our Montana way of life." Tester is in a tight reelection battle with Republican challenger Tim Sheehy, a first-time political candidate and former Navy SEAL. Biden's presidency has been one of the defining messages in the race for Montana's Senate seat, as Tester is one of only two incumbent Democrats running for reelection in states that Donald Trump won in 2020. Biden lost to Trump in Montana by roughly 16 points, capturing only 40.5% of the vote. The Tester campaign has seemingly made a concerted effort to put some distance between the senator and the sitting president, as the campaign is frequently promoting examples of times when Tester broke with the president. As the Tester campaign digs a cavern between Tester and Biden, the Sheehy campaign and the National Republican Senatorial Committee has simultaneously been trying to create a link in voters' minds between Tester and Biden. "Let's be clear, Jon Tester stands with Joe Biden because Jon Tester is a Biden Democrat," Sheehy said in a statement following the news Monday. "Montanans won't forget that not too long ago Two-Faced Tester said Joe Biden is 100% with it and doing a good job. Ill say what weve all known to be true here in Montana, but Jon Tester is too scared to say Crooked Joe Biden is the worst president in American history, and its time to put an end to the disastrous Biden-Tester agenda. The North Dakota Ethics Commission has seen a rise in campaign-related complaints but lacks tools to address the allegations, Executive Director Rebecca Binstock said. Commissioners are considering adopting a new set of rules so the board has more authority to investigate the complaints. As of late June, 23 complaints had been filed with the commission since the beginning of the year, the North Dakota Monitor reported. Of those, 10 related to campaigns, Binstock said. The commission received 17 complaints in all of 2023 and 14 in 2022. In both 2023 and 2022, two complaints each year related to campaigns. Generally, ethics complaints are confidential unless the commission determines them to be substantiated and the accused has the ability to appeal. Weve also received, I want to call it anecdotal information, from the public, from state agencies, state employees as well as elected officials that this particular election cycle is different, Binstock told commissioners during a recent meeting. That anecdotal evidence aligns with what we see in real time with the complaints that have come in. Secretary of State Michael Howe said his office has received reports of alleged improper campaign finance disclosures on materials such as signs and flyers, though hes not sure if theres been more this election cycle compared to previous years. The Secretary of States Office does not enforce compliance with campaign laws. We say, Well, there is a requirement of that North Dakota Century Code, Howe said. If you feel the law has been broken, you need to reach out to the states attorney in the county where you think this crime has been committed. Recently, there have been allegations of campaign fraud in North Dakota submitted to federal authorities. Julie Fedorchaks campaign filed complaints with the Federal Election Commission and Federal Communications Commission after text messages were sent en masse to North Dakotans the day of the primary election falsely insinuating she had dropped out of the U.S. House race. A North Dakota resident in May filed an FEC complaint against Rep. Brandon Prichard, R-Bismarck, claiming he may have engaged in campaign finance activity that violates federal election law. Prichard has denied wrongdoing. The status of the complaint is not public. The 2018 constitutional amendment that created the Ethics Commission allows the board to adopt rules related to elections, lobbying, corruption and transparency to enforce ethical behavior by state officials. Under the constitution, the Ethics Commission can investigate alleged violations of its own rules, the constitutional amendment or related state laws. Its ability to investigate campaign complaints is still very limited, however. For one, the commission has yet to adopt any rules on campaign ethics. North Dakota does have statutes relating to campaign ethics most of which impose misdemeanor penalties which could fit the definition of related state laws under the constitutional amendment. However, because the commission does not have prosecution authority, it cannot investigate alleged violations of criminal law, Binstock said. There are other ways to address complaints, though. The Ethics Commission may work with the complainant and the accused to resolve the complaint informally, for example. Additionally, if a complaint accuses someone of a criminal violation, the Ethics Commission is required by law to forward the allegation to a states attorney. States attorneys have discretion over whether to charge someone with a crime. Binstock noted during the meeting that when an ethics-related allegation crosses the desk of a state prosecutor, chances are the prosecutor is already dealing with a heavy caseload. A letter dated May 10 provided to the North Dakota Monitor indicates that Binstock referred a complaint about a legislative race to Burleigh County States Attorney Julie Lawyer. The prosecutor has not responded to requests for comment and Binstock is unable to comment on specific complaints. If a prosecutor declines to bring charges related to an ethics complaint, the case is handed back to the commission. But again, since the commission has neither prosecution authority nor any rules pertaining to elections, its staff may be unable to investigate the complaint. If the Ethics Commission doesnt have a corresponding ethics rule, were left with a criminal statute that the Ethics Commission cant investigate under, Binstock said. The commission during the meeting gave staff the greenlight to draft election rules. The draft rules will likely go before the commission for consideration sometime in the next few months, Binstock said. In 2018, Burleigh County prosecutors charged Bismarck legislative candidate Duane Sand with a misdemeanor that alleged he misstated opponent George Keisers voting record in a campaign ad. The charge, publication of false information in political advertisements, was prompted by a police report Keiser filed and a finding from a prosecutor that the act fit the elements of the crime, The Bismarck Tribune reported. Sand later filed police reports accusing Keiser and others of breaking the same law. The charge against Sand was dismissed after all involved reached a private settlement and agreed to stop pursuing the complaints, the Tribune reported. Catacombs, aka The Woman Who Wouldnt Die, seems to owe a debt to Alfred Hitchcock. The style, the twists and turns that the plot takes, all seem to scream Hitchcockian. Heck, the director, Gordon Hessler, began his career in television as a story reader for Alfred Hitchcock Presentshe even gives himself a little walk-on cameo not unlike the Master of Suspense, himself. But Catacombs is reminiscent of another genre, the thriller that toys with expectations of supernatural elements. At once, it feels like a new spin on an old classic like Diabolique, or one of the many films produced by Val Lewton, where the mere idea that the supernatural may exist is more terrifying than any vengeful spirit may actually be. Ellen Garth (Georgina Cookson) isnt an evil woman, simply a domineering one. She has a way about her. Shes a successful businesswoman and likes her life, and the people who populate it, to be just so. Everything must be perfect. Shes a loving woman, but a controlling one, and its all a bit too much for the people close to her to take. And, it seems, just about everyone in her life wants her dead. Whether its her husband Raymond (Gary Merrill), who resents the idea of being a kept man, or her assistant Dick (Neil McCallum, who also produced the film). Raymond and Dick begin plotting. They want to keep it simple: Shes planning a business trip to Italy. Whos to say she doesnt have a little car accident while shes out of town and they split whats left to them in her will? Things, of course, dont happen so simply. Raymond, you see, is planning on having an affair with her beloved niece (Jane Merrow) and shes caught them in the act. Ellen has no interest in keeping Raymond in her life, or in her will. Raymond kills her then and there, and the murdering duo have to make excuses as to why shes not available for functions she signed up for. She must be witnessed leaving town, so they hire an actress to dress like her, walk on a cane like her, faking a bad hip, and for their plan to work, there must be a body in Italy. So, the poor actress is killed, too. One woman. Two dead bodies. And, worse yet, her spirit may be haunting Raymond. He can hear her tap-tap-tapping along the corridors of her empty house. Her perfume can be smelled. Her brand of cigarettes, freshly smoked, are filling up the ashtrays. Catacombs also feels like a modern spin on an Edgar Allan Poe classic, The Tell-Tale Heart with the ghostly sounds of Ellen gnawing at Raymonds guilt, driving him mad. Its also not without a certain amount of self-awareness and tongue-in-cheek humor. The movie delights in the twists and turns it dreams up and then runs rampant with. It is also aware of how over-the-top, silly, and outlandish the plot is. After the film wraps and the credits roll, its best not to think about the plot, it doesnt hold up under scrutiny. Catacombs is well aware of this, so it moves at a pace brisk enough that the audience isnt left the time to draw connections or realize how silly it all is. The movie lays enough groundwork that were willing to suspend our disbelief and leave it at that. Catacombs is not a masterpiece, but it doesnt need to be, nor does it set out to be. Its a nasty little thriller thats about the evil that humans are capable of. It feels like the kind of picture youd watch late one evening on Turner Classic Movies and remember years later by the lurid, wonderful tagline that describes it as, The story of a girl who twice returned from the grave! Movies like Catacombs are a fun discovery, to happen upon this forgotten hidden gem with a macabre story that unfurls with viciousness. The production is top-notch, with excellent acting from all players involved and sharp, snappy dialogue. Gordon Hessler had an active career directing television, and made a handful of feature films, but his technique here is refined and shows a real talent behind the camera. Vital Stats: The Blu-ray Catacombs comes to a gorgeously-realized Blu-ray courtesy of Imprint Films. The feature, and its supplements, are found on a single Blu-ray disc, housed in a standard case with some impressive artwork. The removable slip adorns poster art of a Grim Reaper-like specter, with a womans leg, complete with high heel, emerging from the cloak. There are a number of special features to be found within that give an interesting perspective on the films production history, release and special place in its era. ITM Power announced a significant capacity reservation agreement with a major global industrial customer on Monday, securing 500MW of future production capacity for ITM Powers advanced electrolyser stacks. The AIM-traded firm said the contract spanned until the end of 2028 and encompassed call-offs for future projects across Europe and the United States. While specific contract details remained undisclosed, the board said the agreement represented a substantial step forward for ITM Power, ensuring a steady production pipeline and reinforcing its market presence in key regions. Today's announcement is a great example of how close collaboration will unlock competitive and successful green hydrogen projects, said chief executive officer Dennis Schulz. Following the already announced capacity reservation for 100MW from Shell, this agreement with yet another large-scale industrial customer is a validation of our technology and credibility to deliver. At 0914 BST, shares in ITM Power were up 12.34% at 56.25p. Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Marketing and communications software-as-a-service specialist Pulsar Group reported a 2.2m increase in annual recurring revenue in its interim results on Monday, demonstrating a marked improvement in growth momentum compared to the 1.3m growth in the first half of 2023. The AIM-traded firm said the accelerated growth was contributed by all regions, including Asia-Pacific, EMEA, and North America. Total revenue for the period was 30.8m, slightly up from 30.4m in the first half of 2023, with 96% of the revenue being recurring, compared to 95% in the prior year. The group reported adjusted EBITDA of 3.1m - a significant year-on-year increase from 2m. Looking ahead, the board said it anticipated strong cash generation in the second half of the financial year, bolstered by positive momentum across all regions. Pulsar Group said it was trading in line with the board's full-year expectations, reflecting confidence in its strategic direction and financial health. As governments, corporations, brands, and individuals respond to today's complex communication landscape, the rising demand for audience intelligence is evident, said non-executive chairman Christopher Satterthwaite. Pulsar Group's cutting-edge audience intelligence solution continues to drive innovation in marketing and communications. Our technology provides the critical insights and engagement strategies necessary for organisations to navigate these challenges, which have only been intensified by the increasing use of artificial intelligence in media and social channels. Satterthwaite said the board was pleased with the progress made during the first half of the year, including enhancements to its product offerings and a significant acceleration in annual recurring revenue growth alongside improved adjusted EBITDA margins, despite the ongoing challenges of a difficult macro-economic environment. The group remains focussed on enhancing profitability and cash generation, with a number of cost optimisation initiatives delivered to date and continued emphasis to be placed on this during the remainder of the financial year. Overall, the board remains confident in Pulsar Group's outlook for the second half of the year and beyond. At 1250 BST, shares in Pulsar Group were down 5.81% at 81p. Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Vehicle tracking specialist Quartix Technologies said in a trading update on Monday that it expected to report first-half revenue of 16m, adjusted EBITDA of 2.6m, pre-tax profit of 2.6m, and free cash flow of 0.9m. The AIM-traded company said its net cash balance at the end of the period on 30 June stood at 2.6m. It said the estimates included 0.5m in non-recurring costs, primarily related to the liquidation of the subsidiary Konetik Deutschland. Additionally, the free cash flow estimate included costs from the 4G upgrade programme in France, amounting to 0.4m. Quartix's annualised recurring revenue (ARR) grew by 3.01m, or 11%, year-on-year, with two-thirds of this growth occurring in the first half of 2024. The average revenue per unit subscription increased by 1%, offsetting some price erosion effects. However, the overall customer attrition rate rose to 14%, mainly due to the termination of a large UK contract and organisational issues in the USA. In the UK, the company's renewed focus on core business activities, following the discontinuation of the Evolve product line, resulted in a 17% increase in new subscriptions and a 7% growth in the subscription base over the trailing 12 months. Quartix achieved significant successes in the medium-sized fleet segment, attributed to its strong customer service reputation. In France, the subscription and customer bases grew 22% and 14% respectively, on a trailing 12-month basis. While new subscriptions were flat compared to the same period last year, they were 14% ahead of the second half of 2023. In the US, organisational and strategic changes in 2022 and 2023 negatively impacted performance, reducing annual recurring revenue growth. Recruitment efforts were reportedly underway to support the US business, with improving customer acquisition rates observed by the end of the period. Italy, Spain, and Germany recorded strong growth across key performance measures. Italy showed particularly strong customer acquisition rates, and Germany saw significant growth in new installations. Further investment was planned for the markets in the second half of the year. Quartix acquired Konetik in September last year for up to 3.9m. Konetik, specialising in consultancy for fleets transitioning to electric vehicles, failed to deliver the anticipated growth, leading to its liquidation. The liquidation process was well underway, with operating costs of 0.28m recorded in the period and an additional provision of 0.15m for final costs. A further payment of 0.2m would be due in September under the acquisition agreement. It is extremely pleasing to have recorded strong growth in the value of our subscription base over the past 12 months, said executive chairman Andy Walters. Annualised recurring revenues have increased by just over 3m since July 2023 and two thirds of that increase was achieved in the first half of 2024. Double-digit percentage growth was also achieved in new vehicle subscriptions, the vehicle subscription base and customer acquisition rates. Walters said the customer base grew 9% over the past year, with the company expecting to improve that further as it focussed on customer acquisition with businesses in the SME category. We have now put the issues of 2023 behind us and, despite incurring more than 0.5m of cost associated with those in the first half, we expect to record approximately 2.6m of pre-tax profit in our interim results. I am immensely grateful to all my colleagues and the management team at Quartix who have so successfully refocused the company on its core business activity since my return to the board last September, and we look forward to the future with confidence. At 0921 BST, shares in Quartix Technologies were up 8.2% at 165p. Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com. Delivery Hero tumbled on Monday after saying it might face a fine of more than 400m for alleged anti-competitive behaviour. In a statement on Sunday, the company said it was planning to "significantly increase" a corresponding provision already built in the amount of 186m following unannounced inspections carried out by the European Commission in July 2022 and November 2023. "The intent to increase the provision is based on recent informal engagement with the European Commission and subsequent detailed analysis," it said. "Delivery Hero intends to fully cooperate with the European Commission as it did during the unannounced inspections in July 2022 and November 2023." At 0920 BST, the shares were down 10.6% at 18.78. Jefferies said in a research note that the fine probably relates to the sale of the Balkans business to Glovo in May 2021, and pre-dates Delivery Hero's eventual December 2021 acquisition of Glovo. "More to the point, it's another materially negative regulatory development emanating from the latter acquisition (the other being the ongoing fines levied against Glovo in Spain for rider misclassification)," it said. "The biggest challenge for the market here is not the materiality of the fine (circa 6.5% of the market cap), nor in DH's ability to pay it (1Q24 proforma liquidity was 1.8bn), but in the fact pattern that it creates. "The prompt disclosure of the potential fine and the decision to significantly lift the related provision is a welcome first response from management." Germany's trade surplus widened to its highest level in four months in May as imports dropped significantly, according to data out on Monday from the Federal Statistical Office. The balance of trade increased to 24.9bn in May, up from a revised 22.2bn in April, surprising economists who had expected a decline to 20.3bn. This was the second-highest nominal surplus on record following the 26.8bn positive balance reported in January. Imports into Germany sunk 6.6% from April to 106.7bn after growing 1.2% the month before, as imports from Europe fell sharply. Exports also fell but by less than imports, declining 3.6% to 131.6bn. Compared with May 2023, exports were 1.6% lower while imports dropped 8.7%. Danish brewing giant Carlsberg on Monday said it had reached a deal to buy UK soft drinks maker Britvic for 3.3bn after two previous bids were rejected. Under the terms of the Acquisition, Britvic shareholders will get 13.15 a share, including a special dividend of 25p a share. The price implies an enterprise value for the owner of Robinsons and Tango Britvic of 4.1bn. Britvic two weeks ago said it had rejected two proposals from Carlsberg, one at 12 and another at 12.50p a share. The Britvic board said they considered the terms of the deal "to be fair and reasonable". Britvic also released a third-quarter trading update revealing 2.2% volume growth and positive price/mix despite poor weather in Europe. revenue rose 6.3% to 503m against a "tough prior year comparable" where sales rose 9.9%. In Great Britain, revenue grew 6.6% year on year with both the retail and hospitality channels in growth. Brazil sales were up 48.1% vs the prior year, with both growth from the existing brand portfolio and continued acceleration in energy following the Extra Power acquisition. Other International revenue fell 6.6%. Growth in Ireland was offset by a decline in France and other international markets. Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com Shares in Grifols surged on Monday after a newspaper report stated descendants of the founding family and Canadian fund Brookfield were in talks to launch a takeover bid for the Spanish drugmaker that could be worth around 5.5bn (4.64bn). According to the report, the Grifols board held an extraordinary meeting over the weekend to study a preliminary offer presented by the founding family, which currently controls around a third of the company's shares. The stock was up almost 14% in Madrid. The family's aim is to gain access to the company's books in order to make a final offer in the coming weeks, business newspaper Cinco Dias reported on Sunday, citing unnamed people familiar with the plans. Short-seller fund Gotham City Research has released several reports accusing the company of overstating earnings and understating debt, sending the shares into freefall. Following Gotham City's reports, Grifols announced governance changes and revised its reported leverage higher after market supervisor CNMV required that it change its calculations. Last week, Grifols appointed Rahul Srinivasan as chief financial officer in a management reshuffle and Scranton Enterprises, an entity tied to the Grifols family, reached an agreement with a private investor to refinance 377m of debt in one of its units. The company's other main shareholders include the funds Capital, Blackrock, Europacific and Rokos Global. Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com European shares opened higher on Monday as investors digested the political stalemate in France after the second round of national elections that saw a shock first-place result for the left-wing alliance, but with no single group able to achieve an absolute parliamentary majority. The Stoxx 600 index was up 0.23% to 517.8 in early deals. France's CAC 40 was up 0.26% after the leftwing New Popular Front won 182 seats as voters rejected the idea of a far-right anti-immigrant government but then couldn't decide between the centrists and socialists. President Emmanuel Macrons centrist Together alliance won 163, while Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally trailed in third with 143 seats after leading polls in the first round. Incredible tactical voting made sure there would be no repeat on Sunday. However, despite high turnout estimated at about 67%, no group won the absolute majority of 289 seats required to form a government. The left-wing alliance is made up of the Socialist party and the far-left France Unbowed, which made the largest gains winning between 83-90 seats, "The leader of France Unbowed, Jean Luc Melenchon, has said that he will implement his entire programme and he has refused any negotiation with President Macrons centrist government. Melenchons main policy priorities include rolling back Macrons pension reforms, freezing the price of some consumer staples and raising the minimum wage," said Kathleen Brooks, research director at trading firm XTB. "These are policies that could send shivers down the spine of investors. France has a budget deficit of 5.5%, and concerns about its fiscal health have pushed the French German 10-year bond yield spread to its highest level since the sovereign debt crisis." "If the far left do form a government, their policies, if enacted, would certainly aggravate Frances fiscal position, and put the country on course to clash with Brussels over a breach of fiscal rules." In equity news, Carlsberg shares rose as the Danish brewing giant said its sweetened 3.3bn offer for Robinsons barley water maker Britvic had been accepted. Ocado was up as the online grocery group said it was planning to build a third customer fulfilment centre in Japan as part of its ongoing partnership with Japanese peer AEON. Shares in Delivery Hero slumped 11% after the German online food takeaway firm said it may face a fine of more than 400m due to competition law breaches. Reporting by Frank Prenesti for Sharecast.com London stocks were seen little changed at the open on Monday as investors turned their attention to France, where the election resulted in a hung parliament. The FTSE 100 was called to open down around two points. Axel Rudolph, senior market analyst at IG, said: "Even though the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) unexpectedly won the second round of the French legislative elections with 182 seats and gained a relative majority, financial markets are likely to remain on edge. This is because the NFP - an uneasy alliance of green, socialist, France Unbowed and the communist party - needs a coalition partner to obtain more than the 289 out of 577 seats required in the French assembly to govern. "The NFP will probably have to form a coalition with presidents Macrons centrist Together party. It did far better than expected and gained 163 seats, slightly more than the far-right National Rally (NR) with 143 seats, the biggest loser in the second round of the French presidential elections. "Despite the highest turnout for decades of around 60%, there are no real winners in the French elections as the country enters a new era of parliamentary democracy and is split into three factions. France will likely see a big change in the way it is governed with the centre of gravity shifting from the president to parliament. "Diametrically opposing views among political parties - which arent known for their conciliatory stance - will make forming a coalition that can govern France difficult. "Despite Jordan Bardellas far-right NR party suffering a major election defeat, he and his compatriots won 50 more seats than in the 2022 French National Assembly and are already focusing on the 2026 mayoral elections and the 2027 presidential election. "More political uncertainty lies ahead for Europes third largest economy." In UK corporate news, Danish brewing giant Carlsberg said it had reached a deal to buy UK soft drinks maker Britvic for 3.3bn after two previous bids were rejected. Under the terms of the acquisition, Britvic shareholders will get 13.15 a share, including a special dividend of 25p a share. Britvic two weeks ago said it had rejected two proposals from Carlsberg, one at 12 and another at 12.50p a share. Online grocery group Ocado is planning to build a third customer fulfilment centre (CFC) in Japan as part of its ongoing partnership with Japanese peer AEON. The new Kuki-Miyashiro facility, which will go live in 2027, will operate using the Ocado Smart Platform and follows other Ocado-AEON CFCs in Midori-ku and Hachioji. Today is an exciting moment for AEON and Ocados relationship as we deepen our already strong partnership, said chief executive Tim Steiner. Online grocery group Ocado is planning to build a third customer fulfilment centre (CFC) in Japan as part of its ongoing partnership with Japanese peer AEON. The new Kuki-Miyashiro facility, which will go live in 2027, will operate using the Ocado Smart Platform. The first Ocado-AEON CFC was opened in Midori-ku in July 2023, while the second in Hachioji is due to go live in 2026. "Today is an exciting moment for AEON and Ocado's relationship as we deepen our already strong partnership," said Ocado's chief executive Tim Steiner. Ocado also announced that AEON will upgrade its live operations with the latest Ocado technologies, such as its On-Grid Robotic Pick. "This will bring increasing levels of labour productivity to AEON's operations, enabling them to further reduce the cost to serve and address long-term challenges of labour availability in Japan," the company announced. Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of 737 Max jetliners, after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years, the US the government said in court filing late on Sunday. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice this week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence, or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the US. Guardian The UK will press for job guarantees in return for taxpayer-funded investment during talks with the Indian-owned Tata Steel about the future of its flagship Port Talbot site. The new business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, said he believed there was a better deal available for the south Wales site and the steel industry as a whole, as he confirmed on Sunday that negotiations with Tata were continuing. Guardian Millions of passengers could be compensated for late flights if a landmark legal case against British Airways and easyJet proves successful. British Airways and easyJet are battling to throw out the case, which risks forcing airlines to pay out hundreds of millions of pounds to passengers over late flights. The two carriers have been sued in the High Court over claims they must automatically compensate travellers whose flights are severely delayed or cancelled. Telegraph Administrators of a failed investment business backed by celebrities and members of a south London church have labelled it a Ponzi scheme and say they wish to pursue the bankruptcy of its directors. Insolvency practitioners from Begbies Traynor said that bankrupting Ashley Reading, 54, and his daughter Cameron, 24, who ran Fortress Capital Partners, would allow a full investigation of their personal affairs, including bank and credit card statements. The Times Britains biggest asset manager has made the case for higher executive pay in the UK, warning that a gap between the bosses of British and American companies risks a flight of talent to the United States. Schroders, the investment group that oversees about 760 billion of assets, including stakes in some of the London stock markets biggest companies, analysed the pay packages handed to 2,353 chief executives in Britain and America. It found that on average UK bosses were paid one fifth of the money earned by their peers across the Atlantic. Even adjusting for the size of companies, chief executives in the US were paid more than twice that of their rivals in Britain, Schroders said. The Times India is exploring the option of storing oil in Japan, South Korea, and Singapore to bolster its energy security. The decision will hinge on the accessibility and cost-effectiveness of these locations, with rental charges needing to be reasonable and not surpass transportation costs. This is not India's first venture into storing oil abroad; in 2020, India and the US signed an agreement to explore strategic petroleum reserves, including the possibility of storing Indian oil in the US. Sites in Japan, South Korea, and Singapore are under consideration, but their feasibility needs assessment. Additionally, reserves in the United Arab Emirates might be considered due to their strategic location. Currently, India has a crude storage capacity of 5.3 million tonnes across Visakhapatnam, Mangaluru, and Padur. New storage facilities are being constructed in Chandikhol and Padur, which will add another 6.5 million tonnes of capacity. These reserves are utilized during supply disruptions or emergencies, such as wars or geopolitical crises. The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) in the UAE has already stored crude in India's facilities under the strategic petroleum reserves program. India aims to meet the International Energy Agency's (IEA) requirement of maintaining oil stocks equivalent to 90 days of net imports. The IEA is in discussions with India about full membership following India's application submitted in October 2023. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Russia today for the first time in five years. Moscow has warmed up to New Delhi's regional rival, China. Modi will hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on a two-day visit that follows into July 9. This visit comes just as both countries negotiate the complex web of geopolitical shifts and alignments. India's Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra termed the visit important and said many bilateral issues have piled up as there have been no summits between the two leaders in recent summits. "Several issues on the bilateral agenda have piled up, which need to be addressed", Kwatra told reporters in New Delhi. High-placed Indian diplomats, who wished not to be identified, said while no substantive declarations are expected to be made during the visit, Modi's trip would seal the fact that Indo-Russian ties are strong and forever. The relationship between Russia and India is strong and Cold War era-based, most particularly in the areas of defense and energy. Russia is India's largest supplier of weapons and oil, and this relationship has survived the global dynamics. However, India warily looks at the growing closeness between Russia and China. Moscow, hit by Western sanctions over its ongoing conflict in Ukraine, really has no choice but to hitch its wagon to Beijing. Just last week, Putin said that the relationship between Russia and China was the 'best in history' while attending a security summit in Kazakhstan. That is quite a big difference from the strained ties that exist between India and China. The crisis held between the two Asian giants since a violent border clash in 2020, with resultant talks to resolve such disputes. However, analysts say that India is pushing to get more predictability from Russia as alliances around it shift among them Petr Topychkanov, senior researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. "India, located between Russia, China and the West, would want more predictability from Russia and be willing to play a larger role in promoting peace in Ukraine", Topychkanov said. In private, Modi may press for specifics on Russia's growing closeness to China. While Putin and Modi used to meet annually, such frequent interactions had fizzled out since Putin's nuclear threat in 2022 over the Ukraine conflict. The last time the two leaders met was on the sidelines of a Shanghai Cooperation Organisation meet in Uzbekistan in 2022. The current visit by Modi may revive such regular summits between the two and lay the ground for future high-level engagements. According to Ruslan Pukhov, director of the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies, a Moscow-based defense think-tank, such future arms deals could be in the pipeline. Russia is capable of meeting India's requirements of advanced air defense systems, Su-30MKI fighter jets, and facilitation of the licensed production of Ka-226T multi-purpose helicopters. Against the backdrop of the recent losses faced by India due to fighter jet accidents, all these deals acquire strategic significance. The visit by Modi also comes as a senior U.S. delegation visited India to enhance cooperation in technology, security, and investment. Stocks will likely open flat to negative on Monday, July 8, 2024, due to weak global market momentum. The GIFT Nifty futures suggest a weak start, only 5 points higher than Nifty50 futures at 23,384 levels. This morning, stock exchanges in the Asia-Pacific region mostly showed declines, with Japans Nikkei slipping by 0.17 percent and broad-based Topix sliding by 0.47 percent. South Korea's Kospi declined by 0.07 percent, while the small-cap Kosdaq rose by 0.86 percent. Futures for Hong Kong's Hang Seng index also edged down by 0.78 percent. Bandhan Bank: Bandhan Bank has announced the appointment of Ratan Kumar Kesh as the Interim Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (MD & CEO), effective July 10, 2024. This decision follows the retirement of Chandra Shekhar Ghosh, the current MD & CEO, whose tenure concludes on July 9, 2024. Titan Company: The company's domestic jewelry operations grew by nearly 8%, contributing to an overall year-on-year growth of 9%. Despite high gold prices and fewer wedding days impacting consumer demand and sentiment, the watches and wearables business grew by 15% compared to last year, while the EyeCare business saw a 3% year-on-year increase. IndusInd Bank: The bank has reported a 16% increase in advances from last year, reaching Rs 3.48 lakh crore. Deposits also saw a 15% year-on-year increase, totaling Rs 3.98 lakh crore. The CASA ratio is at 36.7%, compared to 39.9% last year and 37.9% in March. Adani Wilmar: The company achieved strong volume growth of 13%, driven by market-specific strategies aimed at gaining market share, especially in previously underperforming markets. Alternate channels saw a 19% increase in volume. Branded exports experienced a significant 36% year-on-year volume growth. The Food and FMCG business recorded a 23% volume growth from the previous year. Despite industry challenges, the Edible Oils business continued to thrive, achieving a 13% volume growth and a 10% value growth year-on-year. Indian Bank: The bank reported a 10.9% year-on-year growth in total business, reaching Rs 12.21 lakh crore. Total deposits increased by 9.5% from last year, totaling Rs 6.81 lakh crore, while gross advances rose by 12.7% to Rs 5.4 lakh crore. Fsn E-Commerce Ventures: The company expects revenue to grow by 22% to 23% in the first quarter. Gross Merchandise Value (GMV) growth for the quarter is anticipated to be in the mid-twenties. The beauty vertical's revenue growth is projected to be around 22-23%, similar to the overall growth of the company, while its GMV growth is expected to be higher, in the high twenties. The fashion vertical is forecasted to have a healthy performance with approximately 20% revenue growth, although GMV growth for the quarter is projected to be lower, in the mid-teens. Bank of Baroda: The bank recorded an 8.5% increase in domestic loans compared to last year, reaching Rs 8.82 lakh crore. Domestic retail loans saw a significant surge of 20.8% to Rs 2.22 lakh crore. Global loans grew by 8.1%, totaling Rs 10.72 lakh crore. Domestic deposits also increased by 5.25% to Rs 11.05 lakh crore. Dabur: Dabur has noticed a steady increase in demand, particularly in rural areas, and anticipates this trend to continue gaining momentum in the near future. The company predicts that its overall revenue will grow by mid-to-high single digits, with the India business likely to experience mid-single-digit volume growth. Signature Global: The company has reported a 255% growth in pre-sales, reaching Rs 3,120 crore, and a 102% increase in collections from last year, totaling Rs 1,210 crore. Net debt declined by Rs 180 crore to Rs 980 crore. Realizations for the quarter increased to Rs 15,369 per square foot. The number of units sold went up by 8% to 968 units, from 894 units. The company has already achieved over 30% of its Rs 10,000 crore pre-sales target in the first quarter. Marico: The company reported a high single-digit growth in consolidated revenue and expects this upward trend to continue throughout the year. Gross margins are also expected to expand year-on-year due to a favorable portfolio mix. The domestic business showed a modest increase in underlying volume growth compared to the previous period. Parachute coconut oil experienced low single-digit volume growth but is expected to grow significantly for the remainder of the year, driven by healthy offtake growth trends. Saffola Oils achieved mid-single-digit volume growth, while Value Added Hair Oils had a slow start to the year due to persistent competitive challenges. KPI Green Energy: The Company has successfully signed a power purchase agreement for a The Company has successfully signed a power purchase agreement for a 50MW solar-wind hybrid power project with Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam. The project, consisting of 50MW solar and 16.80MW wind, was awarded through a competitive bidding process. Coforge: The IT company acquired 4,618,199 equity shares of Cigniti, representing 16.92% of its current paid share capital. The cost of acquisition was Rs 1,398.50 per share. Two boys were shot and injured at a Bronx McDonalds Saturday night in what police believe was targeted attack, according to a report by CBS News. The incident occurred around 10 p.m. at the restaurant located on White Plains Road in the Allerton section, the report said. According to police, the younger boy, 12, was shot in the leg and back, while the older boy, 13, was shot in the thigh. Both boys were transported in stable condition to Jacobi Medical Center, the report said. It is unknown what precipitated the shooting, but there have been no arrests and the investigation remains ongoing, the report said. A cell phone ban for New York City public schools could be implemented for the coming schoolyear, Chancellor David Banks said during an interview with ABC News on Sunday. Banks told ABCs Bill Ritter that hes thinking about the issue very seriously and has been engaging with parents, teachers and even students on the subject. I will tell you overwhelmingly that we have seen these phones as a real distraction in schools, Banks said. During the school day I dont see any real good use for kids having phones, and we think its contributed to lots of negative behavior. Banks went to say that he believes it to be a societal issue that children are addicted to phones and believes that putting phones in the hands of young children with developing brains creates a complete dependency. There was a time when if there was an emergency, youd call the school, Banks said. We have parents who text their children all day, every day. Thats completely irresponsible; your kids should be in class; they should be learning; they should be focused on their schoolwork. Banks told of a recent meeting he had with a principal who said incidents in her school have dropped 48% because students arent able to use the phones to arrange confrontations after school hours. Were taking a very strong look at this, and well have something to say very soon, Banks said. Back in May, Gov. Kathy Hochul announced that shes considering a ban on smartphones in schools as several state officials aim to keep children safe online from social media platforms and their impact on youth mental health, according to a report. Hochul said she plans to introduce a bill later this year that would ban smartphones in schools. If passed, it means kids would be allowed to carry cell phones not smartphones that cant access the internet but can send text messages. Im saying, leave our kids alone, said Hochul during an MSNBC interview. Let them socialize. They can talk to their friends, but stop doing this. Stop selling our kids personal data for your financial gain. And also, parents should be able to turn it off at midnight, let the kids get some rest till 6 a.m. because otherwise, theyre going to this place all night long and theyre exhausted. HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) President Joe Biden urged his supporters to stay unified during a series of Sunday stops in critical Pennsylvania on Sunday, even as some leading congressional Democrats privately suggested it was time for him to abandon his reelection bid because of intensifying questions about whether hes fit for another term. Addressing a rousing church service in front of stained glass windows bathed in sunshine at Philadelphias Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, the 81-year-old Biden joked, I know I look 40 but Ive been doing this a long time. I, honest to God, have never been more optimistic about Americas future if we stick together, he said. There and during a subsequent rally with union members in Harrisburg, Biden offered short speeches that touched on familiar topics. But he also left plenty of room for key backers to discuss standing by him. In that way, the Pennsylvania swing seemed meant to showcase support for the president from key political quarters more than proving hes up to four more years. His party, though, remains deeply divided. As Congress prepares to resume this week, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries convened top committee lawmakers Sunday afternoon to assess their views. Several Democratic committee leaders, including Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut and Rep. Mark Takano of California, said privately that Biden should step aside, according to two people familiar with the meeting and granted anonymity to discuss it. But other top Democrats, including members of the influential Congressional Black Caucus, argued just as forcefully that Biden remain the partys choice. The conversation was wide ranging, with the committee leaders sharing various views on the situation, but there was no unanimity on what should be done, the people said. Biden was personally calling lawmakers through the weekend. He also joined a call with campaign surrogates and reiterated that he has no plans to leave the race. Instead, the president pledged to campaign harder going forward and to step up his political travel, according to two people who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. One Democrat the president spoke to, Sen. Alex Padilla of California, said he and others are pushing the Biden campaign to let Joe be Joe, get him out there. I absolutely believe we can turn it around, Padilla told The Associated Press. Meanwhile, a person familiar with Sen. Mark Warners thinking said there will be no meeting on Monday to talk about Bidens future, as had been previously discussed, and that those discussions will take place in Tuesdays regular caucus luncheon with all Democratic senators. The person said a private meeting was no longer possible after it was made public that the Virginia Democrat was reaching out to senators about Biden, and that a variety of conversations among senators continue. Five other, different Democratic lawmakers have already publicly called on Biden to abandon his reelection campaign ahead of November. Meeting this coming week in person means more chances for lawmakers to discuss concerns about Bidens ability to withstand the remaining four months of the campaign not to mention four more years in the White House and true prospects of beating Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump. Bidens campaign team was also calling and texting lawmakers to try to head off more potential defections, while increasingly asking high-profile Biden supporters to speak out on his behalf.. Calls to bow out nonetheless popped up from different directions. Alan Clendenin, a Tampa city councilman and member of the Democratic National Committee, on Sunday called for Biden to step aside and allow Vice President Kamala Harris to carry forward his agenda as our Democratic nominee. Director Rob Reiner, who has helped organize glitzy Hollywood fundraisers for Biden in the past, posted on X, Its time for Joe Biden to step down. The Democratic convention is fast approaching and Bidens Friday interview with ABC has not convinced some who remain skeptical. Democratic fundraising bundler Barry Goodman, a Michigan attorney, said hes backing Biden but, should he step aside, hed throw his support to Harris. Thats notable since Goodman was also a finance co-chairman for both of the statewide campaigns of Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who has also been mentioned as a top-of-the-ticket alternative. We dont have much time, Goodman said. I dont think the president gets out. But if he does, I think it would be Kamala. There was no such suggestion at Mount Airy, where Pastor Louis Felton likened the president to Joseph and the biblical story of his coat of many colors. In it, Joseph was sold into slavery in Egypt by his jealous brothers, only eventually to obtain a high place in the kingdom of the pharaoh and have his brothers beg him for assistance without initially recognizing him. Never count Joseph out, Felton implored. Then, referring to Democrats who have called on Biden to step aside, he added, Thats whats going on, Mr. President. People are jealous of you. Jealous of your stick-to-itiveness, jealous of your favor. Jealous of Gods hand upon your life. Felton also led a prayer where he said, Our president gets discouraged. But today, through your holy spirit, renew his mind, renew his spirt, renew his body. After the church service, Biden visited a campaign office in Philadelphia, where Sen. John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat who won a tough 2022 race while recovering from a stroke, offered a forceful endorsement. There is only one guy that has ever beaten Trump, Fetterman said. And he is going to do it twice and put him down for good. Later stepping off Air Force One in Harrisburg, the president was asked if the Democratic Party was behind him and emphatically responded, Yes. Joining him at the union event, Rep. Madeleine Dean, also a Pennsylvania Democrat, said that democracy is on the line. Theres one man who understands it its Joe Biden. Isabel Afonso, who saw Biden speak in Harrisburg, said she was worried when she saw the presidents debate performance, but doesnt think he should drop out of the race and that he can still win. I know he is old, but I know if something happens to him, a reasonable person will replace him, said Afonso, 63. At the same event, 73-year-old James Johnson said he knew what it was like to forget things as hes gotten older but called Biden a fighter. He said replacing the president at the top of the Democratic ticket would only cause confusion. Im talking about lifelong Democrats and people that have been in the Democratic Party for a long time, Johnson said. They may just decide to jump ship, because of that. Still, others arent fully convinced. Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut told CNN that Biden needs to answer those questions that voters have while adding, If he does that this week, I think he will be in a very good position. Biden has rejected undergoing independent cognitive testing, arguing that the everyday rigors of the presidency were proof enough of his mental acuity. Yet California Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff told NBC on Sunday that hed be happy if both the president and Donald Trump took a cognitive test. As some Democrats have done, Schiff also seized on Biden suggesting during the ABC interview that losing to Trump would be acceptable as long as I give it my all. This is not just about whether he gave it the best college try, Schiff said but rather whether he made the right decision to run or to pass the torch. - By Colleen Long, Will Weissert, Marc Levy and Lisa Mascaro Associated Press Weissert and Mascaro reported from Washington. Associated Press writers Zeke Miller and Kevin Freking in Washington, Michelle Price in New York, Meg Kinnard in Chapin, South Carolina, and Bill Barrow in New Orleans contributed to this report. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. - A McKee High School history teacher, often writing at dawn or dusk, has crafted a narrative of a lush village thriving with bunnies, boars and birds, surrounded by fruitful trees and fish-filled ponds, under the guidance of a wise village master preparing to pass down their legacy. In his new novel The Tiger and the Crane, Trevor B. Spisto weaves a story that intertwines themes of acceptance, navigating differences and the essence of leadership against the backdrop of 19th-century British imperialism in Chinas Qing Dynasty. The book is intended for youth and young adult audiences. Spisto said he created a humorous novel that is also infused with serious issues, delving into themes of identity, acceptance, leadership and community. I got to mix my love of history with my love of writing, Spisto said. I love being a teacher. And its fun because, for me, I get to ask my students if a synopsis of a story sounds cool to them and kind of get the gauge on if its a good idea for the age group I am trying to target. Spisto teaches global and U.S. history to 10th and 11th graders at McKee High School. Coinciding with the period he was fleshing out his novel, his students were studying Ming China and Qing Dynasty, which aligned perfectly with their curriculum. This story has been in my life for so long. I am more excited to finally be working on other stuff. In terms of getting this out there... all the feedback and all the reviews have been nice so far, its more of a relief than an excitement that all this hard work came to something, he said. A story of turmoil, threat and responsibility The characters of Spistos novel are animals facing very human-like problems. One day in the forest, a crane named Mung finds a baby tiger and names him Xingfu after the tigers mother is shot by a hunter. As the village, inhabited by herbivores, grapples with fear of the tiger growing into a dangerous creature, Mung assures them that Xingfu can remain peaceful as long as no one tells him he is a tiger and what tigers do. The village also fears human hunters, whom the tiger could defend them against. Meanwhile, there are also three candidates to whos going to be the new Master of the village... I guess you could say like an election, Spisto said. The book explores navigating the inner turmoil of the village, the external threat with the hunters trying to hunt the animals and the responsibility of having to protect the village with new leadership. IndieReader, Publishers Weekly, and NetGalley have given positive reviews, and other retailers and publishers are also beginning to review the novel. The novels journey The book began as a screenplay written for a screenwriting class as a final project at the College of Staten Island during sophomore year. Spisto recalls his professor Jeffrey Couchman saying after reading the first 30 pages: This is a great story; you should finish this and flesh it out to see where it goes. Thats when I started writing it, which was the first draft of the screenplay, Spisto said. After completing the screenplay, I started pitching it to different studios. Thats when Monarex saw it and said, This is great. Monarex, an LA-based production company known for documentaries about Asia, saw the screenplay and decided to auction it, raising funds over a few years. Eventually, Spisto proposed the idea of turning it into a book, which they agreed was a good idea. Spistos debut book also marks Monarexs first venture into the publishing industry. About the author Trevor Spisto's debut novel 'The Tiger and the Crane' tells a tale of courage and honor set in 19th Century China. (Staten Island Advance/ Priya Shahi)Priya Shahi Since he can remember, Spisto always had a rich imagination. When a teacher in his English class told the students to write about a dream they had, Spisto recalls writing about being like a gladiator and fighting a lion -- one of his first stories. I read it back, and I was like, wait, that was really fun, he said. And in middle school, I would play with my toys and come up with plot lines for like stupid, imaginary toys, and now I realize it was a form of storytelling. I kind of always enjoyed doing that. Spistos love of history started at St. Peters High School where he fell in love with history in Mr. McAllens class. He later earned a Bachelors Degree in history with a minor in creative writing from the College of Staten Island. I started to realize that when you look at the past, you kind of see the repercussion of now. If you want to know where were going, you kind of got to look at where we were, he said. He delved into writers like Hemingway, whose dialogue Spisto describes as very snappy and bare-boned, along with J.R. Tolkien, the author of Spistos favorite book, The Hobbit, and Frank Herbert, whom he is currently reading. Tolkien can write an entire page describing a landscape and I love that because he really plants in the readers head like here you are, he said. He also enjoys books like The Jungle Book and Animal Farm, which are parable-type stories rich in symbolism. Theres a lot of allegory that you can tell with animal characters that you cant do with human characters, he said. With his imagination sparking since a young age, he explains that his new novel can resonate differently depending on the readers age. Someone whos 10 or 11 might take away a different message from the book than someone whos 14 or 15, he says. Younger readers might gravitate towards a particular character as they navigate their own identity, while teenagers might focus more on themes of leadership and handling disagreement. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. They are some of the giants of the art world. And you can see them right here on Staten Island. If you know where to look. Vincent van Gogh, with his bandaged ear. Claude Monet, with water lilies and a bottle of wine. Andy Warhol, sitting atop a Pop Art Brillo box. Alexander Calder, holding one of his signature mobile sculptures. Statues of these legendary artists are all part of a modern art installation in a very public spot on the West Shore. Post-impressionist van Gogh is one of the most famous and influential artists in history, known for timeless works like The Night Cafe, The Starry Night and Wheatfield With Crows. He is also known for seriously injuring his left ear with a razor, the exact circumstances of which remain shrouded in mystery. Vincent van Gogh is known for timeless works of art such as "The Night Cafe" and "The Starry Night."Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Statue of Vincent van Gogh, one of the most influential painters of all time, includes a bandage on ear he severely injured with a razor.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Warhol is the father of Pop Art who used commonplace products, such as Brillo boxes and Campbells soup cans, in his work. He is also known for his series of silkscreen paintings of famous Americans such as Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley. Artist Andry Warhol gained fame after using everyday products, like Brillo boxes and Campbell's soup cans, in his work.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Pop Art pioneer Andy Warhol was also famous for his silkscreen paintings of America celebrities like Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Monet is considered the father of impressionist art, and is known for his paintings of the French countryside, including famous paintings of water lilies. Statue of impressionist Claude Monet greets visitors at the beginning of the "Rue des Artistes" public art installation.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Claude Monet is considered the father of impressionist painting.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Calder was known for creating kinetic mobile sculptures, the elements of which moved unpredictably given air currents. Alexander Calder's "kinetic" art mobile includes elements that are moved randomly by the wind.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Close-up of statue of artist Alexander Calder, done by sculptor Robert St. Croix.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance The statues, done by artist Robert St. Croix, can be found along the Rue des Artists promenade outside the Corporate Park of Staten Island at 1441 South Ave. in Bloomfield. Statue of Andy Warhol sits atop a Pop Art box of Brillo soap pads.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance The area also includes flowers and a vineyard for growing table grapes for charity. Our whole goal is to make Staten Island known for art and flowers and music, said Richard Nicotra, who owns the Corporate Park and other borough properties along with his wife, Lois Nicotra. When you walk down that area, we have a ton of flowers, we have music playing. And we have art. Bottle of wine is part of artist Claude Monet's installation.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Nicotra said that he thought the statues would stimulate students who attend school in the Corporate Park building and might lead them to learn more about the artists. Signature painting of water lilies is part of Claude Monet statue installation at Corporate Park in Bloomfield.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance He said a pre-K student recently approach him and his wife along the Rue des Artistes and asked them, Do you know that thats Andy Warhol? Statues of artists include colorful paint palette trays.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance Nicotra said there are plans to add a statue of Pablo Picasso to the area. "Rue des Artists" art installation can be found at the Corporate Park, 1441 South Ave., in Bloomfield.Tom Wrobleski/Staten Island Advance I want to get Staten Islanders to talk about art, he said. It creates conversation. The Corporate Park campus is chock full of eye-catching public art installations, including a Reclining Liberty statue and an inspirational Girl Power sculpture. Growing up, what kind of conversations did you have about money? Did your parent/guardian(s) educate you about finances? We grew up without much money, and money was a constant topic of fights between my parents. I was hyper-aware of how stressful our finances were from a young age, which probably influenced my strong saving habits. As Ive always been pretty good with savings, I dont think my parents felt the need to give me much financial instruction. Our family finances were very different as I became a young adult (marrying rich really works) and I still feel like I dont fully understand or appreciate the position my parents are in now. What was your first job and why did you get it? I worked as a shop assistant in a local pharmacy cleaning, stacking shelves, manning the till. I worked there from about 14 to 17 years old, and I got the job because it was the expectation in my family that you would work as soon as you could. As soon as I was old enough, my mum helped me write a resume (I cannot even imagine what I put on there at 14) and I handed it out to local businesses. The job was dull but having my own money was awesome. Also, I used the uniform to buy cigarettes underage. Did you worry about money growing up? I was lucky to never worry about meals or housing, but I think when you grow up without money, you learn not to ask for much. My mum is great with money though, and even though I know things were super tight when my parents first got divorced, they ultimately improved even though we were all on just her income, because she had total control of the finances. Do you worry about money now? I worry about money more than I should, I think. The cost of living, a mortgage, and single-person living expenses after being in a long-term relationship for many years have meant Ive felt a real reduction in my purchasing power. Im still trying to balance my financial goals with liking really nice things. At what age did you become financially responsible for yourself and do you have a financial safety net? Loading I lived with my parents all through high school and university and was 22 when I got my first full-time job and moved out of home. However, over the years I did spend time living with my partners mum, and then moved back with my parents after separating from my long-term partner (we lived together messy!!!). I have a massive safety net. I received a lot of help buying my apartment, but its more the indirect things Ive benefited from. Living with my parents throughout uni gave me more financial freedom, so I only needed to have a part-time job. Most of my income could go towards savings and travel, and I could comfortably take opportunities like going on exchange. Do you or have you ever received passive or inherited income? If yes, please explain. My parents very generously gave me about $80,000 for my down payment to help me reach the 20 per cent threshold. For passive income, I receive small dividends from my stock portfolio, around $10 a quarter. Day 1 8am I wake up, go on my phone for a bit, and then have my morning catch-up meeting with my team. Its Friday, so it mostly consists of chat about weekend plans. I only physically exit my bed minutes before I have to start work, which means I maximise sleep, but consistently get told I look tired in morning meetings. A trade-off I am willing to make. 10am I walk down to a nearby cafe and get an almond iced matcha. ($6) Its a well-known place so its packed, even on a weekday. Its excellent though, and a pretty good price in my opinion! Its also one of the last places in the city I know of that has a $3.50 base coffee. $6 12.30pm Lunch is leftover spring pasta with broad beans, spring onions, lemon, tuna, and orecchiette. I eat it cold because I dont have a microwave and cant be bothered to heat it up on the stove. Not having a microwave isnt a stance on anything, its just my last one got infested by cockroaches so I think Im done with them forever. 5pm I log off work and head out to yoga. I just miss my first train and the second is delayed, so I am too late to make it to my class. The staff are super nice to me and let me reschedule for tomorrow, even though I booked through ClassPass and it was my fault for being late! I get the train home ($5.60), and pick up some Guzman for dinner on the walk back ($16.40). $22 7pm I semi-impulse buy a kneeling chair ($238.60) online that Ive been looking at for a while. My tiny desk stool isnt cutting it any more. $238.60 8pm I wash my hair, text a few friends, and watch some TV before turning in for the night. Daily total: $266.60 Day 2 9am I wake up and noodle around on my phone for a while. I get dressed in workout gear, have a caramelised fig yoghurt, and get the train to class. 11am Back at yoga baby! I make sure to get here early this time. Its a fancy place I havent been to before, and its a bit woo-woo, but its a good class and they have delicious free tea after. Loading 1pm I get the train back to mine ($5.60) and make some lunch. Beetroot and tofu buns with some seasoned steamed broccoli and cauliflower, some radish kimchi, and chilli oil over the buns. It was a damn good lunch if Im being honest. Im out of chocolate so I mix some peanut butter with some jam as a sad post-lunch sweet treat. 2pm I spend a few hours lazing about on my phone, doing some jigsaw puzzles, and calling a friend. 5.30pm I clean up and get changed to go to dinner with a friend. Its a beautiful night so I walk into the city and we catch up over some Vietnamese food. I pay for dinner which is two meals and two beers ($51.77), and my friend pays for our bingsu after. $51.77 9pm I walk home, have a shower, and head to bed. Daily total: $57.37 Day 3 8am Im spending the day with my not-boyfriend today (please see above reference to the suspension of my long-term relationship). Im 26, my love life is messy! Hes handsome! What else would you expect? 9.30am He swings by my place and we chat for a bit before walking 20 minutes to a nearby cafe we both love. Its still lovely despite being popularised on TikTok recently by the brunch girlies (sometimes gatekeeping is good). I order avocado and egg on toast, a sweet pancake, and an almond latte. ($42.63) Very delicious. $42.63 11.30am We get a quick Uber down to the IMAX theatre to see Killers of the Flower Moon he pays for the Uber and the tickets. The movie is really good but it does feel like a long 3 hours. 4pm We grab a Paloma and margarita at a nearby bar he pays. 5pm The day is so clear and bright and we are at Barangaroo staring at the water, so we decide to get on the ferry somewhere and figure out dinner. On the ferry, we settle on Indian in North Sydney, so we get off after only two stops ($5.60). Dinner is palak kale chaat and lamb biryani and it is so good. After much resistance from him, I cover us both ($52.80). $58.40 6:30pm We leave to head back to our respective homes. I get on the train ($8.90) and he sends me really cool pictures of my street from the City of Sydney archives as I travel. $8.90 7pm I arrive home and call my mum. I talk to her for a while, then have a shower and wind down for the evening. Im pretty exhausted so I just spend some time on my phone and then head to bed. A group of inner Sydney residents, architects and the owners of a luxury hotel are urging the NSW Ombudsman to intervene in plans to redevelop the final piece of the Barangaroo foreshore, accusing the state government of misleading the public to shore up support for the $2 billion-plus proposal. The formal complaint argues the governments development arm, Infrastructure NSW, provided deceptive information in the most recent plans to develop the Central Barangaroo precinct. The beleaguered Central Barangaroo project is the final stage of the massive foreshore renewal project. Credit: NSW government Public confidence in the government is being seriously eroded because of this development application, the complaint to the public authorities watchdog said. Infrastructure NSW denies it acted improperly or misled the public. The agency lodged the plans, known as Mod 9, on behalf of developer Aqualand, seeking approval to construct 143 apartments, a hotel, shops, and offices in seven buildings up to 10 storeys above the soon-to-open metro station. A 21-year-old man has been arrested after his partner was stabbed to death in a unit at Kingswood in Sydneys west on Monday afternoon. The man was arrested at Derby Street in Penrith at around 7.10pm on Monday and taken to Penrith police station. Police and a Careflight helicopter were called to Kingswood after reports of a stabbing - paramedics were unable to save a woman in her 20s who died at the scene. Credit: Facebook Witnesses said he was earlier seen running from the unit complex in Kingswood along the Great Western Highway in Kingswood, sparking a manhunt in western Sydney. The woman, also 21, died in the Kingswood apartment after emergency services were called at 1.40pm. When a police detective woke to a colleague raping her after a Christmas party nearly 25 years ago, she screamed before jumping out of bed, a court has been told. But officer Anthony John Clowes pleaded not guilty to one count of rape at the start of a Brisbane District Court trial on Monday. Clowes and the woman, both detectives at Gladstone, had been to a Christmas party the night of the alleged rape in 1999, prosecutor Sarah McFarland told the jury in her opening. He and another male officer, who both had a platonic relationship with the woman, were invited to sleep at her house as it was two minutes from the party venue. The men were in the lounge room while the woman went to sleep in her bedroom with the door closed, McFarland said. The men accused of firebombing a Burgertory store were allegedly paid $20,000 to torch the Caulfield restaurant during what a magistrate says was a crime spree. One of the accused arsonists, 24-year-old Wayle Mana, also known as Chubby, faced Melbourne Magistrates Court remotely from Barwon Prison on Monday, when his lawyer argued he should be released on bail to complete drug rehabilitation and work at an amusement ride company. The Caulfield Burgertory store was firebombed in November. Credit: Simon Schluter Mana has been charged with criminal damage by fire, robbery and car theft relating to the November 10 Burgertory fire, as well as criminal damage and car theft over a fire at a Bendigo tobacco store on January 29. Detective Acting Senior Sergeant Michael Ferwerda told the court detectives had deployed phone intercepts, covert operatives and surveillance during the investigation into the fires. Police have been dealt a serious blow in their attempts to end Melbournes brutal tobacco war, with witnesses and victims being threatened to keep their silence. The crew of exiled gangland boss Kazem Kaz Hamad is suspected of waging the campaign of intimidation, which comes as authorities struggle with a wave of violence linked to the year-long turf war. Kazem Kaz Hamad in about 2015. The prosecution of a suspected Hamad standover man collapsed on Friday after a key witness refused to co-operate with authorities investigating allegations he was being extorted for at least $10,000 for the protection of his tobacco shops in Melbournes north this year. In March, George Serevetas was charged with two counts of extortion over a scheme in which he allegedly collected the money after the store owner received threatening WhatsApp calls from Hamad. A court heard the calls included a warning from Hamad that he would blow up the mans tobacco shops if he wasnt paid. What do carpenters, geologists, secondary teachers and fitness instructors have in common? More of them prefer to live in Scarborough than any other suburb in WA, according to new census data revealing where certain professions call home. Similarly, Baldivis is home to the most sales assistants (832 of them), aged/disabled carers (335), truck drivers (323), primary school teachers (231), checkout operators (169), police officers (159) and hairdressers (115). Scarborough is a tranquil haven for FIFO worker and geologist Bruno Pereira, pictured with a sample of lithium bearing rock from the Pilbara Credit: Claire Ottaviano This in-depth look into occupational statistics has been made available for the first time thanks to a change in the way census information is recorded. For Brazilian immigrants Bruno Pereira and Graciany da Silva, finding out they are two of 98 geologists living in Scarborough was no surprise, with many of their geologist colleagues, as well as Brazilian nationals, flocking to the suburb for its colourful beachside festivals and community. Desree Pether has not seen her husband, Robert, since he was jailed in Iraq three years ago when a business trip went horribly wrong. Now, she says she is told to stop talking about his case Australias Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade advise her that campaigning for him would make things more difficult to get him out. DFATs treatment of those wrongfully detained overseas has come under the spotlight after members of the Australian Wrongful and Arbitrary Detention Alliance successfully lobbied for a Senate inquiry into the way the department manages cases. Desree Pether and her husband, Robert, before he was jailed in Iraq. Credit: Desree Pether Alliance director Kylie Moore-Gilbert, who spent two years in an Iranian prison, told this masthead the government needed to drop its insistence on secrecy when negotiating the freedom of Australians, warning some families go rogue to raise awareness. The Senate inquiry will investigate how Australia can increase public awareness of the regimes that engage in hostage diplomacy, the current management of wrongful detention by the department, and communications with families and detainees. Do I think its four years late? I probably think its 45 years, 50 years late. Well just have to see how we go with the Victorian government, he said. Allan said the latest cost estimate for above-ground rail, and who would bear costs above $10 billion, was yet to be worked through. She denied she had sought further federal funding. With delay does come cost and so this will be something that the Commonwealth government will need to work through with its project partners, Allan said. There are still other issues that need to be resolved, including the airports demand for compensation from governments for land that is leased to them for their private operation. Loading Adrian Dwyer, chief executive of industry body Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, said spending on major transport infrastructure had peaked, with a slowdown in the number of new projects and a decline in their sizes creating space in the market. The real question is in the capacity of the Commonwealth and Victorian governments to fund the delivery of the project as sobering fiscal realities continue to bite, Dwyer said. This years state budget predicted that by 2028, Victorians would be on the hook for interest repayments of more than $25 million a day. Melbourne Airport revealed on Sunday that it would drop its opposition to an above-ground station outside its terminals, in the hope the line could open by 2030. But the premier made it clear the backdown would not speed up the construction timeline as her government continued prioritising the Suburban Rail Loop East project, which had its preferred bidder for the next stage of the line announced on Monday. Melbourne Airport chief executive Lorie Argus on Monday. Credit: Chris Hopkins I certainly welcome the acknowledgement overnight and this morning by the airport that their unreasonable demands to pursue an underground station do not stack up, Allan said. But the consequence of the unreasonable position that has been taken for a number of years now is that this project has been delayed by four years. Thats the simple fact and consequence of what we have been trying for years to negotiate with the airport. One source questioned this argument for a four-year delay. They said there had been a pause in planning and procuring contracts because of the saga, but early works on an airport rail were still under way as originally planned. Loading Allans comments are also a change from those made two months ago by Treasurer Tim Pallas, who said the full impact on the projects timing was not clear while the airport refused to budge on its underground preference. Of course, were the airport operator to see reason and maybe become a good corporate citizen at some point, instead of a really good car park operator, then perhaps we might be able to move those things forward, he said at the May budget launch. Airport chief executive Lorie Argus said the airport expected to receive redress for the use of part of its land, leased from the federal government, which would be acquired by the state. We are genuinely empathetic to the challenges that the state is facing. So we want to do that as cost effectively as possible. Were definitely not going to be difficult in this process, Argus said. A spokesperson for the Albanese government welcomed the airports new stance on above-ground rail. Moonee Valley Mayor Pierce Tyson. Credit: Simon Schluter The report from the Commonwealth-appointed independent mediator, Neil Scales, made it clear the project was viable and necessary, and that there was unanimous support for it, the spokesperson said. State opposition transport infrastructure spokesman David Southwick said the airport link should no longer be delayed. Victorians have had enough. They just want an airport rail, and they want it done, he said. Those comments were echoed by Labor-aligned Moonee Valley Mayor Pierce Tyson, who said his community had one of Victorias highest proportions of aviation workers and would benefit from a station built at Keilor East as part of the rail line. Weve been waiting over half a century for this project, and its about bloody time to stop talking and get it built, he said. Transport Workers Union state secretary Mem Suleyman said the airports thousands of workers needed affordable and efficient ways to get to work. With the airports commitment to co-operate and the billions being invested by governments, we must now get straight on the tools and in the trucks to build the rail link, he said. As the state government focuses on building the eastern section of the Suburban Rail Loop, Allan announced on Monday that Terra Verde a global consortium of tunnelling businesses comprising WeBuild S.p.A, GS Engineering and Construction Australia and Bouygues Construction Australia would be responsible for constructing the 10-kilometre northern twin tunnels between Glen Waverley and Box Hill. A tiny one-bedroom sandstone cottage in Surry Hills with an outdoor toilet and no parking sold for $1,291,000 at auction on Saturday. Fifteen buyers registered and nine actively bid on at 8 McElhone Place, mainly first-home buyers and investors from interstate and overseas. The historical street was named after Terence Mcelhone who arrived by convict ship in 1819. Bidding opened at $1 million by a son bidding on behalf of his mother, then $10,000 and $5000 bids were placed until a final $1000 bid sold it under the hammer to a local investor from Bondi. London: Russia has rained missiles down on cities across Ukraine in broad daylight, killing at least 36 civilians and badly damaging Kyivs main childrens hospital in the deadliest air strike in months. An unknown number of people were trapped under rubble after Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital, one of the countrys most important paediatric facilities, suffered extensive damage when a missile ripped through the dialysis ward. Polina, 10, looks after her sister Marina, 3, at the site of Okhmatdyt childrens hospital hit by Russian missiles, in Kyiv. Credit: AP Doctors and others inside the hospital which treats 20,000 children annually shared images of bloodstained hallways, collapsed ceilings and destroyed operating rooms. Parents holding babies walked in the street outside the hospital, dazed and sobbing after the rare daylight aerial attack. Children being treated at the facility were evacuated with IV drips in their arms, with many needing to be comforted by family outside the shattered remnants of a hospital war. Dubai: Several officials in the Middle East and the United States believe the level of devastation in the Gaza Strip caused by a nine-month Israeli offensive has likely helped push Hamas to soften its demands for a ceasefire agreement. Hamas over the weekend appeared to drop its long-standing demand that Israel promise to end the war as part of any ceasefire deal. The sudden shift has raised new hopes for progress in internationally brokered negotiations. Israeli soldiers in the southern Gaza Strip. Credit: AP Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted on Monday (AEST) that military pressure including Israels ongoing two-month offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah is what has led Hamas to enter negotiations. Hamas is highly secretive and little is known about its inner workings. In recent internal communications seen by AP, messages signed by several senior Hamas figures in Gaza urged the groups exiled political leadership to accept the ceasefire proposal pitched by US President Joe Biden. King Lear gave up power too early. US President Joe Biden will give it up too late. And that is Joes tragedy. Unlike Biden, Lear had a loyal lord who was willing to tell him the truth. When the old king disinherits his good daughter and divides the kingdom between his maleficent daughters, the Earl of Kent tries to tell Lear hes bollixing up everything: What wouldst thou do, old man? Thinkst thou that duty shall have dread to speak, When power to flattery bows? Lear, swayed by his bad daughters sycophancy, screams at Kent, Out of my sight! Kent urges the king to see better. US President Joe Biden at the White House on Sunday. Credit: AP Some eyes get plucked out in King Lear, but the play is really a lesson about inner blindness, the way power can occlude the ability to see yourself, and the world. A lack of self-knowledge in a leader can lead to ruination. And that is where we are with Biden. His raison detre for running, at 81, is stopping Donald Trump, a mendacious scofflaw who will become even more incorrigible with the egregious decisions of his radical Supreme Court and his own age spiral. Chris Miller says he took the job as Donald Trumps last defence secretary scared to death because I listened to all the press that he was batshit, like unhinged, Miller tells me. After three days in the post, he got his first chance to find out for himself. Miller was summoned urgently to the White House for a crisis meeting of the top US national security officials. Trump had just seen on the news that Iran had edged closer to possessing a nuclear warhead. The then-president wanted to do something about it: Are the Iranians giving the finger to the United States of America? Trump asked his cabinet secretaries and assembled advisers, recalls Miller. Illustration: Dionne Gain Credit: Why dont we bomb the hell out of them? the president demanded. Miller wants me to understand that thats not national security language. No kidding. But it was the right question, he says. Miller assured Trump that they could: And I said, Mr President, we can absolutely bomb the shit out of Iran. We absolutely can. We can put several hundred missiles in and destroy their deeply buried [nuclear facilities]. Its going to be about a two-week campaign, air campaign. PHILIPSBURG:--- On the evening of July 06, 2024, at approximately 07:30 PM, a second shooting incident was reported, this time in the Simpson Bay area. A male victim was shot and wounded. Central dispatch promptly notified the ambulance service, and the victim was transported to the St. Maarten Medical Center for further treatment. His condition has been listed as serious but stable. Forensic and detectives have been investigating the circumstances surrounding this shooting. The St. Maarten Police Force (KPSM) again appeals to the general public for assistance. If you have any information related to this incident, we urge you to come forward and share any details that may help in the investigation. Please get in touch with us at the following numbers if you have any information: - Dispatch Center: 911 - Hotline: 9300 - Police Telephone: 5422223 Your cooperation is vital in helping us ensure the safety and security of our communities. KPSM Press Release. PHILIPSBURG:--- In the early hours of July 06, 2024, at approximately 02:30 AM, the police dispatcher received a report of a shooting in the Dutch Quarter area. A male in his twenties received a gunshot wound. He was transported to the St. Maarten Medical Center, where he is currently receiving treatment for his injury. His condition has been listed as serious but stable. Detectives and forensic teams have been actively investigating the scene to determine the circumstances surrounding this incident. At this time, no arrests have been made, and the details of what transpired remain unclear. The St. Maarten Police Force (kPSM) urges the general public and anyone with information regarding this incident to come forward. Your assistance is crucial in helping us resolve this matter and ensure the safety of our community. If you have any information, please get in touch with us at the following numbers: - Dispatch Center; 911 - Hotline: 9300 - Police Telephone: 5422223 KPSM Press Release. JOHNSTOWN, Pa.:--- A Saint Martin citizen unlawfully residing in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, was sentenced in federal court to 60 months in prison, to be followed by five years of supervised release on his convictions of conspiracy to distribute and possession with intent to distribute crack cocaine, heroin, and cocaine, and unlawful possession of a firearm by an illegal alien, United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan announced today. Senior United States District Judge Kim R. Gibson imposed the sentence on Hector Concepcion, 35. According to information presented to the Court, from in and around August 2019 to in and around April 2021, in the Western District of Pennsylvania, Concepcion conspired with others to distribute and possess with intent to distribute 28 grams or more of a mixture and substance containing cocaine base in the form commonly known as crack and quantities of heroin and cocaine. Further, in and around July 2021, Concepcion, an illegal alien who is unlawfully in the United States, possessed a firearm and ammunition. Federal law prohibits anyone who is illegally or unlawfully in the United States or who is an alien admitted to the United States under a non-immigrant visa from possessing a firearm. Concepcion was intercepted on a federal wiretap, obtaining quantities of crack cocaine, heroin, and cocaine that he distributed to others. Assistant United States Attorney Maureen Sheehan-Balchon prosecuted this case on behalf of the government. United States Attorney Olshan commended the Federal Bureau of Investigations Laurel Highlands. Resident Agency and Homeland Security Investigations for the investigation that led to the successful prosecution of Concepcion. Additional agencies participating in the investigation included the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, United States Postal Inspection Service, Pennsylvania Office of Attorney General, Pennsylvania State Police, Cambria County District Attorneys Office, Indiana County District Attorneys Office, Cambria County Sheriffs Office, Cambria Township Police Department, Indiana Borough Police Department, Johnstown Police Department, Upper Yoder Township Police Department, Richland Police Department, Ferndale Police Department, and other local law enforcement agencies. This prosecution is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces (OCDETF) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles the highest-level drug traffickers, money launderers, gangs, and transnational criminal organizations that threaten the United States by using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local law enforcement agencies against criminal networks. Press Release United States Attorney Eric G. Olshan Western District of Pennsylvania The Saba Tourist Bureau hosted a group of distinguished US travel journalists for an exclusive day trip. Diamond PR coordinated the trip in collaboration with the St. Maarten Tourism board. The initiative aimed to provide the journalists with a unique and immersive experience of Sabas rich offerings, from its natural beauty to its cultural heritage and conservation efforts. The trip included a variety of activities, such as an arts and crafts workshop, insights into Sabas conservation projects, and a guided hike, giving the journalists a comprehensive view of the islands unique charm and island-hopping opportunities. Participating journalists represented several influential publications, including: Southern Bride : Reaching soon-to-be brides in the Southern states, from Florida to Georgia, Texas, and beyond, with a readership of 30,000 through its print issues. : Reaching soon-to-be brides in the Southern states, from Florida to Georgia, Texas, and beyond, with a readership of 30,000 through its print issues. MSN : A major online platform with a wide and diverse audience. : A major online platform with a wide and diverse audience. Caribbean Living Magazine : Based in New Jersey, this publication specializes in Caribbean travel and lifestyle. : Based in New Jersey, this publication specializes in Caribbean travel and lifestyle. Resident Magazine: Known for its authority on luxury living, this magazine caters to high-net-worth individuals and maintains a strong digital presence in key markets such as New York, Aspen, Miami, the Hamptons, London, and Palm Beach. The journalists expressed amazement at Saba's unique features and the potential for island-hopping in the region. Additionally, Saba hosted an award-winning travel journalist from Vancouver, Canada, who covers travel, family, and food for notable print and online publications, including Travel + Leisure, Food & Wine, Fodor's, and USA Today. She, along with her son, were hosted by Julianas Hotel and experienced various local restaurants. They also enjoyed a hike guided by Mr. James Johnson of the Saba Conservation Foundation and learned about the activities organized by the Sea & Learn Foundation. The Saba Tourist Bureau is confident that these immersive experiences will significantly boost destination awareness. The journalists are expected to pitch and share their first-hand encounters, contributing positively to the islands representation in their upcoming articles and features. The Saba Tourist Bureau would like to thank the partners, WinAir and Diamond PR, for facilitating a successful and productive visit. The Saba Tourist Bureau, in collaboration with the St. Maarten Tourist Board, successfully organized a familiarization (Fam) day trip as part of the St. Maarten Fly-in Travel Agent Event. This initiative aimed to showcase the beauty and hospitality of neighboring islands and was designed to highlight the island-hopping potential while vacationing in St. Maarten. The St. Maarten Tourist Board hosted travel agents from various countries. As St. Maarten is the main hub for neighboring islands, the St. Maarten Tourist Board partnered with surrounding islands for a day trip experience for the travel agents. This marks the second consecutive year that Saba has had the opportunity to host agents as part of this program. Saba was honored to host nine travel agents who selected Saba as their preferred Fam Trip destination. These agents hailed from Canada, Brazil, France, Germany, and the regional market. During their visit, the agents explored the island for the day, including site inspections of two accommodations and a villa as part of the product review. They enjoyed a unique lunch experience in the rainforest at Rendezvous and participated in a walking village tour. For many agents, this was their first visit to Saba, and they gained invaluable insights into the diverse accommodations and tourism products that the island offers. The Saba Tourist Bureau was delighted to welcome the travel agents and showcase Saban hospitality. Such intraregional collaborations and events among the islands, connectivity partners, and tourism boards are crucial in strengthening the region. They provide an opportunity to share the unique diversity of each island with both journalists and travel agents, enhancing the island-hopping experience. We would like to thank the St. Maarten Tourist Board and WinAir for their collaboration in making this Fam Trip a reality. Special thanks also go to our on-island partners for their hospitality, which contributed to the overall positive experience of the travel agents. Philippines, Japan on verge of key defence pact Manila, July 7 (AFP) Jul 07, 2024 The Philippines and Japan are set to sign on Monday a key defence pact that will allow the deployment of troops on each other's territory. Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa will hold high-level talks with their Philippine counterparts Gilberto Teodoro and Enrique Manalo in Manila. The Philippines and Japan -- longtime allies of the United States -- have been deepening defence ties in the face of an increasingly assertive China. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos will witness the signing of the reciprocal access agreement (RAA), which the countries began negotiating in November, the Philippine Presidential Communications Office said. The accord would provide the legal framework for Japan and the Philippines to send defence personnel to each other's territory for training and other operations. Negotiations were "close to conclusion", Tokyo's ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, said in a speech on Thursday, as he flagged "significant developments" in Japan's defence equipment supplies to the Philippines. The talks follow escalating confrontations at sea between Chinese and Philippine ships as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims to nearly all of the South China Sea. The most serious in a number of incidents happened on June 17 when Chinese coast guard personnel wielding knives, sticks and an axe surrounded and boarded three Philippine navy boats during a resupply mission to Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands. A Filipino sailor lost a thumb in the clash. Tokyo and Beijing are also at loggerheads over Japan-controlled disputed islands in the East China Sea. - 'Linchpin' - The RAA was important because it would enable the Philippines "to enhance our interoperability with like-minded partners," said Manila-based geopolitical analyst Don McLain Gill. "This would also complement what we are trying to do in terms of enhancing our security partnerships within the US hub and spokes network." Washington has been strengthening its network of alliances in the Asia-Pacific region to counter China's growing military might and influence, which Chinese officials have said is a US effort to create a "NATO" in the region. Leaders from Japan, the Philippines and the United States had their first trilateral summit in April aimed at boosting defence ties in Washington. It was held on the heels of four-way military drills that included Australia in the South China Sea, riling Beijing. The Philippines has been a key focus of US efforts to build an arc of alliances, owing to its position in the South China Sea and proximity to Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Philippine support would be crucial for the United States in the event of any conflict. Japan, wary about possible future changes in US policy in the region, was also seeking "to play a larger role" as an independent and stabilising force, Gill the analyst, said. Tokyo has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia in recent years. The Philippines has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. Japan, which invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II, is a top provider of overseas development assistance to the country and also a supplier of security equipment. "The Japanese would like to impress upon the Americans that Japan is the linchpin of US security presence, military presence here in the region, and of course, the most reliable ally of the United States," said Renato Cruz De Castro, professor for international studies at De La Salle University in Manila. US troops leave Niger base at Niamey Niamey, Niger, July 7 (AFP) Jul 07, 2024 US troops have completed a withdrawal from their base in Niger's capital of Niamey and will fully depart from Agadez in the north before a September 15 deadline set by the country's military rulers, both countries said Sunday. Niger's military leaders scrapped a military cooperation deal with Washington in March, after seizing power in a July 2023 coup. The United States had around 650 soldiers in Niger as part of anti-jihadist missions in several Sahel nations of West Africa, including a major drone base near Agadez. "The defence ministry of Niger and the US Defence Department announce that the withdrawal of American forces and equipment from the Niamey base 101 is now completed," the two countries said in a statement. A final flight carrying US troops was due to leave Niamey late Sunday. The US presence had stood at around 950 troops, and 766 soldiers have left Niger since the military ordered their departure, AFP learned at a ceremony at the base attended by Niger's army chief of staff Maman Sani Kiaou and US General Kenneth Ekman. "American forces are now going to focus on quitting airbase 201 in Agadez," the statement said, insisting that the withdrawal would be completed by September 15 as planned. Niger had already ordered the withdrawal of troops from France, the former colonial power and traditional security ally, and has strengthened ties with Russia which has provided instructors and equipment. On Saturday, Germany's defence ministry also said it would end operations at its airbase in Niger by August 31 following the breakdown of talks with military leaders. A similar shift has taken place in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also ruled by military leaders and faced with violence from jihadist groups. Elephant in room at NATO: would Trump blow it up? Washington, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 Western leaders are celebrating 75 years of NATO with an elephant in the room -- will Donald Trump, who could again be the US president within months, blow the alliance up? This week's summit in Washington will look, without saying so explicitly, to "Trump-proof" NATO by expanding the role of the alliance itself -- especially in supporting Ukraine, whose fight against Russia has drawn skepticism from the Republican candidate. US President Joe Biden and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg have both trumpeted the 32-nation bloc as the most successful military alliance in history, pointing to its role countering the Soviet Union and later protecting new European democracies after the fall of the Iron Curtain. Trump, whose motto is "America First" and has voiced admiration in the past for Russian strongman Vladimir Putin, has seen NATO from a dramatically different lens, accusing allies of freeloading off an overstretched and costly US military. In campaign remarks attacked by Biden, the New York real estate developer said he would encourage Russia to "do whatever the hell they want" if NATO allies do not "pay (their) bills." - Leverage or plan to quit? - What exactly Trump meant -- if he was serious or making threats to force Europeans to cough up more money -- remains open to debate. In a March television interview, British anti-immigration politician Nigel Farage asked Trump if the United States would fulfill its NATO commitments if allies "start to play fair," to which Trump replied, "Yes. 100 percent." But John Bolton, a hawkish Republican who was Trump's national security advisor and later became an outspoken critic, has said that Trump is complaining about NATO allies' spending not as a way to cajole them into putting up more money but rather as a pretext to start a US withdrawal. Bolton in a memoir recounted that Trump at a 2018 NATO summit said "we will walk out" and "not defend" countries that do not meet spending goals. Even short of withdrawing from NATO, Trump could signal to Moscow that he would not care about NATO's key Article Five -- that an attack on one ally is an attack on all. While president, Trump raised eyebrows when he described people in tiny NATO ally Montenegro as "very aggressive" and capable of starting "World War III." Project 2025, an unofficial policy blueprint for a second Trump administration, led by the Washington-based Heritage Foundation, calls for transforming NATO so that US allies field "the great majority of conventional forces required to deter Russia," with the United States reducing forces in Europe and primarily offering its nuclear umbrella. The United States stations roughly 100,000 troops in Europe, a sharp increase since Russia attacked Ukraine in 2022. Elbridge Colby, a key advisor to Trump who served in his Defense Department, has argued that the United States is too concerned about Russia and should instead focus on China, with its much larger population and economy. - Worth 'freaking out'? - Stoltenberg recently highlighted that 23 of the 32 allies spend at least two percent of GDP on defense -- compared with only three of them when NATO set that goal in 2014 under pressure from US president Barack Obama. Germany, Europe's largest economy, has notably shifted its calculations and boosted defense spending following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. France has long called for a greater European lead on defense and mulled putting French troops in Ukraine. But few Europeans believe they could fill the void if Trump pulled out of NATO. "It would be the end of NATO if the US pulled out and it would be the end of deterrence," one European diplomat said. But Rachel Rizzo, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council who studies transatlantic security, cautioned that Trump ultimately did not harm NATO in his first term. "What I say to Europeans all the time is, stop freaking out about Trump," she said. "You did this for four years, and guess what? It actually wasn't that bad for Europe," she said. There was "tough language that ruffled feathers, certainly, but the policies that Trump put in place toward Europe were not damaging toward NATO." NATO has tapped as Stoltenberg's successor Mark Rutte, who as the Dutch prime minister is said to have played a key role calming Trump at the 2018 summit in Brussels. Some noted that Trump is both transactional and susceptible to flattery. "If you kiss Trump's ass persistently enough, then he will be happy with you," a second European diplomat said. Will NATO disappoint Ukraine again in Washington? Brussels, Belgium, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 When NATO leaders welcome Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to their summit in Washington this week, they will reaffirm that Kyiv will one day become a member and vow to keep arming its troops. But they will not give Zelensky what he wants most: a firm invite for his war-torn country to join their nuclear-armed alliance anytime soon. Last year, NATO's failure to issue Ukraine a clear timeframe for membership did not go down well. Zelensky unleashed a diplomatic firestorm at NATO's 2023 summit in Lithuania by blasting the alliance's refusal as "absurd". Still, in the end he did not get leaders to budge from saying that an invite would only come "when allies agree and conditions are met". In Washington, Western officials say they are hoping to avoid another bust-up -- with Zelensky being told clearly there will not be concrete progress. Multiple diplomats said that NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg set out what was on offer at a meeting with the Ukrainian leader ahead of time. "The scene is better prepared now," said one NATO diplomat, speaking like others under condition of anonymity. "Zelensky will have to accept whatever is offered." A smooth summit is particularly important for US President Joe Biden as he struggles to right his reelection campaign after a damaging debate performance. - 'Close to zero' - Two and a half years into Russia's full-scale war, Ukraine remains adamant that getting under the protective umbrella of the US-led alliance is its only long-term guarantee for security. But in Kyiv there is an acceptance that the Washington summit will not bring the country any closer towards NATO membership. "The chances of getting an invitation are close to zero," a high-ranking Ukrainian official said. The official added, however, that Kyiv hoped to parlay the "sense of guilt" among allies over the lack of progress into advances in other areas. Most reluctant on bringing Ukraine closer to the fold are heavyweight powers the United States and Germany -- long cautious of dragging NATO closer to a war with President Vladimir Putin's Russia. Diplomats say that Kyiv has made some progress on key reforms such as in military procurement, but there is still much work to do rooting out graft. In a push to offer Ukraine encouragement, NATO diplomats say they are debating calling Kyiv's membership push "irreversible" in the summit declaration. The alliance will also likely speak about setting Kyiv on a "bridge" towards joining, officials say. "Putin has said Ukraine should not be in NATO, so Washington should give a very strong response indicating that it is an irreversible process," said a European diplomat Beyond tweaks in wording, NATO says it will also put Western support for Kyiv on a firmer footing. Part of that will be done by having the alliance take over coordination of weapons deliveries from the United States. Diplomats say that should help insulate supplies should former US president Donald Trump return to the Oval Office. NATO allies have also hashed out a pledge to keep on providing support to Kyiv at roughly the rate -- 40 billion euros ($43 billion) a year -- that they have been since Russia invaded. But the promise is not legally binding -- and Washington watered it down further by insisting it needs to be reviewed next year. - More Patriots? - The most important -- and concrete -- help Zelensky appears likely to get in Washington is commitments of new air defence systems to better defend Ukraine's skies. Kyiv said back in April that it desperately needed seven more Patriot missile systems to help intercept Russia's devastating attacks. Since then only three advanced air defence systems have been offered -- by Germany, Romania and Italy. Reportedly, the United States is now mulling over announcing a further Patriot system for Kyiv, while a Dutch-led initiative to assemble another could yield results. "I think we'll have some additional good news for them on that front," a senior US official said. Ahead of the summit, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said Washington will provide a new $2.3 billion package including key air defence. One diplomat said that while the rest of the summit might "lack meat", getting more air defences could at least leave Zelensky feeling like he had scored a win. "What would you want more? Nice words in a declaration that don't mean much or military support?" the diplomat asked. "If you're the Ukrainian president you obviously want the military support." Why the Philippine-Japan defence pact matters Manila, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 More than 70 years after Japan's invasion and occupation of the Philippines during World War II, the countries on Monday signed a defence pact that allows them to deploy troops on each other's soil. The agreement was finalised during high-level defence talks in Manila and comes as China increases military and diplomatic pressure in the Asia-Pacific region. - Legal framework - The Reciprocal Access Agreement, or RAA, provides the legal framework for the deployment of Japanese troops and equipment in the Philippines, and vice versa. It took more than seven months to negotiate and will take effect after ratification by lawmakers in both countries. Both countries have longstanding maritime territorial disputes with China and this agreement allows for increased cooperation between their militaries in combat training as well as disaster response. That would include live-fire exercises and joint patrols, said Aries Arugay, visiting senior fellow at the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. Japan, which hosts 54,000 US military personnel, has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia, but this is its first in Asia. The Philippines has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. - Security 'latticework' - The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening an arc of alliances in the region to deter China -- infuriating leaders in Beijing. Monday's agreement was "another layer in the latticework of #IndoPacific security partnerships," US ambassador to Japan, Rahm Emanuel, said on social media platform X. "The historic reciprocal access agreement... not only boosts their cooperation and capabilities, but also reinforces our collective deterrence and commitment to a free and open #IndoPacific." The Philippines, which has a mutual defence treaty with the United States, has been seeking to boost security ties with other countries in Asia and Europe. Japan forms part of the Quad grouping with the United States, Australia and India, while members of the AUKUS security pact -- Australia, Britain and the United States -- are considering cooperating with Tokyo on military technology. Japan's Defence Minister Minoru Kihara told reporters in Manila that Tokyo was keen to deepen its "trilateral and quadrilateral ties". - Japan stepping up - Long-pacifist Japan is becoming -- with US encouragement -- more assertive in response to China's growing military clout and North Korea's missile activities. It has pledged to double defence spending to two percent of economic output by 2027 and to acquire "counterstrike" capabilities with US Tomahawk missiles. In April, Washington and Tokyo announced a major overhaul in their defence ties including an upgrade to their command and control structures to make them more nimble in a crisis. Given the uncertainty over US policy towards the region, Japan was "levelling up" to be a strong security partner for its neighbours, said Jay Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines' Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea. While China will be annoyed by the deal, the United States will be happy, said Ian Hall, professor of international relations at Australia's Griffith University. "Under both Trump and now Biden, the US has been encouraging its regional allies to cooperate and to take on more of the burden of sustaining regional security. This new RAA assists that process," Hall told AFP. - More equipment - Japan is already a key supplier of security equipment and technology to the Philippines, which is in the process of modernising its armed forces and strengthening its coast guard. Since 2016, Japan has delivered 10 44-metre (144-foot) and two 97-metre multi-role response vessels to the Philippine Coast Guard and has agreed to provide another five 97-metre ships. It also has delivered five TC-90 trainer aircraft and spare parts for UH-1H helicopters. Earlier this year, a Japanese-made air surveillance system arrived in the Philippines and it has pledged to send a coastal radar surveillance system. Tokyo's ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, said Thursday that "significant developments" in Japan's defence equipment supplies to the Philippines were in the offing. Japan is also providing funding and equipment to other countries in the region including Malaysia. burs-amj/sn Philippines and Japan sign key defence pact Manila, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 The Philippines and Japan signed a key defence pact on Monday that will allow the deployment of troops on each other's territory, as they boost ties in the face of China's growing assertiveness. The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) was finalised in Manila, where Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa held talks with their Philippine counterparts Gilberto Teodoro and Enrique Manalo. The accord, which Tokyo and Manila began negotiating in November, provides the legal framework for Japan and the Philippines to send defence personnel to each other's territory for training and other operations. Teodoro and Kamikawa signed the agreement at the presidential palace. It will take effect once ratified by lawmakers in both countries. The signing was "another milestone in our shared endeavour to ensure a rules-based international order, to ensure peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific and particularly in our region", Teodoro said. The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening its alliances from Canberra to Tokyo to counter China's growing military might and influence in the region. Chinese officials have accused the United States of trying to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO. The signing of the RAA comes as China's sabre-rattling towards Taiwan and over the South China Sea fuels fears of a potential conflict that could drag in the United States. There have been escalating confrontations at sea between Chinese and Philippine ships as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims to nearly all of the strategic South China Sea. The most serious happened on June 17 when Chinese coast guard personnel wielding knives, sticks and an axe surrounded and boarded three Philippine navy boats during a resupply mission to Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands. A Filipino sailor lost his thumb in the incident. Tokyo and Beijing are also at loggerheads over disputed islands, controlled by Japan, in the East China Sea. Kihara said Japan was "gravely concerned" about the "escalation of regional tensions". Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said the Asia-Pacific region did not need "military groups, let alone small circles that encourage a new Cold War and provoke confrontation". Japan invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II but the two countries have since grown closer due to trade and investment and, more recently, to counter a resurgent China. Japan is a key supplier of security equipment and technology to the Philippines, including patrol vessels and surveillance systems. Tokyo's ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, flagged in a speech on Thursday "significant developments" in Japan's defence equipment supplies to the Philippines. - 'Linchpin' - Tokyo has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia in recent years. Manila has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. The Philippines has been a key focus of US efforts to build an arc of alliances, owing to its position in the South China Sea and its proximity to Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Philippine support would be crucial for the United States in the event of any conflict. Leaders from Japan, the Philippines and the United States had their first trilateral summit in April aimed at boosting defence ties in Washington. It was held on the heels of four-way military drills that included Australia in the South China Sea, riling Beijing. "Beyond our bilateral relations, Japan is also keen to deepen trilateral and quadrilateral ties, such as Japan, the Philippines, United States or Japan, the Philippines, United States and Australia," Japan's Kihara said. Japan, wary about possible future US policy changes in the region, was seeking to play a larger role in security, analysts said. "The Japanese would like to impress upon the Americans that Japan is the linchpin of US security presence, military presence here in the region, and of course, the most reliable ally of the United States," said Renato Cruz De Castro, professor for international studies at De La Salle University in Manila. Why the Philippine-Japan defence pact matters Manila, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 More than 70 years after Japan's invasion and occupation of the Philippines during World War II, the countries signed a defence pact on Monday that allows them to deploy troops on each other's soil. The agreement was finalised during high-level defence talks in Manila and comes as China increases military and diplomatic pressure in the Asia-Pacific region. - Legal framework - The Reciprocal Access Agreement, or RAA, provides the legal framework for the deployment of Japanese troops and equipment in the Philippines, and vice versa. It took more than seven months to negotiate and will take effect after ratification by lawmakers in both countries. The agreement allows for increased cooperation in combat training as well as disaster response. That would include live-fire exercises and joint patrols, said Aries Arugay, visiting senior fellow at the Singapore-based ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute. Under the RAA, the visiting country can request "access to and use of" facilities and areas for joint activities but the host country would retain "overall control". The RAA does not provide a basis for the establishment of "military facilities in the territory of the other", according to the agreement. Japan, which hosts 54,000 US military personnel, has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia but this is its first in Asia. The Philippines has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. Manila has a separate agreement with Washington that allows US troops to rotate through and store defence equipment and supplies on nine Philippine military bases. - Security 'latticework' - The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening an arc of alliances in the region to deter China -- infuriating leaders in Beijing. Monday's agreement was "another layer in the latticework of #IndoPacific security partnerships", US ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel said on social media platform X. "The historic reciprocal access agreement... not only boosts their cooperation and capabilities, but also reinforces our collective deterrence and commitment to a free and open #IndoPacific." The Philippines has been seeking to boost security ties with other countries in Asia and Europe. Japan forms part of the Quad grouping with the United States, Australia and India, while members of the AUKUS security pact -- Australia, Britain and the United States -- are considering cooperating with Tokyo on military technology. - Japan stepping up - Long-pacifist Japan is becoming -- with US encouragement -- more assertive in response to China's growing military clout and North Korea's missile activities. It has pledged to double defence spending to two percent of economic output by 2027 and to acquire "counterstrike" capabilities with US Tomahawk missiles. Washington and Tokyo announced a major overhaul of defence ties in April, including an upgrade to their command and control structures to make them more nimble in a crisis. Given the uncertainty over US policy towards the region, Japan was "levelling up" to be a strong security partner for its neighbours, said Jay Batongbacal, director of the University of the Philippines' Institute for Maritime Affairs and Law of the Sea. Ian Hall, professor of international relations at Australia's Griffith University, said that while China will be annoyed by the deal between Manila and Tokyo, the United States will be happy. "Under both Trump and now Biden, the US has been encouraging its regional allies to cooperate and to take on more of the burden of sustaining regional security. This new RAA assists that process," Hall told AFP. - More equipment - Japan is a key supplier of security equipment and technology to the Philippines, which is in the process of modernising its armed forces and strengthening its coast guard. It has delivered 10 44-metre (144-foot) and two 97-metre multi-role response vessels to the Philippine Coast Guard since 2016 and has agreed to provide another five 97-metre ships. Japan has also delivered five TC-90 trainer aircraft and spare parts for UH-1H helicopters to the Philippine military. A Japanese-made mobile air surveillance radar system arrived in the Philippines this year and Tokyo has pledged to provide coastal radar systems. Tokyo's ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, said Thursday that "significant developments" in Japan's defence equipment supplies to the Philippines were in the offing. burs-amj/pbt Thousands join march to commemorate Srebrenica genocide anniversary Nezuk, Bosnia and Herzegovina, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 A crowd of thousands began marching towards Srebrenica in eastern Bosnia on Monday to commemorate the anniversary of the 1995 genocide in the ill-fated town. The annual march takes in a 100-kilometre (62-mile) route to Srebrenica from the village of Nezuk, where the first survivors arrived days after the massacre. Bosnian Serb forces captured Srebrenica on July 11, 1995, and killed 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the worst massacre in Europe since World War II. Fatima Ibrahimbegovic Alic who joined the march told AFP her father, Ramiz, was killed trying to escape. "I don't feel well, but I go for him, for all of them, to walk this path where they suffered," she said. "We need to keep doing this so we never forget." The atrocity was deemed genocide by two international courts. The marchers, carrying Bosnian, Palestinian and Turkish flags, will stop at the sites of dozens of mass graves where the remains of the victims were found. In late May, the United Nations General Assembly established an annual day of remembrance for the 1995 Srebrenica genocide. The move drew fierce opposition from the Serbian government and Bosnian Serb leaders, who still play down the atrocity and refuse to accept it was a genocide. The marchers will reach the memorial centre in Potocari, where nearly 7,000 massacre victims were buried, on Wednesday. They will attend a ceremony to mark the atrocity's 29th anniversary the next day. Thousands march to mark Srebrenica genocide anniversary Nezuk, Bosnia and Herzegovina, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 Thousands of people began marching on Monday towards Srebrenica in eastern Bosnia to mark the anniversary of the 1995 genocide, the worst massacre in Europe since World War II. The annual march covers a 100-kilometre (62-mile) route to Srebrenica from the village of Nezuk, where the first survivors arrived. Bosnian Serb forces captured Srebrenica -- a UN protected enclave at the time -- on July 11, 1995, and killed 8,000 Muslim men and boys. The atrocity was deemed genocide by two international courts. Fatima Ibrahimbegovic Alic told AFP her father, Ramiz, was killed trying to escape. "I go for him, for all of them, to walk this path where they suffered," she said. "We need to keep doing this so we never forget." Carrying Bosnian, Palestinian and Turkish flags, the marchers will stop at the sites of dozens of mass graves where the remains of victims were found. - 'Under a rain of bullets' - "We are here so that Srebrenica never happens again, anywhere ... that everyone knows" about the crime, said Azra Barakovac, a woman who arrived from Sarajevo to march for the first time. Marcher Resid Dervisevic is one of the rare massacre survivors. In July 1995, he and his eight male relatives fled Srebrenica, running through the woods. His brother, an uncle and six nephews were killed during the escape. Returning to the scene "brings back emotions, even in the days before this march", the 64-year-old said holding back tears. But it is easier to do it now than in 1995 "under a rain of bullets and shells -- hungry, barefoot, without sleep for days", he added. "I walked for seven days through the forest. I survived on 250 grams of sugar. "And when we arrived here, on this territory, people welcomed us by giving us everything they had to eat and drink." - 'Important not to forget' - In late May, the United Nations General Assembly established an annual day of remembrance for the 1995 Srebrenica genocide. The move drew fierce opposition from the Serbian government and Bosnian Serb leaders, who play down the atrocity and refuse to accept it as a genocide. "We want to dedicate this march to all the people who did not manage to save themselves and who were killed in the Srebrenica genocide," Ela Rehic, 14, who joined the march with her mother, said. "It will certainly be difficult to march for three days, but I want to see and experience a bit of what I learned about their flight from Srebrenica." Tofik Sejdic, like Rehic, was born after 1995 and said he felt very emotional. "It's important not to forget what happened in those years in our country, especially in Srebrenica. "For our people, for me, Srebrenica is sacred," the 24-year-old man said. In late May, the United Nations General Assembly established an annual day of remembrance for the 1995 Srebrenica genocide. The move drew fierce opposition from the Serbian government and Bosnian Serb leaders, who play down the atrocity and refuse to call it a genocide. The marchers will reach the memorial centre in Potocari, where nearly 7,000 massacre victims were buried, on Wednesday. They will attend a ceremony to mark the atrocity's 29th anniversary the next day. Bosnia's war 1992-1995 between its Croats, Muslims and Serbs claimed approximately 100,000 lives. Nearly three decades since the war ended, the Balkan nation remains deeply divided along ethnic lines. Relatives of Russian troops in Ukraine camp outside defence ministry Moscow, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 Eight Russian women whose sons and husbands were mobilised to fight in Ukraine camped outside the defence ministry on Monday to seek their return and a meeting with the defence minister. Following a similar demonstration at the ministry in Moscow last month, the women -- some with young children -- positioned themselves with rucksacks and camping gear. They said they were ready to spend the night there, in a video posted on a Telegram account of one of the protesters, who identified herself only as Paulina. "At the moment the women are just located by the defence ministry without placards. They are asking for a meeting with the defence minister," Andrei Belousov, Paulina wrote. "Basically we are waiting and waiting and waiting. We won't leave here without results," she added. One of them was shown in a photo lying on a mat on the pavement outside holding her child. The rare protest linked to Russia's military offensive in Ukraine followed another one on June 3, when women kneeled outside the building holding handwritten placards. On that occasion, a ministry spokesman came out to address them -- an unusual move since Russian authorities almost never engage with protesters. The women ended up leaving due to heavy rain. Earlier in May, Russia branded a movement called "Put Domoy" (The Way Home) seeking to bring back men mobilised to fight in Ukraine a "foreign agent". After that, women protesters told AFP they wished to remain anonymous and were not part of Put Domoy. They continued to hold protests without inviting media, after journalists were arrested at demonstrations by Put Domoy. A woman at the protest on Monday who gave her name as Lidiya told a policeman they had "no connection to the Put Domoy movement". "We need the defence minister of Russia," Lidiya told the officer who came out to talk to them, saying she had come from Novosibirsk in Siberia. "Our children and the husbands of these young women are in deadly danger," Lidiya said, after the policeman asked them to move to another place. "My son was seriously injured. Now he has been sent again to the zone of the special operation without being fully healed," Lidiya said, adding that her son had been serving almost two years. In a video posted later on Telegram, one of the women said they had met a representative of the ministry but "they did not tell us anything interesting.. Nothing interesting, nothing new. We are going back to the spot where we were standing." Paulina wrote that well-wishers had brought the women and children food and water. Poles join army courses with eye on Ukraine, Belarus Tomaszow Mazowiecki, Poland, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 At a Polish military base southwest of Warsaw, 200 Poles are firing guns, throwing imitation grenades and learning about military tactics as war rages in neighbouring Ukraine and tensions rise on the border with Moscow ally Belarus. The session on a summer weekend is one of 20 programmes for civilians run by the Polish army. "I have two children, so I wanted to learn the basics of survival and what to do in a dangerous situation," said Monika Ludwiczak, 41, a school secretary. "Maybe one day I will have to defend my own children". Some participants, like Ludwiczak, are holding a weapon for the first time. Others have previous experience and want to catch up on new weapons and tactics. "I don't know in which direction everything will go, but we would like to be prepared," said Tomasz Sandkowski, a 54-year-old investor who previously served in the military. "These last two years here have heightened that need," he said, referring to the ongoing war in Ukraine. Poland, a critical ally of Ukraine, has also been faced with security concerns along its eastern border with Russian ally Belarus. Warsaw accuses Belarusian authorities of encouraging migrants to cross the EU border in a form of "hybrid warfare". In June, a Polish soldier died after being stabbed as migrants attempted to cross the border in circumstances that are still under investigation. The Polish military also views the free eight-hour training sessions as an opportunity to spark interest among potential recruits. "By participating in a given project, a volunteer can see a little from the inside of what life in the army is like," Second Lieutenant Borek, from the Military Recruitment Centre in Tomaszow Mazowiecki, told AFP. "Each year we have more volunteers." Of the 200 participants, 10 percent formally expressed an interest in future recruitment possibilities. "We see what is happening in Ukraine," said Lieutenant Colonel Zbigniew Kowalski, of the 25th Air Cavalry Brigade. "We see what knowledge society should have in order to cope in today's environment." US aims to up scrutiny on property deals near military sites Washington, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 The United States plans to broaden oversight of foreigners' real estate transactions on properties close to military installations, the Treasury Department said Monday, as concerns involving Chinese land purchases grow. "President (Joe) Biden and I remain committed to using our strong investment screening tool to defend America's national security, including actions that protect military installations from external threats," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement. Under a proposed rule, more than 50 facilities will be added to a list of sites where surrounding property transactions may be reviewed by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) -- taking the total figure to 227. CFIUS's jurisdiction covers land purchases as well. The concern is that a foreigner's purchase or lease of certain properties could allow them to collect intelligence or "expose national security activities" to foreign surveillance risks, the Treasury noted. Among the proposed sites to be added are Camp Grayling in Michigan -- some 100 miles from where Chinese electric vehicle battery-maker Gotion plans to build a facility. Republican congressman John Moolenaar of Michigan has pushed back on Gotion's plans, raising security concerns. A senior Treasury official said CFIUS's jurisdiction was "country-agnostic" and did not specify if the latest rule was aimed at quelling concerns directed at specific countries like China or Russia. In May, US authorities announced that a Chinese-owned crypto firm was barred from using land near a strategic US nuclear missile base over national security concerns. MineOne Partners Limited was ordered to divest from land it bought in 2022, which sat less than a mile from Wyoming's Francis E. Warren Air Force Base -- home to Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missiles. CFIUS had also raised concerns about the installation of "specialized" crypto mining equipment on the land which is "potentially capable of facilitating surveillance and espionage activities." The hospitality scene is really booming, and there is some really good nightlife too. I dont know whether I would have wanted to live here in my twenties, but we moved in our late thirties, and it is perfect for us. We also love being close to London on the train you can be at London Bridge in an hour and a half. For years, it was demonised as being full of racists and Nazi nostalgists, not least because it was founded in 1972 by Jean-Marie Le Pen, now a convicted Holocaust denier. But his daughter, Marine Le Pen, is the current de facto leader, and she claims she has detoxified it, along with Jordan Bardella, her boyish protege who has attracted many young new members (Bardella is 28, and a TikTok influencer with more than 1.5 million followers). * 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. Scotland needs to play a big part in rebuilding an election-winning conservative movement and, along with many others, Ill be taking careful consideration of the new circumstances we are in and of how I can best contribute to that task. With forecasts for the public finances indicating a squeeze of up to 20 billion in spending on departments where budgets are not protected, Labour will rely on increased growth to keep its twin promises of not returning to austerity and avoiding tax hikes beyond the measures it has already announced. This is an early recommitment to what I said in the campaign to come here physically on the third day (of being Prime Minister), to have discussions with the First Minister about the long-term objectives and of course, about some of the pressing issues, including Tata Steel, which is of great concern to me, to the First Minister and to so many people here in Wales. She did not confirm whether the Government would abandon use of the barge but, while visiting police officers in Lewisham, told reporters: We need to clear the Conservatives asylum backlog, but the first priority has to be to get the stronger border security in place, and that is why our first step is setting up the new border security command. All eyes will be on Mr Biden, the oldest president yet, to judge his mental and physical stamina after he blamed a cold and fatigue for his poor showing in the first TV debate with Mr Trump - who has seized on it to argue that a rival only three years his senior is too old and infirm to serve. The attack came on the eve of a three-day Nato summit in Washington, which will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since the Second World War. WENTZVILLE Wentzville School District leaders hired a law firm to investigate potential leaks of confidential information, retaliation and violations of the school boards code of ethics last year before Superintendent Danielle Tormalas abrupt resignation and $1 million contract buyout, records show. The district retained Kansas City-based Spencer Fane to investigate the allegations against the boards three newest members: Jen Olson, Renee Henke and David Lewis. In all, the district paid Spencer Fane about $100,000 for the investigation, according to the records. Invoices and the districts contract with the firm do not identify who filed complaints against the board members, nor do they provide specifics about what confidential information may have been leaked or potential retaliation. They also dont outline what the investigation found. But the records, obtained by the Post-Dispatch through a Sunshine Law request, give more details on the lead-up to Tormalas sudden departure and context for her buyout. They confirm the district paid a third party to investigate three members of the divided board, as community members had speculated for months. And they provide insight into Missouri Attorney General Andrew Baileys attempts to intervene in disputes between the superintendent and the three board members. Olson, Henke and Lewis were among the sharpest critics of Tormalas tenure. They submitted sworn affidavits alleging the district broke open records laws by discussing a bathroom policy for transgender students in closed meetings. The affidavits led to an ongoing lawsuit filed by Bailey. In a statement, Olson and Henke said the allegations against them were false. They said board leadership, the prior administration and the districts former outside counsel colluded to weaponize board policy against the three of us. The only individuals that were harassed, intimidated and retaliated against, were Directors Olson and Lewis, and Secretary Henke, their statement reads. So much so that the attorney general of the state of Missouri sent a cease-and-desist letter to the prior administration and the remaining board members due to their malicious intimidation and retaliatory acts against us. We remain on the lawful and just side of this issue. Lewis declined to comment on the investigation, saying, I want to make sure that I dont cross any closed meeting information lines. When reached by phone on Wednesday, Jason Goodson, Wentzvilles board president at the time of Spencer Fanes hiring, said he followed protocol in the face of an unprecedented set of matters. Goodson, who did not run for reelection and is no longer on the board, declined to comment on the specifics of the investigation. As employers, the WSD Board of Education must take any complaints from employees seriously and we must ensure due process and appropriate course of action is taken to ensure we minimize liability to the district and ultimately the taxpayers, Goodson said in a statement. A spokeswoman for Baileys office did not respond to messages. Tormala did not respond to a request for comment. Wentzville spokeswoman Brynne Cramer declined to speak about the investigation, saying the district does not comment on confidential legal and personnel matters. As the district transitions, we look forward to the continued opportunity to focus on our students and to provide the best possible learning experience, she said. Tormalas tenure Tormala resigned April 12 after less than two years as superintendent of Wentzville School District. A year before her resignation, the conservative slate of Olson, Henke and Lewis were elected to the board. The district agreed to pay $1,027,558 in exchange for Tormala agreeing to drop any current or future claims against the district and school board for compensatory damages, emotional distress, loss of reputation, humiliation, embarrassment, costs, expenses and attorneys fees. Tormalas tenure was marred by critics who put her on the opposing end of culture war fights in Wentzville. And the district hired Spencer Fane as tensions in the district reached their peak. For months, parents and meeting attendees sparred with administrators and school board members over a host of issues, ranging from transgender students use of bathrooms and locker rooms to elementary-level reading and writing curriculum. Meetings frequently devolved into shouting matches and calls for Tormalas resignation. That fall, the board voted to staff a second police officer at meetings as members said they received death threats. Around that time, police said they were requested to patrol outside Tormalas home because of threats. On Sept. 28, two days after Bailey filed his lawsuit against the district, Spencer Fane sent Wentzville an engagement letter outlining the investigations scope and its hourly fees, which varied from $360 to $495, depending on which of two attorneys on the investigation were on the clock. A revised engagement letter was sent to Goodson in November, and the district paid a $5,000 advance retainer shortly after. Invoices from Spencer Fane show the investigation involved interviewing board members and witnesses; evaluating news articles and posts containing closed session information; analyzing possible leaks of board confidential information; traveling to Jefferson City to conduct an interview with a complainant and her attorney; and completing an investigative report. Spencer Fane attorneys finalized its investigative report on Feb. 16, invoices show. Bailey sent a cease-and-desist letter to Tormala six days later. Also around that time, former state Sen. Bob Onder posted on X, formerly Twitter, that he learned of plans that the Wentzville board and wokester Tormala planned to censure Olson, Henke and Lewis. The board ultimately did not vote or publicly consider a censure. In his cease-and-desist letter, Bailey wrote: I understand that the Wentzville School Board initiated an investigation into the three whistleblowers and, for the past several months, the district or the rest of the board has been taking steps to silence them. In a scathing letter to Bailey, Tormala denied the district would take any action against any person for engaging in any protected activity under Missouri or federal law. As you know, misrepresenting fiction as fact to Missouri citizens spreads confusion amongst parents, students, staff and district patrons, and fractures relationships that the district works hard to sustain in our community, Tormala wrote. In their statement, Olson and Henke painted the investigation against them as a witch hunt. They said prior board and district leadership did not like that we questioned the legality or appropriateness of certain practices, board norms and topics of discussion in closed session. Many attempts were made to silence us and get us to just let it go, Olson and Henkes statement reads. However, we instead decided on an alternative route and submitted sworn affidavits pertaining to violations of the Missouri Sunshine law and the attorney generals office. Tormalas departure was lamented by parents and area politicians who said the district progressed under her leadership, despite certain stakeholders in the district incessantly harassing her. But a staunch group of detractors had the opposite view, and they had circulated a petition calling for her dismissal months before her resignation. Dr. Tormala has created a hostile environment for the Board and parents within the district. Her behavior is an example of what we do not want for this district or for our students, reads the petition, which garnered close to 1,400 signatures. Deputy superintendents Brian Bishop and Jeri LaBrot initially led the district on an interim basis after Tormalas departure. Last month, the district announced Bishop would serve as interim superintendent for the upcoming school year. Despite everything that has happened in the past 15 months, we are confident that the district will continue to move forward in a positive direction with our new administration, Olson and Henke said. Confidential information leaks The board never publicly discussed why it hired Spencer Fane, one of at least 10 law firms paid by the district in the past nine months. But mentions of Spencer Fanes investigation still popped up in public comment sections at school board meetings over the past several months. So again I ask: What is $107,000 (sic) being spent on? Leigh Palitzch, a former candidate for Wentzville School Board, asked at a March meeting. Is it investigating our three newest board members? Emails between Tormala and board members, obtained by the Post-Dispatch through a records request, provide insight into what confidential information may have prompted the investigation. On Sept. 19, a Gmail account called Wentzville Whistleblower composed a two-page report outlining the ways they said Tormala and the board had worked to get rid of Olson, Henke and Lewis. The report was written by a person claiming to be a longtime employee of the district and mostly included descriptions of scuttlebutt around the office as well as bits of overheard conversations between Tormala and board members. The writer sent it to City of St. Charles School District board members, Wentzville aldermen and Wentzvilles mayor, who forwarded it to Tormala to inform her of the message. Also, a month before Spencer Fane was hired, a lengthy post on Facebook from an account named Patriot Mama Bears outlined six months of board activity including details of meetings closed to the public with the hashtag #FireTormala. Concerned constituents emailed Tormala and board members copies of the timeline, which remains on Facebook. Patriot Mama Bears claimed the timeline showed retaliation against the three new board members: Olson, Henke and Lewis. It included votes and descriptions of conversations held in closed meetings, sometimes with great detail. At this point you could see it in each of their eyes, they couldnt believe what they were hearing, reads a description of an Aug. 24 closed session meeting, in which the post claims the three board members were told the complaints against them. Palitzsch, who was defeated in Wentzvilles school board election in April, emailed a PDF of the Mama Bears timeline to the board, administrators, and local elected officials copied on the email. WE DO NOT WANT OUR TAX DOLLARS PAYING FOR YOU/DISTRICT TO INVESTIGATE BOARD MEMBERS! she wrote. The districts chief communications officer responded by calling the timeline inaccurate. Upon initial review of the detailed account you referenced, we acknowledge the sequence of several of the events outlined but dispute the accuracy of many of the details, as they are erroneous or appear to be based on speculation, Cramer wrote, according to emails obtained through a records request. Olsons ties to the Patriot Mama Bears Facebook page have been questioned by Wentzville School District residents and stakeholders since she was elected. Before her election, she was a host of the Patriot Mama Bears radio show, on which she has said schools had been infiltrated by the Marxist Neo-commies that are unapologetically indoctrinating our children. This timeline has info in it that has no other explanation than that it came from either a direct leak of private info OR a directive of what/who to sunshine was shared, Jenna Roberson, a Democratic candidate for Missouri House, wrote in an email to Olson. Constituents who wrote to board members about the post did not note that the timeline was copied and pasted from a private Facebook group, in which it was posted anonymously. And about a month before the timeline's posting, the Mama Bears account identified its administrator as Kristen Haftarczyk, who is president of the St. Charles County Parents Association, a conservative group with a goal to combat "ideological subversion" in schools. In emails to constituents, Olson repeatedly denied involvement with the page, except for state and national election-related content over the summer of 2023. But other than that, I have not contributed or participated in any of the other types of content posted since April or before then, Olson wrote in one response. This story was updated Tuesday to clarify the origin of the Patriot Mama Bears post. Over 700 officers, soldiers of PLA Southern Theater Command head for flood-hit region Xinhua) 08:06, July 08, 2024 CHANGSHA, July 7 (Xinhua) -- More than 700 officers and soldiers from the airforce of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command departed for Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, on Sunday to undertake flood relief and rescue operations. Carrying 46 vehicles, they are scheduled to arrive at designated areas before midnight on Sunday, with the tasks of inspecting dikes, reinforcing embankments and assisting in the restoration of local production and daily life. Heavy and prolonged rainfall has resulted in flooding in various regions of China, notably causing a breach in the dike of Dongting Lake, the country's second-largest freshwater lake, located in a county administered by the city of Yueyang. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Ground was broken two months ago in Las Vegas to bring high-speed rail to Los Angeles at a maximum speed of 186 mph, which four years from now is expected to cut the trip by train between the cities to half the driving time. Massive viaducts and bridges are being constructed in Californias Central Valley for high-speed rail that will take passengers less than three hours to go from Los Angeles to San Francisco, with final statewide environmental clearance for the project announced last week. In Florida, privately operated high-speed trains between Orlando and Miami began last year with a maximum speed of 130 mph. Amtrak is also considering high-speed rail service between Houston and Dallas that would take 90 minutes, compared with 4 hours by car. So is high-speed rail, still a rarity in the United States, in New York States future? No, but a 12-year-long state and federal review, High Speed Rail Empire Corridor, released early last year, provides a blueprint on how to reduce travel times and, perhaps most importantly, make travel more dependable in a rail system plagued by unreliability. There has been talk of having higher efficiency rail across upstate New York for decades, said Bruce Becker, communications director and former president of Empire State Passengers Association. I have two plastic bins full of old studies dating back to the 1960s. We are extremely hopeful that the current efforts to improve rail service will finally bring improvements. Unfinished study could threaten funding for upstate passenger rail upgrades Without the study, passenger train advocates fear New York State won't be able to take full advantage of the geyser of rail dollars expected later this year. Alternative 90B, chosen by the New York State Department of Transportation and the Federal Railroad Administration, with a cost of nearly $6 billion in 2017 dollars, would see trains travel at a peak speed of 90 mph, well below the sustained speeds of 125 mph typically considered the cutoff for high-speed rail in the U.S. Although the environmental impact statement was concluded 18 months ago, there is still no timeline for when work on the rail corridor will start. Matthew Janiszewski, upstate press spokesman for Gov. Kathy Hochul, called the rail corridor study an important milestone. The Department of Transportation is now working with the Federal Railroad Administration to identify and progress a pipeline of intercity passenger rail projects that will allow us to achieve the goal of faster, safer and more reliable rail service throughout the entire Empire Corridor, Janiszewski told The Buffalo News. High-speed rail is still largely elusive in America. Amtrak, which received $66 billion from the 2021 infrastructure bill, is pursuing numerous new routes across states and repairing old ones, but very few provide for high-speed rail. Becker said it is not always about how fast a train can go. Increasing speed at low-speed areas say going from 25 to 50 miles per hour can be of greater benefit than increasing speeds from 70 to 90 miles per hour, he said. The study The state study began under President Obama, who entered office with a goal of establishing a national high-speed rail network. Those plans were ultimately dashed in 2010, after Republican governors in Wisconsin, Florida and Ohio rejected federal money for train routes through their states. The goals for improving rail service on the 463-mile corridor from Niagara Falls International Railway Station to Penn Station in New York City 322 miles of it west of the Albany-Rensselaer Station call for improving on-time performance to at least 90%, reducing travel time, increasing frequency of service and minimizing interference with freight rail, since CSX, alone, owns more than half of the Empire Corridor. Existing inadequate infrastructure to support rail operations limits Empire Corridor service, the report said, contributing to trains that operate between Albany and Buffalo being late 52% of the time, with an average late time of almost 28 minutes. Stephanie Clark, a Rochester transplant who frequently takes Amtrak to Buffalo to visit family members, said her experience is usually a good one, but there is room for improvement. There are some times where friends and family come to visit and the train stalls or we have major delays, Clark said Sunday at the Buffalo Exchange Station, where she was returning home with two children and a grandchild. Alternative 9B calls for the installation of 370 miles of track, upgrades to 17 grade crossings and warning systems, a new signal system and 74 undergrade bridges. Significantly, the plan calls for a new dedicated third passenger track between Buffalo and Schenectady that would allow Amtrak to get around freight trains, a significant source of delays. There would also be a fourth track in limited locations. While the maximum speed from Albany to Niagara Falls would be 90 mph, the average speed would be to 61 mph, 17% faster than current speeds. It would shave 90 minutes off the current timeline. We call it higher-speed rail, internally, said Janet Ho, DOT assistant commissioner for finance and integrated modal systems. The public perception of high-speed rail is what you see in other countries, and coming out of the EIS, you can just see there are a large number of hurdles in New York State to get us there at that level. Reliability is key for people, and I think we recognize that and understand that, she said. The plan envisions doubling the number of daily round trips to Albany to eight, with four round trips added between Albany and New York City. The study projected a capital cost of $5.97 billion and a ridership increase of 2.6 million passengers in 2035, a gain of 1 million annually if the current system is not updated. Both estimates used 2017 data and are being revisited. The plan was also estimated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 33,000 metric tons per year. Higher speeds Two alternatives called for higher speeds, but brought their own share of challenges and costs. One would allow a maximum speed of 110 mph, but still averaged 63 mph. Unlike Alternative 90B, which would have land use impacts in nine areas in six counties, Alternative 110 would require acquiring land in 53 areas in eight counties. The project cost was $6.7 billion. For Alternative 125, which would allow trains to go 125 mph, 2,000 to 3,000 acres in 12 counties would have to be acquired to construct the sealed high-speed rail corridor, disrupting wetlands, potentially tribal lands and bisecting and isolating sections of prime farmland and farmlands of state significance. Another major hurdle: CSX requires trains going 125 mph to operate 30 feet from freight track. The total project cost for high-speed rail, in 2017 dollars, was $15.7 billion, more than double the cost of the nearest alternative. Alternative 125, which was projected to boost ridership to some 4.3 million passengers and provide 19 daily roundtrips between Buffalo and Albany, received the most favorable public comments. CSX, shippers and companies relying on freight rail overwhelmingly favored no changes to the current system. The selection of Alternative 90B balances the preferences of these different constituencies, the report said. Changing the sequence The study calls for starting the rail improvements downstate, with 10 years elapsing before work would begin west of Albany. It would take another 15 years, the study said, to complete track and other improvements in Buffalo and Niagara Falls. But with billions of federal infrastructure dollars available this year and the next two years, the state DOT may alter the sequence of work to tap into the potential funding. Because it took so long to complete the study, the Federal Railway Administration is requiring some of the projections from 2017 to be updated. The DOT is using a $500,000 federal grant to update the studys Service Development Plan, which also provided the timeline for proposed improvements across the entire state, project by project. That has contributed to the idea in DOT, Ho said, of seeking money for whatever projects are ready to go, regardless of the geographical sequence the report suggested. That put us in a really good place to figure out what we think that universe of rail projects looks like, Ho said. Doing projects across the state, rather than in order, would be a welcome and significant development, Becker said. I am very encouraged that they are looking at it in a more pragmatic matter, he said, as opposed to starting at New York City and ending up in Western New York. Not in the queue A former planner for the City of Niagara Falls isnt pleased with the states readiness. DOT dropped the ball by not being better prepared to take advantage of the spigot of money now flowing from the federal government, said Thomas DeSantis, who led the planning for the Niagara Falls Station and is a board member of Citizens For Regional Transportation. The transportation department should have identified a dozen or more projects in different locations years ago, he said, and had them in the queue, ready to go. It would have provided hope for the general public that this isnt some kind of crazy pipe dream that will never get implemented because the timelines are too long, the budgets are too big and the political will may not be there, DeSantis said. He would like to see DOT work with regional metropolitan planning agencies on rail projects they want to advance. Im disgusted because a lot of work went into this, starting 20 years ago, DeSantis said. There was an environmental impact statement undertaken by the state to implement the plan at great cost, but never completed for 12 years. Are we expected to wait another 15 years to start projects west of Albany? Its time to do it, he said. The plan is there and the money can be there, so we need to actually start now. Ridership levels up Train ridership across upstate New York has rebounded since the pandemic. Empire Service ridership was 72,600 more from October 2023 to April 2024 than over the same period from 2018 to 2019, prior to the spread of Covid-19. While we are looking forward to future improvements, Becker said, we shouldnt overlook the fact that ridership continues to grow. An Air Force C-130J Super Hercules drops pallets of water drums near Yeoju city, South Korea, during a training exercise, June 25, 2024. (Ericka McCammon/U.S. Air Force) CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea Four U.S. Air Force and one South Korean air force C-130J Super Hercules airlifters flew over the Korean Peninsula for the first five-transport aircraft sortie last month, according to an Air Force news release. The U.S. C-130Js assigned to the 36th Airlift Squadron, 374th Airlift Wing at Yokota Air Base, Japan, flew to Gimhae Air Base on the southeastern coast of South Korea to load containers for a mass airdrop training mission June 25, according to the Air Force on July 1. The cargo consisted of 600-pound water drums to simulate real-time cargo airdrops, 7th Air Force Maj. Rachel Buitrago said by phone Monday. Photos taken by the Air Force showed airmen and South Korean combat controllers providing guidance for the aircraft at the drop zone near Yeoju city, roughly 40 miles southeast of Seoul. The training was to build interoperability with the [South Korean] air force, 36th Airlift Squadron chief of theater engagement Capt. Timothy Kim said in the release. Interoperability is a term used by the U.S. military to describe the ability of one nations military to use anothers training methods and equipment. There are challenges to overcome, from organizational culture to language barriers, Air Force Capt. Heejoong Kim said in the release. These barriers can only be solved by working together and understanding each other better, enabling us to operate and execute missions effectively and efficiently as combined forces through partnership. The 36th Airlift Squadron last year worked with the South Korean air force to deliver humanitarian aid to Micronesian Islanders during Operation Christmas Drop, a massive airdrop exercise using transport aircraft from the U.S., South Korea, Japan and Canada, according to the release. The C-130J is used by the Air Force to transport oversized equipment, such as large pallets, helicopters and armored vehicles. The aircraft can airdrop up to 42,000 pounds and its four Rolls-Royce engines can bring it to a top speed of roughly 410 miles per hour. An Air Force AC-130J Ghostrider, the gunship variant of the C-130 platform, assigned to the 4th Special Operations Squadron out of Hurlburt Field, Fla., flew to Osan Air Base in South Korea for aerial drills and gunnery training last month. Georgian soldiers scan their sectors of fire during exercise Noble Partner at Vaziani Training Area, Georgia, in 2022. The Pentagon has canceled the U.S. Armys largest exercise in Georgia over concerns that the country is involved in an anti-American misinformation campaign. (Victor Everhart/U.S. Army) The Pentagon canceled a major U.S. Army exercise that was slated to begin later this month in the country of Georgia, amid accusations that Tbilisi waged an anti-American misinformation campaign. U.S. Army Europe and Africas two-week Noble Partner drill was scheduled to kick off July 25. The exercise, which in previous years involved several thousand troops from numerous countries, was held at a former Soviet air base on the outskirts of Tbilisi, the capital. This is an inappropriate time to hold a large-scale military exercise in Georgia, the Defense Department said in a statement Friday. The decision came in the wake of a comprehensive review of relations that was launched in May in the wake of inflammatory statements by Georgian officials that the U.S. rejected as untrue. Georgia falsely claimed that the U.S. and other Western entities were attempting to pressure the country to open a second front in the Russia-Ukraine war and that they had participated in two coup attempts against the ruling party, the Pentagon statement said. Relations with Georgia are now at a low point, with Washington and others in the West accusing the countrys government of moving in an authoritarian direction and closer to Russia. Thousands of Georgians took to the streets in May to protest the legislatures passage of a bill that has been criticized as an attempt to stifle dissent. The legislation is modeled on a Russian counterpart dubbed the foreign agent law. The situation marks a sharp turn for Georgia, which for years aspired to NATO membership and more integration with the European Union. Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili remains committed to the pro-West orientation and vetoed the controversial legislation, but lawmakers in the ruling Georgian Dream party overrode her veto and got the bill passed. Before its shift toward Russia on the heels of the downfall of pro-Western President Mikheil Saakashvili, the country held the United States in especially high regard. In 2008, when former U.S. President George W. Bush pushed for Georgia to become a member of NATO, not all allies were in favor of the idea. But in a show of gratitude for his advocacy, a stretch of highway in Tbilisi was named after him. And after the countrys brief 2008 war with Russia, the U.S. military maintained especially close ties to the Georgian Defense Force, which played a big role in Afghanistan despite the countrys small population. Sailors move planes across the flight deck aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, July 4, 2024, in the South China Sea. Roosevelt and its escort ships are making their way to the Middle East, where U.S. and partner forces recently shot down four drones launched by Houthi militants, according to U.S. Central Command. (Ryan Holloway/U.S. Navy) American forces and their partners in the Middle East destroyed four aerial drones launched by Houthi militants in Yemen over the weekend, ahead of the arrival of the latest Navy carrier strike group in the region. Two of the drones were destroyed in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, CENTCOM said in a statement Sunday. The other two drones were shot down by unspecified partner forces over the Gulf of Aden, according to the statement. Since June 30, the U.S. also has destroyed seven Houthi surface drones in the Red Sea and four of the Iran-backed militant groups radar sites in Yemen. The U.S. is leading a coalition to defend commercial shipping in the Red Sea from Houthi attacks. Last month, the Pentagon announced that the Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group would be on duty in the Red Sea following the departure of the aircraft carrier USS Dwight D. Eisenhower and its escorts on June 22. Roosevelt last was in the Indo-Pacific region participating in an exercise with Japan and South Korea. The three-day exercise ended June 29, and Roosevelt was expected to depart for the Middle East shortly afterward, according to the Pentagon. The Roosevelt group includes the destroyers USS Halsey, USS Russell and USS Daniel K. Inouye. It was unclear Monday when the strike group was expected to arrive in the region. Meanwhile, Eisenhower is transiting the Atlantic Ocean along with the destroyer USS Gravely and cruiser USS Philippine Sea. The ships are returning to the U.S. after a nearly nine-month deployment that saw the carrier group protecting ships in the Red Sea, Bab-el-Mandeb and the Gulf of Aden. Eisenhowers departure leaves the Wasp Amphibious Ready Group on duty in the Mediterranean Sea. USS Hershel Woody Williams enters the port at Libreville, Gabon, on May 5, 2024. The ship ran aground near the port four days later. On July 8, the Navy relieved Gold crew commander Capt. Lenard Mitchell in connection with the grounding. (Alison Bath/Stars and Stripes) NAPLES, Italy The Navy has relieved a commanding officer with more than 30 years of service in connection with his ship running aground in May as it attempted to leave a port in Africa. Capt. Lenard Mitchell, Gold crew commander of the expeditionary sea base USS Hershel Woody Williams, was relieved by Vice Adm. Thomas Ishee due to a lack of confidence in his ability to command, U.S. Naval Forces Europe-Africa/U.S. 6th Fleet said in a statement Monday. The Navy did not say exactly when Mitchell was removed but said sufficient evidence emerged during its investigation into the soft grounding that warranted relieving him of command. The investigation is ongoing, according to the statement. Woody Williams grounded at about 1 p.m. on May 9 as it was leaving the port of Libreville, Gabon, to take part in the Obangame Express exercise in the Gulf of Guinea. There were no injuries or major damage, and the ship eventually broke free at high tide about four hours later. But the ship languished outside the port for more than a week waiting for an inspection before eventually getting underway. The ship wasnt able to participate in the exercise as planned. Woody Williams is one of the few U.S. naval ships with missions primarily in Africa, where rivals China and Russia have made their own inroads. The ship plays a part in broader U.S. government efforts to build partnerships in a region America considers vital to its national security interests. Capt. Lenard Mitchell, Gold crew commander of the expeditionary sea base USS Hershel Woody Williams, speaks during a change of command ceremony in the hangar bay while deployed to Namibia, Nov. 25, 2022. Mitchell was relieved of command in connection to the grounding of the ship off the coast of Gabon in May, the Navy announced Monday. (Conner Blake/U.S. Navy) Capt. Lenard Mitchell, Gold crew commander of the expeditionary sea base USS Hershel Woody Williams, in an official photo on Nov. 28, 2022. Mitchell was relieved of command in connection to the grounding of the ship off the coast of Gabon in May, the Navy announced Monday. (Ryan Seelbach/U.S. Navy) Mitchell of Canton, Miss., enlisted in the Navy in 1990. His previous assignments include executive officer and later commanding officer of the littoral combat ship USS Little Rock. He was named commanding officer of Williams Gold crew in November 2022. In May, Mitchell told Stars and Stripes the current deployment would be his last as he planned to retire. Mitchell has been temporarily assigned to Commander, Naval Surface Forces Atlantic. Capt. Michael Concannon will assume duties as interim commanding officer, the Navy said. Woody Williams is deployed to the U.S. Naval Forces Africa. Its homeport is at Naval Support Activity Souda Bay on the Greek island of Crete. The ship operates with a hybrid crew of 100 sailors who manage flight and other operations, and 50 civilian mariners responsible for navigation and maintenance. To sustain its presence, Woody Williams is manned by two separate crews, dubbed Blue and Gold, which rotate five-month deployments. An SUV carrying Japanese soldiers in Hawaii for the Rim of the Pacific exercise was involved in a fatal collision with a motorcycle last week on Kauai, according to Japanese and U.S. officials. (Lance Cpl. Andrew Cortez/U.S. Marine Corps) An SUV carrying Japanese soldiers in Hawaii for the Rim of the Pacific exercise was involved in a fatal collision with a motorcycle last week on Kauai, according to Japanese and U.S. officials. The motorcyclist, a 44-year-old man from Kauai, was killed Thursday when he collided with a rented SUV carrying three members of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, according to the Kauai Police Department and the Self-Defense Force. One SUV occupant was injured and treated at the scene, according a police news release Friday. Speed appears to be a suspected factor in the crash, however, the investigation remains ongoing, the police said. The westbound 2021 Dodge SUV was turning left on Kaumualii Highway, Kekaha, when it collided with the eastbound motorcycle, according to police. The accident occurred outside the Pacific Missile Test Range at Barking Sands, Navy Lt. Cmdr. Rob Reinheimer told Stars and Stripes on Monday by phone. The three are participating in RIMPAC with the 7th Surface-to-Ship Guided Missile Regiment, based on Camp Katsuren, Okinawa, according to a Self-Defense Force news release Friday. We are deeply saddened by this tragic event, and our thoughts and prayers are with the loved ones of the deceased, Reinheimer said via email. We are cooperating with local officials throughout the investigation. Reinheimer declined further comment, citing privacy concerns and the ongoing investigation by Kauai police. Kauai police could not be reached by phone or email Monday morning for comment. The highway was closed for approximately 2 hours while police investigated the scene, according to the release. This is Kauais fifth fatal accident this year, it states. RIMPAC, a biennial exercise in Hawaii touted by the U.S. Navy as the largest in the Pacific, this year runs through Aug. 8 and includes 29 countries, including Japan. The exercise focuses on developing relationships between countries and improving their ability to work together during disasters or warfare. Customs authorities have seized 13 small craft vessels associated with illegally transporting Chinese citizens to Guam since 2022. (Guam Customs and Quarantine Agency) Two Chinese citizens will serve time in jail for attempting to illegally transport a group of 14 people from Saipan to Guam in 2023, the U.S. attorney for Guam announced Friday. ChangCai Dong, 61, and YongBing Tang, 54, were each sentenced July 2 to 30 days in jail, a year of supervised release and a $100 fine. Both will be required to return to China once their sentence is served, the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Districts of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands said in a news release Friday. The two were among 12 Chinese and two U.S. boaters rescued by the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard after their boat ran out of fuel near Rota in July 2023. The group was attempting an illegal transit between Saipan and Guam, according to the release. Their boat, overloaded and poorly equipped for rough seas, ran out of fuel near the island of Rota and drifted for more than 14 hours before the crew radioed a distress call, the U.S. attorneys office said in the release. Saipan, about 80 miles northeast of Rota and 140 miles northeast of Guam, provides visa waivers that permit Chinese citizens to stay up to two weeks and citizens of other countries to stay up to 45 days. U.S. Attorney Shawn Anderson in the news release called the case an abuse of the visa waiver program that creates substantial risk to those involved in these voyages and their rescuers. Our federal and local partners will continue to target unlawful travel between the [Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands] and Guam, he said in the release. Carmela Rapadas, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorneys office, acknowledged Stars and Stripes request Monday for additional information but had not responded that afternoon. The two defendants are at least the fourth and fifth Chinese citizens to be convicted on charges of conspiracy to transport illegal aliens this year, according to the U.S. attorney for Guams website. In another case, Donglin Xu , 49, and Qinglang Li, 52, were sentenced on May 31 to 12 months and eight months imprisonment, respectively, along with one year of supervised release, 50 hours of community service and a $100 fine. The two attempted to bring another 12 Chinese citizens from Saipan to Guam for approximately $5,000 a person. All 14 were convicted, sentenced and ordered to return to China on the same charges, but Xu and Li were given stronger sentences for profiting from and having leadership roles in the scheme, the U.S. attorneys office said in a June 5 news release. Chinese citizens in Saipan under the visa waiver program may attempt to enter Guam in search of work, U.S. Homeland Security and Guam officials told Stars and Stripes in February. The problem is further complicated by differing policies, with federal agencies and territorial agencies, such as Guam or the Northern Marianas, having different procedures and jurisdictions. The Naha District Court building in Naha, Okinawa, on Jan. 30, 2024. (Mari Higa/Stars and Stripes) CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa The U.S. military has yet to announce new restrictions on troops stationed in Japan despite calls from local authorities after two service members were indicted for alleged sexual crimes on Okinawa. There is currently no update right now in terms of any changes to liberty policy at the moment, Gunnery Sgt. Jonathan Wright, spokesman for U.S. Forces Japan, told Stars and Stripes by phone Monday. Tensions have escalated on Okinawa, where the U.S. military stations approximately 30,000 service members, more than 50% of its troops in Japan, following disclosures in late June of the two indictments by the Naha Public Prosecutors Office. The commanding generals of Okinawa-based III Marine Expeditionary Force and Marine Corps Installations Pacific directed their commanders to reinforce their expectations of standards and conduct across the force, III MEF spokesman 1st Lt. Owen Hitchcock said by email Monday. We take seriously the recent incidents involving U.S. service members stationed in Okinawa and are fully cooperating with local authorities throughout the course of each case, Hitchcock wrote. We provide every member of our force regular education and training throughout their careers to ensure service members follow local laws and U.S. military regulations. We will work closely with our Japanese allies to ensure U.S. personnel maintain the highest standards of behavior and conduct in support of our mutual security. In the first indictment, an Air Force member assigned to Kadena Air Base, Brennon R. E. Washington, 25, was charged March 27 with kidnapping and sexually assaulting a minor in December. The second indictment, June 17, was disclosed earlier this month and charged Marine Lance Cpl. Jamel Clayton, 21, with attempting to sexually assault a woman May 26 in Yomitan village. The cases were not disclosed to the Okinawan government until court dates were scheduled, prompting protests from Gov. Denny Tamaki and other Okinawan officials. A special committee of Okinawan legislators drafted a protest letter to U.S. authorities Thursday urging the U.S. government to take measures to prevent further incidents, including revising the status of forces agreement. Japans Defense Minister Minoru Kihara on June 28 said his office asked U.S. authorities to enforce discipline and take measures to prevent another incident. We think that the important thing is that the U.S. side considers and applies a concrete preventive measure. And wed like to prevent any crimes or accidents, cooperating with the U.S. side, Kihara said. Japans investigative authorities have begun sharing information about cases with Okinawa prefecture as much as possible, Japans Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi announced at a press conference Friday. Under the new system, authorities will share information with the Foreign Affairs Ministry once investigations are concluded, and the ministry will share this information with the local government through the Ministry of Defense, if the investigative authorities find that the crime was committed by the suspect, Hayashi said. U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel met with Japans Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Masataka Okano on Friday and reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to cooperate with local authorities in support of the investigations. It is clear the protections we have in place are insufficient, Emanuel said in the release. We are not meeting the standards we set for ourselves and the standards that we hold for the community. We need to do better and fix this fast. A 1995 case in which a 12-year-old girl was sexually assaulted by three U.S. service members on Okinawa led to a 1996 agreement between the U.S. and Japan to move Marine Corps Air Station Futenma in Ginowan city to Camp Schwab in the Henoko region in the north of the island. However, continued protests and disapprovals from Tamakis government repeatedly delayed construction on the project. The work resumed in January, but movement of quarried material was halted early this month after a truck hit and killed a security guard and injured a protester at the port of Awa. KHARKIV REGION, Ukraine Ukrainian attacks on Russian supply lines have left Russian units scrambling for food, water and ammunition, blunting Moscows renewed invasion into Ukraines northeast Kharkiv region, according to Ukrainian field commanders who shared radio and phone intercepts and results of their interrogations of Russian prisoners of war. The intercepts and extensive interviews with 10 Ukrainian commanders and troops operating across the front line in Kharkiv including several who monitor Russian communications and who question POWs immediately after they are captured paint a picture of increasingly desperate Russian ground troops who are losing personnel and momentum after reinvading across the border in May. In the transcript of one radio conversation, intercepted in June and shared with The Washington Post, a Russian soldier orders another to ensure incoming troops responsible for carrying supplies understand that there is a dire shortage of food and water. Tell each of them not to listen to the [expletive] guide who says that Water is not needed, food is not needed, everything is here, the soldier says. There is nothing here. Andrii Shcherbyna, 42, and Oleh Kushnerov, 36, sit on the bed of their truck after returning from a mission near Vovchansk on June 27. (Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post) *** A conversation between three Russian soldiers using code names or call signs Comrade, Varyag and Ahmed: Soldier 2: Varyag, can he hear? Can he hear me now? Comrade, Comrade, can he hear me? Can he hear me now? Soldier 3: Ahmed is on the receiving end. Soldier 1: Ahmed, Ahmed, prepare the third, small household for tomorrow. Ahmed, same principle as the last two. [Expletive] tell every [expletive] one of them, tell every [expletive] one of them, dont [expletive] listen to the [expletive] guide, the [expletive] who says, [expletive] dont need any [expletive] water, [expletive] , dont need any [expletive] food [expletive], its all [expletive] there. Theres [expletive] nothing here. Give that to them, please, for [expletive] sake. If someone [expletive] comes to me tomorrow and says the guide said Id give [food and water] to them, just [expletive] punch them in the [expletive] face. Soldier 3: Yes, I did. I personally supervised today about the water and the food. They lose it out there. They throw it away on the way. I dont give a [expletive]. Radio communication in Russian intercepted by Ukrainian troops; translation by The Washington Post *** The Post could not independently confirm the veracity of the audio and transcripts but received them directly from troops monitoring the communications. Nearly all of the Ukrainian soldiers interviewed for this article spoke on the condition that they be identified only by first name, in accordance with military rules. Russias military, which far outnumbers Ukraines, remains at a strong advantage in the region, supported by hundreds of enormous glide bombs smashing weekly into Ukrainian positions across the front line. But Ukrainian troops have largely prevented major Russian territorial gains. According to British intelligence analysts, Russia in May suffered its highest number of daily casualties since the invasion began in February 2022, with at least 1,200 Russian troops killed or wounded each day. The steep losses and degraded condition of Russian units on the front show how Moscows invasion of Ukraine has resulted in a grinding war of attrition with major territorial shifts unlikely between now and November when the Kremlin sees a chance that a Donald Trump victory in the U.S. presidential election could lead to a reduction in Western military aid for Ukraine. In the Kharkiv region, Russian forces initially appeared poised to overrun the poorly fortified border region. Russian President Vladimir Putin said that his goal was to create a buffer zone that would limit Ukrainian strikes on cities and towns in Russia. That also could have put the Russians within artillery range of Kharkiv, Ukraines second largest city, potentially allowing them to encircle it. But Ukraines defenses were buoyed in part by a White House decision to allow certain U.S. weapons to be used to strike inside Russia. The Ukrainians used American weapons to hit Russian air defenses, forcing the Russians to pull back some batteries. The Ukrainians also carried out coordinated attacks on Russian supply routes using drones and artillery. The intercepted communications shared with The Post show that Russia now faces significant difficulty securing sufficient supply routes to serve the basic needs of its troops. In one communication, a Russian soldier speaks to his parents, telling them he is positioned near the Ukrainian village of Lyptsi, where his unit lost several men and ran out of food. We had nothing to eat, but we found a jar of wine and drank it for two days, the soldier said on the call, which Ukrainian troops recorded. *** A Russian soldier in the Kharkiv region of Ukraine speaking to his parents and referencing 300 a code for wounded soldiers: We are at the front line. Im calling you to say hello from Ukraine. Im still alive. Its very hot here in every sense: in terms of weather and situation. If my dad can hear me its the reservoir, Lyptsi. Im in some village; there are even five-story buildings here, though theyre all in shambles. We had nothing to eat, but we found a jar of wine and drank it for two days. Yesterday, we pulled out two of our 300s. Telephone call in Russian intercepted by Ukrainian troops; translation by The Washington Post *** Another communication suggested troops were unwilling to move forward. I am without orders, one soldier says, describing troops who are refusing. The intercepts, along with drone footage, provide critical intelligence as Ukrainian forces, outnumbered and outgunned, plan their next moves and assess the impact of their attacks. Despite being stopped well short of encircling Kharkiv city, Russias objectives seem not to have changed, with Moscows forces still focused on seizing the village of Lyptsi, an important logistical hub that would also allow them to use hilltops for firing advantage, officials said. Col. Maksym Golubok, chief of staff for the 13th Brigade of the National Guard of Ukraine, on June 28. (Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post) Col. Maksym Golubok, 42, chief of staff of Ukraines 13th National Guard Brigade, said that since Washington lifted restrictions on hitting targets across the border, Russia has stopped massing large groups of troops in the border area and has moved some artillery systems away to protect them. They dont gather people in one place. They operate in small units, Golubok said in an interview. We eliminate one soldier at a time, not entire units. Still, relentless glide bombs pose the greatest threat to Ukrainian troops. Between early May and late June, Golubok said, more than 660 bombs hit his brigades positions in the Kharkiv region. Dmytro, 29, a Ukrainian soldier responsible for monitoring Russian communications, said that Russian soldiers previously used motorcycles and buggies for supply runs. But after Ukraine, using drones, mined roads and hit supply vehicles, Russian soldiers are moving mainly on foot. Ukrainian troops are also delivering supplies on risky ground missions, as well as by air using agricultural drones that carry heavier payloads. Andrii shows a photo of the Russian radio he found on a dead soldier. (Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post) *** Soldier 1: Handsome, Handsome, Im Said, over. Soldier 2: Handsome is on the line. Soldier 1: Handsome, youve got gifts coming in today. Are gifts flowing in? Soldier 2: When, when? Soldier 1: Today, this morning. Soldier 2: I got [expletive] of guests, just like yesterday, and theyre all empty. I didnt get an [expletive] present today. Yesterday, Koba brought me one backpack, and there was some small stuff in there too, and again some [expletive] rusty [expletive] ammo. Radio communication in Russian intercepted by Ukrainian troops; translation by The Washington Post *** Andrii, 37, an infantry soldier in Ukraines 13th Brigade of the National Guard. (Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post) Due to constant Ukrainian surveillance, Russian troops are moving in short bursts, taking cover frequently, Dmytro said, so a five-mile journey for food and water could take three days or longer. If we disrupt the routes they use for food and supplies, we wont need to go on assault theyll just leave the positions, he said, speaking from a different underground command center north of Kharkiv where wall-mounted screens showed live birds eye views of Russian positions. Andrii Shcherbyna, 42, a soldier in Ukraines 57th brigade, said that while on front-line missions, he drinks two to three liters of water a day. From intercepts, Shcherbyna said he understood Russian troops are rationing water, drinking just 250 milliliters each. Our main target is not let the Russians establish supply routes, he said. If you cut water and food, theyre in a very bad condition. Some Russian soldiers are now holed up in a factory in Vovchansk, a town Russia invaded in May where street battles continue to occur, Ukrainian officials said. In June, Ukraine cut off supplies by surrounding the factory, which is the tallest building in the area and fortified by thick walls. *** Soldier 1: Roger, roger. Soldier 2: Said, Said, look, rusty [expletive] ammo. ... These are backpacks, intended for Koschei. And the ones that go to Handsome are purely provisions; there wasnt a single ammo in them. How did you take it? Soldier 1: Kuban, I took you in, I took you in. They [expletive] got mixed up, and Krasavchik got [expletive] ammunition. Soldier 2: Just total, as I understand it. I packed them. There were four backpacks with ammo; if two popped, two more popped, so the rest of the backpacks were already without ammo. Radio communication in Russian intercepted by Ukrainian troops; translation by The Washington Post *** Despite initial plans to flood the area with reinforcements, Russia has been unable to reach the factory, Ukrainian troops said. Storming it would be difficult, so Ukrainian troops focus on blocking supply routes. Vitalii, 23, one of the Ukrainian troops working in intense 24-hour shifts monitoring the factory from a destroyed civilian house nearby, said there could be anywhere from dozens to more than 100 Russian soldiers inside. Our responsibility is to control the road to cut off supply, Vitalii said. Vitalii, 23, and Roman, 35, soldiers in Ukraines 57th brigade, stand near a lake in Kharkiv region during a day off. (Serhiy Morgunov for The Washington Post) Russia has also tried often unsuccessfully to deliver supplies by drone, Vitalii said. Each journey to and from Vitaliis position could be his last. To get there, Ukrainian soldiers leave their vehicles some distance away, then move on foot for hours under intense attack. Knowing they have trapped Russian troops inside is worth it, said another soldier, Roman, 35. I dont think they thought theyd be in this position, Roman said. Intercepted information is so valuable that Ukrainian troops risk their lives to collect it. Andrii, 37, an infantry soldier who has spent weeks fighting on the most intense front lines, said he knew from such intelligence gathering that Russia had a lot of injured and they had problems with food and water. They asked for resupply, but vehicles could not reach them, Andrii said. *** A Russian soldier in the Kharkiv region speaking to a woman, apparently his wife: Im fine for now, I dont know what will happen next. They said we would go another kilometer further, but I dont know when we will go, first of all, and secondly, everything was mined this morning. I dont know what it will look like! I havent reached my place yet. I dont have a place now. I just came to my old position to get my first aid kit, and then Ill return. Radio communication in Russian intercepted by Ukrainian troops; translation by The Washington Post *** Last month, after a street gun battle in Vovchansk, Andrii said he collected a green radio off the chest of a dead Russian soldier the first time in two years of fighting that he found such a prize. Back at the destroyed civilian house where he was based, Andrii hung the radio on the wall. It was so loud that he spent 30 minutes trying to lower the volume so he could monitor Russian operations without giving away his own position with the noise. Then, for 12 hours, he listened as troops relayed their positions and plans. He reported the details to his own commanders, until the line went dead. The information helped thwart a planned Russian attack, Andrii said. Ukrainian troops were waiting for them, he said. If youre informed, youre ready. On a more personal level, listening to frantic Russian voices also boosted Andriis spirits. It helped a lot to hear theyre panicking and in fear, he said. I could hear their fear, and it inspired me, because were also scared. In this article, The Washington Post used [expletive] where profanity appears instead of its usual style because the profanity in Russian does not always directly translate into English. An Israeli activist wears a mask depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as thousands demonstrate against the government in Tel Aviv on July 6, 2024. (Heidi Levine for The Washington Post) Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu injected new uncertainty into cease-fire negotiations late Sunday, insisting that Israel should be able to resume fighting as part of any deal accepted by negotiators. The statement, issued at a crunch moment for talks, appeared to raise the bar for what Israel would accept in a deal and further tempered any lingering expectations of an imminent peace. Netanyahu stipulated that any deal will allow Israel to resume fighting until all of the objectives of the war have been achieved. A statement issued by his office suggested that the prime minister would be unwilling to fully commit to a permanent cease-fire until the complete elimination of Hamas in Gaza something he has repeatedly described as a key aim of the war, alongside the release of the hostages and the ensuring of Israels security. Netanyahus office also said that any deal would need to prevent the smuggling of weapons from Egypt into the Gaza and maximize the number of living hostages released by Hamas rather than the return of all the hostages. The statement was criticized by Netanyahus domestic political opponents as well as Israeli demonstrators campaigning for a hostage-release deal. On Sunday, opposition leader Yair Lapid condemned Netanyahus statement as provocative messages, while protesters in Tel Aviv accused the Israeli prime minister of stymying peace talks with the new conditions. With his irresponsible statement, Netanyahu once again proved himself to be the one who obstructed [the deal], said Einav Zangauker, a mother of one of the hostages, who suspended herself in a cage above the demonstration in Tel Aviv in protest. The statement comes as the United States, Egypt and Qatar continue attempts to broker a cease-fire and hostage release deal. In May, President Biden outlined a three-phase plan that includes a six-week initial stage with a cease-fire and a surge in humanitarian aid, forming the basis of the current round of talks. CIA Director William J. Burns, a key U.S. participant in past cease-fire negotiations, is returning to the Middle East this week as the Biden administration seeks to nudge the process forward, according to a Middle East government official familiar with the arrangements. Burns will arrive in Cairo on Tuesday and will travel onward to Qatar for meetings with Israeli, Qatari and Egyptian officials and intelligence counterparts on Wednesday, said the official, who requested anonymity in discussing ongoing negotiations. The CIA declined to comment on Burnss travel. On Monday, Israeli media reported that an Israeli delegation led by intelligence chief Ronen Bar would continue negotiations in Egypt. Last week, Israel and Hamas resumed indirect talks in Doha, Qatar, sparking muted optimism after weeks of back-and-forth. According to a person familiar with the negotiations, one of the new sticking points is the transition from the first to the second phase of the proposed framework agreement. As talks sputtered, Israels military said it was continuing operations in the Gaza Strip. The Israel Defense Forces announced Monday that troops have begun an operation in Gaza City, including in the area of the headquarters of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) that aids Palestinian refugees. The IDF said intelligence indicated the presence of Hamas terrorist infrastructure, operatives, weapons, and investigation and detention rooms in areas of the city. Juliette Touma, an UNRWA spokeswoman, said she had no information on operations at the headquarters, which the agencys staff evacuated in October. It has since been used by displaced Palestinians seeking shelter, as well as by the IDF as a base of operations, she said. Heres what else to know Israeli forces said they struck multiple Hezbollah military targets across southern Lebanon. In a statement Monday, the Israel Defense Forces said its fighter jets hit a weapons storage facility and other targets on Lebanese territory and fired artillery to remove a threat in other parts of the countrys south. At least 38,193 people have been killed and 87,903 injured in Gaza since the war started, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and combatants but says the majority of the dead are women and children. Israel estimates that about 1,200 people were killed in Hamass Oct. 7 attack, including more than 300 soldiers, and it says 323 soldiers have been killed since the start of its military operations in Gaza. Former president Donald Trump returns from a break during the first presidential debate of the 2024 elections on June 27. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post) Former president Donald Trumps campaign is aiming to announce his running mate by July 15, the first day of the Republican National Convention, according to people familiar with the situation, and internal discussions have largely centered on two finalists as he nears a decision. Trump has not communicated his choice, the people familiar with the situation said, but discussions inside the campaign have narrowed in on Sens. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum is also in the mix, and Trump, who has a habit of changing his mind, was privately discussing other names as recently as the last week, according to the people with knowledge of the situation. Like others interviewed for this story, the people spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe private talks. Trump has two rallies scheduled this upcoming week: One on Tuesday in Miami and the other on Saturday in Butler, Pa. Trump has publicly said he would name his vice-presidential pick at the convention. The nomination is expected to take place July 15 under convention protocol, according to two of the people with knowledge of the situation. The vice-presidential pick is slated to speak on July 17. The former presidents running mate choice is one of the most closely watched decisions of his campaign. Trump said in June that he had decided on his vice-presidential pick but hadnt told the person yet. The vice-presidential pick is a very personal thing for the president, said Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), a Trump ally. The vice presidents job is to basically support the presidents policies and be an advocate for what he wants. The Trump campaign previously requested vetting documents from at least eight potential candidates. In addition to Vance, Rubio and Burgum, the campaign requested documents from Sens. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Tom Cotton (R-Ark.); Reps. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) and Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and former secretary of Housing and Urban Development Ben Carson. Trumps decision carries major potential implications for governance and politics. Trump is 78 and would be term limited if he wins in November. He has been a dominant figure in the Republican Party for eight years with no clear successor. Its also unclear if a running mate would become that person: Trump broke with his first-term vice president, Mike Pence, over Pences refusal to try to overturn the 2020 election results. Doug Burgum is the choice if youre worried about governing, said Brad Todd, a Republican strategist. J.D. Vance is the candidate if you think youre going to win no matter what and youre trying to shape the party going forward. Marco Rubio is the candidate you pick if youre worried about winning the election. Talks about a running mate for Donald Trump have narrowed in on Sens. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.), above, and J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), but Trump was said to be recently discussing other candidates in private. (Kevin D. Liles/The Washington Post) The decision comes at a moment of flux in the presidential race, when President Bidens future has been cast into uncertainty after a widely panned debate performance in which he appeared to lose his train of thought several times. Biden has vowed to stay in the race but a growing number of Democrats have called on him to step aside and some in the party have embraced Vice President Harris as a potential alternative. As President Trump has said himself, the top criteria in selecting a Vice President is a strong leader who could make a great President, said Trump campaign senior adviser Brian Hughes in a statement. He added that only Trump knows who the pick will be and when it will be made. Several Trump allies have described Vance as a leading candidate, though Trump advisers have cautioned that the situation is more fluid. The 39-year-old Ohio Republicans allies argue that he would bring communication skills to the presidential ticket, noting that he is comfortable doing interviews both in conservative and mainstream media. They say he is closely ideologically aligned with Trump and point to his connection to tech world donors such as Peter Thiel and David Sacks, the latter of whom Vance worked with to organize a San Francisco fundraiser for Trump in June. Trump has publicly praised Vance and promoted the senators television appearances defending him. Vance has done very well on CNN and the Sunday morning news shows, one person familiar with the vice-presidential selection process said. He also has several supporters in the former presidents orbit including Donald Trump Jr. and Tucker Carlson, who has spoken to Trump about picking Vance, according to the person familiar with the process. His allies argue that he can connect with working class voters because of his own background growing up in a working class family, as well as donors given his celebrity fame from writing the memoir Hillbilly Elegy and his Yale Law School credentials. And they note hes a veteran, having served in the Marines before going to college. (He would be the first Marine veteran to serve as vice president.) J.D. Vance is the future of the Republican Party, said Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) Theres a great case to make him the running mate because whoever Donald Trump taps to be his vice president is immediately in contention to be president four years later which makes this decision a lot different than the decision he made in 2016. Yet some of Vances GOP critics have noted his previous criticism of Trump - he once wrote the former president was unfit for the White House - and say his experience in government is more limited than Rubios or Burgums, given that Vance was first elected to the Senate in 2022. Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) speaks during a news conference on border security at the U.S. Capitol in May. (Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post) Theyve also noted that while Vance won his race by six points against Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio), he ran behind Gov. Mike DeWine and faced criticism during his run that he did not campaign aggressively enough in the general election, though some Republicans attributed his relative difficulties to his inexperience and bruising primary. Some have also questioned what additional voters Vance would bring in beyond Trumps base. Since formally entering politics, Vance has displayed strong loyalty to Trump, whose endorsement played a key role in his Senate primary. Rubios allies argue that the Cuban American senator could help Trump make inroads with non-White voters; is telegenic; has valuable foreign policy experience; and is popular with some Republican donors. Trump sees Rubio as a good messenger for his agenda, according to people familiar with the presidents thinking. While Trump and Rubio clashed sharply during the 2016 GOP primary, with Trump nicknaming him Little Marco and Rubio calling the former president a con man, the two worked closely together while Trump was president, especially on U.S. foreign policy toward Latin American countries. One notable obstacle for Rubio is that he and Trump are Florida residents. Under the 12th Amendment to the Constitution, a Florida elector cant vote for the ticket if Trump and his running mate are both residents of the same state. Burgum has developed a close relationship with Trump since the GOP primary where he was largely a non-factor. Like Vance, Burgum traveled to New York during the former presidents hush money trial, in which Trump was convicted on charges of falsifying business records related to a payment to an adult-film actress. Burgum is also independently wealthy. As governor, Burgum signed one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the country, which Democrats plan to highlight if Trump picks him. Democrats are already attacking Trumps potential vice-presidential candidates more broadly and seeking to tie them closely to the top of the ticket, with the Democratic National Committee sending out regular emailed press releases about the Trump MAGA Veepstakes. Last month, Trump was asked in Pennsylvania if he had picked a vice-presidential candidate. In my mind, yeah, Trump replied, according to NBC News. He said he plans to announce his choice right around the convention. Maybe a little before, but could be at the convention, Trump said. Well have some great people. The New York State Police announced the arrest of the following individuals in connection with a month-long investigation led by the NYSP Community Stabilization Unit into the theft and resale of government-owned military equipment. (New York State Police) SYRACUSE, N.Y. Four people have been charged with stealing equipment from Central New York military bases and selling it on Facebook marketplace, the New York State Police said Monday. The equipment was shipped to at least five states, troopers said. One ballistic vest was being reshipped to Russia, they said. The investigation began after an account advertised the stolen equipment in a post on Facebook Marketplace last month, according to Trooper Jack Keller, a spokesperson for the State Police. The gear was not available to the general public, and some of it was sensitive in nature, he said. Investigators determined the account was created by James Waleski of Jamesville, according to Keller. He is a civilian working for the U.S. Defense Department at the 174th Air National Guard Attack Wing, which is based on the military side of Syracuse Hancock, International Airport. Waleski, 50, worked with two other people to steal the equipment, Keller said. They were identified as Gordon Reynolds, a military police officer; and Joriann Garcia-Hernandez, a unit supply specialist. Troopers recovered thousands of dollars of military equipment from New York, Texas, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Georgia and Florida, Keller said. They also got back a ballistic vest that was being reshipped to Russia. Tens of thousands of dollars in additional gear was found at Waleskis home, Keller said. It was stolen from the 174th Air National Guard Attack Wing and Army National Guard 27th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, both based in Syracuse, as well as the 272nd Army Military Police Detachment in Auburn. Waleski was charged with second-degree grand larceny and unlawful sale of body armor, as well as 11 counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He is being held in the Onondaga County Justice Center jail, records show. His bail was set at $20,000 cash or $100,000 bond. Waleskis wife, Jennifer Waleski, 40, was charged with third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. She appears to have been released from the county jail. Reynolds, 44, was charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of stolen property, and two counts of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon. He is being held in the Madison County Jail, records show. Garcia-Hernandez, 38, of Rome, was charged with petit larceny, a misdemeanor. 2024 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit syracuse.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. The Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters building as seen in Washington, D.C., on July 6, 2022. (Carlos Bongioanni/Stars and Stripes) WASHINGTON A Department of Veterans Affairs account with Microsoft was infiltrated earlier this year by Russian hackers, though the agency reported no personal information or other sensitive data of any veterans was accessed. Hackers gained access in January to Microsoft Azure Government, a cloud computing service that delivers servers, storage, databases, networking and software that the VA and other federal agencies use across the internet, according to the VA. After investigating the matter, we determined that no patient data was compromised, Terrence Hayes, the VA press secretary, said Monday. We are continuing to look into this matter with Microsoft to ensure that all veteran patient data remains protected and that we are not compromised in the future. Hayes said the VAs cloud account with Microsoft was accessed for just one second, presumably to see if the credentials worked. Microsoft said Monday that it is assisting with mitigation efforts after notifying customers whose account information might have been exposed in the breach. The company did not respond directly to the hack at the VA but said it has no evidence that Microsoft-hosted, customer-facing systems were compromised. Microsoft alerted the VA in March to the cybersecurity attack, which also included breaches at the Peace Corps and the U.S. Agency for Global Media, an independent news organization of the federal government that includes Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and Free Asia. These actions were determined to be part of the broader Midnight Blizzard compromise within the Microsoft corporate environment on or about January 2024, Hayes said. The company blamed a Russian state-sponsored group known as Midnight Blizzard, or Nobelium, for the attack. An investigation is underway by the Department of Homeland Security. Microsofts security team detected a nation-state attack on our corporate systems on Jan. 12, 2024, and immediately activated our response process to investigate, disrupt malicious activity, mitigate the attack and deny the threat actor further access, Microsoft said in a blog post published Jan. 19. The group initially targeted Microsoft corporate email accounts, including members of the senior leadership team, for information shared with the companys clients, according to Microsoft. The attack was not the result of a vulnerability in Microsoft products or services, Microsoft said. The blog post did not identify the VA or other Microsoft clients that were the target of the attacks. Microsoft said Midnight Blizzard engaged in what is known as a password spray attack to access accounts. A spray attack involves a repeated process of using simple, predictable passwords to access email accounts without the users knowledge or consent. VA credentials were used to access an agency testing environment for new web applications before they are released to users, the VA said. Veteran data is not part of the testing environment. VA found that Midnight Blizzard used a single set of stolen credentials to access a Microsoft cloud test environment around January, Hayes said. The VA has determined no additional credentials or sensitive email were taken, he said. Usernames and passwords to log in to cloud accounts were changed. VA changed the exposed credentials, along with log-in details across their Microsoft environments, Hayes said. Additionally, after reviewing the emails that the hackers accessed, the VA determined that no additional credentials or sensitive email were taken. The VA is working with Microsoft and authorities as the investigation continues, he said. Hayes said the attack was unrelated to another breach that the VA disclosed in April involving a commercial vendor that processes health care payments for the VA. That previous breach was a result of an attack that impacted much of the United States health care system, including potentially VA, he said. Change Healthcare, the nations largest payment processor for health care services, was the victim of a cyberattack by unidentified malicious actors, according to United HealthGroup, parent company of Change Healthcare. Fifteen million veterans were notified their private health care information could have been compromised in the attack, the VA disclosed at the time. OK, so Joe Biden lost the first debate. He couldnt keep up with Donald Trumps rampage of lies. Lets remember Barack Obama lost his first debate to Mitt Romney too. He was just too passive but came out firing big time during the second debate. Lets hope Biden does the same. In the big picture of things lets not lose sight of some of the egregious things Trump has done: ruined abortion health care, nixed the bipartisan border deal because it would make Biden look good, threatened pull out of NATO and invited Vladimir Putin to attack its members, opposed all gun control legislation in the face of a gun killing epidemic, encouraged physical revenge against his opposition, incited and supported the Jan. 6 storming of the Capitol, stole top secret nuclear information, etc. But the one that hit hardest home for me was his criticism of Gold Star families of which I am one. Trump, an obvious draft dodger coward, when invited to visit a war cemetery in France is supposed to have said, Why would I want to visit those suckers and losers. For me whose father died in the Normandy invasion fighting for the freedom that now Trump enjoys, and Im sure for other Gold Star families, he could not have made a more hurtful and despicable statement. Losing the first debate pales in comparison to these derelict transgressions. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that he left Ireland for a new job in Amsterdam days later and has since married and become a father Chakib Baddaoui was sentenced to two years in prison, with the second year suspended. Photo: Collins Courts A bank worker has been jailed for one year for attacking his then-partner in their home nine years ago. Chakib Baddaoui (40), a Dutch national, had pleaded guilty to assault causing harm on November 14, 2015 at the apartment they shared on Parnell Street in Dublin. Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that he left Ireland for a new job in Amsterdam days later and has since married and become a father. He travelled from Dubai for the sentencing and brought 10,000 to court in compensation. Judge Elva Duffy heard that Baddaoui and the injured party had not been in a relationship for long when they moved in together due to a difficulty with the womans accommodation. It was his first time to live with a partner. In the days leading up to the offence, the relationship had become strained, with Baddaoui asking her questions about men she had dated previously. That night, they argued from about 9pm until 3am or 4am, with Baddaoui hitting her sporadically in the head and body during that time. After Baddaoui fell asleep, the victim managed to text a friend and asked her to call her brother. When he woke up, the argument resumed, with Baddaoui kicking her in the ankle and shin. The womans brother arrived a couple of hours later with another man, who had a metal bar. The woman started crying and showed her brother her bruises. Her brother approached Baddaoui and said: I told you not to hurt my sister anymore. He told his sister to call the gardai and she did. She heard Baddaoui crying and saying not to call the gardai. She then took the metal bar and hit him with it three times before packing her belongings. When the gardai arrived, the second man was holding the accused down on the bed and the woman was advised to leave the apartment. She went to a garda station to make a statement six days later, by which time the accused had left his job in Dublin and moved to Amsterdam. A European Arrest Warrant was issued by the High Court. While living in Amsterdam, Baddaoui travelled to Spain on business. He was arrested entering the country on foot of the warrant and spent six weeks in custody there. He consented to return to Ireland in 2022 but was granted bail and has been living in Dubai with his Belarusian wife and their child. He has no previous convictions. The court heard that the injured party did not wish to make a victim-impact statement. Nicola Cox BL, defending, handed in a letter of apology from her client. She explained that he had worked in the banking sector in the IFSC, Dublin, but was due to leave to take up another job in Amsterdam at the time of the offence, and that had added to the stress on their relationship. She said he is currently the sole earner for his family, who had travelled from Dubai for the hearing. She handed in a letter of apology from his wife of four years, who was waiting outside court with their young child. Counsel said that he had brought 10,000 for the injured party, which a garda witness said would be of great assistance to her. Ms Cox described the offence as a very serious and grave error in judgment. She said that he was under significant pressure to take up the position in Amsterdam. She added that he was never in trouble before or since and that this was very out of character for him. She also noted that, as he is the sole earner for his family and his wife is from Belarus, her visa to remain in Dubai was through him. Nine years have passed, she said. Hes contributing to society. That nine years is due to his absconding, remarked the judge. Violence resumed the next morning, she added. He went to bed and didnt think better of his actions but got up the next morning and continued. Judge Duffy noted that gardai had made him aware on November 15 that they would be in touch. When they went looking for him on November 20, he had left his job and the jurisdiction, she said. The court heard that he had called to a garda station twice before he left, but that it might have been the wrong garda station. The judge noted that there would be a potential impact on his family were he to be taken into custody. She imposed a sentence of two years on him. The question is whether I can suspend it in full, she said. I find I cant. She suspended the final 12 months for two years and backdated it to take into account the six weeks he spent in custody in Spain. Baddaoui became emotional when the sentence was read out. His wife, who had entered the courtroom, also became emotional and covered her face. Im sorry, he said in her direction before leaving to begin his sentence. The decision of Judge James ODonohue in the Circuit Civil Court means that local authorities are not legally liable for such accidents providing they have not taken any action to repair their footpaths damaged by tree root intrusions. South Dublin County Council is not responsible for an accident in which a retired cleaner injured herself by tripping over the roots of a tree that had erupted onto a footpath and created a hazard for pedestrians, a judge ruled today. The decision of Judge James ODonohue in the Circuit Civil Court means that local authorities are not legally liable for such accidents providing they have not taken any action to repair their footpaths damaged by tree root intrusions. Judge ODonohue, in his ruling on a personal injury claim by 70-year-old Mary Fagan, of Arthur Griffith Park, Lucan, Co Dublin, said he agreed with the legal submissions presented to the court by barrister Paul McKeon on behalf of the county council. Mr McKeon told Judge ODonohue that his clients contention that its failure to repair the footpath at the site of the accident did not confer a legal liability to Ms Fagan on the basis of the nonfeasance rule whereby a tree is considered to form part of the public road. The duty of a road authority to maintain the tree was actionable only in respect of misfeasance, negligence caused by a repair to the footpath or the removal of branches or roots or of the tree itself. Mr McKeon said that if a tree did not fall within the definition of a road under the Roads Act, the local council, in its capacity as the roads authority, would not have any power to attend to a tree, to lop and cut branches or to remove it in the case of tree root action. Under legislation a tree was defined as part of the road. It is submitted that although the definition does not specifically refer to trees it does include any structure or thing for the amenity of road users and for the protection of the environment, Mr McKeon said. Trees provide a considerable benefit and amenity to the public in general and road users. Mr McKeon told the court that street trees played a crucial role in capturing pollutants and particulates from the air which could significantly improve air quality. He said Ms Fagans claim had been entirely predicated on the admitted fact that the council had omitted to carry out any works to deal with the incremental damage that had been caused to the footpath due to tree root intrusion. Judge ODonohue, stating that the court sympathised with Ms Fagan who had suffered a genuine and significant injury to her wrist, said South Dublin County Council was entitled to an order for its legal costs against her. Judge Fiona Brennan said his reaction to what happened was unacceptable. A partygoer got a kitchen knife and chased a man out into the street when the victim made unwanted advances to his girlfriend, a court heard. Felipe Guimaraes Vaz (40) feared for his partners safety when he got the knife and ran after the man in her defence. Adjourning the case, Judge Fiona Brennan said his reaction to what happened was unacceptable. Vaz, with an address at Gardiner Street in north central Dublin pleaded guilty to producing a knife in the course of a dispute. Dublin District Court heard gardai went to an address on Gardiner Street in the early hours of August 22, 2022 when it was reported that a man was threatening another man with a knife. When they arrived there was no sign of the man with the knife but gardai had to breach the address, Sergeant Michelle Lynch said. The court heard the victim had been socialising with a group of people who had returned to the address and an altercation took place during which Vaz produced the knife and chased the man out. The accuseds girlfriend told him she had received unwanted advances and he feared for her safety, saying that was why he produced the knife and chased the man. He had no previous convictions. Advances were made to Vazs partner and he should not have reacted the way he did, his solicitor Michael French said. Tensions were heightened at the party when the incident happened and alcohol was involved. It was an isolated incident for the accused who worked in catering and had never come to any garda attention before, Mr French said, asking Judge Brennan to be as lenient as possible. The judge said it was an extremely serious incident and the court was not prepared to leave the accused without a conviction. To produce a knife even in defence of someone else to whom advances were made was unacceptable, she said, adjourning the case for finalisation on a later date. Farmer conducted malevolent campaign against his relative and left dozens of threatening messages A man who admitted a targeted and malevolent social media campaign of harassment against his niece has been jailed for 10 years. William Phelan also pleaded guilty to a random arson attack on a takeaway business that caused 224,000 worth of damage. The Co. Laois man left dozens of threatening and crude voice mails on his nieces phone as well as aggressive and lewd Facebook posts aimed at her. She was left in fear that her home could be burned down, and members of her family would be attacked. Judge Keenan Johnson said that the woman targeted by Phelan should under no circumstances blame herself and that blame rests exclusively with Phelan. She said in a previous victim impact statement she felt guilty for not dealing with it sooner. Because the harassment took place after he had been given bail on the arson charge, Judge Johnson imposed consecutive sentences for each set of offences. He gave Phelan, who sat impassively in court with his arms crossed, six years for the arson attack and the same for the harassment, and suspended the final two years. The judge commended the womans impact statement which he described as understated and reasoned and that she went to the gardai only as a last resort. A member of the family whose catering business was devastated by Phelans arson attack said his actions had hit them physically, mentally and financially. People in nearby apartments had to be evacuated as a result of the fire, which Judge Johnson said showed Phelan did not consider the danger he was causing to others. The court had heard that small farmer Phelan, from Mountrath, also left his niece fearful that her house would be burned down. In one message Phelan warned hed done it before and in another that he knew people hed met in prison who would finish her husband and son if she ignored him. The harassment started years before the period in 2023 for which he was charged. Even after Phelan was charged and bailed, he continued to send threatening messages which became more aggressive depending on how much he had drunk. The woman said she felt guilty over what her husband and teenage children had to endure because she hadnt dealt sooner with her uncles harassment. She thought he would leave her alone if she ignored him, but at one point he left as many 30 voice mails on her phone in a single day. Phrases such as that he was an atom bomb ready to go off left her terrified what might happen. When a brother died, she said Phelan would make calls from the grave, an act she said had an effect on her she cant describe. She described the Facebook commentary as sinister and lewd, and which left scars that will never heal. Trips into town became anxiety filled as Phelan would be sitting in the town square watching the comings and goings. They installed a CCTV system at their home such was her fear that Phelan would carry out his threats to burn her house down. After a court hearing at which Phelan got bail after reassuring the court he would stop, he was harassing her within 48 hours. She described him as an expert in manipulating facts who can adapt and upskill and sees himself as the victim and has shown no remorse. A Garda officer previously gave evidence how Phelan described himself as a chronic alcoholic who was drinking a 700ml bottle of vodka and six to eight cans of cider every day. Phelan also said he got a kick out of frightening the woman and putting the sh*ts up her after being asked about one message in which he threatened suicide. Phelan was re-arrested and has been in custody since July last year. It was heard he who lived alone on a 40-acre farm since the death of his mother in 2011. Gilchrist, who was jailed for 11-and-a-half years last week, told gardai he got involved after two men called to his home and threatened him The 8.4m worth of cocaine flown into Longford by a Walter Mitty pilot is believed to have been destined for the west Dublin gang known as The Family. Tim Gilchrist Jnr had set up a transport and logistics company the year before he was caught, and claimed to be involved in a host of business activities ranging from meat processing to mining. Gilchrist, who was jailed for 11-and-a-half years last week, told gardai he got involved after two men called to his home and threatened him, forcing him to fly the drugs in but investigators believe those claims were complete rubbish. Sources said the haul was believed to have been linked to the west Dublin crime gang known as The Family and other criminals based in Ballyfermot. The gang are involved in large-scale heroin and cocaine trafficking and are suspected of laundering more than 100m of drug money every year. Numerous multi-million euro drug seizures have been linked to them in recent years, while gardai have also confiscated several firearms and millions of euro as part of operations targeting the gang. They are top targets of the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau (GNDOCB) and senior members of the gang are currently before the courts on charges linked to organised crime activity. Gilchrist, with an address at Mavis Bank, Newrath, Waterford, set up a company called Each Way Transport & Logistics Ltd the year before he was caught with the drugs. The company never filed accounts and while it is technically still a registered company, it is not doing any business. Defence counsel Michael OHiggins SC, said his client, despite having previously been employed in the highway maintenance sector, was someone who had not enjoyed an excessive lifestyle and whose only income was just over 200 a week in illness benefit. He described Gilchrist as a Walter Mitty-type character. A director of several companies dating back to the 1990s, Gilchrist had previously been the director of African European Alliance Group Ireland Limited, which was described as being involved in the sale of agricultural raw materials, live animals, textile raw materials and semi-finished goods. In online profiles, he described himself as the MD and CEO of the company and said he was based in Uganda. In an exhaustive list of skills, he claimed he was a mechanic, a transport engineer, a welder, and a carpet manufacturer. He also said he had worked extensively in the Research and Development field of alternative energy solutions, had experience in modern manufacturing technology and processes and was involved in mining, oil, gas and coal. He claimed to be involved in energy sector development on a governmental scale and in applications for large fleet operation to domestic transportation and power needs. Despite all his claims, his companies never appeared to file any accounts. Gilchrist was caught after flying the drugs into Abbeyshrule Airfield in Longford in August 2022. The plane Gilchrist piloted with the drugs onboard Detective Garda Ciaran Cummins, of the GNDOCB, told the court of how a wide-ranging surveillance operation was put in place after confidential information had come to light over the use of a Cessna light aircraft which had flown out from the Longford based airstrip the previous day. He said, on the day of the incident shortly before 5.30pm, gardai observed Gilchrist Jnr remove several bags from the aircraft before placing them in a dark coloured vehicle. Shortly after, gardai stopped two vehicles, one driven by the accused and where five holdalls and a single suitcase were retrieved containing 120kg of cocaine worth an estimated 8.4m. The court was told Gilchrist Jnr, in a series of interviews at Ashbourne Garda Station, stated he had been under duress from a number of unknown individuals not before the court. His sentence was backdated to when he went into custody almost two years ago. Cathal Crotty (22) was last month given a fully suspended three-year prison term for the attack on Limerick woman Natasha OBrien Natasha OBrien was viciously assaulted on a street in Limerick city by soldier Cathal Crotty, who received a three-year suspended sentence. Photo: Brian Arthur Soldier Cathal Crotty was given a suspended sentence for his assault on Natasha O'Brien The soldier who sparked public outcry after avoiding a prison term for an unprovoked assault on a young woman is to be dismissed from the Defence Forces this week. Cathal Crotty (22) was last month given a fully suspended three-year prison term for the attack on Limerick woman Natasha OBrien in 2022. Upon completion of the court process, the Defence Forces launched dismissal proceedings against Crotty. This process has now concluded and the soldier is expected to be formally discharged from the military on Thursday. There had been concerns that any appeal lodged by Crotty or the State against his sentence could delay him being discharged. Over a week after the sentence, the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed the sentence on the grounds that it was unduly lenient. However, after seeking legal advice, the Defence Forces has completed the dismissal process and Crotty will be discharged because of his criminal conviction. Ms OBrien was knocked unconscious by Crotty in Limerick City Centre on May 29, 2022. He later boasted about the attack. He told friends on social media afterwards: Two to put her down, two to put her out. Natasha OBrien explains how she regained her hope after almost losing faith in humanity Limerick Circuit Court heard the soldier grabbed Ms OBrien by her hair and delivered six upper cut punches to her face and head. He continued punching her after she fell to the ground and was losing consciousness, the court heard. Ms OBrien said she had politely asked Mr Crotty to stop shouting homophobic slurs at people but he grabbed her and assaulted her. Following the court case, the Government ordered a review of how many serving Defence Forces personnel have criminal convictions or are charged before the courts. A report into the matter uncovered 68 such cases and with the offences including rape, sexual assault, and domestic violence. Last week, the Irish Independent revealed how one soldier continued to serve with the Defence Forces despite being convicted and jailed over a sexual offence. Dismissal proceedings against this individual have also commenced in recent weeks. Gardai are investigating the circumstances of a threatening letter sent to Cathal Crottys family residence last week. The letter was addressed to Cathal Crottys father, began: Mr Crotty, please understand this letter has nothing to do with you, so nothing will be done to you or your house. But if you do as we ask, all isnt lost, however in not doing as we ask, it will be a very sad story indeed for your son, Cathal. It also stated: Mr Crotty, justice wasnt done in court, your son cant get away with this crime. However, we will look at the case if your son (moves) out of the county for good, in two weeks time. This talk with my members is his last hope, leave now or else, well, you know Mr Crotty what is coming. The anonymous letter which includes a Dublin postmark repeats: Get him out for good and we will leave him be. The letter concludes: Time is running out fast 2 weeks or we are coming down Mr Crotty, night or day. A garda spokesman said: An Garda Siochana is aware of correspondence received at a domestic residence in Co Clare in July 2024. The garda spokesman added that enquiries are ongoing. Childrens names were removed from insurance policy of father just weeks before he was killed Killer Molly Martens emptied a joint banking account she held with her husband Jason Corbett within days of battering him to death. Molly (40) and her father, former FBI agent Tom Martens (73), were released from US prisons on June 6 after serving four years and three months for the voluntary manslaughter of Mr Corbett (39) in August 2015. The father and daughter agreed a plea bargain deal last year with North Carolina prosecutors after successfully appealing against their second-degree murder convictions and the 20-to-25-year prison sentences handed down in August 2017. Both will remain under the supervision of the North Carolina parole authorities until June 2025. Limerick father-of-two Jason Corbett Court papers and a book by Mr Corbetts sister, Tracey, have revealed Mollys astonishing obsession with cash. It has emerged that Molly emptied a bank account that Mr Corbett had used for daily family living expenses within days of him being beaten to death by her and her father on August 2, 2015. Almost $30,000 (25,000) was involved. My Brother Jason, a book written by Tracey Corbett-Lynch about the Irish familys fight for justice in the US, revealed Molly also tried to empty the family home at Panther Creek Court outside Winston-Salem of all furnishings and ship these back to her native Tennessee. This was only stopped by North Carolina police after Mr Corbetts Irish family became aware of what was happening and the furnishings were eventually placed in secure storage until all criminal and civil proceedings against the father and daughter were resolved. Molly would pay for the entire group meal on the family credit card but would then accept cash from her friends Molly eventually received 147,000 from the sale of the Panther Creek Court property in 2018. This was despite the fact she had been convicted of killing the Irish father of two. Under North Carolina law, she was entitled to half the marital assets. Molly had not held paid employment after her marriage to the Irish widower. The property was bought by Mr Corbett with the proceeds from the sale of his Limerick home and his life savings. Mr Corbett had also paid over 45,000 to Tom Martens towards the cost of the June 2011 wedding in Tennessee though the former FBI agent took credit for hosting the lavish ceremony. Tracey also revealed that Molly was given 75,000 to furnish the property. In the 48 hours after killing her husband, Molly spent 5,000 from their joint bank account to pay for a forensic deep clean of the house where she and her father bludgeoned Mr Corbett to death. Tracey also revealed in her book that, in the two years before his death, Molly had been charging expensive meals to the family credit card from her evenings out socialising with friends. It emerged that Molly would pay for the entire group meal on the family credit card but would then accept cash from her friends for their share of the evening cost. Jason's sister Tracey Corbett-Lynch. Photo: Mark Condren However, Molly who still insists on being referred to in official documents as Molly Corbett was denied a 500,000 life insurance payment by a US firm after her husbands death. The firm refused to pay out on a policy issued on the life of Mr Corbett, given that he had been killed by his wife and father-in-law. The 2017 Davidson County murder trial heard that the policy was initially created to offer 50pc of the benefits to Molly and 50pc to Mr Corbetts children in the event of his death. However, in the weeks before Mr Corbetts death, the policy was remotely accessed and the two children were removed as beneficiaries leaving the entire proceeds to Molly. It could not be determined who had made the changes to the policy. A drop-out from the prestigious Clemson University over 20 years ago, Molly was described by prosecutors as having a very complicated relationship with the truth. Molly met Mr Corbett, an Irish widower with two children aged under two, when she flew to Limerick to work as a nanny, after having lied about her experience in childcare. The family accused Molly of having spun a web of lies Prosecutors maintained she was obsessed with gaining control of his two children and had even visited a US divorce lawyer weeks before her June 2011 wedding. Mr Corbetts family maintain he was beaten to death because he was about to bring his two children back to Ireland for their safety, and had steadfastly refused to sign adoption papers giving Molly equal rights to the youngsters. The family admitted they were very disappointed that the father and daughter were released so soon. The family accused Molly of having spun a web of lies and of relentlessly putting Jasons two children, Jack and Sarah, through a judicial nightmare. Both father and daughter insisted they acted in self defence but the pair were found totally uninjured at the scene whereas Mr Corbetts skull had been so badly shattered that a pathologist warned he could not accurately count the number of blows inflicted. They were dead and needed to be shocked back. They had drunk very large amounts of energy drinks Two young men suffered cardiac arrest following excessive consumption of energy drinks, it has emerged sparking fresh calls for a ban on their sale to children. While the UK looks close to banning energy drinks for under-16s, it appears this country is lagging behind. In Ireland, it is currently at the discretion of shops if they sell energy drinks to children or not. Mater Hospital cardiologist Professor Joseph Galvin said: Weve come across two patients who had cardiac arrests after drinking large amounts of energy drinks. They were dead and needed to be shocked back. They had drunk very large amounts of energy drinks. One of the patients is in his early 20s and the other in his mid-20s. Prof Galvin said one of the men had drunk between eight to 10 cans of an energy drink and a litre of a fizzy drink. I think people can build up their tolerance to a certain amount. But if they take more, they could potentially get into trouble, Prof Galvin said. It is rare that this would happen and a lot of people will tolerate the drinks and not have a problem, but some of us are prone to heart problems and we might not know. I find it hard to say anything particularly good about the drinks. Companies are profiting from energy drinks when evidence shows theyre harming children and young peoples health. This is unacceptable. Prof Galvin said he would favour energy drinks being banned for children. At the very least, he believes there should be health warnings visible on every drink can and bottle. He said the real problem with the energy drinks is the high sugar content. He said this causes obesity, which can lead to health problems such as diabetes and heart issues. Yes, I think we should ban them, he said. You see patients with atrial fibrillation (heart rhythm disturbance), which has been brought on by high blood pressure, shortness of breath and fluid retention, due to poor heart function. A huge amount of that is brought on by obesity in patients who weigh 120 to 140 kg and who are short of breath. The professor said children needed to be targeted from an early age to learn how to eat healthily. The Irish Heart Foundation (IHF) is calling for a mandatory ban on energy drinks for under-18s in order to protect childrens health. The charity is also lobbying for improved labelling of energy drinks, with appropriate health warnings to be considered, along with restrictions on marketing and price promotions. There should also be greater efforts to promote water as the drink of choice among children, the charity stated. Evidence relating to the impact of energy drinks on children and young peoples health suggested the effects of these drinks are more significant and broader than previously understood, it said. It added there is, in particular, negative outcomes for childrens mental health in addition to physical health. Energy drinks are marketed to children and young people as a way to improve energy and performance, but research suggests they are actually doing more harm than good. Companies are profiting from energy drinks when evidence shows theyre harming children and young peoples health. This is unacceptable. While some retailers enforce their own voluntary sales restriction, there is no monitoring or enforcement of whether this is being upheld in practice at store level, and nor does this include all retailers. Meanwhile, these drinks are still readily available at many corner shops and convenience stores, which are often favoured by young people themselves, including on their way to and from school. The charity said a level playing field needed to be created across all retailers in order to protect our children and young peoples health and well-being. Galway University Hospital heart consultant, Professor Sherif Sultan, said energy drinks contain large amounts of sugar, ranging from 21g to 34g per ounce, primarily in the form of sucrose, glucose or high fructose corn syrup. High sugar intake increases the risk of obesity and type 2 diabetes, said Prof Sultan. Studies have shown that energy drinks can increase heart rate and blood pressure. Overconsumption can lead to severe cardiac issues such as ventricular arrhythmias, myocardial infarction and arterial dilatation. Prof Sultan stopped short of calling for a ban, however, stating: Education and proper labelling are vital strategies to mitigate these risks without the need for outright bans. By fostering awareness and promoting healthier alternatives, we can better protect public health and well-being. Aileen McGloin, director of nutrition at Safefood, said when the health body carried out research into energy drinks several years ago, there wasnt enough evidence to ban the drinks for children. Water and milk are the key drinks we recommend for children, and fruit juice as one portion of fruit. Dr McGloin, who was appointed in 2022, said she had not had any political enquiries on the matter. My understanding is its not being considered here, or I dont know that it is, said Dr McGloin. Every two years we update a widget on our website that shows the levels of sugar and caffeine in different energy drinks. Its a useful resource for the public. We always encourage people to have drinks that are low in sugar. Weve been doing that for decades. Weve highlighted over the years the high level of sugar in drinks. Water and milk are the key drinks we recommend for children, and fruit juice as one portion of fruit. Our messages dont change. These have never been good drinks, we wouldnt recommend them. But when we looked at the evidence of the latest report, there wasnt enough evidence to ban them at this point. But we can certainly restrict it. The Irish Independent asked several major stores about their policies on selling energy drinks to children. Aldi Ireland was the only retailer to confirm it had implemented an outright ban on the sale of the drinks to children. John Curtin, group buying director at Aldi Ireland, said: Aldi was the first retailer in Ireland to ban the sale of energy drinks to under 16-year-olds in 2018. This applies to drinks with more than 150mg of caffeine per litre. We introduced this age restriction in response to the growing concern about the consumption of energy drinks among young people and their effects on mental and physical health. A Lidl Ireland spokesperson said: At present, there are no age constraints on the sale of energy drinks at Lidl. The spokesperson said Lidl Ireland takes its responsibility on the sale of prohibited or restricted products seriously and is vigilant in adhering and updating our policies in line with government guidance and legislation. Were also acutely aware that as a family retailer of our size and influence, we have a responsibility to drive progress with regards to shopping behaviours and healthy nutrition for families. A Tesco Ireland spokesperson said: We continue to monitor industry developments on this issue closely and look forward to working with key stakeholders and other retailers. The Department of Health was asked for a response. Reacting to proposals for a ban for under-16s in the UK, where most supermarkets have chosen to do so voluntarily, the British Soft Drinks Association last month urged any move to restrict energy drinks to be "evidence based" and said: In line with and in the spirit of our own long-standing Code of Practice, BSDA members do not market or promote the sale of energy drinks to under 16s and label all high-caffeine beverages as not recommended for children, so we welcomed the move by retailers to voluntarily restrict sales to under 16s." "We were glad to find these lads well, but we would like to thank the members of the public who made the call. It is better to err on the side of caution. A Wexford lifeboat crew located a pair of kayakers safe and sound, drinking tea, despite concerns being raised about their wellbeing last week. The Fethard RNLI crew were requested by the Coast Guard to launch their inshore lifeboat at 5.10pm last Thursday evening (July 4) following a report that two kayaks were in difficulty off Hook Head. There was a strong force 5 south-westerly wind and choppy sea conditions, when vigilant members of the public raised the alarm concerned for the welfare of the kayakers heading west below Hook Lighthouse. The lifeboat, helmed by John Colfer and with crew members Peter Mullen and Nadia Blanchfield onboard, launched at Slade Harbour and made its way to Hook Head beginning to search the coastline. The inshore lifeboat, with the assistance of Irish Coast Guard Helicopter Rescue 117, eventually found the two kayakers on Baginbun Beach having successfully navigated their way there. The very experienced sea-farers were navigating their way around the Irish coast and were well equipped with food, means of hydration and communications equipment. Speaking after the call-out, volunteer Helm John Colfer said, It was great to find the two kayakers safe and sound, drinking tea. They were very well equipped and very experienced. They advised us that they will let the Coast Guard know their future movements to avoid another call-out. "We were glad to find these lads well, but we would like to thank the members of the public who made the call. It is better to err on the side of caution. If you do get into difficulty or see somebody in trouble on the water or along the coast, dial 999 or 112 and ask for the Coast Guard. He defeated Senator Pippa Hackett by 984 votes to 912 votes Roderic OGorman is the new leader of the Green Party. He defeated Senator Pippa Hackett by 984 votes to 912 votes a tight margin. The result was announced today at a party meeting in Bewleys of Grafton Street, Dublin, accompanied by claps and cheering by the assembled faithful. The electorate was 3,425, and there were no spoilt votes. A total of 1,896 votes were cast. Mr OGorman received 52pc to Ms Hacketts 48pc, the same margin by which Mr Ryan defeated Ms Martin in 2020. The party now has a job of work to do to convince the electorate they have what it takes after the party lost both its MEP seats in the European elections last month. Senator Pippa Hackett The result was announced by returning officer Stephen Spillane after an entirely online vote to save paper. Outgoing leader and deputy leader Mr Ryan and Ms Martin were at the leadership announcement. National coordinator Christina Kiely said everyone had an opportunity to shape the party and its leadership one member, one vote. There was applause and a standing ovation from members as thanks were expressed to outgoing leader Mr Ryan, who has been at the helm for over 12 years. Mr Ryan expressed thanks to Ms Martin for her role as deputy leader, saying he felt like the father at a wedding. He said the Greens should be so proud of its record in Government, helping to deliver Budgets that protect the most vulnerable. The party will also hold an election for Deputy Leader next Saturday. Brown says the timeframes for completion and final cost are not yet known, but NZTA will have more information by the end of September. The projects are Belfast to Pegasus (including the Woodend Bypass), the Hawkes Bay Expressway, SH1 Cambridge to Piarere, State Highway 29 Tauriko, Takitimu North Link Stage 2, Mill Road, and Warkworth to Wellsford. On Friday, it was announced NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi expects to start procurement and construction on the seven roads within the next three years. Transport Minister Simeon Brown says the seven new roads of significance , which are being fast-tracked, may be tolled to help pay for them. The Government is open to the roads being tolled if NZTA recommends it, he says. We need to pay for the roads, and we need to raise the revenue to be able to pay for it. Tolling is a great way to bring forward that investment. So where NZTA recommends a toll, we will support tolling of that infrastructure to pay for it. It is a user-pays approach. Brown made the announcement at the entry to the town of Pegasus on the outskirts of Christchurch. A number of the projects, including the Belfast to Pegasus/Woodend Bypass, have already had a lot of work done on them before they were stopped by the Labour Government, he says. NZTA system design regional manager Richard Osbourne says the first step for the Belfast to Pegasus project is for them to dust off the scheme plans done 10 years ago and do a scope confirmation exercise. They will be in touch with people impacted by the planned new road very soon, Osbourne says. The area around Pegasus has changed a lot in the past 10 years, with a number of new housing and commercial developments, so they will need to look at what changes are needed. Woodend Bakery owner Serey Chum says the bypass will probably impact his business, but he's confident residents will continue to support them. He's happy that a bypass will probably help avoid traffic jams and reduce accidents. Woodend Store owner Krishna Barot also expects the change will impact on their business, which they only recently purchased. But she says the project will probably be positive for residents who are having trouble with the traffic congestion. -RNZ. Rotoruas mayor has welcomed the Governments new housing growth plan, saying it prioritises the current housing crisis. Stage one of the Governments Going for Housing Growth plan was announced on Thursday and Housing and Resource Management Act Reform Minister Chris Bishop says it will focus on the fundamentals that have led to unaffordable housing. Our programme of reform involves freeing up land for development and removing unnecessary planning barriers, improving infrastructure funding and financing, and providing incentives for communities and councils to support growth. Housing in New Zealand is too expensive because we have made it very difficult for our cities to grow. Fixing our housing crisis will improve our economy, increase productivity, help get the governments books back in order by reducing the enormous fiscal cost to the government, improve intergenerational equity, and decrease material hardship. The policy will have a big impact on local councils. Changes includes the Government abolishing councils ability to set fixed urban-rural boundaries and the powers that let councils mandate balconies or minimum floor area sizes for developments. It will also make the Governments Medium-Density Residential Standards optional for councils. Rotoruas previous elected council requested the city be included with Tier 1 councils such as Auckland and Tauranga, enabling up to three houses of up to three storeys to be built on most residential sections without a resource consent. Rotorua Lakes Councils then-mayor Steve Chadwick said in 2022 it was a welcome step. The decision to seek Rotoruas inclusion in this legislation was unanimously supported by our elected members who all recognise the acute housing needs in our district. The decision was controversial and some members of the current council believe the community was not consulted. Now, all councils covered by the standards need to take a ratification vote to determine whether to retain, alter, or remove the MDRS planning changes. Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell says housing remains a top and urgent priority for the council. Its positive to see the Government continuing to prioritise the current housing crisis as theres no doubt we need more homes in Rotorua. She says the required ratification vote will attract interest locally, to determine whether it kept or altered the standards in urban areas, providing they give effect to the new Governments other pro-development policies. Rotorua mayor Tania Tapsell is welcoming the new plan. Photo / Laura Smith. As a council, well now need to consider what this means for Rotorua and what opportunities there are to work with Government to ensure better housing development that meets the needs of our locals in a positive way. This will take some time as the Government plans to undertake formal consultation in early 2025. Well be waiting on further Government decisions such as when these announcements will come into force and look forward to discussing it as a council. Local Democracy Reporting asked the council how the housing growth announcement will impact the district, and what is most significant for Rotorua. Community and district development group manager Jean-Paul Gaston says there's a lot to consider and staff need time to understand the impacts on current housing policies and planning rules, as well as the Governments plan for implementation. A 2019 analysis found Rotorua had a growing housing deficit of 1750 homes. Nearly 900 applicants were on the waiting list for social housing in the city as of March, with about 600 in temporary housing in May. LDR is local body journalism co-funded by RNZ and NZ On Air. Weve had times recently where weve gone to the pools for a shower, we have a chilly bin for food and I cook on the BBQ, says Maddy, not her real name. Sometimes a $20 loan from Maddys sister gets them through other weeks, the power is disconnected and the family of four are on the cold and soul-destroying countdown until payday. At least twice a week, the pre-paid power meter in Maddy Walkers Hamilton home glows red and the scramble is on to scrape together money to top up. Meanwhile, the main players in the power business are making huge profits including charging hundreds for reconnections, often done by the touch of a button. In the first part of a series about power, we speak to those going without. Each year around 40,000 New Zealanders are disconnected from the power supply for non-payment, according to Consumer NZ. They are surviving winter in cold, dark homes without access to a warm shower or a homecooked meal some for months. Even when I have topped up, we try to go without the heater because it drains the meter so quickly. Maddy signed up to Mercury Energys Glo-bug pre-paid system when she was disconnected from her usual supplier after getting behind on payments and racking up a $700 bill a few years ago. I had so many bills coming in and I couldnt keep up. I got notices they were going to disconnect me but I couldnt afford it I thought they would let me pay it off, she says. When it was disconnected I was so embarrassed. One of my boys had friends over and there was no power. I was ashamed and pretended there was a power cut. On that occasion, Maddy went without power for four days until she borrowed money to pay the bill. They charged us for disconnection and then it was a couple of hundred or something to get reconnected, she said. I already couldnt afford the bill and then I had to pay my sister back and pay extra for the reconnection. Months later, she faces disconnection again. That time we had no power for about two weeks and it was terrible. The house was freezing and we had no hot water or anything. I was so ashamed and sad for my children. Food or heating Solo mum Jenna often has to choose between food or heating. Last week, she had no choice but to ask for a food parcel from BBM Foodbank, run by community advocate Dave Letele, after threats of disconnection. The house I rent has wood floors so I have to use the heater to keep my children warm this winter otherwise its freezing, says Jenna. The mum of three occasionally sleeps in the lounge with her children to save heating the whole house. She has also asked the property manager if the home is properly insulated and if a heat pump would be more efficient. I have asked but I also dont want to be seen as complaining because I need this home for my children, I dont want to be homeless. Jenna says she has been disconnected previously and had to pay hundreds to get reconnected. I cant afford for that to happen again so I have had to choose paying the bill over buying food. Four months without power Maddy and Jennas experiences with energy hardship are not uncommon according to those who run New Zealands City Missions. In the last two weeks alone, more than six desperate households have called the Auckland City Mission asking for food and assistance, solely because of a high power bill. Ellen Lear from the Mission says this includes a solo mum who had not eaten for three days because her whole benefit of $382 went on a power bill to avoid disconnection. Carla Ceppi from Wellington City Mission has assisted a family with two children who had lived without electricity for four months. They had cold showers every now and again and the children ate meals at school and just had snacks at home. The family were very ashamed; they took four months to come to us, says Carla. Carla says it's unacceptable for families to go without an essential service when power companies profit through disconnection and reconnection charges. We dont think its fair that people who already cant afford the actual bill have to pay for disconnection, arrears, and the $200 on top for reconnection. So what is energy hardship? The Ministry of Business, Innovation, and Employment defines energy hardship as households who have either struggled to pay energy bills in the past year, not heated their home adequately, put up with feeling cold to keep costs down and lived with dampness. Dr Kimberley OSullivan from Otago University adds energy hardship is tricky to measure and says as well as not being able to maintain their homes at a healthy temperature, there are also those going into debt or rationing other necessities. For those living it, it could be taking the family to the local pools for a shower because theres no hot water, eating a cold meal by torch or candlelight, cooking outside on the BBQ or skipping meals to pay the power bill. Whatever the measure its clear people are making dangerous and heartbreaking choices in the coldest months to keep the power or to get reconnected. Big profits versus poverty This comes as Consumer NZ reports the financial records of the big four power companies - Meridian, Contact, Genesis and Mercury had combined earnings of $2.7 billion over the last year about $7.4 million a day. In 2023 that meant a combined net profit after tax of $520m. Over the same period, an estimated 40,000 Kiwi households had their power disconnected for non-payment according to Consumer NZ research. Disconnection means a bad credit score, so the only option for those cut off often is the more expensive prepaid power. According to Paul Fuge at Consumer NZ prepay customers are paying around 13 per cent more despite being less able to afford it. Kiwi children are going to bed cold with an estimated 50 households a night are going without power according to Consumer NZ. Recent research by the consumer watchdog also reveales around 18 per cent of people have experienced financial difficulty paying their bills and 13 per cent have to borrow from family and friends to pay a bill. Around 11 per cent of people say their home is not warm enough because they cant afford the extra money to heat their home. As an essential service, Consumer NZ says the electricity connection should never be removed because of non-payment. Ongoing access to safe, reliable, and affordable electricity is fundamental to our health and wellbeing, and our ability to function in a modern society, says Paul. Heartbreaking choices Advocates for those struggling tell of solo mums only using power when their children are home, families turning the hot water cylinder off for days, using a BBQ to cook dinner and not heating the home. Disconnection and reconnection fees of around $27 to $300 are an added hit for already financially stressed families. Some say they have no choice but to stay disconnected. Those on pre-pay systems such as Glo-Bug tell of the anxiety that comes when the device glows amber or red and they know disconnection is imminent unless they top up. Some go for days, weeks and even months without power because they dont have $10 to make the minimum payment. Energy hardship expert Kimberly OSullivan from the University of Otago has made it her lifes work to research and find solutions for those struggling to keep the lights on. Families often sleep together for warmth in one room to avoid heating the whole house. Photo / Stephen Parker. Kimberly has been into freezing and unheated homes to speak with people living without power. She tells of families who have lived without power for months. No heating, no hot showers, no light at the touch of a switch. Just cold, unhappy hardship. That was one of the more severe cases but there are others out there that we dont hear about, she says. One family had been disconnected and then went without power for four months because they were unable to reconnect. Kimberly says it's unacceptable that thousands of New Zealand households are living without the basic right of power. She has walked up paths with frost on the grass and sat in freezing unheated homes to hear heartbreaking stories from people who were struggling to keep the lights on. Some will go without other essentials to keep the light on because of the shame they feel when the power is cut. They dont want the neighbours to notice the power has been off for days on end so they go without to pay the power bill. There are parents who will skip a meal and families who will turn off the hot water cylinder for days so they can afford the bill. Kimberly says it's unacceptable that families are living without power but even more heartbreaking is those dying without it. Living and dying without power In 2007, Mangere woman Folole Muliaga died hours after a Mercury Energy contractor cut the power to the home because of an unpaid bill. Folole was using an oxygen machine and the coroner ruled the lack of electricity contributed to her death. For me that kicked things off, because after that I was speaking to kaumatua and they were using oxygen machines and they were really worried, says Kimberly. Family members grieve at the casket of Folole Muliaga, who died after electricity was cut off to their home because the bill was not paid. Photo / Glenn Jeffrey. Despite policy changes that came about after Fololes death, Kimberly says there are numerous deaths where power poverty is a hidden factor. We dont see it reported but if you look carefully there are people who are dying because of the way they are heating their house or what they are doing to cope without power. This includes deaths resulting from patio heaters used inside, candles used for light and children dying from illnesses caused by living in a damp and cold home. Too many are going cold Data from the 2023 Energy Hardship Expert Panels final report revealed 110,000 households can't afford to keep their home adequately warm. But that figure is grossly underestimated according to others working in the field. Kimberly, the energy hardship expert from the University of Otago, says that figure is drawn from people who say they can't heat their home a lot of the time. Based on current research we are undertaking were finding between 16-30% of homes are affected, depending on the measure used, she says. This is much higher than the most recent report by MBIE finding that 110,000 households or 5.8 per cent of homes are unable to keep warm. The report also revealed in 2017 alone living in a damp or mouldy house in New Zealand led to 6276 hospitalisations and represented a cost of $36m. Prominent lawyer Olinda Woodroffe, who represented the Muliaga family, says it's a sad indictment that 17 years after Folole Muliagas death, there are still average New Zealand households rationing or living without power. We have a duty to ensure all people in the community have access to power, particularly those who are elderly, unwell and families, says Olinda. We know its good for businesses to make a profit but with essential services such as electricity, the focus should be wellbeing peoples health needs to be protected irrespective of their income. It is a human right. -NZ Herald. Manaaki Tangata Victim Support is here 24/7 for people directly affected by crime, suicide and traumatic events, including their whanau and witnesses. Manaaki Tangata | Victim Support helps around 50,000 victims nationwide every year, which is nearly 1,000 victims each week, says district manager Waikato and Bay of Plenty, Brent Nielsen. Brent says that like most regions across the country, the Bay of Plenty has seen an apparent increase in demand for the Victim Support services. In Tauranga alone, weve supported 41 per cent more people in the first five months of this year compared to last year, averaging 15 incidents every week. Victim support aims to support people to feel more informed, empowered, safe and able to cope with the impact of trauma. Brent says the services are a crucial resource for nearly 3000 individuals each year. Anyone can find themselves a victim of crime or affected by a traumatic event. The impacts are profound, affecting individuals and communities alike. Victim support is so much more than a mere charitable gesture it changes victims lives. We know from recent research that 42 per cent of people likely would have dropped out of the criminal justice process if it werent for Victim Support. Victims face a wide range of crime and traumatic events - from burglary, assault and cybercrime to homicide, road crashes and suicide. These experiences can leave lasting emotional, physical, social, and financial impacts. Many victims feel as though their lives have been turned upside down and feel overwhelmed and unsure where to turn. Victim Support is here 24/7 for people directly affected by crime, suicide and traumatic events, including their whanau and witnesses. We support people to feel informed, empowered, safe and able to cope with the impact. Manaki Tangata | Victim Support. Photo: Rebecca McMillan Photography. Victim Support provides many services covering emotional support, practical assistance, information and criminal justice and coronial process support. The service aims to listen, normalise, validate and support victims to identify ways to cope. The service aims to develop a support plan, access financial assistance from the Victims Assistance Scheme if eligible, and advocate. They provide information on what happens next as well as coping resources and helping to understand your rights and make informed choices. They assist with understanding the court system, Victim Notification Register applications, victim impact statements, and supporting key moments during court, parole hearings and coronial inquests. Were someone independent and non-judgmental that the victim can talk to. We work with them to develop a support plan, access any financial assistance if theyre eligible, link them with community resources and advocate on their behalf. Brent says their support workers and volunteers are at the heart of the organisation. Our people come from all walks of life, just like the people we support. What makes them special is that they are everyday people who have been highly trained to meet victims needs with professionalism. Like our other teams across the country, our people in the Bay of Plenty are based in the communities they support. Brent says the teams are highly trained to provide immediate, tailored assistance and collaborate closely with local community agencies to ensure their clients needs are met. Manaki Tangata | Victim Support. Photo: Rebecca McMillan Photography. The justice system can be complicated and unfamiliar. We can help victims to understand and engage with the justice system and the coronial process and answer any questions they may have. Victim Support is free and available to everyone, even if a crime is not reported to the Police. Victims often begin their journey with us feeling overwhelmed and vulnerable. Many victims express that our services have been instrumental in helping them regain control of their lives and stay engaged with the justice system. Our latest Consumer Evaluation Survey revealed that 93 per cent of victims surveyed reported positive outcomes such as feeling listened to, supported, more informed, better able to make decisions, better able to cope and less stressed. Brent stresses that none of us know when tragedy may strike, We simply hope it never does. But if it does, no one should be left wondering what to do or how to cope. Victims should know that they are not alone, and that support is available at any time. We put our clients at the heart of everything we do, and are honoured to deliver mana-enhancing, trauma-informed support for people in the Bay of Plenty and beyond. While our service is essential, we are a charitable organisation that relies on government contracts, grants and donations. Demand for our services is increasing in the Bay of Plenty and across the whole country. To make sure we can continue to provide round-the-clock support for victims, please consider donating to Victim Support: www.victimsupport.org.nz/donate Victims of crime, suicide and traumatic events can contact us confidentially on 0800 842 846 or find out more on our website: www.victimsupport.org.nz. Our website has a quick exit button on the top so they can leave the site quickly if they need to. One worker was housed in a garage with no heating or insulation, with 19 others for four months. Some of the 19 slept on the carpeted garage floor because there were not enough mattresses. Jafar Kurisi had earlier pleaded guilty in the Tauranga District Court to exploiting four illegal migrant workers, underpaying them thousands of dollars in wages and charging them $100 rent a week and travel costs for some, to get to and from work. A man who exploited illegal migrants, housing them in overcrowded garages and underpaying them, has avoided jail after he crowd sourced $80,000 in reparation payments. The worker was later rehoused in another garage - this one had holes in it - where five other employees were also staying. At Kurisis sentencing today, Crown Prosecutor Sunny Teki-Clark said the 60-year-old had used his position within the local mosque, and Muslim community, to exploit the victims. A victim impact statement from one of the exploited workers said he had trusted Kurisi because of their shared religion. I was taken advantage of ... he used our religion to convince me that what he was doing was to help me, the worker said. Another said Kurisi should practice what he preaches so no one gets the same treatment I did. Teki-Clark said these statements should frame the way the judge viewed Kurisis offer of reparation, as Kurisi had now used that community to meet the reparation target set by the court. My understanding is the money itself has been essentially crowd sourced from members of Mr Kurisis community to help him pay back this amount. Jafar Kurisi has avoided imprisonment for exploiting migrants after he crowdfunded a reparation qualifying him for a discount that allowed his sentence to be one of home detention. Judge David Cameron asked Teki-Clark if this was something that was undesirable. Teki-Clark said it was not, but it was telling that Kurisi was leaning on members of his community to pay back money that he owed, rather than coming from his own pocket. He said the offer of reparation didnt indicate true remorse, which was reinforced by the fact no apology had been apparent in any of the pre-sentence reports before the court. It had been a report writers opinion that Kurisi had simply been looking to pay his way out of jail, Teki-Clark said. Kurisis lawyer, Michael Douglas, said the reparation funds were given by community members on the understanding Kurisi would repay them. Douglas said Kurisis background ought to be taken into account, as hed come from an impoverished setting where hed lived in similar conditions as those hed subjected the migrant workers to. While Douglas said this wasnt an excuse for the offending, it did offer some explanation for it. But Teki-Clark said Kurisi came to New Zealand in 1996 and had been through a previous sentencing for offending of the same nature. Victims of Jafar Kurisi's exploitation said he used his position with the Tauranga mosque, and as vice-president of the Tauranga Muslim Association, to gain their trust. Any causative contribution from his previous life before he arrived New Zealand ... was surely extinguished when he was sentenced by a very thin margin to a sentence of home detention last time. Added to that, it was only a matter of days, I believe, after that previous sentence expired that this set of offending start[ed]. The judge said it was unfortunate that Kurisi hadnt indicated any remorse or issued an apology, and still denied some of the facts. He denies for example having 19 people in his garage at one point in time, the judge said. Judge Cameron began with a starting point of three years, and uplifted it by three months for the attempt to pervert the course of justice. A 25% discount for his reparation, along with 20% for his guilty plea and 10% for his health issues, meant the sentence got down to 17.55 months. The judge didnt apply a discount for Kurisis background, agreeing with the Crown that the previous offending made that inappropriate. The 17.55 months was uplifted by six months due to Kurisis relevant previous offending, to 23.5 months, and being under two years, the judge had the option of a home detention sentence. The judge said from the outset of the case he had made it clear that a significant financial contribution to the victims, by way of reparation payments, would impact the ultimate outcome. Workers were charged $100 rent a week to live in the garage. Based on that, over the past few months the defendant has raised funds to the value of $80,000. At an earlier date it was made clear that should the defendant reach that target then no further reparation order beyond that would be made. Judge Cameron decided, by a very narrow margin, to commute the sentence to one of 12 months home detention. What Kurisi admitted to In February 2024, Kurisi pleaded guilty to seven charges of exploiting unlawful employees. The charges related to his failure to pay the minimum wage and, in three cases, also holiday pay, between December 1, 2018, and July 22, 2020. He also pleaded guilty to a further charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice after he tried to get a prosecution witness to make a false statement to Immigration NZ. He asked the witness not to tell authorities he had paid them cash, saying, if you tell them you got cash from me, I will go to jail. The summary of facts states that Kurisi was involved in labour contracting in the kiwifruit industry for 15 years. He would hire workers for picking, pruning and thinning, both for individual orchard owners and larger companies. Orchard owners often pay a contractor who then pays their workers. The contractor must ensure that the workers are lawfully entitled to work in New Zealand and then ensure they pay the workers at least the minimum wage and other entitlements. The employees in this case were from Indonesia and Malaysia. Jafar Kurisi had previously admitted to seven charges involving the exploitation of workers, as well as one of attempting to pervert the course of justice. A visa agent had told them they would make good money in New Zealand and they borrowed money to pay for what they believed were work visas and travel costs. The first victim borrowed the equivalent of $11,850 to pay for the visa and travel from the agents company to be repaid over three years, the summary said. The victim was granted a three-month visitors visa on July 19, 2019, but because he did not speak or read English, he believed it was a work permit. The worker lived with up to 19 people in a garage area under Kurisis house. They each had $100 rent a week deducted from their wages. The garage was crowded, with no heating or insulation, and because there were not enough mattresses some workers slept on the carpeted floor, the summary said. In January 2020, Kurisi moved this victim to a small house he owned in Merivale occupied by five others, and they slept in a cold garage with holes in it and continued to pay $100 a week rent taken from his wages. The summary said that on average the victim worked 51 hours a week and was paid an estimated hourly gross rate of $5 an hour, despite being told his hourly rate would be $13 an hour. Immigration NZ estimates Kurisi underpaid this worker $24,338.54 gross in minimum wages. Similarly, Kurisis other victims also paid a visa agent for visa and associated travel costs, believing the payment would qualify them for New Zealand work permits. In total, Kurisis victims were unpaid $121,134.06 gross in minimum wages and three workers also received no holiday pay entitlements. Kurisis earlier offending related to providing poor-quality accommodation and food and failing to pay minimum wages or holiday pay. In that case, Kurisis offending was connected to a high-profile human trafficking case involving Faroz Ali who was the first person in New Zealand to be sentenced for human trafficking when he was jailed for nine-and-a-half years in December 2016 for 15 human trafficking charges involving Fijian nationals. Eugenio Cabezas Macharaviaya Monday, 8 July 2024, 18:43 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X (antes Twitter) LinkedIn Telegram Threads By 8pm on Saturday 6 July the small village of Macharaviaya in the Axarquia on the eastern side of Malaga province was packed with residents and visitors whod travelled from all over Andalucia to watch a re-enactment of the Battle of Pensacola, in which the most illustrious resident of this small village of just 500 inhabitants, Bernardo de Galvez, played a key role. His bravery and determination led to the victory against the British during the American War of Independence in 1783. Born in Macharaviaya in 1746 de Galvez would go on to become governor of Louisiana and viceroy of New Spain. Since 2014 he has been considered an 'honorary citizen' of the USA and a painting of him hangs in the Capitol in Washington. The celebration has been declared of Tourist Interest by the provincial government the Diputacion Provincial de Malaga. The Mayor of Pensacola, D. C. Reeves, and the consuls of the USA, Czech Republic and Luxembourg in Malaga province were present at Saturdays event, as well as the dean of the Diplomatic Corps, Alberto Benito. Also in attendance were US military personnel whose ship had called in to Malaga port. Little Madrid Mayor of Macharaviaya Antonio Campos said, "We are the only town in the world with only 500 inhabitants that celebrates it this way. At around 10pm the re-enactment of the life of Bernardo de Galvez began, with a modified script this year in which special emphasis was placed on the life and career, not only of the soldier, but also of his family. A new scene was recreated in the court of King Carlos III, in which Bernardo's uncle, Jose de Galvez, was the Minister of the Indies. Little Madrid as Macharaviaya was known in the 18th century, still retains much of the legacy left by the de Galvez family, who included not only soldiers, but also businessmen and traders. Jose de Galvez, Bernardos uncle, built the villages San Jacinto church, which today is also the family burial place. He also repaired streets and introduced fountains and pipes bringing water to the village for the first time.The Torrijos 1831 Cultural Association, the Order of Grenadiers and Ladies of Honour of Galvez and the Malaga Recreation Association took part in the military-historical recreation. Alfonso Aurioles, the municipal head of the re-enactment, pointed out that "the first western revolution was the independence of the United States, and blood was shed there, and illusion was shed there, and there were Spaniards there". Bernardo de Galvez led the offensive alongside General Jeronimo Giron, but when the latter's ship ran aground, de Galvez took on the role of Field Marshal and uttered the words that would make him famous: "He who has honour and courage, let him follow me. If not, I will march alone". The same words were spoken during Saturdays reenactment by Jose Galvez, a descendant of the general who still lives in the village. The two-hour reenactment included a sound and light show as well as bayonets with real gunpowder. Quique Yuste Segovia Monday, 8 July 2024, 13:42 Opciones para compartir Copiar enlace WhatsApp Facebook X (antes Twitter) LinkedIn Telegram Threads A three-year-old boy has drowned in a private swimming pool in Ortigosa del Monte in Segovia, a Spanish province northwest of Madrid in the Castile and Leon region of central Spain. The tragic incident happened late on Friday afternoon for reasons that are being investigated by the Guardia Civil. The mayor of the Segovian town, Juan Carlos Cabrejas, explained that the boy was at his family home when the fatal accident happened. "We still don't know exactly what happened", said the mayor about the circumstances surrounding an accident that has shaken the municipality, located some 20 kilometres from the city of Segovia and with a population of just over 500 inhabitants, although in the summer months its population multiplies. According to the first investigations, the boy was playing and fell into the pool, where he was found by his family. They tried to revive the child and called the emergency services. Health professionals and Guardia Civil raced to the scene in an attempt to save the life of the child. In fact, he was rushed to the General Hospital of Segovia, but the medical professionals certified his death on arrival. The mayor of Ortigosa del Monte said that the family, shocked by the tragedy, is made up of lifelong residents of the village. "Both grandparents and parents are from here," he said. "It's a tragedy. Everyone is shocked. It's horrible," he added. The local council ordered official mourning in the municipality throughout the weekend and flags flew at half-mast. It also sent a message of support to the family via social media. "This town hall, on behalf of all the residents, expresses our support and affection to this dear family in these difficult times". News / Local by Staff reporter Some Zimbabweans are concerned about Dr Aaron Motsoaledi's return as Minister of Health in South Africa, citing his previous harsh attitude toward migrants, notably Zimbabweans, accusing them of overwhelming their hospitals.Dr Motsoaledi was appointed Minister of Health in South Africa's Government of National Unity (GNU) Cabinet, succeeding Dr Joe Phaahla, now deputy minister.He is no stranger to the health sector, having served as Minister from 2009 to 2019.However, Zimbabweans are skeptical about Dr Motsoaledi's return, noting that after his 10-year stay in the position, he demonstrated a lack of tolerance for the migrant community, whose anti-immigration attitudes were quite common in the health sector."Dr Motsoaledi's return as the Minister of Health is a gross concern. We have many clips that have shown where he has been very xenophobically dealing with health issues, actually blaming migrants, particularly from Zimbabwe, for flooding the hospitals and causing them not to deliver appropriately," said Dr Vusumuzi Sibanda, leader of the African Diaspora Global Network in an interview with CITE.Dr Sibanda stated that as Home Affairs Minister, Dr Motsoaledi demonstrated anti-migrant policies regarding permits in a legal case that had to be heard by South Africa's Constitutional Court. When he was previously Minister of Health, he accused Zimbabwean migrants of "stealing medication that they don't deserve or making themselves available for medication they don't deserve."He also warned Zimbabweans and others to exercise caution because Dr Motsoaledi could create a crisis for individuals needing treatment."We have seen this make a lot of migrants fail to get treatment at hospitals, so we are expecting that there's going to be a serious war that's going to start again or start afresh in the sector where Dr Motsoaledi is going to be heading now," Dr Sibanda said.Dr Sibanda went on to say he has noticed how some South African government officials tend to identify with populist rhetorical attitudes to be perceived as the next best possible person for specific posts."We once discussed Dr Phophi Ramathuba, who is currently the Premier of Limpopo after serving as the province's Health Member of the Executive Council (MEC). Dr Motsoaledi formerly worked in health before becoming Minister of Home Affairs; he is now back in the health department. These people have participated in similar conducts against migrants," he noted.Nicholas Ngqabutho Mabhena, Chairperson of the Zimbabwean Community in South Africa, shared similar thoughts, pointing out that migrants may have difficulties in receiving treatment."In our view, it is going to be difficult for migrants to receive treatment because we suspect Dr. Motsoaledi is going to order hospital CEOs to make sure people without proper documentation are not treated or that they pay upfront in public hospitals," he said."If one's bill is R25,000 and they don't earn that money, because it's a public hospital for someone who has documents and is South African they will not pay because the State will cover that. But for an undocumented migrant, they will have to pay upfront."Mabhena said even holders of the Zimbabwe Exemption Permits (ZEPs) may be required to pay hospital charges upfront."This is what we think the hospital CEOs will be told to do, to make sure that holders of ZEP and undocumented migrants struggle. It's what we think and we will see how the minister will proceed. He may have a change of heart or policy," said the chairperson.Mabhena said the last time Dr Motsoaledi was Minister of Health, the former ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC), had adopted the National Health Insurance (NHI) Bill.The NHI is South Africa's strategy to achieve universal health coverage, which is a centralised, national insurance fund from which the government will buy healthcare services from healthcare providers in both public and private sectors and was recently signed into law."President Cyril Ramaphosa signed the health insurance into law just before the elections so it is yet to be seen how Dr Motsoaledi will roll out the NHI, which as we know the GNU partners are opposed to, in particular the Democratic Alliance (DA)," Mabhena said."ANC's alliance partners such as the South African Communist Party (SACP) and Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) want the NHI to be implemented."According to Mabhena, South Africans were also looking at how Dr Motsoaledi was going to balance the two opposing views concerning the NHI."We shall see whether he's going to please the ANC and alliance partners by implementing the NHI or he's going to face pressure from the DA and others opposed to it. It is an interesting time so people will be watching him to see how he's going to proceed," he said.South African reports have also said some medical professionals and civil society advocates were cautiously optimistic about Dr Motsoaledi's appointment as Minister of Health, while some critics argued he had left the public service in a worse state than he found it, resulting in a struggling health department. Living in a tidy, organized home can help lower your stress and make daily life more peaceful. And I know from experience the challenge can come down to figuring out what to do with all the items you need to clear out, especially big things like furniture and appliances. Getting rid of things quickly can help prevent clutter from piling up. If you only have a small amount of stuff, dropping it off at a local charity or thrift store is a great option. But when you have multiple bags or large items, hauling everything to a donation center can be a real chore, if not downright impossible! Thats where these companies come in -- theyll pick up your donations from your doorstep, free of charge. THE SALVATION ARMY For over 150 years, the Salvation Army has been helping people in need. This nonprofit organization operates in over 131 countries. At Salvation Army thrift stores, donated furniture is sold at low prices, and the funds support their alcohol and drug rehabilitation centers. To schedule a pickup, visit their website and enter your zip code in the schedule a free pickup section. Youll be directed to the donation details page for your local center. Generally, the Salvation Army accepts a variety of items, including clothing, shoes, toys, furniture, small appliances, household goods, cars and books. VIETNAM VETERANS OF AMERICA The VVA supports veterans and their families by funding programs through its thrift stores. They accept clothing, shoes, baby items, jewelry, bikes, small furniture and appliances, tools, kitchenware and other household goods. Note that they do not take large furniture or appliances. You can schedule a pickup by phone or online at the VVA website. Then just leave your items, clearly marked for VVA pickup, outside. GREENDROP GreenDrop partners with local charities to collect donations. They operate in several states, including Alaska, Illinois, Washington, D.C., Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania and Virginia. They accept clothing, shoes, household items, kitchenware, toys, games, sporting goods, small appliances, small furniture and electronics. Schedule a pickup online if youre in their service area. BIG BROTHERS BIG SISTERS OF AMERICA Big Brothers Big Sisters of America offers mentoring programs for youth and accepts donations in Massachusetts and Connecticut. The organizations Hartsprings program accepts clothing, shoes, books, small appliances, kitchenware and household goods. You can schedule a pickup or find a donation dropoff bin at the Big Brothers Big Sisters website. HABITAT FOR HUMANITY Habitat for Humanity helps families build and find affordable homes. Their ReStores accept donations of building supplies, tools, appliances and furniture. Most locations offer pickup for large items. Use their search tool to find your nearest store and arrange a pickup. Generally, Habitat ReStores accept sofas, chairs, dining room tables, dressers, bed frames, coffee tables, end tables, filing cabinets and bookshelves. On a personal note, when my husband remodeled our kitchen, we donated all the existing cabinets and appliances to Habitat ReStore. A big truck came and picked up all the items, once the crew confirmed everything was in good, working, resalable condition. And as with all IRS-approved nonprofit organizations, we received a receipt authorizing a tax deduction for the items fair market value. PICK UP MY DONATION Pick Up My Donation partners with local charities and thrift shops to keep donations in your community. Enter your ZIP code on the website, complete a questionnaire about your items, and they will connect you with information on charities within a 15-mile radius so you can schedule a pickup. AMVETS FOUNDATION AmVets supports veterans through their thrift store proceeds, offering pickup services in Maryland, Washington, D.C., Northern Virginia, Delaware, Texas and Oklahoma. They accept clothing, shoes, kitchenware, household goods, bedding and seasonal items, as well as electronics, computers and flatscreen TVs less than five years old. Schedule a pickup at their website. THE ARC The Arc advocates for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, accepting donations of clothing and household items at branches across the U.S. Check if your local branch offers pickups by searching your ZIP code on their website, then contact them for details. This organization can help make your decluttering efforts easier, with the highest of possibilities that your unwanted items will find a new home while you support a great cause. The Arc accepts used vehicles, boats (with trailer), recreational vehicles, furniture, housewares and clothing. Many local Arc chapters accept donations of other physical items. To schedule a free large furniture pickup along with up to 20 boxes and bags of donations, contact the local chapter. Or you can schedule online. PICKUP PLEASE This organization is all about supporting Vietnam veterans. They offer counseling, housing for homeless vets, and medical care, using funds from donations to make a real difference for Vietnam vets living in America. Currently, Pickup Please accepts clothing, household goods, toys, electronics, books, exercise equipment, tools, small furnishings, bikes, musical instruments, small appliances and almost anything else. You can easily schedule a donation pickup using their online scheduler. Theyll often come by for your donation within 24 hours. Check the Pickup Please website for the location nearest you. Now, should you feel like Ive left you hanging without specific information on these organizations, exact website addresses and phone numbers, you can easily find all of that at EverydayCheapskate.com/freepickup. Ill be waiting for you there! Mary invites you to visit her at EverydayCheapskate.com, where this column is archived complete with links and resources for all recommended products and services. Mary invites questions and comments at Ask Mary. This column will answer questions of general interest, but letters cannot be answered individually. Mary Hunt is the founder of EverydayCheapskate.com, a frugal living blog, and the author of the book Debt-Proof Living. COPYRIGHT 2023 CREATORS.COM Yuanchu Andrew Liu came to America to study and build his own business. But when he graduated from Syracuse University in 2015, the budding entrepreneur was left with few options other than to return to China. Liu is one of thousands of international students each year forced to return home after graduation because of an antiquated federal immigration policy that tends to keep entrepreneurs and their possible companys tax revenue and job creation out of the country. Today, Liu runs a growing business in Chinas Hebei province. His company oversees roughly a dozen employees who help monitor the safety of 450,000 elevators in the regions skyscrapers. A New Mexico judge decided Monday that actor Alec Baldwins role as co-producer isnt relevant to the involuntary manslaughter trial over a fatal shooting on the set of the Western film Rust. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ruled that evidence wont be allowed at trial about Baldwins secondary role on the movie, siding with defense attorneys. Im having real difficulty with the states position that they want to show that as a producer he didnt follow guidelines and therefore as an actor Mr. Baldwin did all of these things wrong that resulted in the death of Ms. Hutchins because as a producer he allowed these things to happen, Marlowe Sommer said. Im denying evidence of his status as a producer. Special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson argued unsuccessfully to allow evidence that Baldwins role as a producer made him keenly aware of his responsibilities on set for safety. It goes to Mr. Baldwins knowledge, knowing that his conduct on set was negligent, she said. In the courtroom Monday, Baldwin sat between lead attorneys Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro. He thumbed briefly through papers with a yellow legal pad in front of him, wearing glasses and close-cropped hair. The trial starts July 9 with jury selection and is scheduled to last 10 days. Last week, the judge cleared the way for crucial firearms experts for the prosecution to testify about Baldwins handling of the revolver and whether the gun was functioning properly prior to the fatal shooting. Prosecutors have argued that a state workplace safety investigation, which found serious violations on set, was incomplete, untrustworthy and should be prohibited from the trial. Baldwin is charged with a single felony count of involuntary manslaughter punishable by up to 18 months in prison if hes convicted. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, the armorer on set, was convicted of involuntary manslaughter in cinematographer Halyna Hutchins death and sentenced to 18 months in prison. She is appealing the conviction. In October 2021, Baldwin was rehearsing a cross-draw maneuver with the revolver when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has pleaded not guilty and claims the gun fired accidentally after he followed instructions to point it toward Hutchins, who was behind the camera. Unaware the gun contained a live round, Baldwin said he pulled back the hammer not the trigger and it fired. Baldwins attorneys also want to bar discussion at trial of actor Brandon Lees death from a fatal shot to the abdomen while filming a scene from The Crow in 1993. In that instance, a makeshift bullet was mistakenly left in a gun from a previous scene and struck Lee while filming a scene that called for using blank rounds. Prosecutors have agreed not to illicit testimony about The Crow, but also contend that Baldwin knew about safety risks posed by guns even when live rounds are not present. Attorneys for Baldwin argue that it was inconceivable that live rounds would wind up on set. Prosecutors want to exclude a letter signed by crew members that disputes the characterizations of the Rust set as chaotic or dangerous prior to the fatal shooting. Prosecutors also want to exclude from trial the conclusions of the safety investigation into the fatal shooting that places much of the blame on assistant director Dave Halls. Halls has pleaded no contest to negligent use of a firearm and may be called to testify at Baldwins trial. Rust Movie Productions paid a $100,000 fine to resolve violations of state safety regulations that were characterized as serious but not willful, under a 2023 settlement agreement. Prosecutors say conclusions of the investigation are easily contradicted by more reliable information. Baldwins attorneys say the report cant be ruled out as evidence and that state occupational safety officer Lorenzo Montoya should be allowed to testify at trial. Another pretrial motion might defuse snipping between the prosecution and defense teams. Prosecutors want the judge to preclude accusations of prosecutorial misconduct and personal attacks. Prosecutors also want the judge to exclude evidence and arguments designed to garner sympathy for Baldwin, including indications of remorse or the impact of events on his family, arguing that it has no bearing on determining guilt. Note: This story has been updated with a statement from Syracuse City Ballet The Syracuse City Ballet has reached a settlement with six dancers it fired last year after a finding by the National Labor Relations Board that the troupe violated the artists rights. LEVITTOWN, N.Y. (AP) A New York man was charged with arson after giving an 11-year-old child fireworks that set a shed and two homes on fire on Independence Day, police said. The Nassau County Police Department on Long Island said Karamjit Singh, 33, told the child to light the fireworks Thursday morning outside his home in Levittown, but they malfunctioned and set a shed on fire. The blaze then spread to Singhs home and a neighboring house in the suburban neighborhood, causing extensive damage. Images captured by local media showed thick smoke billowing from the fire and the side of one of the homes burned away to expose its wooden studs. Charred debris was strewn across the yard. No injuries were reported. Singh was arrested without incident and the child was released to a family member, police said. Court records show Singh is being represented by the Nassau County legal aid office. A message seeking comment was left there on Sunday. Singh is charged with arson, reckless endangerment and endangering the welfare of a child, among other charges. WASHINGTON (AP) President Joe Biden, in a letter to congressional Democrats, stood firm against calls for him to drop his candidacy and called for an end to the intraparty drama that has torn apart Democrats since his dismal public debate performance. Bidens efforts to shore up a deeply anxious Democratic Party came Monday as lawmakers returned to Washington confronting a choice: Decide whether to work to revive his campaign or try to edge out the party leader, a make-or-break time for his reelection and their own political futures. Biden wrote in the two-page letter that the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. He stressed that the party has one job, which is to defeat presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in November. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election, Biden said in the letter, distributed by his reelection campaign. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Anxiety is running high as top-ranking Democratic lawmakers are joining calls for Biden to step aside despite his defiance. At the same time, some of the presidents most staunch supporters are redoubling the fight for Bidens presidency, insisting theres no one better to beat Trump in what many see as among the most important elections of a lifetime. Biden followed up the letter with a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe show, on which he insisted that average Democrats want him to stay in the race and said he was frustrated by the calls from party officials for him to step aside. Theyre big names, but I dont care what those big names think, Biden said. He threw the gauntlet at his critics, saying if theyre serious they ought to announce for president, challenge me at the convention or rally behind him against Trump. Later, Biden joined a call with members of his national finance committee, while first lady Jill Biden campaigned for her husband in a three-state swing focused on engaging veterans and military families. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, she told a military crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina. Thats the decision that hes made, and just as he has always supported my career, I am all in, too. Democratic voters are split on whether Biden should remain the Democratic Partys nominee for president, or whether there should be a different Democratic nominee, according to a New York Times/Siena College poll. As lawmakers weigh whether Biden should stay or go, there appear to be no easy answers. Its a tenuous and highly volatile juncture for the presidents party. Democrats who have worked alongside Biden for years if not decades and cherished his lifes work on policy priorities are now entertaining uncomfortable questions about his political future. And its unfolding as Biden hosts world leaders for the NATO summit this week in Washington. Time is not on their side, almost a month from the Democratic National Convention and just a week before Republicans gather in Milwaukee to renominate Trump as their presidential pick. Many Democrats are arguing the attention needs to be focused not on Biden but on the former presidents felony conviction in the hush money case and pending federal charges in his effort to overturn the 2020 election. Its what Biden himself might call an inflection point. As he defiantly says he will only step aside if the Lord almighty comes and tells him to, Democrats in the House and Senate are deciding how hard they want to fight the president to change his course, or if they want to change course at all. In an effort to get on the same page, House Democratic leader Hakeem Jeffries is convening lawmakers for private meetings before he shows his own preference, according to a person familiar with the situation and granted anonymity to discuss it. He planned to gather on Monday some Democrats whose bids for reelection are most vulnerable. A private call Sunday including some 15 top House committee members exposed the deepening divide as at least four more Democrats Rep. Jerrold Nadler of New York, Rep. Jim Himes of Connecticut, Rep. Adam Smith of Washington state and Rep. Mark Takano of California privately said Biden should step aside. Nadler, as one of the more senior members on the call, was the first person to say that Biden should step aside, according to a person familiar with the call who was granted anonymity to discuss it. He did so aware of his seniority and that it would allow others to join him. Many others on the call raised concerns about Bidens capability and chance of winning reelection, even if they stopped short of saying Biden should step out of the race. Still other members, including Rep. Maxine Waters of California and Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia, both leaders in the Congressional Black Caucus, spoke forcefully in support of Biden, as did Rep. Richard Neal of Massachusetts, the top Democrat on the powerful Ways and Means Committee. And several lawmakers appeared frustrated that leadership was not providing direction or a path forward, according to people familiar with the call. One Democratic lawmaker said regardless of the decision, the situation has to end now, one of the people said. Neal said afterward that the bottom line is Biden beat Trump in 2020 and hell do it again in November. The upheaval also is testing a new generation of leaders, headed by Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Both New Yorkers have refrained from publicly directing lawmakers on a path forward as they balance diverse opinions in their ranks. Behind the scenes is Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi, who continues to field calls from lawmakers seeking advice about the situation, and is widely viewed as the one to watch for any ultimate decision on Bidens future because of her proximity to the president and vote-counting skills in party politics. Pelosi spoke up last week, saying Bidens debate performance raised legitimate questions he needed to answer, but she has remained supportive of the president. And Biden called her last week when he reached out to other party leaders. When Bidens prime-time ABC interview on Friday appeared to do little to calm worried Democrats, and some said made the situation worse, Pelosi stepped forward to publicly praise Biden on social media as a great President who continues to deliver for Americas kitchen table. She added, and were not done yet! Schumer has kept a lower profile throughout the ordeal but will convene Democratic senators Tuesday for their weekly lunch when senators are certain to air many views. One Democrat, Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia, had intended to gather senators Monday to discuss Biden privately, but a person familiar with his thinking said those conversations will take place in Tuesdays regular caucus luncheon with all Democratic senators. Another Democrat, Sen. Alex Padilla of California, said it was time to quit the hand-wringing and get back to door knocking. Padilla spoke with Biden over the weekend, and urged his campaign to let Joe be Joe. Given the debate, I think the campaign has no choice, Padilla said Sunday, explaining that Biden needs to hold town halls and unscripted events to show voters the Joe Biden that most people in America have come to know and love. While some deep-pocketed donors may be showing discomfort, strategists working on House and Senate races said they have posted record fundraising as donors view congressional Democrats as a firewall and last line of defense against Trump. As Democratic candidates campaign alongside Biden, the advice has been to focus on building their own brands and amplifying the way the work thats done in Congress affects their local districts. News / National by Staff reporter SOUTH Africa-based businessman, Shepherd Chipatiko, is demanding back the R1,6 million (about US$91 000), he splashed on lobola and marriage celebrations, from his ex-wife after their short-lived marriage collapsed amid a tsunami of vicious personal attacks.His marriage to Varaidzo Marylyn Kunze collapsed in December last year and he is suing her for R15 000k for allegedly peddling falsehoods against him.He claims Varaidzo even offered him to marry her daughter, Thando Sibanda, but he turned down the offer.He has also dangled a R10 000 reward for anyone who helps him know where she can be located.The couple was married for only a short period of time and they did not have any children together."I now want her to refund me the lobola payment and celebrations amounting to R755 000, posh car for R385 000, Bitcoin loan of R100 000."She made a misrepresentation of a fake pregnancy, R320 000, age misrepresentation, and about having one child when she has two kids."I also want R15 000 for defamation of character."Shepherd told H-Metro:"We separated last year in December and I gave her R188 000 to start her life after lying to me several times."She lied that she was pregnant and she was dating someone here in SA."She was weighing on who to stay with and I engaged the guy who also said she was a fraudster."This woman lied about her age that she is 38 yet she was 48 and even promised to give me her daughter, who is 25 years."She promised to destroy my reputation."Shepherd's lawyers, Kevin James McCallum Attorneys, have also written to Varaidzo."Our client instructs that you have published on every social media platform possible (including but not limited to Whatsapp, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter, and YouTube) as well as media outlets, Threads and Bluewheel Barrow Farm, both within the Republic of South Africa and Zimbabwe defamatory and slanderous comments with the specific aim and intention of defaming our client as well as his wife."The blatant untruths published and shared on and across the aforementioned platforms constitute a defamation of our client's good name and character."Your actions have as such led to our client incurring damages on a professional and business level as well as in his personal life."Our client instructs us that he was coerced into a customary marriage with yourself as a result of the below-mentioned misrepresentations made to him by you."You misrepresented that you were 38 years of age and that you were pregnant with our client's child and only had one other child, when in fact you were 48 years of age, with two children and were not in fact pregnant with our client's child or at all as a fertility clinic had determined you to have already reached menopause."The lawyers added:"As a result of the aforementioned, misrepresentations by yourself, our client paid a sum of R 1 655 000 for a customary marriage celebration and lobola."Further to the aforementioned, our client loaned you a sum of R100 000 for the purposes of you investing in Bitcoin. To date our client has never received a single cent towards the repayment of same."Our client also instructs that during and possibly after your marriage you have forged his signature on numerous occasions on various documents which for the purposes of this letter we wish to merely put on record, but will be dealt with by instituting criminal charges against you for same."We are further instructed that not only have you shared our client's personal and private information with media outlets but the personal and private information of his wife and minor children, which is in direct violation of the POPI Act which could result in a massive fine and/or imprisonment."In light of the aforementioned we demand the following from you within 24 hours after dispatch hereof:"Removal of all your defamatory social media posts, a retraction statement to be issued to all the media outlets that you have contacted or been contacted whereby you defame our client and/or his wife, a formal public apology to be shared on every and all social media platforms you took to, to defame our client and/or his wife in the first place."The lawyers said they were demanding:l "Repayment of the sum of R100 000 lent to you by our client aforementioned, repayment in the sum of R1 655 000 paid by our client for the customary marriage celebrations and lobola into which he would never have entered had it not been for your outrageous misrepresentations.l "Payment in the sum of R15 000 for defamation of character as our client has suffered irreparable damages to his good standing, character, reputation, and loss of income incurred as a direct result of your spurious and vexatious defamatory mistruths shared about our client." 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. ChatGPT and the rapid adoption of generative AI have pushed chief information security officers (CISOs) to the limit, with employees testing these tools in the workplace. A survey released earlier this year found that few businesses view this threat vector seriously enough to already have a third-party security cyber risk management solution in place. While 94% of CISOs are concerned with third-party cybersecurity threats including 17% who view it as a top priority only 3% have already implemented a third-party cyber risk management solution at their organizations, and 33% plan to do so this year. Security risk management software firm Panorays shed new light on the worsening network security problems workers cause. This internal threat occurs when employees use their organizations network to experiment with generative AI and other AI tools. According to the research, 65% of CISOs expect the third-party cyber risk management budget to increase. Of those respondents, 40% said it would increase from 1% to 10% this year. The report also revealed that CISOs at very large enterprises (73%) are more concerned about third-party cybersecurity threats than mid-size enterprises (47%). Only 7% of CISOs said they were not worried at all. CISOs understand the threat of third-party cybersecurity vulnerabilities, but a gap exists between this awareness and implementing proactive measures, said Panorays CEO Matan Or-El. He warned that empowering CISOs to fortify defenses by analyzing and addressing gaps swiftly is crucial in navigating the current cyber landscape. With the speed of AI development, bad actors will continue to leverage this technology for data breaches, operational disruptions, and more. Overlooked Challenges Increasing Cybersecurity Risks The top challenge CISOs see in fixing third-party risk management matters is complying with new regulations for third-party risk management, according to 20% of the CISOs responding. A majority of CISOs are confident that AI solutions can improve third-party security management. However, other cyber experts not referenced in the Panorays report argue that AI is too nascent to provide that solution reliably. Other challenges include: Communicating the business influence of third-party risk management: 19% Not enough resources to manage risk in the growing supply chain: 18% AI-based third-party breaches increasing: 17% No visibility to Shadow IT usage in their company: 16% Prioritizing the risk assessment efforts based on criticality: 10% Confronting regulatory changes and escalating third-party cyber risks is paramount, continued Or-El. Despite resource constraints and rising AI-related breaches, increased budget allocation towards cyber risk management is a positive step in the right direction. The Importance of Reducing Third-Party Security Risks Jasson Casey, CEO of cybersecurity firm Beyond Identity, agreed that access to AI tools can expose companies to sophisticated attacks. These tools can be manipulated to reveal proprietary information or serve as entry points for cyberthreats. The probabilistic nature of AI models means they can be tricked into bypassing security measures, highlighting the importance of rigorous security practices and the need for AI tools that prioritize privacy and data protection, he told TechNewsWorld. Casey added that Shadow IT, particularly the unauthorized use of AI tools, significantly undermines organizational cybersecurity efforts. It increases the risk of data breaches and complicates incident response and compliance efforts. To combat the challenges posed by shadow IT, organizations must encourage transparency, provide secure alternatives to popular AI tools, and implement strict yet adaptable policies that guide the use of AI within the enterprise, he offered. Organizations can better manage the risks associated with these unauthorized technologies by addressing the root causes of shadow IT, such as the lack of available, approved tools that meet employee needs. CISOs must provide secure, approved AI solutions that mitigate the risk of information leakage. They can reduce reliance on external, less secure AI applications by offering in-house AI tools that respect privacy and data integrity. Casey noted that fostering a security-conscious culture and ensuring that all AI tool usage aligns with organizational policies are crucial steps in curbing the proliferation of shadow IT. Balancing Innovation and Security While that formula for fixing may sound simple, making it happen is one of the biggest obstacles CISOs face today. Among the most formidable challenges CISOs face is the rapid pace of technological advancement and the innovative tactics employed by cyber adversaries. Balancing the drive for innovation with the need for comprehensive security measures, especially in the face of evolving AI technologies and the shadow IT phenomenon, requires constant vigilance and adaptability. Moreover, overcoming security fatigue among employees and encouraging a proactive security posture remain significant hurdles, Casey noted. The most significant increases in the usage and adoption of gen AI and other AI tools are in sectors that stand to gain from data analysis, automation, and enhanced decision-making processes. These include finance, health care, and technology. This uptick necessitates a more nuanced understanding of AIs benefits and risks, urging organizations to adopt secure and ethical AI practices proactively, he said. Mitigating Risks of Shadow IT Exposure IT leaders must prioritize establishing AI-centric security training, according to Casey. Workers need to recognize that every interaction with AI could potentially train its core models. By implementing phishing-resistant authentication, organizations can shift from traditional phishing security training to educating employees on the proper use of AI tools. This focus on education will form a robust defense against inadvertent data breaches and provide a good starting point for defending against third-party cyber assaults. A worthwhile follow-up for CISOs is developing dynamic policies that account for the evolving nature of AI tools and the associated security risks. Policies must limit confidential and proprietary inputs to public AI services, mitigating the risk of exposing these details. Additionally, these policies should be adaptive, regularly reviewed, and updated to remain effective against new threats, Casey pointed out. By understanding and legislating against the misuse of AI, including potential jailbreaks, CISOs can safeguard their organizations against emerging threats. Serving tech enthusiasts for over 25 years.TechSpot means tech analysis and advice you can trust Space Odyssey: NASA plans to send the first crewed mission to Mars sometime in the 2030s. Although it will be an orbit-and-return mission, eventually, the space agency wants boots on the ground. Four intrepid explorers just completed one of a series of feasibility studies by living in a space outpost lookalike for a year. After spending 378 days in almost complete isolation in a simulated Mars environment, the first CHAPEA (Crew Health and Performance Exploration Analog) mission crew exited the Mars Dune Alpha building this Saturday. The four volunteers spent more than a year doing simulated "Marswalks" and growing vegetables, providing NASA with a valuable research opportunity to prepare for future Mars exploration. The CHAPEA mission began on June 25, 2023, when crew members Kelly Haston, Anca Selariu, Ross Brockwell, and Nathan Jones entered a 3D-printed 1,700-square-foot habitat at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas. The CHAPEA program includes a series of missions that realistically simulate conditions astronauts would have to endure in year-long landfall visits to Mars. The CHAPEA crew had to conduct simulated "Marswalks" and engage in other physical activities so NASA could collect data on various factors, including behavioral health and performance. The crews living a year in Mars Dune Alpha also had to grow vegetables to supplant canned food and generally experience an estranged life with limited resources and delayed communications, like a real Mars landing mission. After completing their mission, the CHAPEA 1 crew members expressed their gratitude for the opportunity to participate. Biomedical research scientist Kelly Haston, the mission commander, said the mission was fun and challenging. "[CHAPEA was] a unique experience with great challenges, joys, and sorrows, and a lot of hard work with a fair bit of fun thrown in," Haston remarked. Flight engineer Ross Brockwell highlighted how the simulated Mars mission was an opportunity to focus on optimizing resource utilization. "This [was an] incredible opportunity," said Brockwell. "[It gave us] the chance to live the idea that we must utilize resources no faster than they can be replenished and produce wastes no faster than they can be processed back into resources." Emergency medicine professor Nathan Jones, who acted as the crew's medical officer, said that despite the extended mission length, there was always something to do, so the time "went by quickly." "[I'd like to thank] the American public for continuing to dare to dream that this humanity might go beyond Earth and our next giant leap forward," he said. Microbiologist and US Navy officer Anca Selariu, the crew's science officer, expressed that CHAPEA 1 was a dream come true for her. "[I was] astonished that I got to contribute to the one thing that is dearest to my heart: bringing life to Mars," Selariu told reporters. The CHAPEA crew wasn't alone in its simulated Mars experience. During the mission, Johnson Space Center Deputy Director Steve Koerner and four other NASA members acted as the earth-based control crew. NASA has planned two additional CHAPEA missions over the next few years. In February, the space agency began looking for crew members for CHAPEA 2. If everything goes according to plan, a Mars exploration attempt could happen sometime in the next decade. What just happened? Microsoft has told all its employees in China that they will soon only be allowed to use iPhones for work purposes. The ban on Android devices is part of a security-related Microsoft initiative for providing a unified way of managing and verifying employee identities. The mandate, set to come into effect in September 2024, was announced in an internal memo seen by Bloomberg News. It will require Microsoft's China-based workers to verify their identities when logging in to work computers or phones. The change is part of Microsoft's global Secure Future Initiative that is intended, among other things, to ensure that all staff use the Microsoft Authenticator password manager and Identity Pass app. While Apple's iOS store is available in China, Google Play isn't. Local smartphone giants such as Huawei and Xiaomi operate their own platforms in the country, but Microsoft has chosen to block access from those companies' devices to its corporate resources because they lack Google's mobile services, reads the memo. Any staff in the country using Android handsets, including those from Huawei or Xiaomi, will be provided with an iPhone 15, as a one-time purchase. The Redmond giant is designating collection points across China where employees can pick up their iPhones. Microsoft is also introducing the iPhones-only rule in Hong Kong, despite the Google Play Store being available in the special administrative region of China. Microsoft has been beefing up its cybersecurity recently following several embarrassing breaches. The company detected a nation-state attack against its corporate email network last year, identifying the likely culprit as Russian group Midnight Blizzard. The hackers had access to Microsoft's corporate network for a month, breaching some of the company's source code repositories and unspecified "internal systems." In April, a government review of the attack on Microsoft's Exchange Online hosted email service by a China-linked group blasted the company for allowing a "cascade of security failures" that were preventable and should never have occurred. The report described Microsoft's security culture as "inadequate" and requiring an overhaul. Apple and Microsoft have not commented on the report, but it's easy to imagine Apple welcoming the news, especially as China started banning iPhones from certain government offices last year, and sales of the devices in the Asian nation have slumped recently. Opinion / Columnist We want to believe that the demonstrations in Kenya just happened overnight. The Gene Zs went on a rampage assisted by criminals. To framing them so thin, is to trivialize a genuine revolution that was long overdue. Having been following the demonstrations in Kenya closely, these young men and women are qualified and have a clear understanding of Kenyan political, economic discourses. The Gene Zs have been observing the Kenyan economic discrepancies pilling up and the elected government appeared to have no clue about how to alleviate poverty in the lives of the poor majority. This reaction by the youth is not specific to Africa and Kenya only; it can everywhere. Having voted them into power, the very politicians start living large: the word opulence was spoken at the demonstrations by Gene Zs. These overnight rich politicians did not even try to conceal their ill-gotten wealth. The fertile ground for a volatile revolution was set long back. A revolution needs a critical mass to trigger a reaction of that magnitude we have seen in Kenya.Curiously, the Kenyan revolution has started: The citizens of Zimbabwe are anticipating the same, but no critical mass. Since the beginning of the 1990s, Zimbabwean economy has been on a freefall: a revolution that fails to take because of so many factors. There have been one failure economic plans with the other. Having borrowed from international lending institutions until they could not, the World Bank and the IMF prescribed austerities that made the economic situation even worse. ESAP sent millions out of employment. As if it was not enough pain, Mugabe regime allocated billions of US dollars to war veterans for free, just to appease them from the rumblings due to economic hardships. This money given to war veterans was not in the budget. The Zimbabwean economy sank deeper again because the UK government stopped giving "free" money to Zimbabwe. In fury, Mugabe cut his nose to spite his face. There were farm invasions: removal of white farmers from the best lands. Instead of giving the land to the majority poor, the politician shared the best lands among themselves. This reaction came back to hound them, Zimbabwe was faced with massive food insecurities for the first time after independence. To this day, Zimbabwe has never had stable food securities. People are starving because of the ego of one man: Mugabe. Anger is indeed a very bad counselor.Constipating the economic ills further: Mugabe's Zanu party lost a referendum against the newly formed party MDC in year 2000. He turned his anger from Zimbabwean white farmers to the opposition party Movement for Democratic Change. Mugabe regime started a cleanup operation called "Operation Murambatsvina". Houses were destroyed. So many people died because it happened right in the middle of HIV/AIDS pandemic; more than three quarters of million people were internally displaced. The situation in most towns and cities became unlivable. As if it was not enough, again, there were violent elections in 2008. Opposition members were brutally murdered and maimed in thousands. In contrast to Kenya today, whereby the Gene Zs decided it was the moment to bring change in Kenya: Zimbabwean, especially those in the middle-class bracket left the country in millions. They were mostly qualified professionals who easily got employment in South Africa, some to the UK, Canada, USA, New Zealand, and Australia, leaving mostly peasant population without leadership: the critical mass is missing to stage a successful revolution. A revolution needs its intelligentsia for it to be successful.Intelligentsia in Kenya is abundant, evidenced by wider social media coverages that have plausible answers to move Kenya to the next level.What is painfully lacking in Zimbabwe is a powerful opposition. There is no opposition even to speak about today: A leadership that can stand up to Zimbabwean government and challenge it ideological, political, socially, economically is absent. There is no leadership in Chamisa and Co too. You cannot fight a brutal regime of President Mnangagwa, wearing a three-piece tailor-made suite living a posh and affluent life in Harare. Inside the opposition party of CCC are unending conflicts and internal blackmails. The CCC leadership is unable to solve issues internally on their own. One wonders how they will be able take on a ruthless government of Zanu PF if it is showing signs of infantile attributes. How competent is Chamisa to take over a government if he has not mastered basic leadership skills.The Kenyan intellectuals are still intact living in Kenya, few left the country. It is mind-blowing, listening to intellectuals in Kenya, young and old, talking about a true revolution in their midst and what steps must be done to alleviate a disaster that is looming. What could hijack a good thing at this juncture? The neighbor states have been in the same situation; They also staged revolutions but because there were no contingency plans done before they went to the state house to remove the Head of State; Sudan finds itself in a war of about two years and still raging on. Ruanda has declared war with the Democratic Republic of Congo. Ethiopia is at war with Tigray. The entire Sahel region is fragile. President Tinubu of Nigeria is dreaming of setting up a big army that will invade "rogue" states in West African ECOWAS organization at the behest of France, for absconding the ECOWAS. We have vassal states in Africa too.Kenya, in sharp contrast to Zimbabwe; the intelligentsia is assisting the Gene Zs how to spearhead the revolution effectively for it to be a success. Failed countries north of them are talked about in detail as reference point. The Gene Zs have discovered that their voice and actions have great impact on President Ruto and the Kenyan government. The finance bill that triggered the demonstrations have been suspended: a great achievement. Kudos to Gene Zs. The Gene Zs are going further with their demands, unequivocally: they don't trust the Head of State, therefore they want him removed. There is rationality in their actions, it is for this reason the Gene Zs have earned great respect from the public, and right across ethnic and class divides. They are rebirthing the African consciousness. Heroes in Kenya and Africa, emblematic with revolutions in Niger, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Mali, and many other progressive forces continentally. There is indeed a rich vein of hope across the African continent.To say what is happening in Kenya is not possible in Zimbabwe should not be seen as an unfounded critique. A revolution must be ripe ever to take place. However, in Zimbabwe the war of liberation is still fresh and is sitting in the psyches of many. Politics is a game of fear. The 2018 demonstrations that took place in Zimbabwe after the harmonized elections benchmarked disdain in trust towards the opposition leaders who feared to be part of it. The opposition leader Nelson Chamisa and his lot hid safely in their posh and opulent homes in Highlands. They gave beer and crack to young demonstrators to do the job for them. Soft revolutions are not successful and have never been.There is raw courage needed to stage a revolution like the one in Kenya by Gene Z. It takes incredible raw courage to be in the shoes of General Traore of Burkina Faso. What is taking place in the Sahel region is a true African revolution, Zimbabwe is far from it, a pie in the sky.Again, there is a culture of selfishness in Zimbabwe nurtured by the higher echelons in Zanu leadership hierarchical going down. The general population realized that the Zimbabwean government and the opposition do not care about its citizens. It is for this reason; the general population will never risk their lives going out and demonstrate against the Zanu regime. The 2018 demonstrations that took place immediately after the disputed elections, left 6 dead: Not one opposition leader was present at the funeral of those that were mercilessly gunned down by the Zimbabwean army. It is painful to realize how the ruling elite is plundering and pillaging our national resources for themselves and their immediate relatives. There is poverty in urban and rural settings. A poor Zimbabwean is poor in the sense of the word. Thousands of street children eke out a living in the streets and die in the streets. In high density urban areas, children play in raw sewage. Gene Zs in Kenya would have staged a revolution in Zimbabwe long back.Curiously, the learned population in Zimbabwe, home and abroad are pushing for the Vice President to take overpower from the incumbent Mnangagwa. With all due respect, our vice President barely reads and writes. Is it even normal to wish for the worst from the worse to be in power? Some doctorate degree was written for him, and he calls himself Dr. Chiwenga, an inept persona. Our intelligentsia are pushing hard to get him in power. He was in dispute with his former boss Mugabe because of the diamond revenue loot: 15 billion dollars loot from Marange, shared among themselves led to the coup in Zimbabwe. Dr. Chiwenga goes to China for medical checks: blood pressure and several other minor medical checkups, are all done in China because he does not trust his own medical institutions at home. Now he is supposed to be our next head of state, the most educated are pushing for him to be the next in power. Can you see the difference between Kenyan revolution and our ineptitude in Zimbabwe. Chinese nationals arrive in Zimbabwe in hundreds, get themselves the best gold, and lithium, chrome mines and farmlands allocations, pillaging our resources and the coming generation without a pinch of guilt. They employ Zimbabweans to work as cheap labour in these mines and farms. That is what is called foreign direct investment for you! How stupid can an African still be? Ghanaian Pratt Kwesi says African leadership is useless: dump stupid! In brief: Tesla's shareholders are heading to court today to contest a legal bill. The lawyers who fought against Elon Musk's $56 billion Tesla compensation by successfully arguing it was excessive are asking to be given the equivalent of around $7.6 billion in the EV giant's stock. It's up to the judge who stopped Musk's pay package to decide whether this demand is "outlandish" and should not be paid. More than five years after shareholder Richard Tornetta filed suit against Tesla over claims it breached its fiduciary duty by unjustly enriching its CEO to the tune of $56 billion, Delaware Judge Kathaleen St. J. McCormick voided Musk's pay package in January. Soon after, the four law firms that represented Tornetta asked to be awarded 29 million shares of Tesla stock, which as of Friday was worth $7.3 billion. That would make it the largest fee in US litigation history and equate to roughly $370,000 for every hour worked by the 37 lawyers, associates, and paralegals. In a letter to McCormick in March, Nathan Chiu, a Tesla shareholder from New Jersey, wrote "The legal fees appear exceedingly disproportionate and outlandish." As reported by Reuters, it was one of around 1,500 letters sent by Chiu, the California Public Employees' Retirement System, and more than 8,000 Tesla stockholders to the Delaware Chancery Court. The hearing has been moved to the largest courthouse in the building to accommodate the 47 attorneys from 19 law firms appearing in the case. The lawyers argue that Tesla is being asked to pay the massive fee because it will benefit from the return of Musk's compensation, which they claim will result in hundreds of millions of shares being returned to the company. "This structure has the benefit of linking the award directly to the benefit created and avoids taking even one cent from the Tesla balance sheet to pay fees," the shareholder legal team said, adding that the fee was tax-deductible for Tesla. McCormick will also be deciding whether to reinstate Musk's pay package after more than 70% of Tesla shareholders voted in June to ratify it. The vote doesn't require McCormick to undo her ruling, but she has said she will consider the vote at a separate hearing. Musk's package, which allows him to buy around 304 million shares, was worth almost $56 billion in January. Now, it's closer to $69 billion. Tornetta's attorneys say they should receive a fee equal to 11% of the judgment, a percentage that is arguably conservative by Delaware legal precedent. They added that they would have been justified in asking for up to 33% of the value of Musk's pay package. Tesla says that as Musk's pay has been restored, Tornetta's legal victory is now technically a loss that does not benefit the company or the shareholders. As such, the lawyers should receive as little as $13.6 million. McCormick may take weeks or months to make her ruling. The decision will likely be influenced by the outcome of a $267 million fee request in a shareholder class action involving Dell Technologies, which is taking place at the Delaware Supreme Court. What is Eton? Eton College, a boys boarding school located near Windsor just outside London, boasts an impressive list of notable alums, including Prince William, Prince Harry, Tom Hiddleston, and Eddie Redmayne. The school is also renowned for educating several future British prime ministers, such as David Cameron and Boris Johnson. Eton College, one of the most prestigious boarding schools in the world, is set to ban smartphones for its incoming first-year students. The school, which houses and educates boys aged 13 to 18, will offer ancient Nokia phones as an alternative. This move reflects the school's efforts to balance technological advancements with students' education. An Eton spokesperson told Business Insider that Eton frequently reviews its mobile phone and device policies to weigh the benefits and challenges technology brings to the educational environment. Starting in September, new "Year 9" (freshmen) students will receive "brick" phones, which allow calls and texts but have no internet functionality. Furthermore, students can only use their phones outside school hours. They still have access to school-issued iPads during classes, but only to support their academic studies. Eton's "age-appropriate" technology rules for upperclassmen remain unchanged. The new smartphone policy marks a significant step beyond Eton's previous regulations. In 2018, the school implemented a rule requiring first-year students to surrender their smartphones overnight. This latest policy completely replaces smartphones with basic Nokia phones, emphasizing a trend toward reducing internet access among young people, especially during classes. Business Insider notes that these "dumb phones" have grown in popularity, particularly among younger generations who are part of emerging movements aimed at disconnecting from social media. This trend aligns with Eton's new policy, reflecting a growing awareness of the potential distractions and negative impacts of constant connectivity on young people's focus and well-being. The school's initiative highlights a broader conversation about the role of technology in education and the importance of maximizing benefits while mitigating drawbacks. By replacing smartphones with simpler devices and providing iPads for academic use only, the school aims to create an environment that supports learning while minimizing distractions. Officials believe this approach is a model for other educational institutions struggling with similar issues. The decision spotlights the importance of regularly reassessing technology policies, ensuring they align with academic goals and student needs. Image credit: Luke McKernan Following the launch of its first Southeast Asian production facility, BYD Co. will buy 20% of its Thai distributor, Rever Automotive Co. The two firms' joint investment agreement, which Rever Automotive announced late Saturday, explains the action. Rever said the combined venture will boost their electric vehicle competitiveness, Bloomberg reported. BYD announced the move days after opening a plant in Rayong, Thailand, nearly two years after buying property for its first Southeast Asian production site. The site will produce right-hand-drive automobiles for Thai and Southeast Asian customers. According to the Chinese firm, the plant can produce 150,000 cars per year. The factory will also make batteries and gearboxes, it claimed. The new investment plan follows a Friday meeting between BYD chairman and CEO Wang Chuanfu and Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin. Customers in Thailand were upset about recent BYD model price decreases. BYD is one of the leading companies to take advantage of Thailand's tax incentives, which aims to transform the country into the region's EV production hub. By 2030, Thailand wants EVs to make up 30% of its local car production. BYD also Expanding in Turkey Meanwhile, Turkey is expected to announce a $1 billion deal with BYD to build a new facility in Manisa province, according to sources. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will attend a ceremony on Monday to announce the Chinese manufacturer's European expansion, despite rising trade tensions, per SCMP. Turkey's customs-union agreement with the EU provides BYD with enhanced access to EU markets, thereby positioning the new factory optimally. The EU proposes to slap temporary duties on Chinese electric vehicles, adding 17.4% to existing levies. Electric vehicles made up 7.5% of auto sales in Turkey, home to almost 90 million people, last year. The facility will target the European market, as well as a growing domestic demand. Read Also : J2 Ventures Secures $150M Funding for Innovations in Civilian and Military Tech BYD Beats Tesla in 2nd Quarter of 2024 A recent report by Counterpoint Research predicted that BYD will exceed Tesla in battery electric vehicle (BEV) sales this year, a major industry change.This development shows the worldwide EV market's dynamic character, said Counterpoint researchers. A TechTimes reported recently that BYD is beating Tesla in sales performance as it sold 426,039 BEVs in the second quarter, up 21%, while Tesla sold 443,956 cars, down 4.8%. BYD, which produced over 3 million battery-only and hybrid cars last year, has surpassed Tesla's 1.84 million. While Tesla led the BEV market, the Chinese carmaker produced 1.6 million battery-only passenger vehicles and 1.4 million hybrids. The EV maker still leads the BEV market, especially in China, despite losing the first quarter to Tesla. By 2024, Counterpoint Research expects China to sell four times more BEVs than North America. Counterpoint expects that China will hold over 50% of the global BEV market until 2027, surpassing North America and Europe by 2030. Dr. Will Cavendish reportedly claims that artificial intelligence can be a critical tool in finding new ways to solve the world's ongoing climate crisis. Dr. Cavendish is a current global digital services leader at Arup and a former Strategy Lead Applied at DeepMind, where he was responsible for comprehending the groundbreaking breakthroughs in Artificial Intelligence. According to the Guardian report, Dr. Cavendish claims that AI has already proven to be an important facilitator in addressing climate and environmental issues. In certain circumstances, AI uses far less power than the traditional computers it replaces, such as in energy-intensive sophisticated climate models. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence has the potential to uncover huge decarbonization prospects. Cavendish adds that AI can also aid in the transition away from polluting materials like concrete, lower the carbon footprint of energy and transportation systems, and promote the reuse and repurposing of existing structures. The doctor stresses, however, that "we" must continue improving the efficiency of AI development while ensuring that it is done properly and ethically. But as crucial is using AI to help expedite the green transformation. NASA on AI Against Climate Change Dr. Cavendish's claims are one of many, as NASA was also reported using the booming technology to combat climate change. In 2023, NASA and IBM Research collaborated to create an AI geospatial foundation model. This model, trained on massive databases such as NASA's Harmonized Landsat and Sentinel-2 (HLS) data, is a critical resource for many AI-driven research projects addressing environmental challenges. NASA has also made the model accessible to all interested parties, promoting cooperative inquiry and discovery. Foundation models are the foundation for scientists to build various applications, providing strong and efficient solutions. Manil Maskey, the data science leader at NASA's Office of the Chief Science Data Officer (OCSDO), compares these models to Swiss Army Knives, which are flexible and can be used for various purposes. According to NASA, fine-tuning has improved the geospatial foundation model's ability to recognize burn scars, delineate floodwater, and categorize crop and land use types. While NASA provided substantial data and scientific experience, IBM provided computational resources and expertise in AI algorithm optimization. NASA and IBM Research also collaborate to create a weather and climate model after the geospatial foundation's achievement. Like the geospatial model, this weather and climate model will be publicly available, promoting collaborative innovation and research. Multiple foundation models trained on diverse datasets would be required to address all elements of Earth science. AI-Powered Home Devices Users can even reportedly benefit from AI against climate change. While traditional weather predictions give a geographical perspective, AI-powered smart home devices personalize any digital experience, including weather data, for specific users. These gadgets are outfitted with powerful sensors and machine-learning algorithms. They can examine local weather trends, historical data, and even user preferences to produce hyper-local forecasts. Last week was a massive week for crypto, with a significant crash in the market for all, including the massive settlement of Silvergate to the SEC for its latest case. However, the study on the global crypto hacks in the first half of 2024 also saw a significant rise, with as much as double the stolen money in the blockchain recorded by researchers in the latest investigation. The titan of the cryptocurrency industry, Bitcoin, saw a massive crash over the weekend, to as low as $53,000, attributed to Mt. Gox's latest repayments to creditors. Silvergate Pushes to Settle SEC Case on Massive Violations Silvergate Bank has decided to settle the cases filed by the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) against the company and its executives regarding massive violations and charges. The cases center on issues including defrauding investors and misleading them during the FTX downfall, and the bank will pay $50 million in civil penalties. This settlement means that Silvergate is not confirming or denying the charges against the company and its executives, including Chief Executive Officer Alan Lane and Chief Risk Officer Kathleen Fraher. The SEC's main case centers on the bank's failure to monitor as much as $1 trillion in crypto transactions amidst FTX's downfall, misleading investors about their anti-money laundering compliance. Crypto Hacks 2024: $1.4 Billion in The First Half Only It is only July, and the past six months of 2024 already saw as much as $1.4 billion worth of cryptocurrency stolen by bad actors, one of the largest crypto hacks in history for this short amount of time. This was regarded as double the amount stolen compared to last year's first half, which only amounted to $657 million, more than twice as much this year. Blockchain research firm TRM Labs confirmed this in their latest report. According to Bloomberg, five major attacks took place, during which 70 percent of all crypto was stolen. The research firm believes that more will be stolen in the second half of the year, with hacks now on the rise significantly compared to previous years. Bitcoin Crash and Mt. Gox's Repayments Bitcoin crashed big time last week. From around $62,000 when July first started, it ended the week with $56,000 in valuation, the lowest value of the coin since it hit this figure in February. However, it also briefly saw a $53,000 dip amidst the entire ordeal, its record lowest since its massive rally during the previous months. Forbes reported that this was a 6.73 percent crash over the past week, affecting other cryptocurrencies in the market, including Ethereum, Solana, and more, and collectively lost $1 trillion in market capitalization, now in $2 trillion from its $3 trillion cap in March. It was regarded that Mt. Gox's repayments to creditors prompted this massive crash. Many cashed out on their Bitcoins after receiving payments, and more are expected to be returned soon. Scientists at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio have achieved a groundbreaking milestone by creating the world's first mouse model equipped with a fully functional human immune system. Named TruHuX (for truly human, or THX), these humanized mice represent a significant advancement in immunological and microbiological research. Advancing Human Immunology With TruHuX Mice Unlike traditional mouse models, Interesting Engineering reported that TruHuX possesses key human immune components such as lymph nodes, germinal centers, and thymus human epithelial cells. It also features human T and B lymphocytes, memory B lymphocytes, and plasma cells capable of producing specific antibodies and autoantibodies that closely mirror those found in humans. Notably, this model also hosts a human-like gut microbiome, further enhancing its relevance for studying immune responses and diseases. This innovative approach opens up new possibilities for studying human diseases and testing therapies more accurately and ethically, potentially reducing reliance on non-human primates in research. Paolo Casali, MD, the University of Texas Ashbel Smith Professor and Distinguished Research Professor, explained that THX mice utilize estrogen activity to bolster human stem cell and immune cell development, enhancing antibody responses. This breakthrough opens the door to advanced human immune system research, the creation of human vaccines, and the testing of treatments. Casali emphasized that this innovation could revolutionize in vivo experimentation, enabling the development of cancer immunotherapies, vaccines against human viruses and bacteria, and the modeling of various human diseases. He envisioned that this approach might eventually replace the need for non-human primates in biomedical research focused on immunology and microbiology. Unraveling Immune Complexity in TruHuX Mice The latest research highlighted that these mice display a broad range of human B cell and T cell antigen receptors, enabling them to generate sophisticated antibody responses through processes like somatic hypermutation and class-switch recombination. Importantly, they can develop autoimmune responses akin to lupus after pristane injection. THX mice utilize estrogen activity to facilitate human immune cell development and antibody maturation, offering a robust platform for studying the human immune system and advancing the development of human vaccines and treatments. Building on the success of the THX model, Casali's team is now investigating how these mice respond to SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19) infection both systemically and locally. They also examine human memory B cells, their reliance on the nuclear receptor ROR for formation, and the factors influencing ROR expression and dysregulation. Researchers are additionally delving into epigenetic mechanisms governing the production of human plasma cells. These cells are vital for generating antibodies rapidly in response to pathogens or cancer cells. Mice are commonly employed in biological and biomedical research due to their small size, ease of handling, biological similarities to humans regarding immune responses, and their amenability to genetic manipulation. In the evolving landscape of biomedical innovation, TruHuX mice exemplify a bridge between human biology and experimental inquiry, inspiring new horizons in the quest for healthier futures. Australia is set to boost its military capabilities with the acquisition of US-made Switchblade 300 drones, as announced by the Australian government on Monday (via Nikkei Asia). Australian Troops to Receive US-Made Kamikaze Drones The Switchblade 300, produced by the American unmanned aircraft systems manufacturer AeroVironment, is a precision loitering munition designed to crash into its target and detonate. Weighing less than 2 kilograms, this portable drone can be carried in a backpack and deployed from a launch tube in under two minutes. It provides army units the ability to attack targets with precision beyond the line of sight, a feature highlighted by Malcolm Davis, a senior defense analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute. The Switchblade 300 also boasts impressive specifications. According to AeroVironment's website, It can reach speeds of up to 160 kilometers per hour, has a range of 30 kilometers, and an endurance of 20 minutes. Additionally, the drone also provides a number of important features such as "real-time video, GPS coordinates, selectable warheads, and wave-off capabilities." The latest version of the drone features a payload equivalent to a 40-millimeter grenade, capable of taking out soft-skinned vehicles and infantry positions. Killer Drone Widely Used in Ukraine The demand for such weapons has surged following their successful deployment in conflicts in Azerbaijan, the Red Sea, and Ukraine. The Defense Post tells us that the Switchblade 300 has been notably effective in neutralizing Russian military assets, even in the presence of sophisticated electronic warfare systems. It has also been used in Iraq and Afghanistan, demonstrating its versatility and effectiveness on various battlefields. In their announcement, the Australian government has not disclosed the exact number of Switchblade 300 drones it will acquire or the contract's value. However, initial deliveries are expected later this year, with the drones entering service by 2025. The acquisition is part of a strategic initiative to enhance the ADF's use of drones, as emphasized by Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy. He stated, "With autonomous weapon systems increasingly prevalent, the Defence Strategic Review made clear that new technology and asymmetric advantage are important priorities." Read Also : Satellite Images Reveal China Could Be Bombing Mock US Aircraft Targets Australia to Boost Attack Drone Arsenal In addition to acquiring the Switchblade 300, Australia is also exploring domestic production of similar drones. Davis suggested that producing a large number of these drones domestically could be cost-effective compared to missile systems. He mentioned that Australia's guided weapons and explosive ordnance enterprise could potentially manufacture these drones at a low cost. This acquisition aligns with Australia's plan to boost its military capabilities by increasing the use of uncrewed aerial systems. Currently, the ADF operates around 760 unmanned aerial systems primarily for surveillance and reconnaissance missions, ABC reports. The Switchblade 300 will significantly enhance the ADF's attack capabilities. Earlier this month, the US Department of State approved a potential foreign military sale of AeroVironment's Switchblade 300 loitering munition systems to Taiwan. Stay posted here at Tech Times. Microsoft is implementing a new security measure in China, requiring employees to use Apple devices for work access. Previously, they were allowed to use Android smartphones, but with the recent announcement, things have changed for those who usually rely on these handsets. With the growing tensions between Beijing and the US, the Chinese mobile ecosystem is only one of many sectors that will be affected. Microsoft Employees Need to Use Apple Devices at Work According to an internal memo reviewed by Bloomberg, Microsoft will mandate the use of Apple devices for employee login verification in China. This falls under the company's global Secure Future Initiative (SFI), aiming to standardize password management and identity verification across the workforce. Fragmented App Ecosystem Drives Decision The fragmented nature of China's app market plays a key role in Microsoft's decision. Unlike most of the world, Google Play is unavailable in China. Local phone manufacturers like Huawei and Xiaomi operate their app stores, lacking Google Mobile Services (GMS). These missing services, including the Microsoft Authenticator and Identity Pass apps, are crucial for secure logins within SFI. Android Users Transition to iPhones To ensure compliance, the software maker will provide a one-time iPhone 15 to employees currently using Android devices, regardless of the manufacturer. These phones will be available for collection at designated hubs across China, including Hong Kong where GMS is accessible. How the Market Reacted on Microsoft's Decision The news of Microsoft's decision had a minimal impact on stock prices. Microsoft and Apple shares saw slight pre-market increases, while Alphabet (Google's parent company) and Xiaomi experienced minor declines. Microsoft hasn't publicly addressed the iPhone mandate, leaving the specific reasoning unclear. Security Concerns and Geopolitical Tensions This move comes amidst a backdrop of heightened security concerns within China. Since 2023, an increasing number of government-affiliated entities have banned employees from using foreign devices due to security anxieties. Microsoft, meanwhile, has faced repeated attacks by state-sponsored hackers worldwide. A Russia-linked breach earlier this year compromised data from several US government agencies. Microsoft's Security Push Motivated by these incidents and legislative pressure, Microsoft has made security a top priority. The SFI initiative represents the company's most ambitious security overhaul in two decades. Key aspects of SFI include faster cloud vulnerability patching, enhanced credential protection, and mandatory multi-factor authentication for employees. While the iPhone mandate in China raises questions about its practicality and geopolitical implications, it underlines Microsoft's strong commitment to bolstering its security posture on a global scale. As of March 31, 2024, there are 221,000 employees at Microsoft worldwide. 120,000 are US-based employees while 101,000 came from different parts of the world. In other news, Tech Times reported that Microsoft agreed to settle a $14.4 payment regarding the allegations that it discriminated against employees based on their use of their protected leave. A powerful tornado ripped through Caiyuan, Shandong province in eastern China, on Saturday, July 6, leaving a path of destruction in its wake. At least five people were killed in the recent disaster while nearly 100 individuals were injured in the city of Heze. With the alarming number of casualties, experts caution the residents about the increasing frequency and severity of extreme weather events in the region. Deadly Tornado Causes Widespread Damage State-run media Xinhua reported five fatalities and nearly 100 injuries due to the tornado. Dramatic footage shared online showed the devastation, with roofs torn from houses, trees uprooted, and debris flung through the air. Related Article : New Research Tracks Wildlife Responses to Cyclone Idai, Revealing Surprising Insights Weather Radar Implicates Powerful Storm While details of the storm's path aren't available, weather radar data likely played a crucial role in tracking its movement. Radar technology can detect rotational patterns within storm clouds, indicating the potential for tornado formation. This information allows authorities to issue timely warnings and prepare for potential emergencies. "Severe convective weather caused a tornado," the Dongming County Emergency Management Bureau said. The agency added that even before a disaster lands in a region, the local government pre-emptively built a command center intended for emergency response operations. China's Rising Threat from Extreme Weather The Caiyuan tornado highlights China's growing vulnerability to extreme weather events. While less frequent compared to the US, tornadoes still pose a significant threat in China. Researchers estimate an average of less than 100 tornadoes occur annually, but fatalities remain high, with over 1,770 deaths reported since 1961. Another report from the South China Morning Post says that another tornado hit China in April. At that time, the heart of Guangzhou's southern city was ravaged. The calamity resulted in at least five deaths and 33 injuries. Climate Change Exacerbates Extreme Events China's recent "Blue Book" on climate change paints a concerning picture. The report confirms 2023 as the nation's warmest year on record, with a predicted increase in extreme weather events. Often ignored, climate change is likely the culprit here. The consequences that humans are experiencing right now are just the beginning, and the Caiyuan tornado is a prime example. Drought and Floods Compound China's Struggle The Caiyuan tornado isn't an isolated incident. Other parts of China are battling extreme weather conditions. Northern regions face severe drought and record-breaking temperatures, while heavy rainfall triggers flooding in the south. These occurrences further illustrate the urgency of addressing climate change and its impact on weather patterns. Outside news updates about natural disasters, Tech Times reported that Microsoft has a new announcement for employees in China. According to the report, the workers are instructed to use iPhones and other Apple devices in the workplace, which means that Android gadgets are not allowed anymore. According to Microsoft, the transition will make changes to login verification. What the Redmond giant wants here is to standardize password management inside the company. China's primary artificial intelligence technology firm, iFlytek, expects a first-half loss of up to $65 million due to significant investments made under "ultimate" Washington pressure. For the first six months of the year, the business predicted a net loss of 380 million to 460 million yuan ($53.31 million to $64.53 million), compared to a net profit of 73.57 million last year. After the disclosure, iFlytek shares plunged roughly 7% Monday morning. According to a report from Nikkei Asia, the company lost money due to increased spending, including 650 million yuan for Spark V4.0 AI language model research. The US began penalizing iFlytek for alleged human rights abuses against minory Muslim groups in Xinjiang in October 2019. Despite these hurdles, the business highlighted its AGI advances and engagement with Chinese partners in education, medicine, and automotive. Massive Losses Recorded The corporation reported receiving over 1.3 billion yuan in governmental subsidies over the last three years. A 140 million yuan drop in investment income, 120 million in other revenue, and 100 million in credit impairment provisions also contributed to the loss. Kyna Wong, a Citi analyst who rates iFlytek a buy, said earnings fears pushed the share price down. The target price is 54.3 yuan, over 40% above Monday's lunchtime closing, although US-China tensions and AI competition are threats. Meanwhile, Chinese AI startups seeking globalization are flocking to Singapore due to US trade penalties that slow down the development of China's newest technology. Having a presence in Singapore aids these enterprises in distancing themselves from their Chinese heritage, a tactic known as "Singapore-washing." This technique intends to limit customer and regulatory scrutiny in anti-China nations like the US. Even so, US regulations and criticism have plagued Singapore-based enterprises such as ByteDance and Shein. China Still Showcasing Tech Dominance Despite Restrictions from The West AI startups risk more than perception. These businesses train their algorithms with massive datasets and powerful hardware. US prohibitions on advanced processors and technology to prevent military use affect the quality of AI products. China, too, has limited access to OpenAI's software. To comply with AI-generated content laws, companies must register their algorithms with China which limits AI development and exploration. One expert estimated that 70% to 80% of Chinese software and AI businesses seek worldwide markets, sometimes skipping China, per a report published by Yahoo! Finance. Singapore has liberal regulations, making business start-ups easy. Chan Ih-Ming, executive vice president of the Singapore Economic Development Board, says its strategic position and robust multinational company network offer it a gateway to Southeast Asia and worldwide markets. By 2023, Singapore will have over 1,100 AI firms, with more Chinese AI businesses moving in. Amid the challenges, China's AI business showed sophisticated goods at the recent World AI Conference in Shanghai, with the UN naming it top AI software patent filer. The conference exhibitors displayed realistic watercolors and sci-fi artworks made using generative AI. Humanoid robots from almost a dozen Chinese companies performed for guests, per a report from Manila Standard. Startup incubator staffer Ethan Duan was optimistic about China's tech talent. Duan expects China's AI industry to expand despite Western constraints. According to the Paulson Institute think tank MacroPolo, China's proportion of leading AI researchers rose from 29% in 2019 to 47% in 2022. After Huawei released a new PC using an Intel AI-capable CPU, the US authorities withdrew export permits for specific components. Critics speculate that China might use its AI for spying. Meeting at Stormont Castle (L to R): Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn, First Minister Michelle O'Neill, deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer (Niall Carson/PA Wire) Sir Keir Starmer on Monday came under pressure from Sinn Fein to agree to a reunification vote in Northern Ireland as the new PM pressed on with a four-nation tour of the UK. The Irish nationalists emerged from the General Election as Northern Irelands largest Westminster party, in terms of both seats and vote share. Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald urged Sir Keir to embrace the right of Irish self-determination following Labours landslide election win. But Hilary Benn, newly appointed as Northern Ireland Secretary, said the prospect of a vote on Irish unity is off into the distance. Irish Taoiseach Simon Harris concurred that a reunification referendum - which must be held on both sides of the border - was not a priority. Sir Keir was visiting Belfast following a trip to Scotland on Sunday, and was also holding talks in Wales later on Monday. He was expected on Tuesday to meet metro mayors in England before making a rapid-fire debut on the international stage when he attends a Nato summit in Washington. The new PM said he was seeking an immediate reset of the relationship between Westminster and the devolved nations, insisting that Labours landslide victory had given it a clear mandate to govern for all four corners of the United Kingdom. Starting his first full week in office, the new PM arrived at Stormont Castle early on Monday where he was met by Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle ONeill of Sinn Fein and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). Ms ONeill - dressed all in Irish green - congratulated Sir Keir on his success and they discussed upcoming parliamentary schedules in Westminster and Stormont, although Sinn Fein refuses to take its seven seats in the UK Parliament. Sir Keir had already spoken by phone with the power-sharing Northern Irish leaders following his election success, and also had a conversation with the Irish premier before the pair are due to meet next week at Blenheim Palace when the PM will host a European summit set to include the French and German leaders. The DUP was licking its wounds after slumping from eight Westminster seats to five. Party leader Gavin Robinson said he would use his meeting at Stormont to press Sir Keir on public services in the province and trade with the European Union, but also stressed: Now is a time for new beginnings. In Cardiff, Sir Keir was due to attend the Senedd and hold talks with Labour First Minister Vaughan Gething, who is resisting calls to resign after he lost a no-confidence vote last month. Scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have developed a groundbreaking wearable sensor that can monitor glucose levels through sweat (via Medical Xpress). This bandage, reported in the journal Analytical Chemistry, which combines flexible materials with advanced light-based sensors, offers a non-invasive, effective, and painless way for patients, especially those with diabetes, to keep track of their health. How the Bandage Works This wearable sensor utilizes a technology known as "flexible photonics," which integrates light-based (photonic) sensors with flexible materials. The flexibility allows the sensor to be comfortably worn on the skin. Central to this technology are optical resonators, devices that use light to detect very small changes. These resonators significantly enhance the sensitivity of the sensors, addressing the challenge of monitoring weak biological signals directly on the skin. The bandage employs a thin film laser sensor made by embedding tiny liquid crystal lasers within a hydrogel. The hydrogel, a sponge-like material, allows small molecules from sweat to enter. When these molecules interact with the liquid crystal lasers, they produce light signals. These signals are highly sensitive and selective, accurately detecting specific substances like lactate, glucose, and urea in sweat. No Need for Finger Prick Tests In a proof-of-concept test, researchers demonstrated that the sensor could detect various metabolites (substances produced during metabolism) in sweat using multiple light wavelengths. This advancement is a significant step forward in creating wearable health monitors that utilize light-based technology, offering high sensitivity and accuracy in detecting small biological molecules. Traditionally, diabetic patients use invasive finger prick tests to monitor blood glucose levels. This method involves pricking the finger to collect a small drop of blood, which is then analyzed using a portable glucose meter. While sensor-based monitoring devices exist as an alternative, they are often expensive, rigid, and uncomfortable for prolonged use. The new bandage developed by NTU researchers offers a more comfortable option. By encapsulating a microlaser in liquid crystal droplets and embedding them in a soft hydrogel film, the team has created a compact and flexible light-based sensing device. According to tests, the device can even measure glucose, lactate, and urea levels as low as 0.001 millimeters. This makes it 100 times more sensitive than other similar devices we have now. Additionally, the wearable sensor can even provide highly accurate biomarker readings within minutes. Read Also : Scientists Develop Living Bioelectronics to Heal Skin What's Next? According to the researchers, this technology can help improve healthcare in Singapore and globally, where diabetes is becoming increasingly prevalent. In Singapore alone, over 400,000 people live with the disease, with the number projected to surpass one million by 2050. The NTU research team plans to fine-tune the microlaser sensors to detect a wider variety of substances, including drugs and other chemicals found in sweat. This could provide even more comprehensive health data for patients and healthcare providers. Dr. Lin Chun-Hsien, MD, from the National Taiwan University Hospital, believes that this device could "provide a more convenient and effective way to monitor patients' blood glucose," benefiting both patients and physicians. Stay posted here at Tech Times. Texas hunkers down as storm Beryl approaches Houston, July 7 (AFP) Jul 07, 2024 Coastal Texas was under hurricane and storm surge warnings on Sunday, as the southern US state braced for the approach of Beryl, which was threatening to make landfall as a hurricane. The city of Galveston, southeast of Houston, had issued a voluntary evacuation order for some areas, with videos on social media showing lines of cars heading out of town Sunday afternoon. As Beryl's winds intensified, acting Governor Dan Patrick called on Texans to be on alert, listen to local officials, and leave the danger zone if possible. "It will be a deadly storm for people who are directly in that path," Patrick told a state emergency management press conference, saying Beryl was likely to roar ashore before dawn Monday between the city of Corpus Christi and Galveston Island. "Trust me, you don't want to be in a Category 1," he added, referring to the lowest level of hurricane, with winds between 74 and 95 miles per hour (119-153 kilometers per hour). The White House said it was monitoring the situation. Hurricane Beryl left at least seven dead after it tore through the Caribbean and Venezuela, as winds at times reached Category 5 strength. It has since weakened to a tropical storm, with winds recorded at 65 miles per hour, but "steady strengthening is expected, and Beryl is forecast to become a hurricane again later today," the National Hurricane Center said Sunday. "Continued strengthening is expected overnight before Beryl reaches the Texas coast." Beryl hit Mexico Friday as a Category 2 hurricane, flattening trees and lampposts and ripping off roof tiles, according to its civil protection authority, though there were no reported deaths or injuries there. Before that, it hit the Cayman Islands and Jamaica, slamming Grenada, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, as well as Venezuela. Rainfall of up to 15 inches (38 centimeters) is expected in parts of Texas, the NHC reported. "This rainfall will produce areas of flash and urban flooding, some of which may be locally considerable," it said. "Minor to isolated moderate river flooding is also expected." Beryl is the first hurricane since NHC records began to reach the Category 4 level in June, and the earliest to hit the highest Category 5 in July. It is extremely rare for such a powerful storm to form this early in the Atlantic hurricane season, which runs from early June to late November. Scientists say climate change likely plays a role in the rapid intensification of storms like Beryl, since there is more energy in a warmer ocean for them to feed on. North Atlantic waters are currently between two and five degrees Fahrenheit (1-3 degrees Celsius) warmer than normal, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. 11 dead, 19 missing in Indonesia landslide Indonesia, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 At least 11 people are dead and 19 more are missing after heavy rains caused a landslide near an illegal gold mine on Indonesia's central island of Sulawesi, an official said Monday. Unlicensed mines are common across the mineral-rich Southeast Asian archipelago, where abandoned sites attract locals who hunt for leftover gold ore without proper safety equipment. The landslide hit a remote village in the Bone Bolango district of Gorontalo province late Saturday after spells of torrential rain, killing at least 11 and leaving more than a dozen still unaccounted for. "Eight people who have died have been evacuated. Five people survived but were injured, from light to heavy injuries", said local search and rescue agency head Heriyanto, who goes by one name, adding that three others who died had yet to be evacuated and 19 people were still missing. Several bridges to the area collapsed and rescuers were having to travel to the site of the disaster by foot due to the difficult terrain, Heriyanto added. At least 180 people had been deployed as part of the rescue operation, including police officers and soldiers, he said. Indonesia is prone to landslides during the rainy season between November and April, but July is usually dry season and heavy rains are rare. In May, at least 15 people died after landslides and flooding in South Sulawesi province swept away dozens of houses and damaged roads. A landslide in the same province the month before killed 20 people. Greece records jump in June wildfires Athens, July 8 (AFP) Jul 08, 2024 Greece battled more than 1,200 forest fires in June, more than double the number from the same month last year, the government said Monday. The country has experienced its warmest winter and earliest heatwave on record, with temperatures hitting 44 degrees Celsius (111 degrees Fahrenheit) in the first half of June. Strong winds and drought conditions have fanned fires in recent weeks in the area around Athens, on the island of Chios near the Turkish mainland and in the Peloponnese region south of the capital. Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis told a press briefing there had been 1,281 fires this June compared with 533 last June. "This June was the hottest on record and the forecast for July is similar," he added. Scientists say climate change makes extreme weather events including heatwaves more likely, longer lasting and more intense. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis warned earlier this month that Greece had "entered the heart of the fire season". The temperature in parts of the country is expected to climb beyond 40C once again in the coming days. Greece endured an unprecedented two-week heatwave last year that led to deadly wildfires. Thousands stranded after flight cancellations and delays at Gatwick and Heathrow airports More than 10,000 holidaymakers have been hit with flight cancellations and delays to and from London Heathrow and Gatwick airports. British Airways axed 51 fights due to operate to or from Heathrow on Sunday, and a further 31 on Monday. Several airlines also cancelled Gatwick flights. The worst affected was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. The disruption at both Heathrow and Gatwick had finally ended by Tuesday morning. Affected passengers are unlikely to be eligible for compensation as the disruption is deemed to be out of airlines control. But they are entitled to assistance, which could involve refreshments, overnight accommodation and rebooking with alternative carriers. Images published by the MailOnline showed passengers sleeping overnight in Heathrow Terminal 5 after failing to secure hotels. Holidaymakers were spotted surrounded by their luggage and trollies as they settled down for the night. Flights to and from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice were cancelled, the Independent reported. At Heathrow, British Airways cancelled two round-trips to Rome as well as services to Naples, Barcelona and Larnaca in Cyprus. EasyJet said the cancellations happened overnight due to poor weather conditions and air traffic control (ATC) disruption. Three EasyJet flights on Monday were impacted by the knock-on effects from Sundays weather and ATC restrictions, the Standard was told. Flights otherwise appeared to be departing and arriving on time on Monday at both airports. The airline said in a statement: EasyJet operated around 1800 flights yesterday however some flights across Europe were unfortunately disrupted due to the impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays. We have been doing everything possible to minimise the impact for our customers whose flights were affected, providing hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight and are advising customers they will be reimbursed for expenses should they need to make their own arrangements. The safety and wellbeing of our customers is our highest priority and while this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused. British Airways told the Standard: Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines weve had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today. Two BA aircraft were struck by lightning on Sunday, it is understood, and these jets were taken out of service for safety checks. Several stranded passengers vented their frustrations on X, formerly Twitter. One said: EasyJet is the worst service ever!!! Cancelled my flight, wont book me another hotel lol then says they cant book me another hotel because the ones they use are sold out. Another said: Would NOT recommend EasyJet. Approaching 48 hrs since we were meant to be home - opted for the train after 3rd cancelled flight. A third wrote: Was flying to London this morning to see family and EasyJet cancelled my flight at 5.30am. Alternative flights were either too expensive( deliberately) or unsuitable. Never again will I fly with these chancers. Ryanair apologised for excessige flight delays on Monday caused by the European ATC staff shortages. The airline said in a statement on its website: ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5% behind 2019 levels) with repeated staff shortages. On Mon 8 Jul, 21% of Ryanairs first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC staff shortages. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanairs control. It comes as Unite union announced that strikes by Gatwick baggage security screeners have been postponed following an improved pay offer. The workers, who are employed by ICTS, have agreed to call all off industrial action scheduled to take place from July 12 to 14 and July 19 to 21 while they ballot on the offer, the union said. Unite regional officer Dominic Rothwell said: As a sign of good faith, ICTS workers at Gatwick have postponed strike action while they are balloted on the new offer. Industrial action by Wilson James workers can also be avoided but only if the company comes forward with an improved deal. Federal Treasury is reviewing an unknown number of foreign takeovers involving PwC after the embattled consulting firm was accused of misleading the Tax Office to help its clients receive Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval. The investigation could lead to criminal charges and approvals being revoked, but Treasury would not say if the review could lead to forced sales if the foreign acquirers were unable to gain fresh approval. Federal Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the PwC scandal exposed severe shortcomings in Australias regulatory frameworks. This now includes foreign investment approvals. Credit: Oscar Colman The move follows revelations from the Australian Taxation Office that it now monitors the role of advisers when foreign groups seek Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB) approval, after a recent case involving aggressive tax arrangements where PwC acted as an adviser. The ATO said statements it received from the applicant and/or PwC, while possibly legally correct, had the effect of misleading the ATO as to the intended use of aggressive tax structures by the FIRB applicant. The ATO did not name the applicant involved. Advertisement Eating outJust open In Fitzroys backstreets glows a charming little newcomer with serious cooking cred Go to Carnation Canteen for the $12 wines and salty snacks at aperitivo hour, stay for a lavish produce-driven dinner with back-vintage wines. Tomas Telegramma July 8, 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 . More openings you need to know about The former cordial factory that is now hot new Collingwood restaurant and bar Orlo. Hot new Fitzroy restaurant Carnation Canteen walks the high-low tightrope with panache, balancing the fancy and the unfussy. A radiant pink Italian marble bartop contrasts with intentionally stripped-back walls. Four-figure back-vintage champagne from cult producer Egly-Ouriet sits alongside $12-a-glass house wine from Abruzzo. And best-in-class produce gets the less-is-more treatment on deceptively simple plates. Intentionally stripped back walls are part of the Carnation Canteen aesthetic. Coco and Maximilian Its a decisive debut for owner-chef Audrey Shaw, who brings some serious culinary (and architectural) cred to the table. Shes worked for Ruth Rogers at iconic London restaurant The River Cafe, and Brigitte Hafner at the ever-impressive Osteria Tedesca. Advertisement But Shaw is an architect by trade, previously at acclaimed local practice Kerstin Thompson, where she assisted in the design of sibling CBD restaurants Sunda and Aru. Three years ago, she began funnelling that experience into a site on Gore Street, once a Greek corner store called Less Mini World (the signage remains). Wed walked past a million times, so I went full detective mode [to secure the site], she says. The charming 20 seat restaurant in Fitzroys back streets. Coco and Maximilian Its become an intimate, charmingly poky 20-seater that glows like a lantern in the backstreets at night. Shaws food philosophy is loosely Mediterranean, so the offering bears influences from across Italy, Greece and Spain. We use a lot of olive oil, a lot of lemons, a lot of salt, Shaw says. Those are our core ingredients and everything moves around [them]. Advertisement The handwritten menu looks different from week to week, depending on what produce is at its peak. Shaw works directly with small suppliers such as certified-organic Days Walk Farm in the Keilor Valley and South Melbourne Market fromagerie K-Sein. A recent menu offered treviso radicchio, the leaves tangling with hunks of Riverine Blue cheese, blushing apples and walnuts; and spanakorizo, a home-style Greek dish of spinach, rice and barrel-aged feta from cheese expert Will Studd. One dish havent been able to budge from the menu, though, is King George whiting. Delivered daily and butterflied and de-boned in-house, its grilled over charcoal and served in a pool of Yalla-y-poora biodynamic olive oil with a lemon cheek. Visit from 4pm for martinis and apertivi. Visit from 4pm for aperitivi, Dont want a full meal? Visit from 4pm for aperitivi, which involves Grey Goose martinis (so popular weve been pouring [them] like water) and uncomplicated snacks. Carnation Canteen is currently dinner-only, but there are plans to open for lunch soon. Bookings are via email at reservations@carnationcanteen.com or direct message through Instagram. Advertisement Open Wed-Sat 4pm-10pm 165 Gore Street, Fitzroy, instagram.com/carnationcanteen A former cordial factory is now Collingwoods hottest new restaurant and basement bar The heritage-listed site of Orlo Collingwoods new Med-inspired diner and bar has a colourful history. It was built in the late 1800s as a cordial factory for the brand Dyason. Orlo occupies a historic former cordial factory. Parker Blain Advertisement That heritage is what attracted hospitality veteran James Klapanis (St Cloud Eating House, Youngs Wine Rooms), whos transformed the building into a sprawling three-level venue that pays homage to its roots. I want people to walk in and get a feel for what was here, he says. The original arched red-brick facade has been restored; likewise, the bluestone walls, and an old truss above the private-dining mezzanine (accessible by a spiral staircase). Sfinci (Sicilian-style savoury doughnuts) with white anchovies at Orlo, Collingwood. Parker Blain Klapanis let executive chef Matteo Tine (Grossi Florentino, Bar Carolina, Tetto di Carolina) go berserk with the menu, powered by a Josper grill and pulling from but not limited to his Sicilian background. Theres bubbling cacio e pepe conchiglie (giant pasta shells); swordfish spiedini (Italian skewers) souped up with miso; and wildcards such as Sommerlad chicken cooked in the style of Cantonese barbecue classic char siu. Advertisement Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up Cathy Wilcox Credit: . To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@theage.com.au. Please include your home address and telephone number. No attachments, please include your letter in the body of the email. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published. It is too often forgotten in the Senator Fatima Payman furore that the issue that triggered her defection was whether to recognise Palestine now or later, essentially a matter of political judgment. It was not any failure by Labor to recognise the nightmarish horror being suffered by Palestinians in Gaza, which would much more obviously have raised a conscience issue for her. Certainly there is a strong case, which I have made both privately to the ALP leadership and publicly, that Australia should join the more than 140 countries that now recognise Palestinian statehood not just as the final outcome of a political settlement, but as a way of helping kick-start it. To do so would not be to reward Hamas for its October 7 outrage, but benefit Israel as well as ordinary Palestinians. Achieving a just two-state settlement, accommodating reasonable Palestinian aspirations, would by far be the best guarantor of Israels long-term security. The governments current position captures the spirit but not the urgency of the ALP platform. Senator Payman, I and many others wish it did. But her obligation, and opportunity, within the caucus, was as she well knew to swallow the disappointment of a decision not wholly satisfying her own strongly held belief, and fight within the party-room to change it, as many of us have done over the decades when similarly challenged. Australias international voice on these matters is not inconsequential. The irony is that, by taking the defiant stand she has, Senator Payman has now made it politically harder for the government to take the small extra step in its recognition policy that would be in everyones interest, Palestinians and Israelis alike. Gareth Evans, foreign minister (1988-96), Leader of the government in the Senate (1993-96) A futile gesture by the senator What did Senator Payman expect to achieve by crossing the floor to vote for a meaningless Greens motion that was never going to pass? She has not changed government policy. She has not prevented one death in Gaza. She has merely destroyed her reputation as a team player and created more division and conflict in our country. Thats not the way to achieve peace anywhere. Margaret Ludowyk, Brunswick A prayer without meaning or effect Anthony Albanese claims that faith-based parties would risk Australias secularised political culture. Why, then, is the Lords Prayer read at the beginning of each days parliamentary sitting? Beseeching a so-called Almighty God to bless parliament and prosper the work of thy servants to the advancement of thy glory is hardly consistent with a secularised political culture. And judging by the shenanigans in recent sittings, the prayer fell on deaf ears. Angela Smith, Clifton Hill From its roller coasters, amusement arcades and fortune tellers to bingo halls, ballroom waltzes and beach donkey rides, Blackpool has long had multi-generational appeal, so its fitting that theres fun for all the family at Showtown. The strollable, 10-kilometre, tram-lined seafront of Blackpool Promenade. Credit: Getty Images A decade in the making, part of a $600 million regeneration project for Britains biggest coastal resort, this new all-singing, all-dancing, all-weather museum celebrates Blackpools zest for entertainment and the characters who graced stages here in its heyday, from home-grown talents like Tommy Cooper and Stan Laurel to international stars such as Frank Sinatra and Judy Garland not to mention glove puppets like Orville the Duck and Sooty (a yellow bear bought by its handler, Harry Corbett, on one of Blackpools three piers in 1948). Showtown has old-time attractions as well as interactive fun. As I roam Showtowns immersive galleries that are split into themes like the seaside, circus, shows and magic, hazy memories stir from childhood outings to Blackpool with my Manchester-based relatives. I was a similar age to the giggling young people dashing about today, pressing, pulling and turning the museums interactive exhibits. While they honk the horn of a clown car, I spin a wheel that chatters a set of false teeth, a nod to Frank Randle, an early 20th-century comic who would throw fake gnashers into Blackpool audiences for a laugh. Cries of joy and tears of relief broke out at the leftist alliances gathering in Paris when the estimates were announced. People spontaneously hugged strangers, and several minutes of non-stop applause broke out after the projections landed. At the Greens headquarters, activists screamed with joy, embracing each other. Im relieved. As a French-Moroccan, a doctor, an ecologist activist, what the far right was proposing to do as a government was craziness, said Hafsah Hachad, 34. As for Macron, they called him the sorcerers apprentice, even unhinged, but the French presidents decision to dissolve parliament and call snap elections appears to have partially paid off. The first round of these elections amounted to a referendum for or against Macron. Marine Le Pen with Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old who had hoped to be Frances next prime minister. Credit: AP The French electorate clearly came out against the president. The second round was framed as a referendum for or against the National Rally, and the French clearly came out against handing power to the hard right. The result was helped along by some canny politicking, with deals done to withdraw candidates so Le Pen politicians could be defeated by a messy coalition of voters. True, the result still amounts to historic gains for the Le Pen camp, but there is no doubt that it also constitutes a slap in the face for the National Rally and its slick young TikTok king Bardella, who failed to impress when it came to credible policy. The result could also seriously put the brakes on Le Pens ambitions to be president in 2027. On Sunday night, she claimed her victory was merely deferred, stressing that the National Rally was the leading party in France. The tide is rising. It didnt rise high enough this time, but it continues to rise and, as a result, our victory is only delayed, she said on French television, adding: I have too much experience to be disappointed by a result where we double our number of MPs. However, her seemingly inexorable rise has lost key momentum. The main victor is what has been called the Republican front, namely all those French who chose to vote tactically in 200-odd constituencies to keep the National Rally out. As respected political analyst Alain Duhamel put it: This the most spectacular surprise in modern French politics by a mile. Undeniably, Macron has also been sorely chastened, with his Ensemble group losing about 100 seats in the space of two years. But it will remain a force to be reckoned with in the national assembly. The question now is who will join forces to form a coalition government and who will be prime minister. Gabriel Attal, Macrons 35-year-old head of government, has offered his resignation. Loading In a message after the result, Macrons office said the president would wait for the new national assembly to organise itself before making any decisions. The Macron camp and Luc Melenchons LFI party have already ruled out joining forces. Indeed, Melenchon called on the president to step down. Meanwhile, the left may have been united during the campaign but has displayed huge differences in the past; a similar alliance of parties fell apart over the Israel-Gaza war and has also divided over NATO and the war in Ukraine. Crucially, power will now move away from the Elysee Palace to the French parliament as Macron enters a period of cohabitation. Macron, who theorised his role as Jupiter, the Roman god of gods, now finds himself confined to a far lesser role, in charge of foreign and defence affairs. Meanwhile, often dubbed doormats when the president has a parliamentary majority, French MPs will now call the shots and several heavyweight politicians will enter parliament, including socialist ex-prime minister Francois Hollande. Raphael Glucksmann, a leading left-winger whose socialist-backed list came third in European elections, said France was having to make political compromises via coalitions in parliament, much like in Italy or Germany. Were in the lead, but were in a divided assembly, and so were going to have to behave like adults. As Attal, the outgoing prime minister, put it: Tonight, no absolute majority can be driven by the extreme. And this is because of the French spirit. Casa Redondo acquires Safari from Diageo Diageo has announced the sale of fruit-flavoured liqueur Safari to Casa Redondo, a Portugal-based drinks company. Safari, which is mainly sold in Portugal, Benelux, and Turkey, has been acquired by Casa Redondo for an undisclosed amount. Diageo says the sale is in line with its strategy for effective portfolio management. John Kennedy, Diageo president, Europe, explained: This transaction will allow us to further concentrate on our core areas of strength, including tequila and whisk(e)y, as we accelerate towards our ambition; to be one of the best performing, most trusted and respected consumer products companies in the world. Daniel and Ricardo Redondo, chief executive and chief financial officer of Casa Redondo, added: We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of Safari from Diageo. This transaction underscores our commitment to expanding our portfolio with premium offerings that resonate with consumers globally. We look forward to integrating this brand into our family, continuing to innovate for our customers, whilst ensuring exceptional quality. Safari joins family-owned Casa Redondos portfolio of spirits, which includes its flagship brand Licor Beirao, a Portugese liqueur. 8 July 2024 - Lucy Schofield Share this story Troye Sivan is making his way back to NZ for his highly anticipated Something To Give Each Other tour this December. After selling out arenas across Europe, the exploding pop sensation will light up stages across the ditch before making his way to our shores for what is bound to be an unforgettable performance. Joining Sivan on this tour is Sydney artist Nick Ward, a rising star in the bedroom pop scene. Known for his debut EP Everything I Wish I Told You and the critically acclaimed Brand New You, Ward was named Ticketmaster's 2023 Breakthrough Artist. With over twenty-six billion streams and 10 million adjusted albums sold worldwide, Troye Sivan has firmly established himself as a global music icon so you youre going to want to RUSH to grab yourself tickets before they sell out! Margot Robbie is expecting a baby with husband Tom Ackerley. The 'Barbie' star debuted her baby bump on Sunday 7 July in Lake Como, Italy, according to photos obtained by the Daily Mail. She was waiting to step aboard for a boat ride with her movie producer partner, wearing a white crop top and showcasing a small but unmistakable bump. People magazine has also run with multiple insider confirmations that Robbie is pregnant. Robbie and Ackerley tied the knot in December 2016 during an intimate ceremony in Byron Bay, Australia. At the time, the duo had been dating for about two years after meeting in 2013 on the set of the war drama Suite Francaise. The 'Wolf of Wall Street' actress revealed in May 2016 that her relationship with "the best-looking guy in London" was unexpected. "I was the ultimate single gal. The idea of relationships made me want to vomit," she said in an interview with Vogue. "And then this crept up on me. We were friends for so long. I was always in love with him." A big family has been on Robbie's radar since day one, although she has often stressed that it would happen only when the time was right. "If I'm looking into my future 30 years from now, I want to see a big Christmas dinner with tons of kids there," Robbie told Porter in a 2018 interview. 3 minor girls flee juvenile home in Chhattisgarh; land in Nagpur Police net Staff Reporter : It was quite a journey of the three adolescent girls as they fled from a juvenile detention home in Chhattisgarh hoping to start a new life. But lady luck deserted them due to alert traffic police personnel in the Lakadganj area. On Saturday during the routine check, the cops signalled the girls to stop as they were riding on a moped and the one driving was not wearing a helmet. For cops, what was a routine detention turned out to be quite a long and scary story. When asked to produce the registration documents of the two wheeler, a Honda Activa, the girls faltered and it only heightened suspicion of the cops. The cops alerted their superiors and the three girls were handed over to Lakadganj Police, where women officers grilled them and as details were spilled, even the cops were stunned for a while. The three minor girls had escaped from a correctional home in Rajnandgaon, Chhattisgarh. According to police officials, two of the girls face murder charges and fled after locking the warden inside the correctional facility. The third one had struck friendship with the two and she also hopped on with them sensing opportunity. Police personnel Vaishali Durugkar and Puja Puri were on duty at Wardhaman Nagar Square under Lakadganj Division on Saturday. They noticed three girls riding an Activa moped without helmet. Upon questioning, the girls provided evasive responses. As a result, the cops reported the matter to their seniors and took the girls to the police station. Further investigation revealed that the minors were reported missing from Rajnandgaon. The girls had fled after locking a warden inside the correctional facility and on way out they also stole a two-wheeler Activa. The trio also took away two mobile phones and cash. Two of the girls were charged in a murder case registered at Police Station Basantpur, Rajnandgaon. Charges under Sections 294, 323, 394, and 34 of the Indian Penal Code were levied against one of the girls. All three minors were admitted to the Juvenile Correctional Home. From Rajnandgaon, the three girls hit the highway as they knew search would be launched for them very soon in Rajnandgaon. They hoped to reach Nagpur about which they knew very sketchy details. Little did they realise that their flight of fancy would crash land and put them back from where they had escaped. Fortunately for the girls, that they did not fall into wrong company or their lives might have got ruined for their lifetime. Even the cops, post interrogation, were quite surprised at the audacity of the girls. Also that three travelled the 214 km distance on the two wheeler on the busy national highway showed the dare devilery on part of minors. Upon being informed, Chhattisgarh Police arrived in the City and took the girls into their custody. Police Inspector of Basantpur Police Station commended the woman police personnel with an immediate cash reward for their vigilance. 6 terrorists killed in J&K twin encounters SRINAGAR : SIX terrorists were killed and two soldiers laid down their lives in twin encounters in Jammu and Kashmirs Kulgam district, officials said on Sunday. The bodies of two terrorists were recovered from the Modergam encounter site while four bodies were recovered from the Chinnigam site on Sunday, they said. The twin encounters in the two villages of Kulgam district began on Saturday. Two Army soldiers, including an elite para commando, laid down their lives while battling the terrorists, the officials said. Speaking about the operations, Jammu and Kashmir Director General of Police R R Swain said the neutralisation of such a big number of terrorists was a major achievement. Undoubtedly, this is a big milestone in the efforts towards strengthening the security environment. These successes are very meaningful both substantively as well as in terms of messaging, he said. People are coming together to end terrorism and the operations are gaining momentum. The current operation is still underway and has not reached its conclusion. We have received news of the involvement of local terrorists as well, he said. The involvement of local terrorists underscores the complex challenges faced by security forces in the region. As the operations continue, further updates are anticipated, said DGP Swain. SOLDIER INJURED AS TERRORISTS OPEN FIRE ON ARMY CAMP IN RAJOURI: AN ARMY personnel was injured when terrorists opened fire on a security post in a village in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir early on Sunday, officials said. The terrorists fired on a sentry post of Territorial Army at village Galuthi in Manjakote area around 4 am, prompting retaliation by troops, they said. They said the soldier was injured in the exchange of fire that continued for nearly halfan-hour between the two sides but the terrorists managed to flee into the nearby forest. A massive search operation was launched to track down the terrorists. Mysterious deaths of youths sparks sensation Police personnel taking away the body Vani Goyal (Inset) of from the Hotel. (Pic by Manoj Dewangan) Staff Reporter ; RAIPUR mysterious deaths involving a young man and woman have created a sensation in Raipur. The body of a young woman was discovered in room number 416 of Hotel Babylon Inn on Jail Road, while the body of a young man was found on the railway tracks at Urkura. The deceased woman, identified as 25-year-old Vani Goyal from Ambikapur, had been reported missing at Saraswati Nagar police station. Her friend, Vishal, was found dead near Urkura railway station the previous night. The police are treating the girls death as a potential murder and have launched an investigation. Raipur Police confirmed the discoveries and indicated that the girl had been missing sincehe previous day. Initial reports suggest that both Vani and Vishal had arrived together at Hotel Babylon Inn, as evidenced by CCTV footage showing them entering the hotel together on Saturday, July 6, at around 1:39 PM. The footage also revealed that Vani had arrived by cab while Vishal was already near the hotel. They checked into room 416 and remained there for about five hours. At approximately 6:30 PM, Vishal was seen leaving the hotel alone, which has led to suspicions that Vani might have been murdered before his departure. Following this, Vishals body was discovered near the Urkura railway tracks, leading investigators to believe he may have committed suicide after the incident. Vani Goyal, the niece of BJP district president Babulal Goyal from Surajpur, had been studying in Raipur for a few days. The police are examining all angles including extensive review of CCTV footage. The bodies have been sent for post-mortem, and the investigation continues under the jurisdiction of Ganj police station. The police are striving to piece together the events that led to this tragic outcome and bring clarity to the circumstances surrounding these deaths. Saraswati Nagar Police stated that in the case of a missing person reported at the police station, the search for Vani Goyal, daughter of Ashok Goyal, age 26, and resident of Maruti Life Style, House No. 29/05, Kota, Saraswati Nagar Police Station, Raipur, was being actively pursued by the police team. Through technical analysis and other means, the police tracked the location of Vani Goyals mobile phone to Nagpur, Maharashtra. Consequently, team members were dispatched to Nagpur to locate the mobile phone and search for the missing person. During their search, on the morning of July 7, 2024, the police discovered the body of Vishal Garg, son of Rajkumar Garg, age 30, resident of Chandgi Ram Heights, 3rd Floor, House No. 302, Police Station City Kotwali, District Ambikapur. On the same day, the police received information about a deceased girl found in Room No. 416 of Hotel Babylon Inn, located on Jail Road under Thana Ganj area. The police team identified the deceased as Vani Goyal, the missing person reported in Saraswati Nagar. New criminal laws Need more tech-savvy police investigators By Sajan Parihar Durg : Even though the new criminal law codes which came into effect from July first aims to modernise the criminal justice system in the country, the not so tech-savvy investigators of the Police Department in Durg district seem to be grappling with the changes as it is becoming harder for them to adapt to the use of technology. The new provisions of the criminal laws are aptly being implemented in the district but most of the police investigators are finding it a daunting task to record audio-video during search and seizures and also confessions and statements of witnesses with their mobile phones. Due to lack of training, it has become harder for the police investigators to employ the audio-video technology in investigations and currently, making the investigators well versed with the use of technology has become a challenge for the Durg Police. Most of the investigators ranging from Head Constable to Sub-Inspectors deployed in different police stations of the Durg district are above 50 years of age and the use of audio-video recording during investigations and uploading the same on the designated application E-Sakshya is becoming a herculean task for them. Several police investigators serving in the rank of Head Constable and Assistant Sub Inspector promoted to their ranks are finding it difficult to completely utilise their mobile handsets in pursuance to the investigation. In most of the cases, it has so far been seen that the constables from the younger generation have been assisting the investigators in comfortably recording the audio-video and uploading the same on the mobile application. Sources said that while several police investigators are busy in unlearning and relearning legal codes that have been part of their daily operations for decades, most among them are still unable to effectively use technology in their investigations. Requesting anonymity, a young police constable said I accompany my superior investigating officer to the crime scene to record audio and video from my mobile phone which is also uploaded by me on the mobile application. However, the certificate confirming the upload of evidence is issued by my senior, he said. The instance hints on the dire need of teaching the use of technology to the investigators so that they can ensure safe and secure storage and transfer of electronic evidence. Durg Range Inspector General of Police, Ram Gopal Garg when contacted said that some constables have been given postings in police stations exclusively so that they can assist the police investigators on the technology front. We have been organizing training workshops, distributing necessary literature related to new laws etc in police stations to ensure that the new laws are implemented effectively. Police personnel well versed in technology have been assisting the investigating officers in following the provisions, said Garg. Punjab Governor Purohit enquiresabout SS leader injured in attack LUDHIANA : PUNJAB Governor and Administrator of Chandigarh Banwarilal Purohit on Sunday inquired about the health of Shiv Sena (Punjab) leader Sandeep Thapar who was attacked with swords here two days ago. After reaching the Circuit House here, Purohit spoke to the doctors attending toThapar. He also talkedtothe Ludhiana Deputy Commissioner and the Ludhiana Police Commissioner and asserted that he came to the city togather first-handin formation about the incident. Shiv Sena (Punjab) leader Thapar got grievously injured after he was attacked with swords by three assailants in full public view here on Friday. As far as his treatment is concerned, he is being given the best available treatment, Purohit said, adding that the Shiv Sena (Punjab)leader was fortunate that he survived the murderous attack. He suffered head injuries, butluckily, his brain and skull remained intact which saved his life, Purohit said. He also has fractures on his hands, he said. There will be no disability and he will be able to work normally, Purohit added. There is a need not to die but live for the country: Amit Shah AHMEDABAD : UNION Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday said there is a need not to die but live for the country as he lauded the Kadva Patidar community for their role in the development of Gujarat. He was speaking at an event after inaugurating a hostel complex for students in Ahmedabad in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel. Shah also inaugurated a hospital in the city during the day. The hostel Amin PJKP Vidyarthi Bhavan has been built by the Kadva Patidar community and will accommodate students from all social groups, said its officials. Shah said today there is a need not to die for the country but to live for her. You may be a good IAS, IPS, CA, doctor, good citizen or housewife, but you need to work for the country, he said. The senior BJP leader said the Kadva Patidar community has contributed a lot to the development of Gujarat. The development of Gujarat and Patidar community is parallel. Through its hard work, the Kadva Patidar community has made an important contribution to its development as well as the development of the State and the country, he said. Today people are serving the country after studying in many institutions of Kadva Patidar community of north Gujarat, Shah said. Speaking on the occasion, Patel said that due to the Shala Praveshotsav (school enrolment) and Kanya Kelavani Mahotsav launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the then Chief Minister two decades ago, the education sector in the State has seen a lot of development. It is very important to give good and quality education to children. Education is the foundation of development. The Government is constantly striving to strengthen education to uplift the future of the country, the CM said. Shah also inaugurated the newly constructed multi-specialty SLiMS Hospital in Ahmedabad. Built at a cost of over Rs 30 crore, the 8-storey hospital has state-of-the-art facilities like robotic surgery and cardiac care centre along with OPD facilities. I am confident that this hospital equipped with modern facilities will help in meeting the medical needs of the area, he tweeted. Lower East Side residents and community leaders converged at Corlears Hook Park Sunday afternoon for a prayer vigil in memory of three people who were killed the evening of July 4 when the driver of a pickup truck came barreling through the park. Thanks to Ritu Saheb for these photos from the vigil, led by Pastor Marc Rivera of Primitive Christian Church and organized by district leaders Daisy Paez, Mariami James and Ron Thomas. Police say the driver, Daniel Hyden, was coming down Water Street at a high rate of speed Thursday evening just before 9 pm and that he sped through the stop sign at Jackson Street, jumped onto the sidewalk and crashed into the park. Lower East Side residents Lucille Pinkney, 59, and her son, Hernan Pinkney, 38 were killed, along with 43-year-old Ana Morel. Eight others were injured. Hyden was taken to the 7th Precinct and charged with vehicular homicide, eight counts of assault, three counts of driving while intoxicated and one count related to driving with a suspended or revoked license. Hes being held without bail. According to Channel 7, Police traced Hydens steps to find his whereabouts prior to the crash to a boat party on Pier 36. He was apparently denied entry for being too drunk. Hyden then got into a heated dispute with a bouncer before being refunded and leaving the location. The Post reported that Hyden once lived in New Jersey but now is a Bronx resident. He is supposedly a substance abuse counselor who wrote a book called, The Sober Addict. The Post also spoke with Herman Pinkneys brother, Desmond, who described him as a, class clown kind of guy who could bring out smiles. And Desmond called his mom the, definition of hard work. On Juky 4th, he had hoped she would take some time to relax and enjoy a day off at home. As some Democrats call on President Biden to withdraw, Virginia Sen. Tim Kaine said in Richmond Monday that hes confident Biden will make the right decision and that Kaine will respect it. Meantime, state Sen. Lamont Bagby, chairman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, made clear on Monday that he supports Bidens reelection and, like many other Black Democratic leaders across the county, doesnt want the embattled president to surrender to calls for him to end his candidacy. Bagby, whose caucus represents 32 Black members of the General Assembly, said Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have delivered on their promises to voters who elected them in 2020. This administration has proven that they care for the millions of Virginians who voted them into office, he said in a statement. The person we elevate to lead us as a nation must have respect for the democratic process that empowers them to make decisions for the good of the people. The only candidate I trust with this responsibility is Joe Biden, Bagby said. Earlier Monday, Biden issued a statement to congressional Democrats in which he reiterated that he will not leave the contest. I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden said in the two-page letter. Larry Sabato, head of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said in a social media post: Like it or not, thats the end of that. Biden-Harris it is for Dems. Legally, Biden has the high ground he has to agree to step aside and he is clearly not going to do so. Tough stretch for Democrats While his fellow Virginian, Sen. Mark Warner, reportedly tried to arrange meeting between Biden and a group of Senate Democrats who want him to step down, Kaine told reporters Monday that he has not talked to Warner about the idea. The two normally work closely together. Kaine, who is seeking a third term in November against Republican Hung Cao, said he hasnt talked to Biden either, adding any advice I have for the president, Im going to share with the president and I dont think I will share with anybody else. He said he had not yet seen the letter Biden sent to Democratic members of Congress, in which the president said he is firmly committed to staying in the race and absolutely believes he is the best person to beat Donald Trump in November. As he makes his decision, I will completely respect that decision, Kaine told reporters after an event Monday at Reynolds Community College, at roughly the same time Biden released the letter. Joe Biden is a person who puts the country ahead of himself and Ive never been disappointed in him, Kaine said. Joe Biden is the best Democrat. I cant say it better than I said. He won a race against Donald Trump in 2020 here in Virginia and nationally and has done a great job as president. Its been a tough stretch, Kaine said, but added, Im just going to tell you, it is the eighth of July, and it is early in this discussion in the aftermath of the debate so well see. A huge issue Kaine, whos been on the campaign trail himself this week in his bid for re-election, said Bidens performance in the first debate last month is a top concern on voters minds. Obviously the question is a huge issue, much bigger than my race. But again, I think this is going to, I believe its going to work out in a good way, he told reporters after an event at Reynolds Community College. Now Mark Warner always says Im too positive about everything, he added. He said he expects Biden and Harris will come to Virginia for additional campaign events, and youll see me with them. Kaine said the continuing dribbling out of Democrats criticism of Biden is not helpful. We need to be unified, to be successful. And so we have to find a dynamic that will enable us to be unified [or] we wont be successful. I do see a path forward where we can be unified, but you know, thats a burden on our shoulders. We need unity and we need energy to be successful in November in the last, you know, 10 days or so havent been easy, he said. Kaine said Democrats who try to address concerns about Bidens age by saying that the presidency is a team effort help a bit to address worries. But its not a complete answer. I mean, it is the case that the team is very important. And what youve seen with the Biden team is you havent seen a lot of drama, not a lot of people leaving not a lot of turnover, not a lot of chaos. Its very stable team. And thats important, he said. Two visions Black leaders have emerged as a solid foundation of support for Biden, as they did during the Democratic primaries that rescued his candidacy in 2020, first in South Carolina and a week later in Virginia and other states holding their party primary on Super Tuesday. The Hill, an influential political journal in Washington, published a story on Monday about strong support for the president from members of the Black Congressional Caucus and their frustration with other Democrats who have called for Biden to step down after a disastrous June 27 debate with Trump triggered a panic among many Democrats over the health and mental condition of the 81-year-old president. Any leader calling for President Biden to drop out needs to get their priorities straight and stop undermining this incredible actual leader who has delivered real results for our country, U.S. Rep. Frederica Wilson of Florida said in a statement on Sunday. Bagby and other Black leaders said Democrats need to focus on one thing: defeating Trump. The choice is between two visions, he said. A second Trump presidency would set us back a generation. We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward. A Federal High Court in Abuja has rejected a request by a businessman, Ibrahim Dende, to restrain investigative journalist, Fisayo Soyombo, and the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ) from publishing further stories about him. The request was part of a lawsuit filed by Dende against Soyombo and FIJ, following an undercover investigation that alleged he was involved in massive smuggling and gunrunning. Investigative journalist Soyombo conducted a sting operation to expose the vulnerability of Nigeria's borders, successfully smuggling 100 bags of rice from the Republic of Benin into Nigeria without encountering any security resistance. The operation revealed collusion between corrupt Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) officials and smugglers, who shared intelligence on patrol teams' schedules and routes, enabling the illegal importation. Titled Undercover As A Smuggler, his report also indicted Dende as the biggest smuggler in the Southwest, and was followed by several tweets about smuggled goods mentioning Dende as the architect. On May 3, IBD Dende filed a lawsuit against 'Fisayo Soyombo, the Foundation for Investigative Journalism (FIJ), and Arise Group, alleging defamation following the broadcast of an investigative documentary on smuggling. On July 2, Justice Binta Mohammed of the FCT High Court, Abuja Judicial Division, heard IBD Dende's application for a restraining order to prevent the defendants from publishing further allegedly defamatory content about him. In the written argument submitted to the court by his counsel, it was argued that the 1st and 2nd defendants had consistently defamed and maligned IBD Dendes character. It was alleged that Soyombo continued to publish statements on IBD Dende as recently as June 3, thereby subjecting IBD Dende to social media trial and judgment while the subject matter of the suit was still before a court of law. As a result, IBD Dendes legal counsel urged the court to grant an injunction to stop the alleged continuous defamatory publications against their client, pending the final ruling on the case. They argued that while the constitution protects freedom of expression, it does not extend to defaming individuals. They also disputed the accuracy of a viral video published by FIJ, which labelled IBD Dende a smuggler and gunrunner. In a counter-affidavit, IBD Dende clarified that the video merely showed a verbal disagreement with customs officers and did not provide evidence of his involvement in smuggling. He maintained that he is a licensed customs clearing and forwarding agent, whose legitimate work involves facilitating the transportation of goods into and out of Nigeria. FIJ countered IBD Dende's injunction request, affirming the accuracy of their publications and urging the court to dismiss the application. They argued that the injunction request is unconstitutional, as it seeks to restrain the press and stifles press freedom. In their written argument, Soyombo and FIJ's counsel contended that pre-trial suppression of the press violates the constitutional right to freedom of the press and speech. They emphasized that the press has a public duty to expose wrongdoing and must not be censored or restricted, as this is essential to serving the public interest. Further, FIJ counsel argued that the grant of the application for injunction to restrain further libel would be prejudicial to the main suit because it would be wrongly assumed that previous publications were defamatory and there was a need to stop further defamatory publications. In addition, it was submitted that IBD Dende who had admitted under oath to assaulting law enforcement officers did not deserve an equitable relief of injunction to restrain the press. FIJ argued that he who seeks equity must do equity and come with clean hands and it would be a perverse incentive to grant injunction in favour of a party who has engaged in such lawlessness depicted in the video. Soyombo and FIJ have also filed a defence to the main suit alongside a list of witnesses to be invited to testify. These include: one Rotimi Awoyemi, the Customs officer who was allegedly threatened in the video published by FIJ; Mr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi (MFR), Comptroller- General of Customs; and Mr. Hussein Ejigbunu, whom IBD Dende reportedly mentioned in the viral video. IBD Dende also listed two witnesses: himself and Oba Akintunde Akinyemi, the traditional ruler of Iselu, Yewa North Local Government, whose written statement on oath was filed in support of the statement of claim. The lawyers closed their argument and the court reserved ruling on the application for interlocutory injunction to a later date to be communicated to the parties. According to a certified true copy of the court's proceedings on May 21, IBD Dende had previously sought an ex parte order to restrain Soyombo, FIJ, and Arise from further alleged defamatory publications, before serving them with court processes. However, the court refused to hear the application and instead instructed the claimant's counsel to serve the defendants with notice, directing them to appear in court. Bauchi, Nigeria; July 8th, 2024: The Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative (ASR Africa) has commenced the construction of a 30-bed hospital for the Nigerian Customs Service with a groundbreaking ceremony held today at the Nigeria Customs Service Command in Bauchi State. This state-of-the-art medical edifice in Bauchi State is valued at 500 million Naira. The groundbreaking is coming after the presentation of letters of award to Nigerias security agencies in December 2022 by the MD/CEO of ASR Africa, Dr Ubon Udoh. The Comptroller General (GG) of the Nigerian Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi (MFR) expressed his appreciation to the Chairman of ASR Africa for the grant awarded to the agency. He mentioned that this gesture is worthy of mention as it is the first of such a huge donation to the Nigeria Customs Service from any organization. He added that upon assumption of Office as the CG, he deemed it fit to continue the project as the welfare of the agencys personnel is his utmost priority. He promised that the Nigerian Customs Service is committed to ensuring adequate deployment of medical personnel for the effective use of the facilitywhen completed. L-R: Alh. Uthman Dan jikan Bauchi, Hakimin Miri; Engr. Dayo Kolurejo, Project Contractor; Dr. Ubon Udoh, MD/CEO, ASR Africa; Bashir Adewale Adeniyi (MFR), Comptroller General, Nigeria Customs Service; ACG A. Abdulazeez, Zonal Coordinator, Bauchi/Gombe Command; and DCG MJ Nwafor at the ground breaking ceremony of the Abdul Samad Rabiu 30-BED Modern Reference Hospital for Nigeria Customs Service, Bauchi today. In his speech at the groundbreaking ceremony, Dr Ubon Udoh(MD, ASR Africa) reiterated the commitment of the Chairman of ASR Africa and the BUA Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, in fulfilling the pledges made to the security agencies across Nigeria. He further stated that ASR Africa has engaged with all the beneficiaries of the security grant and is on track to ensure the implementation of all projects selected by the armed forces and security agencies. He thanked the leadership of the Nigerian Customs Service for partnering with ASR Africa on this project. It will be recalled that the Chairman of ASR Africa, Abdul Samad Rabiu on his visit to the immediate past President of Nigeria in December 2022, announced a grant of 10 billion Naira to the Nigerian armed forces and security agencies. This grant, part of the Security Sector Support grant, is aimed at providing support for security agencies in the country and the armed forces to effectively and efficiently fulfill their mandate to the Nigerian people. Other beneficiaries include the Nigerian Navy, Nigerian Air Force, Nigerian Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Nigeria Immigration Service, Department of Secret Services (DSS), Nigeria Police, National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) and the Nigerian Correctional Service. About ASR ASR Africa is the brainchild of African Industrialist, Philanthropist,and the Chairman of BUA Group. Established in 2021, ASR Africa provides sustainable impact-based, homegrown solutions to developmental issues affecting Health, Education, and Social Development within Africa. Vietnamese ICT company CMC Corporation has launched a data centre subsidiary. The new company CMC AI Digital Infrastructure, or CMC ADI will be constructing and operating hyperscale data centres. CMC Corporation has invested some US$12.5 million in establishing the subsidiary which is headquartered in Tan Thuan Export Processing Zone in Ho Chi Minh City. The Data Centre Dynamics website says it is expected that the company will go into more detail about its hyperscale data centre plans at CMC's annual general meeting on 25 July. CMC ADI will be the eleventh subsidiary in which CMC Corporation has invested, and is the company's second-largest spin-off investment. Founded in 1993, CMC Technology Group is the second-largest IT and telecommunications company in Vietnam. Its not hard to see why CMC feels there is an opportunity in the country. The amount of global data doubles every three years, but Vietnam's data growth rate is said to be even faster. Vietnam does not currently have a large data centre market but that may be changing. Huawei has said it is considering a cloud region in Vietnam at some point. Also, as we reported in May, ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) is expanding into Vietnam via a joint venture with Vietnamese tech firm VNG Corporation to build and operate data centres in Ho Chi Minh City. Alibaba also aims to build a data centre in Vietnam, which at the moment has 22 data centres across three markets: Ho Chi Minh City, Hanoi, and Da Nang. From the Lok Sabha to Manipur Hitting the right button | From taking the story of Manipur to the floor of the Lok Sabha, courtesy the extremely relevant speech delivered by MP Bimol Akoijam, to now Rahul Gandhi visiting the strife torn State, the third to be precise during the conflict, the oldest political party is hitting the right button, in so far as Manipur is concerned. Carrying on the spirit which was so much visible in the speech of the Lok Sabha MP, Rahul Gandhis visit to Manipur is shorn of any partisan approach but is an attempt to reach out to the beleaguered folks who have been reeling under the ethnic violence for over 14 months now. The country cares about Manipur is the unsaid but clearly audible message that one can read into the visit by the Congress leader and this is a sentiment which is being shared by the common folks of the place. A gesture which can go some way in healing the injured souls and mentality of the people and while no one expects Rahul Gandhi or the Congress to whip out a magic formula to resolve the issue, an important message has been delivered and that is, there are some sections of people who are concerned and this is saying something a lot. This is where one is reminded of the fact that Manipur did not have to wait endlessly for days when the place went up in protest after the bullet riddled body of Thangjam Manorama was discovered one day after she was picked up by Assam Rifles personnel in the dead of the night on July 10, 2004. The now historic nude protest in front of Kangla followed on July 15 and it did not take long for the then Prime Minister of the country, Dr Manmohan Singh to fly to Imphal in November the same year and address the media in the packed banquet hall of Raj Bhavan. Kangla was also handed over to the people of Manipur and the Justice Jeevan Committee was formed to look into the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. A protest that could have prolonged, given the fact that a braveheart, Pebam Chittaranjan self immolated on August 15 the same year against the continued imposition of the Army Act. The point is, the battered sensibilities of the people were addressed to a certain extent just by the visit of the then Prime Minister of the country and while the present issue with that of 2004 is totally different, it stands that timely response from New Delhi could have gone a long way in addressing the hurt of the people now. That it took more than 13 months for the Prime Minister to open his mouth on the Manipur mayhem inside the Rajya Sabha should say something significant when viewed against the response of the Centre back in 2004. The issues are different, everybody knows it, but it is the indifference of the Centre to the human tragedy that is being scripted here that has given a further understanding to the term alienation. An alienated people, this is the understanding one can infer from the silence of the Prime Minister for over a year and it is the concern demonstrated by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that can and will go a long way in healing the hurt psyche of the people. This is not a comparison at all but acknowledging the understanding of reaching out with the hand of understanding and empathy. Here is a place and her people who have been geographically segegrated for over a year, a place decorated with buffer zones with over 60 thousand people surviving in relief centres and yet here is a case of the Prime Minister being misinformed to tell Parliament that normalcy is returning. How can one say Manipur is limping back to normalcy when no Meitei can travel along the Imphal-Dimapur route crossing Kangpokpi and no Kuki would entertain the idea or proposal of returning to the place they once called home at Imphal or in the other valley districts ? Is this a show of normalcy ? Even after more than a year of the violence erupting, it is more than clear that the Centre is not ready to accept the reality and when one dodges the reality then the path to normalcy is still very far off. This is a line that should be accepted by all. India and the world may be fooled for some time with lies and more lies but not forever and over 14 months is a long enough time for the misinformation campaign to blow over. The visit of Rahul Gandhi should hopefully help throw more light on what is happening at the ground and the attack launched by Kuki militants in the wee hours of July 8 at Jiribam, just hours before the Congress leader touched down at the said place is the real story of Manipur now. Manipur Cauldron Effective Unified Command and a strong Political Will are the only means towards Conflict Resolution | Laiphrakpam Ibotombi Singh While examining the role of security forces under the Unified Command and the Political Will towards conflict resolution of the ongoing conflict, both have failed to bring conflict resolution in the State. The onus of failure in bringing peace in Manipur is slightly titled towards the Security Forces, considering the mammoth size of additional forces pressed home in the State during last one year. The present Unified Command has not given any tangible results for facilitating dialogues between the two warring communities. Is it the right time to restructure and change the approach towards the Unified Command ? One of the suggested changes is that the Unified Command should be headed by the General Officer Commanding 3 Corps. Manipur has been witnessing unprecedent violence since May 3rd , 2023 resulting in large fatal and non-fatal casualties besides thousands have been rendered homeless as their houses and livelihoods have been burnt and have become refugees in their own Land. So far, over 227 persons have been killed, 71,000 displaced, thousands injured, scores missing, 3,814 houses burnt and 391 religious structures vandalized in Manipur. After more than one year and 63 days, peace appears to be a distant dream amongst the people of Manipur. It is seen that both the Security Apparatus and the Political Will are lacking in will to control the conflict and in bringing an amicable resolution. While examining the role of security forces under the Unified Command and the Political Will towards conflict resolution of the ongoing conflict, both have failed to bring conflict resolution in the State. The failure is slightly seen more towards the Security Forces, considering the mammoth size of additional forces pressed home in the State during the last one year. The primary role of the security forces is to keep the environment free from violence to facilitate political dialogue between the two warring communities ie. Meiteis and Zo-Kukis. Efficacy of the present Unified Command is under clouds considering the knee jerk reactive responses towards violent conflicts, recent example being spread of the ethnic violence to Jiribam District, westernmost district of Manipur neighbouring Assam, despite clear warning given to the Unified Command in January 2024. Unfortunately, security personnel at the helm are applying readymade templates of fighting against the Naxalites, they cannot even differentiate between terrorists, militants, insurgents, militias, village volunteers and are resorting to knee jerk actions, more of reactive scenarios than pro-active actions to control the situations, besides there is no synergy in application of forces. Equally is lack of political will towards resolution of conflict in Manipur by the Double Engine Government. It is unfortunate that there has been not a single word from the PMO despite Manipur burning for more than a year. In the recent address by the President, during the opening session of Parliament, there was complete silence on Manipur, as if Manipur State does not exist. Had Manipur got equal weightage in the Rajya Sabha (Council of States) or permanent house of Parliament, like what US Senate has, having equal seats for all the 50 States, then the matter would have been different. The public of Manipur are confused whether Article 355 or 356 has been invoked in Manipur, for all decisions on internal security matters are initiated by the Ministry of Home, under the directions of Union Home Minister. The recent example being exclusion of Chief Minister of Manipur, while reviewing security situation chaired by the Union Home Minister. Article 355, part of emergency provisions, under Part XVIII of the Indian Constitution says It shall be the duty of the Union to protect every State against external aggression and internal disturbance and to ensure that the Government of every State is carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution. Likewise under Art 356 of the Constitution of India, again part of emergency provisions, says If the President, on receipt of report from the Governor of the State or otherwise, is satisfied that a situation has arisen in which the Government of the State cannot be carried on in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution, the President may by Proclamation assume to himself all or any of the functions of the Government of the State by the Governor. the Union Govt can take direct control of the State machinery including powers of the Legislature of the State. On analysis of the context of these provisions, the present situation in Manipur is more tilted towards Article 356 as governance by the State Government is not functioning according to the provisions of the Constitution as life and property cannot be protected by the State machinery, there is widespread illegal tax collection and the public in the valley are confined in the areas of 40 by 30 Km, by virtue of creation of restricted zones around the valley. Thus, from the way the governance is remotely controlled from the Centre, it is a HYBRID Article 356 in Manipur, by ensuring governance of Bhartiya Janata Party in the State at the same time all important decisions in running the State by the Central Government, thereby proving to be saanp bhi mare aur lathi bhi na toote or lin su siba chaise su tektaba in Manipuri One of the glaring examples is overnight change in decision (cancellation) of visit of the Manipur Chief Minister to Jiribam, post violence in the district. Another loosely used terminology in present impasse in Manipur is Buffer Zone, which otherwise is used during armed conflict between two great powers. The word Buffer Zone is a mutually agreed upon area lying between two greater powers, which is demilitarised in the sense of not hosting the armed forces of either power. Thus, there can be no buffer zone per se in Manipur as no two-armed forces of separate Nations are at war. It is an ethnic conflict between two warring communities assisted by Zo-Kuki militant groups under Suspension of Operations (SOO) and Myanmar origin terrorists operating as mercenaries in creating mayhem against innocent Meitei villagers staying on the outskirts of Imphal valley neighbouring Chin-Kuki dominated areas. Therefore, there is a need to avoid this terminology, instead check point barriers, security check posts may be used. In 2008 there was a communal conflict between the Bodos and the Assamese Muslims in Udalguri and Darang Districs in Assam, which left more than 100 people dead and about 1.5 lakh people of various communities refugees in relief camps at Darang, Udalguri, Kharupetia and other places. However, the violence was doused within a month due to immediate intervention by security forces and timely ground visit of the then Prime Minister Shri Manmohan Singh, hordes of his Ministers of UPA-2 regime and other political parties, besides other personalities of India. The violent situation was stabilised by the security forces enabling political cum social dialogue at the political level which resolved the conflict between the two communities. Conflict resolution is an art, which requires a strong political will, combined with shaping a conducive environment by the security forces. In the case of Manipur as the present Unified Command has not given any tangible results for facilitating dialogues between the two warring communities, is it the right time to restructure and change the approach towards the Unified Command ? One of the suggested changes is that the Unified Command should be headed by the General Officer Commanding 3 Corps like similar arrangement made in Assam. For this, tactical Headquarters of 3 Corps can be shifted to Imphal, for better command and control. The two divisional Headquarters viz. Headquarters 57 Mountain Division and Inspectorate General Assam Rifles, South can be given separate areas of responsibilities, if required even Inspectorate General Assam Rifles, East can be shifted temporarily to South Manipur. The primary mandate of key result areas of the Unified Command will be disarmament, stringent enforcement of cease fire ground rules, preventing flow of weapons and warlike stores from Myanmar into Manipur, thereby bring the level of violence down, conducive for initiation of political dialogues. The primary role of the Unified Command will be to facilitate conflict resolution and NOT repeat NOT counter insurgency. This arrangement can be made for six months and reviewed accordingly. Side by side there is a need to have a Strategic Command headed by the Chief Minister, if the Centres stand about Manipur is not under Article 355 or 356 is true, or it should be headed by the Governor if Article 355 is invoked, thereby facilitate application of synergised security forces. The commander Unified Command de facto will be Security Advisor to the Chairperson Strategic Command. Some of the recommended key focused areas for the Unified are:- (a) Disarmament : The foremost important tasks which require synergized efforts from all govt machinery including the SF is disarmament without which no dialogue can take place. Without disarmament normalcy will not return, instead the situation will worsen. Disarmament can be achieved by encouraging surrender or use of punitive force against all armed personnel, including Kuki-Zo militant groups under Suspension of Operations (SSO) who are terrorising innocent villagers on daily basis, in violations of cease fire ground rules (CFGR). The perception of the Centre, in particular Ministry of Home, advised by the NSA and the Interlocutor, not to abrogate SOO with Kuki-Zo militant groups in Manipur until ongoing peace dialogue with the NSCN(IM) is fructified, may soon lead to catastrophe in the beleaguered Manipur State. Thus a holistic call needs to be taken. (b) Strict Enforcement of CFGR : One of the most important tasks for the Unified Command is strict implementation of CFGR rules. Punitive actions including confiscation of weapons and munitions need to be taken when violated. All the weapons, munitions and other warlike stores belonging to the various insurgent cum militant groups under SoO are recommended to be kept in separate armoury having triple locks, one key each with the SF, second with the Militant Groups and third with the Interlocutor to avoid misuse of these weapons while under SoO. Deployment of Security Forces must be based on detail analysis of threat and likely flash points for violence and not reactive knee jerk actions as is prevalent now. The SFs must pursue precision hard intelligence based surgical strikes towards violators of CFGR by Militant Groups under SoO and village volunteers and ex-servicemen who have taken up arms. Simultaneously, encourage surrender of arms by giving lucrative incentives, for which the Centre must chip in the State financially. (c) Last Bastion of Security Forces : The Indian Army is the last bastion of the Indian Security Forces, when called upon in aid of the civil authority, to restore normalcy during riots, public disorder, mob violence etc. It was shocking and pathetic to see a junior commissioned officer of Assam Rifles meekly pleading and requesting the fully armed group of Zo-Kuki militants, against basic norms taught in the military training institutes, to remove area weapons (106 mm recoilless gun) pointed against them and blocking the road, while moving in a Casspir mine-resistant ambush protected vehicle at Moreh on January 17th , 2024. It was the Zo-Kuki terrorists carrying out show of force against the SF, which is unprecedented in the annals of aid to civil authority history by the Indian Security Forces. It was a clear violations of CFGR by the Zo-Kuki Terrorists under SoO, which should have been acted upon. (d) Accountability of SFs : Besides fencing, to be completed on a war footing, the Indo-Myanmar border must be sealed by physical presence of troops. Avoid illegal weapons and warlike stores from Myanmar into India as most of the Indo-Myanmar border is now under control of various warring Myanmars ethnic groups. The 15 Battalions of Assam Rifles raised for guarding of Indo-Myanmar border in 2001-2002 by the MHA must be utilised effectively, instead of frittering away these precious resources in the form of counter insurgency grid. Make them accountable as recommended in K Subrahmanyam committee report post Kargil War 1999. (e) Dynamic Deployment : There is a need to identify centre of gravity of the current problem and those responsible for creating mayhem in the State and carry out precision strikes accordingly. Ensure dynamic and grid deployment of the Security Forces and ensure accountability. Instil confidence, indulge in psychological operations for winning Hearts and Minds of the public. Initiate suitable measures to stop spreading of rumours and false propaganda, invoke relevant Acts and initiate suitable legal actions as per the law against violators. Best way to counter rumour is to counter the false propaganda with factual details by fastest means for which a centralise team as Counter False Propaganda Team need to be created. (f) Intense Operations : Security Force under unified command in Manipur is one of the means to lead to peaceful conflict resolution. This component needs to create conducive atmosphere for initiating dialogues through political means. Proactive intense and tangible operations in the centre of gravity, likely flash points and vulnerable areas, both in the Hills as well as in the valley, is key to brig down level of violence. The actions of the SFs should not only be transparent by means of daily press brief and but also made aware amongst the public. (g) Punitive Actions : Investigate who are the parties involved in tacitly supporting and inciting violence, and initiate stringent legal actions against them. Political Will. Strong political will both at the State level as well as at the Centre is need of the hour. Combined with intense disarmament operations by the SFs, side by side dialogues without pre-conditions must be initiated by the executives. Remember conflict resolution requires political dialogue from warring factions, the agenda should be without disintegrating unity of Manipur. The Centre must give all the support and initiate concrete steps, made aware to the public, so as to lead to conflict resolution. Some recommended actions at the political level are as under :- (a) Dialogue : In order to arrest the level of violence in the State and bring in some semblance of law and order, all the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), Student Organisations and Other Key Organisations both in the valley and in the Hills need to be actively engaged. Thereafter, bring in a common agenda so as to resolve the conflict by peaceful dialogue. These arrangements must go on side-by-side with military means containment of violence under the Unified Command. b) NRC : Ensure early implementation of NRC based on 1951 or 1961 census in Manipur. c) Secured and Reliable Line of Communication : Establish a safe, secured, reliable and all-weather lines of communication to Imphal, the State Capital. National Highway 37 is a better choice as the alignment runs entirely through Manipur. Create a sizeable and strong National Highway Protection Force on similar line to Railway Protection Force. Stringent punitive actions must be taken against personnel who indulge in blockade of National Highways. Enact law as non-bailable for such offences. d) Inclusion of Meitei Community as ST : Continue with proper examination of Meitei community for scheduled tribe status as per law and facts as per history. e) Revocation of MLRLR Act : Revoke Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms Act 1960 and permit all tribes and communities of Manipur to settle in all areas within Manipur on the same line as is being practiced in Himachal Pradesh. (The last recommendation can be easily carried out by Shri Amit Shah, the Honble Union Home Minister, who on 5th August 2019 with the blessings of Honble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi carried out a Precision Strike in the Parliament where the Govt of India revoked the special status or autonomy, granted under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution to Jammu and Kashmir.) An alumnus of Sanik School Imphal, Laiphrakpam Ibotombi Singh served in the Indian Army for about 36 years. He has vast exposure and knowledge of conflict resolution while serving as Chief Operational Officer in Somalia and later as a Colonel of a Mountain Division in charge of operations responsible for counter insurgency in Lower Assam. NE likely to see more rain | NEW DELHI, Jul 8 : Indian Meteorological Department has forecast heavy to very heavy rain along the West Coast, many parts of North East and east India and Uttar Pradesh during the next five days. Met department said, there is a likelihood of isolated extremely heavy rainfall in Bihar and Odisha today, July 8. Assam and Meghalaya are also likely to witness rainfall on the 10th and 11th of July. Fairly widespread to widespread light to moderate rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms and lightning is very likely over Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, Kerala and Mahe, Lakshadweep, and Coastal Karnataka during the next five days. Malaysian telco U Mobile and Axiata-owned telecoms infrastructure company Edotco say they have formed a partnership to accelerate the rollout of 5G under the governments planned dual network model. Under an MoU signed on Thursday and announced on Friday, Edotco will provide U Mobile with information and access to its tower infrastructures, resources and expedited site delivery to facilitate the telcos 5G network rollout. U Mobile and Edotco will also jointly develop a streamlined process to drive efficiency in site tower infrastructure rollout and handover. This will include using AI and data analytics to identify suitable tower locations and structures, as well as working with various state agencies to enable faster and more efficient site acquisition and permissions. The two companies will also discuss commercial arrangements for various infrastructure requirements, including built-to-suit sites, co-locations, site upgrades and indoor coverage. All of this will enable faster on-air time for new 5G sites, expedite coverage expansion, and establish a cost-efficient and competitive offering to enable fast rollouts, the companies said in a joint statement. U Mobile which recently renewed its lease contract with Edotco for another term also said it is working on a site consolidation plan that aims to enhance aesthetics as well as lower network opex, which it says will further advance deployment of 5G using existing infrastructure. U Mobile CTO Woon Ooi Yuen said that leveraging Edotcos tower infrastructure footprint was in line with the Malaysian governments mandate for dual 5G networks and would strengthen U Mobiles position to deploy the second 5G network. The Ministry of Communications has been planning to launch a second 5G network to compete with existing wholesale 5G operator DNB since May 2023. The launch of the second operator has been contingent on two conditions, the first being that DNB achieve 80% coverage in populated areas. That condition was met at the end of last year. The second condition was the finalisation of the share subscription agreements (SSAs) signed by Telekom Malaysia, Maxis, U Mobile, YTL and CelcomDigis Infranation in December 2023 take a collective 70% stake in DNB. That process was completed last month, with the exception of Telekom Malaysia, which is expected to finalise its SSA next month. The SSAs come with an option that allows each telco to sell their DNB stake in order to take a stake in the second 5G network. They are not allowed to own stakes in both. In their statements confirming that their DNB SSAs have been finalised, U Mobile, Maxis and CelcomDigi each said they were committed to play a role in the second network. Last month, representatives from the Ministry of Communications, the Ministry of Digital, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of Investment, Trade, and Industry met to discuss their respective roles and functions in implementing the dual 5G network model. After an elderly couple who were facing harassment pleaded for intervention by the Chief Minister, East Burdwan district police have finally woken up and registered FIR against 12 Trinamul Congress supporters in Jamalpur, bringing charges of assault, intimidation and atrocities. No-one, however, has been arrested as yet. The police said: Weve just begun a probe and after completion of the interrogation process the official arrests can be made. The elderly couple, Sanoara Sheikh and Burhan Sheikh, both farmers by profession and their son Bashir were thrashed heavily at their doorstep at Kubazpur village at the whims of a Trinamul Congress leader Azad Sheikh. They were attacked and thrashed as they had refused to attend a kangaroo court organised by Azad for the purpose of out-of-court settlement of a separation case. The couples only son Bashir Ali Sheikh was married to Julekha Sheikh, a young woman of Aludanga village on 21 January 2018. Julekha however returned to her parents within a couple of months and has been staying there. In 2019, she lodged a complaint of torture against her inlaws with the Jamalpur police station and in 2021 with the Burdwan Women police station. Bashir and his parents were granted bail by the Chief Judicial Magistrates Court in Burdwan. The issue is still pending with the CJM Court. Advertisement On last 10 June, we however were ordered by the TMCs area president Azad Rahman Sheikh to appear at the local party office on 14 June for an outof-court settlement of the issue, which we declined, said Sahanara. Burhan said: As we didnt turn up, Azad, accompanied by two of his aides Badsha Mallik and Raja Mallik raided our house and attack my son with lathis. They thrashed Bashir badly and when we went to rescue, we also were beaten. The injured family members left home and after treatment at the Jamalpur Block Hospital, they lodged a complaint with the local police station. Considering Bashirs serious injuries, he was shifted to the Burdwan Medical College and Hospital. The police meanwhile said: In case Azads involvement is established, his name will also be attached to the FIR. The couple had sent an appeal to the Chief Minister on last Friday. Azad, meanwhile, denied his involvement, saying: Its all bogus and they had some local issues with a family. My partys name has been intentionally dragg in with an ulterior motive. Kolkata is in a better situation this year till now as far as dengue infections are concerned, informed the mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, Firhad Hakim, today. According to the mayor, 30 per cent fewer dengue cases have been reported this year. Till 30 June, the number of dengue cases was 30 percent fewer than the number reported during the corresponding period last year, said Mr Hakim. As informed by the mayor, the number of cases reported till 30 June this year was 112 against last years 179 during the same period. All the patients are in good health and none of them are in serious condition, he informed. Mr Hakim who is also the state Urban Development and Municipal Affairs minister, reiterated that the citizens need to be alert against the disease. We have started the awareness campaign using auto rickshaws while workers are visiting houses every seven days, he said. The mayor however, pointed out that he was not satisfied with the figures. Even one reported case is a cause of concern to me, said Mr Hakim. The mayor emphasised that the vector borne disease could be fought and curbed by increasing awareness among citizens. Unless the people are more aware and they do not dispose of the waste like coconut shells and bhand (earthen cups) properly, dengue cannot be controlled, he added. The minister of the state UDMA Department attributed the rising number of cases in other municipal corporations and municipalities particularly in suburban areas, to the increasing urbaniz ation and concretisation of buildings. He urged the people to keep the roofs and terraces of their homes clean. Advertisement Central BJP leaders are aiming to restructure the saffron partys organisation at the state and district level ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections in view of the partys poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections. According to sources, some central party leaders, who are dealing with organisation affairs are keeping in close touch with some state BJP leaders. The party leadership is said to be planning to replace the presidents of at least 15 out of 43 organisational districts in Bengal. Both winning and losing candidates in the Lok Sabha elections will be utilised for organisational work, said the BJP sources. There is even a possibility of a change in the state BJP president. On Friday, BJPs national president J P Nadda assigned new organisational responsibilities in 24 states except West Bengal. Sources said that as the post-election analysis at the grassroots level has revealed several reasons for the BJPs poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections in Bengal, so the Delhi headquarters are taking stock of the situation. The saffron party leadership is planning a significant organisational overhaul in view of the disappointing election results.Reports indicated that nearly 15 district presidents will be replaced before the Puja. Additionally, recently state president Sukanta Majumdar hinted at a possible change in his position, noting that the partys principle is one person, one post. He had recently stated: Our partys policy is one person, one post. Therefore, since I have become a minister, I may have to step down. However, the final decision will be made by the central leadership. Our partys structure undergoes changes from the top to the bottom in terms of organisational restructuring. The focus will primarily be on revamping the district organisations, from the district to the mandal levels. Most district presidents in areas with poor results in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections will be replaced. Advertisement Over 300 mandal presidents may also be replaced. Furthermore, the majority of booth committees will be restructured. While Mr Majumdar did not directly comment on the organisational reshuffle, a state BJP leader claimed that any changes in the state BJPs organisational structure would be on the directives of the central leadership. However, sources within the BJP have confirmed that organisational changes are indeed taking place at various levels within the state BJP. A few days ago, state BJP leaders met at the Salt Lake party office for a post-election review meeting, where it was decided to gather reports from the district level. Subsequently, review meetings are being held in various districts with mandal presidents, district and zone in-charges, and assembly in-charges. The complete grassroots reports will soon be submitted to the state committee, which will then send the refined reports to the central leadership. The grassroots leaders and workers have identified several issues responsible for the partys poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections during the review meetings, including that many senior workers were not involved in the election work, booth organisations were quite lax, incorrect booth reports were sent, with optimistic projections that did not match reality. BJP workers were lax in door-to-door campaigning, and voters were not adequately approached. There was also a lack of coordination between district presidents and party candidates in most Lok Sabha constituencies. Frequent meetings and large gatherings by central leaders resulted in insufficient grassroots voter outreach, said the sources. These issues are being discussed within the party. Organisational reshuffles are expected in several districts, including Howrah, Hooghly, South 24-Parganas, West Midnapore, Jhargram, Bankura, and Burdwan. Both Lok Sabha constituencies in Howrah did not yield satisfactory results, the Hooghly seat was lost, and even though Arambagh was considered a positive seat, it was lost. The Burdwan-Durgapur seat was lost, and even though Asansol was considered positive, it was lost as well. Additionally, there is internal conflict within the party in Burdwan, necessitating organisational restructuring. South 24-Parganas performed very poorly, and reports of factionalism have surfaced. Organisational changes are also expected in Midnapur, Jhargram, and Ghatal. The Bankura seat was lost, and there was significant internal conflict within the party before the elections. In Bishnupur, BJP won by a very small margin. Consequently, organisational changes are planned in Bankura, Bishnupur, Birbhum, and Bolpur. Diya Mondal (20), a nursing student, hailing from Kanksha near Durgapur, is reported to have committed suicide by hanging herself in Bengaluru in Karnataka. She hails from a poor family and her father works as a cook to earn a living. A resident of Satyanarayan Pally in Gopalpur of Kanksha, Diya Mondal went to study a nursing course in the Mother Terresa Group of Institutions in Bengaluru. Late yesterday evening one of her college mates called her family from the hostel and informed them that she has committed suicide by hanging herself from the ceiling of the hostel room. Her father Debashis Mondal is virtually shattered and said that she was his only child and he can not accept such a tragic ending. Despite our poor earning I have tried my best to get my daughter educated and become self-reliant. I had heard a boy used to disturb her. I dont know the reason behind her commiting suicide. Today I am leaving for Bengaluru, but I dont have money to bring back her body back to Durgapur and request our chief minister to help bring her back to my native place, said Debashis Mondal. The victim last talked with her mother on Saturday evening at around 6 p.m. What happened two hours after that has baffled the family. The family wants an impartial investigation into her death. So far no official comment has been received from the district civil, police administration or the state government on this issue. Advertisement Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva on Monday hit out at Delhi Minister Atishi and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, alleging that they have badly damaged the school education system of the national capital. Sharpening his attack, the Delhi BJP chief accused the AAP leaders of diverting the teachers towards non- teaching duties, and also alleged that they have not recruited regular teachers nor guest teachers, resulting in one of the worst teacher student ratios in the state run government schools here. Sachdeva further said that the saffron party never wanted to do politics on education departments working, and added that the present education minister forced Delhi BJP to bring it up before everyone as to how the Kejriwal government has damaged the education system of the national capital. Advertisement He claimed that the city at present has 995 normal schools as compared to 1015 in 2015, when Arvind Kejriwal government came to power, and alleged that during the past 10 years they have not hired any new teachers. Delhi BJP chief claimed that the other 32 schools for specialized education totally lack facilities, and some of them are the worst schools. Throwing light on the number of school teachers in Delhi he claimed,As per the Right to Education statistics Delhi government schools need around 62000 teachers while there are only around 43000 teachers along with around 13000 guest teachers. There is a a lack of around 6000 teachers in Delhi Government schools. Sachdeva further slammed the Delhi government stating that despite the schools not having sufficient teachers, yet the Kejriwal Government has diverted over 5000 teachers to non teaching duties. Shockingly school teachers are forced to do clerical duties, work as legal assistants and work as OSDs to senior officials, Sachdeva claimed. The Delhi BJP leader further claimed that around 5200 posts of clerks and accounts staff in Delhi government schools are vacant, and on half of them contract employees have been kept at a salary of Rs 25000 per month. Against the other half, around 1500 teachers with a salary bracket of Rs 70000 per month are being forced to work as clerks and accounts officers, the BJP leader claimed. Slamming the AAP further, Sachdeva alleged that the Kejriwal government is misusing education funds on employing its party cadre, and some 1027 Estate Managers and around 1000 contract clerks have been kept from AAP cadre without following proper rules and regulations, he claimed. Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj on Monday held an important review meeting with Medical Superintendents (MS) and Medical Directors (MD) of all the state government hospitals over the prevention of dengue in the national capital. The minister took stock of the preparedness in view of the vector borne diseases, while the concerned officials and medical institutions chiefs gave detailed information about the availability of medicines in hospitals, arrangement for dengue beds and other preparations. Bhardwaj also gave instructions to take necessary steps to prevent the serious vector borne disease. He has directed the concerned department and officials to intensify fogging and cleaning campaigns in dengue prone areas. Advertisement The Health Minister issued instructions to MS and MDs to visit hospitals daily, and keep a check on measures to prevent mosquito breeding. If mosquito breeding is seen around hospitals, immediately inform the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, Bhardwaj told the officials. He has directed all the hospitals to ensure the availability of mosquito nets in sufficient quantities for the patients, and also keep the stock of medicines ready. The minister also issued instructions to run awareness campaigns and broadcast information on dengue and measures to prevent the disease through social media and other modes of communications. This is the second high level meeting called by the Health Minister during the past one week regarding the important issue. In the meeting several officials of different hospitals informed that special arrangements have been made for dengue patients by reserving some beds only for them, where only dengue and malaria patients will be admitted. This will ensure that they are given proper care, and also the other patients may not get affected, and mosquito nets will be put around the dengue and malaria patients so that no mosquito who bites the patient can spread the disease to other patients. The decision has also been taken to spread awareness about the vector borne diseases in schools and public places by running awareness campaigns with the help of the education department. During the last meeting over the issue, Bharadwaj had issued directions to schools to instruct the students to wear full sleeved clothes and also ensure routine fogging and maintain cleanliness in the school premises. The Minister has also asked the top officials of the hospitals to ensure that they make necessary rules to tackle the serious diseases and ensure that the rules are followed. He has also warned the officials of action in case the situation is overlooked and short comings are found in this regard. The Health Minister on June 5 had convened a meeting to ensure preparedness against dengue during the monsoon. Officials from various departments including Home and Family Welfare (H&FW), GNCTD, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS), Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC), Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB), Public Works Department (PWD), Directorate of Education (DoE), Delhi State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (DSIIDC), and Irrigation and Flood Control (I&FC) had attended the meeting on Friday night. In the meeting, the DGHS had informed that 40 lakh pamphlets have been printed centrally for distribution among the public and the genome sequencing of samples has been increased. The MCD briefed the Minister that all schools under it are providing kids with dengue homework cards, while the checking of mosquito breeding was stepped up. Delhi Mayor Dr. Shelly Oberoi and leader of the house in the Municipal Corporation of Delhi on Monday held a meeting of the officials of the civic body on Monday to discuss the citys sanitation and the garbage vulnerable points (GVPs). The meeting discussed the issues related to the GVPs across the 12 MCD zones of the city with the officials sharing the details about the present condition of the spots and the actions taken in this regard. Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Oberoi said the officials have informed that across the 12 zones, many of the GVPs have been already eliminated and the same spots have undergone beautification work. Advertisement Oberoi said many such points still exist and the corporation is working continuously on clearing them. The officials have been given instructions to appoint a nodal officer in every ward to shoulder the responsibility of the garbage points. The nodal officers will not only get the beautification work done at the GVPs but will also put in place big dustbins at the locations. With the elimination of the GVPs the corporation will get closer to fulfilling the dream of a clean and beautiful Delhi, as visualized by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the mayor added. She said the aim of the meeting was also to improve sanitation across the city. Some new GVPs have come up recently which will be fixed soon and their beautification work will also be done, she added. The primary responsibility of the civic body, she said is to maintain cleanliness across the city. Dr. Oberoi said several measures are being undertaken to resolve monsoon-related issues in the city and in the coming days a meeting with the Health Department would be held to discuss all the shortfalls. She said meetings are also being held over vector-borne diseases and steps are being taken for their prevention on priority. Delhi Education Minister Atishi on Monday said the transfer of 5,000 teachers was done to ruin government schools and the education revolution of the city as part of a conspiracy. The statement of the minister comes after the Directorate of Education (DoE) of Delhi government on Monday put on hold its 2nd July order relating to transfer of around 5,000 teachers who are continuing for more than 10 years in the same school. Notably, on 4t July, Atishi had asked Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar to immediately withdraw the transfer order of around 5,000 teachers issued on 2nd July by the DoE. Advertisement Addressing a press conference, the Minister said, Through an order issued by the DoE this morning, the unjust transfer order issued on July 2 under which more than 5,000 teachers were transferred has been stopped. Pointing out that the teachers, children and their parents were worried after the 2nd July order, she said, On 2nd July, I had promised the people of Delhi, teachers of Delhi government schools, children and their parents that no matter how many conspiracies the BJP hatches, we will not let the Delhi government schools be ruined, we will not let this education revolution stop. I am happy that due to this struggle of the people of Delhi, the BJP had to withdraw this transfer order through its LG. This is the victory of the people of Delhi. Attacking the BJP, Atishi said, No matter how many conspiracies BJP hatches to trouble the people of Delhi, to stop their work, the Arvind Kejriwal government will keep fighting for Delhiites. No matter how much struggle we have to endure, we will keep fighting for the people of Delhi. I want to tell the BJP that no matter how many conspiracies they hatch to destroy the schools of the Delhi government, as long as Arvind Kejriwal is the Chief Minister of Delhi, he will keep fighting for the people of Delhi, and will keep working for them, she said. Will Smith has been a beloved actor since his debut with The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, celebrated for his talent, persona, and his ventures into rap and singing. However, this fame encountered a significant setback at the 2022 Academy Awards when the actor slapped Chris Rock, sparking considerable controversy and leading to a 10-year ban from the Oscars by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. For those unaware, Rock was the host that evening and had made a joke about Smiths wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. This did not sit well with the star of The Pursuit of Happyness, prompting him to slap Rock and exclaim, Keep my wifes name out of your f**king mouth. Advertisement View this post on Instagram A post shared by Will Smith (@willsmith) Following this incident, Smith faced consequences including losing projects and receiving limited attention for his film Emancipation. However, his recent release Bad Boys 4, which premiered on June 7, proved to be a commercial success. While some view this as a potential comeback for the actor, the Academy remains hesitant to fully embrace him again. In an exclusive interview with the Mirror, three-time Oscar winner Paul N.J. Ottosson suggested there might be a path for Smiths return in the future, contingent upon accepting responsibility for his actions at the 2022 Oscars and expressing genuine remorse. He emphasized that Smiths past achievements alone wont sway the Academy; rather, ongoing success, exemplary conduct, and genuine contrition will be necessary to rebuild his reputation. Ottosson personally expressed forgiveness towards Smith but maintained his stance on the Academys ban. As a human being, we should forgive, as long as he acknowledges his wrongdoing. However, as a private institution, we reserve the right to enforce consequences for behavior we cannot tolerate. By punishing him temporarily, we send a message that such actions are not acceptable, while allowing a path for redemption through subsequent actions and behavior, Ottosson clarified. He also acknowledged that while Smith may have felt provoked by the joke, all individuals must strive to exercise restraint. Previously, Smith had discussed the incident on The Daily Show with Trevor Noah, reflecting, Theres a lot of nuances and complexities to it. But at the end of the day, I just I lost it, you know? I was going through something that night, you know? Not that that justifies my behavior at all It was a lot of things. The actor also acknowledged that his actions may have been influenced by longstanding tensions with Chris Rock. Another funding win has been announced by for mobile and broadband wireless infrastructure supplier NuRAN Wireless, this time involving Cameroon. Strictly speaking, NurRAN has announced a financial close: that of a US$5 million loan facility with the Facility for Energy Inclusion, a fund managed by Cygnum Capital and announced earlier this year. NuRAN says the initial drawdown of US$2.5 million under the Facility is underway and the funds will be disbursed within five to ten business days. The initial drawdown under the Facility includes a US$1.07 million refinancing of renewable energy assets already previously shipped and installed by NuRAN in Cameroon. Combined with the operating cash generated by operations, this is expected to allow the company to complete the 122 sites from the initial contract and to build up to an additional 120 new sites. NuRAN says that based on the recent performance of its sites in Cameroon the new site build represents an important milestone in expanding connectivity in underserved regions across the country. The company adds that a drawdown under a Facility for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is expected to follow subject to compliance with all drawdown conditions. Upon closing this is expected to fund the completion of over 100 sites in DRC. Management also intends to kick off operations in Ivory Coast and to build sites from inventory in South Sudan before the end of 2024 subject to further financing. Francis Letourneau, President and CEO of NuRAN Wireless, says: We are pleased to have successfully completed this important financing allowing the Company to focus on building more sites in Africa with the aim of demonstrating the effectiveness and profitability of these rural and remote sites. As we continue to add live sites to our inventory, we believe that our business model will not only prove to be successful but will demonstrate the value of the more than 5,000 sites that we already have under contract. Ram Charan has completed filming for his highly anticipated movie Game Changer, marking a milestone in the making of this ambitious project. Taking to Instagram, the actor shared a nostalgic collage featuring snapshots from the first day of shooting to the final wrap-up moment. In one of the pictures, Ram Charan appears approaching a helicopter, hinting at the high-octane action to expect in the film. Directed by the renowned Shankar and announced back in 2021, Game Changer has been in production for nearly three years, promising audiences a gripping storyline. The movie stars Ram Charan alongside Kiara Advani, reuniting after their collaboration in Vinaya Vidheya Rama directed by Boyapati Srinu. The plot revolves around an idealistic Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer who wages a battle against corrupt politicians, advocating for fair elections and systemic reform. Its a narrative that resonates deeply in todays socio-political climate, where integrity in governance is a pressing issue. In addition to Game Changer, Ram Charan is gearing up to share the screen with Janhvi Kapoor in an upcoming, untitled film. This project, recently launched in Hyderabad with a traditional puja ceremony, also features Kannada superstar Shiva Rajkumar in a prominent role. Directed by Buchi Babu Sana, known for the National Award-winning Uppena, the film will be released in multiple languages including Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada, highlighting its broad appeal across diverse audiences. With musical maestro AR Rahman composing the soundtrack, expectations are high for both Game Changer and the untitled film, promising audiences a cinematic treat blending action, drama, and social relevance. As fans eagerly anticipate their release, Ram Charan continues to cement his stature as one of Indias most versatile and dynamic actors in contemporary cinema. South Korean actor Song Joong Ki has delighted fans with the announcement that he and his wife, Katy Louise Saunders, are expecting their second child. The news was confirmed by Joong Kis agency, HighZium Studio, after rumors had been circulating on social media for some time. In a statement to Star News, the agency shared, Song Joong-ki and his wife are pregnant with their second child. It is difficult to confirm the timing of birth or the gender of the child as these are private matters. Unlike their first pregnancy, where they openly shared details like the due date and gender, this time the couple has chosen to keep these aspects private. Advertisement View this post on Instagram A post shared by songjoongki official (@hi_songjoongki) Fans of the actor, known for his roles in popular dramas like Descendants of the Sun and Vincenzo, expressed their excitement and sent their best wishes to the growing family on social media. Joong Ki, who gained fame through his roles in both television and film, including hits like Sungkyunkwan Scandal and A Werewolf Boy, welcomed his first child just last year. His career has received by critical acclaim and commercial success, with numerous accolades including two Baeksang Arts Awards and two Blue Dragon Film Awards. Joong Ki has also been a consistent presence on Forbes Koreas Power Celebrity list, ranking in the top ten multiple times. He was Gallup Koreas Television Actor of the Year in 2012 and 2017, underscoring his popularity and influence in the industry. The actors journey to stardom began with breakthrough roles that showcased his versatility, from historical dramas to action-packed blockbusters. His recent works such as Arthdal Chronicles and Reborn Rich have further solidified his status as a leading figure in Hallyu, or the Korean Wave, which continues to captivate audiences globally. As Joong Ki and Saunders prepare to welcome their second child, the couple has asked for privacy regarding further details, emphasizing their focus on this precious family moment. The news of their expanding family has resonated warmly with fans, who await more updates and continue to support their beloved actor in this new chapter of his life. Five Army soldiers were killed and five others were injured when terrorists on Monday attacked a military truck with grenades in Billawar region in the Kathua district of the Jammu division. The injured soldiers were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment. Reports said that the Army truck came under terror attack in the Badnota village in the Machhedi area of the Lohai Malhar block in Billawar. Terrorists tossed grenades at the Army vehicle and opened fire at it from the hilltop. Advertisement The soldiers retaliated and an encounter broke out in the area. A massive search operation has been launched in the jungle area by reinforcements of the Army, CRPF and J&K Police. Additional DGP (Jammu Range) Anand Jain said, Exchange of fire between terrorists and security forces is going on in the Machedi area of Kathua district. Massive search operation has been launched after two soldiers were injured in a terrorist attack. Officials said five soldiers have been martyred in the incident. The attack in the district came days after a CRPF jawan was killed and two Pakistani terrorists eliminated in the Hiranagar area of the Kathua district on 12 June. An Army soldier was injured yesterday in a terrorist attack in the Rajouri district of Jammu and two soldiers lost their lives in the Kulgam encounter. Six terrorists were also neutralised in Kashmir. Terrorist attacks particularly in the Jammu region have heightened in the past few weeks. Jammus Reasi district was rocked by a terror attack at a pilgrims bus on 9 June in which 9 persons were killed and 41 injured. This was followed by twin terror attacks in the Doda district on 11 and 12 June 12. Six security personnel were injured when terrorists attacked a joint check post at Chattargalla, while a police personnel was injured in a gunfight with terrorists at Kota top in the Gandoh area on 12 June. On June 26, three terrorists were killed during an encounter with security forces in a forest area in Jammu and Kashmirs Doda district. Following the attacks, security forces intensified their anti-terrorist operations and announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh each for four Pakistani terrorists believed to have infiltrated and operated in the district. Security has also been heightened in Punjabs Pathankot area neighbouring the Kathua district of Jammu where movement of terrorists was noticed a few days ago. The Punjab government has tightened security for the Amarnath pilgrims passing through Pathankot while travelling to the Kashmir valley. In a tragic accident, 46 school students were injured when a bus overturned near Pinjore town in Haryanas Panchkula district on Monday. The injured students were rushed to the government hospital in Pinjore, where they are undergoing medical treatment. Visuals from the hospital show a flurry of activity as medical personnel attend to the injured students. Concerned parents of the students also rushed to hospitals to check on their children. Advertisement Panchkula Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Mukta Kumar provided an update on the situation, stating, Fortysix injured have been admitted to the Pinjore Polyclinic since morning, 22 out of which have been referred here. Out of all the patients, only 3 are adults, the rest are children. The situation is under control. For now, all patients are stable. The whole team of doctors is available in the hospital. Some injured were referred to the PGI Chandigarh. The bus was operated by Haryana Roadways and it reportedly overturned after the driver lost control wheel. The Haryana government has suspended the driver and conductor of the bus. Authorities are trying to nab the bus driver, who went absconding after the accident. The conductor, who also sustained injuries, is undergoing treatment at the government hospital in Pinjore. The recent surge in electricity bills in Chhattisgarh has sparked a heated debate as the Congress and the BJP clash over electricity tariffs. Former Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel has accused the BJP government of imposing higher electricity tariffs, placing a heavy financial burden on consumers. The Congress staged protests outside the electricity board office in Raipur, where Baghel criticized the states policies. He highlighted that under the Congress tenure, electricity tariffs remained stable, contrasting sharply with the current administrations decisions. Protests have spread across the state, with demonstrations at power facilities and public squares. Chhattisgarh Congress President Deepak Baij expressed widespread public discontent over rising electricity costs under the BJP rule. Advertisement He expressed concern over frequent power outages, stating, Under the BJP rule, surplus electricity has turned into severe shortages, affecting daily life significantly. The Congress leaders, including Baghel, also voiced criticisms on social media, highlighting severe power cuts and increased tariffs, blaming the BJP for neglecting electricity needs. The Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee announced statewide protests against power cuts and price hikes, with leaders like Deepak Baij and Bhupesh Baghel leading rallies in the capital. Baghel added: During our tenure, we ensured uninterrupted power supply, even procuring electricity from other states to meet demand. Despite surplus power generation, critics argue BJPs policies led to inefficient distribution and higher tariffs. The BJPs amendments to the Electricity Act of 2020 could escalate tariffs further, impacting consumers financially. Rajeev Chakraborty, spokesperson for the Chhattisgarh BJP, attributed the recent hike in electricity tariffs to escalating coal prices and transportation costs. He highlighted ongoing initiatives in Chhattisgarh aimed at modernizing the states electrical infrastructure, emphasizing the governments commitment to enhancing convenience and safety for citizens. Chakraborty reassured the public of the governments dedication to ensure reliable and competitively-priced electricity services across the state. We are making significant strides in upgrading electrical infrastructure to meet growing demands and ensure uninterrupted power supply for our citizens, he affirmed. Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Monday won the trust vote in the state assembly with a comfortable majority of 45 MLAs. He was sworn in as the chief minister last week after replacing Champai Soren, who had taken over the post following the formers dramatic arrest in a land scam case around five months ago. Hemant was granted bail by the Jharkhand High Court on June 28. Subsequently, Champai Soren tendered his resignation, paving the way for Hemants return to the chief ministerial post. Advertisement In the 81-member Jharkhand Legislative Assembly, the JMM-Congress-RJD alliance holds 45 seats, with the JMM having 27 legislators, the Congress 17, and the RJD one seat. The Opposition BJP has 24 MLAs. Following the trust vote victory, Hemant is expected to expand his cabinet later on Monday as Governor C P Radhakrishnan is likely to be out of the state after July 9. The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief had held a meeting with coalition partners on Sunday to discuss the cabinet expansion. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said he will review all aspects of bilateral cooperation apart from discussing various regional and global issues with President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Russia. In a statement ahead of his departure for Russia for the 22nd India-Russian Annual Summit and Austria, he said, I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. Mr Modi noted that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Advertisement Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries. Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) July 8, 2024 Mr Modi will reach Moscow this evening. President Putin is scheduled to hold a private dinner in his honour during which the two leaders will have wide-ranging talks in an informal setting. Tomorrow, Mr Modi will have interface with the Indian community in Russia, pay respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldiers in the Kremlin and visit an exhibition in Moscow. Thereafter, Mr Modi and Mr Putin will have summit-level talks which will be followed by delegation-level talks between the two countries. A whole range of issues, including defence, trade linkages, culture, education, civil nuclear cooperation, culture and people-to-people contacts, will be on the agenda. They will also discuss various global developments. Given the personal chemistry between the two leaders, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict is likely to figure prominently during the Modi-Putin meeting. The PM is expected to reiterate Indias stand that this is not the time for war and that the two warring nations must give dialogue and diplomacy a chance to resolve the crisis. The talks between the two leaders will also provide Mr Modi an opportunity to raise with Mr Putin the issue of Indian nationals who were misled into participating in Russias war with Ukraine. While ten Indians have returned home, an estimated 30-45 Indian nationals are still working for the Russian Army. India has strongly taken up with Russian authorities the issue of their early repatriation. The PMs visit to Moscow marks a continuation of high-level engagement between India and Russia. The last annual summit was held in New Delhi in December 2021. After concluding the Moscow leg of his tour tomorrow evening, Mr Modi will leave for Austria in what will be the first visit of an Indian PM to the European nation after 41 years. Mr Modi said that in Austria, he will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism, he said. The PM noted that this is the first visit of an Indian PM in over 40 years and said he looks forward to his discussions to take the bilateral partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology, and sustainable development, among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria who is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct, he said. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday expressed his deep sorrow over the devastating floods in Assam, highlighting the tragic loss of life and widespread displacement caused by the calamity. Gandhi, who is on a day-long visit to the state, particularly mentioned the heartbreaking death of an 8-year-old boy to underscore the human toll of the catastrophe. He slammed the BJPs double engine government for the gross and grave mismanagement, saying the party had come to power with promises of a flood-free Assam. Advertisement Assam Congress leaders apprised me of the situation on ground: 60+ deaths 53,000+ displaced 24,00,000 affected. These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJPs double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam, he said. The Congress leader called for a comprehensive and compassionate response to the crisis, and emphasized the need for immediate relief, rehabilitation, and compensation for those affected. Additionally, he proposed the establishment of a pan-northeast water management authority to develop long-term strategies for flood control in the region. I stand with the people of Assam, I am their soldier in Parliament, Gandhi declared, urging the central government to provide all possible assistance and support to the state promptly. His Assam visit comes at at a critical time as the state grapples with the aftermath of one of its worst flood seasons in recent years. Earlier, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma shared a video of a rhino calf stranded in flood waters in Kaziranga, showing the devastation the floods have caused. He asserted that the floods have affected the humans and animals alike and that Team Assam is working round-the-clock to aid everyone. Stating We should not be in self-denial (NEET-UG 2024 was compromised by paper leak) as it only adds to the problem, the Supreme Court on Monday directed the National Testing Agency (NTA) to make full disclosure about the nature of the leak, places where the leak took place and the lag of time between leak and conduct of the exam that took place on May 5, 2024, in which 23,33,287 candidates took the exam and 72,000 students did not. The court asked the NTA to state when the leak first took place, the manner in which the leaked question papers were disseminated and the lag of time between the occurrence of the leak and the conduct of the examination exam on May 5, 2024. The court further directed the NTA to inform about the steps taken by it to identify beneficiaries of the leak, identify the centres/cities where the leak took place and the modalities followed to identify beneficiaries of the leak. Advertisement Besides seeking information from the NTA, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud heading a bench also comprising Justice J B Pardiwala and Justice Manoj Misra directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file a status report on its investigation and the material that has come to light as of today. The investigating agency, the court said, would also furnish information on the identified beneficiaries of the paper leak, identify the centres/cities where the leak took place and the modalities followed to identify beneficiaries of the leak. The status report by the CBI will be filed by the investigating officer investigating six FIRs registered in Patna, Delhi, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra and Jharkhand. We are also of the view that CBI shall file a status report before this court on the status of the investigation as of today and material which has come to light till today, the court said in its order. Having directed the full disclosure of information from the NTA and the status report from the CBI, the bench deferred passing any order on the merits and posted the matter for hearing on Thursday July 11, 2024. We are of the view that an order on merits would have to be deferred, said CJI Chandrachud. On the conclusion of the hearing which lasted for over an hour and a half, the top court in its order asked the Central government and the National Testing Agency to inform whether it would be feasible to use data analytics in a cyber forensics unit or any agency employed by the government to identify suspect cases, so that modality can be formed to segregate tainted from the untainted students. The court further directed the Central government to set up a multi-disciplinary team of renowned experts to ensure due measures are taken to obviate any further breach in NEET papers. Stating that the experts on the committee could be from outside the government, the court directed that the constitution of the committee shall be informed to it (court) and the court shall decide if the committee shall go ahead or need people from a diverse pool of domain expertise and data analytics. On the plea by a number of petitioners seeking the cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 in its entity and its reconduct, Chief Justice Chandrachud said the parameters for the grant of such a prayer are well settled and they include whether the leak of the paper is traceable to systemic levels, whether the breach is of the nature and scale that fouls the integrity of the entire examination process and whether it is not possible to segregate tainted (the beneficiaries of the paper leak) from the untainted students who appeared for the NEET-UG 2024. Having spelt out the parameters that would weigh in favour of retest, Chief Justice Chandrachud said that in a situation where a breach of sanctity affects the entirety of the exam and if segregation is not possible then retesting is needed. But if beneficiaries are identified then retest wont be needed which involves students on such a wide spectrum. In a series if posers, the bench sought information as to how question papers are framed, their printing, their transportation from NTA to the printing press, where they are kept after the printing or whether they are brought back to NTA, when they are sent to 4750 examination centres spread over 571 cities/ Union Territories and 14 centres located overseas. The court also wanted to know at what time the question papers are taken out of the storage room of the State Bank of India and the Canara Bank in different cities and when they reach the examination centres. All through the hearing, the court sounded guarded on the plea for the cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 and its re-conduct, stating that it involved over 24 lakh students, time for preparation, their travelling to different centres and the expenses involved. The court also noted that most of the students came from middle-class backgrounds. The bench also noted that in 2020 one student scored perfect 720 marks, three in 2021, one in 2022, two in 2023 and a whopping 67 in 2024, scored perfect 720 marks. The NEET-UG is 180 questions with Physics, Chemistry, Botany and Zoology having 45 questions each and every question having four marks. There is a negative marking and for every wrong answer, a student loses one mark. Posting that matter for hearing on July 11, the court directed that the affidavit by the Central government, National Testing Agency and the Central Bureau of Investigation shall be placed on record by 05.00 pm on Wednesday July 10, and also be given to the advocate appearing for the petitioners as well. In the course of the hearing, a senior advocate appearing for a petitioner told the court that the paper leak took place on May 5, that too through an electronic device. The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice on a plea by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the Allahabad High Court acquitting Surendra Koli a death row convict in 12 cases of rape and murder that took place in Nithari village, Noida, bordering with Delhi in 2005 and 2006. A bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Viswanathan issued notice to the convict and others and tagged the matter along with other pending matters relating to the cases. During the brief hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, argued that Koli was a serial killer, who used to lure young girls and kill them. Advertisement The Solicitor General said that the killings were gruesome and told the bench that there were accusations of cannibalism and the trial court had awarded the death penalty to Koli, but the same had been reversed by the Allahabad High Court. Earlier, the top court had sought response from the Uttar Pradesh government and others on an appeal by one Pappu Lal, father of one of the victim girls, challenging the High Court order acquitting businessman Moninder Singh Pandher and Koli. The Allahabad High Court had in October last year acquitted Pandher and his domestic help Koli in some of the cases concerning the Nithari killings and overturned the death penalty imposed on them by the trial court. It had acquitted Koli in 12 cases and Pandher in 2 cases, where they were earlier held guilty for murder and awarded the death penalty by the trial court in these cases. The CBI had registered 16 cases against Koli and Pandher over rape and killing of girls that had shocked the nation. The case came to public attention in December 2006 when skeletons were discovered in a drain near a house in Nithari village, Noida. Pandher was the owner of the house and Koli was his domestic help. Koli was made accused in all of the cases on various charges including murder, abduction, rape, and the destruction of evidence. However, Pandher was named in six of them. Koli was convicted of committing multiple rapes and murders of various girls and was sentenced to death in more than 10 cases. This story was originally published in our Daytripping section on May 19, 2022. High in the mountains of northeastern Oregon lies Wallowa Lake, a ribbon-shaped body of water people have been visiting for hundreds of years to catch a respite from the summer heat. These days, the 1,500-acre lake is the centerpiece of a state park. And while summer is still the most popular time to visit, the park is open to campers year-round and the nearby town of Joseph, Ore., is geared toward tourism throughout the year. Wallowa Lake State Park, located about 100 miles south of the Lewiston-Clarkston Valley, offers a wide array of outdoor activities: camping, hiking, biking, fishing, boating, swimming and wildlife-spotting. And if members of your party decide theyve had enough nature, there are also charming dining and shopping options. The areas most notable feature might be the Wallowa Lake Tramway, which first opened in 1970 and is billed as the steepest gondola in America. Those who pay for tickets, which cost between $30 and $40 per person, get to ride a tram car up a ridge of Howard Mountain, gaining about 3,700 feet of elevation along the way. At the top (8,150 feet above sea level) is the Summit Grill, which, like the tramway, is open from May until early October. There are also some easy-to-navigate hiking trails at the top. Most visitors to the park will end up spending time at the lake, which is fed by glacial runoff from the surrounding Wallowa Mountains. The beautiful high-mountain setting must have appealed to the Nez Perce Tribe, which had bands that lived in the area before the encroachment of white settlers. The three-day workshop on Corporate Training for Professional Development/Core Skills, organized by IT firm Bharuwa Solutions, was held at the Patanjali University auditorium in Haridwar. The workshop marked a significant milestone for the IT arm of Patanjali, showcasing its dedication and achievements in the sector. On the conclusion of the workshop, Swami Ramdev, the founder of Patanjali Yogpeeth, said that Bharuwa Solutions products hold the key to resolving various IT sector challenges. Advertisement Swami Ramdev emphasized that Bharuwas innovative solutions have the potential to revolutionize the IT industry. Acharya Balkrishna, a prominent figure in Patanjali, highlighted the companys expansion into Information Technology through Bharuwa Solutions. He noted that this venture is a testament to unwavering dedication and hard work. Acharya Balkrishna informed that Bharuwa Solutions has secured eight patents in the IT sector and has collaborated with renowned companies such as Welspun, Mother Dairy, Amul, Syntex, and the Indian Railways. The companys recent contract to centralize and monitor data for 26 airports underscores its growing influence. He elaborated on Bharuwa Solutions capabilities, stating that the company now meets all of Patanjalis IT requirements, eliminating the need for third-party software. Bharuwa Solutions boasts state-of-the-art infrastructure and certifications, with a focus on developing software powered by Artificial Intelligence. The platform supports various functions, including Document Management Systems (DMS), Point of Sale (POS) ERP, Human Resource Management Systems (HRMS), Hospital Management Information Systems (HMIS), Warehouse Management Systems (WMS), billing, accounting, and supply chain operations. Acharya Balkrishna also acknowledged the significant contributions of Pawan Singh, Kavindra Singh, and their team in establishing Bharuwa Solutions. He likened the companys current phase to the early growth stages of a substantial banyan tree, poised for widespread implementation. Mr. Rambharat, Managing Director of Patanjali Foods Ltd., noted that Bharuwa Solutions is experiencing remarkable growth in the IT industry. He expressed confidence in the companys ability to expand its market presence both nationally and internationally. The workshop was attended by Bharuwa Solutions President, Mr. Irendra Chhabra, Vice President Kavindra Singh, Patanjali Ayurveda Ltd. IT Head Pawan Singh, and over 250 employees from the Haridwar, Hyderabad, and Noida offices. The event highlighted Bharuwa Solutions commitment to professional development and its promising future in the IT sector. Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow to a red carpet welcome on Monday evening for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on bilateral cooperation as well as various regional and global issues, including the war in Ukraine. Mr Modi, who is accompanied by a high-powered delegation, was received at the Vnukovo International Airport by Russias First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and senior Indian officials. President Putin will hold a private dinner in honour of the Indian leader tonight. This will provide the two leaders an opportunity to discuss the entire gamut of bilateral ties and global developments in an informal setting. Advertisement Tomorrow, Mr Modi will address the Indian community in Russia, pay respects at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Kremlin and visit an exhibition in Moscow. Thereafter, Mr Modi and Mr Putin will hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit, which will be followed by delegation-level talks between the two countries. Thereafter, Mr Modi will leave for Austria for the second leg of his overseas visit. In a statement, Mr Modi said, I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role in a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia. He noted that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. A whole range of issues, including defence, trade linkages, culture, education, civil nuclear cooperation, culture and people-to-people contacts, will be on the agenda of the Indian PM and the Russian President. They will also discuss various global developments. Given the personal chemistry between the two leaders, the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict is bound to figure prominently during the meeting. The PM is expected to reiterate Indias stand that this is not the time for war and that the two warring nations must give dialogue and diplomacy a chance to resolve the crisis. India has been under intense pressure from the West to minimise its engagement with Russia for its aggression against Ukraine. However, India has been quite clear that while the war must end, it cannot afford to alienate Russia due to various factors, including Moscows increasing proximity to China. The talks between the two leaders will also provide Mr Modi an opportunity to raise with Mr Putin the issue of Indian nationals who were misled into participating in Russias war with Ukraine. While ten Indians have returned home, an estimated 30-45 Indian nationals are still working for the Russian Army. India has strongly taken up with Russian authorities the issue of their early repatriation. The PMs visit to Moscow marks a continuation of high-level engagement between India and Russia. The last annual summit was held in New Delhi in December 2021. After concluding the Russia visit, Mr Modi will leave for Austria tomorrow afternoon in what will be the first visit of an Indian PM to the European nation after 41 years. Mr Modi said that in Austria, he will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism, he said. The PM noted that this is the first visit of an Indian PM in over 40 years and said he looks forward to his discussions to take the bilateral partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology, and sustainable development, among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well regarded for their professionalism and conduct, he said. Congress Member of Parliament and Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, arrived in Assam on Monday to assess the flood situation in the state. Upon landing at Kumbirgram Airport in Silchar, Southern Assam, Gandhi is scheduled to visit flood relief camps in the Lakhipur area of Cachar district. Following his visit to the relief camps, he will proceed to Jiribam, an area on the Assam-Manipur border, where recent ethnic tensions have arisen. Advertisement In Manipur, Gandhi will visit relief camps in Jiribam, Churachandpur, and Moirang, according to the schedule shared by the Congress. He is also set to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at 5:30 pm. The day-long visit will conclude with a press conference at the Manipur Congress office in the evening. Gandhi has visited Manipur twice before. The Congress-led Opposition INDIA bloc has repeatedly raised the issue of the Manipur crisis in both the Houses of Parliament during the recent session. The opposition disrupted Prime Minister Narendra Modis two-hour-long reply to the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the Presidents address on July 2, chanting Justice for Manipur and Bharat Jodo slogans. In his speech, PM Modi stated that efforts are ongoing to bring peace to Manipur, with 11,000 FIRs and 500 arrests made. He noted that incidents of violence are decreasing, showing potential for peace. Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday said there has been no improvement in the situation in the conflict-hit state of Manipur and requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the state to give confidence to the people there. After becoming the Leader of Opposition in Parliament, this was the first visit of Gandhi to Manipur as he visited relief camps in the districts of Churachandpur, Bishnupur and Jiribam districts and spoke to the displaced persons. Addressing the media, Gandhi said that he does not want to politicise the issue and requested Prime Minister Modi to come to Manipur and listen to the peoples voice. Advertisement He also assured that as an opposition, Congress party will do whatever it takes to bring back peace in the north eastern state. Terming the situation in Manipur a `tremendous tragedy, Gandhi said that the situation in the state is nowhere near normal. I was expecting some improvement, but I was disappointed, there hasnt been any improvement in the situation. I came here to listen to their pain and put pressure on the government as an opposition to act, he said. The unrest in the northeastern state has tragically claimed over 200 lives since May last year, with many displaced individuals seeking refuge in these camps. I want to tell people of Manipur I came here as your brother and I am ready to do whatever I can to bring peace here. Gandhi added. This was Gandhis third visit to Manipur and the first after he was elected as the Leader of Opposition in Parliament. Gandhi also met with Governor Anusuiya Uikey in the presence of Chief Secretary Vineet Joshi and Security Adviser Kuldeep Singh. The meeting also included leaders of the Congress party in Manipur, including Okram Ibobi Singh, Keisham Meghachandra, and Gaikhangam. Earlier on the day, Gandhi arrived at Kumbhirgram airport in Silchar and met flood victims in a relief camp in Lakhipur area of Assam. Over 22.70 lakh people in 28 districts of Assam have been affected by the floods, with 78 fatalities from this years floods, landslides and storms. Led by Assam Pradesh Congress Committee President Bhupen Bora, Congress leaders submitted a memorandum to Rahul Gandhi to raise the flood issue in Parliament. After visiting the flood relief camps in Assam, Gandhi wrote on X, The extreme devastation caused by flooding in Assam is heartbreaking with innocent children like 8-year old Avinash being taken away from us. My heartfelt condolences to all the bereaved families across the State. Assam Congress leaders apprised me of the situation on ground: 60+ deaths 53,000+ displaced 24,00,000 affected These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJPs double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam. Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision proper relief, rehabilitation, and compensation in the short term, and a pan-Northeast water management authority to do everything necessary to control floods in the long term. I stand with the people of Assam, I am their soldier in Parliament, and I urge the Central govt to extend all possible help and support to the State expeditiously, he added. Three members of a family were killed and 20 others were injured when a roadways bus in which they were travelling rammed into a trailer on the Delhi-Jaipur National Highway near the Alwar triangle culvert on Monday. The injured were rushed to NIMS hospital located on the highway and Jaipurs SMS hospital where the condition of passengers was reportedly serious, the Shahpura police station said. The roadways bus was on the way from Delhi to Jaipur, and around 4 am, it went out of control and rammed into the trailer going ahead. Advertisement A woman and her son died on the spot in the accident. At the same time, the womans husband died while being taken to the hospital. Initial investigation has revealed that this accident happened due to overtaking. However, the police are engaged in investigating the whole matter. At the time of the accident, there were about 40 passengers in the bus, most of whom were sleeping. After the accident, there was a long traffic jam on the Jaipur-Delhi National Highway. After taking the injured to the hospital, the police removed the damaged vehicles from the middle of the road. Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday gave a clarion call to people who left the Congress to return to the party while urging its activists to work harder to make Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi the next prime minister. The Congress observed the birth anniversary of its former chief minister YS Rajasekhar Reddy and Revanth Reddy who is also the PCC chief reminded party leaders and workers that Gandhi could have assumed the post of Prime Minister during UPA rule, between 2004-2014 but was never keen on posts or positions. Meanwhile, another BRS MLC Challa Venkatrami Reddy met the chief minister at his residence after six BRS MLCs joined the ruling Congress last week. Advertisement Since last year, the Congress has been celebrating the birth anniversary of Y S Rajasekhar Reddy, fondly known as YSR with much fanfare. With the party in power this time, the celebration of his 75th birth anniversary was quite grand. Addressing party workers, Revanth Reddy said, I remember YSRs statement after coming to power for the second term in 2009 that Rahul Gandhi will become the Prime Minister of India. YSR left us before Rahul could ascend to the post. All Congress workers should strive hard to make him the Prime Minister. He further said that the Congress MP was inspired by YSRs own padayatra to undertake his Bharat Jodo Yatra last year which was instrumental in the partys victory in Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh. He also said that the six guarantees promised by the Congress during Assembly elections were also inspired by the welfare schemes of YSR who reigned as the chief minister of unified Andhra Pradesh between 2004 and 2010 before he died in a helicopter crash leaving the party rudderless in AP. He said Gandhi was already working hard as LoP and just a step away from the post of Prime Minister. He exhorted the Congress supporters to work to ensure Gandhi becomes the Prime Minister. Posts and positions are not important for Rahul Gandhi. He could have become the Prime Minister anytime between 2004-2014. True supporters are those who work hard to make Rahul the next Prime Minister said the chief minister before adding I appeal to all YSR fans to join the Congress. He also referred to his decision to appoint 35 Congressmen to nominated posts in the government which was officially announced on YSRs birth anniversary as a reward for their loyalty to the party. Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka also gave a similar call to those who have left the Congress to back the party once more and ensure the welfare programmes reach people. Claiming that the Congress will work for the people for next two decades, he said people flocking to the party was evidence enough that it was functioning well. The Supreme Court ruled on Monday that there cannot be a bail condition directing accused to share their Google Maps location to track their movements, as it would amount to violating their right to privacy. A bench of Justice Abhay S Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan held there cant be conditions that enable the police to constantly track the movements of the accused and virtually peep into his privacy. Setting aside the bail condition that required the accused to share their Google Maps location with the police, the court in its judgment said, Two things we have said. There cannot be a bail condition defeating the purpose of bail. We have said Google PIN cannot be a condition. Police cannot peep into the accuseds private life for bail. Advertisement It also said no court can impose bail conditions that frustrate the purpose of granting bail itself. The order of the top court came while examining whether a bail condition requiring an accused to share Google Maps location to the investigating officer to access his location violates a persons right to privacy. The top court judgement came on an appeal against certain conditions imposed by the Delhi High Court in 2022 in its order granting interim bail to a Nigerian national, Frank Vitus, who was an accused in a drugs case. The high court had ordered the accused Frank Vitus and a co-accused to drop a pin on Google Maps to ensure that their location was available to the investigating officer of the case. The accused were also asked by the high court to get an assurance from the High Commission of Nigeria that they would not leave India and would appear before the trial court. To this, the top court said that there cannot be bail conditions that defeat the purpose of granting bail. A Shia-Sunni coordination committee meeting on Monday in Srinagar urged the Imams, preachers and scholars of both sects to play a constructive role in maintaining unity and harmony among all the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir especially during the ongoing Muharram. The meeting to foster unity among the two sects was held at Mirwaiz Manzil at Rajouri Kadal, Srinagar, under the patronage of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Ulama Jammu and Kashmir, on the commencement of Muharram. Prominent scholars of leading religious organisations and sects of the valley, as well as civil society members, participated in the meeting. Advertisement The participants appreciated Mirwaiz-e-Kashmir Dr Moulvi Muhammad Umar Farooqs efforts in fostering unity among the Ummah. The meeting stressed the importance of unity and brotherhood and respect for each other, and constant dialogue among the various sects. It was agreed that altercations and one-upmanship among the various schools of thought are detrimental to the growth of Islam. As such, the meeting urged all Shia and Sunni organisations, scholars, preachers, speakers, and imams to play a constructive role in maintaining unity and harmony among all the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir, especially as the sacred days of Muharram commence. The members asked them to consciously refrain from making statements or comments from the pulpit, on social media, and other media, and from public platforms that lead to divisiveness and encourage miscreants and elements opposed to unity to succeed. This meeting appreciated the efforts of the Majlis-e-Ulema patron, Mirwaiz Dr Moulvi Muhammad Umar Farooq, for playing a leading role in fostering unity and taking everyone along. Despite being kept under continued house arrest for more than four years and repeatedly detained at home since then, he is always trying his best, in spite of restrictions and hurdles, to forge unity among the Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir, it said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Monday announced a resolute stance against perpetrators who evade accountability in view of the recent Worli hit-and-run case. It is intolerable that the powerful and influential misuse their status to evade justice, he said in a statement posted on social media. The lives of ordinary citizens are precious to us, and we will ensure that justice is served. Highlighting specific measures to combat such incidents, he said directions have been sent to the state police department. I have instructed the state police to handle these cases with the utmost seriousness, he affirmed. We are implementing stricter laws and harsher penalties for hit-and-run offenders. Advertisement The chief minister further underscored his commitment to impartiality in justice, asserting, No one, regardless of wealth, influence, or political affiliation, will be immune from prosecution as long as I am the chief minister. I have zero tolerance for injustice. Shindes statements come in the wake of public outcry following the Worli hit-and-run case where a Shiv Sena leaders son fled the scene after fatally injuring a woman. The speeding car of the accused, identified as Mihir Shah, struck a fisherman and his wife who were riding a scooter near Atria Mall in Mumbais Worli. The two-wheeler was hit from behind which resulted in the woman and the husband falling on the cars bonnet. Tragically, the wife succumbed to injuries, while the husband sustained injuries in the accident. The driver fled the spot after the accident. According to reports, the woman was dragged for 100 metres after being stuck on the bonnet of the luxury car, resulting in fatal injuries to her. The car has been seized by Mumbai Police. As per officials, the driver and his son were present in the car at the time of the accident. The search for the absconding driver is underway. The meeting between the foreign ministers of India and China in Kazakhstan marks a significant yet cautious step forward in addressing the longstanding border issues that have plagued the two nations. The Himalayan border, a vast and poorly demarcated expanse, has been the site of increased tensions and military standoffs, most notably the deadly clash in 2020 that claimed the lives of soldiers on both sides. This historical context adds weight to the recent discussions, highlighting the urgency and complexity of the situation. The decision to enhance dialogue between diplomatic and military officials reflects a pragmatic approach to conflict resolution. The prolonged standoff is not in the interest of either nation, especially given their status as nuclear-armed powers. The mutual agreement to expedite talks recognizes that maintaining peace and stability is paramount, not just for bilateral relations but for regional security as well. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankars reaffirmation of the importance of abiding by past bilateral agreements, protocols, and understandings is a call for consistency and adherence to established norms. This emphasis on existing frameworks can provide a foundation for trust-building and ensure that both sides remain committed to peaceful resolutions. It also signals a desire to move past the impasses that have characterised recent interactions. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yis comments on handling and controlling the border situation while resuming normal exchanges suggest a dual approach, one that Beijing has used in the past. On one hand, it is crucial to manage the immediate security concerns and prevent any escalation of tensions. On the other, there is a need to foster positive engagement in other areas, which can create an environment for resolving border disputes. Advertisement This balanced strategy could be instrumental in breaking the cycle of mistrust and suspicion that has hindered progress; but Beijing will have to be more sincere than it has been in the past. The backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modis recent call for urgent attention to the prolonged border situation adds a layer of political commitment to the diplomatic efforts. As he begins his third term, Mr Modis administration is likely keen to demonstrate a proactive stance on national security issues. This meeting and the agreements reached could be seen as an initial step in a broader strategy to stabilise the region. However, it is essential to temper optimism with realism. The history of India-China relations is fraught with complexities, and the path to a lasting resolution is unlikely to be straightforward. Both nations have fortified their positions and increased their military presence along the border, reflecting deep-seated apprehensions. Confidence-building measures will need to be robust and sustained over time to create meaningful change. Moreover, the broader geopolitical context cannot be ignored. Both India and China are major players on the global stage, with strategic interests that extend beyond their bilateral relationship. How they navigate their border issues will have implications for their roles in international forums and their relations with other countries. It is in their mutual interest to avoid an escalation that could draw in external powers and further complicate the situation The government is likely to halt the suspension of licences and other administrative steps against striking trainee doctors in an effort to seek a breakthrough in months-long medical service disruptions, officials said on Monday. Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong was scheduled to hold a press briefing after a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, during which he was to announce measures that would help facilitate dialogue and resolve the ongoing standoff with the medical community over the medical school admission quota hike. More than 12,000 trainee doctors, or more than 90 per cent of the total, have left their worksites since late February in protest of the governments medical reform plan, and most of them have rejected calls for returning to work, reports Yonhap news agency. Advertisement As a latest, key appeasement measure, the government is expected to halt administrative steps even for those who opt not to return to hospitals. Some trainee doctors are reluctant to return to work out of concerns that the move would lead to punishment against their defiant colleagues, a ministry official said. If we suspend administrative measures altogether, that would help induce more to go back to hospitals, he said, adding that it would be a last resort for the government to address the situation. Doctors have urged the government to cancel, rather than suspend, administrative steps against striking doctors, but it would not do that in consideration of those who already ended their strike and other legal issues, officials said. Despite strong opposition from doctors, the government finalised an admissions quota hike of some 1,500 students for medical schools for next year in an effort to address problems stemming from the shortage of doctors. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common and symptomless herpes virus that can cause serious harm to newborn babies and people with impaired immune systems like organ transplant and HIV patients, said experts here on Saturday. CMV belongs to the herpes virus family and can infect people of all ages. It spreads through body fluids and usually remains dormant, causing no symptoms or a mild illness characterised by fever, sore throat, fatigue, or swollen glands. But it can prove to be risky for some people. CMV is the most commonly transmitted virus to a developing foetus. Advertisement In people with weaker immune systems, CMV can produce serious symptoms affecting the eyes, lungs, oesophagus, intestines, stomach, or liver. If a pregnant woman contracts CMV for the first time during pregnancy (primary infection), there is a risk of transmitting the virus to the unborn baby. This can result in congenital CMV infection, which may cause developmental problems, hearing loss, vision impairment, and other serious health issues in the baby, Dr Neha Rastogi Panda, Consultant-Infectious Diseases, Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram, told IANS. CMV is a common virus that infects over 90 per cent of the Indian population during pregnancy (intrauterine) or early childhood. While typically harmless in healthy individuals, CMV can become a serious threat to people with HIV/AIDS or those undergoing organ transplants (especially kidney and bone marrow). In these cases, the virus can reactivate and cause a range of health problems, added Dr Rajeev Gupta, Director Internal Medicine at the CK Birla Hospital (R), Delhi. CMV in people with low immunity on steroids, cancer, and dialysis can reactivate and cause symptoms like fever, pneumonia, gastrointestinal symptoms, and visual effects and problems. Dr Neha said that CMV is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in people with weakened immune systems. While there is no widely available vaccine specifically to prevent the initial infection with CMV, antiviral medications administered during organ transplant procedures significantly reduce the risk of CMV reactivation. The doctors called for maintaining hygiene by washing hands regularly, practising safe sex, not sharing items like toothbrushes, and avoiding contact with bodily fluids. 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. Job Title: Senior Maintenance Engineer Substations Organisation: Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) Duty Station: Kampala, Uganda About Organisation: Uganda Electricity Transmission Company limited (UETCL) is responsible for bulk purchase of electricity from the generating companies and selling it in bulk to the distribution companies throughout Uganda. UETCL is also responsible for exports and imports of electricity to Uganda. Our vision is: To Become a leading strategic business partner in the transmission and Single Buyer Business and to support sustainable energy development in Uganda. Qualifications, Skills and Experience: The applicant should have relevant qualifications How to Apply: All candidates who are qualified should send their applications with copies of academic testimonials and detailed CVs indicating three referees and their full addresses, to: recruit.hr@uetcl.com Deadline: 19th July 2024 by 05.15 P.M. NB: UETCL is an equal opportunity employer. Only electronically sent applications will be accepted. For more of the latest jobs, please visit https://www.theugandanjobline.com or find us on our facebook page https://www.facebook.com/UgandanJobline Date Posted 2024-07-08T01:53 Valid Through 2024-07-20T00:00 Employment Type FULL_TIME Hiring Organization Uganda Electricity Transmission Company Limited (UETCL) Job Location Kampala, Kampala, Kampala , 0256, Uganda Related Jobs "The Things I Do For Love..." The story didn't end well for Jamie Lannister after that. By the looks of it, a Pune woman employed in Bengaluru is also walking the same path as the Lannister Lord. The protagonist is one Indra Rajwar, 29, who decided to make a hoax call to the airport helpline to stop her boyfriend from travelling. According to reports, Rajwar told the hotline staff at Bengaluru's Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) that one Mir Raza Mehdi en route to Mumbai was carrying explosives with him. Mehdi was the woman's boyfriend and a police probe later revealed that she made the fake call while at the airport -- at a stone's throw from the unsuspecting man. Mehdi and Indra Rajwar were both scheduled to fly to Mumbai from Bengaluru on June 25, Thursday, on separate flights. The duo were even captured chatting by the airport's CCTV at the departure longue. However, minutes later, she stepped away to make the phone call in a last-minute attempt to stop his lover from flying. According to reports, Mehdi was isolated and thoroughly frisked by the airport security personnel as a result of the bomb threat call. His bags were also checked but the sleuths found that he was clean. The Bomb Threat Assessment Committee (BTAC) held a meeting and decided to file a complaint with the police on July 3, Wednesday, Indian Express said in a report. It was only a matter of time before Rajwar was busted. During interrogation at the KIA police station, Indra Rajwar confessed to having made the call to stop Mir Raza Mehdi from taking the flight. The couple had some differences and she wanted him to cancel the trip, she reportedly told the cops. She was booked under Section 505(1)(B) (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) as the incident happened before the BNS was enforced. Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said the devastation caused by Assam floods was heartbreaking and charged the double-engine Bharatiya Janata Party government in Assam and Centre have failed to manage the situation. The Opposition leader reached Manipur on Monday and he visited a relief camp set up at a higher secondary school in Jiribam. The Congress leader will be visiting two other relief camps in Manipur and meeting the governor later today. En route to Manipur, he visited a relief camp sheltering those affected by floods at Fulertal in Assam. "The extreme devastation caused by flooding in Assam is heartbreaking. Assam Congress leaders apprised me of the situation on ground - 60 plus deaths, 53,000 plus displaced and 24,00,000 affected. These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJP's double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam. Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision - proper relief, rehabilitation, and compensation in the short term, and a pan-Northeast water management authority to do everything necessary to control floods in the long term, Gandhi tweeted. Rahul Gandhi arrived at Silchar Airport on Monday for his first visit to conflict-stricken Manipur after the Lok Sabha polls. The Congress leader is visiting the state after fresh violence was reported in Jiribam. Gandhi visited a relief camp set up at Jiribham Higher Secondary School in Manipur and interacted with victims sheltered there. Debabrata, Manipur Congress Working President said, Rahul Gandhi came here to meet those affected by the recent conflict in Jiribham. After the prime minister said that normalcy had returned to Manipur, everybody believed it. But the fact is that the relief camp inmates here narrated their stories about how devastated they are and how nothing has been done by the government. He heard from (relief camp) inmates about their story." Earlier at the airport, the opposition leader was received by Pradesh Congress leaders of Assam and Manipur. Members of the Assam Congress presented a memorandum on the Assam floods to the opposition leader and urged him to raise the issue in parliament. The Assam Congress complained the double-engine BJP government has failed the state. Assam Pradesh Congress Committee president Bhupen Borah urged Rahul Gandhi to intervene and get adequate relief and compensation for the severe losses incurred due to the deluge in Assam. We will be grateful to you for carrying our voice of agony to the Centre, he said. Assam should get a package to tackle the grim situation, 'as the state government has failed to get adequate funds from the Centre, a double failure of the double engine government, Borah added. Gandhi will return to Silchar airport from Jiribam, and fly to Imphal for the next leg of his Manipur tour. The Opposition leader will visit relief camps in Churachandpur and Moirang later today. He has also sought a meeting with Manipur Governor at Raj Bhavan. -with inputs from agencies. The Mumbai police has lookout notice against the 24-year-old son of Ekanath Shinde-led Shiv Sena leader who is at large after allegedly fatally hitting a middle-aged woman in Worli on Sunday. Police had already arrested the Sena leader and his driver in connection with the case. According to police, Mihir Shah, the Sena leaders son, who was allegedly driving the BMW car fled from the scene after allegedly fatally knocking down 45-year-old Kaveri Nakhwa in front of Atria Mall in Worli during the early hours of Sunday. Police issued the lookout notice on Sunday evening fearing the suspect may flee from India. "As there was a possibility of Mihir Shah fleeing the country, the Mumbai Police on Sunday evening issued an LOC against him," a police official told PTI. The police have launched a search for the accused and formed six teams to trace him, he added. Police suspect Mihir was under the influence of alcohol at the time of the accident as he was spotted at a bar in Juhu area here a few hours before the incident. Police sources told the publication they have recovered a bill of Rs 18,000 of the bar and are verifying it. Police are also examining the CCTV footage from the bar. Mihir is the son of Rajesh Shah, a prominent leader of the Shinde-led Sena faction in Palghar. Police arrested Rajesh and his driver Rajrishi Bidawat as the car was owned by the former. Police will be producing the accused in court later today. The accused persons have been booked under various sections, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), according to the police. Kaveri Nakhwa (45), resident of Worli Koliwada, was going with her husband Pradeep on the arterial Dr Annie Besant Road when the BMW car, allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, crashed into the couple's two-wheeler at around 5.30 am on Sunday. The car dragged the woman for more than 2km, a police official said. She was rushed to a hospital where doctors declared her dead on arrival. After the accident, the accused fled towards the Bandra-Worli Sea Link. He left the car and his driver Rajrishi Bidawat, who was sitting next to him, near Kala Nagar in the Bandra area and ran away, police said. Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said on Sunday law will take its course. The Mumbai accident is unfortunate. I have spoken to the police department to take strict action, he had said. -with PTI inputs. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will embark on his two-day visit to Moscow on Monday, which Russia calls "a very important" one. This will be the Prime Minister's first visit to Moscow since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 and is at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin. Kremlin has enthusiastically responded to the visit, stating the programme of Prime Minister Modi in Moscow will be extensive and the two leaders will be able to have informal talks, Dmitri Peskov, press secretary for Russian President Vladimir Putin, said in an interview with Russia's state-run VGTRK television channel on Saturday. "Obviously, the agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as well," he said, adding that Russian-Indian relations are at the level of strategic partnership. He said that there would be both one-on-one talks in the Kremlin and those involving delegations. Peskov also emphasised that the West is closely and jealously watching Modi's visit to Russia. "They are jealous that means they are closely monitoring it. Their close monitoring means they attach great importance to it. And they are not mistaken, there is something to attach great importance to," Peskov said in response to a question about the jealous attitude of Western politicians towards Modi's visit to Russia, the Tass report said. The meeting will provide an opportunity for the two sides to review a range of bilateral issues from defence and trade to investment ties and energy cooperation, Indias Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said. India-Russia Annual Summit The primary aim of Modi's visit is to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. The meeting will see the leaders of both nations deliberate on a range of multifaceted relations between the two countries and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest. The annual summit is considered the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries and so far 21 summits have taken place alternately in India and Russia. The last annual summit was held on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi when Putin visited India. Trade talks Trade is expected to feature predominantly in the conversation between the two leaders. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had said that the meeting would be a 'great opportunity' for Modi and Putin to have a direct conversation about issues such as trade imbalance. "There are issues...like the trade imbalance...So, at a leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for Prime Minister Modi and President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other. And then obviously, as per their directions, we will see how to take the relationship forward," Jaishankar said on Sunday. The EAM already stressed the significance of the meeting, considering how the economic relations between the countries have grown. "What you do is you look at the state of the world, there are things you want to do more. There are things you want to do differently. One of the big changes has actually been that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously," he added. Energy talks There are also reports that the delegations of both countries will discuss banking challenges due to Western sanctions. The talks will focus on issues related to Indian energy imports in oil and LNG. Investment and logistics, including the future of connectivity projects like the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), the Chennai-Vladivostok maritime route, and the North Sea corridor, are also topics of interest. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi interacted with the victims of the ethnic violence in Manipur as he visited the relief camps in Jiribam and Churachandpur districts on Monday. This is Gandhis first visit to Manipur after the Lok Sabha elections in which the party won both the seats from the state. Sharing pictures of Gandhis visit to the relief camps, the Congress party wrote on X: His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause. The Congress leader, who is the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, is scheduled to call on Governor Anusuiya Uikey in the evening after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office. LoP Shri @RahulGandhi visits a relief camp in Manipurs Churachandpur district, where thousands of violence-hit people have taken refuge. pic.twitter.com/iBMWFrmL3S Congress (@INCIndia) July 8, 2024 More than 200 people have lost their lives in the ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki communities in the northeastern state since May last year while hundreds of others are staying in relief camps after being displaced from their villages. Rahul had visited the state weeks after the violence broke out and later launched his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from the state in January 2024. In his first speech in the Lok Sabha as the LoP last month, Rahul had launched a blistering attack on the government and questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modis silence over the violence in Manipur. The Congress on Monday stepped up its attack on Modi, saying he has neither found the time nor even had the inclination to visit the state for even a few hours. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, "Today, the non-biological PM goes to Moscow while the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha heads for Assam and Manipur." "Of course, the drumbeaters of the non-biological PM have claimed that he stopped the Russia-Ukraine war for some time. Presumably, this Moscow trip will lead to even more bizarre claims," he said. Modi is visiting Russia on July 8 and 9 at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin to hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. On the day of the gruesome murder, Tamil Nadu BSP chief K Armstrong had visited his under-construction house in a narrow lane at Perambur in north Chennai. Known as Venugopalsamy Koil Street, the narrow lane is a densely populated residential area that the slain leader visited regularly. This is just a few hundred meters away from the Perambur police station and the Perambur barracks, the two main landmarks in the area. The CCTV images show a few men alighting from a motorbike with machetes and sickles. The footage also shows a man arriving with a bag and a machete and fleeing from the spot. Sources say that Armstrong was murdered in retaliation for the murder of a high profile history sheeter Arcot Suresh who was killed in August 2023. According to highly placed sources, the police are also investigating the sources linked to the political heavyweights involved in the Aarudhra gold scam. While Arcot Suresh supported the Aarudhra gold trading company, Armstrong was fighting for the depositors who lost money in the scam. The Aarudhra gold scam case has been under investigation for the past few years. The trading company had allegedly defrauded more than a lakh depositors to the tune of Rs.2438 crores. Armstrong had fought for the depositors who lost money and had promised to retrieve their money. Jayapaul and Armstrong supported the depositors who lost money, a senior police officer told The Week. During a meeting at Arakkonam, a year before, Arcot Suresh allegedly made gestures to eliminate Armstrong for acting against his interests in the gold scam case. Sureshs team believed that Jayapaul killed him on instructions from Armstrong. Interestingly, one of the suspects who surrendered to the police after Armstrongs murder, Ponnai V Balu is the brother of Suresh. Balu had vowed to eliminate Armstrong either on July 5, the birthday of Suresh, or before August 18, his first death anniversary. Balu, who is facing three criminal cases, allegedly led the gang that killed Armstrong. Suresh was known to be a gang leader and he was named in the murder of Thennarasu, the brother of rowdy Bomb Saravanan, in 2015. ALSO READ | 7 blood-stained weapons, Zomato bag... Chennai police smell revenge in BSP leader Armstrongs murder While the police sources confirm that gang rivalry was the reason behind Armstrongs murder, it is yet to be revealed if he was behind Arcot Sureshs murder. Arcot Suresh was killed in August 2023. But the police investigation is yet to reveal the intention for his killing and also if Armstrong had a hand in it. They are trying to close it as gang rivalry. But there is a larger conspiracy behind Armstrongs killing. Saying that the police did not have information or did not know that there were conspiracies to kill him is not acceptable, says R Kumar, a BSP worker, who participated in the protest rally demanding a detailed probe in Armstrongs killing. ALSO READ | BSP leader Armstrong murder: Tamil Nadu govt transfers Chennai Police Commissioner Sandeep Rai Rathore The DMK government in Tamil Nadu, a day after the killing of Armstrong made high-profile transfers in the police department. Chennai City Commissioner Sandeep Rai Rathore has been replaced by A Arun, IPS, who was the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) Law and Order. We are seriously looking into the issue. We will tell them (rowdies) in their language to leave criminal activities. Days after targeting the government in Lok Sabha over the Manipur violence, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Monday visited the northeastern state and interacted with the victims of the riots. The Congress leader urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Manipur, saying the tragedy of the state was tremendous. Gandhi said the Congress party would do everything possible to bring peace to Manipur. "We will do everything we can to bring peace to Manipur... As somebody in the opposition, I have been trying to pressure the government," he said, addressing a press conference in Imphal. "It's the third time I have come here since the problem started and it has been a tremendous tragedy. I was expecting some improvement in the situation but I was disappointed to see that the situation is still nowhere near what it should be. The Congress leader said violence has hurt everybody and the need of the hour is peace. Thousands of families have been harmed, properties have been destroyed, family members have been killed and I have never seen anywhere in India what is going on here," he said. Manipur is a proud State of the Indian Union - every patriot should reach out and help bring back peace here. In the face of this huge tragedy, I request the Prime Minister to come here, listen to the people and offer them comfort. Congress party is ready to support anything pic.twitter.com/C6aplaBjnL Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 8, 2024 Earlier, Gandhi visited several relief camps in Jiribam and Churachandpur districts and interacted with the inmates. People, living in those camps highlighted their problems during the Congress leaders visit. "We want separate administration. We have been suffering here for long. We have been here since the crisis. I don't think there is peace. There is still a crisis My house in Chandel district was burnt down on May 4. It has been a year now," a college student told news agency ANI. She said her house in Chandel district was burnt on May 4 last year during the violence. After visiting the camps, the Congress leader called on Governor Anusuiya Uikey. This is Gandhis first visit to Manipur after the Lok Sabha elections in which the party won both the seats from the state. Sharing pictures of Gandhis visit to the relief camps, the Congress party wrote on X: His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause. Rahul had visited the state weeks after the violence broke out and later launched his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra from the state in January 2024. More than 200 people have lost their lives in the ethnic violence between Meitei and Kuki communities in the northeastern state since May last year while hundreds of others are staying in relief camps after being displaced from their villages. Following the elections that failed to produce a clear majority, France is entering a phase of political uncertainty. The final round saw the far-left coalition, the New Popular Front, make unexpected gains, disrupting the earlier dominance of the far-right and the centrist coalition. What could happen next in France with no party gaining majority? Also Read | French election results: Deadlock as left coalition emerges on top, Le Pen's far-right bloc pushed to third Hung Parliament None of the three major political blocs secured the 289 seats needed for a majority in the 577-seat National Assembly. This hung parliament situation is unprecedented in recent French political history. The National Assembly, the more powerful of France's two parliamentary houses, will start its new session on July 18, with the new legislators beginning work on Monday. Macron's Dilemma President Emmanuel Macron now faces the challenge of forming a stable government. One potential path is negotiating a deal with the moderate left, though this would be difficult given France's lack of tradition in such arrangements. Macron has ruled out working with the hard-left France Unbowed party but might seek an alliance with the Socialists and Greens. However, their cooperation is uncertain. If no political deal is reached, Macron might appoint a government of unaffiliated experts, but this too would need parliamentary approval. Divisions on the Left The left-wing parties have been divided, especially following the October 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. France Unbowed's criticism of Israel has been met with accusations of antisemitism, which they deny. Despite these divisions, the left formed the New Popular Front coalition to contest the recent elections. Their platform includes raising the minimum wage, reversing Macron's pension reforms, and freezing prices on essential goods, causing concern in financial markets. Interim Government Prime Minister Gabriel Attal offered his resignation, but Macron asked him to stay on temporarily. Attal's interim government will manage current affairs while political negotiations continue. Macron has indicated he will wait for the new National Assembly to organise before making any decisions on a new government. There is no set timeline or requirement for Macron to appoint a prime minister from the largest party in parliament. Macron's Position Macron's presidency, which runs until 2027, remains intact, though his ability to implement his agenda is weakened. He retains significant powers over foreign policy, European affairs, defence, and international treaties, and remains the commander-in-chief of the armed forces. The new prime minister, accountable to parliament, will focus on domestic policy while Macron continues to handle France's international and defence matters. There is also a possibility of appointing an apolitical or an independent candidate, just to run things smoothly for the time being with the upcoming Paris Olympics. Russian President Vladimir Putin hosted Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence at Novo-Ogaryovo for a private engagement on Monday. Putin will hold extensive bilateral talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday. #WATCH | Moscow: PM Modi meets Russian President Vladimir Putin at President's house. He will have a private meeting and dinner with Russian President Vladimir Putin shortly pic.twitter.com/rdFqlHvn2U ANI (@ANI) July 8, 2024 "Around noon, Putin and Modi will start talking. We expect that there will be a private conversation, as well as Russian-Indian talks over an official breakfast, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov was quoted as saying by the state-owned TASS news agency. PM Modi was received by the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Maturov on Monday evening. It is Modi's first trip to Russia in five years. During the 22nd India-Russia annual summit, Modi and Putin are expected to explore ways to further expand bilateral relations in diverse areas, including trade, energy and defence. The Kremlin spokesperson said that no statements will be issued after the summit. "No joint communication with the media is foreseen," he said. "But we expect an extended exchange of views at both the private and extended sessions, which will largely compensate for the lack of statements to the media," he added. Reportedly, Modi is expected to bring the Ukraine war to the table and convey to Putin that no solution cant be found on the battlefield. Prime Minister Modi will hold in-person meetings with President Putin for 8-9 hours during his nearly 24-hour stay in Russia. This is the 22nd annual summit between India and Russia. The last summit was held in 2021 in New Delhi. President Putin had visited India to attend the summit. Putin, as head of the Russian state, has visited India nine times. Prime Minister Modi and President Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022. The Russian missile attack on Kyiv damaged Ukraine's biggest children's medical facility on Monday. Also, at least 30 people were killed in multiple Russian missile strikes across Ukraine. Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital is a leading treatment centre in the country for children's cancer. Several people were feared trapped under the rubble as the rescue operations took place in the area. Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed the attack and said the exact number of casualties is still unknown. Reportedly, at least seven people including children were killed in the attack. "Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children...Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are people under the rubble, and the exact number of casualties is still unknown," said Zelenskyy. Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 In another attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, at least 15 people were killed. According to Oleksandr Vilkul, head of the city administration, the massive missile attack on the city injured around 30 people. Zelenskyy said that it is very important that the world should not be silent about the Russian attacks. The attack comes on the eve of a three-day NATO summit in Washington. A two-storey building at the children's hospital was partly destroyed. On the hospital's main 10-storey building, windows and doors were blown and walls were blackened. Medical personnel and local people helped shift the rubble as they searched for children and medical workers who could be trapped underneath. The Kyiv city administration reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in a handful of Kyiv areas. Smoke rose from several Kyiv neighbourhoods as the strikes continued. The head of Ukraine's presidential office, Andrii Yermak, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the city's streets. 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. In a significant blow to President Joe Bidens reelection campaign, four senior House Democrats have called on him to step aside, citing concerns over his ability to win in November. The lawmakers, including Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.), Adam Smith (D-Wash.), and Mark Takano (D-Calif.), made their plea during a private call with Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Sunday. This development comes after a poor performance by Biden in the first presidential debate against former President Donald Trump, which has sparked anxiety among Democrats about his prospects in the 2024 election. The four Democrats join five other House members who have publicly questioned Bidens ability to win, including Reps. Jim Himes (Conn.), Zoe Lofgren (Calif.), Don Beyer (Va.), and Rick Larsen (Wash.). The lack of endorsement from top Democrats like Nadler, Morelle, Smith, and Takano, who hold significant positions in the party, could severely damage Bidens campaign. Despite efforts by Jeffries to ease fears and unite Democrats behind Biden, the mounting concerns from within the House suggest a wavering confidence in the president. However, other Democrats, like California Rep. Maxine Waters, have rallied behind Biden, with Waters declaring, People say Joe Bidens too old. Im older than Biden! Biden, 81, faces pressure over his age and debate performance, which his team is trying to address through damage control and unity efforts. However, the president has reiterated that he has no plans to step aside, despite the growing calls from House Democrats. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) In a landmark decision, the Federal Court has determined that PayPal Australia Pty Limited utilized an unfair contract term in its standard agreements with small businesses. This verdict comes after legal action initiated by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) in September 2023, which accused PayPal of incorporating a clause that enabled the company to retain erroneously charged fees unless small businesses reported the error within 60 days of the charge appearing on their account statements. The courts declaration impacts small businesses that opened PayPal Business Accounts between September 21, 2021, and November 7, 2023. According to ASIC, as of June 30, 2023, there were over 600,000 small businesses with PayPal Business Accounts. Federal Court judge Mark Moshinsky, who presided over the case, highlighted the inherent imbalance in the contract terms. He pointed out that, unlike PayPal, small businesses were not in a position to effectively manage the risk of incorrect charging or overcharging. His Honour noted that small businesses had only a 60-day window to notify PayPal in writing of any erroneous fees. This short period was further complicated by account statements that did not clearly describe the various types of fees or the methods of their calculation in a way that could be easily reconciled with PayPals Product Disclosure Statement (PDS). Justice Moshinsky also found no evidence that PayPal had caused a consumer to suffer loss or damage by relying on the contested fee error term. This finding was consistent with ASICs investigation, which did not uncover any instances of PayPal causing harm through the use of this term. Following the courts decision, Deputy Chair Sarah Court of ASIC emphasized the regulators commitment to protecting consumers and small businesses from unfair contract terms. Todays decision serves as a reminder to all businesses that unfair contract terms in standard form contracts with small businesses will not be tolerated, and that ASIC will take decisive action where appropriate to protect the rights of consumers and small businesses, she stated. PayPal acknowledged the unfairness of the contract term and agreed to the courts declarations, having already removed the term from its contracts as of November 8, 2023. The court declared the unfair term void from the inception of the contracts and issued an order restraining PayPal from applying, relying on, or enforcing the term in any of its contracts with small businesses. Additionally, the court ordered PayPal to pay ASICs litigation costs, further underscoring the gravity of the issue. Throughout the investigation and legal proceedings, PayPal cooperated with ASIC, demonstrating a willingness to address and rectify the unfair term in its contracts. This ruling marks a significant step in ensuring fair treatment for small businesses in their contractual relationships with large financial service providers. It highlights the importance of transparency and fairness in contract terms and reinforces ASICs role in advocating for the rights of consumers and small businesses in Australia. Keep up to date with our stories on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un called South Koreas recent front-line live-fire drills suicidal hysteria as she threatened unspecified military steps Monday if further provoked. The warning by Kim Yo Jong came after South Korea performed firing exercises in its tense land and sea borders with North Korea in the past two weeks. The exercises were the first of their kind since South Korea suspended a 2018 agreement with the North aimed easing front-line military tensions in June. The question is why the enemy kicked off such war drills near the border, suicidal hysteria, for which they will have to sustain terrible disaster, Kim Yo Jong said in a statement carried by state media. She accused South Koreas conservative government of deliberately escalating tensions as a way to escape a domestic political crisis. She said the riskiness of the South Korean drills is clear to everyone as they happened amid a touch-and-go situation established after the U.S., South Korea and Japan recently held a new military exercise that North Korea views as a security threat. In case it is judged according to our criteria that they violated the sovereignty of (North Korea) and committed an act tantamount to a declaration of war, our armed forces will immediately carry out its mission and duty assigned by the (North Korean) Constitution, she said, without elaborating. North Korea has been engaged in a provocative run of weapons tests since 2022. But its two recent tests one on a missile with a super-large warhead and the other on a multiwarhead missile drew widespread skepticism from South Korean officials and experts who said North Korea likely fabricated successful launches to cover up failed tests. In early June, South Korea fully suspend the 2018 inter-Korean military pact after North Korea flew balloons carrying manure, cigarette butts and waste paper across the border to protest South Korean activists scattering political leaflets in the North via their own balloons. The military agreement reached during a short-lived era of reconciliation between the Koreas required the two countries to cease all hostile acts at border areas, such as live-firing drills, aerial surveillance and psychological warfare. The deal had already been in the danger of collapse, with both Koreas taking steps in breach of it amid animosities over North Koreas spy satellite launch last November. (AP) A major Russian missile attack across Ukraine killed at least 31 people and injured almost 130 on Monday, officials said, with one missile striking a large childrens hospital in the capital, Kyiv, where emergency crews searched the rubble for casualties. The daytime Russian barrage targeted five Ukrainian cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, hitting apartment buildings and public infrastructure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in a social media post. Strikes in Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyys birthplace in central Ukraine, killed 10 people and injured 47 in what the head of city administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said was a massive missile attack. Seven people were killed in Kyiv, authorities said. It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, Zelenskyy said on social media. Western leaders who have backed Ukraine in the war are holding a three-day NATO summit in Washington beginning Tuesday. They are to look at how they can reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since World War II. At the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital in Kyiv, rescuers were searching for people under the rubble of a partially collapsed, two-story wing of the facility. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least 16 people, seven of them children, were injured. On the hospitals main 10-story building, windows and doors were blown out and walls were blackened. Blood spattered the floor in one room. The intensive care unit, operating theaters and oncology departments were all damaged, officials said. Medical personnel and local people searched for children and medical workers. Volunteers formed a line, passing bricks and other debris to each other. Smoke still rose from the building, and volunteers and emergency crews worked in protective masks. The attack forced the hospital to shut down and evacuate. Some mothers carried their children away on their backs. Others waited in the courtyard with their children as calls to doctors phones rang unanswered. A few hours after the initial strike, another air raid siren sent many mothers with their children hurrying to the hospitals shelter. Led by a flashlight through the shelters dark corridors, mothers carried their bandaged children in their arms and medics carried them on gurneys. Volunteers handed out candy in an effort to calm the children. Marina Ploskonos 4-year-old son had surgery for cervical spine tuberculosis last Friday. My child is terrified, she said. This shouldnt be happening, its a childrens hospital, she said, bursting into tears. Ukraines Security Service said it found wreckage from a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile at the site and had opened criminal proceedings on war crime charges. The Kh-101 is an air-launched missile that flies low to avoid detection by radar systems. Ukraine said it shot down 11 of 13 Kh-101 missiles launched by Russia on Monday. Czech President Petr Pavel said the hospital attack was inexcusable and that he expected at the NATO summit to see a consensus that Russia was the biggest threat for which we must be thoroughly prepared. Russias Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian defense plants and military air bases and were successful. It denied aiming at any civilian facilities and claimed without offering evidence that pictures from Kyiv indicated the damage was caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile. Since early in the war that is stretching into its third year, Russian officials have regularly claimed that Moscows forces never attack civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, despite what officials in Kyiv say and Associated Press reporting on the ground. Elsewhere in Kyiv, where seven of the citys 10 districts were hit in the heaviest Russian bombardment of the capital in almost four months, the strikes killed seven people and injured 25, officials said. About three hours after the first strikes, more missiles hit Kyiv and partially destroyed a private medical center. Four people were killed there, Ukraines Emergency Service said. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. The Kinzhal flies at 10 times the speed of sound, making it hard to intercept. City buildings shook from the blasts. An entire section of a residential multistory building in one district of Kyiv was destroyed, officials said. Three electricity substations were damaged or completely destroyed in two districts of Kyiv, energy company DTEK said. The head of Ukraines presidential office, Andrii Yermak, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the citys streets. (AP) President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts are meeting in Washington this week to mark the 75th anniversary of the worlds biggest security organization just as Russia presses its advantage on the battlefield in Ukraine. The three-day summit, which begins Tuesday, will focus on ways to reassure Ukraine of NATOs enduring support and offer some hope to its war-weary citizens that their country might survive the biggest land conflict in Europe in decades. Much of what NATO can do for Ukraine, and indeed for global security, is misunderstood. Often the alliance is thought of as the sum of all U.S. relations with its European partners, from imposing sanctions and other costs on Russia to sending arms and ammunition. But as an organization, its brief is limited to the defense by military means of its 32 member countries the sacred Three Musketeers-like vow of all for one, one for all and a commitment to help keep the peace in Europe and North America. That also means not being dragged into a wider war with nuclear-armed Russia. Heres a look at NATO and how its aiding Ukraine: What is NATO? Founded in 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization was formed by 12 nations to counter the threat to European security posed by the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Dealing with Moscow is in its DNA. NATOs ranks have grown since the Washington Treaty was signed 75 years ago to 32 countries after Sweden joined this year, worried by an increasingly aggressive Russia. NATOs collective security guarantee Article 5 of the treaty underpins its credibility. Its a political commitment by all member countries to come to the aid of any member whose sovereignty or territory might be under attack. Ukraine would meet those criteria, but it is only a partner, not a member. NATOs doors are open to any European country that wants to join and can meet the requirements and obligations. Importantly, NATO takes its decisions by consensus, so every member has a veto. Whos in charge? The United States is the most powerful member. It spends much more on defense than any other ally and far outweighs its partners in terms of military muscle. So Washington drives the agenda. NATOs day-to-day work is led by its secretary-general former Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, until he is replaced on Oct. 1 by outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. NATOs top civilian official chairs almost weekly meetings of ambassadors in the North Atlantic Council at its Brussels headquarters. He chairs other NACs at ministerial level and summits of heads of state and government. Stoltenberg runs NATO HQ. He does not order the allies around. His job is to encourage consensus and speak on behalf of all 32 members. NATOs military headquarters is based nearby in Mons, Belgium. It is always run by a top U.S. officer. The current supreme allied commander Europe is Army Gen. Christopher Cavoli. What is NATO doing to help Ukraine? Even though most allies believe that Russia could pose an existential threat to Europe, NATO itself is not arming Ukraine. As an organization, NATO possesses no weapons of any kind. Collectively, the alliance provides only non-lethal support fuel, combat rations, medical supplies and body armor, as well as equipment to counter drones or mines. But members do send arms on their own or in groups. NATO is helping Ukraines armed forces shift from Soviet-era military doctrine to modern thinking. Its also helping strengthen Ukraines defense and security institutions. In Washington, NATO leaders will endorse a new plan to coordinate the delivery of equipment to Ukraine and training for its armed forces. The leaders will renew a vow that Ukraine will join the alliance one day, but not while its at war. Why is NATO stationing more troops on its European borders? While some allies have left open the possibility of sending military personnel to Ukraine, NATO itself has no plans to do this. But a key part of the commitment for allies to defend one another is to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin, or any other adversary, from launching an attack in the first place. Finland and Sweden joined NATO recently over concern about this. With the war in its third year, NATO now has 500,000 military personnel on high readiness to counter any attack, whether it be on land, at sea, by air or in cyberspace. The alliance has doubled the number of battle groups along its eastern flank, bordering Russia and Ukraine. Allies are almost continuously conducting military exercises. One of them this year, Steadfast Defender, involved around 90,000 troops operating across Europe. Isnt the U.S. doing the heavy lifting? Due to high U.S. defense spending over many years, Americas armed forces benefit not only from greater troop numbers and superior weapons but also from significant transport and logistics assets. Other allies are starting to spend more though. After years of cuts, NATO members committed to ramp up their national defense budgets in 2014 when Russia annexed Ukraines Crimean Peninsula. The aim was for each ally to be spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense within a decade. A year ago, with no end to the war in sight, they agreed to make 2% a spending floor, rather than a ceiling. A record 23 countries are expected to be close to the spending target this year, up from only three a decade ago. (AP) Vice President Kamala Harris is stepping up her involvement in President Joe Bidens campaign as the election in November approaches, following a debate performance by Biden that received widespread criticism. Cedric Richmond, co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign, confirmed this during an appearance on MSNBCs The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart. Richmond, a former congressman from Louisiana, emphasized Harriss ongoing commitment and importance to the campaign, saying, Harris is increasing her role, and shes been a valued partner since day one. I wont get into whether shes been covered fairly by the press, but she is a valuable partner. He also highlighted Harriss intelligence and dedication, adding, She has not only publicly stated her support for President Biden, but shes privately said that, too. In response to concerns within the Democratic Party about Bidens ability to secure a second term, Richmond reassured viewers that Harris is not alone in her support for the President. I was with [California Gov.] Gavin Newsom after the debate when he did the same, and [Michigan Gov.] Gretchen Whitmer was on the chairs call yesterday, and she reiterated her support. Richmond acknowledged that some Democrats have urged Biden to withdraw from the race but insisted that party leaders remain united. Leaders are rallying around this president and vice president because they understand whats at stake, and they understand what they have accomplished, he said. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) Two influential Democratic operatives, Rosa Brooks and Ted Dintersmith, are circulating a memo that outlines a plan for a blitz primary to replace President Biden if he can be convinced to withdraw from the race. The memo, distributed to party contributors, executive branch officials, and Bidens campaign staff, proposes a rapid primary process before the Democratic National Convention in August. Brooks, a Georgetown University law professor and former volunteer policy adviser on Bidens 2020 campaign, and Dintersmith, a venture capitalist and deep-pocketed donor, argue that the party must act swiftly to avoid a shameful, avoidable democracy-ending defeat. The memo references Bidens recent comment that he would only step down if the Lord Almighty told him to, saying We need to act. Now. The plan requires Biden to abandon his re-election effort by mid-July and Vice President Kamala Harris to support an open primary contest. Six candidates would then advance to a campaigning period, followed by moderated forums hosted by cultural icons like Michelle Obama and well-known celebrities. Delegates would use ranked-choice voting to select the Democratic presidential nominee, who would be announced on the third day of the convention. The memos authors believe this plan would allow the party to forge an uplifting path and find a stronger candidate to defeat Donald Trump in the general election. On Monday, Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats reaffirming his commitment to the 2024 race, despite growing concerns about his cognitive acuity. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) In a social media post, Yair Netanyahu, the son of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, launched a scathing attack on the countrys judicial system. Alongside a picture from a recent court hearing related to the October 7 terrorist attack, Yair wrote, The Supreme Court and the Attorney Generals office are destroying the state. This is not the first time Yair Netanyahu has spoken out against senior figures in the defense establishment. Last month, he targeted Air Force Commander Tomer Bar in a tweet, questioning his actions on the day of the terrorist attack. Where was he and what did he do on October 7? he asked. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) The IDF on Monday morning launched intense attacks in Gaza City in the central Gaza Strip in the wake of intelligence information indicating that terror groups had re-established themselves in the city. Gazan residents told Reuters that the operation is one of the heaviest since October 7th. The city was bombarded by air throughout the night and columns of IDF tanks entered the heart of the city from different directions. Overnight, IDF and Shin Bet forces launched counterterrorism activities in the Gaza City area, including at the UNWRA headquarters located in the area, the IDF spokesperson stated on Monday morning. The activity of the forces in the area began following intelligence information about the presence of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terror infrastructure. IDF forces previously operated in the area, killing and arresting many Hamas terrorists and destroying an extensive underground route that passed under the compound. As the operation launched, the IDF announced and warned citizens about activity in the area and that a humanitarian corridor will be opened for the exit of uninvolved citizens from the area. The IDF will continue to act in accordance with international law and against the Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror organizations, who systematically operate from within civilian infrastructure, including UNWRA compounds, using them to plan and carry out terror acts against the State of Israel. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) Is there a future for French Jewry in France? Its a question thats been asked many times for many years but has taken on new urgency in the wake of the stunning results of the snap elections on Sunday, with a coalition of far-left parties, including an antisemitic party, winning the most seats. The leaders of the left-wing parties, despite many differences between them, successfully mobilized before the snap elections and formed a leftist alliance, the New Popular Front, against the far-right. The most prominent leader of the alliance is Jean-Luc Melenchon, the head of the antisemitic France Unbowed party. Melenchon has called French Jewry an arrogant minority that lectures to the rest, celebrated anti-Israel rioters after they stormed a shul, and describes Israel as a colonial state. Under Melechons leadership, the New Popular Front has made the Palestinians its cause celebre. One of the main figures in Melechons party called the Hamas assault on October 7th a legitimate action. French philosopher Bernard-Henri Levy wrote following the election: The left is once again kidnapped by the infamous Melenchon. Divisive language. Hate of the republic on the lips. Around him right now are some incarnations of the new antisemitism. A chilling moment. A stain: Continue to fight against these people. French-Jewish journalist Yohann Taieb wrote: Melenchons victory sends a horrifying message of impunity to all anti-Jewish Islamo-fascists. Meyer Habib, a frum Jew who served four consecutive terms in the French National Assembly, narrowly lost his seat in the elections to Caroline Yadan, another Jewish candidate from French President Emmanuel Macrons party who is considered pro-Israel. Habib, who represented the 8th constituency, which mainly represents French residents overseas, including Israel, the PA, Gaza, Italy, Turkey, Cyprus, Malta and Greece, won 85% of the votes in Israel. (YWN Israel Desk Jerusalem) The head of the UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, moaned and groaned that since the war began, half of the agencys facilities in the territory have been destroyed. This destruction, he claims, has resulted in the deaths of over 500 people, including employees and displaced individuals seeking shelter. Lazzarini, the Commissioner-General of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA), made the remarks during a news conference alongside Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelaty. The Egyptian official reaffirmed his countrys support for UNRWA, which has faced accusations from Israel along with a mountain of evidence of collaborating with Hamas and perpetuating the Palestinian refugee crisis. UNRWA denies these allegations. The comments came as the IDF announced operations at UNRWA headquarters, located near the Rimal neighborhood in Gaza City. The IDF has previously discovered significant Hamas tunnel infrastructure and engaged in battles with gunmen in the area. (YWN World Headquarters NYC) The makom tefillah to bring about yeshuos QUEENS, NY Feverish preparations are underway at the old Montefiore Beis Hachaim, the site of the ohel of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, zya, in advance of the yahrtzeit, this Tuesday, July 9. The ohel and nearby visitors center are a hub of activity every day, open to the public 24/7, yet it is a massive undertaking to prepare the site for the auspicious day of 3 Tammuz, when Yidden are expected to visit, en-masse. All year, Yidden of all stripes come to daven and merit the yeshuos they are waiting for in the zechus of the Rebbe, and on the yahrtzeit, they come in droves. Tens of thousands are expected to travel from far and near, to ask the tzaddik to intercede on their behalf and storm the Heavens to bring about the yeshuah they are waiting for. One contemporary gadol who spoke of this special opportunity, was the late Rav Moshe Wolfson, ztl. Once, when Rav Wolfson, ztl, was in Eretz Yisrael, he met a fellow New Yorker who had come to daven in Eretz Yisrael for a particular yeshuah he was waiting for. Rav Wolfson expressed his surprise that he had to leave America in order to receive a brocha, and the mashgiach said to him, Today, the kever of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, zya, is the makom tefillah to bring about yeshuos. Youve already been helped! B. Waxberger of the famous Malchus Waxberger company was working with Reb Shalom Mordechai Rubashkin, shlita, in Postville, Iowa, at a time when he sadly had no children yet. Having exhausted a gamut of medical procedures locally, he received an appointment at a great specialist abroad. Rav Shalom Mordechai said, Why dont you go to the top specialist? Go to the ohel of the Rebbe! The Waxbergers went to daven at the ohel, and later flew to the great professor. After reviewing the initial tests, the doctor asked, Why did you come if youve already been helped?! Reb Leibishs tefillah answered. One erev Rosh Hashanah, Reb Leibish Langer, shlita, was at the ohel. He wrote a pidyon nefesh, asking for a shidduch for one of his children. Following the advice of his rebbe, Rav Moshe Wolfson, ztl, he mentioned a speech he had delivered at the Chabad Lag Baomer parade. That very afternoon, a friend who, like himself, davens in Emunas Yisrael, called to suggest a shidduch. Why couldnt you wait until you see me tonight in shul? Reb Leibish asked. I just came up with the idea and felt an urge to redt it right away. It wasnt long before they celebrated a Lchaim. Reb Leibishs tefillah at the ohel was answered as quickly as that! Beg until you feel you were helped Reb Yisrael Shem Tov, shlita, of Crown Heights, met a Yid in the area outside the ohel. He looked distraught. Perhaps theres something I can help you with? Reb Yisrael asked. The man described his difficult predicament. A seven-year prison term awaited him, and that was after he had invested millions of dollars in legal fees. Go to the ohel. Daven and beg until you feel you were helped, Reb Yisrael advised. The man cried his heart out for over an hour. Not long after, he called out excitedly, Reb Yisrael! Reb Yisrael! I just received a message from my lawyer: Prison is canceled. The man was set free, confined only by a metal chip on his foot for a certain length of time. Just where the tefillin are placed. A yungerman from Boro Park shares: It was at a routine well-visit, when the doctor examined our ten-month-old baby. Measuring his head, he expressed concern that the top front of the babys head was far smaller than it should be. We may need to do serious testing of the brain, he informed us. It was Rosh Chodesh Tammuz 5782. I went to the ohel and davened fervently. When I came out, I opened a sefer to find a kabbalah to take upon myself as a zechus for a yeshuah. It was an Iggros Kodesh by the Rebbe. On the page I opened, the Rebbe was convincing a Yid to don tefillin dRabbeinu Tam. This yungerman had stopped putting on his own Rabbeinu Tam tefillin, and he immediately accepted upon himself to continue. Not surprisingly, at the next doctors visit, when they measured the circumference of the head, going around just where the retzuos of tefillin are placed, it measured a perfect, regular size like any healthy baby! There will be transportation to the Ohel Monday and Tuesday from Crown Hights, Flatbush, Manhattan, Boro Park and Lakewood, For schedule and to reserve a seat or for more information the Ohel bus please visit bustoohel.com Professor Tung Bui of the University of Hawaii (USA) believes that incorporating AI into businesses to create competitive value is a great opportunity for Vietnam. The Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawai'i at Manoa hosted the Shidler Global Leadership Summit on "Vietnam's Competitiveness in the AI Era and New World Order" at Van Lang University, Ho Chi Minh City, early this month. Dr. Vance Roley, Dean of the Shidler College of Business at the University of Hawaii, spoke with over 120 business CEOs and technology leaders from some of the world's leading companies who are alumni of the Shidler Vietnam Executive MBA (VEMBA) program about the advancement of AI and its impact on Vietnam's future development. Professor Tung Bui of the Shidler College of Business pointed out that Vietnam may not have the ability to build AI machines like ChatGPT because money is the problem. "OpenAI pays hundreds of thousands of dollars per day to run its AI models. But fortunately, there are many open AI source codes that we can take advantage of," he said. Professor Tung Bui of the University of Hawaii speaking at the event on July 5. Photo courtesy of Shidler College of Business According to Tung, the biggest opportunity for Vietnamese businesses in this era is to find a suitable AI model and apply it to their systems in order to boost competitive value and save operating expenses. When it comes to GenAI, there are three major components to consider: user interfaces, machine learning models, and AI training data. "Without data, there is no AI. Data is the biggest competitive asset for Vietnamese businesses that OpenAI or any international company does not have," the professor said. He thinks that global supply chain disruptions are creating new opportunities for Vietnam. However, multinational companies still have concerns about the quality of the production chain and the skills of the labor force. If Vietnamese businesses can apply AI to limit weaknesses and enhance strengths, multinational corporations will be more confident in picking Vietnam as their new location. In the AI age, competition revolves around creating the best intelligence. This is also a race against time, as businesses that do not embrace new technologies risk falling behind. Vietnam, with its strong technological drive, appears to be ready to adopt AI. Nguyen Thi Thuy Duong, Chief Revenue Officer of FPT Automotive, said that it took the company 25 years to generate US$1 billion in revenue from software exports. However, with AI, it might take only 23 years to achieve the next billion-dollar milestone. Duong believes that AI is "both attractive and scary." But if businesses are bold enough to adopt it and find the right formula, they will develop very quickly. The FPT leader is a testament to this, with the rapid development of the Long Chau pharmacy chain, she said. "From the outside, Long Chau appears to be a pharmaceutical company, but behind it is a team of highly skilled technology engineers. We use AI not only to train employees but also in logistics, sales, customer needs analysis, and behavior," Duong said. At the forum, CEOs and managers of global corporations assessed that the strong transformation period of the scientific and technological revolution and the enhancement of competitiveness in the AI era promised to bring many great benefits to Vietnam. Professor Tung Bui, VEMBA faculty director and Matson Navigation Company chair of global business, Shidler, University of Hawaii at Manoa, at the AI summit on July 5. Photo courtesy of Shidler College of Business Nguyen Thi Tra My, Co-founder & Group CEO, The PAN Group, said that AI was impacting all aspects of life. Even traditional industries, such as agriculture, are susceptible to this trend. AI has the potential to automate, boost productivity, and effectively manage resources. "If we know how to collect and organize data, AI can be trained based on the knowledge and experience of farmers, helping to maintain and pass on traditional techniques to future generations," she said. Tra My also mentioned that this combination has the potential to produce a sustainable and efficient agriculture model that is appropriate for Vietnam's current environment. This will not only help increase productivity and product quality but also protect and develop natural resources and biodiversity. Regarding the application of AI in manufacturing practices, Professor Tung Bui noted that before implementing AI, users must have a clear approach. Knowing what they have, what they require, and avoiding reliance on machinery. He emphasized that for the first time in history, AI allows humans to interact with computers using their own natural language rather than through programming software, which opens up a great turning point for society. However, AI has its flaws, and there is still some incorrect information in billions of pieces of information. Users need to be cautious when using this tool, especially when it comes to "AI ethics," which must be carefully considered when applying the technology. The gathering of VEMBA alumni intends to identify how AI may be used to deliver the greatest value to Vietnam, guaranteeing that the country is prepared for the future. AI should be used to help society in a fair and ethical manner. The Vietnam Executive MBA (VEMBA) program at the University of Hawaii Shidler College of Business offers an unparalleled opportunity for career advancement. The AACSB-accredited program blends rigorous academic coursework with practical, hands-on learning experiences designed specifically for full-time executives. Since its inception in 2001, VEMBA has built a diverse cohort of 1,007 professionals from over 20 countries, providing a unique platform for networking and collaboration. The program's flexible hybrid format, which combines in-person and online sessions, allows participants to manage their professional commitments while pursuing their MBA. With faculty drawn from prestigious institutions and a strong alumni network, VEMBA stands out as a leading choice for those aspiring to leadership and excellence in the global business arena. Business is often criticised for being short-termist. Compared with the constant churn of ministers in the past decade under the Tories and the coalition, however, many FTSE 100 boardrooms look like models of stability. The average tenure of a FTSE 100 boss is five and a half years, according to research by investment experts at AJ Bell. That is significantly longer than the shelf-life of most of the politicians with whom business leaders have had to deal over the past few years and indeed longer than the full term of a parliament. Around a fifth of FTSE 100 bosses have been in post for more than a decade. The best ones Simon Wolfson at Next and Pascal Soriot at AstraZeneca spring to mind are also among the longest-serving. This is not coincidence. Nigel Wilson, who recently retired as chief executive of Legal & General after more than ten years at the top, attributed his ability to take a radical approach to investing in UK infrastructure to his faith that he would be in the job for a long time. 'Stable' mates?: The new Government must find a way to stop the constant ministerial churn By the time most businessmen and women reach the pinnacle, they are highly experienced in their field. Contrast that with politicians. As our sister paper The Mail on Sunday reported yesterday, since 2015 there have been seven chancellors, eight City ministers, nine business secretaries and nine work and pensions secretaries, before the new Labour appointments. The ever-changing dramatis personae makes relationships with business harder. Explanations need to be given and cases made on a seemingly endless loop. I popped in to see Grant Shapps in his office in Victoria in the autumn of 2022, when he was for a fleeting four-month period the business secretary. Paintings of bewigged gentlemen belonging to his predecessor Jacob Rees-Mogg, who served an even shorter stint of less than two months, were still hanging on the walls. I hope the new Government will find a way to stop this constant churn. In fairness, many of those taking key positions have been shadowing their roles for some time. There have also been interesting appointments of experts such as Sir Patrick Vallance as science minister and James Timpson at prisons. As boss of the shoe repair chain, he has taken a huge interest in rehabilitating offenders. The drawback with this approach is that 'outsiders' may know their subjects inside out, but are not familiar with the dark arts of politics. But however smart people are, it is crazy to expect them to master overnight a fiendishly complex brief such as pensions. Building relationships with civil servants, working out requirements then making them happen also takes time. The revolving door creates constant friction and confusion. It is also harder to hold here-today-gone-tomorrow ministers to account. Former Tory leadership contender Rory Stewart, who held five ministerial jobs between 2015 and 2019, has spoken out against the 'pass the parcel' ethos and suggested a minimum two-year term for ministers. The recent merry-go-round is linked to Tory upheavals post-Brexit, but the underlying problem is deeper. People are often shuffled around, for reasons of ideology or in-fighting, rather than ability. The UK subscribes to the cult of the gifted amateur in politics and much else. Labour says it will sort out the national finances through growth. To stand any chance of success it will need steady commitment and focus from ministers, not a motley parade of characters. A woman in southern Vietnam admitted to the police she had used cyanide to poison her husband and three of her siblings' children over the past 10 months due to family conflicts. Nguyen Thi Hong Bich, 38, was arrested on July 5 after a nephew of her was confirmed to have been poisoned with cyanide by the police. Upon her detention, Bich confessed that due to conflicts with family members, she had bought cyanide to poison her 18-year-old nephew, who lives in the same house with her in Nhon Trach District. The teenager, fortunately, has been out of critical condition and is still hospitalized. Over two days of investigation, Bich admitted on Sunday besides using cyanide to poison that nephew, she had killed his younger brother, a niece who was her sister's kid, and her husband between October last year and May this year. She used cyanide in all cases. According to the police, Bich and her husband lived in the same house with her elder brother, his wife and two sons in a single-story house in Nhon Trach. Together, they ran a restaurant. On Oct. 14, 2023, believing her 38-year-old husband was gambling and in debt, Bich added cyanide to his daily medication and gave it to him. He died four days later. The family thought he must have died of a stroke or a heart attack. After her husband's death, Bich was angry because her sister accused her of having an affair, so she poisoned the sister's seven-year-old daughter late last year. Once again, no one in the family suspected foul play. By the end of May, after having some arguments with her brother's wife, Bich poisoned their youngest son, who was 12. Most recently, due to disagreements over home repairs and buying a new sink to serve the restaurant, Bich plotted to kill her brother's oldest son, the 18-year-old, for revenge. On June 22, while the teenager was studying alone at home, Bich approached him and commented on his acne-ridden face. She mentioned that she used to have the same problem and had taken some processed herbs to detoxify. The young man trusted her aunt and agreed to use the herbs. Bich Then visited a nearby pharmacy, lying that she needed to buy some medicine for her leg pain. Then she emptied the medicine from a capsule, replaced it with cyanide, and gave it to her nephew. Shortly after, Long became drowsy and was found by his mother, who rushed him to Le Van Thinh Hospital in Ho Chi Minh City, which borders Dong Nai. Doctors conducted tests and found cyanide in the patient's body. His family reported the case to the police and an investigation led to Bich. A police search found white plastic bottle weighing about 0.7 kg containing cyanide crystals, which Bich had hidden in a nearby cemetery. The criminal technical department of Dong Nai Police confirmed that this substance was highly toxic cyanide. Investigators determined that Bich owed money to several people. After her husband died, Bich received VND800 million from insurance, which she used to pay off debts and spend. Aside from the four family members that Bich admitted to have poisoned, her father and her own child had also passed away unexpectedly. Bichs father, Hai, died shortly after her husband and because the old man had many chronic diseases, no questions were raised. Next was Bich's 14-year-old child. The child died quickly with symptoms such as difficulty breathing, cardiac arrest, and cyanosis all over the body. Her neighbor reported that when the child developed those symptoms, Bich kept hesitating and did not call an ambulance. Police are expanding the investigation. The Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD Get Free Report) (TSE:TD) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 5,685,433 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 113% from the previous sessions volume of 2,666,872 shares.The stock last traded at $63.30 and had previously closed at $63.80. Analysts Set New Price Targets TD has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on Toronto-Dominion Bank in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. They issued a neutral rating on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded Toronto-Dominion Bank from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. Finally, National Bank Financial upgraded Toronto-Dominion Bank from an underperform rating to a sector perform rating in a research report on Thursday, August 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating, one has assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average price target of $84.00. Get Toronto-Dominion Bank alerts: View Our Latest Analysis on Toronto-Dominion Bank Toronto-Dominion Bank Stock Down 0.8 % The firm has a market cap of $110.57 billion, a PE ratio of 14.36, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 0.81. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $60.43 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $58.13. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.10. Toronto-Dominion Bank (NYSE:TD Get Free Report) (TSE:TD) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 22nd. The bank reported $2.05 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.49 by $0.56. The firm had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $9.40 billion. Toronto-Dominion Bank had a return on equity of 14.34% and a net margin of 6.94%. The companys quarterly revenue was up 9.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.48 earnings per share. Analysts expect that The Toronto-Dominion Bank will post 5.84 earnings per share for the current year. Toronto-Dominion Bank Cuts Dividend The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 31st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, October 10th will be issued a $0.739 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 10th. This represents a $2.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.67%. Toronto-Dominion Banks dividend payout ratio is currently 68.41%. Institutional Inflows and Outflows Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Williams Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank in the second quarter worth about $10,454,000. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. grew its stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank by 2.7% in the first quarter. Dixon Mitchell Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 1,388,528 shares of the banks stock worth $83,881,000 after purchasing an additional 37,002 shares during the last quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank in the first quarter worth about $6,454,000. FORA Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank in the first quarter worth about $4,025,000. Finally, V Square Quantitative Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Toronto-Dominion Bank by 5,032.5% in the fourth quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 15,808 shares of the banks stock worth $1,022,000 after purchasing an additional 15,500 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 52.37% of the companys stock. Toronto-Dominion Bank Company Profile (Get Free Report) The Toronto-Dominion Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides various financial products and services in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It operates through four segments: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, U.S. Retail, Wealth Management and Insurance, and Wholesale Banking. Featured Stories Receive News & Ratings for Toronto-Dominion Bank Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Toronto-Dominion Bank and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter. K Hospital in Hanoi and AstraZeneca signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on June 27 to boost research, development, and the improvement of cancer treatment quality in Vietnam. According to Globocan 2022, an estimated 180,480 new cancer cases and 120,184 cancer deaths are expected in Vietnam. Breast cancer, liver cancer, and lung cancer are the most common cancers in Vietnam, with incidence and mortality rates increasing annually. This situation necessitates the acceleration of cancer diagnosis and treatment quality improvement efforts. In this context, the collaboration program between AstraZeneca Vietnam and K Hospital aims to: accelerate the hospital's scientific research and international integration; enhance the quality of cancer treatment for patients in the northern provinces and across the country; and aspire to make cancer no longer a leading cause of death in Vietnam. The signing ceremony on June 26 was witnessed by both companies leaders and representatives. Photo courtesy of AstraZeneca Vietnam Combining the strengths of a K hospital, a central-level hospital, and the leading oncology department in the country with those of AstraZeneca, a leading pharmaceutical company with medical expertise from the U.K. and Sweden, where oncology is a key therapeutic area, the two parties will focus on key research and development activities, and strategic collaboration, in conducting clinical oncology trials. They will also establish and develop a network or center for innovation, digital transformation, research, and the application of advanced technologies and artificial intelligence in healthcare. In addition, conducting epidemiological and cancer registry research, and collaborating on the establishment and implementation of scientific research, training, and international cooperation programs are also mentioned in the partnership. And finally, the partners will collaborate to promote comprehensive healthcare coordination programs for cancer patients and support patients in increasing access to advanced treatment drugs. In parallel with research and development activities, AstraZeneca and K Hospital will also prioritize promoting health equity through, developing a national cancer prevention network, and co-implementing the "Love Your Lungs" program to raise awareness for early detection of lung cancer in the community. According to Prof. Dr. Le Van Quang, Director of K Hospital, with an integrated and sustainable development strategy, K Hospital's goal is to become a model hospital, leading in Vietnam and meeting international standards in cancer treatment. The hospital highly appreciates the cooperation of AstraZeneca and hopes that in the future, the two organizations will have more extensive and in-depth activities in the fields of scientific research, clinical research center development, training and international cooperation, community communication, education, and support for cancer patients. "Together, I believe that this cooperation, built on a 'patient-centric' approach, will yield significant and lasting benefits for patients and contribute not only to the advancement of oncology but also to the overall development of the Vietnamese healthcare sector," he said. Prof. Dr, Le Van Quang, Director of K Hospital, said at the signing ceremony on June 26. Photo courtesy of AstraZeneca Vietnam Building on the success of their initial collaboration agreement signed in 2019, AstraZeneca and K Hospital have further solidified their strategic partnership through this new agreement. This strengthened collaboration has led to the implementation of numerous clinical trials that adhere to rigorous global standards. These trials have yielded significant results, as showcased at major international forums like the recent ASCO 2024 conference in the US. Furthermore, the collaboration has demonstrably enhanced the clinical trial capabilities of hospitals and medical professionals. This is evident in their ability to surpass the stringent investigations conducted by large pharmaceutical companies, medical regulatory bodies, and reputable clinical research management organizations (FDA, independent inspection units, et al). Atul Tandon, General Director of AstraZeneca Vietnam, said at the signing ceremony that he was grateful and proud of the achievements both parties have made through the strategic partnership. Over the years, the unwavering commitment to comprehensive collaboration spanning diagnosis, treatment, and holistic care for cancer patients has been continuously enhanced and has yielded demonstrably enhanced treatment outcomes compared to previous times. Looking towards the future, he believes that the two organizations will continue to create significant advancements in cancer treatment practices and transform the patient journey. "Ultimately achieving health equity for everyone in the country, fostering a healthier and more sustainable future for Vietnam," the leader said. Atul Tandon, General Director AstraZeneca Viet Nam. Photo courtesy of AstraZeneca Vietnam Earlier in June, AstraZeneca and K Hospital successfully co-organized the "National Lung Cancer Investigator Meeting" to foster knowledge exchange in lung cancer research between Vietnamese and international experts. This collaboration aims to strengthen clinical research capabilities in hospitals, earning recognition from the Deputy Minister of Health for its contribution to Vietnam's healthcare advancement. The conference exemplifies both entities' commitment to R&D, particularly clinical trials, to discover new treatments and improve Vietnam and global cancer patient survival rates. The frog dish table feast at Ech Xanh represents the cultural intersection of the dishes served at the restaurant, with a touch of tradition intertwined with modernity. Ech Xanh has been among the top searched keywords for foreign visitors traveling to Vietnam. Photo courtesy of Ech Xanh Frog dishes are an indispensable part of traditional Vietnamese cuisine. In Vietnam, frog dishes are rustic and quite popular, thanks to their good taste that is easy to enjoy. Frogs are not only an ingredient for a single dish but are processed into countless delicious dishes, from rustic to luxurious, from appetizers to main dishes... to satisfy all tastes and preferences. The chef has applied culinary knowledge and added creativity to create frog dishes of overall harmony, with a bit of tradition mixed with a bit of modernity, captivating lots of diners. Frog meat contains high protein, is low in calories and fat, and is rich in essential vitamins and minerals. Enjoying dishes made from frogs not only provides energy but also brings necessary nutrients for the body, Strengthening the immune system and the eyes, bones, joints, and nervous system. According to Oriental medicine, frog meat has long been known for its sweet taste, cool properties, and non-toxic and non-allergenic properties, so it is completely suitable for all ages. The wild bamboo shoot hotpot is also a well-known dish during gatherings, family reunions, and get-togethers with friends. Photo courtesy of Ech Xanh Talking about frogs, Ech Xanh Restaurant is one that shouldn't be missed. It was one of Saigons first restaurants to specialize in frogs. Through more than 15 years of operation and development, Ech Xanh has affirmed its position in the market and has gradually become a popular choice at gatherings with family and friends. The food here is a combination of traditional and modern cuisine. Using typical ingredients bearing the mark of traditional Vietnamese cuisine, combined with modern processing methods that interact with different culinary cultures. With a menu of more than 50 frog dishes transformed into various versions, each dish is a creative and new combination. Especially since the restaurant understands the nutritional value of frog meat for children, a separate menu is designed to serve "future preschoolers." At Ech Xanh, the restaurant is committed to using 100% fresh frogs. It has popular dishes such as fried frog with salted egg, fried frog with tomyum sauce, Singapore frog porridge, and frog hot pot. Fried Frog with Salted Egg and Frog with Tomyum Sauce always compete for ranking first. Both have parts of the frog that are fried until golden and crispy; a pleasant "crackling" sound could be felt while enjoying them. If salted egg sauce is loved for its fatty, fragrant, salty, and sweet flavor, then the tomyum sauce is no less competitive with its spicy and sour sauce, rich in tomyum flavor and a little fatty from coconut milk. The next must-try dish at Ech Xanh is Singapore frog porridge. It is a dish that is quite familiar to Saigon food lovers. Diners are free to enjoy this dish at different locations. The first highlight is the porridge pot. Ech Xanh uses a special type of pot that is heat-resistant and retains heat for a long time so that customers can enjoy it until the pot is empty and still retains the heat. Next is the white porridge cooked with a little tofu, making the porridge smooth, fragrant, and greasy. Finally, the sauce served with the porridge is imported directly from Singapore by Ech Xanh to keep the original flavor the same as the local version, only slightly reduced to better suit the taste of Vietnamese. When the party comes to an end, a steaming hot pot is an indispensable part of the events closing. Hotpots at Ech Xanh vary from wild bamboo shoots hotpots to tomyum hotpots to country hotpots. Most recently, the "spicy dry frog hotpot" version has just been launched with 2 separate hotpot compartments, 1 spicy compartment stimulating taste, and a milk compartment to enable taste balance. Fried frog with tomyum sauce is one of the best-selling picks at the Ech Xanh restaurant. Photo courtesy of Ech Xanh Not only are diners attracted by the quality of food, but Ech Xanh also scores points with its impressive space and attentive service. Its chain currently has 8 branches nationwide, stretching from Hanoi to Ho Chi Minh City. Each branch is decorated in its own style, inspired by the culture and characteristics of each region. Ech Xanh has become a favorite destination for a number of diners across the country. See more information here or contact via hotline at 1900633650. U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III previewed a new military assistance package for Ukraine as he met recently with Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov. I am proud that the United States will soon announce more than $2.3 billion in new security assistance for Ukraine, he said. The aid is designed to provide Ukraine with essential resources at a crucial juncture in the war. The package will provide more air defense inceptors, anti-tank weapons, and other critical munitions from U.S. inventories, said Secretary Austin. It will also enable the United States to procure more Patriot and NASAMS air defense interceptors, which will be provided on an accelerated timeline by the re-sequencing of deliveries for some foreign military sales. The U.S. and Ukraine signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement underscoring U.S. support for Ukraine in building and strengthening its defense and deterrence capability over the long term at the G7 Summit in June. As President Biden said, "A lasting peace for Ukraine must be underwritten by Ukraine's own ability to defend itself now, and to deter future aggression." The United States has not wavered in the commitment to ensure Ukraines security needs are being met despite Russias continued invasion, said Secretary Austin. Ukraine is in a tough fight and has been ever since the start of Putin's reckless war of choice. The Kremlin continues to intensify its bombardment of your cities and civilians. Secretary Austin praised the skill of Ukrainian forces in their continued efforts to fend off Russia's attacks with grit, ingenuity, and courage. The United States commitment to Ukraine remains strong, said Secretary Austin. Alongside some 50 allies and partners, we'll continue to provide the critical capabilities that Ukraine needs to push back Russian aggression today and to deter Russian aggression tomorrow. Criminal barristers around the country will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9 in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. It follows a recommendation from the Council of The Bar of Ireland last month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses, including at Criminal Courts of Justice in Dublin; Ennis, Co Clare; Washington Street, Cork; Tralee, Co Kerry; Naas, Co Kildare; Kilkenny City; Limerick City; Castlebar, Co Mayo; Longford town; Trim, Co Meath; Sligo town; Clonmel, Co Tipperary; Bray, Co Wicklow; Waterford City; Wexford town. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers all over the country on October 3 last, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme". Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10. However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored, say the Council of The Bar of Ireland. Sara Phelan SC, chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland, said it is with regret that they have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. "No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice. The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. Sean Guerin SC, chair of the Criminal State Bar Committee, said it has been acknowledged in Government that there is "no good reason" why fees of criminal barristers shouldnt be restored. "Yet eight months on from a commitment to establish a process reviewing the fees, no meaningful progress has been made. The impact of inadequate fees is having a corrosive effect on the retention of counsel in criminal practice and this isnt just a matter that affects barristers, its also a matter of social justice. "A lack of experienced and available barristers to fully and properly defend or prosecute a case, leads to inequality and injustice, which have an impact on everyone in society. Public trust in the criminal justice system should not be taken for granted, and must be protected, said Mr Guerin. The Council of The Bar of Ireland has recommended a withdrawal of service by criminal law barristers nationwide on the following dates: Tuesday, July 9, Monday, July 15, and Wednesday, July 24. U.S. Department of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin recently met with Israel's Defense Minister Yoav Gallant to discuss crafting a lasting peace in the Middle East. One major concern is Irans destabilizing activities, including the backing of Hezbollah terrorist groups in Lebanon. I am extremely concerned about the rise in rocket attacks on Israel's north from Lebanese Hezbollah and the recent surge in tensions, said Secretary Austin. 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 a catastrophe for Lebanon and it would be devastating for innocent Israeli and Lebanese civilians. A diplomatic solution is the best way to restore lasting calm across the Israel-Lebanon border, said Secretary Austin. Hezbollah has tied its attacks on Israel to the conflict in Gaza, providing another reason why the ceasefire and hostage proposal put forth by Israel and approved by both President Joe Biden and the United Nations Security Council should be approved. However, Hamas has yet to accept these terms. The failure of Hamas to accept this important proposal is prolonging the agony of Palestinian civilians and Israeli civilians alike, said Secretary Austin. 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. Secretary Austin said that although Israel is in a hard fight against a cruel and ruthless foe, it must continue to do more to protect Palestinians in Gaza and continue to increase the flow of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The United States will also work with Israel and the Palestinian Authority 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, he said. The United States will prioritize the protection of human life in the Middle East, and will work closely with Israel to ensure conflict does not escalate in the region. TO ACCESS THIS CONTENT YOU MUST OPEN A SESSION OR CREATE AN ACCOUNT MEMBER LOGIN CREATE YOUR USER ACCOUNT Elering has signed a contract with the consulting company Civitta to carry out a study of long-term gas consumption in Estonia. The study will set out. . . Relocated residents rest at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. At 5:48 p.m. on Friday, a Dongting Lake dike burst in Tuanzhou Township, Huarong County, administered by the city of Yueyang in Hunan Province, causing flooding in the area. The breach was initially about 10 meters wide but later expanded. Following the immediate relocation of around 5,000 residents from the affected area, urgent measures have been taken to repair the breach. As of Sunday noon, 75 meters of the 226-meter breach in the dike had been sealed, according to the Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters. According to the Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters, 4,739 rescuers have rushed to join the frontlines as of 2 p.m. on Sunday. At present, Huarong County has set up four evacuation and resettlement sites, and a total of 3,224 affected residents have been transferred and resettled. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) A relocated resident receives medical checkup at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Staff members unload donated vegetables for relocated residents at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Relocated residents are seen at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Volunteers distribute donated clothing to relocated residents at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Relocated residents receive lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Relocated residents enjoy watermelons at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Children have lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) An aerial drone photo shows a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) A staff member prepares lunch for relocated residents at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Relocated residents receive lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Staff members prepare lunch for relocated residents at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Relocated residents receive lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) A relocated resident sends videos to her family during lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Relocated residents queue to receive lunch at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) A medical worker measures blood pressure for a relocated resident at a makeshift resettlement site in a vocational school in Huarong County, Yueyang City, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Editor: WXY Actually . . . The Kansas City Boulevard system was designed BRILLIANTLY and endured for generations amid the greatest population boom in the history of Western Civilization. Again . . . When considering recent troubles . . . It might be lack of enforcement and police coping with staffing shortages that are more to blame for traffic fatalities. Instead . . . WATCH KANSAS CITY MAINSTREAM MEDIA BLAME OLD SCHOOL WHITE DUDES FOR CURRENT DANGER ON LOCAL STREETS!!! Here's the sketchy premise that will be used to justify more traffic crackdowns and restrictions on freedom of movement . . . In Kansas City, youre more likely to die in car crashes than in almost every other major U.S. city. Nearly 200 people died on Kansas City streets in 2022 and 2023. Traffic safety experts say its not because were terrible drivers. Rather, they point to poorly designed roads that encourage speeding and make car crashes deadlier. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . As we noted recently . . . FIRST RESPONDERS DESERVE OUR RESPECT FOR ANSWERING THE CALL OF KANSAS CITY IN CRITICAL NEED!!! Politics is fun but locals can't count on our elected officials outside of timely press events. Alternatively . . . In AN EPIC NUMBER OF CIRCUMSTANCES THIS WEEKEND . . . Firefighters came to the rescue of locals suffering misfortune and some bad circumstances of their own creation. Like all of the cowtown country music drunks . . . According to KCFD, 107 calls for service were placed from the Kenney Chesney concert at Arrowhead Stadium on July 6. Although some of the calls were for various other ailments, heat-related issues and intoxication were the bulk of them. Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com links . . . KCFD responds to 107 calls at Kenny Chesney concert: 'Intoxication for the most part' As country music fans filled Arrowhead Stadium Saturday night, calls for intoxication and heat-related aid filled the Kansas City Fire Department. KCFD rescues man, woman after they got stuck in cave for five hours The man and woman first went into the caves around 11p.m. Saturday KCFD responds to 'several significant calls' overnight The Kansas City, Missouri, Fire Department responded to "several significant calls" overnight, according to a department spokesperson. Developing . . . Amid online allegations and TV reporting . . . Here's the latest development amid an ongoing police investigation . . . We'll post follow-up coverage as soon as possible . . . For now, word sent our way: Victims to hold press conference on the steps of the Jackson County Courthouse in downtown Kansas City. United in their efforts, this group of women aims to encourage other victims to come forward about the harm they endured by Bobby Hawk. KANSAS CITY, MO. (July 8, 2024) Six victims of Robert Bobby Hawk will hold a press conference in front of the downtown Jackson County courthouse in downtown Kansas City (415 E 12th St, Kansas City, MO 64106) at 1 PM on Wednesday, July 10, to discuss their intended next steps. This group of women aims to encourage other victims to come forward as well as discuss next steps towards accounability and justice. Bobby Hawk is the former President of the Blue Springs Districts Board of Education as well as served as lead pastor of EPIC KC Church. This press conference will serve as a way for victims to stress the importance of speaking out as well as inspire others to join them in seeking justice. They believe that collective action will help bring accountability and support to those impacted. If you have any additional information, please reach out to Sergeant Hughes at the Blue Springs Police Department, which has been given official authority to investigate Bobby Hawk. Anonymous tips are also welcome. Sergeant Keegan Hughes Blue Springs Police Department ################# Developing . . . Its a well-known fact that fishermen and farmers rise a little earlier than the rest of us, and as we roll out onto calm, dark Coxs Cove, on the west side of Newfoundland, Im still blinking a little sleep out of my eyes. But our captain of the day, Darren Park of Four Seasons Tours, who has lived his whole life on these Newfoundland waters, is convinced that rising at the crack of dawn will help us with our catch. Together with a small group of travel writers, were readying our rods and reels when Park, at the helm of his traditional wooden Bay of Islands dory, is suddenly distracted. Bald eagle! Bald eagle! Bald eagle! he calls out, three times, pointing up and off the starboard side. Sure enough, two tufted white heads peer down on us from the treetops, perhaps united with us in our hope that we will soon bring a big fish to the surface and theyll swoop down for a taste. I spot many more of these beautiful birds as we drop our lines in the water, trying a few of Parks favourite spots. The nibbles come slow, but the stories flow fast. Park points out long stretches of shoreline that once comprised a bustling fishing community. This is all resettled land, he says. Back in the 1960s, they floated houses right across the water. At one point, we navigate past a series of very tall sea cliffs. This was a cannonball practice site for the French navy, says Park, not clarifying when although I figure it mustve been long ago. The French still had a significant naval presence around Newfoundland in the late 1700s. As the sun climbs in the sky and the air warms, our chances for catching a fish drop. Even our eagle friends seem to have given up and flown off. And then, my rod twitches. At the end of my line, is that a bite? Im on a press trip to experience the wild side of Newfoundlands west coast. When we think about outdoorsy fun in Canada, British Columbia or Alberta often leaps to mind first. But here, from the craggy ridges of the Blow Me Down Mountains to the beauty of the Bay of Islands, I discover theres plenty of adventures on land and sea around Corner Brook, the provinces second city (which is far less visited than the capital, St. Johns, over on the east coast). And because this is Newfoundland, all of the fun comes with a good story including pirate tall tales told by a self-professed buccaneer. With the long history of this land from the Indigenous people whove lived here since time immemorial to the European settlers who began arriving in the latter part of the 15th century comes lots of legends. And Paul Gale is dealing stories on the day I visit his lodge and outdoor adventure company, Pirates Haven, a little over an hour southwest of Corner Brook. But first, he leads our small group on a fairly epic ATV trip. Heavy rain has nixed the initial plan to ride along the coast. So instead, Im following Gale, steering my roaring vehicle up into the foothills of the Long Range Mountains, the last stretch of the Appalachians. Further north, theres a range of the same chain called, rather evocatively, the Blow Me Down Mountains. As the wind and wet lash down, Im glad Gale has lent me his neon orange/yellow rain jacket and matching pants. And a funny thing happens: As the weather worsens, he seems to get only happier. At one point, he stops his four-wheeler and strides back to shift mine into a lower gear. Were going to do some river ridin now! he cries, almost ecstatic. And we do, descending onto a shallow stretch of Robinsons River. I navigate carefully over the rocks, white water rushing beneath my feet, the hardy tires throwing out great gushers on all sides. Looping back up to the main lodge at Pirates Haven, we find that Ruth Forsey-Gale, our guides wife and business partner, has prepared a crackling fire in the wood stove. As we begin to dry out, the couple places heaping plates of steaming moose burgers and sausages on the table. While the conditions werent ideal, Gale still feels like the ride went well. (I agree.) Were all about the outdoors, nature and showcasing hidden places, he says, smiling brightly. Gale tells me hes always been a pirate (I presume spiritually if not literally), and certainly looks the part, with a bandana, long hair and a big, bristly moustache. He starts to regale us. One tall tale is a love story that took place right near here. A young first mate for Peter Easton, the legendary 17th-century English pirate, jumped ship with some of the booty to pursue his passion for the daughter of another privateer. Gale launches into a second story. Distracted by drying my socks, I quickly lose the plot, but it involves poisoned wine and a captain stabbed through the throat. Perhaps he spots a few dubious looks among the group. This is history! he exclaims. You can look it up! The adventures continue. Just east of Corner Brook, I go ziplining with Marble Zip Tours at Marble Mountain Resort, soaring almost 30 stories over the thunder of Steady Brook Falls. On the Port au Port Peninsula, to the southwest, I hike a stretch of Dannys Trail, encountering rabbits and looking for seals, seabirds and whales in the clear waters of the bay, which is backed by rugged mountains. And right near Corner Brook, on the Bay of Islands, I take a Zodiac trip while a guide with Everoutdoor Adventures relates local town history, and legends about buried treasure, including the one where Spanish sailors carved a face on the peak of Shellbird Island now known as the Man in the Mountain to mark the spot. Back on Coxs Cove, my adrenalin surges as I realize Ive got a fish on my line. But, alas, only for a moment. As I set the hook and start to reel it in, the rod quickly goes slack, as the creature down below slips off and swims away to fight another day. But all is not lost. As we head to Parks cabin, another crackling fire awaits on a beach. He will prepare a beautiful seafood boil with mussels and lobster, simple and delicious, for our picnic table. All served up, of course, with a whole fresh round of wild stories. Tim Johnson travelled as a guest of Go Western Newfoundland, which did not review or approve this article. Traveling with pets can be so ruff, right? You are all set for your great trip around the world, and then it occurs to you that you have had a little pet with fur ever since. Fear not! This is good news for pet lovers as pet-friendly airlines are fully prepared to welcome your furry friend and let you travel together. Traveling with a furry friend was once considered a distress, but things are not as bad as before. Now, you have choices, and many airlines have begun accommodating pets on their airplanes. These pet-friendly airlines do not just allow your pet to travel by airplane, but make sure it does so in style. These are the pet-friendly airlines you must consider when traveling with your furry friend or whatever animal that is! Alaska Airlines When traveling with pets, choosing the right airline is important. Alaska Airlines stands out as a leader among pet-friendly airlines. They make the process seamless by allowing pets in the cabin and treating your pet carrier as a carry-on item. This way, your furry friend stays close and calm, right under the seat in front of you. Alaska Airlines exemplifies how pet-friendly airlines can change travel by putting pet comfort at the forefront. JetBlue JetBlue takes its place as one of the pet-friendly airlines with a kind offering: the JetPaws program. This innovative program caters to pet owners by providing a special pet carrier bag and valuable tips for managing pets while traveling. They even reward traveling pets and their owners with loyalty points, making every trip with your furry companion a little more rewarding. JetBlue's focus on making pet travel fun and stress-free shows why they are celebrated among pet-friendly airlines. Related Article : These Are the Pet-Friendly Destinations in Asia If You Want to Travel With Your Furry Friend Air Canada Flying with a larger pet? Air Canada, recognized among pet-friendly airlines, ensures that larger pets have a safe space in the cargo area while smaller pets can snuggle safely in the cabin. They require pets to be secured in their carriers but guarantee comfort and safety throughout the flight. This airline's commitment to accommodating pets of all sizes shows its dedication to being pet-friendly. Frontier Airlines Frontier Airlines distinguishes itself among pet-friendly airlines by allowing cats and dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs, and hamsters to fly in the cabin. Including smaller pets makes Frontier a standout choice for pet owners looking to travel with less conventional furry friends. Their approach to pet travel ensures that all pets, regardless of size, can travel comfortably and safely with their owners. Swiss International Airlines Swiss International Airlines rounds out our list of pet-friendly airlines with its flexible pet policy. They welcome various pets in the cabin, including cats, dogs, and even rabbits, as long as they're in an approved transport container. Their policy emphasizes safety and comfort, catering to pet owners who wish to keep their companions close during flights. Swiss International Airlines' commitment to flexible and friendly pet policies makes them a top choice among pet-friendly airlines. A staff member works at an oil-paper umbrella shop in Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) This photo taken on July 4, 2024 shows a view of Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) A woman dries farm produce at Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) This photo taken on July 3, 2024 shows a view of Shimen Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) A villager sells local specialties at Shimen Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) A tourist visits Shimen Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) Tourists visit Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) Tourists visit Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) A craftsman makes a straw raincoat at Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) This photo taken on July 3, 2024 shows an interior view of a homestay at Shimen Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) Tourists visit Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) Tourists visit Huangling Village of Wuyuan County, east China's Jiangxi Province, July 3, 2024. In recent years, Wuyuan County has been making efforts to promote rural tourism by exploring and utilizing its unique natural resources and traditional culture. (Xinhua/Du Xiaoyi) Editor: JYZ In Sicily, a popular vacation spot in Italy, hotels and guesthouses face serious problems. They need more water, forcing them to turn away tourists just when they are needed most. This issue is sparking a big worry among local business owners and tourists, especially during the peak summer months. Sicily's Water Crisis Hurts Tourism Sicily declared a state of emergency earlier this year due to a severe drought. The lack of rain has caused the ancient aqueducts and modern water systems to dry up, making it hard for hotels in cities like Agrigento to provide basic amenities like showers and toilets. As a result, more than 1 million residents and numerous tourists in about 93 communities are now under strict water rationing. As per CNN, local businesses, especially those in the tourism sector, are feeling the pinch. Hotels are trying to manage by advising guests about the water situation and helping them rebook in less affected areas of the island. However, smaller accommodations like bed and breakfasts are struggling because they can't store enough water to meet their needs. The regional government in Sicily has reached out for financial help to import water from the mainland, but no solid plan is in place yet. Meanwhile, the lack of water is not just an inconvenience but a threat to Sicily's economy, which heavily relies on the influx of tourists. As Sicily enters another dry summer, the island is at a crossroads. Efforts to diversify tourism throughout the year and not just in the summer are being considered, as the community tries to navigate this growing challenge. Drought Threatens Sicilian Farming Future Sicily has been experiencing drought since May, putting immense pressure on its farming communities. The region has received only 150 millimeters of rain in the past six months, creating one of the worst water crises in history. It has led to a state of emergency, as the drought threatens the economy and the daily lives of the people reliant on agriculture. The situation has resulted in over 1 billion in losses for farmers across Sicily. With water sources drying up, there is insufficient water for crops or livestock. Farmers like Donatella Vanadia saw a drastic reduction in hay production, essential for feeding cattle, by up to 70%. This affected the availability of animal food, reduced milk production, and increased the likelihood of culling livestock. Euronews revealed that in Sicily, water for drinking is pulled from underground aquifers, and water for irrigation is stored in large tanks built post-World War II. However, decreased rainfall and neglected maintenance of water systems over decades have led to failing reservoirs that can't meet current demands. The Italian government has stepped in with an emergency fund of 20 million, but local leaders, like Graziano Scardino of the Italian Farmers Confederation in Sicily, said it was not enough. They called for more significant actions and sustainable solutions to address the ongoing water crisis and support the local agriculture many depend on in Sicily. The locals in Barcelona have chosen a weird way to raise their voices against the city getting flooded by tourists. On Saturday, some sprinkled water on visitors to scare others away. In this unique form of protest, the locals of Barcelona raised their voices against the growing count of visitors who, according to them, had made living in Barcelona unbearable. Barcelona Residents Demand Tourist Limits Now The protest march through the streets of Spain's most-visited city was not just about the water-splashing incident. It was a cry for help from the residents who felt the charm and livability of Barcelona were under threat. Signs and banners reading "Enough! Let's put limits on tourism" could be seen waving among the crowd. The tourism problem in Barcelona has been growing: it received more than 12 million visitors last year alone, Travel Pulse stated. This surplus is what has made the cost of housing shoot by almost 70% in just a decade, pushing locals out of their own city. Protesters want the authorities to take stringent measures to reduce the number of tourists as quickly as possible. This protest in Barcelona is also part of a movement across the European continent, where cities like Amsterdam and Venice are rebelling against mass tourism equally. The mayor of Barcelona has acknowledged people's behavior toward mass tourism. He said steps might have to be taken to control the tourist boom. However, among Europe's most visited spots, Barcelona persistently needs help to balance warm hospitality toward visitors and ensure a high quality of life for residents. Related Article : Barcelona Takes Bold Step to Reclaim Housing for Locals, Bans Tourist Stays Tourist Limits Intensified Amid Crowding Following the declaration of Barcelona city council officials as being at full tourist capacity, a touristic tax increase will be implemented for the second time this year. This is in the hope that it manages to control and regulate the huge number of visitors, approximately 32 million, that visit the city annually. According to Planet Attractions, the new rise will come into effect from October, after which visitors will pay 4 per night as opposed to the present 3.25. It is the second rise since the beginning of April when it went up from 2.75 per night. In addition, a regional tourist tax stands at 3.50 per night, and the total levy on a week's stay becomes 52.50. It forms part of a greater plan to wean Barcelona off mass tourism and refocus on fewer but higher-spending visitors. In what might be referred to as an initiative to further tighten the noose on tourist numbers, Barcelona will revoke all licenses for holiday rentals by November 2028, affecting some 10,000 apartments in short-lets. Such a decision would prevent prominent online rental platforms like Booking.com and Airbnb from offering short-term rentals across the city. Additionally, the Barcelona City Council has once more introduced stringent legislation on constructing new hotels by adopting a policy that drastically limited new licenses between 2015 and 2023. This proves their commitment to the city to reshape its tourism model towards quality and with less quantity. A JetBlue plane had to urgently return to John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on Tuesday evening after debris was found in its engines. The Airbus A320, flying from JFK to West Palm Beach, was at an altitude of 5,000 feet when air traffic controllers spotted debris coming off the aircraft. JetBlue Quick Landing After Debris Scare The pilots quickly decided to turn the plane around and made a safe landing back at JFK approximately 30 minutes later on runway 22L. Following the incident, another JetBlue Airbus was sent to check the runway. Initially, nothing was found, but a closer look revealed two metal pieces near the runway's lights. Travel and Tour World says that a thorough inspection of the area uncovered three medium-sized metal fragments, confirming the initial concerns about foreign object debris (FOD) - a known aviation hazard. FOD can cause serious damage and is something all airports try to keep in check to avoid accidents. The affected JetBlue aircraft, which is over 24 years old and equipped with 162 seats, was originally delivered to JetBlue in June 2000. After a stint with Germany's Blue Wings from 2006 to 2010, it rejoined JetBlue's fleet. Following this incident, the plane has been listed as "stored" on Planespotters.net. To handle the disrupted travel plans, JetBlue arranged for another Airbus A320, registration N636JB, to take the passengers to West Palm Beach, landing three hours behind the original schedule. Related Article : JetBlue Airways Rolls Out New Bag Fees for Busy Travel Times New Daily Flights Enhance Connections JetBlue is stepping up its game with plans to add a new daily flight from Washington D.C. to Puerto Rico, aiming to better connect the two regions. The airline, known for its budget-friendly options, wants to start a second daily nonstop flight from Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport to Luis Munoz Marin International Airport in San Juan. This move comes after the success of their initial daily flight launched in 2012. The recent Federal Aviation Administration Reauthorization Act of 2024 is giving JetBlue this new opportunity. In another Travel and Tour World report, the act allows some flights to go beyond the usual distance limits from D.C., and JetBlue is ready to use one of these chances to fly more often to Puerto Rico. Every day, JetBlue shows its strong operations. For example, on July 5, a JetBlue Airbus A321 took off at 08:19 from D.C., reached San Juan at 11:36, and then headed to New York. This quick turnaround is just one example of how JetBlue keeps its planes and crews moving efficiently. Looking forward, JetBlue isn't just increasing flights to Puerto Rico. The airline plans to bring its Mint premium service to flights between New York and San Juan and is setting up a new crew base in San Juan. This base will help support more than 370 JetBlue crew members already working in Puerto Rico. JetBlue is also working on better connections to places like the U.S. Virgin Islands. By the end of 2024, JetBlue plans to offer flights to 18 destinations directly from Puerto Rico, including a new route to St Croix starting in December. The countries in the Caribbean have long been a favorite for beach lovers all around the world. That's because you will find the most picturesque, most pristine beaches in these countries. One of which is Trindad and Tobago. The southernmost island country in the Caribbean, Trindad and Tobago is rich mix of Indian and African cultures. It is also home to some of the best destinations in the world for beach lovers. If you're planning a trip to the beach soon, here are the places in Trinidad and Tobago that are more than worthy of your consideration. Englishman's Bay One of the beaches found in the island of Tobago, Englishman's Bay is a must-visit for those prefer more secluded beaches. This is because it can be quite tricky to find. However, once you do find it, expect a lush rainforest and a crescent-shaped beach. Those who visit typically enjoy camping, swimming, and snorkeling, and those who like to find turtles might be in luck. This is because Englishman's Bay is a known nesting ground for Leatherback Turtles. Maracas Bay Otherwise known as Maracas Beach, Maracas Bay is easily the best beach in the island of Trinidad. Located in the northern side of the island, Maracas Bay boasts of blue-green waters and off white sand. With a coastline that's 1. 25 miles (two kilometers) long, it has become a favorite among beach lovers. Maracas Bay can be reached by driving from the capital, Port of Spain, which makes it relatively accessible for visitors. It is one of the favorite spots of those who enjoy surfing due to its waves that can reach three feet (one meter). Related Article : These Beaches in Aruba are Perfect for Your Next Summer Vacation Pigeon Point If you are looking for what is the island of Tobago's best beach, then you're looking for Pigeon Point. Known for its white sand, Pigeon Point has made it to different rankings of the top beaches in the world. This is also where you can find numberous shops, restaurants, and bars to enjoy when in Tobago. Numerous watersports and water-related activities can also be enjoyed here, including snorkeling and kite surfing. Store Bay Looking for a very accessible beach? As in a beach that is known for literally being a two-minute walk away from the airport? Then you're looking for Store Bay. One of the busiest beaches in the island of Tobago, this is typically the departure spot for boat tours, particularly those heading for Buccoo Reef. It is also one of the best places to go to for anyone looking to try local delicacies. It is also a good place to find local crafts and souvenirs to take home. Dreaming of staying at The Venetian during your trip to Las Vegas? Well, you're in luck because there is an exciting promotion that will let you save on your stay! The luxury hotel and casino resort is offering up to 30% off for those who are staying at The Venetian from June 23 to September 5 this year. To sweeten the deal, this promotion likewise applies to stay at The Palazzo at The Venetian Resort. Here's what you have to know about this great promotion. Up to 30% Off at The Venetian Las Vegas Those who are interested to take advantage of this offer should take note that bookings can only be made until September 3, 2024, 10 a.m. PST. There is a minimum length of stay, which is three nights. Interested should also take note that blackout dates may apply. For those who end up jumping the gun by booking their stay only to regret it, there is good news for you. Your booking is cancellable or refundable. Related Article: Las Vegas Hotels Hit Record Highs with Formula One Boost Flexible Rates For those who wish to book their stays during the dates not covered by the aforementioned promotion, there is no need to worry. The Venetian Las Vegas has a flexible rate offer available on its official website. With a flexible 24-hour cancellation policy, these rates do not require a minimum nightly stay. It likewise applies to both The Venetian and The Palazzo at The Venetian Resort. Holiday Factory has been operating in the UAE since 2011. it is the countrys leading online package tour operator having been awarded for changing the face of the travel industry through offering affordable packages and excellent services. (TRAVPR.COM) UAE - July 8th, 2024 - Holiday Factory the biggest online package tour operator in the UAE is proud to present the Affordable Holiday Packages for this summer. The company was founded in the year 2011 and since then it has brought a revolution in the travel industry with cheap yet affordable services. This summer, Holiday Factory has prepared many cheap offers for the most popular destinations. Being a member of a German group, Holiday Factory has earned its reputation as the best company that is characterized by professionalism, zeal and dedication in its services for travel. As its vision of making travel accessible to everyone, Holiday Factory inspires travelers to discover new places, embrace different cultures and have fun with its cheap travel deals. Destinations and Deals Holiday Factory offers a variety of destinations to choose from, including: Uzbekistan: Discover the amazing ethical cities of Samarkand and Tashkent starting from AED 1,099. Kyrgyzstan: Explore the sights of Bishkek and get the packages starting at AED 1,599. Armenia : Experience the charm of Yerevan with packages starting from AED 1,799. Georgia : Enjoy the vibrant culture of Tbilisi with packages starting from AED 1,899. Thailand: Relax on the pristine beaches of Bangkok and Krabi with packages starting from AED 3,399. These packages include flights, accommodation, airport transfers, and guided tours, ensuring a hassle-free holiday experience. About Holiday Factory Holiday Factory has been operating in the UAE since 2011. it is the countrys leading online package tour operator having been awarded for changing the face of the travel industry through offering affordable packages and excellent services. Holiday Factory is a part of the German Group; as such, it has its main values and principles: professionalism, dedication and love for travel. Our mission is to continue offering cheap holiday packages and, thus, open new horizons for those who want to travel and discover new places, countries, and traditions, the CEO of Holiday Factory stated. Booking Your Dream Holiday Making bookings with Holiday Factory is easy and fast. Booking of packages is also convenient for customers through the companys website through the easy-to-use online booking system. All that a traveler is required to do is to select the travel destination, choose a package, and make the payment. Holiday Factorys professional staff guarantees that the necessary documents are forwarded to the customers through email hence there are no complications. Visit for us: https://www.holiday-factory.com/ ### At the summit in Washington this week, the leaders of the NATO member countries will make significant security commitments to Ukraine. U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink wrote this on the social media site X, commenting on today's Russian missile attack against cities across Ukraine, Ukrinform reports. "As leaders gather for NATOs 75th anniversary, Russia launched 40 missiles across Ukraine. This callous aggression - a total disregard for human life, jeopardizing European & Transatlantic security - is why leaders will make significant security commitments to Ukraine this week," she said. Russia launched a massive missile attack on Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk and Kramatorsk on July 8. More than 40 missiles of various types were used. Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said that at least 20 people had been killed in the Russian missile attack on Ukraine. According to preliminary reports, eight people were killed and 15 injured in the Ukrainian capital, Kyiv. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has strongly condemned missile attacks by Russian invaders against Ukrainian cities this morning, which killed innocent civilians, including children. He said this in Washington on Monday before a meeting with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, Ukrinform reports, citing the Pentagon's website. "In Ukraine, Russia continues its brutal war. Only today, we have seen horrendous missile attacks against Ukrainian cities, killing innocent civilians, including children. I condemn these heinous attacks. At the summit, we'll make decisions to further strengthen our support to Ukraine, and Russia must understand that they are not able to wait those out. They need to sit down and accept a solution where Ukraine prevails as a sovereign independent nation," Stoltenberg said. Before the start of the negotiations, Stoltenberg thanked Austin for his commitment to strengthening NATO and the transatlantic alliance, and especially for his leadership in mobilizing all allies and many partners, more than 50 nations, establishing the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. "The Ramstein format has been extremely important, and it really made a difference and enabled us all to provide unprecedented support to Ukraine. So, this would not have happened without your strong leadership on the support for Ukraine," Stoltenberg said. The 75th NATO Summit will take in Washington on July 9 through July 11. One of its main topics will be stepping up military aid to Ukraine. Photo: nato.int 07/08/2024 By Brooke Coupal Porchhay Be 24, an avid video gamer, has seen his fair share of cheating in the virtual realms. Theres a lot of bad actors hacking video games, says Be, who grew up in Cambodia. Since I was young, I wanted to know how they did that, and how it can be prevented. Bes curiosity developed into a desire to work in cybersecurity, where he could protect systems from digital attacks like the ones he witnessed in video games. Now a cybersecurity firmware engineer at Schneider Electric in Andover, Massachusetts, Be has accomplished his goal. Bes journey with Schneider Electric, an energy management and automation company, began during his senior year at UMass Lowell. As a computer science major, Be took part in the Kennedy College of Sciences Undergraduate Design Project, which since 2018 has connected students with companies, including Red Hat and Onto Innovation (formerly Rudolph Technology), to work on real problems for academic credit. Schneider Electric has collaborated with the Undergraduate Design Project since 2019, and this year, the company was looking for students to work on artificial intelligence (AI) security research. With an interest in AI, Be signed on. Im a tech enthusiast. I like to learn about new technology, and AI has become very popular, he says. Being able to work with AI and trying to secure it, its amazing. Over the academic year, Be worked on the project with fellow computer science majors Ali Jibril Kabbara 24, Joan Montas 24 and rising senior Shruti Susarla. The group investigated different ways in which AI can be attacked and how those attacks can be stopped. They regularly visited Schneider Electric, where they learned about the different technologies that the company uses and received feedback on their work. At the end of the academic year, the students presented their findings to Schneider Electric and the UMass Lowell community. It was a symbiotic relationship, says Montas, a Maynard, Massachusetts, resident who is now working in cybersecurity at a different organization. We are fresh on theory, and Schneider Electric has the experience and the wisdom. They learn from us, and we learn a lot from them. I gained a lot of soft skills, adds Jibril Kabbara, a Canton, Massachusetts, resident who is looking to pursue a software engineering career. I got to be a part of a long-term project where I worked with a group under professional expectations that we can present to people who arent familiar with what were working on. Image by Courtesy Ian Chen, an assistant professor in the Miner School of Computer & Information Sciences, led the project, while Schneider Electric employees Nicholas Yameen 19, 21 and Ted Han served as mentors for the students. Before working for Schneider Electric, Yameen, a computer engineering alum, interned for the company for two years following his first year at UMass Lowell. He also completed a project with Schneider Electric during his senior year as part of the Francis College of Engineerings Industry-Sponsored Senior Design Project. Yameen credits this project with helping him get a full-time job offer after he received his bachelors degree. As my boss says, Its the best eight-month interview that you can get from a student, says Yameen, a Schneider Electric senior technical edge product owner from Haverhill, Massachusetts. For the past five years, Yameen has mentored students in the Undergraduate Design Project. Its a full-circle moment, he says. I can teach them what it means to be a full-time engineer in an environment like this. Several students who have completed the project with Schneider Electric have received internships and co-ops with the company, which subsequently led to full-time job offers for some. Thats exactly what happened with Be. The employees at Schneider Electric encouraged Be to apply for a co-op as he was working on the Undergraduate Design Project. He got the position and started working as a cybersecurity embedded software engineering intern in February. The cybersecurity team went on to offer Be a full-time position, which he began in July. I enjoy working with them, so its exciting that they gave me a return offer, says Be, who adds that securing a full-time job was a big relief. For Be, the Undergraduate Design Project proved instrumental as he started his career. It gave me professional experience that prepared me for my future work, he says. The path Jerrian Reedy took to medicine was forged in the crucible of personal tragedy. Still just nine years old, Reedy had one of the more memorable summers of his life. His father was admitted to a Hattiesburg, Mississippi, hospital with three gunshot wounds. Though children are not allowed in the intensive care unit in their hometown hospital, Reedy was given an exception. The vision of his father lying on the bed at the hospital remained in his mind long after his father's death, only a week later. If that wasn't enough of a blow for the boy, his family further suffered from the loss of both an aunt and a grandmother in the course of nine months. These experiences instilled in Reedy the need to prevent other children from having to go through similar heartbreak. This drive propelled him into the field of medicine, heeding his call to become a beacon of hope in the field where representation and understanding can be very instrumental in the outcome of treatment. The Road to Representation Reedy's path to becoming a medical student at the University of Mississippi School of Medicine vastly becomes relevant in the much broader context of racial inequities within medicine. In Mississippi, a state where nearly 40% of its population bears the racial identity of Black, less than 10% of its doctors do. This wide discrepancy underscores long-standing barriers Black individuals face during access to medical education and, consequently, to care within their communities. Even though he's part of just a small minority-- 82 of the 660 medical students at his school are Black-- Reedy is a major player. Studies have shown that patients do better when they're cared for by doctors of their own race, partly because they communicate better and relate to the same culture. Medical schools are working hard across the country to develop programs to attract Black, Hispanic, and Native American students to fill such gaps. These efforts are now threatened by recent changes to the law. Anti-DEI Legislation Challenges This push toward medical school diversity has continued amid rising pushback, especially after the Supreme Court's 2023 decision that barred affirmative action policies in higher education. In response, numerous states, such as Mississippi, have proposed or created laws designed to constrain this type of DEI program. Proponents argue that it should be purely based on qualification and not on race or socioeconomic status. However, critics argue that these measures will only help in increasing health disparities. They also said that DEI work is not about giving international students room to have lower standards than their domestic classmates; rather, it's about leveling the playing field so any qualified person, regardless of background, has a chance to pursue a medical career. Much research points out that having a diverse medical workforce will improve health outcomes for the underserved population of communities. The debate surrounding DEI programs in medical education is very poignant in Mississippi. Its health outcomes are among the worst in the nation, and its legacy of systemic racism persists within its healthcare workforce to this very day. The University of Mississippi School of Medicine has a contentious legacy-- only integrating its first Black student in 1972. Planning the annual African American Visit Day and test preparation programs for underrepresented applicants are looking to move the school forward from this tarnished legacy. Supporting the Next Generation Events like the African American Visit Day at the University of Mississippi School of Medicine aim to inspire, equip, and mentor the next generation of Black doctors. Activities provide a glimpse into the vast career opportunities available through medicine and offer specific tools such as test preparation and mentorship. This will be of value to participants who would resonate with it. For Reedy, being involved in programs such as the PROMISE program was essential in his journey. Students from families whose backgrounds have hitherto been considered disadvantaged, and who meet certain specified academic criteria, have acceptance guaranteed under these programs. These programs support students who otherwise might be bypassed by systemic biases baked into educational and healthcare systems. Reedy's story is one of the principal narratives of resilience and representation in medicine. His drive to orthopedic surgery was to serve his community, to secure a future where no child goes through that kind of loss. It is further seasoned with the hope that continuing higher education will inspire dedication and support to make the medical profession increasingly fair. This will lead to favorable health outcomes for all. In a landmark judgment, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has held that students enrolled under the fake University of Farmington, created by federal immigration agents, are permitted to bring the claim against the government of the United States. The long-awaited judgment now puts to question subterfuge tactics said to have been used over the years against the students by the controversial U.S. Immigration and Customs enforcement department. The University of Farmington was founded in 2015 in Farmington Hills, Michigan, at least in the minds of ICE agents who thought up the fictional school so they could conduct a sting operation to catch foreign citizens committing visa fraud. The university had what appeared to be a website, an admissions office, and even accreditation from something called the Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges. However, it was all an operation fashioned to catch students whom ICE believed were looking at ways to remain in the U.S. without pursuing real courses. 250 students have so far been arrested in the operation and some of them deported. Legal Battle for Justice and Compensation In 2020, Teja Ravi and several students, his peers, who had admitted themselves to the University of Farmington, filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government for fraudulent inducement to recover tuition fees and other consequential damages. Each student lost the U.S. equivalent of $11,000 as tuition a year to study an education for which the service was never tendered. By taking their tuition money under false pretenses, the U.S. government made an implied contract with the students and started the lawsuit in a roundabout way. The initial ruling of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in 2022 dismissed the case for lack of jurisdiction. This most recent Federal Circuit decision reverses that dismissal and remands the case back down to the Claims Court, which is a massive win for the students because, in essence, their right to hold anyone accountable for their claims and to redress the deceptions they suffered has now been respected. "In all fairness, this ruling feels like a victory not just in court but in the high moral ground," said Prudhivi Raj, a student at the University of Farmington, in a recent statement. "It highlights, time and again, that no one, not even the government, is above the common spirit of rectitude." Implications and Reactions The ruling has elicited widespread reaction, which underscores considerations of ethics and legality in the government's action. According to Anna Nathanson, one of the students' attorneys, "It is time for the US government to be held accountable for the families and all those affected by this operation; justice is needed now." The ICE operation has been broadly denounced as deceptive. Documentation indicates that ICE went so far as to confer the state of Michigan corporate status on Farmington University, in addition to listing the university on the ICE website as an approved school. The students, among them immigrants from India who were here to pursue their degrees in technology and science, were legally in America on attendant student visas. With all the shows created to make the institute look on the up-and-up, the jig was up when students started noticing some inconsistencies and reported missing classes and unresponsive university officials. Ravi himself, who had paid $12,500 in tuition, revealed he was not enrolled in any class or pushed to do assignments. He was never made to attend a single class, even after he was assured about these matters by official university representations. The controversy has elicited the notice of several strident public figures and organizations. In 2019, more student arrests sparked protests from lawmakers like Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In 2022, 40 groups urged DHS to investigate and help students. A Ray of Hope This judgment not only offers a ray of hope to the students whose rights have been violated but also points to a way for future litigations regarding similar cases of government overreach and deception. The judgment lays down the requirement for accountability and transparency since the steps taken by government agencies rifle down with far-reaching effects on the lives of individuals. As the case returns to the Court of Federal Claims in Washington, D.C., the students are again with the case and their lawyers, emphasizing the need for accountability and compensation for wrongs committed. The case is not just about the violation of rights but a reminder that in the goal orientation of law enforcement, fairness and probity cannot become a casualty at the altar of convenience and expediency. Many students from Uzbekistan have systematically made their way to the best universities in the United States for many years. This article acquaints the readers with bright cases of talented young Uzbeks on their way to success, their desires for further education, and building a great career. These stories are about the example of dedication, resilience, and ambition for young scholars. Abdulaziz Sobirov: From Khiva to Harvard University A 17-year-old student of Khiva, Abdulaziz Sobirov, gained admission to Harvard University with a $366,000 scholarship. He wants to major in Mechanical Engineering. Now, he is a senior at the Presidential School in Tashkent. He had a passion for engineering and robotics, which kept him on his academic track. In his application to Harvard, he made sure to mention his active participation in many science, mathematics, and robotics competitions and his eagerness to apply his engineering ingenuity to serve mankind. On the intellectual front, he has also been a national quiz bowl participant in Zakovat. His team won many seasons of the Students League, reflecting that he could succeed in a competitive environment. Reflecting on his journey, Abdulaziz contributes this success to the never-ending pursuit of knowledge coupled with the sheer support from fellow colleagues and mentors. His is an inspirational story: a great example of passion and dedication to one's area of interest that brings over-the-top opportunities one's way. Allomakhon Fayzullaeva: Championing Gender Studies at Brown University 18-year-old Allomakhon Fayzullaeva was an Academic Lyceum graduate from the University of World Economy and Diplomacy, and she was sent on a $376,000 scholarship to Brown University to follow her interests in political science and gender studies. Allomakhon's story is that of rigorous scholarship commitment and social activism. She spent her gap year preparing for the SAT, researching colleges, and drafting application essays. What's more, the lack of internationally recognizable programs like IB or A-levels had not daunted Allomakhon from any online college courses to take up to strengthen her academic resume. She was also working part-time as a private IELTS tutor. Allomakhon is going to apply her education to supporting gender equality within Uzbekistan. She desires to bring more women into leadership and politics and calls upon her major in political science and gender studies to make this happen. Her story shows how never giving up can make all the difference and how education might just determine the greatness one will achieve. Asad Abdrshin: Mathematical Pursuits at Vanderbilt University Asad Abdrshin is an 18-year-old United World College Red Cross Nordic, Norway graduate who has been admitted to Vanderbilt University on a scholarship worth $384,000. Asad's academic story is that of a math lover whose life was thrown into limbo after he received a scholarship to attend UWC. Coming from Tashkent, his selection to the UWC program was a milestone in his life. At the same time, it pushed him not only academically and culturally but also as an individual toward becoming the international citizen UWC purports. Concerning Vanderbilt, Asad hopes to work with mathematical knowledge in a variety of subjects to improve society. Asad's story goes on to show how strongly international education could work as a significant propeller to any person for both personal and academic elevation. His commitment to mathematics and his desire to leave something good behind speaks for what the young-minded, optimistic-minded scholar can do, shaping the potential of the future. Husniddin Qironov: Global Liberal Studies at NYU Husniddin Qironov, a 19-year-old graduate of Target International School, Tashkent, got accepted to the Liberal Studies program at New York University. His admission papers state his interest in cross-cultural studies with an eye toward global problems. Husniddin has a motivating story, showcasing the fact that a versatile interest in different things and the passion to get to know them critically can also be a leading path to great success. Getting accepted into Liberal Studies at NYU speaks for his academic excellence and potential to be engaged in global dialogues. Sayfullo Saidov: Aspiring to Be a Chemical Engineering Student at Princeton University Sayfullo Saidov is a 17-year-old entering freshman from Bukhara. He was accepted by Princeton University with a $357,000 scholarship. He has an idea of further majoring in Chemical and Biological Engineering. Guided by Freshman Academy, Sayfullo's journey is one showing the power of mentorship and quality preparation. Sayfullo went to Japan with his family which changed his view on the world and contributed to his education. His admission to Princeton indicated the excellence of his academics and what kind of shining capacity this man holds in the field of engineering. These are stories of different ways in which hard work, dedication, and community support helped Uzbek students get admitted to top US universities. Their story is deeply motivational, encouraging others to pursue their dreams through the transformative power of education. July 8 2024 The seaside town of Aberdour in Fife will receive a new private school and over a hundred new homes in a joint venture between Cala Homes and Hillside School. The pairing has submitted proposals for 186 homes alongside a new Additional Support Needs campus within the grounds of the B-listed Hillside House, which will be vacated by the school and repurposed for residential use. An agreement between both parties has seen the school agree to sell its 135-acre estate to Cala while retaining a portion of the site for a new energy-efficient building, a playing field and workshops. Stephen Faller, land manager with Cala Homes (East), said: We understand the sensitive nature of the development and recognise there is a responsibility on us as a collective to bring forward the best possible plans. Given the site achieved outline planning consent in 2021, the teams have worked hard to understand the concerns around the previous proposals and have amended our designs to reduce the overall residential development footprint by around 15%. The residential and school development will be gas-free, containing new electric charging points and extensive tree planting which is putting sustainability at the core of the development. The proposals also include a dedicated three-metre cycle/pedestrian link within the development which will connect the village to the site for the wider publics benefit, reducing the reliance on car use. The plans for a mix of cottage flats, terraced and detached homes, including 46 classed as affordable, are now in the hands of Fife Council. July 16 2015 Plans have been submitted by Bosunstone for a large mixed-use development in Tradeston, Glasgow , replacing existing warehousing with 398 flats and a landscaped amenity space.Rising up to 11 storeys the ICDP Architects designed scheme will give all flats a dual aspect and/or access to private balconies, together with an active frontage to Cook Street in the form of an arcade/galleria intended to honour the historic industrial grid.Two tones of brick will be used for a rusticated base plinth and mid sections with a high pressure laminate cladding and opaque glazing used for a penthouse levelIn their design statement ICDP said: Instead of forming a building with an enclosed courtyard, a single building form with wings folding towards the rear of the site allowed a number of distinctive courtyards to be formed which would let sunlight from the South to penetrate the development whilst providing the dwellings with open views out of the site."Due to the scale of the development and the fact that southern side of the scheme would be highly visible from the railway line and motorway there would be no traditional front and rear elevations; therefore each bookend block is designed to have a distinctive form to help generate a sense of place.Walking and cycling routes will be cut through this block to link with West Street. Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday assured K-Electric of addressing its matters related to delayed payments ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday assured K-Electric of addressing its matters related to delayed payments. According to press release issued by the finance ministry, the minister was talking to delegation of K-Electric that called on him here. The delegation members included Chief Executive Officer (CEO) K-Electric Syed Moonis Abdullah Alvi, CFO KE Muhammad Aamir Ghaziani and Chief Regulatory Affairs Muhammad Imran Qureshi. The minister asked the KE team to focus on improving service delivery in Karachi and to expedite its plan for adding cheaper generation capacity so that the cost of electricity could be brought down. Earlier, the KE representatives stated that the agreement signed between the government and KE earlier this year had addressed a number of issues and KE was now vigorously working on implementing the new generation projects to improve its electricity mix. The delegation raised the issue of delayed payments of KEs consumer bills collected through the post office. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday held a meeting with the Founder and Chairman Delivery Associates Sir Michael Barber at Finance Division ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb on Monday held a meeting with the Founder and Chairman Delivery Associates Sir Michael Barber at Finance Division. The minister thanked Sir Michael for his acknowledgment and appreciated the support of the United Kingdom (UK) government, said a news release. He outlined key priority areas for the government comprising of taxation reforms, energy sector reforms, and restructuring of State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs). Emphasizing the importance of structural reforms within the framework of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) program. Aurangzeb highlighted initiatives aimed at enhancing exports, attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), and the privatization efforts. He underscored the government's focus on export-led growth and the digitalization of the Federal board of Revenue (FBR) to ensure transparency and expand the tax base. Sir Michael Barber appreciated the Federal Budget 2024-25 and the structural reforms in taxation implemented by the government of Pakistan. Recognizing the challenges involved, he discussed the priority areas of Pakistan's homegrown economic plan. Sir Michael reaffirmed the commitment to continuing support, building on previous collaborative efforts with Pakistan. They both agreed to enhance collaboration, focusing on mutual strategic goals and sustainable economic development. The meeting was also attended by Development Director British High Commission Ms. Jo Moir, Senior Governance Advisor Matt Clancy, Governance Advisor BHC Naveed Aziz, Senior Economic Advisor Louie Dane and officials from Finance Division. (@ChaudhryMAli88) Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that under an agreement reached between the Federal and Balochistan provincial governments, a total of 28,000 agricultural tube wells in the province would be shifted to solar system within three months QUETTA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday said that under an agreement reached between the Federal and Balochistan provincial governments, a total of 28,000 agricultural tube wells in the province would be shifted to solar system within three months. Talking to media after the agreement signing ceremony, the prime minister said the federal government would provide 70 percent funds while 30 percent would be contributed by the provincial government for Rs 55 billion solarization project. The prime minister met the provincial cabinet in which the federal ministers and Governor Balochistan Jafar Khan Mandokhel and Chief Minister Sarfraz Ahmed Bugti were present, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release. Earlier, the prime minister witnessed an agreement signing ceremony between the federal and the provincial governments for shifting of electricity run tube wells to solar powered mechanism. The prime minister tasked the chief minister to complete the solarization project within three months. He opined that the completion of project would ensure prosperity of the farmers and bring a large area of cultivable land under farming, adding that with functioning of the solar powered tube wells, the farmers would get uninterrupted power supply throughout the day. During his address to the provincial cabinet, he termed the agreement as a deep structured change firmly rooted in the governments conceived reforms agenda, he said that a huge sum of Rs500 billion would be saved from going down the drain. The prime minister said that the federal government would be absolve of paying Rs80-90 billion burden which was provided as subsidy to the province due to non-payment of bills and still the farmers community was getting 2 to 6 hours power supply. With the solarization process, the issue would be resolved forever, he expressed the hope. The prime mister said that throughout the world, the utilization of solar capacity was tapped for generation of environment friendly power which was considered as the inexpensive source of power. He said that the government was taking steps on priority basis for the provision of solar power and assured that the federal government would work closely with the provincial government for the uplift of the province. The prime minister said that they had reserved 10 percent of additional quota for the students of province in a batch of 1,000 graduate students being sent to China on government scholarships to seek the latest training in the agriculture sector. While 10 percent additional quota for the students of Balochistan was also allocated in the training programme to be imparted by Huawei to 300,000 students in IT sector, he added. He further informed that the federal government had already set aside funds in the fiscal budget for Danish schools in the province, adding that they were keen to broaden Danish schools to the divisional level so that students in the entire province could be benefitted from the education facility. The prime minister said that when the young people of Balochistan were equipped with the latest education, the country and province would move on path of progress. The prime minister also appreciated ideas and efforts of the chief minister and said the todays signing of agreement was part of the reforms agenda and collective efforts made by the federal and provincial governments for the progress and prosperity of the country. The prime minister also apprised that a total of 1 million agricultural tube wells throughout the country would also be converted on solar power and would save a sum of $3.5 billion on import bills of fuel, thus saving precious and limited resources of the country. The model for the upcoming project would be introduced soon which would be a quantum jump, he added. He regretted that the injustices were done with the debt ridden country in the last many decades and if they had not taken drastic steps for the economic turnaround, the coming generations would not forgive them. The prime minister said that it was his first visit to the province after the formation of new government. He said Balochistan was a very important province of the country and if it was lagging behind in terms of development, there were various reasons, adding Pakistans progress was linked with the development of province. The prime minister said that Punjab province had also allocated a part of its NFC share to the development of Balochistan, adding about Rs150-160 billion had been provided to province so far. The prime minister said that nothing was impossible to achieve in this world though there might be difficulties but the developed nations emerged successful after overcoming different challenges with collective efforts. He said Gwadar would become the biggest income resource for the province and China was ready to transform it into a global hub of trade. The prime minister also expressed the resolve to root out the scourge of terrorism from the province. Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, during a meeting of the Energy Department, approved in-principle Roshan Gharana Program under which solar panels would be provided to the consumers consuming up to 500 units of electricity LAHORE, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, during a meeting of the Energy Department, approved in-principle Roshan Gharana Program under which solar panels would be provided to the consumers consuming up to 500 units of electricity. The chief minister said that Punjab government will provide solar system to million of consumers consuming electricity from 50 to 500 units, adding that 90 percent of the cost of solar panel will be paid by the Punjab government, while the remaining 10 percent will be paid by the consumer. The CM said in view of the rising cost of electricity and the energy crisis, it was decided to start 'Roshan Gharana' programme, under which solar panels will be provided to the customers in easy installments of five years. Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif said, We will not leave people alone in difficult situations. She added, We are trying to save people from the effects of past disasters. She highlighted that after five years people will not have to face the current issues. The CM also called a cabinet meeting tomorrow to formally approve 'Roshan Gharana' program of providing solar panels to the people. She said using a transparent procedure, solar systems will be given to the poorest families in Phase-I. She added in winter the installment of solar panel will be relatively less, the panel will only be supplied by the government. She said that as per users needs, ratio between government electricity and the electricity obtained from solar system would be determined. PESHAWAR, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Health Department has issued a special advisory stating that all hospitals, including basic health centers, will remain open in the province during Muharram ul Haraam. Health Directorate and district-level control rooms have been established, ensuring emergency services are available in all hospitals, including those near Imam Bargahs. All hospitals have been directed to ensure the presence of doctors, nurses, and other supporting staff. Measures have been taken to guarantee the availability of medical equipment in all health centers. Hospitals will maintain contact with district administrations and rescue teams, and hospital heads have been informed accordingly. (@Abdulla99267510) The court has ruled that the murder of senior journalist Arshad Sharif was illegal and unconstitutional, and directed the government to pay 10 million Kenyan shillings to his family. NAIROBI: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-July 8th, 2024) The Kenyan High Court on Monday ordered the government to pay 10 million Kenyan shillings to the family of slain journalist Arshad Sharif, who was mistakenly shot and killed by the local police in October 2022. Arshad Sharif, a senior journalist and tv anchor, was killed near Nairobi on October 23. He was living in self-exile. The police later in a statement regretted over unfortunate incident. Justice Stella Mutuku announced the verdict ruling that the use of lethal force against Arshad Sharif by shooting him in the head was unlawful and unconstitutional. Advocate Dudley Ochiel represented Sharif's wife, Javeria Siddique, and asked the court to order the Attorney General, Director of Public Prosecutions, Inspector General of Police, Independent Policing Oversight Authority, and the National Police Service Commission to provide her with copies of all documents, evidence, films, photographs and video recordings related to Sharifs shooting. The court ruled that By shooting the deceased in the circumstances described in this case and which shooting has been admitted save for the allegation that it was mistaken identity, the respondents violated the rights of the deceased,. Earlier, Kenyan investigative journalist Brian Obuya raised concerns over the delay in the probe findings into the senior journalist's murder case. Obuya pointed out that investigators have taken a considerable amount of time to complete the probe into Sharif's death. ISTANBUL, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Thousands of workers are battling against time to plug the breach in a dam at Chinas second-largest freshwater lake, state media reported on Monday. The dike breach of around 226 meters (741 feet) in Dongting Lake in mountainous southern Hunan province in Huarong county occurred on Friday, triggering the evacuation of some 7,000 local residents. An unprecedented rainfall had led to unsuccessful emergency repairs in the lake embankments that comes under the jurisdiction of the city of Yueyang. Over 300 workers, including police and firefighters, working on a 14.3-kilometer (8.8-mile) embankment -- seen as the second line of defense against the lake's gushing waters -- appear to be under threat. Also, some 4,739 rescuers joined the rescue and relief operations, according to Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters. The embankment separates the flooded Tuanzhou township from the lake, while the water has broken through in several places. Local authorities expect to plug the gaps by Tuesday afternoon, local time. In May, the Pakistan China Joint Lab for Artificial Intelligence and Smart Agriculture (AI&SA) has been established at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF) BEIJING, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) In May, the Pakistan China Joint Lab for Artificial Intelligence and Smart Agriculture (AI&SA) has been established at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad (UAF). Punjab Province, as Pakistan's main agricultural production area, its annual grain output accounts for about 76% of the country's total annual grain output. Both parties agreed that it has unique advantages to carry out pilot applications of high-throughput crop monitoring projects here. In this province, about 600 farmers have joined the pilot application. Dr. Iqrar Ahmad Khan, Vice Chancellor UAF, noted lately that in the 25,000 villages across Punjab, if drone spraying technology could be adopted on a large scale, it will help increase productivity, reduce costs and greatly promote the development of intelligent agriculture. "We use drones equipped with visual recognition equipment to fly around the fields to achieve intelligent management of crop monitoring, cultivation management, pest and disease analysis, and agricultural production, including growth determination, crop health monitoring, water requirement analysis, fertilization, as well as pesticide application," Dr Wu Jun, the Chinese Director of the lab, introduced. Mohammad Malik, a local farmer who has been growing wheat, sugarcane and other crops in Punjab for more than 30 years, is one of the participants in the pilot project. At first, he had many doubts about the project. "This technology is too complicated for farmers like me, and I doubt its effectiveness and practicality." The project team members promptly explained it, "We could produce a text guide and audio-visual materials of the vegetation health map written in the local dialect and send them to your son's smartphone application." "We now have a more accurate grasp of the water and fertilizer needs of crops, which avoids over- or under-watering as we did in the past, thus reduces input costs," said Malik, with joy, he has learned how to use these techniques. "Now our whole family is looking forward to this innovative technology helping us increase the yields." It is well known that the biggest difficulty facing traditional farming is the unpredictable natural climate and the impact of pests and diseases, which leads to the dual instability of food production and income. Pakistan, is one of the world's top ten wheat and rice producers, with agriculture accounting for about 18.9% of its GDP and employing 44.2% of the country's labor force. Despite its favorable agricultural planting foundation, Pakistan is one of the countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and one of the ten countries with the largest number of people facing severe sudden hunger, CEN reported. Today, the Joint Lab has 9 doctors and several masters and engineers working on the development of high-throughput crop monitoring projects. Pakistan has also sent several postdoctoral fellows to Guangzhou, China, to learn AI technologies. "I come from a farmer's family thus I totally understand the problems faced by our farmers. By now, severe heat waves and water shortages have become our main challenges. I joined the team to provide farmers with real-time data to help them optimize their planting decisions and ensure community food security," Saqib Ali, a Pakistani researcher at the lab, mentioned. "Bringing AI technology to Pakistan and applying it to agriculture to help local farmers solve the problem of hunger is the most important thing as well as our biggest goal," said Dr. Wu. By now, the World Bank and the Asian Disaster Management Center has provided funding support for the project, emphasizing the importance of this innovative solution in addressing climate challenges and enhancing agricultural sustainability. APP/asg Palestinians on Monday fled heavy battles in Gaza City as the Israeli military expanded an evacuation order nine months into its war with Hamas group Gaza Strip, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Palestinians on Monday fled heavy battles in Gaza City as the Israeli military expanded an evacuation order nine months into its war with Hamas group. While fighting raged, Hamas and Israel staked their claims for truce talks as mediators Egypt and Qatar were due to host new meetings this week, according to officials. Israeli troops and tanks pushed into parts of Gaza City, in the besieged territory's north, and battled Palestinian group. Thousands were on the move again, according to the Civil Defence agency in the Hamas-run territory. Witnesses said messages on loudspeakers urged civilians to leave Gaza City's Al-Daraj and Al-Tuffah neighbourhoods. The Israeli military called on Palestinians to leave parts of Gaza City's west, the army's spokesman Avichay Adraee said on social media, expanding its evacuation zone in the territory's biggest city with the third order in less than two weeks. AFP photographers saw Palestinians leave on foot, bikes and on donkey carts, carrying their belongings through rubble-strewn streets. Manila, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) The Philippines and Japan signed a key defence pact on Monday that will allow the deployment of troops on each other's territory, as they boost ties in the face of China's growing assertiveness. The Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) was finalised in Manila, where Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara and Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa are holding talks with their Philippine counterparts Gilberto Teodoro and Enrique Manalo. The accord, which Tokyo and Manila began negotiating in November, provides the legal framework for Japan and the Philippines to send defence personnel to each other's territory for training and other operations. Teodoro and Kamikawa signed the agreement at the presidential palace, presidential communications secretary Cheloy Garafil told AFP. The Philippines and Japan are longtime allies of the United States, which has been strengthening its alliances from Canberra to Tokyo to counter China's growing military might and influence in the region. Chinese officials have accused the United States of trying to create an Asia-Pacific version of NATO. The signing of the RAA comes as China's growing sabre-rattling towards Taiwan and over the South China Sea fuels fears of a potential conflict that could drag in the United States. There have been escalating confrontations at sea between Chinese and Philippine ships as Beijing steps up efforts to push its claims to nearly all of the strategic waterway. The most serious in a number of incidents happened on June 17 when Chinese coast guard personnel wielding knives, sticks and an axe surrounded and boarded three Philippine navy boats during a resupply mission to Second Thomas Shoal in the Spratly Islands. A Filipino sailor lost his thumb in the incident. Tokyo and Beijing are also at loggerheads over Japan-controlled disputed islands in the East China Sea. Japan invaded and occupied the Philippines during World War II, but the two countries have since grown closer due to trade and investment, and more recently, to counter a resurgent China. Japan is a key supplier of security equipment to the Philippines, including patrol vessels for its coast guard and a coastal radar surveillance system. Tokyo's ambassador to Manila, Kazuya Endo, flagged in a speech on Thursday "significant developments" in Japan's defence equipment supplies to the Philippines. Tokyo has signed similar reciprocal access agreements with Britain and Australia in recent years. The Philippines has equivalent pacts with the United States and Australia and plans to pursue one with France. The RAA between Manila and Tokyo was important because it would enable the Philippines "to enhance our interoperability with like-minded partners", said Manila-based geopolitical analyst Don McLain Gill. "This would also complement what we are trying to do in terms of enhancing our security partnerships within the US hub and spokes network." The Philippines has been a key focus of US efforts to build an arc of alliances, owing to its position in the South China Sea and proximity to Taiwan, which China claims as its own. Philippine support would be crucial for the United States in the event of any conflict. Leaders from Japan, the Philippines and the United States had their first trilateral summit in April aimed at boosting defence ties in Washington. It was held on the heels of four-way military drills that included Australia in the South China Sea, riling Beijing. Japan, wary about possible future changes in US policy in the region, was also seeking "to play a larger role" as an independent and stabilising force, Gill the analyst, said. "The Japanese would like to impress upon the Americans that Japan is the linchpin of US security presence, military presence here in the region, and of course, the most reliable ally of the United States," said Renato Cruz De Castro, professor for international studies at De La Salle University in Manila. Kyiv, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Jul, 2024) Russia struck cities across Ukraine on Monday with a missile barrage that killed three dozen people and ripped open a children's hospital in Kyiv, an assault condemned as a ruthless attack on civilians. Dozens of volunteers including hospital staff and rescue workers dug through debris from the Okhmatdyt paediatric hospital in a desperate search for survivors after the rare day-time bombardment, AFP journalists on the scene saw. President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia launched dozens of missiles toward five towns and cities in southern and eastern Ukraine as well as the capital. Ukrainian officials said 33 people were killed and another 140 wounded in the wave of 38 missiles. The air force said air defence systems had downed 30 projectiles. Zelensky called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council over the barrage and urged Ukraine's allies to deliver "a stronger response" to Russia's attack. (@FahadShabbir) Santa Fe, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 8th Jul, 2024) Decades before Alec Baldwin and the "Rust" shooting, the dusty acres of Bonanza Creek Ranch helped put New Mexico on the map as a stunning, homespun location to film Westerns. The ranch was the backdrop to classics like "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," a place where jaded Hollywood stars would be greeted by long-standing manager Imogene Hughes with a cool glass of homemade lemonade and banana bread. Now, with Baldwin set to go on trial this week for manslaughter over an on-set death at Bonanza Creek that has drawn global headlines, Hughes's daughter is glad her late mother never had to witness the ranch's new notoriety. "I think that would have really upset her," said Denise Spaccamonti. Nestled in the foothills outside Santa Fe, the ranch was mainly known for its cattle operations until Hollywood came knocking in the 1950s. Location scouts chose it for "The Man from Laramie," a 1955 Western starring James Stewart, and more movies sporadically followed. Film operations sharply accelerated when Hughes took over the day-to-day operations after the death of her husband Glenn, often working with local politicians to lure movie producers from California with financial incentives. Crews for "Silverado," a 1985 Western starring Kevin Kline and Kevin Costner, erected a white-painted homestead building, which remained in place after the film wrapped. More buildings were added in a piecemeal fashion for films like "Young Guns" and "Lucky Luke," and soon entire Western town streets were in place. "'Lucky Luke' comes to mind. It wasn't a great movie. It was terrible actually!" said Spaccamonti. "But it's kind of nice, how each movie had a part in building that... It wasn't one person. It was a bunch of puzzle pieces put together." - 'Insensitive' - But today, that legacy has taken a cruel twist. One of those hodgepodge buildings was a chapel in which, on October 21, 2021, a gun held by Baldwin discharged during a rehearsal, killing "Rust" cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Movie productions were temporarily shuttered at Bonanza Creek in the immediate aftermath as police investigators combed the site. They have since quietly resumed, though the identities of recent and current films are under wraps. "Nobody wants to say they are shooting a movie at the same location where she was killed," said David Manzanares, field manager for nearby Ghost Ranch, where "Oppenheimer" was made. Although there is no suggestion the ranch is in any way to blame, "people say, 'if it gets out, we'll be seen as insensitive, how could you film there?'" added Manzanares, a longtime friend and collaborator of Hughes. Recognizable buildings like the chapel could be "skinned" to disguise their infamous connotations in future films, he suggested. Contacted by AFP, Bonanza Creek's owners declined an interview. Asked if the shooting had caused Bonanza Creek challenges going forward, Shannon Hughes, who runs the movie operation, said that was "an assumption." She said Imogene Hughes's legacy "should not be involved in the 'Rust' accident... she's deceased, she doesn't get to speak for herself." - 'Very unfortunate' - Yet the legacy of Hughes -- who died just weeks before the "Rust" shooting -- was warmly described by other relatives and prominent New Mexican filmmakers. "She was somebody who touched deeply everybody that she met," said Jacques Paisner, artistic director of the Santa Fe International Film Festival, who runs a scholarship for local film students named after Hughes. "My mom had a heart for students. She would let them come [to film at the ranch], no charge. Who does that nowadays?" said Spaccamonti. For Manzanares, Bonanza Creek and Hughes were "so instrumental" in bringing valuable Hollywood cash to New Mexico, one of the poorest states in the US. "The owner could easily have said 'I'll get on with raising cattle,'" said Manzanares. Instead, "she allowed everyone else to prosper," with "millions of Dollars for multiple decades" going to industries from film crews and technicians, to drivers and catering companies. "It's just very unfortunate," he said. UNITED NATIONS, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 9th Jul, 2024) The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) has called for an independent investigation into Israels bombing of a school in central Gaza as the war entered it's 10th month. The school, run by the UN agency which helps Palestinian refugees, served as a shelter for 2,000 displaced persons in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. Another day. Another month. Another school hit, said Philippe Lazzarini, head of UNRWA, the largest aid agency in Gaza, in a post on X, formerly Twitter, after a school in Nuseirat, central Gaza, was hit by the Israeli Forces on Saturday. It was home to nearly 2,000 people forcibly displaced by the hostilities, the UNRWA Commissioner-General said, adding that dozens of casualties had been reported. The development comes as ceasefire and hostage-release talks were reportedly due to resume in coming days. Repeated previous efforts to make headway have foundered, despite sustained international pressure from Member States with influence on both sides. Success in negotiations this week will depend on satisfying Hamass call for a permanent end to the fighting and intense Israeli airstrikes which have flattened vast areas of the enclave, and the Israeli Governments stated war aim of destroying Hamass military capability after the group attacked on 7 October. To date, tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, according to the Gazan health authorities and latest data from UNRWA indicates that at least 520 people sheltering in the UN agency's shelters have been killed and at least 1,602 injured since the start of the war. In a regular situation update, the UN aid coordination office, OCHA, reported that up to 1.9 million people in Gaza have been uprooted by the war, including some displaced "nine or 10 times". Previous estimates were 1.7 million but this was before the Israeli operation in Rafah in early May, which led to additional displacements from Rafah and other parts across the Gaza Strip. The renewed push for an end to the war comes amid daily exchanges of fire between Lebanese militants, Israel, and key Hamas ally, Hezbollah, across the UN-monitored Blue Line separating them. On Sunday, the Lebanon-based group claimed responsibility for a reported drone strike on Mount Hermon in the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights. Hezbollah has said that it will halt operations only when the war in Gaza ends. "The gradual expansion in the scope and scale of the confrontations well beyond the Blue Line significantly raises the risk of miscalculation and further deterioration of an already alarming situation," the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) told UN news, ahead of the latest escalation. Citing latest OCHA data, the UN force said that nearly 97,000 people have been displaced from southern Lebanon because of the ongoing hostilities as of 25 June; more than 1,800 casualties have been reported including 435 deaths of whom 97 were civilians. A political and diplomatic solution is the only viable long-term solution, it insisted. Responding to the school strike and Israeli military claims that it had been used by Palestinian armed groups, UNRWAs chief, Lazzarini said that he took the allegations very seriously. "It is exactly why I have repeatedly called for independent investigations to ascertain the facts and identify those responsible for attacks on UN premises or their misuse, he said a reference to an ongoing UN office investigation into Israeli assertions that 12 UNRWA staff were involved in the 7 October Hamas-led attacks. Eight UNRWA staff remain under investigation by the UNs internal oversight body, OIOS; to date, it has suspended three other cases citing insufficient evidence from the Israeli authorities and closed one case because Israel had not provided any supporting evidence, it has been reported. Nine months on this brutal war, I call once again for a ceasefire under which people in Gaza and Israel would finally get respite and protection and all hostages would be immediately released, Lazzarini said. The longer this war goes on, the deeper the rift will become, & the more suffering people will endure. Miltos Alamaniotis UTSAs participation will be led by Miltos Alamaniotis, GreenStar Endowed Fellow in Energy and associate professor of electrical and computer engineering. Alamaniotis is an expert in applied artificial Intelligence within the nuclear engineering domain. This marks the second NNSA consortium that UTSA will participate in to advance nuclear science. In 2019, NNSA provided $3 million for CONNECT (The CONsortium on Nuclear sECurity Technologies), a project engaging investigators from the University of Nevada at Las Vegas, St. Marys University, Argonne National Laboratory and Los Alamos National Laboratory. CONNECT has since been renewed for another $5 million in funding, for a total of $8 million from the NNSA. The exceptional researchers at UTSA are critical partners in this collaboration, said Eric Brey, dean of the Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design at UTSA. UTSA is home to world-class researchers and innovators in the nuclear fields. Connecting with our peer institutions and national labs will catalyze our scientific advancements and enhance our students experience in this field. Alamaniotis is also confident that membership in the consortium will benefit researchers and students. This consortium will be an eye-opener for our students, as they will have the chance to interact and collaborate with students from top schools across U.S., while performing high-quality research in a critical field of national and international interest, he said. Furthermore, in a consortium of this large scale our students will have the chance to prove themselves and showcase the qualities and capabilities of UTSA. Alamaniotis at the Laboratory for Applied Artificial Intelligence Alamaniotis is a co-principal investigator in the consortium and the principal investigator (PI) representing UTSA, where he leads research efforts and prepares students for careers in the nuclear enterprise. Each PI in the consortium is responsible for contributing to collaborative research as well as leading one research project of their own. Alamaniotis will lead a project that focuses on developing artificial intelligence algorithms to coordinate the movement of multiple mobile detectors within a metropolitan area to identify hidden radiological threats, he said. This project is particularly challenging due to the presence of naturally occurring ambient radiation and the uncertainty regarding the type of threat, added Alamaniotis. Anyone in possession of illicit nuclear material is a threat to our safety. We want to prevent detonation and dispersion of radioactive material within metropolitan areas, and there is only way to accomplish this: detect the material while on the move before it is detonated. We also need to retain privacy in data analysis, as we cannot allow mistakes and wrongly accuse people as potential terrorists. This can only be attained by developing highly sophisticated AI algorithms fed with high-quality datasets. The two consortia that are receiving funding from the U.S. Department of Energy will be led by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville and Georgia Institute of Technology respectively. They include: Enabling Capabilities in Technology Consortium, led by the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. This consortium comprises 15 universities and eight national laboratories, including UTSA, the Colorado School of Mines, the Air Force Institute of Technology, Clemson, UC Santa Barbara, University of Hawaii, Louisiana State, MIT, North Carolina State, University of Oklahoma, Oregon State, Texas A&M, University of Utah, Virginia Tech, Idaho National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories and Savannah River National Laboratory. Consortium for Enabling Technologies and Innovation, led by Georgia Tech. This consortium comprises 12 universities in partnership with 12 national laboratories, including Abilene Christian, Colorado School of Mines, MIT, The Ohio State University, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Stony Brook University, Texas A&M, University of Alaska Fairbanks, UT-Austin, University of Wisconsin - Madison, Virginia Commonwealth, Argonne National Laboratory, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Idaho National Laboratory, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Nevada National Security Site, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories and Savannah River National Laboratory. UW meat scientist Cody Gifford slices lamb samples during last years Wyoming Sheep and Wool Festival. This years festival will take place Friday-Sunday, July 12-14, at the Hot Springs County Fairgrounds in Thermopolis. (UW Extension Photo) The second annual Wyoming Sheep and Wool Festival will take place Friday-Sunday, July 12-14, at the Hot Springs County Fairgrounds in Thermopolis. Organized by the Wyoming Wool Growers Association, the festival celebrates all aspects of the Wyoming sheep industry and includes programming by University of Wyoming Extension and Wyoming Wool Initiative. What I love about the Wyoming Sheep and Wool Festival is how it brings together the ranchers who produce Wyomings lamb and wool clip, the fiber artists and hobbyists who craft their works from wool, and folks from the community, says Micah Most, Johnson County extension educator. Im really looking forward to learning more about the history of sheep ranching in Hot Springs County and the ways it is still present and as vibrant as ever today. Throughout the weekend, Whit Stewart, UW Extension sheep specialist, and students in the UW Sheep Program will give interactive demonstrations about the eco-friendly characteristics of different kinds of wool fiber. During the festival, attendees also will have the opportunity to bid on high-quality fleeces in a silent auction organized by the UW Sheep Program. To consign fleeces to the silent auction, register here. The weekend will kick off at 8:30 a.m. Friday with the Sustainable Sheep Grazing in the Intermountain West workshop funded by the National Grazing Lands Coalition. Derek Scasta, UW Extension rangeland management specialist, will lead a session about carbon credits. Other experts will discuss climate-smart programs and conserving working and wild lands. We are working with (UW Extension educator) Barton Stam to organize this workshop and are discussing topics that are extremely timely and relevant for grazers, says Alison Crane, executive director of the Wyoming Wool Growers Association. This workshop also incorporates techniques for range improvements and management. The workshop sessions will be followed by a panel discussion and range tour in the afternoon. Registration for these free events is required and can be completed at www.wyowool.com/grazingworkshop. Following the morning session of the grazing workshop, the UW Extension Sheep Task Force and Wyoming Wool Initiative will host a train the trainer wool evaluation workshop from 1-3 p.m. Participants will learn how to assess key characteristics of wool quality with opportunities for hands-on practice. Those interested in starting a wool judging team also can receive free practice fleeces after the event. Registration is required and can be completed here. Saturday will feature the Vendor Fair with demonstrations and workshops in fiber arts, conservation and collaboration. At 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m., UW meat scientist Cody Gifford will demonstrate different ways to cook lamb. Participants will receive savory samples and guidance about direct marketing of lamb. Those interested in crafting with wool are encouraged to attend a fleece-felting workshop led by rancher and entrepreneur B.J. Edwards and sponsored by Wyoming Wool Initiative. During this free workshop, scheduled Saturday at 9 a.m., a limited number of participants will learn the basics of wet felting and create their own pieces. Preregistration is required and can be completed here. The Sheepherders Come Bye Awards Dinner, featuring lamb donated by Jones Sheep Co., will conclude UW-sponsored programming for the weekend. Starting at 6 p.m. Saturday, the Wyoming Wool Growers Association and Wyoming Wool Initiative will confer awards on donors, producers and artists. Tickets are required to attend the dinner and can be purchased for $25 by clicking here. A free live show featuring Kellen Smith and the Nate Champion Band will follow the dinner. Other educational programs sponsored by the Wyoming Wool Growers Association and community partners throughout the weekend will address marketing, agritourism and conservation opportunities. To view the full 2024 festival program, visit www.wyomingsheepandwoolfestival.com. For more information, call Crane at (307) 265-5250. About University of Wyoming Extension Since 1914, UW Extension has provided lifelong learning opportunities to Wyoming citizens across the state. With roots in agricultural education, UW Extension supports rural communities facing contemporary challenges and changes. UW Extension brings the universitys resources to each of the states 23 counties and the Wind River Indian Reservation. To learn more about UW Extension, visit www.uwyo.edu/uwe or call (307) 766-5124. 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. Javier Milei, making his first visit to Brazil as Argentina's president, attacked socialism for curtailing liberties and creating corruption in a speech Sunday to a conservative rally led by former Brazilian hard-right President Jair Bolsonaro. Reading from a prepared speech at the CPAC Brazil 2024 event, Milei made no mention of Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, even as Bolsonaro supporters chanted insults about the leftist leader and called for him to be put in jail. Milei skipped the presidential summit of the Mercosur trade block in Paraguay on Monday, where he would finally meet Lula, Argentina's main trading partner. He instead decided to attend the rally of his right-wing ally Bolsonaro. Milei strained relations with the Brazilian government by calling Lula "corrupt" and a "communist" in a post on social media platform X last week the most recent in a number of insults. Lula has in the past demanded an apology from Milei. After the speech, the crowd cheered Bolsonaro, saying they want him back in power, despite his being banned from seeking elected office until 2030 for attacks on democracy, and under investigation for other alleged crimes during his four-year term. CPAC Brazil is intended to drum up support for candidates of Bolsonaro's party in this year's municipal elections and project his influence ahead of the 2026 presidential race. The event, billed as the first major opposition rally in the campaign for local mayoral elections in October, also has served to unite right-wing leaders in the Americas. Chile's former presidential candidate Jose Antonio Kast addressed the rally, as did former Bolivian minister Branko Marinkovic, who was presented as a possible candidate for next year's presidential elections in Bolivia. Right-wing politicians from Portugal and El Salvador also spoke during the event. Bolsonaro, who spoke Saturday, said the right-wing is gaining ground internationally, in Italy and France, and said he hoped that former U.S. President Donald Trump will be returned to the White House this year. U.S. President Joe Biden visited the political battleground state of Pennsylvania on Sunday, pressing his case for reelection even as some fellow Democrats said he must quickly show that he has the mental acuity and physical stamina to carry out a winning campaign to defeat former President Donald Trump in the November election. Biden, 81, visited a Black church in Philadelphia, joking with 300 congregants about his age, saying that although he may look like he's "40 years old," he's "been around a long time." He said his goal is to "unite America again. I honest to God have never been more optimistic about America's future if we stick together. We have to bring dignity and hope back in America." Later, Biden was headed with first lady Jill Biden to a local union hall in Harrisburg, the state capital of Pennsylvania, a must-win state for both Biden and Trump in the November 5 election. Biden has vowed to continue his campaign after a halting performance at his June 27 debate with Trump in which Biden at times lost his train of thought and was unable to mount a sustained attack on the Republican presidential nominee or consistently defend his three-and-a-half-year tenure in office. Watch related report by Veronica Balderas Iglesias: As a result, numerous Democrats are questioning many privately and some publicly whether Biden has the capacity to beat Trump for a second time after narrowly defeating him in the 2020 election. While Biden was steady during a Friday night interview on ABC News, it did not quell anxiety about his candidacy among fellow Democrats. Five Democrats in the House of Representatives have called for Biden to step aside, and numerous Democrats have suggested that Vice President Kamala Harris would prove to be a more formidable presidential candidate against Trump, who is the Republican standard bearer for the third straight election cycle. Sunday news talk shows displayed the angst that many Democrats are feeling about Bidens candidacy as Trump has pulled ahead in national polls to reclaim the presidency for another four-year term starting in January 2025. House lawmaker Adam Schiff, a Democratic Senate candidate in California in the November election, told NBCs Meet the Press show, Ultimately, this is a decision President Biden is going to have to make and President Biden alone. But I would say this, he has been an extraordinary president, Schiff said. He has created millions and millions of jobs. He has expanded and strengthened our NATO alliances. He has brought back manufacturing to this country. He has brought about the most aggressive attack on climate change. He's done more in one term than most presidents ever do, no matter how many terms they get. And he's running against someone who's a pathological liar, someone who ran the country into the ground by his mishandling of a deadly pandemic. Someone who is a pathological not only a pathological liar, but is immoral, indecent, unfit for office, Schiff argued. Still, Schiff added that Bidens performance on the debate stage, I think, rightfully raised questions among the American people about whether the president has the vigor to defeat Donald Trump. It should not be even close. And there's only one reason it is close, and that's the president's age. Senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut, a Biden supporter, told CNNs State of the Union show, This week is going to be really critical, as the president hosts a meeting of NATO, the Wests main military alliance, in Washington and holds a rare news conference Thursday. Murphy described Biden as one of the best person-to-person politicians this country has seen, but the question is whether that is still the case. There is a lot of anxiety in the country and party. Longtime Democratic strategist David Axelrod told another CNN show, Inside Politics, that Biden is dangerously out of touch with his falling standing in the race against Trump. Axelrod said Biden has often beaten personal and political odds in a five-decade career in public life, but what he cant beat is Father Time. Hes not winning this race. Its more likely hell lose by a landslide than win narrowly. Biden has remained adamant he will stay in the race, telling ABC News in the Friday interview, If the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get out of the race, Id get out of the race. But the Lord Almighty is not coming down. Another Democratic U.S. senator is questioning President Joe Bidens ability to mount an energetic re-election campaign in the aftermath of his poor debate performance against former President Donald Trump last month. Senator Patty Murray of the northwestern state of Washington issued a statement Monday through her re-election campaign saying President Biden must do more to convince voters of the serious threat Trump poses to the country if the Republican ex-president wins the November elections. Murray expressed her deep appreciation and strong respect for Biden and his historic presidency. But she said we need to see a much more forceful and energetic candidate on the campaign trail in the very near future in order for him to convince voters he is up to the job. At this critical time for our country, Murray said, President Biden must seriously consider the best way to preserve his incredible legacy and secure it for the future. Murrays statement echoes that of fellow Senator Mark Warner of the southern state of Virginia, who issued a statement earlier Monday saying it is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Trumps lawlessness from returning to the White House. A small but growing number of Democratic Party lawmakers in the House of Representatives have publicly called for the 81-year-old Biden to end his reelection campaign. Numerous others have privately voiced the same opinion since Biden, both looking and sounding exhausted, repeatedly lost his train of thought at the June 27 face-to-face confrontation with Trump. Democratic Senator Mark Warner said in a statement Monday afternoon that another Trump term would be perilous for the rule of law and democracy. But he went on to say that it is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Trumps lawlessness from returning to the White House. Both chambers of Congress have been out of session and are returning to town Monday for the first time since Bidens poor debate performance. Representative Adam Smith, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee, said in a statement Monday, The presidents poor performance in the debate was alarming to watch and the American people have made it clear they no longer see him as a credible candidate to serve four more years as president. Biden, however, has resisted calls to drop out of the race, saying that only the Lord Almighty could force him out. He told Democratic lawmakers, as they returned to Washington from the July 4 Independence Day holiday, that "the question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end." He said the partys one job was to defeat Trump, who served as president from 2017 to early 2021 and lost the last national election to Biden four years ago. "We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election" on November 5, Biden said in the letter. "Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It's time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump." Bidens letter to congressional Democrats kicked off a crucial week for him as he tries to salvage his five-decade political career and his 2024 campaign. Trump, set to be nominated as the Republican presidential candidate at his partys national convention in the Midwestern city of Milwaukee next week, has pulled ahead of Biden in numerous national polls and surveys in crucial political battleground states. The contest, however, remains close and volatile, seemingly subject to the good moments and bad for both candidates. Speculation about Bidens cognitive health intensified after news outlets Monday said that Dr. Kevin Cannard, a doctor based at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center who specializes in treating Parkinsons disease, a disorder of the central nervous system that affects movement, has visited the White House at least eight times since 2022, according to White House visitor logs. The revelation of Dr. Cannards visits to the White House sparked an intense and often angry exchange between reporters and White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre over whether the president was being treated for Parkinsons disease. Late Monday night, Dr. Kevin OConnor, Bidens personal physician, released a statement night through Jean-Pierre confirming that Cannard had given Biden a neurological examination in each of his last three annual physicals, the last back in February, and found no evidence of Parkinsons disease or any other neurological problems. OConner explained that Cannard has held regular neurology clinics at the White House Medical Clinic in support of the thousands of active-duty members assigned in support of White House operations. Biden is set to host a meeting of NATO, the Wests main military alliance, in Washington starting Tuesday and hold a rare solo news conference on Thursday. VOA's Katherine Gypson contributed to this report. The Childrens Hospital in Kyiv is struck by Russian missiles, at least 31 people were killed in shelling across the country. Putins ally, Viktor Orban of Hungary met with President Xi in Beijing as NATO prepares for its annual summit, to be held in Washington this week. A surprise defeat is handed to Marine La Pen and her far-right party in French elections, and Iran has a new president elect. Japan and the Philippines sign a military agreement. Plus, June set records for heat and journalists in Ghana are facing threats for covering environmental issues. A horrific scene in Ukraines capitol Kyiv following a barrage of Russian missile strikes hit Kyiv's main Childrens hospital. Anna Chernikova on scene describes the destruction and says it will likely take days for rescue workers to search under the rubble. As NATO prepares to convene its three-day summit in Washington with expectations the alliance will reinforce its support for Ukraine. VOA attended a roundtable with Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. We hear what he had to say following the Prime Minister of Hungary's visit to Moscow. Preparing for the upcoming Olympics in Paris, a Ukrainian high jumper talks about trying to stay focused on the raised bar, while her mind is fixed on the war. China and Belarus began joint anti-terrorism exercises Monday in Brest, Belarus, that will last for 11 days. The two countries will conduct drills in the exercises titled Eagle Assault, and soldiers from both sides will jointly carry out hostage rescue operations and counterterrorism missions, Chinas state news agency Xinhua said. Together, they will work out the issues of night landing, overcoming water obstacles, and conducting operations in a populated area, according to a statement from the Belarusian Ministry of Defense. China and Belarus have a history of conducting joint military exercises, having conducted four anti-terrorism exercises in territories of both countries from 2011 to 2018. Eagle Assault occurs against a backdrop of increasing Chinese-Belarusian cooperation, with Belarus being the newest country to join the Chinese and Russian-led Shanghai Cooperation Organization. In recent days, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Foreign Minister Wang Yi have also met with their Belarusian counterparts. Monday in Beijing, the foreign ministers of both countries met, and Wang Yi expressed Chinas willingness to deepen high-level exchanges, strengthen strategic synergy and deepen all-round cooperation with Belarus to advance their all-weather, comprehensive strategic partnership, Chinese state media reported. The countries also agreed to oppose external interference and resist unilateral bullying, Chinese state media CGTN said. Amid tensions in Northern Europe, the exercises will occur 80 miles kilometers (50 miles) north of Ukraine on the Belarusian border with Poland, a NATO member. Belarus has remained a close Russian ally throughout the war in Ukraine, supporting the war effort by allowing Russia to store tactical nuclear weapons in the country. China has yet to condemn the war and has continued to provide Moscow with economic support to buffer the effects of Western sanctions. Deforestation in Colombia fell 36% to a 23-year low in 2023, driven by declining environmental destruction in the Amazon region, the environment ministry said on Monday. Nationally, deforestation fell to just over 792 square kilometers (305 square miles) last year, down from around 1,235 square kilometers in 2022, the ministry said in a statement. Colombia is one of the world's most biodiverse countries and is home to thousands of plant and animal species. However, like elsewhere in the region, it loses swathes of forest to deforestation each year. The government of leftist President Gustavo Petro says it is prioritizing the protection of Colombia's environment and has called on rich nations to cancel foreign debt in exchange for conserving areas like the Amazon, whose destruction scientists say could worsen global climate change. "It's really good news ... but we definitely cannot say that the battle is won," Environment Minister Susana Muhamad told journalists in Colombia's capital Bogota. Deforestation in Colombia's Amazon region - traditionally the driver of the national figure declined 38% to around 443 square kilometers, down from close to 712 square kilometers in 2022. Despite the strong performance in cutting deforestation in 2023, Muhamad in April warned that deforestation had increased in 2024 amid dry conditions exacerbated by a strong El Nino weather phenomenon. In May, eight sources told Reuters that government measures to tackle illegal roads in Colombia's Amazon region had stalled, while environmental procurator Gustavo Guerrero who works for a state watchdog which keeps tabs on officials said the hold-up amounted to an "evident failure." Colombia's government will continue to roll out plans including tackling environmental crime, strengthening institutions and working with communities to prevent deforestation, Muhamad said. Colombia will host the COP16 U.N. biodiversity summit in the city of Cali later this year. A bored policeman sits at a table in an empty parking lot to showcase the governments helpfulness; an entourage assembles rabbits and saplings to stage a photo op for a governor who never arrives; a distinguished national scholar claims that all life on Earth originated precisely in his country. These scenes from the award-winning dark comedy Bikechess sound absurd, but director Assel Aushakimova based them on real news reports from her home country, Kazakhstan. Even the title of the film, which won Best International Narrative Feature at New York Citys annual Tribeca Festival, is based on a real-life event: the Kazakhstan Chess Federation in 2019 announced a new sport in which chess players compete while on exercise bikes. Aushakimovas narrative follows Dina, an ambitious journalist who finds herself covering increasingly absurd stories while attempting to keep her feminist activist sister out of trouble. Balancing precariously between the comic, awkward, and tragic, Bikechess touches on corruption, police brutality, LGBTQ+ rights, and the state of journalism not only in Kazakhstan but across the post-Soviet space. With a ranking of 142 out of 180 on the World Press Freedom Index, independent media in Kazakhstan have limited ability to work, according to Reporters Without Borders. Wrecked by a succession of repressive reforms since 1997, the media landscape is now essentially a propaganda outlet for the Kazakh regime, the watchdog reports. Aushakimovas work highlights this repressive environment and has in turn been impacted by it. The directors first feature, Welcome to the USA, was restricted in Kazakhstan and received only limited screenings, with an adult rating due to the inclusion of a brief kiss between women. Bikechess also deals with LGBTQ+ themes, which Aushakimova said means there is little chance of it being screened in Kazakhstan, let alone receiving government funding. We now have very homophobic rhetoric and a lot of talk about traditional values, Aushakimova told the audience during a Q&A at the Tribeca screening. The Ministry of Culture will not grant permission to screen films in Kazakhstan if they contain any offense to traditional values, or any political statements. While there are no direct political statements in Bikechess, the films deadpan satire offers an unsparing portrait of Kazakh life. Government initiatives are presented as empty public stunts that fail to address citizens actual needs, nonconforming youth are treated cruelly, and police ineptitude quickly turns from comical to malevolent. The Soviet legacy remains ever-present throughout the film, seen in the barely changed official titles and the stilted formality of bureaucratic interactions. And the character of Dina herself, portrayed by Kazakh actor Saltanat Nauruz, is not a heroic figure but one who has become inured to the compromises required to get ahead. A lot of people in Kazakhstan make compromises, said Aushakimova, and this is the kind of conformism that has led us to the state we find ourselves in. The films script was mostly written prior to January 2022, when nationwide unrest in Kazakhstan was put down with the help of Russian military intervention, shortly before the Kremlins full-scale invasion of Ukraine. But while Aushakimova is clear that Kazakhstans problems go further back, the impact of recent events has been felt as the government in the capital, Astana, takes its cues from Moscow. Whats happening now is copied directly from Russias Cinema Fund, likely because of the war in Ukraine, she said in an interview with the Kazakh magazine Vlast. Law and order, family values these themes are taken straight from the Russian repertoire. Bikechess has relied on Norwegian and French financing for its distribution. Producer Antoine Simkine connected with Aushakimova via the Istanbul Film Festivals Meetings on the Bridge platform and helped bring the film to the United States. What interests me is when a film carries something beyond its local context, Simkine told VOA In this specific case, Dina's efforts to cope with the absurdity of her mission reflect the current situation in countries like Kazakhstan. However, the film also illustrates how totalitarianism works. Following the films premiere at Tribeca, Aushakimova has her sights set on the festival circuit. And while she would like to one day screen the film in Kazakhstan, she admits the chances are slim. According to the filmmaker, the situation can only improve with a change of government cultural policy oriented away from Russia or the development of private film funds. Until then, she will continue her work as best as she can. My dream would be to write a comedy script, completely apolitical. But I havent been able to do it so far everywhere I look, politics intrudes, because I follow everything thats happening in Kazakhstan. A military court in the volatile east of DR Congo sentenced 22 soldiers to death on Monday for "fleeing the enemy" during fighting with M23 rebels, a lawyer told AFP. Sixteen soldiers were handed death sentences in one case in the North Kivu province, and six others in a separate case, coming just days after 25 soldiers received a similar judgment. The latest sentences come as M23 rebels, which Kinshasha accuses Rwanda of backing, last week seized new terrain on the northern front of the conflict that has been ongoing for two-and-a-half years in the North Kivu province. A military court condemned 16 people in one case in the court in North Kivu. The prosecution had asked on Saturday that 22 people in the case be condemned to death. But the court on Monday instead handed down 10-year prison sentences to three defendants and acquitted three other people. In a separate case examined and judged on Monday in North Kivu six of the seven defendants were sentenced to death and one person was acquitted, lawyer Jules Muvweko told AFP. Last Wednesday, a court sentenced 25 soldiers to death during a one day trial for also "fleeing the enemy," lawyers said. Since the end of 2021, the M23 rebels have conquered vast swathes of territory in the province, nearly completely encircling the provincial capital of Goma. An alliance of French left-wing parties was on course Sunday to become the biggest parliamentary bloc by beating the far right and President Emmanuel Macron's coalition, according to surprise projected results. No one group won an absolute majority in the poll, plunging France into political limbo with no clear path to forming a new government, two days before a major NATO summit and three weeks before the Paris Olympics. We talk to Frederic Merand, professor and chair of the political science department at the University of Montreal. A memorial concert was held in Kenya's capital Nairobi on Sunday for those killed in anti-government protests. And four people came out of isolation after a year in a simulated Mars habitat to study what it would be like. Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in Beijing Monday for talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Orban's press chief told state news agency MTI. "Prime Minister Viktor Orban's peace mission continues," Bertalan Havasi was quoted as saying. This is Orban's third surprise overseas trip since Hungary took over the European Union's rotating presidency at the beginning of July, after he traveled to Ukraine and Russia last week on what he called a "peace mission." His trip to Moscow drew strong rebukes from his allies. Hungary, under right-leaning Orban, has become an important trade and investment partner for China, in contrast with some other European Union nations seeking to become less dependent on the world's second-largest economy. Orban's visit also came days before a NATO summit that will address further military aid for Ukraine against what the Western defense alliance has called Russia's "unprovoked war of aggression." Hungary's foreign minister, Peter Szijjarto, was accompanying Orban on the China trip, according to photographs on Szijjarto's Facebook page. The foreign ministry canceled late last week a meeting for Monday in Budapest with Germany's foreign minister and Szijjarto, a German foreign ministry official said Friday. Orban, a critic of Western military aid to Ukraine who has the warmest relations of any EU leader with Russian President Vladimir Putin, said last week he recognized he had no EU mandate for the trip to Moscow, but that peace could not be made "from a comfortable armchair in Brussels." Beryl has been downgraded to a tropical storm after it made landfall in the southern U.S. state of Texas early Monday as a Category 1 hurricane. At least two people were killed in the Houston area. The storm knocked out power to more than 2 million homes and businesses, causing flash flooding and sent rescue crews scrambling to save stranded residents. Houstons two airports, according to information from FlightAware, canceled more than 1,000 flights. That has impacted flights across the United States. According to FlightAware, some 1,479 flights were canceled nationwide, while 2,254 were delayed as of 12:33 p.m. EDT. According to the National Hurricane Center and the Central Pacific Hurricane Center, flood warnings were in effect across a wide stretch of the Texas coast. Police in Rosenberg, a Houston suburb, encouraged residents to stay off the road. One of the suburbs high-water rescue vehicles was hit by a falling tree during a rescue. Authorities reported that the two known fatalities occurred when trees fell on two different houses. According to Precinct 4 County Constable Mark Herman, hundreds of trees have fallen in the county. Residents without power said they were doing their best. We are struggling to have food and losing that food would be difficult, said Rosenberg resident Eva Costancio during a power outage. Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick warned of days of flooding as rain continues to pelt the saturated ground. This is not a one-day event, said Patrick, who is acting governor while the current governor, Greg Abbott, is in Asia on business. According to a White House official, President Joe Biden has been receiving regular updates on the storm after it made landfall in Texas. The center of the storm came ashore near Matagorda, Texas, about 160 kilometers southwest of Houston. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Beryl had regained hurricane strength shortly before landfall with maximum sustained winds of 130 kilometers per hour. Forecasters said they expected 12-25 centimeters of rain to fall on areas of eastern Texas by late Monday. Texas officials warned of flooding and power outages, and expressed worry that not many people were fleeing coastal areas ahead of the storms arrival. Before impacting Texas, Beryl move through the Caribbean, killing three people in Venezuela, three people in Grenada, three people in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and two people in Jamaica. Beryl also struck Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula before crossing the Gulf of Mexico and heading for Texas. The storm set a record as the earliest to attain Category 5 strength during the Atlantic hurricane season that runs from June to November. Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press and Reuters. Israels military carried out airstrikes Monday throughout the Gaza Strip and against Hezbollah militants in southern Lebanon. Residents also reported Israeli tank operations in Gaza City, in northern Gaza, where the Israeli military said it was carrying out counterterrorism activities. In southern Gaza, the Israel Defense Forces reported killing more than 30 militants. The latest violence came a day after Israeli protesters blocked highways across the country as they called for a cease-fire and for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resign. Sunday's "Day of Disruption" started at 6:29 a.m. local time, noting the moment that Hamas militants launched the first rockets toward Israel last Oct. 7, an attack that killed 1,200 people and led to the capture of about 250 hostages. Protesters blocked main roads and demonstrated outside of the homes of members of Israel's parliament. Near the border with Gaza, Israeli protesters released 1,500 black and yellow balloons to symbolize those who were killed and abducted. Israels subsequent ground and air counteroffensive in Gaza after Hamas shock October attack has killed more than 38,000 Palestinians according to the health ministry in Gaza. Israel says it believes Hamas is still holding 116 hostages, including 42 the military says are dead. Israel and Hamas may be inching closer to an elusive cease-fire after Hamas dropped its demand that any deal include a complete end to the war, although both sides said significant gaps remain. Talks to end the fighting have stalemated for weeks, but two Hamas officials said Sunday the Palestinian group is waiting for a response from Israel on its cease-fire proposal, five days after it accepted a key part of a U.S. plan aimed at ending the war. "We have left our response with the mediators and are waiting to hear the occupation's response," one of the two Hamas officials, speaking anonymously, told the Reuters news agency. The three-phase cease-fire plan for Gaza was offered in late May by U.S. President Joe Biden and is being mediated by Qatar and Egypt. It aims to end the war and free the remaining hostages. About 100 hostages were freed in a weeklong cease-fire last November in exchange for hundreds of Palestinians jailed by Israel. Bidens plan calls for a "full and complete" six-week cease-fire during which older, sick and female hostages would be released in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. During those 42 days, Israeli forces would withdraw from densely populated areas of Gaza and allow the return of displaced people to their homes in northern Gaza, officials have said. Israel was discussing a halt to the fighting with the Qataris, according to another Palestinian official with knowledge of the cease-fire deliberations. "They have discussed with them Hamas's response and they promised to give them Israel's response within days," one official told Reuters. Netanyahu has said that negotiations would continue this week but has not given any detailed timeline. His office said Sunday that Netanyahus opposition to those calling on Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah pushed Hamas to enter negotiations. The office reiterated Israeli demands in a cease-fire deal, including that Israel be allowed to resume fighting to meet its war goals, that armed terrorists not be allowed to return to northern Gaza and maximizing the number of living hostages who are released. Hamas says it would allow negotiations to achieve an end to the war but during the talks some of the hostages would be returned to Israel in exchange for more Palestinians jailed by Israel. A Palestinian official close to the peace efforts has said the proposal could lead to a framework agreement, if embraced by Israel, that would end the war. U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns is set to travel to Qatar this week for further negotiations, according to a source familiar with the matter. Some information for this story was provided by The Associated Press, Agence France-Presse and Reuters. Japan and the Philippines signed a key defense pact Monday allowing the deployment of Japanese forces for joint military exercises, including live-fire drills, to the Southeast Asian nation that came under brutal Japanese occupation in World War II but is now building an alliance with Tokyo as they face an increasingly assertive China. The Reciprocal Access Agreement, which similarly allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, was signed by Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. It would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures, Philippine and Japanese officials said. Kamikawa called the signing of the defense agreement a groundbreaking achievement" that should further boost defense cooperation between Japan and the Philippines. A free and open international order based on the rule of law is the foundation of regional peace and prosperity," she said. "We would like to work closely with your country to maintain and strengthen this. Kamikawa and Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara later held talks with their Philippine counterparts on ways to further deepen relations. The defense pact with the Philippines is the first to be forged by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain in 2023. Under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the Japanese government has taken steps to boost its security and defensive firepower, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from Japans postwar principle of focusing only on self-defense, amid threats from North Korea and Chinas growing assertiveness. Its doubling defense spending in a five-year period to 2027 in a move to bolster its military power and make Japan the worlds third-biggest military spender after the United States and China. Many of Japans Asian neighbors, including the Philippines, came under Japanese aggression until its defeat in World War II and Japans efforts to bolster its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue. Japan and the Philippines, however, have steadily deepened defense and security ties. Kishidas moves dovetail with Marcos effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. The busy sea passage is a key global trade route which has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. The United States has also been strengthening an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including in any future confrontation over Taiwan, and reassure its Asian allies. Japan and the Philippines are treaty allies of the U.S. and their leaders held three-way talks in April at the White House, where President Biden renewed Washington's "ironclad" commitment to defend Japan and the Philippines. Japan has had a longstanding territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea. Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships, meanwhile, have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an axe aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic faceoff in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Philippines strongly protested the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded $1 million for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Japan and the United States were among the first to express alarm over the Chinese actions and call on Beijing to abide by international laws. Washington is obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. A court in Kenya said Monday that police acted unlawfully in using lethal force against a Pakistani journalist killed near the capital in October 2022, ordering thousands of dollars in compensation for his widow. Arshad Sharif, 49, died when Kenyan police opened fire on his car at a roadblock outside Nairobi. Authorities said it was a case of mistaken identity. On Monday, the court in Kajiado, where Sharif was killed, ruled the use of deadly force against the Pakistani journalist was arbitrary, un-proportional, illegal and unconstitutional, and ordered the state to pay over $77,000 to the family. The payment was suspended for 30 days after the states attorney claimed lack of funds. The court also ordered authorities to conclude their investigation and take action against the police officers involved. Javeria Siddique, one of Sharif's two wives, filed the lawsuit in Kenyan court last year on October 23 exactly one year after her husbands killing. Speaking to VOA, Siddique said getting a verdict in this case in Kenya was a big deal for her. I was not very hopeful. This was a politically motivated murder, Siddique said. Of course, implementation will take time. For me, todays victory will leave a huge mark on press freedom and freedom of expression. Sharif, a prominent news anchor, fled Pakistan in August 2022 while facing sedition charges. He had become a vocal critic of Pakistan's powerful military establishment after former Prime Minister Imran Khan was removed from office in a parliamentary vote of no-confidence in April 2022. In a letter to Pakistans Supreme Court in late 2022, Sharifs mother Riffat Ara Alvi listed several members of the militarys top brass, including then-army chief Gen. Qamar Javed Bajwa, who she said should be questioned about her sons killing. The Pakistani military and its spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) have denied playing any role in the killing. Sharif's family has been unable to lodge a police report in Pakistan for the crime. Speaking to VOA, Siddique rejected a report Islamabad police filed two years ago against three Pakistani nationals who hosted her late husband in Kenya as bogus. A Pakistani fact-finding mission which visited Kenya in November 2022 concluded that the father of five was the victim of a targeted killing. "Arshad Sharif's death is not a case of mistaken identity - I can say, and on the evidence we have so far, this prima facie is a target killing, then-Interior Minister Rana Sanaullah told reporters in Islamabad in December 2022. The minister said the journalists body had bruises and signs of torture. In a statement marking the first anniversary of Sharifs killing last year, journalists advocacy group Reporters without Borders accused authorities in Pakistan and Kenya of duplicity. Kenya is protecting its police officers and Pakistan is deliberately steering clear of the possibility that its security services were involved, the watchdogs head of investigation Arnaud Froger said in an online statement. The countrys top court began scrutinizing the Pakistani governments investigation in December 2022. Siddique told VOA she has been waiting for nearly a year for the court to set a date for a hearing. As NATO prepares to convene on Tuesday a three-day summit in Washington to celebrate its 75th birthday, the alliance is reinforcing its support for Ukraine in the ongoing war with Russia. During a news conference with a handful of reporters Sunday previewing the summit, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said all NATO members want peace, and that can be achieved if Russian President Vladimir Putin understands he cannot win on the battlefield. The quickest way to end this war is to lose the war, he said. But that that will not bring peace. That will bring occupation. Stoltenberg outlined key measures NATO would take, including the establishment of a dedicated command in Germany, enhanced financial and military aid, and bilateral security agreements. Stoltenberg emphasized these initiatives while addressing the complexities of Ukraine's potential NATO membership and the alliance's united front against Russian aggression. The precise language of the final agreement of the summit regarding Ukraines NATO membership is still under negotiation, he said. In April, Stoltenberg said the alliance did not expect to offer Ukraine NATO membership during the summit, but rather a bridge to membership. At the summit, that bridge will encompass five essential components: Security assistance command: NATO is setting up a new command in Germany, with logistical hubs in Eastern Europe, to coordinate international security assistance for Ukraine. This will involve 700 personnel led by a three-star NATO general, according to Stoltenberg. Stoltenberg said there have been differences among allies about the approach or types of weapons Ukraine should be delivered. Those differences create bureaucratic delays, and the goal is to make delivery faster and easier. This new command will have a very robust mandate, so there will be no need for consensus on each and every delivery, he said. Financial pledge: Since February 2022, NATO allies have provided around $43 billion annually in military support to Ukraine. The upcoming summit is expected to extend this commitment for another year, laying a foundation for future support. Immediate weapon deliveries: Announcements on delivering more weapons and ammunition, particularly air defense systems, are anticipated at the summit to bolster Ukraine's defense. While the secretary-general did not offer specifics, a senior U.S. official indicated that announcements can be expected from NATO allies this week regarding the provision of F-16 aircraft to Ukraine. Bilateral security agreements: Twenty NATO allies will have signed bilateral security agreements with Ukraine by the start of the summit, offering additional security guarantees and reinforcing collaborative defense efforts. Interoperability: Efforts are underway to align Ukrainian armed forces with NATO standards, including a joint training center in Poland and programs on military acquisitions and procurement. Hungary wont participate or obstruct Stoltenberg addressed concerns about Hungary's stance on Russia's war in Ukraine and its potential to block NATO decisions. He recounted a recent visit to Budapest, where he secured an agreement with Prime Minister Viktor Orban ensuring that Hungary will not obstruct the proposed support measures for Ukraine. Budapest will not participate in the new NATO security assistance command for Ukraine but will fulfill its other NATO obligations and contribute to the common budget, Stoltenberg said. The secretary general highlighted NATO's diverse engagements with Moscow even after the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. He noted a recent conversation between U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and the Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, underscoring the routine nature of such contacts. Stoltenberg said NATO must function cohesively in developing new defense strategies, emphasizing unity despite differing perspectives, such as those represented by leaders like Orban. Future relationship with the US Stoltenberg is confident that the United States would continue to be a staunch NATO ally regardless of future election outcomes, attributing past criticisms by former president Donald Trump primarily to defense spending issues rather than NATO itself. He emphasized that any secretary-general must be able to work with all leaders within the alliance, comparing NATO to a big family that every now and then has arguments and disagreements. Stoltenberg recounted his experience working with presidents Barak Obama, Trump, and Joe Biden, noting that despite differing political leadership, the U.S. has remained a steadfast and committed NATO ally. For 30 years, the Essence Festival of Culture has brought together people from all walks of life and from around the world to connect through conversation, shared experiences and, of course, music. The nations largest annual celebration of Black culture was set to end Sunday with musical performances by Janet Jackson and a special tribute to Frankie Beverly & Maze, the soul band that closed the event for the festival's first 15 years. Beverly, now 77, has said he is stepping away from performing live, and the group has been on a farewell tour. Others scheduled to perform included Victoria Monet, Teedra Moses, Tank and the Bangas, Dawn Richard, SWV, Jagged Edge, Bilal and Anthony Hamilton. Barkue Tubman-Zawolo, chief of staff, talent and diasporic engagement for Essence Ventures, told The Associated Press the festival helps connect the global Black community. Historically, as Black people, sometimes we're not sure where our heritage comes from, Tubman-Zawolo said. "America is just one place. But within America theres a melting pot of different Black cultures: Africa, Latin, Europe, the Caribbean. Understanding that allows our power to be even greater." Tubman-Zawolo said those connections could be seen throughout this year's Film Festival, held at the city's convention center, where fans heard from storytellers from Nigeria, Ghana and the Caribbean who are targeting our stories about us, for us, globally. She noted similar connections through the Food and Wine stage, where discussions highlighted Caribbean and African cuisine; the Soko Market Place, where vendors from all over the world shared their craft; and on the Caesars Superdome stage, which spotlighted Caribbean and African artists including Machel Montano of Trinidad and Ayra Starr of Nigeria. All of that occurred over four days, Tubman-Zawolo said. But the beauty of it is, it doesn't stay here. (Fans) take it with them. New Orleans Mayor Latoya Cantrell said this year's We Love Us theme was appropriate. This whole We Love Us theme brought us together to build communities, she said. The festival's impact on the city and state has surpassed $300 million, with more than 500,000 people visiting since 1994. Essence started the festival as a way to celebrate 25 years of the magazine's history. The locals are being incorporated in a manner that we can see and touch and feel and smell. That has been a part of the evolution of Essence, Cantrell said. The event's current contract ends in 2026, but Essence Ventures CEO Caroline Wanga has said the festival's forever home is New Orleans. That's what we believe as well, Cantrell said. We have a foundation that's been laid over 30 years. The city is always ready and prepared to host this event and more. I think staying in New Orleans is the best fit and best marriage, the best partnership. Jeremiah Manele and Charlot Salwai, the prime ministers of the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, are in China this week. Their visits come as Beijing seeks to grow its bilateral ties with the two South Pacific nations and as China is increasingly competing for influence in the region with Australia, the United States and others. Last week, China donated a presidential building to Vanuatu while Australia and New Zealand inaugurated an airfield in the Solomon Islands. During his first overseas trip to Australia last week, Manele sought Canberras support to double the Solomon Islands police force. The airfield and Australias security support are two key things analysts say China will focus on during Maneles visit to Beijing this week. Everything happening in the region is viewed through a comparative lens and recent developments [in the Solomon Islands-Australia relationship] will be top of the agenda for the Chinese, Michael Walsh, a visiting researcher at the Lasky Center for Transatlantic Studies at the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich, told VOA by phone. For Manele, the priority will be addressing the Solomon Islands economic issues, some experts say. [Since] the Solomon Islands economy is in a precarious state, Manele wants to demonstrate to Solomon Islanders that his governments close relationship with Beijing will bring economic benefits that are tangible to their everyday lives, Parker Novak, a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub, told VOA by phone. Ahead of the trips, Chinas Foreign Ministry said discussions will focus on issues of mutual interest and growing relations. Foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning said Maneles trip would be a great opportunity for the two sides to work together to further strengthen strategic communication, expand practical cooperation, and advance our bilateral ties. While former Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare was in office, the Solomon Islands deepened ties with China, including signing a police cooperation agreement with Beijing. Manele was the Solomon Islands foreign minister during Sogavares tenure, and some analysts expect hell maintain a similar foreign policy agenda. He said he would maintain the standard position of being friends to all and enemies to none for the Solomon Islands, said Tess Newton Cain, an adjunct associate professor at Griffith Asia Institute in Australia. [While] the meat and bones of Solomon Islands foreign policy is not going to change significantly under Manele, he will be more moderate when it comes to presenting his administrations foreign policy agenda, Cain told VOA by phone. After his trip to Australia, Manele told journalists that discussions about seeking Canberras support to expand the Solomon Islands police force wont affect the island nations security arrangements with Beijing. The arrangements with the Peoples Republic of China, including the police cooperation arrangements, will remain in place, he said, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Following his trip to China, Manele travels to Japan to attend the 10th Pacific Islands Leaders meeting from July 16 to July 18. Great power competition in Pacific Despite a failed attempt to push through a regional security pact with 10 Pacific Island nations in 2022, China continues to seek opportunities to increase its influence in the Pacific. China signed a police cooperation deal with the Solomon Islands last year and has offered to provide security support to Tonga for a Pacific Islands Forum taking place in August. Tongan Prime Minister Siaosi Sovaleni said he was considering the offer. Meanwhile, Kiribatis acting police commissioner, Eeri Aritiera, told the Reuters news agency in February that a Chinese police delegation would support the island nations community policing program and IT department, raising concerns from some U.S. lawmakers. In January, Papua New Guineas foreign minister, Justin Tkatchenko, revealed that his country was engaging in early talks with China about a potential security and policing deal, prompting a senior U.S. official to warn that security guarantees offered by Beijing may come with costs. Since China has presented itself as a security stakeholder in the Pacific region, some experts say Beijing will likely keep building security partnerships with regional countries. [China] seeks to deepen its presence [in the Pacific] through existing mechanisms like policing and its growing maritime presence through its coast guard fleet, said Anna Powles, an associate professor in security studies at Massey University in New Zealand. While China seeks to expand its security footprint in the Pacific, the United States and other democratic countries have tried to counter Chinas growing security presence in the Pacific in recent years, including Washingtons efforts to sign a security agreement with Papua New Guinea in 2023. WATCH: US and Papua New Guinea sign security pact Despite these attempts, Walsh in Munich said China is still making inroads in several Pacific island nations, including Vanuatu, Solomon Islands, and Kiribati. The West doesnt seem to have an effective response, he told VOA. There is also the question of whether security deals align with the needs of Pacific island countries, said the Griffith Asia Institutes Cain. While Pacific island countries dont see China as posing any military threat to them, they need to have relevant security conversations with countries [they are engaging with] in order to talk about what they are really concerned about, she told VOA. To safeguard their interests, Novak at the Atlantic Council said regional countries are likely to try to foster positive relationships with all external partners, whether its the United States, Australia, or China. They believe [doing so] will ensure regional stability and sovereignty, he told VOA. A Russian missile struck a childrens hospital in Ukraines capital Monday, part of a barrage of aerial attacks on areas throughout the country that killed at least 31 people and injured another 154. Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. Different cities Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk, Kramatorsk. Zelenskyy said Russia targeted the five cities with more than 40 missiles of different types in the daytime assault that hit apartment buildings and public infrastructure. Ukraines air force said it intercepted 30 missiles. Authorities said seven people were killed in the Kyiv attack, while strikes in Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy's birthplace in central Ukraine, killed 10 people and injured 47. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the attacks, calling the strikes on the Kyiv hospital and on another medical facility in the capitals Dniprovsky district particularly shocking, spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. Directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects is prohibited by international humanitarian law, and any such attacks are unacceptable and must end immediately, Dujarric said. The United Nations Security Council will meet on Tuesday to discuss the Russian attack, diplomats said. Russia's defense ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian defense plants and military air bases and were successful. It denied aiming at any civilian facilities and claimed without evidence that pictures from Kyiv indicated the damage was caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile. Col. Yurii Ignat of the Ukrainian air force said Russia has been improving the effectiveness of its airstrikes, equipping its missiles with enhancements, including so-called heat traps that deflect air defense systems. In Monday's attack, the cruise missiles flew at low altitudes only up to 50 meters off the ground making them harder to hit, he said in comments sent to The Associated Press. Western countries, led by the United States, have backed Ukraine with billions of dollars of armaments. They are holding a three-day NATO summit in Washington starting Tuesday to look at how they can reassure Kyiv of the alliance's unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europe's biggest conflict since World War II. Czech President Petr Pavel said the hospital attack was "inexcusable" and that he expected to see a consensus at the NATO summit that Russia was "the biggest threat for which we must be thoroughly prepared." Zelenskyy said during a visit to Poland he hopes the summit will provide more air defense systems for Ukraine. The Ukrainian leader said rescuers were digging through rubble at Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv where the number of casualties was not yet known. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said at least 16 people, seven of them children, were injured in the attack, which caused a partial collapse of a two-story wing of the facility. On the hospital's main 10-story building, windows and doors were blown out and walls blackened. Blood was splattered on the floor in one room. The intensive care unit, operating theaters and oncology departments all were damaged, officials said. The attack forced the evacuation of the hospital and its temporary closure. Some mothers carried their children away on their backs, while others waited in the courtyard with their children as calls to doctors' phones rang unanswered. Zelenskyy said on the X media platform, Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general. It is very important that the world does not remain silent about this now, and that everyone sees what Russia is and what it is doing. In the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine, authorities said missiles hit an industrial factory, killing at least three people. Ukraines air force said earlier Monday the countrys air defenses had shot down three Kh-101 cruise missiles over the Cherkasy and Zhytomyr regions. The Russian attack overnight included a fourth Kh-101 missile, as well as two Iskander-M ballistic missiles, the Ukrainian air force said. Serhiy Lysak, governor of the Dnipropetrovsk region, said on Telegram that Russian forces attacked several villages with kamikaze drones and artillery, injured four people and damaged several buildings. In the central region of Sumy, the regional military administration said on Telegram that Russian aerial drones dropped explosives on three communities. Russias defense ministry reported Monday its air defenses destroyed two Ukrainian aerial drones over the Belgorod and Voronezh regions. The governor of Voronezh said no injuries or damage were reported. Peace talks Chinese President Xi Jinping said Monday the international community should work to create the conditions for Russia and Ukraine to hold direct negotiations. Xi made the remarks during a visit by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Chinese state media said. Orbans trip to China came days after he had similar talks in Moscow with Russian President Vladimir Putin that were criticized by Ukraine and the European Union. Some information for this story was provided by Reuters and The Associated Press. A Russian court has sentenced a playwright and a theater director to six years in prison for justifying terrorism through the production of a play about Russian women marrying Islamic State fighters. The ruling on Monday is the latest in a crackdown on dissent and artistic freedom since Russia sent its troops into Ukraine. Zhenya Berkovich, an independent theater director, and Svetlana Petriychuk, a playwright, have denied the terrorism charges. I staged the performance to prevent terrorism, Berkovich said during the trial. I have nothing but condemnation and disgust toward terrorism, she said. The womens lawyers, according to The Associated Press, said in court hearings before the start of the trial that the play, Finist, the Brave Falcon, was supported by the Russian Culture Ministry and won the Golden Mask, Russias top theater prize. The lawyers also told the court that a reading of the play, staged at a womens prison in Siberia in 2019, received a favorable review from Russias state penitentiary service. During a court session last year, Berkovich said the play has "a very simple and transparent idea that dozens of women in our time become, I emphasize, random victims of evil," according to a Moscow Times report. "Understanding and justifying why this happens are two different things," she said. A lawyer for the women, Ksenia Karpinskaya, said they plan to appeal the verdict. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Reuters. Senegalese President and West Africa's ECOWAS "facilitator" Bassirou Diomaye Faye called Monday for dialogue and peaceful reconciliation with three countries that recently split from the bloc. The military leaders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso broke away from the Economic Community of West African States earlier this year and formed a confederation of their own on Saturday. ECOWAS heads of state met in Abuja on Sunday and deplored the "lack of progress in interactions" with Burkinabe, Malian and Nigerien authorities, who came to power in a series of recent coups. "We cannot stand idly by," Senegal's President Faye said in a video posted Monday. "Our responsibility is to work on bringing everyone closer and reconciliation -- to ensure there is room for dialogue", he said, vowing that the bloc will work towards peace. The three countries' decision to leave was fueled in part by their accusation that France was manipulating ECOWAS and not providing enough support for anti-jihadist efforts. ECOWAS has warned the region faced "disintegration", though its efforts to bring the seceding countries closer so far have failed. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have called their withdrawals "irreversible." ECOWAS appointed Senegal's president as a "facilitator" in negotiations with the three states, alongside Togolese President Faure Gnassingbe. President Faye stressed that, on paper, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger remain members for another year, as per article 91 of the organization's founding treaty. "I hope that by the end of the [one-year] notice period, we will have had enough conversations to reconcile views and strengthen the organization so that it can better tackle our shared challenges," Faye said. ECOWAS announced on Sunday that it would draft an "prospective emergency plan" to "address any contingency" in the tense relations with the breakaway countries. Four Indian soldiers were killed and at least six others were wounded when suspected rebels ambushed an army vehicle during a routine patrol in Kashmir's Indian-controlled Kathua district on Monday, according to Indian police officials. In response, police and army reinforcements swiftly deployed to the area, establishing a cordon and commencing a search operation. The incident, for which no insurgent group has claimed responsibility, marks the latest in a series of violent clashes. Just a day earlier, two separate gunfights in Kulgam district resulted in the deaths of two Indian soldiers and six suspected militants, according to police reports. Earlier on the same day, militants fired upon an army camp in Rajouri district, injuring one soldier. The Kashmir region, situated in the Himalayas, has been a point of contention between India and Pakistan since 1947, with both nations laying claim to the entire area. The dispute over Kashmir has led to three wars between the nuclear-armed neighbors. The Muslim-majority region is divided between India and Pakistan. India has accused Pakistan of supporting insurgents with arms and training in Indian-administered Kashmir. Islamabad denies these allegations. Since 1989, rebel groups have waged an insurgency seeking either independence for Kashmir or its integration with Pakistan. The conflict has resulted in tens of thousands of casualties among civilians, soldiers and insurgents. In June, an attack on a bus carrying Hindu pilgrims in the Reasi area claimed the lives of nine pilgrims and injured many others. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse. A Philadelphia radio host who interviewed President Joe Biden on July 3 has resigned after using questions provided by his campaign team. Andrea Lawful-Sanders, who hosted The Source on local radio station WURD, asked Biden four questions as part of an interview after the first presidential debate last month. WURD, Pennsylvanias only Black-owned talk radio station, said the interview had been arranged and negotiated without managements knowledge or consultation. In a statement, WURD president, Sara M. Lomax said the questions provided by the election campaign violates our practice of remaining an independent media outlet. WURD and Lawful-Sanders have since mutually agreed to part ways, the statement said. As Pennsylvanias only independent Black-owned talk radio station, WURD Radio has cultivated that trust with our audience over our 20-year history. This is something we take very seriously, Lomax said on the website. Agreeing to a pre-determined set of questions jeopardizes that trust and is not a practice that WURD Radio engages in. In an interview with U.S. media, Lawful-Sanders said the campaign sent her eight questions, four of which she used. A second radio host who also interviewed Biden in Milwaukee said that he, too, was provided questions before the interview and because of that could not ask everything he had wanted to. A spokesperson for the Biden reelection campaign was cited in media saying it is not uncommon to share topics they would like to discuss, and that Lawful-Sanders was free to ask other questions. We do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions, and hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners, the campaign spokesperson said. The Associated Press cited a person familiar with how the Biden campaign books interviews as saying the team plans to stop offering suggested questions to hosts. U.S. troops have completed a withdrawal from their base in Niger's capital of Niamey and will fully depart from Agadez in the north before a Sept. 15 deadline set by the country's military rulers, both countries said Sunday. Niger's military leaders scrapped a military cooperation deal with Washington in March, after seizing power in a July 2023 coup. The United States had around 650 soldiers in Niger as part of anti-jihadist missions in several Sahel nations of West Africa, including a major drone base near Agadez. "The defense ministry of Niger and the U.S. Defense Department announce that the withdrawal of American forces and equipment from the Niamey base 101 is now completed," the two countries said in a statement. A final flight carrying U.S. troops was due to leave Niamey late Sunday. The U.S. presence had stood at around 950 troops, and 766 soldiers have left Niger since the military ordered their departure, AFP learned at a ceremony at the base attended by Niger's army chief of staff Maman Sani Kiaou and US General Kenneth Ekman. "American forces are now going to focus on quitting airbase 201 in Agadez," the statement said, insisting that the withdrawal would be completed by September 15 as planned. Niger had already ordered the withdrawal of troops from France, the former colonial power and traditional security ally, and has strengthened ties with Russia which has provided instructors and equipment. On Saturday, Germany's defense ministry also said it would end operations at its airbase in Niger by August 31 following the breakdown of talks with military leaders. A similar shift has taken place in neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also ruled by military leaders and faced with violence from jihadist groups. BENI, DRC (AFP) A military court in the volatile east of DR Congo sentenced 22 soldiers to death on Monday for "fleeing the enemy" during fighting with M23 rebels, a lawyer told AFP. Sixteen soldiers were handed death sentences in one case in the North Kivu province, and six others in a separate case, coming just days after 25 soldiers received a similar judgment. The latest sentences come as M23 rebels, which Kinshasha accuses Rwanda of backing, last week seized new terrain on the northern front of the conflict that has been ongoing for two-and-a-half years in the North Kivu province. A military court condemned 16 people in one case in the court in North Kivu. The prosecution had asked on Saturday that 22 people in the case be condemned to death. But the court on Monday instead handed down 10-year prison sentences to three defendants and acquitted three other people. In a separate case examined and judged on Monday in North Kivu six of the seven defendants were sentenced to death and one person was acquitted, lawyer Jules Muvweko told AFP. Last Wednesday, a court sentenced 25 soldiers to death during a one day trial for also "fleeing the enemy," lawyers said. Since the end of 2021, the M23 rebels have conquered vast swathes of territory in the province, nearly completely encircling the provincial capital of Goma. Human Rights Watch says the Southern African Development Community should speak out against Zimbabwean authorities intensified crackdown on opposition activists and civil society groups ahead of its summit in Harare. In a statement, Human Rights Watch said President Emmerson Mnangagwas government has since 2017 committed serious human rights violations and failed to implement lasting reforms. Violence, intimidation, harassment, and repression aimed principally at opposition members and civil society activists have restricted civic and political space. Several activists have been abducted and tortured in the past year. The authorities have weaponized the criminal justice system against the ruling partys political opponents. Opposition politicians have been held in prolonged pretrial detention or convicted on baseless, seemingly politically motivated charges. The government of President Mnangagwa is accelerating its crackdown against legitimate and peaceful activism ahead of the August summit The Southern African Development Community needs to engage with the authorities to take clear measures to ensure the enjoyment of basic freedoms by all Zimbabweans. SADC should promote respect for human rights by calling upon Zimbabwes government to end repression and the arbitrary arrests and prosecutions of activists and opposition supporters. The pervasive climate of intimidation and repression needs to end. About 80 Zimbabwean Citizens Coalition for Change activists are currently in remand prison for attending a peaceful event in which they were commemorating International Day of the African Child. They are facing charges of bigotry. CCC activists say the arrests have become the order of the day since Mnangagwa assumed power in 2017. Recently, members of the National Democratic Working Group led by Job Sikhala were arrested and a few days before that, some CCC activists were detained in the Midlands province at a remembrance ceremony of their colleagues who was killed by suspected Zanu PF followers two years ago. President Emmerson Mnangagwa told a gathering of Zanu PF members last month that he was aware of certain rogue elements within the nation who are being on peddling falsehoods and instigating acts of civil disorder, especially before, during and after regional and world stage events. He said security agencies were on high alert to decisively deal with the so-called rogue elements. Similar sentiments were expressed by the countrys information minister, who said without elaboration, that criminal and opportunistic elements within the opposition, certain politicians, and some civil society organizations were attempting to incite disorder and discontent. Human Rights Watch noted that SADC should use the August summit and President Mnangagwas chairmanship as an opportunity to encourage Zimbabwe to put in place key reforms to improve respect for human rights, democracy, and the rule of law, in line with the SADC, which requires members to act according to these principles. Human Rights Watch and other organizations have reported numerous instances of the inability of the Zimbabwean judicial system to effectively provide remedies for alleged human rights violations. SADC member states should consider engaging the African human rights systems, such as the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights and the African Court on Human and Peoples Rights, to provide clarity on Zimbabwes obligations to protect all human rights under conditions laid down by the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights. Heads of state and government of SADCs 16 members will meet on August 17, 2024, in Harare, Zimbabwe, for their 44th summit, where Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa will be taking over as chairperson of the subregional organization. The revelation comes after Alice Munros death in May. Photo: Julien Behal/PA Images/Getty Two months after the death of Nobel laureate Alice Munro, her daughter has opened up about abuse in the family. In a new essay published in the Toronto Star alongside a new report about the case, Andrea Skinner says her mother knew about the sexual abuse she faced from her stepfather, Gerald Fremlin, but chose to stay with him anyway. Fremlin, 80 at the time, was convicted of sexually abusing Skinner in 2005 and sentenced to two years probation. What I wanted was some record of the truth, some public proof that I hadnt deserved what had happened to me, Skinner writes about why she pursued a criminal charge. I also wanted this story, my story, to become part of the stories people tell about my mother Unfortunately, thats not what happened. My mothers fame meant the silence continued. Skinner writes that the abuse occurred during her summer vacation in 1976, which she spent with Munro and Fremlin in Clinton, Ontario. When her mother was traveling in China, Skinner writes, Fremlin went into his stepdaughters bed and sexually abused her. During that same trip, Fremlin would ask her inappropriate questions about her sex life, behavior that would continue during her summer trips throughout the next several years. When I was alone with Fremlin, he made lewd jokes, exposed himself during car rides, told me about the little girls in the neighbourhood he liked, and described my mothers sexual needs, Skinner remembers. At the time, I didnt know this was abuse. I thought I was doing a good job of preventing abuse by averting my eyes and ignoring his stories. Back in Victoria, British Columbia, Skinner says she told her father, Jim Munro, about the abuse, but the family kept it a secret from Alice Munro. When Skinner was 11, the mother of a 14-year-old said Fremlin exposed himself to the young girl. He denied it, and when my mother asked about me, he reassured her that I was not his type, Skinner writes. In front of my mother, he told me that many cultures in the past werent as prudish as ours, and it used to be considered normal for children to learn about sex by engaging in sex with adults. My mother said nothing. I looked at the floor, afraid she might see my face turning red. The abuse left Skinner at war with myself, suffering from bulimia, insomnia and migraines, with the private pain taking a toll during her college years. At 25, Skinner worked up the courage to tell Munro about the abuse after they discussed a short story similar to Skinners own real-life experience. Munro briefly left Fremlin before eventually taking her husbands side and remaining married until he died in 2013. The lauded writer treated her husbands abuse like an infidelity that happened between Skinner and her stepfather. Munro felt it had nothing to do with her, her daughter writes. The revelation and the subsequent conviction left Skinner estranged from Munro until her death in May. In my case, my mothers fame meant that the secrecy spread far beyond the family, Skinner writes. Many influential people came to know something of my story yet continued to support, and add to, a narrative they knew was false. Following Munros death, Andrea and her sisters Jenny and Sheila Munro want her legacy to include the truth. View from the plop. Photo: Jared Siskin/Getty So, you were offline this long weekend enjoying the actual world, and now its Monday, youre back at your desktop, and everyone is talking about this guy Derek Blasberg, who allegedly diarrhead all over Gwyneth Paltrows guesthouse bathroom at one of her properties in the Hamptons or possibly Montecito, California. You want to know whats going on without having to ask someone or click on a Daily Mail link. We got you. News of the shitcident spread like, well, you know, over the past few days, as people who knew or cared about who this person is were utterly scandalise by the whole affair. What, if anything, is confirmed? What is this mans relationship to Paltrow? And how are the Seinfelds involved? Who is Derek Blasberg? Derek Blasberg (more like Derek Blast-turd, am I right?) is a 42-year-old writer, socialite, and media personality who is based in New York but can frequently be found in vacation destinations around the globe with his celebrity and fashion-industry friends. Hes worked everywhere from Vogue to Harpers Bazaar to Vanity Fair to CNN to the Gagosian Gallery, and he has 1.6 million followers on Instagram, where he frequently posts photos and videos of himself sitting front row at various fashion weeks next to Anna Wintour and having fun with A-listers like Kim Kardashian, Victoria Beckham, Naomi Campbell, Emma Chamberlain, Bella Hadid, and, yes, Gwyneth Paltrow. Whats his relationship to Paltrow? The two have been friends for years. In 2016, Paltrow told New York magazine, When I first met him, I was a little dubious: Are you a professional best friend of celebrities? And why are you everywhere at once? Whats your deal? But after ten seconds, I fell completely in love with him. She flies private with him, consults him for Instagram captions, and describes him as a midwestern boy who cant believe who hes eating dinner with, while simultaneously being completely comfortable with who hes eating dinner with. Shes participated in more than one of his web series, fielding questions and pretending to work at a spa. In his book, which is for some reason a womens-advice book, titled Very Classy: Even More Exceptional Advice for the Extremely Modern Lady, he calls Paltrow probably our generations most Classy woman alive, and names her as one of the modern celebrities who he thinks has the best taste, alongside Nicole Kidman and Emma Watson. What crappened? Last week, gossip site Popbitch published an item about a rumor that has been floating around Hamptons social circles for the last few weeks, purporting that a recent houseguest of Gwynnies catastrophically shat themselves in bed while staying there, then fled back to the city before they had to face the music. The site claims that the incident is really part of a larger epidemic of Ozempic-induced diarrhoea putting a strain on houseguest-host relations. On July 3, Dailymail.com claimed that an insider identified Blasberg as the culprit, that he blamed it on Ozempic before fleeing the property, and that the Ozempic excuse was just that: an excuse. The source alleges that the rumor spread after Paltrow told Oprah Winfrey, Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld, and Larry David. Despite Blasberg allegedly leaving a trail of evidence in his wake, the incident is contested. On July 3, Lainey Gossip blogger Maria Tallarico wrote that they had received a letter around three weeks prior that this same rumor (minus the Ozempic detail) was floating around NYC, and that it took place at Paltrows Montecito guesthouse. And? And thats all we know. Blasberg hasnt posted to grid since July 1, before these items were published, so he has yet to personally confirm or deny. So many folks are flush with Schadenfreude over this story, because we all love a good high-low contrast every now and then, reminding us all that even the wealthiest, most glamorous celebrities take real messed-up dumps sometimes. I do hope Paltrow and Blasbergs friendship survives this. He lasted posted a photo of Paltrow on Instagram in January. Its a picture of her staring down a Rothko at the Fondation Louis Vuitton in Paris. Whats one more paint job between friends? Photo: Jasper Savage/Prime Video Every episode of The Boys, Prime Videos ultraviolent, savagely satirical superhero series, offers an abundance of gross moments. Some involve violence. Others involve sex. And others still feature characters crossing moral, personal, and ethical boundaries. But even in a series in which no ones hands are ever fully clean literally or figuratively some characters behave worse than others. With The Boys, an episode title like Dirty Business practically doubles as a warning label that things will be nastier than usual. (See also Herogasm.) And guess what? They are. This week brings our heroes into an exclusive gathering hosted by Tek Knight, where they discover parties within parties where dark plans get hatched and dark desires find expression. Plus theres cake! 24. Daphne Campbell Lets take this opportunity to apologize to Hughies mom, Daphne. In the end it was (probably) wrong to suspect her of being up to no good. It seems like she really cared about Hugh Sr. and felt awful about leaving her husband and child behind but felt her mental health made staying impossible. We could dock her some points for scattering Hugh Sr.s ashes in a questionably legal fashion, but lets let her have that. Shes in mourning. 23. Look, even if you agree with Daphne and Hughies assessment of the 2002 rom-com Maid in Manhattan starring Jennifer Lopez and Ralph Fiennes, you have to admit shes good at her job and able to keep a smile on her face while she does it. Keep at it, unnamed guide. 22. Frenchie Frenchies out of the picture this episode. Hes in a dark place, and its easy to feel bad for him, but refusing to see Kimiko is still pretty crappy. 21. Ghost Becca Butcher Once again, the spirit of Becca Butcher is on hand to offer her husband wise moral counsel. True, she might be the side effect of a tumor, but that doesnt change anything. And, even so, shes far less dubious than Butchers other tumor ghost friend. 20. Sameer Sameers in a gross situation, but thats not really his fault. Hes trying to stay strong and do what he feels to be the right thing by not giving Butcher a virus that will kill Homelander (which hed probably be okay with) but also every other supe on earth, including those he loves. 19. Kimiko Apart from dealing out some serious violence at Tek Knights mansion, Kimiko spends the episode making sure an ailing Mothers Milk gets medical attention and trying to visit Frenchie in jail. In the world of The Boys that practically qualifies her for sainthood. 18. A-Train A-Trains journey back to the light continues despite the threat of cold feet spoiling his progress. (Can a super-speedster ever literally have cold feet? Interesting to think about.) But even if his fear sends him all the way to Toronto to take a phone call, he still does the right thing and rushes Mothers Milk to the hospital (with some prodding from Kimiko). Whats more, he likes the look of admiration his heroics inspire in a young onlooker. Could he end up being a flat-out hero? He seems headed in that direction. 17. Ryan Ryan looks a little too comfortable at Homelanders side at Tek Knights party, but does he have any choice? He might be drifting to the dark side, but hes also a kid. Lets cut him some slack and hope his better angels prevail. (That one of them is Butcher makes that kind of a long shot, though.) 16. Starlight Starlights apology to Firecracker honestly seems to be from the heart. That she uses the moment to administer a knock-out injection almost seems coincidental. (Its still a pretty dirty trick, however.) 15. Mothers Milk This is a tough one and a tough episode for Marvin. Hes using a meditation app to stay focused, but what good is that when the job requires you to shoot up a superpowered junkie via the pooper? True, he doesnt want to do this, but its still pretty gross. 14. Hughie Similarly, Hughie participates in a lot of, lets say, unconventional sexual activities in this episode, but not by choice. In fact, he seems pretty shaken by the experience as the episode ends. Still, if you fart on a cake, youre not going to end up at the bottom of this list. Sorry, Hughie. Also, the line You tap my undies, theyll shatter like peanut brittle, man, summons up a seriously nasty image. 13. Black Noir II Black Noirs replacement wears the costume well, literally, but not in any other sense. He really just wants a steady acting gig with none of the violence and mayhem this part requires. That, apparently, was not a problem for his predecessor, who sounds like a true sicko based on the Deeps description. Speaking of 12. The Deep This is an unusually low showing for the Deep, whos usually elevated by a combination of his aquatic proclivities, radioactive insecurity, gross overcompensation, and repellent, needy aura. Still, his speech about how violence creates respect is enough to score a relatively high berth for our guy, even for an episode that otherwise doesnt give him much to do. The kid stays in the picture! 11. 11. Like the Deep, these minor players are defined by awful words, not deeds, in this episode. But that doesnt let them off the hook. 10. Butcher Between the bloody vomiting and the torturing of Sameer, this is a pretty nasty outing for Billy Butcher. But other developments like the temptation to create superhero genocide via a global pandemic suggest it could get even more unpleasant. 9. Ghost Joe Kessler Okay, it seemed pretty obvious that Becca only existed in Butchers head, but it turns out his old CIA partner-in-violence is just as incorporeal and that Butcher has been Beautiful Minding both characters all season? What a twist! That doesnt make Kessler any less of a bad influence on Butcher. It also casts a lot of whats gone on this season in a new light. 8. Tek Knights Previous Sidekick We dont learn much about this leather-suit-clad sex-dungeon dweller, but, given the chance, he does the right thing and turns on the billionaire whos bound and imprisoned him. Maybe that wouldnt be that hard, though? 7. Victoria Just how committed is Victoria to helping out the bad guys? That answer gets less clear with every episode. Between having abortion and rape mansplained to her and her barely disguised impatience with her far-right fellow travelers, she seems gripped by discontent. Sure, she ends the episode signing on to help Homelanders evil schemes namely internment camps for his enemies but she seems to have an agenda of her own. 6. Sage Ditto Sage, who forms an unexpected alliance with Victoria when they bond at Tek Knights party. We learn a bit about her origins as a child genius who watched her Black Panther grandmother die despite having concocted a cure for her leukemia, thanks to condescending and uncaring doctors. Her seeming motto One hand in their pockets while the other slits their fucking throats all but confirms shes not a true believer in Homelanders cause (if thats the right word). But what does she believe? Well, sometimes she believes in mindlessly eating awful food with little regard for manners, which helps score her a pretty high slot for this episode. 5. Elijah Tek Knights butler/surrogate father has seen and cleaned up plenty of nasty deeds, but he has his limits, as Tek Knight learns the hard way. 4. Ashley Okay, lets tread lightly as we enter the Tek Knight sex dungeon in earnest. We do not want to kink shame anyone. What happens between consenting adults is fine. And to be fair, as disgusting as Tek Knight is as a person and as repulsive as his sexual tastes might be to many, the whole S&M situation he has going with Ashley does seem like a consenting-adults arrangement at least until he crosses the line late in the episode. (Though the discarded sidekick kept in chains might suggest otherwise. We dont really know what his deal is, though he tries to bring down Tek Knight with enthusiasm when given the chance.) Whatever makes you swampy, right? With that out of the way, these are bad people, which makes their turn-ons seem pretty foul, too. Ashley doesnt think shes doing anything wrong by laying abuse on the bound figure she believes to be Webweaver, nor, by the rules of that space, should she. But shes also fundamentally awful, so its pretty hard to see what shes doing as anything but awful, too. 3. Webweaver The Boyss Spider-Man analog lives a drugged-up hermetic existence thats left him devoid of shame. (Shoot it up my pooper, dog, is undoubtedly one of the most memorable lines the series has produced so far.) Hes nasty, his costume smells nasty, and his webhole is pretty gross, too. With only one appearance (after a handful of previous references) and limited screen time, Webweaver shoots (climbs?) way up the chart. Congrats, dog. 2. Homelander (tie) 2. Just as she is starting to make it possible to feel a little sorry for her, Firecracker reveals shes so obsessed with Homelander and all he represents shes been medically altering herself so she can lactate and breastfeed him. (It just enlarges the heart just a tiny little bit, no big deal.) Its hard to say one has the edge over the other in the grossness department, the milker or the milked. Beyond the lactation scene, Firecracker goes on about Jewish space lasers while Homelander plots to imprison his enemies and gets twitchy when anyone objects to his plans to stage a coup. Call the No. 2 spot a draw. 1. Tek Knight There is only one possible winner this week, however. Tek Knights superhero persona combines elements of Batman, Iron Man, and Daredevil. But behind closed doors, hes less a superhero than a superfreak. Again, what he and others do is their own business, but when you couple his fuzzy idea of consent with boasts about how his family made their fortune as slave catchers and that he now owns more private prisons than any other company in the U.S. of A, its pretty hard to stomach. When he tells Hughie hes tired of all the usual holes and that sometimes you just gotta make your own. And then fuck them, any doubt that hes the most disgusting character in the episode goes out the window. Also, R.I.P. Tek Knight. In hell there are no safe words. Not even Zendaya. Artemisia Gentileschi was a pioneering and fearless Roman artist whose trailblazing artistic legacy is only being fully appreciated in modern times. The stellar career of Italian early baroque painter Artemisia Gentileschi has long been overshadowed by her tumultuous life story, whose tragedies and triumphs continue to captivate the public imagination more than three and a half centuries after her death. Born in Rome in 1593, Gentileschi was the eldest of five children, and only daughter of Orazio to whom she was apprenticed in her early teens following the death of her mother. In 1610, aged 17, she made her stunning debut with Susanna and the Elders. Her use of a full-frontal nude to interpret a biblical tale was particularly daring during the Counter-Reformation era. The fact that this masterpiece was painted by a female, a teenager at that, during a time when women artists were confined to portraits and still lifes, was even more mould-breaking. Detail of Susanna and the Elders by Artemisia Gentileschi The Rome of Gentileschi's childhood was plagued by violence and crime, meaning she had little access to the city's cultural heritage and its hive of artistic production. The year after she painted Susanna and the Elders, Gentileschi began taking private lessons from her father's artist colleague Agostino Tassi, who raped the teenager in her own bedroom. Nine months later Orazio took Tassi to court for reneging on his alleged promise to marry his daughter to restore her dignity. The 18-year-old Gentileschi's trauma was compounded by a gruelling seven-month public trial in which she testified courageously against her perpetrator, a despicable character whose murky past included accusations of raping his sister-in-law and having his wife murdered by bandits. As part of then courtroom practice Gentileschi was subjected to sibille, a primitive mediaeval torture device involving the tightening of thumbscrews or metal rings around her fingers, to ensure she was telling the truth, leading her to shout across the courtroom to Tassi: This is the ring and these the promises you gave me. The trial in 1612 and its salacious details shocked Rome and received considerable publicity. A transcipt from the court still survives, providing a graphic account of the case which propelled the young Gentileschi into the spotlight for the worst reasons. Paradoxically it was the victim who suffered the worst punishment in the end: although Tassi was found guilty of rape and was imprisoned for two years, his verdict was later annulled and he was at liberty a year later. Following the trial, Gentileschi was forced into a rushed arranged marriage with the cash-strapped Florentine artist Pierantonio di Vicenzo Stiattesi. Exiled to Florence in 1613, Gentileschi's personal situation was worsened by a loveless union and the premature deaths of several children. However she countered this litany of misfortune with tenacity and talent, becoming the first woman accepted to the Accademia del Disegno. Florence also allowed Gentileschi to meet other artists of the day, such as Cristofano Allori who introduced her to influential figures including Cosimo II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, while her patron Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger helped her win prestigious commissions and acquainted her with the scientist Galileo. In 1620 Gentileschi returned to Rome with her husband, her daughter Palmira and her lover Francesco Maria Maringhi, who helped her keep two homes on Via del Corso and Via della Croce. Despite the seemingly violent relationship with her father, she was now free to explore the capital as well as interact with her artist peers, notably French painter Simon Vouet, who was so impressed with her work that he painted her portrait, palette in hand. During her time in Rome Gentileschi's prowess as a portrait painter continued to develop, as she absorbed the influences of artists working round her. In 1630 Gentileschi moved to Naples, making her Neapolitan debut with the celebrated Annunciation, influenced stylistically by Massimo Stanzione, who was working in the city at the time. Detail of Self-portrait as the Allegory of Painting by Artemisia Gentileschi In 1638 Gentileschi travelled to London, apparently at the invitation of Charles I, where she joined her ailing father at the Stuart court. She worked closely with him on paintings for the ceiling at the Queens House, as well as undertaking numerous other works before his death in 1639, while remaining in England for a further year or two to fulfil her commissions. Most of her London works were dispersed in the sale of crown assets after Charles was beheaded in 1649 and her only identifiable work still in the Royal Collection today is Self-portrait as the Allegory of Painting. Little is known of her movements after her eventual return to Italy. Records indicate that Gentileschi worked in Naples until her death, the exact date of which is unknown but is believed to have been in or around 1656. Much like Caravaggio, Gentileschi was largely forgotten until the 20th century. Renewed interest in her work was sparked in 1916 when a research paper by Italian art critic Roberto Longhi described Gentileschi as "the only woman in Italy who ever knew about painting, colouring, doughing, and other fundamentals". Interest grew further in 1947 following the publication of Artemisia, a fictional account of Gentileschi's life by Longhi's wife, Anna Banti. Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy by Artemisia Gentileschi Gentileschi expert Judith Mann describes it as a phenomenon in the history of art that we understood the artist's life far earlier than her painting. Despite a growing appreciation for the artist's work, the gender gap on the art market between father and daughter Gentileschi remains substantial. In January 2016 the painting Danae by Orazio was bought at auction in New York by the Getty Museum in Los Angeles for more than $30 million. Two years earlier, Mary Magdalene in Ecstasy by Artemisia was sold at auction in Paris for 865,000. Notwithstanding the widely-held narrative that the rape of a teenage Gentileschi had an everlasting effect on her artistic output - leading to her reputation as a painter of powerful women as well as her modern-day interpretation as a feminist heroine - the artist will be forever remembered for her masterful artistic legacy and for 'shattering the glass ceiling' in a male-dominated age. By Andy Devane Salerno-Costa d'Amalfi airport opens this summer. Italy's stunning Amalfi Coast, famed for its colourful fishing villages and lemon groves, opens up to commercial flights from a nearby airport this summer. The Salerno-Costa d'Amalfi airport, located south of Salerno and about 45 km from the town of Amalfi, is currently undergoing major expansion works and will be inaugurated on 11 July. Built in 1926 as a military base, the airport is expected to be fully operational by 2026/2027 on completion of a new passenger terminal and the extension of its runway up to 2,200 metres. In the meantime it will open on a limited basis to commercial flights within Italy as well as from Basel, Berlin, Geneva, London, Malta and Nantes. Currently most international tourists travelling to Amalfi fly into Capodichino Airport in Naples, or Rome Fiumicino, before taking trains and buses to the popular coastline. Which airlines will fly into Salerno Costa dAmalfi Airport? Volotea will offer flights from Salerno Costa dAmalfi Airport (QSR) this July, from Nantes and Cagliari, before adding Verona and Catania in September. EasyJet will offer flights from Basel, Berlin, Geneva, London Gatwick and Milan Malpensa, with Maltese airline Universal Air to launch flights between Malta and Salerno Costa d'Amalfi. Ryanair recently announced that from August it will operate flights to Salerno Costa dAmalfi from London Stansted, Milan Bergamo and Turin, with the last two destinations remaining operational in the winter season. Until now the Salerno-Costa d'Amalfi airport has been used as a military air base, flying school, firefighting centre and for private flights before functioning briefly as a commercial hub, in a very limited way, about a decade ago. The current programme of works began in 2019 and is being overseen by Gesac, the airport management company of both Salerno and Capodichino Interanational Airport in Naples. The ambitious 257 million expansion project is set to conclude fully in 2043, by which time Gesac expects to welcome six million travellers a year to the airport. Rome taxi drivers call off Tuesday strike. Taxi fares in Rome are set to increase significantly, according to Italian news reports, as the capital prepares to issue 1,000 new taxi licences. A new minimum fare of 9 will be introduced, La Repubblica reports, with the fixed rate to and from Fiumicino airport to rise from 50 to 55, and the Ciampino fare to be hiked from 31 to 40. Meanwhile a 24-hour strike scheduled by Rome taxi drivers on Tuesday 9 July was called off on Monday afternoon. Rome's transport councillor Eugenio Patane will reportedly hold talks with taxi representatives on Tuesday, while the mayor Roberto Gualtieri recently said that the capital would issue 1,000 new taxi licences. As Rome attempts to address a chronic shortage of taxis in the capital, Italy's powerful taxi lobby continues to oppose moves to introduce new taxi licences and efforts to deregulate the sector by opening it up to ride-hailing apps such as Uber. Meanwhile the difficulty in getting a taxi in Rome continues to make headlines and spark customer discontent, with massive queues a regular sight at the taxi rank outside the city's central Termini station. Last week the television journalist and Report presenter Sigfrido Ranucci took to social media to vent his anger about being unable to get a taxi in Rome, writing: Will someone have the courage to put an end to this indecent Italian, and above all Roman, scandal, which makes it impossible to book a taxi in the capital of Italy? Towards the middle of this book, Jimmy Kelly writes: Where there is injustice, we should be prepared to show practical solidarity with the oppressed worker no matter where. In this regard, the workers of Waterford Crystal have been trailblazers, whether it was in supporting fellow workers on the island of Ireland, in Britain and beyond. Reading Jimmys book, you see a story of a man who has dedicated his life and work to holding up the rights and dignity of others across Ireland and abroad. At the End of the Day is also not just the story of one mans life but the story of Waterford City and its trials and triumphs. Workers strike in the early 1990s. Born to young mother Kitty in the 1950s, Jimmy was raised on Gas House Lane in "the shadow of the Waterford Gas Company". From an early age, he was taught the value of socialist principles, particularly the work of Dr Noel Browne. Waterford-born Browne tried valiantly to introduce the Mother and Child Scheme, offering free healthcare to mothers and children in Ireland. Inside 'The Glass' Jimmy Kelly began work at the age of 15, leaving Mount Sion Secondary School to go to work as an apprentice glass-cutter at Waterford Crystal. He writes: Working-class school leavers no longer had to take the emigration route of our fathers and mothers and generations before them to England, Europe or the US. Instead we walked or cycled to factory jobs in our own home town. Jimmy vividly describes the influx of workers from Italy, Germany and Czechoslovakia who shared their skills with the local workers. Two Czech men in particular, Miroslav Havel and Charles Bacik, are highlighted for their work in re-introducing traditional cutting patterns from the Penrose Crystal times. Shop-floor power The book gives an invaluable inside look behind 'the Glass', from its start in 1783 with William and George Penrose, onto the re-birth flanked by Bacik and Havel, during its heyday as one the best places to work in the country. The calamitous fallout of 1990 job losses and the 2009 shutdown are recounted in vital, thorough detail. The 2009 closure coincided with the global economic downturn, which Jimmy notes caustically: "In some ways mirrored the behaviour of senior managers in Waterford Crystal who were awarding themselves substantial bonuses at a time that the company was haemorrhaging cash." All-Ireland Solidarity Within the book, there are passages reflecting workers' solidarity across the whole of Ireland. As the tremors of January 2009 reverberated throughout Waterford, Jimmy and fellow trade unionists showed strong support to fellow workers north of the border in Belfast and Antrim. In May 2009, Jimmy and fellow Unite members gave support to former Ford-Visteon workers, who were occupying their factory in west Belfast. In the North of Ireland, Jimmy met with then First Minister Peter Robinson over the proposed cuts and possible privatization of the local bus services. Jimmy makes a plea for the importance of public ownership: Since the 1980s, fares have gone up and thousands of bus routes have been cut, leaving passengers stranded. Buses keep our cities moving and our countryside accessible to everyone. Reading this today, it is difficult not to be reminded of certain bus services in the Republic, especially in Waterford. Global solidarity As a member of ATGWU, now known as Unite, Jimmy saw first hand how workers could be respected and protected by unions, not just in Ireland, but globally. He wrote: "We were part of an influential union affiliated with Workers Uniting, which counted, among many others, the Los Mineros Union in Mexico, as well as the United Steel Workers in the United States and Canada." In his role as Irish Secretary of Unite Jimmy has travelled to Columbia, meeting with fellow trade unionists, peace activists and workers. Across the world, he sees the same problems; people suffering under the dominance of powerful corporations, senior management and decimation of worker's rights. He writes down his experiences, not to merely reminisce, but to share lessons with the current and future generations: "Now as I write, how will workers, pensioners and their families cope with the spiralling cost of living, and what about the rising generation who face an ever-deepening housing and accommodation disaster? "Hence, the conclusions are intended to be a summary of workers fighting back in yesterday's, today's and tomorrow's world." Following a Council of The Bar of Ireland recommendation, criminal barristers around the country, including Waterford, will withdraw their services this Tuesday, July 9, in the first of three days of withdrawal this month. Protests will take place at 16 courthouses nationwide where criminal cases were due to be heard, including Waterford City; Dublin; Ennis, Co Clare; Washington Street, Cork; Tralee, Co Kerry; Naas, Co Kildare; Kilkenny City; Limerick City; Castlebar, Co Mayo; Longford town; Trim, Co Meath; Sligo town; Clonmel, Co Tipperary; Bray, Co Wicklow; and Wexford town. This is an escalation on the unprecedented action taken by criminal barristers on October 3, 2023, with the aim of seeking "an independent, meaningful, time-limited and binding mechanism" to determine the fees paid to criminal barristers by the Director of Public Prosecutions and under the Criminal Justice (Legal Aid) Scheme. Following the first withdrawal on October 3, 2023, a 10% restoration was subsequently announced in Budget 2024 on October 10, 2023. However, even after this 10% was restored, the full range of FEMPI-era cuts that were applied across the public sector, continue to apply to the profession, and the unilateral breaking of the link (in 2008) to public sector pay agreements has yet to be restored. This is despite a Government-commissioned review in 2018, acknowledging that the reversal of the cuts was justified given the level of reform and flexibilities delivered by the profession. It is with regret that we have recommended to criminal practitioners that they withdraw service again. No barrister wishes to be in this position, but we have been left with no choice," said Sara Phelan SC, Chair of the Council of The Bar of Ireland. She continued, "The Government has just reported on the complete unwinding of FEMPI legislation this month, yet FEMPI-era cuts still apply to our profession. This is despite the fact that the role of criminal barristers has evolved significantly in that time frame, and we have at all times delivered on the required reforms and flexibilities. "Yet, barristers continue to be treated differently to others in the criminal justice system and indeed to society at large. All we are seeking is fairness, and for appropriate investment in the criminal justice system. "A failure to so invest will result in continued attrition at the criminal bar, which will in turn add to the delays already being experienced by members of the public involved in the criminal justice system these delays can often be very difficult, in particular for victims of crime and accused persons, all of whom are seeking to have their rights vindicated. The ball is in the Governments court now," said Ms Phelan. Sean McKeown is set to take over the reins of Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Waterford City and County Council. Mr McKeown revealed the news on LinkedIn, stating: "I am hugely honoured and privileged to be confirmed as Chief Executive by the elected members of Waterford City & County Council. "I wish to thank the Mayor, Jason Murphy, and the elected members for approving my appointment." He continued: "I am looking forward to working with them and all the wonderful staff across the various teams in the Councils service areas to make Waterford the best place in the country to live, work, visit and do business!" Former CEO In the announcement, Mr McKeown thanked both Ivan Grimes and former CEO Michael Walsh, who stepped down from the role in April. He stated: "I wish to thank my colleague, Ivan Grimes, who has served as Interim Chief Executive, and I want to especially acknowledge the significant contribution that my predecessor, Michael Walsh, has made to Waterford." He added: "There is a strong pipeline of projects and plans in place, and I am excited to be at the heart of delivering them. "I also look forward to developing a close working relationship with the local community and business stakeholders over the coming years." Kilkenny County Council Mr McKeown previously worked as the Director of Planning, Economic and Environmental Services for Kilkenny County Council. He also had a role as Director of the South East Action Plan for Jobs, a five-county project to increase employment in Waterford, Kilkenny, Tipperary, Carlow and Wexford. Mr McKeown already has some experience as an acting CEO for a local authority, having stepped in as CEO for Kilkenny in 2022 after the retirement of former CEO Colette Byrne. Waterford Credit Union have assured members that their branches are in "a strong, stable position" following the announcement last week of significant changes to their operating hours. From August 19, Waterford Credit Union will no longer be operating on Saturdays at its Parnell Street and Tramore branches, and will instead be adding an additional day to the Upper Grange branch, which will now be open on Mondays. The move to digital Last month the Waterford Credit Union Board of Directors made the decision to alter the hours, saying it was done to pool resources on Saturdays into one branch for a better member service experience and to further reinforce the financial security of our credit union. A statement from the Credit Union added that a recent analysis of member activity and an increasing number of members opting to use online services inspired the decision. Fidelma Wallace, Elsie Fitzgerald and Gemma Doyle spoke about the amended Waterford Credit Union hours. Photos: Joe Evans The statement reads: It is clear to see that peoples behaviour has changed since Covid and this changed behaviour has continued despite Covid no longer being a factor. The Credit Union said that it will remain available to the public, whether that be digitally or in person. Eve, Clive and Paddy Prendergast. Credit Union user, Paddy said the change in Waterford Credit Union opening hours is 'disappointing'. While many members may choose to use our digital services, we believe that all members value the option of meeting directly with a member of staff in our branches. Waterford Credit Union remains fully committed to operating in the community and members will be able to undertake all their Credit Union business both through our digital (online) channels, as well as personal service in any of the branches five days a week in both Parnell Street and Tramore and six days a week in Upper Grange. Here at Waterford Credit Union, we are digital when you want, but human when you need. A very strong Credit Union Representatives also acknowledged the disruption that the changing hours may have on users. Inevitably, closure of both Parnell Street and Tramore branches will cause inconvenience for some members. However, members have the option to avail of our Upper Grange branch which will be opened from 10am 5pm. Deputy Matt Shanahan. Photo: Joe Evans Upper Grange branch is a 10 minutes drive or 3.7km away from Parnell Street and 13 minutes drive or 11.5km from Tramore respectively. At our Upper Grange Branch, you will have access to free parking, making it much easier for you to get into us. As well as this, our Upper Grange branch is on a public transport route for those that do not drive. Amidst potential concern from users regarding the changes, representatives of the Credit Union said that they are "in a strong, stable position", with over 182 million in assets and 25 million in total reserves, which makes them "a very strong Credit Union". Reaction A number of local Credit Union users were asked by Waterford News & Star this week how they feel about the changes. Fidelma Wallace, Elsie Fitzgerald and Gemma Doyle said they use the Upper Grange branch and were surprised to hear the news of the upcoming amended opening hours. The group said: We dont mind the change because well still have the five days to use the service with the extra day added at Grange, so we can rotate between the branches." The group added that they value Waterford Credit Unions decision to ensure that in person services remain in place. Wed all prefer to go in person than be online. We love to go in. You need to have human contact and we love to go even just to have a chat with people and the staff are all lovely there so its important to us. Another Credit Union user, Paddy Prendergast added: I think personally there will eventually be only one Credit Union in Waterford because things are changing quickly. The news is disappointing but we can't do anything about it unfortunately. Deputy Matt Shanahan also spoke on the changes, saying: I wouldnt be a fan of it because its a handy service and I know a lot of people who do access it on a Saturday, especially people who are working all week. Speaking on the publics increased desire to use digital services, Deputy Matt Shanahan said, Moving online is big now and its created disassociation. Theres a lot of talk about mental health and having less interaction cant be good for people. Human beings are social animals at the end of the day and interaction is important. Community Waterford Councillor John Pratt (Labour), who has previous experience working within Credit Unions, said the service they offer to the community is invaluable. It's very important to have that accessibility and the more access you have to the service the better. People do adapt, but a lot of people are working Monday to Friday and being able to access the Credit Union on a Saturday is very important." He added, The Credit Union is in my opinion one of the best movements because it has always been community-based and community-run regarding the boards and volunteerism. The good thing about the Credit Unions is also the personal touch they offer and the one-to-one at the counter. So that's important." Waterford Credit Union were contacted for further comment. Alison O'Riordan The actions of a 22-year-old criminal who harassed and tormented a vulnerable man with a brain injury before stabbing him to death in his own home have been described by the victim's family as "nothing but evil". Christopher Hall's daughter Rebecca told the Central Criminal Court on Monday that the decision by defendant Owen Maughan to plead guilty to murdering her father does not change anything for her family, as it "does not undo or justify" what he did and will not bring her father back. She added: "You took the life of an innocent and vulnerable man that had a brain injury, your murderous crime on him was heinous and barbarous and my family will always wonder why you did this. It was senseless, you took his life in his own home, where he lived alone, a place where he was supposed to feel safe and secure, your actions were nothing but evil". Ms Hall said she had found her father's body on the floor between two chairs in their sitting room and that he was lying on his back in a pool of his own blood. "He was clothed but his clothes looked like they had just been thrown on to answer the door. I always think he must have only got out of bed moments before his life was taken". Ms Hall said she planned to bring her father to the Garda station that day because Maughan had "harassed him and stolen from him days before taking his life". The testimony was heard as part of an emotional victim impact statement read on Monday to the Central Criminal Court, where Owen Maughan was sentenced to the mandatory term of life imprisonment for murdering 65-year-old Christopher Hall. The sentence was backdated to July 4th, when he went into custody. Maughan, of Dun Saithne Avenue, Balbriggan, appeared in court on Monday for his sentence hearing, having pleaded guilty last month at a Central Criminal Court pre-trial hearing to murdering Mr Hall at his home in Dun Saithne Green, Balbriggan, Co Dublin, between November 23rd and 24th, 2021, both dates inclusive. Sentencing judge Mr Justice Paul McDermott noted today that when cases come before the court and a plea has been entered, the focus "rightly falls on the victim of the crime" and the consequences for the family, which he said he had heard "so eloquently expressed" in the two victim impact statements. He said Mr Hall was "clearly very loved" and he expressed his deepest sympathy to the family for their loss. The judge thanked the Hall family for their statements, saying that they "were very difficult to compose and they took a lot". Earlier, the court heard that Maughan has 39 previous convictions, 20 of which were committed as a child and 19 as an adult. Defence counsel Philipp Rahn SC, for Maughan, said his client had anger issues and was hyperactive as a child but was doing well until he was 16 years old. "He started committing offences, keeping bad company and started taking drugs, which became a real problem," he added. He said the defendant was taking alcohol and drugs at the time of this offence. Mr Rahn said Maughan had written a short letter to the Hall family, where he wished to express his remorse but that he appreciated "no words on paper" can make anything better. He went on to say that his client said there was no good reason for the senseless crime committed and he was not in the right frame of mind at the time but on drugs. "He can't explain or put into words how sorry he is and he hopes one day he will find forgiveness," he said. Garrett Baker SC, prosecuting, told the hearing that a postmortem was conducted by State pathologist Dr Heidi Okkers, who identified seven stab wounds on the deceased's neck, one of which had penetrated the right internal jugular vein. The pathologist also noted blunt force trauma injuries on the right side of the head and a fracture to the right orbital bone. Mr Baker said the pathologist was of the view that the blunt force injuries could have been caused by the handle of a knife. The prosecutor said gardai became aware that the deceased's daughter, Ms Rebecca Hall, had concerns about Maughan interacting with her father prior to the offence. CCTV footage in the immediate area, the court heard, had captured Maughan at the deceased's house on three occasions, on November 23rd and into the next day. Detective Sergeant Noel Smith, of Balbriggan Garda Station, said the investigation revealed that Mr Hall was seen out and about after the first occasion, which meant Mr Hall was still alive at that point. He said it was believed Mr Hall was murdered by Maughan on the second visit that day. By Jonathan McCambridge, PA The Stormont powersharing Executive will have to look at raising its own revenue to help deal with public sector budget pressures, new Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn has said. In his first visit to the North since taking up office, Mr Benn said Stormont has historically not been as good as it might be in income generation. He also said that a priority had to be given to ensuring that the current budget was being used in the most effective way, adding there is an urgent need for public sector reform. Mr Benn visited St Georges Market in Belfast on Sunday morning where he spoke to traders and members of the public. If followed meetings that he had in Hillsborough Castle in Co Down on Saturday evening with the main Stormont political parties. Northern Irelands First Minister, Michelle ONeill, said she made the case for fair funding for public services during her meeting. Speaking to the media, Mr Benn pointed out that public spending in Northern Ireland is higher than in England. Northern Ireland Secretary Hilary Benn speaks with a market trader (Niall Carson/PA) The North receives about 124 per head for every 100 per head spent in England. Mr Benn said: Those (funding) discussions about the future will continue and there will be additional money when the main estimates are published which I anticipate will be in the near future. But I would also say this. There is a question for the Executive about how the money is spent. All public bodies, governments, institutions have to look at what theyve got coming in, whats going out and how they can make the most effective use of that. Historically, government in Northern Ireland has not been as good as it might be in income generation. That is something the Executive is going to have to look at. Hilary Benn meeting First Minister Michelle ONeill and deputy First Minister Emma Little-Pengelly at Hillsborough Caste on Saturday (Kelvin Boyes/PA) Mr Benn added: Through the process of reform which we are very keen to assist withthat is also a path to a better future because if there ways in which the money which is currently being allocated, which is more than the constituency that I represent in Leeds (receives), using it most effectively to get the best public services should be an urgent priority for all of us. The Northern Ireland Secretary said: The really urgent task for now is public services, the longest waiting lists in the whole of the United Kingdom. This was an election in which people voted in all parts of the United Kingdom for change and that is why I am so keen to work with the Executive. They have a big responsibility to undertake public service reform because with more funding per head than say my constituents receive, Northern Ireland has the worst waiting lists in the whole of the UK. I think everybody recognises there is a need for reform. We stand ready to give advice and expertise and support because it is a very big task but it is an urgent one for the people of Northern Ireland. Speaking following her meeting with Mr Benn on Saturday, Ms ONeill said: We strongly made the case for fair funding to be provided urgently for health, education and public services here. The cuts our people and public services have endured under the Tories must end now. Mr Benn said it was a great privilege and an honour to be appointed Northern Ireland Secretary. He said: I was very keen to come here as soon as possible and that is why I arrived yesterday. I am determined that we are going to build a new relationship with the parties in Northern Ireland. I was a very strong supporter of the restoration of the (Stormont) institutions because Northern Ireland needs its government to function above all in the interests of the people of Northern Ireland who, in recent years, have been without a government for far too long. I am greatly encouraged by the way in which the Executive has started its work. The chief executive of Nine-owned Pedestrian Group, Matt Rowley, will leave the youth publisher as part of a major restructure and cost-cutting effort, in which up to 40 jobs will go across the business. The restructure will include splitting the business in half, and Pedestrian exiting its licensing deals to publish third-party brands including Vice, Refinery29, Gizmodo, Lifehacker and Kotaku in coming months. These titles will no longer be published in Australia, with the majority of their staff to be let go. It will focus on its wholly owned brands, Pedestrian and Pedestrian TV. The future of its Web3 publication The Chainsaw is up in the air. Pedestrian Group CEO Matt Rowley is leaving the publisher as part of a restructure. With Rowleys exit, the company is in the market for a new figure to lead the reshaped and downsized division. Rowley announced the changes and his departure to staff on Monday morning. Director of Nines free news website, nine.com.au, Kerri Elstub also told staff some roles would be removed as it adjusted its budget. Labors Peter Khalil has become the first MP to push back against claims made by a pro-Palestinian political movement aiming to unseat Labor politicians, declaring the group known as The Muslim Vote is misleading the public about the governments stance on the Gaza war. The Melbourne MP is fighting to hold onto his inner-northern seat of Wills after a redistribution proposal five weeks ago that favours the Greens, who are reaching out to Muslims who make up 10 per cent of the electorates voters. The Muslim Votes network plans to campaign against Labor MPs they regard as weak on Palestine in several seats including Wills and met Senator Fatima Payman last month before she crossed the floor to vote with the Greens on immediate recognition of Palestinian statehood. Peter Khalil has hit back at a campaign against Labor over the conflict in Gaza. Credit: The Sydney Morning Herald Khalil on Monday accused the groups leaders of failing to mention countless public statements by Labor such as breaking with the United States to back a ceasefire vote at the United Nations, calling for unimpeded aid, demanding Israel respect humanitarian law, and affirming Australias role in a peace process that could lead to a Palestinian state. This is an opportunity for people to enter the ecosystem, he said. Years back, I was seeing all the Blackbird investment news and AirTree news and thought I should get involved, but there wasnt an easy bridge for me to do that. Thats why weve created this its a way for mums and dads who might have an investment property for example, they might want to expand their portfolio and start dabbling in start-up investments. This platform can help marry them with the types of founders they might be interested in based on their industry and insights. Canva has made millionaires out of its early backers. Credit: Bloomberg Data from Cut Through Venture shows that after a prolonged investment drought, the capital raised by Australian start-ups is up 30 per cent year-on-year, with interest particularly strong in AI and big data start-ups. Already on the AngelClass platform are high-profile local angel investors including Peter Moore, who sold his company to Atlassian in 2010, and Simon Rossi, Uber Eats Australias first employee. The investors appear in a series of masterclasses, where they share their learnings and insights on how to improve and refine an investment strategy or make fewer mistakes, as well as tips for unicorn hunting. There are so many start-up investment opportunities out there that finding and picking the right ones is the critical component, Rossi said. The traditional way of start-up investing is knowing somebody who knows somebody, and then it always happens over email. This is a much better way of doing things. I dont know if its right for everybody, because it is high-risk so you need to be able to stomach that risk appetite. My approach to angel investing is very much about going wide, and what that means is making more smaller investments and knowing most will fail, but you make your returns on the few that do hit. The AngelClass program joins a number of similar existing programs, including Airtree Explorer and Aussie Angels, which are both designed to encourage more people to become angel investors and educate them on dipping their toes in the water. Maxine Minter is an angel investor in start-up companies. Credit: The Age Maxine Minter is an angel investor on the AngelClass platform and said that Australia still collectively invests a tiny proportion of capital into tech start-ups compared with investors in the United States. Its awesome to see these education offerings pop up; theyll do a lot for the local sector, Minter said. Youre going to have folks out there deploying $10,000, which becomes $20,000 and then $100,000 over the course of 10 years, if theyre good at it. And for start-ups, their cap table should be like a group of Avengers, all bringing different things to the business ideally, very strategic things. A recent court stoush between mattress maker Sleeping Duck and its largest investor, Adir Shiffman, highlighted some of the common pitfalls of angel investing, Spiegel says. Last month, Melbournes Supreme Court ruled against Shiffman, who had sued Sleeping Duck alleging he had been frozen out of the company and oppressed, or effectively omitted from key product and marketing decisions. Spiegel said common pitfalls for first-time investors included putting too much money into their first investment round so that they couldnt support future rounds, and falling in love with the founder rather than doing due diligence on the business model or problem. Sleeping Duck co-founders Selvam Sinnappan (left) and Winston Wijeyeratne. Credit: Daniel Hartley-Allen If we can help more founders succeed, and more investors succeed, and do that at scale then thats our job done, Spiegel said. We want to be able to improve the success rate of Australian start-ups. Washington: Embattled US President Joe Biden has doubled down against party elites who have called for him to drop out of the election, daring any of his critics to challenge him at next months Democratic convention. As members of Congress returned to Washington for the first time after Bidens dismal debate performance 11 days ago, the president made an unexpected phone call to MSNBCs Morning Joe program to express his frustration and once again declare he is not going anywhere. Joe Biden and Pastor Louis Felton pray at a church service at Mt Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Credit: AP Im getting so frustrated by the elites in the party, he told hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, occasionally raising his voice. They know so much more? If any of these guys dont think I should run run against me. Go ahead. Announce for president; challenge me at the convention. From 24 to 28 June 2024, the World Customs Organization conducted a Training of Trainers workshop on the Harmonized System for the WCO West and Central Africa (WCA) Region in Abidjan, Cote dIvoire. The workshop was organised within the framework of the EU-WCO Programme for Harmonized System in Africa (HS-Africa Programme), funded by the European Union. The Training of Trainers workshop aimed to develop a pool of competent trainers in the area of HS tariff classification who could further disseminate knowledge about the HS in their respective countries and region. The training brought together 35 representatives from the 24 WCA countries, who are experienced experts on tariff classification in their Customs Administrations. The workshop was conducted by two WCO experts and one recognised expert from Spanish Customs. HS Experts from Cote dIvoire Customs who had successfully followed the Programmes competency development cycle between February 2023 and January 2024 were able to put in practice their skills and facilitated dedicated sessions. In his opening remarks, Colonel Leopold AKE, representing the Director General of Customs, highlighted the importance of the HS in trade facilitation and management of customs processes while emphasising the critical role played by the HS in streamlining Customs procedures, ensuring accurate tariff determination and facilitating the collection of correct trade statistics. He thanked the EU for its strong commitment to support African partners at continental, regional and national level through such initiatives as the HS-Africa Programme. He extended his appreciation to the WCO on the remarkable partnership in the implementation of the Programme. Mr. Abdel Kader SANGHO, the Director of the WCO Regional Office for Capacity Building for the WCA Region, emphasized the role of accurate application of the Harmonized System as a key factor for successful trade facilitation and continental integration. He also thanked the WCO and the EU for their commitment and high quality support in building the capacities of WCA Customs Administrations on HS. The Training of Trainers workshop was an occasion to deepen the experts understanding of the HS as well as develop and strengthen their training skills to deliver HS related training in their administrations. The workshop fostered a vibrant learning environment, offering the participants a unique opportunity to deliver short group and individual presentations in various HS related topics while taking into account the skills and tips learnt from the WCO experts. In conclusion of the workshop, the WCO experts provided general feedback to the participants with a focus on key areas that needed improvement as well as commending the notable areas where participants deployed the acquired skills in developing training materials and delivering a training. For more details, please contact wcoHSAfrica@wcoomd.org. In the margins of the 143rd/144th Sessions of the WCO Council, held from 27 to 29 June 2024, the Secretary General of the World Customs Organization (WCO), Mr. Ian Saunders, and the Chairman of the State Customs Committee of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr. Shahin Baghirov, signed a Grant Agreement to establish the Azerbaijan Customs Cooperation Fund (CCF Azerbaijan). This fund aims to bolster Customs cooperation and capacity building along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, also known as the Middle Corridor. In recent years, the WCO has received numerous requests from countries in the sub-region to provide capacity-building support to enhance Customs connectivity along the Middle Corridor. These requests highlight the corridors importance as a critical trade route and the need for robust Customs procedures to facilitate efficient and secure trade flows. The establishment of CCF Azerbaijan will address these demands and the challenges faced by Customs administrations due to the globalization of trade. CCF Azerbaijan will support a range of activities, including the training of Customs officials, and the organization of seminars, workshops and meetings for the beneficiary Customs administrations. These activities are designed to promote trade facilitation, improve compliance and enforcement, enhance Customs modernization, and build the competencies and capacities of Customs officials. This initiative aligns with the WCO's strategic vision of fostering regional cooperation. By enhancing the connectivity along the Middle Corridor, CCF Azerbaijan aims to create a seamless and efficient trade network that boosts economic activities, strengthens regional ties, and fosters sustainable development. The WCO welcomes this initiative, which underscores the ongoing cooperation with Azerbaijan Customs, and looks forward to further supporting Members through the new CCF Azerbaijan. Eimear Dodd A Dublin taxi driver who raped two young women in separate incidents in 2022 has also been convicted of raping a seven-year-old girl over a decade ago. Raymond Shorten (50), with addresses in Melrose Crescent, Clondalkin and in Rathfarnham, was convicted in May of two counts of rape and one of sexual assault in 2012 of the young girl. Shorten was 37 at the time. The now 20-year-old woman indicated she wished for Shorten to be named, but to retain her anonymity. The Central Criminal Court heard Shorten was known to her family at the time. The offending came to light after the girl left a handwritten note on her grandmother's pillow in 2020 saying that Shorten had sexually abused her. She was interviewed by specialist gardai in early 2021. The court heard on Monday that Shorten raped the young girl for the first time in the days after her mother's funeral. She was seven or eight when the second rape occurred. Shorten later sexually assaulted the girl in a car by touching her leg inappropriately. Shorten denied any wrongdoing when he was interviewed by gardai in 2021. He described the first incident of rape as 110% lies and said he was mystified by the allegations. Shorten gave evidence in his own defence during this trial and denied the allegations, saying they were a total fabrication. Shorten was convicted of two counts of rape and one of anal rape by a jury at the Central Criminal Court last month and is due to be sentenced in relation to these charges later this month. He has eight previous convictions, including five for road traffic offences. A victim impact statement was read to the court by prosecuting counsel Gerardine Small SC. The young woman said she was severely taken advantage of by Shorten, whom she never liked. She said he always creeped me out and she didn't want to go near him. She said she was terrified and didn't understand what was happening. One part of me knew what he done to me was not right and couldnt be right, but another part thought it must be right because why else would an adult man do that to a seven-year-old, she said. The woman described the effect of the abuse on her, including issues with sleep, self-harm, suicidal ideation and strong emotional outbursts when she was younger. She said she felt angry about the sexual abuse but couldn't comprehend what had happened to her. She said she was terrified to be left alone with a male teacher, in case they'd do the same with me. She said it was only when she started sex education in school at the age of 14 that she realised what Shorten did to her was wrong. She outlined suffering with panic attacks in recent years, describing weeks where I would have one panic attack every 20 minutes. I thought I was going to die. She said she was relieved when she was told the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had decided to prosecute Shorten but was terrified of the process. She said when Shorten was convicted, she felt she'd finally found the beginning of the end. She said Shorten should have protected me, not abused me. Ms Small told the court that the DPP's view is that the case falls into the more serious category for sentencing, meriting a headline sentence of between 10 and 15 years. She noted the aggravating features include the age difference between Shorten and the girl, and her young age and vulnerability at the time. Lorcan Staines SC, defending, said his client does not accept responsibility for the offences. Counsel said Shorten has a long work history, initially in a factory, then as a milkman before working as a taxi driver. Shorten is a father of seven children and hopes to rebuild his relationship with them in future. He has also lost his marriage and relationship with his parents. Shorten has been working in the prison laundry while in custody and is on an enhanced prisoner regime. Mr Justice Kerida Naidoo adjourned this case for finalisaton on July 19. Three days later on July 22nd, Shorten is due to be sentenced in relation to the three taxi rape charges. Shorten had pleaded not guilty to the rape and anal rape of a 19-year-old woman on June 26th, 2022 and to the rape of another woman, then aged 20, a couple of months later on August 9th. Each young woman separately found themselves in a taxi after a night out socialising and drinking in Dublin city centre, where they were raped by the driver, Shorten. The court heard that Shorten raped the girl for the first time in the days following her mother's funeral. The assault took place in a bathroom at her family home and Shorten put his hand over the girl's mouth so she couldn't scream. She hit her head on a radiator during the incident and was sore and bleeding in its aftermath. Shorten raped her again on a bed when she was seven or eight years old. She described feeling sore and uncomfortable during the incident and recalled it took place at night-time as the lights were on. He sexually assaulted her on another occasion while in a car. The court heard the girl screamed and he stopped. Shorten was voluntarily interviewed by gardai in June 2020. He denied the allegations saying oh my god, that is 110% a lie in relation to the first incident of rape. He denied he had ever been at the girl's family home and said the allegation was horrendous. He said the second rape was pure, made-up lies. He said he was mystified by the whole lot and thought it was a wind-up when gardai contacted him. Mr Staines noted his client has been in custody since August 2022 and asked the court to consider backdating any sentence to the earliest point of time. Weather Alert Bulletin: ...FROST ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT FROM 2 AM TO 9 AM EDT FRIDAY... * WHAT...Temperatures as low as 33 degrees will result in frost formation. * WHERE...A portion of central Pennsylvania. * WHEN...From 2 AM to 9 AM EDT Friday. * IMPACTS...Frost could harm sensitive outdoor vegetation. Sensitive outdoor plants may be killed if left uncovered. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Take steps now to protect tender plants and vegetation from the cold. Potted plants should be brought inside. The frost will occur mainly in valley locations. && Info: Type: Frost Advisory start_time_local: 2024-10-11T02:00:00-04:00 end_time_local: 2024-10-11T09:00:00-04:00 county_name: state: PA headline: Frost Advisory from FRI 2:00 AM EDT until FRI 9:00 AM EDT county_fips: category: Met url: urgency: Expected severity: Minor certainty: Likely geographicname: Schuylkill County state_name: Pennsylvania Beetle outbreak: Another fossil rove beetle from Botswana A new species of fossil paederine rove beetle from Orapa. A remarkable fossil discovery in a Botswana diamond mine, 824 kilometres from Johannesburg, has shed light on the ancient history of beetles. The groundbreaking discovery was made possible by a kimberlite eruption of two adjoining pipes triggered by gas and steam, that led to a volcanic eruption, which formed a crater lake at the centre of the mine. The specimen is a rove beetle preserved in sediments that are dated to be around 90 million years old. The new research, published in the Journal of Entomological Science, describes the new species, Mesostaphylinus orapa, a new species that enhances our understanding of beetle evolution and distribution. Led by Dr Sandiso Mnguni, a GENUS NGP Postdoctoral Fellow at Wits University, and his team, including Prof Shaw Badenhorst from the Evolutionary Studies Institute at Wits University and the late Dr Ian James McKay, this research marks the first recorded fossil of a paederine rove beetle in Africa and only the second in the Southern Hemisphere, following a previous discovery in Brazil. Mesostaphylinus orapa is named after the Orapa Diamond Mine where it was discovered. The Orapa Diamond Mine is the largest conventional open-pit diamond mine by carat production in the world and, remarkably, it also houses an abundance of fossil insects and plants. The new species was unearthed from lacustrine sediments (deposits that accumulate in lake environments), that have been exposed by mining operations. The beetle has a typical body form of paederine rove beetles, including concealed antennal insertions and sharp, scissor-like, predatory mouthparts. These beetles thrived in damp environments around the ancient crater lake, under logs, litter, and foliage, and in caves and nests of ants and termites. "This beautiful specimen made our research less difficult," Mnguni states. "Its body shape clearly indicated its affiliation with paederine rove beetles, and we used key traits like antennal insertions and a leg part called coxa to distinguish it from its sister group, the staphylinine rove beetle, which we have also recently described from the same deposit." Rove beetles, identifiable by their short elytra exposing the abdomen, are known for their highly mobile lifestyles and versatile habitat preferences. The paederine group, social parasites closely related to staphylinine rove beetles since 156 million years ago, continues to reveal its evolutionary success through such discoveries. I am convinced that there are more rove beetles from this deposit, Mnguni said. The Orapa Diamond Mine is a unique deposit of the Cretaceous age (145 to 66 million years ago). It has become an important deposit for documenting and subsequently helping in better understanding the biodiversity of the past, and reconstructing ancient ecosystems and environments, revealing a world where these rove beetles and other groups of insects roamed alongside dinosaurs and therapsids. Insects continue to be an integral part of trophic systems. Mnguni emphasises the significance of this well-preserved specimen, which provides a window into the widespread distribution of paederine rove beetles during the Cretaceous period. Although fossils from China, Myanmar, and Brazil have been documented, the findings from Botswana underscores the Orapa Diamond Mine's importance as a Cretaceous deposit in Africa. The discovery of Mesostaphylinus orapa enriches our knowledge of the biodiversity, biogeography, and evolution of paederine rove beetles during the Cretaceous. Following his descriptions of other rove beetles named Afristenus orapensis and Paleothius mckayi, this continues to highlight the untapped potential of the Orapa Diamond Mine in expanding our understanding of Cretaceous ecosystems and environments, and the evolutionary trajectories of insect life on Earth. There are still more fossil insects belonging in various groups that continue to await description and this is an opportunity for collaborations, Mnguni optimistically shares. Members of Beijing Dance Academy perform during the Chinese classical dance show "Beauty Beyond Words" on the main stage of Bucharest's National Theater in Bucharest, Romania, July 4, 2024. [Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua] The Chinese classical dance show "Beauty Beyond Words" staged at Bucharest's National Theater and showcased the unique charm of Chinese dance. BUCHAREST, July 5 (Xinhua) The Chinese classical dance show "Beauty Beyond Words" captivated audiences on Thursday evening at Bucharest's National Theater. The event, performed by the Beijing Dance Academy, was part of a series of celebrations marking the 75th anniversary of diplomatic ties and the 20th anniversary of the comprehensive friendly and cooperative partnership between China and Romania. Following successful performances at the Sibiu International Theater Festival and in Brasov, the Beijing Dance Academy once again received high praise from Romanian audiences. Around 900 people attended the performance, including ambassadors and representatives from over 20 countries, Romanian ministerial-level officials, former politicians and local residents. A member of Beijing Dance Academy performs during the Chinese classical dance show "Beauty Beyond Words" on the main stage of Bucharest's National Theater in Bucharest, Romania, July 4, 2024. [Photo by Cristian Cristel/Xinhua] The performers showcased the unique charm of Chinese dance. From the elegant beauty of the solo dances "Cloud Fairy" and "Flying Apsaras" to the lingering love of the duets "Butterfly Lovers" and "Farewell at the Pavilion," the dance works are based on Chinese traditional culture, blending gentleness and strength. Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin highlighted the importance of cultural exchange in promoting dialogue among civilizations. Irina Cajal, undersecretary of state of the Romanian Culture Ministry, praised the performance, noting its significance as a bridge between the past and future in the relationship between China and Romania. She commended the ongoing cultural exchanges between the two countries in theater, film, music, art and photography and anticipated deeper cultural cooperation in the future. The audience was deeply impressed by the performances. Seventeen-year-old student Ilinca Budura was particularly struck by the "Thousand-handed Bodhisattva." IT consultant Octavia remarked on the beauty, diversity, and uniqueness of Chinese classical dance and expressed a newfound interest in traveling to China. "I think this is going to encourage people to want to learn more about Chinese culture," Octavia said. The event was co-hosted by the Chinese Embassy in Romania and the Romanian Ministry of Culture. (Source: Xinhua) Editor: Wang Shasha Huang Xiaowei, Vice-President and First Member of the Secretariat of the All-China Women's Federation (ACWF), also Vice-Chairperson of the National Working Committee on Children and Women under the State Council, met Puan Maharani, Speaker of Indonesia's House of Representatives, on May 29. Huang accompanied Maharani during her visit to China Women's University (CWU), in Beijing. Huang said China and Indonesia have a profound traditional friendship. Under the strategic guidance of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indonesian President Joko Widodo, relations between the countries have achieved stable and fast development, and have marched toward a new phase of building a China-Indonesia community with a shared future. Women in the two countries have maintained friendly communications for a long time, Huang added. She expressed ACWF's willingness to work with sisters from Indonesia to implement important consensus reached by the two heads of state, advocate traditional friendship, deepen exchanges and cooperation, promote deep and substantive progress in building a China-Indonesia community with a shared future, and jointly build a peaceful, safe and secure, prosperous, beautiful and amicable home for China and ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations). Huang noted that Xi had attended the opening of the 13th National Women's Congress of China (held in October 2023), and had delivered an important speech during a talk with ACWF's new leadership. Xi's discourses on the work related to women and children as well as the work of women's federations, and Xi's discourses on the importance of family, family education and virtues have provided the guiding principles for Chinese women's development to achieve historic progress, Huang said. Huang also outlined ACWF's major work; in particular, she mentioned the Spring Bud Project, which received the 2023 UNESCO (the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) Prize for Girls' and Women's Education, and the Exchange and Training Base of Global Women's Development Cooperation, established at CWU. She added the ACWF is willing to work with sisters from all countries, including from Indonesia, to foster global women's development. Maharani spoke of China's measures and achievements in advancing women's empowerment and safeguarding women's rights and interests. She said Indonesia is willing to enhance mutual learning with China, advance the development of relations between the two countries, and make new contributions to the promotion of progress in women's development and well-being of the people. Huang accompanied Maharani during her visit to CWU's history hall. They watched international students attending a class and writing the Chinese characters meaning "pursuing common goals together," to express their wishes that women's friendly cooperation between China and Indonesia will be enhanced. Lin Yi, Vice-President and Member of the Secretariat of the ACWF, Djauhari Oratmangun, Indonesian Ambassador to China, and representatives from the National People's Congress of China, attended. (Source: Women Voice) Editor: Ye Shan 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. Boeing agrees to plead guilty to defrauding the FAA but escapes punishment sought by victims families Kurdish Folk Dancers continue family tradition at Llangollen Eisteddfod This article is old - Published: Monday, Jul 8th, 2024 A group of competitors were playing the generation game at this years Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod. The London-based Kurdish Folk Dancers have been coming to the world-famous north Wales festival, which aims to promote peace through music and dance, to showcase their traditional skills and take part in its competitions, since 1990. Their leader is 65-year Huseyin Cicek who accompanies the groups 16 male and female dancers on a highly-decorated drum. In the past he has brought with him to perform his two older sons but this year it was the turn of his youngest son, 21-year-old Burak, to join the line-up as a dancer. Dad Huseyin, who had the distinction of heading up the group in the Eisteddfods famous Parade of Nations which traditionally kicks off the week-long festival, said: With a couple of years exception during the pandemic, we have been coming to the Llangollen Eisteddfod every year since 1990. The reason we keep coming back is that, as Kurds, we are not recognised as a national group anywhere else in the country apart from Llangollen and that is a very good feeling. We also love to come to the Eisteddfod because of the fantastic location and international atmosphere. He added: Ive been living in the UK since 1985 and brought my two eldest boys to Llangollen as part of our group. This year I am delighted that Ive been able to bring my youngest son so he can see for himself why we all love the Eisteddfod so much and keep on coming back. Burak, who along with the rest of the group all have day jobs and only dance for the sheer fun of it, said: Ive really enjoyed myself at Llangollen and it was something special for me to be part of the group at last. The people you meet in the town and on the Eisteddfod field are lovely and friendly and its amazing to be in a place surrounded by such beautiful countryside. Im definitely hoping to come back again next year because Ive enjoyed myself so much and its been fantastic to keep up the family tradition of performing in Llangollen. The Eisteddfods Artistic Director Dave Danford said: We were delighted to have the Kurdish group with us once again this year. I think its marvellous to see that their long association with our festival has now continued into another generation, with Burak joining his dad Huseyin, who is such a familiar face to us, and the other dancers in one of our competitions and the Parade of Nations. The fostering of friendship between so many international groups has always been a key part of the ethos of the festival since it began in 1947. Rock the Park (Wrexham) Ltd fined 10,000 for breaching noise limits This article is old - Published: Monday, Jul 8th, 2024 Rock the Park (Wrexham) Ltd has been fined 10,000 for breaching noise limits at their Rock the Park Festival in August 2023. Wrexham Council say that the company did not attend the hearing on Tuesday 2 July, was not represented and was convicted in its absence. With added costs and victim surcharge the total payable is 16,381.00. An investigation was launched following the 2023 event where the Councils Environment Health Officers recorded sound levels equivalent to being twice as loud as the limit permitted in the licence for the German techno band Scooter who were the final act on Friday night of the weekend long event. The sound limits were imposed by the Councils licensing committee when granting a licence for the event out of concern for nearby residents who had been adversely affected by previous events and were agreed by the organisers in order to secure the licence. Cllr Hugh Jones, Lead Member for Public Protection and Planning said: It is disappointing to see that the event organisers were unable to control disturbance caused to local residents on the Friday night by excessively loud music despite the specific condition set in advance by the Councils Licensing Committee. Such conditions are carefully considered and would only have been imposed with good reason, primarily to protect those living close to the event. It is pleasing to note that this is a rare case as most event organisers take their responsibilities seriously and run events in a professional manner without causing a nuisance. The Council is supportive of events that are a significant benefit to the community and help to promote Wrexham as a great place to go for a diverse range of cultural attractions. I hope that this isolated case demonstrates that the Council will not hesitate to take action where necessary. From time to time events such as this dont always meet the expectations of consumers and sometimes are cancelled or postponed leaving ticket holders wondering what their rights are. If you are in that situation you can get advice from Citizens Advice Consumer Services who provide a free consumer advice service. You can ring them on 0808 223 1133 (0808 223 1144 for Welsh language service) or visit their website. Senedd calls for free suncream in schools amid high rates of skin cancer This article is old - Published: Monday, Jul 8th, 2024 Senedd members called for free sunscreen in schools and the removal of VAT amid concerns Wales has the highest rate of skin cancer in the UK. Sioned Williams warned skin cancer is by far the most common type affecting Welsh people, accounting for almost half of cancers. The Plaid Cymru politician said skin cancer rates in Wales increased by 8% between 2016 and 2019, with more than 2,000 people each year or six a day dying across the UK. She told the Senedd: Out of the four UK nations, Wales has the highest rates of skin cancer and we now all of us have a one in five chance of developing it during our lives. Ms Williams said a report found 30-50% of cancers occur due to exposure to avoidable risks, such as exposure to the sun or using sunbeds, as she called for a focus on prevention. Revealing The shadow social justice secretary raised an extremely revealing and important study which urged schools in Wales to do more to protect children from exposure to the sun. She said Julie Peconi, of Swansea Universitys school of medicine, found only 39% of schools had a sun safety policy and not all enforced them Dr Peconis study showed schools with a higher number of children entitled to free school meals and lower attendance rates were less likely to have a policy. Ms Williams said only 29% of schools teach sun safety as a part of the curriculum in every year group and only 5% of schools had sufficient shade for most active outdoor pursuits. Education will go a long way towards reducing skin cancer rates, she stressed. Duty bound Sian Gwenllian told the Senedd her husband, Dafydd, died after being diagnosed with melanoma, a type of skin cancer, 20 years ago. She said: He was 47 years old and he was the father of four young children, with the youngest just three-years-old. At that time, there wasnt much talk of melanoma but, now, its well known that skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in Wales, and cases are increasing. The Plaid Cymru MS for Arfon backed a focus on educating children and adults on the practical steps they can take to mitigate risks. She said: Melanoma steals loved ones from us but there are ways of helping, there are ways of mitigating risks and we must draw the attention of the people of Wales to those. And I think that the state here in Wales is duty bound to lead on that work. Crisis Ms Williams warned the cost-of-living crisis has pushed up the prices of essentials, including sun protection, with some food banks starting to offer sunscreen. She said the cost of sunscreen has increased by almost 30% in the past two years, according to the Office for National Statistics, impacting on sales figures. Ms Williams raised a warning from the British Association of Dermatologists that as prices rise, people may use sunscreen less putting them at great risk of cancer. The former BBC Wales journalist said sunscreen is classed as a cosmetic product, and subject to the full VAT rate, as she backed a campaign to remove the tax. She acknowledged powers to vary VAT are reserved to Westminster but she encouraged Welsh ministers to take up the issue with the incoming UK Government. Ms Williams, who represents South Wales West, urged the Welsh Government to provide free sunscreen to schools, improving access as has happened with menstrual products. Deadly Drawing on the example of hand sanitiser use since the pandemic, Ms Williams suggested sunscreen dispensers in public sector workplaces, schools and hospitals. She warned: Most skin cancers are preventable but they can be deadly. What are we going to do to ensure that they are prevented effectively? This is a matter of utmost importance. Ms Williams said about two teaspoons should be used if covering your head, arms and neck or two tablespoons if covering your entire body to, for example, wear a swimming costume. Her colleague Mabon ap Gwynfor said: My children will be very pleased to hear that we tend to lather them with too much and they look like zombies by the time weve finished. During the debate on July 3, Mr ap Gwynfor, Plaid Cymrus shadow health secretary, raised concerns about rising rates as he called for a comprehensive cancer plan. Key Lynne Neagle, for the Welsh Government, said there were 15,000 recorded cases of non-melanoma skin cancer and 1,000 cases of melanoma in 2019. The education secretary told the chamber the Welsh Government provides advice and guidance for all schools to help them keep pupils safe on extremely hot days. Acknowledging the key role of education, she pointed out that health and wellbeing is one of six areas of learning and experience at the heart of Wales new curriculum. But Ms Neagle said: We also cannot forget that cancer prevention is an issue for the whole of society, not something that we can place entirely on the shoulders of schools. The former chair of the Senedds children and young people committee pledged to follow up on the Welsh Governments response to recommendations from a 2012 report. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus government is accelerating efforts to establish an authoritarian state in parallel with its war to annihilate the Palestinians in Gaza. Unable to achieve its twin aims of implementing Jewish Supremacy throughout Greater Israel and preventing any possibility of a Palestinian statelet alongside Israel within Israel through democratic means, the Zionist state must suppress its own citizens, including Jews. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, speaks with Minister of Finance Bezalel Smotrich during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Defence Ministry in Tel Aviv, Israel, January 7, 2024. [AP Photo/Ronen Zvulun] The Knesset (parliament) defied mass opposition to the governments judicial overhaul and passed a key component of the legislative agenda last year aimed at limiting the High Courts power to override legislation that conflicted with Israels Basic Law, the nearest the Zionist state has to a constitution. But this was later struck down by the High Court. Undeterred, Justice Minister Yariv Lewin has refused to bring the appointment of a new Supreme Court president and two new Supreme Court justices to replace several retirees for approval at the Judicial Selection Committee, where the government does not have a majority to push through its appointees. This work-around ensures it now has the necessary right-wing majority in the High Court to pursue its dictatorial agenda. The government has introduced a raft of new anti-democratic laws, increasing surveillance over the Palestinians and of Israeli citizens and restricting freedom of speech. New laws give the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet, Israels domestic spy agency that reports to the Prime Ministers Office, greater powers to hack into the private computer systems used to operate CCTV cameras and to erase, alter or disrupt materials on them, without either the knowledge of the computers owner or permission from a court. This is supposedly allowed in cases that might jeopardize state security or the continuity of the operational functioning of the IDF with respect to military operations carried out as part of the war, when its urgently necessary, and when its impossible to obtain access another way that infringes rights to a lesser degree. The government has tabled another bill to allow the Shin Bet to search computers and cell phones without the owners knowledge. This would enable Israels spieswith authorisation from the prime minister and a legal opinion from the attorney generalto gain access to the databases of public authorities, including government ministries, the police, and the National Insurance Institute and use Pegasus-type spyware to search computers and phones holding private correspondence. With journalists also included within the Shin Bets reach, the government is seeking to clamp down further on press freedom. Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi is trying to take control of the Israeli media, including the Kan public broadcaster. Two months ago, the government closed Al Jazeeras operations in Israel/Palestine, branding it Hamass mouthpiece and a threat to Israels national security and accusing it of inciting against Israeli soldiers. It confiscated Al-Jazeeras broadcasting equipment and blocked its websites. The network had reported Israels genocidal war on Gaza extensively, maintaining 24-hour coverage in the Gaza Strip even as Israels criminal campaign killed and wounded members of its staff. The Jewish Power Minister of National Security Itamar Ben-Gvir has sought to mobilise vigilante gangs to hound the Palestinians and drive them out of their homes and off of their land in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. He has distributed about 30,000 automatic rifles to anyone classified as members of community security guards, not just in border towns and villages but cities throughout the country, and approved applications to thousands of people with no authority or training. It is now a common sight to see people in city centres walking around with a weapon slung over their shoulder. Ben-Gvir has sought to relax the regulations on opening fire. He has sought to rein in the anti-government protests demanding a hostage deal and ceasefire, demanding the police stop the demonstrations, often violently using tear gas and water cannon. The clampdown on demonstrations has chiefly targeted Israels Palestinian citizens, with Police Commissioner Kobi Shabtai declaring, Anyone who want to identify with Gaza is invited to take a bus there. The police have repeatedly prevented demonstrations in Arab towns, citing laws on incitement and the disruption of public order, with the Supreme Court declaring unanimously against a petition opposing the ban on demonstrations in Sakhnin and Umm al-Fahm. They have arrested hundreds of Israeli Palestinians for expressing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, opposing the war or taking part in peaceful protests. Authorities detained four former lawmakers planning a demonstration in Nazareth, including Higher Arab Monitoring Committee Chairman Mohammed Barakeh. In addition, the authorities are clamping down on freedom of speech, monitoring almost all comments on social media for incitement to terrorism. Under the Justice Ministrys hardline internet incitement policy, the police have filed more than 130 indictments, most against Israeli Palestinians, since October 7, compared to just 88 such indictments in the four years between 2018 and 2022. There is no longer any requirement to seek approval from the State Attorneys Office to investigate suspected incitement, with proceedings against anyone suspected of posting comments supporting terrorism to be expedited, even for a first offence. Legislation amending the Fighting Terrorism Law expands the range of activities deemed to be supporting or inciting terrorism and makes it a criminal offence, punishable by one year in prison, to repeatedly access content produced by Hamas or ISIS. The universities have rushed to initiate disciplinary proceedings against students who have praised Hamas or opposed the war. Soon after the war started, 30 universities and colleges opened 120 proceedings against students, mostly based on reporting of comments by fellow students with little or no regard for the actual content or context of the postings or remarks. Israels treatment of the Palestinians inside the Sde Teiman detention centre in the Negev desert and other Israeli prisons bears comparison with the notorious US naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba and Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq. A shocking CNN report last May revealed that Gazans imprisoned thereheld without charge or legal representation on national security groundsare blindfolded, forced into stress positions, beaten, insulted, and prevented from speaking for extended periods. Prisoners have had to have their limbs amputated due to their injuries. The prisons are so full of Gazan detainees that Israel released the Shifa hospital director after six months, along with 50 others due to lack of space and the Supreme Courts order to close the Sde Teiman detention centre. The UN Independent International Commission of Inquirys report into Israeli prisons cited numerous examples of Israeli forces publicly stripping Palestinian women of their clothes and veils and subjecting them to sexual harassment in front of their families during ground operations in Gaza, as well as male victims being subject to sexual violence and humiliation in Gaza and the West Bank. It concluded that such was the frequency and severity of sexual and gender-based violations that they were likely part of [Israeli security forces] operating procedures. In the West Bank, Israels Finance Minister and Religious Zionist Bezalel Smotrich has legalised five settler outposts established illegally under Israeli law and approved the construction of a record 12,855 housing units in the settlements since January. He has imposed restrictions on the movement of senior Palestinian Authority (PA) officials and authorised Israeli enforcement against illicit Palestinian construction in Area B, which is under the joint administration of the PA and Israeli military, violating the Oslo Accords. All the while, the army stands guard protecting far right settlers as they terrorise the Palestinians. Smotrich is seeking the collapse of the PA, transferring only a small proportion of the hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenues Israel collects on behalf of the PA. He has sought, unsuccessfully thus far, to withhold the waiverin place since 2016 that shields Israeli banks from lawsuits for supporting terrorismfor Palestinian banks that allows Israeli banks to transact with them. The waiver is crucial for the PAs imports of essential goods, payment of its essential services and salaries and all banking activity. Without it, the PA and the West Bank economy face a financial collapse that could destabilise the West Bank and the wider region. Last week, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) confirmed another person working on a dairy cattle farm, this time in Colorado, has been infected with the H5N1 bird flu virus. This raises to four the number of confirmed spillover cases from cows to workers since the outbreak was first confirmed in late March, the first in Texas and the next two in Michigan. In the most recent case, the workers only symptoms were inflammation of his eyes, also described as conjunctivitis or pink eye. He was treated with antivirals and has since recovered. Health officials have not provided the exact date when the person was first diagnosed nor if there was any genetic testing of the virus that infected him. Dairy cattle feed at a farm in New Mexico. On Wednesday, July 3, 2024, U.S. health officials said a fourth dairy worker has been infected with bird flu in the outbreak linked to U.S. dairy cows. [AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd] Nirav Shah, an epidemiologist and the CDCs principal deputy director, in a call with reporters on the day the CDC confirmed the fourth case, stated bluntly, We need to stay prepared for the possibility of an expansion of the H5N1 outbreak in humans. He then recited the oft-used phrase that the risk to the public continues to remain low, a reassurance so perfunctory as to be meaningless. Such assurances, in the context of the continued deepening of the bird flu outbreak on cattle and poultry farms, and while testing of farm workers and broader serological surveillance remain essentially non-existent, have no scientific basis. The extent of these infections remains unknown, and their potential evolution into a pandemic pathogen remains a serious existential threat. One must recall it was a matter of only a few weeks after COVID-19 was first detected spreading across the city of Wuhan, China, in December 2019, before it had begun to spread across the globe. Since H5N1 is far more lethal than COVID, health authorities and government officials cannot be allowed to follow the blueprint followed by the Trump and Biden administrations, when elementary public health precautions were scrapped in favor of exclusive reliance on vaccines. Nonetheless, HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra wrote, We have successfully taken lessons during the COVID-19 pandemic and used them to better prepare for future public health crises. As part of that, we continue to develop new vaccines and other tools to help address influenza and bolster our pandemic response capabilities. The US government is securing future stocks of vaccines against bird flu, including from Moderna to the tune of $176 million. This suggests that the health officials regard H5N1 as a serious threat, despite their public complacency. Given the experience with mRNA technology and the current COVID vaccines, the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) unit of HHS has accelerated the development of a bird flu vaccine that could be used in people. Preliminary work has been underway with promising results. Using a portion of the genetic signature of the H5N1 virus, a blueprint that encodes instructions to make a small protein is administered as a vaccine that teaches the immune system to build immunity against the real pathogen. Testing in mice and ferrets has shown they develop high immune titers. Also, vaccinated ferrets were deliberately infected with the bird flu and all of them survived. By comparison, all the animals that were immunologically naive succumbed to the infection. The vaccine nationalism that proved catastrophic for the worlds poorest countries during COVID is also a danger in the bird flu pandemic. In mid-June, the EUs Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) signed a deal to provide 665,000 pre-pandemic vaccine doses for 15 EU and European Economic Area (EEA) member states, with the possibility of buying 40 million doses over four years. Finland, which has seen widespread outbreaks of bird flu among mink and fox open-air fur farms and the culling of some 485,000 animals last year, has purchased vaccines for 10,000 people (the series is a two-dose injection), and will, as of this week, begin inoculating workers who have exposure to animals. A statement released by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare declared, 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. Last week, British Pharma behemoth GSK said it would offer as much as $1.5 billion for several mRNA vaccines that include COVID, seasonal flu, and the bird flu from CureVac. According to the company, they would pay the vaccine maker $430 million to take full control of these vaccines and then provide an additional $1.13 billion depending on achieving developmental, regulatory and sales goals. According to the USDA, as of July 3, 2024, 140 total outbreaks have been confirmed across 12 states, a figure that continues to grow at a steady clip. Worrisome too is a CNN report stating that the FDA had collected and tested 275 bulk samples of raw milk collected from four states in which herds had been infected with H5N1 bird flu virus. Almost 60 percent of these samples showed traces of the virus. In a quarter of the positive samples, the virus proved infectious and viable when injected into fertilized chicken eggs. However, these figures represent samples collected from late April, more than two months ago, underscoring the concerns raised by scientists and researchers for timely and accurate data on the actual epidemiology of the H5N1 outbreak. This implies that despite the promises and assurances offered little is being done to contain and eliminate the main threat posed by the bird flu: its transformation into a potential pandemic pathogen. Rick Bright, an immunologist/vaccine researcher and former director of BARDA, wrote in a social media post, Another human confirmed infected with H5N1 bird flu. This is sad to hear. Completely expected by weak efforts to track and stop this outbreak. Completely preventable. Will the CDC do any serology testing of infected person, close contacts, family members, co-workers, or get virus samples from cows on the same farm? Despite having already distributed 750,000 bird flu tests to local public health labs and another 1.2 million expected to be available in the next three months, the CDC has only managed to test 53 people for the bird flu, which translates to fewer than four tests a week over the 15 weeks that have passed since the outbreak was first officially confirmed. Meanwhile, more than 17,000 tests for bird flu in cattle have been conducted. Commenting on this glaring gap, Shah has previously claimed, We would like to be doing more tests. Wed like to be testing not just symptomatic workers, but anyone on a farm who is exposed. [However] right now we want to be in a role where were building trust with farms and farm workers. These trust building initiatives have mainly been on the use of financial incentives that include a meager $200 million in federal support promised on May 10, 2024, to stop the continuing spread of H5N1 among dairy cows. This includes $2,000 a month to farms for providing their workers with personal protective equipment, such as N95 respirators and face shields. The USDA has added up to $10,000 per affected premises for veterinary costs from the initial date of positive confirmation. The American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) has estimated the economic impact from bird flu for dairy cattle at $100 to $200 per cow. The Executive Director of AABP, Dr. Fred Gingrich, told the American Veterinary Medical Association, If you have, say, a 1,000-cow dairy, in two to three weeks, you can expect to lose $100,000 to $200,000, not including the long-term impact from the disease, decreased herd size, or other potential effects. But there is nary a word that addresses the human toll on laborers working on these farms or incentives for them and their families. The reliance on immigrant workers, many undocumented, places the necessary context for the failures of testing squarely on the predatory and criminal policies that exploit their labor. They offer a paltry $75 payment to any farm worker who agrees to provide blood and nasal swabs to the CDC. There are no discussions on the grueling conditions that these workers labor under, let alone the constant fear of retaliation for their undocumented status. A 2015 study on the economic impact of immigrant labor on US dairy farms by the Center for North American Studies found that immigrant labor accounts for 51 percent of all dairy labor. Dairy farm workers are paid an average wage of $11.54 per hour, and with non-wage benefits included, an annual equivalent compensation of $34,443. A key finding in the study noted that if immigrant labor was eliminated, the number of US dairy herds would fall by 2.1 million cows, milk production by 48.4 billion pounds, and the number of farms by 7,011. Retail milk prices would almost double. The dairy farm sector of the US agricultural economy is in increasing crisis, with real wages down 2.2 percent from 2019 at $4.2 billion. Revenues have declined over the last five years by one percentage point to $46.4 billion. The number of employees working in the dairy business declined 5.5 percent to 102,000 and the number of businesses fell by 10 percent to 18,830. Unsurprisingly, in a survey conducted by the APHIS, more than 60 percent of dairy farms continue to move their livestock across state lines from infected farms after the onset of clinical signs of infection in the animals. The well-being of workers is intimately connected with the broader public health threat posed by the bird flu virus. However, the immediate needs of agricultural business and corporate profits render such considerations moot. Jean-Luc Melenchons New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the winner of the second round of the French snap elections last night. The NFP carried 182 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly, against 168 for President Emmanuel Macrons Ensemble coalition and 143 for the far-right National Rally (RN). Final turnout was 67 percent, the highest in the second round of legislative elections since 1997 and over 20 percent higher than the 2022 legislative elections. Jean-Luc Melenchon, center, delivers a speech after the second round of the legislative elections [AP Photo/Thomas Padilla] The result, bucking media expectations of an RN victory, testifies to the left-wing sentiment and the rejection of neo-fascism among broad layers of workers and youth in France. It is a debacle for Macron, who throughout his presidency has claimed to be leading a fight against the far right. In reality, he has ruled systematically against the will of the people. His party has been relegated to a rump in the National Assembly as 70 percent or more of the population opposes his illegitimate pension cuts, which he rammed through without a vote last year, and his call to send French troops to Ukraine to fight Russia. Minutes after the results were announced at 8 p.m. yesterday, Melenchon spoke on national television, appealing to Macron to call upon the NFP to form a government. The president has the duty to call the New Popular Front to govern, Melenchon said, hailing voters for having won a result that was said to be impossible. The majority has made another choice for the country, Melenchon added, arguing that the will of the people must be confirmed. The president must give in. Melenchon claimed the NFP would apply its program, only its program, but all of its program. Measures like repealing Macrons reform raising the retirement age to 64, stopping price increases by fixing prices for key goods, and raising the minimum wage can be taken by decree, without a vote, he said. Before the result was announced, Macron held a meeting at the Elysee presidential palace with Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and leaders of his Ensemble coalition. Earlier, it had been reported that either Macron or Attal would speak after the election results were announced. Afterwards, however, the Elysee palace reported that Macron would not be speaking Sunday evening and was taking note of the results of these legislative elections as they come in, constituency by constituency. Macron will wait for the structuring of the new Assembly before taking the necessary decisions, the Elysee announced, including deciding who to name as a new prime minister to try to assemble a parliamentary majority. Attal later issued a statement to the press declaring that he is willing to stay in power as long as duty will require it. The Elysee also reported that Macron will delay by one day, but not cancel his trip to Washington to attend a NATO war summit starting tomorrow. At the NATO summit, imperialist warmongers like Macron will discuss how to escalate the war against Russia while intensifying the attacks against the working class to finance the war economy. Macron, despite his election debacle, clearly intends to continue ruling against the people. Today, Macron asked Attal to remain as prime minister for the moment, supposedly to ensure the stability of the country. Thus Macron will fly to Washington to continue NATO war plotting as a representative of a government that is rejected by the French people. Last night, RN leader Marine Le Pen spoke on TF1 television to state that her party had suffered only a temporary setback and pledged that neo-fascism would one day rule France. She said, The tide is rising. It did not rise high enough this time, but it is continuing to rise and, consequently, our victory is only delayed. I have too much experience to be disappointed by a result which allows us to double the number of seats we have, citing a result that made the RN the first party in terms of the number of seats. Frustration exploded at RN election headquarters, however, as RN officials issued foul-mouthed threats and denunciations of the French people for not electing them. The French people are assholes, its a people of idiots! one told the media, while RN legislator Julien Odoul said: They will pay the price of this act of submission. They will pay the price of this non-choice. But the electorate has spoken against fascistic-authoritarian rule and the hated policies of Macron. The will of the overwhelming majority of the people that works for a livingrepeatedly trampled underfoot by Macron and his right-wing alliesmust be done. The war escalation against Russia and the genocide in Gaza must be stopped, Macrons pension cuts and other austerity measures must be repealed, and the police-state dictatorship of the banks that he has imposed must be dismantled. The independent mobilization of the working class in struggle is decisive to the fight to impose such demands. Workers cannot leave them to Frances political establishment, which is dominated by supporters of militarism and austerity. While the election marks a setback for the RNthat, like previous setbacks, will likely lead to criticisms in the RN of Marine Le Pens refusal to openly promote the heritage of French fascism and to advocate street violencethe RN has established itself as a significant force. According to official French Interior Ministry figures, the RN led in absolute numbers of votes with 8.7 million, followed by 7 million for the NFP, and 6.3 million for Ensemble. There were 1.6 million blank or spoiled ballots, and 1.5 million votes for the right-wing The Republicans (LR) party. The NFP vote fell and Ensemble rose because the NFP largely favored Ensemble in tactical voting deals to block RN candidates: the NFP withdrew its candidates to back Ensemble candidates in 125 constituencies, while Ensemble supported NFP candidates in only 80. Within the NFP, moreover, Melenchons electoral negotiations gave away substantial positions to longstanding parties of capitalist government that support war with Russia and denounce opposition to the Gaza genocide as anti-Semitism. While Melenchons own France Unbowed (LFI) party carried 72 seats, the big-business Socialist Party (PS) 65, the Greens 34, and the French Communist Party (PCF) 9 seats. The Pabloite New Anti-capitalist Party (NPA) did not win any seats. Within the NFP, forces around the PS are calling for the NFP to make far-reaching concessions to Macron, because they in fact support his reactionary policies. Raphael Glucksmann, who denied that a genocide is underway in Gaza while he led the PS campaign in the European elections this spring, told the media: We are in a hung parliament and therefore we will have to act like adults, that is, we will have to talk, to discuss, to engage in dialogue, to get beyond ourselves. Workers and youth must reject calls for compromise with Macron, despised figures like PS former president Francois Hollande, or their allies among the Greens and the Stalinist PCF bureaucracy. The decisive task now is to turn Macrons election debacle and the RN setback into a broader offensive of the working class against war, genocide and capitalism. President Joe Biden speaks at a campaign office in Philadelphia on Sunday, July 7, 2024. [AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta] Following the June 27 debate between President Joe Biden and Donald Trump, and just four months before the US presidential election, there are growing calls within the political establishment and media for Biden to step down as the Democratic Party candidate and perhaps even resign from office. On Sunday, Democratic House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries convened an online conference with ranking committee members. It was reported that Reps. Jerry Nadler (New YorkJudiciary Committee), Mark Takano (CaliforniaVeterans Affairs Committee), Don Beyer (VirginiaAdministration Committee) and Adam Smith (WashingtonArmed Services Committee) called on Biden to withdraw. Speaking on Meet the Press, California Democratic Representative Adam Schiff observed that Bidens interview with ABCs George Stephanopoulos on Friday didnt put concerns to rest. Virginia Senator Mark Warner is assembling a group of senators with the aim of forcing Biden out of the race. The role of Schiff, the former chair of the House Intelligence Committee, and Warner, the current chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, underscores the close involvement of the intelligence agencies in these discussions. Whether or not Biden drops out of the presidential race, a prospect that seems increasingly likely, a substantial section of the ruling class has clearly lost confidence in him. Bidens performance in the debate has precipitated these maneuvers, but more fundamental issues are at stake. Indeed, the fact that Bidens cognitive capacity is significantly impaired has been known for some time. The debate fiasco, however, made impossible the continued public denial of this fact. The concerns within factions of the ruling class aligned with the Democrats that Biden will lose in a contest with Trump are motivated by several factors. There are, first of all, the implications for US foreign policy. This week, the heads of state of the NATO powers are meeting in Washington D.C. to plot the next stage of escalation in the war against Russia, including preparations for the direct deployment of thousands of NATO troops. The large contingent of CIA Democrats that function within Congress as direct agents of the military and intelligence apparatus do not trust Trump and fear that his erratic conduct of foreign policy may disrupt the far-advanced war plans of American imperialism in Ukraine, as well as in the Middle and Far East. In statements defending his position as the Democrats candidate, Biden has stressed this issue. He boasted to Stephanopoulos, Im the guy that put NATO together, the future. No one thought I could expand it. Im the guy that shut Putin down. No one thought it could happen. Im the guy that put together a South Pacific initiative with [the] AUKUS [military alliance]. A second and even more fundamental consideration within the ruling class is the consequences of a Trump victory for the social and political stability of the United States. Last weeks Supreme Court decision in Trump v. United States declared the president immune from prosecution for any crime carried out under the cover of an official act. This not only legitimizes Trumps January 6 coup, it places the president above the law and transforms the chief executive and commander-in-chief into a dictator. As the dissenting judges in the case themselves noted, the ruling provides immunity for presidential activities ranging from the assassination of political opponents to staging a military coup. This unprecedented decision heralds a breakdown of constitutional arrangements that regulate the whole state-federal structure of the country. In its analysis of the Supreme Court ruling, the WSWS characterized it as the Counter-Revolution of July 1, 2024, noting, A permanent state of dictatorial rule surrounds the occupant of the White House, akin to the authority the fascist states of the last century concentrated in Mussolini and Hitler. The ruling, which effectively overturned the Constitution and core democratic principles advanced by the American Revolution and Civil War, has exacerbated the highly unstable social and political conditions existing in the United States. There is an awareness within sections of the ruling class that the coming to power of Trump under these conditions will fuel explosive social discontent and a process of irreversible political radicalization. While the media has largely dropped reference to the ruling from its coverage, the noted Princeton University historian Sean Wilentz, writing in the New York Review of Books, underscored its far-reaching significance. The decision, Wilentz wrote, has radically changed the very structure of American government, paving the way for MAGA authoritarianism just as the Taney Court tried to pave the way for enshrining the Slave Power. All of which makes Trump v. United States the Dred Scott of our time. Dred Scott is a reference to the 1857 Supreme Court ruling delivered by Chief Justice Roger Taney that entrenched the slave power and made civil war all but inevitable. While Wilentz does not say so explicitly, the implications are clear: The United States is on the verge of a new civil war. It is not just a question of the characteristics of Trump or the particular composition of the Supreme Court, which has implemented a series of deeply reactionary decisions that undermine core democratic principles. It is a culmination of a decades-long process that has accelerated over the past quarter century. At the time of the theft of the 2000 elections, in a lecture titled Lessons from history: The 2000 elections and the new irrepressible conflict, WSWS International Editorial Board Chairman David North noted that a Supreme Court decision to hand the election to Bush would reveal how far the American ruling class is prepared to go in breaking with traditional bourgeois-democratic and constitutional norms. North asked, Is it prepared to sanction ballot fraud and the suppression of votes and install in the White House a candidate who has attained that office through blatantly illegal and anti-democratic methods? A substantial section of the bourgeoisie, and perhaps even a majority of the US Supreme Court, is prepared to do just that. There has been a dramatic erosion of support within the ruling elites for the traditional forms of bourgeois democracy in the United States. Nine days later, the majority of the Supreme Court issued its infamous Bush v. Gore decision, stealing the election and handing power to Bush, which Gore and the Democratic Party accepted. The 2000 elections were followed by an unending and expanding attack on democratic rights, under both Democrats and Republicans, which involved unlimited domestic spying, the sanctioning of torture as state policy, indefinite detention without due process and drone assassination, including of US citizens. The breakdown of democratic forms of rule has two fundamental underlying objective causes: 1) unending and escalating war; and 2) the extreme growth of social inequality. The 2000 election was followed by the War on Terror, including the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq under Bush and a series of wars throughout the Middle East under Obama, which has now metastasized into an open conflict between the NATO powers and Russia. The Biden administration and American imperialism have fully backed genocide in Gaza, which, according to a study published Friday in The Lancet, has led to the deaths of roughly 186,000 people, or nearly 8 percent of the total population. The capitalist oligarchy controls the entire state apparatus, which exists as a permanent conspiracy against the interests of the vast majority of the population, the working class. In the media commentary over Bidens fate, there are continuous references to the donors, i.e., the corporate-financial oligarchs who funnel billions of dollars into the campaign coffers of both the Democrats and Republicans. It is taken as a matter of course that the final decision will be made by the handful of billionaires who finance the campaigns of both capitalist parties. Commenting on the deepening crisis of American democracy, Socialist Equality Party presidential candidate Joseph Kishore wrote on X: For the working class, the critical question is to intervene in the crisis with its own program. Democracy cannot be preserved within the framework of capitalism. The defense and expansion of democratic rights require the expropriation of the capitalist oligarchs, an end to the dictatorship of the corporate and financial elite, the establishment of a workers state, in the US and internationally, and the socialist reorganization of social and economic life. On July 24, the World Socialist Web Site and the Socialist Equality Party will host a demonstration and meeting in Washington D.C. coinciding with the address of Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Congress. The purpose of this event is to build a movement in the working class against the genocide in Gaza, imperialism and capitalism, and in defense of democratic rights. We urge our readers and supporters to make plans to attend and help build the demonstration by filling out the form below. Workers for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board on strike, July 2024. Workers for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) began a week-long strike July 4, after seven months of negotiations with the city government. The 240 members of Laborers International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 363 are fighting against concessions over safety, healthcare and wages. The strike is the first ever in the history of the citys parks department. The strike pits the workers against the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, as the state Democratic Party is known. It controls all nine MPRB commissioners, the MPRB superintendent and the mayor, who are seeking to impose the citys economic crisis on the backs of the working class. The parks department is playing hardball with workers. When negotiations broke off after management issued their last, best, and final offer, they informed Local 363 that workers will not be able to return to work at the end of their week-long strike without a settled contract, effectively locking workers out unless they accept a concessions-laden deal. The park board is offering a meager 10.25 percent wage increase over three years2.75, 4.5 and 3 percent each year of the contract. Workers have backed up their demands for better wages by pointing to the pay disparity between themselves and those in surrounding municipalities. The park board gave us data [on wages] that wasnt sourced, Mitch Clendenen, a Local 363 union steward, told the WSWS. Using the market analysis of wages for comparable jobs in the surrounding metro area, we selected the top 20 areas. On the high end, Minneapolis Park Board members were underpaid by $15 an hour. When you average out these wages, we were underpaid by $8 an hour. Meanwhile, the city granted MPRB superintendent Alfred Bangoura a ten percent wage hike this year alone. He now makes $210,000 a year. The systematic underpayment of wages is all the most outrageous because the Trust for Public Land has a number of times ranked the Minneapolis parks system number one among the nations 100 most populous cities. Currently, their website ranks it number two. Workers are also up in arms over the healthcare package. It used to be that city workers had the best healthcare, said Clendenen. But its been going steadily downhill. Right now, most of our members avoid going to the doctor. When I go to the doctor, I get a bill for $300-$400. He continued: The Park Board has written up members for something they call weaponizing safety. If you bring something up, they dont like that. Weaponizing Safety is actually written into the document. Weve had union members shocked by electrical lines, members cope with hypodermic needles when cleaning out homeless camps, we deal with fecal matter on a daily basis. On the other hand, the Park Boards counter to our safety language was that if an employee doesnt bring up a safety issue, they will be disciplined. In other words, its your fault you got hurt, so were disciplining you now for not bringing it up. We were shocked when they turned to this. Throughout the negotiations weve been pushed and dismissed. Its sad. Workers are also opposed to attempts by the Board to undermine seniority in the assignment of jobs. A worker told the WSWS, Every winter we have something called a winter preference. All the parks come together and union members can choose which ice rinks they want to go to, which buildings they want to work at, and so on. Park Board management wants to take away citywide seniority and limit you to preference inside your district. The city is divided into five districts. There are three Southern districts, a Northeast/Southeast district and North Minneapolis is one district. The city is attempting to offload a fall in property tax revenues onto the backs of workers. Since the start of the pandemic, Minneapolis, like other cities, has seen property values fall and office complexes left empty or only partially occupied. Nearly 80 percent of the MPRBs general fund relies on property taxes. This is a big reality check, said MPRB board president Meg Forney back in February, as the crisis developed. So heads up everybody, implying major cuts were on the horizon. There is enormous potential for a broader struggle uniting parks workers with the working class as a whole. Four hundred employees of the citys Public Works department have voted by 99 percent to authorize a strike action. Educators with the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers have engaged in repeated struggles against the city administration over their living standards and the conditions in the public schools. There are nurses, doctors and other medical personnel who have engaged in multiple strikes. There are thousands of workers represented by unions under contract with the City of Minneapolisthe American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Building Trades, Operating Engineers, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Teamsters, Firefighters, the International Association of Machinists and others. Currently, 176 wastewater treatment plant workers with the International Union of Operating Engineers at nine facilities across the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan region filed an intent-to-strike notice June 17 after overwhelmingly rejecting the Metropolitan Councils contract offer. The Minnesota Historical Society has laid off seven workers involved in organizing their union. Workers were given a two-day notice and management demanded they sign away their recall rights should future positions open up. But workers confront not just a fight against the Democratic Party-led city government, but against their supporters in the trade union officialdom. The union bureaucrats have worked to keep all of these struggles separate from each other and to limit them as much as possible. This includes LiUNAs calling of a limited strike, rather than an open-ended one, which has resulted in handing the initiative to the parks board. Rather than appealing for support in the working class, Local 363 has simply said they will file an unfair labor practice complaint over the lockout. But appealing for support from the same government which is lined up against workers will lead nowhere. Instead, workers must mobilize themselves to broaden their struggle. A rank-and-file committee must be organized to directly appeal to workers across the city and the country for a joint struggle. The campaign for the release of 25-year-old Bogdan Syrotiuk, jailed by the Zelensky regime for opposing NATOs war on Russia, continues to win support in Britain among workers, youth and other defenders of democratic rights. Syrotiuka socialist opponent of both the Zelensky and Putin regimeswas arrested by the Security Service of Ukraine, the SBU, on April 25. He is a leading member of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL), a Trotskyist organisation fighting to unite the Russian and Ukrainian working class against the war. Bogdan Syrotiuk, April 2023 During Britains snap general election, the Socialist Equality Partys (SEP) candidates Tom Scripps and Darren Paxton campaigned against Syrotiuks imprisonment, bringing his plight to the attention of thousands of workers and young people. The global campaign for Syrotiuks freedom is being waged against NATO plans to escalate war with Russia, and to build a socialist anti-war movement based on the unity of the international working class. Jonathan Hall, London, a retired lecturer: The arrest of Bogdan Syrotiuk should be condemned by everyone aware of the risks presented by the developing war in Europe, but the most immediately affected will be the working class who will be made to bear the costs. Bogdan is accused of treason by the Ukrainian nationalists in power there, but the same accusations are faced by the anti-war protestors on the Russian side. This intensifying nationalism is a global phenomenon. The only beneficiaries of the increasing belligerence of the nation-states are the large international corporations. They hope to resolve their crisis by expanding their scope for exploitation on a global scale, partly at the expense of their rivals but mainly at the expense of the overwhelming majority. To defend Bogdan Syrotiuk is to prepare that majority, i.e. the global working class, for the revolutionary struggle to prevent the impending disaster of global war. David Atkinson, Liverpool: I am an NHS [National Health Service] healthcare worker in the UK. I strongly condemn the arrest of the young socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk of the Trotskyist Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists in Ukraine and his imprisonment in Nikolaev in Southern Ukraine. Bogdan has been charged by the Ukrainian Security Services (SBU) of participating in the distribution of Russian propaganda. These charges are bogus! Bogdan calls for the unity of Ukrainian and Russian workers to end the war. This is not a crime! The arrest of Bogdan is part of a global clampdown on all opposition to war and genocide by the ruling elites. Students, academics and artists are being criminalised for citing opposition to war and mass murder. The right to protest is not a crime but a basic democratic right! I call for the immediate release of Bogdan Syrotiuk and for all charges to be dropped. Erica Steenkamp, a musician based in London: Bogdan Syrotiuk is a socialist seeking to unite the working class of Ukraine and Russia against the war. It is utter madness that he has been imprisoned by the Zelensky regime for his pacifist stance. The United States, advocate of the first amendment should demand his immediate release in defence of democracy and freedom of speech. David Kirkham, Sheffield, an SEP supporter: I send my solidarity to Bogdan Syrotiuk, a true socialist who has been jailed by a fascist Ukrainian regime under the control of US/NATO imperialism simply for revealing an objective truth that the ruling class of Ukraine and its imperialist backers do not want the world to know: that the war in Ukraine is a war of US/NATO imperialism and Russian national chauvinism, part of a global capitalist redivision of the world that threatens to condemn humanity to World War III and nuclear annihilation. Bogdan is clearly opposed to Zelenskys fascist regime, US/NATO imperialism and Putins reckless, reactionary nationalism. He is opposed to yet another futile war that is killing and disabling hundreds of thousands of people. His arrest by the Security Service of Ukraine is part of a huge global suppression of free speech and protest by the global ruling class who do not want the working class to be aware of the objective truth about our situation because they know that once armed with that truth, we threaten to be an unstoppable global force that will end all national chauvinism, nation states and the rancid capitalist system that threatens to annihilate us. I urge all socialists to call for Bogdans immediate release, to build a global working-class movement to end the war in Ukraine, the US/NATO backed genocide in Gaza, and all the wars of national chauvinism and imperialism taking place around the only planet that supports human life. Tim Wade, Sheffield: The jailing of Bogdan Syrotiuk is an absolute disgrace. The Zelensky regime claims to be defenders of democracy and freedom against Putins reactionary invasion of the Ukraine, yet Zelensky is guilty of exactly the same reactionary persecution of Syrotiuk based simply on his political beliefs. Zelenskys persecution of Syrotiuk is the product of complete desperation and fear of the strength and power of the political perspective that Syrotiuk offers for the workers of the world, particularly in Ukraine and Russia. Syrotiuk needs to be released immediately and compensate for the horrendous treatment he has had to endure. On Sunday, thousands of Kenyan youths concentrated in Uhuru Park grounds, the main park in central Nairobi, dressed in black and waving Kenyan flags to honour those killed during anti-Finance Bill protests by the William Ruto government. Protesters block the busy Nairobi -Mombasa highway in the Mlolongo area, Nairobi, Kenya., July 2, 2024 [AP Photo/Brian Inganga] Surrounded by a heavy police presence, protesters erected makeshift crosses bearing the names of those who died over the past three weeks. According to the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), at least 43 people were slaughtered across the country, the majority in Nairobi, during the demonstrations, and over 600 were injured, many with bullet wounds. A few kilometres away, army and police were deployed near Parliament and State House and major roads. Sundays actions came after smaller protests organised on Tuesday and Thursday last week. There is a sense that the mass anti-Finance Bill 2024 movement, which evolved into broader opposition against the entire post-independence political establishment, is receding. This does not represent any lessening of the hatred felt by millions against the Ruto regime, but rather growing frustration with the bankrupt political perspective pushed by the opposition Azimio la Umoja and the trade union bureaucracy. Significantly, workers are now mobilizing to fight for better wages and against precarious working conditions, despite trade union efforts to suppress opposition to Ruto. In recent weeks, workers have joined protests alongside youth and sections of the professional middle class on an individual basis, without leveraging their industrial power in key economic sectors. Last Thursday, the Kenya Medical Practitioners, Pharmacists and Dentists Union (KMPDU), with over 7,000 members, including doctors, pharmacists, and dentists, announced an indefinite strike effective Monday and a plan to occupy the Ministry of Health's premises. On Sunday night during a zoom meeting with KMPDU members, Deputy Secretary General Dennis Miskellah denounced them. He said, if you want to occupy MOH, go and occupy MOH and do whatever you want, but KMPDU will not be part of that accept batch posting [of interns] or stay at home. On Monday, KMPDU Secretary General Davji Bhimji Atellah suddenly called off the strike in an official X account. We are suspending the occupation of Afya House. This decision comes as a result of ongoing discussions with the Ministry of Health, he wrote. The statement was quickly deleted after it provoked mass anger from KMPDU members and other workers on social media. Many users accused Atellah of being bribed by the Ruto government. Atellah ludicrously claimed that the unions X account had been hacked. Reports circulating to the effect that #OccupyMoH has been suspended is false. The union handle has been compromised and we are trying our best to gain control of it and clean it. Interns are currently camping outside of the MOH. Many KMPDU members have participated in the mass protests, particularly healthcare professionals offering medical assistance to injured protesters for free. Many were attacked by police with live ammunition, batons and teargas. On Monday, the Kenya Union of Clinical Officers (KUCO), with a membership of 20,000, called off their nationwide strike after 99 days. The strike, which had paralysed services in public hospitals, ended following an agreement with the Council of Governors (CoG). The full agreement has not been disclosed, but the major grievances leading to the strike included demands for higher salaries, risk allowances, comprehensive medical coverage, guarantees for career progression, confirmation of clinical officers working on contracts as permanent staff with pensions, and the recruitment of 20,000 additional clinical officers. KUCO Secretary General George Gibore directed all members to resume their duties immediately and the deal is widely perceived as a betrayal. On social media, one workers said, 100 days on strike with nothing substantial, bure kabisa [useless] ... This union needs to be dissolved, Nothing said on interns. Another, under the name Kenya West, declared, Matako nyinyi [you asses], you throw interns under the bus!. Another asked, What are the contents of the RTWF [Return to Work Formula] ??? Once again a full disappointment. A doctor from Kisumu said, This is a malunion. Another said, Nothing gained. Screenshot of some of the workers' criticism on X of the trade union bureaucracy [Photo: X] The Kenya Union of Journalists (KUJ) has issued a 14-day strike notice at the Standard Group PLC, one of the largest media houses, over accumulated salary arrears for seven months and failure to remit dues for their savings and credit cooperatives. Media workers at Standards Radio Maisha have been on a wildcat strike since last week, demanding unpaid wages. On June 28, media workers from Standards Radio Maisha, Spice FM, Berur FM, and Vybez Radio staged a walkout and went off air. The Central Organization of Trade Unions (COTU-K) has declined to even express solidarity with the KUJ. COTU, comprising 36 trade unions representing over 1.5 million workers, has not mobilised support from other member unions. Every section of the working classfrom workers in Nairobis Industrial Area, to tea, coffee, and horticulture workers, to port workers in Mombasa (East Africas largest port), as well as teachers and healthcare workersshould have united in action to defeat Rutos austerity measures, police state measures and the deployment of the army. COTU instead is working with Ruto to impose austerity. Secretary Seneral Francis Atwoli infamously defended the Finance Bill, before the massacre on June 25 that killed dozens forced him to appeal to Ruto to withdraw the bill. He is now promoting illusions in Rutos dialogue with the youth. On Monday, Atwoli called on Ruto to consider reviving an employment initiative inspired by President Jomo Kenyatta to help mitigate the ongoing demonstrations and promote social cohesion. Appeals to the Ruto regime will not defend workers jobs, wages and social conditions. Bitter struggles over the past years have highlighted the futility of such measures. Ruto will use any breathing space provided by the trade unions to impose $2.7 billion of brutal austerity measures to cover the revenue shortfalls brought by the rejection of Finance Bill 2024. Last Friday, Ruto disclosed plans for the dissolution and privatization of over 40 state-owned companies, with the loss of thousands of civil service jobs. More budget cuts are expected in education, national healthcare facilities, social welfare, housing, and infrastructure, as well as the funding of the 47 counties that oversee devolved functions such as primary healthcare, pre-primary education, county roads, public works, and other vital services. The working class cannot effectively fight for better wages, jobs, and conditions, nor resist the austerity measures imposed by the Ruto government under the dictates of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), if they remain confined within unions that act as industrial enforcers for the government and big business. Workers need to take control of their own struggles by building rank-and-file committees, independent of the trade unions and the capitalist parties, including the opposition Azimio la Umoja coalition led by millionaire Raila Odinga, in every workplace, plantation and major economic centre. Above all, workers can turn to their brothers and sisters internationally. Across Africa, the ruling class is terrified of the contagion of Kenya-style mass anti-austerity protests. Social media posts have called for protests and shutdowns in Nigeria, Malawi, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Like Kenya, all four are heavily indebted and are raising taxes steeply while their governments are accused of corruption, nepotism and police-state repression. In Malawi, the highly anticipated national shutdown demonstration scheduled for this week against the high cost of living was postponed, citing high school examinations. One of its organisers, Edwards Kambanje, expressed fear things could get out of control, stating in the spirit of unity. We recognize that collective action and constructive engagement are crucial for building a harmonious and prosperous society. On the other side of the continent, the former president of Ghana (2012-2017), John Mahama, urged MPs to tread carefully lest they find themselves confronting mass opposition, as in Kenya. He warned, The Kenyan public are beating up Members of Parliament for passing bad laws. Mr Speaker, it is a serious matter. I saw colleagues Members of Parliament beaten to a pulp We should be worried. It is not a laughing matter. It is not a joke. It's serious. I saw one running and the police ushering him through a tunnel to escape. In Nigeria, a poster under the hash tag #ENDBGIN is circulating on social media calling for nationwide protests in early August against soaring costs of living. Organisers have rallied people to support the demonstration regardless of their tribe, region or religion, which, like Kenya, have long been used to divide workers and the rural masses. Daily Trust, owned by Media Trustone of the leading media companies in Nigeria, featured a commentary by Eugene Enahoro titled Nigeria is not Kenya! He accused the organisers of behaving irresponsibly, urging Nigerians to wake up and make the sacrifices that Kenyans have made because that is the only way we can have a better country. Enahoro warned of a military coup if protests were organized: Bearing in mind our nations history of ill-advised military interventions, and the current trend in West Africa, anyone calling for violent street protests in Nigeria places our democracy at risk. Amid a surge of crimes being reported against Asian people in New Zealand, a Chinese-born school student was brutally attacked on an Auckland public bus on the morning of June 28. The 16-year-old, Jason, was left with severe facial injuries after being beaten with a metal rod by a woman yelling racial slurs. The teenager had three teeth knocked out and another two damaged in the unprovoked attack, which has prompted an outpouring of anger and concern across social media. Jason was taking the bus to Panmure in South Auckland when a woman started verbally abusing me and then immediately started to physically abuse me, he told the New Zealand Herald. I was just listening to music, scrolling my phone, and then it happened. She just stood up and hit me. Jason said although there were more than 10 people on the bus, only one intervened. A 75-year-old gentleman at the back helped me to control the woman and get in the middle, he explained. The woman jumped off at the bus stop and ran away, leaving behind her metre-long rod. Jason has lived in New Zealand for seven years and said this was the first time he had experienced a racially motivated attack. He described the woman as in her 40s, with a large build and dressed in all black. I feel a bit fearful, this time it was a stick, next time who knows whats going to happen, maybe a knife? he said. Police have made an arrest. Transport Minister Simeon Brown said he would seek advice on whether proper procedures were followed by Auckland Transport staff. It seems to me listening to Jason, the bus drivers priority was continuing his route We dont want this happening again, he declared. A First Union spokesman replied that drivers are not trained like police officers to intervene in violent confrontations and put themselves at risk. The focus on the actions of the driver is an attempt to divert attention from the issue of racist attacks on Chinese and other Asian people. In February, NZ Police reported that the number of hate incidents formally reported to authorities increased by 12 percent between 2022 and 2023. Race-motivated abuse made up 83 percent of 9,351 reported incidents, and more than a third targeted people of Asian descent. The Justice Ministry recently reported that the proportion of Asian adults experiencing crime, including cases of fraud, deception and violence, increased from 24 to 30 percent between 2018 and 2023. Within Asian adults, the proportion of Chinese crime victims increased from 19 to 29 percent, ahead of the Indian community. According to the Global Times, the Chinese Embassy expressed serious concern to New Zealand officials about the attack on Jason, as well as another alleged incident in which a Chinese tourist in New Zealand was handcuffed and rudely searched by three New Zealand police officers who were apprehending a criminal suspect. The tourist received no explanation or apology for their treatment. The increase in attacks on Chinese peoplewho make up just 5 percent of New Zealands populationcoincides with an escalating anti-China propaganda campaign promoted by the countrys media outlets and political establishment. The purpose is to bring public sentiment into line with the US-led preparations for war against China, in which New Zealanda key ally of US imperialism in the Indo-Pacific regionis increasingly integrated. During an official visit to New Zealand by Chinese Premier Li Qiang last month, Stuff released an online documentary, The Long Game, which alleged widespread Chinese interference, followed by numerous articles on the subject. Stuff spoke to Chinese dissidents who claimed they had been assaulted and intimidated by Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members in New Zealand. The series reprised the methods of a similar Stuff campaign in 2021, which repeated false allegations of genocide of Uyghurs in China, amid a clamour for a more aggressive posture toward Beijing. Such reporting has never been motivated by genuine concern over the repressive actions of Chinas police state which are directed, above all, against the working class. The corporate media has for years been building a human rights case for imperialist aggression, as was done to justify the criminal US wars against Iraq and Afghanistan in which New Zealand participated. In a response to the latest Stuff investigation, Chinas ambassador Wang Xiaolong issued a statement saying it featured baseless slander and misinformation. Wang warned that commentators displaying malicious intent would ultimately harm the interests of New Zealand, adding they will end up lifting a stone only to drop it on their own feet. Stuffs principal source, prominent NATO-funded, pro-US academic Anne-Marie Brady, retorted this was a threat designed to silence critics, officials and journalists. Foreign Minister Winston Petersleader of the anti-immigrant and anti-Chinese NZ First Partyendorsed the documentary, saying the investigation had been unusually competent and was worth reading and listening to. The opposition Labour Party foreign affairs spokesperson, David Parker, similarly praised the documentary. A particularly odious role is played by the pro-Labour Party Daily Blog, which hailed Brady and Stuffs documentaryincluding unsubstantiated claims that Chinese-born National Party MP Nancy Lu is a spy. The blog regularly accuses Beijing of being New Zealands economic overlord while demanding tougher restrictions on immigration. Editor Martyn Bradbury has endorsed the Wuhan lab lie, blaming China for the COVID-19 pandemic, and asserts that a pro-Beijing fifth column within New Zealands Chinese community is preparing for a period of social unrest. Anti-immigrant chauvinism is also promoted by Maori nationalist politicians, such as former MP Hone Harawira, leader of the Mana Party, who declared in 2017 that any Chinese that brings meth [methamphetamine] or precursors into this country should be jailed for life, deported, or executed. He said this would not apply to other ethnicities, only Chinese people. Labour carries particular responsibility for attacks on immigrants. Led by Jacinda Ardern, Labour contested the 2017 election promising a sharply reduced immigration intake. With its ally the Greens, Labour then formed government in coalition with the racist NZ First Party, whose leader Peters was made Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister by Ardern. The last Labour government asserted that the country had to prepare for war against China. The Security Intelligence Service (SIS) last August published its first unclassified national threat assessment, alleging that the country is besieged by foreign intelligence agencies who persistently and opportunistically conduct espionage operations, naming China, Iran and Russia in particular. The attempts to whip up xenophobia and racismincluding the anti-Maori demagogy from the current governmentalso have the aim of dividing the working class and preventing any unified movement from developing against war and the worsening social crisis. With the full collaboration of the trade unions and the Labour-led opposition, the right-wing coalition government has in the last six months launched a brutal offensive on the social position of the working class. Over 6,000 public sector jobs have been slashed, with more to come. The ANZ Bank forecasts 40,000 more people will be out of a job by the end of the year as unemployment surges. The working class must take up the defence of immigrants and oppose all efforts to stoke racial divisions. This is an indispensable part of the fight to build a socialist movement to unite workers of every background and nationality against capitalism, which is the root cause of war, poverty and inequality. At a joint press conference on Friday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (Social Democratic PartySPD), Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Greens) and Christian Lindner (Free Democratic PartyFDP) announced that the coalition government had reached an agreement on the 2025 federal budget. Although the exact figures will not be announced until 17 July, one thing is already clear: It is an austerity and war budget that intensifies the governments anti-working class and militaristic agenda. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, right, Finance Minister Christian Lindner, left, and German Economy and Climate Minister Robert Habeck, center, address the media during a news conference in Berlin, Germany, Friday, July 5, 2024. [AP Photo/Markus Schreiber] In his remarks at the beginning of the press conference, Scholz explained that the issue of security was the most important issue for him in relation to the draft budget. He said: Its about a strong defence, a strong Bundeswehr [Armed Forces], which offers protection against the aggressive tyrannies of our time. That is why, he continued, NATOs two percent target will be fully met every year. From 2028, he explained, after the 100 billion special fund for the Bundeswehr has been exhausted, the regular defence budget will allot 80 billion in order to continue to ensure that the two percent [of GDP] target for military spending is met. Scholz repeatedly returned to the question of rearmament. As the special fund will soon be used up, he said, the government will then guarantee 100 percent of the necessary funding for the Bundeswehr from the budget. This is why the increase to 80 billion for the Bundeswehr budget is necessary. He stressed that we will have to finance this two per cent... in 2028, 2029, 2030 and in all subsequent years of the 2030s from the federal budget, without special funds. He said this was very central for the Bundeswehr and the important support for all the procurement projects that now lie ahead of us. It concerned a lot of money and a major task that our entire country has to tackle. In the coming year, Scholz added, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) would receive a lot more than was in the financial planningfor good, correct reasons, because he has to ensure that we equip the Bundeswehr better and make up for all the deficits of the past decades. It was only two days before, on Wednesday, that the Bundestags Budget Committee approved further massive armaments projects at its last meeting before the summer break. These included 105 Leopard battle tanks, worth almost three billion euros. After the Wednesday meeting, Pistorius boasted that 42 so-called 25-million-euro proposals totaling 27 billion had been approved in the last six months alone. These plans, the budget and the chancellors statements are a declaration of war on working people. The German ruling class is reacting to the deep crisis of capitalism, the escalation of war against Russia and in the Middle East, and the growing tensions between the imperialist powers by arming itself ever more aggressively and pursuing a militaristic great power policy. Germany must now be an anchor of stability in Europe, demanded Scholz. As a country at the heart of the continent, with its strategic importance, its economic power and its political weight, we must not turn our backs on the world in these times, we must not be preoccupied with ourselves. Habeck referred to the challenge of the American election campaign for Europe, saying, Regardless of how it turns out, it will create a new task for Europe to position itself more independently in global politics. The obligation to keep Germany stable in these turbulent times and to be a place of reliability on the European continent and perhaps beyond had always been a guiding principle in the talks on the budget, he stressed. The leaders of the three-party coalition left no doubt that the rearmament was aimed directly at Russia. Scholz said: This is a turning point, because Russia, with its imperial war and brutal aggression, has annulled the understanding in Europe that borders should not be moved by force. Thats why we have to help Ukraine, but thats also why we have to make our Bundeswehr strong. In fact, it is not Russia that is the imperial aggressor, but the NATO powers, which have been laying waste to entire countries since time immemorial, moving borders by force when it serves their geostrategic and economic interests. By systematically encircling Russia, NATO provoked the Putin regimes reactionary intervention in Ukraine in the first place. Since then, it has been pushing the conflict ever further in order to militarily defeat and ultimately subjugate the resource-rich country. The aggressiveness of the German governments push to rearm and reestablish Germany as a major military power despite its historical crimes in the 20th century is matched by the aggressiveness of its drive to make the working class pay for these policies. In his remarks, Lindner boasted that the debt brake enshrined in the constitution in 2011 would be adhered to in 2025 and would be tightened further compared to last year. While the budget for this year still amounts to 489 billion, in 2025 we are planning a budget volume of 481 billion, announced Lindner. This figure alone makes clear that there will be severe cuts in numerous departments. It was already known that the government was planning to cut citizens allowance welfare support by 2.6 billion. These attacks are linked to even more stringent controls to force workers into any job, no matter how bad. Habeck emphasised that the monitoring of the acceptance of offered work will be made stricter, i.e., sanctions will be tightened. The few social announcements made by the government can only be described as a provocation. For example, Scholz, Habeck and Lindner boasted that child benefit and the emergency child allowance are to be increased by 5 (!) each in 2025. This is not even the proverbial drop in the ocean and will do nothing to change the disastrous social situation millions confront. According to the EUs statistical office (Eurostat), the proportion of people at risk of poverty and social exclusion in Germany has already risen by 3.6 percent in the last three years, and now stands at 20.9 percent. The rearmament orgy now planned will be accompanied by an enormous increase in poverty and the decimation of remaining expenditures on social welfare, education and health. In concrete terms, the German governments plans to achieve the 2 percent military spending target by 2028 using the regular defence budget alone means it will have to increase by at least 30 billion per year. While Berlin has told NATO it estimates defence spending of 90.6 billion for the current year, the regular defence budget is currently only just under 52 billion. The ruling class knows that its agenda of war and social devastation will not bring stability, but will fuel opposition among workers and young people. For this reason, the government is also increasing the powers and means of the states repressive apparatus. Around one billion euros more than previously planned will be made available for the security authorities, reads an initial government information paper on the new budget. The Lancet, the prestigious peer-reviewed British medical journal, has warned that the true death toll in the Gaza genocide could be 186,000 or more. This staggering figure amounts to 8 percent of the population of Gaza. A similar percentage of the US population would be 26 million people. Palestinians bury the bodies of people who were killed by the Israeli military during a mass funeral in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Jan. 30, 2024. [AP Photo/Fatima Shbair] It stands as an indictment of the United States and its imperialist allies, who have funded, armed and politically defended Israels genocide in Gaza. The massive death toll has been made possible by the 14,000 2,000-pound bombs provided by the US to Israel, which it has used not only to massacre tens of thousands but also to destroy all aspects of civilization in Gaza, contributing to the deaths of tens of thousands through malnutrition, communicable diseases and lack of healthcare. The official death toll since the onset of the Israeli attack, according to Gazan government sources, is 37,396. But The Lancet noted that this figure reflects neither the thousands of people buried under the rubble nor the countless deaths caused by the deliberate destruction of Gazas food distribution, healthcare and sanitation systems. In its report published Friday, titled Counting the Dead in Gaza: Difficult but Essential, The Lancet noted: The number of reported deaths is likely an underestimate. The non-governmental organization Airwars undertakes detailed assessments of incidents in the Gaza Strip and often finds that not all names of identifiable victims are included in the Ministrys list. Furthermore, the UN estimates that, by Feb. 29, 2024, 35% of buildings in the Gaza Strip had been destroyed, so the number of bodies still buried in the rubble is likely substantial, with estimates of more than 10,000. The publication further pointed out that Collecting data is becoming increasingly difficult for the Gaza Health Ministry due to the destruction of much of the infrastructure. The report warned: The total death toll is expected to be large given the intensity of this conflict; destroyed health-care infrastructure; severe shortages of food, water, and shelter; the populations inability to flee to safe places; and the loss of funding to UNRWA, one of the very few humanitarian organizations still active in the Gaza Strip. The Lancet noted: In recent conflicts, such indirect deaths range from three to 15 times the number of direct deaths. Applying a conservative estimate of four indirect deaths per one direct death to the 37,396 deaths reported, it is not implausible to estimate that up to 186,000 or even more deaths could be attributable to the current conflict in Gaza. Using the 2022 Gaza Strip population estimate of 2,375,259, this would translate to 7.9% of the total population in the Gaza Strip. The Lancet estimate of a death toll of 186,000 is thus based on two assumptions that would tend to lower the estimated death toll. First, it starts with the governments reported death toll of 37,396, which does not include those buried under the rubble. Then, it uses a multiple of four to estimate the indirect deaths caused by the war, as opposed to the multiple of 15 times the number of direct deaths observed in other conflicts. There are reasons to question the validity of these low assumptions, including the fact that Israeli officials have explicitly stated a goal of killing Palestinian civilians through starvation and disease. Ashraf Abu Draz mourns over the bodies of his two daughters who were killed in the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip at a hospital morgue in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Thursday, April 4, 2024. [AP Photo/Fatima Shbair] In November, Giora Eiland, the former head of the Israeli National Security Council, published an article in which he urged the Israeli military to create medical conditions that would cause the deaths of as many Gazan civilians as possible from preventable disease. He wrote: Who are the poor women of Gaza? They are all the mothers, sisters, or wives of Hamas murderers. The international community warns us of a humanitarian disaster in Gaza and of severe epidemics. We must not shy away from this, as difficult as that may be. After all, severe epidemics in the south of the Gaza Strip will bring victory closer and reduce casualties among IDF soldiers. This genocidal rhetoric is consistent with the declaration by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant of a complete siege ... no electricity, no water, no food, no fuel. We are fighting human animals, and we act accordingly. In a report published last month, the United Nations commission investigating the Gaza genocide declared: Israel has used starvation as a method of war, affecting the entire population of the Gaza Strip for decades to come, with particularly negative consequences for children. The UN committee concluded: At the time of writing this report, children have already died due to acute malnutrition and dehydration. Through the siege it imposed, Israel has weaponized the withholding of life-sustaining necessities, cutting off supplies of water, food, electricity, fuel, and other essential supplies, including humanitarian assistance. This constitutes collective punishment and reprisal against the civilian population, both of which are clear violations of [international humanitarian law]. The Biden administration, in covering up and defending the Gaza genocide, has claimed that the deaths of civilians are an unintended consequence of Israels war against Hamas. But these claims are belied by the statements of Israeli officials, who have made it clear that they are waging a war of extermination against the civilian population. In October, Israeli President Isaac Herzog declared: Its an entire nation out there that is responsible. Its not true this rhetoric about civilians not aware, not involved we will fight until we break their backbone. That same month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated: You must remember what Amalek has done to you, referring to a biblical passage that states, Go, attack Amalek. ... Spare no one, but kill alike men and women, infants, and sucklings. The report by The Lancet makes it clear that the Gaza genocide is among the greatest acts of imperialist barbarism in modern history. In under one year, the United States and other imperialist powers have worked with Israel to wipe out close to a tenth of the population of one of the most densely populated urban areas in the world. This crime is part of a global eruption of imperialist violence, aiming to subjugate the whole world under neo-colonial domination, targeting centrally Russia and China. The massive death toll in Gaza is a warning: Imperialism is prepared to carry out any crime in pursuit of its predatory interests. The Gaza genocide must be stopped! On July 24, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will travel to Washington D.C. to give a progress report to his imperialist paymasters. We call on workers and young people to join the demonstration and meeting in Washington called for that day by the Socialist Equality Party as a critical step in building a mass anti-war movement based on the working class. This cover image released by Little Brown Books for Young Readers shows "Be a Hero with Skipper the Seal" by Admiral William H. McRaven with Kelly Marie McRaven. (Little Brown Books for Young Readers via AP) NEW YORK (AP) Adm. William H. McRaven is collaborating with daughter Kelly McRaven on a follow-up to his bestselling Skipper the Seal picture book that draws upon his onetime passion for being a superhero. Little Brown Books for Young Readers announced Monday that the McRavens' Be a Hero with Skipper the Seal will be published March 11, 2025. With illustrations by Howard McWilliam, the new book follows the adventures of Skipper as he is asked by the president of the United States to recruit a team of heroes. As a young boy in Texas, I dreamed of being a superhero and saving the world, the admiral said in a statement. But I thought you had to have special powers. When I grew up, I found that real heroes are all around us and the only power they needed was belief in themselves. Kelly McRaven said in a statement that Some of my favorite memories are of my dad reading to me before bed and sharing life lessons. He taught me that we can all be heroes if we give a little of ourselves each day. McRaven, who retired in 2014, led the U.S. Joint Special Operations Command when a team of Navy SEALs killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan in 2011. Two years earlier, he led the 2009 rescue of Richard Phillips, a ship captain captured by Somali pirates who was later portrayed by Tom Hanks in the 2013 movie Captain Phillips. McRaven's other books include The Hero Code: Lessons Learned from Lives Well Lived and Sea Stories: My Life in Special Operations. Kandi Burruss isnt the only former Real Housewives of Atlanta star coming to Kenya Moores defense. Claudia Jordan has now also come out in support of her former castmate amid Kenyas recent scandal and exit from the show. Kenya was suspended from filming for Season 16 after allegedly decorating for her spa opening party with posters of newcomer, Brittany Eady, performing oral sex on an unknown man. It was later decided that Kenya would not be getting her peach back. Claudia, who filmed alongside Kenya for Seasons 7 and 8 of RHOA, was recently asked her thoughts on the whole scandal. She was unequivocally in Kenyas corner, and finds the whole situation tragic. Claudia Jordan hopes Kenya Moores RHOA absence is only temporary TMZ caught up with Claudia in Los Angeles on Saturday. Like Kandi before her, she also expressed disappointment with the outcome of Kenyas poster-gate. Claudia began, I think its tragic Is [the show] worth watching if shes not going to be on it? I think shes a big part of that success and I hope its only a temporary thing. When the news of Kenyas alleged stunt broke, she maintained her innocence and asserted that she would never engage in revenge porn. According to Kenya, the truth would eventually come to light. Claudia says that Kenya has never been a liar. Even when shes being a shade assassin. Kenya will say something and people will accuse her of being messy, only to find out years later she was telling the truth, Claudia explained. Its unclear if THE DOOR IS CLOSED to Kenya ever returning in the future. Claudia thinks that the fans will really miss Kenya on the show. However, Claudia wants her to do whatever makes her and her fat wallet happy. Claudia concluded, I just want whats best for her and whatever makes her happy. But I know that she got a GOOD check because we used to have the same lawyer, honey. There was more zeroes on hers than there was on mine. She was getting paid! Season 16 of The Real Housewives of Atlanta is expected to premiere in 2025. TELL US DO YOU AGREE WITH CLAUDIA ABOUT KENYAS HONESTY? IS KENYAS EXIT TRAGIC FOR THE SHOW? The post Claudia Jordan Defends Kenya Moore After RHOA Exit: Its Tragic appeared first on Reality Tea. Actor Doug Sheehan, best known to TV fans for his work on soap operas General Hospital and Knots Landing, has died. He was 75. News of Sheehans death was made public by the Wyoming-based Kane Funeral Home, where memorial services are being arranged. Per the announcement, Sheehan passed away peacefully at his home on Saturday morning, June 29, 2024, with his loving wife at his side. A cause of death was not disclosed. More from TVLine Sheehans first major TV role was that of lawyer Joe Kelly on ABCs General Hospital, where he appeared from 1979 to 1982. He picked up a Daytime Emmy nomination (for Outstanding Actor in a Supporting Role in a Daytime Drama Series) for his work on the soap. The following year, Sheehan joined the cast of CBS Dallas spinoff Knots Landing, arriving in Season 5 as journalist (and Vals eventual second husband) Ben Gibson. Sheehan stayed on the show until Season 8, when Ben left for South America and never returned. The actor also held memorable roles on NBCs short-lived sitcom Day by Day (where he starred as stockbroker Brian Harper) and ABC/UPNs series adaptation of Clueless (where he took over the role of Chers father, Mel Horowitz, from Michael Lerner after Season 1). Other TV credits included episodes of Cheers, the original MacGyver, Columbo, Diagnosis Murder, What I Like About You and Sabrina the Teenage Witch. TV Stars Who Died in 2024 TV Stars We Lost in 2024 View Gallery62 Images Best of TVLine Get more from TVLine.com : Follow us on Twitter , Facebook , Newsletter EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) El Paso night club 101 is calling all rockers across the Borderland to Rock for Ruidoso at a benefit concert on Sunday, July 14. Doors open at 12:30 p.m. at the club located at the Mesa Inn, 4151 N. Mesa. There will be a $10 cover charge at the door, with all the proceeds going to victims of the Ruidoso fires and floods. Rock for Ruidoso t-shirts will also be on sale for $25, all of which will also go to victims. There will also be a donation drop-off site at the club for people who want to bring physical donations such as blankets, clothing, toys for kids, or anything that might help. The concert will feature eight local bands, some well-known to others who are up and coming, that all jumped at the idea of playing for free in order to contribute to the cause. Weve actually skyrocketed with how many people have been wanting to help. Weve had people wanting to come and volunteer. Weve had bands just trying to jump on. Unfortunately, weve had to turn away bands because we just dont have that many time slots, said John Summerford, a 101 DJ who goes by the name of Johnny Crash, who came up with the idea of the benefit concert. Summerford said that when the fires were raging, his son had asked him if there was anything they could do, and thats where the idea sparked. Since then, many local sponsors have jumped in to donate and make the concert happen. Summerford said the response from everyone skyrocketed and felt this is something that they needed to do. Because Ruidoso is kind of a foundation for El Paso as well, its a get-away spot for a lot of people that go there to relax and enjoy nature, to enjoy the forests. The people up there, Main Street, Ruidoso Downs, the Mescalero Apaches, everything up there is almost like a sister to what El Paso is, Summerford said. Summerford said they will put on a heck of a show, and at the end of the day, their goal is to help victims as much as they can to get their lives back. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. During the summer of 1978, 13-year-old Scott Birney of Tappan Lake was viewed as a movie star. Birney was one of eight youngsters from the Tuscarawas Valley who were featured in a segment of the NBC-TV miniseries "Centennial," portions of which were filmed in Tuscarawas and Coshocton counties. The children portrayed orphans, and they shot their scenes at an old farmhouse long torn down near Winfield. "It was just a really cool experience. It was really fun," said Birney, who now lives outside of Dennison. Scott Birney talks about his experiences appearing as an extra in the television miniseries 'Centennial' when he was a boy. Based on a novel by James A. Michener "Centennial," based on a 1974 novel by James A. Michener, tells the story of a fictional town in Colorado from 1795 to the 1970s. It aired on NBC from October 1978 to February 1979. One of the characters in the mini-series was Levi Zendt, a Pennsylvania Mennonite who leaves his home to settle in the west in 1846. Gregory Harrison was featured as Zendt, and Stephanie Zimbalist played his wife, Elly. A photograph of actor Greg Harrison, center, is among a collection of memorabilia from Scott Birney's time spent on the set of "Centennial", a television miniseries. The Tuscarawas Valley was chosen for filming because of its authenticity in portraying the Lancaster County area of Pennsylvania in the 1840s. Besides the house in Winfield, scenes were also shot at Roscoe Village in Coshocton, a farm near Port Washington and in Wilkshire Hills. Universal City Studios officials estimated that they spent around $300,000 ($1.4 million in 2024 dollars) while they were filming here. Expenses included dredging a portion of the Tuscarawas River near Wilkshire Hills to film a covered wagon crossing the river. More than 100 local people served as extras. One family made $150 in one day by having their four children walk around Roscoe Village. They also got lunch. By all accounts, the food was excellent. 3,000 people applied to be extras Birney got involved in the show because his mother, Shelva, saw an article in the paper that the studio was looking for extras. So, they traveled to New Philadelphia to the Holiday Inn, where applications were being taken. Around 3,000 people applied to be extras. "It was a zoo," he recalled. He provided his name, address and a photo. For the orphanage scene, the studio was seeking children who looked like they were Amish. "I had poker straight blond hair, not a curl in it," Birney said. Newspaper clippings collected by Scott Birney of Dennison show him in pictures from his time spent on the set of the television miniseries "Centennial." The woman taking applications put the photos in a large box, but she put Birney's in a shoebox. A month and a half later, his family got a call from the studio that he had been hired. Earning $25 a day Birney, who was about to enter the eighth grade, and the other children had no lines in the show, but they were featured in a couple of scenes. Filming lasted three days. He was paid $25 a day for his work. "We did this one take where I carried this bucket of water across the yard from the house over to the side of the yard. That one didn't even go in. They cut that out, but I bet we filmed that thing 15 times," he said. He recalled that Harrison and Zimbalist were good to the children. "They were such nice people. My mom got to know her pretty well. She baked her a loaf of bread." Zimbalist later sent him a hand-written note, thanking him for his work. Joe Mizer, left, a former reporter for The T-R, poses on the set of the TV miniseries "Centennial" in 1978 with his daughter, Carla, his wife, Diana, and his father-in-law, Robert Parks. "All that summer and after that I was a movie star. When I went back to school, everybody asked me about it," he said. Birney has never acted since. A 1983 graduate of Jewett-Scio High School, he now works for MPLX Pipeline out of Cadiz. Filming at Roscoe Village Joe Mizer, a veteran reporter for The T-R, wrote several stories for the paper while the "Centennial" crew was in the area. He, along with his wife, Diana, his daughter Carla (then 6 years old) and his father-in-law, Robert Parks, worked as extras in the scenes shot at Roscoe Village. "The filming in Roscoe Village was unique because they made it look like a town in the 1800s, the dirt street, the Conestoga wagons," he said. "I remember it was a very hot day, and dressed in that outfit that we were in, wool coats. Looking back, it was worth it." His family spent one day during filming at Roscoe. They also went to watch filming of the scenes at Winfield and the river crossing at Wilkshire Hills. Carla Mizer of New Philadelphia (right) is pictured on the set of the TV miniseries "Centennial" in 1978 along with one of the stars of the show, actress Stephanie Zimbalist. "It was just a very interesting experience, one of the highlights of being a newspaperman. There were a few others, but nothing quite like this," Mizer said. Jon Baker is a reporter for The Times-Reporter and can be reached at jon.baker@timesreporter.com. This article originally appeared on The Times-Reporter: NBC mini-series 'Centennial' filmed in Tuscarawas Valley in 1978 Julio Foolios family and friends seemingly sent off the late rapper the way he would have wanteddissing his rival, Yungeen Ace. On Sunday (July 7), a viral video of a woman, who allegedly is Foolios girlfriend, turning up at the service made its way online. The woman, along with other funeral-goers, could be seen passionately rapping Julios Yungeen Ace diss, When I See You, spitting, Went out to eat on his birthday/Four shot, three dead in the worst way /He kept dissin on me /Now we smokin 23. Ace, a member of the ATK gang, and Foolio, a part of the Jacksonville gang, KTA, have been feuding since 2017. In 2018, Zion Brown, Foolios cousin, was shot and killed, escalating tensions between the respective gangs. It was then found that one of Aces associates was responsible for the death and charged with the murder, per The Florida Times Union. European fans who were excited to see legendary rapper Nicki Minaj in Romania will have to wait due to the Pink Friday 2 artist canceling her appearance at the Saga Festival. On Sunday, Minaj wrote in a lengthy message on X: Out of concern for the well-being of our team and myself, I have been advised by my security detail not to travel to Romanias festival tonight due to safety concerns regarding protests in the area. I look forward to seeing you all at another time. As a mom, I have to make sure Im making sound decisions for me to make it home to my son and for my team to make it home to their families. To not heed the advice of security at this time is simply not what I think I should be doing. I love you and thank you for your understanding and support. She added, I am very excited to see my fans this Friday in London for another very special headlining show at Wireless Festival. Out of concern for the well-being of our team and myself, I have been advised by my security detail not to travel to Romanias festival tonight due to safety concerns regarding protests in the area. I look forward to seeing you all at another time. As a mom, I have to make sure Nicki Minaj (@NICKIMINAJ) July 7, 2024 While there hasnt been much coverage on what specific protests will be happening, Crisis 24 writes, Civil society groups plan to march in Bucharest on July 8. Attendees will gather at 08:15 in Victory Square and then march from 09:30 to Constitution Square. Business groups and taxpayers are demanding improvements to the states fiscal policies and processes. Demonstrators will then rally in front of the Ministry of Finance until 13:30. It is likely that several hundred to low thousands of protesters will take part. This isnt the first time this year that Nicki has had to cancel or reschedule one of her live shows due to extenuating circumstances: In May, she was arrested at Amsterdams Schiphol Airport on suspicion of drug possession. Nicki claimed on social media that the arrest was a setup, explaining on social media that, Theyve been trying to stop me from coming to every show. They took my bags before I could see them. Put it on the plane. Now saying theyre waiting on customs. This is what it looks like when ppl are paid big money to try to sabotage a tour after all else failed. Everything theyve done is illegal. She later revealed that she was arrested for possession of weed, which is illegal in the Netherlands. Nicki claimed that her tour manager and security planted the drugs in her luggage to ruin her international tour. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Florida Studio Theatre is cramming as much laughter as it can over two days for the 14th annual Sarasota Improv Festival. This years event brings together more than 80 comedy artists in 16 troupes from around the world, including a group from Chile making its Sarasota debut. Will Luera, the director of improvisation at FST, said he tries to bring back returning favorite troupes mixed in with others that are performing at the theater for the first. There are the tent poles, the ones the audiences know theyre going to get a quality show and recognize the faces, he said. Every so often one of those groups really sticks, like North Coast Improv, they came in as a new group and were received very well and weve united them back for several years. The headliner this year is the returning Impro Theatre from Los Angeles, which presents an original improvised full-length play. The group will perform at 9 p.m. Saturday The Los Angeles-based Impro Theatre, which performs a full-length play in the style of famous writers and composers, is the headlining act for the 2024 Saraosta Improv Festival at Florida Studio Theatre. Three troupes are being introduced to Sarasota audiences this year, including Jet Eveleth (7 p.m. July 12, 5 p.m. July 13), a solo performer who was featured in a comedic role in the Cirque du Soleil show Absinthe in Las Vegas. Luera said she is a favorite of old school improvisers. Lospleimovil (8 p.m. July 12, 5 p.m. July 13) is a group Luera met when he taught improv in Santiago, Chile. The group, which performs improv games and full-length scenes, was formed in 2000 and became pioneers in the art form in Chile. It also has an English-speaking core that will perform in Sarasota. Brotha Sista (9 p.m. July 12, 6 p.m. July 13) is a duo act from Minneapolis that performs fast-paced scenes with a fresh take and energy. The schedule includes a host of returning troupes, including such festival stalwarts as Dads Garage, the Atlanta troupe that will showcase a new kind of program this year, Available Cupholders from Austin, and Orlandos SAK Comedy Lab. Perry Frost, left, and Andy Coen perform with Atantas Dads Garage, which has performed at the Sarasota Improv Festival since the first season. Regrouping after the pandemic The festival returned last year after a three-year COVID break, and reverts to its original two-night format. In recent festivals, Thursday was reserved for troupes from across Florida. Producer Rebecca Hopkins, who launched the festival and the FST Improv group, said, we didnt like relegating Florida to just Thursday night, which is when all the other troupes are arriving and they cant see them. Those Florida groups include FST Improv and its musical offshoot Treble in Paradise, Just the Funny from Miami, Swan City Improv from Lakeland and The Commodore from Ybor City. Luera, who will be performing with both FST Improv and Bostons Big Bang, said that improv artists have a different kind of experience in Sarasota because it has a theater-related audience. They respond to a different cadence than a typical audience of improv artists. During the day Saturday, some of the visiting troupe members will be leading workshops that have become a popular part of the weekend for the performers and some audience members. The shows will be presented in three theaters on the FST campus, and audiences will have up to three shows to choose from in each hour. Most sets run about 45 minutes. Fridays schedule ends with an Improv All Stars special and Saturday features the traditional All-Play to close the night with as many of the weekend artists who want to perform a little more. There is also a family show at 10 a.m. Saturday. Members of the Chilean comedy troupe Lospleimovil make their local debut at the 14th Sarasota Improv Festival. Who else is performing this year? FST Improv: 6 p.m. July 12. The host company for this annual event features a varied group of improv performers who perform sketches and improv games based on audience suggestions. Parallelogramophonograph: 7 pm. July 12, 8 p.m. July 12. This Austin-based theater company creates improvised plays and theater from audience suggestions. HERE: The (Improvised) Musical: 7 p.m. July 12 and 13. From Columbus, Ohio, Tara DeFrancisco and Rance Rizzutto create original two-person improvised musicals. They have performed in more than 80 cities around the world. Dads Garage: 8 p.m. July 12 and 13. One of the first groups to appear at the festival, this Atlanta-based company is part of a theater that presents scripted plays, improv classes and weekly improv comedy shows. Available Cupholders: 8 p.m. July 12, 7 p.m. July 13. From Austin, Texas and Los Angeles and featuring veterans of Second City and other prominent groups, this company performs long-form improv based on audience suggestions. Jet Eveleth a clown and comic performer will present a solo show during the 2024 Sarasota Improv Festival. North Coast: 9 p.m. July 12, 7 p.m. July 12. This New York City group brings hip hop and freestyle rapping to the festival in high energy routines backed by beatboxer Doctor Brick. Big Bang Improv: 6 p.m. July 13. One scene leads seamlessly into the next with this Boston-based group that includes Will Luera, FSTs director of improvisation, who worked with the company for years. It operates on the philosophy of follow the funny. SAK Comedy Lab: 9 p.m. July 12, 8 p.m. July 13. This Orlando-based troupe, which gave a start to Wayne Brady and others, has been presenting a variety of improv styles since it was founded in 1991. Improv Fest Family show: 10 a.m. July 13. Improv performers from around the world join together to create improv games, scenes and songs geared for family audiences, who help guide their performances. Improv I-4-Ever: 5 p.m. July 13. Two Florida troupes share a time slot for improv games and sketches. It features Swan City Improv of Lakeland, which started in 2017, and The Commodore, a Tampa troupe that presents its show The Captains Wheel, a competitive improv format that requires the performers to overcome random challenges. Tropical Punchlines: 6 p.m. July 13. Miamis Just the Funny and the Sarasota musical improv group Treble in Paradise. Workshops On Saturday, there will be 18 different workshops led by different troupes and individual artists at 9 a.m., 11:30 a.m. and 2 p.m. on different styles of improv, including how to rap, a program for Spanish speakers led by Lospleimovil, how to keep an audiences focus, creating characters and more. Workshops are $35 for each two-hour session or $90 for three sessions. For details: floridastudiotheatre.org/sarasota-improv-festival-workshops-2 Tickets Single tickets for most shows are $10 (they are $25 for the headliner Impro Theatre). A two-day pass for all performances is $75. A Friday pass is $49 and Saturday is $59.For details: 941-366-9000; floridastudiotheatre.org Follow Jay Handelman on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Contact him at jay.handelman@heraldtribune.com. And please support local journalism by subscribing to the Herald-Tribune. This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Sarasota Improv Festival welcomes 16 troupes from around the world Looking for a place to eat around Bradenton? Manatee County restaurants are routinely inspected by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation for health and food safety issues and cleanliness. Florida bases its inspection standards on the U.S. Food and Drug Administrations Food Code, which contains many, many possible violations. Passing inspection without flaw is no easy feat, so we like to let our readers know which restaurants did exceptionally well during recent inspections. Here are the local businesses that earned perfect or near-perfect health inspections from June 18 to July 3. 8th Floor Rooftop Bar, 600 U.S. 41, Palmetto (Inside Palmetto Marriott Resort & Spa) (No violations) The Boba Spot on AMI, 5400 Mariana Dr., Holmes Beach (No violations) China Master at Ellenton Premium Outlets, 5461 Factory Shops Blvd., Ellenton (No violations) Five Guys, 6783 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton Freedom Concessions at Freedom Factory, 21050 S.R. 64, Bradenton Georgia Girl Soul Food & Catering (Food truck) (No violations) J & S Mobile, 5718 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton (Mobile food business) (No violations) Little Caesars Pizza, 5285 30th St. E., Bradenton (No violations) McDonalds, 6103 US-301, Ellenton Mexi-Peru, 4816 14th St. W., Bradenton (No violations) El Morelense, 3413 Cortez Road W., Bradenton (Mobile food business) (No violations) Mr. Frontera 3, 1304 Eighth Ave. W., Palmetto (Mobile food business) (No violations) Remys on Main, 8138 Lakewood Main St., Lakewood Ranch Ricos Pollos Alex, 519 23rd St. E., Bradenton (Mobile food business) (No violations) Ritas Italian Ice & Frozen Custard, 1731 Lakewood Ranch Blvd., Bradenton (No violations) Salt & Pepper by Jerry, 5704 14th St. W., Bradenton (Food truck) (No violations) Simple Mexican Grill, 11235 U.S. 301 N. #105, Parrish Southern Smoked by JP, LLC (Food truck) (No violations) Sysco Foodie Truck, 3000 69th St. E., Palmetto (Food truck) (No violations) Taqueria los Sebastianes, 710 13th St. W., Palmetto (Mobile food business) (No violations) Taqueria y Mas Martin, 5620 14th St. W., Bradenton (No violations) Two Guys To Go (Food truck) Wendys, 5420 Manatee Ave. W., Bradenton Zaxbys, 5020 14th St. W., Bradenton Restaurants in Florida are licensed and routinely inspected by the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation. Diners can report health and cleanliness issues at a restaurant anywhere in the state by filing a complaint with the agency. This Airline Just Made It Easier for West Coast Travelers to Visit Belize What to Know San Francisco is getting a new nonstop flight. Simon Dannhauer/iStockphoto/Getty Images Its about to get easier to escape to the lush paradise of Belize from the West Coast thanks to a new United Airlines flight set to take off from San Francisco. The new nonstop flight will launch on Dec. 21 and travel between San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and the Philip Goldson International Airport (BZE) in Belize City, the Belize Tourism Board confirmed to Travel + Leisure. This represents the fifth city United will fly to Belize from in addition to Houston, Newark, Denver, and Chicago. This new route opens a world of possibilities for travelers seeking adventure, relaxation, and cultural immersion in a remarkable and unique destination, Anthony Mahler, the minister of tourism and diaspora relations, said in a statement shared with T+L. We are confident this new flight will significantly boost tourism arrivals from the San Francisco Bay area and further strengthen the ties between Belize and the United States of America. The new flight will operate seasonally on Saturdays from Dec. 21 to Jan. 4, 2025, and from March 8 to March 29. After that, the flight will depart San Francisco on Saturdays and return from Belize on Sundays through April 30 and again from the end of May through Aug. 17, according to the Belize Tourism Board. One-way flights from San Francisco start at $542, a search on Google Flights shows. The flight will operate on a Boeing 737 aircraft, according to the San Francisco International Airport. Ivar C. Satero, the director of the airport, called the new flight a welcome addition to [Uniteds] wide range of destinations from SFO. Belize, which sits just underneath Mexicos Quintana Roo state, offers gorgeous beaches, hundreds of islands and cays, the worlds second largest barrier reef, and seemingly endless jungle to explore. High season is from December to April with January to March considered the driest months to visit. For more Travel & Leisure news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on Travel & Leisure. Yahoo Sports Week 5 is in the books and oh my there's a lot of panic on these fantasy streets. Dalton Del Don joins Matt Harmon for another edition of the 'People's Panic Meter' to answer all of your listener submissions. The duo examines the situations for Breece Hall, Buffalo Bills, Bijan Robinson and many more. Central Florida preschools look to boost learning by getting kids tinkering and building A new program informed by Harvard University research is looking to improve preschool education in Central Florida by encouraging young children to assume a maker mindset. Launched last month, the Empowering Communities to Shape Their Worlds program is an educational approach that relies on building and tinkering. The maker mindset is that theres always a new and better way to produce and improve what we make, said Marnie Forestieri, CEO of the Young Innovators Academy, whose three preschools in Orange and Seminole counties area are included in the program. The Early Learning Coalition of Orange County is providing extra pay to 25 preschool teachers to learn and implement the educational approach at daycare centers that largely serve children from low-income families. The initiative began at a research facility at the Harvard Graduate School of Education called Project Zero. For the last 12 years, researchers at the facility have been investigating ways in which a makers approach to learning could influence curriculums. Its about getting kids to understand how objects and systems are designed, so they can feel empowered to hack or reshape those objects and systems, said Edward Clapp, a principal researcher at Project Zero. When Forestieri learned about Clapps work she began weaving it into the curriculum at her preschools. Then she invited Scott Fritz, CEO of the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County, to come watch it in action. When I went over there and looked at it, I was just thoroughly amazed because it was everything I wanted it to be for a school for children, Fritz said. In one of Forestieris lesson plans a teacher reads a story to the class about a turtle trying to cross a stream. The teacher then asks the students to think about how the turtle can get to the other side. Thats what it means to put the kid in the drivers seat, Forestieri said. If a student says a bridge could be built for the turtle, the teacher will say, okay, thats a really great idea. Why dont you go make it? Forestieri explained. Her classrooms include what she calls makers centers, which are equipped with cardboard boxes, blocks and other building materials. What we learn every day from kids is that they are super smart. We dont have to go and tell them what to do, which is what teacher direct instruction is doing, Forestieri said. Alfreda Clark is center director at the West Lakes Early Learning Center and one of the educators participating in the program. Clarks center sits near Camping World Stadium. She is excited that the program was extended to West Lakes and grateful for the extra funding it provided. The children at West Lakes are primarily from under-resourced families and under-resourced communities. So, this allows children who are here to receive similar opportunities that they would receive in other areas where families have everything they need, said Clark. The extra money means a boost in pay to $25 an hour for preschool teachers who in Florida earn an average of $17 an hour. To kick off the program, Clapp and his colleagues came to Orlando to teach participating teachers about the educational approach. They plan to return three more times during the eight-month program. In-between visits, teachers will host study group meetings, to share ideas and learn from each other. In this industry, everybody works like theyre on a small island. And we didnt want that to happen. We wanted to share this, said Forestieri. When embattled deep-sea tourism startup OceanGate lost its only submersible and its CEO in one catastrophic dive last June, reactions varied. Most of the world watched with bated breath as emergency crews tried to locate the lost ship and rescue its five-person crew. Media focus ranged from tragic and personal to skeptical repeated safety issues and setbacks had plagued the Titan throughout its development. Stockton Rush, OceanGates CEO and the submersibles pilot, had made charged comments about regulations and safety in the deep-sea exploration industry. To state it gently, the Titan was an outlier in design. The pilots interface was a video game controller. The only interior fixtures were two screens and a front porthole window. And the crew squatted on the floor for the duration of each voyage, seated on a plain rubber mat. Not to mention its carbon fiber hull a first-of-its-kind gambit that, now, will likely never again be attempted. The search for the Titan and its crew ended when remotely operated vehicles found it in pieces on the ocean floor. The U.S. Coast Guard called the incident a catastrophic loss of pressure inside the cabin. Official investigations commenced, and OceanGate promptly shuttered operations. James Cameron speaks out Some experts, including experienced deep-sea submersible pilot and film director James Cameron, later implied Rush had been on a dangerous crash course all along. You dont move fast and break things if the thing youre going to break has got you inside it, the director recently told 60 Minutes Australia. As the Coast Guard and other agencies continue their investigations, tech news outlet Wired recently shared the results of its own year-long probe involving tens of thousands of OceanGate documents and internal communications. Dating back to the companys early days in 2013, the investigation plots a chronicle of compounding decisions by Rush and other key individuals leading up to the Titan disaster. This timeline navigates the tortuous development of the doomed submersible. 2009 OceanGate opens with plans to charter deep-sea trips for tourism and research. It first uses older, steel-hulled craft. 2013 CEO Stockton Rush announces plans for a new carbon-fiber submersible. The lightweight material makes a cylindrical build feasible, according to Rush, adding more capacity for passengers than traditional sphere-shaped designs. 2015 OceanGate first tests the concept with a steel prototype called the Cyclops 1. Red flags pop up right away. Reporting for New Scientist, investigative reporter Mark Harris dives with Rush in an early test. He reports the Cyclops glitches badly at only 130 meters. Scared the shit out of everyone 2016 Designs continue to fluctuate and fail across multiple experiments with different materials for critical components. Wired later reveals OceanGates testing protocols clash with engineers recommendations. According to Wired: Cyclops 2 prototypes never survive the targeted safety-margin pressure in testing, and the company never tests the titanium components the final sub will use in conjunction with the fiber. Instead, the company thickens the hull specs from 4.5 to 5 inches and commissions a contractor to build the final design. When it arrives, it is too thick for portable ultrasonic testing equipment. Ultrasonic testing can detect miniscule flaws or weak points in the final product without destroying it. Testing would have been possible with a stationary ultrasonic rig. Instead, Rush concludes transporting and testing the Titan is too expensive. Ultrasonic tests never occur. Finally, the ship uses an acrylic viewport that falls far short of pressure safety targets. Will Kohnen, the designer of the nine-inch-thick unit, later tells Wired that OceanGate fell well short of a rigorous testing protocol for the unit. He claims that he only rated the window to 650 meters. When he urges Rush to reconsider the component, the CEO allegedly refuses. You are going to kill someone 2018 According to Wired: Rush fires marine operations manager David Lochridge after Lochridge refuses to sign off on the final sub, citing 27 safety issues from flammable materials to missing bolts and more concerns over the carbon fiber hull. Lochridge files a whistleblower report to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), but Rush sues him for breach of contract, leading Lochridge to drop the complaint. Titan and its safety systems are way beyond anything currently in useI have grown tired of industry players who try to use a safety argument to stop innovation and new entrants from entering their small existing market, Rush wrote to McCallum in one of the Wired documents. Since [starting] OceanGate, we have heard the baseless cries of You are going to kill someone way too often. Rob McCallum, a deep-sea explorer, also seeks to discourage Rush from proceeding in a petition drafted by Kohnen. One safety system relies on acoustic feedback from the carbon fiber hull as it crackles and pops under pressure. OceanGate frames it as an early-warning system that can signal the crew to surface at a certain threshold of micro-buckling. A safety consultant familiar with material acoustics says that the noises actually indicate irreversible damage to the hull. Real-world testing began but proceeded poorly. The submersible once nearly broke apart in shallow, choppy water with Rush inside. And when the Titan first reached 4,000 meters, the hull warped alarmingly by up to 37% more than intended, according to engineers. A successful dive 2021 According to Wired: Contractors re-manufacture the carbon hull using updated techniques. It passes pressure tests at a University of Maryland lab, but OceanGate elects to salvage the old titanium rings from the damaged sub based on Rushs intolerance toward added cost and delay. An employee spots new lifting points attached to the two titanium rings. Theyre a new addition, and a representative from the original manufacturer had warned OceanGate back in 2017 to raise and lower the vehicle only with nylon slings: The titanium cannot take load/tension, the individual said. July 13 OceanGate completes its first successful visit to the Titanic with tourists. 2022-23 But problems persist, from inane to frightening. OceanGate cancels a 2022 mission with Intelligencer reporter David Pogue on board when, 11 meters below the surface, two rubber floats come partly untethered from the subs launching platform. View this post on Instagram A post shared by New York Magazine (@nymag) MacGyvered The event comes a year after a crew gets trapped on board the Titan. Instead of the programmed six hours, the expedition lasts 27, much closer to the cabins 96-hour oxygen threshold. Inspecting the vehicle before his failed outing, Pogue tells Rush that the sub feels MacGyvered. When Rush acknowledges the comment, Pogue asks if that has concerned anyone else in the deep-sea industry. Rush tells Pogue: Oh yeah! Oh yeah. Yeah, no, Im definitely an outlier. Theres been more intrigue into that than I can go into. There were a lot of rules out there that didnt make engineering sense to me. They made sense at the time, in the 60s and 70s. But, you know, theres a limit. You know, at some point, safety just is pure waste. I mean, if you just want to be safe, dont get out of bed, dont get in your car, dont do anything. At some point, youre gonna take some risk, and it really is a risk-reward question. I said, I think I can do this just as safely by breaking the rules. June 18, 2023 Titan dives toward its famous target but never returns. The U.S. Navy eventually reveals it detected an acoustic anomaly consistent with an implosion shortly after the Titans surface crew lost contact with it, according to CBS. The U.S. Coast Guard launches an investigation, which continues today. The post Deep Investigation Reveals Startling Details of OceanGate Titan Disaster appeared first on Explorersweb. This Delaware favorite won our best french fries poll ahead of National French Fry Day If you want to eat Delaware's favorite french fries, our readers say you must go to Rehoboth Beach. Thrasher's French Fries, the beloved boardwalk snack that's been a summer tradition since 1929, got the nod as the top fried potatoes in the state, just in time for National French Fry Day on Friday, July 12. The Delaware fries voted by our readers as the best in the state are included in a story in USA Today looking at America's favorite french fries. So why do Delawareans love Thrasher's French Fries? Is it nostalgia? Or are Thrasher's simply a quintessential taste of summer? We think part of it is continuity. Traditions reign supreme at Thrasher's and there is no deviation from original procedures or recipes developed 95 years ago. Thrasher's French Fries June 27, 2024, at 7 Rehoboth Ave in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Thrasher's French Fries are best enjoyed sitting on or near the sand. (All three Delaware locations two on Rehoboth Avenue and one on the boardwalk are close to, if not within site of, the ocean.) And the flavor of these piping hot, fresh-cut Idaho potatoes fried in peanut oil is somehow enhanced when accompanied by the soundtrack of the crashing surf and squawking seagulls. Thrasher's are famously seasoned with only salt and apple cider vinegar. That's it. This is a condiment-free zone by choice. No ketchup. Not ever. Seriously. Pam Redding adds vinegar to her Thrasher's French Fries June 27, 2024, at 7 Rehoboth Ave in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. Just read the signs at all locations that say, "We Serve No Ketchup." Seeking ketchup?: Craving ketchup for Thrasher's fries in Rehoboth? Play this new boardwalk arcade game Dean Shuttleworth, a partner of the Thrasher's franchise in Rehoboth that's been operating since the early 1980s, said ketchup is not served because the Delaware french fries business honors the wishes of the company's founders. And it's not just a Delaware Way thing. You also won't find ketchup at the three Thrasher's sites in Ocean City, Maryland, where the company was founded nearly a century ago. Thrasher's French Fries drain after the first fry June 27, 2024, at 7 Rehoboth Ave in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. (Last summer, in a cheeky move, Zelky's Beach Arcades on the boardwalk filled a coin-operated crane machine with single-serve packets of Heinz ketchup so people could scoop up packages of the condiment to squirt on french fries.) Cheesesteaks worth the trip: National Cheesesteak Day: Places to gobble up Philly steaks in Delaware So how good is Thrasher's? One reader told us they don't even like french fries, but they travel to Rehoboth Beach just for Thrasher's. So there you go. Other top votes in our french fry poll went to The Dog House, a Wilmington Manor landmark near New Castle since 1952; Gus & Gus Place, an iconic Rehoboth boardwalk restaurant since 1956; Nicola Pizza, which was founded in Rehoboth in 1971 and moved to Lewes in 2023; and Bethany Beach's DB Fries, a favorite of tourists and locals since 1987. Visitors enjoy Thrasher's fries on the boardwalk in Rehoboth Beach on Tuesday, June 13, 2023. Patricia Talorico writes about food and restaurants. You can find her on Instagram , X and Facebook. Email ptalorico@delawareonline.com. Sign up for her Delaware Eats newsletter. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: National French Fry Day readers poll reveals Delaware favorite What does an inmate look like? Central Ohio art project aims to change perceptions When Hattie Gilbert first saw the portrait of herself, she couldn't believe who she was looking at. "My first thought was, 'That's me?'" she said. "How is it that someone can put me in a picture and capture my energy?" June 24, 2024; Marysville, Ohio, USA; Hattie Gilbert listens during a group session at the Ohio Reformatory for Women where particpants reflected on their participation in the Marysville Women Art Project. Colorful scarves covered the plain tables of the conference room the group meets in. Gilbert simply could not fathom that she was worthy of being painted. Or be seen as beautiful. That's because, for more than a decade, she has only been seen as an inmate. Local artist Kirsta Benedetti said the work, produced through an initiative known as the Marysville Women's Art Project, intends to give the public a different perspective of who these incarcerated women are. "The focus of this project is not whether or not this person is guilty, whether or not they deserve their sentence, it's just these people have dignity and value whether or not they've done something terrible." June 24, 2024; Marysville, Ohio, USA; Local artist Kirsta Benedetti listens during a group session at the Ohio Reformatory for Women where particpants reflected on their participation in the Marysville Women Art Project. What is the Marysville Women's Art Project? The Marysville Women's Art Project began in 2022 as a continuation of an oral history project through the Columbus-based nonprofit organization We Amplify Voices (WAV), which was funded by the Ohio Humanities grant program. The project aimed to explore the unique stories of women serving extended sentences at the ORW. "I believe that it would benefit the community and victims if they were still able to see the humanity in someone who has done great harm," Benedetti said. Benedetti, who focuses her artwork on advocating for marginalized communities, said that while getting to know these women, she felt inclined to allow imprisoned women to tell their stories as humans instead of as criminals. "The minute somebody is painted, they are very important and seen as very valuable, so I have decided to be really conscious of who I paint," Benedetti said. And she's not alone. Gilbert is one of 15 women at the Ohio Reformatory for Women (ORW) who were drawn in a self-portrait for a program known as the Marysville Women's Art Project, led by local artist Kirsta Benedetti and co-facilitator Carrie Fletemeyer. June 24, 2024; Marysville, Ohio, USA; Artist Kirsta Benedetti covers tables with colorful scarves in the conference room where the Marysville Women Art Project group meets at the Ohio Reformatory for Women. While curating the portraitseach taking two weeks allowing the women to share their stories through journal prompts, Benedetti said she realized how much communities could benefit from understanding a different side of these women. "We, on the outside, need to change the way we see people on the inside," she said. "Otherwise, it's pointless because when they come out, we will never let them change even if they want to." The prison held an exhibition titled "Where life is precious, life is precious" on May 15, which included more than 100 people from the community. Others were some of the women's family members and fellow inmates. "To be given a different perspective to the public, that's positive and uplifting and brings us out of our comfort zone and allow us to open up as a group, I think there's something very special about that," said Mindie Stanifer, 45, one of the women in the ORW. June 24, 2024; Marysville, Ohio, USA; Colorful scarves cover the plain tables of the conference room the Marysville Women Art Project group meets. Community members like Ron VanHorn, 53, of Circleville, said the initially daunting experience of interacting with imprisoned women became an experience in which he could interact with people who seemed more like neighbors. "You kind of go in with this preconceived idea these must be horrible people, and you're met with just the opposite," he said. "I came away saying, 'It's not just a person that's in prison.'" VanHorn said he chose to attend the exhibit after being invited by Benedetti because he believes it is important for people to better understand the women imprisoned in their communities. "As I was looking at the pictures and reading through stories, I was thinking this could be my mom or a friend," VanHorn said. "I guess when you can take the time to put yourself in someone else's shoes, you can find a common ground." The ORW is the largest female prison in Ohio, according to Tara Nicle, the correction warden assistant. It holds approximately 2,300 women, 200 of whom are currently serving life sentences. In recent years, the prison began shifting its focus to better focus on trauma-informed care programming like the Marysville Women's Art Project falls into the category of promoting wellbeing and facilitating personal growth. The portraits, along with the booklets, including short biographies of the women, will be on display at the Franklinton Arts District from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. on October 11. Who are these Marysville women? On paper, the women serving long sentences at ORW have a pretty ugly image. Society has written them off as monsters for the lives they've ruined or even taken. These women know every day in prison is a constant reminder of what they have done. These women also know they are more than their offense. And with time, therapy and programs like the Marysville Women's Art Project, those who have healed are committed to changing the narrative of what imprisonment means. Hattie Gilbert, 36, is serving a 41-year sentence for attempted murder and other charges "I can be comfortable in my own skin for who I am, not this collar, not my number not my crime." Gilbert has been incarcerated for 16 years. Hattie Gilbert, 36, is incarcerated at the Ohio Reformatory for Women. She spoke June 24 about her recent participation in the Marysville Women Art Project. She also became involved through the previous Life Stories project. Gilbert said the biggest thing she's learned in prison was how little she knew about the power of human interactions. With time, she said art has become a tool to help her grow. "I've never had peace about my time," Gilbert said. "When you have a lot of time, you can't fathom it, and so art has been kind of my therapy." Hattie said before changing the narrative about society, it was important for her and women like her to change the narratives they often hear and think about themselves. "You think about whatever culture has told you a person behind bars is like," she said. "But then you realize they've been hurt and went through some of the things you did." Hattie said being asked questions like 'When was the last time you felt beautiful' during the program made her realize how little she thought of herself. "I had to realize that I'm worthy to live life because the shame and the guilt is hard when you have good intentions or you're not a horrible person, but you make a very horrible decision that ruins lives," she said. "However, art was kind of the salt that helped that wound heal." Gilbert is grateful for the new perspective she has. "I understand because of television why people think the way they do about the prison environment, but in this particular environment, it's all about growth," she said. "And I don't think I would have gotten to this place had it not been for this opportunity." "Hattie to print," Benedetti's portrait of Hattie Gilbert, 36, for the Marysville Women's Art Project Mindie Stanifer, 45, is serving an 18-year sentence for involuntary manslaughter and other charges "In the free world I was in prison and in prison I feel free." Mindie Stanifer, 43, is incarcerated at the Ohio Reformatory for Women. She spoke June 24 about her recent participation in the Marysville Women Art Project. Stanifer has been incarcerated for eight years. She became involved in the Marysville Women's Art Project through her participation in other activities, like setting up decorations for the Horizon Prison Initiative graduation. Stanifer said she saw the opportunity to be creative as a chance to learn more about herself something her drug use prevented her from doing. She hopes this project will encourage people to be more open-minded about the trials of addiction. "A lot of us will not be here forever. We're going to get out, we're going to be your neighbor, we're going to work next to you, and that's not necessarily a bad thing," she said. "A lot of the ladies here have put in a lot of work to overcome addictions, and poverty, and I think as a society, it is more beneficial to uplift one another rather than hold people back from their past." "Seeing Beauty Again," Benedetti's portrait of Mindie Stanifer, 43, for the Marysville Women Art Project Heather Matthews, 52, is serving a life sentence for murder and other charges "I am so over that definition of who I was. I am who I am today." June 24, 2024; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Heather Matthews, 52, is incarcerated at the Ohio Reformatory for Women. She spoke about her recent participation in the Marysville Women Art Project. Matthews has been incarcerated for 31 years. She became well-established in the prison as a mentor to others and a frequent participant in programs like WAV's Life Stories project. Matthews said being able to choose which part of her journey she wanted to share with the community felt liberating. "People got to see us for who we are," she said. Matthews not only touched the hearts of many from the community with her display of growth and progress in becoming a Stephen Minister, but she found importance in getting to know a person for who they are now, rather than who they were in the past. Matthews said her goal in this project was to share with people that although incarceration will always be a part of who she is, it is not the full picture. "I am here for the rest of my life, and it's always been a part of me because it was so out there, and everybody knew what I was here for," Matthews said. "Being a part of that project made me feel that doesn't define me." "Peace has made me stronger," Benedetti's portrait of Heather Mathews for the Marysville Women Art Project ABayo@dispatch.com This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Marysville Women's Art project aims to tells stories of incarcerated 50 States Project | By Kaitlin Petersen The 50 States Project is a series of candid conversations with interior designers across the country about how theyve built their businesses. This week, St. Louisbased designer Amy Studebaker tells us why she wants her clients to care as much about the details as she does, how Instagram has broadened her geographic reach, and how she learned to setand meetevery client expectation. What pushed you to launch your firm? I got my degree in design, and I always knew that I wanted my own design firm. But I had to calculate: What are the steps to make that happen? I knew step one was not going to be just opening up a firmit was working for a firm to understand what that looks like. Straight out of school, I started as an intern for a local company here in St. Louis, and then was hired on as a design assistant. There were eight or nine designers and a design assistant on the team, and while I was there, I really learned what it was like to do POs and place orders, how to calculate yardagesit was the backbone of everything. After a couple of years, I went to work for a [small firm], where it was just the designer and me. I took in everything that I felt was working, and also what I noticed was not working. After about five years, I felt very comfortable saying, OK, nows the time. I was offered a wonderful, large-scale project through a connection I made during my time with that designer, and it was just this moment of all the right things hitting at the right time and knowing that I needed to take the step. What was the opportunity? It was for a client in St. Louis, working on tying up construction on their 10,000-square-foot home and then doing all of the interior decorating. I was in my mid-20s and on my own [for the first time], so inside I was a little nervous, but I felt like that was a great way for me to begin. It wasnt a full-on construction job I was personally responsible for; it was just some minor things on the construction side and then ordering everything for the house. Did that become the backbone of your portfolio to go out and get more work? We did photograph that project for a national magazineit was a very small publication, not one that everyone has heard of, but I was still so excited for the opportunity. But what really got me started was that I did a great job of connecting with the client and listening to their needs, and then setting expectations and performing to [the standards] I told them I was going to perform to. Then they just said wonderful things about me to other people in St. Louis. After that project, my business [grew] by word-of-mouth. I love that you just mentioned expectation-setting, because thats so easy to overlook but is so essential to the client experience. Whats the secret to getting that right? I always listen when my clients tell me [what went wrong] if they had hired somebody in the past. They might say, Ive worked with somebody who just drove me nuts, and I dont indulge in it, but I do say, OK, well, thank you for letting me know. I take in the bits and pieces of information from people over time, listening to what they didnt like, and trying to fill those gaps with the reverse. How else can I communicate? How else can we overcommunicate? We always communicate where we are in a project, where were going to be with the timeline or if a timeline is delayed, where their product iswe do a lot of explaining where we are with everything. Is there a cadence to that with your firm today? How do you streamline client communication now? When I began, it was just me, but over time, Ive hired one employee after another, and we are now a team of 12. On the design side, we have three teams, and each team consists of a senior designer, a junior designer and me. I meet with them when we get started with a project, and then set up an initial meeting with the clientsif its an existing house, were walking the job; if its blueprints, were meeting to look at the plans. Once we sign on, we set up the first team meeting, where we request builders, architects, the clients and my team to be present. Thats where we walk the job and talk about goals and time frames. From there, we try to meet once a week via Zoom to go over all of our design details that weve done for that week. We set a schedule where we set expectations for the clientlike, this week, you can expect to have your cabinetry designed for your kitchen, or your dining roomand then we meet those expectations. In a guest bedroom at the Kips Bay Decorator Show House in Palm Beach, a twin bed dressed in layers of textiles frames the window, maximizing its impact - Photo Credit Nikolas Sargent Is it always you talking to the client? My design team is present in the meetings, and I am there for 99 percent of the meetings. But when it comes to logistics like coordinating details with contractors or reviewing information that comes in from the architects, the design team thats been assigned to that job handles all of those. I get to be a part of the overall concept and design direction of the home, but then I have this wonderful team that really knows how to handle the logistics to make sure the project is heading in the right direction. How did you start to grow your team so that you could take that step back? I did everything myself for maybe six months, and I was very busy. I knew I could not work from 7 a.m. until 10 p.m. any longer, but I also wanted to be responsible with finances and hiring. So first, I hired someone part-time and [gave them] tasks like, I need a blue welt, or Can you pick up these samples? I started to realize, This is saving me 20 hours a week, and when I pay her, Im still making money because its giving me the opportunity to look at other projects that are coming in. So I slowly moved her to full-time, and she eventually became a design assistant. After another six months or so, I finally felt comfortable letting someone oversee the finances, so I found someone to handle all of the QuickBooks and payments to our vendors, and suddenly I felt like I had gained another 40 hours back in my life. Those two positions were what started getting me in a groove. After that, I hired another design assistant and an intern, and then kept adding design assistants. We got to a point where I felt like we needed additional people, but also [more] structure. I know a lot of firms have a project manager that [focuses on certain elements of] all projects, but Ive found that the people weve hired like to see the whole process. They want to get to know the client on a personal level, just like I doto be able to ask, How was your vacation? How are your kids? How is your dog? They want to see the project from blueprints to that final hand towel in the bathroom. And so with our team approach and the way that we work, the two designers on each project get to see it through to the end. I feel like it also teaches them so much, because theyre seeing every aspect. How has your role evolved as that team gets bigger? I love being in designits truly my happy place, and its basically the only thing I know how to do. I dont know how to cook, I dont know how to plant, but I can design the hell out of your house and make it beautiful. And I wanted to give the opportunity to feel that way to other people who were interested in design. In the firm where I was a design assistant, you would never get to be more than a design assistantthey were never going to bring me on as a designerand to me that just seems like such a hard stop for so many people, that theyre not going to get more responsibility or get to have their own thoughts. I wanted to create an environment where, yes, at first youre a design assistant so you can learn, but as you grow more knowledgeable and start to see how we create spaces, you get to [add] your own input into the design process. As I worked on stepping back [from day-to-day project details] a little bit, I figured out very quickly where my time was best spent and where I was most helpful. Am I helpful [while] going to pick out a green leather? No. Let our junior designer, who is excited about [joining] the industry, go search for green leathers to her hearts content, because that is going to make her happy, you know? I had to know where my employees strengths wereand if they didnt have that strength, I needed to teach them how to get there so that I could handle the things that make sense for me to handle as the business owner. What are those things today? How have you identified your core responsibilities within the company? When were meeting with clients, I pride myself on being able to hear a clients needs and wants. For example, I understand why they might like this one floral over anotherand if they say they dont want this floral, its not because they dont like florals; its because of that one little detail of how that [particular] fabric was designed. And from that, I can grasp the entire look and lifestyle theyre trying to achieve, and I can really guide my team. My role is also still overseeing some of the construction aspects. Some of my team members have been with me for going on eight years, but others are new. Im reviewing drawings, helping with those minute details that take [the project] from one level to the next. How many projects are you working on these days? We always have somewhere around 20 to 23 projects going, but those are not all large projects. Some might be for a client that we worked with a few years ago who wants a refresh in one area, or who bought a condo and wants some furniture. The majority of the projects we take on are construction-based, whether its a whole-home remodel, a remodel and addition, or building from the ground up, and then we [select] and install the interior decor after we get through the construction. Usually, there will be six larger-scale projects going at a time, some in St. Louis and some in various areas of the United States. When were designating projects to different teams, were first looking at it like, Can this team travel? Do they already have projects on this side of the U.S., or are they on the opposite side? We did e-design during Covid to keep the employees busy, and that was wonderful for a period of time, but its no longer something that we do. What was it about e-design that didnt make sense once the pandemic conditions subsided? We build great relationships with our clients and their families, and my team enjoys that. When youre doing e-design, youre not building [as much of] a personal connection. And then at some point, it needs to become its own subcategory, with workers who just handle that, because its so different than the [workload of] the team that handles whole-home projects. During Covid when we had a little bit more time, everyone was on board jumping into that. But when we didnt need to do that anymore, it was like, OK, lets go back to the people were going to spend years with as we build them a wonderful home. I did [consultations through] The Expert for a period of time, too, and it was a wonderful experience Zooming with these clients. A lot of them were actually Instagram followers, so it was exciting to meet them, because they already felt like they had a connection to us. But with all of our out-of-state clients, my travel schedule made it too much of a balancing actif Im gone Monday through Wednesday, then I only have two days in the studio to meet with my team on all of their projects, and it was becoming very unfair to our employees who were working so hard but not getting any face time with me. I ended up leaving The Expert about a year ago to focus on our clients. Thats fun that you got to meet so many followers through it. When did social media start to take off for you, and how does it play into your day-to-day? I love being on Instagram. When I first got on there, I thought itd be fun to share some of our experiences on the job sites so people can see what were doing. It was like, Maybe itll show them that were not just selecting furniture and fabrics all day. We are on job sites making construction decisions. I started getting approval from our clients to share on the feed what were working onand then when Stories came out, I was able to share details of how we work from my clients homes. When Covid hit and all of a sudden we werent on job sites, I started sharing what I was doing to my home, because my husband and I had just bought our home the year before; we had completely renovated it, but I still had some decorating to do, so I was explaining why I selected this pink color, or why I painted my floors, or why I designed the lighting the way I did. And oh, my gosh, thats when my Instagram blew up. I mean, our following just skyrocketed, and people were asking so many questions. They loved the personal aspect of what I was sharing in my home, and that I didnt mind sharing resources. Are you always open with vendor names? I dont mind giving out paint and fabric or vendor names for my home. I cant do it for my clients stuff, because they own that. Thats how I phrase it: They own that design, and I cannot share what I dont own. But I can share what I do own. And if giving someone the name of a green paint makes their day and makes their home a better place, then I want to give them that information. Has your Instagram following become a good source of clients as well? Yesand not just [here in St. Louis, but also] in California, Arizona, Oklahoma and Palm Beach. Ive worked out of state pretty much all of my career, but before, it was mainly for clients that we started off with in St. Louis, and maybe its their second, third or fourth home. But with Instagram taking off the way it did, we were getting called to do primary residences out of state, which felt like such an honor. Im thinking, You can select anyone in the U.S., and you are messaging me. The designers living room features a medley of soft blue, green and pink hues - Photo Credit Max Kim-Bee Tell me about your local design scene. Whats unique about the work youre doing in St. Louis? I love St. Louis. I was born and raised here, and its such a wonderful place to have a family. I feel like the people here have that mentality: They were born and raised here, and maybe they leave for a period, but they come back. I think we get a lot of client referrals locally because it is such a small, well-connected communitywhen you do work with one person, theyre always like, Oh, I have a friend whos building a house, and I want to recommend you. We have a lot of newer construction, but we also have a lot of wonderful historic homes that were built during the Worlds Fair [in 1904], so we get to work on projects that are of varying types. Right now we have one that was built during [that turn-of-the-century] time, and its exciting to see the wonderful historic moldings and architectural details. But then another house we just finished building has more of a New England aesthetic. Thats been wonderful to work on because it has a little bit more of that cottage feel, with shingles and wonderful wood floors and textures. I really enjoy the challenge of working in different styles. Is there a specific aesthetic that clients are coming to you for? Yes. Im sure everyone is thinking, Im confusedeverything you just described is literally nothing on your website or Instagram. People do come to us with a wide variety of styles [of home], but the aesthetic that theyre wanting from us is new-meets-old. Its this very warm, comfortable, welcoming look. How and where do you source? Our current studio [is located near] KDR, which is considered the design center of St. Louis, and has a lot of wonderful upholstery lines and casegood lines. So its been a great support to us, and a resource where our clients can sit on upholstery and we can talk it through even if its not the exact piece. We can say, Hey, your sofa is about here, your arms out here. Heres what its looking like. And when it comes to upholstery, weve really had great help [from KDR]. Outside of that, Ive developed quite a few relationships all over the United States and also in Europe with antiques vendors and dealers and boutique shops. I travel maybe six times a year to Atlanta to shop the wonderful antiques that they have down there, or Ill go to New York. I was there two weeks ago pulling textiles from boutique vendors. I even do a lot of custom furniture. So my team and I will hand-sketch tables, benches, dressers, beds, whatever. And we will have local craftsmen here in St. Louis, with whom weve built a wonderful relationship, build our furniture, then either deliver locally or ship to our projects. How have you approached charging for the firms work? I charge an hourly rate, and then there is a commission structure on top of the items that were procuring for the client. Typically, thats just going to be things like furniture and fabrics, but sometimes we also get involved in procuring the appliances, tile and such. Our clients know that for whatever is run through our businessand at minimum, its going to be all of the interior decorthere is going to be a designer discount [on the cost of the item] and then a set commission on top of that. We feel very good about our structure. We do have some potential clients who ask quite a few questions about it, and we explain it. If it works for them, it works for them; if it doesnt, it doesnt. And any of the clients who have been really good clients, who understand our process or the need for a luxury-level design firm, dont ask those questions. So we kind of know that when we start getting lots of questions or feedback, its probably not the client whos going to align with how we run our business, and they would probably find a better fit elsewhere. How are you filtering for projects of the right size? So many prospective clients call my office and say, What is your minimum? We have this small project. My husband actually joined the company to run the business side of my firmso now its our firmand he is the one who handles all incoming requests. He always starts by saying, Dont worry about a minimum. Just tell me about your project. Tell me what youre looking for. What it comes down to is this: Our clients value their home and what it looks like at the end of the day. Its that simple. We have found that there are some clients with unlimited budgets, or even just fabulous budgets, whom weve wanted to work with but then theyre really more like, Just fill my houseI really dont care. And when they dont care, or theyre not really into the details, we know its not a client for us. Ill bet some people are going to be reading this saying, Wait, I want that client! I am very layered and very into the details. I care about how your molding terminates, where the paint starts and stops, and the sheen level. So it really comes down to [finding clients] who value their home and trust us to handle it, but still get excited about the details. We had someone call in a couple months ago from the Northeast, and the first question the husband asked was, Whats your minimum? And my husband says, Well, tell me about your project. They said, Would Amy really fly out here for just like four rooms? And my husband says, Tell me about your project. Later, he came back and said to me, Amy, I have never heard another man talk so passionately about his house and how he wants to carry on the legacy of the previous person who owned it. I think this is a project for you. And I said, Yes. Yes, it is. Send me up there! I know that they are going to value the hours that my team and I put into the home, and they value paying that invoice because they want us there and they want us to care. Only after that do we talk loosely about numbers, just to make sure they are on the same level of understanding about what it might cost to do four rooms, or a whole home, or whatever it is. Sculptural pieces in saturated, sun-drenched hues complement the rugged landscape - Photo Credit Max Kim-Bee How did your husband joining the company change your experience in your business? Oh, it relieves so much stress for me. Even though I had support, I was always the person everybody came to on the business side to ask questions, so I was running myself ragged trying to make appropriate business decisions, while also making appropriate design decisions. I told my husband, I need to hire somebody to run the business end of this, and I feel like you would do an amazing job. I think we could work together. And he said, You know, I really think that we could. He was in medical sales at the time, and he said we could talk about it in six months. When that six months came and went, I just said, Nick, I really feel that if you join the company, theres so much potential here, but I cant do it [alone]. Were either going to go backward because I need to slow down, or I can go forward with your help. He joined the company in March 2021, and it has been such an amazing relief. Anytime we need to hire someone, he can spend the time vetting the person and finding a great fit. He can answer all of the business questions. So now I can really focus on the construction and the design. I can travel without feeling that Ive left half my team in need of me, because my husband is there overseeing everything. And they all feel very comfortable going to him as the head of the company and the business side to answer questions and get things done. When you look ahead, where do you see the most opportunity to grow? I love the size of the team we currently have. Weve always grown, grown, grown, but I dont foresee [much more]. But I would love to expand in avenues like a product lineagain, I love helping people and creating a product that meets their needs. We are also in the very beginning stages of a book, and I am thrilled to get to do that. What does success mean to you? I feel that I have a very successful company. But I feel like I get that from the fact that I can stand back and say, This is something that I initially began building on my own, but then others came to help me build, and its made them happy, and its made me happy. And then for my husband to even be able to join, and my son to want to join the companyeven though hes only 10, he wants to join the companyto me, that is success. To learn more about Amy Studebaker, visit her website or find her on Instagram. Want to stay informed? Sign up for our newsletter, which recaps the weeks stories, and get in-depth industry news and analysis each quarter by subscribing to our print magazine. Join BOH Insider for discounts, workshops and access to special events such as the Future of Home conference. Familys tribute to father with beautiful smile stabbed to death in east London Josh McKay, 33, was stabbed to death on Saturday (Family Handout/Met Police) The family of a father-of-two have spoken of their devastation after he was stabbed to death in broad daylight in Walthamstow. Josh McKay, 33, died after a knife injury in Lea Bridge Road, east London, at 3pm on Saturday. His family released a picture of the father in sunglasses, smiling and holding a parrot. They said in a statement through police: The heart of our family has stopped beating. The world is less bright without his beautiful smile. The Metropolitan Police arrested a 38-year-old woman on suspicion of assisting an offender. She remains in custody. Mr McKay died after the stabbing in Lea Bridge Road, Walthamstow, east London (Google Maps) DCI Linda Bradley from the Mets Specialist Crime Command said: We are continuing to carry out extensive enquiries, including a review of CCTV footage, and our colleagues from the local policing team remain in the area, she added. However, we still need your help. Two children have been left without a father. If you saw anything, or have information regarding the person who killed Josh, please do the right thing and call us, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously. Labour MP Stella Creasy urged witnesses to the henious attack to come forward. I urge everyone to refrain from speculating as a way of respecting his family who are deeply grieving their loss, she wrote on X. A post-mortem examination will be held in due course and formal identification will take place. Acting superintendent Jack Callaghan previously said: Our thoughts are with this mans family and friends as they struggle to come to terms with their loss. We know that this violent attack will have caused a lot of concern in the local community, and we share that concern. You can expect to see officers in the area over the coming days and I would encourage you to speak with them. We are doing everything we can to support the investigation in order to find the person responsible. Information can be provided via: https://mipp.police.uk/operation/01MPS24W62-PO1 You can also call police via 101 quoting reference CAD 4049/06Jul. To remain anonymous contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111. Four Minnesota writers each have 3 (or more!) books out this year. How did they do it? Kao Kalia Yang screwed up the premise of this story with her answer to my very first question. I was writing about four local writers who, somehow, managed to each have three books coming out this year. "Actually, it's four books," said Yang, who does, indeed, have a quartet of 2024 offerings. She's just wrapping up publicity tours for the first three (memoir "Where Rivers Part" and two books for young people, "Caged" and "The Rock in My Throat," with middle grade novel "The Diamond Explorer" coming in September). And, in her spare time, she gave the commencement address and received an honorary degree from her alma mater, Carleton College. "It's partly a coincidence," said Yang, who hadn't had a book out since 2021. "But I don't really believe in coincidence, so it was meant to happen this way." Marcie R. Rendon, who just published poetry collection "Anishinaabe Songs for a New Millennium" and has a mystery, "Where They Last Saw Her," and a children's book, "Stitches of Tradition," coming this fall, has a theory about all this productivity: "An alien ship landed and zapped us." She's kidding, of course. Truthfully, one thing Rendon and Yang have in common is that they don't sleep much, which is true of two other 2024 Minnesota Triple Threats: Ty Chapman, whose poetry collection "Tartarus" is already in stores and who'll release children's books, "James Finds the Beat" and "Stokes: The Brief Career of the NBA's First Black Superstar" (co-written with fellow Minneapolis writer John Coy) in October. Also, Kate DiCamillo's "Ferris" and "Orris and Timble: The Beginning" are out now and her "The Hotel Balzaar" lands in October. In a time when slacker Donna Tartt hasn't published anything since her 2013 bestseller "The Goldfinch," it goes without saying that these writers keep their fingers to the grindstone, but each approaches work differently. 'Playing with many different toys' Yang, who has three small children, tends to tackle one project at a time, stealing computer minutes between meals and school. Chapman, who jokes his writing process is "more chaos and whimsy than science" and who's now at work on two young adult books, said, "I have a short attention span, so I get bored easily and I enjoy playing with many different toys. It was great having shorter-form projects that I could jump to when I was feeling burnt out or stuck or just wanted something different." Rendon also juggles projects, envisioning her brain as a filing cabinet from which she can pull out whichever file she needs. " 'Where They Last Saw Her,' I've been working on since pre-Covid. And then the children's book that comes out in October, that just happened with [the publisher's] schedule. 'Anishinaabe Songs for a New Millennium' is something I've been working on for 20-plus years," said Rendon. "I've been anthologized to death, but I've never had a collection of my poetry and I got a residency oh geez at Franconia Sculpture Park last winter and I had three weeks where I all I did was go through every single poem I had." The pandemic didn't have much impact on Chapman's books, although it altered the course of his career. When performance spaces went dark in 2020, the puppeteer and theater artist shifted to writing. But DiCamillo, like Rendon, found that the pandemic gave her more time than usual to focus on work. "Everybody I talked to was, like, 'I can't do anything.' For whatever reason, I could and it saved me," said DiCamillo. "I don't know why it worked that way for me." DiCamillo said the pandemic's stay-at-home months suited writing: "Before the pandemic, so much of my life was traveling and then I was here and the stories, I needed them and they showed up." Yang thinks there are specific reasons she and her fellow Minnesota writers have been extra-productive of late. 'So much to write about' "The murder of George Floyd and the economic situation there is so much to write about in our world now and in the Minnesota context, that is especially true," said Yang, all four of whose books draw inspiration from her having been born in a Thai refugee camp. "We have all these refugees coming in, with wars being fought so many places around the world, and Minnesota is the No. 1 place in secondary refugee resettlement [meaning refugees who originally land in another state before moving here]. And we're one of the top states for resettlement overall," said Yang, citing the welcoming atmosphere in Minnesota, as well as its social services. "As a refugee writer, there is so much to write about in this state, so much the rest of the world isn't even looking at." Since three of these four super producers are people of color, it's also worth noting that writers of color often have felt they had to work twice as hard to get half as much attention as their white counterparts. Even in just the last decade of her career, Rendon said she has seen change in the stories publishers want to bring into the world. Speaking during a break from a workshop for Native writers, she's seen growing acceptance of stories from marginalized voices. "With 'Murder on the Red River,' it was five years of rejection before I ever got published rejection by agents, editors, publishers. And then: Boom!" said Rendon, whose debut mystery hit stores in 2017, launching a hit series. "I think it was a change in the industry." Chapman emphasized that the publishing world is tough for everyone. "I'm not going to sit here and say folks of color have to work harder in this industry. I know plenty of white authors who work very hard as well," Chapman said. "But there is that feeling like we're running uphill sometimes, especially when our stories haven't been wanted historically and are still not welcome in certain spaces." Yang, too, thinks the tide is turning. In her case, it's turning into a deluge. "There are season of flood and seasons of drought in every writer's life, so next year will be a quieter year for me," said Yang. "And then we gear up for 2026 in which I think I'll have three books." Here's why this vodka and gin may be the most Wisconsin-y booze of all. Hint: Cheese KNOWLTON - With all due respect to the beer brewers out there, the most Wisconsin-y adult beverages produced today have got to be the vodkas and gins distilled in a small town between Wausau and Stevens Point. Heather Mullins, co-founder and head distiller of Knowlton House Distillery, stands in front of the distilling equipment she used to experiment with making spirits using whey, a byproduct of cheese production. Knowlton House Distillery is the brainchild of Heather and Luke Mullins, who recently celebrated their 10th wedding anniversary. If you are a cheese fan, the Mullins name is likely familiar to you. The family, including Luke, operates Mullins Cheese in Knowlton, which lays claim to being the largest family-owned cheese-producing business in the state. Mullins Cheese buys 7 million pounds of milk per day from 700 dairy farmers across the region. The company uses that milk to produce 250 million pounds of cheese each year. While Luke Mullins embraced a deep family tradition in the dairy industry, Heather Mullins, who grew up in nearby Stevens Point, took a scientific and boozy path in her professional life. She studied biology and chemistry as an undergrad, and then went to England and Scotland to earn a masters degree in brewing science. Prior to opening Knowlton House, she worked for a Waupaca company that develops fermentation and filtration products for alcohol beverage makers. Luke and Heather Mullins' marriage brought together their professional passions, melding cheesemaking with booze distilling. The result? Knowlton House and its distillery. The distillery, called TenHead, uses whey, the by-product of cheesemaking, in its fermentation process to create award-winning vodka and gin. Cheesy-booze, if you will. What's more Wisconsin than that? The design of the Knowlton House Distillery is based on the original Knowlton House, a tavern, inn and restaurant that was built in Knowlton in 1849. How whey, a by-product of cheese production, helps make smooth vodka and gin Heather Mullins doesn't really think of her products as cheesy-booze. She laughs at the idea, but quickly points out calling it that could imply that her vodka and gin tastes like cheese. It does not. You can't really taste the whey when you sip Ten Head vodka or gin, because it's transformed in the biochemical fermentation process of distilling alcohol, in which yeast transforms sugars into alcohol. Sugars in any hard spirit can come from a variety of sources, such as potatoes, wheat or other grains. As far as Heather Mullins is aware, only a handful of distillers in the world use whey as the sugar source for spirits, including one other in Wisconsin. "We did not invent this," Heather Mullins said. But, she said, the close connection with Mullins Cheese, along with her years of scientific expertise, gives TenHead an edge. One reason so few distillers go this route is "you need a special strain of yeast to make this all happen," Heather Mullins said. To find that yeast, Heather Mullins went all "science geek," she said. For years before opening Knowlton House, Heather spent hours in the garage of her and Luke's home, experimenting with a small distillery. That distillery is now a show piece that sits on a table in a dining room at Knowlton House. She tried wide array of yeast strains, eventually finding the right one that gives TenHead spirits a great taste and can be scaled up to produce large, commercially-viable batches of the liquor. Heather Mullins says that although her use of whey does not make her drinks taste of cheese curds, it does provide a dairy-like richness and smoothness to both her gin and her vodka. She describes her vodka as having a "faint creamy vanilla aroma" with a "silky, lightly sweet and well-balanced" taste. The TenHead gin has a "fresh pine and floral undertone" in its aroma, with a taste that is "silky" with hints of "gentle juniper, crisp citrus and woodsy spice." Both spirits have been winners at a variety of tasting competitions across the country. They most recently garnered gold medals at the San Francisco World Spirits Competition. TenHead vodka also received a triple gold designation at the 2024 Major Liquor Spirits Awards. Judges there backed Heather Mullins' contention that the whey helps create a velvety taste in the spirits. They said the TenHead vodka was smooth with a "hint of sweetness" and has "remarkable balance that vodka connoisseurs will notice." Knowlton House Distillery Founders Heather and Luke Mullins. Thanking the farmers who help produce quality vodkas and gin Wisconsinites tend to be a pragmatic bunch who aim to use the resources at hand to their fullest extent. When the Knowlton House Distillery uses whey, a byproduct of cheese production that was once considered waste, it taps into that ethos. Heather Mullins said that in years past, the whey produced in cheese production was simply spread on fields to bolster crops. It was a use, but not one that fully exploited whey's commercial potential. Mullin Cheese is a pioneer in developing new uses for whey. Today the cheese producer uses its whey to create products such as nutritional protein supplements used by fitness enthusiasts, baby formula and feed for farm animals. While the whey Knowlton Distillery uses is a small amount compared to the other ways Mullins Cheese uses it, Heather Mullins takes pride that making top-notch spirits adds value to something once deemed nearly worthless. The use of the whey doesn't mean that Mullins Cheese needs to buy more milk so Heather Mullins can make more vodka, she said. But using the whey in the distillation process does give it one more commercial use. That could, potentially, drive up demand for milk, which helps farmers earn more money, which "helps our economy as a whole," Heather Mullins. That kind of impact may be a way off. But Knowlton House Distillery will continue to do what it can to make a positive impact on the local economy, buying locally-sourced food, coffee and other products whenever it's practical, Heather Mullins said. And Knowlton House Distillery offers discounts on the vodka and gin it makes to farmers, milk haulers and cheese producers, she said. "It's really great to see farmers come in an enjoy our products," Heather Mullins said. "We like to say thanks and say, 'You are part of our supply chain.'" Keith Uhlig is a regional features reporter for USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin based in Wausau. Contact him at 715-845-0651 or kuhlig@gannett.com. Follow him at @UhligK on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram or on Facebook. This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Knowlton House Distillery uses Mullins Cheese whey for its boozes An art battle at a business school conference? Two Chicago area street artists painted murals during the first By Design Conference at Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. The goal of the conference was to help MBAs unlock their creative confidence. Courtesy photo Consider, for a moment, the ridiculousness of Goldfish Crackers. They dont taste like goldfish. Theyre not made as cat treats. Theyre simply crackers, shaped like fish, meant to taste like cheddar. And yet, youve certainly heard of them. Youve most likely snacked on them (even though Cheez-Its are right there). Now imagine if you were the finance guy at Pepperidge Farm. Would you have been the person who killed Goldfish Crackers and the billion-dollar brand it would become dead in the water because you didnt get the concept? Or would you have had the creative confidence to recognize the potential in the nonsensical? Paul Earle If youre a CFO or tracking to be a CFO, maybe youre not painting a wall in a skate park. But if you can learn to recognize the power of a huge idea, and the transformational impact of a huge idea, youre more likely to fund that idea, says Paul Earle, an adjunct lecturer at Northwesterns Kellogg School of Management and lead faculty of a new Kellogg conference devoted 100% to creativity. You might remember this case study about Goldfish Crackers and you might say, Okay, this idea doesnt make sense. But it could be a billion dollar platform and Im going to invest in that. KELLOGG + CREATIVITY This spring, nearly 250 Kellogg MBAs spent a full day talking and thinking about the link between creativity and business at the schools first annual By Design conference. Its a conference organizers hoped to develop at Kellogg even before COVID, but was obviously delayed. Its also a passion project for Kellogg donors Gordon and Carole Segal, the founders of Crate&Barrel a company built with design and creativity as a competitive advantage. (Gordon) really wanted to amplify how in all the different areas of study, and all the different disciplines of management, creativity is one thing that endures generation to generation. Businesses that can continue to lead with creativity are often the most durable and longest lasting, says David Schonthal, director of entrepreneurship as well as faculty director of Kelloggs Zell Fellowship Program. Schonthal described By Design as a one-day creative palooza, where MBAs heard about the Beatles process for making music, watched an art battle between two street artists painting murals in real time, and listened to Gordon Segal talk about the power of taste in recognizing great ideas. Story continues Jess Lanzillo, head creative of Dungeons & Dragons, spoke about building creative worlds at Kelloggs first By Design Conference: Unlocking the Creative Advantage. Courtesy photo There was a panel discussion on creative collaboration with a rock star (Jason Narducy, front man for punk band Verboten and touring bassist for Superchunk) and a Tony award winning theater director (Anna D. Shapiro, artistic director of Steppenwolf Theatre from 2015-2021). The head creative of Dungeons & Dragons, Jess Lanzillo, talked about building creative worlds: You have to go both wide and deep if you want to engage and build a passionate fan base. And, Britt Nolan, president and chief creative officer at Leo Burnett, shared the story of Goldfish Crackers and out-of-the-box creative campaigns he created for companies like Samsung, Wingstop and the Art Institute of Chicago. There is tremendous value in artsy fartsy creative nonsense, Nolan told the Kellogg MBAs, a phrase that made Geetha Somayajula, MMM 24, smile. (Nolan) emphasized that testing the art of the possible pays off. Regardless of the industry you work in, we must cultivate the courage to bring our wild ideas to the table, Somayajula tells P&Q. Delivering work that elicits an emotional response in our audiences and users is key to making a campaign, strategy, or product stick we cant shy away from the big feelings. For future conferences, organizers are looking to add workshops and excursions to creative locations. While the conference was fully subscribed for its first year, they hope to expand to offer more room to more interested MBAs. IS CREATIVITY TEACHABLE? One of the great myths Kelloggs By Design conference aims to dispel is that creativity is something youre either born with or not, says Earle, a serial entrepreneur in consumer products and Principal of Paul Earle & Co., an innovation consultancy and venture platform. Hes also a Kellogg MBA, Class of 1999, and wishes there had been a similar program when he was studying business. Theres a creative mindset that we see a lot in the artistic world. So one of the things we tried to do at the conference was bridge the worlds of artistic creativity and business creativity. Not everybody can be Michelangelo or John Lennon. But everybody can be creative to some degree. Its just a matter of where you fall on the spectrum, Earle tells P&Q. So were trying to improve peoples creative confidence. Creativity is not the exclusive domain of brand managers and advertising executives. The best possible outcome Earle could imagine might actually be the finance executive who figures out how to work more creativity in his or her job. In fact, one of the most creative works hes seen recently was actually a vendor invoice. It was brightly colored and beautifully designed with a 3D embossed letterhead. Its the only invoice Ive ever gotten that made me smile. Guess which invoice I paid first? Earle says. These students are going to come out of Kellogg with an incredible set of skills in finance, operations, accounting, statistics.Theyre going to have a lot of arrows in their quiver. To add creative sensibility even if its just empathy or a heightened awareness of what a great creative idea can do I mean, they could be superheroes with that. David Schonthal Schonthal agrees. Take a class of six or seven year olds, and few will hesitate to draw out an idea on the whiteboard or ham it up in a class performance. But as we get older, we put ourselves into buckets. Im creative, Im not creative. Im left brained or right brained, he says. Throughout the conference, presenters tried to weave in the importance of play. Play is an essential part of ingenuity; that creative chunk of your brain just cant help but activate when you fold play into everyday life. Just ask that class of six year olds. Find ways to play at work, at school, in the kitchen, wherever, and see how much more creative your outcomes become. I dont think were trying to teach people creatively, were just trying to unlock the creativity they already have, Schonthal says. A CONFERENCE UNIQUELY KELLOGG? Creativity has long been a feature of Kelloggs approach to business. The very first class its EMBA students take is on one on design thinking, and it offers classes such as Creativity as a Business Tool. Its Levy Inspiration Grant, a kind of inspirational Fulbright Fellowship for Kellogg entrepreneurs, offers small, 100% customizable grants to individuals who want to explore a business case or problem, anywhere in the world. Last year, grants funded a trip to Townsville, Australia, so an MBA could study the business solutions to the dying Great Barrier Reef. Another student traveled through Chile, Argentina, and Brazil, to explore how restaurant tech could transform the food industry in LATAM. Kellogg MBAs help color a mural for the By Design Conference. Courtesy photo A dedicated creativity conference, however, has the potential to reach more MBAs than the limited few who can enroll in a course or take a class trek to LA to talk about the intersection of film, music, and business. And it can reach students in finance, operations, or marketing that arent actively pursuing careers in entrepreneurship an endeavor with creatively necessarily built it. I think thats what were trying to debunk that its entrepreneurship and innovation and creativity that belong together. There are places of importance for creativity in everything that we teach. If we can get students to unlock that creative confidence, they might approach a job that may have seemed very left brain in an entirely different way, Schonthal says. Other business schools, certainly, offer programs that emphasize creativity. Stanford Graduate School of Business offers a Design Thinking Bootcamp to executives and strategy professions. At Rotman School of Management, its Business Design Initiative aims to move Design Thinking beyond the engineering and design schools it typically occupies and incorporate Design Education into the heart of its business school. In November, Columbia Business School hosted a conference on Marketing and the Creator Economy, focused on influencers, podcasting, video creation, blogging, and product development. Kelloggs conference is somewhat unique in that it is tailored to MBAs specifically but does not focus on any discipline or creative endeavor in particular. Kellogg is uniquely positioned both geographically, as well as with the university that were affiliated with. At Northwestern, we have extraordinarily strong arts and communication. We have extraordinarily strong music. We have extraordinarily strong business, we have extraordinarily strong engineering, Schonthal says. I do think one of the unique things about us is that, on campus alone, youve got all of these creative disciplines that rarely come together under one roof. One of the aspirations of the creative advantage is also just to put on display the multidisciplinarity of what happens at Northwestern and how business students can be inspired by engineering students and how engineering students can be inspired by music faculty. Geetha Somayajula, MMM 24 For Somayajula, who earned a dual MBA and MS in Design Innovation at Kellogg, By Design was one of the most unique experiences shes had at the school. Creativity has been a throughline of her career so far she worked in design consulting at PwC before Kellogg and plans to continue to work in creative fields. At Kellogg, she was co-leader of the student org Innovation & Design Association. While she will return to PcW after graduation, she dreams to someday help big brand concert music organizations like the Chicago Symphony or LA Phil find new ways to connect with audiences. Im inspired to dream even bigger. Its easy to fall into the trap of pushing forward with whats been tried, true and tested, leaving the out there thinking for later. By Design has taught me the value and honor there is in throwing out the playbook, and equipped me with the courage to pioneer what I believe in, she tells P&Q. The classical music industry is hundreds of years old, and reimagining audience experiences and building deep emotional ties is hard work. After hearing from leaders whove successfully disrupted historic industries like toothpaste, lip balm, and boxed pasta with great design, I feel empowered to chase my own wild ideas. DONT MISS: REVEALED: HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOLS NEW MBA ESSAYS FOR APPLICANTS AND WHY MCKINSEY, BAIN & BCG ARENT LIKELY TO HIRE MANY MBAS FULL-TIME IN FALL 2024 The post Inside Kelloggs New Conference On Creativity appeared first on Poets&Quants. Lebanon Transit asking residents to 'Name the Bus' in contest: How to enter Lebanon Transit is asking county residents and commuters for creative help in naming their buses ahead of Try Transit Month with a 'Name the Bus' contest. This is Lebanon Transit's first bus naming contest, inviting residents to come up with creative names for their fleet, with the winning entries to be displayed on each bus during the month of September. Lebanon Transit is holding a 'Name the Bus' contest with winning names to appear on the buses in September. The contest will consist of two rounds. In the first, participants can submit up to three bus names. Lebanon Transit staff will then select its 50 favorite names from those submissions in the first round. Those 50 favorites will then be put to a community-wide vote to determine the top 18, one for each bus in Lebanon Transit's fleet. The first round, where residents can submit names, will open up on Monday, July 15 at 8 a.m. and close on Sunday, July 28 at midnight. The community voting round will begin on Friday, Aug. 2 at 8 a.m. and close on Friday, Aug. 9 at 4 p.m. Both rounds will be hosted online at lebanontransit.org/namethebus. Residents without internet access can contact the marketing coordinator at (717) 274 3664 extension 304 to submit entries by phone. Winning names will be announced and winners notified by Friday, Aug. 30. Of the 18 winners, eight will be randomly selected to receive an official Lebanon Transit fleece scarf. Name the Bus contest rules: The contest is open to residents living or working within Lebanon County. During the name submission round, participants can enter up to three (3) potential bus names per person. During the community voting round, participants can vote an unlimited number of times for their favorite name(s). Names of people (living or deceased), places, songs, movies, pop culture elements, and other non-trademarked items are permitted. Be creative! But be classy. Names that are obscene, offensive and/or derogatory in nature or reference illegal activity will be disqualified. Any and all entries for Bussy McBusface will be immediately disqualified. Winners agree to have their name, municipality, and photo shared on the Name the Bus webpage and Lebanon Transit social media accounts. Daniel Larlham Jr. is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at DLarlham@LDNews.com or on X @djlarlham. This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Name Lebanon Transit's buses in inaugural contest A midwife who won the lottery is still delivering babies more than a decade after becoming a millionaire. Ruth Breen, 45, was on her lunch break in work at the Royal Albert Edward Infirmary, Wigan, when she checked her emails and discovered she had won 1 million on the EuroMillions. Some 10 years later, the mother-of-one is still working for the NHS, although she has enjoyed splashing out on holidays to destinations such as Dubai, St Lucia and Mauritius. An awful lot has changed in the past 10 years but then again, not so much, she said. The win came at the most perfect time ever. It allowed me to reduce my working hours, giving me a much better work-life balance. Im really lucky that I only work part-time. Thats enabled me to spend much more time with my daughter doing fun mum things instead of working flat out for a really really busy service. Weve had great holidays, but weve tried to keep our feet on the ground and I think working really helps me to do that. Ms Breen was on her lunch break when discovered she had won 1 million on the EuroMillions. (Dave Kendall/National Lottery /PA Wire) Ms Breen also wanted to continue working as an example to her daughter, who was 11 when she won. The universe gifted me something incredible but you cant take it for granted, not everybodys that lucky. she added. The community midwife now arrives at her visits in a BMW X3, saying the need for boot space prevented her from driving a sportier model, and her first purchase following the win was a pair of Jimmy Choos. She said: I nearly cried when I was paying for them in Selfridges because I couldnt believe I was actually able to purchase this and I had the money to do it. It was a little bit overwhelming. That collections a little bit bigger now, I dont cry as much any more! Ms Breen still lives in the house she bought just before her win and says most of the new mothers she works with are unaware they are being looked after by a millionaire. I dont introduce myself and say: Oh by the way I won a million quid 10 years ago. The vast majority of people havent got a clue and thats the way I like it, she said. Im treated just like any other midwife by patients and staff. To mark the 10-year anniversary of her win, Ms Breen has been supporting charity The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan. Ms Breen has been supporting charity The Baby Room, which provides essentials for new families in Wigan (Anthony Devlin/PA Wire) She said: We all know theres a cost-of-living crisis thats been going on for quite some time and babies dont come cheap. Not everybody is fortunate enough to be able to just go out and spend however much on all the equipment theyre going to need to make sure the babys got somewhere safe to sleep at night or that theyve got sterilising equipment to make sure the bottles and teats theyre using, if they choose to bottle feed, are safe and clean. Alison Wakefield, who set up the baby bank in 2022 after having her youngest child, said: Without our support wed have babies that were sleeping on the floor, they wouldnt have a safe space to sleep, wed have them sleeping in drawers, wed have babies using nappies more than once. Its an essential service that is definitely needed. Without us people would be going without and babies would be going without. The year is going by fast and Independence Day is finally here. All over the United States, family, friends, and loved ones are gathering together to fellowship. Folks are firing up the grill. Fireworks sales are happening coast to coast and entire cities are linking up under the stars to watch the bright lights hit the night sky. The Fourth of July is all about celebration and togetherness as citizens commemorate the US gaining its independence in 1776. However, the US isnt the only country celebrating independence. Every year, many other nations worldwide celebrate Independence Day in a special way. Although its not celebrated on July 4, these countries have their own reasons to celebrate with annual traditions, incredible food, and festivities full of joy. Independence Day is not an American thing. Instead, its a universal celebration of a new future for countries once ruled by another. Heres how a few countries celebrate Independence Day each year. Burundi Photo credit: Safari Consoler/Pexels Located in East Africa, Burundi celebrates its Independence Day every year on July 1. Like the US, the country is bursting with excitement, engagement, and events to commemorate Burundi achieving its true independence. There are fireworks of course, as well as cultural events, giant parades, and traditional dance performances. In between the excitement, citizens also gather to listen to speeches from the countrys president as well as Prince Louis Rwagasore, a great Burundian hero and visionary. Burundis Independence Day celebrates the country gaining its independence from Germany and Belgium in 1961. Rwanda Photo credit: JUSTIN MUHINDA/Pexels The United States isnt the only country celebrating independence on July 4. Rwanda officially became independent from Belgium on July 1, 1962. However, the country celebrates independence alongside Liberation Day on the fourth. Also known as Kwibohora, Rwandas annual Liberation Day celebrates the end of the genocide that occurred in the country in 1994. Locals use the holiday as an opportunity to educate younger generations on the countrys history and its strides toward unification. Kenya Photo credit: Breston Kenya/Pexels While American citizens are preparing for the Christmas holiday, Kenyans are celebrating their independence every December. The African country gained its independence from Great Britain in 1963. Each Jamhuri Day, Kenyans gather nationwide to dance, feast, and celebrate the years of toiling to gain independence. On December 12, the country commemorates the day the British flag was removed and replaced by the Kenyan flag on Mt. Kenya. A year later, Kenya was admitted into the Commonwealth as jamhuri, a republic. Nicaragua Photo credit: ROBERTO ZUNIGA/Pexels The entire month of September is dedicated to celebrating Nicaraguas independence. The country gained independence from Spain on September 15, 1821. Nicaragua wasnt the only country to gain independence from Spain during that time. Costa Rica, Honduras, Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala also celebrate their independence from Spain on September 15. Multiple events are happening every day in Nicaragua throughout September to celebrate its independence. Theres the ceremony where the burning torch travels through Central America and marching bands from schools gather to play at festivals and events. Although the 15th is the official day of independence, Nicaraguans celebrate all month. Ukraine Photo credit: Oleksandr P/Pexels Every summer, Ukraine celebrates its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. The countrys Independence Day is celebrated on August 24 after being a part of the Soviet Union for decades. The day commemorates the country adopting its Acts of Independence and Ukraine has remained an independent nation for 33 years. Unfortunately, celebrating Independence Day in Ukraine is difficult due to the current Russian invasion. Nonetheless, Ukraine continues to fight for independence and freedom. Nigeria Photo credit: McBarth Obeya/Pexels Nigeria celebrates its Independence Day on October 1 and Nigerians around the world prepare each year for a grand celebration. The country freed itself from British rule in 1960 and has grown into the most populous country in West Africa. The streets of Nigeria come alive for Independence Day. Theres plenty of jollof for everyone, student parades, military marches, and traditional musical performances. Its a national celebration that Nigerians commemorate wherever they reside that represents freedom and national pride. PETERSBURG The Petersburg Sheriff's Office "Girls with Dreams Become Women with Visions" program takes place at the Petersburg Public Library. The week-long initiative is dedicated to highlighting inspiring women who serve as first responders or who are in the criminal justice field. Guest speakers include a judge, canine handler, warden, federal probation officer, federal case manager, superintendent, sheriff, police chief, military warrant officer, dispatcher, Commonwealth's Attorney and director of juvenile justice services. During the week-long initiative, they will share their stories of success with young ladies who are a part of S.T.E.A.M., an educational approach that integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics to provide students with a well-rounded education. "Their unique perspective and journey is valued, and we have been honored to have women of such great caliber speak for one hour about their upbringing, career path and strategies they employed to achieve success. The aim is to motivate and empower young girls by showcasing real-life examples of strong and resilient women who have excelled in their respective fields," Vanessa R. Crawford, sheriff of Petersburg, said. "We believe that the speakers insights and experiences will undoubtedly leave a lasting impact on our participants, inspiring them to dream big and pursue their goals with determination and courage." The program for girls was originally scheduled for July 8 - 12 from 8 a.m. - noon, however, due to circumstances beyond their control, the Petersburg Sheriff's Office will need to reschedule it. The week-long program for boys who participate in the S.T.E.A.M. program at the library is currently scheduled for August 5 - 9. Petersburg Public Library is located at 201 W. Washington Street. For more information, contact the Petersburg Sheriff's Office. Conventiongoers tour Old Towne Petersburg brewery hosts cruise-in, city gives trolley tours: View gallery, video How do you select a ripe melon? Easy way to cut watermelon: Social Butterfly columnist shares simple steps with video Kristi K. Higgins aka The Social Butterfly, an award-winning columnist, is the trending topics and food Q&A reporter at The Progress-Index voted the 2022 Tri-Cities Best of the Best Social Media Personality. Have a news tip on local trends or businesses? Contact Kristi (she, her) at khiggins@progress-index.com, follow @KHiggins_PI on X and @socialbutterflykristi on Instagram. Your support is vital to local journalism. Please subscribe. This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Petersburg: Role models share tales, inspire S.T.E.A.M. participants Remember Stephensons Apple Farm? A grandson is bringing a taste of it back to KC Uniquely KC is a Star series exploring what makes Kansas City special. Are you feeling nostalgic for a Kansas City area restaurant that closed years ago? Share your memories, and we may write about the place in a future story. For decades, the long-gone Stephensons Old Apple Farm Restaurant was a beloved dining destination. Now Thaddeus Stephenson wants to bring it back. Sort of. Several readers wrote to The Star with fond memories of dining at the restaurant at U.S. Highway 40 and Lees Summit Road. But to Thaddeus, it was the site of late-night lock-ins and games of ultimate hide-and-seek (which were sometimes scary, he added, recalling a few ghost tales). It was where he carried warm baked goods out to customers, shoveled sidewalks on snowy winter days and watered flowers with his mother in the summertime. His lip trembled as he shared memories of the restaurant that his grandfather, Les Stephenson, started in 1946 with twin brother Loyd on their family orchard. He did a little of everything there, including waiting on customers and delivering their checks: Ive been doing, Sign here. This is your copy, this is mine, since I was a little tot, Thaddeus said, sitting in a booth at Jaspers Italian Restaurant, where he now works. Now 38, Thaddeus recently pulled out two jars and set them on the table: apple butter from his new company, Stephensons of Kansas City. Hes been canning the apple butter using Stephensons original recipe once slathered on the restaurants rolls and apple fritters and sold in jars to take home. He hopes to have it on grocery store shelves this fall. Thaddeus has been meeting with producers but cant share details just yet. So, stay tuned: Its coming. And soon, he hopes to release a line of seasonings for such Stephensons favorites as corn relish, green rice casserole and brisket. (That brisket seasoning is something everybody wants to get their hands on, Thaddeus said.) And while there will always be a crowd begging him to reopen the Stephensons restaurant, Thaddeus said hes content with having this small piece of his familys legacy live on. Opening a restaurant that would live up to the original would be a monster, he said. But this is a good compromise. Hopefully with this launch, the Stephensons name can be in peoples homes again, he said. Thaddeus Stephenson hopes to begin selling his familys apple butter in stores this fall. Apple fritters and green rice casserole Walter Cronkite, Harry Truman, Lady Bird Johnson and Jimmy Carter all dined within Stephensons rustic walls. But the restaurant started small. After Les and Lloyd returned from World War II, they decided to open a restaurant on their family orchard, near their parents house. The 40-seat cafe served a limited menu. Stephensons Old Apple Farm Restaurant opened on a family apple orchard in 1946. Over its 60-year history, the restaurant was renovated and expanded at least five times to accommodate more guests: 350 at one point. It remained in the same spot as it grew beyond the original foundation. In its heyday, customers waited for their table inside the lobby, sipping cups of complimentary apple cider from the barrel as many swigs as they wanted. Wood from an old tobacco barn lined the interior, while a classic barn-red coated the outside. A country store in one wing of the restaurant sold jams, jellies, relishes, stick candy and other old-fashioned goods. A cocktail lounge centered by an apple press sat in another. Wherever possible, the apple theme has been carried out in draperies and other decor, The Star said in 1966. Stephensons Apple Farm Restaurant, at the southeast corner of U.S. 40 and Lees Summit Road, closed in 2007. Entrees included creamy baked chicken (a favorite of many), brisket and hickory smoked ham steak. I have never eaten chicken quite like this, The Star raved. It is brown, juicy and literally falls from the bones. Each dish came with a side of green rice casserole, a baked potato, bread and apple butter, corn relish and a choice of salad. (The tossed salad came with a wedge of cheese shaped like a carrot, a sprig of parsley stuffed on top.) Remembering Stephensons Barbara Young, now 86, dined at Stephensons regularly for date nights with her late husband, David. She wrote to The Star, suggesting an article about Stephensons as part of the Uniquely KC series on gone-but-not-forgotten restaurants. And she was one of many. Several other readers echoed her enthusiasm. Youngs favorite time to visit was in the spring, when the apple trees around the restaurant were in full bloom. You always felt welcomed, and you always felt like you were special, she said. She always ordered the pork chops. Nobody did them like Stephensons. They were perfectly seasoned, always tender, she said. One evening in 2007, Young and her husband were planning to swing by for a routine date night when they realized it had closed. After decades, the restaurant that had served thousands of locals and presidents was finished. Thaddeus said the family was tired and exhausted. With the brothers growing older, they decided to close it down. Its mementos were sold in an auction that summer. It was later razed, and today, a QuikTrip gas station stands in its place. Both Les and Loyd have since died. But even 17 years later, the restaurant is fondly remembered. In its heyday, Stephensons seated hundreds of customers. One of its steadfast fans has been Jasper Mirabile, owner of Jaspers Italian Restaurant, where Thaddeus works. Mirabile was friends with the brothers, swapping stories about the industry and attending conferences together. So, when Mirabile was thinking of themes for his monthly supper club, he approached Thaddeus about the possibility of doing a Stephensons-themed menu. Thaddeus was flattered They sold roughly 200 tickets in mere minutes, and Mirabile said they easily could have sold hundreds more. We had all the living Stephensons survivors the nephews the cousins, here for dinner that night, Mirabile said. On the menu: favorites like the pork chops, baked chicken, green rice casserole and apple fritters. (Earlier this year, local chef Rick Mullins recreated the fritters for one of his Historic Exploration of Kansas City Cuisine pop-up dinners.) In fact, it was repeated interest from the general public that helped Thaddeus decide to launch his line of Stephensons products. The people that dined here that evening were just in love, so that really made me want to do it, Thaddeus said. More confirmation that hes on the right path: In 2010, shortly before he died, his grandfather called Thaddeus to apologize. What do you have to apologize for? Thaddeus remembers asking. Les said he was sorry the restaurant wasnt around for him anymore. He had wanted his grandson to take the reins one day. I didnt see anyone else light up when you were doing that job, he said. Thaddeus felt validated for his choice to continue on in the restaurant industry. And now, as he moves forward with his plans for Stephensons of Kansas City, hes honored to carry on the family name. There were decades of people before me who laid down the brickwork, Thaddeus said. Uniquely KC is a Star series exploring what makes Kansas City special. Are you feeling nostalgic for a Kansas City area restaurant that closed years ago? Share your memories, and we may write about the place in a future story. Email Jenna Thompson at jthompson@kcstar.com. Making cocktails follow classic mixology recipes of tried and true favorites, and others try something entirely new. Tasting Table recipe developer Katie Rosenhouse shares this spicy tomatini recipe, a.k.a. the tomato martini, that you didn't know you needed in your life. It features sweet cherry tomatoes and a kick of hot sauce, and it comes together as a delightful, salmon hue in your glass. Whereas a Bloody Mary features tomato juice, this tomatini is subtler, highlighting everything you love about tomatoes with more finesse. "I love that this spicy tomatini is so nicely balanced, with a good kick from chile flakes and hot sauce, acidity from fresh cherry tomatoes and lime juice, a healthy dose of vodka, and simple syrup to mellow it all out," Rosenhouse says. "A touch of salt in the drink and on the rim wakes up your palate and enhances the overall flavor." If you're looking for a way to switch up your cocktail game, this is easy, unexpected, and sure to be a hit. You can mix the drinks ahead of time if you're hosting a party and store the blend in the fridge up to a day, but wait to shake in the egg white and ice until serving. Snacks are a great way to tame the effects of alcohol, and Rosenhouse suggests accompanying your tomatini with tasty bites, such as "shrimp cocktail, guacamole and chips, stuffed jalapenos, a cheese platter, or crudites and hummus." Read more: 13 Liquors Your Home Bar Should Have Gather The Ingredients For This Spicy Tomatini Recipe tomato martini ingredients - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table For this recipe, you'll need kosher salt, chile flakes, cherry tomatoes, fresh lime, simple syrup, vodka, hot sauce, and ice. If desired, you can add a large egg white to increase the frothiness. Step 1: Combine The Salt And Chile salt and chile on plate - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table On a rimmed plate, stir to combine the salt and chile flakes. Step 2: Rub Lime On The Glass Rim rubbing lime on glass rim - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Cut the lime in half and rub one half gently around part of the rim of two martini or coupe glasses Step 3: Coat The Rim With Spicy Salt dipping glasses in chile salt - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Dip each glass into the salt mixture; set aside. Step 4: Muddle Tomatoes muddling tomatoes in shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table In a shaker, muddle 6 cherry tomatoes, reserving 2 tomatoes for garnishing the drink. Step 5: Add Lime Juice squeezing lime juice into shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Squeeze in the juice of the lime. Step 6: Season adding chile salt to shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Add a generous pinch of the salt mixture. Step 7: Add The Liquid Ingredients adding hot sauce to shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Add the simple syrup, vodka, hot sauce, and the egg white (if using). Step 8: Add Ice adding ice to shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Add ice. Step 9: Shake shaking cocktail shaker - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Cover and shake vigorously for at least 15 seconds, or until a layer of frost coats the shaker. Step 10: Strain The Drinks straining tomato martini - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Strain evenly into the prepared glasses. Step 11: Garnish The Drinks tomato martini with cherry tomato - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Garnish each glass with a cherry tomato and sprinkle with additional chile salt, if desired. Step 12: Serve tomato martini on table - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Serve immediately. Spicy Tomatini (Tomato Martini) Recipe tomato martini on table - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table How Do I Make My Own Simple Syrup? two tomato martinis top view - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Simple syrup is an important component of this spicy tomatini and many other cocktails. You can certainly buy a bottle of it, but if you don't have any on hand, it's easy to make and only requires sugar and water. Rosenhouse instructs, "Combine equal parts water and sugar in a small pot, then stir gently and bring to a simmer." You'll want to keep stirring until the sugar granules dissolve, then take the pot off the heat and let it cool down entirely before using it in your cocktail. Alternatively, you can try our no heat, no fuss simple syrup recipe if you don't feel like getting a pot dirty. Either way, you can expect your homemade simple syrup to last around 1 month in an airtight container in the refrigerator. If you notice it being to crystallize, it's time to make a new batch. Once you learn how to make plain simple syrup, you're ready to experiment with infusions and further enhance your cocktail repertoire. How Can You Change Up This Tomato Martini? tomato martini on table - Katie Rosenhouse/Tasting Table Rosenhouse offers several options for playing around with and enhancing this tomato martini. For starters, she suggests "adding herbs, such as basil or cilantro, when muddling the cherry tomatoes," which is sure to add plenty of fragrance to the drink. You can also swap in lemon juice instead of lime for a citrusy twist. Meanwhile, if you prefer your cocktails on the tarter side, you can use less simple syrup or swap in honey or agave for a slightly different flavor. Rosenhouse also recommends "infusing the vodka with jalapeno for a spicy kick in place of the hot sauce," which also opens up the possibilities for plenty of other spicy cocktails. A cucumber garnish provides a bit of a cooling effect to tame the heat. If you're a gin martini kind of person, swap the vodka with gin for a personalized take. Read the original article on Tasting Table. Scouted selects products independently. If you purchase something from our posts, we may earn a small commission. Going platinum blonde for the first time in her life for Paris Fashion Week. Dancing to Charlie XCX on TikTok. Practicing falconry in Ireland with her husband of 26 years. Actor, entrepreneur, one-time RHOBHs star, and all around good-time girl Lisa Rinna knows how to summer. Her vibe? Im feeling excited, adventurous, light, airy and no stress, Rinna told The Daily Beast in an email from the road. Im traveling to places with different climates and packing for each: from cooler (Ireland, a country Ive never visited) to warmer (Paris with my daughter at fahncy couture shows). Up next on her itinerary: Croatia, where she plans to explore new places and be on a beautiful boat listening to yacht rock. Of course, Ill also be reading, doing yoga every day, getting massages and facials. Did we not tell you the woman knows how to live? I work really hard, then I tend to lay low, she says. Spending time with family and friends makes me happier than anything! Through it all, the Rinna Beauty founder, who launched an eponymous cosmetics line in November, 2020(with, what else, lip kits)has also proved herself an absolute pro at optimizing skincare, no matter what her locale. Ahead, she shares the summer essentials that stock her beauty bag and keep her skin as radiant as her spirit. EltaMD UV Clear Deep Tint Face Sunscreen Ill also be hiking on the trail near our home, wearing a hat, and using sunscreen to protect my skin while I commune with nature, Rinna says of her summer plans. This sunscreen is tinted so it looks like I have a little makeup on and it doesnt break me out. I use it all year round. Buy EltaMD UV Clear Deep Tint Face Sunscreen at Bluemercury, $45 Buy EltaMD UV Clear Deep Tint Face Sunscreen at Amazon, $45 Rinna Beauty Icon Lip Kit in Legends Only The peachy-pink nude colors work really well for summer, and looks good on everybody, Rinna says of the product bundle that comprises a lip liner in Notice Me (a natural brown with a peach undertone), lipstick in Mrs. Hamlin (a pink nude) and lip gloss in Pink Champagne (a sheer nude with gold shimmer). Buy Rinna Beauty Icon Lip Kit in Legends Only at Amazon, $40 Buy Rinna Beauty Icon Lip Kit in Legends Only at Rinna Beauty, $40 True Botanicals Pure Radiance Oil Rinnas use of this bestselling True Botanicals oil doesnt stop at the face. Its great for the neck. I even put it in my hair at night, she says. Buy True Botanicals Pure Radiance Oil at Credo Beauty, $120 Buy True Botanicals Pure Radiance Oil at Nordstrom, $120 Dr. Sebagh Rose de Vie Serum For daytime hydration, Rinna taps this antioxidant-packed organic rose hip oil serum. It smells fantastic and gives my face a beautiful glow, she says. Buy Dr. Sebagh Rose de Vie Serum at Neiman Marcus, $180 Dr. Barbara Sturm Hyaluronic Serum Its just a must have, Rinna says of this splurgy hydrating serum Its my favorite of all the hyaluronic acid [products] and I use it in my skincare routine daily. Buy Dr. Barbara Sturm Hyaluronic Serum at SpaceNK, $325 Buy Dr. Barbara Sturm Hyaluronic Serum at Sephora, $325 Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream This moisturizer is made with a proprietary delivery system that takes key vitamins, lipids, and proprietary peptides to skin cells in order to enhance cell renewal. Its lightweight and it has a light smell to itwhatever it does to the skin I just love it, Rinna says. Buy Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream at Augustinus Bader, $185 Buy Augustinus Bader The Rich Cream at Neiman Marcus, $185 MORE FROM SCOUTED: Sienna Millers Beauty Bag Staples Include a $22 Glossier Concealer and a $2700 At-Home Laser Its Not Caffeine; Its This Tom Ford Bronzer That Gives Sabrina Carpenter Her Luminous Glow Brooke Shields and I Both Swear by Grande Cosmetics Brow Serum Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. The Teacher's Aide strives to be the aide all Central Louisiana educators need Not every teacher has a teachers aide and thats what Shannon Trimble-Reed wants her new business The Teachers Aide to be for area educators. A grand opening is set for 5-8 p.m. Monday (July 8). The store will be open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. starting Tuesday. It will be open Monday through Saturday. CREOLA - Not every teacher has a teachers aide, and Shannon Trimble-Reed wants her new business The Teachers Aide to be just that for educators. A grand opening is set for 5-8 p.m. Monday (July 8). The store will be open from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. starting Tuesday. It will be open Monday through Saturday. I wanted to do a party first because teachers never get to party, she said laughing. Toddfathers will serve appetizers and sweet treats will be provided by Cake-N-Bake. "We're going to have door prizes. I just want everybody to come in and see what we've got and give me suggestions on other things I can carry. And, have a good time, she said. Though it has a Dry Prong address, the business is at 21730 Highway 167 South Suite E in a shopping center near the Colfax Banking Company in Creola. On Saturday, Trimble-Reed was busy preparing the store for the grand opening. I have someone painting tables for me and theyre drying. Were just waiting to put all that stuff out, she said as she looked at the merchandise sitting on the floor. But the former St. Francis Cabrini School pre-K teacher is confident the store will be ready to welcome customers once the doors officially open Monday. She told someone else that she once got her classroom on a Friday once and she had it ready for her students Monday morning. So, I think I can do it, she said while laughing. July may seem a little early to some for a school-related business to open but teachers work year-round, said Trimble-Reed. People may think they are off for the summers, but they really arent, and she wanted be open for them to get what they need. The store will carry items like sensory kits, STEM kits and bulletin boards and decor and art supplies. Since she was a Cabrini school teacher, the store will also sell religious education material. And, she will carry a variety of teacher gifts minus one item. No coffee mugs, she says laughing. I took a poll. No mugs. Parents can also shop there to pick up supplies for their students. The store will also sell uniforms. She has khaki and navy pants, shorts and skirts in stock and red, white and navy shirts. Those are the main colors worn in area schools. If she needs to branch out on colors, she has that option. Right now, the store will not be carrying plaid. She plans for the store to carry uniforms year-round. Trimble-Reed said her business will make it a point support teachers side businesses like Teacher Tools and Cardinal Magnolia. Like the lady who does my crazy sunglasses, shes a teacher. The girl who prints my T-shirts is also a teacher, she said. Because teachers are truly underpaid heroes, so weve got to do a little side gig every once in a while to help pay the bills. Printing, copying and laminating will also be offered. Whats more, she can deliver items to teachers and schools. If a teacher drops off a project and wants me to deliver it to the school that she works at, I can do that, she said. That includes schools in both Grant and Rapides. She has a website under construction, www.theteachersaidestore.com where people will be able to send in their projects and she can work on them and send them out if needed. But, she does stress that there may be times when she cant deliver. As the business is just starting out, she will be the only one working for the time being, though she does have some employees in the works. And because of where we're located, there's not a lot of stuff out here for local businesses to get office supplies, she said. And we're going to have some of that stuff, too. So, we really want to be a big footprint in the community and take care of everybody. Trimble-Reed had been a teacher for six years and in her last year, she was diagnosed with cervical cancer. It was during this journey that she realized she wanted to help teachers be able to do their jobs. School Aids in Alexandria closed and the nearest place teachers had to shop for school and classroom supplies was in Baton Rouge. She and her husband who works for the South Grant Water System are the parents of two young boys who attend Tioga Elementary School. "I'm still a mom, so if anything comes up where we've got to go to a T-ball game or something like that, we may be closed for a T-ball game, she said. Trimble-Reed, a native Texan who lives in Pineville, has been encouraged by the positive response The Teachers Aide Facebook page has received so far. We're up to 800 and almost 850 followers now and. The teachers have been so supportive, she said. And she wants to take care of them. And I've always wanted to have my own business, and this just seemed like the best fit, she said. This article originally appeared on Alexandria Town Talk: The Teacher's Aide strives to help Central Louisiana educators 'What's not to love'! This beloved peddler of fries won best french fries in Taunton-area TAUNTON The people of Greater Taunton have spoken: Poutine Peddlers has the best fries in the area! In an online poll conducted by Taunton Daily Gazette, Poutine Peddlers won by a landslide. In all, 5,928 votes were cast for 10 popular restaurants/eateries in the greater Taunton area known for great fries. Of those, Poutine Peddlers received 2,973, or 50.15% of the votes. Yeah, we did! exclaimed Kristen Macedo, co-owner, adding this is overwhelming and extremely exciting to receive this acknowledgement from the community. Kristen Macedo, co-owner of Poutine Peddlers, located at 239 Broadway in Taunton, serves up award-winning fries. Coming in second, Riverhouse in Taunton made a strong showing with 2,005 votes or 33.82% and rounding out the top three was Deep Pond Farm in Taunton with 711 votes, or 11.99% We asked, you answered: Here are America's favorite french fries What's poutine? Poutine Peddlers parked its food truck in Taunton in November 2021, located in the parking lot of 239 Broadway. Macedo said she and co-owner/high school friend Shelley Ring wanted to bring something different here, to the area, and both had fallen in love with the popular Canadian staple, poutine. What's not to love? said Macedo, referring to the ingredients of french fries, gravy, cheese curds and scallions, comprising traditional poutine, all of which is a bit messy, which is why its typically eaten with a fork. Poutine Peddlers makes a splash Taunton food truck serves up cheesy, smothered Canadian fries Fries are of course the foundation of what Poutine Peddlers does. Every helping is fried to order, so that when they are sent out, they are always hot, fresh, and crispy, said Macedo. Asked what makes their fries a cut above the competition, no pun intended, she added fries are what we do. We specialize and focus on that. We wanted to be the best and we strive for that always. The Poutine Peddlers food truck in Taunton offers lots of different menu options, including "The OG," featuring hand cut fries with house made brown gravy, squeaky Wisconsin cheddar cheese curds and scallions. What's on the menu? While the menu is small, Poutine Peddlers gets creative with how they present their fries. Besides traditional poutine, dubbed the OG on the menu, another popular selection includes the Porky Pig, which takes poutine and adds on top coleslaw, BBQ sauce, and BBQ pulled pork that comes directly from Taunton staple Kinfolks BBQ. Then there's the "Mac Attack which takes poutine and adds on top seasoned ground beef, cheese sauce, pickles and special sauce. This reporter also recommends the Gold Fever Chick, which is poutine topped with fried chicken and a zesty, honey mustard-like gold fever sauce. There are always weekly specials. At time of this interview, Poutine Peddlers was offering a Teeny Weeny Poutine, which is poutine topped with fried hot dogs, mustard and diced onions, and the Italian Sausage Poutine, which is poutine topped with fried Italian sausage, roasted onions and peppers, and mustard. And if you just want fries, by itself, you can, of course, order that and be happy. The Poutine Peddlers food truck in Taunton offers lots of different menu options, including "The Mac Attack," featuring hand cut fries and brown gravy, topped with creamy American cheese sauce, seasoned ground beef, lettuce, diced onions and pickles and their special sauce. Southern soul food is coming to Taunton Country fried steak and gravy in Taunton? A hit right away Macedo admits there was initial worry in the beginning if Poutine Peddlers would take off. Its like with any new business. There was concern with how the community will perceive us. Can you get people to try it? Macedo said. She said once they opened it took off from the very beginning and we are so happy the city has embraced us. This article originally appeared on The Taunton Daily Gazette: Here's who won best fries in Taunton. What makes them so special? Cayleigh Aslanian started supporting Kabul Small Animal Rescue, and her future dog Jumper, in 2021 Kabul Small Animal Rescue; Cayleigh Aslanian/Carli Williams Jumper in Afghanistan in 2021 (left) and Jumper with her new family Cayleigh Aslanian first learned about Kabul Small Animal Rescue in Afghanistan through Facebook in 2021 Jumper was one of over 300 pets that the rescue, founded by Charlotte Maxwell-Jones, transported to the U.S. in 2024 to find homes Aslanian adopted Jumper in June; the dog was one of the canines featured in the 2021 story that attracted Aslanian to KSAR Three years ago, Cayleigh Aslanian of Denville, New Jersey, was scrolling her Facebook feed when she saw a post that stopped her. It was August 2021, and some 6,700 miles away, Afghanistan's capital city of Kabul had been seized by the Taliban. During a two-week period, thousands of people, including foreign diplomatic staff, military personnel, and vulnerable Afghans, were evacuated from the city's airport. Kabul Small Animal Rescue (KSAR), a nonprofit run by American Charlotte Maxwell-Jones, was on the scene trying to fly out dozens of dogs and cats on chartered flights before U.S. troops left. Some animals were the pets of evacuating Americans, some were retired working dogs, and some were KSAR residents. That effort failed, and the animals were set loose into the airport as it was emptied, turning once beloved and rescued animals into frightened strays. One of those was a beautiful dog named Jumper, who had a full, ivory-colored coat and a freckled face. Aslanian didn't know it then, but their paths would cross someday. "It really broke my heart to see that all those dogs who had been ready to fly to their forever homes were now just running around the airport," Aslanian tells PEOPLE. Luckily, many released animals, including Jumper, were eventually recovered. Kabul Small Animal Rescue Jumper the dog Aslanian began following the rescue closely, becoming an avid supporter. She sent donations when she could, created an annual birthday fundraiser for the rescue, and continually shared the rescue's posts to raise its visibility. Back in Kabul, Maxwell-Jones continued with her efforts with KSAR, which she founded in 2018. The Tennessean had landed in Afghanistan close to a decade earlier to complete her PhD dissertation research in archaeology. Seeing the country's vast need for animal protection, she created KSAR. Maxwell-Jones never intended to run an animal rescue though she believes that her personality makes her uniquely suited for the job. "I think I've been stubborn since I was a kid," she says. "There aren't many people who could do my job or would want to do my job. I don't stop ever. I don't sleep and I do a lot of negotiations with the government in which I absolutely don't back down." Related: Woman Agrees to Buy Puppy Born with 'Missing Toe' After Breeder Discovers Claw-Like Paw (Exclusive) Her efforts help both animals and people. The rescue employs 92 full-time staff from the community, including five veterinarians. KSAR is funded almost solely by personal donations and is an entirely free clinic, not charging for any veterinary or rescue work. Running an animal rescue in Afghanistan isn't easy. Maxwell-Jones says, "There's a massive food shortage, and people are hungry. Animals are mostly looked on as fellow inhabitants of the city but treated more like pests than companions. But the Afghan peoplethere's a generosity of spirit. When you ask for help, you really get it." Cayleigh Aslanian/Carli Williams Jumper in New Jersey Maxwell-Jones asked for a lot of help this spring: She, her staff, and more than a dozen temporary employees embarked on a herculean effort to bring some of the rescue's feline and canine residents to the United States in a quest to place them in new homes. In early June, a chartered airlift of 300 lucky animals arrived in Washington, D.C.. After landing, the pets went as far as Maine and California to adoptive homes or rescues. Related: Military Dog Handler Friends Adopt Their Canine Partners After Dogs Retire at the Same Time Jumper was among the 300 pets on the transport. Like when Aslanian learned about KSAR's work and knew she had to help, the New Jersey woman instantly connected with Jumper. "I was scrolling social media one morning back in March," says Aslanian, "and someone was talking about how Jumper was the longest resident at the rescue and how she is cat friendly. I told my fiance Kyle [Brennan], 'Oh my God, she's perfect for us.'" Aslanian and Brennan messaged KSAR about their interest in adopting Jumper ahead of the transport. On June 5, after Jumper's international trip, the dog joined the couple's home, which includes two cats. Cayleigh Aslanian/Carli Williams Jumper the dog with Kyle Brennan (left) and Cayleigh Aslanian Since then, "she's really just been doing everything that we do together," says Aslanian. "She's such a calm dog, especially for what she's been through. And she's super friendly. Everyone she meets loves her. She shoves her head on your lap and asks for pets." Jumper's new life is outdoor zoomies and snoozes in the middle of her dog bed while Aslanian and Brennan work in their home offices. Once disinterested in toys, "now she's obsessed with a fluffy hedgehog we got her," says Aslanian. Jumper has met both sets of "grandpawrents," as Aslanian calls them, "and she makes my dad wish he'd adopted a dog too." Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Jumper also enjoys a hot dog joint in town. She's been to breweries, listened to live music, and taken boat rides to the Jersey shore. "We're so grateful to have her," says Aslanian. "She's really our third wheel now, and we love it." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Woman Who Moved into New Home Has 'No Words' After 98-Year-Old Neighbor Shows Up on Doorstep with Gift The woman responded to the gesture by baking a lemon pie and hand-delivering it to the neighbor days later Kelly McDuff/TikTok Kelly McDuff A woman is going viral after sharing the sweet gesture her 98-year-old neighbor made after she moved into her new home: walking a cake over to her house to welcome her to the area. In a video posted to TikTok, Kelly McDuff can be seen on the verge of tears as she displays a chocolate bundt cake with white frosting before panning the camera up to her window, where the neighbor who dropped off the cake can be seen walking back to his home. "We just moved into a house and my 98-year-old neighbor just dropped off a cake to welcome us to the neighborhood," McDuff, 27, wrote in the text accompanying the video. "He's lived here for 52 years and 'hopes we love it as much as he has,' " McDuff added. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Related: Reddit User Claims They Received 'Creepy' Package in the Mail from Anonymous Sender: 'Hope I'm Not Cursed' Speaking to PEOPLE, McDuff who lives in Richardson, Texas says she and her fiance Garrison moved into their home in early June. The neighbor, she adds, "brought the cake over" just a couple of weeks later. McDuff then returned the gesture. "I brought him a lemon pie the day after and he loved it," she says. Kelly McDuff/TikTok Kelly McDuff She shared more on TikTok, saying she was "excited" to bring her neighbor the pie so she could learn more about him. In that video, she shared the moment she brought the pie along with her contact information, so they could stay in touch to his doorstep. Related: Husband Sparks Outrage for Refusing to Cancel Guys' Trip to Help Wife Move into Their New Home "Bless you, sweetheart, I love lemon pie," the man could be heard saying in the background of the video. "You didn't have to do that, but I'm just delighted you did." Back home at her house, McDuff said in the video: "I have no words. I am on cloud nine and will be recovering the rest of the week." She added that, for those who were just as impacted by the man's kind gesture, it's worth it to reach out to neighbors. "Go meet your neighbor," she said. "Go knock on their door, bring them some cookies." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. 1 hospitalized, 2 others injured in crash between semi truck, RV, and boat on US-40 WASATCH COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) Three people were injured in a crash on US-40 on Sunday afternoon, with one person being flown to the hospital, according to the Utah Highway Patrol. Officials with UHP told ABC4.com that a semi truck with an empty tanker was traveling eastbound on US-40 when it got hit by an RV that was turning to go westbound on the same road. READ NEXT: Utah CEO, daughter identified as victims of fatal Ogden crash UHP officials said the RV was towing a boat at the time of the crash. The incident happened near Strawberry Reservoir in Wasatch County, and officials said both the driver of the semi truck and the driver of the RV suffered minor injuries, but neither was taken to the hospital. The passenger in the RV was flown to the hospital in critical condition, according to UHP. According to the Utah Department of Transportation, the crash occurred near milepost 40, about 19 miles south of Heber City. UDOT said the crash happened just before 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, and drivers were advised to seek alternate routes while the roads were closed. UDOT said motorists should expect major delays in the area. The incident was expected to be cleared by 4:30 p.m., according to UDOT. However, UHP told ABC4.com that traffic in the area was alternating and that the road was not closed. 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. A person has life threatening injuries from a shooting in northeast charlotte. Medic says, it happened around 4:30 a.m. early Sunday morning off North Tryon Street not far from NoDa. Were asking CMPD what led up to this shooting. So far, there is no word on any suspects or the victims condition in this shooting. Well keep you updated as we learn more. If you have any information on this incident, you are asked to reach out to CMPD. RELATED STORY: Community attends vigil to honor victims of Charlotte shooting The intersection of 9th Street and Conner Street is closed as construction fills the roadway on Conner Street, Thursday, May 9, 2024 in Noblesville. The disruptive State Road 32 resurfacing project in downtown Noblesville will likely be delayed after construction crews discovered large gas tanks buried underground near the Hamilton County Government and Judicial Center. The Indiana Department of Transportation found seven tanks near Conner and 6th streets and removed 1,000 gallons of groundwater, possibly mixed with some fuel, from them last week, said INDOT spokeswoman Kyleigh Cramer. 'A hot mess': Downtown construction roils Noblesville streets Environmental experts will test the soil at the site Wednesday to make sure it is safe. If it is clean, crews will remove tanks that are under the street. Tanks under the sidewalks will be filled with dirt and remain so the sidewalks don't have to be destroyed. If there is soil contamination all the tanks and dirt around it will need to be excavated. The project, to replace century-old bricks underneath the road surface, has closed parts of Conner Street from 14th Street to 6th Street since April 1 and was scheduled to last about three months, with a finish date of July 15, Cramer said. The testing could delay the project but Cramer could not say by how long until soil tests come back. Hamilton County historian David Heighway said at least one of the tanks was broken open at the top. You can see they must have smacked into the top of it but it looks pretty empty, Heighway said. Realtor and amateur historian Kurt Meyer said he was tipped off about the tanks, did some research and found they could date back 100 years. Map of undeground downtown Noblesville by the Sanborn Fire Insurance company shows where gas tanks were buried in the 1920s. He said in the 1880s that area of Hamilton County used to be a livery, where horses were rented or kept for out-of-town visitors. But after the invention of the automobile liveries died out and were replaced with car repair shops and gas stations starting around 1920. Meyer found a map drawn by the Sanborn Fire Insurance company that showed five tanks with up to 550 gallons were buried in the area next to garages. Likely, they were never reported to the government. Nowadays there are environmental laws that document them and when they were removed, Meyer said. A hundred years ago there was no regulation. The State Road 32 project will be completed in four phases from just west of State Road 37 to across the White River and is scheduled to be finished by the end of 2024. It is part of a $10 million INDOT project that includes improvements on three State Road 37 intersections. The construction comes while a Hamilton County roundabout project is underway at the intersection of Allisonville Road and 146th Street and Pleasant Street south of SR 32 in Noblesville is being rebuilt as an expressway with a series of roundabouts. 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: Noblesville street project hits delays after crews find 100-year-old tanks CHICAGO (WGN-TV) More than 100 people were shot, 19 fatally, across Chicago on the extended Fourth of July weekend. The number of shootings which totaled 109 victims between Thursday and Sunday surpassed last years holiday weekend total, Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling and Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a Monday press conference. These are 19 families whose lives are forever altered. Nineteen families who woke up this morning without a son, without a daughter, without a mother, without a father, without an aunt, without an uncle. Over 100 people whose lives will never be the same, Mayor Johnson said. The most recent shooting incident was a homicide around 11:30 p.m. Sunday in Chicagos Austin neighborhood. Police responded to a well-being check in the area and found a 36-year-old man on the kitchen floor. He was bleeding and unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the head, and was pronounced dead on the scene. Just before 5:30 a.m. Sunday, three men were shot and wounded outside the University of Chicago Hospital. According to police, witnesses observed someone in a dark-gray SUV point a gun from the vehicle and fire shots at several people standing near a parked car in what initially looked to be a targeted shooting. The victims were transported to the hospital. A massacre of everything: 2 mothers, 1 child killed, 2 children still critical in Grand Crossing shooting Weekend shootings with multiple victims included an incident at Columbus Park in the Austin neighborhood. Police said two people exchanged gunfire and fled the scene. A total of seven people were shot. A 40-year-old man died after driving himself to Stroger Hospital following the shooting. The youngest shooting victim over the extended Fourth of July weekend was 8-year-old Bryson Orr, who was killed along with two female relatives in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood. Two other children were also wounded in the shooting. We cannot bring back these children. If we want to avoid having these types of press conferences and these types of meetings again, we need every single person to step up. We need people to start coming forward. We need people to take responsibility. Help us, help you, Supt. Snelling said. Additional officers were deployed over the extended holiday weekend across Chicago. The police department announced the opening of an Emergency Services Assistance Center Tuesday at Fosco Park, which will help people who have been traumatized by the weekends violence. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. DECATUR, Ill. (WCIA) A 14-year-old boy is facing first degree murder charges in Decatur after police said he was connected to a deadly battery and shooting that happened overnight. Officials with the Decatur Police Department said officers were informed around midnight of a battery in the area of Monroe Street near Grand Avenue. When officers arrived, they found a 63-year-old man dead. Officials said the man had bruising on his face and a gunshot wound to his lower body. A shell casing was found near the body. Two dead in weekend crash near Bement Based on information obtained in the investigation, the Decatur Police Department obtained a search warrant for a home a block north of the crime scene. As a result of the investigation, a 14-year-old was arrested for first degree murder. Due to state law, Decatur Police cannot release the boys name, but officials did say he is on parole through the Illinois Department of Juvenile Justice. At this time, the boy is being held in Peoria. The investigation into the murder is ongoing. Anyone who has further information about it is asked to contact the Decatur Police Department at 217-424-2734 or Macon County Crime Stoppers at 217-423-8477. 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 WCIA.com. SOUTH HILL, Va. (AP) Fifteen firefighters were injured battling a large fire at a fertilizer warehouse in Virginia, officials said. The firefighters suffered non-life threatening injuries from chemical exposure, heat exhaustion and minors scrapes and burns while taking on the fire that started Saturday at the Nutrien Ag Solutions facility in South Hill, the towns volunteer fire department said on Facebook. Fire officials recommended those near the area evacuate voluntarily and asked people to avoid the area and take shelter. The destroyed Nutrien Ag Solutions warehouse in South Hill, Virginia (Courtesy of South Hill Volunteer Fire Department) The fire has been contained, the fire department said. The Virginia Department of Emergency Management was monitoring the area after runoff from the fire entered nearby creeks, the fire department said. Cleanup will take weeks for our agencies and an extended period of time for the property, the fire department said. News outlets reported that the fire started when someone drove into the building. Fire officials said that person was sent to the hospital with burns. The South Hill Volunteer Fire Department shared this latest update on Sunday night: Where can we even begin to say thank you. This community pulled together for a historic downtown fire and loss of Nutren Ag Solutions. A very tragic event to say the least. We will never be able to repay or express our gratitude for our fire, ems, law enforcement, hospital staff, families, friends, Auxiliary, Dispatchers, public works, water departments, public utilities, local officials, businesses and volunteers who poured their hearts out to protect life, limb and property. Extreme temperatures, high humidity, and a fire driven by a propane tank created a very dangerous situation. Setting up Command staff, logistics, safety, operations, water supply, staging and calling for resources early protected our downtown neighborhood. At the peak of the incident 156 Personnel were on scene along with 74 units. Multiple jurisdictions and states worked hand in hand to protect multiple exposures. Our Emergency Communications center performed flawlessly. South Hill Volunteer Fire Department Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WAVY.com. A 17-year-old is dead after a shooting in Lawrence Saturday night. Officers responded to a report of gunfire on Brook Street around 9:47 p.m. and found a 17-year-old boy suffering from gunshot wounds, the Essex County District Attorneys office said in a statement. The injured teen was treated on scene by paramedics and EMTs before being rushed to Lawrence General Hospital where he was pronounced deceased. Lawrence Police and the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit for Essex County is investigating the deadly shooting. Essex County District Attorney Paul Tucker, Lawrence Police Chief Melix Bonilla, and investigating law enforcement officials ask anyone that may have information pertaining to this incident to come forward, the DAs office said. No additional info was made immediately available. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW After struggling with constant suicidal thoughts, being released from the hospital for self-harm and mourning back-to-back relatives deaths, Nadia Thomas is on a personal healing journey, she says. Shes promoting mental health awareness so that others locally can heal too. The 17-year-old Macon native received the Youth Leader Award on June 29 at the Mentor Georgia 2024 Summit for founding Nadias Truth, a business that encourages youth to speak up about mental health issues instead of coping in unhealthy ways. My business is my way of telling my story, Thomas said. I dont want to see another teenager go through what I went through. I tell them to embrace their mental health and know that they dont have to go through it alone. Seventeen-year-old Nadia Thomas, founder of Nadias Truth, was a guest speaker at the Mentor Georgia Youth Summit, where she received the Young Leader Award for Excellence in Mentoring on June 29. Previous reporting from The Telegraph found that mental health is a critical issue for Macon teens, as the citys rate of 10 to 19-year-olds discharged from hospitals for self-harm exceeded the Georgia state average in 2022. In addition, five of the 25 people who committed suicide in Macon in 2023 were under the age of 21. June ONeal, executive director of The Mentors Project of Bibb County, said she nominated Thomas for the leadership award because she felt Thomas transparency is needed in the community. Before the pandemic, The Mentors Project might have one or two children a year experiencing mental health crises. Since the pandemic, we might have three children a month experiencing mental health crises. The numbers have just exploded, ONeal said. Thomas said a variety of factors specifically contribute to mental health woes for Macons youth, including bullying, peer pressure, social media and household issues. Theres going to school and being bullied or just feeling like you have to fit in by doing something so you can be this cool person, Thomas said. Even household issues like losing family members, some teens dont know how to cope with that, so theyll turn to drugs or act out in school for attention. Through the sale of hoodies, custom-made journals, bookmarks and other items, Nadias Truth encourages young customers to never give up, boldly live their truth and seek mental health treatment. I feel like a lot of people get judged because they seek help, and when they dont seek help, then theyre called crazy, Thomas said. The business also prompted Geovada Walker, Thomas mother, to educate herself and identify warning signs of what to look for in children who experience mental health problems. Walker manages a TikTok account for the business, which provides advice from a parental perspective on how parents can support children. As a parent, I didnt know that my daughter was suffering with depression because she was always this happy-go-lucky type of person, Walker said. Im thankful that I had the mindset to assist my child while she was depressed because a lot of teens dont have that support system. With Nadia telling her story, she is helping teens find that support. Thomas is an ambassador for Restoring Inspiration By Success In Education, a program ran by the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorneys Office and addresses trauma impacts on Macons youth. Thomas said she is personally aware of the influence Nadias Truth is having on the community because fellow classmates have recognized her efforts. It just touches my heart to know that the kids I was in elementary school with are going through similar stuff that I went through, and theyre contacting me to let me know what Im doing has helped them, she said. Thomas calls the supporters of Nadias Truth butterflies, because the insect represents change, hope and beauty the three things a person would question while going through a mental health crisis, she said. Before revealing her butterfly tattoo that covers old self-inflicted scars, Thomas said she wants to start a nonprofit to help teens access her merchandise for free, as well as a Caterpillars Club for elementary students who have questions about mental health. It would be a good resource for them before they enter middle and high school, she added. I want each and every teen to know that if theyre going through anything, its going to be okay. Dont ever give up. Suicide is not the answer to your questions. Use me as an example, she said. Thomas encourages her peers to speak to their mental health counselors in school. The Mentors Project also has in-house counseling available for Bibb County youth, said ONeal. Thomas will graduate from VIP Academy in May 2025. She said she wants to attend Albany State University, where shes eager to pursue a career in nursing and make a difference in health care. 18-year-old wanted for armed assault to murder arrested in Worcester after traffic stop, police say An 18-year-old man wanted for armed assault to murder was arrested after running away from police during a traffic stop in Worcester over the weekend, police said Monday. William Tchoubah was arrested early Saturday morning on two warrants, police said. He is charged with possessing a large-capacity firearm, firearm carry without license loaded, carrying a firearm without a license, possessing a large capacity firearm weapon, feeding device, possessing ammunition without an FID Card, improper storage of a large capacity firearm, breaking and entering nighttime, disorderly person, disturbing the peace and trespassing. Tchoubah had an active warrant for armed assault to murder and various other firearm charges stemming from an earlier shooting and armed robbery at Esther Street, police said. At approximately 12:30 a.m. Saturday, Worcester Police officers saw a vehicle speeding on Cambridge Street. Officers learned that the vehicle did not have a valid inspection sticker and stopped the vehicle on Harding Street. A man exited the vehicle from the backseat and started to run, police said. Officers saw the man grasping and holding the waistband of his pants as he ran, which is behavior consistent with someone carrying a firearm, police said. Police alerted other officers in the area to help track down the suspect. Officers went back to the vehicle, where two males were sitting inside. Both denied knowing the man who fled, police said. Both were released after a brief investigation. A short time later, residents reported seeing a man matching the suspects description running through their yards. Officers found the suspect, later identified as Tchoubah, in a rear stairwell on Ashmont Street. Police said officers were concerned that the suspect discarded a firearm in a neighborhood with children. An investigation led officers to a home on Canton Street, and the homeowners allowed officers to search for the weapon. Police said a Glock pistol was found tucked in between some cement and a fence. The gun was processed by the Crime Scene Unit, police said. 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 Two Army veterans will go head-to-head for Virginias 7th Congressional District, setting up what is expected to be a costly and contentious race for an open seat in a battleground district. Republicans picked Derrick Anderson, 39, a lawyer and former Army Green Beret who was supported by House GOP leaders in the testy intraparty fight between six candidates. Democrats chose retired Army Col. Yevgeny Eugene Vindman, 49, one of the twin Army officers involved in former President Trumps first impeachment trial. The two are vying to succeed Rep. Abigail Spanberger (D), who chose to run for Virginia governor next year. Its going to be one of the marquee national races this fall, said Stephen Farnsworth, a political analyst at the University of Mary Washington. Because its close to [Washington, D.C.], both parties are going to be paying a lot of attention to this race. It will have lots of money, lots of national attention, and people will look at it as something of a bellwether for swing districts around the country. In few places are military issues more likely to dominate than in Virginias 7th District, the swath of land that sits between Alexandria and Richmond and hugs both the coast of the Potomac River in the east and the foothills of Shenandoah National Park in the west. The area is home to numerous defense contractors, a sizable concentration of military veterans, Marine Corps Base Quantico and Army Garrison Fort A.P. Hill. Both candidates leaned heavily on their military records during their respective primaries, with the same messaging expected to carry over in the lead-up to November. This is a district where national security oriented candidates do well, and Republicans and Democrats have both chosen people with extensive national security backgrounds, biographies tailor made for this district, Farnsworth said. Youre talking about a district that is chock full of defense contractors, active duty military, retired military, retired federal employees, all looking at national security credentials as an important asset. Anderson, who served in the Army from 2006 to 2014, was a Bronze Star recipient at just 29 and has been deployed to Afghanistan, Iraq, Bahrain, Jordan and Lebanon. The top fundraiser in his crowded race, he won the states June 18 primary and he earned the endorsement of Trump last week. Derrick is America First all the way, and he is running against a weak and pathetic Democrat named Yevgeny Eugene Vindman who lied to push the Ukraine Impeachment Hoax, a continuation of the greatest and most dangerous Political WITCH HUNT in the History of our Country, Trump wrote. This is Andersons second time seeking a congressional seat, with his first run in 2022 ending in a narrow defeat in the Republican primary. This time around Andersons race was equally narrow, with the former Green Beret capturing about 45 percent of the vote but beating his closest competitor Cameron Hamilton a former Navy SEAL backed by the House Freedom Caucus by just 2,891 votes. The GOP nominees first general election TV ad, aired June 27 during the presidential debate, highlighted his military background. We hear it every day. Americas more divided than ever. When I led men and women in combat, nobody had a red or blue jersey on. We all wore Americas uniform with pride. I know what leadership really means, Anderson says in the ad. Vindman, a first-time candidate, served in the Army for more than 25 years. He handily beat out his competitors by grabbing just more than 49 percent of the vote after a massive fundraising haul, with his closest competitor, Elizabeth Guzman, only managing to capture 15 percent. A former deputy legal adviser for the National Security Council under Trump, both Eugene Vindman and his brother, Alexander, were booted from the administration after Alexander testified before Congress about the July 2019 phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The call, during which Trump pressured Zelensky to investigate then-former Vice President Biden and his son, Hunter, in exchange for military aid, eventually led to Trumps first impeachment trial. Vindman, a Ukrainian immigrant who in recent years has been involved in advocacy work for U.S. support to Ukraine and has made continued alliance with Ukraine a campaign talking point has used his name recognition to his advantage in fundraising. In a November interview with Military Times, Vindman said he also planned to focus on improving veterans programs and keeping the military nonpolitical. Last time Trump ran, I was in uniform, I was not in a position to do anything political. This time, I want to juxtapose what integrity is, what Army values are versus what Trump is presenting, he said at the time. Vindman may have to face headwinds in the race due to President Bidens rocky debate performance in Atlanta, which has sparked fears of a down-ballot liability. Several Democrats running in competitive House districts this cycle have already broken from the president over the issue. Farnsworth, however, said that Bidens poor performance in the debate or Trumps conviction for trying to hide a payment to a porn actor during his 2016 campaign may matter less in the 7th District than in some places. There are so many people with fixed partisan opinions in this country that a bad debate performance, a conviction on a felony, it doesnt seem to move the needle much in terms of public opinion, he told The Hill. And Trump has traditionally struggled in suburban areas in Virginia, making him less of an asset in the 7th than he would be in more rural areas. Seth Lynn, a founder of the nonpartisan Veterans Campaign, an organization that trains veterans running for office, told The Hill that in swing districts a veteran status can give candidates a bump over their nonveteran competitors. In the case of Virginias 7th District, however, the two candidates are on more equal ground. In swing districts that really could go either way, having something else, a background that has some appeal across party lines, I think Vindman fits pretty well into that, Lynn said. Two veterans going head-to-head for a seat in Congress is not unheard of, with the 2022 election cycle featuring a surge of former service members from the wars of the 1990s and those following the attacks of 9/11. Numerous House and Senate races in the midterms involved two veterans, including in Indiana, where incumbent Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.), a Naval Academy graduate who served in the Marine Corps and is now a senator, beat out Thomas McDermott Jr., who served in the Navy aboard a nuclear submarine. And in Virginias 2nd District, then-Rep. Elaine Luria (D), a 20-year Navy veteran and prominent House Armed Services Committee member, was beat out by former Navy helicopter pilot Jen Kiggans, a Republican Virginia state senator. But the 7th District is promising to be a particularly bruising race, with both parties viewing the race as winnable in a fierce contest for the House majority. I think the RNC is going to look at the 7th as the most likely pickup in Virginia, political analyst Bob Holsworth said. I expect this to be heavily competitive, I expect a lot of money to be raised, and its crucial for the Democrats if theyre going to take the House to hold on to this seat. The race has already become personal. Anderson on Tuesday accused Vindman of running to pursue a personal vendetta, contending that he was a newcomer to the district and not focused on local matters, according to a post on his campaigns Facebook page. Anderson, who has pitched himself as the homegrown candidate, grew up in Spotsylvania County and has since returned after graduating from Georgetown University Law Center in 2019, according to his campaign page. Vindman, who grew up in New York City after his family fled from the Soviet Union in 1979, settled in Dale City, Va., in 2016 when he was assigned to the Pentagon. Farnsworth predicted both campaigns will be amply funded given both parties want bragging rights, and this is in the Washington media market. So it will be an expensive race, one of the more expensive races in 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. Two men are behind bars in connection to drug trafficking. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said last month, the GBI, the FBI, Cook County Sheriffs Office, Hahira Police Department, and Georgia State Patrol arrested Shyiem Marquon Banks, 28, and Roderick Dion Collins, 36. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] This was following a joint investigation into drug trafficking in Adel, Georgia. Authorities searched the home of Collins and Banks on June 28, which led to the seizure of 210 grams of suspected methamphetamine, 3.2 pounds of suspected marijuana, 13 grams of suspected alpha-PVP (Flakka/bath salts), over 90 suspected oxycodone tablets, and two guns. The GBI said Banks faces several charges including three counts of trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a schedule II controlled substance, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. TRENDING STORIES: The GBI said Collins is being charged with two counts of conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine, trafficking in methamphetamine, possession of a controlled substance with intent to distribute, possession of a schedule II controlled substance, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Both men were taken to the Cook County Jail. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: 2024 is not 1968 and the Democratic convention in Chicago will play out very differently than in the days of Walter Cronkite The presidential nominating conventions every four years are political events, but they are also media events. Since the advent of television, Democratic and Republican national convention organizers have sought to tightly stage-manage their gatherings for home viewers, and theyve often succeeded. But not always. One of the worst misfires was the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago, when anti-war activists on Michigan Avenue chanted to the TV cameras the whole world is watching, as Mayor Richard J. Daleys police beat them with billy clubs. In the convention hall itself, delegates staged their own protests for the cameras, and Daleys security forces famously punched CBS newsman Dan Rather. Images of that chaos circulated for months, and the Democratic nominee Hubert Humphrey never fully made up the points he lost when Americans saw that violence on their TV sets. As an expert on the 1968 convention and, in particular, on how TV news covered that crisis, Ive been thinking about how Chicago might handle or mishandle the Democratic convention as both a political and a media event this August. Fear of a 68 replay looms large, as the city has thus far denied permits to groups seeking to gather near the United Center, site of the convention. That denial of permits feels like a page from the Daley playbook. But just because a situation echoes the past does not mean history is repeating itself. Todays media is completely different, and a machine politician is no longer at the helm in Chicago. Protesters outnumbered by law enforcement Since 1998, conventions have been legally designated as national special security events, managed largely by the Secret Service. But back in 1968, Daley decisively held the reins. Asked whether his police had over-reacted to protesters, Daley declared, The policeman is not here to create disorder. The policeman is here to preserve disorder, a statement that was less malapropism than Freudian slip. Under his guidance, the city was secured like a fortress, as 10,000 protesters faced off against phalanxes of police and National Guardsmen, with demonstrators outnumbered 2 to 1. Daley scared off thousands with law and order threats in advance of the convention, but its reasonable to expect a much higher number of demonstrators arriving in 2024. Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson is a progressive who is widely perceived as more sympathetic to activists than to the police. He has not discouraged protest at the upcoming convention. That fact alone marks a pivotal difference between Johnson and Daley. Johnson is a Democrat, but not the team player and machine boss that Daley was. Nor is he the authoritarian that Daley was. Daley had the police in his back pocket. He did not, however, have the media in his back pocket, and neither does Johnson. In fact, even if he wanted to, Johnson could not suppress the voices of journalists, influencers, bloggers, TikTokkers and podcasters sure to descend upon Chicago. The media ecosystem is radically different from what it was 50-plus years ago, when news was more centralized and media technologies were less portable and more difficult to obtain by nonprofessionals. Kneecapping news reporting Taking advantage of this top-down communications structure, Daley did everything he could to stymie journalism during the convention. Crucially, he did not resolve an electrical workers strike against the local phone company, which led to a double-edged crisis. First, not enough extra phones were installed on the convention floor and other key areas such as convention hotels. That shortage made it difficult for print journalists to communicate with editors and call in stories. The 3,200 extra telephones installed before the convention fell far short of what was needed. It boggles the mind, but this was life before everyone carried phones in their pockets. Second, the electrical lines and hookups the networks needed for live street coverage could not be installed because of the strike, which meant the only live TV coverage was in the convention hall itself. Film footage shot in the streets was raced by motorcycle couriers to the convention site, the International Amphitheatre, where it was developed, edited and aired. An awkward but more accurate chant during the Battle of Michigan Avenue would have been, The whole world will be watching in three or four hours! CBS, NBC and ABC understood that Daley was deliberately kneecapping them. It felt like a total news blackout, as exasperated CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite declared, an atypical, quick aside that perhaps only a media historian obsessively rewatching every moment of network convention coverage would pick up on. NBC anchorman Chet Huntley reported that the news profession in this city is now under assault by the Chicago police. These were heavy words. Before the rise of cable news, much of which slants left or right, the professional norms dominating TV news insistently dictated neutrality. If Huntley went out on a limb to critique Chicago police, it had to be true. Or did it? Could Huntley be trusted? A CBS reporter is thrown to the ground in a scuffle with security staff on the third day of the 1968 Democratic National Convention. Pictorial Parade/Archive Photos/Getty Images Support for police, not journalists This is the part of the story that sounds most contemporary. In surveys taken after the convention, and mountains of letters and telegrams sent to the networks, a majority of Americans judged the police to have used an appropriate amount of force or even insufficient force against protesters. Criticism of violence against journalists was scant. Instead, the networks were accused of liberal bias for showing too much violence on the part of police and not enough on the part of protesters. The CBS News archive is packed with letters from viewers decrying a lack of objectivity. Many harshly declared that Dan Rather got what he deserved. Broadcasters responded to critics that they had merely shown what happened. A rigorous content analysis done by NBC at the time found that 3% of the networks coverage included street demonstrations. CBS showed closer to 5%, by NBCs estimation. Having watched the gavel-to-gavel coverage, I can attest that, if anything, the networks undercovered police violence against protesters, not the opposite. Suppression unimaginable today In 1968, defenders of Daley claimed that the press told the Chicago story incorrectly, but they didnt deny that the police had been violent. Today, by contrast, basic truths are subject to partisanship, and the belief that the mainstream media is infused with liberal bias has taken root among conservatives and those farther right. Former President Donald Trump exploited this preexisting worldview to his benefit while in office, and after, spreading the falsehood that the 2020 election had been stolen from him. GOP members of Congress and Fox News personalities likewise tapped into a belief among their followers that mainstream media could not be believed when they described footage of the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6 as evidence not of an insurrection but of sightseeing. Accusations of fake news and exclamations that the mainstream media is the enemy of the people have put journalists in jeopardy not only at high-profile events such as political conventions but also during their everyday work. This will all weigh heavily in the air in Chicago in August. And at the GOP convention in Milwaukee in July. The suppression of live coverage is unimaginable today, with mainstream media distributing instant images, and nonprofessional videos circulating like quicksilver on social media. With phones that also function as cameras in everyones hands in 2024, the challenge for Americans observing both conventions from afar will be less censorship and a paucity of live imagery than the reverse an overabundance of unsorted imagery, potentially coupled with a proliferation of disinformation, amplified by those with malicious intent. There are many differences between the 1968 and 2024 conventions. One of the biggest is that now, the whole world is filming. The problem today is not how much we can see but how much we can believe. 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: Heather Hendershot, Northwestern University Read more: Heather Hendershot does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. The Republican National Committee's platform committee adopted a new GOP platform on Monday -- and it softens language on the issue of abortion, marking a shift in the party's stance to more closely align with the views of former President Donald Trump. The platform says that Republicans "will oppose Late Term Abortion while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments)," according to the document obtained by ABC News. The 2024's brief section on abortion also states that the GOP "believes" that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution "guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights" bolstering Trump's view that the issue should be determined at the state level. That's a change from the GOP's 2016 and 2020 platforms that supported legislation that would have imposed a 20-week federal abortion ban -- language that Trump ran on both cycles. MORE: Trump campaign memo signals plans to reduce the national GOP platform Full RNC membership will vote to officially confirm the platform from the convention floor, according to an RNC spokesperson. The party's convention takes place next week in Milwaukee. Trump dialed into the meeting Monday morning and "described why some parts are in" the platform, according to the committee member. During the meeting, Trump also expressed his approval of a draft of the new Republican Party platform, according to a source familiar with the meeting. Trump took a victory lap after the platform committee voted to approve a new overhauled party platform plan to better align with his political posture. Ours is a forward-looking Agenda with strong promises that we will accomplish very quickly when we win the White House and Republican Majorities in the House and Senate. We are, quite simply, the Party of Common Sense! America needs determined Republican Leadership at every level of Government to address the core threats to our very survival, Trump wrote on his social media platform. The platform's mention of abortion, however, came near the end of the full document. It is not included as part of the platform's 20 principles that are prioritized first in the language. The first two of those principals call to "seal the border" and "carry out the largest deportation operation in American history." Those are followed by "end inflation" and "make America the dominant energy producer in the world." Notably, the U.S. is already the top global oil producer. Other points include "large tax cuts for workers and no tax on tips," "defend our constitution," "prevent World War III" by restoring peace in Europe and the Middle East and putting an end to "weaponization" of the government. PHOTO: President Donald Trump pauses while speaking during a rally in Charlotte, N.C., March 2, 2020. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE) A political party's platform distinctly outlines its positions on foreign and domestic policies, but it is not binding and doesn't directly impact the work of elected officials or candidates. Monday's move by the committee comes as abortion remains a key issue for voters in an election year in what is expected to be a close race between Trump and President Joe Biden. In 2016, the Republican Party -- on their way to nominating Trump for the first time -- adopted a strict, conservative platform around issues of gender and sexual orientation against the efforts by some of the party's more moderate faction to soften that language. An identical platform was approved in 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic made it difficult for party committees to convene and adjust language. During that convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, Trump was chosen as the party's nominee for a second time. The Republican platform since the 1980s has articulated support for a constitutional amendment that would assert the sanctity and protection of human life, extending to unborn children. This is the first time in 40 years that the RNC has not explicitly endorsed a national ban on abortion in the platform. PHOTO: Signage promoting Milwaukee as the 2024 host of the Republican National Convention inside the Fiserv Forum during the Republican National Convention (RNC) fall media walkthrough in Milwaukee, Wis., on Nov. 30, 2023. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE) Now, in 2024, the GOP will work to finalize a platform for the first time since the Dobbs decision overturned the constitutional right to an abortion more than two years ago. The plan could play an outsized role in establishing the ideals of a party reinvented by the former president, who has been clear about his opposition to a federal ban and his preference for this issue to be left up to the states. Trump's position on reproductive rights has worried some anti-abortion activists and RNC members who have expressed concern that the call for a "right to life" amendment would be stripped from the platform this year. A platform committee member who spoke with ABC News following the vote, which passed 84-14, said there was a lot of "unanimity" around the language, even from some of the more socially conservative members who have been vocally opposing a platform reflective of Trump's abortion stances. MORE: Donald Trump will define 2024 RNC platform, committee members say "We had a whole bunch of people stand up and go the microphone [during a comment section]. And for the most part, things were really quite upbeat. People were happy to see this document," the member said. Following the vote, SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser -- a major antiabortion leader and one of the individuals lobbying the Trump team about the platform this year -- released a statement supporting the document. "It is important that the GOP reaffirmed its commitment to protect unborn life today through the 14th Amendment. Under this amendment, Congress enacts and enforces its provisions. The Republican Party remains strongly pro-life at the national level. The mission of the pro-life movement, for the next six months, must be to defeat the Biden-Harris extreme abortion agenda," Dannenfelser wrote. "The platform allows us to provide the winning message to 10 million voters, with four million visits at the door in key battleground states," Dannenfelser added. But others, including Gayle Ruzicka, a Republican National Committee platform member from Utah, told ABC affiliate WISN that she was disappointed with how the platform vote was forced on committee members and with how it handled abortion. "I'm extremely disappointed that we do not have any pro-life language. There are good things in this platform. This is the first time we don't have a pro-life platform. The platform simply says that we oppose late-term abortion. Well, what about before that? Ruzicka said. At a political event in Waukesha, Wisconsin, following the vote on Monday afternoon, RNC Chairman Michael Whatley dispelled notions that the platform was weak on the issue of abortion. "We have a very solid pro-life platform. We feel very, very solid about it. I think you can just look at the number of pro-life groups from across the country that have come in and said that they strongly support this platform. Look, the Republican Party stands for life. And we are always going to stand for life. I think when you look at this platform, you're going to see that it is very pro-America. It is very pro-family. It is very pro-life. And we feel very strong about the language that we have," Whatley said. The Biden campaign responded to the GOP platform's softened language on abortion by reinforcing their stance that Trump, should he regain the presidency, would not be moderate on the issue. "Despite Trump and his teams best efforts, the American people are clear on just how far he would go to rip away their freedoms and theyll vote accordingly this November," Biden-Harris 2024 Spokesperson Sarafina Chitika said in a statement. Donald Trump has made it clear with his own words and actions what he will do if he regains power rip away womens freedoms, punish women, and ban abortion nationwide. You dont have to take it from us, take it from Trump himself: Hes proud to have killed Roe v. Wade and unleashed extreme bans with no exceptions for rape or incest, which he calls a beautiful thing to watch. He promised to be leading the charge to ban abortion nationwide, and said hed fight side by side with extremists who want to ban abortion entirely. Trump himself said that women should be punished for having an abortion, that doctors should be criminalized for doing their jobs, and that hes looking at restrictions on birth control," she added. ABC News' Brittany Shepherd, Hannah Demissie and Lalee Ibssa contributed to this report. RNC committee adopts GOP's 2024 policy platform -- including on abortion originally appeared on abcnews.go.com BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan continues to be a reliable partner for China, Ding Tao, Charge d'Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Azerbaijan, said during a conference on the promotion of logistics and trade in Azerbaijan, SCO demonstration area, Trend reports. "China and Azerbaijan are genuine friends and strong partners, cooperating on the basis of equality and mutual benefit. Over the past 32 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, our two countries have enjoyed healthy and stable development despite changes in the international arena," he said. Tao recalled that the recently concluded Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Astana provided a platform for a successful meeting between the heads of state of China and Azerbaijan, where they jointly announced the establishment of a strategic partnership. "The joint statement issued reflects both sides' firm support for their core interests, recognition of each other's policies and concepts, and pursuit of high-quality pragmatic cooperation. Raising the level of relations in Central Asia has been an important step in the history of our bilateral relations, bringing more stability and positive energy to maintaining peace and development in the world," he added. He pointed out that trade turnover between Azerbaijan and China shot up by 43.5 percent to a whopping $3.1 billion by the end of 2023. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel 24-year-old man accused of threatening to kill Nashua, New Hampshire police officers on social media A 24-year-old man accused of posting threats to kill local police officers on social media and making bomb threats is in custody after a vehicle pursuit into Massachusetts, police said Monday. Daniel Mercado, of Nashua, was held on preventative detention after waiving extradition following his arrest on Friday in Massachusetts, police said. Mercado is charged with two counts of felony criminal threatening, felony false reports (explosives/bomb threats), misdemeanor disobeying an officer, and misdemeanor reckless driving, police said. He is slated to be arraigned in the 9th Circuit District Division Court in Nashua on Monday. On Wednesday, Nashua police officers took a report that Mercado was posting threats on social media saying he was going to kill Nashua Police Officers by shooting them, hitting them with his vehicle, and throwing explosives at them while driving around in his car, police said. Officers found Mercado and his car and tried to stop his vehicle, but Mercado drove off. Police pursued Mercado into Massachusetts, where police stopped him and took him into custody. Officers then learned that Mercado claimed that he had placed timed explosives in Nashua and Merrimack for the Fourth of July, police said. An investigation by detectives later confirmed that Mercados statements about the explosives were false. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the Crime Line at 603-589-1665. 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 second person has been arrested in a Columbus fraud case that involved hundreds of thousands of dollars being stolen, according to the Columbus Police Department. Demetrius Redding, 46, was arrested Saturday over the alleged fraud, which was committed with the help of a Navy Federal Credit Union employee, according to police. Police said Redding, with Steven Verretts help, deposited four stolen checks totaling $480,142.91 in various bank accounts. Redding is charged with four counts of third-degree forgery and four counts of criminal attempt of theft by deception, police said. Redding is scheduled to appear in Recorders Court at 9 a.m. on Tuesday, according to police. What was first arrest in Columbus fraud case? Verrett was a Navy Federal Credit Union employee who was arrested after the Columbus Police Department discovered fraud activity amounting to more than $800,000, CPD said in a news release Wednesday, according to Ledger-Enquirer reporting. Police said Verrett used legitimate customers at his desk as cover while he deposited counterfeit checks and opened fraudulent vehicle loans. Verrett would then funnel the money back to himself and co-conspirators, according to police. Police said the initial five checks were reported stolen from the mail and amounted to more than $800,000. Ledger-Enquirer reporting shows Verrett was facing 31 fraud-related charges, 18 of which were felonies, as of early June. 3 airlifted, including child after boat crashes into bridge in Florida Keys 3 airlifted, including child after boat crashes into bridge in Florida Keys Video above: Boat captain navigates common busy boating weekend problems TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Three people, including a child, were airlifted to mainland hospitals following an overnight boat crash in the Florida Keys. The center console boat was traveling at a high rate of speed around 2 a.m. on Monday when it crashed into the South Pine Channel Bridge, Monroe County spokesperson Kristen Livengood confirmed. Seven people were aboard the boat during the crash. Monroe County Fire Rescue was able to safely remove all seven passengers from the boat before the vessel sank. Florida teen took grandmothers gun, shot into car with 4 people inside, deputies say The other four passengers were taken to local hospitals. The severity of the seven passengers injuries is unknown at this time. Seatow and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission responded to the crash; however, the boat was still in the water on Monday morning. The FWC is still investigating what led up to the crash. This is a developing story. Stay up to date on the latest from News Channel 8 on-air and on the go with the free WFLA News Channel 8 mobile app. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA. MCDOWELL COUNTY, N.C. (WJHL) Three people are dead after a plane that left from Johnson County crashed in McDowell County, North Carolina on Sunday night. McDowell County Emergency Management issued a press release shortly before 9:30 a.m. Monday stating crews were on the scene of a plane crash near Brackett Town Road in Dysartsville. At 1:09 p.m., McDowell County Emergency Management issued a new release confirming three fatalities in the crash. Sheriffs Department: 31 dogs seized in Greene County animal cruelty case Johnson County Airport Manager Dave Garris confirmed the plane took off from Johnson County around 8:30 p.m. on Sunday but never reached its destination. The plane had been bound for Rutherfordton, North Carolina, Garris told News Channel 11. The identities of the deceased have not been released. McDowell County Emergency Management stated the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) was on the scene Monday afternoon. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) was also alerted to the crash and will lead the investigation, the release stated. The FAA confirmed the plane was a single-engine Cessna 182. The FAA told News Channel 11 that the plane crashed in the mountains near Rutherfordton and that three people had been aboard. An FAA spokesperson said a preliminary incident report will likely be available on Tuesday. The NTSB said in a statement that an investigator was heading to the scene as of Monday afternoon. The investigator will start the process of documenting the scene and examining the wreckage of the plane crash. An NTSB investigation looks at three main sectors: the pilot, the aircraft and the operating environment. Anyone who may have witnessed the plane crash is asked to contact the NTSB by emailing witness@ntsb.gov. A preliminary report from the NTSB will be available within 30 days. More than a dozen departments responded to the crash scene on Monday. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. 3-year-old was underwater for 3 min., flown to hospital after falling into pool in Georgetown A three-year-old girl was underwater for three minutes when she fell into a pool before she was pulled out and flown from the North Shore to a Boston hospital Sunday. The girl fell into an above-ground pool on North Street shortly in Georgetown before 5:00 p.m., a spokesperson for Georgetown Police and Fire Departments told Boston 25. Off-duty Georgetown and Newbury firefighters arrived at the home to find the girl had been pulled from the pool but was unresponsive. The crews were able to perform CPR and the girl regained her pulse and breathing. Officers, firefighters and paramedics rushed the girl to Anna Jacques Hospital in Newburyport where she was flown by medical helicopter to a Boston hospital. Georgetown Fire and Police are investigating the incident. 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 With blue and red lanyards that reveal their political leanings, participants practice civil political conversations at the Braver Angels 2024 conference in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Friday, June 27, 2024. | Jeffrey Sevier, Braver Angels This article was first published in the ChurchBeat newsletter. Sign up to receive the newsletter in your inbox each Wednesday night. Divisions among the Founding Fathers 237 years ago this month imperiled the Constitutional Convention. George Washington explained what saved the Constitution when he submitted it to Congress that September with a letter. The Constitution, which we now present, is the result of a spirit of amity, and of that mutual deference and concession which the peculiarity of our political situation rendered indispensable, Washington wrote. Amity, mutual deference and concession are not just three virtues that created the Constitution, former BYU general counsel Thomas Griffith said Friday, June 28, at the annual conference of Braver Angels in Kenosha, Wisconsin. They are needed to sustain the Constitution today, said Griffith, former judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, widely considered the second-most important and powerful court in the country. The example set by Washington, Benjamin Franklin and others in 1787 is vital in this perilous moment of toxic political polarization, Griffith said during a week that included a presidential debate and major Supreme Court rulings. Griffith also quoted President Dallin H. Oaks, first counselor in the First Presidency of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who recently told church members that, on contested issues, we should seek to moderate and unify. The Constitutional Convention moderated division in three key ways, Griffith said, pulling from a journal article by Stanfords Derek Webb, The Original Meaning of Civility: Democratic Deliberation at the Philadelphia Constitutional Convention: First, the conventions rules banned talking, reading and writing while someone was speaking, which promoted careful listening. Second, the delegates formed dinner groups across regional and ideological lines. (Griffith loosely paraphrased what George Mason of Virginia wrote to his son People from New England arent so bad after all!) Third and most important, a group of moderates met in Benjamin Franklins home and agreed to persuade their colleagues to compromise for the sake of unity even before they knew the terms of the compromise. They put, Griffith said, the nations well-being ahead of (their) own interests. Griffith recommended a new book he called the most important ever written on the Constitution: American Covenant: How the Constitution Unified Our Nation And Could Again. He said the author, Yuval Levin, shows that the Constitution not only protects Americans rights, it also creates a governmental structure that can only work when majorities and minorities act together through negotiation, compromise, and conciliation. Following the processes of government the Constitution creates gives us practical experience in living and acting together, Griffith said. Braver Angels is dedicated to political depolarization. It promotes the active listening modeled by Washington, Franklin and the rest of those who were in Philadelphia in 1787. For example, Braver Angels kicked off its convention last week by hosting what it called the largest cross-partisan Biden-Trump debate watch party in the country. Hundreds of Biden voters and Trump voters watched the presidential debate side by side, then spoke civilly about what theyd watched, following the organizations guidelines for conversations between conservative Reds and liberal Blues. Braver Angels has created a petition asking U.S. leaders to address division in America, hosts workshops on difficult issues to seek cross-partisan points of agreement and is sponsoring an election day activity to have Red/Blue pairs show up together at the polls. The Deseret News is partnering with the A Braver Way podcast during the four months leading up to the presidential election. To read a Deseret News Q&A with the podcaster, Monica Guzman, author of I Never Thought of It That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curious Conversations in Dangerously Divided Times, click here. My recent stories How Andy Reids belief in Jesus Christ and experiences with Michael Vick guide the Kansas City Chiefs (July 3) About the church What Im reading Two people were killed in a Russian missile strike on the Okhmadyt specialised children's hospital in Kyiv on 8 July. One of them was Svitlana Lukianchuk, a 30-year-old from Lviv who worked as a paediatric nephrologist, says Lviv Mayor Andrii Sadovyi. "Svitlana was born in Lviv. She was an orphan and was brought up by her aunt. She graduated from the Oleksandr Bohomolets National Medical University. After that, she completed her internship," Sadovyi wrote. The mayor added that Svitlana would be buried near her parents at Lviv's Holoskivske Cemetery. As of 15:30, the death toll from the Russian missile strike in Kyiv has risen to 20. Two people were killed in the grounds of the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital, and another 16 were injured. The medical facility next door, the Ukrainian Ministry of Health's Center for Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, was also damaged in the Russian bombardment. According to Ukraines Ministry of Health, the Russians hit the building which housed the toxicology department of the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital, where children were having dialysis. Following the air-raid warning, the acting head of the intensive care unit reported that the children were in the basement during the bombardment, and the doctors were in the corridor. Support UP or become our patron! FRANKLIN COUNTY, Mo. The Saint Louis Zoo is celebrating the births of four American red wolves at its Wildlife Reserve in Franklin County this spring. The pups are part of the most endangered wolf species on Earth. According to a zoo spokesperson, a female pup named Otter was born on April 26 to parents Lava, 8, and Tyke, 9. Both Lava and Tyke came to the Wildlife Reserve in late 2023 from the Wolf Conservation Center in New York State. Three additional pupsMolly, Finn, and Obiwere born on May 4 to parents Ladybird, 3, and Wilber, 8. Ladybird came to the Wildlife Reserve from the Endangered Wolf Center in Eureka, Missouri. Wilber was sent from Homosassa Springs Wildlife Park in Florida. The zoo said all four pups had their first checkups in late June and are healthy and doing well. Police searching for escaped prisoner in Warren County The zoo opened the 355-acre Wildlife Reserve in 2022 to help save critically endangered American species. Peggy Lehmann donated the land to the zoo in 1993 in honor of her late husband, Sears Lehmann Jr. About 20 American red wolves (Canis rufus) remain in the wild and they can only be found in eastern North Carolina. Red wolves were once spread across the southern and eastern United States, from Texas to Missouri to New York. Unfortunately, a red wolf has not been seen in Missouri since the 1950s. The species was declared extinct in the wild in 1980. The red wolf is the largest carnivore solely native to the United States. The wolves weigh less than gray wolvesabout 65 poundsand are distinguishable by the reddish fur around their head, ears, and legs. The Wildlife Reserve is not open to the public, and staff has limited contact with the red wolves to allow them to maintain their natural behaviors and survival skills. According to the zoo, the goal is to keep the red wolves safe until they can be selected for release into the wild. The red wolf pups will stay with their parents for two years and may then be sent to other partner institutions for breeding and starting their own packs. As of May 2024, approximately 290 red wolves live in human care. Red wolf pup Otter during a June 2024 health checkup at the Saint Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann, Jr. Wildlife Reserve Photo courtesy of Jamie Lombardo via Saint Louis Zoo. A red wolf pup during a June 2024 health checkup at the Saint Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann, Jr. Wildlife Reserve. Photo courtesy of Sara Burran via Saint Louis Zoo. A red wolf pup during a June 2024 health checkup at the Saint Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann, Jr. Wildlife Reserve. Photo courtesy of Joshua Sydney Smith Saint Louis Zoo. A red wolf pup during a June 2024 health checkup at the Saint Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann, Jr. Wildlife Reserve. Photo courtesy of Sara Burran via Saint Louis Zoo. A red wolf pup during a June 2024 health checkup at the Saint Louis Zoo Sears Lehmann, Jr. Wildlife Reserve. Photo courtesy of Jamie Lombardo via Saint Louis Zoo. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. 4 killed, 3 injured at Northern Kentucky house party. What we know Here's what we know about a mass shooting in Florence early Saturday that left four people dead and three wounded. The shooter also died. Police have identified the shooter as 21-year-old Chase Garvey, a Florence resident. They believe he turned the gun on himself a short time after the shooting and died at a local hospital. What happened in Florence mass shooting During a press conference Saturday, Florence Police Chief Jeff Mallery said Garvey is believed to have gunned down seven people at a private residence, killing four and injuring three others. It was during a birthday party at a home in the 2600 block of Ridgecrest Drive around 2:50 a.m. Officers performed life-saving measures on the victims, but four died at the scene. Three others were wounded and taken to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. As of Saturday, Mallery said, they were in stable condition and expected to make a full recovery. What happened to the shooter? Partygoers identified the suspect as Garvey. Police said he fled in a vehicle after the shooting. Officers pursued him south on U.S. 42 into Union and onto Hicks Pike. Police said they believe he shot himself, which caused him to crash the vehicle. Garvey was taken to St. Elizabeth Florence Hospital where he died. An initial investigation by Florence police found Garvey acted alone. Who were the victims? The four killed were: Melissa Parrett, 44, of Florence; Shane Miller, 20, of Florence; Hayden Rybicki, 20, of Elsmere; and Delaney Eary, 19, of Burlington. Parrett, who was nicknamed "Missy," worked at Toyota Boshoku America in Erlanger for over eight years, a company spokesperson told The Enquirer. "Missys commitment, hard work, and positive attitude has left a lasting impact on all of us. We extend our heartfelt condolences to Missys children, family and loved ones during this difficult time," the company said in a statement. Paris Miller, whose brother Shane died in the shooting, said he was a "beautiful soul" and remembered him for his kindness and sense of adventure. If he wasn't spending time with loved ones, he was out in nature with a fishing pole in his hand. Shane Miller was killed in a mass shooting in Florence on Saturday, July 6, 2024. He is remembered for his kindness and sense of adventure. "I want them to all know how loving and caring he was, how much he loved everybody close to him," Paris Miller told The Enquirer. Paris Miller also knew Eary, one of the four killed, saying she had a beautiful smile and kind heart. Eary was an ex-girlfriend of the shooter, Paris Miller said. The names of the three wounded people have not been released. What we know about the shooter's criminal history This is not Garvey's first encounter with law enforcement. Kenton County court records show he was arrested in 2021 and charged in the rape of a 13-year-old girl. In April 2023, Garvey was sentenced to five years of probation after he pleaded guilty to unlawful transaction with a minor in the second degree, a felony, court records show. What qualifies as a mass shooting? The phrase "mass shooting" is typically not used by law enforcement, but rather a way gun violence groups and media quantify incidents where multiple people are shot. There is no widely accepted definition of mass shooting. The nationwide shooting-tracking organization, Gun Violence Archive, defines a mass shooting as an incident in which at least four people are injured, not including the shooter. Everytown For Gun Safety, a gun violence prevention organization that tracks shootings across the U.S., has defined a mass shooting as any incident in which four or more people are killed, excluding the shooter. The organization noted, however, that "research and news coverage of these tragic events has expanded greatly, but the question of how to best define a mass shooting remains unsettled." The FBI calls it a mass shooting "when one or more people engage in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area." The bureaus definition excludes shootings motivated by gang violence, drug violence, domestic disputes or hostage situations. It also does not include shootings resulting from another criminal act, such as a bank robbery. Greater Cincinnati mass shootings in 2024 The mass shooting in Florence is Greater Cincinnati's third such incident this year. On Monday, three people were killed in Cincinnati's Corryville neighborhood. A father and son were among the victims there. On June 15, five people were injured in a shooting during a community gathering in Madisonville. Florence police respond to a call of a shooting that left four victims dead and three others injured police say on the 2600 block of Ridgecrest Drive in Florence, Ky. Saturday, July 6, 2024. The shooting in Florence is the 20th mass killing in the United States this year, according to a database maintained by the Associated Press and USA Today. A mass killing is a broader term than a mass shooting. The Associated Press and USA Today define mass killings as incidents in which at least four people die, but not necessarily as a result of gunfire. Based on early reports from police, the Florence shooting is similar to other mass killings because it occurred in a home, rather than a public place. It may have involved members of the same family. Additionally, it ended with a self-inflicted gunshot wound by the suspect. What we don't know As of Sunday, we do not know the names or updated conditions of the three wounded victims. The Enquirer left a message with Florence police and the University of Cincinnati Medical Center for an update. We also don't know what motivated the shooter or whether he has any connections to those attending the party. Enquirer reporters Aaron Valdez, Killian Baarlaer and Bebe Hodges contributed reporting. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 4 killed at birthday party in Florence, Kentucky, home: What we know A handful of senior Democrats in Congress said that Joe Biden should drop out of the 2024 election during a conference call convened Sunday by Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, adding to the steady trickle of legislators breaking ranks to call for another nominee to be allowed to take the presidents place. The Democrats calling for Biden to side aside were Reps. Jerry Nadler (NY), Adam Smith (WA), Mark Takano (CA), and Joe Morelle (NY), according to NBC News and Politico, which both cited sources familiar with the hour-long call. All four are high-ranking members of vital House committees. Nadler is the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, which he chaired from 2019 to 2023. Smith is his equivalent on the House Armed Services Committee; Takano on the House Veterans Affairs Committee; and Morelle on the House Administration Committee. Several other legislators presentReps. Jim Himes (CT), Zoe Lofgren (CA), Don Beyer (VA), and Rick Larsen (WA)challenged Bidens viability as the candidate to beat Donald Trump in less forceful terms, according to Politico. Additional sources told NBC that there had been an overwhelming sense on the call that Vice President Kamala Harris was the obvious choice to replace Biden. A journalist for Punchbowl News reported on X that Beyer had called Biden clearly very, very fragile and that Harris was in a great position to win in November. The Virginia congressman quickly disputed this, saying in a statement that he supported Biden and the Biden-Harris ticket. Reached for comment on Sunday afternoon, a Biden campaign official pointed The Daily Beast to a Friday statement from the presidents official X account: Im not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work. Im staying in the race, and I will beat Donald Trump. The four new voices add to the slow but steady trickle of Democrats who have publicly and privately begun urging Biden to drop out of the race in the wake of his disastrous performance at the first presidential debate last month. On Tuesday, Rep. Lloyd Doggett (TX) became the first sitting congressional Democrat to call for Biden to abandon his re-election bid. Rep. Raul Grijalva (AZ) soon joined him, telling The New York Times that what Biden needed to do was shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seatand part of that responsibility is to get out of this race. In the days since, Reps. Seth Moulton (MA), Mike Quigley (IL), and Angie Craig (MN) have also emerged to call for the presidents withdrawal. This is not a decision Ive come to lightly, but there is simply too much at stake to risk a second Donald Trump presidency, Craig said in a statement on Saturday morning. Thats why I respectfully call on President Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee for a second term as President and allow for a new generation of leaders to step forward. The impression that Biden may not be able to beat Trump in November, let alone effectively lead the country for four more years, was compounded by a highly-anticipated interview with ABC News that aired on Friday. The president repeatedly dug his heels in during the 22-minute interview, insisting that only the Lord Almighty could get him to drop out. Hes toast, one unimpressed House Democrat told Axios. Still, a significant number of Democratic lawmakers have assembled behind Biden in recent days, publicly and emphatically defending him as the partys best chance of retaining the White House come November. Any leader calling for President Biden to drop out needs to get their priorities straight and stop undermining this incredible actual leader who has delivered real results for our country, Rep. Frederica Wilson (FL) said in a statement. And when you contrast that with a dangerous figure like Donald Trump pushing a radical agenda to be dictator on day one and destroy our democracy, we must do everything in our power to defeat him. Read more at The Daily Beast. Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now. Stay informed and gain unlimited access to the Daily Beast's unmatched reporting. Subscribe now. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan plans to enhance its presence at international tourism exhibitions in China, Head of the Tourism Policy and Strategy Department at the State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan Mahammad Muradov said during a conference on the promotion of logistics and trade in Azerbaijan, SCO demonstration area, Trend reports. He highlighted the tourism sector's vital role in Azerbaijan's economy, which is drawing an increasing number of international and domestic tourists. "In 2023, revenues from tourist accommodation totaled $2.7 billion, marking a 2 percent increase from 2022. The tourism sector now contributes 2.4 percent of GDP, reaching pre-pandemic levels. To ensure sustainable development, Azerbaijan places particular emphasis on promoting tourism in remote regions and continues to pursue efforts in this regard," he stated. Muradov pointed out that Azerbaijan rolled out the red carpet for a whopping 16,609 tourists from China in the first half of 2024, showing a mind-blowing 135 percent surge compared to the same period last year. "We also aim to enhance our presence at international tourism exhibitions in China, launch advertising campaigns, promote Azerbaijan's tourism offerings, and enhance the skills of our professionals in this sector. Additionally, we are committed to developing direct air links and expanding financial services between our countries," he added. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel 13 years ago, he rage-quit an internship and flew to Bali for a 5-day vacation. It changed his entire career plan. 13 years ago, he rage-quit an internship and flew to Bali for a 5-day vacation. It changed his entire career plan. Simen Platou fell in love with Bali, Indonesia, during a 5-day vacation. Those days stretched into 6 months, and eventually, he decided the island was where he wanted to live. It's been 13 years since he left Norway, and he doesn't think he'll move back anytime soon. It's been 13 years since Simen Platou moved to Bali from Norway, and he remembers his first visit to the Indonesian island clearly. Back then, he was doing an internship in Vietnam, and a group of Indonesian couch surfers who were living with him planted the idea of visiting Bali in his head. Intrigued by their stories, Platou decided he wanted to see the island for himself. A week before he was due to depart for Bali, Platou decided to quit his internship because he wasn't enjoying it at all. Then he hopped on the flight and never looked back. Simen Platou with his wife Jennifer and their two kids. Simen Platou/The Simifers "It was before social media and everything, I didn't know anything about Bali at all. I had never seen a picture of Bali. I didn't know that Westerners even lived here," Platou, 38, told Business Insider. "But when I realized that it was a possibility, it just completely changed my whole outlook." What was meant to be a five-day vacation stretched into six months. Platou then returned to Norway to start his master's degree in finance, sticking to the original plan he had set for himself. But after six months in Norway, the allure of Bali was too hard to resist, and Platou never did go ahead with pursuing his master's. "I decided I wanted to be here in Bali instead," he added. Finding a place in Bali The exterior of the villa. Amanda Goh/Business Insider When Platou first started living in Bali in 2011, he stayed in a communal home in Kuta, a region near the south of the island. Known for its surf scene, Kuta was also one of the first tourist developments in Bali. "I had a fan and a shared bathroom with four other people," Platou said. He said he paid 1 million Indonesian rupiah, or $60, a month for the room. In 2014, as other parts of Bali slowly developed, Platou moved further north to Kerobokan an area sandwiched between Seminyak and Canggu where he still lives, now with his wife and two kids. The sofa in the living area. Amanda Goh/Business Insider His three-bedroom house is a leasehold property on a 20-year lease. He first leased it for two years at 170 million Indonesian rupiah, before renewing his lease for another two years at the same amount. He's since extended his lease for another 15 years until 2034 at 370 million Indonesian rupiah for every five years. This averages out to 6.04 million rupiah, or about $370, a month. Platou's two-story villa is tucked away in a quiet street, next to three other villas owned by the same landlord. The open-plan living and dining area. Amanda Goh/Business Insider On the first floor, there's an open-plan living and dining area, a kitchen, and a home office. Upstairs, there's a TV room and two bedrooms. "One is meant to be the kids' bedroom while the other is supposed to be my and my wife's room, but now I'm sleeping with my daughter, and my wife is sleeping with my son," Platou said. The dining table. Amanda Goh/Business Insider The property was brand new when he moved in, but it's been renovated twice over the past few years in order to accommodate his growing family. "When I moved in, I never thought that I was going to have a family here and everything, so we kind of done it as we've gone along," he said. The baby fence around the pool and the new doors that close in their first-floor living space are fairly new additions. A lounge chair by the kitchen counter. Amanda Goh/Business Insider "Before that, we had no AC in here," Platou added. The house wasn't built with the best materials, which caused things in the house to deteriorate quickly, he said. Even though he doesn't own the property, Platou says that he's paid for everything that he's changed from the water pump to the kitchen out of pocket. A sofa on the upper floor of their villa. Amanda Goh/Business Insider "I am OK with that because I spend so much time here and because I've locked in the rent so early that it's relatively cheap, so it's still worth it," he said. Although he has another 10 years left on his lease, he's hoping to build a new house elsewhere for his family soon. Embracing a slower pace of life Platou's done a lot of different things since he moved to Bali, from starting his own clothing business to doing marketing for insurance companies. The kids' room. Amanda Goh/Business Insider In the past couple of years, Platou's been investing in real estate. He's currently completing two holiday villa rentals in Pererenan, near Canggu. As an entrepreneur, Platou says he loves the flexibility in Bali. "I work for myself, and I can work whenever I want to, but the best thing about Bali is that everyone else does it too," Platou said. This is different from what life was like in Norway. Platou and his wife sleep with their kids. Amanda Goh/Business Insider "With my work hours in Norway, I wouldn't have anyone to hang out with," Platou said. "Even when I go there in the summer, the friends that don't have vacation, we can't meet up it doesn't matter that I have time off. But here, everyone has similar schedules so it's easy to gather." It's also easy for him to meet new people who have similar interests. "Moving here as an adult, I think it would be easy as long as you put yourself out there a little bit," Platou said. "I feel like here, if you want to meet people, you'll meet people." One of the bathrooms in the house. Amanda Goh/Business Insider It also helps that the expat community in Bali is large, Platou said that many others he's met along the way have the same attitude toward making friends and letting new people in. Like many locals, Platou has a motorbike that he uses to get around the island quickly. And it's another contributor to his social life. "If I'm going to meet up with a friend, it's easy for me to go anywhere. In Norway, it's like I have to check what time the metro runs and how far the walk is on each side," he said. There's a child fence around the pool. Amanda Goh/Business Insider But the best part of Bali has, by far, been the people, he said. "I've always experienced people's willingness to help," Platou said. "When I first started my clothing line here, I didn't know anything about production or design. But all the people I met were just so helpful. They took me to factories, showed me how to do it, and let me sell stuff in their stores. I think in other places people would probably be a bit more competitive." Bali is continuing to change Platou has a word of caution for those who want to move to Bali. Because of how quickly the island is developing, it may look and feel different from what people expect. "You have to be a little bit mindful of your long-term plans. So don't build a villa rice field view because it could be gone in six months. Lastly, the island has more to offer than popular tourist spots such as Canggu and Seminyak, he said. "I think a lot of people when they come here, expect the tropical life but end up moving to what is now a semi-city," Platou added. Have you recently built or renovated your dream home? If you've got a story to share, get in touch with me at agoh@businessinsider.com . Correction: July 10, 2024 An earlier version of this story misstated the profile's education plans. He decided not to go ahead with pursuing his master's. Read the original article on Business Insider DENVER (KDVR) Multiple people were injured in an early morning car crash on Interstate 25 in Denver. A little after 4 a.m. Monday, the Denver Police Department said officers were investigating a single-car crash near southbound I-25 and West 8th Avenue. FOX31 Newsletters: Sign up to get breaking news sent to your inbox Denver police said five people inside the car were taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. The crash caused some delays in the area, but all lanes have since been reopened. Denver police have not said what factors may have led to the crash. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. The Supreme Court wrapped up its latest term last week by releasing its final few rulings and an order list with updates from the justices last meeting before their summer break. The list highlighted five new additions to the Supreme Courts next term, including a case on age-verification requirements on websites that might be harmful to minors. There are now nearly 30 cases set to be heard during the 2024-25 term, and the justices will likely add at least 50 more to its schedule over the next eight months. The Supreme Court will be back in session in three months on Oct. 7 to hear its first oral arguments of the new term. Cases the Supreme Court will hear next Heres a look at some of the most notable issues the Supreme Court will consider later this year. Gender-related health care for minors Case name: United States v. Skrmetti Key question: Does a Tennessee law preventing transgender children and teens from accessing certain gender-related medical treatments, like hormone therapy, violate the Constitution since other young people can still access those treatments? Lower court ruling: The teens who challenged Tennessees law secured a partial victory at the district court level. The judge put aspects of the law dealing with hormone therapy and puberty blockers on hold, but not the part dealing with gender-transition surgeries, since the teens hadnt been candidates for such surgeries. But the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals later overturned that decision and reinstated the law. Ghost guns Case name: Garland v. VanDerStok Key question: Should a weapon parts kit that can be used by the buyer to assemble a ghost gun be regulated the same as a more traditional firearm? Lower court ruling: A federal district court judge said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives regulations for ghost guns should be on hold while the case plays out, and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed. But in August, the Supreme Court overturned that temporary order, allowing the ATFs regulations to take effect. Since then, the lower courts have again ruled against the ATF, deciding that gun kits do not fall under the Gun Control Act of 1968s definition of firearm. Age-verification on pornography sites Case name: Free Speech Coalition v. Paxton Key question: When adults challenge kid-focused age-verification rules for websites with adult content, what legal test should judges use when considering the challenged policies? Lower court ruling: The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld Texas age-verification rules, but now the Supreme Court will debate whether the judges asked the wrong questions. A major environmental law Case name: Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado Key question: Whats the scope of the National Environmental Policy Act? Lower court ruling: The Surface Transportation Board said a proposed rail project in Utah could satisfy the National Environmental Policy Acts environmental review requirements without studying how the rail lines eventual cargo crude oil would affect the environment. The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals applied the act differently, deciding that the rail project cant move forward until organizers undertake a broader environmental impact study. CBD products Case name: Medical Marijuana v. Horn Key question: What counts as a business or property under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations, or RICO, Act? Lower court: A federal district court ruled against a former truck driver attempting to use RICO to challenge the makers of a CBD product that he alleged had led to him losing his job through its misleading advertising. It said that RICO doesnt apply to a personal injury like the loss of your job. The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals then reinstated the mans RICO claim, ruling that losing your job amounts to a harm to your business, which is part of the law. Supreme Court trends Although the Supreme Court will more than double the current list of 2024-25 cases by this time next year, its already clear that the justices will return to some familiar themes next term. For example, the ghost guns case has much in common with the recently concluded terms case on bump stocks. In each, the Supreme Court was asked to consider how to apply old gun laws to the modern gun market and how much leeway the executive branch has to enforce new gun restrictions in the absence of new laws from Congress. And in the case on environmental impact studies, the Supreme Court has yet another opportunity to limit the reach of the EPA. In the past two years, the justices have done just that in cases on air pollution rules and protection for wetlands. Its also notable that the Supreme Court has not yet taken up a First Amendment religion case. Religious freedom played almost no role in the 2023-24 term, breaking a streak of several years in which it took center stage, as the Deseret News previously reported. 5-Year Legal Battle Pays Off for Black Residents Who Sued Their City for Condemning Their Properties Joseph Askew Sr. reveled in good news on a recent Sunday afternoon. The 77-year-old retiree has been in a legal battle to keep his historic properties from being destroyed by the city officials in his hometown, Kinston, North Carolina. Already, theyve demolished some of his properties. He contends its because of his race because officials ignored dilapidated properties owned or located in predominantly white neighborhoods. The fight hasnt been in vain. After five years of litigation, Askew is finally celebrating a win. On June 28, the North Carolina Supreme Court unanimously ruled in their favor, overturning a prior doubly flawed analysis from the North Carolina Court of Appeals, wrote Justice Anita Earls a Democrat and only Black justice on the states Supreme Court. I feel good. I feel great, Askew told Capital B of the ruling. This decision is rare, given the politically conservative nature of the high court, Ralph Bryant, Askews attorney, told Capital B. The legal issue of protecting the constitutional rights of individual citizens of our state was understood to be so important, that all political inclinations were set aside and justice prevailed, Bryant added. In the days since the opinion, Askew has been busy. Hes made calls near and far beyond Kinstons borders, rallying people together to attend his press conference where he will share the news. Although hes always been optimistic, the journey hasnt been easy. Read more: This City Wants to Raze Black Properties, at the Cost of Generational Wealth. It started in 2017, when city officials added the properties of Askew and two other Black residents Curtis Washington and Charlie Gordon Wade III to their condemnation list. Kinston ramped up its efforts to take a more targeted approach to improve the appearance of neighborhoods by condemning and demolishing blighted houses. The city increased its demolition fund from $50,000 to $125,000 in 2018. They pledged the properties fit within their criteria, refuting the racial bias claims. But, Askew, Washington, and Wade didnt see it that way. In 2019, they filed a lawsuit in federal court, which dismissed it for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. In 2021, a trial court judge ruled in favor of Kinston, stating the plaintiffs failed to establish evidence and hadnt exhausted their administrative remedies before proceeding with a lawsuit. Rather than sue, they argue that Askew and others shouldve gone through the local process, such as submitting a written appeal to the city for condemning their properties. In 2022, the North Carolina Court of Appeals followed suit and dismissed the plaintiffs discrimination claims. The plaintiffs brought forth a constitutional law claim, which means there is no other adequate state remedy to address the discrimination issue. The precedent for this argument was set in 1992, when the state Carolina Supreme Court ruled in Corum v. University of North Carolina, that in the absence of an adequate state remedy, one whose state constitutional rights have been abridged has a direct claim against the State under our Constitution. Exhaustion of administrative remedies does not dictate jurisdiction over Corum claims. That authority flows from the Constitution itself, Earls wrote in the opinion. To ensure that North Carolinians may seek to redress all constitutional violations, Corum creates a unique path into court when existing channels fail to offer an adequate remedy. The Supreme Court vacated and remanded the case, which means they reviewed the lower courts decision, found error, and sent it back. Now its up to the Appeals Court to decide it again using the Supreme Courts opinion as guide. The attorney for the city of Kinston did not respond to a request for comment. The post 5-Year Legal Battle Pays Off for Black Residents Who Sued Their City for Condemning Their Properties appeared first on Capital B News. In the five years since sex offender Jeffrey Epstein first walked into a 23rd-floor courtroom in Manhattan -- shackled and dressed in navy blue prison garb -- his victims have hastened the public downfalls of a British prince and other prominent men, provided key testimony that led to the imprisonment of two alleged accomplices, and reached out-of-court settlements totaling more than half a billion dollars. Yet, many of the survivors of Epstein's decades-long sex trafficking scheme are pressing on. They continue to push forward in quests for justice, transparency and accountability from institutions and individuals who allegedly aided, enabled or turned a blind eye to the late financier's criminal behavior. In the first half of 2024 alone, lawsuits on behalf of Epstein's victims have been filed against the Federal Bureau of Investigation, current and former government officials in the U.S. Virgin Islands, Epstein's former lawyer, his longtime accountant and a renowned psychiatrist accused of involvement in the sex-trafficking operation. "I think that their story is not over," said Sigrid McCawley, a lawyer who has spent over a decade advocating for Epstein's victims. "There were so many people involved. And it's remarkable that there was so much facilitation of this trafficking operation by many individuals." All of those accused in the recent litigation -- including the USVI officials, the lawyer, the accountant and the psychiatrist -- have denied the allegations against them. MORE: The rise and fall of Jeffrey Epstein: A timeline of the financier's troubles McCawley, along with other victims' rights lawyers, has represented hundreds of survivors of Epstein's abuse in both criminal and civil actions over the past decade. Her first client was Virginia Roberts Giuffre, whose allegations of sexual abuse in 2014 court filings -- against Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell, Prince Andrew and a host of other well-known men -- ignited a firestorm of news coverage that served as a catalyst to almost everything Epstein-related that transpired over the next decade. PHOTO: Virginia Roberts Giuffre holds a photo of herself at age 16, when she says Palm Beach multimillionaire Jeffrey Epstein began abusing her sexually, March 22, 2018. (Miami Herald/TNS via Getty Images, FILE) Suddenly, Epstein's lenient treatment by authorities in Florida years earlier and his proximity to powerful people were under renewed scrutiny by civil attorneys, journalists and law enforcement. "When I first sat in a room with [Virginia], it was almost an entire day. And I said, 'What is it that you want me to help you with? How can I help you?' And she said, 'I want Epstein and Maxwell to pay for their crimes. I want them to be in prison,'" said McCawley, a managing partner at the law firm Boies Schiller Flexner. MORE: Alleged Epstein victims recount powerful emotions after witnessing financiers New York arraignment Giuffre's civil lawsuit against Maxwell filed in 2015 and settled two years later, served as a sort of dry run for Maxwell's criminal prosecution in 2021. Giuffre alleged that Maxwell -- the socialite daughter of British publishing tycoon Robert Maxwell -- had for years enabled and participated in Epstein's abuse. Federal prosecutors secretly subpoenaed the sealed records of the case and later called as witnesses at Maxwell's trial several of the women who were set to testify in the civil dispute. PHOTO: Ghislaine Maxwell attends an event in New York City, Oct. 18, 2016. (Patrick McMullan via Getty Images, FILE) Maxwell was convicted on five of six counts related to the abuse and trafficking of underage girls and sentenced to 20 years in prison. She is appealing her conviction. A 'big spiraling ride' Among the witnesses against Maxwell was Annie Farmer, who said she was lured by Maxwell and Epstein and sexually abused at his New Mexico ranch when she was just 16 years old. Farmer was also one of just two of Epstein's victims to have the opportunity to confront him at his detention hearing in July 2019. Less than a month later, Epstein was dead. His death was ruled by the New York City Medical Examiner as a suicide by hanging, but widespread skepticism of the official account abounds to this day. Farmer said in an interview this month that attending Epstein's hearing five years ago was like the beginning of a "big spiraling ride." "And I feel like I haven't gotten off," she said. "I didn't anticipate what it would mean to speak at the hearing in terms of the attention that would come with that. And I don't think anyone can really anticipate the way that the news story would take off and take on a life of its own." Farmer's older sister, Maria, was the first person to report Epstein and Maxwell to law enforcement authorities in 1996, but no action was taken. Both sisters also spoke to the FBI in 2006 when federal prosecutors identified at least three dozen alleged victims of Epstein's sexual abuse. But then the government made the infamous "sweetheart deal" with Epstein that allowed him to plead to two relatively minor charges in state court. He served just 13 months of an 18-month sentence, with liberal work release privileges that allowed him to spend up to 16 hours a day at his office in West Palm Beach. Maria Farmer has been pressing for years for the FBI to release records of her initial contact with the agency in 1996. Epstein's '1953 Trust' Epstein's death in 2019 set off a frenzy of activity by victims' advocates in courts from New York to Florida to the U.S. Virgin Islands, where Epstein owned a private island estate. Two days before his death, Epstein amended his will, transferring all the assets of his estate -- valued at more than $650 million -- to a cryptic entity he called "the 1953 Trust," apparently named after the year he was born. The beneficiaries of the trust have not been identified. Epstein named as co-executors of his estate Darren Indyke and Richard Kahn, his longtime attorney and accountant. Lawyers for the pair hashed out an agreement with attorneys for the victims to create the "Epstein Victims Compensation Fund," a voluntary restitution program modeled after similar complex claims for multiple victims of 9/11 and clergy abuse in the Catholic Church. The program ended its operations in August 2021, having paid out more than $120 million to 136 survivors of Epstein's sex trafficking network. Another 52 women filed and privately settled claims outside of the compensation fund, according to court records. To fund the claims program and to pay other creditors, the co-executors of the estate sold most of Epstein's assets, including the Gulfstream jet that carried him from Paris to Teterboro airport in New Jersey on the day of his arrest. They also sold his multimillion-dollar mansions in Florida and New York, his apartment in central Paris, and his two private islands off the east coast of St. Thomas, where much of the alleged abuse of children and young women is alleged to have taken place. Epstein's New Mexico ranch, the last of the estate's major real estate assets, was sold in August. PHOTO: This photo provided by the New York State Sex Offender Registry shows Jeffrey Epstein, March 28, 2017. (New York State Sex Offender Registry via AP) Epstein's estate is still under probate court supervision in the U.S. Virgin Islands. None of the unknown beneficiaries of the 1953 Trust can receive benefits until all creditors are paid and all claims against the estate have been exhausted. With just a handful of lawsuits still active, the estate still holds assets of more than $84 million with liabilities of about $30 million, according to the most recent accounting statement filed in court in St. Thomas. MORE: Brother of Ghislaine Maxwell says crimes against Epstein accusers 'were not committed by my sister' Survivors of Epstein's sex-trafficking have also sought accountability from the financial institutions that held Epstein's vast fortunes and allegedly ignored red flags that should have alerted the banks and government authorities of criminal activity. JPMorgan Chase and Deutsche Bank each settled lawsuits brought by the survivors, for $290 million and $75 million, respectively, with no admission of wrongdoing. JPM Chase paid another $75 million to the USVI government and Deutsche Bank agreed to pay $150 million in penalties following an investigation by New York state financial regulators. "It really woke up the financial institutions to the fact that they can no longer turn a blind eye when they're seeing these red flags in their institutions," McCawley said. Private settlement with a prince Perhaps no ripple effect of Epstein's sex-trafficking network has received more attention than the allegations leveled by Giuffre against Prince Andrew, who lost his military titles and royal patronages after his failed attempt to have Giuffre's lawsuit against him dismissed. The prince's 2019 BBC interview -- in which he claimed not to recall ever meeting Giuffre -- was widely assailed as tone-deaf and ineffectual. The prince privately settled the lawsuit in 2022 for an undisclosed sum. As part of the agreement the Prince said he would "make a substantial donation to Ms. Giuffre's charity in support of victims' rights,'' according to a letter filed with the court. "Prince Andrew has never intended to malign Ms. Giuffre's character, and he accepts that she has suffered both as an established victim of abuse and as a result of unfair public attacks," the letter said. "It is known that Jeffrey Epstein trafficked countless young girls over many years. Prince Andrew regrets his association with Epstein, and commends the bravery of Ms. Giuffre and other survivors in standing up for themselves and others." Expressing regret for ever meeting or associating with Epstein became a common refrain for many whose names appeared in his address book or on flight logs of his private jet or whose business or academic dealings with Epstein were disclosed by journalists and victims' lawyers. The long list of the remorseful includes prominent figures like Leslie Wexner, the founder of The Limited Company, billionaire private equity investor Leon Black and many more. All denied any knowledge or participation in Epstein's illicit activities. Several prestigious universities - including Harvard and MIT - issued scathing reports on their associations with Epstein and acceptance of his financial gifts - even after his 2008 guilty plea in Florida for solicitation of a minor into prostitution. "Going forward, hopefully, we will be in a position where trafficking victims will have some more protections, more people looking out for them and more people doing the right thing, finally," McCawley said. Annie Farmer said that the widespread recognition of the evils of Epstein's trafficking has made her feel "like it was worthwhile to use my voice to speak out against this." But the constant stories in the news and on social media over the past five years, she said, have made it very difficult to escape the painful feelings that invariably surface wherever she hears his name. "It's a cycle where you'll sort of feel like you're moving through it and kind of putting it in the past, but then something new comes up and you feel a little bit of a deja vu in terms of having to look backward," Annie Farmer said. "It's also just really draining." She said that for all the investigations and examinations of Epstein's operation, there is still so much missing. "It's not clear to me how he was able to be in the position he was in financially. I think that opened up a lot of the doors for him to commit these crimes," she told ABC News. "And I still don't feel like there's a satisfying answer yet about why my sister's original complaint wasn't followed up on. And what happened in 2006 when they recognized that it was a more systemic situation?" Some of those answers could lie in still undisclosed records of the FBI, but the government has resisted calls from the victims, members of Congress and the press to make the documents public. Prosecutors cite the potential impact exposure of the records could have on a re-trial of Maxwell, if her appeal is successful. Last week, a federal judge in New York agreed that the FBI files could be withheld by the agency and dismissed a Freedom of Information Act case first filed in 2017. 5 years after Jeffrey Epstein's arrest, push for accountability continues originally appeared on abcnews.go.com TAMPA Rising above one side of Interstate 275 near the Busch Boulevard exit, the 214-foot-tall Sulphur Springs water tower remains a symbol of its neighborhoods former prosperity. But Javier Suarez said he has long had his eyes set on the four-floor, 57,000-square-foot structure rising above the other side of that interstate exit. He considers that 74-year-old building a symbol of Sulphur Springs future. I always saw it as an iconic building, Suarez said. Two years ago, his Tampa Development Group company purchased the building at 715 E. Bird St. that is sandwiched between TGT Poker and Racebook, Sulphur Springs Pool and Springs Theatre, which is being converted into a distillery. Now, restorations are underway as Suarezs company has the building turned into office space. He hopes the first floor with a cafe and event center and the second floor with co-work space will be ready by January. There is no set timeline for the third and fourth floors that will offer traditional office space. The condition of this property, its not fantastic, Suarez said. But the bones are good. Ive never seen a structural engineer so excited. In all, he said, it will cost up to $8 million to finish the building, which Tampa Development Group bought for $2 million, according to the Hillsborough County Property Appraiser. Tampa Development Group recently converted a 52-year-old Clearwater building at 3118 Gulf to Bay Blvd. into three stories of office space. Despite being a low-income area, Suarez said, Sulphur Springs is a perfect location because it is situated between Tampa Heights and the University of South Florida. He envisions the project becoming a catalyst for the neighborhood by luring other businesses that want to cater to the more than 250 people whom he said will be working in the building. Were able to come in here with a very blank canvas, he said, and capture heritage and make history. From the late 1800s through the mid 1900s, Sulphur Springs was one of Tampas premiere neighborhoods. Residents and tourists originally filled jugs with water from the spring that gave the community its name. Then, in 1927, the water tower was constructed to provide water pressure to the neighborhood that became known as Floridas Coney Island, boasting a roller coaster, an alligator farm, a dog track, a luxury hotel and what might have been the states first indoor shopping center. Erected in 1950, Suarezs building was originally a two-story structure that housed a convenience store. In 1958, Springs National Bank took over the building and promoted itself as the largest national bank in suburban Tampa. The decline of that neighborhood began a few years later, partly because the springs had bacterial outbreaks and because other tourist attractions had sprung up. That began an economic tailspin from which the neighborhood has still not recovered. But the bank building grew in 1970 by adding two floors that were rented to other companies, according to Tampa Bay Times archives. In 1987, a fire swept through the structure, causing $1 million in damages. The bank announced that the building would be demolished, but instead decided to sell. Since then, the building has been sold at least four times, according to records at the Hillsborough County Clerk of Courts. Different ownership groups have had different plans, including creating the Tampa Arts Center with lofts for creatives, but none came to fruition. The Tampa Arts Center sign still adorns the building, and Suarez said his company plans to keep the name. There was little preventing the current owners from razing the building. Its old enough to qualify as a local historic landmark, a designation that would make it more difficult for them to receive city permission to demolish. But the alterations to the original exterior over the years likely disqualify the building from such status. Knocking it down was never a thought, said Suarez, who considers the structure to be an important part of that neighborhoods story. You can build back a building, but you cant build back history. Alec Baldwin arrived in a Santa Fe, New Mexico, courtroom Monday for a hearing ahead of jury selection for his manslaughter trial related to the fatal 2021 on-set shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. On Oct. 21, 2021, Baldwin was rehearsing with revolver when the gun went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. The 66-year-old Baldwin, who pleaded not guilty, claims the shooting was an accident and that the gun misfired after he pulled the hammer, not the trigger. What was Alec Baldwin charged with? He is charged with felony involuntary manslaughter and faces up to 18 months in prison if convicted. Hannah Gutierrez, the armorer on set, was convicted in March of involuntary manslaughter for her role in Hutchins death, but she is appealing the verdict. She claims she is not the person who brought live ammunition to the set. Prosecutors previously argued that she was responsible for bringing the live rounds to set, but Baldwins role as co-producer could paint him as negligent. Charges against Baldwin had been dropped in 2023 but were re-filed in January. At the end of June, a defense motion to dismiss the case was rejected. Who was killed? Hutchins, who was 42. She was considered an up-and-coming movie-maker and is survived by a husband and young son. What do the prosecutors need to prove? They can either try to convince the jury Baldwin acted negligently with the firearm or that he acted with total disregard or indifference for the safety of others on the set. They are expected to argue that Baldwin, in his role as producer on the film, behaved recklessly. Who is defending Baldwin? Baldwin hired New York firm Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan to handle his case. Alex Spiro, who has defended other celebrities in disputes, is expected to handle cross-examination of the prosecutions witnesses. Spiro previously represented Megan Thee Stallion and Jay-Z. He has long represented Elon Musk, who is currently facing a defamation lawsuit in Texas. In April, Spiro was hired to defend New York Mayor Eric Adams and the NYPD Transit Bureau in a lawsuit over an alleged sexual assault by Adams against a former officer. They will largely argue that, in his role as an actor on the set, Baldwin was not responsible for checking the prop gun for live rounds. The Screen Actors Guild supports this position. They will also argue the gun was damaged by investigators and the defense had no opportunity to conduct an independent examination of the weapon. How long will the trial be? The trial is expected to last about 10 days before jury deliberation. Jury selection is scheduled to begin Tuesday and last all day. Opening statements are expected to start Wednesday with closing arguments coming next Friday, July 19. Theres no way to predict how long the jury will take to reach a verdict, but given the complexity of the case, it could take several additional days. Is there testimony or evidence the prosecutor or defense will try to exclude? Baldwins team tried to block firearms experts who testified as Gutierrez from returning to the stand, but were unsuccessful. They will testify about how Baldwin handled the gun and whether it was functioning properly. The defense also wants to nix any discussion of actor Brandon Lees death in a fatal shooting on the set of The Crow. No charges were ever brought in that case, but the production was fined by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Prosecutors want to exclude a letter signed by crew members that disputes the Rust set was chaotic or dangerous. They also want to exclude the results of a state occupational safety investigation that put much of the blame of assistant director David Halls, the films assistant director who was accused by others of being responsible for the shooting. Halls pleaded no contest to negligent handling of a firearm. The prosecutors have argued there is new, more reliable evidence that calls those findings into question. Who else will testify? Several people from the production, including Souza, the director who was also shot and wounded, and Halls. Zac Sneesby, a crew member who was on set during the rehearsal, will testify he saw Baldwin pull the trigger. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer rejected an immunity deal prosecutors wanted to offer Gutierrez, but she may still be called to the stand. The defense has not said whether Baldwin himself will testify, but he has every right to. Has another production been charged for similar on-set deaths in the past? Yes. In 1987, director John Landis and four others were acquitted of involuntary manslaughter for three deaths while filming Twilight Zone: The Movie in 1982. Actor Vic Morrow the father of actress Jennifer Jason Leigh and two child actors were killed in a helicopter crash. The child actors families later reached a settlement in a civil suit. Is the trial going to be broadcast? Yes, on CourtTV and other outlets. _____ [Source] Ken Mar, a 99-year-old Chinese American World War II veteran, was honored for his service and contributions at the 30th annual Fourth of July Parade in Sacramentos Pocket area. He joined the event with members of the Gung Ho American Legion, which represents Asian American veterans. Drafted in 1943, Mar reflected on his wartime experiences, including the Battle of the Bulge and his capture by the Germans. He was previously recognized with the Congressional Gold Medal and Bronze Star, as well as the Legion of Honor in France. Download the NextShark App: Want to keep up to date on Asian American News? Download the NextShark App today! FILE PHOTO: Abbott Laboratories logo is displayed on a screen at the NYSE in New York By Brendan Pierson (Reuters) - Similac baby formula maker Abbott is expected to face a trial on Monday over claims that its formula for preterm infants used in neonatal intensive care units causes a potentially deadly bowel disease, the second trial out of hundreds of similar lawsuits in the United States. Lawyers for the company and for Illinois resident Margo Gill will make their opening statements to jurors in St. Louis, Missouri, and the trial is expected to last most of the rest of the month. Gill alleges in the lawsuit that her premature infant child developed necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) as a result of being fed Abbott's products for premature babies. NEC, which causes the death of bowel tissue, mostly affects newborns and has a fatality rate of between 15% and 40%. Gill's child survived, but suffers long-term health problems, according to the lawsuit. Like all of the lawsuits over NEC, the case involves formula and products for fortifying mother's milk given to infants in hospital settings, not ordinary formula available to consumers in stores. "Specialized formulas and fortifiers, like the one in this case, are considered part of the standard of care by the medical community and, along with human milk, are the only available options to feed premature infants," Abbott said in a statement. The company said that Gill's child "suffered from a traumatic brain injury in utero and at birth, long before she was fed any Abbott products," and that "no one is to blame" for her condition. Close to 1,000 lawsuits have been filed against Abbott, Enfamil formula maker Reckitt Benckiser or both in federal or state courts alleging that cow's milk-based formula products for premature infants caused NEC. More than 500 are centralized in an Illinois federal court, with others pending in Illinois, Missouri and Pennsylvania. The lawsuits claim that the companies failed to warn that infants given their products are at greater risk of NEC compared to infants who are breast-fed or given donor milk or human milk-derived formula. Reckitt and a lawyer for the plaintiffs did not immediately comment. The first lawsuit to go to trial, against Reckitt in Illinois, ended with a $60 million jury verdict in March. Reckitt is appealing that verdict and has argued that the plaintiff's case relied on unsound expert testimony. The litigation has concerned investors. Reckitt's share price fell about 15% after the verdict, and Abbott's about 4%. Both stocks have remained depressed, although analysts at JPMorgan and Barclays have said they believe the companies' ultimate liability is likely to be small. The NEC Society, a patient-led non-profit organization working to combat the disease, has criticized the lawsuits, saying that "feeding decisions should be made at patients' bedsides, not in courtrooms." The group has no financial or other relationship with Abbott or Reckitt, according to a spokesperson. The NEC lawsuits are separate from ongoing litigation against Abbott over the shutdown of its Sturgis, Michigan, plant and subsequent recall of batches of baby formula for possible contamination, which contributed to a nationwide formula shortage in 2022. There have been no trials in those cases. (Reporting By Brendan Pierson in New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Josie Kao) From abortion ban to local elections, here's a look at Texas Supreme Court rulings this year The final arbiter of all civil matters in the state, the Texas Supreme Court, issued rulings in several cases this year ranging from what medical treatments can be performed on children in Texas to who should oversee local elections in certain counties. While the high court rejects weighing in on most cases put before it, each year the nine justices are tasked with issuing sweeping decisions, as per its interpretation of the state constitution, in matters that deal with everything from family disputes to clarifying business contracts. The following is a look at a few cases the Texas Supreme Court has decided so far this year. The court has a slate of future oral arguments set on its docket in September and October. Justice Debra Lehrmann and Chief Justice Nathan L. Hecht listen to Beth Klusmann of the Texas attorney general's office argue in November in Zurawski v. State of Texas. The Zurawski plaintiffs, 20 women who were denied abortions despite severe pregnancy complications and two OB-GYNs suing on behalf of their patients, demanded that the state clarify medical exceptions to its near-total abortion ban. Texas abortion ban clarifications Since Texas enacted one of the nation's strictest abortion bans in 2021, the state's Supreme Court has been tapped to clarify and even consider overturning the law. Having previously rejected an appeal by Kate Cox, a mother of two from Dallas who was carrying a fatally ill fetus and sought the court's intervention last year to terminate her pregnancy, the state's high court again ruled to keep the abortion ban in place in May, siding against 20 women who were unable to receive emergency abortions. The plaintiffs in Zurawski v. State of Texas stand outside the Capitol on Nov. 28, 2023. after the Texas Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the abortion case. Texas law prohibits abortions except when a pregnant patient has a "life-threatening condition," the state Supreme Court has affirmed in its recent decisions. The ban, which vaulted to the national stage with Cox attending the State of the Union address in March as a guest of President Joe Biden, remains active after the court's deliberation in May. The Texas Medical Board, a governor-appointed board tasked with overseeing the practice of medicine and licensing of physicians in the state, has adopted several new rules tied to abortion in June, including a clarification that a patient need not face "imminent" death before they can qualify for an emergency abortion. Prohibition on gender-affirming care In the wake of one of the biggest state legislative battles last year, the Texas Supreme Court in June upheld the provisions of Senate Bill 14, which prohibits certain gender-affirming medical treatments for minors. In a nearly unanimous decision, the court rejected an appeal from parents, physicians and advocacy groups that sought to have the new law tossed out for being an unconstitutional infringement on parents' rights to seek medical care for their children. LGBTQ+ rights activists on May 2, 2023, protest Senate Bill 14 on the second floor of the Capitol Rotunda as American Principles Project members pray on the first floor. SB14 banned gender-affirming medical care for transgender children. While the court acknowledged the rights of parents, its ruling not only upheld SB 14 but also reaffirmed the Legislature's right and standing to determine what medical treatments are allowed to be performed in Texas. SB 14 prohibits gender modification surgeries for minors as well as the prescription of "puberty blockers," or medications meant to affect the developments that occur during puberty. In a dissenting opinion, Justice Debra Lehrmann expressed reservations about the state's foray into parental rights and the potential issues that could arise in the future by usurping the purview of parents. "The law is not only cruelit is unconstitutional," Lehrmann wrote. Paxton continues fight against "apex" depositions After a Travis County state District Court judge ruled in January that Attorney General Ken Paxton and three of his top deputies must testify under oath in the long-running wrongful termination lawsuit brought by four former agency officials, Paxton immediately appealed the case to the state Supreme Court. Still pending before the court, Paxton's appeal over his deposition has ground the 4-year-old case to a halt as arguments continue over Paxton's obligation to testify on the situation that resulted in his former, handpicked deputies leaving the office and reporting allegations of misconduct against Paxton to the FBI. Willing to accept a final judgment in the case, Paxton has argued in multiple court filings that the proceedings should already have ended and that as an executive official he is immune from testifying on matters that fall under his office. Attorneys for the whistleblowers have consistently rebuffed Paxton's immunity claims as being a threat to public accountability and having a chilling effect for future whistleblowers, also pointing to Paxton's effort to see the case end without further testimony or a trial as disingenuous. After the most recent round of requested legal filings were presented to the court in June, it remains unclear when the nine-member bench will issue a decision on Paxton's sworn testimony. Nate Paul stays out of jail for now Found in contempt of court, Nate Paul, a former Austin real estate developer and Paxton ally, made an appeal to the Supreme Court in March to prevent an ordered 10-day jail stint. In a long-running case in which he is accused of defrauding a nonprofit in Travis County, Paul faces six counts of criminal contempt for a "continuous refusal" to follow the parameters of an injunction that required him to report his monthly financial exchanges. Austin real estate investor Nate Paul leaves a federal courtroom in Austin after a pretrial hearing on Feb. 16. An original criminal contempt order by Travis County state District Judge Jan Soifer was upheld by the Supreme Court in a 5-4 decision in March, but the subsequent 10-day sentence was again delayed by Paul's current appeal protesting the sentence as an unlawful detention. Before the court accepted Paul's emergency appeal, he was ordered to appear at the Travis County Correctional Center by April 1. A final decision on the current appeal remains pending before the court. Senate Bill 1750 clears challenge Flying under the radar as other election-related bills were debated during the 2023 legislative session, Senate Bill 1750 abolished Harris County's chief elections administrator position. More: Texas Supreme Court sides with state regulators on $16 billion winter storm overcharges The law, which requires all election duties to return to the purview of the county's clerk and tax assessor-collector, survived an initial challenge in front of the Supreme Court last year, allowing it to take effect before the most recent election cycle. Despite protests from Harris County and Houston officials, the challenge to the law was shelved from the court's docket late last year after oral arguments. In February, the court officially tossed the challenge to the law as moot. What's next for the Texas Supreme Court? Currently, there are two dozen cases set for oral arguments before the Supreme Court in September and October. The wide-ranging docket includes a dispute between the Save Our Springs Alliance and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality over water quality regulations and a reprimand against First Assistant Attorney General Brent Webster. Webster faces an official complaint from the Commission for Lawyer Discipline, a standing committee of the State Bar of Texas, seeking to reprimand him for a "dishonest" attempt to prevent the certification of 2020 election results in Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia and Michigan that were favorable to President Joe Biden. In April, 18 attorneys general filed a friend-of-the-court brief in Webster's support, arguing that allowing for the punishment would be an intrusion into prosecutorial discretion. In a parallel case also before the state Supreme Court, Paxton, the state's top attorney, faces similar allegations. In June, Paxton filed a request to the high court to reconsider a lower court's previous ruling that advanced a disciplinary case against him for his effort to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. Oral arguments for Webster's reprimand case are set for Sept. 12. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: What has the Texas Supreme Court done in 2024? Here are few rulings. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Transit shipments between Azerbaijan and China have increased significantly, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) Yusif Abdulayev said, Trend reports. He made the remark during a conference on promoting logistics and trade in Azerbaijan - a demonstration zone of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Abdullayev emphasized that Azerbaijan's location at the crossroads of Europe and Asia is strategically important, especially in transit logistics. "Transit shipments between Azerbaijan and China amounted to 178,000 tons in 2024, which is 31 percent higher compared to the previous year. Specifically, rail transport increased by 93 percent," he explained. According to him, Azerbaijan and China have strategic relations that differ from those of two-three years ago. "These relations create opportunities to enhance cooperation across almost all spheres of interaction between the countries. This includes trade, economic, cultural, and tourism ties. We have joint projects with our partners, including events, exhibitions, and forums organized in collaboration with various organizations. These events are supported by both states and will certainly continue from our side," he added. To note, on July 2, Azerbaijan and China sealed the deal on a Memorandum of Understanding that will grease the wheels for transportation volumes along the Middle Corridor linking the container rail freight transportation networks of China and the European Union countries through Central Asia, the Caucasus, Turkiye, and Eastern Europe. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Abortion discussed as Debbie Mucarsel-Powell campaigns for US Senate in Tallahassee Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate, is seen at a Tallahassee appearance, July 8, 2024. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a Democratic candidate seeking to unseat incumbent Republican Sen. Rick Scott, came to Tallahassee Monday with a message: Womens rights will be the central issue of the fall campaign. Mucarsel-Powell, a former congresswoman for South Florida in 2019-21, leads three other candidates in the Democratic primary and trails Scott by two points (within the margin of error) in a recent Florida Atlantic University poll. She has made Scotts reproductive rights record a central talking point of her campaign, including his opposition to Amendment 4, which would enshrine abortion access in Floridas constitution. A request for comment is pending with the Scott campaign. In a law office across from Florida State University, Murcasel-Powell joined eight women, aged 20 to senior citizen, to discuss the impact of the six-week abortion ban Florida imposed earlier this year. Former Tallahassee City Commissioner Dot Inman-Johnson, now seeking to regain a seat on the board, also attended, as did current City Commissioner Jack Porter, who is seeking reelection. In a surprise turn, former U.S. Rep. Al Lawson, D-Tallahassee, stopped in; he served with Mucarsel-Powell in Congress. Scott applauded the ban and sponsored a nationwide abortion ban in the U.S. Senate. The women also criticized his vote against legislation to protect access to contraception and to in vitro fertilization, also called IVF treatment. Mucarsel-Powell later explained she expects a voter backlash to the GOPs policies on abortion and government overreach in other policy areas such as book bans and voting restrictions. The bottom line (on) this race and what is happening in Florida right now. It is freedom. Freedom is a central issue and people are ready to come out and protect their freedoms, Mucarsel-Powell told a reporter. Mucarsel-Powell has to get by former Florida House member Brian Rush, South Florida businessman Stanley Campbell, and Dr. Rod Joseph in the August primary before she can face off against Scott in November. The incumbent Scott faces primary challenges from attorney Keith Gross and novelist John Columbus for the Republican nomination. Democrats have won just one statewide race since 2012, current party chair Nikki Frieds 2018 election as Commissioner of Agriculture. She passed on a reelection bid for that office to run unsuccessfully for governor in 2022, losing the primary to former Gov. and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, who himself later lost to Gov. Ron DeSantis by a whopping 19 points in the general election. James Call is a member of the USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jcall@tallahassee.com and is on X as @CallTallahassee. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Debbie Mucarsel-Powell makes abortion central to US Senate campaign Protesters gather outside a Missouri clinic in 2019. (Michael B. Thomas | Getty Images) Abortion surveillance is something former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, has said is up to states. But for abortion providers and advocates, surveillance and monitoring by anti-abortion activists has long been the reality. And post-Dobbs many states are actively trying to expand government surveillance. There is a lot of confusion in our patient population because most of them are coming from states that have banned abortion about the legality of coming to another state, said Michele Landeau, chief operating officer of Hope Clinic in Granite City, Illinois. Just across the border from St. Louis, Missouri, Hope Clinic serves as one of the closest abortion clinics to several banned states in the Midwest and the South. After Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, the clinic increased its staff and capacity to accommodate an influx of patients, more than 80% of whom are coming from outside of Illinois, Landeau told States Newsroom. She said the clinic has also seen an influx of protesters, especially on Saturdays, who can sometimes be heard shouting patients out-of-state license plates. That can cause a lot of anxiety and fear, Landeau said. I believe the protesters know that, and thats why they do it. Since Dobbs, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, a nonprofit that specializes in digital civil liberties, has seen a spike in doxing of abortion providers and assistance groups, said staff attorney Lisa Femia. Another increased privacy threat since Dobbs, she said, is police sharing automated license plate reader data with police in states where abortion is not legal. Illinois is among several states that have adopted abortion rights in the lead-up to and since Dobbs, most recently travel data privacy protections. A law that went into effect earlier this year prohibits the sharing of data from automated license plate readers with law enforcement for the purpose of investigating or enforcing a law that denies or interferes with a persons right to choose or obtain reproductive health care services. But even in this abortion-haven state, Mark Lee Dicksons Sanctuary Cities for the Unborn initiative helped pass an ordinance banning the mailing or shipping of abortion pills in Danville, a town along Illinoiss eastern border with Indiana, where abortion is not legal. The ordinance (which the American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois says is unlawful and unenforceable because it violates state law) was passed the same month an anti-abortion extremist drove a car loaded with gasoline-filled containers into the building of a planned abortion clinic in Danville. Femia said increased legal challenges have so far not upheld laws that attempt to restrict interstate abortion-related travel or information. But its still early, she said. I think we also have to remember that in sort of the scheme of the legal system, it hasnt really been very long since Dobbs and since states have actually started implementing extremely abortion restrictive laws, Femia told States Newsroom. So were still in sort of the nascent stages of abortion prosecutions. To fight for reproductive health privacy, Femia said the Electronic Frontier Foundation has tried to put pressure on government to enforce privacy protections on the books as well as educate the public. The nonprofit MSI Reproductive Choices has recently launched a digital guide for safely searching abortion-related information online in partnership with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, called the Vagina Privacy Network, and as part of the launch handed out free burner phones at three different reproductive rights marches in Indiana, Tennessee, and Georgia last month. The post Abortion surveillance isnt new but monitoring has increased post Dobbs, activists say appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. Active duty military member from Connecticut charged with sexual assault, missing Monroe County teen found with him Active duty military member from Connecticut charged with sexual assault, missing Monroe County teen found with him PRINCETON, WV (WVNS) An active duty military member from Connecticut was arrested and charged with sexual assault. According to the Mercer County Sheriffs Office, on Sunday, July 7, 2024, deputies responded to the Microtel Suites in Princeton where they arrested Richard Nolan Tillotson, 24, of Connecticut. During the arrest, a missing 13-year-old girl from Monroe County was found with him. The teenage girl has since been released back into the custody of her family. Investigators confirmed to 59News that Tillotson is an active duty military member. While the branch of service was not confirmed, it was said that Tillotson had been stationed outside of the country and was stateside temporarily. Richard Tillotson was charged with nine counts of Sexual Assault in the Third Degree. The investigation into the incident remains active. Stick with 59News for updates as they become available. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Aglamesis Bros' to open new ice cream parlor in this Cincinnati suburb Aglamesis Bros will open its first new parlor in decades in a Cincinnati suburb. The historic Cincinnati ice cream and chocolate brand will open the new parlor in downtown Hamilton in late August or early September, third-generation president Randy Young told The Enquirer on Monday. The parlor will move into the Davis Building at 304 Main St. Aglamesis had no plans to expand this year, Young said. The company opened a new chocolate production facility in Cincinnati's West End last year, and will add a factory outlet to the space within the next two years. Aglamesis Bros' will open a new store in downtown Hamilton, its third parlor overall, later this summer. But Hamilton officials pitched the location to Young in January, hoping Aglamesis could replace Village Parlor, an ice cream shop that operated in the Main Street building for five years and chose not to renew its lease in December. The space a ready-to-move-in, old-fashioned ice cream parlor sealed the deal, Young said. The company opened a chocolate production facility in Cincinnati's West End last year. "We walked through the site location... and it fit our personality," he said. "Everything about the parlor fit the Aglamesis image." The Consortium for Ongoing Reinvestment Efforts, a nonprofit public-private partnership that drives revitalization in Hamilton's urban core, negotiated the building's rental agreement. Lauren Nelson, project manager with Hamiltons economic development department who also serves on behalf of the consortium, helped to facilitate the partnership. "The ice cream parlor in this historic building has that old-time, very traditional ice cream parlor feel to it, and we were looking for someone that we thought would be a great fit for that," she told The Enquirer. "Aglamesis, with their long tradition in Cincinnati and great products, came to mind as someone we'd love to have in Hamilton." Renovations at the 1,670-square-foot ice cream parlor will be minimal. Aglamesis will only need to install candy cases and shelves for chocolates, and outfit the space with the company's signature branding and colors. The Hamilton shop marks Aglamesis Bros' first new parlor since their Montgomery store, which opened in 1970. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Historic Cincinnati ice cream brand expanding to new Ohio city What to do if an airline bumps you from an overbooked flight What to do if an airline bumps you from an overbooked flight Holiday travel broke records in July as severe weather forced disruptions at many airports. Airlines oversell flights on normal days, and they're more likely to bump passengers during disruptions. Here's what you should do if you're bumped from a flight and how to lower the odds of it happening. The Transportation Security Administration screened a record number of passengers over the July 4th holiday weekend as airlines continue to see booming demand for travel. Sunday alone saw over 3 million people the most ever in a single day. According to the aircraft tracking website FlightAware, there were about 900 cancellations and about 20,000 delays between Thursday and Saturday for flights flying to, from, or within the US. Hurricane Beryl forced thousands more on Sunday and Monday as it made landfall in Texas. Airlines overbook flights on a good day to ensure planes are full, but it's even more likely during times of weather and operational chaos. Depending on the traveler, getting bumped from a flight can either be an easy way to make some cash ($10,000 in one rare case) or a nightmare scenario that ruins your vacation. Either way, there are a few things you should know if you're bumped from an oversold flight. Voluntary and involuntary bumping Denied boarding, or "bumping," happens when airlines overbook a flight. This means there are more passengers than available seats, and it's a perfectly legal strategy airlines use to optimize revenue. According to the US Department of Transportation, when a plane is overbooked, airlines must first seek out passengers willing to volunteer to take a different flight in exchange for compensation. This is considered a "voluntary" bump, where a passenger can essentially sell their seat back to the airline for anything from cash to a free ticket, per the DOT. There is no limit to the amount of money or vouchers that airlines can offer as compensation, and passengers can negotiate with the carriers. In 2022, Delta Air Lines offered passengers $10,000 cash to take a different flight after overselling a flight from Michigan to Minnesota amid the summer's post-pandemic travel chaos. Tayfun CoSkun/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images If you accept the airline's compensation to give up your seat and take a later flight, the DOT recommends asking these questions to make sure you're aware of any restrictions: When is the next flight on which the airline can confirm your seat? Will you be put on standby? The DOT warns that standby comes with risks because you could be left stranded if the later flights are also full. Will the airline provide other amenities such as free meals, a hotel room, transfers between the hotel and the airport, and a phone card? If you accept a free ticket or voucher, how long is it good for? Is the ticket or voucher unusable during holiday periods? Can it be used for international flights? If not enough people volunteer, the airline will involuntarily bump customers. Most of the time, this occurs before the plane is boarded, and passengers cannot be removed from an aircraft after boarding unless for safety, security, or health reasons or if they're being disorderly. According to the DOT, airlines must provide compensation for bumped passengers, as well as a written statement of their rights and how airlines select who and who doesn't get involuntarily bumped. There are a few conditions and exceptions outlined by the DOT, including: Aircraft change to a smaller plane due to operational or safety reasons The aircraft holds fewer than 30 people Weight and balance concerns for planes with 30-60 seats The flight is departing from a foreign country and headed to the US If none of these apply and you have a confirmed ticket, you met the check-in deadline, you were at the gate on time, and the airline could not get you to your final destination within an hour of your original arrival time, the DOT says you are entitled to denied boarding compensation, or DBC. When you're entitled to compensation and how much According to the DOT, the DBC is based on the value of your ticket, the length of your delay due to the involuntarily denied boarding, and whether your flight was domestic or international. The agency said the airline might try to offer you a free flight or cash-equivalent voucher first, but you are entitled to cash or check if you prefer. DOT rules entitle passengers to hundreds of dollars in compensation if they are involuntarily bumped from a flight, under certain terms and conditions. Constantine Johnny via Getty Images For domestic flights that arrive one to two hours later than scheduled, passengers receive 200% of their one-way fare, capped at $775. Arriving over two hours later entitles customers to 400%, capped at $1,550. For international flights that arrive one to four hours later than scheduled, passengers receive 200% of their one-way fare, and anything over four hours is 400%. The same regulated minimum monetary caps apply, but the airline can decide at its discretion to offer more. The DOT said compensation for non-fare tickets, like those paid for with points, is based on the lowest-priced ticket sold in the same class of the service on the same flight. Passengers who booked a higher-fare class, like first or business, but were downgraded to a cheaper cabin must be refunded the difference in price, per the DOT. Customers can also receive a refund for extras they paid for but did not receive on their substitute flight, like a reserved seat. How to lower the odds of getting bumped from a flight There's nothing you can do to guarantee you won't get bumped from an overbooked flight, as one traveler who said he was bumped off an American Airlines flight learned the hard way. However, you can take some steps to decrease your odds of getting bumped, such as buying higher-class seats, checking in on time, and having frequent-flyer status. The DOT said among those in the same fare class, the last to check in are the most likely to be involuntarily bumped. Some travelers may consider booking on an airline that doesn't have a reputation for involuntary bumping. According to the DOT's 2023 consumer air travel data, Allegiant Air, Delta Air Lines, and Hawaiian Airlines involuntarily bumped 0, 3, and 5 people, respectively, over the entire year. On the other end of the spectrum, American Airlines and Frontier Airlines involuntarily bumped over 10,000 passengers each in 2023. "However, the criteria cannot subject a passenger to any unjust or unreasonable prejudice or disadvantage," the agency notes. "For example, an airline could not lawfully use a passenger's race or ethnicity as a criterion." Read the original article on Business Insider Akron-area residents sound off about abundance of homespun fireworks displays over holiday File photo of the city of Akron's downtown fireworks display. It was a Star-Spangled Banner year for fireworks this Fourth of July. Not so much for Fido or those who like to go to sleep early. The rockets' red glare was bursting in air all across northern Ohio this long holiday weekend, with the state in recent years joining the chorus of others across the country in relaxing rules on common folks shooting off fireworks from their yards. Some frustrated Greater Akron residents turned to social media to blast those who celebrated the nation's independence with too much zeal and with fireworks that rivaled community displays. "Why do so many neighbors apparently get them by the pallet and continue to shoot them off for hours at a time until well past midnight?" one Akron resident asked on Reddit. One Akronite said the celebratory salvos in their neighborhood started at 6 a.m. Another shell-shocked Akron resident agreed that enough was enough. "We have a 5 month old whos having trouble sleeping already, a wife with PTSD, a cat with anxiety and me who is sitting here like (emoji of a frustrated person)," another poster replied. "I like going to see the sparkly boom booms but not having them disrupt the household (frowning emoji). The thunderous skies were not limited to just Akron. The homespun displays sparked by the fairly recent proliferation of fireworks stores in northern Ohio spread to the skies of Akron suburbs and beyond. At-large Stow Councilman Kyle Herman said he saw a lot of online chatter about the number of fireworks going off in his city. But under Stow's current rules, Herman said, it was legal to shoot them. "It was legal, but I would ask residents to be respectful and to think about how their actions effect others in the community," he said. He added that he has tried to pass legislation to ban such fireworks in the city but has not been able to muster the support of his fellow council members. Hudson City Council President Chris Foster said he, too, saw rumblings on social media about the fireworks but no one contacted him personally to complain. "We haven't gotten any formal complaints or emails at all," Foster said. "I probably got more complaints four years ago than I got this year. "Four years ago, they generally weren't permitted, so people would call." One person in Medina County commented on Facebook that his dogs weren't too bothered by the booms, but his horses were spooked. "The whole weekend in our area was like a battle of fireworks," he said. "I was surrounded by them." A Medina resident commented that it looked like World War III had started in the city with all the fireworks going off in neighborhoods. Akron Ward 6 Councilman Brad McKitrick said just one resident in his Ellet neighborhood reached out to complain about the fireworks but McKitrick did see a lot of chatter online. He reminds residents that while the state permits them being set off, Akron does not. He said these homegrown fireworks displays have had unfortunate results in the past. "We've had situations where we've had house fires because people were not cautious with setting off their fireworks, and it's truly a public safety issue," McKitrick said. Greater Akron police departments respond to fireworks complaints As dogs scurried for cover and hid under beds, local police departments fielded fireworks-related calls. Akron Police Department Sgt. Michael Murphy said via email that since July 1 the department received exactly 100 calls about fireworks more than the previous three years combined. About one-third of those calls, he said, came between July 4 and 5. "It appears as though the calls are coming in throughout the city and are not limited to any specific areas," Murphy said. Looking back at five years of firework-related complaints in Akron, the highest complaints over the Fourth holiday came in 2020. 2019 : 49 complaints. 2020: 203 complaints. 2021: 18 complaints. 2022: 20 complaints. 2023: 28 complaints. Fairlawn police said they fielded just three fireworks-related complaints. The Summit County Sheriffs Office said it didn't have an unusual number of fireworks-related calls. Barberton police had 61 fireworks-related calls between July 1 to July 7 with a fair number actually traced to neighboring Norton. "Usually, we average 30, 40 calls," said Barberton Police spokesman Marty Eberhart. The number of calls was up in Copley Township too. "It was worse than it was last year," said Police Chief Michael Mier. "More complaints and more activity." Mier said he plans to work with township trustees to curb the problem of folks setting off fireworks without permission on private property and too close to homes and even senior centers and apartments. "We're going to do something," he said. Akron Children's Hospital reported just one outpatient fireworks-related injury. The more serious incident happened in southern Medina County. The sheriff's department said it responded to a call early Sunday morning in which a man, whose identity was not released, had a firework blow up in his hand in Homer Township. The man lost two fingers and damaged others. Deputies were able to find one of the missing fingers, with the hope that doctors at MetroHealth Medical Center in Cleveland could attempt to reattach it. There was no update readily available on the man's condition. And on Saturday night, a 39-year-old Medina man was injured in Valley City when he was hit in the eye by a firework. This map shows the states that permit fireworks in the U.S. What are the rules for setting off fireworks in Ohio? The first rule of thumb if you want to keep it intact of fireworks is to leave it to the professionals. But Ohio like other states has relaxed its rules for home displays of fireworks. The good news for the fireworks haters is Ohio's window for shooting them off for the Fourth has closed. Here are the times when it is legal in the state to shoot off fireworks. New Years Day (midnight-1 a.m.; 4.-11 p.m.) Chinese New Year. Cinco de Mayo. Memorial Day weekend, last Monday in May and the Saturday and Sunday immediately preceding that day. Juneteenth (June 19). July 3, 4, and 5, and the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday immediately before and after July 4. Labor Day weekend, the first Monday of September and the Saturday and Sunday immediately preceding that Monday. Diwali. New Years Eve (4-11:59 p.m.) A handful of cities including Akron, Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls and Wadsworth decided to buck state lawmakers and keep a ban on residents shooting off fireworks. Sales in Ohio have been booming for Youngstown-based Phantom Fireworks, the largest brick-and-mortar retailer in the United States. Were there more fireworks going off this year? The question of whether there were more fireworks going off this Fourth is not so simple to answer. Like anything, it depends on where you live and just how adventurous your neighbors are. But chances are... yes it is very likely your house was rocking a bit more this year. Based on statistics by the American Pyrotechnics Association that keeps track of such things and promotes the setting off all things that go boom, Americans' love affair with fireworks has grown over the years thanks in part to more relaxed state laws. In 2000, American consumers spent a collective $400 million to purchase 102 million pounds of fireworks. The number of fireworks consumed and shot off has grown in the ensuing years. By 2023, the sales of fireworks in the U.S. skyrocketed to $2.2 billion with 246.5 million pounds purchased. And these figures do not include the money spent on professional fireworks set off by the professionals at community and sporting events. Julie L. Heckman, executive director of the APA, said the industry is on pace to see a record $2.4 billion spent by consumers on fireworks this year. And they expected consumers firing off fireworks to "hit an all-time high this year" around the Fourth since it fell on a Thursday leading into a long holiday weekend. What fireworks are legal in Ohio? Residents are allowed (on the permitted days) to discharge 1.4G of consumer-grade fireworks that were purchased in the state from a licensed fireworks sales location. The American Pyrotechnics Association, says 1.4G fireworks known as Class C fireworks have 50 mg of explosives in them and are about the size of half an aspirin tablet. Ohio residents are not allowed to purchase or discharge 1.3G display-grade fireworks or display fireworks that are shot off by licensed professionals at large community fireworks shows. So-called cherry bombs, M-80s, M-100s, and silver salutes are also banned illegal explosives in the state. Reporters Alan Ashworth, April Helms and Derek Kreider contributed to this article. This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Homespun fireworks displays boom Akron area during Fourth of July week Bars in a prison. A staircase can be seen behind them. A prison corridor in Holman Correctional Facility in 2019. (File) Alabamas two prison education programs do well in providing staff, services and gender equity, according to a report published last month by the Vera Institute of Justice. The Vera Institute, an independent nonprofit national research and policy organization specializing in criminal justice, gave the state high marks across several categories for a prison bachelors program administered by Auburn University and career and technical programs offered through J.F. Ingram State Community College. What our report is showing is that they are seeing strong faculty, equitable access for men and women, good library services and parity in prison programs versus those offered in other places, said Ruth Delaney, director for the Unlocking Potential initiative at the Vera Institute of Justice. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The report studies the effect of making Pell Grants which help low-income students attend college available to the incarcerated. The U.S. Department of Education made the grants available to incarcerated people last year, lifting a 30-year ban. The study notes Alabama needs to improve aspects of the program, including enrollment in the program and academic advising to credit transfers. The Auburn University program offers incarcerated people a Bachelor of Arts in interdisciplinary studies. The program focuses on business, leadership, human development and family studies. The analysis included the vocational and technical training offered to incarcerated people by J.F. Ingram State Technical College, which had about 3,000 students enrolled in 2023. There are dedicated staff who pay attention and care quite deeply about things like faculty qualifications and library resources, Delaney said. They are effectively running a college within a college in some ways, making sure the services get to the students who are in prison. Samantha Rose, public relations coordinator for Ingram State Technical College, said their focus was meeting the needs of Alabamas employers. We operate around a prison to workforce pipeline model that trains individuals for high-demand jobs to support those priorities, she said in an emailed statement Wednesday. Since the data was analyzed, Ingram State Technical College stopped using Pell Grants for funding its education program for those incarcerated, so that will not be considered moving forward. Messages seeking comment were left with Auburn staff who oversee the prison credentialing program. According to Vera, the bachelors degree program placed well in terms of quality, earning the highest marks in terms of instructor credentials, academic research and library access, and mode of instruction. It also did well in terms of equity. One of the things I would point to as something that other folks could learn from at Auburn is their success in enrolling people who are representative of the racial demographics of the prison population as a whole in their programs, Delaney said. And working with their students through completion. The program was rated as inadequate across some of the rating criteria when it comes to how many people are enrolled in the program. The study found that fewer than 5% of the students who are eligible are enrolled in the program. This is a result of having just one program, Delaney said. You have a really large prison system with just a program that is going to be offered at two facilities. You are not going to see a lot of enrollments at that rate. Authors rated it as developing in terms of the availability of programs, because there is a single offering, credential pathways and completion. This sometimes happens when you have a prison system that is overcapacity. You have too many people for the space they have available to house them. You might start seeing people moved across different facilities for various reasons throughout the length of their sentence. That disrupts education. The Second Chance Pell program began in 2016 with then President Barack Obama, and has expanded with each successive administration, potentially allowing those incarcerated to take advantage of a Pell Grant to use for their education even while incarcerated. Auburn was one of the initial cohorts of colleges and universities eligible to offer incarcerated individuals such an opportunity. That is part of the reason, Delaney believes, it garnered a relatively high rating. I think with having this long history and having been able to troubleshoot different approaches to offering different kinds of college services, they have put together really good strategies for making these things happen, and that is what is coming through in our data, she said. They have had time to develop expertise, Delaney added. They have been able to try a couple of different approaches and find the one that works. Delaney said that about 95% of those incarcerated will eventually be released, and that education programs in prison facilities help to reduce recidivism, which makes communities and people in the community safer. It also provides a safer environment for people working at the facilities. There are fewer violent incidents in facilities that have higher education programs, she said. This means they are safer places to live for incarcerated people, but also a safer place to work for correctional staff, which is a very important aspect of thinking about the safety of our communities. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry's leadership and the heads of Azerbaijani diplomatic missions abroad visited the Alley of Honor and the Martyrs' Alley on the occasion of the professional holiday of the country's diplomatic service employees, Trend reports. The diplomats paid tribute to the memory of the national leader of the Azerbaijani people, Heydar Aliyev, by laying a wreath and flowers at his tomb. Foreign Ministry personnel also honored the memory of the prominent ophthalmologist, academician Zarifa Aliyeva, and laid flowers at her tomb. Flowers were then laid at the tombs of the distinguished statesman Aziz Aliyev and the renowned doctor and scientist Tamerlan Aliyev. Further, they paid their respects at the Eternal Flame memorial and visited the tombs of Azerbaijanis who laid down their lives defending the nation's independence and territorial integrity. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel [Watch in the player above: ALDI opening new store in Kent] WARRENSVILLE HEIGHTS, Ohio (WJW) Northeast Ohios newest ALDI grocery store is opening at 4087 Richmond Road in Warrensville Heights on Thursday, July 18, according to a news release from the German grocery chain. A beacon of hope: Cleveland officer Jamieson Ritter remembered This embedded content is not available in your region. The grand opening is set for 8:45 a.m. The first 100 customers are expected to get a gift back with a sampling of fan-favorite products and a gift card. Shoppers can also enter to win a $500 gift card during the grand opening weekend through Sunday, July 21. Nearly all ALDI locations offer grocery delivery and curbside pickup, according to the release. New, giant flamingo coming to Parma following theft The next closest ALDI stores are a 7-minute drive away, at 4650 Northfield Road, North Randall; and a 10-minute drive away, at 6217 SOM Center Road, Solon. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. On the eve of Alec Baldwins involuntary manslaughter trial for the 2021 killing of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, the multiple Emmy winner just scored a big legal win. Over arguments from prosecutors, a New Mexico judge has determined Monday that Baldwins role as a co-producer on the troubled indie Western cannot be entered as evidence into the July 9 starting trial. More from Deadline Baldwin was in court at the defense table when the ruling was announced, as he has been all day. Im having real difficulty with the states position that they want to show that as a producer he didnt follow guidelines and therefore as an actor Mr. Baldwin did all of these things wrong that resulted in the death of Ms. Hutchins because as a producer he allowed these things to happen, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer declared today in a pre-trial motions hearing going on right now in Santa Fe. Hutchins was fatally shot, and Rust director Joel Souza was injured on October 21, 2021 after the Colt .45 Baldwin was pointing at the director of photography fired off a live round during a rehearsal at the Bonanza Creek Ranch near the New Mexico city. In an approximately two-week trial set to begin with jury selection tomorrow, Baldwin, who has pleaded not guilty, faces up to 18 months behind bars and thousands in fines if convicted. Along with being the star of Rust, Baldwins other hat as a producer made him keenly aware of his responsibilities on set, stated special prosecutor Erlinda Johnson in her unsuccessful pitch. Defendants role as a producer emboldened him in the days before October 21, 2021, to engage in conduct that placed others, including Ms. Hutchins at risk, by rushing crew members and making demands for quick changes to scenes, sending crew members scrambling, Johnson said in an earlier filing. Mr. Baldwins role as producer also made him keenly aware of his duties to observe set safety rules and orderly conduct on set. To that, Judge Sommer made her decision in part to avoid muddying the waters for the yet-to-be seated jury. The probative value is not substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice and confusion to jurors, Judge Sommer added to special prosecutors Johnson and Kari Morrisey, as well as Baldwins Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan defense lawyers Luke Nikas and Alex Spiro. Im denying evidence of his status as a producer. Alec Baldwin on Rust set In both Baldwins first 2023 indictment and in his recharging this January, the actors place as a working producer on Rust has been a core tenet of the states case. The now muted prosecution route has gone directly to the thrust that Baldwin was likely aware of issues of previous gun discharge and other matter on the set of the $7 million budgeted film. Additionally, the prosecutors have put forward that Baldwins producer placement in the films hierarchy allowed him to essentially take over Rust and even big foot director Souza on occasion, including on matter of firearm safety and his own training by now incarcerated armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed. All of which is off the table now. Presently, Baldwins defense lawyers, who have failed over and over to get the matter tossed out, are putting a spotlight on allegations that the prosecutors have not been timely in handing over certain documents in the discovery process. Admitting it is unlikely the case will be dismissed over this at this late stage, the defense want the evidence in question kept out of the trial. You are essentially asking for a continuance, an irritated Judge Sommer responded before giving the parties an hour Monday to come up with a solution. Expected to be in court every day of the trial, Baldwin is also up against several civil cases in California and New Mexico courts related to Rust and the tragic shooting on the movies set. As well, with the Land of Enchantment pulling over $1.6 million in tax incentives that Rust had been awarded, the deal that Baldwin and fellow producers made with widower Matthew Hutchins to end his wrongful death suit may now be in jeopardy. The funds from those tax incentives were to be used in part to pay Hutchins as part of an October 2022 settlement payments that are long overdue, according to those in the know. Gutierrez-Reed was sentenced on April 15 to 18 months in a New Mexico state prison after being found guilty of involuntary manslaughter on March 6 for the live round that ended up on the seemingly chaotic Rust set. The 27-year-old daughter of legendary movie gunman Thell Reed is appealing her sentence and trying to get early release. Gutierrez-Reed is on the states witness list, though it is unlikely they will get much from her as the ex-armorer invoked her 5th Amendment rights repeatedly during a pre-trial interview for the Baldwin case. Rust the movie was resurrected early last year and completed filming in Montana with Baldwin and Souza returning as star/producer and director respectively. Finished for months, the film has not been picked up by any buyers so far. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. In a significant victory for the defense, Alec Baldwins role as a producer on the film Rust will not be considered during his involuntary manslaughter trial in the fatal on-set shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer ruled Monday. Baldwins position as a producer has consistently been part of the prosecutions strategy as they have sought to show he had more responsibility and influence on the set than just as an actor. In court Monday, the prosecution said as producer he should have been aware of set safety requirements, while Baldwins defense said this evidence was prejudicial and confusing to the jury. In issuing her ruling, the judge admitted she struggled to understand the prosecutions arguments. Im having real difficulty with the states position that they want to show that as a producer, he didnt follow guidelines, and therefore, as an actor, Mr. Baldwin did all these things wrong resulting in the death of Halyna Hutchins because as a producer, he allowed this all to happen, Marlowe Sommer said. The judge said her decision was impacted by the fact that there were other producers on the film and Baldwin himself was not solely responsible for on set decision-making. The probative value is not substantially outweighed by unfair prejudice and certainly confusion of issues to the jury, so Im denying evidence of his status as a producer, she concluded. Alec Baldwin appears in court during a hearing on Monday, July 8. - Pool Now, with the judge not allowing evidence related to his role as a producer, the jury will consider Baldwin solely as an actor who was holding the gun as part of his role not as the boss or as a supervisor who was responsible for set safety. The decision was one of a number of key evidentiary rulings made during a hearing Monday, just one day before jury selection is set to begin in the case. The trial is expected to last about two weeks. The case stems from the fatal shooting of Hutchins on October 21, 2021, at a New Mexico ranch as they rehearsed the Western film Rust. Baldwin was practicing a cross draw pulling a gun from a holster on the opposite side of his body from his draw hand with a prop gun when it fired a live round, killing Hutchins and injuring director Joel Souza. Prosecutors charged Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter, saying he was negligent and reckless in his handling of the gun. Baldwin has pleaded not guilty and has said he did not pull the trigger and did not know there were live rounds in the firearm. Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the armorer and props assistant for Rust who loaded the firearm, was found guilty of involuntary manslaughter in March. She was sentenced to the maximum 18 months in prison. Dave Halls, the assistant director who yelled cold gun and handed it to Baldwin, agreed to plead no contest to negligent use of a deadly weapon, the district attorneys office announced in January 2023. Judge allows some videos of Baldwin Other pretrial rulings on Monday dealt with videos of Baldwins behavior on set, the relevance of some evidence and whether certain witnesses can testify. In one ruling, the judge determined prosecutors can show videos from the set of Baldwins handling of the firearm. Prosecutors have said the videos show him improperly handling the gun, including engaging in horseplay with the revolver and placing his finger on the trigger during scenes where he was not required to shoot the firearm. However, the judge ruled prosecutors cannot introduce videos of him yelling or screaming at people on set, saying they were not relevant to the charge. Prosecutors will be allowed to show video of Hutchins after she was shot and photos of her autopsy, the judge ruled. The defense had argued this evidence would be prejudicial to the jury, but prosecutors said it was necessary to their case. Further, the judge ruled to exclude a letter from about 25 crew members defending the safety on set. The judge said the letter was hearsay and cannot be used as evidence at trial unless one of the trial witnesses participated in the letter. Several other decisions went for the defense. In one, the judge ruled they can question Souza, the director, about his civil lawsuit against Baldwin and question his motives. In another, the judge ruled the defense can seek testimony from Robert Shilling, a former investigator for the prosecution who criticized the quality of the investigation. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Alec Baldwin, the actor, will stand trial this week on a charge of involuntary manslaughter for the accidental shooting of Rust cinematographer Halyna Hutchins. Alec Baldwin, the producer, will not. Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer of the First Judicial District in New Mexico ruled Monday that prosecutors could not argue that Baldwins role as a coproducer in addition to being its leading man made him culpable for the death of Hutchins. However, the judge also ruled that jurors could see videos that allegedly show Baldwin was reckless while handling guns on set. Prosecutors have argued that footage allegedly shows the actor with his finger on the trigger and using his gun as a pointer to direct crew members. Baldwin has been charged with one count of involuntary manslaughter for allegedly pointing a gun at Hutchins during rehearsal of a scene. She was killed on Oct. 21, 2021, when a gun he was rehearsing with discharged a live bullet. The gun fired and fatally struck Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza. He has pleaded not guilty, saying he was told the gun did not contain live ammunition. Baldwin has also claimed he did not pull the trigger before the bullet fired, which prosecutors dispute. Jury selection in Baldwins trial is set for Tuesday, with opening arguments scheduled to open on Wednesday. The post Alec Baldwin Wins Rust Pre-Trial Victory as Judge Rules to Exclude His Role as Coproducer appeared first on TheWrap. TORONTO (AP) The daughter of the late Nobel laureate Alice Munro has accused the author's second husband, Gerard Fremlin, of sexual abuse, writing that her mother remained with him because she loved him too much to leave. Munro, who died in May at age 92, was one of the world's most celebrated and beloved writers and a source of ongoing pride for her native Canada, where a reckoning with the author's legacy is now concentrated. Andrea Robin Skinner, Munro's daughter with her first husband, James Munro, wrote in an essay published in the Toronto Star that Fremlin sexually assaulted her in the mid-1970s when she was 9 and continued to harass and abuse her until she became a teenager. Skinner, whose essay ran Sunday, wrote that in her 20s she told the author about Fremlin's abuse. Munro left her husband for a time, but eventually returned and was still with him when he died, in 2013. She reacted exactly as I had feared she would, as if she had learned of an infidelity, Skinner wrote. She said that she had been told too late, she loved him too much, and that our misogynistic culture was to blame if I expected her to deny her own needs, sacrifice for her children and make up for the failings of men. She was adamant that whatever had happened was between me and my stepfather. It had nothing to do with her. Skinner wrote that she became estranged from her mother and siblings as a result. Shortly after The New York Times' magazine published a 2004 story in which Munro gushed about Fremlin, Skinner decided to contact Ontario Provincial Police and provided them letters in which Fremlin had admitted abusing her, the Toronto Star reported in a companion news story also published Sunday. At 80, he pleaded guilty to one count of indecent assault and received a suspended sentence one that was not widely reported for nearly two decades. The news stunned and grieved the literary world, although some readers and Skinner herself cited parallels in the authors work, for which she was awarded the Nobel in 2013 and dubbed a master of the contemporary short story by the judges. Author Margaret Atwood, a fellow Canadian and longtime friend of Munro's, told the Star that she didnt know about Skinners story until after Fremlin had died and Munro was struggling with dementia. The kids probably wondered why she stayed with him, Atwood said. All I can add is that she wasnt very adept at real (practical) life. She wasnt very interested in cooking or gardening or any of that. She found it an interruption, I expect, rather than a therapy, as some do. The owners of Munro's Books, a prominent independent store in Victoria, British Columbia, issued a statement Monday expressing support for Skinner and calling her account heartbreaking. The author co-founded the store in 1963 with first husband and Skinner's father, James Munro, who continued to run the store after their 1971 divorce. Two years before his 2016 death, he turned the store over to four staff members. "Along with so many readers and writers, we will need time to absorb this news and the impact it may have on the legacy of Alice Munro, whose work and ties to the store we have previously celebrated, the store said in a statement issued Monday. In Skinner's account, she wrote that she had told her father with whom she lived for most of the year of the initial assault, but he told her not to tell her mother and continued to send her to Munro and Fremlin for summers. The current store owners have become part of our familys healing, and are modelling a truly positive response to disclosures like Andreas, reads a statement from Skinner and other family members posted on the store's website. We wholly support the owners and staff of Munros Books as they chart a new future. Although Skinner spent many years estranged from her siblings, they have since reconciled and her family spoke with the Toronto Star in support of Skinner. While they felt the world needed to know of the coverup and that sexual violence must be talked about, the Star reported, Munro's children believe her acclaimed literary reputation is deserved. I still feel shes such a great writer she deserved the Nobel, daughter Sheila Munro told the Star. She devoted her life to it, and she manifested this amazing talent and imagination. And thats all, really, she wanted to do in her life. Get those stories down and get them out. Sheila Munro, also an author, wrote of her mother in the 2002 book Lives of Mothers & Daughters: Growing Up With Alice Munro, a project suggested by Alice Munro. Sheila makes no reference to the abuse of Skinner, but does observe that her mother often drew upon her private life and that she struggled to separate Munro's fiction from the reality of what actually happened. Munro biographer Robert Thacker noted to The Associated Press that such Munro stories as Silence and Runaway center on estranged children. In Vandals, a woman grieves over the loss of a former boyfriend, Ladner, an unstable war veteran who we learn assaulted his young neighbor, Liza. When Ladner grabbed Liza and squashed himself against her, she had a sense of deep danger inside him, a mechanical sputtering, Munro wrote, as if he would exhaust himself in one jab of light, and nothing would be left of but black smoke and burnt smells and frazzled wires. Thacker, whose Alice Munro: Writing Her Lives came out in 2005 the same year Fremlin was convicted told the AP that he had long known of Fremlin's abuse but omitted it from his book because it was a scholarly analysis of her career." I expected there to be repercussions one day, said Thacker, who added that he even spoke to the author about it. I dont want to get into details but it wrecked the family. It was devastating in lots of ways. And it was something that she spoke deeply on. ___ Italie reported from New York. Opinion editor's note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom. The judicial system is a fundamental, foundational component of our democracy. A "cornerstone," according to U.S. Attorney Andrew Luger, who along with his dogged colleagues responded swiftly to an alleged $120,000 bribery attempt in the Feeding Our Future trial. Five people have been charged, three of whom were already on trial in the broader case. "This is a chilling attack on our justice system," Luger told an editorial writer. A system, he noted, that relies on lawyers, judges and juries "who determine the facts based on evidence" and a jury system in particular that's "one of the cornerstones of our democracy [that] ensures the rule of law and ensures fairness for all. "This attack, as alleged, was an attempt to corrupt one of those cornerstones of our democracy." But the metaphorical cornerstone, like literal ones, was strong and upheld the edifice of justice essential to society. That's in part because Juror 52, the diligent citizen targeted with the alleged bribe, immediately called police. And in part because Luger's office and the FBI immediately went back to work and, as Luger described, "put their nose to the grindstone to get to the bottom of this." Everyone, he continued, "recognized time was of the essence. It was important to determine who did this, how they did it. One, to hold them accountable. But also to send a clear message that you simply cannot get away with this. And I'm really proud of that." He and his colleagues should be. And Minnesotans should be proud of them, as well as the other official participants in the trial who Luger lauded for their belief "in the fairness and sanctity of the jury system" and "common interest in an independent, free and fair jury." Attempts to tamper with juries are rare and must remain that way. Luger said his only indirect, similar experience was in New York in the 1980s with mafia attempts to corrupt jurors. "My takeaway here is we now have to recognize that people who engage in a massive scheme to defraud may be capable of worse, and we have to protect our system, as we have done here." The scheme to defraud is at the heart of the Feeding Our Future case. Actually, cases, as upcoming trials await scores more defendants in the alleged $250 million pandemic-era fraud of federal programs meant to feed people in need. Of the 70 charged, 18 already pleaded guilty, seven were just tried (with five found guilty). The publicity surrounding the case itself, let alone the alleged bribery, may make it more difficult to find jurors for future cases. But that shouldn't impede the imperative to protect jurors and the system itself. "This has happened once," Luger said. "I hope it doesn't happen again. But hope is not a strategy. We, collectively lawyers, prosecutors, defense lawyers and judges all need to go forward with our eyes open with carefully thought-out ideas to protect the system." Luger declined to provide a specific prescriptive on anonymous juries or the option of sequestering them in future Feeding Our Future cases, or any other cases under his office's jurisdiction. The justice system "should not overreact," he said, but also "cannot underreact." Another aspect the judicial, but also political and societal, system must react to is the way those charged allegedly tried to leverage race in their appeal to Juror 52. Among the documents found in a defendant's phone is what amounts to an instruction manual for the juror, including a suggestion that they were targeted because of their social status. "We are immigrants: they don't respect and care about us," it allegedly said. Luger's response: "False claims of racism to further a crime are dangerous and must be called out, as we have done here." Getting to the bottom of the alleged bribery attempt, as well as the broader fraud, are key to keeping, or in many cases restoring, citizens' trust in government that has been understandably shaken by this entire sordid episode. "Our focus in this case," concluded Luger, "on holding people accountable for this massive fraud they committed is an essential part of the work that this office can do, along with our federal law enforcement partners, to show people that government works, the Department of Justice works, federal law enforcement works." That work is itself a vital cornerstone to our democracy and Minnesotans are fortunate to have public servants like Luger and his colleagues dedicated to protecting it. FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (PIX11) The man accused in a stabbing at Long Islands Adventureland Amusement Park on Sunday was acquainted with the victim, according to the Suffolk County Police Department. It happened around 4:50 p.m. inside the Farmingdale amusement park. An argument broke out between the suspect, victim and several others, according to authorities. More Local News Daniel Tomasky, of Shirley, allegedly stabbed 47-year-old James Burns in the abdomen, per police. At least one child was present during the stabbing, according to authorities. Burns, of Florida, was taken to an area hospital where hes in critical condition. Tomasky, 42, was charged with assault, criminal possession of a weapon and endangering the welfare of a child. Submit tips to police by calling Suffolk County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS (8477), visiting suffolkpd.org/Alerts/Crime-Stoppers or downloading the P3 Tips mobile app. Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. President Ilham Aliyev has signed an order "On approval of the Agreement on cooperation in the natural gas sector between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Republic of Turkiye," Trend reports. The agreement was signed on May 14, 2024 in Istanbul. Upon the entry into force of the Cooperation Agreement stipulated in the order, the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan will oversee the implementation of its provisions. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Azerbaijan will notify the Government of Turkiye regarding the completion of domestic procedures required for the entry into force of the agreement. CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) Dramatic changes are coming to Charlotte-Douglas International Airport this July, starting on Tuesday. From July 9 to July 21 many American Airlines ticket counters will temporarily relocate for a critical construction phase in the Terminal Lobby Expansion project, officials announced. During these 12 days, all American Airlines ticket counters between Checkpoint C and Checkpoint E will close. Temporary ticket counters will be set up during this time. Officials said some counters will move outside to Door 2 on the departures level, with four ticket counters and an additional four kiosks available. Temporary Ticket Counters: Outside Door 2: four kiosks and four ticket counters Mobile podiums: two dynamic ticket counters set up in available space Use other airlines ticket counters as available The temporary changes are happening as the CLT airport is experiencing record-breaking travel numbers. From Memorial Day through the Fourth of July, CLT surpassed 2023s numbers by 14%. The Fourth of July holiday witnessed approximately 925,000 arriving and departing passengers from July 2 to July 7, a 7% increase over last year. Of those 925,000, over 153,000 were local passengers departing Charlotte, a 6% uptick from 2023. Passenger activity is forecasted to remain high through Labor Day, with a continued 13% increase in passengers over last year, the airport said on Monday. Weather worsens CLT airport delays during holiday travel weekend Passengers are strongly advised to arrive two and a half hours prior to their domestic flights and three and a half hours prior to international flights during this time, the airport said on Monday. American Airlines flyers are encouraged to utilize the kiosks outside of Door 2. Passengers not needing to check luggage are encouraged to check in for their flights at aa.com and proceed directly to the security checkpoints. The Terminal Lobby Expansion is a six-year-long project that is scheduled to be completed by 2025. Officials said this multi-year construction project is transforming the terminal, which was built in 1982 to only accommodate 2.8 million travelers per year. In 2023, CLT passenger traffic reached a record 53.4 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 Queen City News. A U.S. citizen who was a representative of a drone company doing business with the Israelis has been wounded in Israel, after the Hamas-aligned militant group Hezbollah fired missiles toward Israel, U.S. officials tell CBS News national security correspondent David Martin. A spokesperson for the U.S. State Department confirmed that an American civilian was injured, but didn't offer further details. The U.S. Embassy in Jerusalem is assisting the injured American and the citizen's family, the spokesperson said. The U.S. government has repeatedly urged Americans to stay away from the region because of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. "The department reminds U.S. citizens of the continued need for caution and increased personal security awareness throughout Israel and the West Bank, as security incidents often take place without warning," the State Department spokesperson also said. Antisemitism in Europe drives some Jews to seek safety in Israel despite ongoing war in Gaza Fears about the possibility of war between Israel and Lebanon's Hezbollah have grown after an Israeli airstrike killed a senior Hezbollah commander last Wednesday. Israel said the commander, Mohammad Naameh Nasser, was responsible for firing rockets into Israel. Hezbollah responded with another barrage of rocket fire. Like Hamas, Hezbollah is backed by Iran but is believed to be larger and better armed. Holly Williams, Omar Abdulkader, Margaret Brennan and Olivia Gazis contributed to this report Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries Hoppin' clams! "SpongeBob SquarePants" turns 25 Americans are nearly evenly split over whether former President Trump should face prison time for his felony conviction in the New York hush money case, a new poll found. According to the survey from the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 50 percent of respondents said Trump should not be sentenced to jail time in the felony case, while 48 percent said he should. Trump was convicted in May on all 34 counts of falsifying business records, becoming the first former U.S. president to become a convicted felon. The charges stemmed from reimbursements made to Trumps onetime fixer and attorney, Michael Cohen, for a hush money payment to porn actor Stormy Daniels to keep quiet about an alleged affair. Opinions over prison time in the survey released on Monday varied between political parties, with 78 percent of Democrats saying the former president should serve jail time, and 86 percent of Republicans saying he should not. Independents were more evenly divided, with 50 percent stating Trump should be put behind bars, compared to 46 percent who said he should not. A similar trend was observed among party lines when it comes to approval of the conviction, pollsters found. Eighty percent of Democrats said they approved of the hush money conviction, while 6 percent disapproved and 12 percent chose neither. More than half 55 percent of Republicans disapproved of the conviction, while 14 percent said they approve, and 30 percent said neither. Independents in the poll were more mixed on the issue, with 32 percent who said they approve, 21 percent who disapprove and 47 percent who chose neither. Most Democrats 70 percent said they are extremely or very confident Trump was treated fairly, while 63 percent of Republicans said they are not very or not at all confident the former president received fair treatment. More independents 42 percent said they are not confident Trump was treated fairly, compared to 23 percent of independents who said the opposite. Trump, who is the Republican Partys presumptive presidential nominee, is now slated to be sentenced in September. His sentencing was originally scheduled for Thursday, three days before the Republican National Convention opens. The delay came after Judge Juan Merchan agreed to adjourn a July 11 sentencing hearing so Trump could attempt to mount his presidential immunity defense. The former president has not argued he is immune from the hush money charges, but his lawyers argue the jurys verdict must still be dismissed because some of the trial evidence was precluded under the Supreme Courts new test. Various legal experts have noted incarceration would be a rare punishment for a first-time offender convicted of Trumps charges in New York. Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D), whose office brought the case against the former president, declined to say whether prosecutors will seek jail time, insisting that they would speak through their court filings in coming weeks. Trump also faces three other criminal cases, including in Florida for alleged mishandling classified documents and in Washington, D.C., on charges of conspiring to subvert the 2020 election results. He is also charged in Georgia, where he is accused of attempting to overturn the 2020 election results in the state. Trump has pleaded not guilty in the other cases and denies any wrongdoing. The new poll of 1,088 adults was conducted June 20-24. It has a margin of sampling error of 4 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. Americans should have the right to be stupid. Fireworks bans are unpatriotic | Opinion In the wake of July Fourth, I always look forward to the reports of fireworks injuries. Not so much for the window it offers into the general irresponsibility of so many Americans (it is not a good idea to combine your roman candles, firecrackers and sparklers into a Frankenstein pyrotechnic), but for its usefulness as a barometer of Americas health. In many states, fireworks have been severely restricted, sucking all the fun and freedom out of Americas birthday. Thats not the case across much of the Midwest including Kansas and Missouri, where Black Cats, Patriot Salutes and bottle rockets run riot over the amber waves of grain not far from the sprawliest suburbs. It is Democratic strongholds, mostly far away, like California, Massachusetts and, disappointingly, Illinois where the frivolity-hating nanny state holds sway. More locally, your betters in Kansas City hate any patriotic displays of aluminum powder and potassium perchlorate, worried as they are over a night of noise and concerned that their residents retain both eyes and all 20 digits. And as we all know, nothing says liberty quite so well as a tube of smoky carbon rising from the ground. Anyway, my point is that freedom matters only if you are allowed to do things that those with more sense think are a bad idea. You dont need freedom of speech to compliment Aunt Fanny on her skill at crocheting. The First Amendment protects your right to be angry, hateful and cause trouble at City Council meetings. You dont need the right to bear arms to keep a fancy butter knife collection. The Second Amendment protects your right to have a loaded weapon of war next to your shoe rack in the bedroom closet. You dont need the Third Amendment to keep your 21-year-old kid from coming home and living in your basement. You need it to keep the king from quartering redcoats in your living room. (Well, maybe thats not so relevant anymore.) You dont need the right to be free of unreasonable search and seizure to keep a pile of boxes filled with forgotten slides of your boring vacations. You need the Fourth Amendment to keep the chief of police from breaking into a newspapers offices to destroy records of an investigation into his past sexist comments. You dont need the right to remain silent to be quiet about Grandmas old lady smell. The Fifth Amendment lets us all keep secrets about our conspiracy to have crazy Uncle Joe and that psychotic New Yorker named Donald involuntarily locked into an old folks home until the election is over. Real freedom begins when you are being annoying, unpopular or stupid. And thats why I want Donald Trump to make undoing the 1966 Consumer Product Safety Commission ban on cherry bombs and M-80s part of his pledge to Make America Great Again. If there is anyone who knows about the value in freedom to be annoying and stupid, it is Donald Trump. David Mastio, a former editor and columnist for USA Today, is a regional editor for The Center Square and a regular Star Opinion correspondent. Follow him on X: @DavidMastio or email him at dmastio1@yahoo.com Analysis: 'Dodged a bullet.' In France, voters deny far right a win. But what now? People gather at the Place de la Republique Sunday night in Paris to celebrate parliamentary election results. (Louise Delmotte / Associated Press) Strangers in Paris cafes raised joyful toasts to one another. In tight-packed crowds, people hugged and wept. A speeding bicyclist trailed a flapping French tricolor. Fireworks hissed and popped. In Sunday's parliamentary election, the French far right made a thunderous knock at the gates of power but one that seemingly dwindled at the last moment into insistent tapping. The National Rally, whose ascendancy had been widely feared after it topped the field in first-round voting a week earlier, fell back to an unexpectedly weak third-place finish surpassed by both a leftist grouping that took the largest share of parliamentary seats, and President Emmanuel Macron's centrists, who came in second. Tallies showed no bloc achieving a clear parliamentary majority, a result that points to prolonged political gridlock. But French financial markets, which had been rattled by the prospect of a far-right surge, rallied somewhat on news of the result. Macron, who has always had a fondness for audacious gestures, made a big gamble in calling these early elections. Reviews were mixed as to whether his bet had backfired. Its not catastrophic for Macron, said Christophe Chabrot, a senior lecturer in public law at Lumiere University Lyon 2. But now everything is very, very complicated. The uncertainty of what would come was not lost on the revelers in Paris, but they were for the moment thrilled that voters had staved off what had been the specter of Frances first far-right government since the dark Nazi-collaborationist days of World War II. People celebrate election results in Paris on Sunday. (Aurelien Morissard / Associated Press) The newly formed coalition of leftist and environmental forces was the nights surprise success story, garnering 178 of the 577 seats in the lower house of Parliament. That was well short of the 289 needed for an absolute majority, though. Cest Ouf, was the headline in Mondays early editions of the left-leaning Liberation newspaper crazy, in slang usage superimposed on a photo of a gigantic gathering in the Place de la Republique, a historic central Paris square. Read more: France braces for potential political earthquake: a far-right surge. What to know about the election The political disarray comes less than three weeks before the start of the Summer Olympic Games, although visitors to Paris were unlikely to experience much in the way of disruptions beyond the obstacle course that already exists in the city center. Many among the throngs of tourists navigating the barricades and blockages on Monday said they were unaware of the previous night's commotion. We pretty much slept through it all, said Jack Cherry, a 28-year-old Australian tourist who works in finance. There were a few sirens and so forth that we heard, but that was about it. For the French, though, the contest was all-consuming. Into the wee hours of Monday, long after the last late-summer evening light had left the sky, there was widespread rejoicing over the National Rally's defeat but already, a dawning sense of the deadlock and instability that lies ahead. Read more: A Ukrainian 'King Lear' comes to Shakespeare's hometown. Its actors know true tragedy I think you can say dodged a bullet, yes? said Leslie Laurent, a Parisian retail manager in her 50s. She said she had supported Macrons bloc, but was relieved that the far right had not managed a triumph. The votes stakes were reflected in unusually high tensions surrounding the race and by a turnout that authorities described as the highest in decades for a parliamentary contest. Read more: For Jewish voters in France, the election is 'a choice between the plague and cholera' The government sent 30,000 police officers into the streets on election day, and dozens of candidates reported having been physically attacked during the run-up to the balloting. But by Monday morning, there was little sign of the previous evening's raucous celebrations. The Place de la Republique was swept clean, with a sole cleaning crew scrubbing away at new graffiti on the base of the square's central monument. Macron, whose term does not expire until 2027, can remain in his post, although some opponents, including Jean-Luc Melenchon, the head of the leftist alliance's largest party, were already calling on him to step down. With Macron's centrists having lost one-third of their previous seats, the president's handpicked prime minister, Gabriel Attal, proffered his resignation Monday which Macron rejected, citing the need for stability. Attal had already offered to remain in his post until a new government could be formed, which may be a long and difficult process. Read more: Zelensky to Europe: A Russian victory in Ukraine would lead to the unthinkable The National Rally a successor party to the National Front, a xenophobic grouping that for decades was relegated to Frances political fringe had high hopes heading into the vote, expressing confidence that it could even achieve an absolute majority and form a government. But although it fell far short of that aim, the National Rally dramatically increased its number of parliamentary seats a state of affairs that is likely to result in considerable hand-wringing once the initial euphoria wears off. And not everyone, of course, is rejoicing. The National Rally made its name with deep antipathy toward immigration and scorn for the European Union, but part of its appeal springs from hard-edged dissatisfaction with the cost of living and economic inequalities within France sentiments shared even by many who felt that voting for the party would be an affront to Frances democratic values. Supporters of the far-left France Unbowed party react in Paris as a coalition on the left won the most parliamentary seats in the snap election. (Thomas Padilla / Associated Press) Initial reaction from Macrons camp was muted. He made no immediate personal appearance, with his office saying he would ensure that the sovereign choice of the French people will be respected. After the June 30 initial round of voting in which the National Rally came in first which itself followed Frances June 9 elections for the European Parliament, in which the National Rally also performed best centrist and leftist forces joined together, as they have in the past, to create a Republican front. Read more: In Europe, even if 'center is holding,' far right ascends That military-sounding endeavor is so named because it was intended to safeguard the French republic by blocking the far-right juggernaut. The far right responded to the results with defiance. Its president, Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old who had hoped to become the next prime minister, referred darkly to dangerous electoral deals made to stymie the National Rallys drive. Leaning into the partys narrative that it champions the forgotten against a powerful elite, Bardella told supporters in Paris that these machinations had deprived National Rally supporters of the government they wanted. Calling the early elections had been a huge gamble on Macrons part, and there was mixed opinion as to whether he had won his bet. He had counted on French voters repudiating the National Rally as a governing force, even if they were willing to lend it a protest vote. Still, the battle was a deeply damaging one and likely to leave Macron, deprived of a parliamentary plurality, a diminished figure in global affairs, including causes such as championing Ukraine and fighting climate change. Read more: Nigel Farage, Trump ally and political flamethrower, shakes up British parliamentary vote During the campaign, Macron described the far left as equally dangerous as the far right a dynamic of enmity that will make it difficult for his centrists to secure even temporary tactical alliances with leftists. At least at this juncture, none of the main blocs appeared willing to work with one another, and the successful leftist grouping in particular could be prone to infighting. Marine Le Pen, the National Rally leader who did not contest this election but is expected to run for president in 2027, suggested in a post-vote television interview that it had taken the combined efforts of the left and center to keep her party down. In the nights setbacks, she told Frances TF1, she saw the ferments that are those of tomorrows victory. Supporters of the far-right National Rally react at their Paris headquarters after the release of vote projections that the party would come in third. (Louise Delmotte / Associated Press) 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. Today's burning question considers affordable housing in Asheville and how many residents qualify for it. Have other questions for our staff? Email Executive Editor Karen Chavez at KChavez@citizentimes.com and your question could appear in an upcoming column. Hilliard Apartments, right, and The Avery apartments complex, at the corner of Hilliard and Clingman avenues, March 28, 2024. Question: How many affordable housing units are currently in Asheville and Buncombe, including projects in progress like the apartments being built in the RAD and off Clingman, and those under the auspice of the Asheville Housing Authority and like agencies? How has the number of "affordable" units changed in the last 10 years? What percentage of the population is in need of or qualifies for affordable housing? Answer: In this economy? Everyone needs affordable housing! Well, maybe not those who are making enough to purchase the $50 million estate in Highlands or those who are living in the neighboring town of Biltmore Forest, considered the "richest" in North Carolina. But many of us, I believe, would say they aren't treading water, but rather drowning in this housing market. Last year, we hit record high median home sale prices of $485,000 in Asheville. The metro has the third highest fair market rent for a one-bedroom apartment between North Carolina, Virginia, Georgia, South Carolina and Tennessee, according to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Harvard recently analyzed metropolitan areas across the United States and found that Asheville had the highest income to home price ratio in North Carolina, as the average home price costs 6.5 times the area's yearly median income. The other day, I spoke to Joint Center for Housing Studies of Harvard University senior research associate Alex Hermann who called the statistic "astounding" considering Asheville's size and location. The Avery apartment complex is under construction at the corner of Clingman and Hilliard avenues downtown. The proposal was originally rejected by City Council but was approved after the developer made changes to the proposal, including doubling the affordable housing units. To start off on your question, reader, it's hard to exactly tell how many units of affordable housing are in the region, but some resources from Buncombe County can give us a rough estimate. In 2023, the county developed the affordable housing map, a resource developed for those looking for Buncombe County housing that fits certain affordability or accessibility criteria. The map highlighted around 5,000 units in the county, including those in the City of Asheville and run by the Housing Authority of the City of Asheville. I should note that accessible units have been highlighted as particularly rare, as the recent Buncombe County Fair Housing Plan stated there are only 232 accessible units in the county. Commission funds more affordable units: How Buncombe County will use $19M for affordable housing: new units, rent help, repairs Asheville looks at affordability The Avery apartment complex is under construction at the corner of Clingman and Hilliard avenues downtown. The proposal was originally rejected by City Council but was approved after the developer made changes to the proposal, including doubling the affordable housing units. As for other elements of this question, the city of Asheville has a head start. The city discussed the draft Affordable Housing Plan developed by Enterprise Community Partners during a June 25 city council work session. The company had received a $146,517 contract last fall to start the study, an effort that was partially funded by Dogwood Health Trust. The final study is scheduled for publication by the end of July. The results of the draft plan are, needless to say, staggering. Housing cost-burdened households make-up 13,641 of Asheville's total households, meaning that many households pay 30% or more of their monthly income to housing and utilities, according to the draft. It's well over a third of Asheville's households. In terms of projects currently in progress, I reached out to the City of Asheville recently to answer a very similar question earlier this year. As of March, the city had funded 571 units of affordable housing since 2016. The Housing Trust Fund, a fund established by City Council in 2000 to boost the region's affordable housing opportunities, and other affordable housing funds have provided money for roughly 2,315 affordable housing units to date, according to the draft. The most recent American Community Survey data indicates that 40% of Asheville's households make less than $50,000 a year, though separating this data between family and non-family households shows that only 28% of family households make less than $50,000 while a staggering 55% of non-family households make less than $50,000. The threshold for those to qualify for a 80% area median income voucher is $52,350, according to the latest data from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development. So, depending on how you process the data, about half of Asheville's households qualify for 80% AMI vouchers. Another interesting aspect to this question is the conversation between growth and migration. Jerah Smith, a program director of Equitable Housing Solutions with Enterprise, speaks during a meeting on affordable housing at Harrahs Cherokee Center Asheville, March 27, 2024. Jerah Smith, program director for Enterprise Community Partners, noted that much of Asheville's growth comes from in-migration from new residents whose incomes are typically higher, displacing those at lower incomes who currently live in the area. "Based on our findings, the community's feelings are validated. Based on this evidence, growth is occurring and it's leaving them behind," Smith said. Enterprise Community Partners estimates that the city will need to build 14,000 new homes by 2050 just to keep up with population growth "let alone tip the balance of affordability." More: Asheville-based makers of the ENO hammock, popular outdoors brand, celebrates 25 years More: Asheville spends millions on affordable housing; its neighbor, NC's richest town, $0 Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com.Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Answer Man: How many in Asheville qualify for affordable housing? Family members and neighbors perform the last rites of Savitri Devi, 50, who died during a stampede, in Ramnagar, in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, Wednesday, July 3, 2024. Devi was among more than 120 people who died in a stampede last week at a religious festival in northern India, as the faithful surged toward the preacher and chaos ensued among the attendees. (AP Photo/Rajesh Kumar Singh) RAMNAGAR, India (AP) The orange rising from flames shone a light on the twilight scene. Savitri Devi, 50, had just been cremated. Devi was among more than 120 people who died in a stampede last week at a religious festival in northern India, as the faithful surged toward the preacher and chaos ensued among the attendees. The event had been permitted to accommodate only 80,000 people. Its not clear how many made it inside the giant tent set up in a muddy field in a village in Hathras district in Uttar Pradesh state but they were reported to be about three times the permitted number. It was a matter of fate. What does Baba have to do with it? Vir Pal Singh said about his wife Devis passing. Singh was a volunteer at the religious gathering. The couple had been a follower of the Hindu guru, known locally as Bhole Baba, for more than 10 years. It was not clear what sparked the stampede. The states chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, told reporters that a crowd rushed toward the preacher to touch him as he was descending from the stage, and volunteers struggled to intervene. An initial report from police suggested that thousands of people then thronged the exits and many slipped on the muddy ground, causing them to fall and be crushed. Most of the dead were women. The chaos appeared to continue outside the tent when people ran toward the preacher as he left in a vehicle. His security guards pushed the crowd back, causing more people to fall, according to officials. Devis daughters Bharti and Sonam were inconsolable. Were orphans now. Mother has left us. Who will take care of us? they wailed. Village women held them and mourned together. My parents believed that Babaji (the preacher) would lift all our burdens, Ajay Kumar said. Kumar, who is a graduate, said he also went to religious gatherings of the Baba because it became a family tradition. Deadly stampedes are relatively common at Indian religious festivals, where large crowds gather in small areas with shoddy infrastructure and few safety measures. The family will immerse the ashes in the River Ganges, a Hindu belief that the deceased will attain salvation with this act. When asked whether he would volunteer at the Babas religious events in the future, Singh said I will decide when the time comes. Apple has removed several VPN apps from its App Store in Russia at the request of the governments communications watchdog, according to VPN makers. Last week, Russian news agency Interfax reported that Apple had removed 25 VPN apps from its App Store in Russia after Roskomnadzor, a government body that regulates the internet including what Russians can access demanded the removals. The internet in Russia is heavily controlled and censored, so Russian online users often rely on VPNs to circumvent restrictions and access blocked content. On Monday, two VPN services Le VPN and Red Shield VPN told TechCrunch that they received a letter from Apple notifying them of the companys decision to remove their apps from the App Store. AdGuard VPN was also removed, according to the company's spokesperson Ekaterina Kachalova, who told TechCrunch that the company received the same letter from Apple on July 8. In an email to TechCrunch, Hidemy.name's CEO Markus Saar also confirmed receiving the notification from Apple. We are writing to notify you that your application, per demand from Roskomnadzor will be removed from the Russia App Store because it includes content that is illegal in Russia, which is not in compliance with the App Review Guidelines, read a letter sent to Red Shield VPN by Apple, according to a screenshot provided to TechCrunch by the companys CEO and founder Vladislav Zdolnikov. Another source, who claimed to know some of the developers of the banned apps, provided the same letter to TechCrunch. The letter essentially argues that the VPN apps in question are in violation of Russian law. Apps must comply with all legal requirements in any location where you make them available (if you're not sure, check with a lawyer), the letter reads. We know this stuff is complicated, but it is your responsibility to understand and make sure your app conforms with all local laws, not just the guidelines below. The letter did not provide a specific reason for the app removals, but that Roskomnadzors takedown request was authorized by a specific article of Russias federal law. It's the latest crackdown on VPNs since the government introduced a ban on VPN advertising ahead of the country's election in March. Zdolnikov said in an email that Red Shield VPN, as well as other apps that were removed, like HideMyName and Le VPN, are developed and maintained by people who have an in-depth understanding of Russia's internet censorship mechanisms. We know how to circumvent these restrictions and are constantly improving our services. Despite years of efforts to block our services, they remain accessible to users, Zdolnikov wrote. It turns out that Apple did this work for the Russian authorities and with better quality. Konstantin Votinov, the founder of Le VPN, told TechCrunch that the company received a message from Apple on July 4, notifying them of the removal. In Le VPNs case, according to Votinov, Roskomnadzor flagged the apps description on the App Store as infringing content. We received a notice from [Roskomnadzor] via Apple after our app had already been removed, giving us no opportunity to address the concerns. This appears to be part of a broader crackdown affecting at least 25 VPN providers in Russia, Votinov said. Apple in 2022 halted hardware exports to Russia and stopped some services to protest its invasion of Ukraine, though its app store remains open. Apple did not respond to requests for comment sent by TechCrunch. The Russian Embassy in Washington, D.C. did not immediately respond to a request for comment. This story was updated on July 9 to include comments from AdGuard and hidemy.name. Insights from Bloomberg, Americas Quarterly, El Pais, and Forbes The News Argentina will dramatically expand its supply of lithium, a mineral key to the global green energy transition. Lithium is a key component in batteries, and Latin America is already one of the worlds leading producers of the element, second only to Australia. The country will open four new lithium mines in the coming months, Bloomberg reported, increasing its annual capacity by around 80% and helping it catch up to neighboring Chile, which is currently the dominant regional producer. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Latin Americas role in the global green transition is growing Sources: Semafor, Americas Quarterly, El Pais, Chatham House Argentina is among three Latin American countries the others being Bolivia and Chile that make up a lithium triangle, where almost 60% of the worlds deposits of the mineral exist, Semafors Jeronimo Gonzalez previously reported. With the exception of Chile, the region has been underdeveloped. But investment has been growing, largely led by China, Americas Quarterly wrote. The US is also starting to invest more, but may be lagging Beijing by as much as 10 years, an expert told El Pais. Ultimately, foreign countries are crucial for extraction, as technologies for refining and the construction of downstream industries remain in the hands of advanced, rich states and multinational corporations, think tank Chatham House noted. Mileis approach to lithium reflects geopolitical tensions Sources: Bloomberg, El Pais Argentinas President Javier Milei hopes the new investment in lithium extraction will give a much-needed boost to the country as he tries to extricate it from a decades-long economic crisis, Bloomberg noted. Milei recently passed a package of laws designed to benefit lithium developers and attract more export dollars. Meanwhile, the president has moved Argentina away from its previously close relationship with China and has instead welcomed closer ties with the US. He is also reportedly discussing investment opportunities with tech mogul Elon Musk, El Pais noted. China is not out of the picture altogether, though Beijing is also continuing to expand its portfolio of lithium projects in the country. There is no shortage of lithium globally, and its prices have dropped Sources: Bloomberg, Forbes Argentinas move to produce more lithium comes at a time when there is no shortage of the mineral globally, Bloomberg reported. In June, prices for lithium carbonate in China reached their lowest level since 2021, an epic slump, the outlet added. Slowing demand for electric vehicles, which use lithium-powered batteries, caused a cut in orders of the mineral, while rising production and expectations of a summer let-up made prices drop. This price crash should remind everyone that green energy is just as susceptible to market forces as its competitors in the fossil fuels industry, a political scientist wrote on Forbes. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan and Armenia have significantly limited the quantity of non-negotiated peace treaty matters, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov told reporters, Trend reports. The Constitution of Armenia retains territorial claims against neighboring states, he added. He mentioned that the public is regularly updated on the priorities of the peace agenda with Armenia, emphasizing that Azerbaijan is the initiator of these efforts. "Azerbaijan ended decades of occupation. In January 2021, President Ilham Aliyev publicly extended an olive branch and proposed a peace agenda to Armenia, transcending past hostilities. By the end of June, we forwarded the latest version of the peace agreement to the Armenian side," added the Azerbaijani Foreign Minister. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Arizona agency says budget raid of water fund was unlawful. But it isn't suing for now Not everyone in state government files a lawsuit when disputes arise. The governing board of the Water Infrastructure Finance Authority of Arizona decided not to sue after losing about $160 million in the new state budget, even though the funding raid may have been unlawful. State law says the agency's long-term water augmentation and water supply development revolving funds can't be transferred to the state's general fund without a 3/4 super-majority vote. The budget measure moving those funds didn't meet that threshold. It passed on a 34-21 vote with five absent in the House, and 17-12 vote with one absent in the Senate. But Chuck Podolak, the agency's director, said suing over this year's funding raid when the state's been hit with a $1.2 billion budget shortfall would have been "counterproductive." Still, the agency known as WIFA could get tougher on state leaders if they don't commit to the agency's long-term mission, he suggested. "I wouldn't say it's definitely settled," he said. WIFA's board passed a resolution unanimously last week reminding lawmakers of the legal stakes, and seeking the Legislature's commitment to adhere to the agency's mission to improve Arizona's water scarcities. Former Gov. Doug Ducey signed an expansion of the agency into law in 2022, promising to put more than $1 billion into the fund to research projects like desalination. The resolution didn't have the "fiery tone" that state Attorney General Kris Mayes put into her threat to sue the state over a raid of opioid settlement funds, Podolak said. It was more like an "offer" to work with state leaders. But he believes raiding the fund was unlawful and hinted such raids might not be tolerated in the coming years. "That's as close I get to tipping our hand," he said. Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey signs a bill making a $1.2 billion down payment on water issues on July 6, 2022. WIFA's cuts came during negotiations for the new $16.1 billion budget, which required cutting $1.4 billion from the previous plan when the state got slammed with a tax revenue shortfall. Gov. Katie Hobbs and legislative leaders decided to take out about $158 million from WIFA's funding, and not deposit a promised $333 million into the fund. The cuts will hurt the agency's mission to invest in water security projects in rural areas and potentially scare off investors from a large, but still unplanned, water supply project, the resolution states. Senate President Warren Petersen, R-Gilbert, negotiated the budget with Hobbs and House Speaker Ben Toma, R-Glendale. Petersen said he doesn't believe any lawsuit over the alleged need for a 3/4 vote would come to pass. "You cannot bind future legislatures on appropriations," said Petersen, who voted for the law in 2022. This embedded content is not available in your region. Though last year's budget didn't provide WIFA's full promised funding, either, the agency still has more than half a billion dollars. Petersen noted that its current and ongoing projects will be funded and leaders do support its mission. Finding and developing a new supply of water could be critical to the state's economy, which benefits from constructing homes and other developments for new residents. "We want to refill WIFA and we will do it," he said. "It's a temporary situation." The state can fund future projects when it can, he added. And if "lightning strikes twice" and the state faces another large shortfall in a few years, then WIFA "should be understanding," he said. Petersen's larger concern has been the failure of the so-called "ag-to-urban" bill this year that would have allowed agricultural property to retain rights to pumping groundwater if the property gets sold to a home builder. The plan would conceivably have incentivized some farmers to sell their properties, leaving more water in the ground because residential developments use less water than farms. "I think we find a way to get it done next session," he said. Reach the reporter at rstern@arizonarepublic.com or 480-276-3237. Follow him on X @raystern. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Water Infrastructure Finance Authority won't sue over budget Abe Hamadeh and Blake Masters are locked in a bitter primary fight for a House seat in Arizona. Masters has made attacks on Hamadeh's Muslim background a key aspect of his campaign. The primary fight also shows just how nationalized politics has become. It's a subject that Abe Hamadeh can't seem to avoid. In campaign trail appearances in the Phoenix area last month, the Republican congressional candidate, an Arab American with a Muslim father, inevitably made some sort of reference to the barrage of television ads and near-ubiquitous yard signs that have painted him as an Islamic terrorist sympathizer. "How many of you guys have seen these nasty ads against me?" Hamadeh asked the few dozen Republicans who had ventured to a crowded antique shop in a northern Phoenix strip mall to hear him speak. "They're pretty bad. I look at them and I'm like, 'I've got a lot of facial hair in those ads.'" On paper, Hamadeh his party's nominee for state attorney general in 2022 should be the presumptive winner of the GOP primary for Arizona's 8th congressional district. He's been endorsed for Congress by former President Donald Trump and has the enthusiastic backing of Kari Lake, the former gubernatorial candidate and all-but-certain Senate nominee who remains popular among the MAGA faithful in Arizona. Yet Hamadeh remains stuck in an apparent dead heat with the man behind the nasty ads: Blake Masters, the Peter Thiel protege and 2022 Senate nominee who's plowed millions of dollars of his own fortune into his opposing bid for the seat. "He is running a very bigoted race," Hamadeh told me of Masters, "and MAGA and the America First movement is bigger than that." This primary, described by some as the nastiest in America, will be a test of that proposition whether conservative voters can look past any drummed-up suspicions about Hamadeh's background to elect one of Arizona's most fervent election deniers. It's also a window into what may be the future of Republican politics, where what happens on the internet can matter more to voters than what happens in the state legislature, and where politics becomes so thoroughly nationalized that one candidate, Blake Masters, can plausibly seek to represent a House district over 100 miles from his home in Tucson. Abe Hamadeh speaking to voters at an antique shop in North Phoenix on Tuesday, June 25. Bryan Metzger This congressional seat, anchored by tens of thousands of older voters from around the country who've ensconced themselves behind the gates of sprawling, palm tree-studded retirement communities, is overwhelmingly Republican. Whoever wins on July 30 is all but guaranteed to go to Washington. If Masters and Hamadeh dropped out, the race would still be crowded. There's Arizona House Speaker Ben Toma, who's been endorsed by the district's retiring congresswoman, Rep. Debbie Lesko. There's state Sen. Anthony Kern, who was on the steps of the US Capitol on January 6 and now faces charges over his role as one of the state's fake Trump electors in 2020. There's even former Rep. Trent Franks, who previously represented the district before resigning amid a sexual harassment scandal in 2017. But those other men have largely become an afterthought. While they may possess the legislative records and strong ties to the district that Hamadeh and Masters lack, both frontrunners possess something far more crucial for winning a wide-open Republican primary in 2024, especially in a district like this: High name recognition and MAGA-world stardom. 'It's a lively primary' It's virtually impossible to drive through the suburban roads of northwest Maricopa County without seeing one: A large corrugated cardboard sign blaring the phrase "America was founded on Islamic principles" in bold yellow text beside a photo of Hamadeh at the Kaaba in Mecca, dressed in the ihram clothing that Muslims wear during the Hajj pilgrimage. One of Masters's TV ads also declares that Hamadeh "blamed Israel for 9/11" and once supported a pathway to citizenship for people living in the country illegally. As startling as the ads are, there's been little widespread outrage or condemnation among local Republicans, including the incumbent congresswoman. "You know, I've been involved in politics for a while," Lesko told me while walking to vote at the Capitol. "I expect everything. It's a lively primary, and may the best person win." An anti-Hamadeh yard sign, paid for by the Masters campaign, beside one of Hamadeh's own signs in the 8th district. Bryan Metzger While Masters is twisting his opponent's words the 33-year-old Hamadeh made most of the statements in question when he was a teenager, browsing the same kinds of mid-2000s message boards that Masters notably used to frequent his negative campaign is capitalizing on real complexities about the Trump-backed candidate's political identity. Hamadeh is the son of Syrian immigrants a Muslim father and a Druze mother who moved to Chicago in 1989 and overstayed their visas. His name was "Ibrahem" before he anglicized it to "Abraham" in 2010. His parents faced the threat of deportation in 1996 after his father, a jeweler living in Skokie, was indicted in connection with a 1994 synagogue firebombing, though prosecutors were unable to definitively connect him to the crime, and the charges were ultimately dropped. His father successfully appealed that deportation order, citing the fact that two of his children, including Abe, were born in the United States and were thus citizens. Masters's campaign has gone as far as to call Hamadeh an "anchor baby." Hamadeh's family later moved to Arizona. "As soon as they got off the flight, they looked at each other and they said, 'Wow, we found the Middle East of America,'" he told the antique shop crowd. In his youth, Hamadeh apparently identified on some level as a Muslim, writing in a Ron Paul Forums post in 2009 that he would be the "first arab american/muslim senator ooooh yeah." It was that same year, on that same forum, that Hamadeh made the "Islamic principles" comment, in which he was arguing against the demonization of Muslims while referencing a depiction of the Prophet Muhammad at the Supreme Court. He also blamed "Israeli Mossad" for the September 11th terror attacks, though he later disavowed those views in an interview with the Daily Wire. After graduating from the University of Arizona's law school in 2016, Hamadeh worked as a prosecutor in the Maricopa County Attorney's Office and joined the US Army Reserve as an intelligence officer. He made the trek to Mecca during a 14-month deployment to Saudi Arabia from 2020 to 2021. Two years ago, Hamadeh's religious background was a clear asset for a MAGA movement that has at times been keen to highlight its non-white adherents: In 2022, a local conservative outlet promoted the Mecca photo to illustrate the GOP's "bigger tent." Yet Hamadeh himself speaks about it now with some detachment. "My dad is Muslim, my mom is Druze, I have family who are Christian," he told me. "I've been to Jerusalem, I've been to Istanbul, the Vatican, Thailand, Japan. I'm very non-denominational, I don't identify really with one particular faith. I just have a belief in God, and I believe Jesus is going to return to Earth, but I think organized religion, in many ways, has failed so many people." The Republican Party is replete with ambitious politicians fashioning themselves to fit the moment, and Hamadeh has played his cards right. In the space of several months in 2022, he emerged from relative obscurity to become the party's nominee for attorney general, winning Trump's endorsement as the result of his unflinching devotion to the former president's stolen 2020 election claims and perhaps a well-timed loan from his wealthy brother. Running on a ticket with Masters and Lake, he came the closest of the trio to winning in 2022, falling just 280 votes short in what he calls "the closest statewide race in Arizona history that everybody just seems to ignore." He has since insisted that he is the rightful winner of that election, and he's now on his fourth lawsuit over the results. Hamadeh's chief identity is that of a fighter, a "happy warrior" as he puts it. During the first primary debate, he referred to himself as a "young man with a lot of testosterone." He's prone to trash-talking his political adversaries, quipping after our interview that Ben Toma is "gonna get 12%" in the primary and that "nobody talks about" Trent Frank's "sexual shit." He's also demonstrated a fluency in the parlance of the MAGA faithful, proclaiming to his supporters that "this is a 1776 moment" while warning them to be "cognizant of all of these psyops." "They're not just after me, they're after all of you," Hamadeh declared during his antique shop stump speech, echoing a favored line of the former president. "You all are a threat, just for being here." 'I call everybody crazy' While Hamadeh's calling card is stolen elections and a medley of contemporary MAGA bromides, Blake Masters is most closely associated with the New Right, an idiosyncratic form of conservatism that seeks national transformation along nationalistic, populist lines. The movement's most prominent spokesman in the halls of Congress is Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, who has endorsed Masters and is currently in the running to be Trump's vice-presidential pick. But while Vance made it across the finish line in 2022, Masters did not, owing in large part to a slew of alienating comments he made during free-wheeling interviews he gave during his Senate campaign. At one point, Masters named Ted Kacynski, a domestic terrorist known more commonly as the "Unabomber," as a "subversive thinker that's underrated." This year, he appears to be taking a more disciplined approach. "Blake is really not doing any more interviews for the rest of the campaign," his spokesperson told me in June. "This guy, he lost against Mark Kelly because he's a weirdo," Hamadeh told me. "He's a weirdo and nobody likes him, quite frankly. Kari and I were trying to drag him up, and look how he repays us." Hamadeh, Lake, and Masters ran together as a statewide ticket in 2022. Brandon Bell/Getty Images Bereft of the Trump endorsement, Masters has turned to running ads blaring that Trump endorsed his Senate campaign, an apparent attempt to muddy the waters that's drawn the ire of the former president's inner circle. Lacking the "stolen election" credibility that Hamadeh and Lake have unlike the other two, he has fully acknowledged that he lost his Senate race Masters has made illegal immigration the centerpiece of a starkly nativist campaign, pledging at one recent debate to be the "most conservative, most right-wing, anti-immigration member of Congress." At a forum in the Sun City West retirement community, where each House candidate was given just four minutes to make their pitch to a crowd of roughly 300 Republicans, Masters spent roughly half of this allotment on the issue. "Illegal immigration is a cancer," Masters said. "It is ruining our country. It's common sense: If you import the Third World, you become the Third World. I think the Left is obsessed with replacing us. If you're a sort of 'heritage American,' if you're a white American, they hate you. The Left hates how you look, they hate the way you think. If you're a minority here, and you're willing to come to this room as a Republican or an independent conservative, well, they hate you for being a turncoat. Look at how they treat the best Supreme Court Justice, Clarence Thomas, right? The Left is demented." Blake Masters speaking to a group of Republicans at a candidate forum in Sun City West. Bryan Metzger In May, Masters leaked a text that Hamadeh sent to him in which the former attorney general candidate appeared to privately mock those who believe in stolen elections. "I'm not lumped in with crazies with election stuff because I'm so close at 280, but the crazies love because they see me fighting," Hamadeh said in part. When I asked Hamadeh who he was referring to when he said "crazies," he laughed it off. "We're all crazies," Hamadeh said, his face curling into a sardonic grin. "It's ironic. I call everybody crazy. It's actually a very endearing term in these times." As Hamadeh has waged his counteroffensive against Masters, he's done the same thing that Democrats did to the 37-year-old tech entrepreneur in 2022: Dredging up his long history of online commentary, including internet forum comments from his libertarian days calling for "unrestricted" immigration and his residence in a vegan co-op while attending Stanford University. While Thiel has stepped back from overt involvement in politics this year, Hamadeh has sought to turn Masters's association with the right-wing tech billionaire who Business Insider revealed last year to be an FBI informant against him, pointing to a nearly $25 million bonus that Masters earned from Thiel Capital in 2023. "I think that warrants some investigative journalism," Hamadeh told me. A person familiar with Masters's compensation package, which the candidate revealed in financial disclosures this year, said that the payment was a bonus that Masters was owed in accordance with an industry-standard contract that he signed in 2018. 'I can't vote for you' Back at the antique shop, Hamadeh opened up the floor for questions, including half a dozen about whether this November's election might also be stolen, one about whether a newly concocted virus or "a meltdown of the grid" might prompt a cancellation of the election, another about "what can we do" to fight "the deep state," and precisely zero about what specific policies Hamadeh might champion if he were elected to represent the 8th district. In fact, we weren't even in the 8th district we were five miles away from its easternmost edge. "I can't vote for you," one woman, apparently not a prospective constituent, told Hamadeh as she shook hands with him after the event, "but I'll give you a donation." Hamadeh did grow up in the area, but he's lived in Scottsdale for years. Hamadeh's campaign says that he has since re-established residency in the district, while Masters continues to live all the way in Tucson. But charges of "carpetbagging" don't exactly land the same in Arizona: Most of the state's residents are transplants from out of state, and that's even more true of the tens of thousands of retirement community residents many of whom likely pay more attention to Fox News or alternative media sources than the Arizona Republic who make up a large chunk of the local GOP electorate and are the most likely to actually vote. Ben Toma, the speaker of the Arizona House, may simply be too much of a nice guy to win this race. Rebecca Noble/Getty Images It is under these conditions that this primary's top two candidates, neither of whom have held elected office, are waging an ugly fistfight, much of it via dueling "War Room" accounts on X. When Hamadeh talks about issues specific to the district, it's to speculate that Chinese nationals may be crossing the southern border to surveil the sprawling TSMC semiconductor plant undergoing construction in the northern reaches of the district. Masters, meanwhile, proudly told the Sun City West crowd that he's "honored to have won and beat Mark Kelly" by "seven or eight points" in the district when he ran for Senate. As attendees streamed out of the candidate forum, few stopped to shake hands with Ben Toma, the mild-mannered state House speaker who had politely warned the crowd to "be careful of noisemakers" and touted his record of enacting key conservative priorities on tax cuts and education reform while keeping a narrow, fractious majority in line. "I don't think this new breed of in-your-face, always rushing to tweet or post something on social media, or run after a network camera, is good for us," Toma told me. But Toma may simply be too much of a nice guy for this climate. He wasn't offering the red meat being sold by Hamadeh, who was busy holding court with a steady procession of voters on the other side of the room. He also can't compete with the personal war chest of Masters, who had apparently already bolted from the event. Moments earlier, I had overheard Toma explaining to one attendee apparently unaware of what office he held that he was, in fact, the speaker of the Arizona House. Read the original article on Business Insider Democrat Ruben Gallego and Republican Kari Lake have dominated attention in Arizonas U.S. Senate race, and Mark Lamb has done his best to elbow into the conversation for Republicans, too. But voters will see a few other, less familiar names on their way to choosing who replaces the retiring U.S. Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, I-Ariz., next year. Elizabeth Jean Reye is a Republican who despises Lake, wants her party to return to something more like Ronald Reagans vision and is on the GOP primary ballot that must be returned by July 30. At the same time, Green Party voters will see a pair of names few of them will recognize, Arturo Hernandez and Mike Norton. But they wont see one party officials wish were there: Eduardo Quintana. The Green Party has two candidates on its ballots suspected as plants from the Democrats and Republicans. Quintana is hoping to win the primary in a write-in effort. Meanwhile, Sinemas decision not to seek another term simplified the electoral calculus in the race, but as an incumbent she still could draw a smattering of write-in support in November and slice another narrow portion of votes away from Gallego or whoever wins the Republican primary. Such is the state of Arizonas political undercard, a space where some voters send protest messages or hold to visions of a starkly different agenda than what the major parties offer. People said, Start with mayor. The thing is, it can cost just as much to run for mayor and Kari Lake is losing to Ruben Gallego and she was driving me crazy, said Reye, a neuroscientist in Paradise Valley. She threw Kyrsten Sinemas border (security) bill in the trash. I found that pretty rude. Here we are in Arizona, and immigration is a massive issue. For Quintana, who decided to run for the Senate because of his support for the Palestinian cause against Israel, the biggest issue at the moment is just reasserting control of the Green Party over two imposters who qualified for the ballot. Im not being rhetorical. We really dont know these people, cant talk to them, cant find a contact number, havent met them, he said. Theyve never been members of the Green Party as far as we can tell. We know everybody in the Green Party that was interested in running for anything. Elizabeth Reye: A throwback for Republicans Reye, 46, is realistic about her prospects but believes strongly that Lake doesnt reflect the values of traditional Republicans. Beth Reye is a Republican running for the U.S. Senate against Kari Lake and Mark Lamb. If I were to get magically lucky enough to actually beat Kari Lake good luck I would work with the other side so that we can strengthen that border. Reye said someone less brusque than Lake is the GOPs only chance to beat Gallego. The problem is, I dont have the name recognition, so its a tough run, Reye said. If I lose in the primary, thats OK by me. At least I know I did something that I cared about. Reye considers herself a classic Republican. She sees former President Donald Trump as loud and rude, but the other thing is he made the economy unbelievably better. Even so, she isnt a MAGA extremist, which she sees as the biggest difference between herself and Lake and Lamb. I do not believe at all in the election denier thing. Kari Lake is still pursuing that, Reye said. If I lose, I lose. Reye is an Arizona native but worked in neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University, researching schizophrenia by demonstrating its genetic basis in lab mice. She later lived in Oregon, where she made her first bid for public office, the state legislature in 2018. She hopes for an evidence-based approach to making policy. I find that the extreme MAGAs are just embarrassing what I consider the Grand Old Party, she said, from rejecting vaccines to Lakes recent appearance in front of a Confederate battle flag. Green candidates: 2 on ballot a mystery to party chair If Reyes run is about trying to improve her party, its not clear what the Green Party candidates are trying to do. Hernandez has ties to the GOP. Norton has ties to Democrats. Quintana is a longtime member of the Green Party but needs a write-in win to represent his organization. Cody Hannah, the co-chairman of the Arizona Green Party, said neither Hernandez nor Norton have responded to his requests to discuss their runs and he can only presume it is part of an effort to hijack his party by each major party. Republicans may hope that a Green siphons votes from Gallego. Democrats can benefit if the Green Party nominee drops out of the race when its too late for the party to do anything about it, Hannah said. This is what happens when the duopoly parties think that they can interfere in our democracy. They dont believe in democracy. They dont believe in giving everybody a fair shot. What were asking voters to do, not just in Arizona, everybody in the United States, is to examine the dirty tricks that are happening here. As it stands, the party has officially endorsed Quintana, who is a write-in candidate because the cost to collect signatures was prohibitive. Candidates: Arizona border mayor appeared with Kari Lake but endorsed Ruben Gallego Eduardo Quintana: Gaza a key motive for one Green Quintana, 76, is a retired technician from the forerunner to Raytheon who, paradoxically, helped build bombs but now wants to stave off what he calls genocide in Israel. Eduardo Quintana, Green Party write-in candidate for U.S. Senate 2024 Im in favor of cutting off Israel from all funds, Quintana said of that countrys war with Hamas, the terrorist organization operating in Palestinian-held Gaza. Its a horrendous human-rights crime. While Quintana is focused on the conflict involving Israel, he takes significant policy departures on other major issues of the Arizona Senate race. He sees immigration and border security as a symptom of bigger problems. We dont see the situation on the border as an invasion or as a terrorist threat or as a criminal threat even, he said. We see it as a crisis of our society to deal with these millions of people due to climate change, by civil strife in their country. We believe its being mischaracterized as a security threat. They want jobs, and we need workers anyway. Quintana said he doesnt believe in capitalism and sees inequality, from money to health care, as the real problem in the nations economy. A major part of the solution, he said, is to redirect the economy toward creation of renewable energy through jobs at living wages. Quintana supports abortion rights as a broader recognition of womens rights. Little information on Mike Norton, Arturo Hernandez By comparison, its unclear what the other Green candidates want. Norton was unavailable to comment Tuesday about his Senate run. His bare-bones website notes a professional background in shipping and transportation and past support for Republicans and Democrats. Nortons campaign has multiple traces of Democratic assistance. Though he hasnt run for federal office before, shortly after launching his low-profile campaign in late March, it pulled in $37,000, from sources with histories of helping Democrats. Mike Norton It got $20,000 from four political-action committees Defend the Vote, End Citizens United, Save Democracy and Amalgamated Transit Union. All those organizations have given nearly exclusively to Democrats before. ECU, for example, has given $10,000 to Gallegos campaign this cycle as well. At least five of the six publicly disclosed individual donors have previously given significantly to Democrats or held roles in Democratic politics, including a senior policy advisor to the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. All of them are from the Washington, D.C. area or Massachusetts. Last year Norton was registered as an independent voter, not a Green. Information on Hernandez is even harder to come by. He was registered as a Republican in 2023, months ahead of his Senate and is a tribal gaming agent with no obvious political record before his current campaign. His original campaign treasurer was Chrissie Hastie, who runs a campaign compliance firm in Las Vegas. She has worked for an organization supportive of Nevadas Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo and was treasurer for Nevada Republican Danny Tarkanians failed run for Congress in 2018. Hernandez amended his campaign filings in April to show himself as the treasurer instead of Hastie. Even so, he still listed her phone number as a point of contact. The campaign finance report reflecting the first three months of the year including the time when Hernandez gathered signatures to qualify for the ballot shows no money taken in and none spent. He has no evident campaign website and could not be reached for comment about his run as a Green. Major parties dominate in Arizona A Democrat or a Republican has won every Senate election in Arizonas history. Beyond that, third parties have rarely had much impact on the final results. In 2022, for example, Libertarian candidate Marc Victor added a measure of potential suspense to the race involving U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., and Republican Blake Masters. Victor participated in the only debate that featured Kelly and Masters, cutting into the time for the other two candidates. Even so, Victor dropped out of the race in its final days and urged his supporters to back Masters. But early voting had already begun, blunting whatever impact that gesture might have made. In the end, Kelly beat Masters by nearly 126,000 votes, well beyond the 54,000 votes Victor received. It was similar to 2018, when Green Party nominee Angela Green dropped out of the race between Sinema, then a Democrat, and Republican Martha McSally. Sinema won by 56,000. Green picked up 57,000 votes. Before that, U.S. Sen. Barry Goldwater, R-Ariz., won his final term in 1980 by just 9,400 votes over Democrat Bill Schulz. Libertarian Fred Esser and two other minor party candidates combined for about 19,000 votes in that race. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: AZ Senate race includes Elizabeth Reye of GOP, 3 Green Party hopefuls TBILISI (Reuters) - Armenia's foreign minister will travel to Washington on July 9-10 during the NATO summit, his ministry said on Monday, as the country, once a top Russian ally, seeks to build closer ties with the West. "Minister (Ararat) Mirzoyan will take part in an event with NATO partners on the sidelines of the NATO summit, as well as in other events dedicated to the 75th anniversary of the organisation. Bilateral meetings are also planned," a spokesperson for the ministry said on the Telegram messaging app. The NATO summit kicks off in the U.S. capital on Tuesday. Armenia is not a member, belonging instead to the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organisation alliance. Until recently Russia's closest ally in the South Caucasus region, Yerevan has increased ties with Western countries as its relations with Moscow have soured over what Armenia sees as Russia's failure to defend it from neighbouring Azerbaijan. Armenia's defence ministry said on Saturday it would hold joint military exercises with the United States in Armenia on July 15-24, focusing on tasks related to peacekeeping missions. Last week Washington postponed exercises planned for this month in Georgia, Armenia's neighbour, long a close U.S. ally but lately seen orienting closer to Moscow. (Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Peter Graff) A pilot program initiated in April that gives Army doctors at military in-processing facilities broad authority to grant waivers for 147 low-risk medical conditions has gone so well that the service may make it permanent, said the one-star general heading the Armys Medical Process and Augmentation Team. Additionally, she told Army Times that the service has also offered a second chance to hundreds of would-be recruits who were previously denied waivers. Brig. Gen. Katherine Simonson, who is also a registered nurse and deputy commanding general for the medical arm of U.S. Army Recruiting Command, spoke candidly at a late June meeting of the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services about how the militarys new electronic health record, MHS Genesis, had extended the recruit processing timeline and increased the workload for staff without meaningfully increasing the number of medical disqualifications. The health record, which essentially documents every medical encounter in a recruits lifetime, merely gave staff less leeway to exercise their own judgment over conditions that technically required waivers but were known to be low-risk. The added step of retrieving additional medical documents to support a waiver one that could add another 100 days to entry-level processing increased a recruits likelihood to walk away, Simonson said. Following a Pentagon-wide pilot program that eased barriers to entry for 38 medical conditions, the Army rolled out its own pilot with the 147 conditions that data showed received waiver approval more than 95% of the time. For these, providers received guidelines and leeway to help them exercise their own judgment in passing a recruit through. In addition to things like mild or past asthma, the pilot included a number of female-specific conditions, such as abnormal pap smears without cancer indicators, past gestational diabetes, and well-managed endometriosis and polycystic ovarian syndrome. Results from the first month of the pilot program were dramatic. The waiver approval rate for recruits with technically disqualifying medical information rose from 39% to 47%, she said, and the proportion of return without action applicants those required to secure more medical documentation or consults to get approved dropped from 40% to 32%. The new waiver guidelines, she indicated, have also brought more consistency to waiver decisions. In our analysis, if we looked at an asthma patient with a similar packet, we may have one provider who felt very comfortable making a decision for a one-time albuterol prescription they rarely used, and another provider who felt that that patient needed a consult or more information, medical records, etc., Simonson said. With the help of a staffing plus-up that included more than doubling the U.S. Army Recruiting Command waiver team to 20 medical providers and growing the medical behavioral health team to nine providers, Simonson said the Army has brought its backlog down to 3,600 applicants awaiting waiver decisions, with 300 to 500 new waiver requests daily and up to 5,000 per month. With the new providers on board, she said, Army officials hoped to get the waiver decision timeline down to two weeks. In an interview with Army Times following the briefing, Simonson said the best part for her had been the Armys decision to call up prospective recruits whod applied as far back as November and been denied medical waivers. Of those, she said, 271 accepted the invitation to return to military entrance processing stations to resume the entry pipeline. But other than that, we really havent changed our denial rate, which shows us weve looked at very low-risk conditions we didnt change much of the risk, she said. Still, the Army is proceeding with caution when it comes to making the pilot permanent or adding new conditions. Simonson said the pilot included tracking the recruits granted waivers as they move through the training pipeline and complete their first tour of service to evaluate any change in medical drop rates or medical issues in service. The Pentagon has yet to report early results of its own waiver program, which was set to remain in effect through June. Officials told Military Times last April that following the pilots conclusion, they would evaluate the data and determine whether to extend it. I ate at the world's biggest Starbucks. The meal was tasty, and the setting was super cool, but it wasn't worth the $43 I spent. I ate at the world's biggest Starbucks. The meal was tasty, and the setting was super cool, but it wasn't worth the $43 I spent. I went to the world's biggest Starbucks the Reserve Roastery on Chicago's Magnificent Mile. It sells food and drinks not available at normal Starbucks stores, which diners can take to its rooftop terrace. I ordered avocado toast, tiramisu, tea, and a strawberry spritz. It came to $43 with tax and tips. While I was in Chicago for a conference in May, I decided to check out the world's biggest Starbucks the Chicago Reserve Roastery. It opened in late 2019, making it the sixth and most recent Reserve Roastery to open. It joined two other Reserve Roasteries in the US New York and Seattle. The upscale coffee houses roast their own coffee beans, sell food, drinks, and merchandise not available at normal Starbucks stores, and host tours and classes as well. The 35,000-square-foot Reserve Roastery is located on Chicago's Magnificent Mile. It's just a couple of minutes from the iconic John Hancock Center, since renamed 875 North Michigan Avenue. The Chicago Reserve Roastery has 35,000 square feet of floor space. Grace Dean/Business Insider Source: Starbucks The store has four floors, each serving a range of hot and cold drinks including coffee and alcoholic beverages and food from the exclusive Starbucks Reserve menu. Four different floors in the Reserve Roastery serve hot and cold drinks. Grace Dean/Business Insider I got my meal from the second floor, which hosts the Princi cafe and bakery. This is the main place to get food at the Reserve Roastery. I ordered food from the cafe on the second floor. Grace Dean/Business Insider Savory items on the menu include pizza, focaccia sandwiches, and croissants with prosciutto and fontina cheese. Most are priced at just under $10 pre-tax. Customers can get pizza, focaccia sandwiches, and savory croissants. Grace Dean/Business Insider There's a huge selection of desserts, too, with most selling for around $10 pre-tax. They include cheesecake, chocolate tarts, olive oil cake, and pastries. The Reserve Roastery has an extensive range of desserts. Grace Dean/Business Insider I opted for avocado toast with cherry tomatoes, tiramisu, and tea. This was my meal. Grace Dean/Business Insider The Reserve Roastery is much more upmarket than regular Starbucks stores, but there still wasn't table service. Customers were given buzzers, though, so that they could find a seat while they waited for their orders. Customers stood around as they waited to collect their orders. Grace Dean/Business Insider The food was served on a wooden tray, but it wasn't served with proper silverware. Instead, there was disposable but compostable cutlery for customers to take. There was disposable cutlery for customers. Grace Dean/Business Insider I took my tray up to the rooftop terrace on the fifth floor. It was a bit difficult to take my tray with a cup of tea up to the top floor in an elevator and open the door to the terrace. The Reserve Roastery has a rooftop terrace on the fifth floor. Grace Dean/Business Insider The avocado toast was delicious. I opted for one served with cherry tomatoes, arugula, and herbs. The toppings were generous, but I was disappointed in the overall portion size for $9 pre-tax. It also, strangely, wasn't served on a plate. I got a meal from the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Chicago. Grace Dean/Business Insider There was no English Breakfast tea on the menu, but a staff member advised me to get the Golden Monkey black tea instead, which I ordered with steamed oat milk. I would have loved a normal cup of English Breakfast tea. Grace Dean/Business Insider In the UK, black tea is just served with a splash of milk, but what I ended up with was a cup of very milky tea that was lacking in flavor. I didn't enjoy drinking it and neither did the Brits sat opposite me, sipping at their own tea. I wanted to order whatever the most popular dessert was. A member of staff told me that it was the tiramisu, followed by the cheesecake. I opted for the tiramisu, said to be the most popular dessert at the Roastery. Grace Dean/Business Insider The tiramisu was the most expensive thing I ordered, at $11.50 pre-tax. I enjoyed the creamy mascarpone filling, but the cake layers were a little bit dry and not as strongly flavored as I'd expected. Overall, I was underwhelmed by the tiramisu. Grace Dean/Business Insider This little bird enjoyed my leftovers, though. A bird took some of my tiramisu. Grace Dean/Business Insider Starbucks is a cold drink pioneer. Though many of its most popular iced drinks contain coffee, like its cold brew and lattes, it's also known for its Refreshers and Frappucinos. On my way out, I decided to try something available only at the Reserve locations the Strawberry Balsamic Spritz. I tried a Strawberry Balsamic Spritz. Grace Dean/Business Insider It was made up of sparkling water, "muddled" strawberry, and balsamic vinegar, and cost $7 for a grande. It tasted nice and was really refreshing, but I couldn't taste the vinegar at all. The portion of the lightly mashed strawberry was generous this is how much was left when I finished the liquid. The drink was very refreshing. Grace Dean/Business Insider I was glad I'd kept my fork from my lunch. I used it to scoop out the tasty chunks of strawberry. There was a lot of strawberry left once I'd finished the liquid. Grace Dean/Business Insider I loved being able to sit on the roof terrace with views of Chicago's skyscrapers, though it did get really busy up there. And I thought the avocado toast was delicious. The rooftop terrace had great views of Chicago's Magnificent Mile. Grace Dean/Business Insider But my toast, tiramisu, and two drinks came to $37, or $43.09 including tax and tips. For that price, you could get a deep-dish pizza for two, garlic bread to share, and a drink each from Chicago pizza staple Lou Malnati's, which has a location just down the street. I know which I'd pick. My meal was pricey. Grace Dean/Business Insider Read the original article on Business Insider The Russians have struck the toxicology department of the Okhmatdyt children's hospital, where seriously ill children were undergoing dialysis. Source: Operations were underway at the hospital at the time of the attack, Health Minister Viktor Liashko said during the national joint 24/7 newscast on 8 July. Quote from Liashko: "We managed to rescue everyone in the operating theatres and intensive care units. We are calmly bringing them down, and the children are being moved in coordination with the Kyiv Emergency Medical Service. Priority is being given to those who are on artificial lung ventilation, who need oxygen, or who need electricity to stay alive." Update: The acting head of the critical care unit told hromadske that during the air-raid warning, the children were in the basement and the Okhmatdyt medical staff stayed in the corridor. Patients, including those in intensive care, are now being evacuated, as there is no electricity, water, or oxygen. They are being moved to all Ministry of Health hospitals in Kyiv. Quote: "Work on dealing with the aftermath of the attack is ongoing. We can see the building where the toxicology department used to be, where children were on dialysis and where the lab was. The State Emergency Service is helping us here, as they were the first to start clearing the rubble. After a certain period of time, we will know who was evacuated by ambulance and who could potentially be under the rubble. All department heads are working. We have operational staff in place, and we will report everything. The main thing is not to panic and help save as many lives as possible," the health minister said. Some of the doctors have been injured and are receiving medical attention. Quote: "The main task is to save lives. Then the specialists will see what can be preserved. We have a network of all the hospitals that are ready to free up certain intensive care beds so that doctors can work at other institutions if they cannot work here," the minister said. Update: In the initial version of this news piece, we reported that people had been killed and injured in the toxicology department. We have now corrected this. When asked about the number of people injured and dead, Viktor Liashko said: "There is information, the number is constantly changing. Unfortunately, I can't give you the numbers right now." He did not indicate that he was talking about fatalities in the toxicology department. The Ukrainska Pravda. Life editorial team apologises for this error. Background: On 8 July, the Russians launched about 40 missiles of various types on Ukraine and attacked the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital. Okhmatdyt, in Kyiv, is the largest children's hospital in Ukraine. Since the beginning of the full-scale invasion, Okhmatdyt has not stopped a single operation, and in the early months, it was constantly treating injured people regardless of age. Support UP or become our patron! AUSTIN (KXAN) Hurricane Beryls path to Texas caused destruction on parts of the Caribbean. To help clean up the debris and devastation left by Beryl, an Austin native has organized efforts to help locals on the Caribbean island of Grenada. READ MORE: Hurricane Beryl makes Texas Landfall Daniel Perry is currently a medical student at St. Georges University on the island of Grenada, previously attending Vista Ridge High school in the Austin area. After Beryl hit Grenada, Perry felt inclined to help out. I came across the Grenada Red Cross Society, and I signed up to be a volunteer, Perry said. I was like alright Im going to see if I can get some student volunteers. Perry said he initially expected five to six students to join him but ended up getting over 50 medical students to provide disaster relief. Its an incredible group of people, Perry said. They were not comfortable being stationary after Beryl. Group photo of volunteers who helped cleaned a beach in Grenada following Hurricane Beryl (Courtesy Marta Wojtanowski) Volunteers cleaning a beach in Grenada following Hurricane Beryl (Courtesy Danny Levis) Volunteers cleaning a beach in Grenada following Hurricane Beryl (Courtesy Lucinda Eberly) When Beryl hit the island, it reportedly killed three people, according to the Associated Press. Perry said the weather Beryl brought was nothing he had ever seen before. We went into full lockdown on the island, Perry said. It was kind of surreal. You (saw) sideways rain and wind. It was the most rain Ive ever seen the most wind Ive ever seen. As hurricane season is far from over, Perry says there is still a lot to be done to be ready for the next cycle of intense weather. The mission now is to continue hurricane proofing these parts of the island that got it worse, Perry said. Having these backup places, backup generators, backup water supplies things like that so we can be ahead of the curve. Hurricane Beryl made landfall on Texas Gulf coast early Monday 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 KXAN Austin. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan will keep its active foreign policy to enhance its international role, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov told reporters, Trend reports. We have many goals ahead. As President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has repeatedly stated, Azerbaijan's foreign policy must meet national interests. It's crucial to pursue the right policies, identifying in advance what poses a potential threat to our country. We are pursuing a policy of developing friendly relations with all states, which will also be our top priority in the coming periods. For this purpose, it is of utmost importance to implement the right foreign policy, to establish relations with other states and allies," he added. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Australian police have imposed three nights of curfew on the popular tourist town of Alice Springs after a series of violent assaults and a brawl involving 80 people. One of the alleged assaults targeted four off-duty officers who were walking home. It was not immediately known if the offenders identified them as police, Northern Territory police commissioner Michael Murphy told reporters. The curfew would act as a pressure-relief valve and improve the safety of the community, said chief minister Eva Lawler. I love Alice Springs but the offending and behaviour we have seen over the last 96 hours will not be tolerated, she said. We want to stamp out this poor behaviour, Ms Lawler told reporters. The curfew will provide police extra powers to get on top of the situation. It was not a political decision, she said, and was made for the safety of the towns residents. Mr Murphy said the violence over the weekend contributed to "significant harm and civil disturbances" and was the reason for the decision to impose the curfew, which would be in place from 10pm to 6am. The intent of this declaration is to disrupt the behaviours associated with the harm were seeing in Alice Springs, he said. It applies to all classes of people, it will apply to adults and it will apply to youths. New laws introduced in May empower the police commissioner to impose a lockdown for three days and then ask for the government for an extension to control any violent incidents. "If I believe an extension is required I will put that in writing, about the reasons why I think that should occur," the police chief said. A police officer was allegedly run down by a vehicle and suffered arm and leg fracture over the weekend. A group of local officials was assaulted on Saturday when they tried to contain large-scale disturbance involving around 80 people. That subsequently led to the assault of four off-duty police who were walking home, Mr Murphy said. The officers, a man and three women, were attacked by a group of about 20 young men. While one of the female officers was pulled to the ground and had her purse stolen, another was punched in the face and kicked before her mobile was stolen. The officers reported the assault to police after returning to their accommodation. In a separate incident, police charged a man in the alleged stabbing of a 42-year-old woman on Sunday. Community leaders have long identified alcohol abuse as a major factor behind violence in the town. The curfew would be enforced "in the confines between Anzac Hill, Schwarz Crescent, down to the hospital, from the Stuart Highway across to Leichhardt and Stott Terrace", Mr Murphy said. "Anybody into the zone can be engaged by police, and they can be asked to leave," he said. "Or alternatively, they can be asked to stay if theres another disturbance and they need to be contained for their own safety. A failure to abide to a request by police can lead to an offence, and it can lead to an infringement notice or an arrest." People can still enter the designated area during curfew hours if they are fleeing domestic violence, visiting family, travelling to care for someone, going to work or going to fast food restaurants, said Mr Murphy. Alice Springs was put under a two-week curfew in March after a mass brawl involving 150 people, but it was enforced for only those under 18 years of age. Alice Springs, a remote town in Australias vast outback region some 2,000km northwest of Sydney, is the gateway to major tourist attractions, including the giant red sandstone monolith of Uluru, formerly known as Ayers Rock. Around a fifth of the towns population are Indigenous Australians, who have been marginalised since the continent was colonised by Britain in the late 18th century. Additional reporting by agencies Two new Leonardo AW139 helicopters specially configured to measure and map radiation levels from the air recently joined the Department of Energys fleet. The AW139s will replace a pair of aging Bell 412s that have been used for years in this role, which includes being on call to collect vital data after a nuclear attack or accident. The mission set also involves conducting surveys ahead of major public events, from presidential inaugurations to Super Bowls. The blue and silver twin Hueys with their podded instruments are one of the aircraft we have gotten asked about the most over the years as their low-level search patterns over major population centers definitely garners interest wherever they operate. The Department of Energys AW139s touched down at Joint Base Andrews just outside of Washington, D.C. last week. This is the culmination of an effort to replace the Bell 412s, which have been in service for more than three decades, that dates back to 2016. The new helicopters are now part of the larger Aerial Measuring System (AMS) fleet, which will be overseen by the National Nuclear Security Administrations (NNSA) Nuclear Emergency Support Team (NEST). Historically, one AMS helicopter has been based at Andrews and the other at Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada to help better position them to respond to nuclear incidents on either side of the country. One of the two new AW139s for the Department of Energy seen after its delivery. DOE/NNSA USAF The data provided by AMS [Aerial Measuring System] aircraft are often the first readings that federal, state, local, territorial, and tribal officials can use to make vital health and safety decisions, Kasia Mendelsohn, acting Associate Administrator for NNSAs Office of Counterterrorism and Counterproliferation, said in a statement after the arrival of the AW139s. These new helicopters will increase NESTs ability to conduct a wide range of national security and public safety missions. The current AMS fleet also includes three specially modified Beechcraft King Air 350ER twin-engine turboprops, which replaced old King Air types back in 2019. These aircraft are configured primarily to spot and geolocate radioactive hotspots down below, as well as collect details about that radiation, which much lower-flying AMS helicopters would then survey more closely. AMS fixed and rotary wing components are both able to generate valuable data in near-real time, along with gathering information that personnel on the ground can analyze further after the completion of a sortie. As already noted, the entire AMS is on call to be able to help spot and track the spread of radiation following any attack involving nuclear weapons, as well as so-called dirty bombs, which use conventional explosives to disperse radioactive material. The Department of Energy aircraft can also help with the response to nuclear accidents. In addition, the AMS helicopters fly survey missions ahead of major domestic events, as well as other routine sorties over major cities, to help establish baseline radiation levels. Having a picture of what normal, naturally occurring radiation readings are for a specific area makes it easier to identify concerning abnormalities. A baseline radiation map of Washington, D.C. created using AMS data in 2013. DOE/NNSA Just today, NNSA announced that one of the AMS Bell 412s will be conducting baseline collection sorties over Milwaukee, Wisconsin between July 9 and 11. Milwaukee will host the 2024 Republican National Convention next week ahead of this years presidential election, which a large number of prominent politicians and other dignitaries, including former president Donald Trump, are set to attend. The AW139s offer important improvements over their predecessors for these critical missions. The new AMS helicopters can cruise at around 190 miles per hour and have a maximum range of 650 miles, according to NNSA. Their fuel capacity also means they can stay aloft for nearly three and a half hours during survey missions within a more limited area. For comparison, the existing Bell 412s configured for this mission have a range of just 250 miles and an endurance of around one and a half hours. The flight time of the AW139 greatly improves the efficiency of an aerial survey and decreases the time needed to provide survey results to incident managers, NNSA has said in the past. The AW139s have greater overall payload capacities. The new helicopters can therefore carry all of their sensors and other mission systems internally, rather than in external pods as is the case with the existing Bell 412s. A stock photo of one of the Department of Energys existing AMS-configured Bell 412s at Joint Base Andrews. Note the external sensor pods. USAF Furthmore, the new helicopter includes state-of-the-art integrated avionics and fully digital glass cockpit to minimize pilot workload and improve situational awareness, per NNSA. Communications equipment will enable the pilots and crew to communicate with operations on the ground such as NESTs Radiological Assistance Program and police, fire, and emergency services. A satellite communication system provides both data and voice capability to ensure real-time measurements are transmitted back to DOEs national laboratories for interpretation and faster product delivery to an incident commander. The AW139 has a digital backbone that NNSA says will more readily allow for the integration of new and improved capabilities down the road, too, such as forward looking infrared or other thermal imaging cameras, or video and still images to enhance aerial survey interpretation products. Originally developed as part of a partnership between Italys Agusta and Bell, the AW139 is a popular in-production design in current service with armed forces, law enforcement organizations, other first responders, and commercial operators around the world. The U.S. Air Force is currently in the process of replacing a portion of its aging UH-1Ns, a militarized variant of the Bell 212 that preceded the 412 model, with MH-139 Grey Wolves, a version of the AW139 created for that service in cooperation with Boeing. Earlier this year, it emerged that the Air Force was slashing expected MH-139 purchases in half. There are robust supply chains for the AW139s in the United States, with the new AMS-configured helicopters coming from the same Philadelphia, Pennsylvania plant as the Air Forces MH-139s. That facility also assembles examples for other customers. NNSA says it will now take around six weeks before its new AW139s are fully ready to fly real AMS missions as the flight crews familiarize themselves with the configuration of the controls, conduct a thorough validation of their scientific equipment, and calibrate the detectors. The delivery of the two AW139s last week already marked an important milestone in modernizing the AMS, a key capability for keeping an eye out for potential nuclear attacks or other incidents and responding to any crises or contingencies involving the spread of radiation that might arise. Contact the author: joe@twz.com BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. (WKRG) Baldwin County Sheriff Huey Hoss Mack is announcing his retirement after serving as sheriff for 17 years. In a letter addressed to deputies, Sheriff Mack says he has accepted an offer to become the Executive Director of the Alabama Sheriffs Association in Montgomery. In the letter, Mack explained that it was not an easy decision, but he believed that the time is right to make this move. It is a great opportunity for me to work with all of Alabamas 67 sheriffs. Sheriff Mack joined the Baldwin County Sheriffs Office in 1989 as a criminal investigator. He was first elected as Baldwin Countys sheriff in 2006 and is currently serving his fifth term. He says he plans to retire sometime in the late summer or early fall. If needed, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey will appoint a provisional Sheriff to serve until Novembers 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 WKRG News 5. Only two of the dozens of ballot measures proposed this year might move forward. (Getty Images) Just two of the more than 50 new laws proposed by Oregonians through the ballot initiative process stand a chance at appearing before voters in November. Friday was the deadline for groups to submit the more than 100,000 petition signatures needed to give voters a chance to approve or reject ballot measures. Only two measures one that would tax corporations more to give $750 annual payments to all Oregonians and one that would restrict union-busting in the cannabis industry submitted signatures by Friday. If the Secretary of States Office confirms that both proposals collected enough verified signatures from Oregon voters, theyll join three legislative referrals on the November ballot. Lawmakers in 2023 opted to let voters decide whether to give the Legislature the power to impeach top officials, let an independent commission set salaries for elected officials and change the way candidates are elected. Backers of high-profile measures to walk back Oregons drug decriminalization law and limit political spending used their signature gathering efforts as leverage to convince lawmakers to make the changes they wanted. Other proposed measures, including an attempt from the Republican state representative responsible for many of Oregons tough-on-crime laws to limit pretrial release and require state law enforcement to cooperate with immigration officials, ran out of time. And still other proposals, including a suggested constitutional amendment to quintuple the state House of Representatives, never stood a chance. Cannabis unions Backers of Initiative Petition 35, the only of several proposed ballot measures from the states largest private sector union to move forward, submitted about 160,000 signatures to the Secretary of States Office on Friday. Its the latest attempt by United Food and Commercial Workers 555, the union that represents Oregon grocery workers, to make it easier to unionize the cannabis industry. UFCW first tried to pass House Bill 3183, similarly worded to the ballot measure, during the 2023 legislative session. When state Rep. Paul Holvey, a Eugene Democrat and chair of the House Business and Labor Committee, tabled the bill over concerns that it would conflict with federal law, UFCW launched a recall campaign against him. Holvey won the recall with more than 90% of the vote, though he chose to retire instead of run for reelection. The proposed ballot measure would require cannabis retailers and processors to remain neutral in communications to employees about labor organizations and mandate that cannabis companies present a labor peace agreement with a pledge of neutrality when they apply for or renew their state licenses. Failing to do so could result in fines or license suspension. Michael Selvaggio, a lobbyist for the union, said Holveys concerns about the legality of this proposed law arent widely held and are a non-issue as far as he is concerned. California, New York and New Jersey have all had these kinds of provisions baked into their cannabis policy since it was adopted, he said. There have been zero challenges of any kind of merit to this structure of organizing rights. UFCW, the largest private-sector union in Oregon, has directed more than $2 million to the campaign. Oregon rebate The other ballot measure likely to move forward, Initiative Petition 17, submitted more than 168,000 signatures on Wednesday. It would increase corporate excise taxes to 3% on sales above $25 million and use the proceeds to send rebates to everyone in the state, including children. Backers estimate the average annual rebate would be about $750, assuming it brings in $3 billion in new taxes and the state population of more than 4 million. But opponents, including the states main business lobby group Oregon Business and Industry, warned that higher taxes could drive corporations to leave the state. The campaign has raised more than $700,000, most from out-of-state donors. More than half its funding is from Jones Holding LLC, a California-based company owned by Josh Jones, a venture capitalist who supports universal basic income. Antonio Gisbert, the Portland resident who serves as chief sponsor of the initiative, did not return a call. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Baltimore Archbishop William Lori struck a unified tone with the chair of the committee representing sex abuse victims in the Catholic Churchs bankruptcy case at a news conference Monday, as both men acknowledged the number of survivors who filed claims is not yet known. Lori and Paul Jan Zdunek, chair of the creditors committee of survivors, told reporters that they shared the goal of promoting an efficient bankruptcy process that ends with fair compensation for survivors, a detailed set of protocols to prevent future child abuse and an ability for the church to continue its mission. It is shared the goal of creating an environment rooted in mutual trust that permits us to work together constructively, and hopefully quickly, toward an agreed-upon plan, Lori said. Todays news conference is also about a public declaration of our intention to work together on behalf of victim-survivors. The public show of unity comes more than a month after the deadline for survivors to submit sex abuse claims passed with hundreds filing in the case, and with the archdiocese and survivors committee having jointly asked a judge to begin a lengthy mediation process that they hope will end in a settlement. The archdiocese declared bankruptcy Sept. 29, two days before a new Maryland law eliminating time limits for child sex abuse lawsuits took effect. The church anticipated hundreds of lawsuits to be brought, following the release of a state attorney generals report finding that 156 clergy and other church employees tormented more than 600 children and young adults, dating to the 1940s. After the May 31 deadline for survivors to file in the bankruptcy case passed, Zdunek said there were at least 700 claims filed, but it would take time to identify the final number. He said Monday that the overall number of survivor claims wont be known until mediation begins and the sides agree on a figure. We dont want to release the number of actual survivors claims until we all feel we have accurately identified the correct number, Zdunek said. This is more complicated than it may seem because some duplicate and vague claims were filed. Lori emphasized the people behind the claims. Whatever the number that is finally agreed upon, I think one of the things to keep in mind is its not just a number, Lori said. It represents so many people who have been harmed. It represents so many people that have experienced really terrible things in their lives. Stories of abuse and misuse of power. Stories of how the most innocent have been harmed. The news conference also comes amid continued tension between the archdioceses insurers and the church and survivors committee. The archdioceses lawsuit against its insurers for alleged breach of contract is pending, with several insurance companies asking for that complaint to be handled in the U.S. District Court rather than the federal bankruptcy court. Insurance companies also objected to the joint request by the archdiocese and the committee for mediation. Philip D. Anker, an insurance company attorney, said during a status conference in the case on July 1 that some insurers had shared a framework for a mediation listing seven or eight points. U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Michelle M. Harner postponed a hearing scheduled for Monday to allow the sides more time to reach an agreement on the scope of mediation. If that isnt resolved by July 22, disagreement over mediation will be addressed at a hearing that morning in front of Harner. With their joint appearance Monday, Zdunek and Lori reaffirmed their commitment to work together, despite other survivor advocates having disparaged the archdiocese. While there are others who we are both thankful for and indebted to who have helped shape the child protection laws and pushed for the creation and release of the Attorney Generals report last year, the Archbishop and the Creditors Committee and our representative counsel are the only engaged and informed parties who are discussing all of the claims in an official capacity sanctioned by the court, Zdunek said. David Lorenz, Maryland director of Survivors of those Abuse by Priests, or SNAP, said in a statement that Mondays news conference came as a surprise to many survivors and the survivor organization. He pointed out the Catholic Churchs role in lobbying against the creation of the Child Victims Act, which lifted time limits for sex abuse lawsuits, and fighting it in court once it took effect. Working closely with the survivor community and having to routinely deal with the inaccuracies, the stonewalling, and the misleading statements coming from the diocese has given us a unique perspective on the workings of the diocese, Lorenz said. With no disrespect to Paul or the Creditors Committee, we believe that the diocese is the proverbial wolf in sheeps clothing. Edwin Caldie, an attorney for the survivors committee, said in a statement that to strengthen anything requires tension. In this case, the committee is the tension because our role is to push for more and we are going to do that, and our goal is to ensure that every survivor is heard and acknowledged as fully and completely as humanly possible, Caldie said. Were happy that the archbishop appears to be welcoming this tension. Were hopeful that as we enter mediation, his actions will match his words. Following the news conference, Zdunek issued a statement responding to Lorenzs concerns. Christianity along with almost every other religion is steeped in the foundational value of treating others as you wish to be treated, he said. The religion of humanity is no different. It is better to build bridges than barriers when trying to achieve success. And this is our focus as the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors in the bankruptcy case involving the Archdiocese of Baltimore so that every single survivor receives the most fair and just outcome to the unspeakably horrible events of their past. Barberton gets $1 million state funding boost for courts, police State Rep. Bill Roemer poses in Barberton Municipal Court. Roemer secured $1 million in funds to help renovate the city's municipal court and police department. State lawmakers recently approved a two-year capital budget that includes $1 million in state funding for Barberton's City Hall and Justice Center. Ohio H.B. 2 funds the states two-year construction budget for capital projects across Ohio. The Barberton funding will help pay for renovations for Barberton Municipal Court, the Barberton Police Department, Barberton Law Department, and the Barberton prosecutor. More: A new City Hall? What to know about Barberton's pursuit of FirstMerit building I am glad to bring capital funds back to the Barberton community to support this vital project, State Rep. Bill Roemer said. This investment will support all parts of our local government for years to come. Substitute House Bill 2 was signed by Ohio Governor DeWine on June 28. This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Barberton gets $1 million state funding boost for courts, police Protesters in Barcelona have sprayed visitors with water as part of a demonstration against mass tourism. Demonstrators marching through areas popular with tourists on Saturday chanted tourists go home and squirted them with water pistols, while others carried signs with slogans including Barcelona is not for sale. According to Barcelona's City Council, some 2,800 people demonstrated against mass tourism in the center of Barcelona on Saturday. - Lorena Sopena/Europa Press/AP Thousands of protesters took to the streets of the city in the latest demonstration against mass tourism in Spain, which has seen similar actions in the Canary Islands and Mallorca recently, decrying the impact on living costs and quality of life for local people. The demonstration was organised by a group of more than 100 local organizations, led by the Assemblea de Barris pel Decreixement Turistic (Neighborhood Assembly for Tourism Degrowth). Diners cower as protesters march past a restaurant. - Josep Lago/AFP/Getty Images According to official figures, almost 26 million visitors made an overnight stay in the Barcelona region in 2023, spending 12.75 billion ($13.8 billion). However, the Assemblea de Barris pel Decreixement Turistic says that these visitors increase prices and put pressure on public services, while profits from the tourism industry are unfairly distributed and increase social inequality. It has published 13 proposals to reduce the number of visitors and transition the city to a new model of tourism, including the closure of cruise ship terminals, more regulation of tourist accommodation and an end to public spending on tourism promotion. Protesters squirt water pistols during Saturday's protest. - Lorena Sopena/Europa Press/AP On Saturday, the citys mayor, Jaume Collboni, highlighted a series of measures that he has announced recently to reduce the impact of mass tourism, including increasing the nightly tourist tax to 4 ($4.30) and limiting the number of cruise ship passengers. At the end of June, Collboni also announced that it would end apartment rentals for tourists by 2028 by scrapping short-term rental licenses for more than 10,000 apartments. This would help to make housing more affordable for long-term residents, according to Collboni, who said rents had increased 68% in the past 10 years, with the cost of buying a house up 38%. However, Collboni has been criticized for allowing events such as a Louis Vuitton catwalk show in architect Antoni Gaudis Parc Guell in May, as well as the upcoming Americas Cup sailing competition. The growing discontent in Barcelona echoes similar protests in other parts of Spain. In April, locals in the Canary Islands mobilized to protest against excessive tourism, blaming visitors for pricing them out of their homes and causing environmental damage. These complaints are common to many tourist hot spots around the world, which have experienced record visitor numbers recently as the travel industry has roared back from a pandemic-induced downturn. Such surges may be sweet for local economies and hospitality businesses bottom line, but they also come with notable downsides: increased noise, pollution, traffic and strain on resources; a lower quality of life for locals; and a diminished visitor experience, among others. Not surprisingly, many tourist magnets have created initiatives and restrictions intended to combat overtourism, including new or increased tourist taxes, campaigns aimed at discouraging problematic visitors and attendance caps at popular attractions. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The Bartlesville Police Department has identified the victim in Mondays fatal shooting as 38-year-old Alexander Daugherty. The incident occurred early Monday morning in the 1400 block of West Hensley. Police responded to a call at approximately 12:50 a.m. about a gunshot and found Daugherty lying in an alley. Despite life-saving efforts by officers and medical personnel, Daugherty was pronounced dead at the hospital. Through their investigation, police have developed Thomas Conway as a person of interest in the case. Authorities are seeking the publics help in locating Conway. Anyone with information on Conways whereabouts is urged to contact the Bartlesville Police Department at (918) 338-4001. This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Bartlesville shooting victim identified; police seek person of interest Who will become Frances next prime minister? Frances Leftist bloc New Popular Front (NFP) said they hope to come up with a prime minister replacement within the week, in what will be the first big test of the fledgling coalition. After defying the polls and snatching victory from the countrys hard-Right National Rally in Sundays election, the first order of business is to reach a consensus on the person who will represent the NFP and lead the government. But interests and priorities diverge widely among the coalitions four groups, which include the hard-Left France Unbowed (LFI), the Socialists, the Greens and the Communists. Here are some of the runners and riders for French prime minister. Over the last few weeks, the leader of Frances Green party has rebranded herself as one of the most outspoken and visible faces of the New Popular Front. Her signature style, which typically consists of a green blazer and jeans, has generated its own Twitter account with more than 13,400 followers. Dubbed the other Marine by French media, Ms Tondelier, 37, said the ideal prime minister should be aligned with the Left blocs program, work to heal the country and bring about consensus. She has also said she is open to the idea of forming a grand coalition in parliament in order to get things done. A former journalist and film-maker who was re-elected in his constituency of Somme in a narrow victory Sunday, Mr Ruffin, 48, is one of several former France Unbowed (LFI) dissidents who were recently purged from the party or left of their own accord. Mr Ruffin has long criticised Jean-Luc Melenchons leadership of the LFI, calling him a ball and chain liability and promised that if re-elected, he would not sit as an LFI deputy. Mr Ruffin styles himself after Michael Moore and through his satiric documentary Merci Patron! he accused Frances richest man, Bernard Arnault, of sacrificing French workers to globalisation. The morning after her re-election, Clementine Autain, 51, announced that she will sit in the French parliament, not as a representative of France Unbowed (LFI) but as an independent, breaking ties with the far-Left party and its leader Jean-Luc Melenchon. Ms Autain also expressed a desire to form a new political party. When asked if she would be interested in filling the prime ministers post, she said her name has been put forward, and told BFM TV: Of course, I would accept without hesitation. Leader of the Socialist party, Olivier Faure, 55, said Monday that the Left coalition New Democratic Party must be able to propose a name within the week. We must not give the impression that we are not capable of governing, he said. Mr Faure started his political career serving as deputy director of Francois Hollandes office when he was the leader of the Socialist party in the early 2000s. He proposes that the group choose a prime minister by consensus or vote. Dubbed the rising star of French socialists during the European parliamentary elections, Raphael Glucksmann scores big on popularity. In one survey from pollster Odoxa conducted recently, Mr Glucksmann surged 13 points the strongest leap ever-recorded by the pollsterto Frances fourth most popular political figure behind Edouard Philippe, Jordan Bardella and Marine Le Pen. More significantly, he also emerged the most liked politician from the Left at the expense of France Unboweds leader Jean-Luc Melenchon, whose popularity suffered a sharp drop. Mr Glucksmann is an outspoken critic of Mr Melenchon and has said he would not support the LFI leader as prime minister. President of the Socialist party in the national assembly prior to dissolution, Boris Vallaud, 48, is another name that has been tossed into the ring. In his constituency of Landes, Mr Vallaud is known for being on the ground and active in the community. In a glowing profile by economic magazine Challenges, locals praise him for defending local French traditions and industries like foie gras and bullfighting. In the same piece, Mr Vallaud said that if he were to be named prime minister, he would accept and assume his duties. The most divisive figure within the Leftist coalition, the leader of the far-Left party France Unbowed (LFI) has said that he will not impose himself as prime minister. Several high profile members of the Left coalition have made it clear that they would not support Mr Melenchon as prime ministerial candidate, including Glucksmann, Ruffin and Tondelier. Melenchon loyalists, however, insisted Monday that he is not disqualified from the running, and that the nomination of prime minister should come from the largest representative party within the group, which is the LFI. Emmanuel Macron, the president, has also said his centrist party will not ally with LFI. Laurent Berger, former head of the CFDT civil servants union, has also been mooted as a possible contender who could bring consensus within the group as a civilian candidate. Mr Berger, who now works for the private sector, has publicly declined the idea but his name remains high on the list. Mr Berger clashed repeatedly with the president over the pension reforms which raised the age of retirement from 62 to 64. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev has signed a decree on the application of the law "On amendments to the law of Azerbaijan on state registration and the state register of legal entities" and "On amendments to the decree of the President of Azerbaijan on the application of the law of Azerbaijan on state registration and the state register of legal entities", Trend reports. According to the decree, the powers of the relevant executive authority, provided for in Articles 5.8, 5-1.8, in the second sentence of Article 6.1.3, in Article 7.1.1, in the third, fourth (in all three cases), and fifth sentences of Article 7-2.1, in the second sentence of Article 7-2.4, and Article 11.3.2-1 of the law of the Republic of Azerbaijan "On state registration and the state register of legal entities," are exercised by the President of Azerbaijan. In Article 11.3.2-1 of this law, the term "body (institution)" refers to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Cabinet of Ministers of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In Article 5-1.8 and in the second sentence of Article 7-2.4 of this law, the term "body (institution)" refers to the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of the Republic of Azerbaijan. In Article 5.8, the fourth (in the third case) and fifth sentences of Article 7-2.1 of this law, the term "body (institution)" refers to the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan through the State Tax Service. In the second sentence of Article 6.1.3, in Article 7.1.1, and in the third and fourth (in the first and second cases) sentences of Article 7-2.1 of this law, the term "body (institution)" refers to the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan. The powers of the relevant executive authority provided for in Article 2 of law No. 1155-VIQD of Azerbaijan dated May 21, 2024, "On amendments to the law of Azerbaijan on state registration and the state register of legal entities," are exercised by the President of Azerbaijan. In Article 2 of this law, the term "body (institution)" refers to the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan. The Cabinet of Ministers, in accordance with Article 2 of Law No. 1155-VIQD of Azerbaijan dated May 21, 2024, "On amendments to the law of Azerbaijan on state registration and the state register of legal entities", must take appropriate measures related to the creation of the relevant information system of the Foreign Ministry of Azerbaijan, as well as address other issues arising from this law within six months. Belarusian authorities are forcing political prisoners to publicly repent to be freed, activists say FILE - In this photo provided by the Belarusian Presidential Press Service, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko speaks to military personnel during his visit to Oshmyany District, Grodno region of Belarus on March 26, 2024. A Belarusian human rights group said Thursday, July 4, 2024 that at least 10 political prisoners have been freed since the country's authoritarian president this week promised to release seriously ill people jailed in connection with massive protests nearly four years ago. (Belarusian Presidential Press Service via AP, File) TALLINN, Estonia (AP) Human rights activists on Monday accused Belarusian authorities of setting unacceptable conditions for the release of political prisoners, including writing public statements admitting their guilt and repenting. The accusation comes just days after President Alexander Lukashenko promised to release those who are seriously ill and those who were swept up during the 2020 mass protests against his rule. The number of those freed so far has reached at least 18, according to activists, among them opposition party leader Ryhor Kastusiou who is suffering from a severe form of cancer. The United States and the European Union have welcomed the release of some political prisoners but called on Belarus to free all those jailed during the 2020 protests. Some were released under an amnesty while others were pardoned. Those who were pardoned had to publicly admit their guilt. Some political prisoners have refused to write such a letter as they do not believe they are guilty, the Viasna human rights center said. There are currently 1,420 political prisoners behind bars in Belarus, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski. Of those, more than 200 people are seriously ill and require medical care, Viasna said. Viasnas Pavel Sapelka said that dozens, not hundreds of political prisoners were released following Lukashenko's July 3 announcement and suggested that authorities have already filled up empty jail cells with new political prisoners. Lukashenko has suppressed the opposition and independent media since coming to power in 1994. The disputed results of the 2020 presidential election allowed him to win a sixth term and sparked protests that were the largest and longest in the countrys history. Authorities responded harshly, arresting some 35,000 people; many prominent opposition figures were jailed and others fled the country. Activists say authorities have created conditions akin to torture in prisons, depriving political prisoners of medical care, transfers and meetings with lawyers and relatives. Despite the hellish conditions of detention in prison, some famous Belarusians did not admit guilt, did not publicly repent and ask Lukashenko for mercy, Sapelka said. BERKELEY, Mo. A 45-year-old man is dead after a shooting Sunday night in Berkeley. The incident occurred around 11 p.m. Sunday night as the Berkeley Police Department responded to reports of shots being fired in the 6100 block of Jefferson Avenue. Missouri AG denied private records in WashU transgender center probe Upon arrival, officers found a man inside a vehicle suffering from a gunshot wound. The man was transported to a local hospital but later succumbed to his injuries and was pronounced dead. The investigation is ongoing. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Beryl knocks out power to more than 2 million, leaves 4 dead, after making landfall as Category 1 hurricane After coming ashore as a Category 1 hurricane Monday morning roughly 85 miles southwest of Houston, Beryl knocked out power to more than 2 million customers. The storm, which has since been downgraded to a tropical storm, packed winds of more than 80 miles per hour as it made landfall and was blamed for the deaths of at least two people who were killed by trees that fell on homes. Another person was killed in a house fire reportedly started by a lightning strike as the storm passed over Harris County, and a fourth died after his car was submerged, officials said. After dumping several inches of rain Monday, roadways across the Houston area were flooded, bringing travel to a standstill. Beryl caused some structural damage, but far less than was witnessed when the storm battered islands in the Caribbean after undergoing record-breaking intensification and becoming the earliest Category 5 storm in recorded history to form in the Atlantic basin. At least 11 people were killed when the massive storm swept across Jamaica, Grenada, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and northern Venezuela before making landfall in Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula. One big mess Allison Crane walks out of her flooded neighborhood in Galveston, Texas, on Monday. (Rich Matthews/Reuters) Galveston, Texas, also took a hard hit from the storm, officials said in a Facebook post Monday afternoon. "The island experienced substantial wind damage in the form of downed power lines, transformers, trees and other debris," the post read. It could take as long as two weeks to restore power to the entire island, officials added. Experts warned late Monday that even though Beryl is expected to weaken further likely becoming a tropical depression Monday night and a post-tropical cyclone on Tuesday, when its center of circulation will be located over Arkansas the storm system still posed significant flash flooding risks in the coming days. "Beryl has been a resilient storm ever since it exploded into a Category 5 hurricane in the Caribbean last week," Alex DaSilva, AccuWeather's lead hurricane expert, said in a news release. "People in the path of Beryl's track should not let their guard down this week. Beryl will bring the risk of tornadoes as far away as Ohio. Downpours from Beryl could also cause flash flooding as far north as Detroit, more than 1,100 miles from where Beryl made landfall in Texas." A tornado was reported in Jasper, Texas, as the storm passed on Monday. "We have power outages all over town, and we dont have an estimated time when they will be restored," the city of Jasper said in a Facebook post. "Watch out for down power lines; always treat a power line as if its live." No power, but plenty of heat A vehicle is stranded in high waters on a flooded highway in Houston after Beryl came ashore on Monday. (Juan A. Lozano/AP) In Houston, where the rainfall tapered off late Monday afternoon, residents were left to try to clean up the mess Beryl left behind. With millions of residents still without power, that will be made more challenging by the hot weather forecast over the next two days. The forecast in Houston calls for a heat index of 105 degrees Fahrenheit on Tuesday and Wednesday. Mayor John Whitmire said that his home was one of those without power. Were going to take care of every community. No community is favored over another community. Every Houstonian is important to us. Well get your power on as quickly as possible, he said. AUSTIN (KXAN) Hundreds of Texas flights have been delayed or canceled due to severe weather brought by Tropical Storm Beryl. Corpus Christi resident Zuleika Soler and her partner booked a summer trip to Europe months before becoming aware Hurricane Beryl was expected to make landfall on the Texas coast. Now, their return flight has been canceled, and there are no flights available to book until Wednesday. Tropical tracker: Timeline of storms in the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season So definitely by Thursday, Friday, I was starting to get worried. So we actually tried calling to see if we can get a flight sooner than what we planned, which was Monday, because we had a feeling this would happen that it would get canceled because it made landfall today, Soler told KXAN. But they didnt have anything. They didnt have anything sooner. It seems like a lot of people might have beat us to it and beat us to getting flights sooner. Photo taken by Zuleika Soler in Germany But, Soler and her partner werent the only travelers to experience this kind of delay. More than 1,400 flights have been canceled and over 400 flights have been delayed in Texas alone, according to flightdelay.com, an air traffic control system database. Soler said she wasnt able to prepare ahead of time for this extended trip Beryl caused, making things difficult for her back home. Photo taken by Zuleika Soler in Germany I have a cat sitter who was taking care of my cats. She lives along Ocean Drive in Corpus Christi, right by the bay waters. She had to evacuate, her and her family, she said. I had nobody to take care of my cats and I was worried about them, and then I was also worried about that my cats losing power. PHOTOS: Damage after Beryl made landfall in Texas United Airlines ranked number one with the most number of canceled flights, totaling over 400. Southwest Airlines came in second place with more than 300 canceled flights. Airlines and airports are encouraging travelers to stay on top of weather updates and monitor their flight status before heading to the airport. Travelers can keep an eye on flight details directly through their airline or on the airport website, or look online for an overview on all airport delays and cancelations. KXAN reached out to the Federal Aviation Administration for details on how long these delays are expected to last. We will update this story once weve received an answer. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Beryl May Hit Hurricane Strength Again Before Pounding Texas Tropical storm Beryl is gaining strength, hammering the Texas coast with wind, rain and rip currents after leaving a swath of destruction and at least 11 dead across the Caribbean and Mexico. Before it makes landfall early Monday, Beryl could strengthen into a Category 2 hurricane as it travels over the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico. People should be preparing for the possibility of a Category 2 hurricane landfall, wrote hurricane expert Eric Blake in a forecast from the National Hurricane Center. Preparations should be rushed to completion. Beryl will make landfall early Monday near Matagorda Bay, approximately 100 miles south of Houston, the hurricane center said. Authorities caution the storm path could change and Texans should stay vigilant. The storm is expected to bring damaging hurricane-force winds to parts of the Texas coast tonight and early Monday, the Hurricane Center said. A Hurricane Warning is in effect from Baffin Bay to San Luis Pass. Dane Allen and Randy Davis board up apartments ahead of Tropical Storm Beryl's arrival. Brandon Bell/Getty Images Life-threatening storm surge is a danger from the seashore to Sabine Pass, including Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay, the Hurricane Center said. Residents in these areas should follow local officials advice and evacuation orders. Significant flash and urban flooding is anticipated tonight through Monday night across parts of the middle and upper Texas Gulf Coast and eastern Texas, the center said, warning of life-threatening beach conditions across much of the Gulf Coast Monday. Beachgoers should heed warning flags and follow lifeguards and local officials advice. Last week, Beryl set a record as the earliest storm to reach Category 5 strength in the Atlantic. Beryl weakened and then intensified rapidly throughout the week, which forecasters described as a sign of a severe hurricane season ahead. People evacuate and move belongings out ahead of the expected landfall of Tropical Storm Beryl in Texas. Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images Beryls rapid intensification and unprecedented early formation signal the hot conditions in the Atlantic and Caribbean, the hurricane center said. Beryl would be the 10th hurricane to strike Texas in July since records began in 1851 and the fourth in the past 25 years. 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. Editor's note: This story has been updated to include a quote from city of Corpus Christi City Manager Peter Zanoni. Despite initial predictions of serious threats posed to Corpus Christi, Hurricane Beryl brought little rain, winds and surge to the city. An overview provided by municipal officials showed that as of 7 a.m. Monday, the storm had few to no impacts in Corpus Christi including to areas well-known for major flooding, such as North Beach and Laguna Shores and evaluations had been discontinued. Jorge Carranza, of Kingsville, fishes in the Gulf on Sunday evening, July 7, 2024, in Corpus Christi, Texas. Still, a team will remain on-call to conduct damage assessments if anything comes up that was not found or reported overnight, the one-page document stated. City services had also been planned to fully resume normal operations, while the emergency operations center was scheduled to be deactivated, according to officials. Department staff "performed well in anticipation of Beryl," wrote City Manager Peter Zanoni in a message to the Caller-Times. "We were preparing for a Category 3 event as it is our protocol to prepare for one level higher than the worst forecast," he wrote. "Fortunately, the storm did not negatively impact Corpus Christi, but our plans were in place to protect and inform the community had it struck us." A tropical storm warning had been in place overnight, and meteorologists had warned of a limited potential for tornadoes. However, winds did not exceed 44 miles per hour, and the highest rainfall measured one inch, according to the citys overview document. As of 4 a.m., a coastal flood advisory was in effect and anticipated to remain in place through Tuesday morning, with three feet of beach inundation expected, according to social media posts by the local office of the National Weather Service. The area had previously at one point been under a storm surge warning. A message from the local agency also noted that a small craft advisory was expected to be valid through Monday afternoon, featuring seas as high as 10 feet and winds projected to reach 34 knots, or nearly 40 mph. The conditions are starkly different than what had initially been predicted prior to Beryls shift to the north and the east over recent days at one point, models had shown the storm making landfall near Corpus Christi. Instead, Beryl made landfall near Matagorda Bay, with the most dire threats descending on areas along the mid- and northeast Texas coastline. Several events were postponed and businesses closed around the Coastal Bend area. In Port Aransas, visitors many of whom had made the trek to the beach for the long July 4 weekend were ordered to evacuate by noon Sunday, under the order of Nueces County Judge Connie Scott. Response by Corpus Christi residents showed little boarding of structures, and a rush on hardware and grocery stores did not appear to unfold in many parts of the city. Sunday night, many gathered on the Michael J. Ellis seawall to watch the waves, and some of the more adventurous were drawn to the beach where Bob Hall Pier once existed, some with fishing poles. More: Live updates for Hurricane Beryl: Flood advisory for Corpus Christi More: Beryl has reached US as the 10th hurricane on record to make landfall in Texas in July This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Little to no damage found in Corpus Christi after Hurricane Beryl Tennessee's federal representatives justify their positions by claims of support from "the American people." (Photo: Holly McCall/Tennessee Lookout) Perhaps youve noticed the habit of U.S. politicians of all stripes to reference the American people. For some it is close to a nervous vocal tic. Pressed on any point, they will assert with certainty and bravado that the American people take the position they are advocating, or demand the policy they support. There is little evidence that politicians cite public opinion research or even noodle around with a Ouija board before proclaiming the American people as the good and noble reason for their efforts. I decided to run a test of what Tennessees U.S. Senators and U.S. House members, via their online newsletters, are attributing to the American people. I ran a search for that phrase in DCInbox.com, a full-text site for all online congressional newsletters. The results, from January through mid-June, were revealing. The most prolific user of that phrase was Mark Green, Republican congressman from Clarksville. Eight times Green used the American people to bash President Joe Bidens border policies and to try to justify impeachment articles against Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. U.S. Rep. Mark Green, photographed on Nov. 8, 2022. (Photo: Nick Fantasia) Green took pride in delivering those impeachment articles ones that went nowhere to the U. S. Senate. Green went so far as to bloviate, The greatest threat to national safety and security of the American people is Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. Really?! A greater threat than nuclear weapons proliferation, pandemic-potential diseases, global warming, terrorist cells, or Vladimir Putins expansionist wars and disinformation campaigns? Further, Green used the phrase in messages about identification standards for illegal aliens, an upsurge in Chinese nationals illegally entering the U.S. and in opposition to student debt relief. Green also cited the American people in a rambling screed covering one murderous illegal migrant, Peoples Republic of China businesses, fentanyl and DHS. Nashville-area Congressman Andy Ogles also wrote the American people often in newsletters. He blasted the Republican Chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence for supporting reauthorization of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act. Ogles blurted this was a calculated attempt to scare the American people into supporting deep-state policy priorities. Ogles also used the phrase in a rambling list of reasons he voted against Fiscal Year 2024 appropriations. The list included bizarre references to drag shows and transgender body apparel. He also asserted the American people see right through President Bidens recent immigration executive order. Most egregiously, Ogles wrote, Its not Americas responsibility to perpetually absorb large numbers of nationals from unstable, developing countries and it does not serve the best interests of the American people to continue doing so. Indeed, any measure allowing poorly processed Haitian migrants access to our neighborhoods will result in preventable crimes and tragedies. So many things are wrong with those claims, but lets start with the crime element. Significant published research, including from Stanford economist Ran Abramitzky and from the libertarian Cato Institute, shows that immigrants commit fewer crimes in the U.S. than people who are born in the U.S.. Recent analyses by the Marshall Project and the New York Times found no link between undocumented immigrants and a rise in community violent or property crime rates. Tennessee Congressional District 5 U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles. (Photo: John Partipilo) One also should remember our nation-of-immigrants tradition embodied in a plaque placed on the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty. Emma Lazaruss sonnet reads Give me your tired, your poor. Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door! East Tennessee Republican Congressman Tim Burchett apparently read the mind of the American people to demand greater transparency on Unidentified Aerial Phenomena (aka UFOs) and the late Jeffrey Epsteins flight logs. Middle Tennessee Congressman John Rose, also a Republican, took aim at Colorados Supreme Court and its musing about leaving insurrectionist, felon, and former President Donald Trump off the state ballot. Ogles blasted the notion as subverting the will of the American people. Sen. Marsha Blackburn cited the American people in: opposition to Biden border policies, alarm about TikTok, in stopping any state from using Medicaid dollars for undocumented migrants, and in demands for Epstein flight logs. The only Democrat in the Tennessee federal delegation, Steve Cohen from Memphis, used the phrase very differently. He bashed the Supreme Courts slow walking of Trumps immunity claims now settled in Trumps favor and the GOPs recent phony impeachment narrative about Biden. Cohen also referenced his trip to the U.S. Holocaust Museum and one exhibits attempt to answer, What did the American people know about the threats to the Jewish people posed by Nazi Germany. Cohens historical question aside, most of our legislative delegation cant fathom that the majority of the public may not be with them on each and every matter. Its a non-productive delusion. (Bloomberg) -- They pride themselves on being doers; taking decisive action at crucial inflection points and anticipating major power shifts. Most Read from Bloomberg Yet in the midst of one of the biggest crises ever to strike the Democratic Party, Wall Streets most influential donors are resigned to watching and waiting like much of the rest of the country. The view within Manhattan circles, one top Wall Street executive said on Monday, is largely unchanged since Joe Bidens June 27 debate: A change at the top of the ticket will boost the Democrats chances of beating Donald Trump. Thats even as the president pledged to fellow party members he will remain in the 2024 race, seeking to quell dissent within his ranks as lawmakers return to Washington. But whats clear to these ultra-rich bankers and investors is that theres no obvious path to making the change happen themselves. Some also see sitting on the sidelines as a savvy option, wanting to avoid fueling a narrative that financiers are pushing Biden out. Money usually talks but, perhaps, not in this case. Bidens political operation has some $240 million on hand, and efforts from those like Mike Novogratz to drum up funds for a yet-to-be-determined alternative have thus far fallen far short of that kind of figure. The senior Wall Street executive, who requested anonymity to speak freely about private conversations, said hed still bet that there are too many voters who worry about Bidens age for the president to remain in the race. But, mainly, hes taken to voicing concerns to family and friends, convinced that only Democratic leaders like Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries can turn the tide. Billionaire Bill Ackman, on the other hand, took to X to publicly lay out his view of the state of play. Ackman opposed Biden in the Democratic primary, supporting long-shot challenger Representative Dean Phillips. Absent a more serious health incident between now and the election, it now seems eminently clear that Biden will be the candidate, he wrote. Ackman said that if the general-election matchup was Biden vs Trump, I am definitely voting Trump. Bidens Response Among Washington observers, the feeling is that the next few days will be critical for Bidens candidacy. Already, at least nine House members have called for him to step aside, and the House Democratic caucus will meet Tuesday morning, which could lead to more defections. Theres a feeling of inevitability that Biden will bow out, one donor said, who requested anonymity to discuss private conversations. The current parlor game is when and how it will eventually come to pass, the person said. Biden, 81, wrote in a letter to the group Monday that he is firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump. On MSNBCs Morning Joe, he dared anyone who thinks he shouldnt seek reelection to challenge him at the Democratic convention. I dont care what the millionaires think, Biden said on MSNBC Monday. I want their support but thats not the reason Im running. Still, the campaign needs wealthy donors money with Trump and the Republicans now raising similar sums as the Democrats. Biden, along with campaign chair Jennifer OMalley Dillon and Maryland Governor Wes Moore joined a call with some of the campaigns largest contributors on Monday. The party has spoken. The Dem nominee is me, Biden said. We cant waste any more time being distracted. Donations to the campaign have thinned in recent days, with some wealthy donors saying they will withhold any future contributions until Biden is off the ticket, according to a person familiar with the fundraising efforts. The Biden campaign has said that grassroots contributions surged following the debate and reported raising more in June than any other month. Bidens sizable war chest had been a selling point for donors, especially compared to Trumps cash-poor campaign through the primaries. But since clinching the nomination, Trump has caught up and surpassed Biden, and now has $285 million cash on hand, according to his campaign. Unlike Trump, whos spent little on television or offices in battleground states so far, Bidens campaign is employing an expensive strategy. The campaign alone booked $48 million in advertising time last month, according to AdImpact. I know a lot of donors who are very unhappy and arent going to spend money on the campaign, said Vin Ryan, founder of Schooner Capital and a longtime Democratic donor. A lot of money will be diverted to House and Senate races. Ryan said a Biden replacement would likely get an outpouring of donor support, with many willing to bet on a younger and more articulate candidate. Two Democratic fundraisers, who asked not to be identified to discuss private conversations, said theyve been advising donors to shift their donations to competitive House races even before the debate, but now worry that with Biden atop the ticket, Democratic congressional candidates will lose en masse to Republicans. Lets not blindly follow our friend off a cliff, Novogratz wrote on X Monday. Its time to move on from the gerontocracy. Alternative Investments The lack of real power to force Biden out, combined with a desire to prevent a Trump victory, has led some Democratic donors to launch long-shot efforts to find a replacement. Bill Harris, the former chief executive officer for Intuit Inc. and Paypal Holdings Inc., has personally funded polling about voter views of Bidens age in swing states. Harris contributed to Biden in 2020, but has decided to not give to him this cycle. Georgetown University professor Rosa Brooks and investor Ted Dintersmith have also concocted a plan for a blitz primary that would involve celebrities such as Oprah Winfrey, Taylor Swift and Stephen Curry introducing candidates to voters before conducting a snap election to pick a Biden successor. The plan is novel, but unlikely to come to fruition, even by the authors own admission. While we hope for help from Lord Almighty, the plan says, in an apparent nod to Bidens Friday interview with ABC, in which he said hed only step down if God told him to, he/she helps those who help themselves. We need to act. Now. (Updates with details on Bill Ackman, Bill Harris in paragraphs 7-8, 23) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Republican presidential candidate, former U.S. President Donald Trump reacts during the CNN Presidential Debate at the CNN Studios on June 27, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) As part of its $50 million July ad push, President Joe Bidens reelection campaign is releasing a new ad Monday that focuses on former President Donald Trumps role in appointing U.S. Supreme Court justices who voted to overturn landmark abortion ruling Roe v. Wade. Viewed by the Capital-Star ahead of its wider release, the 30-second spot, titled Her Own, uses Trumps comments from the June 27 presidential debate, where he called appointing the justices who helped kill Roe v. Wade a great thing. It will run on digital TV in battleground states. Ask yourself, who do you want in the White House: The man proud to overturn Roe v. Wade, or the President fighting for your rights? the voiceover asks. The issue of abortion access has been energizing for the Democratic base, but Biden gave somewhat confusing answers to questions about abortion and Roe v. Wade during the debate. The campaign has tried to demonstrate the consequences of the Supreme Courts Dobbs decision for women who have had to navigate the new patchwork of state abortion laws to receive care. If Trump is reelected, he will go even further punishing women who receive an abortion, banning abortion nationwide, and carrying out the rest of the extreme Project 2025 agenda, campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said in a statement Monday. The only thing standing between American women and Trumps cruel attacks on reproductive health care is Joe Biden and Kamala Harris. While he has boasted about appointing the three conservative justices to the Supreme Court, Trump said during the debate he believes in abortion ban exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother. But in February he reportedly expressed support for a nationwide abortion ban, and during an interview with a Pittsburgh TV news station in May, Trump hinted that he might be open to states limiting or banning access to contraception, though he walked back his remarks the same day in a social media post. The new Biden campaign ad also seeks to continue its focus on linking Trump to Project 2025, , a conservative policy proposal that would, among other things, hinder abortion and contraception access. Trump tried to distance himself from Project 2025 in a social media post last week. The ad comes as Biden brushes aside suggestions he should step aside as Democrats presumptive 2024 nominee, after his shaky debate performance. The president campaigned in Pennsylvania on Sunday, speaking at a church in Philadelphia and a union gathering in Harrisburg as he tried to reassure voters he was up to the job. Trump is scheduled to speak in Pennsylvania on Saturday at a rally in Butler, north of Pittsburgh, two days before the opening of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The post New Biden campaign ad puts focus on Trumps role in overturning Roe v. Wade appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star. Former State Sen. Adam Hollier discusses President Joe Biden's record on military and veteran's issues. | Kyle Davidson On the heels of Independence Day, President Joe Bidens campaign hosted a press conference in Lansing touting his administrations efforts to support military veterans. State Rep. Jennifer Conlin (D-Ann Arbor Charter Twp.), chair of the Michigan House Committee on Military, Veterans and Homeland Security, joined former state Sen. and U.S. Army Reserve Cpt. Adam Hollier and Robert Kull, an active-duty Navy veteran and Officer in the Michigan Army National Guard. They highlighted Bidens record on veterans services and employment while blasting Trump-era military policies. As the chair of the House Committee on Military, Veterans and Homeland Security, I can tell you all of the progress the Biden-Harris administration has made is at risk if Donald Trump gets back in the White House, Conlin said, noting Biden had signed into law almost 30 bipartisan bills in support of veterans, including the PACT act, which expands Veterans Affairs health care and benefits to veterans exposed to burn pits, Agent Orange and other toxic substances. Veteran unemployment has also dropped below 4% under Bidens administration, Conlin said, with the president also working to help veterans access childcare, affordable housing and jobs. We have a president who cares about protecting our veterans rights and freedoms from expanding reproductive services and cracking down on financial fraud to supporting LGBTQ+ veterans by ending Trumps ban on transgender service members in the military, Conlin said, blasting the former president for previously proposing cuts to veterans programs and benefits. Kull emphasized the impact of the PACT act on veterans exposed to burn pits. Exposure to Toxic burn pits is one of the most critical healthcare challenges that my generation of veterans are facing, but its also one of the least talked about. It was President Biden who signed the PACT Act into law, which was the most significant expansion of health care benefits for toxic exposures for veterans in over three decades, Kull said. Before President Bidens leadership. We were denying 70% of Veterans Disability Claims including my own that involved burn pit exposure, Kull said, noting that more than 1 million PACT Act related claims have been granted since the law was implemented, including more than 21,000 in Michigan. Hollier and Kull both criticized Trump for comments in which the former president reportedly called fallen soldiers suckers and losers. While Trump and his campaign have repeatedly denied that he made these remarks, Trumps former Chief of Staff John Kelly later confirmed the president had privately disparaged service members, as reported by the Atlantic in 2020. During the June 27 presidential debate, Biden blasted Trump on the comments, which were reportedly made when Trump canceled a visit to the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, a World War I Cemetery in Belleau, France. My son was not a loser or sucker. Youre the sucker, youre the loser, Biden said, in reference to his son, Beau, an Iraq War veteran who died of brain cancer. However, the former presidents debate performance has been a source of anxiety for Democrats with a growing number of leaders asking the president to withdraw from the race. When asked about the presidents performance, Hollier stressed Bidens record over his ability to debate. I look at the veterans care. It has changed fundamentally. I did the public service student loan repayment thing. And so when my 10 years was up, I was like, All right! Filing for my student loan repayment. And you know what they said to me, they said, Youve made three qualifying payments. And I was like, b=But Ive been paying consistently for the past decade, Hollier said. Under a Biden presidency, they went back and fixed that program for myself and thousands of other service members to ensure that that debt that was supposed to be gone, was gone, Hollier said. Looking forward, Kull noted the Biden administration was looking at raising pay for lower-enlisted ranks, increasing housing allowances for veterans, and hiring more veterans affairs claims officers to review claims more quickly and address the backlog of claims and appeals. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Biden campaign blasts Trump on military issues, stresses support for servicemembers appeared first on Michigan Advance. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Adil Aliyev has been appointed as head of the Surakhani District Executive Power in Baku, Trend reports. In this regard, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev signed a corresponding decree. By another decree of the head of state, Aziz Azizov was relieved of his post as head of the mentioned district's Executive Power. Former Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.) said Vice President Harris is increasing her role in the campaign ahead of Novembers election. Richmond, co-chair of the Biden-Harris campaign, said Sunday on MSNBCs The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart that the vice president will be stepping up her involvement in the campaign. This comes as the campaign and the White House are still trying to quell concerns about President Bidens ability to win a second term following a lackluster debate performance last month. She is increasing her role and shes been a valued partner since day one. I wont get into whether shes been covered fairly by the press, but she is a valuable partner. Shes incredibly intelligent, he said. And I will just say she has not only publicly stated her support for President Biden, but shes privately said that too. Harris has been walking a fine line as some people have suggested that she replace Biden at the top of the ticket. She has reiterated her support for Biden and has doubled down on his ability to serve a second term. Richmond also said that California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) have also expressed their support for Biden following the debate. The two Democratic governors have been floated as possible replacements to Biden, but they have maintained their support for his reelection effort. I was with Gavin Newsom after the debate when he did the same, and Gretchen Whitmer was on the chairs call yesterday, and she reiterated her support, Richmond said. Leaders are rallying around this president and vice president because they understand whats at stake and they understand what they have accomplished, he 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. Mariam Zuhaib/AP Images, Alex Brandon/AP Images, Evan Vucci/AP Images, Tyler Le/BI This week is the most important yet for Biden's struggling candidacy. Democratic lawmakers are returning to DC, and more may go public about their concerns. Biden keeps insisting he won't go anywhere and is growing increasingly defiant. President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats increasingly appear to be on a collision course. As lawmakers return to the Capitol for votes this week, conversations among them about the president's future are going to ramp up. Reporters are going to be asking any Democratic lawmaker in sight whether they believe Biden should remain their party's nominee against former President Donald Trump. Inevitably, some of them are likely to say that he should not, or that they continue to have grave concerns about his future. As of Monday morning, five House Democrats have publicly called for Biden to step aside, while two have pointedly said that he can't win. In private, the situation seems more dire. According to several media reports, four more senior Democrats including Reps. Jerry Nadler of New York, Mark Takano of California, Adam Smith of Washington, and Joe Morelle of New York have privately said that Biden should drop out. Though no Democratic senator has publicly called for Biden to go, The Washington Post reported that the "consensus" among them is that he should, citing two Democratic senators. The Post also reported that Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia is among them. With the dam teetering on the edge of breaking, Biden has remained defiant. On Monday morning, he sent a letter to congressional Democrats which his campaign was quick to make public insisting that he's not going anywhere, saying that the "question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now" and that "it's time for it to end." Shortly thereafter, the president called into MSNBC's "Morning Joe," saying that if any of the "elites in the party" didn't want him to run, they should "challenge me at the convention." That comes after days of Biden insisting that he's staying. On Friday, he told ABC's George Stephanopoulos that he would only drop out if "the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me" to do so. All of this makes the week ahead extremely important for Biden and the Democratic Party. At this point, the best possible outcome for Biden is that Democrats on Capitol Hill simply shut up and fall in line, and that the president continues barrelling into the November election with multiple Democrats having gone on record saying that he should have stepped aside. The worst possible outcome for Biden is that a public consensus emerges among congressional Democrats that he must go, and that party leaders follow suit by issuing calls for him to drop out. Though Biden insisted that wouldn't happen during his Friday interview on ABC, it's difficult to see how he could shoulder on if it did. Perhaps the most disastrous outcome for the Democratic Party is something in the middle: A large minority of House Democrats call for Biden to step aside, but he remains the nominee, irreparably damaged by the dissent within his own party. It's that scenario that Rep. Ritchie Torres of New York alluded to in a statement Monday morning. He said that public speculation about Biden was "creating and compounding" the problem and that the "process by which we decide how to move forward matters as much as the decision itself." "Regardless of where one stands on the question of President Biden's political future, the intra-party mixed messaging strikes me as deeply self-destructive," Torres said. "The drip, drip, drip of public statements of no confidence only serve to weaken a President who has been weakened not only by the debate but also by the debate about the debate." Read the original article on Business Insider President Biden will deliver remarks at a trio of events focused on key themes and voting blocs for his reelection bid during the week of the Republican National Convention, the White House announced Sunday. The series of speaking engagements, which includes travel to the battleground state of Nevada, is the latest indication its full speed ahead for Biden even as a growing number of Democratic lawmakers urge him to step aside as the partys candidate in November. Next week, President Biden will continue traveling the country to discuss the extraordinary progress the American people have made in the past three and a half years, lay out his vision to ensure the promise of America reaches all communities, and make clear that we must resist attempts by Congressional Republicans to take us backwards, a White House official said in a statement. Biden will deliver remarks on July 15 in Austin, Texas, at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library, to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. The landmark legislation outlawed discrimination based on race, religion or sex. The presidents speech will take place on the opening day of the GOP convention in Milwaukee, Wis. Republicans will gather there that week to outline their policy platform, deliver speeches and formally nominate former President Trump. Biden will deliver remarks in Las Vegas at the 115th NAACP national convention on July 16. The president will speak on July 17 in Nevada at the UnidosUS annual conference, which is described as one of the largest gatherings of Latinos and allies in the country. While all three speeches are official White House events, they are directly connected to key themes of Bidens campaign. He has aggressively pushed back on Republican efforts to roll back basic rights on the heels of the Supreme Courts decision to overturn Roe v. Wade and affirmative action, and the president and Vice President Harris have courted Black and Latino voters who helped put them in the White House in 2020. The president has ramped up his travel schedule in the wake of a disastrous debate performance in late June that triggered calls from some elected officials for him to step aside out of concern that he cant beat Trump in November. Biden visited Wisconsin last week and spent Sunday in Pennsylvania, both key battlegrounds he will likely need to win in order to secure reelection. The president will spend the upcoming week attending events for the NATO summit taking place in Washington, D.C. But his more active schedule may not be enough to assuage Democrats who are concerned he cant effectively make the case against Trump over the next four months and convince voters hes up to the job for another four years. A Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll of battleground state voters, published Saturday, showed Biden leading Trump in Michigan and Wisconsin. Trump leads Biden in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, Pennsylvania and North Carolina, though the races remain close in all 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 The Hill. North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, a Republican vice presidential contender, has made numerous comments that liken President Joe Bidens administration to a dictatorship. On June 23 on CNNs "State of the Union," Burgum said, "This president, more like any other, has bypassed Congress." He implied that there is a double standard for Biden in his use of executive orders compared with former President Donald Trump. Burgum said there is "a nonstop media attack on President Trump saying that, Oh, that he might use executive orders when he takes office. He followed by saying, "The open borders and the inflation are things that (Bidens) doing by himself alone, ignoring the other branches of government." CNNs Kaitlan Collins fact-checked Burgum during the interview, pointing out that Trump signed 220 executive orders during his four years in office, while Biden is at 139 so far in his term. Biden did use executive action at a significantly higher rate than other presidents in his first few days in office, largely as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic. But Trump had issued more orders by this time in his presidency with 169 from Jan. 20, 2017, to July 1, 2020, compared with Bidens 139, according to a PolitiFact analysis of data provided by the American Presidency Project, a nonprofit source for presidential documents hosted by the University of California, Santa Barbara. In the CNN interview, Burgum cited Bidens order on student loan debt relief and federal Environmental Protection Agency regulations on baseload electricity as examples of the president circumnavigating the legislative and judicial branches. He said that Biden "is bypassing the other two branches of government to push an ideological view, whether it's on economics or whether it's on climate extremism." But both of those have been through the legal system, and Biden has not dismissed the Supreme Courts rulings on his policies. A Burgum spokesperson did not respond to PolitiFacts request for evidence that Biden "bypassed Congress" more than other presidents through executive orders. According to the American Presidency Project, Collins numbers are correct. Trumps 220 executive orders are the most in a single term since Jimmy Carter issued 320 orders during his presidency from 1977 to 1981. Presidents have multiple methods of executive action, including regulations, military orders and proclamations, said Kenneth Lowande, a political science and public policy professor at the University of Michigan. Executive orders are the most common and powerful. They are not a perfect metric to see how often presidents have "bypassed Congress," because of the executive branchs other available powers. Experts say that executive orders do not necessarily mean a president circumvented the other branches, because these powers are granted to the executive branch in the Constitution. It is also difficult to tell which actions will have the biggest policy effects. President Donald Trump holds up an executive order addressing freedom of speech on college campuses during a ceremony at the White House in 2019. "It takes years to learn which executive actions were really important and which were bluster because so much depends on implementation," Lowande said. "Thats all executive actions are, at the end of the day orders to bureaucrats." "One of the complications we warn about repeatedly is relying simply on counts of specific kinds of Presidential Documents as a summary measure of executive action," said John Wolley, co-director of the American Presidency Project and an emeritus professor of political science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. Even so, political science experts say there is no evidence to signal that Biden has bypassed the other two branches of government more than other presidents. "I do not see Bidens actions as being materially different from his recent predecessors of either party," said John Frendries, a political science professor at Loyola University Chicago. "Presidents of both parties have relied on EOs to move in certain policy areas." "I would hesitate to say which president has more often used executive action because of a desire to bypass Congress," Woolley said. "I don't think anybody's done the careful analysis that would be required to make such a statement." In his statement on CNN, Burgum criticized Bidens action on the border. However, during Trumps presidential tenure he, too, used an executive order to push immigration policy. Biden used executive action in an attempt to secure the border, restricting the number of migrants who can seek asylum between official points of entry. Collins pointed out that Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., urged Biden to address the border. A proposed bipartisan immigration deal in May failed to advance in the Senate, blocked by Republicans. Woolley pointed out that Trump had similar issues getting congressional approval for his proposed border wall. Through executive action, he diverted $3.6 billion from the military budget to fund the wall, but that was challenged in multiple courts. After continuing legal clashes, the Supreme Court declared the case moot in October 2021 because Biden had halted border wall spending. Bidens executive order efforts to relieve $430 billion in student loan debt were rejected by the Supreme Court in 2023. But Biden has found other ways to decrease loans by expanding existing regulations within the Department of Education, including the SAVE (Saving on a Valuable Education) program, which lowers monthly payments for low-income borrowers. The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled July 1 to allow that plan to continue in August after a federal judge in Kansas initially blocked the decreased payments. Although Frendries underscored that Bidens original executive order on student loan debt relief involved significantly large-dollar sums, he said that "these policy changes were litigated, undercutting any dictatorship claim." Several experts told PolitiFact the Supreme Court ruling July 1 which gives presidents immunity from prosecution when carrying out "official acts" could have future implications for presidential power. This could encourage future presidents to take more executive action than Biden or Trump has. Our sources This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Biden, so far, has signed fewer executive orders than Trump The high-stakes week ahead is critical to whether President Joe Bidens defiance will save his reelection bid or whether Democrats who question his capacity to serve a second term will succeed in pressuring him to step aside. While only a handful of House Democrats have publicly called for the president to end his campaign, there is deep disquiet inside the party at the possibility that Biden, who swept Donald Trump out of the White House four years ago, could ruin his legacy and throw the country into uncharted political territory by failing to deter voters from sending his rival back in the Oval Office after Novembers election. Biden on Monday emphatically said he was staying in the race. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us, Biden wrote in a letter to congressional Democrats. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Democratic anxiety reverberated through a call that House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries hosted for his conference Sunday afternoon. Some members said Biden should go, and theres a consensus among dozens of party lawmakers that he needs to step aside, sources told CNN. But a meeting that Sen. Mark Warner planned for Monday to consider the presidents future is now scrapped, and the Virginia Democrat has not decided whether he thinks Biden should step aside, a source said. Several key party heavyweights said on Sunday morning news shows that the president needs to do far more to ease skepticism among voters. I think this week is going to be really critical for him to answer those remaining questions, Connecticut Sen. Chris Murphy said on CNNs State of the Union. The president nevertheless insisted in a campaign swing through battleground Pennsylvania on Sunday that Im up for the job! Biden reinforced his refusal to cede the Democratic nomination he earned through a largely unopposed primary run in a high-stakes interview with ABC News on Friday, warning only the Lord Almighty could compel him to end his campaign. But the interview only reinforced Democrats panic that followed his devastating debate performance last month over his chances of beating Republican presumptive nominee Trump. The interview also raised further questions over Bidens health as he seeks a new term that would end when he is 86 and over whether he understands the gravity of his political plight as he trails Trump in polls. The turmoil surrounding Bidens future is creating a grim mood inside the White House, CNNs MJ Lee reported. West Wing staffers are rattled by the presidents debate performance and the coverage of the presidents subsequent struggles, although support for his reelection bid remains strong in the building. A moment of soul-searching for the Democratic Party Among the key questions now is whether a critical mass of lawmakers will unite to try to convince the president to stand aside. If that happens, would senior party leaders be willing to go to the president and argue that his position is unsustainable? And even if they did, would Biden who has earned the votes of millions of Democrats to secure the nomination and who maintains he is fully fit to serve a new term agree to cede his campaign? If the president remained obdurate at this point, Democrats would face a decision on whether to go public about their views, and many in critical states and districts would have to consider distancing themselves from their own partys presidential nominee to try to save themselves in November. There is an almost surreal quality to the frenzied political debate as Biden digs in. It would be an extraordinary twist to an already remarkable year in which Republicans will nominate a convicted felon and twice-impeached former president if Democrats decline at the last minute to nominate a sitting president, who most believe has had a successful term, over concerns that he cant win. Passing on Biden would also mark a humiliating coda to a political career that has spanned half a century, and the president would likely regard himself as the victim of scathing betrayal. If Democrats do push him aside, theyd create a high-risk scenario unprecedented in modern history. Theyd have to decide whether to rally around Vice President Kamala Harris which has already begun in some quarters or whether to stage a lightning process to pick an unvetted neophyte new nominee. There would be no guarantee that a new standard-bearer would do better than Biden, who has already beaten Trump once. But the fact many want to try shows the intensity of alarm in the party and the potency of the image of an aged and sometimes incoherent president blazed on the minds of 50 million television viewers at the CNN debate in Atlanta. In a worrying sign for Biden, even senior party figures who are normally supportive and laud the achievements of his term argue that he must do far more to convince voters that he is up to the demands of the presidency. Theres no doubt that the presidents performance at the debate has raised questions for voters, not questions about his character or his decency or who he cares about or who he fights for, but questions as to whether this is still the old Joe Biden, Murphy said on CNNs State of the Union. He told Dana Bash that the president needed to get out and do a town hall, that he do a press conference, (to) show the country that he is still the old Joe Biden. Rep. Adam Schiff also raised concerns. Like Murphy, Schiff poured praise on Bidens achievements and lacerated Trump. But he said on NBCs Meet the Press that the debate performance raised concerns among voters about whether Biden had the capacity to win an existential race. Given that Trump is a convicted criminal, the California Democrat said that the election shouldnt be close and that the presidents age is the only reason it is. He should seek out people with some distance and objectivity. He should seek pollsters who are not his own pollsters. He should take a moment to make the best-informed judgment. And if the judgment is run, then run hard and beat that SOB. The comments of the two senior Democrats underscore the disconnect in the party. While there is alarm among many on Capitol Hill and a desire for the president to do far more in unscripted situations to prove his fitness, Biden himself has already ruled out ending his reelection bid. He refused to answer a question in the ABC News interview about what he would do if leaders such as Jeffries and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told him that he could harm Democrats in Congress if he stayed in the race. Im not going to answer that question. Its not going to happen, Biden said. But the president is getting strong support from his allies in the Congressional Black Caucus. Ohio Rep. Joyce Beatty, a former chair of the CBC, said Democrats shouldnt be going rogue against our own president. And voters at the Essence Festival in New Orleans voiced confidence in Biden and resisted calls for him to end his campaign, CNNs Ebony Davis and Eva McKend reported. The ABC News interview aside, the president is not throwing himself into the intense scrutiny of repeated and spontaneous political events that even many of his supporters want to see. On Sunday, the president gave a speech in a Black church in Philadelphia and addressed campaign workers in a short, off-the-cuff speech in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He did spend considerable time working a rope line in stifling heat. And later this week, hes expected to hold a news conference at the NATO summit hes hosting in Washington, which will be another critical barometer of his faculties. But many Democrats want him to do more amid fears that his position is so precarious that he will not only lose the White House but that he could also drag down his party, allowing Republicans to win back the House and retain the Senate. With the Supreme Court cementing an era of ultra-conservative jurisprudence, many Democrats are openly scared of the consequences of a second, unrestrained Trump presidency. House Democrats on Sunday vented their frustration about Bidens troubles and the impact they could have on winning back the House, a possibility that many members had been optimistic about until the debate. It was pretty brutal, a senior Democratic aide told CNNs Jeff Zeleny, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversation among House leaders. No decisions about demands for a White House meeting or about the possibility of sending a letter to Biden are expected to be made before the full Democratic caucus meets Tuesday, aides said. A source who was on the Sunday call told CNNs MJ Lee that Jeffries has not taken a position on what should happen. But the Tuesday meeting looms as a fateful moment for the president. Concern about Bidens ability to perform on the campaign trail and the long-term implications of the debate remain deep, despite the legacy of a first term in which his legislative record matches or surpasses that of any Democratic president since Lyndon Johnson. Rep. Gerry Connolly, for instance, told CNNs Pamela Brown on Saturday that he believed what happened was more than a bad night, and thats why that image is so indelible on so many minds. The Virginia Democrat said that while Bidens performance in the ABC News interview was largely good, there were some troubling aspects. Invoking God Almighty as the only intervention that is going to dissuade him from going forward, I hope Joe Biden didnt really mean that, Connolly said. Biden hits the trail Biden sought to squash speculation about his future by seeking to project a picture of vigor on the campaign trail in Pennsylvania, a state that he must keep in his column in November to keep his hopes of victory alive. The president reflected on faith and the trials it can help surmount at a stop at Philadelphias Mount Airy Church of God in Christ. Were all imperfect beings. We dont know where or what faith will deliver us to or when, he said, while appearing to read from prepared notes. Black Democratic voters helped to rescue Bidens primary campaign in 2020 and to put him in the White House. He has been beset by polls in this cycle suggesting Trump is making inroads in a community that usually votes overwhelming for Democratic presidential candidates. Later in the day, Biden moved on to the state capital of Harrisburg, in the company of Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, a Democratic rising star spoken of as a possible alternative nominee. Biden also traveled with Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman, one of the most vehement supporters of his continued reelection campaign, and his old friend Sen. Bob Casey, who is in a tough reelection race, completed the impression of the commonwealths top Democrats protecting his back. This election is going to be about blocking, tackling simple, basic politics, simple. Its going to be a matter of how many signs we get out, how many doors we knock on, how many calls we make and how many requests we answer, Biden told supporters. His campaign has already announced that he plans to campaign in another vital swing state, Michigan, on Friday, following this weeks NATO summit in Washington. Hosting world leaders will allow Biden to highlight his credentials as a statesman and one of the most significant aspects of his term his reinvigoration and expansion of the Western alliance and the steeling of US allies to meet the threat posed by Russias invasion of Ukraine. If he can successfully navigate the event without more controversy, the focus may begin to turn away from his perceived liabilities and back toward Trump, who is expected to unveil his vice presidential nominee at or ahead of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee next week. By the time Biden is back in the spotlight, there will be even less time ahead of the Democratic National Convention in August for his critics to push any alternative nominee. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com President Joe Biden sat down for an interview with ABCs Good Morning America co-anchor and This Week anchor George Stephanopoulos in Wisconsin on the campaign trail on July 5, 2024. (Photo used with permission of ABC News) WASHINGTON President Joe Biden on Friday in his first televised interview since the presidential debate defended his reelection bid and rejected calls that he should step aside amid growing anxiety among some Democrats about his mental and physical state. The 22-minute interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos came as some lawmakers and other prominent Democrats have said Biden should suspend his campaign and let someone else become the official nominee. Virginia Democratic Sen. Mark Warner is attempting to assemble a group of Democratic senators to ask President Biden to exit the presidential race, according to the Washington Post. But Biden said thats unnecessary, distilling his actions during the June 27 debate as simply a bad night. It was a bad episode, no indication of any serious condition, Biden said. I was exhausted. I didnt listen to my instincts in terms of preparing and it was a bad night. Biden refused to answer a question about what he would do if allies and friends in Congress urged him to leave the presidential campaign. Im not going to answer that question. Its not going to happen, Biden said. Members of Congress and Democratic governors have expressed concern with Biden remaining the presumptive nominee ever since he struggled to answer questions and had moments where he appeared confused during the first presidential debate. Biden brushed aside Virginia Sen. Mark Warners plans to convene Democratic senators on Monday to discuss the future of Bidens bid, which multiple news organizations reported Friday. Both chambers of Congress will return to Washington next week. Mark is a good man, Biden said, before incorrectly claiming Warner tried to get the nomination for president Warner in 2006 said he would not make a bid. Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him. Biden wont commit to cognitive exam Stephanopoulos pressed Biden during the interview on whether he really has the mental and physical stamina to remain president for another four years, and whether Biden is being honest with himself about his age. I believe so, Biden said. I wouldnt be running if I didnt think I did. Look, Im running again because I think I understand best what has to be done to take this nation to a completely new level. Biden repeatedly declined to commit to taking a cognitive exam, suggesting that his schedule and daily work load are evidence enough hes up to the task of being president. I have a cognitive test every single day. Every day I have that test, everything I do, Biden said. You know, not only am I campaigning, Im running the world. Biden added that there are 125 days left in the campaign and that people should watch him in the months ahead to determine if hes suitable to be reelected to the highest position in the government. In Wisconsin, Biden points to Trump flubs The ABC News interview aired just hours after Biden held a rally in Madison, Wisconsin, where he repeatedly criticized the Republican presumptive presidential nominee, Donald Trump. This Novembers presidential election, Biden said, should be about character, honesty and decency. Lets focus on what really matters: Were running against the biggest liar and the biggest threat to our democracy in American history, Biden said. Thats not hyperbole. Biden sought to shift the attention from his performance at the debate to flubs Trump has made over the years, including in a Fourth of July speech in 2019 when the former president said securing the airports was essential during the Revolutionary War. He said George Washingtons army won the Revolution by taking control of the airports from the British, Biden said before crossing himself somewhat jokingly. Talk about me misspeaking airports from the British in 1776? Its true, he is a stable genius. Trump, at the time, criticized the teleprompter for the comment. Biden during the rally listed off what he views as his accomplishments, including canceling some student loan debt, nominating Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, signing a same-sex marriage bill, approving gun safety policies and working with Congress on a sweeping climate change law. Im not letting one, 90-minute debate wipe out three-and-a-half years of work, Biden said. During the next four years, Biden said, whoever holds the Oval Office will appoint at least two new justices to the Supreme Court. Should that be Trump, a recent ruling from the justices on presidential immunity could lead to a challenging time for the country, Biden said. For over two centuries, Americas been a free, democratic nation, Biden said. And Ill be damned if in the year 2024 just two years before our 250th anniversary as a nation Ill let Donald Trump take this away. Illinois Dem congressman says Biden should quit Biden briefly spoke with reporters in the White House pool after the rally, saying he was determined to stay in the race and brushing aside calls from some lawmakers for him to withdraw. When asked by a reporter about Warner suggesting Biden let another person take over as the partys presidential candidate, Biden said Warner is the only one considering that. Later in the evening, Illinois Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley said on MSNBC that Biden should step aside. Mr. President, your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude, Quigley said. The only thing that you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this. President Joe Biden sat down for an interview with ABCs Good Morning America co-anchor and This Week anchor George Stephanopoulos in Wisconsin on the campaign trail on July 5, 2024. (Photo used with permission of ABC News) WASHINGTON President Joe Biden on Friday in his first televised interview since the presidential debate defended his reelection bid and rejected calls that he should step aside amid growing anxiety among some Democrats about his mental and physical state. The 22-minute interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos came as some lawmakers and other prominent Democrats have said Biden should suspend his campaign and let someone else become the official nominee. But Biden said thats unnecessary, distilling his actions during the June 27 debate as simply a bad night. It was a bad episode, no indication of any serious condition, Biden said. I was exhausted. I didnt listen to my instincts in terms of preparing and it was a bad night. Biden refused to answer a question about what he would do if allies and friends in Congress urged him to leave the presidential campaign. Im not going to answer that question. Its not going to happen, Biden said. Members of Congress and Democratic governors have expressed concern with Biden remaining the presumptive nominee ever since he struggled to answer questions and had moments where he appeared confused during the first presidential debate. Biden brushed aside Virginia Sen. Mark Warners plans to convene Democratic senators on Monday to discuss the future of Bidens bid, which multiple news organizations reported Friday. Both chambers of Congress will return to Washington next week. Mark is a good man, Biden said, before incorrectly claiming Warner tried to get the nomination for president Warner in 2006 said he would not make a bid. Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him. Biden wont commit to cognitive exam Stephanopoulos pressed Biden during the interview on whether he really has the mental and physical stamina to remain president for another four years, and whether Biden is being honest with himself about his age. I believe so, Biden said. I wouldnt be running if I didnt think I did. Look, Im running again because I think I understand best what has to be done to take this nation to a completely new level. Biden repeatedly declined to commit to taking a cognitive exam, suggesting that his schedule and daily work load are evidence enough hes up to the task of being president. I have a cognitive test every single day. Every day I have that test, everything I do, Biden said. You know, not only am I campaigning, Im running the world. Biden added that there are 125 days left in the campaign and that people should watch him in the months ahead to determine if hes suitable to be reelected to the highest position in the government. In Wisconsin, Biden points to Trump flubs The ABC News interview aired just hours after Biden held a rally in Madison, Wisconsin, where he repeatedly criticized the Republican presumptive presidential nominee, Donald Trump. This Novembers presidential election, Biden said, should be about character, honesty and decency. Lets focus on what really matters: Were running against the biggest liar and the biggest threat to our democracy in American history, Biden said. Thats not hyperbole. Biden sought to shift the attention from his performance at the debate to flubs Trump has made over the years, including in a Fourth of July speech in 2019 when the former president said securing the airports was essential during the Revolutionary War. He said George Washingtons army won the Revolution by taking control of the airports from the British, Biden said before crossing himself somewhat jokingly. Talk about me misspeaking airports from the British in 1776? Its true, he is a stable genius. Trump, at the time, criticized the teleprompter for the comment. Biden during the rally listed off what he views as his accomplishments, including canceling some student loan debt, nominating Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, signing a same-sex marriage bill, approving gun safety policies and working with Congress on a sweeping climate change law. Im not letting one, 90-minute debate wipe out three-and-a-half years of work, Biden said. During the next four years, Biden said, whoever holds the Oval Office will appoint at least two new justices to the Supreme Court. Should that be Trump, a recent ruling from the justices on presidential immunity could lead to a challenging time for the country, Biden said. For over two centuries, Americas been a free, democratic nation, Biden said. And Ill be damned if in the year 2024 just two years before our 250th anniversary as a nation Ill let Donald Trump take this away. Illinois Dem congressman says Biden should quit Biden briefly spoke with reporters in the White House pool after the rally, saying he was determined to stay in the race and brushing aside calls from some lawmakers for him to withdraw. When asked by a reporter about Warner suggesting Biden let another person take over as the partys presidential candidate, Biden said Warner is the only one considering that. Later in the evening, Illinois Democratic Rep. Mike Quigley said on MSNBC that Biden should step aside. Mr. President, your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude, Quigley said. The only thing that you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this. The post Biden in first TV interview since debate denies medical condition: It was a bad episode appeared first on Source New Mexico. The most memorable part of last years NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania happened before it even began. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, upset that his country wouldnt get a timeline for membership, scolded the alliance online. Ukraine also deserves respect, he wrote. In order to avoid a repeat of last year, the 2024 summit in Washington has been much more closely coordinated. Multiple European officials told Defense News that planning began months earlier than usual. And many delegations are using the same slogan: Managing expectations. Now that the summit has arrived, the events around it are proving difficult to manage. French President Emmanuel Macron, a persnickety but dogged NATO advocate in Europe, is facing political gridlock after parliamentary elections left the National Assembly, the lower house, fractured from the extreme left to the extreme right. And while Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met with Zelenskyy in Kyiv last week, he went on to visit Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow shortly thereafter. Orban, who has previously slow-walked European aid to Ukraine, framed his visits as a peace mission but his suggestion that Ukraine order a truce before peace negotiations drew a frosty response from Kyiv. Even more concerning for NATO is the state of its main backer. U.S. President Joe Biden is trying to contain a crisis at home after a catastrophic debate two weeks ago. Supporting the alliance has been one of Bidens signature issues. Now, many in his own party say he shouldnt even be the nominee making the return of a NATO-skeptic Donald Trump to the presidency more likely. The upshot is a split 75th birthday for NATO. By some measures, like membership and spending, the alliance is stronger than ever. And yet, many members are searching for ways to Trump proof its support for Kyiv while trying to protect their own security. Despite a more unified message this year, and a large package for Ukraine, European officials acknowledge the political situation is a major distraction. Right now the policy is support Ukraine, said Evelyn Farkas, a former Pentagon official focusing on European security. Could it change? Sure. But right now, the big affirmation is going to be NATO at 75 years and look what were doing to help Ukraine. A senior U.S. administration official told reporters on Friday that allies will reaffirm that Ukraines future is in NATO, will make significant new announcements about how were increasing NATOs military, political and financial support for Ukraine. The Washington summit will send a strong signal to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin that if he thinks he can outlast the coalition of countries supporting Ukraine, hes dead wrong. Three-part package As has been the case since Russias full-scale invasion over two years ago, the biggest part of this NATO summit will be backing Ukraine. Heading into the meetings, officials and analysts outlined a three-part package. The first piece will be equipment, likely including urgently needed air defense batteries and interceptors for Kyiv. NATO will also take a larger role in the process. To this point in the war, the U.S. has led the effort, with a monthly meeting convened by Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin. This Ukraine Defense Contact Group has helped raise and direct around $100 billion in aid. The alliance is now taking on some of those tasks. In June, NATO announced a command of 700 personnel in Germany that would also help steer aid to Ukraine moving forward. Speaking with reporters on the condition of anonymity before the summit, a European official predicted this group would take on more authority over time. We are crossing that line, the official said. We are giving NATO greater role in terms of assistance to Ukraine. Biden will host an event at the summit with Zelenskyy and nearly two dozen allies and partners who have signed bilateral security agreements with Ukraine. A final part of the package is what the final communique will say about membership for Ukraine. The delegations are still haggling over how to word it a bridge, an irreversible path or some combination of the two. Whatever the language, the same European official said it needs to be firmer than the conditional phrasing of the Vilnius communique. To many in Ukraine, though, this back and forth misses the point. We know we will probably not get an invitation to joint NATO, said Oleksandr Merezhko, chair of the Committee on Foreign Policy Committee in Ukraines parliament. The question is what we will get instead. Parsing the words in the communique when Ukraine has known membership isnt on the table ignores more important questions: like the alliances readiness and Russias threat beyond Ukraine, argued Maksym Skrypchenko, who leads the Transatlantic Dialogue Center, a think tank in Kyiv. People [in Ukraine] are very frustrated with NATO, he said. They feel like NATO isnt working and Russia can invade the Baltic states and nothing will happen. Done this before Despite that mood, there are signs that the Washington summit is more unified than last years. In a post last week, Zelenskyy predicted there are good things to come on air defense, membership and security agreements. NATO will also have a clutch of good news to celebrate. Its hit a record number of members spending at least 2% of GDP on defense expected to hit 23 this year compared to only three a decade ago. It has a new member, with Sweden ending a long accession process in March. And theres a new secretary general coming, now that former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte earned enough support in June. That said, the political malaise surrounding the summit will make the work harder, multiple analysts and officials said. Asked whether the optics of a weakened American and French president would distract from the real policy discussions, another European official was terse. Yes, the official said. Hence, despite the carefully coordinated messaging, many members of the alliance will arrive in Washington looking for reassurance, or even trying to hedge against the whiplash of a second Trump term by meeting with his campaign or conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation. Others are skeptical such an approach could work. I find this notion of future-proofing or even Trump-proofing the alliance, to be frank, a little bit laughable, John Deni, a former adviser to American military leaders in Europe, said on a press call hosted by the Atlantic Council. Denis argument was two-fold. One, there is no country in NATO with the ability to replace a more distant United States, economically or militarily. And two, NATO has been through these political transitions in the past, including with American leaders thought to be insufficiently committed to Europe. Every expert on the call with Deni argued that second point: An alliance doesnt last 75 years without learning how to survive. What I say to Europeans all the time is stop freaking out about Trump, said Rachel Rizzo, an expert at the Atlantic Council. Youve done this before. Biden to meet with new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in D.C. this week The Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer, and his wife, Victoria, arrive at Number 10 Downing Street in London, delivering his first speech to the nation as the head of government of the United Kingdom on Friday. Photo by Rory Arnold/No 10 Downing Street/UPI July 8 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden plans to host newly elected British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Wednesday during NATO's 75th anniversary and bilateral meetings in Washington, D.C., the White House announced Monday. The nations' meetings run Tuesday through Thursday. NATO has 32 member countries, including newcomer Sweden. On Friday, Britain's Labor Party won a landslide victory in a general election that saw the ruling Conservative Party of Prime Minister Rishi Sunak swept from power after 14 years in government. "President Biden looks forward to his first meeting with Prime Minister Starmer and will underscore the importance of continuing to strengthen the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said in a statement. "President Biden looks forward to his first meeting with Prime Minister Starmer and will underscore the importance of continuing to strengthen the special relationship between the United States and the United Kingdom," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said. Photo by Ken Cedeno/UPI She said the two "leaders will have the opportunity to discuss in depth U.S.-UK cooperation across a range of issues, including support to Ukraine, advancing a free and open Indo-Pacific, reaching a ceasefire and hostage release deal in Gaza, ensuring that Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon, and strengthening the coalition to confront Iranian-backed Houthi threats to commercial shipping." She said they will also discuss furthering bilateral cooperation in "areas such as protecting advanced technologies and developing climate and clean energy solutions." Biden and Starmer spoke Friday, according to the White House. Starmer, who served as the leader of the Labor Party since 2020, appeared in London on Friday at mid-morning for an audience with King Charles, in which the monarch invited him to form a new government led by him. Events are scheduled at the convention center and the White House, as well as the Mellon Auditorium, which is where the North Atlantic Treaty was signed in 1949. Biden is not being treated for Parkinson's, White House says after NYT report WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden is not being treated for Parkinson's disease and has not seen a neurologist outside of his annual physicals, the White House said on Monday, after the New York Times reported that visitor logs showed a doctor specializing in the illness visited the White House at least eight times from August through March. Concerns that Biden might be suffering from an undisclosed illness have risen since he stumbled, appearing frail and losing his train of thought at times, at his June 27 debate against Republican Donald Trump. Dr. Kevin O'Connor, the White House doctor, issued a letter on Monday night that said Biden has not seen a neurologist outside of his normal annual physical. Biden is battling criticism from some Democrats that he lacks the mental acuity to stand as their nominee against Trump in the Nov. 5 presidential election. Biden has, however, said he will not abandon his campaign, telling MSNBC via phone on Monday that he was "not going anywhere". A Reuters review of White House visitor logs showed that Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist and movement disorders specialist from Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, visited the White House eight times from August through March. Cannard has co-authored research on treatment for early Parkinson's disease at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. O'Connor said Cannard's visits to the White House were part of his neurological clinics aimed at supporting "thousands" of active duty members assigned in support of White House operations and not to treat the president. Cannard's visits to the White House were first reported by The New York Post on July 6. One former White House official, who worked for Biden when he was vice president under President Barack Obama and as president, was treated by the same doctor for migraines in 2016, the former official told Reuters. The doctor came to the White House once a month then as part of his rotation, the individual said. White House spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre refused to confirm or elaborate on Cannard's visits earlier in the day. At the media briefing, she was frequently challenged by reporters and said she wanted to respect the privacy of all involved for security reasons. She said Biden had seen a neurologist three times connected to his annual physical exam. She did not explain Cannard's presence at the White House but suggested it might be connected to treating some of the military personnel who work at the White House complex. "There are thousands of military personnel that come to the White House and they are under the care of the medical unit," she said. (Reporting by Andrea Shalal, Steve Holland and Jeff Mason; Writing by Doina Chiacu; Editing by David Gregorio, Heather Timmons, Deepa Babington, Cynthia Osterman and Himani Sarkar) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Additional authority has been bestowed upon Azerbaijan's Ministry of Economy, Trend reports. The issue was reflected in a decree "On a number of issues related to the use of the system of registered exporters of the European Commission by Azerbaijan" signed by President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. According to the decree, the Ministry of Economy is the sole authorized body responsible for issuing exporter registration confirmation codes for the use of the Registered Exporter System (REX) of the European Commission and responses to inquiries from member states of the European Union, as well as Norway and Switzerland, regarding the provision of tariff preferences unilaterally under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) and performs other related tasks within this framework. The Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan was tasked with resolving issues arising from this decree. The Ministry of Economy was tasked to approve the rules for issuing exporter registration confirmation codes and responding to incoming inquiries as stipulated by this decree within a four-month period. The ministry was also required to inform the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan accordingly and take necessary measures to address other issues stemming from this decree. Additionally, the decree tasked Foreign Ministry to notify the member states of the European Union, Norway and Switzerland about the designation of the Ministry of Economy of Azerbaijan as the sole authorized body as per this decree. President Joe Biden speaks at Mt. Airy Church of God in Christ church July 7, 2024 (Photo via Biden campaign) PHILADELPHIA President Joe Biden was in Pennsylvania on Sunday to speak at a church in Philadelphia and a campaign office near Harrisburg, with the states top Democrats appearing with him along the way. The trip to the key swing state comes at a time when Biden is seeking to reassure Democratic voters and some of the partys elected members that he is up to the job despite a poor showing in the June 27 debate with former President Donald Trump. Bidens first stop on Sundays visit was at the Mt. Airy Church of God in Christ, a traditionally Black church in Northwest Philadelphia, where he spoke for about 10 minutes. Biden and first lady Jill Biden were originally scheduled to address the National Education Association conference in Philadelphia on Sunday, but canceled that appearance after a group of NEA workers went on strike Friday. The campaign said Biden refused to cross a picket line. Ive been doing this a long time, Biden told the congregation on Sunday in brief remarks, speaking in a quiet voice, without the use of a teleprompter. Honest to God, I have never been more optimistic about Americas future, if we stick together. I really mean it. The president arrived in Philadelphia at about 10 a.m., according to pool reports, where he was greeted at the airport by Democratic Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman and his wife Gisele Fetterman; Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker; and U.S. Reps. Brendan Boyle (D-2nd District) and Madeleine Dean (D-4th District). The church service began at about 10:30 a.m, and Biden, Casey and Parker arrived a short time later. After an opening song, Bishop J. Louis Felton began the service with a welcome to the president, who sat next to the churchs founder Bishop Ernest Morris, Sr. We want you to know, President Biden, that Bishop Morris is 91 years old on his way to 92, Felton said. And so, Mr President, since you are only an octogenarian sitting next to a nonagenarian, dont let anybody talk about your age. You are a young whippersnapper. Felton said Biden was among family, and took some not-so-subtle jabs at former President Donald Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, during his remarks. This president doesnt sell Bibles, he actually reads them, Felton told the congregation. He also defended Biden for not being able at certain times to bring forth words, noting that another person lies fluently, an apparent reference to Trump. Biden at church service in Pennsylvania Sunday marked the first time Biden has returned to Pennsylvania since the debate, which hes since admitted was a bad episode. Following his remarks in the church, Pamela Abrams, a Philadelphia native who has attended services at the church for 15 years, told the Capital-Star she was not concerned about Bidens debate performance or his age. That was just a little freak of nature, Joe is fine, Abrams said. I think he has all of his faculties, he knows what he wants to do, he knows how he wants his office run and I think four more years we can give him to get it done. She added she loved his speech at the church. Looking forward to four more years of Joe. Go Joe, go. Run Joe, run. Republican National Committee chairman Michael Whatley criticized Biden in a statement Sunday, saying his policies had failed Pennsylvania families. Its no wonder why Pennsylvania voters are lining up to Make America Great Again by supporting President Trump, Whatley said. Dark Brandon is coming back Biden took selfies with some of the congregants immediately following the service, then made an unscheduled stop at the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign office in Philadelphia, speaking briefly to a gathering of supporters and volunteers ahead of canvassing efforts. Fetterman, Dean and Parker joined him at the campaign office, which had signs on the wall with handwritten responses to the phrase Im onboard because. The answers included Inclusion and choice matters, Democracy is vital to our country, and I care about access to reproductive health, according to the pool report. This election is going to be about block and tackle, and simple basic politics, Biden told the gathering, repeating his oft-cited pledge to build the economy from the middle out and the bottom up, adding hes been saying that since he was a U.S. Senator. He told the gathering at the campaign office in Philadelphia that beginning the night of the debate and in appearances since, hes been drawing big crowds. Biden said voters want to know you care, and encouraged the volunteers to keep door knocking. He also said a lot of corporate greed was contributing to the cost of groceries, adding The wealthy are going to have to start paying their fair share. As he shook hands and greeted people in the audience, he approached a woman who told him, we need Dark Brandon back, a reference to Bidens cooler, meme-fied alter ego. Biden patted his jacket and said even though he didnt have his sunglasses a key feature of the Dark Brandon image Dark Brandon is coming back. Fetterman, wearing his usual hoodie and shorts, spoke next, saying he was proud to be with the president. I know what its like to have a rough debate and Im standing here as your senator, Fetterman said, a reference to his 2022 debate against GOP candidate Mehmet Oz. Fetterman had suffered a stroke a few months earlier and struggled during the debate with auditory processing issues. The 2024 election was always going to be close, Fetterman added Sunday. [But] there is only one guy that has ever beaten Trump and he is going to do it twice and put him down for good. Biden makes first Harrisburg visit since 2020 Biden next headed to Harrisburg, where union members, campaign staff and others began to arrive in the early afternoon at the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employee Union event ahead of his apperance. Sunday was Bidens first trip to the Harrisburg area since the 2020 campaign, when he delivered a Labor Day speech at the state AFL-CIO headquarters and said he would be the strongest labor president weve ever had. Lancaster resident Harry Davis, 82, said Sunday he had planned to spend the day canvassing for Biden, despite the high temperatures. But when he was invited by the campaign to see Biden speak, he decided not to pass on the opportunity. Davis said that the concerns about Bidens age and capability have made him more aware of his own age. Hes slightly older than Biden, and said he can have trouble with words himself. It made me really mad, people saying hes a tottering old man, Davis said. Im perfectly confident he can do it. And if he cant, Kamala Harris she usually gets a short shrift but Im confident she can do it too. Davis added that for him the No. 1 issue is the environment. Janet Temin Diaz, a Lancaster City Council member and chair of the PA Dems Latino Caucus, said she has heard concerns from her constituents about Bidens age, but believes that the threat of another Trump term makes Biden a candidate worth supporting, even if its more of a vote against Trump. They do feel a little concerned about his age, Temin said about her constituents, particularly the Latinos shes spoken with since the debate. I would say theres positives and negatives, but most of them will vote for Biden, because its safer because of how far right Trump is. She cited the American Rescue Plan funding as something her constituents have felt directly, and said she appreciates Bidens support for unions. Biden is union, Diaz said. Hes always been with unions, where Trump wasnt. State Rep. Ismail Izzy Smith-Wade-El (D- Lancaster) said he was pleasantly surprised by the turnout at the event so far, speaking to the Capital-Star about 45 minutes before Bidens scheduled remarks. In 2020, the African-American and Latino communities of central Pennsylvania over-performed and delivered this state for Democrats, sending a Democrat to the White House, Smith-Wade-El said. Seeing that turnout [here], seeing Black and brown folks, seeing organized labor here, that tells me that the people who need to be brought in to win this thing are being brought in. Smith-Wade-El added that he hasnt heard much concern from his community about Bidens age. Theyre talking to me about health care, theyre talking to me about housing, theyre talking to me about Gaza, Smith-Wade-El said. Theyre not talking to me about Bidens age I think when you look at his track record vs the other guys track record, I think it becomes simple, fortunately or unfortunately. The Harrisburg Palestine Coalition protested the event. At around 12:30, when the protest was scheduled to start, the turnout was around 20 to 30 people, who stood beside a road leading to the AFSCME building where Biden spoke. Biden reaffirmed his support for unions during his remarks in Harrisburg, and doubled down on a vision for his second term focused on economic support for the lower and middle classes. He spoke off the cuff, walking in front of the gathering while holding a microphone, this time wearing his signature aviator sunglasses. The middle class built this country and, guess what, the unions built the middle class, Biden said to the AFSCME crowd. The president pledged to increase spending on child care and senior care if elected for a second term. Biden also pledged further tax reform, with a focus on a tax for billionaires and corporations. Biden was joined in Harrisburg by Dean, Fetterman and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis. All three voiced support for the embattled president, even as calls for him to step aside continued Sunday. During the Harrisburg event, Democrats sought to draw a contrast between Biden and Trumps terms in office. We were all hoarding toilet paper, Fetterman said of the end of Trumps term, whereas under Biden, Our economy is the envy of the world right now. Dean focused her remarks on the candidates character. Weve seen them both perform as president, Dean said. One with utter integrity and the other so seeded with corruption. Dean also recalled her experience on Jan. 6, when a crowd of Trump supporters rallied by the former president broke into the Capitol as Congress was certifying the 2020 election. I was there on January the 6th, Dean added. I was taken out in a gas mask. After his remarks, Biden took selfies and spoke with audience members for roughly 45 minutes, even as the temperature in Harrisburg held steady in the low 90s. Biden next headed to Denim Coffee in Harrisburg, where he was joined by Gov. Josh Shapiro, Harrisburg Mayor Wanda Williams, Fetterman and Jill Biden. The president declined whipped cream on his strawberry smoothie, according to the pool report, and left $20 in the tip jar. Biden says hes not dropping out Bidens insistence that he will remain in the race has not prevented national media and political pundits from weighing in and speculating - sometimes flat-out stating that he should step down as the presumptive Democratic nominee in favor of a younger candidate. But Biden has largely dismissed those calls to drop out. Let me say this as clearly as I can: Im staying in the race, he told a capacity crowd of more than 1,000 supporters in Madison, Wisconsin on Thursday. Those calling for him to leave the race are ignoring the will of the voters who voted for him in primaries across the country, he added. Im not going to let one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work. Most of Pennsylvanias top elected Democrats have thus far expressed support for the president remaining in the race. Shapiro whose name comes up frequently in speculation about who would replace Biden on the ticket went on cable news shows the morning after the debate and said Democrats should stop worrying and start working, while acknowledging Bidens debate performance was bad. Fetterman said Friday on MSNBC that Democrats calling for Biden to drop out were betraying the president. I am not the sum total of a bad debate and certainly the president isnt either, he said. But U.S. Rep. Summer Lee (D-12th District) said on a satellite radio show July 3 that Biden would need to show that hes up for the task, if he decided to stay in the race, adding that Vice President Kamala Harris should be the Democratic nominee if Biden steps aside. The campaign said the weekend swing through the blue wall states Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin is part of a July outreach blitz that includes a $50 million media campaign. It also will include an aggressive travel schedule which will see the Bidens, Harris and second gentleman Doug Emhoff travel to every battleground state. Its organizing program aims to knock on more than 3 million doors throughout July and August, the campaign said. Trump will visit Pennsylvania next weekend, with a rally in Butler County, north of Pittsburgh, days before the opening of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Neither candidate has spent much time in the western half of the state so far this campaign cycle. With a few exceptions, Trumps debate performance has not drawn the same level of scrutiny as Bidens, but a fact-check by CNN found the presumptive GOP nominee made more than 30 false claims during the debate, many of which had already been debunked. Biden last visited Pennsylvania in May, when he and Harris launched the campaigns Black Voters for Biden-Harris initiative in Philadelphia. Trump campaigned in Philadelphia in June, speaking on Temple Universitys campus, where he appeared on stage for the first time in 2024 with GOP U.S. Senate candidate David McCormick. And Trump last visited Harrisburg in February, speaking at a National Rifle Association event where he promised the audience no one will lay a finger on your firearms. Biden beat Trump in Pennsylvania in 2020 by just over 80,000 votes. Updated with a full write-through at 5:25 p.m. July 7, 2024. 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. The post Biden returns to battleground Pennsylvania for campaign events in Philadelphia and Harrisburg appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner. Biden says, Im running, despite calls to step aside WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) All eyes are on Capitol Hill to see if Congressional Democrats just back from a July 4th recess will unite behind President Bidens 2024 campaign. Monday morning President Biden sent a rare letter directly to both House and Senate Democrats. In it he made clear he is not dropping out of this race under scoring division brewing within the party. The Congressional Black Caucus chair threw his support behind the president. However, five House Democrats are publicly calling on the president to step aside. I am running. I am running, Biden said. Monday morning on MSNBC, the president brushed off the naysayers and in a new letter to Democratic lawmakers made the case hes the best Democrat to defeat Donald Trump. I havent lost. I beat him last time. Ill beat him this time, said Biden. Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy said questions remain even after the presidents sit-down interview Friday. This party wants to make sure that we are in a position to win, said Murphy. No Democratic senators have called on President Biden to drop out. Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal whos backing President Biden says discussions in Washington this week will be critical. Were going to be engaged in ongoing conversations as we have been over the past week or so, said Blumenthal. House Democrats got a head start. Sunday afternoon House leaders held an impromptu call to hear concerns. Unlike the Senate, since the debate, a growing number of House Democrats privately and publicly say the president should drop out. California Congressman Adam Schiff argued the race is too close. Given Joe Bidens incredible record given Donald Trumps terrible record. He should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump, said Schiff. President Biden is questioning polling that shows him trailing in key swing states. A Bloomberg Morning Consult poll released over the weekend shows President Biden leading Trump in Michigan and Wisconsin. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Biden seeks to shut down calls for him to drop out of the race WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) With Congress returning to Washington this week the calls will likely grow even louder from President Bidens own party for him to withdraw from the race. Many Congressional Democrats are still stopping short of telling President Biden to step aside giving him this week to prove hes their best option. Ive been doing this a long time, said Biden. President Joe Biden has been working to calm concerns about the future of his 2024 campaign. If the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get out of the race, Id get out of the race. But the Lord Almighty is not coming down, said Biden. However, thats still not enough for some Congressional Democrats. That is the answer that most concerned me as well. This is not just about whether he gave it the best college try, said Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.). California Congressman Adam Schiff said President Biden should make the decision thats best for the country. This week is going to be absolutely critical. I think the president needs to do more, said Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy said the president needs to prove to voters hes still up for the job. If he answers those questions this week, theres no doubt that he can win this race, said Murphy. Republicans, including Florida Senator Marco Rubio, argue Democrats will lose this November no matter who they nominate as their candidate. The issue is that they are going to be radical. Theres only one pro-life candidate in this race, and its Donald Trump, said Rubio. Both sides have said theyre open to cognitive tests not only for President Biden but also for former president Donald Trump. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. Biden set to campaign in Detroit after vowing to stay in the race President Joe Biden speaks at the Detroit NAACP's annual Fight for Freedom Fund Dinner in Detroit, Mich., on May 19, 2024. (Photo by Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance) President Joe Biden is scheduled to campaign Friday in Detroit, his first trip to Michigan amid calls to drop out of the race from some Democrats and political observers. The Biden campaign did not release any details of the event. The presidents performance at the first debate against presumptive GOP nominee former President Donald Trump last month has been widely criticized, but Biden has repeatedly said hes not withdrawing from the race. He campaigned in Pennsylvania over the weekend and held a rally in Wisconsin on Friday. Both presidential candidates are aggressively targeting Michigan this year, as it was decisive to Trumps 2016 victory and Bidens 2020 win. Biden has visited Michigan three previous times this year, with his last trip to the state in May when he headlined the Detroit NAACPs annual dinner. California Gov. Gavin Newsom stumped for Biden in West Michigan on Thursday. First lady Jill Biden did several events in West and northern Michigan on Wednesday. Trump last campaigned in Michigan in June, doing an event at a Detroit church and speaking at the Turning Point Action conference. That was his time back in the state since being convicted of 34 felonies in a hush money scandal tied to the 2016 election. The post Biden set to campaign in Detroit after vowing to stay in the race appeared first on Michigan Advance. NEW ORLEANS Sitting on a panel here at Essence Fest, an annual gathering of Black leaders, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) brought the crowd alive Saturday with a declaration: It aint going to be no other Democratic candidate its going to be Biden. More significant may have been the private forum Waters used to defend the president a day earlier. On a conference call Friday with other members of the Congressional Black Caucus, the 85-year-old House veteran urged the lawmakers to stand with Joe Biden, sending an implied but unmistakable message to her younger colleagues not to waver, a participant on the call told me. As the president fights for his political life this week, and calls grow from party leaders that he withdraw his candidacy, hes counting on the support of African American Democrats and his union allies as his last line of defense. Its a playbook Biden has turned to in the past, portraying his detractors as mostly elite white liberals who are out of step with the more diverse and working-class grassroots of the party. Thats what propelled his nomination after a string of setbacks in 2020. Its his only path to survival now. If Biden can retain his allies in labor and the Black community, he will have a chance to reframe the boiling debate about his candidacy along the lines of race and class that have animated every Democratic nomination fight for 40 years. Those clashes, of course, played out in primaries and caucuses. This battle is taking place in a more chaotic and truncated fashion, in the media and on group texts, conference calls and Zooms. Yet Biden and his lieutenants are clearly counting on the result being the same in 2024 as it has been in every one of their modern races: The donor class may have their preference, but its older Black women in church pews who will decide the nominee, thank you very much. Thats why Biden literally, as he would say, showed up at an African American congregation in Philadelphia Sunday, why hell address the NAACP convention next week in Las Vegas and this week will, Im told, use the time between NATO meetings to do impromptu events with diverse groups of lawmakers and Washington, D.C.-area residents. The people Joe Biden fights for middle-class labor union members, Blacks, Latinos they know he fights for them and theyre going to stay in the fight for him, Anita Dunn, Bidens longtime adviser, told me Sunday. Cedric Richmond, the former New Orleans congressperson whos a co-chair of Bidens campaign, was even more to the point. I think its interesting that not one African American member [of Congress] has called on the president to step down, Richmond said, before warning white lawmakers that they risk alienating some of their base by abandoning Biden. I wouldnt be rushing to do that if I was from Virginia, Richmond said, hurling a brushback at Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), who is reportedly plotting with Democratic senators to urge Biden to drop out of the race. In conversations with Democratic aides and elected officials over the weekend, people with diverging views on Bidens fate, I was struck by how many of them said that while donors had largely turned on the president, it was a different story with the grassroots, who are mostly focused on former President Donald Trump and his shortcomings. People like my mother, people her age, theyre with Biden, said Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, warning other Democrats: The base is with the president, everybody else needs to stay on board. You want to abandon ship, you dont take everyone else with you. The president of one building trades union told me the can-he-survive conversation in Washington was very different from what he had picked up talking to his locals, who are resolutely pro-Biden. The differing messages, between insiders and voters, have also been striking to members of Congress whove been at home over the July 4 holiday. One House Democrat from a competitive district who is furious at Biden and was poised to call on him to drop out of the race decided to remain quiet after detecting little appetite for such a demand from local unions and rank-and-file voters. Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.), another Biden co-chair, told me he had been bombarded: Local elected officials, civic leaders, grass-roots folks, mostly from Delaware but also around the country. They have, he said, a genuine and deep love for our president and want him to stay in the race. Coons added, though, that he also heard concerns from others and I conveyed those concerns to the president. On a Saturday call between Biden and his campaign co-chairs, another participant told me, Coons recounted two very different texts he got: one from a longtime contributor urging him to tell Biden to drop out and the other from a Black woman friend of his pushing him to stick with Biden. Its not hard to imagine which of those texts resounded more with the president. Much as he craves the affirmation of elites, Biden is in his comfort zone donning the armor of Scranton Joe. It recalls Bill Clinton, facing impeachment and the condemnation of censorious Democratic elites, turning to the party rank and file and especially Black Americans in his hour of crisis. There are crucial differences between then and now, though. Going back to his base is Bidens best, and only, play but its not without risk. For starters, polls indicate that plenty of rank-and-file Democrats, including African Americans, believe the president is too old for the job. Further, if a national union or single Black lawmaker calls on Biden to withdraw from the race it will have an outsized impact on his standing. If a collection of unions or African American elected officials defect, it will be devastating. It was lost on nobody, in the White House or on Capitol Hill, that the ranking House Democrats who used an instantly leaked Sunday conference call to express their preference for Biden to drop out did not include one Black lawmaker. Whats more worrisome for the president, though, is not the CBCs old guard, the former and would-be committee chairs on that call. If Biden loses support with Black members, it would come from younger lawmakers and those who represent more competitive districts, individuals who lack a generational or political connection to the president. The other risk to Bidens bet is even more delicate. In short: Hes counting on his Black supporters to hold the line for him when his most likely replacement would be a history-making Black woman, Vice President Kamala Harris. When I called Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.), a canny political lifer, on Sunday he was nearly beside himself about the damage he believes his nervous colleagues are doing to Biden. Lamenting his partys circular firing squad, he trained his own fire at Democrats demanding Biden step down: You have a winning message sitting right in front of you this man is kicking ass and all you can talk about is Oh my god, this man is senile. Yet before we hung up, Scott delivered one more message. If he drops out, there has to be a seamless shift to Harris, said the congressperson. And, Scott added, if Democrats think there will be some sort of deliberative kumbuya discussion about other alternatives, let me tell you, they are the senile ones. This is the crux of Bidens challenge. He knows his most loyal supporters will be those blue-collar Democrats and their representatives whove always had more of an affinity for him than the latte set. Weve been through some shit in our lives and we dont turn when times are tough, as Richmond put it about the Black community. Yet they wouldnt be turning on him for Pete Buttigieg or Bernie Sanders. The alternative would very likely be Bidens vice president. And thats the extraordinary irony of this moment: If Biden is ultimately forced off the ticket, he may have unwittingly done it to himself by picking Harris in the first place. If she wasnt in the wings, the Bobby Scotts of the world would have ended the conversation by demanding his white colleagues get back on message. Instead, he recalled speaking to a group Saturday and repurposing Trumps debate line about Black jobs when he was asked if Harris was ready: I said, Well, for three-and-a-half years her Black job as vice president of the United States has been to be ready. Biden tells congressional Dems he is staying in the race, urges end to speculation President Joe Biden pledged Monday to stay in his race for reelection, even after a weekend in which a growing number of Democrats asked for him to withdraw and a key U.S. House Republican called for an investigation into the presidents doctor. In a letter to congressional Democrats, Biden argued that the calls for him to drop out of the presidential race with just 119 days until Election Day ignored the results of Democratic primaries and caucuses that he handily won and said he remained the best candidate to defeat former President Donald Trump. The two-page letter ended with a call for party unity and an end to the public back-and-forth among Democrats over whether Biden should leave the race, after a June 27 debate performance that shook some high-ranking Democrats confidence in his ability to overcome his polling deficit against Trump. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now, Biden wrote. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. Comer seeks interview with Biden doctor Congress returns Monday from a weeklong July Fourth recess after several days in which members of both parties continued to press the issue of Bidens fitness for office. Republicans also began pressing for more details. House Oversight and Accountability Chair James Comer on Sunday called for Bidens physician, Dr. Kevin OConnor, to submit to a transcribed interview about his assessments of Biden and OConnors business dealings with James Biden, the presidents brother. The Kentucky Republican said Biden and the White House had sent mixed messages about recent medical examinations of the president. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters last week that Biden had not been examined by a doctor since his regular checkup in February. But Biden told a group of Democratic governors the same day that he was checked out by a doctor following the debate, Comer wrote. Following the debate, Biden, attempting to explain a low, raspy voice, said hed had a cold. Comer also questioned if OConnor could accurately report Bidens health, or if he was compromised by a conflict of interest because of his involvement with James Bidens rural health care company, Americore. James Biden has testified to the committee that he sought OConnors counsel for the business. The White House did not respond to a message seeking comment about Comers request. More Democrats call for withdrawal The holiday weekend also saw more U.S. House Democrats join a list of those asking Biden to step aside rather than seek reelection. In a written statement on Saturday, Minnesotas Angie Craig became the first member from a competitive district to call on the president to quit the race. Craig is the fifth member to publicly call for the presidents withdrawal. Additional members are making private calls, according to media reports. Four Democrats who lead House committees Jerry Nadler of New York on the Judiciary Committee, Adam Smith of Washington on the Armed Services Committee, Mark Takano of California on the Veterans Affairs Committee and Joe Morelle of New York on the House Administration Committee said during a caucus leadership call on Sunday that Biden should withdraw, according to reports. Other accounts reported more members on the call, including Susan Wild of Pennsylvania and Jim Himes of Connecticut, also opposed Bidens continued candidacy. Wild later told the Pennsylvania Capital-Star she expressed concerns about Bidens electability. In an impromptu call in to the MSNBC show Morning Joe on Monday, Biden insisted again he was staying in the race and called for any opponents he had to challenge him at the partys convention in Chicago next month. Biden, who has secured enough pledged delegates through primary and caucus wins to clinch the nomination, would be heavily favored in a contested convention. Democratic Party rules mandate pledged delegates shall in all good conscience reflect the sentiments of those who elected them, but are not legally required to cast their convention vote for their pledged candidate. President Joe Biden told congressional Democrats in a letter on Monday that he will continue his reelection bid despite mounting concerns about his mental fitness and the viability of his campaign, while also hitting back at party elites in an interview ahead of a critical week on Capitol Hill. I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden wrote in the letter, obtained by CNN. Biden sought to put growing concerns about his viability to rest in the forcefully worded letter. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us, Biden concluded. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Its a critical week for Bidens political future as he seeks to tamp down intensifying fallout with the House and Senate back in session for the first time since the debate. More than a handful of top House Democrats told Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Sunday that Biden needs to step aside amid concerns about down-ballot Democratic races. Shortly after the letter was released, Biden called into MSNBCs Morning Joe, part of a strategy to do more off-the-cuff, unscripted engagements to quell concerns about his age. But the appearance, while energetic, may not have had its intended impact. Biden offered a lengthy and occasionally off-topic response to a question about his letter to Hill Democrats calling for unity and lambasted Trump for being on the golf course after the debate. Trump has largely stayed under the radar while Biden battles the news cycle. Well look Democrats Joe, let me say it this way, the reason Ive been on the road so much, all over the country, while Trump is riding around in a golf cart, filling out his golf cart before, golf cart before he even hits the ball but anyway, he hasnt been anywhere in 10 days, Ive been all over the country, No. 1, he said. He continued: And Ive gone over the country for several reasons, one, to make sure my instinct was right about the party still wanting me to be the nominee. And all the data, all the data shows that the average Democrat out there who voted, 14 million of them whove voted for me, still want me to be the nominee, No. 1. And in a pointed rebuke to his critics, Biden said, Im getting so frustrated by the elites. Now, Im not talking about you guys, but by the elites in the party. They know so much more. But if any of these guys dont think I should run, run against me. Go ahead. Announce announce for president. Challenge me at the convention. Critical week ahead on Capitol Hill The president will continue his outreach to Democratic lawmakers this week, a campaign official tells CNN. Tuesday will be a consequential day as members are set hold a planned caucus meeting with Jeffries, and one member told CNN they anticipate that is the day when the dam will break. Two sources told CNN that the meeting, the first time Democrats are gathering as a caucus since the June 27 debate, will be limited to members only and phones are not expected to be permitted inside. Biden will meet virtually with the Congressional Black Caucus Monday night, two sources told CNN. The CBC is arguably the presidents strongest group of support on Capitol Hill and is a key group for him heading into Tuesdays Democratic caucus meeting. NBC News was first to report on the meeting with the CBC. In the week following his disastrous debate performance, Biden personally reached out to roughly 20 House Democrats, a campaign official tells CNN, and has spoken with party leaders including Jeffries, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Reps. Nancy Pelosi and James Clyburn with a goal of reassuring them that the concerns within the party are being heard. Since then, Jeffries, Schumer and Clyburn have voiced support for Biden. Despite divisions in his caucus about Bidens viability in November, Jeffries insisted on Monday that he is still behind the president. Yes, I made clear the day after the debate, publicly, that I support President Joe Biden and the Democratic ticket, Jeffries told CNNs Manu Raju when asked about Biden. My position has not changed. Im for Joe, Schumer told reporters when he arrived at the Capitol Monday and was asked if he supports the president continuing his race for reelection. He would not answer if he has any questions about Bidens mental and physical ability to lead the nation for four more years. Pelosi has said the questions surrounding Bidens disastrous performance at the presidential debate were legitimate. Asked about Pelosis comments, Biden told ABC News, it was a bad episode. No indication of any serious condition. I was exhausted. Several House Democrats have already publicly called for Biden to drop out of the presidential race, with Washington state Rep. Adam Smith becoming the latest to do so Monday afternoon. Well, look, I think he should step aside, he told CNNs Jake Tapper on The Lead. I think its become clear that hes not the best person to carry the Democratic message. And heres the thing: We have an incredibly strong message and record to run on. And all respect to the president, hes done a great job. But Smith added: Weve got a good message. The president has shown he is not capable of delivering that message in an effective way. On a call with senior House Democrats convened Sunday by Jeffries, Smith was one of a half-dozen lawmakers who voiced their own concerns during a conversation one aide described to CNN as pretty brutal. Those lawmakers which CNN has reported to include Reps. Smith, Jerry Nadler, Mark Takano and Joe Morelle represent the highest-ranking Democrats on the Armed Services, Judiciary, Veterans Affairs and House Administration committees. A campaign official declined to say whether the president had spoken directly with Sen. Mark Warner, the Virginia Democrat who organized a concurrent effort among like-minded senators to explore the possibility of an official request for Biden to step aside. Warner canceled a follow-up meeting scheduled for Monday evening, a source tells CNN, after news of the groups efforts leaked. The next meeting will be Tuesday with Senate Democrats and their leadership. Biden told ABC News that Warner was a good man but has a different perspective. Bidens campaign on Monday highlighted a list of supportive statements from Hill Democrats, seeking to amplify the voices who have expressed confidence in the presidents candidacy in recent days. Biden team hosted another top donor call Also on Monday, the Biden campaign hosted a donor call with its national finance committee, another sign of outreach. A top concern of the campaign is whether donors will continue to back Biden or redirect their money to House and Senate campaign efforts if he stays in the race. Biden said he is not exiting the race and that he believes hes still the best candidate to beat Trump, three participants told CNN. My one job is to beat Donald Trump, Biden said, according to one of the participants on the call, who said Biden thanked donors and renewed his pledge to keep the fight alive. A second participant said of the presidents determination to continue running: He aint budging an inch. Campaign chair Jen OMalley Dillon lead the call, which had more than 300 participants, and Maryland Gov. Wes Moore offered a fiery defense of the president, the participants told CNN. Moore was among the governors who met with Biden at the White House last week, telling reporters after the meeting he supports the president but acknowledged the concerns from voters. During the question-and-answer portion of the call, Biden fielded a question from a donor about what he needs to do in the second debate currently scheduled for September 10 to perform better than the first debate, where 51 million Americans watched his meandering and low-energy performance. Biden, dressed in a suit and flanked by an American flag and family photographs, outlined the strategy simply, two participants said: Attack, attack, attack. DNC Finance Chair Chris Korge, who was among the final speakers on the call, was begging us to stay in line, one of the participants said. Biden struck a defiant note on a call with donors, emphasizing that the party needs to shift the narrative back to Trump and the important issues at stake in November. There was a fair amount of discussion, according to one donor on the call, on Project 2025. Biden made clear how damaging Trumps agenda would be across the board, including for the economy, women and the LGBTQ community, one donor said. Biden also smiled on screen when one donor said she would crawl through glass for him. Another participant on the call, who has been critical of Biden and his campaign over the past week, praised the presidents words on Monday and said the campaign seemed to finally grasp the seriousness of the moment. The ultimate test, this donor said, would be whether congressional leaders urge Biden to reconsider this week and whether the battleground map showed any signs of expanding or if the presidents support eroded in campaign polling this week following the long July 4 holiday weekend. Its still a huge hole to climb out of, the Democratic donor said, speaking on condition of anonymity to avoid alienating the campaign. It was already a steep hill to climb to victory. This story has been updated with additional developments and reporting. CNNs Morgan Rimmer, Annie Grayer, Haley Talbot, Ted Barrett, Donald Judd and MJ Lee contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Democratic lawmakers are returning to Washington on Monday with President Bidens reelection troubles looming large, as the party remains split over whether the incumbent should carry on with his bid for the White House after last months disastrous debate. In the House, five Democrats have publicly called on Biden to withdraw from the 2024 race, and at least four senior lawmakers voiced support for that course of action during a private phone call over the weekend. In the Senate, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) is working to gather support among Democratic senators to ask Biden to step down. A handful of lawmakers in both chambers, meanwhile, have publicly backed Biden amid the postdebate fallout, and the president himself has been adamant that he intends to remain in the race, creating a harsh divide among Democrats over the future of their partys ticket, with just weeks to go until next months convention. Those dynamics are set to come to a head this week, when Democratic lawmakers return to the Capitol with questions swirling about Bidens viability as the partys nominee, and as leaders face pressure to respond to the growing discontent with the incumbent. Also this week, the Senate is set to vote on a bill to establish a national right to an abortion before the third trimester of pregnancy, codifying a protection from Roe v. Wade. House lawmakers, meanwhile, will vote on a measure to ban noncitizens from voting in federal elections, which is already illegal. Biden troubles loom over Congresss return Two divided Democratic caucuses are returning to Washington this week amid a tumultuous time for the party, with several lawmakers calling on Biden to withdraw from the 2024 election, others publicly backing the incumbent, and the president steadfast in his belief that he is the best candidate to take on former President Trump in November. Those opinions are set to collide on Capitol Hill on Monday, when both chambers return to session. It will be the first time senators are back in the building and face reporters since the debate, and the second time for House members. For House Democrats, conversations are expected to be underway Tuesday morning, when the caucus will meet as a group for the first time since the debate. The chorus of voices calling on the president to step aside grew ahead of that meeting on Sunday afternoon, with Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), Mark Takano (D-Calif.), Joseph Morelle (D-N.Y.) and Adam Smith (D-Wash.) all committee ranking members expressing support for a change at the top of the ticket during a private phone call. That quartet joins Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Mike Quigley (D-Ill.), Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Angie Craig (D-Minn.), who have publicly called on Biden to step aside. In the meantime, however, a handful of Democratic lawmakers including leaders and veteran members have publicly backed Bidens reelection bid, highlighting the disagreements within the caucus. Rep. Frederica Wilson (D-Fla.), for example, wrote in a statement Sunday that Any leader calling for President Biden to drop out needs to get their priorities straight and stop undermining this incredible actual leader who has delivered real results for our country. At the center of the contentious debate will be House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.), who listened to different opinions in his caucus last week and will be peppered with questions about his thoughts on the matter this week. Jeffries after the debate said he did not think Biden should step aside, but raised eyebrows when he told reporters hours later, Until he articulates a way forward in terms of his vision for America at this moment, Im gonna reserve comment about anything relative to where we are at this moment other than to say I stand behind the ticket. In the Senate, meanwhile, Warner has been working to drum up support among other Democrats in the chamber to ask Biden to end his reelection bid, a concerning sign for the president. Axios had reported that Warner was leading efforts to organize a meeting Monday night to discuss Bidens campaign, but a source familiar with the Virginia Democrats thinking told The Hill on Sunday night that the huddle would not happen. No Senate Democrats have publicly called on Biden to step aside, but cracks in that support have emerged. In addition to Warners behind-the-scenes efforts, Sens. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) have both publicly criticized the Biden campaigns response to the debate fallout. Biden, for his part, tried to quell the panic within the party through an interview with ABC Newss George Stephanopoulos on Friday night, though some Democrats said he did not achieve that goal. The interview didnt put concerns to rest, Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) told NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday. No single interview is going to do that. Senate to vote on bill to protect abortion access The Senate this week is set to vote on a bill that would create a national right to an abortion before the third trimester of pregnancy reestablishing a protection that was afforded under Roe v. Wade marking the latest attempt by Senate Democrats to put a spotlight on reproductive rights ahead of the election. A Senate Democratic leadership aide told The Hill that the upper chamber is poised to vote on the legislation later this week. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) teed up a vote on the legislation titled the Reproductive Freedom for Women Act last month, setting the stage for the third vote this summer on protecting womens reproductive rights. Schumer, in setting up the vote, took aim at Republicans for their stances on womens reproductive rights, a common form of messaging from Democrats in the Capitol and on the campaign train since the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade in 2022. Republicans cannot escape a simple reality: Their record on womens health care is dangerously out of step with the views of most Americans, Schumer said on the Senate floor. Action on the Reproductive Freedom for Women Act follows votes on two bills in the Senate last month that would create a federal right to birth control and establish a national right to in vitro fertilization, both of which were rejected by Republicans in the chamber. House to vote on elections bill The House this week is slated to vote on a bill that would ban noncitizens from voting in federal elections, which is already illegal. Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) introduced the measure titled the Safeguard American Voter Eligibility Act after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) met with Trump and spoke about the idea in April, when the top Republican was facing an ouster threat from a small group of GOP lawmakers. Johnson previously told reporters that, based on intuition, non-U.S. citizens were voting in American elections. Ever since 1996, however, federal law has prohibited noncitizens from voting in federal elections. In a floor lookout Sunday night, the office of House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) claimed that while noncitizens are barred from voting in federal elections, some continue to unlawfully register to vote, diluting the votes of American citizens and potentially allowing foreign interference in our elections. For that reason, they argued, the legislation at hand is needed. House Republicans are bringing legislation to require proof of citizenship when registering to vote, as well as allow states to remove noncitizens from voter rolls, to keep foreign interference out of our elections, maintain election integrity, and increase American citizens trust in our federal elections, the floor lookout reads. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Joe Bidens problems got even worse on Sunday as he completed a short campaign swing through battleground state Pennsylvania. Congress remains out of session until Monday, when many lawmakers will face their first real pressure to answer questions about the presidents future. But already the first hints of a landslide were visible as Democrats issued statements calling on the president to step aside or at least have a serious conversation about doing so. That list got longer on Sunday. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, the head of the House Democratic caucus, convened a call with his members as the weekend drew to a close. As news of the call leaked late on Sunday afternoon, it was revealed that Biden had officially lost the support of a House Democratic leader. Though behind closed doors, Rep Jerry Nadler becomes the highest-ranking member of the House Democratic caucus to call on Biden to step aside, and several others did on Sunday after the call wrapped including Mark Takano and Adam Smith. Don Beyer, a congressman from swing-state Virginia, also undercut the presidents message so seriously that a spokesman had to issue a statement clarifying that Beyer was continuing to support the presidents campaign so long as it lasted. Hes clearly very, very fragile. Fragile physically, although his handshake is very firm. Also really has trouble putting two sentences together, said Beyer on the call with Jeffries and other Democrats, according to Punchbowl News. He added: I also believe Kamala is in a great position to win in November, probably a much better position than Joe. Judiciary ranking member Jerry Nadler is pictured on Capitol Hill. Hes one of three committee chairs-in-waiting who called on Biden to drop out on Sunday. (EPA) Beyers spokesman clarified that the congressman supports President Biden and said so on this call, and argued that any reporting to the contrary is a misunderstanding of what he said. The congressman in his own remarks also made clear that he was a team player and would support whatever decision the president made. In the Senate, Biden has seen the same drip-drip of dissent from his party. While no senators are publicly calling for the president to step aside yet, Senator Mark Warner of Virginia is reportedly circulating a letter to his colleagues which would urge Biden to do so. Two senators, Bernie Sanders and Alex Padilla, indicated that they would not participate in such discussions. Mondays return to Capitol Hill is likely to drive up those numbers. The s*** is going to hit the fan on Monday, when Congress returns, one House Democrat said to Axios for a piece published on Sunday. People are scared about their own races. But theyre also worried about the country, and about democracy. But the damage is already done: Biden now faces a more fractured Democratic Party heading in to November than Trump ever faced at any point in this years Republican primaries, which he (like Biden) won handily. And reports indicate that the incumbent president is turning to his family to provide a bubble of affirmation as his critics become louder and more numerous. Axios separately reported on Sunday that Bidens own connection to felony convictions, his adult son Hunter, has seemingly become a liaison between his father and the outside world a barrier deciding who does or doesnt get to speak to the president. Joe Biden, beset by Democrats calling for him to drop out, walks with family members including Hunter Biden (AP) It was that reporting that make Padillas revelation that he had received a call from Biden on Saturday more notable. He claimed that the president had shared the campaigns internal polling with him, and denied that those internals showed a bleeding of support. He as he is as pumped and as eager as Ive seen to make sure hes taken this campaign seriously, said the senator. The Washington Post, meanwhile, reported on Sunday that a number of those Democrats publicly vouching for Biden, at the behest of the White House and campaign, privately say theres no path to the president remaining the nominee or beating Trump in the fall. Democrats are poised to host their nominating convention in August, meaning the presidents detractors have roughly a month to convince him to step aside before it likely becomes too late for another candidate to run. Biden has maintained publicly that he will not drop out. His campaign has turned its fire on the media, accusing reporters of misunderstanding the stakes of the election. Vice President Kamala Harris, the most likely choice to pick up the reins if Biden steps aside, made that point on Saturday at the Black culture gathering Essence Festival held in New Orleans during a nearly 30-minute interview in which she only directly mentioned Biden once. The press has not been covering it as much as they should, Harris claimed. [The Supreme Court] told this individual convicted of 34 felonies he will be immune from [criminal prosecution for] the activity he told us he is prepared to engage in if he gets back into the White House. Attention to all young people, technology enthusiasts, and those with startup ideas, organized by The Association of Small and Medium Business Entities and Clubs (KOBSKA) and supported by Kapital Bank, the iFest-Innovation and Technology festival will be held in Baku city. The main goal of the project is to establish connections between technology companies and youth, support the development of startups, facilitate their access to financial resources, and showcase ideas. Considering our country will host COP29 in November, this years iFest will focus on COP29 under the slogan Green technology - for a green world. Technology companies and startups at the minimal viable product (MVP) stage will participate with their booths at the festival. Local and international venture funds and angel investors will also be represented. The festival will take place at 23 July 2024. Various engaging activities are planned during the event, including startup presentations, investor meetings, a startup forum, exhibitions of technology companies and startups, and entertaining shows. Note that the iFest-Innovation and Technology festival is part of a series and is planned to be held annually. The festival invites all citizens interested in youth, technology enthusiasts, and startups to actively participate. For more information and registration: https://ifest.az/qeydiyyat/ Kapital Bank, the country's first bank, is part of PASHA Holding. Kapital Bank has the largest service network in Azerbaijan with 120 branches and 53 departments all over the country. For more detailed information about the banks products and services, please refer to https://kapitalbank.az website, 196 Call Centre or the banks various social network pages. To apply for a consumer loan visit https://kbl.az/prgtk, for a Birbank installment card visit https://kbl.az/prcrc. Biden's biggest electoral challenge right now isn't wooing Independents but firming up the Democratic base Biden's biggest electoral challenge right now isn't wooing Independents but firming up the Democratic base Independent voters will be a significant force in the 2024 presidential election. Both Biden and Trump are competing hard for this highly coveted slice of the electorate. But Biden's most pressing challenge right now is convincing Democratic voters to stick with him. President Joe Biden is working to reassure wary Democrats that he'll be able to reorient his campaign and win the November general election after last month's disastrous debate. Despite Democratic calls for Biden to reevaluate his candidacy, he received a dose of good news on Saturday in the form of polling conducted by Bloomberg News/Morning Consult. The swing-state survey showed that the gap between former President Donald Trump and Biden narrowed to just two points with Trump holding a 47% to 45% lead among registered voters. Most observers would assume that Biden could overtake Trump by wooing Independents on the fence. But right now, that's not the president's biggest issue regarding the electorate. The latest Journal poll showed Biden and Trump tied at 40% support among Independents, representing a four-point increase for the president and a four-point decline for the ex-president. According to the latest numbers, this demographic is competitive for both candidates. However, fueled by renewed concerns over Biden's age, the president's most pertinent challenge will involve getting Democrats back into the fold. Biden insists he can defeat Trump in the fall, but the latest Wall Street Journal poll shows how the Democratic incumbent's standing has slipped within his own party. Trump led Biden 48% to 42% among all registered voters questioned in the survey. But in that same poll, Trump won over 93% of Republicans, a seven-point jump from the February Journal poll. Meanwhile, Biden's standing among his party slipped, with 86% of Democrats indicating that they'd back him, a 7-point decline from February. And there's another challenge: The latest Journal survey showed Trump winning 95% of the voters who supported him in 2020. Biden's number stands at 84%, a sign of erosion among the coalition that sent him to the White House nearly four years ago. The Journal poll also had a sobering number for Biden. Among Democrats, 76% of respondents said he was too old to serve as the party's 2024 standard-bearer. So he'll have to convince swaths of Democratic voters who are skeptical of his effectiveness to also cast ballots for him this fall. For Biden, a pre-existing concern was his struggles in bridging the enthusiasm gap among young and minority voters. Many have registered frustration with the administration over the conflict in Gaza, unresolved issues regarding student loan debt relief, and concerns over the economy. A CBS News/YouGov poll conducted in June revealed that 66% of registered voters aged 18 to 29 said they would definitely vote in November, a rate lower than every other age group. But when these voters turn out, as they did in key races in 2022, it has been a game-changer for Democratic candidates. While Independents are poised to play a decisive role in the general election especially in the seven swing states Biden and Trump are competing in Biden will have to shore up his support among Democrats. And he'll need to do it quickly. Business Insider has reached out to the Biden campaign for comment. Read the original article on Business Insider The NATO summit is being held in Washington, DC, this week. It comes amid rising global conflict and turmoil. But questions about President Joe Biden's political future could overshadow the meeting. NATO leaders are gathering in Washington, DC, this week amid global conflict and rising tensions from Ukraine to the Taiwan Strait. But it's the political future of the alliance's most powerful member, the US, that's expected to be a core focus of discussions. Following his disastrous debate performance against Donald Trump on June 27, President Joe Biden is facing questions about his political future just months before the November election. NATO faces growing threats European governments have been discussing how to "Trump-proof" NATO. One official told the Associated Press the mood ahead of the summit was "gloomy." US military trucks at Poland's Arlamow Airfield. SOPA Images via Getty Images. The 32-member alliance was formed during the Cold War as a bulwark against Soviet aggression. Under President Vladimir Putin, it's faced the most potent threat from Russia in decades. The alliance is giving money and weapons to Ukraine to defend itself against the Russian invasion. Leaders believe that if Ukraine is defeated, Putin could move on to other parts of Europe in a matter of years. Though Biden has been a staunch defender of NATO and has overseen about $175 billion in aid bills for Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, Trump, who has increased his lead on Biden in many postdebate polls, has questioned both the US's commitment to NATO and to helping Ukraine defend its territory. During Trump's four years in office, he accused NATO members of freeloading off the US, threatened to withdraw from the organization, promoted baseless conspiracy theories about Ukraine, and repeatedly praised Putin. After decades of unbroken US backing for European security, Trump's presidency threw NATO into turmoil. And on the 2024 campaign trail, he's offered, at best, ambivalent commitments to NATO and Ukraine. Moves to 'Trump-proof' NATO Trump has prompted some European leaders, including France's President Emmanuel Macron, to call for greater strategic autonomy for Europe to reduce its dependence on US wealth and military power. Congress also moved to safeguard the US's NATO commitment, passing legislation requiring presidents to have congressional backing to withdraw from the alliance. Trump, if reelected, could bypass this by cutting off NATO funding and military aid. The Wall Street Journal reported that NATO members are expected to announce a range of new measures to "Trump-proof" the alliance this week, including taking the lead in coordinating the training and equipping of Ukrainian forces. And though many NATO members have boosted their spending in the wake of the Russian invasion about one-third of the member nations met their 2% defense-spending goal in 2023, The Washington Post reported a lack of US support would leave a huge hole. In the first few months of the year, there was a stark warning of what losing US support could mean for Ukraine. As Republicans blocked a US aid bill, Ukraine's military came perilously close to collapse as it ran out of ammunition on parts of the front line. Ukraine's European allies were unable to make up the shortfall. The prospect of a second Trump term means that NATO members are once again asking hard questions about the alliance's future. Correction: July 8, 2024 An earlier version of this article misstated the date of Biden and Trump's debate. It was on June 27, not June 28. It also misstated how many member states are in NATO. There are 32, not 23. It also misrepresented the number of NATO members that met the alliance's 2% GDP defense-spending goal. About one-third met this goal, not "nearly all of them." Read the original article on Business Insider A California bill authored by Asm. Esmeralda Soria, D-Merced, proposes to address Californias nursing shortage by allowing community colleges to develop baccalaureate of science in nursing (BSN) degrees. Fresno State and the California State University system oppose Assembly Bill 2104 as it is currently drafted. Heres why: Number of nurses The bill might not increase the number of new nurses entering the workforce. The availability of clinical placements at hospitals and other healthcare facilities restricts seats in nursing programs. Just like doctors need residency placements, nurses need clinical placements, and many hospitals may be unwilling to increase current numbers due to the cost. AB 2104 would not change the number of clinical placements available, so new community college programs would need seats for students. While the nursing shortage in California is a pressing issue, the most efficient and effective way to solve it is to work within the existing, established pathway programs. Opinion California taxpayers The bill would place an unnecessary new burden on California taxpayers. Developing new four-year programs at community colleges is costly and slow requiring a new curriculum accredited by the California Board of Registered Nursing, new faculty and new facilities such as those that already exist at CSU campuses. Alternatively, expanding capacity in the CSU via new clinical placements would require a fraction of the resources needed to establish this new infrastructure at community colleges, and it could be implemented in a fraction of the time. Costs for students Community college students may not pay less to earn a BSN when compared to their CSU counterparts. Education Code (Section 78042) authorizes community college baccalaureate programs to charge tuition and fees at the same level as CSUs. For example, community college baccalaureate degrees in other healthcare fields, such as dental hygiene, cost approximately $20,000 for the final two years of bachelor degree courses, which is comparable to or more than the cost of a CSU degree. In comparison, he average cost for a three-semester ADN-BSN program at Fresno State is $10,000. CSU is already meeting the need All 20 CSU BSN programs are nationally accredited and have licensure exam pass rates of more than 85%. Fresno States pass rate for the last 10 years is around 90%, boasting a 98% passing rate last year. By contrast, only 43% of community college associate degrees for nursing programs are nationally accredited. Fortunately, a cost-effective alternative to AB 2104 already exists. Many CSU campuses, including Fresno State, have partnered with community colleges to produce high-quality ADN-to-BSN degree programs with exceptional passing rates. This proven pipeline leverages existing resources, does not require additional clinical placements and can be scaled significantly to meet our nursing workforce needs at a fraction of the cost. While Fresno States BSN program is severely impacted due to limited medical placement spots, there is no waiting list for the ADN-BSN program. With a $6 million allocation, we could increase the number of ADN-BSN graduates from 180 a year to 1,500. No other option will offer this return on investment. Budget limitations preclude us from implementing this expansion on our own. Most of the ADN-BSN programs are hybrid or online, allowing diverse, place-bound students in rural communities to earn their BSN close to home. Fresno State already has robust partnerships with local community colleges and we stand ready to work with all of our regional partners to meet nursing workforce needs. If we are serious about addressing the nursing shortage, lets not create unnecessary, costly new nursing programs that will take years to bring online. While the CSU was not involved in the original drafting of this legislation, we would welcome the chance to collaborate closely with our higher education partners to collaboratively address Californias nursing shortage. Dr. Saul Jimenez-Sandoval is the president of California State University, Fresno. By Jennifer Rigby LONDON (Reuters) -The bird flu strain found in cows in the United States is not easily transmitted through the air among ferrets, a new study shows, although the scientist who led the work said it had shown some ability to spread this way. Ferrets are considered to be the best small mammal for studying influenza virus infection and transmission, and are often used to inform assessments of the public health risks of emerging viruses. In the experiment led by researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, ferrets infected with a sample of the H5N1 bird flu strain were placed near healthy animals, but not close enough for physical contact. None of the four healthy ferrets exposed in this way became ill and no virus was recovered from them during the study. However, one of the ferrets produced antibodies to the virus, the researchers later found, suggesting it had been infected. "It is good news that the virus does not have extensive transmissibility between ferrets through the air, but it is concerning that it has the ability to transmit (at all in this way)," said study author and flu virologist Yoshihiro Kawaoka. A virus that can spread easily through the air between humans would pose a greater pandemic threat than H5N1 currently does. That risk is assessed by public health agencies worldwide as low, as there is no evidence of any human-to-human transmission. Four human cases, all dairy workers, have been reported in the U.S. since avian flu was confirmed in dairy cows in March. All four people have recovered. The study, published on Monday in Nature, also showed the bird flu virus in cows can bind to human-type receptors under lab conditions. These receptors are how flu viruses typically enter and infect human cells in the real world. Bird flu prefers to bind to avian-type receptors only, which are scarce in humans. The lab results need further study to assess their real-world implications, scientists said, as in the past flu viruses that developed the ability to bind to both types have caused human pandemics. Scientists have so far suspected the virus spreads among animals and humans through contact with infected milk or aerosolized milk droplets, or from exposure to infected birds or poultry. The study also confirmed that the virus, isolated from the milk of an infected cow in New Mexico, made both mice and ferrets sick after exposure to the unpasteurized milk. It also spread through the body to muscles and mammary glands in infected mice, as it appears to do in cows. Angela Rasmussen, a virologist at the University of Saskatchewan in Canada, said it was a relief to see the virus had not yet acquired the capability to cause a human pandemic, but this did not mean it would never do so, particularly if the spread among cows goes unchecked. "It's always better to stop a pandemic before it starts than to respond to it once it has started. We should heed this warning and take action now," she said via email. The study was funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health in the U.S. (Reporting by Jennifer Rigby; Editing by Jan Harvey and Rod Nickel) Grammy-nominated country music duo The War and Treaty are speaking out about a racist incident they faced at the Coca-Cola Sips & Sounds Music Festival in Austin, Texas. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Michael Trotter Jr. said he and his wife Tanya were devastated after they found cotton plant in their dressing room at the festival before going on stage. Anger is what I felt. Disrespect is what I felt. Sadness is what I felt. Sadness not just because of what that plant represents to people that look like me but sadness for myself because I am a son of this country. I served this country honorably in the United States Army 16th Infantry, 2nd Brigade, 1st Armored Division. Im wounded for that service. Im very vocal about my wounds and my scars, and I felt betrayed, Trotter told The Hollywood Reporter. Its not fair. Its something that white artists dont have to worry about at all. It just happens to come through the bowels of this genre. So, I feel that its not enough for us to talk about it, we have to demand that we be about it. Despite the troubling sight, Trotter said he and Tanya decided to perform anyway. After the show, however, the couple immediately left the venue. When I demanded that we quickly leave this festival and get out of there, Tanya and I had a moment in our hotel room where we wanted to address our son, Legend, whos 12, and he ended up addressing us, Trotter said. He said that this is not the time to be quiet about it. He was very upset, and he understood exactly what it meant. Hes home schooled, and he knows what that means. In a statement to The Hollywood Reporter, a representative for the Sips & Sounds Music Festival said the organizers are disheartened to see that the couple were disturbed at the event. There was no purposeful harm intended, and we sincerely apologize, the rep told The Hollywood Reporter. Their concern was met with immediate action, including a heartfelt in-person apology, removal of the decor and a personal conversation with the artists by event organizers to assure them this was an honest mistake. Tanya and Trotter have been enjoying a highly successful journey in the past year. The couple came out with their major-label debut, Lovers Game, in 2023 and also made history that year when they became the first Black performers to be nominated for duo of the year at both the CMA and ACM Awards. They also collaborated with country music star Zach Bryan and released Hey Driver, which became a Top 15 track on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart. Additionally, Tanya and Trotter have earned two Grammy nominations in 2024. Following the racist incident Sips & Sounds Music Festival, Tanya said she is especially disturbed because she is the granddaughter of a sharecropper. Tanya told The Hollywood Reporter that her grandfather bought a plantation and picked cotton in New Bern, North Carolina, where her family still lives. So when you see these things, you look at it and youre like, Wow, even though my grandfather bought the plantation, theres still a lot of pain rooted for people that didnt get an opportunity to change it into economic development for their families,' Tanya told the media outlet. I didnt want to sit in there and educate because its not my position to educate anybody on what cotton is and what it represents in this country. It just shouldnt happen. Beyond it just being about racism, its broader now. Its now a safety issue because we have to feel safe coming to these festivals. In its first meeting, the Statewide Charter School Board voted Monday to delay a decision on how, and when, to follow an order from the Oklahoma Supreme Court to rescind a contract with St. Isidore of Seville Catholic Virtual School. The board cited a pair of legal documents in the case one filed Friday, the other Monday in making its decision not to decide. St. Isidore is seeking to become the nations first Catholic virtual charter school. The case is being eyed closely due to its religious overtones and potential for a precedent-setting ruling. Attorneys for St. Isidore asked the Oklahoma Supreme Court on Friday to issue a stay of its order that the school's contract must be rescinded, while acknowledging that the school would not be allowed to open for the 2024-25 academic year. On Monday, the state court gave Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, who sued to stop the state from contracting with the school, until July 22 to respond to St. Isidores motion. Rebecca Wilkinson, executive director of the State Charter School Board, holds the door as the board heads into executive session to discuss St. Isidore at the first meeting of the new board. Statewide Charter School Board chair says they want to let legal process play out Brian Shellem, chosen by his peers Monday to be chair of the Statewide Charter School Board, said the board intends to follow the order, but wants to let the legal process play out. We did receive advice from our counsel, Shellem said after an executive session that lasted about 90 minutes. We understand that the order of the Supreme Court, our board will always stay in compliance with those orders. One thing the Supreme Court did not say was the timeframe of that, when that needs to take place, in rescinding that contract. St. Isidore did seek a motion to a stay. Well see if the Supreme Court decides on (that). More: St. Isidore asks state Supreme Court to stay an order to cancel its contract Shellem did acknowledge the contract between the board and St. Isidore does technically remain in place on paper, although St. Isidore already has said it will not open for the 2024-25 school year, as it had originally planned to do. Shellem also said the board has not made a decision on whether it should appeal the state Supreme Court ruling. St. Isidore already has said it intends to ask for a review of the state courts ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court. By a 3-2 vote last October, the current boards predecessor, the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, approved the creation of St. Isidore and Drummond quickly sued, saying such an agreement was unconstitutional. The state court heard oral arguments in the case on April 2. The new Statewide Charter School Board meeting held its first meeting Monday at the Oklahoma History Center. The state Supreme Court issued its ruling June 25, ordering the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board to rescind its contract with St. Isidore. But three days later, at the final meeting of that board before its dissolution, it failed to take action on the court order. The old boards legal responsibilities have fallen to the new board, which began operating July 1. The new board chose Shellem, the lone holdover from the Statewide Virtual Charter School Board, as its chair. Jared Buswell, a self-described education activist who unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the Tulsa Public Schools board earlier this year, was chosen as the vice chair. The board picked up its ninth member on Friday when House Speaker Charles McCall nominated Ben Lepak of Edmond. Lepak is the executive director of the State Chamber Research Foundation. State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, who chose to serve on the board instead of designating a nominee, did not attend the meeting. Walters did, however, send a proxy to vote for him John Tautfest, who says on his LinkedIn page that hes the new director of school choice for the Oklahoma State Department of Education, which is headed by Walters. The superintendent announced the establishment of an Office of School Choice within his agency in March, but has yet to make public details of how the office works. Other board members who joined Walters in skipping the board's first meeting included Lepak and Angie Thomas. Thomas is one of three appointees to the board made by Gov. Kevin Stitt. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: New board takes no action on Oklahoma religious charter school contract Television actor Jay Johnston, who had roles in Bobs Burgers and Arrested Development, pleaded guilty Monday to interfering with police officers during the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol insurrection. Johnston, of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty to a felony charge of civil disorder while in court Monday, The Associated Press reported. He is slated to be sentenced Oct. 7 and could face a maximum sentence of five years in prison, though sentencing guidelines recommended eight months to 14 months. Johnstons attorney declined to comment to The Hill. The attorney told his client to not speak to reporters as they left the courtroom, the AP reported. Johnston was arrested last year after authorities used public video, closed circuit television footage and police body camera footage to identify him and trace his movements on Jan. 6, according to the FBI affidavit filed in June 2023. Court documents said Johnston allegedly confronted Capitol Police directly and helped other rioters by handing out stolen police shields that were used to create a shield wall against authorities. Johnston then participated in group assault on officers who were defending the lower west terrace tunnel before rejoining other rioters outside the tunnel in pushing repeatedly against the defending officers, the affidavit stated. Once the FBI posted photos online, Johnstons attorney contacted the bureau, which subsequently interviewed three current or former associates of Johnston. The bureau obtained a text message from one of associates, which confirmed Johnston was at the Capitol on Jan. 6. Court filings said Johnston also used his cellphone to record other rioters during the insurrection, some of whom broke through barricades and sent police officers retreating, per the AP. Johnston was a voice actor on Foxs Bobs Burgers but was reportedly fired after it was confirmed that he was at the Capitol on Jan. 6. His acting roles also include parts in Mr. Show with Bob and David, Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy and Bicentennial Man. More than 1,420 people in nearly all 50 states have been charged for their alleged involvement in the Jan. 6 riot. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Jay Johnston was wearing a green camouflage neck gaiter and a dark leather jacket at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, officials said. Image courtesy FBI July 8 (UPI) -- Jay Johnston, the voice of Jimmy Pesto on the animated comedy Bob's Burgers, pleaded guilty Monday for taking part in the Jan. 6 Capitol riot in 2021. In Washington, D.C., Johnston, 55, pleaded guilty to one felony count of civil disorder. Sentencing is set for Oct. 7 before U.S. District Judge Carl Nichols. He is facing a maximum of five years in prison. Johnston, who surrendered in June 2023 to the FBI field office in Los Angeles, was charged with interfering with law enforcement officers, remaining in a restricted building or grounds, disorderly and disruptive conduct on those grounds, and impeding passage through the Capitol grounds. Johnston was indicted by a federal grand jury alongside four other Jan. 6 defendants. Jay Johnston is No. 247 on the FBIs Capitol Violence website, which includes photos of some of its most wanted suspects in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. Photo courtesy FBI/X Investigators allege that Johnston was "near the front of the mob" on the west side of the Capitol building. When police began to retreat from the area, he was among those who followed them into a tunnel leading to the building. After entering the tunnel at about 3:05 p.m., Johnston took a Capitol police riot shield. He joined other rioters attempting to push back a group of officers before leaving the tunnel and handing a shield to another person at about 3:13 p.m. Court documents show still images of Johnston using a cellphone to take photos or video of clashes with police. He is also shown entering the tunnel, holding the shield and making a "shield wall" with others. Johnston acknowledged his involvement in the Capitol attack, texting an associate that it "actually wasn't" an attack. That associate was asked by FBI investigators to confirm photos showing Johnston at the Capitol on Jan. 6. "The news has presented it as an attack. It actually wasn't," Johnson said in a text message. "Thought it kind of turned into that. It was a mess." Johnston is No. 247 on the FBI's Capitol Violence website, which includes photos of some of its most wanted suspects in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack. The FBI has made more than 1,400 arrests, with more than 1,000 convictions. Johnston's voice on Fox's animate series Bob's Burgers was later revived with a different voice actor, the Daily Beast reported in 2021. Johnston's acting credits include Anchorman, Mr. Show, Arrested Development and The Sarah Silverman Program. On Silverman's program, he portrayed police officers. ALMATY, Kazakhstan, July 8. Kazakhstan possesses a number of advantages that can contribute to transforming it into a transportation regional hub, Almas Abaideldinov, General Director of Eastcomtrans LLP, said at the sidelines of the Annual meeting & Business Forum of the Eurasian Development Bank (EDB) in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Trend reports. "Kazakhstan has several advantages that can help it become a regional transportation hub. The first is its geographical location. Kazakhstan is situated between Europe and Asia, making it a crucial transit corridor for trade between these regions. The second advantage is infrastructure development," Abaideldinov said. He noted that in recent years, Kazakhstan has been actively investing in transport infrastructure, including railroads, highways, airports, and seaports. "For instance, the project to build a bypass railway line around the Almaty station will redirect cargo traffic to the new Zhetygen-Kazybek railroad. Additionally, the construction of a new railway line from Bakhty to Ayagoz and the opening of the third border crossing with China at Bakhty-Chuguchak, along with the modernization of Caspian Sea ports, are all aimed at enhancing transport corridors," he said. Abaideldinov emphasized that the government is also providing substantial support. "The government of Kazakhstan develops and implements strategies and programs to enhance the country's transport and logistics potential. Notably, the Nurly Zhol program and other initiatives aim to develop the transport network. Additionally, Kazakhstan is a member of various international agreements and organizations, such as the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and China's One Belt, One Road initiative, which create additional opportunities for international trade and transit," he said. The official cited competition and other factors as challenges facing the country's transportation sector. "Other countries in the region are also actively developing their transportation corridors and infrastructure, which creates competition. Significant investments are needed to implement large infrastructure projects. Kazakhstan must continue to attract external investment and effectively utilize domestic resources. Additionally, long-term projects require stability and predictability in the political and economic spheres," he said. He noted that the timeline for achieving the goal will depend on many factors, including those mentioned above. "If current strategies and projects are successfully implemented, significant improvements can be expected within the next 510 years. The full establishment of Kazakhstan as a regional transportation hub may take longer, perhaps 15-20 years, given the scale and complexity of the tasks," he added. The Eurasian Development Bank 2024 Annual Meeting and Business Forum features a series of sessions on the topics of Islamic finance, transport, ecology, energy, and digital technologies. The Eurasian Development Bank is a multilateral development bank carrying out investment activities in the Eurasian region. The EDB's authorized capital is $7 billion. The main share in the EDB portfolio is occupied by projects with an integration effect in the areas of transport infrastructure, digital systems, green energy, agriculture, industry and mechanical engineering. Body of college student who vanished from gathering in New Hampshire found in river The body of a missing college student who vanished from a social gathering in New Hampshire over the weekend was found in a river, law enforcement and education officials said. Officers and firefighters responding to a report of a missing Dartmouth College student in the area of 8 Boathouse Road near the docks of the Connecticut River in Hanover, New Hampshire, on Sunday recovered the body of 20-year-old Won Jang about 65 feet offshore after an hourslong search, according to Hanover Police Chief Charles B. Dennis. Scott C. Brown, the dean of Dartmouth College, said Jang was reported missing Sunday afternoon after he attended a gathering near the river on Saturday night. I write to share the sad and difficult news that Won Jang 26 has died. Won had been reported missing late this afternoon following a social gathering last night near the Connecticut River, Brown wrote in a statement. His body was found this evening in the river after a search involving state and local emergency responders. There is no indication that Wons death involved foul play. Jang was a biomedical engineering major from Middletown, Delaware, and a fraternity brother at Beta Alpha Omega, according to Brown. Won wholeheartedly embraced opportunities at Dartmouth to pursue his academic and personal passions. He served as a project manager at the DALI Lab, was a research assistant at Thayer, and participated in the TuckLAB entrepreneurship program, Brown added. He supported his peers and found fast friendships as an international student mentor for the Office of Pluralism and Leadership and as a fraternity brother at Beta Alpha Omega. He enthusiastically took part in the Dartmouth community, from starting his own band to playing club squash and joining the snowboarding team. Counselors will be made available for grieving students from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Monday. The Medical Examiners Office is working to determine the cause of Jangs death but police noted that a preliminary investigation indicated that foul play is not suspected. New Hampshire Fish and Game assisted local authorities in the search for Jang. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Body was found at a motel and a South Carolina woman was taken to jail, sheriff says A South Carolina man was recently killed and a woman was taken into custody, according to the Clarendon County Sheriffs Office. The shooting was the result of a domestic violence related incident, the sheriffs office said in a news release. On July 2, deputies responded to a call about a shooting victim at the Quality Inn on Paxville Highway, according to the release. Thats near Exit 119 on Interstate 95. At the motel, deputies discovered a man lying on the upper landing of the second-floor stairwell, the sheriffs office said. The Clarendon County Coroners Office said the man, identified 28-year-old Sumter resident Abram Bernardo Walker Jr., died at the scene, according to the release. Carrie Anastasia Woodberry, a 27-year-old Sumter resident, was in possession of a handgun, the sheriffs office said. She was taken into custody and was held at the Clarendon County Detention Center where she was awaiting charges, according to the sheriffs office. Information about what led to the shooting was not available, but the sheriffs office said this appears to be a domestic violence related incident between Woodberry and Walker. The sheriffs office did not immediately respond to messages seeking more information. The shooting continues to be investigated by the sheriffs office, which asked anyone with information to call 803-435-4415. FILE - Workers collect debris on March 12, 2019 at the scene where an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed shortly after takeoff, killing all 157 on board, near Bishoftu, or Debre Zeit, south of Addis Ababa, in Ethiopia. On Sunday, July 7, 2024, the Justice Department said Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two deadly crashes of 737 Max jetliners. (AP Photo/Mulugeta Ayene, File) Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge stemming from two crashes of 737 Max jetliners that killed 346 people, the Justice Department said late Sunday, after the government determined the company violated an agreement that had protected it from prosecution for more than three years. Federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice last week of entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. Prosecutors accused the American aerospace giant of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and pilot-training requirements for it. The plea deal, which still must receive the approval of a federal judge to take effect, calls for Boeing to pay an additional $243.6 million fine. That was the same amount it paid under the 2021 settlement that the Justice Department said the company breached. An independent monitor would be named to oversee Boeing's safety and quality procedures for three years. The deal also requires Boeing to invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs. The plea deal covers only wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia, which killed all 346 passengers and crew members aboard two new Max jets. It does not give Boeing immunity for other incidents, including a panel that blew off a Max jetliner during an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon in January, a Justice Department official said. The deal also does not cover any current or former Boeing officials, only the corporation. In a statement, Boeing confirmed it had reached the deal with the Justice Department but had no further comment. In a filing Sunday night, the Justice Department said it expected to submit the written plea agreement with a U.S. District Court in Texas by July 19. Lawyers for some of the relatives of those who died in the two crashes have said they will ask the judge to reject the agreement. This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died. Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeings crime are being hidden, said Paul Cassell, a lawyer for some of the families. Federal prosecutors alleged Boeing committed conspiracy to defraud the government by misleading regulators about a flight-control system that was implicated in the crashes, which took place than less five months apart. As part of the January 2021 settlement, the Justice Department said it would not prosecute Boeing on the charge if the company complied with certain conditions for three years. Prosecutors last month alleged Boeing had breached the terms of that agreement. U.S. District Judge Reed O'Connor, who has overseen the case from the beginning, has criticized what he called Boeings egregious criminal conduct. O'Connor could accept the plea and the sentence that prosecutors offered with it or he could reject the agreement, likely leading to new negotiations between the Justice Department and Boeing. The case goes back to the crashes in Indonesia and in Ethiopia. The Lion Air pilots in the first crash did not know about flight-control software that could push the nose of the plane down without their input. The pilots for Ethiopian Airlines knew about it but were unable to control the plane when the software activated based on information from a faulty sensor. The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in older 737s, and about how much training pilots would need to fly the plane safely. The department agreed not to prosecute Boeing at the time, however, if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, including the $243.6 million fine, and took steps to comply with anti-fraud laws for three years. Boeing, which blamed two low-level employees for misleading the regulators, tried to put the crashes behind it. After grounding Max jets for 20 months, regulators let them fly again after the company reduced the power of the flight software. Max jets logged thousands of safe flights and orders from airlines picked up, increasing to about 750 in 2021, about 700 more in 2022 and nearly 1,000 in 2023. That changed in January, when a panel covering an unused emergency exit blew off a Max during the Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon. Pilots landed the 737 Max safely and no one was seriously injured, but the incident led to closer scrutiny of the company. The Justice Department opened a new investigation, the FBI told passengers on the Alaska plane that they might be victims of a crime and the FAA said it was stepping up oversight of Boeing. A criminal conviction could jeopardize Boeings status as a federal contractor, according to some legal experts. The plea announced Sunday does not address that question, leaving it to each government agency whether to bar Boeing. The Air Force cited compelling national interest in letting Boeing continue competing for contracts after the company paid a $615 million fine in 2006 to settle criminal and civil charges, including that it used information stolen from a rival to win a space-launch contract. The company based in Arlington, Virginia, has 170,000 employees and dozens of airline customers spanning the globe. The best customers for the 737 Max include Southwest, United, American, Alaska, Ryanair and flydubai. But 37% of its revenue last year came from U.S. government contracts. Most of it was defense work, including military sales that Washington arranged for other countries. Boeing also makes a capsule for NASA. Two astronauts will remain at the International Space Station longer than expected while Boeing and NASA engineers troubleshoot problems with the propulsion system used to maneuver the capsule. Even some Boeing critics have worried about crippling a key defense contractor. We want Boeing to succeed, Richard Blumenthal, a Connecticut Democrat, said during a Senate hearing last month on what he termed the companys broken safety culture. Boeing needs to succeed for the sake of the jobs it provides, for the sake of local economies it supports, for the sake of the American traveling public, for the sake of our military. Relatives of the Max crash victims have pushed for a criminal trial that might illuminate what people inside Boeing knew about deceiving the FAA. They also want the Justice Department to prosecute top Boeing officials, not just the company. Boeing has paid fines many a time, and it doesnt seem to make any change, said Ike Riffel of Redding, California, whose sons Melvin and Bennett died in the Ethiopian Airlines crash. When people start going to prison, thats when you are going to see a change. At a recent Senate hearing, Boeing CEO David Calhoun defended the companys safety record after turning and apologizing to Max crash victims relatives seated in the rows behind him for the grief that we have caused. Hours before the hearing, the Senate investigations subcommittee released a 204-page report with new allegations from a whistleblower who said he worried that defective parts could be going into 737s. The whistleblower was the latest in a string of current and former Boeing employees who have raised safety concerns about the company and claimed they faced retaliation as a result. ___ Koenig reported from Dallas. Richer reported from Boston. Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a fraud-conspiracy charge over the 737 Max saga, but it isn't out of the woods just yet Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a fraud-conspiracy charge over the 737 Max saga, but it isn't out of the woods just yet Boeing agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the US. Its government contracts, worth 37% of last year's revenue, could be in jeopardy. Boeing faces other investigations and lawsuits from Alaska Airlines passengers. Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the US, the Justice Department said in a Sunday court filing. The department said Boeing violated a 2021 deferred-prosecution agreement, reached after 346 people died in two 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019. Boeing had to pay $2.5 billion mostly to the victims' families and agreed to strengthen its compliance program. The DPA was due to expire two days after January's Alaska Airlines blowout. In May, the Justice Department said Boeing had failed to "design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program." The filing says that under the plea deal, Boeing will pay an additional fine of $243.6 million, the same criminal penalty it paid in 2021. It has also been ordered to invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs and install an independent monitor. The filing says the court will determine the restitution to be paid to the families of the victims of the 2018 and 2019 crashes. But it's not the end of the fallout just yet. Paul Cassell, an attorney for some of those families, slammed the plea deal and called on the judge to reject it. "This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died," he said in a statement. "A judge can reject a plea deal that is not in the public interest, and this deceptive and generous deal is clearly not in the public interest." Government contracts By pleading guilty, Boeing will agree it committed a felony jeopardizing its government contracts. The company's latest annual report said 37% of its revenue came from government contracts. They are primarily in the defense and space sectors, which have been a saving grace for Boeing as its commercial-airplanes division has suffered from January's blowout. Without them, Boeing's stock price might have fallen even further than the 26% it has dropped since the start of the year. But each government agency has been left to decide whether to continue business with Boeing. As such a valued firm, it seems unlikely to suffer much here. In a Senate hearing last month about Boeing's safety culture, Sen. Richard Blumenthal argued that Boeing "needs to succeed for the sake of the jobs it provides, for the sake of local economies it supports, for the sake of the American traveling public, for the sake of our military." Then there are other investigations Boeing is facing. In March, The Wall Street Journal reported that the Justice Department had opened an investigation into Boeing following the Alaska Airlines blowout, in tandem with the review of the DPA. Later that month, the FBI told passengers of Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 that it had identified them "as a possible victim of a crime." Numerous passengers are also suing Boeing in relation to the blowout. In short, Boeing's headache looks set to continue. Regaining the trust of regulators and customers is likely to prove difficult for its next CEO. Read the original article on Business Insider The Justice Department and Boeing came to an agreement just before midnight on Sunday in which the company will plead guilty to conspiracy to defraud the government stemming from two deadly plane crashes in 2018 and 2019 the latest escalation of the quality-control crisis plaguing one of the nations biggest manufacturers. The charge accuses the company of violating a deferred-prosecution agreement in 2021 in which Boeing had pledged to improve its manufacturing processes. Boeing will admit it conspired to defraud the federal government for how it handled information related to the faulty flight-control software implicated in the MAX crashes. It also has agreed to an independent third-party monitor, pay an additional $487 million, over and above what the company paid as part of a prior settlement, and invest $455 million in additional compliance programs. Additionally, Boeings board of directors must meet with the families of the crash victims. Boeing confirmed that it had reached a deal in principle, "subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms," but said little else about the deal's substance. The plea came after weeks of deliberations, kicked off by a spate of new quality control problems in Boeings workhorse 737 MAX passenger jet. The brand of felon will be yet another challenge for Boeing, as the major defense and aerospace contractor faces mounting investigations amid criticisms that it has put short-term profits ahead of public safety. In May, the agency told a federal court that it believed Boeing had violated the 2021 agreement. Boeing has denied any wrongdoing, stating it has honored that agreement. Faulty flight control software on the MAX has been blamed in the 2018 and 2019 crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia, which killed a total of 346 people. In court documents related to those cases, Boeing admitted that two of its employees had deceived the Federal Aviation Administration about the flight control software implicated in those crashes. A separate manufacturing flaw in one MAX jet revealed when a door plug flew off an Alaska Airlines flight over Oregon in January didnt seriously injure anyone but drew heightened attention to Boeings problems and raised new questions about the FAAs oversight of the company. The worlds second largest aircraft manufacturer Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to two 737 Max crashes that left more than 300 people dead between 2018 and 2019 in Indonesia and Ethiopia. The proposed plea deal still needs a judges approval. Boeing would agree to pay a $243.6 million criminal fine as part of the deal with the Department of Justice. The company would also invest an additional $455 million into its compliance and safety programs and agree to an independent, government appointed compliance monitor to oversee its operations for at least three years. Though families of the crash victims criticized the deal as an ineffective minor penalty, the federal government suggested Boeings employees could still be on the hook for future charges. By pleading guilty to felony criminal fraud charges brought by the DOJ earlier this year, Boeing will avoid a criminal trial that could have resulted in far greater penalties. But additional criminal charges involving Boeing executives or employees could still be on the table. The most recent plea deal, revealed in court documents on Sunday, are tied specifically to misconduct surrounding the 737 Max crashes. That means Boeing could still face penalties for alleged misconduct that critics and whistleblowers say may have contributed to a spate of high profile safety incidents in recents months. The DOJ, in its filing, said it would provide no immunity to any individual employees at the company as part of the agreement. Boeing could pay up to $487 million in total fines as part of the new plea deal. Thats a far cry from the reported $24.8 billion families of crash victims had hoped to force the company to pay in restitution. Those families of victims are expected to publicly oppose the agreement. Paul Cassell, a lawyer representing some families suing Boeing, told CNN the agreement amounts to a sweetheart deal for Boeing. Erin Applebaum, another attorney representing crash victims, described the deal as nothing more than a slap on the wrist that would do nothing to effectuate meaningful change within the company, during a recent interview with Bloomberg. A Boeing spokesperson confirmed with Popular Science that the company had reached an agreement in principle with the DOJ. The DOJ did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Agreement marks Boeings second deal with DOJ in three years The criminal charges underpinning the most recent agreement date back to a pair of 737 Max plane crashes in 2018 and 2019 that claimed the lives of 346 passengers and crew. Public backlash following the crashes led Boeing to ground the planes for 20 months. Investigators digging into the events during that time revealed the crashes were tied to a previously undisclosed software, called MCAS, which was intended to adjust for a design flaw in the planes. Data pulled from one of the impacted 737 Max planes flight data recorder system, commonly referred to as a black box, reportedly showed evidence of pilots physically fighting against the MCAS system in a desperate effort to keep the planes from nose-diving. Frantic audio recordings captured from within the cockpit reportedly suggest the pilots were unaware of how to address the malfunctioning software. Boeing eventually admitted its employees had withheld information about the design flaw from the Federal Aviation Administration, which led the DOJ in 2021 to charge the company with one count of conspiracy to defraud regulators. At the time, Boeing struck a deal with federal prosecutors and agreed to pay $2.5 billion to resolve those issues. A more recent DOJ probe into the company following a string of safety mishaps, however, alleged Boeing may have violated parts of the 2021 agreement which would have opened them up for additional prosecution. This weeks plea agreement would settle that dispute. But Boeing isnt clear of potential legal hurdles just yet. The aircraft maker came under renewed scrutiny earlier this year after a door plug flew off of an Alaskan Airlines aircraft mid-flight. Since then, passengers on board Boeing flights have endured injury-enduring nosedives, shocking wheel detachments, and planes rolling off runways. An investigation into the door plug issue revealed Boeing suppliers had used Dawn dish soap and hotel keycards to secure the door seal, a practice the company has since defended as an innovative approach. Making matters worse, a new whistleblower complaint filed against the company earlier this year claims Boeings key supplier let plane bodies leave factory floors with serious defects. In total, Boeing had reportedly been the subject of 32 whistleblower claims in just three years. The US Department of Justice and Boeing have reached an agreement that the latter will plead guilty to a conspiracy to defraud the US government charge stemming from two fatal crashes that killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019, the New York Times reports. In May, the DOJ announced that Boeing violated its 2021 deal to pay penalties and compensation, as well as implement major safety changes just four months prior, a cabin panel blew off an Alaska Airlines flight while it was at 16,000 feet in the air. The DOJ offered the company a plea deal on June 30, giving it one week to accept or face a trial. Boeing had struck a deal in 2021 over these crashes with the agency, promising to implement major safety changes and engage in no wrongdoing for three years. In May, the DOJ announced the company had violated the agreement, and on June 30 it offered Boeing a choice: accept a plea deal within one week or go to trial. If the new agreement is approved by the court, Boeing will have to pay a fine of $487.2 million however, part of it could be covered by payments made in the original agreement. Boeing will also be required to invest at least $455 million in safety and compliance over the next three years and have a DOJ-appointed third-party monitor its progress. The deal was criticized as insufficient for the crash victims. "This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died," Paul Cassell, a lawyer representing some of the families, said. "Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DoJ, the deadly consequences of Boeing's crime are being hidden." In 2021, Boeing agreed to pay its customers $1.77 billion in compensation after authorities grounded the 737 Max plane for a year and a half. The deal also included the company paying $243.6 million in fines and $500 million into a crash-victim fund for the heirs, relatives and legal beneficiaries of the passengers killed in the flights near Indonesia and Ethiopia. The Federal Aviation Administration's Aircraft Evaluation Group (FAA AEG) determined that the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) activated while both planes were in flight and was the likely point of failure. Two Boeing 737 Max flight technical pilots deceived the FAA AEG two years before the first crash, concealing information about an important change to the MCAS. If approved, the new deal will be Boeing's first new felony in decades. (The Hill) Boeing has agreed to plead guilty in the criminal case over two deadly crashes involving its 737 Max jetliners, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a Sunday night court filing. Under the deal, which still requires a federal judges approval, Boeing agreed to pay a $487.2 million fine and invest at least $455 million in its safety and compliance programs, according to the filing in the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Texas. The agreement was filed hours before the deadline for Boeing to respond to the offer and avert a criminal trial. Boeing confirmed to The Hill that it reached a deal but had no further comment. It comes nearly two months after the DOJ found Boeing violated a 2021 settlement related to two crashes in 2018 and 2019 involving Boeings 737 Max jetliners. The crashes killed 346 people in total. Prosecutors in 2021 alleged Boeing committed conspiracy to defraud the government by misleading regulators about a flight-control system involved in the crashes. Under the 2021 settlement, the DOJ agreed not to prosecute Boeing over the crash for three years, but found in May the company breached the terms of the agreement. NTSB sanctions Boeing for releasing details of 737 Max investigation In addition to the fines and investment requirements, Boeing will be independently monitored for its safety and quality procedures over the next three years. The plea deal only covers wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes and does not give the plane manufacturer immunity for other incidents or cover current or former Boeing officials, according to the filing. The Hill reached out to the DOJ and some attorneys representing the families of the crash victims for comment. Paul Cassell, a lawyer for 15 families of victims, told The Hill last month that the families would strenuously object to the plea deal. The deal will not acknowledge, in any way, that Boeings crime killed 346 people. It also appears to rest on the idea that Boeing did not harm any victim, Cassell wrote in a statement. The memory of 346 innocents killed by Boeing demands more justice than this, he added. Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun was grilled last month by senators over the settlement and other safety concerns during a Homeland Security subcommittee hearing, during which he apologized to the families of the crash victims. I want to personally apologize, on behalf of everyone at Boeing. We are deeply sorry for your losses. Nothing is more important than the safety of the people who step on board our airplanes. Every day, we seek to honor the memory of those lost through a steadfast commitment to safety and quality, Calhoun said. Boeing acquiring supplier Spirit AeroSystems for $4.7B The following day, a group of families released a letter to the DOJ, calling on federal prosecutors to bring aggressive criminal prosecution against the plane-maker. Boeing came under national scrutiny last January when a door blew out of a 737 Max 9 aircraft while in the air. The blowout caused a hole in the side of the aircraft, and pilots were forced to make an emergency landing back at Portland International Airport in Oregon. The Federal Aviation Administration temporarily grounded all 737 Max 9 aircraft and launched a probe into the manufacturer. It found issues with safety checks and manufacturing in Boeings build process, prompting increased pressure from regulators and Congress to address the problems. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Boeing said it would plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the the United States Getty Boeing jet Boeing will plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States as part of an agreement with the Justice Department. The charge is related to two fatal 737 MAX 8 jet crashes that killed a combined 346 people in 2018 and 2019. According to a court filing outlining the plea agreement reviewed by PEOPLE, Boeing will be subjected to a $487.2 million fine and will be required to invest at least $455 million in its own compliance and safety programs. A federal judge will need to approve the plea agreement before it becomes official. Boeing will also be overseen by an independent monitor for the next three years, per the terms of the deal. The charge against Boeing stems from the 2018 crash of a Lion Air flight and the 2019 crash of an Ethiopian Airlines flight, both of which were operating Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets. Related: Lion Air Plane's Black Box Found After Crash as Relatives Identify Belongings of 189 Killed In the court filing, prosecutors said the guilty plea would hold Boeing accountable for its material misstatements to the Federal Aviation Administration. The Associated Press reported that prosecutors had alleged that Boeing misled federal regulators about the 737 MAXs flight control-system, which was linked to both crashes. Prosecutors acknowledged in the filing that families of the 346 victims were opposed to the plea agreement and have requested to brief the court about their opposition. This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died, Paul Cassell, a lawyer for several families said, according to the AP. Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeings crime are being hidden. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. The plea deal comes months after Boeing was the subject of negative press because of a January incident, during which an Alaska Airlines flight had to make an emergency landing after part of the cabin blew out in mid-air. Related: Alaska Airlines Flight Makes Emergency Landing in Portland After Part of Plane Blows out Mid-Air The plane in question in the January incident was a Boeing 737 MAX 9. A statement from the Justice Department, reported by CNN, says the plea agreement only applies to the two crashes and does not give the company immunity for the Alaska Airlines incident. DOJ is resolving only with the company and providing no immunity to any individual employees, including corporate executives, for any conduct, the department said in the reported statement. DOJ is resolving with Boeing only for misconduct that predated the 737 Max crashes and not providing immunity for any other corporate conduct, including the Alaska Airlines 1282 incident. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. 11th Annual "Downstream Central Asia and Caspian" Conference Coming to Astana on September 18-19, 202. This event is supported by the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan and KazMunayGas. The conference, with an 11-year history, is renowned as a key event for regional project owners to meet leading international technological and engineering companies from Europe, the USA, East Asia, Turkiye, and the Middle East. It is expected that at least 40% of participants will represent project owners in the oil refining and petrochemical industries of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan, highlighting the event's consistent appeal year after year. The agenda, recently published on the event's website, includes critical analyses of global trends such as the increasing demand for clean energy and digitalisation, and their impact on the regional petrochemical sector. Special attention will be given to investment potential and attracting international partners. New major projects in Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Turkmenistan will be presented, detailing investment plans and technological solutions. Prior to the main conference, a business summit "Hydrogen in Central Asia & Caspian" will take place, focusing on discussing pertinent issues of hydrogen production in the region. Among our regular participants are KazMunayGas, KPI, KazAzot, KMG PetroChem, Silleno, Uzbekneftegaz, Uzbekistan GTL, Shurtan GCC, PetroKazakhstan, Samruk-Kazyna Ondeu, KazEnergy, SOCAR, Azerikimya, Turkmengaz, Turkmenkhimiya, and many others. For more detailed information about the program, audience, and registration, please visit the official conference website: https://globuc.com/en/downstream-centralasia/. The conference is organised by Globuc, specialising in high-level business events in the fields of energy, petrochemicals, and digital transformation. Workers recover debris at the scene of an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing crash in March 2019 near the capital of Addis Ababa - Mulugeta Ayene Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge to resolve an investigation linked to two 737 MAX fatal crashes, a US Justice Department official said. The plea, which must be approved by a federal judge, would brand the plane manufacturer a convicted felon and require it to pay a criminal fine of $243.6 million. The charge relates to two 737 MAX crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia over a five-month period in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people and prompted the families of the victims to demand that Boeing face prosecution. A guilty plea potentially threatens the companys ability to secure lucrative government contracts with the likes of the US Defence Department and NASA, although it could seek waivers. Boeing became exposed to criminal prosecution after the Justice Department found the company violated a 2021 settlement involving the fatal crashes in May. Still, the plea spares Boeing a contentious trial that could have exposed many of the companys decisions leading up to the fatal MAX plane crashes to even greater public scrutiny. It would also make it easier for the company, which will have a new CEO later this year, to try to move forward as it seeks approval for its planned acquisition of Spirit AeroSystems. Boeing declined to comment. Boeing has also agreed to invest at least $455 million over the next three years to strengthen its safety and compliance programs, the official said. The Justice Department (DOJ) on June 30 offered a plea agreement to Boeing and gave the company until the end of the week to take the deal or face a trial on a charge of conspiring to defraud the Federal Aviation Administration in connection with a key software feature tied to the fatal crashes. After being briefed last week on the DOJs offer, a lawyer for some of the families criticised it as a sweetheart deal. They have vowed to oppose the deal in court. The Justice Departments push to charge Boeing has deepened an ongoing crisis engulfing Boeing since a separate January in-flight blowout exposed continuing safety and quality issues at the planemaker. A panel blew off a new Boeing 737 MAX 9 jet during a Jan. 5 Alaska Airlines flight, just two days before the 2021 deferred prosecution agreement that had shielded the company from prosecution over the previous fatal crashes expired. The agreement only covers Boeings conduct before the fatal crashes and does not shield the plane-maker from any other potential investigations or charges related to the January incident or other conduct. Boeing is pleading guilty to making knowingly false representations to the Federal Aviation Administration about having expanded a key software feature used on the MAX to operate at low speeds. The new software saved Boeing money by requiring less intensive training for pilots. The Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) is a software feature designed to automatically push the airplanes nose down in certain conditions. It was tied to the two crashes that led to the FAAs grounding the plane for 20 months, an action that cost Boeing $20 billion, and the government lifted in November 2020. As part of the deal, Boeings board of directors will meet with relatives of those killed in the MAX crashes, the official said. The agreement does not shield any executives, the DOJ official said, though charges against individuals are seen as unlikely due to the statute of limitations. 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 Boeing logo. US aircraft manufacturer Boeing has pleaded guilty to defrauding the US government to avoid a court case concerning two fatal crashes involving the 737 Max aircraft, according to a document from the US Department of Justice for a court in Texas. Patrick Pleul/dpa US aircraft manufacturer Boeing has pleaded guilty to defrauding the US government to avoid a court case concerning two fatal crashes involving the 737 Max aircraft, according to a document from the US Department of Justice for a court in Texas. The deal, which was agreed late Sunday evening, means the company must pay a multi-million-dollar fine and will also be monitored by a government watchdog. The accidents in October 2018 and March 2019 claimed the lives of 346 people. At the time, Boeing avoided prosecution by promising to implement a compliance and ethics programme. The company also paid a fine of $243.6 million. The Department of Justice decided in May that Boeing was in breach of the conditions of the deal at the time. New investigation after dramatic incident in January when a fuselage fragment of a virtually new Boeing aircraft broke off during a climb. Nobody was injured in the incident but it was only due to luck that the seats next to the hole in the fuselage were not occupied at the time. The 2018 and 2019 crashes were caused by aircraft software that was supposed to support pilots but interfered with the controls more than expected. It steered the aircraft towards the ground but the pilots of the two aircraft were ultimately unable to turn them back to level flight. Aircraft of this type were not allowed to fly for almost two years until the error in the software was rectified. Boeing was subsequently accused of fraud in criminal proceedings because employees of the aircraft manufacturer had declared special training for the software to be unnecessary when the type was certified by US authorities. Court documents published late on Sunday show Boeing must invest at least $455 million in compliance and safety programmes following the guilty plea. It must also make a further penalty payment of $243.6 million. The agreement only becomes valid once it has been approved by the court in Texas, where the case is being heard. Survivors demand harsher penalties. Crash victims' families sharply criticized the prospect of a new agreement with Boeing and demanded a billion-dollar fine. They are due to meet the Boeing board of directors. Boeing chief executive Dave Calhoun apologized to the relatives a few weeks ago and underlined that the company bore responsibility for the crashes. Boeing's big mea culpa just dropped and it doesn't look pretty Boeing's big mea culpa just dropped and it doesn't look pretty Boeing agreed to plead guilty to defrauding the US on Sunday. In May, the DOJ accused Boeing of violating a 2021 settlement over two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes. An attorney for the victims' families said he has filed an objection to the plea deal. Boeing has agreed to plead guilty to defrauding the US, essentially admitting to accusations that it violated an earlier agreement to strengthen its safety measures in the wake of two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes in 2018 and 2019. "The parties have agreed that Boeing will plead guilty to the most serious readily provably offense," the Justice Department said in a court filing on Sunday night. Last week, Bloomberg reported that federal prosecutors had offered Boeing the choice of either accepting the plea deal or risk facing trial. Under the plea deal, Boeing will have to pay a fine of $243.6 million. This is on top of the $243.6 million Boeing had already paid as part of the 2021 settlement it breached. Besides the fine, Boeing will be required to "invest at least $455 million in its compliance and safety programs." In addition, the government will appoint an independent compliance monitor to oversee the company for three years. "We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms," a spokesperson for Boeing told BI in a statement on Monday morning. Paul Cassell, an attorney for 15 of the victims' families, told BI on Monday that he has filed an objection to the plea deal. "This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeing's conspiracy, 346 people died," Cassell said in a statement. "A judge can reject a plea deal that is not in the public interest, and this deceptive and generous deal is clearly not in the public interest." Boeing had initially avoided a fraud charge related to two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes one near the coast of Indonesia in 2018 and another in Ethiopia in 2019 after it struck a $2.5 billion settlement agreement with the DOJ in 2021. Notably, the 2021 agreement did not impose an independent compliance monitor on Boeing. The DOJ said in a statement then that a monitor wouldn't be necessary because "the misconduct was neither pervasive across the organization, nor undertaken by a large number of employees, nor facilitated by senior management." But the DOJ accused Boeing of violating the terms of the agreement in May, just months after a door plug from a Boeing 737 Max 9 blew out mid-flight. The incident, which took place in January, prompted the Federal Aviation Administration to order the grounding over 170 such planes. "The plea agreement will not provide Boeing with immunity for any other conduct, including any conduct that may be subject of any ongoing or future Government investigation of the Company," the DOJ said in its filing on Sunday. Read the original article on Business Insider A tent is seen near the Glen Huntington Bandshell in downtown Boulder on April 28, 2021. (Derek Miles for Colorado Newsline) This story originally appeared in Boulder Reporting Lab. A high-profile lawsuit challenging the city of Boulders camping ban is likely to be dismissed after the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled that a similar ordinance in Grants Pass, Oregon, did not violate the U.S. Constitutions prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment. The June 28 ruling from the nations highest court allows cities to ticket homeless people for sleeping in public spaces. The ruling is likely to have significant implications for how cities across the country, including Boulder, address encampments in public spaces amid rising homelessness. The local lawsuit in Boulder was filed by the ACLU of Colorado in May 2022 on behalf of several homeless people and a local nonprofit, Feet Forward. It alleged that the city violated protections against cruel and unusual punishment in the Colorado Constitution by issuing citations to homeless people when they had nowhere else to sleep but in public spaces, among other allegations. The lawsuit seeks to halt enforcement of the citys camping ban when shelter spaces is not accessible. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The debate over homeless encampments in Boulder has intensified since the lawsuit was filed, as the number of people sleeping outside has risen in recent years, primarily due to high living costs and exacerbated by a lack of mental health and substance use treatment services locally and across the state. In November 2023, voters passed a ballot measure amending city code to make tents and propane tanks near schools, sidewalks or multi-use paths subject to prioritized removal. The ballot measure was a response to several fires likely caused by propane tank explosions near Boulder High School. The lawsuit seeking to overturn Boulders campaign ban was scheduled for a trial in August 2024. But in April, the case was paused due to the pending U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the Grants Pass case. Boulder County District Court Judge Robert R. Gunning issued an order halting proceedings, stating that the ruling would provide important precedent and hold tremendous weight in shaping a ruling on the Boulder case. The U.S. Supreme Courts 6-to-3 ruling, split along ideological lines, sided with the City of Grants Pass. The Grants Pass lawsuit, Johnson v. City of Grants Pass, was filed in 2018 and alleges the city violated Eighth Amendment protections against cruel and unusual punishment by citing homeless people for sleeping in public spaces when they could not access shelter. Much of the debate centered on whether homelessness is a state of being or a form of conduct and whether people can be punished for violating local ordinances that prohibit sleeping in public spaces. Writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch argued that the court should not be deciding a pressing social question like homelessness, among other points. The Constitutions Eighth Amendment serves many important functions, but it does not authorize federal judges to wrest those rights and responsibilities from the American people and in their place dictate this nations homelessness policy, he wrote. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote the dissenting opinion. She was joined by Justices Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson. Sleep is a biological necessity, not a crime. For some people, sleeping outside is their only option, Sotomayor wrote. She said the City of Grants Pass jails and fines people for sleeping in public spaces and their cars with as much as a blanket to keep warm or a rolled-up shirt as a pillow. That is unconscionable and unconstitutional, she added. The June 28 ruling by the Supreme Court does not guarantee that Gunning will dismiss the case in Boulder, though observers generally believe the case is now decided. The Boulder lawsuit is based on similar civil rights protections in the Colorado Constitution, not the U.S. Constitution. The City of Boulder will address the Grants Pass decision in our filings with the court in our own camping ban lawsuit, Shannon Aulabaugh, a spokeswoman for the city of Boulder, told Boulder Reporting Lab. Lawyers for the plaintiffs were unavailable to comment in time for publication. Deborah Richardson, executive director for ACLU of Colorado, said in a statement that addressing homelessness through tickets, arrests and incarceration is inhumane and ineffectual. Make no mistake: this ruling is not the end of our efforts, Richardson said. We will remain steadfast in our advocacy for the rights of unhoused Colorado residents. We expect the Colorado courts to come to the correct conclusion under our state Constitution: jailing people for sleeping outside when they have no other choice is cruel and unusual punishment. The city of Boulder spends about $3 million per year clearing out encampments of homeless people and cleaning up public spaces. At least 171 people are experiencing homelessness in the city of Boulder, according to a point-in-time count by the city in July 2023. That number is likely higher, as people are often turned away from the citys main shelter in North Boulder, which has a capacity of about 180. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST BRADFORD, N.Y. (WETM) A Bradford man has been arrested on multiple charges following a domestic dispute in the Village of Bath last week. According to the Village of Bath Police Department, Aaron L. Barnard, 41, was arrested on Friday, July 5, on the following charges: One count of assault in the second degree, a class D felony Two counts of criminal mischief, a class A misdemeanor Three counts of endangering the welfare of a child, a class A misdemeanor Resisting arrest, a class A misdemeanor Harassment in the second degree, a violation Barnards arrest follows an incident that occurred around 7:17 a.m. on Friday, July 5, where police say they were called to an address on Chestnut Street for the report of a physical domestic dispute between a male and a female. Bradford County man arrested, allegedly choked woman After arriving at the scene, police say that they were investigating the incident when Barnard struck one of the police officers in the face and attempted to choke them. After fighting with police, Barnard was then taken into custody and was taken by Bath Ambulance to a hospital for evaluation and treatment of injuries, along with the injured officer. Both were treated and released. Gunshots in Elmira result in police investigation over the weekend After being released from the hospital, Barnard was taken to the Bath Village Police. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. The Bradley Symphony Center, Harley-Davidson Museum and Pfister Hotel are among the prominent Milwaukee venues that have landed events tied to next week's Republican National Convention. That's according to a newly updated events calendar released by the RNC. Bradley Symphony Center is among the downtown Milwaukee venues booked for events tied to the Republican National Convention. That comes at a time when several downtown business operators have told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and other news media outlets that they haven't booked any convention-related events. One of the more high-profile events will be at Bradley Symphony Center, 212 W. Wisconsin Ave.. The center, home to the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, on July 15 will host "Heritage Policy Fest: Fighting for America's Future," an all-day event staged by The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank. The foundation has made headlines through its Project 2025, which centers on a plan and personnel to reconstruct the country's executive branch if Donald Trump wins the presidential election. Trump on Friday tried to distance himself Project 2025, saying in a post on his Truth Social account he knows "nothing" about it. That led President Joe Biden to say Trump is lying, and to criticize Project 2025's policy goals, according to USA Today. Harley Museum, Maier Festival Park, Lakefront Brewery secure bookings Other downtown venues hosting RNC events include Maier Festival Park, Harley-Davidson Museum, 3rd Street Market Hall's Venue 3 events room, Northwestern Mutual's office tower grand ballroom, Marcus Performing Arts Center, Discovery World, Lakefront Brewery and Project Pilot Brewing, according to the calendar. Hotels, restaurants and taverns hosting events include the Pfister Hotel, Hilton Milwaukee City Center, Iron Horse Hotel, AJ Bombers, Mader's Restaurant and Drink Wisconsinbly. The calendar also lists events at locations outside downtown, including Mitchell Park Domes, Crowne Plaza Milwaukee South Hotel and Grand Geneva resort, in Lake Geneva. The RNC is expected to bring an estimated 50,000 visitors. That will bring an estimated $200 million economic impact, according to Visit Milwaukee, a publicly funded nonprofit group which promotes Milwaukee as a travel destination. Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, X and Facebook. Subscribe to get the BusinessWatch email newsletter. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Updated RNC events calendar includes Harley-Davidson Museum, others A judge in Florida has tossed out key evidence in a computer hacking case against Courtney Clenney and her parents. Clenney is an OnlyFans model accused of killing her boyfriend, and her parents are accused of taking, accessing, and disposing of the boyfriend's personal computer. Judge Laura Shearon Cruz said the state violated attorney-client privilege when prosecutors collected texts and emails between Deborah Lyn Clenney and Kim DeWayne Clenney and their attorneys. Prosecutors claimed they weren't aware at the time they accessed the parents' cloud storage system that the parents had hired legal representation. The post Brickbat: Model Misbehavior appeared first on Reason.com. LAPD officers investigate the site where police killed a man who was holding a knife and assaulting his girlfriend in the Vermont Square area. (Al Seib / Los Angeles Times) Los Angeles police officials have been trying for years to curb officer shootings of people in crisis who are holding a knife, machete or other "edged weapon." Despite rolling out policies to prevent gunfire in such encounters, a Times analysis of LAPD data shows that there have been more shootings this year than in all of 2022. The department is on pace to eclipse last year's total of 11. In the first half of 2024, officers shot six people who were holding a sharp object while experiencing a behavioral or mental health crisis a designation that includes those believed to be suicidal or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Four were killed. There have been 17 police shootings this year, including cases involving edged weapons. Since 2018, The Times' analysis found, officers have opened fire in similar circumstances at least 56 times, killing 35 people and injuring 19 others. The Los Angeles Police Department's public-facing data do not track killings of people in crisis. The Times' review is based on a variety of records, such as information disclosed in lawsuits, reflecting shootings that aren't necessarily counted in the department's annual use-of-crime reports. Along with other agencies nationwide, the LAPD has adopted guidelines that prioritize de-escalation techniques and the use of less lethal alternatives to deadly force. After recent high-profile cases in which officers killed mentally ill people, the departments civilian oversight body has put renewed scrutiny on the issue. In one confrontation in Koreatown in the spring, video showed an officer fatally shot a man experiencing a bipolar episode in his parents' apartment as he walked slowly toward police with a knife. Read more: Column: A Korean American family called for help. An LAPD officer arrived, shot mentally ill son The May 2 killing of Yong Yang, 40, was followed by two more fatal edged-weapon shootings, prompting the Los Angeles Police Commission to ask for a report on department training and policies. I want to make sure that all other efforts are exhausted before lethal force is used, the panels vice president, Rasha Gerges Shields, said at a June commission meeting. Relatives attend a funeral service last month for Yong Yang, whom LAPD officers fatally shot as he held a knife in his family's home. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) LAPD officers are taught to use space and time to prevent confrontations from getting to the point where they are forced to fire their weapons, according to Jonathan Wender of the police training firm Polis Solutions. In situations where a suspect is indoors and doesnt pose a threat, Wender said, some agencies are training officers to simply contain instead of rushing in to make an arrest. Officers also are encouraged to use Tasers, beanbag shotguns or projectile launchers to try to subdue people in crisis, Wender said. But these less lethal weapons can prove ineffective or have unintended consequences, he said, such as provoking a subject to charge at officers. Read more: An outsider as next LAPD chief? Candidates face culture that has 'spit out' past leaders "Theres going to be side effects, he said. LAPD officials previously acknowledged that confusion over a recent state law resulted in officers occasionally waiting too long into an encounter before deploying a 40-millimeter launcher. The department has since updated its policies to allow use against anyone who poses an immediate public safety threat. The Times reviewed LAPD records from more than 200 cases in which officers fired at people over a five-plus-year period, along with hours of associated body camera video, search warrant affidavits and civil lawsuits filed by the families of those killed or injured. Behavioral crises involving edged weapons accounted for about 27% of police shootings between 2018 and the present, with the LAPDs Central and Valley bureaus recording the most instances. The officers who fired their weapons had an average of about nine years of department experience. Shootings of people wielding sharp objects were more likely to end with someone being killed than were confrontations involving suspects armed with guns which ended in a death in less than a third of the cases The Times' review found. The edged-weapon cases resulted in fatalities more than 60% of the time, including one innocent bystander. Of the 56 edged-weapon cases, police officials deemed the shootings out of policy meaning they should not have occurred under department standards eight times. In two cases, officers accidentally shot the victims of knife assaults while trying to save their lives. In 2021, an 11-year-old boy who was being stabbed by his mother was struck by "bullet fragments" when police opened fire to stop the attack. The boy's mother was wounded. In the other case, police in 2018 fired at a man who was holding a knife to his ex-girlfriends throat at a Van Nuys homeless outreach center, killing both of them. Before both shootings, officials said that officers had tried to request help from a Systemwide Mental Assessment Response Team, or SMART, which pairs cops with county mental health clinicians. But all the SMART units citywide had been tied up with other calls, prompting former police Chief Michel Moore to order a review of dispatching procedures in mental health-related cases. LAPD officials say they long ago stopped teaching the 21-foot rule, which suggests that anyone with an edged weapon within that distance represents an imminent threat. But William Briggs, a former police commissioner, said that mindset has endured, with many officers being told from their earliest days in the field that people with knives can always harm them, even when far away. As a result, he said, some officers give less lethal options little or no time to work before opting to shoot. Youre bringing a gun to a knife fight, said Briggs, who retired from his post last month, adding that he has long pushed for more hand-to-hand combat training to teach officers how to disarm people without killing them, including those threatening suicide by cop. If we had that kind of training, that would be one thing," Briggs said. "But the critics within the department and within the union, they say, We dont want our officers hurt. Read more: L.A. wants to make firing bad cops easier. Should the LAPD's watchdog have a role? The law allows LAPD officers to use deadly force to protect themselves or others from the immediate threat of death or serious bodily injury. They also are permitted to shoot at people who are armed but not actively attacking, but only as long as they can articulate how that person had the potential to seriously harm or kill someone. Police dispatchers are required to send a supervisor when they receive a call about an edged weapon, and department policy tells officers to give verbal warnings before firing and only use force that is "objectively reasonable" and proportional to the threat they face. Officers are expected to discuss among themselves how to best approach a suspect, designating specific roles to limit the number of guns drawn. Department officials say that overall police shootings are far below the levels seen in the 1990s and the large majority of mental health-related calls end without any force being used. In 2023, about 93% of patrol officers who responded to emergency calls had completed a 40-hour training course on mental health intervention, officials said; the class is mandatory for all recruits. Yet edged-weapon shootings remain regular occurrences, raising questions about whether the training has taken hold. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department also has a long history of shootings involving mentally ill people wielding knives or less dangerous objects. Two years ago, deputies shot a Lancaster woman who was armed with a knife and threatening to kill herself inside her home. When the woman, who was seated at the kitchen table, began advancing toward the deputies and refused to drop her knife, the deputies opened fire, the department said. In that case, the deputies did not wait for the department's Mental Evaluation Team before entering the home a common occurrence that has been questioned by oversight officials. L.A. County Inspector General Max Huntsman said he considers knife shootings a very serious issue on which we could make real changes such as through funding real response units like the MET [Mental Evaluation Team]. The Sheriff's Department said that it has 34 MET units that operate around-the-clock throughout the county, with an additional 10 dedicated to the transit system. "Patrol units face situations in which they are not aware a person suffers from a mental illness or has a developmental disability," the agency said in a statement. Read more: LAPD video shows officers shoot mentally ill man seconds after entering K-town home LAPD shootings overall have dramatically declined in recent decades. But several recent cases have again cast a spotlight on police interactions with people who are mentally ill and drawn concern from department leaders. In February, police fatally shot 36-year-old Jason Maccani while he was going through what his relatives described as a bipolar episode. After officers hit Maccani with a 40-millimeter projectile, he began moving toward them. One officer then opened fire at point blank range, apparently mistaking a plastic fork he was holding for a weapon. In about two-thirds of instances where officers fired their handguns and less-lethal weapons at an armed person which sometimes happened simultaneously they were reprimanded or ordered to undergo retraining for lapses in judgment. But even when officials concluded that the actions leading up to the shooting violated department policy, nearly 80% of the time the shooting itself was found to be justified. Such was the case with the Jan. 3, 2023, police shooting of Oscar Sanchez, when Moore faulted a supervisor for not consulting the mental health unit and for ordering officers to pursue Sanchez after he kicked down the front door of what turned out to be his own apartment. Moore recommended to the commission that the shooting be found in policy because the officers said they feared the 35-year-old would harm someone else after a Taser and 40-millimeter launcher proved ineffective. City leaders, and even some senior LAPD officials, have acknowledged that not all mental health emergencies require the presence of armed police. In the wake of George Floyd's murder by Minneapolis police in 2020, L.A. was among the major U.S. cities that pledged to develop and invest in new emergency responses that use trained specialists to render aid to homeless people and those facing mental health and substance abuse issues. Several crisis response programs have sprouted across the city on a trial basis. But activists have raised concerns about the continued underfunding of such programs and other, community-led efforts that are not aligned with law enforcement. Calls involving weapons or threats of violence are still almost always funneled to police. And some officials argue that the alternative units are often unavailable or take too long to respond to emergencies which officials have blamed on under-staffing at the county. Briggs, the former police commissioner, recalled a police ride-along in which he waited an hour and 50 minutes for a SMART team to arrive. He supports such alternatives, but does not fully endorse diverting all mental health-related calls to unarmed clinicians, as a growing number of activists and city leaders have pushed for. You never know what could happen in that situation; that person could be killed, he said. Times staff writer Keri Blakinger 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. Britain's Chancellor Rachel Reeves delivers a speech at the Treasury to an audience of leading business figures and senior stakeholders, announcing the first steps the new government will be taking to deliver economic growth, in London, Monday July 8, 2024. (Jonathan Brady/Pool Photo via AP) LONDON (AP) Britain's new Labour government will make stimulating economic growth its mission, the Treasury chief said Monday, pledging to limit bureaucracy to make it easier to invest in the country. In her first major speech, Rachel Reeves said there was no time to waste to reverse what she called 14 years of chaos and economic instability under Conservative governments. Where governments have been unwilling to take the difficult decisions to deliver growth or have waited too long to act I will deliver," she told business leaders and reporters. Britains first female Treasury chief and a former Bank of England economist, Reeves said sustained economic growth was the only way to improve living standard s for all and to rebuild the country's stretched and underfunded public services. She said she's taking immediate action to relax planning rules to remove obstacles to building infrastructure, housing and energy projects. To investors and businesses who spent 14 years doubting whether Britain is a safe place to invest, then let me tell you, after 14 years, Britain has a stable government, she said. In an uncertain world, Britain is a place to do business. Reeves said she will assess the spending inheritance left by the Conservatives over the coming months before making the governments first budget statement later this year. She pledged to set a mandatory target of 1.5 million new homes in England over the next five years, as well as remove an effective ban on onshore wind energy developments that has been in place since 2015. The environmental group Friends of the Earth welcomed that announcement. By ending the onshore wind ban in England, Labour is making an important stride towards delivering on our climate goals, while also paving the way for lower bills, as renewables produce some of the cheapest and cleanest energy available, said Mike Childs, head of science, policy and research at the organization. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who became leader on Friday after a landslide majority in last week's election, has promised to rebuild the infrastructure of opportunity for voters frustrated with a stagnant economy, rising poverty and dysfunctional public healthcare. Soaring rental and mortgage rates and a chronic shortage of housing were among the top issues voters raised during the election campaign. Home-building in Britain has slowed down in the past decades, and in the year to March construction began on about 135,000 homes down by more than one-fifth compared to the year before. The current system is clearly anti-growth, and these proposals should help, said Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, an independent think-tank. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijani companies are invited to open their representative offices in Qingdao, Director of the West Asian and African Affairs Department of the Qingdao Municipal Trade Bureau Men Weiwei said, Trend reports. Weiwei made the remark during a conference on promoting logistics and trade in Azerbaijan, a demonstration zone of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). She drove home the point that Azerbaijan, sitting right at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, has built up its transport infrastructure and is a major player on the Silk Road. "We invite Azerbaijani logistics companies to open offices in Qingdao and collaborate in global logistics, sustainable development, workforce training, and other areas," the official added. Besides, she pointed out that Qingdao, as a significant trade port in China, enjoys a favorable geographic position linking East and West, with well-developed infrastructure for international trade. "Azerbaijan, endowed with rich energy and agricultural resources, plays a crucial role on the southern route of the Silk Road and has great potential for cooperation with Qingdao. We aim to deepen cooperation with Azerbaijani trading companies, expand the scale of trade, and promote the products of our enterprises on international markets," Weiweu stressed. Furthermore, the official highlighted that Azerbaijan is the birthplace of the modern oil industry and actively develops the digital economy and other economic diversification models. "This aligns with Qingdao's efforts to promote digital technologies. We hope that by leveraging Qingdao's robust production base, comprehensive industrial infrastructure, and extensive market, Azerbaijani companies can realize their innovative ideas. We also welcome young entrepreneurs from Azerbaijan wishing to start businesses in Qingdao and are ready to provide maximum support in coworking and cultural activities," she said. According to her, Qingdao and Azerbaijan have established strong technology partnerships. "In 2023, trade volume between them reached 233 million yuan, more than five times higher than the previous year," she added. To note, Beijing is home to Azerbaijan's sole trade representative office in China. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel The Brockport United Methodist Church is receiving a $15,000 Sacred Sites Grant from the New York Landmarks Conservancy. The grant is one of 14 Sacred Sites totaling $228,000 that the New York Landmarks Conservancy is awarding to 14 historic religious properties throughout New York State. Since 1986, the Sacred Sites Program has pledged nearly 1,700 grants totaling over $13.8 million to more than 850 religious institutions statewide. The program is said to provide congregations with matching grants for planning and implementing exterior restoration projects, technical assistance, and workshops. We are delighted that our grants will help these diverse congregations maintain their buildings and continue to serve their communities with social service and cultural programs, Peg Breen, the president of The New York Landmarks Conservancy, said. These 14 congregations reach 60,000 people beyond their congregations with no-cost or low-cost services. The $15,000 grant to the Brockport United Methodist Church will help fund a roof replacement. The church was reportedly designed from 1876 to 1877 by prominent Rochester architect Andrew Jackson Warner in partnership with James Goold Cutler. Outside the church's membership, it reaches around 550 people with activities like Cub Scout Pack, AA meetings, the Moms Club of Brockport, American Red Cross blood drives, winter clothing distribution, and a mini library. The New York Landmarks Conservancy is a private non-profit organization that has worked to preserve and protect New York Citys architectural legacy for more than 50 years. Its website states, "From the smallest buildings to the most extraordinary landmarks, to our diverse neighborhoods, the New York Landmarks Conservancy is on the front linespreserving and protecting the unique architectural heritage and character of the City we love." Since its founding in 1973, the Conservancy has loaned and granted more than $62 million, leveraging almost $1 billion in nearly 2,000 restoration projects throughout New York. For more information on the New York Landmarks Conservancy and the Sacred Sites Grant, visit https://nylandmarks.org/what-we-do/grants-loans/sacred-sites/. Madison Scott is a journalist with the Democrat and Chronicle who edited our Weld Street Project and also did reporting for it. She has an interest in how the system helps or doesn't help families with missing loved ones. She can be reached at MDScott@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Brockport United Methodist Church receives 2024 Sacred Sites Grant By Elizabeth Pineau PARIS (Reuters) - The champagne was on ice at the far-right National Rally's (RN) headquarters, but the celebratory mood swiftly turned to disbelief when the first projected results from Sunday's parliamentary election appeared on TV screens. For days, Marine Le Pen had confidently predicted that her party would triumph with an outright majority and her protege Jordan Bardella would be prime minister. Instead, the National Rally was on course to come third, behind a left-wing alliance and President Emmanuel Macron's centrist bloc. It was undone to a large extent by tactical dealmaking between centrist and leftist opponents, who pulled more than 200 candidates from three-way races to avoid splitting the anti-RN vote. The projected result brought to a shuddering halt what had appeared to be the far right's relentless rise in France, carefully engineered by Le Pen who had sought to clean up her party's image and tap the grievances of voters angry over living costs, strained public services, and immigration. To be sure, Le Pen and her party have suffered disappointment before, most recently her 2022 defeat to Macron in the presidential election, and have managed to bounce back more strongly than before. But for now, the outcome was a bitter pill to swallow. "The results are disappointing and they don't represent what French people want," said Jocelyn Cousin, 18, who had come to party HQ expecting a victory party. The RN's momentum had appeared unstoppable after it trounced the centrists in European elections in early June and came first, ahead of the hastily assembled leftist New Popular Front, in the first round of the parliamentary vote on June 30. Le Pen and Bardella attributed their party's setback on Sunday to what Bardella called the "disgraceful alliance" of anti-RN forces, who he said had caricatured the party and disrespected its voters. But IPSOS pollster Brice Teinturier pointed to the RN's own shortcomings, including revelations before the run-off that several of its candidates had expressed xenophobic views, raising questions over whether the party had really ditched its more toxic past. "What happened is also that RN candidates themselves showed in this campaign that they either were not ready or had in their ranks candidates that are antisemitic, xenophobic or homophobic," Teinturier told France 2 television. 'TIDE IS RISING' Florent de Kersauson, an RN candidate in Brittany in western France, acknowledged the fallout had been damaging. But he also said voters may have felt the party was arrogant in predicting an absolute majority. "I thought it was strange that they said that," said Kersauson, who lost his race against a pro-Macron candidate. "It seemed like something that was very hard to achieve." Bardella and Le Pen strove to put a brave face on their result. The party had increased its share of seats in the National Assembly to a record high, they noted, vowing to keep fighting until they won power. "The tide is rising, but it didn't rise quite high enough this time," said Le Pen, who is likely to mount her fourth presidential campaign in 2027. "Our victory has merely been delayed." That was also the feeling among many of the supporters gathered at party HQ in Paris. "I see our victory coming. People are going to understand that the National Rally is not so horrible. I believe it will happen in 2027. I have a lot of hope and I'll continue to fight," said Elea da Cunha, 17. Frederic-Pierre Vos, a close associate of Le Pen and former RN party lawyer elected in a constituency north of Paris, said the hung parliament thrown up by the election would mean an ungovernable France, providing fresh opportunities for RN in 2027. Yet despite the party's fighting talk, Sunday's outcome was a clear setback. Business newspaper Les Echos ran a front page showing a grim-faced Bardella with the headline "la claque" or "the slap". (This story has been refiled to fix typos, in paragraphs 4, 9) (Additional reporting by Gabriel Stargardter, Michel Rose and Sybille de la Hamaide; Writing by Estelle Shirbon; Editing by Richard Lough and Gavin Jones) More people were killed from January through June of this year in Charlotte than in the first six months of any year since at least 2015. Sixty-one people were killed in the first half of 2024, according to preliminary data from Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police. At least 50 victims were shot to death, most by handguns. The only stretch of time in the past nine and a half years to outpace the start of 2024 was the second half of 2020, when 66 people were killed during a nationwide upswing in violence near the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. The increase in homicides in Charlotte bucks a national trend, said Chandler Hall, senior policy analyst for gun violence prevention at the Center for American Progress, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit. Nationally, firearm-linked homicides dropped 13% in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period the year before, Hall said. But homicides here have increased 33% so far this year, CMPD data show. Its shocking to hear a city going so significantly in the opposite direction, Hall said. Looking for why A number of factors could affect short-term trends, said Ernesto Lopez, senior research specialist with the Council on Criminal Justice. A particularly deadly month or a few incidents with multiple victims can lead to a spike in homicides for a city, he said. Charlotte had both. Charlotte had three incidents where three or more people were killed already this year. A gunman killed four law enforcement officers April 29 after a U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force tried to serve an arrest warrant where he lived in east Charlotte. The shooter, Terry Clark Hughes, Jr., was also killed. Ashley Eyer places her hand on husband Joshua Eyers casket after making remarks to mourners at First Baptist Church on Friday, May 3, 2024. Joshua Eyer was a Charlotte-Mecklenburg police officer, one of four law enforcement officers killed April 29, 2024 during a standoff in east Charlotte. On Jan. 27, three people where shot and killed in south Charlotte, just west of South Boulevard. At the time, CMPD said the shooting started during a fight between two groups in a parking lot. Arguments, according to CMPDs data, were behind about one-third of this years homicides. On March 17, the bodies of a mother and her two children were found in north Charlotte near Interstate 85 and North Tryon Street. The suspect, Benjamin Taylor, 34, was arrested in California and extradited to North Carolina. Hes charged with three counts of murder and one count of concealment of death, according to CMPD. There were 18 homicides in March, the most in any month since at least 2015, an Observer analysis found. Those sort of things will definitely impact short-term trends, Lopez said of shootings where multiple people died. You wouldnt expect them to carry into the second half of the year or the following year. The Observer requested an interview with CMPD officials about the increase in killings, but the department did not respond. Nor did it answer written questions sent by email. Some patterns stick Like in previous years, victims of homicides in Charlotte in the first half of 2024 were most often Black men. Nearly all killings occurred in or around whats called the citys crescent, a string of mostly lower-wealth neighborhoods that stretch from east to west north of uptown. According to the 2024 CMPD homicide data: 67% of the people killed were Black, 18% were Hispanic and 7% were white. 87% of the victims were male. The average age of victims was 30 years old. The youngest was less than a year while the oldest was 58, according to available data. New way of seeing gun violence The American Public Health Association now considers gun violence a major public health threat, one that is the leading cause of premature death in the United States. Tracie Campbell, senior health manager for Mecklenburg Countys Office of Violence Prevention, sees it as a disease often caused by trauma such as abuse and neglect. She likened gun violence and homicides to the pandemic. One person gets COVID and they dont know they have COVID... They go out and spread it, Campbell said. Its the same thing as having unresolved trauma when you have no one to help you deal with it. The county created the office about four years ago to help treat that trauma, sometimes by referring those who have experienced violence to mental health services. Campbell calls it a relationship-building program. The office partners with families, community leaders, churches, YMCAs and others to try to prevent violence, including intervening before it escalates. C. Maria Macon, founder and executive director of Mecklenburg Council of Elders, said she agrees that untreated trauma is a main cause for Charlottes gun violence. The nonprofit group provides therapy to those affected by violence and helps people get their criminal records expunged. Shes not surprised by the recent increase in homicides, she said. There is a great number of people with unaddressed trauma, Macon said, adding that it may have happened when they were younger, but it manifests itself when they get to the age that they can flex their muscles. That anger is now flaring up. BUDA, TEXAS (KXAN) The city of Buda is taking steps to add 30 acres of parkland on the east side of Interstate 35. Last month, the city purchased the land off Hillside Terrace near the Green Meadows subdivision for $6.1 million. Once opened, the aptly named Eastside Park will be the 15th park facility managed by the citys parks department. This City of Buda map shows where leaders plan to develop Eastside Park. Courtesy: City of Buda Currently, just two of the citys 14 existing parks are located east of I-35. Those 14 parks cover 363 acres of parkland. Were experiencing quite a bit of population growth on the east side, Buda City Manager Micah Grau said. It was really important that we preserve and dedicate that land now while we could before it was developed. Grau said the next step is to work with city leaders, the public, and likely an outside consultant to plan the park. The money to pay for it comes from an $89 million bond election for transportation and park improvements. Hays County is also contributing money from a parks bond passed in 2020. We dont have a timeline yet for what that transformation will look like, Grau said. There is money set aside as part of the bond to do some initial planning and hopefully get it open so people can at least get over there and start enjoying it, maybe as a passive-use park. The parkland is currently open space with just a few stock ponds on it. Grau said eventually the city would like to connect the park to nearby neighborhoods. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. (FOX40.COM) The Butte County government has announced the activation of a Fire Survivor Resource Line for residents impacted by the recent fires in the area, including the Thompson Fire, which burned nearly 4,000 acres and prompted plenty of evacuations. The Butte County Department of Employment and Social Services said the phone line is designed to provide recovery information and resources for anyone whose homes have been damaged or destroyed in the recent fires. Pay Fire causes evacuations, power outages in Placerville By calling the hotline at 530-552-6262, affected residents can receive information on various topics, including: Housing Assistance: Resources for finding temporary and long-term housing solutions. Financial Aid: Information on available financial support and how to apply. Basic Necessities: Access to food, clothing, and other essential items. Emotional Support: Contact details for counseling and mental health services. Rebuilding and Recovery: Guidance on the steps to take for obtaining important documents, rebuilding homes, and navigating insurance claims. Department of Employment and Social Services Director Shelby Boston said, Our community is no stranger to these large incidents, and we want to ensure everyone affected has access to the resources they need to recover and rebuild. Man allegedly started a backfire to try to combat the Thompson Fire, officials say Boston continued, The hotline is a vital tool to provide immediate assistance and connect residents with the right services. The resource line, which officially opened on Saturday, will be available every day from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Sunday, CAL Fire said 13 single-family homes were destroyed by the Thompson Fire alone, with five other homes listed as damaged. The agency added that 13 other minor structures were destroyed and three more were destroyed. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. These California cities are among the top dog-friendly vacation spots in US. Heres why California is home to three of the top 10 dog-friendly vacation destinations in the United States, according to USA Today Blueprint. If your idea of a good vacation includes your best canine friend, youre in luck, Katy McWhirter and Kara McGinley wrote on the personal finance website. To come up with its list of the 20 best places to take your pup, published March 13, USA Today Blueprint looked at factors including the number of dog-friendly restaurants, bars and beaches, as well as veterinary offices. Flagstaff, Arizona, was No. 1 on the list, thanks to its sunny climate and high number of Fido-friendly hotels, trails and restaurants. San Luis Obispo came in second, followed closely by another Central Coast city, Santa Barbara, in third place. A total of five California cities landed in the top 20, with San Diego taking sixth place. Salinas ranked at No. 13, and San Jose was No. 18. Aimee Davis tosses a tennis ball for her dog Rocky at what is commonly known as Dog Beach between Morro Bay and Cayucos. Why is SLO the No. 2 vacation spot for dog owners? Dubbed Americas Happiest City by Oprah Winfrey in 2011, San Luis Obispo offers plenty of outdoor adventures for you and your furry friends, according to USA Today Blueprint. SLO had the highest concentration of vet offices in our analysis, the site said. The city had 32 dog-friendly accommodations and 18 dog-friendly restaurants per 100,000 residents. In addition, SLO boasts nine beaches within 50 miles, USA Today Blueprint said. making it a hot spot if youre looking to enjoy some waterfront time with your dog. Dogs play in the surf at Avila Beach. The harbor district is reconsidering its rules for dogs on beaches after several complaints have surfaced regarding pet behavior on the beaches. What about other California cities? USA Today Blueprint cited Santa Barbaras Mediterranean climate and proximity to Los Angeles as reasons its a popular getaway for SoCal residents who want an escape with their pup. The Central Coast city has nearly 29 dog-friendly restaurants and around 19 dog-friendly commodations per 100,000 residents, plus 57 trails that are open to canine companions. San Diego, meanwhile, offers mild weather and plenty of outdoor activities for pets and their owners, including 102 dog-friendly trails. There are 10 dog-friendly beaches within 50 miles of the city. Whats more, San Diego has about 21 dog-friendly restaurants per 100,000 residents. According to USA Today, the Southern California city is home of the best dog park in the United States, Fiesta Island. Three California cities are among the top 10 dog-friendly vacation destinations in the United States, according to USA Today Blueprint. What are the top 10 dog-friendly destinations in US? These are the top 10 dog-friendly vacation destinations in the nation, according to USA Today Blueprint: Flagstaff, Arizona San Luis Obispo Santa Barbara Austin, Texas Portland, Oregon San Diego Naples, Florida Nashville, Tennessee Denver Key West, Florida Three California cities are among the top 10 dog-friendly vacation destinations in the United States, according to USA Today Blueprint. How did USA Today Blueprint come up with rankings? To come up with its list the best dog-friendly vacation destinations, USA Today Blueprint analyzed the top 50 most visited cities by overseas tourists in 2022 according to the U.S. International Trade Administration. The personal finance website looked at six metrics: Number of dog-friendly places to stay per 100,000 residents. Number of dog-friendly restaurants per 100,000 residents. Number of dog-friendly bars per 100,000 residents. Number of vet offices per 100,000 businesses. Number of dog-friendly beaches within 50 miles (both seaside and lakeside). Number of dog-friendly trails. Data came from Hotels.com, BringFido.com, Alltrails.com and the U.S. Census Bureau. Three California cities are among the top 10 dog-friendly vacation destinations in the United States, according to USA Today Blueprint. What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com. California will impose permanent water restrictions for the first time in history after the states Water Resources Control Board approved a long-debated policy. The policy, dubbed Making Conservation a California Way of Life, is intended to permanently decrease statewide water use so that water reductions during droughts arent as severe. The new policy was prompted by legislation signed by former Gov. Jerry Brown in 2018. Retail water suppliers, not individual households or businesses, will now be required to reduce their water use by close to 30% over the next 15 years. Suppliers who do not follow the new guidelines will face $10,000 daily fines. Los Angeles County captured 96 billion gallons of water during storm season Suppliers will have to find ways to encourage their customers to reduce their water usage, such as imposing restrictions or promoting the use of low-flow appliances. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the cuts will not be based on a one-size-fits-all method but on a formula that weighs several factors, including the areas past water consumption, climate, and land use. Some areas, like the Bay Area, wont see dramatic reductions since water use in the region has historically been low. For the Los Angeles County area, water use reductions will also vary. San Bernardino County calls for emergency declaration over Californias homeowners insurance crisis According to the California State Water Resources Control Board, the California American Water Company Los Angeles Division should see a water usage reduction by 15% come 2040; however, Los Angeles County Waterworks District 40 Antelope Valley has a higher projection of 42% by the same year. The new rules are expected to take effect on Jan. 1, 2025; the first round of cuts will happen by 2027. Unsurprisingly, some water agencies have been critical of the policy, while some environmental groups expressed that the water reduction percentages should have been higher. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan is an important partner of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), Ding Tao Charge d'Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Azerbaijan said during a conference on the promotion of logistics and trade in Azerbaijan, SCO demonstration zone, Trend reports. "In 2016, Azerbaijan joined the SCO as a partner and has become a significant member of the organization, playing an increasingly pivotal role in regional economic cooperation. Over the past six years, the SCO demonstration area has continued to evolve, establishing itself as a hub for multilateral economic and trade cooperation services, bilateral investment projects, and business platforms. During the sixth financial meeting, a memorandum of understanding was signed between the Small and Medium Business Development Agency of Azerbaijan and Shanghai, in the presence of Azerbaijan's Deputy Prime Minister. This initiative has injected new momentum into local economic and trade cooperation," he said. To note, Kazakhstan's Astana hosted the SCO Summit on July 4. Azerbaijan, among others, was represented at the summit by the head of state, alongside leaders from India, Iran, China, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Belarus, Mongolia, Qatar, the UAE, Turkiye, and Turkmenistan. The summit also included the SCO Secretary-General and the Executive Director of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Gov. Gavin Newsom is once again urging residents to take precautions as a heat wave continues to blanket the region. Newsom has directed the Office of Emergency Services to activate its State Operations Center and move into Phase II of its Extreme Temperature Response Plan. This move ensures a 24/7, coordinated, whole-of-government response to the heatwave, according to the governors office. Extreme heat watches are in effect for much of California. Locally, record highs were set in Palmdale (114 degrees), Lancaster (115 degrees), and Sandberg (100 degrees) on Sunday. Heatwave continues to break records across Southern California, Southwest U.S. In response to the uptick in temperatures, officials are asking the public to stay hydrated, avoid sugary, alcoholic, and very cold drinks, and avoid outdoor exercising when its too hot. Heres what Californians need to know: According to weather officials, the heat wave will likely continue throughout the week. Much of Southern California is under an Excessive Heat Warning or Excessive Heat Watch until 9 p.m. July 11. Californians can see the forecasted temperature for their area by clicking here. In addition to staying hydrated, wearing loose-fitted, bright-colored clothes and avoiding outdoor exercising when it is too hot, officials also advise the public to: Stay cool by staying in the shade when outside or setting air conditioners between 75 and 80 degrees and closing windows, shades and blinds when inside. If those options arent feasible, people can also visit nearby cooling centers. A list of ones across California can be found here. Drink at least 2 cups of water every hour, even if youre not feeling thirsty. Check in on friends and family, especially elderly relatives or neighbors. Call 911 in cases of a high fever or other emergencies. Wear sunscreen More tips on how to prepare for extreme heat 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. (FOX40.COM) The Roseville Police Department assisted in arresting a woman connected to illegal activities in Ohio and among California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) faculties, according to police. While responding to a call on June 30 involving a man and a woman, the woman fled from officers on foot upon their arrival. South Sacramento residents shelter-in-place due to armed person Officers were able to obtain the womans identity and found she had an outstanding warrant from Ohio for multiple fraud charges. Ohio law enforcement said they would extradite the woman upon her arrest in Roseville. Roseville officers were not the only people looking to apprehend the woman as a plain clothes CDCR agent was also found to be looking for her. The woman was found to be connected to cell phones and drugs being smuggled into Pelican Bay State Prison in Del Norte County. Are those fireworks or gunshots? Here are ways to tell the difference The CDCR agent informed officers that she was likely at a shopping center at the corner of Fiddyment Road and Blue Oaks Boulevard in West Roseville. She was found in a yogurt shop in the shopping center and was arrested. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. California small-business owners can pitch their products to be sold at Walmart. Heres how Are you the owner of a small or medium-size business in California whos looking to expand? Do you know someone who is? Walmart is accepting applications for its 11th annual Open Call event, where entrepreneurs can pitch their products to be sold on Walmart or Sams Club shelves, or on Walmart.com and SamsClub.com. Applications are open until Monday, July 15. If a business is selected, its owners will be invited to the event in Bentonville, Arkansas, where they will pitch their products alongside other business owners from all 50 states. Last year, Walmart and Sams Club merchants heard over 1,000 pitches from more than 700 businesses at Open Call, according to a news release. Entrepreneurs who secure a golden ticket a deal for Walmart to sell their products in stores or online will reach millions of new customers with their American-made products, according to the release. More than 86% of Walmart shoppers have said it is important for retailers to carry goods made in the U.S., the release said. Walmart in California hosted a Road to Open Call event recently at the Los Angeles Chamber of Commerce. During the event, some entrepreneurs received fast passes, granting them direct invitations to the Open Call to pitch their products. Among the chosen suppliers from California were Cactus Foods and Synear Foods. Cactus Foods is a female- and minority-owned business that sells chips made from the nopal cactus. Synear Foods sells frozen dumplings from a facility in Chatsworth. To apply for the event, visit www.rangeme.com/walmartopencall2024. We can't let a Republican official use Christianity to 'lynch' someone As pastors in the state of Arizona, we are concerned about the toxic polarization that has taken hold in our state and the weight it is adding to the souls of our neighbors. A video recently surfaced that showed violent rhetoric toward an Arizona public servant. It deserves the rebuke of Christians in our state and all people of goodwill. Maricopa County Republican official Shelby Busch told an audience that if Republican Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer were in the room with them, she would lynch him. This was not only a call to violence. It is a term that carries a particularly disturbing connotation in the history of our country. Maricopa County Recorder Stephen Richer speaks on his relationship with Maricopa County Sheriff Paul Penzone and the MCSO in the media room in the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office headquarters in Phoenix on Monday, Oct. 24, 2022. The troubling mention of 'Christian' disagreements Violent rhetoric of this kind has no place in Maricopa County or Arizona. With hate crimes on the rise and violent threats against public officials especially election officials at a dangerous high, this type of language is reprehensible and contrary to the teachings of Jesus. Furthermore, Busch stated that there was a difference between Richer, who is Jewish, and other public officials because other officials can have "Christian" disagreements. In the video, Busch contrasts Richer against a man in the audience who she says is a "good Christian man that believes what we believe." She said she could find "unity" with someone who agrees to "run a good Christian foundation campaign." To be clear: No matter what types of disagreements Arizonans have, our religious tradition calls us to resolve them peacefully. Disagreements should never be resolved through violence, regardless of their extent. Beyond the danger of this call to violence, the rhetoric of Christian" disagreements implies that Christians can treat non-Christians with less respect or dignity. This is contrary to the teaching of Jesus, who calls us to love our neighbor as ourselves. An Arizona pastor finally said it: Arizona pastor doesn't just think abortion is murder. He wants to execute women for it. We can't manipulate religion to divide people Buschs comments can also give the impression that non-Christians should not serve in public office. This could not be further from the truth. While we believe in strongly expressing our Christian beliefs in the public square and advocating for policies that reflect our values, religious tests for officeholders are a violation of the First Amendment. 'We'll hunt you': Trump, MAGA supporters' violent rhetoric isn't a glitch. It's a feature. Whats more, we would embrace any politician who serves the public with integrity, honesty and fairness, regardless of their faith tradition. To demand that public officials adhere to a single interpretation of a single religion is a betrayal of foundational American values. Faith's tenets are love and compassion The combative environment in Arizona politics stems largely from the lies about the 2020 election and the demands that Arizona officials overturn the will of the people. When individuals are willing to throw aside the results of a free and fair election and silence the voices of the majority of their neighbors these elements cultivate a dangerous environment for our democracy. Opinion alerts: Get columns from your favorite columnists + expert analysis on top issues, delivered straight to your device through the USA TODAY app. Don't have the app? Download it for free from your app store. We are tired of this divisive violent rhetoric that manipulates our religious values, distorting the core tenets of compassion and understanding that define our faith. As local church pastors, we invite our community to reject the path of violence and follow the way of Jesus, a path of peace, grace, love and truth. As the Apostle Paul wrote to Christians living under the Roman Empire, Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:17-18). The Rev. Katie Sexton has served as executive director of Arizona Faith Network since 2019 and has been an ordained pastor in the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) since 2014. The Rev. Caleb Campbell is lead pastor at Desert Springs Bible Church and author of Disarming Leviathan: Loving Your Christian Nationalist Neighbor. Reach them at katie.sexton@azfaithnetwork.org and Caleb@dsbc.church. This column first appeared in The Arizona Republic. You can read diverse opinions from our USA TODAY columnists and other writers on the Opinion front page, on X, formerly Twitter, @usatodayopinion and in our Opinion newsletter. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: GOP leader threatens to 'lynch' election official. We can't allow that DOTHAN, Ala (WDHN) A Dothan teen accused of shooting two women in the head at a party almost two years ago is set to go in front of the Houston County Grand Jury for a second time. According to Houston County District Attorney Russ Goodman, Vincent Oliver Jr. is expected to be reindicted by a grand jury in August 2024 on two counts of capital murder. Oliver Jr. is accused of shooting 21-year-old Jasmine Danielle Bean and 20-year-old JaLexius Lashon Wells to death in November 2022. He was fourteen at the time of the murder. In May 2023, a Houston County Judge ordered Oliver Jr. to be charged as an adult, and a grand jury initially indicted the teen in October of that year. However, a month later, the case was halted after Oliver Jr.s defense team filed a motion to appeal the ruling. RELATED: Appeals Court upholds ruling for 14-year-old murder suspect to be charged as an adult The Alabama Court of Appeals upheld the order in December 2023, reaffirming the judges decision. His case was then returned to the Houston County courts. DA Goodman says it has taken nine months to have Oliver Jr. go in front of a grand jury for a second time because of the appeals courts slow process. If Oliver Jr. is reindicted, the District Attorney does not expect him to stand trial until at least 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 WDHN - wdhn.com. SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) The Coke County Sheriffs Office has asked for the publics assistance in identifying three men responsible for a criminal mischief incident in Robert Lee, a group that may also be connected to vandalism that occurred at the towns pool. According to CCSO, the criminal mischief took place at 1:12 a.m. on July 5 at Ivey Motors. Surveillance footage recorded the trio walking from 8th Street to Austin Street. At the dealership, two of the three men were filmed tampering with an electric car charging station before using its plug to shatter its glass face. San Angelo woman killed in single-vehicle crash on Houston Harte As of the time of publication, the sheriffs office is facing a discrepancy between the crimes reported time of occurrence at 1:12 a.m. and a surveillance recordings logged time of 2:15 a.m. It said that it is not sure if the time may be wrong or if the three individuals returned again an hour later. CCSO stated that the damage caused by the criminal mischief is estimated to cost approximately $6,000, though it also stated that the total cannot be confirmed at this time. Ivey Motors, alongside another business in the area, contributed surveillance videos to help the sheriffs office in its efforts to identify the individuals. CCSO said that the videos are not the best quality, though, leading it to ask the public for any tips it may have that can lead to the identification of these three individuals. Below are two videos provided by the sheriffs office that depict the unidentified individuals: The sheriffs office also said that the deputy investigating the crime has reasonable belief that the criminal mischief may be connected to a separate instance of vandalism that occurred at the Coke County Pool that same morning. During the incident, an unknown person or group of people broke into the property sometime in the early hours and threw multiple items into the pool, including bottles, hubcaps, chairs, cameras ripped out of the facility and a lifeguard chair. RELATED: CCSO seeks publics help after Coke County Pool vandalized An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. An image depicting the damages caused by a vandal or multiple vandals at the Coke County Pool in Robert Lee on July 5, 2024. CCSO stated regarding the pool vandalism that Criminal Trespass and Criminal Mischief of $2,500 or more in damage is a State Jail Felony in the State of Texas. According to the Texas Penal Code, a state jail felony is punishable with confinement for any term of not more than two years or less than 180 days with a few exceptions. Investigations into both incidents are still ongoing. The sheriffs office asks anyone with information that may lead to the identification of the three men depicted in the recordings or the party responsible for vandalizing the Coke County Pool to contact it at (325)-453-2717. Three unknown men involved in a criminal mischief incident in Coke County on July 5, 2024, walk down a street. Image courtesy of the Coke County 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 ConchoValleyHomepage.com. ST. LOUIS As the national opioid crisis continues, the fight against the exploitation of controlled substances and hard drug prescriptions carries on. Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Dr. David A. Parks, 66; James M. Bilderback, 58; and Michelle J. Scheer, 43, were indicted for illegally prescribing controlled substances and even defrauding health care insurers. The trio worked out of a clinic located in the Central West End. Prosecutors said the three conspired to commit the crime for an increase in patient population and, with that, their profit. The doctor and his two employees prescribed controlled substances outside of what is the professional norm and for no legitimate medical purpose at Dr. Parks clinic, located in the 3900 block of Lindell Boulevard in the Central West End. Many of Parks patients would regularly receive prescriptions including hydrocodone, oxycodone, and dextroamphetamine-amphetamine salts that aid in the treatment of ADHD and are similar to Adderall. Bridge collapse leaves residents isolated, emergency access hindered According to the U.S. Attorneys Office, between July 6, 2016 and December 31, 2021, the trio continually prescribed substances that, when combined, would increase the addictive, euphoric effects of the drugs. Additionally, the prescriptions given would increase the potential for overdoses and lead to other situations related to drug abuse. Dr. Parks ran the clinic and Bilderback was the clinical manager and clinical research coordinator at the clinic. Parks and Bilderback were later married while working at the clinic and Scheer worked at the front desk as a receptionist. The U.S. Attorneys Office says Parks would only be present at the clinic one to two days per week and for only a few hours at a time. The staff reportedly used pre-signed prescriptions, allowing patients to obtain substances without being evaluated or having any medical records reviewed while Parks was out of the office. Bilderback or another employee would even forge Parks signature on prescriptions. For prescriptions processed electronically, Parks and Bilderback gave the cellphone used to approve those prescriptions to staffers with no prescribing authority, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Scheer, while at the front desk, would use the cellphone to make her own decisions regarding patient prescriptions, such as changing their dosage, quantities, and types of substances included in prescriptions. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office, Parks instructed clinic staff not to drug test patients in order to prevent the detection of potential signs of drug abuse and distribution to non-patients. Special treatment was even given to friends and family of Parks and Bilderback through issuing prescriptions for drugs whenever they desired and without any requirement to see another provider. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News Parks failed to properly supervise nurse practitioners and did not review even 10% of their charts documenting nurse practitioner activities. During an appointment at the clinic, patients were sometimes seen by only a nurse practitioner or Bilderback but were charged higher rates as if they were seen by Parks, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Outside of illegally distributing controlled substances, the couple was charged for defrauding Medicare, Missouri Medicaid, and private health insurers. The couple would often bill insurers for services that identified Parks as the healthcare provider when he was out of the country at the time of the claim, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Parks, Bilderback and Scheer were each charged with conspiracy to illegally prescribe controlled substances and five counts of the illegal prescribing of a controlled substance. Parks and Bilderback were charged on one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and eight additional counts of illegally prescribing a controlled substance. The couple was also charged with 15 counts of making false statements regarding health care matters. Statement from Dr. David Parks: For 30 years, Dr. David Parks has built a reputation as a respected physician, caring for tens of thousands of patients in the St. Louis area, beginning in the 1990s, at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. At his Center West End clinic, Dr. Parks practiced internal medicine, and served a diverse group of patients, including young adults and the elderly. He was also instrumental in treating underserved individuals from the LGBTQ community, often providing free or low-cost treatment to patients who could not afford to pay. Dr. Parks is recognized as a specialist in the treatment of infectious diseases, particularly HIV/AIDS. In his career as a physician, Dr. Parks worked to prolong the lives of his patients, many of whom had multiple, complex, and chronic conditions. He also sought to improve the quality of their lives, including through pain management, which sometimes necessitated prescribing controlled substances. Dr. Parks and his husband Jim intend to defend themselves against these allegations. Dr. Parks is represented by Talmage E. Newton IV and Steven Hoffmann of Newton Barth, L.L.P. Statement from Dr. David Parks Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 lot of the time, great discoveries happen by a complete accident. At least, that was the case in Bulgaria last week when a crew of archaeologists unexpectedly unearthed a centuries-old artifact during a dig at the site of an ancient city called Heraclea Sintica, Reuters reported. The relic in question is actually a life-size marble sculpture of the Greek god Hermes that has been hidden away in a sewer for thousands of years. More from Robb Report Its head is preserved. [Its in a] very good condition. There are a few fractures on the hands, Lyudmil Vagalinski, who led the team of archaeologists, explained to Reuters. Now known as the village of Rupite, Heraclea Sintica has a history that spans centuries. King Philip II of Macedon founded the city in southwestern Bulgaria between 356 B.C. and 339 B.C. The metropolis was then destroyed by an earthquake in 388 A.D. and subsequently abandoned around 500 A.D. In what the archaeologists believe was a deliberate attempt to preserve the sculpture over time, the statue was covered in dirt and placed into the sewer where it sat for approximately 2,000 years. According to the experts, the statue is actually a Roman reconstruction of the ancient Greek original. Everything pagan was forbidden, and they have joined the new ideology, but apparently they took care of their old deities, Vagalinski added. Bulgarian archaeologists discovered a well-preserved marble statue of the Greek god Hermes. The 6.8-foot (2-meter) tall statue was found during excavation work at the site of the ancient city of Heraclea Sintica. More here: https://t.co/SAZCD18M3j pic.twitter.com/U1DiplzfJP Reuters (@Reuters) July 5, 2024 In addition to the recent Hermes statue excavation, this year has already seen its fair share of exciting discoveries. In January, French tourist Julien Navas unknowingly stumbled upon an insane 7.5-carat chocolate-colored diamond. The Parisian traveler was visiting Crater of Diamonds State Park in Arkansas when he accidentally found the gem. It was one of the most amazing surprises, after the birth of my daughter, Navas told The Washington Post at the time. Then, back in April, archaeologists came across a collection of frescoes during an excavation effort in Pompeii. The paintings decorated a banquet room and depicted different characters and figures from the Trojan War. Pompeii is truly a treasure chest that never ceases to surprise and amaze us because, every time we dig, we find something beautiful and significant, Gennaro Sangiuliano, Italys culture minister, said in a statement. At this rate, who knows what could be dug up next? 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. 'Challenge me at the convention.' Biden comes out swinging Monday following calls for him to drop out. Facing continued opposition within his party, President Biden aggressively pushed back against his critics in a new public letter and television interview Monday morning. Biden's comments came as Congress is expected to return to Washington on Tuesday for the first time since the June 27 debate. Bidens debate performance, which saw him speaking haltingly and sometimes losing his train of thought, caused significant concerns among fellow Democrats worried about his ability to defeat former President Donald Trump in November. Five House Democrats have publicly called on Biden to step aside for another nominee to take his place an unprecedented move just weeks before the Democratic National Convention. Here's a look at Biden's latest statements and the context behind them. What did Biden do? Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats on Monday saying that he is firmly committed to staying in this race. The letter comes a day after Hakeem Jeffries, a New York Democrat and minority leader of the U.S. House of Representatives, organized a meeting of leaders to discuss support for Bidens candidacy. The president doubled down on his stance with an unscheduled call into MSNBCs Morning Joe, during which he told co-hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, I am not going anywhere. MSNBC EXCLUSIVE: President Biden on Morning Joe says Were not going anywhere. I am not going anywhere. pic.twitter.com/9r2ovGrSDA MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 8, 2024 What did Biden say? The two-page letter rejects the criticism of Bidens campaign coming from Capitol Hill members and the media. He denied allegations that he is unprepared to be reelected and reiterated the need for unity within the Democratic Party. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us, he wrote. The voters of the Democratic Party have voted. They have chosen me to be the nominee of the party. Do we now just say this process didnt matter? he asked. I decline to do that. This morning, I sent a letter to my fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill. In it, I shared my thoughts about this moment in our campaign. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/ABtAaJrr0n Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 8, 2024 In response to the growing pressure from Democratic lawmakers and operatives calling for Biden to drop out of the race, the president told the MSNBC hosts: I dont care what those big names think. Who else do you think could step in here and do this? Biden asked on MSNBC. Run against me. Announce for president. Challenge me at the convention. Im not going to explain anymore about what I should or shouldnt do, he added. I am running. Watch the full Morning Joe call with Biden: On Sunday, Jeffries organized a private conference call with several senior House Democrats including Reps. Jerry Nadler, Adam Smith, Mark Takano and Joe Morelle, all of whom reportedly said that Biden should step down as the Democratic nominee. Read more about the Jeffries call from CNN: Several top House Democrats say Biden should step aside during leadership call How did all of this start? Bidens poor debate performance on June 27 has caused growing concern over his fitness for reelection. Almost immediately after the debate, the president started facing public calls about whether he should step down as the Democratic nominee. Those calls have only grown louder in recent days from elected officials, party stalwarts and donors. The Biden campaign has responded by buying more campaign ads, booking more campaign stops and scheduling a high-stakes interview with ABC News last Friday. What happens now? The president remains steadfast in his commitment to run for reelection and win. But he faces an increasingly vocal group within his own party questioning his efforts. Over the weekend, Rep. Angie Craig became the fifth Democratic member of Congress to call on Biden to step aside. Reps. Mike Quigley of Illinois and Lloyd Doggett of Texas repeated their calls for Biden to exit the race. On Tuesday, Jeffries has planned to hold a caucus meeting with Democratic lawmakers. Jeffries has remained mum on his stance about Bidens reelection. With the Democratic National Convention looming a little more than a month away on Aug. 19, the clock is ticking for Democrats to resolve this issue. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Transit shipments between Azerbaijan and China have increased significantly, Executive Director of the Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) Yusif Abdulayev said, Trend reports. He made the remark during a conference on promoting logistics and trade in Azerbaijan - a demonstration zone of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO). Abdullayev emphasized that Azerbaijan's location at the crossroads of Europe and Asia is strategically important, especially in transit logistics. "Transit shipments between Azerbaijan and China amounted to 178,000 tons in 2024, which is 31 percent higher compared to the previous year. Specifically, rail transport increased by 93 percent," he explained. According to him, Azerbaijan and China have strategic relations that differ from those of two to three years ago. "These relations create opportunities to enhance cooperation across almost all spheres of interaction between the countries. This includes trade, economic, cultural, and tourism ties. We have joint projects with our partners, including events, exhibitions, and forums organized in collaboration with various organizations. These events are supported by both states and will certainly continue from our side," he added. To note, on July 2, Azerbaijan and China sealed the deal on a Memorandum of Understanding that will grease the wheels for transportation volumes along the Middle Corridor linking the container rail freight transportation networks of China and the European Union countries through Central Asia, the Caucasus, Turkiye, and Eastern Europe. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Online Duval County court records show that charges against a popular rapper from Jacksonville have been dropped. Yungeen Ace, whose real name is Keyanta Bullard, was arrested in April on a charge of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. The prosecution dropped the charges against Bullard on July 3, but hes been out of custody since April. According to a disposition statement, E-Traces were completed for the firearms but provided no evidence to associate the firearms with Bullard. Bullards phone was recovered, but after review, a search warrant was not sought. ... Bullards DNA was taken pursuant to a search warrant and was compared against the firearms, but FDLE reported that the firearms failed to demonstrate a sufficient amount of DNA for processing. Read: Rapper Yungeen Ace arrested for possession of firearm by convicted felon in Jacksonville Beach There were 4 other people in the car with Bullard and the driver when Jacksonville Beach police stopped the car for running a stop sign. The driver of the car later claimed in a YouTube video that the firearms found belonged to other people in the car, the disposition statement said. Mere proximity to a firearm does not establish that the person intentionally exercised control over it in the absence of additional evidence, the disposition statement said. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Action News Jax told you in June 2018 that Bullard was the lone survivor in a drive-by shooting on Town Center Parkway that killed 3 young men. After he was released from the hospital from his injuries in that shooting, he was arrested by the Jacksonville Sheriffs Office for violation of probation. Officials said at that time that he violated his probation for possessing a firearm. In 2017, he was given 31 months of probation on an accessory charge out of Clay County. Read: Jacksonville rapper Julio Foolio fatally shot in Tampa while celebrating birthday, attorney confirms In October 2018, Bullard was arrested again for violation of probation. The warrant from that arrest stated he did not stay with his itinerary while traveling back from a trip to Louisiana and also visited the Orange Park Mall without consent from his probation officer. In March 2019, Bullards attorney said he was ambushed, which led to a shooting at the Hampton Inn in Waycross. One man was killed and another was injured. Bullard was in the area performing a concert. [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] JSO is currently looking into whether Bullard was involved in the death of rival Jacksonville rapper Julio Foolio, who was shot and killed at a hotel in Tampa while celebrating his 26th birthday. Bullard released a diss track about Foolios death hours after the actual murder. Jacksonville Sheriff TK Waters said the agency is aware of the video and is investigating, but Bullard has yet to be officially named a suspect or person of interest in Foolios murder. 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. In the Charlotte area, a slice of South Carolina helped boost the Hispanic growth rate Its no secret that Charlotte and Mecklenburg County are part of one of the fastest growing metro areas in the U.S., and recent census data continues to prove just that. That growth is seen within the Hispanic population. Specifically, Lancaster County in South Carolina is seeing the most growth in both overall population and the Hispanic population. Heres what else we found: What the numbers show About 50,000 people became residents of Mecklenburg and its nine bordering counties between July 2022 and July 2023. They residents increased the areas population to nearly 2.8 million people, according to the data. Thats a growth rate of about 1.8%. About 30% of the new residents or around 14,500 people were Hispanic, according to a Charlotte Observers analysis of census data. Within the 10-county area and yearly time frame, the Hispanic population increased by 4.3%, double the growth of the areas Black population and about five times the rate of the white population. New census data showed that the Hispanic population accounted for 30% of the overall growth rate. in the Charlotte area. This is a nationwide trend The Hispanic population made up about 71% of overall growth in the country, mainly through what is known as a natural increase, according to a Census Bureau news release. Between 2022 and last year, the Hispanic population had about 722,000 more births than deaths. International migration accounted for about one-third of the populations increase, with about 437,000 newcomers entering the country. So, why Charlotte? Its unclear whether the Hispanic population increase in Mecklenburg is from newcomers or a natural increase but it seems to be a bit of both, according to Michelle Zuniga. Shes a University of North Carolina at Charlotte assistant professor in Earth, environmental and geographical sciences. Zuniga said the Hispanic population, and other immigrant communities, tend to move to areas where they already have a network. That could include family, friends or community members. This way they have resources and connections to those who speak the same language and understand them on a cultural level. As the Hispanic population grows in the Charlotte area, resource groups such as the Hispanic Federation make the transition easier. Historically, Zuniga said, those networks were in port cities such as New York City or Los Angeles. And they still are. But as those cities have become more and more expensive, the population moves away, setting up their lives in less expensive cities such as Charlotte. Then, Zuniga said, theres political policy. She said North Carolinas political landscape toward immigrants is not as extreme as say Florida or Texas. So, North Carolina provides a halfway point for those populations moving north. Theres policies pushing for people to move. Stringent immigration policies have pushed individuals away from those places so that they can live a life that is less fearful, Zuniga said. Perhaps North Carolina could be less fearful for them. Theres also resources and acceptance in cities such as Charlotte and nearby areas, Zuniga said. Cultural connections Cultural festivals have increased and while theres room for more organizations, Zuniga said, the resources available to the Hispanic population are abundant. Lauren Rogers, the director of community engagement for International House, agreed. Once they come here to Charlotte, theres already a pretty great support system in place with the Hispanic community. A lot of times those families are able to integrate pretty seamlessly within the Hispanic network, Rogers said. Some of those resources include International House, Latin American Coalition and Carolina Migrant Network. The city of Charlotte is growing rapidly and its becoming more and more diverse every year, Rogers said. I think slowly but surely some of the service providers in Charlotte are really starting to take note and start taking steps to really be able to serve these families a little bit more efficiently. Celebrations, like this Hispanic Heritage Month event, may have contributed to the Hispanic populations growth in Charlotte area. Booming growth rates in Lancaster County, SC Out of the 10 area counties, Lancaster in South Carolina had both the biggest growth in total population and in its Hispanic population between 2022 and 2023. The Observer found that Lancasters population increased by 3.3%, while its Hispanic population jumped by 7.1%. Zuniga said one reason the county could be seeing a growth in the Hispanic population is for the same reason as Charlotte. The area is less expensive. Dennis Marstall, Lancasters county administrator, credits the jump to the areas quality of life, job market and affordability. Its a continuation of the growth from Charlotte, Marstall said. But more importantly, you are finding the lower cost of living. You do find more housing options. We have a variety of jobs from manufacturing to corporate, back office jobs to tech jobs, to mortgage jobs, health care jobs These things make the area attractive to everyone. Marstall said growth in the county is especially occurring in the northern portion such as the Indian Land area, which is closest to the North Carolina border. In terms of affordability, Marstall said the variety in housing stock is keeping prices low. Theres a range of entry-level housing prices to executive prices. Land space is vast and also affordable, allowing for rental developments. Between land purchases, plan submissions, county approvals and new home announcements, more than 2,500 new homes could be coming to the area, The Rock Hill Herald reported in March. The number of construction projects that have already been approved is several times higher. We have large developments anywhere from 15-unit housing up to 800, Marstall said. Having so many housing developments underway, that provides for more options and makes for a bit more competitive housing market that can be good on the price point. The job market is the same. More tech-heavy firms are calling the area home, Marstall said, as well as existing corporate companies such as Continental Tire and Nutramax Laboratories. Lancaster also has a heavy agriculture and timber-based economy. The range of jobs just provides new residents with more opportunities. In this file photo, a construction crew works on the The Lodges at Indian Land on Fort Mill Highway. Lancaster County had the biggest growth in total population and in its Hispanic population. Infrastructure issues As Lancaster grows, so will its infrastructure needs. Marstall said the county is working to control growth so that the infrastructure isnt overwhelmed, but new roadways and increases in basic public safety services are all happening now. All of those improvements, such as highway widening, hiring more emergency personnel and creating new park systems, are in preparation for even more people. As the fastest growing county in the Charlotte region, we dont see that changing in the next two or three years. Weve got to make sure we stay focused on growth because its coming, whether we are ready or not, Marstall said. Every department in Lancaster County has been impacted by growth, he said. We look forward to maintaining the quality of life for those who are here and also being an attractive place for others coming. Here are some other findings Lancaster County had the areas largest percentage increase between 2022 and last year at 3.3%. Catawba County had the smallest increase at 0.9%. Two counties Cabarrus and Gaston saw a drop in the number of white residents. Lincoln County had the largest jump in its Black population, with an increase of 6.8%. Mecklenburg County is 44% white, 31% Black and 16% Hispanic. NC Reality Check reflects the Charlotte Observers commitment to holding those in power to account, shining a light on public issues that affect our local readers and illuminating the stories that set the Charlotte area and North Carolina apart. Have a suggestion for a future story? Email realitycheck@charlotteobserver.com An exterior photo taken June 20 of the office building being converted to the Heart of Ohio Classical Academy in Dublin, a charter school set to open this fall and offering a no-cost classical education to students. A new charter school is set to open this fall in a former Dublin office building, offering a no-cost "classical" education based on conservative Hillsdale College's curriculum to hundreds of students. The Heart of Ohio Classical Academy, located across Interstate 270 from Tuttle Mall in Dublin, will be a free to students charter (or community) school that is open to enrollment for all Ohio students. The school currently has over 200 students enrolled for the fall, but Sam Weisbrod, the headmaster of the new school, said the school could grow to over 400 students. The Heart of Ohio Classical Academy purchased the former office space from the previous owners for $7.5 million in early June, according to the Franklin County Auditor's Office. Funds were raised for the purchase by issuing bonds, Weisbrod said, and the academy will use state-issued funds to work on servicing the debt when it becomes available to the school in October, Weisbrod said. The location of the property right off of I-270 and near U.S. 33 makes the location a prime spot for students across the region and state, he said. Weisbrod said he wants the Heart of Ohio Classical Academy to be a viable alternative to the public school system, which he says is "in disarray, to say the least." "The idea here is taking a curriculum that hitherto has only been available in private schools, and making it accessible to everyone," Weisbrod said. What is a 'classical education?' The Heart of Ohio Classical Academy will be using the conservative Hillsdale College's Barney Charter School Initiative classical education curriculum. Weisbrod said nearly 100 schools nationwide use the curriculum, although Weisbrod said the Heart of Ohio school will be the first in central Ohio to offer it at no cost to students as a charter school. According to Hillsdale College, a conservative Christian college in Michigan that has refused federal funding to avoid government regulations, the "classical" curriculum offers an education where "teachers lead students toward moral and intellectual virtue by means of a rich and robust course of study in the liberal arts and sciences, with instruction in the principles of moral character and civic virtue." Students take courses in literature and mathematics, history and the sciences, the fine arts, Latin and physical education. More: Two 'classical education' schools tied to Hillsdale College planned for Greater Columbus Weisbrod said the model employed under the Hillsdale curriculum is one that has worked "for a very long time across western civilization." "We've got a superior product to help kids become the best that they can be to help train people to their potentials, giving them a clear and concise roadmap on how to get there," Weisbrod said. "And that's, I think, everything that a parent wants for their kids." What will Heart of Ohio Classical Academy offer? Despite the school's use of conservative Hillsdale's curriculum, Weisbrod said the charter school will not be political or religious and will offer school services like intervention specialists and Individualized Education Programs (IEPS) like any other charter or public school. Weisbrod, who is Jewish, said he was impressed by the range of backgrounds and minority groups interested in a classical education in central Ohio. "Because they recognize that there's this discipline inherent in the education that we're helping to provide," Weisbrod said. "Compared to more of an arbitrary 'Okay, this teacher, this classroom, thinks that, or thinks this.' This is a consolidated approach." Weisbrod said that the classical academy model offers a balance between fostering the individual characters of each student while also providing a strong structure to help them grow. He said many of the teachers at the academy have even taken a pay cut to work there because they believe in the school's mission. The school was first conceptualized in 2020 from a group of people interested in promoting classical education opportunities for central Ohio youth, according to the school's website. The school will begin offering kindergarten through sixth grade, with plans to add a new grade each year up through 12th grade. The school building is currently being renovated from a former office space, but the building already features a large auditorium and the first two floors of the four-story building with plans to expand over time. Cbehrens@dispatch.com @colebehr_report This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: 'Classical education' charter school opening in former Dublin office Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley gives an update on the search for Quniton Simon during a press conference on October 10, 2022. Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley on Monday withdrew his application to lead the police force in Beaumont, Texas, noted a news release. Hadley last month was named a finalist for the police chief position, according to a news release issued by the City of Beaumont. Hadley, who has served as Chatham County's police chief since December 2017, was appointed in June by County Manager Michael Kaigler to oversee the transition of the unincorporated area's privately-run fire services to the newly-formed Chatham County Fire Department. With Hadleys departure from the day-to-day operations of CCPD, Kaigler has appointed CCPD Assistant Chief Julie Tolbert as acting chief. Chatham County Public Information Officer Betsy Nolen provided a statement on behalf of Hadley: After careful consideration, I have withdrawn my application for the Chiefs position in Beaumont, Texas. I have informed the Beaumont search committee, the Chatham County Manager, and the officers and staff of the Chatham County Police Department of my decision. "Many people in law enforcement receive opportunities to explore other professional positions from time to time, and it is rewarding to be considered as a finalist for a Chiefs position. As I said when I was selected as a finalist, any future career decisions would be made carefully and only after taking many factors into account. "When I was named a finalist, I received an outpouring of communication from Chatham County leadership, fellow law enforcement officers, and members of the community. The kind words they had for me and more importantly the Chatham County Police Department, reaffirmed what I have known for the six and a half years that I have served this community. "Chatham County is a unique and special place, and the Chatham County Police Department is an exceptional law enforcement agency. My work here is rewarding, the support of leaders and the community is exceptional, and those who serve in the Chatham County Police Department are some of the finest professionals you will find anywhere. There is simply no reason to step away. "I remain committed to my role as Chatham County Police Chief, and to my temporary assignment assisting in the Chatham County Fire Department transition. Public safety is my lifes work, and I look forward to continuing my commitment to everyone who lives, works and visits our community. More: Is Chatham County Police Chief Jeff Hadley headed west? Here's what to know More: Chatham County Fire Department begins providing fire services to unincorporated county More: 'Sadly, we still have not found Quinton': Chatham police, FBI identify mother as prime suspect Hadley began his law enforcement career 33 years ago in Cape Coral, Florida. Prior to his selection as CCPD chief, Hadley served more than nine years as public safety chief in Kalamazoo, Michigan. He had been a captain with the Fort Wayne (Indiana) Police 15 years prior. When the CCPD transitioned from the joint Savannah-Chatham Metro Police Department in December 2017, Hadley was hired as the CCPD chief. 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: Chatham County police chief withdraws application for Texas position A new project could set a precedent for other cities exploring large-scale office-to-residential conversions amid a housing crisis. In Chicago, the office-to-residential conversion movement is underway. Four former downtown office buildings will become mixed-use, mixed-income residential properties in an initiative called LaSalle Street Reimagined. Office-to-residential conversions bring a mixed-bag of opportunity and challenges. They could yield a two-birds-one-stone solution for cities facing housing shortages and a glut of vacant commercial properties, but the conversion process presents design challenges that restrict how offices can be updated. When pandemic lockdowns eased and workers began returning to downtown offices, many found Chicagos Loop eerily empty. In the LaSalle Street corridor, the citys art decoadorned financial district, the vibe was ghostly. Even before the pandemic, tenants operating in the historic buildings had begun restructuring or downsizing, abandoning their LaSalle offices; some, like BMO Harris and Bank of America, had already planned to move into brand new, class-A facilities elsewhere. When the pandemic hit, abandonment continued, and by 2024, the vacancy rate reached 25 percent, according to Chicago Magazine. Former mayor Lori Lightfoot announced that her administration was exploring using tax dollars to support revitalizing the corridor into a vibrant live-work neighborhood. Though housing advocates were skeptical that Mayor Brandon Johnson, elected in 2023, would continue to support the plan, he announced in April that the city would use $151.2 million in tax increment financing dollars to turn about 1.25 million square feet of former commercial space into 1,000 homes. Architects at Lamar Johnson Collaborative recently released renderings for 208 S LaSallea 22-story Classical Revival building built in 1914 for the Continental and Commercial National Bankwhich will create 226 apartments plus amenities across five floors. These units will add to downtown Chicagos growth as a residential neighborhood; According to Bloomberg, the Loops residential population grew by nine percent between 2020 and 2023. At a recent Tiny Homes conference, Nneka Onwuzurik, first deputy of business and neighborhood development, noted in a speech to attendees that LaSalle Reimagined also adds a much needed 300 affordable units to the downtown districts existing nine subsidized units. Related reading: How Feasible Is It to Turn Office Buildings Into Apartments? Top image: tunart/Getty Images FILE - Pope Francis attends a meeting with the participants of the 50th Social Week of Catholics in Italy, in Trieste, Italy, on July 7, 2024. The Vaticans chief prosecutor has strongly defended the integrity and fairness of the city states justice system, amid criticism that Pope Francis' absolute power and his interventions in the recently-concluded trial of the century violated the defendants fundamental rights. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino, File) ROME (AP) The Vaticans chief prosecutor has strongly defended the integrity and fairness of the city states justice system following criticism that Pope Francis' absolute power and his interventions in the so-called trial of the century last year violated the defendants fundamental rights. Prosecutor Alessandro Diddi's defense comes as the Vatican tribunal finalizes its written reasonings for its December 2023 verdicts. The tribunal convicted a cardinal and eight others of various financial-related crimes related to the Holy Sees 350 million euro investment in a London property, but has not yet explained its decisions. Diddi published an essay last month in a peer-reviewed Italian journal, Diritto e religioni (Law and Religion) though he was not identified as the Vaticans top criminal prosecutor, in keeping with the journal's practice. Legal experts said such a publication in an academic journal was unusual, since Diddi is a party to a trial that is heading into the appeals phase. He was essentially replying to two academics and lawyers representing some of the 10 defendants who have raised questions about whether the two-year trial and preceding investigation were fair. Their critiques have raised more fundamental concerns about whether a fair trial is even possible in an absolute monarchy where the pope wields supreme legislative, executive and judicial power and used it in this case. These critics have cited Pope Francis role in the trial, since he secretly issued four decrees during the investigation that changed Vatican procedures to benefit prosecutors. And they have called into question the independence and impartiality of the tribunal itself since its judges swear obedience to Francis, who can hire and fire them at will. Francis recently named several of his closest allies cardinals with no experience in Vatican law to sit as judges on the Vatican's highest court of appeal and issued new rules on judges' salary and pension benefits. In his essay, Diddi argued the trial and Vatican system itself were most certainly fair. He insisted that the tribunal and its judges were fully independent and that the defense had every opportunity to present its case. He said the popes four decrees merely filled regulatory loopholes in the Vatican's peculiar legal code and had no impact on the outcome of the trial or the rights of the defendants. Even though the Holy See isnt a signatory to the European Convention on Human Rights, it doesnt place itself outside the international community and doesnt renege on the principles that inspire it, Diddi wrote. The four secret decrees were signed by the pope in 2019 and 2020, giving Vatican prosecutors wide-ranging powers to investigate, including via unchecked wiretapping and to deviate from existing laws in allowing them to detain suspects without a judge's warrant. The decrees only came to light right before trial, were never officially published, provided no rationale or timeframe for the surveillance or detention, or oversight by an independent judge. Diddi denied the decrees impacted the suspects rights. He said they merely provided an authentic interpretation by the pope to Vatican norms. He argued that regardless, the decrees only disciplined some particular aspects of the investigation, and and did not determine any failure in the guarantees offered to the suspects. Geraldina Boni, a canon lawyer who provided a legal opinion for the defense of Cardinal Angelo Becciu, has written that the decrees represented a clear violation of the right to a fair trial since the suspects didn't know about the broad powers granted to prosecutors until they were on trial. One defendant who came in for questioning was jailed for 10 days by prosecutors. Diddi noted that Swiss and Italian courts have previously recognized the independence and impartiality of the Vatican City State's legal system in agreeing to provide judicial assistance in freezing assets of the suspects. Those rulings, however, were issued before the current trial ended and the decrees' existence known. Additionally, a British judge ordered the assets of one of the suspects released because he found appalling misrepresentations and omissions in Diddi's case. Questions about the fairness and impartiality of the Vatican City States legal system could have implications for the Holy See down the road, since the Vatican relies on other countries to cooperate in law enforcement investigations and implement its sentences. These countries might be less willing to cooperate if they doubt the fairness of the system. Additionally, whenever the Holy See signs commercial contracts with non-Vatican entities, it insists that any contract dispute be handled by its own tribunal. That contractual clause could become difficult to negotiate if there are questions about whether the other side will be treated fairly by the Vatican court. Less hypothetically, the Holy See is subject to periodic review by the Council of Europes Moneyval commission, whose evaluators analyze the effectiveness of the judicial system in fighting money laundering and terrorist financing. In a related development, the Vaticans No. 3 official on Monday wrapped up three days of testimony in a London court in a spinoff counter-suit brought by one of the Vatican defendants. Raffaele Mincione, a London-based financier, is seeking to have the British High Court declare that he acted in good faith in his dealings with the Vatican over the London property. He is hoping to clear his name and repair the reputational harm he says he and his firm have endured as a result of the Vatican trial. Mincione has also filed a complaint with the U.N. human rights office in Geneva, claiming that the pope violated his rights by authorizing surveillance via the decrees. The Vatican has rejected the claim, saying in a press statement that the investigation followed all relevant laws and international agreements and that no surveillance was actually ordered for Mincione. Mincione, and the other defendants, have announced appeals. Child struck, killed in driveway of family home in Horizon Child struck, killed in driveway of family home in Horizon EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A 2-year-old child was struck and killed in the driveway of the family home in Horizon City on Sunday night, July 7, the Horizon City Mayors Office confirmed to KTSM. The incident happened along the 14200 block of Desert Shadow Drive. Our crew on the scene reported a large police presence at the scene. The incident remains under investigation. We will update this story as soon as we learn more. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Children head back to school on year-round calendar in one North Carolina county - could it be coming to your district? Children head back to school on year-round calendar in one North Carolina county - could it be coming to your district? While the Fourth of July holiday marks the high point of summer for many US students, it meant something a little different for thousands of kids in North Carolinas Wake County: the last weekend of summer break. In 37 middle and elementary schools in the district, home to the city of Raleigh, Monday, July 8, marked the first day of school, part of a year-round schedule that eschews the traditional lengthy summer break in favor of four nine-week quarters, with smaller breaks in between. Were not sure what the year-round is going to bring, but were excited," one district parent, whose child is entering year-round schooling for the first time, told local news station ABC 11. The district has spent decades experimenting with year-round calendars and is still split on where it stands. A majority of students are still on the traditional calendar, and wont be back in school until August 27. The divide reflects the larger trend in the US, where districts and states have swung back and forth adopting, then dropping, then re-adopting year-round school plans, most recently during a wave of renewed interest during the pandemic. Schools first began experimenting with this format in the l960s and 70s, in growing communities like Hayward, California, and Valley View, Illinois, which were absorbing high numbers of students whose families were leaving cities in favor of suburban neighborhoods. Proponents argue that year-round calendars make more efficient use of school resources, and prevent learning loss over long summer breaks. "We were looking primarily at our summer learning loss from the last few years. So, the research shows students were falling back two to three years in their math and reading," Adrian Bustillos, chief transformation officer of Aldine Independent School District in Texas, told Fox News last year, as his district shifted to a revised calendar. "When we look at our data, there is essentially no learning loss. There is a slight dip, but nothing compared to years in the past. Such policies caught on particularly in high-growth areas like Clark County, home of Las Vegas, whose school population grew by 60 percent, to 160,000 students, between 2000 and 2019, and Wake County, where late 2000s projections assumed the school system would grow by 5,000 students a year. However, these experiments never quite caught on with the wider country, and only represented about four percent of US schools by 2020, after declining for the previous 20 years. And the evidence isnt compelling that year-round calendars really boost educational achievement, Paul T. von Hippel a public policy professor at the University of Texas at Austin, wrote last year in Education Next. They have been tried and tested for over 50 years, and rigorous research on nearly one thousand public schools in the United States has found that they dont raise academic achievement, he wrote. Meanwhile, they needlessly complicate life for working parents and teachers. Still, the pandemic seems to have boosted interest in year-round calendars. As of last school year, a quarter of the school districts in South Carolina had switched to year-round calendars, while Washington state used some of its pandemic funding to explore shifting to such a system across more than 40 school districts. In Mississippi, meanwhile, nearly a quarter of districts began using such a calendar as of the 2023-2024 school year. Beyond what some see as a lack of concrete scholarly evidence about the benefits of year-round school calendars, others cite problems such as difficulties finding child care, depriving kids of the chance to get summer jobs, families having children on different calendars, and difficulty having enough time to prepare for standardized tests in their opposition. And in places like Wake County, at least two middle schools may switch back to a traditional calendar, facing a lack of the kind of student growth once projected for the area. Operating multi-track year-round schools at such a low level puts a lot of strain on the district in order to fund the additional positions that are not earned, Assistant Superintendent Glenn Carrozza told a school board facilities committee in June. Continued over the issue suggests that, as it has for decades, year-round schools will remain something between a trend and a fixture. As Katy Rouse, an economist who has studied year-round schools, once told The Wall Street Journal, Some things like summer vacation are institutionalized. When its the way its always been, its hard to change. China and Belarus conduct joint military exercises right next to NATO and EUs border Belarus and China kicked off 11-day joint military training exercises Monday, Belarus defense ministry said with activities taking place just miles from the border of Poland, a NATO and European Union member. The joint anti-terrorist training Attacking Falcon exercises in Belarus would see military personnel from both countries act together as one unit in certain stages, Major General Vadim Denisenko of the Belarusian military said in a Telegram post. Events in the world are complex, the situation is complex, therefore, having studied new forms and methods of conducting warfare, here we will work out all these moments considering all that is new that has been learnt in the past two years, Denisenko said. The joint exercises are being held at a training ground near the city of Brest on the Belarus-Poland border and some 40 miles from Minsks border with Ukraine. They come as Russias invasion of that country more than two years has hardened geopolitical divisions and continues to threaten broader regional security. Beijing and Minsk have been tightening their ties in recent years under Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, both autocrats and strong allies of Russias Vladimir Putin. The start of the anti-terrorism exercises coincided with a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to Warsaw, where he signed a security agreement with Polish Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. They also began on the eve of NATOs 75th anniversary summit in Washington a gathering where leaders will look to shore up support for Ukraine nearly two and a half years since Russias invasion. NATO and the EU have long accused Belarus of weaponizing the border by pushing asylum-seekers from third countries to its borders, and the joint exercises will no doubt be seen by some as a further provocation. CNN has reached out to NATO for comment. Belarus has been a critical Russian ally in the Kremlins war on Ukraine. Moscow partly used Belarus as a launching pad for the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 after amassing troops on the Ukrainian border during what it said were joint military exercises. Last year Putin also announced Russia would place tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. China has emerged as a key diplomatic and economic lifeline for Russia since its invasion of Ukraine, and been accused by Western leaders of bolstering Moscows war effort through the provision of dual use goods a charge Beijing denies. Belarus Ministry of Defense said troops from Chinas Peoples Liberation Army arrived in Belarus over the weekend. It published a series of photographs showing Chinese troops offloading equipment from a military cargo aircraft and said the drills will last until July 19. Chinas Ministry of Defense said on Sunday that the drills will include hostage rescue operations and counter-terrorism missions. The training aims to enhance the training levels and coordination capabilities of the participating troops, as well as deepen practical cooperation between the armies of the two countries, it added. Over the weekend, a delegations from Chinas Central Military Commission also held talks with counterparts in Minsk where the two sides discussed prospects for Belarusian-Chinese cooperation on military personnel training and outlined new areas of cooperation, according to Belarus defense ministry. This latest showing of their security cooperation comes just days after Belarus joined the Beijing and Moscow-backed Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on Thursday. Founded in 2001 by China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan to combat terrorism and promote border security, the SCO has grown in recent years as Beijing and Moscow drive a transformation of the bloc from a regional security club with a focus on Central Asia to a geopolitical counterweight to Western institutions led by the United States and its allies. Belarus entry in the bloc hailed by Xi and Lukashenko in a meeting on the sidelines of an SCO summit in Kazakhstan last week was widely seen by observers as another mark of that transformation. Then, Xi hailed the great strides in the relationship between the two countries a sentiment echoed in a meeting between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his newly appointed Belarusian counterpart Maksim Ryzhenkov on Monday in Beijing. Wang and Ryzhenkov agreed that the two sides would firmly support each other on issues concerning their core interests and major concerns, according to a readout from Chinas Foreign Ministry, which also noted their ambition to reject unilateral hegemony a reference to their shared opposition to a world order they see as dominated by the United States. CNNs Mariya Knight and Andee Capellan contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Pakistan has cooked up proposals to broaden economic cooperation with Azerbaijan, including getting a piece of the pie in Pakistan Refinery Limited, the publication of Pakistani media said, Trend reports. "Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has instructed the country's Minister of Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives to hold consultative meetings with relevant agencies, including the ministries of Commerce, Industry, Information Technology, Education, National Food Security, and the Board of Investment, to form a portfolio of investment proposals of $23 billion for Azerbaijan," the Pakistani media wrote. The proposals for Azerbaijan included participation in the underground gas storage project, the White Oil Pipeline, and oil gas liquefaction infrastructure. "Also SOCAR may be offered a share in Pakistan Refinery Limited (PRL), the creation of a JV between Pakistan State Oil (PSO) and SOCAR, investments in exploration blocks at sea and onshore," Pakistani media noted. Pakistan plans to invite Azerbaijan to projects on valuable metals, and cooperation in the field of information and communication technologies (the possibility of establishing IT campuses in Azerbaijan is not excluded). "In addition, negotiations are underway with Baku on transit and preferential trade. The possibility of increasing exports to Azerbaijan from Pakistan of pharmaceutical products and smartphones is also being considered," the media report of Pakistan noted. To note, SOCAR Trading has delivered two shipments of liquefied natural gas to Pakistan at a competitive price since December 2023. The idea of selling SOCAR's stake in the Pakistani refinery has been discussed for about two years. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel FILE PHOTO: Aerial view of the contested Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea BEIJING (Reuters) -China said on Monday "illegal" beaching of Philippine warships at the Nansha islands in the South China Sea had "gravely damaged" the coral reef ecosystem in the area, as both countries tussle over disputed territory at atolls in the vast waterway. China's Ministry of Natural Resources, in a comprehensive report, said Philippine warships have been "illegally beached" around Second Thomas Shoal near Nansha Islands for a long time, "and it has seriously damaged the diversity, stability and sustainability of the reef ecosystem." There was no immediate comment from the spokespersons of the Philippine Coast Guard and Philippine Navy on China's claims or China's report. The countries have bickered extensively over the Spratly Islands - called Nansha Islands by China - the Second Thomas Shoal and Sabina Shoal. These small islands are located in the vast waterway, a conduit for more than $3 trillion of annual shipborne commerce The Philippines has soldiers living aboard a rusty, aging warship at the Second Thomas Shoal, which was deliberately grounded by Manila in 1999 to reinforce its maritime claims. The report proposes that the Philippines should remove the "illegal" beached warships to eliminate the source of pollution and avoid continuing to cause sustained and cumulative harm to the coral reef ecosystem. China claims most of the South China Sea as its own territory. Beijing has rejected a 2016 ruling by The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration which said its expansive maritime claims had no legal basis Both sides have reported coral reef damage from ships and fishing vessels operating at certain atolls. China's report said that from 2011 to 2024 coverage of reef-building corals at the Second Thomas Shoal reef platform declined about 38.2% Last year, the Philippines said it was exploring legal options against China accusing it of destruction of coral reefs within its exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea. Over the weekend, the Philippines said China's largest coastguard vessel had anchored in Manila's exclusive economic zone in the waterway, a move meant to intimidate. Despite ongoing altercations, both countries last week agreed for the need to "restore trust" and "rebuild confidence" to better manage maritime disputes. (Reporting by Farah Master and the Beijing newsroom; Writing by Bernard Orr; Editing by Christian Schmollinger and Jacqueline Wong) China state media slams Sinograin over alleged use of fuel tankers to transport cooking oil BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese state media on Monday criticized the state grains stockpiler Sinograin after local media reported that its fuel tankers were allegedly also used to transport cooking oil, sparking food safety concerns. The Beijing News last week reported it was an open secret in the transportation industry that Sinograin was using tankers to transport both fuel and food products like cooking oil, soybean oil and syrup, without cleaning the tankers in between. The report sparked an uproar on social media over worries of food contamination. Chinese consumers have been increasingly sensitive over food safety, with consumers turning to foreign brands and Beijing stepping up controls, after a series of scandals, including the sale of baby formula containing lethal amounts of the industrial chemical melamine in 2008. Sinograin, in a Weibo post on Saturday, said it had ordered an investigation into whether transportation carriers leaving and entering its warehouses were compliant with food safety regulations. Transportation units and carrier vehicles found in violation of the regulations would be terminated immediately and any major problems found would be reported to the relevant regulatory authorities, Sinograin said. On Monday, state broadcaster CCTV called the operation a cost-saving measure that was tantamount to poisoning. While Sinograin is trying to make up for its loss, consumers are still confused and stunned, CCTV said in a post on WeChat. Usually, we can avoid poor quality cooking oil by not cutting corners and choosing big brands and well-known manufacturers. But big brands can also have loopholes in the transportation chain where fuel and cooking oils are mixed, which is obviously beyond most people's knowledge, it said. Such mixing of products was not only a blatant provocation to the Food Safety Law, but also showed an extreme disregard for the life and health of consumers, CCTV said. (Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Bernadette Baum) "Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Chinas large Huanliu-3 nuclear fusion reactor follows decades of research in Chengdu. The worlds dozens of active tokamak experiments share ideas, scientists, and more. This tokamak, like many others, contributes to International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER). China joined the quest for an enormous, internationally cooperative nuclear fusion reactor in 2023. Now, theyve reached a milestone by generating its magnetic field for the first timea field that is entirely new in tis design. The artificial sun reactor, Huanliu-3 (HL-3), is a tokamak run by 17 collaborating labs and facilities around the world. But the much-ballyhooed quest to make energy using these huge reactors still has a decade or more to go, with a lot of misinformation in the mix. While HL-3 puts China in the group of forerunners in nuclear fusion research, this reactor isnt the largest (by far), and this milestone is only for its own timeline. This reactor is not close to operating consistently or producing energy that compares to the vast amounts of energy it and other similar reactorsknown as tokamaksrequire to operate. But HL-3, like many global tokamaks, is considered a proving ground for technologies that nations like China will offer to the truly world-leading ITER project in France. In that sense, each nations developments could make a difference going forward. A tokamak is a donut-shaped (toroidal, in the science parlance) container that holds a stream of superheated magnetic plasma and is reinforced by massive magnets and supercooling encasement. The plasmaa cohesive cloud of atoms under star-like conditionsends up hosting the same reactions that fuel the actual stars. The nuclei of atoms fuse together and release an enormous amount of energy... in theory. We know it happens in the stars, but weve never seen it happen inside a thousand-ton piece of machinery on Earth. So, what does it mean for a world-class artificial sun tokamak reactor like HL-3 to establish its own, novel magnetic field design? Well, its a huge milestone within the field of tokamak research, as the magnetic field is what actually contains the superheated, fusion-generating plasma. Because plasma reaches a million degrees, it cant make contact with any other material, or it will both instantly cool down out of the energy range and damage or destroy the part it touches. As such, a successful magnetic field is the only thing that will ever allow a tokamak to contain the plasma and keep it hot enough to make net energy. There are a number of structural issues with how todays tokamaks build their magnetic fields. The extremely huge electromagnets used in these machines are key to tokamaks designs (ITER received the most powerful magnet ever made in 2021), and they're under development all the time. But they all create hotspots that interrupt the plasma like an island in a streameither because they are discretely installed at intervals around the shell of the tokamak, or simply because theyre made (by humans) of the naturally occurring materials we have on Earth. In the cosmos, stars are not contained, so this never comes up. But in a generator, it's yet another hurdle to overcome. All this means that a new configuration for a magnetic field can be a huge step forward, especially for HL-3, which is considered a feeder technology for ITER. Chinese media reports that China has signed on to build a vacuum chamber module for ITER. The vacuum vessel is essential to ITERs goals, because it helps make the experiment plausibly safe to doto contain a starlike reaction along the French waterfront. The language barrier and state-owned media both make it difficult to scrutinize Chinese projects like HL-3, and there arent a lot of meaningful comparisons between the worlds dozens of active projects in existence. China has another active nuclear fusion reactor in the international eye (Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak, or EAST), which has been iterated upon Chinas Hefei Institutes of Physical Science since the 2000s. HL-3, however, comes from a lineage at Southwestern Institute of Physics in Chengdu, 900 miles west on the cusp of vast Western China. That program dates back decades as well, and both have steadily grown more and more powerful over decades of huge upgrades and rebuilds. HL-3 improves on previous designs, and is likely to get a larger machine with a larger overall amount of power going. We still have never reached the threshold where a nuclear fusion reactor makes more energy than it uses, and to be honest, its not clear that we definitely will. But each step forward in proven tokamak technology brings the possibility of nuclear fusion energy closer to reality. And when were so many steps away, every little bit counts. You Might Also Like A choice between the middle and the far right in Republican primary for LD7 Photos by Gage Skidmore (modified) | Flickr/CC BY-SA 2.0 GOP voters will make a choice between two of the most dissimilar legislators currently serving Arizona in the Republican primary for the state Senate seat representing Legislative District 7 when they choose between Sen. Wendy Rogers, of Flagstaff and Rep. David Cook, of Globe. Legislative District 7 covers portions of Gila, Pinal, Coconino and Navajo counties. While Rogers, who has served Legislative District 7 since 2021, built a national profile on election denialism after former President Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, Cook is more moderate throwback to what Republican elected officials were like before Trump dominated the GOP. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Cook is a rancher who has served in the state House of Representatives since 2016 and is chairman of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, while Rogers is a former Air Force pilot and chair of the controversial Senate Elections Committee. The committee has entertained presentations from conspiracy theorists and approved bills that would have upended Arizonas elections, with proposals that would have forced hand counts and banned no-excuse early voting. Rogers declined to participate in what was supposed to be a Clean Elections debate, broadcast by Arizona PBS on July 1, that ended up being just a question and answer session for Cook. Rogers did not respond to an interview request from the Arizona Mirror or to a question about why she skipped out on the debate. Rogers, a member of the far-right extremist group the Oath Keepers, has been mired in controversy virtually since she took office. She faced an ethics complaint for mistreating a staffer in early 2021 that was later dismissed, and was censured by the Senate in 2022 after she threatened her colleagues with political retribution when some of them criticized her for speaking at a white nationalist conference and calling for her enemies to be hanged. She later filed a restraining order against Senate reporter Camryn Sanchez for ringing Rogers doorbell when investigating whether Rogers actually lives in the district she represents. A judge later dismissed the restraining order. But Cook has also faced the ire of his own party, as one of the few Republicans in the legislature that sometimes openly sympathizes with Democratic causes or votes alongside them, against the rest of his party. Cook was one of a small group of legislative Republicans who publicly agreed that an 1864 total abortion ban that the state Supreme Court ruled was enforceable in April should not go into effect. Before the House voted on the bill to repeal the law, Cook said the Civil War-era law was out of touch with what Arizonans want. However, he ended up voting against the repeal bill when it finally went up for a vote. Cook is term-limited in the House, and told the Mirror that he decided to run for Senate this year because he just cant take the idea of Rogers representing the district where he and his friends live and work. Weve got to have people step up and do better, he said. The final straw, he said, was when Rogers last year retweeted explicit images of Joe Bidens son, Hunter Biden. Now Im not going to be in the House, whos going to protect the people and communities in District 7? Cook said he thought at the time. Whos going to step up to continue to do the good work for the people? And it just came down to me. At the time, Cook figured that Rogers would get voted out in the primary, but he said that other people were afraid to run. These people are so full of hate, and when you just watch them and their demeanor and stuff, they cant have an intelligent conversation, you know? Rogers definitely cant, Cook said. And so that means shes not going to get anything accomplished. He pointed out that Gov. Katie Hobbs signed 22 bills that he either sponsored or co-sponsored this year compared to nine from Rogers. Hobbs vetoed seven bills that Rogers sponsored or co-sponsored and five from Cook. Cook said that hes been criticized by some in his own party for working with Hobbs, but at present, thats realistically the only way to get legislation passed since she has veto power. Theres more work in the middle that needs to be done for Arizona, not giving up my principals or my foundation or what I believe in for the people that elect me, he said. And, in Cooks view, the refusal of some of his colleagues to work across the aisle has resulted in urgent problems going unsolved. He expressed frustration that his health insurance reform bill, which had bipartisan support in both chambers, was blocked by Senate President Warren Petersen without explanation. He wouldnt even meet with me to tell me why, Cook said, adding that meanwhile people in his district were dying and rural hospitals were going broke because of health insurance issues. During the debate on July 1, Cook said that he does not believe the 2020 and 2022 elections were stolen. He pointed out that, even though the Trump-endorsed Republican candidates for statewide office in 2022 lost their races, Republicans Kimberly Yee and Tom Horne won the races for treasurer and superintendent of public instruction, respectively. And even though Hobbs was elected governor, Republicans kept a narrow hold on both chambers of the legislature. It doesnt make any sense, Cook said, that Democrats would rig the race for governor and not take control of the legislature as well. On the same day as the debate she declined to participate in, Rogers shared a post on the social media site X, formerly Twitter, that praised far-right French politician Marine Le Pen for refusing to wear a headscarf and then canceling a meeting with a Muslim leader. I trust all other leaders of our white society take notice, they fit into our way of life, not us into theirs, it is our country, the post she retweeted read. When Rogers shared the post, she added a brief message of support: You go, girl. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST City files suit against major companies, blaming their products for environmental damages: 'They must be held accountable' Baltimore filed a lawsuit against major companies like Pepsi, Frito-Lay, and Coca-Cola for the environmental damage they are causing to the city by way of plastic pollution. What happened? The Baltimore Sun reported on the lawsuit, in which the city says that these corporations should help foot the bill to clean up the plastic litter they produce and that has infiltrated the city's streets and waters. In addition to taking aim at multinational corporations, the suit also includes several companies that manufacture plastics within Maryland. The suit is part of a larger effort by the city to take legal action against corporations that it deems responsible for pollution and other problems. So far, it has brought in about $8 million on its environmental claims, according to the Sun. "When bad corporate actors have harmed our city's land and water, they must be held accountable and that's what this suit is designed to do," Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott said in a statement. Why is this lawsuit important? This is part of a broader movement by cities to hold plastic producers accountable for their waste. For instance, New York State Attorney General Letitia James filed suit against Pepsi in November 2023, saying that single-use plastics harm people and the planet. These claims aren't unwarranted. According to Oceana, the Coca-Cola company increased its use of plastic packaging by more than 6% to around 3.78 million tons in 2022. That same year, PepsiCo increased its plastic packaging by 4% to about 2.87 million tons. Meanwhile, most of these plastics go unrecycled after use. According to the suit, a recent report found that only about 2.2% of plastic products collected in Baltimore are actually recycled. This is even lower than global estimates of 9%. Much of the unrecycled plastic ends up in landfills, burned in incinerators, or scattered as litter. As plastics break down over time, they become microplastics. These tiny particles have made their way into our food, water, soil, and air, and can now be found in human livers, kidneys, and placentas. Scientists have raised concerns about the potential health impacts of microplastics, including developmental, reproductive, neurological, and immune disorders, along with endocrine-disrupting effects. Plastic pollution also threatens marine life, as animals may ingest or become entangled in it. Scientists estimate that more than 1 million marine animals die each year because of plastic debris in the ocean. What's being done about plastic pollution? In addition to lawsuits like the one in Baltimore, several corporations are trying to break free of plastics. For instance, though Pepsi's single-use plastic production shot up in 2022, the company is also testing reusable packaging to replace traditional plastic bottles. Meanwhile, major beer brands like Coors Light are getting rid of the plastic packaging rings that kill thousands of sea creatures a year. Plus, scientists have discovered how to break down plastic by using hungry wax worms and fungus. You can help by cutting your plastic consumption. Some ideas include switching to powdered soap and detergent, investing in reusable shopping bags, and ditching single-use water bottles. Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet. Vandals wrote racist messages on a covered play area at Northern Heights Elementary over the weekend, a Bellingham Police spokeswoman said. Graffiti that targeted Black and Jewish people was reported by a nearby resident, Megan Peters told The Bellingham Herald. The drawings were described as swastikas, and there were slur words that were derogatory toward Black people and some specific to Jewish people, Peters said in an email. The officers documented the graffiti and were able to wash it off. Officers will check cameras in the area to see if there is footage of who did the graffiti, she said. Damage was estimated at $50. We are extremely disappointed by these acts; hate and racism have no place in our schools or on our campuses, Bellingham Schools spokeswoman Jacqueline Brawley told The Herald. We are grateful for the Bellingham Police Departments quick response and help in trying to remove the graffiti. As of today, our facilities team has finished removing it completely. We are working with (police) on trying to identify the person or people responsible. Saturdays vandalism was reported just weeks after a Whatcom Middle student was attacked because of his race. A suspect in that incident is facing a hate crime charge. Bellingham High reported an antisemitic incident in October. Although students in Bellingham Public Schools are off for the summer, the YMCA offers child care at Northern Heights. Northern Heights, which is located in the Barkley neighborhood, had an enrollment of 420 students during the 2023-24 academic year, according to the state Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction. Its demographic of 39% enrollment among people of color makes it one of the districts more diverse locations, according to OSPI data. Someone complained to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources on Jan. 17, 2024 that the City of Rolfe had burned tree debris too close to houses. (Photo courtesy of Iowa DNR) A northwest Iowa town has agreed to pay a $7,000 fine for burning tree debris within a quarter mile of numerous residents houses despite a warning years ago that it couldnt, according to the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Rolfe has for years had a tree and brush disposal site on the south side of town that is within several hundred feet of some residents. One of them complained in 2015 when the city burned the debris, and the DNR told city officials they would need to acquire waivers from all residents who live within 1,320 feet of the site for future burns, as required by state rules. The department also issued the city a violation notice. The city was unable to obtain waivers for all of the affected residents, said Michelle Sabatini-Rosacker, a senior environmental specialist for the department. Then in January 2024, a newly elected Rolfe mayor allegedly approved burning the debris at the site. A company had estimated that it would cost $17,000 to process the debris into wood chips. Mayor James Pentico did not immediately respond to a request to comment for this article, but city council meeting minutes from February say: Mayor stated he will take the responsibility for it, he thought everything was ready to go. The city later adopted a policy that restricts the size of tree limbs that can be deposited at the site so that they are small enough to be easily processed and composted, Sabatini-Rosacker said. The future of the tree pile will have to be assessed over time, due to costs and limitations, she said. Brush fires that are too close to homes can diminish the air quality for people who live there. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post City of Rolfe fined for burning tree debris too close to houses appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. Clayton County Schools cancels all events for the week due to heat Temperatures across metro Atlanta are expected to stay in the 90s throughout the week. Because of the high heat index, Clayton County Public Schools officials have decided to cancel all school-sanctioned events for the week. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Spokespeople say school officials should adhere to Red Level protocols at least until Friday. They say parents should take similar precautions for any outdoor events throughout the week. TRENDING STORIES: Here are some recommendations to protect yourself from the sun and high temperatures: Wear lightweight or moisture-wicking clothing Take frequent breaks Drink plenty of water Plan activities for early morning or the evening Here are more heat safety tips from the National Weather Service. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: Walk Off Charities Scout Team coach Kevin "K" Harris, center, talks with Jaques Jackson, left, about technique during a June baseball game. The nonprofit was recently among 30 youth organizations to receive United Way of Northeast Florida grants. United Way of Northeast Florida awarded $180,000 in grants to 30 area nonprofits and other community organizations that provide youth programs in minority neighborhoods. The grants ranged from $5,000 to $20,000, funded by Miller Electric Co.s $1 million United Way "racial equity" gift in 2020. The initiative stems from a recent needs assessment conducted "through a racial equity lens" in Duval, Baker, Clay, Nassau and St. Johns counties, according to the United Way. Among other things, the report showed youth arrests rose by 9% from 2021 to 2023, with about 80% in Duval County alone involving juveniles of color. About 51% of Black households and 44% of Hispanic households in Northeast Florida were struggling to make ends meet, compared to 34% of white households. During her 2020 summer internship at Riverside Animal Hospital, aspiring veterinarian Mynia Porter gives medication to a bearded dragon. Jacksonville's AnnieRuth Foundation, which recently received a United Way of Northeast Florida grant, sponsored the internship. "This financial strain makes it impossible for families to invest in quality developmental programming for their children," James Ellout, the agency's vice president of community impact, said. "There is a clear need to boost offerings in neighborhoods where youth of color live." Grants went to AnnieRuth Foundation, CARES Justice Institute, Delores Barr Weaver Policy Center, Empowerment Academy, First Coast Esports Alliance, Gameface 4:13 Training Academy, I Am The Prize, The Jacksonville Alliance of Gentlemen, Jacksonville Arts & Music School, Jacksonville Gullah Geechee Nation Community Development Corp., Jacksonville Urban League, Just Food Network, Krumpin 4 Success, Level the Playing Field Leadership Academy, Melanin Collaborative Group, Moore Myers Childrens Fund, The Moxie Group and MyVillage Project. 'Significant need': United Way awards $9 million in nonprofit grants to help struggling families Other recipients were New Town Oasis Marketplace, New Hope Education and Addiction Services, Operation Save Our Sons, Pearls of Perfection, Planned to A.T., Saint James AME Church, The Soyini Circles Girls Corp., Timucuan Parks Foundation, Urban Geoponics, US and Our Children, Walk Off Charities and Wayman Community Development Corp. bcravey@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4109 This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Jacksonville-area crime, needy families prompt youth program grants BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. COP29 should coordinate a clear and ambitious new financial plan, Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources of Azerbaijan, President of COP29 Mukhtar Babayev said during the opening ceremony of the 18th Baku Summer Energy School at ADA University today, Trend reports. He underlined that Azerbaijan now supports the energy transition and uses its oil and gas income to achieve long-term sustainable development. In November, Babayev said, the entire world will convene in Baku to talk about how to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius and create a zero-emissions global economy. "Technology development is necessary to reach zero emissions by 2050, and in this context, research conducted at ADA is crucial. The main economic task in the world is to create conditions that will effectively implement the energy transition, which is impossible without innovation and efforts towards 'green' trends," Babayev stressed. According to him, the COP's ambitious task is to create a new climate situation that is important for air, land, and water purity. "One of the main principles is to provide support to everyone in the fight against climate change. We'll encourage countries to develop new plans to reduce emissions, adapt to the consequences of climate change, and prepare transparent reports on their actions. Azerbaijan is working on updating its national emission reduction plan," the minister explained. He also pointed out that during COP29, it's high time to hammer out a rock-solid and sky-high new financial plan for tackling climate change. "This will help remove barriers that hinder many developing countries and island states in implementing the climate agenda. Effective climate financing is necessary for the good of the planet," Babayev added. To note, this November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COPthe Conference of the Partiesis the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, with its secretariat in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel A said a 52-year-old acupuncture doctor accused of sexual battery was arrested last week, the Clermont Police Department said. Police said Tuesday that a 31-year-old woman left an acupuncture clinic, found an officer a block away and reported the sexual battery. Investigators said the woman attended a scheduled acupuncture appointment with Dr. Andrew Lawrence Walsh at Acupuncture Clermont on North Frontage Road. Read: Man accused of dropping boy from Daytona Beach hotel balcony Police said that when the woman was in the exam room with Walsh, she was inappropriately touched and sexually battered by him during a massage. They said that after a DNA search warrant was executed, Walsh was arrested and was taken to the Lake County Jail. Read: Shark bites teen in Ponce Inlet, 5th confirmed attack this year in Volusia County Walsh is currently being held without bail. The agency said it encourages anyone who may also be a victim to come forward. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. Prosecutor tells New York City jury at bribery trial that Sen. Bob Menendez put power 'up for sale' United States Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., leaves federal court following the day's proceedings in his bribery trial, Monday, July 8, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Larry Neumeister) NEW YORK (AP) A prosecutor accused Sen. Bob Menendez in a closing argument at his bribery trial Monday of putting his power up for sale to benefit three New Jersey businessmen who bribed him with gold, cash and a luxury car. The presentation by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul Monteleoni that will continue on Tuesday prompted the Democrat to scoff as he left the courthouse, saying: The government is intoxicated with their own rhetoric. Minutes earlier, Monteleoni urged the Manhattan federal court jury to follow a trail of hundreds of emails and text messages between the businessmen and Menendez and his wife to see the link between the businessmen and the bribe proceeds found in an FBI raid on the Menendez residence in June 2022. He said they'll also be able to match fingerprint evidence linking the businessmen and Menendez to the bribes, including fingerprints on the tape that bound thousands of dollars in cash hidden in coat pockets, boots and boxes found at the Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, home owned by his wife, Nadine Menendez. Monteleoni said the senator put his power up for sale. The prosecutor said it wasn't enough that the senator was one of the most powerful people in Washington as the ranking member and later the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, where he could block or approve hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to nations such as Egypt. He also wanted to use it to pile up riches for himself and his wife, Monteleoni said. Monteleoni's closing as the trial enters its ninth week in Manhattan federal court was about half finished when court concluded for the day. As he left the courthouse, Menendez mocked the prosecutor's closing, saying the government had spent two hours on charts, not witnesses that came before the jury. He added that Monteleoni had spent two hours telling jurors about what they believe conversations should be that they never heard. Monteleoni cited a clear pattern of corruption and told jurors to closely review communications between the Menendez couple and the businessmen to see evidence of bribes along with proof that they were trying to cover up their schemes. Prosecutors say gold bars, over $480,000 in cash and a Mercedes-Benz discovered during the FBI raid are the proceeds of bribes paid to get Menendez to help the men in their business dealings. Monteleoni said defense claims that gold in the house had mostly been inherited by Nadine Menendez was belied by serial numbers on gold bars that showed they had come from the businessmen who paid bribes. All this talk about Nadine having family gold is a distraction, he said. In return for bribes, prosecutors say, the senator took actions from 2018 to 2022 to protect or enhance the business interests of the businessmen including protecting Wael Hana's monopoly over the certification of meat exported to Egypt from the U.S. to ensure it conformed to Islamic dietary requirements. Besides charges of bribery, extortion, fraud and obstruction of justice, Menendez has also been charged with acting as a foreign agent of Egypt. Monteleoni said Menendez took bribe-driven actions to benefit Egypt, including speedily clearing nearly $100 million in military aid and demanding that a top U.S. agriculture official stop interfering with Hana's meat-certification monopoly, causing the official to reassure U.S. Embassy workers in Egypt that he has their back. The prosecutor said Menendez also shared sensitive nonpublic information about the number of Americans at the U.S. Embassy in Egypt and the number of Egyptians who worked there, knowing it would reach the Egyptians, and helped the Egyptian government prepare its response to U.S. senators critical of its policies. All the while, Monteleoni said, Menendez was sometimes speaking vaguely in his communications with his wife and the businessmen because, as she knew, he wants his fingerprints off it and they don't want to get caught. He was acting like a bribed man because that's what he was, the prosecutor said. Menendez, 70, along with Hana and real estate developer Fred Daibes, have pleaded not guilty and are on trial together. A third businessman, Jose Uribe, pleaded guilty in the case and testified against the others during the trial, the second the senator has faced in the last decade. None of the defendants testified. An earlier trial against Menendez in New Jersey ended in 2017 with a deadlocked jury. After the charges were lodged last fall, Menendez was forced to give up his chairmanship of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Nadine Menendez, 57, the senator's wife, is also charged in the case, but her trial has been postponed while she recovers from breast cancer surgery. She also has pleaded not guilty. As part of his defense, Menendez's lawyers have argued that tens of thousands of dollars in cash found in Bob Menendez's boots and jackets resulted from his habit of storing cash at home after hearing from his family how they escaped Cuba in 1951 with only the cash they had hidden in their home. Menendezs lawyers have also asserted that his wife, who began dating the senator in 2018 and married him two years later, kept him in the dark about her financial troubles and assistance she requested from the businessmen. Menendez was born in Manhattan after the family moved to New York City, though he was raised in the New Jersey cities of Hoboken and Union City, according to testimony by his sister. Menendez has held public office continuously since 1986, serving as a state legislator before serving 14 years as a U.S. congressman. In 2006, then-Gov. Jon Corzine appointed Menendez to the Senate seat he vacated when he became governor. Several weeks ago, Menendez filed to run for reelection this year as an independent. Police in Charlotte said Tuesday that a missing 15-year-old girl, has returned home and is with family. She was not harmed, police said. The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department posted on Monday asking the public to be on the lookout for Tanijah Watts. Watts was last seen on Calhoun Street, in north Charlotte, around 1:30 a.m. Sunday, according to CMPD. (WATCH: Tips for securing tickets during summer concert season) Five people were rescued by the U.S. Coast Guard after their boat capsized about 11 miles off the coast of Florida, officials said Sunday. The Jacksonville command center dispatched a Coast Guard boat and helicopter crew at 10:15 a.m. after receiving a call from the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office reporting that a 24-foot vessel had overturned and that the passengers were in the water, the Coast Guard said in a news release. Five men were rescued by the United States Coast Guard after their vessel capsized 11 miles off the coast of Florida, officials said Sunday. / Credit: U.S. Coast Guard Upon arrival, the Coast Guard boat crew discovered five men on top of the capsized boat wearing life jackets. The men were brought aboard the response boat and transported safely back to the Mayport Boat Ramp in Jacksonville, Florida. The Coast Guard released four images from the rescue operation, including a photo showing the men being greeted on shore by their family and personnel from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The vessel was left behind and will be salvaged by its owner, the Coast Guard said. No injuries were reported. "While on the water, situations can become unpredictable and dangerous in an instant, so it's crucial to be prepared," said Jacksonville commander Nick Barrow, who assists with search and rescue missions. "Having life jackets for everyone aboard your vessel can help save lives by providing essential buoyancy and increasing visibility in the water. A @USCG Station #Mayport boat crew rescued five people, Sunday, after their 24-foot vessel capsized 11 miles offshore of Mayport, #Florida. Read more about the rescue: https://t.co/hGo68VjZdB pic.twitter.com/tDsHnOypTk USCGSoutheast (@USCGSoutheast) July 7, 2024 Mayport is home to Naval Station Mayport, which boasts the third largest fleet concentration in the United States. The cause of the capsizing is under investigation. Last month, seven adults and a child were rescued by the Coast Guard when their boat capsized 36 miles off the coast of Boca Grande, Florida, CBS Miami reported. Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries Hoppin' clams! "SpongeBob SquarePants" turns 25 Coe College's Prison Learning Initiative received grant funding from the Associated Colleges of the Midwest. (Photo courtesy of Coe College) Coe College students and members of the Cedar Rapids community will have more access to education on criminal justice and incarceration with support from the Associated Colleges of the Midwest. Coe College received a $6,400 grant from the Associated Colleges of the Midwest to maintain and expand programs within the colleges Prison Learning Initiative. According to a news release from the college, the initiative is focused on teaching students and community members about the criminal justice system, reentry challenges and building a more supportive environment for formerly incarcerated people. Liberal arts students often crave opportunities to see how their classroom learning relates to what goes on beyond the boundaries of their campuses, said Lisa Jasinski, the president of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest, in the release. We are proud to support worthy projects that empower students to both deepen their learning and use their knowledge to uplift their local communities. The Spencer Foundation, a Chicago-based foundation that invests in education focused on improving society, provided the majority of the funds, according to the release, and the Associated College of the Midwest contributed more money to provide more proposals with grant dollars. An Associated Colleges of the Midwest news release stated that the organization gave close to $30,000 to six initiatives through the grants. Programs included in the prison learning initiative are Art Links, where people view a selection of art created by incarcerated people and provide written notes on their thoughts and what discussions the pieces prompted, and a reentry simulation in which participants roleplay as a formerly incarcerated person trying to return to society. The initiative also organizes book drives and provides books to incarcerated people across the region through the Midwest Books to Prisoners program. According to a statement from faculty leading the prison learning initiative, grant funds will be used to make the programs Art Links and reentry simulation annual events and to continue with the Midwest Books to Prisoners volunteer trip, held each semester. The college will also host guest speaker events in the fall and spring, and will work with the Wisconsin-based nonprofit The Community to host a screening and panel discussion called Correcting the Narrative in September. This grant funding propels our Prison Learning Initiative to deepen our engagement with the community, said Prison Learning Initiative Director Gina Hausknecht in the Coe College release. I eagerly anticipate the new partnerships and hands-on learning experiences it will foster on our campus. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Coe College Prison Learning Initiative receives grant funds for programming appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. What is cold water shock? Why is it dangerous? PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) The early summer heat wave in 2024 in Oregon is one reason many people will go to lakes and rivers to cool off. But even though the temps are hot, the water is not and that sets up cold water shock. Were expecting the Sandy River, where Oxbow Regional Park is, to be in the low-60s, said Hannah Erickson, a communications specialist with Metro Parks and Nature. Now, when you have a temperature change that is that big between air and water, that is a set up for whats called cold water shock, and that can make your body clench up so much that its not able to swim. How to keep your home cool and save money in the PNW heat wave Its always important to wear a US Coast Guard-approved life jacket, which needs to be the correct size. Erickson said there is literally a good rule of thumb for finding if a life jacket is fitting correctly. When you put one on, make sure all the straps are tight. Then, she said, You put your thumbs underneath the lifejacket, and if you can pull it up past your ears then it is not tight enough. Metro Parks and Nature offers life jackets that people can borrow for free at their parks and boat ramps. A life vest kiosk at Oxbow Regional Park, July 7, 2024 (KOIN) Swimmers also need to be aware of their surroundings. Unlike a swimming pool, there will be unexpected drop offs in a riverbed or a lakebed. There can also be underwater snags that youre not prepared for that can catch your feet, as well as currents and sudden temperature changes, she said. About 50 people drown in Oregon waters every year, officials said. About 35 of those accidental drownings are teenagers. KOIN 6 News will have more information later. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. College closing: When layoffs will begin at Eastern Nazarene in Quincy QUINCY Eastern Nazarene College will cut 125 jobs between Aug. 29 and the spring of 2025, according to MassHires Department of Career Services. The announcement came 10 days after ENCs board announced it will close the Wollaston campus due to financial headwinds after more than 100 years in operation. ENC notified MassHire as required under the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988, which gives employers 60 days to inform MassHire, local government officials and employees of mass layoffs or plant closings. ENC will continue to serve students on track to graduate by years end and retain staff and faculty needed to do so, as well as staff needed to close the 20-acre campus, according to its website. The college has also pledged to provide employees with job-placement support, counseling and financial support. Students not on track to graduate by the end of 2024 can transfer to Gordon College in Wenham; Mount Vernon Nazarene University in Mount Vernon, Ohio; and Trevecca Nazarene University in Nashville, Tennessee. Eastern Nazarene College The Wollaston campus currently hosts a processing center and temporary shelter for homeless migrant families, which opened in the summer of 2023. Operated by the Massachusetts Office of Health and Human Services and local social service providers, the programs will not be immediately impacted by the colleges closure, according to ENCs webpage. In its June 25 announcement, ENCs board of trustees said it will transition into a new educational enterprise. In and FAQ section of its website, ENC says the this will entail annual scholarships for Nazarene students from the Eastern Field to attend another Nazarene IBOE (International Board of Education) school. According to U.S. News and World Report, ENC enrolled 492 undergraduates and 155 graduate students in 2022. Last September, Mayor Thomas Koch introduced an overlay district to reserve the campus for senior housing in the event that ENC should close. City Council referred the overlay to committee, where it remains. Quincy tax contributors: Who in Quincy pays the most in taxes? Take a look at the top 10 Cannabis in Quincy: Quincy's 2nd recreational cannabis shop opens for business Peter Blandino covers Quincy for The Patriot Ledger. Contact him at pblandino@patriotledger.com. Thanks to our subscribers, who help make this coverage possible. If you are not a subscriber, please consider supporting quality local journalism with a Patriot Ledger subscription. Here is our latest offer. This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Mass layoffs at Eastern Nazarene College in Quincy due to closure Americans are increasingly skeptical about the value and cost of college, with most saying they feel the US higher education system is headed in the wrong direction, according to a new poll. Overall, only 36% of adults say they have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in higher education, according to the report released Monday by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation. That confidence level has declined steadily from 57% in 2015. Some of the same opinions have been reflected in declining enrollment as colleges contend with the effects of the student debt crisis, concerns about the high cost of tuition and political debates over how they teach about race and other topics. The dimming view of whether college is worth the time and money cuts across all demographics including gender, age and political affiliation. Among Republicans, the number of respondents with high confidence in higher education has dropped 36 percentage points over the last decade far more than it dropped for Democrats or independents. Its so expensive, and I dont think colleges are teaching people what they need to get a job, says Randy Hill, 59, a registered Republican in Connecticut and a driver for a car service. His nephew plans to do a welding apprenticeship after graduating high school. You graduate out of college, youre up to eyeballs in debt, you cant get a job, then you cant pay it off. Whats the point? The June 2024 surveys overall finding that 36% of adults feel strong confidence in higher education is unchanged from the year before. But what concerns researchers is shifting opinion on the bottom end, with fewer Americans saying they have some confidence and more reporting very little and none. This years findings show almost as many people have little or no confidence, 32%, as those with high confidence. Experts say fewer college graduates could worsen labor shortages in fields from health care to information technology. For those who forgo college, it often means lower lifetime earnings 75% less compared with those who get bachelors degrees, according to Georgetown Universitys Center on Education and the Workforce. And during an economic downturn, those without degrees are more likely to lose jobs. It is sad to see that confidence hasnt grown at all, says Courtney Brown, vice president at Lumina, an education nonprofit focused on increasing the numbers of students who seek education beyond high school. Whats shocking to me is that the people who have low or no confidence is actually increasing. This years survey added new, detailed questions in an effort to understand why confidence is shrinking. Almost one-third of respondents say college is too expensive, while 24% feel students are not being properly educated or taught what they need to succeed. The survey did not specifically touch on the protests this year against the war in Gaza that divided many college campuses, but political views weighed heavily on the findings. Respondents voiced concerns about indoctrination, political bias and that colleges today are too liberal. Among the respondents who lack confidence, 41% cite political agendas as a reason. Among other findings: More than two-thirds, or 67%, of respondents say college is headed in the wrong direction, compared with just 31% who feel its going in the right direction. Generally when people express confidence in higher education, they are thinking of four-year institutions, according to Gallup. But the survey found that more people have confidence in two-year institutions. Forty-nine percent of adults say they have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in two-year programs, compared with 33% of Americans who feel that way about four-year colleges. California college student Kristen Freeman understands why. Its about saving money. Thats why I went to a two-year. Its more bang for your buck, says Freeman, 22, a sociology major at Diablo Valley Community College with plans to transfer to San Jose State University for the final two years of college. Freeman understands the concerns about indoctrination and whether college prepares students for life and work but also feels the only way to change structural problems is from the inside. I am learning about the world around me and developing useful skills in critical thinking, Freeman says. I think higher education can give students the spark to want to change the system. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Colorado stands out among the 10 states that have dropped the highest share of Medicaid enrollees since the U.S. government lifted a pandemic-era restriction on removing people from the health insurance program. Its the only blue state in a cluster of red states with high withdrawal rates a group that includes Idaho, Montana, Texas, and Utah in the Medicaid "unwinding" underway since spring 2023. Colorado also is the only state that had all the policy ingredients in place to cushion the fallout from the unwinding, according to Medicaid policy analysts at KFF, an independent nonprofit that conducts health policy research. But it seems the cushion hasnt been deployed. Theres really a divide in Colorado between our progressive policies and our underfunded and fragmented administration, said Bethany Pray, chief legal and policy officer at the Colorado Center on Law and Policy, a Denver-based legal aid group. According to KFF data, during the unwinding Colorado has seen a bigger net drop in enrollment in Medicaid and the Childrens Health Insurance Program than any state except Utah. Advocates for health care access, researchers, and county administrators the administrators handling the bulk of the Medicaid redeterminations in Colorado say that the major issues involve outdated technology and low rates of automatic renewals. Both create obstacles to enrollment that undercut the states progressive policies. Colorado is the only blue state in a cluster of red states with high Medicaid disenrollment rates. State officials have a rosier view. They say the drop in enrollment is a sign that they did a good job enrolling people at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Secondly, they say Colorados economy is doing well, so more people can get insurance through their jobs. When we have a really stellar unemployment rate, not as many people need safety-net programs, and were proud of that. Our people are rising and thriving, said Kim Bimestefer, who leads the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing and is the states top Medicaid official. Her department has also said that some people choose not to fill out their eligibility paperwork because they know their incomes are too high to qualify. Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that while its true Colorados unemployment rate is lower than the nations as a whole, its higher than it was before the pandemic. State officials say they believe Medicaid enrollments dropped because many of those people found jobs, as reflected by the lower unemployment rates. But that scenario happened in fewer than half of the states counties, a KFF Health News analysis found. Notably, in 11 counties where unemployment stagnated or increased from January 2020 to April 2024, the share of the population covered by Medicaid shrank. A low unemployment rate does not necessarily mean there is less of a need for Medicaid coverage because many employed people earn wages low enough to still qualify for the program. Colorado increased enrollment in Medicaid and the related Childrens Health Insurance Program by 35% during the COVID-19 public health emergency, compared with about 30% nationally and among Medicaid expansion states. We grew more, which means, logically, were going to disenroll more, said Bimestefer.We went up higher, were going to come down lower because our economy is stellar. Her departments website initially claimed Colorados Medicaid enrollment grew more than any other Medicaid expansion state except Hawaii. But data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services shows pandemic enrollment growth in other states, including Indiana, North Dakota, Virginia, and Nevada, also exceeded that of Colorado. Even if it had grown the most, the argument that what comes up must come down doesnt hold water, Medicaid policy analysts said. A counterargument to that is we know that there was never a full participation in Medicaid prior to the pandemic, said Jennifer Tolbert, deputy director of the KFF Program on Medicaid and the Uninsured. Tolbert said she was surprised by the extent of Colorados Medicaid enrollment losses, given it was the one state in the nation that met all the criteria that KFF expected would cushion the effects of the unwinding. Those policies include adopting the Affordable Care Acts Medicaid expansion and the automatic processing of renewals. Tolbert was among several policy researchers who said that even if unemployment returned to pre-pandemic levels, they would expect a higher, not lower, share of Coloradans to be enrolled in safety-net coverage. Ally Sullivan, a spokesperson for Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, said one complicating factor in Colorados system is that its among the handful of states where most of the eligibility verification work falls on counties, which added complexity to the states unwind process. Colorado is committed to ensuring that Coloradans who no longer qualify for Medicaid coverage are connected to other affordable sources of coverage as soon as possible, and the state is going to great lengths to do so, the statement said. Minnesota is another state where verifying eligibility is largely left to the counties. Yet just 26% of its Medicaid population dropped enrollment in the unwinding, compared with Colorados 48%. Like Colorado, Minnesota is led by a Democratic governor. Minnesota also mirrors Colorado in its population, pandemic-era increase in enrollment, the percentage of its residents living in prosperous areas, and its better-than-national unemployment rate. But Bimestefer dismissed any comparison. I dont care about Minnesota, Bimestefer said. This is Colorado. I dont care what Minnesota did. Advocates for health care access and researchers said a cluster of technological and administrative issues have contributed to Colorados high withdrawal rate. First, Colorados eligibility database, the Colorado Benefits Management System, is outdated and clunky, according to people who use it or are familiar with systems in other states. Its like still using the old flip phone where youre trying to play Snake, said Sarah Grusin, an attorney at the National Health Law Program. We have better stuff. Grusin and Prays organizations filed a civil rights complaint with several federal agencies saying that the system issues that terminated disabled Coloradans coverage amounted to discrimination. It took many months to fix something that doesnt sound that complicated, Pray said. Bimestefer said her department is working on a plan to improve the system, which is managed by Deloitte under a $354.4 million contract that lasts until 2027. A recent KFF Health News investigation of eligibility systems managed by Deloitte found widespread problems. In Colorado, a state-commissioned audit in 2020 found that many Medicaid beneficiaries were sent incorrect notices and deadlines. Kenneth Smith, a Deloitte executive who leads its national human services division, said that Deloitte is one player among many who together administer Medicaid benefits and that the states own the technology and make the decisions about their implementation. Colorados technology woes have also weakened its ability to use a powerful tool in enrollment: automatic renewal. Last fall, Bimestefer said, her agency had to choose between fixing the system so that it would stop dropping children who shouldnt lose coverage, or start automatically renewing people with no income or with income below the federal poverty level. It couldnt do both, she said. Experts such as Tricia Brooks, a research professor with the Center for Children and Families at Georgetown University, said its especially important to increase automatic renewals in states like Colorado where most of the renewal work falls on county government staff. What happens when youre not getting a high rate of automated renewals? Youre sending out those renewal forms, Brooks said meaning more disenrollments. They didnt get the mail. The notice was confusing. They tried to get help through the call center. The list goes on as to why people dont renew. Indeed, two-thirds of Coloradans who withdrew lost coverage for procedural reasons. Thats in line with the national average, according to KFF. But paired with Colorado having withdrawn so many people overall, that means more than 500,000 Coloradans, or about 9% of the states people, were withdrawn for procedural reasons more than the population of its second-largest city, Colorado Springs. At least a third of those disenrolled were later determined to be eligible for Medicaid. Officials at Colorado community health centers and mental health centers say theyre seeing a rise in uninsured patients coming through their doors a sign, they say, that Coloradans dropped from Medicaid arent necessarily moving on to greener health insurance pastures. Fifty-eight percent of those who were dropped coverage have returned to Medicaid, or now have another form of insurance. However, the state doesnt yet know what happened to the remaining 42% of people who were dropped and said it would conduct a survey to find out. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Colorados Democratic leaders defend steep drop in Medicaid enrollees BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. A Trade and Investment House pavilion is scheduled to be launched within COP29, Azerbaijan Export and Investment Promotion Agency (AZPROMO) Executive Director Yusif Abdullayev told Trend. "AZPROMO plans to host the Trade and Investment Day event and establish a Trade and Investment House pavilion during COP29," he said. According to the executive director, they are currently working on resolving the issue's organizational components. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Members of the Colorado Gay Rodeo Association ride along Colfax Avenue in Denver's Pride Parade on June 23, 2024. (Sara Wilson/Colorado Newsline) This piece originally appeared in The Conversation. The Colorado Gay Rodeo Association has held a gay rodeo every year since 1983, making it the longest-running event of its kind in history. Their flagship event, the Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo in Denver, is part of a circuit of rodeos that, at times, has stretched across the United States and into Canada. Despite the cultural pushback these rodeos have faced, the legacy of the Denver rodeo continues as it celebrates its 41st anniversary on July 12-14, 2024. We researched the origins of this rodeo for our book, Slapping Leather: Queer Cowfolx at the Gay Rodeo, which also explores how gay rodeoers were at the forefront of combating discrimination and the AIDS crisis. Roots in Reno Gay rodeo didnt originate in the Rocky Mountains but instead was born in another mountain range further west the Sierra Nevada. Businessman Phil Ragsdale held the first gay rodeo in 1976 in Reno, Nevada, as a fundraiser for local community organizations. Ragsdale faced some difficulties renting space and animals when arena owners and stock contractors learned the event was for queer people. Nonetheless, Ragsdales first rodeo largely went off without a hitch. Soon known as the National Reno Gay Rodeo, the event expanded from the couple hundred spectators and participants who attended that first year to an annual event that sometimes attracted more than 10,000 people. In 1981, John King opened Charlies Denver, a gay country western bar managed by Wayne Jakino. The venue provided a space for cowfolx or queer ranchers, rodeoers and country western enthusiasts across the gender and sexuality spectrum to gather and form a community. Friends who met at the bar traveled en masse to the 1982 Reno rodeo. In 1983, they held their own rodeo in Denver, calling it the Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo. The Denver rodeo was the first gay rodeo to take place outside of Nevada, but it was soon joined by others, with four additional rodeos taking place in Oklahoma City, Phoenix, Los Angeles and Dallas by the end of 1986. Colorados leadership Thanks to the leadership of King and Jakino, the Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo helped other gay rodeos get off the ground across the United States and Canada. As Renos rodeo stumbled and eventually collapsed in 1984, Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo members worked with groups in Texas, California and Arizona to form the International Gay Rodeo Association in 1985. Jakino took the reins as the organizations first president. Jakino was particularly interested in bringing a sense of professionalism to gay rodeo, though that emphasis was always balanced with fun, campiness and sexual freedom. In 1982, Jakino wrote a letter to Ragsdale in which he outlined his goal of promoting the professionalism of gay rodeos and the enjoyment of our members and rodeo fans alike. Controversy in the Rockies This emphasis on professionalism didnt protect the International Gay Rodeo Association from anti-LGBTQ+ backlash. The Colorado Gay Rodeo Association explained to its membership in a 1988 newsletter that the first year the group held the Denver rodeo, eight arenas turned them away because they were an LGBTQ+ organization and that their current arena was barely on board with hosting them. The group called on its membership to prepare themselves for this kind of opposition and to come together in order to be a constructive force in the well being of the gay community! Anti-LGBTQ+ hostility grew more heated in the 1980s as the AIDS epidemic spread across the country. Even as the Colorado Gay Rodeo Association fought to remain visible and present, its members were literally fighting for their lives. Two of the groups founding members died of AIDS in 1986, and the organization directed its fundraising efforts toward helping with the HIV-AIDS crisis. With the expansion of the Christian Right in the 1980s and 90s, Colorado experienced intense campaigns to oppose the militant homosexual attack on traditional values, as the Colorado for Family Values organization put it. This group urged voters to pass Amendment 2, which would prevent towns or cities from creating laws to protect LGBTQ+ people and void the ordinances already in place in cities like Aspen and Boulder. Funded by national conservative groups like Eagle Forum and Focus on the Family, conservatives successfully passed the amendment in late 1992. This prompted a nationwide response called Boycott Colorado. The boycott cost the state roughly $120 million in lost tourism. Boycott organizers hoped to deter other states from passing similar legislation, but the boycott also threatened queer-owed businesses in the state, including the rodeo. While Amendment 2 was overturned by the Supreme Court in 1996 and never went into effect, Jakino and others were placed in the awkward position of having to ask their supporters to break boycotts to ensure their own economic survival. In 1993, Jakino wrote to fellow rodeo associations: We will not be driven out of Colorado or any other state and we pray that you will be there in even greater numbers as a message to Colorado and the nation We will fight against discrimination and for our Equal Rights! For Jakino and many other gay rodeoers, their continued presence in the world of rodeo was a poignant act of resistance. Gay rodeos future Having survived AIDS, homophobic legislation and national boycotts, the future of gay rodeo even such long-standing events like the Rocky Mountain Regional Rodeo is far from assured. While the AIDS epidemic decimated gay rodeo in some ways, it also attracted people to its ranks who wanted to fundraise for their queer community. Similarly, homophobic attacks united gay rodeo against outside opposition. Since the late 1990s, the International Gay Rodeo Associations story has turned from boom to bust, with more associations shuttering each year. By 2013, there were more defunct associations than active ones for the first time in International Gay Rodeo Association history, and in 2019 the organization held just 10 rodeos versus 22 in its prime. The COVID-19 pandemic was a crushing blow to a group already struggling for survival. Yet there is hope for the future, as more recent years have seen 12 rodeos back on the circuit. The Colorado Gay Rodeo Association packed stands at its 40th anniversary rodeo in 2023, but it may have a bumpy ride ahead. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST On June 27, a kitten was finally rescued after being trapped in a storm drain in Denver, Colorado, for four days. The feline was stuck in the pipe, and some residents tried their best to save him. However, after several failed attempts, they had to ask for help from the West Metro Fire Rescue. Kitten trapped in storm drain finally rescued in Denver Last month, a couple of Good Samaritans tried to rescue a kitten stuck in a storm drain for about four days. The West Metro Fire Rescue posted about the incident on its X formerly known as Twitter account. The feline is a beautiful black kitty who was saved and is recuperating from his scary ordeal. He is currently in a 10-day quarantine, after which the residents who helped rescue him plan to bring him home. This is the tail (tale) of a kitten who's used up at least one of his nine lives. After four days in a drain pipe, and a 911 call, he was rescued by the crew with West Metro Engine 3, a Lakewood Animal Control Officer, and a couple of caring residents. #catdistributionsystem pic.twitter.com/HcLOLg3n6V WestMetroFire (@WestMetroFire) July 6, 2024 Residents Max and Kat spotted the kitten days before the rescue mission. In the video, they noted that he ran into the storm drain pipe from a nearby home. After trying to save the feline for several days, they called the authorities for some help, per KDVR. The joint effort of West Metro Engine 3, Max and Kat, and Lakewood Animal Control finally saved the kitty. The cat-loving locals are already in love with the black kitten and plan to bring him home after his quarantine period. In a similar case, on July 3, another black kitten was rescued from a storm drain in Evesham, New Jersey. The feline was much younger than the one saved in Colorado. According to Shore NewsNetwork, thanks to Evesham Fire Rescue and the Evesham Township Police Department, the kitty made it out of the drain safely. When spooked by people or passing vehicles, kittens often run into nearby storm drains and sewers. The feline could be part of a stray litter or have been abandoned by someone on the side of the road. Fortunately, his rescuers saved him in time, and he already has a loving forever home. The post Colorado Kitten Trapped in Storm Drain for 4 Days Rescued appeared first on CatTime. Columbia Co. DA files petition to keep serial rapist behind bars, request publics help COLUMBIA COUNTY, Ga. (WJBF) Columbia County District Attorney, Bobby Christine, is asking the public to help keep a convicted serial rapist behind bars. In 1986, Willie Johnson brutally raped three women whose husbands were on duty at then Fort Gordon. He was sentenced to five consecutive years of life in prison plus 40 years. The Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles has voted to grant a tentative clemency release. In January 2022, Chief Assistant DA Natalie Paine, wrote a similar letter to the parole board. (We want to warn you this letter contains graphic material.) DA Christine is petitioning for this NOT to happen and asking citizens to contact the parole board. Read the full letter sent out by the DA below: You can contact the parole board at: Call: (404) 656-4661 Email: GaParoleBoard@pap.ga.gov Write: State Board of Pardons and Paroles| 2 M.L. King, Jr. Drive, SE Suite 430, Balcony Level, West Tower Atlanta, Ga., 30334 Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Three Columbia University deans who engaged in very troubling text message exchanges in the aftermath of relentless pro-Palestinian campus protests have been permanently removed from their positions, President Minouche Shafik and officials announced Monday. The administrators had been placed on leave pending an investigation since their texts at a reunion panel on Jewish campus life on May 31 were exposed. This incident revealed behavior and sentiments that were not only unprofessional, but also, disturbingly touched on ancient antisemitic tropes, Shafik wrote in an email to students and faculty. Whether intended as such or not, these sentiments are unacceptable and deeply upsetting, conveying a lack of seriousness about the concerns and the experiences of members of our Jewish community that is antithetical to our universitys values and the standards we must uphold in our community. Columbia spokesmen declined to say if the leave is paid or if the administrators will remain employed by the university in other roles. A fourth dean who was in one of the group chats will remain in his position. The text exchange first excerpted in the conservative news outlet The Washington Free Beacon a month ago and released in full by the U.S. House Education the Workforce Committee last week showed Cristen Kromm, the dean of undergraduate student life, fired off two sick and vomit emojis referencing a campus rabbis op-ed about antisemitism. Amazing what $$$$ can do, the dean remarked. Another administrator, Matthew Patashnick, the associate dean for student and family support, charged Hillel Executive Director Brian Cohen, one of the panelists, knows exactly what hes doing and how to take full advantage of this moment. Huge fundraising potential. The message was liked by Kromm. A third official, Susan Chang-Kim, the vice dean and chief administrative officer of Columbia College, said panelists expressing their fears about campus antisemitism came from such a place of privilege. Hard to hear the woe is me, we need to huddle at the Kraft center, said Chang-Kim, referring to the Jewish life campus building, which hosts weekly Shabbat dinners and services, and religious events for the High Holidays. Huh?? Last spring, Columbia was roiled by campus protests against Israels war in Gaza, including an encampment in the heart of campus calling for divestment. Shafik summoned the NYPD to clear the demonstration. Shortly after, students set up new tents until a smaller group of protesters occupied a campus building and spurred Shafik to again call the police, who arrested more than 100 demonstrators. Last month, the cases of 31 of the 46 people who were charged with trespassing in Hamilton Hall were dismissed by the Manhattan district attorneys office. Other protesters were offered a deal that would see their charges dismissed if they were not arrested again but declined. The group is due back in court July 25. Columbia College Dean Josef Sorett, who was in one of text exchanges and chimed in with a Lmao, slang for laughing, will remain in his position, university officials said. He penned a memo to students on Monday apologizing for the incident. As the leader of Columbia College, I am responsible for setting the culture and tone of the staff of the college, he said. The entire incident was contrary to the values of the university. While not intended as such, some of the text messages exchanged may call to mind antisemitic tropes. Any language that demeans members of our community, or divides us from one another, is simply unacceptable. I am deeply sorry that this happened in a community that I lead and, that I was part of any of the exchanges, and I pledge to spearhead the change we need to ensure this never happens again, added Sorett, whose academic research focused on religion and race. An alumni-led petition launched last week after the release of the full transcript had called for all four deans ousters and reached 1,400 signatures Monday. The group called Soretts continuing as dean untenable. In the near term, current Columbia College staff will take charge of its operations. Shafik said Columbia will launch a vigorous program of training against antisemitism and broader anti-discrimination training for faculty and staff this fall, plus related sessions for students led by the Office of University Life. More details will be shared this summer, officials said. While this disturbing incident has presented us challenges as a community, Columbias leadership team recognizes this as an important moment to implement changes that will build a stronger institution as a result, the university president said. NEW YORK Three Columbia University deans who engaged in very troubling text message exchanges in the aftermath of relentless pro-Palestinian campus protests have been permanently removed from their positions, President Minouche Shafik and officials announced Monday. The administrators had been placed on leave pending an investigation since their texts at a reunion panel on Jewish campus life on May 31 were exposed. This incident revealed behavior and sentiments that were not only unprofessional but also, disturbingly, touched on ancient antisemitic tropes, Shafik wrote in an email to students and faculty. Whether intended as such or not, these sentiments are unacceptable and deeply upsetting, conveying a lack of seriousness about the concerns and the experiences of members of our Jewish community that is antithetical to our universitys values and the standards we must uphold in our community. Columbia spokesmen declined to say if the leave is paid or if the administrators will remain employed by the university in other roles. A fourth dean who was in one of the group chats will remain in his position. The text exchange first excerpted in the conservative news outlet The Washington Free Beacon a month ago and released in full by the U.S. House Education and Workforce Committee last week showed Cristen Kromm, the dean of undergraduate student life, fired off two sick and vomit emojis referencing a campus rabbis op-ed about antisemitism. Amazing what $$$$ can do, the dean remarked. Another administrator, Matthew Patashnick, the associate dean for student and family support, charged that Hillel executive director Brian Cohen, one of the panelists, knows exactly what hes doing and how to take full advantage of this moment. Huge fundraising potential. The message was liked by Kromm. A third official, Susan Chang-Kim, the vice dean and chief administrative officer of Columbia College, said panelists expressing their fears about campus antisemitism came from such a place of privilege. Hard to hear the woe is me, we need to huddle at the Kraft center, said Chang-Kim, referring to the Jewish life campus building, which hosts weekly Shabbat dinners and services, and religious events for the High Holidays. Huh?? Last spring, Columbia was roiled by campus protests against Israels war in Gaza, including an encampment in the heart of campus calling for divestment. Shafik summoned the NYPD to clear the demonstration. Shortly after, students set up new tents until a smaller group of protesters occupied a campus building and spurred Shafik to again call the police, who arrested more than 100 demonstrators. Last month, the cases of 31 of the 46 people who were charged with trespassing in Hamilton Hall were dismissed by the Manhattan district attorneys office. Other protesters were offered a deal that would see their charges dismissed if they were not arrested again but declined. The group is due back in court July 25. Columbia College Dean Josef Sorett, who was in one of text exchanges and chimed in with a Lmao, slang for laughing, will remain in his position, university officials said. He penned a memo to students on Monday apologizing for the incident. As the leader of Columbia College, I am responsible for setting the culture and tone of the staff of the college, he said. The entire incident was contrary to the values of the university. While not intended as such, some of the text messages exchanged may call to mind antisemitic tropes. Any language that demeans members of our community, or divides us from one another, is simply unacceptable. I am deeply sorry that this happened in a community that I lead and, that I was part of any of the exchanges, and I pledge to spearhead the change we need to ensure this never happens again, added Sorett, whose academic research focused on religion and race. An alumni-led petition launched last week after the release of the full transcript had called for all four deans ousters and reached 1,400 signatures Monday. The group called Soretts continuing as dean untenable. In the near term, current Columbia College staff will take charge of its operations. Shafik said Columbia will launch a vigorous program of training against antisemitism and broader anti-discrimination training for faculty and staff this fall, plus related sessions for students led by the Office of University Life. More details will be shared this summer, officials said. While this disturbing incident has presented us challenges as a community, Columbias leadership team recognizes this as an important moment to implement changes that will build a stronger institution as a result, the university president said. _____ Will Columbus kids be served? School board must answer serious questions before closings. There's zero doubt the Columbus City Schools district needs to close some of its 113 buildings, not to mention to figure out how to dispose of other closed schools wasting $400,000 of taxpayer money annually. The multi-million dollar question is whether the proposal submitted June 25 by the Superintendent's Community Facilities Task Force is the proper plan or needs adjustments for Ohio's largest district of 46,000 students, down from 110,173 during the 1971-72 school year. The task force originally proposed closing up to 20 school buildings under nine different recommended scenarios. But in a final report, it recommended closing six elementary schools, two middle schools, a high school and the downtown administrative building. The task force also recommended the district modify the age groups served by four schools. None of the changes would begin before the fall of 2025. What's in the CCS closure plan? Read details of task force recommendations The school board wisely chose to take more time on the matter that night, with President Christina Vera saying the members needed to take more time to hear from the community. The next regular board meeting is in August. What can't happen now is for the board to again fail to act as it did in 2018 following a similar process. Board members are voluntarily elected to make difficult decisions that will never please everyone. They must agree to a plan that balances educational needs with fiscal accountability to taxpayers. Nor can they cave to the teachers' union which stopped participating in the closure process. So, here are our questions for board members to answer before finalizing the plan. Superintendent Angela Chapman, alongside school consolidation task force chairmen Jim Negron and Al Edmondson and board president Christina Vera, speaks to reporters following Columbus City Schools board meeting in which school closures and consolidation were recommended on June 25. Do the recommendations help kids? When Superintendent Angela Chapman visited our editorial board earlier this year, her pitch for school closures focused heavily on improving educational opportunities. She spoke passionately about low-enrollment high schools struggling to serve students. That's a worthy goal we can heartily endorse if CCS leaders can explain exactly how this proposal turns that vision into reality with concrete examples. There is much room for improvement. The district only earned one-star ratings in the graduation and early literacy categories on its 2022-2023 report card from the Ohio Department of Education. It received two stars in the achievement category and three stars each in progress and gap closing under the new system. Up to five stars are possible in each category. Just as importantly, how will the district work to ensure these changes are as minimally disruptive as possible? The task force already took a significant step in that direction by scrapping plans to close Cranbrook and Siebert elementary schools, which all have significant English as a Second Language programs. But what else can be done for students struggling after the COVID pandemic? A Cranbrook Elementary supporter waits for the announcement of school closures and consolidations during a meeting of the Columbus City Schools board. Will Columbus need to close more schools? Deciphering the future remains impossible although many do their best to predict population growth and other factors that influence how many children walk through the doors of a public school. With experts predicting substantial population growth throughout central Ohio and the city of Columbus seeking rezoning to allow for denser residential projects on key corridors, one has to wonder what the long-term impact may be on Columbus schools. Could enrollment increase? Of course, major portions of the city are served by suburban school districts, one of the key reasons Columbus' enrollment has fallen as the city has grown. Charter and private schools, currently benefiting from expanded vouchers and friendly conservative lawmakers in the Ohio General Assembly, also impact enrollment. Our View: Unhinged, unethical document shouldn't stop board from closing schools. District is too big. If enrollment continues to decline, what would come next for building closures? Presumably some of the originally recommended schools might be on the hook again? Our main concern is avoiding major capital expenses on buildings we may not need in five or 10 years. Remember, all of the schools being closed were retrofitted for air conditioning to help settle the 2022 teacher strike. What is the longer-term plan taxpayers deserve? The public in attendance reacts as school closures and consolidation are announced during a meeting of the Columbus City Schools board June 25. Exactly how much money will be saved? The proposed closures could save about $9 million a year, although that number is heavily influenced by not making $7.7 million in capital improvements each year, the district said. CCS says it would save $853,000 on maintenance and $788,000 on utility costs annually, although it only spends $400,000 on currently closed schools. To us, there also should be some additional savings on personnel from reducing principal positions and maintenance personnel. More details are needed. Could sale of downtown building be lucrative? We're intrigued by the proposal to close the downtown Columbus Education Center, 270 E. State St., presuming there is sufficient space to house employees at the district administrative building at 3700 S. High St., where most board meetings are currently held. The move also needs to be cost effective, meaning the avoidance of major renovation costs to make it possible. The district's downtown lot, which spans most of an entire city block with its parking lot, could be in high demand given the desires of developers for new apartment buildings and other projects. It's also near the ever-expanding Grant Medical Center. If CCS vacates this building, there needs to be a specific accounting of related expenses and a plan to reinvest any proceeds for the benefit of the community. As for board meetings, why not host them in high schools across the district? What will the district do with currently vacant schools? We suspect one reason Columbus already maintains 12 vacant properties can be found in Ohio law. Public districts are now required to make "surplus" schools available to high-performing community or charter schools. We doubt CCS wants to aid its competitors by handing over buildings that could help charters become more successful. Chapman wants to use vacant schools for a community partnership offering early childhood education to pre-kindergarten children, which benefits CCS and children. But if that can't work out, the school board needs to clear about whether it plans to keep paying money to heat and maintain vacant schools. Not all details are possible We understand district officials can't answer every question we or the public may pose, especially how individual school boundaries may be impacted. But openly answering these questions and other worthy queries from the public would go a long way to addressing the fallout from board member Brandon Simmon's awful written plan to steamroll public concerns about school closures. The board needs to show voters its listening after its successful $100 million levy campaign last fall. Responsive and inclusive engagement must take place before any vote to close schools, even if not everyone will agree with the plan. It's up to the school board to make that happen. This piece was written by Dispatch Executive Editor Michael Shearer on behalf of the editorial board of The Columbus Dispatch. Editorials are fact-based assessments of issues of importance to the communities we serve. These are not the opinions of our reporting staff members, who strive for neutrality in their reporting". This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Questions must be answers before Columbus City Schools closes buildings COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) Monday, a jailhouse murderer was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole after pleading guilty to strangling to death his Muscogee County Jail cellmate with his bare hands. Jayvon Hatchett, 23-year-old black man, entered a guilty plea in the September 2020 jailhouse murder of his cellmate, Eddie Nelson, Jr, a white man. The defendant, Mr. Hatchett, murdered his cellmate, Mr. Eddie Nelson, through major strangulation, Assistant District Attorney Austin Hammock addressed the court. I mean, he murdered Mr. Nelson with his bare hands. Superior Court Judge John Martin sentenced Hatchett to life with the possibility of parole, under Georgia Law you must serve at least 30 years. Our community continues to be plagued by violence and murders, for persons to understand that if you behave like this, that there are serious consequences, Judge Martin said. We are here today to, as I indicated, this is how we resolve disputes in this country. And I think the message needs to go out that if there is behavior like this thats completely unjustified, that there are serious consequences to it. Point being, this was a heinous crime. He took another mans life, Hammock told WRBL. And honestly, it really doesnt matter why were glad to see him go away for life. Hatchett was serving time for stabbing an AutoZone worker. Hatchett said he stabbed the worker because he, wanted to kill a white man, after watching a video of police brutality against a black man on social media. Two weeks after the AutoZone attack, Hatchett killed his cellmate. Both crimes came just three months after the brutal murder of George Floyd, which made national news. I think that is a real problem that people see and theres a disconnect between what we see on the Internet, what we see on television, and what its like in real life when someone is hurt or killed, District Attorney Don Kelly said. We often see young people who act out in ways that are disproportionate to what has happened. And that does lead to a lot of our murders. Hatchett has been jailed since 2020 and will receive credit for time served. He also entered a guilty plea Monday to family violence in a separate case. Judge Martin sentenced him to 20 years to be served concurrently with his life sentence. Previous Coverage March 29, 2023: Columbus courtroom proceedings for jailhouse murder plea paused after Jayvon Hatchett suffered a medical issue (wrbl.com) March 24, 2023: Thats the absolute definition of a hate crime, Columbus man sentenced, convicted in racially motivated attack | WRBL March 23, 2023: Superior Court jury convicts Columbus man in racially motivated 2020 AutoZone attack | WRBL March 23, 2023: I diagnosed him with schizoaffective disorder: Psychologist takes the stand in day four of Jayvon Hatchett trial (wrbl.com) March 21, 2023: Wheelchair-bound AutoZone stabbing victim describes vicious attack in what the DA says was racially motivated crime (wrbl.com) Sept. 8, 2020: Suspect arrested in racially motivated AutoZone stabbing faces murder charge in beating death of inmate | WRBL Sept. 5, 2020: Muscogee County Jail inmate beaten to death; Inmate incarcerated for alleged racially motivated attack is suspect | WRBL Aug. 27, 2020: AutoZone stabbing suspect felt the need to find a white male to kill, police say in court testimony | WRBL Aug. 25, 2020: Suspect wanted in AutoZone knife attack | 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. COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) A man accused of bringing a rifle to a recreation center as it was being used as a voting precinct was taken into custody on Sunday, according to the Columbus Police Department. Noah Harley was arrested and charged with possession of a deadly weapon at a public gathering. Police say he had a rifle at Shirley B. Winston Recreation Center on May 21 election day in Georgia. The recreation center was being used to vote at that time. Initial Report: Investigation underway following dispute at recreation center during election day Harley has additionally been charged with theft by receiving (motor vehicle) and obstruction. On Monday, Harley pled not guilty in Recorders Court and waived his preliminary hearing. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 Columbus Zoo shared an adorable update and some great news as their resident Gorilla became a first-time mom, and the baby is so cute. On July 3, 2024, the Columbus Zoo took to social media to share details about the birth of the precious baby Gorilla, and share some first photos. Take a look! View the original article to see embedded media. On Instagram, the Columbus Zoo shared three photos of their precious Western Lowland Gorilla born in late June. Related: Gorilla at Cincinnati Zoo Gets the World's First 3D-Printed Titanium Cast for Broken Arm "Welcome to the world, baby!" the zoo shared. "We are thrilled to announce the arrival of a precious baby Western Lowland Gorilla, born early on Saturday, June 29, 2024, to first-time mom, Sue, and proud dad, Ktembe!" The first of three photos shows Sue, who is looking at the camera, and the little baby, who is cuddled in her arms. The baby's eyes are fixated on Mama, and they look so cute and happy. "Sue is being an amazing mom, cuddling and caring for her newborn with lots of love. To give them some privacy and bonding time, we'll find out if the baby is a boy or a girl a little later," the zoo's post continued. "The entire gorilla family, including Ktembe, Nia, Cassie, and little Jamani, are all being very respectful and giving Sue and the baby the space they need." The little Gorilla will be available for the community to take a look starting July 8 but the zoo was clear in their intention to put baby and mom's bonding above any other need. "These special hours will help ensure the gorillas continue to bond comfortably." The other two photos included in the social share showed the baby's face a little closer and their tiny and adorable hands. To finish their social share, the Columbus Zoo explained why this baby's birth is a really big deal. "This most recent baby is the 35th gorilla to be born at the Columbus Zoo, where history was made in 1956 with Colo, the first gorilla to be born in professional care," the zoo explained. "Colo made history again as she lived to be 60 years oldthe oldest gorilla in a zoo at that time. Though she passed away in 2017, her legacyand the Zoos gorilla programcontinues to have far-reaching impacts in helping to protect the future of western lowland gorillas." Western Lowland Gorillas Are 'Critically Endangered' According to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) the population of these Gorillas has been on a scary decline for decades. "The size of the population in 2013 was estimated to be almost 362,000 individuals," the IUCN notes. "The country of Gabon lost over half its Gorilla population between 1983 and 2000. More recent population declines have been estimated using a predictive model that incorporated survey data collected between 2003 and 2013 across the entire range of Western Lowland Gorillas," the organization explains. "The results reveal a 19.4% decline between 2005 and 2013, corresponding to an annual loss of ~2.7%." The majority of the population declines have been largely driven by "poaching and disease (Ebolavirus) outbreaks. The exterior of the Rhode Island State House is shown in the afternoon. All four seats on the 12-member commission preparing for a possible constitutional convention that are reserved for members of the public have been filled by political insiders, namely former lawmakers or staffers. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) The newly appointed bipartisan commission preparing for the possibility of a constitutional convention in Rhode Island has less than six weeks to complete its job. The 12 members announced last week are tentatively scheduled to hold their first meeting on July 24 at the State House. The group must hold public hearings and gather input for a report to be completed by Sept. 1. It will disband after that date. The report will suggest potential issues that could be addressed by a constitutional convention often referred to as a ConCon for inclusion in the voter handbook mailed to all registered voters before the Nov. 5 election. If the commission is short on time, could the same be said for its bandwidth? Thats a fair question given its composition: four representatives, four senators and four members of the public. The latter category has been filled by former lawmakers and former State House staffers. Legislative leadership lacks imagination when it comes to appointments, Common Cause Rhode Island Executive Director John Marion told Rhode Island Current. Its disappointing to see that [in] a state rich in colleges and universities, including a law school, there isnt an actual expert in constitutional law on the commission. The four House members are: Judiciary Chairman Robert Craven, a North Kingstown Democrat; Deputy Speaker Raymond Hull, a Providence Democrat; Rep. Arthur Corvese, a North Providence Democrat; and Minority Whip David Place, a Burrillville Republican. The four Senate members are: Judiciary Chairwoman Dawn Euer, a Newport Democrat; Sen. Robert Britto, an East Providence Democrat, state Sen. Matthew LaMountain, a Warwick Democrat; and Minority Leader Jessica de la Cruz, a North Smithfield Republican. The four members of the public all have ties to Smith Hill. House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi selected former State Rep. Deborah Ruggiero, a Jamestown Democrat who served in the legislature from 2009 to 2023 and was an unsuccessful candidate for lieutenant governor. Rhode Islands state constitution allows voters to weigh in every ten years on whether there should be a state constitutional convention, Ruggiero said in a statement Monday. Who knows what voters will decide this November- ten years ago they voted no convention, 55%; but it is the right of the people to make that decision. I am honored to serve and look forward to the conversation on ConCon at our first meeting on Wednesday July 24. Senate President Dominick Ruggerio selected Stephen Iannazzi, his former chief of staff who resigned in 2021 to become regional director of government affairs for Cox Communications. House Minority Leader Mike Chippendale picked Daniel Reilly, who served as a state representative for House District 72 (which includes parts of Portsmouth and Middletown) between 2011 and 2013 and again from 2015 to 2017. Since 2022 Reilly has worked as legal counsel for the House GOP. De la Cruz chose Joseph Larisa, Jr., who served as chief of staff and executive counsel to former Gov. Lincoln Almond. He was also mayor of East Providence. Rhode Island is one of five states, along with Alaska, Hawaii, Iowa and New Hampshire, where people automatically have the chance to vote to hold a constitutional convention every 10 years. The General Assembly may also propose amendments during any election year. Overall, 14 states mandated periodic constitutional convention referenda. Rhode Islands convention question typically goes on the ballot in years ending in the number four, but voters rejected ballot questions seeking to convene one in 1994, 2004 and 2014. The states most recent convention in 1986 saw delegates create an Ethics Commission, restore felons voting rights, and clarify Rhode Islanders rights to the shoreline. Proponents for holding a convention to change Rhode Islands governing documents say it gives the public a chance to update how the state government operates. Opponents argue a constitutional convention could roll back many of the states civil protections. Should a majority of Rhode Islanders want to move ahead with a convention, the state would have to set up a special election to select 75 convention delegates to represent each of the state House districts. This story was updated to include comment from former State Rep. Deborah Ruggiero. The post Commission appointed to prep for potential constitutional convention appeared first on Rhode Island Current. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8.Azerbaijans selection as the COP29 host has heightened business awareness of ESG (environmental, social, and governance) principles and created a drive to adhere to them, Shaukat Tapia, new Country Managing Partner of PwC for Azerbaijan told Trend in an exclusive interview. To note, ESG encompasses criteria for assessing a company's sustainability, focusing on its environmental impact, social responsibilities, and quality of management. It includes three key components: environmental, social, and governance factors. Shaukat Tapia was appointed as PwC's Country Managing Partner effective July 1, 2024. According to him, the most important goal is to establish a platform for fostering cooperation, exchanging views, and facilitating dialogue. "Together with the UN, we organized a summit that effectively facilitated this. ESG practices and company collaboration were discussed extensively with stakeholders and regulators. I think it set the basis for concrete progress, which is vital," he stated. The managing partner highlighted key findings from PwC Azerbaijan's latest ESG report. "In our first ESG survey, about 33 companies participated, including local Azerbaijani firms, multinationals, and Azerbaijani multinational companies. Some key insights: approximately two-thirds of participants have a basic to advanced understanding of ESG principles; 27 percent have a documented ESG strategy and implementation roadmap; and around 70 percent are concerned about climate change and energy issues. Notably, Azerbaijan's selection as the host country for COP29 has heightened business awareness of ESG and increased the motivation to adopt these practices," Tapia noted. He noted that public-private partnerships provide a platform for exchanging resources, ideas, and perspectives. COP29 has certainly laid an excellent foundation for this. Regulators, stakeholders, and companies are actively engaging in discussions on how to tackle the challenges businesses face and their methods for implementing ESG practices. The ESG Summit, co-organized by PwC Azerbaijan and the UN, exemplified a forum where many ideas and paths forward on ESG were shared. It was truly inspiring, he added. Shaukat Tapia also discussed opportunities for Azerbaijani companies to integrate ESG principles into their operations. Lack of knowledge, restricted funds, and regulatory issues are the key issues. However, these problems offer great potential. Knowledge improves innovation, risk management, stakeholder confidence, and compliance. ESG reduces regulatory noncompliance. Commercially, it enables access to foreign capital as funding institutions increasingly prioritize ESG concepts and regulatory compliance, he concluded. To note, PwC (PricewaterhouseCoopers) is a leading global network of professional services firms providing a wide range of services, including audit, advisory, and tax services. PwC is renowned for its expertise in ESG, helping organizations navigate the complexities of sustainable development, ethical governance, and social responsibility. In Azerbaijan, PwC has been at the forefront of promoting ESG practices. The company has worked with various local and international clients to integrate ESG considerations into their business strategies, ensuring compliance with global standards and enhancing their sustainability performance. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, with its secretariat in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency'sWhatsApp channel Common Cause of NCs Bob Phillips on the recessed legislative session, the state of election laws Bob Phillips, Executive Director of Common Cause North Carolina (Screengrab from press briefing) The North Carolina General Assembly wrapped up its 2024 short session recently and once again, it was a tough session for many basic aspects of democratic government. Whether they were unveiling secretly written proposals to overhaul state campaign finance laws, placing new unfunded obligations on election administrators, or cementing in place law changes that will make voting more of a challenge, lawmakers stuck to the same playbook theyve used in recent years. All that said, as Newsline learned in a recent conversation with one of the states top good government watchdogs, Common Cause of North Carolina executive director, Bob Phillips, things might well have been worse had lawmakers not abruptly ended the session when they did. The post Common Cause of NCs Bob Phillips on the recessed legislative session, the state of election laws appeared first on NC Newsline. SHEBOYGAN - Peggy Fischer, who has lived in King Park neighborhood for 32 years, is wary about how the Malibu Apartments, proposed on contaminated land, will affect residents and future tenants. In addition to effects of the contaminated land itself, Fischer suspects there could be more frequent flooding in the lowland area and interruption of the natural hydrology cycle if the 210-unit complex is built on the Kite Beach plot on South Seventh Street. With an impervious surface and no soil to absorb rain, she said she's concerned there could be increased storm water runoff and reduced groundwater recharge. Its just a big concern of mine, Fischer said. A plot of land as seen, Thursday, February 29, 2024, along South 7th Street where Optenberg Iron Works and later Optenberg, LLC once stood in Sheboygan, Wis. Malibu Apartments, LLC, received Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources approval for a site investigation work plan of the contaminated site. It was formerly occupied by the Optenberg Iron Works steel plant, which operated there in some capacity for more than a century. Fischer worked at Optenberg in purchasing after college and was a witness to the lingering contamination when it was torn down in 2003 after shutting down. Fill, including waste, was detected on the 4 acres of land, some as deep as 8 feet below the surface, according to a June 2024 DNR letter. When a different developer, Sheboygan Lakeview Property, LLC, looked to redevelop the site into condominiums in the early 2000s, an environmental site assessment in 2005 determined the land didnt qualify as a Superfund site but had several hazardous aspects, including an underground storage gas tank that released oil into soil and groundwater and an oil/chemical storage room that had surrounding soil impacts. Contaminants were detected in 2001 but went unreported. Sheboygan Streetwise SLP applied for Voluntary Party Liability Exemption, an environmental cleanup program with the DNR, though site remediation still hasnt been reached. The developer completed site investigation and remediation work until 2017. Jake Buswell, developer with Malibu Apartments, LLC, said the VPLE program is not required for the new proposed project. Being in the program is costly and requires more DNR oversight of the material management plan, he continued. FILE - Optenberg Enterprises as it was seen Monday, October 3, 2005, in Sheboygan, Wis. We could discontinue this program and seek DNR closure like many other contaminated sites that get developed, Buswell said in an email. However, for everyones piece of mind we think it is the right thing to do to make 100% sure everything is being handled properly and that long term there are no potentials for issues. The site cleanup will be supported with funding from a $500,000 Brownfield Assessment grant, awarded to the city last year by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. The extent of funds dedicated to the project will be based on several factors, like sampling results and demands of the redevelopment project, according to County Planning and Conservation Director Aaron Brault. DNR recommends extensive soil testing on the contaminated site The DNR recently approved and recommended extensive remedial tasks for the land installing about 24 soil borings that extend to a maximum of 16 feet; monitoring for groundwater samples on the beach, site and off-site on Clara Avenue; and providing a sediment and surface water assessment. The department also highly recommends collecting unsaturated soil samples up to two feet to determine direct contact risk and future capping needs. The plan calls for monitoring volatile organic compounds, PAHs, PCBs and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act metals, like lead, arsenic and mercury. Construction one cause of overflow: Construction, uneven water distribution at Sheboygan treatment facility one reason for overflow last week Concerns about flooding, storm water runoff persist in King Park neighborhood Though there is a plan for site monitoring and testing, there don't seem to be final plans yet for stormwater or runoff management. Fischer has experienced several flooding incidents living in the King Park neighborhood. She witnessed damage from the flood of 1998, overwhelming the city with 10 inches of rain within a 24-hour period. More than 800 homes were water damaged and 16 houses on Camelot Boulevard were torn down, beyond repairable. It was running in my windows, Fischer said. She said her husband was up all night, running water out of the basement with a hose. They had to throw a lot of things away and check for mold. Sewer water came up through cracks in her basement a few years before that. The city installed a sump pump crock to prevent future flooding. Fischer said the last significant flooding was in 2019, when she got a sump pump to remove water. From her understanding, the catch basin at the corner of Georgia Avenue and Seventh Street was faulty and caused the most recent flooding. She hasnt had any issues since but isnt sure if its been fixed. She said the DNR told her a stormwater system could drain to the lake or connect to the catch basin off Georgia Avenue. South 12th Street was closed due to localized flooding near Kohler-Andrae State Park, Monday, May 18, 2020, in Sheboygan, Wis. That is a huge concern because is the infrastructure down here good? Fischer said. Im concerned about it. The developers are working with Stantec, an engineering and environmental consulting firm, on the material management plan and a stormwater system, Buswell said. He didn't share more about a plan. Jim Van Akkeren, who grew up in the neighborhood, said his concerns lie with the high water levels of the neighborhood, which could call for constructing a rubble or concrete revetment to break waves crashing near the shore of the proposed complex. He said this could have ecological impacts of an area natural with vegetation and sand dunes. While revetments can prevent erosion from high lake levels, he said nearby properties may bear the brunt of diverted waves, too, and that type of manmade structure is not consistent with what that area has always looked like. Lake levels were high when the Optenberg factory was still on the property, so it was also protected with concrete revetments. At that time, the lake wasnt accessible from that point. Malibu Apartments, LLC, has been in communication with the DNR about Ordinary High Water Mark and the Waterways Program qualifications for the proposed project, which could call for establishing a boundary between the proposed development and Lake Michigan based on consistent water patterns. The OHWM aims to protect public resources and give clear guidelines to private properties and projects. In correspondence with the department, Buswell said the OHWM is on city land and the project should be well away from wetlands or the OHWM. Howards Grove: Water in Howards Grove may stymie larger development, but changing that would be expensive and challenging Kite Beach land hasn't been sold yet Sheboygan Lakeview Property, LLC, still owns the land for the proposed apartments, according to land records. The development group opted to stay in the VPLE program, according to correspondence with the DNR in February. City Administrator Casey Bradley said he thought SLP may be applying for a zoning permit with the city in the future. Malibu Apartment, LLC, couldnt be reached to learn more about its plans to purchase the property. Have a story tip? Contact Alex Garner at 224-374-2332 or agarner@gannett.com. Follow her on X (formerly Twitter) at @alexx_garner. This article originally appeared on Sheboygan Press: Land contamination of Malibu Apartments site persist, DNR approves remediation plan HOLLAND Residents accustomed to dropping by Van Wieren Hardware can breathe a sigh of relief; the building will remain a hardware store, after all. Kristen Redell, great-granddaughter of founder Andrew Van Wieren, confirmed the news to The Sentinel on Monday, July 8. More: Van Wieren Hardware to close after 75 years in Holland Township As she and her family reflect on 75 years in business, there are countless memories that come to mind like the times they stayed open during intense storms, and when they'd pick up nightcrawlers as bait for local fisherman. The store's history dates back to 1948, when Andrew and Harriett Van Wieren opened a gas station/lunchroom/bait shop at the corner of Division and Ottawa Beach Road. Van Wieren Hardware will close for the last time Saturday, July 13. Its been run by three generations of owners and five generations of employees. This Saturday, the shop at 645 Douglas Ave. will close its doors for the last time. Its a happy time, Redell said. I think, when you close a business, everybody thinks it should be sad. I know everyone is looking forward to next steps with retirement and enjoying life. Redell said the building has been sold and will be leased by Rivers Ace Hardware, a family-owned chain of stores with locations across West Michigan, including in Whitehall, New Era, Grand Haven and Rothbury. It's a family-run hardware business, which was important to us, Redell said. We're excited that the community will still be able to receive amazing support for their projects through a locally run hardware store. Van Wieren Hardware in the early 1960s. The building and surrounding land was originally listed for sale in April and included four addresses (645 Douglas and 9, 15, and 19 Division). The properties on Division include rental homes and all four were zoned C-1 Commercial. The main building is 20,750 square feet with a 1,086-square-foot house in the rear, all on 3.33 acres. The home at 9 Division is 728 square feet on 0.5 acres, the home at 15 Division is 1,399 square feet on 0.97 acres, and the home at 19 Division is 1,152 square feet on 0.64 acres. Redell said a timeline for Ace Hardware's opening is yet to be determined, but confirmed plans to update the building. Rivers Ace has offered employment to all current store workers. Subscribe: Get all your breaking news and unlimited access to our local coverage Prices will drop by 80% this week, and the family will hold an open house from 3-6 p.m. Tuesday, July 9, as one last celebration. The community is tremendous, Redell said. We've had such a solid run because of the support and love. We gave a lot to the community but we also got a lot from the community, and I think thats what owning a business in Holland is all about. Contact reporter Austin Metz at ametz@hollandsentinel.com. This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Van Wieren in Holland Township to become Ace Hardware Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. (Courtesy of Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Clinic closures in the wake of the Dobbs decision and questions about the legality of emergency contraceptives, including disinformation that some are abortion drugs, may have contributed to a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans, according to a University of California Los Angeles study. The decline was significant in most states with restrictive bans following Dobbs in June 2022 that returned regulation of abortion procedures to the states, the study found. The group of researchers, led by pharmacy professor Dima Qato, used data from national prescription audit databases to estimate the monthly volume of prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies nationwide and state-by-state. It represents estimates from more than 93% of retail pharmacies. Given that abortion would be restricted in many states even more after Dobbs, I wondered whether now more people would get covered through contraception to prevent pregnancy and the need for an abortion, Qato said. Over the past six months, especially in states with near-total abortion bans, lawmakers have discussed proposals that would protect access to contraception, but those efforts have largely failed because of concern over whether that would include emergency contraception. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. The researchers think those conversations have led to confusion among residents who arent sure if emergency contraceptives are still legal in their state. That confusion could also extend to pharmacists. While Plan B is available over the counter at many retail stores and pharmacies, including Amazon, it can also be obtained by prescription, which is the only data point the study captured. According to the research, the rate of obtaining it through prescription between 2021 and 2023 dropped more than 70% in four states with near-total bans Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. It declined by about 60% in Missouri. The increases peaked in July 2022 and then dropped to levels lower than the pre-Dobbs period, Qato said. For patients that are seeking emergency contraception but cant get it prescribed or filled, thats where it matters, Qato said. They want to take it, they know its an option, and now theyre faced with hesitant prescribers and pharmacies. Half of women surveyed in ban states are unsure if Plan B is legal A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released in early 2023 found that more than 30% of adults surveyed were unsure if Plan B was legal in all 50 states and over the counter and half of women living in states with abortion bans were under the impression that emergency contraceptives were illegal or were unsure if they were legal. Conversely, in two states with near-total bans, Idaho and South Dakota, the rate of prescriptions for emergency contraceptives increased by 148% and 182%, respectively. Those numbers were attributed to increases in ulipristal, which is also known as Ella, rather than levonorgestrel, known as Plan B. Ella can be effective at preventing pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex, while Plan B is most effective within three days and is also less effective in people who weigh more than 165 pounds, while Ella does not have that limitation. Between the 12 states with the most restrictive bans, the combined decline of emergency contraceptive prescriptions was 60%, and the decline for oral contraceptives was 24%. Qato said she expected to see lower rates of emergency contraceptive use in the most restrictive states, particularly with the conversations likening them to abortion drugs, but she wasnt expecting to also see a drop in monthly oral contraceptive prescriptions. Among states with the most restrictive bans, the largest decrease of 28% was in Texas, while most other states had decreases of about 20%, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee. Qato also theorized that the closure of abortion clinics in those states with bans contributed to the decreases, since most clinics that provided abortions prior to Dobbs also offered prescriptions for oral and emergency contraceptives, IUDs and other family planning services such as screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The study found no change in the use of IUDs and other forms of contraception such as the patch or vaginal ring. Over-the-counter options only help certain people In her research, Qato noted that two years after Iowa imposed Medicaid coverage restrictions on family planning clinics that provided abortions, the use of contraceptives declined by two-thirds. A report from the Guttmacher Institute released this week showed 42 clinics that provided abortions nationwide closed their doors between 2020 and 2024. The number of abortions have also increased during that time, and more than 80% still take place at brick-and-mortar clinics rather than via telehealth or by mail. While Plan B and Opill an oral contraceptive are available over the counter, Qato said those options are still untenable for some people who need contraceptives the most, including low-income women and women of color. Opill is convenient for those who dont want to go to the doctor and have that discretionary income to purchase it, but low-income women relied on clinics that are now closed, they relied on prescriptions that they now dont have, Qato said. Those options are accessible, but not affordable to women who could really benefit from it. While Qato said there should be a focus on restoring and protecting access to abortion, there should also be efforts to protect contraception in the most restrictive states. She is alarmed to see initial increases after Dobbs and then such steep declines. It suggests that we may observe increases in live births from unintended pregnancies in women who were forced to have a child that wasnt planned because the state didnt protect or introduced fear of criminalization or liability for patients, doctors, or pharmacists, she said. A woman may not feel safe choosing emergency contraception in those states anymore. The post Confusion, clinic closures may have caused big declines in contraception use, study shows appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Clinic closures in the wake of the Dobbs decision and questions about the legality of emergency contraceptives, including disinformation that some are abortion drugs, may have contributed to a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans, according to a University of California Los Angeles study. The decline was significant in most states with restrictive bans following Dobbs in June 2022 that returned regulation of abortion procedures to the states, the study found. The group of researchers, led by pharmacy professor Dima Qato, used data from national prescription audit databases to estimate the monthly volume of prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies nationwide and state-by-state. It represents estimates from more than 93% of retail pharmacies. Given that abortion would be restricted in many states even more after Dobbs, I wondered whether now more people would get covered through contraception to prevent pregnancy and the need for an abortion, Qato said. Over the past six months, especially in states with near-total abortion bans, lawmakers have discussed proposals that would protect access to contraception, but those efforts have largely failed because of concern over whether that would include emergency contraception. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. The researchers think those conversations have led to confusion among residents who arent sure if emergency contraceptives are still legal in their state. That confusion could also extend to pharmacists. While Plan B is available over the counter at many retail stores and pharmacies, including Amazon, it can also be obtained by prescription, which is the only data point the study captured. According to the research, the rate of obtaining it through prescription between 2021 and 2023 dropped more than 70% in four states with near-total bans Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. It declined by about 60% in Missouri. The increases peaked in July 2022 and then dropped to levels lower than the pre-Dobbs period, Qato said. For patients that are seeking emergency contraception but cant get it prescribed or filled, thats where it matters, Qato said. They want to take it, they know its an option, and now theyre faced with hesitant prescribers and pharmacies. Half of women surveyed in ban states are unsure if Plan B is legal A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released in early 2023 found that more than 30% of adults surveyed were unsure if Plan B was legal in all 50 states and over the counter and half of women living in states with abortion bans were under the impression that emergency contraceptives were illegal or were unsure if they were legal. Conversely, in two states with near-total bans, Idaho and South Dakota, the rate of prescriptions for emergency contraceptives increased by 148% and 182%, respectively. Those numbers were attributed to increases in ulipristal, which is also known as Ella, rather than levonorgestrel, known as Plan B. Ella can be effective at preventing pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex, while Plan B is most effective within three days and is also less effective in people who weigh more than 165 pounds, while Ella does not have that limitation. Between the 12 states with the most restrictive bans, the combined decline of emergency contraceptive prescriptions was 60%, and the decline for oral contraceptives was 24%. Qato said she expected to see lower rates of emergency contraceptive use in the most restrictive states, particularly with the conversations likening them to abortion drugs, but she wasnt expecting to also see a drop in monthly oral contraceptive prescriptions. Among states with the most restrictive bans, the largest decrease of 28% was in Texas, while most other states had decreases of about 20%, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee. Qato also theorized that the closure of abortion clinics in those states with bans contributed to the decreases, since most clinics that provided abortions prior to Dobbs also offered prescriptions for oral and emergency contraceptives, IUDs and other family planning services such as screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The study found no change in the use of IUDs and other forms of contraception such as the patch or vaginal ring. Over-the-counter options only help certain people In her research, Qato noted that two years after Iowa imposed Medicaid coverage restrictions on family planning clinics that provided abortions, the use of contraceptives declined by two-thirds. A report from the Guttmacher Institute released this week showed 42 clinics that provided abortions nationwide closed their doors between 2020 and 2024. The number of abortions have also increased during that time, and more than 80% still take place at brick-and-mortar clinics rather than via telehealth or by mail. While Plan B and Opill an oral contraceptive are available over the counter, Qato said those options are still untenable for some people who need contraceptives the most, including low-income women and women of color. Opill is convenient for those who dont want to go to the doctor and have that discretionary income to purchase it, but low-income women relied on clinics that are now closed, they relied on prescriptions that they now dont have, Qato said. Those options are accessible, but not affordable to women who could really benefit from it. While Qato said there should be a focus on restoring and protecting access to abortion, there should also be efforts to protect contraception in the most restrictive states. She is alarmed to see initial increases after Dobbs and then such steep declines. It suggests that we may observe increases in live births from unintended pregnancies in women who were forced to have a child that wasnt planned because the state didnt protect or introduced fear of criminalization or liability for patients, doctors, or pharmacists, she said. A woman may not feel safe choosing emergency contraception in those states anymore. The post Confusion, clinic closures may have caused big declines in contraception use, study shows appeared first on Rhode Island Current. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Clinic closures in the wake of the Dobbs decision and questions about the legality of emergency contraceptives, including disinformation that some are abortion drugs, may have contributed to a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans, according to a University of California Los Angeles study. The decline was significant in most states with restrictive bans following Dobbs in June 2022 that returned regulation of abortion procedures to the states, the study found. The group of researchers, led by pharmacy professor Dima Qato, used data from national prescription audit databases to estimate the monthly volume of prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies nationwide and state-by-state. It represents estimates from more than 93% of retail pharmacies. Given that abortion would be restricted in many states even more after Dobbs, I wondered whether now more people would get covered through contraception to prevent pregnancy and the need for an abortion, Qato said. Over the past six months, especially in states with near-total abortion bans, lawmakers have discussed proposals that would protect access to contraception, but those efforts have largely failed because of concern over whether that would include emergency contraception. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. The researchers think those conversations have led to confusion among residents who arent sure if emergency contraceptives are still legal in their state. That confusion could also extend to pharmacists. While Plan B is available over the counter at many retail stores and pharmacies, including Amazon, it can also be obtained by prescription, which is the only data point the study captured. According to the research, the rate of obtaining it through prescription between 2021 and 2023 dropped more than 70% in four states with near-total bans Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. It declined by about 60% in Missouri. The increases peaked in July 2022 and then dropped to levels lower than the pre-Dobbs period, Qato said. For patients that are seeking emergency contraception but cant get it prescribed or filled, thats where it matters, Qato said. They want to take it, they know its an option, and now theyre faced with hesitant prescribers and pharmacies. Half of women surveyed in ban states are unsure if Plan B is legal A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released in early 2023 found that more than 30% of adults surveyed were unsure if Plan B was legal in all 50 states and over the counter and half of women living in states with abortion bans were under the impression that emergency contraceptives were illegal or were unsure if they were legal. Conversely, in two states with near-total bans, Idaho and South Dakota, the rate of prescriptions for emergency contraceptives increased by 148% and 182%, respectively. Those numbers were attributed to increases in ulipristal, which is also known as Ella, rather than levonorgestrel, known as Plan B. Ella can be effective at preventing pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex, while Plan B is most effective within three days and is also less effective in people who weigh more than 165 pounds, while Ella does not have that limitation. Between the 12 states with the most restrictive bans, the combined decline of emergency contraceptive prescriptions was 60%, and the decline for oral contraceptives was 24%. Qato said she expected to see lower rates of emergency contraceptive use in the most restrictive states, particularly with the conversations likening them to abortion drugs, but she wasnt expecting to also see a drop in monthly oral contraceptive prescriptions. Among states with the most restrictive bans, the largest decrease of 28% was in Texas, while most other states had decreases of about 20%, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee. Qato also theorized that the closure of abortion clinics in those states with bans contributed to the decreases, since most clinics that provided abortions prior to Dobbs also offered prescriptions for oral and emergency contraceptives, IUDs and other family planning services such as screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The study found no change in the use of IUDs and other forms of contraception such as the patch or vaginal ring. Over-the-counter options only help certain people In her research, Qato noted that two years after Iowa imposed Medicaid coverage restrictions on family planning clinics that provided abortions, the use of contraceptives declined by two-thirds. A report from the Guttmacher Institute released this week showed 42 clinics that provided abortions nationwide closed their doors between 2020 and 2024. The number of abortions have also increased during that time, and more than 80% still take place at brick-and-mortar clinics rather than via telehealth or by mail. While Plan B and Opill an oral contraceptive are available over the counter, Qato said those options are still untenable for some people who need contraceptives the most, including low-income women and women of color. Opill is convenient for those who dont want to go to the doctor and have that discretionary income to purchase it, but low-income women relied on clinics that are now closed, they relied on prescriptions that they now dont have, Qato said. Those options are accessible, but not affordable to women who could really benefit from it. While Qato said there should be a focus on restoring and protecting access to abortion, there should also be efforts to protect contraception in the most restrictive states. She is alarmed to see initial increases after Dobbs and then such steep declines. It suggests that we may observe increases in live births from unintended pregnancies in women who were forced to have a child that wasnt planned because the state didnt protect or introduced fear of criminalization or liability for patients, doctors, or pharmacists, she said. A woman may not feel safe choosing emergency contraception in those states anymore. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX In this photo illustration, a PlanB one-step contraceptive tablet is displayed on June 30, 2022, in San Anselmo, California. (Photo Illustration by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) Clinic closures in the wake of the Dobbs decision and questions about the legality of emergency contraceptives, including disinformation that some are abortion drugs, may have contributed to a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans, according to a University of Southern California study. The decline was significant in most states with restrictive bans following Dobbs in June 2022 that returned regulation of abortion procedures to the states, the study found. The group of researchers, led by pharmacy professor Dima Qato, used data from national prescription audit databases to estimate the monthly volume of prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies nationwide and state-by-state. It represents estimates from more than 93% of retail pharmacies. Given that abortion would be restricted in many states even more after Dobbs, I wondered whether now more people would get covered through contraception to prevent pregnancy and the need for an abortion, Qato said. Over the past six months, especially in states with near-total abortion bans, lawmakers have discussed proposals that would protect access to contraception, but those efforts have largely failed because of concern over whether that would include emergency contraception. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. The researchers think those conversations have led to confusion among residents who arent sure if emergency contraceptives are still legal in their state. That confusion could also extend to pharmacists. While Plan B is available over the counter at many retail stores and pharmacies, including Amazon, it can also be obtained by prescription, which is the only data point the study captured. According to the research, the rate of obtaining it through prescription between 2021 and 2023 dropped more than 70% in four states with near-total bans Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. It declined by about 60% in Missouri. The increases peaked in July 2022 and then dropped to levels lower than the pre-Dobbs period, Qato said. For patients that are seeking emergency contraception but cant get it prescribed or filled, thats where it matters, Qato said. They want to take it, they know its an option, and now theyre faced with hesitant prescribers and pharmacies. Prescriptions increase in South Dakota and Idaho A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released in early 2023 found that more than 30% of adults surveyed were unsure if Plan B was legal in all 50 states and over the counter and half of women living in states with abortion bans were under the impression that emergency contraceptives were illegal or were unsure if they were legal. Conversely, in two states with near-total bans, Idaho and South Dakota, the rate of prescriptions for emergency contraceptives increased by 148% and 182%, respectively. Those numbers were attributed to increases in ulipristal, which is also known as Ella, rather than levonorgestrel, known as Plan B. Ella can be effective at preventing pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex, while Plan B is most effective within three days and is also less effective in people who weigh more than 165 pounds, while Ella does not have that limitation. Between the 12 states with the most restrictive bans, the combined decline of emergency contraceptive prescriptions was 60%, and the decline for oral contraceptives was 24%. Qato said she expected to see lower rates of emergency contraceptive use in the most restrictive states, particularly with the conversations likening them to abortion drugs, but she wasnt expecting to also see a drop in monthly oral contraceptive prescriptions. Among states with the most restrictive bans, the largest decrease of 28% was in Texas, while most other states had decreases of about 20%, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee. Qato also theorized that the closure of abortion clinics in those states with bans contributed to the decreases, since most clinics that provided abortions prior to Dobbs also offered prescriptions for oral and emergency contraceptives, IUDs and other family planning services such as screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The study found no change in the use of IUDs and other forms of contraception such as the patch or vaginal ring. Over-the-counter options only help certain people In her research, Qato noted that two years after Iowa imposed Medicaid coverage restrictions on family planning clinics that provided abortions, the use of contraceptives declined by two-thirds. A report from the Guttmacher Institute released this week showed 42 clinics that provided abortions nationwide closed their doors between 2020 and 2024. The number of abortions have also increased during that time, and more than 80% still take place at brick-and-mortar clinics rather than via telehealth or by mail. While Plan B and Opill an oral contraceptive are available over the counter, Qato said those options are still untenable for some people who need contraceptives the most, including low-income women and women of color. Opill is convenient for those who dont want to go to the doctor and have that discretionary income to purchase it, but low-income women relied on clinics that are now closed, they relied on prescriptions that they now dont have, Qato said. Those options are accessible, but not affordable to women who could really benefit from it. While Qato said there should be a focus on restoring and protecting access to abortion, there should also be efforts to protect contraception in the most restrictive states. She is alarmed to see initial increases after Dobbs and then such steep declines. It suggests that we may observe increases in live births from unintended pregnancies in women who were forced to have a child that wasnt planned because the state didnt protect or introduced fear of criminalization or liability for patients, doctors, or pharmacists, she said. A woman may not feel safe choosing emergency contraception in those states anymore. EDITORS NOTE: This story has been updated to correctly identify the University of Southern California as the institution that conducted a study that found a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. (Photo illustration by Justin Sullivan / Getty Images) Clinic closures in the wake of the Dobbs decision and questions about the legality of emergency contraceptives, including disinformation that some are abortion drugs, may have contributed to a sharp drop in the rate of prescriptions for contraceptives in states with the most restrictive abortion bans, according to a University of California Los Angeles study. The decline was significant in most states with restrictive bans following Dobbs in June 2022 that returned regulation of abortion procedures to the states, the study found. The group of researchers, led by pharmacy professor Dima Qato, used data from national prescription audit databases to estimate the monthly volume of prescriptions dispensed at pharmacies nationwide and state-by-state. It represents estimates from more than 93% of retail pharmacies. Given that abortion would be restricted in many states even more after Dobbs, I wondered whether now more people would get covered through contraception to prevent pregnancy and the need for an abortion, Qato said. Over the past six months, especially in states with near-total abortion bans, lawmakers have discussed proposals that would protect access to contraception, but those efforts have largely failed because of concern over whether that would include emergency contraception. Some anti-abortion organizations call Plan B, which is an emergency contraceptive designed to prevent pregnancy after unprotected sex, an abortion drug because it can prevent the implantation of a fertilized egg. The researchers think those conversations have led to confusion among residents who arent sure if emergency contraceptives are still legal in their state. That confusion could also extend to pharmacists. While Plan B is available over the counter at many retail stores and pharmacies, including Amazon, it can also be obtained by prescription, which is the only data point the study captured. According to the research, the rate of obtaining it through prescription between 2021 and 2023 dropped more than 70% in four states with near-total bans Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana and Tennessee. It declined by about 60% in Missouri. The increases peaked in July 2022 and then dropped to levels lower than the pre-Dobbs period, Qato said. For patients that are seeking emergency contraception but cant get it prescribed or filled, thats where it matters, Qato said. They want to take it, they know its an option, and now theyre faced with hesitant prescribers and pharmacies. Half of women surveyed in ban states are unsure if Plan B is legal A Kaiser Family Foundation poll released in early 2023 found that more than 30% of adults surveyed were unsure if Plan B was legal in all 50 states and over the counter and half of women living in states with abortion bans were under the impression that emergency contraceptives were illegal or were unsure if they were legal. Conversely, in two states with near-total bans, Idaho and South Dakota, the rate of prescriptions for emergency contraceptives increased by 148% and 182%, respectively. Those numbers were attributed to increases in ulipristal, which is also known as Ella, rather than levonorgestrel, known as Plan B. Ella can be effective at preventing pregnancy up to five days after unprotected sex, while Plan B is most effective within three days and is also less effective in people who weigh more than 165 pounds, while Ella does not have that limitation. Between the 12 states with the most restrictive bans, the combined decline of emergency contraceptive prescriptions was 60%, and the decline for oral contraceptives was 24%. Qato said she expected to see lower rates of emergency contraceptive use in the most restrictive states, particularly with the conversations likening them to abortion drugs, but she wasnt expecting to also see a drop in monthly oral contraceptive prescriptions. Among states with the most restrictive bans, the largest decrease of 28% was in Texas, while most other states had decreases of about 20%, including Kentucky, Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee. Qato also theorized that the closure of abortion clinics in those states with bans contributed to the decreases, since most clinics that provided abortions prior to Dobbs also offered prescriptions for oral and emergency contraceptives, IUDs and other family planning services such as screenings for sexually transmitted diseases. The study found no change in the use of IUDs and other forms of contraception such as the patch or vaginal ring. Over-the-counter options only help certain people In her research, Qato noted that two years after Iowa imposed Medicaid coverage restrictions on family planning clinics that provided abortions, the use of contraceptives declined by two-thirds. A report from the Guttmacher Institute released this week showed 42 clinics that provided abortions nationwide closed their doors between 2020 and 2024. The number of abortions have also increased during that time, and more than 80% still take place at brick-and-mortar clinics rather than via telehealth or by mail. While Plan B and Opill an oral contraceptive are available over the counter, Qato said those options are still untenable for some people who need contraceptives the most, including low-income women and women of color. Opill is convenient for those who dont want to go to the doctor and have that discretionary income to purchase it, but low-income women relied on clinics that are now closed, they relied on prescriptions that they now dont have, Qato said. Those options are accessible, but not affordable to women who could really benefit from it. While Qato said there should be a focus on restoring and protecting access to abortion, there should also be efforts to protect contraception in the most restrictive states. She is alarmed to see initial increases after Dobbs and then such steep declines. It suggests that we may observe increases in live births from unintended pregnancies in women who were forced to have a child that wasnt planned because the state didnt protect or introduced fear of criminalization or liability for patients, doctors, or pharmacists, she said. A woman may not feel safe choosing emergency contraception in those states anymore. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Confusion, clinic closures may have caused big declines in contraception use, study shows appeared first on Source New Mexico. (The Hill) Political momentum is building to regulate the spread of nonconsensual explicit deepfakes as the issue of digitally altered images has moved from a potential threat to a reality. Several bipartisan bills introduced in Congress aim to mitigate the spread of nonconsensual explicit images made using artificial intelligence (AI), an issue that has not only plagued public figures and celebrities, but everyday people and even kids. The past year, its really been a new thing where its forced itself where weve got a real big problem, said Anna Olivarius, the founding partner of McAllister Olivarius, a transatlantic law firm specializing in cases of race and gender discrimination. In January, explicit AI-generated images made to look like Taylor Swift circulated online, bringing mass attention to the issue. The outcry inspired lawmakers and the White House to push platforms to enforce their rules and prevent the spread of such images. While the spread of the Swift deepfakes put a spotlight on the rise of nonconsensual AI porn, the issue has become more widespread. Schools have even been forced to grapple with the new form of cyberbullying and harassment as students create and spread deepfakes of their peers in a largely unregulated space. Its impacting tons of everyday people, Olivarius said. Lawmakers have also been victims. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who is one of the lawmakers spearheading a bill to fight explicit deepfakes, spoke about being targeted by nonconsensual explicit deepfakes herself in an April interview with Rolling Stone. The issue is drawing support from lawmakers across the political spectrum. One of the bills, the Defiance Act, is led by Ocasio-Cortez and Sen. Judiciary Committee Chair Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), while another, the Take It Down Act, is led by Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.). Olivarius said the support on both ends is striking. Its looking like we might have something here finally that lawmakers can agree upon or enough to actually pass, she said. Congress fights nonconsensual deepfakes The two bills aim to tackle the issue from different angles. The Defiance Act, introduced in March, would create a federal civil cause of action that would allow victims to sue individuals who produce, distribute or solicit the deepfakes. The Take It Down Act, introduced last month, would create a federal criminal violation for publishing or threatening to publish nonconsensual digitally altered images online. It would also create a process that would allow victims to force tech platforms to remove nonconsensual explicit deepfakes that depict them. Durbin spokesperson Emily Hampsten said the two bills are complementary and his staff is in discussions with the offices of the other bills sponsors. Although there is bipartisan support for the bills, there still may be an uphill battle to get them passed especially in the months leading up to a contentious election with the power of the White House and both chambers at stake. Durbin, the Senate majority whip, brought the Defiance Act up for a unanimous consent vote in June, but it was stopped by Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) a co-sponsor of the Take It Down Act. Lummis spokesperson Stacey Daniels said the senator supports the intent of the Defiance Act but remains concerned that this legislation contains overly broad language that could unintentionally threaten privacy technology and stifle innovation while failing to protect victims. Daniels said Lummiss team is working with Durbins to try and address the issues. Senator Lummis supports the Take It Down Act for its more tailored approach that ensures people who produce or knowingly distribute deepfake pornography are held accountable, Daniels said in an email. Olivarius said the civil remedies built into the Defiance Act are very powerful, because it would give power to individual people impacted to take action. The Take It Down Act, however, is much more narrow. Carrie Goldberg, a victims rights attorney, said the Take It Down Act is an interesting new approach but also highlighted potential obstacles with how it would be enforced as a criminal law. Im pretty skeptical of laws that just put the power back in the government, Goldberg said. It then becomes an issue of whether law enforcement is going to take it seriously, she said. Altman, Huffington launching AI health coach At the same time, Goldberg said, one purpose of a bill like this is to show that this conduct is illegal, and that alone could deter offenders. She also said that tech companies may argue that Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act may preempt the notice-and-removal provision of the bill. Section 230 protects platforms from being held liable for content posted by third parties. But since this is a federal law thats kind of clashing a little bit with another federal law, itll be interesting to see how that plays out, Goldberg said. Another bill to combat nonconsensual explicit deepfakes was introduced by Sens. Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.) and John Cornyn (R-Texas) in May. The legislation would make it illegal to share deepfake pornographic images and videos without consent and create a criminal offense for sharing such images. The bill would also create a private right of action for victims to file a lawsuit against parties who share the images. Olivarius urged Congress to take action on the issue, underscoring its impact particularly on women and its dire and even potentially fatal effects, citing cases where victims have died by suicide after the spread of the altered images. Society hasnt done a lot to show many people care about women, she said. This [support for the bills is] unusual. I think this is great, and hope we can get it on the books as soon as possible, she said. With the potential roadblocks posed by Section 230, though, Goldberg said Congress should prioritize abolishing the controversial provision in order to help victims. The best way to handle so many harms that are happening on platforms is for the platforms to be themselves sharing in the costs and the liability, Goldberg said. Power needs to transfer to the people, and they need to be able to sue or demand content removal from the platforms, she 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 Queen City News. Congress returns to Capitol Hill: Here are the five members calling Biden to step aside Lawmakers return to Capitol Hill on Monday after the July 4 recess amid growing anxiety about President Joe Bidens status as the top of the ticket in this Novembers election.In the days following the debate debacle in Atlanta, concerns about Bidens fitness for office prompted five Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives to urge the presumptive nominee to withdraw from his position as the partys candidate for the November election. Despite this, Biden remains defiant and signaled his intent to stay in the race. In a letter to Congressional Democrats on Monday, Biden said he would not step aside and called for an end to the party drama. The voters and the voters alone decide the nominee of the Democratic Party, he wrote. Lloyd Doggett of Texas Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Texas, speaks during a news conference on Medicare Advantage plans in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on July 25, 2023 Lloyd Doggest, 77, was the first Democratic lawmaker to break from the party and call for Biden to step aside. On July 2, he called Biden to make way for a new generation of leaders to unite the country. President Biden saved our democracy by delivering us from Trump in 2020, he said in a statement. He must not deliver us to Trump in 2024. Raul Grijalva of Arizona Rep. Raul Grijalva, D-AZ, (L) and fellow members of the House Progressive Caucus hold a news conference ahead of the vote on the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 12, 2022. Raul Grijalva, 76, told the New York Times on July 3 that Democrats need to put up a fight against Trump and that Biden should exit the 2024 race, the day after Doggett made his call. What he needs to do is shoulder the responsibility for keeping that seat and part of that responsibility is to get out of this race, Grijalva told the Times. Seth Moulton of Massachusetts Seth Moulton, 45, first signaled his lack of confidence in Bidens ability to beat Trump in a July 3 statement. He went further in a July 4 interview with WBUR and called for the president to step aside. President Biden has done enormous service to our country, but now is the time for him to follow in one of our founding fathers, George Washingtons footsteps, and step aside to let new leaders rise up and run against Donald Trump, he said in the interview. Mike Quigley of Illinois Mike Quigley, 65, became the fourth Democratic member of Congress to call on the president to bow out of the race after Bidens first on-air interview after the June 27 debate with ABC News. Mr. President, your legacy is set. We owe you the greatest debt of gratitude. The only thing that you can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this, Quigley said on MSNBC on July 5. Angie Craig of Minnesota Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., left, and Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., center, listen to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., in the House chamber in Washington, D.C. on Jan. 4, 2023 Angie Craig, 52, is the most recent House Democrat to call on the president to step aside. Her statement came after Bidens ABC interview on July 6. Given what I saw and heard from the President during last weeks debate in Atlanta, coupled with the lack of a forceful response from the President himself following that debate, I do not believe that the President can effectively campaign and win against Donald Trump, Craig said. This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: Who are the Dem members of Congress calling for Biden to step aside? BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The construction of bp's solar power plant in Jabrayil is expected to start before COP29, the Director General of COP29, Deputy Energy Minister Elnur Soltanov told reporters in ADA after the opening ceremony of the summer energy school, Trend reports. "Azerbaijan has already uttered its voice in the oil and gas spheres, we have become a reliable partner in ensuring the energy security of the world's countries. Now, Azerbaijan demonstrates seriousness in its intentions to implement "green" projects, both at sea (plans to create wind farms) and on landin Absheron and liberated territories. The process of transition to "green" energy in the world is unstoppable. Our philosophy is to utter our voice in "green" energy," Soltanov said. According to him, Azerbaijan is also rich in such sources of "green" energy as water resources. "Hydroelectric power plants have already been and will be built in Karabakh and Eastern Zangezur, which will sufficiently provide the liberated lands and neighboring territories with electricity. The project of construction of a solar power plant by bp in the Jabrayil region is next in line, and I think we will hear about the commencement of this project before COP29," Soltanov said. To note, the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) will be held in Azerbaijan in November this year. The decision was made at the plenary meeting of COP28 held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Within two weeks Baku, having become the center of the world, will host about 70,000-80,000 foreign guests. The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Rio Earth Summit in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference in the climate system. The acronym COP (Conference of Parties) stands for Conference of Parties, which is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. A total of 198 countries are parties to the convention. Unless the parties have decided otherwise, COP is held annually. The first COP event was held in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin with its secretariat in nation's Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA) The Sangamon County Coroner has released the name of a Springfield woman who was shot by a Sangamon County Sheriffs deputy over the weekend. Coroner Jim Allmon said the woman was 36-year-old Sonya Massey. Sangamon County officials confirmed that a deputy shot Massey at her home on Hoover Avenue Saturday at 1:21 a.m. and she died 25 minutes later at 1:47 a.m. in the emergency room of HSHS St. Johns Hospital. An autopsy performed Monday confirmed a single gunshot wound as the cause of death. 14-year-old arrested for overnight Decatur murder: Police Deputies initially responded to Masseys home in response to a 911 call about a reported prowler, and officials said they got there 30 minutes before the deadly shooting happened. Neither the Sangamon County Sheriffs Office nor the Illinois State Police have given any information on what happened during those 30 minutes. Sangamon County Sheriff Jack Campbell confirmed the two deputies involved in the shooting are on paid administrative leave pending the results of the investigation, but he, his office and the Illinois State Police have declined to answer further questions. Two men hurt in overnight Danville shooting: Police Masseys death remains under investigation by Allmons office and the Illinois State Police, which took over the investigation shortly after the shooting happened. Crime scene investigators were seen on Hoover Avenue Monday afternoon. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCIA.com. Pride Month apparel is seen on display at a Target store on June 06, 2023 in Austin, Texas. Businesses across the United States have begun advertising LGBTQIA+ apparel to mark this year's Pride Month. | Brandon Bell/Getty Images Throughout Pride Month, it has become increasingly common for corporations to adorn their websites in rainbow flags, espouse their support for LGBTQ+ rights and try to win over a community that has historically been stereotyped as having a disposable income. But some of those companies still steer big money to groups and politicians who oppose LGBTQ+ rights. Chief Economist at the Koppa LGBTI+ Economic Power Lab, Lee Badgett, said that the idea that LGBTQ communities have more money to spend is a misrepresentation of the community as a whole. Theres long been an incorrect stereotype about LGBTQ people that they are well off, lots of income, no real financial problems, Badgett said. We know that gay and bisexual men and bisexual women in particular tend to have lower earnings than their heterosexual counterparts. Same for transgender and cisgender people, transgender people are earning less. Lack of clarity on how politicians and corporations are spending can create a false narrative that a specific corporation or political figure solely aligns with LGBTQ rights, when they may also give to anti-LGBTQ groups. OpenSecrets has found that even corporations that publicly condemn anti-LGBTQ legislation regularly steer tens of thousands of dollars in political contributions to legislators who advanced those bills. Melissa Michelson, professor of Political Science at Menlo College, calls this behavior during Pride month a type of rainbow washing. Politicians engage in rainbow washing for the same reason that corporations do because they want consumers, slash voters, slash potential donors to think well of them. And maybe that means you will donate money to them, or maybe you will consider voting for that, Michelson told OpenSecrets. Either way thats the currency of politics, whether its a financial donation or a vote, thats what every candidate needs. Fairweather support Large donors to Pride events in June have done everything from changing their logos to making posts on social media, but some of their political giving tells a different story. Delta Air Lines sponsored multiple Pride events in California, New York and Washington, D.C. The airlines PAC donated more than $300,000 to Republican candidates, including $8,500 to Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and $5,000 to Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) both of whom have supported anti-LGBTQ legislation according to GLAAD. Blackburn has been a vocal opponent of gender-affirming care for transgender youth, and Scalise who has a long history of introducing and supporting anti-LGBTQ bills. All Republican Senators who received funds from the PAC received less than 20 from the Human Rights Campaign Congressional scorecard. Many did not reach the double digits. The airline donated another $45,000 to GOPAC and $10,000 to the dark money group Alliance for American Exceptionalism, both of which work to elect conservatives with records of voting against LGBTQ+ rights at the state and federal level. Mark Green who compared LGBTQ Americans to ISIS, received $5,000 from GOPAC, filings show. GOPAC also gave $5,000 to Michigan State Sen. Tom Barrett whose campaign sent out anti-trans text messages. Another big sponsor for Pride events across the country is MasterCard, whose PAC also steered more than $100,000 to Republican candidates in 2024, including $10,000 to Patrick McHenry (R-N.C.) and $4,000 to Jim Jordan (R-Ohio). Both politicians have openly opposed bills that would protect the rights of LGBTQ individuals, including a vote in 2022 against the Respect for Marriage Act. Republicans who received funds from Mastercard did not pass 60 on the HRC scorecard while Democrats did not score below 90. Defense contractor Booz Allen Hamiltons corporate PAC contributed almost equally to Republicans and Democrats in 2024, giving more than $100,000 to Republican Candidates and $87,000 to Democrats. Some recipients from the defense contractors PAC include $4,000 each to Reps. Ken Calvert (R-Calif.) and $5,000 to Mike Gallagher (R-Wis.). Calvert has a long history of opposing LGBTQ rights but his views shifted to ostensibly support marriage equality after his district was redrawn to include Palm Springs, a city that has the largest LGBTQ population per capita in the U.S. But in 2023, Calvert voted for the Parents Bill of Rights Act, legislation that would force schools to out transgender students. Gallagher backed two amendments that would remove protections for transgender people experiencing homelessness in 2019. He also voted against the Equality Act in 2021 which would have explicitly protected LGBTQ people through federal civil rights law. The Booz Allen PAC makes contributions on a bipartisan basis to U.S. federal congressional candidates, a spokesperson from Booz Allen said in a statement to OpenSecrets. The PAC continues to evaluate and execute a giving strategy aligned with our diverse global business, our corporate values, and our interests as a large employer. Delta and MasterCard did not respond to requests for comment. While some companies sponsoring Pride events have made contributions to groups and politicians with records of opposing LGBTQ rights, it is noteworthy that the organizations publicly support Pride because that is not something that historically happened, Michelson told OpenSecrets. I dont remember 10 years ago that youd walk into Target and there were rainbows everywhere, Michelson said. In the same way that corporations are responding to this new kind of national focus on LGBTQ rights I would imagine that thats paralleled in the political arena. That support, however, isnt without its own issues. Earlier this year the national brand Target announced that it would be limiting its pride section after conservative pushback on pride-themed items and bathing suits for transgender people. Despite the pullback on pride merchandise, Target has still been a corporate sponsor for a number of pride events around the country. How much theyve donated in those sponsorships is unclear. It has become common for various groups like airlines, big banks, and defense contractors to sponsor stages or portions of Pride events, which have historically worked to offset the cost of hosting the events. Every June, every corporation, every politician, everybody wants to say, I'm supportive of LGBTQ rights, I'm an ally of the community, Michelson said. Maybe you never hear anything from them about issues facing the community the rest of the year, but suddenly in June, they're very concerned and very supportive. This story was produced in partnership with OpenSecrets, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that tracks money in politics. Click here to read the story in its original form. The post Corporate sponsors of Pride events also contribute to politicians with anti-LGBTQ leanings appeared first on Michigan Advance. The US Air Forces project to modernize its nuclear missile arsenal is projected to cost approximately $141 billion, which is roughly 81% more than previously anticipated, and will be delayed by several years, officials said Monday. A review of the Sentinel program was conducted after the Air Force said in January its costs were exceeding baseline projections. The review found that the cost of the program is estimated to be $140.9 billion an 81% increase from the cost estimate made in September 2020. The Sentinel program is a massive effort to replace the Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile system, which was introduced in the 1970s, with Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missiles. According to Air Force Global Strike Command, the Sentinel will extend the US land-based nuclear capabilities through 2075. There are reasons for this cost growth, but there are also no excuses, Dr. Bill LaPlante, the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment, said on Monday. We fully appreciate the magnitude of the cost, but we also understand the risks of not modernizing our nuclear forces, and of not addressing the very real threats we confront. As a result of the cost increase, LaPlante said he has directed the Air Force to restructure the program and put an appropriate management structure in place to control costs which will delay it by several years. He also rescinded approval for it to enter the engineering and manufacturing development phase. Typically, if the costs of a program increase by 25% or more, it has to be terminated unless the under secretary of defense for acquisition and sustainment certifies to Congress that the program meets established criteria to continue, a news release on Monday said. LaPlante told reporters on Monday he was doing exactly that. He said the modernization program is essential to national security, and is higher priority than programs whose funding will need to be cut to accommodate the rising costs with no alternatives that would match the Sentinel programs capabilities for a lower price. LaPlante attributed the inaccuracy of the original cost estimate to insufficient knowledge on a piece of the program. Vice Chief of Staff of the Air Force Gen. Jim Slife added Monday that decisions on of what funding trade-offs the Air Force will need to make in order to fund Sentinel wont need to be decided for another few years. After what LaPlante called a comprehensive, unbiased review of the program, he determined it was clear that a modified version of the program remains essential to US national security. Its important to note that Sentinel is truly a historic program to modernize the land leg of the nuclear triad, and its scale, scope, and complexity are something we havent attempted as a nation for over 60 years, LaPlante said. Across the department, we are committed to ensuring we are on the right path to defend our nation while protecting the sacred responsibility the American taxpayer has entrusted us with. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The Pierce County Council has approved more than $17 million for a broad variety of outreach and housing projects expected to impact tens of thousands of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness over the next two years. The resolution passed July 2 included a list of nearly 50 projects that received recommendations for funding from the Human Services department. The investment is known as the Homeless Housing Program (HHP) and is the countys largest regular funding opportunity for homeless services. According to county staff, the HHP is funded by the Housing and Homeless Fund through a variety of local, state and federal sources. During the July 2 council meeting, Pierce County policy analyst LeighBeth Merrick said 56 homeless service applications were filed for funding through HHP and more than $32 million was requested. Community service providers were evaluated by Human Services staff and given a score based on a rubric. The rubric evaluates project proposals based on factors that include budget management, staffing, organizational experience and connections to supports and services, among others. Human Services supervisor Devon Isakson told the councils Health and Human Services Committee on June 18 that geographic equity was also a factor used to prioritize certain proposals. For example, Key Peninsula Community Services was recommended an award of $175,000 for outreach services in its region. Isakson said the organization was the only new program recommended for funding in the outreach category because it serves a relatively under-resourced region. While only half of the outreach programs that applied for funding were recommended to receive it, Isakson said all of the all three of the day shelter projects were recommended for funding. She said there was an identified need in the community for hygiene services offered by day shelters. Isakson said three emergency-shelter applications were denied recommendations for funding because the shelters are not in operation, and it could have been six months until they were. Eighteen emergency shelters applied for funding, and a little over $6.5 million was recommended. One of the largest funding recommendations for emergency shelter was the City of Puyallups Hotel Pilot Project, which received nearly $700,000 to continue its operation. Isakson said the project was prioritized because Puyallup is recognized as a homelessness resource desert. According to Isakson, rapid-rehousing projects were one of the highest priorities during their HHP recommendations as every project that applied was recommended for funding. More than $5 million was recommended for rapid-rehousing projects, which aim to get families that are unhoused or on the cusp of homelessness into stable housing with continued support. In an email to The News Tribune, Human Services communications coordinator Jordan Chames said the departments prioritization of rapid rehousing is consistent with the countys Comprehensive Plan to End Homelessness. The need for more rapid rehousing capacity was identified as a factor causing a backlog in the countys Coordinated Entry system which works to direct those experiencing homelessness to available resources. According to Chames, rapid rehousing is an intervention designed to help people exit homelessness and return to permanent housing. It connects people experiencing homelessness to services such as short-term rental assistance and community resources such as housing-search assistance, move-in costs, employment training and connection to mainstream services such as behavioral health programs. Rapid Re-Housing is a highly successful and cost-effective way to end homelessness for many households, Chames wrote in an email to The News Tribune. Rapid rehousing made up 34% of homelessness spending from 2015 to 2023 more than what was spent on emergency shelter and permanent supportive housing in the same time frame. The funders for the current HHP list, which will provide money through 2024 and 2025, are the Department of Commerce, Tacoma Housing Authority, Housing and Urban Development and the City of Fife, with the Department of Commerce contributing nearly $15.4 million. On June 18, council member Ryan Mello estimated that more than $11 million was available in the Homeless Document Recording Fee Fund and urged representatives from Human Services to find ways to get the recording-fee dollars into the hands of more programs and services. Before passing the resolution on July 2, the council passed an amendment requesting the County Executive to use different revenue sources such as the Housing and Homeless Fund, Homeless Document Recording Fee Fund, or the Housing and Related Services Fund to fund services that applied for funding but did not receive it. Mello expressed concern over service providers that did not receive HHP funding despite receiving a high score from the rubric used by Human Services. Mello said the need for these services to too great not to figure out ways to get them funding. MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) A Murrells Inlet man facing multiple assault charges after police said he admitted to using a sprinkler to douse protesters outside Solid Rock Church last week will be in Myrtle Beach Municipal Court next month. Robert Wayne Lochel / Myrtle Beach Police Department Robert Wayne Lochel, 67, was captured on cell phone video aiming a pressurized sprinkler at several people who gathered in front of Solid Rock on June 30 to raise awareness about domestic violence following the April 27 death of Mica Miller. Her husband John-Paul is founder and senior pastor of the 803 Howard Avenue church. Lochel reportedly told officers he turned the sprinkler onto the group after his wife said she was frustrated by their presence. The protesters have appeared in front of John-Paul Millers church every week since Mica Millers death at Lumber River State Park in Robeson County. Authorities said she died by suicide. I think its important that he face charges for his actions because nobody is responsible for what he did that day but him, Sharone Carone said in court on Monday. And blaming his actions on a woman for (his) acts of aggression is the very thing that were out there protesting against. Lochel turned himself in to Myrtle Beach police hours ahead of his initial appearance in front Judge Glenn V. Ohanesian. Hes charged with five counts of third-degree assault. Lochels attorney, Russell Long, has also been retained by John-Paul Miller. Ohanesian issued a conditional bond ahead of Lochels Aug. 14 court date allowing him to continue attending services at Solid Rock. He ordered him not to initiate contact with victims through social media. Theyre just trying to disrupt church services. Theyre trying to scare people away by screaming and yelling at them every day, Long told News13 on Monday. They can make their point about Justice for Mica anywhere in the world. They dont have to stand at the corner of a church. Lochel faces fines of $1,087 for each of the charges. This is a developing story. Count on News13 for updates on-air and online. * * * 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. * * * Jackie LiBrizzi is a multimedia journalist at News13. Jackie is originally from Hamilton, New Jersey, and was raised in Piedmont, South Carolina. Jackie joined the News13 team in June 2023 after she graduated as a student-athlete from the University of South Carolina in May 2023. Follow Jackie on X, formerly Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram, and 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. Corey Brettschneiders new book couldnt have landed at a more auspicious moment. The Presidents and the People: Five Leaders Who Threatened Democracy and the Citizens Who Fought to Defend It, went on sale last Tuesday the day after the Supreme Courts ruling in the election interference case against Donald Trump that gave presidents broad immunity for their official acts. Brettschneider, a professor of politics and constitutional law at Brown University, writes about five past presidents who posed great threats to democracy by pushing the limits of legality John Adams, James Buchanan, Andrew Johnson, Woodrow Wilson and Richard Nixon and the citizens who responded by pushing back in an age-old American pattern of constitutional crisis and recovery. Adams, after all, had prosecuted people who criticized him. Buchanan colluded with the Supreme Court to deny constitutional personhood to African Americans, as Brettschneider outlines. Johnson urged violence against his political opponents while heightening white supremacy in the wake of the Civil War, Wilson nationalized Jim Crow and Nixon, of course, committed criminal acts in the sprawling Watergate scandal. When the president does it, as the 37th president (in)famously said, that means it is not illegal. In response to these executives attempts to weaken or outright eliminate the checks on their power, citizens fought back from abolitionist Frederick Douglass to journalists Ida B. Wells and William Monroe Trotter to Pentagon Papers leaker Daniel Ellsberg and others recommitting to the Constitution and stoking what Brettschneider calls democratic recovery. Brettschneider reminds us that we were warned from the beginning this could happen. Revolutionary War heroes such as Patrick Henry predicted that the office was so powerful that a president with authoritarian ambitions could simply lay claim to the American throne, Brettschneider writes, noting that the power of the presidency has always been a loaded gun, one that threatens American democracy itself. Patrick Henrys warning has always been relevant. And it has arguably never been more relevant than it is right now. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. What was Patrick Henrys warning, and why do you think we should be thinking about it extra-hard right now? Many of the framers were assuming that a good person, a person of virtue, would occupy the office. Henry asked a very different question, which is essential for the current moment: What do you do when a bad person, a criminally minded person, is president? And Henrys answer is: That persons going to realize, Wow, there are very few checks on the office. Its going to empower them to commit even more crimes until they realize and this is the dramatic point that I think before Monday seemed like hyperbole that they can take power in a self-coup and basically destroy the republic and crown themselves the monarch. There has long been a policy by the Department of Justice to keep sitting presidents immune from criminal indictment. But what no court had ever said is that former presidents have that immunity. Henrys warning is even more important because that criminal president will think to themselves: lf I try this self-coup thing, not only will I not be indicted now, but I wont be indicted ever, as long as I claim I did it for my official duties, that I was defending the country, or that I was taking care that the laws be faithfully executed in some broad sense. Henry turns out not to be paranoid, but to really have hit upon something that is true to this moment. You name a handful of presidents who tested the boundaries of executive power. Where in your mind does the former and maybe future president Donald Trump exist in this context? I would say he has elements of all these former presidents. Adams really believed that the Constitution gave him the power, and the Sedition Act gave him the power, to shut down criticism of the president and that the First Amendment wasnt really a right to dissent against the president. And that sounds a lot like Trumps threat to prosecute political opponents, so hes a wannabe Adams, a wannabe authoritarian. In the Nixon case, I think his view is Nixon didnt fight hard enough that if he had really threatened to not back down in the case of impeachment, as Trump did, he wouldve survived and he wouldve seen how powerful the office is. And thats what Trump is threatening to do. Its really hard to see how we would stop him absent, of course, the citizen action that Im describing throughout the book. The dynamic you describe here is one of crisis and recovery, this historically repeating pattern. When theres crisis, we respond in some way with some kind of recovery. It doesnt feel like recovery right now. Why do you think that is? Even in the hopeful moments of the past that I described where there were recoveries, it takes time in each of them. So, in the Adams period, you do get a very serious recovery. Thomas Jefferson does say, Were all federalists. Were all Republicans. He doesnt seek the renewal of the Sedition Act, but privately he seeks prosecution of political opponents. And its really only during James Madisons administration, more than eight years later, that you see the power of the recovery because of his refusal to prosecute dissenters even during a war. The recovery that I described after Woodrow Wilson was decades long. Trotter and Wells have an initial resistance to Wilsons attempt to nationalize white supremacy, nationalize segregation, nationalize the idea of second-class citizenship. They confront him in the White House famously and speak out. But you need several more decades until you get the more serious recovery of the 1964 Civil Rights Act and the 1965 Voting Rights Act. Id say we really never did recover from Nixon. We got rid of Nixon, and the Ford and Carter presidencies are certainly improvements. And we do have this legislation the independent counsel law, the Ethics in Government Act which is a huge improvement over what we have now. But what we need to really make that recovery finally happen is a citizen movement devoted to the idea that presidents really are not above the law, meaning that they can be prosecuted if they commit crimes. Weve got to find a way to push back against this really outrageous invitation to authoritarianism that you saw in the Supreme Court decision by creating institutions that are supported by citizens. So that might not mean returning to the old independent counsel, but it certainly does mean an office of a peoples prosecutor that would be charged with investigating criminal presidents and being able to indict them. Why do you think Donald Trump has been more effective at pushing the limits of presidential power than any of the predecessors you mention in this book? Is it that hes more effective, or that the people and institutions are less effective at providing a check? I think its all of the above. Hes distinct in his ability to galvanize an anti-democratic movement. Hes able to use media in a way that really goes beyond what other presidents did. And he really has become a master at manipulating anti-democratic populist sentiment through social media and through his authoritarian rhetoric. In the past, these authoritarian presidents disappear, but hes come back successfully. Think of Andrew Johnson, for instance, who doesnt even get his own partys nomination after his presidency. Trump certainly has his nomination locked up. I think that there was a potential after Watergate to build the kind of movement that wouldve led to a more fundamental recovery from the dangers that Nixon showed. But it disappeared. What the pardon of Nixon did is it made everybody think this was a one-time thing. It wouldnt happen again. That was a colossal mistake. We failed to see that the Nixon danger really could reemerge. Theres a lot of blame to go around, and its bipartisan. Bill Clinton began office by praising the prosecutor law, the Ethics in Government Act, but when he faced his own investigation at the hands of Ken Starr just or unjust he destroyed the institution. He joined forces with Republicans to allow the independent counsel [law] to expire. So there became a bipartisan sense that presidential power is not a danger ... and that bipartisan consensus really led us away from warnings like Henry that were present after Watergate but just never really got the citizen movement behind them. The people that Im profiling in the book are heroes because they went out and they placed these ideas of a democratic constitution in our wider consciousness. The idea that a president could shut down free speech, even though Trump is promising to do it, theres a wide understanding that thats a violation of our First Amendment. We never really got out of Watergate. We got slogans like, No person or president is above the law. But we failed to really see that the presidency itself is a danger. That should have been the lesson. We have a president whos relentless and coming back, we dont have a citizen movement pushing back against an authoritarian idea of the presidency this is a moment of crisis. There is a danger of the kind of democratic collapse that Henry talks about. But these past examples of the heroes show that against horrible odds that there was a recovery. It is not inevitable that well have these recoveries, but its certainly possible. How possible? What are the odds? In the book I focus on the phrase hope because I dont want to be mechanistic about it. We sort of think that we can make this a scientific matter, but its a matter of will. Its a matter of whether citizens can galvanize behind an idea of constitutional recovery. So I dont think we can put it in terms of odds. Weve got to put it in terms of either we fail to see the importance of restructuring the checks, restoring the fundamental criminal check on a president, or at least a former president or we dont. And the risk continues. Even if Biden wins, its not that weve escaped the risk. The structure is still there. A recovery means structural protection from the potential for a criminal president in the future. Do you think Joe Biden has been, or has tried to be, a recovery president? I would say its certainly an absence of the kind of threat that we were facing with Trump. Hes not an authoritarian or a wannabe authoritarian, but I have not seen him prioritize constitutional recovery. And what a recovery president would do is not just be the absence of that threat. They would work to create the legal structure to ensure that, for instance, the person looking into the wrongdoing of a president cant be fired. Second thing is that the prosecutor charged with investigating a president should have the power to indict not just a former president but a sitting president. If those wouldve been on the agenda, maybe Biden could have worked to find a consensus on this issue. He wouldve been saying, Constrain me. I am offering myself. If Ive committed crimes, if you think Ive committed crimes, put me against Ken Starr or against a prosecutor, a Leon Jaworski or an Archibald Cox, and Ill face off. The problem of course with Ken Starr was that he was an overzealous prosecutor. I dont want to defend his actions and of course Monica Lewinsky was treated horribly by him among other things but the institution was so important. It was the institution that looked into wrongdoing during Iran-Contra. It was a functional institution. Carter went along when there was an investigation of his chief of staff. All of those things suggest that theres a trade-off. Do we fear more an overzealous prosecutor who might hamper the functioning of the executive branch to some degree and distract it? Thats what happened during Starr. Or do we fear an authoritarian president? Id rather have 10 Ken Starrs than one Donald Trump. What would Patrick Henry be saying to us today? I think he would say hes completely vindicated. I told you so. Exactly. That he warned about the danger of a president with no formal checks who might try to crown himself an authoritarian. Thats Donald Trump. When Trump started out, I wrote a piece for POLITICO Magazine called Trump versus the Constitution, and it was all about how much Trumps proposals contrast with the requirements of our Constitution. He was extremely ignorant of the Constitution. And his proposals, like the proposal to torture the families of suspected terrorists, were obvious violations of due process and the ban on cruel and unusual punishment. But over time, hes learned the system, and hes manipulated it towards his own ends. In putting three justices on the court who just found that he potentially has immunity as a former president, he has recreated the Constitution in an authoritarian image. And so the Constitution that I was writing about when he was first running has been reshaped by him. Now, thats not the end of the story. Citizens shouldnt give Trump, or this Supreme Court, the final word on the meaning of the Constitution. Weve got to reclaim it. Thats what all these citizens did throughout history. The newspaper editors in Adams time reclaimed the First Amendment to make it about a right to criticize the president, the right to dissent. Frederick Douglass reclaimed the meaning of the preamble to the Constitution and of the Declaration of Independence to say it was incompatible with the enslavement of other human beings. I think Henry would say, This is our moment. We have to see that we have created a potentially authoritarian presidency that could collapse the whole system, and we need a movement to come back. Henrys answer was: Scrap the Constitution. Thats not the way. My approach is: Lets reclaim the Constitution. Lets make it democratic again. And fundamental to that has to be the idea that no person, not even a president, is above the law. We have to make that mean something. Thats been the tradition of America, of how weve recovered from authoritarianism of the past, that weve reclaimed the Constitution, weve used its text, weve used its principles, and weve made it become democratic and rescued it. It is, as ever, on us. It is on us. What would you say to the not insignificant number of people in this country who would say to you: No, its Joe Biden whos the authoritarian who doesnt respect the Constitution? Ive heard that of course. But I dont know what it is that hes doing thats the equivalent of [Trump]. The authoritarianism of Trump is found in the specifics. He did a very specific authoritarian thing: Jan. 6 wasnt just a riot, it was a coordinated, attempted self-coup to try to stay empowered despite losing the election. Thats almost the definition of authoritarian action. Adams shut down the opposition party. Buchanan lobbied for the denial of literally all rights for Black people, secretly lobbying the Supreme Court while pretending not to. Joe Biden has been in legal disputes about presidential power in the courts, but he backs down when he loses. It seems to me to be the normal dynamic that political scientists describe between a president asserting his own power and courts pushing back in some instances, or Congress pushing back. The definition, to me, of an authoritarian idea of the Constitution or a crisis presidency is when you really push the boundaries in one of the pivotal areas that define democracy. Theres the right to dissent. Theres the idea of equal citizenship regardless of race or gender or sexual orientation. And the rule of law, the idea that no person is above the law and that we dont have a monarch. I dont see Biden coming close to the kind of violation of those fundamental core pillars as the presidents that Im profiling or that Trump exhibits. OAK LAWN, Ill. Northwestern College abruptly closed over the weekend due to financial issues. The for-profit university, located at 9400 S. Cicero Ave., sent an email to students Saturday to let them know theyre closed immediately. President Lawrence Schumacher cited that the U.S. Department of Education was conducting a review, which disrupted the regular flow of federal student aid funds to Northwestern College. Nursing student Destini Hampton, 38, told WGN News she was crushed after reading the email Saturday morning. Completely devastated: Oak Point University abruptly closing I worked so hard and so long to get here, she said. We never thought they were having difficulties, rumors here and there but no officials said anything to the students. School officials said students can transfer to the following colleges based on their program. Northwestern College said the schools offer similar programs and indicated to them that they will accept the students. Dental assisting Prairie State College Medical assisting Moraine Valley CC Health information technology DeVry University, Moraine Valley CC Nursing Chamberlain University, Malcolm X, Moraine Valley CC, Morton College Radiologic Technology Moraine Valley CC The full email sent to students is below. It is with great regret that I must inform you that Northwestern College, due to severe financial problems, cannot continue to hold classes and will be closing as of July 6, 2024. The U.S. Department of Education has been conducting a review of the College. When the Department began its review, they also informed the College that, due to the existence of this review, the regular flow of federal student aid funds to the institution has been ended and the College was placed on a reimbursement system, where funds will be delayed for 45 days or more. The College was able to cover the delay in funding for over two years. Unfortunately, the College is no longer able to make alternative arrangements to cover this continuing delay in funding. We explored the possibility of another institution taking over the College but there was not sufficient time for that to happen. The College has reviewed options for you to complete your academic programs at other postsecondary institutions in the community, and we have identified several institutions that have comparable academic programs and have indicated they will accept our students, provide credit for coursework completed on a satisfactory academic basis and will expediate the admission and enrollment processes. Information on these other institutions is provided in the attachment to this notice and also on our website. The College will be making arrangements to maintain academic and financial aid records and we will provide any information that you or other institutions may request. We have given notice of our closing to the U.S. Department of Education, our accrediting agency The Higher Learning Commission, and the state licensing agency, the Illinois Board of Education. If you wish to contact any of those agencies, contact information for those agencies appears in our catalog but is also provided in the attachment to this notice. We understand that you may have questions and the Administration of the College will try to respond as promptly as possible to all questions. We suggest that you direct all questions to records@nc.edu. In closing, I want to again tell you how sorry I and the leadership of the College are that we have not been able to overcome our financial difficulty and keep the College open. We are very grateful for the opportunity we had to serve you and we wish you every success in the completion of our studies and the pursuit of your careers. Lawrence Schumacher President Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Cuba foils plot to sneak arms onto island from U.S., official says FILE PHOTO: Men work in a monument in front of the U.S. Embassy in Havana By Nelson Acosta HAVANA (Reuters) - Cuba has foiled a plot to sneak arms and ammunition onto the Caribbean island from the United States, detaining nearly three dozen people in a broader scheme authorities say sought to destabilize its government, a Cuba Interior Ministry official said on Monday. Cuba first unveiled details of the plot last December, when authorities said a Cuban man residing in the United States arrived on the island by jetski, armed with guns, ammunition and military gear, to recruit others and commit acts of violence. A subsequent seven-month investigation, said Victor Alvarez, a lead criminal investigator with Cuba's Interior Ministry, unveiled a broader plan that includes participation by 32 Cuban residents and a U.S.-based group called La Nueva Nacion Cubana, which Cuban authorities say continues to plot attacks on Cuba from U.S. soil. Cuba said it had notified the U.S. government agencies of the results of the investigation, but said the individuals continue to act with impunity. "These individuals continue to act with impunity in North American territory, organizing, financing and supporting activities of a violent nature in order to subvert the internal order of our country," Alvarez said. The U.S. State Department said it was aware of the most recent allegations. "U.S. law enforcement prosecutes individuals based on U.S. law and does not take direction from foreign governments," a state department official told Reuters on Monday via email. Cuban authorities provided Reuters with what they said was a videotaped confession from Ardenys Garcia, who allegedly entered Cuba by jetski in November before proceeding to recruit others to join him. Officials said Garcia, who is now detained in Cuba, also faces human trafficking charges in the United States. Cuba has for decades alleged the United States turns a blind eye to plots hatched by Cuban nationals residing in the United States to foment unrest on the island and upend its government. Cuba in December published a list of foreign nationals and entities - including La Nueva Nacion Cubana - that it accuses of involvement with terrorism, including many long-time dissidents who reside in the United States. The list includes dozens of people Cuba says have been implicated in hotel bombings, plots to foment unrest, and assassination attempts against Fidel Castro, many of which date back decades. The Cuban list appears to be the island`s response to a U.S. decision to keep Cuba on its own list of state sponsors of terrorism, a designation that subjects Cuba to harsh sanctions and considerable economic hardship. (Reporting by Nelson Acosta, Editing by Dave Sherwood and Aurora Ellis) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Azerbaijan is discussing a total of 15 initiatives within the COP29 chairmanship agenda, COP29 Chief Executive Officer, Deputy Energy Minister Elnur Soltanov told reporters, Trend reports. "Azerbaijan has the opportunity to introduce its own initiatives as part of the COP29 chairmanship agenda. Currently, we are actively discussing 15 initiatives, and I am confident that Azerbaijan will make significant contributions and set a positive example for other countries worldwide in terms of performance and the preparation process for COP29," Soltanov said on the sidelines of the opening of a summer energy school in ADA. The deputy minister emphasized that, as COP29 chairman, Azerbaijan should maintain a neutral position and refrain from imposing initiatives. "All interested countries should be involved in decision-making. The negotiation process is currently underway," added the COP29 CEO. This November, Azerbaijan will host COP29. This decision was made at the COP28 plenary meeting held in Dubai on December 11 last year. Baku will become the center of the world and will receive about 7080,000 foreign guests. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is an agreement signed at the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 to prevent dangerous human interference with the climate system. COP - the Conference of the Parties - is the highest legislative body overseeing the implementation of the Framework Convention on Climate Change. There are 198 countries that are parties to the Convention. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the COP is held annually. The first COP event took place in March 1995 in Germany's Berlin, with its secretariat in Bonn. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Today, in the largest attack on the capital city for many months, Russia bombs a Childrens hospital in Kyiv. We discuss the horrific attack. Elsewhere we analyse Hungarian Prime Minister Victor Orbans diplomatic efforts in Kyiv and Moscow and we examine Russias hybrid war in Germany. Listen to Ukraine: the Latest, The Telegraphs daily podcast, using the audio player at the top of this article or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app. War in Ukraine is reshaping our world. Every weekday The Telegraphs top journalists analyse the invasion from all angles - military, humanitarian, political, economic, historical - and tell you what you need to know to stay updated. With over 70 million listens, our Ukraine: The Latest podcast is your go-to source for all the latest analysis, live reaction and correspondents reporting on the ground. We have been broadcasting ever since the full-scale invasion began. Ukraine: The Latests regular contributors are: David Knowles David is Head of Audio Development at The Telegraph, where he has worked for over three years. He has reported from across Ukraine during the full-scale invasion. Dominic Nicholls Dom is Associate Editor (Defence) at The Telegraph, having joined in 2018. He previously served for 23 years in the British Army, in tank and helicopter units. He had operational deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan and Northern Ireland. Francis Dearnley Francis is Assistant Comment Editor at The Telegraph. Prior to working as a journalist, he was chief of staff to the Chair of the Prime Ministers Policy Board at the Houses of Parliament in London. He studied History at Cambridge University and on the podcast explores how the past shines a light on the latest diplomatic, political, and strategic developments. They are also regularly joined by Telegraph reporters and correspondents around the world, including Joe Barnes (Brussels Correspondent), James Kilner, (Foreign Correspondent and Editor of the Central Asia & the South Caucasus Bulletin), Sophia Yan (Senior Foreign Correspondent), Roland Oliphant (Senior Foreign Correspondent), Colin Freeman (Foreign Correspondent), Danielle Sheridan (Defence Editor), and Tony Diver (US Editor). Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Dallas man dies after crash into river in Tillamook County A Dallas man died Sunday afternoon when his car left the road, rolled down an embankment and ended up in a river east of Pacific City in Tillamook County. A Dallas man died Sunday afternoon when his car left the road, rolled down an embankment and ended up in a river east of Pacific City in Tillamook County. Tyler Jacob Bell, 32, was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash, according to Oregon State Police. Police said Bell was driving a GMC Sierra west on Highway 130 at milepost 3 when his car went off the road and ended up in the Little Nestucca River. Police said Bell was not wearing a seat belt and that speed is the primary cause of the crash. Traffic was slowed in the area for over four hours. Bill Poehler covers Marion and Polk County for the Statesman Journal. Contact him at bpoehler@StatesmanJournal.com This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Man dies in crash into Little Nestucca in Tillamook County The way David Axelrod sees it, Joe Biden has a two-week runway to turn things around. Biden is in the middle of the most brutal stretch of his political career. But if he can weather the storm, he might be in the clear, the architect of President Barack Obamas victory tells The Daily Beast. If he gets past the next two weeks without the congressional leaders trying to get him to step aside, I suspect he will be the nominee, Axelrod said. Axelrod has been an unstinting critic of Biden, calling him out-of-touch for insisting on staying in the presidential race during an interview with ABCs George Stephanopoulos. Never a fan of the Obama brain trust to begin with, Biden has been especially annoyed by Axelrods months-long expressions of doubt about the presidents re-election campaign. Only he can decide to step aside, Axelrod told the Beast on Monday afternoon, as congressional Democrats sought for ways to replace the top of their ticketor face down-ballot woes come November. If that isnt an endorsement of Bidens strategy, it is an acknowledgement that one seems to be at work. If he is dug in and stays, we go on to November, Axelrod predicted. Even on Capitol Hill there was evidence that for all the speculation about who might replace Biden in the end he will survive. Obamas Go-To Guy in the White House Says Theres No Way Biden Wins Enough influential House Dems will stick it out with him, one leading Democrat told The Daily Beast, speaking on the condition of anonymity. He has strong support among senior CBC members and key folks in battleground states, he added, referring to the Congressional Black Caucus. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA), however, issued a statement on Monday suggesting Biden isnt the candidate who is best suited to defeat Trump in November. With so much as stake in the upcoming election, now is the time for conversations about the strongest path forward, Warner said. He said it is incumbent upon the president to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and that it is time for Biden to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Donald Trump from returning to the White House. Warner issued the statement a day after cancelling a planned meeting to try to recruit sufficient Senate Democratic support to convince Biden to stand down from his re-election bid. Biden himself was increasingly striking a defiant tone Monday. By lashing out at the media, challenging members of his own party and insisting that he knows best, he risks coming across like the man whose name he could barely stand to mention during the first two years of his presidency: Donald Trump. Biden in New Crisis Over Parkinsons Docs Eight White House Visits Im getting so frustrated by the elites, the president told MSNBCs Morning Joe during an unexpected, but clearly pre-planned, Monday call-in. Biden, insiders say, is used to getting doubted by the smart set, the Ivy Leaguers who scoff at his credentials and folksy demeanor. Nothing fuels him like the desire to prove them wrong. But many think that, this time, he is acting on ego more than instinct. Of course, that charge is not new, either. Bidens Problem Is His Ego, a Politico headline sniffed in 2019 when nobody thought he would prevail in the following years Democratic primary. All the drama has folks rattled, a Democrat who is working with the Biden campaign in Florida told The Daily Beast on Monday, but the vibe is they just want to focus on Trump and move on. But getting through July will not be easy, as all eyes will be on the president, watching for signs of cognitive decline. Later this week, Biden will conduct what White House senior spokesperson John Kirby called a big-boy press conference after several days of meetings with NATO leaders in Washington. He is expect to continue campaigning, as he has been since the debate, holding rallies and conducting interviews. On Monday he appeared to have calmed few of his critics, who see Trumps widening lead as evidence of a potential cataclysm. But if he is determined, it may not make a difference. 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. After a warm meal at noontime, these American children take off their shoes for their nap in their public nursery, one of forty-one servicing an industrial area of thirty miles on the western U.S. coast. Their parents are working in a shipyard and their nursery school was established through funds appropriated by the U.S. Congress for the benefit of war workers children. The nursery is open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. (U.S. Office of War Information photo, courtesy of Library of Congress) Mom or Dad is at work all day, or out of the picture altogether. The spouse is at home taking care of the kiddos but needs to get out of the house to work or pursue an education. There is just one obstacle, but it is a big one day care. In Alaska and throughout the nation quality day care is hard to find and expensive. Imagine the issue resolved. Imagine that high quality day care is widely available and jaw-droppingly inexpensive at about $8 to $10 per child per day. Day care includes snacks and a hot lunch. It includes a ratio of 1 to 10, staff to children. And it includes basic health care. The day care facility may be a new building specifically built as a fully equipped modern day care center, or it may be a local school building. It opens early and stays open late to accommodate elastic work schedules. Some day care facilities are open 24 hours a day, six days a week. At the end of the day, select day care centers send home an evening meal for the parent and children. Impossible but tantalizing daydream? No, not a mere daydream part of our American history. Parents demanded it. Politicians wanted it. And it was done. For a few brief years the United States had a generously funded day care program across the nation. Early in the 1940s the United States had hurled itself into war against the Axis powers. The men were gone, engaged in the war effort. Graphics of Rosie the Riveter were everywhere, urging women to replace men in critical war industries. Maybe Rosie didnt have children, or maybe she had a kindly mother who watched her children while she was hammering rivets. But millions of real women were alone at home with their children. How could they work full-time in war industries and be full-time mothers at the same time? As the New York Times reported in 2019: The major source of funding to remedy this came from the Lanham Act of 1940, which enabled a number of social programs during the war years. Beginning in 1942, the Lanham Act funded the Federal Works Agency to provide group child care in areas of war impact. But far from instantly setting up a cheerful child care center on every block, the act created a complex patchwork of public and private entities, which in some cases sustained existing centers, and in others allowed communities to set up new ones. According to a report by the Congressional Research Service, even at the outset of the program the need for the child care centers was estimated to be much greater than the services provided. Nevertheless, it was an extraordinary accomplishment: The wartime child care programs were locally planned Overall, as many as 635 communities across the nation were granted funds to operate one or more centers. Projects included programs for preschool and school-age children. In July 1944, when the wartime child care program reached its apex, 52,440 preschoolers and 76,917 school-age children were enrolled. By mid-1945 it was clear that the Allies had won the war. The prevailing male sentiment was that it was time for Rosie the Riveter and her female factory colleagues to pack up and go back home. They were urged to take their traditional place in the kitchen and give the factory jobs back to men. And to make sure the women did that, politicians immediately slashed funds for national day care, quickly dismantling the program. Pushback ensued. Women and children demonstrated in the streets. There were write-in campaigns, according to the CRS report: Approximately one month after this announcement, the FWA [Federal Works Agency] reported it had received communications from 26 states and the District of Columbia (1,155 letters, 318 wires, 794 postcards and petitions signed by 3,647 individuals), urging continuation of the program. Principal reasons given were the need of servicemens wives to continue employment until their husbands returned, the ongoing need of mothers who were the sole support of their children, and a lack of inadequacy of other forms of care in the community. Nevertheless, sexism and discrimination prevailed. Within a few short years most of the national day care program had been wiped out. Vestiges remained through the 1960s, mostly in California. Then the national day care program was entirely gone. So here we are today. Day care woes abound. Tax breaks and other marginal incentives of today cannot build a national day care program. However, eight decades ago the Federal Works Agency did. We have the precedent and the need but lack politicians with the vision. This commentary was originally published in theAlaska Beacon, which like the Nevada Current is part of States Newsroom. People offer flowers at the memorial outside Nippon Budokan during state funeral of late former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in Tokyo, Japan, on September 27, 2022. He was assassinated during a campaign speech on July 8, 2022. File Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI July 8 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1776, the Declaration of Independence was read in public for the first time, to people gathered at Philadelphia's Independence Square. In 1835, the Liberty Bell cracked while being rung during the funeral of U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall in Philadelphia. In 1889, The Wall Street Journal was first published. In 1909, the Wright Brothers demonstrated their airplane for an enthusiastic crowd at Fort Myer, Virginia. The statues of North Korea's founder, Kim Il Sung and his son and successor, Kim Jong Il, stand in the city of Nampho. On July 8, 1994, North Korean President Kim Il Sung died at age 82. He had led the country since its founding in 1948. File Photo courtesy of Yonhap File Photo by Pat Benic/UPI In 1950, U.S. Army Gen. Douglas MacArthur was designated commander of U.N. forces in Korea. The Eiffel Tower is lit by fireworks on Bastille Day in Paris July 14, 2017. On July 8, 1951, Paris celebrated its 2,000th birthday. The city was founded sometime around 250 A.D. by a Gallic tribe known as the Parisii. File Photo by Maya Vidon-White/UPI In 1951, Paris celebrated its 2,000th birthday. The city was founded sometime around 250 A.D. by a Gallic tribe known as the Parisii. In 1969, U.S. troops began withdrawing from Vietnam. A Palestinian woman makes her way through debris on July 8, 2014, in the Gaza strip town of Khan Yunis. The airstrikes began a 50-day conflict between the Palestinians and Israel. File Photo by Ismael Mohamad/UPI In 1991, Yugoslav leaders signed an accord calling for an internationally observed cease-fire in Slovenia and Croatia. In 1994, North Korean President Kim Il Sung died at age 82. He had led the country since its founding in 1948. Gen. Douglas MacArthur (C) and staff, accompanied by Philippine President Sergio Osmena (R), land at Palo Beach, Leyte, on October 21, 1944. On July 8, 1950, was designated commander of U.N. forces in Korea. File Photo courtesy of the U.S. Army In 2009, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, benefiting from a robust economy, was easily re-elected. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI Space Shuttle Atlantis "flies" in its home at the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex at the Kennedy Space Center, Fla., on September 3, 2013. On July 8, 2011, Atlantis began the 135th and final mission of the U.S. space shuttle program that started in 1981, a two-week voyage to the International Space Station with a cargo of supplies and spare parts. File Photo by Joe Marino-Bill Cantrell/UPI In 2010, a French surgeon said he had performed the first successful transplant of a complete face, giving a 35-year-old disfigured man every feature, including tear ducts. In 2011, space shuttle Atlantis began the 135th and final mission of the U.S. space shuttle program that started in 1981, a two-week voyage to the International Space Station with a cargo of supplies and spare parts. In 2014, in an escalating conflict, Israeli airstrikes pounded the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip and rockets were fired at Israel. A statement from the military said the strikes were made to "stop the terror Israel's citizens face on a daily basis." The airstrikes began a 50-day war between the two sides, ending Aug. 26, 2014. In 2019, the so-called "Terminator" of the Democratic Republic of the Congo -- Bosco Ntaganda -- was found guilty of war crimes by the International Criminal Court in the Netherlands. In 2022, Shinzo Abe, Japan's longest-serving prime minister who retired from office in 2020 after a bout of health problems, was shot dead at a train station while making a campaign speech for a parliamentary candidate. File Photo by Keizo Mori/UPI OXON HILL, Md. (DC News Now) A D.C. man was shot and killed in Oxon Hill on Saturday, police said. The Prince Georges County Police Department (PGPD) said that 45-year-old Tyrone Jones died in the hospital after he was shot Saturday morning. Two charged in connection to Taco Bell shooting in Silver Spring Officers were called to the 800 block of Southern Ave. for a shooting around 10 a.m. They found Jones in a parking lot and took him to the hospital. PGPD was still working to determine a motive and suspect(s). It is offering a reward of up to $25,000 for any information that leads to an arrest and indictment. Anyone with any information should call 301-516-2512 or submit a tip 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 DC News Now | Washington, DC. DC police arrest suspect for shooting near Nationals Park, search continues for another suspect involved WASHINGTON (DC News Now) Police in D.C. said they arrested a man for a shooting that happened Saturday night near Nationals Park, and are still searching for another man who may have been involved. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) responded to the 1200 block of Half Street SE at about 9:18 p.m. There, they found a man who was suffering from gunshot wounds. He was taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Man hurt in shooting near Nationals Park in Southeast DC Detectives said 29-year-old Deon Elonte Bookhardt and another suspect had exchanged gunfire when the man was struck. Brookhardt was arrested and charged with Assault with a Dangerous Weapon and Destruction of Property. The other suspect was captured by surveillance cameras and can be seen below: Courtesy of the Metropolitan Police Department. Anyone with information or who can identify the second suspect is asked to call police at (202) 727-9099 or text MPDs tip line at 50411. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. WASHINGTON (DC News Now) D.C. police said Monday that they would be investigating a mans 2021 death as a homicide. Officers with the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) responded to the unit block of Quincy Place, NE on the evening of Oct. 18, 2021, for a person who was reported unconscious. Police found 26-year-old Zachary Freeling, who had been shot, inside of a home. DC Fire and EMS responded as well and determined that Freeling was dead. DC police arrest suspect for shooting near Nationals Park, search continues for another suspect involved Responders transported his body to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for an autopsy, but Freelings cause of death was not determined until June 20, 2024, when officials told MPD that the cause of death was ruled a homicide. MPD asks that anyone with any information call 202-727-9099 or text 50411. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Deadly heat wave sweeps California. Heres which cities broke records and how hot it got A heat wave has been slamming cities across California with triple-digit temperatures, shattering records and leaving at least one person dead. Weather forecasts for several California cities, including Sacramento, Redding and Riverside, call for high temperatures in the high 90s and 100s. Other parts of the state, such as Los Angeles and San Luis Obispo, will see highs in the 80s and 90s, the National Weather Service said. Death Valley National Park one of the hottest places on the planet reached a record high temperature of 128 degrees on Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reported. Thats just a few degrees shy of the all-time record of 134 degrees set on July 10, 1913. One person visiting the park died from heat exposure, the Associated Press reported, and another person was hospitalized. Heres how hot it got across California. Zalaeyah Kirk, 3, of Citrus Heights plays with apparatus at North Natomas Aquatic Complex as temperatures reach 103 degrees on Monday, July 1, 2024, in Sacramento. Her father, Xzavion Kirk, says she cries when they have to leave the pool and begs to stay. Sacramento breaks records for heat streak, high temperatures Triple-digit temperatures baked the Sacramento region during the entire Fourth of July holiday weekend. Downtown Sacramento broke daily temperature records on Friday and Saturday, according to the weather service. On Friday, the capital city recorded a high of 110 degrees, surpassing the record set on July 5, 2007, by two degrees. Saturdays high of 113 degrees shattered the 105-degree record set on July 6, 1989. Sunday was the sixth consecutive day of high temperatures of 105 degrees or higher in Sacramento, according to the weather service. The heat streak matched similar six-day streaks set in September 2023, August 1996 and June 1985. Grant Craton catches his son Finn, 4, as he dives into the Templeton pool, run by San Luis Obispo County Parks and Recreation. Temperature read 109 degrees in the pool parking lot on July 5, 2024. Redding records all-time high temperature Redding and Stockton both smashed heat records on Saturday, the weather service said. Redding reported an all-time high temperature of 119 degrees, beating the previous record by a single degree. The city also demolished the previous daily record of 111 degrees, set in 1984. Stockton set a daily temperature record on Saturday with a high of 111 degrees, compared to 106 degrees in 1905. Colton Hall of Templeton takes a dive off the high board at the Atascadero High School pool. Hot weather has kids flocking to pools all over San Luis Obispo County. Which other California cities saw record-breaking weather? Fresno, Hanford and Merced all bested records for high temperatures on Saturday, according to the services Hanford office. Fresno had a high of 112 degrees on Saturday, just one degree above the temperature record set in 1905. It also reported a record low temperature of 81 degrees, compared to 78 degrees in 2007. Merced recorded a high of 111 degrees on Saturday, blasting a 108-degree record set in 1931. Meanwhile, Hanford eclipsed another daily high-temperature record set in 105 111 degrees with a high of 113 degrees. The data is in! We have broken several records for high and low temperatures in the valley today. Merced: 111, old record 108 (1931) Fresno: 112, old record 111 (1905), 81, old record 78 (2007) Hanford: 113, old record 111 (1905) Madera(tied): 110 (1970) and 72 (2007) NWS Hanford (@NWSHanford) July 7, 2024 Record-breaking heat continued in the Central Valley on Sunday, the weather service said. Fresno had a high of 114 degrees that day, three degrees higher that its 1905 record. The city also beat its daily low temperature record of 76 degrees, set in 2014, with a low of 81. Hanford bested its 1905 heat record of 113 degrees by a single degree, and tied with a low-temperature record of 72 degrees set in 2001. Two-year-old Parker Beverly cools off with her dog River in the mist of North Natomas Regional Park on Tuesday, Sept. 6, 2022. Merced set a daily heat record with a high of 111 degrees, compared to 109 degrees in 1941. Madera, which had a high of 110 degrees, topped a heat record set in 1921 by one degree. It also tied with its low-temperature record of 73 degrees from 1936. Also on Sunday, Bakersfield tied with its high-temperature record of 114 degrees, set in 1905, and surpassed its low-temperature record from 1968 by a single degree with 82 degrees. Hot weather drew big crowds to Pismo Beach on Saturday, despite the countys stay-at-home order. What about the Central Coast? In San Luis Obispo County, Paso Robles burst a 17-year-old temperature record on Friday. The North County city reached 112 degrees, breaking the previous 110-degree record for the same day in 2007. What do you want to know about life in Sacramento? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@sacbee.com. Russia launched a large-scale missile attack on Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on 8 July, eleven people were killed and 59 were injured. Source: Oleksandr Vilkul, Head of Kryvyi Rih City Defence Council, on Telegram; Serhii Lysak, Head of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration; Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutor's Office, State Emergency Service Quote: "Multiple strikes, including on an administrative building of an industrial facility. Clean-up operations are ongoing. Early reports indicate 10 fatalities and 31 casualties, with 10 people in a critical condition currently in hospital." : Details: Vilkul noted that all emergency, municipal and medical units have been deployed. Later, information about the aftermath of the attack on Kryvyi Rih was confirmed by Serhii Lysak, Head of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration. He said the Russians had also hit Dnipro and there were casualties there. Quote: "A high-rise residential building and a business were damaged in Dnipro. A car service station was also damaged. There are casualties," added Lysak. Photo: Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutor's Office Details: The prosecutor's office reported that one local resident had been injured in the Russian attack on the city of Dnipro. Emergency services and law enforcement officers are working at the scene to record yet another crime committed by the Russian Federation. Law enforcers have launched pre-trial criminal investigations into the violation of the laws and customs of war combined with premeditated murder. Photo: Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutor's Office Update: At 12:55, Lysak said that the number of civilians injured in the city of Kryvyi Rih had risen to 37. In addition, the official noted that a man had been killed and six more civilians injured in a Russian attack in Dnipro. One person is in a serious condition. The rescue workers report that the Russian army damaged a nine-storey building in Dnipro. The roof and technical floor were destroyed, windows in residential apartments were smashed, and cars were damaged. A two-storey car service station building was also partially destroyed and the other company building was damaged. In Kryvyi Rih, the State Emergency Service recorded the destruction of a building that belonged to a business. PHOTO: DNIPROPETROVSK OBLAST PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE Later, the head of the Kryvyi Rih Defence Council said that the number of injured in the Russian attack had risen to 41. "As of now, there are 10 dead six women and four men. 41 people were injured, including nine seriously injured," Vilkul wrote. Later, Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutors Office reported that the number of injured in the missile strike on Kryvyi Rih had risen. "The number of injured in a missile attack on Kryvyi Rih has risen to 42. The search and rescue operation is ongoing," the Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Prosecutors Office reported. Updated at 14:06: The Head of Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Military Administration reported that, as of now, the number of injured in Kryvyi Rih is 47. Nine of them are in serious condition. There are 12 injured in Dnipro, five of them were taken to the hospital. One of the injured is in serious condition. Background: On the morning of 8 July, Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia had scrambled Tu-95 bombers from the Olenya airfield. Later, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that the Russians had launched missiles and guided aerial bombs on Ukraine, causing an air-raid warning to be issued across the country. Explosions rocked Kyiv and a number of other cities. Support UP or become our patron! BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The fifth meeting of the Organizing Committee in connection with the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) was held on July 8, Trend reports. According to the information, the Head of the Administration of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Chairman of the Organizing Committee Samir Nuriyev noted that the process of preparation for COP29 is under constant control of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev. The chairman of the organizing committee noted that in the "Karabakh Declaration" adopted at the summit in Shusha, the brotherly Turkic states supported Azerbaijan's consistent efforts to achieve real results at COP29. The Head of the Presidential Administration also noted that the final text of the "host country" agreement to be signed between the Government of Azerbaijan and the Secretariat of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change will be ready shortly, taking into account the conclusions of the relevant state structures. According to him, after the Bonn Climate Conference held on June 3-13, 2024, Azerbaijan entered the active phase of chairmanship of COP29. Speaking about Azerbaijan's priorities at COP29, Samir Nuriyev noted that a preliminary list of proposals consisting of 14 initiatives has been prepared based on the proposals of various state structures, as well as intensive discussions with the UN and other international organizations. The COP29 thematic days have already been divided by agreement with the UN. Referring to Azerbaijan's openness to cooperation in the struggle against climate change with states, non-governmental organizations and think tanks, he stressed that the work on the establishment of the International Advisory Committee of COP29, consisting of several influential foreign representatives, is being completed. Then Minister of Ecology and Natural Resources, COP29 President-designate Mukhtar Babayev made a report on the general progress of preparations for COP29, results of the Bonn Climate Conference, and foreign visits of the COP29 team. Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan Anar Alakbarov informed about the activities carried out in the organizational and logistical sphere in preparation for COP29, including the work started on the construction of infrastructure at the Baku Olympic Stadium. Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov spoke on general substantive issues, negotiations on a new climate finance target at the Bonn Climate Conference, the COP29 Presidency Agenda, and initiatives. Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan - Head of the Foreign Policy Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev talked about communication issues, including work with foreign media. Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson) Sabina Aliyeva informed about the conducted and planned activities within COP29. Minister of Emergency Situations Kamaladdin Heydarov made a speech on measures taken in the field of fire and technical safety. Head of Baku City Executive Authority Eldar Azizov talked about the capital's preparations for COP29. Deputy Chairman of the Food Safety Agency Zakiya Mustafayeva talked about the organization of public catering services and control measures taken in this direction. Director of DOST Inclusive Development and Creation Center Limited Liability Company Nigar Mammadova informed about the work done in connection with COP29 by DOST Inclusive. At the end of the meeting, instructions were given on the implementation of the COP29 action plan and other relevant issues Deer Springs Fire sparks in Kane County, grows to more than 9,100 acres in one day Deer Springs Fire sparks in Kane County, grows to more than 9,100 acres in one day UPDATE 7/7/2024 10:23 p.m. As of 10:23 p.m. on Sunday, the Utah Wildfire Dashboard was updated to show that the Deer Springs Fire had grown to about 9,117 acres on the same day it was discovered. UPDATE 7/7/2024 6:30 p.m. In a Utah Interagency Fire press release, officials said the fire was human-caused, and a private cabin was being threatened by the Deer Springs Fire. As of Sunday evening, seven engines had responded to the fire from five crews. The fire is burning on Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, south of Bryce Canyon approximately 21 miles northeast of Kanab, Utah, officials said in the release. Roads in the area including Skutumpah Road and Timber Mountain Road are closed for the safety of firefighters and the public, according to the press release. UPDATE 7/7/2024 5:30 p.m. Less than two hours after Utah Fire Info first alerted Utahns of the Deer Springs Fire in southern Utah, officials provided an update on the size of the wildfire that was discovered on Sunday. At 3:55 p.m. on Sunday, Utah Fire Info said the Deer Springs Fire was estimated to be more than 500 acres. At 5:35 p.m. on Sunday, Utah Fire Info said the blaze had increased to an estimated 1,500 acres to 2,000 acres in size. A Type 3 team has been ordered and is mobilizing, Utah Fire Info said in the update. ORIGINAL STORY: Deer Springs Fire sparks in Kane County, said to be very active KANE COUNTY, Utah (ABC4) A new fire was discovered to the northeast of Kanab in Kane County on Sunday, according to Utah Fire Info. In a social media post on Sunday, officials said the fire named the Deer Springs Fire was estimated to be more than 500 acres and was very active. However, according to Utah Fire Infos Utah Wildfire Dashboard, the blaze was estimated to be 1,200 acres as of Sunday afternoon. READ NEXT: Extreme Fire Behavior: Silver King Fire grows to over 5,400 acres Resources were responding both by air and by ground, but there were no threats as of Sunday afternoon, according to Utah Fire Info. An image of the Deer Springs Fire in southern Utah, shared by officials on July 7, 2024. (Courtesy: Utah Fire Info) An image of the Deer Springs Fire in southern Utah, shared by officials on July 7, 2024. (Courtesy: Bryce Canyon National Park) Bryce Canyon National Park also posted on social media Sunday, saying the smoke column was visible from the park. However, the park said air quality was not impacted by the fire on Sunday afternoon. The fire is located on BLM land, according to officials. Bryce Canyon National Park said the fire was about 13 miles south of Yovimpa Point. This fire is happening in an area where a Red Flag Warning is in effect. The cause of the fire was undetermined as of Sunday afternoon. 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. A Defense Innovation Unit project to link the Pentagons high-performance computers with cloud-based services could soon bring real-time, high-speed data processing to military users around the world. DIU, whose mission is to help the U.S. Department of Defense better leverage commercial technology, worked with two computing firms on the 18-month effort: Rescale, headquartered in San Francisco, and Parallel Works, based out of Chicago. The companies partnered with DoDs High Performance Computing Modernization Program, which is working to make decision-making tools enabled by supercomputers more accessible across the department from researchers and acquisition officials to operators in the field. The military uses supercomputers to quickly process large amounts of data that can be used to inform decisions or simulate complex scenarios. For example, a unit could use high-performance computing to understand how the weather forecast might impact a planned ISR operation. Or an engineer designing lighter body armor for soldiers could use it to research materials. The Pentagon relies largely on physical computers which are expensive to buy and maintain to perform this work. Through the DIU effort, Rescale and Parallel Works demonstrated that they could provide these computing tools on the cloud, which means users dont have to have access to a physical computer to take advantage of the capability. Researchers are [now] able to access cloud resources when appropriate to augment their work at on-premises centers, Benjamin Parsons, chief technology officer for the High Performance Computing Modernization Program, said in a June 27 statement. This has given them access to a wider variety of hardware, and the ability to scale resources beyond what is currently possible, all within one secure, easy to use, environment. Both firms are poised to receive production contracts later this year to scale their high-computing platforms to more users. Matt McKee, Rescales chief operating officer, told C4ISRNET in a July 3 interview that cloud-based computing platforms have played a key role in the private sectors, which have used these tools to significantly reduce engineering cycle times for new product releases. Those capabilities, he said, could change the way DoD develops, tests and fields new systems over the next three to five years. Youre seeing that type of thing reverberating through the private sector industry so, how do we make sure that the U.S. government also has that agility, he said. We need to be able to incorporate everything new that is available to us and put all those resources to bear. After more than a week of interviews and campaign events attempting to counter calls to step down from his campaign, President Joe Biden is going on the offensive. Im getting so frustrated by the elites [] the elites in the party, Biden said Monday during a phone interview with MSNBCs Morning Joe. Run against me. Go ahead, announce for president. Challenge me at the convention, I dont care what those big names think, Biden added of editorials from major publications urging him to step down. The bottom line here is that were not going anywhere. I am not going anywhere. 'The bottom line here is we're not going anywhere. I'm not going anywhere'. @potus while calling in to Morning Joe pic.twitter.com/5FVyX5JU4a Morning Joe (@Morning_Joe) July 8, 2024 In the aftermath of Bidens blundering debate performance in late June, long-simmering concerns over the 81-year-old presidents advanced age and cognitive health have boiled over into a public debate on whether the president should remain in the race, or pass the torch to a younger, more agile candidate. On Monday, the president sent an open letter to Congress blasting what his campaign previously called bedwetting by party members, donors, lawmakers, and commentators shocked by his performance against former President Donald Trump. Now that you have returned from the July 4th recess, I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden wrote. I feel a deep obligation to the faith and the trust the voters of the Democratic Party have placed in me to run this year. It was their decision to make. Not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals, no matter how well intentioned. The voters and the voters alone decide the nominee of the Democratic Party. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump, he concluded. This morning, I sent a letter to my fellow Democrats on Capitol Hill. In it, I shared my thoughts about this moment in our campaign. Its time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. pic.twitter.com/ABtAaJrr0n Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) July 8, 2024 But the train may have already left the station. Congress spent the last week out of session for the July 4 recess, and their return to the Capitol will likely mean more face-to-face discussions about the presidents future. As of Sunday night, five Democratic lawmakers have publicly called for Biden to end his bid for the presidency: Reps. Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas), Raul Grijalva (D-Az.), Angie Craig (D-Minn.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.) and Mike Quigley (D-Ill.). According to sources who spoke to CNN, on a Sunday call with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, several more Democratic House members expressed their desire for Biden to drop from the race despite having not yet taken a public stance on the matter. Those calling for the presidents exit included prominent senior Democratic Reps. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), Adam Smith (D-Wash.), Mark Takano (D-Calif.), and Joe Morelle (D-N.Y.). It was pretty brutal, a senior Democratic aide told CNN. In the Senate, Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) was reportedly attempting to form a coalition of Democratic senators who would openly call for the president to step aside and hand the campaign over to a younger candidate. According to Politico, Warner has pushed a planned meeting with lawmakers to Tuesdays caucus luncheon. On Friday, Biden sat down for a highly anticipated interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos, his first since the debate. The president appeared frustrated with questions about his mental acuity and future as a candidate throughout the 20-minute interview. If the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get out of the race, Id get out of the race, he said. The Lord Almightys not coming down. When asked how he would feel if he stayed in this race, and ultimately lost to Trump, Biden responded that as long as he feels he gave it his all and did as good a job as I know I can do, thats what this is about. Stephanopoulos: If you stay in, and Trump is elected and everything you're warning about comes to pass, how will you feel in January? Biden: I'll feel, as long as I gave it my all, and I did as good a job as I know I can do, that's what this is about. pic.twitter.com/79HSyGcOI2 nikki mccann ramirez (@NikkiMcR) July 6, 2024 Its not what this is about, though, and Democrats are becoming increasingly frustrated with the presidents apparent lack of self-reflection. One interview is not going to change the perception we need more than 22 minutes people have got to know he has the stamina to do the job and right now there are still concerns, one anonymous Democratic Rep. told ABC News after the interview. Joe Biden is a good man, hes an American patriot, yet the need for him to step aside is more urgent tonight than when I first called for it on Tuesday, Rep. Doggett told CNN in response to the interview. On Tuesday, Washington, D.C., will play host to a high-level NATO summit commemorating the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic Treaty. The three-day event will feature 32 member countries, intense debate over the potential entry of Ukraine into the treaty, as well as meetings, press conferences, and speeches from global heads of state. But on Capitol Hill and throughout the backrooms of D.C., this week may be President Bidens last chance to convince them of his fitness for another four years in office. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone The U.S. Supreme Court (Susan J. Demas illustration.) July 4th hits different when youre confronted by the unescapable reality that the American experiment is over in a fundamental way. And no, that isnt hyperbole if you read the U.S. Supreme court opinion released last week in Trump v. the United States by six right-wing justices, who function more like insular high clerics than thoughtful jurists. The case was brought by Donald Trump, who has the distinction of being the only former president to be found guilty of 34 felonies in a hush money case tied to the 2016 election and faces dozens more in three other criminal cases. But the majority on the high court half of whom were appointed by Trump handed him an astounding victory, ruling that presidents have almost limitless immunity, so long as something can be called an official act. In May, Justice Sonia Sotomayor confessed that there are days that Ive come to my office after an announcement of a case and closed my door and cried. And in reading her scorching, 29-page dissent, I began weeping myself. The President of the United States is the most powerful person in the country, and possibly the world. When he uses his official powers in any way, under the majoritys reasoning, he now will be insulated from criminal prosecution. Orders the Navys Seal Team 6 to assassinate a political rival? Immune. Organizes a military coup to hold onto power? Immune. Takes a bribe in exchange for a pardon? Immune. Immune, immune, immune, she writes. You might be tempted to believe those scenarios are fantastical, although I would argue you have to be hitting the normalcy bias tap pretty hard to convince yourself of that. But as Sotomayor delineates, the court has given a wholesale rewrite to the powers of the presidency which is tremendously significant in and of itself. Even if these nightmare scenarios never play out, and I pray they never do, the damage has been done, she writes. The relationship between the President and the people he serves has shifted irrevocably. In every use of official power, the President is now a king above the law. The fact that this decision dropped just three days before Independence Day quite honestly made it so much harder to comprehend. We literally fought a war to free ourselves from despots. We rejected the temptation of establishing a monarchy of our own to forge a democracy, a bold undertaking few thought would work. And we beat back an empire that sought to throttle our republic in its infancy. And yes, our history is marred by the original sin of slavery and the refusal to extend the rights of citizenship to anyone besides white men. But the ideals of our nation the separation of powers, right to assemble, freedom of the press and so much more have always been worth fighting for. Abolishing slavery, establishing the right to vote for women and African Americans and dismantling Jim Crow have all been part of our journey to make America a more perfect union. Thats why I love America. And no, I wasnt raised in a particularly patriotic household, although my parents did periodically remind me that I was a bicentennial baby. Ive never owned any flag-adorned clothing or cared much for the performative pomp and circumstance of July 4th (I didnt like joining in pep rallies in high school, either, and would usually try to sneak off to the library to read a book). In college, I majored in European history, focusing on the French Revolution, and was known to pedantically opine that its dedication to Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite made it far superior to its American cousin (I was always fun at parties). But as Ive aged, Ive found that binary thinking is, more than not, overly shallow and not particularly constructive. I also find myself cringing when I hear those on the left flippantly bash America, as the underlying premise seems to be that our country is broken beyond repair and not worth saving. Now Ive certainly never been an optimist, but I have to be these days because I have kids. I want them to live in a better world than the one they were born into. I think thats worth fighting for. I believe America is worth fighting for. And I dont care if that sounds corny or MAGA-coded. The GOP has long pretended, particularly post-9/11, that they are the only true patriots. And under Trump, Republicans have become emboldened to declare that theyre fighting for a vision of America that existed before the 1960s or even the 1860s. Vowing to forcibly turn back the clock to darker times in our nations history when Black Americans and other people of color, women and LGBTQ+ people were denied basic rights and often subjected to state-sanctioned violence is an incredibly bleak and disturbing political agenda. But its all outlined, in chilling detail, in Project 2025, the brainchild of the ultraconservative Heritage Foundation thats an authoritarian blueprint for the next Trump administration. And now with the Supreme Court deciding that its fine and dandy for us to have our very own King George III in the White House, its clear that the judicial branch wont serve as a check on his abuses of power. Never in the history of our Republic has a President had reason to believe that he would be immune from criminal prosecution if he used the trappings of his office to violate the criminal law, Sotomayor writes in her dissent. Moving forward, however, all former Presidents will be cloaked in such immunity. If the occupant of that office misuses official power for personal gain, the criminal law that the rest of us must abide will not provide a backstop. With fear for our democracy, I dissent. Our democracy is no longer young at 248 years old, but it isnt withering away its under direct assault from those who reject pluralism and are determined to rule over us. We face a grave test in November. We cannot fail. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post With our democracy under siege, this Independence Day was a somber one appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. From the Dispatch Politics on The Dispatch Happy Monday! Were one week out from the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. Your Dispatch Politics team will be on the ground to cover what, surprisingly, may be the more predictable of the two party conventions this year. Up to Speed President Joe Biden looks competitive with former President Donald Trump in a Saturday poll of swing state voters from Bloomberg. The president led his Republican challenger in Michigan and Wisconsin and was within the margin of error in Arizona, Georgia, Nevada, and North Carolina. But the poll was not entirely positive for Biden, as he trailed Trump by 7 points in Pennsylvania, which will likely be a key battleground state this November. That comes after a CNN poll last week found Biden trailing Trump nationally by 6 points, while Vice President Kamala Harris trailed him by 2 points. As calls to drop his reelection bid grow, Biden is scheduled to deliver a major speech next Monday coinciding with the first day of the Republican National Convention, NewsNation reported Sunday. The presidents speech will take place at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library in Austin, Texas, and focus on democracy and civil rights in honor of the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. Perhaps notably, Johnson famously abandoned his 1968 reelection bid that March after barely winning the New Hampshire primary and seeing his job approval ratings plunge. Trump on Friday disavowed Project 2025, the Heritage Foundations roadmap for the next Republican administration that Democrats have used as a club against the former president. I know nothing about Project 2025, Trump wrote in a Truth Social post. I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of the things theyre saying and some of the things theyre saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them. Bidens campaign spent much of the weekend attempting to tie Project 2025 to Trump, pointing out that a number of his former aides have been involved in it. In response to Trumps post, a Project 2025 spokesperson said in a statement on X that the initiative does not speak for any candidate and represents a coalition of conservative groups advocating policy & personnel recommendations for the next conservative president. Two of Trumps rumored potential vice presidential picks also attempted to distance the former president from Project 2025 on Sunday shows. Think tanks do think tank stuff, Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida told Dana Bash on CNNs State of the Union. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio made similar comments to Kristen Welker on NBCs Meet the Press. On the Project 2025 issue, what the media and the Democrats are trying to do is attach its most unpopular elements to the Trump administration, he said. Its a 900-page document. I guarantee there are things that Trump likes and dislikes about that 900-page document, but he is the person who will determine the agenda of the next administration. Both Rubio and Vance also made notable comments amid the brewing battle over issues in the GOPs next platform. Vance said he supported access to the abortion pill mifepristone, while Rubio endorsed changing language in the platform to affirm that abortion is a state issue, saying he hoped that our platform will reflect our nominee. As the platform battle is set to begin, pro-life organizations are changing their messaging strategy to sway voters on the issue, Politico reported Monday. To counter effective ads from the left that feature women who went through hard pregnancies and had difficulty obtaining abortions, the pro-life coalition will run its own ads featuring women who were in similar situations and chose to carry their children to term. Democrats do this well, Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America Director of State Public Affairs Kelsey Pritchard told the outlet. Republicans need to match them on this and do even better. Thats how they can get ahead in 2024. He Cant Go On President Joe Biden makes a campaign stop at a Biden-Harris campaign election office in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, on July 7, 2024. (Photo by Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images) President Joe Biden was struggling to save his embattled reelection bid Monday morning as the number of prominent Democrats urging the 81-year-old commander in chief to pull the plug on his 2024 campaign spiked over the weekend. Biden is showing no signs of abandoning his campaign, telling ABC News George Stephanopolous Friday in his first and only television interview since a disastrous debate performance hurled his campaign against presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump into uncertainty that he was committed to staying the course. If the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get outta the race, Id get outta the race. The Lord Almightys not comin down, the stubborn president said. Biden reaffirmed that message during a weekend campaign swing, telling voters in Pennsylvania and Wisconsin that hes not going anywhere. Im the nominee of the Democratic Party, Biden said during a campaign rally in Madison, Wisconsin. Some folks dont seem to care who you voted forwell, guess what? Theyre trying to push me out of the race. Well, let me say this as clearly as I can: Im staying in the race. Ill beat Donald Trump. I will beat him again. Biden Monday appeared to be belatedly stepping up his effort to keep wavering Democrats in the fold, firing off a defiant letter to Democratic members of Congress and telephoning into MSNBCs Morning Joe to declare he would not exit the race under any circumstances. But 10 days after Bidens televised faceoff with Trump in Atlanta, the former president is in the drivers seatmore so than was the case beforehand. On June 27, the day they met on a CNN stage, Trumps lead over Biden in national polling averages was 1.5 percentage points. This morning it was 3.3 percent. On June 27, Trumps lead over Biden in the key battleground states was 3.2 percent; this morning it was 3.8 percent. Voters were concerned about Bidens age and infirmity before the debatewith worries that he is unfit for the presidency, either now or over the course of a second term, only increasing since. And now Biden is losing the confidence of top Democrats in the House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate and prominent party insiders across the country. Punchbowl News reported Sunday that four House Democrats in committee leadership positions want Biden to step aside: Rep. Jerry Nadler of New York, the ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee; Rep. Adam Smith of Washington, the ranking member of the House Armed Services Committee; Rep. Joe Morelle of New York, the ranking member of the House Administration Committee; and Rep. Mark Takano of California, the ranking member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee. That followed news from the Washington Post that Sen. Mark Warner of Virginia was organizing a group of fellow Democrats in the Senate with the goal of pressuring Biden to stand down ahead of the partys August 19-22 convention in Chicago. Wealthy Democratic donors and fundraising bundlers, including those in Hollywooda crucial component of Bidens financial base of supportalso are involved in efforts to convince the president to withdraw. I intend to stop any contributions to the party unless and until they replace Biden at the top of the ticket. This is realism, not disrespect. Biden is a good man and has served his country admirably, but the stakes are far too high, Abigail Disney told CNBC, adding that she sees Vice President Kamala Harris as a capable alternative. Biden so far has managed to hang onto support from at least one critical Democratic constituency, black voters. And robust crowds at his post-debate rallies suggests the bottom has not dropped out of the presidents candidacy. But Democratic operatives are telling Dispatch Politics that Bidens hold on the nomination is growing more precarious by the day. In part, this is because Democrats have wholeheartedly embraced a central element of the presidents reelection pitchthat his Republican challenger is a threat to American democracy. Considering the presidents candidacy is untenable, its only a matter of time until [convention delegates] start saying so publicly. He cant go on, a Democratic insider in Pennsylvania told us, requesting anonymity to speak candidly. If Biden stays in, the grassroots will have his back because people will fight to beat Trump no matter what. But I cant name a single person who is comfortable with the state of the race, added a veteran Democratic campaign operative who is based in the Southwest. Republicans Clamp Down as They Draft a New Platform Members of the Republican National Committees platform committee have already met in Milwaukee to approve what Donald Trumps campaign advisers have promised will be a streamlined document of the GOPs statement of political positionssome of which, the Washington Post reports, will be a softening of the partys views on abortion. Heres what were hearing, from two sources familiar with the process: The 112 delegates to the Republican National Convention serving on the platform committee saw the draft of the platform that was personally edited by Trump himself. They have received no paper copies, and they were not allowed to bring their phones into the room with them. According to Maggie Haberman of the New York Times, the committee quickly and overwhelmingly passed the slimmed down platform, which will have to pass a vote of the full convention next week. A source with knowledge told Dispatch Politics the draft platform passed 84 votes to 18, with no amendments allowed. Trump himself briefly called into the meeting, this source said, and the Trump campaign brought in a large sign that read VOTE YES, which campaign staffers walked around the room with. These are some notable departures from the more open process of drafting and approving a platform, which typically happens in the week of party business before the pomp and circumstance of the actual national convention. This contrasts with 2016, when the drafting of the Republican platform to fit the partys unconventional nominee was a chaotic but fairly transparent process. The GOP did not adopt a platform in 2020. It reflects the incredible amount of control Trump and his campaign are exerting over the party. Earlier this year, the former presidents team sought to remove any Trump critics within the RNC from the platform and rules committees. And to the extent there has been or will be any dissent about modifications to the platform, they will likely continue to come from social conservatives and pro-life activists who have already raised the alarm about a watered down position on allowing abortion policy to be set by the states. Spokespersons for both the RNC and the Trump campaign did not reply to requests for comment from Dispatch Politics. Notable and Quotable Im getting so frustrated by the elitesnow, Im not talking about you guysbut about the elites in the party who, They know so much more. If any of these guys dont think I should run, run against me. Announce for president. Challenge me at the convention. President Joe Biden in an impassioned call-in interview on MSNBCs Morning Joe, July 8, 2024 Read more at The Dispatch The Dispatch is a new digital media company providing engaged citizens with fact-based reporting and commentary, informed by conservative principles. Sign up for free. Joe Biden told Democrats questioning his leadership to challenge me at the convention and sent a combative letter to Congress defending his embattled candidacy on Monday as Washington braced for what may be one of the most politically significant weeks in recent memory. The US president went on a redoubled counter-offensive as Congress prepared to reconvene after a two-week break, with leading Democratic lawmakers facing the urge or obligation to reveal openly if they plan to stick with him as their nominee for re-election. Related: Leading House Democrat Adam Smith calls on Biden to end presidential bid Biden gave a surprise live interview to MSNBCs Morning Joe reportedly one of his favourite TV shows to bolster his letter to returning congressional Democrats, both carrying the unambiguous message that he intended to fight on. He pledged not to back down even as pressure continued to mount after some prominent House Democrats reportedly told the House minority leader, Hakeem Jeffries, in a virtual meeting that they believe the president should step aside in the race after his poor debate performance against Donald Trump and an underwhelming ABC interview. Challenge me at the convention, he told the shows joint hosts, Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, adding that the entreaties to step down had irked him. Im getting so frustrated by the elites, Im not talking about you guys, but about the elite in the party. The defiant posture came as the Senate and House of Representatives both prepared to enter session in Washington simultaneously for the first time since the 27 June debate, during which Biden struggled to make his points, became muddled and could not effectively parry a litany of attacks and lies from the former president. This drew renewed scrutiny to Bidens ability to serve as president for another four years as, at 81, he is already the oldest president in US history and had been suffering in the polls over questions over his mental fitness and stamina. In his letter to Congress, Biden acknowledged these concerns but stressed that they had not weakened his resolve. Now that you have returned from the July 4 recess, I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, he wrote. Referencing extensive conversations with the party leadership and rank-and-file members, he acknowledged their good faith concerns and fears over the high stakes in the rematch against Trump. But he added: I know better than anyone the responsibility and the burden the nominee of our party carries. I can respond to all this by saying clearly and unequivocally: I wouldnt be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024 I have no doubt that I and we can and will beat Donald Trump. His redoubled offensive following a spate of weekend campaigning events and several interviews, including the high-profile ABC conversation on Friday came amid fierce speculation that the return of lawmakers to Capitol Hill would intensify pressure on the party leaders who are known to be influential with Biden. These include the Senate majority leader, Chuck Schumer, the former speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and the South Carolina congressman James Clyburn, as well as Jeffries. Rumors are swirling about which might signal definitively whether they think Biden should stay in the race or step aside. I think that hes got to go out there this week and show the American public that he is still that Joe Biden that they have come to know and love. I take him at his word. I believe that he can do it, but I think that this is a really critical week. I do think the clock is ticking, the Democratic senator Chris Murphy of Connecticut told CNN on Sunday morning. Biden attempted to address concerns that he is no longer the campaigner of old in response to Brzezinzki, who asked him how could ensure there would be no repeat of his lamentable debate performance. Look at my career: I have not had many of those nights. It was a terrible night, and I really regret it happened, he said, before appearing to mangle his words. Addressing calls for him to take a cognitive test, he added: I had a physical neurological physical as well in February, its released. I released all my records, all of them all, and I have a neurological test every single day. Try sitting behind this desk and making these decisions. Bidens message of defiance was amplified by his wife, Jill Biden, at a campaign event for military veterans in Wilmington, North Carolina. The first lady, branded Lady MacBiden by rightwing critics who claim she is manipulating her husband to hold on to power as his powers are supposedly waning, said she was all in with his determination to maintain his candidacy. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, she told a cheering crowd that chanted four more years in response. Thats the decision that hes made. And just as he has always supported my career, Im all in too. The interview and letter Monday amounted, in part, to a riposte to reports emerging from Sundays virtual meeting with between senior Democratic congressmen and Jeffries, suggesting that Jerry Nadler of New York and Jamie Raskin of Maryland were apparently among a significant clutch of lawmakers arguing that Biden should leave the presidential race, with the New York Times reporting this was the consensus. Jeffries has not revealed his hand. In the days since the debate and ABC interview, a small number of Democratic representatives have openly called on Biden to step down, and other reports emerged that the Virginia senator Mark Warner was looking to assemble a group of Democrats from the upper chamber to encourage Biden to quit his crisis-hit campaign. Warner reportedly planned a key private meeting for senators on Monday but is now more likely to convene smaller-scale conversations after too much public attention, the Associated Press reported late on Sunday. Biden spent Sunday campaigning in Pennsylvania, where the Democratic senator John Fetterman likened Bidens struggles to his own recovery from a stroke and said: I know what its like to have a rough debate, and Im standing here as your senator. Biden insisted to supporters in Philadelphia that he was the person to reunite America in a second term. Last Friday he told ABC his debate performance was a bad night, while downplaying the importance of his low approval ratings. But there were more questions on Sunday and those will only mount this week. The interview didnt put concerns to rest. No single interview is going to do that, the Democratic congressman Adam Schiff, who is expected to win election as a senator in California in November, said on NBC News. Related: Biden insists he can reunite US as high-profile Democrats reportedly want him to quit race Either he has to win overwhelmingly, or he has to pass the torch to someone who can. Its as simple as that. Schiff said the vice-president, Kamala Harris, could beat Trump decisively and some House lawmakers reportedly also told Jeffries in their virtual meeting that Harris was the most likely person to take over the nomination. The House Democratic caucus met in person on Tuesday. The last president to decline to seek re-election was Lyndon B Johnson, who abandoned his campaign in 1968 amid the carnage of the Vietnam war, slumping approval ratings and concerns about his own health. FILE - Passers-by walk past Sayles Hall on the campus of Brown University, in Providence, R.I., May 7, 2012. The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights announced Monday, July 8, 2024, that it entered into an agreement with Brown to make sure the school is in compliance with federal law barring discrimination and harassment against students of Jewish, Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim ancestry. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File) The U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights announced Monday that it entered into an agreement with Brown University to make sure the school is in compliance with federal law barring discrimination and harassment against students of Jewish, Palestinian, Arab and Muslim ancestry. A complaint was filed against the university in December, according to the department. Brown officials said the school voluntarily agreed to clarify and enhance existing policies and procedures related to the resolution of discrimination and harassment complaints, including those related to antisemitism. The university denied that it violated Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 when handling matters alleged in a complaint which it said had been filed by the editor of an online media outlet with no affiliation with Brown or presence on campus. As part of the resolution, Brown agreed to continue efforts to conduct nondiscrimination training for members of the campus community. The Office of Civil Rights investigation confirmed the university has taken what it described as notable steps to support a nondiscriminatory campus environment including providing student and staff workshops on combating antisemitism and combating anti-Muslim hate. According to the investigation, the school received some 75 reports of alleged antisemitic, anti-Palestinian, and anti-Muslim harassment against students from October 2023 through late March 2024, but appeared to take no or little action in response other than to acknowledge receipt of the reports, list support resources, and request to meet with the those making the complaints. These reports include allegations students pointed at a Jewish classmates Star of David jewelry and yelled Zionist pig Jew; a Palestinian-American students roommate berated them about their Palestinian-American identity; and students blocked a Jewish classmate from attending a pro-Palestinian rally. During the investigation, the university revised its practices including focusing on protecting the safety of its community, in particular the needs and safety of its students, faculty, and staff who are Israeli, Palestinian, Muslim, Jewish, have ties to the region, and are feeling affected by current events. I commend Brown University for assessing its own campus climate and undertaking responsive reforms to comply with Title VI, in addition to the terms it agrees today to undertake in response to OCRs investigation, Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights Catherine Lhamon said. According to Brown officials, many of the required actions outlined in the agreement were already underway by the school. In some cases, the school agreed to further enhance and clarify its existing policies and procedures. In other cases, Brown agreed to expand previously announced efforts, such as broadening the scope of training on nondiscrimination and harassment, school officials said. The university is satisfied that the voluntary resolution with OCR enforces and reaffirms Browns commitment to strengthening our policies, systems and operations to ensure a campus environment where students, faculty and staff are safe and supported, said Russell Carey, executive vice president for planning and policy, and interim vice president for campus life. KANSAS CITY, Mo. Deputies are searching for a 53-year-old man last seen or heard from on Monday, July 1, according to the Clay County Sheriffs Office. Around the time of the disappearance, law enforcement said David M. Willman of the Liberty and Kearney, Missouri area was last seen driving a 2006 black Ford Fusion with Missouri license plate XK2 C5K. Man kills brother in front of 3-year-old daughter: court records His car was spotted near Westport in Kansas City on Saturday morning. However, investigators could not determine who was in it. Willman is described as approximately 5 foot 9 inches tall and 185 pounds. He has blue eyes and was wearing a blue Detroit Lions T-shirt and gray shorts at the time of his disappearance. Deputies with the Clay County Sheriffs Office are searching for missing 53-year-old David Willman of Kearney/Liberty, Missouri who disappeared on Monday, July 1, 2024. Deputies with the Clay County Sheriffs Office are searching for missing 53-year-old David Willman of Kearney/Liberty, Missouri who disappeared on Monday, July 1, 2024. Deputies said he is known to frequent homeless camps. If you or anyone you know has any information regarding Willman and his whereabouts, deputies ask that you call the Clay County Sheriffs Office at (816) 407-3700. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. State officials are collectively paying anti-abortion advocates hundreds of dollars an hour to represent their interests on an obscure government panel in the battle over November's abortion ballot measure. It's another loud-and-clear move that Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida House of Representatives leadership are serious about defeating Amendment 4, the constitutional amendment aimed at ensuring abortion access in the state. The Executive Office of the Governor is paying Michael New, an assistant professor of social research at the Busch School of Business at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., $300 an hour, to speak at the state's Financial Impact Estimating Conference (FIEC) meetings. During a press conference in Pensacola on Monday, July 1, 2024, Governor Ron DeSantis announced that Pensacola State College will receive $4.4 million to expand its aviation maintenance program. DeSantis also announced that Santa Rosa County will receive $500,000 for defense infrastructure improvements. And the Florida House of Representatives is paying Rachel Greszler, a senior research fellow with the Roe Institute at the conservative Heritage Foundation, also based in Washington, $75 an hour to represent the House, according to the Florida House's Office of Open Government and House spokesperson Jenna Box Sarkissian. The panel, which met last week and Monday, determines the "fiscal impact statement" to be printed on ballots, which could potentially sway voters to keep Florida's Heartbeat Protection Act, a ban on abortions after six weeks, in effect. The voting members, who will decide on the text of the statement, are Chris Spencer, once DeSantis' budget chief and now head of the State Board of Administration, on behalf of the governor; Greszler for the House; Senate Finance and Tax Committee Staff Director Azhar Khan, and Amy Baker, who heads the Florida Legislature's Office of Economic & Demographic Research (EDR). DeSantis has called Amendment 4 "very, very extreme," and said the Florida Supreme Court "dropped the ball" allowing the measure on the ballot. In June, the governor launched the "Florida Freedom Fund," a political spending committee aimed to defeat the abortion and marijuana ballot amendments and support candidates across the state. As of June 28, the committee had $121,000 in contributions. Amendment 4, which needs at least 60% of the vote to pass, would negate the current restrictions signed into law by DeSantis. The ballot measure would allow abortions up to fetal viability, usually about 24 weeks of pregnancy. That would restore a standard that was in place across the nation until the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 Dobbs ruling that ended the constitutional right to abortion in the Roe v. Wade decision. Abortion-rights and anti-abortion activists voice their opinions outside the Florida Supreme Court after the Court heard arguments on the proposed abortion amendment Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024. Spencer pushed the panel to include potential litigation costs if the amendment is passed, which would cost the state. "We believe from the governor's office that it's inevitable that litigation is going to occur, and we need to account for that," Spencer said. EDR analysts do not usually include litigation in the fiscal impact analysis. Spencer listed 20 state laws he believed would "probably" be contested in court, and said the fiscal impact would not only include the cost of the state defending the litigation but also the costs of potential state Medicaid coverage. Spencer used Michigan as an example abortion rights supporters are suing the state to overturn the ban on taxpayer-funded abortions after voters passed a constitutional amendment in 2022. "We can't put a dollar figure how much the litigation is going to cost ... but I think it's something significant enough that it can't be ignored in a financial estimating impact analysis," Spencer said. Greszler agreed and said other state courts have ruled for taxpayer-funded abortions. Khan, however, said some of those decisions were from the 1980s and '90s before the Dobbs decision that ended the constitutional right to abortion. "I believe it will be litigated. I feel very comfortable saying that given the history in other states," he said. "But I'm very uncomfortable saying what a judicial outcome will be on this issue." Later in the meeting, Greszler brought up fertility rates and demographic trends and their effects on the state's economy. "I think it's intellectually dishonest to have an economic analysis that's only going to consider the short term," she said. Florida added over 300,000 new residents last year, according to the U.S. Census. Khan said Greszler's argument that a larger population equals a larger economy does not account for Florida's tax structure. "Folks, if you look at the past in-migration and out-migration trends in the state, we lose people when they finish high school and they finish college, and we gain them back when they get closer to their retirement. How do we account for that?" he said. The meeting, which started at 9 a.m. Monday, continued into the afternoon, and was the second time the FIEC panel met to discuss the abortion amendment. The panel will meet again next week and is expected to decide what the financial impact statement will say on the ballot in November. Baker said the panel can "agree to disagree" if they arrive at a 2-2 vote. Ana Goni-Lessan, state watchdog reporter for the USA TODAY Network Florida, can be reached at agonilessan@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis pays outsider to speak at FL abortion financial impact panel BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The work on the establishment of the International Advisory Committee for COP29 consisting of several authoritative foreign representatives is being finalized, Head of the Presidential Administration of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Chairman of the Organizing Committee for the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) Samir Nuriyev said at the fifth meeting of the Committee on July 8, Trend reports. Referring to Azerbaijan's openness to cooperation in the struggle against climate change both with states and non-governmental organizations, and think tanks, he stressed that the work on the establishment of the International Advisory Committee of COP29 consisting of several authoritative foreign representatives is being completed. Details of Ukraine-Poland security agreement released: includes plan to develop mechanism for intercepting Russian missiles The Ukraine-Poland security agreement includes a provision to develop a mechanism to shoot down Russian missiles and drones launched in the direction of Poland within Ukrainian airspace. Source: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a briefing in Warsaw on Monday, as reported by European Pravda Details: After signing the security cooperation agreement, Zelenskyy thanked Poland for the "special arrangements" reflected in the document. "The security agreement includes provisions for developing a mechanism to intercept Russian missiles and drones launched towards Poland within Ukraine's airspace," the president said. "Here, I am confident that our teams, the teams of the defence ministries, will collaborate closely with our military to swiftly implement this aspect of our agreement," Zelenskyy added. Background: Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, for his part, stressed that no one has the right to resolve the issue of a peaceful settlement with Russia without Ukraine or to negotiate European policy without the EU's approval. On Monday morning, President Zelenskyy arrived in Warsaw before heading to the NATO anniversary summit in Washington. Support UP or become our patron! GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) It was a busy weekend for U.S. Coast Guard patrols along Lake Erie. Crews were sent on multiple search-and-rescue missions, including one that pulled five boaters from the water and one that ultimately ended with two fatalities. Sign up for breaking news alert emails According to a news release, the first search and rescue mission started around 10:30 a.m. on Saturday after the USCG station in Buffalo, New York, picked up a mayday call. A 23-foot boat had capsized, leaving several boaters stranded approximately 1 nautical mile off the shore of North Perry, Ohio about 40 miles northeast of Cleveland. A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter crew from Air Station Detroit took part in two rescue missions on Lake Erie on Saturday, July 6, 2024. (Courtesy USCG) During that search, however, a helicopter crew from Air Station Detroit was diverted to yet another rescue mission. That call came in just after 11:30 a.m. with a report that five people were thrown from their boat approximately 10 nautical miles off the coast of Ashtabula, another 20 miles northeast of North Perry. Coast Guard urges beachgoers to know lake conditions There, all five boaters were wearing lifejackets and were found clinging to a floating cooler. They were taken to a nearby hospital but had no medical concerns. The crew then returned to North Perry to rejoin the search there. Around 1 p.m., some floating debris had been spotted. Crews eventually recovered three people from the water, although one man was unresponsive and later confirmed dead at a hospital. The rescued boaters told the Coast Guard one other person is still missing. Crews continued their exhaustive search throughout the day Saturday until it was ultimately suspended. Inside woodtv.com: Lake Michigan Summer Beach Guide Suspending a search and rescue case is one of the most difficult decisions for us to make, USCG Capt. Mark Kuperman said in a statement. Our crews in conjunction with our Ohio state partners and local partners conducted an exhausting search for the missing individual and we are greatly appreciative of the immense effort by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources and the northeast Ohio community of first responders to attempt to return the individual safely to their family. We offer our heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of those involved in this tragic incident. NOTE: This story previously misstated the number of people rescued by the USCG. News 8 regrets the error. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Gaza hostage-ceasefire deal faces new hurdles as Israel sets conditions. Heres what to know Editors Note: A version of this story appears in CNNs Meanwhile in the Middle East newsletter, a three-times-a-week look inside the regions biggest stories. Sign up here. Optimism about an Israel-Hamas ceasefire-hostage agreement waned this week as Israel set conditions for the deal and Hamas warned that Israeli actions in Gaza could jeopardize the talks. Last week, a US official told CNN that a framework agreement is in place and an Israeli official said that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had authorized his negotiators to enter into detailed negotiations, signaling a potential breakthrough. Talks resumed in the Qatari capital Doha on Friday. Over the weekend, Hamas agreed to compromise on a major sticking point for Israel, that the Jewish state commit to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza before signing an agreement. But a statement by the Israeli prime ministers office on Sunday cast doubt on whether the deal would progress, laying out several principles Israel is not prepared to abandon, including resumed fighting in Gaza until all of objectives of the war have been achieved. Israel launched its war on Gaza nine months ago, in response to Hamas October 7 attack that killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 others hostage, according to Israeli authorities. The war has left swathes of the enclave unrecognizable, displaced almost the entire population and killed more than 38,000 people in Gaza, according to the health ministry there. Israel had said it wouldnt end the war until all hostages are freed and Hamas is eliminated. Some experts say Netanyahus statement on Sunday suggests the deal may face new hurdles. The prime ministers conditions block any possibility of progress from the Israeli side, Gershon Baskin, a former Israeli hostage negotiator who once acted as a channel to Hamas, told CNN, adding that the conditions were completely against what Hamas demands are. I dont think that Hamas will give in to additional Israeli demands, such as staying on the Philadelphi Corridor, Baskin said, referring to the 14-kilometer (about 8.7-mile) buffer zone on the Egypt-Gaza border. Hamas is also unlikely to agree to an Israeli demand of a veto on the selection of Palestinian prisoners to be released. Heres what we know about where the talks stand. What is the deal that is on the table? US President Joe Biden in May laid out a three-phase proposal that he said Israel had submitted, as he declared its time for this war to end. The first phase of the potential agreement would last six weeks and include the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all populated areas of Gaza as well as the release of a number of hostages, including women, the elderly, the wounded in exchange for the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners. Phase 2 would allow for the exchange for the release of all remaining living hostages, including male soldiers. In Phase 3, the president said, a major reconstruction plan for Gaza would commence and any final remains of hostages whove been killed will be returned to their families. A Palestinian tailor works in a newly reopened sewing factory after the machines were retrieved from a building hit in an Israeli strike, amid Israel-Hamas conflict, in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. - Hatem Khaled/Reuters On Thursday, a senior US administration told CNN that the framework for a deal is now in place, following a call between Biden and Netanyahu. An Israeli source familiar with the negotiations echoed a similar message earlier on Wednesday, telling CNN the two sides appear to be on the brink of a framework agreement. What is Hamas position? Hamas has long demanded that Israel agree to a permanent ceasefire before signing any deal, which Israel has so far refused. A senior Hamas official who had been involved in negotiations told CNN Saturday the group would instead accept that talks on reaching a permanent ceasefire would take place throughout the first phase of any deal, which would last six weeks. This means, in the first phase, mediators would guarantee a temporary truce, the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza and the withdrawal of Israeli troops. Indirect talks would continue towards implementing the second phase of the agreement. But as Israel issued new evacuation orders in Gaza city on Sunday, Hamas said on Monday that the move threatens to return the negotiating process to point zero. Netanyahu and his army bear full responsibility for the collapse of this negotiation path, the head of the groups political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, said. What is Netanyahus position? An Israeli source familiar with the negotiations told CNN last week that Israeli officials believe Hamas latest response will enable the two parties to enter detailed negotiations to reach an agreement. Netanyahu subsequently authorized his negotiators to enter into detailed talks in a bid to broker a deal, an Israeli official and a source familiar with the negotiations said, signaling progress after weeks of deadlock. In a statement Sunday, however, Netanyahus office published a list of principles that it said will not be infringed upon by the plan agreed to by Israel and Biden. The prime ministers steadfast position against calls to halt Israeli military action in the southern Gaza city of Rafah is what brought Hamas to the negotiating table, the statement said. The principles include a resumption of the war until all of objectives of the war have been achieved and the prevention of smuggling of weapons to Hamas from Egypt to the Gaza border. Israel began a ground operation in Rafah on May 7, crossing the Philadelphi Corridor and seizing the Palestinian side of the border with Egypt. Israel has long accused Hamas of using the Philadelphi corridor to smuggle weapons from Egypt. Netanyahu also said there will be no return of thousands of armed terrorists to the northern Gaza Strip, the statement said. What is the White House saying? A US official told CNN Thursday that last weeks call between Biden and Netanyahu seemed to reach a breakthrough on the transition from Phase 1 to Phase 2, adding that the deal is now very consistent with what Biden had laid out in May. Asked if the administration believes that Netanyahu is playing politics and could try to sabotage the deal, the official said the deal is structured in a way that fully protects Israels interests. The developments came after the US proposed new language to help bridge gaps in discussions for a deal, and as Biden scrambled for political survival after floundering in a presidential debate against his predecessor Donald Trump. Bidens handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict has been a key issue for voters. Are the two sides closer to a deal? Prospects of a deal appeared to become distant again this week after Netanyahus demands, as senior Israeli politicians from accross the political spectrum publicly chided the prime minister over his handling of the war and the hostage talks. Far-right members of Netanyahus government, whom he relies on to keep his government intact, warned him against making compromises with Hamas. Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir warned that a negotiated settlement is a surrender to terrorism on all fronts, and said the prime minister conducts himself as a one-man government, making decisions by himself, and excluding his natural partners in the government, including cabinet meetings that are without any significant content, describing the situation as intolerable. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, told his party that the proposed outline of a ceasefire deal was a defeat and humiliation for Israel and a victory for Sinwar, Hamas leader in Gaza. We will not be part of a deal to surrender to Hamas, Smotrich said. The people of Israel, the bereaved families and the IDF fighters demand victory. We must not disappoint them. We must not endanger the country. Meanwhile, the chairman of the National Unity party, Benny Gantz, who left the war cabinet last month after repeated disagreements with Netanyahu, accused the prime minister of prioritizing the survival of his government over bringing back the hostages. Yesterday the prime minister linked bringing back the hostages to bringing down the government. Today, Ben Gvir connects a seat in the limited cabinet with political votes in the Knesset. Israels security during the most difficult campaign in its history became a victim of political whims. Opposition leader Yair Lapid criticized the prime ministers statement as provocative. What is it good for? We are at a critical moment in the negotiations, the lives of the abductees depend on it, Lapid wrote Sunday on X. Why issue such provocative messages? How does it contribute to the process? Theres a hostage deal on the table, he said later. It is not true that Netanyahu has to choose between the hostage deal and his continued tenure as prime minister. I promised him a safety net, and I will keep that promise. If Smotrich and Ben Gvir retire, he will get a safety net. People march on the street as anti-government protesters mark nine months since the deadly October 7 attack, under the slogan "Israel comes to a standstill," outside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's private residence in Jerusalem on Sunday. - Ilan Rosenberg/Reuters Baskin, the former negotiator, said that added US pressure is unlikely to sway the Israeli prime minister, who is battling for political survival amid anti-government protests demanding his resignation. US pressure is strongly diminished now after Bidens debate against Trump, Baskin said. Bidens weak debate performance only led more Democrats to express doubts that he can beat his opponent in the upcoming election. If the Americans are still optimistic (after Netanyahus Sunday statement), then they are really living in La La land, Baskin told CNN. They have really no idea what is going on in the mind of Netanyahu. CNNs Jeremy Diamond, Samantha Waldenberg and Arlette Saenz contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Dayton Gets Real: Community collects signatures for public hospital in West Dayton A community group is working to bring a public hospital to West Dayton. As reported on News Center 7 at 11:00, the Clergy Community Coalition hosted an event to collect signatures for their petition on Sunday. Coalition leaders said West Dayton has been a healthcare desert since the Good Samaritan Hospital shut down, according to a previous News Center 7 report. President of the Clergy Community Coalition Bishop Richard Cox said Sundays event was successful. >>PREVIOUS COVERAGE: DGR: Community group proposes public hospital to address healthcare desert in West Dayton We collected 100 signatures, Cox said. The coalition believes this hospital is a much-needed entity for the community. A public hospital helps people who are poor, people who are indigent, people who have no insurance or little insurance, Cox said. Good Samaritan Hospital was one of 11 public hospitals in Ohio and helped the community for almost 100 years, according to Cox. It is an inclusive initiative that does not discriminate. This would be a hospital for everybody, Pastor Renard Allen said. The coalition needs 1,250 signatures from registered Dayton voters before presenting the plan to the Dayton City Commission. If the commission approves the plan, it will be put on the ballot in November. City residents would then vote on a proposed one-mill tax that could raise $2 million every year, for 10 years. It will cost a person with a property value of $100,000, $35, Cox said. >> Police investigate reported stabbing in Dayton Cox said if the public hospital is approved, it will not only bring healthcare to the area but also new job opportunities. A public hospital is a hospital of the people, there is transparency, Clergy Community Coalition Secretary Nancy Kiehl said. The Clergy Community Coalition is hosting another event to collect signatures from 1:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. on July 14 at Grace United Methodist Church. We will continue to follow this story. AUSTIN (KXAN) President Joe Biden will visit Austin and deliver remarks July 15 at the Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, the White House Press Office confirmed Sunday. Bidens trip to the Texas capital comes in the thick of campaign season and is scheduled on the same day as the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee. The RNC is expected to officially nominate former President Donald Trump as the partys presidential candidate, mirroring the same top ticket candidates from the 2020 presidential race. RELATED: President Joe Biden to speak in Austin as Republican convention kicks off in Milwaukee Bidens impending visit isnt the first time either presumptive nominees have visited Austin. Heres a look back at some of the most recent presidential visits in the capital city. May 2022: Former President Donald Trump stops in Austin on the American Freedom Tour Trump spoke at the Austin Convention Center May 14, 2022, during an all-day event as part of the American Freedom Tour. Fellow guests at the event included Trumps son, Donald Trump Jr., Kimberly Guilfoyle, Mike Pompeo, Dines DSouza and Mark Lamb. The Downtown Austin Alliance had cautioned residents of downtown traffic congestion and delays surrounding the event, while the Austin Police Department told KXAN at the time it would work to ensure appropriate staffing levels to supplement Trumps Secret Service protection. November 2019: Then-President Donald Trump tours Apple manufacturing facility in northwest Austin Trump joined Apples CEO Tim Cook for a visit to the companys northwest Austin manufacturing facility. The visit came nearly a year after the tech giant announced its expanded Austin footprint courtesy of a planned $1 billion, 133-acre campus. During Trumps visit, he and Cook discussed product assembly in the Texas capital most notably the Mac Pro, a desktop computer noted for its high-capacity computing power. The visit drew protests from local group Indivisible Austin, as well as a roundtable discussion between the Texas Democratic Party, Texas AFL-CIO and local democratic officials elected at the time to aid in exposing Trumps failed economic record. PAST COVERAGE: President Trump to tout economic policy with Austin Apple visit September 2016: Then-Vice President Joe Biden speaks at Austin campaign event While still vice president at the time, Biden made an appearance in the heart of the Lone Star State in mid-September 2016, speaking at a private Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee event. He delivered those remarks at a private residence that was closed to both the media and public. Bidens stop in Austin came shortly after a trip from then-vice presidential candidate Tim Kaine, who visited the Democratic Party headquarters in east Austin. Texas is critically important. We always look at Texas in the Democratic party. When I was democratic party chair the first meeting we did we brought it to Austin. Were going to go after Texas. Its big. Its complicated and its hard, but were serious, then-Sen. Kaine said at the Aug. 9, 2016, event. March 2016: Then-President Barack Obama dines at Torchys Tacos in Austin Guests at the Torchys Tacos at El Paso and South First streets got the presidential treatment on March 11, 2016, courtesy of a visit from then-President Barack Obama. His impromptu lunch stop came amid Obamas planned visit to Austin for a keynote conversation at the 2016 South by Southwest Conference & Festivals. His SXSW marked Obamas seventh trip to Austin at that time. ICYMI: President Obama grabs lunch at Torchys Tacos July 2014: Then-President Barack Obama skips the line before dining at Franklin Barbecue Its a dream most Austinites wish could become their reality: skipping the line and dining right away at Franklin Barbecue. That dream became a reality for Obama, whose July 2014 visit to Austin included meeting with Austin letter writer Kinsey Button for coffee at Magnolia Cafe, delivering a speech at the Paramount Theatre downtown and topping the trip off with plenty of lunchtime barbecue, as detailed in the Obama Administrations archives. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Mark Robinson Has Lost His Black-MAGA Mind, Saying Making This Violent Statement ... In a church North Carolina Lieutenant Governor Mark Robinson speaks at a rally for Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump at the Greensboro Coliseum, in Greensboro, NC on Saturday, March 2, 2024 - Image: Scott Muthersbaugh (Getty Images) Many are calling Mark Robinsons remarks at a southeast North Carolina church last month incendiary and bizarre after a 30-minute speech where he endorsed violence, saying some folks need killing. The North Carolina Lt. Governor left churchgoers shocked, with many not knowing exactly how to respond to his remarks. You know, theres a time when we used to meet evil on the battlefield and guess what we did to it? We killed it, he said while referring to the United States bombing of Japan in 1945. Robinson also mentioned Nazi Germany: No, theyre bad. Kill them. Robinson even called for the guys in green and boys in blue to handle wicked people doing wicked things [like] torturing and murdering and raping. He called out the Democrats: Some liberal somewhere is gonna say that sounds awful. Too bad! Sparse applause from members of the Lake Church followed his statement. North Carolina GOP gov nominee Mark Robinson endorses political violence in June 30 video surfaced by @newrepublic: "Kill them! Some liberal somewhere is gonna say that sounds awful. Too bad! ... Some folks need killing! It's time for somebody to say it." https://t.co/GVKCE7QvVV pic.twitter.com/AjfAxo08xE Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 5, 2024 Robinson went on to warn churchgoers that liberals are watching us. Theyre listening to us. Theyre tracking us. They get mad at you. They cancel you. They dox you. They kick you off social media. They come in and close down your business. The GOP nominee has garnered a reputation of controversial political agendas and divisive statements and conspiracy theories. Most famously, Robinson has called for a complete ban on all abortions, claiming when a woman becomes pregnant, its not [her] body anymore. Robinson also has strong views on the LGBTQ community, saying trans people should find a corner outside somewhere instead of using public restrooms, and he has even referred to Beyonce as satanic. Coming to Robinsons defense, Lake Church Rev. Cameron McGill said Robinson certainly did not imply the taking of any innocent lives. He clarified that Without a doubt, those he deemed worthy of death [were] those seeking to kill us. A spokesperson for Robinsons gubernatorial campaign told NewsNation that Robinsons comments only referred to the Japanese and Nazis of WWII. Mark Robinsons repeated and repulsively violent rhetoric fits into his pattern of spewing division and hate rather than serving North Carolina families, said a representative for Attorney General Josh Steins gubernatorial campaign. We cannot have a governor who calls for extrajudicial killings. Mark Robinson is divisive and dangerous. Robinson has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump. The GOP nominee is set to face Stein in the November election for governor of North Carolina. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Diddy Is The Subject Of A Federal Criminal Investigation In New York: Heres What We Know Sean Diddy Combs has new legal troubles and more accusations. According to Deadline, the 54-year-old is at the center of a criminal investigation in New York, and a federal grand jury in the Southern District of the state is hearing evidence included in the investigation. A U.S. Attorneys Office spokesperson declined to comment, and Combs lawyers did not answer Deadlines request for comment. This is the next step in the process for Mr. Combs as the investigation continues, a law enforcement official familiar with the grand jury proceedings told Deadline. They also confirmed that Combs and his team of attorneys have been notified about the grand jury, NBC reported. Legal experts define Combs as someone who is within the scope of a criminal investigation. However, there isnt an indictment on the table, and Combs has not received a target letter (its important to note that sending one in the Southern District of New York is not required). On Wednesday, adult film star Adira English filed suit against him, alleging that he sexually assaulted and sex trafficked her for years during white parties at his residences, People reported. It is the latest of at least six other lawsuits filed since November from people who say that Diddy sexually assaulted or harassed them. Its been three months since Combs homes were raided in Los Angeles and Miami, and the music mogul has been the subject of back-to-back controversies over the last seven months. Combs has been hit with sexual assault allegations by multiple women, and a harrowing video of him physically assaulting his then-girlfriend Cassie Ventura in a Los Angeles hotel in 2016 went viral in May. He settled a federal lawsuit by Ventura in November, the day after it was filed. Combs businesses have also taken a hit: a reality project he had in the works with Hulu was dropped by the streamer, and he also had to divest his stake in Revolt. The 54-year-old was also stripped of his honors by Howard University and returned the key to New York City. Die over this product: Woman accused of stealing from multiple stores MEMPHIS, Tenn. A woman faces 10 counts of aggravated assault after Memphis Police say she stole from numerous stores, including $6 worth of clothing from Family Dollar. MPD: Man accidentally kills wifes friend while playing with loaded gun Honesti Howard, 21, three counts of Theft of Property $1,000 or less and 10 counts of Aggravated Assault. Her bond is set at $210,000. On June 30, at around 10 a.m., two women, one being Howard, allegedly walked into Kroger on Truse Parkway and stole $500 worth of items. When employees tried to stop them, one of the women pulled out a gun and said, Dont get your White [expletive] shot. You gonna die over this product. Im coming back to shoot your White [expletive]. They reportedly fled in a gray Nissan Rogue. At around 5 p.m., the suspects went to Family Dollar on Knight Arnold. Police say they stole $6 worth of clothing. When confronted by employees, one of the women pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot. Kidnapping suspect arrested in Arlington Sunday, a little after 11 a.m., two women stole nearly $300 in groceries from SuperLo on Perkins Road. When approached by employees, one of the women pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot them. Officers found the gray Nissan Rogue on South Mendenhall and recognized Howard. While in custody, Howard allegedly admitted to MPD that she was involved in the thefts. However, she stated that Ameshia Taylor was responsible for pulling out the gun and threatening the employees. Honesti Howard is set to appear in court Monday 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 WREG.com. After the first presidential debate, theres a sense of triumph for Donald Trump as he prepares to come to South Florida for a rally in Doral on Tuesday. A sense of triumph not because Trump had a remarkable presentation at the CNN debate in late June. Hes lucky that the focus of attention has been not on how he shamelessly spread misinformation, but on Democrats panic and attempt to replace President Joe Biden after his disastrous performance raised reasonable questions about his mental acuity. When Trump takes the stage at Trump National Doral Miami Tuesday evening, the bar will be set low for him. Trump has to do the bare minimum looking and sounding vigorous will likely be enough as the news cycle turns to 24/7 coverage of how many Democrats are calling on the president to pass the torch to a younger candidate. Not even Trumps outrageous comments so run of the mill at this point or his criminal conviction on 34 felony charges will steal the spotlight from the Democrats internal struggle as Biden refuses to relinquish his reelection bid. Trump might want to wait to announce his vice-president pick to allow the Democratic Party to stew in the negative attention a little longer. At the same time, Doral would be the perfect location to announce his VP pick if its Miamis own U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, whos reportedly on the former presidents shortlist. Biden handed Trump a gift at the debate with his rambling, and at times incomprehensible, answers and his deer-in the-headlights facial expressions. It was an easy distraction from the falsehoods Trump spewed with little pushback from his opponent or CNN moderators. For example, Trump claimed Democrats abortion rights stance is so radical they will take the life of a child in the eighth month, the ninth month, and even after birth. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that less than 1% of abortions in the U.S. happen after 21 weeks. If they do occur, its usually because of fetal abnormalities or life-threatening emergencies for the mother. Most democrats support abortion up until the point of viability, the standard applied under the Supreme Courts Roe v. Wade ruling for more than 50 years. Taking the life of a child after birth would be murder. Trump accused Biden of allowing millions of people to come in here from prisons, jails and mental institutions. Federal numbers show that, from 2021 to 2024, immigration authorities arrested 103,700 noncitizens with criminal convictions in the U.S. or abroad not millions. Not all of them were let into the U.S. and some had legal status in the U.S., PolitiFact, which rated Trumps claim pants on fire, reported. Trump also accused Biden of calling Black people super predators when pushing for a crime bill in the 1990s. Biden in 1997 said just the opposite in a speech: that youth in the criminal justice system are not the so-called super predators, according to a CNN fact check. Voters brushed off Trumps casual relationship with the truth before. After a disastrous night for Democrats, his lies became nuance lost in the bigger drama of a president who failed to assure the American people that he can hold the worlds most powerful job for another four years and into his late 80s. The stage for Trumps next rally is emblematic of the crossroads Bidens party finds itself in. The losses Democrats have had in South Florida and Florida as a whole in recent years are largely self-inflicted wounds and lack of proper voter engagement. Thanks to growing support among Hispanic voters, in 2020 Trump made large strides in Miami-Dade, where Biden won by 7% after Hillary Clinton carried it by a 30-point margin in 2016. You can bet that Trump will use his speech in Doral to gloat over his supposed triumph at the debate and Bidens apparent cognitive decline while ignoring his own. Expect him to continue to inject his supporters with a dose of fear-mongering a la immigrants are poisoning the blood of the country and anger over the falsehood that abortion-rights supporters are ripping babies out of the womb to kill them. While he does that, America will be too busy worrying about a Bidens fitness for office. Trump couldnt ask for a bigger distraction. Click here to send the letter. Disney Fan with Guillain-Barre Syndrome Who Was Denied Disability Pass at Disneyland Speaks Out On TikTok, Charisma Mangahas, whose condition requires a tracheostomy tube to help her breathe, offered Disney an alternative to denying visitors the pass AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images Sleeping Beauty Castle at Disneyland Another Disney fan is speaking out about being denied a Disability Access Service (DAS) pass under the theme park's recently updated guidelines. Charisma Mangahas, who has Guillain-Barre syndrome and uses a tracheostomy tube (also called a trach tube) to help her breathe, spoke out about her experience being denied the service and offered Disney an alternative option to having employees assess guests' health conditions individually. She shared her idea in a TikTok video posted in late June that has gotten over 1.7 million views. "I was recently denied the Disability Access Services here at Disneyland and Disney California Adventure," she says in the video, recorded at the theme park while she is sitting in her wheelchair, with a Stitch plush perched on her shoulder. Getty "I wanted to make this video to show that no matter the severity of the disability, Disney has [its] own standards [it] created that determines whether or not you apply for [its] specific disability service," she says. She recounts that upon requesting a DAS pass, a Disney employee told her the services mainly apply to "severely disabled" people (she looks down and indicates herself while saying the phrase) or "cognitively disabled" people. According to Disney's website, DAS passes will now only be available to "guests who, due to a developmental disability like autism or similar, are unable to wait in a conventional queue for an extended period of time." The change in policy took effect on May 20 at Walt Disney World and June 18 at Disneyland, after being announced April 9. AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images General views of the Disneyland Resort According to Mayo Clinic, Mangahas' diagnosis of Guillain-Barre syndrome occurs when "the body's immune system attacks the nerves" and can cause "weakness, numbness or paralysis." Symptoms of the condition include an unsteady walk, difficulty breathing, and trouble with facial movements, including speaking, chewing or swallowing. She also has a trach tube visible in her post. This device allows a patient to breathe after they have a tracheostomy procedure involving making a hole into the windpipe. "I do understand," Mangahas says of the theme park's policies. However, she goes on to describe an alternative idea she had to the controversial new policy, under which many people who previously qualified for disability services at Disney are no longer eligible. She proposes that Disney offer people with disabilities the option to purchase an annual "Lightning Lane" pass, which would allow them to skip lines for a fee. She said it would help people with disabilities who benefit from not having to wait in line without leaving each determination up to employees. Mangahas explains that she was offered the theme park's queue attraction re-entry service, which allows a person with a disability to exit the line and return when its their party's turn to ride, but requires that "the rest of the party will remain in the queue" while the person with the disability waits apart from them, per Disney's website. Paul Hiffmeyer/Disneyland Resort In April, shortly after the new DAS policy was announced, PEOPLE spoke to Natasha Caudill, has a rare eye disorder called achromatopsia, about being denied. (Per Cleveland Clinic, this condition limits people's ability to see color vision and also causes other vision issues, such as rapid eye movements.) "I wish Disney was more upfront about the change. Disney World offers such a welcoming atmosphere, but as a disabled person, I just dont feel as welcome now," Caudill said. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Disney didn't immediately reply to PEOPLE's request for comment about Mangahas' video. When reached about Cauldill's story in April, Disneyland officials told PEOPLE, "Disney is dedicated to providing a great experience for all Guests, including those with disabilities, which is why we are so committed to delivering a wide range of innovative support services aimed at helping our Guests with disabilities have a wonderful time when visiting our theme parks." For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, July 8. Kazakhstan and China have agreed on the further development of railway transport corridors from China to Europe in transit through the territory of Kazakhstan, Trend reports. The corresponding agreement was reached during a meeting between the management of Kazakhstan Railways (KTZ, a national company) and the Ministry of Transport of China. The parties exchanged views and discussed issues of further development of cooperation in the field of transport logistics and prospects for international transport corridors. The great work done by the railways of the two countries to modernize border railway stations and approaches to them to increase capacity was also noted. Following the meeting, the parties expressed their readiness to deepen cooperation in the transport sector. To note, last year, rail transport between countries achieved a record 22 percent increase over the previous year (more than 28 million tons). Over the 5 months of this year, this figure increased by 12.4 percent, including exports from Kazakhstan to China, which increased by 1 million tons to 5.7 million tons. Meanwhile, the volume of trade turnover between Kazakhstan and China amounted to $6.27 billion from January through March 2024. This volume increased by 6.3 percent compared to the same period in 2023 ($5.9 billion). At the same time, exports to China for the above period amounted to $3.18 billion, while imports from China amounted to $3.09 billion. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A 31-year-old Las Cruces man is facing a charge that he recklessly abused a child resulting in their death or great bodily injury, according to court documents obtained by KTSM. Joseph Isaiah Parra, 31, was arrested in connection with a 5-month-old boy who was found unresponsive and ended up on a ventilator over the weekend, according to court documents. It is unclear if the child has died at this time, according to court documents. At about 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, July 7, Dona Ana County Sheriffs deputies were contacted about a child who was unresponsive and not breathing at a home along the 8700 block of North Valley Drive in Las Cruces. The childs grandparents placed the injured child in a vehicle and started driving to get medical care, according to court documents. Parra, who was later identified as the suspect in this incident, remained at the family home. Deputies intercepted the grandparents vehicle. CPR was administered to the child and he was then taken to a local hospital by ambulance. When the childs mother arrived at their home, she was overheard saying that Parra was drunk and had killed the child, according to court documents. Parra referred to the injured child as one of his sons during his interview with deputies. Otherwise, his relationship with the child was not spelled out. The grandfather also told deputies that the child had a bruise above the left eye and a mark on the right side of his torso, according to court documents. When deputies spoke to Parra, he was slurring and had a difficult time putting words together, according to court documents. The suspect also provided inconsistent statements about where the child was when he found him unresponsive, court documents stated. When the suspect was taken to the Dona Ana County Sheriffs Office main station, he had a significant odor of alcohol coming from his breath and person, according to court documents. The mother of the injured child, who was at work at the time of the incident, said that Parra uses THC and consumes alcohol. She also told deputies that she received a call from Parra at about 1:30 p.m. on Sunday, saying the baby wasnt breathing. She told deputies that she told Parra to call 911 and he responded with, Call 911 now? according to court documents. The mother also said there was not any bruising on the child when she left for work that morning. The child was born 28 weeks prematurely but did not have any current diagnosed medical conditions, according to court documents. The mother also said that two weeks previously, there was an alcohol-related incident in which Parra was arrested for domestic violence, according to court documents. Given how unresponsive the child was, the mother was told by medical personnel that there was potential brain damage. According to court documents, the child was scheduled for more medical tests to determine the extent of his injuries. Parra, meanwhile, was read his Miranda rights and waived his right to counsel. According to court documents, Parra provided inconsistent statements throughout the interview and could not provide an appropriate timeline of events, according to court documents. Parra initially denied that he had been drinking but later changed his answer, saying that he had taken two shots of tequila at around 10 a.m. After changing the diapers of the other children in the house, Parra went to change the injured child and realized he was lifeless. He said he began tapping the injured child to get a response and then called both the childs mother and grandparents before calling 911, according to court documents. Throughout the interview with deputies, the childs condition had to be repeated to Parra multiple times. When it was said that maybe (the child) had fallen off the bed, (Parra) immediately stated he would never lay a hand on his sons, according to court documents. He also told deputies that he thought it was normal for a 5-month-old baby to lay quietly in bed for an hour and a half or longer. A search of the house found 11 mostly or completely consumed bodies of tequila of various sizes, a majority of them hidden in the trash cans underneath used diapers, according to court documents. THC wax, along with bongs and a large torch lighter, were also found. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) A man is facing a murder charge after allegedly stabbing another man behind a Circle K this past weekend in Las Cruces, according to court documents. Man arrested in fatal weekend stabbing Court documents say William Clyde Turner, 51, is charged with one felony count of murder after stabbing Carlos Lakemper, 30, early Saturday morning, July 6, behind a Circle K located at 825 Avenida de Mesilla in Las Cruces. An employee working at the time told police that Lakemper walked into the store and stated that he had been stabbed, according to court documents. Lakemper gave police a description of the person who stabbed him and that person was identified to be Turner, according to court documents. The employee told police that Turner had walked into the store earlier that same day, stating that he had been jumped and physically hit by another man. Turner then walked outside of the store, and minutes later Lakemper walked in with a stab wound, according to court documents. Turner told police that he is currently homeless and was walking near the Circle K that morning when he saw Lakemper. Turner told police that Lakemper was dating his ex-girlfriend Roxy and that Turner gave her $60. Court documents say that Turner told police that Lakemper took the money from Roxy and Turner wanted the money back which led to the confrontation. Turner told police that Lakemper started the physical altercation and that he could not defend himself from Lakemper. After the altercation, Turner ran into the store and talked to the employees. He then walked outside and started to walk back towards his shopping cart and saw Lakemper with no shirt on, according to court documents. Turner told police that he saw red on Lakempers back and thought it was blood from when they were on the ground. Turner also told police that he did not stab Lakemper and does not carry knives anymore. A witness who saw the altercation told police that he knew both of the men and saw Turner stab Lakemper, according to court documents. Lakemeper was transported to MountainView Regional Medical Center for medical treatment where a doctor stated that he had a punctured right lung. Lakemper was then transported to UMC in El Paso that same day where he later died shortly before 10 a.m. as a result of his injuries. Turner was booked into the Dona Ana County Detention Center where he is initially being held without 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 KTSM 9 News. Doctoral Student Vanished While Celebrating Fourth of July. Now Partner Is Person of Interest The death of Atlanta man Deundray Cottrell, who went missing on July 4, has been ruled a homicide Birmingham Police Department (2) Deundray Cottrell, Julian Morris The death of an Atlanta man who went missing in Alabama on Thursday, July 4, has been ruled as a homicide, and his partner is a person of interest in the case, according to Birmingham Police Department. Deundray Cottrell, 31, went missing during a Fourth of July celebration with his loved ones at a family members residence in Birmingham, Ala., according to a press release. Police say they received a missing persons call that evening after family and friends reported that they couldnt find Cottrell after last seeing him at the residence. Officers say they recovered items of Cottrells clothing when searching the area where he was last seen and were provided surveillance footage of him walking in the area by a community member. The press release states that Cottrell's body was found on Saturday, July 6. The following day, the police department shared on social media that the Jefferson County Medical Examiners Office has ruled Cottrell's manner of death homicide. Police also named Cottrell's partner Julian Taylor Morris, 31, as a person of interest in the investigation. Police wrote in a press release that they need "assistance locating Deundrays romantic partner who may have last seen or heard from Deundray the evening of his disappearance." Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage, and details of intriguing unsolved cases. The victim's sister, Angelica Harris, recounted the evening of Cottrell's disappearance in an interview with AL.com, saying that Cottrell and Morris arrived in Birmingham around 6 p.m. on the day of the holiday. Four hours later, around 10 p.m., Harris said Cottrell claimed he was going upstairs to check on his dog because of the fireworks and she "never saw him again." Harris alleged to the outlet that the group was told by Morris that Cottrell "took off running through the backyard," where they later found one of his shoes and his cell phone. She claims that they tracked down security camera footage that showed Cottrell "running for his life" in the area. Per Cottrells Instagram, he was working on his doctoral degree after receiving a master's degree in public administration. Police are asking anyone with information on the case or Morris whereabouts to contact the Homicide Unit at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The New York Police Police Department is under fire following the arrest of a Black army vet for carrying a firearm. The veteran says hes licensed to carry. Now, he demands to know what was really the issue. Raffique Khan, retired U.S. Army member and Purple Heart veteran, says he was sitting in the car outside a family members house with a friend the evening of November 26, 2023, when an unmarked police car passed them. After driving off, the same vehicle pulled them over and several plain clothes officers emerged. Khan alleges he notified the officers that he had a weapon in his glove box and that its registration was in his sun visor. However, Khan claims the cops werent tryna hear it and ordered him to step out of the car. While searching his vehicle, Khan claims they asked him, How did you get this? in reference to his military identification. He said they also confiscated his weapon before taking him down to the station where they booked him on charges of criminal possession of a weapon and possession of pistol ammunition. Khan claims he was never told what he was being charged with despite asking multiple times. The complaint says he was released from custody the following day after going in front of a judge. At his next hearing, Khan claimed the District Attorney verified he had a weapons permit and the charges were dismissed later in February. Now, he wants justice for simply exercising his Second Amendment rights. Khans lawsuit named the NYPD, city of New York, Mayor Eric Adams and several police officials as defendants. The suit alleges he was racially discriminated against, wrongfully arrested and denied his right to bear arms. One defendants attorney responded to the complaint denying the allegations and argued that Khan was only authorized to carry his firearm at work, via court records. However, Khan is registered in the NYPD database to carry and his certification was completed in April 2023, per court documents. Attorney Cory Morris tells The Root another claim in the suit has to do with the return of Khana firearm, which, according to court documents, took months despite Khans charges being dropped. My client was forced to jump through several hoops and could never get his property back from the New York City Police Department. After several demands, I filed a lawsuit and two orders to show cause that resulted in the return of his property, said Morris. When Khan was finally was able to get his firearm back, Morris said the piece was damaged and had suspicious number engravings. Morris tells The Root Khan will join him in front of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York in Brooklyn for a follow-up hearing on July 11th. To be honest, Im disappointed. I never thought I would serve and come home to be treated in this manner. I love my country. I wasnt born here but what better way to pay your country than to serve. I did it honorably, Khan told The New York Daily News. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. What does the future of Catholic education in the Belleville Diocese look like? In January, the Diocese of Belleville announced it would be closing two Catholic schools in the metro-east at the end of the school year Notre Dame Academy in Belleville and St. Ann Grade School in Nashville. Twenty-three elementary schools and three high schools remain in the diocese. At its peak in the 1965-66 school year, it had 70 elementary schools including one special education school and eight high schools, according to the diocese. Total student enrollment in the Belleville Diocese has decreased by 14.4% over the past decade close to the national average of 14.2% and by nearly 78.4% since the mid-1960s peak, when total enrollment was 23,759, diocesan data shows. Across the river in Missouri, the larger St. Louis Archdiocese shuttered three grade schools last spring under its All Things New downsizing plan to address the decreasing number of Catholics, priests and schoolchildren, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. The BND sat down with Bishop Michael McGovern to discuss how Catholic schools in the Belleville Diocese are funded, what factors are considered in a school closure, what the future of Catholic education in the diocese looks like and more. McGovern became the dioceses ninth bishop in 2020, succeeding the retiring Bishop Edward Braxton. How are schools in the Belleville Diocese funded? Schools are funded through parish subsidies with most of those funds coming from Sunday collections tuition and fees from families, fundraisers like dinner-dances and bingo, and gifts from benefactors and bequests, McGovern said. Not every parish has a school, however, as was the case with Notre Dame Academy for several years. Notre Dame was the result of a 2015 consolidation of Cathedral Grade School with the previously-merged St. Mary-St. Augustine School after enrollment at Cathedral declined to 128, according to a diocesan fact sheet. In instances like this, one parish ends up paying most of the subsidy for the school, which can be difficult, McGovern said. In the fall of 2023, St. Mary and St. Augustines sponsorship of Notre Dame Academy ended, the fact sheet states. The diocese has had ongoing conversations about what percentage of a parishs revenue should go to the school, because if the percentage gets too high, say around 60%, then the parish doesnt have the money it needs for maintenance and other needs, McGovern added. Previously, the diocese was also receiving about $900,000 through the Invest in Kids tax credit scholarship program Illinois enacted in 2017, McGovern said. The program allowed individuals or businesses to donate to scholarship-granting organizations that then distributed the money to students from low-income families to help pay their private school tuition. Donors received a 75% tax credit. Last year, the state didnt renew the program as opponents argued that it diverted taxpayer dollars to private schools. Advocates argued it gave children from low-income families the ability to attend schools usually only available to wealthier families. McGovern said the Catholic Conference of Illinois is going to lobby the state legislature to bring back the program. It gave parents an option, he said. What is the process for closing a school? What factors are considered? The shuttering of Notre Dame and St. Anns were his first direct experience with school closings in his four years as a bishop, McGovern said. The process for closing a school begins with a principal and pastor coming to the diocese and saying their school is at a point where it needs to be closed or that closure needs to be considered, he said. The bishop and the dioceses Education Advisory Board then convene, as they did last December, to weigh the various factors before making a final decision. McGovern said that if the diocese is considering whether to close a school, he likes to ask the hypothetical question: If the school or parish wasnt here, would we open it today? I find thats a very freeing question, he said. If the answer is theres not enough people, well, that tells you something. There are several factors that go into the consideration of closing a school, McGovern said. Those factors include: Demographics, including projections for how many Catholic children there will be in a parish in the next few years based on baptisms and preschool enrollment, among other things Enrollment figures Facilities, including whether there are significant upkeep expenses, like replacing a boiler The financial health of the parish He said the diocese also looks at a schools strengths. Its not just a question of the money, but money is a very important factor, McGovern said. Another challenge for schools in the Belleville Diocese has been finding principals, who have to be practicing Catholics, he said. Outside of Notre Dame Academy in Belleville, Illinois, on Jan. 18, 2024. Are there any school closures being considered for the near future? I dont know, sitting here today, if there would be some situation that would require change, McGovern said. But change isnt just closure. Change could also be things like consolidation. There are places in the Belleville Diocese where theres concern, but consolidation can be an opportunity, he said. Ive seen this happen when I was a priest in Chicago, where, when schools didnt cooperate with each other, that one after another, they closed, he said. I think theres an advantage sometimes to say, why dont several schools work together in a unified way, and choose the future and have a stronger school thats going to be here five years from now and 10 years from now, because we made good decisions at a critical moment. McGovern pointed out that there are four schools in the diocese that have expanded in recent years with building additions: St. Clare Catholic School in OFallon, St. Andrew School in Murphysboro, St. Bruno Catholic School in Pinckneyville and All Saints Academy in Breese. What does the future of Catholic education look like in the Belleville Diocese? I have a strong commitment to Catholic education, McGovern said. Both of his parents were teachers, and he attended a Catholic grammar school, high school and college, he said. I believe in Catholic education, McGovern said. Of all the different ministries we have, I think education is something weve done very well, especially in the United States. He added that he has visited all of the dioceses schools at least once in the four years since he became bishop. I enjoy visiting the children, the teachers, he said. Theyre really the future of the church. Bolstering Catholic schools requires thinking outside the box, McGovern said. For example, hes been looking to strengthen the dioceses connection with homeschooling families by developing a hybrid approach in which children attend a Catholic school for half a day and are homeschooled for half a day. Supporting Catholic school teachers, who are paid less than they would be in the public school system, is also paramount, he said. We have to keep looking for ways that we can thank our teachers and strengthen our support for them, McGovern said. Theres an enormous amount of work to do, I think, on the horizon for us to really try and have strong, vibrant Catholic schools in southern Illinois, but I think theres a lot of support there, and we just have to keep working at it. An investigation is underway after a dog was found in a remote area of Malibu Creek Canyon with zip ties over its muzzle and neck. The dog was discovered by a pair of rock climbers last Wednesday evening, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Animal Care and Control. One of the rock climbers that found the dog told KTLA in an email that they were able to gain the dogs trust long enough to remove the zip tie from its mouth. The dog warmed up to them after having its mouth freed. He is such a sweet dog, he said. He allowed my friend and I to pet him and he gently ate our food out of our hands. Viewer images show the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. Viewer images show the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. Viewer images show the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. Viewer images show the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. Viewer image shows the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. Viewer image shows the German shepherd resting as they await rescuers in Malibu Canyon on July 3, 2024. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department responded to the call and deputies met the climbers near the 500 block of North Malibu Canyon Road. The dog was about 250 feet down the side of the road, officials said. He was eventually carried up the hill to safety with the help of first responders. Shelters experience surge of strays following Fourth of July weekend In addition to the zip ties around his neck and snout, it was observed that the dog also had inflammation, warts and skin tags on its legs, stomach and groin. The officer suspected the dog had been exposed to poison oak, a DACC official said. The dog was impounded and taken to Palmdale Animal Care Center for treatment. Hes since been returned to the Countys Agoura Animal Center. The dogs listing on the DACC website describes him as a German shepherd thats estimated to be about 7 years old. The DACC website shows this German shepherd that was found with zip ties around its neck and muzzle on July 3, 2024. (Los Angeles Department of Animal Care and Control) Our department is investigating, and for now he is in good hands at our Agoura Care Center, Im certain getting lots of love from our staff and volunteers, the official told KTLA. The hiker who sent photos and videos of the dog says he hopes getting the story to the public will help find the person responsible for abandoning him. Someone did this intentionally. They left him stranded, down a hill in the middle of nowhere off the side of the road. They left him suffering. They left him for dead, he said. I am still trying to wrap my mind around what happened but I know something needs to be done to find the person who did it. If you have any information about this incident, you are encouraged to contact the LASD Malibu/Lost Hills station at 818-878-1808. L.A. County residents who suspect animal cruelty or neglect can make a report by calling DACC at 562-940-6898. The animal rescue organization In Defense of Animals is offering a $2,500 reward for information that leads to the arrest of those responsible for the dogs 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 KTLA. DENVER (KDVR) Rocky Mountain National Park is home to over 900 wildflower species. While it may seem like an innocent act to pick a wildflower while on a hike, its actually considered a federal offense and could cost you hundreds of dollars. According to Kyle Patterson with Rocky Mountain National Park, there is currently a wide variety of wildflowers in bloom in the montane, subalpine and alpine ecosystems. From columbines to fairy slippers to the prickly pear, wildflowers will grow all over the park even at 10,000 feet. Federal law bans the picking of wildflowers While it might seem easy to just pluck one of the plants and take it home as a souvenir, picking wildflowers on national park property is a huge offense. Is it illegal to pick columbines in Colorado? The National Park Service was created to preserve and protect the natural and cultural resources of its parks for future generations. So, this means everything on national park property is protected federally, including flora. The Code of Federal Regulations under the National Park Service, Department of Interior chapter has made the preservation of natural, cultural and archaeological resources a federal law. Within that law, it says Possessing, destroying, injuring, defacing, removing, digging, or disturbing from its natural state plants or the parts or products thereof, is prohibited. Depending on the circumstances, Patterson said picking an innocent wildflower could cost you up to $250 in fines. Is picking just one wildflower really that bad? While thousands of wildflowers bloom each year in Rocky Mountain National Park, the tiny flora are a critical part of the ecosystem. According to Patterson, the wildflowers provide food for bees, butterflies, mule deer, marmots and pika. People Magazine names Colorado town as bucket list travel spot Picking one wildflower might not seem like it will impact an entire ecosystem, but the act can have a domino effect. Another part of our mission is to protect the park in a way that what you see today, will look similar to the landscape you will see in the future. Over four million visitors come to Rocky each year. If everyone picked a flower in the park, there would not be any flowers left for others to enjoy. This would dramatically change the landscape for future visitors, said Patterson. If you want to keep that $250 in your wallet, be sure to snap some photos of the stunning wildflowers but leave them where they are. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Former Missouri state Sen. Bob Onder, who is running for Congress in the state's third district, speaks at a rally in support of a bill that seeks to change Missouri's initiative-petition process (Annelise Hanshaw/Missouri Independent). Former state Sen. Bob Onder, one of the leading Republican candidates in Missouris 3rd Congressional District, on Monday landed the endorsement of former President Donald Trump in the seven-way contest for the Republican nomination. Trump, via statement on the Truth Social platform, said Onder is an incredible America First Patriot and a highly respected physician and attorney who would back Trumps program on economic, border and military policies. Onder, of St. Charles, former state Sen. Kurt Schaefer of Columbia and state Rep. Justin Hicks of Lake St. Louis are the three candidates in the GOP primary race who have organized significant campaigns. Trumps endorsement includes a dig at Schaefer, but doesnt mention the other candidates. Onders opponent, Kurt Schaefer, is WEAK ON MAGA, Trump wrote. Thats all you have to know! Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US The 3rd District covers all or part of 16 counties, including Boone, Cole, St. Charles and Jefferson. The incumbent, U.S. Rep. Blaine Luetkemeyer of St. Elizabeth, surprised the Missouri political world when he announced in January that he would not seek another term. Other candidates in the Republican primary are Arnie C. AC Arn Dienoff of OFallon, a perennial candidate; Chad Bicknell of OFallon, who lost a primary to Luetkemeyer in 2018; Kyle Bone of DeSoto, who lost a 2018 primary for a Missouri House seat; and Bruce A. Bowman, a Jefferson City businessman. In a statement to The Independent, Onder said he was honored to have the endorsement. In 2025, we will reverse the disastrous policies of Joe Biden and the Democrats, and restore America First principles, Onder said. President Trump was the greatest President of my lifetime and I look forward to being his ally in Congress to pass his America First Agenda and Make America Great Again. Trumps endorsement has been a coveted campaign asset for years, both in Missouri, where Trump got 57% of the vote in 2020, and in other Republican states. In the 2022 U.S. Senate primary in Missouri, Trump issued a vague statement endorsing Eric that did not distinguish between Eric Schmitt, who eventually won the seat, and Eric Greitens, a former governor. Schaefer, who is counting on his name recognition in central Missouri to counter Onders strength in the eastern end of the district, didnt concede that the endorsement will push the race to Onder. Unlike Bob Onder, Ive always supported President Trump, Schaefer said in a statement to The Independent. In the 2016 presidential contest, Onder endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz over Trump. Ill use my experience as a proven prosecutor with a record of enforcing the law to fight for President Trump and his agenda, Schaefer said. Together, well restore law and order, expose DC corruption and secure the border. Schaefer has the endorsement of Luetkemeyer, made in April after denouncing the antics of far right wingers among the Republican conference in Congress. Onder and Schaefer both served two terms in the Missouri Senate and both have failed in campaigns for other offices. Onder lost to Luetkemeyer the 2008 GOP primary in the old 9th Congressional District and Schaefer lost to Josh Hawley in the 2016 primary for attorney general. Schaefer won his state Senate seat the same year Luetkemeyer won his seat in Congress. This article has been updated to remove the name of Brandon Wilkinson, who withdrew as a candidate. The post Donald Trump endorses Bob Onder over GOP rivals in Missouris 3rd Congressional District primary appeared first on Missouri Independent. BUTLER, Pa. (WHTM) Former President Donald Trump will visit Pennsylvania this weekend, just days after President Joe Biden campaigned in the critical swing state. The former President will be at Butler Farm Show Inc. in Butler on July 13 at 5 p.m. What is Project 2025? Doors for the event will open at 1 p.m. and attendees can register for up to two tickets per mobile number. All tickets are first come, first served. The former President recently campaigned in Philadelphia at the Liacouras Center at Temple University on June 22. He was joined by Senate candidate Dave McCormick and was later spotted at Tony and Nicks Steaks in Philadelphia. This latest event comes a week after President Joe Biden visited Mt. Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia and held an event in Harrisburg. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now This Week in Pennsylvania After visiting the City of Harrisburg and meeting with Mayor Wanda Williams and Governor Josh Shapiro at a local coffee shop, the President held a campaign event at the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) union headquarters in Lower Paxton Township. The Presidents events come as Democrats have called on the President to drop out of the race amid concerns over his age and recent debate performance. The President has pledged to stay in the race, sending a letter to Democrats on Monday rejecting calls to drop out. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Doomsday cult leader goes on trial after over 400 followers die Doomsday cult leader goes on trial after over 400 followers die The leader of a doomsday cult in Kenya went on trial on Monday on charges of terrorism over the deaths of more than 400 of his followers in a macabre case that shocked the world. Self-proclaimed pastor Paul Nthenge Mackenzie appeared in a packed courtroom in the Indian Ocean port city of Mombasa along with 94 co-defendants. Principle magistrate Leah Juma ordered the removal of journalists from the court shortly after the start of the hearing to enable a protected witness to take the stand on camera. Mackenzie, who was arrested in April last year, is alleged to have incited his acolytes to starve to death in order to "meet Jesus" in one of the world's worst cult-related massacres. The father of seven and his co-accused pleaded not guilty to the charges of terrorism at a hearing in January. The 55 men and 40 women also face charges of murder, manslaughter, as well as child torture and cruelty in separate cases. The remains of more than 440 people have been unearthed so far in a remote wilderness inland from the Indian Ocean coastal town of Malindi, in a case that has been dubbed the "Shakahola forest massacre." Mortuary personnel pull a cart with the remains of a victim of a Kenyan starvation cult at the Malindi Sub-County Hospital Mortuary in Malindi on March 26, 2024. / Credit: LUIS TATO/AFP via Getty Images Autopsies have found that while starvation appeared to be the main cause of death, some of the victims -- including children -- were strangled, beaten, or suffocated. In February, Mackenzie pleaded not guilty to the murder of 191 children whose bodies were found in mass graves. Previous court documents also said that some of the bodies had had their organs removed. "Worst breach of security in the history of our country" Prosecutors said in a statement that they planned to call about 90 witnesses to testify as well as show physical and digital evidence. "The prosecution will present evidence to illustrate that the accused did not function merely as a fringe group, but rather as a well-organized criminal enterprise operating under the guise of a church under the leadership of (Mackenzie)," the statement said. Mackenzie, a former taxi driver, turned himself in after police first entered Shakahola forest in April last year and found the bodies of four people and several other starving people. The police action came after a relative of one of the victims received a tip-off from a former member of Mackenzie's Good News International Church about grisly happenings in Shakahola forest. Family members have said Mackenzie told his followers to join him in the Shakahola forest, where he offered them parcels of land for less than $100. Court documents allege that in early 2023, Mackenzie told his followers in the forest that the end of the world was coming and they must prepare through extreme hunger. He allegedly split members into smaller groups assigned biblical names. It's believed these smaller groups died together and were buried together in mass graves. Paul Mackenzie, right, leader of an alleged starvation cult accused of convincing hundreds of followers to starve themselves to death, including children, is seen at the Shanzu Court in Mombasa, Kenya, Aug. 10, 2023. / Credit: Andrew Kasuku/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images Mackenzie had set up the church in 2003, but closed it in 2019 and moved to the sleepy town of Shakahola. In March this year, the authorities began releasing some victims' bodies to distraught relatives after months of painstaking work to identify them using DNA. Questions have been raised about how Mackenzie, a self-styled pastor with a history of extremism, managed to evade law enforcement despite his prominent profile and previous legal cases. Several surviving members of the group have told family members that what he preached would often come true, citing as an example his prediction that "a great virus" would come, just before COVID-19 hit the country. As people struggled during the pandemic, financially and medically, Mackenzie preached about leaving the difficulties of life behind and "turning to salvation." Interior Minister Kithure Kindiki last year accused Kenyan police of laxity in investigating the initial reports of starvation. "The Shakahola massacre is the worst breach of security in the history of our country," he told a senate committee hearing, vowing to "relentlessly push for legal reforms to tame rogue preachers." Reports by the Kenyan senate and a state-funded human rights watchdog have said the authorities could have prevented the deaths. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights (KNCHR) in March criticized security officers in Malindi for "gross abdication of duty and negligence." The horrific saga has seen President William Ruto vow to intervene in Kenya's homegrown religious movements. "What we are seeing ... is akin to terrorism," Ruto said last year. "Mr. Makenzi ... pretends and postures as a pastor when in fact he is a terrible criminal." In largely Christian Kenya, it has also thrown a spotlight on failed efforts to regulate unscrupulous churches and cults that have dabbled in criminality. In 2022, the body of a British woman who died at the house of a different cult leader while on holiday in Kenya was exhumed, according to the family's lawyer. Luftunisa Kwandwalla, 44, was visiting the coastal city of Mombasa when she died in August 2020 and was buried a day later, but her family has claimed foul play. Sarah Carter contributed to this report. Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries Hoppin' clams! "SpongeBob SquarePants" turns 25 BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Kazakhstan's KazTransOil (the national operator of the main oil pipeline) transported over 500,000 tons of oil in the direction of Baku from January through May 2024, a source at KazTransOil told Trend. "From January through May 2024, 577,500 tons of oil from the Tengiz field were transported through the port of Aktau in the direction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline," the source said. According to the company, there are no changes in plans for transportation volumes at the end of 2024. "Over the entire year 2024, it is planned to transport up to 1.5 million tons of oil through the port of Aktau in the direction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline. KazTransOil supplies oil in accordance with the oil transportation schedule. This schedule is approved by the Ministry of Energy of Kazakhstan based on applications from shippers," the source added. To note, at the end of 2023, the loading of oil into tankers in the port of Aktau using the facilities of KazTransOil amounted to 3.376 million tons, including 1.057 million tons in the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan direction. Meanwhile, in 2022, President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev issued an order to enhance the amount of oil transported through the Trans-Caspian corridor. The State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic (SOCAR) and KazMunayGas, the country's oil and gas company, signed an agreement allowing for the transportation of up to 1.5 million tons of oil annually from the Tengiz field in the direction of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan oil pipeline in compliance with this directive. In addition, during the visit of President of Kazakhstan Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Azerbaijan on March 1112, KazMunayGas and SOCAR signed an agreement to increase the volume of oil transported via the BTC to 2.2 million tons per year. (Bloomberg) -- About this time last year, voters didnt know the name Doug Burgum. Just to get on a debate stage with other Republican presidential primary contenders, he had to give out $20 gift cards in return for $1 campaign donations. Most Read from Bloomberg Now that hes on the short list to be Donald Trumps running mate, its a different story: Just listening to Burgum speak at a fundraiser costs $10,000. Want to ask him a question? Thatll be $25,000. The North Dakota governor crisscrosses the country campaigning for the former president, who has turned to him during events to provide details on energy policy. He has also charmed donors, with his long career as a business executive helping him speak their language. Among his supporters: Kevin OLeary, chairman of OLeary Ventures and one of the investing stars of the television show Shark Tank. Trumps a bombastic vision guy, but you need someone to execute, OLeary said in an interview. Burgum will get it done. Hailing from Arthur, North Dakota a town of roughly 300 residents Burgum, 67, got an MBA from Stanford University, worked as a consultant at McKinsey & Co., and leveraged his family farm to start a tech company called Great Plains Software. He sold his firm in 2001 to Microsoft Corp. for $1.1 billion and stayed on as a senior vice president until 2007. He also founded real estate development company Kilbourne Group and venture capital firm Arthur Ventures before entering politics and winning his first term as governor in 2016. Burgum tried to leverage that resume to build support for a bid for the Republican presidential nomination. And while that effort flopped, it propelled him into Trumps orbit. Now, a host of business executives and lawmakers are pitching the governor as the ideal running mate. Trump has largely been quiet on the national stage recently, letting President Joe Bidens disastrous debate performance and anxieties about his candidacy dominate the news cycle. This week, the GOP nominee is slated to return to the trail and host a rally at his Doral golf club in Florida on Tuesday. With the Republican National Convention set for next week, the clock is ticking for him to name a vice presidential pick. Brian Hughes, a senior adviser to the campaign, said Trumps top criteria in selecting a vice president is a strong leader. Anyone telling you they know who or when President Trump will choose his VP is lying unless that person is named Donald J. Trump, Hughes said. Burgum declined to comment for this story. He has evaded answering questions about his political ambitions, telling reporters that he isnt auditioning for Trumps ticket. He has said he wont seek a third term in North Dakota, and left the door open to returning to the private sector. Trump Counterweight Burgums allies paint him as a savvy business executive whose attention to detail and deep understanding of energy, agriculture and tech could help advance the former presidents ambitious second-term agenda. His supporters say he also offers the promise of a pragmatic, approachable second-in-command who would be a counterweight to Trumps more inflammatory tendencies qualities that could help persuade independent voters and donors to support the Republican ticket. Hes not a fire-breather, but he is a conservative, said Bruce Rastetter, founder and executive chairman of Summit Agricultural Group, which has a subsidiary thats working to build a carbon dioxide pipeline in the state. For a broad section of Republicans that didnt maybe vote for Trump, he would come across as a guy that youd feel good supporting. In recent months, Burgum has participated alongside the former president in several high-dollar fundraisers on the West Coast and in Texas. Burgum convened with donors who paid $25,000 to ask him a question in a Zoom fundraiser for Trump. He has also made Trumps case with voters, such as last month, when he made a visit to Michigan to discuss grocery prices with residents. Though Burgum, a trained cowboy, is known for sporting blue jeans and boots, Rastetter noted hes recently swapped his wardrobe to include ties and slacks as his surrogacy has ramped up. Burgums supporters for a spot on the Trump ticket highlight the assets they think set him apart from other contenders, focusing on his business background and experience running a state rich in oil and agricultural commodities. Burgums rural roots may make him a powerful ambassador to swing voters in Michigan, Wisconsin and western Pennsylvania. Dan Eberhart, a Republican donor and chief executive officer of Canary Drilling Services, said he thinks of Burgum as a secret weapon in the Midwest. Governor Burgum is not going to embarrass Donald Trump, and, more importantly, hes not going to overshadow Donald Trump, Eberhart said. But at the same time, hes ready to be president. Former Iowa Governor Terry Branstad, who has known Burgum for years in his official capacity as well as work on the Summit pipeline, said he was trying to schedule a call with Trump to advocate for Burgum as vice president. Several former Trump administration officials and strategists also have named Burgum as a possible energy secretary or White House chief of staff. Energy Expertise As governor, executives say Burgum has struck a business-friendly tone in meetings, asking how he could welcome them in the state. His mantra, innovate, not regulate, has been apparent in his approach to policy and government oversight and dovetails with Trumps own attitudes. Burgums deep familiarity with energy was on display during a May luncheon and roundtable with oil and gas executives in Houston. At a May rally in New Jersey, Trump praised Burgums expertise: He made his money in technology, but he probably knows more about energy than anybody I know. It didnt start out that way. North Dakota is the nations third-biggest producer of crude, with its prolific Bakken and Three Forks formations beckoning a surge of oil companies and workers into the state more than a decade ago. When Burgum became governor in December 2016, the sector was unfamiliar turf and some in the industry were wary, said Kathleen Sgamma, president of the Western Energy Alliance. But Burgum assuaged those concerns by meeting with industry and studying up. He was able to take that business acumen and apply it to oil and gas issues, Sgamma said. Burgum also toiled late at night before speeches to industry groups, reaching a level of expertise usually found in the oilfield not a governors mansion said Ron Ness, president of the North Dakota Petroleum Council. Burgum himself campaigned during the primary on promises to unleash American energy production, while criticizing climate policies he said threaten to deepen US reliance on Chinese technology. But as governor, Burgum has had more nuance. He embraced a policy that could be seen delivering a fatal blow to fossil fuels reaching carbon neutrality by 2030 and unveiled his pitch at an oil conference. North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer called it an act of courage, taking a big platform to bring it right into the lions den. He said Burgums policy chops and experience as both a businessman and governor make him an appealing option for the GOP ticket, while his personality offers a contrast to Trumps bombast. He provides a calming, if you will, because of his ability to dive deep into the policies, Cramer said. Donald Trump doesnt need help selling the message to the public, to the voter, to the workers. But what Doug Burgum does is he explains it to Wall Street. (Updated with Trumps schedule in eighth paragraph. A prior version of the story was corrected to remove an inaccurate reference to Trump giving a nickname to the governor.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Ukraines path to joining NATO was described as irreversible in a draft text of the alliances joint communique, three sources familiar told CNN Monday. How strong of a guarantee to provide to Ukraine about its future membership to NATO has been a key source of debate between the 32 members of the alliance ahead of this weeks summit in Washington, CNN previously reported. The draft could change before the final version, but the presence of the irreversible language would be a significant signal to Kyiv and Moscow as the war in Ukraine continues with little sign of an end. One of the sources, a US official, said the White House supports the use of the word in the final communique as long as the document also reaffirms that Ukraines work on democratic reforms must continue. The official said the final version is expected to contain that language. While many Europeans have emphasized the need for strong language around Ukraines eventual future in the alliance, US and German officials had proposed describing a bridge to NATO membership for Ukraine. However, officials have also stressed the importance of tangible measures, in the words of a European diplomat, to support Kyivs ongoing fight against Russia. Ruslan Stefanchuk, the chair of Ukraines parliament, said at an event Monday that its not just about language, but its about actually bringing Ukraine closer to NATO. A US senior administration official said Friday that the alliance will make significant new announcements about how were increasing NATOs military, political and financial support for Ukraine as part of Kyivs bridge to NATO. US officials on Monday publicly declined to discuss specifics of the joint communique ahead of the summit, which kicks off on Tuesday. There is rightly considerable focus on what Allies will say about Ukraines membership path in the summit declaration. The language will be clear and forceful. It will recognize Ukraines vital ongoing reform efforts and demonstrate Allied support for Ukraine on its path to NATO membership, Michael Carpenter, the senior advisor for Europe at the National Security Council, said at a briefing Monday. The senior administration official said Friday that what they described in terms of the bridge to membership and the deliverables that NATO will be unveiling for Ukraine is quite substantial. Were not talking about some sort of plan for how theyre going to get from here to there. Were talking about standing up an entire command at Wiesbaden, and well look at how we do these various pieces that I mentioned earlier training, coordination, equipping, coordination, logistics, force development. This is a very serious effort to get Ukraine in a position, as I said earlier, where it will be ready to assume its roles and responsibilities within the alliance on day one, the official said. Ill let the Ukrainians speak for themselves, but I think they understand the value of what NATO will be doing for that, they said. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Driver dies after single-vehicle crash on Interstate 5 in Sacramento, authorities say A Sacramento man died Monday in a single-vehicle crash on Interstate 5 near Sacramentos South Land Park neighborhood, according to the California Highway Patrol. A motorist drove at high speeds and cut through southbound lanes near the 43rd Avenue off-ramp before crashing into a center divide, according to the CHPs dispatch log. Officer Mark Leavitt, a spokesman for the CHPs South Sacramento office, said officers were called about 7:20 a.m. to reports of a 2011 Chevrolet sedan that crashed for unknown reasons. A person was taken to a hospital in critical condition, said Capt. Justin Sylvia, a spokesman for the Sacramento Fire Department. A 26-year-old Sacramento man died, and there were no other passengers in the vehicle, Leavitt wrote in an email. The victim will be identified by the Sacramento County Coroners Office after family members are notified. The motorist in the vehicle was not wearing a seat belt, according to the CHPs dispatch log. Officers closed roads north of Seamus Avenue as investigators collected evidence for the incident. The lanes have since been reopened. The investigation is ongoing. Its unknown why the man crashed and whether he was driving under the influence, Leavitt said. WEST JORDAN, Utah (ABC4) An intoxicated man was arrested on Friday after drunkenly attempting to buy alcohol, smacking a store employee in the face, and offering police officers a $20 bribe to be released from custody, according to West Jordan Police. Santiago Medina, 21, was arrested in Salt Lake County on bribery/offering a bribe (third-degree felony), assault (class-B misdemeanor), disorderly conduct (class-C misdemeanor), intoxication (class-C misdemeanor), and possession of controlled substance marijuana/spice (class-B misdemeanor). On July 5, a West Jordan police officer responded to a report of an assault by an intoxicated person. When the officer arrived at the scene, witnesses reported that Medina was refused the sale of alcohol due to being heavily intoxicated. Utah CEO, daughter identified as victims of fatal Ogden crash One witness told police Medina walked out of the store with a can of beer, and a store employee followed and got Medina to return the beer. However, after Medina returned the can of beer, he smacked [the female employee] on the face, a probable cause affidavit states. He smacked her on the right side of her cheek. Another witness claimed Medina repeatedly re-entered the store after being asked to leave multiple times, and was creating a nuisance for employees and customers alike. The officer observed Medina to be heavily intoxicated, allegedly having slurred speech and poor balance, as well as being confused about where he was, and Medina admitted to the officer that he had drunk alcohol. Due to the totality of signs and symptoms that [Medina] displayed, I perceived him to pose a threat to himself and the public if he continued to roam free, the officer wrote in the affidavit. The officer arrested Medina and found a marijuana vape in his possession. While en route to jail, Medina repeatedly offered a $20 bribe in exchange for being taken home or set free on the side of the road, according to the affidavit. Medina was booked into Salt Lake County Jail on the charges previously stated. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Duke Energy rate hike for 93,000 Rock Hill region customers will soon be underway Duke Energy Carolinas is increasing its rates in South Carolina after receiving approval from the Public Service Commission of South Carolina. The Charlotte-based energy company filed a rate review request with the commission in January. The rate increases ranged from 4.4% to 8.7% on average, depending on the type of customer. The commission approved the rate review request based on a settlement agreement submitted in May. That agreement lowered the requested annual revenue increase from $323 million or 15.5% to $240 million or 11.5%, Duke Energy South Carolina President Michael Callahan said in his settlement testimony. This marks the first base rate increase requested by the company since 2018, according to Duke Energy spokesman Ryan Mosier. Heres how the changes will impact the Rock Hill region: According to recent News & Observer reports, Duke Energys influence sprawls across North Carolina politics, ranging from political donations through the companys corporate political action committee to spending $903,800 lobbying legislators last year, making it one of the largest political donors in the state. Who is impacted In the Rock Hill region, the rate hike impacts about 39,000 customers each in York and Lancaster County. Chester County has an additional 14,700 Duke Energy customers. How much are the rate hikes A typical residential customers monthly energy bill will increase by about 8.7%, according to a Duke Energy news release Monday. This represents an approximate increase of $151.20 in residential customers annual energy bill. Commercial and industrial customers will see an average increase of around 4.6% and 4.4%, respectively, the cpmpany said. When will the new rates start? The change in rates will begin Aug. 1. Why is Duke Energy increasing rates Duke Energy is raising its rates in South Carolina to recover the costs of investments made to increase system reliability, such as upgrades to power plants, wires and poles, Mosier said. Duke Energy completed upgrades in April to its Bad Creek pumped storage facility in Salem, South Carolina. The facility can now power over 1.3 million homes. The energy company also invests in its systems to ensure it can meet future energy demand, according to the news release. The oil industrys recent decision to abandon its effort to repeal Californias neighborhood oil drilling restrictions and pull its referendum from the November ballot is a big relief. After a 16-month suspension, the states 2022 law banning new drilling within 3,200 feet of homes and schools is back in effect . Its a victory for public health, the environment and Californians, more than 2 million of whom live near drilling operations and are exposed to cancer-causing air pollutants and suffer related health ailments. But it shouldn't be seen as a total defeat for the oil companies that walked away with a healthy return on the more than $25 million they invested in the effort: A lengthy delay to a law they didnt like, an undermining of the legislative process, and the ability to keep extracting oil and profits from our backyards without these restrictions for more than a year. Read more: Editorial: Shame on California lawmakers for killing fossil fuel divestment bill again When the California Independent Petroleum Assn., the industry lobbying group backing the referendum, announced the withdrawal of the measure last month, it blamed lawmakers, saying that even if its side won and voters repealed the law in November, the Legislature would simply introduce other, similar bills. A bill by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Los Angeles) may have been the last straw. That legislation would penalize low-producing wells within the buffer zone with $10,000-a-day fines, and had cleared the state Assembly and started to move through the Senate late last month. But after negotiations with worried industry representatives, Bryan said he promised to narrow the scope of the bill if they pull the referendum from the ballot. We're guessing that another reason for the industrys failure was a law passed last year that changed the confusing way questions are phrased in a referendum. Instead of choosing between yes and no, voters now decide whether to keep the law or overturn the law. Fossil fuel interests could no longer count on voter confusion to help them get rid of a law they didnt like, and polling showed the referendum did not have enough public support. Read more: Editorial: Californians don't have to accept skyrocketing electric bills. Here's how to fight back Also key to its defeat was the strength of the coalition defending the law, which included former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, actor Jane Fonda and grassroots environmental justice groups. The industry may not have relished going up against local activists such as Nalleli Cobo who have lived near drilling operations and fight the oil industry by focusing on the harm extraction inflicts on communities of color. Gov. Gavin Newsom also championed these protections and rebuffed industry pressure to weaken the law by narrowing the buffer zone or carving out exemptions in Signal Hill and Long Beach. No matter what combination of factors was responsible, the restoration of this law shows you can fight Big Oil and win (and that it doesnt hurt to have a well-funded campaign that raised more than $30 million and powerful allies in government and Hollywood). Read more: Editorial: Climate change is making more California homes dangerously hot. It's time state laws caught up Still, the oil industry has made it clear that its fight to keep drilling in neighborhoods will continue, only in court instead of on the ballot. It's still the state's most powerful lobby and we can expect it to keep using its money and influence to try to get its way. Now that the law is in force again, the California Geologic Energy Management Division, the states oil and gas regulator, must move past its history of coziness with the fossil fuel industry and rubber-stamping oil wells and use its authority vigorously to protect public health and safety. This division now plays a crucial role in policing a dirty industry whose days are numbered by the move to zero-emission vehicles and ensuring it winds down its operations quickly and safely, and takes responsibility for cleaning up its mess. Although this latest threat is now off the ballot, the fight with Big Oil and its ongoing damage to our communities and our planet remains far from over. 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. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) An El Paso man was sentenced to 2 years in prison for defrauding two federally funded correctional institutions, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Western District of Texas. Jack McCager Kidd, 72, was the owner of a company contracted by the Bureau of Prisons to construct two gas pipelines to separate correctional institutions a high-security prison in Pennsylvania and a medium-security prison in Alabama, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Kidd falsely invoiced the prisons for more natural gas than his company delivered and refused to provide information to the prisons about the amount of natural gas delivered, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. Kidd also refused to provide his calculations used to determine the monthly invoice amounts, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office. He was arrested on Oct. 28, 2021, and charged with 72 counts of wire fraud, the U.S. Attorneys Office said. He pleaded guilty on Aug. 30, 2023, to one count of wire fraud. As per the plea agreement, Kidd also agreed to pay $11.39 million in restitution, the U.S. Attorneys 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 KTSM 9 News. CHICAGO Authorities are offering a warning to residents on the citys West Side after a man attempted to sexually assault an elderly woman on Thursday morning. Chicago police say the incident unfolded just before 7 a.m. near the intersection of West Pierce Avenue and Central Park Avenue in Humboldt Park. Officers say the woman was searching for an item in her car when a man appeared and grabbed her before he attempted to sexually assault her. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines The man then fled the scene in an unknown direction. Authorities are now searching for the man involved and say he is believed to be a Hispanic male, between the ages of 20 and 40 years of age, who stands between 5-foot-6 and 5-foot-10 and weighs between 160 and 180 pounds. At the time of the incident, the man was spotted wearing a white shirt. Police advise the public to remain aware of their surroundings and say residents should report any suspicious activity immediately. WGN Traffic Map: Get the latest real time traffic updates Authorities warn the public never to pursue a fleeing assailant and say they should instead work to remember any unique physical characteristics of the offenders. Police say those who fall victim or witness a crime should call 911 immediately and provide authorities with a detailed description of the offenders. If a surveillance video of the incident is available, residents should make a copy of it for authorities. LATEST CASES: Missing people in Chicagoland Those who fall victim should call 911 immediately and remain on scene if possible. If approached by a witness, victims should request contact information. Anyone with information on the attempted sexual assault is asked to contact CPD Area Five Detectives at 312-746-6554 or dial 911. Those with information can also leave a tip at CPDtip.com. Tips can be filed 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. Barrett Adams, 4, of East Lansing, helps his mom Stacey submit her ballot on the $93.7 million school millage proposal Tuesday. If approved, the district would replace five aging elementary schools with new buildings and reopen Red Cedar Elementary School, closed since 2014. LANSING Voting in the 2024 August primary has already begun. While local clerks don't expect turnout to approach the interest of the presidential election in November, many races on a local level will be decided in August, both in the Lansing area and across Michigan. Local clerks mailed absentee ballots to residents on the permanent absentee voting list on June 27 and, for the first time in Michigan, people can vote early, beginning in late July. Here's what you need to know about how to register to vote and cast a ballot in the Aug. 6 primary. Wondering what's on your ballot? We have a complete list of candidates and ballot issues for Ingham, Eaton and Clinton counties. Dont spoil your ballot The top issue on many clerks' minds is reminding residents that voting in a primary is different than a general election. Voters in primary elections in Michigan cannot split their ballot, or vote for candidates from more than one party. So on an Ingham County ballot, for example, a voter who selects Elissa Slotkin, a Holly Democrat, for U.S. Senate but votes for Republican Tom Barrett, of Charlotte, for U.S. House would spoil their ballot. Its not a new issue in Michigan but is particularly important given the rise in no-reason absentee voting. Voters who split their ballot while voting in person can expect the ballot to be rejected by the electronic tabulating machine into which they feed their ballot, have their error pointed out to them and be able to cast another ballot. However, voters who split a ballot and mail it in or leave it in a drop box may or may not have a chance to recast a correct ballot, depending on whether staff at their local clerks office can reach them in time before the election. Any non-partisan votes on the spoiled ballot would be counted, such as local judicial races or ballot issues, but no partisan votes would be recorded. August primaries are unique in Michigan because you must Stay In Your Lane, Ingham County Clerk Barb Byrum said. Both parties candidates appear on one ballot, so you will not need to select a ballot style. That means you can choose to vote for either Democratic candidates or Republican candidates, but you cannot cross over and vote for some Democrats and some Republicans. If you do, the partisan section of your ballot will be considered blank and only the non-partisan sections will be counted. More: Lansing area 2024 voter guide: Ingham, Eaton and Clinton ballots at a glance Im not registered to vote. Do I still have time? You can register to vote up to 8 p.m. on Election Day at your city or township clerks office. You must show proof of residence with documents that have your name and current address. Acceptable documents include a Michigan drivers license or state ID, a current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government check or other government document. Digital copies of documents are acceptable, according to the Secretary of States office. You can also register at any secretary of state branch office or online. Your voter registration application must be received or postmarked at least 15 days before the election. You can register online at https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/RegisterVoter/Index. Can I vote in person before election day? Yes. For the first time, Michigan voters will have early voting because of a state constitutional amendment approved by voters in 2022. Local clerks must provide a minimum of nine days of early voting for the August primary, although communities may offer additional days. The process is very similar to voting on election day, in that you will receive a ballot, fill it out and then insert it into a tabulating machine. The early voting period begins the second Saturday prior to Election Day, which this year is July 27, and ends the Sunday before an election, Aug. 4. Under state law, communities can offer up to 29 days of early voting, according to Michigan election officials. You find more information on early voting sites by calling your local clerk or going to https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/. How do I vote absentee? Anyone registered to vote can vote absentee because in 2018 Michigan voters approved no-reason absentee voting. Also, in 2022, voters were also allowed to sign up for their countys permanent mail ballot list. In Ingham County, more than 51,000 voters chose that option. Clerks began sending absentee ballots on June 27, so voting has already begun. If you are not on the permanent list, you can request a ballot online at https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/AVApplication/Index up to the Friday before election day or call or visit your local clerks office to obtain a ballot. Once you have voted, you can mail in your ballot, place it in a voting drop box in your community or turn it in in person up to 8 p.m. on election day. Local clerks and election officials recommend that any ballot submitted within two weeks of the election be delivered in person. Can I track my ballot? Yes. The Michigan Secretary of State offers a tracking system at https://mvic.sos.state.mi.us/Voter/Index. Can I change my vote if I already submitted my ballot? Yes, depending on when you do it. Sometimes candidates drop out of a race or voters have a change of mind. You can spoil your ballot by giving your local clerk a written request, which you will be required to sign. You must make the request by 5 p.m. on the second Friday before the election if you have returned your absentee ballot, which this year is July 26. There is no option during the mandatory early voting period or on Election Day to spoil an absentee ballot that has been received by the clerk. An absentee ballot that has not been returned to your local clerk may be spoiled in person at your clerks office until 4 p.m. on the Monday prior the election, which this year is Aug. 5. And, if you have not returned your absentee ballot, you can bring it to a poll during early voting or on election day and either surrender the ballot or sign a statement that it was lost or destroyed and vote in person. This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Election 2024: Michigan's early voting and absentee ballots: What to know 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. ST. LOUIS An accused burglar has been charged with a copper theft at an electrical supply warehouse this past spring. According to the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Departments probable cause statement, the theft happened on March 24 at Metro Electric Supply on Hoffman Avenue. Police said security video shows Robert A. Sneed, 32, peeling back the rear sheet metal wall of the warehouse before leaving the area. Approximately two hours later, Sneed returns with two other people in a red Kia. The trio uses bolt cutters to open the overhead garage door. Food delivery driver shot in OFallon, Missouri after mistaken delivery Sneed and the others stole more than $4,000 worth of copper before driving away, police said. A cellphone was found inside the warehouse, which belonged to Sneed, police said. In addition, Sneed was seen wearing a distinct gray Russian fur hat on the surveillance video. That hat is believed to be the same hat Sneed is wearing in a photo on his Facebook profile. The St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office charged Sneed with first-degree property damage, stealing $750, and two counts of second-degree burglary. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Elise Stefanik has become a star in the GOP. Is it enough to be Trump's VP? PLATTSBURGH, N.Y. At a recent ribbon cutting ceremony in Rep. Elise Stefanik's district not far from the international border a pair of Jewish Canadian citizens approached the New York Republican thanking her for questioning a trio of college presidents about the rise of antisemitism on their campuses. Stefanik's line of inquiry during a heated hearing last year and the subsequent resignations of two of the three presidents echoed far outside Washington. It also illustrated the rise of the House Republican conference chair, the 40-year-old Stefanik, one of the more visible congressional Trump supporters in the GOP. In the world of Donald Trump, where potential running mates have lined up in front of microphones outside a courthouse where he was being tried for 34 felony charges, does visibility alone make her vice presidential? An early sign her star was rising came long before her verbal wrestling with Ivy League academics. It happened years ago, in a restaurant called Poopies Diner. Stefanik had given a vigorous defense of the former president when House Democrats impeached him over accusations he abused the presidency in pressuring Ukraine to investigate then-presidential candidate Joe Biden and his family. Nestled in Glens Falls, one of the few Democratic-leaning areas in her district, Poopies Diner is a sort of microcosm of the electorate of New Yorks Twenty-First. Outside, Poopies is a largely unassuming American diner with one of Stefaniks campaign signs hanging outside. Inside though, Poopies owner, Jerry DiManno, made what is akin to a shrine to Trump to the immediate right of its entrance. Im on Trumps side all the way, DiManno said in June, his forehead dripping with sweat at the counter, when a storm took out the power to Poopies. Various pieces of both Trump and Stefanik memorabilia sit in a corner of the diner, from campaign merchandise to books to even a signed portrait from the former president. Hanging from a wall is a signed portrait of Stefanik: Jerry I Poopies!! Congresswomen Elise Stefaniks photo hangs at the restaurant Poopies in Glens Falls, New York. Stefanik made an unannounced visit to Poopie's during the tail end of Trumps first impeachment trial in the Senate in early 2020. She was working alongside future White House chief of staff Mark Meadows and future House Speaker Mike Johnson defending the Republican president before the upper chamber. Constituents are used to seeing their congressional representatives maybe once every few years, mostly on TV commercials leading up to Election Day. Trump's impeachment trial was televised and streamed, and the principal players on both sides got plenty of screen time on national networks for all Americans to see a constitutional process that had only played out only two other times in nearly 250 years of U.S. history. When Stefanik entered that night in 2020, the entire restaurant, tables full, stood up and gave her a standing ovation for her unyielding defense of Trump. We realized at that moment on, it was never going to be the same for her," said Alex DeGrasse, one of Stefaniks closest advisors who has worked with her since her first campaign back in 2014. It's now four years later, and DeGrasse was back in Poopies recalling the moment over a cold sandwich. Thats all the diner was serving, since the power was still out. Stefanik aides were already moving behind the scenes trying to get the lights back on. A power companys truck was parked nearby, but nobody was in it. The impeachment, as DeGrasse put it between bites, was a rocket ship for Stefaniks career, who is among the few names and the only woman who received vetting materials from Trumps campaign to potentially be his second-in-command. Trump said he expects to name his running mate by the start of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee on July 15. There's no official shortlist, but several GOP sources close to the Trump campaign recently told USA TODAY that the three finalists are North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum and Republican Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio and Marco Rubio of Florida. Those sources do include the caveat that this is Trump, known for being unpredictable, and anything remains possible. For all the flak Stefanik gets from Democrats and her critics, accusing her of selling out for Trump, it is difficult to say she is not regarded highly in her district. Ive had a lot of people come in here that are veterans and police departments. They all love her around here. Troopers, local police, county police, they all like her a lot, DiManno said. Stefaniks district is indisputably MAGA country, as evidenced by Trump winning Stefaniks constituents by more than 15 points in the 2020 presidential election. Both ideologically and physically, it could not be further away from deep blue New York City which lies more than 150 miles south. In its most northern part, a stoplight cannot be seen for miles, and it would be difficult for anyone driving through the district to miss the Trump flags and hand-made signs strewn across yards on the side of the road. Its population of more than 770,000 is sparsely distributed throughout a region almost the size of nearby Vermont and New Hampshire combined. You almost need a helicopter to move around that district, New York conservative party chair Gerard Kassar quipped. I reflect my district, and I proudly support President Trump, Stefanik said in an interview with USA TODAY. That's not just a line for some of Stefanik's constituents. The second time he met Stefanik, Brandon Budlong, president of the local border patrol union chapter partly in her district, had her phone number and could get in touch with her or her team whenever he needed. The guys are like well, trust in Brandon because hes talking to Elise. And Elise is going to get it addressed, Budlong, who was Stefaniks guest at this years State of the Union address, said of his members support of him and Stefanik. Touring the Montgomery County Sheriffs office in Fultonville, a small village home to less than 1,000 residents and just a rifles shot from the Mohawk River, police officers briefed Stefanik on a $1.5 million investment she secured for the office from this years government spending process. Those funds are being used to provide new ambulances for the office which has struggled to keep up with EMS calls, a familiar problem for rural America. Over the past three months, the office said it has fielded over 260 EMS calls with no ambulances available. Walking through the small 911 center, outfitted with just four desks and an equal number of dispatchers at the time, Stefanik asked one of them about the day-to-day workflow. Congresswoman Elise Stefanik met with 911 dispatchers Staysha Forsey and Tyrell Homkey at the Montgomery County Public Safety facility during a recent tour of her district. How are you? How has the volume of calls been lately? Stefanik asked. Some days, nothing, the dispatcher told her. Other days, the calls can be non-stop. The conversation was about to end, until Stefanik found out the dispatcher was a new mother of a five-month-old girl. How are you doing? she, a mother of a two-year-old boy herself, turned and asked. Stefanik, whose son, Sam, turns three at the end of August, offered advice to cherish the time she has with her daughter: The days are long, but the years and months are short when you look back. When she opens that mouth, you were killing them Elise Stefaniks profile in the GOP has been on the rise since the start of her congressional career less than 10 years ago. In 2014, at the age of 29, Stefanik made history as the youngest woman ever elected to Congress at the time. Arriving on Capitol Hill, she was seen as the face of a new generation of Republicans and someone who could reach across the aisle as Americans were growing more frustrated over gridlock. She wasn't always a fan of Trump, who earned his fame as a real estate mogul before turning to politics. In 2015, Stefanik called Trump insulting to women to a New York radio station and initially backed then-Ohio Gov. John Kasich in the 2016 presidential race. When Trumps infamous Access Hollywood tape leaked just weeks before the election, where he made comments about assaulting women, Stefanik released a statement calling them inappropriate, offensive and just wrong. Her career did not skyrocket to where it was today because of centrism. What she is most well-known for now is her undying loyalty to Trump. She describes herself as Trumps strongest ally in Congress, a bold proclamation given how a number of other GOP lawmakers would also say they are the former presidents staunchest supporters. "When he needed a leader to stand in the breach, Ive stood in the breach, she told USA TODAY. Rep. Elise Stefanik of New York, speaks during the Republican National Convention at the Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C. on Aug. 26, 2020. Indeed, the New York Republican has stood by Trump in his weakest moments. Stefanik's loyalty was on display after a mob of his supporters attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, to overturn his election defeat, joining the 147 Republicans who voted against certifying some of Bidens electoral votes after rioters were cleared out of the building. When Republicans blamed Trump for their severe underperformance in the 2022 midterm elections, Stefanik was the first lawmaker to endorse the former president's next White House campaign, even before he had officially announced it. She is also the one who pitched and then helped organize the presumptive presidential nominee's meeting this spring with House Republicans as they talked through the GOP's goals for the coming year. The session marked Trump's first appearance on Capitol Hill since leaving the presidency and the Jan. 6 insurrection. Stefaniks chances at becoming Trumps running mate and possibly the next vice president are not lost on her constituents. At an honor flight for veterans from the North Country region of New York at the World War II Memorial in Washington, D.C., one veteran who met her told her, I hope you become vice president. Another veteran when they saw her: Oh my god! Its Elise! he said, before quickly realizing he had to get a photo with her. Jerry DiManno makes sandwiches during the lunch rush at his restaurant, Poopies in Glens Falls, New York. DiManno supports Congresswomen Elise Stefanik and hangs her photo on his wall at his restaurant. Her defense of Trump during the first impeachment, she said, was when their very strong relationship began. No one asked more effective questions to unravel that impeachment hoax than I did, Stefanik said in the interview. For all the attacks and condemnations Stefanik levied at Democrats, that ultimately did not stop the House from voting to impeach Trump and initiating a trial in the Senate, where Stefanik served in an unofficial capacity as a spokesperson for Trump's congressional defense team. At the end of the day though, Trump was acquitted. It was not a shocking result, given the high threshold to convict a president, but Stefanik was among the Republicans the former president heaped lavish praise on after his acquittal. "I thought 'She looks good, she looks like good talent,'" Trump said to an audience of GOP leaders, including Stefanik, at the White House after his acquittal. "But I did not realize, when she opens that mouth, you were killing them Elise." "I'll always be your friend," the former president added. "What a great future you have." Her devotion to Trump has made Stefanik a household name in the MAGA movement, Steve Bannon, the recently imprisoned former advisor to the former president who continues to be a force in Trump world, told USA TODAY last month. Stefanik famously replaced the House GOPs last conference chair, Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., who was Trumps most vocal critic in Congress in the wake of Jan. 6. Cheney later lost her seat to a Trump-backed challenger. Her succession of Cheney is particularly remarkable given the praise Stefanik had for the daughter of former Vice President Dick Cheney in previous years. Stefanik even nominated Cheney to the conference chair position in both 2018 and 2020. Liz, I was very proud to nominate you to serve as our conference chair. That is the highest position of women in the Republican conference, and we think youre a huge asset in that role, she said in 2019 at a launch event for Elevate PAC, Stefaniks political action committee aimed at recruiting Republican women. She now takes immense pride in ousting Cheney, who she said was doing a disservice with her vicious attacks on Trump. Perhaps Stefaniks most viral moment was when she went off-script at the end of December's congressional hearing with the three college presidents by asking them whether calling for the genocide of Jews warranted disciplinary action. She figured they would answer the question, which seemed to be a softball, with a resounding yes. In fact, she prepared a follow-up question to ask them about enforcement problems on their campuses. But all three presidents waffled and dodged the question, instead offering legal responses without directly condemning calling for the genocide of Jews. The exchange between Stefanik and the presidents, hailing for Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania and MIT blew up on social media and garnered worldwide attention. Stefanik said she didnt anticipate her line of questioning getting as much attention as it did. But reflecting upon it now, she said, Theres a reason why, and its because it was just moral bankruptcy on display. Her stock rose after the hearing and so did the scrutiny. Her critics were quick to point out Stefanik's campaign ads in 2021 that claimed Democrats were allowing undocumented immigrants to enter the U.S. to change the electorate in their favor, echoing the antisemitic Great Replacement Theory. The ads garnered heavy scrutiny in 2022 after a mass shooting suspect peddled the theory in an apparent manifesto. When asked about the ad, Stefanik said she had never heard of the replacement theory when the ads were first the topic of debate in 2022: "The ad talked about border security, which is not racist. Securing the border is what people across this country want. Congresswomen Elise Stefanik meets with fellow New Yorker Joshua Poitras at McSweeney's Red Hots in upstate New York. From Harvard University to Trump loyalist Those who know Stefaniks path to power know it didnt go the way of so many other MAGA Republicans. She didnt ride a sudden wave of populism to serve in a massive federal government with no knowledge about the way things work in Washington. Stefanik recalled her mother would drop her off at the New York state GOPs headquarters in Albany, where she stuffed envelopes and made yard signs. It was the September 11, 2001, attacks, Stefanik said in the interview, that was a very crystallizing moment to push her into politics. Her first job out of college she notes she was one of the few Republicans at Harvard where she graduated was in the George W. Bush administration in his White House Domestic Policy Council. After a few other stints, she later worked for Mitt Romneys presidential campaign and helped Paul Ryan prepare for his first vice presidential debate with Joe Biden. But the GOPs stinging defeat in the 2012 presidential election in part spurred her to run for Congress two years later. In the wake of the 2012 loss, Stefanik helped the RNC put together its autopsy report. The report called for Republicans to be more inclusive to a wider swath of voters, including young women. She said she embodied those recommendations in her bid to flip New York's 21st District, a seat that was held by Democrats since 1993. I felt like this district needed a new generation approach, high-energy and just someone to fight upstate New York, she said. Most aspiring elected officials often fail to adjust from Washington politics to grassroots campaigning, but Stefanik was different, said Ed Cox, the chairman of the New York GOP. Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y. stands with Matthew Manda and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., for a ceremonial swearing-in and photo-op during the opening session of the 115th Congress on Jan. 3, 2017, on Capitol Hill in Washington. She was coming from the West Wing of the White House to preparing Paul Ryan for debates, dealing with big policy issues. That is a very heavy atmosphere," Cox told USA TODAY. She put in the work, and it was a delight to see her adapt." In that rookie political campaign, Stefanik successfully flipped her seat by an overwhelming margin of more than 20 percentage points. Arriving back in Washington, she didn't start out as a party-line lawmaker. In her first term, which overlapped with the final two years of the Obama administration, The Lugar Center and Georgetown University ranked Stefanik the 31st most bipartisan member of Congress. In her second term, it ranked her 19th. Fort Drum is among Stefaniks major legislative priorities. The Army base, lying on the western border of New York and near the Canadian border, is home to the largest deployed Army unit since the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Almost 15,000 military service members work at the base along with 16,000 family members who reside at Fort Drum or in the local area. She prides herself most for the legislative wins she secured for the base, offering a listicle of improvements and investments for Fort Drum when asked. Included in those wins was when she, along with the rest of the states congressional delegation, protected the base from major defense cuts in her first term. Congresswomen Elise Stefanik meets with small business members at Kirsh helmets. Kirsh helmets manufactures motorcycle helmets, all American-made. That particular victory provides a small snapshot of the type of legislator Stefanik was in her early years on Capitol Hill. She led a letter that earned the signatures of all her fellow New York lawmakers to then Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter emphasizing the importance of the base to national security. Including among the signatories was Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who is currently serving as the upper chambers majority leader and has long been reviled by Republicans. And though she voted with many of Trumps policy initiatives, she gave the thumbs down on his signature 2017 tax cuts widely seen as the Republican presidents biggest domestic policy victory. But Stefanik didn't keep Trump at arm's length for long. She heavily lobbied Trump to come to Fort Drum to sign an annual defense policy bill there. I have to tell you about Elise. She called me so many times. I said I dont want to take her call, Trump said during the August 2018 event after introducing Stefanik and mispronouncing her name. Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), chair of the House Republican Conference, attends the Conservative Political Action Conference, CPAC 2024, at the Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center. That was still one of the best events he did and certainly that weve had in this district, Stefanik reflected in the interview. Stefaniks experience in Congress could be of value to a second Trump administration. By virtue of her position as conference chair which organizes and manages the day-to-day operations of the House GOP, she has cultivated relationships with many lawmakers. Shes a political animal. I dont believe you change who you are just like that, a GOP lawmaker close to GOP leadership said on the condition of anonymity to speak candidly. To Stefaniks credit though, the lawmaker said, she is extremely political and would do well in the vice presidency given her existing connections to Capitol Hill. 'One of the leaders of the MAGA movement for decades to come Stefanik has not gone to the lengths her other vice-presidential contenders have gone to support the former president. Though she was in Atlanta to support and stump for Trump at the first presidential debate, she did not go to Manhattan to attend his criminal hush money trial in May. Her allies do not say if she has vice presidential aspirations with the exception of Kassar, who said he absolutely knows Stefanik wants to be vice president and she has not brought up the topic in their conversations. Johnson described her to USA TODAY in June as a strong candidate for vice president, but noted Trump has a list of other great candidates and declined to weigh in further. But even if Stefanik is not chosen, she could land a senior administrative role in a second Trump presidency. Im sure shell be offered a senior position in the Cabinet. And if she doesnt take that, shes in House leadership. So regardless of what happens shell get a much higher national profile, Bannon said. And shes very young, so shes perfectly positioned to be of the leaders of the MAGA movement for decades to come. New York Republican Elise Stefanik meets with law enforcement at the Montgomery County Sheriffs office in upstate New York. Behind the scenes, Stefanik's colleagues who share committees with her describe her as sharp and attentive to detail. Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., a close friend who attended her wedding and who works with her on the House Armed Services Committee and House Education and Workforce Committee, recalled taking Stefanik on her first congressional delegation trip in 2015 to the Middle East, which included visits to Jordan, Afghanistan and Iraq. There, he saw her capabilities and understanding of foreign affairs and identified her as a soon-to-be star in the GOP. That stardom of course transcends international borders, as evidenced when Stefanik was greeted by Jewish Canadian citizens thanking her for her work. Stefanik in May also became the highest-ranking GOP lawmaker to address the Israeli Knesset. Her allies say it would hardly be a setback for her if Trump chooses someone else to be his running mate. Stefanik only just turned 40 at the start of July, comparatively younger to the rest of her colleagues on Capitol Hill. Whether it be remaining as conference chair or returning to the White House where her first job out of college over a decade and a half ago, the adoration and vitriol from both her friends and enemies all ensure she will continue be a GOP and MAGA superstar both nationally and in New Yorks 21st. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Elise Stefanik is a star in the GOP. Is it enough to be Trump's VP? Elite nightclubs are forcing the Hamptons into an identity crisis Elite nightclubs are forcing the Hamptons into an identity crisis The Hamptons are facing an influx of exclusive social clubs and locals aren't happy. Traditionally a quiet refuge for the wealthy, club nightlife is now encroaching on the area. Hamptons' residents don't want their community to become a party hot spot. Just two hours east of Manhattan, the Hamptons is an ultra-wealthy beach hideaway where millionaires and celebrities from Martha Stewart to Beyonce escape from the big-city bustle. At least it used to be. Nowadays, exclusive social clubs with long lines, dress codes, and pounding music are popping up in the Long Island hub for the rich, and residents aren't happy. Take the Blu Mar restaurant, for example. The Southampton restaurant was recently transformed into an Italian restaurant and nightclub by Kyky Conille, who's operated several hot spots in New York City. Conille told The Hollywood Reporter that the restaurant's club will be inclusive, catering to "customers from 25 to anyone who can still walk." However, another club in the back will be more selective. "We will pick the clientele for the lounge,'' Conille told the outlet. "My doormen will choose by the way they dress. We don't want people coming in the lounge in the evening wearing shorts. I want to bring back elegance for people to get excited to get dressed.'' And Conille isn't the only one trying to shake up the scene. Scott Sartiano, the owner of the elite Manhattan social club Zero Bond, where high-profile celebrities from Taylor Swift and Elon Musk to Tom Brady and Kim Kardashian go to party, planned to convert East Hampton's historic Hedges Inn into a new club location earlier this year, according to the same article. Business Insider previously reported that the club's fees for new members would range between $2,700 and $9,000 a year, depending on age. But Sartiano's plans had to shift in May after residents filled town meetings and convinced local leaders to set up an 11 p.m. curfew for this season. Since that spoiled the nightclub idea, Sartiano says he'll use the property as a new outpost for his New York restaurant, Sartiano's, for the time being. Still, some locals aren't buying it. "Mr. Sartiano has greatly watered down his proposal so that it will simply be an Italian restaurant, and if that's the case, we will roll out the red carpet," Marcos Baladron, the East Hampton Village administrator, told The Hollywood Reporter. "But if his ultimate goal is to open another Zero Bond, I think the neighbors should be very wary." The New York Times reported Thursday that town officials had seen no confirmation that Sartiano had officially leased the property. While the future of the Hamptons is uncertain, one thing is clear: The wealthy enclave is experiencing a cultural identity crisis, and locals will have to fight to prevent it from becoming a getaway for partyers. "One of the lost things in this world is quietude," Carrie Doyle, the village trustee, told The New York Times. "People come out for peace and quiet, and the ironic thing is that to get it, you have to make a lot of noise. So that's what we've done." Read the original article on Business Insider EMPORIA (KSNT) Working for you, 27 News contacted the City of Emporia to confirm if the skateboard park at Santa Fe Park will be demolished. Emporia Communications Manager Christine Torrens confirms the skate park at Santa Fe Park will eventually be demolished to make way for ball fields. Director of the Emporia Recreation Commission Tom McEvoy said the Emporia City Commission is hoping to have two t-ball diamonds constructed where the current skatepark is. It will get more use, McEvoy said. Those programs are big [t-ball and softball], I dont know the number of skateboarders, thats something the city knows but for us on the recreation side of things, t-ball and machine pitch, the youngest of the kids bring the largest numbers of our summer time programs. McEvoy said the skateboard park at Santa Fe Park was installed roughly 15-20 years ago. According to McEvoy, a Burlington Northern railway development resulted in one of the t-ball diamonds at Whittier Park being removed. McEvoy said there are only two usable t-ball diamonds currently at Whittier Park. When asked about the cost of building new t-ball diamonds, McEvoy said they dont have any estimates and are waiting to hear back from their landscape architect. He said two t-ball diamonds with bleachers, fencing, ect. could cost $800,000. McEvoy hopes to get started on construction before the end of the year. Report: Wages not keeping up with home prices in Shawnee Co. 27 News asked if anything prevented the property owner, BNSF, from selling the property after investing in the land. Yes, the existing lease runs through the 2060s, Torrens responded. According to Torrens, the city is on a 99-year lease with BNSF which owns the land the Santa Fe Park is on. Torrens said the current contract with BNSF states that the city must use the property for ball fields. We would have to modify the lease to allow for construction of the new skateboard park, Torrens said. BNSF wanted the City to go to a year-to-year lease if we had modified the lease. In 2021, 13-year-old Maddox Gutierrez started a petition asking for improvements to be made to the Santa Fe Skateboard Park in Emporia. After 27 News covered the story, an anonymous local family made a quarter-million-dollar donation to the Kahola Lake Park Fund with the Emporia Community Foundation. Earlier this year, the City of Emporia released design images for the new skate park that will be built at Whittier Park thanks to the donation and city funding. Nearly $600k set to improve Shawnee Co. trails The skate park construction is expected to begin in late summer 2024 with construction contingent on weather conditions. 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. Engineers warn prolonged outages could soon strike one of the world's most populous countries: 'If the situation continues, there are fair chances of a grid disturbance' Indian engineers are warning about possible prolonged energy blackouts in the north of the country due to increased demand amid searing heat, The Guardian reported. What's happening? The publication explained that energy demand has soared in India as people try to cool down from scorching temperatures. Manufacturers reported that the sales of air conditioners and air coolers went up 40-50% compared to summer 2023. These units are being run constantly to keep up with the heat. Power consumption in the northern state of Punjab increased by 43% in June compared to June 2023, which prompted the All India Power Engineers Federation to write to the state government, saying the situation is becoming more "serious by the day." "If the situation continues, there are fair chances of a grid disturbance," the group warned, and that could have a domino effect on the rest of the country. Why is India's heat wave concerning? India has been suffering extreme heat since mid-May, making life more difficult for people, especially outdoor workers. Overnight temperatures hover around 91 degrees Fahrenheit, offering little respite. Water shortages in many poorer neighborhoods are exacerbating the problems. This is just one of many dangerous heat waves that have swept the world in the first half of 2024, from Asia to Mexico, the United States, and Greece. This is worrisome for humans, as exposure to extreme heat can lead to heat-related illnesses, including potentially deadly heat stroke. While extreme weather events such as heat waves and flooding have always occurred, scientists agree they are occurring more frequently as a result of rising global temperatures. What's being done about heat waves? Every day, governments, companies, and scientists are rolling out new ways to help humans better cope with hotter weather. Phoenix, for instance, started using "cool pavement," which reflects the sun's heat and can cool temperatures. Plus, one company says it can use plants to create cooling shade structures and rooftop systems to combat sweltering heat on city streets and sidewalks. While adaptation is key, it's also important that we try to stop the overheating of our planet by cutting down on dirty energy use. You can make a difference by changing the way you get around try biking more, walking when you can, taking public transit, making your car more efficient, or even going electric for your next vehicle. Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet. While the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is reviewing Black Hills Energy's proposal to raise electric rates, some Pueblo ratepayers are saying the investor-owned utility should, if anything, lower the rates residents and businesses are paying. Rate increases, proposed to take effect by March 2025, would increase the "average" monthly residential bill of a customer using 600 kilowatt hours of energy from $109.67 to $129.81. Proposed increases also are being considered for commercial customers paying up to $276.26 for 600 kilowatt hours. Increases are being levied to raise revenues by $36 million annually to pay for operating and employee expenses, according to Black Hills Energy. However, a survey from the Colorado Association of Municipal Utilities (CAMU) reported that the typical Black Hills Energy customer was already paying higher residential rates than those paid by a typical customer of any other utility in the state in January 2024. Surveyed Black Hills Energy customers, on average, spent over $145 in January for using 700 kilowatt hours, according to the CAMU survey. Xcel Energy customers reportedly spent less than $100 while Colorado Springs residents spent less than $99 for using the same amount of energy. Fort Collins residents spent less than $84. "We've consistently been 40 to 50% higher than anybody on the Front Range," Pueblo City Council President Mark Aliff told the Chieftain. "How is it that when a company is extremely successful, they make tons and tons of money, how is it that we need another increase?" Pueblo Energy Advisory Commission President Ken Danti speaks during a commission meeting about rate increases proposed by Black Hills Energy on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. Pueblo resident Ken Danti told the Chieftain that opposition to Black Hills Energy's rate increases is something that can unite Pueblo residents regardless of their political affiliation or socio-economic status. While Danti also is the president of the Pueblo Energy Advisory Commission, he specified that he was speaking with the Chieftain as a ratepayer and not on the city's behalf. "The PUC is the decider for all of this," Danti said. "Now, people can intervene in rate increases and I think that is one of the things that we all need to do is talk with the PUC. I think the final message is 'Enough is enough.' Black Hills is such a bad thing for their Colorado customers. They just need to go and sell the utility." PUC received comments from over 100 individuals urging the commission to reject rate increases Over 125 public comments opposing Black Hills Energy's proposed rate increases have been submitted to the PUC, according to electronic filings from the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies. Angela Ulrichson was among the many Pueblo County residents to submit such a comment. "We cannot keep paying these increases and costs just to live in this city," Ulrichson's comment states. "We already pay some of the highest rates in the state and are just trying to get by as it is. If an increase is needed please decrease the amount so that people don't leave the area or have to choose between power or food." Janna Elwell, another Pueblo ratepayer, said Black Hills Energy should make cuts to duplicate services and senior management expenses before increasing rates. Anthony Bustos, also of Pueblo, said that that rates are expensive enough "as it is." "Cost of living is already out of control and big corporations want to continue raising everything except people's wages to be able to support themselves," Bustos said in his public comment. The Colorado Office of the Utility Consumer Advocate is among the parties intervening on behalf of ratepayers in the PUC's review of proposed increases. The office advocates for affordable utility services and ensures equitable treatment of residential and commercial energy customers, according to its website. Joe Pereira, deputy director at the Colorado Office of the Utility Consumer Advocate, met with Pueblo city and county leaders on July 3 to talk about the proposed increases. "We will definitely intervene," Pereira told members of the Pueblo Energy Advisory Commission. "We are a regular party to rate cases... This one is large and from our perspective, maybe a little unexpected. We had been operating under the messaging that Black Hills has been working toward affordability within its territory." Utility Consumer Advocate and Deputy Director of the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies Joseph Pereira speaks during a Pueblo Energy Advisory Commission meeting about proposed rate increases from Black Hills Energy on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. Black Hills Energy 'mindful' of cost increases, but says they're 'necessary' Julie Rodriguez, senior manager of public affairs for Black Hills Energy, shared a statement from the utility with the Chieftain. The statement says that Black Hills Energy's proposed rate increases are the first to be submitted to the PUC since 2016 and that they are necessary to cover contractor, insurance, and tax expenses. Investments over $370 million were made between 2016 and 2023 to cover capital expenses in providing "safe and reliable service" to customers. However, these expenses are "not reflected in current base rates," according to the statement. "We are very mindful of cost impacts to our customers and are committed to the thorough and transparent process with the PUC, where interested parties have the opportunity to participate," the statement reads. "We have worked diligently over the past eight years to manage cost increases and maintain stable bills for customers." Rodriguez also shared a statement addressing rates reported in the CAMU survey. Black Hills Energy has participated in the survey for many years and its rates reported in the 2024 survey are similar to national averages despite being higher than Colorado averages, according to the statement. "The communities we serve are smaller than Colorado Springs and Denver, with less density than the larger urban centers of the front range. The basic utility infrastructure needed to serve is the same regardless of how many customers you have or the size of the service territory," the statement reads. New PCC President: What to know about Pueblo Community College's new president as he officially takes over Pueblo Chieftain reporter James Bartolo can be reached at JBartolo@gannett.com. Support local news, subscribe to The Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: What Pueblo ratepayers are saying about Black Hills Energy increases EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) Two men have been arrested for illegally dumping trash in the desert, the El Paso County Sheriffs Office said. On Saturday, July 6, deputies were called to the 11700 block of Elizabeth Drive in East El Paso County about reports of illegal dumping. When deputies arrived, they saw a vehicle that matched the description they had been given in reference to the illegal dumping. Deputies then conducted a vehicle stop at Horizon Boulevard and Stockyard Drive. An investigation found 51-year-old Manuel Hidalgo and 47-year-old Felipe Hidalgo to be responsible for dumping roughly 1,440 cubic feet of trash in the desert area, according to the Sheriffs Office. An online calculator shows that 1,440 cubic feet of trash would fill a room that was 12 feet by 12 feet and 10 feet high. Manuel Hidalgo and Felipe Hidalgo were arrested and booked into the El Paso County Detention Facility for illegal dumping under a $1,500 bond. The news release did not say what their relationship to each other is. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, July 8. Kazakhstan has prepared a plan to compensate for oil production in the first half of 2024, Trend reports, with reference to the statement of the Ministry of Energy on the OPEC+ agreement. "Kazakhstan reaffirms its commitment to the OPEC+ agreement and supports decisions taken jointly with OPEC+ member countries. Following the decision of the 37th OPEC+ Ministerial Meeting, Kazakhstan prepared a detailed compensation plan, according to which it will gradually compensate for the volumes exceeded in the first half of the year until September 2025," the statement reads. According to the statement, Kazakhstan will go the extra mile to toe the line and make up for overproduction as scheduled. To note, Kazakhstan extended its previously accepted voluntary commitments until the end of 2025. The 38th meeting of OPEC countries and non-OPEC countries will take place on December 1, 2024. By Daniel Wiessner (Reuters) - A challenge to a Biden administration rule allowing socially conscious investing by employee retirement plans will present an early test of how courts will scrutinize federal regulations after the U.S. Supreme Court said they no longer have to defer to the expertise of the agencies that issued them. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments on Tuesday in a lawsuit by 25 Republican-led states challenging the U.S. Department of Labor rule, which says 401(k) and other plans can consider environmental, social and corporate governance (ESG) factors as a "tiebreaker" in making investment decisions. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas, refused to block the 2022 rule last year, citing a 40-year-old doctrine known as Chevron deference, named for a 1984 Supreme Court case, which had directed courts to uphold agencies' reasonable interpretations of the laws they enforce. Kacsmaryk, an appointee of Republican former President Donald Trump, is the lone active judge in Amarillo and his courthouse has become a favored venue for conservative litigants suing to block Biden administration policies. But in the challenge to the ESG rule, the judge said he was bound to apply Chevron until the Supreme Court overturns it. The high court did just that in a June ruling in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, saying judges instead should exercise their independent judgment in evaluating agency rules. That decision is expected to have a widespread impact on the government's ability to adopt new rules such as environmental, securities and labor regulations, and is part of a broader effort by conservative groups to rein in the powers of what they call "the administrative state." And the case over the ESG rule will give the 5th Circuit a chance to unpack the Supreme Court's directive that courts should exercise their independent judgment and consider what framework the appeals court will apply to cases challenging agency rules moving forward. "The trial court expressly relying on Chevron in upholding the ESG regulation ... puts this case on track to be an early harbinger of how courts will address pending cases," said Julie Stapel, a Chicago-based lawyer with the firm Morgan Lewis & Bockius who represents employers. Lawyers for the states that sued over the ESG rule and the U.S. Department of Justice, which is defending it, did not respond to requests for comment. In a June 28 letter to the 5th Circuit, the states said the Supreme Court decision released earlier that day bolstered their lawsuit. Citing the ruling, they said courts should consider deferring to agencies only when regulations are adopted shortly after the laws they interpret and remain consistent over time. Under that standard, the Labor Department is not owed deference because its position on whether a 1974 law regulating employee benefit plans permits ESG investing has shifted multiple times, the lawyers wrote. The Justice Department in a filing responding to the states said it had not cited Chevron in its court briefs and that the 5th Circuit panel should use its independent judgment in determining whether the rule is valid. $12 TRILLION The key issue in the case is whether the 1974 law, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, allows retirement plans to consider nonpecuniary factors in making investment decisions. The Labor Department in adopting the rule said the law is silent on the issue and that considering ESG topics is allowed as long as financial factors come first. The rule has been sharply criticized by conservatives who say that infusing a political agenda into investment decisions endangers workers' retirement savings. The rule covers plans that collectively invest $12 trillion on behalf of more than 150 million workers and retirees. The 5th Circuit is widely regarded as the most conservative U.S. appeals court and in recent years had largely abandoned the Chevron doctrine while blocking a number of Biden administration regulations. All three judges on Tuesday's panel were appointed by Republican presidents. The fact that the ESG rule is coming before the 5th Circuit may blunt the impact of the Supreme Court ruling on the case, said Katherine Kohn, a Washington, D.C.-based lawyer at the firm Thompson Hine who counsels companies on employee benefits issues. "If the 5th Circuit is inclined to vacate the rule, there is probably a path for that even if we were still living under Chevron," she said, "although the Loper Bright decision certainly makes it simpler for the 5th Circuit to side with the (states)." (Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York, Editing by Alexia Garamfalvi and Matthew Lewis) French President Emmanuel Macron and U.S. President Donald Trump shake hands during a joint press conference in the White House April 24, 2018. Credit - Chip SomodevillaGetty Images When Joe Biden attended his first G7 summit as president in 2021, his message to U.S. allies was Americas back. Their response, the president recalled to TIME in a recent interview, was: For how long? Three years later, that question is at the top of European minds as they brace for the possibilityand, if recent polls are to be believed, probabilitythat Donald Trump could edge out Biden in the race for the White House in November. While the rematch between the current and former presidents has long been expected, the pairs first presidential debate of this racein which Biden appeared alarmingly frail (the 81-year-old president was reportedly suffering from a cold) compared to Trumps typical bravado and blusterput the reality of the matchup into much sharper focus across the Atlantic. Panic quickly ensued. American democracy killed before our eyes by gerontocracy, Guy Verhofstadt, the former Belgian prime minister who now serves in the European Parliament, wrote of the debate in an X post. German lawmaker Norbert Rottgen warned that Germany must prepare at full speed for an uncertain future, adding that if we dont take responsibility for European security now, no one will. Polish Foreign Minister Radek Sikorski appeared to suggest in a cryptic post that Biden should consider withdrawing from the race, noting that its important to manage ones ride into the sunset. Former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi was less subtle: Joe Biden cant do it. Europe survived Trumps first term, of course. But the continent would find itself in a much more perilous position in a second term, particularly given Russias ongoing invasion of Ukraine, which is in its third year with no end in sight. While many European leaders and policymakers are no doubt considering what such a scenario would mean for the continent, few are willing to speak about it publicly. [The U.S.] is a country I know very, very well indeed, and because I know it very well indeed, Im going to leave the debates that occur in their politics to them, David Lammy, Britains newly-appointed chief diplomat, told TIME during a recent press conference in London. He did divulge that at least some preparation is underway, noting that he is maintaining links with American lawmakers across the political spectrum, among them Trump acolytes and advisers such as Sen. Lindsey Graham and former national security adviser Robert OBrien. In private, however, other European lawmakers are more candid about the challenges that a potential Trump re-election would pose. Its nearly impossible to prepare for that because the main issue is [Trumps] unpredictability, a senior German official, who requested anonymity in order to speak freely, told TIME in June. Indeed, many Europeans remember Trumps first term as being erratic and detached, defined by trade wars, isolationism, and deep skepticism towards the E.U. and NATO. In a second term, Trump has promised more of the same, telling TIME in a recent interview that he would take Europe to task on trade (They dont want our agriculture. They dont want our cars. They dont want anything from us. Its like a one-way street) and defense spending (Theyve taken advantage of us, both on NATO and Ukraine). Read More: How Far Trump Would Go Its Trumps seemingly dubious commitment to NATO, which holds its 75th anniversary summit in Washington, D.C. this week, that has transatlantic observers most concerned. That is Europes key vulnerability vis a vis the U.S., says Majda Ruge, a Berlin-based senior policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations. While the former president may not be able to act on his previous threats to pull the U.S. out of NATO, as such a move now requires the approval of Congress, he could demand that European countries dramatically increase their defense spending or even suggest, as he has previously done, that those who dont be relegated to having fewer protections. Another proposal, floated by one Trump-aligned think tank, would be for the U.S. to maintain its nuclear umbrella over Europe, but otherwise downsize Americas security role on the continent. Although European countries have been seen to step up their defense spending in recent years, among them Poland (which since Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine has doubled its defense spending to 3.9% of GDP) and Germany (where Chancellor Olaf Scholz pledged to overhaul Germanys defense policy in response to Russias invasion), and despite calls for greater strategic autonomy by the likes of French President Emmanuel Macron and others, Europe remains heavily reliant on American security guarantees. There is a growing awareness that Americas commitment to Europe is going to be much more volatile and much less straightforward if Trump is re-elected, says Leslie Vinjamuri, the director of the U.S. and Americas program at the Chatham House think tank in London. Its really obvious with Trump that any prospect of getting more out of America is going to depend on Europe doing more. Europeans fear that volatility could also extend to U.S. support for Ukraine, which has already been hindered by costly delays as a result of Republican opposition in Congress. While Trump has suggested that ending the war in Ukraine would be among his first tasks if he were reelected, he crucially hasnt divulged how. In the absence of such details, Europeans have stressed the importance of making support for Ukraine Trump-proof, in the event the former president should opt to significantly reduce or end U.S. military aid to Kyiv. While outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg has floated the idea of a multiyear aid package to shield Ukraine against the winds of political change, many remain downbeat about the prospect of a full Ukrainian victory anytime soon. Obviously, the ultimate goal is a full restoration of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, including Crimea, Czech President Petr Pavel told TIME in a recent interview. But we all understand that it's not an easy task. It will not happen in the foreseeable future. Read More: A Sobering Message On Ukraine From a NATO Head of State A less congenial and more transactional brand of diplomacy wont be limited to NATO. Whether its dealing with matters as seemingly disparate as trade policy to the fight against climate change to relations with China, Vinjamuri warns that Eurpeans should expect Trump to link multiple policy issues together. Clearly Donald Trump is going to turn to the tariff wars again, Vinjamuri says, referencing the Trump administrations 2018 decision to slap tariffs on steel and aluminum from the E.U.; the former president has proposed imposing a 10% tariff on all imports if hes given a second term. He is going to take on Europe on all manners of questions of trade, of Europes cooperation with China. Wed like to think that you can separate out different issue areas, she adds, but if theres a Trump reelection, there will be huge spillover. In effect, a Trump administration could threaten to withdraw U.S. troops from Europe to force a policy shift on trade or threaten to change its policy vis a vis Moscow if European countries dont shift their approach towards Beijing. The sooner Europe is able to form a common position on these issues, Ruge warns, the stronger the front it could present against a bullish Trump administration. But the continent remains deeply divided, not least over its continued support for Ukraine, climate, and immigration. Those divisions stand to be exacerbated by the rise of far right parties, some of which already find themselves in government in half a dozen of the E.U.s 27 countries. Spoilers such as Hungarys Viktor Orban would be particularly emboldened by a Trump return. Ultimately, whatever preparation Europe believes it should do in advance of November, it may already be too late. Now Europeans are really taking this very seriously, but I think the timing is unfortunately suboptimal, says Ruge, who co-authored a recent policy brief outlining six foreign policy scenarios that could face Europe in a second Trump term. In the brief, she and her co-authors noted that while European leaders and policymakers are no doubt aware of the challenges they will face in a second Trump term, precious few policy measures have been takena dissonance that stems from divisions within Europe over the risk a Trump administration would pose (some European governments, particularly in Hungary and Slovakia, welcome the prospect) and the extent to which they can weather a second term as they did the first. The critical question is not just how these countries should prepare, but when they should have started preparing, Ruge says, and that is definitely not now. The process shouldve started two years ago. Write to Yasmeen Serhan at yasmeen.serhan@time.com. An investigation into child-molestation allegations against a former Peninsula School District teacher opened in late-February. Here is what will happen to his teaching certificate once the criminal case against him is resolved. Jordan Roy Henderson began his career as a substitute teacher in 2012-13 at the Peninsula School District. He had since been an educator at the district for over 10 years. Henderson was teaching the fifth-grade at Evergreen Elementary School when the Pierce County Sheriffs Department announced an investigation into allegations that were reported by students on Feb. 26. Henderson is accused of inappropriately touching and groping some of his female students over the course of their time in his class. One child alleged that Henderson threatened that he would find her house when she asked him to stop, The News Tribune reported. Henderson was arrested and charged with nine counts of child molestation on April 19. He was charged with an additional three counts of child molestation last week. The school district turned over all material to the Sheriffs Department for its investigation. The district was waiting for the results of that investigation before determining what the next steps will be, a spokesperson for the district previously told The News Tribune. Henderson was on paid administrative leave when the investigation began. According to the Washington State Fiscal Information, he made about $89,546 in the 2022-23 school year. Since Monday, Henderson no longer works at the Peninsula School District after he resigned, the district told The News Tribune. There will still be an investigation that will deal with his teaching certificate, which he needs in order to work. A letter of complaint about Henderson from Peninsula School District Superintendent Kresin Bahr was submitted to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction on April 25. OSPI has opened an investigation into the allegations made against Henderson, Catherine Slagle, director of office of professional practices at OSPI, said in an email to The News Tribune. Slagle said that while the school district decides a teachers employment, OSPI deals with teaching certificates. If [Henderson] is convicted of the crimes he is charged with, his Washington state education certificate will be permanently revoked, and he will never be able to hold an education certificate in Washington, Slagle said. The information of his permanent vocation will be uploaded to the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification (NASDTEC) clearinghouse. This information will be sent to all 50 states, Guam, Canada and several other jurisdictions. The order that we issued will also be placed on our website. If Henderson is found not guilty, OSPI will continue its investigation and determine the appropriate level of discipline based on what is is able to legally prove. That also would happen if a teacher is convicted or pleads guilty to a crime that would not permanently revoke their license. What happens once OSPI opens an investigation? OSPI usually opens an investigation when the school district superintendent, educational service district superintendent or the chief administrator of a private school has sent a letter of complaint. The agency can open one on its own once it receives information that someone has been arrested or charged with certain crimes, Slagle said. Once an investigation is opened, the school district is subpoenaed for investigation materials and other documents. Next, OSPI interviews victims and witnesses. It also interviews the educator accused of violating the code of professional conduct and/or accused of lacking good moral character or personal fitness, Slagle said. An investigative report is then produced, and the staff attorney reviews the investigation. If there is enough evidence to prove a case, an appropriate level of disciplinary action is issued based on the facts. If an educator is convicted of a crime against children, their certificate would be permanently revoked, Slagle said. If they are convicted of another crime that is felony level, but does not fall under specific crimes against children, their certificate would be revoked. If the crime is a misdemeanor conviction, their certificate may still get revoked, but OSPI could also suspend the certificate for a specific amount of time and require certain conditions be met prior to reinstatement, she said. After that, the proposed order is written and sent to the educator. The educator has 30 days to appeal the decision. If it is not appealed, the proposal becomes a final order, she said. If the educator appeals, the case is heard by the Admissions and Professional Conduct Advisory Committee, which is a group of nine educators and administrators, Slagle said. Each side has 10 minutes to present their case. The APCAC committee then has 30 days to issue a final order. That order can also be appealed within 30 days of it being sent out. If that happens a full-blown hearing is scheduled in front of an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ), Slagle said. In this hearing victims and witnesses as well as the educator are called to testify. After the hearing, the ALJ has 90 days to decide on the appropriate level of discipline to issue in the case. OSPI has issued permanent revocations for seven teaching certificates in the last year. The agency has issued 24 total over the last five years, Slagle said. She said that permanent revocations are only issued for convictions or guilty pleas for certain crimes, mainly against children. (FOX40.COM) The National Weather Service said an Excessive Heat Warning for Californias interior will continue through the evening of Friday, July 12. A Heat Advisory issued in the California Delta area and the Sierra Nevada mountains will continue to the same date. Live Weather & Maps Live Weather Radar Weather News Weather Email Alerts Live Traffic Map The extensions come as a heat wave persists across the state even with only a small lull on Monday and Tuesday, when temperatures in Sacramento are expected to be around and potentially dip below 100F. Since July 1, much of the state has been baking in sweltering heat, with some cities breaking records for temperatures on individual days and matching or breaking heat wave duration records. When will it stop being 100 F in Sacramento and Northern California? The NWS advises people to avoid being outside in the direct sun between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. since there is a higher risk of heat stress or illnesses. Temperatures in the Central Valley and foothill regions could reach anywhere between 100-111F, with low temperatures between the upper 60s and mid-80s. Mountain areas can expect highs of 95-105F, with lows between the upper 50s and upper 70s. Cooling centers open in Northern California as dangerous heat arrives The forecast for the weekend shows a slight drop in temperatures into the mid to high 90s for the Sacramento area. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Exclusive: Congresswoman says Biden should ease restrictions on Ukraines use of US weaponry on Russian soil The administration of U.S. President Joe Biden should further lift restrictions on Ukraines use of American weaponry for strikes against targets on Russian soil, a ranking member of the U.S. House of Representatives defense committee said. In an exclusive interview with the Kyiv Independent, Congresswoman Betty McCollum (D-Minnesota) said that she and other House legislators will raise the issue with the White House this week as world leaders gather in Washington, D.C. for the NATO summit and Biden faces ongoing pressure to bow out of the presidential race. It needs to be lifted a bit, Rep. McCollum told the Kyiv Independent. I want soldiers of Ukraine to have a level of defense that allows them to do their mission. Marking a major shift more than two years into Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. late this spring followed some European countries, including Germany, France, and the U.K., in allowing Ukraine for the first time to use their weaponry to conduct strikes on Russian territory in border regions of Ukraines northeast. The policy reversal allowed for the use of U.S. weaponry as advanced as the American HIMARS multiple-launch rocket systems and the European equivalent. Ukraine wasted no time in exploiting the decision by quickly conducting cross-border strikes to pre-empt further Russian air strikes and incursions, such as the recent push by Russian troops into the northeastern Kharkiv Oblast. But the move had stopped short of allowing Ukraine to use the more powerful and longer-range ATACM rockets the HIMARS system can fire. Rep. McCollum spoke with the Kyiv Independent just before Russia on July 8 carried out its latest massive air strikes on Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities after returning from a meeting with Zelensky in Kyiv and before Congress returned to session Monday after a week-long recess. Ambassador of the United States to Ukraine Bridget A. Brink (L) stands with members of the Congressional delegation (from 2L to R) Betty McCollum, Mike Turner, Ronny Jackson, John Joyce and Tony Gonzalez during a press conference in Kyiv on July 1, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images) During this Kyiv meeting with a small bipartisan Congressional delegation, U.S. restrictions on Ukraines use of American weapons to strike within Russia were discussed. Rep. McCollum said that Zelensky was straightforward in what his army needed to further protect his country, help the Ukrainian military hold positions, and retain hope of pushing Russias forces out from some 18% of Ukrainian territory in the east and south that remains occupied. He speaks directly as he should to members of Congress because he is representing a sovereign country under attack, she said. The Ukrainian lives that were lost when Congress stalled for six months before passing nearly $60 billion in aid for Ukraine have served as a lesson for the governing body that has future Ukraine spending bills to mull, Rep. McCollum said. She declined to predict how smoothly U.S. legislators will be able to approve future support packages. Despite the unknowns of what a second Donald Trump presidency could mean for aid to Ukraine, Rep. McCollum said the urgency with which she hopes the restrictions will be lifted has nothing to do with this autumns U.S. presidential election. She believes they should be removed right away. Trump and his isolationist MAGA base within the Republican party have questioned the prospects of future U.S. assistance for Ukraine. Trump has himself expressed various views ranging from assistance being granted only on a loan basis, to suggestions that Ukraine may have to concede territory to Russia. Trump, without providing details, has also boasted that he could end the war even before taking over as president, adding that Russias invasion would not have occurred under his leadership. A lot of questions President Biden, meanwhile, repeatedly vowed to stay in the presidential race over the weekend, despite mounting calls for him to step aside after appearing mentally confused during a recent televised debate with Trump. He defended his mental fitness and ability to serve in a 22-minute ABC News interview on July 5, where he tried to reassure voters by revisiting his record. Im the guy that shut Putin down, Biden said. So far, five House Democrats have said Biden should step aside, while many others have expressed concern. I have a lot of questions, Rep. McCollum, herself a Democrat, told the Kyiv Independent when asked whether Biden should stay in the race. We need to make sure that President Biden is up for the job. From questionable radio appearances to swing-state campaign stops, every appearance by Biden is viewed as carrying with it the chance to make a detrimental impact on his campaign. We will see as we find out more about what could take place in the future, McCollum said, who represents Minnesota, where Democratic incumbent Rep. Angie Craig, who is in a battleground district, called for Biden to step aside last weekend. U.S. House of Representative member Betty McCollum speaks during a press conference in Kyiv on July 1, 2024, amid the Russian invasion in Ukraine. (Anatolii Stepanov/AFP via Getty Images) Representative Hakeem Jeffries, Democrat of New York and the minority leader met virtually with leading Democrats on Sunday to discuss Bidens candidacy. Six top House Democrats said its time for Biden to withdraw in the private remarks to colleagues, according to reporting from the New York Times. We can all have one bad day of work at work, unfortunately when you have one bad day at work during one of the most important moments of your life the debate that the world is watching, there are a lot of questions and speculation to it, McCollum told the Kyiv Independent. NATO Summit At the NATO summit this week in Washington, D.C., Ukraine is expected to receive a commitment of nearly $40 billion in financial assistance for 2025 from alliance leaders. The announcement could be a direct attempt to mitigate the risk of a second Trump administrations opposition to aid. President Biden remains committed to Ukraine, Rep. McCollum said when asked if there are any worries to be had with continued support for Ukraine in a second Biden administration before quickly pivoting to an anecdote about how Congress rallied against Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greenes (R-Ga.) opposition to U.S. aid for Ukraine. How committed Biden is could surface this week during his packed schedule in D.C. at the NATO Summit, where he will face foreign allies again. Rep. McCollum said shell certainly be raising the issue of restrictions on U.S. weapons at the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C. this week, which celebrates 75 years of the alliance that recently welcomed Sweden this March. The White House said President Biden may hold a bilateral meeting with President Zelensky during the July 9-11 summit. We are looking for some serious and strong decisions from the Washington Summit, President Zelensky told reporters last week. However, it remains unclear how much Biden will be able to focus on continued aid to Ukraine at the Washington Summit, where it is reported that a NATO office in Kyiv will be announced. I guess a good way to judge me is you're going to have now the NATO conference here in the United States next week, Mr. Biden said in his interview with ABC News on Friday Come listen. See what they say. After the NATO-Ukraine Council meets on July 10, Biden will conclude the summit with a solo press conference. Speculation looms that the news conference could determine his political fate after over a week of panic in the Democratic party following the president's party-rattling debate performance. Read also: White House: Biden may hold bilateral meeting with Zelensky during NATO summit Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. By Jonathan Landay and Parisa Hafezi WASHINGTON/DUBAI (Reuters) - Recent satellite imagery shows major expansions at two key Iranian ballistic missile facilities that two American researchers assessed are for boosting missile production, a conclusion confirmed by three senior Iranian officials. The enlargement of the sites follows an October 2022 deal in which Iran agreed to provide missiles to Russia, which has been seeking them for its war against Ukraine. Tehran also supplies missiles to Yemen's Houthi rebels and the Lebanese militia Hezbollah, both members of the Iran-backed Axis of Resistance against Israel, according to U.S. officials. Images taken by commercial satellite firm Planet Labs of the Modarres military base in March and the Khojir missile production complex in April show more than 30 new buildings at the two sites, both of which are located near Tehran. The images, reviewed by Reuters, show many of the structures are surrounded by large dirt berms. Such earthworks are associated with missile production and are designed to stop a blast in one building from detonating highly combustible materials in nearby structures, said Jeffrey Lewis of the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. The expansions began at Khojir in August last year and at Modarres in October, Lewis said, based on images of the sites. Iran's arsenal is already the largest in the Middle East, estimated at more than 3,000 missiles, including models designed to carry conventional and nuclear warheads, experts say. Three Iranian officials, who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly, confirmed that Modarres and Khojir are being expanded to boost production of conventional ballistic missiles. "Why shouldn't we?" said one official. A second Iranian official said some of the new buildings would also allow a doubling of drone manufacturing. Drones and missile components would be sold to Russia, drones would be provided to the Houthis and missiles to Hezbollah, the source added. Reuters was unable independently to confirm the Iranian officials' comments. Iran's mission to the United Nations did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on the expansion of the complexes. Tehran has previously denied providing drones and missiles to Russia and the Houthis. Hezbollah's media office did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdulsalam said a boost in Iran's weapons manufacturing would not have any impact in Yemen because the Houthis develop and manufacture aircraft independent of Iran. Lewis analyzed the Planet Labs imagery with Decker Eveleth, an associate research analyst at CNA, a Washington thinktank, as part of a Middlebury project that monitors Iranian missile infrastructure. "We know that Russia is on the hunt for low-cost missile capabilities, and it has gone to Iran and North Korea," said Lewis. Moscow and Pyongyang have denied the transfer of North Korean missiles to Russia. The Russian embassy in Washington and North Korea's mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to requests for comment for this story. The two U.S. researchers said in separate interviews that it was not clear from the photos what kinds of missiles would be produced at the new facilities, which still appeared to be under construction. Any increase in Tehran's missile or drone production would be concerning to the United States, which has said that Iranian drones help sustain Russia's assault on Ukrainian cities, and to Israel as it fends off attacks from Iran-backed groups, including Hezbollah. The U.S. Office of the Director of National Intelligence declined to comment on the reseachers' analysis. A U.S. National Security Council spokesperson declined to confirm their assessment, adding that the United States has implemented various measures, including sanctions, intended to constrain Iranian missile and drone production and exports. Reuters in February reported that Iran had sent surface-to-surface ballistic missiles to Russia for use against Ukraine. Iran denied providing the weapons. Washington said it could not confirm the transfers but it assumed Tehran intended to provide missiles to Moscow. NEW BUILDINGS, DIRT BERMS Shahid Modarres and Khojir are overseen by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite paramilitary organization that plays a central role in Iran's missile and nuclear programs. It controls large segments of the Iranian economy and answers directly to Irans supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The complexes have long been associated with the development and production of Iran's short- and medium-range ballistic missiles and rockets for the country's space program. On Nov. 12, 2011, a massive explosion destroyed a large swath of Shadid Modarres associated with solid fuel missiles, killing 17 IRGC officers. They included Gen. Hassan Moqaddam, regarded by Iran as the "architect" of its ballistic missile program. Construction at Shahid Modarres, which began again after the 2011 explosion, accelerated last year, the second Iranian official said. "I think the Iranians may have chosen not to berm the buildings (before the explosion) because they didnt want to draw attention to them," said Lewis. "They learned the hard way." Eveleth and Lewis said the sites' long history with Iran's missile program Shahid Modarres is considered by some experts as its birthplace - and the numerous dirt berms support their assessment that Tehran is expanding ballistic missile production. "When we see where you basically have an entire production line that is bermed like that, that's usually missiles," said Eveleth. (Reporting by Jonathan Landay and Parisa Hafezi; Editing by Don Durfee, Cynthia Osterman and Daniel Flynn) By Ju-min Park and Jack Kim SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol said he would discuss with NATO leaders the distinct threat North Korea poses to Europe by deepening military ties with Russia, warning that Moscow must choose between the two Koreas where its true interests lie. It "depends entirely" on Russia where it wants to take future ties with South Korea, Yoon said, adding that Seoul would make a decision on weapons support for Ukraine based on how a new military pact between Moscow and Pyongyang plays out. "Military co-operation between Russia and North Korea poses a distinct threat and grave challenge to the peace and security on the Korean peninsula and in Europe," Yoon told Reuters. The remarks came in a written response to Reuters' questions ahead of a visit to Washington for a NATO summit. Yoon, who became the first South Korean leader to attend a NATO summit in 2022, is set to depart on Monday for the Washington event, his third time attending such a meeting. Together with Australia, Japan and New Zealand, South Korea makes up the four Asia-Pacific partners joining in the talks on July 10 and 11. Relations between South Korea and Russia have soured as Moscow receives shipments of ballistic missiles and artillery from Pyongyang for its war against Ukraine. Both Russia and North Korea deny such deals. Russia has called South Korea "the most friendly among unfriendly countries", with President Vladimir Putin saying it would be making "a big mistake" if it decided to supply arms to Ukraine. South Korea protested when Putin visited Pyongyang in June and signed a treaty with leader Kim Jong Un that covers mutual defence. "North Korea is clearly a menace to the international society," Yoon said in his comments. "I hope that Russia will sensibly decide which side - the South or the North - is more important and necessary for its own interests." He added, "The future of ROK-Russia relations depends entirely on Russia's actions," referring to South Korea by its official name, the Republic of Korea. Russia said it "fully disagreed" with Yoon's comments calling on it to choose between North and South Korea. Moscow supports building good relations with its neighbours but South Korea has imposed sanctions on Russia while North Korea is a partner, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in comments posted by the Russian embassy in Seoul on social media platform X on Tuesday. Yoon has pushed for greater security ties with Europe and other U.S. allies to deter North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. At the same time, he has looked to boost the South's role in global security, on issues such as Russia's invasion of Ukraine and rivalry between China and the United States. ARMS FOR UKRAINE When asked if he would authorise weapons for Ukraine, Yoon said South Korea would look at "the level and substance of military co-operation between Russia and North Korea". That would include areas such as arms dealing, transfers of military technology and assistance with strategic materials, he added. Russia, a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council which approved sanctions resolutions until 2017, has engaged in an "illegal" military partnership with North Korea, Yoon said, adding that it was troubling to consider what help it might be giving Pyongyang in return. There will be a clear "negative" impact on South Korea's ties with Russia if it continues to violate U.N. resolutions, he added. Before Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, it was South Korea's fifth-largest export destination, while Russia was a key supplier of energy to South Korea, the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies says. South Korea will take its partnership with NATO to a new level in September, through a cyber defence exercise in which it plans to host NATO member states, organised by the country's intelligence agency, Yoon said. Leaders are gathering in Washington for the summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization that will also celebrate the 75th anniversary of the military alliance. Yoon declined to comment on possible changes to U.S. policies if Donald Trump becomes president a second time in November elections, but pointed to unwavering bipartisan support for the U.S.-South Korea alliance over the past 70 years. "The alliance will stay strong going forward," Yoon added. Trump's allies are assuring officials in Japan and South Korea he will support a Biden-era effort to deepen three-way ties aimed at countering China and North Korea, Reuters has reported. (Reporting by Ju-min Park, Jack Kim, Josh Smith, Hyonhee Shin, Hyunsu Yim; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Christian Schmollinger) President Biden, accompanied by Vice President Harris, signs an executive order regarding artificial intelligence safety on October 30, 2023 in Washington, D.C. Credit - Chip SomodevillaGetty Images A large majority of American voters are skeptical of the argument that the U.S. should race ahead to build ever more powerful artificial intelligence, unconstrained by domestic regulations, in an effort to compete with China, according to new polling shared exclusively with TIME. The findings indicate that American voters disagree with a common narrative levied by the tech industry, in which CEOs and lobbyists have repeatedly argued the U.S. must tread carefully with AI regulation in order to not hand the advantage to their geopolitical rival. And they reveal a startling level of bipartisan consensus on AI policy, with both Republicans and Democrats in support of the government placing some limits on AI development in favor of safety and national security. According to the poll, 75% of Democrats and 75% of Republicans believe that taking a careful controlled approach to AIby preventing the release of tools that terrorists and foreign adversaries could use against the U.S.is preferable to moving forward on AI as fast as possible to be the first country to get extremely powerful AI. A majority of voters support more stringent security practices at AI companies, and are worried about the risk of China stealing their most powerful models, the poll shows. The poll was carried out in late June by the AI Policy Institute (AIPI), a U.S. nonprofit that advocates for a more cautious path in AI development. The findings show that 50% of voters believe the U.S. should use its advantage in the AI race to prevent any country from building a powerful AI system, by enforcing safety restrictions and aggressive testing requirements. Thats compared to just 23% who believe the U.S. should try to build powerful AI as fast as possible to outpace China and achieve a decisive advantage over Beijing. The polling also suggests that voters may be broadly skeptical of open-source AI, or the view that tech companies should be allowed to release the source code of their powerful AI models. Some technologists argue that open-source AI encourages innovation and reduces the monopoly power of the biggest tech companies. But others say it is a recipe for danger as AI systems grow more powerful and unpredictable. What I perceive from the polling is that stopping AI development is not seen as an option, says Daniel Colson, the executive director of the AIPI. But giving industry free rein is also seen as risky. And so theres the desire for some third way. And when we present that in the pollingthat third path, mitigated AI development with guardrailsis the one that people overwhelmingly want. The survey also shows that 63% of American voters think it should be illegal to export powerful AI models to potential U.S. adversaries like China, including 73% of Republicans and 59% of Democrats. Just 14% of voters disagree. A sample of 1,040 Americans was interviewed for the survey, which was representative by education levels, gender, race, and the political parties for whom respondents cast their votes in the 2020 presidential election. The margin of error given for the results is 3.4% in both directions. So far there has been no comprehensive AI regulation in the U.S., with the White House encouraging different government agencies to regulate the technology themselves where it falls under their existing remits. That strategy appears to have been put in jeopardy, however, by a recent Supreme Court ruling that limits the ability of federal agencies to apply broad-brushstroke rules set by Congress to specific, or new, circumstances. Congress is so slow to act that there's a lot of interest in being able to delegate authorities to existing agencies or a new agency, to increase the responsiveness of government when it comes to AI policy, Colson says. This [ruling] definitely makes that harder. Even if federal AI legislation seems unlikely any time soon, let alone before the 2024 election, recent polling by the AIPI and others suggests that voters arent as polarized on AI as they are on other issues facing the nation. Earlier polling by the AIPI found that 75% of Democrats and 80% of Republicans believe that U.S. AI policy should seek to prevent AI from quickly reaching superhuman capabilities. The polls also showed that 83% of Americans believe AI could accidentally cause a catastrophic event, and that 82% prefer slowing down AI development to account for that risk, compared to just 8% who would like to see it accelerated. Write to Billy Perrigo at billy.perrigo@time.com. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation of Kazakhstan is undertaking a large-scale transformation of the entire water industry, an informed source from the ministry told Trend. "To ensure water security and address potential water scarcity issues, the Ministry of Water Resources and Irrigation is undertaking a large-scale overhaul of the water sector in strategic areas. This includes developing a comprehensive plan for Kazakhstan's water industry from 2024 to 2028. The plan encompasses several initiatives, notably the construction of new reservoirs for storing melt and flood waters, the renovation of 15 existing reservoirs, and upgrades to over 14,000 kilometers of irrigation canals. Additionally, the plan includes comprehensive inspections of hydraulic structures and the implementation of water-saving irrigation technologies," the statement from the ministry reads. According to the source, the Comprehensive Plan until 2028 includes the construction of 40 new reservoirs and the development of design and estimate documentation for 3 additional reservoirs. "The implementation of these projects aims to increase the capacity for storing an additional 2,603.9 million cubic meters of water and expand the irrigated area to 295,041 hectares. This initiative also ensures reliable water supply to various sectors of the economy and mitigates the risk of emergencies. Furthermore, to enhance water resource efficiency and prevent future shortages in water-deficient regions of the country, the action plan for implementing the Concept of Development of the Water Resources Management System of Kazakhstan for 2024-2030 (approved by the Government of Kazakhstan on February 5, 2024, under No. 66) includes research into promising options for territorial redistribution of water resources, including the rivers Ertis and Kigach," said the ministry. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Explosion occurs in Kharkiv: Russians use tactical aircraft to strike Rescue workers at the scene of the strike. Stock photo: State Emergency Service of Ukraine An explosion occurred in the city of Kharkiv or its vicinity after reports of increased activity of Russian tactical aircraft on the night of 7-8 July. Source: Ukraines Air Force; Suspilne, a Ukrainian public broadcaster; Oleh Syniehubov, Head of Kharkiv Oblast Military Administration, on Telegram Details: Ukraines Air Force reported that Russian tactical aircraft were active in the east and southeast. Kharkiv local journalists stated that an explosion was heard in the city, "presumably somewhere on the outskirts". Syniehubov asked residents of Kharkiv and Kharkiv district to stay in shelters. Support UP or become our patron! Explosion rocks Mykolaiv during air-raid warning because of ballistic missile threat Smoke after an explosion. Stock photo: Open sources An explosion occurred in the city of Mykolaiv on the night of 7-8 July. Source: Ukraines Air Force; Suspilne, a Ukrainian public broadcaster Details: The explosion occurred after the military warned of a threat of ballistic missile attacks from the south. An air-raid warning was issued in Ukraines southern oblasts. Support UP or become our patron! The King will be in Balmoral when Extinction Rebellion protests at Windsor - Jane Barlow/PA Extinction Rebellion has organised a protest at Windsor Castle in a challenge to the King who will be in Scotland. The campaign group has announced plans to stage a mass occupation of Windsor Great Park from Aug 30 until Sept 1, citing the Kings well-documented passion for the environment. The group has written to the monarch, informing him of its plans to bring thousands to his door and urging him to help facilitate the protest. However, he will be on his annual summer holiday at Balmoral in Scotland, some 500 miles away. Buckingham Palace is aware of Extinction Rebellions plans, and said the protest was a matter for the police. Announcing the protest, the group quoted from a book called Harmony, written by the King when he was the Prince of Wales in 2010. This is a call to revolution, he wrote in the introduction. The Earth is under threat. It cannot cope with all that we demand of it. It is losing its balance, and we humans are causing this to happen. Extinction Rebellion said it had chosen to occupy Windsor Great Park because the King clearly understands the plight of the planet and the urgent need for change. It acknowledged that he is expected to be less vocal on the topic now he is monarch, as it is considered too political. Extinction Rebellion said it had chosen to occupy Windsor Great Park because the King 'clearly understands the plight of the planet' - John Sibley/Reuters The group insisted that the protest would not target an individual but the system, in which it said money and power was concentrated in the hands of a few. It is unclear whether it considers the King an ally or part of the problem. He has been personally invited to join the protest, along with all people of good hearts and good conscience who can look forward to three days of beauty, community, action and democracy. The group wrote to the King on June 13, warning that, without radical change to democracy, politicians would fail us again and again. It said: We will bring thousands to your door in Windsor to protest at the failure of our government to act on the science of climate change and ecological collapse. We refuse to bequeath a dying planet to future generations by failing to act now. We act in peace, with ferocious love of these lands in our hearts. We act on behalf of life. Catherine Bartlett, of Extinction Rebellion UK, said: Windsor Castle has been chosen as an embodiment of a broken and unjust system, where our message will resonate powerfully. The general election has neither fixed our broken system nor addressed the urgent action needed to tackle the climate and nature emergency. Aristocrats, oligarchs and corporate interests have infected and distorted our politics and media for their own benefit and at our expense. Our politics is failing us from top to bottom. Its time for a democratic upgrade. We demand better at all levels. 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. Fleets of new and updated fighter jets will be placed at U.S. military bases in Japan, a notable defense development and financial investment in the Pacific as tensions continue to rise with China. The Department of Defense announced last week that 36 modern F-15EX aircraft will be replacing 48 older F-15C/D fighter jets at Kadena Air Base on Okinawa over the next several years. Additionally, Misawa Air Base in northern Japan will get 48 F-35A Lightning II aircraft to replace 36 F-16 Fighting Falcon fighter jets. Pentagon officials also announced that they will "modify the number" of F-35B aircraft at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni near Hiroshima, but did not specify the new size of the fleet. All those changes are slated to happen over the course of several years. Read Next: Feds Arrest Former Air Force Base Engineer in Connection to Deadly Mississippi KC-130 Crash in 2017 "The modernization plan, which will be implemented over the next several years, reflects over $10 billion of capability investments to enhance the U.S.-Japan Alliance, bolster regional deterrence, and strengthen peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region," the Pentagon said in a news release. While it wasn't immediately clear what that means for shuffling personnel, Pentagon Press Secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder, in response to Military.com, said Monday that those future moves will be specific to the new aircraft. "It's going to be tailored to the number of aircraft, the types of aircraft and the requirements," Ryder said. "I think it's safe to say that the Air Force will provide whatever capabilities are needed in terms of manpower, equipment to sustain those capabilities." The announcement that modern aircraft will be stationed at Kadena Air Base, Misawa Air Base and Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni came after officials announced in 2022 that F-15s would be pulled from Kadena and replaced with rotational forces of more modern aircraft. Air Force spokeswoman Ann Stefanek told Military.com on Monday that personnel have already been relocating to the area since the F-15Cs have been pulled from Japan. "Once new aircraft begin arriving at Kadena, associated personnel will be assigned," Stefanek added. "This is typical during an aircraft transition. Modernizing our capabilities remains our top priority, and the transition to more capable aircraft exemplifies our continued commitment and strong foundation of [our] alliance with Japan." Stefanek said that, currently, rotational forces are continuing to support the base and added that "for operational security reasons" more details could not be provided. The news of the lack of a permanent fighter squadron drew criticism from GOP lawmakers in 2022, Military.com reported at the time, because Kadena Air Base on Okinawa is one of the closest installations to Taiwan, at a little under 500 miles away. Last week's announcement of the modern aircraft coming to the region was well received by Japan's government, its Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a press conference last week. "In the face of the most severe and complex security environment since the end of World War II, and amidst the increased military activities of neighboring countries, the United States is maintaining and strengthening the presence of U.S. forces in Japan to further enhance the deterrence and response capabilities of the Japan-U.S," Hayashi said, according to CNN. The moves mirror the Department of the Air Force and Pentagon's overall shift to "great power competition" -- a term used by officials to justify increased spending and strategy focused on adversaries, namely China. Last month, the 142nd Wing of the Oregon Air National Guard became the first operational unit in the entire Air Force to receive the new F-15EX Eagle II fighter jet. -- Konstantin Toropin contributed to this report. Related: GOP Lawmakers Sound Alarm over Pulling F-15s from Japan SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) Two worried parents flew all the way from Kansas City to San Francisco to search for their missing son on the streets of the Tenderloin neighborhood. Dorrell Kings mother and father hiked up and down city streets on Sunday. We came all this way to let him know we miss him and we want him to be safe, the mother, Crystal King, said. Dorrell, 43, is homeless and struggles with addiction. He was first reported missing in November of 2023. Police advised his parents that their son may be found between OFarrell and Turk streets, where people often hang out using drugs. Crystal and Dorzell King flew from Kansas City to San Francisco to find their missing son. (KRON4 Photo). As a father, it hurts, and its a very painful thing to know he has sunken to this level, the father, Dorzell King, said. Baby falls out of window in SFs Mission District: authorities A local nonprofit, Urban Alchemy, helped search for Dorrell. Al Ibarra of Urban Alchemy said sometimes he works with unhoused people for months, and then suddenly, stops hearing from them. Sometimes it is bad news, sometimes it is good news but most of the time bad news. Its very unfortunate. All these people, they come from families, and something in their life happened that made them homeless, Ibarra said. Crystal and Dorzell King tape fliers with photos of their son around San Francisco on July 7, 2024. (KRON4 Photo) Dorrells parents did not give up on finding their son in a city thats more than 1,500 miles away from home. JJ Smith, an anti-drug advocate who helps homeless people around the Tenderloin connect with services, watched KRON4s news story. Early Monday morning, Smith spotted Dorrell in the Mission District and helped reunite him with his parents. The time between when Smith watched the news, and saw Dorrell, happened so quick I couldnt believe it myself, Smith told KRON4. San Francisco has thousands of homeless people, with many struggling from addiction. Dorrell King is one of those people. He hasnt been heard from since November. His family flew all the way from Kansas City to look for him and try to save him. Theyre hoping for a miracle. pic.twitter.com/YdHL4ci5UE Jack Molmud (@jmolmud) July 8, 2024 At first, Dorrell hesitated to talk to Smith when Smith called out his name. I already had his parents on the phone, so when I walked up to him I just handed him the phone. (He was) very shocked his family was on the phone, Smith said. Dorrells parents said they will encourage their son to return home to Kansas and get clean. Smith said he believes in giving people who are struggling a chance to get their life back on track. He told KRON4, There are a lot of people that are on the streets that are struggling and some of them are here because theyre afraid to go home. If your family is looking for you, then there is someone who cares for you, and they can help. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Family with two children killed in Kharkiv Oblast by Russian landmine A two-month-old baby and a 5-year-old boy and their family were killed by a Russian mine. Photo: Serhii Bolvinov An explosion of a Russian mine killed a family of six people, including two children, in Kharkiv Oblast. A 2-month-old girl and a 5-year-old boy are among the dead. Their car hit a mine on a dirt road in the woods on their way home from a cottage, said Serhii Bolvinov, Head of the National Police Investigation Department in Kharkiv Oblast. "The man was carrying his sister, her two adult children and two young grandchildren in a Zhiguli (a Soviet car brand ed.). The driver decided to take a shortcut to the city and turned into the forest near the ring road," Bolvinov wrote. The tragedy happened near the cemetery in village of Tsyrkuny. The car hit the Russian mine and then caught fire. Preliminary data suggests it was a Russian TM-62P anti-tank mine. "The explosion was so powerful that people were thrown out of the car in different directions. The body of the older boy was severely burned, and his uncle's body parts had to be collected," the investigator said. Law enforcement officers found the body of a two-month-old girl the day after the tragedy. The blast wave had her thrown 15 metres away from her mother. The search lasted from 7 July. The first to check the area were demolition experts. On 2 July, a 58-year-old resident of the Kherson Oblast hit a Russian mine. An 11-year-old boy and his grandfather were injured in June when their goat stepped on a mine in Kherson Oblast. Support UP or become our patron! So far, no Black lawmakers on Capitol Hill have called on Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee. Why it matters. So far, no Black lawmakers on Capitol Hill have called on Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee. Why it matters. President Biden leaned on his deep ties to Black voters during a Sunday appearance in Philadelphia. So far, no Black lawmakers in Washington have publicly asked Biden to forgo his reelection bid. It's a show of support that is helping Biden as he works to reassure Democrats that he can win in the fall. On Sunday, President Joe Biden once again found himself in Philadelphia, a city that has played a crucial role in his political life. As Biden spoke onstage at the Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, one of the most influential Black churches in Philadelphia, he was received warmly by the congregants. It's a reception that Biden hasn't always gotten recently, as he continues his personal campaign to reassure Democrats that his reelection bid against former President Donald Trump remains viable following his disastrous June debate performance. For over a week, Biden has been under pressure by Washington lawmakers and many rank-and-file Democrats to make the case that he can handle the rigors of the general election campaign, part of long-running concerns over the 81-year-old Biden's acuity and fitness for office in a second term. But so far, no Black lawmaker on Capitol Hill has called on Biden to step aside as the Democratic presidential nominee, a show of support that may not hold but at the moment is appearing to give him some breathing room as he works to shore up jittery Democrats. Why is this development so significant? Pulse of the Hill Since last week, at least five House Democrats have called on Biden to forgo his reelection bid and allow the party to select a new nominee. But no member of the Congressional Black Caucus has made such a plea, and there is seemingly little appetite to do so. On Sunday, Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio told CNN's Eva McKend that Democratic lawmakers shouldn't turn against Biden. "I don't think for Democrats so close to the majority, so close and being so united under Hakeem Jeffries, we shouldn't be going public, we shouldn't be going rogue against our own President," she said after an appearance at the Essence Festival in New Orleans. During a Monday appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe," Beatty a former CBC chair said the group was firmly behind both Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris. Former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus Rep. @JoyceBeatty: I just returned from Essence Festival where CBC members took to the stage and sent a clear message: We are 100% with the president. We are standing with the Biden-Harris team because they have delivered. pic.twitter.com/JfHOOMv5RS Julia Hamelburg (@juliahamelburg) July 8, 2024 "We are 100% with the president," she reiterated. "We are standing with the Biden-Harris team because they have delivered." And the current CBC chair, Rep. Steven Horsford of Nevada, said in a statement: "President Joe Biden is the nominee and has been selected by millions of voters across this country, including voters in Nevada." While House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York the first Black lawmaker to lead a party in Congress held a Sunday virtual meeting with his caucus regarding Biden's candidacy, he has so far not publicly weighed in on how the Democratic nominee's campaign should proceed. A huge "what if" for Biden is if a high-ranking Black lawmaker calls on him to exit the race. Such a move would be a huge blow for a campaign that relies on influential Black surrogates to engage with voters across the country. Rep. Jim Clyburn of South Carolina, one of Biden's top Black allies in Washington, has voiced his continued support for the president. But Clyburn also said last week that should Biden step aside, he'd endorse a "mini-primary," arguing that it would be a fair process but also one that would likely give Harris a prime opportunity to prove her mettle. Right now, Biden's most reliable legislative allies are giving him considerable political cover. But will it help him with Black voters in the coming weeks and months? All eyes on the base In 2020, Black voters buoyed Biden in the South Carolina Democratic primary, which paved the way for his robust Super Tuesday performance en route to him winning the party's presidential nomination. That November, Biden won 92% of the Black vote, compared to Trump's 8% support, according to the Pew Research Center. It was a dominant performance that contributed heavily to Biden's wins in states like Georgia, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. But over the past year, Biden has stumbled with his support among Black voters namely those aged 18 to 29 as Trump is aiming to siphon minority votes away from the Democratic ticket. While Black voters are still largely behind Biden, his weaker numbers have contributed to some of his swing-state polling struggles, which have a direct impact on his ability to win against Trump in the fall. Biden's increased visibility is undoubtedly bringing a sigh a relief to allies who have been privately worried about the president's post-debate electoral prospects. As Biden leans on his most reliable base of supporters during the most turbulent period of his campaign, it'll be a huge test of his strategy for wooing Black voters as issues like the economy and health care continue to dominate the 2024 race. Read the original article on Business Insider Youll have noticed that the more Nigel Farage speaks for England, the more French he looks. At his post-election press conference, the eyes bulged and the shoulders shrugged at agitators who shouted RACIST! in a bid to drown him out. To them, he is another European nationalist. Had they shut up and listened, they might have felt vindicated. Asked what he thinks of Marine Le Pens performance in France, Nigel said: I disagree with [her] fundamentally on economics but I understand the sentiments that are expressed about La France, their culture, their identity. The National Rally goes further than hed ever go on deportations, but hed much rather they won than the extreme Left. This came as a surprise. I thought it was the consensus that British populists distinguish themselves from the Vichyites across the Channel we left the EU to escape nutters like that etc and in 2014, Farage certainly described Le Pens movement as tainted by anti-Semitism and general prejudice. But his tone has softened; her Euroscepticism clearly helps. And with Geert Wilders rising in the Netherlands and Giorgia Meloni in charge in Italy, the Left spies Farage joining an axis against liberal democracy. He wants to take us back to the 1930s! The counter-argument is that the European Right could only become competitive by imitating Nigels rather modern, race-blind patriotism. The Front National transformed into the National Rally; Marine broke with her anti-Semitic father; her golden boy, Jordan Bardella, is of Italian heritage. Le Pen even went to the high court to try to stop the state describing her party as far-Right. As for Reform, racists are certainly drawn to the party, but they are unwelcome and expelled. One of the defining images of the election was Reform candidate Irene Yoong-Henery, who migrated from Malaysia, telling Channel 4 News that we cant have every Tom, Dick or Harry moving to Britain. And the partys final rally was headlined by an entrepreneur called Zia Yusuf, who I suspect Farage is grooming as an heir. If this is nationalism, it is a new brand of multi-ethnic nationalism: the New Labour of the Old Right. Indeed, one of Reforms arguments is that tolerance, pluralism and harmony, which people imagine to be intrinsic British traits, are endangered by mass migration. Why? Because Labour and Tory governments have welcomed large numbers of people from cultures that dont share said values, and by arriving and living as a cohort, theyve never had to buy into them. The party thinks its support was galvanised by the Gaza protests, that the images of vast numbers marching for what Reformers see as an Islamist cause woke voters up to the fraying of the social fabric. Exactly the same happened in France. You might recall that Lee Anderson split with the Tories over the question of Islamic extremism in politics. Anderson won his seat on Thursday, as did two pro-Gaza independents. At Reforms press conference, Farage suggested that if anyone has a racism problem it is in fact Labour anti-Semitism while Reform is resolutely pro-Israel. So is the National Rally. Against the weight of history, some French Jews now vote for Le Pen as an unexpected bulwark against Muslim anti-Semitism: Le Pen won 27 per cent of the first round vote in a heavily Jewish Parisian suburb, the local socialist mayor observing that identity now plays a greater role in voting preference than social status. Many modern nationalists, far from being anti-constitutional, let alone reactionaries hankering for throne and altar, see themselves as rescuing the liberal order from the mistakes made by liberals. Reformers frequently pose as defenders of second-wave feminism, gay rights, free speech, working-class wages and conditions, and secularism. Sectarian politics is here, said Farage with a Gallic sigh: Weve never seen it in our lifetimes. By implication, his nostalgia is not for a time when racism was permissible and rife i.e. the 1930s but when people did not see everything through the prism of race. The Reform clock does not go back very far. Perhaps one or two decades. The SDP I did not vote for Reform, but for the Social Democratic Party, which is the Menshevik to their Bolshevik, the soft vs hard option. My reasons are complex. In short, I agree with Francis Fukuyama that history ended in 1989 in the sense that the battle of Left vs Right was over but politics would continue, for it is an expression of identity and values. In the absence of socialism, people will need to believe in something, so nationalism and religion would return to life. Its now clear that they have and that liberalism, which sees us as just individuals buying stuff, will struggle to compete. Given a choice between the national and the religious, I lean towards the religious and while Reform is defined by British exceptionalism, the SDP, so small it could comfortably fit in a telephone box, is motivated more by the Christian socialist tradition of national solidarity. Whatever: my seat remains Tory, and will do till the end of time, and the only thing that will change is the resident at Chevening House. Out goes the old foreign secretary, James Cleverly, in comes David Lammy. I shall be popping round to borrow milk which, if Labour wrecks the economy may be less a pleasantry, more a necessity. 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. MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WBTW) A recent study shows that fatal and serious crashes in South Carolina resulted in $30 billion in economic and quality-of-life costs in 2023. The study looks at the causes of increased traffic fatalities and potential solutions. Ricky Moretti, the director of policy and research with TRIP, a transportation nonprofit research organization based in Washington, D.C., said organizations across the country are doing a safe system approach, which is a broad-based, holistic approach to address what he calls a traffic safety crisis. Moretti said it starts with the motorists themselves driving at safer speeds and not being impaired while behind the wheel. He also said it goes beyond that to the infrastructure we are driving on. We know that when we do a variety of cost effective safety improvements, from adding rumble strips on rural roads, to adding turn lanes at busy intersections, to paving shoulders where its appropriate, to making sure that facilities for pedestrians and bicyclists are as safe as possible, he said. When we make these improvements, we see a significant benefit in terms of traffic safety. From 2013 to 2023, South Carolinas number of traffic fatalities rose 34%. The fatality rate increased by 9%. Moretti said $8 billion of that are the economic costs, which is lost productivity or lost time because of peoples injuries or if they had been killed. Looking at the $23 billon costs, which are the actual quality-of-life costs, those are the devastating costs that when someone obviously loses a loved one, he said. When you look at those costs, they are significantly higher. The number and rate of U.S .traffic fatalities increased greatly in 2020, being 1,066, and then increasing in 2021 to 1,198. However, it decreased in 2023, to 1,028. While the number did go down, it is still significantly higher than a decade ago, being 767 in 2013. Moretti said on average, more than 1,000 people are being killed in traffic crashes in South Carolina. About 18% of them are actually pedestrians or bicyclists, so this is really impacting everyone in South Carolina who are trying to get places, Moretti said. The challenge moving forward is reducing the number. The correct number needs to be zero, but how do we continue to see those numbers come down. While most crashes are on roadways, there are still fatalities in highway work zones. In South Carolina, highway work zone crashes resulted in 54 fatalities from 2018 to 2022. The U.S. Department of Transportation has taken on a national roadway safety strategy based on a safe system approach. Moretti said some of the elements of the approach include safer people, safer roads, safer vehicles, safer speeds and post-crash care. That definitely is a crisis that were facing and moving forward. It really is going to take a comprehensive approach, he said. Starting with the motorists, including making sure the infrastructures are as safe as possible and also looking at things like post-care crash, making everything as effective as possible. TRIP said ensuring safety on our roadways is a collective effort. * * * Hannah Huffstickler is a multimedia journalist at News13. She joined the News13 team in January 2024 after graduating from Coastal Carolina University in December of 2023. Keep up with Hannah on Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram. You can also 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. At least two people were killed in the Houston area on Monday when trees fell on homes as Hurricane Beryl descended on Texas, before the system was expected to turn north toward Arkansas by early Tuesday morning. Among those confirmed dead were a 53-year-old father and a 74-year-old grandmother, authorities in Harris County said. The man, who was not publicly identified, was sitting indoors with his wife and children in Humble when an oak tree crashed through the roof and hit the homes rafters, leaving him pinned underneath, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez wrote in a post on X. The rest of the family was unharmed, Gonzalez wrote. The aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, in El Campo, Texas. Daniel Becerril/Reuters In Ponderosa Forest, authorities received a report from a caller who said a tree fell through the roof of her grandmother's room, Mark Herman, a Harris County constable, wrote in a Facebook post. We are saddened to report that the 74 year old victim has been confirmed deceased, Herman wrote. Please keep her family in your prayers. The fatalities arrived soon after Beryl made landfall in Texas early Monday, bringing life-threatening storm surge and wind gusts up to 81 miles per hour after plowing a path through areas of Mexico and the Caribbean, where the storm left at least 11 dead in its wake. Beryl blew into Texas as a Category 1 hurricane, but was later downgraded to a tropical storm. By 10 a.m. central time, Beryls path was forecasted to turn north after pummeling Houston, and was set to reach southwestern Arkansas by 7 a.m. Tuesday, according to an update from the National Hurricane Center. A damaged gas station in Edna, Texas. Daniel Becerril/Reuters In the meantime, the center warned of flash flooding through Monday night and rip currents creating life-threatening beach conditions through Tuesday across portions of the northern and western Gulf coasts. Life-threatening storm surge inundation will continue through this afternoon along the coast of Texas from Port OConnor to Sabine Pass, including the eastern portion of Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay, the update said. Damaging wind gusts near the core of Beryl will continue to spread northward within the Tropical Storm Warning area, including the Houston metro area, for the next several hours. 10am CDT Key Messages for #TropicalStorm #Beryl: Life threatening storm surge, damaging wind gusts and considerable flash flooding continue across portions of southeast #Texas. See https://t.co/tW4KeGe9uJ and https://t.co/SiZo8oA90V for more info and the latest updates pic.twitter.com/lzfmaN3Cmt National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) July 8, 2024 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. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, July 8. Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kazakhstan Murat Nurtleu has held a meeting with Deputy Chairman of the Cabinet of Ministers and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan Rashid Meredov, who arrived in Astana on a working visit, Trend reports via the press service of the Kazakh MFA. During the talks, the sides discussed a wide range of issues concerning Kazakh-Turkmen cooperation. This included the status and prospects of cooperation in political, trade and economic, transit and transportation, energy, cultural, and humanitarian spheres, as well as the schedule of upcoming international events at the highest and highest levels. The Kazakh Foreign Minister congratulated his Turkmen counterpart on the successful holding of the Days of Culture of Turkmenistan in Kazakhstan, as well as the opening of the monument to Turkmen spiritual leader, and philosophical poet Makhtumkuli Fraghi in Astana. Stay up-to-date with more news at Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel OAK HILL, WV (WVNS) A Fayette County man was sentenced to prison for grand larceny. 48-year-old Eugene Derringer, of Oak Hill, was sentenced on June 24, 2024 to one to ten years in prison for the felony offense of grand larceny. On April 30, 2024, Derringer pleaded guilty to the felony offense, and he will need to spend at least one year in prison before becoming eligible for parole. Mount Olive Correctional Center inmate sentenced for Second-Degree Murder of another inmate A Trooper with the West Virginia State Police got a report that Derringer had stolen a 2001 BMW sport-utility vehicle from a house in the Oak Hill area of Fayette County on September 6, 2023 before selling it to a scrap yard in Raleigh County. The Trooper was informed by witnesses that Derringer stated he was the owner of the car, which had an estimated value of $1,100, and that it was given to him by the victim after he finished work on the car. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Jada Johnson called Fayetteville police for help. They shot her. Now, what will change? Two recent developments relate back to the fatal shooting of Jada Johnson, age 22, by Fayetteville police officers. The second anniversary of her death fell last Monday. The Fayetteville City Council at its June 24 meeting voted that the city will pay for lawyers to represent two police officers named in a federal lawsuit filed by Johnsons family and her estate. At the same meeting, council members budgeted millions of dollars to put muscle behind an Office of Community Safety. One goal of that office is to offer an "alternative response" to deescalate potentially violent situations through a program that may include social workers, mental health professionals and EMS personnel. Jada Johnson, 22, and her daughter Lanaya in a 2021 photo. From where I sit, the same difficult questions lie at the heart of both these developments. Namely: Johnson called 911 for help, the police responded. How was it the same police that killed her? How could this have been prevented? Can policing look different in Fayetteville? A Durham-based documentary sets the stage. Fayetteville City Council members see body camera footage The council voted 10-0 to pay for lawyers to represent Fayetteville Police Sgt. Timothy Rugg and Officer Zacharius Borom, according to the June 24 meeting notes and a city spokesman. The officers are accused of violating Johnsons civil rights when she was shot and killed in her grandparents living room on July 1, 2022. Why the Fayetteville Police Foundation is speaking out against the City Council In June 2023, several members of the City Council were hesitant to pay for legal representation for the two officers because members said they wanted to view body camera footage of the incident. That raised the ire of the Fayetteville Police Foundation, which advocates for the police. Councilmember Mario Benavente said last week that a judge in June allowed members to review video footage on the condition that members would not share details of its content with the public. The city was initially named as a defendant, but last December, U.S. District Court Judge James C. Dever III dismissed Fayetteville from the case. He accepted the citys argument that it cannot be held liable solely based on one of its employees violating someones rights. Civil rights lawyer: Suit is a march toward justice The suit, which Johnsons family announced at a news conference last year, was filed in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina. Civil rights lawyer Harry Daniels, who is one of the lawyers representing the family, called the action a march towards justice. Rick Iwanski, who is Johnsons grandfather, requested in a statement at that news conference that the council not cover the officers legal defense. Loved ones and supporters of Jada Johnson gathered at a press conference Friday, April 7, 2023, as Johnson's family's legal team announced a federal lawsuit in her death. Johnson, 22, was fatally shot by Fayetteville police July 1, 2022, in her grandfather's home. On the night of the incident, Johnson was in the throes of a manic episode and had called 911 multiple times, fearing harm by an ex-boyfriend who had a documented violent history, according to Johnsons family, Police Department news releases and the lawsuit documents. A long exchange ensued, during which paramedics were called, sent away and called back again. Johnson was tackled by police officers after she pulled out a gun and threatened to shoot herself. The lawsuit alleges Rugg had full control, but Borom shot her multiple times anyway. Johnson was shot in front of her 2-year-old daughter and her grandparents, Rick and Maria Iwanski. The state Department of Justice, after investigating the incident, declined to bring charges against any police officers. $2.3 million direct funding goes for Office of Community Safety In 2023, I moderated a forum on police reform that was organized in the wake of the beating death of Tyre Nichols by Black Memphis police officers in January of that year. For many in our community, the forum was their first time hearing about how an Office of Community Safety versions of which are up and running in cities like Durham and Greensboro might work. Johnsons situation was a part of the discussion. Her grandfather sat near the front. Funding for the office was included in the more than $319 million budget approved unanimously last month by the council. The budget allots $2.3 million in direct funding for the OCS, plus an additional $2.5 million for OCS-type activities, which include community outreach programs within the Police Department, some existing. Sources for the funding include the general fund, federal block grant money and money from the American Recovery Plan. Part of the money will go toward a mental health liaison. Activists on behalf of an OCS want to see as part of the office an alternate response model like Durhams HEART program. In that program, a response team deploys on certain calls alongside police. Funeral service for Jada Johnson at St Patrick Catholic Church on Friday, July 15, 2022. Johnson was shot and killed by a Fayetteville police officer July 1. Benavente said last week one priority was educating city residents here on how such a model would work in real life, that when you call 911, in certain situations that meet specified criteria, you get a different kind of help. Might such a model have saved Jada Johnsons life? We will never know. But it strikes me that, as a community, we owe it to ourselves to try, since what happened with Ms. Johnson should never have happened. Myron B. Pitts Myron B. Pitts can be reached at mpitts@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3559. This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Fayetteville to pay to defend officers in lawsuit over Johnson's death A firefighter working overnight looks at the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon fire burning in northern New Mexico in 2022. (Photo Courtesy Santa Fe National Forest) As the U.S. Forest Service plans to greatly increase prescribed burns to protect communities from devastating wildfires, a government report prompted by the states biggest-ever fire found gaps in some key areas in the federal agencys strategy. In June 2022, U.S. Rep. Teresa Leger Fernandez, a Democrat from Las Vegas, N.M., asked the Government Accountability Office to investigate and review the Forest Services prescribed burn protocols. She did so a few weeks after two escaped prescribed burns ignited on federal forest land combined to become the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire, which burned more than 530 square miles and hundreds of homes near her hometown. The Government Accountability Office, or GAO, is the auditing and investigations arm of Congress. It provides policy recommendations and investigates allegations of waste and fraud. The 57-page report released by the GAO on Monday examined how the Forest Service implemented changes it promised it would make after the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire, with an eye toward the future of prescribed burns in the United States. Amid multi-year drought and increasing average temperatures across the West, the Forest Service has a goal of treating up to 20 million additional acres across the national forests under its control over the next 10 years to reduce wildfire risk. That means thinning dense and dying tree stands and also igniting prescribed burns. The service also hopes to treat an additional 30 million acres of other federal, state and private lands, in partnership with those governments or agencies. The GAO report also examined the causes and harms of 43 escaped prescribed burns ignited by the Forest Service between 2012 and 2021, out of about 50,000 projects. It found those fires escaped due to a combination of incorrect weather forecast readings, inaccurate information on prescribed burn plans, improper implementation of those plans, and insufficient or inadequately trained staff on site. Frequently, burn bosses felt pressure to ignite within limited burn windows, due to aggressive forest management goals or to avoid losing funding, according to the authors. Despite being the impetus for the GAO review, the reports authors did not include data or findings about the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire causes. Leger Fernandez said in a news release that that was because of pending litigation. However, many of the factors common to the 43 escaped burns, including inaccurate information on burn plans and insufficient staff, were among the causes found for the Hermits Peak Fire escape on April 6, 2022 in Las Dispensas, New Mexico. The 2022 Cerro Pelado Fire near Los Alamos was also determined last year to have been an escaped prescribed burn. That fire and the Calf Canyon Fire both started as pile burns ignited by forest crews that smoldered for weeks or months before roaring to life and becoming destructive fires. In total, prescribed burns that escaped burned roughly 385,000 acres in New Mexico in 2022. After the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon fires started, the Forest Service initiated a 90-day pause on all prescribed burns nationwide and issued a detailed report on the causes of the Hermits Peak-Calf Canyon Fire. It also released a list of changes it would make to ensure escapes like those in New Mexico dont happen again. The changes included requiring better modeling, more mobile weather stations in the project and requiring more-frequent supervisor sign-offs before burns are ignited, an effort to better adapt to changing conditions on the ground. The GAO report determined the Forest Service implemented those reforms and it has taken steps to address other reforms. While these are positive steps toward improving the prescribed fire program, the Forest Service has not determined the extent to which it will implement the remaining actions, including how or when, the authors write. One major challenge relates to how the service will ensure there are adequate staff available to conduct prescribed burns or arrive as backup should things go awry. The Forest Service is already struggling to hire enough wildland firefighters to suppress fires, due to low pay, long hours and safety risks. The Forest Service generally relies on the same teams of firefighters to ignite prescribed burns as it does to suppress wildfires, according to the authors, but prescribed burns operations pay less. Firefighters arent provided hazard pay for prescribed burns, and some employees dont get overtime, according to the report. Availability of sufficient and trained staff is among the greatest challenges to the Forest Services goal of expanding its prescribed fire program, the authors wrote. General fatigue and being overextended might also mean forest supervisors are less likely to send firefighters to support prescribed burns, according to the report. U.S. Forest Service Chief Randy Moore said in the report the service generally agrees with the GAOs findings and that it would work to implement the recommendations. Forest Service officials stress that prescribed burn escapes are extremely rare, occurring less than 1% of the time. But Leger Fernandez said the stakes of an escape are high. When you play with fire, theres no margin for error, she said in a news release about the GAO report. The GAO report also notes that impacts from the few prescribed fires that escape may be significant. The post Federal review prompted by NM wildfire warns of staffing shortfalls for future prescribed burns appeared first on Source New Mexico. FEMA letters to New Mexico applicants will contain important details, agency says NEW MEXICO (KRQE) Otero County, Lincoln County, and Mescalero Apache Reservation residents should keep their eye out for letters from FEMA. They may come by mail or email. After the South Fork and Salt Fires, community members were encouraged to apply for help from FEMA if they suffered damages or losses. FEMA inspecting New Mexico properties for assistance process FEMA stated they send letters after residents apply for federal disaster assistance. Those leters contain important details and require careful reading. They might include how much assistance youll receive or what you can use those funds for. If youve received a letter and need help understanding it, call FEMAs helpline at 800-621-3362. Click here to visit FEMAs disaster assistance 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 KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos. UPDATE: The missing individual has been located and is safe. Per our station policy, his name and picture have been removed from this story. FENTON, Mo. The Jefferson County Sheriffs Office has issued an Endangered Silver Advisory for a 77-year-old man who went missing Sunday afternoon. According to the advisory, the man left his home in Fenton around noon. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News The mans family said he has memory loss and other health issues that require medication that he did not take with him. Anyone who sees the man or his vehicle is asked to call 911 immediately. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. ST. LOUIS A Ferguson, Missouri, man remains in custody for a shooting over the weekend in downtown St. Louis. According to a spokesman for the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department, the shooting happened around 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 6, near Friedrich Schiller Sculpture Park at Market and 14th streets. An off-duty officer notified the department of the shooting. A 15-year-old boy suffered a graze wound to his right elbow, police said. The boy had been walking on 14th Street with a 45-year-old woman, a 43-year-old man, and another 15-year-old boy when they heard gunfire north of their location. Meanwhile, a 59-year-old man who was in his vehicle at the red light on Market at 14th heard gunshots, followed by the sound of bullets striking his car. An officer saw a vehicle speeding away from the area and reported a description of the vehicle to dispatchers. Another officer downtown stopped the vehicle near 18th and Olive streets. Police searching for escaped prisoner in Warren County The driver, a 31-year-old woman, and passenger, a 28-year-old man, were detained. Police said the off-duty officer who saw the shooting near the sculpture park identified the passenger as the suspect. The passenger, Jaquan D. Rush, was arrested without incident. Rush, a convicted felon, already had an active probation violation. The driver was also taken into custody for having active arrest warrants against her. The 15-year-old shooting victim was treated at the scene and did not have to go to the hospital. No other injuries were reported. The St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office charged Rush with second-degree assault, unlawful use of a weapon, unlawful possession of a firearm, first-degree property damage, and two counts of armed criminal action. No bond will be allowed for the time being. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Fire causes $130K in damage to Buffalo home BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) A fire caused an estimated $130,000 in damage to a Buffalo residence Sunday afternoon, fire officials announced. Officials said the fire occurred just after 12:30 p.m. at 260 Northland Avenue. The fire started on the first floor of an occupied residential structure, but no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. 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. SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) San Francisco firefighters responded to a fire Monday burning inside an apartment at the top of a four-story apartment building. The cause of the fire was determined to be from an electric scooter that was charging, according to the San Francisco Fire Department. The apartment is located at 60 Leavenworth Street. The fire, which broke out before noon, was contained within one unit on the fourth floor, SFFD said. Photo: San Francisco Fire Department Family from Kansas City finds missing son in SF Tenderloin According to SFFD, more than 45 firefighters worked to contain the fire, which was under control by 12:26 p.m. The fire department said one adult suffered non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to the hospital. Three adults have been displaced due to the fire. The cause of this fire was an electric scooter that was charging at the time of the fire, SFFD wrote on X. The fire department asked residents to avoid the area as crews were on 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 KRON4. BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, July 8. Kyrgyzstan exported 4,175 tons of oil products to China from January through April this year, which is 76 percent more than the 2,372 tons exported during the same months in 2023, Trend reports. According to Kyrgyzstans State Statistical Committee, the value of these exports reached $4.141 million, an increase of 58.4 percent over the $2.614 million recorded in JanuaryApril 2023. During the reporting period, Kyrgyzstan sold abroad a total of 67,781 tons of oil products worth $43.222 million. The value of these exports increased by 52.4 percent compared to $28.362 million in the same period of 2023, and the volume rose by 74.3 percent compared to 38,884 tons in JanuaryApril 2023. The majority of oil products from Kyrgyzstan were sent to Turkiye (37,404 tons for $23.627 million), followed by Uzbekistan, which received 17,641 tons worth $5.055 million. Overall, Kyrgyzstan's foreign trade turnover reached $5.171 billion from January through April 2024, which is a 27.7 percent increase compared to the same period in 2023 ($4.051 billion). Exports amounted to $760.6 million, which is an increase of 19.7 percent compared to the $635.678 million recorded in JanuaryApril 2023. Imports grew by 29.2 percent compared to $3.415 billion in the same period in 2023, reaching $4.411 billion from January through April 2024. NEW JERSEY (PIX11) Fireworks were blamed for a fast-moving wildfire, which has engulfed thousands of acres in southern New Jersey, according to authorities. The fireworks were lit in Wharton State Forest on the Fourth of July, per the New Jersey Forest Fire Service. More Local News The blaze wasnt spotted until the morning after near a campground that was later evacuated. The fire scorched an estimated 4,000 acres as of Sunday. It was 75% contained as of Sunday, according to authorities. Officials ask anyone with information to call the state park police tip line at 844-PARK-TIP (844-727-5847). Erin Pflaumer is a digital content producer from Long Island who has covered both local and national news since 2018. She joined PIX11 in 2023. See more of her work here. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. First lady attempts to reassure voters on campaign trail WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) With questions mounting about President Joe Bidens future in the 2024 race, First Lady Jill Biden hit the campaign trail on Monday. She visited three different states for rallies with military families and veterans. We need you in this election, Dr. Biden told a crowd in Wilmington, North Carolina. She also held events in Tampa, Florida and Columbus, Georgia. George Washington University Political Science Professor Todd Belt says the rallies seem to all be part of a larger effort to get the Biden campaign back on track. Its not uncommon for the first lady to be an important surrogate for a presidential campaign. However, three different events in three different states is a pretty heavy schedule, Belt said. The first lady seemingly addressed the doubts about her husband staying in the race. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, Dr. Biden said. The president is behind and needs all the help he can get, Belt said. Professor Belt says veterans could be a key voting bloc for President Biden as he looks to rally support. I think the Biden campaign sees a real weakness for Donald Trump and an opportunity there to cash in on that in order to supplement some of the other loses that the campaign has had among other groups, Belt said. As Team Biden tries to change the conversation theyre focusing on the stakes of the race. We have to meet this moment as if our freedoms are at risk, because they are, Dr. Biden said. With the first lady out front the Biden campaign is showing a commitment to stay in the race. Theyre really determined to plow forward no matter what, Belt 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. First lady Jill Biden launches program for veterans and military families in Wilmington Greeted by applause and cheering from supporters, first lady Dr. Jill Biden used a visit to Wilmington this week to launch the Veterans and Military Families for Biden-Harris program. She said four years ago her husband, President Joe Biden, went from being a military father to being commander in chief and that its a responsibility he took with pride. Joe reminds everyone any chance he gets, our U.S. military is the finest fighting military force in the history of the world, Biden said in front of an enthusiastic crowd at Hi-Wire Brewing. The first lady added that her husband believes that the one true sacred obligation is to prepare those our country sends into harms way and to care for them and their families when they come home. She acknowledged that although military spouses and children may not wear the uniform, they serve the country too. More: Scenes from first lady Dr. Jill Biden's visit to Wilmington Among the list of work for veterans and military families is the president's signing of the PACT Act, which granted over 1 million claims to veterans seeking care after being impacted by toxic exposures. It was the most significant expansion of benefits for veterans in over 30 years, according to the Biden-Harris campaign. In 2023 alone, the administration also delivered over $163 billion in earned benefits to 6.3 million veterans, according to the campaign. At Monday's event, Biden acknowledged her husband's decision to end the war in Afghanistan because the sacrifice of military families was too steep for too long. The first lady also acknowledged the presidents expansion of reproductive healthcare. President Biden wakes up every morning ready to work for you, Biden said. First lady Dr. Jill Biden speaks to the crowd at Hi-Wire Brewing on Monday July 8, 2024 in Wilmington, N.C. KEN BLEVINS/STARNEWS The first lady took the stage at Hi-Wire Brewing just before noon, joined by Wilmington Mayor Bill Saffo and Jason Cain, former North Carolina assistant secretary for military affairs. Saffo led the remarks with strong support of the Bidens and their work for military families. The Bidens know what it feels like to have a son fighting for their country, Saffo said. President Biden has spent his life helping those who have bravely served as well as their families. Saffo also acknowledged the importance that North Carolina voters play in the election. The path to the White House runs through North Carolina, Saffo said. Mayor Bill Saffo and First lady Dr. Jill Biden greet the crowd at Hi-Wire Brewing on Monday July 8, 2024 in Wilmington, N.C. KEN BLEVINS/STARNEWS Cain, a U.S. Army veteran, joined in support of the Biden-Harris administrations program launch and introduced the first lady. I know firsthand the sacrifices and challenges that come with serving our country and the immense toll that it takes on our families, Cain said. The Bidens have dedicated their lives to championing the needs of those who have served and that they are a military family, he said. Cain noted that Biden has expanded healthcare access to thousands of veterans across the state, has lowered veteran unemployment, helped service members cover the cost of childcare, helped veterans obtain affordable housing and made it easier for veterans and their families to find jobs. The first lady said her husband will continue to fight for the military community. She noted that her father served in World War II and her son Beau served in the Delaware Army National Guard and then for a year in Iraq. This is personal to us, Biden said. The first lady also went on the defensive against Donald Trump. She drew attention to Donald Trumps alleged comments about prisoners of war and those who died in war calling them suckers and losers and said that they were disgraceful, but not surprising. Donald Trump wakes up every morning thinking about one person and one person only, himself, Biden said. Biden said the country cannot trust Trump and that the military community deserves better, with a president that serves with integrity, wisdom and character, and that she believes thats her husband. Biden asked the audience to remember what it felt like the morning after the 2016 general election, when Trump won over Hillary Clinton and the Democratic Party fell short. We cant take anything for granted, Biden said. We have to meet this moment as if our freedoms are at risk because they are. This article originally appeared on Wilmington StarNews: First lady Jill Biden visits Wilmington, NC, for campaign event First Lady says in NC that Joe Biden is all in as president sends letter to Democrats First Lady Jill Biden, seen here at a state dinner at the White House in June, has tested positive for COVID-19. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images) First Lady Jill Biden told supporters in North Carolina on Monday that President Joe Biden was all in for November, as the president rejects calls from some Democrats to step aside as the nominee. Joe has made it clear that hes all in, the first lady said at a campaign speech in Wilmington, as she touted the administrations record on military families and veterans. Thats the decision that hes made. And just as he has always supported my career, I am all in too. Her speech is the latest signal from the White House that Biden is not planning to step aside as he runs for a second term. Since he took the stage alongside former President Donald Trump for the first televised debate on June 27, anxiety has mounted about his mental and physical state as he prepares for a rematch of the 2020 race. That anxiety has included calls for him to step aside from several U.S. House Democrats, with others voicing concern and urgency. North Carolinas U.S. Rep. Don Davis said in a statement last week that Biden needed to step up if he was going to stay in the race. And U.S. Rep. Wiley Nickel said we need to see him make the case for why he should remain the nominee, WRAL reported. In a statement Monday evening, U.S. Rep. Valerie Foushee said she believed Biden is fit to run and am supportive of his reelection campaign. Biden said he was firmly committed to staying in the race in a letter penned to House Democrats on Monday. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now, Biden wrote. And its time for it to end. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. North Carolina will hear from Bidens re-election campaign again before the week is over. Vice President Kamala Harris will visit Greensboro on Thursday for a campaign event. The post First Lady says in NC that Joe Biden is all in as president sends letter to Democrats appeared first on NC Newsline. A boom in medical tourism is afoot and the results are increasingly dangerous. At the British Medical Associations annual meeting last week, senior doctors warned that the NHS was being left to pick up the pieces following rogue operations overseas, providing emergency care to those returning to the UK from surgeries including abdominoplasty (tummy tuck), facelifts and even organ transplants. Some hospitals have had to cancel elective procedures as those who had come back in need of urgent care were occupying their hospital bed. Last year, the British Association of Aesthetic Plastic Surgeons (BAAPS) found that the number of Britons needing medical treatment or corrective surgery following procedures abroad had surged 94 per cent in three years, while in 2023, six British nationals died of complications, bringing the total to 28 fatalities since 2019. All of last years fatalities had surgery in Turkey, roundly considered the medical tourism capital, though the Czech Republic and Lithuania are popular, too. BAAPS estimates that the average cost to the NHS of treating a botched operation is around 15,000, in some cases rising up to 100,000, with the total bill at around 4.8m to the taxpayer since 2018. My department is regularly taking patients through the on-call system that have serious wound problems, says Vivien Lees, a consultant plastic surgeon and vice president of the Royal College of Surgeons. This typically occurs in the week or two post-surgery, following procedures such as breast implants, breast reduction surgery, tummy tucks, thigh lifts the vast majority of it does seem to be body contouring work, Lees explains. Those expecting cosmetic procedures to be finished for free will be disappointed, she adds. Its our job to get people through the acute phase of a complication such as wound healing or infection problems. Once thats settled were not going to do anything further; thats that. There is not going to be a lot of tidying up surgery [that] then takes place via the NHS. Here are five common operations being undertaken abroad, and what can go wrong. Tummy tuck (abdominoplasty) Excess fat and skin are removed from the lower part of the tummy, leaving a long scar across the lower area, and combined with that theres usually some tightening of the muscle down the midline, Lees explains. Healing typically takes around a fortnight, with a slow return to normal activity in the six weeks post-operation. (This differs from bariatric surgery, which is aimed at the very overweight; liposuction, meanwhile, involves just the removal of fat with no tightening.) In the UK, it costs 5,000-10,000; all-inclusive packages in the likes of Turkey (covering the operation, flights and accommodation) are often under 2,500. What can go wrong? Wound healing problems are more likely with surgeries of this kind, says Lees. She also believes that case selection may not be as good overseas, so patients are coming back that we would have felt did not meet the indications for surgery i.e. their body weight meant the surgery would have been deemed unsafe in the UK, yet clinics overseas carried it out anyway. Carol Keenan, a 54-year-old grandmother from Fife, died after collapsing following tummy tuck surgery in Turkey with the presumed cause being a blood clot or embolism. In spite of being very active, Keenan had set her heart on having surgery after seeing stories about other people and celebrities having procedures, her daughter said. I dont know if it was a midlife crisis. Hair transplants Hair transplants range between 1,000-30,000 in the UK, depending on the extent of hair loss, the type of procedure you have, and the quality of the clinic and its team, according to the NHS website. There are two kinds: follicular unit transplantation, where a thin strip of skin with hair is removed from the back of the head, divided into pieces and then inserted into minute cuts made in the scalp. The second is follicular unit extraction, where the head is shaved, the hairs are removed individually, and then placed into tiny cuts made in the scalp. Both are usually carried out under local anaesthetic and take around a day, but do not require an overnight stay. For those having large areas grafted, this may require two or more sessions on different days. What can go wrong? Complications can include scarring or scalp damage, blighting the potential for regrowth and further treatment, says Bessam Farjo, a hair transplant surgeon with clinics in London and Manchester. He says 75 per cent of his clients with problems have had their transplant done in Turkey, where all-inclusive packages cost around 2,000. Its not unusual for somebody to say to me: Can I reverse the hair transplant?... I would rather be bald rather than look like I have abnormal hair. He notes too that young men are signing up at increasing rates due to a lack of confidence, but that they then go on to lose more hair as they age, and the hairline [created by the transplant] they have looks a bit too harsh, too straight, inappropriate for somebody who is getting a little bit older if theyre lucky enough they may be able to have corrective surgery but if theyre unlucky then it can be a very difficult problem to correct. Botched ops exacerbate the problem for the already self-conscious, he adds, giving them something else to be concerned about. Dental work One in 10 Britons has flown overseas for dental surgery, suggests recent research from insurers Canada Life, with one in five having crown procedures, and one in 10 seeking veneers or composite bonding. (Crowns cover the entirety of damaged teeth, while veneers are around half the thickness, and placed over the front only.) A porcelain crown costs from around 600 in the UK, compared to 80 overseas. What can go wrong? Turkey teeth has become a telltale moniker for those who return from overseas bearing seemingly perfect smiles (one clinic reports adding an additional 100 British patients per month since 2022) but the reality can be more sinister. Poorly executed surgery can result in infected gums, rotting teeth, and persistent pain. In some cases, this can result in the need for a root canal, or the loss of the affected teeth entirely. Many UK dentists have warned that Turkey teeth will not be fixed by the NHS, as the problems are considered cosmetic, though emergency issues such as open wounds would be treated in A&E. Facelift A facelift involves a flap of skin on either side of the face being pulled back and excess skin being removed to create a firmer, more youthful appearance. In the UK, this can cost up to 30,000, while some clinics in Turkey offer the procedure, along with travel and accommodation, for a quarter of that price. Healing time is usually a couple of weeks, Lees says, with the affected areas settling down [in] two to three months. What can go wrong? Wounds, infections and even deformities are potential risks. Judy Willis, who travelled to Turkey in 2021 for a facelift at the age of 54, paid 8,000 for surgery that left her disfigured. She shelled out a further 30,000 when back in the UK on corrective surgery to her eyes, neck, cheek and ears, describing the situation as a living hell. Joint replacements Over 60,000 NHS patients were waiting more than a year for elective orthopaedic surgery in February 2022, compared to 436 two years earlier, according to the British Orthopaedic Association. Replacement surgery involves damaged parts of the joint being substituted for metal or plastic versions (for knees; hip replacements may involve ceramic parts). According to figures from the Private Healthcare Information Network, self-funded hip replacements have increased by nearly 200 per cent in the past five years a procedure that can cost around 11,000-16,000, depending on whether it is a partial or total replacement. Telegraph analysis last year showed that Georgia was among the cheapest countries to have a hip replacement at an average cost of 2,475, including travel, accommodation and insurance. What can go wrong? Along with the regular risks such as infection, which, in severe cases, can require further surgery, or blood clots, some have reported that overseas replacements do not include follow-up appointments or physiotherapy, which are key to recovery. Lees says that the trend for people going overseas for care and the NHS dealing with the fallout is likely to continue, as people will take an optimistic view, particularly if theyve seen something positive on social media, [and] they will not be able to assess their own risk profile sensibly. the dynamics which are causing people to go overseas are things that are very difficult for any of us to change, but getting the information out there [about what can go wrong abroad] again and regularly is very important. If you are looking for a cosmetic surgeon in the UK, you can check that they are a registered doctor or surgeon on the General Medical Council online register. Some surgeons have a cosmetic surgery certificate from the Royal College of Surgeons (RCS). This means theyve been assessed and they meet an agreed national standard. 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 Western Wall, Dome of the Rock, Temple Mount, Jerusalem, Israel. Getty Images. Nothing is simple. Everything is complicated. The state Senates Judiciary and Public Safety Committee led by chair Sen. Ron Latz, DFL-St. Louis Park convened on June 25 in order to spotlight anti-Israel and anti-Jewish incidents at the University of Minnesota. These were the words on the Senates published meeting schedule. They neatly convey the entanglement of Middle East politics with debates over the question of antisemitism, here in Minnesota as elsewhere. That leads to the first of several points worth making. 1. You cant keep the Middle East out of a conversation about antisemitism. Latz cautioned witnesses to stick to events at the U of M and not to get into Middle East affairs. But he repeatedly broke his own ground rules by grilling witnesses about their views on Hamas, its Oct. 7 attack, the future of Israel, and his (questionable) representations of some U departments statements condemning Israels war on Gaza. He described these, as well as various protest rhetoric, as calls for the extermination of Jews in the state of Israel. Even putting aside such tendentious claims, if much of the evidence for antisemitism concerns stances toward Israel, Palestine, and various political ideologies as everyone seems to acknowledge then there is no narrow, local scope to maintain. Apparently, however, you can keep Muslim student voices and all Palestinian Americans out of this conversation. Thats not too hard. Such students, who were insistently smeared as genocidal antisemites, were not there to defend themselves. 2. Every word in this debate is disputed. You say intifada, and pro-Israel spokespersons say terrorism. Latz advanced personal interpretations of Arabic-language terms intifada, which refers to an uprising, and thawabit, a concept including the right to resist occupation. The chair and various friendly witnesses described each of these as code for the mass murder of Jews, terrorist antisemitic language in Latzs words. Its safe to say that many others disagree. Thats how it is with Israel and Palestine. For many, ambiguity is an enemy and almost every word is ground for information warfare. These problems were visible in a tense exchange between Latz and Beth Gendler, the leader of Jewish Community Action, as she contended that the definitions of Zionism, anti-Zionism, and antisemitism are disputed. He, apparently frustrated, responded by seeking to tarnish her as an apologist for anti-Jewish rape and murder. 3. Middle East politics makes for strange bedfellows. Steve Hunegs, the longtime leader of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Minnesota and the Dakotas, was the final witness of the day. Before the hearing, he could be seen jubilantly embracing Sen. Warren Limmer, R-Maple Grove. The JCRC long has made defending Israel its mission, and they will work with anyone who shares that mission. The emerging division in the Jewish community over Israel and Palestine cant be stifled, and it intersects with other cleavages to form two contending coalitions. On one side are the JCRC, Republicans, and some establishment Democrats. On the other are a diversity of identity-based social-justice groups, including JCA, and progressive Democrats. The reemergence of anti-Zionism among American Jews is driving this division wider. Still, much of the conversation is familiar. In 1972, American and Israeli Jews met in Jerusalem and debated wait for it whether anti-Zionism equaled Jew-hatred. Many thought that it did. One prominent Israeli dissident, Simcha Flapan, cautioned in response, There are many reactionaries who are pro-Zionist. 4. Consistency is a constant struggle. Oren Gross, a law professor at the U, and other witnesses remarked that, in liberal thinking, African Americans and other historically oppressed groups are authorized to define their own oppression, and that their experience of discrimination is deemed sufficient evidence of harm to them. So why not give the same consideration to Jews? Its a valid point. However, this whole discussion shows us how simplistic those precepts are. Groups who have suffered discrimination will disagree among themselves. Historically oppressed groups can be at odds with one another. The solution is not to extend problematic concepts, but rather to rethink them carefully. 5. Academic freedom is an orphan. The Us interim president, Jeff Ettinger, as well as Gross and another law professor, Richard Painter, testified, yet none of them forcefully defended free speech. In fact, the two lawyers ran over the idea with a truck, threw the truck into reverse, and then backed up. Gross, also an associate dean for academic affairs, was demagogic. He called Jewish antiwar protesters Jews supporting Hamas which is absurd, and exactly the kind of terrorist-baiting rhetoric that fuels attacks on academic freedom. Ettinger recently blocked the hire of a new faculty director of his schools Center for Holocaust and Genocide Studies, after the JCRC raised a hue and cry because the search resulted in an offer extended to Raz Segal, an Israeli American historian. Segal had written an article calling Israels war a genocide. Ettinger occupied a middle ground at the hearing, as he defended his decision, unpopular with committee members, to negotiate a de-escalation of campus protests this spring. Ettinger had thrown the political establishment a bone by refusing to hire Segal, and he talked as if the JCRC might have veto power in a do-over search. It seemed no coincidence when immediately after controversy erupted over Ettingers interference with academic freedom which now has led to a faculty vote of no-confidence in him Latz announced the antisemitism hearing, A JCRC-approved search might still recruit a respected scholar. But then, the centers director will be dogged by the perception they were hired because they met the JCRCs political test. A comparative genocide studies center is relevant to multiple communities. Yet many continue to believe that any discussion of genocide ought to remain the turf of Jews and specifically the right kind of Jews, the ones who continue to see in the memory of the Shoah a useful prop to support Israel. Its not a pretty picture. A Florida State Representative is demanding answers after the Orlando Sentinel reported the Florida Department of Education required some authors to remove or edit references to climate change in science textbooks. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< State Representative Anna Eskamani PhD (D-Orlando) has sent a letter to Florida Commissioner of Education Manny Diaz, Democratic questioning whether state education leaders had altered and even removed some references to climate change in several science textbooks before approving them for use in Florida classrooms. This is a downward spiral of Florida pulling us back in time. Republican politicians preferring to choose partisan politics over just good governing, said Eksmani. The news comes less than a month after Governor Ron DeSantis signed a new state law that removed all references to climate change in state statute. In defense of that policy, the Governor argued the law is intended to focus the states energy policy on more reliable forms of energy like natural gas during a June press conference. So, this is not about saying this or saying that. Its about what policies do you think are in the best interest of the State of Florida and I have no doubt making sure energy is attainable and affordable for people is very important, said DeSantis. The legislation I signed todayHB 1645, HB 7071, and HB 1331will keep windmills off our beaches, gas in our tanks, and China out of our state. Were restoring sanity in our approach to energy and rejecting the agenda of the radical green zealots. Furthermore, were going to pic.twitter.com/G13RcdxIBR Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) May 15, 2024 [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] The Florida Department of Education weighed in on the climate change textbook controversy. Florida has set a high bar for education, with some of the most rigorous educational standards in the nation. This is why Florida has ranked number one for education two years in a row. In order for instructional materials to be used in Florida classrooms, they must align to our high-quality standards, State Board rule and Florida law, said FDOE Communications Director Sydney Booker in an emailed statement. As such, Florida works with publishers to ensure that their product aligns with our standards and does not include any form of ideology or indoctrination. But Eskamani argued Florida is ground zero when it comes to climate change impacts, and by failing to teach it accurately in schools, Florida students will be left in the dark. And its sad because it puts us at a disadvantage, not only in addressing this crisis head on, but of course in setting up our students for failure when trying to compete at a global scale of the next generation of jobs, said Eskamani. This isnt the first time the Florida Department of Education has come under fire for requesting alterations in school textbooks. In 2022, the department rejected 28 math textbooks for incorporating prohibited topics and strategies, including critical race theory. [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. The father of a Fort Myers man facing the death penalty in a 2019 Cape Coral double-murder was paramount to his capture and arrest. In June, Wade Wilson, 30, was found guilty of the Oct. 7, 2019 murders of Kristine Melton, 35, and Diane Ruiz, 43. Wilson, who shares his name with the alter ego of Marvel character Deadpool, met Melton at a Fort Myers bar and eventually accompanied her to her home where he choked her to death as she slept in her bed and stole her car. A short time later, Wilson saw Ruiz walking along a Fort Myers road and asked her for directions. He lured her into the car, choked and beat her when she tried to exit, then pushed her out of the car and ran her over repeatedly. After the murders, Wilson called his biological father several times confessing to the crimes in gruesome detail. After initially dismissing Wilson's calls and attributing the admissions to Wilson being a "good storyteller," Steven Testasecca, 46, contacted police. Here's what to know about Wade Wilson, his crimes and Steven Testasecca's role in his capture and arrest: Wade Wilson murders of Kristine Melton and Diane Ruiz Wilson, then 25 years old, met Kristine Melton, 35, and her friend Stephanie Sailors on Oct. 7, 2019, at Buddah LIVE, a Fort Myers bar. 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 to a nearby school 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 10 to 20 times. After the murders, Wilson called his biological father Steven Testasecca several times confessing to and narrating the gruesome details of crimes. Wade Wilson's relationship with his father Steven Testasecca Wade Wilson's biological father, Steven Testasecca, 46, of Lakeland, said his level of contact with his son has been "sporadic" over the years. Testasecca said Wilson, 30, confessed to the double homicide during a phone call. Wilson's parents were teenagers when his mother became pregnant and he was eventually placed for adoption, Steven Testasecca testified during the murder trial. When Wilson was 18, he connected with his father who lives in Lakeland, Florida, and they stayed in "sporadic" contact. Wade Wilson called father after murders On the day of the murders, Wilson called his father and told him he did something he couldn't take back. "I am a killer," Wilson said, according to Testasecca's testimony. Testasecca, who was at work at the time of the call, said Wilson was a "good storyteller" and initially did not believe him. He told Wilson to call back later in the evening. At least two other calls followed. It was not until a 10 p.m. call that Testasecca began to think what Wilson was saying could be true, he testified. Wade Wilson reveals shocking details of murders in calls to father Testasecca said Wilson confessed to choking Melton after she went to sleep. Testasecca testified Wilson admitted to stopping Ruiz for directions before she got into the car and he choked her while he drove. According to Testasecca's testimony, Wilson said Ruiz was still breathing before he repeatedly ran her over. "He was excited," Testasecca said, adding Wilson said he wanted to make Ruiz "look like spaghetti." "He was wanting me to feel the same way he was feeling." Testasecca said Wilson did not show remorse. Testasecca said he initially wanted to help Wilson, but his perspective changed when Wilson began delving into detailed recounts of the slayings. "What if that was my mom?" Testasecca asked. "He would've done it again." How Wade Wilson was caught, arrested Testasecca testified that during the latter calls in which Wilson detailed the killings, he put his phone on speaker with Testasecca's wife listening in and relaying the information to law enforcement. Testasecca asked Wilson for his location and told him he would send an Uber to his location. Instead, Wilson's location was relayed to police and he was arrested on Oct. 8, 2019. Did Wade Wilson get death sentence in Florida? On June 12, 2024, Wilson was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder, grand theft, battery, burglary and petty theft. During the penalty phase of the trial, the jury voted 9-3 and 10-2 in favor of the death penalty for the two murders. Judge Nicholas Thompson will decide whether to impose the death sentence. Sentencing is scheduled for July 23. If Thompson confirms the death penalty, Wilson will join the 276 men on death row at Union Correctional Institution. Wilson masterminded escape attempt from jail Wilson, who shares his name with the alter ego of the Marvel character Deadpool, racked up additional charges while awaiting his murder trial in the Lee County Jail. In 2020, Wilson and his cellmate were accused of tampering with a window in their cell in an attempt to escape. Wilson, who was reportedly the primary planner and instigator of the escape effort, also tried to set up a getaway car. Deputies searched the 10x10 cell Wilson and his cellmate were housed in and found the window tampered with. The metal frame holding the window had been removed and there were several cracks in the thick security glass. A man accused in the 2019 deaths of two Cape Coral women and a man accused in a domestic violence case were thwarted in a bid to escape the Lee County Jail Thursday. This window in their cell showed signs of tampering. Wilson was charged with attempted escape and criminal mischief. Court records in the case connect Wilson to the prison-based white supremacy gang "Unforgiven." Support local journalism by subscribing to the News-Press. This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Wade Wilson murders: Father Steven Testasecca key to killer's capture Florida officials urged not to pass up millions in food assistance again TALLAHASSEE State officials said they passed up millions of dollars in new federal food assistance money because they have more than enough programs to feed Floridas hungry children this summer. But advocates for the hungry say the numbers tell a different story. The perception put forward by the state is that there is no need for other programs in the state, said Sky Beard, the Florida director for the non-profit No Kid Hungry organization. I wish it were true! While its too late for Florida to change course in time to affect kids this summer, 185 groups that seek to end hunger recently sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state leaders urging Florida to apply for the money by the Aug. 15 deadline for 2025. Every summer is a hungry time for kids. Beard said. One in five children in Florida are experiencing hunger because their families cannot afford enough groceries to make up for the free meals they got at school during the academic year, according to a recent report by Feeding America, a nationwide network of food banks, pantries and community organizations dedicated to ending hunger. Fewer than 10% of the 672,324 elementary school children in Florida who get free or reduced-price lunches during the school year receive a summer lunch, says a report by the Food Research and Action Center, a nonprofit organization working to end poverty-related hunger. Summer always means more demand as low-income families with very tight budgets absorb the extra financial hit of one or more children eating at home, said Greg Higgerson, chief development officer for Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida. Second Harvest said in the past year the number of people using its online search tool to find food pantries jumped 95%. Florida officials in December turned down a chance to get $259 million through SUN Bucks, a new program administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which also runs the school lunch program. The new program would have provided $120 in grocery money each to the parents of about 2.1 million Florida school-aged children who receive free or reduced-price school lunches during the school year, advocates said. Florida was one of 12 states that opted not to participate in the program. Mallory McManus, a spokeswoman for the Department of Children and Families, which administers the federal school lunch program for Florida, has said that Florida had no need for the additional resources. We anticipate that our states full approach to serving children will continue to be successful this year without any additional federal programs that inherently always come with some federal strings attached, she told the Sentinel in December and other news outlets as recently as June 21. McManus did not say what that full approach entailed, what other programs Florida offers to food insecure children or what strings are on the federal money, other than the requirement for the state to contribute to administrative costs. But Beard said the state manages several other federal food assistance programs with similar strings to SUN Bucks, including the school-year lunch program. Florida would have needed to put up $12 million to share the administration costs of running the new program, a small fraction of the money it would have received in return. This isnt the first time Florida balked at participating in a federal food assistance program. In 2021, the state turned down more than $800 million that would have fed 2.2 million children during the COVID-19 pandemic, but reconsidered when it was pressured by nonprofits and politicians to take the money. The department continued to administer the pandemic-related summer food assistance program for two more years, but it ended last summer. The new SUN Bucks program aimed to replace it. Because of the states decision, Floridas neediest families are not getting the benefits of the new program $40 a month per child, or $120 for the entire summer, that parents could have spent at a grocery store or farmers market, Beard said. The state has nothing to stand in the place of the loss of SUN Bucks, she said. The new program would have complemented other summer meal programs provided by the state, such as Summer BreakSpot, another federal program that provides up to 16 million meals to children at hundreds of locations across the state. Not all needy families can get their children to those locations where breakfast and lunch is served, however, so its reach is far less than the school-based meals. That makes SUN Bucks more convenient as parents would be able to buy food for the home, Beard said. This is a statewide concern that affects colleagues, friends and families in our communities that are really challenged, Beard said, It would be highly unfortunate that Florida didnt take advantage of that in 2025, she added. BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, July 9. Minister of Health of Kyrgyzstan Alymkadyr Beishenaliev held a meeting with Director for International Business Development of the South Korean company H-Robotics Marina Lee, the Kyrgyz ministry said, Trend reports. According to the information, at the meeting, company representatives presented REBLESS equipment, intended for use in various rehabilitation programs, including recovery from stroke, brain injury and other diseases that cause movement disorders. It is reported that representatives of H-Robotics expressed their intention to donate 20 sets of this equipment to the Ministry of Health of Kyrgyzstan, in connection with which the meeting participants discussed its possible use in the healthcare system of Kyrgyzstan. Beishenaliev thanked H-Robotics and noted that this equipment will be a valuable addition to the rehabilitation services provided by healthcare organizations in the republic. Florida residents were shocked to see a manatee swimming in their human-made lake. A biologist thinks she knows how it got there. A manatee was spotted in an artificial lake in South Florida. Manatees can travel through canals and drains, especially after stormy weather. Marine biologists think the manatee should have enough food to survive in the lake. South Florida residents recently noticed an unusual new neighbor in their artificial lake: a manatee. Last week, a resident of the Cedarwoods neighborhood in Pembroke Pines took video footage of the marine mammal swimming around, the news station WPLG Local 10 reported. A couple also spotted the manatee in late June, and they said it had a baby with it. "This is the first one we've seen on the lake," Bill Barnett, one of the residents who filmed the sea cow, told the news station. How did the manatee reach an inland lake? The artificial lake is about 10 miles from the Atlantic Ocean. Looking at a map, it may seem as if the manatee wouldn't have a good route from the coast to the lake, but there are underground passageways that maps don't show. Amber Howell, a biologist with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, told Business Insider there are large pipes called culverts under the roads. "The culverts in this area are big enough for manatee to safely swim through," she said. There's a floodgate in the area that it would've had to navigate, but it's often open during the state's rainy season. That's probably how this manatee ended up in its current locale. Manatees can travel hundreds of miles in search of food A manatee at an inactive power plant in Riviera Beach, Florida. Thomson Reuters Florida manatees, a sub-species of the West Indian manatee, have faced difficulty finding food in the past several years, with hundreds dying annually. Algae blooms that kill seagrass, a huge source of food for the manatees, are partly to blame. Though they're marine mammals, manatees can survive in fresh, brackish, and salty water. And they can roam quite far in search of food and warm water. Some Florida manatees travel through the ocean around the US, from Texas to as far north as Delaware. But the mammals also spend a lot of time in freshwater rivers, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Since they prefer shallow water, they'll often head inland, like this manatee. Finding food in the lake shouldn't be too difficult, either. "In this area, there is a lot of shoreline vegetation, which they'll take advantage of," Howell said. Manatees have been seen in this area for the past few years, so the big visitor isn't unique. Howell said biologists had "absolutely no concern" for this particular animal. How to help your neighborhood manatee Howell said people could sometimes be a little overzealous in trying to help manatees. They may see a manatee in shallow water and try to move it deeper. But sometimes, it's an exhausted female who's taking a rest from a nearby mating herd. "It's the worst-case scenario to push her back into that group," Howell said. She said that if Florida residents are concerned about a manatee who seems in distress, they can call the Wildlife Alert Hotline at 888-404-3922. Read the original article on Business Insider Florida teen took grandmothers gun, shot into car with 4 people inside, deputies say Florida teen took grandmothers gun, shot into car with 4 people inside, deputies say TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) An 18-year-old was arrested after he allegedly took his grandmothers gun and used it to shoot into a car with four people inside on the Fourth of July, deputies said. The Volusia County Sheriffs Office was called to 1062 George Anderson Street in Ormond Beach late Thursday after several shots were fired. Deputies said Dylan Preis, 18, of Ormond Beach, fired into the vehicle because he had a recent falling out with the driver of the car. Suspected DUI driver arrested after firing gun into air multiple times in St. Pete: police Bullet holes in the vehicle revealed that the occupants of the car narrowly missed being struck in the head and chest, the sheriffs office said. Image courtesy of the Volusia Sheriffs Office Following the incident, deputies said Preis initially denied having any involvement in the shooting but later confessed to using his grandmothers 9mm handgun to fire the rounds. The gun, ammunition, and shell casings were recovered at the scene. Rays Wander Franco still faces legal repercussions from prosecutors in the Dominican Republic The 18-year-old was charged with one count of attempted first-degree murder, three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, four counts of firing into a vehicle, and one count of criminal mischief. He also violated his juvenile probation. He was taken to the Volusia County Branch Jail, where he is being held with no 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 WFLA. Florida woman pulled over in SC for speeding, then deputies found a secret compartment A Florida woman went from a traffic stop to a drug trafficking charge when nearly half-a-million dollars worth of cocaine was found hidden inside the vehicle she was driving, according to the Florence County Sheriffs Office. Orlando, Florida, resident Carmen Denisse Garcia Roman was charged with cocaine trafficking, the sheriffs office said in a news release. On July 3, deputies pulled over a speeding vehicle driving north on Interstate 95 at the 163 mile marker, according to the release. Information about the speed the vehicle was traveling on I-95 when spotted by deputies was not available. During the traffic stop, deputies developed reasonable suspicion that criminal activity was afoot and conducted a consent search of the vehicle, the sheriffs office said. The Florence County Sheriffs Office seized three kilos of cocaine during a traffic stop. Deputies said they found an aftermarket compartment in the vehicle, also known as a trap, which the sheriffs office previously said can be used to transport illegal drugs. That was the case in this instance, as deputies found three kilograms of cocaine (approximately 6.6 pounds) hidden inside the compartment, according to the release. That amount of cocaine can be worth up to $450,000, according to estimates from the Guardian Recovery Network an organization that treats alcohol and drug addiction. Roman was booked at the Florence County Detention Center, the sheriffs office said. No bond was set and the 34-year-old Florida resident remains behind bars in South Carolina, jail records show. If convicted on the felony drug trafficking charge, Roman faces a maximum punishment of 30 years in prison and a $200,000 fine, according to South Carolina law. The Florence County Sheriffs Office seized three kilos of cocaine during a traffic stop. Attempts by Donald Trump and his MAGA minions to create plausible deniability of their violent intentions are getting less plausible by the day. Take for instance the uproar caused last week when Kevin Roberts, the head of the Heritage Foundation, threatened a violent crackdown if Trump returns to the White House. "We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be," Roberts told host of Real America's Voice Dave Brat, a former congressman who spent his brief time in government claiming the attendees of the Women's March are much more dangerous than white supremacists. Roberts' right-wing group is the primary driver of Project 2025, an initiative that has done the organizing and policy work to turn Trump's dreams of being a far-right dictator into a reality. Trump's Project 2025 leader: "We are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be pic.twitter.com/8rk8a7fDT8 Biden-Harris HQ (@BidenHQ) July 3, 2024 The word "if" is meant to be doing a lot of work there. From Trump on down, the MAGA protocol when issuing violent threats has been to couch them in ambiguous wording. For instance, Trump dropped one "peaceful" in his speech telling the MAGA crowd to "march on" the Capitol on January 2021. Another gambit is to claim the threat is a "warning," as if any violence that could result when Trump doesn't get his way is random and not the direct result of his "warnings." And, of course, there are the fake claims of "self-defense," where Trump and his allies voice violent fantasies justified by imaginary victimization at the hands of "antifa." Want more Amanda Marcotte on politics? Subscribe to her newsletter Standing Room Only. The Republican candidate for governor in North Carolina, Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, let loose with this recommendation at a recent campaign stop: "Some folks need killing!" Robinson hollered this in a thoroughly paranoid and overheated speech inside a church, calling "killing" a "matter of necessity!" But even here, we can see Robinson trying to construct some wiggle room for himself, by being vague about which people "need killing." Greg Sargent at the New Republic explained: Robinsons call for the killing of some folks came during an extended diatribe in which he attacked an extraordinary assortment of enemies. These ranged from people who have evil intent to wicked people to those doing things like torturing and murdering and raping to socialists and Communists. He also invoked those supposedly undermining Americas founding ideals and leftists allegedly persecuting conservatives by canceling them and doxxing them online. It's a favorite trick of Trump's, to claim his violent intent is aimed only at a few extremists. For instance, Trump called his fellow Americans "vermin" and implied they needed elimination, but caveated it by saying he's talking about "Communists, Marxists, Fascist and Radical Left Thugs." Anyone who is reassured by this, however, should note that these are the words Trump uses to describe anyone to the left of Steve Bannon, so really, it's not a small group at all. Roberts, similarly, appears to be trying the "self-defense" tactic with this "if." But in his excitement over the Supreme Court granting Trump the powers of a dictator, Roberts gives up the wiggle room used to deny that threats are threats. The "choice" offered Trump's opponents is to bend the knee or face the sword. Most people, even journalists wishing to avoid arguments over what a fascist "really" means with their barely-coded threats, can see that there is no choice at all. Even after the events of January 6, there's often a media skittishness around discussing Trump's eagerness to use violence to silence his political opponents. Understandably so, because every time the press points out that Trump uses unsubtle language and gestures to threaten violence, a sea of disingenuous actors rise up to berate journalists into exhaustion with bad faith claims that Trump is merely "joking" or being "metaphorical." Report accurately that Trump warned of a "bloodbath" if he loses or that he posted an image depicting President Joe Biden being kidnapped, and prepare for the dogpile of gaslighting Republicans declaring they only see someone suffering "Trump derangement syndrome." Of course it is all lies, but journalists fear being seen as hyperbolic or biased, so the bullying works. The idea that only pants-wetters would see violence in Trump's rhetoric goes back to the 2016 campaign when journalist Salena Zito wrote in the Atlantic that Trump supporters take their leader "seriously but not literally." Since then, Zito has been exposed as a shoddy "journalist" who, uh, massaged the truth to create Trump-friendly narratives in the press. Her gambit was, in retrospect, obvious enough in its purpose: To browbeat into silence anyone who might raise the alarm about Trump's violent rhetoric, out of fear of being ridiculed as someone who can't take a joke. It's become an article of faith in GOP circles that January 6 wasn't violent or was the FBI/antifa or that Trump didn't do it the excuse changes by the minute. That allows Republicans to ignore the dispositive fact that Trump literally means the terrible things he says, to the point where Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., smoothly lies to cameras by denying Trump's criminal behavior. But, as Roberts's threat of violent suppression of "the left" shows, the ability of Republicans to pretend it's all just a laugh is eroding quickly. As Kristy Parker, former federal prosecutor and counsel at Protect Democracy told the "Daily Blast" podcast, even with this new "immunity" ruling by the Supreme Court legalizing most if not all crimes committed by (Republican) presidents, there are still lingering limits on what illegal actions Trump could take in office. For instance, Trump's wild threat to falsify charges of "TREASON" against former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., for daring to speak out against him. Trump wants "TELEVISED MILITARY TRIBUNALS," likely because that sounds scarier and more extra-legal than a jury trial. But, as Parker says, you still have judges, prosecutors, and other law enforcement who will resist the command to throw out the rule of law in order to railroad an innocent woman. That is why Roberts is issuing his threat. As the 900-page playbook published by Project 2025 can tell you, their definition of "the left" is anyone who might resist far-right agenda especially federal employees who insist on obeying the law instead of Trump. Any judge or prosecutor who refuses to falsify charges or evidence against Cheney would be reimagined as someone who is not "allowing" the "second American Revolution." Roberts is pre-emptively blaming the victim for the bloody "revolution" he is imagining. But, of course, the responsibility lies solely on the shoulders of those who are using threats of violence to scare people out of sticking by their oath of office. We should take this seriously, and not just because January 6 proved that MAGA means all the violent talk. Both the comments by Robinson and Roberts show that the MAGA threats are losing the thick swaddling of plausible deniability that they used to have. They're barely trying to pretend there's an "if" in there at all. The yearning to unleash violence on the majority of Americans who oppose the fascist project is right there on the surface. It's very much like MAGA activists know they're on the brink of being able to go hog wild, and can no longer contain their excitement. Ford launches game-changing new service for electric vehicles and it's a first in the industry Ford Pro has launched the E-Transit Custom Van with a new home charging system for EVs that is specifically aimed at supporting small and medium enterprises in increasing their productivity while saving them money and benefiting the environment, as reported by CleanTechnica. Ford Pro's new EV charging system offers not only a home charger and installation, but also comprehensive training, management software, charge scheduling for efficiency, and warranty, as per CleanTechnica. This allows SMEs to reduce the cost of purchasing company vehicles. The Ford Pro system effectively uses technology to integrate EV driving and company management into one. Ford Pro's new approach is a bold step toward a sustainable future for all. One of the biggest obstacles to increasing EV fleets is the inaccessibility of EV infrastructure like chargers and range anxiety. However, switching to EVs can save users money and reduce air pollution from the transportation sector. A study from Pew Research found that "access to public infrastructure is tightly linked with Americans' opinions of electric vehicles themselves" and noted that "Americans who live close to public chargers view EVs more positively than those who are farther away." When an EV manufacturer like Ford Pro Europe's leading commercial vehicle brand begins to prioritize creating systems that include at-home charging, it can go a long way in changing minds about the benefits of EVs. In Ford's press release about the new E-Transit Custom Van, the company stated "the company is driving forward with bold, new EVs, each one designed with European drivers in mind and innovating with services to help people connect, communities grow, and businesses thrive." This exemplifies Ford's goals to not just make EVs, but to make a world where EV drivers can succeed. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration issued multiple recalls last week, including notices for more than 30,000 Ford Mustangs over potential loss of steering control. Are you looking to see if any recalls were issued on your vehicle? If the car isn't listed below, owners can check USA TODAYs automotive recall database or search NHTSAs database for new recalls. The NHTSA website allows you to search for recalls based on your vehicle identification number or VIN. Here is what to know about the vehicle recalls published by NHTSA from June 30 to July 6. Ford recalls: More than 30,000 Mustangs over potential loss of steering control Toyota recalls head rests that may be removed Toyota is recalling its 2024 Lexus RX 350 for a head rest malfunction. Toyota is recalling 11,418 of its vehicles. The automotive manufacturer said the head restraints on the driver and front passenger seats may be removed without pressing the lock release button. A helmet that is not securely fastened can come loose or detach, increasing the risk of injury during a crash, the NHTSA report said. The government agency said these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) Number 202, "Head Restraints." To fix this issue, Toyota dealers will replace the driver and front passenger seat headrest assemblies for free. Recall notification letters are expected to be mailed on July 27. Owners may contact Toyota customer service at 1-800-331-4331. Toyota's numbers for this recall are 24LB06 and 24LA06. Recalled vehicles: 2024 Lexus RX 350 2024 Lexus RX 350h 2024-2025 Lexus NX 250 2024-2025 Lexus NX 350 2024-2025 Lexus NX 350h General Motors recall for fuel pump being improperly secured General Motors is recalling its 2024 Chevrolet Colorado for a fuel pump that's improperly secured. General Motors (GM) is recalling 8,622 of its 2024 Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon vehicles. The automotive manufacturer said the lock ring that secures the fuel pump to the fuel tank assembly may not have been locked fully. As a result, this can cause a fuel leak during a crash. When a fuel leak happens near an ignition source, it increases the risk of a fire, according to the NHTSA report. To fix the issue, dealers will inspect and fully lock the fuel tank lock ring. This service will be completed for free. Notification letters are expected to be sent out on Aug. 13. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020 or the GMC Customer Call Center at (888) 988-7267. GM's number for this recall is N242451330. Recalled vehicles: 2024 Chevrolet Colorado 2024 GMC Canyon Ford recalls Loss of steering control for tie rod failure Ford is recalling 2,605 of its 2025 F-Super Duty F-650 and F-750 vehicles. The automobile manufacturer said the front axle tie rod assemblies may have ball studs that have been heat-treated incorrectly. This can cause them to break and possibly cause a tie rod failure. If a tie rod fails, a driver can lose control of the steering and increase the risk of a crash, the NHTSA report said. For free, dealers will inspect and replace the front axle tie rod assembly as needed. Owner notification letters are expected to be delivered by Aug. 13. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 24S42. Recalled vehicles: 2025 F-Super Duty F-650 2025 F-750 vehicles Windshield detachment Ford is recalling 4,361 of its 2024 F-150 vehicles for a windshield detachment. Ford is recalling 4,361 of its 2024 F-150 vehicles. In the NHTSA report, the automobile manufacturer said the windshield may not have been properly bonded to the vehicle which can cause it to detach during a crash. A vehicle's windshield that detaches during a crash can increase the risk of injury. The government agency also said that these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 212, "Windshield Mounting." As a resolution, Ford dealers will remove, replace, and reinstall the windshield for free. Recall notification letters are expected to be sent on July 8. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 24C20. Recalled vehicles: 2024 F-150 Lost steering wheel control Ford is recalling its 30,735 2022-2023 Ford Mustang vehicles. In the NHTSA report, the automobile manufacturer said the secondary steering torque sensor may not be calibrated properly. This can cause the steering wheel to turn side to side despite the driver's direction. If a steering wheel turns unintentionally, it can cause a driver to lose control of the vehicle and increase the risk of a crash. Ford dealers will update the affected vehicle's power steering control module software for free. Recall notification letters are expected to be delivered by Aug. 5. Owners may contact Ford customer service at 1-866-436-7332. Ford's number for this recall is 24S44. Recalled vehicles: 2022-2023 Ford Mustang Ahjane Forbes is a reporter on the National Trending Team at USA TODAY. Ahjane covers breaking news, car recalls, crime, health, lottery and public policy stories. Email her at aforbes@gannett.com . Follow her on Instagram, Threads and X (Twitter) @forbesfineest. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Check car recalls: Ford, Toyota, General Motors among 57,000 recalled Former Astronaut Explains How the Astronauts Stranded in Space Might Be Feeling Silver Linings NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are still stranded on the International Space Station after Boeing's plagued Starliner spacecraft finally managed to drop them off last month. Since then, technical issues affecting the spacecraft have delayed their return journey indefinitely, with multiple helium leaks kicking off an investigation. Williams and Wilmore were originally meant to return on June 14 over three weeks ago and NASA has yet to announce when its latest attempt will be to bring them back down to Earth. It raises an interesting question: how are Williams and Wilmore feeling about the delay? One former colleague says that the extended stay on board the orbital outpost could actually be a blessing rather than a curse. "Well, my first reaction was it's probably good news for the two Boeing astronauts," retired Air Force colonel and NASA astronaut Terry Virts told NPR. "They're, you know, they get a few bonus weeks in space. And you never know when your next space flight is going to happen, and so I'm sure the astronauts are happy to get some bonus time and space." Virts also argued that the rest of the station's crew would be "happy" to get some "free labor." Glass Half Full Meanwhile, NASA has been adamant that the two astronauts are technically "not stranded in space," despite being stuck there indefinitely. "So far, we dont see any scenario where Starliner is not going to be able to bring Butch and Suni home," NASA commercial crew program manager Steve Stich told reporters last month. Boeing's spacecraft has already faced years of delays and budget overruns, with technical issues greatly hampering its efforts to establish an alternative to SpaceX's tried-and-true Crew Dragon astronaut shuttle. But according to Virts, it's all par for the course, especially given the fact that Starliner's latest trip is a test flight, not an operational mission. In 2015, Virts had his own return journey from the International Space Station delayed after a Russian supply ship had crashed back down to Earth following a rocket failure. Officials at the time wanted to give engineers more time to conclude their investigation into the mishap. Virts told NPR that he believes they're indeed not stuck and that they could simply "jump in the capsule, close the hatch, and come back to Earth" in case of an emergency. "They want to take the big bureaucratic rubber stamp and stamp certified on the Starliner," he said. "You know, and so in order to do that, they basically have some free time" during which "engineers can analyze all the data to understand what's going on with the helium and the jets." "Once they come back to Earth, they'll never be able to get that data again," he added. Virts also took the opportunity to send a message to Williams and Wilmore. "I would just say enjoy it," he told NPR. "And stay busy. You don't want to, you know, just sit around. But I know these two, they're not going to sit around. And I'm sure NASA will have plenty of work for them to do." More on Starliner: NASA Praises Boeing's Stranded Starliner for Managing Not to Explode While Docked to Space Station A former City of Sacramento employee is suing the city claiming it allowed a security guard to sexually harass her, which set off a chain of events leading her to suffer a concussion in a City Hall elevator. Barbara McIntyre worked on the second floor of City Hall as a traffic investigator in the public works department, alleged the lawsuit filed last week in Sacramento Superior Court. The womens bathroom required employees to swipe a badge to enter, while the mens bathroom did not. Many times when McIntyre entered the bathroom, a male security guard would come in and start banging on the stall door, the lawsuit alleges. As a result of the repeated interruptions, McIntyre suffered repeated urinary infections and other issues, the lawsuit states. When asked by McIntyres supervisor, an Allied Universal manager said the visits were plumbing checks, the lawsuit states. In May 2023, McIntyre contacted the citys Equal Employment Opportunity Office for further investigation into the sexual harassment. She alleged she had complained about the issue multiple times over the years and the city never followed up. The city EEO Office dropped the complaint in June 2023, the lawsuit alleges. The issue continued and in November McIntyre filed a complaint with the federal EEOC and state Civil Rights Department. Those agencies issued McIntyre a right to sue notice. But The city EEO Office again closed the case. In December, McIntyre started using the first floor womens restroom, where badges were not required for entry, instead of the second floor one by her office. On Dec. 8, while returning to her desk, she suffered a concussion while trapped in the elevator, the lawsuit states. The elevator malfunctioned and twice crashed down to the first floor after ascending toward the second floor, the lawsuit states. After the injury, McIntyre was on medical leave for 10 weeks, the lawsuit states. The city required her to use her vacation and sick days instead of putting her on workers compensation leave. City spokesman Tim Swanson declined comment because the city hasnt been served with the complaint yet. The city still contracts with Allied and is paying up to $27 million for a five-year contract expiring in August 2025. Allied Universal did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment Monday. Due to the issues, McIntyre resigned from the city in February, the lawsuit stated.. Her lawsuit claims whistleblower retaliation, which is a violation of the California labor code. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, July 8. Turkmenistan discussed issues of further development of partnerships in various directions with the UN, Trend reports. According to the official source, these issues were discussed during a meeting between President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Secretary General of the UN Antonio Guterres. The meeting took place in Ashgabat, both in a small-scale and large-scale format, with the involvement of delegation members. During the meeting, it was noted that the comprehensive development and consolidation of a multifaceted partnership with the UN is one of the key vectors of the foreign policy of sovereign Turkmenistan, which is consistently committed to the principles of openness, peacefulness, and active international cooperation in the interests of all. Meanwhile, during his visit to Ashgabat, Antonio Guterres also met with Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov. Berdimuhamedov stressed that ramping up collaboration with the United Nations is a top-notch, must-have objective of Turkmenistan's foreign policy. Special emphasis was placed on the constructive nature of bilateral contacts within the framework of the implementation of the Sustainable Development Cooperation Framework for 20212025, which is the basic document for joint work. A former purchasing agent for the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium pleaded guilty to charges connected to a fraud investigation at the zoo, according to Auditor of State Keith Faber. On July 2, Tracy Murnane, 65, of Westerville, pleaded guilty to felony counts of grand theft, complicity in the commission of theft of a motor vehicle, forgery, telecommunications fraud, and filing incomplete, false, and fraudulent tax returns. He also pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges. >>RELATED: Fourth former Columbus Zoo employee charged in fraud investigation Murnane was initially charged on May 23, according to a previous News Center 7 report. At the time, Murnane was the fourth Columbus Zoo employee to be criminally charged with felony theft-related offenses in connection to the states ongoing fraud investigation, according to the Ohio Attorney Generals Office. In April 2021, the Auditor of States Special Investigations Unit and the Attorney Generals Office opened a criminal investigation and forensic audit of the Columbus Zoo. Investigators discovered that Columbus Zoo executives used zoo funds for vacations, vehicles, concerts, sporting events, and more from 2011 to 2021, according to Faber. >> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Former Ohio zoo executives indicted, accused of misusing over $2M of public funds According to a previous News Center 7 report, Murnane sold services from his familys business to the zoo while working as a zoo purchaser. While working at the zoo, he sold personal cars using a straw seller and aided former zoo CEO Tom Stalf in using zoo funds to buy a vehicle for Stalfs personal use. Court documents indicate that Murnane used a zoo vendor barter system to book a party bus for a family members wedding and file tax returns for 2019 without accounting for his fraudulent gains. In September 2023, former CEO Tom Stalf, former Chief Financial Officer Greg Bell, and former Director of Marketing Pete Fungerhut were indicted on charges in connection to allegedly stealing more than $2.29 million in public funds for their benefit. Since then, Bell and Fingerhut have pleaded guilty to their charges. Murnane submitted his guilty pleas during a hearing in Delaware County Common Pleas Court and will be sentenced at a later date. Former Monroe City Schools superintendent charged: What you need to know. Brent Vidrine, former Superintendent of Monroe City Schools, was charged on Thursday following a lengthy probe into allegations of financial misconduct while serving on the school board. Here's what you should know about the former superintendent's charges. What was Vidrine charged with? Vidrine faces charges of felony, malfeasance in office, and falsifying public records, with two counts of the latter. What are the charges based on? The State Legislative Auditor's Office launched an investigation in 2023 into retirement payments made to Vidrine in 2021 and 2022. Upon review of the investigation's findings, the Ouachita Parish Sheriff's Office issued a warrant for Vidrine's arrest on July 1. Vidrine provided fraudulent documentation to the Monroe City School Board regarding the purchase of creditable service from the Teachers' Retirement System of Louisiana in 2021-2022, according to the investigation. A false receipt allegedly from the Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana was discovered among the documents, indicating that Vidrine had made a mandatory payment of $48,194.92 to the organization in 2021. However, the organization's records revealed no evidence of receiving such payment from Vidrine. Vidrine submitted a payment request for creditable service from the Teachers Retirement System of Louisiana in 2022, with the submitted document showing a cost of $67,422.71. However, upon review of an editable file from the organization on Vidrine's school board-issued desktop computer, it was discovered that the actual cost was $47,422.71, significantly lower than the original amount requested, as stated in the warrant. Vidrine fraudulently obtained an additional $20,000 by submitting a falsified document to the board. Follow Ian Robinson on Twitter @_irobinson and on Facebook at https://bit.ly/3vln0w1. This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Former Monroe City Schools superintendent charged. What to know. (Getty Images) LINCOLN The former city clerk in Ponca, Nebraska, now stands charged with three criminal offenses for allegedly destroying years of city financial records just prior to her dismissal 16 months ago. Denise Peterson, 59, was charged recently in Dixon County Court with one count each of abuse of public records and official misconduct, and one count of violation of the state records act. The first two counts are Class II misdemeanors, punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,000 fine. The public records charge is a Class III misdemeanor that carries a potential of three months in jail and a $500 fine. Messages left with a cell phone registered to Peterson did not elicit a response Monday. The Nebraska State Auditors Office stated in October that Peterson, the northeast Nebraska towns clerk for 21 years, may have violated state laws by wiping clean city computer records, disabling a data backup system and removing all emails and passwords related to her accounts just prior to being fired in February 2023. Ponca city officials said the actions were deliberate and premeditated to leave all the city cupboards bare and the city non-operational. It prompted an expensive effort, officials said, to attempt to restore the records. At the time, State Auditor Mike Foley called Petersons actions very disturbing and beyond anything I have ever seen. He said she deserved harsh penalties. Auditors also raised questions about two instances in which Peterson was issued duplicate paychecks for two work periods and said she had possibly misused a city credit card for purchases in excess of $10,000. City of Ponca officials, in their official response to the 2023 audit, said that new rules had been adopted concerning use of the city credit cards and that steps had been taken to back up city records. The charges against Peterson, filed by Dixon County Attorney Leland Miner on June 28, allege that the offenses took place between Jan. 30, 2023, and Feb. 17, 2023. The post Former Ponca city clerk faces trio of criminal charges for allegedly wiping clean city records appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. A federal appeals court on Monday upheld former Tennessee state Sen. Brian Kelsey's 21-month prison sentence for campaign finance violations. Kelsey, who represented Germantown in the Tennessee Senate from 2009 to 2022, argued that prosecutors violated the terms of his plea agreement when they sought a harsher sentence for him after he tried to withdraw the guilty plea he entered months before. He pleaded guilty in November 2022 to illegally shuffling money from his state campaign account through several political action committees to pay the American Conservative Union for political advertising spots benefiting his failed 2016 congressional campaign. After he asked to withdraw his guilty plea in May 2023, U.S. District Judge Waverly Crenshaw applied an additional sentencing enhancement for obstruction of justice that prosecutors requested. Notably, that enhancement only increased the proposed sentencing range for Kelseys conviction. The 21-month sentence Crenshaw handed down in August 2023 fell below ranges recommended by prosecutors both with and without the enhancement for obstruction of justice. Then-Sen. Brian Kelsey, R-Germantown, during a special legislative session in October 2021. Still, Kelsey argued that prosecutors still violated the plea agreement, which said the government would not change the sentencing range it would recommend to the judge. United States Attorney Henry C. Leventis for the Middle District of Tennessee praised the decision. Brian Kelsey pled guilty to intentionally violating federal campaign finance laws over 19 months ago, Leventis said in an emailed statement. The Sixth Circuits decision today, upholding both his plea agreement and the District Courts sentence, should ensure that he will finally be held accountable for his actions. The three-judge panel at the U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday ruled against Kelsey and affirmed Crenshaws decision to apply the sentencing enhancement. On behalf of two of three judges, Judge Karen Nelson Moore wrote that Kelseys lawyer did not adequately object to the purported breach of the plea agreement. According to the decision, Kelseys attorney at the sentencing hearing said he think(s) the governments come pretty close to violating the plea agreement and it sure sounds like theyre advocating for those two (sentencing) points, and they cant do that, which the judges found vague and noncommittal. In a concurring opinion, Judge Raymond Kethledge wrote that Kelseys attorney did object but still found the government did not violate the plea agreement. Alex Little, Kelseys attorney at the 6th Circuit, said that he plans to appeal the case. We plan to appeal this decision to all the judges of the Sixth Circuit because we are confident that the Department of Justice broke its deal with Mr. Kelsey, Little said in a written statement. Even without the sentencing enhancement for obstruction of justice, Kelseys sentence still fell well below the guideline sentencing range for his convictions. The sentencing guidelines initially proposed by prosecutors called for between 27 and 33 months in prison. After Crenshaw applied the enhancement, the guideline sentencing range rose to 33-41 months. He sentenced Kelsey to 21 months in prison in August 2023. Notwithstanding the governments conduct, then, Kelsey received the key benefit of the plea agreementa sentence not only within the range contemplated by the parties, but below itso it is unclear how any breach prejudiced Kelsey, Moores decision says. As part of his attempt to withdraw his guilty plea, Kelsey argued in court filings and during a May 2023 hearing that stress in his personal life led him to make a rash decision to plead guilty, even though he privately maintained he was innocent of the charges. He said he did not fully comprehend the consequences of pleading guilty to a criminal felony and was of unsound mind when he accepted the plea deal due to personal stressors. Federal prosecutors and Crenshaw didn't buy the Georgetown-trained lawyer was naive to the circumstances, with prosecutors calling him a "highly sophisticated" criminal defendant and the judge refusing to allow him to rescind his plea. Melissa Brown contributed to this report. 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: Brian Kelsey, former state senator, has prison sentence upheld FORT LAUDERDALE The mangrove trees and pines that shielded the River Oaks neighborhood from a nearby shipyard are gone forever. The city-hired drainage contractor that chopped them down also dumped gravel into a canal that runs through River Oaks and discharged water into both the canal and a nearby wetland preserve last year, increasing turbidity above allowable limits, county officials say. For that, Broward County has fined Ric-Man Construction and Fort Lauderdale $175,450. The city and contractor are splitting the fine, with Fort Lauderdale paying $78,808 and Ric-Man paying $96,642. Ric-Man was tapped to oversee a $50 million drainage project in River Oaks and nearby Edgewood. The neighborhoods are among 25 low-lying areas in Fort Lauderdale slated to get drainage upgrades to help protect against flooding. The missing trees are a sore spot for the residents of River Oaks, says Ted Inserra, the neighborhoods association president. They were between 10 and 20 feet high, Inserra said. Now that theyve been taken out, we can hear the noise coming from the shipyard. Theyre doing major work over there on those superyachts. Theyre not changing spark plugs. Theyre painting and sanding and grinding. It was Inserra and his neighbors who alerted the county, saying they saw crews dumping gravel into the canal that runs parallel to Coconut Drive. We just knew something wasnt right, Inserra said. And we were proven right. A Ric-Man official declined to comment Monday, referring questions to the city. During a recent meeting, Public Works Director Alan Dodd said the city thought Ric-Man made the right move on certain actions they took. However, the county saw it differently in terms of regulations, Dodd said. The countys Environmental Permitting Division cited Fort Lauderdale after Ric-Man dumped gravel into a canal west of Coconut Drive and removed more mangroves than what county officials say was allowed under their permit. Mangroves are usually nursery areas for the fish, said Carlos Adorisio, assistant director of Broward Countys Environmental Permitting Division. They lay their eggs there. To make up for the mangroves they destroyed beyond what was allowed under permit, credits were paid toward wetlands restoration outside the county in the Everglades Mitigation Bank near Homestead. The city was also cited for unauthorized discharges into the River Oaks wetland preserve at 2117 SW 19 Ave. When water is discharged into another body of water, it can stir up large deposits of silt and sediment, giving the water a cloudy or milky appearance known as turbidity. If turbidity levels are high, both plant and aquatic life can suffer and potentially die. When the water is turbid, oxygen levels go down, Adorisio said. That could kill fish and other animals. Dodd told commissioners the county is requiring the city to remediate the preserve to get it back to its previous condition. The city has hired a consultant to keep an eye on the contractors ongoing work. The mistakes were unfortunate, said Commissioner Warren Sturman, whose district includes River Oaks. My concern is that we have a robust system of checks and balances to make sure this doesnt happen again, Sturman told the South Florida Sun Sentinel. Every time we pay a fine, thats money that could have gone toward drainage infrastructure. Inserra said he thinks the fine should have been higher for destroying what was once a beautiful area of the neighborhood. Since March, Inserra says he has planted at least 40 mangrove saplings along the canal bank. Im hoping the city doesnt rip them out, he told the Sun Sentinel. They should be thanking me for planting those trees. All the city did was plant some little shrubs along the rocks on the south end of the canal. Fort Lauderdale officials are working on a plan to plant larger trees and vegetation along the southern banks of the canal where the mangroves and exotic trees were removed, Dodd said. But the city might end up having to remove the mangroves as they grow, Dodd warned. Mangrove trees can stop the flow of water and increase the risk of flooding, Dodd said. To come into compliance, Fort Lauderdale has directed Ric-Man to stop all dewatering activities. Dewatering, the process of removing ground water from a certain location, was required to install a large diameter pipe. A revised dewatering plan is being developed to prevent excessive turbidity before any future dewatering is authorized. The city is also increasing Construction Engineering and Inspection services to provide greater on-site quality assurance and verify Ric-Mans quality control procedures are adequate during future work. We have learned a lot of lessons on this, Dodd said. Susannah Bryan can be reached at sbryan@sunsentinel.com. Follow me on X @Susannah_Bryan Former local government minister Lee Rowley last year ordered the council to stop the trial because it proved of little value to taxpayers - Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament The first British council to trial a four-day week has claimed it has resulted in better public services, as it seeks to convince Labour the experiment should continue. South Cambridgeshire district council claims that its controversial 15-month experiment to give staff a shorter week on full pay led to quicker planning decisions and reduced staff turnover. The Liberal Democrat-controlled authority introduced the four-day week trial as part of efforts to improve services by filling hard-to-fill positions permanently rather than hiring more expensive agency workers. The experiment required staff to carry out 100pc of their tasks while working one day less each week and still receiving their full salary. It ran between January 2023 and April 2024. The findings come despite repeated criticism from the former Conservative government about the four-day policy in the local authority sector. Labour is yet to say if it will allow councils to continue with the arrangement. Former local government minister Lee Rowley last year ordered the Cambridgeshire council to end the experiment immediately, claiming that the short week would not provide value to taxpayers. Michael Gove, former levelling up secretary, last October warned underperforming councils that they were on notice and risked facing financial penalties if they did not ditch four-day weeks. Labour, meanwhile, has resisted union demands to champion the four-day working week despite it being a key policy during the 2019 election. An independent report by the Universities of Cambridge and Salford into the councils four-day week trial on Monday found that 22 out of its 24 services either improved or remained the same. Areas found to have improved included call answering times at the councils contact centre, timeliness of planning decisions, how long it takes to process benefits claims, and speed of emergency repairs to council homes. John Williams, the lead council member for resources, said: We know we cannot compete on salary alone and have needed to find bold new ways of tackling our recruitment and retention issues. The report shows that a shorter week would deliver 371,500 in yearly cost savings, mainly through permanently filling 10 hard-to-fill roles. The council also recruited more than 130 new staff, of which three quarters said they were influenced by the four-day week trial. A separate independent health and wellbeing survey by Robertson Cooper also found that more staff are intended to stay longer at the South Cambridgeshire district council, reducing staff turnover and high vacancy rates. Mental and physical health, plus motivation is said have increased. Mike Davey, the leader of Cambridge city council, which shares planning services with South Cambridgeshire, said: It seems to be a win-win-win situation, with improved service delivery for residents, reduced staffing costs for the council, and a better work-life balance for council staff. The South Cambridgeshire council has continued the four-day week even after the trial formally finished in March. 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. Americano Media, a right-leaning Hispanic media outlet that operated from 2022 to 2023, is making a comeback supported by a new group of investors, according to owner Ivan Garcia-Hidalgo. Garcia-Hidalgo, the former telecommunications executive who conceived Americano, previewed the scope of the new investment in an exclusive interview with The Hill. I think a lot of people are going to be very surprised to see the round of investors that stepped up in order to bring Americano back and launch it into the future. And I think its going to be a really surprising shock for many that passed on the opportunity, he said. And Im pretty sure theyre probably going to kick themselves for not jumping in, and theyre probably going to come, you know, wanting to jump in and invest, quite frankly. But I dont know if itll be too little too late, but you know, thats the way the cookie crumbles, right? Though short-lived in its first iteration, the network quickly gained steam as Trump Worlds preferred Spanish-language outlet, landing interviews with former President Trump and other top Republicans in his orbit. Everybody just talked about a need for a Fox News in Spanish type network for decades, ever since Fox News launched, and nobody ever did it, and we decided to do it. We were probably crazy enough to do it, Garcia-Hidalgo said. Americanos rise and fall between 2022 and 2023 was the product of an aggressive expansion plan, fidgety investors and a failed takeover attempt by Texas-based Voz Media, a separate conservative media company that also failed to acquire Mega TV from Puerto Rico-based Spanish Broadcasting System. Theres two things that I believe went wrong. They tried to grow too fast, right? They pushed the accelerator too fast, right? If youre not an experienced race driver, meaning you might not be an experienced entrepreneur, and you accelerate the vehicle too much, youre gonna crash, said Jose Aristimuno, a former Democratic National Committee spokesperson who appeared on Americano as a center-left political analyst and is in talks to return for the networks revival. The second is that they operated in good faith that investors were going to come through, and some investors fell along the way. You know, people they got, they got promised things and investors didnt deliver, added Aristimuno. Garcia-Hidalgos need for cash stemmed from a rush to transition the networks 18 hours of daily original live programming from radio to video. When we started, we, you know, we started with very little funding, with a million dollars, and that wasnt going to give us the ability to launch a television network a la Fox News or CNN or MSNBC, Garcia-Hidalgo said. But you know, we did it. We were able to go and launch radio. We were able to, you know, get on SiriusXM. About $14 million of the $19.7 million Americano ultimately raised came from Doug Hayden, a packaging company heir who invested after meeting Garcia-Hidalgo through a mutual friend he met at a political conference. Garcia-Hidalgo said Hayden and his family are 100 percent on board with the new version of Americano. But that funding was not enough to finish the transition to video, which Garcia-Hidalgo said was necessary because radio is dead. You know, radio is dead. Theres no money in radio. With funding dried up, Garcia-Hidalgo halted operations and furloughed staff in order to avoid further liabilities and focus 100 percent on our next round of funding which is this round, and is the round thats the most important round for us and for most startup companies which is the one that gets you to distribution and monetization, right? From the get-go, Americano has aimed to fill an ideological gap in Latino media, providing a conservative outlet with comparable reach to Telemundo and Univision. The thirst for such an outlet highlights the growing interest from all sides of the political spectrum in Latino voters, who were once dismissed as nonparticipatory or as bound to Democrats. But Garcia-Hidalgo says its also a reflection of a broader trend in conservative media. Conservative investors have traditionally always invested in real estate and energy you know, oil and gas and they havent really invested in media and tech and things like that, and then they wonder why they lose the culture wars, he said. Outside of Elon Musk and Donald Trump, you know, there really arent a lot of conservatives in media, right? You can say Fox, but you know, thats it. And I think thats going to change. I think thats going to change dramatically. That change, according to Garcia-Hidalgo, will happen because of Americanos leadership and investor teams, whom he declined to name at this time. Were coming back. Were going to blow it up. Were not going to stop. You know, the leadership team is fantastic. The round of investors are amazing, he said. We have the right mix, the right people that have deep pockets and believe in the cause, believe in the mission. Believe that Hispanics deserve to hear both sides of the news, of the stories, and not just one side, and be told, you know, what to think. And thats what Americano was all about. Thats also whats brought Americano heavy criticism from the left and anti-Trump Republicans who see Trump-aligned Hispanics as self-defeating at best. But some on the left see the possibility of a conservative Latino network as a space to reach new audiences. Aristimuno, who regularly appears on Fox News, said conservative networks are an opportunity for Democrats to reach new audiences. Im of the belief and theres no question that Americano is right-leaning, or has a conservative mission. OK, theres no denying that, but Id rather have Democrats be involved in things like this than not, because there are people who say, Im not going to Fox News. I dont agree with Fox. Im not going. Youre doing a disservice to American people, and youre doing a disservice to the nation by not participating in this type of thing, right? he said. And Aristimuno, who once co-hosted a right-left news analysis show with Garcia-Hidalgo, said his former co-host is the right person to build that network. Ivan is like a, like a bull, man. He just keeps going and going and going until he tears down the wall. So I think he can the drive is there, right? The drive is there. And I think the connections too. I think he knows the right people to pull this off, Aristimuno 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. (Bloomberg) -- France is heading into an extended period of political gridlock after a shock defeat for Marine Le Pens far right in Sundays elections produced a divided parliament with no clear majority. Most Read from Bloomberg A left-wing alliance including the far-left group France Unbowed will be the biggest group with 178 out of 577 seats in the lower house, but still way short of the 289 required for an absolute majority. President Emmanuel Macrons group was second with Le Pens National Rally trailing in third place. In the runup to the vote, investors had been concerned about the prospect of a far-right takeover after Le Pens crushing victory in last months European parliamentary elections. But some analysts were even more worried about Jean-Luc Melenchons France Unbowed leading the next administration, since he has made spending promises that would destabilize the public finances and risk a market crisis. The result means that neither Melenchon nor Le Pen will be able to put their plans into action and makes the formation of any effective government extremely difficult. The extremes have been averted, said Antonio Barroso, a political analyst at advisory firm Teneo. But the problem is that there is no easy path to a government. French bonds and the euro were little changed as traders digested the results. The CAC 40 was up 0.3% in Paris trading, adding to last weeks rebound. The French equity benchmark has erased almost half of its losses of recent weeks and remains 3.8% lower than it was before the election was called on June 9. The leftist alliance, known as the New Popular Front, struck a deal with Macrons centrists ahead of the second round of voting in order to prevent Le Pens from clinching a majority. Le Pens National Rally won the biggest share of the vote in the first round but wound up with only 143 seats while Macrons group took 156, according to the French interior ministry. For full results, click here. The scenario of political deadlock in France, with an assembly divided into three blocs, is the least worst-case scenario, said John Plassard, a director at Mirabaud & Cie. Macron had said that the snap election hed called following his defeat in the European election was meant to clarify the political situation in France. Instead, its kicking off what looks like weeks of negotiations to try to come up with a formation that can govern. Although the electoral rules of the Fifth Republic were designed to avoid gridlock, France is facing the same political fragmentation that has seen parliaments across Europe plunge into extensive and complex negotiations in order to form majorities. Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof was sworn in this month, almost eight months after his countrys election. Spanish Premier Pedro Sanchez is governing with the support of seven different parties after the conservatives, the biggest parliamentary group, failed to form a majority. Olaf Scholz is leading Germanys first three-way coalition in more than half a century. In France, the most likely outcome is a government with a minimal set of policies that can keep the country running without aiming at any major changes, say constitutional and political experts. There are major differences between each of the three main blocs. Thats an extraordinary outcome in large part because the current French constitution, brought in under Charles de Gaulle in 1958, was created in order to try to avoid the kind of parliamentary paralysis that France experienced following World War II. Melody Mock-Gruet, a constitutional expert at SciencesPo university, said you have to go back to the presidency of Vincent Auriol from 1947 to 1954 to find a similar situation. He would meet with each group in parliament and try to find the least common denominator with them in order to try to build a government, she said. This is going to take weeks at least. As the maneuvering began on Sunday night, Macrons prime minister, Gabriel Attal, distanced himself from the presidents decision to call the election and announced that he will offer his resignation. Despite the friction, Macron asked him to remain on an interim basis in order to maintain stability. Melenchon demanded that Macron recognize his defeat and appoint a left wing premier to replace Attal, telling his supporters that the New Popular Front will implement its program in full. Socialist leader Olivier Faure struck a more conciliatory note, saying its the partys job to find a path to respond to the needs and demands of French people. Its not just that the parliament is fragmented, but the parties themselves are split, said Barroso, the Teneo analyst. Under the French constitution, the president is allowed to pick whomever he wants as prime minister, but without a majority any government will be vulnerable to no-confidence votes and will struggle to pass laws. Mock-Gruet said that Macron will likely wait until the National Assembly meets on July 18 before starting any serious negotiations. She said the parties that make up Melenchons New Popular Front will most likely form separate groups, potentially providing an opening for Macron to deal with the Socialists or Greens. Whatever happens next, theres a consensus emerging that French politicians are going to have to find a new way to operate that involves more compromise. Thats not an easy task in a country thats used to parliament unflinchingly implementing the program of a president. We are leading but not with a full majority, Socialist Raphael Glucksmann, who has been touted as a potential prime minister, said on TF1. So we need to start a new era of acting like adults. We will need to debate and have dialog. --With assistance from Tara Patel, Ania Nussbaum, Samy Adghirni and Phil Serafino. (Updates with premier asked to stay on in 16th paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. The election defeat of the far-Right in France was celebrated by many of the national teams most well-known players, many of whom have African heritage, as the squad prepared for their Euro 2024 semi-final against Spain on Tuesday. Among those thanking their fellow voters for stopping the advance of the far-right National Rally led by Marine Le Pen, were Liverpool defender Ibrahima Konate; Marcus Thuram of Inter Milan; the Barcelona players Jules Kounde and Ousmane Dembele; as well as Real Madrids Aurelien Tchouameni. Many of the players posted on their Instagram pages in celebration of the result which saw Le Pen defeated by a combination of the hard left, and the centrist party of president Emamnuel Macron. The New Popular front, a coalition of left, centre-left and Green parties, have the largest share of seats in the National Assembly. Before the election many France players used press conferences to urge young voters to reject the far right. Kylian Mbappe, the teams star and captain was among them although his message was more unclear suggesting he opposed the far Left as well. Tchouameni posted on X: La victoire du peuple the victory of the people. Kounde said that his relief at the result had been equal to that of his concerns on the lead-up to the ballot. Congratulations to all the French people, he posted, who mobilised so that this beautiful country that is France did not find itself governed by the extreme Right. Dembele posted a picture of himself smiling followed by a graphic of the voting breakdown on his Instagram stories. Thuram posted on his Instagram story: Congratulations to all those who responded to the danger over our beautiful country. Long live diversity, long live the Republic, long live France. The fight goes on. France face Spain on Tuesday for a place in the final of Euro 2024. French team try to unite divide nation The Marseillaise will doubtless boom out across the stadium in Munich a lot louder and much more heartfelt when the latest generation of Les Bleus line up before Tuesdays semi-final against Spain and another date with destiny. The failure of Marine Le Pens hard-Right party Rassemblement National to prevail in this weeks French elections could yet be the turning point in Frances Euro 2024. In fact, what had become the defining issue for the country, and by extension a squad of many who could trace their immediate heritage outside of France, was supplanted by the end of Didier Deschamps press conference. In its place came the usual arguments over performance. It was tense for Deschamps, who turned on a Swedish journalist for calling his team boring, but in many respects it would have been a relief to his players. As ever, the needle in football is sometimes pushed relentlessly in one direction to the issue of the day politics, scandal, culture wars but it always returns to the mean. Which is recriminations about performance. If you are getting bored, watch another game! Deschamps retorted. He had begun by accusing the journalist of being a member of the French press in disguise, which told you all you needed to know about the relationship between this France team and their own media. Overnight the big issue had been the defeat of Le Pen, who was poised to take control of Frances Assemblee Nationale only to lose to a coalition of left, centre-left and Green parties. Had RN prevailed then, come Tuesday night, the Marseillaise may have meant something very different to many of the young men who had, in the days before, urged their fellow French citizens to reject the extremist views of Le Pen. None of those who had shared their views on the election were selected for the official Uefa press conference, unsurprising given the governing bodys terror of politics. Adrien Rabiot, the midfielder, said nonetheless that the squad were concerned about the result of the election. We have these things playing on our minds. By the end it was back to the question of why the pre-eminent team in international football over the past six years had looked so flat. They have not scored a single goal from open play in the tournament, and Deschamps was even asked why Olivier Giroud, 37, was not starting games. Giroud is Frances all-time record goalscorer. He also played seven games in the triumphant 2018 World Cup campaign and did not register a shot on target, never mind a goal. Deschamps said that with the exception of Spain, it had been difficult for every side at this Euros perhaps thinking about the criticism levelled at Gareth Southgate. We have the ability to make lots of Frenchmen and women happy through the results we have pulled out the bag, Deschamps said. Especially in a period which has been difficult for our country. There were more complaints about the leaking of tactical plans. Its never nice to see when you have really worked hard on something and by the end of the session the media have already caught wind of it, Rabiot said. Deschamps told his players the team and the formation en route to the quarter-final against Portugal last week, according to LEquipe, the French newspaper. There is pressure on the partnership of Kylian Mbappe and Antoine Griezmann, which has failed to deliver so far. Deschamps made it clear that Mbappes broken nose was improving but still a cause of major discomfort for the man himself. The mask, Deschamps said, may have to be worn for weeks, possibly months. It restricts Mbappes peripheral vision. Deschamps is convinced his team are ready to win the Euros. Certainly they were not great entertainers when they won in Russia 2018, but it is now reaching the stage where anything short of victory in Berlin on Sunday will be regarded as failure. 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) -- France looks headed for political instability after a surprise win by a left-wing coalition in Sundays legislative election offered no party a path to claim the majority needed to govern. Most Read from Bloomberg The New Popular Front which includes the Socialists and far-left France Unbowed won 178 seats in the National Assembly, according to data compiled by the Interior Ministry. Marine Le Pens National Rally, which pollsters last week had seen winning the election, came third with 143, while President Emmanuel Macrons centrist alliance notched up 156. Even with smaller parties or individual lawmakers aligning with the larger groups, all will fall far short of the 289 required for an absolute majority in the 577-seat lower house. Its unclear therefore how the country, which doesnt have a tradition of coalitions, will form a government that is able to pass laws. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that he would present his resignation to Macron on Monday, which would start the process for the formation of a new government. The euro and French bond futures slipped at the start of trading, as investors digested a result that few had anticipated and brings back to the fore concern about the countrys fiscal problems, given parties commitment to a major increase in public spending. The Institut Montaigne estimates that the campaign pledges by the New Popular Front would require nearly 179 billion ($194 billion) in extra funds per year. The far-right National Rallys plans would cost about 71 billion, while Macrons party and its allies would incur extra spending of close to 21 billion. French Legislative Election: Second Round Results Le Pen put a positive spin on the results, pointing out that National Rally, which had 89 spots in the previous legislature, is on course to get the most seats of any single party. The tide is rising, Le Pen said. It hasnt risen high enough this time, but its still rising. The unexpected result means no single alliance has the numbers to govern with an absolute majority, fragmenting the legislature into three distinct groups with divergent agendas. Macron will wait for the new configuration of the National Assembly before making any further decisions on naming the next prime minister, according to a statement from an Elysee official. France will now face two options, which have little precedent in the history of the modern republic. Macron could try to cobble together a coalition among willing but not always like-minded parties, but that would require the New Popular Front to break apart and reconfigure behind the president without its more radical elements. Or Macron could name a technocratic administration that could bridge the period of political turmoil. Both solutions will likely mean a weakened government that will have trouble passing any meaningful legislation and with less influence on the international stage. The absence of majority and the absence of government will expose France and French people to formidable danger, Macrons first prime minister, Edouard Philippe, warned on Sunday night. Central political forces now have a responsibility they cannot duck: They must work for an agreement without dishonor that will stabilize the political situation. Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of France Unbowed, told supporters Sunday that the New Popular Front would implement its program in its entirety and that he would refuse to enter into a deal with Macron. But Socialist leader Olivier Faure struck a more conciliatory note, saying its the partys job to find a path to respond to the needs and demands of French people. French assets tumbled in the days after Macron announced the snap election four weeks ago, but bounced late last week when traders started to price out an absolute majority for Le Pens far-right party, and embrace the prospect of a gridlocked government in which neither right nor left had unchecked power. What Bloomberg Economics Says... Debt was on an unsustainable path even before the vote, and trend growth is slow. With the chances of fiscal slippage and policy paralysis up, the likelihood of these serious problems being tackled is down. Eleonora Mavroeidi, Maeva Cousin and Jamie Rush. For their FRANCE REACT, click here While a lower-than-expected seat count for Le Pens party and a bump for Macrons bloc thus came as a relief to some traders, the win for the left bloc is likely to hurt French assets in the weeks to come. For Vincent Juvyns, global market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management, that could pop up in the spread between French and German bond yields, which he sees widening. The European Commission and rating agencies are expecting 20 billion to 30 billion euros of cuts but the government will actually have to deal with a party which want to increase spending by 120 billion, Juvyns said. This could create tension across markets in the coming weeks. Markets may demand a higher spread as long as the new government hasnt clarified its fiscal position. Sundays projections offer some vindication for Macrons call to dissolve parliament following a crushing defeat to Le Pens party last month. He was widely criticized for the decision after his party finished a distant third in the first round of voting last week in which Le Pen seized the initiative. The past week has seen frantic efforts to activate the so called Republican Front an arrangement in which mainstream parties strategically pull candidates from certain races to bolster votes against the National Rally. Macrons party withdrew 76 candidates from runoff contests where they had little chance of winning, in order to avoid splitting the anti-Le Pen vote. The New Popular Front withdrew 130. National Rally President Jordan Bardella criticized the strategy, saying that the approach orchestrated by the Elysee palace is not going anywhere. Antonio Barroso, deputy director of research at Teneo, wrote in a note that the formation of a new government would be complicated and could take a long time. This indecision runs a risk for the country that nobody should underestimate, Philippe said. The credibility of our country could be hit, as well as its credit ruined. --With assistance from Julien Ponthus, Albertina Torsoli, James Regan and Tara Patel. (Updates with final results in second paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Left-wing parties alliance wins France's legislative elections, PM vows to resign Xinhua) 08:07, July 08, 2024 This photo taken on June 28, 2024 shows the Eiffel Tower with Olympic rings in Paris, France. (Xinhua/Sun Fei) Official provisional results are expected to be published by the French interior ministry late Sunday night or early Monday morning. PARIS, July 7 (Xinhua) -- The left-wing parties' alliance, the New Popular Front (NFP), wins the 2nd round of France's legislative elections, and is expected to hold between 175 and 205 seats in the National Assembly, according to projections published by research firm Elabe. French President Emmanuel Macron's coalition comes in second with the possibility of getting 150 to 175 seats, while the far-right wing party and its allies would only obtain 115 to 150 seats, Elabe said in its projections. No party would get the absolute majority of 289 seats in the 577-member French National Assembly. Speaking after the publication of several projections confirming the win of the NFP, French left-wing head Jean-Luc Melanchon, "saluted" the effort and mobilization of the French people who have voted in favor of the NFP. "Our people have clearly avoided the worst solution for them," he said, referring to the far-ring wing party, the National Rally (RN). "We achieved a result that we were told impossible," said Melanchon, head of left-wing party La France Insoumise. A voter casts ballot at a polling station in Paris, France, July 7, 2024. (Photo by Julien Mattia/Xinhua) According to him, the result of the elections is "a huge relief" for most French people. "The will of the people must be strictly respected...The defeat of the President of the Republic and his coalition is clearly confirmed," he told his supporters. "The prime minister must resign. The president must call on the New Popular Front to govern," he said. Former French president Francois Hollande, a member of the French Socialist Party (PS) and candidate of the New Popular Front (NFP), is elected as deputy as well following the second round. "I considered that my duty, despite the positions I held, was to do everything to prevent the extreme right from coming to power, but also to open a path of hope," he said at a gathering. The former French president noted that the New Popular Front (NFP) has the responsibility to "fulfill its role" at the future National Assembly. Following the defeat of the National Rally, its president Jordan Bardella thanked the RN's supporters. "Unfortunately, the alliances of dishonor this evening deprive the French of a policy of recovery. This evening, the electoral agreements throw France into the arms of the extreme left of Jean-Luc Melenchon," he said. "The National Rally embodies more than ever the only alternation and will stand alongside the French people. We do not want power for power's sake but to return it to the French," the 28-year-old far-right wing lead noted. Although the National Rally failed to become the largest party in the National Assembly, it still would have more seats than in the previous assembly. People cast ballots at a polling station in Clichy-La-Garenne, near Paris, France, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Gao Jing) French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced Sunday night to submit his resignation to French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday, following the defeat of Macron's centrist coalition in the elections. "This evening, the political group that I represented in this campaign, has achieved three times more than the seats predicted in the past weeks, but does not have a majority," Attal said in a televised speech. "Being faithful to the republican tradition and in accordance with my principles, I will submit my resignation tomorrow morning to the President of the Republic," he said. Saying that the French people may feel a form of "uncertainty" about the future following the results of the legislative elections, Attal stressed that he would "obviously" assume his role as prime minister for as long as it requires, given that France is to hold the Olympics Games in three weeks. Although Attal would submit his resignation to Macron on Monday, the latter doesn't have to accept it immediately. Official provisional results are expected to be published by the French interior ministry late Sunday night or early Monday morning. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, July 8. Turkmenistan and Pakistan are looking for new ways of cooperating, Trend reports. According to the Turkmen Embassy in Islamabad, this topic was discussed between the Ambassador of Turkmenistan to Pakistan Atajan Movlamov and the Federal Minister for Economic Affairs of Pakistan Ahad Khan Cheema. During the meeting, the parties focused on strengthening economic ties and exploring new areas of cooperation between the two countries. At the same time, they stressed the importance of intensifying bilateral trade and economic cooperation. Atajan Movlamov noted the potential for increasing trade volumes and opportunities for investment in various sectors, including energy, infrastructure, and technology. In turn, the minister expressed Pakistan's commitment to creating a favorable environment for foreign investment and shared his opinion on the country's recent economic reforms aimed at promoting growth and stability. Meanwhile, economic cooperation between Turkmenistan and Pakistan has significantly strengthened in recent years, especially in the fields of energy and infrastructure. The most important project between the countries at the moment is the construction of the TAPI gas pipeline (Turkmenistan - Afghanistan - Pakistan - India), which is designed to provide Pakistan and India with Turkmen gas, which will contribute to the energy security of the region. (Bloomberg) -- Frances political class is drawing breath after a turbulent parliamentary election as officials prepare to begin in earnest negotiations over the next government. Most Read from Bloomberg Many new lawmakers from the left-wing alliance that came first in Sundays vote were focused on hiring advisers and moving into their offices in the National Assembly on Monday. President Emmanuel Macron met with lawmakers from his party as representatives from across the political spectrum take stock of the situation. Macrons decision to call a snap election after a crushing defeat to the far right in European elections last month has cost him control of the French parliament. But with the lower house split between three antagonist blocs, its unclear who will be able to lead the next government. With 178 out of 577 seats, the leftists of the New Popular Front may get to make the first move and Senator Yannick Jadot, touted as a potential premier, told Franceinfo that the group is aiming to nominate a candidate in the next few days. We will propose a government this week, said Jadot, who represents the Greens within the left-wing grouping. We need a prime minister who is consensual within our group, brings calm to the country, who can find majorities around a certain number of major reforms the country needs. The problem is that the candidate will almost certainly need to win support from Macrons group, which has 156 lawmakers in the National Assembly. Both groups, or at least parts of both groups, will need to get as close as possible to the magic figure of 289 votes that constitutes an absolute majority to adopt legislation. Thats going to put pressure on the New Popular Front, which also includes the Socialists and the far-left France Unbowed. Jean-Luc Melenchon, the fiery leader of France Unbowed, is extremely reluctant to cooperate any further with Macrons centrists the feeling is mutual. The two groups though did coordinate strategy for the second round on Sunday by pulling weaker candidates to avoid splitting the vote. The tactical positioning pushed Marine Le Pens far right into third place, with the National Rally winning 143 seats despite leading nationwide after the first round. The coming negotiations are likely to put strain on all of the parties involved as they consider the compromises required to form a functioning government. In an interview on LCI late Monday, Melenchon called for an end to any quarreling within the leftist alliance, saying the parties will come up with a potential candidate for prime minister this week. The France Unbowed leader threw his hat in the ring, while also proposing other potential candidates from his party. I feel capable and would hold the line, he said. Im part of the solution, not the problem. Trouble is, other members of the alliance have made it clear they dont want Melenchon as their candidate for premier. Meanwhile, in a sign of other tensions still to come, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who appears ready to break away from Macrons party to mount a run for the presidency in 2027, held a separate meeting with lawmakers from the presidents party. Gabriel Attal, Macrons 35-year-old prime minister, has also been keen to emphasize that it was not his decision to hold snap elections, but solely Macrons. Another solution would be to bring together a broader range of lawmakers from the center-right to the center-left to govern. That would actually reflect Macrons tack to the right. Since the president has lost his absolute majority in the lower house in 2022, he has often been passing legislation thanks to the support of conservatives. A key centrist backer, Francois Bayrou, advocated the creation of such a coalition. In an interview on LCI TV late Monday he said a broad alliance that excluded the far right and the far left is the only long-lasting way out of the current quagmire. There is no other solution than the one that I have described, he said, calling the leftist alliances economic pledges dangerous. Xavier Bertrand, the head of the Hauts-de-France region in the north, told Bloomberg that such a coalition would be able to address issues like public order, the cost of living and public services which are at the heart of voter discontent. Theres a large majority of French people who are angry, he said, possibly positioning himself as a contender to be prime minister. What we really need is people who will try to bring us together, whatever our differences. There are more important things than political parties. Agnes Pannier-Runacher, the junior agriculture minister, proposed a similar solution and said that the presidents party has to acknowledge that supporters of the left-wing alliance had helped them prevent a far-right victory. Even though they disagree on many issues,Macron needs to recognize that, she said. I know a certain number of those who voted for me did it to block the National Rally, Pannier-Runacher said on Sunday night. I know this cause was very important for many people and I want to thank them. I feel responsible toward these voters. Monday offered a moment of respite after a rollercoaster campaign that saw angry demonstrations on the streets and hundreds of billions of euros wiped off the value of French financial markets. But there was still a sense that France is not yet in the clear. Electoral deals and arrangements between Melenchon and Macron have stopped us getting a majority, said Jordan Bardella, the president of Le Pens National Rally. I have enormous difficulty seeing how Macron can keep going for three years in this situation, where everythings blocked. One Socialist party member joked that if the situation looks too peaceful then the president might just appoint Melenchon as prime minister to stir things up again. --With assistance from James Regan and Tara Patel. (Updates with comments from Melenchon in 10th and 11th and Bayrou in 15th and 16th paragraphs.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. TechCrunch In 2020, Parker Gilbert (pictured above; middle) was so fed up with the tedium of managing finance and accounting at an early-stage startup that he decided to co-found Numeric, an accounting software that automates certain parts of the book-closing process. Over the last year, Numerics revenue has increased four-fold to the single-digit millions, and investors are suddenly flocking to back the company. Now, just five months after it raised a $10 million seed round from a slew of well-known investors, the company has raised a $28 million Series A led by Menlo Ventures, with participation from new investors IVP and Socii. France's election ends up with no clear majority. This is what could happen next People gather at the Republique plaza after the second round of the legislative election, Sunday, July 7, 2024, in Paris. Surprise polling projections in France say a leftist coalition that came together to try to keep the far right from power has won the most parliamentary seats in runoff elections after a high turnout among voters. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte) PARIS (AP) French voters have given a broad leftist coalition the most parliamentary seats in a pivotal legislative election that has kept the far right from power but has put France in the unprecedented position of having no dominant political bloc in parliament. While a fractured parliament is not uncommon in Europe, France has not experienced that in its modern history. That sends the country into uncharted territory that will involve tense negotiations to form a new government and name a prime minister, who focuses on domestic policy and shares power with the president. President Emmanuel Macron s centrist alliance came in second in Sunday's runoff for the National Assembly, France's lower house of parliament, after his centrists and the leftists both campaigned against the far right, with candidates in three-way races dropping out to benefit the one deemed most likely to defeat the far right candidate. The far right party came in third, though still drastically increasing its number of seats. No clear figure has emerged as a possible future prime minister. Macron can propose a name, but that choice would need support from a parliamentary majority. He says he will wait to decide his next steps, and heads to Washington this week for a NATO summit. New legislators start work Monday, and hold their first session July 18. A hung parliament? Three major political blocs have emerged none of them is close to holding a majority of at least 289 seats out of 577. Results so far have showed just over 180 seats for the New Popular Front leftist coalition, 160 for Macron's Together for the Republic centrist coalition, and more than 140 for the far-right National Rally party. The National Assembly is the most important of Frances two houses of parliament. It has the final say in the lawmaking process over the Senate, which is dominated by conservatives. The split lower house will require lawmakers to build consensus across parties to agree on government positions and a legislative agenda. Frances fractious politics and deep divisions over taxes, immigration and Mideast policy make that especially challenging. The results means Macron's centrist allies almost certainly won't be able to implement their pro-business proposals such a promise to overhaul unemployment benefits. It could also make passing a budget more difficult. Can Macron make a deal with the left? Macron may seek a deal with more moderate elements of the left. France has no tradition of this kind of arrangement, so such negotiations if they happen are expected to be difficult and could result in an informal and fragile alliance. Macron has said he would not work with the hard-left France Unbowed party, but he could stretch out a hand to other parties in the New Popular Front: the Socialists and the Greens. They may refuse to take it, however. His government last week suspended a decree that would have diminished workers rights to unemployment benefits, which has been interpretated as a gesture toward the left. Some Macron allies are instead pushing to form a government around the centrists and the conservative Republicans who together with their allies came in fourth with over 60 seats. However, that grouping would still need support of additional lawmakers. Is the left divided? The left has been torn by divisions, especially after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel. Jean-Luc Melenchon and other leaders of the hard-left France Unbowed party have been sharply criticized by other more moderate leftists for their stance on the conflict. Hard-left politicians, who have accused Israel of pursuing genocide against Palestinians, have faced accusations of antisemitism, which they strongly deny. In elections last month for the European Parliament, the Socialists ran independently, but Macron's call for an early parliamentary election drew leftist leaders together into the New Popular Front. Their joint platform promises to raise the minimum monthly salary from 1,400 to 1,600 euros ($1,515 to $1,735), pull back Macrons pension reform that increased the retirement age from 62 to 64 and freeze food and energy prices. All that has financial markets worried. What is Melenchons role ? Melenchon says the leftist alliance is ready to govern." But theres no chance hell be named prime minister, because Macron refuses to work with him, and so far Melenchon's own coalition has not proposed him or anyone else for the job. New Popular Front leaders say further internal discussions are needed. The 72-year-old founder of France Unbowed is disliked by many moderates and often perceived as authoritarian. A wily politician and gifted orator, Melenchon has long been a figure on the French left, first in the Socialist Party. He launched France Unbowed in 2016 and was an unsuccessful presidential candidate in 2017 and 2022. Political rivals have argued that the left's win in Sunday's parliamentary elections stemmed more from fear of the far right than any attraction for Melenchon or his party. Why is a temporary government needed? Prime Minister Gabriel Attal offered his resignation Monday but Macron instead asked him to remain temporarily after election results left the government in limbo. Attal says he can stay on through the upcoming Paris Olympics or as long as needed. For now, Attal's government will handle day-to-day management. Macrons office says he will wait for the new National Assembly to organize itself before making decisions on a new government. There is no firm timeline for when Macron must name a prime minister, and no firm rule that he has to pick someone from the largest party or bloc in parliament. What about Macron? The president's term runs until 2027, and he says he won't step down. With no majority and little possibility of implementing his own agenda, Macron comes out weakened from the election. But under France's Constitution, he still holds power over foreign policy, European affairs and defense and is in charge of negotiating and ratifying international treaties. The president is also the commander-in-chief of the countrys armed forces and holds the nuclear codes. The prime minister is accountable to parliament, leads the government and introduces bills. The new prime minister might be unable or unwilling to seriously challenge Macrons defense and foreign policy powers. ___ Follow APs global election coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/global-elections/ By Michel Rose PARIS (Reuters) - President Emmanuel Macron may have seen off the threat of France's far right, but he now faces a frustrating final three years in office after gambling away much of his political power in an election that has left France with a chaotic hung parliament. Rolling the dice after Marine Le Pen's National Rally (RN) humbled his own party in June's presidential election, Macron challenged voters to decide again where power should lie. Le Pen and her young protege Jordan Bardella were confident victory would be theirs. They were wrong. A surge by the left-wing New Popular Front alliance, aided by tactical anti-RN voting, thwarted Le Pen. Even Macron's own centrist camp bettered the far-right vote. Macron, 46, has a history of winning audacious bets, not least his first presidential run in 2017 when he had never held elected office. While he may have neutered the far right for now, Sunday's vote will shift political power from the Elysee Palace to a potentially disorderly parliament. His Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, gave his own blunt assessment, seeking to distance himself from Macron's electoral gamble on which he had not been consulted. "From tomorrow, the centre of gravity of power will be ... more than ever in the hands of the parliament," Attal said as he announced his plan to resign from his post on Monday morning. Macron rejected his offer, asking him to stay on for now to help to ensure stability. OUT OF TOUCH Macron said he wanted the election to provide clarity, but it has had the opposite effect, plunging France into the uncharted waters of coalition government and weakening his authority as president. Macron's office did not return a request for comment. The president's snap election call stunned close allies and opponents alike. Some from Macron's own camp have denounced it as a reckless move though others close to him argue it was not an entirely illogical decision, according to half a dozen sources in government or in his party speaking to Reuters on condition of anonymity. The government expected to face no-confidence motions from opponents later in the year, and Macron hoped to catch them offguard with a quickfire ballot on his own terms. Macron's move was indicative of how out of touch he had become with an electorate that was increasingly disenchanted with him, sources who know him well said. "He dissolved parliament because he thought he could win," said one former advisor who worked with Macron at the Elysee, speaking anonymously to talk frankly about the president. "What really astonishes me is how badly he misjudged the mood of the country," added the former aide, who noted "how quickly you can lose touch with reality" from inside the gilded cage of the President's palace. WEAKENED HAND France's fragmented parliament is likely to weaken its role in the European Union and further afield, and make it hard for anyone to push through a domestic agenda. Leaders of the leftist alliance launched talks on what should happen next, with options including a minority government or a complex broader coalition. Allies of Macron, who has not spoken publicly since Sunday's results, sought to distance themselves from an unpopular president and his election call. Macron's former prime minister Edouard Philippe said the vote had resulted in great uncertainty. "I regret it but I am not surprised," Philippe said. Others have put the blame on the small coterie of aides surrounding Macron. Ahead of the election, a visibly angry Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire hit out at the "lice crawling through the palace cracks" in a TV interview. Macron's history of placing winning bets had given him an indestructible sense of his own destiny, most sources agree. Theatre producer Jean-Marc Dumontet, a close friend of the Macrons, said the president's commitment to his decisions "makes you deaf to everything people around you tell you." GROWING UNPOPULARITY Elected in 2017 on a promise to rejuvenate French politics, Macron's popularity nosedived after he began to govern in a so-called "Jupiterian" fashion. He loosened labour rules by decree, cut housing allowances and raised fuel taxes while defiantly defending his security guard who beat up protesters. His perceived arrogance soon created deep resentment across the country, which erupted in 2018-2019 with the "yellow vest" crisis. What began as a revolt against rising fuel prices soon morphed into a seven-month challenge to Macron's authority. After being re-elected in 2022 after Russia launched its war on Ukraine, Macron's raising of the pension age using executive constitutional powers to bypass parliament further damaged his reputation among working-class and middle-class voters. Aides said Macron believed voters would overlook his unpopularity and instead focus on his economic record. Alexandre Holroyd, a former lawmaker in the National Assembly, said Britain's Brexit vote should have served as a warning against such thinking. Yet Macron didn't just misjudge how low his stock had fallen among voters, three sources said. He underestimated the left's ability to put aside its differences on issues like Gaza and antisemitism to form a united front against the far right. The election revitalised the left, with France's next prime minister likely to come from its ranks. Fresh faces including moderate Raphael Glucksmann, Green leader Marine Tondelier and leftist Francois Ruffin have all emerged to challenge hardliner Jean-Luc Melenchon as the bloc's potential leader. There is still a chance that Macron could turn political gridlock to his own advantage. A chaotic "cohabitation" period could allow him to stay above the fray, leaving the door open for one of his centrist disciples in 2027, some political experts said. "Two of the three previous cohabitations worked to the advantage of the president," said Sudhir Hazareesingh, a French politics expert at Oxford University, citing Francois Mitterrand and Jacques Chirac, who both recovered enough popularity to win a second mandate after a period of power sharing. "But Macron is not experienced as these two men, and he is actually not a very astute political tactician," he said. (Writing and reporting by Michel Rose; additional reporting by Gabriel Stargardter; Editing by Keith Weir) LYON, France (AP) A French court ruled on Monday that the American man accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said, So I raped you, can be extradited to the United States. Ian Cleary, 31, of Saratoga, California, was detained in April in the city of Metz in northeastern France after a three-year search. He has been held in custody pending extradition proceedings since his arrest. Put-in-Bay chase leads to golf cart crash, arrest The Court of Appeal in Metz said that Cleary can be extradited. When asked if he wished to be extradited or not, in line with French law, Cleary refused, prosecutors said in a statement Monday. His refusal may delay the extradition process, but it wont stop it. The ruling is final. Clearys case is now the responsibility of the French Justice Ministry, which must prepare and submit the extradition order for the French prime minister. While he awaits the prime ministers signature, Cleary remains detained in France. Justice Ministry officials didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. Woman indicted decades after newborn found dead Cleary had been the subject of an international search since authorities in Pennsylvania issued a 2021 felony warrant in the case weeks after an Associated Press story detailed the reluctance of local prosecutors to pursue campus sex crimes. The arrest warrant accuses Cleary of stalking an 18-year-old Gettysburg College student at a party, sneaking into her dorm and sexually assaulting her while she texted friends for help. He was a 20-year-old Gettysburg student at the time, but didnt return to campus. The Gettysburg accuser, Shannon Keeler, had a rape exam done the same day she was assaulted in 2013. She gathered witnesses and evidence and spent years urging officials to file charges. She went to authorities again in 2021 after discovering the Facebook messages that seemed to come from Clearys account. So I raped you, the sender had written in a string of messages. Ill never do it to anyone ever again. I need to hear your voice. Ill pray for you. The AP doesnt typically identify sexual assault victims without their permission, which Keeler has granted. The accusers lawyer in Pennsylvania, reached on Monday, declined to comment on the development. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. Following a second round of voting over the weekend in a snap election called by President Emmanuel Macron, France's left-wing New Popular Front has secured a leading plurality of seats in parliament. Defeating Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party, the shocking victory has reportedly elicited a wave of relief among the country's leading climate scientists. While further political uncertainty remains, and no group secured an outright majority of National Assembly seats, the implementation of science-hostile policies promoted heavily by National Rally candidates appears to be, for now, unlikely. "We have avoided a catastrophe, said Alain Fischer, president of the French Academy of Sciences, in a Monday interview with Nature. It can now be hoped that international scientists will continue to work in France ... We do not know who will govern, but I dont expect there to be much change in policy for us. Science and education were absent from the European and French parliamentary election campaigns, and budget constraints mean that research will not be a priority." Champa Patel, executive director for Governments and Policy at Climate Group, emphasized the need to protect the European Union's Green Deal, a set of proposals aiming to create the first climate-neutral continent and to stay on track in reaching the 2030 climate goals established by the French High Council for the Climate. ''The New Popular Front's and Ensemble's victory in the French parliamentary elections brings some relief from the threat of an ascendant far right in France. But no party has won an absolute majority. As we wait to see how the political pieces land, it is critical that parties commit to safeguarding the EU Green Deal and ensuring a sustainable future for the continent," Patel said in a Monday statement. France is Europe's third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases, and the National Rally party previously proposed a spate of policies that would have reversed several French commitments to European Union climate goals. Editor's note: The article was updated with the election results published on July 8. The French left-wing coalition, New Popular Front (NFP), won the most seats in France's parliamentary elections, outpacing President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Ensemble alliance and the far-right National Rally (RN) party. Following a bruising defeat in the European Parliament elections earlier in June, Macron called for snap elections to be held on June 30 and July 7. The first round resulted in a shocking victory for the right-wing National Rally (RN) party. In an unexpected twist, both the left-wing NFP and Macron's centrist coalition overtook the RN and its allies in the second round. The NFP won 182 of the 577 seats, becoming the leading force in the parliament's lower chamber. The president's coalition has secured 168 seats, while the RN and its allies trailed third with 143. No bloc has been able to achieve an absolute majority. Read also: French far-right surge threatens the countrys commitment to Ukraine After the far right's unexpected victory on June 30, the left-wing alliance withdrew at least 130 candidates from three-way races in which the far right was projected to win. NFP leadership then advised its supporters to vote against the RN candidates in these races. This strategy, aimed at staving off further far-right election success, appears to have worked. People gather to celebrate the victory of the left-wing union after the partial results of the second round of the French parliamentary elections in Paris, France on July 07, 2024. (Luc Auffret/Anadolu via Getty Images) The left-wing coalition includes a number of parties, including the far-left party, France Unbowed, the more moderate Socialist party, and the Communists, among others. According to CNN, thousands of people have already gathered at the Place de la Republique in Paris, waving French flags and celebrating the election outcome. Read also: European elections: Far-right gains, center holds, Ukraine-skeptics flounder Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. People enter a polling station during the second round of the French parliamentary elections. On July 7, 2024, France is holding parliamentary elections that will be decisive for the country's political future and in which the far right could become the largest party in parliament for the first time. Hannes P. Albert/dpa The left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) said it has a mandate to govern after it pulled off a surprise win in the second round of the French parliamentary elections on Sunday, with the far right falling to third place, according to initial projections. The NFP, a new alliance that has brought together Jean-Luc Melenchons hard-left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed), the Socialist Party, the Communist Party, The Ecologists and several smaller left-leaning groups, is projected to gain 177 to 198 of the 577 seats in the lower house, or National Assembly, broadcasters TF1 and France 2 predicted after polls closed on Sunday. "The president has a duty to call on the New Popular Front to govern," Jean-Luc Melenchon said after the first projections were published on Sunday evening showing his alliance on top. He called on Prime Minister Gabriel Attal from President Emmanuel Macron's centrist camp to go, and not long after his wish seemed to be fulfilled when Attal said he would tender his resignation to Macron on Monday morning. Macron should concede defeat, Melenchon said, while ruling out negotiations on a merger with Macron's Ensemble (Together) camp. The leader of the Socialist Party, Olivier Faure, also said there should be no "coalition of opposites" that continues Macron's policies, while Green Party leader Marine Tondelier said it was a clear win for the NFP. "We have won and now we will govern," she asserted in Paris. "Tonight social justice has won, tonight ecological justice has won and tonight the people have won and now it's just getting started," Tondelier said. But the arithmetic is not on the NFP's side, or indeed on any camp's: Macron's centrist alliance came second and is projected to win 152 to 169 seats, down from 245; The far-right National Rally party, which came out on top after the first round, fell to third place, and is expected to take 135 to 145 seats. If the projections are correct, no camp is likely, therefore, to achieve an absolute majority of 289 seats. At 67.5%, voter turnout was significantly higher than in previous years. France's divided left only united a few weeks ago to form the NFP for the snap parliamentary elections. There is a dispute within the left, particularly over Melenchon's leadership. The populist, who stands out with his Eurosceptic statements and is clearly pro-Palestinian, is heavily criticized even within his own party. The left-wing alliance does not have a clear leadership, nor does it have a common programme. National Rally suffered from a coordinated campaign by the second and third-placed groups in the first round, who did a deal in some 200 seats to put forward one candidate in the hopes of keeping the far-right candidate out. The ploy worked, leaving National Rally leader Jordan Bardella incandescent with rage. He lashed out at Macron's centrist camp and the NFP as a "single party" and an "alliance of dishonour." Bardella railed against "electoral agreements" that "have plunged France into the arms of Jean-Luc Melenchon," the hard-left leader. Marine Le Pen, who is looking to run for president for the National Rally in 2027, expressed optimism that her party would see more success in the future. "The tide continues to rise and our victory today has only been delayed," Le Pen said after the first projections. Macron's office said the president is focusing on forming a government. Before making any decisions, the head of state will await the final results of the election and the final composition of the National Assembly, the Elysee Palace announced. "In his role as guarantor of our institutions, the president will ensure that the sovereign choice of the French people is respected," it said. The Elysee Palace also stated that the number of lawmakers required for an absolute majority would have to be reached, BFMTV reported. In view of the expected election result with Macron's centrist alliance in second place, the Elysee Palace explained: "The centre camp had been declared dead: but it is there, even after seven years in power." If confirmed, the result gives rise to various future scenarios: The left could try to gain support from the centrist forces - either as a minority government under a confidence-and-supply arrangement with other parties or in a kind of grand coalition. In view of the opposing political orientations, however, it is not clear whether this could succeed. It is unclear whether Macron would be politically forced to appoint a prime minister from the ranks of the left in such a scenario. The National Assembly has the power to topple the government. With a prime minister from the left, Macron would have to share power under an arrangement known in France as cohabitation. The prime minister would become more important. Should none of the camps find a governing majority, the current government could remain in office as a transitional government or a government of technocrats could be appointed. In such a scenario, France would be threatened with political gridlock. In view of the Olympic Games, which are due to begin in Paris on July 26, it is also possible that Attal's government will remain in office for a few more weeks. Boosted by general dissatisfaction with the Macron administration, National Rally topped the European Parliament elections in June with 31.36% of the vote, leading Macron to call the snap parliamentary polls. There are more than two years to go until the next round of presidential elections in 2027, which Le Pen is favoured to win. Macron cannot run again. A man enters a booth to cast his vote at a polling station during the second round of the French parliamentary elections. On July 7, 2024, France is holding parliamentary elections that will be decisive for the country's political future and in which the far right could become the largest party in parliament for the first time. Hannes P. Albert/dpa A woman casts her vote at a polling station during the second round of the French parliamentary elections. On July 7, 2024, France is holding parliamentary elections that will be decisive for the country's political future and in which the far right could become the largest party in parliament for the first time. Ludovic Marin/AFP/dpa ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, July 8. A document signing ceremony was held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan between the departments of Turkmenistan and the UN Resident Coordinator Office, the UNDP representative office in Turkmenistan, Trend reports. According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Turkmenistan, during the event, four documents were signed, sealing the deal on cooperation between Turkmenistan and the UN in a multitude of fields.: - joint policy document "Strengthening integrated and coordinated employment and social protection systems for a fair transition by 2030" between the Ministry of Labor and Social Protection of the Population of Turkmenistan and the Office of the UN Permanent Coordinator in Turkmenistan; - amendment to the project document "Capacity Building for the Central Commission for Holding Elections and Referendums in Turkmenistan" between the Central Commission for Holding Elections and Referendums in Turkmenistan and the UNDP office in Turkmenistan; - addendum to the project document "Strengthening national capacity for seismic risk assessment, prevention and response to potential earthquakes of Turkmenistan" between the Institute of Seismology and Atmospheric Physics of the Academy of Sciences of Turkmenistan and the UNDP office in Turkmenistan; - the work plan for 20242025: Enhancing the Capacity of the Board of Lawyers in Turkmenistan in Ensuring Human Rights between the Presidium of the Bar Association of the city of Ashgabat and the UNDP representative office in Turkmenistan. Meanwhile, recently, President of Turkmenistan Serdar Berdimuhamedov and Secretary General of the UN Antonio Guterres held a meeting during which they discussed issues of further development of partnership in various areas. The meeting took place in Ashgabat, both in a small-scale and large-scale format, with the involvement of delegation members. French Prime Minister to Resign After Shocking Defeat for Far Right A left-of-center coalition beat out Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally in Frances second round of parliamentary elections Sunday, shocking politicians and pundits alike. But with no party winning an absolute majority, the country has been plunged into an uncertain state of political gridlock that could stretch on for months. The alliance, the New Popular Front, won at least 181 seats, according to the Associated Press, which cited Frances Interior Ministry. Meanwhile, Macrons centrist bloc slid into second place with at least 160 seats, while National Rally took a measly 143 seats. Final results were still being tallied on Sunday night, with precise totals expected to be announced on Monday. French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said he would resign on Monday morning, the expected move given that Macrons centrist coalition fell short of an absolute majority of 289 seats. I know that, in light of the results of this evening, many French people feel a certain uncertainty about the future, as no absolute majority has emerged [in parliament], Attal said, according to CNBC. Our country is experiencing an unprecedented political situation. Supporters of the left wing union, the New Popular Front, gather at the Place de la Republique following the defeat of the far-right in France's legislative elections. Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images Appointed by Macron just six months ago, Attal said that, if asked by the president, he would remain in office until a new government could be formed. But it was unclear on Sunday night how long that might take. To effectively run the French government, Macron will have to form alliances, though he has said he will not negotiate with firebrand leftist Jean-Luc Melenchon. The Times of London reported that Macron plans to wait for the full picture to emerge before making any necessary decisions. The president, as guarantor of our institutions, will respect the choice of French people, a statement from the Elysee Palace read. Melenchon, for his part, called the results an immense relief for a majority of people in our country, according to the AP. He also called on Macron to appoint a prime minister from the NFP, invite it to form a government, and get down to the brass tacks of implementing the blocs agenda. The president must bow and admit this defeat without trying to circumvent it, Melenchon said, according to The Washington Post. The NFPs program includes lowering the retirement age raised by Macron last year; roll back his controversial pension reforms; reform green and agricultural policies; and increase government spending on everything from health care to environmental protections. Young supporters of the far-right National Rally party react to results of the second round of the French parliamentary elections Sunday. Artur Widak/Anadolu via Getty Images The coalition was hastily jury-rigged together less than a month ago, a few days after President Emmanuel Macron called snap elections. It is made up of a Frances four main leftist parties, including Melenchons France Unbowed and the more moderate Socialists, as well as a handful of smaller blocs. Macron called the elections after his coalition was thrashed by National Rally in the European parliamentary elections last month, hoping that French voters would turn out to reject the specter of a far-right government. The risky move backfired spectacularly in the first round of voting, however, with National Rally and its allies clawing in 33 percent of the vote. The NFP won 28 percent, while Macrons alliance trailed with 20 percent. With those results firmly in place, no one expected the lefts come-from behind upset victory on Sunday. As it became increasingly clear, however, a dismal gloom settled in on the other side of the aisle. Party apparatchiks talked in hushed tones of indications they had fallen short, a BBC journalist wrote of a National Rally gathering in Paris. Nervous glances were exchanged, the glasses looked more half-empty than half-full. People celebrate after the first results of the second round of France's legislative election Sunday. Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images The crowd quickly dispersed as the results rolled in, according to NPR. Jordan Bardella, the partys president, delivered a quick speech decrying the unnatural and dishonorable alliance that had deprived the French people of a National Rally landslide. More than ever, the National Rally embodies the only alternative and will stand by the French people, he said, according to NPR. We don't want power for powers sake, but to give it back to the French people. Le Pen was noticeably absent from the scene, though The New York Times later quoted her as saying that the tide was rising in National Rallys favor. It didnt rise high enough this time, but its still rising, she said. And as a result, our victory, in reality, is only delayed. Le Pen is expected to run for president in 2027. Macron, currently in his seventh year in office, will be ineligible to run again. 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. Going to the vending machine do you want something? Soda? Gum? A round or two of bullets? A growing number of supermarkets in Alabama, Oklahoma, and Texas are selling bullets by way of AI-powered vending machines, as first reported by Alabama's Tuscaloosa Thread. The company behind the machines, a Texas-based venture dubbed American Rounds, claims on its website that its dystopian bullet kiosks are outfitted with "built-in AI technology" and "facial recognition software," which allegedly allow the devices to "meticulously verify the identity and age of each buyer." As showcased in a promotional video, using one is an astoundingly simple process: walk up to the kiosk, provide identification, and let a camera scan your face. If its embedded facial recognition tech says you are in fact who you say you are, the automated machine coughs up some bullets. Oh, and these aren't vending machines, per se. According to American Rounds, these are "smart retail automated ammo dispensers." "Our smart retail automated ammo dispensers," reads the company's website, "have built-in AI technology, card scanning capability and facial recognition software." The site adds that American Rounds is "at the cutting edge of retail ammunition technology," and is "constantly evolving to incorporate the latest advancements in AI and machine learning." It's a bizarre and uniquely American twist on the AI-in-everything trend, and an odd new use of controversial surveillance technology by a company with some serious don't tread on me energy. And though the device raises a number of safety and ethics concerns, most folks' first question, we presume, is an immediate: why? According to American Rounds, the main objective is convenience. Its machines are accessible "24/7," its website reads, "ensuring that you can buy ammunition on your own schedule, free from the constraints of store hours and long lines." While this may be an appealing offer to some folks, though, others might argue that bullets are just one of those things that someone should maybe stand in line for. Though it's incredibly easy to purchase firearms and ammunition in many US states, human employees still retain the right to deny purchases to individuals for any reason (barring discrimination against protected classes, which does happen.) Thus, in instances where a potential buyer appears unstable or unwell, the human middleman with a gut feeling may well be the only obstacle between that buyer and ammo. American Rounds claims that its machine can reliably confirm age and identity. The devices seem ill-equipped, however, to protect against the sale of ammunition to someone in a visibly poor mental state. American Rounds has also yet to reveal which facial recognition software provider it's using to power its devices. And to that end, it's worth noting that facial recognition technology is far from reliable; though the algorithms are generally pretty good at identifying white men under ideal conditions, the tech is well-documented to be demonstrably worse at identifying women and racial minorities. What's more, the company has remained pretty vague about its privacy terms. Though American Rounds CEO Grant Magers has stated that the company isn't selling facial recognition data, there are no terms or privacy agreements available for viewing on the company's website. And in the multiple available videos of the terminal in action, it doesn't seem to flash any privacy policy notice or warning. Given that this machine is designed to scan your face and ID while you make a sensitive purchase, that feels like a big deal! We've reached out to American Rounds to inquire about its privacy standards, data practices, and facial recognition software provider, but haven't received a reply. As it stands, the legality of the devices remains unclear. Though officials in Tuscaloosa, where two machines have been installed, told the Thread that the devices are in full compliance with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives' standards, Newsweek notes that at least one of the devices has been taken down amid a Tuscaloosa city council investigation into its legal standing. "It's what the founding fathers intended!" Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox joked to the Thread. Magers, meanwhile, argues that his devices will only help to lower levels of ammunition theft and illegal sale to underage buyers. And according to him? The demand for his bullet ATMs is only climbing. "We have over 200 store requests for AARM [Automated Ammo Retail Machine] units covering approximately nine states currently," the CEO told Newsweek, "and that number is growing daily." More on AI use cases: Wendy's Says Its AI Only Screws up 14 Percent of Drive-through Orders A farmer planting corn near Dwight, Illinois, on April 23, 2020. Partisan gridlock in Congress has led to a stalemate on the current farm bill, which provides crop subsidies and nutrition assistance. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) WASHINGTON The stalemate over the current farm bill may be solidifying a new era in farm politics as it joins the last three farm bills in a trend of delays and partisan division a contrast from the legislations history of bipartisanship. Every five years, Congress is tasked with drafting a new federal farm bill. The omnibus law that began 90 years ago as various kinds of payments to support farmers now has an impact far beyond the farm, with programs to create wildlife habitat, address climate change and provide the nations largest federal nutrition program. The current farm bill process, already nearly a year behind schedule, is at an impasse as Democrats and Republicans clash over how to pay for the bill and whether to place limits on nutrition and climate programs. The previous farm bill expired in September 2023 and has been extended through the end of this September. Historically, farm bills were completed within a few months of their expiration date. Ten of the 13 farm bills since 1965 were enacted by December 31 in the year of their expirations. But three of the four farm bills since 2008 went beyond that date. The last three bills including the 2018 bill, which is the one recent version that passed on time each had partisan disagreements about spending. The trend represents a change in how the once-bipartisan legislation is viewed. The last two farm bills were the anomaly, said Jonathan Coppess, a professor of Agricultural Law and Policy at the University of Illinois who has written a history of the farm bill. Now that it has been three in a row, Im not sure that holds. A recent report from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service notes that starting in 2008, farm bills have been subject to delays, vetoes and insufficient votes to pass on the floor. The report concluded: Over time, farm bills have tended to become more complicated and politically sensitive. As a result, the timeline for reauthorization has become less certain. Spending debate That uncertainty is true of the current farm bill, as Republicans in the House and Senate push for spending limits that Democrats say are non-starters. I dont think were close to getting a farm bill done until the folks who are negotiating the farm bill are realistic about whats doable within a constrained resource environment, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an interview on the radio program AgriTalk June 21. The Republican-led House Agriculture Committee approved its farm bill proposal largely on party lines at the end of May, after hours of debate and complaints from Democrats that the process had not been as bipartisan as in years past. Four Democrats voted for the bill in committee, but they joined 20 other Democrats on the committee in a dissenting views letter expressing genuine concern over the trajectory of the Majoritys partisan farm bill which they predicted would be stuck in delay and dysfunction without significant changes. The Senate Agriculture Committee has yet to vote. The Republican and Democratic leaders of the committee have each put forward contrasting bills and expressed their frustration. The most frustrating time Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat who is retiring after this term, has called the process the most frustrating of her career and said she would not let the Republican approach for the farm bill be her legacy. Ive actually been involved in six farm bills and led on three of them, and this has been the most frustrating time, said Stabenow in an interview with Michigan Advance at the end of June. Because its so much more partisan than usual and particularly around food assistance. Partisan division is not uncommon in todays Congress but is notable on the farm bill, which had historically brought together lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. Bipartisan support can be necessary for final passage because the size of the $1.5 trillion farm bill means it inevitably loses some votes from fiscal conservatives and others. If you dont have a bipartisan bill, this is not going to happen, and that is no matter whos in charge. The margins are too close to be able to get this done without bipartisan support, said Collin Peterson, a former Democratic House member from Minnesota and Agriculture Committee Chairman. The key dispute for Democrats this year is a funding calculation that would place limits on the Thrifty Food Plan formula that calculates benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP. Republicans are using the limits to offset other spending in the bill on crop subsidies. The top Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee, Arkansas Sen. John Boozman, said he wants to put more farm in the farm bill. Peterson, who is now the head of an eponymous consulting firm, said in an interview with States Newsroom that Republicans would likely have to make changes to the nutrition title to get a bill to final passage. It is unrealistic to think they are going to get this done without significant changes in that part of the bill, he said. An uneasy alliance from the start The nutrition program that is at the center of the impasse was added to the legislation 50 years ago to help build a coalition of wide-ranging bipartisan support. Lawmakers added the nutrition title to the farm bill in 1973, a move that widened the vested interest in the bill in the House. Lawmakers who wanted to increase payments for cotton and wheat farmers in their districts were able to bring in support from representatives from districts whose citizens could benefit from food aid. That was the first coalition building between the two interests, Coppess said. But it was pretty intense. And it was an uneasy alliance from the start. Since then, the farm bill in many ways has become a food bill. Three-quarters of the mandatory spending in the bill falls under the nutrition title, which includes SNAP, the largest U.S. program that addresses hunger. The program, formerly called food stamps, supplements food budgets for low-income households. Anti-hunger groups have joined the outside interests pushing for the bill every five years. But with such a large funding line, the nutrition program has become a target for Republicans who want to cut it to offset other spending in the bill. The dispute is all the pay-fors, Peterson said. And that has been the issue for the last three farm bills and issue on this one as well. Peterson, who was chairman of the House Agriculture Committee for the 2008 farm bill and was the top Democrat on the committee for the 2013 and 2018 bills, said partisan division on the committee is not unfamiliar at this phase of the process. The farm bills he worked on also had partisan votes in the House but eventually found support from both sides after conferencing with the Senate. At the end of the day, every one of those bills was partisan, until we got through the conference committee, and then at that point it was bipartisan, because the Senate brought some of that to the table, Peterson said. So, kind of, whats going on here went on the last three farm bills. The most recent farm bill in 2018 was marked by contentious partisan debate centered on SNAPs work requirements and other eligibility rules. The House Agriculture Committees bill that year initially failed on the House floor and later squeaked through on a 213-211 vote. Twenty Republicans joined all House Democrats in voting against that bill. After reconciling with the Senate bill and the removal of some of the contentious changes to SNAP, most Democrats flipped their votes in support and the House agreed to the final conference report in a bipartisan vote of 369-47. The dissenting votes included 44 Republicans and three Democrats. A trend toward fracture The partisan division over the nutrition title creates new fault lines for the farm bill. Historically, farm bill alliances were more regional than partisan. They were built on a common ground of support for shared crops or producers: cotton in the South, corn in the Midwest and wheat in the Western Plains. What was our biggest issue back in the four farm bills that I wrote was not Republican versus Democrat. It was usually Midwest against the Southeast or the Northeast or the Southwest from a crop standpoint, former Senator Saxby Chambliss said in an interview. Chambliss, a Republican from Georgia, was on the House Agriculture Committee from 1995 to 2002 and the Senate Agriculture Committee 2005 to 2011, which included a stint as chairman and ranking member. Theres a different political dynamic that exists in the Senate today that did not exist when I was there, Chambliss said. How much of that bleeds into the farm bill? I dont know the answer to that, but obviously its a little more acrimonious than what I ever experienced. As partisan politics have become more entrenched in regions of the country, with the South becoming more closely aligned with the Republican Party, it has played out in farm-bill politics. You see a staunch realignment around where the regional and the partisan are now very similar, said Coppess. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Frustrating partisan stalemate: the new normal for farm bills? appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. A farmer planting corn near Dwight, Illinois, on April 23, 2020. Partisan gridlock in Congress has led to a stalemate on the current farm bill, which provides crop subsidies and nutrition assistance. (Scott Olson/Getty Images) WASHINGTON The stalemate over the current farm bill may be solidifying a new era in farm politics as it joins the last three farm bills in a trend of delays and partisan division a contrast from the legislations history of bipartisanship. Every five years, Congress is tasked with drafting a new federal farm bill. The omnibus law that began 90 years ago as various kinds of payments to support farmers now has an impact far beyond the farm, with programs to create wildlife habitat, address climate change and provide the nations largest federal nutrition program. The current farm bill process, already nearly a year behind schedule, is at an impasse as Democrats and Republicans clash over how to pay for the bill and whether to place limits on nutrition and climate programs. The previous farm bill expired in September 2023 and has been extended through the end of this September. Historically, farm bills were completed within a few months of their expiration date. Ten of the 13 farm bills since 1965 were enacted by December 31 in the year of their expirations. But three of the four farm bills since 2008 went beyond that date. The last three bills including the 2018 bill, which is the one recent version that passed on time each had partisan disagreements about spending. The trend represents a change in how the once-bipartisan legislation is viewed. The last two farm bills were the anomaly, said Jonathan Coppess, a professor of Agricultural Law and Policy at the University of Illinois who has written a history of the farm bill. Now that it has been three in a row, Im not sure that holds. A recent report from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service notes that starting in 2008, farm bills have been subject to delays, vetoes and insufficient votes to pass on the floor. The report concluded: Over time, farm bills have tended to become more complicated and politically sensitive. As a result, the timeline for reauthorization has become less certain. Spending debate That uncertainty is true of the current farm bill, as Republicans in the House and Senate push for spending limits that Democrats say are non-starters. I dont think were close to getting a farm bill done until the folks who are negotiating the farm bill are realistic about whats doable within a constrained resource environment, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said in an interview on the radio program AgriTalk June 21. What was our biggest issue back in the four farm bills that I wrote was not Republican versus Democrat. It was usually Midwest against the Southeast or the Northeast or the Southwest from a crop standpoint. former Senator Saxby Chambliss The Republican-led House Agriculture Committee approved its farm bill proposal largely on party lines at the end of May, after hours of debate and complaints from Democrats that the process had not been as bipartisan as in years past. Four Democrats voted for the bill in committee, but they joined 20 other Democrats on the committee in a dissenting views letter expressing genuine concern over the trajectory of the Majoritys partisan farm bill which they predicted would be stuck in delay and dysfunction without significant changes. The Senate Agriculture Committee has yet to vote. The Republican and Democratic leaders of the committee have each put forward contrasting bills and expressed their frustration. The most frustrating time Senate Agriculture Committee Chairwoman Debbie Stabenow, a Michigan Democrat who is retiring after this term, has called the process the most frustrating of her career and said she would not let the Republican approach for the farm bill be her legacy. Ive actually been involved in six farm bills and led on three of them, and this has been the most frustrating time, said Stabenow in an interview with Michigan Advance at the end of June. Because its so much more partisan than usual and particularly around food assistance. Partisan division is not uncommon in todays Congress but is notable on the farm bill, which had historically brought together lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. Bipartisan support can be necessary for final passage because the size of the $1.5 trillion farm bill means it inevitably loses some votes from fiscal conservatives and others. If you dont have a bipartisan bill, this is not going to happen, and that is no matter whos in charge. The margins are too close to be able to get this done without bipartisan support, said Collin Peterson, a former Democratic House member from Minnesota and Agriculture Committee Chairman. The key dispute for Democrats this year is a funding calculation that would place limits on the Thrifty Food Plan formula that calculates benefits for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP. Republicans are using the limits to offset other spending in the bill on crop subsidies. The top Republican on the Senate Agriculture Committee, Arkansas Sen. John Boozman, said he wants to put more farm in the farm bill. Peterson, who is now the head of an eponymous consulting firm, said in an interview with States Newsroom that Republicans would likely have to make changes to the nutrition title to get a bill to final passage. It is unrealistic to think they are going to get this done without significant changes in that part of the bill, he said. An uneasy alliance from the start The nutrition program that is at the center of the impasse was added to the legislation 50 years ago to help build a coalition of wide-ranging bipartisan support. Lawmakers added the nutrition title to the farm bill in 1973, a move that widened the vested interest in the bill in the House. Lawmakers who wanted to increase payments for cotton and wheat farmers in their districts were able to bring in support from representatives from districts whose citizens could benefit from food aid. That was the first coalition building between the two interests, Coppess said. But it was pretty intense. And it was an uneasy alliance from the start. Since then, the farm bill in many ways has become a food bill. Three-quarters of the mandatory spending in the bill falls under the nutrition title, which includes SNAP, the largest U.S. program that addresses hunger. The program, formerly called food stamps, supplements food budgets for low-income households. Anti-hunger groups have joined the outside interests pushing for the bill every five years. But with such a large funding line, the nutrition program has become a target for Republicans who want to cut it to offset other spending in the bill. The dispute is all the pay-fors, Peterson said. And that has been the issue for the last three farm bills and issue on this one as well. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US Peterson, who was chairman of the House Agriculture Committee for the 2008 farm bill and was the top Democrat on the committee for the 2013 and 2018 bills, said partisan division on the committee is not unfamiliar at this phase of the process. The farm bills he worked on also had partisan votes in the House but eventually found support from both sides after conferencing with the Senate. At the end of the day, every one of those bills was partisan, until we got through the conference committee, and then at that point it was bipartisan, because the Senate brought some of that to the table, Peterson said. So, kind of, whats going on here went on the last three farm bills. The most recent farm bill in 2018 was marked by contentious partisan debate centered on SNAPs work requirements and other eligibility rules. The House Agriculture Committees bill that year initially failed on the House floor and later squeaked through on a 213-211 vote. Twenty Republicans joined all House Democrats in voting against that bill. After reconciling with the Senate bill and the removal of some of the contentious changes to SNAP, most Democrats flipped their votes in support and the House agreed to the final conference report in a bipartisan vote of 369-47. The dissenting votes included 44 Republicans and three Democrats. A trend toward fracture The partisan division over the nutrition title creates new fault lines for the farm bill. Historically, farm bill alliances were more regional than partisan. They were built on a common ground of support for shared crops or producers: cotton in the South, corn in the Midwest and wheat in the Western Plains. What was our biggest issue back in the four farm bills that I wrote was not Republican versus Democrat. It was usually Midwest against the Southeast or the Northeast or the Southwest from a crop standpoint, former Senator Saxby Chambliss said in an interview. Chambliss, a Republican from Georgia, was on the House Agriculture Committee from 1995 to 2002 and the Senate Agriculture Committee 2005 to 2011, which included a stint as chairman and ranking member. Theres a different political dynamic that exists in the Senate today that did not exist when I was there, Chambliss said. How much of that bleeds into the farm bill? I dont know the answer to that, but obviously its a little more acrimonious than what I ever experienced. As partisan politics have become more entrenched in regions of the country, with the South becoming more closely aligned with the Republican Party, it has played out in farm-bill politics. You see a staunch realignment around where the regional and the partisan are now very similar, said Coppess. CHULA VISTA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) Crews responded to reports of a house fire in the South Bay Sunday afternoon, said the Chula Vista Fire Department. According to Battalion Chief David Albright, multiple calls came in sometime after noon about a garage fire at a residence on the 400 block of Willowcrest Way. Upon arrival, firefighters discovered the fiery garage with flames that were reported to be burning through the roof of the house. This Roaring 20s-era castle is on the market in National City The fire ultimately spread to the back room and kind of burned the whole left side of the structure, said Chief Albright. The fire has since been put out. Two people were people evaluated for smoke inhalation, but were not transported to the hospital. The Red Cross is assisting the family impacted by the fire. No firefighters were injured during this response. The origins and cause of the fire remain under investigation. No further details were immediately 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 FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News. Gaston County school kicks rising senior out for where she performs A high schooler and musician in Gaston County is upset after her school said she cant return to class because of where she performs. Just so excited to, you know, just do all the small things that seniors do, Bailey Griggs said. Like any rising high school senior, Griggs was looking forward to all of the special moments with her friends during her last year at Cramerton Christian Academy. Whenever we ended school, I had every right to think that I was going back there, she said. ALSO READ: NC Court of Appeals upholds dismissal of parents lawsuit over private schools diversity policies But that thought changed after Baileys mom, Jennifer Griggs, received an email from the school last week. The email just said she wasnt allowed back at the school. And they gave the reasons, she said. Bailey is a musician and her talents have landed her on stages all across the Queen City, from Amos in South End to her most recent performance at Goldies in June. But her school said where shes performing is a problem. The private school stated in an email that attending night clubs or bars and attending gatherings with alcohol or drugs present indicates Cramerton Christian is no longer a good fit for Baileys goals. When you look at the handbook and the way its written, it says that shes not to be gathering in places where theres alcohol and drugs. And shes not gathering, shes doing her job, her mom said. Im the performer and Im not drinking. Im underage, Bailey said. Jennifer said they didnt receive any warning from the school ahead of the email, which is why she believes Bailey was singled out. ALSO READ: Swim academy says 10-year-old with disability cant take lessons, mom says The other kids in the school, theres posts many, many posts of them attending music concerts, her mom said. And if anybody knows when you go to those concerts, [you] are surrounded by alcohol. Bailey said its not just about her senior year getting ripped away, but its the principle of the matter. Yeah, rules are rules, but make sure youre making everybody abide by those rules and not just some people, Bailey said. Bailey said while this situation tugged at her heartstrings, the strings of her guitar are helping her push through. A lot of people have reached out saying that they still support me and that I should still follow my dreams and stuff, she said. Channel 9s Almiya White reached out to the school for a statement. Administrators responded saying the school holds very high standards for students to abide by, adding it does not enroll students who do not meet those standards. (WATCH BELOW: 9 School Tools drive officially underway) People grief after an Israeli attack on a school, which has been used as a shelter for families who have fled their homes elsewhere in the Gaza Strip since October 2023. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa The Israeli military has advanced further into the southern and western regions of Gaza City, which is located in the north of the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported on Monday. In the early hours of Monday, the military began counterterrorism operations in the area and called on civilians to leave before the operation began, it said. IDF troops reached the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza City, it said. On Monday, army radio reported clashes with armed members of the Islamist group Hamas, with no initial reports of casualties. The Israeli military has previously advanced into the northern section of the besieged coastal area during war. Residents of the affected neighbourhoods described the overnight advance as a "night of terror," a dpa correspondent reported on Monday. The state of Georgia has dragged its feet for months on allowing defense attorneys to visit the forest where a criminal conspiracy allegedly operated in opposition to the Cop City police training center, according to a motion filed this week and the Guardians reporting. In his motion filed in Fulton county superior court, attorney Xavier de Janon is seeking to dismiss all charges related to the South River Forest, located south-east of Atlanta for his client and for dozens of others. The forests importance to the case is underlined by the fact that the indictment mentions the word, forest, 310 times in its 109 pages, according to the motion. Since January, deputy attorney general John Fowler has failed to schedule a visit to the alleged crime scene, all while construction of the $109m training center has proceeded apace, according to the motion. Judge Kimberly Esmond Adams ordered Fowler at a court conference in early May to schedule visits by the end of June, adding that the jury in an eventual trial may also need to visit the site. Fowler sent an email to the more than 70 attorneys involved in the case shortly thereafter but never followed up to schedule visits, effectively ignoring the judges deadline. Material, exculpatory evidence has been forever lost due to months of construction, the motion asserts. The Guardian confirmed that other defense attorneys in the case have not been able to schedule visits to the construction site and surrounding forest. One attorney sent emails to Fowler at least six times about the matter only to be ignored. The attorney general and Atlanta police did not return requests for comment. De Janons motion is the second in recent weeks centering on Fowlers apparent mishandling of the case. Another filed in late June highlighted how the deputy attorney general violated attorney-client privilege by sharing emails between defendants and their attorneys with Atlanta police investigators instead of excluding them from evidence. The Guardian confirmed these actions as well. The attorneys behind that motion filed another one 3 July asking the judge to schedule a hearing as soon as possible on the violation and their petition to disqualify Fowler and the state law department from the case, asserting that this is not a matter that should await consideration by the court. Fowler said in the same May court conference he did not think police were using Signal to communicate about Cop City despite being presented by 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 case centers on the states use of Rico, or criminal conspiracy law originally developed to prosecute the mafia. It names 61 people in what experts have told the Guardian is the largest number of defendants ever in a Rico case involving a protest or social movement. Twenty-three of them were arrested on 5 March 2023 including De Janons client, James Jamie Marsicano. On that date, a music festival was held in Intrenchment Creek Park, a DeKalb county public park separated from the Atlanta-owned Cop City site by the creek that gives the park its name. As many as 1,000 people camped or visited the festival in the park during the March week of action held in opposition to the training center. In the late afternoon at the festival, at least 100 people, most wearing masks, left the site of the festival and walked nearly a mile to the construction site, where they burned equipment and set off fireworks, chasing off police. Atlanta police filmed these acts. Within several hours, dozens of officers swarmed the forested public park as the sun set, creating a chaotic scene that included children running through the forest and teams of festival attendees negotiating their departure from the park with police. The arrests happened in the park, not at the construction site. Other defendants in the Rico case have also been arrested in the park which, like the Cop City site, is part of South River Forest, or Weelaunee Forest to activists a Muscogee (Creek) term. De Janon and other defense attorneys have never been able to set foot in the forest after the indictment or since 29 August 2023 the attorney told the Guardian. The state has provided photos and maps, but that does not substitute for walking through the forest from where the construction equipment burned to where Marsicano was arrested, for example. When I read the indictment, I cant know what theyre talking about, De Janon said. DeKalb county closed Intrenchment Creek Park to the public shortly after the festival. Joe Peery knows nearly every inch of the forest, on both sides of the creek. He has biked and walked there for more than a decade, created or maintained about six miles of trails himself, and led hundreds of people on tours. By visiting the site the exact, specific places they would learn exactly how far away the music festival was from Cop City, Peery said. Its a pretty good hike. It only benefits [the state] to keep everything hazy given the fact that most people arrested [in the Rico case] were in a public park, he added. Actually seeing the alleged crime scene is important not only for the allegations my client is facing but all other counts involving things that allegedly happened in the forest, the attorney said. Nolan Huber-Rhoades has been filming a documentary on the movement against Cop City for most of its four years, and was at the forest 5 March of last year. Being there in person, you can understand the complexities of the land, the nuances of ownership and the legal proceedings around the forest, he said. This information could sway a jury. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, July 8. Turkmenistan discussed with Iran the extension of the working hours of the Artyk-Lotfabad customs posts, Trend reports. According to the official source, a Turkmen delegation consisting of representatives of the customs, border, and migration services, the Turkmenawtoulaglary Agency (Turkmen automobile service) and Turkmendemiryollary Agency (Turkmenistan Railways) visited the customs post in Lotfabad (Razavi Khorasan province, Iran) in order to participate in the second meeting of the border agencies of the two countries. On the Iranian side, the head and staff of the Lotfabad customs post, the head of the border post, the heads of the relevant departments of the Razavi Khorasan provincial municipality, as well as representatives of the Ministry of Internal Affairs on passport and visa issues, were present. During the meeting, the parties discussed the issue of extending the working hours of the Artyk-Lotfabad customs posts in the period from November to January, developing a mechanism for mutual data exchange, and expediting visa processing for truck drivers on both sides. At the same time, the parties also considered the possibilities of the Lotfabad railway crossing. A representative of the State Customs Service of Turkmenistan informed the participants about the entry into force of the rules on preliminary notification, according to which carriers from June 1, 2024, can submit information to the customs authorities about goods before they are imported into the country. To note, the Turkmenistan State Customs Service implements state policies to control the country's customs system and comply with international customs responsibilities. A man enters a booth to cast his vote at a polling station during the second round of the French parliamentary elections. On July 7, 2024, France is holding parliamentary elections that will be decisive for the country's political future and in which the far right could become the largest party in parliament for the first time. Hannes P. Albert/dpa German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his entire government are, in his own words, "relieved" about the outcome of the parliamentary elections in France, which saw the far right fail to achieve a breakthrough and an unexpected win for the left. It would have been a major challenge if French President Emmanuel Macron had to agree to work with a right-wing populist party, Scholz said on the fringes of a visit to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (Bamf) in Nuremberg. "That has now been averted," he added. The secretary general of Scholz's Social Democrats (SPD), Kevin Kuhner, reacted more euphorically: "A load has been lifted off many people's minds - including mine," he told broadcaster ZDF. The new left-wing alliance New Popular Front (NFP) has won the snap parliamentary elections. Macron's centrist Ensemble (Together) coalition came in second place. Marine Le Pen's far-right nationalist National Rally (RN), initially seen as the favourite after the first round of voting, came third. The chancellor said he hopes that Macron and the elected lawmakers would succeed in forming a stable government. "In any case, I am also pleased with regard to the important Franco-German friendship, and I can personally say that I am also pleased with regard to the good personal relationship that I have with the French president," he said. Scholz also emphasised the importance of the election result for the European Union. It is about cooperation among the 27 member states, but also about further development and the inclusion of new countries. "This is only possible together with France," said Scholz. "And that is why the result is the basis for us being able to continue to fulfil this task in the future." Earlier, German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck had said that while France now faced the big challenge of forming a government - especially given that no political camp won the 289 seats needed to secure an outright majority in the National Assembly - it was heartening to see how centrist and leftist parties had worked together to prevent France from drifting toward far-right nationalism. During a visit to Stuttgart on Monday, the Green party politician called it an "encouraging election result." Left Party leader Martin Schirdewan described the election result in France as a sign of hope at a press conference in Berlin. "Macron has gambled away. He gambled big. The price was almost the seizure of power by the extreme right in France," he said. Fortunately, the left had won the election and saved the country from this, said Schirdewan. "That should give us all courage. France is a sign of hope for Europe, but also for the German left." His own party had recently performed poorly in the European Parliament elections and also in previous local elections. The party is searching for its future course, following a split by former party members close to the politician Sahra Wagenknecht, who quit the Left Party to found a new populist party that carries her name. Germany confirms delivery of Patriot system, ammunition, other aid to Ukraine Berlin has delivered new military equipment to Ukraine that includes its third Patriot air defense system with spare parts and additional missiles, the country's defense ministry confirmed on July 8. The German ambassador in Kyiv, Martin Jaeger, announced the system's delivery to Ukraine earlier on July 5. On July 8, it was announced that the package will additionally include ammunition for the Leopard 1 tank, 9,000 rounds of ammunition for anti-aircraft guns Gepard, 55,000 rounds of 155mm ammunition from German domestic stocks, as well as 58,000 rounds of 40mm ammunition. Germany will also provide Ukraine with two air surveillance radar TRML-4D, 30 Vector reconnaissance drones, 200 mobile drone jammers, 10 unmanned surface vessels, four Wisent 1 mine clearing tanks, and one Bergepanzer 2 armored vehicle. Berlin will also supply the Ukrainian Armed Forces with smoke grenades, various types of rifles, machine guns, SatCom terminals, night vision goggles, and pick-ups. Germany said in May that it planned to up its military aid to Ukraine by another 3.8 billion euros ($4.13 billion) in 2024, Reuters reported on May 21, citing an undisclosed source. The German government announced the previous military package for Ukraine in June. It included three HIMARS multiple rocket launchers, among other equipment. Initially a hesitant partner, Berlin has become Ukraine's second-largest military donor after the U.S., although German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is still reluctant to supply some key capabilities, namely Taurus long-range missiles. Read also: US announces new defense aid package for Ukraine worth $150 million Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Medical aid provides to a child after Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed the Okhmatdyt Children's Clinic Hospital. Aleksandr Gusev/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Germany has offered support and treatment for Ukrainian children after a Russian missile attack that struck a paediatric hospital in Kiev. German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach promised his Ukrainian counterpart Viktor Lyashko in a post on X "that we will take in sick children in need at any time, the next rescue flight will take off on Wednesday." Lauterbach went on to write: "[Russian President Vladimir] Putin has once again shown that he is a war criminal by deliberately attacking a children's hospital." Ukraine's ambassador to Germany, Oleksiy Makeyev, thanked Lauterbach on X for his "active solidarity and compassionate humanity," which he said could save children's lives. Since the beginning of the war, the German government has repeatedly taken in sick and injured people from Ukraine for treatment in German hospitals and clinics, as well as children in need of palliative care. One of Ukraine's largest paediatric clinics in Kiev was hit by a Russian missile attack on Ukraine on Monday. Mayor Vitali Klitschko spoke of 16 casualties in the hospital, including 7 children. Two of the injured died. The Russian Defence Ministry confirmed that Russian forces launched missile attacks, but claimed that those missile strikes were aimed at arms factories and military airfields in Ukraine. Russia claimed without offering any evidence that the damage in Kiev was caused by a Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile. An injured hospital worker watches as rescue efforts begin. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa An ambulance is parked near the Lukianivska metro station as smoke rises over an unfinished building during a Russian missile attack in Kyiv, capital of Ukraine. -/Ukrinform/dpa Germany reports on sending Patriot and Leopard 1 ammunition to Ukraine The German government updated the list of military assistance provided to Ukraine on Monday (8 July), confirming the delivery of the third Patriot air defence system. Source: The Federal Government (Germany), European Pravda reports Details: The list shows that Ukraine has received the third Patriot air defence system with spare parts and interceptor missiles, ammunition for Leopard 1 tanks, 9,000 rounds of ammunition for Gepard self-propelled anti-aircraft guns and 55,000 155 mm artillery shells. The list also includes 2 TRML-4D air surveillance radars, 30 Vector reconnaissance drones, 200 mobile drone jammers, 10 surface drones, 4 WISENT 1 mine clearing tanks and a Bergepanzer 2 armoured recovery vehicle. In addition, Germany has handed over 29 SatCom (satellite communication) terminals, 150 night vision goggles, 2 pick-up trucks, 10 protected vehicles, 58,000 rounds of 40 mm ammunition, 93,000 smoke grenades, 800 MK 556 assault rifles, 10 HLR 338 precision rifles with ammunition, 150 CR 308 rifles and 250 MG5 machine guns. German Ambassador Martin Jaeger announced last week that the third air defence system donated by his country had arrived in Ukraine. In total, in the first half of 2024, Germany issued licences for arms exports to Ukraine worth 4.88 billion. Support UP or become our patron! Germany's Scholz 'relieved' far right did not win French election By Sarah Marsh and Andreas Rinke BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Monday he was "relieved" that the eurosceptic far right failed to win a snap election in top ally France, noting Berlin should be able to keep working with Paris to motor the European Union. Marine Le Pen's National Rally (RN) had been favourite to top the polls. Instead the election threw up a hung parliament, with a leftist alliance unexpectedly taking the top spot but no group winning a majority, heralding tricky negotiations to form a government. Germany and France, the two top economies in the European Union, have traditionally powered decision-making together in the unwieldy bloc of 27 member states. "It would have been a major challenge if the French president had had to enter into a coalition with a right-wing populist party," Scholz, a Social Democrat, told reporters. "This has now been averted and we now hope that the president, but also the elected representatives, will succeed in constructively forming a government." As the largest EU country by population and economy, Germany had a greater interest in the success of the bloc than any other country, which was only possible through cooperation with France, Scholz said. "This result gives us the basis to keep pursuing this task," he said. "It won't be easy, but it's worth the effort." LOOKING ELSEWHERE FOR ALLIES Relations between the EU's two biggest powers became strained after Scholz took office in late 2021 amid policy differences and a lack of chemistry between the German leader and his French counterpart Emmanuel Macron. Domestic challenges - infighting in Scholz's three-way coalition and weak voter support for Macron - also hampered cooperation, slowing EU decision-making, although this has picked up over the past year amid shows of unity. Scholz said on Monday he was pleased about the results not just because of the "important Franco-German friendship", but "on a personal level, given the good personal relationship I have with the French President." German government officials had previously expressed surprise at Macron's decision to hold a snap election at a time of major challenges to the EU from trade tensions with China, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the possible re-election of former U.S. President Donald Trump. German Minister of State for Europe, Anna Luehrmann, told Reuters it was positive that pro-European forces had a majority in the French parliament. Still, she said partnerships with other countries such as Poland and Britain were growing in importance after elections there yielded more like-minded governments. Germany and Poland last week held government consultations together for the first time in six years and Luehrmann said Berlin should quickly seek to identify concrete areas of closer cooperation, especially on security and climate protection. (Reporting by Sarah Marsh and Andreas Rinke; Editing by Matthias Williams and Christina Fincher) One of the six residents displaced in a Bellefonte apartment building fire on Friday has started a GoFundMe campaign for those who lived there. The Friday afternoon fire in the 100 block of East High Street affected six people in four apartments, Taylor Douglas wrote on the website for the fundraiser, which raised more than $600 by Monday afternoon. I am hoping to raise funds to get the tenants into new housing, as many of us have no where to go and are staying with friends or family or at hotels, Douglas wrote. We also need to replace many of our belongings due to smoke and water damage. The funds raised by the GoFundMe will be split evenly between all six displaced tenants, the page states. The fire broke out on Friday afternoon and shut down traffic on portions of Allegheny and High streets. In a Facebook post, the Undine Fire Department thanked several businesses Weis Markets, Pizza Mia and Lykens and members for donating gift cards, food items and water to area firefighters who battled the blaze in the heat. The Greater Pennsylvania branch of the American Red Cross wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the organization assisted the six tenants post-fire. Douglas and the Undine Fire Department could not immediately be reached for comment. WORCESTER This September will mark two years of cannabis certificate programs at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, as the need for product development hits sky-high levels in the Massachusetts cannabis industry. This September will mark two years of cannabis certificate programs at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, as the need for product development hits sky-high levels in the Massachusetts cannabis industry. In 2023, the Cannabis Control Commission announced a new sales record for the year had been set, exceeding $1.56 billion, more than 5% growth from the previous year. This past April, the CCC announced the state had surpassed $6 billion in gross sales. "The cannabis market in Mass. is growing pretty quickly and significantly and that is creating a need for all sorts of things," said Daniel Kalef, chief growth officer of Green Flower. "Because everything sold in Massachusetts has to be made in Massachusetts, it creates its own ecosystem." Green Flower partnered with WPI and launched the online program in September 2022. The program offers five different certifications: health care and medicine, agriculture and horticulture, business, compliance and risk management, and their newest program, product development and design. More than 120 students have participated in the programs since their launch. "Through this cannabis certificate program, WPI believes it can assist in workforce training, development and upskilling in a growing industry, and highlight WPIs related, unique academic offerings to industry professionals who may be interested in further education," said Jon Cain, a spokesperson for WPI. "We partnered with WPI, well their reputation is second to none," Kalef said. "The school also has an interest in how to make sure the industry is full of people who are knowledgeable and prepared." The newest program, the product development and design certification, reflects directly with what's happening in the industry. "There is an explosive growth in edibles, not just in Massachusetts but across the country," Kalef said. "Having people fully understand how these things are extracted from the plant, CBD, THC, etc., and then added to edible products is more important now than ever." Green Flower has partnered with nearly 30 colleges in the United States to offer cannabis certificate programs. WPI is the only one in Massachusetts. Classifying Green Flower as a cannabis education company, Kalef explains those looking to get into the industry need to learn and understand the foundations of the industry as a whole. "Even if you're a businessman or businesswoman, it's just harder in the (cannabis) industry," Kalef said. "You can't buy a Google ad with the word 'cannabis' in it, you can't put your profits into a federally ensured bank. Then there is being compliant with all the regulations." This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: WPI adds online cannabis product & design certificate program In Reality Check stories, Star-Telegram journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? RealityCheck@star-telegram.com. Tarrant County Republican Party Chair Bo French took to social media over the weekend to accuse Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker of pushing radical transgender ideology. His post included a screenshot of the Beanstack App, which hosts the Mayoral Reading Challenge, showing a message encouraging users to check their local libraries for books by LGBTQ+ authors. French wrote on X that the image was sent to a 6-year-old, and was reminiscent of the 2023 Reading Challenge, which included activities to celebrate Pride Month. Parker pushed the Fort Worth Library to remove the Pride-related activities from the 2023 challenge. She argued that determining the appropriate age to talk to children about human sexuality is a deeply personal issue, and one that should be left to parents rather than the mayor. Mattie Parker Reading List Mayor Mattie Parker (@MayorMattie) came under fire last summer for using the Mayor's Summer reading program to push LGBT ideology on children, and it appears she has not learned her lesson. Her reading program is now pushing very young children to read pic.twitter.com/bswNkCHFmu Bo French (@Bo_French_TX) July 6, 2024 While many conservatives celebrated Parker for removing Pride related activities from the 2023 reading challenge, Frenchs social media post accused Parker of backsliding and said she had sold out conservatives through her apparent support of the LBGTQ+ community. However, representatives for the Fort Worth Library, which runs the Mayors Reading Challenge, noted the 2024 iteration tracks only the amount of time someone spends reading and does not include activity based challenges. The page encouraging people to read books by LGBTQ+ authors came from the Beanstack app, and not from the Mayors Summer Reading Challenge, said library spokesperson Theresa Davis. Here's what else we've Reality Checked: Is AI 'manipulating' your thermostat? Are American Airlines flight attendants really going to strike? True or false: Snakes can swim up your toilet Asked in an email for a response to the librarys assertion, French sent a pair of screenshots showing the logo of the summer reading challenge and the one he posted to X. Literacy is foundational in a thriving community, Parker said in a May press release promoting the summer reading challenge. She cited statistics about summer learning loss while arguing about the importance of encouraging young Fort Worth residents to read. In an emailed statement Monday, Parker reiterated that the goal of the summer reading challenge is to encourage families to read together. Unfortunately, no good deed goes unpunished, she said. While the app has been a valuable resource, Parker said it has overcomplicated what should have been a simple reading challenge focused on tracking the number of reading minutes. I am extremely disheartened that this is having the opposite effect of what I was very emphatic about achieving through the Mayors Summer Reading Challenge encouraging reading at a time when childhood literacy is a crisis in our nation, she said. A spokesperson for the Mayors Office noted several residents have reached out about the Beanstack app encouraging children to read books by LGBTQ+ authors, and each has gotten a response explaining the situation. Other than his post on social media, French has not reached out to the Mayors office, the spokesperson said. French did not immediately respond to an email from the Star-Telegram seeking to confirm whether hed reached out to the Mayors office. I got tested for the BRCA gene mutation while I was pregnant. With my family history, I knew I wanted a double mastectomy regardless of the results. I got tested for the BRCA gene mutation while I was pregnant. With my family history, I knew I wanted a double mastectomy regardless of the results. Gila Pfeffer is a humor writer who splits her time between NYC and London. The following is an adapted excerpt from her memoir, "Nearly Departed: Adventures in Loss, Cancer, and Other Inconveniences." It chronicles her journey as a cancer previvor and survivor, determined to reverse the cycle of death in her family. Eleven years after my mother died in 1994, when I was 31, I learned that a simple blood test could confirm whether I was a carrier of a BRCA gene mutation. Named for the first two letters of "breast" and "cancer," a positive result would place my odds of developing breast cancer at 87%. As an added bonus, BRCA carriers have a 66% chance of being hit with ovarian cancer. Those sound pretty high until you consider my insanely strong family history of cancer, which cranked my risk up even further. A blood test would be nothing more than a formality, a scientific breakthrough to tell me what I instinctively knew. I would 100% be BRCA-positive. Testing wasn't a common practice yet It was 2005, and genetic testing was far from commonplace. The famous Human Genome Project, an international effort to generate the first complete sequence of the human genome, had only recently achieved its goal by producing a sequence that decoded 92% of human DNA. There was growing buzz around mainstream genetic testing and although we were still years away from at-home spit tests like 23andMe or Ancestry.com, this development could tell me exactly what my body was up against. After a decade of playing defense, I'd finally have the chance to shift to offense. I could see a path to reversing my family's health trajectory. Pregnant with my third child and sick of everyone in my family dying too young, my self-preservationist instincts went into overdrive. I already thought about my own mortality way more than your average 30-year-old, but my obsession didn't stop there. I had my younger sisters and baby daughter to worry about, too. Because my sisters were still children when our mother died, the primary impact on them was that it rendered them motherless. For me, an adult, it was a wake-up call to get ahead of breast cancer. As the family matriarch, I felt a responsibility to take preventive measures not only for my own sake, but to set a good example for my siblings. At the same time, my friend had a prophylactic double mastectomy Shortly after I learned about genetic testing, my friend Stephanie told me she was scheduled to have a procedure called a prophylactic double mastectomy. That's a lot of syllables that amount to electively removing healthy breast tissue before cancer can take root. It was the first I'd ever heard of it, and my immediate reaction was, "I want that." Reconstruction is usually done at the same time, unless a woman chooses to "go flat." Unlike the modified radical mastectomy my mother eventually underwent, the prophylactic version leaves the outer skin and sometimes the nipple and areola intact. It would be years before Angelina Jolie would make "prophylactic double mastectomy" a household phrase by writing an opinion piece in "The New York Times" about her choice to have the same procedure. Stephanie and I met when I moved to Highland Park a few years earlier. Our kids were around the same ages, and we were both stay-at-home moms and active volunteers at school. We also had a family history of breast cancer in common, but her mother, who'd been diagnosed in her 20s, had caught it early and survived. By the time Stephanie told me about her upcoming mastectomy, she had already tested positive for the BRCA1 gene. I went to visit Stephanie while she was recovering at home. My intention was to fulfill the mitzvah (good deed) of Bikur Cholim (visiting the sick), but it was also a reconnaissance mission. Other than a dental implant, I'd never had surgery and came armed with a million questions. How long was the operation? Had she had any reaction to the anesthesia? How much pain was she in, and where? Did her new boobs look natural? And most important of all, on a scale of one to infinity, how relieved did she feel now that breast cancer was no longer a threat? I knocked on the door and went inside as I announced myself. "Hellooooooooo! You have a visitor!" I sang as I walked across the foyer. Her mother greeted me and pointed to the living room. "How's she doing?" I mouthed while unzipping my coat. She gave me a double thumbs-up, touched her palms together, and looked heavenward. "Thank God," she said quietly. "So?" I asked Stephanie as I plopped my pregnant self down on the couch, careful not to disrupt the intricate network of tubing that stuck out of her from all angles. All of my questions rolled into one: So?? "I'm OK! The pain meds are working, and my back is pretty sore, but mostly I feel relieved. I'm telling you, Gi, it's like a weight's been lifted. No more worrying. I'm free!" She beamed, all dimples and shining eyes. She showed me her post-surgical sites, like a guide preparing a tourist for a hike through rocky terrain. Her chest was wrapped many times over in white gauze, and clear plastic bulbs the size of lemons hung off tubes on either side of her rib cage. They were filled about a third of the way with a viscous, rust-colored liquid. "Surgical drains," she explained, giving each one a little flick with her fingers. "They collect the extra blood and other fluids to stop them from accumulating in my body. I have to dump the contents a couple times a day and keep track of how much comes out to make sure it's less each time." She showed me a little notebook with a list of dates and measurements in decreasing amounts. "It's a little gross, but they're only there for a few more days, until they stop filling up with gunk." "More like a lot gross," I said, recoiling slightly, which got a laugh out of Stephanie. I'd been peed on by my kids and caught their vomit in my bare hands without batting an eye, but medical gore made my insides churn. Of the several options for reconstruction, she'd chosen silicone implants with an overlay of muscle taken from her upper back to give her "foobs" fake boobs a more natural look. "All I have to do is sit on my couch propped up with these pillows, some physical therapy to regain range of motion in my arms, and I'll be good as new," she reassured me. "Better, even." I asked for the BRCA test, and my doctor agreed During my next prenatal checkup, I asked my doctor to arrange a BRCA test. The OB-GYN practice had started to see an uptick in requests for this type of blood test. She agreed that for me, it was a no-brainer. "I'll make sure to have the test kit here for your next check-up," she said. "But are you sure you want to do this while you're pregnant?" She was concerned about the psychological toll of potentially finding out I was a carrier at a time when I was already hormonal enough. My doctor was cautious but never alarmist. It was hard to say how old she was. Her wiry gray hair was always pulled back into a messy ponytail, and she favored socks with Birkenstocks and rimless glasses, which probably added years to her actual age. What mattered to me was that she'd been in the expectant-mother game for a long time. "Absolutely," I said without reservation. Whatever the test results, I was already plotting my next preventive steps. "Have you decided what to do if it turns out you're BRCA positive?" she asked, wheeling her little stool over to her desk to make some notes in my chart. "Either way, I'm getting rid of these," I announced, grabbing a swollen breast in each hand. "No question. I don't want this threat looming over me anymore." Excerpted from Nearly Departed: Adventures in Loss, Cancer, and Other Inconveniences by Gila Pfeffer. Copyright 2024, Gila Pfeffer. Published by The Experiment. Read the original article on Business Insider TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, July 8. Uzbekistan and the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) have developed a strategy for 20222026, Trend reports. The news follows a meeting between ambassador of Uzbekistan Nodirjon Turgunov with Director General of the Project Planning Department of IsDB Anasse Aissami. At the meeting, the sides discussed issues of boosting cooperation between Uzbekistan and the IsDB, preferential financing of large projects being developed in the country, support for women and youth, and attracting technical and humanitarian assistance. Anasse Aissami noted that the fundamental reforms launched under the leadership of the President of Uzbekistan are yielding effective results and are of great significance in strengthening the country's position in the international arena. The sides reviewed opportunities to finance projects in transportation, logistics, education, agriculture and water management, ecology, animal husbandry, and other areas. They noted the programs aimed at supporting women and youth in Uzbekistan and considered prospects for expanding IsDB's participation in them. In addition, the participants decided to organize a practical visit of IsDB representatives to Uzbekistan to continuously monitor the implementation of projects implemented by the bank and discuss future plans. Earlier, a meeting was held between Uzbekistan's Minister of Investment, Industry and Trade Laziz Kudratov and a delegation headed by the head of the Regional Office of the Islamic Development Bank Ibrahim Shukri. During the meeting, the sides announced that the IsDB is developing 4 promising projects worth $434 million with Uzbekistan. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (L) speaks Sunday during a visit to Taiwan while the region's president, Lai Ching-te, looks on. Photo courtesy of Texas Gov. Greg Abbott/X July 8 (UPI) -- Texas plans to open a trade representative office in Taiwan, Gov. Greg Abbott has announced amid fraying relations between the United States and China. Abbott made the announcement Sunday during the first full day of his three-nation economic development mission to Asia that will take him to Taiwan, South Korea and Japan. According to a statement from his office, the Republican governor met with President Lai Ching-te at the Presidential Office where the pair "explored opportunities for Texas and Taiwan to work together to strengthen trade relations and investment in critical economic drivers," including the semiconductor, energy and electric vehicle manufacturing industries. The new office in Taiwan will operate under the Texas Economic Development and Tourism Office with the mission "to attract foreign direct investment and job creation into Texas and increase Texas export into Taiwan and other countries," the governor's office said in a separate statement. "Texas and Taiwan are critical economic partners that seek to drive the future of innovation," Abbott said. "By working together, we will ensure our people have the freedom and opportunity to thrive in the growing economies of the 21st century." The announcement of the new trade relations office came after the politicians and Taiwan Minister of Economic Affairs Jyh-Huei Kuo signed a economic development Statement of Intent that aims to bolster investment, trade and collaboration between their two governments. According to Abbott's office, trade between Texan and Taiwan amounted to $21.3 billion in 2023, making the Asian island Texas' seventh-largest total trade partner. Pleased to welcome the delegation led by Governor @GregAbbott_TX & @TexasFLCA on their 1st visit & celebrate the opening of the State of Texas Taiwan Office! We're excited to strengthen the #Taiwan-#Texas friendship & create opportunities for further business ties & investment. pic.twitter.com/vt04CW5FQz Lai Ching-te (@ChingteLai) July 7, 2024 Lai said in a statement online that he was "pleased" to welcome Abbott to Taiwan. "We're excited to strengthen the #Taiwan-#Texas friendship & create opportunities for further business ties & investment," the president said. He added in a separate statement that Abbott had told him he was "proud" to open the new office. "I believe that the establishment of the Texas Office in Taiwan will serve as a strong pillar of friendship between Taiwan and Texas and the United States, strengthening and deepening the Taiwan-U.S. partnership and creating peace and prosperity together," he said. The United States terminated diplomat relations with Taiwan in 1979 in order to establish ties with China, which views the autonomous democratic island as a rogue province and has vowed to take it back by force if necessary. However, the United States maintains unofficial diplomatic relations with Taiwan that have grown over the years, with U.S. State Department describing the island as "a key U.S. partner in the Indo-Pacific." Washington has even sought closer relations with Taiwan as the China threat on its democracy has grown. The Texas office is to be the 23rd by a U.S. state on the island, with four offices having opened last year. Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry holds a press conference on July 1, 2024, at the Denka neoprene plant in LaPlace, La., to speak against a new EPA rule he says is unfair to the company. (Photo credit: Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator) A non-traditional applicant with the backing of Gov. Jeff Landry and two others were named finalists to be the next president of Northwestern State University. The Northwestern State University presidential search committee Monday advanced Associate State Supreme Court Justice Jimmy Genovese, Massachusetts Deputy Commissioner of Higher Education Richard Riccardi and University of Colorado Springs Vice Chancellor Jose Cantu as finalists. The position was vacated after the current president, Marcus Jones, announced he was resigning to take the position of senior adviser to University of Louisiana System President Rick Gallot. Jones has served in the position since November 2021. The candidates will travel to the Natchitoches campus for town hall-style interviews next week, where the university community will have the opportunity to interact with them. Genovese, who does not have any higher education experience, told The Advocate that Landry has sent text messages to support his candidacy. Genovese leaving the court would create an opportunity for the governor to help elect an ally to the bench. The search committee was called June 10, with the aim to hire a president July 18. Its unusual for a presidential search committee, the industry standard for selecting a university leader, to make a decision on such a short timeline. It is also unusual for searches to be held primarily over the summer, when many professors and students have their attention elsewhere. Im a little concerned that everything about this search seems to be designed to give an advantage to the candidate the governor seems to put up, Frank Serio, the faculty representative to the committee, said in an interview with the Illuminator. The Illuminator attempted to ask the governor about faculty concerns the search process was skewed toward his favored applicant at a news conference on another topic last week. But the question was interrupted, though the governor took a moment to address the search generally. I think its important that the people or the state of Louisiana are in control of their universities, Landry said. And so what we respond to as stakeholders in those areas, as we look towards trying to take universities who are in trouble and taking them out of trouble. The timeline to replace NSUs president was not originally so condensed. With the help of a new law that gave the governor further power over state higher education boards, Landry replaced University of Louisiana Board of Supervisors Chair Jimmy Clarke with Mark Romero. In an interview, Clarke said the proposed timeline while he was chair would have resulted in the selection of a new president sometime later in the fall semester. The chair has the authority to set the search timeline. Days after Romero took over from Clarke, the rapid timeline was announced. Romero said he opted to condense the timeline so the new president could be installed before the fall semester began. As a student, Romero said he underwent several administrative and academic transitions, and he feels it would be better for students to know their president going into the academic year. The three candidates were advanced as finalists from among five applicants after three others withdrew their applications. Romero said he didnt know why the three withdrew. Romero and several other members of the search committee said they had not heard from Landry regarding Genoveses candidacy. Though Landry denied wanting Genovese off the court in an interview with The Advocate, Landry has made several attempts to shift the court to the right. Landrys interest in the Northwestern State search renewed the fears of many in higher education who thought giving the governor further influence over higher education boards would lead to even more political influence. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC), the accrediting body for Louisiana universities, requires that governing boards for its accredited schools remain free from undue external influence. In 2020, SACSCOC found Gov. Henry McMaster, a Republican, had undue influence on the University of South Carolinas search for a new president. At the time, McMaster asked trustees to end the search and hire Bob Calsen, a former West Point superintendent. Calsen resigned the next year amidst a plagiarism scandal. If Genovese is hired for the position, he would not be the first former elected official with no higher education experience to lead a university. Before serving as Grambling States president, Gallot was a Democratic legislator for many years. LSU also considered former Republican Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne to be its president, before reopening the search to hire William Tate. Many other universities and university systems are also led by former elected officials, including the University System of Georgia, led by former governor and Trump agriculture secretary Sonny Perdue, and the University of Florida, led by former U.S. Sen. Ben Sasse of Nebraska. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Gov. Landry-backed candidate, two others named finalists for Northwestern State presidency appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders appoints campaign manager, lobbyist Chris Caldwell as new Arkansas Game and Fish commissioner Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders appoints campaign manager, lobbyist Chris Caldwell as new Arkansas Game and Fish commissioner LITTLE ROCK, Ark. Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders named a longtime advisor as the newest member of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission Monday. Chris Caldwell joins the commission for a seven-year term, with Sanders saying Caldwell would replace outgoing AGFC chair Stan Jones while John David J.D. Neeley assumes the role of commission chairman. Arkansas Game and Fish Commission expands hunting, fishing opportunities for 2024-25 season According to a spokesperson for the governor, Caldwell is from Saline County, where he runs a lobbying firm. He had previously managed the Sarah for Governor campaign and served as a special advisor to the governor-elects transition team. During the Trump administration, Caldwell was the federal co-chair of the Delta Regional Authority. He has also previously served on Sen. John Boozmans (R-AR) staff. Sarah Huckabee Sanders begins transition, appoints staff and opens job application site Caldwell said he was looking forward to assuming this new role. Hunting and fishing have always been a big part of my life, and Im proud to join the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission and help provide the same opportunities I enjoyed to every kid and family in Arkansas, Caldwell said. Im grateful that the Governor has selected me for this role and look forward to working with her and every Commissioner to help make Arkansas the best state in the nation to hunt, fish, live, and raise a family. DRA announces $2 million investment to strengthen Arkansass transportation infrastructure Sanders expressed confidence in Caldwell, who she said was a great friend and trusted advisor. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Government searching for options to relocate Okhmatdyt children's hospital, Shmyhal says The Ukrainian government is looking for new places to relocate the Okhmatdyt hospital, including its staff and patients, after the July 8 Russian attack, Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said. Okhmatdyt hospital the country's largest children's medical center was struck by a Kh-101 cruise missile, according to the preliminary data obtained by the State Security Service (SBU). At least two people were killed, and at least 16 people were injured, including seven children, according to local authorities. The consequences of the attack will be assesed during the next government meeting, Shmyhal said. The Ministries of Health, Economy, and Finance were instructed to allocate funds to restore medical facilities and help the victims of the attack, he added. "We hope that our international partners will draw their own conclusions. We need effective responses to Russian terror," Shmyhal said. Read also: Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine, kills at least 36 civilians and injures 149 others Russia launched a mass missile attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8, killing at least 36 civilians and injuring 149 others, according to the State Emergency Service. The aerial attack targeted Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk, damaging "50 civilian sites, including residential buildings, a business center, and two medical facilities," the State Emergency Service reported. The July 8 attack has been the deadliest in months, with the casualty figures comparable to massive strikes carried out by Russia during the winter. Read also: I want Russians to feel it on their own skin: Shock, fury at the site of childrens hospital attack Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Chris Caldwell, a longtime friend of the Sanders' family and a political advisor to Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, addresses a crowd in Little Rock after being appointed to the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission on July 8, 2024. (Mary Hennigan/Arkansas Advocate) Chris Caldwell a longtime friend to Arkansas first family, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders campaign manager and political adviser, and the chair of a group that opposes three ballot initiatives was appointed to the state Game and Fish Commission Monday afternoon. Sanders announced Caldwells appointment at the Witt Stephens Jr. Central Arkansas Nature Center in Little Rock, where native fish swam in a habitat nearby, preserved geese were strung from the ceiling, and a stuffed beaver and bear occupied a scene in the background. The room was filled with boisterous applause as Sanders announced Caldwells appointment, a position he will hold for the next seven years. Sanders told several stories of Sanders-Caldwell hunting trips and other outdoor activities. She also seemed to get choked up as she recalled Caldwell cheering on his son as he shot his first deer. But Im not appointing him to this commission because hes my friend, Sanders said of Caldwell. Im appointing him because I know how much he loves Arkansas, how much he adores hunting and fishing, and the Arkansas way of life. The written mission of the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission is to conserve and enhance Arkansas fish and wildlife and their habitats while promoting sustainable use, public understanding and support. The commission is made up of seven people who lead these efforts, and the agencys website states it is privileged to have a diverse and passionate group. The first woman to hold a full term on the commission in the states history was appointed by former Gov. Asa Hutchinson in 2019. No other women have been named to the commission since. No person of color currently holds a seat on the commission. During the appointment announcement, Sanders noted Caldwell was a bit rough around the edges, and she said its not uncommon for him to have a deer or a couple of dead raccoons in his truck bed while doing business at the state Capitol. Caldwell, 45, said hes spent four decades hunting and fishing on Arkansas public lands, making many core memories along the way. He currently lives in Little Rock. I feel that we have a responsibility to all Arkansans, and particularly the commission and staff, to preserve and conserve that future for future generations, said Caldwell, a father of two children. Getting to spend time outdoors on our public lands is so important to our family that I bring to this a commitment to preserve that to all Arkansans. Sanders also referenced Caldwells involvement in her parents and her own wedding, as well as Caldwells previous work with U.S. Sen. John Boozman and as the federal co-chairman of the Delta Regional Authority under former President Donald Trumps administration. Alexa Henning, Sanders spokesperson, told the Arkansas Advocate after the announcement that Caldwell would continue as the chair for Stronger Arkansas, a ballot question committee opposed to the Arkansas Abortion Amendment of 2024, the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment of 2024 and the Arkansas Educational Rights Amendment of 2024. Henning did not reply to a question of whether Caldwells appointment poses a conflict of interest. The spokesperson for the Arkansas Ethics Commission was not privy to Caldwells appointment before an inquiry, though Graham Sloan said there was no existing concern. A resident could submit a complaint to the commission if they were concerned, which could then prompt an investigation that has the potential to end in fines. Sloan said the commission does not have the authority to remove someone from such a position. Mondays announcement was also a leadership handoff of sorts as outgoing Chair Stan Jones and incoming Chair J.D. Neeley spoke. Hutchinson appointed Jones and Neeley to the commission in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Both Jones and Neeley expressed their support for Caldwell. They also shared positive sentiments about the leadership from Austin Booth, the commissions director. Booth was among the primary topics of discussions during a recent special legislative session that was called to fund the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission after lawmakers failed to do so during its fiscal session. Legislators referenced the need for better communication between the agency and state leaders. On Monday, Neeley said that under Booths leadership the agency was plowing ahead with a straightforward precision focus. The commission appointed Booth director in 2021. Booth and his family were present for Mondays announcement, though he did not speak. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST GREENVILLE, Mich. (WOOD) Authorities said people in a neighborhood on the south side of Greenville can return to their homes after they were evacuated for a gas leak Sunday night. Just after 8 p.m., Montcalm County Central Dispatch announced on social media that there was a very large gas leak in the area of E Union Street and S Clay Street. Greenville Department of Public Safety blocked off the area and worked on the leak, which was caused by an axe hitting a gas line, according to dispatch. Residents within a three-block radius of Union and Clay streets were evacuated from their homes and warned to use caution with fire, sparks, starting vehicles or using electronics. This embedded content is not available in your region. Eventually, everyone was cleared to return to their homes, according to the updated post. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. While Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane on Monday on the Texas coast, knocking out power to at least two million homes and killing at least two people, Governor Greg Abbott was enjoying a trip to East Asia. Abbott left for South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan on Friday as the storm was forecast to hit Texas on Monday. He went ahead with his nine-day trip anyway to drive forward progress in industries critical to the future of the global economy, according to a press release from his office. Many in Texas and on social media didnt see it that way, as Abbotts trip seems quite similar to Senator Ted Cruzs infamous 2021 trip to Cancun when the state was hit with a winter disaster. The Lose Cruz PAC pointed out that Cruz was also whale-watching in Southern California over the weekend. Twitter screenshot Lose Cruz @LoseCruzPAC: While Hurricane Beryl closed in on Texas, Greg Abbott was visiting South Korea and Ted Cruz was whale watching in Southern California. Texans deserve better. Cruz himself did post a video on Monday near a flooded highway in Houston. Houston and the entire Gulf Coast will come through the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl. Right now, keep your family safeavoid high water. #HoustonStrong pic.twitter.com/HdiGDX14mn Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) July 8, 2024 One Texan pointed out the arrogance from Texas Republicans. Twitter screenshot Matt Angle @LSPmatt: Don't think @GregAbbott_TX schmoozing in east Asia while a hurricane hits Texas leaving 2M w/o power is him being stupid. It's stunning arrogance - like going to a fundraiser the evening of the Uvalde massacre. Abbott doesn't care & is daring voters to do something about it. Democratic Representative Eric Swalwell pointed out Cruzs history, and wondered about Abbott and those like him facing any accountability in the Lone Star state. Twitter screenshot Rep. Eric Swalwell @RepSwalwell: My family in Texas are about to be slammed by #HurricaneBeryl. And shocker!..Governor @GregAbbott_TX is out of the country. Sound familiar, @tedcruz ? My God. Who the hell are these leaders? And why arent they held to account? Abbott seemed to foresee a backlash on Sunday, posting a statement that he was in daily contact with Texas Division of Emergency Management & local officials to ensure preparation for Hurricane Beryl. Your safety is our top concern. Others werent convinced. Twitter screenshot 0mega6 @noCinErik: Uh, hey, man... you think your timing is appropriate? LONDON/MADRID/BARCELONA (Reuters) - The Grifols family and Canadian fund Brookfield have agreed to evaluate a possible joint takeover bid for beleaguered Spanish drugmaker Grifols with the intent to delist it, the companies said in regulatory filings on Monday. Grifols said its board held an extraordinary meeting over the weekend to study a preliminary offer presented by Brookfield and the Grifols founding family, which holds a stake of around 30%, according to the latest data by Spanish securities regulator CNMV. Brookfield and the family have asked the board for access to certain company information for due diligence before potentially buying all of Grifols' shares, Brookfield and Grifols said in the filings. Brookfield is considering investing more than 5 billion euros ($5.41 billion) in Grifols, with part of that amount to refinance and restructure the company's debt, according to a source close to the conversations. The Canadian-based fund will carry out the deal alongside other investors in its funds, the source said. The Grifols family is not planning to sell its stake, the source said. Grifols' net financial debt reached 10.9 billion euros in the first quarter of this year, around 400 million euros higher than in the prior quarter. Grifols and Brookfield declined to comment. The conversation between the Grifols family and Brookfield started more than a year ago, the source said, before short-seller fund Gotham City Research released several reports that have erased a third of Grifols' value. Grifols' shares closed 9.7% higher on Spain's blue-chip index Ibex 35 on Monday. The deal could be worth around 5.5 billion euros ($5.96 billion), according to Cinco Dias newspaper which first reported on the deal. Grifols' market capitalization reached 6.2 billion euros on Monday. Brookfield said the talks over the joint offer could end with Grifols delisted from the Spanish stock exchange and the Nasdaq. "There is no agreement or decision regarding a potential transaction or the related terms and conditions," Brookfield said, adding there was no guarantee there would be a final offer. Grifols also said it did not know if a transaction will take place or the terms under which it could be carried out. Its main shareholders - in addition to the descendants of the three brothers who took the company from a small family-owned lab in Barcelona to a global player in the plasma derivatives business - include the funds Capital Research and Management Company, BlackRock, Europacific Growth Fund and Rokos Global Macro Master Fund, according to Spain's stock market regulator. Story continues Since early January, short-seller fund Gotham City Research has released several reports accusing Grifols of overstating earnings and understating debt. Following the reports, Grifols announced governance changes and revised its reported leverage higher after market supervisor CNMV required that it change its calculations. Last week, Grifols appointed Rahul Srinivasan as chief financial officer in a management reshuffle and Scranton Enterprises, an investment vehicle partly tied to the Grifols family, reached an agreement with a private investor to refinance 377 million euros of debt in one of its units. ($1 = 0.9229 euro) (This story has been refiled to remove an extraneous word in paragraph 3) (Reporting by David Latona in Madrid, Andres Gonzalez in London and Joan Faus in Barcelona; Additional reporting by Marta Serafinko; Editing by Louise Heavens, Arun Koyyur, Anousha Sakoui and Matthew Lewis) TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, July 8. Uzbekistan and China harped on the need to hit the ground running on the construction of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railroad., Trend reports. The discussion took place during a meeting between President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev with a delegation of the National People's Congress of China headed by Chairman of the Standing Committee Zhao Leji. During the meeting, the sides noted the highest level of Uzbek-Chinese relations and all-round strategic partnership achieved in recent years. Both parties emphasized that the outcomes of the high-level talks held on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Astana will give a new impetus to the expansion of multifaceted cooperation between the two countries. China's expressed readiness to support Uzbekistan's socio-economic reform program, especially in poverty reduction, as well as plans to adopt strategic cooperation programs in infrastructure development, industrial cooperation, agriculture, and green energy. The participants also noted that the second Forum of Regions will be held next year. Both sides discussed issues of opening branches of Chinese universities, expanding cooperation in vocational education, and supporting the Confucius Institute in Uzbekistan. The second Educational Forum is scheduled to be held next year. The officials reviewed cultural and tourism exchange and the need to further expand inter-parliamentary interaction, intensify exchanges between parliamentarians, and study the experience of lawmaking activities to support the ongoing reforms. At the end of the meeting, both countries expect to adopt a road map for the implementation of measures aimed at deepening cooperation between the parliaments of the two countries. Meanwhile, Uzbekistans foreign trade turnover volume with China amounted to $5 billion from January through May 2024. Steve Bakken, left, and Casey Neumann, of the New Economic Frontier ballot initiative group, carry boxes containing petitions to the Secretary of State's Office on Monday, July 8, 2024, at the state Capitol in Bismarck, N.D. Organizers of a ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in North Dakota submitted petition signatures on Monday, likely setting up another statewide vote on the issue that voters and state lawmakers have previously defeated. The group submitted more than 22,000 signatures, sponsoring committee chairman Bakken said. (AP Photo/Jack Dura) BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) Organizers of a ballot initiative to legalize recreational marijuana in North Dakota submitted petition signatures on Monday, likely setting up another statewide vote on the issue that voters and state lawmakers have previously defeated. The New Economic Frontier measure group submitted more than 22,000 signatures, sponsoring committee chairman Steve Bakken said. The initiative needs 15,582 valid signatures to make the Nov. 5 general election ballot. Secretary of State Michael Howe's office has until Aug. 12 to review the petition signatures. Bakken, a Burleigh County commissioner and former Bismarck mayor, said the measure is an effort to preclude any one from out of state that might be potentially unmanageable. A lot of what we don't want to see is what's going on in some of the other states, and we think that this is a measure that fits the conservative nature of North Dakota, Bakken told reporters in an office where Howe's staff unboxed petitions. Also, law enforcement resources should focus more on opioids and fentanyl, not minor marijuana offenses, he said. The 20-page statutory measure would legalize recreational marijuana for people 21 and older to use at their homes and, if permitted, on others private property. The measure also outlines numerous production and processing regulations, prohibited uses such as in public or in vehicles and would allow home cultivation of plants. The measure would set maximum purchase and possession amounts of 1 ounce of dried leaves or flowers, 4 grams of a cannabinoid concentrate, 1,500 mg of total THC in the form of a cannabis product and 300 mg of an edible product. It would allow cannabis solutions, capsules, transdermal patches, concentrates, topical and edible products. Marijuana use by people under 21 is a low-level misdemeanor in North Dakota. Recreational use by anyone older is not a crime but possessing it is, with penalties varying from an infraction to misdemeanors depending on the amount of marijuana. Delivery of any amount of marijuana is a felony, which can be elevated depending on certain factors, such as if the offense was within 300 feet (91 meters) of a school. Last year, 4,451 people statewide were charged with use or possession of marijuana, according to North Dakota Courts data requested by The Associated Press. North Dakota voters previously rejected legalization measures in 2018 and 2022. In 2021, the Republican-led state House of Representatives passed bills to legalize and tax recreational marijuana, which the GOP-majority Senate defeated. Opponents decried what they called the harmful physiological and societal effects of marijuana. Voters approved medical marijuana use in 2016. The state-run program has nearly 10,000 active patient cards. In 2019, the states Pardon Advisory Board approved a new process to ease pardons for low-level marijuana offenses. Republican Gov. Doug Burgum granted 100 such pardons from 2019 to 2023, according to his office. Twenty-four states have legalized recreational marijuana for adults. Ohio did so most recently, by initiative in November 2023. Measures will be on the ballot in Florida and South Dakota in November. In May, the federal government began a process to reclassify marijuana as a less dangerous drug. "Dedication can bring answers, even those we do not wish to hear," a member of the Uvalde Foundation For Kids said Bee County Sheriff's Office Caleb Harris, Missing Texas A&M Student The Uvalde Foundation For Kids says it has joined the search for 21-year-old Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi student Caleb Harris, who went missing in March. On Wednesday, July 3, the foundation dedicated to ending school violence and established after the 2022 massacre at Robb Elementary announced that they would be assembling a special team of volunteers from its STOPNOW school community patrol teams in its Dallas, San Antonio & Bell County chapters, to aide in the ongoing search for [Harris]. Now is not the time to end the search for this young man," James Earle, team director for the Uvalde Foundation For Kids STOPNOW Patrol, said in a statement. "If anything it should give a renewed hope that persistence and dedication can bring answers, even those we do not wish to hear. In this case, until the community knows otherwise, we are urging those joining efforts to locate Caleb to stay the course, Earle continued. Our foundation will utilize all our resources to aide at this time. Caleb deserves that. The foundations involvement comes after the Corpus Christi Police Department said that on June 24, a city employee found human remains in a 40-foot-deep wastewater collection point that was reportedly near Harris apartment. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. In a news release posted on June 26, police said that the Nueces County Medical Examiners Office confirmed that the remains bore no obvious signs of homicide and were unable to make an identification, nor provide a manner or cause of death. The remains were sent to the University of North Texas Center for Human Identification for further DNA analysis. Police have said Harris was last seen on March 4 near his apartment complex around 3 a.m. in the 1900 block of Ennis Joslin Road near Texas A&M University's Corpus Christi campus. Randy Harris, Calebs father, told local TV affiliate KIII that Caleb left behind his ID and car keys and by 3 o'clock his phone was dead." "He was totally gone, Randy told KIII at the time. He doesn't have his wallet. He doesn't have any identification on him." As of July 3, TV station WOAI reported that, according to city officials, identification of the remains found last month could require weeks. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A new group, Pass the Torch, Joe, has formed to circulate a petition among Democratic voters that urges President Biden to step aside from the 2024 race. The group is made up of Democratic activists, organizers and voters who are focused on beating former President Trump in November, according to its website. The petition targets Democratic lawmakers and delegates ahead of the Democratic National Committee in August to call on Biden to step down. And it includes a pledge for signers to say they will unite behind a new ticket and do everything in their power to beat Trump. The groups organizers include Rhode Island state Sen. Tiara Mack (D), former Rhode Island state Rep. Aaron Regunberg (D) and organizers in swing states including Pennsylvania and Michigan. We have incredible talent in our party including a vice president who made history once and could do it again, and governors whove proven their ability to win critical swing states, the group says on its website. In 2020 Joe Biden committed to being a transition president. It is time for him to make good on that commitment, put his country first, and secure his legacy as the man who saved our democracy. Five sitting House Democrats have now called for Biden to drop out: Reps. Angie Craig (Minn.), Lloyd Doggett (Texas), Mike Quigley (Ill.), Raul Grijalva (Ariz.) and Seth Moulton (Mass.), and a number of senior House Democrats reportedly said Biden should drop out on a private call over the weekend. The website includes quotes from those lawmakers, as well as other notable Democrats such as longtime strategist James Carville, saying Biden should step aside. The group pointed to a radio interview Biden did last week, for which the host has since admitted she used questions the Biden campaign provided in advance. The host is no longer with the station that aired the interview. Democratic leadership asked President Biden to take what should be a simple test for a presidential nominee: Do some unscripted interviews. But Bidens campaign appaently didnt trust the President to pass that test, so they essentially cheated on the exam by making the interviews scripted, Pass the Torch wrote in a social media post. Biden has repeatedly declared that he is not stepping down, dismissing calls for him to step aside as the nominee in a Monday morning interview on MSNBCs Morning Joe. He dared other Democrats to challenge him at the convention and bashed the big names and elites in the Democratic Party who want him off the ticket. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. After gubernatorial primary loss, Lyman sues for records that allowed Cox to get on ballot Utah Rep. Phil Lyman speaks as he debates with incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox during 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) Gubernatorial candidate Phil Lyman and his running mate, Natalie Clawson, are suing state election officials in an effort to review records that allowed Utah Gov. Spencer Cox to be on the ballot for the Republican primary election. Endorsed by former President Donald Trump, Lyman fell about 38,000 votes short in his attempt to unseat Cox from the right. And, like the former president did with the last election, Lyman has questioned the validity of Utahs primary results, refusing to concede, calling for an audit and filing open records requests to inspect the steps Cox took to get on the ballot. That records request is at the heart of Lymans complaint filed last week in Utahs 3rd District Court in Salt Lake County. Utah law allows candidates two avenues to get on the ballot they can seek nomination by GOP delegates at the Utah Republican Partys convention, or they can collect enough signatures from eligible primary voters. Cox chose the signature route, and now Lyman wants to get his hands on unredacted nominating petitions, Signature Packets, and other voter registration information sufficient to allow, according to the complaint. Lymans campaign hopes those records will allow them to verify and possibly challenge the signatures that were submitted on behalf of the Cox campaign. The Cox campaign responded to the lawsuit in a statement on Monday, telling Utah News Dispatch they are confident the court will rule in their favor. Phil lost with Utah Republican voters, and it wasnt close. Hes already lost once with a judge during this election cycle, and hell lose again with this lawsuit and the others he says he intends to file, said Matt Lusty, the governors campaign spokesman, pointing to Lymans failed bid to find his original choice for a running mate eligible for the ballot. Hendersons office declined to comment on active litigation. But in a July 3 statement, the same day the complaint was filed, Henderson sent a letter to Utahs county clerks reminding them that election related materials are not considered public records. The lawsuit also seeks to obtain signature gathering records from Brad Wilson and Derek Browns campaign Wilson lost his bid for U.S. Senate, while Brown won the GOP primary for attorney general. Calling it a lawsuit about the publics right to transparency and the integrity of the signature-gathering process for primary elections in Utah, the complaint names Utah Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson, the top election official in the state, director of elections Ryan Cowley, and Mallory Underwood, office administrator for the lieutenant governor. Confidence in our elections is crucial. Continued obstruction by Lt. Gov. Henderson, which makes it impossible to independently verify Cox/Hendersons signature packets, does nothing to promote transparency and faith in our elections. We believe this action is essential to ensure the integrity of this important process, Lyman said in a statement posted to his X account. The complaint references Gathering Inc., a signature gathering company that was used by the Cox campaign and state Sen. Don Ipson, R-St. George. The Washington County attorney found issues with the signatures gathered for Ipsons campaign, which according to the complaint led to about 600 being invalidated. Ipson holds a 444 vote lead over his GOP challenger Chad E. Bennion, according to the latest results. After learning of the potential signature-gathering issues with Ipsons campaign, the Lyman and Clawson campaign filed a public records request to see the signature packets for Cox, as well as Brown and Wilson. The lieutenant governors office produced a redacted version of the signature packets, according to the complaint, which prevents any other campaign or individual from challenging Signature Packets submitted by another candidate for state or local office. To ensure a fair and transparent process, this information must be disclosed to other candidates or political campaigns, court documents read. There are currently no hearings set for Lymans lawsuit. The court challenge is the latest in Lymans tirade against Cox and the Utah election law. After the two debated in June, Lyman declined to say he would accept the results, instead telling reporters he would be checking the results of the election I will be checking the statistical analysis that should be available after an election. Lyman has also criticized SB54, which Utah lawmakers passed in 2014, allowing candidates to collect signatures rather than solely rely on the partys convention to get to the primary ballot. In Utah and elsewhere, that process has been rife with issues of fraud, deception, and forgery, the complaint filed last week reads. Utah election officials, including Henderson, maintain that the states elections are fair and secure. Utah leads the nation in elections administration by protecting voters constitutional right to the ballot in ways that reduce barriers, while also strengthening security measures to ensure each Utahn knows that their vote is counted securely, accurately and anonymously, Henderson said at an election trust forum at Utah Valley University in the spring. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post After gubernatorial primary loss, Lyman sues for records that allowed Cox to get on ballot appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. Proposition 6 asks California voters to amend the state Constitution to ban involuntary servitude, which would end forced labor in state prisons. What will the measure do? Proposition 6 would end mandatory work requirements for state prisoners, instead making jobs voluntary for incarcerated people. It would also protect prisoners from being disciplined for refusing a work assignment. Who are the supporters? Proposition 6 was placed on the ballot by California state lawmakers, who supported it with a bipartisan vote. The measure is a Legislative Black Caucus priority bill. Additional supporters include numerous liberal groups that advocate for reforming the criminal justice system. Who are the opponents? There are no official opponents. Some Republican lawmakers have expressed worry that the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation would have to pay prisoners minimum wage, which would cost the state over a billion dollars annually. Proposition 6 doesnt mandate wages, and a related new law explicitly says that the state would not be required to pay prisoners minimum wage and that the secretary of the Corrections Department would set prison wages. Why is this on the ballot? Californias Constitution mirrors the 13th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which allows for involuntary servitude as punishment for crime. A growing list of states have passed similar initiatives that removed involuntary servitude as punishment for crimes from their state constitutions. Those states include Vermont, Oregon, Tennessee, Alabama, Nebraska, Utah, and Colorado. Criminal justice reform advocates have been pushing for a change to the language in the Constitution for years, saying it allows the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to require able-bodied inmates to work for as little as 35 cents an hour. The first push to remove that exception from the state Constitution stalled in 2022 because lawmakers feared it would cost billions. After the effort was discarded, Assemblymember Lori D. Wilson (D-Suisun City), chair of the Legislative Black Caucus, brought back the measure last year as one of 14 bills to advance reparations for the descendants of enslaved African Americans. This measure would make prison work optional by instituting a voluntary work program. Past coverage Read more: California lawmakers add measure to end forced prison labor to the November ballot Read more: California could end forced prison labor. Will lawmakers send this measure to the ballot? Read more: California lawmakers revive effort to ban involuntary servitude as punishment for crimes More election news 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. Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud conspiracy charge from two deadly crashes of its 737 Max 8 planes that killed 346 passengers and crew, and will cough up a $243.6 million fine, the Department of Justice said on Sunday night. The plea deal came after federal prosecutors gave Boeing the choice to enter a plea deal and pay a fine or face trial on the federal criminal charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. The settlement now must be approved by a judge, but the deal will save Boeing from a criminal trial despite advocacy from the families of those killed in the crashes. The $243.6 million fine is on top of the same amount paid in 2021 under a settlement the DOJ said the company breached. Additionally, Boeing vowed to invest at least $455 million over the next three years to tighten its safety and compliance programs, according to the DOJ. An independent monitor will oversee Boeings safety efforts and quality procedures over the next three years. The plea is meant to cover only wrongdoing by the company before the crashes and does not include immunity for other incidents Boeing has been responsible for, including a panel that blew off a 737 Max 9 plane during an Alaska Airlines flight in January, according to the DOJ. The deal also does not cover any current or former Boeing officials and is aimed solely at the corporation. Boeing confirmed in a statement it agreed to the plea deal with the DOJ and declined to comment further. How Boeing CEOs Catastrophic Reign Could Become Criminal The case is in response to two deadly crashes. The first came in 2018 in Indonesia, where Lion Air pilots did not know about the flight-control software that could push the nose of the Boeing 737 Max 8 down without their input. The Lion Air crash killed 189 people. The second was in 2019 in Ethiopia, where an Ethiopian Airlines pilot knew about the software but was not able to control the plane when the software activated due to information about a faulty sensor. One hundred fifty-seven people were killed. The DOJ charged Boeing in 2021 with deceiving FAA regulators about the software, which did not exist in the older 737s, and about a lack of adequate training for pilots to fly the new planes safely. At the time, the department agreed not to prosecute Boeing if it paid a massive $2.5 billion settlement on top of the $243.6 million fine and complied with anti-fraud laws for the next three years. After a 20-month ban on 737 Max flights, things went smoothly until the Alaska Airlines incident. 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. GULF BREEZE, Fla. (WKRG) A Gulf Breeze plastic surgeon has pleaded not guilty to a homicide charge after his wife died following cardiac arrest during a procedure, according to court documents. Escambia County Sheriffs Office: Man wanted for questioning about shooting 41-year-old Benjamin Jacob Brown was charged with second-degree homicide: manslaughter by culpable negligence on June 17 and was expected to be in court this week before he made his plea. Deputies were called to the business, Restore Plastic Surgery, on Nov. 21, 2023, for a report of a medical emergency. Officials said when their deputies arrived, they found that Hillary Ellington Brown, Benjamins wife, had suffered cardiac arrest and was taken to a local hospital for care. Pitstop packed in Baldwin as thousands head home from 4th of July Hillary was put on life support, but she later died on Nov. 28, according to previous reporting. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Gun-toting crook is robbing people he meets on dating website, police say CHICAGO A man who is meeting people on a dating website is robbing them at gunpoint when they arrive at an agreed-upon location. In one instance, the thief met a victim at their house and stole their car, police said. At least four victims were robbed within a nine-day period beginning June 26, police said in an alert. Three of the robberies took place on the same block on North Pine Avenue. The fourth was on West Van Buren Street. All of the attacks were in Chicagos Austin neighborhood. Police detailed the robberies as occurring: at approximately 2:30 p.m. on June 26 on the 200 block of North Pine Avenue at 12 a.m. on June 30 on the 200 block of North Pine Avenue at 9:30 a.m. on July 2 on the 5300 block of West Van Buren Street at 2:34 p.m. on July 4 on the 200 block of North Pine Avenue Authorities released a limited description of the thief: A Black man between 20 and 30 years old who stands about 6 feet tall and weighing between 130 and 160 pounds. He was last seen wearing a black ski mask and black hooded sweatshirt. Anyone with information is asked to contact Chicago police at 312-746-8253. Anonymous tips may be submitted online at CPDtip.com. The case numbers are JH322679, JH327004, JH329873, and JH333419. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. CAIRO (Reuters) - Hamas accused Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday of putting obstacles in front of ceasefire negotiations amid talks aimed at reaching a deal to end the war in Gaza. The group called on mediators to intervene and stop what it called "manipulations and crimes" by Netanyahu, in a statement on its Telegram account. Netanyahu said on Sunday that any Gaza ceasefire deal must allow Israel to resume fighting until its objectives are met. On Monday, Israeli tanks advanced into the heart of Gaza City after a night of bombardments which Gaza authorities said had killed dozens, even as multi-national negotiations for a ceasefire deal intensified. "While the Hamas movement demonstrates flexibility and positivity to facilitate reaching an agreement to halt the Zionist aggression, Netanyahu is placing additional obstacles in the way of negotiations as he escalates his aggression and crimes against our people," the group said. Hamas on Saturday accepted a key part of a U.S. plan aimed at ending the nine-month war in Gaza, dropping a demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before signing the agreement. A U.S. delegation led by Central Intelligence Agency Director William Burns arrived in Cairo on Monday to meet an Egyptian security delegation for a new round of ceasefire talks, the Egyptian state-affiliated Al Qahera News reported. The war was triggered on Oct. 7 when fighters led by Hamas, which controlled Gaza, attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Since then at least 38,193 Palestinians have been killed in the military offensive and 87,903 have been wounded, Gaza's health ministry said in an update on Monday. (Reporting by Jaidaa Taha, Nayera Abdallah and Muhammad Al Gebaly; Editing by Susan Fenton and Andrew Heavens) On Sunday night, joy: French voters had, once again, kept the far right out of power. On Monday morning, uncertainty: A hung parliament, shaky alliances and the threat of turbulent years ahead. President Emmanuel Macron called Frances snap parliamentary election to clarify the political situation. But after the shock second-round results, the waters are more muddied than they have been in decades. While a surge in support for the left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) coalition foiled Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) party, French politics is now more disordered than it was before the vote. So, what did we learn last night, who might be Frances next prime minister, and has Macrons gamble paid off? A shock victory, but not a decisive one After leading the first round of voting last Sunday, the RN was closer to the gates of power than ever before, and was on the cusp of forming Frances first far-right government since the collaborationist Vichy regime of World War II. But after a week of political bargaining, in which more than 200 left-wing and centrist candidates withdrew from the second round in a bid to avoid splitting the vote, the NFP a cluster of several parties from the extreme left to the more moderate emerged with the most seats in the decisive second round. The NFP won 182 seats in the National Assembly, making it the largest group in the 577-seat parliament. Macrons centrist Ensemble alliance, which trailed in a distant third in the first round, mounted a strong recovery to win 163 seats. And the RN and its allies, despite leading the first round, won 143 seats. Does that mean the NFP won the election? Not quite. Although the coalition has the most seats, it fell well short of the 289 seats required for an absolute majority, meaning France now has a hung parliament. If this was a victory for anything, it was the cordon sanitaire, the principle that mainstream parties must unite to prevent the extreme right from taking office. The far right kept at bay, but more potent than ever It was meant to be a coronation. Crowds of supporters had crammed into election night events at the RN party HQ in Paris and at outposts all over the country, to watch the moment many felt had been decades in the making: Confirmation that their party, and its long-taboo brand of anti-immigrant politics, had won the most seats in the French parliament. That wasnt to be. The fervent atmosphere soured as supporters saw the RN had slumped to third place. Jordan Bardella, the 28-year-old leader handpicked by Le Pen to freshen the partys image and purge it of its racist and antisemitic roots, was dyspeptic. He railed against the dangerous electoral deals made between the NFP and Ensemble which had deprived the French people of an RN-led government. By deciding to deliberately paralyze our institutions, Emmanuel Macron has now pushed the country towards uncertainty and instability, Bardella said, dismissing the NFP as an alliance of dishonor. A disappointed Jordan Bardella speaks at an election night at the RN headquarters in Paris. - Kevin Coombs/Reuters Still, the RNs success should not be underestimated. In the 2017 elections, when Macron swept to power, the RN won just eight seats. In 2022, it surged to 89 seats. In Sundays vote, it won 125 making it the largest individual party. That unity means it will likely remain a potent force in the next parliament, while the solidity of the leftist coalition remains untested. Will the left remain united? A month ago, the NFP did not exist. Now, it is the largest bloc in the French parliament and could provide France with its next prime minister. It chose its name in an attempt to resurrect the original Popular Front that blocked the far right from gaining power in 1936. Sundays results mean it has done so again. But while it achieved its founding purpose, it is unclear whether this capacious and potential fractious coalition will hold. The hastily assembled bloc comprises several parties: the far-left France Unbowed party; the Socialists; the green Ecologists; the center-left Place Publique and others. This many-headed hydra does not speak with a single voice. Each party celebrated the results at their own campaign events, rather than together. Two of its most prominent figures Jean-Luc Melenchon, the populist France Unbowed leader, and Raphael Glucksmann, the more moderate leader of Place Publique are barely on speaking terms. Disagreements over economic and foreign policies could spill over, as the NFPs expansive spending plans which include raising the minimum wage, capping the price of certain foods and energy and scrapping Macrons pension reforms collide with the European Unions restrictive fiscal rules and Frances need to rein in its ballooning deficit. Crowds of most young people gathered at Place de la Republique in Paris to celebrate keeping the far right at bay. - Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images A better night for Macron than expected, but he emerges weakened Macron once said his thoughts are too complex for journalists. Still, his decision to call a snap election three years earlier than necessary, and with his party way behind in the polls baffled the sharpest of political analysts, caught even his closest allies off guard and left many French voters confused. He called the vote minutes after his party was trounced by the RN in last months European Parliament elections. Although European results need have no bearing on domestic politics, Macron said he could not ignore the message sent to him by voters and wanted to clarify the situation. But Sundays results suggest he has achieved the opposite. Eduoard Philippe, Frances former prime minister and an ally of Macron, said what was intended as a clarification has instead led to great vagueness. Although Macrons party recovered from the first round, it lost around 100 seats compared to the 2022 election. Emmanuel Macron, accompanied by his wife Brigitte Macron, right, holds his ballot to vote in the second round at a polling station in Le Touquet, northern France. - Mohammed Badra/Pool/AFP/Getty Images Where does France go from here? Macrons first decision is to appoint a new prime minister. He has already delayed this process by declining Gabriel Attals resignation, asking him to stay in office for now. Typically, the French president appoints a prime minister from the largest bloc in parliament. But it is unclear from which party within the NFP this will be. Melenchons party won the most seats within the NFP, but Macrons allies have repeatedly refused to work with France Unbowed, saying it is just as extreme and therefore as unfit to govern as the RN. In order to reach the majority needed to pass laws, the NFP will likely have to enter into alliances with Ensemble as two coalitions enter an even larger coalition, straddling vast ideological ground. Finding common ground will be a fraught task, meaning gridlock is likely. Without a clear majority, a minority government faces the risk of no-confidence votes as soon as this month, which could lead to several governments replacing each other. One way out could be a technocratic government, which would involve Macron appointing ministers with no party affiliation to manage day-to-day matters. But these can come to seem undemocratic and can further fan the flames of populism. Just look at Italy: after the premiership of Mario Draghi, the technocrat par excellence, the country elected its most far-right government since Benito Mussolini. While France avoided a far-right government for now, the RN threat is likely to remain strong. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Gov. Gavin Newsom stumps for President Biden in Hooksett, N.H., on July 8, 2024. Vice President Kamala Harris will rally Asian American voters the next day in Nevada. (Steven Senne / Associated Press) As President Biden tries to cling on to the Democratic Party nomination in the aftermath of his calamitous debate performance, prominent Californians notably Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Gavin Newsom are trying to buttress the embattled incumbent on the campaign trail. Newsom stumped for the president Monday in New Hampshire, the state that holds the nation's first presidential primary and has reliably voted Democratic in recent decades but appears to be in play in 2024. Harris rallied Asian American voters on Tuesday in Nevada, another critical early voting state. "I decided instead of just rolling over and giving up, that I would step up, and I pick up the fight and that's why I've been in Michigan and Pennsylvania. That's why I'm here," Newsom told reporters at a turnpike rest stop near Manchester after greeting Biden supporters and nibbling on an apple cider doughnut. "I took my holiday weekend. It wasn't easy to be away from the kids and I said there was something more important liberty, the future, reproductive care, freedom. ... All those things are profoundly on the ballot. Daylight and darkness." Newsom rallied Democrats in Michigan and Pennsylvania before arriving in the "Live Free or Die" state Sunday night. On Monday, in addition to the rest stop event where Newsom met with local reporters and was told to "return to California" by a disgruntled passerby he held events with Biden campaign interns, met with state party officials and raised money for legislative candidates. The campaign's decision to send Newsom to New Hampshire is notable. The Granite State used to be purple but last voted for a Republican presidential candidate in 2000. Biden won the 2020 election here with 52.7% of the vote. Read more: Angry Biden: 'Go ahead. Challenge me at the convention' The state has only four electoral votes, but it's always closely watched because of its first-in-the-nation status in the nominating contests. Biden came in fifth in the 2020 primary, behind Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg, Amy Klobuchar and Elizabeth Warren. Biden got 8.4% of the primary vote. Tristan Mitzen, a 23-year-old Dartmouth student who was eating a chimichanga and sipping a Negro Modelo at Tacos Y Tequila in Hanover, is among the young voters who backed Sanders in the 2020 primary. He abandoned his Democratic Party voter registration the following day and then sat out the general election that year. Mitzen said Monday that he may do the same this year because he believes Biden doesn't appreciate the difficulties facing many Americans. "My generation has it harder than anyone else," the history major said. Biden has consistently led former President Trump in New Hampshire in general election polls, until now. A survey by the well-regarded Saint Anselm College in Goffstown in the aftermath of the debate found Trump leading by 2 percentage points, well within the margin of error, but a far cry from its June poll that had Biden leading by 9 points. Asked why he was spending time in a state that has gone Democratic in recent years, Newsom said he went wherever Biden's campaign is sending him. (He is among the incumbent's campaign committee leaders and has held well over two dozen events in support of the president this year.) "They're not taking it for granted," he said in an interview, sitting on a curb behind the rest stop in Hanover, where the temperature was in the upper 80s. The octogenarian Biden's age is a source of concern among Democrats, especially in the aftermath of last month's debate. Newsom argued that the president's energy and skills are best shown when he is on the stump, compared with when he is on television, and called it Biden's "superpower." "I've seen it over and over and over again, he gets energized with people. He doesn't get energized up onstage by himself in a cold studio," Newsom added. "You feel it, you see it. And he loves people. I mean, he just loves it. His biggest critics have to acknowledge that he loves people." Still, he acknowledged that Democrats' growing public angst over their presumptive nominee does not aid their party's cause. "Obviously it's not helpful," Newsom told reporters in a doughnut and coffee shop, before adding that the naysayers were "just a handful of people." Frequently mentioned as a future White House contender, Newsom repeatedly did not respond to questions about his 2028 presidential aspirations in an interview and throughout the public portions of his appearance in Hanover. He had been scheduled to headline a fundraiser Monday afternoon for statehouse candidates in Hanover for weeks the typical kind of event that White House hopefuls hold to curry favor with local elected officials in the early states. It was canceled Monday morning, according to an employee of the Mexican restaurant in Hanover. He noted that he would still be governor for 2 years. "Come on. I have two more budgets, three more legislative sessions," Newsom said in the interview, before once again demurring about his future political aspirations. "I hope there's a country that allows free and fair elections in the future." On Tuesday, Harris spoke to a friendly crowd of supporters in a Las Vegas resort ballroom to launch the campaign's initiative for Asian American, Pacific Islander and Native Hawaiian voters. At several points, the crowd of a few hundred people spontaneously erupted into chants of "Four more years!" "Indeed," Harris said with a laugh. "And a lot of work to do!" Newsom and Harris contemporaries whose careers were forged in the crucible of San Francisco politics are publicly and vocally standing by Biden. But their names are among the most cited as potential replacements should the president decide to not seek reelection as a growing number of Democrats call on him to bow out. On Sunday, Rep. Adam B. Schiff of Burbank was the latest Democrat to express concerns about Bidens candidacy. The performance on the debate stage, I think rightfully, raised questions among the American people about whether the president has the vigor to defeat Donald Trump. And this is an existential race, Schiff, a candidate for U.S. Senate, said on NBC's Meet the Press. It should not be even close. And there's only one reason it is close, and that's the president's age. Read more: With Biden faltering, can Trump finally win Orange County? Biden on Monday repeated that he would not drop out of the race, sending a letter to Democrats urging them to unite around his candidacy and defeating Trump. "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end," Biden wrote. "We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. ... Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump." Given the growing drumbeat among Democrats for Biden to step aside, Harris is considered the clear favorite to replace him should that occur. But Newsoms name has also been raised. Neither has given any public indication of hoping to replace Biden. Newsom, I think hes smart enough to realize if its not Biden, its going to be Harris," said Dante Scala, a political science professor at the University of New Hampshire. "He'll keep doing what hes doing, playing the long game, if Harris fails. If she gets the nomination and doesnt manage to pull it off, then the fields open in 2028. Get the L.A. Times Politics newsletter. Deeply reported insights into legislation, politics and policy from Sacramento, Washington and beyond, in your inbox three times per week. This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times. True summer weather is finally arriving in northcentral Montana. High temperatures are expected to reach above 90 degrees in Great Falls and stay there through the week, according to the National Weather Service in Great Falls. The hottest temperatures are expected to hit Wednesday through Friday, with some areas projected to near record highs on those days. View of the Missouri River from the entrance of Broadwater Bay in Great Falls on July 8. The Great Falls area is expected to see high temperatures above 95 degrees on Wednesday and Thursday this week. Great Falls is forecasted to reach 98 degrees on Wednesday and 97 on Thursday, while Helena is expected to hit triple digits at 101 and 100 on those days, respectively. Great Falls had a record high of 99 in 2002, while Helenas projected temps on Wednesday and Thursday are tying to just below all-time record max temperatures. The Cut Bank area is forecasted to likewise see temperatures up to 98 degrees on Wednesday and 95 on Thursday, while the outlook in Havre is up to 98 on both days. Temperatures in Great Falls are forecasted to drop down to the low 90s starting Friday while Helenas remain above 95 through the weekend, with a high of 99 predicted on Saturday. Overnight lows in Great Falls and northcentral Montana will not offer significant relief from hot daytime temperatures, NWS Great Falls wrote in its report on Twitter. Starting Wednesday, overnight lows are predicted to be around 59 to 60 degrees while in Helena temps are set to drop to around 63 to 64. Plan vigorous activities early in the morning while temperatures are still relatively cool, NWS Great Falls wrote. Now is the time to install air conditioning units if they have not already been installed. NWS Great Falls recommends shifting outdoor activities on these days away from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and to be vigilant on hydrating and taking frequent breaks in the shade or in air conditioning if youre outside at those times. High temperatures such as those forecasted in the area this week can have a greater impact on vulnerable populations such as pregnant women, young children, elderly people and those with chronic illnesses. This article originally appeared on Great Falls Tribune: Temperatures expected to rise high in Great Falls area this week What the heck is happening in France? Out gay PM Gabriel Attal tries to resign after far-right blowout France's legislative elections have concluded with a resounding loss for the country's far-right party, but the left and centrist parties weren't entirely victorious. Politicians in France are grappling with how to run the National Assembly after the leftist coalition New Popular Front won the most seats (182) in last week's sudden elections. President Emmanuel Macrons centrist alliance came in second, winning 168 seats, with the far-right National Rally (RN) coming in last at 143 seats. No party earned the 289 seats needed to hold an absolute majority in the chamber, which has 577 seats. While many European parliaments do not have a dominant party, it is the first time that a party in the country has not held the majority. The National Assembly is one of two houses in France's parliament. It has the final say in the law-making process over the Senate, which is currently controlled by conservatives. The Prime Minister is accountable to the assembly, and is in charge of introducing legislation. It is not a policy or law that positions appointed by the president's administration, such as Prime Minister, must be members of the dominant party, though it is typically custom in the nation. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, the first out gay man to serve in the position, was appointed by Macron in January, and has since submitted his resignation anyways. Macrons office has said that the president will wait for the new National Assembly to organize itself before deciding on the government. Macron has subsequently asked Attal to stay on "temporarily," until negotiations between the parties are settled. Attal has agreed to stay on as long as he's needed, including for the quickly approaching Paris Olympics. Macron unexpectedly called the recent snap elections after polls suggested the far-right was pulling ahead. Though his term ends in 2027, the president has said that he will not step down. His centrist party will not be able to implement its policies under the new parliament without compromise, with many officials now weighing an alliance with the left-wing parties. From the Boiling Frogs on The Dispatch On Friday, a few hours before the presidents interview with George Stephanopoulos, I listened to a podcast in which the hosts proudly predicted that a decent man and patriot like Joe Biden would do the right thing for his country by withdrawing as his partys nominee. And I thought, If Joe Biden were decent or patriotic, he would have withdrawn the moment the true extent of his infirmity became apparent to him and his inner circle. Its unclear precisely when that moment arrived, but each new day brings fresh reporting that pushes the timeline back. For those who know him well, alarms evidently began ringing long before 9 p.m. ET on June 27. I turned on the Stephanopoulos program later and watched with wonder as this exchange played out. STEPHANOPOULOS: And if you stay in and Trump is elected and everything youre warning about comes to pass, how will you feel in January? BIDEN: Ill feel as long as I gave it my all and I did as good a job as I know I can do, thats what this is about. That was the second time in eight days that the president made fools of his voters. The first was at the debate, of course, when those of us who believed he was as diminished as any 81-year-old discovered he was quite a bit more diminished than that. But his response in the clip above is worse: If you view the stakes in November as a choice between the constitutional order and authoritarianism, you were jolted by the realization that the president doesnt share your sense of urgency. For all the heavy breathing he and Democrats do about democracy being on the ballot, he seems to prefer hanging on as nominee, losing, and collecting his participation trophy to doing everything necessaryincluding making way for a more capable candidatein the name of defeating Donald Trump. On Monday morning, with a Democratic revolt in Congress brewing, he released a letter to lawmakers affirming that he wont quit the race. Later, he phoned into Morning Joe and all but threatened to burn the party down if the efforts to replace him persisted. The votersand the voters alonedecide the nominee of the Democratic Party, he warned, daring would-be usurpers to challenge him at the convention. I am not going anywhere. As of noon on January 20, 2021, I thought we were done having to pay attention to presidential psychodrama every day in order to discern how stable America is or isnt. Thanks to Biden, the man who promised to restore normalcy, we are not. For nearly 40 years, Joe Biden has been dedicated to fighting on behalf of his number one issue, which is Joe Biden being the president, New Republic editor Osita Nwanevu tweeted after the Morning Joe segment. Anyone who talked themselves into believing Bidens cause was nobler than that, as I did, is a fool and has now been made to feel like one. One way or another, Joe Bidens absurdly long political career will be over by January 20 of next year. Hes actively choosing to end it in the most humiliating, destructive, and villainous way possible. The remarkable thing about the presidents heel turn from anti-Trump champion to prideful midwife of a Trump restoration is how Trumpy its been. Time and again over the last two weeks, he and his cronies have borrowed political tactics from his enemys playbook. And I dont just mean slathering his face with bronzer to make him seem more vigorous. Whenever Trumps fragile ego is confronted with a harsh reality that it cant bear, he protects it by retreating into denial. The same is true of Biden lately. When Stephanopoulos asked him what his plan was to turn the campaign around, the president dodged by boasting about the size of his crowdswhich sounds familiar. When he was confronted with the numerous polls showing him trailing, he scoffed and insisted that All the pollsters I talk to tell me its a toss-up. Fake news, in other words. Trump relies on unqualified family members as top advisers and is quick to scapegoat deputies for his failures. Joe Biden has also relied on unqualified family members to advise him on how to move forward post-debate, with his son Hunter reportedly crashing meetings between the president and his aides. (What the hell is happening? one source wondered to NBC News.) Hunter and Jill Biden have allegedly urged Joe to fight on to November while conniving to scapegoat his deputies for his debate performance. Oh, and remember when Trump infamously said of Americas problems in 2016 that I alone can fix it? That also turns out to be the Biden familys position on Joe in 2024. Joe isnt just the right person for the job. Hes the only person for the job, Jill Biden said at an event shortly after the debate. The president himself ended his interview with Stephanopoulos in a similar manner. Whos gonna be able to hold NATO together like me? Whos gonna be able to be in a position where Im able to keep the Pacific Basin in a position where werewere at least checkmating China now? Whos gonnawhos gonna do that? Who has that reach? Who haswho knows all these pe ? Thats a rare case of a nominee implicitly arguing that voters should prefer him to his running mate as much as they should prefer him to his actual opponent. Joe alone can fix it. Not Kamala Harris. And of course, no Trump comparison would be complete without a theatrically combative White House press office that withholds damaging information from the press and then affects righteous indignation when asked legitimate questions about it: Where Biden really resembles Trump, though, is the degree to which hes apparently willing to bully the establishment of his party and risk wrecking its chances of winning the presidency if it seeks to replace him as leader. As Ive noted repeatedly these past few years, the essence of the Republican hostage crisis is that its more important to Trump and his movement to control their party than to control the government. They would rather monopolize primaries and lose to Democrats in the general election than stand aside for more electable Republican candidates to help the right win power. The price of denying them that control is murder-suicide: Nominating Ron DeSantis or Nikki Haley this year likely would have led Trump and his diehards to withhold their support from the GOP in November, assuring a Republican wipeout. Isnt that what Joe Biden is now proposing for his own party if they replace him? A murder-suicide? Biden lacks the cultish devotion needed to bring about a true political Jonestown of the sort Trump might engineer, but hes doing everything he can to delegitimize the effort to find a more electable nominee. His letter to congressional Democrats stresses that ousting a duly elected party nominee would be anti-democratic, as much an affront to the partys voters as it would be to him personally. And hes planning to lean heavily on his African American base for support during this crisis, knowing how wary party leaders will be to thrust the party into a racially tinged argument over disenfranchisement so soon before November. I will make this as painful for you as I can, the president is telling his Democratic critics. If they try to end his presidential campaign, hell nurse a sense of betrayal among his supporters that risks a disaster for the left at the polls. As of today, like Trump, Biden rules his partys establishment not by affection but by fear. And like Trump, hes not above lowbrow demagoguery aimed at elites to bind his grassroots supporters tightly to him. The last trick in the Trump playbook is to cultivate intense loyalty among supporters by encouraging apocalyptic despair at the thought of the other party prevailing. Thats a no-brainer for Joe Biden to borrow, as a Trump restoration really could mean doom for the constitutional order. The point of the Flight 93 election nonsense in 2016 was to minimize Trumps many moral failings by getting Republican voters to weigh them against the end of the republic as we know it. No matter how many misgivings you might have had about the Republican nominee, you were encouraged to learn to live with them knowing that defeat would assure Americas extinction. Biden is now using the same logic to justify sticking with him despite his infirmityand hes not being subtle about it. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us, he wrote in his new letter after reminding his party of his opponents role in the January 6 attack on the Capitol. Democrats can either unite behind Joe or they can fracture and bring about the end of the republic as we know it, but Biden is going to make them pick one or the other. Theres no third option. If you doubt how effective catastrophism can be in inculcating an ethic of party unity (and why would you doubt it after eight years of Trump?), witness the phenomenon of (gulp) blue MAGA on social media this week. Numerous liberals have declared their intention to vote for Biden over Trump as the lesser of two evils no matter how disabled he becomes or how embarrassing his behavior might be. And while I share their sentiment generally, its not opportune at a moment when Democrats have a chance to replace the president with a more capable and electable person. The idea of blue MAGA is true to the spirit of this political era, though. Once again, instead of reckoning honestly with their leaders unfitness for office, a partys rank-and-file is rationalizing his flaws, scapegoating allies who dare to point them out as disloyal, and demanding that everyone get back to storming the cockpit in order to prevent the plane from crashing. Democrats are speedrunning the Access Hollywood episode from 2016. I suspect that, deep down, Bidens defenders are angry at him for having misled them about his condition for so long yet feel forced by the pressures of a high-stakes election to redirect their anger at targets who are politically safer to attack. Either way, like Donald Trump, Joe Biden cannot fail. He can only be failed. The thing is, this isnt the Access Hollywood episode. That happened a month before the 2016 election, long after the GOP convention. There was no time to reprint ballots. And there was reason for right-wingers to think (or hope) that no additional recordings of Trump being his obnoxious self would surface. Diehard Republicans had little choice but to weather the storm and pray that it would pass before Election Dayalthough, even in those difficult circumstances, some did try to engineer a change of nominee. Today, Democrats do still have a choice. The election is four months away; Biden hasnt officially been chosen as nominee; no ballots have been printed. The president could extricate his party from this crisis relatively gracefully if he wanted to by withdrawing. Hes choosing not to because hed rather be the head of his party for six more months than maximize its dwindling chances of preventing a second Trump catastrophe. His infirmity isnt a storm that will pass either. There might not be any further political hurricanes as strong as the Category 5 we saw at the debate, but then again there might beat any moment. Certainly, there will be lesser storms of the sort weve been seeing for months. Each one will be a reminder of that Category 5, and each public appearance will be a hold-your-breath affair in which the presidents basic ability to function like any other candidate will be the main storyline. If he does? Great, bare minimum met. And then the next hurricane watch will begin. Already, well-placed sources are whispering to the media that theyre not sure whos in charge of policy in the West Wing. A senior White House official, who presumably works in close quarters with the president himself, told the New York Times this weekend that Biden has declined in recent months and should withdraw from the race. An election that was supposed to be about Trump will, going forward, be an election about which neurological disorder a historically unpopular incumbent may or may not have. That storm will rage until Election Day. Bidens presidential chances wont survive it. His complaints about the will of the voters of his party are also disingenuous and misplaced. Biden didnt win this years primary because Democrats are excited to see what sort of policy magic an 86-year-old might make in his second term. Both before and after the debate, huge numbers of American voters said the party should have a different nominee. The president prevailed in the primary because anyone who might have seriously challenged him was too frightened to try. The prospect of a bitter race splitting the left and enabling a Trump victory guaranteed that the most formidable contender Biden would face was Dean Phillips. Even then, had the party known the full extent of his debilitation, a serious opponent presumably would have emerged in order to spare Democrats from having to gamble the fate of the constitutional order on Joe Bidens collapsing cognitive health. But that opponent never came because the White House aggressively deceived Americans on that subject. Biden defrauded his party, depriving primary voters of a fully informed decision, and now hes touting the success of that fraud as a reason for why he should be allowed to get away with it. Theres a third absurdity to this fiasco, though: By now it should be clear to all that Kamala Harris, more so than Biden himself, is the real nominee this fall. Republicans have made that point for months, but whatever shred of hope remained that the president might complete a second term evaporated on the debate stage on June 27. Joe Biden might live until January 2029, but its inconceivable that hell be able to do the job until then. If hes reelected, Harris will assuredly assume the presidency at some point. So why not make her the nominee now and give Americans an honest choice? Asking them to reelect Joe Biden to a four-year term he certainly wont complete is asking for their complicity in a second fraud. I resent that Im being asked to participate in it. And if I resent it, imagine how swing voters who dont view Trump as some sort of providential judgment on America feel. This all feels like an enormous waste of time, and Democrats dont have time. If Biden suffers another significant senior moment, the outcry of exasperation within the party might finally force him to face reality and withdraw. That could happen in a week, or a month. Or, if that senior moment is especially disastrous, even in the fall. Ballots bearing the presidents name might already have been printed by then. As I write this, Biden is effectively demanding that members of his party whove spent two weeks loudly questioning whether hes still fit for the job somehow put all of that rhetorical toothpaste back in the tube. But even if they can do it (which they cant), itll all come spilling out again the next time he suffers a cognitive eventpossibly anonymously but spilling out all the same. If Biden doesnt suffer another significant senior moment, but rather a series of sporadic smaller ones on the trail, his candidacy will limp on to November and hell likely lose handily to Trump. Democratic leaders wont dare try to replace him against his will, though: Even if thats feasible at the convention under party bylaws, the rancor and recriminations it would cause would probably doom Bidens replacement and possibly cause a liberal disaster down the ballot. Instead, Democratic leaders will go on vouching for his fitness insincerely until Election Day, with all the corrupting Trumpy consequences that entails. That can have corrosive effects beyond just potentially losing an election, Benjy Sarlin noted at Semafor. It breeds suspicion and cynicism inside and outside the party and ties elected Democrats to any future revelations about his health. The presidents either going to waste his partys precious time by trying to hang on before being replaced anyway, or hes going to waste everyones time by hanging on to Election Day and losing. Even with an alternative as loathsome as Trump on the ballot, I cant imagine Americans voting for a man whom they no longer believe has the basic cognitive wherewithal to execute the duties of the office. Its all Joe Bidens fault. His legacy will be vanity, demoralization, and authoritarianism. 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. Our Savior's Lutheran Church in Henderson (Photo: Dana Gentry/Nevada Current) The pastor of a small Henderson church that distributed food to neighbors in need for the last 14 years says he is at a loss as to why Three Square food bank chose to end its partnership, leaving the church without a source of donated food. Ed Bruning, pastor of Our Saviors Lutheran Church for three decades, says he is reluctant to speak publicly about Three Squares decision to sever its relationship with the church. I dont want to harm the mission of feeding people, and therefore I dont want to really put Three Square in a bad light, but the way that they have acted and what they continue to do has soured me entirely, Bruning said during an interview. Three Square says in 2023 it distributed more than 37 million meals through community partners in Clark, Esmeralda, Lincoln and Nye counties, but Bruning says Three Square has unrealistic expectations of its partners, given its lack of guidance, which is documented in state audits. The pastor says he pleaded with Three Square CEO and President Beth Martino, who joined the non-profit a year ago: She said that we were not philosophically aligned, and that she had to rush off to a meeting, but she would look into it further, and thats the last I heard from her. I believe what I actually said is that I thought we had some philosophical differences in how we wanted to serve people relative to our two primary goals of serving people with safety and dignity, Martino said in an interview. She declined to elaborate, referring the Current to a Nevada Department of Agriculture inspection from late last year that identified inadequacies in Our Saviors volunteer-run operation. The states review of Our Saviors conducted in November of last year cited food safety concerns, no access to records, and inadequate training. I was in the hospital at the time and there was no one there to provide the information to the Department of Agriculture, says Bruning. The state suggested Our Saviors food distribution efforts be suspended pending training provided by Three Square. Bruning says there is no process for Three Squares partners to appeal when the food bank terminates a partnership. Food distribution agencies must maintain eligibility by complying with state and federal regulations, including requirements of the TEFAP program and food safety requirements, the Department of Agriculture said in a statement to the Current. The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), a USDA program, provides food to people who do not qualify for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) because their incomes exceed the allowable threshold. According to the National Council on Aging, nearly 2 million food-insecure seniors did not qualify for SNAP benefits in 2021 because their incomes were too high. Qualifying for USDA food requires identification, proof of Nevada residency, and a declaration that household income does not exceed 185% of the federal poverty level. The Department of Agriculture said, Three Square, you are the regional food bank. Its your responsibility to train this partner. Go over there and train them, and after youve trained them, go back here and make sure that theyre doing it right, Bruning asserted. Martino says Three Square has been working with Our Saviors and has made training available to all of its 150 partner agencies. Bruning says the church satisfied Three Squares requirements to the best of its ability, given the food banks lack of best practices. He says distribution sites largely fend for themselves without training and guidelines. Martino declined to say whether the church satisfied Three Squares requirements. Its an ongoing process and I wouldnt want to say anything that isnt factual. She said she was unaware of Three Square severing a partnership with any other distribution agencies. Nevada Department of Agriculture audits detail a number of inadequacies, similar to those identified at Our Saviors, at other Three Square partners and at Three Square itself, such as: failing to have accurate food distribution information listed on its website; failing to ensure eligibility forms are completed at every distribution; failing to ensure distribution agencies comply with TEFAP regulations and policies during agency site reviews; having excess supplies in the warehouse such as refrigerators and freezers that are purchased with government funds; having no food loss procedures in place; failing to ensure proper food combinations are being distributed equitably among agencies. The findings indicate a need for Three Square to improve TEFAP training and program communication with partnering agencies, as well as conduct site reviews and technical assistance throughout the year to ensure program compliance, the Department of Agriculture noted in its evaluation of Three Square. We have been, subsequent to that audit, working very diligently and as expediently as possible to correct all those issues, Martino said. Small church, big mission Bruning says Our Saviors, a small place of worship located in the heart of downtown Henderson, had a big footprint in the food pantry realm. We were once Three Squares partner agency of the year. We used to use a flatbed truck to pick up food from the grocery stores, he says. But Three Square eventually cornered the market buying refrigerated trucks and entering agreements with the stores to exclusively obtain their leftover food and distribute it to agencies such as Our Saviors. Nevadans spend an average of almost $295 per week on groceries, the most in the Mountain West and second highest in the nation behind California, according to the HelpAdvisor report based on U.S. Census data. The national average is $270. The average weekly food budget shortfall is $24.23 per person across Three Squares service area. For a family of four, this equates to about $5,040 annually, says the agencys website. According to Three Square, 1 in 7 Southern Nevadans dont always know where their next meal will come from, and 1 in 5 children lives in a food-insecure household. What we were hearing from our partners is that they were seeing an increased demand and that they needed more food on their shelves, so weve tried to do everything we can to help them meet that demand, Martino says of Three Squares commitment to purchase more food. The effort resulted in a loss of $12 million in 2022, according to the nonprofits tax return. Our Savior is located in the 89015 zip code, where the per capita annual income in 2022 was $32,000, according to U.S. Census data. Almost half of the areas residents are seniors, many of whom live alone. Golden Groceries, a program made possible by a grant from Three Square, provided food to carry seniors through weekends when few pantries are open, according to Bruning. On Saturday morning we had cars lined up and down the streets, he says. They would line up at five oclock in the morning. The traffic jams prompted the city to charge the church with traffic violations. We attempted several solutions suggested by the city, but they were costly and we were unable to satisfy their demands, Bruning says. We felt compelled to eliminate the program in 2022. Catering to the poor in downtown Henderson, the focus of the citys redevelopment effort, has been a challenge not only for Our Saviors, but for St. Timothys, a church with a food program that was popular among the unhoused until local businesses complained, according to Bruning. The effort was tweaked to discourage service beneficial to homeless individuals. The city does not want to acknowledge there are homeless people in Henderson, Bruning says. Just acquiring transportation to a food source can be a challenge for the neighborhoods residents, Bruning notes. Do they have a vehicle that is available at will? Is there a bus route close by? Can they achieve what they need to accomplish through wheelchairs and other mobility devices that are limited in range? Bruning says Our Saviors provided more than food for its previous pantry clients. These are people who are depressed and fearful. Part of it stems from fear over the economy and the presidential election. Anybody that pays any attention to the negativity of the news its very easy to be fearful in a dull, inexplicable sense. Our volunteers made them feel like family. Here's why trial was postponed for woman charged in crash that killed 3 Topeka Girl Scouts A Shawnee County District Court judge Friday postponed the trial set to begin Monday for Amber Peery, charged with crimes linked to the deaths of three Topeka Girl Scouts in an October 2022 crash on the Kansas Turnpike. Judge Jessica Heinen postponed the trial until Aug. 12 at a hearing she had initially scheduled to consider the prosecution's request that she allow another driver involved in the crash to testify by Zoom at Peery's trial. That driver, Robert Russell, 72, of Huntsville, Alabama, testified Nov. 30 by Zoom during the preliminary hearing in the case for Peery, who faces charges that include three counts of involuntary manslaughter. Russell isn't able to travel and wouldn't be able to testify at next week's trial because he suffers from prostate cancer, which has metastasized to his bones, he said while appearing by Zoom at Friday's hearing. A judge Friday postponed the trial set to begin Monday for Amber Peery, shown here listening to witness testimony at her Nov. 30 preliminary hearing. Peery faces charges linked to the October 2022 Kansas Turnpike crash deaths of three Girl Scouts. Why ailing truck driver won't allowed to testify by Zoom Thomas Bath Jr., representing Peery, said Friday that Russell being allowed to testify by Zoom would violate part of the Kansas Constitution Bill of Rights that says defendants at trial must be able to confront witnesses "face to face." If Heinen granted the prosecution's request, Bath said, her court would be the "first court in the State of Kansas to allow somebody to testify like this." Bath added that prosecutors had chosen not to exercise their option of instead meeting that requirement by arranging for Russell to appear at a deposition, in which out-of-court witness testimony is recorded as part of the discovery process and may be used later in court. Heinen agreed and forbade Russell from appearing by Zoom as a witness for the prosecution. Deputy District Attorney Lauren Amrein responded that she didn't intend to bring Russell here to testify in person at Peery's trial. Bath then said he and Peery's other attorney, Vanessa Riebli, wanted to exercise their option of having a deposition taken from Russell in Alabama. He asked Heinen to postpone the trial to give them time to do that. Heinen granted that continuance, over objections from Amrein. Bath said he planned to next submit written notice of his intent to take a deposition from Russell. How were the Girl Scouts involved in triple fatality accident? Peery and Russell were involved in an October 2022 crash that authorities said killed Laila El Azri and Kylie Lunn, both 9, and Brooklyn Peery 8, as they rode to a Girl Scout event in a van driven by Amber Perry, Brooklyn's mother. Amber Peery and her two other passengers her daughter, Carrington Peery, then 5, and Gabriella Ponomarez, then 9 suffered injuries but survived, the Kansas Highway Patrol said. Peery's five passengers were part of Topeka's Daisy Troop 5567. They had been going to an event in Tonganoxie. The crash occurred near an opening in a Turnpike barrier wall between its northbound and southbound lanes, which is used to turn around by law enforcement officers, emergency workers and Kansas Turnpike Authority employees. Peery's van was part of a caravan of three vehicles going to the Tonganoxie event, according to testimony given at her preliminary hearing. Two of the other drivers testified at Peery's preliminary hearing that they were southbound when they realized they were going the wrong way on the Kansas Turnpike, then turned around and went north on that highway. One of the other drivers said they must have used an opening in the barrier wall between the northbound and southbound lanes. No off-ramps exist between the Turnpike's South Topeka interchange and Admire interchange, 30 miles to the southwest. She said she then called Peery and told her she needed to find a place to turn around. Video shown at Peery's preliminary hearing showed she tried to make a U-turn from the right southbound lane through the southbound Turnpike's left lane to go through an opening in the barrier wall. Peery's vehicle was then struck on its driver's side rear quarter panel area by a semi-trailer driven by Russell, who was southbound in the left lane, a highway patrol accident report said. What has happened with the civil suit filed regarding the crash? Attorney L.J. Leatherman, of Topeka's Palmer Law Group, on April 17 filed a motion in 2nd District Court in Pottawatomie County saying a confidential settlement agreement had been reached by all plaintiffs and defendants in a civil suit linked to the Turnpike crash. Girl Scouts of Northeast Kansas and Northwest Missouri is among defendants in the suit, for which the petition gave updated full names of Laila El Azri Ennassari and Gabriella Casas. Leatherman's motion asked for the scheduling of a hearing at which a judge would approve the settlement agreement spelling out distribution of proceeds and attorney's fees. A court document filed May 7 said Elder would consider approving the agreement June 18. The Capital-Journal then noticed late last month that all records regarding the case had been removed from the Kansas District Court website. Jeff Elder, chief judge for the state's 2nd Judicial District, which includes Pottawatomie County, had sealed the file for that case, The Capital-Journal was told July 1 by Pottawatomie County District Court Clerk McKenna Smith. Max Kautsch, a Lawrence attorney and former president of the Kansas Coalition for Open Government, contended Elder acted unconstitutionally in sealing the case file entirely. Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934. This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Trial postponed for Topekan charged in crash that killed 3 Girl Scouts Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump looks on during a campaign event on December 19, 2023, in Waterloo, Iowa. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images) I dont know about you, but I am so over democracy. What has democracy ever done for us? Apart from equal rights, respecting the essential dignity of every person, and the rule of law, I mean. Has it given us flying cars? It has not. But now the Supreme Ruling Junta Guardian Council Commissar Court has ditched that rule of law business, I expect things to improve around here. Americas going back to its roots. Way back. Like the time when one guy told all of us what to do. You didnt need to wear yourself out deciding stuff. George III decided it for you. He was also a stylish dude: Check out the fab gear. Nobody dared threaten to prosecute him, thats for sure. True, the British put Charles I on trial for treason in 1649, convicted him, then chopped off his head for insisting that God had chosen him as king, therefore he could do any damn thing he wanted. Times have moved on. No more beheading our lords and masters. After all, Donald Trump says God chose him, too. They didnt have a wise and sensible court in England back then. Here in America, our Supremes now inform us the president by which they mean Donald Trump, of course cannot be tried for treason. Or corruption. Or bribery. Or stealing classified documents. Or inciting an insurrection to overturn a free and fair election. Or anything else as long as it was an official act. And who gets to say whats official? Why, our own dear Federalist Society Ayatollahs. Richard Nixon was right all along: When the president does it, that means that it is not illegal. Economical with the truth Lefties will point out that quite a few of the sitting Just-Say-No-Trials-for-Trump justices might have said things at their confirmation hearings that dont exactly square with their recent decision putting the president above the law. Like that nice lady Amy Coney Barrett, who declared: No one is above the law. And Samuel Alito: No person in this country is above the law. And John Roberts: No one is above the law under our system, and that includes the president. And Neil Gorsuch: No man is above the law. Brett Kavanaugh quoted Federalist 69 about how presidents should be liable to prosecution and punishment in the ordinary course of law and added, I do not think anyone thinks of immunity. And why not? No one is above the law. And that is just such a foundational principle of the Constitution and equal justice. Well, that was then, this is now, and how do you know they didnt have their fingers crossed? Besides, surely you agree that when the opportunity presents itself to create a nice little autocracy benefitting you, your religious fanatic allies, and your lovely billionaire patrons you must seize it. Plus, who among us hasnt been economical with the truth at a job interview? The majority of the court is merely fulfilling the mission laid out for them by their friends at the Heritage Foundation in their Project 2025. New Order Lovingly hand-crafted by hundreds of Trump administration alumni, unwoke professors, good Catholics (the Torquemada type, not the Pope Francis type), and other fine white people, P2025 aims to cut off free contraception, outlaw mifepristone, abolish the Department of Education (because where does education get anybody?), hamstring the Civil Rights Act, defund the FBI, the Department of Justice, and the Department of Homeland Security, shut down the Federal Reserve, decimate welfare, replace all federal employees with political appointees, and bring our nation back to godliness. Exactly as Justice Alito recommended. When Donaldus Magnus becomes Dear Leader next January, he and his court will establish a New Order in which the un-white must acknowledge that only real Americans, heirs to gentlemen of property such as Washington, Jefferson, and Madison, are the natural rulers of this country, not swarthy immigrants from below the southern border or even swarthier descendants of Africans who came over to work on agricultural plantations. Women must accept men as their natural rulers (girls, you have ONE JOB white babies!) and go back to learning how to make cakes from scratch. Most crucially, America must return to the True Faith of oil, the only energy source for genuine patriots. As the Project proclaims, Stop the war on fossil fuels! In the unlikely event this so-called climate change thing is real, well fix it simply by refusing to name it. Worked great in Florida! Why not ditch elections, too? If anyone objects (your old hippies, your Green New Dealers, your Al Gores, your South Florida residents drowning in the latest floods), no longer can they go crying to Washington. Our Super Supremes have overturned the Chevron Doctrine, decreeing federal agencies, with their thousands of climate scientists, chemists, engineers, wildlife biologists, MDs, Ph.Ds., JDs, and other elites, dont get to decide whats clean air, clean water, what animals ought to be saved, etc. If youre a species, and youre endangered, I say its probably your own fault. You shouldnt be living in a forest that needs logging or waterways where people want to go fast in their boats or near major highways. Government has got to go. Mr. Kevin Roberts, president of the Heritage Foundation, says, We are in the process of the second American Revolution. Back in the 1770s, they liked to talk about freedom, justice, and progress. Well, look where thats got us: woman suffrage, a minimum wage, affordable health care, a free press, the end of slavery, and too much damn democracy. I say while were righting the American ship of state, why not ditch elections, too? Theyre such a hassle, all that coloring in little circles when you could be in church. Or shopping. Sure, theyll be some resistance from the wokesters and hair-splitters who like to point to the Constitution as some kind of Bible. Theyll back off eventually. As Heritages head honcho puts it in a totally non-threatening way the coming revolution will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be. Democracy-fetishists, rights freaks, lovers of the perverted practice of voting: Youre on notice. LEtat, cest Trump. If I were you, Id be extra careful walking down Fifth Avenue. WESTERVILLE, Ohio (WCMH) A central Ohio distillery pub is readying to open a new north Columbus restaurant and speakeasy inside a former post office built in 1935. High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery later this summer at 28 S. State St. in Westerville, the company announced on social media. The 89-year-old building has been transformed into a more than 3,600 square-foot full-service restaurant and bar with two patios, a retail store and an exterior Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area window. Columbus program would have coffee shops loan out reusable cups like a library High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery later this summer at 28 S. State St. in Westerville. (Franklin County Auditors Office) High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery in spring of 2024 at 28 S. State St. in Westerville. (Courtesy Photo/High Bank Co.) High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery in spring of 2024 at 28 S. State St. in Westerville. (Courtesy Photo/High Bank Co.) We are renovating the old post office building into two entirely new spaces. Actual Prohibition, Anti-Saloon League propaganda was mailed out from this building, which is amazing to me, Hines said. It has always been my dream to have a High Bank location here to contribute to the culture and community of Uptown Westerville. Guests will also be transported by elevator down to a 2,000-square-foot speakeasy underground with a specialty cocktail menu that will pay tribute to a 19th-century saloon owner, Henry Corbin. Columbus dispensaries among approved group for provisional recreational marijuana licenses Corbin opened a Westerville saloon in 1875 when the area was known to strongly oppose the consumption of distilled spirits. The saloon was blown up twice and Corbin is believed to have ignited the Whiskey War of prohibition and the Anti-Saloon League when he confronted protestors with two drawn pistols. High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery in spring of 2024 at 28 S. State St. in Westerville. (Courtesy Photo/High Bank Co.) High Bank Co. is opening a third distillery in spring of 2024 at 28 S. State St. in Westerville. (Courtesy Photo/High Bank Co.) The $2.7 million project has kept the historic building intact with crown molding and original brickwork, paired with the interior mixing modern furnishings of High Banks industrial aesthetic. As a local resident and business owner, to play a part in bringing a national award-winning operator to our nationally award-winning community is special, said John Brooks, managing partner of BTTS and developer of the new location. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. In a courtroom last week, Cook County prosecutors handed over a stack of cellphone records to a defendant accused of fatally stabbing 11-year-old Jayden Perkins in March, as the defendant lobbed back accusations that they hid evidence from him. The case against Crosetti Brand is striking on its own: A man with a documented history of abusing multiple women is accused of barging into an Edgewater apartment just a day after being released from prison, attacking his ex-girlfriend and killing Jayden when the boy tried to help his mother. But procedurally, the matter stands out even more as it unfolds at the busy Leighton Criminal Court Building. Brand is serving as his own attorney, arguing the case without the expertise of a licensed lawyer, and he has demanded a speedy trial meaning the case is proceeding toward trial at a pace nearly unheard of in a building where murder cases can linger for years or even a decade. I have seen the mounds of discovery tendered to you, tendered in a very rapid fashion, way more quickly than Ive seen in any other case, Judge Angela Petrone told Brand at the latest hearing, where he took possession of reams of records. The judge said she found no merit to his assertions that prosecutors werent complying with their obligation to turn over evidence. The hearings pit Brand, who often appears to misunderstand terminology, rules of procedure and evidence, against experienced prosecutors racing against a clock to expedite evidence production. Defendants have a constitutional right to represent themselves, a right that experts say nonetheless puts the accused at a disadvantage. It also poses challenges for judges and prosecutors. In this case, the parties have struggled with logistics, such as how Brand, from the jail, may serve subpoenas upon witnesses he plans to call. Any pro se litigant has a fool for a lawyer, as the expression goes, said Richard Kling, a clinical professor of law at Chicago-Kent College of Law and veteran defense attorney. You open your (expletive) door During an hourslong hearing July 1, prosecutors laid out new details about the case, alleging that Brand went on a harassment campaign before he finally showed up at the Edgewater apartment. The case has drawn ire and grief in the community, and raised questions about protections for victims of domestic violence and the Illinois Prisoner Review Boards handling of the decision to release Brand. Brand was released from prison in October for a period of mandatory supervision after he was convicted in a 2015 attack on another woman. He harassed and threatened Jaydens mother, prosecutors said, and showed up at her apartment on Feb. 1 after texting her threats the day before. The transgression landed him back in prison, but only for a short time. He was released about six weeks later, one day before the alleged attack. The states top parole official and another board member resigned in the wake of the attack, and Gov. J.B. Pritzker created a new executive review board position with a mandate to expand domestic violence training for board members. Seeking to introduce evidence of Brands history of domestic violence, prosecutors described continuous threats from Brand to Jaydens mother prior to the stabbing. You open your (expletive) door, I will be there, Brand texted, prophetically, to Jaydens mother, according to Assistant States Attorney Stephanie Gersch. On March 13, she opened the door in order to take her two children to school, and Brand was there, prosecutors said. Gersch also outlined past allegations and convictions against Brand in connection with two other women. This defendant has a pretty specific pattern of just showing up where these women are, Gersch said. When he shows up he either physically causes harm to these women or threatens to. Brand did not have a detailed response to prosecutors motion, but said they were dropping a bomb on him last minute. You can allege anything in this court, he said. Nightmare for judges Brand has filed a flurry of motions since the case began, some which appear to misunderstand fundamental elements of a criminal prosecution. Last week, he sought to present police body-camera footage, seemingly to exclude a witness on the basis that she wasnt present at the crime scene. Assistant States Attorney Danny Hanichak noted that witnesses dont necessarily have to be eyewitnesses to the alleged crime. Though Brand has successfully made some arguments after he argued that pretrial publicity may prejudice him, Petrone, acting on a request from prosecutors, sealed factual records in the case the motion hearings thus far have followed similar patterns. Nothing is being hidden. Thats ridiculous, Hanichak said, pointing out that Brand appears to be clueless on courtroom procedure. Oftentimes in cases like this where you are dealing with different agencies, (evidence production) can take a year, 18 months. Weve fast-tracked everything. Defendants who seek to represent themselves have a constitutional right to proceed on their own, Kling said, but they are held to the same standard as any attorney. The possibility or probability of error being injected into the record goes up astronomically, he said. It becomes a nightmare for judges and prosecutors because realistically both judges and prosecutors want to avoid anything thats going to cause the trial to be reversed. A quick pace During the hearings, Petrone has been solicitous of Brand, often repeating issues for his understanding and allowing long blocks of time for the hearings. The speed at which the case is moving is rare. If defendants do not ask for a continuance, their cases must proceed to trial within 120 days, a timeline that is almost never used by those charged with the most serious felonies, Kling said. Mostly when defendants come into the system, they need more than 120 days because the lawyers have to go through discovery, get the police reports, etc., Kling said. Yes, this is unusual. The hearings in Brands case at times have been tense, with family members filling the gallery and sometimes growing emotional listening to Brand defend himself of particularly tragic allegations. Scuffles broke out during earlier proceedings as distraught relatives of Jaydens tried to run toward Brand. For Brands part, he continues to deny guilt. This is America, he said. Im entitled to the presumption of innocence. 3975 Cass (left) and 3977 Cass (right) in Detroit. Both properties are owned by the Pierce and Hill Harper Arts Foundation. Blight ordinance violation notices have been issued to a property owned by a foundation operated by Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Hill Harper, although he says he is committed to renovating the property and turning it into a community asset. According to city of Detroit records, a vacant commercial property at 3975 Cass Avenue, owned by the Pierce and Hill Harper Arts Foundation, has twice failed inspection by the city, once on March 22, and then again on June 28. Among the violations noted in the correction orders were failing to properly secure the two-story building, which required police to sweep entire interior for removal of squatters, as well as failing to do the following; remove graffiti and peeling paint, maintain a visible address, maintain a fence on the south side of the property in sound condition, maintain glazing materials free from and holes in good repair, properly barricade openings, and keep the premises free of any debris and garbage. Additionally, the notices said there had been a failure to arrange for an interior inspection, secure required certificate of compliance, and secure a certificate of vacant property registration. Harper, who has drawn attention for a fundraiser this week featuring controversial comedian Dave Chappelle, is running as a progressive as he seeks the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate on Aug. 6, facing off against U.S. Rep. Elissa Slotkin (D-Holly). Also in the U.S. Senate race are four Republicans: former U.S. Reps. Mike Rogers (R-White Lake) and Justin Amash (I-Cascade Twp.), businessman Sandy Pensler and Dr. Sherry ODonnell, a physician and former 2022 congressional candidate. Harper told the Michigan Advance on Sunday night that his foundation came into ownership of the building, and an adjoining house, in 2021 after being contacted by the Arts Center Music School, which owned the properties, but had fallen behind in paying water fees to the city and was facing a hostile buyout by a developer. I got a call from an older Black woman who was just in hysterics, and she said, Youre the only person that can help me. Theyre stealing our building tomorrow. And I said, What building? She was on the board of the Arts Center Music School, the oldest art school, music school in the history of Detroit, said Harper, who had his lawyer attend a hearing and file for an injunction to stop the purchase, and then spent another $75,000 to pay off the water bill and cover legal fees to halt the developers attempt at gaining control of the property. Harper said the school then asked if his foundation, the Pierce and Hill Harper Arts Foundation, could take over the property, so that it could retain its heritage as an arts institution. This is when I say no good deed goes unpunished, Harper said, while laughing. They wanted me to take on the responsibility of those things, and I said I would do it. And so they basically transferred them to my foundation. According to the Wayne County Register of Deeds, the Music Arts School Inc. sold 3975 Cass to Harpers foundation by a quitclaim deed in 2021, which transferred ownership without any guarantee of a clear title, meaning the school was not liable for any problems that might arise after the transfer. A warranty deed transfer was then implemented in 2022. The foundation which is in Harpers name and that of his young son, is listed under his address at the Fisher Mansion in the Boston Edison neighborhood. It was created in 2019 as a nonprofit public charity. However, IRS records show its tax exempt status was revoked in August 2022 for not filing a Form 990-series return or notice for three consecutive years. Harper said the foundation, which remains licensed as a nonprofit with the state of Michigan, never filed those forms because it never spent any money, and that all of the costs associated with obtaining the Cass property and securing it have come out of his own pocket. We havent done anything yet and were not spending any money, per se, he said. I wasnt raising any money, and no one donated any money. He said the foundation, which remains licensed as a nonprofit in Michigan, was originally envisioned as something that would create an art space at his home, including hosting an artist in residence program, but with ownership of the Cass property, he sees that as its new mission. As recently as March, the foundation, which appears to have no obvious website or social media presence, was mentioned in a biography of Hill used for an appearance at Talladega College where he gave the commencement address. However, it was not listed on a campaign finance disclosure report filed late last year. The building in question has a storied history. According to a 1992 report to the Detroit City Council, the building at 3975 Cass was originally the home of the William R. Hamilton Funeral Home, a well-established Detroit business over 100 years old. The residential component on the corner of Cass and Alexandrine (3977 Cass), originally the Robert H. Brown House, was the work of one of Detroits leading residential architects of the late 19th century; the adjoining structure on Cass is an excellent example from the second wave of Egyptian Revival popularized during the Art Deco period. In 1981, the property was sold to Dr. Nellie Huger Ebersole, head of the Art Center Music School, which was established in 1922 with a mission is to provide quality music instruction to low and moderate income families at affordable rates. According to the 1992 report, Ebersole and her husband, Amos, through the years fostered the careers of outstanding Black artists, among them Joseph Cole, baritone, Estelle Andrews, soprano, Constance Hardy, coloratura soprano, and George Shirley, the first black tenor to perform with the York Metropolitan Opera. Hugh Downs, host of 20/20, was a pupil of Dr. Ebersole. Harper says his goal is to continue that tradition, although he acknowledges it will be a long-term project, likely to cost tens of millions of dollars. He says he invited an archivist with the Illitch organization to tour the building in February and at this point he is waiting to receive their recommendations on how to proceed with rehabilitation. 605_ANN_Correction_Order_V2_20240322_101830 Meanwhile, Harper said he has been trying to work with the city and figure out what they saw as the priority. Because there were some unhoused folks that had broken in at one point and had sort of set up a camp, I thought that the main point was to secure the space to make sure its safe and secure and people are not in there and falling through the stairs that are in disrepair and all of that stuff, said Harper. I felt like we had done that, and since there had never been really citations before for all those years, and all of a sudden, its getting citations, I thought maybe theyre citing it because of security. Harper said he made sure the windows were secured and even hired a landscaper to cut the lawn and trim the bushes. Im just trying to keep doing incremental improvements, he said. Im not at a point where I can just fence the whole place in and start a massive construction project. I dont have the resources to do that. So its got to be incremental, and Im doing the best I can. A July 15 virtual hearing is set on the citation issued after the June 28 inspection, and Harper hopes to demonstrate that he is making progress. Obviously, its no good for me to have any kind of citations or blight or anything like that, so I want to get it solved as quick and as best I can, he said. 605_ANN_Correction_Order_V2_20240630_215016 The post Hill Harper envisions bright future for Detroit building cited for blight violations appeared first on Michigan Advance. On March 9, 1926, the Register's sister paper, the Evening Tribune, reports that a ticket led by women has turned back an effort to win a Ku Klux Klan majority on the Des Moines School Board. The Des Moines Register is celebrating 175 years of journalism. Featured front page As anti-immigrant, anti-Catholic and anti-Black sentiment mounts in the 1920s, the Ku Klux Klan becomes increasingly powerful across the Midwest. On March 9, 1926, the Des Moines Register's sister paper, the Evening Tribune, reports that a ticket headed by women has turned back an effort to install a KKK majority on the city's school board. The women-led effort succeeds just six years after passage of the 19th Amendment grants women the right to vote. One of the successful candidates, Millicent Lincoln, identified in the article as Mrs. S.E. Lincoln, becomes president of the board and serves as a longtime leader of the Iowa PTA. Each day this month, as the Register marks its 175th birthday, were sharing front pages from noteworthy moments in history. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: The Des Moines Register historic front page: School voters reject KKK COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL) An inmate at Rutledge State Prison was found dead in his cell on Sunday afternoon, according to the Muscogee County Coroners Office. Muscogee County Coroner Buddy Bryan confirms to WRBL Leon Habson, 58, was pronounced dead on the scene at 12:39 p.m. Coroner Bryan says Habson was apparently assaulted by his roommate. Bryan also says evidence at the scene confirms this as a homicide. Habsons body will undergo an autopsy at the GBI crime lab in Decatur. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Pro-Beijing supporters hold Chinese flags to mark the 27th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to Chinese rule in Hong Kong, Monday, July 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei) HONG KONG (AP) The Hong Kong government is seeking to regulate online car-hailing platforms through licensing and impose tougher penalties on illegal ride services, a move likely to have a significant impact on tech companies such as Uber. Transport officials sent a document Monday to the legislature, asking lawmakers to further study the proposal. The officials also said they would further assess and iron out details, such as requirements for obtaining licenses and the number of vehicles that can be run through online platforms. Authorities plan to complete the legislative proposals sometime in 2025. Hong Kongs taxi industry has long resisted online platforms like Uber, seeing them as a threat to its business. In Hong Kong, it is illegal for drivers of private vehicles to provide paid services to customers without a permit. Police have in the past arrested some Uber drivers suspected of driving without a permit and in 2018, the city's court system fined more than two dozen drivers. Uber, which started operating in Hong Kong in 2014, remains a popular choice in a city where many residents are frustrated with poor taxi services. The San Francisco-based company has faced many challenges in its overseas expansion meeting multiple legal and regulatory challenges. In the document, the government said it hopes for a win-win situation for the transport industry and passengers through licensing and an improvement in the quality of taxi services. To further curb illegal ride-hailing services, the city's transport authorities also proposed that when a car is found to be providing paid services to customers without a permit, judges could have the vehicle impounded and its license suspended even if charges cannot be brought against the driver. Uber welcomed the Hong Kong authorities' move to regulate ride-hailing platforms but also cautioned in a statement that it was "critical for the government to accompany this step with a workable licensing regime." The statement also said that capping the number of ride-sharing licenses could be a blow to many drivers who rely on the platform for flexible earnings opportunities. Lawmakers are expected to discuss the government proposals on Friday. CLYDE Lots of tissues were handed out as family and friends greeted the three tearful new graduates of the Hope Court as they finished their graduation ceremony, moving on to new lives after drug or OVI offences. The speaker was former Sandusky County Sheriff Kyle Overmyer. He completed prison sentences related to an opioid addiction. He is now a public speaker advocating for living a drug-free life. I was the former sheriff of this county. One of the things about this disease of addiction, is it doesnt discriminate, Overmyer said. A lot of people suffer in silence, shame they get incarcerated and they get lost in the system. You all, who are going to graduate today, are the ones that have continued on in this program, are getting a second chance, and we all deserve a second chance. He talked about his own challenges and gave the graduates some advice. Be proud and stand up tall, because you all deserve it, Overmyer said. Recover out loud. You didnt get here overnight. ... Dont let the past define you. Let it refine you. The speaker for Hope Court graduation was former Sandusky County Sheriff Kyle Overmyer, who recommended graduates "recover out loud." He completed a prison sentences related to an opioid addiction and is now an advocate for living a drug-free life. Graduate Cassandra Steward said the program means a lot to her and wanted to talk about it and how it has helped her get back on her feet. Ive come a long way. I lost the custody of my kids. Ive lost a lot of friends and family during my addiction and I lost my place to live. I lost everything, so being able to come this far means a lot to me, Steward said. I got custody back of my kids. I have a stable place to live and I have a job I manage, she said, wiping away tears. Its emotional. Its not easy. Hope Court is part of the participants sentence. Court administrator Stacy Dickman had some words for the graduates of the voluntary program. Im just very proud of everyone who has graduated today. It takes a lot of hard work. This is probation, but it is intense probation. They have to report to us. They have to go through other procedures. We have to make sure they are doing things right. And talking to the judge, and us, we help them as much as possible, Dickman said. Hope Court graduates have shown signs of chronic substance abuse and receive a reduction in their penalties for taking part in the four-step program. Eligibility requires they live a clean and sober lifestyle and work with the court system on achieving goals in employment, education and the regaining of trust. They also cannot have any other open court cases and may not have had a violent crime conviction sentence in the last five years. Many Hope Court participants suffered the legal loss of their children, loss of jobs and incarceration. Judge Cynthia Welty applauds as another group graduates from Hope Court. I have a passion for specialized dockets, especially substance abuse, addiction, mental health, ..., Welty says. A few hiccups along the way, but a journey completed Judge Cynthia Welty said the graduates each hit a low point, but each worked their way out. It was not without a few hiccups, but they did it. Yes, not without a few hiccups, Welty said. In the past, graduation took about a year, but this one was longer due to a transition of judges. One graduate was sober 570 days as part of her journey through Hope Court. The judge said at any point there are usually eight to 12 participants working their way through Hope Court. We would like to increase it, but since Im just, really, getting started, were trying to tweak a few things, Welty said. The July 1 graduation was the first since the transition of judges and the required program recertification from the Ohio Supreme Court. Welty took the place of Sandusky County Court District One Judge John Kolesar, who started the specialized court in 2010. Kolesar left the Clyde court in April 2023. Welty was appointed judge by Gov. Mike DeWine on Oct. 16, and will serve the remainder of Kolesars unfinished term, needing to run for election in this fall to retain the seat. I have a passion for specialized dockets, especially substance abuse, addiction, mental health, and I wanted to make sure we were able to keep it, Welty said, adding it took extra effort on the part of the graduates because of the judicial transition time. She has been a nurse and an attorney, with more than 10 years in the combined roles in the area. Its much different from a regular docket. Its more one-on-one, dealing with the individual participant, and bringing it to their level. Sometimes, when Im on the bench and they are a defendant, and not a participant, my role is different. They tend to do better when you are on their level, Welty said. They are defendants when their case is on-going. But once their case is done and over, and they enter the OVI court of the drug court, they become participants. rlapointe@gannett.com 419-332-2674 This article originally appeared on Fremont News-Messenger: Three graduate from Clyde Hope Court on journey toward drug-free lives Wichita Falls and North Texas got a good drenching Sunday night prior to heading into a week forecast to bring hot dry weather more typical of July. Late Sunday, the city officially received 2.33 inches of rain as thunderstorms moved across the region. That brought the total for 2024 to 24.93 inches, which is about 10 inches more than usual by this time of year. Despite recent rain, the combined level of the city's two primary reservoirs fell slightly over the past week, losing 0.6 percent of capacity by Monday. After rain chances through Monday, no more precipitation was in the forecast for the week ahead as daytime high temperatures gradually climb to 100 degrees by Sunday. After possible rain on Monday, the Wichita Falls area is forecasted to return to hot, dry weather. Hurricane Beryl made landfall south of Houston early Monday, bringing flooding to Galveston and leaving hundreds of thousands of Texans without power. Although the remnants of hurricanes can sometimes be felt as far as West Texas, forecasters think Beryl will sweep north across East Texas and likely will not affect the Wichita Falls area. This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Hot, dry weather to return to Wichita Falls following early week rains House Republicans have postponed a planned hearing with Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg (D) as former President Trumps sentencing in the New York hush money case has also been delayed. The hearing with the House Judiciary Committees select subcommittee on government weaponization was expected to take place Friday, a day after Trumps originally scheduled July 11 sentencing. Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in relation to a 2016 hush money payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels. Another top prosecutor in the case, Matthew Colangelo, was also set to appear in the hearing. A source familiar with the scheduling said there is no new date set for the hearing yet. Last week, a New York judge delayed Trumps sentencing until Sept. 18 as he fights the conviction based on the Supreme Court ruling on presidential immunity. In addition to denying he falsified business records, Trump argues that some of the trial evidence is precluded under the new standard articulated by the Supreme Court. It is unlikely that the hearing would be set until after Trump is sentenced. Bragg had previously declined to appear before the committee until the conclusion of Trumps trial and sentencing. The Manhattan D.A.s Office is proud to play a crucial role in upholding and enforcing the rule of law for the people of New York. It undermines the rule of law to spread dangerous misinformation, baseless claims, and conspiracy theories following the jurys return of a full-count felony conviction in People v. Trump, Braggs office said in a statement last month. Nonetheless, we respect our government institutions and plan to appear voluntarily before the subcommittee after sentencing. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) is requesting President Bidens physician to give a transcribed interview in connection with the committees investigation into Bidens family. Comer told White House physician Kevin OConnor the committee is concerned your medical assessments have been influenced by your private business endeavors with the Biden family, in a letter sent to OConnor on Sunday. Comer pointed to a recent article from The Washington Post that reported OConnor has never recommended the president take a cognitive test. After a concerning debate performance by President Biden against former President Donald Trump on June 27, journalists have rushed to report on what Americans have seen plainly for years: the President appears unwell, Comer wrote. Americans question President Bidens ability to lead the country, and the Committee on Oversight and Accountability is investigating circumstances surrounding your assessment in February of this year that President Biden is a healthy, active, robust 81-year-old-male, who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency, Comer continued. Bidens debate performance sparked concerns among Democrats and pundits that he may not be fit to serve another term as president. Biden, 81, has pushed back on the concerns and calls to step down from the ticket, saying that he is still the best candidate to beat former President Trump. Comer has been a key figure in the GOPs impeachment inquiry into Biden. However, the investigation has yet to solidify evidence that Biden was involved in his sons foreign business deals while serving as vice president or that his family has engaged in corruption. Comer is asking OConnor to provide answers on his independence, according to the letter. You have repeatedly refused most interview requests from the media, and the Committee now turns to you to provide answers regarding your independence because of the mixed and confused messaging coming from the White House regarding the Presidents ability to perform his job, Comer wrote. Comer pointed to Bidens answers to some questions during an ABC News interview on Friday. When asked if he would be willing to take a cognitive test, Biden said, I have a cognitive test every single day. The medical exam by OConnor in February found that Biden is fit for duty. Comer is also asking OConnor to provide documents related to Americore Health and James Biden, the presidents brother. James Biden had asked for OConnors help in 2017 in connection to his work with Americore, according to a transcript of an interview with the committee and a Politico report earlier this year. Given your connections with the Biden family, the Committee also seeks to understand if you are in a position to provide accurate and independent reviews of the Presidents fitness to serve, Comer wrote. Comer asked OConnor to contact his staff by July 14 to schedule an interview. White House spokesperson Ian Sams dismissed Comers letter in a statement to The Hill. Here they go again, pushing their crazy, discredited conspiracy theories in order to score another hit on Bartiromo, Sams said, referring to Fox News Maria Bartiromo. He then referred The Hill to a Washington Post piece that reported that many of the issues within the White House Medical Unit were traced back to now-Rep. Ronny Jackson, who served as the White House physician under the Trump administration. If extreme House Republicans want to take a look at a White House physician, heres an idea for where to start, Sams said, with a link to the article. Updated 7:16 p.m. ET. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. The Iranian government is trying to diplomatically protect the country's rights in its nuclear program, the spokesperson for Iran's Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanaani said at a press conference held in Tehran on July 8, Trend reports. He claims that diplomacy led to the signing of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) between Iran and the P5+1. From this premise, the government has and will continue to direct all of its resources toward protecting the nation's interests. Commenting on the possible meeting between Iran and the US in Oman on the nuclear issue, the Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman noted that Iran is exchanging information in various forms through diplomatic channels. Several indirect negotiations have been held between Iran and the US, the details of which will be disclosed as necessary. To note, the Comprehensive Plan of Joint Action on Iran's nuclear program was implemented between Iran and the P5+1 group (the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, and Germany) in January 2016. In May 2018, the US announced its withdrawal from the plan and imposed sanctions on Iran in November of the same year. Iran has announced that there will be no restrictions on the Iran nuclear deal in 2020. Meanwhile, in late 2020, the Iranian parliament adopted a strategic plan to counter the sanctions, citing the non-fulfillment of the JCPOA signed between Iran and six countries and the imposition of sanctions on Iran. Based on the decision of the Iranian parliament, as of February 23, Iran stopped the implementation of additional measures and an additional protocol included in the nuclear deal. As a consequence, the monitoring mechanism of the IAEA was reduced by 2030 percent. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel WASHINGTON D.C., UNITED STATES - JUNE 3: United States Representative James Comer speaks during the House Oversight and Accountability Subcommittee on Coronavirus Pandemic hearing in Rayburn building at the United States Capitol in Washington D.C., on June 3, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images) House Republicans are opening an investigation into President Joe Bidens doctor in the wake of his debate performance the latest sign that Democrats political headaches are only growing. House Oversight Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) sent a letter to White House physician Kevin OConnor on Sunday requesting that he appear behind closed doors for a transcribed interview with committee counsel. Comer is giving OConnor until July 14 to contact staff to schedule the interview. Americans question President Bidens ability to lead the country. [The committee] is investigating circumstances surrounding your assessment in February of this year that President Biden is a healthy, active, robust 81-year-old-male, who remains fit to successfully execute the duties of the Presidency, Comer wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by POLITICO. OConnor, in his February report, said that Biden took an extremely detailed neurologic exam and that there were no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder. He also described Biden as having a stiffer gait, but that he is a healthy, vigorous, 80-year-old male, who is fit to successfully execute the duties of the presidency. Comer is the first House Republican to open an investigation in the wake of Bidens debate performance that has sparked growing concerns among Democrats including calls from a handful of House lawmakers for him to step out of the presidential race. Biden has been adamant that he is staying in the race, though an ABC News sitdown failed to quell the open skepticism within the party. There was already growing panic among Democrats that the political fallout from Bidens debate performance could spill into congressional fights as the GOPs campaign arms quickly rushed to try to box in House and Senate Democrats about if they believed Biden was fit for office. But Comers letter is also a sign that House Republicans will also use the powers of their slim majority to weigh into the fallout. Theres been a growing push from the Houses right flank, including members of Comers committee, for Republicans to take such a step, with GOP members floating launch hearings or subpoenaing White House officials, OConnor in particular. And the Kentucky Republican, in his letter to OConnor, linked the investigation back to a separate impeachment inquiry, which has largely focused on the family deals of Bidens family members. Republicans dont have the votes to impeach Biden, as theyve failed to win over skeptics within their own conference who dont believe that investigators have shown that Biden committed a crime or an impeachable offense. And while Democrats have also voiced concerns about Bidens mental acuity over the last week, Comer referencing his impeachment inquiry investigation as well two checks from Jim Biden to Joe Biden that representatives for both have repeatedly said are loan repayments is likely to spark fierce Democratic pushback. The White House expressed skepticism Sunday. "Here they go again, pushing their crazy, discredited conspiracy theories in order to score another hit on [Maria] Bartiromo," said White House spokesperson Ian Sams when asked about Comer's investigation. Sams also pointed to recent reporting on now-Rep. Ronny Jackson's time as the White House physician as a potential place to start "if extreme House Republicans want to take a look at a White House physician." Comer is asking OConnor to hand over any documents or communications he has that relate to Jim Biden, Joe Bidens brother, or Americore, questioning if OConnor is in a position to provide accurate and independent reviews of the Presidents fitness to serve. Jim Biden requested OConnors help in 2017 when Joe Biden was out of office as part of his work linked to Americore, according to emails previously obtained by POLITICO and Jim Bidens closed-door interview as part of the impeachment inquiry. That includes Jim Biden and OConnor meeting with the head of a Pennsylvania hospital that Americore was in the process of acquiring in July 2017, POLITICO previously reported. A huge dinosaur skeleton has made a transatlantic journey from the United States to the Museum of Evolution in Denmark for visitors to get an up-close look. "It was discovered in Wyoming by a rancher and some professional dinosaur hunters," Christoffer Knuth, the museum's director, told CBS News on Monday. That was in 2017, and it took a team about five years and about 15,000 hours of work to get the Camarasaurus grandis skeleton out of the ground and into the Danish museum. "It's an amazing specimen, first of all because it's articulated it was lying in the same position as it died in 150 million years ago. Secondly, it's 97% intact, so we have almost every single bone of the dinosaur," Knuth said. "That means it's a world-class specimen." The 42-foot skeleton was flown from the U.S. to Europe, but it wasn't an entirely smooth trip to its final destination. "We had a little bit of a problem with it, because it actually sort of disappeared between Zurich and Copenhagen, but eventually it showed up about a week late," Knuth told CBS News. He said the museum tracked the dinosaur as it made its way to Denmark, but as it was so large, it required multiple trackers, and at one point, one tracker showed the ancient bones in Zurich, Switzerland, another said Utah, and a third showed it in the Danish capital of Copenhagen. Eventually, the transport company used by the museum to move its purchase from Wyoming found the missing bones in Zurich and got them to their final destination. Once the skeleton arrived, it took a team at the museum about 24 hours just to reassemble the dinosaur's long neck. "We know that it died most likely in a stream or in shallow water, and then it was covered with some sort of sediment, mud, sand. That prevented predators from eating it," Knuth said. The museum has said it is open to lending the specimen to other museums or universities. Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries Hoppin' clams! "SpongeBob SquarePants" turns 25 HORRY COUNTY, S.C. (WBTW) As hundreds of thousands of visitors head home from their July 4 weekend on the Grand Strand, local businesses say they saw a huge spike in sales. Restaurants and fireworks vendors particularly enjoyed a windfall, and Myrtle Beach International Airport was busy on Sunday as people departed a place that U.S. News and World Report named as one of the countrys top Independence Day destinations. I mean, it pretty much tripled what I had for the last week in one day, said Lewis Broome, owner of Black Pearl Fireworks. I could make my entire year in two days, and pay my astronomical rent. Broome said on average, people spent about $500 per purchase. Over at Mimosas one of the regions most popular brunch spots owner Gentiana Tubaku said she knew how to be ready for this years crowds. We prepared extra food and drinks. Knowing from last year, how busy it was, we already knew. So we had to get ready for it, Tubaku said. The citys airport was buzzing on Sunday as well, where officials said they expected about 50,000 people to depart over the next several days. AAA projected that about 5.7 million people will over this holiday weekend, a 7% jump from 2023 numbers. * * * Hannah Huffstickler is a multimedia journalist at News13. She joined the News13 team in January 2024 after graduating from Coastal Carolina University in December of 2023. Keep up with Hannah on Facebook, X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram. You can also 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. Hundreds rally for New Yorker held hostage in Gaza for 275 days: No one can be left behind Hundreds of people gathered at Central Park on Sunday to call on Hamas to release New York-native Omer Neutra and the rest of the remaining hostages in Gaza. Omer Neutras parents have endured 275 days of silence from their son. Orna and Ronen Neutra, of Plainview, New York, havent heard one word from the 22-year-old since he was kidnapped by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7. Nine months waking up every morning, hoping Omer is also waking up too, his mother Orna said. Hundreds of people gathered at Central Park on Sunday to call on Hamas to release New York-native Omer and the rest of the remaining hostages in Gaza as Israel and the terror group approach a cease-fire deal. He is one of eight American hostages who remains in Hamas clutches, with his mother praying for her sons safe return. New Yorkers Orna and Ronen Neutra (left) led a rally in Central Park calling for the release of their son, Omer, who was kidnapped by Hamas on Oct. 7. LP Media Hundreds came out to the rally on Sunday, urging Israel to accept a US-backed hostage negotiation deal. LP Media It has been nine months since the last phone call with Omer from his post, Orna added. I can still hear his voice. I cant imagine what he is going through, with no signs of life. Omer had foregone his acceptance to Binghamton University to join the Israeli military. He decided to enlist to help protect the friends he made while attending a military prep program, his parents previously told The Post. The Israel Defense Forces tank commander was stationed near the Kibbutz Nir Oz in southern Israel when his base was attacked by Hamas on Oct. 7, with footage showing the terrorists igniting Omers armored vehicle and kidnapping the young soldier. The rally in Central Park commemorated the nine-month anniversary of the Oct.7 terrorist attack in Israel. LP Media Omers father, Ronen, said Israel has a responsibility to free his son and the some 119 others following news that Israel and Hamas negotiators were mulling a new, US-back hostage deal even if it means that the war will end before his country can destroy the terror group. The war needs to end and bring the hostages home, Ronen said. The elimination of Hamas is important but will take time and patience. No one can be left behind, he added. The time is now, bring them home now. The frustrated father said the war has ruined the trust many Israelis put in their government and army. He called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus administration to put their political agendas aside and put the hostages lives as the priority. Many came in support of the eight American hostages who remain in Hamas captivity. LP Media Netanyahu has repeatedly said that military might is the best way to free the hostages, with the Israeli leader refusing to entertain any deal that ends the war prematurely and allows Hamas to remain in Gaza. The brother-in-law of another hostage, Omri Miran, echoed the importance of keeping the kidnapped Israelis at the forefront of any cease-fire deal. Once Miran and the rest of the hostages are released, then Israel can focus on fighting its enemies, Moshe Emilio Lavi said. We know were fighting an evil, terrorist organization, he said. We know well continue to fight them and the Axis of Evil run backed by Iran. The supporters chanted Bring them home now! during Sundays rally. LP Media Friends of other American hostages also came out to Sundays event, including an Israeli military reservist who identified himself as Afek. Afek said he was participating in the rally for his friend, Itay Chen, a 19-year-old American citizen who joined the IDF and was later revealed to have been killed on Oct. 7. Like the Omers, Afek said that the Israeli government needs to prioritize the hostages release, but the reservist also sympathized with the Israeli governments struggle to reach a cease-fire deal. Omer, a New York-native, enlisted in the IDF and served as a tank commander when Hamas militants ambushed his squad. Family Handout I think its a really really complicated situation because Hamas is a terrorist organization and has lied about everything, he said, and its hard to make a deal with them. He added: I dont know the solution, but I hope the government or someone will do something. The rally comes a day after Hamas accepted the US-backed cease-fire agreement, with the terror group finally dropping its hardline demand that Israel ends the war. The Iran-backed terror group, however, is now demanding written guarantees that mediators will continue to negotiate a permanent truce during the first phase of the cease-fire. In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, left, shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping before a meeting at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, Monday, July 8, 2024. (Li Xueren/Xinhua via AP) TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) Chinese President Xi Jinping called on world powers to help Russia and Ukraine resume direct dialogue during a meeting Monday with Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban, state broadcaster CCTV reported. Orban made a surprise visit to China after similar trips last week to Russia and Ukraine to discuss prospects for a peaceful settlement of more than the two-year war. Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the European Union this month and Orban has since embarked on a peace mission, which, however, lacks the endorsement of other European leaders. China is a key power in creating the conditions for peace in the Russia-Ukraine war, Orban wrote on the social media platform X. This is why I came to meet with President Xi in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest. Orban is widely seen as having the warmest relations with Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin among European leaders. His visit to Moscow last week drew condemnation from Kyiv and EU officials, who insisted Orban was not acting on behalf of the whole European bloc. Their rebuke failed to deter Orban from extending a similar visit to Beijing, which he called Peace mission 3.0 in a picture posted on X. During his meeting with Xi, Orban described China as a stabilizing force amid global turbulence and praised its constructive and important peace initiatives. China has been promoting its own six-point peace plan, which it issued with Brazil in May. Beijing says it is neutral in the conflict, though in practice it supports Moscow through frequent state visits, growing trade and joint military drills. While hosting Orban, Xi called on Russia and Ukraine to cease fire and on other major powers to create an environment conducive to talks. Only when all major powers project positive energy rather than negative energy can a cease-fire occur, Xi said, according to CCTV. Orban hosted the Chinese leader in Hungary only two months ago as part of a three-country European tour that also included stops in France and Serbia, which unlike the other two is not a member of the EU or NATO. During the trip, China upgraded its ties with Hungary to an all-weather, comprehensive strategic partnership, one of its highest designations for foreign relations that in addition to Hungary applies only to Belarus, Pakistan and Venezuela. Hungary under Orban has built substantial political and economic ties with China. The European nation hosts a number of Chinese electric vehicle battery facilities, and in December it announced that Chinese EV manufacturing giant BYD will open its first European EV production factory in the south of the country. The Hungarian prime minister broadly opposes Western military aid to Ukraine and has blocked, delayed or watered down EU efforts to assist Kyiv and impose sanctions on Moscow over its invasion. Orban has long argued for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine but without outlining what that might mean for the countrys territorial integrity or future security. That posture has frustrated Hungarys EU and NATO allies, who have denounced Russias invasion as a breach of international law and a threat to the security of Eastern Europe. With Europe trying to increasingly speak with one voice in its relations to China and Russia, Orbans unannounced and uncoordinated trips are not helping in signaling or creating a unified European Union with regard to EU-China relations, said Eva Seiwert, a China foreign policy and security expert with the Mercator Institute for China Studies in Berlin. Orbans proposals for resolving the war largely correspond with Putin's interests, Seiwert added, though the Hungarian prime minister might prove helpful in organizing a peace conference in the future. Standing alongside Orban last week in Moscow, Putin declared that Russia wouldnt accept any cease-fire or temporary break in hostilities that would allow Ukraine to recoup losses, regroup and rearm. Putin repeated his demand that Ukraine withdraw its troops from the four regions that Moscow claims to have annexed in 2022 as a condition for any prospective peace talks. Ukraine and its Western allies have rejected that demand, suggesting it is akin to asking Kyiv to withdraw from its own territory. China meanwhile has spread its influence in Central Asia and Eastern Europe in recent years beyond its no limits partnership with Moscow. Over the weekend, China held anti-terror military drills with Belarus a key ally of Russia near the border with Poland. The drills came after last week Belarus joined a regional security organization led by China and Russia. Orban will next head to Washington, D.C., where NATO leaders are holding a summit to discuss ways to assure Ukraine of the alliances continued support. Next stop: Washington, Orban posted on his social media account Monday. It was not clear whether he would meet separately with President Joe Biden, or Donald Trump, whose presidential candidacy Orban openly supports. ___ Associated Press writers Adam Schreck in Bangkok, Justin Spike in Budapest, Hungary, and Vladimir Isachenkov in Moscow contributed to this report. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said over the weekend there is a very, very high chance President Biden will not be reelected in November and praised former President Trump as a man of peace. Im sure that a change would be good for the world, Orban said in an interview Sunday with Axel Springer media outlets, including Politico. He applauded Trump as a self-made man with a different approach to everything, stating his return to office will be good for the world politics. He [Trump] is the man of peace. Under his four-year term he did not initiate a single war, and he did a lot in order to create peace in old conflicts in very complicated areas of the world, Orban said, per Politico. Orban, who has been widely criticized for his friendly relations with Russia amid its war with Ukraine, called out the Bidens administrations approach toward the Russia-Ukraine war as Washington continues to mount financial and military support for Kyiv. Trump, who has repeatedly claimed that he could end Russias war in Ukraine in just 24 hours if he were the president, was reportedly shown a plan in recent months that would make U.S. assistance conditional on Ukraine entering peace talks with Russia, Reuters reported last month. Moscow would also be warned any refusal to negotiate would prompt increased U.S. support for Ukraine. When asked about this plan, Orban said, I think new leadership will provide new chances. Orban came under criticism from Washington and other European allies last week for his trip to Moscow to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Were concerned that Prime Minister Orban would choose to take this trip to Moscow, which will neither advance the cause of peace, nor will it promote Ukrainian sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence, a senior Biden administration official said on a call with reporters ahead of this weeks NATO summit in Washington. Look, at the end of the day, we believe that Russia could end this war today by ceasing its aggression against Ukraine, the official added. Prior to his trip to Moscow, Orban met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv, saying he was pitching a a deadline-bound cease-fire, that could provide an opportunity to speed up peace negotiations. Zelensky said Orbans visit was a clear signal to all of us of the importance of unity in Europe and taking collective steps. Orban said Sunday that peace talks would be possible in the Russia-Ukraine conflict if the U.S., China, Europe and the nations at war would sit together at the negotiating table. He largely blamed Washington for why these talks have not happened, Politico reported. China has a peace plan. America runs a war policy, he said. And Europe, instead of having our autonomous strategic approach and position, we are simply copying the American position. The job for me now is not to say who is good, who is bad. The situation is obvious, he said, explicitly stating that Russia invaded Ukraine. But I would not like to be indulged [in] a kind of measurement, who is responsible for what, and so on. My duty is to concentrate on how we can create peace. The Hill reached out to the White House and Biden and Trumps reelection campaigns for comment. The NATO summit is set to take place Tuesday to Thursday. Allies are expected to outline new financial and military commitments for Ukraine in its war against Russia since Putin launched a full-scale invasion against the country in February 2022. Other summit deliverables include the alliance announcing new NATO commitments to Ukraine to deepen ties and to lay the groundwork for Kyiv to eventually join the alliance. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. (Bloomberg) -- Chinese leader Xi Jinping repeated his call for a cease-fire in Ukraine during a surprise meeting with visiting Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has upset Europe with a self-styled peace mission. Most Read from Bloomberg Xi said the priority now should be a deescalation as quickly as possible, according to a post on X by a spokesperson for the Foreign Ministry in Beijing, echoing comments his nation has made since Russias full-scale invasion in 2022. Orban lauded China, according to Hungarys state-run MTI news outlet, crediting it with firmness and stability. Xis comments are unlikely to do much to end the fighting. Beijing has sought to portray itself as mostly neutral since Russias attack, yet it has developed a deep friendship with Moscow as part of what Xi and Vladimir Putin term a no limits friendship. Underscoring their closeness, Xi and Putin have met more than 40 times since the Chinese leader came to power in 2012. During a sitdown in Beijing in May, they agreed to tighten coordination, including between their militaries, against what they called Washingtons destructive and hostile course. The US has been a strong backer of Ukraine, especially militarily. China laid out a vague 12-point blueprint for peace in early 2023 that has largely been ignored by the parties to the war. A fundamental flaw is that it doesnt explain how territory that Russia has seized would be handled. Earlier this year, China and Brazil called for an international conference recognized by both Russia and Ukraine to discuss proposals to halt the war. That idea came just before a conference on the war hosted by Switzerland that Beijing didnt attend. Orbans trip to China comes just after he met with Putin in Moscow. That visit provoked a sharp response from the rest of the European Union, which had already been worried about how Hungary would approach the EU presidency it started on July 1. Appeasement will not stop Putin, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in a post on X after Orban landed in Russia. Speaking alongside the Russian leader after talks, Orban presented himself as uniquely positioned to mediate on the war. The Kremlin said afterward that there was no progress on Ukraine. --With assistance from Jing Li. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. By Joe Cash and Anita Komuves BEIJING/BUDAPEST (Reuters) -Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban met Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday to discuss a potential Ukraine peace deal, paying the unexpected visit to Beijing days after his talks with Russia's Vladimir Putin angered some European Union leaders. Orban and Xi met at the Diaoyutai State Guest House in Beijing, Chinese state media reported, for what Orban described as the third leg of a "peace mission" that he has undertaken without the backing of the European Commission or Ukraine. While Hungary just assumed the EU's rotating presidency this month, Orban has already met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv and been received by the Kremlin, a trip that drew a strong rebuke from his allies. "Peace Mission 3.0.," Orban, a critic of Western military aid to Ukraine and the EU leader with the warmest relations with Xi and Putin, said on his official X account as he touched down in Beijing. China, which has close ties to Russia, has been promoting a six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil in May, proposing an international peace conference "at a proper time" and calling for equal participation by both Ukraine and Russia. Ukraine is hoping to win broad global backing for its proposals on how to end the war with Russia before beginning discussions with Putin, holding a huge international summit last month in Switzerland to which Moscow was not invited. But Kyiv's aim of ostracising Russia is meeting resistance. China sat out the Swiss meeting and has won backing from Moscow for its own peace plan. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is now in Moscow, with Ukraine likely to be on the agenda. "The international community should create conditions for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiations between the two sides and provide assistance," Xi told Orban, according to Chinese state media. "It is in the interests of all parties to seek a political solution through an early ceasefire," he added. Orban said China was "a key power in creating the conditions for peace in the Russia-Ukraine war", giving that as the reason for his meeting with Xi just two months after the Chinese leader visited Budapest. The Kremlin said that Russia appreciated Orban's efforts to clarify positions in resolving the conflict. Zelenskiy said Orban could not act as a mediator, a task he said could only be undertaken by world powers. "Are there many such countries around the world? Not many. I believe the U.S. and China are such countries. And the EU, not one country, but the whole EU," Zelenskiy said during a visit to Poland. NATO SUMMIT Orban's trip to China comes days ahead of a NATO summit in Washington, D.C. that will address providing further support to Ukraine and which he is due to attend. Hungary's leader also comes to China fresh off the European Commission confirming last week that it will impose tariffs of up to 37.6% on imports of electric vehicles made in China. The central European country has become an important trade and investment partner for China, in contrast with other EU nations seeking to become less dependent on Beijing. While Beijing threatens to impose retaliatory anti-dumping measures against European pork imports, Peter Szijjarto, Hungary's foreign affairs and trade minister, told Hungarian state media the two sides had negotiated an agreement on relaunching pork and poultry exports to China. Chinese companies at the forefront of the electromobility transition would also continue to make investments in Hungary that would create about 25,000 jobs, he added. EU trade policy has turned increasingly protective over concerns that China's production-focused development model could see it flooded with cheap goods as Chinese firms look to step up exports amid weak domestic demand. China's electric vehicles have become a particular cause for concern because Brussels claims they benefit from unfair state subsidies, an allegation Beijing rejects. While some EU leaders have been quick to say Hungary's EU presidency does not mean Orban represents the 27-strong bloc, Xi told Orban that China hoped Hungary would "play an active role" in developing China-EU relations. In Germany, Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said Orban does not speak for Europe and that Hungary's politics often do not represent the core of EU thinking. (Additional reporting by Boldizsar Gyori in Budapest;Writing by Joe Cash; Editing by Himani Sarkar, Miral Fahmy, Helen Popper, Ron Popeski and Cynthia Osterman) BAKU, Azerbaijan, July 8. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban announced that he arrived in Beijing to continue his "peace mission", Trend reports. "Peace mission 3.0. #Beijing," he said in a post on his X page, accompanied by a photo from the airport. Previously, Reuters reported citing Orbans spokesman Bertalan Havasi that Orban will meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. According to the news agency, the Chinese Foreign Ministry also confirmed his visit. HPD: Shooting incident ruled accidental after victim shows up to hospital HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT) The Huntsville Police Department has ruled a shooting incident as accidental after the victim showed up at Huntsville Hospital with life-threatening injuries Sunday night. According to HPD, hospital staff members were told the shooting took place at the Wendys on Sparkman Drive and officers are currently working to learn more information. Download the WHNT News 19 App to stay updated on the go. Sign up for WHNT News 19 newsletters to have news sent to your inbox. HPD said after the department interviewed the victim, witnesses and the person of interest, the incident was ruled as accidental. The department says no charges are expected and the victim is still in serious but stable condition. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. A number of the fatalities from the storm were the result of falling trees. Photo courtesy of Harris County Constable Precinct 4/X July 8 (UPI) -- At least eight people were killed after Hurricane Beryl slammed southeast Texas with heavy winds, rain and flash flooding Monday. More than 2.5 million were still without power late Monday. The death toll included seven people killed in Texas and one in Louisiana. Beryl made landfall at 4:30 a.m. as a Category 1 storm with maximum sustained winds of 75 mph near Matagorda. It is the first storm in the Atlantic hurricane season to make landfall in the United States. After coming ashore, the hurricane was downgraded to a tropical storm as it passed through the Houston area, about 94 miles from Matagorda, with sustained winds of 60 mph. On Monday night, the sustained winds dropped to 45 mph. Matagorda appeared to withstand major long-term damage as the rain and winds began to subside during the day. A man looks at a fallen tree knocked over by wind and rain from Hurricane Beryl in Houston, Texas, on Monday. While wind speeds are expected to drop significantly throughout Monday, the storm is expected to continue to dump substantial rain over its affected areas. Photo by Carlos Ramirez/EPA-EFE Strong winds recorded include 94 mph in Freeport, 85 mph at Brazoria County Airport and, at Hobby International Airport, 76 mph. Houston's George Bush International Airport recorded wind speeds of 67 mph. In Texas' Montgomery County, three people died within an hour span midday, according to local judge Mark Keough's office, KOU11 reported. Interstate 45 North Freeway southbound between Cavalcade and Patton was closed due to high water in Houston. Photo courtesy Texas Department of Transportation/X The victims were identified as a man in his 40s, and a man and a woman who appeared to be homeless. All were killed by fallen trees. In Harris County, two people died. A 74-year old woman was killed when a tree fell on her house, according a statement from Harris County Constable Precinct 4. And a 53-year-old man died after becoming trapped under debris when a tree fell on his house, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said. "The man (53) was reportedly sitting in his house with family, riding out the storm. An oak tree fell on roof and hit rafters, structure fell on the male. Wife and children unharmed," he said on X. Two others also died in Houston. One was from fire that Mayor John Whitmire said is believed to be storm-related. The other fatality was a civilian worker for the Houston Police Department, he said. Russell Richardson, 54, drowned in his vehicle while driving it work when hit by flooding while under an underpass. "I've been there all afternoon watching his colleagues retrieve his body from his submerged car. Horrible situation," he told reporters during a Monday night press conference. In Louisiana, a woman died when a tree fell on her home in Bossier Parish near the Texas border, the sheriff's office said in a Facebook post. Nine others died after the storm hammered the Caribbean islands and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula last week. Whitmire, calling the situation "an emergency," said during a morning briefing residents should shelter in place because of winds, rain and flooding. "Don't let the clear skies fool you. We still have dangerous circumstances, we still have high water across our city," Whitmire said during an afternoon conference. Widespread rainfall amounts of 4 to 8 inches have fallen there since Sunday night, with much of the rain falling since daybreak on Monday. Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport picked up more than 4.5 inches of rain since midnight, according to National Weather Service data. Normally, it records 3.77 inches for the entire month of July. Texas Department of Transportation crews worked to clear debris and downed trees. Maintenance crews have been hard at work throughout the morning hours clearing debris and downed trees. Please continue to monitor local weather and check https://t.co/yxU1zdB9BS for the current road conditions. And remember turn around, don't drown. #BeSafeDriveSmart pic.twitter.com/TEkpvyNJ1J TxDOT Bryan (@TxDOTBryan) July 8, 2024 Around 2.5 million people in Texas are without power out of 13.8 million customers, according to Poweroutages.US, including more than 251,000 in Montgomery County, which is north of Harris County. In Louisiana, more than 31,000 didn't have electricity. It will take several days to restore power to the millions of people across the state, Thomas Gleeson, the chairman of the Public Utility Commission of Texas said at a news conference. There were 19 calls for water rescues from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nearly 1,500 flights have been canceled into and out of Houston's two major airports. According to the flight tracking website FlightAware.com, 91% of the flights out of Bush Intercontinental Airport, totaling 604, were canceled through Monday night and another 165 flights -- 78% of all outgoing trips -- out of William P. Hobby Airport. Flightaware said 560 flights originally scheduled into Bush were canceled, making up 83% of the airport's incoming flights, while 147 incoming fights into Hobby -- 68% -- were canceled. In all, there were 2,336 cancellations in and out of the United States on Monday. The worst of the rain and windy conditions were expected to be over by 7 p.m. local time, according to the Houston Chronicle. Metropolitan Transit Authority was not operating service, including buses or rail. Door Dash suspended service until 9 a.m. Tuesday. Shipping traffic already had been restricted or closed ahead of Beryl's arrival, including ports in Corpus Christi, Houston, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City. Port Houston expects to resume operations Tuesday. A gauge showed water 10.29 feet above its typical level after 9 a.m. The U.S. Coast Guard, Galveston Port Police and port staff will conduct assessments to determine when waterways and port operations can open. A portion of Interstate 45 North Freeway southbound was blocked off due to high water. Other roadways, including the Fred Hartman Bridge that connects La Porte to Baytown, were shuttered Monday morning because of high winds. And bayous and streams across the Houston area are overflowing. Some areas had more than 5 inches of rain, according to data from the Harris County Flood Control District. Several have surpassed 10 inches. Hurricane Beryl damaged part of the roof and several windows at St. Luke's Health-Brazosport Hospital in Lake Jackson, a spokesperson said. The hospital was operating on generator power. Surfside Beach in Brazoria County was under between 5 and 7 feet of water from storm surge, Mayor Gregg Bisso said. In Galveston, officials urged people to shelter in place and remain off roadways because of substantial debris and traffic lights out of order. There were reports of severe damage in Hitchcock besides flooding and downed trees. About 4 feet of flood water along Highway 6. The National Weather Service Lake Charles confirmed a tornado near Jasper at 11:11 a.m. with 30 to 40 homes damaged, according to Jasper County Judge Mark Allen. The tornado hit an apartment complex and nursing home facility. A tornado also touched down in the east Texas town of Timpson. And there were tornadoes near the Texas-Lousiana border. Storm surge was expected to lift sea levels up to 7 feet in Port O'Connor to San Luis Pass, 6 feet in Sabine Pass and Galveston Bay, and 5 feet in High Island, according to the National Hurricane Center. NHC said the fast-moving storm is expected to move into the Lower Mississippi Valley on Tuesday and then the Ohio Valley by Wednesday. While wind speeds are expected to drop significantly throughout Monday, the storm is expected to continue to dump substantial rain over its affected areas. Beryl is predicted to drop up to 15 inches of rain across some areas of the middle to upper Texas Coast. "Heavy rainfall of 3 to 5 inches, with locally higher amounts possible, is expected across portions of far southeastern Oklahoma, Arkansas and southern Missouri tonight into Tuesday," NHC said. (Reuters) -Tropical Storm Beryl brought howling winds and torrential rain to southeast Texas on Monday, killing at least three people, flooding highways, closing oil ports, canceling more than 1,300 flights and knocking out power to more than 2.7 million homes and businesses. Beryl, the season's earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, weakened from a hurricane after pounding the coastal Texas town of Matagorda with dangerous storm surges and heavy rain before moving across Houston, the U.S. National Hurricane Center (NHC) said. The agency said conditions could spawn tornadoes in Texas, Louisiana and Arkansas. The storm, which was expected to rapidly weaken as it moved inland, swept a destructive path through Jamaica, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines last week. It killed at least 11 in Mexico and the Caribbean and before reaching Texas, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick told reporters. In Texas, a 53-year-old man and a 74-year-old woman were killed in two incidents by trees that fell on their homes in the Houston area on Monday. A third person, a city of Houston employee going to work, drowned in an underpass, Patrick said. Oil refining activity slowed and some production sites were evacuated in the state that is the nation's biggest producer of U.S. oil and natural gas. "For those of you in northeast Texas, be aware. You will have tropical storm winds, maybe as late as midnight or 1 a.m. You will have flooding, you will have rain, and you need to stay off the roads," Patrick said. State officials had yet to assess the economic damage as officials remained on a rescue footing while powerful winds continued to blow. Restoring power would take several days, said Thomas Gleeson, chair of the Texas Public Utility Commission. More than 2,500 first responders were deployed statewide, said Nim Kidd, chief of the Texas Division of Emergency Management. Following warnings that it could be a deadly storm for communities in its path, people rushed to board up windows and stock up on fuel and other essential supplies. Before daybreak, strong gusts and torrential rain lashed cities and towns such as Galveston, Sargent, Lake Jackson and Freeport, television video showed. By late morning, many fallen trees blocked roads in Houston as the worst of the storm passed, with persisting winds and some road flooding, rendering lanes on major freeways impassable. The city barricaded flooded areas. Crews using a life jacket and ladder fire truck rescued a man from a truck on a flooded stretch of freeway, video posted on social media by Houston's local ABC station showed. Patrick said there were several other rescues. Flood waters exceeded 10 inches (25 cm) across most of Houston, Mayor John Whitmire said. "We're literally getting calls across Houston right now asking for first responders to come rescue individuals in desperate life safety conditions," Whitmire said. The storm had strengthened to a Category 1 hurricane as it crossed the warm waters of the Gulf of Mexico before making landfall. But the NHC said it was expected to weaken into a tropical depression overnight and a post-tropical cyclone on Tuesday. That was still enough to deliver more heavy rain as it moved northeastward from eastern Texas on Monday afternoon, across Arkansas on Tuesday, into the Lower Ohio Valley on Tuesday night, and finally into the Lower Great Lakes on Wednesday, the U.S. National Weather Service said. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the U.S. Coast Guard had positioned staff to assist with search and rescue efforts. FEMA also readied water, meals and generators to boost local response efforts, according to the Biden administration. Schools said they would close as the storm approached. Airlines canceled more than 1,300 flights, and officials ordered a smattering of evacuations in beach towns. Small businesses in Houston, including package delivery services and chiropractors, delayed openings or were closed on Monday. More than 2.7 million homes and businesses in Texas lost power, according to Patrick and and PowerOutage.us. Several counties in southeastern Texas - including Houston, where many U.S. energy companies are headquartered - are under a flash-flood warning as thunderstorms unleashed up to nearly 12 inches (30 cm) of rain in some areas. Closures of major oil-shipping ports around Corpus Christi, Galveston and Houston ahead of the storm could disrupt crude oil exports, along with shipments of crude to refineries and motor fuel from the plants. The Corpus Christi Ship Channel has re-opened, while the Port of Houston was projected to resume operations on Tuesday afternoon. Some oil producers, including Shell and Chevron, evacuated personnel from their Gulf of Mexico offshore production platforms ahead of the storm. Marathon Petroleum Corp's refinery in Texas City, Texas was hit by a power interruption on Monday amid the storm, the company said in a statement. (Reporting by Tyler Clifford, Arathy Somasekhar, Liz Hampton, Marianna Parraga, Georgina McCartney and Swati Verma; Additional reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad, Susan Heavey, Brad Heath and Daniel Trotta; Writing by Helen Popper and Daniel Trotta; Editing Rod Nickel, Josie Kao and Sandra Maler) Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas early Monday morning, leaving more than 1 million homes and businesses without power in the hours after and shuttering major ports on the states coastline. The ports of Houston, Corpus Christi, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City said they closed after condition Zulu was set by Coast Guard captains on Sunday. All vessel movement and cargo operations are restricted as gale force winds of 39 to 54 miles per hour were expected within 12 hours of the designation. More from Sourcing Journal While port condition Zulu is in place, no vessels can enter or transit through the port without the permission of the Coast Guard. Port Houston is the largest of the Texas hubs, driving $439 billion of economic activity in the state, or nearly 20 percent of Texas total gross domestic product (GDP) and $906 billion in economic impact across the U.S. The port, which handles the fifth-most 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of containers in the U.S., said it will continue to monitor the weather closely and will provide an update no later than 12 pm Central Time on Monday about Tuesdays operations. The 52-mile Houston ship channel, which on Sunday operated under transit restrictions before halting all traffic, allows access to eight public facilities and roughly 200 private terminals. Beryls impact could be felt the most in the energy sector, namely oil and natural gas, with Texas being a substantial producer of both compounds. Corpus Christi, Texas City and Freeport are all major shipping hubs for oil, so closures bring a halt to crude exports, as well as shipments to refineries. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), the hurricane made landfall near the coastal town of Matagorda, Texas, about 85 miles south-southwest of Houston, packing maximum sustained winds of 80 mph. Ports arent the only logistics hubs that have been forced to shutter as the storm approaches. Two Class I railroads in the Houston area, Union Pacific and BNSF Railway, temporarily halted some operations in affected areas Monday. UP said it suspended operations beginning Sunday evening on the southern Texas coast between Angleton and Brownsville, and plans to keep through Monday evening. On Sunday, BNSF began restricting operations in its Houston Complex, which spans 60 square miles and includes five rail yards. Ingates at BNSF Pearland Intermodal Facility in Houston are no longer being accepted. BNSF stopped operating trains south of its railyards in Temple and Teague, both into the Houston region and through the Houston Belt & Terminal Railway. The yard closures and ingate restrictions are expected to remain in place until 12 pm Central Time on Monday. Both rail operators said in statements that they established preparations for potential outages. This includes activating around-the-clock command centers, as well pre-positioning track equipment and supplies, including fuel cells, generators and rail ballast, at various locations to address any impacts to the network as power outages and flooding are expected. Meanwhile, UP said water pumps had been strategically positioned to mitigate damage. BNSF said customers with shipments expected to move through the Houston region should expect delays and extended transit times over the next several days. FedEx posted an update Friday saying it was closely monitoring the hurricane, with delays and disruptions expected for inbound and outbound shipments in the affected region across southeast Texas. Contingency plans are in place, and we are prepared to provide the best possible service as conditions allow, FedEx said in the notice, noting that it would continue working to minimize the impact on service. Beryl already hit Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula on Friday and Saturday, resulting in delays for both pickups and deliveries for international and domestic services in the states of Yucatan, Quintana Roo, Campeche and some areas in Tabasco, FedEx said. UPS told Sourcing Journal it was closely monitoring the situation, and that Hurricane Beryl may impact local deliveries in some areas Monday. Less-than-truckload (LTL) freight and transportation services provider XPO said its Houston and West Houston terminals are closed Monday, with no pickup and delivery service available at the locations. XPO is providing limited pickup and delivery service as conditions allow at three impacted Texas-based terminals in Corpus Christi, Victoria and Bryan. Delays are possible for freight originating in, destined for or traveling through these locations throughout the duration of the storm, XPO said. Hurricane Beryl hit Texas in the early hours of Monday, July 8, after already killing at least 10 people Joe Raedle/Getty Hurricane Beryl makes landfall in Jamaica According to the National Weather Service, Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Texas as a Category 1 storm in the early hours of Monday, July 8 "Life-threatening storm surge and strong winds are occurring with considerable flash and urban flooding expected," the National Weather Service added Hurricane Beryl is believed to have already killed 10 people on its path through the Caribbean and Central America Hurricane Beryl has officially made landfall in Texas. The hurricane hit the eastern part of the state in the early hours of Monday, July 8, according to the National Hurricane Center. In a post shared on X (formerly Twitter), the NHC said the hurricane had made landfall near Matagorda a community between Corpus Christi and Galveston at around 4:00 a.m. CDT with "maximum sustained winds of 80mph." "Life-threatening storm surge and strong winds are occurring with considerable flash and urban flooding expected," the post continued. According to the National Weather Service, Beryl made landfall in Texas as a Category 1 storm. A hurricane warning is currently in place across Matagorda Bay, from Mesquite Bay to Port Bolivar. This is a life-threatening situation. Persons located within these areas should take all necessary actions to protect life and property from rising water and the potential for other dangerous conditions, the NHC said, per NBC News. Related: Hurricane Beryl Death Toll Rises as Storm Moves Through the Caribbean and Causes Unimaginable Damage Winds of 92 mph were reported in Freeport, a city east of Matagorda, while some areas of southeast Texas were receiving two to four inches of rain per hour, according to USA Today. Photos shared on X by the Rosenburg Police showed flooded streets and officers being dispatched to a water rescue in the area, which is north of Matagorda. The hurricane has also left at least 487,000 people without power in Texas, according to an update from poweroutages.us shared at 7:05 a.m. ET. The storm is forecasted to weaken into a tropical storm as it moves north through eastern Texas over the next 12 hours, per NBC News. The death toll of the hurricane, which at one point strengthened to a Category 5 hurricane, rose to at least 10 on Thursday, July 4, after Beryl hit Jamaica and the Cayman Islands, according to Reuters. Victoria Razo/Bloomberg via Getty On July 5, the NHC issued hurricane and storm surge watches along the Texas/Mexico border and along the Texas coast from the Rio Grande through Corpus Christi. There is an increasing risk of damaging hurricane-force winds and life-threatening storm surge in portions of northeastern Mexico and the lower and middle Texas Coast late Sunday and Monday where watches have been issued, the NHC said. The NHC went on to say that that the Texas Gulf Coast can expect Heavy rainfall of 5 to 10 inches with localized amounts of 15 inches on late Sunday (July 7) through the middle of next week. The rain is expected to produce flash foods, especially in urban areas. Related: Honeymooners Kept Inside Their Hotel as Hurricane Beryl Batters Grenada (Exclusive) Beryl hit the Caribbean as a Category 5 hurricane and went though Jamaica and the Cayman Islands as a major storm on July 3. As of July 4, the hurricane had killed at least seven people, per the Associated Press. Three deaths were reported in Grenada and Carriacou while another occurred in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, the news agency said, citing officials. Additionally, three deaths were reported in Venezuela. Victoria Razo/Bloomberg via Getty Per the New York Times, officials in Grenada reported that 98% of the buildings on Carriacou and Petite Martinique have been destroyed by the storm, including the airport and the Princess Royal Hospital Carriacous main health center. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. As of July 2, Grenadas residents ranging between 9,000 and 10,000 people were left without electricity and communication. Beryl is the first hurricane of the 2024 season and is the earliest storm to begin as a Category 5 hurricane in the Atlantic Ocean, per Reuters. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Gov. Greg Abbott speaks about CenterPoint Energy during a press conference at Gallery Furniture in Houston on Sunday, July 14, 2024. Credit: Douglas Sweet Jr. for The Texas Tribune More than 88,000 CenterPoint customers have no power one week after hurricane July 16, 2024 at 4:07 p.m. Hundreds of thousands of CenterPoint Energy customers are in their second week without power. Tuesday morning eight days after Beryl ripped through southeastern Texas 88,000 CenterPoint customers lacked electricity. CenterPoint Energy Executive Vice President Jason M. Ryan speaks during a Public Utilities Commission meeting in Austin on Thursday, July 11, 2024. Leaders of various energy companies spoke to the committee about the status of their progress in restoring power in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl. Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune About 10,000 customers who receive power through other utilities also lacked electricity Tuesday morning. CenterPoint said they expect 98% of their customers to have electricity back Wednesday night. It is not clear exactly when the remaining 2% of their affected customers about 45,000 households and businesses will get power back. The company's outage tracker shows that some households in Harris County won't have electricity back until Friday. The company's goal is to restore power to all households and businesses that can receive it by Friday, according to Thomas Gleeson, chair of the Public Utilities Commission, which regulates electricity. Gleeson indicated during a Monday press conference that some homes and businesses are so badly damaged that they will not be able to receive power by Friday. The longer-lasting outages were expected to be in the hard-hit areas of Matagorda County, Brazoria County and parts of Galveston County, along with some pockets elsewhere, said Jason Ryan, executive vice president of regulatory services and government affairs for CenterPoint, at a PUC meeting on Thursday. The slower work will involve rebuilding large spans of infrastructure, Ryan told the commissioners, such as poles broken and toppled onto the ground. We know that we still have a lot of work to do and we will not stop the work until it is done, Ryan said. Nearly 3 million electricity customers lost power in Texas after Hurricane Beryl swept across the southeastern portion of the state Monday. [They need to fix something quick: Texans without power for days are getting angry] Frustrations at CenterPoint, the Houston-area electric utility, have boiled over after it bungled its communications to the public amid yet another massive Texas power outage. The company appeared in chaos as it worked to turn on power for angry people who faced days in dangerous heat without air conditioning, including stressed customers struggling to manage health issues without electricity. More than 48 hours after the storm left the region, the company still had no clear timeline for when people could expect their electricity to be restored. Yet even as elected officials piled onto everyday Texans scathing criticisms of how long the outages are lasting, CenterPoint appears to be restoring power to people faster than it has after recent storms. We have never restored more than a million customers a little over two days after a hurricane before and you can only do that with significant readiness, Ryan said at the PUC meeting Thursday. Entergy CEO Eliecer "Eli" Viamontes speaks during a Public Utilities Commission meeting in Austin on Thursday, July 11, 2024. Credit: Sergio Flores for The Texas Tribune According to PowerOutage.us, Entergy Texas, which serves College Station and Beaumont, still about 4,200 customers without power Monday morning; Texas-New Mexico Power, serving some areas of Houston and around Brazoria on the Gulf Coast, had over 3,600 customers lacking power; and AEP Texas, which stretches from Brownsville to Bay City, had about 142 customers without power. Utility representatives made the case to state regulators on Thursday that they were prepared for the storm. PUC Chairman Thomas Gleeson told Ryan that the utility needed to get out in the community to listen to feedback when the repairs were done. The public expects more communication, more frequent communication, different modes of communication, Gleeson said. And so I think its definitely incumbent on all of us to look at the way we communicate going forward. Emily Foxhall, Alejandra Martinez, Dante Motley and Pooja Salhotra Heat remains a danger this weekend as hundreds of thousands go without power July 13, 2024 at 10:22 a.m. Temperatures in the Houston area are expected to hit the high 80s Saturday and low 90s Sunday, as hundreds of thousands of Texas households and businesses are still without power following Hurricane Beryl. As of Saturday morning, the National Weather Service has much of the Houston area under a moderate heat risk, which affects most individuals sensitive to heat, especially those without effective cooling and/or adequate hydration. Humidity is also a factor topping out at 77%. Scattered thunderstorms are also expected throughout the day. Extreme heat is the leading cause of weather-related fatalities each year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. On Tuesday, a 60-year-old disabled man died from a heat stroke following the storm, according to Matagorda County Justice of the Peace Jason Sanders. His death brought the hurricanes death total to 10. CenterPoint Energy projects that by the end of the weekend, they will have restored power to 85% of the original 2.26 million outages they faced, leaving approximately 390,000 still without electricity on Monday. As of Saturday morning, 689,000 of its customers were still without power. Entergy Texas, which serves College Station and Beaumont, still has 50,000 customers without power. Texas-New Mexico Power, serving some areas of Houston and around Brazoria on the Gulf Coast, has over 29,000 customers lacking power. AEP Texas, which stretches from Brownsville to Bay City, has 1,100 customers without power. Dante Motley Texans affected by Beryl can start applying for federal aid this weekend July 13, 2024 at 2:42 p.m. Residents and business owners in 17 Texas counties that were hard hit by Hurricane Beryl will soon be able to apply for federal dollars to help them cover the costs to repair or replace their homes. The Federal Emergency Management Agency funding will be available to uninsured and underinsured people who live in Brazoria, Chambers, Galveston, Harris, Jackson, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Orange, Polk, San Jacinto, Walker, and Wharton counties, said FEMA spokesperson Jaclyn Rothenberg. On Saturday, two other counties were added including Fort Bend and Nacogdoches. Individuals will be able to apply for funding by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov or by calling 1-800-621-3362 or by using the FEMA App. The quickest way to receive the dollars is often by applying online because of high call volume, Rothenberg said. Registration is expected to open by Saturday morning. Affected individuals can also visit a FEMA disaster recovery center to get direct help from a FEMA staff member. Some recovery centers were opened in the Houston region after a May derecho storm slammed into the region in May. The amount of federal funding individuals can receive through FEMAs program varies. Qualifying individuals can receive serious needs assistance, which is a $750 payment for emergency supplies such as food, medicine and baby formula. Separate claims can be submitted to receive support to repair homes. Theres a whole series of questions we ask people to get them the maximum amount of support, Rothenberg said. The maximum amount FEMA can provide to an individual for repairs is $42,500, according to statutory guidelines passed by Congress. People cannot receive disaster and insurance assistance for the same damages. Insured Texans should first file claims through their existing policies before applying for FEMA assistance. FEMA reformed its federal assistance policies this year, allowing people who are underinsured to receive federal assistance if their insurance policy does not cover the full extent of their damages. The state could request funding for additional counties affected by Beryl, which hit Texas early Monday morning as a Category 1 hurricane and knocked out power for more than 2.5 million people. Gov. Greg Abbott said in a Thursday press release that additional counties may be requested once damage assessments are complete. The announcement comes after President Joe Biden approved a major disaster declaration on Tuesday for damage sustained from Beryl in 67 counties. That declaration was the first step in unlocking federal dollars and resources to support storm recovery efforts. FEMA offers two main types of assistance: public assistance and individual assistance. Public assistance supports local governments in rebuilding or repairing infrastructure, such as roads, bridges or schools while individual assistance helps affected people jumpstart their own recovery. Pooja Salhotra Matagorda County was "hardest hit" by Beryl, Patrick says July 10, 2024 at 1:28 p.m. Some 2,500 households in the unincorporated coastal community of Sargent may not have power for another two weeks, Matagorda County Judge Bobby Seiferman said Wednesday during a press briefing about Hurricane Beryl's aftermath. The hurricane struck the Texas coast early Monday and knocked out power for millions of Texans along the Gulf Coast, greater Houston and in Deep East Texas. Matagorda County was the hardest hit of all 121 counties included in the states disaster declaration, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said at the briefing. [Days after Beryl, Texans toil to cope with debris, heat, rain and no power] And Sargent was the hardest hit of that part, of that county, he said. Patrick is serving as acting governor while Gov. Greg Abbott is on an economic development trip in Asia. Since Monday, Patrick has traveled to Houston, Galveston and now Bay City to provide updates on storm recovery. He couldnt visit Sargent because of the bad weather and there wasnt a suitable place for his helicopter to land, he said. Sen. Joan Huffman, a Republican who represents Matagorda County, also attended the briefing and promised to work with local and federal officials to help the county deal with the storms aftermath, including restoring power and cleaning up debris. Matagorda County officials have asked the state to help set up cooling stations, remove debris and get food to residents beyond ready-to-eat meals, Patrick said. Tony Cantu surveys the property damage caused by Hurricane Beryl on Wednesday in Sargent. The coastal town, located in Matagorda County, may not have power for another two weeks. Credit: Hope Mora for The Texas Tribune Theyve asked for a lot because there are a lot of issues, he said. We are going to do everything we can to check every box that they asked us to check. He added that the state will provide additional security personnel to Sargent as well as food, water and ice. Pooja Salhotra Outages make it hard to discharge hospital patients, leading to backups July 10, 2024 at 1:17 p.m. Houston's NRG Arena was being converted into a temporary medical facility on Wednesday. The facility will have 250 beds for hospital patients who have been discharged and cant return to homes without power in Houston, according to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick. Credit: Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune Several Houston-area hospitals are having trouble making room for new patients because they cant discharge patients to homes without power, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said Tuesday. In fact, we had a police officer who was shot in the leg, and when the mayor went down to see him the next day, he still didnt have a room, he said. [Beryl power outages crowd hospitals, delay new admissions] Patrick, who has served as acting governor amid the storm, said NRG Arena will be converted into a temporary medical step-down facility to free up space in local hospitals. It will have 250 beds available. Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd said hospitals, physicians and patients will decide who goes to NRG Arena. Any of the regional hospitals can send a patient to the arena, as most of them are in a crisis, he said. Millions of Texans are still without power after Hurricane Beryl caused regionwide power outages. Kidd said it was in patients best interest not to go back to their homes if they dont have power and they cant keep their medications refrigerated. Kidd has also ordered 25 additional ambulances to come to Houston and assist this week. The City of Houston told us they had an ambulance shortage because all of their ambulances were in the emergency department waiting to offload patients, he said. Some had been sitting there for three-plus hours. This isnt the first time the arena in Houston has been used during a crisis. In 2005, a medical facility was established in what was then known as the Astrodome to treat and shelter Hurricane Katrina evacuees. Stephen Simpson Hurricane Beryl death toll rises to 10 July 10, 2024 at 1:46 p.m. Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Tim Kidd, left, listens as Acting Governor Dan Patrick answer questions about Hurricane Beryl on Monday at the State Operations Center in Austin. Credit: Olivia Anderson/The Texas Tribune Hurricane Beryl, which brought fierce winds and heavy rains to a large portion of southeastern Texas, killed at least 10 people, according to state and local authorities. In Harris County, two people waiting out the storm in their homes were killed in separate instances when trees fell on their residences. An Atascocita Fire Department spokesperson said that in the first instance, two people were in a residence when a tree fell, killing one and injuring the other. The second instance saw a 74-year-old grandmother die after a tree fell on her bedroom, according to Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick announced another person, a city of Houston employee, died from drowning in a flooded underpass on July 8. Acting Houston Police Department Chief Larry Satterwhite identified the man in a social media post as 54-year-old HPD information security officer Russell Richardson. [Tropical Storm Beryl: How to get help and help Texans] Harris County also reported two deaths from carbon monoxide poisoning during Beryl, Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd said in a July 9 news conference. Kidd said that during the power outages, people run generators in unsafe places like in a garage or near windows allowing carbon monoxide to pool indoors. This can lead to asphyxiation. In Montgomery County, two died inside a tent in a wooded area, according to a news release from the countys emergency management office. No additional details surrounding their death were available. A third person, a man in his 40s, died in Montgomery County after a tree fell on him while he was on his tractor, the news release said. In Galveston County, John Florence, an investigator with the county's Medical Examiner confirmed that 71 year-old Judith Greet died at Crystal Beach, a community in the Bolivar Peninsula. Greet was on oxygen for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, a lung disease that blocks airflow and makes it difficult to breathe. When the hurricane knocked out power in her RV home, Greets oxygen machine ran out of battery and she died. In Matagorda County, where thousands are still without power, county officials reported that one person died from heat. The Houston Chronicle reported that a tenth person died in a house fire caused by lightning. Houston fire officials told The Texas Tribune that the cause is under investigation. Pooja Salhotra, Stephen Simpson, Dante Motley and Alejandra Martinez Power restoration could take days and summer temperatures are rising July 9, 2024 at 7:48 p.m. The Ha Family play games together at the Trini Mendenhall Community Center, which was being offered as a cooling center on Tuesday in Houston. Credit: Joseph Bui for The Texas Tribune Millions of Texans are heading into a third summer day without power after Hurricane Beryl wreaked havoc through several counties including the states most populous one and temperatures rose dangerously into the 90s. The heat index is projected to push past 100 degrees in some areas, compounding the risk for an already battered and worn-out area. Power companies have deployed thousands of workers to restore power while state and local officials navigate residents frustrations at whats becoming routine in Texas: massive power outages after winter storms, thunderstorms, tornadoes or hurricanes. [Millions of Texans face third day without power in summer heat] As of 6:22 p.m. Tuesday, 1.9 million electricity customers concentrated in the southeastern corner of the state that bore the brunt of Beryls fierce winds still didnt have electricity. Power companies and elected officials said it could be days before everyone has electricity again, meaning people without air conditioning would have to figure out how to cope with the heat. The power system is a life saving critical infrastructure its the difference between life and death, said Costa Samaras, a professor of civil and environmental engineering at Carnegie Mellon University. The era of nobody could have foreseen these conditions is over. Utility officials and state leaders have said it will likely take days to get everyones electricity back on and temperatures are projected to rise steadily over the next week, National Weather Service Meteorologist Ryan Knapp said. Temperatures in the 80s and 90s can create unsafe conditions for high-risk individuals, especially in a home with no power, and finding ways to keep cool will be paramount, he said. The upper 80s can obviously heat the inside of the home pretty quickly, Knapp said. Pooja Salhotra, Jess Huff, Emily Foxhall and Kayla Gao Federal disaster declaration approved, Patrick says July 9, 2024 at 3:14 p.m. Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said President Joe Biden approved a Federal Emergency Disaster Declaration to aid Texans in the recovery from Hurricane Beryl. Following a phone call with Biden Tuesday, Patrick stated that he requested FEMA assistance to cover costs for debris removal and emergency protective measures. We are appreciative that the federal government will step in and they will pick up most of the cost as we go through recovery of the storm, Patrick said at a Tuesday press briefing. [Biden says Texas officials delayed request for Beryl federal aid] Once the declaration is finalized and issued, the states homeowners and business will be able to access loans and grants to help with Beryl-related recovery costs. FEMAs public assistance program is divided into categories. Part A covers the costs of debris removal, while part B covers emergency protective measures like medical care, transportation and evacuation. Patrick said the federal government would be covering most of the cost associated with storm recovery. The declaration includes 121 impacted counties, Texas Division of Emergency Management Chief Nim Kidd said. Those counties include Brazoria, Galveston and Harris. Kidd urged residents to adhere to local government regulations if they start doing their own debris cleanup. Debris will need to be separated into three categories. Vegetative debris includes leaves and plants; construction and demolition debris includes building materials; appliances and white goods are another category. Please dont put it all into one pile, Kidd said. It only slows the recovery process. On Monday, Biden spoke with Houston Mayor John Whitmire and said his administration is committed to supporting Texas, a White House spokesperson said. The U.S. Coast Guard and FEMA are on the ground and stand ready to support local response efforts, the spokesperson said. They will remain with the people of Texas every step of the way. Alejandra Martinez and Pooja Salhotra Texans begin to assess damage and plan clean-up efforts after bruising storm July 9, 2024 at 9:00 a.m. Mikhail Kochukov surveys a tree on his property that fell from strong winds caused by Hurricane Beryl on Monday in Houston. Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune Hurricane Beryl plowed through the Houston region Monday and, according to local meteorologist Matt Lanza, keeping up hurricane strength until it got halfway across town. Only in the afternoon would the winds die down completely, allowing people to emerge to follow a routine many know well: assess the damage, check on others, clean up and wait for the power to return. The storm jolted people awake as its winds roared, blowing at 90 miles per hour, pushing tree branches at windows and ripping shingles from rooftops. Ten to 15 inches of rain pounded homes, according to Houston Mayor John Whitmire. [Just my luck: Houston begins clean up after Beryl rips through Gulf Coast] The wind sounded to 31-year-old Elizabeth Alvarez in Houston like someone screaming. The mother of six woke up at 4 a.m., scared, and didnt go back to sleep. She thought her window might break. She lost power and hour by hour more Houstonians did too, their air conditioning and refrigerated food going along with it. Later, Alvarez would drag her pet birds in their cages onto her porch to feel the cooler air, while neighbors grilled corn and pork and others kicked a soccer ball. She would clutch a handheld, battery-powered fan, that was turned off to save for when she needed it. Across the region, fences toppled. Awnings ripped from restaurants. Signs soared away from businesses. Traffic lights twisted askew. A local television station lost power and went off the air. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick said on The Weather Channel, Really, Houston is getting the brunt of the wind and the rain. The pops of transformers echoed. Entire trees crashed down. And the damage pushed on from there, as Beryl uprooted trees and downed power lines into southeast Texas. In Liberty, a beloved pecan tree outside the historic courthouse was uprooted early on Monday, according to Bluebonnet News. The tree served as a meeting place for generations of residents. The rebuild is going to be significant. There was real damage. But the good news is for Houston, this aint our first rodeo, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz said at a Monday evening press conference. Emily Foxhall How to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning from generators during power outages July 8, 2024 at 12:59 p.m. When electrical power is knocked out after a hurricane, carbon monoxide poisoning from improperly used gas-powered generators is especially dangerous. The odorless, colorless gas is called an invisible killer. Early symptoms can include headache, dizziness, weakness and nausea, similar to the flu. To stay safe, experts recommend never connecting a generator directly to your homes wiring, ensuring it's properly grounded, and always operate it outdoors away from windows and vents. Alejandra Martinez Beryl makes landfall in Texas as Category 1 hurricane July 8, 2024 at 5:37 a.m. A National Weather Service graphic shows potential rainfall from Hurricane Beryl, which made landfall near Matagorda at about 4 a.m. on Monday. The storm is expected to move northeast on a track through East Texas, finally leaving the state early Tuesday. Credit: National Weather Service Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Matagorda around 4 a.m. Monday as a Category 1 Hurricane, according to the National Hurricane Center. The storm strengthened through Sunday evening and had maximum sustained winds of 80 miles per hour when it came ashore. A 5 a.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center warned about life-threatening storm surge and inland flooding Monday. Hundreds of thousands of Texans are without power, including many in coastline counties such as Brazoria and Matagorda, according to PowerOutage.us. The full scope of the storm's damage is not yet clear and it could cause more Monday as it moves northeast through the state. The hurricane center said the coast was experiencing life-threatening storm surge. It also warned of flash floods throughout the southeastern portion of the state as the storm continues moving inland, bringing five to 10 inches of rain to some areas or up to 15 inches in some isolated places. Category 1 storms primarily damage unanchored mobile homes, shrubbery and trees. They can also do extensive damage to electricity lines and cause power outages that last several days. Pooja Salhotra What should I do after a hurricane hits? July 8, 2024 at 5:00 a.m. Stay away from flood waters and damaged power lines. Dont enter damaged buildings. Take photos and document damages to your home or property. Residents are also encouraged to document their storm damages and losses through a state-run online survey to help state officials understand the extent of the damages. Organizations like the American Red Cross, Salvation Army and local volunteer organizations can help you find food, shelter and supplies, as well as even assist you with clean-up efforts. [How to navigate FEMA during this years hurricane season] Government and community resources may be available to help with recovery. Disaster declarations from the governor and president may free up federal funds for recovery assistance from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. People cannot receive disaster aid and insurance assistance for the same damages, so insured Texans should file claims through their existing policies before applying for FEMA assistance. Maria Probert Hermosillo and Pooja Salhotra Tornadoes pop up in East Texas after Beryl downgraded to a Tropical Storm July 8, 2024 at 1:21 p.m. After downing trees and power lines across the Greater Houston area, Hurricane Beryl has been downgraded to a Tropical Storm, meaning wind speeds have lowered below 75 miles per hour. Maximum sustained winds have decreased to about 60 miles per hour, a 1 p.m. advisory from the National Hurricane Center. Beryl is headed northeastward at about 14 miles per hour and is expected to increase in speed as it continues to move through East Texas, where some local officials asked residents to shelter in place. The National Weather Service out of Shreveport is tracking three confirmed tornadoes on radar, two in Texas and the third in Louisiana. The first is south of Joaquin, which is north of Lufkin and near the Louisiana border, the second is north of Timpson, which is also near the border. Forecasters urged Texans to use caution amid downed power lines and warned that improper generator use can cause carbon monoxide poisoning. On the Texas coastline, a storm surge warning is still in effect north of San Luis Pass to Sabine Pass, an area that includes Galveston Bay. The tropical storm warning was discontinued from Port OConner to San Luis Pass. The Coastal Bend, including areas like Corpus Christi, was spared from the brunt of the storm. Pooja Salhotra and Jess Huff High winds persist into East Texas, prompting requests for residents to shelter in place July 8, 2024 at 12:32 p.m. High winds have made their way north from the Texas coast into East Texas and counties have begun to ask residents to shelter in place as a way to keep emergency vehicles off the roads as well. The storm kept up its momentum as a Category 1 hurricane all the way to Interstate 10, surprising meteorologist Matt Lanza at Space City Weather. The widespread wind gusts of 75 to 85 mph so far inland was really unnerving, he wrote in an updated blog post. Residents of San Jacinto, Liberty, Hardin and Tyler counties have been encouraged to shelter in place, especially to stay off the roads in an effort to also keep emergency vehicles off the road. News outlets and emergency management teams throughout the region have reported downed power lines and trees throughout the region. The National Weather Service issued a tornado watch until 10 p.m. Monday for counties between Montgomery and Texarkana counties, as well as Northwest and North Central Louisiana and Southern Arkansas. A wind advisory is in effect until Tuesday morning. Jess Huff Storm passes over Lake Livingston Dam, which was inundated with rain in April July 8, 2024 at 12:54 p.m. In Polk County, which is home to the Lake Livingston Dam, the storm began to peak around 11 a.m. with the worst of it located over the dam, according to Polk County Emergency Management. High winds are still top of mind, even as Beryl has been downgraded to a tropical storm. The dam, which recently reported potential failures, was releasing 21,175 cubic feet of water per second as of 11 a.m. and the lake level is at 130.93 feet above sea level. This is significantly less than the several hundred thousand cubic feet of water released in April, when storms required several hundred thousand cubic feet of water per second to be released for multiple days in a row. The Trinity River Authority, in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Authority, initiated a temporary flight restriction over the dam as the authority also began construction to mitigate potential failures early Monday. Jess Huff Houston officials ask residents to remain off roads as damage assessment begins July 8, 2024 at 12:48 p.m. A truck drives through water and downed branches from Hurricane Beryl on Monday in Houston. Credit: Annie Mulligan for The Texas Tribune Downed tree limbs and power lines, flooded streets, and power outages have Houston officials pleading with residents to stay home. Houston mayor John Whitmire held a news conference Monday detailing the dire situation the city finds itself in as it took the brunt of Hurricane Beryl. We are dealing with a very serious amount of water. Around 10 inches of rain across the city and 90-mile-per-hour winds and hurricane conditions, Whitmire said. Please, Houstonians, shelter in place. We are in emergency and rescue mode. Whitmire said over 700,000 Houston electricity customers are currently without power, and the regions two major airports are not open. However, city officials should better understand the situation now that the storm is moving away. We are experiencing the dirty side of a dirty storm, Whitmire said. The storm's sustained winds were still at 70 miles per hour as it moved from the Gulf Coast into the Houston area. The National Hurricane Center said that up to 10 inches of rain could fall in some places and some isolated areas of the state may receive 15 inches. Some areas of Houston have already received nearly 10 inches of rainfall, according to data from the Harris County Flood Control District. On Monday morning, local officials in the Houston area said the storm had downed trees and caused street flooding. At least two people died when trees fell onto their residences. In Rosenberg, a city 35 miles southwest of Houston, a downed tree hit a high water rescue vehicle returning from a rescue, police said on X. Officials there also urged residents to stay off roadways. Houston Fire Department Chief Samuel Pena underscored the strain on resources due to the high demand for high-water rescues and live wire calls. These are currently the primary service requests, consuming a significant portion of their resources, and they have already helped eight people in high-water rescues. Earlier today, we saw a video of a high-water rescue, and you can see how resource-intensive those call types are. We cant keep using those resources. Please be cautious and heed the warnings, Pena said. Stephen Simpson, Pooja Salhotra and Emily Foxhall Refineries begin reporting storm-related air pollution July 8, 2024 at 12:34 p.m. Some refineries along the Texas coast have shut down due to Hurricane Beryl and are self-reporting instances of unintentional emissions. In one instance, Freeport LNG, a large natural gas terminal on the coast of Brazoria County, reported releases of over 8,000 pounds of unplanned air pollution on Sunday. Pollutants included ethylene, a chemical with a faint sweet and musky odor, that can cause headache, dizziness, fatigue, and lightheadedness if people are exposed to it in large amounts overtime. In their report to the state, the company wrote the facility was proactively shutting down before the hurricane winds caused power outages. [The shutdown] resulted in a subsequent unavoidable venting, the report said. Flaring, a process for burning unwanted gas to relieve pressure or clear pipes, usually happens before or during extreme weather events, said Luke Metzger, executive director of the nonprofit Environment Texas. The Marathon Galveston Bay Refinery in Texas City, along the Houston Ship Channel, tweeted the facility was flaring Monday morning due to a brief power disruption during the storm. No report has been submitted to the state yet. Metzger said Beryls pollution events are low compared to Hurricane Harveys 8.3 million pounds of air pollution reported to the state, but suspects more facilities will submit reports after the storms passing. I was surprised looking at the pollution reports that there has been relatively little pollution reported, Metzger said. Thats either good news because the storm had less of an impact [on refineries] or facilities [operators] have learned their lesson. Alejandra Martinez Disclosure: CenterPoint Energy has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here. Roshan Taroll says his mother, Beena Preth, brought him to the United States as a child in hopes he would put his nose to the grindstone and shoot his shot at accessing the bounty of opportunity uniquely offered by America. He will not have the chance. In 2008, Taroll arrived in the U.S. as a 10-year-old with his younger brother and Preth, who had secured a job in the States at a tech company on an H-1B visa. He subsequently became a Dreamer: the moniker given to migrants who arrived in the U.S. as children through no fault of their own. Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), instituted during President Barack Obama's administration, shielded many of those individualswho often do not know any other country as homefrom deportation. But core to being a Dreamer under DACA's purview is that you must be undocumented. Taroll* and about 250,000 others, meanwhile, are known as "Documented Dreamers": those who came to the U.S. as children lawfully but face self-deportation if their parents cannot help them get a green card, or if they cannot find another visa, before they age out of dependent status at 21 years old. DACA does not apply to them, so in many cases, Documented Dreamers are vulnerable to expulsion not in spite of coming to the U.S. legallybut because of it. One typical reaction: These migrants must not have done their due diligence in trying to obtain permanent residence; they came here as kids, so they had plenty of time. It's a core misconception that obscures how topsy-turvy the U.S. immigration system is. It can take decadesor moreto get through the green card application process, thanks to stratospheric wait times wrought by country-of-origin caps. The federal government allots approximately 140,000 employment-based green cards annually. But each country can nab a maximum of 7 percent of those in a single year, meaning people from nations that produce a disproportionate amount of highly skilled immigrants are punished based on where they were born. And thus the backlog was born. India, where Taroll is originally from, is a prime example. There are about 1.8 million cases in the backlog. Over one million of those are from India, and they are waiting in a line that continues growing longer and longer with little hope in sight. Many will wait decades. Most perverse is that that is essentially the best-case scenario, as new applicants today now face a wait time that requires defying mortality: about 134 years. Hundreds of thousands will die waiting. Taroll's mother was one of them. In 2018, Preth died of cancer before she could make it to the front of the line. Although the federal government allows family members to apply for permanent residence after their principal petitioner dies, that hope was more theoretical than practical, as Taroll predictably aged out of dependent status before he, too, could reach the front of the line. He subsequently converted to a student visa to finish his degree at Boston College and then received a temporary work permit allotted to international students who graduate with science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees. His employer, a semiconductor company, submitted Taroll in three H-1B visa lotteries, of which the odds of winning have dropped off a cliff in recent years. He wasn't selected. So last month, Taroll was forced to self-deport to Taiwan, where his employer was able to secure him a spot. He does not know the language nor does he have any family ties to the country. "I grew up in my hometown of Boston as just a regular kid, never imagining that my status would define my decisions later in life," he tells me. "And like many Documented Dreamers, we only truly understood the ramifications once we get closer to aging out and have to start planning for ways to remain in the only country that we know as home." Though the architecture of the law doomed Taroll's chances at getting permanent residence from his mother, some Documented Dreamers never have any such hope to begin with, as certain visas do not have pathways to permanent residence or citizenship. In 2005, Laurens van Beek's parents moved him from the Netherlands to Iowa on an E2 small business visa, which allows for extensions so long as they meet certain requirements. It does not, however, allow them to get in line for a green card. Van Beek attended the University of Iowa on an international student visa and, like Taroll, received a temporary extension based on his studies in STEM. But in 2022, after three failed H-1B visa lottery attempts, he had no choice but to leave the country. At the time of his expulsion, van Beek says, his fatherwho remained in Iowa to run his small business, Jewelry by Haroldwas suffering from grave kidney disease. "I believe DACA is a good thing," van Beek tells me, "however why are these protections not extended to Documented Dreamers as well? Or at least something to prevent us from having to give up our lives and roots?" Some lawmakers on both sides of the aisle have tried to answer that question. In 2021, Rep. Deborah Ross (DN.C.) introduced a bill in the House to effectively close the Documented Dreamer loophole and pave a pathway for citizenship. It also would have addressed another one of the more harebrained inconsistencies with DACA, whose recipients can apply for work permits. Documented Dreamers cannot. "When I was a freshman and sophomore, I didn't go to any of the career fairs," Documented Dreamer Pareen Mhatre told me in 2021, "because I knew that I wouldn't be able to apply for any of the internships." That same legislation was introduced in the Senate by Sens. Alex Padilla (DCalif.) and Rand Paul (RKy.). "My bill America's Children Act fixes the documented dreamer problem by prioritizing the children of legal immigrants for permanent status," Paul tells Reason. "So, a child whose parents came legally will not have to face deportation when they turn twenty-one." In 2022, it looked like change was nigh. A version of that bill passed the House as an amendment in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). And then it was laid to rest in the Senate's legislative graveyard after Sen. Charles Grassley (RIowa) rebuffed the proposal. So the change, despite being widely uncontroversial and not rupturing along predictable partisan fault lines, remains paralyzed for now. "Comprehensive immigration reform has become the enemy of incremental reform," adds Paul. The momentum isn't dead. In June, Padilla and Ross submitted a bipartisan letter, signed by 43 lawmakers, urging President Joe Biden's administration to make the plight of Documented Dreamers less tenuous via executive action, although a legislative solution is by far the superior option, should Congress find the political will to do its job. "Every day without action results in young adults, who have been lawfully raised in the United States by skilled workers and small business owners, to be forced to leave the country, separating them from their families and stopping their ability to contribute to our country," says Dip Patel, founder of Improve the Dream, a group that advocates for Documented Dreamers. "The economic case is clear and the moral case is clear. It is common sense." Taroll is just one such casualty. He still hopes he'll get a different ending. "This country means everything to me and I owe everything to it," he says. "While I always say that my parents raised me and my brother, I also believe that this country raised us. It afforded us the opportunities to participate academically, personally, and professionally. We always saw it as home and as a duty always made sure to leave our positive mark on it." Van Beek agrees: "My current hope is that my employer is able to secure a visa for me to come back to the United States," he tells me, "but in the meantime I'm doing my best to stay positive." Both also have strong familial reasons to return to the U.S., albeit in different ways. Van Beek's father "is not in the best medical state," he says, but he survivedafter one of his employees donated her kidney to save him. Taroll's mom, meanwhile, has been gone for over six years. But he still wants to come back for her. "All she wanted was for me and my brother to work hard and have a chance at the American dream," he says. "It feels as though I am letting her down by not fulfilling her one wish." *CORRECTION: The original version of this article partially mischaracterized Taroll's relationship to DACA. The post He Immigrated to the U.S. as a Child. He Was Just Kicked OutDespite Coming Here Legally. appeared first on Reason.com. Drew Angerer/Getty Images With immigration sitting as a top issue for both candidates and voters heading into the 2020 election, University of Michigan researchers have released survey data breaking down immigration attitudes in four Michigan cities. The Detroit Metro Area Communities Study and Michigan Metro Areas Community Study surveyed residents in Detroit, Flint, Grand Rapids and Ypsilanti on whether they believed legal immigration to the United States should be easier or harder. Overall, 39% of residents in the four cities metro areas believed it should be easier for foreigners to legally immigrate to the U.S., while 16% said policies should remain the same. Twenty-six percent of respondents said legal immigration should be harder, while 19% were unsure if immigration should be easier or harder. When looking at each city independently, residents of Ypsilanti and Grand Rapids were more likely to favor making legal immigration easier than residents of Flint and Detroit. 45% of Ypsilanti residents and 44% of Grand Rapids residents felt it should be easier for foreigners to legally immigrate to the U.S. while 37% of Detroit residents and 29% of Flint residents holding the same view. Additionally, while 29% of Ypsilanti residents and 23% of Grand Rapids felt legal immigration should be harder, 26% of Detroiters and 31% of Flint residents felt the same way. mimacs-imm-2024 Residents of Flint and Detroit also showed more uncertainty in their attitudes toward immigration than residents in Grand Rapids and Ypsilanti. Researchers noted that these differences in attitudes can likely be explained by differences in education, with residents in municipalities where a higher share of the population has a bachelors degree being more supportive of easier legal immigration. Thirty-seven percent of Ypsilanti residents and 39.3% of Grand Rapids residents surveyed held a bachelors degree compared to 16.9% of Detroit residents and 12% of Flint residents. Across the four cities, 55% of residents with a bachelors degree supported making legal immigration easier, while 34% of residents without a bachelors degree held the same view. Residents who did not have a bachelors degree were also more likely to believe it should be harder for foreigners to immigrate legally. However, the issue brief also notes that residents in the four cities without a bachelors degree were also more likely to say they were uncertain on their views on immigration policy than those with bachelors degrees. Mara Ostfeld, faculty lead of the Detroit Metro Area Communities Study noted that former President Donald Trump and other anti-immigrant push narratives that immigrants pose an economic threat to U.S. nationals, despite data showing that immigrants are more likely to create jobs than native-born Americans. Income and education have the same kind of relationship to attitudes on immigration, Ostfeld said, so these narratives around immigrants posing an economic threat will always be felt by individuals who are economically vulnerable and will impact their attitudes. Ostfeld also said the prominence of immigration discussions could explain why 19% of residents surveyed were uncertain of their opinion on immigration policy. Because its been such a salient issue, people are increasingly familiar with both sides of it. Theres this strong argument that theres this economic threat, and theres this other feature that these are people who are just like us, and if you felt like your kid was in an unsafe place, you would probably do the exact same thing, Ostfeld said. Proximity to immigrants was also shown to influence residents attitudes on immigration policy, with U.S.-born residents living in census tracts with a higher percentage of foreign-born residents showing more support for easier legal immigration. Contact is one of the most powerful things at building empathy and support for a group that one may not be familiar with, and [you] find really powerful support for that across social science literatures and even in our own survey of a variety of Detroit neighborhoods, Ostfeld said. According to the issue brief, for every 10% of a census tract that is foreign born, there was a 3% increase on average in support for easier legal immigration. The narrative that immigrants pose an economic threat also carries tension, Ostfeld said, as voters with lower-levels of education are often the most likely to be in contact with immigrants based on where immigrants tend to move. Additionally, uncertainty toward immigration policy was slightly higher in areas with lower shares of immigrants, Ostfeld said. Ostfeld also pointed to the impact that immigration policy will have on Michigan, with the entire state considered a border zone due to its proximity to the Canadian border. Every place in Michigan is subject to immigration enforcement. So this is something that will affect the lived experiences of every Michigander, Ostfeld said. If Michiganders support making it harder to immigrate, increased immigrant policing or more immigrant enforcement, these are policies that will shape the day-to-day experiences of every Michigander, Ostfeld said. Thats also an important question to think about, how people want immigration policy to affect their day to day lives in a variety of ways, Ostfeld said. The post Immigration is a top 2024 election issue. Heres what residents in 4 Michigan cities believe. appeared first on Michigan Advance. Are you an independent? Here's what to know to vote in Arizona's July 30 primary election More than 1.3 million Arizonans who are registered to vote aren't affiliated with a political party. The group of independents comprises about a third of Arizona's electorate. They lag just behind the roughly 1.4 million Republicans who are also signed up to vote, and outnumber the state's 1.2 million Democrats and 61,000 recognized third-party voters. Unaffiliated voters are allowed to cast a ballot in the upcoming July 30 state primary. But they must first take a few extra steps to select a Republican, Democratic or municipal-only option. Are you an independent voter? If so, here's what to know about voting in the primary election. Voters wait in line on Nov. 8, 2022, at the ASU Sun Devil Fitness Center in Tempe, Arizona. How do I make my ballot choice? Contact your county recorder by mail, over the phone, via email or by visiting their office in person to make your selection. Maricopa County voters can select a ballot online through their voter dashboard. What if I want to vote in person? You can vote in person at any polling place before or on election day. You do not need to notify election officials of your ballot choice in advance if you wish to vote in person. You'll make your ballot selection upon checking in at the polls. If you were previously mailed a ballot, it will be automatically voided. To find voting locations, check your county's election website. Are there deadlines? Yes. If you wish to vote by mail, you must make your ballot selection by July 19. That's the last day for all voters to request a mail-in ballot. You can still vote in person if you miss the deadline. If you're casting your ballot by mail, you should send it back no later than July 23. This gives postal workers time to get their completed ballot to election officials by 7 p.m. on election day. What is a municipal-only, or nonpartisan, ballot? Municipal races are nonpartisan, and the municipal-only ballot is only available in cities or towns with local races in July. If you select that option, you will not be able to vote in federal, state and legislative primary races. Partisan party ballots contain both nonpartisan municipal races and partisan contests for federal, state and legislative office. Can I track my ballot? Yes. Maricopa County voters can track their ballot at BeBallotReady.Vote. Pima County voters can track their ballot on the county recorders website. Voters in other parts of Arizona can track their ballot via BallotTrax. Do other states allow independents to participate in primary elections? Arizona is one of 26 states that run partially or fully open primary elections, according to research from the National Conference of State Legislatures. Different states have different rules, so not every state requires independents to choose a ballot style before they vote. In Colorado, for instance, independent voters receive a packet containing the ballots of all participating major parties and must choose one to return. In several states, unaffiliated voters and those registered to a political party can choose which ballot they want to fill out. That means a voter registered as a Democrat could choose to vote in Republican primary races and vice versa. Two states Washington and California use a top two primary format, which lists all candidates on a common ballot. Three others Nebraska, Alaska and Louisiana use a variation of that format. Some states also allow independents to participate in the presidential primary, but Arizona does not. Here, only registered Democrats and Republicans can participate in their respective presidential preference elections. Still have questions? The Arizona Secretary of State's Office provides contact information for election officials by county. All voters can contact the Arizona Secretary of State's Office at 1-877-THE-VOTE or 602-542-8683. Sasha Hupka covers county government and election administration for The Arizona Republic. Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps. Sign up for her weekly election newsletter, Republic Recount. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Are you an independent? What to know to vote in the upcoming primary Bak. Trend: The United States has begun a review of all cooperation programs with Georgia, senior director for European affairs at the National Security Council (NSC) of the White House Michael Carpenter said at a briefing for foreign journalists, Trend reports. "We hope that we will witness a change in the strategic course pursued by the Georgian government. But at the moment, all our [cooperation] programs with Georgia are under review," he said, answering a corresponding question from a journalist. The US Department of Defense last week announced that the joint US-Georgian Noble Partner exercise, scheduled for the summer of 2024, was postponed indefinitely due to a review of strategic relations. Indias Modi lands in Russia for talks with Putin in first visit since start of Ukraine war Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Monday for his first visit to the country since Moscow began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a sign that the two nations remain close despite the Kremlins deepening dependence on China. During his two-day visit, Modi is expected to attend a private dinner hosted by Vladimir Putin and hold talks with the Russian president, according to Indias foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal. The summit will provide an opportunity to the two leaders to review the whole range of bilateral issues, Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi last week, adding that Modi and Putin will also share perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest. India remains heavily reliant on the Kremlin for its military equipment and has ramped up purchases of discounted Russian crude oil, giving Putins nation a major financial lifeline as it faces isolation from the West. Trade between the two countries was worth nearly $65 billion in 2023-24, primarily due to strong energy cooperation, but most of that total flowed toward Russia, Jaiswal said. Reducing the trade imbalance would be a matter of priority in Modis discussions with Putin, he added. Modi last met with Putin on the sidelines of the 2022 SCO meeting in Uzbekistan, when he told the Russian leader: Now is not the time for war. But while India has called for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine and restoration of peace, it has also abstained from all resolutions on Ukraine at the United Nations and stopped short of condemning Russias invasion. I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues, Modi said in a statement from his office before departing for Russia. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, speaking in the wake of Russias deadly attacks on Ukraine Monday, said it was a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the worlds largest democracy hug the worlds most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day. Following Modis arrival, Putin showed the Indian leader around his residence in Novo-Ogaryovo in the Moscow region. They greeted each other with a hug, chatted over tea and rode around in an electric vehicle. Putin also showed Modi the stables and they watched a horse show. The trip is Modis first bilateral visit since winning a third consecutive term in a massive general election last month and is seen as a rare break in convention for an Indian leader who typically travels to neighboring countries such as Bhutan, Sri Lanka and Maldives. The visit also comes as Russia draws ever closer to China, potentially making New Delhi uncomfortable due to its longstanding Himalayan border dispute with Beijing, which has simmered in recent years. Modis trip follows Putins return from Kazakhstan, where the Russian leader last week attended the annual leaders meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a bloc of Eurasian countries spearheaded by China and Russia, at which he claimed Moscow-Beijing relations were experiencing the best period in their history. For India, that burgeoning relationship is a matter of deep concern, said Nandan Unnikrishnan, a fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi. That is one of the reasons that Mr. Modi is undertaking this trip because traditionally, the Soviet Union and then subsequently Russia, has been a balancer in our relationship with China, which has been not the best since the late 50s of the last century, he said. Despite India being an SCO member, Modi was visibly absent from the meeting in Kazakhstan, indicating to some analysts that the leader of the worlds largest democracy does not view the bloc as an effective channel through which New Delhi can pursue its interests. Modis visit to Russia is also widely seen as the latest dent in efforts by Western leaders to cast Putin aside. Despite undermining Western sanctions by purchasing large quantities of Russian oil, New Delhi has remained close with the United States, a key partner as both countries share concerns over Chinas assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region. Modi met with US President Joe Biden during a state visit to Washington in June last year, 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. India is a member of the Quad security grouping with the US, Japan and Australia. 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. Following his Russia trip, Modi will visit Austria in the Indian leaders first visit to the European nation, according to his office. CNNs Ivan Watson contributed reporting. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Indian PM Modi arrives in Moscow in first visit to Russia since beginning of full-scale war Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on July 8 in what was his first trip to Russia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the special and privileged strategic partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation," Modi wrote on X. "Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people," he added. Modi last met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September 2022 at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Uzbekistan. According to a statement by the Kremlin after the dates of the trip were formalized, Modi and Putin will discuss the "prospects for the further development of traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, as well as current issues on the international and regional agenda." Modi's official website said the visit would entail talks on the "entire range of multifaceted relations between the two countries and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest." The two leaders will reportedly attend a dinner on July 8 and hold talks at the Kremlin the following day. New Delhi has been calling for a diplomatic solution to Russia's war against Ukraine but has been simultaneously fostering close economic ties with Moscow. India became one of the chief buyers of Russian oil following Western sanctions, although pressure from U.S. sanctions increasingly threatens this trade. While India participated in Ukraine's global peace summit in June, Modi did not attend personally, and India's representative did not ultimately sign the joint communique. Modi was also one of the few democratically elected leaders to congratulate Putin on his reelection in March after a vote that was widely considered to be neither free nor fair. The trip coincided with a massive Russian missile strike on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8 that killed at least 28 civilians and injured 112 others. The Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, was hit in the attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. Read also: Ukraines peace summit falls short of engaging Global South can Ukraine expand its coalition? Sign up for our newsletter WTF is wrong with Russia? Sign up Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. This article was originally published in Indiana Capital Chronicle. The number of Hoosier families using an Indiana Education Scholarship Account (ESA) meant to help students who require special education services is up 200% for the upcoming school year, the Indiana Treasurer of State announced Monday. The agency said more than 50% of the $10 million appropriated for ESAs in the 2024-25 academic year has already been committed to eligible students. The program application deadline is till two months away, on Sept. 1. The office said that between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 school years, the number of K-12 students with disabilities who applied for and received ESA dollars increased by more than 200%. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Provider participation also increased by more than 130% for that same time period with more joining each week, according to the treasurers office. Additionally, nonpublic schools educating ESA students increased by more than 350% between the 2022-23 and 2023-24 terms. These numbers are proof positive that this program is hitting the mark with parents and nonpublic schools, and our provider pool is growing across the state, said Tina Kaetzel, executive director of the ESA program within the state treasurers office. That provider data point is crucial, because providers are significantly instrumental to both parents and nonpublic schools in providing support and services to customize education for our special-needs kids. Kaetzel said the ESA program is continuing to grow, noting that 20% more providers are registered with the program for the 2024-25 school year compared to the year prior. The number of non-public schools participating in the program has additionally grown by 50%, compared to the 2023-24 school year. Were seeing strong activity, with more applications coming each day so parents will have their best chance of funding availability if they apply now, Kaetzel said. Related New Indiana Checkpoint Tests To Give Mid-Year Snapshots of Student Progress To be eligible for an ESA, school-aged Hoosiers must have an active service plan, Individualized Education Plan or Choice Special Education Plan (CSEP). They must also have an income below 400% of the Federal Free or Reduced School Meals limit, according to the Indiana Department of Education. Accounts set up by the state treasurers office provide each qualifying student with thousands of dollars for private school tuition and various other educational services from providers outside of their school district. Other expenses can include transportation, examinations and assessments, occupational therapy, paraprofessional or education aides, training programs and more. The ESA program was created by the General Assembly in 2021 despite pushback from public education advocates who argued that the program lacks oversight and takes money away from traditional public schools. During the 2024 legislative session, a top state Republican lawmaker floated a bill to eliminate the ESA program in favor of a new grant program that would allow all Hoosier families, regardless of income, to choose where their students get educated. The proposal did not advance, but discussion around the measure previewed possible legislative momentum in 2025. Indiana Capital Chronicle is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Indiana Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Niki Kelly for questions: info@indianacapitalchronicle.com. Follow Indiana Capital Chronicle on Facebook and X. President of Russia Vladimir Putin (R) receives Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi ahead of their meeting at the Presidential residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. -/Kremlin/dpa Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began more than two years ago. An Indian foreign ministry spokesman in New Delhi said ahead of the trip that Modi will likely discuss the Russia-Ukraine conflict during his visit. "We will always strive for a peaceful resolution of this issue as quickly as possible, which will be beneficial for everyone," he said. The spokesman said that the return of Indians from the war in Ukraine is likely to be discussed as well. He added that they had been coerced under false pretences to work for the Russian army. Estimates suggest that this involves around 30 to 45 Indian citizens. Modi plans to travel to Austria after his trip to Russia. On Monday, Modi wrote on X: "These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship." A banquet with Putin is planned for Monday evening. Russia is an important energy supplier for India. Revenue from the sale of Russian oil, which India receives at a discount due to the Western embargo against Moscow, allows Putin to continue financing the war in Ukraine. India has taken a neutral stance towards Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It maintains good relations with both the West and Russia, where Modi last visited in 2019. In the autumn, Russia is expected to host the BRICS summit, a gathering of countries which includes Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa among others, in the city of Kazan, to which Modi is invited. Modi plans to travel to Austria after Russia. It is the first time in more than 40 years that an Indian prime minister has visited the country. Modi is expected to be received by Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. In Moscow and Vienna, Modi will meet with representatives of the Indian community, as he has done on other foreign visits, India's foreign ministry stated. President of Russia Vladimir Putin (R) receives Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi ahead of their meeting at the Presidential residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. -/Kremlin/dpa President of Russia Vladimir Putin (R) receives Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi ahead of their meeting at the Presidential residence in Novo-Ogaryovo. -/Kremlin/dpa Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin for the first time since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine began more than two years ago. An Indian foreign ministry spokesman in New Delhi said ahead of the trip that Modi will likely discuss the Russia-Ukraine conflict during his visit. "We will always strive for a peaceful resolution of this issue as quickly as possible, which will be beneficial for everyone," he said. The spokesman said that the return of Indians from the war in Ukraine is likely to be discussed as well. He added that they had been coerced under false pretences to work for the Russian army. Estimates suggest that this involves around 30 to 45 Indian citizens. Modi plans to travel to Austria after his trip to Russia. On Monday, Modi wrote on X: "These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship." A banquet with Putin is planned for Monday evening. Russia is an important energy supplier for India. Revenue from the sale of Russian oil, which India receives at a discount due to the Western embargo against Moscow, allows Putin to continue financing the war in Ukraine. India has taken a neutral stance towards Russia's invasion of Ukraine. It maintains good relations with both the West and Russia, where Modi last visited in 2019. Inside the old school thats now housing Utahs homeless: Should more cities do the same? Austin Byrne, 39, gets some love from his dog Buddy while posing for a photo at Harris Housing, a permanent supportive housing facility that shares a campus with Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele, on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Austin Byrne, 39, buried his face in the dark coat of his three-month old puppy named Buddy. The pup nuzzled against Byrnes salt-and-pepper beard as the two sat in an armchair of a brightly-lit lobby of a new supportive housing complex in Tooele where Byrne has been living since late last year. He moved in when the development opened its doors in December ending his time living in a homeless shelter ever since he got out of jail. Byrne was arrested in 2022 when he got into an altercation while he was living in Wendover. The arrest cost him his job as a security guard at one of the casinos near the western edge of the Utah-Nevada border. He also lost his apartment, his car. When he got out of jail, all he owned were the clothes on his back. I lost everything, he said. I had to start over. Austin Byrne, 39, poses for a photo with his dog Buddy while posing for a photo at Harris Housing, a permanent supportive housing facility that shares a campus with Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele, on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) While living in a shelter on Vine Street a temporary shelter in Tooele operated by the homeless provider Switchpoint while the permanent supportive housing complex where he lives now was being constructed Byrne said he tried to save up to pay for his own housing by working in construction framing homes, but he didnt make enough to afford rent, and definitely not enough for a home of his own. Then, he said he began struggling with depression when his father died last year. Byrne had dark circles under his eyes, which turned sad when he mentioned his dad. But when he looked down at the puppy leashed at his feet, his eyes softened. Im doing a little bit better now, Byrne said. Now that Ive got Buddy. Now, Byrne lives in one of the about 66 permanent supportive housing units at Harris Community Village. Many of the villages residents have pets, Switchpoint staff said, something thats allowed to help encourage a sense of community as well as provide companionship and responsibility to people struggling with loneliness or other difficulties. Along with Byrne, several other residents were walking their dogs in a fenced, grassy area that serves as a mini dog park. I really didnt think about getting (a dog) until I came here and saw everybody else had one, seeing how happy they were, Byrne said. I was like, Man, that looks like something I need. Otherwise, I was just hiding in my apartment. Byrne said caseworkers have been helping him manage his depression and turn his life around. For now, he said its taking it one day at a time, but he hopes to eventually get back on his feet. This place, he said, is a godsend. Harris Community Village The apartment building near 251 N. 1st Street, owned by the Tooele County Housing Authority, sits next to a brick building that was once an elementary school. Now, the school is a homeless shelter with 44 beds, including seven separate family rooms. In both facilities, Switchpoint provides resident support and case management services with an agreement with the housing authority. Handprints of people who have stayed at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center decorate the walls of the center in Tooele on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Its been freshly renovated for its new role as a shelter, but its hallways with walls that now feature rows of colorful flowers painted with the handprints of its new residents still feel reminiscent of a school. As does its kitchen and cafeteria, which now serves some 500 meals a day (including about 300 for Meals on Wheels for people in need throughout the community). Harris Community Villages campus also features a 24/7 child care facility for families staying in the shelter and permanent supportive housing units, as well as community members living in the larger Tooele area. Its the first project of its kind in Utah where a shelter, child care, case worker programs and supportive housing all share a campus. Its also situated in a community not known for its homeless services (at least not yet). Tooele is a small city located in whats otherwise a mostly rural county of the same name, located some 35 miles west of Salt Lake City, where the vast majority of Utahs homeless services are concentrated. Even though Tooele is not usually frequented by Utahs top elected officials, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox put it on the map when he held a ceremonial bill signing to celebrate a slate of homelessness and behavioral health bills passed by the Utah Legislature earlier this year. He held the news conference in a plaza between Harris Community Villages supportive housing complex and the homeless shelter to showcase its ingenuity and told reporters the idea (renovating old elementary schools and placing shelter and housing all in one place) is one that should be replicated by other cities and counties across the state as Utah continues to grapple with its growing homeless population. I think this is a wonderful model, the governor said at the time, and one well be talking to more counties about. The womens dormitory at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele is pictured on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) One miracle after another Harris Community Village only came to be because five years ago, one pastor after multiple encounters with people experiencing homelessness with nowhere to go began fretting that Tooele didnt have many resources to help. Rick Ehrheart, a now retired pastor from Mountain of Faith Lutheran Church in Tooele, nicknamed Pastor Rick, told Utah News Dispatch it all started in 2019. Our little church here in Tooele. we found someone living on our church patio, then someone had set up an encampment on our front yard, and probably the toughest one was one Saturday, another member and I were at the church doing some work and there was a young lady sleeping on the ground next to the church, Ehrheart said. We found out she had been thrown out of an abusive relationship. She had nowhere to go. It just made it so apparent, the problem that Tooele had, he added. We had no place to refer to anybody who was homeless at the time. Literally no place. So Ehrheart said he started to get involved and ask questions. That year he attended a faith leaders luncheon at the Governors Mansion and started talking to people working in the governors office. Long story short, he was eventually introduced to people leading Switchpoint, which began its operations in southern Utah, based in St. George. I made the mistake of calling (Switchpoint executive director) Carol Hollowell, he joked, and that started a chain reaction of meetings and effort that eventually brought the Harris Community Village to fruition. It was kind of like one miracle after another that made it happen. Harris Housing, a permanent supportive housing facility that shares a campus with Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center, is pictured in Tooele on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) The Tooele County Housing Authority ended up acquiring the former Harris Elementary School from a drug treatment center provider, which in 2019 successfully rezoned the school to be a drug rehab center. They took a lot of heat when the rezoning went through, Ehrheart said. But they got it through, so when we bought it it had already been rezoned so we didnt have to go through that again. Its usually no easy feat to establish new homeless shelters. In 2017, after Salt Lake city and county officials worked for more than two years to site three new homeless resource centers, neighbors were up in arms. But in Tooele, there wasnt nearly as much outcry. Perhaps thats because the small-town facility flew under the radar, plus it had already been rezoned. Since its opening, Harris Community Village also seems to mesh seamlessly with its surrounding community. Ehrheart said perhaps Tooele residents have been able to more easily accept it since it also came with permanent supportive housing, and both are operated by a provider that has firm rules when it comes to drug use. The $31 million project was made possible using funds from the state, Tooele County, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, as well as other private donations, according to Switchpoint. If you can get permanent supportive housing along with the shelter, youre doing a really good thing, he said. And I think that makes this such a special project. A family room at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele is pictured on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) What is Switchpoint? Switchpoints mission is in its name. A switch point is a mechanism on a train track that with a little bit of a turn sends the train in a completely different direction, the provider states on its website. Switchpoint offers tools to get life back on track for those who need it most. The providers staff take that motto to heart, looking for ways to be a switch point in someones life. While helping lead a recent tour of Harris Community Village for Utah News Dispatch, Jeff Quayle, Switchpoint real estate development director, said he thinks of it like this: While people go down the train track that is their life, sometimes they can reach a switch point and they make a choice, where one degree of difference could mean a dramatic change in their trajectory. So what do you choose? Quayle said. Were here to help you if you choose our route. Over the past decade or so, Switchpoint has expanded its operations rapidly throughout Utah and has become a sort of rising star within Utahs homelessness network. Its origins trace back to 2013, when St. George was in search of solutions to its growing homeless population, and its shelter at the time was run down and struggling to provide anything but a night by night band aid to people experiencing homelessness, Switchpoints website states. Executive director Hollowell, in an interview with Utah News Dispatch, said she was inspired to start Switchpoint in 2014 after she met a man in a wheelchair named Ray. He had been living on the streets of St. George for five years after he lost his wallet. After she helped him get a new ID and find stable housing, Hollowell said she felt like I was called to do something. I thought, Wait a minute, if I could solve his problem, maybe I could help solve other problems, she said. And that really launched (Switchpoint) as, How can we do something better and more? Hollowell wrote about her experience meeting Ray in a 2022 article for Profectus Magazine. Ray was my switch point, she wrote. I became his. The cafeteria kitchen at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele is pictured on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Since Hollowell, who has a background in business development, opened Switchpoint Community Resource Center in St. George in 2014, its operations have expanded to now 17 different facilities, in and out of southern Utah, including child care and supportive housing. That also includes several micro-enterprises to offer employment and volunteer opportunities to those experiencing homelessness as well as provide services to the community, from food pantries and thrift stores to doggie day care and more. In 2020, Switchpoint expanded its operations to Salt Lake City and Tooele. Last year, state and Salt Lake City officials also partnered with Switchpoint to operate a temporary microshelter community, among other endeavors. As its kind of taken root across the state, Hollowell said, I think the real (core) of Switchpoint is identifying what does your community need? And then lets make it happen. A focus on accountability, lauded by state leaders Hollowell in recent months has been invited to speak on multiple panels focused on solutions for the states homeless system. Last month, she was a panelist at a summit where Cox, as the keynote speaker, gave a somewhat stern talk directed at homeless providers encouraging them to brace themselves for a homeless system that will be focusing more on producing results toward the states goal of reducing homelessness. We need accountability, the governor said. Not just for those that were providing services, but for those of us that are providing the services. Switchpoints model focuses on accountability and self-sufficiency. It doesnt allow drugs or alcohol in its facilities. We hold people accountable to try to better themselves while theyre here, Quayle said. And if they dont want to do that, then we ask them to move along. At Harris Community Village, staff said they havent had many evictions, but if they have occurred it has more to do with behavioral needs than drugs or alcohol. They said they never exit people without a plan for housing, and they try to work with the individual before jumping to an eviction. Such an approach does not make Switchpoint a low barrier or easily accessible facility for people needing emergency shelter who are also dealing with addiction. As Utahs homeless population has grown along with its needs for drug treatment and behavioral health services state officials this year worked to secure about $50 million to expand the states emergency shelter options, but filling gaps for detox and mental health treatment is an ongoing issue that advocates and leaders have warned will need more investment. Switchpoint, however, fills a different need a place for people ready and willing to better themselves, wanting to learn skills to enter the workforce and work their way toward self sufficiency and out of homelessness. Children work with a staff member at Stepping Stones Tooele, a daycare that shares a campus with Harris Housing and Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Hollowell said Switchpoint, in some cases, has left federal dollars on the table because it doesnt classify itself as a low barrier provider. She said Switchpoint fills its funding gaps with donations or revenue from the micro-enterprise businesses. The move to go to zero barrier or low barrier, where anything goes, is something that I wont do, she said. If we cant hold peoples behavior and safety accountable, then its not safe for my staff, its not safe for my clients. So Im going to have some rules, and Im going to have some accountability, which means all of a sudden Im a medium barrier or a high barrier shelter. To Hollowell, federal funding handcuffs and its low barrier requirement is why our system is so broken. We should not have to keep programs open that are not working simply because were so afraid of funding cuts. She applauded the governors sentiment around holding homeless providers accountable and requiring them to show results. Its something Switchpoint already seeks to do, she says. Switchpoint posts annual reports on its website reporting its donations and progress. In 2023, the provider said it provided services to 8,485 people statewide. Some of those included: 1,426 people housed in emergency shelters 574 families given housing assistance support through case management 430 Utahns permanently housed in Switchpoint housing facilities 220 children served in child care 139 previously unemployed people who re-entered the workforce Virginia Bevan, 52, hangs out in the cafeteria at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) A model for other cities? To the governors comments applauding Harris Community Village as a model that should be replicated in other cities, Hollowell agreed a campus with shelter and housing along with on-site case management and other supportive services is something that could and should be replicated in other communities. It doesnt have to be a school, she said. It could be any kind of empty building. If you look at how much empty space there is from empty malls, office spaces, warehouses, it could be any kind of empty space that could be converted into a great campus. Its something every city that has a homeless problem or a lack of affordable housing should consider, she said. In recent years, Salt Lake City Mayor Erin Mendenhall and now state leaders have been issuing a call to other cities across Utah to play a part in helping solve homelessness, urging leaders on and off the Wasatch Front to acknowledge its a statewide problem, and not one that lands solely on the shoulders of Utahs capital city. For Harris Community Village, Hollowell credited Tooele and people like Pastor Rick for recognizing a problem and being part of the solution. It was much more open-armed, she said when recalling Tooeles eagerness to welcome Switchpoint. It was, please, please, come and do what you can do. Even though Switchpoint has its rules, the residents at Harris Community Village were only complimentary of the provider and its staff. Alex Pinkney, 29, who was living at the mens dorm at the campus shelter, told Utah News Dispatch he was in and out of behavioral health hospitals before coming to Switchpoint. He said hes been living on and off the streets ever since he was about 14 years old, struggling with his mental health. He said Switchpoints Tooele shelter fosters a good environment. People are nice. The staff definitely care. You can tell. Its definitely a needed blessing for me, for sure, he said. Just to have people that care around you. It feels nice. People that are supportive. They keep you pushing forward. Alex Pinkney, 29, poses for a photo on his bed in the mens dorm at Switchpoint Tooele Community Resource Center in Tooele on Friday, May 24, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch) Correction: An earlier version incorrectly stated Switchpoint owns the homeless shelter in Harris Community Village. The Tooele County Housing Authority owns the entire property, while Switchpoint provides case management and resident support in the facilities. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Inside the old school thats now housing Utahs homeless: Should more cities do the same? appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. The EU's promises to deliver 155 mm artillery shells to Ukraine were not met due to "wishful thinking" and the fact that existing stocks may be "at least twice as modest as stated by high-ranking EU officials," RFE/RL Schemes investigative project reported on July 8. The lackluster performance of the European defense industry became apparent when the EU failed on its promise to deliver 1 million artillery shells to Ukraine between March 2023 and 2024. After supplying only about half of the promised rounds, Brussels shifted the deadline to the end of 2024. Journalists found that arms producers in Europe can produce about half as many shells as officials in Brussels claim and that so far, the EU has provided Kyiv with half as many shells as originally promised. European Commissioner Thierry Breton, for example, claimed in June that EU manufacturers will be able to produce 1.7 million shells per year. A senior source in the European arms industry, speaking to RFE/RL on condition of anonymity, said that "the current capacity is still only a third of that figure." Other sources indicated that Europe's production capacity is between roughly 500,000 and 600,000 shells per year. Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said in February that Ukraine needs 200,000 155 mm shells per month. The European Commission commented that their assessment of the EU production capacity is based on "facts" and "takes into account current investments" in the industry, RFE/RL said. An Estonian intelligence report from February 2024 estimated that Russia was able to supply as much as 3-4 million units of artillery ammunition to the front in 2023, in part through refurbishing Soviet stocks. "It is almost certain that Western ammunition deliveries to Ukraine in 2024 will not be able to keep pace," and the gap "in available artillery ammunition between Ukraine and Russia is expected to widen even more in 2024," the report said. Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Investigators in the Florida Keys located a boat that may have been involved in a fatal accident. The incident happened on July 5 in the water off Mile Marker 39 on the Overseas Highway, according to the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. A spearfisherman in the water was fatally struck by a boat, which killed him. Law enforcement asked residents to keep an eye out for a specific boat on social media and it was found later that day. (Monroe County Sheriffs Office) The boat was described as a 32-foot Contender with a white T-top, white hull, and blue paint on the bottom, with twin, white, Mercury outboard engines. Police did not say if they found boats operator or if they face any potential charges. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call FWC at (561) 357-4200. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Schwarz EtienneS UFO-inspired Roswell 08 gets a smart blue colourway The year 1947 might be remembered for many important world events the proposal of the Marshall Plan, India and Pakistans independence from Great Britain and the Truman Doctrine, to name a few. But it was also a period when there was a flurry of UFO sightings recorded across the USA, beginning with pilot Kenneth Arnolds claim that he saw nine shiny unidentified flying objects shooting past Mount Rainier at over a thousand miles an hour. Roswell Daily Record (July 8, 1947) - RAAF Captures Flying Saucer On Ranch in Roswell Region Roswell Daily Record A few weeks after Arnolds revelation, Roswell, New Mexico became the source of fresh UFO-centred intrigue after the FBI communicated that an object purporting to being a flying disc had been recovered in the area. FBI Dallas Field Office's teletype from 1947 FBI Decades later the debris in question turned out to be a high-altitude balloon for detecting Soviet nuclear bomb tests. But at the time the discovery fuelled sensationalist conspiracy theories linked to UFOs and extraterrestrials that have since gone on to inspire books and TV series. Extraterrestrial Tone A downed alien spacecraft or not, the flying saucer at the heart of the Roswell tale also provides the inspiration for Schwarz Etiennes Roswell collection that first landed in 2015. With its wide, flat case, gently domed sapphire crystal and dynamic lugs that project outwards like a set of landing gear the original time-only Roswell set the avant-garde, extraterrestrial tone of this line. That initial model housed the brands in-house automatic movement, inverted so the animation of its micro-rotor and 3 Hz balance were configured dial side and visible through the partly openworked dial. In 2018, the Roswell 08 now fully openworked and sporting an oversized date wheel took the concept to eerie new heights with bright accents green or orange set off against a grey-treated calibre. Roswell 08 Schwarz Etienne Eye-Catching Shade of Azure Recently, the La Chaux-de-Fonds-based outfit added another non-earthly dimension to the range by presenting a fresh Roswell 08 with blue movement and numerals. Indeed, the movements mainplate and micro-rotor have been finished in an eye-catching shade of azure, leaving rhodium-treated elements like the edges of the central hour and minute hands, balance cock and antenna-like small seconds at 11 oclock to stand out superbly. Whats more, each Super-LumiNova-filled applied numeral also boasts a smart blue hue. Roswell 08 Schwarz Etienne Large Date Display A full-fledged manufacture, Schwarz Etienne is known for its capacity to make movements not only for its own watches, but also for those of other brands. This mechanical autonomy allows it to create interesting calibres with original architecture and the ISE 101.01 used here is a fine example of that. Its date mechanism is fully on show dial-side with its column wheel and jumper arranged so as to free up space to accommodate a large date display. On top of that, the date disc has been inclined by ten degrees to improve its readability. Also generously sized are the crown guards which flank the finely notched crown, the lower part of which is a push button for rapid date correction. The power reserve on this one is pretty plentiful too: 86 hours. Roswell 08 Schwarz Etienne Mystery Logo Housing the movement is the aforementioned UFO-like case in stainless steel. The 45mm diameter is not for the slim wristed, though that expanse is offset by a relatively low height, 12.24mm. Fittingly, the sapphire caseback is emblazoned with a Schwarz Etienne logo that mysteriously disappears as you change the viewing angle! This blue Roswell 08 comes on a grey grained, hand-sewn strap with green leather lining and stainless-steel folding buckle. And as a final nod to the Roswell mystery and UFOs, the watch is delivered in a brushed steel presentation case that assumes a saucer-like form. Roswell 08 Schwarz Etienne For more information, beam yourself over to the Schwarz Etienne website. As the Mississippi River is forecast to crest at 20 feet Monday evening, residents in the Iowa Quad Cities served by Iowa American Water can rest assured that their drinking water continues to meet U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and Safe Drinking Water Act standards and regulations, according to a news release. (OurQuadCities.com) Despite the flooding that is occurring in the Quad Cities, Iowa American Waters treatment plant along the bank of the Mississippi River is secure and protected by the permanent flood wall that was constructed in collaboration with the U.S. Corps of Engineers. The $11.8 million project, a 2,200-foot long flood wall completed in October 2013, is an example of a successful public/private partnership Iowa American Water partnered with the Corps of Engineers and the City of Davenport. We want to stress to our customers that their drinking water continues to meet all U.S. EPA standards for safety. As we always do, we will continue to take all safety precautions necessary to protect our water treatment facility as well as water quality to continue to provide our customers the reliable, high quality water service they expect and deserve from us, said Brad Nielsen, vice president of operations for Iowa American Water. Our water professionals remain vigilant and proactive, continuously monitoring the quality of the water as it travels through our treatment facility and adjusting our treatment processes accordingly. Iowa American Water continually monitors water qualitysampling the Mississippi River water and the water as it passes through the various stages of the treatment process. Based on the results of testing, the company has confidence that the water continues to be safe. The flood wall protects the water treatment plant to a river stage of 29.33 feet. The previous flood of record in the Quad Cities was in May 2019, when the river stage reached 22.7 feet. Protecting our customers drinking water supply is our number one priority at Iowa American Water, and the permanent flood wall safeguards the drinking water supply for over 130,000 residents in the Iowa Quad Cities, Nielsen added. Its business as usual at our customers taps because were going the extra mile on our end. Iowa American Waters Clinton District is served by seven deep wells and is unaffected by the current flooding. About American Water American Water is the largest regulated water and wastewater utility company in the United States. For more information, visit here and join American Water on LinkedIn, Facebook, X and Instagram. About Iowa American Water Iowa American Water, a subsidiary of American Water, is the largest investor-owned water utility in the state, providing high-quality and reliable water services to approximately 225,000 people. For more information, visit 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 WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. Heart monitor, EKG readout, heartbeat (Photo via Getty Images) An Ankeny woman is suing a medical device manufacturer, alleging her heart monitor provided her doctors with data from a different patient, leading to an unnecessary surgery. Andrea Irwin, a 33-year-old Ankeny mother of two, is suing ZOLL Laboratory Services and ZOLL Medical Corp. in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Iowa. In her lawsuit, she alleges that in August 2023, her doctors fitted her with a ZOLL-branded heart monitor that would produce a written record of her heart rate. The monitor allegedly recorded several potentially serious cardiac events of a life-threatening nature. As a result, Irwins doctors ordered a pacemaker to be surgically implanted in September 2023. According to the lawsuit, Irwins pacemaker was installed under insufficient sedation, which meant that she was awake and aware throughout the operation. The lawsuit describes the procedure as an agonizing and traumatic situation in which even an attending doctor noted her awareness to the procedure in real time during the surgery. Within days of the operation, Irwins doctors allegedly realized the heart-rate data attributed to Irwins monitor was erroneous and was actually tied to a different patient. The error was discovered only after ZOLL posted data onto Irwins electronic medical chart showing she had a cardiac event after her operation when she wasnt even wearing the heart monitor. The data that had been attributed to Irwins heart monitor were completely erroneous the lawsuit claims. Andrea Irwins heart monitor readings were not from Andrea at all, but from another person entirely, meaning that the heart data that led her to a shocking, painful, traumatizing surgery were just plain wrong. The lawsuit claims Irwins doctors then determined Irwin did not require a pacemaker at all, noting that her physician, Dr. Robert Brewer, wrote in her medical file that her pacemaker implantation was unnecessary and that surgical removal of the device was recommended. ZOLL Labs allegedly paid the medical costs and expenses for removal of Irwins pacemaker, the lawsuit alleges. Irwins lawsuit seeks unspecified damages for negligence and for loss of consortium involving Irwins relationship with her husband and co-plaintiff, John Irwin. ZOLL has yet to file a response to the lawsuit. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Iowa woman claims her heart monitor produced data from another patient appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. Masoud Pezeshkian was elected as Iran's new president on Saturday - AFP/Atta Kenare Irans new moderate president told Hezbollahs leader that he will continue to support the terror group and other regional resistance movements against Israel. In a letter to Hassan Nasrallah, the Hezbollah leader, Masoud Pezeshkian said: The Islamic Republic of Iran has consistently supported the resistance of the regional people against the illegitimate Zionist regime. He emphasised that the support is deeply rooted in the fundamental policies of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the ideals of Imam Khomeini, and the guidance of the Supreme Leader. It marks Mr Pezeshkians first public statement on foreign policy since his election on Saturday. The letter suggests that Irans approach to regional politics and its relationship with Israel is unlikely to shift under the new administration despite Mr Pezeshkians moderate stance. I am confident that the resistance movements in the region will not allow this regime to perpetuate its warmongering and criminal policies against the oppressed people of Palestine and other nations in the region, Mr Pezeshkian wrote. The Hezbollah secretary-general was among the first foreign leaders to congratulate Mr Pezeshkian on his victory in Irans presidential election. In his message, Hassan Nasrallah said: The resistance movements and the nations of the region consider the Islamic Republic of Iran to be a stable supporter of the oppressed and a powerful and permanent support for the resistance. We will continue on this path until we achieve final victory, with the mighty, dear, and powerful Iran at its centre. Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah called Iran Republic of Iran 'a stable supporter of the oppressed' - Getty Images Mr Pezeshkians election comes at an increasingly volatile time for the Middle East. Since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza on 7 October, there have been near-daily exchanges of fire along the Israel-Lebanon border. Analysts warn that an all-out war between Hezbollah and Israel could result in severe damage on both sides and potentially escalate to involve major international powers, including the US and Iran. It would also require Israel to fight on multiple fronts simultaneously, a situation it has not encountered since the 1973 Yom Kippur War. 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. Insights from Wall Street Journal, AI-Monitor, Critical Threats Project, and Responsible Statecraft The News Reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian won Irans presidency on Saturday, fending off hardliner rival Saeed Jalili and pledging to usher in a new chapter for the country. Now President-Elect, Pezekshian is expected to assume his full duties within 30 days, although Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khameni remains in ultimate control of the countrys future. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Support for Pezeshkian may have stemmed from fear of the worst Sources: Wall Street Journal, AI-Monitor That Pezeshkian was allowed to run at all, having been previously barred by Irans Guardian Council, suggests the regime now sees him as a safe bet. Compared with ultraconservative Jalili, [v]otes for [Pezeshkian] were not necessarily hope for the better, but fear of the worst, a director at conflict abatement non-profit Crisis Group told the Wall Street Journal. By lavishing praise on the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei, and campaigning on a program of modest social reform, Pezeshkian styled himself as a welcome alternative to hardliners while toeing the regimes line, AI-Monitors Tehran correspondent wrote. Pezeshkians victory opens a small window of opportunity for the West Sources: Critical Threats Project, Responsible Statecraft Its unclear how much leash Khamenei will give Pezeshkian to pursue new nuclear negotiations with the West, given the Supreme Leaders support for domestic production and a call for the President-Elect to continue his predecessor Ebrahim Raisis policies, analysts at the US-based Critical Threats Project wrote. However, it was Irans former reformist president, Hassan Rouhani, who helped negotiate the 2015 nuclear deal with the US, a columnist argued in Responsible Statecraft, a publication from US think tank the Quincy Institute Pezeshkian could do similar. In turn, the US could use his election as a means to restart the dialogue on nuclear and the region at large conversations that a potential second Trump administration could continue, if only to score political points, he added. Iran's President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian looks on during a gathering with his supporters at the shrine of the late leader of Iran's late leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in south of Tehran (Reuters) - President-elect Masoud Pezeshkian reaffirmed Iran's anti-Israel stance on Monday, saying resistance movements across the region will not allow Israels "criminal policies" towards the Palestinians to continue. "The Islamic Republic has always supported the resistance of the people of the region against the illegitimate Zionist regime," Pezeshkian said in a message to Hassan Nasrallah, leader of the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah group. The comments signalled no change in the regional policies of the incoming government under the relatively moderate Pezeshkian who defeated his hardline rival in last weeks runoff election. "I am certain that the resistance movements in the region will not allow this regime to continue its warmongering and criminal policies against the oppressed people of Palestine and other nations of the region," Iranian media quoted Pezeshkian as saying. Shiite Muslim Hezbollah and the Palestinian Sunni Muslim Hamas are part of a group of Iranian-backed factions in the region known as the Axis of Resistance. Israel did not immediately comment on Pezeshkian's remarks. Israels war against Hamas in Gaza began after the Islamist militant group that governs the Palestinian enclave led an attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostage, according to Israeli tallies. More than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's military offensive and nearly 88,000 have been wounded, according to the Gaza health ministry. (Writing by Dubai newsroom, Eidting by Timothy Heirtage) Iraq exhibits ancient artefacts returned by U.S. and other countries Ancient artifacts are displayed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad Ancient artifacts are displayed at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq on Monday exhibited several ancient artefacts that it said had been returned by the United States and other countries, long after they were looted and smuggled out following the 2003 U.S. invasion. Iraqi authorities have been trying to retrieve thousands of archaeological relics missing since the invasion, which was followed by widespread looting in the country that some historians regard as the cradle of civilisation. Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein handed the recently recovered relics over to Culture, Tourism and Antiquities Minister Ahmed al-Badrani at a ceremony in Baghdad. Most of the artefacts on display at the foreign ministry headquarters were returned by the U.S. after a visit by Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani to Washington in April, Badrani said. He said other relics had been returned by other states, but gave no details. Hussein said more "rare archeological collections" would be returned by Switzerland and Japan this month. (Reporting by Ahmed Rasheed, editing by Timothy Heritage) JERUSALEM (Reuters) - The head of Israel's biggest opposition party said on Monday he would lend Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu his support in parliament to keep him in office if members of the ruling coalition quit over a ceasefire deal. Netanyahu has authorised his officials to resume negotiating a possible deal with Palestinian militant group Hamas to end the fighting in Gaza and release Israeli hostages seized on Oct. 7. Some far-right partners in his coalition have said they will quit if the war ends before Israel has eradicated Hamas and freed the hostages, an outcome that could bring down Netanyahu's government. Yair Lapid, leader of the Yesh Atid party, said at a meeting of his parliamentary faction: "There's a hostages deal on the table. It is not true that Netanyahu has to choose between the hostages deal and the continuation of his tenure as prime minister." "Let him do the deal," Lapid said. "I promised him a safety net and I will keep that promise," he said, referring to a scenario if Netanyahu's coalition partners quit. He said that was a difficult decision to make, given his opposition to Netanyahu, but "the most important thing is to bring the hostages home." The two far-right parties in Netanyahu's coalition that are most implacably opposed to a ceasefire deal have a combined 13 seats in the Israeli parliament, while Lapid's party has 24 seats, according to the parliament's website. (Reporting by Lee Marzel and Christian Lowe; Editing by Ros Russell) The former commander-in-chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, Valerii Zaluzhnyi, celebrates his birthday on July 8. The "Iron General" is 51 years old. He served as the most authoritative military leader in Ukraine for over 2.5 years and during this time won public love and respect. Now the general has become Ukraine's ambassador to the UK. ADVERTISIMENT Ever since he was a child, Valerii Zaluzhnyi could not part with the military. In one of the old photos, he poses with a toy assault rifle in his hands, and in his younger years, he was wearing camouflage in the walls of the Odesa Institute of Land Forces (Military Academy). OBOZ.UA decided to recall what the "iron general" looked like before he was promoted to the rank of commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. During Russia's war against Ukraine in 2014, he was the deputy commander of Sector C, which was formed in Donbas, and fought against the occupiers there. In 2017, he was promoted to the rank of major general, and in July 2021, he became the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The "Iron General" has always known that a Russian attack would be inevitable, and he called for preparations for a new armed aggression. ADVERTISIMENT "I have always said this since I took office. Because this threat of full-scale aggression is there, it was there. And, unfortunately, I have to say that it is likely to continue. Accordingly, our task as the Armed Forces is not to wait for "blessing from heaven," we have to prepare for it," he said in an interview with Radio Liberty. Since the beginning of Russia's full-scale invasion, Valerii Zaluzhnyi has been one of those who made Ukrainians believe in victory. Thanks to the support of not only our society but also the whole world, he was named one of the top 100 most influential people of 2022 by TIME magazine. ADVERTISIMENT After Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy dismissed the chief of the army, Ukrainians could not believe that someone other than him would be able to lead the war effort. Valerii Zaluzhnyi's statements were quoted because he could speak honestly and frankly about the course of the war and answer journalists' pointed questions. "We will fight as long as we have the strength. Our goal is to liberate all Ukrainian land from Russian occupation. The Ukrainian Armed Forces will not accept any negotiations until Russia leaves the occupied territories," is one of the most apt phrases said by the former general. ADVERTISIMENT Valerii Zaluzhnyi is a Hero of Ukraine. In May 2024, he was appointed Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Ukraine to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. It has only recently become known that he will start working in this position on July 10. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! The Israeli military has advanced further into the southern and western regions of Gaza City, which is located in the north of the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) reported on Monday. In the early hours of Monday, the military began what it called counterterrorism operations in the area and called on civilians to leave before the operation began, the IDF said. IDF troops reached the headquarters of the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) in Gaza City, it said. On Monday, army radio reported clashes with armed members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas. According to Palestinian hospital reports, at least 15 people were killed. The number of victims could still rise because rescue workers are unable to reach many residential areas due to the fighting. Dpa is unable to independently verifty the reports. The Israeli military has previously advanced into the northern section of the besieged coastal area during war. Residents of the affected neighbourhoods described to dpa the overnight advance as a "night of terror." Hezbollah militant killed in Lebanon In southern Lebanon, the Israeli military killed a fighter from the Iran-backed Islamist militant group Hezbollah with a targeted airstrike. The man was hit by a drone as he was riding a motorcycle in the Tyros district, Hezbollah announced. The Israeli army confirmed the targeted strike, and said the person killed was part of a Hezbollah rocket unit that was involved in numerous attacks on Israeli territory. The catalyst for Israel's war in Gaza was the unprecedented massacre carried out by Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7 last year in southern Israel. The militants killed 1,200 people and abducted another 250 as hostages into the Gaza Strip. Israel estimates around 120 kidnapping victims are still in the coastal area, though many of them are likely no longer alive. Since then, Hezbollah has repeatedly fired rockets and other projectiles into northern Israel out of what the group calls "solidarity" with Hamas. According to the Hamas-controlled Gaza health authority, more than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza so far. This figure includes both fighters and civilians. Israelis in Cairo for indirect talks An Israeli delegation has departed for Cairo for indirect talks with the militant Palestinian Hamas group to negotiate a ceasefire deal, Israel's Kan radio reported on Monday. The Israeli delegation is led by Ronen Bar, the head of the domestic intelligence service Shin Bet, it said. The discussions, which have been ongoing for months with mediation from Egypt, Qatar, and the US, aim for a ceasefire in the Gaza war and an exchange of hostages held by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. Mediators are currently working on formulations to bridge the existing gaps on contentious points. Hamas is reportedly showing flexibility and has deviated from its core demand that Israel must commit to ending the war. However, Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fundamentally insists on Israel's right to continue the fighting even after the implementation of a future deal. On Sunday evening, Netanyahu's office released a document stating that any ceasefire agreement must allow Israel to resume the fighting until all war objectives are met. Israel has declared the total dismantling of Hamas as a military formation and as a governmental power in the Gaza Strip as one of its war aims. Critics interpreted the condition Netanyahu described as "non-negotiable" as an attempt to derail the resumed talks in Cairo and Qatar. Protests in Israel for hostage deal Over the weekend, tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Israeli cities to increase pressure on Netanyahu to finally reach an agreement for the release of the hostages. The Israeli prime minister governs with ultra-religious and far-right coalition partners who reject concessions to Hamas. For his political survival, Netanyahu, who has been facing a corruption trial for a long time, depends on these partners. People walk between sewage and the rubble of destroyed buildings following the Israeli army's withdrawal from Khan Yunis. Abed Rahim Khatib/dpa By Angelo Amante and Giulia Segreti ROME (Reuters) - Italy is planning to spend just under 7.5 billion euros ($8.1 billion) over the next 11 years on 24 new Eurofighter jets, according to a document by the Ministry of Defence seen by Reuters on Monday. The procurement will renew the fleet of Italy's air force given the necessary decommissioning of aging Eurofighter and Tornado jets at a time of increased defence spending by NATO alliance members caused by heightened geopolitical uncertainty. The twin-engine, supersonic Eurofighter Typhoon jets are built by a German, British, Italian and Spanish consortium, represented by Airbus, BAE Systems and Leonardo. Given the order will be made by the Italian air force, Leonardo will be assigned as prime contractor. A spokesperson for the Italian state-controlled aerospace and defence group declined to comment on the document. In June, a senior company executive told Reuters the government would announce the plan shortly. "The programme ... will have a multi-year development time frame of approximately 2024-2034 ... for a total amount of 7,477.3 million euros ," the defence document said. It added funding was already in place for 690 million euros, while the remaining 6.8 billion would be financed through arrangements to be determined in the future. The aircraft will replace 26 aircraft that Italy is planning to substitute from 2028 and the contract will provide technical support for the jets and staff training. Relevant parliamentary committees are due to issue by mid-August an opinion on the purchase programme - submitted late last week by Italy's government - paving the way to a final approval. Germany last month also announced it would buy 20 additional Eurofighters. Berlin's air force currently operates 138 of them. "Emerging technologies available to competitors mean that air supremacy, a key element of aerospace control, cannot be taken for granted and in some situations may not even be achievable," the document said. The order will allow Italy to transition between the Eurofighter and the new Global Combat Air Programme, to which Rome is contributing alongside Britain and Japan, for the development of a new advanced fighter jet, expected to fly by 2035. ($1 = 0.9227 euros) (Reporting by Angelo Amante and Giulia Segreti; Editing by Tomasz Janowski) Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) backed Donald Trump when asked about the former presidents claim that hed go after Joe Biden and his family should he defeat the president in the election. Vance in an appearance on Sundays edition of Meet the Press told host Kristen Welker that media outlets and Democrats have lost their minds over the quote from Trump, who vowed in June to appoint a special prosecutor to investigate the Biden crime family. Donald Trump is talking about appointing a special prosecutor to investigate Joe Biden for wrongdoing, said Vance, who is reportedly a potential running mate for the presumptive GOP presidential nominee. He claimed that Biden has done exactly that for the last few years, accusing him of engaging in a campaign of lawfare against his political opposition. So I think Donald Trumps saying, look, lets do the basic work of investigating wrongdoing, is a totally reasonable thing for him to do. And frankly, the Biden administration has done far worse, said Vance, who didnt provide evidence of Biden conducting moves in the Justice Department. So if you think that what Donald Trump is proposing is a threat to democracy, isnt what Biden has already done a massive threat to our system of law and government? Welker checked Vance by noting that Attorney General Merrick Garland not Biden appointed special counsel Jack Smith to investigate Trump. She added that the former president had been indicted by grand juries, pointing to the guilty verdict in his hush money trial as deriving from a jury of his peers. Would you support him taking such an action? It sounds like youre saying, Yes, you would, Welker said. I would absolutely support investigating prior wrongdoing by our government, absolutely, Vance replied. The two later sparred after the Ohio senator appeared to start entertaining a conspiracy theory involving Matthew Colangelo, a prosecutor in the hush money case and a former Justice Department official in the Biden administration. If that doesnt make you question the legitimacy of the prosecution, thats a problem, Vance said. Well, senator, that happens all the time, Welker noted. People are appointed from Washington. Related... Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade provided updates during a Monday press conference at the Jackson Police Department headquarters on three recent crime incidents, one involving the kidnapping of a 7-month-old child and others, including two homicides in the city of Jackson. On Saturday, July 6, Jackson police began searching for a 7-month-old girl who was kidnapped while she was in a vehicle that was stolen from the 500 block of Beasley Road. Wade said the child was left in the vehicle that was running outside of a Shell Gas station on Beasley Road near I-55 north. The vehicle was then taken from the specified location. According to Wade, the unidentified suspect abandoned the vehicle at Brent's Drugs in the Fondren neighborhood. Wade said he assumes that the perpetrator either realized that a child was on the back seat or the perpetrator made it "to his destination." Wade provided identification of a suspect alleged to be involved saying, "the suspect in this case appears to be an older white male or a light-skin older Black male." Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade held a press conference on Monday, July 8, 2024, at JPD headquarters to provide updates on three recent crime incidents, including the kidnapping of a 7-month-old child and two homicides in the city of Jackson. Wade said the 7-month-old white, female child was located in the abandoned vehicle and unharmed. She was transported to a local hospital as a precautionary measure. Wade said the police department is in communication with the district attorney's office to determine if any charges will be pursued against the child's mother. "Please do not leave your children and vehicles unattended," Wade said. "Please don't leave your vehicle running unattended, with small children in the vehicle or anyone in the vehicle. You can replace that car, but you cannot replace that baby." 'Something you never want to see:' Louisiana to Mississippi abduction ends with a child deceased, another child injured Who died Sunday, July 7, outside of a Jackson nightclub? Willie Luckett, 47, died after being shot at approximately 4:40 a.m. Sunday outside of Club Twilight in the 3000 block of Livingston Road in Jackson. According to Wade, Luckett had been shot and transported to the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he later died. Wade said police have a person of interest, but no details on the suspect had been released at the time of the Monday press conference. Wade said the police is asking for help from the community in this case. "We are very interested in your information, and we want to bring justice to Mr. Willie Luckett's family," Wade said. Anyone with information about the fatal shooting is asked to contact the Jackson Police Department at 601-960-1234 or Crime Stoppers at 601-355-8477. 19-year-old arrested, one wanted: For victim fatally shot multiple times in North Jackson Who have police arrested for robbing, killing 60-year-old Jackson security guard? Wade told the Clarion Ledger and other media outlets three teenagers have been arrested after they allegedly robbed and killed a security guard identified as 60-year-old Roy Love. Police identified the teenagers as 17-year-old Trent Wooten, 17-year-old Zaylon Norton and 16-year-old Kadaris Cohen. Wade said the incident occurred at approximately 1:30 a.m. Monday at the M&M Food Mart in the 500 block of Cooper Road. According to Wade, Love asked the three teens to leave the location shortly before they attacked Love. Wade said the teenagers stole Loves weapon and shot Love with a weapon already in their possession. Wade told reporters surveillance video captured the "terrifying" attack. A Jackson, Miss., Police Department vehicle is shown in this file photo "It was a robbery," Wade said. "Based on the information we got, they were trying to steal the security guard's gun, and they succeeded. They got it. And they took his life in the process. Unbelievable." The three teenagers were later arrested, and each were charged with capital murder. Wade said the three teens were denied bond. More on: Murders increase in north portions of Jackson compared to previous months Wade stated Monday's homicide is JPD's 63rd homicide of the year with 79% of those cases solved. Wade said JPD investigated 67 murders around this time last year. This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Jackson MS 7-month-old taken, security guard killed, nightclub death Jacksonvilles NAACP will host a reception Monday night for the new Duval County Schools Superintendent. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< Dr. Christopher Bernier was sworn in and started the job last week. Action News Jax told you when Dr. Bernier was linked to a whistleblower complaint alleging racial bias at his last job in Lee County. Families will have a chance to ask Bernier about that complaint tonight. [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Everyone is welcome to attend the welcome reception for Bernier. Jacksonvilles NAACP is hosting, which could mean hell get asked about that whistleblower complaint. The complaint comes from his time as superintendent in Lee County, Florida, which is the Fort Myers area. The complaint alleges racial bias, mistreatment and defamation in social media posts that appear to be a part of the complaint. Read: Details of defamation, racial bias about alleged whistleblower complaint against incoming DCPS Supt. The Duval County School Board said it was aware of it and did its due diligence before hiring Bernier, who has denied the allegations when Action News Jax asked him about it the day his contract was approved. The facts will bare themselves out. I believe the board has done excellent due diligence, including calling people who I provided personal phone numbers to, Bernier told Action News Jaxs Robert Grant. Tonights NAACP welcome reception starts at 5 p.m. at the Beaver Street Enterprise Center. Action News Jax will keep you updated on whether Bernier addresses the complaint. Read: No factual basis: DCPS incoming superintendent addresses whistleblower complaint [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. CHICAGO Two popular eateries that are among businesses that have been burglarized in recent days include Italian restaurant Piccolo Sogno in West Town and Logan Squares Lula Cafe. The latter was recently honored with a James Beard Award. Piccolo Sogno, on the 400 block of North Halsted Street, was hit early Sunday morning by four thieves, a police spokesman confirmed. Security video from the restaurant showed four people inside the business shortly after 4 a.m. They got away with property from the restaurant, police said. Theres a lot of people theyre actually scared to come into Chicago. A lot of my clients are from the North Shore. They wont come in Chicago just because there is high crime. Its time to do something, said Piccolo Sogno co-owner Ciro Longobardo. Lula Cafe was among four businesses burglarized in the early morning hours of June 30, just weeks after being honored with a culinary James Beard Award for hospitality. Chicago restaurant wins James Beard Award for Outstanding Hospitality James Beard Award fortifies Lula Cafe chef Jason Hammels focus on community Police said they believe the thieves who struck Lula Cafe, on the 2500 block of West Kedzie Avenue, are the same who also burglarized three other businesses on the 2400 block of West Division Street, on the 3100 block of West Armitage Avenue and on the 2600 block of West Division Street. In each, police said the thieves used a tire iron to get inside before getting off with cash, safes and electronics. All four burglaries occurred between 3:08 a.m. and 4:53 a.m. Security video from inside Lula Cafe shows thieves inside at 4:42 a.m., with one carrying a large safe. Police offered a limited description of the thieves: four Black teens or young men between the ages of 16 and 25 wearing dark clothing, masks and gloves. They got away in a black, four-door Infiniti sedan, police said. Anyone with information on the crimes is asked to contact Chicago police. Anonymous tips may be submitted online at CPDtip.com. The case numbers are JH327133, JH327169, JH327178, JH327193. A case number for the Piccolo Sogno burlgary was not released. Police said they have no one in custody for these 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 WGN-TV. Iceball Home Using data from the James Webb Space Telescope, researchers have determined that an exoplanet dubbed LHS 1140 b may be an icy water world that could potentially harbor an Earth-like atmosphere and even support life. The planet, which was previously believed to be a mini-Neptune, meaning a gas dwarf that resembles Neptune and has a thick atmosphere of hydrogen and helium gas, is located only 48 light-years from Earth, and orbits its red dwarf star in the system's habitable zone. That means it receives enough radiation from the star to technically allow for the existence of liquid water. However, recent data from the JWST suggests LHS 1140 b is instead a rocky or icy, water-rich "super Earth," making it an even better candidate to look for extraterrestrial life than initially thought. "This is the first time we have ever seen a hint of an atmosphere on a habitable zone rocky or ice-rich exoplanet," said NASA Sagan Fellow Ryan MacDonald, coauthor of a paper accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, in a statement. "Detecting atmospheres on small, rocky worlds is a major goal for JWST, but these signals are much harder to see than for giant planet atmospheres." "LHS 1140 b is one of the best small exoplanets in the habitable zone capable of supporting a thick atmosphere, and we might just have found evidence of air on this world," he added. Ocean Bullseye The potentially habitable exoplanet, which was first discovered in 2017 and has over six times the mass of Earth, has already intrigued scientists given its proximity to the solar system. The latest findings are only adding to the excitement. "Of all currently known temperate exoplanets, LHS 1140 b could well be our best bet to one day indirectly confirm liquid water on the surface of an alien world beyond our solar system," said lead author and Universite de Montreal doctoral student Charles Cadieux in a statement. "This would be a major milestone in the search for potentially habitable exoplanets." It's still too early to conclude if LHS 1140 b is a super Earth that's cloaked in nitrogen, much like our own atmosphere. But observations suggest anywhere between ten to 20 percent of its mass may be composed of water, which means it could either be a massive snowball or lump of ice with a sub-surface ocean. The researchers' analysis also suggests its atmosphere may be nitrogen-rich, supporting such a hypothesis. If that were the case, the exoplanet would sport a 2,485-miles-across ocean on its surface, measuring a balmy 68 degrees Fahrenheit. "This is our first tantalizing glimpse of an atmosphere on a super Earth in the habitable zone," MacDonald said. "While we need more JWST observations to confirm the nitrogen-rich atmosphere, and to search for other gases, this is a very promising start." More on super Earths: Astronomers Discover Potentially Habitable Planet (Bloomberg) -- Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a key agreement that would facilitate mutual military visits, as the US allies deepen their defense ties amid lingering tensions with China. Most Read from Bloomberg Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. witnessed the signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement, which he previously hailed as a boost to his countrys security. The agreement was signed by Japan Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro. The RAA brings our defense partnership to an unprecedented height, Philippine Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo said in a joint briefing following the 2+2 meeting with Japanese counterparts in Manila. We also explored other measures to enhance and coordinate our defense and security policies, Manalo added. The pact sets the stage for interoperability exercises between the two nations, Teodoro said at the briefing. The deal is similar to Manilas visiting forces agreements with US and Australia, he added. It also dovetails with Marcos efforts to bolster ties with what he calls like-minded nations as his administration pushes back against Beijings sweeping claims in the South China Sea. Manila is also in talks for visiting forces agreements with France and Canada. Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Marcos earlier this year met with US President Joe Biden where they pledged to bolster security ties. Their countries also form an emerging regional group with Australia called the Squad. Asked about the Japan-Philippines defense pact during a regular press briefing in Beijing, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian said the Asia-Pacific region does not need a military grouping or the stoking up of bloc confrontation and the smoke signals of a new cold war. For countries to have communication and cooperation, it should not undermine mutual understanding and trust of countries in the region. It should not undermine regional peace and stability, it should not target any third party or undermine third party interests, the Chinese official said. Japan has emerged as one of Manilas major investors and strategic partners, backing the Philippines in its effort to safeguard its maritime claims in the South China Sea, including in maritime patrols and defense equipment. Both nations are facing similar security challenges. We have stated strong opposition to unilateral attempts to change the status quo by force and coercion, Japans top envoy Kamikawa said at the briefing, citing dangerous activities more recently around the Second Thomas Shoal. Manila has been clashing with Beijings vessels in the South China Sea in recent months as both assert their claims in the crucial waterway. Tokyo has also been locked in a dispute with Beijing over claims to a set of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea. Japan is concerned with the unlawful maritime claims and oppose the dangerous and coercive use of the coast guard and maritime militia vessels in the South China Sea, Defense Minister Minoru Kihara said in the briefing. --With assistance from Yasufumi Saito, Ditas Lopez and James Mayger. (Adds Chinas comments. An earlier version corrects spelling of Spratly Islands in map, and removes reference to Japan and China dispute as century-old.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Japan and the Philippines sign a defense pact in the face of shared alarm over China From left, Japan Defense Minister Minoru Kihara, Japan Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, Philippines' Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo and Philippines' Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. join hands as they pose after a press conference at a hotel in Taguig, Philippines, Monday, July 8, 2024. Japan and the Philippines have signed a defense pact allowing their troops to enter each other's country for joint military training. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila) MANILA, Philippines (AP) Japan and the Philippines signed a key defense pact Monday allowing the deployment of Japanese forces for joint drills in the Southeast Asian nation that came under brutal Japanese occupation in World War II but is now building an alliance with Tokyo as both face an increasingly assertive China. The Reciprocal Access Agreement, which similarly allows Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, was signed by Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. It would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures, Philippine and Japanese officials said. Kamikawa called the signing a groundbreaking achievement" that should further boost defense cooperation between the countries. The Japanese and Philippine officials expressed serious concern over the dangerous and escalatory actions by China in Second Thomas Shoal, the scene of a recent confrontation between Chinese and Philippine forces in the South China Sea. The busy sea passage is a key global trade route which has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. They underscored in a joint statement the need for the international community to speak out on the importance of maintaining and strengthening the free and open international order based on the rule of law in the disputed waters. In Beijing, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the Asia-Pacific region does not need military blocs, let alone small groupings that instigate bloc confrontations or a new Cold War and reminded Japan of its atrocities during World War II in Southeast Asian countries including the Philippines. Japan should seriously reflect on its history of aggression and act cautiously in the field of military security, the spokesperson said. The defense pact with the Philippines, which includes live-fire drills, is the first to be forged by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain in 2023. Under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Japan has taken steps to boost its security and defensive firepower, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from the country's postwar principle of focusing only on self-defense. It's doubling defense spending in a five-year period to 2027 to bolster its military power and make Japan the worlds third-biggest military spender after the United States and China. Many of Japans Asian neighbors, including the Philippines, came under Japanese aggression until its defeat in World War II, and Tokyo's efforts to strengthen its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue. Japan and the Philippines, however, have steadily deepened defense and security ties. Kishidas moves dovetail with Marcos effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend its territorial interests in the South China Sea. The United States has also been strengthening an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including in any future confrontation over Taiwan, and reassure its Asian allies. Japan and the Philippines are treaty allies of the U.S. and their leaders held three-way talks in April at the White House, where President Joe Biden renewed Washingtons ironclad commitment to defend Japan and the Philippines. Japan has had a longstanding territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea. Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships, meanwhile, have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an ax aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic faceoff at disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Japanese and Philippine officials said China's actions at the shoal obstructed freedom of navigation and disrupted supply lines, thus, increasing tensions. Kihara said in a news conference that Japan has firmly opposed the dangerous and coercive use of maritime security agencies and maritime militia vessels. The Philippines strongly protested the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded $1 million for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Japan and the United States were among the first to express alarm over the Chinese actions and call on Beijing to abide by international laws. Washington is obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. ___ Nuga reported from Bangkok. Associated Press journalists Joeal Calupitan and Aaron Favila in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report. MANILA, Philippines Japan and the Philippines are signing a key defense pact Monday that would allow the deployment of Japanese forces for joint military exercises, including live-fire drills, to the Southeast Asian nation that came under brutal Japanese occupation in World War II but is now building an alliance with Tokyo as they face an increasingly assertive China. The Reciprocal Access Agreement, which will similarly allow Filipino forces to enter Japan for joint combat training, will be signed by Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa in a Manila ceremony to be witnessed by President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. It would take effect after ratification by the countries legislatures, Philippine and Japanese officials said. Kamikawa and Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara are in Manila to hold talks with their Philippine counterparts on ways to further deepen relations, the Philippine government said in a statement. The defense pact with the Philippines is the first to be forged by Japan in Asia. Japan signed similar accords with Australia in 2022 and with Britain last year. Under Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the Japanese government has taken steps to boost its security and defensive firepower, including a counterstrike capability that breaks from Japans postwar principle of focusing only on self-defense, amid threats from North Korea and Chinas growing assertiveness. Its doubling defense spending in a five-year period to 2027 in a move to bolster its military power and make Japan the worlds third-biggest military spender after the United States and China. Many of Japans Asian neighbors, including the Philippines, came under Japanese aggression until its defeat in World War II and Japans efforts to bolster its military role and spending could be a sensitive issue. Japan and the Philippines, however, have steadily deepened defense and security ties. Kishidas moves dovetail with Marcos effort to forge security alliances to bolster the Philippine militarys limited ability to defend Manilas territorial interests in the South China Sea. The busy sea passage is a key global trade route which has been claimed virtually in its entirety by China but also contested in part by the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan. The United States has also been strengthening an arc of military alliances in the Indo-Pacific to better counter China, including in any future confrontation over Taiwan, and reassure its Asian allies. Japan and the Philippines are treaty allies of the U.S. and their leaders held three-way talks in April at the White House, where President Biden renewed Washingtons ironclad commitment to defend Japan and the Philippines. Japan has had a longstanding territorial dispute with China over islands in the East China Sea. Chinese and Philippine coast guard and navy ships, meanwhile, have been involved in a series of tense confrontations in the South China Sea since last year. In the worst confrontation so far, Chinese coast guard personnel armed with knives, spears and an axe aboard motorboats repeatedly rammed and destroyed two Philippine navy supply vessels on June 17 in a chaotic faceoff in the disputed Second Thomas Shoal that injured several Filipino sailors. Chinese coast guard personnel seized seven navy rifles. The Philippines strongly protested the Chinese coast guards actions and demanded $1 million for the damage and the return of the rifles. China accused the Philippines of instigating the violence, saying the Filipino sailors strayed into what it called Chinese territorial waters despite warnings. Japan and the United States were among the first to express alarm over the Chinese actions and call on Beijing to abide by international laws. Washington renewed its warning that it is obligated to defend the Philippines, its oldest treaty ally in Asia, if Filipino forces, ships and aircraft come under an armed attack, including in the South China Sea. Lake Roopkund in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, bordering Nepal, has been a fascinating mystery for researchers ever since a forester stumbled upon it. Hundreds of skeletons lie among the snow-capped peaks of the Indian Himalayas, but no one has any idea where the gruesome human remains came from. ADVERTISIMENT The eerie scenes unfold only one month of the year at the stunning incline of about 5,000 meters when the cold waters of the lake melt enough to peer into. The bones become visible as the temperature rises and the snow melts, writes The Sun. Researchers estimate that there are about 500 human remains there, and are still searching for an explanation of what left them in this icy, uninhabitable part of the South Asian country. The mystery of the Himalayan reservoir is made even more terrifying by its conditions, which are so harsh that tourists have to walk for five days to overcome them. The difficulty of traveling hints to scientists that there may be undiscovered bodies near the lake. ADVERTISIMENT One popular theory is that the eerie scenes, first spotted by a British ranger in 1942, stem from some sort of pilgrimage calamity. The remains likely come from pilgrims, as the stunning lake is part of the route for the Nanda Devi Raj Jat, which is still observed by followers of the polytheistic religion who pass through the eerie site. Indian mythology says that King Jasdhaval of Kannauj took his dancers and his pregnant wife to Rupkund to visit the Nanda Devi sanctuary, a temple that is approximately a thousand years old. The group was allegedly caught in a violent storm and hail so fierce that they all died by the lake, slowly turning into skeletons. ADVERTISIMENT Other theories suggest that the dead were locals returning from the war or invaded by the Japanese. However, scientists have not confirmed this version after analyzing the DNA of 37 gruesome skeletons. The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, found that most of them died about 1000 years ago, but not necessarily at the same time. Surprisingly, they found that some of the people may have died as early as the 19th century. The discrepancy in time indicates that this may not have been a large-scale disaster, but a series of mysterious deaths that occurred over the centuries. Another surprising fact is that the vast majority of their DNA comes from the Mediterranean Sea, thousands of miles away from the Indian mountains. ADVERTISIMENT "This may be an even bigger mystery than before. It's incredible because the type of ancestry we find in about a third of people is so unusual for this part of the world," Harvard geneticist David Reich commented. He explained that the remains could have been scattered throughout the area and fallen into the lake during landslides over time. But Kathleen Morrison from the Department of Anthropology at the University of Pennsylvania clarifies that the Greek kingdom existed on the Indian subcontinent for about 200 years, starting in 180 BC. And, in her opinion, the fact that there is some unknown group of Mediterranean Europeans is not a big discovery: "Maybe they were collected there because the locals dumped them in the lake. When you see a lot of human skeletons, it's usually a cemetery," the scientist says. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! (Bloomberg) -- It didnt take Jean-Luc Melenchon long to seize the moment after initial poll indications of the French legislative vote showed the leftist New Popular Front was headed to a shock victory. Most Read from Bloomberg Before other leaders of that alliance which includes his own far-left France Unbowed, the Socialists and the Greens could get a word in, Melenchon took center stage at a gathering of followers, demanding that it should be called on to govern the country. He also declared that the New Popular Front wont entertain combinations and will refuse negotiations with other groups. The NFP will implement its program, Melenchon told supporters Sunday. Nothing but its program. All of its program. The alliance has promised a major increase in public spending, a boost to the minimum wage and a cut in the retirement age measures that would provoke a major clash with the European Union. The Institut Montaigne estimates that the New Popular Fronts campaign pledges would require nearly 179 billion ($194 billion) in extra funds per year. The leftist alliance won 178 seats in the National Assembly, according to data compiled by the Interior Ministry still far short of the 289 required for an absolute majority. Marine Le Pens National Rally, which pollsters last week had seen winning the election, came third with 143, while President Emmanuel Macrons centrist alliance notched up 156. On BFM TV, French Education Minister Nicole Belloubet was quick to point out that for all Melenchons claims to his partys right to govern, the New Popular Front doesnt have enough lawmakers to control parliament. President Emmanuel Macron will wait for the National Assemblys new configuration to be established before taking any decisions, the Elysee Palace said in a statement. That may not stop markets and investors from being alarmed at the likelihood of the New Popular Front and someone like Melenchon governing France. The 72-year-old fan of former Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez and Cubas Fidel Castro has long spooked markets and investors every time hes come close to power. Known for his fiery speeches, often without a teleprompter or notes and using his trademark mix of humor and anger, the Communist-backed far-left leader often regales crowds with the evils of extreme markets that transform suffering, misery and abandonment into gold and money. He has alluded in the past to France as a country with huge wealth that is badly distributed. The son of a post office worker and a teacher, both descendants of Spaniards and Italians who emigrated to French Algeria at the turn of the century, Melenchon was born in Tangier, now Morocco, when it was an international zone. He moved to France at the age of 11, studied philosophy, did various jobs including as a journalist and proofreader and got involved in Trotskyist politics. He joined the Socialist Party in 1976 at the age of 25, and was elected to various regional, national and European legislative positions. Melenchon was deputy head of the Essonne region, south of Paris, from 1998 to 2004, and a junior minister in the Ministry of Education from 2000 to 2002. He broke with the Socialist party in 2008, saying it was becoming too business-friendly. In 2016, he founded France Unbowed and in 2022 he ran for president for the third time. And now, Melenchon has once again become someone to reckon with. Even if the alliance hes a part of doesnt have the votes to govern alone, its likely to demand new spending commitments from Macron in order to form a new administration. (Updates with seat counts in fifth paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. The Jeffrey Epstein saga began and could have ended in Palm Beach County in 2006. The Palm Beach Post sued in 2019 to find out why it didn't. Now, secret documents detailing what happened 17 years ago when Epstein was indicted on only a single prostitution charge could become public under a new state law. The Jeffrey Epstein case began in Palm Beach County in 2005, though it was later revealed in Ghislaine Maxwell's criminal case that his sexual abuse of children here began a decade earlier. In the 1990s, Maxwell enlisted Epstein's chauffeur and traveled all over the county to find girls for Epstein. She picked up one of the most spotlighted ones, Virginia Roberts Giuffre, at Mar-a-Lago where the 15-year-old and her father worked. By the mid-2000s, Maxwell apparently participated less in that mission for Epstein. The early case focused on Epstein's network of middle and high school-age girls. Epstein bought his mansion on El Brillo Way in Palm Beach in 1990. Since his death, it has been sold and demolished. Read The Palm Beach Post' investigation: Jeffrey Epstein case, the first failure: To the first prosecutors, Epstein's victims were prostitutes 2005 - The police investigation of Jeffrey Epstein begins March 14 - Molestation of 14-year-old reported to police The stepmother of a 14-year-old girl who attends Royal Palm Beach High School reports to police on the island of Palm Beach that her stepdaughter has been molested by a wealthy man. The stepmother tells a detective that "supposedly the man has a lot of money and often has young girls come to his house." The girl, in tears, tells the detective that she was taken upstairs to give Epstein a massage. When Epstein came into the room wearing only a towel, he sternly told the girl to take her clothes off. She stripped down to her bra and a thong. As she massaged him, he masturbated. Afterward, he paid her $300. The next day she got into a fight at school after another girl called her a prostitute. She never went back to Epstein's mansion. Police begin interviewing more girls, who led them to others who say Jeffrey Epstein had molested or raped them. Oct. 20 - Police search Epstein's home Missing in the search at 358 El Brillo Way are several computers, which police believe possibly contain names and photos of victims. Palm Beach Detective Joseph Recarey says he believes Epstein was tipped off about the search and that the computers were in the vault of an Epstein attorney. Later, federal prosecutors would try to get those computers. Marie Villafana, the chief federal prosecutor, said she suspected child porn was on them. Dec. 19 - Epstein's legal dream team arrives Defense lawyers swoop in on Palm Beach County State Attorney Barry Krischer. Harvard law professor Alan Dershowitz, who had helped to successfully defend O.J. Simpson 10 years earlier, hands him the MySpace pages of several victims, which mention sex, drinking and drugs. Other defense lawyers include local powerhouses such as Jack Goldberger and Roy Black as well as nationally known attorneys Gerald Lefcourt and Kenneth Starr. Barry Krischer, former Palm Beach County State Attorney 2006 - How Jeffrey Epstein gets indicted Feb. 22-23 - MySpace pages First grand jury scheduled; three victims are scheduled to testify. Though the Palm Beach police find more victims, only three are scheduled to testify. Former Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter recalled later that prosecutors told him they wouldn't level charges for any victim 16 years old or older unless it was under "extraordinary circumstances," meaning rape. Prosecutors cancel grand jury in order to assess MySpace pages. Palm Beach Police Detective Joseph Recarey, who investigated the Jeffrey Epstein case. April 1 - Victims tell detective that they and their families are being hounded by Epstein-paid private eyes One victims father tells detective Recarey that private eyes are harassing his family, even running them off the road. Another says an Epstein "source" contacted her and said, "Those who help him will be compensated, and those who hurt him will be dealt with." Recarey reports the incidents to the state attorney's office. Witness tampering can be a crime. Nothing happens. April 17 - Deal for probation offered Another grand jury scheduled for April 18-19 is canceled. Prosecutors and Epstein's lawyers try to negotiate a guilty plea to aggravated assault that carried no jail time. Epstein rejects it. May 1 - Krischer's objectivity questioned by Palm Beach police chief Police Chief Reiter questions the "highly unusual" way Krischer is handling the case, suggesting Krischer might want to disqualify himself. Child sex crimes prosecutor, Daliah Weiss (now a circuit court judge), bows out after Epstein hires her husband's law firm. She was known to be a hard-nosed prosecutor on the child sex-crimes unit. Daliah Weiss, now a circuit court judge, was once a prosecutor on the Jeffrey Epstein case. Known as a hard-nosed assistant state attorney on the child sex crimes unit, she recused herself from the case after Epstein hired an attorney in her husband's law firm. Recarey sends prosecutors a proposed arrest document that lists five victims of felonies girls who were under 16 or those who'd been raped. There were many victims aged 16 and older who told police they'd been sexually abused, but they were listed as witnesses because of the state law at the time. If convicted of the felonies against all five victims and given the maximum sentence on each, Epstein could have been sentenced to 75 years in prison. May 23 - The FBI and federal prosecutors enter the picture Reiter and Recarey, concerned about how the state attorney was handling the case, start talking to the FBI and federal prosecutors about taking over. July 19 - Grand jury indicts Epstein on a single solicitation of prostitution charge Prosecutor Lanna Belohlavek presents the case to a grand jury with only one victim testifying. Belohlavek attacks the 14-year-old's credibility with her MySpace pages given to prosecutors by the defense. The grand jury indicts Epstein on a felony charge of solicitation of prostitution what a "john" propositioning an adult sex worker might face. The charge doesn't address the 14-year-old's age. July 23 - Epstein arrested Epstein spends one night in the Palm Beach County Jail. He is released the next day on $3,000 bond. 2007 - Negotiating the secret deal not to prosecute Epstein Sept. 24 - "Deal of the century" is signed Epstein signs what became known as the non-prosecution agreement, called the "deal of the century," with federal and state authorities in exchange for pleading guilty to two felony prostitution-related charges under Krischer. The deal requires Epstein to register as a sex offender. It also protects four named co-conspirators as well as any potential co-conspirators. Then the real negotiation begins among Krischer, federal prosecutors and Epstein's lawyers. Chief federal prosecutor Villafana stands ready several times to launch a 6- count federal indictment that came from a federal grand jury investigation. The Palm Beach County Stockade in July 2019, where sex predator Jeffrey Epstein spent mostly his nights. 2008 - Epstein pleads guilty, goes to jail Jan. 10 - Victims deceived with FBI letter The FBI sends a letter to victims urging patience while they conduct a thorough investigation. It does not say the federal investigation is already over because of the non-prosecution agreement signed in September. POST EXCLUSIVE: Never-before-seen Jeffrey Epstein biography surfaces June 30 - Epstein pleads guilty to two felonies Epstein pleads guilty to the grand jury's charge of solicitation of prostitution and Krischer's charge of solicitation of a minor for prostitution. Instead of potential decades in federal prison, hes sentenced to 18 months in jail. He would serve 13 months of his sentence in a private wing of the Palm Beach County jail reserved for snitches or others who need protection from other inmates for various reasons, such as having a lot of money. He would spend mainly nights there, leaving on work release six days a week/12 hours a day. One woman said later that she was flown in to have sex with him at the offices of a foundation he'd formed months before his guilty plea. 2009 - Epstein out of jail. Did he violate house arrest? July 22 - He can travel anywhere if he's back in 24 hours Epstein is released from jail to spend a year on house arrest but he is allowed to travel frequently such as to his private island in the U.S. Virgin Islands as long as he's back in 24 hours. His lawyers ask to end house arrest early, a request rejected by Krischers successor, Michael McAuliffe. A few potential violations of house arrest are documented in state attorney's files, but no one takes action. A violation could have sent Epstein back to jail. 2019 - New York prosecutors charge Epstein with sex trafficking July 6 - Epstein arrested in New Jersey New York prosecutors charge him with sex trafficking, related to incidents in Palm Beach and New York. He's arrested at Teterboro Airport in New Jersey, reportedly a hub of his sex trafficking network, after flying in from Paris. In a nationally televised news conference, former U.S. Attorney and Secretary of Labor Alex Acosta blames Krischer for bungling the case. Acosta later resigns. Aug. 10 - Epstein found dead The financier is found hanged in a Manhattan jail cell. The medical examiner rules it a suicide. 2020 - It's Ghislaine Maxwell's turn July 2: Epstein's former girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell is arrested Federal prosecutors in New York charge Ghislaine Maxwell with conspiracy to commit sex trafficking of minors, saying she helped recruit the underage girls that Epstein sexually abused in New York and Palm Beach and sometimes participated in the abuse herself. The cases in Palm Beach County reach back to the mid-1990s. Ghislaine Maxwell: Sex-trafficking trial to have Palm Beach focus even with its New York setting 2021 - Ghislaine Maxwell on trial Dec. 30: Maxwell found guilty After a month-long trial, Maxwell is found guilty of several charges, including sex trafficking, conspiracy and transportation of a minor for illegal sexual activity. Four victims testified against her, including Carolyn Andriano, who is from Palm Beach County and met Epstein when she was 14. More: Jeffrey Epstein survivor who testified against Ghislaine Maxwell dies in West Palm Beach 2022 - Maxwell begins her prison term in Tallahassee June 28: Maxwell in Tallahassee prison Maxwell is sentenced to 20 years in federal prison. She's serving her time at a low-security prison in Tallahassee. Her release date is July 2037. She's teaching etiquette classes that "focus on respect, consideration and honesty," according to the class description. If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, the Palm Beach County Victim Services and Rape Crisis Center can help. Reach their helpline at 561-833-7273, or toll-free at 866-891-7273. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Jeffrey Epstein case timeline: Why early case failed in Palm Beach New Jersey forest fire that was sparked by fireworks is 75% contained This Friday, July 5, 2024 image provided by the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection shows a forest fire in Tabernacle, N.J. The fire had burned 4,000 acres and was 75% contained as of Monday July 8. (New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection via AP) TABERNACLE, N.J. (AP) A forest fire that has burned 6.3 square miles (about 16.3 square kilometers) in the New Jersey Pinelands was 75% contained as of midmorning Monday, officials said. Its status remained basically unchanged since Sunday night. The New Jersey Forest Fire Service said the blaze in Wharton State Forest was not threatening any structures. It was burning in a section of the forest in Tabernacle Township near the Batona Campground and Apple Pie Hill. On Sunday, the service said the blaze had been touched off by the use of fireworks in the forest but would not say how it had reached that determination. The fire was reported by a spotter from a nearby fire observation tower shortly after 9 a.m. Friday. Crews were using backfire operations to fight the fire, burning areas ahead of the main fire in a bid to stop the flames from spreading. Several roads and trails were closed. RIFLE, Colo. (KREX) Fire season is in full effect as another blaze occurred on the Western Slope this past weekend. The Jewell fire, northwest of Rifle, reached 69 acres Sunday night after it was an estimated 15 acres earlier that same day, according to the Upper Colorado River Interagency Fire Management Unit. Three Type 2 handcrews and multiple engines have been on the scene. Because of the size of the incident, crews will mop up to the extent necessary to minimize the likelihood of the fire moving into unburned areas outside of the edge of the fire line, the interagency noted. This may happen for the next few days or even up to a week, depending on the severity of heat within the fire perimeter in order to reach full containment and control. Air tankers, air attack, a helicopter and crews have also worked on containing the fire. The interagency asks the public to avoid the area for public and emergency resource safety. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. WASHINGTON Jill Biden is launching President Joe Bidens outreach to veterans and military families during a campaign swing through battleground states, drawing contrasts with her husbands Republican rival as the Biden team works to shift the conversation away from growing calls for the Democratic incumbent to drop his reelection bid after a damaging debate performance against Donald Trump. The first lady was to announce the formation of Veterans and Military Families for Biden-Harris during stops Monday in Wilmington, North Carolina; Tampa, Florida; and Columbus, Georgia. The states have large populations of veterans and military families. Her daylong tour is part of the Biden campaigns broader effort to rebound from the presidents halting performance against Trump in last months debate, which led a handful of House Democrats and others to call on Biden to end his campaign because they no longer believe the 81-year-old president is mentally and physically capable of defeating Trump in Novembers election. Biden has insisted, during public appearances since the June 27 debate, that he is staying in the race. His campaign manager, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, said the new group will work to engage and mobilize millions of veterans and military families in the U.S. to vote to reelect the president. Our veterans and military families are the brave and the bold, who step forward for all of us," she said. "They deserve a commander in chief who respects their bravery and understands personally their sacrifice, not one who denigrates them for being willing to put their lives on the line for our democracy. Rodriguez was referring to reports that Trump, during a 2018 trip to France, referred to service members who paid the ultimate sacrifice as suckers and losers. Trump denies making the comments. Bidens late son Beau served in Iraq as a member of the Delaware Army National Guard, and the first ladys father was a Navy signalman during World War II. Biden and Trump argued during the debate over who cares the most about veterans. Biden noted that he recently visited an American military cemetery in France, the final resting place for U.S. soldiers who fought in World War I, which Trump notably skipped on that 2018 trip. Trump asserted during the debate that the Democratic president is coddling migrants while neglecting the needs of veterans and service members, and he faulted Biden for the chaotic withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Bidens campaign noted that the president had expanded benefits for veterans affected by toxic exposures, developed a strategy to reduce veteran suicide, increased support for caregivers and awarded more than $1 billion in 2023 to support homeless veterans. Jill Biden separately leads a White House initiative named Joining Forces, which is working to help military spouses get and keep federal government jobs, make child care more affordable and accessible for military families and support those who care for veterans. Jill Biden is defending President Bidens reelection bid, saying shes all in with her husbands 2024 run. President Biden wakes up every morning ready to work for you, the first lady said Monday during a stop in Wilmington, N.C., to launch a campaign initiative aimed at veterans and military families. Thats what this election is all about: you, she said. For all the talk out there about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, Biden continued, before the crowd broke into cheers of Four more years! Thats the decision that hes made. And just as he has always supported my career, Im all in too, exclaimed Biden, a professor at Northern Virginia Community College. Jill Bidens remarks come after the commander in chiefs disastrous debate last month against former President Trump in Atlanta, which ignited calls from political opponents and allies alike for him to exit the White House race. The first lady has faced criticism for her husbands decision to stay in the race, with detractors claiming she was prioritizing what is best for herself over her husbands health and the safety and security of the country at large. The president has plenty of political and policy advisers thats never been [Jill Bidens] role, Elizabeth Alexander, the first ladys communications director, told ITK last week. In her remarks in Wilmington, Biden repeatedly tried to contrast the presidents record on military issues with that of Trump. We know what Donald Trump was like as commander in chief. He dismissed the military community and diminished Americas leadership around the world. And it could be worse this time. He says he wants to be a dictator on day one, Biden said at the event. Donald Trump wakes up every morning thinking about one person and one person only: himself, she said. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Jill Biden will visit Columbus while talks of president dropping out of race persist First Lady Jill Biden will make an appearance Monday in Columbus as her husband battles for reelection, according to communications sent by the Democratic Party. President Joe Biden again faces former President Donald Trump, seeking another four years in the White House after unseating Trump in 2020. Bidens performance in a June debate against Trump has prompted heavy scrutiny and calls to drop out of the race. But Biden says he wont drop out, and Mondays visit from the first lady could be crucial for the Biden reelection effort as they try to rally support in a state that proved essential to his 2020 victory. Multiple media outlets have reported that Jill Bidens visit to Columbus Monday will be part of a three-state visit. She will also visit Florida and North Carolina. The Ledger-Enquirer will have coverage of Bidens visit. Stay tuned to Ledger-Enquirer.com for more. Explosions occurred in Kyiv during an air raid on the morning of July 8. As a result of the attack, debris fell in several districts of the capital and hit a children's medical center. Ten people were killed and 35 others were injured. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported by Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko. Also at 13:00, another shelling was reported in Kyiv, and eyewitnesses saw smoke in the sky. The Kyiv City District Administration reported at 10:30 a.m. that debris had fallen in the Solomianskyi district of the capital. "As a result of a missile strike on Kyiv, debris fell in the Solomianskyi district of the capital. Emergency services are on their way to the scene. Information on the damage and casualties is being clarified," said Serhii Popko, head of the Kyiv City Administration of Emergency Situations. Air defense is in place in the capital, the air raid alert continues, and all residents are urged to stay in shelters. According to a correspondent of OBOZ.UA, the number of people in the Kyiv subway tripled after the explosions. ADVERTISIMENT As of 10:48 a.m., the KRMA reported that debris fell in Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, and Holosiivskyi districts. "As a result of a missile strike on Kyiv, debris fell in Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, and Holosiivskyi districts. Preliminary, there is a fire. Information on the damage and casualties is being clarified. Stay in the shelters until the end of the day," Popko said. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko later reported that rocket fragments fell in Dniprovskyi and Solomianskyi districts. The call for services to the Holosiivskyi district was also recorded. Emergency crews were sent to the scene. At 10:54 a.m., an explosion was reported in the Shevchenkivskyi district. ADVERTISIMENT "There was an explosion in the Shevchenkivskyi district," Klitschko said. At 11:03 a.m., the Kyiv City Military Administration said that as a result of a missile strike on Kyiv, debris fell in Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Darnytskyi, Desnianskyi, Shevchenkivskyi, and Holosiivskiy districts. Preliminary data is as follows: An office building was damaged in Solomyanskyi district. In Holosiivskyi district, debris fell near a residential building. In Dniprovskyi district, debris is burning in a residential building. A private house was damaged in the Darnytskyi district. A building is on fire in the Desnianskyi district. All emergency services are working at the scene. As of now, we know about one injured person, whose injuries are not critical to life. The information continues to be clarified. Also, the mayor of the capital reported at least three injured as a result of the Russian attack and probably one victim. ADVERTISIMENT "At the moment, we know about three victims. One of them was hospitalized. Two were treated on the spot. We are checking the information about one dead person," Klitschko said. As of 11:10 a.m., it became known in the capital that the occupiers had hit one of the premises of a children's medical institution. "They hit one of the premises of a children's medical institution," Klitschko said. The Kyiv City State Administration reported that the Lukyanivska metro station is operating during the air alert both for transportation and for sheltering the population. It was also reminded that during the air alert, the subway does not run on the ground. As of 11:25 a.m., the alert in the capital continues, and all residents are urged to stay in shelters. ADVERTISIMENT As of 11:31 a.m., the KRMA reported at least 5 victims of the Russian attack, and 9 more people were injured. "Update. As of this minute, we know about 5 dead. The information is being updated," said Popko. As of 11:36 a.m., the air raid alert has been canceled in Kyiv. At 11:36, the mayor of the capital also informed that the number of victims had increased to 11 people, 8 of whom are in hospitals. The Kyiv police report that as a result of the Russian attack, debris fell in Desnianskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, Holosiivskyi, Dniprovskyi, Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts of Kyiv. ADVERTISIMENT Two floors of a business center in Solomyanskyi district were damaged by rocket fragments. The destruction covers an area of 1500 square meters. One dead person, two people were injured, and the fire spread over an area of 50 square meters. In Darnytsia district, a piece of debris hit a private residential building, injuring a woman's arm. A house is on fire in the Desnianskyi district. In the Holosiivskyi district, garages were damaged and cars were burning. In Shevchenkivskyi district, a rocket fragment hit a hospital. In other parts of the city, the debris fell on open areas. Rescuers are working at the scene. As of 11:54 a.m., the KRMA reported that the number of casualties had increased to 7. ADVERTISIMENT "Updates. As of this minute, we know about seven dead. The information is being updated," said Popko. The mayor of the capital informed that the patients of the children's hospital, which was hit by an enemy missile, are being evacuated to municipal hospitals in the city. The Minister of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ihor Klymenko said that as of 12:10 a.m., there were 7 dead and 25 injured as a result of the attack on Kyiv. The occupants attacked the country's largest children's hospital. Rescuers on the ground are doing their best to rescue people from the rubble and provide assistance. The mayor of the capital reported at 12:20 that a residential building in the Shevchenkivskyi district was hit. Entrances are damaged, and one is destroyed. Residents are being evacuated. ADVERTISIMENT According to the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, as of 12:30 a.m., the liquidation of the consequences of the hostile shelling of the capital continues in Podilskyi, Desnianskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, Holosiivskyi, Dniprovskyi, Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi, and Shevchenkivskyi districts of the city. At 11:55 a.m., a fire was extinguished in the Shevchenkivskyi district in an area of 1500 square meters. Unfortunately, 5 people died and 4 were injured. The injured were taken to doctors for further hospitalization. Preliminary, the total number of people killed is 8, and 15 more were injured. 213 rescuers and 43 units of basic and special fire and rescue equipment are working at the scene. ADVERTISIMENT As of 12:40 p.m., nine people were killed and 23 wounded in Kyiv as a result of the attack, the Prosecutor General's Office reports. Destruction and damage to civilian infrastructure in seven districts of the capital were reported: In the Shevchenkivskyi district, the Okhmadyt Children's Hospital was damaged, and there were destructions. In Holosiivskyi district, a kindergarten and a residential building were damaged, and cars were burning. ADVERTISIMENT An office building was damaged in Solomianskyi district. In Dniprovskyi district, debris is burning in a residential building. A private house is damaged in the Darnytskyi district. In Svyatoshynskyi district, debris is burning near a residential building, and a fire broke out in the premises of an enterprise. In the Desnianskyi district, a house caught fire. Emergency services and investigative teams are working at the scene. The Kyiv City Prosecutor's Office has initiated a pre-trial investigation into the criminal proceedings over the violation of the laws and customs of war combined with premeditated murder (Part 2 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine). ADVERTISIMENT At 13:16, the Kyiv City Administration of Emergency Situations reported that 10 people were killed and 35 injured as a result of the missile attack. Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes! President Joe Biden struck a defiant tone on Monday, daring his critics to run against him at the Democratic convention if they opposed his decision to stay on as the presumptive presidential nominee. Calling in to NBCs Morning Joe, Biden dismissed calls from some Democratic lawmakers, newspaper editorial boards and political commentators urging him to drop out of the 2024 race after his shaky debate performance with Donald Trump, insisting that average Democrats are with him. Im getting so frustrated by the elites in the party. ... They know so much more, Biden said. If any of these guys dont think I should run, run against me. Announce for president, challenge me at the convention. I dont care what those big names think. They were wrong in 2020, he added, referring to columnists at The New York Times and elsewhere who have urged him to step aside for a younger presidential nominee. Responding to similar worries from some Democratic donors, Biden said, I dont care what the millionaires think. Bidens 3,896 delegates are pledged to him, and the only way one could mount a serious challenge to his candidacy at the Democratic National Convention next month is if he released them. Given his comments on Monday and his letter to congressional Democrats making clear he wont be stepping aside, thats not likely to happen. What might persuade Biden to step aside, however, is other party elders telling him it is time to go. So far, top congressional Democrats and former Democratic presidents are sticking with Biden. That could change if polls show voter concerns with Bidens fitness drag down Democratic candidates for the House and Senate. On Sunday, four Democrats who serve as senior party members on their House committees Reps. Jerry Nadler (N.Y.), Joe Morelle (N.Y.), Mark Takano (Calif.) and Adam Smith (Wash.) reportedly said in a phone call with party leaders that Biden should step aside. That came after one House Democrat seen as vulnerable in her reelection fight, Rep. Angie Craig (Minn.), said she thought Biden should not run. President Biden is a good man & I appreciate his lifetime of service. But I believe he should step aside for the next generation of leadership. The stakes are too high, Craig wrote in a social media post. The debate over Bidens political future is likely to heat up as Congress returns from its holiday recess this week. Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-N.Y.), for example, said Monday that persistent Democratic hand-wringing over Biden would be deeply self-destructive if he remains the nominee. Those publicly calling on President Biden to withdraw should ask themselves a simple question: what if the President becomes the Democratic nominee? Torres wrote in a social media post. The drip, drip, drip of public statements of no confidence only serve to weaken a President who has been weakened not only by the debate but also by the debate about the debate. Weakening a weakened nominee seems like a losing strategy for a presidential election. Related... President Joe Biden reiterated to congressional Democrats he has no intention of stepping aside as their presumptive presidential nominee, urging them to unify to defeat Donald Trump in November. Despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden wrote in a letter released by his presidential campaign on Monday as Congress returned to Washington from a two-week recess. The president argued that bowing out of the race, as some lawmakers have urged him to do, would go against the wishes of Democratic voters who cast their ballots across the country. This was a process open to anyone who wanted to run ... they have chosen me to be the nominee of the party, Biden wrote. How can we stand for democracy in our nation if we dont have it in our own party? He added: The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end. Any weakening of resolve or clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Nine House Democrats have called on Biden to step aside, and dozens more have expressed concerns about his age and physical ability following his shaky debate performance against Trump last month. That number could grow as lawmakers reconvene in Washington this week. Biden also called in to NBCs Morning Joe on Monday morning, saying he had one bad night but that he is committed to running against Trump, citing support for him among voters on the campaign trail. I wanted to make sure I was right that the average voter still wanted Joe Biden. We have large crowds, enthusiastic crowds, Biden said of his campaign events over the past week. The bottom line here is that were not going anywhere. I am not going anywhere, he added. Jubilee! names new lead minister; What's next for its former Wall Street building? ASHEVILLE - Since the Jubilee! Community moved out of its downtown home of more than three decades last year, it has a message for Asheville: We're still here. Jubilee!, an inclusive, independent faith community, relocated to West Asheville's Rainbow Community School Auditorium in May 2023, a temporary solution following the sale of its longtime home at 46 Wall St. The building, which has sat empty since Jubilee! moved out, is poised for new tenants, permit filings show, including plans for a digital art gallery and bar by day, and a live music and performance art space in the evening. The building at 46 Wall St., which has sat empty since Jubilee! moved out, is poised for new tenants, permit filings show, including plans for a digital art gallery and bar by day, and a live music and performance art space in the evening. Spokesperson Michele Bernhardt told the Citizen Times that Jubilee! will eventually be looking for a dedicated new space and has a permanent senior minister on board for the first time in nearly five years, since the 2019 retirement of founder Howard Hanger. Stephanie Escher, an ordained Methodist Elder, started in May. Since Escher came, Bernhardt said there's been an increase in congregants, which they refer to as "Jubilants," from around 80-90 people since the move, to 100-125. Around 30-50 people typically watch online. Speaking to what a new senior minister could mean for Jubilee!, Bernhardt said, We keep the best things about our past, and we explore new opportunities to do new things." "The idea of having a senior minister who is both the spiritual leader and the administrator means we have someone who is more fully involved in Jubilee!. Escher most recently served as manager of mission and spiritual care in the Midwest Region of Advocate Health, per a June release. She has over over 15 years ministerial and chaplaincy experience, including pastorates at progressive, inclusive United Methodist Churches in Minnesota and Illinois. Its been in honor to just step in to where they are," Escher said, particularly as Jubilee! explores its identity without the Wall Street location. "(They are) trying to figure out who can they be? Who were they? At the core, what is Jubilee!? ... Thats the whole journey of spiritual work, is the constant flourishing. Stephanie Escher speaks at a Jubilee! Sunday celebration. What happened to the Wall Street building? Jubilee! sold its downtown building in May 2023 for $1.9 million to Florida-based Equitas Co. The company told the Citizen Times last year it would manage the property, intending to lease it for office or retail space. Permits filed with the city in April indicate proposed improvements to the "upper level" of the space, which exits onto Wall Street. Previously occupied by a single tenant, the building is now intended to have separate tenants on each floor. The project description, dubbed "Third Room," says the "previous place was a place of worship, and will be changed to a nightclub. Gallery and event space during the day." Co-owner of Third Room, Hailey Dellinger, told the Citizen Times July 5 the music and arts venue would be their first location. The two-story building straddles Wall Street and Patton Avenue, with entrances on each, and was home to the spirit-led faith community since 1989. Jubilee originally rented the downtown building, an old nightclub, until purchasing it in October 1999 for $460,000, according to Buncombe County property records. The decision to sell the Wall Street building came after Jubilee! found itself without the financial capacity to maintain it. There were a confluence of changes and complications, such as Hanger's retirement, which came just before the pandemic hit, as well as diminishing membership. It was not an easy thing to do, Bernhardt said of the move. Stephanie Escher speaks at a Jubilee! Sunday celebration. 'We're still here' Since we relocated to Rainbow Community School Auditorium from downtown Asheville, we have heard locals ask if Jubilee! has closed our doors, Louise Slater, chair of Jubilee!s board of directors, said in the release. The answer to that is a resounding No! The misconception really hit them during a February Mardi Gras parade, Bernhardt said. Jubilee! was moving through with its floats, and heard surprise from the crowd, voices calling out people who hadn't known they were still around. It became really, really obvious that once we had a new minister, we need to elevate our profile, she said. "We're still here. We still are inclusive and embrace everybody ... from all spiritual paths." More: Asheville-based makers of the ENO hammock, popular outdoors brand, celebrates 25 years More: Jubilee! to sell its downtown building, home since 1989; temporary move to Rainbow school Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times. This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Jubilee! names lead minister; What's next for its downtown building? An inmate accused of escaping and stabbing a man to death on the Atlanta BeltLine faced a judge for the first time on Monday. William Tyler Coleman appeared in court for his first appearance on murder and aggravated assault charges. A judge denied him bond during the hearing. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Coleman is accused of stabbing a man along Montgomery Ferry Road, which is part of the Atlanta BeltLine trail, on Friday night around 8 p.m. Police found the victim had been stabbed several times and officials pronounced him dead on the scene. On Monday, the Fulton County Medical Examiners Office told Channel 2 Action News that it is still working to identify the victim. Investigators said they identified the suspect as Coleman and learned he had recently escaped from the Georgia Department of Corrections. Online records from the GDC offender database show that Coleman had been at an Atlanta Transitional Center since Oct. 2021. He was convicted on robbery, simple battery and obstruction of law enforcement charges, according to the database. GDC officials confirmed that Coleman walked out of the Atlanta Transitional Center on June 22. Police have not said what motive was behind the deadly stabbing. TRENDING STORIES: [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS 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. | Scott G Winterton, Deseret News A judge ruled on Monday that Washington County Clerk Ryan Sullivan is not required to provide 2nd Congressional District candidate Colby Jenkins with the names and addresses of voters whose ballots require signature confirmation to be counted. Jenkins is currently 314 votes behind Rep. Celeste Maloy in the hotly contested Republican primary to represent Utahs 2nd District. The race is still too close to call nearly two weeks after the June 25 election. Monday marks the final day voters with challenged ballots can remedy them before Washington County undergoes an election certification canvass on Tuesday. The Washington County clerks office has already reached out to each of the voters on the uncured ballot list via a letter, and, for those who provided contact information, via a phone call or a text with a link to cure their ballot through an affidavit confirming their signature. Jenkins campaign hoped by obtaining the names and addresses of voters on this list they could encourage them to respond to the county clerks office and potentially bring the race into recount territory, or a margin of less than 270 votes between the two candidates. Maloy is ahead in most counties in the district, but Jenkins leads Washington County with nearly 60% of the vote. As of Monday morning, Washington County had more than 430 cure ballots pending remedy. Colby Jenkins requests voter info to cure ballots In a complaint filed last week in the 5th Judicial District Court in Washington County, Jenkins claimed county election offices are required under state code to release their uncured ballot lists upon request. The documents said the Salt Lake County Clerks office provided the Jenkins campaign with this information but that the Washington County Clerks office refused to do so on the mistaken belief that they have the discretion to withhold it. On Monday, Jenkins lawyer, John Mertens, argued the Utah law that allows individuals to fast-track requests for election-related public records was not optional because the uncured ballot list was not a draft record or a sealed election return and that state GRAMA laws require responses from public entities. Mertens also argued that giving clerks discretion on releasing voter information would result in counties treating voters differently. He also said that campaigns would be able to give voters a better chance of their voice being heard because ballot remedy requests would be delayed by the U.S. Postal Service which routes all Washington County mail through Las Vegas. The irreparable harm is that if we have legal ballots that arent being counted, and we have legal voters who are able to cure their votes, the irreparable harm would be that their voices would not be heard in this election, Mertens said during the court hearing. And maybe that will result in a victory for one candidate or the other. The crucial item of importance is that these voters have their voices counted. Judge rules in Washington County clerks favor 5th District Court Judge Jay Winward ruled that the plain text of Utah statute gives county clerks discretion as to whether they release uncured ballot lists before their county canvass. Thats within his purview as the executive branch officer to say, Im not disclosing names of my voters in my county, Im going to contact them as required by the statute, Winward said at the 9 a.m. hearing. Winward explained the judicial branchs job is to interpret what the state legislature has written and ensure executive officials are in substantial compliance with the law. The judge questioned Sullivan under oath and found he had complied with the law to the best of his ability by safely storing the unopened challenged ballots and contacting the ballots corresponding voters with steps to remedy their ballots. Winward praised the state legislature for doing their due diligence with election law but said there could be room for improvement. As I read this election code, I found it robust, I found that the legislature really did a pretty good job of addressing a lot of issues, he said, adding, I might ask my senator and my representative to maybe make this a little bit more robust. Winward suggested the legislature might want to make more specific instructions for county clerks in the case of extremely close elections. While the outcome was not what Jenkins hoped for, Winward said the judicial system had provided the candidate with a huge forum to inform voters and remind them to track and cure their ballots if needed. I hope every voter in this county checks their vote, Winward said. The law was passed, the executive branch executed the law, Im interpreting the statute, and now the people get to know where there is not a hole in the system where they can still have their voice in this process. Voters can check the status of their mail-in ballot at ballottrax.utah.gov. St. Clair County Circuit Court Judge Cynthia Lane has rejected a motion to sever the trials of two men charged in a more than 40-year-old slaying. Douglas Laming and Anthony Harris have been charged with open murder for the death of Karen Umphrey in 1980, and both had requested they be given separate trials. The place where Karen Umphrey's body was found in November 1980. The camera is pointing southeast. Lane sided with the prosecution during a hearing on July 1, however, which argued the expectation by the defendants' attorneys that their defenses would be "antagonistic" toward each other was not enough to warrant separating their trials. Umphrey, who was 21 at the time, was found dead in the State Game Area of Beard Hills in 1980 with two bullet wounds to her head. Laming was identified as a suspect more than 40 years after Umphrey's death thanks to an investigative technique called genetic genealogy, which found his DNA was a match for a semen sample on her body. Further investigation led the St. Clair County Sheriff's Office to identify Harris, who was also a genetic match for DNA recovered from Umphrey's body. Several witnesses testified in the preliminary examinations for both defendants. Michigan law allows co-defendants to be tried together in a single trial to save the court time and money. During Laming's preliminary examination, his attorney, Frederick Lepley, asked St. Clair County Detective Ed Silver about the presence of male DNA on Umphrey's underwear that didn't match Laming. Harris, who had not been charged at the time or publicly identified as a suspect, was later found to be a match for that DNA. Laming reportedly told police he and Umphrey had consensual sex before her death. In their response to the defense's motion to sever, the St. Clair County Prosecutor's Office pointed out neither defendant had given a concrete example of how their defense would be antagonistic. "Neither defendant even implies it was the other defendant who must have been culpable of the murder," a court filing from the prosecutor's office stated. "Neither of their statements directly incriminate the other defendant." Laming and Harris' joint trial is scheduled to begin Oct. 8. A plea hearing will be held on Sept. 30. Open murder is punishable with up to life in prison. Contact Johnathan Hogan at jhogan@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Port Huron Times Herald: Judge denies motion to sever trial in Karen Umphrey murder case Lawyers for the state on Monday defended the legislature's decision to outlaw some vaping products. The Kentucky Vaping Retailers Association and the Kentucky Hemp Association are challenging the law. The hearing was held in the Franklin County Court House. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Sarah Ladd) FRANKFORT Franklin Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate heard arguments Monday in a case challenging the constitutionality of a 2024 law banning the sale of some vaping products. This comes as the defendants Allyson Taylor, commissioner of the Kentucky Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, and Secretary of State Michael Adams filed a motion to dismiss the case. Should Wingate grant that motion, the plaintiffs the Kentucky Vaping Retailers Association, the Kentucky Hemp Association and four vape shops will appeal the decision, their lawyer told the Lantern. The plaintiffs have also filed a motion for judgment. Either way, the case is far from settled. Its unclear when a decision could come, as Wingate said it will take a while for him to review. The arguments The lawsuit centers around House Bill 11, which passed during the 2024 legislative session. Backers of the legislation said its a way to curb underage vaping by limiting sales to authorized products or those that have a safe harbor certification based on their status with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Opponents have said it will hurt small businesses and lead to a monopoly for big retailers. Altria, the parent company of tobacco giant Phillip Morris, lobbied for the Kentucky bill, according to Legislative Ethics Commission records. Based in Richmond, Virginia, the company is pushing similar bills in other states. Altria, which has moved aggressively into e-cigarette sales, markets multiple vaping products that have FDA approval. Greg Troutman, a lawyer for the Kentucky Smoke Free Association, which represents vape retailers, told the judge Monday that, among his issues with the new law, is the way it defines vapor products and other substances, looping e-cigarettes and vapable hemp and marijuana products together. He argues that combination makes the law too broad and arbitrary to pass constitutional muster. Troutman argued that because of this, the title of the bill, AN ACT relating to nicotine products, didnt fairly represent the content of the legislation. Lindsey Keiser, an assistant attorney general, countered that the title doesnt need to fully cover the content of the bill. Its long settled that the title does not need to have a detailed index of everything thats contained within the bill, she told the judge. Keiser also argued that the fact that the FDA has approved so few indicates that there is a lot of concern about these products. So, she said, its reasonable then for Kentucky to say that if the FDA is only approving this limited number, we too will only approve this limited number. Later this year, the U.S. Supreme Court will decide whether or not the FDA was unfair in its denial of at least a million vaping product applications, the Associated Press reported in early July. Troutman, arguing for the vape retailers, said the state law is flawed because its based on a flawed federal process. Weve got a state process that is predicated before a federal process that itself has been deemed arbitrary by at least two federal courts, he said. Meanwhile, HB 11 is set to be enforceable starting Jan. 1, 2025, the same day patients with a history of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), cancer or other approved medical conditions will be able to apply for cannabis cards for medical marijuana. The post Judge hears arguments on Kentucky law banning some vaping products appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. Utah's Fifth Judicial District Courthouse is pictured on July 8, 2024, in St. George, Utah. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch) Utahs still undecided Republican primary for the 2nd Congressional District got its first test in court Monday but that doesnt mean the race is any closer to being resolved. Theres another fight brewing this time over potentially hundreds of ballots in southern Utah that werent postmarked on time, the day before Election Day, due to delays through the postal service because theyre routed to Las Vegas for processing before returning to clerks. At issue in court Monday, however, was a conflict between 2nd Congressional District candidate Colby Jenkins and Washington County over whether the clerk there had the right to decline to release the countys list of uncured ballots, which contains the names of voters whose signatures need to be confirmed before their votes can be counted. Despite applauding Jenkins campaign for raising the issue, a judge in Utahs Fifth District Court in St. George rejected the Republican candidates request to force the Washington County clerk to release the uncured list. Utahs 2nd Congressional district debate between Colby Jenkins and Congresswoman Celeste Maloy at the KUED studios at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City on Monday, June 10, 2024. (Pool photo by Scott G Winterton/Deseret News) Judge Jay Winward on Monday ruled Washington County Clerk Ryan Sullivan interpreted and applied Utah election law correctly and agreed that its at the clerks discretion whether to release the list of uncured ballots. Sullivan last week said he declined to release the list as a matter of voter privacy. Thats how I interpret it, the judge said at the conclusion of Mondays hearing at the Fifth District Courthouse in St. George. Its very clear to me that this is how its supposed to occur. However, Winward also praised Jenkins attorneys for their arguments, adding he was grateful that the campaign brought the issue to court. He said it highlighted a potential opportunity for the Utah Legislature to clarify or strengthen Utah law in circumstances of extremely tight elections. But ultimately in this case, reading the statute, I think the Legislature meant it to be broad and left the discretion with (the clerks), Winward said. Sullivan testified that he followed the law and made every effort to contact voters with ballots needing curing, and the decision whether to release the cure list or not was within his purview, he said. However, the judge also said the Jenkins campaign now has a huge forum to raise awareness and urge all voters to track their ballot (a feature available on Utahs election website) and make sure its been counted. I hope every voter in this county, whether its 500 or 5,000 check your vote, go make sure its counted, the judge said. Voters had until the end of the day Monday to contact their clerks offices and rectify any issues with their ballot. Tuesday is the deadline for the county canvass. Winward thanked both Jenkins campaign and the Washington County Clerks Office for engaging in what he characterized as an opportunity to increase confidence in the election process. This is why the country was set up this way. The law was passed. The executive branch executed the law, Im interpreting the statute, and now the people get to know where there is not a hole in the system where they can still have their voice (heard), the judge said. Its cordial, its collegial, its transparent, its not corrupt. Its exactly how it should be. Outside the courtroom, Sullivan told Utah News Dispatch after the hearing he was grateful for the judges ruling. Washington County Clerk Ryan Sullivan (right) exits a Fifth District Court room after a judge ruled to reject candidate Colby Jenkins request to force Washington County to release its voter cure list on July 8, 2024 in St. George, Utah. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch) Im just happy that the judge was able to interpret that so clearly and it went our way, he said, adding that his office still has a lot of work to do Monday to finish the canvass of the election. As of Monday evening, Jenkins was trailing Rep. Celeste Maloy by just 314 votes (49.85% to Maloys 50.15%), according to election results. Jenkins attorneys argued it needed access to the list of about 531 ballots awaiting confirmation to help ensure all possible voters in the county would get their votes counted. Jenkins has found a stronghold of support in southern Utah, especially Washington County, while Maloy has led him in almost every other county in northern Utah and along the Wasatch Front. As more votes have been tallied each day since the election, Jenkins campaign has slowly gained ground on Maloy, but so far not enough to cross into recount territory. For a losing candidate to be able to call a recount, Utah law requires a margin of equal to or less than 0.25% of the total number of votes cast. There have been about 106,928 votes cast in the 2nd Congressional District race so far, putting the required recount margin at roughly 267. As of Monday, Jenkins was just 47 votes away from reaching that threshold. Utahs Fifth Judicial District Courthouse is pictured on July 8, 2024, in St. George, Utah. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch) Why fight for the cure list? The Jenkins campaign had hoped to receive the list in hopes it could spend the rest of the day Monday urging remaining voters to get their signatures confirmed before the cure deadline at the end of the day. Jenkins campaign manager Greg Powers said he wished the judge would have taken a closer look at case precedent that counties need to treat all voters the same (the Jenkins campaign noted Salt Lake County opted to release the voter cure list, but Washington County didnt). However, he said they dont fault him for interpreting the law the way he did. It was a really narrow ruling, and the judge even acknowledged that the statute needs some reform, Powers said. He added Jenkins campaign attorneys believe they could have a strong appellate case if they wanted to pursue that, but given the cure deadline is Monday evening, its likely too late. Utahs Fifth Judicial District Courthouse is pictured on July 8, 2024, in St. George, Utah. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch) However, that doesnt mean the Jenkins campaign will stop fighting and it could perhaps file another legal challenge, Powers said. Jenkins is still holding out hope there could be a recount, or if not, he said the campaign may even contest the election through the courts, now focusing on another issue that led hundreds of ballots in southern Utah to not be counted. Delayed ballots in southern Utah Separate from the voter cure list conflict, another southern Utah county was grappling with a different issue that could also have implications for the Maloy-Jenkins contest and its one that the Jenkins campaign is watching closely. Iron County Commission Paul Cozzons on Friday announced on his Facebook page that hed refuse to vote to certify the primary election results after he learned that roughly 400 ballots in Iron County were postmarked after their deadline, the day before Election Day, even though many voters say they were mailed days before. I cannot in good conscience certify this election, Cozzens told St. George/Cedar City News. Too many voters have vehemently contested the discrepancy, insisting they sent their ballots well before the cutoff date, with some claiming to have mailed them as early as June 22. I would not be keeping my oath of office if I certify that election. Iron County Clerk Jon Whittaker told the outlet that while late-arriving ballots have happened before, this years election saw an unusual number. Whittaker said he believes its because in recent years, mail processing in southern Utah has shifted from being sent to Provo, to now Las Vegas, where its scanned, barcoded and postmarked. Whittaker wrote a seething letter to the U.S. Postal Service, saying he was livid to learn of so many pointlessly rejected ballots, even though many had been mailed days before the deadline due to the maddening, 340-mile journey to Las Vegas for processing. A screenshot of the livestream of the Iron County Commission meeting on July 8, 2024, in Iron County, Utah. (Katie McKellar / Utah News Dispatch). In its public meeting Monday when it was scheduled to certify the election results, an emotional Whittaker, at times pausing to choke back tears, read his letter out loud and told the Iron County Commission he now wishes he hadnt written the letter in a moment of frustration, and that while hes still upset about the situation, he also said the law is clear: if a ballot doesnt have a clear postmark, before Election Day, it doesnt count. Therefore, Whittaker still recommended the Iron County Commission certify the election. I hate the situation, and my actions reflect that, the clerk said, adding that he drove to Salt Lake City and back in hopes of finding a way to make those votes count. However, both myself and you as the board of canvassers are bound by the law. Not certifying would put at risk 9,800 voices in favor of the 400 or so that Im unable to prove. During the hearing, a handful of Iron County residents including some who said they mailed their ballots days before the deadline and yet were still informed that their ballots were not postmarked in time told the commission they had lost trust in the postal service and therefore Utahs vote-by-mail system. Commissioners also expressed frustration and a reluctance to certify the results but they also wrestled with their requirements to follow the law and questioned how to move forward. Ultimately, the commission voted to delay their vote to certify the results until an emergency meeting Tuesday at 4 p.m. to give themselves time to consult with state officials. Let us know what you think... Powers said the Jenkins campaign is watching the issue in Iron County and other southern Utah counties, and may seek to get late-postmarked ballots counted in either a recount process or by filing a new legal action to contest the election if the race doesnt enter recount territory. If theres a whole bunch of ballots that are postmarked late, then we need to figure that out, Powers said, adding it may be another area for the state election code to be clarified or fixed. These people in southern Utah shouldnt be getting disenfranchised simply because they dont know that their ballots are going to get processed in Las Vegas. Powers said its not fair for southern Utah voters who might have mailed their ballots the same day as voters in northern Utah to have lost their chance to vote because of postal service delays. If theres hundreds and hundreds of votes in southern Utah then its very possible that theyve thrown out more than enough votes to swing the election, he said. We dont know that, but if we determine that that might be likely then we could contest the election even if we dont make it into a recount. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Judge rejects Jenkins lawsuit to obtain voter cure list but another fight is brewing appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. Judge rules Missouri AG has no right to medical records of transgender minors at Wash U Civil Courts Building in St. Louis (Rebecca Rivas/Missouri Independent) A St. Louis judge on Friday determined Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has no right to access unredacted private health information of transgender children treated at the Washington University Transgender Center at St. Louis Childrens Hospital. St. Louis Circuit Court Judge Joseph Whyte ruled that Washington University does not have to provide the unredacted medical records sought by the attorney generals office as part of his investigation into the clinics practices. Whyte found that the health information sought in Baileys demands is protected, and the data is not relevant to an investigation under the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, which is the states consumer protection law. A third layer of protection for the information, the judge ruled, is the Health Information Portability and Accountability Act, or HIPAA, which prohibits the disclosure of personal health information without authorization. The attorney generals demands are not specific and limited in scope to the extent reasonably practicable in light of the purpose for which the information is sought, and respondent has not shown that de-identified information could not be reasonably used for the purpose for which it is sought, Whyte wrote. Bailey began looking into gender-affirming care at the Washington University Transgender Center in March 2023 after the centers former case manager Jamie Reed provided an affidavit alleging rushed treatment. The attorney generals office sent civil investigative demands, which are similar to subpoenas, for health records to Washington University and other providers of gender-affirming care to minors, and four facilities filed suit against his requests for information. Washington University, according to Fridays ruling, responded to Baileys demand and gave him redacted records. One of Baileys demands was for the university to, identify all clients to whom you have provided your services. For each client, describe your services, the dates you provided your services, the amounts clients, their insurance or other third-party payors paid for these services and any contracts related to these services. The attorney generals office also wanted access to all electronic health records of clients, according to the judgment. Bailey said the redacted records were insufficient and asked the court to force Washington University to produce the documents in full. His reasoning for needing the information, though, was outside the bounds of the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act, Whyte determined. Whyte recalled the attorney general arguing that he was looking into fraudulent billing of insurance and alleged that redactions removed communications about red flag tracking and patients who had discontinued treatment. That wasnt a sufficient argument, Whyte ruled. The judge wrote that the Missouri Merchandising Practices Act does not require blind obedience to the attorney generals civil investigative demands, noting one section of the law that specifically exempts privileged material. Bailey plans to appeal the order. There is no fight more important than the fight to make Missouri the safest state in the nation for children, he said in a statement to The Independent. My team remains undeterred in our quest to protect children. No stone will be left unturned in these investigations. Whyte is also presiding over a similar case involving demands for records from the St. Louis-based branch of Planned Parenthood, though in that case no records have been turned over to the attorney general at all. Two other cases over Baileys access to medical records are playing out across the state in Jackson County, where Circuit Court Judge Joel Fahnestock ordered Kansas Citys Planned Parenthood organization and Childrens Mercy Hospital to produce requested documents Planned Parenthood appealed in February, and the judges order is placed on hold until after appeal. Childrens Mercy did not appeal. This article has been updated following comment from the attorney generals office. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Judge rules Missouri AG has no right to medical records of transgender minors at Wash U appeared first on Missouri Independent. Judith Belushi Pisano, the widow of iconic Chicago native John Belushi, died Friday night at age 73. The Marthas Vineyard Times reports that Pisano had a long battle with cancer. Pisano and Belushi first moved to Marthas Vineyard, the Massachusetts island just south of Cape Cod, in 1974, the paper reports. Pisano was born as Judy Jacklin in Oak Park, a western suburb of Chicago, on Jan. 7, 1951. Pisano met Belushi at Wheaton High School in the western suburbs, the Sun-Times reports, where they began dating. Belushi, of course, went on to achieve fame as a comedian, actor and musician, best known for his time on Saturday Night Live and his roles in the movies Animal House and The Blues Brothers. Pisano herself was a producer and musician, The Marthas Vineyard Times notes. Robert Towne, Oscar-winning writer of Chinatown, dies at 89 Pisano and Belushi married in 1976 and remained married until Belushis death on March 5, 1982. She later remarried Victor Pisano in 1990, but they divorced in 2010. Belushi Pisano attended the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, where she shared a small apartment with Suze Orman, the future financial guru, according to the Sun-Times. After Belushis death in 1982, Belushi Pisano continued to keep his memory alive. She authored the memoir Samurai Widow, co-wrote a biography titled Belushi and, according to the Sun-Times, organized Joliets 2021 Blues Brothers Con. Belushi Pisano also had several acting credits to her career and co-wrote two humor books. The official John Belushi Facebook page posted a statement Saturday morning on Belushi Pisanos passing. Today, our hearts are heavy as we say goodbye to our sweet Judy, it reads. Her unwavering dedication and creative genius alongside Dan Aykroyd and John Belushi gave birth to The Blues Brothers, a timeless testament to the power of music and laughter. Hearts Ann Wilson announces cancer diagnosis, tour with Illinois stop postponed In the years following Johns passing in 1982, Judy honored his life and championed his legacy and Blues Brothers brand. As we bid farewell, we pledge to continue her work, ensuring that Johns legacy, and the Blues Brothers, will never fade. There was no one like her. Judy made everyone feel loved. She was nonjudgmental, light, funny and pure. You could be truly yourself around her, that alone was a gift. The Belushi and Pisano families will carry your love in their hearts forever. Belushi Pisano is survived by her four children, six grandchildren and three siblings. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. On Monday, July 8, Russian occupants launched missile attacks on civilian infrastructure in several cities of our country. In Kyiv, as a result of another terrorist attack, the modern Okhmatdyt children's hospital was destroyed. ADVERTISIMENT There are numerous dead and wounded, including children. The Defense Forces showed how they would take revenge for the Russian attack on the children's hospital. "The revenge of the Defense Forces is already underway..." the message reads. It is noted that today hell awaits the enemy along the entire front line. Revenge for Okhmatdyt and all the children of Ukraine who suffered from the Russian occupiers will be ruthless. Artillerymen, mortar gunners, and attack drone operators have already struck dozens of strikes against the occupiers in retaliation for the destroyed children's hospital. ADVERTISIMENT The images were provided by various units and brigades, including 24th King Danylo Mechanized Brigade, 101st Separate Artillery Brigade named after Colonel General Hennadii Vorobiov, Operational Command West, 44th Separate Artillery Brigade named after Hetman Danylo Apostol, 126th Separate Territorial Defense Brigade, 25th Separate Airborne Sicheslav Brigade, and the Joint Assault Brigade of the National Police of Ukraine "Anger", 36th Separate Marine Brigade named after Rear Admiral Mykhailo Bilynskyi, 103rd Separate Territorial Defense Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 57th Separate Motorized Infantry Brigade named after Kosh Ataman Kostiantyn Hordiienko, 110th Separate Mechanized Brigade named after Major General Marko Bezruchko. ADVERTISIMENT ADVERTISIMENT ADVERTISIMENT As previously reported by OBOZ.UA, explosions were heard in different districts of Kyiv during the air raid on the morning of July 8. In addition to the children's hospital, other facilities were damaged, including one of the entrances to an apartment building. After the explosions in Kyiv, Dnipro, and Kryvyi Rih and the deaths of civilians in these cities, the Russian Ministry of Defense cynically stated that on July 8, it had carried out a"group strike with long-range precision weapons against military industry facilities and air bases" in Ukraine. Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) With Fourth of July weekend coming to an end, the busiest time of year is over for fireworks sellers. But while many pop-up shops have already closed, other sellers are staying open through the summer. Jakes Fireworks shop in Kentwood is the biggest fireworks store in the state, according to the companys website. After big crowds flowed through for the Fourth of July, employees are already focused on whats next. Jakes Fireworks Michigan locations will periodically stay open through Labor Day, according to Kentwood store associate David Mengel. Mengel said its simple: Theres enough business to make it worth it. Some weekends are more productive than others, but we want to be here because when they want something, they want it now, he said. Theres only so many places to go get it, and we want to be one of those places. Jakes Fireworks in Kentwood. (July 7, 2024) Jakes Fireworks in Kentwood. (July 7, 2024) State law updated in 2018 gave local governments villages, townships, and cities the right to regulate when their residents can shoot off fireworks. Essentially, when you can use them depends on where you go because different areas have different laws. Why you could get a fine for shooting off fireworks Saturday Mengel says he often sees customers coming for the next few months for many celebrations. A lot of people like to celebrate birthdays, weddings, personal holidays, whatever, Mengel said. They come in looking for one or two extra things to make more of an impression on their family and friends. Regardless of local rules, state law allows fireworks in every municipality on certain holidays. That includes the following: Dec. 31 until 1 a.m. on Jan. 1 Saturday and Sunday before Memorial Day until 11:45 p.m. on each day June 29 to July 4 until 11:45 p.m. on each day July 5, if it is a Friday or Saturday, until 11:45 p.m. Saturday and Sunday before Labor Day until 11:45 p.m. on each day The state law gives plenty of opportunities for business no matter where customers live. We know according to the guidelines from the state they can shoot the fireworks off the Saturday and Sunday before (Labor Day), Mengel said. We got to provide them with those. Grand Rapids mostly follows the state regulations but also allows residents to fire off consumer-grade fireworks on Juneteenth, which is observed each June 19. Mengel said the Jakes Fireworks location in Kentwood will remain open through Wednesday. The store will then temporarily close and reopen on July 19. It will remain open on Thursday, Friday and Saturday of every weekend through Labor Day, 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 WOODTV.com. HAMPTON Police and state parks reported a busy Fourth of July weekend consisting of 46 arrests, 18 ocean rescues and 18 vehicle crashes, including one involving two police cruisers. The accident between a Hampton police cruiser and state police cruiser occurred at 12:37 a.m., July 5, on Route 101 at the intersection with Landing Road. Hampton Police Chief Alex Reno said because the collision involved a Hampton officer, state police are conducting the investigation. Hampton police and lifeguards reported a busy Fourth of July weekend consisting of 46 arrests, 18 ocean rescues and 18 vehicle crashes, including one involving two police cruisers. According to state police, Trooper Clark Brighton of New Hampshire State Police Troop A attempted to pursue a vehicle that was traveling east without headlights on Route 101. His Dodge Charger crossed the intersection with Landing Road as a Hampton Police Department Ford Explorer, driven by officer Timothy Vaughan, entered the intersection. The preliminary investigation indicates Trooper Brighton entered the intersection on a green light, according to the state police, when Officer Vaughan, who had been manually operating the traffic light following July 4 celebrations at Hampton Beach, simultaneously entered the intersection on a red light while attempting to reset the traffic light sequence. Both officers were evaluated by emergency personnel and found to sustain minor injuries, according to police, while Route 101 was temporarily closed to traffic. Reno said the Hampton cruiser was "totaled." All aspects of the crash remain under investigation. The crash is in the same area where a multi-vehicle crash occurred Thursday, July 4. The accident closed the roadways for a short time, Reno said, as five ambulances responded to transport those involved to area hospitals. Reno said no one was seriously injured. With great weather and firework displays on Wednesday and Thursday nights, Reno said Hampton Beach was packed. He estimated at points in time on the holiday that about 130,000 people were at Hampton Beach, and police officers spent a lot of time addressing resulting traffic issues. Reno said traffic on the Fourth of July was "bumper to bumper" starting at 8 a.m. He said traffic was restored after the fireworks by about 12:15 to 12:30 a.m. It was very busy, Reno said. But it wasnt crazy. Hampton police dealt with 560 calls for service from July 3 through the early hours of July 8, 150 alone on July 4. That total is almost 100 more than last year. Of those calls, 46 resulted in arrests, including three DWIs and three felonies out of the 69 offenses charged. They also made 180 traffic stops, resulting in 141 warnings and 39 summonses issued. On the Fourth of July alone, Reno said there were 22 arrests, 1 DWI, 8 crashes and 37 motor vehicle stops, resulting in 10 summonses and 27 warnings. "For the most part, everybody was well-behaved," Reno said. "We had some folks who chose not to behave, and we dealt with that." Greg Keeler, spokesperson for the New Hampshire State Parks, said lifeguards made 18 ocean rescues and reunited 31 lost adults and children with families. They also removed 71 dogs from the beach and dealt with 1,331 alcohol violations at all of the Seacoast state beaches, 95 percent of which were at Hampton Beach. Hampton Beach Country Fest 2024: What to know about free Parmalee concert Police: Man rescued from ocean ends up in handcuffs Reno said one rescue occurred at about 7 p.m. on the Fourth of July and ended in an arrest. Dispatch, he said, received several 911 calls from people reporting what appeared to be a highly intoxicated person far out in the ocean, splashing around and in distress. Officers with Marine Patro tried unsuccessfully to get him in their boat. The man was under the influence of some substance and went in the water wearing shorts and a belt, Reno said. And he proceeded to take off his belt and whip the Marine Patrol officers trying to rescue him. A band of lifeguards went out together on paddle boards and were also whipped by the individual, Reno said. When they finally got him on a paddle board, Reno said, he kept flailing about and fell off several times. As they got the man into knee-high water, Reno said, he continued to act up and wouldnt come out of the water. Thats when the police got involved. Police officers were able to subdue him, got handcuffs on him, out of the water and we arrested him, Reno said. The suspect, a 30-year-old Manchester resident, is scheduled to be arraigned on Aug. 13 on charges of criminal threatening, disorderly conduct and resisting arrest, according to Reno. Column: Hampton Beach parking changes should be driven by safety, not views Hampton police thank partners for help during Fourth of July Reno said Hampton police is significantly short of its customary contingency of part-time officers who augment the full-time force each summer, but preplanning and cooperation with other agencies maintained safety. Reno said his department hired officers from Epping, Newton, Kensington and Newfields to patrol over the long holiday weekend. Also present providing coverage were troopers from state police units, including Troop A, deputies from the Rockingham County Sheriffs Office, the Seacoast Emergency Response Team and the National Guard Civil Support Team. We work together to address issues before they become bigger problems, Reno said. Hampton Beach State Park employees are another asset, Reno said, specifically, the lifeguards. Thats especially true when it comes to keeping alcohol off the beach to maintain safety and prevent fights that drunkenness can cause. According to Reno, lifeguards are first to spot alcohol drinking on the beach, which isnt allowed on state beaches. When they do, they approach and tell offenders they have to leave. If after two warnings they refuse to leave, police are called and offenders are removed and sometimes arrested, he said. The lifeguards are a real patrol asset for us when covering Hampton Beach, Reno said. They bring a force multiplier by dealing first with alcohol violations. And they do it well. Seabrook, North Hampton police report busy but uneventful Fourth of July In Seabrook, the statistics appear to be those of a busy summer weekend at the beach without major upheaval. According to Seabrook police Lt. Jason Allen, there was one warrant served, one disorderly conduct, one person taken into protective custody, three arrests and 16 stops for speeding. There were also five accidents, Allen said, but none required transport to hospitals. North Hampton Deputy Chief Thomas R. Scotti said the community was busy and enjoyed the Fourth peacefully, without major problems marring the holiday. There was an incident at the Kia dealership on Route 1 at about 9 a.m. on Saturday, Scotti said, which turned out to be the oil from a compressor leak heating up and smoking badly. But, he said, there was no fire in the structure, although the incident did shut down a part of Route 1 for a short time. North Hampton Police recorded one DWI arrest, 11 vehicle stops, two motor vehicle accidents, one report of vandalism, and one for theft. We were patrolling the beach area, but we didnt have any major problems, Scotti said. It was busy, but everyone played well together in the sandbox. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: July 4 in Hampton: 46 arrests, police cars crash, lifeguards save 18 PHILADELPHIA, Pa. (WHTM) On July 4, 1776, in the Pennsylvania State House (aka Independence Hall), the members of the Second Continental Congress declared independence, then immediately gathered around a table to sign a beautifully calligraphed parchment document which appeared within minutes of the vote Sorry, folks, thats not quite how it happened. Pennsylvania preps for Americas 250th birthday celebration On July 2, members of the Congress voted in favor of the Lee Resolution, proposed by Virginia delegate Richard Henry Lee on June 7, 1776, which reads as follows: Get daily news, weather, breaking news and alerts straight to your inbox! Sign up for the abc27 newsletters here Resolved, That these United Colonies are, and of right to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved. That it is expedient forthwith to take the most effectual measures for forming foreign Alliances. That a plan of confederation be prepared and transmitted to the respective Colonies for their consideration and approbation. Pennsylvania History: On This Date, the 2nd Continental Congress Convenes In a sense, this is the first draft of the Declaration of Independence. But it wanted for a bit of expansion and embellishment, to explain in more detail to the British why these upstart colonists wanted to part ways. In anticipation of a yes vote, Congress had set up a Committee of Five, consisting of John Adams of Massachusetts, Roger Sherman of Connecticut, Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania, Robert R. Livingston of New York, and Thomas Jefferson of Virginia. They hammered out the Declaration, with Jefferson doing most of the writing. On July 4, 1776, after a few edits, Congress voted to approve this Declaration of Independence. President of Congress John Hancock signed the fair copy, and Secretary of Congress Charles Thomson added his signature attesting to it. Thomas Jeffersons rough draft (Library of Congress) Then they had to get the word out. Declaration of Independence, Dunlap Broadside (Library of Congress) Some of the delegates rushed the handwritten declaration four blocks to the printing office of John Dunlap, who had a contract to print documents for Congress. He worked through the night, printing out around 200 copies of the declaration. The copies are what are known as broadsides, large sheets of paper printed on one side only, usually used to announce events or make proclamations. Of the 200 Dunlap Broadsides, only around 30 exist and are millions-of-dollars-apiece valuable. The fair copy is long lost. On July 5 John Hancock started sending out the broadsides. One of the broadsides was pasted into the Congresss official journal; others were sent far and wide, including a copy to George Washington, who had it read to the Continental Army. July 6, 1785: The value of a (decimal) dollar Then on July 8, 1776, the citizens of Philadelphia were summoned to the State House Yard by the bells of the city. (This would include the bell at the State House, known then as the State House Bell, known later as the Liberty Bell, which was not, at the time, cracked.) Attention soon centered on a single man, Colonel John Nixon. Nixon, born and raised in Philadelphia, was a member, and sometimes chairman, of the Committee of Safety, lieutenant-colonel in the Third Battalion of Associators, and commander of the defenses of the Delaware River at Fort Island, as well as the city guard. On this day he had been appointed by the Sheriff of Philadelphia for special duty. At noon Colonel Nixon publicly read the Declaration of Independence for the first time. The city bells rang in celebration well into the night. Reading the Declaration of Independence, July 8, 1776. (Library of Congress) The engrossed Declaration of Independence, on display at the National Archives in Washington D.C. As for the actual signing of the Declaration, that had to wait a bit. On July 19th, Congress ordered that the Declaration be engrossed on parchment. Engrossing is the copying of an official document in a large hand. Though its not certain, the person assigned this task was probably Timothy Matlock, assistant to the secretary to Congress Charles Thomson. It was not a job that could be done quickly. It had to be written out entirely by hand, in ink, using a quill pen-and no backspace key if you make a mistake. Congress had also ordered a new title, The unanimous declaration of the thirteen united states of America, and it was with that heading that the newly engrossed copy of the Declaration of Independence was finally signed on August 2, 1776. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Shootings and other violence during the extended Fourth of July weekend have left at least 42 people dead, including 19 in Chicago, and injured dozens more nationwide, authorities said. The Fourth of July historically is one of the nations deadliest days of the year. A flurry of shootings around the holiday a year ago left more than a dozen people dead and over 60 wounded. And a year before that, seven people died in a mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade near Chicago. Violence and mass shootings often increase in the summer months, with more people gathering for social events, teens out of school and hotter temperatures. Chicago in state of grief In Chicago alone, 19 people had been killed and 85 wounded in shootings as of Sunday night during the extended July Fourth weekend, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. The violence included a mass shooting on Thursday that killed two women and an 8-year-old boy. The recent violence has left our city in a state of grief, Mayor Brandon Johnson said. A community rally was planned for Friday evening, and the city would beef up police presence over the weekend, Johnson said in a statement. We are devastated by the recent violence that has left our city in a state of grief and we extend our heartfelt condolences to the families and communities impacted by these recent events, Johnson said. Eight people were wounded in Chicagos Little Italy neighborhood shortly after midnight Friday. About 90 minutes later, a shooting in the citys Austin neighborhood injured six. Police said preliminary findings suggest the separate shootings involved an exchange of gunfire between two people who then fled. Recent violence at a popular Lake Michigan beach in Chicago prompted officials to close it early each night through the holiday weekend as a precaution. The 31st Street Beach has been the scene of recent stabbings and shootings. Southern California violence In Huntington Beach, California, two people were killed and three others injured in an Independence Day attack less than two hours after a fireworks show ended, police said. Authorities arrested a suspect after responding to reports of an assault with a deadly weapon Thursday night. 15-year-old boy arrested in Niles, Ohio, shooting, 10-year-old girl dies in Cleveland In the northeastern Ohio community of Niles, Police Chief Jay Holland said a 15-year-old male was in custody after a 23-year-old man was fatally shot Thursday night at a Fourth of July party at a residence. A 10-year-old girl, identified as Gracie Griffin, was fatally shot in a Cleveland neighborhood, police said. It is not yet known what sparked the shooting or if she was targeted. Fatal drive-by shooting in Philadelphia A 19-year-old man was killed and six others were wounded in a drive-by shooting in Philadelphia on Thursday night. The wounded, which included four juveniles, were being treated at hospitals for various injuries that were not considered life-threatening. It is not known yet what prompted the shooting. Boston-area shootings leave 2 dead, 5 wounded Three shootings occurred in the Boston area following the citys Fourth of July celebrations, leaving two men dead in separate shootings. One fatal shooting occurred about 1:30 a.m. Friday in a park near Bostons South End neighborhood. At about the same time, three other people were wounded in the citys Jamaica Plain neighborhood. In another shooting in Mattapan just after noon on Friday, police found a man and woman shot inside a car and the man died. Another shooting at a gas station left a victim with life-threatening injuries. A 17-year-old male suffered a stomach wound in another shooting Thursday night in a condominium parking lot in East Bridgewater, Massachusetts. Connecticut woman fatally shot in car In Connecticut, a woman was found shot in her car early Friday and was pronounced dead at a hospital. Police identified her as Shamyria Williams, 23, of Hartford. Relatives told reporters they believed she had just left a Fourth of July party. Six teens shot at home in Albany, New York Police in Albany, New York, said six males ranging in age from 16 to 19 were being treated at a hospital for injuries that were not considered life-threatening after a shooting at a large gathering. Police responded to reports of a shooting at a home around 12:15 a.m. Friday. None of the victims were found at the scene but police said they located evidence consistent with gunfire in the yard behind the residence and in the street. One teenager who had been shot flagged down officers along a street a short time later, police said. Five teens shot during party in suburban Detroit Five teens were wounded when shots were fired into a crowd following a fight at a party early Friday morning in Pontiac, about 30 miles (48.2 kilometers) northwest of Detroit. Three of the victims are 14 years old. The other two are 15 years old. All are males. Authorities said they were taken to hospitals with wounds not considered to be life-threatening. Tampa nightclub shooting wounds 4 Four people were wounded in a shooting early Friday outside a Tampa adult nightclub after an altercation between the clubs security guard and two men, police said. The two men drove their car to the front of the Pink Pussycat Lounge and one of them shot the security guard with a handgun, police said. The security guard underwent surgery at a hospital and was in stable condition. Three other men suffered unspecified minor injuries. Police said both suspects were arrested and charged with several crimes. Violence elsewhere In the Queens section of New York, an 8-year-old boy was fatally stabbed in an apartment in what police described as a domestic dispute. Police said officers later fatally shot a 20-year-old man who held a knife to his 43-year-old fathers throat and refused commands to drop the weapon. In High Point, North Carolina, a shooting at an unofficial fireworks display left one person dead after a large crowd had gathered in the parking lot of the city about 90 miles (145 kilometers) west of Raleigh, police said. The victim was identified as Keith S. Lynch, 32, of High Point. Shootings at two St. Louis-area Fourth of July gatherings left two men dead and five others injured, two critically, police said. In West Virginia, Charles Speer, 42, of Kermit, died early Friday after being shot multiple times following a physical altercation at the home of another man, state police said. And a road-rage incident led to the fatal shooting of a 36-year-old man in Taneytown, Maryland, according to the Carroll County Sheriffs Office. Earlier Thursday, a police officer serving a warrant in Cleveland and an armed person making threats in Yellowstone National Park were among those killed in other shootings. ___ Associated Press reporters Rick Callahan in Indianapolis; Bruce Shipkowski in Trenton, New Jersey; Susan Haigh in Hartford, Connecticut; Steve LeBlanc in Boston; Curt Anderson in St. Petersburg, Florida; Jonathan Drew in Raleigh, North Carolina; Jim Salter in St. Louis; and Karen Matthews in New York City contributed to this report. 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 Kansas City police seek help in finding 80-year-old missing man with dementia Kansas City police seek the publics help in locating an 80-year-old man with dementia who is missing. Mbugua Njoroge was last seen at his residence at 128 West 61st Terrace around 12:01 a.m. Sunday, prompting police to issue a Silver Advisory. Njoroge, who is Black, is 5 feet, 10 inches tall, weighs 180 pounds and has gray hair and beard and brown eyes, according to Alayna Gonzalez, spokesperson with the Kansas City Police Department. Anyone who had seen him is asked to call 911 or the Kansas City Missouri Police Department at 816-234-5043. ST. MARYS (KSNT) Northeast Kansas law enforcement agencies are warning people to take precautions as a rise in vehicle burglaries are reported. The St. Marys Police Department issued a warning on social media on Friday, July 5 to residents following increased reports of vehicle burglaries. Police provided some recommendations to ensure vehicles are secure overnight, such as: Vehicle doors are locked. Garage doors are closed. Your home is locked. Outside lights are on. The Pottawatomie County Sheriffs Office also reported an increase in car break-ins. The uptick in break-ins also prompted the Wamego Police Department to make a social media post warning residents. According to the sheriffs office, numerous vehicle burglary reports were made on Tuesday, July 2 in the neighborhoods near Green Valley Drive. KSNT 27 News spoke to Wamego Police Chief Paul Schliffke about some ways to prevent break-ins from happening. First of all, lock your vehicle, Schliffke said. One of the things thats very common about any vehicle burglaries, including these have been most of the vehicles have been unlocked. Secondly, dont leave valuables in sight in your vehicle. Report: Wages not keeping up with home prices in Shawnee Co. Schliffke also said you should never leave a firearm in your vehicle. It is dangerous for the officers who respond to the scene and it becomes very hard to track when it is stolen. The Pottawatomie County Sheriffs Office said anyone with information on the burglaries should contact Captain Tyler Garver at 785-457-3355 or leave a tip 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. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Adam Proffitt, secretary of the Kansas Department of Administration, said the decision of the agency's procurement director to reject two appeals of contract awards to manage the state's Medicaid program H was the "final agency action" because no other mechanism existed for administrative appeal. The companies could file a lawsuit. (Kansas Reflector screen capture of Kansas Legislature's YouTube channel) TOPEKA The Kansas Department of Administrations procurement director rejected complaints submitted by Aetna Better Health and CareSource Kansas that alleged misconduct in selection of three managed-care companies to operate the states $4 billion Medicaid program. Separate protests by the unsuccessful bidders were denied, meaning decisions by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment to enter into contracts with Sunflower Health Plan, United Healthcare Community Plan and Healthy Blue could go forward. The immediate outcome was Healthy Blue replaced Aetna Better Health. Both challenges questioned KDHEs system of scoring applicants for the KanCare contract. They invited scrutiny of Healthy Blues corporate lineage to Amerigroup, which had been dropped from the states Medicaid program in 2018. Issues were raised about potential conflicts of interest among personnel linked to Healthy Blue, which is affiliated with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas. From 2021 to 2024, BCBS Kansas hired a handful of people who had worked in the administration of Democratic Gov. Laura Kelly or the Kansas Legislature. Todd Herman, director of procurement and contracts in the Department of Administration, informed attorneys representing CareSource and Aetna Better Health that their appeal had been denied. Documents that Herman sent to the two failed bidders were comparable in that both concluded KDHEs process adhered to Kansas law and the outcome was based on objective evaluation of sealed bids that answered to the states 450-page request for proposals. The state of Kansas followed the negotiated procurement process permitted by state statute, he said in the explanatory document sent to Aetna Better Care. The awarding of a contract to United Healthcare, Sunflower and Healthy Blue is supported by the facts. Kelly not involved Herman said the burden of proof was on the protesting company to demonstrate the procurement process was fatally flawed, and neither complaint satisfied that requirement. In terms of the Healthy Blue contract award being tainted by BCBS Kansas hiring of four people who previously worked in state government, Herman said movement of staff to the private sector didnt result in favoritism or conflicts of interest. The states governmental ethics laws are specific to the individual, Herman said. They do not require a state contract to be declared invalid or should not be awarded to a specific vendor due to an individual leaving employment with the state of Kansas and going to work for a vendor who becomes a state contractor. Herman said the current governor had no part in the KanCare procurement process. He said neither Kelly nor her staff reviewed the sealed bids. He said it was folly for Aetna Better Health to claim Kellys political advocacy for expansion of Medicaid eligibility in some way disadvantaged the company. The letters sent to Aetna Better Health and CareSource listed shortcomings of proposals made by those companies, which included problems with describing ways to improve services to about 450,000 Kansans enrolled in Medicaid. Adam Proffitt, secretary of the Department of Administration, told a joint House and Senate Medicaid oversight committee the decisions by Herman would be considered the final agency action because no other mechanism existed for an administrative appeal. Arbitrary, capricious Jane Brown, president and CEO of Aetna Better Health, said it was the companys position KDHE deployed an arbitrary and capricious process to break its scoring tie with Healthy Blue. She said KDHE unfairly fabricated grading criteria after bids from the seven applicants were submitted. She also said the exit of Aetna Better Health from Kansas Medicaid program would be disruptive to about 100,000 Kansans. Chad Moore, president of CareSource Kansas, said Healthy Blue should have been disqualified early in the bidding process due to significant conflict of interest concerns involving BCBS Kansas. However, Hermans written reply to CareSource said arguments put forth by the company to challenge the contract decision were insufficient to warrant the remedies being sought. Herman said the new three-year contracts were in the best interests of the state and the implementation process would proceed ahead of the effective data Jan. 1, 2025. Companies losing an administrative appeal in Kansas may file lawsuits in an attempt to secure a verdict affirming flaws in the KDHE process. In 2018, Amerigroup challenged its ouster from the KanCare program, which lost its spot to Aetna. Amerigroup failed at the administrative and court levels. Under Republican Gov. Sam Brownback, Kansas privatized the states Medicaid program in 2013. The collection of three contractors was shuffled by Republican Gov. Jeff Colyer five years later. As the Kelly administration prepared to issue new contracts for management of the KanCare program, the GOP-led Legislature forbid her from proceeding. The intent was to see if Republican governor candidate Derek Schmidt could defeat Kelly in November 2022 and enable a Republican governor to again pick KanCare contractors. The post Kansas official rejects appeal by unsuccessful bidders on states $4 billion KanCare contract appeared first on Kansas Reflector. Amber Rose, who previously dated Kanye West, is set to speak at the Republican National Convention next week (Getty Images) Model and TV personality Amber Rose will speak at the Republican National Convention next week, a source familiar told CNNs Kristen Holmes. Amber Rose, a reality TV personality and model who shocked fans by endorsing Donald Trump for president earlier this year, is expected to speak at the Republican National Convention next week, a source familiar tells CNN, Holmes tweeted on Monday. The model, who had a past relationship with rapper Kanye West, that ended in 2010, has actively campaigned against sexual violence, and spearheaded the Los Angeles SlutWalk a feminist movement against slut-shaming and sexual assault. In 2016, Rose told The Cut that she believed former president Donald Trump to be a f***ing idiot, adding at the time that she really hope[s] hes not president. But in May of this year, she announced that she would be endorsing Trump in the 2024 presidential election. The following month, she posted a photo of herself with Trump and former first lady Melania Trump, with the caption Trump 2024 along with three American flag emojis. She also posted a photo of herself wearing a MAGA hat and a gold chain. Roses ex, West, who has gone by Ye since 2021, once supported Trump and in 2022, traveled to Trumps Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida to ask him to be his 2024 running mate. But West later said the meeting had grown heated with Trump becoming perturbed by his request and that he was angered by Trumps criticism of his estranged wife, Kim Kardashian. When Trump started basically screaming at me at the table telling me I was gonna lose. I mean, has that ever worked for anyone in history, telling Ye that Im going to lose? West asked in the video. Youre talking to Ye! Trump sharply criticized West and ramped up his efforts to distance himself as he called the rapper a seriously troubled man, who just happens to be black, according to his Truth Social platform. Former president Donald Trump and rapper Kanye West are pictured in 2016 (AFP via Getty Images) So I help a seriously troubled man, who just happens to be black, Ye (Kanye West), who has been decimated in his business and virtually everything else, and who has always been good to me, by allowing his request for a meeting at Mar-a-Lago, alone, so that I can give him very much needed advice. He shows up with 3 people, two of which I didnt know, the other a political person who I havent seen in years, claimed the former president. He added: I told him dont run for office, a total waste of time, cant win. Fake News went CRAZY! West also faced backlash in 2022 over allegedly antisemitic social media posts, with several brands such as Balenciaga, JP Morgan bank, Gap and talent scouts Creative Artists Agency cutting ties with him. During his first working visit to Ukraine, the new Dutch Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans and his delegation visited a drone manufacturing company. Foreign politicians also held talks with representatives of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. ADVERTISIMENT This was reported by the press service on the Defense Ministry's website. Brekelmans, who met in Kyiv with Deputy Minister of Defense for European Integration Oleksandr Balanutsa and other employees of the Ministry, confirmed the unwavering support of his country. "When you say thank you for your help, we thank you five times more. You are defending not only your country but freedom and democracy in the world. We will support Ukraine as long as it takes," Brekelmans said. Particular attention was paid to technology as one of the ways of support that can be expanded. "Military technologies are developing because Ukrainians test them on the battlefield and pay for it with their blood and lives. We invite you to take an active part in the development of Ukrainian enterprises. We need to be more active. While we are negotiating in the political arena, the number of flags on Ukrainian cemeteries is increasing," said Deputy Defense Minister Balanutsa. ADVERTISIMENT Afterwards, the Ukrainian and Dutch delegations, with the participation of the Foreign Ministers of both countries Dmytro Kuleba and Kaspar Veldkamp, laid flowers and paid tribute to the fallen Ukrainian Heroes at the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen Defenders. The parties also discussed the importance of the procurement reform of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. The initiative aims to make the process more transparent and in line with NATO practices. Deputy Defense Minister Dmytro Klymenkov told the foreign politicians about this. He also invited them to invest in the strategic initiative to develop Ukraine's defense industry: "Today, domestic companies account for 70% of all procurement by the Ministry of Defense. Ukrainian arms companies demonstrate significant potential and readiness to meet the needs of the defense sector. We invite you to cooperate and invest to build reliable and innovative defense for our countries together." ADVERTISIMENT Deputy Minister of Defense Kateryna Chornohorenko shared the achievements with the Reserve+ app and plans for the future Army+ app for the military. The latter is expected to become available by the end of the summer. "Digital products are replacing old established processes because it is a requirement of the times, not just convenience," said Chornohorenko. The Ukrainian delegation thanked the Netherlands for its leadership, especially for its participation in the Air Force Coalition. They discussed the urgent need to protect Ukrainian cities from enemy missiles and drones." An agreement was reached on the need to strengthen cooperation in this area," the press service said. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! On KCPD state control, Missouri Republican candidates for governor all take same stance 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. Missouris Republican candidates for governor all support continued state control of the Kansas City Police Department, another obstacle in the long-term quest of Mayor Quinton Lucas and other city leaders for local authority over the force. The GOP candidates Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft and Sen. Bill Eigel all affirmed to The Star through their campaigns that they back KCPDs current governance structure, which relies on a five-member board of police commissioners with four members appointed by the governor. Only one elected official, the mayor, sits on the board. The major Democratic candidates House Minority Leader Crystal Quade and Springfield businessman Mike Hamra both support local control. But even if they are elected, the Republican-controlled Missouri General Assembly is highly unlikely to pass legislation turning KCPD leadership over to the City Council. Kansas City is the only city in Missouri, and one of very few cities nationwide, where local elected officials dont control the police force. City leaders have long chafed against the system, which has its roots in Civil War-era politics. The KCPDs relationship with the community has been strained. Former Police Chief Rick Smith faced allegations he protected officers accused of killing Black men and using excessive force against minorities. The department is under a U.S. Department of Justice investigation to determine if it engaged in racial discrimination. And the force faced scrutiny amid a record-high number of killings last year. But efforts to secure local authority in the Democratic-leaning city in the modern era regularly run up against Republican opposition statewide. Conservative politicians say they fear for public safety if local leaders are put in charge. I do not trust the elected leaders in Kansas City to make public safety a priority so I favor maintaining state control of the police department, Ashcroft said in a statement. Eigel, from Weldon Spring, said he will do everything in his power to ensure Missouri is the best place in the nation for law enforcement. I do not trust the liberal, defund the police, KC regime to do right by our officers, he said in a statement. Kehoe, who has been endorsed by several Missouri law enforcement groups, struck a more conciliatory tone. Still, his campaign also affirmed the current model of state control, in which the governor nominates police commissioners, who are confirmed by the Senate. Kehoe supports the current governance model for the KCPD as it provides a system of checks and balances between the local leaders, the legislature, and the governor, Kehoe spokeswoman Gabby Picard said in a statement. Kehoe, Eigel and Ashcroft are locked in a tight race ahead of the Aug. 6 primary election. An Emerson College/The Hill poll conducted in mid-June showed Ashcroft leading in a close contest within the margin of error, but a late June poll by ARW Strategies shows Kehoe ahead, with Ashcroft and Eigel battling for second place. Mayor Lucas looks forward to working with the next Governor of the State of Missouri, including engaging with the future Governor on issues related to the Kansas City Police Department and ways to reduce violence in Kansas City, Lucas spokesperson Jazzlyn Johnson said in a statement. Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft, left; Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe, center, and state Sen. Bill Eigel are three declared or likely candidates for governor. The early positioning comes as Republicans begin to contemplate the future after Gov. Mike Parson terms out of office in January 2025. Ongoing funding fight The governors race is playing out amid an ongoing fight between Missouri Republicans and Kansas City over police funding. State law used to require Kansas City to allocate 20% of its general revenue for police. In 2021 Lucas and a supermajority of the City Council moved to reallocate $42 million from the police budget to establish a Community Services and Prevention Fund. Police commissioners would have been required to negotiate with the city on how the money would be spent. The plan would have funded police at the 20% threshold under state law while allowing the city to control spending above that amount. The board of police commissioners sued and a Jackson County judge found the council overstepped its authority. Lawmakers then advanced a state constitutional amendment called Amendment 4 that would allow a state law to take effect that requires Kansas City to spend at least 25% of its general revenue on the police, up from 20%. Voters approved the measure with 63% support in 2022, but the Missouri Supreme Court earlier this year tossed the results of the election, ruling the fiscal note summary on the ballot was misleading. Voters will decide again in August whether to approve Amendment 4. No major well-funded campaign has emerged to support or oppose the measure. The struggle over funding has continuously frustrated Democrats, who argue Kansas City needs local authority as it confronts violent crime. Kansas City experienced its deadliest year on record in 2023 with 185 killings, up from 171 the year before. Throughout my career, Ive been an outspoken advocate of local control for municipal governments in a wide variety of issues, including restoring local control of the Kansas City Police Departments board of commissioners, Quade, of Springfield, said in a statement. I believe that locally elected officials often know the unique problems their communities face and are better equipped to work with local community leaders on how to address those problems. Missouri House Minority Leader Crystal Quade Hamra campaign spokesperson Laura Swinford said Kansas City should have the right to oversee its own police force, just like every other major city in the country. Whoever is elected governor will enjoy significant influence over the KCPD by appointing police commissioners. The boards four appointed members each serve four-year terms and must live in Kansas City. The next governor will quickly be able to fill a vacancy on the board as board president Dawn Cramers term expires in March 2025. By early 2028, the next governor will have named all four of the boards appointed members. Eigel promised to appoint commissioners with law enforcement backgrounds, which would mark a break from the current makeup of the board. None of the current appointed commissioners have law enforcement careers; all have careers in business. I will NEVER appoint commissioners who want to take police department funding and divert it to social justice programs, Eigel said. The defund the police movement is nonsense and will have no place in Missouri when Im governor. Ashcroft said in making appointments he would focus on integrity, tenacity and an understanding that supporting law-abiding citizens and law enforcement must be prioritized over coddling criminals. Picard, the Kehoe spokeswoman, emphasized the importance that appointments are supported by the local community. As governor, Kehoe would prioritize appointing board members who are supportive of fully funding the KCPD so the men and women of the department can effectively do their jobs, she said. Johnson, the Lucas spokesperson, said that Lucas will work with the next governor to recommend individuals for the board who are dedicated and trusted community leaders committed to working collaboratively to ensure the men and women of KCPD have the resources and support to combat violent crime in our community. Quade and Hamras campaigns both stressed the importance of local representation in appointments to the board. Quade said she would work with local leaders to appoint commissioners dedicated to addressing crime and the underlying problems that lead to it. Quade, a social worker, called for creative thinking about how to address crime before it occurs, adding that it is important to appoint local leaders who have direct on-the-ground experience and a willingness to think creatively to solve these large problems. Swinford, the Hamra spokesperson, said board members should reflect the Kansas City community and bring to the table a diversity of experience and skills with a shared commitment to work in partnership with law enforcement, state and local government officials, and Kansas City residents. Springfield businessman Mike Hamra launched a Democratic campaign for Missouri governor, becoming the second Democrat to enter the race. Kentucky State University plans to begin bachelors degree programs in manufacturing engineering technology, cybersecurity and biological and agricultural engineering. (Kentucky Lantern photo by McKenna Horsley) FRANKFORT A year into his presidency, Koffi Akakpo is optimistic that Kentucky State University will enroll significantly more students this fall. In a recent interview, Akakpo said Kentuckys only historically black public university is on its way to overcoming problems that put KSU into crisis a few years ago. Were still working on it, but Im pleased where we are, he said. Policies have been updated. People have been held accountable. Akakpo, previously president of Bluegrass Community and Technical College in Lexington, said his vision is to move KSU toward sustainability while supporting academic programs that meet the needs of our region, the states and our country. He pointed to new science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) programs at KSU. The university has received approval to begin bachelors programs in manufacturing engineering technology, cybersecurity and biological and agricultural engineering. That doesnt mean we will neglect our liberal arts mission, but as things evolve throughout the world, we also need STEM to be part of what we do, Akakpo said. Last fall, the universitys total enrollment was 1,689. Akakpo said this falls goal is 3,000. He predicted KSU will either meet that number or be very close to it. In 2022, the Kentucky General Assembly passed legislation that required the Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) to oversee a management improvement plan for KSU and allocated $23 million to offset the universitys budget shortfalls. Travis Powell A previous administration had misused funds , and KSU had received a warning from its accreditation body. Travis Powell, vice president and general counsel for CPE, said KSU has made a lot of progress since the management plan was implemented, but theres a lot to be done. KSU representatives recently told a legislative committee KSU had completed 53 of its 130 improvement plan objectives. Powell said CPE has seen improvements in revising policies and procedures and increased and more accurate financial reporting by KSU. KSU had a general operating budget of about $32 million, according to a budget overview for the 2023-24 fiscal year,. Theres definitely a path forward for them, and were pleased with the progress weve seen today, Powell said. CPEs final report for the 2022 legislation is due to the General Assembly in November 2025, Powell said. While KSU technically has until then to complete the list of deliverables, CPE outlined a schedule to complete them by the end of the 2024-25 fiscal year, giving a few months to make final evaluations. Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson Akakpo has brought stability and a vision for KSU to the institution over the past year, Powell said. The confidence has also permeated through the universitys staff and hires hes made, Powell added. Hes very strong in his position that KSU can thrive and be a shining star in the state of Kentucky, Powell said of Akakpo. Frankfort Mayor Layne Wilkerson, also praised Akakpos leadership. Wilkerson was on KSUs presidential search committee. The mayor said that Frankfort and KSU have had a long history; KSU was founded in the states capital in 1886, more than 130 years ago. This time period will likely be remembered as a watershed moment for KSU. I think he has the right mentality to change the mindset of the university, to start thinking bigger and to expect more, Wilkerson said of Akakpo. Wilkerson said he hopes KSU continues to focus on programs that benefit the regions workforce, particularly in nursing, agriculture, computer science and cybersecurity, and support 21st century careers that will be in demand. Whats good for Kentucky State is good for Frankfort, Wilkerson said. Their success is our success, and Im optimistic for the future. Akakpo said hes felt support from local, state and federal leaders since joining KSU. Everybody wants to see KSU do well, Akakpo said. Look at the future As KSU improves, Powell said the institution could become something the General Assembly wants to invest in from a strategic standpoint to move Kentucky forward. I think KSU expects to be funded fairly based on the students it serves and its size. But as far as any additional support beyond that, its always welcomed, Powell said. And I think if it does happen, itll be based on individual initiatives that come up over time, and who knows what those will be. During this years legislative session, the General Assembly set aside $60 million for KSU to use for campus maintenance and repairs in legislation earlier this year, along with $5 million for the design of a health science education building. Powell said if KSU can focus on building a strong base in the short term, that can help with sustainability moving ahead. While its one of Kentuckys smallestr public postsecondary institutions, it can focus on being high quality at the opportunities it offers students. What I see for KSU is just being that really strong HBCU partner in Frankfort institution that is super high quality, Powell said. Its never going to be for everybody. Some people are going to want that big school experience, but youll get that small school experience at a state school price at a really high quality level. I think thats the ultimate future for the institution. Akakpo said that at the moment, KSU is being pulled in different directions as it continues to complete goals under the management plan and review documents for its accreditation body, Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC). KSU is scheduled to give an update to SACSCOC in October. In August, the Board of Regents will review the institutions five year plan during its retreat, Akakpo said. Once all this is done, then were going to sit down together and look at the future and see how we can work in the greatest integration and work to make KSU one of the best HBCUs in the nation, Akakpo said. The post Kentucky State Universitys rebound, one year into presidents tenure appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. A Kenyan court says 2022 shooting death of a Pakistani journalist by police in Nairobi was unlawful FILE - Senior Pakistani journalist Arshad Sharif poses for a photograph prior to recording an episode of his talk show at a studio in Islamabad, Pakistan, on Dec. 15, 2016. A Kenyan court on Monday, July 8, 2024, ruled that the 2022 shooting death of the Pakistani journalist by police in Nairobi was unlawful and unconstitutional, a lawyer and his family said. (AP Photo, File) ISLAMABAD (AP) A Kenyan court on Monday ruled that the 2022 shooting death of a Pakistani journalist by police in Nairobi was unlawful and unconstitutional, a lawyer and his family said. Justice Stella Mutuku in the ruling in Nairobi also faulted Kenya's attorney general and the director of public prosecutions for laxity in investigating the shooting of Arshad Sharif, after police opened fire at his car at a roadblock checkpoint. Sharif's family has accused an elite Kenyan police unit of intentionally killing Sharif. The 50-year-old journalist had fled Pakistan earlier that year to avoid arrest at home on charges of maligning Pakistans national institutions. A panel of Pakistani investigators in December 2022 concluded that the killing of Sharif was a planned assassination. Their report suggested that the bullet that fatally wounded Sharif was fired from either inside the car or from close range. Kenyan authorities are still investigating the killing and none of the police officers linked to the shooting has been arrested or charged. In Monday's verdict, the court asked Kenyan authorities to conclude their probe of the officers. The court also ordered the government to compensate Sharif's family 10 million Kenyan shillings ($78,000). Dudley Ochiel, a lawyer for Sharifs widow, Javeria Siddique, said the ruling was a big win for the man's family and friends in Kenya, Pakistan and all over the world. Ochiel said he expects the public prosecutor to file a case against two officers suspected of fatally shooting Sharif at the roadblock. The killing shook Pakistan and days later, thousands came out for Sharifs funeral. Pakistan has said no state institution was involved in his death. Siddique, who filed a complaint against Kenyan police together with Kenyan journalists unions, said although she knew that her husband would not come back, at least now everyone knows that he was killed intentionally. Police had initially blamed the shooting on mistaken identity during a search for a similar car involved in a child abduction case. ___ Musambi reported from Nairobi, Kenya. (Bloomberg) -- A key House Democrat on national security matters called on President Joe Biden to bow out of the presidential race. Most Read from Bloomberg Adam Smith, the top-ranking Democrat on the Armed Services Committee, is the most senior House Democrat so far to publicly urge replacing Biden as the partys nominee. He privately made his views known to colleagues on Sunday but decided to go public Monday in an interview on CNN. I think he should step aside, Smith said. I think its become clear that hes not the best person to carry the Democratic message. Vice President Kamala Harris, Smith said, would be a much better, stronger candidate. He urged Biden and his inner circle to put personal feelings aside. I am pleading with them, Smith said. Take a step back. Smith, a pragmatic and understated lawmaker, spoke as foreign leaders headed to Washington for a three-day NATO summit and lawmakers returned to the Capitol amid ongoing fallout from Bidens disastrous debate performance. Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats earlier Monday declaring he is committed to seeing out his reelection campaign and urging lawmakers to stop talking about seeking an alternative nominee so the party can unify behind the campaign. A House Democratic aide said that the Monday Biden letter does not solve anything and many House lawmakers want a personal call from Biden to reassure them. The aide said Biden needs to do a lot more outreach to House Democrats to stem doubts about his performance On Sunday, Smith was joined by Representatives Mark Takano, Joe Morelle and Jerry Nadler in privately saying Biden should go, during a call of senior party leaders organized by House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries. Representative Jim Himes of Connecticut also expressed deep concerns that Biden cannot win on the call according to a person familiar with the discussion. Vulnerable Pennsylvania Democrat Susan Wild said in a statement that she also expressed such concerns during the session. Jeffries has remained silent on Bidens candidacy in the wake of the June 27 debate performance, after initial comments of support for the Biden-Harris ticket the following morning. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer has also been largely quiet but reaffirmed his support for Biden on Monday. Im for Joe, he told reporters at the Capitol. --With assistance from Roxana Tiron and Steven T. Dennis. (Updates starting in fourth paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Man kidnaps ex outside Arlington restaurant, officials say MEMPHIS, Tenn. A man was arrested in Arlington by the Shelby County Sheriffs Office in connection with a kidnapping. On July 6, Tedrick Hall, 35, approached his ex-girlfriend outside a restaurant in the Town of Arlington after trying to talk to her outside. After leaving the establishment, the victim was allegedly followed to her car by Hall, who then entered the passenger side of her car and brandished a handgun. The victim was allegedly coerced into driving to a restaurant in Cordova, where she managed to contact a family member when she was in the restroom. The family member alerted the Memphis Police, who detained Hall until SCSO deputies arrived. MPD: Man shoots at neighbor after trying to break up fight between their girlfriends Upon further investigation, deputies discovered a Glock handgun and personal belongings belonging to Hall inside the victims vehicle. Hall was arrested and charged with aggravated kidnapping, aggravated assault and convicted felon in possession of a firearm. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. People insoect the damage in a street in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa At least 20 people were killed and more than 50 injured in waves of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Monday, a day before NATO leaders gather in Washington to discuss their support for the government in Kiev. A large children's hospital was struck in Kiev, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He posted a video on social media showing portions of the building reduced to rubble and traces of blood on the floor of wrecked hospital rooms. He said the exact number of causalities at the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital was still being determined. "Right now, everyone is helping to clear the rubble doctors and ordinary people," he posted on X. "Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general," he wrote. Health Minister Viktor Liashko said dialysis and cancer treatment departments, as well as operating theatres and the intensive care unit, were damaged. Kiev was among the cities worst impacted by the strikes, with seven dead and at least nine injured, the city administration said in its initial count. Residents in Kiev's centre heard two dozen explosions, presumably the result of anti-aircraft missiles. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said debris fell in four of the city's neighbourhoods. The Russian army fired cruise missiles and several Kinzhal hypersonic missiles at targets in the city that is home to 3 million people, the Ukrainian Air Force said earlier. Kryvyi Rih in southern Ukraine was also badly hit and at least 10 people there were killed and more than 30 injured. Damage was also reported in Dnipro. Other targets included the front-line cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. The Russian military used more than 40 missiles in the attack, Zelensky said. It was unusual that the heavy attack took place during the day at the beginning of the working week. The embattled nation already saw airstrikes by drones, cruise missiles and missiles during the night. Ukraine has been trying to repel a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022 and depends largely on Western support. Kiev repeatedly urges its allies to provide even more modern air defence systems. Ukraine hopes for more NATO help Ukraine has received four of the particularly powerful US-made Patriot systems, but says it needs many more. Kiev is hoping for further commitments at the NATO summit in Washington that opens on Tuesday, including on up to six Patriot systems from Israel. Zelensky has stressed the need for at least seven reliable anti-aircraft systems to protect major cities such as Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhya and Odessa, which are frequently targeted by missile attacks. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the alliance is set to provide Ukraine with military aid worth 40 billion ($43 billion) in 2025 in a press conference ahead of the summit. Smoke rising after Russian missile attack on Kyiv early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa A street is filled with rubble in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa People insoect the damage in a street in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa MANCHESTER, VT - OCTOBER 30: Alec Baldwin and Hilaria Baldwin speak for the first time regarding the accidental shooting that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, and wounded director Joel Souza on the set of the film "Rust", on October 30, 2021 in Manchester, Vermont. The actor, his wife and children pulled over to the side of the road and gave an unscheduled statement after being pursued by photographers and members of the press. (Photo by MEGA/GC Images) Credit - GC Images2021 MEGA The case against actor Alec Baldwin, who has been charged with involuntary manslaughter following a fatal on-set shooting for the film Rust in 2021, is set for trial in July despite a series of back-and-forth between prosecutors and the defense. Defense attorneys' most-recently attempted to have the case thrown out due to damage to the on-set revolver during FBI forensic testing. We can never use our own expert to examine the original state of that firearm, said attorney John Bash, who represents Baldwin. Its not fair that a criminal defendant doesnt get that opportunity. New Mexico Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer rejected the request on June 28, saying that Baldwins lawyers did not offer any evidence, beyond speculation that the gun could have exonerated him. Jury selection for the case is set to take place on July 9. Baldwin, 66, has maintained that he did not pull the trigger on the prop gun he was pointing at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins, which went off and killed the 42-year-old. The shot also wounded director Joel Souza in October 2021. If convicted, Baldwin faces up to 18 months in prison. The actor-producer could also face other legal challenges. Civil lawsuits filed against Baldwin and other film producers have temporarily been put on hold by the judge, who said they would present the charges to a grand jury. Heres what to know about the upcoming case. What happened Film armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed on the Rust set loaded a revolver with what were believed to be dummy rounds, which have no explosives in them, according to Gutierrez-Reeds attorneys. While rehearsing on the set, Dave Halls, the assistant director for the film, grabbed a prop gun that he then handed to Baldwin. Halls called the firearm a cold gun, a phrase that signals that the weapon did not have any live rounds in it, according to a warrant by the Santa Fe County Sheriffs Office. Baldwin was rehearsing a scene with the revolver that required him to point the weapon at the camera when it allegedly went off, per the warrant. The shot struck Hutchins in the chest and Souza in the shoulder. Hutchins was transported to the University of New Mexico Hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. Charges against Baldwin Santa Fe County prosecutors first charged Baldwin with involuntary manslaughter for Hutchins death in Jan. 2023. After a thorough review of the evidence and the laws of the state of New Mexico, I have determined that there is sufficient evidence to file criminal charges against Alec Baldwin and other members of the Rust film crew, New Mexico First Judicial District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies said in an online statement at the time. But prosecutors later dismissed the charge in April 2023, though they said that charges could be refiled. Following a new analysis of the gun, Baldwin was once more charged with involuntary manslaughter after a grand jury indicted him in January 2024. Baldwin has pleaded not guilty. In the upcoming trial, prosecutors have charged Baldwin in the alternative, which means that the jury will decide both whether to convict him of involuntary manslaughter, and under which definition of involuntary manslaughter his actions fall. He could be found guilty of negligent use of the firearm, or for circumspection, meaning he acted in a manner that was indifferent or showed disregard for the safety of others. Baldwin has maintained that while he did pull back the hammer, the gun went off without pulling the trigger. The FBI conducted an accidental discharge test on the weapon which required the firearm to be struck by a rawhide mallet. The gun broke during the process, which is why Baldwins prosecutors attempted to get the case dismissed. Under a different analysis of the revolver by Lucien Haag of Forensic Science Services, the investigation concluded that the trigger had to be pulled or depressed sufficiently for the weapon to go off. There has been much conversation about a lack of safety protocols on the Rust film set. According to the Los Angeles Times, at least six crew members walked off set during the making of the movie because of working conditions, including gun safety. An investigation by the New Mexico Environment Departments Occupational Health and Safety Bureau (OHSB) found that Rust expos[ed] employees to the serious hazards associated with firearm use. In Feb. 2023, Rust Movie Productions, LLC. settled with the OHSB and paid a $100,000 penalty. Rust resumed filming in April 2023 after a wrongful death suit was settled against the production company alongside several others people involved in the film following the Hutchins' death. As part of the settlement, Matthew Hutchins, Hutchins husband, took the role of executive producer on set. Hannah Gutierrez-Reed Aside from the impending case against Baldwin, Gutierrez-Reed was also charged with involuntary manslaughter, as well as tampering with evidence. (The latter charge came after the defendant allegedly gave narcotics to someone to prevent the apprehension, prosecution or conviction of herself, according to the amended criminal complaint filed by prosecutors.) Gutierrez-Reed was convicted on the involuntary manslaughter charge, but acquitted of evidence tampering in March 2024. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison. Prosecutors are hoping to call her to testify during Baldwins trial, though Gutierrez-Reed invoked her Fifth Amendment rights during a pretrial interview. Prosecutors have asked the court to grant her use immunity so that anything she says on trial cannot be used against her in any future prosecution, which the court denied. Her attorneys are in the midst of seeking Gutierrez-Reeds immediate release from prison and have asked for a new trial because prosecutors did not hand over bombshell exculpatory evidence which they say could have led to a different outcome in the case. Contact us at letters@time.com. What to know about Milwaukee convention center, Baird Center, one of the 2024 RNC host sites Fresh off a $456 million expansion, Baird Center will play a critical role in the Republican National Convention later this month. The center is one of three main venues for the four-day event, alongside Fiserv Forum and the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena. All three are part of convention securitys hard zone, meaning the area will be controlled by the Secret Service and require credentials to enter. Baird Center, in particular, will be a home base for national and international news outlets throughout the week. It will also host Convention Fest each afternoon of the RNC, which will bring 100 local vendors together to showcase their products to the national convention audience. And the building is right near one of two designated demonstration areas for the convention. Ahead of the RNC, heres four things to know about Baird Center: Where is Baird Center? Baird Center is in downtown Milwaukee, at 400 W. Wisconsin Ave. It is part of a complex of buildings that also includes the Panther Arena and Miller High Life Theatre. The convention center is more than two decades old and has been renamed six times. Though its renovation only ended months ago, the Baird Center has a 26-year history in Milwaukee. The building first opened as the Midwest Express Center, when the citys chamber of commerce set out in the early 1990s to replace an outdated convention hall in the spot with a larger meeting space, according to the centers website. The 633,000 square-foot building debuted in 1998. Throughout the 2000s, various airlines became naming sponsors for the building. In 2002, it was deemed the Midwest Airlines Center; in 2010, the Frontier Airlines Center; in 2012, the Delter Center; and in 2013, the Wisconsin Center. The center got its current name in 2023, when the Milwaukee-based financial services company Robert W. Baird & Co became its newest naming sponsor. Construction work wrapped up on Baird Center in March 2024, around five months before helping host the Republican National Convention. The convention centers multi-year renovation doubled its size to 1.3 million square feet. The Baird Center expansion project kicked off in 2019, after the Wisconsin Legislature voted that they had a moral obligation to back up project bonds. In October 2021, construction formally began, and the center debuted the expansion this May. The renovation added a 30,000-foot ballroom with its own kitchen and rooftop terrace, a 112,00-square-feet exhibition space, additional meeting rooms and increased parking, among other amenities. In total, the project demanded 1.4 million hours of work and 2,359 workers on-site. The convention center surpassed its diversity, equity and inclusion goals for the expansion. As part of its expansion project, the Baird Center set goals to have at least 25% minority-owned business, 5% women-owned businesses and 1% disabled veteran-owned businesses contribute to the construction. It exceeded all these goals, according to the centers website. Creating more inclusive spaces was also a goal of the renovation, with the addition of all-gender restrooms, sensory rooms and nursing rooms. Marty Brooks, Wisconsin Center District President and Chief Executive Officer, showcases the overhanging roof in the Baird Sky View Terrace on Tuesday February 13, 2024 at in Milwaukee, Wis. Wisconsin and Milwaukee artists feature around the convention center Artwork across Baird Center has been curated to highlight the history, people, cultures and landscapes of Milwaukee and Wisconsin, according to the centers website. The pieces on display range from large-scale portraits of Milwaukee students to aerial sculptures inspired by the Great Lakes. Twenty-one of the 33 artists featured in the center are current or former residents of Wisconsin. Check out profiles of all the artists and artwork currently on display here. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What to know about Milwaukee convention center, hosting RNC 2024 What we know and what we don't know about man who died outside Hyatt in downtown Milwaukee In the days since Dvontaye L. Mitchell died after being held down by four security guards outside a hotel in Milwaukee, many questions remain surrounding his death and the lead-up to it. Mitchells death occurred at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Milwaukee at about 4 p.m. on June 30, after what Milwaukee police described as a disturbance and subsequent fight as he was escorted out. The cause of the disturbance, according to what witnesses overheard, was Mitchell allegedly walking into the women's bathroom. They treated him like he was nothing, like he was an animal, Mitchells sister-in-law Candice Miller told the Journal Sentinel. But questions around why he was there, the hotel's approach to security and what happens now still linger. So far, what is known is based on local authorities' statements and what witnesses have shared with media. Many details remain uncertain in the week since Mitchell died. Heres what we know and dont know so far: Darrell Giles, on the left is the brother of the deceased, Nayisha Mitchell, on the right is the sister of the deceased, and in the middle, is the sister-in-law of the deceased, Candice Miller, seen with a picture of Dvontaye Mitchell, a man killed after being held down by security on June 30 outside of a Hyatt hotel in Milwaukee. 'We're going to miss his presence. He's a good brother, dad, cousin, son, friend- all of that,' N. Mitchell said. She described how he had a kind heart and a big heart and how they are going to miss having him at all the family events. 'The fourth is on Thursday and we have this big family picnic planned that he won't be attending. We all look forward to being together and having a good time together.' She said the security guards that held down her brother should be ashamed on themselves. DVontaye L. Mitchell described as a loving member of his family, faced mental health issues Mitchells family members told the Journal Sentinel that the 43-year-old man was a loving brother and member of the family. He was the father to an eight-year-old daughter, Morgan. Family members said he suffered from depressions since his fathers death in 2016. The initial medical examiner's report said Mitchell was homeless, however the family refuted that. In a statement from family attorney Ben Crump, it said that Mitchells mother believed that he was suffering from a mental health episode. They need to stop killing Black men, his older sister Nayisha Mitchell told the Journal Sentinel. "We are not going to stop until we get justice. We are not going to allow his death to be swept under the rug." How did DVontaye L. Mitchell die? Mitchell died after being held down on his stomach by security guards outside of the Hyatt Regency hotel, but the exact cause of death and autopsy has not been released yet. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiners Office determined July 1 the preliminary cause of his death to be a homicide. The Milwaukee Police Department on Tuesday said it is investigating Mitchells death, that the cause of death is under investigation and the Medical Examiners final report is still pending. The way Mitchell was held down by security guards before his death has invoked immediate comparison to the death of George Floyd, a Black man in Minneapolis who was killed by police after an officer held him down by kneeling on his back and neck. Video from witnesses show Mitchell being held down by four security guards, with knees on various parts of his back. Another video shows Milwaukee authorities attempting to give Mitchell CPR. One witness told the Journal Sentinel that he watched security guards hold Mitchell down between 7 and 10 minutes. Another witness, Nick Hansen, said he believed he heard noise and screaming from the incident for about 10 to 15 minutes, before driving over and observing it for another minute. When the police came, thats when they started getting off of him and police started checking for a pulse, one witness Shawn Moore said. He checked a neck first then he checked an arm and then his neck again and then he turned him over and his body was limp. What led up to the incident between DVontaye L. Mitchell and Hyatt security guards? It isnt clear yet what occurred before Mitchell was held down by hotel security. Mitchells family said they had no idea why he was at the Hyatt and an initial police statement described the incident minimally. The statement said that Mitchell entered the hotel and caused a disturbance. The individual fought with security guards as they were escorting the individual out. Security detained the individual until police arrived. Upon arrival, the individual was unresponsive and despite lifesaving measures, the 43-year-old individual was pronounced deceased, the statement said. Police said they would not discuss an ongoing investigation in response to Journal Sentinel questions. Throughout the incident, witnesses said that someone could be heard saying this is what happens when you go in the womens bathroom. That same person attempted to get Moore and another person to stop recording, Moore said, asking them if theyre cool with (Mitchell) trying to hurt us. The family members are encouraging anyone who witnessed Mitchell's death to reach out to them on social media with photos or videos. Dvontaye Mitchell and his 8-year-old daughter Morgan. What are Hyatt hotel security policies? Its unclear whether hotel security was hired directly by the hotel or through a private security company. In a statement, Hyatt said that it was cooperating with Milwaukee police and that it extended its heartfelt condolences to all who knew and loved Mr. Mitchell. The statement said it was working with the hotel's operator, Aimbridge Hospitality, to "understand the full extent of what transpired." We understand Aimbridge Hospitality is conducting a thorough investigation and has suspended the employees involved in the incident," Hyatt's statement said. An Aimbridge spokesperson said in a Friday statement that the company was supporting law enforcement's investigation and had no further comment at this time. "We offer our sincere condolences to Mr. Mitchell's family and loved ones.," the statement said. "We remain committed to maintaining a safe and welcoming environment for all hotel guests and associates." Aimbridge declined to say whether the company contracted security or hired guards themselves. The Hyatt Regency on West Kilbourn Avenue in Milwaukee on Monday, July 1, 2024. Photo by Mike De Sisti /Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Has anyone been charged in DVontaye L. Mitchell's death? Authorities have not yet announced how they intend to proceed on Mitchells death, however small updates have occurred. In an email on Friday, Milwaukee police said, this is not a criminal investigation at this time; however, we are having the Milwaukee County District Attorney's Office review it. The District Attorney confirmed it was reviewing the case and said there was no timeline on a charging decision. On Wednesday, police said the cause of death is under investigation and that the Medical Examiners final report is still pending. The Milwaukee County Medical Examiner said that it had completed an autopsy on the case, but that police had issued a non-disclosure on the case, holding the autopsys release. David Clarey is a reporter with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at dclarey@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What we know about death of D'Vontaye Mitchell at Hyatt hotel On the morning of July 8, Russian terrorists launched rocket attacks on Kryvyi Rih. The shelling killed 10 people and injured dozens more. ADVERTISIMENT The occupiers struck the administrative building of an industrial enterprise. The news is supplemented by... MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Kremlin on Monday said that Russia appreciated the efforts of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to clarify the positions of Russia and Ukraine on resolving their conflict. Orban held talks on a potential Ukrainian peace deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday, angering some European Union leaders who warned against appeasing Moscow. On Monday he met Chinese President Xi Jinping during an unexpected visit to Beijing. He described it as the third leg of a "peace mission". The initiative does not have the backing of the European Commission or Ukraine. "Mr. Orban is taking a serious initiative to compare the positions of the different sides based on original sources, and we appreciate these efforts of Mr. Orban," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a news briefing. "There is a whole set of disagreements among the parties concerned, but at least Mr. Orban is making a very serious attempt to understand the essence of these disagreements, which is very much appreciated," Peskov said. The Hungarian leader is traveling to Washington on Monday, where his government said he will participate in the NATO summit this week. Asked by reporters if Putin had sent a message through Orban to U.S. President Joe Biden and other NATO leaders, Peskov said no. (Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Bernadette Baum and Philippa Fletcher) Seventy-five years ago, British foreign secretary Ernest Bevin had the vision and determination to bring 12 nations from Western Europe and North America together to create the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato). Today, the Nato alliance spans 32 nations. Thirty-two allies committed to the key principle that an attack on one is an attack on us all. This, as Bevin said, brings us under a wider roof of security, a roof which stretches over the Atlantic Ocean and gives us the assurance of great preponderance of power, which will be used on the side of peace [and] security. This week, we are travelling with the Prime Minister to Washington DC, joining our allies in marking this 75th anniversary. And we meet at a time of unprecedented volatility and insecurity. The whole alliance faces rising global threats both conventional and hybrid. With authoritarianism and greater geopolitical competition on the one hand, and rapid technological development on the other. The first duty of any government is to keep the country safe and protect its citizens. We cannot have stability and prosperity without security. Nato is therefore the ultimate guarantor of all allies ability to live freely and build a secure, more prosperous future for their people. Ernest Bevin brought 12 nations from Western Europe and North America together 75 years ago to create Nato - Masterman Our Governments commitment to Nato is therefore unshakeable. We will have a Nato first defence strategy. European security will be our foreign and defence priority. Our commitment to Britains nuclear deterrent is absolute. We will increase spending to 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence as soon as possible, whilst arguing all Nato allies should adopt this as a new defence target. And we will launch a Strategic Defence Review, so we are fighting fit to defend against any adversary. Foremost amongst these adversaries is Russia. We must strengthen our defences to deter Putin effectively. And we must reinvigorate our support for the brave people of Ukraine, as they defend their freedom against Vladimir Putins new form of fascism. Before the general election, we both travelled to Kyiv and assured the Ukrainians of our ironclad commitment in person. But Britain is always stronger when we work with others. That is why we want to reset our relations with Europe. With a return of war to our continent and security threats rising, Britain must also restore trust to our partnership with our closest neighbours. This includes new security and defence agreements with close allies and partners in Europe, such as Germany. We have underlined this commitment within days of being appointed by our new Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with John travelling to Ukraine and David visiting Germany, Poland and Sweden. On these visits, our new Government has increased support for Ukraine, including new military support a clear signal of our determination to outlast the Kremlin. UK-EU Security Pact And we have begun discussions about how we can do more with European partners. Bilaterally, we will leverage our tightly connected defence industries to strengthen our defences and support Ukraine. And our plan for an ambitious and broad-ranging UK-EU Security Pact would underpin closer cooperation between us, enshrining a new geopolitical partnership that complements the wider Nato alliance. As we, alongside Keir Starmer, look to reconnect Britain on the world stage, we will be fully committed to strengthening other alliances that enhance British security in this increasingly insecure world. We will ensure AUKUS, the trilateral security partnership with Australia and the United States, fully delivers its potential. As negotiations on Nato concluded, Bevin forecast that the step that is now being taken will bring peace and security for many generations to come. How right he was. His vision has grown into the most successful peacetime military alliance in the world. Our generation faces a darkening global landscape. Those who believe in freedom and international law must stand together, stand for whats right just as Bevin did 75 years ago. This requires a strong and reconnected Britain. Under our Government, Britain will be confident in our purpose, clear-eyed about the challenges and determined to invest in our collective strength. A formidable and reliable ally and partner. A country building the foundations of an era of renewal. The spirit of Bevin will live on in this new Government. David Lammy is the Foreign Secretary John Healey is the Defence Secretary Firefighters in California continued to battle several wildfires across the state on Monday, including one that threatened Neverland Ranch, the onetime home of pop star Michael Jackson, in the Santa Barbara County mountains. The Lake fire started Friday afternoon and by late Monday had grown to 21,763 acres in the western Los Padres National Forest, where it fed on grass, brush and timber in rugged terrain, according to the U.S. Forest Service. The fire was 8% contained Monday night, but fire officials noted the fire could grow amid a prolonged heat wave that's lowered moisture in the area and brought gusty winds. Although a smoke column was visible much of the day as the fire burned up Figueroa Mountain, state fire officials said late Monday there had not been significant fire growth throughout the day. Most of the growth was in the southeast portion of the fire. Over the weekend, firefighters on the ground had a difficult time reaching the blaze due to the enduring heat and challenging terrain, requiring them to use helicopters to contain its spread. On Sunday, Santa Barbara County expanded its evacuation orders to include Figueroa Mountain Road, also known as the Grass Mountain Trail Head, and neighborhoods within Sawmill Basin, including Tunnel Road and the Figueroa Campground, according to emergency officials. As of Monday morning, about 20 people had left their homes, according to Jackie Ruiz, a spokesperson for Santa Barbara County's Office of Emergency Management. The evacuation zone also extended to Sycamore Valley Ranch, formerly Neverland Ranch, in Los Olivos. The cause of the blaze is still under investigation. To the east, an evacuation order was put in place for the Mt. Baldy ski resort in the San Bernardino National Forest due to a wildfire that so far has burned more than 588 acres. The Vista fire was reported around 1 p.m. Sunday in steep terrain, about a mile from the ski resort and west of the mountain community of Lytle Creek, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Portions of the Pacific Crest Trail were closed from the Lytle Creek area to Mt. Baldy as well as additional trails below the resort. Hundreds of people were evacuated from nearby recreational areas since the fire broke out, according to Nathan Judy with the U.S. Forest Service, but residents in the community of Lytle Creek were still able to reach their homes. The cause of the fire is under investigation. Meanwhile, up north, a group of hikers was found Monday after going missing in the zone of a wildfire burning in the Tahoe National Forest. The Royal fire, near the Royal Gorge in the North Fork of the American River in Placer County, has burned 201 acres since first being reported late Sunday afternoon, according to the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. The Placer County Sheriff's Department said 13 hikers, ages 16 to 20, were believed to be missing in the area of the fire after their vehicles were discovered parked at the Palisades trailhead. But the group was spotted by helicopter Monday morning, and a search-and-rescue team was set to meet them and escort them out of the area, according to Sgt. Ty Conners with the Placer County Sheriff's Department. The hikers were reported to be in good health, according to officials. The area where the Royal fire is burning is known for world-class kayaking and hiking, said Battalion Chief Nolan Hale with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection. That also means the fire is "sitting in super remote terrain, with steep, unforgiving cliffs and a ton of granite." Farther north in Butte County, firefighters contained a wildfire that started near the city of Oroville last week. The Thompson fire burned 3,789 acres and forced thousands to flee their homes as extreme heat dogged firefighters and persistent winds fanned the flames. The cause of that fire, which state fire officials said started Wednesday and ultimately destroyed 26 structures and damaged eight others, remains under investigation. Near the state's northern border in Siskiyou County, Cal Fire reported a new fire late Monday. The Bogus fire began around 4 p.m. in the 10000 block of Little Bogus Creek Road, fire officials said. By Monday evening it had spread to around 200 acres, spurred evacuation orders, and was 0% contained. At the same time, Siskiyou County has been feeling the effects of the larger Shelly fire, which started July 3 and spread to more than 4,200 acres in the Marble Mountain Wilderness near Shelly Lake and the Pacific Crest Trail. Due to hot dry weather and difficult access, officials said, the fire grew to threaten communities, private timberlands, cultural resources and wilderness areas. As of Monday evening, one of the largest fires in the state was the Basin fire, which has burned more than 14,000 acres in the Sierra National Forest. The blaze did not increase in acreage on Monday, and fire officials said it was 80% contained by evening. The fire started June 26 and the U.S. Forest Service said its cause was still under investigation. 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. LAKE WORTH BEACH Kim Stokes lost her bid for a second term on the Lake Worth Beach City Commission in March, but that hasn't stopped her from trying to make a difference in her community, which has long been a comfort zone for the homeless population in Palm Beach County. The last week of June, Stokes and her friend Brittney Merryweather decided to put on a rally to oppose the recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to allow municipalities to criminalize sleeping in public spaces. In preparation, Merryweather created T-shirts for people to wear that showcased slogans including Housing not handcuffs and People need rest, not arrest. Recently, about 100 people, including several who are homeless, gathered in front of Lake Worth City Hall to voice their opinions on the decision that allows cities to arrest or fine the homeless, even if there aren't shelter alternatives. Every year Im supposed to go out and celebrate the freedoms we have in this country as more and more are getting stripped away, Stokes said. I cant (celebrate) how free we are when people are getting arrested for sleeping. The county has a significant homelessness problem. Today there are more than 2,100 people unhoused, nearly 300 more than there were in 2023, according to a Point-In-Time count, where volunteers and officers collected data, according to WPEC-TV. The problem has been significant at John Prince Park in Lake Worth Beach, where many homeless people have traditionally camped out, creating what has been labeled "Tent City" in the past. Advocates for the homeless outside Lake Worth Beach City Hall on Tuesday, July 3 were there to oppose the recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to allow municipalities to criminalize sleeping in public spaces. Stokes was a commissioner for about three years. During her time in office, she says, she met with Southeast Florida Behavioral Health Network to put together a proposal on how to help homeless people in Lake Worth, a project which involved the city manager. Although the plan had the potential to save lives, some people complained it was a duplication of services. That is false, Stokes says, and was part the reason behind the rally. Kim Stokes This has been brought together just by a few of us concerned citizens, she said We are not attached to any specific organization. We agree with the opinion that sleeping is a biological necessity. If theres nowhere to go, it is cruel and unusual to punish somebody for it. Although the 6-3 Supreme Court ruling does not require communities to enforce punitive measures against people who are unhoused, it does permit them to do so if they choose. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority, referring to an Oregon city at the center of the case. Advocates for the homeless outside Lake Worth Beach City Hall on Tuesday, July 3 were there to oppose the recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court to allow municipalities to criminalize sleeping in public spaces. The city imposes only limited fines for first-time offenders, an order temporarily barring an individual from camping in a public park for repeat offenders, and a maximum sentence of 30 days in jail for those who later violate an order. In West Palm Beach, another city with a prominent homeless base, officials say they aren't sure how they will move forward with the latest ruling. West Palm Beach residents, business owners, and visitors deserve to enjoy public spaces that are clean, safe, and accessible to all. In light of this decision, the City is in the process of reviewing its existing ordinances to ensure that local policies are in alignment with the Supreme Court decision and State law that will be in effect on October 1, 2024, a city spokesman wrote in an e-mail to The Post. Where to go? No place to call home Steven McCullough, 61, has been without a place to call home since 2007 and claims he has been punished by law enforcement because he is homeless. At first it was fine, but then the population grew and City Hall complained, McCullough stated. It seems like they have nothing better to do than mess with people who are just trying to live. McCullough went on to explain a June 9 incident when police accused him of assaulting another person, an allegation he claims was impossible because he was out of town that day. According to McCullough, police left him alone alone after he showed his bus ticket, which corroborated his story. County records show nothing about that arrest. Although McCullough lamented the negative aspects of being homeless, he admitted he always manages to find something to eat. The homeless dont go hungry here, he said. Previously: James, Warren defend West Palm's homeless assistance amid criticism of feeding ordinance Palm Beach County churches have stepped forward to help with food One reason for this is the generosity that can be found in the Lake Worth Beach community. One place that provides food is the New Life Zion Temple. Its difficult, but churches are still trying to do their part, said Pastor Melvin Pickney, who has been with New Life since 2014. New Life provides feedings for the less fortunate on the first and third Wednesdays of every month. They used to hold them weekly, but funding no longer permits doing it so often. The church also had to change the location of where it served meals. Related: Several fined for violating West Palm ordinance requiring permits for feeding homeless We used to feed them in the park, but we didnt want to run into trouble with the police, Pinkney said. I have seen people sometimes sleeping on the property and I get concerned because if someone gets hurt, the church will probably be liable. But how can you run someone homeless from the church? People pushing people away from spaces is an issue, though, one which homeless man Kyle VanEvery, 42, said he has experienced. He lost his job cleaning pools in January and has not been able to afford housing since. VanEvery explains that people who sleep in the streets are everyday people who are just trying to survive and be free. Ive been homeless off and on for the past five years, he said. Normally, I will be sitting in front of a store and even if I have just bought something, employees will come up and tell me to leave. More: Riviera print shop, with help of Mark Wahlberg's brother, gives work to those who did prison time Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Wayne Washington contributed to this report. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Supreme Court homeless ruling faces opposition in Palm Beach County LANCASTER COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) A resident at a detention facility in Lancaster County is facing felony charges after police say he stabbed a staffer with a stick. Anthony Padua, 18, of Philadelphia County, is facing felony aggravated assault charges for the incident. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest According to the criminal complaint filed by West Hempfield Township Police, officers were called to Manos House at 1290 Prospect Road around 10 p.m. on July 3 for an assault. Officers say Padua had struck a staff member twice with a foot-long stick that had six one-inch nails exposed. The two strikes caused puncture injuries to the staff member. Padua was assigned to Manos House by court order for juvenile probation and had turned 18 just weeks before the reported assault. He was arraigned on July 4 and committed to Lancaster County Prison, unable to post $50,000 cash bail. A preliminary hearing is set for July 15 before Magisterial District Judge Miles Bixler. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Massachusetts General Hospital has awarded $18 million to 22 local organizations to support affordable housing initiatives in Boston and North Suffolk County, officials said Monday. The Phillip and Susan Ragon Building, a multi-year construction project that will result in a state-of-the-art clinical care building on the Mass General campus, triggered this landmark investment through the Massachusetts Determination of Need process, officials said. This investmenttotaling more than $62 million dollarsis the largest in Massachusetts history. The evidence is clear: a lack of access to stable housing leads to inequitable health outcomes, Dr. Anne Klibanski, president and CEO of Mass General Brigham, said in a statement. The new Ragon Building will help ensure that our patients receive the care they deserve, while the Community Health Impact Funds will help boost quality, safe and affordable housing in the communities we serve. The organizations selected are: Boston Affordable Housing Coalition DBA Mass Alliance of HUD Tenants Boston Tenant Coalition Bridge Over Troubled Waters Chinese Progressive Association Citizens Housing and Planning Association City Life Vida Urbana DBA Revival, Inc. CIty of Boston Mayors Office of Housing Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative FamilyAid Boston, Inc. DBA FamilyAid Greater Boston Legal Services GreenRoots, Inc. HarborCOV HomeStart, Inc. Homes for All Massachusetts Legal Services Center of Harvard Law School Madison Park Development Corp. More Than Words New England United 4 Justice The Neighborhood Developers, Inc. Transgender Emergency Fund of Massachusetts, Inc. Urban Edge Womens Lunch Place Housing insecurity and substandard housing are strongly linked to health conditions like cardiovascular disease, asthma, and chronic stress, Dr. David Brown, president of Mass General Brighams Academic Medical Centers. We are so pleased for the opportunity to invest in and partner with these community-based organizations offering life- and health-altering solutions to the housing crisis in Suffolk County. In a statement, Mayor Michelle Wu said stable housing in the city is fundamental to positive health outcomes. The City of Boston is grateful that Mass General Brigham has committed $18 million towards solving housing related issues in Boston. Stable housing is fundamental to health outcomes, and these funds will shape better health for many Boston residents, Wu said. MGBs commitment to the new Acquisition Opportunity fund will allow the City to acquire and preserve affordable housing throughout Boston by taking it off the speculative market. It is an innovative way for us to combat displacement, and it will have a positive impact on the city and its residents for generations to come. After more than a year of discussions, the MGH Community Advisory Board identified four Community Health Impact Funds priorities. The $18 million housing allocation is the first to be rolled out, with funding opportunities for the other three prioritiesmental and behavioral health, economic mobility and financial stability, and food insecuritybeing released this spring and summer. A 12-member Housing Allocation Committee, comprised of community leaders and housing experts from local and state government, public agencies, nonprofits, and the philanthropic community, selected the awardees. Officials said decisions were based on creative, community-centered, impactful proposals addressing at least one of the three strategies determined by the board: production and preservation of affordable housing, eviction prevention, and support for community development corporations and other non-profit development organizations. We are so grateful for the dedication and commitment of our CAB and Housing Allocation Committees, Dr. Elsie Taveras, Mass General Brigham Chief Community Health and Health Equity Officer said in a statement. As community leaders and experts in community-based housing challenges and solutions, these committee members engaged in a thoughtful, data- and community-informed process to fund those proposals aimed at achieving the greatest community health equity impact. The housing crisis in our state and across the country is felt most acutely in historically marginalized communities, said Dr. Leslie Aldrich, Mass General Brighams Executive Director for Community Health. The 22 proposals chosen reflect an equitable, multi-pronged approach to benefitting those most impacted by housing insecurityunhoused populations, LGBTQ+, immigrants, domestic violence survivors, communities of color, and more. 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 Photo: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Thirty-seven people have been killed and 170 have been injured in the Russian attack on Ukraine on 8 July. Source: the State Emergency Service of Ukraine Quote: "The aftermath of the large-scale missile attack on the territory of Ukraine: Thirty-three people were killed: 22 in the city of Kyiv; 11 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. In total, 140 people were injured: 74 in the city of Kyiv; 2 in Kyiv Oblast; 64 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast." Details: Emergency workers have reportedly rescued 19 civilians: 11 in the city of Kyiv and 8 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. Updated at 23:04: President Zelenskyy said that at least 37 people were killed, including 3 children, and 170 were injured, including 13 children. Support UP or become our patron! EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) Las Cruces Police is asking for the publics help in locating a missing 12-year-old boy who has not been seen by his foster parents since Sunday evening, July 7. Police say Sergio Martinez, 12, was last seen at around 7 p.m. Sunday on the 200 block of Wall Avenue in Las Cruces. Sergio Martinez, 12. Photo: Las Cruces Police Department Police say its believed Martinez ran away from the area and his destination is unknown. Martinez is 5-feet tall, weighs approximately 140 pounds and has brown hair and brown eyes. He was last seen wearing a blue sweatshirt with New Mexico printed on the front, black pants, and black shoes. Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Martinez is asked to call police at (575) 526-0795. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. LAS VEGAS (KLAS) A searing heatwave in southern Nevada could shatter more records in the coming week as it bakes the Las Vegas valley and surrounding areas. On Sunday, Las Vegas recorded its hottest temperature ever when the temperature reading at Harry Reid International Airport hit 120 degrees. Although the temperature could be higher in other areas of the valley, the official reading is always done at the airport, and in the shade for accuracy. Las Vegas temperatures will reach a peak on July 10 and 11 and then begin dipping down. (Credit: National Weather Service/Las Vegas) There is little relief from the heat on the horizon. The excessive heat warning is now extended through Friday, July 12. Monday, July 8 the daily record was broken when the temperature hit 115 degrees. According to the National Weather Service in Las Vegas, temperatures will range from 114 to 118 degrees this week. If that happens, Las Vegas will set a record for five or more consecutive days of temperatures at 115 or above. The current record is four straight days and was set in 2005. The other record that could be broken is 10 consecutive days of temperatures at 110 or higher. The current record was set in July 2023. Heres how to keep cool and stay safe during a heat wave June 2024 was a forewarning of what was to come when that month broke the record for the hottest June ever recorded in Las Vegas. There were 28 days when the temperature reached 100 or higher. The average for the month was 106.2. 8 News Now weather anchor Sherry Swensk said there may be a slight break in the extreme heat by next weekend when monsoon moisture with a chance of thunderstorms moves into the valley. Then it will be less hot but more humid. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) Lawyers for the family of Deaughn Willis, a man killed after an East Baton Rouge deputy shot into an apartment while searching for a suspect in 2022, spoke at city hall on Monday, July 8. In January 2023, the family filed a federal lawsuit against the sheriffs office and the individual deputy who shot Willis, Eno Guillot. A federal judge said that the qualified immunity defense was not grounds to dismiss the case against the deputy. Trinelle Willis and attorney Christine Cane-Wyatt asked the sheriffs office to fire him. The officer that did the killing is still employed by the East Baton Rouge Sheriffs Office. This is a disservice to East Baton Rouge. This is a disservice to this community. This is a disservice to the United States of America. This is a disservice to every one of us. He should be held accountable. He should be terminated, and thats what were asking for, Cane-Wyatt said. Cane-Wyatt also asked that East Baton Rouge District Attorney Hillar Moore present the case to a grand jury so that Guillot may go through the same process that every other criminal has to go through. Trinelle, Deaughns mother, said she wants justice for her son. Everybody needs to do exactly what our attorney just said, email our district attorney, let him know you guys are not going to put up with this because this could have happened to your family, she said. So Im standing here asking for the communitys support. Im asking for our neighbors to go ahead on and email, and let them know were not going to put up with this. Louisiana sheriffs office warns of phone scam involving impersonation of deputies 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. On the morning of July 8, the aggressor country of Russia launched a new missile attack on Ukraine. The enemy took at least 5 Tu-95 strategic bombers and a MiG-31K fighter into the air. In this regard, a large-scale air alert was announced throughout Ukraine. According to preliminary data, the enemy launched missiles at about 9:30 a.m. ADVERTISIMENT The enemy also attacked with ballistic missiles, and explosions were heard in Kyiv, Kryvyi Rih, and Kirovohrad region. This was reported by the Ukrainian Air Force. According to the Ukrainian Air Force, there are 5 Tu-95s in Russian airspace. There was also information about the activation of MiG-31K. The strategic bombers continued their course to the launch zone and attacked Ukraine with cruise missiles. Later, Putin's terrorists launched Kinzhal aerial ballistic missiles. The head of the Presidential Office, Andriy Yermak, said that the Russian occupiers were firing missiles at civilian infrastructure. He emphasized that the whole world should see today the consequences of terror, which can only be responded to by force. "They targeted children today. A children's hospital, a targeted attack by Russians," Yermak wrote. ADVERTISIMENT President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that Russian terrorists had massively attacked Ukraine with missiles. Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorsk were under attack. The enemy launched over 40 missiles of various types. The Head of State noted that the shelling had damaged residential buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital. All services are engaged to save more people. "And the whole world must use all its determination to finally put an end to Russian strikes. Killing is what Putin is all about. Only together can we bring true peace and security," Zelenskyy wrote. ADVERTISIMENT Kyiv The enemy launched Kinzhal aerial ballistic missiles toward Kyiv. At about 10:30, explosions were heard in the capital. Mayor Vitali Klytschko said that medics were called to the Solomyanskyi district of Kyiv after the explosions. A short time later, another explosion occurred in the Shevchenkivskyi district of Kyiv. The Kyiv City Military Administration reported that as a result of a missile strike on Kyiv, debris fell in Solomyanskyi, Dniprovskyi, and Holosiivskyi districts. According to preliminary reports, there is a fire at the site of the attack. Information on the damage and casualties is being clarified. Later, the city administration reported that an office building was damaged in Solomyanskyi district, debris fell near a residential building in Holosiivskyi district, debris was burning in a residential building in Dniprovskyi district, a private house was damaged in Darnytskyi district, and a house caught fire in Desnianskyi district. All emergency services are working at the scene. ADVERTISIMENT The mayor of Kyiv added that a rocket hit one of the premises of a children's medical center in Kyiv. Three victims are already known, one of them was hospitalized, and two were treated on the spot. The information about one dead person is also being checked. Dnipro A series of powerful explosions occurred in Dnipro. Russian terrorists launched missiles at the city from the south. Residents heard the explosions around 10:45. The Air Force urged not to ignore the danger. ADVERTISIMENT Mayor Borys Filatov said that Putin's troops hit a residential building and a maintenance station with missiles. Destruction was recorded at the site of the attacks. Information about the victims is being clarified. As a reminder, on Sunday evening, July 7, Russian occupation forces fired missiles at the suburbs of Sumy. Explosions in the regional center were heard after 23:00. Earlier it was reported that the Russian occupiers shelled Kherson again on the afternoon of July 7. The Korabelnyi district of the city came under enemy fire: private houses were damaged there. The invaders also attacked Pavlohrad in the Dnipropetrovs'k region: private houses were damaged in the city. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes! (Bloomberg) -- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbans nascent European Union alliance got a boost of influence Monday, with two major farright parties led by Frances Marine Le Pen and Italys Matteo Salvini agreed to join it. Most Read from Bloomberg A spokesman for the Hungarian leader, Zoltan Kovacs, announced the moves by Le Pen and Salvini in posts on X Monday, where he said the new grouping of nationalists could become the third largest political alliance in the European Parliament. Our long-term goal is to change European policy making, Kinga Gal, a Hungarian lawmaker named as the new groups vice chairman, said at a new conference Monday in Brussels. We firmly say no to illegal migration, adding that they hoped other parties and lawmakers will still join them. With backing from Le Pen and Salvini, the alliance appears cleared the hurdles for becoming formally recognized as a party grouping in parliament, which requires membership from lawmakers in at least seven countries. Other members include Spanish far-right party Vox, which ditched Giorgia Melonis European Conservatives and Reformists Group, as well as far-right parties in Austria and Czech Republic. Belgiums far-right Dutch-speaking Vlaams Belang party said over the weekend that it will also join Orbans group, which is named Patriots for Europe. The political maneuvering is set to boost the power and the influence of the new group, as Orban aims to expand his influence in the EU, including on foreign policy, with an unannounced trip Monday to China to meet Xi Jinping. Orbans new alliance also provides a home for parties that had been part of the Le Pen-led Identity and Democracy group. Another ID member, the Alternative for Germany party, is mired in a series of scandals and missteps, most notably when its lead candidate in the EU election was quoted as saying that not all members of the Nazi SS paramilitary organization were criminals. Le Pen, who has sought to move her party away from the fringes, has been particularly critical of AfD recently. Le Pens party will be the largest in the new grouping, which so far includes 84 members in about a dozen countries, according to Kovacs. Today, after a lot of work, today in Brussels a large Patriots group is born. It will be crucial to change the future of this Europe, Salvini, the leader of the League party and a junior member in Melonis government, wrote in a post on X Monday. A similar path was outlined by Jordan Bardella, the president of Le Pens National Rally party, or RN, in the hours following the results of the French vote on Sunday. Tomorrow, the RN will join a large group, that will weigh on European balances of power and fight against migratory submersion, said Bardella, who was named as the chairman of the new group. Orban unveiled his new grouping at the end of last month as he took over the EU presidency for six months. It will also involve the dissolution of the Le Pens ID group, which was set up in 2019 to represent far-right and extreme nationalist views across the bloc. The potential strength of the newly formed alliance is also a blow for Meloni, who sought to carve out a leading role as far-right leader following the European vote. If all the changes will be confirmed, her political group will end up being smaller than the Orban-led one. --With assistance from Zoltan Simon, Lyubov Pronina and Wout Vergauwen. (Updates with quote from member of new alliance in third paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Findings from a new study suggest that those tampons stashed in your bathroom may be harboring toxic heavy metals like arsenic and lead. Researchers from UC Berkeley and Columbia tested various types and brands of tampons and found metals in all samples in the first-ever study designed to examine the heavy metal content of tampons. Millions of menstruating people use tampons every month, which makes the findings alarming, but researchers stress that we still dont know how the heavy metals found in tampons affect the body. We do not yet know if metals can leach out of the tampon and whether they are absorbed by the body, the papers lead author, Jenni Shearston, tells Fast Company. We therefore cannot yet assess to what extent (if any) metals in tampons contribute to any health problems. But we definitely need more research on this severely understudied area, Shearston says. The study was published in the journal Environment International, and evaluated the levels of 16 heavy metals in 30 tampons from 14 different top-selling tampon brands. The metal concentrations seemed to vary depending on the country where tampons were purchased (US vs. EU/UK), whether they were organic or conventional, and store brand vs. name brand. The researchers did not share the names of the tampon brands the study authors looked at, but did note that metals were detected in every type of tampon tested, and that no category of tampon had consistently lower amounts of all or most metals. Lead was higher in non-organic tampons, while arsenic was higher in organic tampons. (Researchers also looked at levels of cadmium, barium, calcium, copper, mercury, nickel and zinc, among other heavy metals.) How heavy metals end up in tampons There are a number of ways how heavy metals can end up in tampons, notes a media release from UC Berkeley, where Shearston is a postdoctoral student. Just as with heavy metal toxins in baby food (homemade or store-bought) and fruit juice, these toxins abound in our natural environment. The cotton material could have absorbed the metals from water, air, soil, through a nearby contaminant (for example, if a cotton field was near a lead smelter), or some might be added intentionally during manufacturing as part of a pigment, whitener, antibacterial agent, or some other process in the factory producing the products. Because the skin of the vagina is highly absorbent, tampons as a source of heavy metal toxins is a major concern. And because tampons are generally used on a monthly basis, sometimes for up to 8 hours at a time, they could result in higher exposure risk even from low concentrations. Although toxic metals are ubiquitous and we are exposed to low levels at any given time, our study clearly shows that metals are also present in menstrual products, and that women might be at higher risk for exposure using these products, says study co-author Kathrin Schilling, assistant professor at Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, to UC Berkeley. What to do if youre worried about heavy metals in tampons As Shearston stated, we dont yet know exactly how much of these toxins are absorbed by the body and what health effects theyll have. But because we do know that lead exposure in particular is linked to cognitive impairment, neurological and reproductive impacts, limiting exposure is always a good idea. You might consider switching to a medical-grade silicone menstrual cup instead of using tampons or even pads, which also tend to be made from cotton. Various brands of period underwear have also undergone backlash for PFAS exposure, but because both pads and period underwear only come into contact with the vulva and are not inserted into the vagina, they may be a better optionbut still, more research is needed. Tampons in the US are considered a Class II medical device by the FDA. However, there is no requirement to test tampons for chemical contaminants, and the FDA only recommends that tampons not contain two dioxin compounds or pesticide residues, study authors write. I really hope that manufacturers are required to test their products for metals, especially for toxic metals, Shearston tells UC Berkeley. It would be exciting to see the public call for this, or to ask for better labeling on tampons and other menstrual products. Trooper Michael Proctor, the disgraced lead investigator in the Karen Read murder case, will face a duty status hearing on Monday that will determine his future with the Massachusetts State Police. Proctor came under fire for a series of disparaging texts about Read that he sent to friends, family, and supervisors, which he read aloud in court during her trial. Proctor admitted on the stand that the texts were unprofessional and he apologized multiple times, telling the jury his texts did not impact his investigation into the death of John OKeefe, Reads Boston police officer boyfriend. In those texts, Proctor commented on Reads physical appearance, used vulgar language, suggested he had made up his mind based on evidence as to Reads guilt, and said he wished Read would kill herself. Lead investigator reads his unprofessional & regrettable texts on stand in Karen Read murder trial Interim Massachusetts State Police Col. John Mawn Mawn relieved Proctor of his duty after Judge Beverly Cannone declared a mistrial in the two-month-long murder trial due to a deadlocked jury. Proctor was then transferred out of the Norfolk District Attorneys State Police Detective Unit. I want to remain very clear. Misconduct in any way, shape, or form in the Massachusetts State Police will not be tolerated, Mawn told reporters after speaking at a Fourth of July safety preparedness event in Boston. I condemn those comments in the strongest terms possible. They are not reflective of the Massachusetts State Police and thats not where we want to be as an organization. Gov. Maura Healey called Proctors behavior terrible and said that it harmed the integrity of law enforcement. Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool) Proctor is now subject to a duty status hearing, which can result in either being retained on full duty, being placed on restricted duty, suspended with pay, or suspended without pay, according to the state police discipline process. An internal affairs investigation into Trooper Proctors alleged misconduct is ongoing, according to Mawn. Its unclear how Mondays hearing will affect other cases that Proctor has touched during his time with the state police. Duty status hearings are not open to the public or the media. Read is accused of killing OKeefe by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm in Canton in January 2022. Prosecutors said Read and OKeefe had been drinking heavily before she dropped him off at a party at the home of Brian Albert, a fellow officer. They said she hit him with her SUV before driving away. The defense sought to portray Read as the victim, saying OKeefe was actually killed inside Alberts home and then dragged outside and left for dead. 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 Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hold signed documents, during a signing ceremony for bilateral security agreements in Warsaw. Zelenskyy is in Warsaw to meeth Polish leaders ahead of the upcoming NATO summit and to sign bilateral security agreement. -/Ukrainian Presidency/dpa Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a bilateral security agreement in Warsaw on Monday, a day before the start of a NATO summit in Washington. "Those who defend Ukraine today are also defending themselves," said Tusk. Zelensky called the agreement "ambitious." "It is capable of protecting the lives of our people and resisting Russian evil," said Zelensky. The treaty provides for the development of a plan by which "Russian missiles and drones fired in the direction of Poland can be shot down in Ukrainian airspace," according to the Ukrainian president. The agreement also states that Poland is examining the possibility of delivering further MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine. Poland has already delivered 10 such fighter jets to Kiev. According to Ukrainian media, 14 more jets are now being considered. However, Tusk emphasized that the prerequisite is that Poland receives adequate replacements. The Polish government will also encourage Ukrainian citizens living in the country to join the Ukrainian military. Zelensky said that a unit of Ukrainian volunteers should be formed and trained in Poland, which would then fight in Ukraine. In the early afternoon, the Ukrainian leader met his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda. Zelensky arrived in Poland as his nation was battered by waves of powerful Russian missile attacks, with at least 26 people killed and a large children's hospital hit in Kiev. "There are no words, no documents, no political statements that would suffice to condemn the aggressor," said Tusk. Poland is one of the most committed political and military supporters of Ukraine as Kiev seeks to fend off the full-scale invasion, now in its third year. Poland is also an important hub for Western military aid to Kiev. Plus, it has taken in almost 1 million Ukrainian refugees fleeing violence in their country. Ukraine has already made security agreements with the EU and 19 individual states, including the United States, Japan and Germany, to formalize the military and civilian support that has been provided already and hold out the prospect of further aid for an initial period of 10 years. At least 2 dead, millions without power as Hurricane Beryl roars through Texas Hurricane Beryl made landfall along the Texas coast as a Category 1 storm early Monday, unleashing a barrage of severe weather as it moved inland before weakening into a tropical storm still capable of widespread damage. Through the morning much of eastern Texas was inundated with "life-threatening storm surge," torrential rain and powerful wind gusts of up to 84 mph in the Houston area, the National Hurricane Center said. The dangerous conditions prompted rescue operations, disrupted hundreds of flights, left more than 2 million people without power and caused at least two deaths. Beryl had sustained winds of over 80 mph as it made landfall at 4 a.m. near Matagorda, a coastal community between Corpus Christi and Galveston, according to the hurricane center. More than five hours later, the sustained winds had diminished to 70 mph, a bit below hurricane force but still capable of uprooting trees and knocking down power poles. More: 2 deaths confirmed in Texas after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall. See total death toll In a suburban part of Harris County, just northeast of Houston, a man was killed when a tree fell on his home and trapped him under debris, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez. In northern Harris County, a tree fell onto a house and killed a 74-year-old woman, Gonzalez said on social media. Last week, Beryl carved a path of destruction across the Caribbean leaving at least 11 people dead and destroying or severely damaging infrastructure on several islands. Beryl, which at one point strengthened into the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record, last made landfall on Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula on Friday morning. Allison Crane walks out of her flooded neighborhood after Hurricane Beryl passed in Galveston on Monday. Hurricane Beryl's strength caught people off guard Hal Needham, an extreme weather scientist widely known to other locals in Galveston as "Hurricane Hal," was up just after 4 a.m. Monday to monitor the storm and livestream updates. "We've had some pretty big squalls today with widespread power outages," he said. "I think the storm was a lot stronger than a lot of people expected." Needham said he was also concerned that continuing power outages would leave residents vulnerable to high-80s heat and high humidity. "This is the hottest time of the year," he said. "If people still don't have power, there could really be some issues with heat exhaustion, with heat-related illnesses, especially for elderly people with health conditions." More: See Texas power outage map as Hurricane Beryl makes landfall near Matagorda Although people from the area are hurricane-savvy, this storm hit earlier than most, catching them off guard, Needham said. "Only 3% of major hurricanes usually happen in June or July," he said. "Typically, Texas does not get a lot of July and June hurricane landfalls. "I think people were really surprised by how hard and how quickly this hit," he added. Buildings stand surrounded by debris after the storm surge from Hurricane Beryl receded Monday in Matagorda. Beryl's path Hurricane Beryl was 45 miles north-northwest of Houston, according to the National Hurricane Center's noon advisory, about eight hours after making landfall in Texas. The storm was hurtling north-northeast at 13 mph with sustained winds of 65 mph, about 15 mph less than when it made landfall. Beryl is projected to downgrade into a tropical depression as it continues heading north across the Mississippi Valley and then the Ohio Valley, where it's expected to dissipate Tuesday and Wednesday. In Galveston, a fish swimming on a flooded street Jacob Jonathan, 21, awoke Monday to harsh winds banging on the window of his Galveston home, which he found "a little stressful.'' Jonathan said his street was flooded with nearly a foot of water. At one point, he looked out his window to see a fish jump out of it. Debris littered the neighborhood, and one fence was knocked down by the wind, he said. By midday, Jonathan was still out of power, and he said some friends in Galveston were also without water. "We're mainly worried about our food going bad in the fridge," he said. More: Houston bayou level rises 25 feet as Beryl brings major flooding, dangerous road hazards Jonathan spent the morning at home after the auto repair shop where he works delayed its opening until the afternoon because of the storm, and he was waiting to see when conditions improved. "Our house is lifted, and we don't have any leaking," he added. "The only nuisance right now is we had to pick up after our animals because they can't really walk in the water." Hurricane Beryl 'has been rough' Donna Radin said she was startled awake by the very strong howl of wind rattling her home as rain came down in sheets early Monday morning. The 58-year-old travel agent lives in Deer Park, a small city east of Houston. Around 5 a.m., as the conditions worsened, she heard a generator blow just down the block, and soon her home lost power. Huddled inside with her daughter, two granddaughters and five dogs, Radin said she had avoided the windows but could see lots of downed trees and the remnants of a fence that was ripped out of the ground and hurled several yards away. "It's the most intense Cat 1 I've ever been through," said Radin, who has lived on the Texas Gulf Coast all her life. "I told my husband, 'Our next investment will be remote-controlled hurricane shutters,' because this has been rough." Gusts of wind blow the hair of Lorena Ochoa, 64, after she stepped out of her home to survey the damage caused by Hurricane Beryl in Freeport on Monday. Hurricane Beryl hits records amid projected busy hurricane season On July 1, Beryl made landfall in Grenada's Carriacou Island as a Category 4 hurricane and tore through the southern Caribbean Islands, flattening hundreds of buildings. Later that night, Beryl became the earliest Category 5 hurricane on record. Driven by record-high ocean temperatures, Beryl's rapid strengthening stunned experts. It was also the earliest Category 4 hurricane on record and is the first June major hurricane east of the Lesser Antilles on record. More: Before Beryl, the last Cat 5 hurricane this early was in 2005, the same year as Katrina Federal forecasters have predicted a hurricane season unlike any other, with as many as 25 named storms possible. It is the most storms the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration has ever predicted in a preseason outlook. Contributing: Jorge L. Ortiz and Dinah Voyles Pulver, USA TODAY; Reuters. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Hurricane Beryl: At least 2 dead, millions without power in Texas 3 killed, 3 injured in Russian strike on Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, governor says Three people were killed and other three suffered injuries in a Russian strike on the Donetsk Oblast city of Pokrovsk on the morning of July 8, the State Emergency Service reported. The attack on Pokrovsk came amid a widespread series of Russian strikes across Ukraine, including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and other cities. Governor Vadym Filashkin said that there was preliminary information about attacks on other locations in Donetsk Oblast, but the extent of the damage and potential casualties was unknown. The strikes took place on the eve of the NATO summit in Washington, where Ukraine hopes to receive long-term aid commitments from the allies. Read also: Russian attack on Kryvyi Rih kills at least 10, injures at least 31 Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. At least six people injured on day two of Pamplona bull run Participants run during the second running of the bulls of the Sanfermines. Six runners have been taken to a medical center after the second running of the bulls of the Sanfermines, carried out by the bulls of the Cebada Gago bull-ranch, without any injuries from the horns of the bulls. Eduardo Sanz/EUROPA PRESS/dpa At least six people were injured during the second bull run in Pamplona in northern Spain, a spokeswoman for a hospital in the city told public broadcaster RTVE on Monday. The injured runners, including a US citizen, mainly suffered from bruising from falls, despite the fact that the cobblestones of the old town were sprayed with anti-slip agents before the race, as they have been for years. One of the bulls broke off part of one of his horns during the wild chase. Hundreds of people will chase six massive bulls, some weighing over 600 kilograms, and several oxen through Pamplona's narrow alleyways into an arena until next Sunday as part of the annual San Fermin Festival, which dates to the 16th century. The bulls are corralled into to Pamplona's bullring where they are then killed by matadors during bullfights. While the San Fermin Festival also includes numerous concerts and processions, the bull runs and bullfights are the highlight of the festivities. Dozens of runners, most of them young men, are injured every year as the race along the 875-metre course. There have been 16 fatalities since 1924, the last in 2009. Animal rights activists call the bull runs "medieval cruelty," of a tradition that dates back to 1591. Despite this, the festival continues to attract thousands of visitors from all over the world. On Monday, July 8, the aggressor country continued to increase the pace of its offensive. The Pokrovsk and Toretsk sectors are currently the hottest spots on the frontline. ADVERTISIMENT This is stated in the report of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of 16:00. The enemy is actively using aviation for attacks. The number of combat engagements along the entire frontline has increased to 85. "Russian invaders are focusing their main efforts on the Pokrovsk direction. More than a third of all the battles took place there. Ukrainian defenders are holding back the onslaught of the occupation troops and inflicting significant losses on the enemy," the General Staff said in a statement. Situation at the front The border of Sumy and Chernihiv regions continues to suffer from artillery shelling from the territory of the Russian Federation. ADVERTISIMENT From the direction of Belgorod (Russia), terrorists hit Vovchanski Khutory with a guided aerial bomb. At the same time, our soldiers have repelled five enemy attacks so far. In the Kupiansk sector, the enemy unsuccessfully stormed the positions of our troops near Stelmakhivka twice. Another battle continues near Berestove. The situation is under control. In the Lyman sector, the invading army made 10 attacks on Ukrainian positions over the day. Seven engagements ended without success for the enemy, two more are ongoing. The enemy continues to look for weaknesses in our defense in the Northern sector. He conducted five attacks near Verkhniekamianske and Spirne. He received a tough rebuff. The occupants' losses are being clarified. ADVERTISIMENT In the Kramatorsk direction, the invaders made eight unsuccessful assaults near Chasovyi Yar, Bohdanivka, Hryhorivka, Bila Hora, and Andriivka. The number of enemy attacks in the Toretsk sector increased to 13. Our troops stopped 12 of them, another battle near New York is still ongoing. The aggressor's aviation is actively working, in particular, the city of Toretsk was bombed, and terrorists attacked Katerynivka with another aerial combat vehicle. The enemy fired 16 unguided missiles at our positions near New York. ADVERTISIMENT The Pokrovsk sector witnessed the highest number of combat engagements. Since the beginning of the day, the occupants have made 30 attempts to push our defenders from their positions. Defense forces are holding back the onslaught and repelled 17 enemy attacks, 13 battles are still ongoing. The enemy is most active near Novooleksandrivka and Novoselivka Persha. The latter, along with Oleksandropil, were attacked by NARs from attack aircraft. Russian terrorists struck the areas of Hrodivka, Vodiane Druhe, and Myroliubivka with multiple rocket launchers. Four battles near Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka, Kostiantynivka, and Paraskoviivka in the Kurakhove sector are over. ADVERTISIMENT Two firefights continue in the Vremivske sector. Ukrainian defense forces are taking measures to prevent the occupants from advancing deeper into our territory. Russian terrorists used almost two dozen guided aerial bombs in the sector. They also fired from multiple rocket launchers. In particular, near Velyka Novosilka. In the Orikhiv sector, an enemy attack near Mala Tokmachka was repelled. In the Prydniprovsk sector, the occupants continue to try to drive the Ukrainian Defense Forces units from their positions on the bridgeheads. Three Russian attacks were unsuccessful. Olhivka and Shevchenkivka were hit by air strikes from Ukrainian drones. ADVERTISIMENT On the morning of July 8, the terrorist country Russia launched a massive attack on Ukraine. The enemy fired missiles at Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and other cities. Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! At least 37 Ukrainians killed, more than 170 injured in deadliest Russian missile strikes in months Emergency workers search for survivors of a missile strike on the Okhmadyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, on Monday that killed at least two people and injured 16 in a wave of deadly Russian attacks on cities across central and eastern regions of the country. Photo by Sergey Dolzhenko/EPA-EFE July 8 (UPI) -- At least 37 people were killed and more than 170 injured Monday as dozens of Russian missiles slammed into cities across Eastern and Central Ukraine including the capital, Kyiv, where the country's largest children's hospital was badly damaged, authorities said. President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said more than 40 Russian missiles targeted Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk and Kramatorsk, hitting apartment buildings, infrastructure and the Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital in the east of Kyiv. The Ukrainian Air Force Commander Lit. Gen. Mykola Oleshchuk said it downed 30 missiles. In total, nearly 100 facilities were damaged, Zelensky said. Twenty-seven people, including three children, were killed in the capital, the Kyiv City Military Administration said on Telegram. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a post on social media that at least 96 others were injured. Some 600 people were in the Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital in the east of the city when it came under attack, destroying two of its floors. Two people were killed -- a doctor and a relative of a patient at the facility -- and more than 50 injured, including seven children, the city administration said in a statement. "This is horror and genocide! More than a hundred rescuers are sifting through the debris in the children's hospital, which was targeted by an enemy rocket," Klitschko said. "Patients from the children's hospital are being evacuated to the municipal hospital in the city." Footage circulating online showed serious damage to the hospital's interior and exterior and children with IV drips outside awaiting evacuation as palls of smoke rose across the capital. An Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital doctor told the BBC that 60%-70% of the complex had sustained severe damage with one part destroyed and another wing ablaze. Health Minister Viktor Lyashko said cancer and intensive care were among the departments struck. People caught out on the street took refuge underground in the nearby Lukianivska subway station. Shortly afterward, four people were killed and three injured when the Isida maternity hospital, a private clinic, in the Dniprovskyi area of the city was hit by falling debris from a Russian missile downed by the city's air defenses. It is not yet known if the victims were patients or hospital staff. Zelensky condemned the attack on the hospital as well as residential buildings and infrastructure saying Russia could not claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held to account. "Russia must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general. It is very important that the world does not remain silent about this now, and that everyone sees what Russia is and what it is doing," he wrote in a post on X. U.S.-based Physicians for Human Rights framed the hospital attack as a continuation of Russia's ongoing onslaught targeting Ukraine's healthcare system. The advocacy group has document 1,442 Russian attacks on Ukraine healthcare facilities, workers and other medical infrastructure since the Kremlin launched its war on Feb. 24, 2022. "Russia's strategy in Ukraine includes attacking babies and children. Domestic and international actors should intensify efforts to hold perpetrators accountable for these war crimes," liana Poltavets, PHR's Ukraine emergency response coordinator, said in a statement supplied to UPI. "Again and again, we have witnessed Russian forces attack vulnerable patients, health workers, and hospitals across the country." In Dnipropetrovsk province, 260 miles to the southeast of Kyiv, the military administration of Kryvyi Rih said at least 10 people had been killed there and 47 injured with one person killed and 12 injured to the East in Denipro, the country's fourth largest city. Three more people were killed in the town of Pokrovsk in Donetsk, according to the province's governor Vadym Filashkin. A 32-year-old Lebanon man who stole a car at gunpoint and led Lebanon City Police officers on a lengthy chase that hurt at least one other individual has pleaded guilty to all charges before he was scheduled to go to trial in August. Standing before Lebanon County Court of Common Pleas President Judge John Tylwalk on Friday, July 5, Cesar Wilkins Romero-Colon pleaded guilty to multiple counts of felony robbery, aggravated assault on police, possession of a stolen firearm, possession of a firearm without a license and flight from police. He was not sentenced during the hearing. Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf said that Romero-Colon accepting responsibility for his actions during the incident saves the victims involved from having to talk about the worst days of their lives. "I think accepting responsibility, accountability and pleading guilty was the right decision, and frankly it's the only decision the man made since the day of the car chases that we can support," she said. In video obtained by police and shown by the Lebanon County District Attorney's office in November, Cesar Romero-Colon is shown falling out of a police cruiser after he attempted to carjack it. He the sat up an pointed a gun towards a South Lebanon police officer. Romero-Colon also pleaded guilty July 5 to charges of drug possession, possession of drug paraphernalia, disorderly conduct to police and theft in two other cases. Officials said Romero-Colon will serve a concurrent sentence for all three cases. Romero-Colon's attorney, Assistant Public Defender Michael Light, called the plea a favorable resolution for everybody. Light added that Romero-Colon has accepted responsibility for these incidents. Police Chase On Nov. 7, police were dispatched to the 1100 block of Brandywine Street for a report of gunshots. With the assistance of the public, officers were able to identify the suspect as Cesar Wilkins Romero-Colon. Romero-Colon allegedly fled on a bicycle before police arrived on scene, then stole a 2005 Dodge Caravan at the 500 block of N. 2nd St. A South Lebanon Police officer located the stolen vehicle in the area of 3rd Avenue and East Cumberland, next to a pizza restaurant. The officer attempted to stop the vehicle, when Romero-Colon drove away. Romero-Colon then fled the wrong way down Route 422 weaving in and out of traffic at a high rate of speed with police following, according to police. As he drove the stolen vehicle to the intersection of Narrows Drive and Route 422 in South Lebanon Township, he crashed into a 1995 Toyota Corolla, according to the Lebanon County District Attorney's office. That collision caused serious injury to a 70-year-old driver, according to officials. Colon then lost control of the stolen car, and it crashed into a nearby field. A South Lebanon Township officer pulled over and directed Romero-Colon to exit the vehicle. Romero-Colon instead exited the vehicle and fled on foot through the field and directly onto Route 422, approaching oncoming traffic with the gun in hand. A Lebanon City Police Department officer got out of the vehicle and commanded Romero-Colon to surrender. Officials said he brandished a firearm and attempted to steal the police vehicle. Video obtained by a police department vehicle and shown by the district attorney's office in November shows Romero-Colon attempting to gain access to the police driver-side vehicle. The driver accelerated, causing Romero-Colon to fall to the ground. As Romero-Colon got up, he pointed the gun towards South Lebanon Police officer. The officer fired two gunshots before he surrendered, and no one was injured as a result of the gunfire. Romero-Colon was in possession of a stolen 9mm handgun at the time of his arrest, which he purchased as part of a "street transaction." Officials said the handgun was loaded with a round chambered. The Lebanon County District Attorney's Office announced in November that the South Lebanon Police officer was justified when he fired on Romero-Colon. Community impact In one day Romero-Colon took so many things that were "the source of life" of people in the Lebanon County community, Graf said. The owner of the 2005 Dodge Caravan did not have collision insurance and is still dealing with the aftermath of Romero Colon crashing his vehicle. "That van was how he got to work. That van was how he employed himself and he hasn't been able to afford replacing it," she said. The driver of the 1995 Toyota Corolla had to have surgery after the collision. Graf said he had multiple injuries, including a broken leg, hip bone and left arm. He then spent month at a rehab facility recovering from his injuries. Graf said a month before the accident with Romero-Colon, the Toyota Corolla driver had lost his wife. "The best way I can describe it is that accident broke his spirit," she said. "He talks about the great sadness from losing his wife and losing his car, and the lack of dignity now in the physical way he has to present and conduct himself." Graf said the officers on scene that day were very grateful that there were no officers shot and killed, because "there very easily could have been." "You can hear on the body camera where she just yells 'No,' and you can hear the pain and the fear that's in there," Graf said. The minimum sentence Romero-Colon could receive is 10 years, according to Graf. His sentencing hearing is scheduled for Aug. 28, 2024. Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on X at @DAMattToth. This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: Man who led Lebanon police on 2023 chase pleads guilty What is the left-wing NFP coalition, and who will be Frances next prime minister? A month ago, the New Popular Front (NFP) did not exist. Now, it has won the most seats in the French parliament and could provide France with its next prime minister. The left-wing coalition chose its name in an attempt to resurrect the original Popular Front that blocked the far right from gaining power in 1936. Official results released early Monday show the NFP has done so again winning 182 seats in the National Assembly, making it the largest bloc but short of an absolute majority, according to the French Interior Ministry. But the hastily assembled coalition comprises disparate political parties that have not always played nice. And it has campaigned on a platform of high public spending that has spooked financial markets and could tip France into economic chaos. So, what is the NFP, what does it stand for, and who are its key players? Who are the NFP? The NFP is made up of several parties: the far-left France Unbowed party; the more moderate Socialist Party; the green Ecologist party; the French Communist Party; the center-left Place Publique, and other small parties. It formed just days after President Emmanuel Macron called a snap parliamentary election, in the wake of his centrist partys embarrassing defeat to Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) party in last months European Parliament election. Following his sides defeat at the European elections, Emmanuel Macron has opted for a gamble at a time when the far right is at its most powerful, running the risk of seeing it come to power for the first time since Vichy, Socialist leader Olivier Faure said last month, referring to the French government that collaborated with Nazi occupiers during World War II. Only a united left can stand in its way, he said. A giant French flag reads "France is born out of migration," at an event in Republique Square in Paris. - Emmanuel Dunand/AFP/Getty Images Whos in charge of the NFP? Its hard to say. Each party celebrated the results at their own headquarters and separate campaign events, rather than together. Going into the second round, it was not clear who the coalition would nominate to be its prime minister. Its most prominent and divisive figure is Jean-Luc Melenchon, a 72-year-old populist firebrand and longtime leader of the France Unbowed party. France Unbowed is the largest single party within the coalition, winning 74 seats in Sundays vote ahead of the Socialists on 59 seats. With France now facing a hung parliament it remains unclear who the next prime minister will be. Figures in Macrons Ensemble party have repeatedly said they would refuse to work with France Unbowed, saying it is just as extreme and therefore as unfit to govern as the RN. Announcing his intention to resign Monday as prime minister, Gabriel Attal said, in an apparent swipe to France Unbowed: No absolute majority can be led by the extremes. We owe it to the French spirit, so deeply attached to the Republic and its values. Melenchons three presidential campaigns have been beset by accusations of antisemitism. In a recent survey of French Jewish voters by Ifop, 57% said they would leave France if Melenchons party were to govern. A more acceptable face of the coalition could be the Socialist Faure, or Raphael Glucksmann, the moderate leader of Place Publique and a member of the European Parliament. People gather at the Republique plaza in Paris after the second round of voting. - Louise Delmotte/AP What are the NFPs policies? On foreign policy, the NFP has pledged to immediately recognize a Palestinian state, and will push for Israel and Hamas to cease fire in Gaza. The NFP campaigned on an expansive economic platform, promising to raise the minimum monthly wage to 1,600 euros (more than $1,700) and to cap the price of essential foods, electricity, fuel and gas. It also pledged to scrap Macrons pension reform, a deeply unpopular policy that raised the French retirement age one of the lowest in the Western world from 62 to 64. While these pledges have proved popular, they have been made at a time when France could be heading for a period of austerity. France is running one of the highest deficits in the Eurozone and now risks falling foul of the European Commissions new fiscal rules, which were suspended to help countries recover from the Covid-19 pandemic and energy crisis. Since Macron called the election, financial markets have taken fright first at the prospect of an extremist government, then at the economic policies of the hard left and right, with the RN also promising an expansive fiscal program. Because the NFP did not win enough seats to form an absolute majority, it will have to enter into another coalition likely with Ensemble, which may try to dilute some of its more radical spending policies in order to pass laws. This process is likely to be frustrating, as several parties straddling huge ideological divides try to find common ground. CNNs Xiaofei Xu and Saskya Vandoorne contributed reporting. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Legal expert: SCOTUS "invented a new rule" that could even give Trump immunity for "unofficial acts" Donald Trump's classified documents case in Florida could hinge on how courts define what constitutes an official presidential act under a landmark Supreme Court ruling outlining presidential immunity, according to a legal expert. The Supreme Court last week ruled 6-3 that presidents have "absolute immunity from criminal prosecution" for acts that fall within the "exercise of his core constitutional powers he took when in office." Presidents, according to the ruling, have "at least presumptive" immunity from other official acts, and no immunity for unofficial acts. Trump pleaded not guilty last year to 40 criminal counts stemming from the discovery of classified documents at Mar-a-Lago after he left office. His lawyers argue that the Supreme Court's ruling "guts" special counsel Jack Smith's own theory of presidential immunity. Trump's team wants to prevent prosecutors from using evidence that concerns Trump's "official acts" in any trial. "The million-dollar question now is how the president's conduct is categorized," University of Miami School of Law professor Caroline Mala Corbin told Salon. "If what he did is considered official conduct, then he has either absolute immunity or at least a presumption of immunity," she said. "And a presumption that will be very difficult to rebut." U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon who is presiding over the documents case is now set to weigh whether Trump had immunity for any alleged acts. She paused upcoming court deadlines for prosecutors and Trump's team, and gave special counsel Jack Smith until July 18 to respond to Trump's motion claiming presidential immunity. A reply from Trump's team is due July 21. The grand jury's indictment includes 32 counts of unauthorized possession and retention of national defense documents, along with counts that allege Trump conspired to conceal documents from FBI investigators. On Friday, Trump's lawyers asked Cannon to decide whether the alleged conduct in the documents case is official or unofficial. In Trump's motion, his lawyers Todd Blanche and Christopher Kise pointed out that Chief Justice John Roberts who authored the majority immunity ruling said that "questions about whether the President may be held liable for particular actions, consistent with the separation of powers, must be addressed at the outset of a proceeding." Trump's lawyers said the indictment concerns "important Presidential powers" including meeting with foreign relations leaders, overseeing international diplomacy and intelligence gathering and responsibility for Executive Branch actions. Earlier this year, Trump's lawyers argued that 32 criminal counts are based on official acts including Trump deciding to "retain" the documents by having them "removed from the White House" while he was still president. "The timeframe alleged for each of Counts 1 32 begins on January 20, 2021," reads his lawyer's motion. "President Trump was the Commander in Chief until noon that day." Trump's lawyers said he had the authority to designate the records as personal under the Presidential Records Act, and that he could declassify records under Article II of the Constitution and Executive Order 13526. Corbin said whether Trump will have absolute immunity for official acts depends on whether Cannon determines he was acting pursuant to a power he shares with Congress. She pointed to the ruling, which said: "Not all of the Presidents official acts fall within his 'conclusive and preclusive' authority. The reasons that justify the Presidents absolute immunity from criminal prosecution for acts within the scope of his exclusive constitutional authority do not extend to conduct in areas where his authority is shared with Congress." Corbin said the Supreme Court's ruling lacked detailed parameters of what constitutes an official and core presidential act. "I think they defined official conduct expansively, but not definitively," she said. "So I think there are a lot of questions that remain." Pace Law School professor Bennett Gershman said the documents Trump removed belonged to the National Archive. Trump's possession and use of those documents as president did fall within the "outer perimeter" of his official duties, according to Gershman. "But will a court find that his retention of the documents after he left office reasonably could be considered an official act of his presidency? Or would a court more likely conclude that his retention of these documents after he left office was a purely private and personal action on his part having nothing to do with his presidency or with any official acts of his presidency?" Gershman told Salon. Gershman said it's "much more reasonable" for a court to conclude that Trump's retention of the documents falls into the unofficial bucket. "The Supreme Courts emphasis on affording a president extremely broad immunity is to allow the president to do his job energetically and fearlessly without tempering his decision-making over fears of prosecution," Gershman said. "Trump, when he decided to take the documents, had no concern over how the retention and possession would affect his presidency. " Gershman added: "The way Trump mishandled the documents storing them in his bathroom, showing them to guests at his house, losing some of them suggests he didnt think these documents were official or that he was possessing in an official capacity." Former federal prosecutor Andrew Weissmann said the Supreme Court's ruling won't "jeopardize the case altogether" but could limit evidence used by prosecutors. "The hurrendous [sic] SCOTUS immunity decision's effect on the Trump MAL case: it may restrict certain evidence, but not jeopardize the case altogether as it is about conduct after Trump was president (unlawful retention of docs and obstruction)," Weissmann wrote on X. "But certain allegations in the indictment may be struck." Weissmann pointed to half a dozen paragraphs in the Florida indictment that outlines the alleged conduct, including Trump gathering official documents and other materials in cardboard boxes in the White House. The indictment also mentions Trump receiving intelligence briefings from high-level government officials and regularly receiving classified intelligence information in the "President's Daily Brief." Trump issued a statement in 2018 stating he has a "unique, Constitutional responsibility to protect the Nation's classified information, including by controlling access to it." And as he prepared to leave the White House in January 2021, the indictment says he and White House staff packed boxes containing "hundreds of classified documents" that were brought to Mar-a-Lago. Weissmann pointed out that the Supreme Court's ruling itself opened the door to impact proceedings involving unofficial acts. "Because the SCOTUS decision says (ie invented a new rule) that even in such an 'unofficial case' the government cannot use evidence of 'official' conduct to prove the case (and some such arguable conduct is cited in the indictment)," he wrote. The Supreme Court majority ruling said that allowing evidence of official conduct in cases about unofficial conduct could jeopardize presidential immunity. "If official conduct for which the President is immune may be scrutinized to help secure his conviction, even on charges that purport to be based only on his unofficial conduct, the 'intended effect' of immunity would be defeated," the ruling says. "The Presidents immune conduct would be subject to examination by a jury on the basis of generally applicable criminal laws. Use of evidence about such conduct, even when an indictment alleges only unofficial conduct, would thereby heighten the prospect that the Presidents official decisionmaking will be distorted." Trump's lawyers pointed to that finding in their motion, and argued that the indictment does not only include official conduct. The Supreme Court's opinion adds: "Allowing prosecutors to ask or suggest that the jury probe official acts for which the President is immune would thus raise a unique risk that the jurors deliberations will be prejudiced by their views of the Presidents policies and performance while in office." Justice Amy Coney Barrett disagreed and concurred in part with Justice Sonia Sotomayor's dissent, arguing that excluding "any mention" of an official act associated with a bribe 'would hamstring the prosecution.'" Chief Justice John Roberts said a prosecutor could point to public record to show the president performed the official act and admit evidence of what the president "allegedly demanded, received, accepted, or agreed to receive or accept." But Roberts said admitting testimony or private records would invite the jury to "second-guess" the president's motivations for official acts which he argues would "'seriously cripple'" a president's exercise of official duties. Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course. In her dissent, Sotomayor said federal criminal prosecutions require "'robust procedural safeguards.'" "If the Government manages to overcome even that significant hurdle, then the former President can appeal his conviction, and the appellate review of his claims will be 'particularly meticulous,' she wrote. She added: "I am deeply troubled by the idea, inherent in the majoritys opinion, that our Nation loses something valuable when the President is forced to operate within the confines of federal criminal law." Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, meanwhile, called the "official-versus-unofficial act distinction... both arbitrary and irrational." Jackson said "the Court has neglected to lay out a standard that reliably distinguishes between a Presidents official and unofficial conduct." Jackson said she questioned whether a president could be held accountable for committing crimes while undertaking official duties. "[C]ourts must now ensure that a former President is not held accountable for any criminal conduct he engages in while he is on duty, unless his conduct consists primarily (and perhaps solely) of unofficial acts," Jackson said. Corbin called the Supreme Court's ruling troubling. "It's assumed that everyone is subject to the law in the United States, including the president, and it's a little worrisome that the President might be absolutely immune from criminal law just because he was executing a power given by the Constitution," Corbin said. "The court's justification for absolute immunity seemed pretty flimsy, and granting absolute immunity to a president especially when we know certain presidents will happily abuse their power is very worrisome." And she called the level of immunity granted unnecessary to protect a president's ability to do the job. "Given that future presidents may not be trustworthy, it's a real worry," Corbin said. "I mean, we've already seen what certain presidents will do without knowing they had absolute immunity. I can't imagine what we might see from a president who has absolute immunity." In a concurrence, Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas raised another issue altogether concerning the constitutionality of the special counsel. Trump has raised such legal arguments for months and argued that Special Counsel Smith's appointment and budget violates the Constitution. Thomas said he wasn't sure about whether the Attorney General could appoint a private citizen as special counsel, saying: "A private citizen cannot criminally prosecute anyone, let alone a former President." "Whether the Special Counsels office was 'established by Law' is not a trifling technicality," Thomas said. "If Congress has not reached a consensus that a particular office should exist, the Executive lacks the power to unilaterally create and then fill that office. Given that the Special Counsel purports to wield the Executive Branchs power to prosecute, the consequences are weighty." Trump's lawyers cited Thomas' dissent in their motion asking Cannon to resolve constitutional questions about presidential immunity and the special counsel's authority. Meanwhile, prosecutors have argued that long-held court precedents have upheld the authorities of special counsels. Smith has pointed out that when Trumps former Attorney General William Barr served under former President George H.W. Bush, Barr appointed former circuit and district judges. And legal experts including D.C.-based national security attorney Bradley Moss say that for decades, criminal defendants indicted by special counsel have unsuccessfully challenged their lawfulness. The Supreme Court's ruling could also potentially forestall sentencing for Trump's criminal charges in New York. In May, jurors in Trump's Manhattan criminal trial found Trump guilty of 34 charges of falsifying business records. Manhattan prosecutors alleged that Trump disguised $130,000 in hush money as a legal expense as part of a scheme to keep information about alleged extramarital sex from voters and unlawfully influence the 2016 presidential election. But in the wake of the Supreme Court's immunity ruling, Judge Juan Merchan postponed Trump's sentencing for at least two months if, the judge said, "such is still necessary." Trump's lawyers argue that because Trump's crimes occurred before he assumed the presidency, some of the evidence used should have been redacted. Prosecutors alleged Trump made or caused the falsification of business records, including invoices and checks to longtime fixer Michael Cohen some of which have Trump's signature on them. Prosecutors also alleged that 2017 Trump Organization general ledger entries falsely described 2017 payments to Cohen as a legal expense. Trump also faces charges for trying to overturn the 2020 election. A D.C. federal grand jury indicted Trump on four charges in August 2023 accusing the former president of conspiring to thwart his 2020 electoral defeat and the peaceful transfer of power to President Joe Biden. Last December, U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan rejected Trumps motion to dismiss the charges on grounds of absolute presidential immunity, which he argues completely shields him from prosecution for any actions taken while in office. In late February, the Supreme Court decided to take up Trumps immunity appeal. The justices sent the case back to Chutkan to figure out which acts are official and unofficial. The Supreme Court's ruling said deciding whether Trump's alleged fake electors scheme "requires a close analysis of the indictments extensive and interrelated allegations." The ruling stressed that the federal government's role in appointing electors is "limited" and that the president lacks "authority to control the state officials who do." The opinion also says the framers excluded electors "suspected of too great devotion to the president in office. Still, the opinion said: "Unlike Trumps alleged interactions with the Justice Department, this alleged conduct cannot be neatly categorized as falling within a particular Presidential function." The lower court will also weigh Trumps' tweets urging his supporters to travel to D.C. on Jan. 6, as well as his speech to the crowd gathered at the Capitol. The court's opinion said the president has "extraordinary power" to speak with citizens. But, the opinion added: "There may, however, be contexts in which the President, notwithstanding the prominence of his position, speaks in an unofficial capacityperhaps as a candidate for office or party leader." And last month, the Georgia Court of Appeals paused proceedings against high-profile defendants in Trumps criminal election racketeering case in Fulton County making it all but certain that the former president wont have a televised trial before the November election. Christopher Davis smiles as he gets to the podium to speak as LeMoyne-Owen Colleges new president at a press conference in Memphis, Tenn., on Monday, July 8, 2024. In June 2023, LeMoyne-Owen College's then-President Vernell Bennett-Fairs resigned, and former board chair Christopher Davis was named the interim leader. Now, the institutions board has selected him to be the permanent president. "The president serves as the foundation of leadership and the ambassador for this institution. The position is necessary for the growth and elevation of LeMoyne-Owen College," said Vanecia Belser Kimbrow, incoming chair of the LeMoyne-Owen board of trustees. "We understand it is imperative to keep the momentum that has been happening the last few years. For that reason, let me welcome, and you all help me congratulate, Dr. Christopher Davis, as our board chair. He and his family have made tremendous sacrifices to bring this university where we are today, over the past year.... There is undeniable freshness in the air about the future of LeMoyne-Owen College." A longtime member of the Memphis community, Davis, age 51, has been the senior pastor at St. Paul Baptist Church in Whitehaven since 2000. According to St. Pauls website, hes helped grow the size of its congregation from around 200 members to over 1,800. He was also an assistant professor of homiletics at Memphis Theological Seminary from 2007 to 2023; and he has been on the boards of the Rise Foundation, the Sisters Network Inc., the Greater Whitehaven Economic Development Corporation, Baptist Health Sciences University, and West Africa Theological Seminary in Lagos, Nigeria. Christopher Davis sits next to his family and listens to a speaker after he was announced as LeMoyne-Owen Colleges new president at a press conference in Memphis, Tenn., on Monday, July 8, 2024. Davis has bachelors degrees from the University of Arkansas and Arkansas Baptist College, a Master of Arts degree from Memphis Theological Seminary, and a Doctor of Ministry degree from the United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. Currently, he is pursuing a Ph.D. in leadership with a concentration in higher education leadership from Anderson University in South Carolina. Now, as permanent president, he wants to enhance students' academic experiences, increase student support services, and strengthen community ties. He also steps into the role at a time when LeMoyne-Owen has gained momentum. "We were actively engaged in recruitment throughout the summer, we're still doing so now," Davis said after the announcement. "We're certainly looking, right now, at about a 30% increase in enrollment, which we're excited about. We're optimistic that we're going to bring in the largest freshman class in the history of the institution this fall." John Klyce covers education and children's issues for The Commercial Appeal. You can reach him at John.klyce@commercialappeal.com. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Christopher Davis named LeMoyne-Owen College president in Memphis **Update: Just before 3:30 p.m., Lenexa police said Crystal Etcitty-Fridlington was found and is safe** KANSAS CITY, Mo. Police are searching for a 15-year-old girl suspected of running away early Monday morning in Lenexa, Kansas, according to the Lenexa Police Department. LPD said Crystal Etcitty-Fridlington was last seen at approximately 1 a.m. Monday leaving her home near West 99th Street and Rosehill Road. Kansas City, Kansas police officer stabbed, suspect on the run Crystal was wearing a black hoodie, jean shorts and white shoes, and is described as 5 foot 3 inches tall and 140 pounds. Police said information indicates that Crystal has run away and no foul play is currently suspected. However, relatives are concerned for the teens welfare. If you or anyone you know has any information regarding Crystals whereabouts, police ask that you 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 FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. To use a phrase synonymous with Formula Ones most successful driver, still he rises. It has been 945 days since Lewis Hamiltons last victory, in Saudi Arabia, a week before the 2021 season finale which played havoc with the British superstars mindset. There is no doubt, in a painful off-season, that retirement entered his thoughts. Mercedes demise in the two-and-a-half years since triggered his shock decision to join Ferrari next year. But it was dreaming of days like this, amid the near-misses in the past 31 months, that kept him going. And at his final home race for Mercedes, in a 52-lap thriller of the wet-dry conditions he so craves, Hamilton secured the sweetest of Formula One victories. There were tears. Plenty of tears. This victory Hamiltons 104th was perhaps his most emotional, such has been the agonising wait for the rich taste of success once more. As he held off his great rival from that infamous 2021 season, Max Verstappen, for a famous ninth win at Silverstone after a stunningly mature and expert drive, he could hold in his emotions no longer. The 39-year-old embraced his father, Anthony, after the victory lap with the emotion and attachment of an infant. In typical fashion, he ran out onto the grass banks at the final corner waving the British flag in front of an adoring crowd. Still, helmet off now, the sheer sensation of the triumph was overwhelming for a man who perhaps thought hed never feel such a thrill again. Since 2021, its been every day getting up trying to fight and train and put my mind to the task, he said, with third-placed Lando Norris looking on, incandescent, in the distance. This is my last race here with the team, I wanted to win this so much for them. The important thing is how you continue to get up, keep digging deep when youre at the bottom of the barrel. There were days since 2021 when I thought I wouldnt be back here. With rain a constant factor throughout this afternoon of twists and turns, you fancied Hamilton to prevail on this Sunday in July. Yet a race of such weather-impacting, lead-changing drama actually started without relative incident. Pole-sitter George Russell, who would be the victim of unfortunate mechanical misfortune late on, kept the lead smoothly from Hamilton and, contrary to many years gone by at the home of British motor racing, all the cars lining up made it smoothly through lap one. Norris did drop a spot to fourth as Verstappen pounced on an error from the McLaren driver at turn four. Unfortunately for the Bristolian and his team, it wouldnt be the last. Lewis Hamilton claimed his first win since December 2021 with victory at Silverstone (Reuters) Yet by lap 20, as drops started to fall from the inconsistent Northamptonshire sky, the superior McLaren pace came to fruition. Within the space of five minutes, Norris had surged from fourth to first, overtaking new race leader Hamilton on the start-finish straight named after Britains greatest racing driver. Dare say, the seven-time world champion did not forget it. Yet this grand prix had five different leaders, and Oscar Piastri grasped his moment out front, before McLaren took it away from him. While all the frontrunners pitted on the same lap as the precipitation intensified Verstappen, at this point, was not really in the leading equation Piastri stayed out a lap too long and dropped to sixth, with Norris taking the lead. Hamilton was emotional as he stood on top of the podium (Reuters) The Mercedes driver waved to the adoring crowd while holding a British flag (Reuters) As the rain steadied, so too did the course of the race until Russell, out of nothing, was forced to retire due to a water system issue. Despondent, he swore over team radio, and stormed out of the garage. For the pole-sitter, a week on from his second F1 win in Austria, it was the most bitter of pills to swallow. Yet for Mercedes, there was still a race to win. Verstappen gambled first as the rain eased, switching to the more durable hard compound tyre, while Hamilton went the other way, switching to soft tyres. Norris also switched to softs a lap later but a slow 4.5-second pit stop as Norris misjudged his pit-box distance meant that by the time the McLaren rejoined the track, he was two seconds behind leader Hamilton. Hamiltons long-term Mercedes engineer Peter Bonnington informed his driver that Norris was on the same tyre. And so came the classic Hamilton response: Leave me to it, mate. As it turned out, the threat would not be from Norris. With five laps left, Verstappen stormed past a stodgy Norris and the chase was on. It was 2021 again, two F1 greats going hammer and tong to the chequered flag. But Hamilton, 31 months since that day in Jeddah, his last victory in the sport he loves and refuses to leave, was zoned in and with a two-second advantage, the crowd at Silverstone rose for their favourite son. It wasnt to be Norriss day. It wasnt another win for Verstappen. Instead, a record ninth triumph at Silverstone for the indomitable Hamilton, the most wins by any driver at any circuit in the history of Formula One. There were tears, there were hugs and there was the podium. On a tremendous weekend for British sport, it was the most ideal of finales. Nearly a dozen Long Island school districts are suing social-media giants such as Facebook, TikTok and Snapchat, claiming the addictive and dangerous platforms cause mental-health woes in kids. The schools which say social media has led to serious financial and resource disruptions in their respective districts want money to compensate for the cost of hiring mental-health professionals, changing lesson plans to teach kids about the dangers of social media and investigating online threats, according to Newsday. Eleven Long Island school districts have sued big social-media companies over the alleged mental-health issues their products cause in kids. Lazy_Bear stock.adobe.com Theyre well aware of the harm theyre doing, said William Shinoff, a California lawyer who represents about 1,000 districts nationwide and 37 on Long Island, to the outlet. Theyre doing nothing to stop it. The lawsuits are the newest in a wave of complaints that threaten to inundate the embattled companies, which have long been accused of not doing enough to protect kids from social medias nefarious effects. In October, New York Attorney General Letitia James and 32 other state attorneys general filed suits that claimed Meta, Facebooks parent company, purposely installed addictive features on Facebook and Instagram to hook young kids on their products. Kids and teenagers are suffering from record levels of poor mental health, and social-media companies like Meta are to blame, James said at the time, adding that Meta has profited from childrens pain and contributed to the youth mental-health crisis. New York City Mayor Eric Adams administration filed a similar lawsuit in February that accused Meta, Google and other companies of designing platforms that purposefully manipulate and addict children and teens to social media applications. On Long Island, more than two dozen other districts plan to file lawsuits similar to those already lodged in California federal court, according to Shinoff. Named in the suits were Meta, Google and Snapchat, among others. SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images The districts nearly-identical five-page complaints which accuse the companies of being both negligent and a public nuisance are part of a multidistrict federal lawsuit brought by parents, schools and state governments, Newsday said. School officials claim theyre on the front lines of redressing the damage the companies algorithms cause when they target kids who are uniquely susceptible to addictive features in digital products and highly vulnerable to the resulting harm, according to the outlet. The Long Island plaintiffs are school districts in Brentwood, Bellmore-Merrick, East Islip, Great Neck, Islip, Jericho, Kings Park, North Merrick, Port Jefferson, South Huntington and Westbury. We have seen things posted and how disruptive they are to the school environment, Nicholas Ciappetta, president of the South Huntington Board of Education, told Newsday. The schools say theyre on the front lines of the issue. Drazen stock.adobe.com We want social-media companies to take responsibility and to implement appropriate safeguards to ensure that theyre monitoring these types of things. Shinoff said schools also want social-media companies to beef up their age-verification processes and make it easier for parents and school officials to keep an eye on kids access. The amount of time that our kids spend on social media is of concern, and the information thats available some of the misinformation thats available on social media that concerns me, Jericho Superintendent Hank Grishman said. The lawsuits are among a spate of recent litigation accusing the social-media companies of nefarious actions. Shutterstock/DavideAngelini He added that he also wants to ban the companies from getting kids personal information or tracking their Internet activity. On Sunday, a Google rep said in a statement that the allegations were simply not true. Providing young people with a safer, healthier experience has always been core to our work, the representative said. In collaboration with youth, mental-health and parenting experts, we built services and policies to provide young people with age-appropriate experiences, and parents with robust controls. Representatives for the other companies did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Post. But a Snapchat rep told Newsday that while the company will always have more work to do, we feel good about the role Snapchat plays in helping close friends feel connected, happy and prepared as they face the many challenges of adolescence. Licking County stream water quality, flooding are the focus of two upcoming hearings This view of Moots Run, photographed from a bridge on Moots Run Road on May 29, shows the shallow creek flowing toward Raccoon Creek in the distance beyond the corn field. A wastewater treatment plant proposed by Southwest Licking Community Water and Sewer District would discharge as much as 3 million gallons of treated water into Moots Run daily. Flooding in Licking County earlier this year and increasing development pressures in the western half of the county have raised concerns about water flowing in the areas rivers and streams. Several studies are underway to gauge water quality and flow in Raccoon Creek, which flows from Johnstown through Alexandria and Granville before merging with the South Fork of the Licking River in Newark. And Moots Run, which flows into Raccoon Creek between Alexandria and Granville, is part of one of the studies. The creek, with headwaters west of Granville and south of Ohio 161 near Outville Road, is the proposed receiver for treated wastewater from a treatment plant proposed by the Southwest Licking Community Water and Sewer District for a site near the headwaters. The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency will hold a hearing on the proposed wastewater treatment plant at 6 p.m. July 16 at the Church of Christ at Alexandria, 5380 Moots Run Road. Officials in Alexandria, Granville, Johnstown and Johnstown-Monroe School District oppose the water and sewer districts request for a permit to operate the plant. The Licking County Soil & Water Conservation District and the South Licking Watershed Conservancy District will host a public meeting to explain the waterway studies will be held two days later from 5-7:30 p.m. July 18, also at the the Alexandria Church of Christ. The meeting is to "provide a comprehensive update on the current state of the South Licking Watershed," the organizations said in a news release. The meeting highlights include: A flood mitigation study of Raccoon Creek, which focuses on identifying areas of flood risk in the watershed and developing alternatives for flood damage reduction projects in the watershed. A strategic plan that summarizes causes and sources of impairment in local waterways, including the headwaters of Raccoon Creek and Moots Run. Results of ongoing water-quality monitoring at a site on Raccoon Creek. The meeting also will include an open forum for attendees to share information and participate in focused discussions at information tables before and after formal presentations at 6 p.m. "Its a unique opportunity for the community to engage with experts, share their insights and contribute to the preservation of our vital water resources," said Kristy Hawthorne, director of the Soil and Water Conservation District. She said its important for residents to understand the state of the watershed as development continues in Licking County. The last water-quality report by the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency was in 2006, she said, "and that is the most recent one they are using to make decisions about issues related to development. So its important for us to have current, certifiable data as we make decisions about the future." Residents who attend the July 18 meeting also can help with the study now underway to better identify where and how flooding occurs along Raccoon Creek. "We are looking for residents to share their flooding experiences with the engineering firm," Hawthorne said. "A map will allow them to pinpoint where they live and where flooding has occurred where flooding might damage structures or roadways." The event is free. People interested in attending are encouraged to RSVP at https://forms.gle/icwQ8kBSsjgnp3zY9 or call 740-670-5330 for planning purposes. Alan Miller writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison Universitys Journalism program, which is funded in part by donations from readers. This article originally appeared on Newark Advocate: Stream water quality, flooding are the focus of two upcoming hearings The European Union is overestimating its capacity to produce 155 mm artillery shells. Actual volumes may be half as much as EU officials claim, which is why they cannot fully fulfill their promises to supply Ukraine with ammunition. ADVERTISIMENT Radio Liberty's Schemes project, in cooperation with a consortium of European journalists, has been investigating for several months whether the public statements of EU officials about the growth of ammunition production capacity and the volume of shells supplied to Ukraine are true. The journalists found out that European manufacturers can produce about half as much ammunition as stated in Brussels. As of June 2024, the EU had provided Ukraine with half the number of shells as it had promised, and with a significant delay. In March 2024, the European Commission announced that its work had brought European production capacity for 155-mm shells to 1 million rounds per year in January. Three months later, in June 2024, a senior European Commission official, Thierry Breton, made an even more loud statement that by the end of the year, EU producers would be able to produce 1.7 million shells a year, and this figure would continue to grow. ADVERTISIMENT However, according to a senior source in the European arms industry, who spoke on condition of anonymity, the current capacity is only a third of that figure. "This is definitely less than 500,000 missiles for 2024. That's what the joint capabilities are. This is a far cry from the 1.4 million or 1.7 million that Borrell and Breton talked about. It's a very bad idea to convince ourselves that we have three times the production capacity and make decisions based on that. And then it may suddenly turn out that nothing comes out of the factories, and you cannot supply (with shells Ed.) Ukraine and the NATO alliance," an informed European industry representative told The Investigative Desk on condition of anonymity. Two other documents estimated the European industry's capacity at the beginning of the year at about half a million shells a year. According to a December 2023 public report by the Estonian Ministry of Defense, the EU's production capacity is about 600,000 rounds per year. This information also coincides with the estimate of the German manufacturer Rheinmetall from January 2024. An internal company document obtained by journalists claims that at the beginning of the year, all Western European arms manufacturers together were capable of producing about 550,000 rounds per year. ADVERTISIMENT In response to journalists' questions about the discrepancy between the statements of EU officials and actual data, the European Commission said that their assessment of European production capacity is based on "facts" and takes into account current investments in the industry. Reasons for the slow increase in ammunition production capacity The journalistic consortium, which includes Schemes, German Die Welt, and Czech Investigate.CZ, Polish Vsquare, and Frontstory.PL, Finnish Iltalehti, Slovak Jan Kuciak Investigative Center, Dutch The Investigative Desk, and Estonian Delfi Estonia, have found out the reasons for the slow increase in European ammunition production capacity. Representatives of arms companies say that the problem lies in the global shortage of gunpowder and explosives, as well as in insufficient funding for the industry due to the reluctance of Western countries to sign long-term contracts with the industry. ADVERTISIMENT High-ranking sources in EU governments and the arms industry, whom Skhemy and media partners spoke to, blame bureaucracy and EU slowness for delays in the supply of ammunition to Ukraine. The EU's inadequate assessment of its production capacities is also cited as one of the reasons for the reduction in supplies. Meanwhile, Ukraine is purchasing ammunition on its own with limited funds and plans to start its serial production of 155-mm shells in the second half of 2024, which is essential to deter Russian aggression. Minister of Strategic Industries Oleksandr Kamyshyn notes that Ukraine will never be able to meet its domestic demand for shells on its own. There is a shortage of NATO-standard ammunition primarily because Ukraine uses it during hostilities faster than the EU can replenish its stockpile. Representatives of the European arms industry also recognize that the EU is not able to meet Ukraine's defense needs. The EU is taking steps to support the industry. However, these efforts seem to be insufficient. ADVERTISIMENT "The experience of the war in Ukraine shows a huge demand for artillery ammunition. The existing production capacities in the Western world do not meet these volumes," said Rheinmetall, one of the leading European arms manufacturers, in June. The EU countries are also keeping the ammunition for themselves, as they have to replenish their stockpiles after the transfer of the shells to Ukraine. In addition, they are trying to fulfill NATO's requirement to have a sufficient number of shells in their warehouses. The journalists' consortium also found that the EU has delivered half as many shells to Ukraine as it promised and with a significant delay. In March 2023, the EU pledged to send Ukraine 1 million shells during the year, but as of the end of May 2024, Ukraine has received only more than 500,000 rounds of ammunition from the EU, the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine told Schemes. This figure was confirmed by the European Commission in June. ADVERTISIMENT The situation is similar to the so-called Czech ammunition procurement initiative, which in February 2024 provided for the purchase of 800,000 shells for Ukraine. The first batch arrived only in mid-June. "Last week, the Czech minister said that the first batch, which is 40-50 thousand shells, should be here by the end of today," Estonian Defense Minister Hanno Pevkur told Delfi Estonia on June 18. A senior source in the Ukrainian Defense Ministry confirmed the arrival of the first shipment but clarified that it was less than 50,000 shells. A foreign source familiar with the Czech initiative told Radio Liberty that of the 15 countries that have agreed to jointly purchase ammunition for Ukraine, as of mid-June, only six have transferred funds, while the remaining nine have only promised to do so. Former Defense Minister Reznikov believes that bureaucracy may be another reason for the delay in deliveries. ADVERTISIMENT "I think that some programs are under-implemented not because someone did not want to, but because there are discussions within the organization who produces, who pays whom, whether all obligations to put money into the 'common cash register' have been fulfilled. Someone says, 'I gave everything, compensate me,' or one country is blocking everything," Oleksii Reznikov told Schemes. Since the start of the full-scale invasion, Ukraine has experienced a critical shortage of ammunition three times, most recently this spring. The deficit was caused by a $60 billion delay in U.S. aid. Ukraine also purchases and produces ammunition on its own, but the volume of national production and purchases is much lower than that of its Western partners. As reported by OBOZ.UA, Rheinmetall has received the largest order in its history. It is a 8.5 billion contract that provides for an increase in ammunition stocks for the Bundeswehr and its allies, including Ukraine. Supplies of ammunition will begin in 2025. ADVERTISIMENT Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes! Little boy who did not deserve this; 2-year-old seriously injured in drive-by shooting A 2-year-old boy was seriously injured in a drive-by shooting in southeast Columbus Sunday evening. Officers with the Columbus Division of Police were called to the 4000 block of Carlton Ave just before 9 p.m. on reports of a shooting, our news partners at WBNS-10 TV reported. The boy was taken to Nationwide Childrens Hospital in critical condition. >> Pickup truck found 15 feet underwater in Ohio river Sgt Joseph Alberts said this was a drive-by shooting. The suspect vehicle was described as a grey or silver four-door sedan. Albert is urging the person or people involved to do the right thing. This is a 2-year-old little boy who did not deserve this for anything, he said. This is a developing story. Qunyatta Warren, the LHCCs new director, is photographed in front of the Caribbean Marketplace and in the forefront of moving the complex forward. Warren love of the traditions of the African diaspora and their cultural expressions has become a focal point in the direction of the complex during a visit on Monday, November 6, 2023 in Miamis Little Haiti neighborhood. A little more than a year after becoming the executive director of the Little Haiti Cultural Complex, Qunyatta Warren submitted his resignation on Monday. The move comes amid ongoing issues that Warren said impacted his ability to lead the LHCC. Two of the main problems, according to Warren, include a long list of repairs to the building that have yet to be started and disagreements with the City of Miamis Parks and Recreation Department, which oversees the LHCC, concerning overtime. It feels systemic, Warren told the Miami Herald. There has been a consistent behavior between parks, the center and city administration that leads me to believe theres a disconnect. I dont know why the center isnt looked at with the same care as facilities in other neighborhoods, added Warren whose last day will be July 19. Warrens main issue stems from the citys lack of response to repair notices, he said. For nearly a year, Warren has pushed the city to repair the roof, address drainage issues that spawned mold and fix the air conditioning unit, he said. In mid-June, the Caribbean Marketplace, one of the LHCCs biggest tourist attractions, was closed because the roof needed to be fixed. We still dont have a hard start date for when the repairs are going to start, Warren said. The LHCC lies within the district of Miami Commission Chair Christine King. Her office and the parks did not respond to a Herald inquiry about the repairs, however, a city spokesperson confirmed receipt of Warrens resignation. The spokesperson also said that updates on all pending improvements at the Little Haiti Cultural Complex will be provided during Tuesdays Little Haiti Revitalization Trust meeting. Warren, who moved from Jacksonville to Miami to helm the Haitian-American institution in June 2023, said he tried to elevate the institution with more programming. The cultural center and its picturesque marketplace have become the heart of Little Haitis cultural fabric, hosting concerts, classes, workshops and artisan markets. When Warren took over as director he helped spearhead more than two dozen events during his tenure, according to his resignation letter. Warren also added dance, martial arts and Haitian culinary classes in addition to helping to beautify the campus, the letter continued. Despite the expansion of programming, the city wanted to extend his probationary period due to his lack of communication with them about facility issues, Warren said. Not only was that not true, Warren said, but the problems predated his employment. The parks department also took issue with his staffs requests for overtime, Warren said, which was simply due to the uptick in events. It didnt make sense for me to be in this position, Warren said. The dragging of feet with regard to repairs and the complaints about staff overtime left Warren with the impression that the cultural complex was not a priority, he said. The city doesnt want to release control of the Cultural Complex because its such a sought after space, Warren added. I think they want it but they dont see it as a top priority. Warrens resignation is just the latest blow to an institution that many community members believe the city no longer appreciates. The LHCC received an unsafe structure violation because of its failure of the 40-year recertification due to overdue structural repairs in February 2023, WLRN first reported. King deemed the violations procedural in a December 2023 interview with the Herald. Two of the previous LHCC directors Sandy Dorsainvil and Abraham Metellus have also expressed frustration about funding issues during their respective tenures. The financial support, the professional support was always lacking, Dorsainvil told the Herald in a Dec. 2023 interview. Having held the position off and on since 2013, Dorsainvil was fired in 2022 after the city discovered she agreed to an advertising contract without proper approval. Dorsainvil admitted to to have done so but blamed the LHCCs lack of staff. To this day, the culture center is still understaffed, still doesnt have a sufficient marketing budget, still doesnt have a sufficient programming budget. In an email sent to the Herald about Warrens resignation, Metellus echoed similar concerns about the lack of support. No matter how many times we followed the steps, improved processes, activated the space, and brought in successful programs, our efforts were met with resistance and resentment, Metellus wrote in a July 8th email, comparing the citys treatment of the LHCC to that of a red-headed stepchild. Qualified managers are brought in to run the complex on a shoestring budget with limited staff, and when they manage to make it work, they are set up to fail, he wrote. As for the future of the LHCC, Warren believes the communitys collective voice might be the best catalyst. I hope that with awareness comes improvements, Warren said, but if the community does not let its voice be heard, then its going to be the same. A little slap in the face: Families upset after driver gets youthful offender status in triple fatal crash BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) A 19-year-old was given youthful offender status in her sentencing to 1 to 4 years in jail stemming from a crash that killed three people in February 2023, the Erie County District Attorneys Office said Monday. Jayla Mueller of Colden was driving on the Audubon Parkway in Amherst around 11:30 p.m. on Feb. 20, 2023 when she lost control of the vehicle in the ramp onto Millersport Highway. Three passengers 18-year-old Azathiel Pabon, 19-year-old Isabella French and 20-year-old Dakota Eldridge died in the crash. Another 17-year-old male was injured. Mueller pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree manslaughter and reckless driving in April. When Mueller pleaded, Judge Susan Eagan committed to sentencing her as a youthful offender under conditions that she not get arrested, comply with the pre-sentence investigation and appear in court for sentencing. She was eligible for youthful offender status due to her age at the time of the crash. The District Attorneys office said in a news release Monday that it opposed Mueller being given youthful offender status and asked the court for the maximum sentence, which she received. The families of the victims also opposed youthful offender status. Certain things we get caught up for, you can be 17 or 18 and theyre not trying to hear that youthful offender status, said Michel Colondres, Pabons aunt. So its kind of like a little slap in the face. Loved ones react to 19 year-olds guilty plea in Amherst crash that killed 3 teens Criminal defense attorney Barry Covert, who was not involved in the case, said that defendants can be given youthful offender status until they are 19 years old and said that it is standard practice that it is granted. Mueller did apologize in court, but neither the judge nor the families believed she showed real remorse or has learned from the crash. Its really unfortunate that Jayla, out of her sentence will have her record wiped clean. I dont think she deserved that aspect of the youthful offender status. I think this is something that should follow her for the rest of her life, Isabellas best friend Robert Augustine said to News 4 following the sentencing. She apologized but went on and on about how it affected her, said Christina Kessel, Eldridges mother. She was still all about [herself]. You just dont get it, Eagan said. Adding that Mueller caused immeasurable pain and suffering. Eagan said it was her hope that Mueller will serve all four years. However, it is possible that she will get out early. Like the judge said: I dont think you get it, Colondres said. Youre still going to school, youre still able to do all those things that got taken from them that second, at that time. The apology, I get it. I can sympathize for her. But its still, just like, alright, finally, I guess. Obviously we wouldve wanted a longer sentence but I think its still justice and as long as she [Isabella] is remembered and loved as she will be, its something for us, said Isabellas best friend Angelina Workman. As a condition of Muellers sentence, her drivers license was revoked. Nothing can change what happened, or make up for what we lost but we are glad its over. We will always miss Bella terribly and hope kids use this accident as a lesson to drive carefully, Isabellas parents Johanna and Damon said in a statement to News 4. 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. Sarah Minkewicz is an Emmy-nominated reporter and Buffalo native who has been a part of the News 4 team since 2019. Follow Sarah on Twitter @SarahMinkewicz and click here to see more of her work. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Jill Biden pushes back on President Biden criticism in Columbus campaign visit: Hes all in. First Lady Jill Biden criticized former President Donald Trump and emphasized her husbands support for veterans in a 10-minute speech in Columbus Monday. The first lady visited Georgia and, along with veterans and military families, gave a speech at the Bibb Mill Event Center to a crowd of supporters. She took the stage just after 6 p.m. and reiterated that President Joe Biden will stay in the race despite recent scrutiny and calls to drop out, some coming from within the Democratic party. For all the talk about this race, Joe has made it clear that hes all in, she said. Thats the decision he has made. And just as hes supported my career, Im all in too. Jill Biden was expected to appear in three states to campaign for her husband, according to multiple media reports. Stops in Florida and North Carolina were also planned. She concluded before 6:30 p.m. and shook hands with members of the crowd. Hundreds of people were in attendance. Trump supporters were outside the venue as she arrived. First Lady Jill Biden made a 10-minute speech in Columbus Monday, criticizing former President Donald Trump and emphasizing her husbands support for veterans. The first lady visited Georgia and, along with veterans and military families, gave a speech at the Bibb Mill Event Center to a crowd of supporters. First lady criticizes Trump for comments on veterans Jill Biden, referencing a report that Trump called people who died in war losers and suckers, advocated for Bidens record on supporting veterans and said the Bidens were launching Veterans & Military Families for Biden. She didnt elaborate on what the group was, but multiple media reports indicate its for outreach to military families. Veterans, families advocate for Biden in Columbus A handful of military veterans and military families spoke at Mondays event. Two veterans directly criticized Trump, the presumptive GOP nominee, with Bill Harlan saying the election was about the survival of our democracy. Harlan kicked off the event. Army mom Kirstin King spoke Monday too, advocating for Georgia to vote in Bidens favor again this year. Together, we can keep GA blue and we can also make sure that Donald Trump never sets foot in the White House again, she said. Supporters chanted four more years during the speeches. The first lady also advocated for the presidents record on veterans issues. He signed the first executive order to help military spouses keep their careers, she said during Mondays speech. First Lady Jill Biden made a 10-minute speech in Columbus Monday, criticizing former President Donald Trump and emphasizing her husbands support for veterans. The first lady visited Georgia and, along with veterans and military families, gave a speech at the Bibb Mill Event Center to a crowd of supporters. Trump supporters demonstrated against event Fans of the former president stood outside the venue as Jill Biden arrived, chanting and holding signs in support of electing Trump. Supporters chanted Lets go Trump, lets go. About 65 people were in the crowd. Supporters of Former President Donald Trump stood outside a speaking event featuring First Lady Jill Biden in Columbus, Ga., on Monday, July 8. Reporter Kala Hunter contributed to this story. Residents assess a fallen tree in their in their neighborhood after Hurricane Beryl swept through the area on July 08, 2024 in Houston, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Hurricane Beryl made landfall early Monday morning in Texas on the Matagorda Peninsula, about 85 miles southwest of Houston, causing at least four deaths and knocking power out to more than 2 million customers, officials said. Beryl hit as a Category 1 storm, with winds reaching 80 mph. As of 10 a.m. CT, the National Hurricane Center had downgraded Beryl to a tropical storm. Its path will take it inland over eastern Texas. According to the National Weather Service, Beryl is expected to "bring very heavy rain, damaging hurricane-force winds and life-threatening storm surge to the Texas coast." Beryl has already traveled through the Caribbean as the earliest Category 5 storm ever recorded in the Atlantic, causing at least 11 deaths and widespread destruction. It then traveled across Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico. Beryl is expected to weaken as it travels overland. President Biden said he would only step down "if the Lord Almighty" told him to. President Biden spent his Sunday on the campaign trail in Pennsylvania, a critical battleground state, days after he insisted he would not be dropping out of the 2024 presidential race against Donald Trump. Biden spoke first at a church in Philadelphia before heading to a campaign event in Harrisburg. Pa. The president, 81, was originally supposed to speak at the National Education Association's annual conference, but canceled after the teachers union's staff announced a strike on Friday. Outside of Pennsylvania, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, a Democrat from New York, held a call with House Democrats Sunday during which a number of party leaders, including Rep. Jerry Nadler, or New York, reportedly expressed support for Biden bowing out of the 2024 presidential race. As of Sunday, five House Democrats have publicly called on Biden to step aside as the party's nominee. Biden on Friday sat down with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos for a high-stakes interview in which he said his highly criticized debate performance was a result of being "sick" and added he would only step down as the Democratic nominee "if the Lord Almighty came down" and told him to. LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER 25 updates After call with Jeffries, Dem. lawmaker reportedly says 'dozens' of colleagues want to replace Biden as nominee Multiple reports have revealed the names of Democratic leaders who called on Biden to step down as the partys presidential nominee during a private call with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Sunday. According to CNN, one senior House Democrat spoke to dozens of colleagues following the call who said that Biden should be replaced. Another source familiar with the nearly two-hour call also reportedly told CNN that the number of lawmakers who said that Biden should not be the Democratic nominee outnumbered those who spoke up for him to stay. According to multiple reports across outlets, those who opposed Biden as the nominee on the call include Rep. Susan Wild from Pennsylvania, Jim Himes from Connecticut, Jamie Raskin from Maryland, Jerry Nadler from New York, Adam Smith from Washington, Don Beyer from Virginia, Mark Takano from California and Joseph Morelle from New York. Reps. Maxine Waters from California and Bobby Scott from Virginia reportedly spoke in support of Biden on the call, according to CNN. None of the lawmakers cited have publicly called for the president to withdraw from the race. That may change on Tuesday, per CNN, when members will hold a planned caucus meeting with Jeffries. Biden: 'Im the most pro-union president in American history.' Rep. Madeleine Dean speaks as President Biden listens at a campaign rally in Harrisburg, Pa. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP) President Biden spoke to a crowd of volunteers and organizers at the Biden-Harris campaign headquarters in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sunday. I make no apologies. Im the most pro-union president in American history. Unions build the middle class," he said, according to the White House press pool. He compared himself to former President Donald Trump who, Biden said, has the largest debt of any president in U.S. history. Biden then handed the microphone to Pennsylvania Rep. Madeleine Dean, who expressed her support for the president, telling the crowd: This man knows exactly what hes doing and we cannot risk going back." 2 more major Democrat leaders are reportedly doubtful of Biden's electoral chances According to CBS News White House Correspondent Ed O'Keefe, two Democratic leaders have expressed skepticism about President Biden's chances of beating Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential election. Reps. Jim Himes, of Connecticut, and Jamie Raskin, of Maryland, reportedly said on a private call today with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries that they're doubtful of Biden's chances. Multiple news outlets have reported the names of other Democratic leaders on the same call who, according to an anonymous source on the call, endorsed Biden stepping down as the party's nominee for the White House. Those lawmakers reportedly include Reps. Jerry Nadler and Joseph Morelle from New York, Adam Smith of Washington, Don Beyer of Virginia and Mark Takano of California. None of the lawmakers cited have publicly called for the president to withdraw from the race. Only five Democratic leaders thus far Reps. Angie Craig of Minnesota, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Mike Quigley of Illinois have publicly called for Biden to bow out of the 2024 presidential campaign. Biden will make several campaign stops in tandem with Republican National Convention According to CNN, President Biden will be hosting several campaign events in Texas and Las Vegas next week, at the same time the Republican National Convention will be taking place in Milwaukee from July 15 to July 18. July 15 in Austin, Texas : Biden will deliver remarks commemorating the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act July 16 in Las Vegas : Biden will deliver remarks at the NAACP National Convention July 17 in Las Vegas: Biden will deliver remarks at the UnidosUS Annual Conference 5 more Democratic leaders reportedly in favor of Biden stepping out of the 2024 race According to multiple reports, Democratic leaders expressed strong support for Biden to step down as the partys nominee during a private call this afternoon with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. An anonymous source who was on the call reportedly told the Washington Post that Reps. Jerry Nadler from New York, and the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, was the first to call for Bidens exit. Rep. Adam Smith from Washington also reportedly spoke in favor of the idea. Meanwhile, journalists from Punchbowl News reported that Reps. Don Beyer from Virginia and Mark Takano from California have also expressed support, with most Democrats on the call saying that Vice President Kamala Harris should replace Biden as the nominee. The New York Times also reported that Joseph Morelle from New York, the top Democrat on the Committee on House Administration, also supported Biden stepping down. None of the five lawmakers cited have publicly called for the president to withdraw from the race. To date, only five Democratic leaders Reps. Angie Craig of Minnesota, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Mike Quigley of Illinois have publicly called for Biden to bow out of the 2024 presidential campaign. Biden and the first lady have arrived in Harrisburg, Pa. President Biden and first lady Jill Biden disembark from Air Force One at Harrisburg International Airport. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP) President Biden and first lady Jill Biden are now in Harrisburg, Pa., continuing the Sunday campaign blitz at an ice cream social at the Biden campaign's headquarters in the statecapital city. According to PennLive, the invitation-only event will be Biden's first visit to the area since Labor Day 2020. Radio station says it has parted ways with host who accepted pre-written questions from Biden camp WURD Radio, which aired the first postdebate interview with President Biden, says it has parted ways with the host who conducted the interview, after confirming that she had accepted pre-written questions from the Biden campaign. A statement from the radio station's president and CEO, Sara Lomax, said that the Biden interview was "arranged and negotiated independently by WURD Radio host Andrea Lawful-Sanders without knowledge, consultation or collaboration with WURD management," and the decision to feature questions provided by the White House in advance "violates our practice of remaining an independent media outlet accountable to our listeners." "As a result, Ms. Lawful-Sanders and WURD Radio have mutually agreed to part ways, effective immediately," the statement read. In an interview with CNN on Saturday, Lawful-Sanders revealed that Biden's team provided her with prewritten questions ahead of their July 3 interview. James Comer requests an interview with Biden's doctor Rep. James Comer. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images) On Sunday, House Oversight Chairman James Comer sent a letter to President Biden's physician, Dr. Kevin OConnor, requesting an interview amid concerns from both parties about the presidents mental acuity. Comer, a Republican from Kentucky, alleged that OConnors medical assessment of Biden was influenced by private business endeavors with the Biden family, according to CNN. In the request, Comer pointed to a story published by Politico in February claiming that O'Connor introduced Biden's brother, James Biden, to Americore Health, a firm that reportedly paid James Biden for consulting services during the time Joe Biden was vice president. Comer requested for OConnor to provide documents related to James Biden and Americore Health. Some Republicans have accused James Biden of benefiting from his deal with Americore Health simply because he was the vice president's brother, though prior investigations showed no evidence that Joe Biden was involved with any transactions or business that benefited his brother, according to CNN. Americore Health filed for bankruptcy in 2019. Biden references viral meme: 'Dark Brandon is coming back' While campaigning in Pennsylvania on Sunday, President Biden made reference to the viral Dark Brandon meme, an image that began circulating in 2022 showing a tough image of the president, with glowing red eyes or in aviator sunglasses. Biden was shaking hands with supporters during a visit to the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign Office in Philadelphia when a woman said to him, "We need dark Brandon back," according to the White House press pool. "Dark Brandon is coming back," Biden reportedly said in response. Initially created to poke fun at right-wing conspiracy theories, the Biden campaign leaned hard into the "Dark Brandon" meme earlier this year. The phrase began trending on X when a broadcaster mistook chants of F*** Joe Biden to be Lets Go Brandon in 2022, according to TechCrunch. Fetterman: Biden 'kicked Trumps ass' and 'he's going to do it twice' Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania speaks in support of President Biden during a campaign stop at the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign Office in Philadelphia. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images) During Biden's visit to the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign Office in Philadelphia, Sen. John Fetterman emphasized his support for the president while addressing the crowd. Theres only one person in this country who has kicked Trumps ass in an election, and that is your president, the Pennsylvania Democrat said before acknowledging Bidens debate performance on June 27. I know what its like to have a rough debate and Im standing here as your senator," said Fetterman, who went on to be elected to the Senate following his own poor debate showing in 2022. "We already knew this was going to be close. We knew it was going to be close in 2016, [and] it's gonna be close in 2024. Nothing has changed." Fetterman continued, saying, There is only one guy that has ever beaten Trump. And he is going to do it twice and put him down for good. Biden makes a pit stop at Philly campaign office President Biden speaks during a visit to the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign Office in Philadelphia. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images) Between campaign stops in Pennsylvania, President Biden visited the Roxborough Democratic Coordinated Campaign Office in Philadelphia, where he greeted supporters and volunteers before they set out to canvass for him and other Democratic candidates in the state. Pennsylvania is a critically important state, he said, according to the White House press pool. This election is going to be about block and tackle and simple, basic politics. Were going to build this economy from the middle out and the bottom up. Pennsylvania Democrats greeted Biden as he arrived in Philly President Biden is greeted at Philadelphia International Airport by Democratic Sens. Bob Casey and John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, foreground, as Rep. Brendan Boyle and Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker look on. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP) President Biden was greeted by a number of Democratic leaders upon his arrival at Philadelphia International Airport this morning. .Those present included Pennsylvania Sens. John Fetterman and Bob Casey, according to the New York Times. Others reportedly included Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle Parker, Reps. Brendan Boyle and Madeleine Dean, and former Reps. Patrick Murphy and Bob Brady. Lindsey Graham wants Biden and Trump to take 'neurological exams' President Biden, former President Trump and all future presidential nominees should have "neurological exams as part of an overall physical exam," Sen. @LindseyGrahamSC says. "People in the line of succession should have a neurological exam," he adds. pic.twitter.com/YvbGVOe22Q Face The Nation (@FaceTheNation) July 7, 2024 During an appearance on CBSs Face the Nation, Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said hes very concerned about President Bidens mental fitness and suggested that both Biden and former President Donald Trump should take neurological tests. All nominees for president, going into the future, should have neurological exams as part of the overall physical exam, said Graham, a supporter of Trump. "We need to make sure that people who are going to be in the line of succession are capable of being commander in chief in dire circumstances," he added. "Im offended by the idea that he shouldnt take a competency test, given all the evidence in front of us. He is not only in denial, this is a dangerous time for the American people to have somebody leading the ship ... who seems to be compromised." Biden ends speech with no mentions of debate or presidential future. Next stop: Harrisburg. President Biden ended a nearly 10-minute speech at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia on Sunday with no mention of his debate performance on June 27 or the growing calls from within his party to step down from the 2024 presidential race. Biden's next stop will be at an ice cream social at Pennsylvania's capital city of Harrisburg. According to PennLive, the invitation-only event will be Biden's first visit to the area since Labor Day 2020. Biden pokes fun at his age: 'I've been around a bit' Biden ended his speech at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia on Sunday by making a joke about his age. "I dont look like Im 40 years old, but Ive been around a little bit," he said, eliciting some laughter from the crowd. Biden speaks to Black churchgoers: 'Black history is American history' While speaking to attendees at Mou Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia on Sunday, President Biden spoke about his faith and his administration's record on supporting Black and brown communities. "In life and as your president, Ive tried to walk my faith to get us through the [COVID-19] pandemic that claimed a million loved ones and left 8 million people with an empty chair at dinner or breakfast because of someone they lost," he said from the podium. "To ensure that the economy has the lowest Black unemployment and more Black small businesses in decades." "While there are those who want to erase history, Kamala and I want to make it because Black history is American history," he added. President Biden speaks at a church in Philadelphia: 'It's good to be home' President Biden has taken the stage at Mount Airy Church of God in Christ in Philadelphia. After greeting attendees to mounting applause, he paused before saying, "It's good to be home." Sanders weighs in on Biden criticism: 'What we have got to focus on is policy.' In an appearance on CBS's Face the Nation, Sen. Bernie Sanders, independent of Vermont, defended President Biden against growing criticism from Democratic leaders calling on him to step down. What we are talking about now is not a Grammy Award contest for best singer," he said. "Biden is old. He is not as articulate as he once was. I wish he could jump up the steps on Air Force One. He cant. What we have got to focus on is policy whose policies have and will benefit the vast majority of the people in this country. Bernie Sanders on Face the Nation: "What we are talking about now is not a Grammy award contest for best singer. Biden is old. He's not as articulate as he once was. I wish he could jump up the steps on Air Force One. He can't. What we have got to focus on is policy." pic.twitter.com/cHb35DMEhK Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 7, 2024 Rep. Debbie Dingell urges the media to 'stop talking' about Biden's age During an appearance on CNN's State of the Union Sunday, Rep. Debbie Dingell, of Michigan, implored the media to "stop talking" about Biden's age and the growing number of Democrats who are questioning his presidential future. "We need to get back to talking about Donald Trump and his performance and all the issues that are at stake and the contrast," the Democrat told the panel, which also included GOP strategists Scott Jennings and Shermichael Singleton. "How he wants to be a dictator and how he thinks Roe was the greatest thing he ever did, how he wants to give your billionaire tax friends a tax cut and how he thinks January 6 was a great thing." Rep. Debbie Dingell: "We need to get back to talking about Donald Trump and his performance and all the issues that are at stake and the contrast ... how he wants to be a dictator and how he thinks Roe was the greatest thing he ever did ... he thinks January 6 was a great thing." pic.twitter.com/rQ16UtzDJW Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 7, 2024 Kamala Harris doesn't address Biden at a recent appearance in front of Black Democrats Vice President Kamala Harris at the 30th annual Essence Festival of Culture. (Michael DeMocker/Getty Images) Vice President Kamala Harris didnt address President Bidens political future during an appearance at the 30th annual Essence Festival of Culture in New Orleans on Saturday, according to the Associated Press. This is probably the most significant election of our lifetime, she said at the event, before rebuking former President Donald Trumps rhetoric about making the Supreme Court more conservative and promising to punish his political opponents. In 122 days, we each have the power to decide what kind of country we want to live in. It was a slight shift in tone from the vice presidents statements in the last few days, in which shes fiercely defended Biden against growing concerns from Democrats about his future following his debate performance on June 27. For his part, Biden has publicly remained committed to being the Democratic presidential nominee. Schiff says Kamala Harris would be an 'extraordinary president.' He's not alone. During an interview on NBCs Meet the Press Sunday, Rep. Adam Schiff of California said Vice President Kamala Harris could overwhelmingly beat former President Donald Trump in the 2024 presidential race but its up to President Biden to decide if he wants to cede the nomination. I think she has the experience, the judgment, the leadership ability to be an extraordinary president, Schiff told moderator Kristen Welker, before stressing, Before we get into a decision about who else it should be, the president needs to make a decision whether its him. WATCH: President Biden should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. Joe Bidens running against a criminal. It should not be even close, @RepAdamSchiff (D-Calif.) tells #MTP. Theres only one reason it is close. And thats the presidents age. pic.twitter.com/kvGSrsiRcy Meet the Press (@MeetThePress) July 7, 2024 Schiff isn't the only Democrat to suggest that Harris would be the best option to replace Biden, should he decide to drop out of the 2024 race for the White House. Reps. James Clyburn of South Carolina, Gregory Meeks of New York and senior member of the Congressional Black Caucus, Maxine Waters of California and Summer Lee of Pennsylvania have expressed similar support for Harris, according to Reuters. Biden has thus far indicated that he has no plans to suspend his campaign. Former Ohio congressman Tim Ryan also made the case for Harris in an op-ed for the New York Times. Hakeem Jeffries will meet with senior House Democrats about Biden's future House Minority leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York has scheduled a virtual meeting this morning with senior House Democrats to discuss President Bidens candidacy for a second term. Since Bidens shaky presidential debate performance on June 27, Jeffries has taken a neutral approach in publicly acknowledging Bidens presidential future, reports the New York Times. To date, five House Democrats Reps. Angie Craig of Minnesota, Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Mike Quigley of Illinois have called for Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. Meanwhile, Democratic governors Gavin Newsom of California and Wes Moore of Maryland, as well as Pennsylvania Sen. John Fetterman and others, have vowed to stand behind Biden. Gavin Newsom doubles down on his support for Biden California Gov. Gavin Newsom (Tayfun Coskun/Anadolu via Getty Images) California Gov. Gavin Newsom reiterated his support for President Biden during a rally in Bucks County, Pa., on Saturday, saying, If Donald Trump succeeds, God help us, we will roll back the last half century. The Democratic governor who has been floated as a possible replacement for Biden as the party's 2024 presidential nominee has publicly stood behind the president since the June 27 debate, when he promised to "never turn my back" on Biden. When pressed about the growing number of Democrats calling for Biden to step down, Newsom told reporters, Look, theres a handful of folks that may have different opinions, adding, "the vast majority of the caucus remains solidly behind the president. Radio hosts who interviewed Biden say campaign aides provided questions in advance Two radio hosts say President Biden's team provided them with questions ahead of their respective interviews with the president. Andrea Lawful-Sanders, host of The Source on WURD in Philadelphia, and Earl Ingram of The Earl Ingram Show in Waukesha, Wis., told CNNs Victor Blackwell on Saturday that the questions were given to them by Biden's campaign aides. The questions were sent to me for approval; I approved of them, Lawful-Sanders said of her July 3 interview with Biden. I chose questions that were most important to the Black and brown communities we serve in Philadelphia. Ingram, who appeared in the same CNN interview with Lawful-Sanders, nodded his head and seemed to not dispute Lawful-Sanderss experience of how the questions were sent for his own Biden interview on July 4. Soon after the CNN segment was aired, Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt told the New York Times that its not uncommon for campaign aides to send over preselected questions to interviewers, stressing that officials do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions by the interviewer and that hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners. Rep. Angie Craig becomes 5th Dem House rep. to call on Biden to drop out of 2024 presidential race Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call via Getty Images) On Saturday, Rep. Angie Craig of Minnesota called on President Joe Biden to end his campaign after his shaky debate on June 27 against former President Donald Trump. "There is simply too much at stake to risk a second Donald Trump presidency," Craig said in a statement on X. That's why I respectfully call on President Biden to step aside as the Democratic nominee for a second term as President and allow for a new generation of leaders to step forward." She added, "If we truly believe that Donald Trump and MAGA Republicans must be stopped, there is only a small window left to make sure we have a candidate best equipped to make the case and win." Craig is the fifth House Democrat to call on Biden to step aside from the presidential race. Reps. Lloyd Doggett of Texas, Raul Grijalva of Arizona, Seth Moulton of Massachusetts and Mike Quigley of Illinois have taken similar stances in the wake of the first presidential debate. Read more: Here are the Democrats who are calling for Biden to step down or voicing concerns about his candidacy A DCS staff member leads a training for case workers in 2023. (Photo: John Partipilo) The Tennessee Department of Childrens Services, already facing a class action lawsuit over its treatment of disabled kids, is placing children with no known disability diagnoses for months at a time in privately-run group homes designed to support adults with disabilities, according to child advocates. The homes serve as way stations before appointments open up to have children evaluated for potential disabilities or mental health issues that, in some instances, they do not have. Children and teens are enrolled in nearby schools, but arent allowed to have friends over, prepare their own snacks, keep their cell phones, receive the usual $2 weekly foster kid allowance or have someone check their homework or grades, said Emily Jenkins, an attorney for the Tennessee Justice Center and a longtime child welfare advocate. While a child is living in a group home awaiting an evaluation, efforts to find a foster home for that child come to a halt, she said. And now its summer and theyre just waiting around in these homes with no support, Jenkins said. This is just another way DCS is placing children in non-family settings, Jenkins said. Were taking a huge step backwards on progress that has been made to ensure the first and best place for a kid is in a home. The privately-run supported living homes previously contracted with the Department of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (DIDD) for adults. They are separate from state-owned group homes that house adults with severe medical and intellectual disabilities, where DCS also houses children. Last month the Lookout reported that DIDD informed loved ones of adults living in the state-owned homes they would be decommissioned to make way for children in state custody a move that the state agency has since backed down from after facing backlash from the families and disability rights advocates, affected families told the Lookout. A DCS spokesperson last week said the agency would by Friday provide answers to questions submitted two weeks ago about how many children are placed in group homes for the disabled and for how long. The agency provided no response on Friday. The states troubled child welfare agency has been subject of mounting scrutiny in recent years over its mistreatment of children in its care. The agency has removed children suspected of being abused or neglected from their homes only to force them to sleep on office floors or keep them hospitalized months after being ready for discharge. Juvenile detention centers licensed by DCS have illegally subjected children to solitary confinement as routine punishment. And the recent class action filed in federal court last month accused DCS of illegally and unconstitutionally warehousing kids with disabilities in prison-like facilities, where they are pepper-sprayed, beaten and denied access to education and healthcare. Lawmakers last year approved a budget boost for the $1.1 billion agency to hire more caseworkers and establish temporary housing for kids brought into custody, but the agency continues to draw scrutiny for its handling of children. Advocates say they are especially concerned that the normal safeguards for adults or children placed in group homes have been set aside for children in DCS custody. DCS protocol for the supported living homes sets no time limit on how long they can stay in the group homes, where up to three children are monitored by hourly employees 24-7. Under longstanding DIDD rules, private contractors operating group homes must only accept individuals with diagnosed intellectual disabilities defined as an IQ of 70 or less or developmental disabilities, such as cerebral palsy or spina bifida in order to comply with federal rules designed to ensure that individuals are getting the correct level of care. DCS also has long-standing rules for qualified residential treatment programs, that require the agency to follow a strict criteria before placing a child in a non-home setting, including 30- and 60-day professional assessments to ensure that children are placed in the most appropriate place. Neither of these criteria apply to the supported living group homes currently housing Tennessee children, according to DCS emails to advocates reviewed by the Lookout. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) A local chef honored his two children Sunday, offering a free cookout to the community to support to anyone also dealing with the loss of a child. Chef Dolla Miller hosted his eighth annual memorial cookout and shared his familys love for cooking with others. Have breaking news come to you: Subscribe to News 2 email alerts God said if we feed the people, hell feed us, Miller said. My daughter used to feed the people. We had a restaurant; she used to give the food away. I didnt know until after she died. Everybody told me. Miller started his annual cookout in honor of his 22-year-old daughter, Eddreka Miller, who died in 2016 following a car crash. He wasnt prepared for the pain of losing another child, but in 2023, he also lost his son to gun violence. According to police, 33-year-old Dequan Howse was shot and killed in a courtyard at Napier Place. PREVIOUS: Man found shot to death south of downtown Nashville When you lose one, it hurts, and its still hurting, Miller said. This is how I get my going: by feeding the people. Eddrekas mother, Deborah Flint, said that her daughters kindness still lives on. That kindness is shown through the stories that their family hears each year at the gathering. Her dad had a restaurant. She started feeding families out of there, so we begin to meet these people as they come and tell us how good that she was to them, Flint said. This is what she would have wanted. Since Howses shooting death, some family members shared their growing concerns over area gun violence. They added that they hope their yearly event offers food and fellowship to anyone going through such a loss. The changes Id like to see is (at) events like this, is that we can all get together with no violence, Eddireka and Howses aunt Tammy Miller said. We[are] all just are coming together as one to love on each other. Read todays top stories on wkrn.com Flint told News 2 that he fears that gun crime will continue to get worse. Flint added that she thinks guns have become too easily accessible. She said that she hopes to offer support for anyone else dealing with the loss of a child. Its not just about Dreekas loss, but here lately, weve done had plenty of loss thats come over the city, Flint said. We just want to welcome everybodyto let you know that theres love still out there and theres people that still love and care. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. CUMBERLAND COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) Local nonprofit organization Friends of the Library is raising $2 million to help renovate the Simpson Library in Mechanicsburgs second location. The Simpson Library hasnt opened its second location yet, but with the help of Friends of the Library, they hope to open one on West Allen Street in Mechanicsburg. The Librarys new Learning and Book Sale Center used to be a retail store. With the help of donations Friends of the Library is looking to transform the once retail store into a building to store books for the annual book sale fundraiser. any big presentations that we offer can go here, and free up meeting space in the library itself, said Assistant Director of Simpson Library Arn Howald. Friends of the Library has amassed over half of its goal so far and needs about $400,000 dollars to reach its goal of bringing more books to the community. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. The first piece of the puzzle was Gustavo Luis Verons research during his PhD studies, when he analyzed semen quality based on different factors in Argentina. Obesity, age and climatic factors were some of the variables that he investigated. At the end of 2021, the results showed that semen samples generated in the winter were noticeably better quality than those generated in the summer. This information got him obsessed with another question: Could increasing heat waves be putting male fertility in check? The latest findings by Veron and his colleagues seem to indicate so. According to a study published this year in Science Direct, semen samples obtained during heat waves presented 10% fewer motile sperm the only ones capable of fertilizing an egg than samples that were never exposed. The high temperatures also affected their morphology. For Dr. Monica Vazquez-Levin, principal researcher at the National Scientific and Technical Research Council (Conicet) and another one of the authors of the report, given the frequency and intensity of these weather events, the climate will eventually be a variable for planning parenthood. Its a myth that men always have sperm and that the sperm is always good. Men are going to have to start taking measures, and they will end up preserving their sperm at an early age, just as women do today with their eggs, she adds. Although there are previous studies reporting a negative association between temperature and semen quality, the focus has been mainly on Asian and European populations and not necessarily on the impact of heat waves. One paper by a group of Chinese academics revealed the impact on bakers and welders. The research by Dr. Veron, genetics graduate Ania Manjon and Dr. Vazquez-Levin is the first report that focuses on the Latin American population and, specifically, the Argentine population. The team identified an average of 6.5 heat waves annually between 2005 and 2023, the period under study, and an increase of half a degree per decade. Although they recorded 287 days with high temperatures, they focused on episodes of at least three consecutive days between 22C (71.6F) and 32.3C (90F), based on how the scientific community defines heat waves. The study also estimated an increase of six days of heat waves per decade. Dr. Monica Vazquez-Levin, genetics graduate Ania Manjon, and Dr. Gustavo Luis Veron, CONICET researchers. CORTESIA The testicular temperature of mammals is vital for efficient spermatogenesis [the moment when the testicles generate sperm]. The evolutionary transition of the human being required the externalization of the testes precisely as a thermal regulator in practically all mammals, except for some such as elephants. And, consequently, conditions that induce heat stress are associated with a decrease in semen quality. Currently, the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued guidelines for the evaluation of semen that consider the number of sperm, vitality, motility (if and how they move) and morphology, as well as external factors. The last publication, from 2021, did not yet include climatic factors. In addition to the impact on motile sperm, the scientists noted that the moment in which the heat wave occurs is also very relevant. Men exposed to increases in temperature during spermatogenesis exhibited a lower number of sperm with worse morphology compared to those who suffered the heat wave at the time of ejaculation. In the increasingly distant future, this information could be used to shape a useful medical tool. One cannot control alone when there is a heat wave or not, explains Vazquez-Levin, founder and coordinator of AndroLATAM, a network of professionals in Male Reproductive Health in Latin America. But it can recommend when it is best to try to conceive based on the days that have passed since the hot moments. Another variable taken into account by this study carried out with 54,926 men between 18 and 60 years old was age. The results show that men under 40 years of age exposed to heat had a lower volume of semen, although the sperm morphology was normal. Men over 40 also had a lower proportion of live sperm and their morphology was affected. Additional analyses revealed a significantly negative association between semen quality and heat wave length. That is, prolonged exposure is more harmful than acute exposure. We know much more about infertility in women than in men. But governments have to make decisions to reverse these climate phenomena, now that we know that they affect them. Because we are talking about the permanence of humans on Earth. There is already literature on the extinction of species due to heat. And we are another species, said Vazquez-Levin. The gap in male infertility research was another reason why they decided to address it. Another one was wanting to remove weight from womens backpacks. Historically there has been a very big burden on our shoulders. The inability to conceive had always been attributed to women, says Vazquez-Levin. Science, once again, shows how wrong we were. About 17.5% of the worlds adults (one in six) will be infertile, according to the WHO. Half of these cases will be due to male infertility. One of the causes that we already know is global warming. The heat waves are going to have an impact on the demographics of the world if we do nothing. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition A local school district is mourning the death of a long-serving school board member. The Avella Area School District said Corey McConn, member and chair of their School Board, died in an accident while he was vacationing in Florida. Corey McConns commitment to our district was unwavering. His leadership and dedication over the years have greatly contributed to the progress and success of our schools. He was passionate about education and deeply valued our community, always striving to make a positive impact, the school district said in a statement. According to the Avella School District website, McConn had been with the school district for 22 years. He was actively serving as the board president and his term was set to expire in 2025. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Washington County road to close for bridge replacement, planned detour is more than 10 miles Man dies after being shot by woman while trying to enter house in Carrick Woman accused of trying to pass suspected drugs to boyfriend at Penn Hills magistrates office VIDEO: LGBTQ advocates mourn Mercer County teen as some call for hate crime charges DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts AURORA, Colo. (KDVR) A party at a park in Aurora Saturday night turned deadly. The victims were all teenage girls. Police said a shooting happened at Highland Hollows Park on South Uruvan Street. 14-year-old girl dies in shooting at party in Aurora park When we turned around the corner, it was like a group of 100 girls. I mean girls, nothing but girls, said Ronald Smith. One thing about that is the girls are starting to act like young men. They are violent and have access to weapons Smith, a violence interruption specialist, got multiple calls around 9:15 p.m. from teens who attended the party. I guess a fight had broke out, he said. One of the girls supposedly pulled out some brass knuckles. The guys, their boyfriends, get into it and then it turns into gunplay. Investigators were still on the scene at around 7 a.m. Sunday. They said a 14-year-old girl died in the shooting. Two others, another 14-year-old and a 15-year-old, were injured. We got to curb the violence with the youngsters. We got to let them know its a better way to live, and that starts with the parents, said Smith. All the youth, all the people thats involved in their life, thats grown, they got to start giving more positivity instead of living off what they went through. Paul Besterman comes to the park four to five times a week to play pickleball. He wasnt aware of the shooting. Its kind of shocking, said Besterman. I guess its the biggest thing because you dont think about things like that happening in places that you are constantly. Smith said the youth needs more outlets like their Struggle of Love Foundation. We try to teach our youngsters life is worth living. Its not all about being mad, negative and violent, he said. We got to make a change and change the mindsets of the youngsters. Denver police prepare for increased summer violence Smith said he has been a violent interrupter for about two decades, and sadly the victims are getting younger and younger. Its a growing problem. When FOX31 reported another teen shooting at an Aurora apartment complex, Aurora police said in 2020 that there were a total of 19 juvenile shootings. In 2021 there were 43, with three being deadly. In 2022 a total of 46, with three being deadly. Last year, there were 53 juvenile shootings that killed five people. Detectives are asking anyone with information, especially video of the party and the shooting, to give Metro Denver Crime Stoppers a call at 720-913-7867. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. "A lot of people injured by glass" Cardiology Centre doctor who witnessed Russian attack on Kyiv children's hospital photos The aftermath of the Russian attack on the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital in Kyiv. Photo: Viktoriia Nabiieva The Center for Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery of Ukraine's Health Ministry has been damaged in the Russian attack on Kyiv on 8 July. It is next to the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital, which suffered extensive damage during the Russian strike. Source: Children's cardiologist Viktoriia Nabiieva, who witnessed the Russian strike, told Ukrainska Pravda. Zhyttia about the events. Details: Viktoriia noted that the cardiology centres windows and doors shattered, although no one was killed. Nabiieva witnessed the Russian strike on 8 July. All photos: Viktoriia Nabiieva "I saw an explosion, a huge pillar of dust that went up, and rubble falling from the Okhmatdyt building. I ran inside. As we had patients of our own, both operating theatres were in use, and the windows faced the building which had been struck. I rushed to help. All our windows and doors shattered. Lots of glass. A lot of people were injured by the glass. And children were arriving from Okhmatdyt in need of help," the doctor said. Aftermath of the Russian attack on Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital on 8 July All photos: Viktoriia Nabiieva Viktoriia said doctors from the children's cardiology centre helped to clear the rubble from Okhmatdyt, and then the civilians were asked to leave the site of the attack. The doctor noted that half of the Okhmatdyt building was destroyed in the attack, while the remaining half has large cracks in it. Patients from Okhmatdyt are being transferred to other hospitals. Aftermath of the Russian attack on Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital on 8 July All photos: Viktoriia Nabiieva "The children in our operating theatres were unharmed, but we had to complete the invasive surgeries because they take 7-8 hours, and we no longer had the conditions to perform them... For several hours since the attack took place, more ambulances have been arriving and collecting adults and children from Okhmatdyt," Viktoriia added. Aftermath of the Russian attack on Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital on 8 July All photos: Viktoriia Nabiieva Background: On 8 July, the Russians struck the toxicology department of the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital. Later, it was reported that the children were in the basement during the bombardment, and the doctors were in the corridor. As of 14:28, Kyiv Mayor Vitalii Klitschko reported two deaths at the Okhmatdyt hospital both adults, one of them being a doctor. In addition, 16 people have been injured at the Okhmatdyt hospital, including 7 children. 15 civilians have been taken to hospital, the mayor added. Support UP or become our patron! Pitch tubes which look similar to popcorn appear in the crevices between adjacent bark plates. The tree is attempting to repel the southern pine beetles by suffocating them with resin. Louisiana House lawmakers are convening an emergency panel to deal with widespread beetle attacks on pine trees across the state and the public safety concern posed by the problem. Its not the English pop band theyre concerned about, state Rep. Mike Johnson said in a phone interview Tuesday. Its actually a more serious issue and one that poses a risk to the ecosystem, property and people, he said. Tiny bark beetles, namely the Ips engraver and southern pine varieties, have been killing millions of trees across Louisiana and Mississippi after a severe drought last year left forests and woods weakened and susceptible to the insect. The beetle attacks have been particularly problematic in the central and northern regions of the state, Johnson said. Johnson is convening a House Emergency Beetle Subcommittee, which he chairs, next week. The panel will hear from forestry, agriculture and legal experts to consider all available options to counter the bark beetle threat, including an emergency declaration, Johnson said. Lateral view of the southern pine beetle, a major pest of pine trees in Florida. Its a terrible thing, the Pineville lawmaker said. Its affecting [timber] farmers but also homeowners and business owners. The panel will also explore sources of emergency funding to assist homeowners who cant afford to hire a tree trimmer to take down affected trees, which can often cost over a thousand dollars, Johnson said. Members of the weevil family, bark beetles are between one-eighth and a quarter-inch in length. They mostly target pine trees but occasionally go after other conifers. The insects tunnel through the bark and live inside the tree, attacking its vascular system and robbing it of water and nutrients until the tree falls and dies, according to the U.S. Forest Service. They go from tree-top to tree-top and can kill a tree fairly quickly, Johnson said. Any tree within about a 150-foot radius is likely to be infected. When one beetle finds a suitable tree to eat, it will release a pheremone that serves as a signal locator for other beetles to join the same location, according to the U.S. Forest Service. Trees that are killed or severely weakened by a beetle attack are more likely to fall, even without stormy weather. This is particularly dangerous to residents who have pine trees on or near their homes. On April 10, a Pineville woman was killed after a tree fell onto the camper she was living in during a thunderstorm, according to the Louisiana Department of Health. It was one that was infested with these beetles, Johnson said. The beetle attacks also pose a risk to utility workers and public works crews who are often working under or near large tree limbs and leaning trees, he said. Officials encourage residents and workers to look for signs of bark beetle attacks in trees. Common symptoms can include brown or discolored pine needles at the crown or top half of the tree, tiny bore holes in the outer bark, sawdust collected in crevices or at the base of the tree, and small popcorn-like masses of sap, called pitch tubes, on the tree trunk. The Emergency Beetle Subcommittee will meet at 9:30 a.m. Tuesday at the Louisiana State Capitol. The Louisiana Illuminator is an independent, nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization driven by its mission to cast light on how decisions are made in Baton Rouge and how they affect the lives of everyday Louisianians, particularly those who are poor or otherwise marginalized. This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Did you know Louisiana has an emergency beetle subcommittee? LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) A 19-year-old man is in the hospital after being shot early this morning in Lansing, police say. According to the police department, the shooting happened on the 6200 block of Beechfield Drive near East Miller Road around 3:20 a.m. Police say they found the young man with a gunshot wound and was taken to a local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. This embedded content is not available in your region. Lansing Police say no suspect is in custody but the shooting was not random. This incident is still 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 WLNS 6 News. Phil Lyman and Natalie Clawson sued officials in Utah Lieutenant Governors Office to try to obtain the signature, names and addresses of voters who signed petitions supporting three different campaigns. The suit was filed in Utahs 3rd District Court on Wednesday. The Lieutenant Governors Office declined to comment on active litigation. Lyman and Clawson got onto the Republican primary ballot for the governors race after winning at the state GOP convention. They lost to incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson by around 9 percentage points in the primary election. The suit Lyman and Clawson filed is for the unredacted signature packets of three candidates, which would include voters names, signatures and addresses. This legal filing comes after Lyman and Clawson submitted a Government Records Access and Management Act request to the lieutenant governors office requesting copies of the signature packets for the Cox and Henderson, Brad Wilson and Derek Brown campaigns. The Cox-Henderson and Wilson campaigns (but not Browns campaign) used the company Gathering Inc. to collect signatures. In the suit, Lyman and Clawson say they submitted their GRAMA request after learning that there was an investigation in relation to signatures gathered by state Sen. Don Ipson he used Gathering Inc. Eric Clarke, Washington County attorney, confirmed to the Deseret News that only the signatures were under investigation, not the company. Previously, he said there was no evidence of a candidate or the company acting inappropriately. We believe this action is essential to ensure the integrity of this important process, said Lyman in a press release. He said that because there were not able to obtain the packets from the Lieutenant Governors Office, they were unable to independently verify the signature packets for Coxs campaign. Utah voters can keep information private In response to the GRAMA request, the Lieutenant Governors Office denied the request citing state law that allows voters to choose to withhold their information from political campaigns and another part of code which states signatures are considered protected information. The law for candidates signature gathering packets are different than for referenda and initiatives its required that names, voter identification numbers and dates of signatures for referenda and initiatives are statutorily required to be posted on the lieutenant governors office website. State law does not have that same requirement for candidates signature gathering packets. The Lieutenant Governors Office gave the campaign a couple of options: they could obtain a report listing the signers from the packets one business day after the request or the campaign could view the packets in person after they are redacted sometime by the end of July. In its email to Clawson, the office said this report could include the address of each signer not classified as private or withheld. Lyman and Clawson say in the filing that the office provided a redacted report to another individual and around 40% of the voters names and information were redacted as private or withheld. Clawson also requested that the Lieutenant Governors Office recuse itself from the request. The office did not recuse itself from the request and after Clawsons request was denied, the filing from Lyman and Clawson says she appealed the decision. On July 2, the chief administrative officer for GRAMA appeals affirmed the decision stating that parts of the records Clawson requested were protected and private. Lyman and Clawson say that because state law allows a government entity to disclose protected records if the interest in releasing them is either equal to or more than the interest in restricting them, the lieutenant governors office should have released the records. The suit states Lyman and Clawson are asking that the court say they have the right to look at the unredacted signature packets and other information sufficient to allow the plaintiffs to independently evaluate, verify, or challenge the signatures allegedly supporting the Cox/Henderson, Brad Wilson, and Derek Brown campaigns. Lyman and Clawson say the office should be required to disclose these packets due to the overriding concerns for election transparency and integrity, and say this is especially true given that Gathering Inc. is under criminal investigation for its work on one campaign, and the Cox/Henderson campaign also used Gathering Inc. to gather signatures and prepare its signature packets. The Washington County attorney says it is just the signatures of Ipson, not the company, that is under investigation. A lawsuit only represents one side of the story. SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) Utah gubernatorial candidate State Rep. Phil Lyman officially filed a complaint in Utahs courts requesting to inspect unredacted signatures of his oppositions campaigns, including those that helped get incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox and Lt. Gov. Deidre Henderson on the ballot. Lyman said the lawsuit was about Utahns right to transparency and to uphold the integrity of the signature-gathering process. According to the lawsuit, Lymans campaign had filed a public records request for the signatures after learning the gathering company was allegedly under criminal investigation for fraud. Lymans campaign said the request was partially granted and partially denied, as they received a heavily redacted version of the signature packets. Colby Jenkins sues Washington County clerk over uncured ballots in Republican primary Lyman previously told ABC4 he wanted to verify Coxs signatures. He said Cox was approved to be on Utahs ballot with 28,006 signatuers, which he said was a slim margin of less than 600 additional signatures. On the night of the primary election, Cox was declared as the projected winner. As of July 5, Cox held 54% of the primary vote. Official canvassing will not be completed until July 22. A week after the night of Utahs primary election, Lyman said he had no plans to concede saying Utah deserved a fair election. Lyman doubled down on questioning the integrity of the election with his lawsuit. Confidence in our elections is crucial, Lyman said in a statement early Monday morning. Continued obstruction by Lieutenant Governor Henderson, which makes it impossible to independently verify Cox/Hendersons signature packets, does nothing to promote transparency and faith in our elections. We believe this action is essential to ensure the integrity of this important process. Despite Lymans doubts, experts say the signatures to get on a ballot are vigorously verified just like a signature that would go onto a mail-in ballot. Zoe Nemerever, an assistant professor of political science at Utah Valley University, previously told ABC4 that signatures, once verified, would be considered legitimate. Theyre not hokey signatures, even if theyre collected by paid signature gatherers, she said. Theyre still legitimate citizens from the correct districts signatures. ABC4 has reached out to the Lt. Governors Office for comment and is currently waiting for a response. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. LYNCHBURG, Va. (WFXR) The DOJ Attorneys Office in the Western District of Virginia announced a Lynchburg man was sentenced to twelve years in prison for distributing 75 grams of fentanyl. According to the DOJ, 25-year-old Elijah Pollard previously pled guilty to possessing pressed fentanyl pills with the intent to distribute. Man accused of 2019 Pittsylvania Co. triple murder able to stand trial Court records show that the Lynchburg PD searched Pollards apartment in 2023 after he repeatedly sold pressed fentanyl pills to officers during a drug investigation. Around 75 grams of pressed fentanyl pills, digital scales, cash, and a loaded a loaded AR-15 were seized during the search. This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. Supporters of French far-left opposition party La France Insoumise and the alliance of left-wing parties, called the New Popular Front, react after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at Place Stalingrad in Paris, France, July 7, 2024. France has said no to the far right. The cordon sanitaire put in place by the left and the center of French President Emmanuel Macron made it possible for Marine Le Pens National Rally (RN) to be decisively defeated in Sundays snap election, in which the left-wing coalition New Popular Front (NFP) was the surprise winner. According to the final official results released early Monday morning, the NFP won 182 seats in the new National Assembly, up from 153. Macrons Ensemble coalition came in second place with 168 seats, down from 250, but still a solid and decisive bloc for the future government. And in third place was Le Pens RN, which headed into the elections the favorite after being the most voted party in the first round a week ago. Together with its allies, it won 143 seats: a victory considering it previously only had 88 seats, but a failure considering the expectations. The result is a surprise. After RNs overwhelming victory in the European elections on June 9, which led Macron to dissolve the National Assembly and bring forward the elections, and after the first round of the vote, some projections placed Le Pens party close to an absolute majority. It is a bitter disappointment for Le Pen and for her deputy, Jordan Bardella, whom she wanted to appoint as prime minister. And it is a huge relief for the majority of French people, who feared a far-right government, and who were worried that the election result would overshadow the Olympic Games, which begin in Paris on July 26. The numbers do not give an absolute majority to any bloc. But they open the way to a grand coalition between the left and Macronism, with a sufficient number of deputies to form a stable and lasting government. The search for a consensus prime minister, possibly coming from the moderate left, but who could find support from the centrists and the moderate right, was expected to begin as early as Sunday night. It will not be easy. The presidential France of the Fifth Republic has little practice with coalitions. There is a vast difference between the left and Macronism when it comes to economic policy. And there are also divisions between the radical left of Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of France Insoumise, and the social democrats that have been revived by the elections. In the parties headquarters, and in the Elysee, they are crunching the numbers to see if the center, part of the moderate right and part of the left opposed to Melenchon, can reach or get near to 289 seats, the threshold for an absolute majority. There are possible points of agreement between the more moderate left and Macronism, such as a pro-Europe stance and positions regarding Ukraine. Jean-Luc Melenchon leader of La France Insoumise (LFI) reacts after the announcement of the results of the second round of the legislative elections in Paris, France. ANDRE PAIN (EFE) We are leading but not with a full majority, said Socialist MEP Raphael Glucksmann. So we need to start a new era of acting like adults. After two years of paralysis and polarization in the National Assembly and in the street, and a president who since his re-election two years ago has governed on the right, the grand coalition could tilt Frances government toward more progressive policies. But the numbers if it includes the moderate right will push the government towards the center, with which Macron came to power in 2017. Mobilization The calendar established by the Constitution for the beginning of the legislature and new National Assembly has now been activated. The chamber must meet the second Thursday after the election. The first plenary is scheduled for July 18, a week and a day before the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics. There is no deadline in the Constitution for when a new prime minister must be appointed. The outgoing prime minister, Gabriel Attal, announced that he would hand in his letter of resignation to Macron, who can either accept or reject it pending the appointment of his replacement. But he will remain in office until a replacement is found. Glucksmann is one of the names that have been floated to replace him. Other possible contenders include ecologist Marine Tondelier, whose voter base is the same as Le Pens, in the deindustrialized north; and Laurent Berger, a veteran trade unionist, who is pragmatic and respected by all. Gabriel Attal, French Prime Minister and French presidential majority group "Ensemble pour la Republique" candidate, delivers a speech after partial results in the second round of the early French parliamentary elections, at Hotel Matignon in Paris in Paris, France, July 7, 2024. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane Guglielmo Mangiapane (REUTERS) In a statement, Attal celebrated the fact that the French had denied an absolute majority to the so-called extremes: the RN and La France Insoumise. Referring to the Macronist party, he declared: We have held on, and we are still standing. Turnout in the runoff was the highest since 1997, at 66.6% 20 points higher than in the previous legislative runoff in 2022. It is a reflection of the fact that, despite the start of the vacations, the French recognized that a lot was at stake in this election. The prospect of a government in the hands of the extreme right triggered alarm bells. The parties of the center and the left mobilized. They withdrew their candidates from the second round in the districts where there were three finalists in order to concentrate the vote on the candidate most likely to defeat the RN. The strategy worked. The voters of the left and center, some of the moderate right as well, largely followed the same tactics and voted for candidates that perhaps were not to their liking, but that were able to stop the extreme right. And this is how the so-called Republican front the French form of the cordon sanitaire once again succeeded, just as it did in the 2017 and 2022 presidential elections, to give Macron victory over Le Pen. Millions of French people were concerned at the possibility that Jordan Bardella, Le Pens dauphin, would become prime minister. They feared that a party like the RN, founded by xenophobes and antisemites, would be at the helm of France a country that boasts of being the homeland of human rights and the Enlightenment. The RN has evolved over time, but at its core it is still driven by an anti-immigration program and distinguishes between categories of French people. And these French people said no, challenging the election forecasts. The leftist NFP coalition is the winner, although it is far from having an absolute majority. The Macronists of Ensemble are holding their own. And the RN, although far from its expectations, has dozens more seats, compared to the 88 it won in 2022 and the eight it won in 2017. Objectively, it is a considerable advance, and signals that the far right is here to stay. The tide is still rising, Le Pen said. Our victory has only been delayed. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition A number of polls and pundits say Joe Biden should exit the race against Donald Trump after his debate debacle and ensuing fallout, but the President of the United States says hes truly in it to win it. I have one job, and thats to beat Donald Trump, the 81-year-old incumbent told a conference call of major donors this morning in Bidens latest attempt to shift the tide and shut down the talk of him stepping back for another candidate. More from Deadline Im absolutely certain Im the best person to be able to do that, Biden said to his reelection National Finance Committee in a what one Hollywood participant described as a forceful presentation that sounded like the Biden I used to know. Among those on the call was super-fundraiser and campaign co-chair Jeffrey Katzenberg, Deadline has learned. Close to the president, Katzenberg has earned the ire of many a fellow donor and bundler over the last week with accusations of concealing the presidents true condition. To that, the former DreamWork boss has been silent and out of the public eye since Bidens slurring and rambling June 27 debate performance cast POTUS potency against the more 78-year-old Trump in doubt. Katzenberg didnt say anything today, I hear, but in language very similar to a two-page letter he sent to top Democrats on Capitol Hill Monday, the besieged Joe Biden made his own point pretty clear. Having repeatedly said over the past week that the live face-off on CNN with Trump was a bad night, POTUS today added: So, were done talking about the debate, its time to put Trump in a bullseye. As a whispering campaign among some top Democrats intensifies and deep pocket loyalists like Damon Lindelof, Reed Hastings, Abigail Disney, and yesterday Rob Reiner, have pleaded with the seemingly increasingly frail Biden to drop out, the president up the ante on his personal persuasion campaign. Today avowed Biden fam Stephen King said it was time for POTUS to announce he will not run for re-election. Im not going anywhere folks, POTUS said on Mondays quickly scheduled call. Im in this to the end, and Im going to beat Trump, he said, Deadline can confirm from audio of the call. After his remarks, Biden took four apparently pre-selected questions on the call. One question about the hard right Project 2025 was from the man who planned Bidens granddaughters wedding at the White House last year. Edging closer to what was on many participants minds, another question wanted to know what would be Bidens strategy going into the planned September debate with former Celebrity Apprentice host. Attack, attack, attack, Biden bluntly said. I dont know if its enough, but he sure sounded on the ball, one ex-studio exec who was on the call said to Deadline after it as done. The exec noted that the next few days will be critical for Biden. The convention is about a month away, we have to have this settled by then or Trump will have the upper hand. The call with donors Monday lasted about an hour. Coming off a series of campaign events over the weekend, some on the teleprompter, some not, plus that less than stellar (though well-watched) July 5 sit-down with ABC News George Stephanopoulos, Biden kicked off this week earlier by pulling a trick out of the Trump dumpster. The president called into MSNBCs Morning Joe on Monday to hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, I am not going anywhere. Todays calls and that correspondence with Congressional leaders were the first flexes the president intends to make this week in the hopes to keep his candidacy alive. World leaders will be in DC for the NATO Summit over the next few days giving Biden a chance to shine at running the world, as he termed his job to Stephanopoulos last Friday. After that, the president heads to the battleground state of Michigan and Motor City on July 12 for campaign events. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 'This is how we get to Mach 3:' Virgin Galactic's Jameel Janjua on his long journey to space (exclusive) It was third time lucky for new pilot-turned-astronaut Jameel Janjua. Dual Canada-U.S. national Janjua flew the pilot's seat in Virgin Galactic's most recent spaceflight last month, called Galactic 07. But his journey to becoming an astronaut took 15 years and three tries and that's only counting the time since he was a semi-finalist for a Canadian Space Agency astronaut selection in 2009. In the decades before Janjua copiloted the VSS Unity spaceship on June 8, he accumulated more than 5,200 hours across 65 aircraft types in several military corps. His time at Virgin Galactic has also been busy, often flying the mothership VMS Eve in support of other suborbital spaceflights. Janjua spoke with Space.com on June 27 about his journey to becoming an astronaut, getting ready for Virgin's new Delta class of spaceships, and what he hopes others will take from his long path to space. Related: Virgin Galactic launches VSS Unity space plane on final suborbital spaceflight with crew of 6 (photos, video) Space.com: Did you ever apply to be a Canadian Space Agency astronaut? Janjua: I applied twice. In 2009, it was the first recruitment they had done since 1992 that's 17 years. I was there right up to the bitter end. There were four people left for two spots: David Saint-Jacques, Jeremy Hansen, Josh Kutryk and me. Josh and I obviously were not selected on that campaign. Then I played again [during the most recent astronaut selection] in 2016-17. Josh was selected, thankfully, with Jenni Gibbons. And then I got to go over to Virgin Galactic in October 2020. My flight, I think, highlights the benefits of the commercial space industry. We have this chorus of folks that want to participate. Government programs are great, but they have funding limits and seat limits and a lot of other factors. It's wonderful that these commercial space companies provide for a diverse set of voices and backgrounds and experience. This is what we are doing. Maybe I'm a real, tangible example of the benefits that can precipitate from these types of endeavors. Fingers crossed. a spaceplane with orange fire jetting out the back There were lots of times in my life where I thought, "Ah, space isn't going to happen." I want to share a message of determination. There's going to be a lot of young people out there, all over the world. One of the most important things that I can do as a matter of social responsibility and public service, is to share a message of: "You know what? There's lots of times where it's going to feel like it's not going to happen." I'll be fair: Look. Sometimes it won't. But [you will see] something like it, or in a different way, or with a different embodiment. That will happen. Related: Canada's Artemis 2 astronaut was named after a 14-year-wait for space an astronaut in a jet cockpit looking over his should in the middle of a flight Space.com: This was Virgin Galactic's last flight with VSS Unity and VMS Eve. How are you, as a pilot, getting ready for the forthcoming Delta program? Janjua: We are on track to a flight test in 2025 and commercial service in 2026. That's the programmatic side. On the developmental side, it's great to be part of something like this. I went to university and got a master's degree. But there was no class on, like, how to build and test a spaceship. It's really important to have operator input, so that's what we pilots provide. We support the design effort, and discuss how we're going to test these vehicles. We'll work from the integrated ground vehicle testing, to the initial carry flights and full-duration flights. Then entry into commercial service. With Virgin, there's a lot to learn about these systems. These are one-of-a kind vehicles. We're looking to produce our Delta-class spaceships. We have the correct experience to show up as experimental test pilots, but there's a little bit of a considered learning process. We impose very high professional standards on ourselves. We're thirsty, right? We're hungry for knowledge. two headshots of virgin galactic pilots Space.com: So for your flight, I want to perhaps break it into two aspects, first the pilot side of it, then the human side. So let's start with the pilot. Can you bring me through your objectives? Janjua: Our goal is to fly a safe and effective profile. It should be effortless, right? Like it's just another day in the simulator. But you're not in the sim. You're in a real spaceship going to space at three times the speed of sound. [Commander] Nicola Pecile and I spent a lot of time in the sim and a lot of time together. I remember once we were flying a light aircraft together. I thought to myself: "This is a great environment, just a little bit of a distraction." Somebody's talking on the radio once in a while. But because we're two very experienced pilots, we went through every emergency procedure in that book so that we never see these things for the first time. Then we practiced them in the sim. As we neared the date of the flight, we really locked in on flying nominal profile and we practiced that a lot. In the days prior, the future astronauts our clients arrived. We got all the pre-checks done in the days prior. We facilitated with Colin Bennett, the cabin lead, who did astronaut training and got them on board. After liftoff, Eve does a lot of the work. Eve spends about 45 or 50 minutes climbing to 45,000 feet (13,700 meters) overhead of Spaceport America. Nicola and I have various things that we do en route, just to make sure all the systems are performing appropriately. And finally, Eve sort of lines us up for release north of Spaceport America, pointing south. Related: How many people can fly on Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space plane? four headshots of virgin galactic astronauts in a row: Tuna Atasever, Andy Sadhwani, Irving Pergament and Giorgio Manenti. names are written in text below pictures [For several spaceflights before this] I was in Eve either as a commander, or the pilot dropping a spaceship. Frankly, commander of Eve is such an important position in this team. This time it was Andy Edgell's job and he did it masterfully to offload any amount of workload he can from the spaceship, and climb up that hill to 45,000 feet (13,700 meters). And CJ Sturckow was with him, and [because he's quiet] we joked that CJ wasn't in the room. CJ would very much deny that, but it was great. It was just a really nice mix of personalities and professional attributes in those two cockpits. There wasn't this feeling of anxiety [for me], but it's palpable. It's like, "We're actually going to do this." For me, it's my first time flying this vehicle. There's a little voice in the back of your head. It's like, "I can't believe this is actually happening." But, I needed to do the timeline. Nicola was relying on me to do certain things, and I was relying on him, Andy and CJ. CJ released us from the mothership. Nicola asked me to light the motor. I lit the rocket motor. It's impressive. You feel its acceleration, and it's persistent. I remember thinking to myself. "This is how we get to Mach 3: pointed straight up." Then Nicola and I, we had a division of tasks. I was responsible for ensuring the health of the motor and that the feather re-entry system operates as intended and is actuated on time. Nicola took care of the trajectory of the ship, for the most part, and obviously he has discretion to do anything [as commander]. Then Nicola landed the spaceship, and did a fantastic job. Related: Virgin Galactic's next spaceship gets its 'feather' (video) Space.com: And how about the human side? I can see on your socials that you've been thinking about it a lot. Janjua: If you weren't thinking about it, then you're not human. This is really the way in which we are opening up access to space for humanity, to folks who otherwise would have thought, "I don't have a place here. I don't have a way in here, or anything to do with this." Nicola and I have an implied responsibility to guide the people on our crew to make sure that they also experience their flight in a way that they want, but with a human aspect. As for myself, as I already said, this doesn't happen overnight. This is something not many humans have ever gotten to do, right? I tried to be respectful of that in the time I had when it was appropriate to think about that and give it the time and thoughts it deserved. I'm still doing that, honestly, in the aftermath. I'm trying to take some time when I can, to think about it and give it the time it deserves, to process it. It's like your first solo in an aircraft. You build up through a pre-check ride with your instructor, and the rehearsal sim. Every step is a step closer to what is hopefully the inevitable. It was palpable. It was really meaningful. It's hard to describe, right? I try and replay it in my mind. When I watch the videos that our comms and media team produce, they help me kind of go back. Our brains [as pilots] are wired to really for us to focus on the technical side, to fly that ship safely and effectively. RELATED STORIES: Virgin Galactic launches VSS Unity space plane on final suborbital spaceflight with crew of 6 (photos, video) How many people can fly on Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space plane? Watch an awe-inspiring video from final flight of Virgin Galactic's VSS Unity spaceplane But there are lots of moments. I remember looking over my right shoulder at one point, when we were about two minutes to release. Giorgio Manenti was sitting right behind me, and I remember looking at him. I had my visor up, and I purposely kept my visor up the whole time because I didn't want to forget to put it up when we were in space. I remember looking back at him, and I winked. He gave me a thumbs up, and he winked. The two of us we had a mind meld. We were thinking the same thing. We could talk more about space and describe all the feelings that this human had, looking out the window at the vastness of space in the universe, and that "darkest dark" that [retired CSA astronaut] Chris Hadfield talks about in his children's book. Then the most vivid colors you've ever seen in your life on your own planet. Imagine the photos just juiced up in in vibrance. There's a sense of humility that for me makes you feel so insignificant in a healthy, positive way. This interview was edited and condensed. French President Emmanuel Macron is refusing to accept Prime Minister Gabriel Attal's resignation following the surprising outcome of the snap parliamentary elections in France, the Elysee Palace announced on Monday. Macron has asked Attal to remain prime minister for the time being in order to ensure the country's stability, it said. Attal announced his resignation on Sunday evening after the preliminary results were announced. France's new left-wing New Popular Front (NFP) alliance aims to quickly agree on a candidate for Attal's successor after its unexpected victory. The NFP bloc consists of the Socialists, the Greens, the Communists and Jean-Luc Melenchon's hard-left France Unbowed. Official results released by the Interior Ministry showed that Macron's centrist Ensemble (Together) bloc came in second place. Marine Le Pen's far-right nationalist National Rally (RN), initially seen as the favourite after the first round of voting, came third. None of the camps achieved an absolute majority, making the formation of a government difficult and risking a state of limbo in the European Union's second-largest economy. Macron called the early polls on June 9. The NFP was launched shortly before the first round of elections for the National Assembly on June 30. The short window to prepare meant that the alliance did not go into the elections with a lead candidate. "We must be in a position to present a candidate" for the post of prime minister within a week, Faure told the broadcaster France Info. He said a quick decision must be made to show the public that the alliance is ready to govern. Faure said the candidate could be picked by a consensus among party officials or through party votes. Mathilde Panot, the parliamentary group leader of France Unbowed, told broadcaster RTL that the NFP will present a prime minister and a government this week. She believes that far-left veteran Melenchon, the controversial founder of France Unbowed, is still in the running. In an interview with France Inter, Green Party leader Marine Tondelier argued in favour of a consensus decision. She added it was far more important to agree on policies than the person who will hold the premiership. The lawmakers have until July 18 to form their parliamentary groups. Efforts to form a government will be focussed on sounding out possible alliances and winning over individual members of parliament (MPs) from other groups. How things will proceed remains unclear for now. It is uncertain whether the left can form a minority government on its own. Given the opposing political orientations, however, it remains to be seen whether coalition agreements could succeed. If no bloc can find a majority to form a government, the current government could conduct business on an interim basis, or an expert government could be appointed. In such a scenario, France would face a political deadlock. A new dissolution of parliament by Macron and fresh elections would not be possible until July 2025. French President Emmanuel Macron takes part in an event at the French embassy in Berlin. Kay Nietfeld/dpa Emmanuel Macron asked his prime minister not to step down as he pleaded for calm after chaotic parliamentary election results left the country facing a hung parliament. Gabriel Attal offered his resignation on Sunday night after parliamentary election results pushed Mr Macrons party into second place, triggering frantic talks to form a new government. Mr Macron on Monday said he had turned down the resignation, and asked Mr Attal, 35, to remain in post for now to ensure the stability of the country just two weeks ahead of the Paris Olympics. The New Popular Front, or NFP, which comprises Jean-Luc Melenchons hard-Left France Unbowed (LFI), Communists, Greens and Socialists, came first in Sundays snap legislative election, taking 193 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly. Mr Macrons centrist Together group came second on 165 seats and Marine Le Pens National Rally (RN) and its allies came third on 143 seats, in a stunning setback for the hard-Right party that polls had predicted to come out in front. The snap election was called in the wake of the Macron camps humiliating defeat to RN in last months European parliamentary elections. Mr Macron insisted it would bring clarity over the French electorates wishes. However, it has ended in confusion as the three main blocs fell far short of the 289 seats required for an outright majority, raising the prospect of deadlock until a workable majority can be cobbled together, which could take weeks. With no single group approaching an absolutely majority, the options include the NFP seeking to form a minority government and support on a bill-by-bill basis (as Mr Macrons minority government has over the past two years), a broad coalition for the centre-Left and centre-Right, or a government of technocrats. Flush with its unexpected pole position, the Left-Green alliance announced that it would come up with its own candidate for the next head of government within the week to replace Mr Attal. Crowds gather at the Republique Square in Paris after the second round results of the legislative election - Mohamad Salaheldin Abdelg Alsayed/Anadolu via Getty Images Mr Melenchon, whose LFI won the most seats in the alliance (74), on Sunday evening unilaterally called on Mr Macron to leave or appoint a prime minister from the NFP, which he implied should come from his party. He insisted the NFP should then be allowed to instantly start rolling out its soak-the-rich programme that that would boost the minimum wage by14 per cent, cut the retirement age from 64 to 60 and freeze on energy prices and essential goods if necessary by decree. His lieutenant Manuel Bompard confirmed the party stance on Monday, saying: The president must appoint as prime minister someone from the NFP, to implement the NFPs programme, its whole programme and nothing but its programme. But Socialists and Greens are keen to put other names forward for prime minister, pointing out that together they form a larger group than Mr Melenchons. Socialist Olivier Faure, for his part, hoped that the NFP would be in a position to present a prime ministerial candidate within the week. Both he and Marine Tondelier, the Green Party leader, said that the figure should be someone consensual, which appeared to rule out the divisive Mr Melenchon. However, one of his loyalists, Mathilde Manot, said the Leftist firebrand was absolutely not disqualified for the post. Many commentators said it was totally unrealistic for the NFP to think it could impose its radical programme without support from a wider coalition. The truth is that the Left cannot hope to govern without compromising, in one way or another, with more centrist forces, wrote Left-leaning editorialist Laurent Joffrin. French voters did not give it a mandate to implement its programme, but to prevent the RN from taking power. Lets not forget that the lions share of NFP MPs in the new assembly were elected by voters from another party. With Mr Macron due to fly out on Wednesday to a Nato summit in Washington, his camp argued that it was up to the president to appoint the new prime minister from the largest group in parliament that can form a workable majority. It is important not for the president, but for the country, to have a majority that can govern and take decisions, that can pass a budget and that can implement public policy, said an Elysee source. Today, no one coming out of the election is able to claim that.The president must find a personality who is capable of emerging from this. The Macron camp is seeking a coalition with what it calls a Republican arc of centre-ground MPs, excluding LFI and RN. If negotiations fail, Mr Macron could appoint a non-partisan expert government to manage day-to-day affairs, subject to parliamentary approval Gerard Larcher, the president of the French senate, said on Monday that Mr Macron has plunged us into political instability. An electoral cartel of the hard-Right and Left, with no future due to fundamental disagreements, comes in first but cannot claim to govern France with a project that would lead to economic and social disaster, he warned. Mr Melenchon's hard-Left La France Insoumise enjoyed strong support in the second round of voting - SAMEER AL-DOUMY/AFP On Monday night, Mr Melenchon refused to rule himself out as the next French prime minister, despite reservations from his own camp saying: Im part of the solution, not part of the problem. He insisted that according to French political tradition, it was up to his LFI party to decide. Since the country has known situations of cohabitation, the party with the majority chooses a prime minister. I think its a wise rule. He said a name would be put forward this week. 03:00 PM BST Todays live coverage has ended Todays live coverage has ended. Here is a roundup of the days main events: Emmanuel Macron is calling for prudence after his party came second to the hard-Left in Frances snap election. Mr Macron on Monday decided to keep Gabriel Attal, his prime minister, in office. France is at risk of immediate financial crisis after the election result, the countrys outgoing economy minister has warned. Gerard Larcher, the president of the French senate, said on Monday that Mr Macron has plunged us into political instability. 02:56 PM BST Jordan Bardella takes responsibility for National Rally defeat Jordan Bardella, the president of the National Rally, took responsibility on Monday for the defeat of his hard-Right party in the second round of the parliamentary elections. Mistakes are always made, I have made them, Mr Bardella told reporters. I take responsibility for both the victory in the European elections and the defeat yesterday. Mr Bardella, who currently sits as a member of the European Parliament, is set to chair a new nationalist European group created by Viktor Orban, the Hungarian prime minister, French and Italian MEPs announced on Monday. 02:49 PM BST Difficult to form a government, says Green leader The Green party leader told France Inter radio on Monday that forming a government is not going to be simple, no, its not going to be easy, and no, its not going to be comfortable. Its going to take a bit of time, Marine Tondelier added. The Green Party is one of the partners in the Left-wing alliance New Popular Front, which emerged as the largest coalition in the parliamentary elections but fell short of a majority by just over 100 seats. Possibilities include the Left forming a minority government and the cobbling together of an unwieldy coalition of parties with almost no common ground. 02:44 PM BST Renaissance MP calls for new social democratic group in National Assembly Sacha Houilie, an MP for Emmanuel Macrons party Renaissance, called on Monday for the creation of a new social democratic group in the National Assembly, according to France Info. Mr Houilie, a figure on the left of Renaissance, opposed Mr Macrons contentious reforms on immigration and unemployment benefits. After such an event and such a shock, it would be suicidal to continue to govern as before, to let ourselves be led by out-of-touch partisans who govern by polls, to sell ourselves for a commission, presidency or vice-presidency of the Assembly, Mr Houilie told Renaissance MPs. 02:30 PM BST How did France vote? How Frances election rounds compared nationwide: 02:24 PM BST Watch: France faces hung parliament after leftist alliance election win 02:16 PM BST Major trade union calls on Macron to form left-wing government The General Confederation of Labour (CGT), one of Frances largest trade unions, called on President Emmanuel Macron on Monday to form a government led by the hard-left coalition the New Popular Front, which won the most seats in the parliamentary election but failed to secure an outright majority. The CGT condemned Mr Macron for calling the election and trying to pit the far right against the left, thus contributing to the legitimisation of the National Rally and its ideology. Mr Macron, the CGT said, was severely punished in the election and he should respect the choice of the ballot boxes. 01:50 PM BST Germanys Scholz hopes for constructive government German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed hope on Monday that France would form a constructive government following parliamentary elections that left no bloc with a clear majority. We hope that the president and the elected MPs will manage to bring about a constructive government formation, Mr Scholz told reporters. 01:28 PM BST Analysis: Could Macron form coalition with moderate left? President Emmanuel Macron might attempt to form a coalition with the moderate left, although such negotiations are expected to be challenging given Frances lack of precedent for such arrangements. Any agreement could manifest as a fragile, informal alliance. While Mr Macron has ruled out collaboration with the hard-left France Unbowed party, he might extend invitations to the Socialists and Greens, who could decline the offer. Recently, Mr Macrons administration paused a decree that would have reduced workers unemployment benefits, seen as a conciliatory gesture towards the left. If political negotiations fail, Mr Macron could appoint a non-partisan expert government to manage day-to-day affairs, although this too would require parliamentary approval. The complexity is compounded by the need for any option to gain parliamentary support. 01:06 PM BST Macron has plunged France into political instability, says French Senate president Gerard Larcher, the president of the French senate, said on Monday that Mr Macron has plunged us into political instability. An electoral cartel of the hard-right and left, with no future due to fundamental disagreements, comes in first but cannot claim to govern France with a project that would lead to economic and social disaster, Mr Larcher said in a statement posted on X, formerly Twitter. Mr Larcher, who represents the Republicans, a centre-right party, also said the defeat of the hard-right was fortunate. 12:43 PM BST Italy celebrates Le Pens performance In Italy, Matteo Salvini, leader of the far-right populist League and a key ally of Marine Le Pens National Rally in France, celebrated her partys strongest-ever performance in Parliament. He criticised what he described as President Emmanuel Macrons concerted effort to undermine Ms Le Pens chances of securing a governing majority. Mr Salvini attributed incidents of violence, including attacks on police with stones in several cities after the election results, to communists, social centres, pro-Islamists, and antisemites. As a junior partner in Premier Giorgia Melonis right-wing government, Mr Salvini has consistently aligned with Ms Le Pen on issues such as anti-migrant policies. 12:22 PM BST France celebrates results Although there have been protests in Paris, others in the capital have celebrated the election result. A man celebrates during the second round of legislative elections in Paris - Lys Arango/Bloomberg Supporters of the left wing union, New Popular Front, gather at the Place de la Republique - Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images 12:01 PM BST National Rally to join hard-right alliance in European Parliament Marine Le Pens hard-right National Rally (RN) will join a growing new alliance in the European Parliament led by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Hungarys government spokesperson said on Monday. Austrias far-right Freedom Party (FPO), Orbans Fidesz and the populist Czech ANO party led by Andrej Babis have joined forces in the European Parliament, citing the fight against illegal immigration, as well as transferring more powers from Brussels back to member states as the alliances goals. The RN has not yet commented. 11:56 AM BST France at risk of immediate financial crisis after election result France is at risk of immediate financial crisis after the election result, the countrys outgoing economy minister has warned. Bruno Le Maire celebrated the loss of the hard-right, but said there are risks ahead after president Emmanuel Macrons party came second to the hard-left in a snap election. The most immediate risk is a financial crisis and Frances economic decline, he said. The second risk is an ideological fracture of the nation, he added. Mr Le Maire called for like-minded groups to unite, urging forces that support the market economy, recovery of public finances, the energy transition, and the European project to set aside partisan interests. 11:47 AM BST Macron urged to select left-wing prime minister Emmanuel Macron has been urged to select a candidate for prime minister from the Leftist alliance that won the most seats in Sundays election. Manuel Bompard, an MP from the hard-Left France Unbowed (LFI) party, said Mr Macron must invite a prime minister from the coalition of Left-wing, Green and Socialist parties that joined together as the New Popular Front (NFP) Radical former LFI leader Jean-Luc Melenchon could be a candidate for prime minister, according to Mathilde Panot, the president of LFI in the National Assembly. The NFP will propose a prime minister this week, Mr Panot said on Monday, adding that France voted against the far-right but also for the programme of the hard-left. The NFP won 182 seats, compared with 168 for Macrons centrist coalition and 143 for the hard-right National Rally, led by Marine le Pen. The left is far from the 289 seats needed for an absolute majority, raising questions as to how the NFP would govern with even fewer seats than Macrons outgoing coalition, which had 250 MPs. Mr Macron has yet to comment on the results of the election. 11:28 AM BST Macron asks prime minister Gabriel Attal to stay in office temporarily French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday decided to keep his prime minister Gabriel Attal in office after parliamentary elections in which the governments political camp lost its role as the strongest party to the left in a hung parliament. The president has asked Gabriel Attal to remain prime minister for the time being in order to ensure the countrys stability, Macrons office said in a statement. Attal had already flagged on Sunday he would offer his resignation, which follows French political tradition, but added he was prepared to stay in office longer as a caretaker and it was up to the president to decide. 11:20 AM BST Prime Minister Gabriel Attal tenders resignation Prime Minister Gabriel Attal tendered his resignation to Macron after arriving at the Elysee palace at 11:30am on Monday morning. France's Prime Minister Gabriel Attal leaves the Hotel de Matignon to go to the presidential Elysee Palace to give his resignation - ANNE RENAUT/AFP via Getty Images Mr Attal announced on Sunday night he would resign after his coalition failed to secure a majority in the parliamentary election. He climbed the steps of the Elysee with an envelope in hand and smiled at reporters before entering the palace. It was unclear whether Macron would accept or refuse the resignation. 11:14 AM BST Berlin expresses relief in response to election result A spokesperson for German Chancellor Olaf Scholz expressed relief following the lefts victory over the far right in the French run-off election on Sunday. Initially, theres a sense of relief, the spokesperson stated on Monday, noting that the formation of the new government in Paris is still uncertain. The spokesperson added that there has been no direct contact between Chancellor Scholz and the victorious left-wing parties, and confirmed that President Emmanuel Macron remains Berlins primary point of contact. 10:47 AM BST Macron calling for prudence after election defeat Emmanuel Macron is calling for prudence after his party came second to the hard-left in Frances snap election. Mr Macron, who has not spoken or appeared publicly since the result, faces the prospect of becoming a lame duck president presiding over a hung parliament. He is privately calling for prudence and analysis of the results, according to an aide who spoke on Monday morning. Mr Macron managed to bat away hard-right leader Marine le Pen, but failed to generate a decisive victory. The left won 182 seats, Mr Macrons centrist alliance 168 and Ms Le Pens National Rally (RN) and allies 143, interior ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal is due to submit his resignation to Mr Macron on Monday. The left has yet to agree on who it will put forward as its prime ministerial candidate. The unprecedented situation is taking shape just as Mr Macron is due to be out of the country for most of the week, taking part in the Nato summit in Washington. 09:47 AM BST Spains prime minister hails rejection of far-right in France and UK Spains socialist prime minister Pedro Sanchez hailed the rejection of the far-right in the recent elections in France and the UK on Monday. Mr Sanchez welcomed France and the UKs decisive commitment to a social left that addresses peoples problems with serious and brave policies in a post published on X, formerly Twitter. There is no agreement or government with the far-right, Mr Sanchez added. The United Kingdom and France have said YES to progress and social advancement and NO to the regression of rights and freedoms. Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez and French president Emmanuel Macron talk at the opening ceremony of the Summit on Peace in Ukraine at the Buergenstock Resort in Stansstad near Lucerne, Switzerland, June 15, 2024. - REUTERS 09:21 AM BST What are political leaders saying about the result? Following Frances election results, here are some key comments from political leaders on Monday morning: Marine Tondelier, Greens General Secretary: According to institutional logic, Emmanuel Macron should today officially call on the Nouveau Front Populaire to name a prime minister. Will he do so? As this president is always full of surprises, we shall see. Manuel bombard, France Unbowed leader It is the leading political grouping in the National Assembly that is to govern, so the President of the Republic has a duty to summon a prime minister from the new Popular Front to the Matignon (the prime ministers residence). Olivier Faure, Socialist Party Leader: We need to present a candidate within the week. Yael Braun-Pivet, Senior Centrist Lawmaker, Macron Ally: What I am seeing is that the coalition that I have been calling for for months and which was impossible to achieve in the Assembly as it was then constituted, well now for me it has become compulsory because the will for it comes from the French people and that changes everything. Francois Bayrou, Centrist MoDem Party Leader: The path, I believe, can be found. I dont say it is certain to be found. I think its extremely difficult. 08:59 AM BST Telegraph readers react Telegraph readers have reacted to Frances shock election result. 08:43 AM BST Germanys Habeck sees French election result as challenge for relations German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck expressed relief at the lefts victory over the far right in the French election, but cautioned that significant challenges remain for France, Europe, and the Franco-German relationship. In remarks to reporters on Monday in Stuttgart, Mr Habeck highlighted the importance of remaining vigilant in the coming months. German Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck welcomed the lefts victory against the far right in We cannot say this went well and tick the checkbox yet, Mr Habeck stated. We still need to pay close attention to what happens next in France, he added. 08:33 AM BST French left to name candidate for prime minister this week The French left will choose a candidate for prime minister from within their electoral coalition within the week, Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure said on Monday. Mr Faures socialists are one of the left-wing parties that make up the New Popular Front (NFP), the alliance that won the most seats - but no outright majority - in Sundays parliamentary election. The results showed a clear disavowal of the presidential camp, Mr Faure told France Info radio on Monday, adding that the only credible alternative was the NFP. He said that realism is essential as his coalition did not achieve an outright majority and will therefore be obliged to negotiate, but called on President Macron to recognise his defeat. 08:23 AM BST Protestors react angrily to result Protestors have reacted angrily to the election result in Paris. The National Rally party was expected to have a strong showing in the second round of Frances parliamentary election. A man places an uprooted plant on a pile of burning e-bikes during a protest - Carl Court/Getty Images Protesters hold a banner reading "The real barrier is the road" during a demonstration following the announcement of the first results - LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images Demonstrators clash with anti riot police - LOIC VENANCE/AFP via Getty Images 08:07 AM BST Ukraine supporters breathe sigh of relief Many of Frances allies breathed a sigh of relief that the worst was averted as Marine Le Pens far-right failed to win a snap election. Ukraines allies feared a Le Pen-led government could be soft on Moscow and pare back military aid that Kyiv has relied on since the Russian invasion in 2022. In Paris enthusiasm, in Moscow disappointment, in Kyiv relief. Enough to be happy in Warsaw, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on X. 08:05 AM BST French Prime Minister offers resignation French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said on Sunday he will hand his resignation to President Emmanuel Macron on Monday morning, after his coalition failed to win a majority in the parliamentary elections. Mr Attal said he will remain in the post during the upcoming Paris Olympics and for as long as needed, as polling projections show that no party has won an outright majority. From tomorrow, our political space should get to work to build a new political offer, to think always and above all of the French, of their lives, and to personify hope for them once again, Mr Attal said on Sunday as he announced his resignation. 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. French President Emmanuel Macron at the French Foreign Ministry, at the Quai d'Orsay in Paris, on June 20, 2024. Credit - Dylan MartinezPOOL/AFP/Getty Images French President Emmanuel Macron had a bruising night. After Sundays crucial legislative election, his centrist Ensemble alliance still has 168 MPs in the National Assembly. He may well try to stage a comeback after his Presidential term expires in 2027. But Macrons deeper political projectthe belief that he could single-handedly forge a new and lasting political consensus through pro-business reforms with an increased emphasis on law-and-orderhas gone up in flames. It may take time for newly-elected legislators to reach a consensus and form a new government. In the 66-year history of Frances Fifth Republic, the National Assembly has never been as divided as it is now, with the largest number of seats belonging to a broad left-wing coalition, followed by Macrons Ensemble, and then the far-right. But whatever these parties decide, this much is clear: the center of political gravity in France has shifted from the Elysee Palace to the Palais Bourbon. Its 577 MPs will be the ones determining the direction of French politics and the President will be forced to live with their choices. As past experiences of cohabitation have shown, its the Prime Minister who sets the national agenda, with the President focusing on defense and foreign policy. Barred from calling new elections for at least another year, Macron will now be reduced to the role of outside observerjust one actor among many. An own-goal for the ages In the run up to his first election in 2017, then-candidate Macron emphasized his goal was to weaken an ascendant far-right. By that metric alone, his presidency could be deemed a failure: Marine Le Pens National Rally (RN) now has a record number of MPs. And instead of a brilliant gamble, his move to call snap legislative elections after the RNs win in European Parliament elections on June 10, will go down as one of the most bewildering own-goals in French political history. The largest bloc in the National Assembly is now the left-wing New Popular Front, which soared thanks to its popular economic proposals like raising the minimum wage and hiking taxes on the rich as well as intense voter backlash against the RN. The disastrous results for Macron will only fuel speculation about his motivations for dissolving the National Assembly in the first place. One should not rule out the possibility that the President was ready to give Le Pens party a chance to govern. According to this theory that circulated the halls of the Elysee, giving the RN a share of power wouldve tainted the partys anti-establishment mystique and decreased its chances of winning the presidency in 2027. As Frances newspaper of record Le Monde reported, it was Prime Minister Gabriel Attalnot Macronwho took the lead on the strategy of encouraging candidates to drop out of second-round races to reduce the risks of an RN majority. If the so-called Republican front lived to see another day, its thanks to the left coalition, which withdrew more candidates from second-round races than anyone else. And its thanks to Macronist candidates, but not the President himself. They helped lay the groundwork for French voters to deliver a punishing blow to Le Pens party. More from TIME But hubris should never be discounted when trying to understand the French President. From his top-down style of governance and carefully-calibrated communications strategy to his projections of French power abroad, Macron fashions himself a modern-day Charles de Gaulle, the World War II hero and towering statesman who shaped Frances post-war institutions. Macrons interior minister described the election gamble as very Gaullian, a nod to the man who dissolved the National Assembly on two occasions and made sweeping constitutional changes through popular referenda. He may have genuinely thought he could win. Read More: Read TIME's Full Conversation With Emmanuel Macron But of the countless differences between Macron and de Gaulle, perhaps the most important one is that the current French President is tremendously unpopular. Starting with his very first election in 2017, Macron never seemed to recognize that many of his votes had come from those determined to deny the presidency to his far-right opponent. Instead of governing France like the politically-divided nation that it is, he acted as if he had a mandate to tear up and rewrite the nations social contract. In some sense, all the problems flow from this misunderstanding. Macrons pro-business economic reforms were often celebrated abroad as a much-needed jolt to an overly-regulated national economy, but back home, they were widely perceived as cruel and unfair. Workers got unemployment benefits slashed and saw labor protections loosened. The well-off got cuts in the capital gains tax and the wealth tax. The much-loathed hike in the retirement age from 62 to 64 disproportionately hit people working tougher jobs and living shorter lives. Macron repeatedly opposed significant hikes in the minimum wage or raising taxes on the rich. All of this ramped up hostility among low-to-middle-income voters. France's far-right Rassemblement National (RN) party volunteers paste campaign posters of party President and lead European Parliament election candidate Jordan Bardella in Lyon on May 6, 2024. Jeff PachoudAFP/Getty Images But something else happened, too. Toward the end of his first term, Macron and his allies started flirting more and more with conservative talking points and even tried legislating on some of the RNs preferred themesthinking perhaps they could outmaneuver them on their own territory. His ministers criticized the ravages of wokisme and Islamo-leftism. His party passed a sweeping security law that included a measure that would have criminalized the filming of police officers (blocked by the Constitutional Council). He passed an immigration law that achieved a longstanding RN demand to restrict foreigners from accessing critical welfare programs (also blocked by the same court). He vowed to ramp up the war on drugs and signed off on an experiment to impose mandatory school uniforms. If this rightward drift was supposed to boost Macrons standing among conservative voters and reduce the appeal of the RN, then it too can be deemed a failure. Just consider the first-round results of the last two legislative elections: since 2022, Macrons coalition lost five percentage points, while the RN gained more than 14. French politics remain a battle between three blocs, but with a new balance of forces: the centrist alliance is flagging, the far-right is surging, and the left is slowly gaining steam. The leftist lesson Its difficult to predict what comes next. Built by de Gaulle, Frances post-war state wasnt designed for moments like these, as the Constitution does not address scenarios where the President and Prime Minister come from different parties. And while the norms and practices of power-sharing agreements have been hammered out over time, the Fifth Republic has never experienced a National Assembly split into three bitterly-divided blocs. Still, the Constitution makes clear that the power to determine policy resides with a government that can win enough support from the National Assembly. As such, it makes sense for Frances left New Popular Front coalition to be the first ones to govern. It has more seats than anyone else and could attempt to form a minority government, focusing on broadly popular measures and appealing to public support for legitimacy. But if a united left coalition fails to withstand the all-but-certain opposition from its foes, some other options may emerge. France may move toward some type of temporary technocratic caretaker government, a la Itays Mario Draghi. Or Macronist MPs may try to team up with some elements of the leftthough, for now, even the Socialist Party, the most moderate faction of the New Popular Front, has stressed its opposition toward governing alongside the Presidents party. For now, PM Gabriel Attal is staying on until an alternative emerges. Whatever happens in France in the coming days, there is a lesson for the democratic West. If politicians are serious about defeating the far-right, they should steer clear of Macrons approach and look at what the New Popular Front has managed to accomplish. Its a simple formula: bread-and-butter measures to improve living standards for Frances working-class majority and relentless hostility toward attempts to demonize immigrants and their descendants. French voters may not have delivered an absolute majority to left-wing parties. But theyve shown that France, and perhaps voters the world over, want to hear more of what the left has to say. Contact us at letters@time.com. The Spanish Army detachment a total of 11 soldiers stationed on the tiny island of Alboran, about 55 km (35 miles) north of Morocco and 85 km (53 miles) from the Spanish province of Almeria, has a brand new baking facility to make fresh bread. This is the only piece of good news the military have had all week. On Wednesday, a delegation of 13 politicians from mainland Spain, representing all political stripes, visited them and expressed concern at the recent increase in drug boats that are now also using this route (shorter than the others) to introduce undocumented migrants into Spanish territory. So far this year, the mafias have brought 518 migrants to this flat islet with a surface area of only seven hectares that rises out of the water in the middle of the western Mediterranean Sea. For several months now, Spains Maritime Rescue service has stopped transferring the migrants to mainland Spain, which means they spend weeks at a time on the rocky outcrop, where the soldiers lack the resources to care for them until they are eventually transferred by officers from the Civil Guard law enforcement agency. The Ministry of Defense is now erecting a temporary building to somewhat improve the conditions of their stay. Between January and June, 20 drug boats have stopped in Alboran to drop off 518 undocumented migrants (including 31 minors and 23 women), almost all Moroccan citizens. The skippers are sometimes armed. The soldiers based in Alboran have also noticed that it is often better for them to hide and not make themselves visible to the traffickers, so that the latter will not push the migrants into the open sea, in areas with cliffs and difficult to reach. Defense officials have concluded this route is good for smugglers because it is shorter, cheaper and less dangerous than the one that leads from Morocco to the coast of Cadiz or Almeria. Alboran is halfway between the cities of Nador in northern Morocco and Adra in southern Spain. The military, which have been present on the island since 1997, complain that it is not part of their duties to welcome and care for the immigrants, but rather to protect the sovereignty of a territory that is part of Spain. Defense Minister Margarita Robles traveled to the islet in person on March 11 after Alboran registered 198 arrivals in the month of February alone. The outlook has not improved since then. Given the evidence that Alboran has become a space of interest for the migrant mafias, in April the Spanish government released 1.3 million to urgently erect a structure in which to temporarily house the new arrivals, after learning that they were spending weeks on an island devoid of any buildings other than a lighthouse. The pavilion is still in a very early stage of construction. Building under construction on the island of Alboran to house migrants. In recent weeks, the Civil Guard has assumed the work of transferring migrants to the peninsula, but these trips that were once handled by Maritime Rescue services and carried out on the same day as the boat arrivals, can now be delayed by several weeks. The islands infrastructure is limited to a lighthouse equipped to house the soldiers stationed there, a small dock and little else. The terrain is steep and there is one tiny cove next to the dock. Sources at the Interior Ministry, which oversees the Civil Guard, said that they pick up migrants whenever the weather conditions allow it, but they also emphasized that Maritime Rescue has stopped handling the transfers and that they cannot assume this service. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition U.S. Sen. Angus King (I-ME) speaks to reporters at the U.S. Capitol October 26, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) U.S. Sen. Angus King of Maine said that President Joe Biden needs to demonstrate to the public that he is capable of being the Democratic nominee for the 2024 presidential election after a widely criticized debate performance late last month. When asked about increasing calls for Biden to step aside so the Democratic Party can nominate another candidate, a spokesperson King, an independent, said the senator does not speak to Democratic nor Republican party strategy or decisions. However, the spokesperson said King was concerned by Bidens June 27 debate performance and believes the president should take every opportunity in the coming days to establish his capacity to continue the campaign and the job of the presidency through unscripted interviews and direct interactions with voters. It is only through such a public process that he can demonstrate that [the debate] was simply an off night, Kings spokesperson added, and that his past ability to define the issues and seek common sense solutions remains undiminished. Kings comments echoed those made by Maine Gov. Janet Mills, who last week was among the Democratic governors who joined Biden in a call about Democratic support in light of the debate. During the conversation, Mills shared with Maine Morning Star that she conveyed to Biden that it would be good for him to reassure the voters of Maine, just as he was reassuring us. On Monday, Biden sent a letter to congressional Democrats, arguing that Democratic voters chose him and that he believes he remains the best candidate to defeat former President Donald Trump. We had a Democratic nomination process and the voters have spoken clearly and decisively, he wrote. I received over 14 million votes, 87% of the votes cast across the entire nominating process. | have nearly 3,000 delegates, making me the presumptive nominee of our party by a wide margin. Kings comments come amid increasing calls from Democratic congressional lawmakers for Biden to step down. U.S. Reps. Chellie Pingree and Jared Golden, both Democrats, have not responded to repeated requests for comment as to whether they believe he should remain the partys candidate. Last week, Golden penned an op-ed arguing that regardless of whether Biden steps aside or not, he believes Trump will win the presidency in November. Maines representatives will need to work with him when it benefits Mainers, hold him accountable when it does not and work independently across the aisle no matter what, Golden wrote. U.S. Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican who publicly backed Trumps rival, former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, has signaled that she is concerned Biden is not up to the challenge of another term as president. I dont know how one could not be concerned, Collins told the Bangor Daily News. Crises dont happen between 10 and four. They tend to happen in the middle of the night. Both our adversaries and our allies were watching what so many Americans watched on the debate stage and you cant help but be concerned. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST Due to the work of previous generations, women have the ability to vote, access education, open a credit card, purchase a home, run for office or control the trajectory of their lives. (Getty Images) On July 12th, we celebrate International Malala Day in recognition of the youngest Nobel Prize laureate in history and a tireless human rights advocate for the education of women and children. As a young woman living in Pakistan, Malala Yousafzai was shot by a Taliban gunman in an assassination attempt after leaving school. When she recovered, Yousafzai became a prominent activist focused on worldwide access to womens education. Her story, and continued dedication to advancing the rights of women, are important not only for women but for democracy. It is no coincidence that womens equality, civil rights and democracy are all subject to the rise of authoritarianism. While womens empowerment is often considered an outcome of democracy, more people are starting to recognize the opposite is true educated and politically active women are a necessary precursor for democracy. Authoritarian regimes have reason to fear womens education and political participation; when women activate and mobilize, mass movements are more robust, sustained and likely to succeed. In addition, outcomes of these efforts are more likely to promote equality, increase democratic participation and advance power-sharing beyond existing hierarchical structures. Over the last century, women have won the right to vote and worked diligently to expand access to education, economic opportunity and reproductive health care. These hard fought wins, however, are in jeopardy as an assault on womens rights has corresponded with a broader offense on democracy. As we recommit in this election year to democratic values and advancing progress for women and other underrepresented populations in the decision making process, its important to understand patriarchal backlash as a fundamental strategy of authoritarian regimes. Autocrats and nationalist leaders use a similar playbook to advance hierarchical gender norms and undergird top-down, male-dominated rule to consolidate power. In this respect, independent and politically activated women are a threat to systems of oppression and controlor a powerful weapon against authoritarianism. Movements that seek progress and the advancement of democratic principles greatly benefit from the participation and leadership of women due to many factors including the need to activate large numbers of people and be resilient in the face of repression. By working collectively and demanding political and economic inclusion, women have the ability to push for democratic transitions that uplift not just them, but their families and communities. Women across the world have led efforts to demand access to fundamental human rights and inclusion in democracy for the past 100 years. Without the work of these previous generations, women would not have the ability to vote, access education, open a credit card, purchase a home, run for office or control the trajectory of their lives. By restraining womens agency and limiting their aptitude and ability to participate in a civil democracy, autocratic leaders purposefully look to silence voices and subjugate women socially, politically, economically and culturally. Women4Change Indiana, a nonpartisan organization founded in 2017, has been increasingly aware of the opportunities and challenges women face in Indiana, the United States and across the world. We recognize how assaults on democracy like weakening rule of law and restrictions on ballot access go hand in hand with efforts to reduce womens equality. Working in partnership with the International Leadership Association (ILA), Women4Change is excited to continue dialogue on the relationship between the rise of authoritarianism and the attack on womens rights. Join us on Sept. 12 as we make connections between women-led movements in other countries and strategize how to mobilize on broad-based issues for marginalized groups to ensure an inclusive democracy. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Man Accused of Murder, Dismemberment of 14-Year-Old Girl. Was She Killed Because She's Transgender? Advocates have called on authorities to investigate the murder of Pauly Likens as a possible hate crime Amanda Benedict/GoFundMe Pauly Likens A Pennsylvania man is accused by authorities of murdering a 14-year-old transgender girl who was found dismembered. Pauly Likens was last seen on June 22, Pennsylvania State Police said in a press release. Later that week, various dismembered human remains, later identified as Paulys, were found scattered around Shenango Lake, police said. The Mercer County Coroner identified the remains. DaShawn Watkins was arrested after police claimed he was seen on surveillance video carrying a large duffle bag and allegedly making several trips in and out of his apartment with different bags on June 24. Police alleged that blood was found in Watkins apartment, including under the bathroom floor. Watkins was charged with first-degree murder, according to court records, as well as aggravated assault, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence. It is not immediately clear if he has retained an attorney or entered a plea. Pam Ladner, of the LGBTQIA+ Alliance Shenango Valley, told TribLive, WTAE and WPXI that she was informed by the victims mother that Pauly was a transgender female. Authorities have not said if they believe Paulys killing was a hate crime, though the Pennsylvania Youth Congress, a statewide LGBTQ organization, called on local and federal authorities to consider the possibility of bringing hate crime charges against Watkins. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage, and details of intriguing unsolved cases. A GoFundMe started by a friend of Paulys mother has raised over $22,000. Pauly was only 14 years old and had a whole life ahead of her, the organizer wrote. No mother should have to bury their baby and due to her unexpected death the family was not financially prepared for funeral expenses. According to an online obituary, Pauly was an avid gamer and loved animals. She is survived by her parents and two siblings. Pauly lit up every room she entered, always making people smile and passing around her contagious laughter, the obituary says. Pauly was a selfless person never missing a chance to help others and give what she could. Even as a young child, she donated her spare change to the veterans stand outside Walmart. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Teen arrested for kidnapping, child molestation in Athens after series of hit-and-run crashes Athens police are accusing a Lawrenceville man of kidnapping and molesting a child. Just before 5 a.m., police responded to the 200 block of Highland Park Drive about a reported kidnapping. During their investigation, officers found the suspects vehicle on Westchester Drive after a series of hit-and-run crashes. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The child was found by officers and taken to the hospital. Police arrested Jehron Keys, 19, and charged him with kidnapping, child molestation, statutory rape, reckless driving, three counts of hit-and-run, failure to maintain lane, and unsafe tires. Their investigation is ongoing. If you have information about this case, police ask you to email Detective Shapland at dara.shapland@accgov.com or call 762-400-7198. TRENDING STORIES: [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: Man who died named in alleged DUI crash that split car in half in Broward: deputies A man suspected of drunk driving was arrested after deputies say he was speeding and swerving lanes before smashing into a tree splitting the car in half in a grisly crash that resulted in the death of his passenger in Cooper City. Ivan Billie Jr. was arrested Saturday, the Broward Sheriffs Office said Sunday afternoon. The 25-year-old faces six charges that include vehicular homicide and driving under the influence resulting in death. BSO confirmed Monday that Billie Jr. is a member of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. At around 4:30 a.m. Saturday, Pembroke Pines Fire Rescue and BSO were called to the scene of a crash near Sheridan Street and Solano Avenue. Upon arrival, they found a car split in half. One man, Justice Fielder, was pronounced dead at the scene, BSO said. Billie Jr. was found injured and taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. In bond court Sunday, prosecutors noted Billie Jr.s blood alcohol level was nearly .24% about three times Floridas legal limit of .08%. Billie Jr. was driving a 2023 Chevrolet Camaro with Fielder, according to the investigation. He was heading east on Sheridan Street when he tried to swerve around another vehicle in his lane. Billie Jr. then lost control of his car, which veered into the center median and hit a tree. The impact caused the car to hit a second tree, cross into the westbound lanes and strike a large concrete utility pole, breaking it at the base and splitting the car in half. The vehicle continued moving until it finally came to a stop in the westbound lanes. Following the crash, Billie Jr. was seen walking away from the wreck covered in blood. Investigators confirmed that he was the driver and owner of the car. After receiving medical treatment, Billie Jr. was arrested and taken to BSOs Main Jail. His bond is set at $60,000. BSOs investigation into the crash is ongoing. A French court has ruled that the American accused of sexually assaulting a Pennsylvania college student in 2013 and later sending her a Facebook message that said So I raped you can be extradited to the United States, the Associated Press reports. Ian Cleary, 31, of California, was arrested in France in April after a three-year search. He is accused of sexually assaulting an 18-year-old Gettysburg College while she texted friends for help. An international search for Cleary was launched in 2021 when authorities in Pennsylvania issued a felony warrant. The accuser, who had a rape exam done the same day she was assaulted, gathered witnesses and evidence and spent years urging officials to file charges. She went to authorities again in 2021 after discovering Facebook messages that seemed to come from Clearys account that included So I raped you, and Ill never do it to anyone ever again. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Target to stop taking personal checks Man dies after being shot by woman while trying to enter house in Carrick Saving money while electric bill rates reach 10-year high VIDEO: Residents concerned after they say they found dead dogs left in garbage in Allegheny County DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) A man was accused of child abuse after dropping a boy off a second story balcony in Daytona Beach, according to an arrest report obtained by NBC affiliate WESH. Daytona Beach police said Brandon Gilmore, 31, was caught on camera dangling a child over the edge of a resort balcony by one leg and dropping him head-first. Gilmore met the childs mother just hours before the incident, according to police records. Police said he told them he took the boy outside to scare him a little bit. The fall was captured on security camera video. Police did not specify the childs age. The boy suffered blunt force trauma to his head and was taken to the hospital. There is no word on his condition as of this report. Gilmore was arrested and charged with aggravated child abuse. The incident was reported to the Florida Department of Children and Families. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 his 20s was found unresponsive in a Lauderdale Lakes swimming pool Monday morning, according to Broward Sheriffs Office firefighters. The man, thought to be 27 or 28 years old, was found around 9:10 a.m. in a pool behind a house in the 4200 block of Northwest 31st Terrace. Battalion Chief Michael Kane, a BSO Fire Rescue spokesman, said the man was in cardiac arrest when paramedics arrived. The medics were able to resuscitate him and get him to a hospital for treatment, Kane said. The mans condition was not immediately known. Fire Rescue has not identified the man. This story will be updated as more information becomes available. Just over a month after obtaining the green light from France, Germany and the United States to use their ammunition against Russian territory close to the border with Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy is on a new diplomatic effort to cross another new red line of the West, especially of Washington. The Ukrainian leader has reiterated, in messages through social media, that decisions must be made to be able to reach, at whatever distance, the launch point of Russian projectiles. Our cities and communities suffer daily from such Russian strikes, the president said on June 29, after a bombing that left seven dead in the Zaporizhzhia region. There are ways to overcome this by destroying the terrorists where they are, eliminating Russian missile launchers, hitting them with long-range weapons, and increasing the number of modern air defense systems in Ukraine, Zelenskiy said. This new campaign by Zelenskiy would currently have the support of several Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Congress. The political perseverance shown by the Ukrainian presidents cabinet since Russia began the full-scale invasion in February 2022 has worked. Messages made openly to the public, and privately to allied governments, have managed to convince Western foreign ministries to shore up Ukraines defense. And it has had an effect: since Paris, Berlin which provided the Franco-British Storm Shadow missiles and, shortly after, Washington which sent HIMARS and ATACMS supported Ukraines attacks on Russian territory to stop the Kharkiv offensive a month ago, the number of bombs and civilian deaths in this province has fallen. Whether due to the deterrence of this move Ukraine has been able to hit S-300 and S-400 batteries in the Russian region of Belgorod or due to the work of the head of the army, Oleksandr Syrskyi, Kyiv has been able to contain Moscows onslaught, which began in early May. Strikes on the Russian border areas helped protect lives, Zelenskiy said in a recorded on June 30. So will further decisions the bold decisions that must be made, that we need and that we are discussing with our partners. In other words, the decisions made so far do not go far enough. Despite the progress, on June 29, a new Russian attack with guided bombs caused the death of seven people in Vilniansk, a small town in the province of Zaporizhia, in the southeast of the country. Three of the victims were children. Kyiv is largely addressing its call to Washington. Although U.S. President Joe Biden gave the green light for its ammunition to be used against Russian territory along the border, he did not include the ATACMS missiles, which have a longer range, in this new scope. The executive director of the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Center, Dmytro Zhmailo, explains in an email exchange the importance of these projectiles: They have a range of up to 300 kilometers [186 miles]. This zone of destruction includes more than 100 military units and, most importantly, some 18 air bases from where Russian planes bomb Ukraine. The exact limit imposed by the U.S. for the use of its missiles against Russian territory is not known. On June 21, The Washington Post reported Ukrainian sources who said that the range is less than 62 miles from the Ukrainian border. The newspaper also quoted the statements very open to interpretation made by U.S. national security advisor Jake Sullivan in an interview with the PBS network: This is not about geography. Its about common sense. If Russia is attacking or about to attack from its territory into Ukraine, it only makes sense to allow Ukraine to hit back against the forces that are hitting it from across the border. Ukrainian agents inspected the crater and destruction caused by a Russian attack in Vilniansk, in the province of Zaporizhzhia, on June 29. KATERYNA KLOCHKO (EFE) Russia launched around 800 guided missiles the same that struck Vilniansk in the last week of June. Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov recently reported that, from the beginning of this year until May, 10,000 projectiles of this type had fallen on Ukrainian soil. These weapons short-range and cheaper than other ammunition are a real nightmare for soldiers and civilians in the border provinces of Donetsk, Kharkiv and Sumi. According to United Nations data, 174 civilians died in May, while 690 were injured the highest figure recorded since June 2023. Guided missions can be launched from Russian territory, at a distance that, at the moment, is not within the reach of Ukrainian artillery. The other nightmare for Ukrainians is glide bombs, which are able to evade anti-aircraft defense systems because they do not carry the propulsion and heat that radars usually capture before launching rockets to intercept. According to Ukrainian government data, more than 3,000 of these projectiles hit targets in March alone. Like guided missiles, glide bombs can be launched from areas far from the range of the Ukrainian missiles. Even if it is fired by a Russian air fighter near the border, its port of departure is usually at a greater distance. Thats where Kyiv wants to target now. Attacks on military air bases, continues Zhmailo, a military and political expert, will force the Russian command to withdraw aircraft from the potential damage zone to points farther away from the Ukrainian border. This will affect the effectiveness of the use of Russian combat aircraft: it will increase the time it takes for them to fly to the bomb drop site. The defense will also have more time to respond, making cities safer. Ukrainian police were working in the shopping center hit by a Russian missile and drone attack on Dnipro on July 3. Mykola Synelnykov (REUTERS) Last Wednesday, on July 3, a new Russian missile and drone attack killed eight people in Dnipro, a city located in the center of the country. The bombing also damaged a shopping center, schools and daycare centers. Zelenskiy repeated his call for more ammunition for anti-aircraft defense Germany reported on Friday through its ambassador in Ukraine, Martin Jaeger, of the arrival of its third shipment of Patriot systems and more long-range attacks against Russian bases. We are actively communicating about all this with our partners at all levels, the Ukrainian president said on his Telegram profile. Last Monday, a delegation of Democrats and Republicans from U.S. Congress traveled to Kyiv to meet with Zelenskiy. After the meeting, Republican Mike Turner, chair of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said that Ukraine should be allowed to strike valid military targets in Russian territory. This issue was previously discussed at a June 26 meeting of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, where both Republican Congressman Joe Wilson and Democrat Gregory Meeks showed their support for lifting the restrictions on Ukraine against targeting military targets inside Russia. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition Man injured after crash into power pole in Fresno County Man injured after crash into power pole in Fresno County FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) A driver was injured after crashing into a high voltage power pole Monday morning, according to the California Highway Patrol. CHP says the crash happened around 9 a.m. at Shields and Academy Avenues. 14 drivers arrested suspected of DUI in Fresno According to investigators, the truck was traveling at a high rate of speed east on Shields Avenue just north of Academy Avenue when the driver lost control and crashed into the high-voltage electric pole. When rescue crews arrived at the scene they extracted the driver with the jaws of life. CHP says the driver, a man in his 30s was transported to Community Reginal Medical Center and his condition is unknown. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Man killed in the crash of homemade helicopter in Sedgwick County identified Authorities identified a 70-year-old man from Andale, Kansas as the person killed when a home-built type helicopter crashed Friday in western Sedgwick County. Vincent Faber was the pilot and sole occupant of the helicopter when the crash occurred, Sedgwick County Sheriffs Office spokesperson Lt. Nathan Gibbs said Monday. The incident was reported just after 8 a.m. Friday when deputies responded to a home-built type helicopter that crashed in a field southwest of Andale. A Federal Aviation Administration spokesperson said the helicopter was a Scorpion 133. FAA aircraft registry records show that Faber owned the helicopter. FAA spokesperson Brittany Trotter said the Scorpion 133 is a small aircraft sold as a kit for self-assembly. RotorWay, the company that manufactured the aircraft, bills itself as the largest kit helicopter company in the world having sold some 5,000 kits from 1972 to 1984. The scorpion helicopter is no longer being made, according to the company. Trotter said the National Transportation Safety Board will lead the investigation and the FAA will assist. The Kansas Highway Patrol was also on the scene Friday morning. . NTSB investigating the July 5 crash of a RotorWay Scorpion 133 near Andale, Kansas. NTSB Newsroom (@NTSB_Newsroom) July 5, 2024 Person killed after home-built type helicopter crashes near Andale KANSAS CITY, Mo. A Kansas City, Missouri man has been charged with first-degree murder after prosecutors say he killed his brother in front of his 3-year-old daughter last week, Clay County court records said. According to a probable cause statement, officers with the Kansas City Police Department were sent to a Northland apartment located on NW 80th Terrace on reports of a shooting just after 6 a.m. on Wednesday, July 3. Man charged in deadly shooting at Kansas City Northland apartment When officers arrived, they found a victim suffering from a gunshot wound inside the doorway. Emergency responders then took the man to North Kansas City Hospital where he was pronounced dead just before 6:45 a.m. Court records said the girlfriend of the victim, a resident of the apartment, was present at the time of the shooting. She allowed officers to enter and search the property and told them the name of the shooter 31-year-old Jaymes D. Henderson. She also told officers that Henderson was the brother of the victim and that he had stayed at her apartment with his daughter for two days before the shooting. According to a formal statement from the girlfriend, she and the victim returned to the apartment that night in a verbal argument. Henderson then interjected himself and began fighting with the victim. Henderson left the apartment during the fight and reentered shortly after, pointing a gun at the victim, the girlfriend said. Kansas City, Kansas police officer stabbed, suspect on the run She explained that she did not see what happened next, however, she heard the victim daring Henderson to shoot him, and thats when she heard the shot. She then found the victim suffering from a gunshot wound in the front of the apartment. After shooting his brother, Henderson demanded the keys to her car, but she refused. The girlfriend said he then begged her not to tell the police and ran from the apartment with his 3-year-old daughter. Court records said that Henderson was found sitting on a bench outside of a Kohls with an empty magazine in his possession. He was then arrested by KCPD officers. While canvassing the area, police located a video of Henderson entering a QuikTrip off Barry Road with his daughter. He was said to have gone into the mens restroom and within two minutes, walked out and left with his 3-year-old. KCPD officers then searched the restroom following his arrest and found a gun wrapped in a paper towel and stashed under a trash can. The gun matched the empty magazine found on Henderson after he was taken into custody. KCFD saves man, woman 2,000 feet underground in Kansas City cave While being questioned, most of Hendersons statements aligned with the girlfriends, but the main difference was in the details surrounding the gun. Henderson said that any time he attempted to leave the apartment during the fight, the victim would reengage with him. He said that while in the heat of the argument, he took the victims gun from his person and shot him. According to the court records, when asked about how he possessed the gun and the circumstances leading up to the shooting, Henderson gave differing stories throughout the interview. Law enforcement also asked what he did with the gun after the shooting, and Henderson said he had dropped it at the scene, even though police told him they found it in the QuikTrip bathroom. Henderson still has not admitted to hiding the gun and refuses to correct his story. However, he did admit to being convicted of two counts of burglary in July 2024 in Jackson County. Kansas City Fire Department saves man stuck in sewer pipe The probable cause statement ended with claims that Henderson is a danger to a crime victim, the community, or another person. Its final sentence declared, Henderson shot an unarmed man in front of a three-year-old. His arraignment is scheduled for Monday at 1:35 p.m. in Clay County and is currently held on a $1 million 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 FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports. Man lighting fireworks killed when one hits him in the head, Washington cops say A 45-year-old man was setting off fireworks when one struck him in the head, killing him, police in Washington said. The man from Bothell was found unconscious in front of a business at about 2:30 a.m. July 5 in the 11500 block of Avondale Road, the Redmond Police Department said in a news release. He had been lighting mortar-style fireworks, police said. These fireworks explode after the fuse has been lit and send dozens of glittering stars into the sky, according to Red Apple Fireworks. One firework hit the man in the back of his head, police said. He wasnt breathing when he was found in the parking lot and was pronounced dead, police said. He died from an accidental explosion from the fireworks, according to police. The mans name has not been publicly released. No one else was injured, police said. What kind of fireworks are legal in Washington? Reloadable mortar fireworks are legal in the state, according to Washington State Patrol and the State Fire Marshals Office. These fireworks have a shell consisting of a container, a lift charge, a time fuse, a burst charge, and stars/effects. The lift charge propels the shell out of the tube igniting the burst charge at the right altitude, igniting the effects, officials said. Other legal fireworks include smoke devices, aerial spinners, roman candles, wheels, ground spinners, cylindrical foundations, cone fountains and parachutes. However, firecrackers, sky rockets and missiles, and bottle rockets are illegal. Redmond is about a 15-mile drive northeast from Seattle. Toddler dies after accidentally shooting self in Walmart parking lot, Georgia cops say 1 dead, 1 wounded by shots fired during fireworks display in North Carolina, cops say Fireworks explosion injures three pyrotechnicians at show, California city says Man shot in the Gladeview neighborhood, Miami-Dade police say. One person is in custody A man was hospitalized after being shot multiple times Monday afternoon in the Gladeview neighborhood of Miami-Dade County, police say. The shooting happened around 2:30 p.m. at the 7600 block of of Northwest 27th Avenue, said Detective Andre Martin, a Miami-Dade police spokesman. One person is in custody. Arriving officers placed a tourniquet on the mans leg before paramedics took him to Ryder Trauma Center at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Martin added. Police have not named the 40-year-old man. Man, 3 juveniles arrested in connection to thefts at Virginia ABC stores in Fairfax County FAIRFAX COUNTY, Va. (DC News Now) The Fairfax County Police Department (FCPD) said it has arrested and charged an adult and three juveniles in connection to a series of thefts that took place across several Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority (ABC) stores in the county. Police said that since March, theyve been investigating a group that has been targeting ABC stores by stealing alcohol. Investigators believe the group is connected to 15 ABC store thefts and over $72,000 in stolen merchandise. On May 21, police arrested 27-year-old Jomarice Evans, of Washington, D.C., in a nearby jurisdiction on unrelated charges. After doing an investigation, police were able to connect Evans to the multiple ABC thefts that took place in Fairfax County. NATO Public Forum: What it is, how to attend Evans was charged with Robbery, five counts of Grand Larceny, five counts of Larceny with Intent to Sell, five counts of Transportation of Alcohol, five counts of Contributing to the Delinquency of a Minor, Destruction of Property, and Organized Retail Theft. He is currently being held in another jurisdiction. Police also identified and charged three juveniles in connection with the thefts. The three juveniles were charged with three counts of Grand Larceny and Larceny with Intent to Sell. Police are still working to investigate additional people possibly connected to these thefts. Here is a chart of the dates and locations where the thefts happened: Anyone with information should call police at (703) 566-7750. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Police officers and firefighters work at the site after a man threw a firebomb towards a door at the Norwegian Royal Palace in Oslo and was then arrested by the police. Annika Byrde/NTB/dpa A man in an electric wheelchair threw several incendiary devices at the Norwegian Royal Palace in Oslo, police in the Norwegian capital city said on Monday. The man initially told an eyewitness that he was carrying a bomb and then threw two Molotov cocktails towards the rear of the building, police said. Flames erupted but were quickly extinguished. The situation is "under control," and the man was quickly apprehended, police said. The motives behind the act remain unclear. Footage published by the newspaper Verdens Gang showed flames in front of a large palace door and police officers fighting the blaze with fire extinguishers. The royal court told the broadcaster NRK that it is still unclear how extensive the damage is. The Royal Palace, where King Harald V resides with his wife Queen Sonja, is located in the centre of Oslo. It is surrounded by the large Palace Park. Police officers and firefighters work at the site after a man threw a firebomb towards a door at the Norwegian Royal Palace in Oslo and was then arrested by the police. Annika Byrde/NTB/dpa MEMPHIS, Tenn. A man and two teenagers are facing charges after police say they led officers on a pursuit on I-240 Saturday afternoon. Memphis Police say 21-year-old Ladarius James, a 17-year-old boy, and a 15-year-old boy are all facing multiple charges, including theft of property, aggravated robbery, and evading arrest. According to Memphis Police, officers responded to an auto theft at Parish LIFE on Central Avenue at 8:10 p.m. Friday. Police say a 2015 white Dodge Charger and a 2016 gray Dodge Charger were stolen from the scene between 6 p.m. and 7:45 p.m. Police say that on Saturday, at 3:28 p.m., officers spotted the white Dodge Charger at the Ten Mile Creek Apartments. According to Memphis Police, the vehicle had been used in two robberies before officers found it on Tarrywood Drive and Tarry Park. The vehicle reportedly fled from the officers at a high rate of speed. Memphis Police say officers deployed stop sticks but stopped the pursuit when the vehicle started driving in the opposing lanes of I-240. Police say other officers in the area saw the vehicle use the Getwell Road exit. The vehicle reportedly struck another vehicle and finally stopped. According to police, the three suspects and two teenage girls fled from the vehicle. All five were found and detained. Memphis Police say the teen girls, ages 16 and 17, were released without charges. According to police, James also had warrants out for theft of property, robbery, domestic assault, and sexual battery. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. DENVER (KDVR) Boulder police are looking for a driver who allegedly hit an out-of-town visitor while he was walking back to his hotel. On July 2 just before 7 a.m., the Boulder Police Department received a call from a community member who said an injured man was lying in his front yard. 5 injured in single-car crash on I-25 Medical personnel took the man to the hospital with serious bodily injuries. Once he regained consciousness, the victim told officers he had been hit by a driver at a stop light near 17th Street while walking to his hotel in the 2100 block of Canyon Boulevard at around 2-2:30 a.m. The victim told police that after he was hit, he laid down to rest in a yard in the 1800 block of Canyon Boulevard and woke up when medical personnel arrived to help. Download the FOX31 App: Breaking news alerts & Pinpoint Weather The man told police the suspected vehicle was a white Honda or Toyota sedan that had possibly turned left on 17th Street when fleeing the scene. Boulder police also offered a description of the victim in the hope that it would help the community come forward with tips. The victim is described as: Black man 5 feet, 8 inches tall Weighs 135 lbs. Bald with a mustache If you witnessed the crash or saw the car or the victim around the area on July 2, you are asked to call Crash Investigations Specialist Hanel at HanelJ@bouldercolorado.gov or 720-648-2408 regarding case 24-6398. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. MANAWA, Wis. (WFRV) Friday was a memorable day for the residents of Manawa, but it was not a memory many hope to keep, as flash floods caused significant issues throughout the city. Torrential downpours caused a failure in the Manawa Dam, causing erosion on a large chunk of land that connected the dam to the shore, sending thousands of gallons of water on the Little Wolf River into Manawa. Community Blood Center experiencing critical shortage of blood, looking for donations This caused hundreds of residents to evacuate their homes, only to return to significant flooding in their neighborhoods. Although Friday was a gloomy day that residents thought theyd never see, Manawa is already building back stronger. City officials have made dumpsters available to all residents at no cost, allowing them to dump any damage caused by the flooding. The dumpsters are available behind the Manawa High School. One major issue city officials are stressing is the need for volunteers to help man the dumpster. Anyone interested in lending a helping hand or hauling items for those who cant is encouraged to contact the city at 920-596-2577. While residents helping residents is already apparent in Manawa, neighboring counties are working to help in any way possible. Their help means a lot because the quicker we can get back to normal, despite some things that are going to take a lot of time to rebuild, but having the word normal in your vocabulary is going to be really nice, said Mike Frazier, the Mayor of Manawa. Two residents throwing out trash bags after major flooding in Manawa. (Blake Borths/WFRV) Garbage being thrown away after major flooding in Manawa. (Blake Borths/WFRV) Garbage being thrown away after major flooding in Manawa. (Blake Borths/WFRV) Additionally, UHAUL in Waupaca is offering those affected by the flash floods one month of free indoor or outdoor storage. Those interested can call 715-802-2765. One of the major restoration projects expected to take a significant amount of time is Lindsay Park, which suffered extensive damage from floods. City officials are asking residents to stay away from Lindsay Park. That is going to be a major mess for us to clean up, and were going to need some direction on whos going to clean it up and how to clean it up, added Mayor Frazier when talking about Lindsay Park. As residents clean up, Manawa officials are providing cleaning kits at the Manawa City Hall, Sturm Memorial Library, and Manawa High School for those who lack the necessary supplies. Mayor Frazier told Local 5 News that despite the major damage, Manawa does not qualify for Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funding. Still, they will apply for funding from the Wisconsin Disaster Relief Fund. The big difference is that private residences will not qualify for this type of funding. Sheriff: Man flees from police in Wisconsin, dies after crashing into an SUV in Illinois A meeting led by Mayor Frazier is expected at City Hall on Wednesday night at 6:00 p.m. All residents are welcome to attend, where a preliminary plan for cleanup and how to move forward will be established. Local 5 News will continue to provide updates as Manawa continues its restoration. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. TOMS RIVER - A 60-year-old Manchester woman pleaded guilty Monday to aggravated manslaughter, admitting she fatally attacked her roommate and occasional lover by turning a shower curtain rod, tape dispenser and other household items into weapons during a fight in their home in 2020, Mary Carbone was scheduled to go on trial next week in the 2020 murder of 55-year-old Frank Sochel and was expected to present a defense of battered woman's syndrome. Instead, she accepted a plea bargain in which she was promised a 10-year prison term, the minimum for aggravated manslaughter and 20 years less than the minimum term for murder. When Ryan asked Carbone if she wished to forgo the trial and abandon her battered woman's defense, the defendant, wiping a tear from her eye, responded, "It still happened, but, yes." Mary Carbone during a hearing Monday, July 1, 2024, before Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan in Toms River. She is charged in the death of Frank Stochel, her landlord, roommate and sometimes romantic partner. More court news: Naomi Elkins, accused of killing her kids, faces psychiatric exam before detention hearing Carbone can be considered for release on parole after serving 85% of the prison term, or 8 years, under the state's No Early Release Act. With credit for time she has already served in the Ocean County Jail awaiting trial since her arrest in March 2020, she will have already served half of the 8 years by the time Ryan sentences her on Sept. 13, the judge noted. Carbone was expected to plead guilty last week, but at that time, she asked for more time to consider the state's offer, presented by Meghan O'Neill and Victoria Veni, assistant Ocean County prosecutors. At Monday's plea hearing, Carbone answered affirmatively when her attorney, Paul Zager, asked her if she had resided at a home on Sixth Avenue in Manchester with Sochel, who was her landlord and, "in the beginning, a friend with benefits.'' She also acknowledged that her relationship with Sochel deteriorated into one of domestic violence, resulting in 58 phone calls made to the Manchester police in the span of nine months, some to report domestic violence. More court news: Wall High School teacher arrested on charges of sex with student Mary Carbone smiles at the camera during a hearing Monday, July 1, 2024, before Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan in Toms River. She is charged in the death of Frank Stochel, her landlord, roommate and sometimes romantic partner. 'A hot and heavy fight' Still responding to questions from Zager, Carbone acknowledged that on the night of Feb. 23, 2020, Sochel came into her bedroom uninvited by breaking down the door amd knocked over her television, resulting in what Zager described as "a hot and heavy fight.'' She also acknowledged that during the fight, she used common household instruments, such as a shower curtain rod and tape dispenser, as weapons against Sochel. When Zager asked his client if she was aware that Sochel was unconscious on the floor, Carbone at first said she was unaware of that, and then she said, "Yes, but he's done that a lot of times, not from any injuries, but drinking." Zager asked Carbone if, when she realized Sochel was unconscious, she called 911. "I didn't have a phone," she replied. She also conceded she didn't go to a neighbor's house to ask for assistance or take Sochel to the hospital. "I had no means to take him to the hospital," she said. "You inflicted injuries on him with a variety of instruments in the home?" O'Neill asked the defendant, who replied affirmatively. "You killed Frank Sochel, correct?" O'Neill asked. "Yes," replied Carbone. More court news: Manchester man admits arson, spray-painting swastikas in antisemitic crime spree Mary Carbone during a hearing Monday, July 1, 2024, before Superior Court Judge Guy P. Ryan in Toms River. She is charged in the death of Frank Stochel, her landlord, roommate and sometimes romantic partner. Carbone acknowledged that by inflicting the injuries and not seeking help for the victim, she demonstrated extreme indifference to the value of human life. Only when a health officer went to the home to perform a welfare check on Sochel on Feb. 24, 2020, was the victim's body was discovered. Blood on the walls, mace in the victim's hand At Carbone's detention hearing in March 2020, O'Neill said the health officer walked into a horrific scene and found blood on the walls and carpet in the home and one of the weapons, the shower curtain rod, which had Carbone's fingerprint on it. She said at the hearing that the medical examiner who conducted Sochel's autopsy opined that he suffered a prolonged period of torture. Zager at the 2020 hearing said Sochel, when his body was discovered, had in his hand a medieval mace, an implement devised of a piece of wood with a chain and ball with spikes attached to it, which he said supported a theory that Carbone was defending herself. More on the Manchester murder: Victim was facedown with a medieval-style mace under his hand Authorities allege that in addition to beating Sochel with various household items, she also tried to strangle him with a piece of wood. O'Neill last week said the plea offer was extended to Carbone after an expert for the state agreed with some of the conclusions of a defense expert who evaluated the defendant for battered women's syndrome. "Although Mary Carbone was originally facing a murder charge in connection with Mr. Sochel's death, legitimate proof issues arose during the course of our investigation that we simply could not ignore, and which we were ethically bound to take into account in evaluating this very difficult case,'' Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer said in a news release. "We believe this to be a just and reasonable resolution after careful consideration of all the facts and circumstances,'' Billhimer said. "Additionally, Mr. Sochel's family was consulted in connection with this resolution, and approved of same.'' Kathleen Hopkins, a reporter in New Jersey since 1985, covers crime, court cases, legal issues, unsolved mysteries and just about every major murder trial to hit Monmouth and Ocean counties. Contact her at khopkins@app.com; 732-643-4202. This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Manchester woman admits fatal shower-rod beating of roommate The novelist Margaret Atwood has revealed her shock at the revelation that her fellow Canadian author Alice Munro knew that her daughter was sexually abused by her husbandand stayed with him after finding out the dark secret. It was a bombshell. Im shocked. Im still trying to get my head around it, Atwood, multi-award-winning author of The Handmaids Tale and many other novels, told The Daily Beast. The literary world, like Atwood, is similarly reeling after Andrea Robin Skinners stunning article in the Toronto Star revealing her abuse at the hands of Gerald Fremlinand Munros non-response to it. Nobel Prize Winning Author Alice Munro Dead at 92 Skinners piece in the Star detailed years of abuse at the hands of Fremlin, Munros second husband who died in 2013. Skinner said the abuse first started when she was 9 and he crept into her bed as she slept, lasting until she was well into her teens. She eventually told her mother about it, but the Nobel Prize winner opted to remain with her husband instead. The schism strained Skinners relationship with Munro through the latters death in May; the author had suffered from dementia for more than a decade. The disclosure has prompted agonizing over Munros legacy months after her death at 92, with writers, fans, and contemporaries grappling with honoring a writer whose status as one of the most lauded writers in the world, and one of the supreme practitioners of short story writing in particular, has been tarnished by her protection of an abuser. Atwood told The Daily Beast: It was a bombshell for me. Im shocked. Im still trying to get my head around it. I had heard a rumor about it but very few details, after Gerry was dead and Alice was in an institution. One noteworthy thing for me is that Alice was from small town southwestern Ontario at a time when such things were swept under the carpet as a matter of course. Now that we know about this horrifying episode, there are clues in the worktry her short story, The Peace of Utrecht, and the exposure artist in her novel Lives of Girls and Women, and the short story, Material. There are dark secrets that come to light in much of her work. I once taught a course called Southern Ontario Gothicthat part of the world, where Alice came from, was very Gothic. In Graeme Gibsons interview with Alice in 11 Canadian Novelistswhich was published in 1973, before any of this happenedthe two of them talk about how Gothic the world of Alices upbringing was. Gothic is very much about secrets. Crimes in cellars. The trusted person turning out to be a werewolf. That was Alices real-life background. Ive seen the phrase, the fairy-tale world of Alice Munro, but whoever wrote that hadnt read many fairy tales. The child abandoned in the woods. The girl who runs away from home because of the threat of incest. The father who steps back and lets evil prey on the child. Child sacrifice is the underlying motif: it keeps the family happy, at least superficially. Munros longtime publisher Alfred A. Knopf, her longtime Canadian publisher Douglas Gibson, and her former representatives at WME did not respond to immediate requests for comment. The award-winning novelist Barbara Gowdy told The Daily Beast she was too shocked and rattled to know what I think. Author, journalist, and professor Susan Swan told The Daily Beast: Im not going to throw out Munros books even though I think she betrayed her daughter by not taking her emotional welfare to heart. Its a tragic, horrible and all too familiar story, particularly of Munros generation of mothers who usually needed a husband to survive economically. As a writer, Alice Munro made a good livelihood, but it appears she was still operating from this old way of thinking for women. Im upset and saddened to learn what happened to her daughter, but I agree with the critic Claire Dederer who said cancelling an unethical artist is a useless consumer gesture in the age of late capitalism. In an obituary for The Daily Beast, published in May, Jessica Ferri wrote: Perhaps no other writer is able to write so richly about human emotion with so little exposition or explanation about place, time, or people. Munro assumes that you understand, and you do. And just when you begin to wonder, she provides you with a detail so nuanced that only someone who has made a career of observing people would be able to capture: a moment that seems quiet but in actuality vibrates for us with meaning, searing our memories until our brains stop pulsing. Author Joyce Carol Oates took to X on Monday to reckon with Munros reasoning, wondering why Munro would blame our misogynistic culture for choosing to remain with the man she lovedand admitted was an abuser. She pointed to the men in Munros short stories, pondering if they were projections of the authors seeming subservience to men. Why cannot we discuss ideas, cultural proclivities, psychological motivations? wrote Oates, who admitted in a separate post that she had not read Skinners piece. Is there no room for anything except condemnatory speech? She seems to have behaved very selfishly, cruelly. That has been said & resaid. It seems baffling, such behavior. So why not try to understand? Jiayang Fan, a staff writer for The New Yorker whos set to teach a class on Munros works, wrote on X the piece made her reflect on how best to teach Munros stories, along with whether her fictional tales were personal projections.Will this change the way I teach her stories? It will & it wont, she wrote. [Because] I dont believe writersor the things they writeare ever meant to be placed on pedestals. At their best, stories invite investigation. What is the relationship btw the writer, the violated & the violating? Some fans have taken matters into their own hands. One fan posted a photo on X of their copies of Munros book in a trash bin. As a mother, I cant even, the poster wrote. My response, after reading about Alice Munro. As a mother, I can't even... pic.twitter.com/8Ub4a8gj7O MaggieTulliver, PhD (@maggie_xer) July 7, 2024 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. Who is Marine Tondelier? Meet the Green leader who inspired France to vote against the far-right Who is Marine Tondelier? Meet the Green leader who inspired France to vote against the far-right Frances left/green alliance the New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the dominant force in Sundays election, thwarting Marine Le Pens push to put the far right in power. It came as a shock after weeks of opinion polls had predicted National Rally (RN) a comfortable victory. With the left winning 182 seats, Macrons centrist alliance 168 and Le Pens RN 143, no single group has secured a working majority, Interior Ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. Green Party leader Marine Tondelier has been one of the stand-out voices in the left-wing election campaign. The party is one of the three largest in the alliance and Tondelier has been tipped for the position of Prime Minister. Early on, she called for a Republican front against the far-right - a joint effort involving withdrawing candidates in the second round of the election in favour of those in the best position to beat the far-right. Tonight, social justice has won, Tondelier said in a victory speech. Tonight, environmental justice has won. Tonight, the people have won. And its only just begun. Who is Marine Tondelier? Recognisable by her iconic green blazer, Tondelier has been opposing the far-right from the start of her political career around 15 years ago. She is from the former mining city of Henin Beaumont in the north of France which is run by RN. It is part of the 11th constituency of the Pas-de-Calais - a constituency that has been represented by Marine Le Pen since 2017 with Tondelier dubbed the other Marine. Tondelier was elected as an opposition member of the towns municipal council in 2014 and was a consistently vocal member of local politics. She documented her experiences of bullying and intimidation working under an RN mayor in her 2017 book News from the Front. She has led Frances Green Party since December 2022. Far-left politician Clementine Autain, left, President of the Green Party Marine Tondelier, right, and Socialist Party Secretary General Olivier Faure, centre. - AP Photo/Thomas Padilla, File As a veteran campaigner against the far-right, Tondelier has been a key player in the creation of the left-wing coalition which swept to victory on Sunday night. She has risen to become a popular political figure in the space of just a few days. Tondelier accused RN leader Jordan Bardella of avoiding a debate with her, criticising him by saying, Ah OK, so its really official, Bardella only wants to debate men. The NFP is also there to improve your daily life and make your tomorrows possible, she told France Inter on Monday, and those who forget ecology will forget themselves. What does the Green victory mean for climate action in France? With no working majority, it will be hard for the NFPs legislative proposals to pass a parliamentary vote. It will likely have to enter into another coalition which could dilute some of its policies. Even the NFP itself is a mix of the Socialists, Greens, Communists and the controversial far-left France Unbowed. The coalitions plans include investment in renewable energy, developing offshore wind and hydroelectric power, moving away from nuclear energy and implementing a climate plan aimed at carbon neutrality by 2050. It also mentions a national plan for climate adaptation to protect people and their property that includes temperature thresholds for outdoor workers in extreme heat. And the coalition says it wants to reform the European Unions divisive agriculture policy. RNs defeat has also come as a relief to supporters of the European Green Deal. Leader Jordan Bardella had called on the French government to renounce the deal and what he described as punitive EU environmental policies. With three full months left in the fiscal year for military recruiting, the services already are developing a sense of whether theyll make their target recruiting mission or end up short. The Marine Corps has brought in more than 101% of its recruiting target for the year to date, up from 100% this time in 2023, and officials anticipate meeting annual recruiting goals once again. The Navy, on the other hand, already is expecting to fall short of its target for a second consecutive year. Thats according to military officials who testified before the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services during the committees quarterly meeting on June 25 in Arlington, Virginia. The Air Force and the Army, which have struggled in the past two years to meet recruiting goals, have indicated theyre on track to make mission. Marines move some recruiting centers to urban hubs in massive realignment While well-documented challenges remain, including lower propensity to serve, fewer qualified young people and a recently implemented health records system that has ramped up denials and delays, the services reported improvements in recruiting performance from 2023s numbers as they work to adapt to new realities. The Marine Corps already has brought in 12,924 contracts, above its year-to-date goal of 12,751, according to documents presented by Sgt. Maj. Allen Goodyear, the senior enlisted adviser for Marine Corps Recruiting Command. This time in 2023, it was roughly even with its goal, having brought in 14,632 contracts in line with a goal of 14,632. The service finished fiscal 2023 with 33,223 enlisted accessions 21 contracts above its mission. The Corps projected ability to meet or outpace its goal once again is a result of planning factors allowing for a preponderance of accessions to occur during the summer shipping period which historically has higher quality recruits and mission success, according to slides Goodyear shared with the committee. The Navy, which has a higher enlisted accessions goal in 2024 than in 2023, also is making healthy progress. The service has brought in 30,067 contracts of the 40,600 enlisted contracts it needs in 2024, or 74% of the total, according to data shared by the services chief recruiter, Master Chief Gerald Allchin. This time in 2023 it had just secured 25,039 contracts of the 37,700 contracts it needed, or 66%, according to data shared at the meeting. The service ultimately missed its goal by 7,450 contracts. The 5,000-person year-over-year increase puts the Navy in a more bullish position than it was in even earlier this spring, when Defense Department numbers showed it lagging behind the other services for the first half of the year. Nonetheless, the Navy still projects it wont be enough to meet this years goal. We are seeing significant increases year over year as you saw, Allchin said. Right now, were projecting a miss of around 4,200 for our active enlisted mission of about 40,600. The Air Force appears on pace to make its goal, with 19,321 enlisted accessions putting it just above the year-to-date goal of 19,262. The Air Force Reserve also is on track to hit its target, said Chief Master Sgt. W. Frank Rawls, the Recruiting Services operations superintendent. The service missed its accessions goal by 10% in 2023 in the first such shortfall since 1999. Rawls credits the services 2024 success in part to a $100 million congressional plus-up in recruitment budgeting. And we seek to continue the momentum, Rawls said, citing plans to increase enlistment bonuses and add nearly 200 more recruiters. The Air Force, he said, also has requested $52 million in marketing funds for lead generation and outreach. The Army, which in response to two years of missed accessions goals has overhauled its recruiting enterprise and slimmed down its targets, is nonetheless up year-over-year in raw numbers. As of the end of April the Army had brought in 24,038 total new contracts, or 43.7%, of its goal of 55,000, according to Sgt. Maj. Danny Basham, the services sergeant major for analytics and production. In the same time in 2023 it had secured just 21,917 contracts, or 33.7%, of that years goal of 65,000. So production is increasing, and were figuring out the process, Basham said. While the most recent numbers show substantial ground that still needs to be made up, Basham maintained the service could meet this years lowered target. Our projections are showing that we will make our enlistment mission with a level of depth for the next fiscal year, he said. Even services with consistent recruiting performance like the Marine Corps, however, cited the difficulty of overcoming new challenges posed by MHS Genesis, the militarys new electronic health record. The systems seven-year rollout was completed in March. Because the system meticulously documents military applicants medical histories, it has necessitated a massive increase in waiver requests for conditions that otherwise might have gone unmentioned or ignored by recruiters. Before the health system rollout, Goodyear said, getting 100 new Marine Corps contracts took 154 applicants; now it takes 181 applicants. The number of medical waivers being submitted for applicants has more than doubled, creating processing delays. The average time in military entry processing for recruits has increased from 10 days to 35 days, he said. And that means less time in the delayed entry program, where recruits get physical training and preparation ahead of shipping to boot camp. With an average of 120 days in the delayed entry program compared with 162 days before MHS Genesis, the boot camp dropout rate has increased, he said, from 11% to 12%. Other military representatives at the meeting, who were asked to present data about the impact of MHS Genesis, offered similar perspectives, even as they said theyre learning to work with the system and implementing staffing changes and policy updates designed to cut down on unnecessary delays and improve throughput. Rawls emphasized that delays in initial processing can cause prospective recruits to second-guess their desire to serve. Amid ramped-up efforts to make recruiting mission in the Air Force, he said, service officials estimate between 3,000 would-be recruits and 4,000 would-be recruits in 2023 simply walked away from service amid long medical processing wait times. Goodyear cited a similar effect. When delays and initial disqualifications occur, young Americans who want to serve are faced with uncertainty about their future, Goodyear said. Often, extended delays require these individuals to pursue a different career path based on the financial realities of life. TANEYTOWN, Md. (WHTM) A man is being held in prison without bail after police say he shot and killed another man in a road rage fight not far from the Pennsylvania state line. The incident happened around 10 p.m. July 4 at Bear Run Road and Runnymede Road near Taneytown, Maryland, about seven driving miles from Pennsylvania. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest Carroll County Sheriffs Office deputies responded to a report of a road rage incident with shots fired. Deputies said Davon Dabbs, 20, of Taneytown exited one vehicle with a passenger while Christopher Moore, 36, of Taneytown, exited a second vehicle. A verbal argument between the three then became physical. Moores fiance, a 33-year-old woman, arrived with a legally owned handgun hoping to de-escalate the situation as Moore was being assaulted. Instead, police said, Dabbs rushed at her and attempted to take the handgun. Dabbs was shot in the left leg in the scuffle and gained control of the handgun, firing several shots. Moore was struck and killed while Dabbs passenger was struck in the hand. Moores fiance suffered injuries including a broken jaw after deputies say Dabbs struck her in the face multiple times. Dabbs was arrested Saturday and arraigned on felony homicide and assault charges. He was held without bail and a preliminary hearing is set for August 6 in Carroll County District Court. Vehicle ricochets off tree, leaves one deceased in Lancaster County Anyone with any additional information about this incident is asked to contact Detective Ehrhart at 410-386-2599 or jehrhart@carrollcountymd.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 ABC27. A large fish die-off event hit Lake San Antonio on the Fourth of July, according to California Department of Fish and Wildlife biologist Zachary Crum. Biologists are still investigating the incident, but they suspect that extreme heat caused algae to bloom in the lake consuming most of the oxygen in the water and suffocating the fish. Algal blooms produce oxygen through photosynthesis during the day when sunlight is available, but algae will consume large amounts of oxygen at night when cellular respiration is occurring in the absence of sunlight, Crum wrote in an email to The Tribune. This can lead to lethally low dissolved oxygen levels in reservoirs, which can essentially cause fish to suffocate. All shallow lake fish species were impacted by the die-off, including largemout bass, bluegill sunfish, black crappie, channel catfish, common carp, Monterey sucker, Sacramento pikeminnow, rainbow trout and threadfin shad, he said. Humans and pets were likely not at risk, Monterey County spokesperson Maia Carroll said. Lake goers can still fish, but people are advised to leave the dead fish alone, she wrote in an email to The Tribune. The Monterey County Parks Department manages the lake, which sits near the southern border of the county. Visitors can swim, fish, camp, boat and horseback ride at the county park. MCPHERSON, Kan. (KSNW) Expansion is underway at McPherson College. U.S. Senator Jerry Moran visits with McPherson College President Michael Schneider outside of the construction site for the new Campus Commons. (courtesy McPherson College) The College shared a photo from Senator Jerry Morans recent visit. Moran toured the campus and got a first-hand look at construction projects currently underway. One of the new projects is the Campus Commons building. The new 55,000-square-foot structure will serve as the campus entrance. McPherson College says the Campus Commons will serve as a hub for students, housing student dining, a coffee shop, the campus store, space for student clubs, activities and lounge spaces. The upper floors will house student services, administrative offices, and a welcome center for events and gatherings. Aerial view of the new Campus Commons building under construction at McPherson College (courtesy McPherson College) Artist rendering of the Exterior view of the new Campus Commons building under construction at McPherson College. (courtesy McPherson College/Beck Design) Artist rendering of the interior of the new Campus Commons building under construction at McPherson College. (courtesy McPherson College/Beck Design) Artist rendering of a new coffee shop that will be part of the new Campus Commons building at McPherson College. (courtesy McPherson College/Beck Design) Artist rendering of a new student dining area that will be part of the new Campus Commons building at McPherson College. (courtesy McPherson College/Beck Design) Firefighters pull man from burning home in McPherson It is one of many projects underway on campus. The Boiler House is a new cafe currently under construction in the center of campus that will feature indoor/outdoor seating and offer late-night dining. Artist rendering of the exterior of a new cafe under construction at McPherson College called the Boiler House. (McPherson College/Beck Design) Artist rendering of the interior of a new cafe under construction at McPherson College called the Boiler House. (McPherson College/Beck Design) We are changing the face of our campus in a way that puts the needs of our students first and provides them with a better academic and social life, McPherson College President Michael Schneider said in a news release. The new Campus Commons is at the forefront of a campus redesign, moving McPherson College away from the traditional residential campus to a modern living community. Moran was in McPherson in late June to announce that McPherson College has received federal funding to create an educational center for Rural and Community Health Science in Kansas. Last year, McPherson College received the largest endowment for any small liberal arts college in the United States, over $1.5 billion. For more about McPherson College, visit McPherson.edu. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. What we do and don't know about Biden and Trump's health Biden so far refuses to undergo more cognitive testing after his concerning debate performance. Biden has shared significantly more health information than Trump. Neither candidate has taken a comprehensive slate of neurological exams. Much has been made of President Joe Biden's health recently, with top Democrats and donors wondering whether the 81 year old is fit to serve another term. Though Donald Trump has escaped much of the age-related spotlight recently, he is 78 and the second-oldest person to ever seek the presidency. In his defiant responses to questions about his debate performance, Biden continues to insist that he is in tip-top shape. He maintains that his fumbling answers stemmed from jet-lag, a cold, and exhaustion, not an underlying health concern. "Look, I have a cognitive test every day," he said in an interview on Friday with ABC News. Presidents and presidential candidates choose what to test and share about their health, leaving much up for speculation. Even before last month's debate, a professor of neurology at Harvard said that both Trump and Biden should take a "full-blown neuropsychological exam," according to the New York Times. As age threatens to upend the entire election, what do we actually know about the candidates' health? Joe Biden President Biden hasn't undergone neurological testing since February and doesn't seem poised to do so any time soon. Samuel Corum/Getty Images Compared to Trump, Biden has released far more comprehensive medical information, with the most recent update coming in February of 2024. Dr. Kevin O'Connor, the White House physician, published a six-page report detailing Biden's conditions, test results, medications, and vitals. According to O'Connor, the president suffers from sleep apnea, gastric reflux, and a stiffened gait, among other conditions. A neurological exam related to his gait "was again reassuring," the report specified, and did not indicate a stroke, Parkinson's disease, or multiple sclerosis. The president exercises five days a week, weighs 178 pounds, and has a blood pressure of 132/78. Despite the detail, though, O'Connor has not sat for interviews, as is traditional, according to The Times. Furthermore, his report included no supporting documentation. In February, O'Connor concluded that Biden did not need to take the Neuropsychological Assessment Battery, a slate of 33 tests that looks for dementia and other brain abnormalities. One cognitive test is not sufficient to detect issues, doctors told the Wall Street Journal. While basic tests measure memory, executive functioning, language, and judgment, only PET scans and other more comprehensive exams help doctors make diagnoses about conditions like Alzheimer's. Visitor logs indicate that an expert on Parkinson's disease visited the White House eight times between July 2023 and March of this year, meeting at least once with O'Connor. It's not yet clear if the specialist visited the White House to discuss Biden in particular or other matters, The Times reported. Biden doesn't seem poised to undergo comprehensive neurological examinations anytime soon, despite the chorus calling on him to do so. Donald Trump Trump has released very little detailed medical information. Scott Olson/Getty Images Trump boasts about his vitality often and even said he "aced" two cognitive tests during the recent debate. The public, however, knows shockingly little about the former president's health. In November, 2023, Trump's personal physician blasted out a glowing, vague, three-paragraph summary about his cognitive and physical abilities. In it, Dr. Bruce Aronwald said that he has conducted "several comprehensive examinations" and called Trump's cognitive exams "exceptional." His physical results, the brief report continues, were all within the normal range. Aronwald's report did not include any details about Trump's medications, blood pressure, or cholesterol levels. Some have drawn attention to Trump's weight in the past, but Aronwald noted that he has shed some pounds, though didn't specify how many. Trump was weighed the Fulton County Jail during one of his criminal trials in August, 2023. According to that reading, he weighed 215 pounds, though some question the measurement. In 2018, Trump asked to take the Montreal Cognitive Assessment test, which screens for dementia, and boasted about his perfect score. Like Biden, though, Trump has made significant public gaffes, such as when he called the president of Egypt the "president of Mexico." Doctors note that the test does not measure intelligence and say anyone without dementia should score perfectly. Trump's father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's in his mid-80s, putting the former president at higher risk for the disease. Read the original article on Business Insider Among potted succulents and a thicket of spiky trees, Sylvan Dayspring planted a Yes on Measure A-24 sign in her Morro Bay front yard. Dayspring hoped the ballot measure would block a 600 megawatt battery storage facility proposed for the retired Morro Bay Power Plant property. She worried that the battery plant isnt safe to locate next to the estuary, Morro Bay High School and tourist attractions on the Embarcadero. Everyone wants to have green energy, but the way that you do it has to be responsible, she told The Tribune. Texas-based energy company Vistra Corp. applied to the city to build the facility, which would either house batteries in three Costco-warehouse-sized buildings or in 174 individual enclosures enough to power 450,000 homes, according to Vistra. As of early July, Vistra was working through the permit process and waiting for approval from the city of Morro Bay and the California Coastal Commission. A massive battery storage plant is in the works in Morro Bay. Heres a look at the project site Last year, a community group called Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation mobilized to oppose the battery plant. While touting the slogan No batteries by the bay, the group gathered more than 1,000 signatures from registered voters to place Measure A-24 on Morro Bays ballot this November. If passed, the initiative will freeze the land use on the property as visitor-serving commercial, blocking the City Council from approving the plant. The ballot measure, however, would not necessarily halt the battery plant project. A new state process allows companies to bypass local governments and apply to the California Energy Commission for approval of large renewable energy projects. If Vistra applied to the state for the battery plant, the commission could approve the project whether or not local zoning allowed it. The Tribune took a look at how Measure A-24 would impact the battery plant as part of its Reality Check series. The Morro Bay City City Council voted on Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, to place a citizen initiative on the ballot designed to block construction of the Vistra battery plant. What does the ballot measure do? When Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation member Barry Branin first joined the group, he said his goal was to the block the battery plant. Last summer, however, Branin became concerned that Vistra could sue the group if their stated purpose was to oppose the project so the group broadened its goals, he said. On Friday, Branin told The Tribune that the ballot measure is about land use not the battery plant. He said Citizens for Estero Bay Preservation wants to prevent any industrial projects from being built on the power plant site, not just Vistras proposal. We dont want any industrial use that would be detrimental to our tourist economy, he said. If passed, Measure A-24 would freeze the land use designation of the Morro Bay Power Plant property as visitor-serving commercial, which allows developments including hotels, shops and restaurants. This would prevent the City Council from approving the battery plant or any other industrial project on the property as it would then not align with the designated land use. Currently, a majority vote from the City Council can change a propertys land use designation. If the initiative passes, citizens would have to propose a ballot measure to be approved by a majority of city voters to change the propertys land use. Branin said groups objective now is to encourage development that supports Morro Bays tourism-based economy and give voters the authority to decide when the citys land use changes. Our goal is to put the power in the peoples hands, he said. Texas-based energy company Vistra Corp. applied to build a battery storage facility on the retired Morro Bay Power Plant site. Vistra public information officers Meranda Cohn and Jenny Lyon and project development manager David Yeager tour the site on April 24, 2024. State energy commission could still approve battery plant Vistra does, however, have a loophole for project approval. Assembly Bill 205 allows developers to submit large renewable energy projects to the California Energy Commission for approval bypassing local jurisdictions such as the Morro Bay City Council. Under AB 205, the Energy Commission can approve a project that does not meet local land use rules if the project is required for public convenience and necessity, its website said. In Morro Bay, the California Coastal Commission would have to approve the battery plant, too, however. Energy attorney Brian Biering told The Tribune the law was created to push forward projects designed to support the states increasing energy demand while meeting renewable energy goals. Raised in Los Osos, Biering attended Morro Bay High School just down the street from the proposed battery plant site. He previously worked for the Energy Commission and now practices law in Sacramento with the firm Ellison Schneider Harris Donlan. The idea was, the state has an interest in energy projects, Biering said of AB 205. Nobody wants a power plant in their backyard, but weve got to have power plants somewhere. The process is still young, though. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the law in 2022, and the commission hasnt yet approved or denied a project through AB 205. As of Friday, only the energy company ConnectGen had submitted a complete application to the Energy Commission. The Texas-based company applied to build Fountain Wind, a 48-turbine wind farm that could produce 205 megawatts of electricity in Shasta County. The Shasta County Board of Supervisors voted down the project, then the company applied to the Energy Commission for approval, according to the Redding Record Searchlight. Biering said Fountain Wind will show the state how the commission handles projects denied by local jurisdictions. So far, the commission has held meetings in Shasta County to get input from the public on the wind farm, he said. Theyre definitely working with the local jurisdictions, getting their feedback, holding meetings in the communities where the projects would be located and have always seen themselves as sort of a partner with other agencies, he said. According to Biering, Measure A-24 will likely push Vistra to apply to the Energy Commission to consider the battery plant. In a statement emailed to The Tribune, a Vistra representative said the company was aware of the AB 205 process, but has prioritized working on our local application, pending with the city of Morro Bay. Even if Measure A-24 passes and Vistra pursues that loophole, it would at least slow down the approval process, Biering said, as the Commission would need to review environmental impacts of the battery plant and consider if the states energy needs override Morro Bays land use rules. In that event, staff from the California Coastal Commission and Energy Commission would likely work together to review the battery plant, Biering said, and both agencies should come to a similar conclusion about the project. Its definitely going to make the proceeding more complicated, he said. The former Morro Bay Power Plant site on April 25, 2024, where Vistra has proposed a battery electrical storage facility. The battery facility will be located on the former oil tank farm in foreground and hidden behind the current sand berm that was a containment for the tanks. Some say measure would give up local control While some Morro Bay residents posted Yes on A-24 signs in their yards, others oppose the measure. About 60 people have joined the group Morro Bay Citizens Opposed to A-24, according to member Marlys McPherson. The group didnt take a position on the battery plant, but they do think approval of the project is inevitable. If the measure blocks City Council from approving the project, the group expects the California Energy Commission and Coastal Commission to push it through, anyway, she said. The whole purpose of AB 205 is to override NIMBYism, McPherson said. Its a fairly new law, but its clearly designed to allow a company like Vistra to bypass the local government and ignore any zoning. Rather than block the project, McPherson said Morro Bay citizens should work with Vistra to pursue a project design that suits the community. Vistra already agreed to tear down the Morro Bay Power Plant and its 450-foot-tall emission stacks, which could cost up to $50 million. The city could push for other community benefits and safety requirements, too, McPherson said. However, if the California Energy Commission and Coastal Commission make the decision, there are fewer opportunities for citizen feedback. You are giving up local control, she said. It really takes the decision out of our hands. Whether or not the battery plant project existed, McPherson said freezing the land use would discourage future development on the power plant property. McPherson thinks its unlikely that a developer would want to spend millions of dollars to buy the property, remove the power plant and stacks, then clean up the pollution to build a visitor-serving project like a hotel or aquarium. The former tank farm area on the power plant site is polluted with total petroleum hydrocarbons (TPHs), which are fuel oils burned to generate electricity, as well as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons found in TPHs, according to a 2022 report from the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. Unless the pollution is cleaned up, the 24-acre site could only be safely used for industrial or commercial purposes, the state agency said. Additionally, McPherson doesnt think a developer would petition voters to update the land use to accommodate a different industrial project so the property will likely stay dormant and undeveloped if Measure A-24 passes. You can see it would discourage developers, she said. They have other choices. Branin, however, said he expects the Coastal Commission to reject the project because it conflicts with the propertys stated land use and jeopardizes coastal resources. In a May 28 comment on the projects draft environmental impact report, the California Coastal Commission advised the city to use the final report to investigate alternative sites for the project that may not have the same coastal resource issues and hazards as the current proposed site, it said. Branin hopes a developer would clean up the pollution on the property for the sake of his grandchildren and the health of the environment, he said. Dayspring, meanwhile, will support the ballot measure regardless of the AB 205 process. She said she hopes a yes vote on the initiative would pressure the Energy Commission and Coastal Commission to reject the project. If people really believe in something they can protect whats beautiful, Dayspring said. DiJuana Davis, with daughter Treasure Woodard, at home in Nashville, Tennessee. Davis is a plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit contesting the states Medicaid eligibility process. She and her children lost their coverage in 2019 after Tennessee launched a Deloitte-built eligibility system.(William DeShazer for KFF Health News) DiJuana Davis, with daughter Treasure Woodard, at home in Nashville, Tennessee. Davis is a plaintiff in a class-action lawsuit contesting the states Medicaid eligibility process. She and her children lost their coverage in 2019 after Tennessee launched a Deloitte-built eligibility system.(William DeShazer for KFF Health News) Deloitte, a global consultancy that reported revenue last year of $65 billion, pulls in billions of dollars from states and the federal government for supplying technology it says will modernize Medicaid. The company promotes itself as the industry leader in building sophisticated and efficient systems for states that, among other things, screen who is eligible for Medicaid. However, a KFF Health News investigation of eligibility systems found widespread problems. The systems have generated incorrect notices to Medicaid beneficiaries, sent their paperwork to the wrong addresses, and been frozen for hours at a time, according to findings in state audits, allegations and declarations in court documents, and interviews. It can take months to fix problems, according to court documents from a lawsuit in federal court in Tennessee, company documents, and state agencies. Meanwhile, Americas poorest residents pay the price. Deloitte dominates this important slice of government business: Twenty-five states have awarded it eligibility systems contracts with 53 million Medicaid enrollees in those states as of April 1, 2023, when the unwinding of pandemic protections began, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Deloittes contracts are worth at least $5 billion, according to a KFF Health News review of government contracts, in which Deloitte commits to design, develop, implement, or operate state systems. State officials work hand in glove with Deloitte behind closed doors to translate policy choices into computer code that forms the backbone of eligibility systems. When things go wrong, it can be difficult to know whos at fault, according to attorneys, consumer advocates, and union workers. Sometimes it takes a lawsuit to pull back the curtain. Medicaid beneficiaries bear the brunt of system errors, said Steve Catanese, president of Service Employees International Union Local 668 in Pennsylvania. The union chapter represents roughly 19,000 employees including government caseworkers who troubleshoot problems for recipients of safety-net benefits such as health coverage and cash assistance for food. Are you hungry? Wait. You sick? Wait, he said. Delays can kill people. KFF Health News interviewed Medicaid recipients, attorneys, and former caseworkers and government employees, and read thousands of pages from contracts, ongoing lawsuits, company materials, and state audits and documents that show problems with Deloitte-operated systems around the country including in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, and Texas. In an interview, Kenneth Smith, a Deloitte executive who leads its national human services division, said Medicaid eligibility technology is state-owned and agencies direct their operation and make decisions about the policies and processes that they implement. Theyre not Deloitte systems, he said, noting Deloitte is one player among many who together administer Medicaid benefits. Alleging ongoing and nationwide errors and unfair and deceptive trade practices, the National Health Law Program, a nonprofit that advocates for people with low incomes, urged the Federal Trade Commission to investigate Deloitte in a complaint filed in January. Systems built by Deloitte have generated numerous errors, resulting in inaccurate Medicaid eligibility determinations and loss of Medicaid coverage for eligible individuals in many states, it argued. The repetition of the same errors in Deloitte eligibility systems across Texas and other states and over time demonstrates that Deloitte has failed. FTC spokesperson Juliana Gruenwald Henderson confirmed receipt of the complaint but did not comment further. Smith called the allegations without merit. The system problems are especially concerning as states wade through millions of Medicaid eligibility checks to disenroll people who no longer qualify a removal process that was paused for three years to protect people from losing insurance during the covid-19 public health emergency. In that time, nationwide Medicaid enrollment grew by more than 22 million, to roughly 87 million people. At least 22.8 million have been removed as of June 4 , according to a KFF analysis of government data. Advocates worry many lost coverage despite being eligible. A KFF survey of adults disenrolled from Medicaid during the first year of the unwinding found that nearly 1 in 4 adults who were removed are now uninsured. Nearly half who were removed were able to reenroll, the survey showed, suggesting they should not have been dropped in the first place. If there is a technology challenge or reason why someone cant access health care that they're eligible for, and we're able to do something, Smith said, we work tirelessly to do so. Deloittes contracts with states regularly cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and the federal government pays the bulk of the cost. States become very dependent on the consultant for operating complex systems of all kinds to do government business, said Michael Shaub, an accounting professor at Texas A&M University. Georgias contract with Deloitte to build and maintain its system for health and social service programs, inked in 2014, as of January 2023 was worth $528 million. This January, state officials wrote in an assessment obtained by KFF Health News that its eligibility system lacks flexibility and adaptability, limiting Georgias ability to serve its customers efficiently, improve the customer and worker experience across all programs, ensure data security, reduce benefit errors and fraud, and advance the states goal of streamlining eligibility. Deloitte and the Georgia Department of Community Health declined to comment. Deloitte is looking ahead with its path to Medicaid in 2040, anticipating sweeping changes that will expand its own business opportunity. State Medicaid leaders and policymakers are hungry to know what the future of health care holds, the company said. Deloitte brings the innovative tools, subject matter expertise, and time-tested experience to help states. Trouble in Tennessee When Medicaid eligibility systems fail, beneficiaries suffer the consequences. DiJuana Davis had chronic anemia that required iron infusions. In 2019, the 39-year-old Nashville resident scheduled separate surgeries to prevent pregnancy and to remove the lining of her uterus, which could alleviate blood loss and ease her anemia. Then Davis, a mom of five, received a shock: Her familys Medicaid coverage had vanished. The hospital canceled the procedures, according to testimony in federal court in November. Davis had kept her insurance for years without trouble. This time, Tennessee had just launched a new Deloitte-built eligibility system. It autofilled an incorrect address, where Davis had never lived, to send paperwork, an error that left her uninsured for nearly two months, according to an ongoing class-action lawsuit Davis and other beneficiaries filed against the state. The lawsuit, which does not name Deloitte as a defendant, seeks to order Tennessee to restore coverage for those who wrongly lost it. Kimberly Hagan, Tennessee Medicaids director of member services, said in a court filing defending the states actions that many issues reflect some unforeseen flaws or gaps with the eligibility system and some design errors. Hagans legal declaration in 2020 gave a view of what went wrong: Davis lost coverage because of missteps by both Tennessee and Deloitte during whats known as the conversion process, when eligibility data was migrated to a new system. Tennessees Medicaid agency, known as TennCare, along with its vendor, Deloitte, designed rules to govern the logic of conversion, Hagan said in the legal declaration. She also cited a manual, keying error by a worker made in 2017. Davis family was incorrectly merged with another family during conversion, Hagan said. Davis regained coverage, but before she could rebook the surgeries, she testified, she became pregnant and a serious complication emerged. In June 2020, Davis rushed to the hospital. A physician told her she had preeclampsia, a leading cause of maternal death. Labor was induced and her son was born prematurely. Preeclampsia can kill the mom. It can kill the baby. It can kill both of you, she testified. Thats like a death sentence. Deloittes Tennessee contract is worth $823 million. Deloitte declined to comment on Davis case or the litigation. Speaking broadly, Smith said, data conversion is incredibly challenging and difficult. Hagan called the problems one-time issues: None of the Plaintiffs cases reflect ongoing systemic problems that have not already been addressed or are scheduled to be addressed. States leverage Deloittes technology as part of a larger push toward automation, legal aid attorneys and former caseworkers said. We all know that big computer projects are fraught, said Gordon Bonnyman, co-founder of the nonprofit Tennessee Justice Center. But a state that was concerned about inflicting collateral damage when they moved to a different automated system would have a lot of safeguards. TennCare spokesperson Amy Lawrence called its eligibility system a transformative tool, streamlining processes and enhancing accessibility. When enrollees seek help at county offices, you dont get to sit down across from a real human being, Bonnyman said. They point you to the kiosk and say, Good luck with that. A backlog of 50,000 cases As part of the Affordable Care Act rollout about a decade ago, states invested in technological upgrades to determine who qualifies for public programs. It was a financial boon to Deloitte and such companies as Accenture and Optum, which landed government contracts to build those complex systems. Problems soon emerged. In Kentucky, a Deloitte-built system that launched in February 2016 erroneously sent at least 25,000 automated letters telling people they would lose benefits, according to local news reports. State officials manually worked through a backlog of 50,000 cases caused by conflicting information from newly merged systems, the reports say. We know that the rollout of Benefind has caused frustration and concern for families and for field staff, senior Deloitte executive Deborah Sills said during a March 2016 news conference alongside Gov. Matt Bevin and other senior officials after Kentucky was bombarded with complaints. Within two months, roughly 600 system defects were identified, found a report by the Kentucky state auditor. In Rhode Island, a botched rollout in September 2016 delayed tens of thousands of Social Security payments, The Providence Journal reported. Advocacy groups filed two class-action lawsuits, one related to Medicaid and the other to food stamp benefits. Both were settled, with Rhode Island officials denying wrongdoing. Neither named Deloitte as a defendant. In a 2018 statement for a Statehouse hearing, Sills of Deloitte said, We are very sorry for the impact that our system issues have had on your constituents, on state workers, and on service providers. The states top human services official resigned. A 2017 audit by a top Rhode Island official prepared for Gov. Gina Raimondo found that Deloitte delivered an IT system that is not functioning effectively and had significant defects. Widespread issues, it said, caused a significant deterioration in the quality of service provided by the State. Deloitte held itself out as the leading vendor with significant experience in developing integrated eligibility systems for other states, the audit read. It appears that Deloitte did not sufficiently leverage this experience and expertise. Deloitte declined to comment further about Rhode Island and Kentucky. Deloitte invokes the phrase no-touch to describe its technology approving benefits without any tasks performed by the State workers, it wrote in documents vying for an Arkansas contract. In practice, enrollee advocates and former government caseworkers say, the systems frequently have errors and require manual workarounds. As it considered hiring Deloitte, Arkansas officials asked the company about problems, particularly in Rhode Island. In response, the company said in 2017, We do not believe Deloitte Consulting LLP has had to implement a corrective action plan for any eligibility system project in the previous five years. Arkansas awarded Deloitte a $345 million contract effective in 2019 to develop its system. It had a lot of bugs, said Bianca Garcia, a program eligibility specialist for the Arkansas Department of Human Services from August 2022 to October 2023. Garcia said it could take weeks to fix errors in a familys details and Medicaid enrollees wouldnt receive the states requests for information because of glitches. They would lose benefits because workers couldnt confirm eligibility, she added. The enrollees were doing their part, but the system just failed, Garcia said. Arkansas Department of Human Services spokesperson Gavin Lesnick said: With any large-scale system implementation, there occasionally are issues that need to be addressed. We have worked alongside our vendor to minimize these issues and to correct any problems. Deloitte declined to comment. Heated negotiations In late 2020, Colorado officials were bracing for the inevitable unwinding of pandemic-era Medicaid protections. Colorado was three years into what is now a $354.4 million contract with Deloitte to operate its eligibility system. A state-commissioned audit that September had uncovered widespread problems, and Kim Bimestefer, the states top Medicaid official, was in heated negotiations with the company. The audit found 67% of the system notices it sampled contained errors. Notices are federally required to safeguard against eligible people being disenrolled, said MaryBeth Musumeci, an associate teaching professor in public health at George Washington University. This is, for many people, whats keeping them from being uninsured, Musumeci said. The Colorado audit found many enrollee notices contained inaccurate response deadlines. One dated Dec. 19, 2019, requested a beneficiary return information by Sept. 27, 2011 more than eight years earlier. Were in intense negotiations with our vendor because we cant turn around to the General Assembly and say, Can I get money to fix this? Bimestefer told lawmakers during the 2020 legislative audit hearing. I have to hold the vendor accountable for the tens of millions weve been paying them over the years, and we still have a system like this. She said officials had increased oversight of Deloitte. Also, dozens of initiatives were created to improve eligibility accuracy and correspondence, and the state renegotiated Deloittes contract, said Marc Williams, a state Medicaid agency spokesperson. A contract amendment shows Deloitte credited Colorado with $5 million to offset payments for additional work. But Deloittes performance appeared to get worse. A 2023 state audit found problems in 90% of sampled enrollee notices. Some were violations of state Medicaid rules. The audit blamed flaws in system design for populating notices with incorrect dates. In September, Danae Davison received a confusing notice at her Arvada home stating that her daughter did not qualify for coverage. Lydia, 11, who uses a wheelchair and is learning to communicate via a computer, has a seizure disorder that qualifies her for a Medicaid benefit for those with disabilities. The denial threatened access to nursing care, which enables her to live at home instead of in a facility. Nothing had changed with Lydias condition, Davison said. She so clearly has the need, Davison said. This is a system problem. Davison appealed. In October, a judge ruled that Lydia qualified for coverage. The notice generated by the Deloitte-operated system was deemed legally insufficient because it omitted the date Lydias coverage would end. Her case highlights a known eligibility system problem: Beneficiary notices contain non-compliant or inconsistent dates and are missing required elements and information, according to the 2023 audit. Deloitte declined to comment on Colorado. Speaking broadly, Smith said, Incorrect information can come in a lot of forms. Last spring in Pennsylvania, Deloittes eligibility role expanded to include the Childrens Health Insurance Program and 126,000 enrollees. Pennsylvanias Department of Human Services said an error occurred when converting to the states eligibility system, maintained by Deloitte through a $541 million contract. DHS triaged the errors, but, for a small window of time, some children who still had coverage were not able to use it. These issues affected 9,269 children last June and 2,422 in October, DHS said. A temporary solution was implemented in December and a permanent fix came through in April. Catanese, the union representative, said it was another in a long history of problems. Among the most prevalent, he said: The system freezes for hours. When asked about that, Smith said it's hyperbole. Instead of the efficiency that Deloitte touted, Catanese said, the system constantly runs into errors that you have to duct tape and patchwork around. KFF Health News senior correspondent Renuka Rayasam and correspondents Daniel Chang, Bram Sable-Smith, and Katheryn Houghton contributed to this report. This article first appeared on KFF Health News and is republished here under a Creative Commons license. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF. The Florida Keys stretch 180 miles from just south of Miami Beach to the southernmost point of the Florida Keys accessible to cars, Key West (pictured). On Monday, seven people were injured after a 35-foot center console boat crashed into a bridge in the Lower Florida Keys. File Photo by Michael Drager/Pixabay July 8 (UPI) -- Seven people were injured, including three who were airlifted to two hospitals in Miami, after a 35-foot center console boat crashed into a bridge in the Lower Florida Keys early Monday. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission said six adults and two children were aboard. The center console boat was traveling at a "high rate of speed" and hit the South Pine Channel Bridge off Little Torch Key at about 2 a.m., the Miami Herald reported. Little Torch Key is about 27 miles from the most southern point accessible by car, Key West. The Keys stretch 180 miles from just south of Miami Beach to the Dry Tortugas. Medics airlifted two victims to Jackson Memorial Hospital's Ryder Trauma Center and one to Jackson South Medical Center. Four were taken to Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West. One person wasn't hospitalized. The boat operator is a Keys resident, according to the Monroe County Sheriff's Office. The group has taken off at about 9 p.m. Sunday, WPLG-TV reported. Monroe County Fire Rescue used ladders to rescue those on board the boat before it sank. "They used ladders from the old bridge to get down to rescue all of the people prior to the vessel sinking," county spokeswoman Kristen Livengood told Keys Weekly. The boat remained sunken at the site of the bridge crash on Monday. South Pine Channel Bridge connects Middle Torch Key with Ramrod Key in the Lower Keys. On Friday, a boating hit-and-run fatality was reported off the Lower Keys, about 10 miles south of the console boat crash. A spearfisherman was struck and killed by a boat at 1:15 p.m. off Mile Marker 39, the Monroe County Sheriff's Office said. BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) A Medina man was killed in a motorcycle accident in Pendleton on Thursday, according to New York State Police. Police responded to the intersection of South Transit Road and Tonawanda Creek Road just after 1:45 p.m. where a motorcycle being operated by 51-year-old Vincent J. Hawkins had hit a car. Investigation showed that a 2018 Honda was traveling northbound on South Transit and entered the median and began to turn left on Tonawanda Creek, failing to yield the right of way. Hawkins was ejected from the motorcycle. He was transported to ECMC, where police said he died of head injuries. This embedded content is not available in your region. 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. Robert Knecht, the director of public works for the city of Memphis, announced his retirement on June 28. He has been with the city for 23 years and is now leaving for a job in the private sector. Knecht was appointed to the position by former Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland and reappointed to the post by Mayor Paul Young. Knecht said he has been approached off and on over the years but said this time it was an offer was a "great opportunity, and I just needed to accept it." "I also had a plan in terms of, you know, how I wanted to make sure where the division was, and from the timing of any transition... I needed to make sure we got through the budget for the mayor and get the budget approved. So there, there's just several factors, but some something came along," Knecht said. During Knecht's time with the city, the department has taken charge on fixing blight in the community and made strides in the sustainability realm. Robert Knecht, director of public works for the City of Memphis, speaks at a press conference to discuss the upcoming colder weather, preparations the city and MLGW are taking and what residents can do to stay safe at city hall on Friday, January 12, 2024. "We're making investments in solar energy, we're working on this grey water, this water reuse project to reduce the impacts on the aquifer, I think those are things I'm very proud of that I've been able to help move in that in the right direction, or to have a direct involvement in their creation and their ongoing operations," Knecht said. Knecht came up with the idea of "Environmental Enforcement," which works to combat illegal dumping, as well as using commercial code enforcement to make an impact on blighted commercial properties. Knecht said he is most proud of what his team has been able to accomplish together during his 23 years with the city. "I'm proud of the division overall because I think we have made huge strides (in) so many things... because we've done a lot of major things address blight, with our roadway conditions, we made some really smart investments to our street maintenance, our roadway network," Knecht said. "And then our enterprise funds, the sewer and stormwater funds, we have these great programs underway that are going to help establish the future of the city so those utilities can serve the city's growth." The biggest obstacle for the department over the years has been budgetary constraints, Knecht said, in addition to the low pay for many of the workers in the department. The Memphis City Council recently passed the 2025 budget which includes salary increases for all city workers. Robert Knecht, director of public works for the City of Memphis, speaks Wednesday, Oct. 23, 2019, during a press conference at the Emergency Operations Center for the Shelby County Emergency Management and Homeland Security office in Memphis. Knecht's last day will be July 26, and he said he is committed to making the transition for the next director smooth over the final weeks. While the decision for the next director is up to the mayor, Knecht said he has offered his support and help. "I've offered...to be involved up until the 26th...I would love to be involved and help facilitate that...but it is ultimately the mayor's decision." Knecht said. Early voting to begin July 12 Early voting for the Aug. 1 primary and county-wide general election will start July 12 and run through July 27. The general election for the Shelby County General Sessions Court Clerk and elections for five Memphis-Shelby County Schools board seats will be held during this election, in addition to party primaries for federal and state races. For court clerk, Tami Sawyer, a former Shelby County Commission member and Memphis mayoral candidate, is the Democratic candidate and Lisa Arnold will be the Republican candidate. Twenty-one people are running for the five school board seats, including four incumbents. Local news: MPD assistant chief is Georgia resident, vaccine supervisor's appeal denied More: Memphis-Shelby County Schools veteran Lori Phillips will oversee office of partnerships MAS without full-time vet There are currently no full-time veterinarians on staff at Memphis Animal Services, according to multiple rescuers and current and previous staff members. The city said that part-time vets have been used by the shelter since June 1. The city of Memphis confirmed this but said a part-time vet was set to begin work at the shelter. Recruitment for a full-time placement has begun, according to the city. Last week, the city said there was an interim vet at the shelter in addition to multiple part-time contract vets coming in four days a week. This comes after a turbulent week for the shelter, with a dog dying in its care likely from heat, and Director Ty Coleman being placed on leave pending an investigation." The city has not said exactly what the scope or focus of that investigation will be. Coleman was appointed director of Memphis Animal Services in January, after serving as interim director since September 2023. He succeeded Alexis Pugh, who was credited with making significant improvements at the shelter. Memphis Animal Services is seen in Memphis, Tenn., on Monday, July 1, 2024. Coleman was appointed as interim director by Strickland, and Young reappointed him to the position. The appointment was approved by the Memphis City Council. "I'm impressed," Councilman J.B. Smiley said in January, "and it takes a lot to impress me." Catch up on the week Got a question for us? Got a question for the metro reporting team you would like us to take on? Send an email to metro@commercialappeal.com or email reporter Brooke Muckerman at brooke.muckerman@commercialappeal.com The week ahead Memphis City Council will also meet for both committee and full council meetings on Tuesday, July 9 starting at 8:30 a.m. Watch the livestream via the Memphis City Council YouTube Channel, or attend in person at 125 N. Main St., Room 514. This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Robert Knecht retiring this month, early voting starting in Memphis Sen. Bob Menendez was a bribed man who repeatedly sprang into action for cash and gold, federal prosecutors said Monday in the first hours of their closing arguments. It wasnt enough for him to be one of the most powerful people in Washington, federal prosecutor Paul Monteleoni said. The closing argument is a chance for prosecutors to tie together over two months of testimony and evidence that they say puts Menendez at the heart of several overlapping conspiracies to disrupt criminal cases against New Jersey business people and aid the government of Egypt in exchange for bribes. Prosecutors are expected to take about three more hours to sum up their case before jurors begin their deliberations later this week. The trial of Menendez and two New Jersey business people accused of bribing him began in May. Menendez and his two co-defendants have pleaded not guilty and are expected to give several hours of their closing arguments beginning Tuesday. The government is intoxicated with their own rhetoric, Menendez said as he left the courthouse on Monday. Monteleoni said the senator engaged in a clear pattern of corruption when he accepted bribes and took actions to help those who were bribing him. His closing argument sought to preempt defense arguments that the senator was kept in the dark about the bribes by his wife or that the bribes were gifts to the couple from long-time friends arguments that the senator and his co-defendants are likely to lean heavily on. Monteleoni tried to put Menendez in the center of the conspiracy and called his wife, Nadine, a go between. She is also charged but will stand trial separately because of a breast cancer diagnosis. Monteleoni said evidence showed that Menendez personally accepted a $10,000 check for his wifes sham consulting business from New Jersey real estate developer Fred Daibes, one of the co-defendants. At another point, Monteleoni said Daibes visited the Menendez home to drop off donuts and a gold bar worth nearly $60,000 an assertion based on a trip to the house by Daibes followed soon after by a Google search by the senator for the price of a kilogram of gold. In exchange for bribes, prosecutors allege Menendez tried to disrupt a federal criminal case against Daibes and a state investigation of another man who has already pleaded guilty to bribing the senator and Nadine with a luxury car. Other allegations involving Egypt are among the most serious, since they cover the senators time leading the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, a time when he was among one of the most influential people in American foreign affairs. In exchange for bribes, Monteleoni said, Menendez cast aside years of concern about human rights to help the Egyptian government ghostwrite a letter meant for fellow senators pushing back on such concerns and take other actions to aid Egypt. Monteleoni told jurors Menendez didnt get to be chair of that committee by being clueless and pointed to numerous texts and phone calls with Nadine and the men accused of bribing them. Why is he texting this to his girlfriend? Monteleoni asked as he showed jurors a text about arms sales from the senator to Nadine before they married. At another point, he showed jurors text messages and testimony from earlier in the trial where Menendezs staff talked about the senator acting weird toward Egypt. Menendez wasnt acting weirdly, he was acting corruptly, Monteleoni said. Mental episode and texting while driving causes crash on I-70 in Shawnee County Mental episode and texting while driving causes crash on I-70 in Shawnee County SHAWNEE COUNTY (KSNT) The Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) said a multi-vehicle crash on I-70 over the weekend was caused by more than one contributing factors. In a KHP crash log, law enforcement details what led up to the crash which occurred around 3:40 p.m. on Sunday, July 7 on eastbound I-70 near mile marker 187.7. A Ford F-150 was traveling east on the highway when the driver stopped due to a mental episode. Another driver, in a Volkswagen Taos, received a text and checked his phone. He struck the Ford, bouncing off it and hitting a third vehicle, a Chevrolet Silverado. The KHP list only the 40-year-old Lawrence woman driving the Ford as being hospitalized in the aftermath of the crash. The 25-year-old Larned man driving the Volkswagen was listed as having minor injuries but was not hospitalized. The 19-year-old Cawker City man driving the Silverado was not injured. Wamego hospital converted to apartments, open house set For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here. Follow Matthew Self on X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/MatthewLeoSelf Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Filmmaker and activist Michael Moore said he thinks President Joe Biden is the victim of a form of elder abuse as those around him push him to stay in the race. Watching the debate a week ago was heartbreaking, Moore told MSNBCs Ayman Mohyeldin. Why did they even let him go out on the stage in this condition? Who was looking out for him? Whos looking out for him right now? Moore said there are people capable of being president in their 80s, but Bidens poor debate performance suggests something other than age. Something was wrong that night, he said. We all saw it. We cant unsee it. Moore, who is from Michigan, said most people who follow politics there believe the key swing state is almost unwinnable for Biden now, not just due to concerns over his cognitive health but also because Arab American voters and younger voters have turned on Biden over his Gaza policy. Moore also had some praise for Biden, calling him the most progressive president that weve had in my lifetime and giving him credit for defeating Trump last time around. He removed the devil in 2020, Moore said. On his podcast and website, Moore called on Biden to get a medical evaluation and said that, if it confirms the obvious medical issues that were on full display during the debate, he should step down and turn over the Oval Office to Vice President Kamala Harris. See his full discussion with Mohyeldin below: Thomas G. Kaiser, 55, was released from jail Friday. He's accused of bringing an explosive device to a bar in Sea Bright. MANVILLE A South Plainfield man, who had previously been placed on probation for bringing an explosive device to a Sea Bright bar in 2019, and his son have been charged after an explosive device detonated at a weekend party in the Lost Valley section, seriously injuring a 34-year-old borough man and damaging homes and vehicles. Both Thomas Kaiser, 60, and his son, Erich Kaiser, 28, of the Monmouth Junction section of South Brunswick, have been charged with one count of fourth-degree aggravated assault, one count of third-degree possession of an explosive device, three counts of third-degree criminal mischief and two disorderly persons counts of criminal mischief, in connection with the incident at about 8:15 p.m. July 6, said Manville Police Deputy Chief Craig Jeremiah. Both were released pending a first appearance in Somerset County Superior Court, police said. About 100 people were attending a block party near Cooper Park when the father and son allegedly attempted to set off a signal cannon, a device that police say is designed to create a large boom and a cloud of smoke when detonated. Surveillance video shows the device being set off by one man and that man walking away from the scene just before it exploded. When the device was ignited, it exploded, sending shrapnel throughout the neighborhood, Jeremiah said, damaging several homes and vehicles. The injured man was attending the party and was not involved in setting off the device, onlookers said. The victim suffered serious injuries to his abdomen, according to police. The victim was treated at the scene and later airlifted to Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital in New Brunswick. Police responded along with EMTs and paramedics from Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital Somerset in Somerville. Prior to the professional health care workers arrival, bystanders provided first aid. The New Jersey State Police Bomb Squad also responded to Lost Valley. The park, with a playground and swimming pool, is in a residential neighborhood about near the confluence of the Raritan and Millstone rivers. "The incident was isolated and there is no danger to the public," Jeremiah said. "The investigation is continuing." Anyone with information about the incident is asked to contact the Manville Police Department at 908-725-1900 or the Manville Police Tips Line at 908-725-1900, ext. 3. Information can also be provided through the Stopit app. All information will be kept confidential. In 2020, Kaiser, a plumber, was placed on a years probation by Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Lourdes Lucas for bringing a homemade explosive device to Donovans Reef in Sea Bright on the Saturday night of Labor Day weekend 2019. At the time, Kaisers attorney, Paul Zager of Red Bank, told the judge that his client didnt know his hobby of making homemade fireworks was illegal. Kaiser discarded other explosives near his home after he learned he was the subject of a criminal investigation, that prompted the cancellation the following day of the South Plainfield Labor Day parade, in which Gov. Phil Murphy and First Lady Tammy Murphy were scheduled to march. The parade route was near where Kaiser discarded the other explosives. Kaiser had pleaded guilty to two counts of possessing a prohibited weapon and one count of tampering with evidence. email: cmakin@gannettnj.com Cheryl Makin is an award-winning features and education reporter for MyCentralJersey.com, part of the USA Today Network. Contact: Cmakin@gannettnj.com or @CherylMakin. To get unlimited access, please subscribe or activate your digital account today. This article originally appeared on MyCentralJersey.com: NJ father and son charged in Manville block party explosion House Speaker Mike Johnson promised Monday to slash government spending, so that he can bulk up Americas already massive military budget. During a speech at an event hosted by the Hudson Institute, the Louisiana Republican outlined the Republican Partys vision to strengthen Americas foreign policy, and subsequently weaken other essential facets of its government. To meet our defense needs, Congress has to work to grow our economy and significantly reduce our overall spending, Johnson said. I promise you that come 2025, spending reform will become a top priority for our new Republican majority. Theyre not going to be easy conversations, but theyre essential for our long-term survival. Congress has to prioritize truly essential needs of our nation, and national security has to be top of that list, he added. Mike Johnson teases big spending cuts at the Hudson Institute: "I can promise you that come 2025, spending reform will be a top priority for our new Republican majority. They aren't going to be easy conversations." pic.twitter.com/lFCNTQolV8 Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) July 8, 2024 If they keep the majority in 2025, Johnson and the House Republicans will likely continue to push for cuts to health programs such as Medicare, the Affordable Care Act, and of course, Social Security. In 2023, the United States spent $1.4 trillion, or 21 percent of its total spending, on Social Security, the most of any spending area. In a sign of how crucial that program is, the government expected that year to provide essential retirement benefits to 48.6 million retired Americans, 2.7 million spouses and children of workers, 5.9 million surviving spouses and children of deceased workers, and 8.8 million disabled or injured workers. The same year, the U.S. spent $820 billion on national defense, accounting for nearly 13 percent of the nations total spending and dwarfing the spending of the next nine nations. Defense spending increased by $55 million from 2022 to 2023, accounting for aid to Ukraine. One can only imagine how much it will increase with Americas continued support of Israels deadly military campaign in Gaza. Malpensa, Milans biggest airport, and the second-busiest in Italy, will be renamed after the countrys late former prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi. Matteo Salvini, Italys deputy prime minister and minister of infrastructure and transport, announced the change on social media Friday, writing: Good news: Milan Malpensa airport will be named after Silvio Berlusconi. According to Salvini, officials from the Lombardy region where the airport is based put in a request to rename it a year ago. On Friday, the board of directors of the countrys National Civil Aviation Authority approved it. The international airport is the second-busiest in Italy by passenger numbers. - Emanuele Cremaschi/Getty Images The final decision is up to the minister of infrastructure and transport and I am ready to put my final signature, with pride and emotion, in memory of my friend Silvio, a great entrepreneur, a great Milanese and a great Italian, Salvini said. He is always with us. It is unclear when Malpensa, which offers flights to 180 destinations in 77 countries, will officially be renamed. CNN has reached out to MilanAirports, the company that owns Malpensa, for comment. Berlusconi, a billionaire who once described himself as the Jesus Christ of politics, died in June last year at age 86. He was elected prime minister three times and served for a total of nine years, longer than anyone since fascist dictator Benito Mussolini. A controversial right-wing figure, Berlusconi landed up in court a number of times across his career. He was tried on charges ranging from tax evasion and bribery to corruption and having sex with an underage prostitute. But only one case stuck a 2012 conviction for tax evasion in a deal involving television rights. The decision to rename the airport in his honor has met with anger from some Italians. Pierfrancesco Majorino, leader of Lombardy Councils Democratic Party, called the decision profoundly wrong. Instead, Majorino suggested renaming the airport after Luca Attanasio, Italys ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo, who was killed in Goma in 2021. Attanasio did not divide our country, Majorino said. He was a servant of the state and an extraordinary Lombardy citizen who brought the best part of Italy to the world. One who wants more peace and justice. CNNs Barbie Latza-Nadeau contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, spoke at a Capitol press conference about fraud in state government on July 8, 2024. Photo by Michelle Griffith/Minnesota Reformer. Minnesota House Republicans on Monday said that the states Democratic trifecta has failed to take responsibility for burgeoning fraud occurring in programs overseen by state agencies, and they argued that electing more GOP lawmakers in November will mitigate future fraud. In recent years, numerous investigations by the states nonpartisan Office of the Legislative Auditor have uncovered repeated failures by state agencies to investigate fraud allegations and adequately oversee the money it sends out the door, among other issues. During a Capitol press conference, House Republicans said the common thread is the leadership of Democratic-Farmer-Labor Gov. Tim Walz, who appoints the heads of state agencies. We need to hold the Democratic-controlled state agencies accountable, and that actually starts with balanced government, said House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring. Concerns that are brought up need to be taken seriously. We know that this is about protecting the resources that are meant for the most vulnerable in our state. We need to ensure that taxpayer dollars are used in the way that theyre intended. All 134 House seats are on the ballot in November, and Democrats have a four-seat majority that Republicans are trying to win back. Demuth on Monday said the Minnesotans shes spoken to on the campaign trail are largely unaware of the extent of fraud in Minnesota but are frustrated when they learn more about it. What Minnesotans are concerned about is the Walz/Biden economy and trying to afford their lives. So when we know dollars good, hard-earned dollars are going out to fraudsters theyre very, very frustrated with it, Demuth said. The most egregious case, Demuth said, was the Department of Educations failure to oversee millions of federal dollars it administered through nonprofits to feed children during the COVID-19 pandemic. Federal prosecutors so far have charged 70 people in whats been dubbed the Feeding Our Future case named for a nonprofit at the center of the scheme for allegedly stealing around $250 million from the nutrition program. An audit released last month found MDE failed to act on red flags and didnt exercise its authority to ensure Feeding Our Future followed the nutrition programs requirements. A jury found five defendants guilty and two not guilty last month in the first trial in the case. A Walz spokesperson in a statement defended the state agencies. Feeding our Future was an appalling abuse of a program intended to feed kids. But those involved have not escaped accountability dozens have been charged, and several are now behind bars, the spokesperson said. The state has taken strong steps to find and eliminate vulnerabilities in government programs and we are constantly evaluating ways to improve. In June, the OLA also released a report that found waste and fraud in Minnesotas frontline worker pay program. Just 60% of the more than 1 million people who received $487 for working frontline jobs during the pandemic in Minnesota clearly deserved the bonuses, according to the audit. The OLA faulted state agencies, but also said the Legislature at the time comprising a GOP-controlled Senate and DFL-controlled House was to blame for how lawmakers wrote the law. The OLA has uncovered noncompliance and lack of internal controls in other state agencies regarding their oversight of programs, including COVID-19 grants administered by the Department of Health and housing and homelessness grants by the Department of Human Services. House Republicans said Democrats should hold state agencies accountable for the fraud by disciplining or firing state workers involved in poor oversight to ensure abuse doesnt continue. Demuth said the agencies should implement the various recommendations made by the OLA to improve oversight and hold public hearings with the agency commissioners when fraud does occur. We have a pattern of systemic fraud in the state of Minnesota, and people have got to be aware of that, Demuth said. Miss AI pageants fake contestants can lead to the exploitation of real-life women | Opinion All beauty pageants have one thing in common: real women. But the new Miss AI pageant challenges the need for human participation. The personas competing in this competition look like real women, with robust and active Instagram accounts but they dont exist. In fact, most of the contestants are controlled by male creators behind a computer. The pageant, from the World AI Creators Awards, aims to celebrate the technical skill and work behind digital influencer personas from across the world. The pageant proclaims itself a monumental leap forward. For technology, this might be true. For women, its false. The introduction of artificial intelligence into beauty pageants creates dangerous expectations and standards for society and real women. The winner of the pageant will be announced Monday. She will be chosen from a list of 10 finalists, who are all AI-generated women. Miss AI judges the competitors on their beauty, the technology used to generate them, and their social media clout or following. Traditional pageants such as Miss Universe focus on values such as intelligence, leadership and talent. At Miss USA, it was worth nothing, what we did on stage, Haley Berger, Miss Kansas USA 2023, told me. What was worth everything was what we said in our interviews. Berger is the epitome of a role model, as the Miss Universe Organization hopes all of its participants will be. She said her character was the most important part to her and the judges while competing. Berger is a graduate student at the University of Kansas earning her Masters of Business Education and Doctor of Pharmacy. And after she had failed a year of pharmacy school and found herself in the darkest spot of her life, she entered the world of pageants. I rediscovered my independence, you know, I rediscovered my worth and my confidence, she told me. Traditional pageants, although they do value beauty, have also developed into scholarship foundations and character-valuing organizations. Miss AI, without regard for character, seems to propagate stereotypical and unattainable beauty standards using fake women. All 10 finalists have acne-free skin, slim bodies and perfectly curated lives. WAICAs Miss AI is sponsored by Fanvue, a platform similar to the adult content subscription site OnlyFans but with an AI twist. Fanvue hosts artificially-generated explicit adult content. Two of the 10 Miss AI finalists have an explicit content Fanvue account linked directly to their Instagram profiles. The popular OnlyFans prohibits most AI-generated content. Its community guidelines state that a user cannot post AI-generated or AI-enhanced content featuring anyone other than the verified OnlyFans creator. Fanvue, with no restrictions, has embraced AI-content creators, and has gained in popularity. Even fake women arent safe from oversexualization. In a world where realistic deepfake images and photo manipulation are becoming weapons against women, profiting off of AI-generated women is harmful, deepening the dangers of digital exploitation. Not only does the idea of an AI pageant undermine the purpose of traditional pageants it demonstrates how unsafe new internet technology is becoming for women. When Berger asks people what they think pageants consist of, she said they usually respond with jets and sky rises and Playboy. She believes that the people who create and judge something like Miss AI must have the same superstitions about pageantry. Two of the judges are AI-generated women. The human judges are Sally-Ann Fawcett, a beauty pageant historian, and Andrew Bloch, a marketing consultant and entrepreneur. When announcing on Instagram his role as judge in this contest, Bloch wrote: AI Creators are becoming some of the most marketable properties on the planet, driving huge engagement and attracting high value brand partnerships. These AI-generated women, the sexualization of their fake bodies and the perpetuation of stereotypically perfect standards are all marketable. But profits dont mean that it is ethical. At some point, women need to stop being seen as commodities. And fake women shouldnt be created to be exploited. Fake personas should not be sexually exposed or judged on their beauty, and neither should actual people. Miss AI, and the swirl of stereotypes that makes it possible, mock not only the pageant world, but all real women. Divya Gupta is a Kansas City Star Opinion intern. She is a Leawood native and a journalism and economics student at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois. Aydin Brown, 14, has reportedly been reunited with his family after his disappearance in Rostock-Warnemunde on Thursday, July 4 Missing Hearts Advocacy Inc./Facebook Aydin Brown The 14-year-old American boy who went missing after disembarking from a cruise ship in Germany this week has reportedly been located and reunited with his family. As previously reported, Aydin Brown was last seen on Thursday, July 4, at around 7 a.m. local time before he disembarked from a Caribbean Princess cruise ship docked at the German port town of Rostock-Warnemunde. Now, NBC News has reported that Brown's grandmother confirmed he was found safe. Princess Cruises also told the outlet that the teen was reunited with his family. In a statement to NBC News, the company wrote that it was "delighted that Aydin Brown has been found safe and sound." We extend our heartfelt gratitude to German authorities for their swift response and exceptional efforts in locating Aydin after he disembarked in Warnemunde last Thursday morning," the statement continued. When reached for comment on Sunday, July 7, Princess Cruises did not provide a statement to PEOPLE, instead recommending "confirmation from German officials or the U.S. Embassy in Berlin." Rostock Police in Germany did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment on Sunday. Fox News reported, citing local police, that Brown was found in Brandenburg, Germany, where he was unharmed and in the company of a 19-year-old. The outlet also said Brown was reunited with family on Saturday night, July 6, citing a family update on social media. Wibke Woyke/imageBROKER/Shutterstock A Caribbean Princess cruise ship photographed in Germany in 2016 Related: Authorities Searching for American Teen, 14, Who Went Missing After Leaving Cruise Ship in Germany As NBC News reported, the search for Brown remained underway as recently as Saturday, when state and local police shared three new photos of the teen. Two of the images were reportedly taken from security video and showed an unknown man speaking to the boy and walking with him toward Warnemunde Church square at around 7:45 a.m. Thursday. At the time, local authorities said they wanted to speak with the man or anyone who could identify the man. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Brown was traveling with his grandmother on the cruise ship before his disappearance. Authorities said the pair got into an argument before Brown left the ship, as previously reported by Fox News. Katie Brown, a woman who identified herself as the boy's mother, described her son's appearance on Facebook and noted that he is from Texas and was "spotted by camera with an unknown person at a train station." NBC News also previously reported that police were looking for the second person, described as being between the ages of 20 and 25. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Its the news residents along the Mississippi have been waiting for; the river is expected to crest this week. Matt Wilson, senior hydrologist at the National Weather Service in the Quad Cities, explains what that means for local river levels. We are cresting in a lot of places, actually, he said. Were having some pretty broad crests from this event, some of thats just kind of due to the nature of rain events that were kind of periodically spread over the course of many weeks. Instead of getting one big event where you get a big crest and then its over, were getting kind of a broad sweeping crest. Were seeing crests from everywhere right now; we just passed the crest up at Dubuque and were cresting all the way down here into the Quad Cities. The crest wave is just about here at Rock Island, maybe its a little bit past, hasnt quite gotten to Muscatine yet. Just because the river is cresting doesnt mean the end of flooding is in sight, said Wilson. Its not over by a long shot. We issued a seven-day forecast and that entire seven-day forecast, up until the 15th, the end of the 15th is all above major flood stage. Were still at 18.9 feet, so were cresting right now, somewhere around 20.1. In a week well drop about 1.2 feet and then well probably have another by five to seven days after that, depends on if we get any extra rain. (Gabe Zwierzynsk) Rain is predicted for the Quad Cities in the next 48 hours, but Wilson says thats no cause for alarm. We do have a big rain event slated for tomorrow to Wednesday, but that has been trending east of us. If there is considerable rain from the storm, it would come in downstream and not affect local flooding. Hurricane Beryl is striking Texas, but Wilson said the precipitation wont cause the Mississippi to back up and create more flooding. It would have to drop a lot of rain to get south of us really well and flooded. We do have flooding all the way down to St. Louis, flooding up on the Mississippi all the way almost down to Cairo Ill. Residents along that part of the river are also contending with the aftermath of the northwest Iowa flooding, as that water is making its way down the Missouri River to connect with the Mississippi at St. Louis. Right now, everythings flowing pretty freely down there. Theyve got a lot of extra space. Theyre only at minor flood down there so theres still plenty of areas, still plenty of space for our water to move down into the lower Mississippi. (OurQuadCities.com) The water may not be coming up, but the river is still dangerous, said Wilson. I know certain areas to our north, theres enough debris in the river that the Coast Guard actually did close the river sections to recreational traffic. Even if your section of the river has not been closed to recreational traffic, be very careful if you are taking a boat out onto the Mississippi. I dont recommend it; Im pretty sure that the Coast Guard doesnt recommend it and its still very dangerous. Theres a lot of extra debris and things that have been picked up along the banks and that current is running deceptively fast. Its not until you really see something moving in it that you see how much faster its moving than what youre used to seeing out there. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Missouri candidate for governor says hes an engineer. Why doesnt he have a license? 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. Missouri Secretary of State Jay Ashcroft came under attack this week for describing himself as an engineer in his campaign for governor despite holding no professional license. Ashcroft, a Republican, has largely centered his campaign for governor on his engineering background in ads and on his website. In a video launching his campaign, Ashcroft said Im an engineer and engineers fix problems. A complaint filed with the Missouri Division of Professional Registration accuses Ashcroft of fraud and dishonesty. It alleges that Ashcroft is not licensed as an engineer and therefore is violating the law by holding himself out as one as well as committing fraud and dishonesty against the profession and the public. The Star obtained a redacted copy of the complaint that does not say who filed it or when. St. Louis TV station KSDK first reported on the complaint last week and reported that the complaint was filed in late June. Ashcroft spokesperson Jason Cabel Roe on Monday defended Ashcrofts professional background but confirmed that the secretary of state has never been licensed as a professional engineer. Jay Ashcroft has bachelors and masters degrees in engineering management, worked as an engineer for more than four years, taught engineering for more than five years, and then got his law degree and practiced intellectual property law largely based on his engineering background, Roe said. Jay was licensed by the State of Missouri to teach mechanical engineering and mechanical engineering technology but as he has never been a Licensed Professional Engineer, he was not required to get a Professional Engineer License. Ashcrofts biography with the Secretary of States Office states that he graduated with degrees in engineering management from Missouri University of Science and Technology in Rolla and later worked for a defense-based engineering company in West Plains. A state certificate attached to the complaint against Ashcroft states that he was originally enrolled as an Engineer Intern starting in 1996. The certificate was from the Missouri Board for Architects, Professional Engineers, Professional Land Surveyors and Professional Landscape Architects. I do further certify that John R. Ashcroft is not now, nor has ever been, licensed as an Architect, Professional Engineer, Professional Land Surveyor or Professional Architect in the state of Missouri, Judy Kempker, the executive director of the board, wrote in the certificate. An engineer intern is not a licensed professional engineer, according to state law. Missouri law specifically bans individuals without engineering licenses from indicating or implying that such person is or holds himself or herself out to be a professional engineer. Morgan Mundell is the president and CEO of The American Council of Engineering Companies of Missouri, Inc. or ACEC/MO, one of the states primary associations for professional engineering firms. Mundell said in an email to The Star that the title of engineer was an important distinction. Professional engineers are very proud of that particular distinction, because it requires, and it also suggests to the public, a high level of academic achievement, professional accomplishment and specific state certification, Mundell said. So, its certainly in the public interest that individuals holding themselves out publicly as engineers actually BE engineers. Mundell said state law was very clear about spelling out who may call themselves an engineer. He painted the strict requirements as a matter of public safety because engineers design and build critical infrastructures from bridges to skyscrapers. The public must know that a person behind such important projects is indeed a state-certified professional, he said. Otherwise, it endangers public safety and undermines public confidence in the profession of engineering. Rivals seize on controversy The questions surrounding Ashcrofts professional background come as he is embroiled in a hotly-contested Republican primary for governor against Lt. Gov. Mike Kehoe and Sen. Bill Eigel from Weldon Spring. Both of Ashcrofts Republican opponents seized on the controversy in statements to The Star on Monday. Jay Ashcroft isnt qualified to be an engineer, and he certainly isnt qualified to be governor, said Gabby Picard, a spokesperson for Kehoes campaign. He is lying to Missouri voters in an attempt to cast himself as anything other than the candidate running on his last name. The reference to Ashcrofts last name appeared to be referring to the fact that Ashcroft is the son of John Ashcroft, a former Missouri governor, U.S. senator and attorney general under former President George W. Bush. Mike Kehoe is a self-made small businessman who came from humble beginnings and has a record of securing conservative wins for Missouriansno resume embellishment needed, Picard said. Eigels campaign manager Sophia Shore also attacked Ashcroft and threw in a jab at President Joe Biden. Jay Ashcroft is being exposed as a phony, thats why his standing in this race is fading faster than Joe Bidens brain, Shore said in an email. Bill Eigel is the only true conservative in the race for governor. Publicly available polling shows that the Republican race for governor remains close with Ashcroft holding a small, margin-of-error lead over Kehoe with a large percentage of GOP primary voters still undecided. An Emerson College/The Hill poll of Missouri Republican primary voters conducted last month found 23% of respondents said they supported Ashcroft and 20% supported Kehoe. Eigel had 6% support in the poll. Roe, Ashcrofts spokesperson, framed the questions surrounding Ashcrofts background as a political attack. This is a pretty weak attack and shows how worried Jefferson City special interests are about Jays candidacy, he said. Silly season is over. Gov. Mike Parson, seated, holds up legislation he just signed offering a tax break to private developers expanding the National Nuclear Security Administrations south Kansas City campus Gov. Mike Parson, seated, holds up legislation he just signed offering a tax break to private developers expanding the National Nuclear Security Administrations south Kansas City campus. (Allison Kite/Missouri Independent) Developers planning to expand a Kansas City facility manufacturing nuclear weapons components will get a break on sales tax under legislation Gov. Mike Parson signed Monday. Parson held a signing ceremony at the site, currently a gravel lot across from the National Nuclear Security Administrations south Kansas City campus. The expansion is expected to cost more than $3 billion and add more than 2 million square feet of space to the campus. Lawmakers present Monday predicted the expansion would add about 2,000 high-paying jobs in south Kansas City. To have that kind of investment anywhere in the state, especially here, is a big deal for the entire state and a big deal for this community, Parson said. For years, Honeywell International Inc. has operated the National Nuclear Security Administrations plant manufacturing non-nuclear parts for the U.S. nuclear weapons program. But proponents of the tax break say the facility needs to expand to accommodate work the NNSA will need to modernize and refurbish the nations nuclear weapons stockpile. Youre talking about securing the country and making sure that this country stays safe, Parson said Monday. Lawmakers passed the tax break overwhelmingly this spring, largely citing the potential economic boon of the new jobs. The sales tax exemption on construction materials for the project is expected to divert more than $150 million in state, county, city and Kansas City zoo sales tax revenue over 10 years, according to a fiscal analysis that noted the exact cost couldnt be verified. Legislative staff wrote that the bills fiscal impact could be significant. The legislation had support from both Democrats and Republicans and was championed by now-former Missouri Sen. Greg Razer, a Kansas City Democrat. At the signing event Monday, Razer called the tax break a no-nonsense piece of legislation. He said the Honeywell expansion would be transformational for south Kansas City, Grandview and surrounding communities. This is high-paying jobs in these communities, Razer said, and as Kansas City continues to grow and have a renaissance, weve got to make sure that every corner of Kansas City grows and is involved in that renaissance. Thats whats happening here today. The post Missouri Gov. Mike Parson signs tax break for KC nuclear weapons manufacturer appeared first on Kansas Reflector. A Modesto woman who suffered burns to almost all of her body on July 4 died Saturday, the Stanislaus County Sheriffs Office reported. Andrea Benning, 52, suffered burns to 80% of her body during a fire on the 1900 block of Robertson Road. She was taken to a local hospital by a ground ambulance and then airlifted to a burn center in Sacramento, where she died. Details of the fire had not been revealed as of Monday afternoon. A Sheriffs Office news release said, The fire was isolated to the area around where the victim was located inside the residence. Detectives were hoping to talk with Benning once she was able, but that never happened. The Sheriffs Office is trying to determine if the fire was accidental or intentional. Several people were contacted at the scene and interviewed regarding the fire, but no arrests had been made as of Monday. Anyone with information regarding the fire or anyone who may have witnessed it is asked to contact Detective Jorge Perez by calling 209-567-4466. Tips may be left with Stanislaus County Area Crime Stoppers at stancrimetipc.org or by calling 1-866-60-CRIME. Insights from The Washington Post, Bloomberg, and Politico The News Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Vladimir Putin peace is of utmost importance and war cannot solve problems" during his first trip to the Kremlin since Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, a visit that is being closely-watched by global leaders. Modis remarks came hours after Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky slammed the meeting on social media, calling it a devastating blow to peace efforts as Modis arrival in Russia on Monday came on the same day as a deadly Russian strike on a childrens hospital in Kyiv. India has avoided criticizing Moscow over its war in Ukraine, while also buying Russian oil, despite strong Western sanctions. Analysts said Modi was charting his own geopolitical path, positioning India as a counterweight to Russias growing ties to China even as it builds relations with the US. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Modi-Putin meeting comes as Indian leader looks for strength Source: Bloomberg Modi has taken the credit for what he presents as Indias improved global standing. But the recent Indian election left him in a weaker position, Bloomberg columnist Mihir Sharma pointed out, so Modi is likely assessing how to continue promoting India as a leader in the Global South. New Delhi has long argued that its outreach to Putin is essential to prevent Russia from drifting further into Beijings orbit, Sharma wrote. Modi is essentially telling Putin: I am the only major leader besides Xi Jinping who will talk to you but I wont talk to Xi and you, only you. A new multipolar world order not monopolized by US Source: The Washington Post Modi landed in Russia hours after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made a surprise visit to China, days after his own meeting with Putin in Moscow. The dual displays of affection by Beijing and Moscow reflect their efforts to create a multipolar world order not dominated by the United States, The Washington Post wrote. Orbans trip in particular was viewed as a diplomatic triumph for Putin, as the Hungarian premier presented his visit unsanctioned by the European Union, where he now holds the presidency of a key leaders group as a peacekeeping mission. Putin has insisted that the West, particularly the United States and Britain, is responsible for prolonging his war in Ukraine by not pressuring Kyiv to give in to his territorial demands, it noted. Orbans peacemaking trips an attempt to shore up support at home Source: Politico Orbans Fidesz party had a poor showing during the recent European elections, and a downturning economy has turned the Hungarian public against him. By acting as Europes peacemaker, Orban might be working to shore up new support at home as opposition parties gain a foothold. For the past decade, the Hungarian prime minister has been constructing an expanding foreign policy narrative, geopolitical analyst Botond Feledy told Politico. The current obvious outgrowth of this is the Peace Mission narrative, which is also about pursuing his own economic interests, and which he built up very heavily for his own voter base in the last election. KYODO NEWS - Jul 8, 2024 - 18:37 | All, World, Japan The western Japanese city of Hiroshima on Monday announced that Israel has expressed its intention to attend the Aug. 6 annual peace ceremony commemorating the atomic bomb attack on the city, bringing the number of countries slated to take part to a record high of 115. The invitation to Israel, widely regarded as a nuclear-armed state, included a call for an immediate cease-fire to the conflict in the Palestinian territory, which has drawn increasing international opposition. A total of 115 nations and the European Union are slated to participate in the ceremony, up from the previous record 111 and the EU in 2023, according to the city. Among the nuclear powers, Britain and France plan on attending, and arrangements are being made for the United States, while China has not responded. Of the countries that have not signed the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, India said it will participate, while Pakistan and North Korea have not responded. The Hiroshima city government has been accused of having a double standard by some residents and activists, as Russia and Belarus have been barred from the ceremony for three consecutive years over the invasion of Ukraine. "We believe that they will attend after seriously taking our thoughts into account," a city official said of the invitation to Israel in a press conference. Israel began military operations in the Gaza Strip in retaliation for attacks on civilians by the militant group Hamas on Oct. 7. Meanwhile, the Nagasaki city government has said it has yet to invite Israel to its Aug. 9 ceremony amid debate over whether to do so. Hiroshima and Nagasaki became the first cities to have an atomic bomb dropped on them on Aug. 6 and Aug. 9, 1945, respectively. Each year, delegates from countries and regions across the world are invited to attend the peace ceremonies to pray for the victims and affirm that humanity cannot coexist with nuclear arms. Related coverage: Oppenheimer reportedly apologized in 1964 meeting with A-bomb victim Hiroshima urges Israel to cease Gaza attack in peace ceremony invite Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) welcomes Russian President Vladimir Putin prior to their meeting at Hyderabad House in New Delhi in 2018 (AFP via Getty Images) Indian prime minister Narendra Modi has arrived in Russia for his first one-to-one summit with Vladimir Putin since the Russian leader launched his full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It is a hugely symbolic choice of destination for Modis first bilateral visit since being sworn in for his third term as prime minister, and one that the Kremlin has gloated about as making the West jealous. Modi is also breaking away from a tradition that normally sees Indian prime ministers start their term with a first visit to neighbouring South Asian countries like Sri Lanka, the Maldives or Bhutan. And it reflects Indias growing confidence in its ability to play both sides in the East-West divide that has grown dramatically since Russia began waging war on Ukraine. Modi will follow up his visit to Moscow with one to Austria, which has backed Ukraines bid to join the EU and provided it hundreds of millions of euros in humanitarian aid. Putin and Modi were scheduled to hold informal talks over dinner on Monday night before a day of meetings on Tuesday. Indias foreign ministry said they would discuss the multiple geopolitical challenges that the world has been facing, and that the visit showed the two countries continue to enjoy resilient ties. Embarking on the plane to Russia on Monday, Modi said he will review all aspects of bilateral cooperation with Mr Putin and seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. File Russian president Vladimir Putin, right, and Indian prime minister Narendra Modi pose for a photo shaking hands prior to their talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, on 16 September 2022. (AP) Putin, who is making a concerted effort to showcase the support of his allies to legitimise his war and counter Western efforts to cast him as a pariah on the international stage, said no topics will be off limits between the two leaders, according to the Kremlin. The Indian government has neither condemned nor condoned Russias invasion of Ukraine, and while Modi made his first foreign trip of his third term to join the G7 in Italy last month, he then skipped a Western-led Ukraine peace summit hosted by Switzerland. India was represented at those talks by its ambassador and did not sign a joint communique at the end of the meeting, insisting that Russia must be involved in negotiations. Harsh V Pant, professor of international relations at Kings College London, tells The Independent that a Putin-Modi meeting was long overdue given the way geopolitical tectonic plates are shifting as a result of Ukraine. There is a rich history to India-Russia relations, with Delhi having relied heavily on Moscow for arms imports for many decades. Since the Ukraine war began India has also bought huge volumes of cheap Russian oil after the US and European countries imposed sanctions, helping Putin fill his war chest. Ukraine's president Volodymyr Zelensky (C-L) meeting Modi during a bilateral meeting in Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy, 14 June 2024 (EPA) Yet India has been uncomfortable with how close Putin has drawn to China, its major Asian rival with whom it has frosty border relations. And India has also been forced to diversify away from Russian arms given Moscows military commitments in Ukraine, buying more from the US, Israel, France and Italy. These talks will be about how to build the India-Russia relationship as, whatever it might seem from the outside, it is not as healthy as it seems, says Pant. It is a new world. India does not have a very robust economic partnership with Russia. So of course the strategic realities are changing. India would like to understand and engage with Russia on its own terms. With this trip, India is sending a clear signal to the US that it will hedge its bets on defence purchases, just as the US is doing by once again opening the doors to China. The [potential] gains for India from this summit are significant in comparison to [those for] Russia, Dr Rafiq Dossani, a senior economist at the Rand Corporation think-tank, tells The Independent. By properly playing its hand, it can position itself as a power worth more than China, whose relations with Europe have taken a beating because of its stance. This can allow India to be the prime broker of a peace in Ukraine down the road, he says. India will also seek to maintain its steady supply of Russian energy as it seeks to pivot from its dependency on the volatile Middle East market and other sources like Venezuela, he says. Analysts say India will also seek reassurances when it comes to arms cooperation, with Indias military still operating with large volumes of Russian hardware. Defence cooperation will clearly be a priority area, says Chietigj Bajpaee, senior South Asia research fellow at Chatham House. Weve seen some delay in the deliveries of spare parts ... following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he said. I believe both countries are due to conclude a military logistics agreement, which would pave the way for more defence exchanges. For Russia, the optics of the visit are likely to be more important than any tangible outcomes. As well as multiple recent meetings with Chinas Xi Jinping, the Russian president has visited North Korea and then Vietnam to project the image of a world leader who still enjoys international backing. Modis visit to Moscow is the most significant achievement yet in that campaign, Pant argues, as India is both an important counterweight to China within the Asia-Pacific while also enjoying robust ties with the West. Putins efforts to court India indicate that Russia seeks to demonstrate resilience against Western isolation and assert its independence in managing relations with China, Mr Pant explains. I dont think Russia wants to be perceived as a junior partner of China. By engaging robustly with India, Russia signals to China its desire to maintain its own distinct space. With Russia increasingly isolated from the West, it risks being seen as subordinate to China, a perception it likely wants to avoid. Mom, 31, accused of kidnapping her 3 kids says it was a misunderstanding A 31-year-old woman accused of abducting her three children over the weekend, all of whom who have since been located, announced today that she will be turning herself in on Monday after speaking to the media about whats being described as a misunderstanding. In a media release issued by the Los Angeles Police Department Sunday morning, authorities were asking for help in locating 14-year-old Mar-Naiya Shelton, 12-year-old Major Shelton and 6-year-old Jeneral Wellace-Peterson, who had last been seen around 9 a.m. on July 6 in the 2000 block of West Florence Avenue in South L.A. Authorities identified the childrens mother as Timberly White and stated the 31-year-old does not have custodial rights of the children. By Sunday afternoon, police said the children had been located and that they were currently with a family member. Timberly White In an email to KTLA sent by civil rights activist Najee Ali, director of Project Islamic Hope, White said that she was falsely accused of kidnapping her 3 children. The email went on to explain that Ali will be escorting the 31-year-old mother of three to help to ensure her safety and to clear up this misunderstanding. This matter is nothing more than a custody dispute between family members, Ali said in the news release. Timberly is concerned about her safety and reputation and wants to meet with law enforcement officers immediately. According to the email, Ali and White have planned a press conference at 10 a.m. Monday morning outside the 77th Street Police Department, located at 7601 South Broadway. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy has issued a national health crisis advisory on the issue of firearm violence. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images) U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy recently issued a national health crisis advisory to the American public that was, according to many experts, long overdue. The subject: gun violence. As the advisory spells out in grim detail, firearm violence has been on a steady and destructive rise across the U.S. for the last several years and has reached the point at which it is now the leading cause of death among children and adolescents. The advisory also points out that the impact of gun violence extends beyond death and injury. It notes that the gun violence has produced layers of cascading harm for youth, families, communities, and other populations and that this includes the detrimental impact that this rise has had on the mental wellbeing on the broader public. With nearly 6 in 10 U.S. adults worrying sometimes, almost every day, or every day, about a loved one being a victim of firearm violence, the release accompanying the report notes, the effects of the public health crisis extend well beyond physical health it has led to a collective trauma across society that warrants heightened attention. Not surprisingly, Murthys advisory provoked widely varying responses. AP News reported that while many healthcare professionals lauded the advisory, the National Rifle Association attacked it. A statement from the President of the American Academy of Family Physicians observed that Family physicians have long understood, and have seen first hand, the devastating impact firearm violence has on our patients and the communities we serve. The president of the NRA, however, decried the announcement as an extension of the Biden Administrations war on law-abiding gun owners. Murthys announcement will not have any immediate, on-the-ground impact, but its hoped that it could open the door to more public health research on the subject much in the same way that Surgeon General initiatives once paved the way for a stronger national response to cigarette smoking. As the advisory conclusion states: A public health approach can guide our strategy and actions, as it has done in the past with successful efforts to address tobacco-related disease and motor vehicle crashes. It is up to us to take on this generational challenge with the urgency and clarity the moment demands. The safety and well-being of our children and future generations are at stake. The following numbers are from the Advisory: #1 rank of firearm deaths among causes of death for U.S. children and adolescents from 2020 to 2022 2020 the first year that firearm deaths surpassed motor vehicle deaths for this group 54 percentage of U.S. adults who say they or a family member has experienced a firearm-related incident 21 percentage who say theyve been threatened with a firearm 19 percentage who say have a family member who was killed by a firearm (including suicide) 17 percentage who say theyve witnesses someone being shot 20 percentage increase in firearm-related suicides from 2012 to 2022 68 percentage increase for children age 10-14 36.4 number of firearm deaths per million U.S. children and adolescents in 2019 6.4 the rate in Canada the nation with the second highest rate More than 600 number of mass shooting incidents per year the U.S. experienced between 2020 and 2023 Less than 400 the average in 2015-2018 79 percentage of U.S. adults who report experiencing stress from the possibility of mass shooting 51 percentage of U.S. teens (age 14-17) who worry about a shooting happening at my school or a local school near me 33 percentage who say fear prevents them from going to certain places or events. 56 percentage of unintentional firearm deaths among children and adolescents that happened in their own home $878 million amount of federal dollars spent on research related to children and adolescents in motor vehicle crashes between 2008-17 $12 million amount spent during the same period on research related to firearm injury prevention for children and adolescents The post Monday numbers: U.S. Surgeon General says firearm violence is a public health crisis appeared first on NC Newsline. Most of the Held v. Montana plaintiffs and their attorneys pose outside the courtroom Most of the Held v. Montana plaintiffs and their attorneys pose outside the courtroom for photos halfway through the trial. (Blair Miller/Daily Montanan) The Montana Supreme Court will hear oral arguments Wednesday in the states appeal of a district court judges decision in the Held vs. Montana case, setting the stage for a decision that will have broad impacts on environmental law and regulations in Montana. Considering the arguments from both sides, and additional briefs from Republican-led states and recreation businesses like Orvis and Patagonia, the court will have to decide whether to uphold Lewis and Clark County District Court Judge Kathy Seeleys order from August finding the state was violating the constitutional rights of the 16 youth plaintiffs to a clean and healthful environment. Lewis and Clark County District Court Judge Kathy Seeley Seeleys order struck down the so-called limitation to the Montana Environmental Policy Act that prohibited the state from considering greenhouse gas emissions and climate impacts from energy and mining projects. She also enjoined a portion of another bill passed by Republican lawmakers last year that said permits approved by Montana agencies that did not include a greenhouse gas emissions evaluation could not be vacated or voided unless Congress voted to start regulating carbon dioxide as a pollutant under the federal Clean Air Act. Attorneys representing the state, Gov. Greg Gianforte, and three state agencies will get 40 minutes to make their case to the justice, while attorneys for the youth plaintiffs will have 30 minutes. The hearing will be held in the Supreme Court chambers in Helena and start at 9:30 a.m. The Montana Environmental Information Center and other Montana environmental groups are also hosting watch parties of the oral arguments, which will be live streamed online, in Missoula, Billings and Kalispell. What the two sides and their supporters are arguing in the Montana case The youth plaintiffs in the case filed their response to the states appeal in March, and the case was fully briefed in April when attorneys for the state, Gianforte, and the state agencies filed their replies. About 20 separate amicus curiae, or friend of the court briefs, have been filed in the case either in support of the youth plaintiffs or the state that the Supreme Court can also consider when deciding the case. Lawyers for the state, governor and agencies have maintained since Seeley handed her decision down that striking down the Montana Environmental Policy Act limitation does not alleviate the plaintiffs injuries because Montanas greenhouse gas emissions are a small fraction of global emissions, which all affect Montana and the global climate. Department of Environmental Quality attorney Lee McKenna The defendants are also asking the Supreme Court to clarify that Seeleys order does not require the state to perform emissions and climate impact analyses but simply provides the opportunity for them to do so if the Legislature decides to follow that route. The Supreme Court received friend-of-the-court briefs in support of the state from the Republican-led chambers of the Montana Legislature, the Montana Chamber of Commerce and several local chambers, NorthWestern Energy, conservative think-tank Frontier Institute, the mining company association Treasure State Resources, 12 Republican-led states, and a Navajo Nation company that owns the Spring Creek Mine in Decker. Most of those briefs, like those from the state, argue that the plaintiffs do not have standing in the case, that Seeley used the wrong level of scrutiny in deciding the case, utilized one-sided data from the plaintiffs expert witnesses that the state did not contest at trial, or that the judiciary was wrongfully stepping into the realm of the Legislature when interpreting laws that intersect with principles of the state constitution. The Judiciarys constitutional authority does not allow the district court to determine how the Legislature should provide for the promise of a clean and healthful environment under Mont. Const. Art. II and IX, Senate President Jason Ellsworth and House Speaker Matt Regiers attorney wrote in their brief, for instance. The plaintiffs attorneys will argue that the Supreme Court should uphold Seeleys order in full, which would permanently keep the Montana Environmental Policy Act limitation out of Montana law, as well as the portion surrounding permit reviews and when permits could be vacated. Their attorneys say Seeley was correct when she found that the states actions prohibiting emissions and climate impact reviews were in direct violation of the 1972 Constitutions intents to protect the environment in Montana for current and future generations. Plaintiffs attorney Nate Bellinger delivers closing arguments in the Held v. Montana trial They say attorneys for the state have purposefully tried to focus the case around the global impacts of climate change when Montanas constitution directly concerns the states environment and impacts to it caused by the states consistent permitting of high-emissions energy projects. Accepting any of the states (or their amicis) belated factual or constitutional arguments would eviscerate the purpose of MEPA, young Montanans rights to a clean and healthful environment today and well into the future, and the very idea of an independent judiciary that reviews government laws for constitutional compliance and defers to the District Courts factual findings but for clear error, the plaintiffs attorneys said in their March brief. The friend-of-the-court briefs filed on the side of the plaintiffs come from a group of professional climbers, runners and mountain guides in Montana; six Montana tribes, a group of public health experts and doctors from Montana and other states, the ACLU and ACLU of Montana, a group of tribal members and conservation groups, a group of outdoor recreation companies that includes Patagonia and Orvis. Because the MEPA Limitation allows Montana to avoid its constitutional responsibility to protect a clean and healthy environment, and because that derogation of constitutional duty is already having profound negative impacts on the outdoor industry in Montana, this court should uphold the district courts order and strike down the MEPA limitation, the brief from the outdoor recreation companies said. There are also friend-of-the-court briefs the court can consider from six retired Montana Supreme Court justices who make arguments in support of the judiciarys role in determining what laws are constitutional or not, as well as from the Montana Trial Lawyers Association, which argues Seeley was correct in not allowing the state to conduct mental health examinations of the 16 plaintiffs before last summers trial. The former justices in their brief ask the Supreme Court to emphatically stress the importance of the separation of powers in government. The separation of powers principle secures our republican form of government. It is well established in Montana jurisprudence. In recent years, however, repeated attempts have been made to abridge long-settled elements of the judicial power, they wrote. The present case involves another such attempt. Recent court decisions could factor into climate change case Its also possible that some recent court decisions at the federal U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and in other states could be a factor in Wednesdays arguments. Both sides have submitted notices of supplemental authority informing the court of recent decisions that could factor into the Held case. That includes filings from the plaintiffs about another case decided by the Supreme Court in which courts found election laws created by the Legislature were unconstitutional, and another in which the Supreme Court used similar standing requirements as Seeley did in Held and also found it could not hear new arguments first raised on the appeal. A third notice tells the court about a similar case in Hawaii which the plaintiffs primary attorneys, Our Childrens Trust, led to a favorable settlement with the state in late June. Hawaiis constitution has similar environmental protection requirements as Montanas, and the plaintiffs said the state was violating their constitutional rights because the state Department of Transportation continued to prioritize highways over other transportation modes that emit less greenhouse gases. The settlement will involve the state establishing a new greenhouse gas reduction plan, a roadmap to decarbonizing the states transportation system, and tens of million dollars to go toward building green infrastructure. Earthjustice attorney Jenny Harbine argues on behalf of the Montana Environmental Information Center and Sierra Club in front of the Montana Supreme Court The state, meanwhile, told the court that the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals had again dismissed a similar Oregon case for a lack of standing, and there was a similar dismissal in a California case challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Relevant to this appeal, the district court rejected the plaintiffs contentions that declaring the challenged EPA policies unconstitutional would redress the plaintiffs climate change injuries, attorneys for the state wrote in the filing. The courts decision in the Held case will also factor into its decision in a case involving the fate of NorthWestern Energys methane-fired power plant in Laurel and whether it was properly granted permits despite the state not considering its expected emissions of 700,000 tons of carbon dioxide a year. The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in that case on May 15. Both cases are expected to see decisions issued later this summer or fall ahead of the November election and the January start to the 2025 legislative session, where there is sure to be more legislation introduced surrounding MEPA and climate analyses depending on the outcome, lawmakers have said during the interim. The Daily Montanan, like the Idaho Capital Sun, is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Daily Montanan maintains editorial independence. Follow Daily Montanan on Facebook and X. Montgomery County Fair in full swing; What fair leaders, state Inspectors do to keep guests safe The Montgomery County Fair is in full swing, and the fair board is working hard to make sure everyone has a fun and safe time. As seen on News Center 7 Daybreak, the fair board works all year to make sure the entire process of the week-long event is smooth and safe for everyone. They work with State of Ohio inspectors to make sure the rides are safe. During a Fourth of July Festival in Washington State, just outside Seattle, a ride named The Cyclone tipped over and 6 people were injured. >> RELATED COVERAGE: Preparations underway for Montgomery County Fair; What you can expect State officials there are looking for answers about the dangerous incident. In Ohio, inspectors from the State Department of Agriculture inspect every ride at any festival, fair, or event, including the state fair, before anyone climbs on board for a ride. David Miran with the Ohio Department of Agriculture told us there are two parts to every inspection. A static inspection and an operational inspection. A static inspection is where the inspectors check out the ride from the ground up. >> CHECK OUT WHEN OTHER COUNTY FAIRS ARE HAPPENING: Dates for county fairs in the Miami Valley An operational inspection is when the vendor that is operating the ride fires the ride up and puts it through a test drive so inspectors can see how its working. We ask the ride operator to start the ride up, making sure the ride is operating smoothly as it should be, making sure that the emergency stop works, that theres no problems with lighting, that theres no loose electrical currents, Miran said. The Montgomery County Fair experienced no problems at all on Sunday. The fairgrounds will open from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Monday through Friday, according to the fair website. Tickets are available at the gate or online for $10 or $15 Friday/Saturday after 4 p.m. More than 10,000 passengers stranded after BA and easyJet flight cancellations Passengers at Zante airport in Greece, from where several flights were delayed by two hours or more (Simon Calder) Passengers flying to and from the UKs two busiest airports on the biggest airlines have once again endured dozens of cancellations, blamed on air-traffic control (ATC) delays and bad weather across Europe. Both easyJet at London Gatwick and British Airways at London Heathrow grounded 32 short-haul flights each. EasyJets cancellations including flights to and from Lanzarote, Budapest and Venice, as well as two round-trips to Belfast International and Edinburgh. One passenger, Tom McCarthy, wrote on X: To make us sit on a plane for 3 hours to then cancel the flight and give us zero alternatives is an absolute disgrace! Family holiday cancelled, now no doubt I will have to fight tooth and nail for my money back and compensation! It appears compensation will not be paid to passengers. A typical easyJet message to cancelled passengers reads: Were sorry that your flight has been cancelled. This is due to air traffic control restrictions. The disruption to your flight is outside of our control and is considered to be an extraordinary circumstance. Airlines can avoid paying out hundreds of pounds in compensation if they can demonstrate the cause of cancellations or long delays was beyond their control. At Heathrow, British Airways cancelled two round-trips to Rome as well as services to Naples, Barcelona and Larnaca in Cyprus. At least 10,000 passengers on easyJet and British Airways are waking up where they did not expect to be. Under European air passengers rights rules, carriers must provide hotels, meals and alternative flights as soon as possible. Due to air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines weve had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule, a spokesperson for British Airways said We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them onto alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today. The Independent has also asked easyJet to comment on the cancellations, which follow hundreds of grounded flights the previous weekend. At each of the UKs third- and fourth-largest airports, Manchester and London Stansted, only a single flight was cancelled: an easyJet service to Copenhagen and an A-Jet departure to Ankara respectively. Hundreds of other flights were delayed across the UK and Europe. Europes biggest budget airline, Ryanair, made no UK cancellations. But the carrier has condemned what it calls unacceptable delays due to repeated air-traffic control staff shortages across Europe In a statement on its website it apologies to passengers for the excessive flight delays caused by European ATC staff shortages today Monday 8 Jul which are affecting all European airlines. ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5 per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated staff shortages. Ryanair says one in six of its first wave departures 579 early flights was delayed due to staff shortage. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable, Ryanair says. More than 18,000 boats inspected for quagga mussels during Fourth of July weekend SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) Over the busy Fourth of July holiday weekend, officials inspected more than 18,000 boats in an ongoing effort to keep invasive quagga mussels out of Utahs lakes and reservoirs. The Utah Department of Natural Resources said in a news release that between Thursday and Sunday officials across multiple state and federal agencies inspected 18,831 boats and performed 364 decontaminations across Utah. Over that time, officers issued 161 citations and warnings. Silver King Fire doubles in size to nearly 11K acres, continues showing extreme fire behavior Most of the violations were from boaters failing to stop at inspection stations, failing to take the mandatory mussel-aware course, not removing drain plugs while transporting their boats, or launching watercraft without waiting the required dry time or getting their boat decontaminated. At Lake Powell the only lake in Utah contaminated with quagga mussels all watercraft are required to get an exit inspection when leaving the area. Following the inspection, the watercraft must be professionally decontaminated or undergo the required cleaning and dry time before it launches in a different body of water. What are quagga mussels Native to Baltic region, quagga mussels are inedible to humans and can rapidly reproduce when introduced to new waters. Utah wildlife officials say the tiny bivalves take food from native fish, clog and damage water pipes, and, when broken, their razor-sharp shells can cut swimmers feet. According to officials, if quagga mussels get into Utahs water delivery system, it would likely cost millions of dollars each year to remove them. Under such a scenario, paying for the maintenance would result in higher utility bills. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Stanislaus County, where dozens of residents have sought treatment for heat illness, is getting a break from the worst temperatures before things heat up again later in the week. The National Weather Service is predicting a high of 106 degrees Monday, which isnt as bad as a weekend scorcher that featured 108 degrees Sunday in Modesto and 110 on Saturday. Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services reported that 61 people have gone to Modesto-area hospital emergency departments with symptoms of heat illness since July 2. A county public health spokesperson said Monday all the patients have been discharged. No deaths have been reported since the dangerous heat wave began last week. Most of those visits were due to outdoor activities, such as working or physical activity outdoors or drinking alcohol, county spokeswoman Carissa Lucas said via email. The influence of San Joaquin-Sacramento River delta breezes is expected to drop the temperature to 101 degrees Tuesday before the mercury rises again to 106 Wednesday, 110 Thursday and 108 Friday. An excessive-heat warning will be in effect from 11 a.m. Wednesday until 8 p.m. Friday. The daytime high is expected to drop to 104 Saturday but wont flirt with double digits until Sunday, when its forecast to be near 99 degrees. The Modesto Irrigation District says the daytime highs have been no lower than 103 degrees since July 2. Those who track the weather in Modesto rely on two sources of data: the National Weather Service and the Modesto Irrigation District. The MID measured 108 degrees Saturday in downtown Modesto, two degrees lower than the Weather Service measured at the Modesto Airport. Saturdays 108 degrees broke a July 6 record of 103 degrees that stood since 1941, according to MID. Modesto has experienced four consecutive days of 105 or above since the Fourth of July, per MID data. With Mondays anticipated high, the city could match an 18-year-old record of five straight days, but wont break it due to the relative cool-off Tuesday. The Stanislaus County Office of Emergency Services said the risk of fire remains high, and people will be vulnerable to heat-related illness for most of the week. Cooling zones are available to shelter people from extreme temperatures. County public health officials continue to encourage residents to drink plenty of water, especially when outdoors for a prolonged period of time. Alcohol and sugar-sweetened drinks are not recommended because they can lead to dehydration when its hot outside. The signs of heat exhaustion include excessive sweating, clammy skin, muscle cramps, dizziness, headache and nausea, according to the Weather Service. Heat stroke is a medical emergency with symptoms including throbbing headache, confusion, nausea, 103-degree body temperature, rapid pulse and fainting. Call 911 or take the person to a hospital. More than 200 business leaders sound alarm over unsettling moves by new governor: 'The very future of our state is at stake' Louisiana's new governor is making waves, but not in the way coastal protectors had hoped. What's happening? Gov. Jeff Landry has shared plans to change the state's Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, as reported by the Washington Post. He removed six board members and proposed merging the CPRA into a larger department to improve efficiency. Critics say these changes could disrupt the agency's work in protecting the state's coastlines and wetlands from rising sea levels and hurricanes. In response, more than 200 business leaders, environmental advocates, and experts have expressed their concerns in an open letter. "The very future of our state is at stake," the letter reads. Why is coastal protection important? The CPRA has been instrumental in safeguarding Louisiana's coast, which is rapidly eroding. Since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the agency has fortified levees, restored barrier islands, and worked to combat land loss, according to the Post. According to the CPRA, Louisiana has lost nearly 2,000 square miles of land since the 1930s roughly the size of Delaware, as the Post noted. Scientists predict the state could lose another 3,000 in the next 50 years. Weakening the CPRA could jeopardize efforts to protect the state from future storms and rising sea levels. In particular, people are concerned with the Mississippi River diversion project that Gov. Landry's administration is stalling, potentially because of political reasons. This project is crucial for restoring coastal wetlands by bringing new sediment to rapidly sinking areas. Without it, Louisiana could face even greater land loss, weakening natural defenses against hurricanes and storms. What's being done about coastal protection? Environmental groups and experts are voicing their opposition, emphasizing the need to keep the CPRA independent and science-based. Politics often have a direct impact on environmental progress, as seen with Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who made protecting the Amazon a top priority when he took office. According to satellite data from Brazil's space research agency INPE, deforestation rates in the Amazon have dropped significantly. However, a recent deal with a meat processor and China could have a negative impact on deforestation in the country. Conversely, political decisions, such as former U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak delaying the ban on new combustion-engine cars and gas boilers, have been criticized for potentially undermining climate goals. These examples show how political and corporate actions can hinder efforts to tackle critical climate issues effectively. In Louisiana, advocates are calling for greater attention to preserving the agency's work and ensuring political changes do not disrupt critical environmental protections. Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet. More councils told to plan for four-day week under Labour Deputy PM Angela Rayner has encouraged business that 'could deliver' within a four-day week to embrace the concept in the past - Wiktor Szymanowicz/Anadolu via Getty Images Dozens more councils could switch to a four-day working week under Labour despite Britains productivity crisis. The 4 Day Week Campaign, which has called for a nationwide trial, said a more sympathetic Labour government could pave the way for more local authorities to switch to a shorter week. It comes after Lib Dem-run South Cambridgeshire district council was last year ordered to stop a three month pilot over concerns the experiment broke the law and deprived taxpayers of essential services. Independent analysis of the trial published on Monday said the four-day week resulted in improved productivity and performance, with fewer refuse collectors quitting and planning decisions being made more quickly. Joe Ryle, of the 4 Day Week Campaign, said the results of the trial were proof that a four-day week with no loss of pay absolutely can succeed in a local government setting. He added: With a more sympathetic Labour government now in place, there is a huge opportunity for councils and organisations across the public sector to start planning for a four-day working week. South Cambridgeshire council launched a trial of the four-day week in May 2023, giving staff an extra day off every week while paying them full salaries. However the council was ordered to stop the pilot over concerns it was in breach of the law. In a letter, former government minister Lee Rowley said removing a fifth of the capacity to fulfil its duties was not something which should be acceptable, and suggested scaling back public services throughout the week could violate the Local Government Act 1999, which binds councils to a duty of best value. The letter backfired, however, and instead promoted seven more councils to register their interest in a four-day working week. The council later said its own research found that staff turnover fell by 39pc during the trial, saving 371,500, mostly on staff agency costs. Regular household planning applications were also sped up by a week and a half on average. Newly-appointed Energy Secretary Ed Milliband has long been an advocate of a shorter working week, going as far as to devote a chapter to it in his book Go Big or Go Home: How to Fix Our World. Deputy PM Angela Rayner has also previously encouraged businesses to introduce a four-day working week, following the success of a large-scale trial involving 2,900 workers across dozens of companies. Ms Rayner told business leaders last year: If you havent already looked at [the trial], please do. In terms of the four-day working week, it goes back to the first question about flexible working. If you can deliver within a four-day working week, then why not? Over 3,000 people working for 61 businesses tested out a shorter week with no loss of pay in 2022 as part of a nationwide pilot scheme aimed at transforming working life in Britain. Since the financial crash, productivity growth in Britain has slowed significantly from its pre-2008 trend and has fallen behind international peers. Slower productivity growth has translated into much slower economic growth. The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), which consults the treasury, expects Britains economy to grow 0.8pc this year, accelerating to 1.9pc in 2025. The Bank of England, in contrast, thinks the UK will grow just 0.2pc this year and 0.6pc next year. Mike Davey, the leader of Cambridge city council, which shares planning services with South Cambridgeshire, described the trial as a win-win-win situation, with improved service delivery for residents, reduced staffing costs for the council, and a better work-life balance for council staff. Cllr Pete Marland, of the Local Government Association, which represents councils, said: More than nine in 10 councils are experiencing staff recruitment and retention difficulties across a diverse range of skills, professions and occupations. It is councils who know what works best for their community, workforce and in their wider labour market conditions. They should be free to pilot innovative solutions to address local challenges and deliver crucial services to their residents. 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. KYODO NEWS - Jul 8, 2024 - 21:07 | World, All, Japan Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a bilateral defense agreement to facilitate joint exercises for closer security cooperation, amid China's growing assertiveness in regional waters. Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa and Philippine Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro signed the Reciprocal Access Agreement in Manila. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. witnessed the signing following his meeting with Kamikawa and Japanese Defense Minister Minoru Kihara. Later in the day, the two nations aired "serious concern over the dangerous and escalatory actions by China" in the South China Sea in a joint press release following their "two-plus-two" security talks involving their foreign and defense ministers. At the gathering, Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo, Teodoro, Kamikawa and Kihara also said their close four-way collaboration with the United States and Australia is key to "promoting the shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific." Japan's first RAA with a member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will ease restrictions on personnel transfers between the Japan Self-Defense Forces and the Philippine military for joint drills and disaster relief operations in each other's country. At the outset of the morning meeting, Marcos said the new defense deal is "very important," while Kamikawa described it as a "big achievement." Once the RAA takes effect, Japan will be able to participate as a full member in the large-scale Balikatan military exercise, which the Philippines and the United States conduct annually in the Southeast Asian nation. The SDF has previously joined in an observer capacity. The press release said the RAA will "promote interoperability" between the two countries' forces. After the two-plus-two talks, Kihara told a joint news conference that Tokyo will boost collaboration bilaterally with Manila based on the pact, and multilaterally with others. China reacted sharply to the signing of the Japan-Philippines RAA, with Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian saying at a Beijing press conference that it "should not undermine regional peace and stability" or "target any third party." "The Asia-Pacific region does not need military groups, let alone small circles that provoke bloc confrontation and instigate a new Cold War," Lin said, adding any actions that damage regional unity and cooperation will "arouse the vigilance and common opposition" of the people in the region. Tokyo and Manila, both U.S. allies, have been ramping up defense ties in recent years in response to Beijing's growing activities and territorial claims in the East and South China seas. Chinese coast guard ships have repeatedly engaged in aggressive activities near disputed shoals in the resource-rich South China Sea in recent months, including the ramming of several Philippine inflatable boats on June 17 that resulted in a Filipino soldier losing a finger. China claims sovereignty over almost the entire sea. Chinese vessels have also repeatedly entered Japanese territorial waters around the Senkaku Islands, a group of uninhabited islets controlled by Tokyo in the East China Sea that are claimed by Beijing, which calls them Diaoyu. The signing of the RAA between Japan and the Philippines came after Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Marcos agreed last November to start negotiations on the pact. Japan has already signed RAAs with Australia and Britain, both of which entered into force last year, and has a similar pact with the United States called the Status of Forces Agreement. Related coverage: U.S. Marine commandant says littoral regiment to be set up on Guam Chinese, Philippine ships collide near disputed shoal in South China Sea China's new rule allowing maritime trespasser detention takes effect (Bloomberg) -- Several influential congressional Democrats said privately on Sunday they want Joe Biden to step aside as the partys White House nominee, as the US president enters a pivotal week for his teetering reelection campaign. Most Read from Bloomberg The latest defections include several Democratic leaders of House committees, a signal that even some party stalwarts in Congress want a new person at the top of the ticket following Bidens stumbling debate against Donald Trump last month. The defections include Jerrold Nadler and Joe Morelle of New York; Adam Smith of Washington; and Mark Takano of California, according to people familiar with the discussion. The members expressed their views in a private virtual call on Sunday afternoon organized by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. That amounts to a total of nine House Democrats who have called for Biden to step aside. The fallout from Bidens June 27 showing against Trump continues to reverberate. The incumbent president has been defiant against calls for him to step aside, repeatedly saying that he has no plans to suspend his reelection campaign. But this week presents fresh challenges as Biden hosts members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Washington and members of Congress return to the Capitol after largely being away since the debate. Most, if not all, of the participants in the call with Jeffries are Democrats not facing much danger of losing their November campaigns. Their posts atop congressional panels reflect, in part, their seniority and relative reelection security. Many have worked with Biden in some capacity over his nearly five decades in government. Senior Democrats, including Richie Neal of Massachusetts and Don Beyer of Virginia, said in statements after the meeting that they want Biden to stay in the race. A regularly scheduled meeting with all House Democrats set for Tuesday morning will be more telling of the sentiment across the caucus, and will include those members facing competitive reelection contests and who fear down-ballot repercussions from Biden voter fallout. Panic is more pronounced in the House than in the Senate, because Democrats in that chamber had high hopes of taking the majority prior to the debate. Jeffries spokesman declined to comment on the meeting, saying it was a private call. Democrats Doubt Several leading Democrats also spoke publicly Sunday in televised interviews: None directly called for Biden to leave the race, but they questioned whether he should go forward. The performance on the debate stage, I think, rightfully raised questions, Representative Adam Schiff, Democrat of California, said on NBCs Meet the Press. He should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. It should not be even close, Schiff added. And theres only one reason it is close, and thats the presidents age. A reported meeting that was being arranged for Monday by Senator Mark Warner of Virginia so Senate Democrats could discuss their support of Biden remaining on the presidential ticket isnt going to occur, a person familiar with Warners thinking said Sunday. The person said the meeting was never actually scheduled, but that the idea was floated to have a private, in-person conversation. Once the idea of this gathering was publicly reported, the meeting became impossible, the person said. Instead, Senate Democrats will talk Tuesday during their regular caucus. The internal party struggle is playing out as Biden himself works to right his campaign, trying to convince voters at home and foreign leaders of his fitness to serve another four years. Biden starting Tuesday is hosting a summit of NATO leaders and officials, some of whom expressed their worries about the presidents age and attentiveness privately during the Group of Seven meeting in Rome last month. The wars in Gaza and Ukraine heighten the pressure, given the US role in corralling allies. Biden raised the stakes of the meeting in his ABC News interview on Friday, effectively saying that he should be judged on his ongoing efforts to reassert Americas place on the world stage. Campaign Efforts The president is also stepping up his campaign to show renewed vigor. Hes visited two battleground states in recent days, Wisconsin on Friday, and then made stops on Sunday in must-win Pennsylvania, the state where he was born but which a Bloomberg News/Morning Consult Poll shows him trailing by seven percentage points. If it wasnt for Biden, Trump would be at the White House and he would be campaigning for his third term, said Senator John Fetterman, the Pennsylvania Democrat who noted he also had a difficult debate after suffering a stroke and went on to win his race. He expressed his strong support at a Biden event with campaign workers in Philadelphia. I know I dont look like Im 40 years old, Biden joked at the Mount Airy Church of God in Christ, a Black congregation in Philadelphia. All kidding aside, you know Ive been doing this a long time, and honest to God, Ive never been more optimistic about Americas future. He later traveled to an event in the Pennsylvania capital of Harrisburg. Starting July 15, after the NATO summit, Biden will go to Austin to mark the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, then to Las Vegas to address the NAACP Convention and the UnidosUS Annual Conference, according to a White House official. The Las Vegas events target Black and Latino voters, two key constituencies. Despite the defections, Tevi Troy, senior fellow at the Bipartisan Policy Center and former senior White House official for the George W. Bush administration, said he questions this premise of growing pressure because Im not sure thats the case. The Biden people have set it up in such a way its very hard to get rid of him unless he chooses to. And hes not gonna choose to, unless people he trusts tell him to step down. And the people he trusts are in positions that are dependent on him being there, Troy said. (Updates with Warner meeting cancellation starting in 13th paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Morrisville hires new temporary manager for $1 a year. For now. What his contract says Morrisvilles new temporary borough manager will be paid at least $1 for overseeing administrative operations of the roughly 9,700-resident riverfront borough. How much more James Dillon could be paid, though, wont be decided until he leaves, according to a copy of his two-page employment agreement obtained through a Right to Know request. Dillons salary isnt the only vague detail in the document either. Morrisville's interim borough manager James Dillon will be paid at least $1 in salary, but his contract doesn't specify how much more council will pay him after he completes his service. The contract specifies that Dillon will act as chief administrative officer, but it doesnt say what days or hours he is expected to work or if he will hold office hours. Rather the agreement states that Dillon may devote time outside normal office hours to conduct borough business, and he can work from home if there is inclement weather or other situations which may be deemed necessary. The agreement appears to accommodate Dillons other job as full-time manager of Bristol Borough where he has overseen daily operations since 2004. The Bristol Borough Council agreed to lend Dillon to Morrisville until it hires a new full-time manager. Under his contract, Morrisville will pay Dillon $1 a year in salary. For now. At the completion of the employees employment to the borough, the borough may provide additional compensation to employee as borough deems appropriate, according to the contract, which doesn't provide a potential or capped amount. The council voted unanimously last month to hire Dillon as interim manager after the resignation of Judith Danko, who worked nearly three years for the borough. Danko left to take a manager position with Tinicum Township in Upper Bucks County. What about the new Police Chief Richard Ciampa? What his contract says Morrisville will have a police chief for at least the next two years, according to a copy of the employment contract for Richard Ciampa, who was hired last month. The borough will pay Ciampa, a former lieutenant with the Freehold Borough Police Department in New Jersey, $140,000 this year and $145,656 in the final year of his contract which expires in June 2027. The borough will provide Ciampa with a vehicle that he can use to travel to and from home and for official business. He cannot use the vehicle for vacations or personal travel, according to the contract. Ciampa also will not be eligible for severance pay if he leaves his job, unless council terminates him without cause, according to the contract. Ciampa, who lives in Middlesex County, New Jersey, started at the Freehold Police Department in 1999 and reached the rank of lieutenant in 2019. He has a bachelors of Arts in public administration and completed a certified public management program at Rutgers State University, according to a copy of his resume provided through a Right to Know request. Ciampa replaced George McClay, who was terminated in November after serving as chief since 2014. Reporter Jo Ciavaglia can be reached at jciavaglia@gannett.com This article originally appeared on Bucks County Courier Times: Morrisville interim manager contract is short on specifics like salary About 60% of the abortions performed in Florida last year would be illegal under the states new, six-week ban that took effect in May 1, new data shows. That supports the fears of reproductive rights advocates who have long contended the new law would sharply reduce access to abortions. Data from the Florida Agency for Healthcare Administration released June 27 shows that last year, 39.8% of abortions about 33,000 were performed before a fetus reached six weeks gestational age, and 60% were performed after that six-week mark. The state had not previously released data from last year on how many abortions were performed before or after six weeks. Until the new ban took effect, abortions in Florida were allowed up to 15 weeks, and prior to 2022, up to 24 weeks. The six-week ban has already had visible impacts, sending more people out of state and to the internet for abortion-inducing pills, along with shrinking revenue at abortion clinics like The Center of Orlando for Women, which started a GoFundMe to stay afloat following a drastic decrease in patients. By banning abortion after six weeks, before many people even realize they are pregnant, politicians have succeeded in drastically accelerating our nations growing public health crisis by forcing millions more individuals to carry pregnancies against their will or travel hundreds of miles to access essential care, said Barbara Zdravecky, interim CEO of Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida, when the ban took effect. The new data, however, doesnt mean a 60% reduction in abortions in the coming year, cautioned Isaac Maddow-Zimet, a data scientist at the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive rights research and policy organization. Weve experienced from other states what the impact of these kinds of six-week bans has been, and its not necessarily a one to one reduction, he said. Both providers and patients are extremely motivated to try to get care before six weeks if they can, and they often go to really great lengths to make that happen. So providers are often doing a lot with appointment scheduling and trying to get patients in as early as possible, and then patients themselves are often trying to get appointments as early as possible. The new data may play a role in in getting people fired up to vote for or against Amendment 4 this November, a ballot initiative that would protect abortion in Floridas constitution. Both opponents and supporters could use the data to illustrate the issues scope, though it is not yet known precisely how the number of abortions has changed in the state since the ban took effect. As of July 1, there was a decrease in the number of abortions reported in the two months since the ban took effect compared to the two months before the ban took effect, according to Florida Agency for Health Care Administration. AHCA tracks the number of abortions performed in the state each year and updates the total each month. Maddow-Zimet said the numbers collected so far are incomplete because providers have 30 days to report abortions to the state. But the downward trend since May 1 is obvious. I think its clear that there has been a drop in the number of abortions provided by facilities in Florida, but because of this slight fuzziness in when facilities report, its hard to get exact numbers, he said. More precise numbers will be available from The Guttmacher Institute in the coming months, he added. The group obtains data directly from clinics in order to estimate the number of abortions provided each month by state. The institute will likely publish Floridas May data in late August, he said. Ccatherman@orlandosentinel.com Mother Who Admitted Killing Son, 7, with Morphine to Remove' Cancer 'Pain Dead at 77 "She was peaceful, pain free, at home and surrounded by her loving family," Antonya Cooper's daughter Tabitha said in a statement to the BBC Antonya Cooper Facebook Antonya Cooper. Antonya Cooper has died at age 77 after admitting to ending her terminally ill 7-year-old son Hamish's life in 1981 by giving him a "large dose of morphine" "She was peaceful, pain free, at home and surrounded by her loving family," Antonya's daughter Tabitha told the BBC in a statement regarding her mother's death Hamish had been diagnosed with stage 4 cancer and his mother recently said she wanted to ease his pain by "quietly" ending "his life" in an interview with BBC Radio Oxford A mother who admitted to giving her 7-year-old son a "large dose of morphine" to "quietly end his life" amid his stage 4 cancer diagnosis has died. Antonya Cooper, 77, from Oxfordshire in England recently confirmed she'd given her son Hamish the fatal dose of the drug in 1981 while speaking to BBC Radio Oxford about wanting to change the U.K. law on assisted dying. In the interview, she revealed that she was "dying too." Per U.K. newspaper The Times, Antonya was diagnosed with breast and pancreatic cancer, and the disease had spread to her liver. On Monday, July 8 Antonya's daughter Tabitha told the BBC her mother died surrounded by family over the weekend. Antonya Cooper Facebook Antonya Cooper. "She was peaceful, pain free, at home and surrounded by her loving family," Tabitha said in the statement, per the outlet. "It was exactly the way she wanted it. She lived life on her terms and she died on her terms." Per the BBC, Tabitha confirmed that Thames Valley Police officers had visited the family before Antonya's death. Thames Valley Police didn't immediately respond when contacted by PEOPLE on Monday but previously said they were "aware of reports relating to an apparent case of assisted dying of a seven-year-old boy, in 1981." "At this early stage, the force is making enquiries into these reports and is not in a position to comment further while these investigations continue," the statement to PEOPLE added. It is currently illegal in England to assist or encourage another person to end their life, per the U.K. parliament's website. The BBC previously reported that Hamish was five years old when he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, which is one of the most common types of cancer among children, per the World Health Organization. The disease develops from immature nerve cells commonly found near the adrenal glands and can also appear in the kidneys, chest, neck, and spine, per the Mayo Clinic. Hamish who was initially given just three months to live ended up having 16 months of cancer treatment at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital, but this left him in "a lot of pain," Antonya shared in the radio station interview published last week. "On Hamish's last night, when he said he was in a lot of pain, I said, 'Would you like me to remove the pain?' and he said, 'Yes please, mama.' " "Through his Hickman Catheter, I gave him a large dose of morphine that did quietly end his life," Antonya added. During her interview, Antonya said "Yes," when questioned whether she knew that she was potentially admitting to manslaughter or murder. "If they come 43 years after I have allowed Hamish to die peacefully, then I would have to face the consequences. But they would have to be quick, because I'm dying too," she said, according to the BBC. Antonya insisted, "It was the right thing to do. My son was facing the most horrendous suffering and intense pain, I was not going to allow him to go through that." Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage, and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Per The Times, Antonya went on to have four more children and helped launch the charity Neuroblastoma U.K. following Hamish's death. "40 years ago, in 1982, a group of bereaved parents came together and formed The Neuroblastoma Society. Following the loss of their sons, Matthew Oldridge and Hamish Cooper, they wanted to help other children and families experiencing neuroblastoma," a message on the website states. The charity didn't immediately respond when approached by PEOPLE for comment. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Mother who admitted on radio to ending life of terminally ill son dies days later Antonya Cooper said she would "never get over" the death of her child - Collect/PA Real Life A mother who ended the life of her terminally ill seven-year-old son has died days after admitting to the act during a live radio interview. Antonya Cooper, from Abingdon in Oxfordshire, on Wednesday acknowledged she was potentially admitting to manslaughter, but said authorities would have to act swiftly if they chose to prosecute as she was suffering from terminal cancer. Ms Cooper, 77, whose son Hamish had stage four cancer before his death in 1981, said she would happily face the consequences of ending his life. Thames Valley Police last week confirmed it was investigating reports relating to an apparent case of assisted dying of a seven-year-old boy in 1981. Aiding assisted suicide carries a maximum prison sentence of 14 years in England and Wales. In a statement to the BBC, Ms Coopers daughter Tabitha said: She was peaceful, pain-free, at home and surrounded by her loving family. It was exactly the way she wanted it. She lived life on her terms and she died on her terms. She also said that the family had been visited by officers from Thames Valley Police after the radio interview. Hamish was five when he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma, a rare cancer that most commonly affects children. He was initially given a prognosis of three months to live. After 16 months of beastly treatment at Great Ormond Street Hospital in London, his life was extended but he was left in great pain, Ms Cooper said. Hamish died at home on Dec 1 1981 after Ms Cooper administered morphine to ease his pain. She said his death was like an amputation and said she would never get over it. In the years after Hamishs death, Ms Cooper had four more children and helped to launch what is now known as Neuroblastoma UK a charity dedicated to finding a cure for the aggressive childhood cancer. Antonya Cooper with her son Hamish in 1980 - Collect/PA Real Life Speaking to BBC Radio Oxford last week, she claimed Hamish knew she intended to end his life when he asked her to stop his pain. Ms Cooper said: I feel very strongly that at the point of Hamish telling me he was in pain, and asking me if I could remove his pain, he knew, he knew somewhere what was going to happen. But I cannot obviously tell you why or how, but I was his mother, he loved his mother, and I totally loved him, and I was not going to let him suffer, and I feel he really knew where he was going. Asked if she understood she was potentially admitting to manslaughter or murder, Ms Cooper replied: Yes. Ms Cooper had been undergoing chemotherapy after being diagnosed with breast and pancreatic cancer. Before her death, she said Hamishs suffering and her own diagnosis had cemented her feelings about euthanasia, prompting her to join Dignitas, the assisted dying organisation. Thames Valley Police was contacted 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. **Learn about sun safety tips in the video above LOS ANGELES (AP) A long-running heat wave that has already shattered previous records across the U.S. persisted on Sunday, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that caused the death of a motorcyclist in Death Valley and held the East in its hot and humid grip. An excessive heat warning the National Weather Services highest alert was in effect for about 36 million people Sunday, or about 10% of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest tied or broke previous heat records. That was certainly the case over the weekend: Many areas in Northern California surpassed 110 degrees (43.3 C), with the city of Redding topping out at a record 119 (48.3 C). Phoenix set a new daily record Sunday for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 92 F (33.3 C). Air quality alert issued for parts of NE Ohio as heat ramps up A high temperature of 128 F (53.3 C) was recorded Saturday and Sunday at Death Valley National Park in eastern California, where a visitor died Saturday from heat exposure and another person was hospitalized, officials said. The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists riding through the Badwater Basin area amid scorching weather, the park said in a statement. The person who died was not identified. The other motorcyclist was transported to a Las Vegas hospital for severe heat illness, the statement said. The other four members of the party were treated at the scene. Park officials warned that heat illness and injury are cumulative and can build over the course of a day or days. High heat like this can pose real threats to your health, said park Superintendent Mike Reynolds. Besides not being able to cool down while riding due to high ambient air temperatures, experiencing Death Valley by motorcycle when it is this hot is further challenged by the necessary heavy safety gear worn to reduce injuries during an accident, the statement said. VIDEO: Big boat gets stuck in tunnel near Los Angeles International Airport The soaring temperatures didnt faze Chris Kinsel, a Death Valley visitor who said it was like Christmas day for me to be there on a record-breaking day. Kinsel said he and his wife typically come to the park during the winter, when its still plenty warm but thats nothing compared with being at one of the hottest places on Earth in July. Death Valley during the summer has always been a bucket list thing for me. For most of my life, Ive wanted to come out here in summertime, said Kinsel, who was visiting Death Valleys Badwater Basin area from Las Vegas. Kinsel said he planned to go to the parks visitor center to have his photo taken next to the digital sign displaying the current temperature. Across the desert in Nevada, Natasha Ivory took four of her eight children to a water park in Mount Charleston, outside Las Vegas, which on Sunday set a record high of 119 F (48.3 C). Theyre having a ball, Ivory told Fox5 Vegas said. Im going to get wet too. Its too hot not to. Jill Workman Anderson also was at Mount Charleston, taking her dog for a short hike and enjoying the view. We can look out and see the desert, she said. It was also 30 degrees cooler than northwest Las Vegas, where we live. Triple-digit temperatures were common across Oregon, where several records were toppled including in Salem, where on Sunday it hit 103 F (39.4 C), topping the 99 F (37.2 C) mark set in 1960. On the more-humid East Coast, temperatures above 100 degrees were widespread, though no excessive heat advisories were in effect for Sunday. Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors, read a weather service advisory for the Baltimore area. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. A sign at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in Death Valley national park during a heatwave impacting southern California, on 7 July 2024. A sign at Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes in Death Valley national park during a heatwave impacting southern California, on 7 July 2024. Photograph: Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images A visitor to Death Valley national park died on Sunday from heat exposure and another person was hospitalized as the temperature reached 128F (53.3C) in eastern California, officials said. The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists riding through the Badwater Basin area amid scorching weather, the park said. The person who died was not identified. The other motorcyclist was hospitalized in Las Vegas for severe heat illness, the statement said. The other four members of the party were treated at the scene. High heat like this can pose real threats to your health, said park superintendent Mike Reynolds. Besides not being able to cool down while riding due to high ambient air temperatures, experiencing Death Valley by motorcycle when it is this hot is further challenged by the necessary heavy safety gear worn to reduce injuries during an accident, Reynolds said. The death comes as a long-running heatwave has shattered temperature records across the US, with about 36 million people roughly 10% of the country under excessive heat warnings, National Weather Services (NWS) meteorologist Bryan Jackson said. Dozens of locations in the west and Pacific north-west were expected to tie or break previous heat records, he said. That was certainly the case over the weekend: many areas in northern California surpassed 110F (43.3C), with the city of Redding topping out at a record 119F (48.3C). Phoenix set a new daily record on Sunday for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 92F (33.3C). Triple-digit temperatures were common across Oregon, where several records were toppled including in Salem, where on Sunday it hit 103F (39.4C), topping the 99F (37.2C) mark set in 1960. Rare heat advisories were extended even into higher elevations including around Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, with the weather service in Reno, Nevada, warning of major heat risk impacts, even in the mountains. The NWS is also warning of increased wildfire risks due to a mix of hot, dry and windy conditions. In southern California, residents were ordered late on Saturday to evacuate parts of Santa Barbara county, where the Lake Fire has scorched more than 13,000 acres since Friday, according to Cal Fire. Each of the past 12 months have ranked as the warmest on record in year-on-year comparisons across the globe, according to the Copernicus Climate Change Service, European Unions climate change monitoring service, which links human activities like the combustion of fossil fuels to climate change-causing greenhouse gas emissions. Last week, Joe Bidens administration proposed the first-ever safety standard intended to protect workers and communities from the impacts of extreme heat. The Associated Press and Reuters contributed reporting LOS ANGELES (AP) A long-running heat wave that has already shattered previous records across the U.S. persisted on Sunday, baking parts of the West with dangerous temperatures that caused the death of a motorcyclist in Death Valley and holding the East in its hot and humid grip. An excessive heat warning the National Weather Services highest alert was in effect for about 36 million people, or about 10% of the population, said NWS meteorologist Bryan Jackson. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest tied or broke previous heat records. That was certainly the case over the weekend: Many areas in Northern California surpassed 110 degrees (43.3 C), with the city of Redding topping out at a record 119 (48.3 C). Phoenix set a new daily record Sunday for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 92 F (33.3 C). A high temperature of 128 F (53.3 C) was recorded Sunday at Death Valley National Park in eastern California, where a visitor died from heat exposure and another person was hospitalized, officials said. The two visitors were part of a group of six motorcyclists riding through the Badwater Basin area amid scorching weather, the park said in a statement. The person who died was not identified. The other motorcyclist was transported to a hospital in Las Vegas for severe heat illness, the statement said. The other four members of the party were treated at the scene. High heat like this can pose real threats to your health, said park Superintendent Mike Reynolds. The soaring temperatures didnt faze Chris Kinsel, a visitor who said it was like Christmas day for me to be at Death Valley on a record-breaking day. Kinsel said he and his wife typically come to the park during the winter, when its still plenty warm but thats nothing compared with being at one of the hottest places on Earth in July. Death Valley during the summer has always been a bucket list thing for me. For most of my life, Ive wanted to come out here in summertime, said Kinsel, who was visiting Death Valleys Badwater Basin area from Las Vegas. Kinsel said he planned to go to the parks visitor center to have his photo taken next to the digital sign displaying the current temperature. Across the desert in Nevada, Natasha Ivory took four of her eight children to a water park in Mount Charleston, outside Las Vegas, which on Sunday set a record high of 119 F (48.3 C). Theyre having a ball, Ivory told Fox5 Vegas said. Im going to get wet too. Its too hot not to. Jill Workman Anderson also was at Mount Charleston, taking her dog for a short hike and enjoying the view. We can look out and see the desert, she said. It was also 30 degrees cooler than northwest Las Vegas, where we live. Triple-digit temperatures were common across Oregon, where several records were toppled including in Salem, where on Sunday it hit 103 F (39.4 C), topping the 99 F (37.2 C) mark set in 1960. On the more-humid East Coast, temperatures above 100 degrees were widespread, though no excessive heat advisories were in effect for Sunday. Drink plenty of fluids, stay in an air-conditioned room, stay out of the sun, and check up on relatives and neighbors, read a weather service advisory for the Baltimore area. Young children and pets should never be left unattended in vehicles under any circumstances. Heat records shattered across the Southwest Rare heat advisories were extended even into higher elevations including around Lake Tahoe, on the border of California and Nevada, with the weather service in Reno, Nevada, warning of major heat risk impacts, even in the mountains. How hot are we talking? Well, high temperatures across (western Nevada and northeastern California) wont get below 100 degrees (37.8 C) until next weekend, the service posted online. And unfortunately, there wont be much relief overnight either. More extreme highs are in the near forecast, including possibly 130 F (54.4 C) around midweek at Furnace Creek, California, in Death Valley. The hottest temperature ever officially recorded on Earth was 134 F (56.67 C) in July 1913 in Death Valley, though some experts dispute that measurement and say the real record was 130 F (54.4 C), recorded there in July 2021. Tracy Housley, a native of Manchester, England, said she decided to drive from her hotel in Las Vegas to Death Valley after hearing on the radio that temperatures could approach record levels. We just thought, lets be there for that, Housley said Sunday. Lets go for the experience. Deaths are starting to mount In Arizonas Maricopa County, which encompasses Phoenix, there have been at least 13 confirmed heat-related deaths this year, along with more than 160 other deaths suspected of being related to heat that are still under investigation, according to a recent report. That does not include the death of a 10-year-old boy last week in Phoenix who suffered a heat-related medical event while hiking with family at South Mountain Park and Preserve, according to police. California wildfires fanned by low humidity, high temperatures In California, crews worked in sweltering conditions to battle a series of wildfires across the state. In Santa Barbara County, northwest of Los Angeles, the growing Lake Fire had scorched more than 25 square miles (66.5 square kilometers) of dry grass, brush and timber after breaking out Friday. There was no containment by Sunday. The blaze was burning through mostly uninhabited wildland, but some rural homes were under evacuation orders. Festival revelers meet the heat with cold water and shade At the Waterfront Blues Festival in Portland, Oregon, music fans coped by drinking cold water, seeking shade or freshening up under water misters. Organizers of the weekend revelries also advertised free access to air conditioning in a nearby hotel. Angelica Quiroz, 31, kept her scarf and hat wet and applied sunscreen. Definitely a difference between the shade and the sun, Quiroz said Friday. But when youre in the sun, it feels like youre cooking. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW KYODO NEWS - Jul 8, 2024 - 20:54 | World, All North Korean leader Kim Jong Un attended Monday a national memorial service in Pyongyang for his grandfather and the country's founder Kim Il Sung to commemorate the 30th anniversary of his death, state-run media said. Kim Jong Un also visited the Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, where the embalmed bodies of North Korea's two former leaders -- Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il -- lie in state, offered a floral basket and paid "high tribute to the statues of the great leaders," the official Korean Central News Agency said. At the memorial event, Ri Il Hwan, secretary of the Central Committee of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, hailed the hereditary transfer of power across the three generations, saying Kim Il Sung "most successfully solved the issue of succession to the revolutionary cause for the first time in history." "Looking far into the distant future of the country and people, a sure guarantee was provided for the Korean revolution," Ri was quoted by KCNA as saying. Kim Il Sung died in 1994 at age 82 after 46 years in power. He was succeeded by Kim Jong Il, the current leader's father, who died of a heart attack in 2011 at age 69. Related coverage: North Korea claims to have test-fired new type of ballistic missile MOUNT OLIVE, WV (WVNS) An inmate at the Mount Olive Correctional Center in Fayette County was sentenced to prison for Second-Degree Murder after stabbing another inmate. 55-year-old Charles Redman, of Mount Olive, was sentenced on July 8, 2024 to 40 years in prison for the felony offense of Second-Degree Murder. Redman will serve his sentence consecutively to his current 15 year to life sentence in relation to a repeat offender conviction from Berkeley County. He will need to serve a minimum of ten years on the Fayette County conviction before becoming eligible for parole. Inmate at Mount Olive convicted of Second-Degree Murder of another inmate Members of the West Virginia State Police received a report around 8:45 p.m. on November 20, 2020, about a stabbing at the Mount Olive Correctional Center in Fayette County. Troopers were informed that an inmate was stabbed multiple times by another inmate, and that the victim later died at the Montgomery General Hospital. Prison video showed Redman was sitting at a card table in the main floor of the residence hall. The video showed that the victim tried to sit beside Redman, who then tried to punch the victim. The victim, who video shows was not the aggressor in the incident, got up and went to an upstairs hallway where video showed that Redman followed and proceeded to stab him. Active duty military member from Connecticut charged with sexual assault, missing Monroe County teen found with him Investigators later found a piece of metal around eight inches long that was covered in blood. The West Virginia State Police determined that the DNA found on the weapon was that of the victims. The victim received four stab wounds, lacerations, and abrasions, and the autopsy report revealed that the victim died as a result of the stab wounds. Redman admitted that he stabbed the victim to a relative during a recorded phone call, and to officers at the correctional 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 WVNS. MQ-9 Reaper drone equipped with new EW pod that makes it a 'black hole' that can 'disappear off of enemy radar,' top Marine general says MQ-9 Reaper drone equipped with new EW pod that makes it a 'black hole' that can 'disappear off of enemy radar,' top Marine general says The US Marine Corps has equipped its MQ-9 Reaper drones with a new electronic warfare pod. The pod "can mimic things that are sent to it," Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith said. The announcement follows the drone's struggles against the Houthi Rebels. The US Marine Corps has equipped its MQ-9 Reaper drones with a new electronic warfare pod that can "mimic" signals to help hide them from enemy sensors, a top US Marine Corps general has said, The War Zone reported. Speaking at a Brookings Institution forum last week, Marine Corps Commandant Gen. Eric Smith said: The pod "can mimic, I'll be careful here, it can mimic things that are sent to it that it detects, turn it around and send it back." "So it becomes a hole. A black hole. It becomes mostly undetectable," he added. The 634-pound pod, known as the Reaper Defense Electronic Support System/Scalable Open Architecture Reconnaissance (RDESS/SOAR), will allow the Reaper drone "to somewhat disappear off of enemy radar." The US first tested the pod, which was developed by General Atomics and L3Harris Technologies, in 2021. A press release from the time describes the pod as "a broad spectrum, passive Electronic Support Measure (ESM) payload designed to collect and geo-locate signals of interest from standoff ranges." It says that its addition to the Reaper helps it become "an even more versatile surveillance aircraft given its ability to conduct electronic sensing well enough to provide high quality intelligence but also keep safely away in friendly or international airspace." The comments from Smith come off the back of the US Navy's intense battle against Yemen's Houthi rebels around the Red Sea. The 36-foot-long Reaper struggled somewhat against the Iran-backed militant group, which claimed to have shot down a number of the drones. "The Houthis have gained access to surface-to-air missiles that have the performance to reach those speeds and altitudes against a large, unstealthy aircraft, courtesy of Iran," Peter Wilson, Senior Defense Policy Analyst at RAND, told Business Insider. And the MQ-9 would face a far sterner test against the air defenses and detection capabilities of an enemy such as China, so the new pod could prove vital in helping keep the drone relevant. Yemens Iran-backed Houthis release footage showing American MQ-9 Reaper UAV being shot down over Yemeni territorial waters. pic.twitter.com/sU0eI5d7vi Clash Report (@clashreport) November 8, 2023 The Marine Corps began operating MQ-9 Reaper drones in 2018. According to the US Air Force, the Reaper is mostly used for collecting intelligence and "secondarily against dynamic execution targets." Peter Wilson noted that the drone is in itself "very useful" and "can be honored." "It was one of the most successful unmanned combat air vehicles used during our protracted counterinsurgency campaigns in Iraq and in dealing with ISIS and also even in Afghanistan. But there, the locals didn't have the kind of weapons that the Houthis have gained access to through Iran," he said. Read the original article on Business Insider The existence of the spiny, snouted Attenboroughs long-beaked echidna had not been definitively recorded since 1961 when the first scientific specimen was collected, and scientists werent sure it still existed. Last summer in the rugged and remote Cyclops Mountains of Papua, Indonesia, a team of researchers spent a month setting up cameras and searching for the mammal. Near the end of the expedition, a camera caught the creature foraging for food, marking a monumental find. One of the researchers on the team was Andrew Tilker, a 2006 graduate of Midwestern State University. This photo shows MSU Texas grad Andrew Tilker setting up a "camera trap" in Vietnam. Tilker is species conservation coordinator for Re:wild, a conservation organization that works around the world to protect endangered species and the places where they live. Documenting the echidna was a pretty big deal, Tilker, a 2002 graduate of Rider High School, said. Given the species restricted distribution, it was unknown if it still existed. With our camera-trapping results, we showed definitely that the species still exists. Then there is also the fact that, being a spiny egg-laying mammal, its a pretty remarkable species. Attenborough's long-beaked echidna, named for the famed biologist David Attenborough, is one of only five living species of monotremes, a group of egg-laying mammals that includes the platypus. Seeing the elusive critter on camera was a dream come true for a boy who said he has vivid memories of endlessly bothering my parents to take me to the library for this or that book on rare and obscure animal species. I quickly became aware that many of these amazing animals were threatened with extinction. Even then, that boy knew he had an innate passion for biology and a curiosity about the animal kingdom. My experiences at Midwestern State University were particularly formative learning from great biologists and naturalists like Drs. Norman Horner, Fred Stangl, and Bill Cook helped to set me on my current professional path," Tilker said. Scientists worried this peculiar creature might have become extinct until a team that included an MSU grad captured it on camera in Papua, Indonesia. Horner said that it was gratifying for a college professor to see the successes of their students. I knew Drew Tilker was a conscientious student who would have a rewarding career, but he has far exceeded my expectations, Horner said. Tilker described his job as supporting species conservation globally for the species that need it most. I am especially interested in the conservation of rare and threatened species, especially mammals, which are overlooked those species that have slipped through the cracks but need the most help such as the silver-backed chevrotain or the tamaraw, he said. Re:wild maintains a list of the Top 25 Most Wanted Lost Species, and Attenboroughs echidna was one of the species that Re:wild put intensive search efforts into. The rugged terrain of Cyclops Forest is where a team found a spiny, snouted Attenboroughs long-beaked echidna, a species believed near extinction. To date, we have found 13 of our previous Top 25 lost species and we hope that many more are to come, Tilker said. The first step to protecting many of these species, and the habitats where they live, is to first show that they exist. Tilker graduated summa cum laude from MSU with a bachelor of science in biology/organismal. He was named Outstanding Biology Student in 2006. During his time at MSU Texas, Tilker also received Presidents Distinguished Scholarships and Presidents Excellence Scholarships. He was named a Fulbright Scholar for 2014-2015. He received a masters degree from The University of Texas, and he earned his doctorate at Berlins Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research. He is the son of Paula and Kristopher Tilker of Wichita Falls. Kris Tilker is professor of legal studies in the Dillard College of Business Administration at MSU Texas. This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: MSU grad helps prove rare creature not extinct A member of Solid Rock Church in Market Common was arrested Monday morning for charges related to spraying Mica Miller protesters in the face with a sprinkler. Robert Lochel, 67, was arrested by Myrtle Beach Police on five counts of third-degree assault and battery on Monday. He is being held at the Myrtle Beach Jail and a bond had not been determined at time of publication. On June 30, a group of people were protesting the church over the April 2024 death of Mica Miller outside Solid Rock Church, 803 Howard Ave. There were sprinklers scattered across church grounds and were turned on before services started, spraying protesters on the sidewalk, said protest organizer Alexandria Cuozzo. A TikTok video captured the incident. After the service, Lochel came out, picked up a sprinkler head and sprayed around six people in the face with water. He put the sprinkler down when a police officer came over. Out of the six people, five filed assault charges which led to Lochels arrest. Lochel told police he sprayed the protesters due to his wifes frustrations, the police report said. No one was hurt, although protester Melissa Pfeiffer said she felt embarrassed after the water made her white shirt sheer, The Sun News reported. The maximum penalty for third-degree assault and battery is 30 days in jail, a $500 fine or both, according to South Carolina law. Cuozzo said she and others have been protesting Solid Rock Church since May 6. Mica Miller, the wife of former pastor John-Paul Miller, died on April 27, and shortly after, her case gained national attention after allegations surfaced that John-Paul Miller had abused his wife. John-Paul Miller has denied these allegations. Protesters meet to protest for Mica Miller, which can be different for each protester. For example, Pfeiffer said as a victim of domestic violence she wants to bring more awareness to it. John-Paul Miller said in a previous statement that Solid Rock believes in the right to protest, but he and church members are upset by not being allowed to worship Jesus for one hour together. About the Mica Miller case Mica Miller committed suicide on April 27, according to North Carolina officials. In May, Robeson County Sheriffs Office released a video of her buying a gun before driving from Myrtle Beach to a North Carolina state park. There, she called 911 and told them she was planning to kill herself. Her body was found in a state park. Her death has become a national conversation topic, with people making TikTok videos about her, Facebook groups being started and posts circulating online with the #JusticeForMica. Mica Millers father and sister, Micheal and Sierra Francis, told The Sun News previously that they believe Mica Miller was in an abusive relationship with John-Paul Miller. The family made it known that they did not approve of the couples relationship. They also offered help as she tried to leave him. Mica Miller had filed for separation multiple times before her death. Cultural artefacts have been stolen from Haiti, wracked by gang violence. The Citadelle Laferriere, commonly known as La Citadelle, is a large early 19th-century fortress located in Milot in Nord, Haiti. picture alliance / dpa-tmn They are the prized bounty of Haitis hard-fought struggle for freedom, taken in battle from European powers and then placed on top of the countrys most revered monument, Citadelle Henry, to guard against French occupation. National treasures, the 18th century cannons are priceless and come in various weights and dimensions. The largest of them, cast in iron, flank the mountaintop fortress outside of the northern city of Cap-Haitien in the rural town of Milot. Smaller ones, cast in bronze with intricate markings hinting at their origins, have been safely tucked away behind locked doors in a museum open only to dignitaries, diplomats and other important personalities. Now, like the Irish Crown Jewels, which went missing from a Dublin castle in 1907 never resurface again, two of the smaller cannons have vanished without a trace from inside the locked museums gallery. The theft was first noticed over two weeks ago by a security guard at the monument. But it was only recently made public after people started discussing it on social networks. Until recently there had been no official notification to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, UNESCO, which considers the cannons part of its World Heritage site designation for the Citadelle and several other historical landmarks located inside the National History Park in Milot. That notification by Haitian authorities is necessary, sources say, for UNESCO to issue an alert for the missing cultural artefacts so that INTERPOL can be notified in hopes of tracking down the cannons, which one preservationist worries could be half way around the world by now. Patrick Durandis, the current director of the Institute for Safeguarding National Heritage, blamed the delayed UNESCO notification on the current state of affairs in Haiti, wracked by gang violence. The theft, he said, required him to visit Cap-Haitien, which he had been unable to get to from Port-au-Prince. I have the photos of the cannons and am gathering the files to mount the forms and make the request, he said. Durandis said whether the cannons are still in Haiti depends on the whether they were stolen for their precious metal or as a collectors item. They speak about a gang leader who went up to the Citadelle at night in the rain to commit this crime. In principle everyone in Milot knows, a lot of the residents in the commune know exactly what happened, said Durandis. But Haiti is a very peculiar country. Even when you encourage people to talk and come forward, there is something in their minds that stops them from doing so. Neat Achille, the director of the institute for Haitis northern region, responsible for protecting the Citadellle, says the theft is an inside job. At the very least its one of the employees who is complicit or the author of the theft, Achille said. Where the cannons were located, they couldnt just walk off, first of all. Secondly, they were located in an area of the Citadelle thats closed to the public. The last visit conducted there was three years ago. No one has entered except for the Citadelles employees who go to clean and security. Achille said there are a dozen people currently employed by the Citadelle and all have been jailed as part of an investigation. Its a dishonest employee who carried this out, he said. Achille says the theft came to light after a day security guard, Ernest Valmyr, reported an empty table where the cannons had been displayed. Valmyr, Achille said, had gone up to the museum to close two open windows when it rained. We took everyone so that if someone knows something, they will have to talk, Achille said. Attack on Haitis history So far no one is claiming responsibility, and the mysterious disappearance and how it is being handled are igniting more questions than answers. When I was growing up in the shadow of the Citadelle, this monument and its companion, the Sans-Souci Palace, were a constant reminder to us youngsters to dream big, said Frandley Julien, a South Florida immigration attorney who is originally from Milot, where the monuments are part of the areas tourist attractions. Its sad to see that our generation, after failing to fulfill our forefathers grandiose vision, does not even have the decency to preserve their legacy. Dominique Dupuy, Haitis ambassador to UNESCO, worries that if the cannons are not recovered, their disappearance can pose a threat to the Citadelles integrity [and] the national parks classification as a World Heritage site. The cannons, she notes, are part of Haitian history, symbols of Haitis fight for freedom. The symbolism of this theft is huge, she said. Its like the antithesis of the foundation of the Haitian nation. What does it say, if we can get to a point where we allow the bounty of our revolution to be sold off in pieces? Its the beginning of the end of everything that we stand for as a nation on a symbolic level. Cannon collection The Citadelles collection of canyons is considered among the largest in the world. They were acquired from the English, Spanish and French after slaves on the island, then known as Saint-Domingue, rebelled and launched the Haitian Revolution in 1791. The 12-year uprising finally culminate in the Battle of Vertieres on Nov. 18, 1803, near Cap-Haitien when the army led by slave-turned-revolutionary hero Jean-Jacques Dessalines defeated Napoleons army. On January 1, 1804, Dessalines declared the birth of a new nation, Haiti, the worlds first free Black republic. To defend that freedom, Henri Christophe, a general in the war, took over after Dessalines assassination and commissioned the construction of large 19th century fortress, the Citadelle Henry or La Citadelle. Daniel Elie, the former head of ISPAN, sees the cannons disappearance as the latest assault on Haitis cultural history. Four years ago, the historic Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception Church was partly gutted by fire. Built in 1809, the church is located in the National History Park in Milot park, along with the ruins of the Palace of Sans-Souci and the fortified site of Ramiers. Earlier this year, amid the deadly gang violence in Port-au-Prince, armed groups looted and ransacked the National Library in their bid to topple the government. The attack against the librarys collection of rare books and manuscripts documenting 200 years of Haitian history came after a series of other assaults against other institutions, including Haitis oldest teacher training school, Ecole Normale Superieure, and the National School of Arts. The education of history has degraded a lot in Haiti, Elie said. People do not believe in history. We are always talking about 1804, the first Black republic, the Battle of Vertillers; how we beat Napoleons army. When you are recounting this history, parallel to the fact that the person cant go to school, cant eat, theres a certain confusion with the reality that he is living.... Its hard for a professor to recount this history with a population that is living in dire poverty and the only hope he has is to leave the country. The theft of the cannons has him fuming, he said, even if he was not surprised by it. People have long been waiting to do this kind of heist at the Citadelle, said Elie, recalling how after cannonballs regularly went missing. Elie, an architect, twice served as head of the institution, and safeguarding both the cannons and the cannonballs was a priority. He oversaw the construction of the museum, which was financed by the National Pantheon Museum. There are other problems with the cultural site, he said. There is no real security, he said. What they call security up there is badly organized. They have no supervisor and there is no control. Sites destroyed by gangs in Port-au-Prince, a city plagued by deadly gang violence carried out by armed groups who have looted and ransacked homes as well as national institutions. Hector Adolfo Quintanar Perez/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Haitian police officers patrol a neighbourhood near the national palace, as Port-au-Prince is plagued by deadly gang violence. Hector Adolfo Quintanar Perez/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Two flintlock Gossard pistols once owned by French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte have sold at auction for 1.69 million ($1.83 million). The guns were sold at French auction house Osenat in Fontainebleau, just outside Paris, on Sunday. They were originally valued at an estimated 1.2 million-1.5 million ($1.3 million- $1.63 million). According to the auctioneer, they were given to Napoleons friend and squire Armand de Caulaincourt just after the emperor attempted suicide in April 1814. The French government declared the guns a National Treasure on Wednesday, meaning that they can't leave the country. - Michel Bury/Osenat Leading up to this date, Napoleon had fought a series of battles against a coalition of European states formed in response to his invasion of Russia. Despite Napoleon winning a number of these battles, Paris fell to the allied coalition on March 31, 1814. In the days before the suicide attempt, Caulaincourt said, Napoleon had been talking about how to kill himself for days, according to Osenat. The emperor had frequently examined his pistols, removing bullets from his necessaire during this time, Osenat reports Caulaincourt as saying. Eventually, Osenat says, Napoleon tried to kill himself using poison after signing the Treaty of Fontainebleau. He survived the attempt, abdicated and was exiled to Elba, an island off the Italian coast. The guns were sold in a Burr walnut box with an ebony inlay. The lid of the box is lined with green velvet embroidered with the letter N, which is bordered with embroidered flowers. The box and two guns also bear Napoleons cipher. Last November, Osenat sold one of Napoleons famous black hats for a record 1.932 million ($2.1 million). Osenat told CNN Monday that the pistols were declared a National Treasure by the French government a week before they were sold, meaning that they cannot leave France. This pair of pistols represents the fall, the end, the abdication of the French emperor, auctioneer Jean-Pierre Osenat said in a video posted by the auction house. Napoleon fell from the pinnacle of power. With this pair of guns, he considered committing suicide, he added. It therefore represents the end, the image of the fall. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the G20 Leaders' Summit at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi, India on September 9, 2023. He began a two-day summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. File Photo by India's PM Press Office/ UPI July 8 (UPI) -- India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi started a two-day Kremlin visit on Monday, marking his first trip to Moscow since Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. India, which has managed to maintain a neutral stance since the Russian aggression, has purchased discounted oil from the country since the start of the war, which critics have complained has helped the Kremlin to fund its war against Kyiv. Modi will attend a private dinner led by Russian President Vladimir Putin as cabinet members hold bilateral members. "[The summit will] provide an opportunity to the two leaders to review the whole range of bilateral issues," India's foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said, according to CNN. "[Modi and Putin will] also share perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest." Modi visited Russia in 2019 during an economic forum in Vladivostok and he last met with Putin face-to-face in 2022 during the Shanghai Cooperation Organization meeting in Uzbekistan. Modi's meeting with Putin comes at a critical time for Russia after the G7, led by the United States, met in Italy in June to renew their commitment to Ukraine and fund Kyiv's efforts by using profits from frozen Russian assets. Putin's longtime spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the Russian president and Modi will have "an important, full-scale visit" and they would have time to talk informally over that time, according to the state-run news agency TASS. NATO chief says alliance will set up new command, establish financial pledges to support Ukraine NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Sunday the alliance is expected to agree to a five-point plan to support Ukraine in the war against Russia, including shifting international support to a unified command and establishing pledges from nations to sustain military support to Kyiv for at least another year. Stoltenberg told reporters during a roundtable in Washington, D.C., ahead of a major annual NATO summit in the U.S. capital this week, that the alliance will create a command post in Germany with 700 personnel and headed by a three-star NATO general. The command will take over most of the international support for Ukraine, which is currently managed by a roughly 50-member alliance, the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. The base will also oversee training and logistics for Ukraine support. NATO will also establish pledges among the 32-member alliance to sustain the level of current Ukraine support among allies for at least one more year. Stoltenberg said that allies will ultimately establish a minimum baseline of future financial support. While the agreements fall short of including Ukraine into the alliance, as Kyiv has long asked for, Stoltenberg said both plans will move Ukraine closer to NATO membership. These are complete actions that actually move [Ukraine] closer to NATO, makes Ukraine ready for NATO, he said. I strongly believe that, of course, language matters, but as important, perhaps even more important, is what we do. The other parts of the agreement that NATO members are expected to agree to at the summit include announcements from allies of more weapons, including advanced systems, and deepening the Ukrainian militarys interoperability with NATO forces. By the start of the summit, about 20 allies will also have signed bilateral security agreements with Ukraine. President Biden signed an agreement last month with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky committing to supporting Kyiv and its defenses over the next 10 years. The NATO summit beginning Tuesday comes as Russian forces are applying pressure across the 600-mile front in Ukraine, which is fighting fiercely to defend against the advances. The U.S. and NATO have argued that Ukraine will become a member of the alliance one day but have stopped short of establishing a concrete timeline for inclusion. Ratifying Ukraine into the alliance now during a major war would would technically trigger Article 5, which stipulates that countries must defend allies that are attacked. Stoltenberg argued that allies have agreed on ambitious action to back Ukraine that will smooth over alliance support. These are agreed NATO commitments to deliver on something which is more accountable and more capable, he said. Stoltenberg also said that the summit will address issues with defense spending across the alliance, a thorny point as some nations have struggled to pay the 2 percent of economic output target. The NATO chief said he expects there will be a message from the summit to do more on defense spending than the 2 percent target. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. STATEMENT OF SENATE PRESIDENT PRO TEMPORE JINGGOY EJERCITO ESTRADA ON THE SIGNING OF RECIPROCAL ACCESS AGREEMENT (RAA) WITH JAPAN 08 July 2024 Any strategic partnership that strengthens our country's close security relationship with a regional partner is an encouraging and welcome development. The signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) demonstrates the mutual commitment of Japan and the Philippines to uphold a rules-based international order, particularly in response to regional security threats. Aside from joint military exercises, the RAA plays a crucial role in coordinating humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations, given the frequent occurrence of natural disasters in the region requiring rapid and coordinated response efforts. Most of the newest vessels of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) were acquired through a project funded by Japan to enhance maritime safety capabilities. As the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on National Defense and Security, I will see to it that the ratification of the RAA will be among the priority agenda of the Senate when we open the 3rd Regular Session later this month. KYODO NEWS - Jul 8, 2024 - 17:34 | All, Japan Monday marks two years since former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot, while issues related to the Unification Church and the plight of "second-generation" members of religious groups that drew attention afterward remain unsolved. Many mourners visited a flower-laying table set at the site where Japan's longest-serving prime minister was shot in Nara, western Japan, on July 8, 2022, at the age of 67, by a man allegedly using a homemade gun during an election campaign speech. The 43-year-old assailant, Tetsuya Yamagami, has been indicted for murder. He has told investigators that he held a grudge against the controversial religious group because of massive donations made by his mother. "The incident brought to light the issue of second-generation members. I want to know about (Yamagami's) motivations in detail through his trial," Toshiko Nanri, 77, from Osaka Prefecture, said outside a train station where Abe was gunned down. A 20-year-old male university student said, "The audience could have been harmed. Baggage checks should be conducted as much as possible during a campaign speech." The table for memorial flowers was fenced to secure safety, with baggage checks also carried out. In Nagato, Yamaguchi Prefecture, where the slain ex-premier's constituency was located, his widow Akie visited his grave and attended a memorial service. "We were able to complete the memorial service without trouble," she told reporters. A flower-laying table was also set up in the prefecture's Shimonoseki. "I had nearly 30 years of relations with (Abe). For a person pursuing a political career, he was like the North Star," said Yukihiro Fukuda, 76, a former city assembly member. The trial of Yamagami is expected to start next year. He told investigators that he targeted Abe as his grandfather, former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi, helped bring the Unification Church to Japan. The Unification Church was founded by a staunch anti-communist in South Korea in 1954 and earned its religious corporation status in Japan in 1964. Kishi supported an anti-communist political group linked to the Unification Church, which was established in Japan in 1968. In the wake of the incident, the Japanese parliament enacted a law to ban maliciously solicited donations, while the government has requested the Tokyo District Court to issue an order to dissolve the Unification Church over donation solicitation practices. Dissolution would deprive the group, formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, of its tax benefits as a religious corporation, although the organization could still continue its activities in Japan. Second-generation members say they are still struggling with the impact of being born into a family of avid followers, such as being denied access to higher education or employment. But the government's steps to provide remedies, including the implementation of the law to ban malicious solicitation of donations, are not enough, they said. Abe was prime minister for one year from 2006 and staged a comeback as Japan's top political leader in 2012. Even after leaving office for health reasons in 2020, Abe maintained influence by taking up the leadership of the biggest faction within the Liberal Democratic Party. But while keeping the faction leader post vacant, the group decided to disband in the wake of a political funds scandal involving its members in January this year, with senior members of the faction punished by the party in April. "I feel very sorry for Mr. Abe," said House of Representatives member Hideo Onishi, after visiting Abe's grave in Yamaguchi. Related coverage: Only 8% of religious group followers' children back government remedy steps Psychiatric exam finds ex-Japan PM Abe shooter mentally fit FILE - From left, Lithuania's President Gitanas Nauseda, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, President Joe Biden, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy pose during a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council during a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, July 12, 2023. U.S. President Joe Biden and his NATO counterparts are meeting in Washington this week to mark the 75th anniversary of the world's biggest security organization just as Russia presses its advantage on the battlefield in Ukraine. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, File) WASHINGTON (AP) NATO leaders meet this week for a summit commemorating the 75th anniversary of the military alliance, which has never been larger and more focused but is also facing potentially existential threats from outside and within. If Russias war in Ukraine, challenges posed by an increasingly aggressive China, and the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza werent enough, some key members' commitment to defend their allies is coming under question. There is deep uncertainty over President Joe Bidens ability to beat his predecessor, NATO skeptic Donald Trump, in November to lead the most powerful member of the alliance. While Bidens political troubles are stirring concerns at home and abroad, countries in Europe are facing their own issues with a rise of far-right populism, particularly in France and Hungary, threatening what had been a bedrock pillar of post-World War II security and stability. Heres what to watch for at the three-day summit: All eyes on Biden Reeling from his disastrous June 27 debate performance and struggling to hold his reelection campaign together, Biden says people should look to his interactions at the NATO summit for proof that he is still strong and vigorous enough to lead. Diplomats and analysts say they will be watching closely although NATO leaders accept they have no control over American elections and are unlikely to weigh in publicly. The outcome of the November election matters enormously for NATO and pretty much all heads of state and government in the alliance feel the same way, even if they refuse to discuss it, said Jeff Rathke, president of the American-German Institute at Johns Hopkins University. The prospect of Trump returning to the White House has alarmed many in Europe who fear he may reduce U.S. commitments to NATO or Ukraine or pull them completely. There is nothing that Bidens NATO counterparts can do to affect that outcome, so they are in the uncomfortable position of being observers to a process that is critical to the alliance but over which they have no control, Rathke said. Biden, who has taken credit for strengthening NATO and resisting Russian President Vladimir Putin, said his confidence and competence would be on display. But he will be under tremendous pressure to quell growing concern that he is not up to the job, as either de facto head of NATO or commander in chief of the alliances most important member. The unpredictability of what (Trump) might do and how quickly in office he might do it, leaves people on edge, Rathke said. It would be a significant jolt to NATO if he were to win. But it's also not all about Joe As much as the spotlight will be on Biden, 31 other leaders have a voice in NATO decision-making. The summit will be British Prime Minister Keir Starmers first appearance on the world stage just days after winning a resounding victory in elections. Starmer also is scheduled to have his first face-to-face meeting with Biden on Wednesday at the White House. Although the new British prime minister has signaled continued strong support for both NATO and Ukraine, gains made by far-right parties, as well as left-wing groups opposed to Western support for Israels war in Gaza, may dilute Londons influence. Of more concern is turmoil in France, where President Emmanuel Macron's government is facing political uncertainty after left-wing parties united to beat a surging far right in legislative elections but still didn't win a majority in parliament. The far-right party, which is skeptical of NATO, greatly increased the number of seats it holds. And there are Hungary and Turkey, the last two NATO members to hold out on allowing the newest members, Finland and Sweden, to join the alliance. Viktor Orban of Hungary raised alarm bells by visiting Russia last week for talks with Putin, and Turkeys Recep Tayyip Erdogan remains on good terms with the Kremlin. NATO's future In many respects, the alliance has never looked stronger. Since Russias 2022 invasion of Ukraine, NATO gained those two members, bringing the total to 32. At the same time, Eastern and Central European members closer to Russias borders the Baltic states, Poland and the Czech Republic have stepped up support for Ukraine and NATO as an institution. But NATO is fragile. Its policies must be made by unanimous consensus, and political upheaval in capitals hinders future decision-making. NATO leaders are expected once again to reaffirm their open door policy that membership is open to any country meeting the requirements. But Ukraine won't see its hoped-for invitation this week. In some ways, this NATO summit is coming as sort of the best of times and the worst of times. The best of times, in the sense that the alliance knows what its about, said Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia, and Eurasia program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. But its also sort of the worst of times obviously because of the war in Ukraine, challenges of ramping up European defense spending, concerns about the reliability of the United States, he said. Defense spending has been one of Trumps biggest complaints about NATO, and he has repeatedly suggested that the U.S. wouldn't defend countries that dont meet the agreed-upon goal of spending 2% of gross domestic product on defense. NATO officials have championed a significant increase to 23 in the number of allies meeting that commitment. Several more are expected to say they're meeting that standard during the summit. Keeping up support for Ukraine Many NATO allies in the past year have signed their own security agreements with Ukraine to provide long-term guarantees of assistance for Kyiv to defend itself from Russia and prevent possible future attacks. Russia made significant battlefield gains over the past several months during congressional delays in approving U.S. military aid. Those have been overcome, and a new multibillion-dollar package is expected to be announced this week. But Ukraines goal is joining NATO, placing it under the alliances Article 5 collective security umbrella that obligates other members to come to its defense if attacked. Membership is highly unlikely while the conflict rages. However, the allies plan to present Ukraine with a bridge to membership that would further lay out next steps. In the meantime, countries are expected to pledge new military and economic support. Billions of dollars have already been sent to Ukraine, and officials say more is coming. Outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Friday that contributions of roughly $43 billion per year should be the baseline moving ahead. During a visit to the Pentagon on Monday, Stoltenberg said the week's focus will be on securing additional defense commitments and trying to get the war in Ukraine to an end. At the summit we will make decisions to further strengthen our support for Ukraine, and the Russians understand that they will not be able to wait us out, the NATO chief said. They need to sit down and accept a solution where Ukraine remains a sovereign nation. Don't forget about China NATO allies also are focused on threats posed by China, including persistent disinformation campaigns aimed at sowing doubts in democratic systems. And they have repeatedly complained that Chinese sales of some tools and technology have allowed Moscow to rebuild Russias defense industrial base to wage war in Ukraine. The U.S., in particular, has called out China for pursuing policies that threaten European security as Beijing seeks broader commercial relations with the countries of Europe. For the third year in a row, leaders or top officials from Australia, New Zealand, Japan and South Korea will attend the NATO summit for discussions on how to deal with Chinese threats in the South China Sea and beyond. ___ Tara Copp contributed to this story. U.S President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walk after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, in Fasano, Italy, June 13, 2024. WASHINGTON NATO allies are in final negotiations over language that says Ukraine's eventual admission into the military alliance is "irreversible" so long as it makes a series of reforms required for membership. The U.S. and other member nations agreed at last year's summit in Lithuania that Ukraine would become a member "when Allies agree and conditions are met." This week they are likely to acknowledge at a critical summit in Washington that, while Ukraine still has a ways to go, as long as it continues to make progress, there will be a path to NATO membership, a U.S. official said. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters Sunday evening in Washington, D.C., that allies are close to agreeing on precise wording. More: His reelection campaign in crisis, Joe Biden hosts high-stakes NATO Summit in Washington U.S President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy walk after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit, in Fasano, Italy, June 13, 2024. "We are working on the exact language on how to express that Ukraine is going to become a NATO ally, and how we are moving forward," Stoltenberg said. The discussion over NATO membership for Ukraine follows claims from former President Donald Trump, the presumptive 2024 Republican nominee, that he would move quickly to end the war in Ukraine if he is elected in November. Trump has also suggested that talk of Ukraine joining the alliance is provoking Russia. NATO allies plan to announce a new package of support at this week's summit, which will bring the leaders of more than 31 western nations, including Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, to Washington for several days of talks. It is likely to consist of five components, Stoltenberg said: training for Ukrainians with a command center in Germany and logistical hubs in the eastern part of the alliance; a financial pledge to continue providing a "minimum baseline" of $43 billion in combined military support over the next year; the delivery of more weapons, ammunition and a "substantial" increase in air defense capabilities; bilateral security agreements, like the 10-year pact the U.S. announced last month; and new programs to help Ukraine's armed forces become fully interoperable with NATO. The five measures "constitute a bridge to membership" along with language in a summit declaration that expresses that Ukraine is "coming closer to NATO membership," he said. More: Russian missile hits Ukraine children's hospital as Biden welcomes NATO leaders "The language on membership is one of the remaining issues," Stoltenberg acknowledged. "So we are negotiating that now. I'm confident we will find a solution." The speaker of Ukraine's parliament, Ruslan Stefanchuk said Monday morning in an exclusive interview with USA TODAY that Ukraine needs more air defense systems, ammunition and fighter jets. "This is a very powerful package and also the same goes for the bilateral security agreements that Ukraine has already signed with a number of countries," he said. "But one thing we must understand is that this package needs to be the package that supports Ukraine on its path to joining the NATO, but not as a replacement to joining the NATO." A senior administration official told reporters on a White House call last week that the summit communique would include "very strong language" that amplifies President Joe Biden's position that Ukraine will join NATO. On Sunday evening, a U.S. official told USA TODAY the Biden administration had agreed to the inclusion of the word "irreversible" on the specific condition that Ukraine meets all the necessary requirements. More: Trump allies have presented plan to halt US military aid to Ukraine unless it enters peace talks with Russia For the U.S. to approve Ukraine's membership to NATO, the war with Russia would have to be over and Ukraine would have to enact additional anti-corruption reforms, a second official said. Stefanchuk says Ukraine has made those reforms. As speaker of parliament, he said he would do everything possible to accelerate the process. "We are open to all the proposals and suggestions from our partners that will help us not only with fighting the corruption but also with building and strengthening the Ukrainian statehood," he added. Ukraine a focus of the NATO summit NATO is taking over the coordination of security assistance to Ukraine from the United States. The goal is to "create a more predictable, robust institutional framework for support" in the long term, Stoltenberg said. Trump has repeatedly claimed he could end the war quickly if he beats Biden. Theyre dying, Russians and Ukrainians, Trump said during a CNN town hall in May 2023. I want them to stop dying. And Ill have that done Ill have that done in 24 hours. Trump said during a presidential debate with Biden on June 27 that, if he wins a second term, he would end the war before he takes office. He did not offer any specifics on how he would end the conflict. Russian President Vladimir Putin later said he believes Trump is sincere, but he did not know what Trump planned to do. More: Biden signs 10-year pact with Ukraine that could be upended if Trump wins Trump hasnt said exactly how he would approach the issue. One proposal floated by his allies would involve delaying Ukraines entry into NATO and sitting down with Russia. Under such a scenario, Ukraine would be warned it would get more U.S. weapons if it agrees to enter peace talks, while Russia would be told that refusing to negotiate would result in increased U.S. support for Ukraine. "This is a time to sit down and start talking," said retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, who was chief of staff to the National Security Council in the Trump administration. To Ukraine, the U.S. should say, "If you sit down and talk, we will continue to support you and, if not, we will modify our support," said Kellogg, who's close to Trump and talks to his campaign regularly. More: Life on Ukraines front line: Worse than hell as Russia advances The message to Russia should be, "If you sit down and talk we can stop the killing and discuss Ukraine's near-term admission to NATO. If you do not start discussion, we will support Ukraine to a much greater level to support the destruction of the Russian army in Ukraine." Other analysts question the wisdom of such an approach. Rose Gottemoeller, who served as NATO deputy secretary general during the Trump administration, warned that approach would send the wrong message not only to Putin, but to leaders such as Chinas Xi Jinping and North Koreas Kim Jong Un. It would send a message that aggression is rewarded, said Gottemoeller, who is now a lecturer at Stanford University in California. That's the wrong message an American president wants to send, full stop, to anyone in the world. I think it's a way of tempting violence, aggression in other parts of the world. Telling Ukraine it cant join NATO and telling Russia it can keep some of the territories it has stolen would guarantee a future Russia-Ukraine war, said John Herbst, who served as U.S. ambassador to Ukraine under George W. Bush and is now the senior director of the Atlantic Councils Eurasia Center. The man who put that package together, Trump, would look like a patsy, he said. Herbst said such an approach also would impact U.S. interests in the West Pacific. Its no accident that Japan, South Korea and Taiwan have stressed the importance of defeating Putin in Ukraine as a way to deter Xi in Taiwan, Herbst said. The stakes go beyond European security and Americans critical interest in European security, he said. Regardless of the language on membership, allies will announce concrete actions at NATO, Stoltenberg said Sunday. "The substance of our package, we will deepen and strengthen our security cooperation with Ukraine, it speaks as loudly as language in the declaration," Stoltenberg said. "And I really believe that we now are turning a corner, given that we are able to agree (on) all these elements of the security package." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NATO debates calling Ukraine membership path 'irreversible' at summit A NATO member said Ukraine joining the alliance is 'irreversible' as fears mount that Trump would block membership A NATO member said Ukraine joining the alliance is 'irreversible' as fears mount that Trump would block membership Estonia's president said Ukraine joining NATO is "non-negotiable" and "irreversible." NATO must send a strong message that it will support Ukraine for as long as it takes, Alar Karis said. Trump is reportedly open to a deal with Russia that would block Ukraine from the alliance. Estonian President Alar Karis said Ukraine joining NATO isn't negotiable and that the Western military alliance must send a strong message that NATO will support Ukraine for as long as it takes. "Ukraine's NATO membership is non-negotiable, and the process of becoming a member is irreversible," he said, according to Estonian news outlet ERR. Karis' comments came after reports that former President Donald Trump, now the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, would consider stopping Ukraine's NATO progress as part of a peace deal with Russia. Trump-aligned national security experts told Politico last week that, if elected, Trump is considering negotiating a deal with Russian President Vladimir Putin that would see Russia getting some territory and NATO committing to not expanding membership to Ukraine or Georgia. Sources told Politico that Trump is unlikely to quit NATO outright, but members worry that, if elected, he could downplay the US role, block aid for Ukraine, or try to strike an unpopular peace deal with Russia. Ukraine and the majority of its allies don't want a peace deal that gives Russia territory. They say it's not right, as Russia invaded a sovereign country, and that Russia can't be trusted in such deals. Ukraine has taken steps toward joining NATO but has not yet been given a clear road map. Estonia has been a strong backer of its membership, saying that it would help protect it from Russia. In his comments, Karis said that "if Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty are not respected, it will lead to new and larger wars in the future. Russia and other aggressors will only be emboldened to attack again." "NATO has successfully overcome previous hesitations regarding military aid to Ukraine," he added. "No limits should be set on further assistance." Being a member of NATO would offer Ukraine strong protection due to the alliance's mutual protection policy, which means that if one member is attacked it can call on other members, like the US and UK, for help. Many NATO states have called for Ukraine to be granted membership of the alliance. But any single member, such as a Trump-led US, could block it, as new membership needs consensus support. Trump has long been critical of NATO, and threatened to withdraw from it during his presidency. Trump long complained that many NATO members did not spend the recommended 2% of their GDP on defense. (Members' spending has soared since but experts told Business Insider that Trump's protests were not the reason.) The Associated Press reported this week that European leaders are trying to "Trump-proof" NATO and its Ukraine support, in case he is reelected. Member states like Estonia are also preparing in case Russia attacks them next. "Russia will be more hostile in the next decade than it was in the previous one," Karis said. "NATO must be prepared for this. NATO has good collective defense plans, which need to be backed by necessary forces and weapons systems." Read the original article on Business Insider WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) Ukraine is searching through the rubble of a childrens hospital in Kyiv, one of several targets Russian missiles hit Monday that left more than 30 dead and 100 injured across Ukraine. The major missile attack comes on the eve of the NATO summit in Washington, where leaders say supporting Ukraine is the top priority. In Ukraine, Russia continues its brutal war, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin ahead of this weeks NATO summit in Washington. At the summit we will make decisions to further strengthen our support to Ukraine, Stoltenberg said. Ukraine isnt currently part of NATO, but the White House says the summit will bring the country closer to joining the 32-member military alliance. Youre going to see, as I alluded to, some discussion about Ukraines path to NATO, National Security Council Spokesperson John Kirby said. Kirby says the focus at the summit is on helping Ukraine win the war and defeat Putin. If he thinks he can outlast the coalition of countries supporting Ukraine, hes dead wrong, Kirby said about Putin. Focus will also be on President Joe Bidens performance at a press conference during the summit. It comes as calls grow within his own party for him to step down from seeking another term. Kirby says hes not heard from any allies that theyre concerned about the president. Were not picking up any signs of that from allies at all, quite the contrary. The conversations were having with them in advance is that theyre excited about this summit, Kirby said. The summit starts Tuesday. President Biden will take questions from reporters and meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy 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 DC News Now | Washington, DC. Insights from Bloomberg, Time Magazine, and The Washington Post The News The Washington DC NATO summit begins Tuesday, when representatives from the 32 member states will gather to discuss future support for Ukraine and how to counter the growing threat of Russian aggression. The alliance is expected to take over coordinating US aid for Ukraine, an effort to Trump proof the support that Semafor first reported. It is also set to commit to at least 40 billion ($43.4 billion) in military aid for Ukraine, a European diplomat told Semafor. Reuters first reported the package. NATO is also set to announce measures to boost its military readiness, including fast-tracking purchases of air defense systems and other key weaponry, and to push for standardizing ammunition across its militaries. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Biden under pressure to perform at summit Sources: Associated Press, Bloomberg, The Washington Post The political maelstrom surrounding US President Joe Biden threatens to engulf a summit that had been planned as a celebration of the alliances stability. Biden may hope the summit could help shore up his campaign amid widespread concern about his age: European leaders mostly prefer Biden to Donald Trump, who has threatened to drastically reduce the US commitment to the alliance. But Bidens poor presidential reelection campaign performance has left European officials uncertain about his future, Bloomberg reported. They dont want to make it part of the discussion, out of courtesy for Biden, a former NATO official told The Washington Post, but it is on everyones mind. NATOs commitment to Ukraine has been scaled back Sources: Bloomberg, Time Magazine, CNN While the alliance will present an aid package as a strong sign of its commitment to Ukraine, it is relatively modest compared to initial plans of a 100 billion, multiyear package for Kyiv ($108.4 billion). The alliance has yet to hammer out the terms of a commitment to enable Ukraine to join NATO, with Germany and the US reportedly preferring a bridge to membership, while more hawkish countries push for an irreversible pathway to membership. Yet officials are keen to avoid a repeat of 2023s Vilnius summit, where Ukrainian officials clashed with the alliance. Three European officials told Semafor that members had done a better job of expectation management with Kyiv this year, keeping Ukrainian officials more in the loop in the hope of avoiding such an outcome. China will be criticized for its support of Russia The alliance is also expected to offer an assertive criticism of China in its final communique, focusing in particular on Beijings support for Russias war in Ukraine, the European officials said. There will be strong language on China, one of the officials said, adding that it was a key priority for the Biden administration. While NATO officials have stressed that the alliance has a role to play in the Indo-Pacific, there are strong disagreements within NATO about its role in Asia. We dont see any added value for NATO being involved as a security actor in the Indo-Pacific, the official said, noting that even the US was worried that an increased NATO presence might antagonize China. CONSTANTA, Romania After months of delays, NATO has adopted its first counter-drone doctrine, testing its tenets in an exercise along the Black Sea shore that was marred by real-life interference wafting across the water. The focus of the Ramstein Legacy drill, held June 3-14, was on developing the alliances integrated air and missile defense with an additional eye on combating Class 1 unmanned aerial system threats a reference to small, mini and micro drones. Participating units hailed from Romania, Germany, Portugal, Hungary, France, Turkey and Poland, supported by British and Finnish fighter jets. In addition, three companies were invited to introduce some of their counter-drone equipment, including the U.S.-based firm Echodyne, the French CS Group, and German electronics specialist Rohde & Schwarz. Class 1 UAS have become one of the most important threats we observe at the moment in military conflicts. Where for many years having air superiority was one of the pillars of the NATO doctrine, we have seen recently thats no longer the case, said Cristian Coman, chief scientist at the joint intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance center at NATOs Communications and Information Agency (NCIA). On the first day of the training, participants were asked to get familiar with the capabilities of the systems at the exercise, including electronic warfare equipment, radars, and command-and-control systems. The following days were focused on practical exercises and hands-on training, with each scenario increasing in difficulty. Part of the personnel involved in this segment were officers from the Italian C-UAS Center of Excellence, who performed the job of the enemy. We are here acting in the role of the red team in this exercise, where we are the threat the trainees need to identify and counteract. We are flying the drones, which are common civilian ones, Italian Navy Lt. Cmdr. Federico Fugazzotto told reporters. Some of the models displayed included the American-made Parrot Disco first-person-view drone as well as two Chinese-made DJI types. Exercise participants were instructed to use their detection equipment for picking up the drones electronic signatures. According to Fugazzotto, increasingly complex scenarios entailed flights of varying lengths, hiding the drones points of departure on the ground, and attacking with multiple systems at once. Crimea mirage As the training unfolded, experts with NCIA confirmed to Defense News that GPS spoofing was detected and affected some of the drones, though officials did not name the source. The interference method feeds false coordinates to drone navigation systems in an effort to crash or disorient them. When I had the hand-held device from the drone, where you basically have the controller, my hand device would be on a foreign location in Crimea, Mario Behn, the principal scientist at NCIA, told Defense News. But the drone was still here, which of course is physically impossible, as it is a huge range, On both days of Ramstein Legacy, data provided by the website GPSJam showed a high level of GPS interference that encompassed all of Constanta. Military personnel here were vague about anti-jamming techniques and equipment used to mitigate interference, citing security concerns in revealing Western countermeasures. Counter-drone equipment is set up during a NATO drill near Constanta, Romania, on June 13, 2024. (Elisabeth Gosselin-Malo/Staff) The extensive level of jamming was also apparent in the area surrounding the nearby Mihail Kogalniceanu air base, where Finnish F/A-18 fighter jets and British Eurofighters were deployed. The exercise marked Finlands first foreign deployment for NATO since joining the alliance in April 2023. When asked if he was used to flying amid this amount of jamming, Lt. Col. Rami Lindstrom, commander of the Finnish F/A-18 detachment in Romania, acknowledged the GPS interference but appeared unfazed about it affecting the equipment. We have a lot of reports in Finland about the same kind of jamming, so we are used to that. But the F-18 is a warhorse and is resistant against that, Lindstrom told Defense News in an interview. You can say we know our neighbor and we like to share this knowledge with our allies, the Finnish official added, referring to Russia. Back to school In 2019, NCIA established an academy in Oeiras, Portugal, to provide training on NATO systems devoted to communications, air command and control, and cybersecurity. With drones omnipresent in todays military thinking, the schools emphasis is about to change. Our idea would be to add a counter-UAS curriculum with educational courses followed by enhanced practical training, which would be very easy to integrate at the Portugal academy, Behn said. There are some hurdles to that end, however, especially when it comes to standardizing hands-on training. For one, the drone arsenals of NATO countries are so diverse that finding cross-cutting training approaches will be tricky. That is in addition to the ceaseless cat-and-mouse game of buying improved drones and superior countermeasures. Procurement processes take years, except we dont have years to defend against those small drone threats, Coman said. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, speaks with President Biden during a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council during last year's NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. Biden is hosting this year's summit. (Pavel Golovkin / Associated Press) NATOs summit in Washington this week was supposed to be a feel-good moment celebrating the alliances milestone 75th anniversary amid stirring tributes to an enduring cornerstone of Europes postwar security architecture. But despite expressions of solidarity and steadfastness, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization gathering, which begins Tuesday, comes as some of the 32-nation blocs most important leaders can be counted among the political walking wounded, and at a dispiriting point in the war in Ukraine, now in its third year. All this takes place as European leaders begin to fully grapple with the possibility of another presidential term for presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump, who has suggested he would not honor transatlantic treaty commitments, including NATOs foundational mutual-defense pledge. Trump declared in February that if an outbreak of hostilities involved members who didnt pay a perennially misleading characterization of the alliances finances he would tell Russia to do whatever the hell they want. The roster of leaders of member countries reflects a time of unease and upheaval on both sides of the Atlantic. President Biden, hosting the gathering, is facing calls to abandon his reelection bid over a debate performance in which he appeared frail and enfeebled. France was plunged into deep political uncertainty by a mixed result from its parliamentary election that leaves President Emmanuel Macrons centrists weakened even though early projections from Sunday's vote indicated that French voters rejected a determined power bid from the far-right National Rally. Read more: Analysis: 'Dodged a bullet.' In France, voters deny far right a win. But what now? New British Prime Minister Keir Starmer is fresh off a sweeping general-election victory for his Labor Party, but untested on the world stage. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz got an unwelcome wake-up call last month when what was once considered a fringe far-right party romped to second place in the countrys European Parliament elections. Another casualty: Alexander De Croo, the prime minister of Belgium whose capital, Brussels, is the site of the alliances headquarters remains in his role only as a caretaker pending the formation of a new government. He stepped down after the same European Parliament elections that rattled Scholz and Macron with strong far-right showings. And Hungarys Russia-friendly Prime Minister Viktor Orban, now head of the rotating six-month European Union Council presidency, made a visit to Kyiv, where he urged President Volodymyr Zelensky to accede to a cease-fire, under terms the Ukrainians say would be unworkable. Read more: A Ukrainian 'King Lear' comes to Shakespeare's hometown. Its actors know true tragedy Then, to the consternation of the EU, he went on to Moscow for a chat with Russian President Vladimir Putin one that the bloc stressed was without its blessing. "Appeasement will not stop Putin," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on the social media platform X. Even NATO's chief-in-waiting, the Netherlands former prime minister, Mark Rutte, was only available to be named secretary-general and to start in October because he was out of a job: the Dutch government he led for nearly 14 years is now in the hands of a far-right-led coalition. The general air of gloom threatened to overshadow what was to have been a triumphal element of the Washington summit: the accession to the alliance this year of Sweden, after Finland joined in 2023 both of these Nordic countries being front-line states at a time of high tension with Russia. Alliance members initially sprang to Ukraines defense after Moscow's full-scale invasion of February 2022, and continue to provide billions of dollars' worth of weaponry and other aid. But as the war drags on, the European Council on Foreign Relations, or ECFR a think tank that released a major new study on European public attitudes about the Ukraine war pointed to emerging cracks over the nature of the conflicts endgame in advance of the NATO summit. Read more: Zelensky to Europe: A Russian victory in Ukraine would lead to the unthinkable One of the key challenges for Western leaders will be reconciling the conflicting positions between Europeans and Ukrainians on how the war will end, wrote Mark Leonard, ECFRs founding director. While both groups recognize the need for continued military provision to help Ukraine push back at Russian aggression, there is a profound gulf over what constitutes a victory and what the purpose of Europes support actually is. Similarly, U.S. public and congressional support for Ukraine initially near-united in enthusiasm has shown signs of doubt and decline. Several Republican leaders, as well as Trump, have questioned whether Washington should continue to pour billions of dollars into Ukraine. And a poll taken in April by the Pew Research Center said Americans who say the U.S. is spending too much money on Ukraine grew to 31% from just 7% shortly after the war there started in 2022. As the leaders gather three months after formally marking the 75th anniversary of NATO's founding, the alliance's boosters can point to a few bright spots. Italys right-wing Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in her post since October 2022, has proved surprisingly supportive of Ukraine and of NATOs overall posture. Read more: In Europe, even if 'center is holding,' far right ascends Turkey, a sometimes problematic ally that had initially balked at letting Sweden into NATO because of quarrels over the latters dealings with Kurdish separatists, dropped its opposition. And Sweden, a longtime bastion of neutrality, joined the alliance in March. Only a little over a month before the summit, there were powerful rhetorical reminders of NATOs raison detre, as world leaders gathered above the beaches of Normandy to mark the 80th anniversary of D-Day, a turning point in the World War II fight against the Nazis. Were not far off from the time when the last living voices of those who fought and bled on D-Day will no longer be with us, Biden said as he paid tribute to the last surviving members of the Allied invasion force. So we have a special obligation, he said. We cannot let what happened here be lost in the silence of the years to come. Staff writer Tracy Wilkinson in Washington 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. The Navy has relieved the commanding officer of the expeditionary sea base Hershel Woody Williams, amid an investigation into a soft grounding the ship suffered in May. The service announced Monday it removed Capt. Lenard Mitchell, who has led the ships the Gold Crew since November 2022, due to a loss of confidence. Unlike most reliefs, the Navy said his ouster occurred due to an investigation into the May 9 soft grounding, which occurred just after getting underway from a port visit in Libreville, Gabon. While the investigation is still open, sufficient findings of fact emerged during the investigation to warrant the relief of the commanding officer, the Navy said in a statement Monday. USS Hershel Woody Williams suffers soft grounding in West Africa The U.S. Navy holds commanding officers to the highest standard and takes action to hold them accountable when those standards are not met, the Navy said. Naval leaders are entrusted with significant responsibilities to their Sailors and their ships. Mitchell, originally from Canton, Mississippi, first enlisted in the Navy in 1990 and served in the U.S. Navy Ceremonial Guard in Washington, DC. He then commissioned through the Navy Reserve Officer Training Corps program at Southern University in 2000. Previous assignments include serving as the weapons officer and combat systems officer aboard the cruiser Gettysburg, and as the pre-commissioning executive officer and then commanding officer of the littoral combat ship Little Rock. The Navy has temporarily assigned Mitchell to Naval Surface Forces Atlantic. Mitchells relief has not affected the ships mission or schedule, the Navy said. The expeditionary sea base is based out of Souda Bay, Greece. It is the first Navy ship assigned to U.S. Africa Command, according to the service. The Hershel Woody Williams is among several ships that ran aground in the past year. The dry cargo ship Alan Shepard ran aground in Bahrain in July, and the guided-missile destroyer Howard suffered a soft grounding in August as it pulled into Bali, Indonesia, for a scheduled port visit. Editors Note: This story has been updated with additional information on Mitchells previous assignments. North Carolina teachers and school staff will get raises this summer under legislation Gov. Roy Cooper signed into law Monday. The bill, a last-minute measure to formally authorize pay raises for the second year of the two-year budget GOP lawmakers enacted last year, came together during the final days lawmakers were in session last month, after Republicans failed to reach a deal on a new budget. In a statement, Cooper said the bill simply restates the small pay raises legislators already gave public school teachers last year. The legislature should pay our teachers significantly more as North Carolina has already dropped to 38th in the country in teacher pay and invests nearly $5,000 less per student than the national average, Cooper said. Our state has the resources to make meaningful investments to help our public school students and now is the time to do it. Most state employees are already set to receive a 3% pay raise starting this month that was part of the 2023-2025 budget passed this past fall. But the same budget bills raises for teachers and other school employees dont kick in without additional legislation, the General Assemblys nonpartisan Fiscal Research Division told The News & Observer in June. So while this years budget adjustment bill may or may not ever come, lawmakers authorized the raises before they left at the end of June. How much are raises for teachers? Teachers in public school districts are paid typically for 10 months of the year. Pay is higher for teachers with certain kinds of accreditation or a doctorate. The money was allocated in the 2023 state budget, a two-year spending plan, but the language in the bill does not let it be paid out unless the General Assembly authorizes that money by June 30, according to the nonpartisan Fiscal Research analysts at the legislature, The N&O previously reported. Here are the raises that the bill authorized: First-year teachers could receive $2,000 more. New teachers would have a starting salary this year of $41,000. Last year, it was $39,000. Step increases are built into teacher pay as they become more experienced, topping out at 25 years. There is a salary plateau with no increases for 15 through 24 years of experience, which would be $5,306 a month. For a veteran teacher of 25 or more years, last years pay was $5,510 a month, or $55,100 a year, and this year it would be $5,595, or $55,950 a year. Some teachers may also receive additional bonuses, paid out in January 2025 based on data from the previous two years. Those who qualify for the bonuses include teachers who teach Advanced Placement classes, with more money for each students scores, and Career and Technical Education. Some school districts offer more salary supplements to teachers and other school personnel. Whats next The General Assembly has a legislative session scheduled for Wednesday, and a few more sessions through the rest of the year. During any of that time, House and Senate Republicans may reveal a negotiated budget adjustment bill that could have more money for raises and other programs and projects. By Satoshi Iizuka, KYODO NEWS - Jul 8, 2024 - 11:36 | All, Japan Incumbent Yuriko Koike's victory in the Tokyo gubernatorial election Sunday ends a winning streak in recent elections for the main opposition party, which had supported former lawmaker Renho, dashing its hopes of further ramping up the pressure on Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. A surge in support among swing voters for non-affiliated Shinji Ishimaru, the social media-savvy former mayor of a small city in Hiroshima Prefecture, may also prompt political parties to review their strategies for future elections. A triumph for Renho would have signaled a serious weakening of support for the ruling Liberal Democratic Party and might have sparked moves to quickly replace Kishida amid continuing speculation that he plans to dissolve the House of Representatives for a snap election at an early date. But while the victory by Koike, effectively backed by the LDP, has made such a scenario less likely, Kishida is still expected to face a tough battle in its upcoming party leadership race in September as a slush funds scandal has driven down support for the ruling party, pundits said. Former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba, believed to be popular among the public, could pose a significant threat to Kishida's chances of being reelected. But with bitterness remaining over his brief defection from the party in the 1990s, Ishiba could fail to win sufficient backing. Since the political fundraising scandal was revealed late last year, the LDP has been under heavy scrutiny, with its support rates plunging to their lowest levels since it returned to power in December 2012 after a short period in opposition. With the scandal undermining public trust in the LDP, the party refrained from fielding its own candidate in this year's Tokyo gubernatorial election, instead backing Koike together with its junior coalition partner the Komeito party. Koike, a former LDP member, became Tokyo's first female leader in 2016. Later, she established her own regional political party called Tomin First no Kai, adopting an antagonistic stance toward the LDP. Nevertheless, Koike has gradually extended an olive branch to the LDP, the largest force in the Tokyo metropolitan assembly, hoping to consolidate her power base as her popularity recedes after eight years in power. Renho's loss, meanwhile, is a major blow to the leading opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan as it looks to seize power from the LDP, even though it took three seats in lower house by-elections in April from the ruling party. Ishimaru's use of social media with YouTube posts featuring fierce exchanges with municipal assembly members from his time as a mayor appears to have been enough to overhaul Renho in the final stages of the campaign. Hiroshi Ogushi, the head of the election strategy committee of the CDPJ, said Sunday's outcome was "very harsh," acknowledging that the party failed to gain support from swing voters against a backdrop of Ishimaru's rising momentum. Masahiro Iwasaki, a political science professor at Nihon University, said the defeat of Renho showed that it is "unrealistic" to expect the CDPJ to defeat the LDP at the national level. Within the LDP, meanwhile, a growing number of its lawmakers, particularly those who are concerned they might lose their seats in an election, have begun to openly voice their dissatisfaction with Kishida, who assumed office in October 2021, for his handling of the slush funds scandal. While Kishida has indicated he hopes to win reelection as party chief in September, some within the party hope for Ishiba to take over before a general election, which must be held by October 2025. Late last month, a Kyodo News opinion poll showed only 10.4 percent of respondents want Kishida to win the LDP's next presidential race. Ishiba, a former LDP secretary general, is seen as the most suitable replacement, with 26.2 percent supporting him. But Ishiba, who is soft-spoken but a security hawk, has struggled to garner adequate backing from party lawmakers due to his leaving it in a bid to topple the then LDP-led government in 1993, causing some members to label him a "renegade." Since returning to the party in 1997, the 12th-term lower house lawmaker has run in the LDP leadership race unsuccessfully four times. He was regarded as a vocal critic of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who was assassinated in July 2022. Political analyst Norio Toyoshima said the LDP has historically implemented "intraparty regime change" by appointing a new leader who can attract voters during times of crisis, particularly in the run-up to national elections. Ishiba is rumored to be one of the preferred candidates of former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Kishida's predecessor and still a powerbroker in the LDP, who has recently urged the incumbent to consider stepping down to take responsibility for the slush funds scandal. Other potential candidates include LDP Secretary General Toshimitsu Motegi, Digital Minister Taro Kono and Economic Security Minister Sanae Takaichi, known for sharing Abe's hawkish stance, with China criticizing her as a "right-wing" nationalist. Former Economic Security Minister Takayuki Kobayashi, a relatively young lower house member, has also emerged as a dark horse, with some in the party believing the former Finance Ministry bureaucrat could help give the impression that the LDP has turned a new leaf. Related coverage: Tokyo Gov. Koike reelected, beating opposition Renho, rising ex-mayor CPD: 109 shot, 19 fatally, in shootings over Fourth of July weekend in Chicago CHICAGO Chicago police have confirmed 109 people were shot, 19 fatally, across the city over the Fourth of July weekend. The shootings occurred over the extended holiday between midnight July 3 and midnight Sunday. Chicago police Supt. Larry Snelling and Mayor Brandon Johnson addressed the holiday weekend violence Monday morning, which has surpassed last years numbers. The superintendent and mayor called the situation unacceptable and reiterated this cannot be just a police problem. These are 19 families whose lives are forever altered. Nineteen families who woke up this morning without a son, without a daughter, without a mother, without a father, without an aunt, without an uncle. Over 100 people whose lives will never be the same, Mayor Johnson said. The most recent shooting incident was a homicide around 11:30 p.m. Sunday in the Austin neighborhood. Police responded to a well-being check in the 200 block of North Central Avenue and discovered a 36-year-old man on the kitchen floor. He was bleeding and unresponsive with a gunshot wound to the head, and was pronounced dead on the scene. Just before 5:30 a.m. Sunday, three men were shot and wounded outside the University of Chicago Hospital in the 5700 block of South Cottage Grove Avenue. According to police, witnesses observed someone in a dark-gray SUV point a gun from the vehicle and fire shots at several people standing near a parked car in what initially looks to be a targeted shooting. The victims were transported to the hospital. A massacre of everything: 2 mothers, 1 child killed, 2 children still critical in Grand Crossing shooting Weekend shootings with multiple victims included an incident at Columbus Park in the 500 block of South Central Avenue in the Austin neighborhood. Police said two people exchanged gunfire and fled the scene. A total of seven people were shot. A 40-year-old man died after driving himself to Stroger Hospital following the shooting. The youngest shooting victim over the extended Fourth of July weekend was 8-year-old Bryson Orr, who was killed along with two female relatives in the Greater Grand Crossing neighborhood. Police said several people fired into a home in the 7100 block of South Woodlawn around 6 a.m. on July 4. Two other boys were also wounded in the shooting. We cannot bring back these children. If we want to avoid having these types of press conferences and these types of meetings again, we need every single person to step up. We need people to start coming forward. We need people to take responsibility. Help us, help you, CPD Supt. Snelling said. Additional officers were deployed over the extended holiday weekend across Chicago. The police department announced the opening of an Emergency Services Assistance Center Tuesday at Fosco Park, to will help people who have been traumatized by the weekends violence. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Stacks of signed petitions sat in Crista Eggers home in Omaha in May 2022, awaiting submission to the State of Nebraska. Eggers is the statewide campaign coordinator for Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana. (Courtesy of Rebecca S. Gratz) LINCOLN Nebraskas midsummer flurry of citizen initiatives seeking the ballot in November, including competing campaigns on abortion, spurred hundreds of requests to remove peoples signatures from petitions. At least 348 people had signed state affidavits claiming they mistakenly signed a petition, according to unofficial numbers obtained by the Examiner late last week. More than 300 asked to pull signatures from the Protect Women and Children petition, which is backed by abortion opponents and would limit how long into a pregnancy abortion is legal. Affidavits in 2024 to remove signatures by ballot initiative, to date Protect Women and Children, 304 Protect Our Rights, 12 Choose Life Now, 11 Nebraska Human Life Protection (stopped collecting), 10 EPIC Option consumption tax, 4 Consumption tax exemption for groceries, 4 Paid sick leave, 3 Total, 348 Those 304 would be the most filed against a single ballot initiative with the Secretary of States Office. The previous high was set in 2023, when nearly 200 were filed against an effort to repeal a tax credit for funding private school scholarships. Back then, school choice supporters organized a Decline to Sign campaign. This year, an abortion-rights campaign encouraged supporters to sign a signature-removal affidavit if they were concerned they might have signed the wrong petition. Organized effort to remove signatures State Sen. Megan Hunt of Omaha, a supporter of the abortion-rights campaign, Protect Our Rights, has criticized circulators with the competing Protect Women and Children petition. She said some purposely sowed confusion among people who support abortion rights. She told the Nebraska Examiner on Friday that hundreds, if not thousands, of signers thought they were supporting abortion rights. She said people were misled about the purpose of the petition and tricked into signing something they dont actually support. She shared allegations from one supporter who said her sister had been told she could sign for an entire family. Nebraska law requires people to sign for themselves. At least seven formal complaints were filed against circulators for each effort. More were still being reviewed. This is what happens when petitions pay per signature, Hunt said. Many of them said they were flown in from other states for the final push This only incentivizes gatherers to get as many signatures as possible, by any means. Opponents label removal push spectacle Protect Women and Children organizers said the signature-removal push by the Protect Our Rights campaign reflects concern from abortion-rights advocates that most voters in a red state like Nebraska prefer leaving the Legislatures laws and authority on abortion in place. The group said it had more than 1,200 volunteers along with paid petition circulators and nonprofit backers who gathered more than 205,000 signatures. The Protect Our Rights campaign also used paid petition circulators, volunteers and nonprofits. The activists organizing their followers to remove their names is a mere media spectacle, Brenna Grasz said. Protect Women and Children garnered more than 205,000 signatures in a record number of days, and has an unprecedented volunteer army going into November. Protect Women and Children seeks to restrict abortions after the first trimester to no more than 12 to 14 weeks gestational age. But the way the measure is written, the proposed constitutional amendment would let state lawmakers pass stricter bans. Its language contains exceptions for the life of the mother, but opponents argue the exceptions were written to be difficult to access. Supporters say it would maintain legal protections for the unborn, including parental notification requirements. Abortion law in Nebraska Nebraska currently restricts abortion to 12 weeks gestational age, or about 10 weeks after fertilization. State lawmakers tightened restrictions most recently in 2023. The state had previously allowed abortion up to 20 weeks after conception. Social conservatives fell a single vote short of passing a bill that would have banned abortion after an ultrasound can detect embryonic cardiac activity, at about six weeks. Gov. Jim Pillen and others have said their goal is an outright ban. The Protect Our Rights petition would cement the right to an abortion in the state constitution. It would allow abortions until the point of fetal viability, as defined by a persons medical provider, typically between 22 and 24 weeks gestation. Its organizers said they turned in more than 207,000 signatures. Both needed 123,000 valid signatures from registered Nebraska voters to approve a constitutional amendment, along with a baseline of 5% from voters in 38 counties. Critics have said Protect Our Rights language leaves too much room for medical providers to allow late-term abortions. Supporters say the proposal addresses fetal anomalies and health risks and values the relationships between women and doctors. Both likely to make ballot Political observers expect both abortion petitions to make the fall ballot, which would be the first time competing abortion amendments made the same ballot in the same election since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022. The stakes of both amendments reaching the November ballot could be significant. Both campaigns reported raising more than $2 million apiece. Both have ties to national donors. And if both pass, the one with the most votes gets into the constitution. Since the Supreme Courts Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health decision in 2022, voters in California, Kansas, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Vermont have either adopted protections for abortion rights or rejected new restrictions or bans. Six more states have abortion already on the ballot this fall Colorado, Florida, Maryland, Nevada, New York and South Dakota. Another five appear poised to add it Arizona, Arkansas, Missouri, Montana and Nebraska. Signature checks underway Nebraska and county election officials are in the early stages of verifying signatures. They have 40 days, plus a little time to transport signatures for verification. Then the final tussles over ballot language begin, and will include the attorney general. Protect Our Rights, abortion-rights campaign, hosts a news conference A dozen filed to remove signatures from the competing Protect Our Rights petition. People also filed 11 removal requests against a third abortion-related petition that fell short, Choose Life Now. That one would have granted legal personhood to fetuses and embryos. Critics said it would have caused problems in civil and criminal law. Defenders said it offered the clearest path to ending legal abortions. Voters filed a handful of affidavits to remove signatures from the other petitions circulating as well. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Nebraska abortion fight fuels record filings to remove signatures from petitions appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. HOWELL A 1920s building in downtown Howell, known as "The Pearl," has a history of ups and downs. In recent years, a husband-and-wife team took on major renovations; and now, the structure has entered a new chapter. The building was originally Locey's Recreation, opened by Vern Locey in September 1928. It had a billiards hall and four-lane bowling alley on the main level; a skating rink, dance hall, and convention hall on the second floor; and a gymnasium for boxing and wrestling in the basement, according to an Aug. 29, 1928, article in the Livingston Republican. But tragedy struck when fire broke out around 4 a.m. Sunday, Feb. 17, 1935. A 1920s building in downtown Howell, known as "The Pearl," has a history of ups and downs, and has entered a new chapter. "Fire of undetermined origin destroyed practically all but the walls of the Locey Recreation building on E. Grand River," read a Feb. 20, 1935, article in the Livingston County Republican-Press. "Heroic and well-planned work by the fire department confined the loss to the Locey building alone." The space was later used by St. Joseph Catholic Church and the Howell Armory. Howell Auto Parts operated there for more than 50 years before closing in 2016. Colleen and Jeff Doyle, owners of Doyle Homes, saw value in giving the building at 309 E. Grand River Ave. new life. They renovated the space to include two storefronts on the first floor, which they leased to KW Living-Keller Williams Realty, then built out four apartments on the second floor and installed a rooftop deck. Jeff Doyle, on the balcony of what was once the office area of Howell Auto Parts, in July 2019. "I think its kind of a dream come true for us," said Jeff Doyle, who moved with his wife into one of the apartments. They were recently honored by Howell Main Street Inc. with an award for rehabbing the building. "We invested a ton of money in the community, and its great to get some feedback that the community likes it," Doyle said. "It was very satisfying." Dominic Cormer, owner of KW Realty Living, said they also house their title company, Living Title Agency, there. They're in the process of installing a new mortgage office. "From the very beginning, walking through it with Jeff before any renovations started, our combined vision for what this real estate office would look like and feel like, it's turned out even better than originally planned," Cormer said. An upstairs apartment at the renovated "Pearl" building in downtown Howell. The couple worked with officials to secure a brownfield redevelopment tax credit to offset environmental costs, bringing the building which officials had declared "functionally obsolete" back to usable condition. Doyle said the renovation wouldn't have been possible without support from the city, as well as a $530,000 grant through the Michigan Communities Revitalization Program. Facade work was supported by a $20,000 grant from Howell Main Street, Inc. Subscribe: Get all your breaking news and unlimited access to our local coverage "I think probably the biggest challenge was, after the fire in 1935, they never replaced the second floor. They put a small mezzanine level on each end of it," Doyle said. "As we tore off plaster and all these other things ... the new floor was installed almost precisely where the original second floor was (evidenced by burn marks on the wall). I think one of the biggest surprises was, when we stripped the plaster off, there was that beautiful brick under there." Contact reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com. This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: The Pearl in downtown Howell was once Locey's Recreation Insights from The Guardian, Atlantic Council, Politico, Le Monde, and BBC The News France is in political deadlock after a left-wing coalition upended expectations by defeating the far-right in the final round of a snap election but fell short of a majority. The New Popular Front, a leftist coalition forged last month to keep the far right out of power, won the most seats in Parliament, followed by President Emmanuel Macrons centrists in second place, and Marine Le Pens National Rally and its allies in third. The resulting hung Parliament has raised questions about where France goes next. SIGNALS Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories. Attal will remain PM for now, but could face no-confidence vote Sources: Le Monde, BBC Macron has asked Prime Minister Gabriel Attal a member of the presidents party who offered his resignation after the results to remain in his post for the time being, to ensure stability as the country prepares to host the Olympics in less than three weeks. But Attal will likely face a no-confidence vote from Parliament as early as July 18 when the National Assembly holds its first session, Le Monde noted. A motion of no confidence would have a good chance of being passed, since the presidential coalition now has only 168 seats out of 577, and it would lead to the immediate dismissal of the Attal government, the newspaper said. Appointment of future PM a tough choice for Macron Sources: The Atlantic Council, Politico Its unclear if Attal will remain in the role long term. Macron is not bound by the results of the election, and theoretically could choose anyone to be premier, but custom dictates that he appoints someone from the party that wins the election. Macron will have to choose a prime minister who will appoint a government whose first task will be to be strong enough to avoid falling prey to a no-confidence vote, former French cabinet minister Rama Yade wrote for the Atlantic Council. It is possible that to avoid massive disagreements within the incoming government, the left will choose a candidate from outside the political sphere, Politico noted. Coalition a possibility, but parties have no history of collaboration Source: The Guardian Unlike other European nations, France has little experience of a hung Parliament: Typically, one party wins a clear majority in its elections. A coalition will depend on the different parties willingness to compromise, wrote The Guardians Europe correspondent. The three opposing blocs have historically not worked together, and diverge on key issues, from taxation to climate change. Its a nice idea on paper, but theres a huge gap between whats possible and whats actually achievable, Bertrand Mathieu, an expert in constitutional law from Sorbonne University, told the newspaper. And its programme could envisage only a bare minimum. AMHERST COUNTY, Va. (WFXR) Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue has been battling a brush fire within the Washington-Jefferson National Forest area in Amherst County. Fire officials said on Sunday around 3:57 p.m., reports of a brush fire were received off Hercules Road located in the Washington/Jefferson National Forest. Multiple departments responded to the scene. Boonsboro Volunteer Fire crews put in hand lines cut snags, and opened paths for hand crews to operate while the Virginia Department of Forestry used a dozer to widen the fire break. Four-vehicle crash leads to apartment fire in Roanoke County, no injuries Crews then extinguish the remaining areas burning to strengthen the controlled area. Fifty fire and EMS personnel from nine separate agencies worked for about six hours in a heat index of 100 degrees. The terrain was very steep and in heavy mountain laurel-infested areas. Crews may still be on the scene. Anyone willing to drop off water and/or other supplies can do so at one of the following departments that are working in the area. Departments operating on the Hercules Fire: Amherst Fire Department Amherst Department of Public Safety Big Island Emergency Crew, Inc. Big Island Vol. Fire Company Inc. Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Monelison Volunteer Fire Department Pedlar Fire Dept., Rescue Squad & Auxiliary Virginia Department of Forestry U.S. Forest Service Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Photo Credit: Boonsboro Volunteer Fire & Rescue Company Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFXRtv. A cable installer's job offer was rescinded over their use of medical marijuana, according to a complaint released last week by the state attorney generals office. The alleged move by Prince Telecom which has offices in Ocean Township and Hillside highlights the struggles that employers face trying to enforce a drug-free workplace while respecting an employees right to use cannabis during their personal time. Marijuana's effects may linger for days, compared with a few hours for drinking, but pot tends to have less impact on an employees' mental and physical capabilities, according to Lewis Nelson, chairman of emergency medicine at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark. Story continues below photo gallery Drug tests, meanwhile, can find evidence of THC the compound in pot that causes a high weeks after it has been consumed and long after its effects have worn off, he added. That leaves employers having to consider behavioral characteristics consistent with being under the influence of marijuana when determining whether to take some kind of action against the employee. What the complaint says According to the July 2 complaint, the worker whose name state authorities have redacted had a job offer on the table in October 2020 from Prince Telecom as a cable installation tech pending the results of a drug test. In this case, the worker notified the drug testing center that he had a medical marijuana card, which he said was used to treat a disability, the complaint states. Subsequently, the worker tested positive for cannabis. More: Weed and work: NJ has yet to launch key tool, putting employers in a bind Upon receiving the positive result, the worker told a human resources representative about the test, but added that he was protected under state law because of his status as a medical marijuana patient. He never heard back from Prince Telecom and made several attempts to work with them, according to the complaint. The worker ultimately filed the complaint with the state in January 2021. The states Division of Civil Rights said it found sufficient evidence that the workers rights were violated, specifically regarding disability accommodations. Those accommodations prohibit a business from taking any kind of action including termination against someone because of their disability. Ascend Rochelle Park begins sales of adult recreational marijuana on April 21, 2022. People 21 and older can purchase marijuana at certain dispensaries without a medical card. Once the employer is made aware of a worker or applicants disability, they have to work with the person regarding accommodations, something the complaint alleges was never done. This employer cut off all communication, refusing to even try to work with their candidate, New Jersey Attorney General Matt Platkin, the states chief law enforcement officer, said in a statement. Prince Telecom did not return a voicemail and email seeking comment for this story. How legal weed has affected NJ laws Guidelines put out in 2022 by the states Cannabis Regulatory Commission which regulates marijuana in New Jersey say that the detection of cannabis, by itself, is not grounds to take action against an employer, such as termination or rescinding a job offer. Under the guidelines, employers can fill out a reasonable suspicion report that documents the workers behavior, physical appearance and other evidence. The commission posted a sample form online, though employers are free to create and use their own form. The business could designate employees or a third-party contractor trained to determine impairment who would determine whether the worker is under the influence during work hours. A WIRE could be called in to detect behaviors consistent with someone under the influence of cannabis. But the certification hasnt yet been finalized, state officials said. No timeline has been made available. Meanwhile the states Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act, signed in 2019, bars employers from taking any kind of adverse action against an employee simply because they are a medical marijuana user. Given the lack of certified testers as required under New Jersey law, employers need to have good processes in place to determine if an employee is impaired while working, said Ray Cantor, deputy chief government affairs officer at the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, an association of industry trade groups. Employers are essentially left on their own, having to balance out workplace safety while accommodating the 2021 law legalizing marijuana. Some employers have just stopped testing for cannabis altogether, said Stephen Trimboli, a labor lawyer and partner at the Morristown law firm Trimboli & Prusinowski. Greg Lalevee is business manager at the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 825 a union whose workers operate heavy construction equipment such as cranes. That can cause headaches for businesses, even in the case of medical marijuana, said Greg Lalevee, business manager at the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 825 a union whose workers operate heavy construction equipment such as cranes. The prospect of cannabis in the workplace has sowed anxiety in high-risk jobs such as manufacturing and construction, where mistakes could mean injury or death, and even office and retail jobs, where employees might frequently interact with customers or handle sensitive legal and financial transactions. Its great that the doctor prescribed it to you," Lelevee said of medical marijuana. "Did you tell the doctor what you do for a living? Daniel Munoz covers business, consumer affairs, labor and the economy for NorthJersey.com and The Record. Email: munozd@northjersey.com; Twitter:@danielmunoz100 and Facebook This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Prince Telecom rescinded job offer for medical marijuana use, NJ says The sun sets a burnt orange in Roswell on Tuesday, June 18, 2024 due to smoke from the South Fork and Salt fires. (Leah Romero / Source NM) Attorney General Raul Torrez has made good on a pledge last week to investigate alleged price gouging at hotels where victims of wildfires in Southern New Mexico sought shelter. Torrez issued cease and desist letters to six properties last week. The letters went to five Roswell hotels Baymont by Wyndham; Clarion Inn; Days Inn; Holiday Inn Express & Suites; and Home2 Suites by Hilton and one in Artesia, the La Quinta Inn and Suites. Torrez says complaints came from customers, but also hotel employees. What we heard is that a number of these hotels, many of which are connected with national and indeed internationally branded hotel chains, unjustifiably raised rates on consumers who were fleeing the fire in the course of an emergency under a mandatory evacuation order, Torrez said. He added that there are allegations of reservations being canceled, then when customers tried to rebook the same room they found the price had doubled. The letters demand hotels stop engaging in any actions that violate the New Mexico Unfair Practices Act. Torrez said state consumer protection laws prohibit unconscionable trade practices. These include practices that are grossly unfair to consumers who cannot engage in the normal course of business. I think most people would agree that they would under these circumstances, Torrez said. It also includes practices that result in buying a good or service where the value is not commensurate with the price. Torrez emphasized that these are allegations. The Attorney Generals office will interview customers, as well as hotel owners and employees, and pull market and historical data. If we determine that a violation has occurred, we will engage with the owners of these hotels and their corporate sort of managers, give them an opportunity to resolve our claims and make whole the consumers who have been harmed, he said. If they choose not to do that, Torrez said his office will file an action that could result in a $5,000 civil penalty per violation. One of the hotel owners, Parth Shah with Clarion Inn and Suites, told KUNM his property did not engage in the accusations outlined in the letter. He said the hotel actually gave guests fleeing the fires discounts on the normal pet fees, and in some case waived them entirely. KUNM reached out to the other hotel managers named in the letters and left messages, but has not heard from them. We will update this story if they respond. Torrez said he already anticipates potential fraud that may show up in other ways in the wake of the South Fork and Salt fires when assistance funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency begin flowing and insurance companies pay claims. You get fly-by-night contractors who descend on the community. They take down payments for construction jobs, and then they just leave and walk away, he said. These types of traumatic events and emergencies attract swindlers. Last week he said there were plans to open a satellite office in Ruidoso. But he also said New Mexico should have stronger consumer protection laws when there are emergency disaster declarations and he plans to pursue that with the Legislature in the next session. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post NM attorney general sends cease and desist letters to hotels on price gouging appeared first on Source New Mexico. NEW YORK (PIX11) With work happening on both sides of the river, officials gathered for a signing ceremony for the Hudson Tunnel Gateway Project on Monday. Sen. Chuck Schumer said the federal government will now pay for 70% of the project. More Local News All systems go. No turning back. Locked in, said Schumer. Both New York and Jersey governors have pledged to pay for a combined half of the costs. The federal government will fund the second half or more. Representatives from the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Transit Administration also participated. Sen. Cory Booker spoke at the event about the importance of the region and rail corridor and its job creation benefits. The first equipment will be in the river this month to begin that part of the project. Work to build the approaches to the new tube has been underway for months. It is expected to take a decade to build, with an estimated $17 billion cost. Schumer says the additional federal investment will allow the state to spend its money on other transit 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 PIX11. No way Putin would attack a NATO country, Orban says Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) shakes hands with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban during their meeting in Moscow. -/Kremlin/dpa Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said he thinks it impossible that Russian President Vladimir Putin would attack a NATO country. "No serious person can speak of Russia intending to attack NATO," Orban told the German newspaper Bild in an interview released on Monday. Attacking NATO is completely impossible - not just for Russia, but for anyone in the world - as it is by far the strongest military community, Orban said. Orban said that all NATO countries stand behind their promise of collective security, which means that an attack on one NATO ally is an attack all. The Russians have a different history and culture, as well as a different understanding of freedom and national sovereignty than the Europeans, said Orban, who met with Putin in Moscow last week. "But they are rational, they are hyper-rational," he said. In response to the objection that the invasion of Ukraine was not rational, he replied: "Irrationality is different from making a mistake in a rational calculation." Orban praises Trump as a 'man of peace' With a view to the US presidential election in November, Orban said he believed that US President Joe Biden would not re-enter the White House. He then once again showered praise on Biden's Republican rival, Donald Trump. "He's a businessman, he's a self-made man, he has a different approach to everything. And I think that's good for world politics," said Orban to Bild. "Let's not forget that he is the man of peace," Orban asserted, saying that Trump did not start a single war during his four years in office. Orban was the only prime minister of an EU country to openly declare his support for the Republican even before Trump's election as president in 2016. The two met at Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in March. EAST STROUDSBURG, MONROE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) A local nonprofit is stepping up to help families in the Caribbean Islands left in the path of destruction by Hurricane Beryl. A list of names with check marks next to them represents families supported by the Just Care Back non-profit in Stroudsburg. Chantal Fulgencio, chief operating officer/co-founder, of Just Care Back, said We are responding with an emergency relief for the victims of Hurricane Beryl. Mural project changing directions in Electric City The organization has worked with these families, schools, and childrens shelters in Grenada and Carriacou by providing first aid and school supplies. But now theyre helping them through destruction. These are people that we know, people that we love, people who have lost their homes and their livelihood, so we just really want to show support to them. Show them love and let them know that people are thinking about them and keeping them in their prayers for relief and recovery, Fulgencio says. Dozens of barrels stocked with non-perishable food, clothing, and toiletries are packed and ready to be shipped to the hurricane victims. Now the nonprofit has a call out to the community for donations including rope, batteries, or any essential items to be shipped out this week. Extra hands coming from other local organizations like the Kiwanis of the Poconos Daybreak to help fulfill their goal of providing supplies and hope. If youd like to donate to Just Care Backs emergency relief packages, you can drop off any supplies at the Weis in Stroudsburg on route 611, the Pocono YMCA, or the Stroud Rec Department in East Stroudsburg. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. TIANJIN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- European aircraft manufacturer Airbus on Monday delivered its 700th A320 family aircraft assembled at its A320 Family Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) in north China's Tianjin Municipality. "It means that at least every third Airbus A320 aircraft in China comes from Airbus Tianjin," said Christoph Schrempp, general manager of the Airbus Tianjin Delivery Center. "It underlines the strong commitment of Airbus to China, the Chinese aviation market and its continuous development." The newly delivered aircraft, an A320neo, featuring 180 economy class seats, was handed over to Chengdu Airlines. Chengdu Airlines has 50 Airbus aircraft, said Wang Shushi, the company's CEO. Inaugurated in 2008, the FALA in Tianjin is the first Airbus production line established outside Europe. The FALA has been operating for over 15 years and has become a role model of successful China-Europe cooperation. Following the delivery of the first Airbus A320 aircraft in 2009, the FALA completed the delivery of the 500th A320 family aircraft at the end of October 2020. In less than four years, it has achieved the milestone of delivering the 700th A320. "This figure highlights the long-standing and in-depth cooperation between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry," said George Xu, Airbus executive vice president and Airbus China CEO. Over the years, Airbus has been expanding its industrial footprint in China, integrating its supply chains with China, which has led to an increasing presence of Chinese elements in Airbus aircraft, Xu added. Data from Flight Master, a Chinese intelligent air-travel platform, shows that in the first half of 2024, China's civil aviation passenger transport handled about 2.7 million flights, up 14.8 percent year on year. According to China's five-year development plan for the civil aviation industry, by 2025, its passenger transportation volume is expected to reach 930 million passengers, while the cargo and mail transport volume is expected to reach 9.5 million tonnes. "China is Airbus' largest single-country market globally," said Xu, adding that the number of aircraft delivered by the company to Chinese customers annually accounts for about 20 percent of its total global deliveries. Airbus has seen its market share in China climb from about 20 percent in 2008 to more than 50 percent so far this year. In recent years, the FALA has also delivered airplanes to airlines such as Hungary's Wizz Air and the Philippines' Cebu Pacific. China's stable aviation industrial chain enables Airbus to supply globally from production bases in China, thus fueling the development of the global aviation industry, according to Xu. "We firmly believe that the Chinese aviation market has remarkable potential and will continue to hold an important position. We must seize this strategic market," said Xu. Now, the second FALA project in Tianjin, which broke ground in September 2023, is being built at full speed and is expected to be operational around the beginning of 2026. After the completion of the project, Airbus' global production network is expected to include 10 final assembly lines, two in Tianjin (one currently under construction), two in Toulouse, France, two in Mobile, the United States (one under construction) and four in Hamburg, Germany. "It means that Airbus' A320 family aircraft production capacity in China will account for 20 percent of our global total capacity," noted Xu. According to the company's market forecast, China's average annual growth in aviation transportation will reach 5.3 percent in the next 20 years, higher than the global average of 3.6 percent. More than 40,000 new aircraft will be needed worldwide by 2042, of which more than 9,000 are estimated to be delivered to China. "Airbus remains dedicated to strengthening strategic collaboration with China and fulfilling our long-term commitment to this thriving market," Xu said. Airbus is willing to continue to work hand in hand with its Chinese partners to contribute to the high-quality development of China's civil aviation, and to build a bridge for exchanges and cooperation between China and Europe, Xu added. North Carolinas GOP Candidate for Governor Says Some Folks Need Killing in Church Rant About Political Enemies North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson called for the extrajudicial killing of people during an address at a church service on June 30 Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Mark Robinson in National Harbor, Maryland, on Saturday, March 4, 2023. North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson called for the extrajudicial killing of people he considered to be enemies of Christian America on Sunday, June 30, reports The New Republic. Some folks need killing... Its a matter of necessity! Robinson, the current Republican nominee for governor, said in front of church patrons at Lake Church in White Lake, N.C. During his address, Robinson said, We now find ourselves struggling with people who have evil intent," per The New Republic. The politician continued to refer to and compare the supposed enemies to the Nazis in World War II. We didnt argue and capitulate and talk about, Well, maybe we shouldnt fight the Nazis that hard. No, theyre bad. Kill them, Robinson said, adding, Time to call out, uh, those guys in green and go have them handle it. Or those boys in blue and have them go handle it. Robinson did not identify who the folks are but added that there are wicked people doing wicked things, torturing and murdering and raping. The further we start sliding into making 1776 a distant memory and the tenets of socialism and communism start coming into clearer focus, he continued. Theyre watching us. Theyre listening to us. Theyre tracking us. They get mad at you. They cancel you. They dox you. They kick you off social media. They come in and close down your business. The churchs pastor, Cameron McGill, defended Robinsons comments. Without a doubt, those he deemed worthy of death [were] those seeking to kill us, McGill told The New Republic, adding Robinson certainly did not imply the taking of any innocent lives. Dylan Hollingsworth/Bloomberg via Getty Mark Robinson in Dallas, Texas, on Saturday, Aug. 6, 2022. Related: What to Know About Mark Robinson, North Carolinas Hitler-Quoting Gubernatorial Candidate Robinsons campaign communications director, Mike Lonergan, told Newsweek that Robinson was "speaking about the enemies of the U.S. and the Allied Powers during World War II, the Nazis and the Imperial Japanese Army and Navy." Robinson has previously faced backlash for his public statements. In 2021, he released a report alleging that North Carolina public school teachers were "abusing" their positions to indoctrinate students. His political career began in 2018 after he attacked gun control and mocked the survivors of the February 2018 school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Throughout his tenure, he has made racist, antisemitic, homophobic and transphobic attacks, along with promoting conspiracy theories, including denial of the Holocaust, per The New York Times. He has also spoken against the LGBTQ+ community, referring to its members as "filth, and said trans women should be arrested when using womens restrooms, per the Associated Press and The Washington Post. Robinson has also posted racist, anti-Muslim and anti-Asian comments to his social media accounts, per Rolling Stone. Related: North Carolina Lt. Gov. Mocked School Shooting Survivors in Unearthed Facebook Rants Sarah Silbiger for The Washington Post via Getty Mark Robinson in Washington, D.C., on Friday, June 23, 2023. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. The politician has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump and is running against Democratic nominee Josh Stein in North Carolina's gubernatorial election this fall. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Police in North Texas recently arrested suspects involved in a sophisticated multi-state gift card tampering ring after investigators recovered more than 4,000 gift cards with a value of over $1.7 million, according to the Burleson Police Department. Burleson officers were alerted on June 27 by a Flock Safety automated license plate reader that flagged a vehicle connected to fraudulent activities at Home Depot stores, police said in a news release. A Burleson officer assigned to Fort Worth Police Departments Real Time Crime Center informed patrol officers, who found the suspect car in a Target parking lot at 200 NW John Jones Drive, next to the Home Depot in Burleson. Officers saw two men leaving the Target store and getting into a Honda Accord. The car drove onto Southwest Wilshire Boulevard, where officers observed a traffic violation and conducted a traffic stop, according to the release. When they approached the Accord, officers saw a large number of gift cards in plain view, and they detained the suspects and conducted a probable cause search. Officers found over 1,000 gift cards neatly packaged and organized in bundles and boxes, leading to the arrest of the suspects, the release states. As the investigation continued, Burleson police coordinated with other agencies including a U.S. Secret Service Task Force, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Homeland Security Investigations, the Texas Financial Crimes Intelligence Center, organized retail crime prevention teams for Home Depot and Target, and police in Fort Worth, Colleyville, Euless and Carrollton. More top stories from our newsroom: Murder suspect put down baby, fired rifle killing 3: warrant More students got zeros on STAAR writing questions North Texas woman, husband survive 4th of July shark attack [Get our breaking news alerts.] The investigation led to a hotel in Carrollton and officers obtained a search warrant. Officers recovered a total of 4,017 gift cards with an estimated value of $1,720,050. The two suspects face felony charges including theft of property over $300,000, fraud, and possession or use of credit or debit cards. Ukraines largest childrens medical center was pummeled by Russian missile attacks Monday, leaving sick children covered in blood in the aftermath of the attack. On Telegram, footage from the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital showed a young child drenched in blood and soot and held by a woman also covered in blood. A video on Telegram showed a partially collapsed wing of the hospital, with pieces of glass and spots of blood covering the floor. In another, the outside of a hospital building appeared to be left in ruins, with debris scattered and smoke filling the air. Kyivs Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital was an early site of horrors during the war. When Russias army fought on the streets of the city, doctors at Okhmatdyt performed life-saving surgeries to patch up bullet wounds and shrapnel fragments for children in the capital city. In early 2023, The Daily Beast wrote a story from Okhmatdyt, where doctors relieved the appalling incidents they have experienced throughout the war, including removing massive shards from a 13-year-old boys legs and stitching multiple childrens faces after being injured in missile shelling. Putins War Has Caused a Huge Plastic Surgery Boom in Ukraine When a child has a congenital defect from birth, the doctors are ready, the parents are ready, but in such situations where a completely healthy child becomes a child with a disability because of all the trauma, emotionally it is very hard, Valeriy Bovkun, the dead of the Department of Reconstructive Plastic Microsurgery at the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital, told The Daily Beast at the time. Children and medical workers could be trapped under the rubble of the hospital, according to a tweet on X on Monday by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general. It is very important that the world does not remain silent about this now, and everyone sees what Russia is and what it is doing, wrote Zelensky. Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorks all came under attack Monday morning in attacks that reportedly killed 20 and wounded 50 in the country. More than 10 explosions bombarded Kyiv despite air defense systems working. At least five people were killed in the city, and 11 were injured. Mondays attack comes one day before the NATO summit in Washington, where Ukraine hopes to receive long-term aid commitments from its allies. 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. Number of people killed in Russian missile attack on Kyiv rises to 23 The aftermath of one of the Russian strikes on Kyiv on 8 July. Photo: Bohdan Kutiepov A Russian missile strike in Kyiv has claimed 23 lives and left more than 63 people wounded. Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Quote: "20 people were killed and 61 others injured in Kyiv. In particular, two people were killed and 10 others were injured on the territory of the Okhmatdyt children's hospital. Four people were rescued, including 3 children." Details: In total, 31 people were killed and 125 others were injured in Ukraine as a result of the Russian attack. Updated: Later, rescue workers reported that "a total of 22 people have been killed in Kyiv and 72 have been injured". Update at 19:20: Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration, said that as of this evening, 22 people have been killed (including 2 children) and 82 people injured. In particular, in the Shevchenkivskyi district, 2 adults (one of them a doctor) were killed in the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital, and 10 others were injured. The clearing of the rubble and search for people is ongoing. At an industrial facility, one person was killed and three were injured, and work is underway to clear the rubble. The Domino business centre was damaged in the Solomianskyi district, seven people were killed and nine were injured, and work is underway to clear the rubble and search for people. In the Holosiivskyi district, a 5-storey residential building was partially destroyed, 2 10-square-metre fires started, and the roof was damaged. A preschool educational institution was damaged nearby. In the Dniprovskyi district, eight people were killed and four were injured in a medical centre, and efforts are underway to clear the rubble and search for people. In the Darnytskyi district, a house was damaged, a person was injured, and a fire broke out, killing 3 people (including 2 children), and injuring 18; 7 people have been rescued. Updated at 20:10: The Prosecutor Generals Office of Ukraine reported that as of 19:00 23 people have been reported as killed in Kyiv, 2 of them children, who were saved from under the debris of a residential building, and 63 people have been reportedly injured. Background: On the morning of 8 July, Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia had scrambled Tu-95 bombers from the Olenya airfield. Later, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that the Russians had launched missiles and guided aerial bombs on Ukraine, causing an air-raid warning to be issued across the country. Explosions rocked Kyiv and a number of other cities. Debris fell in Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Darnytskyi, Desnianskyi, Shevchenkivskyi and Holosiivskyi districts of Kyiv as a result of a missile strike. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated that as a result of Russia's missile strike on Ukraine on 8 July, 27 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded. Earlier in the day, the mayor of Kyiv wrote that the number of casualties in different districts of the capital had increased to 66 people, 44 of whom were taken to city hospitals. Others were treated on the spot. He said that two adults were killed in a Russian missile attack on the morning of 8 July on the Okhmatdyt children's hospital, and 16 people were injured, including seven children. Support UP or become our patron! NYC pols fume as migrants keep getting dumped on one borough: Its like the third world Queen pols are fuming that the borough is being overloaded with rowdy migrants and are calling for other Big Apple neighborhoods to take their fair share of asylum seekers. Its been a real challenge, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards said Sunday. Just because you have a loud voice and more wealth doesnt mean you dont do your fair share. What about Staten Island? The Post reported Sunday that the poorest neighborhoods in the five boroughs are taking a disproportionate number of the migrants flooding into the city with Queens taking the brunt. Migrants at a Long Island City shelter in Queens have allegedly set up a fight club and train from a heavy bag hung from a nearby tree, according to frustrated locals. Gregory P. Mango African migrants at a Long Island City shelter sell haircuts and even tattoos on the sidewalk, part of a troublesome trend that has some locals now comparing the area to a third world nation. Gregory P. Mango Queens is home to 70 of the 193 taxpayer-funded shelters or 36% being used to accommodate the more than 65,000 migrants still living in the city. Long Island City alone has 23 government-run shelters, or 12% of the citywide total, with Jamaica and Briarwood combined housing 20 of the shelters in the borough. More than 206,000 migrants have now passed through the city in all with the number of arrivals now increasing back to about 1,000 per week, according to city data. Were getting dumped on here, said city Councilman Robert Holden. How long can we sustain this? These shelters add nothing to the neighborhood. They only bring crime, Holden added. Councilwoman Vickie Paladino blamed progressive lawmakers who pushed right to shelter laws without limitations. You kind of get what you vote for, she said. Ask any Democrat if they support New York being a sanctuary city. They all support it. This is what the progressives want. The migrant unrest that has rattled neighbors was on display at one shelter in Long Island City on Sunday, where migrants have formed into hostile cliques Latin American nationals on one side and African asylum seekers on the other and have even allegedly started a fight club. Haircuts and even tattoos are being sold right on the sidewalk on Austell Place. The Post reported Sunday that the Big Apples poorest neighborhoods are bearing the brunt of the migrant crisis. New York Post Its slowly been sliding and now its like the third world, right here, one 31-year-old local told The Post. Thats the best way to describe it, said the woman, who asked that her name not be used. You cant walk down this street and say you dont see it. The sidewalk is full of guys getting haircuts, tattoos. I swear to God, like a prison tattoo. Some nights turn into fight club, right here, she added. A couple of nights ago you could hear the noise half a block away. Many of the migrants refuse to eat the food handed out at the shelters and instead cook their own food on open flames outside, with the fires at times flickering dangerously between or even under parked cars, locals claim. Theyre going to blow somebodys fking car up, said Marin Hernandez, 19, who rides his bike past the shelter every day. These guys are lighting fires in the street. They had a big fire going the other night with a bunch of post and lids and all sorts of st. Queens Borough President Donovan Richards, left, says other boroughs should share the burden of housing migrants. What about Staten Island? ZUMAPRESS.com Migrant bikes and scooters lined up outside a migrant shelter on Austell Place in Long Island City, one of 193 such sites in the five boroughs. Gregory P. Mango I asked [one migrant], Why the fk are you doing this? A guy from Morocco explained to me that the West African guys cant eat the food in the shelter, Hernandez said. They said they couldnt eat the food at all. That it has nothing, no flavor or it is dead or something. He kept saying, to the West Africans, the food tastes dead. According to City Hall, Latin American migrants make up more than 70% of the population at the shelters, with 38% of all migrants from Ecuador and 19% from Columbia, the data show. But natives of African nations now make up 13% of the asylum seekers at the shelters. Police stand guard at the NYU campus, after students and pro-Palestinian supporters were removed after days of encampment, in New York By Jonathan Stempel NEW YORK (Reuters) -New York University settled a lawsuit by Jewish students who accused the school of failing to stop antisemitism on campus. Terms of the settlement reached on Monday were not immediately available. A lawyer for the students and an NYU spokesman said the parties will issue a joint statement on Tuesday. The accord resolves one of the earliest of the many lawsuits accusing major universities, including New York's Columbia University, of allowing and encouraging antisemitism following the outbreak of war in Gaza between Israel and Hamas. It was announced the same day Brown University agreed to bolster nondiscrimination training for employees and students, to resolve a complaint filed with the U.S. Department of Education over its handling of discrimination and harassment claims, including those related to antisemitism. The NYU lawsuit was filed in Manhattan federal court last November by Bella Ingber, Sabrina Maslavi and Saul Tawil, all juniors at the time. They accused the school of violating federal civil rights law by enforcing its anti-discrimination policies unevenly, including by allowing chants such as "gas the Jews" and "Hitler was right" while ignoring other bigotry. The plaintiffs also claimed that NYU administrators including President Linda Mills "ignored, slow-walked, or met with gaslighting" Jewish students' complaints. NYU sought to dismiss the case, arguing that reports of antisemitism had declined significantly following an initial surge immediately after the war began. It also said it had taken far more steps than the law required to address student concerns, including by adopting a "10 Point Plan" to boost on-campus security and disciplining people who violate its anti-discrimination policies. Other schools that have faced similar lawsuits include Carnegie-Mellon, Harvard, MIT, the University of California, Berkeley and the University of Pennsylvania. A scheduled Tuesday court hearing on NYU's motion to dismiss the case was canceled. The case is Ingber et al v New York University, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. 23-10023. (Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Bill Berkrot and David Gregorio) David Axelrod didnt mince words when the subject of Joe Bidens chances of re-election came up during a Sunday appearance on CNN, saying he doesnt believe the president understands he cant beat Donald Trump in November. There are certain immutable facts of lifeand those were painfully obvious on that debate stageand the president just doesnt seem to come tohe hasnt come to grips with it. Hes not winning this race, Axelrod said on Inside Politics. If you just look at the data and talk to people around the country, political people around the country, its more likely that hell lose by a landslide than win narrowly this race. He warned@ And if the stakes are as large as he says, and I believe they are, then he really needs to consider what the right thing to do here is. A chief campaign strategist turned senior adviser in Barack Obamas White House, and now a CNN pundit, Axelrod has long been critical of his former bosss vice president. As early as last fall, he suggested that Biden, then 80, might be too old to occupy the nations highest office. Only @JoeBiden can make this decision, he tweeted after a particularly dire set of New York Times polls were released in November. If he continues to run, he will be the nominee of the Democratic Party. What he needs to decide is whether that is wise; whether it's in HIS best interest or the countrys? And that was before the debate. Following Bidens lackluster performance on that Georgia stage, Axelrod has driven yet more nails into the coffin, sounding off this week to observe that the president seems dangerously out of touch with reality. The president is rightfully proud of his record, he wrote on X on Friday. But he is dangerously out-of-touch with the concerns people have about his capacitiies [sic] moving forward and his standing in this race. Four years ago at this time was 10 points ahead of Trump. Today, he is six points behind, Axelrod continued, seemingly referencing a Wall Street Journal poll published the previous day showing that Trump has opened a 6-point lead nationally. The president is rightfully proud of his record. But he is dangerously out-of-touch with the concerns people have about his capacitiies moving forward and his standing in this race. Four years ago at this time, he was 10 points ahead of Trump. Today, he is six points behind. David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) July 6, 2024 The Journal survey showed Biden trailing Trump at 42 to 48 percent, compared to a 2-point lead from a prior February poll. A full 80 percent of respondents also said the president is too old for a second term. Though most fast-twitch polls after the debate showed Biden suffering a significant slide in numbers, at least one recent survey reflects something of a recovery: a Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll which, when put out Saturday, showed Trump leading Biden in seven key swing states by only 2 points, 47 to 45 percent. The new numbers represent the closest Biden has been to catching up to Trump since Bloomberg began tracking the seven states last October. Still, Bidens approval rating hovered around 36 percent as of earlier this week. No incumbent president has boasted such grim stats since George H.W. Bush more than 30 years ago, according to Politico. The approval rating, no doubt a sore spot for the president, was referenced in his first sit-down interview after the debate, a 22-minute spot with ABC News that aired on Friday. Mr. President, Ive never seen a president [with] 36 percent approval get re-elected, the networks George Stephanopoulos said. Well, I dont believe thats my approval rating. Thats not what our polls show, Biden responded. Asked how he would feel should he choose to remain in the race and subsequently lose to Trump, Biden replied tersely, Ill feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the good as job as I know I can do, thats what this is about. The president later clarified that only the Lord Almighty could make him drop out of the race. Axelrod tipped his hat to Stephanopoulos for his work a day later. His questions were respectful but firm and probing, he wrote on X. He asked what needed to be asked, and did it with sensitivity. Though he didnt touch on Bidens performance opposite his interviewer, Axelrod didnt hold back come Sunday. Listening to the interview, he seemed to deny where he is in the race. He seems not to grasp what is the big concern that people have, he said on CNN, adding that although Biden has fought successfully against tremendous loss and tremendous odds, he cant beat Father Time. The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to Axelrods Sunday assessment, but the president apparently harbors few warm feelings for the ex-strategist. After Axelrod proposed he consider dropping out last fall, Biden reportedly starting referring to him as a prick behind closed doors. 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) With law enforcement receiving hundreds of fireworks-related calls in Colorado around the Fourth of July, several people received citations and dozens received warnings. Fireworks that leave the ground or explode are illegal in Colorado. Its also illegal to buy fireworks in Wyoming and bring them to Colorado, but Coloradans do it anyway. As a result, law enforcement agencies across the metro area received hundreds of calls reporting illegal fireworks around the Fourth of July. A spokesperson for the Douglas County Sheriffs Office told FOX31 in an email that while the agency is still gathering data, the preliminary number of fireworks-related calls they responded to was 134 for July 3 and 4. That number may include multiple calls for a single incident. Dont call 911: Heres how to report illegal fireworks in Colorado During that same period, deputies gave 29 warnings, and six citations were issued. Five of those six citations were given to adults and were issued on the 4th. One was issued on the 3rd, to a juvenile, the DCSO spokesperson wrote. The Jefferson County Sheriffs Office told FOX31 that its deputies responded to 391 fireworks-related calls, and four summonses were issued for illegal fireworks. Fires break out across the metro Investigations are still underway, but several fire agencies said most fires were likely caused by fireworks. Denver firefighters alone responded to 119 trash and grass fires, five house fires and two multi-family home fires from Thursday to Friday. Aurora firefighters responded to 250 incidents from 8 a.m. Thursday to 8 a.m. Friday. Illegal fireworks spark 3-acre fire near Centennial neighborhood Even after the holiday, firefighters responded to fireworks-related fires. For example, South Metro Fire Rescue said illegal fireworks sparked a three-acre fire in a park in Centennial Sunday morning. (Credit: South Metro Fire Rescue) Crews extinguished a fire in an open space near a Centennial neighborhood Sunday morning (Credit: South Metro Fire Rescue) What are the legal penalties for using illegal fireworks? In many areas, the use of illegal fireworks can result in fines of up to $750 and possible jail time. That is the penalty that state law outlines. Police caution against illegal fireworks For example, in unincorporated Jefferson County, it is a class 3 misdemeanor punishable with fines from $50 to $750, and/or up to six months imprisonment, according to the website. However, some municipalities can have different ordinances and enforce more severe penalties. For example, fines can reach up to $1,000 in Greeley. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Officials to discuss building of Buc-ees store in Kansas next month KANSAS CITY, Mo. A delay over plans to possibly bring Buc-ees to the Kansas City area. Wyandotte County officials planned to discuss building the giant convenience store near Kansas Speedway Monday, July 8. Those talks have been pushed back until next month on Aug. 12. The meeting would have discussed the possible use of STAR bonds to help pay for the project. If Kansas City, Kansas officials approve of their plans by the speedway, it would be the first one in Kansas. Kansas City, Kansas police officer stabbed, suspect on the run The first Missouri location opened last year in Springfield. Records show that Buc-ees submitted a preliminary plat earlier this year for officials in Wyandotte County to review. The proposed location is near the Legends and Kansas Speedway on Village West Parkway. The Kansas Speedway currently owns the property at the proposed location on the northeast corner of 110th Street and Interstate 70. See the latest headlines in Kansas City and across Kansas, Missouri Buc-ees, originally founded in 1982 in Texas, has become a beloved convenience store chain and now has dozens of locations across the southern U.S. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. YANGON, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar is working to seek an ASEAN status for its Moeyungyi Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary located in the Bago division in the southern central part of the Southeast Asian country. Dr Kyaw Zin Win Tun, assistant director of the Nature and Wildlife Conservation Division under the Forest Department, said this on Monday. The official told Xinhua an Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) heritage park status may secure more chances for international cooperation and cooperation under the ASEAN framework for the protected area. There are currently over 50 ASEAN heritage parks, and Myanmar hosts eight of them, according to him. The Moeyungyi Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary covering an area of 103.6 sq. km. features 120 species of mammals, 28 species of amphibious and reptiles, 33 species of insects, 59 species of hibernated birds, 77 species of domestic birds, 44 species of fish, and 74 species of aqua plants, according to a report by the Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper. Will offshore wind presence get even bigger off Ocean City? Here's the latest The first auction of 2024 for more land leased for offshore wind off the Delmarva Peninsula was cleared for Aug. 14 after the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management released the Central Atlantic Final Sale Notice. The notice is the last step required by the agency to hold a lease auction for the Central Atlantic region, which includes offshore areas in Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. In total, the area available for lease covers more than 275,000 acres, enough to develop up to 6.3 GW of offshore wind energy capacity. We are excited to announce this sale and underscore our commitment to explore additional areas in the Central Atlantic for potential offshore wind energy development. BOEM will continue to work with all ocean users to ensure offshore wind energy proceeds in an environmentally responsible manner," said Elizabeth Klein, the bureau's director. More on the Nov. elections 'The president was very clear that he is in this to win this,' Gov. Moore says of Biden Ongoing federal partnerships on offshore wind An rsted vessel works on one of the company's offshore projects. Earlier this month, the bureau signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the state of Maryland to engage stakeholders in identifying acreage for additional offshore wind lease auctions in the Atlantic. According to the memorandum, additional acreage is critical to meeting Marylands and other Mid-Atlantic states offshore wind power generation targets. The Biden-Harris administration had previously committed to holding these auctions after publishing a Proposed Sale Notice in December for sites in the region. Also in June, Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed an executive order that directed every state agency to develop a plan for "a just energy transition" and requires the Maryland Energy Administration to chart a path toward powering the state with 100% clean electricity by 2035. While offshore wind developer US Wind declined to comment on the bureau's announcement, Maddy Voytek, rsted's Head of Government Affairs & Market Strategy in Maryland, noted they would continue to look for opportunities. More on the new CBA Collective bargaining deal for police ends contentious county standoff. What it means. "rsted's focus in the Central Atlantic is continuing to develop Skipjack Wind. We have high confidence in the projects ability to deliver value for both people and nature. As we move forward with Skipjack Winds development, we will continue to monitor future procurement opportunities," Voytek said. Detractors cite 'foreign owned' offshore wind companies The proposed pier and onshore infrastructure construction by US Wind in West Ocean City was the topic a public meeting Monday, March 25 at Wor-Wic Community College, where many sounded off on their continued concerns about offshore wind. Detractors for the expansion of offshore wind in Maryland, like Rep. Andy Harris, R-Md-1st, took aim at the decision, noting there were still a number of environmental issues surrounding plans for turbines. We should never allow foreign-owned offshore wind companies to control our energy supply much less harm our marine life while doing it," said a spokesperson for Harris. In January, Harris held a townhall meeting with the public attended by offshore wind experts and regional leaders who opposed turbine development. Among the concerns voiced were the lack of structural soundness of turbines, impacts on marine mammals and national safety from foreign attacks. Experts testified, and Harris reiterated, that for all the data presented to the Bureau when the companies acquired their licenses for the development, that numbers were continually changed to minimize the impact on native sea mammals and the environment. During the January meeting, Ocean City Mayor Rick Meehan categorized the proposed development off the Maryland coast as nothing short of "a tourism killer" for a location that brings in an estimated 8 million visitors annually. US Wind and rsted currently have federal leasing agreements to operate their fleet of turbines in the ocean between 15 to 21 miles off the coast of Maryland and Delaware. The Baltimore-based US Wind is considering properties in Ocean City for the maintenance and operations of the turbines that are scheduled to be operational by 2026. More on everything pony penning Pony Penning 2024: Everything to know about Chincoteague's big Pony Swim and auction This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Offshore wind presence could keep growing off Ocean City. All to know. Joel Penton, the founder of LifeWise Academy, testified in support of a bill to require public school districts to release students for religious instruction. Ohio public schools would not be able to prevent students from leaving school to attend religious instruction if a bill becomes law. Former Rep. Al Cutrona, R-Canfield, and Rep. Gary Click, R-Vickery, cosponsored House Bill 445 which would require public school districts to excuse students for off-campus religious instruction. Cutrona is now a state senator. Current law allows students to be excused for religious instruction but does not require districts to have a policy that allows it. "Parents have the natural right to direct their childs education including their religious education," Click said during the bill's first hearing. More: An Ohio parent joined LifeWise Academy to post its curriculum online. Now it's suing him What does released time religious instruction look like? Released time programs must meet these conditions under Ohio law: The student must have written permission from their parent or guardian. The organization must take attendance. The organization, parent, guardian or student is responsible for transportation to and from the classes. The organization is liable for the student. No public money is spent and no public school staff are involved in the religion classes. The student is responsible for any missed schoolwork. Students cannot miss a core curriculum class, such as math or language arts, for religious instruction. Schools cannot count a student as absent if they are attending religious instruction. What is LifeWise Academy? Joel Penton, founder of LifeWise Academy, testified in favor of the bill. LifeWise Academy is a Christian nonprofit organization based in Hilliard that offers a religious instruction program during the school day. Penton said during a hearing on the bill that the organization works with 200 schools across Ohio and 23 school districts have turned down LifeWise Academy in Ohio. "As we all know, some parents remove their children from public school to send them to private Christian school or home school, often for the purpose of providing religious instruction," Penton said. "This is simply not feasible for all families. But that does not mean that parents dont want religious instruction for their children." When asked why LifeWise Acedemy does not operate before or after school, Penton said he wants the program to be accessible to students who rely on public school transportation before and after school. Penton said the program typically lasts for 40-50 minutes and LifeWise looks to operate from buildings as close to the school buildings as possible to minimize transportation time. LifeWise filed a lawsuit against a former volunteer on July 2. LifeWise said in court filings that the former volunteer published curriculum documents on the website Parents Against LifeWise. LifeWise argues this is a copyright violation. What do other groups say? Not all released time programs offer Christian education, but most of the supporters who testified in favor of the bill specifically mentioned the opportunity to learn about God. No opposition testimony has been heard yet. House Bill 445 had its last hearing in the House Primary and Secondary Education Committee on June 4. 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 bill would require schools excuse students for religion classes Its showdown week between Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. Thats a pretty remarkable sentence, and not one I imagined Id be writing two weeks ago, but here we are. Biden, after a not-horrible-but-definitely-wobbly acquittal last Friday night in his interview with George Stephanopoulos, has dug his heels more deeply into the ground with each passing day. Only the Lord Almighty could get him to quit the race, he told the ABC host. But Democratic politicians, though still supportive publicly (with a few exceptions, including now six senior House members), are getting closer with each passing day to confronting their president. The biggest sign on Sunday was the statement by Adam Schiff on Meet the Press. Schiff is not in the House Democratic leadership, but hes known to be close to it, and hes just a few months away from becoming a senator. Kristen Welker asked Schiff if Biden was still the strongest candidate to defeat Donald Trump. He didnt say yes. After some pol verbiage, he said Biden should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump. Joe Bidens running against a criminal. It should not be even close. Theres only one reason it is close. And thats the presidents age. He also said Kamala Harris could win, and overwhelmingly, if Biden were to drop out. That was a warning shot. But other Democrats are standing behind Biden. Senator John Fetterman in particular has been rabidly pro-Biden since the debate. But it goes beyond him. Senator Raphael Warnock also appeared on Meet the Press, and he defended Biden too: There have been more than a few Sundays where I wished I preached a better sermon. But after the sermon was over, it was my job to embody the message, to show up for the people that I serve. And thats what Joe Biden has been doing. Ive never seen the Democratic Party in a worse predicament in my adult lifetime. You might say 1984, when Walter Mondale lost 49 states to President Ronald Reagan. But you knew Mondale was going to lose, and lose big. And Reagan, though certainly conservative, wasnt a fascist. He made no promise during that campaign to round up immigrants by the truckload or to eliminate the vermin from society. This is worse for two reasons. First, because, as Schiff said, its a race the Democrat should win. Mopping the floor overstates it, but I think Schiff is basically right: If Biden were 75, hed be five or six points ahead. Second, because Trump is a fascist. As Rob Reiner, a big Democratic fundraiser, tweeted Sunday: Rob Reiner tweet about Biden And theres a third reason: None of the options are great. Option one, Biden stays. Hes obviously hoping to do this. Theres a NATO summit this week in Washington. The White House thinks that if he does well there, things will quiet down and he can run out the clockthat as the convention (August 1922) gets closer, Democrats wont risk a public fight there that would tear the party in two. If this is what happens, Bidens coronation will elicit about as much enthusiasm as when the Bulgarian Communist Party renominated Todor Zhivkov in 1978. Option two, Harris. She could win. She could be a breath of fresh air. Shes a prosecutor, and Trumps a criminal. Maybe she can keep him on the defensive. But Trump will come at her in all kinds of ways. It will mostly be about what a crazy radical she is, with her San Francisco background (no, even worseBerkeley!) and lefty-professor father. She isnt that, so she might be able to ride that out too. My big concern about Harris is that economics has never been her strong suit, and presidential elections tend to come down to which person made the stronger economic case about the future. Maybe she can do it, but weve not heard much from her there. Option three, the open scenario. A lot of people I know were excited about Ezra Kleins Sunday column, using James Clyburns comments late last week that hed support an open convention process. You can actually fashion the process thats already in place to make it a mini-primary, and I would support that absolutely, Clyburn said. We cant close that down, and we should open up everything for the general election. I think that Kamala Harris would acquit herself very well in that kind of a process, but then it would be fair to everybody. It seems fairest. Its certainly the most interesting, which would be one of its main benefitsAmericans would watch it pretty intensely, so theyd see this strong candidate materialize before their eyes, the way we see a palooka transmogrify into a heavyweight contender in movie montages. But the logistical questions are serious. Biden can transfer his money to Harris, but not to the others. How does this nominee raise all those bajillions? (Trump has raised nearly $400 million so far this cycle.) How do you put together a staff? Hire vendors? These things can be done, but if theyre done in too much of a hurry, they might be done badly. Then theres the question of whether anyone would even bother participating. If Im Gretchen Whitmer or Josh Shapiro, Im probably thinking, Do I want to try to take this away from a Black woman and alienate a quarter of the party? It isnt clear why someone would do that, although maybe if one takes the plunge, others will follow. But right now, its all eyes on Biden. When I write or tweet that he should leave the race, I get a pretty fair number of angry tweets about how Im a bedwetter and how all this worry is just helping Trump. I kind of understand where people are coming from. But I am not part of the media thats been helping Trump. As I noted last week, we just put him on our cover as Hitler. Im part of the media that thinks the Democrat absolutely has to win this election. Im not ready to say categorically that Biden cant. Trump can screw it up in a dozen different ways. And we saw one poll over the weekend where Biden gained ground postdebate in most swing states (though he was down seven in Pennsylvania). But hes a much riskier bet than he was before the debate. And any Democrat who believes that needs to say it, this week. Biden does have the power to run out the clock. The only tool congressional Democrats have is pressure. If they want to use it, the time is now. Tents are set up May 31 outside the Homeless Alliance Resource Campus in Oklahoma City. The Oklahoma City Housing Authority is in imminent danger of halting housing vouchers to thousands on a waiting list just as state laws are about to ban public camping under highway bridges and on public land, including sidewalks. The Oklahoma Housing Finance Agency has yet to lift a freeze it put on accepting housing choice voucher applications last year. The local housing authority, meanwhile, faces running out of vouchers for more than 10,000 people currently on its waiting list. The federally funded housing voucher program helps low-income families, the elderly and people who are disabled to afford housing. Mark Gillett, director of the Oklahoma City Housing Authority, said his agency is dangerously close to a shortfall of federal funding for its housing vouchers due to rents going through the roof. Many housing authorities across the country are in the same place we are, Gillett said. To date in 2024, OCHA has not been officially placed into shortfall. However, based on current projections, shortfall is imminent. We are very close. More: Affordable housing, transportation part of plan to improve care for OK's aging population Thousands are on the waiting list for vouchers in Oklahoma The housing authority as of Tuesday had 10,567 people on the waiting list for vouchers. Holley Mangham, spokesperson for the Oklahoma Housing Finance Authority, said her agency is facing a risk it may not have sufficient funds to support the number of vouchers authorized by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. This could impact the low- and moderate-income families on OHFA's waitlist, many of whom have been waiting for assistance for over two years, Mangham said. This is a widespread issue across the country, and without legislative intervention, it is likely to worsen. Meghan Mueller, CEO of the Oklahoma City Homeless Alliance, is hoping that a resolution can be found before the waiting time gets any worse for those without housing. She said in previous years the nonprofit worked with the housing authority to avoid a complete shortfall. Why is the Oklahoma City Housing Authority facing a funding shortfall? Skyrocketing rent and the end of pandemic-era assistance Rents in Oklahoma City have skyrocketed over the past three years, with Redfin reporting the city saw the fastest rising rents (31.7%) among the countrys 50 largest cities in 2022. We know rents in Oklahoma City are rising quickly relative to other places, Mueller said. HUD allocations dont always keep up with those increases. OPINION: OKC lacks smaller, affordable housing. Ordinance for added dwelling could be one solution She added agencies and nonprofits also are faced with the end of pandemic-era assistance. Those funds have expired, Mueller said. That's a factor. Some of those safety nets in place keeping people barely on the edge are gone, and people have fallen off the cliff and are experiencing homelessness. She said another challenge is the diminishing number of landlords accepting vouchers. Jordan Sowers, left, and Trace Karpe, try to make contact with the occupant of a tent Jan. 25 during the Oklahoma City Point in Time survey, coordinated by the Homeless Alliance, to count the homeless population. The annual Point in Time census of those without housing show a 28% jump in 2024 over last year in Oklahoma City. A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling cleared the way for a state law banning homeless camps on state properties, public land and sidewalks which is set to go into effect later this year. It's a concerning time, Mueller said. Everyone is navigating many challenges at once. When you have this problem, and then a ban on camping, and punitive measures for those who do not have other options, it can be pretty scary. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC may halt Section 8 vouchers to thousands on waiting list This article was originally published in Oklahoma Voice. OKLAHOMA CITY Oklahoma reached a new milestone on Monday with a new superintendent taking office in Oklahoma City Public Schools. For the first time, Black women are simultaneously leading the states two largest school districts, OKCPS and Tulsa Public Schools. Jamie Polk stepped into the OKCPS superintendent role on Monday, succeeding Sean McDaniel. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter Ebony Johnson became the first Black woman to lead the Tulsa district, the states largest by enrollment, when she was picked to be interim superintendent in September and hired permanently in December. Polk said she looks forward to working with Johnson to enrich students educational experiences and opportunities. It is our shared belief that every child should see themselves represented in the educators and leaders who guide them in their educational journey, Polk said. Tulsa schools did not return a request for comment from Johnson. When Johnson was promoted in TPS, Oklahoma had only one other Black female superintendent working in the state at the time Cecilia Robinson-Woods at Millwood Public Schools. Robinson-Woods said she sees Johnsons and Polks hiring as a big step for women, especially Black women, to be given the confidence and trust to lead a school district. Its also a boost in representation of groups that arent always well served, she said. It is not a secret that minority children, especially Black children, have the lowest test scores in everything, Robinson-Woods said. Its not to say just because you have someone of color that things are going to change for those learners, but it does at least give you an insight, and it does at least broaden the conversation about what kids need. Research has shown a positive impact on minority students test scores and long-term outcomes when they have a teacher of their same race. But the demographics of educators and school leaders in Oklahoma public schools are vastly different from that of the students they serve, according to state data from the 2022-23 school year. While 77% of public educators in the state are white, more than half of all students are racial or ethnic minorities. Having diverse leadership is important in districts that want to prioritize equity, said Karlos Hill, regents associate professor of African and African American studies at the University of Oklahoma. We care about equity both in terms of making sure our kids are fairly educated, but we also should care about the people who are educating them, Hill said, and making sure that theres a diverse group of, not only teachers, but diverse leadership to make sure that the policies (and) the procedures of the school are not just reflective of one group, but of the community. Hiring Black female superintendents is significant in the context of the states long and deep history of exclusion for people of color, said Hill, who is also the OU presidents adviser for community engagement. That history, he said, is the reason Oklahoma didnt reach this milestone decades ago. If we care about equity, we will care about that history of exclusion and the ways in which it shows up today, Hill said. Unlike in Tulsa, there are Black female predecessors in the Oklahoma City superintendents office. The first was Betty Mason in 1992, who also was the first woman and the first African American superintendent to lead OKCPS. We all owe her a debt of gratitude for setting the stage for the historic moment we find ourselves in today, Polk said. The new superintendent said her district will continue to recruit diverse teachers through its Grow Our Own program. The initiative, founded in 2016 at the OKCPS Foundation, covers the cost of a teaching degree for paraprofessionals working in the district. Twenty-five teachers, most of whom are bilingual or racially diverse, have earned a bachelors degree through the program so far, and another 81 are on track to graduate this summer. The OKCPS Foundation launched a similar program to support aspiring school administrators who want to earn a masters degree. Sen. George Young, D-Oklahoma City, said he hopes Polk will continue to emphasize the teacher pipeline program and overall teacher pay. Young has represented the historically Black area of northeast Oklahoma City in the state Legislature for 10 years and is a pastor in the community. When youve got folks who look like you standing in front of you, it does make a difference, Young said. It doesnt make all the difference, but it sure does make a difference. And so I hope that she will remember that and see the things that made a difference in her life. And I think thatll make a difference in the life of our school district. An Iowa native, Polk spent 25 years as a teacher, principal and district administrator in Lawton Public Schools, where she moved because of her husbands military career. McDaniel, the outgoing OKCPS superintendent, hired her in 2019 to oversee the districts elementary schools. Leading the neighboring district of Millwood, Robinson-Woods said shes gotten to know Polk as a very personable leader and a data-driven problem solver. Similar descriptions have been applied to Johnson, who is trying to engineer an academic turnaround amid heavy pressure from the Oklahoma State Department of Education. Johnson was raised in Tulsa and spent her entire career in the district when the local school board promoted her from chief academic officer to superintendent. Like Johnson, this is Polks first superintendent job, one she said shes deeply honored to accept. Moving forward, OKCPS will remain steadfast in our dedication to cultivating leadership that reflects the vibrant tapestry of the communities we serve, Polk said. Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Oklahoma Voice maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janelle Stecklein for questions: info@oklahomavoice.com. Follow Oklahoma Voice on Facebook and X. One dead, several injured after fire at German refugee centre A police officer stands in front of the wall sections lying in front of the accommodation containers after an explosion in a refugee shelter. There is an explosion in a refugee shelter in Buchholz in der Nordheide. The building is on fire. One person dies and a police officer is seriously injured. Georg Wendt/dpa One person died and a police officer was seriously injured in a severe fire at a refugee centre in the northern German city of Buchholz in der Nordheide near Hamburg on Monday. The officer suffered severe burns, according to a spokesman for the fire brigade. A policewoman and a member of staff at the refugee centre were also injured. A body was found in the building but the identity of the deceased is not yet clear. Initially, there were "indications of a fire hazard" in the morning, according to a police statement. Two officers and two employees of the accommodation centre then noticed the smell of petrol in the building. Suddenly there was an explosion. The accommodation then caught fire. By midday, about 150 emergency services rushed to the asylum seekers' shelter. The operation is ongoing. View of the living container of a refugee shelter that was completely destroyed in an explosion. One person dies, and a police officer is seriously injured. Georg Wendt/dpa One dead, several injured after fire at German refugee centre A police officer stands in front of the wall sections lying in front of the accommodation containers after an explosion in a refugee shelter. There is an explosion in a refugee shelter in Buchholz in der Nordheide. The building is on fire. One person dies and a police officer is seriously injured. Georg Wendt/dpa One person died and a police officer was seriously injured in a severe fire at a refugee centre in the northern German town of Buchholz in der Nordheide near Hamburg on Monday. The policeman and an employee at the refugee centre suffered severe burns, according to a spokesman for the fire brigade. A policewoman was also injured. A body was found in the building but the identity of the deceased is not yet clear. The refugee accommodation is made up of a total of 48 containers converted for temporary housing of asylum seekers in Germany. A total of 20 people were injured in the fire. The fire brigade spokesman was initially unable to say how serious the other injuries were. There were "indications of a fire hazard" in the morning, according to a police statement. Two officers and two employees of the accommodation centre then noticed the smell of petrol in the building. "We received a tip-off that someone was setting fire to the building," said a police spokesman. Suddenly there was an explosion. A fire broke out on the first floor of the two-storey facility, the fire brigade said. Around 150 firefighters rushed to the scene and searched all of the containers: "Our priority was to rescue people, we didn't know how many people were still in the building at that time," said the fire brigade spokesman. The injured - including residents of the temporary housing units - were treated on site and some were taken to nearby hospitals. The seriously injured police officer was also taken to hospital. The fire was brought under control relatively quickly, said the spokesman. The extinguishing and rescue work was completed in the afternoon. In order not to hinder the rescue work, the police asked people to avoid the area. An investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing. "As soon as the heat allows, fire investigators will examine the scene," said the police spokesman. Residents of the centre have been put up in another nearby refugee accommodation for the time being. View of the living container of a refugee shelter that was completely destroyed in an explosion. One person dies, and a police officer is seriously injured. Georg Wendt/dpa At least two people have died after Hurricane Beryl made landfall along the Texas coast as a Category 1 storm early Monday. While Beryl has been downgraded to a tropical storm, its brought torrential downpours and wind gusts measuring 70 mph as of 10 a.m. Eastern Time on Mondaythough gusts were as high as 90 mph in Freeport and San Bernard earlier in the day. The storm has also caused trees to fall on homes, which killed one adult male, and one 74-year-old female. More than 2.5 million customers reported power outages in the Southeastern Texas area and residents are expected to remain without power until the wind dies down, acting Governor Dan Patrick said on Monday, reminding people that crews could not fix lines with such strong gusts. At least another 11 deaths were recorded in the Caribbean, according to the Associated Press. The National Hurricane Center warned of life-threatening storm surge inundation along Texas Port OConner to Sabine Pass and Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay in a Monday advisory. Beryl brought in six to eight inches of rain along southeastern Texas from midnight to early Monday, per the National Weather Service (NWS). Flash flooding is expected across other portions of Texas later today and local beaches will also experience moderate to major flooding, with water expected to reach some low-lying roadways, the NWS reports. More than 120 Texas counties are under a disaster declaration as officials urge people to stay off the roads. Some 2,500 emergency responders and 1,200 assets have been deployed across the state in anticipation of the storms damage. Responders received nearly 20 calls for water rescues since 6 a.m. today, according to the Houston Chronicle. Heavy rainfall of anywhere from 3 to 5 inches is also expected to affect southeastern Oklahoma, Arkansas, and southern Missouri into Tuesday. Beryl is now moving through eastern Texas where it will weaken as it traverses inland. Meteorologists predict the storm will spread to the Mississippi and Ohio valleys on Tuesday and Wednesday. The storm is expected to become a post-tropical cyclone by Tuesday. Tornado watches are also in effect along east Texas, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Beryl was previously labeled as a Category 5 Hurricane that wrecked havoc in the Caribbean, destroying 95% of homes on the islands of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Beryl later weakened to a Category 3 storm by the time it reached Mexico, but still forced evacuations along coastal hotels near Tulum. Experts called the storm unprecedented because it arrived so early in the hurricane season, signaling the effects of climate change on this extreme weather event. Contact us at letters@time.com. If Joe Biden is inclined to step aside as president (granted, a big if), dont expect him to do so until after Thursday. That will be the last day of the NATO summit in Washington, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic alliance. Biden will make sure to host that event, even if its (literally) the last thing he does as leader of the free world. The summit, which starts Tuesday, will be a grand convocation of the Western leaders, with splendid rhetoric to match. The agenda is well planned; the concluding document is prebaked: It will welcome Sweden as the latest of the alliances 32 members. It will proclaim that, for the first time, the alliance overall has met its pledge to spend 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense. It will reaffirm, and considerably boost, military support for Ukraine. It will lay out a road map to welcome Ukraine into the alliance at well, some point in the not-too-distant future. Finally, the assembled leaders, in their opening or farewell speeches, will thank Biden not just for convening the summit but for his huge role in making its accomplishments possible. And they will be telling the truth. Biden has done much to revitalize NATO after the four years of Donald Trumps neglect and hostility. More broadly, Biden has made foreign policy the centerpiece of his half-century-long political career, as senator, vice president, and president. Throughout, he has touted alliances as key to an effective foreign policy, and he has heralded NATO as the central alliance, without which American interests and values could not long survive in a turbulent world. So, President Biden will be there, and he will be there as President Biden. However, the summittrue to the words originsmay be the peak of Bidens idealization of NATO, and the downhill slope on the other side may be steep, especially from the vantage of Bidens political future. There will almost certainly be postsummit news stories reporting that several of the leaders or their aides were shocked or stunned by Bidens frailty or mental decline, even compared with just a month ago, during the get-together at Normandy marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day. Reporters will avidly seek out leaders and their aides, asking questions designed to evoke such observations (off the record or on background, of course). Unless Biden truly is in as much denial as he has appeared to be these past few days, he must know that these stories will be writtenthat his closest foreign allies, who will have just lavished him with praise and glory in public, will proceed to express wincing doubts in private about his suitability to serve four more years in the White House. If Biden does plan to step down (and thats, again, a big if), he might do so soon after the summit, before these harsh verdicts take their tollso that, as in respectful obituaries, the effusive tributes get the high-up paragraphs. A swift departure may also ensure a wave of Biden nostalgia in the history booksno small consideration to a man like Biden, who studies history and mulls his own legacy. This may be the last completely harmonious NATO summit, and that harmony will be linked to Biden, especially if its his final summit as president. If Trump is back in power at the next summit, he will almost certainly throw some wrench into the works. He is known to have no love for entangling alliances in generaland no appetite at all for the idea of activating Article 5 of the North Atlantic treaty, which regards an attack on one NATO member as an attack on all. He admires Vladimir Putin and mocks Volodymyr Zelensky. His plan for ending the war in Ukraine quickly is simply to halt all aid to Ukraine. The leaders of the Baltic states, Poland, and every other member wonder how concerned he is about their security. Some of these leaders will conclude that they must go their own way (despite lacking the resources to do so) or make accommodations with Moscow. Trans-Atlantic ties will be frayed. Biden could be remembered as the last trans-Atlantic American president. Even if Trump doesnt win, the future cohesion of NATO is in doubt. The alliances most prominent leaders are unpopular at home. The French parliamentary elections this past weekend dealt a thumping blow to the far-right National Rally party led by Marine Le Pen, but the center and left partieswhich cooperated to block Le Pens ascentdidnt win a majority. Awkward coalitions will have to be formed, and Macron himself did nothing to boost his own partys standing. Some are predicting deadlocks in policymaking, which will only further alienate voters. Meanwhile, Hungarys prime minister, Viktor Orban, a onetime democratic reformer who now ranks among the continents most avid authoritarians and friends of Putin, is nowby the rules of random rotationthe president of the European Council. The post doesnt give him enough power to sway European policy, but it may enable him to stymie or block moves to strengthen the European Unions stance toward democracy and a common defense. A somehow-revitalized Biden, or some successor who shares his values and priorities, might slow down or reroute some aspects of this trend but probably wont be able to halt it. What follows might induce wispy meditations by future memoirists and historians about Bidens presidency as a golden agebut only if he gets out at its high point, before the deluge. Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Beijing on Monday, and the two sides exchanged in-depth views on the Ukraine crisis. Orban briefed Xi on his recent visits to Ukraine and Russia. President Xi expressed appreciation for Orban's efforts in promoting the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and elaborated on China's relevant views and propositions. Xi stressed that an early ceasefire and a political settlement are in the interests of all parties, saying that the priority is to cool down the situation through observing the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no fanning by any party over the flames. Xi called on the international community to create conditions and provide support for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiation between the two sides, saying that only if all major countries inject positive rather than negative energy, can a ceasefire in this conflict emerge as soon as possible. "China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way and encouraging and supporting all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis," he said, adding that the basic propositions of China and Hungary and the direction of their efforts are the same, and China is willing to stay in communication with Hungary and all relevant parties. Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lin) Dan Goodman, executive director of Kansas Advocates for Better Care, said state and federal lawmakers should intervene to address the 25% of Kansas nursing homes providing substandard care. He also expressed concern about the high number of for-profit long-term care facilities with low scores on federal ratings. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector) Dan Goodman, executive director of Kansas Advocates for Better Care, said state and federal lawmakers should intervene to address the 25% of Kansas nursing homes providing substandard care. He also expressed concern about the high number of for-profit long-term care facilities with low scores on federal ratings. (Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector) LAWRENCE A national coalitions report says one-fourth of Kansas 300 nursing homes were categorized as problem facilities due to substandard care and persistent compliance issues. The Long-Term Care Community Coalitions latest summary, based on the federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services five-star quality rating system, showed 24.6% of nursing facilities in the United States were designated problem facilities after receiving a one-star rating. In Kansas, 25.2% of nursing homes had that lowly score based on inspection reports, staffing levels and other quality measures. In Kansas, six of 10 nursing homes were owned by for-profit companies. Three-fourths of the states troubled nursing homes were of the for-profit variety, the coalition said. If were outperforming the nation, thats a really bleak picture, said Dan Goodman, executive director of Kansas Advocates for Better Care. Particularly were concerned with the lack of staffing of these facilities. Kansas currently ranks 46th in the nation as far as staffing long-term care facilities compared to other states. The amount of staffing in those facilities directly impacts the overall care that residents receive. Goodman said on the Kansas Reflector podcast there was an unsettling correlation between low staffing levels and the frequency in use of medications to control nursing home residents. Those drugs could be detrimental to the health and quality of life for elderly people, he said. He said staffing shortages in long-term care facilities also contributed to failure to deliver routine care, including basics of brushing teeth or using the restroom, and could extend to frequency of dangerous falls as well as premature death. Federal staffing mandate In April, the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, also known as CMS, published a rule that would reform long-term nursing care facilities serving 1.2 million residents across the country. The agency order would increase the required staff-to-resident ratio, mandate a registered nurse be onsite 24 hours per day and expand regulations related to assessments of the facilities. The requirements, to be implemented over a three-year period, prioritized safety and health care quality, while taking into consideration workforce challenges some facilities may experience, especially those in rural areas. The rules on overall staffing would take effect in 2026 for urban facilities and in 2027 for rural facilities. U.S. Sen. Roger Marshall, a Kansas Republican, has sought to reverse the new long-term care regulations embraced by the administration of President Joe Biden. Marshall, who is a physician, said the regulations were unnecessary and would lead to closure of nursing homes in Kansas. These overly burdensome rules will be devastating to nursing homes in Kansas, especially those in rural areas, Marshall said. The unfunded mandates will further increase operating costs and exacerbate the existing nursing shortage. There is no evidence that these regulations will improve the quality of patient care. It just doesnt make sense. Marshall and U.S. Sen. Jerry Moran, R-Kansas, endorsed a congressional resolution that would, if passed, nullify the nursing home rules adopted by CMS. Marshall co-sponsored a bill that would prohibit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services from implementing the minimum staffing rule in instances where imposition of the order diminished access to care. The bill was endorsed by LeadingAge Kansas, the Kansas Hospital Association and the Kansas Health Care Association/Kansas Center for Assisted Living. Our nursing homes are committed to providing the highest quality care in Kansas and stand ready to work on real solutions for the continuing workforce crisis in long term care, said Rachel Monger, president and CEO of LeadingAge Kansas. The federal government cannot mandate staff where none exist. Inside the numbers Goodman, of Kansas Advocates for Better Care, said the federal rating system indicated 77 of the 306 nursing homes in Kansas were problem facilities. The analysis indicated one-third of for-profit nursing facilities in Kansas had low scores. In other words, he said, 58 of 183 for-profit nursing homes were rated as problematic. Goodman said investment companies, including real estate firms, were buying into the nursing home industry. Operators of those companies didnt have a background in health care delivery and wouldnt necessarily have a grasp of what it meant to provide compassionate assistance to residents, he said. Individuals are suffering, and probably dying sooner than they should be, Goodman said. A federal government report in November concluded for-profit nursing facilities tended to have lower quality ratings, fewer registered nurses and more safety violations. In 2021, the National Bureau of Economic Research said residents of nursing facilities owned by a private equity firm had a 10% greater chance of dying compared with residents living in another type of long-term care facility. Libby Hastings, communications coordinator at Kansas Advocates for Better Care, said updated federal guidelines for long-term care facilities opposed by Marshall and Moran shouldnt be viewed as burdensome if the objective was to provide quality care to these Kansans. Hastings said the workforce situation in nursing homes would be improved if direct-care workers were viewed as skilled labor, and provided paid health insurance and opportunities to advance in the business organization. She said families should consult the federal rating system for nursing homes before making personal decisions, but also consider who owned and operated the nursing homes. I think for consumers its important not to go just solely based off the five-star metric system, Hastings said. I think its important to look at your inspections. You should go visit the facilities unannounced. The post One-fourth of Kansas nursing homes labeled problem facilities because of persistently poor care appeared first on Kansas Reflector. One memorable speech can turn around a faltering campaign how Nixon did it with his Checkers talk Twenty years before Watergate, then-Sen. Richard Nixons national political ambitions were in peril. He was accused of dipping into a private, $18,000 slush fund to cover expenses, and doubts about the propriety of his conduct intensified as the 1952 presidential election campaign unfolded. Nixon was able to preserve what became a long career in national politics and kept the vice presidential spot on that years Republican national ticket with a talk on television and radio in which Checkers, his familys cocker spaniel, figured memorably. What is known as Nixons Checkers speech was without precedent, and it came at a moment when television was just beginning to have an impact on American political life. Although popular memory of the speech has faded, the episode offers a reminder, perhaps loosely relevant these days to President Joe Biden, about how political firestorms and demands that a controversial candidate quit a national party ticket can in some circumstances be neutralized. The Checkers case is also a reminder that a whiff of scandal isnt necessarily destructive to a political campaign. Then-vice presidential candidate Richard Nixon relaxes at home in Washington with his cocker spaniel, Checkers. Bettmann/Contributor Nixon at a crossroads The 1952 Republican ticket, led by Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, won a 39-state landslide over the Democrats presidential nominee, Gov. Adlai E. Stevenson of Illinois. The sweep of the Eisenhower-Nixon victory was an outcome no pollster had anticipated, as I note in my 2024 book, Lost in a Gallup: Polling Failure in U.S. Presidential Elections. But a Republican victory hardly seemed assured in mid-September 1952, when the New York Post reported that Nixon, then 39, had benefited from a private fund set up by supporters to cover expenses incurred as a U.S. senator from California. The then-liberal Post said the fund was supported by a millionaires club of Californians and was devoted exclusively to the financial comfort of Sen. Nixon. The nest egg allowed Nixon to live in style well beyond what a senators salary $12,500 annually, or about $145,000 these days could support, the Post alleged. Nixon was caught unawares and denied wrongdoing. He was slow to realize that the Posts disclosure threatened his political career. Not only did it raise doubts about the senators judgment, the report appeared to contradict Eisenhowers pledge to crack down on scandal, corruption and unethical conduct in Washington. Nixon not only seemed to be damaged goods, as Tom Wicker wrote in his biography of Nixon. He was suddenly a liability to Eisenhower, a five-star general and Americas preeminent military hero of World War II. Calls for Nixon to vacate the Republican ticket arose quickly, emanating even from within the Republican party and its Eastern establishment wing. Former New York Gov. Thomas E. Dewey, a two-time loser in campaigns for the U.S. presidency, urged Nixon to quit. Nixon soon was the target of jeering audiences at campaign stops. Many reporters covering the candidate figured he would have to quit. Demands that he do so began appearing in newspapers that supported Eisenhower. The Washington Post, for example, said Nixons quitting would provide the Republican party an unparalleled opportunity to demonstrate the sincerity of its campaign against loose conduct and corruption in government. The New York Herald Tribune, a voice of Eastern establishment Republicanism, called for Nixon to make a formal offer of withdrawal from the ticket. Eisenhower, meanwhile, was lukewarm about Nixons remaining on the ticket and extended little more than half-hearted support to his running mate as the controversy deepened. He called on Nixon to make full disclosure about the fund. A turnaround with Checkers Nixons response was to plead his case to Americans by radio and television from a broadcast studio in Los Angeles. His half-hour speech was paid for by the Republican National Committee and aired live on Sept. 23, 1952, five days after the New York Posts report about the fund. Nixon during the broadcast was by turns adamant, self-pitying and partisan. His wife, Pat, was seated nearby in an armchair that was mostly out of camera range. She looked stricken the few times the camera turned her way. Nixon emphasized his modest background and lifestyle, mentioning that his wife did not own a mink coat, an artifact of luxury at the time. Instead, Nixon said, she wore a respectable Republican cloth coat. He described in detail his possessions and liabilities, saying, It isnt very much. But Pat and I have the satisfaction that every dime that weve got is honestly ours. Nixon said he had granted no special favors to the 76 contributors who donated as much as $1,000 to the fund, which had been set up two years before. Its singular purpose, Nixon asserted, was to help cover expenses that I did not think should be charged to the taxpayers of the United States. The funds single largest expenditures were reported to be $6,100 for stationery and $3,430 for travel. Not one cent went for personal use, Nixon said. Little of what Nixon described seemed to support the New York Posts claims of a fund set up for his financial comfort. Nearly 20 minutes into his remarks, Nixon invoked Checkers, a passage that helped win for the speech an enduring place in American political lore. A Nixon supporter in Texas had gifted the pet to Nixons family after he heard a radio broadcast in which Pat Nixon said her daughters would like to have a dog. Not long afterward, Nixon said during the speech, we got a message from Union Station in Baltimore, saying they had a package for us. We went down to get it. You know what it was? "It was a little cocker spaniel dog, in a crate sent all the way from Texas, black and white, spotted. And our little girl Tricia, the six-year-old, named it Checkers, Nixon said. And you know, he added, the kids, like all kids, loved the dog, and I just want to say this, right now, that regardless of what they say about it, we are going to keep Checkers. Dwight D. Eisenhower and Richard Nixon in January 1952 in New York. Bettmann/Contributor A political masterstroke The writer George D. Gopen, in assessing the speech years later, said the reference to Checkers allowed Nixons daughters metaphorically to burst onto the scene, unseen, to dominate our consciousness, playing with their dog. That is great thinking and really good writing, he wrote. In the immediate aftermath of the speech, Robert Ruark, a syndicated columnist, wrote that Nixon had effectively stripped himself naked for all the world to see, and he brought the missus and the kids and the dog into the act. Nixon had aligned himself with mainstream Americans in what Wicker described as a political masterstroke. Nixon closed by inviting viewers and listeners to help decide his political fate by sending letters and telegrams not to Eisenhower but to members of the Republican National Committee. Tell them, Nixon said, whether you think I should stay on or whether I should get off. And whatever their decision is, I will abide by it. Americans responded by the tens of thousands, expressing support for Nixon. Members of the Republican National Committee voted without objection to keep him on the ticket. The outcome was perhaps encouraged by less-sensational disclosures at the time that Stevenson, the Democratic presidential nominee, had supported supplementary income funds for appointees to state positions in Illinois and that his running mate, Sen. John Sparkman, had kept his wife on his congressional payroll for 10 years. The day after the speech, Eisenhower met Nixon in West Virginia and declared his running mate vindicated. Why, youre my boy! the Herald Tribune quoted the general as saying. A political disaster had been averted. Nixon served two terms as vice president in Eisenhowers administrations and twice won the presidency before resigning in August 1974 over the Watergate scandal. Nixons rescuing himself in the 1952 election was notable and perhaps instructive, suggesting that a creative, high-profile and timely response can prevent sensational allegations from overwhelming a beleaguered candidacy, much as they nearly did to Nixon. The lessons of 1952, of course, are only superficially germane to Bidens predicament in the aftermath of his recent disastrous debate with former President Donald Trump. Even though the long-ago Checkers speech offers no sure road map to surviving a political crisis, it does represent intriguing context to 2024. It is certainly noteworthy that Biden in recent days has sought out a variety of audiences, including those of a television network, in an urgent gambit to preserve his candidacy for reelection. Although Biden rejects their findings, polls make clear Bidens not succeeding, that a Checkers-like redux is not in the offing. 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. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) The Ohio Division of Cannabis Control shared an update Friday on how far along the states dispensaries are in getting approval to sell recreational marijuana. As of Wednesday, DCC Public Information Officer Jamie Crawford told NBC4 that the agency had received a total of 244 applications to convert medical marijuana businesses to dual-use, which will allow them to sell both recreational and medicinal cannabis. From there, the DCC reviewed the submitted paperwork and cleared 182 businesses for different types of dual-use licenses: Six Testing labs 33 Cultivators 39 Processors 104 Dispensaries Boyfriend of woman missing for 23 years remains primary suspect, deputies say The final number in particular reflects the high interest among the states 126 total medical dispensaries to get an entirely new sect of customers. Some of them, alongside the lawmakers who approved the recreational sale rollout, also predicted when sales could begin. Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord), co-chair of the states Joint Committee on Agency Rule Review, shared an estimate of mid-June after approving the dual-use process. After applications opened, the CEO of Story Cannabis told NBC4 his dispensaries could start selling recreational cannabis as early as the week of June 23. However, both of those predictions turned out incorrect. While several of the states dispensaries have secured provisional licenses, theyre missing the next piece of the puzzle. Crawford said on Friday that until they also get a certificate of operation, the businesses cant sell recreational products. There have been no certificates of operation issued to dispensaries to begin selling non-medical cannabis at this point, Crawford wrote. A dual-use provisional license does not permit the holder to sell non-medical cannabis. It is issued as a placeholder while the provisional licensee works to meet the necessary requirements to obtain a certificate of operation and the division processes all required documents. Gahanna roundabout project presents struggle for local business The DCC publicly displays the applications for Ohio dispensaries to convert to dual-use on its website, as well as the status of its provisional license: Cresco Labs, which operates both a growing facility and medical dispensaries in Ohio, has the lowest license number in the cultivator class. And Verdant Creations, also owned by Cresco with locations in Chillicothe and Newark, holds the lowest-numbered license in the dual-use dispensary category. While Crawford noted that the DCC will review and process applications roughly in the order in which completed applications have been received, he clarified Friday that the order of provisional licenses in e-license is not necessarily an indication of when a completed application was received by the division. This means the lowest-numbered applicants in the database arent guaranteed to be the first to receive the needed certificate to start recreational sales. Think of the BMV model, where there is a single line but multiple windows open, Crawford said. A complicated application with multiple things that need to be resolved may get to a window first, but may not complete their certificate of operation first. Poll: 70% of Ohio restaurants, hospitality businesses plan to raise prices in 2024 Crescos chief communication officer, Jason Erkes, shared the dispensaries perspective on the wait for certificates of operation. In May at the companys growing facility in Yellow Springs, his team planted the first crop of cannabis intended for recreational marijuana products. Theyll later go on sale at Crescos Sunnyside Dispensaries, with locations in Ohio towns like Chillicothe. Erkes believes his companys hands in both supplies and sales may result in receiving a certificate faster. Being that all the products sold to adult-use consumers must come from both a dual-use cultivator and a dual-use approved lab, we think those will be the first operational licenses issued; otherwise the dispensaries will have no approved product to sell, Erkes said. Crawford supported Erkes theory in his metaphor for the approval process. Cultivators, processors and testing labs receive some priority because they are less complicated, and to ensure that products available for adult-use consumers can be traced back to a dual-use cultivator or processor, Crawford said. Dispensaries will be required to show they are able to properly process adult use and medical sales, as well as provide proof of training, which means they will take more time at the window even if they are called up first. Columbus Zoo shares update on dog who was best friends with cheetah Erkes also shared the latest prediction on when sales could start: July. Since the passing of Issue 2 on the ballot, we have made significant increases in staffing in our cultivation and manufacturing facility to accommodate the increased demand, Erkes said. And likewise our five Sunnyside Dispensaries have beefed up to prepare for the influx of new consumers we expect to start shopping this month. People outside of Ohios formal marijuana industry are also trying to get in on the hype. In Ohios first full year with legalized cannabis, two festivals were planned in the summer months. The Stargazer Cannabis Festival is set for July 26-28 and endorses personal consumption of homegrown cannabis at the event. One of its sponsored activities includes a joint-rolling contest, which organizer Chad Thompson hired judges for at $100 an hour. But the Ohio Cannabis Festival, slated for Aug. 31 to Sept. 1, fizzled out in a dispute over its compliance with state law, with legal action pending from the organizers side. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. One of the top options to replace Biden publicly bows out One of the top options to replace Biden publicly bows out Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan vowed she wouldn't run if President Joe Biden exited the race. Whitmer has repeatedly backed the president and his 2024 run. Leaked polling found Whitmer was popular among Democrats and outperformed Biden. Since President Joe Biden's awful debate performance, Democrats and voters alike have been speculating about who could replace him in the race. But one of the top options, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan, has said to count her out. The two-term Democratic governor told The Associated Press in an interview ahead of the launch of her new book, "True Gretch," that she would not join the 2024 race if Biden stepped down. "It's a distraction more than anything," Whitmer told the AP in a story published Monday. "I don't like seeing my name in articles like that because I'm totally focused on governing and campaigning for the ticket." Whitmer, a national cochair of Biden's reelection campaign, has repeatedly reiterated her support of the president. On the social-media platform X, Whitmer wrote in a post last week that she's all in on Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, adding, "Help me elect Democrats up and down the ticket." In a follow-up post, she said: "Joe Biden is our nominee. He is in it to win it and I support him." Whitmer was part of a coalition of 24 Democratic governors who met with Biden on Wednesday to discuss the fallout from his debate performance and his path to victory, the Detroit Free Press reported. Though Whitmer said she would not replace Biden on the ticket, she might have a decent chance if she did, according to an internal Democratic polling memo leaked to Puck. The polling memo, crafted by OpenLabs 72 hours after the debate, said Whitmer was polling just behind Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg among voters in swing states. Biden was ranked last among the five options, with Harris second to last, the leaked poll found. While some polls show Biden losing ground since the debate, a new Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll found Biden was still ahead of Trump in Michigan a must-win for the incumbent this November and narrowing Trump's lead in other key swing states. As for Whitmer's presidential prospects, she has for years said she doesn't want to ever run for president. For example, she told the Free Press in 2022, "The lure of Washington, DC, has not been something that has ever drawn my interest or attention." But lately, she's been changing her tune. In a speech to hundreds of fellow politicians at a Washington event in March, Whitmer said, "See you in 2029," hinting at a 2028 run, The Washington Post reported. Read the original article on Business Insider One week from RNC, Trump has yet to announce VP pick WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR) Next week will kick off the Republican National Convention and there is still no clear sign of who will be former president Donald Trumps vice-presidential pick. Trump says he has selected his running mate but hes not releasing the name just yet. Donald Trump is running on common sense, on restoring common sense versus the lunacy of the last four years in the far left, said Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). Florida Republican Senator Marco Rubio and Ohio Republican Senator J.D. Vance are seen as potential Trump running mates. Both men spent the weekend trying to distance the former president from a conservative plan called Project 2025, which lays out a massive overhaul of the federal government. Its a 900-page document. I guarantee there are things that Trump likes and dislikes about that 900-page document. But he is the person who will determine the agenda of the next administration, said Vance. Trump said on his Truth Social platform he had nothing to do with the plan, I know nothing about Project 2025. I have no idea who is behind it. One week out from the Republican National Convention its anyones guess when the former president will name his pick. Also on the short list, North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum, South Carolina Senator Tim Scott, Florida Congressman Byron Donalds and New York Congresswoman Elise Stefanik. Political science professor Todd Belt says theres a key component to winning that is missing from this group of names. They dont bring a state that Donald Trump needs and they dont bring a constituency that Donald Trump needs. These are normal politician calculations. And Trump is not a normal politician, said Belt. The former president will hold campaign rallies in Florida and Pennsylvania this week, potential opportunities for an announcement. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. One of the worst invasive species threatens WA waters. Heres what to do if you see it European green crabs are considered to be one of the worlds worst invasive species and a significant threat to the health of Washingtons marine waters. Their destructive tendencies damage both critical habitat (like eelgrass beds) and other native species. I think the most concerning thing about European green crab is that they are excellent generalists, meaning they can eat all sorts of things, said Stena Troyer, science specialist at the environmental education nonprofit Harbor WildWatch. They have the potential to consume so many critical parts of the Salish Sea food web including oysters, clams, and Dungeness crab all of which happen to be things that people value eating too. More than 105,300 European green crabs have been removed in Washington waters this year, with the tally recently at 752,047 total removals since Jan. 1, 2022. Statewide efforts to control these crabs began in 2020 and public education efforts ramped up in 2022. While a very small population was detected in Hood Canal in 2022 and 2023, thankfully they still have not been detected in south Puget Sound. Despite its name, the European green crabs distinguishing feature is not its color, but the five spines to the outside of the eye on the shell. Control and monitoring are managed through the combined efforts of the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife-led coalition of tribal co-managers and partners, as well as Washington Sea Grants Crab Team. However, only a small fraction of the identified suitable nearshore habitat which spans the entirety of the Puget Sound and Salish Sea can be monitored by these teams. Thats where the Molt Search Program comes in, calling on the publics help to keep the south Puget Sound free of this invasive species and monitor shorelines throughout the Salish Sea. How to identify crab species Molt Search is a volunteer-based early detection program led by Washington Sea Grant and Washington State University. The program trains interested beachgoers to identify crab molts and report local findings. Better yet, Molt Search partners with local organizations across 12 Puget Sound counties to help lead programs. Harbor WildWatch recently led a molt training at Titlow Beach Park and has incorporated molt searches into their biannual participatory science beach monitoring as well as their summer beach tours. They encourage interested beachgoers to reach out to Troyer about early detection trainings or come to one of their many educational beach tours over the summer. Washington Sea Grant also has weekly trainings in-person and online across the Puget Sound. In-person trainings give you a hands-on experience identifying crab species which can be extra helpful when distinguishing a Dungeness crab from the similar Graceful crab, said Troyer. While we anticipate a bunch of zeros reported in the South Sound, this is still an important number to record. Plus, when submitting reports, there is the opportunity to contribute data about Dungeness crab. The premise behind Molt Search is straightforward: set a timer and go on a personal scavenger hunt in the rack line of the shore where high tide stretched to and often remnants of seaweed remain. Beachgoers should specifically look for crab carapaces, the outer exoskeleton or shell of crabs. All crabs shed their carapaces when they grow, so looking for molts enables detection of populations when they are (hopefully) still small. In fact, when European green crabs were originally detected in the late-1990s, the very first reports were not of molted shells rather than live crabs. According to Washington Sea Grant, the recent increases in their numbers are a crucial focus of population control for state managers and early detection is a high priority. Report sightings immediately The trickiest part of Molt Search is identifying any discoveries, which is where the trainings come in handy. Despite their name, European green crabs arent always green and can range from red to yellow depending on age. The best way to identify them is by counting the five prominent marginal teeth on their carapace, located near their eyes (for comparison, Dungeness and Graceful crabs have 10 prominent marginal teeth). The five marginal teeth on the wide eye side are the key to identifying this invasive crab, said Troyer. Heres a fun memory tool: think of the five letters in the word green as your key to remember the five marginal teeth from each eye of the European Green Crab. Then hold up your hand to give a European green crab high-five. Troyer offered another memory tool: European green crabs carapaces are wide on the eye side, kind of like your eyes might be if you were to come across one in the south Puget Sound. If a carapace or live European green crab is identified, it can be reported through WDFW, Washington Sea Grant, or through the MyCoast app (which trainings help familiarize volunteers with). Any live findings should be left in place after being reported. Though leaving crabs in place might sound counterintuitive, WDFW does not want native species to be incorrectly identified and accidentally killed. Leaving the crab and reporting it allows partners to investigate findings and set traps. If any European Green Crabs are caught in the traps, they are frozen and reutilized by WDFW as fertilizer. Trained or not, if youve found a European green crab, report it immediately, said Troyer. If it is a dead crab or a molt, WDFW requests that you hold on to the specimen so it can be verified. Sightings can be reported to the WDFW hotline at 1-888-WDFW-AIS. Community-involved programs like Molt Search provide important data for researchers and are imperative to having more boots on the ground to detect a highly invasive species. Put simply: the Puget Sound and Salish Sea have more than 2,000 miles of shoreline. Researchers and managers cant cover these beaches alone, so searching for molts provides critical support to the early detection of these crabs before they establish large populations that would be difficult, or impossible, to control. The more folks we have on the beach reporting the presence and, more importantly, the absence of European Green Crab, the better for reacting to this potentially devastating invasion, said Troyer. -- See you on the shore for a molt search! I am retiring from The Peninsula Gateway newspaper after a wonderful five years of reporting on the local environment. Thank you for caring about your impact in our community and across the Salish Sea. Carly Vester Carly Vester has been writing an environmental column for The Peninsula Gateway since 2019. Her storytelling focuses on the intersection of people and the outdoors from adventures across the west, to our environment and the rich history surrounding it. Her documentary films have screened internationally and her writing has been published locally and regionally. Editors Note: Dean Obeidallah, a former attorney, is the host of SiriusXM radios daily program, The Dean Obeidallah Show. Follow him on Threads. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. Read more opinion at CNN. America may soon be subjected to the countrys first DEI president: Kamala Harris, screamed the headline of an op-ed in The New York Post on Saturday penned by Fox Business senior correspondent Charles Gasparino. Dean Obeidallah - CNN The longtime media figure began his article by slamming Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs as literally destroying businesses. Gasparino then took aim at the vice president, writing that the American public may soon be subjected to DEI writ large in the next president of the United States, if Kamala Harris finds her way to the top of the Democratic ticket. Gasparinos suggestion that Harris only got to where she is because of diversity programs not because she earned it is despicable. It reeks of the white supremacist myth that people of color are inherently inferior to white people and, therefore, we achieve success and positions of influence not on the merits, but only with the help of a diversity program. (I once was called a quota hire years ago on social media by a Fox News frequent guest because at the time I was the first Muslim hired to host a national radio show.) Gasparinos use of DEI hire apparently to demean the achievements of a person of color is far from the first time weve seen this. In fact, just last week, GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert of Colorado took a page from this same vile playbook in a social media post attacking White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre. Boebert who in the past suggested that Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, who is Muslim, was a terrorist was apparently upset with Jean-Pierres comments about Bidens workday being many hours longer than she believed to be true, so she smeared her as a discredited DEI hire. Earlier this year, the same DEI-as-insult line was used to attack the Black mayor of Baltimore, Brandon Scott, after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse. Scott responded to the smears by stating, We know what these folks really want to say when they say DEI mayor. He added bluntly, They really want to say the N-word. The mayor later gloriously trolled the bigots, telling MSNBC that the acronym DEI actually stands for duly-elected incumbent. In February, we even saw DEI used as a slur by a Republican against a fellow party member. That happened after the New York congressional special election in which Democrat Tom Suozzi defeated the GOP candidate, Mazi Melesa Pilip, who was born in Ethiopia. In response, Trump ally GOP Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida declared on Newsmax, It turns out DEI isnt a real good strategy for Republican candidate recruitment. Theres no hiding whats intended with these types of attacks. In fact, Gasparino was not shy on this point, writing Harris was only picked by Biden as his running mate in 2020 because as a Black woman she checked all the boxes. Never mind the fact that Harris had been a public servant for more than 16 years at the time: first as an elected district attorney of San Francisco, and later as the elected attorney general for the state of California, where she oversaw the largest state justice department in the country. In that office, she successfully secured billions of dollars in damages from unscrupulous businesses that had preyed on Californians. Nor does it matter to her detractors that Harris was then elected to the US Senate in 2016, where she made a name for herself with her service on the Judiciary and Intelligence committees. Nope, Gasparino apparently attributes her many achievements to her being given preferential treatment because of her race and gender. He predicted that if President Joe Biden ends up remaining on the 2024 ticket and wins, its unlikely he would physically be able to serve four years. The result, he says, is that Harris becomes the nations first DEI president by default. Of course, none of what Gasparino said was written in a vacuum. Its in keeping with efforts by Republicans to try to discredit both the achievements by people of color as well as efforts to address our nations past acts of racism and racial discrimination. Thats been evident for months, as GOP-led legislatures rush to enact laws restricting and even outlawing DEI programs in education, state government, contracting, pension investments and other aspects of civic life. Those actions are, at least in part, an outgrowth of the hostility to DEI shown by former President Donald Trump, who signed an executive order in fall 2020 forbidding the federal government, as well federal contractors, subcontractors and grantees, from offering diversity training on racial issues. But many of those initiatives were only put into place after streets across the country filled with protesters in response to the videotaped murder by police in Minneapolis of George Floyd, and a dawning awareness by many Americans of just how profound the nations racism problem is. Despite that, Trump who in the summer of 2020 called Black Lives Matter a symbol of hate dismissed such programs as anti-American propaganda. And that was just the start. In an interview with Time magazine published in April, the former president vowed to do more to unwind diversity initiatives if he gets back into the White House. I think there is a definite anti-white feeling in this country and that cant be allowed, he declared. The point of what Gasparino, Boebert, Gaetz and others meant when using DEI hire was to demean the triumphs of Black Americans because they simply dont believe a Black person couldve attained that level of success on their own merit. And its more than a little reminiscent of Trump himself, when he spread his false birther claim suggesting that former President Barack Obama, as a Black man, could not possibly have been born in this country and have achieved, on his own merits, his academic and political accomplishments. It was a statement born of jealousy and bigotry. It was, and is, despicable. But if one is to believe what he says, Trump will pick up where he left off if he reclaims the White House. And sadly, the nations DEI-hater-in-chief will have lots of company, because animus against racial fairness and equity appears to explain much of what fuels todays GOP. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Joe Biden's presidency has been compared to Lyndon Baines Johnsons for its highly significant reshaping of domestic policy. But heres another comparison which has not been embracedand should be: the crucial role of Lady Bird Johnson in creating and executing the strategy that resulted in LBJ bowing out after a single elected term. Lady Bird Johnson (left) dealt with being second lady to Jacqueline Kennedy (right) with aplomb; for her husband being vice president was trickier. Joe Biden says he was inspired by JFK while his presidency has been compared to LBJ's. Now it is Jill who has a chance to be inspired by the Johnsons. Cecil Stoughton/The White House/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library/Reuters Its a comparison that our current first lady should study closely, because these next few days may be the most consequential of her life. The parallels between Jill Biden and Lady Bird Johnson are clear: both were senators wives and second ladies before entering the East Wing; both faced roiling crisescivil rights, COVID, Jan. 6, Israeltearing at Americas social fabric. Now, like Lady Bird, Jill must help her husband make the ultimate choice: to run or not to run for a second term. When LBJ grudgingly accepted the vice-presidential slot on JFKs 1960 ticket, he was Senate majority leader; the role was a demotion by any light. For him, it was like trying to swallow a nettle: hurt, sticky, spiny, in Lady Birds account, as detailed in my book, Lady Bird Johnson: Hiding in Plain Sight. But as second lady, while her husband wallowed, she began to thrive. An often despondent Jackie Kennedy tossed her a large chunk of her ceremonial duties. Yet Lady Bird accepted them with aplomb. For the Johnsons, promotion to the presidency and the role of first lady not by election but by assassination was far worse than choking on a nettle. At first, Lady Bird genuinely believed they were caretakers and would stay in office only for 13 months. But six months into the presidency, and as a devout New Deal Democrat, she began to believe that LBJwith her helphad the chance to make good on the domestic policy agendaparticularly civil rights and universal health carethat FDRs death in 1945 had left unrealized. It took months after her husband was sworn in on Air Force One with her by his side for Lady Bird to come to believe he should run for election. But she came up with a strategy of serving one full term then bowing outand persuaded him to follow it. Cecil Stoughton/John F. Kennedy Presidential Library/Reuters But she had two problems to overcome. One was LBJ himself; the other was the country. LBJ lived under the cloud of depression and, after a massive heart attack almost killed him in 1955, the prospect of not living to finish out even a first full term was real. As much as LBJ has been painted as the embodiment of power, his formidable ability to exercise it came at a huge cost to his mental and physical health. Serving as Senate majority leader had almost killed him; the presidency might finish the job. Lady Birds fears were voiced as early as May 1964, when the inexorable pull into the unwinnable morass of Vietnam was only just beginning. Lady Bird by then well understood, as she wrote in her diary, the depth of [Lyndons] pain, when and if he faces up to the possibility of sending many American boys to Vietnam or some other place. LBJ was worried less by his ability to beat Barry Goldwater in November than by his capacity to hold public support and to govern going forward. On the morning of his 1965 inauguration, Lady Bird already had a clear timeline for her husband's service and departure. While the coming years tore at America's social fabric, she persuaded him to stick to that course. Yoichi Okamoto/LBJ Library/Reuters Despite her stiff and two-dimensional public persona, Lady Bird Johnson possessed deep reserves of wisdom, stamina and, crucially for her husband, political judgment. And she was the only person in his immediate circle whom Lyndon trusted without reserve. That May, she retreated to the Huntland estate in Virginia and, at LBJs request, wrote him a strategy memo. The Huntland memo set forth the idea that LBJ commit to one full term in officeshe didnt want him to retire early and drive her crazy back at the Ranch. If you win, she concluded, lets do the best we can for three years and three or four months. And then, in February or March 1968 she proposed, announce that he would not run for a second term. Of course, LBJ ran and defeated Goldwater and, before Vietnam became the intractable crisis, passed the Civil Rights Act and the Great Society legislation which Joe Biden considers his inspiration. By fall 1967, though, the mood in the country had turned. After living in what she described as insulated against life at the White House, Lady Bird began her own shift when appearances on American campuses to promote her environmentalism were drowned out by protest and as one daughters fiance and anothers husband prepared to deploy to Vietnam. The Bidens are also in a quandry over running for a second term. Unlike Lady Bird, Jill has been publicly and privately behind her husband running. Elizabeth Frantz/Reuters I want to know whats going oneven if to know is to suffer, she said. She had already begun counting the days to the end of his term and in October of that year launched her campaign to focus Lyndon on the timing of his public announcement that he would not run for a second term. She helped draft his January 1968 State of the Union; in his breast pocket was tucked a section announcing he would not run, but he decided not to deliver it. Instead, it was on March 31, 1968, in an Oval Office address purportedly about Vietnam that her husband explained his decision not to stand as a candidate for re-election. The campaign was too consuming, the priorities of the presidency as he saw it- a peace process with Vietnam, a deeper civil rights expansionhad to be his focus. I shall not seek, and I will not accept, the nomination of my party for another term as your President. Lady Bird had helped draft this speech too, but it was her quiet strategy nearly four years in the making that LBJ embraced that night and that our current first lady can learn from. Coaxing someone she loves out of doing what he lovesand Joe Biden clearly loves his job and relishes the potential of a second termmay well be the hardest moment of Jill Bidens own political career. But it may be as consequential as saving the American republic this fall. 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: Its time to find out whether Biden has cognitive impairment or not Editors Note: Jonathan Reiner, MD, is a CNN medical analyst and professor of medicine and surgery at George Washington University. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN. Theres a tenet of medicine that states, You only find what you look for. Dr. Jonathan Reiner - CNN Last week, in the wake of a poor debate performance, President Joe Biden was asked multiple times by George Stephanopoulos if he would agree to undergo a cognitive screening examination. The president demurred, saying that the duties of the presidency and running the world prove his mental fitness for the job: Look, I have a cognitive test every single day. This is no longer sufficient. In June, 51 million people tuned in to watch the much-anticipated debate between Biden and former President Donald Trump. For most Americans, it was their first extended and unscripted look at the candidates in this election cycle. CNNs Jake Tapper posed the evenings first question, asking Biden, What do you say to voters who feel they are worse off under your presidency than they were under President Trump? Subdued, and speaking in a soft and halting voice, an ill-appearing Biden struggled to construct a fluid response, identify words and complete his thoughts, a pattern that would continue throughout the 90-minute debate. Although the president seemed to perform a bit better toward the end of the evening, the sense that something was very much amiss permeated the event. Predictably, post-debate analysis was dominated not by Trumps frequent misrepresentation of established facts, or differences in the candidates policy positions, or their vision for the next four years, but rather by alarm over Bidens health. Biden later told ABC that he just had a really bad cold on debate night and said he was distracted by Trump still shouting over his muted microphone while Biden was speaking. With a combined age of 159 years, no presidential election in American history has featured older major-party candidates, and at no other time in the last half century has there been more concern about the physical and cognitive status of both candidates. Despite his many years in the public eye, we still know very little about the health of 78-year-old Trump. Last November, Dr. Bruce Aronwald, Trumps personal physician since 2021, issued a meager, three-paragraph, data-devoid note attesting to Trumps physical and cognitive fitness for office. In February, Bidens White House physician, Dr. Kevin OConnor, released a more comprehensive report, summarizing the presidents medical history and results from his annual checkup. The six-page document described the 81-year-old patients history of atrial fibrillation, sleep apnea, osteoarthritis, hyperlipidemia and peripheral neuropathy. In a section describing an extensive assessment of the presidents noticeably stiff gait, OConnor stated that Biden had undergone a thorough multidisciplinary evaluation, including an examination by a neurologist, that ruled out the presence of degenerative neurologic conditions such as Parkinsons disease, multiple sclerosis and ALS. There was no report of a cognitive assessment. While Medicare does cover cognitive screening examinations for adults 65 years and older, the United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in 2020 reviewed the role of dementia screening examinations in asymptomatic adults in this age group and concluded that the current evidence is insufficient to assess the balance of benefits and harms of screening for cognitive impairment in older adults. But Bidens performance at last months debate raised questions about whether the president is truly asymptomatic, and whether he now shows signs of cognitive decline. Deterioration in cognitive capacity is common with advancing age. Dementia, which is defined as a significant deterioration in one or more cognitive domains (complex attention, executive function, learning and memory, language, perceptual-motor control and social cognition) affects more than 10% (6 million people) 65 years old or above. Mild cognitive impairment occurs in another 22%. While the USPSTF review is noncommittal on the use of dementia screening in ostensibly asymptomatic people, theres no ambiguity in the use of testing in adults where dementia is a concern. There are a variety of screening exams such as the Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA) or Mini-Mental State Examination that are used to detect signs of cognitive decline. If these tests are abnormal, extensive further assessments are performed, including a variety of laboratory studies, screening for depression and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain. Trump has repeatedly bragged that he aced two dementia screening tests during and after his presidency, and described the former test as difficult. But that exam (the MOCA test), which, among other questions, asks the patient to draw a clock, identify a camel and count backward from 100 by sevens, is a low bar for a candidate who, if elected, will carry nuclear launch codes. There are only a few medical conditions that should disqualify a candidate from assuming the presidency, but dementia is certainly one. In view of Bidens very public difficulty during the debate, Americas voters need to know whether the poor performance was simply a poorly timed, one-off event a bad night, in Bidens words or whether it represents a degenerative process. If indeed the president has not been recently tested for evidence of cognitive decline, its in the countrys best interest that the assessment be performed now. If the evaluation shows no evidence of impairment, this issue should be put to rest. If testing is abnormal, then both the patient and the country need to know. Its time to look. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday sent a congratulatory letter to the Green Development Forum of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Countries. Xi pointed out that it is the consensus of SCO countries to protect the environment and promote green development. China, committed to the philosophy that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, has in recent years unswervingly pursued a model of sound development featuring improved production, higher living standards and healthy ecosystems, leading to remarkable achievements in building a beautiful China. China hopes to strengthen communication and cooperation in the field of green development with all parties via the forum, to boost the sustainable economic and social development of all countries and promote harmonious coexistence between human and nature, Xi said. Describing the SCO as a model for a new type of international relations and regional cooperation, Xi noted that China has recently taken over the rotating presidency of the SCO. China is ready to work with all sides to carry forward the Shanghai Spirit, strengthen unity and coordination, promote green development, write a new chapter of common development, and jointly build an even closer SCO community with a shared future, Xi added. The Green Development Forum of SCO Countries opened on Monday in the coastal city of Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. Editors Note: Michael Bociurkiw (@WorldAffairsPro) is a global affairs analyst. He is a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and a former spokesperson for the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. He is a regular contributor to CNN Opinion. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his own. Read more opinion at CNN. As Washington prepares to welcome world leaders for a landmark summit commemorating 75 years of NATO, some 5,000 miles away I was having a heart wrenching dinner conversation. Michael Bociurkiw - Chrystia Chudczak My dreams have been shattered, a Ukrainian friend, Inna Ivanova, told me at a restaurant tucked away in an obscure corner of Odesa. A former resident of this southern Ukrainian port city, Inna was visiting family during a break from her job as an accountant in Germany. Up until Russias full-scale invasion two years ago, Inna was studying drama with hopes of becoming an actress. But with the frequent air raid sirens and electricity outages, like millions of other Ukrainians, Inna opted for a calmer life elsewhere. Her turmoil, however, continues. This week, 32 NATO allies will be gathering in Washington, DC, amid what they rightly describe as the most dangerous security environment since the Cold War. The overarching message from Ukrainians Ive spoken to over the past few weeks, including Inna, is: Help us stop this war now. And indeed, catapulting Ukraine into a winning position should be the key goal of the Washington summit. Failing to push back Russian President Vladimir Putin, a man who only responds to brute force, will only prolong the war and make it more costly for Europe especially if many thousands of Ukrainians, unable to heat their homes, seek asylum there this winter. The question on everyones lips Looming over the summit will be the question of Ukraines desperately sought NATO membership. Former Vice-Prime Minister for the European and Euro-Atlantic Integration of Ukraine Ivanna Klympush-Tsintsadze told me that if NATO leaders pass up the opportunity to signal the irreversibility of Ukraines membership it will be a drastic mistake of the alliance. She added that it would be a much bigger mistake for the region and the world than the mismanaged 2008 Bucharest NATO summit decision, which opened the door for Ukraine and Georgia to join the alliance, but with no plan on how to get there. (Critics argued it essentially raised a red flag to Moscow regarding two former Soviet countries but without the benefit of NATO protection.) Considering the moves already made by Brussels towards integrating Ukraine and providing it with more predictability, Kyiv could feel that it is pretty much part of the NATO family save for the collective protection (known as Article 5) that full membership supposedly brings. The Biden administration has talked about the idea of a bridge to NATO eventual membership for Ukraine, but the alliance has yet to offer Kyiv a concrete timeline. Nonetheless, NATO leaders could give themselves a pass to skirt the membership question by giving Kyiv drastically enhanced capability to repel Putins aggression, while still providing a solid roadmap for a seat at the alliance table. The two faces of Ukraine After more than two years of war, those of us who have stayed recognize newcomers or returnees such as Inna. With each passing air raid siren they anxiously scroll through Telegram channels to assess the threat (cruise missiles and ballistic missiles being the biggest). But a brief stroll would present an Odesa that is opening up, looking less and less like a war zone. The port, the engine which powers the local economy as well as a crucial part of the global food supply chain, is back to pre-war levels of traffic. Visitors this summer will find the landmark Potemkin Stairs and many other prized attractions re-opened after the removal of military blockades. But beneath the surface, the war is still undeniably taking its toll. Fewer men are visible on the streets; caught up in the war or hiding from the roving conscription squads trying to enlist them in it. The morale of soldiers, many of whom have served for more than two years with little time off, is in rough shape, those who visit them regularly, tell me. Military cemeteries in cities such as Lviv are bursting at the seams. And firms are struggling to keep operating amid a severe manpower shortage and power cuts. A smouldering building in the southern Ukrainian port city of Odesa, following a Russian missile strike on June 24. - Oleksandr Gimanov/AFP/Getty Images Nationwide, including here in Odesa, attacks on critical infrastructure have been so brutal that much of Ukraines generating capacity has been destroyed leading to outages of several hours a day. Ukrainian-Canadian Bohdan Chomiak, who lives in Kyiv, told me that roughly speaking, more than half the day is without power. Some experts are predicting that by the time the first frost arrives later this year, parts of Ukraine could be down to less than four hours a day of power, creating the conditions for a humanitarian catastrophe. To make matters worse, Russia has reportedly started to attack renewable energy installations such as solar and wind farms. Whats next for Ukraine? Let there be no mistake: The last thing Ukrainians want is for any of their countrymen to live a minute more than necessary under brutal Russian occupation. But Ive seen a noticeable shift in the mood of ordinary people, with many telling me that they cant take much more of a war thats claimed the lives of tens of thousands of soldiers and at least 174 civilians in May alone. Bitterness is building up too about the drip, drip, drip approach to providing aid to Ukraine. Had Kyiv been given everything it needed at the start of the war, the argument goes, Russia wouldnt have been able to exploit the delays to seize more territory, build up defenses and repurpose old missiles to target Ukrainian cities. Ukrainians are also realizing that their traditional alliances with Western capitals may not be so solid after voters turned towards far-right parties in the recent European elections. The agonizing five-month wait for US legislators to approve $61 billion in military and other aid for Kyiv shouldve been a signal for the Zelensky administration that they can also no longer bank on unrestricted American support. Even more so with the prospect of a return of former US President Donald Trump who, in CNNs presidential debate, made the outrageous claim that he would have the war settled before Inauguration Day doubtfully in Ukraines favor. Meanwhile in Washington The forecasted record heat wont be the only thing making NATO leaders in Washington break into a sweat. Growing questions over President Joe Bidens ability to govern, Trumps strong showing in post-debate polls and the political uncertainty swirling around other alliance leaders in the fallout from the European elections, will make this summit feel more like a painful goodbye gathering than a celebration of NATO unity. The clock to Novembers US election is ticking and loudly. NATO members now look certain to agree to Secretary General Jen Stoltenbergs proposal to guarantee at least 40 billion euros in military support each year to Ukraine, for as long as necessary an apparent effort to future-proof Ukraine funding from a Trump presidency. Given the high stakes for Ukraine, people here will be watching developments in Washington closely. As one Ukrainian member of parliament, Kira Rudik, leader of the Golos Party, told me: The best way of honoring Ukraines fight for freedom is to allow us to finally win this war. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, who has arrived on an unexpected visit to Beijing,has held talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Source: Orban on Twitter (); CNN; Xinhua News Agency; Quote from Orban: "China is a key power in creating the conditions for peace in the Russia-Ukraine war (Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine ed.) This is why I came to meet with President Xi in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest." Details: The Xinhua News Agency only reported on the fact that Orban had met with the Chinese leader. Russian media stated that during the meeting, Orban had expressed Hungary's high appreciation for China's "peaceful" initiative regarding Ukraine. "In the context of a conflict (Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine ed.) that is taking place next to Hungary, we also highly value your (China's) peace initiative," Orban said. CNN notes that Orban's visit to Beijing and his stops in Russia and Ukraine last week took place just a week after Hungary assumed the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union a position viewed with scepticism by many leaders of the bloc, where Orban is considered an "illiberal outlier." This also comes amid ongoing concerns and deep disagreements about how and when the war in Ukraine will be resolved, nearly two and a half years after the Russian invasion. Background: On Sunday, after his trip to see Putin, Orban promised more "surprise meetings". Russian ruler Vladimir Putin hosted Orban in the Kremlin on 5 July to conduct negotiations and discuss Ukraine, among other things. He started the meeting by mentioning an ultimatum for Kyiv. The Hungarian PM said that after his visits to Moscow and Kyiv, he realised that the positions of both sides regarding the war of aggression unleashed by Russia "are very far apart". Support UP or become our patron! Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary effectively endorsed Donald Trump for president in an interview and, on the eve of this weeks NATO summit, blasted the United States for having a war policy in Ukraine rather than a strategy for achieving peace. Orban contrasted U.S. policy unfavorably with what he described as a credible peace plan from China. The Hungarian leader met recently with Vladimir Putin and defended his outreach to the Russian autocrat as a practical necessity during the war. Orban's comments came in an interview Sunday with Axel Springer media outlets. POLITICO is owned by Axel Springer. In the interview, Orban commented extensively on Trump and U.S. politics, predicting there was a very, very high chance that President Joe Biden would not be reelected and describing that as a positive outcome. Im sure that a change would be good for the world, Orban said, cautioning that he did not want to intrude too much into the American election despite doing just that. Orban, who is widely distrusted by fellow European leaders for his pro-Russian views and autocratic tendencies, praised Trump in generous terms as a self-made man who has a different approach to everything. I believe that will be good for the world politics, Orban said, adding of Trump: He is the man of peace. Under his four-year term he did not initiate a single war, and he did a lot in order to create peace in old conflicts in very complicated areas of the world. He further criticized the Biden administrations stance toward the Russia-Ukraine war, calling for Europe to stop copying American foreign policy while predicting an increasingly bloody conflict in the coming months. In recent months, Trump was presented with a plan that would aim to bring the war to an end. Ukraine would be pushed to negotiate peace or risk losing U.S. support, according to the plan. Russia would also be incentivized to seek an end to the war, as Washington threatens to boost military assistance to Kyiv. Asked what he thinks about the potential Trump plan, Orban said, I think new leadership will provide new chances. His comments come less than a week after his talks with Putin, as well as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Hungarian leader said that peace is possible in the conflict when all the major players the United States, China, Europe and the countries at war decide to come to the negotiating table. Its largely Washingtons fault that such talks havent happened, said Orban, who recently assumed the European Union presidency, a six-month post that will allow Orban to bring attention to Budapests foreign policy priorities.. China has a peace plan. America runs a war policy, he said. And Europe, instead of having our autonomous strategic approach and position, we are simply copying the American position. Orban came under fire from European politicians for his meeting with Putin in Moscow last week. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen accused the Hungarian leader of appeasing Putin, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said theres no signs that Putin wants to engage in a peace deal, and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas said Orban in no way represents the EU or the EUs positions. But Orban defended his meetings, saying that someone has to step up to engage diplomatically with all sides to end the war while admitting that Russia started it. The job for me now is not to say who is good, who is bad. The situation is obvious, he said, explicitly stating that Russia invaded Ukraine. But I would not like to be indulged [in] a kind of measurement, who is responsible for what, and so on. My duty is to concentrate on how we can create peace. If theres no progress on peace soon, Orban said, many more soldiers on both sides will die, he added. In the months leading up to the U.S. presidential election in November, the front line will be far worse than it was up to now, he said, explaining that both Putin and Zelenskyy are confident they can win the war and are digging in. Believe me that the forthcoming two, three months will be far more brutal than we think. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has written a letter to European Council President Charles Michel and EU leaders after his visit to Russia containing a "summary" of his talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, in which he simply regurgitated Russian propaganda about "peace for Ukraine". Source: Orban's letter, dated 5 July, obtained by European Pravda Details: The Hungarian prime minister insists in the letter that he "did not put forward any proposals or express any opinion on behalf of the European Council or the European Union" during the visit, and that any statements to the contrary are "groundless". Speaking about his conversation with Putin, Orban said that the Russian leader's attitude to the frontline situation "differs significantly from President Zelenskyy's understanding". "Putin did not mention Russian losses in any way. With regard to Ukrainian losses, the Russian side estimates the monthly losses of Ukrainian forces at 40,000-50,000 soldiers, which have increased even more in recent weeks. So he [Putin] was surprised that the Ukrainian president rejected the proposal for a temporary ceasefire," he said. The letter says, however, that Putin is prepared to consider a possible ceasefire that "will not serve as a covert redeployment and reorganisation of Ukrainian forces". The Hungarian prime minister added that Russia according to Putin is only prepared to agree to the conditions set during the talks in Istanbul in April 2022, "especially the fifth paragraph of the document, which defines the international security guarantees that should be provided to Ukraine". This refers to the veto for the so-called security guarantors for Ukraine in case of the use of force against it, and Russia wanted to see itself among these guarantors. The letter goes on to say that Moscow is prepared to "exchange views" on the so-called peace proposal put forward by China and Brazil. This "proposal" envisages "peace talks" between Ukraine and Russia and makes no mention of the need to restore Ukraine's territorial integrity and sovereignty. Orban dedicated the rest of the letter to repeating his arguments that "Europe needs peace" for economic prosperity, and that the chances of peace are decreasing "because diplomatic channels are blocked and there is no direct dialogue between the parties". "Time is a crucial factor in light of the intensification of hostilities and the rapid increase in casualties. Unless we stop this process, we will see more dramatic losses and military developments on the front line in the next two months than ever before," he said. Finally, Orban believes that the United States will be unable to display "political leadership" on this issue in the next few months due to the upcoming presidential elections, so it is necessary to consider launching a "European initiative" in the spirit of "strategic autonomy". Earlier, after his trip to Moscow, Viktor Orban said he had kept these plans hidden from his Western allies until recently and promised more "surprise meetings" in the near future. Meanwhile, the ambassadors of EU member states intend to raise the issue of Orban's visits to Ukraine with his self-proclaimed "peace mission" at the next meeting of the EU Committee of Permanent Representatives. Support UP or become our patron! Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's new alliance of far-right parties, the Patriots for Europe, was formally founded as a political group in the European Parliament on Monday. Patriots for Europe will "fight for the future and sovereignty of the European people," Orban's spokesman, Zoltan Kovacs, said on X to announce the new group's establishment. It is set to be the parliament's third-biggest group. National political parties usually band together into different pan-European groups in the parliament and often vote as single blocs. The Patriots for Europe fulfilled the requirements to set up their new group after political parties from more than seven EU countries announced their intention to join - a key threshold under the parliament's rules. The Patriots for Europe reported that the group will have 84 members in the European Parliament for the time being. It needed a minimum of 23 lawmakers under parliament's rules. As well as Orban's Fidez party, the far-right League party, which is part of the Italian government, France's National Rally (RN), and the Freedom Party from Austria are also part of the group. The group held its founding meeting in Brussels on Monday. Jordan Bardella, from the RN, and a key campaigner in the country's recent parliamentary elections, is to be the new group's president. The RN achieved the biggest result in France in the June 9 European Parliament elections, but in the snap elections to the French parliament, however, the right-wing nationalists unexpectedly only came third on Sunday. The group must now inform European Parliament President Roberta Metsola of its formation. It is then expected to be officially confirmed at a parliamentary sitting next week in Strasbourg, France. Many of the parties in the Patriots for Europe were previously with the far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) group, dominated by Bardella's RN. The addition of the RN allows the Patriots for Europe group to become the third-strongest parliamentary group, behind the centre-right European People's Party (EPP), and the centre-left Social Democrats (SD), overtaking the other right-wing group, the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR). The shifting right-wing alliances add an element of uncertainty before the EU legislature's first sitting next week to elect Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as president of the European Commission. Von der Leyen is currently trying to build a coalition of votes to secure a majority and has courted ECR support. The new group's manifesto has the usual far-right focus on retaining national sovereignty vis-a-vis the European Union, fighting illegal migration and pushing back EU measures to reduce climate change. The Dutch Party for Freedom (PVV), Belgium's Vlaams Belang, the Czech ANO party, and the Danish People's Party are also part of the Patriots for Europe. The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is not part of the group. AfD was kicked out of the ID group during the recent European Parliament elections. Editor's note: The article was updated with details of Orban and Xi's meeting, and the headline was changed. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban arrived in China on July 8, days after his visits to Kyiv and Moscow. Orban, whose country took over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU earlier in the month, called the visit to Beijing a third step in his "peace mission." "China is a key power in creating the conditions for peace in the Russia-Ukraine War. This is why I came to meet with President Xi (Jinping) in Beijing, just two months after his official visit to Budapest," Orban said on X. China has positioned itself as neutral in the ongoing war but has deepened economic ties with Russia and become Moscow's leading source of dual-use goods. Beijing has also pitched a peace plan together with Brazil as an alternative to Ukraine's peace efforts, hoping to secure international backing for its proposal. Orban met Xi later during the day, sharing a joint photo on social media. The two leaders exchanged "in-depth views" on the Russia-Ukraine war, the Chinese state news agency Xinhua reported. Hungary's head of government briefed Xi on the former's visits to Kyiv and Moscow, while the Chinese president appreciated Orban's "peace efforts" and stressed the need for an early ceasefire, the Chinese media wrote. "China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way and encouraging and supporting all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis," Xi said, adding that China's and Hungary's direction of efforts are the same. Both Kyiv and Moscow rejected an early ceasefire, saying it would only benefit the opposing side as a chance to regroup its forces. The Hungarian prime minister's visit to Moscow and talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on July 5 sparked anger across the EU. European officials stressed that the presidency has no mandate to conduct any "peace missions" on the EU's behalf and that Orban's undertaking is a bilateral effort on Hungary's part. Budapest has maintained close relations with Moscow throughout the full-scale war, obstructed sanctions against Russia, and criticized military aid to Kyiv, alleging that it merely "prolongs" and "escalates" the war. Upon talking with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Orban said that the stances of the two countries on peace prospects are "very far apart." Read also: Orbans Kyiv, Moscow trips test boundaries of EU presidency, expert says Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Rassemblement National reacts after second round results of the 2024 snap legislative elections Rassemblement National reacts after second round results of the 2024 snap legislative elections BUDAPEST/BRUSSELS (Reuters) -France's National Rally (RN) will lead the European Parliament's third-largest alliance, Patriots for Europe, forged by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, the group announced on Monday. Marine Le Pen's far-right RN joined the alliance in the European Parliament earlier on Monday, a day after it suffered a blow to its ambitions by finishing in third place in elections to the French National Assembly. Austria's far-right Freedom Party, Fidesz and the populist Czech ANO party led by Andrej Babis had already agreed to join forces, citing the fight against illegal immigration, as well as transferring more powers from Brussels back to member states as the new alliance's goals. With the addition of RN's 30 members, the Patriots will pose a challenge to the centre-right European People's Party (EPP), which supports Ursula von der Leyen for a second term as European Commission President. "As patriotic forces, we are going to work together in order to retake our institutions and reorient policies to serve our nations and peoples," Jordan Bardella, prominent RN member and the group's new president, said in a statement. In total, the Patriots have 84 members including 11 from Hungary's Fidesz and 8 from Italy's League. Kinga Gal of Fidesz and Roberto Vannacci of the League will be vice presidents. To form a new political grouping, 23 MEPs are needed who represent at least a quarter of EU member states. "After a lot of work, the large Patriots group is born together with the League in Brussels, which will be decisive in changing the future of this Europe," League leader Matteo Salvini wrote on X. Third behind the centre-right EPP and centre-left Socialists and Democrats, the Patriots have leapfrogged the rival far-right ECR group, led by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is allied with the League in domestic politics. Meloni was dealt a blow to her own alliance efforts after Spain's far-right party Vox left her bloc last week and joined the Patriots. Among other far-right groups, Germany's Alternative for Germany will not join the Patriots but has yet to land in a bloc. The RN's strong showing in the European election in France helped push the liberal Renew bloc that included President Emmanuel Macron's centrists from third place down to fifth in the new European parliament. The groupings may still change before the newly elected parliament sits in its first plenary session next week. Orban's party is pushing to strengthen its presence at the European level after Hungary's opposition party, Tisza, joined the EPP last month. (Reporting by Boldizsar Gyori, Crispian Balmer and Elizabeth Pineau, writing by Julia Payne in Brussels; Editing by Keith Weir and Peter Graff) Gov. Tina Kotek ordered an external audit of the Department of Human Services' oversight of long-term care facilities following the preventable death of a woman with dementia. (Michael Romanos/Oregon Capital Chronicle) The Oregon Department of Human Services is facing another examination of its policies and practices this time following the death of an elderly woman with dementia who wandered away from a long-term care facility and died outside alone on a winter day. Ki Soon Hyuns body was found in the woods on Christmas day. An investigation by Oregons long-term care ombudsman faulted the agency in her death and recommended in April an audit of DHS. Two months later, an official with Gov. Tina Koteks office said the governor had ordered an external audit of DHS oversight practices. DHS oversees 2,070 nursing homes, long-term care facilities and adult care homes, which care for thousands of vulnerable Oregonians. It is supposed to ensure their safety by licensing facilities, tracking complaints and issuing sanctions up to closing facilities. But DHS and the facility that was supposed to keep her safe failed Hyun, officials said. She moved into Mount Hood Senior Living two days before her death. Mt. Hood Senior Living failed on multiple fronts to properly care for Ki Soon Hyun and the rest of the residents in the facility, said Walter Dawson, chair of the Governors Commission on Senior Services, in an April letter to the governors office. He added that DHS ignored red flags pointing to problems at the agency and the threat that people at Mount Hood faced by allowing an owner with no background or knowledge of long-term care to open a state-licensed memory care facility. Two months later, Koteks adviser on seniors, Rachel Currans-Henry, informed Dawson in a letter that the office had ordered the audit to protect residents. DHS is also under pressure to improve its foster care system to keep vulnerable children safe. In May, the agency settled a long-running lawsuit over the mistreatment of foster children. It agreed to improve the system by working with an outside expert to improve its oversight. The agency agreed late last month to work with Kevin Ryan, who has helped Texas, Michigan and Oklahoma to improve their foster care systems. DHS expects to work with Ryan for a decade or more. The external audit of its oversight of long-term care facilities is likely to be finished well before then, though the review is not yet started. Plans to bring in a consultant are in the very early stages, and no details have been determined on the selection process for a contractor at this time, DHS spokeswoman Elisa Williams told the Capital Chronicle. She said the agency is looking forward to the process and is committed to improving its systems. She declined to comment on any policy changes that would improve DHS oversight of long-term care facilities, citing pending litigation. Hyuns family has filed a $17 million wrongful death suit against Mount Hood Senior Living and the Department of Human Services. The family welcomed the audit. Our family applauds Governor Kotek for ordering an audit of the Oregon Department of Human Services, the family said in a statement to the Capital Chronicle. It is a travesty that the tragic death of our mother had to be the impetus for DHS to try to get their act together. We fully support the development of policy remedies that hopefully can keep our painful loss from happening to any other families in Oregon. All elderly Oregonians deserve care overseen by competent and fully trained providers in safe and secure facilities. Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale, is one of nine Republican state senators who criticized Oregon's flagship climate program in a recent letter. (Ben Botkin/Oregon Capital Chronicle) Oregon Senate Republicans are questioning whether the states environmental agency has authority to re-create and implement a program that would drastically reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuel companies, a task those lawmakers said should be taken up by the Legislature instead. In a letter addressed to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality on June 19, nine Senate Republicans outlined their concerns about rising electricity rates and a potential connection to the states Climate Protection Program. They also questioned whether DEQ has the authority to create and implement the program after the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled the agencys first attempt invalid. We believe its an error for DEQ to fire up this program, state Sen. Lynn Findley, R-Vale, said. I would hope that they would want to sit down, have some conversation between the legislative branch and the administrative branch, and talk about paths forward. In their letter, the Senate Republicans shared deep concern about the program and claimed that its previous implementation has contributed to Oregonians rising electricity costs. Six of those lawmakers are in their final terms, barred from seeking reelection after they walked out during last years legislative session. Anyone that thinks that all these increased costs and programmed operations will be borne by the utility or borne by the industry is living in an alternative world, because they will pass all of those costs on to consumers, said Findley, who is among the Republicans not allowed to run for reelection. Any increased cost [to] utilities, or any company that has to comply with the Climate Protection Program, will be passed on 100% to the consumers. Findley said the program is partially to blame for the current surge in electricity rates a claim that environmental regulators dispute. So far this program hasnt cost the utilities anything, said Lauren Wirtis, DEQs communications and outreach manager. Energy and gas rates have steadily increased over the past five years, mostly due to the increase in the price of natural gas, the cost of the transition to renewable energy and companies demand for profits. If the Climate Protection Program had been implemented as intended earlier, fossil fuel companies would have been allowed to purchase carbon credits, each worth one ton of emissions. The funds collected would have gone toward programs benefiting communities most impacted by climate change. We didnt get a chance to implement that program before, so nobody paid into that either, Wirtis said. In his criticism of the Climate Protection Program, Findley also said DEQ created the program in a vacuum and did not have adequate public participation, and he argued that it should have been drafted by lawmakers, not bureaucrats. The program was created under an executive order by former Gov. Kate Brown. Brown directed state agencies to develop rules that would limit and reduce fossil fuel emissions. The executive order came after state legislators failed to pass a cap-and-trade program that would reduce the states overall greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to human-caused climate change. The correct solution would be to have the Legislature do it and, and DEQ to write rules on how to implement it, Findley said. Senate Republicans walked out two years in a row to prevent a quorum that would have allowed majority Democrats from voting on several bills, including a cap-and-trade bill. Senate Democrats are confident that the Department of Environmental Quality is responsibly putting programs in place to limit toxic pollution and modernize Oregons energy production, Senate Majority Leader Kate Lieber, D-Beaverton & Southwest Portland, said in an email to OPB. The clean energy transition is happening because it is a safer, more sustainable investment for our economy and our communities, she said. We can either lead the way or get left behind. Rebooting Oregons flagship climate response Currently, the Climate Protection Program is undergoin a second rule-making process. The program aimed to reduce fossil fuel emissions from oil and gas companies by 90% by 2050. It was first implemented in 2022, and at the time was one of the strongest climate protection programs in the nation. But fossil fuel companies sued in March 2022, arguing DEQ exceeded its authority when it created the programs rules. A court ruled late last year that the states first attempt was invalid, saying DEQ failed to comply with disclosure of the federal Clean Air Act. DEQs Wirtis said the agency is confident that it has the full authority to re-create and implement the program and appreciates the feedback it continues to receive. The Legislature gave authority and direction to the agency to reduce air contaminants, which includes greenhouse gas emissions, she said. During the first rulemaking process, Wirtis said, the public process lasted over 18 months and DEQ received more than 7,000 comments. In the second round, Wirtis said, DEQ is committed to learning what worked and what didnt work. The previous implementation of the program also accrued no costs from regulated fossil fuel companies, she said. Wirtis said the agency is preparing to release a draft of the new Climate Protection Program rules soon, which will be open for public comment. DEQs Environmental Quality Commission will vote on the new rules by the end of the year. If passed, the new programs implementation would begin in 2025. This story was originally published by Oregon Public Broadcasting, a Capital Chronicle news partner. An injured hospital worker watches as rescue efforts begin. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa At least 31 people were killed and a 125 more injured in waves of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, the Interior Ministry said on Monday, a day before NATO leaders gather in Washington to discuss their support for the government in Kiev. While the missiles struck sites across Ukraine, it was an attack on a large children's hospital in Kiev left Ukrainians especially stunned. The city's mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said at least two people died at the hospital and several more were wounded. No additional details about the victims were released. Earlier he had said that 16 people were injured, including seven children. President Volodymyr Zelensky posted a video on social media showing portions of the building reduced to rubble and blood on the floor of wrecked hospital rooms. Hundreds of people gather at the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital to search through the debris. "Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general," Zelensky wrote. Health Minister Viktor Liashko said dialysis and cancer treatment departments, as well as operating theatres and the intensive care unit, were damaged. "Little cancer and dialysis patients sit on the pavement with their mothers," German ambassador Martin Jager said on X after visiting the hospital. Later Ukrainian reports said a second hospital in the capital on the other side of the Dnipro River was also damaged. Kiev was among the cities worst impacted by the strikes, with 20 dead and at least 61 injured, the city administration said in its latest count. Residents in Kiev's centre heard two dozen explosions, presumably the result of anti-aircraft missiles. Mayor Klitschko said debris fell in several of the city's neighbourhoods. The Ukrainian Air Force said the Russian military fired 38 missiles of various types at targets in Ukrainian cities. Ukraine's air defences were able to intercept 30 of them. Private electricity supplier DTEK reported damage to three transformer stations in the capital. Kryvyi Rih and Dnipro in southern Ukraine were also badly hit with at least 11 people killed and 59 injured. Other targets included the front-line cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. No information was provided about hits on military targets or defence factories. The Russian military used more than 40 missiles in the attack, Zelensky said. It was unusual that the heavy attack took place during the day at the beginning of the working week. The embattled nation already saw airstrikes by drones, cruise missiles and missiles during the night. Ukraine has been trying to repel a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022 and depends largely on Western support. Kiev repeatedly urges its allies to provide even more modern air defence systems. Moscow confirms attacks, says defence factories targeted The Russian Ministry of Defence confirmed missile attacks that allegedly targeted Ukrainian defence factories and military airfields. The ministry said, without evidence, that the damage in Kiev was caused by an errant Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile. The Moscow military dismissed the Ukrainians' shock at the attack as "hysteria on the part of the Kiev regime" and said this is often the case before NATO holds meetings. Zelensky: Russian attack on children's hospital was deliberate Zelensky rejected Russia's claims that there had been an air defence error. "What cynicism the bastards in the Kremlin have shown, that it was allegedly Ukrainian air defence and not a targeted missile strike," Zelensky told a press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. Zelensky thanked all those who have posted videos online "on which it can be seen concretely that it is not just a part of one or another missile, but a direct missile strike that killed and injured many people." Ukraine hopes for more NATO help Ukraine has received four of the particularly powerful US-made Patriot systems, but says it needs many more. Kiev is hoping for further commitments at the NATO summit in Washington that opens on Tuesday, including on up to six Patriot systems from Israel. Zelensky has stressed the need for at least seven reliable anti-aircraft systems to protect major cities such as Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhya and Odessa, which are frequently targeted by missile attacks. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the alliance is set to provide Ukraine with military aid worth 40 billion ($43 billion) in 2025 in a press conference ahead of the summit. Lithuania criticizes attacks, vows to support Kiev "Putin sends his greetings to the NATO summit with the bombing of a children's hospital, as if any clarification were needed as to why Ukraine must now receive all possible support and real guarantees for its future security," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said on X. Parliamentary Speaker Viktorija Cmilyte-Nielsen spoke of "another shocking testimony of war crimes against Ukraine." Russia is firing missiles at children's hospitals and creating a Russian world - "Russki Mir" - in which it is normal for mothers to search for their children under the rubble, she wrote on Facebook. "There is no excuse for not giving Ukraine the help it needs." Berlin strongly condemns Russian attacks The German government strongly condemned the Russian attacks, including on the Kiev children's hospital. Berlin is calling on Russian President Vladimir Putin "to put an immediate end to this war of aggression against so many innocent people," a Foreign Office spokeswoman said. Civilians and children in Ukraine in particular are suffering greatly, she said, subject to "a brutal war of aggression that indiscriminately claims victims through Russian bombs and attacks that cannot be justified by anything" for more than two years. Crews work to rescue those trapped under the rubble, the number is unknown. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Crews work to rescue those trapped under the rubble, the number is unknown. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Medical aid provides to a child after Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- As global climate change intensifies, extreme weather events have grown increasingly frequent and severe worldwide. In June and early July of this year, various extreme weather phenomena were observed across the globe, impacting natural ecosystems and over half of the world's population. HEATWAVES Multiple regions experienced unprecedented heatwaves in June and early July. The southwestern United States, Mexico, southern Europe, most of South Asia and northern Africa were engulfed by sustained heat, with some areas recording temperatures exceeding 45 degrees Celsius. Concerns about wildfires, drought and disruptions to power and water supplies, which could lead to significant economic losses and environmental damage, are prevalent. Climate Central, an independent nonprofit organization focusing on weather research, said that between June 16 and 24, 4.97 billion people -- over 60 percent of the world's population -- experienced extreme heat. This extreme heat not only disrupted daily life but also led to a surge in heat-related illnesses such as thermoplegia, heat cramps and heat exhaustion, severely affecting public health, particularly the elderly and those with chronic diseases, and underscoring the personal impact of extreme weather. Authorities in some countries urged residents, especially elderly people and children, to use air conditioners appropriately, stay hydrated even when not thirsty, and avoid unnecessary outings and exercise. In Sudan, the production of maize has more than halved due to the sweltering heat, with temperatures surpassing 50 degrees Celsius. Normally, one feddan of maize (about 0.4 hectares) in northern Sudan produces about 15 100-kilogram sacks; this year, the number dropped to merely six sacks. HEAVY RAINFALL AND FLOODING Concurrently, heavy rainfall and floods ravaged several areas globally. In India, the ongoing floods in the northeastern state of Assam have affected over 2.1 million people and killed at least 52, officials said last Friday. The situation continues to be grim in 29 districts of the state. According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority, 3,208 villages have been inundated, and over 57,018 hectares of crop area have been damaged across the affected districts. Additionally, floods hit Bangladesh, Nepal and Myanmar, forcing thousands of people to evacuate. Devastating floods have left large swaths of land in Bangladesh's northeastern Sylhet division underwater, marking the third wave of flooding in less than a month in the region. More than 1 million people in northeastern Bangladesh districts, including Sylhet and nearby Sunamganj and Moulvibazar, were stranded due to extensive flooding after days of heavy rains. Millions of people in Bangladesh, crisscrossed by hundreds of rivers, suffer from flooding. The low-lying country experiences seasonal floods every year during the June-September monsoon, when rivers that feed into the Bay of Bengal burst their banks. Last month, flash floods displaced more than 2 million people during two rounds of flooding in the region, affecting hundreds of areas and causing untold suffering to the dwellers. Sheikh Russel Hasan, deputy commissioner and district magistrate in Sylhet, told Xinhua that prolonged torrential rains and runoff from upstream hilly regions on the Indian border caused the main rivers in the region to swell beyond danger levels. HURRICANES AND STORMS Hurricane Beryl, a long-lived tropical cyclone active in the Gulf of Mexico, significantly impacted Jamaica, Mexico and other countries in late June and early July. The hurricane brought heavy rainfall accompanied by strong winds, which led to flash floods, storm surges and other secondary disasters. Over 1 million people in the Caribbean have been affected by Hurricane Beryl, UN humanitarian agency said Friday. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the hurricane has affected some 40,000 people in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, more than 110,000 people in Grenada, and 920,000 people in Jamaica. As a category 4 hurricane that has claimed at least 11 lives so far, Beryl left a trail of destruction in Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines last Monday, then impacting Jamaica on Wednesday. The hurricane is currently approaching the Texas Gulf Coast. The International Organization for Migration reported that the hurricane caused extreme damage to the islands of Carriacou and Petit Martinique in Grenada, where 70 percent and 97 percent of buildings were damaged, respectively. In Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, 90 percent of homes on Union Island were affected, while nearly all buildings were damaged on the island of Canouan. Tropical Storm Alberto already soaked the Gulf of Mexico in June. RESPONSE MEASURES Governments and the international community must take more proactive measures to address global extreme weather. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned last Monday that climate change's damaging effects are a major driver and multiplier of suffering, displacement and competition for scarce resources. "We recently received confirmation that the last 12 months have been the hottest on record -- a sign that we are hurtling in the wrong direction," Guterres said. On June 5, the UN chief warned of "a climate hell" in a video address marking World Environment Day. "It's climate crunch time," he said, emphasizing that "the need for action is unprecedented, but so is the opportunity -- not just to deliver on climate, but on economic prosperity and sustainable development." "We are way off track to meet the goals set in the Paris Agreement," said Deputy Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) Ko Barrett. "We must urgently do more to cut greenhouse gas emissions, or we will face increasingly high economic costs, millions of lives affected by extreme weather, and extensive damage to the environment and biodiversity," she said. On a global scale, the COP28 UN Climate Change Conference in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, last year concluded with an agreement to ratchet up climate action before 2030, with the overarching aim of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius within reach. "Whilst we didn't turn the page on the fossil fuel era in Dubai, this outcome is the beginning of the end," said Simon Stiell, executive secretary of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change, in his closing speech. "Now all governments and businesses need to turn these pledges into real-economy outcomes, without delay." Crews work to rescue those trapped under the rubble, the number is unknown. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Almost 40 people were killed and more than 140 injured in waves of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, the Interior Ministry said on Monday, a day before NATO leaders gather in Washington to discuss their support for the government in Kiev. While the missiles struck sites across Ukraine, it was an attack on a large children's hospital in Kiev in particular that left Ukrainians and people around the world stunned. The UN Security Council will hold an emergency meeting to discuss the Russian attack on Tuesday at the request of permanent member France and non-permanent member Ecuador. Kiev's mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said at least two people died at the hospital and 17 more were wounded, including seven children. No additional details about the victims were released. President Volodymyr Zelensky posted a video on social media showing portions of the building reduced to rubble and blood on the floor of wrecked hospital rooms. Hundreds of people gather at the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital to search through the debris. "Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. Against people, against children, against humanity in general," Zelensky wrote. Health Minister Viktor Liashko said dialysis and cancer treatment departments, as well as operating theatres and the intensive care unit, were damaged. "Little cancer and dialysis patients sit on the pavement with their mothers," German ambassador Martin Jager said on X after visiting the hospital. Later Ukrainian reports said a second hospital in the capital on the other side of the Dnipro River was also damaged. Kiev was among the cities worst impacted by the strikes, with 27 dead and at least 82 injured, the city administration said in its latest count. Residents in Kiev's centre heard two dozen explosions, presumably the result of anti-aircraft missiles. Mayor Klitschko said debris fell in several of the city's neighbourhoods. The Ukrainian Air Force said the Russian military fired 38 missiles of various types at targets in Ukrainian cities. Ukraine's air defences were able to intercept 30 of them. Private electricity supplier DTEK reported damage to three transformer stations in the capital. Kryvyi Rih and Dnipro in southern Ukraine were also badly hit with at least 11 people killed and 59 injured. Other targets included the front-line cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. No information was provided about hits on military targets or defence factories. It was unusual that the heavy attack took place during the day at the beginning of the working week. The embattled nation already saw airstrikes by drones, cruise missiles and missiles during the night. Ukraine has been trying to repel a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022 and depends largely on Western support. Kiev repeatedly urges its allies to provide even more modern air defence systems. Moscow confirms attacks, says defence factories targeted The Russian Ministry of Defence confirmed missile attacks that allegedly targeted Ukrainian defence factories and military airfields. The ministry said, without evidence, that the damage in Kiev was caused by an errant Ukrainian anti-aircraft missile. The Moscow military dismissed the Ukrainians' shock at the attack as "hysteria on the part of the Kiev regime" and said this is often the case before NATO holds meetings. Zelensky: Russian attack on children's hospital was deliberate Zelensky rejected Russia's claims that there had been an air defence error. "What cynicism the bastards in the Kremlin have shown, that it was allegedly Ukrainian air defence and not a targeted missile strike," Zelensky told a press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. Zelensky thanked all those who have posted videos online "on which it can be seen concretely that it is not just a part of one or another missile, but a direct missile strike that killed and injured many people." Ukraine hopes for more NATO help Ukraine has received four of the particularly powerful US-made Patriot systems, but says it needs many more. Kiev is hoping for further commitments at the NATO summit in Washington that opens on Tuesday, including on up to six Patriot systems from Israel. Zelensky has stressed the need for at least seven reliable anti-aircraft systems to protect major cities such as Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhya and Odessa, which are frequently targeted by missile attacks. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced the alliance is set to provide Ukraine with military aid worth 40 billion ($43 billion) in 2025 in a press conference ahead of the summit. Medical aid provides to a child after Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed the Okhmatdyt Children's Clinic Hospital. Aleksandr Gusev/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa An injured hospital worker watches as rescue efforts begin. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa CLEVELAND, Ohio (WJW) Flags in Ohio are flying at half-staff in honor of the life and service of fallen Cleveland Police Officer Jamieson Ritter. Governor Mike DeWine ordered flags at all public buildings and grounds throughout Cuyahoga County and at the Ohio Statehouse, Vern Riffe Center, and Rhodes State Office Tower in Columbus to be lowered until sunset on the day of Ritters funeral. Let them know: Chiefs message after officer death The order was issued July 4, the day Ritter was shot and killed. Ritter, who was just 27 years old, had been with the Cleveland Division of Police for four years. He was part of a team that responded to the area of Wade Park for a report of a wanted man. The suspect attempted to get away on a bike and pulled out a gun and began firing, police said. The suspect Delawnte Hardy, 24, was taken into custody and is charged with aggravated murder. This tragedy is a painful reminder of the sacrifices our law enforcement and military members make in support of freedom and public safety, said DeWine. Fran and I offer our deepest condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of Cleveland Police Officer Jamieson Ritter, who not only dedicated his life to protecting the citizens of Cleveland but also served his state and nation as a member of the Ohio National Guard. Remembering local officers killed in line of duty On Monday, a memorial service and procession was held in downtown Cleveland. A funeral for Ritter is being held in New York state, where he grew up. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Youssef Mikdad, a former Palestinian prisoner recently released by Israel, meets with people, in Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza Strip By Ramadan Abed DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza (Reuters) - During more than two decades in an Israeli prison, Palestinian Youssef Mikdad dreamed about one day returning to a prosperous Gaza Strip where he could make up for lost time with his children. But when Mikdad finally tasted freedom and set foot in Gaza last week, he found his house destroyed and his homeland reduced to rubble, dust and twisted metal by Israeli bombardments. Walking through neighbourhoods laid waste by air and artillery strikes, he came to Gaza's Mediterranean shoreline, where Palestinians displaced many times over by the Israeli offensive were living in tents on the beach. Like every Gazan parent, he has to find a way to feed his family in a territory suffering shortages of food, fuel, power and medicine. Schools which would have provided an education to his grandchildren have been destroyed and few hospitals are functioning. Mikdad's daughter Haya - his favourite child, he says - was just four years old when he was imprisoned. She perished in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City in March, one of more than 38,000 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the start of the war. "I have five children, three sons and two daughters, this girl was the youngest and the best," he said. He received the devastating news during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan - which he observed behind bars for years - that Haya had been killed along with her husband and four children. "I didn't see her as a bride when she was married, but I longed to see her with her children. Every time I see a woman with young children, I think to myself this must be her," he said. Mikdad, 63, was seized by Israeli forces from his house in a Gaza City suburb during a raid in 2002. He was sentenced after he was convicted of being a member of Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed wing of the Fatah Palestinian faction. He served time in several Israeli prisons. He recalls how at one point Palestinian prisoners were allowed to run their own affairs in jail, as each side learned to respect the other. But the atmosphere changed radically after fighters led by the Palestinian group Hamas attacked communities in southern Israel on Oct. 7 last year, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages back to Hamas-run Gaza. "Even animals have rights, but we humans for them didn't (have any rights). We have seen all forms of torture, even hunger," said Mikdad. "There was no food, water, papers or any ways of communication, there was nothing. Prisoners were humiliated and crushed for 24 hours (a day)." The Israeli military did not immediately respond to a request for comment about prison conditions. Widespread reports of mistreatment of detainees in Israeli prisons have added to international pressure on Israel for its conduct of the Gaza war, now in its tenth month. In May, the U.S. State Department said it was looking into allegations of Israeli abuse of Palestinian detainees. Hamas, like other Palestinian factions, has long called for the release of the roughly 6,000 Palestinians in Israeli jails, an issue that has been part of talks aimed at ending the war. (Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Ros Russell) Woman holds a young child in her arms in the wake of the attack When a missile hit Kyivs Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital on Monday, Olena Magarevska threw herself over her son, Andriy, to protect him. The boy, who is nine and disabled because of a neurological condition, was recovering from surgery on the fifth-floor intensive care unit when air raid sirens sounded just before 10am. Hospital staff were unable to evacuate him to the shelter because of his medical needs, so he was moved to a dining area with sturdy walls for safety. Then the Russian KH-101 hypersonic missile smashed through the roof of the building in a rare daytime attack that left one dead and 30 wounded, according to hospital staff. I heard a loud explosion and me and my husband both jumped to cover Andriy with our bodies. The windows were completely destroyed so then we covered him with pillows in case there was another attack or falling debris, Mrs Magarevska told The Telegraph through tears. The lights also went out and it was so dark in the room. Andriy doesnt like the dark, hes scared of it, so I turned the torch on on my phone to try to calm him. Ohmatdyt is Ukraines largest childrens hospital, where more than 20,000 youngsters and teenagers are treated every year for a range of problems, from injury to genetic conditions and cancer. The missile left a giant hole gouged out of the building in central Kyiv, with rescue workers scrambling to evacuate the most sick and infirm, passing bricks by hand to clear the way. Children from the oncology ward, unable to evacuate to the shelter alongside most other patients, were forced to sit outside on pavement attached to IV drips. Pictures distributed by officials from the children's medical facility in Kyiv showed people digging through mounds of rubble - GLEB GARANICH/REUTERS About 30 people were wounded and one died in the attack Daytime missile strikes have become rare since the war began, and direct hits have largely been kept away from Kyiv in recent months. Russia has targeted civilian infrastructure throughout the war and some observers pointed out the attack on the hospital had echoes of Vladimir Putins playbook in Syria. The surprise attack came as Viktor Orban, Hungarys prime minister, met Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, to discuss a potential peace deal to end the war. Mr Orban has also visited Volodymyr Zelensky and Putin in recent days. Joe Biden, the US president, said the strikes were a horrific reminder of Russias brutality. It is critical that the world continues to stand with Ukraine at this important moment and that we not ignore Russian aggression, he said. Mr Biden said he would be meeting Mr Zelensky this week at the NATO summit to make clear our support for Ukraine is unshakeable. Together with our allies, we will be announcing new measures to strengthen Ukraines air defences to help protect their cities and civilians from Russian strikes, he said. A young boy is carried into an ambulance - GLEB GARANICH/REUTERS Andriy was left in his bed inside the smouldering hospital for five hours before he was evacuated safely out of the rubble to another Kyiv hospital. While he waited Mrs Magarevska and her husband, Igor Magarevskyi, tried to keep Andriy calm amid the broken glass and ceiling debris. When Andriy was moved first to a stretcher in the lobby, Mrs Magarevskyi held and kissed his hand, stroking his head for comfort amid the chaos of the relief operation. Volodymyr Zovnir, director general of the hospital, said that it had been a routine morning and that staff were gathered for a meeting when the air alarm sounded and they rushed out to move children to the shelters. Children hooked up to IV drips and their parents were seen waiting patiently in a queue of seats We heard one explosion nearby and we moved to a safer area and then the second explosion hit us. I ran to the emergency department and asked the doctors to start helping the wounded immediately, he said. Approximately 30 people were wounded and one died she was taking children to the shelter at the time. Some of the wounded are doctors and nurses, many with shrapnel wounds. Mr Zovnir said that one doctor had been about to carry out heart surgery at the time of the attack, but both he and the eight-year-old patient had survived. A family waits for an evacuation for their child in the hospital - EMRE CAYLAK Volunteers quickly descended on to the scene, bringing medical supplies, water and food for the patients, medical staff and rescue workers. The hospital was plunged into darkness with even the generators damaged, and the corridors flooded because of burst pipes. The air was thick with smoke and rocket fuel. The first children to be evacuated were those with the most urgent needs, those with cancer or who rely on breathing equipment. Some doctors were trapped and had to escape out of the window while four staff members were in the lift at the time of the attack and were briefly stuck. With most of the windows broken, many of the hospital rooms had collapsed ceilings and wires dangling down. Some staff were planning to stay overnight to help the clean-up. Rescuers work at the hospital after the Russian missile strike - EMRE CAYLAK If I could give my own life to save the children, I would, Nina Fiterenko, a hospital cleaner, said. The West has to give us more support, more air defences dont let any more children get hurt. As well as the hospital and its patients, much of the hospitals equipment was badly damaged, meaning any restoration effort will be costly. The hospital is already searching for a new location to continue its work. A baby was reportedly pulled out from under the rubble on Monday evening and taken to another hospital. A woman comforts a young patient near the hospital - GLEB GARANICH According to Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, two people were killed at the hospital, including a young doctor, and 16 people were injured, of which seven were children. Ukraines Ministry of Health announced that Germany is to take some of the children for treatment from Wednesday. Seven districts in Kyiv were damaged in total, with 82 people injured and at least 22 killed, according to Kyivs military administration. Among the damaged areas were a former factory, residential buildings and another medical facility, where at least seven were killed. One metro station was also damaged. Russia cannot help but know where its missiles are flying, and must fully answer for all its crimes: against people, against children, against humanity in general, Mr Zelensky said. Tuesday has been declared as a day of mourning in the capital. 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. Striking Minneapolis park workers will likely return to work as planned Thursday, after the Park Board reversed its lockout stance and agreed to bring workers back even if a contract is not reached by then. Board officials had said striking workers must remain on strike and would not be allowed back to work, but rescinded that threat on Monday afternoon, hours after the workers union filed an unfair labor practices charge. The workers, who comb hypodermic needles out of Minneapolis parks, clean bathrooms, empty trash bins, clear paths of downed tree limbs and monitor pool chemistry per health codes, have been on a seven-day strike since July 4 after months of contract negotiations stalled. They've been picketing at some of the city's most popular locations, including Minnehaha Falls Park and the Lake Harriet Bandshell, where concerts including one scheduled for Monday evening have been canceled. Park Board managers and workers have not gone back to the table since contract negotiations broke down around midnight on July 1. The Laborers International Union of North America Local 363 filed an unfair labor practices charge against the Park Board, after managers threatened in a July 2 email an indefinite lockout of striking workers. "This behavior raises serious questions about the Park Board's integrity and true intentions in contract negotiations," Local 363 business manager AJ Lange, an arborist, had said. In its "last, best and final" offer on July 1, the Park Board proposed a 10.25% wage increase for most full-time laborer positions, which would cost $4.6 million, according to a Park Board statement. In contrast, the union's last proposal would cost approximately $6.7 million over three years. "Park leadership is confident that the plans the MPRB has in place, including adjusting both work priorities and staffing locations, will help the MPRB continue to deliver core services and minimize impacts to the public" during the strike, according to the statement. "The MPRB has been negotiating in good faith for more than seven months." On the picket line Friday, much of the talk concerned the Park Board's request for contract concessions. These include extending the new hire probation period the length of time someone could be fired for any reason without notice from six months to one year, and making annual wage step increases discretionary, allowing management to withhold automatic raises for individuals at will. "No other bargaining unit that we represent in this labor-friendly state puts that in contracts," said Keith Glenn of Local 363, who has been bargaining on behalf of workers. "That means we can say you do a great job but I don't like you, you don't get a raise." Striking workers also said they were disturbed by a July 2 email from the Park Board's human resources department stating, "If a Local 363 employee chooses to not report to work, they must remain out on strike for the duration of the strike," and, "A strike is considered to have ended when an agreement is ratified by Local 363 membership." The email indicates that at the conclusion of the seven-day strike for which the union has given notice, the Park Board intended to lock out the workers who participated in the strike until the union accepts the contract offered. "It's scary," said Anthony Smith, a park worker of 10 years and a union steward. "We decided to do a one-week strike after talking to members because the vast majority of members agreed that the longer it goes on, the more it's going to impact their families. And then on top of all of this uncertainty, it's compounded with fear tactics and threats. We're talking about people losing their vehicles, their homes, their labor, no income coming in for who knows how long." Local 363 is accusing Superintendent Al Bangoura and the Park Board of violating federal labor protections for workers on strike. It is the second unfair labor charge that the union has filed during the course of ongoing contract negotiations. In December, Local 363 accused management of infringing on workers' freedom of speech by imposing work rules prohibiting them from being critical of the Park Board. The Park Board reversed course on Monday afternoon, acknowledging that it cannot legally lock out striking workers without locking out all Local 363 members. The board issued a statement assuring the agency will not prevent striking workers from returning to work at the conclusion of their strike on Thursday because it "is not in MPRB's value set." The Park Board is a semi-autonomous governing body of the city of Minneapolis. Park arborists also take care of all public trees. City Council President Elliott Payne and Members Jason Chavez and Aurin Chowdhury addressed workers' picket line on Friday. "Minnehaha Falls Park, that we're in right now, is a gem in our community and one of the few places in the city of Minneapolis where you can have a waterfall in your backyard, which is pretty incredible," said Chowdhury, whose ward includes Minnehaha Falls Park. "Minneapolis feels the work that you do every single day to make these parks the best in the nation. If we're gonna claim that and say that, we better treat our workers the best we can." On Monday night, the board of park commissioners convened for a special meeting to discuss ongoing contract negotiations. Park Board Finance Director Juli Wiseman reminded commissioners about the agency's reliance on property taxes, and the decline in tax collections due to the plummeting value of the city's commercial real estate and tax court settlements. The Park Board's finance committee is scheduled to discuss how much next year's property tax levy should be at this Wednesday's regularly scheduled meeting, followed by full board approval on July 24. Mayor Jacob Frey, City Council members and elected members of the Board of Estimate and Taxation must then approve the Park Board's levy request. "So you will be making these decisions pretty quickly," Wiseman said. "Now, my history here at the Park Board, 30-plus years of history, is that it is very, very difficult, and we have a very uphill battle to get a property tax levy that is at the magnitude that we are estimating for our last best and final or the union's proposal." Park Commissioner Becky Alper, who had called for Monday's meeting along with Commissioners Billy Menz and Tom Olsen, suggested the Park Board look for cuts in order to pay workers more, such as leaving the July 4 fireworks show for another government body to finance and pausing capital improvement projects. Menz urged the Park Board to continue to negotiate on contract language beyond wages, and questioned the purpose of provisions to reduce the number of union stewards and make automatic wage increases the discretion of managers. "I sense a culture in the organization where there are punitive actions that are concerned, and I think that this type of language continues and maybe even exasperates that culture," he said. Striking workers say they want the Park Board to return to the bargaining table. Bangoura asked union leadership to call a vote on the Park Board's last contract offer. "We had put forward our best, last and final proposal to the union and we haven't had a response back from that," he said. Park workers sitting in the audience protested loudly, with several shouting the last proposal was the reason they're on strike. A doctor who is an expert on Parkinsons disease reportedly visited the White House on a fairly regular basis in the past year, including at least once for a meeting with President Joe Bidens personal physician. Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist who recently published a paper on Parkinsons, made eight White House visits in an eight-month period from last summer through this past March, according to visitor logs obtained by The New York Times. Its unknown if Cannard, who works at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, has made any more recent visits because they would only be disclosed later this year under the White Houses voluntary program to release visitor logs. The records do not show if the doctor met with Biden himself or if the visits included any discussions about the presidents health. Cannard, who is described as a movement disorders specialist, met on Jan. 17 with Dr. Kevin OConnor, the White House physician, during one visit revealed by the report. That meeting came about six weeks before Bidens most recent annual physical exam performed by OConnor, a checkup that gave him a clean bill of health. The annual exam included an extremely detailed neurologic exam and no findings which would be consistent with Parkinsons, which is a degenerative disease affecting the nervous system. The White House says Biden remains in good health and there has been no need for any additional neurological tests since the exam performed by OConnor. The White House suggested that Cannards visits were not related to Biden, although it didnt specifically deny it. Walter Reed (specialists) visit the White House complex to treat the thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds, spokesman Andrew Bates said in a statement. Biden, 81, sent Democratic supporters into a panic with a disjointed and sometimes incoherent performance at his debate with former President Donald Trump late last month. Biden, who claims he was suffering from a bad cold, often stared blankly into space while Trump spoke, raising concerns about his mental fitness. Some Parkinsons patients suffer from similar symptoms. The presidents debate performance has elevated questions about Bidens age and fitness to beat Trump and serve as president four more years. He insists he is not even considering dropping out. An expert on Parkinson's disease visited the White House eight times over an eight-month span between last July and March of this year, including one visit with the president's personal physician, according to White House visitor logs. The doctor, Kevin Cannard, is a neurologist and "movement disorders specialist" who works at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center. According to the logs, prior to July 2023 he had visited the White House only once -- in November 2022. The White House would not confirm if he was advising on the president's personal care, saying only in a statement "a wide variety of specialists from the Walter Reed system visit the White House complex to treat thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds." MORE: House Oversight Committee requests interview, documents from Biden's physician Asked repeatedly at Monday's briefing, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre refused to say if the neurologist ever treated the president or consulted on his care, citing privacy concerns, but did say Biden was not being treated for Parkinson's disease. ABC News Chief White House Correspondent Mary Bruce pressed Jean-Pierre on reporting about Cannard's visit with the president's personal physician, Dr. Kevin O'Connor. "You're refusing to say if he was here to evaluate the president or if he was consulting on the president's health. So, what then was that meeting about?" Bruce asked. Jean-Pierre said she would not elaborate on the meeting "because we will not confirm or speak to names that you're providing to me. It is out of security." PHOTO: A view of the White House in Washington, July 8, 2024. (Kevin Mohatt/Reuters) As part of his annual physical exam, the president was evaluated by a neurologist who found no signs of Parkinson's, according to a summary O'Connor released in February. "An extremely detailed neurologic exam was again reassuring in that there were no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder, such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson's or ascending lateral sclerosis, nor are there any signs of cervical myelopathy," his report states. Overall, the February report stated Biden, 81, continued to be "fit for duty and fully executes all of his responsibilities without any exemptions or accommodations." Jean-Pierre repeatedly pointed to Biden's three previous physicals during the press briefing, and read aloud from the February report that said there were no findings that would be consistent with Parkinson's or another neurological disease. "So, to give you some answers here, has the president been treated for Parkinson's? No," Jean-Pierre said on Monday. "Is he being treated for Parkinson's? No, he's not. Is he taking medication for Parkinson's? No. So, those are the things that I can give you full-blown answers on." MORE: Biden won't commit to independent cognitive test when asked in ABC News interview The president has been adamant that his doctors have not recommended any cognitive testing, insisting in an exclusive interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos that he passes a cognitive test every day. "Every day I have that test," Biden said. "Everything I do. You know, not only am I campaigning, but I'm running the world. Not -- and that's not hi-- sounds like hyperbole, but we are the essential nation of the world." Stephanopoulos pressed Biden repeatedly if he would be willing to take a cognitive test and release the results publicly, but Biden declined to commit to such a course of action. "Watch me between -- there's a lotta time left in this campaign," the president said. Biden will be closely watched on the world stage this week as NATO leaders come to Washington, and some are deeply concerned about the president's ability to run the country for another four years, according to an informal adviser to the Biden administration who has been speaking to NATO leaders. "He's getting slower; he's having a harder time hearing; he's having a harder time processing; He doesn't have the energy he used to," the source said. "They're concerned about the president's ability to run a presidential schedule. You've got to be 'on' all of the time. Biden today is not that." ABC News' Alexandra Hutzler and Selina Wang contributed to this report. Parkinson's expert visited White House 8 times in 8 months, met with Biden's doctor originally appeared on abcnews.go.com (WHTM) It might soon be illegal for Pennsylvania drivers to purchase or possess a device known as a license plate flipper. Legislation that would ban license plate flipping devices was passed in the Pennsylvania House on July 8. According to Pennsylvania House Democrats, the bill would subject violators to a $2,000 fine if a license plate flipping device is discovered. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Breaking News House Bill 2426 was introduced by state Representatives Pat Gallagher and Greg Scott as a step toward ensuring accountability and safety on Pennsylvania roads. License plate flipping devices enable a vehicle license plate to be flipped to another license plate either manually or electronically, giving drivers the ability to potentially engage in criminal activity with little consequence. Dog law fixes signed by Pennsylvania Governor According to Gallagher and Scott, legal loopholes allow for these James Bond-style gadgets to be used to get out of making payments. License plates are crucial for vehicle identification, and its essential that our laws explicitly prohibit the use of license plate flipping devices that allow drivers to evade this identification, said Scott. These devices can be used to avoid tolls, engage in reckless driving, and even commit more serious crimes without being detected. By banning these devices statewide, we are closing a loophole and enhancing public safety across Pennsylvania. McDonalds bringing back everyones favorite sandwich Gallagher said that the problem is already being addressed at the local level. My city of Philadelphia recently took action on this issue by prohibiting these devices in the city, and now its time for the entire state of Pennsylvania to follow suit, he said. The bill is now heading to Pennsylvania Senate for consideration. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- China urges the United States to stop its smears and vilification against China, act responsibly and contribute to the peace and security of the cyberspace, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday. Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks at a daily press briefing when asked to comment on a newly-released report by China's National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center, National Engineering Laboratory for Computer Virus Prevention Technology and the 360 Digital Security Group. According to the report, the United States has been hyping a hacker organization named "Volt Typhoon" since 2023 and engaging in a worldwide disinformation campaign against China. Lin said that back in April, relevant Chinese agencies revealed the scandal about the United States framing China for being responsible for "Volt Typhoon" in order to advance its own geopolitical agenda. The latest report further revealed that this disinformation campaign was conceived by the National Security Agency (NSA) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and other members of the U.S. intelligence community with the participation of congressional China hawks and multiple federal agencies, as well as cybersecurity agencies from other Five Eyes countries, and it aimed to manipulate public opinion, Lin said. "Till this day, the United States still owes us an explanation after the report was released," Lin said, adding that the NSA chief is still spreading disinformation about "Volt Typhoon." "What is worse, the latest report exposed that the U.S. government has been pressuring a cybersecurity company and asking it to rewrite its tech analysis that proves 'Volt Typhoon' to be a ransomware group," Lin added, pointing out that this is a clumsy cover-up tactic that has not worked and will not work. Lin said that China strongly condemns the irresponsible behavior of the United States. "The United States still owes us an explanation, and should stop its smears and vilification against China at once. We urge the United States to act responsibly and contribute to the peace and security of the cyberspace," he said. Pennsylvania State Police continue to search for man accused of stealing from local gas well site Pennsylvania State Police are trying to identify a male suspect involved in a burglary last year in Young Township, Indiana County. On Nov. 13, 2023, employees of Diversified Energy reported that the company gas well site on Henry Road in Young Township had been burglarized. Several tools and other items were taken. >> Suspect who stole items from Indiana County gas well site wanted by police The suspect is described as a white male wearing a ball cap, gloves and a bandana/scarf covering his face. A second person, possibly a juvenile, was also seen in a Dodge Dakota with a cap on the bed during the incident. Tips may be referred to the Indiana Criminal Investigation Unit at 724-357-1960. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Target to stop taking personal checks Man dies after being shot by woman while trying to enter house in Carrick Saving money while electric bill rates reach 10-year high VIDEO: Residents concerned after they say they found dead dogs left in garbage in Allegheny County DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts The U.S. Supreme Court released a new ethics code on Monday, Nov. 13, 2023 but Sen. Dick Durbin, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said the new rules fall short of what we could and should expect when a Supreme Court issues a code of conduct. (Al Drago/Getty Images) The U.S. Supreme Court. (Al Drago/Getty Images) Recently, the U.S. Supreme Court, in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce (together, Loper Bright) overturned what is colloquially known as the Chevron doctrine. The doctrine is a judge-made, legal principle adopted by the U.S. Supreme Court 40 years ago that required federal courts to give deference to federal agencies interpretations of ambiguous statutes and regulations passed by Congress. The idea behind the doctrine was that federal agencies were run by subject-matter experts who were better equipped to administer, enforce and, importantly, interpret Congresss statutes, rather than unelected federal judges who had little, if any, expertise or understanding of the nuances and intricacies of the complex problemsor scientific terminologiesagencies sought address. But the recent commentary from some of the nations prominent legal analysts and pundits, from Ruth Marcus at The Washington Post to Adam Liptak at The New York Times, are overly simplistic and somewhat misleading takes on the broader ideological breakdown in support of or in opposition to Chevron. The commentary suggests there are fixed ideological camps on each side of the Chevron national debateRepublican and conservative-leaning jurists are anti-Chevron deference, while Democrat and liberal-leaning jurists are pro-Chevron deference. The Chevron question is, like many constitutional and administrative law issues, far more nuanced than how national commentators and pundits may lead us to believe. While those opposed to federal court deference to federal agencies have trended more conservative over the last 20 years, states where courts have employed a deferential standard towards [state] agency expertise have diverse ideological and political majorities. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court is one example where the traditional ideological and political tents do not parallel the U.S. Supreme Courts majority and dissenting opinions in Loper Bright. The state high court has never expressly adopted the federal Chevron approach, but the court has also conceded that the federal Chevron version is indistinguishable from [Pennsylvanias] own approach to agency interpretations of [Pennsylvania] statutes. Part of the reason for the lack of alignment, in theory and practice, is that the Chevron doctrine was applicable primarily to federal courts and federal agencies. State courts and state agencies, such the Commonwealth Court or the Department of Environmental Protection, have always had the independence to diverge from or converge with the Chevron doctrine as a matter of state constitutional and state administrative law. Its fair to say that the doctrine employed by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to review state agency decisions is rooted in federal precedents and closely grounded upon earlier federal cases. However, even in light of the state Supreme Courts historic following of Chevron-like deference of its own volition, the Justices diverge in their positions on the doctrine in ideologically and partisan ways that are not aligned with traditional camps at the federal level. In 2019, Justice Christine Donohue, an elected Democrat and liberal-leaning jurist, who believes the state constitutions Equal Rights Amendment includes a right to abortion, said, in a concurring opinion in Harmon v. Unemployment Compensation Board Review, I write separately to state my disagreement with the Majoritys discussion of administrative deference. She explained, In my view, while an administrative agencys interpretation of a statute is one of many factors that a court may consider when interpreting an ambiguous statute, it is not entitled to any deference in the interpretative process. She concluded that her position was consistent with the fundamental precept that the interpretation of statutes is a question of law for reviewing courts to decide[a]dministrative agencies, unlike courts, have no particular expertise in interpreting statutes, and I reject any rule of construction that would require courts to abdicate our judicial role to administrative agencies One could easily mistake her writing for that of Republican-appointed, center-right Chief Justice John Roberts opinion in his Loper Bright ruling overturning Chevron, where he explained courts decide legal questions by applying their own judgment and federal agencies interpretations of statutes are not entitled to deference. Justice David Wecht is another Democrat and liberal-leaning jurist on the state high court who, like Justice Donohue, believes Pennsylvanias Constitution enshrines a right to abortion. He wrote a concurrence offering a similar anti-Chevron position. He noted, As I have explained in the past, I do not agree that reviewing courts should afford what often amounts to unqualified deferencei.e., Chevron deferenceto an executive-branch agencys interpretation of an ambiguous statute. If a law is unclear, he wrote in Snyder Bros., Inc. v. Pa. Pub. Util. Commn, we must perform our interpretive duty. Justice Wechts position neatly aligns with Chief Justice Robertss majority opinion in Loper Bright, but it also echoes Justice Clarence Thomass concurring opinion in support of overruling Chevron. Justice Thomas explained that Chevron must finally be overruled and that the doctrine incorrectly required jurists to defer to an agencys interpretation of an ambiguous statute and thus stripped judges of their constitutional duties to interpret statutory provisions when reviewing federal statutes as applied to agency actions. The late-Chief Justice Max Baer, a Democrat-elected juristwho played a key role in liberally construing the state constitutions Free and Equal Elections Clause to expand the right to vote by extending the date to submit mail-in ballots in the lead up to the 2020 Presidential Election amid the unprecedented pandemicwas quite lukewarm towards Chevron. In 2007, he wrote, While I agree that the Secretary [of Education] enjoys a great deal of latitude in administering the [Education Empowerment Act], I do not believe that administrative interpretations forwarded for the first time in connection with adversarial litigation, are entitled to any more weight than any other litigants argument[.] He proceeded to recognize how the U.S. Supreme Courts Chevron views were, at the time, beginning to evolve and recognize the dangers of deferring to [agency] interpretations developed amid litigation. Like Justices Wecht and Donohue, Baers position on Chevron writes more like Justice Neil Gorsuch, a Trump-appointed conservative jurist, who argued in his concurring opinion in Loper Bright that the weight of agency interpretations cannot outweigh the long-settled principle that courts must independently exercise their judgment in reviewing statutes and regulations, instead of deferring to those interpretations, whether at the litigation or rulemaking stages, from purported agency expertise. Indeed, compare the state Democratic-liberal Justices takes on Chevron with their state Republican-conservative counterparts. The former Chief Justice Thomas Saylor of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court, a conservative Republican, was a vocal defender of Chevron-like deference. He believed that some consideration should be afforded to the role of state agencies interpretation of statutes. Relying on U.S. Supreme Court precedent, Justice Saylor noted that deference is due to the [agency] and that it is well settled that [a]n interpretation by the agency charged with the administration of a particular law is normally accorded deference, unless clearly erroneous. Justice Sallie Updyke Mundy, a Republican Justice, favored Chevron-like deference and agreed with former Chief Justice Saylors take on Chevron. She wrote, in her Harmon dissent, that it is well[-]settled law that an agencys interpretation of a statute or regulation, when administering a particular law, is normally accorded deference and that the court should grant deference in the case before it. These conservative-Republican state jurists views parallel the Loper Bright dissenting opinion penned by Justice Elena Kagan and joined by Justices Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown Jackson, known as the liberal wing of the U.S. Supreme Court. In determining who decides what the ambiguous words enacted by Congress mean, Justice Kagan argued that the choice should usually fall to agencies, with courts broadly deferring to [the agencies] judgments. The point is not to recast Justices Wecht, Donohue and Baer as closet Republican-conservative Justices like Justices Roberts, Thomas and Gorsuch, nor is this meant to paint Justices Mundy and Saylor as liberal stalwarts of the ilk of Justices Kagan, Sotomayor and Jackson. Far from it. Instead, we should be careful not to cast ideological generalizations about all major U.S. Supreme Court decisions as indicative of the broader views and positions of other American legal institutions. The ideological and partisan make-up of state courts do not always share or align with the ideological breakdown of each and every U.S. Supreme Court decision, nor should they. The overruling of Chevron is a stark reminder of that reality The post Pennsylvanias Supreme Court does not align with ideological split of SCOTUS Chevron decision appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star. The Pentagon on Friday indefinitely called off a U.S. Army exercise in the country of Georgia, which neighbors Russia, as U.S. officials review future cooperation with the country. The training event, dubbed Noble Exercise 2024, was scheduled to run from July 25 to Aug. 6, and normally takes place at Vaziani and Camp Norio Training Areas outside the capital city of Tbilisi. The Pentagon said the Georgian government has spread misinformation that the United States and other allies had pressured the country to open a second front on its border with Russia. Officials in Georgia also accused U.S. officials of attempting two coups against the countrys ruling party. The United States government has determined that this is an inappropriate time to hold a large-scale military exercise in Georgia, the Pentagon said in a statement. In 2022 during a military exercise in Georgia, some 2,400 service members from the United States and 19 other nations participated. This year, a combination of approximately 3,000 U.S. and allied troops were scheduled to participate in the drills, U.S. Army Europe and Africa spokesman Terry Welch told Military Times in an email. On May 30, the U.S. government announced a comprehensive review of its relationship with the small country in the South Caucasus. The change of plans came as Georgia faced accusations that the country is trending toward authoritarianism and growing its relationship with Russia. The countrys parliament passed a controversial foreign agents bill into law, overriding the presidents veto of the legislation. The legislation, which critics say mimics a similar law in Russia, requires media and other non-governmental organizations that receive more than 20% of their funding from outside the country to register as a foreign agent, according to the Associated Press. Critics said the legislation would impact Tbilisis efforts to join NATO and integrate with the European Union. In April 2008, then-President George Bush tried to rally members of NATO to allow both Georgia and Ukraine to join the alliance at NATOs yearly summit. Other members of the alliance, however, rejected the proposition. While Noble Exercise 2024 has been postponed, the Pentagon said in the statement it looks forward to working with allies in the Agile Spirit 2025 military exercise, which traditionally takes place in both Turkey and Georgia. Units from V Corps, as well as the 21st Theater Sustainment Command, the 4th Security Forces Assistance Brigade, Georgia Army National Guard, and the Navys Naval Mobile Construction Battalion 11, were all slated to participate. People in 7 States Confirmed to Have Mosquito-Borne West Nile Virus: Know the Symptoms The virus has progressed to severe illness in more than half the people who have been diagnosed with West Nile Arterra/Universal Images Group/Getty The culex mosquito, which carries viruses like West Nile. The West Nile Virus has sickened people in 7 states so far and some of the cases have progressed to severe disease. Nine people in Arizona, Arkansas, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi and Tennessee have been diagnosed with the disease but the virus has been found in non-humans (like mosquitoes and birds) in at least 18 states, the Centers for Disease Control reports. Thats a troubling sign for the potential spread of the virus, as the CDC says, People become infected with the virus when mosquitoes feed on infected birds and then bite people. Five of the nine people who have been diagnosed with West Nile have seen it progress to neuroinvasive disease, according to the CDC, which means theyve developed illnesses like meningitis or encephalitis. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service/Getty The culex mosquito, which carries viruses like the West Nile. Although the CDC says most people who get infected with West Nile will not get sick, those older than 60 or with certain medical conditions (like cancer, diabetes, or hypertension) are more likely to develop severe disease. Those symptoms include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, disorientation, coma, tremors, convulsions, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness, and paralysis. The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! We are seeing West Nile virus (WNV) activity a little earlier this year so its really important that everyone take steps to protect themselves and their families from mosquito bites, Kate Fowlie, a press officer for the CDC, said in a statement, according to NBC News. Related: Rebel Wilson Had Malaria After Waking Up with '100 Mosquito Bites on My Face' WNV tends to be unpredictable and varies from year to year so we dont know specifically how this year will be compared to others. There is no cure or vaccine for West Nile; Instead, the CDC advises prevention instead. Getty Stock image of a person using insect repellant. Wear long sleeves and pants, the CDC says, and use an insect repellant with DEET, Picaridin oil, lemon eucalyptus, or para-menthane-diol with the last two ingredients not recommended for children under 3 years of age. And West Nile isnt the only mosquito-borne illness on the rise; in June, the CDC warned about an increased risk of dengue fever in the U.S. Related: Puerto Rico Declares Dengue Fever Epidemic amid Spike in Cases In an earlier report on West Nile, the Environmental Protection Agency attributed the rise in mosquito populations to climate change. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Studies show that warmer temperatures associated with climate change can accelerate mosquito development, biting rates, and the incubation of the disease within a mosquito, the EPA said. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. US heat wave turns deadly as high temperatures continue to scorch the West (CNN) More than 50 million people across the US are under heat alerts amid a brutal heat wave that has shattered records and caused multiple deaths across the West. As of Monday, much of the West and South are experiencing moderate to major heat risk, the National Weather Service said. California and Nevada are expected to see more daily record high temperatures in the week ahead. By Thursday, the heat in the Pacific Northwest will shift to the Intermountain West and northern High Plains, the National Weather Services Weather Prediction Center cautions. In Oregon, four people died of suspected heat-related illnesses over the weekend, according to a Monday news release from Multnomah County. Three of the four were residents of Multnomah County, while the other individual was transported from outside the county and later died at a Portland hospital. These deaths happened after the county declared a state of emergency Friday due to dangerously hot temperatures, but the news release noted further tests and investigation will determine whether the deaths are officially hot-weather-related. In some cases, the deaths may be found to have had other causes. Dozens of locations in the West and Pacific Northwest tied or broke previous heat records in recent days, and more than 165 daily high temperature records could be tied or broken this week. A motorcyclist died Saturday in Californias Death Valley from heat exposure, the Death Valley National Park said in a news release. The high temperature that day was 128 degrees Fahrenheit, according to preliminary data. Six motorcyclists were near Badwater Basin when they became sick due to the heat, the release said. In addition to the cyclist who died, one was transported to a hospital in Las Vegas and the other four were treated on scene. Rescue efforts were hampered due to the extreme heat at the park, as emergency medical flight helicopters cannot fly safely when it is over 120 degrees, the release noted. Heat illness and injury are cumulative and can build over the course of a day or days, the release said. Besides not being able to cool down while riding due to high ambient air temperatures, experiencing Death Valley by motorcycle when it is this hot is further challenged by the necessary heavy safety gear worn to reduce injuries during an accident. Heat is the deadliest weather threat in the United States, killing more than twice as many people each year on average than hurricanes and tornadoes combined. Record-high heat during a holiday weekend Death Valley was among a slew of places where daily temperature records were broken this Fourth of July weekend. On Saturday, Death Valley reached 128 degrees, breaking the daily record of 127 set on July 6, 2007. An excessive heat warning is in effect until late Wednesday evening for the area where temperatures are expected to be between 122 to 129 degrees. Areas across the West are bracing for multiple days of triple-digit temperatures this week. - Etienne Laurent/AFP/Getty Images On the more-humid East Coast, temperatures above 100 degrees were also widespread, The Associated Press reported. Many areas in Northern California surpassed 110 degrees Sunday, while Phoenix, Arizona, set a new daily record for the warmest low temperature: it never got below 92 degrees. Las Vegas also made history, reaching a record high of 120 degrees on Sunday. Indiana resident Mark Kavacinski told CNN affiliate KVVU his family almost canceled their vacation to Las Vegas because of the intense heat. We knew it was going to be hot. Its July, right? Did we know it was going to be this hot? No, Kavacinski said. But we decided that heats heat. We can handle it. Las Vegas hit an all-time high temperature record on Sunday, with 120 degrees. - John Locher/AP Las Vegas temperatures have exceeded 110 degrees each day since Wednesday and are forecast to do so every day until at least next Sunday, which would mark a stretch of prolonged extreme heat longer than any ever experienced in the city, with 11 days or more above 110 degrees. Sundays heat was enough to melt crayons, the weather service office in Las Vegas demonstrated on X. And parts of western Nevada and northeastern California wont see temperatures below 100 degrees until next weekend, the National Weather Service office in Reno said. Further north, Oregons weekend scorcher broke many records. On Sunday, Salem hit 103 degrees, just over the citys 100-degree record from 1945, according to the National Weather Service office in Portland. Eugene also experienced temperatures of 103, breaking the 1945 record of 98 degrees. But some Oregonians told CNN affiliate KATU Sunday they would not miss the Portland Timbers soccer game, regardless of the heat. Yeah, I know its hot! Its 100, its crazy. but the game here is greater, Tim Hueng of Tigard, Oregon told KATU as he waited in line to enter Providence Park. Officials are urging people to take precautions in the face of dangerously high temperatures. - Zoe Meyers/Reuters Even mountain destinations couldnt beat the heat. Reno, Nevada, saw a new daily record of 105 degrees on Sunday, the weather service office there announced. And on Monday, Reno reached 106, topping the 2017 record of 104. And despite its elevation of just over 6,000 feet, South Lake Tahoe hit 92 degrees Sunday, beating its daily record of 88 degrees. The high temperatures continued Monday, with the city seeing 91 degrees, breaking 2017s record of 89. CNNs Dalia Faheid, Monica Garrett and Brandon Miller contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com The Person of Interest in the Death of Missing Atlanta Man was Someone He Knew Very Well The Fourth of July celebration for the family of Deundray Cottrell was spoiled when he mysteriously went missing from the gathering. Two days later, he was found dead. Now, police are looking at the person who last saw Cottrell, his boyfriend. The 31-year-old doctoral student was last seen at a residence in Birmingham, Ala. Cottrell along with his boyfriend Julian Taylor Morris, also 31, had traveled from Atlanta to visit family in Alabama for July 4th. Authorities from the city police department say they were dispatched to the home after family said Cottrell was missing. The following day, officers launched a search with the Special Victims Unit and scoured the area where Cottrell was last seen. Officers recovered a few clothing items belonging to Cottrell in the area. A community member then provided the police a surveillance video where Cottrell was seen walking in the area. On day two of searching for him, Cottrell was found dead just a few blocks from the residence where he was last seen. The Jefferson County Coroners Office determined his death to be a homicide. Now, the cops are on the hunt for the person they believe was the last one to lay eyes on Cottrell: Morris. Cottrells sister, Angelica, told AL.com her brother came to the function with Morris who later told the family he last saw Cottrell running through the backyard leaving behind his shoes and cellphone. Read what else Angelica Cottrell told WSBTV: She said Morris was the one who alerted her that her brother disappeared saying he jumped off her patio balcony. He told us that when he jumped, he bounced...got up and jumped the fence and took off running, she said. She added that his initial reaction and behavior were bizarre. While we looked Julian didnt, she said. At one point when everybody was searching, Julian had fixed a plate and was sitting there eating, and he looked at me and said omg the food is so good. Fearing Morris knew more than what he was letting on, Angelica said she told him to leave and find somewhere else to stay. Julian knows everything and he made a point to keep reminding me throughout his rants that he was a marine, she said. Morris is described as a Black male, 56 in height and 160 pounds. CrimeStoppers are offering $5,000 for any tips on where he was last seen. Anyone with any information on Morris is encouraged to contact Birmingham Police at 205-254-1764 or CrimeStoppers at 205-254-7777. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. FARMINGDALE, N.Y. (PIX11) A person was seriously injured after they were stabbed Sunday at Adventureland Amusement Park on Long Island, according to officials. More Local News Suffolk County Police said the stabbing happened at the park around 5 p.m. The victim was taken to the hospital in serious condition, according to police. One person is in police custody, according to officials. In a statement to PIX11 News, a spokesperson for the park said: For more than 60 years, Adventureland has been providing Long Island families with a convenient, affordable and fun local destination. The safety and security of our visitors is our highest priority. This afternoon, Sunday July 7, apparently two families got into a confrontation at the park, resulting in one male with stab wounds. Park Safety responded quickly to the altercation to secure the scene, provide aid and called in local police and first responders. The police have finished processing the scene and as of 8 p.m. all parts of the park are open until 10 p.m. tonight and will operate under regular hours in the week coming up. We defer any further comment about the incident to Suffolk Police who are investigating. Adventureland Amusement Park spokesperson 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. Phantom Lake playground burns down again, police investigating it as a possible arson The brand-new playground at Phantom Lake Elementary school sustained significant damage in a fire Sunday morning that is being investigated as a possible arson. Last July the playground was destroyed in one of several fireworks related incidents. The playground just reopened in February. Fireworks are suspected in this fire as well, but the cause remains under investigation. A mother who spoke to KIRO 7 on Sunday said she is frustrated. The district is in a financial crisis, and this is going to cost a lot of money to fix. We are losing teachers; we are losing staff members, and this is where money is going to have to go because we cant not have a place for kids to play for recess. Its disgusting it makes me so so mad. What a waste, she said. On July 4, the hillside between Phantom Lake Elementary and Tillicum Middle School was set on fire by fireworks. Investigators are looking into whether the two incidents may be connected. Residents assess a fallen tree in their neighborhood after Hurricane Beryl swept through an area in Houston on Monday. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Hurricane Beryl pummeled the Texas coastline as a Category 1 storm on Monday, bringing with it life-threatening winds and major power outages before weakening to a tropical storm. Wind speeds were reported as high as 80 mph, and flood warnings were issued across several areas of the Texas coast. Four deaths were reported in Texas, and the storm knocked out power to more than 2 million customers in Southeastern Texas. Last week, Beryl emerged as the earliest Category 5 storm on record in the Atlantic, sweeping a path of damage in the eastern Caribbean and Jamaica before crossing into Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico. At least 11 people were reported killed in the Caribbean. ADVERTISEMENT Advertisement [Click here to view Yahoo News' Hurricane Beryl live blog.] Here's a look at Beryl's destructive path through the Caribbean and up to the United States: A vehicle is left abandoned in floodwaters on a highway after Hurricane Beryl swept through the area on Monday in Houston. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) A tattered American flag flies in the wind after Hurricane Beryl made landfall near Matagorda, Texas, on Monday. (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images) Jeff Reding 57, looks at damage to the Holiday Inn resort after Hurricane Beryl hit Galveston, Texas, on Monday. (Rich Matthews/Reuters) People stand beneath a knocked-down metal structure in El Campo, Texas, on Monday. (Daniel Becerril/Reuters) A flooded street in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl in El Campo, Texas, on Monday. (Daniel Becerril/Reuters) Debris blocks a main access road in Matagorda, Texas, on Monday. (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images) A home is surrounded by floodwaters in Houston on Monday. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) People hide behind a car to shield themselves from wind and rain as they film videos for social media in Bay City, Texas, on Monday. (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images) A fallen tree lies on a car in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl in Ganado, Texas, on Monday. (Daniel Becerril/Reuters) A gas station in Edna, Texas, suffered hurricane damage to its roof on Monday. (Daniel Becerril/Reuters) Vehicles sit in floodwaters in Houston on Monday. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) Debris and floodwaters cover the main roadway in Surfside Beach, Texas, on Monday. (Adrees Latif/Reuters) A police officer fights fierce winds from Hurricane Beryl as he searches for occupants of an overturned semi-trailer truck in Freeport, Texas on July 8, 2024. (Adrees Latif/Reuters) A U.S. flag near a trailer home left overturned by Hurricane Beryl winds in Surfside Beach, Texas. (Adrees Latif/Reuters) Clyde George, left, and his son Chris George board up their home ahead of the arrival of Tropical Storm Beryl on July 7, in Port O'Connor, Texas. (Jon Shapley/Houston Chronicle via AP) A homeless couple prepare to seek shelter ahead of Tropical Storm Beryl's arrival on July 7, in Corpus Christi, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) A message for Beryl on a boarded-up business on July 7, in Rock Port, Texas, as the storm moved closer to the Texas coast. (Eric Gay/AP) A tree blocks a street in Kingston, Jamaica, on July 4 after Hurricane Beryl barreled through. (Leo Hudson/AP) Debris and the remnants of a damaged house on Friday in the aftermath of Hurricane Beryl, in St. Elizabeth Parish, Jamaica. (Maria Alejandra Cardona/Reuters) A tree uprooted by Hurricane Beryl lies on a street in Tulum, Mexico, on Friday. (Fernando Llano/AP) A fisherman looks at fishing vessels damaged by Hurricane Beryl at the Bridgetown Fisheries in Barbados. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP) A sailboat damaged by Hurricane Beryl submerged on one side in Kingston, Jamaica, on Thursday. (Leo Hudson/AP) Property damaged by Hurricane Beryl in Union Island, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, on Tuesday. (Agency for Public Information, St. Vincent and the Grenadines/via Reuters) Scattered debris and houses with missing roofs, from a drone photo after Hurricane Beryl passed the island of Petite Martinique, Grenada, on Tuesday. (Arthur Daniel/Reuters) A toppled tree on the roof of a house in Kingstown, the capital of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. (Lucanus Ollivierre/AP) Fishermen with boats damaged by Hurricane Beryl at Bridgetown Fisheries, Barbados. (Ricardo Mazalan/AP) A home destroyed by Hurricane Beryl in Ottley Hall, St. Vincent and the Grenadines. (Lucanus Ollivierre/AP) Members of the Barbados armed forces clear a street of sand after it was flooded by seawater. (Chandan Khanna/AFP via Getty Images) Boats in the water after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. (Andrea De Silva/Reuters) Waves crash into a seawall after Hurricane Beryl made landfall in Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago. (Andrea De Silva/Reuters) A man clears water from a damaged restaurant in Christ Church, Barbados. (Randy Brooks/AFP via Getty Images) See more of our photo features on Yahoo News >>> TASHKENT, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The just-concluded summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has opened a new chapter in strengthening cooperation between China and Central Asian countries, including Uzbekistan, an Uzbek expert has said. "Intensive communication between China and Central Asian countries sends several key and multi-purpose signals at the international level," Azamat Seitov, a scholar of Uzbekistan's University of World Economy and Diplomacy, said in a recent interview with Xinhua. The active interaction between China and Central Asian countries within the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), efforts to strengthen multifaceted cooperation, joint efforts to combat terrorism, extremism and separatism, and the interaction in defense and security have all indicated the further formation of stable partnerships, positively impacting the efforts in supporting regional stability and security, said the expert. The Uzbek expert believed the political dialogue at the summit is conducive to discussing and addressing common challenges such as terrorism, extremism, drug trafficking, potential conflicts in the region, the development of joint economic projects and initiatives, as well as issues of cultural and humanitarian cooperation. "Most importantly, the meetings of leaders at SCO summits contribute to closer political interaction and coordination, help to better understand each other's positions and interests, which promotes quality dialogue and strengthens trust" within the SCO framework, Seitov said. Seitov noted that the SCO has transformed from a regional forum into an important player on the international stage, actively influencing global security and stability. Over the past years, the organization has actively developed its mechanisms and strategies to combat terrorism, extremism and separatism. An important step was the establishment of the SCO Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) in Tashkent, which coordinates the efforts of member countries to combat these threats, said the expert. "Notably, the SCO is adapting its activities to new challenges, such as cybersecurity and climate change. This makes the organization more flexible and capable of effectively responding to modern threats," he said. Noting the positive role of the SCO in improving the security situation in Central Asia over the past two decades, Seitov highlighted the significant role played by the SCO RATS in coordinating the efforts of member countries in information exchange, joint anti-terrorist exercises and operations against extremist groups. Another important aspect is the exchange of experience and best practices in law enforcement, which encompasses training programs, staff exchanges and technical assistance among member countries, said the expert. "In enhancing security in Central Asia within the framework of the SCO, China undoubtedly plays an important and leading role. Chinese initiatives and its active participation in their implementation contribute to strengthening stability, economic development and reducing security threats in the region," said Seitov. The BRI, in particular, has opened up new opportunities for improving transport infrastructure, developing energy, reducing customs barriers, simplifying procedures and attracting investment in Central Asian countries, as well as contributing to the development of cultural and humanitarian ties, and enhancing mutual understanding and trust among people within the SCO, Seitov added. Friends of Raychel Sheridan, 24, of Plain Township held a vigil in her memory Thursday evening in Monument Park in Canton. City workers found her body the day before in Mother Goose Land Park. Investigators believe she was killed in her apartment. CANTON A Plain Township man is now facing murder and other charges tied to the slaying of his girlfriend. The Stark County Sheriff's Office on Monday filed felony charges of murder, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse against Sean Goe, formally accusing Goe of killing his girlfriend Raychel Sheridan. A complaint filed in Canton Municipal Court alleges Goe, 26, struck Sheridan, 24, in the head and body around June 30, causing her death. It did not specify if any weapon was used. Deputies also filed a new misdemeanor charge of domestic violence. Related: Stark Sheriff: Expect charges soon over Raychel Sheridan's murder, suspect acted alone Sean Goe to appear in court Goe is scheduled to be arraigned by video in Canton Municipal Court on these charges at 9 a.m. Tuesday. He has been held at the Stark County Jail since Wednesday on $500,000 bond on charges of burglary, grand theft of a firearm, criminal damaging and domestic violence allegedly committed against Sheridan in May. A judge could increase his bond amount. A message seeking comment was left Monday for Christopher Fisher, an attorney at the Stark County Public Defender's Office who represented Goe at his arraignment Friday on the other charges. Stark County Sheriff George Maier has said his investigators had concluded that Sheridan was killed in the Plain Township apartment on Orchard Dale Drive NW she shared with Goe. Canton workers on Wednesday morning found Sheridan's body wrapped in plastic in a garbage can at Mother Goose Land Park in southwest Canton. A complaint filed Monday alleges Goe transported Sheridan's body in a vehicle and "disposed of her body in a trash receptacle." Another complaint says Goe "destroyed, concealed and removed evidence" knowing there would be an official investigation into Sheridan's disappearance. In court records, Goe has recently been listed at the Orchard Dale Avenue NW address but his address is listed as Norman Avenue NW in Canton with the charges filed Monday. Sean Goe murder complaint by Rick Armon on Scribd This embedded content is not available in your region. Raychel Sheridan goes missing On Tuesday, Sheridan's mother reported Raychel Sheridan missing to the Stark County Sheriff's Office after Sheridan did not show up for work at a fast-food restaurant the prior day, Maier has said. Her mother hadn't heard from her since the Saturday before the Fourth of July. On Monday, the Stark County Sheriff's Office filed felony charges of murder, tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse against Sean Goe, formally accusing Goe of killing his live-in girlfriend Raychel Sheridan. Deputies found the apartment door open, the sheriff said and waited to obtain a search warrant before going into the apartment. Meanwhile, deputies said they spotted Goe driving on nearby Guilford Avenue NW in Sheridan's Jeep Liberty. Deputies pulled him over. They said Goe fled on foot into the woods. Canton police arrested him at a Canton homeless shelter Wednesday morning. The sheriff said Sheridan "certainly was a victim of a cycle of domestic violence." Goe's and Sheridan's Facebook profiles indicate the two began dating in June 2021, about six months after Goe was released from the Belmont Correctional Institute in St. Clairsville. After attending GlenOak High School, Goe served a four-year sentence on a conviction for burglary, receiving stolen property and heroin possession. Sheridan's body has been sent to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office for an autopsy. The results have not been released. Reach Robert at robert.wang@cantonrep.com. X formerly Twitter: @rwangREP. This article originally appeared on The Repository: Sean Goe charged with murder of his girlfriend Raychel Sheridan Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy hold signed documents, during a signing ceremony for bilateral security agreements in Warsaw. Zelenskyy is in Warsaw to meeth Polish leaders ahead of the upcoming NATO summit and to sign bilateral security agreement. -/Ukrainian Presidency/dpa Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a bilateral security agreement in Warsaw on Monday, a day before the start of a NATO summit in Washington. "Those who defend Ukraine today are also defending themselves," said Tusk. Zelensky called the agreement "ambitious." "It is capable of protecting the lives of our people and resisting Russian evil," said Zelensky. The treaty provides for the development of a plan by which "Russian missiles and drones fired in the direction of Poland can be shot down in Ukrainian airspace." Zelensky arrived in Poland as his nation was battered by waves of powerful Russian missile attacks, with at least 26 people killed and a large children's hospital hit in Kiev. "There are no words, no documents, no political statements that would suffice to condemn the aggressor," said Tusk. Poland is one of the most committed political and military supporters of Ukraine as Kiev seeks to fend off the full-scale invasion, now in its third year. Poland is also an important hub for Western military aid to Kiev. Plus, it has taken in almost 1 million Ukrainian refugees fleeing violence in their country. Ukraine has already made security agreements with the EU and 19 individual states, including the US, Japan and Germany, to formalize the military and civilian support that has been provided already and hold out the prospect of further aid for an initial period of 10 years. Zelensky was due to meet his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda in the early afternoon. President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a security agreement on July 8 in Warsaw. Poland is the latest country to sign such an agreement with Ukraine based on a pledge made by the Group of Seven (G7) in July 2023. Others states, including the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and France, as well as the European Union, have signed similar bilateral treaties to help Kyiv repel Russia's aggression. The agreement highlights that Poland was the first country to recognize Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union on Dec. 2, 1991. Ukraine and Poland agreed to further develop political, military, and economic cooperation, and "cooperate closely in the reconstruction of Ukraine as a sovereign and democratic state." During the joint press conference with Tusk, Zelensky thanked Poland for the "special agreements" in the document. The president added that the security agreement includes a provision to develop "a mechanism" for intercepting Russian missiles and drones in Ukraine's airspace aimed at Poland. Later in the day, the Presidential Office published on its website the full text of the security agreement between Ukraine and Poland. The document consists of 10 chapters covering political, military, economic, and other support, as well as bilateral cooperation in the event of a future threat of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Poland committed to providing several packages of military assistance by the end of 2024 and to continue to assist Ukraine over the next 10 years of the agreement. Warsaw will also consider supplying Ukraine with at least an additional MiG-29 squadron, according to the document. The security agreement includes forming and training a Ukrainian Legion in Poland as well. "The Ukrainian Legion will train in Poland and be equipped with the help of our partners. Every Ukrainian citizen who decides to join the Legion will be able to sign a contract with the Ukrainian Armed Forces," Zelensky said. "Our teams are currently working out all the details of this proposal," he added. Zelensky arrived in Warsaw earlier on July 8, a day before the upcoming NATO summit is scheduled to begin in Washington, D.C. "Perseverance and courage. These words best describe the attitude of Zelensky in the fight for a safe Ukraine and a safe Europe. You can always count on us in this fight," Tusk posted on X shortly after Zelensky arrived in Poland. Read also: Explosions rock Kyiv, other cities in Russian Monday morning massive attack Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Akia Winters, a police recruit with the Oglala Sioux Tribal Police Department, practices a hand-to-hand technique on Ashaun Roach-Valandra, a recruit from the Sisseton-Wahpeton Tribal Police, during a basic law enforcement certification course. The 13-week course was taking place at the George S. Mickelson Law Enforcement Center in Pierre. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) Akia Winters, a police recruit with the Oglala Sioux Tribal Police Department, practices a hand-to-hand technique on Ashaun Roach-Valandra, a recruit from the Sisseton-Wahpeton Tribal Police, during a basic law enforcement certification course. The 13-week course was taking place at the George S. Mickelson Law Enforcement Center in Pierre. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) PIERRE South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley hopes a new basic law enforcement training course that prioritizes tribal recruits will prove the state could host regional training for Native American officers from the Upper Midwest. Jackley and U.S. Attorney Alison Ramsdell spoke Monday at the George S. Mickelson Law Enforcement Center in Pierre, in advance of a media tour of the facility and presentations on the ongoing course. The states police academy has long been open to recruits from tribal law enforcement agencies. In practice, though, most attend the 13-week training through the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) at a facility in Artesia, New Mexico. After the basic course is complete, the tribal recruits will be offered an add-on course in tribal policing, which also typically takes place in Artesia and focuses on tribal policing. The BIA has offered its support to that portion of the training in South Dakota. The overall goal would be to not just have South Dakota tribal or South Dakota BIA officers here, but because we do such a good job, to expand it regionally, Jackley said. Born of controversy, history of recruitment trouble Gov. Kristi Noem threw her support behind the idea of an additional basic law enforcement course that would prioritize tribal recruits this spring amid a flurry of controversy over statements shed made on public safety on the states tribal lands. Noem delivered a speech on border security during the winter legislative session that linked migration at the U.S.-Mexico border to cartel-related drug abuse and violence on reservations. Noem has claimed without evidence that some tribal leaders are personally benefiting from a cartel presence on the states reservations. An officer recruit fires a pistol during firearms training at the George S. Mickelson Law Enforcement Center in Pierre on July 8, 2024. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) Tribes have pushed back on those claims. Leaders in all nine of South Dakotas tribes have voted to ban her from their lands, citing the claims about cartels, as well as what theyve described as disparaging comments Noem made about Native American children and parents. Even so, tribal leaders have long decried a dearth of funding for public safety on reservations, which is a treaty obligation for the U.S. government. The typical expectation that tribal recruits spend weeks away from their families in New Mexico has been a barrier to recruitment noted by tribal leaders, as well as Noem and members of South Dakotas congressional delegation. U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, R-South Dakota, has called for the establishment of a Midwestern training center for the BIA, pointing to the states Mickelson Center as a prime partnership candidate for such an endeavor. On Monday, Jackley praised Noem for throwing her support behind the current course, now in its sixth of 13 weeks. I had been asking for additional classes ever since Ive been attorney general, and I want to give this governor credit, Jackley said. The new course is no different from any other basic law enforcement course offered in Pierre, aside from its goal of prioritizing the acceptance of tribal recruits. U.S. attorney: consistent training, relationships aid prosecutions The course, provided at no cost to local agencies, drew 11 tribal recruits from three tribes: the Sisseton-Wahpeton Oyate, the Oglala Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe. Another 13 recruits joined them from agencies across the state to make a class of 24. Ashaun Roach-Valandra, Sisseton Wahpeton Law Enforcement Services; Akia Winters, Oglala Sioux Tribe Department of Public Safety; and Michelle Casiano, Sisseton Wahpeton Law Enforcement Services, are pictured on July 8, 2024, at the George S. Mickelson Law Enforcement Center in Pierre. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight) Ramsdell, whose office prosecutes all felony-level crimes that occur on reservations in South Dakota, also praised the decision to hold a tribal-priority training course. She said the basic training is valuable because it brings together officers from across the state to build the kinds of relationships necessary to work across jurisdictions. There were more than 500 prosecutions led by Ramdells office last year, she said, with 220 originating in tribal areas. The office also prosecuted 140 people for drug trafficking. Our state really leads the nation on these stats, Ramsdell said. Were often second or third after Arizona and Oklahoma in prosecuting violent crime in Indian Country. Ramsdell said shed looked through the list of agencies represented by the recruits before coming to Pierre, and over the last year and a half, weve worked with each one of them on really meaningful prosecutions. In a state as small as South Dakota, she said, cooperation and relationships are critical to public safety. I think its exemplary of the fact that everything we do starts locally, and without our local partners, we wouldnt have the success we do at the U.S. Attorneys Office, she said. Thats one of the reasons Jackley said he hopes to see the course pave a path for more tribal law enforcement training in the future. A training ground near a recruits home allows them to get home to their families on weekends, ensures consistency for all officers working in South Dakotas borders and builds connections between those officers. I think all those things make good sense as to why this should happen here, Jackley said. I think its why we have local officers teaching this class, why we have tribal officers and tribes willing to attend it, and why I think this is going to be a success. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX All Access Police say they need free access to OnlyFans to solve crimes, of course. Investigators are warning that the UK-based platform, which is primarily used by sex workers, may be underreporting the amount of child sexual abuse material (CSAM) on the site, Reuters reports. Basically, they say that the individual paywalls that creators use to rake in cash are impeding their efforts to get a more accurate picture of the situation. 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Any other unflagged accounts will remain paywalled, Reuters found. It's an intractable conundrum. On the one hand, it's crucial to protect kids from being exploited. On the other, giving law enforcement carte blanche access to a site where users pay for lascivious content poses clear issues for privacy and whether cops would use the access for strictly professional purposes is anyone's guess. "OnlyFans is proud of the work we do to aggressively target, report, and support the investigations and prosecutions of anyone who seeks to abuse our platform in this way," a spokesperson told Ars Technica. "Unlike many other platforms, the lack of anonymity and absence of end-to-end encryption on OnlyFans means that reports are actionable by law enforcement and prosecutors." A 2021 report by the BBC found that teenagers were using fake IDs to set up accounts on OnlyFans, with 102 Republican and Democratic members of the House of Representatives calling for a probe into child exploitation on the platform. But whether the Justice Department is actively investigating remains unclear, as Reuters reports. More on CSAM: Image Database Powering Google's AI Contains Explicit Images of Children ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo. Homicide detectives with the St. Louis County Police Department have identified the deceased victim in a shooting during a July 4 gathering in Spanish Lake. According to Sgt. Tracy Panus, a police spokeswoman, officers were notified of a shooting in the 1200 block of Lakeview Avenue just after 11:05 p.m. Thursday. Police arrived to find a man, identified as DMon Ward, suffering from a gunshot wound. Ward was rushed to the hospital but later succumbed to his injuries. He was 42. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily News Five other adults were taken to local hospitals with gunshot wounds. Two of those adults suffered life-threatening gunshot wounds but are still alive: a 30-year-old woman and a 31-year-old man. Three people suffered injuries that were not life-threatening: a 33-year-old man, a 44-year-old man, and a 58-year-old woman. The shooting happened during a heavily attended fireworks event, police said. The investigation remains ongoing, Panus said. Anyone with information is asked to contact the St. Louis County Police Department at 636-529-8210. If you wish to remain anonymous or are interested in a cash reward, call CrimeStoppers at 866-371-8477. 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 FOX 2. Police looking for BB gun vandal in Lebanon County Police looking for BB gun vandal in Lebanon County LEBANON COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) Police are currently asking the public for help catching an individual who has been shooting cars and windows with a BB gun. According to Western Lebanon County Regional Police Department, between July 4-6, they received multiple calls related to damage to windows on vehicles and residences. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now abc27 Evening Newsletter Police say the damage occurred in the 400 block of East Maple Street, 400 block of East Lebanon Street, and the 100 block of Station Corner Drive in Annville. Damage was caused by someone shooting BBs through the windows during the overnight hours. Anyone with cameras in the area is asked to check them for any identifying information. Anyone with information about these incidents is asked to contact the Western Lebanon County Regional Police Department at 717-838-8189. abc27 news will keep you updated as more information becomes available. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Police Pull Over Car for Driving on Wrong Side of Road, Startled to Discover It Has No Driver Wrong Lane A video making the rounds on social media shows a police officer in Phoenix, Arizona pulling over a vehicle after it drove down a busy road in the opposing lane. But as the body cam footage, which was shared by AZCentral last week, quickly reveals, there's no human driver behind the wheel. It's a driverless taxi operated by self-driving car company Waymo leading to an unusual and incredibly awkward interaction. "There's no driver," the officer told dispatch over his radio. "Hi!" he added cheerfully once the window was automatically rolled down. "Connected to rider support," a robotic voice answered unperturbed. "This call may be recorded for quality assurance." "So your car here drove into oncoming lanes of traffic," the cop told the Waymo support team member. "Okay, I will go ahead and take a look at that right now," the disembodied voice replied. Freak Out The incident highlights just how difficult it can be for law enforcement to ensure driverless vehicles are following the rules of the road. We've already seen plenty of reported incidents between robotaxis and human drivers. Most notably, a woman was found trapped underneath a self-driving Cruise vehicle last year, leading to owner General Motors shutting down all driverless operations. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is also actively investigating Waymo over 31 incidents involving its vehicles breaking traffic laws, almost half of which occurred in Arizona. Fortunately, nobody was hurt in the latest incident. The company has been operating its self-driving car-hailing service since mid-2022 and is planning to expand commercial services into Los Angeles, California. "You know the construction here?" the officer told a curious passerby. "It was going eastbound in the westbound lanes, which is real bad. So I light it up and it takes off in the intersection." Dispatch records obtained by AZCentral said that the car ran a red light and "FREAKED OUT" before it pulled over. The company told The Independent in a statement that the car "encountered inconsistent construction signage and briefly entered an unoccupied oncoming lane of traffic." It was then "blocked from navigating back into the correct lane" for roughly 30 seconds. In the end, Waymo got away scot-free. "UNABLE TO ISSUE CITATION TO COMPUTER," the police dispatch records read. More on self-driving cars: Mercedes Exec Blasts Tesla for Reckless Full Self-Driving Rollout TOKYO, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Japan logged a current account surplus of 2.85 trillion yen (about 18 billion U.S. dollars) in May, said a government report on Monday. The figure grew 41.8 percent from a year ago, preliminary data from the Ministry of Finance showed. According to the ministry, the country saw a goods trade deficit of 1.11 trillion yen and a services trade surplus of 2.3 billion yen in the recording period. During the reporting period, the country's imports grew 9.3 percent to 9.24 trillion yen driven by rising crude oil prices, while exports expanded by 12.1 percent to 8.13 trillion yen due to increases in exports of automobiles, semiconductor manufacturing equipment and electronic devices. Due to a growing number of foreign visitors to Japan, the travel surplus in May grew over 1.5-fold from a year earlier to 441.7 billion yen. The report also said the primary income, which reflects returns on overseas investments, booked a surplus of 4.21 trillion yen, up 13 percent from a year ago. (1 Japanese yen equals 0.0062 U.S. dollars) Nancy Faeser, German Minister of the Interior, presents the "Federal Situation Report on Sexual Offenses against Children and Adolescents 2023" at the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). Boris Roessler/dpa The number of known cases of sexual abuse of children and adolescents increased in Germany last year, according to a police report published on Monday. However, as the police assume that there is a large number of unreported cases of this type of offence, this alone is not an alarming finding, the report states. In 2023, the police were notified of 16,375 cases of children being sexually abused - an increase of 5.5% compared to the previous year. In the same period, 1,200 offences were also recorded in which young people were sexually abused. The number of cases involving depictions of the sexual abuse of children increased by 7.4% to around 45,000 cases, mainly due to numerous reports from abroad. In the situation report, the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA) points out that the number of child abuse cases uncovered is closely linked to police monitoring activities and reporting behaviour. "In this respect, intensified police activities in the area of criminal offences in recent years are likely to have led to an increase in the number of unreported cases," the report continues. The BKA also points out that the statistics do not include the numerous cases in which no potential crime scene in Germany can be identified following information, particularly from the United States. The reason why such investigations sometimes come to nothing is the minimum retention of telecommunications traffic data - especially IP addresses - which has been suspended in Germany. Images and videos of sexually abused children and young people are shared thousands of times on the internet. Joseph Francis poses for a police mug shot after his arrest in May. Stephanie Francis had a raised red bump on her forehead and she seemed to be "visibly upset." But she told Hopkinton police that she was okay and that she and her husband Joseph were on their way to a separation. The May 20 police encounter with the 44-year-old mother and her "aggressive" and "uncooperative" husband is detailed in police reports. When the reports were written, they supported a slate of domestic violence charges against Stephanie's husband, 45-year-old Joseph Francis. They also detailed Francis' weapons, including illegal high-capacity magazines for pistols and rifles. But by the end of this past weekend, the reports had come to foreshadow the end of Stephanie's life. By 12 a.m. Saturday, the woman was dead, apparently from a gunshot wound, and by midmorning Saturday, her husband was wanted on a warrant accusing him of homicide, according to state police. Not long after, police spotted the 45-year-old and pursued him intermittently until he lost control of his SUV and was pronounced dead at the scene. A domestic encounter last month led to police involvement The encounter between police and Joseph Francis last month started out in the driveway of the Francis family home on a plot in a leafy wooded area not far from the Ashaway Sportsmen Club. Francis was "aggressive uncooperative" and out of control until police shocked him with a Taser, according to the police report. Francis had been drinking. When he calmed down, he told Hopkington police he had smashed his wife's cell phone on the floor of their garage. He told police he was angry that his wife was meeting other men on an online dating site but acknowledged he had been on such a site himself, police say. Stephanie told police that she and her husband had wrestled over a notebook that contained a police report that focused on a cyber-harassment incident involving her husband. A domestic homicide Late Friday night, Hopkinton police notified state police of Stephanie's homicide in the family's home on Stubtown Road, a dirt road marked unofficially as private, with no trespassing signs, even though it's plowed by the Town of Hopkinton. Detectives identified Francis as the suspect and obtained an arrest warrant charging him with murder and violation of a no-contact order with both counts falling under Rhode Island's domestic violence statutes, according to Rhode Island State Police Lt. Col. Robert Creamer. Hopkinton Police Chief Mark J. Carrier said Monday that Stephanie's two adolescent children and a guest were in the house at the time of her death. Her children are in the care of family, he said. Rolling pursuit breaks off and resumes On Saturday, at 10:50 a.m., Westerly police spotted Joseph Francis in his Suburban on Route 1 North, near the intersection with Route 78. "Despite multiple attempts to stop Mr. Francis, he evaded law enforcement," Creamer wrote. Carrier said Monday that the department follows a stringent policy on high-speed pursuits. In this case, officers had maximum latitude, but even then restraint was necessary. Police officers have a lot to lose in such a situation, Carrier said. "He had nothing to lose," he said. "His flight showed that." Carrier said he believes Francis, at that point, aimed to escape law enforcement. "He was actively fleeing," he said. Police were not going to drive 115 mph on back roads, putting their own lives and the lives of civilians in jeopardy, he said. Instead, he said, authorities spread the word and "flooded the zone." Police flooding southern Rhode Island in manhunt The feeling was that "somebody's going to get eyes on him again," Carrier recalled. Carrier said he's uncertain how long it took, but the SUV turned up in Charlestown. Charlestown and Richmond police officers made pursuit. One Charlestown police supervisor tried to disable and stop the fleeing Suburban by ramming it, Carrier said. That didn't work. Francis' path led to Dawley Park Road. He sped down it and lost control at the intersection with Nooseneck Hill Road. The SUV tore across both northbound lanes of Nooseneck Hill Road and broke into a roll. It came to rest on its roof at the tree line, Creamer wrote. Charlestown and Richmond police officers did not approach the crashed SUV, instead waiting until the state police tactical team "affirmed the safety of the scene." When officers finally approached his car, they found Francis inside and medical personnel pronounced him dead at the scene. His cause of death is pending an autopsy, Creamer wrote. This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Hopkinton woman's domestic abuse ends in her death Police search for suspect after Kansas City, Kansas officer stabbed while starting shift Police are searching for a suspect after an officer was stabbed while starting his shift in Kansas City, Kansas Saturday night. An officer started their shift around 9:58 p.m., when he was approached by someone acting bizarre in a parking lot near 47th Street and State Avenue, according to a news release from the Kansas City, Kansas Police Department. The individual took out a sharp object, stabbed the officer twice and fled northbound, police said. The officer had injuries that were not life threatening. Police have not located the individual and are investigating the incident. Anyone with information is asked to call the anonymous TIPS Hotline at 816-474-8477. Approximately 200 Kenyan police officers and support staff arrive in Haiti on Tuesday, June 25, 2024 as part of the first contingent of a United Nations-backed Multinational Security Support mission. Haitian police say they have retaken control of the countrys largest public hospital, more than four months after armed gangs launched coordinated attacks in Port-au-Prince and seized control of the area around the facility to use as part of an escape route. Rameau Normil, the new head of the Haiti National Police, said Monday that police took control of the Hospital of the State University of Haiti, also known as the General Hospital, Sunday night. In their effort to topple Haitis previous governments, armed groups have torched and looted more than 30 private and public health facilities in metropolitan Port-au-Prince since Feb. 29. The attacks plunged Haiti into a deeper humanitarian crisis as it left Haitians like Carole Dieujuste with few healthcare options. A heart-disease and diabetic patient, Dieujuste also has kidney disease and was forced to go weeks without dialysis. She has faced one medical crisis after another over the last four months. After managing to get through a possible foot amputation thanks to the generosity of well-meaning Haitians, she now face an even bigger crisis after suffering a heart attack on Sunday. Her daughter, Nadjla Juste, said she now fears her mother will die because she lacks $300 to pay for oxygen at a private facility. Mon cur se serre a la vision de cette video du site du chantier de l'Hopital general de Port-au-Prince finance notamment par @AFD_France. Des annees de travail sans doute perdues et l'ouverture de l'hopital encore repoussee au sortir de 4 mois d'anarchie. Honte et indignation. https://t.co/ECcGyLXpiN Fabrice Mauries (@FabriceMauries) July 5, 2024 A video shared on X on July 5 by the online media outlet Tripotay Lakay showed the destruction at the General Hospital, where patients paid little for medical care. Its green-and-white building appeared to be vandalized, with furniture strewn on the ground and an electrical utility pole tossed sideways on one of the buildings. Armed groups had used the facility as an evacuation route to get to their nearby base after setting fire to at least a dozen pharmacies in the area and looting a nearby private Catholic hospital. In the background of the General Hospital, a still-unfinished 534-bed replacement facility could be seen. The new building was financed by the United States and France after the 2010 earthquake and was hobbled by financing and contract disputes before the gang violence made its fate even more uncertain. In a post on X, Frances ambassador to Haiti, Fabrice Mauries, expressed his heartbreak over the images. My heart sinks at the sight of this video of the Port-au-Prince General Hospital construction site financed in particular by @AFD_France, Mauries said. Years of work undoubtedly lost and the opening of the hospital further postponed after 4 months of anarchy. Shame and indignation. Normil said Monday in a joint press conference with Godfrey Otunge, the head of the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support mission, that they are working to restore security so that Haitians can freely move throughout the country. The mission, currently consisting of a small contingent of 200 specialized Kenyan police and support staff, arrived in Haiti on June 25. The police chief said over the last 15 days police have been in a period of evaluation and planning over how to neutralize the gangs. He declined to go into details over how operations are being conducted with the Kenyan troops, citing strategic concerns. Such concerns have also been frequently cited by U.S. officials when asked about the extent to which the foreign security personnel will be involved in anti-gang operations with the Haitian police. The presence of an armed international force in Haiti has raised hopes in Haiti, where gangs continue to wreak havoc. Last week, the National Haitian Police Union said two divisional police inspectors and a civilian were killed in southwest Port-au-Prince by armed bandits who later took away the police officers bodies. The incident happened in the Arcachon 32 neighborhood of Carrefour following a deadly attack on June 30 in Gressier, where more than two dozen people were killed and a police station was seized by bandits. Normil did not address the Carrefour incident. Instead, he said that he mounted a task force to seize the Gressier police station and for the first time police seized a back loader the gangs regularly used to destroy buildings, particularly police stations. He also has reinforced a number of police substations, Normil added, including a specialized base used by the border police unit. Otunge said the job of the Kenyan officers is to restore peace throughout Haiti and we intend to achieve this by working closely with Haitian authorities, local police and the international community. There is no room for failure, he said. While the Kenyan police have been steadily increasing their presence on the streets of Port-au-Prince, they recently became the target of backlash when images and video were shared on line of some officers standing guard outside the U.S. Embassy. In a social media post, the Cops Kenya X account called the images misleading. The account said the officers were escorting Otunge, the force commander, and MSS leadership as they paid a courtesy visit to the embassy. TOPEKA (KSNT) A murder in an affluent west Topeka neighborhood was gang-related, according to a police report 27 News obtained through the Kansas Open Records Act. The report sheds new light on details surrounding the crime. The shooting happened at 2:15 a.m. June 21 in the Westboro neighborhood, northeast of 17th and Gage. Brian Wright, 23, was killed in the shooting. A 23-year-old woman, who lives just around the corner from the shooting, was also injured. Police said the murder and attempted murder were intentional and premeditated, but its unknown how the victims were known to the killer. Police believe the shooter was acting on behalf of a gang, according to the report. Mental episode and texting while driving causes crash on I-70 in Shawnee County The woman who survived the shooting lives just around the corner from where it all unfolded, outside a familys $300,000 home in the 3100 block of Westover. The rapid round of about two dozen gunshots caused $5,000 in damage to the inside and outside of the home, the police report said. A 1-year-old and 3-year-old live inside. Police initially said the relationship between the killer and the family of four was unknown, but later clarified that the family is unknown to the victims and the suspects. 27 News obtained audio from a neighbors outdoor camera, which indicated the barrage of rapid gunfire coming from a handgun, followed by a woman crying for help and asking someone for a bottle of water. In addition to the damage to the home, a black car that was riddled with bullets was removed from the scene after the shooting. Police arrested Dasanee Curry, 18, of Topeka, in connection to the shooting in June. He was arrested for murder in the first degree along with other charges. Workers pick up 430 tons of trash from Kansas River homeless camps in Topeka 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. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Polish and allied fighter aircraft were scrambled due to a Russian attack on Ukraine on the night of 7-8 July. Source: Operational Command of the Polish Armed Forces on Twitter (X) Details: The Polish military also noted that an increase in noise levels was possible due to the start of flights of Polish and allied aircraft in Polands airspace. Quote: "Intense activity of the Russian Federation's long-range aircraft is observed today [on the night of 7-8 July], associated with strikes on targets located, among other things, on the territory of Ukraines west." More details: The last time Poland scrambled its aircraft because of Russian attacks on Ukraine was on the night of 21-22 June 2024. Background: On the evening of 7 July, four Tu-95 strategic aircraft took off from the Olenya airfield in Russia. Around 01:30, they performed launch manoeuvres, and the first groups of missiles were spotted in Ukraine's airspace around 02:30. The air-raid lasted until 03:52. Support UP or become our patron! EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU) President Joe Biden made two stops on Sunday in Pennsylvania, one of several key battleground states. The campaign stops come amid growing cries within his own party to drop out of the race. 28/22 News Reporter Gianna Galli sat down with a political analyst for his take. After a tough debate performance in June, President Biden is now trying to convince the Democratic party he is fit for a second term. Political Analyst David Yonki believes Democrats and Biden have their work cut out for them if he is to receive his partys nomination. We have a lot do to folks but we can do it. We are on the cusp of getting so much done. I really mean it, President Biden said. President Joe Biden campaigning in Harrisburg on a sweltering Sunday afternoon as his campaign is taking heat. Its a shame that anybody is going to be judged for 90 minutes of one particular thing in their career, Political Analyst David Yonki said. Yonki is talking about the debate in June that turned to turmoil. After Bidens sluggish performance against the former president and presumptive Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump, calls have grown for President Biden to bow out of the race. Now granted it was bad. But unless something happens in the next week or so that matches that, I think the Democratic Party should give him the opportunity to state his case, Yonki continued. Taking a free swim in Kingston Community Pool But four congressional Democrats on Sunday joined an untold number of other party members who say theyve heard enough. They would rather see another Democrat get the partys nomination for president, like Vice President Kamala Harris. This would be a real big lift to have a new nominee, especially in this short of time, Yonki added. And I honest to God have never been more optimistic about Americas future if we stick together, Biden stated. Earlier Sunday, the president campaigned at a church in Philadelphia where he urged supporters to stay unified. I think he has to make sure that he is on the top of his game. I think he has to be cogent and I think he has to be a little more forceful, Yonki explained. Bidens Harrisburg visit was the first to the state capitol since 2020, but it marked his 10th stop in the commonwealth this year. Battleground states like Pennsylvania are expected to prove critical to the election outcome. The Democratic Party in Pennsylvania and all around the state is going to have to re-double their efforts and for every three votes the Republican party gets, theyre going to have to get five, said Yonki. Yonki believes the decision for Biden to stay in the race or drop out has to be made within the next two weeks. Yonki also says it should be a personal decision made by the president himself. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Father Louie Hotop of Arrupe Jesuit High School leads a prayer in the Colorado House of Representatives on Feb. 13, 2024. (Quentin Young/Colorado Newsline) No day at the Colorado Capitol is the same as the next, but one feature is common to every day: prayer. A formal morning prayer on the floor of the House and Senate comes before anything else, and the primacy lawmakers assign to this ritual implies that scripture is a dominant authority at the General Assembly. Religious belief is central to many Colorado households, and lawmakers often lean on faith for moral guidance. But daily collective prayer, overseen by legislative leaders in the seat of the state government, is corrosive to democratic lawmaking, and it undercuts the Legislatures duty to act on behalf of all Coloradans. It invites a supernatural hand into secular debates and imbues the chambers with the interests of faith. There is not one good reason for it to continue, and there are numerous reasons why it should stop. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX In February, I published an initial commentary on the subject of government prayer at the Colorado Capitol. The piece quoted several of the prayers to which lawmakers are subjected, illustrating that some of the rhetoric can be divisive or false. The commentary also tallied the religious and demographic biases of the prayers. A Newsline analysis found that the person who led prayer in the House more than anyone else during the 2023 and 2024 sessions was Republican Assistant Minority Leader Ty Winter. Before he was elected to the Legislature in 2022, Winter was a far-right conspiracist podcaster with connections to extremist group the Proud Boys. He led 13 House prayers this year, more than any other single person. But hes not the only figure with ties to political extremism who was permitted to lead lawmakers in ceremonies that purport to evoke shared transcendent values. On March 4, Mike Polhemus was invited to lead the House prayer. Polhemus Rock Church in Castle Rock is aligned with dangerous election deniers and the militia-connected anti-government group FEC United. On March 7, state Sen. Mark Baisley was invited to lead the Senate prayer. Baisley has close ties to Charis Bible College, where founder Andrew Wommack advocates the Seven Mountains Mandate, which says Christians should rule over all aspects of society. Charis is associated with the New Apostolic Reformation, a Trump-warrior dominion movement led by self-identified prophets. On April 5, Ric Brown from the Church at Briargate in Colorado Springs was invited to lead the House prayer. The church is a persistent source of anti-LGBTQ bigotry. Capitol leaders should not honor such people with the privilege of any statehouse platform beyond whats due to them as participants in legislative work. More than half 55% of prayers in the House were led by white Christian men. The Newsline analysis found that in the House during the 2023 legislative session, men led the morning prayer almost 80% of the time; more than two-thirds of the prayers were explicitly Christian or represented a Christian perspective; and almost half of the prayers were led by white Christian men. The Senate prayers exhibited similar characteristics. The 2024 session ended in May, and a new analysis shows that the statehouses prayer program retained a clear preference for white Christian men. This year, more than half 55% of prayers in the House were led by white Christian men. Christianity was represented in the House in at least 72% of its morning prayers, an increase from last year. In the House, 76% of the prayers were led by men. In the Senate, 86% were led by men. Leaders should discontinue the Capitols program of prayer not only due to its demographic favoritism and because it sometimes affords odious figures a platform they dont deserve. The larger problem is that no government should have any official role advancing any message of religious faith, particularly not as a daily feature of work it performs on behalf of people of various or no religious beliefs. Government prayer is especially toxic now, when Christian theocracy is ascendant in Colorado and around the country. The most prominent political figure in the state, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert, has explicitly called for the Christian church to direct the government. Oklahomas top education official recently ordered all public schools in the state to teach the Bible. Conservative activists who are preparing for a second Trump administration intend to transform the federal government into an organ of Christian nationalism. Habits are hard to break. But when the Legislature reconvenes in January, it should purify its democratic purpose by ridding itself of government prayer. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST RICHMOND Following a week where apparent cracks began showing in party unity behind President Joe Bidens re-election bid, key Virginia Democrats as well as the president himself started the new week by trying to seal up those breaks. On Monday, Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, reiterated his support for Biden during an appearance in downtown Richmond. Similarly, the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus issued a statement backing shared policy positions among them, Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, and one Virginia representative pledged full commitment to Biden, "our party's nominee." Topping it off, Biden told Congressional Democrats in a letter that he was firmly committed to staying in this race despite concerns raised about his age (81) and mental acumen for a second term. Recent polls nationwide show Biden trailing presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump in many battleground states. In Virginia, also a battleground state, polling has put Biden even with Trump, his White House predecessor. Bidens bad showing in the first presidential debate with Trump on June 27 ignited concerns about age-related dulling of his cognitive ability. While Republicans had been touting it, some Democrats both publicly and privately began to acknowledge concerns that Biden should step aside in the campaign. In Virginia, reports surfaced over the weekend that Sen. Mark Warner was quietly putting together a coalition of Democratic colleagues to approach Biden with the suggestion to step down. Reps. Don Beyer and Gerry Connolly, who represent traditionally blue northern Virginia, were both linked to possible moves along the same vein, both issued public statements supporting the president. Disappointed ... not surprised Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Virginia, speaks during a visit Monday, July 8, 2024, to J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College in Richmond, Virginia. Kaine reiterated his support for President Joe Biden's re-election following reports of intra-party turmoil over Biden's candidacy. Speaking after a tour of J. Sargent Reynolds Community Colleges downtown Richmond campus, Kaine was asked about Warner and the reports. I was disappointed in it, Virginias junior senator said. If you have a conversation with 20 U.S. senators, you kind of have to expect it might get out. So, I was disappointed maybe, not completely surprised. Kaine, opposed for a third term this November by Republican Hung Cao, spent last week on a campaign swing through the state looking to reassure supporters that Democrats were not treading water by sticking with Biden. During the swings kickoff in Petersburg, local Democrats urged Kaine to push his colleagues to turn down the noise on talk of leaving Biden behind. Monday morning, Kaine pointed to oft-repeated comments he made during the swing calling Biden a patriotic American. He said he has had conversations with fellow Democrats, including Warner, but he declined to share what he said. Far be it from me to tell any elected official what their opinion should be or what they should say, Kaine said. Im not going to comment on what anyone else is saying. Ive said what I think. He added he has also had conversations with the White House but Im just going to keep those conversations to myself. But he confirmed that he has not spoken specifically recently with Harris. Should the president decide to not seek re-election, Harris would be among the top Democrats to lead the ticket. 'Demonstrated their values' The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, mostly African American Democrats in the General Assembly, sought to put to rest any dissention with the direction of the party under Biden. The president and vice president, VLBC said, have demonstrated their values. They have fought for and won policies that protect real, working-class people from exploitative corporate interests in the pharmaceutical industry, overwhelming student debt, and the threats our changing climate brings, the statement read. A Trump presidency would set us back a generation, but a second term for Biden would promote the future. The person who we elevate to lead us as a nation must have respect for the democratic process that empowers them to make decisions for the good of the people, VLBC said. The only candidate we trust with this responsibility is Joe Biden. The confidence vote is seen as pivotal in efforts to keep Virginia in the Democratic column where it has been since Barack Obamas first election in 2008. 'Our party's nominee' Rep. Jennifer McClellan, D-Virginia, the first Black woman ever elected to Congress from the commonwealth, issued her own statement of support for Biden. McClellan's statement did not address any concerns about age or mental stability. Instead, she said she backed a Biden-Harris ticket because of "how much is at stake" in the election. McClellan I stand with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to continue their historic progress to protect our freedoms, build an economy that leaves no one behind, and address the threat of climate change," her statement read. "We must re-elect President Biden and stop Donald Trump from bringing his anti-democracy, anti-reproductive freedom and anti-health care access policies back to the White House." McClellan concluded her statement by vowing to "work every day to support Joe Biden, our partys nominee, and do the work necessary to win in November. McClellan's 4th congressional district includes the Tri-City and metro Richmond areas. A deep obligation In the Monday morning letter to Democrats released by the Biden campaign, the president took note of what he called good-faith fears among Democrats about his future. Im not blind to them, he said. I would not be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024, he wrote. While the letter did not rehash Bidens earlier explanations for his bad showing in the debate he was tired, he was fighting a bad cold, he was being distracted by off-mic comments by Trump it did note that with 42 days to the Democratic convention in Chicago and 119 days to the November election, any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. This embedded content is not available in your region. At the same time, though, Biden said party members nationwide have spoken and have chosen him fairly as the Democratic nominee. The letters most fiery rhetoric focused on that, saying the president has a deep obligation to the faith and the trust the grassroots supporters have given him. He did not call out any specific names of detractors, but he did throw shade on them. It was [voters] decision to make. Not the press, not the pundits, not the big donors, not any selected group of individuals, no matter how well-intentioned, Biden wrote. The voters and the voters alone decide the nominee of the Democratic Party. How can we stand for democracy as a nation if we ignore it in our own party? I cannot stand for that. I will not stand for that. Related: Congress returns to Capitol Hill: Here are the five members calling Biden to step aside Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI. This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Biden's re-election hopes bolstered by key Virginia Democrats Press Release July 8, 2024 Villar pushes for avian biodiversity conservation To learn about the rich diversity of bird species in our region is important to preserve their natural habitats for future generations, said Sen. Cynthia A. Villar. As the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, Villar said she fully supports activities that promote conservation and preservation awareness of our animals and native plants. The senator gave the Welcome Remarks during the Anniversary of the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines and Launching of the 13th Asian Bird Fair at Villar Sipag Hall in Las Pinas City. Villar noted this year's celebration is particularly special because of the launching of the 13th Asian Bird Fair 2024 (ABF) in November in Las Pinas. She congratulated the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines, which she has known since 2010. "For bird enthusiasts, she said it is notable that LPPWP is a crucial resting and refueling stop for migratory birds using the East Asian-Australasian Migratory Flyway, with some coming from as far as Siberia," she said.? Over the years, Villar related she is proud that she and the Wild Bird Club have collaborated on numerous programs to ensure the efficient conservation of the wetland park. Villar said both she, and Wild Bird Club's President, Mr. Michael Lu, as members of LPPWP Protected Area Management Board regularly discuss policies and interventions for the park's protection. This fair, Villar said, promises to be a celebration of avian diversity, conservation efforts, and a shared passion for birds. This will be shared with the public, especially students from Las Pinas and Paranaque to be invited in the event. "Asian Bird Fair aims to foster camaraderie, cooperation, and the sharing of knowledge and best practices among bird clubs across Asia. Its goals include promoting bird-watching as a sustainable eco-tourism activity, drawing attention to various bird festivals, fairs, and races, and highlighting the unique attractions and cultural offerings of the host city," she said. "The fair provides a platform for bird enthusiasts to exchange experiences and enhance their understanding and appreciation of avian life while contributing to bird habitat conservation and environmental awareness," she added. Through diverse activities and events, the senator said the the Asian Bird Fair strengthens bonds within the bird-watching community and encourages greater public interest in bird-watching and conservation efforts. Villar, isinusulong ang avian biodiversity conservation Mahalagang malaman ang mayamang kaibahan ng mga uri ng ibon sa ating rehiyon upang mapanatili natin ang kanilang natural na tirahan para sa darating na henerasyon, ayon kay Sen. Cynthia A. Villar. Bilang Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Environment, Natural Resources, and Climate Change, sinabi ni Villar na suportado niya ang mga gawaing nagtataguyod conservation at preservation awateness ng ating mga hayop at native na halaman. Nagbigay ang senador ng Welcome Remarks sa Anniversary ng Wild Bird Club of the Philippines at Launching ng 13th Asian Bird Fair sa Villar Sipag Hall sa Las Pinas City. Iginiit ni Villar na espesyal ang pagdiriwang sa taong ito dahil sa launching ng 13th Asian Bird Fair 2024 (ABF) sa November sa Las Pinas City. Binati niya ang Wild Bird Club of the Philippines na kanyang nakilala mula pa noong 2010. "For bird enthusiasts, she said it is notable that LPPWP is a crucial resting and refueling stop for migratory birds using the East Asian-Australasian Migratory Flyway, with some coming from as far as Siberia," ani Villar. Ipinagmamalaki ni Villar na sa maraming taon. nakasama niya ang Wild Bird Club sa mga programa para matiyak ang epektibong konserbasyon ng wetland park. Bilang mga kasapi ng LPPWP Protected Area Management Board, regular nilang pinag-uusapan ni Wild Bird Club President Michael Lu ang mga polisiya at interventions sa proteksyon nito. Ang bird fair na ito. ani Villar, ay selebrasyon ng avian diversity, conservation efforts, shared passion sa mga ibon. Ibabahagi ito sa publiko partikular sa mga mag-aaral ng Las Pinas at Paranaque na iimbitahan sa naturang okasyon. "Asian Bird Fair aims to foster camaraderie, cooperation, and the sharing of knowledge and best practices among bird clubs across Asia. Its goals include promoting bird-watching as a sustainable eco-tourism activity, drawing attention to various bird festivals, fairs, and races, and highlighting the unique attractions and cultural offerings of the host city," ani Villar. "The fair provides a platform for bird enthusiasts to exchange experiences and enhance their understanding and appreciation of avian life while contributing to bird habitat conservation and environmental awareness," dagdag pa niya. Inihayag ng senador na sa diverse activities at events, palalakasin ng Asian Bird Fair ang ugnayan sa bird-watching community at. hihikayatin na magkaroon ng interes sa bird-watching at conservation efforts. BEIRUT, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's industrial exports doubled to 4 billion U.S. dollars over the past five years, Industry Minister George Bouchikian announced on Monday, highlighting a significant expansion in the domestic manufacturing sector. "The industry sector has become a major contributor to the Lebanese economy," Bouchikian said, according to the National News Agency. "Lebanese products now hold a 67 percent share of the local market, compared to just 17 percent in 2019," the minister added. Bouchikian attributed the growth to a surge in new factories, with the ministry granting licenses to roughly 1,300 in the past three years. "These new investments are crucial for boosting our exports," Bouchikian remarked, noting that the industrial sector now contributes from 37 to 41 percent of Lebanon's gross domestic product. The minister also pointed to promising trends in foreign investment, noting that the ministry is collaborating with European countries and chambers of commerce to establish partnerships "for integrated industries targeting the Middle East." Bouchikian said these partnerships will leverage Lebanon's workforce, geographical location, and strong diaspora ties. According to Lebanon's Investment Development Authority, the top five industrial exports are pearls and precious stones, mechanical machinery, electrical machinery, plastics, and essential oils and cosmetics. FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) The Porterville Police Department has made multiple arrests after multiple business burglaries in the city. Police say over approximately one month, various businesses in the City of Porterville including Target, Marshals, Kohls, Home Depot, and Lowes have reported numerous burglaries during after-hours. According to investigators, the burglaries resulted in a combined loss of tens of thousands of dollars in merchandise. Detectives say they identified Oscar Cardenas as being one of several individuals involved in the burglaries. On Saturday at 9:53 P.M., officers say they spotted Cardenas leaving a home in the 600 block of South Oak View Street and attempted to contact him. Police say Cardenas fled from Officers and a brief foot chase ensued. Officers were ultimately able to apprehend Cardenas nearby. Police say Victor Torres and Terri Lara were contacted and arrested after they refused to comply with lawful orders from Detectives. Detectives say they also arrested Ivelice Chavez who was found hiding in the attic of the residence. During their search, detectives say they found methamphetamine and numerous items that were stolen from various businesses, including tools, clothing, and a large amount of lumber. Detectives say they identified Francisco Abarca as also being involved in the burglaries. Abarca was located and arrested on July 7 around 2 a.m. in the area of Main Street and Vandalia Avenue. Detectives say during the investigation they responded to the Tule River near Prospect Street where they located and recovered a John Deere riding lawn lower that was stolen from Lowes during a burglary on July 5. Oscar Cardenas Victor Torres Francisco Abarca Terri Lara Ivelice Chavez Petriz Police say Cardenas was arrested for resisting arrest, commercial burglary, conspiracy to commit a felony, possession of stolen property, and multiple unrelated arrest warrants. Cardenas was booked at the Tulare County South County Detention Facility and is being held in lieu of $240,000 bail. Abarca was arrested for, commercial burglary, conspiracy to commit a felony, possession of stolen property, and multiple unrelated arrest warrants. Abarca was booked at the Tulare County South County Detention Facility and is being held in lieu of $300,000 bail. Torres was arrested for resisting arrest, commercial burglary, conspiracy to commit a felony, possession of drug paraphernalia, possession of stolen property, possession of methamphetamine, and multiple unrelated arrest warrants. Torres was booked at the Tulare County South County Detention Facility and is being held in lieu of $140,000 bail. Chavez was arrested for resisting arrest, being in possession of stolen property, and possession of methamphetamine. Chavez was booked at the Tulare County South County Detention Facility and is being held in lieu of $30,000 bail. Lara was arrested for resisting arrest, possession of methamphetamine, and multiple unrelated arrest warrants. Lara was booked at the Tulare County South County Detention Facility and is being held in lieu of $85,000 bail. Anyone with information regarding this investigation is encouraged to contact the Porterville Police Department at (559) 782-7400. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are pouring $25 million into new charging infrastructure for electric heavy-duty drayage trucks as California forges ahead with its long-term electric vehicle mandates. The San Pedro Bay ports will partner with regional air quality agencies to install 207 charging units at eight sites in Southern California in a project that will cost $135 million. More from Sourcing Journal Units will be installed in several California municipalities including Wilmington, Rancho Dominguez, Rialto, Fontana, and Commerce, as well as the Port of Long Beach. The Mobile Source Air Pollution Reduction Review Committee, a group that has invested more than $400 million in hundreds of clean transportation initiatives to reduce automotive air pollution in the region, is spearheading the project. The South Coast Air Quality Management District is administering the contracting for the project. Following in the footsteps of a California executive order that will phase out gas-powered cars and trucks for consumers and drayage trucks by 2035, both ports have a joint goal of transitioning to an entirely emission-free truck fleet by that same year. Port of Los Angeles executive director Gene Seroka told Sourcing Journal in May that there were 20,000 trucks registered to pick up or drop off freight at the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, with roughly 9,000 of them hauling regularly or about once a week. Were investing with our Clean Truck Fund to get both zero-emission (ZE) trucks and infrastructure on the street as quickly as possible, said Seroka in a statement. In addition to funding charging stations, were partnering with the state of California to offer vouchers of up to $250,000 toward the purchase of a ZE heavy-duty truck. Every day, were making progress toward our goal of a zero-emission port. The state voucher program was implemented late in 2023 and is aimed at helping truck drivers buy zero-emission vehicles. The twin ports poured a combined $60 million into the program to support the purchases of up to 800 new zero-emissions Class 8 drayage trucks operating across the gateways. Under the Clean Truck Fund, the ports collect a $10 fee per 20-foot equivalent unit (TEU) or $20 fee per 40-foot equivalent on loaded drayage trucks entering or leaving container terminals at both ports. The investment potential provided by the Clean Truck Fund rate is a key to our air quality efforts, said Port of Long Beach CEO Mario Cordero in a statement. These projects with our partners shows the program is working as designed, and demonstrates zero-emissions goods movement is not a buzz phrase here in San Pedro Bay but a goal we make progress toward every day. Both the Los Angeles Harbor Commission and the Long Beach Harbor Commission each approved allocating $12.5 million from their respective Clean Truck Funds for the plan. Exemptions from the rate are provided for loaded containers hauled by zero-emissions trucks, and under limited circumstances, by low-nitrogen oxide trucks. Through March 2024, the Port of Los Angeles collected about $78 million in funds from the program, while the Port of Long Beach has secured almost $75 million. The Port of Los Angeles also recently deployed new battery-powered electric cargo top handlers in June. The handlers, which typically run on diesel fuel, are off-road vehicles with booms that can load and unload 75,000-pound containers onto trucks and trains, and then stack them in terminals. Five new electric top handlers are now being used at the ports Yusen Terminal and can run for two full shifts before needing a five-hour charge. Both ports have been working in tandem with Amazon to accelerate the deployment of electric heavy-duty trucks, with the e-commerce giant launching its first fleet of these vehicles designed to pick up freight at the hubs. In May, Amazon debuted the first of 50 electric drayage trucks that will eventually be deployed to move cargo containers and packages from the ports to Amazon facilities for distribution throughout the region. A dozen are expected to be in operation by the end of 2024 Other logistics companies have put forth recent efforts to bolster electric trucking in the SoCal region and further decarbonize the supply chain. Logistics real estate company Prologis and Maersks logistics services subsidiary Performance Team debuted an EV charging depot in May, located 20 miles north of the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The depot can charge up to 96 EV trucks simultaneously. The charging depot is the third Southern California-based commercial truck EV charging project Prologis Mobility and Performance Team have opened together, with locations in Santa Fe Springs and Commerce. Those stations can charge 38 electric trucks each. By Simon Lewis, Andrea Shalal and Andrew Gray WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Leaders of NATO member states arrive in Washington this week intent on deepening support for Ukraine but will find themselves facing another kind of challenge: how to navigate the possible return of former U.S. President Donald Trump. Host Joe Biden fumbled a June 27 debate, boosting Trump in the polls ahead of a Nov. 5 election that could upend Washington's foreign policy. NATO leaders also confront political uncertainty in Europe, with paralysis looming in France after gains for left and far right parties, and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition weakened after a poor showing in European Parliament elections. The NATO summit, which starts Tuesday, was meant to celebrate the 75th anniversary of a Cold War-era alliance that has found new purpose in opposing Russian President Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine. The White House theory was that (the NATO summit) would show Biden's great strengths, which is that he does get this stuff," said Daniel Fried, formerly U.S. State Department's top diplomat for Europe. "But the debate has knocked everything back. The politics will be overshadowing this." While much of the attention will focus on Biden amid growing calls within his own party to step aside, the delegates will have a full agenda focused on military and financial aid for Ukraine and offering some pathway toward eventual NATO membership for Kyiv. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg, speaking at a pre-summit news conference at NATO headquarters in Brussels, acknowledged that NATO summits always take place within a domestic political context. But he declared: "What I can do, and NATO can do, is that we can focus on the substance of NATO. And that's exactly what we'll do." The Biden administration also projected confidence. A senior Biden administration official briefing reporters on Friday ahead of the summit said allies recognized Biden's work to "reinvigorate the NATO alliance, including expanding it, making it more capable." "Foreign leaders have seen Joe Biden up close and personal for the last three years. They know who they're dealing with," said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. TRUMP 2.0? The prospect of a second Trump term alarms many of NATOs 32 member countries, given his frequent criticism of the transatlantic alliance in and out of office. Trump has suggested he would not defend NATO members that did not meet the alliances defense spending target of 2% of each member's GDP if they came under military attack and has also questioned the amount of aid given to Ukraine. With the summit taking place just days before the Republican convention that will nominate Trump as the partys presidential candidate, NATO officials plan to stress to a U.S. audience that its members are stepping up their defense spending. "The Europeans will have to put a brave face on it and celebrate NATO, celebrate the fact that they've gotten 23 of the 32 members at or above the 2% spending target this year," said Joern Fleck, senior director of the Europe Center at the Atlantic Council. Asked for comment, a Trump campaign spokesperson said: "We had four years of peace and prosperity under President Trump, but Europe saw death and destruction under Obama-Biden and now more death and destruction under Biden. President Trump got our allies to increase their NATO spending by demanding they pay up." Despite the concerns, some diplomats pointed out that four years of Trump as president from 2017-2021 did not spell the end of NATO. "I think we can find ways of working with Trump 2.0 as we worked with 1.0. The approach is different from working with Biden, that's evident. But it's nothing that couldnt be done. Thats why diplomacy is there," said a senior NATO diplomat in Brussels. 'BRIDGE' TO MEMBERSHIP For Ukraine, confronting sustained attacks on its cities by Russian forces, the stakes are high. NATO leaders are expected to endorse an initiative that will see the alliance coordinate arms supplies and training for Ukrainian forces fighting Russia's invasion. U.S. officials have said Ukraine is also likely to get "good news" at the summit on its appeal for more Patriot air defense systems. Some members have also signed bilateral agreements with Ukraine and are expected to talk about those commitments in a demonstration of cohesion, according to diplomats. Ukraine ultimately wants membership of NATO to ward against further future attacks by Russia, but new members have to be approved by all 32 of the alliance's members, some of which are wary of provoking a direct war with Russia. Moscow sees NATO as a vehicle for U.S. dominance and has accused the alliance of returning to a Cold War mindset. U.S. officials have said the summit will offer Ukraine a "bridge to membership," which would include the new NATO effort to coordinate arms supplies and training. Some members want the alliance to make clear Ukraine is moving toward NATO "irreversibly" and are keen for language in a statement emerging from the summit to move beyond the alliance's pledge last year that "Ukraine's future is in NATO." Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has been invited to the summit and diplomats expect him to attend. (Reporting by Simon Lewis, Andrea Shalal and Andrew Gray; additional reporting by David Brunnstrom, Daphne Psaledakis and Nathan Layne. Editing by Don Durfee and Mark Potter) Electricity is essential to just about everyone rich and poor, old and young. Yet, when severe storms strike, socioeconomically disadvantaged communities often wait longest to recover. That isnt just a perception. We analyzed data from over 15 million consumers in 588 U.S. counties who lost power when hurricanes made landfall between January 2017 and October 2020. The results show that poorer communities did indeed wait longer for the lights to go back on. A 1-decile drop in socioeconomic status in the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions social vulnerability index was associated with a 6.1% longer outage on average. This corresponds to waiting an extra 170 minutes on average for power to be restored, and sometimes much longer. The top map shows the total duration of power outages over eight storms by county. The lower map is a comparison with socioeconomic status taken into account, showing that counties with lower average socioeconomic status have longer outages than expected. Ganz et al, 2023, PNAS Nexus Implications for policy and utilities One likely reason for this disparity is written into utilities standard storm recovery policies. Often, these polices prioritize critical infrastructure first when restoring power after an outage, then large commercial and industrial customers. They next seek to recover as many households as they can as quickly as possible. While this approach may seem procedurally fair, these recovery routines appear to have an unintended effect of often making vulnerable communities wait longer for electricity to be restored. One reason may be that these communities are farther from critical infrastructure, or they may be predominantly in older neighborhoods where power infrastructure requires more significant repairs. Commercial areas are often higher on the priority list for faster power recovery in an outage. This store was still closed for several days during Texas widespread outages in 2021. Montinique Monroe/Getty Images The upshot is that households that are already at greater risk from severe weather whether due to being in flood-prone areas or in vulnerable buildings and those who are least likely to have insurance or other resources to help them recover are also likely to face the longest storm-caused power outages. Long outages can mean refrigerated food goes bad, no running water and delays in repairing damage, including delays in running fans to dry out water damage and avoid mold. Our study spanned 108 service regions, including investor-owned utilities, cooperatives and public utilities. The differential impact on poorer communities did not line up with any particular storm, region or individual utility. We also found no correlation with race, ethnicity or housing type. Only average socioeconomic level stood out. How to make power recovery less biased There are ways to improve power recovery times for everyone, beyond the necessary work of improving the stability of power distribution. Policymakers and utilities can start by reexamining power restoration practices and power infrastructure maintenance, such as replacing aging utility poles and trimming trees, with disadvantaged communities in mind. Power providers already have granular data on power usage and grid performance in their service regions. They can begin experimenting with alternative recovery routines that consider the vulnerability of their customers in ways that do not substantially affect average recovery duration. People in some Fort Myers, Fla., neighborhoods still lacked water and electricity more than a week after Hurricane Ian in 2022. Montinique Monroe/Getty Images For socioeconomically vulnerable regions that are likely to experience long outages because of their locations and possibly the aging energy infrastructure, utilities and policymakers can proactively ensure that households are well prepared to evacuate or have access to backup sources of power. For example, the U.S. Department of Energy announced in October 2023 that it would invest in developing dozens of resilience hubs and microgrids to help supply local power to key buildings within communities when the wider grid goes down. Louisiana plans several of these hubs, using solar and large-scale batteries, in or near disadvantaged communities. Policymakers and utilities can also invest in broader energy infrastructure and renewable energy in these vulnerable communities. The U.S. Department of Energys Justice40 program directs that 40% of the benefit from certain federal energy, transportation and housing investments benefit disadvantaged communities. That may help residents who need public help the most. Severe weather events are becoming more common as global temperatures rise. That increases the need for better planning and approaches that dont leave low-income residents in the dark. Chenghao Duan, a Ph.D. student at Georgia Tech, also contributed to this article. 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: Chuanyi Ji, Georgia Institute of Technology and Scott C. Ganz, Georgetown University Read more: The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. Students with the Della Keats precollege program attend a lecture at the University of Alaska Anchorage campus in 2024. (Photo by Chanmi Joo) Students with the Della Keats precollege program attend a lecture at the University of Alaska Anchorage campus in 2024. (Photo by Chanmi Joo) Of all the courses offered by the Della Keats precollege program, the three high school students in the University of Alaska Anchorage lobby were most struck by the cadaver lab in their Anatomy and Physiology course. Its not the kind of opportunity students from rural Alaska usually get, which is the point. Bristol Albrant, a 16-year old from Ketchikan, said the experience was indescribable. Thats definitely not normal. Like, people just dont get to have donors like that, she said. For Tanya Nelson from Napakiak, it was her first time seeing a cadaver. Probably most of our first time, she said with a smile. Albrant wants to go to medical school, Nelson is interested in a nursing career and Cruz Kvaznikoff, an 18-year old from Nanwalek, said his interest in being an EMT was sparked by his father, who is in the medical field. All three of them are living in Anchorage for a month as part of a program aimed at boosting the early college success of rural Alaska Native or otherwise underrepresented students interested in health-related careers. It is named after Della Keats, an Inupiaq traditional healer from the Noatak region. The Della Keats program lapsed for six years due to a lack of funding, but is back for the first time since 2018. Halfway through the program, its organizers learned the initiative won a $1.3 million grant from the Indian Health Service that should keep it running for at least five more years. The program aims to address a gap in health equity. Data shows that nationally, and in Alaska, Alaska Native and American Indian people are underrepresented in health careers. The programs focus is on students considering careers in research, medicine, or health-related professions, so that Alaskans benefit from a more diverse healthcare workforce. The Della Keats reboot comes as the state grapples with a significant nursing shortage in the wake of the pandemic. Gloria Burnett, the director of Alaska Center for Rural Health and Health Workforce at UAA, said several previous grant applications were unsuccessful, so this news is a relief. She said it eases the burden of solving financial problems, so administrators can focus on building the program. A lot of these students dont have access in their home communities to these types of opportunities. So theres definitely that culture shock of leaving their small home community and coming into a bigger place like the university, Burnett said. And what were trying to do is make that a more comfortable place and space for them while theyre still in high school, so that its easier for them once they graduate. Burnett said the new funds mean they will add new components to Della Keats, including outreach to K-eighth graders and creating an Alaska Native learning community for undergraduate students at UAA and in the University of Washingtons multistate medical education program, known as WWAMI after the initials of the participating states names: Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho. The program has staff and courses on the UAA campus. Getting kids interested is one thing, and I think were doing a really good job of that in the state of Alaska, but not necessarily bridging into higher education, she said. She said Della Keats bridges that gap by showing students what training programs look like, what requirements are, and introducing them to paperwork and financial aid. It also shows them how to live independently. Students live in dorms and are given a stipend that they must budget for things like daily lunches and weekend activities. Students like Albrant, Nelson and Kvaznikoff experience college-like courses and independent dorm living with support from mentors who have been through the program and are now in medical school. Chanmi Joo, a program alum who just finished her first year of medical school at University of Washington, participated in Della Keats twice. It is her fourth year as a mentor. Cadaver lab was also my favorite. And it not only solidified my desire to go into medicine, but I think it also helped me realize, like, this is how I can make an impact. Not just with patients, but also, like the future generation, she said. Joo said the program got her started on her path to being a surgeon by helping her decide which parts of the medical field were right for her, so she wants to be part of that for the next generation of health workers. Nelson, who is interested in returning to Western Alaska for a nursing career in the hub city of Bethel, said the program has helped her decide which parts of medicine arent right for her, too. Im not into research, she said. I want to see patients. Yeah, hands on, Kvaznikoff added. Albrant agreed: I dont love being in a lab. I kind of like more figuring out a problem and then solving the problem. After medical school, she said she wants to return to Alaska, too. I think that for school, I might want to move around, she said. But then definitely come back to Ketchikan so I can try to give back as much as possible. Editors note:The article has been updated to reflect that UAA officials say the forthcoming Alaska Native health student learning community would be open to UAA students. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX President Joe Biden sent a defiant letter to congressional Democrats on Monday morning stating unequivocally: "I am firmly committed to staying in this race." This followed his Friday interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulos, in which he said it would take a literal act of God to force him off the 2024 Democratic presidential ticket. "If the Lord Almighty came down and said, 'Joe, get out of the race,' I'd get out of the race," said Biden. "The Lord Almighty's not coming down." That interview failed to reassure many Democrats that Biden has the stamina to defeat Donald Trump in November, or even that he is cognitively fit to serve as president for another term. But make no mistake: He has every intention of continuing his campaign. Moreover, it is extraordinarily unlikely that he will be forced off the ticket, and pundits who expect Biden to ultimately bow out are glossing over some hard truths about power and politicsnamely, that Biden wants to be president again. At the moment, the prevailing wisdom in Washington, D.C., is that Biden's immediate fate is uncertain at best. A previously neutral-to-supportive political media has turned on him completely, in part due to a toxic combination of betrayalreporters feel duped by the White House about the extent of his impairmentsand despair over his dwindling reelection odds; countless mainstream news organizations are now calling for him to drop out. Some congressional Democrats have endorsed these calls, and Democratic leaders on Capitol Hill are currently meeting to discuss Biden's future. Major donors want him gone. Hollywood is out. These defections have impacted the betting markets. On PredictIt, Biden went from having about an 80 percent chance of being the nominee on July 1 to just 40 percent a week later. Over the weekend, New York Times columnist Ross Douthat made the case that not only should Biden drop out, he is likely to do so eventually. "I think Biden will bow out, his current protestations notwithstanding," writes Douthat. The columnist does make note of the major counterexample: Donald Trump, who himself faced open revolt against his candidacy in 2016 following the Access Hollywood tape. Leading Republicans, including the two most recent Republican presidential nominees at the timeMitt Romney and John McCaincalled on Trump to quit the race, but Trump defied them all. He remained the nominee and even won the presidency for good measure. Then, in 2020, the Republican National Convention held competitive primaries and scheduled debates with alternative candidates. (Trump did not attend.) Conservative media christened Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis as Trump's successor. Leaders of the party did everything in their power to move on from Trump. None of this worked. Trump's conviction that he should seek the presidency again is a more powerful motivator for Trump than the party's conviction that he should go away quietly. Douthat acknowledges this dynamic but writes that things are sufficiently different on the Democratic side. Unlike Trump, Democratic political figures actually care what their thought leaders think about them, argues Douthat. Furthermore, "Democrats still appear more capable of functioning and deciding as a party than the Republicans." Republican elites are at the mercy of Trump and his throng of supporters, whereas Democratic elites are dealing with a much more obedient, quiescent base. These are all compelling points. The problem is that they don't matter very much. In order for the Democratic National Convention to nominate someone else when it meets in August, Biden would have to be persuaded to willingly step aside: He already won the delegates, they are bound by "good conscience" to vote for him, and delegates have shown little indication they would do otherwise unless he assented. Biden is the leader of the Democratic Party; there is no higher authority that can remove him from the ticket (other than the Almighty). This means that Democrats who want to nominate a different candidate must convince Biden to go. That's going to be a tough sell, because Biden wants to be president again. (If he didn't want to serve a second term, he wouldn't have run for one.) No one should be surprised by this. It may seem very basic, but political figuresparticularly at the highest levels of influencegenerally seek to retain power. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (DCalif.) recently died in office, and she's hardly the first senator to do so. Ruth Bader Ginsburg cost Democrats a pivotal Supreme Court seat by refusing to retire. In 2022, Sen. Chuck Grassley (RIowa.) ran for reelection; he's currently 90 years old. Trump has been willing to risk nearly everythingincluding his freedomin order to retain control over the GOP and regain the presidency. Polls showing that other Republicans had an even greater chance of beating Biden in 2024 made little difference to Trump; Trump wants Trump to be the president, not just any Republican. Perhaps Biden is not so self-centered and wouldat some pointput the good of the party over his own ambitions. It's at least possible that if Biden were convinced he had no shot at beating Trump, and some charismatic Democratic rival had a good chance at beating Trump, he would step aside. These conditions have not been met; they are not anywhere close to being met. According to recent polls, Biden is likely to lose to Trump. But his only plausible replacementVice President Kamala Harrisfares only slightly better. A CNN poll has Biden six points behind Trump and Harris two points behind Trump. To be clear, this could be a meaningful difference if you're the Democratic Party and your only goal is to maximize your odds of beating Trump. It would be wild and potentially destabilizing to swap the candidates at this point, and historically Harris has been viewed less favorably than Bidenbut it's certainly possible to construct an argument that the Democratic Party should take the gamble. Biden is not the Democratic Party, however. If he drops out, he reduces his own odds of being the president again to approximately zero. No one can explain why Bidenfrom the Biden perspectiveshould do this. Democrats need to persuade their president that his shaky debate performance has made his reelection so improbable that he doesn't lose much by bowing out now. They also need to make the case that Harris is so much more appealing to the electorate that Biden's continued presence in the race is blowing an actually winnable election for her. Again, that's a tough sellparticularly when the people controlling access to Biden are Jill Biden and Hunter Biden, whose judgment in this matter might be far from objective. It's possible, of course, that Democrats overcome these significant hurdles and convince Biden to exit. There's also a possibility that Biden could have a more serious health emergency that does necessitate him dropping out. Barring that scenario, I am comfortable predicting that Biden will be the Democratic nominee for president in November. You can bet on it. I now have a $100 bet with @robbysoave about Biden dropping out. https://t.co/eYhG8aPctV Brianna Wu (@BriannaWu) July 6, 2024 The post Prediction: Sorry Democrats, Biden Isn't Going Anywhere appeared first on Reason.com. Pregnant Mom Said She Fled Wildfire in Calif. After Having Had to Do the Same During Previous Pregnancy "Im supposed to be having my first appointment ... but now my doctors office is closed due to the fire," Arielle Penick told CNN JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty A helicopter surveys the scene at the Thompson Fire in Oroville, California, on July 2. For a woman who fled her home due to a recent California wildfire, it was deja vu all over again. Arielle Pennick, 24, who is pregnant, told CNN that she evacuated her home in Oroville, California, with her 5-year-old son, her fiance and her fiances two children on Tuesday, July 2, the day the Thompson Fire started, the Sacramento Bee reported. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Penick said she was also pregnant in 2018 when she had to leave her Paradise, California, home during the Camp Fire, which has since become the deadliest wildfire in the states history. I was almost seven and a half months pregnant with my son Andrew. And hes 5 now, Penick told CNN in a story published last week. And there was five of us, two dogs and a cat and not one of us had a car. And so we were walking, and we walked for almost a mile. And some guy in a big white truck named Butch, he picked us up and he put us in the bed of his truck. Seeing my big old pregnant belly, he said, Get in. Related: Paradise Residents Speak Out After Deadly Wildfire Ravages California Town: 'We Have Nothing' Penick found out that her Paradise home was mostly gone several weeks later at the time of the 2018 fire, which killed 85 people and destroyed almost 20,000 structures. All my baby stuff, my original ultrasounds from my pregnancy were burned, she told CNN. "All the stuff I had for my son. I was supposed to have my baby shower on Nov. 11, and the Camp Fire happened on the 8th so I didnt even get to have my baby shower. The Thompson Fire brought back memories for Penick, who said seeing the smoke in the sky immediately kicked in the PTSD from the Camp Fire. Im supposed to be having my first appointment in Oroville on Friday, but now my doctors office is closed due to the fire, she told CNN. At the moment, Penick is staying at the home of a friend who also survived the 2018 Camp Fire, according to CNN. As of early afternoon Monday, July 8, per Cal Fire, the Thompson Fire, which covered 3,789 acres, has been 98% contained. There were no reported deaths and two injuries while 26 structures were destroyed. About 20,000 residents were ordered to leave because of the latest wildfire in Butte County, where Oroville sits, the San Francisco Chronicle reported. Related: Hawaii Fire Death Toll Reaches 93, Becoming Deadliest US Wildfire in More Than 100 Years California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a state of emergency on Wednesday, July 3, in response to the Thompson Fire We are using every available tool to tackle this fire and will continue to work closely with our local and federal partners to support impacted communities, Newsom said in a statement. As we head into some of the most challenging months of wildfire season, the state is better prepared than ever to protect at-risk communities with new tools, technology and resources. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. TAYLOR COUNTY, Texas (KTAB/KRBC) In this weeks episode of Big Country Politics, Diana Hartman, president of the Abilene Republican Women, discussed grassroots efforts in Texas politics and addressed the division within the Republican party. The worst presidential debate in American history: Dr. Paul Fabrizio analyzes debate, Bidens performance & future of U.S. politics Abilene Republican Women was established about two years ago as a part of the largest group of politically active women in Texas, the Texas Federation of Republican Women. Hartman explained that the chapter was created because she saw that the Taylor County Republican Party wasnt very active at the time. We got started. A friend of mine, Darla Keeling, and I were one day very angry after watching Fox News. We were like, weve got to do something. So it prompted us to start looking into getting active in our local Republican Party. We had gone to several of the Taylor County Republican parties, and we were trying to get into doing something to activate our precincts; we looked at our precincts, and we found out that neither one of our precincts had a precinct chair. We put in our application to be precinct chairman, Hartman shared. We basically went in there and tried to get active in the Taylor County party. We found out that they werent doing much they were just meeting like maybe once a month, and at that point in time, I dont think they were meeting once a month, every like meeting every quarter. So they have to do that by the law of the GOP. Thats their rule. We just started getting active and doing things and we found out that things werent really moving along. So what we did is we started Abilene Republican Women. Just a few weeks ago, Chris Carnahan, chairman of the Taylor County Republican Party, appeared on Big Country Politics to discuss his re-election and reuniting the local Republican Party following his resignation earlier this year, before the primary election. Hartman believes that what he said was not uniting the party. The one thing that the Taylor County Chair is supposed to do is have a convention before our state convention to get representatives to represent our county and go as delegates to the state convention. He had no intentions of doing that. Back in February, he went on another show, and he said that he was resigning and told everybody he was resigning from his position as the Taylor County Chairman. What prompted that was some of the CEC, which is the county executive committee, got together and wanted to have a meeting to get prepared for our precinct Convention, which we have to have before we go to the state convention. And he had no intentions of doing that, Hartman said. We have to swamp the Democrats: Taylor County GOP chair urges Republican unity, addresses influence of outside organizations on elections She shared that she believes he resigned due to personal beliefs during the House District 71 race between Stan Lambert and Liz Case. I dont think he wanted to support her [Liz Case]. And thats why he resigned because, as a whole, youre supposed to support all the candidates that are running, not just make, at that point in primaries, we dont pick who it is until the voters decide. Then were all in on whoever the voters voted in. I think he wanted to support Mr. Lambert, who was running because Liz was running against him. So he resigned because they were wanting to have an executive committee meeting because he had nothing planned for any kind of a state convention or anything like that. So, we do not think his intentions were to do that. And, of course, it didnt happen, Hartman shared. She said his resignation split the party right down the middle, and half of them went to one side and one to the other. We had to bumble around and try to get pulled back together to have our precinct convention to get ready for state. There were a lot of good people that helped us and Mr. Pickens was one of them. That helped us, as well as rich Sanders, Dr. Rich Sanders, and several others who pulled the party back together. We had our precinct convention. We had more delegates go this year than Ive ever remembered. I think we had like something like 32 delegates go from this county, which doesnt seem like a lot. But when you only had six in the years passed, thats a lot of people, Hartman said. Taylor County Republican Party chairman resigns ahead of primary election Divisions within the Republican party have been a longstanding issue. Hartman mentioned that she attributes some of it to a lack of activity and teamwork, although she is unsure about its exact origin. Its that old saying, teamwork makes the dream work. A lot of times, there was a lot of opposition from Chris when people would come up with ideas on how to get the vote out or go door-knocking, or just do anything new and different. He wasnt on board for that. He kind of liked it to be just the little feudal people that were running it, there was about four of them at that time that were running it. People werent encouraged to do anything other than what their agenda was. I know that during the scramble of trying to reorganize, they had to come up with a new set of bylaws. They actually have made it where theres now committees, different committees that all get together and make the decision for the party. Its actually using the talents of the people that are coming in and weve had a growth in membership. I know that were up to nearly 50 members, just in Republican women, Hartman explained. She recommended making amends through apologies to bring the party back on the same page. I always think that apologies all around would work, you know, just coming out and apologizing for doing that. Whether it was ego pride or whatever, he could still come back and just say Im sorry, I did this. Lets try to work together. I think that would go a long way with a lot of the people who are in the party right now because its not just women; its men too. Because we were left in a large, a big large for many, many weeks, and we had to decide how we were going to get back to sending those delegates, and it really, unfortunately, it kind of pulled us together when he stepped out of the way and we were just like, you know, got it all organized and ready to go, Hartman shared. Rep. Arrington discusses legislation to breakup healthcare monopolies & bill to fund Dyess AFB Hartman shared that division is not uncommon, but you can still stand alongside someone without seeing eye to eye. The grassroots effort is a diversity of people who are coming together with one common purpose. So there is sometimes division and our party, but, you know, this isnt the first time this has happened. And Ronald Reagan said it best when he said, If a man is with you 80% of the time, and you disagree 20%, Hes still on your side, you know, so thats what we have to look at now, Hartman shared. She mentioned that they are progressing with their plans to urge the seven golden cities to maintain the states red status. Weve been planning this for over a year to have the seven golden cities, and I dont know if youre aware of it, but when Cortez first came to Texas, he was looking for the seven golden cities that the Aztecs had somewhere. And, of course, he was doing it for a different reason. We are looking at it as a way to hold and keep Texas red. In the last election and 2020, that actually did happen. West Texas did hold the state as a red state because the metropolitan areas, a lot of them were already turning mostly blue, or you perceived as blue. we are trying to start that effort again. There are seven cities, which are Abilene, Amarillo, Midland, Odessa, Lubbock, Wichita Falls, and San Angelo, and the seven cities; if we can get our little cities around us to also join us, then we will be able to hold that line. Because if we get 70% of our vote out, we can hold the Metropolitan studies, Hartman explained. Big Country Politics: Heritage Foundation expert reveals research about big techs election influence The Abilene Republican Women is hosting an event on July 12-13. The $75 fee includes breakfast, lunch, and dinner on Friday and breakfast and lunch on Saturday. The event will feature Troy Jackson, Abraham Enriquez, Ben Quine Troy Jackson comes from the site party as one of their trainers. Hes gone out and done this before in the Dallas area. Abraham Enriquez, I had heard today from somebody that Trump has got him on his radar to work their six precincts in the United States right now that Trump needs help with and theyre mainly Hispanic. He is going to get Abraham to come out because he has some things to make the Hispanic voters realize that maybe they may be Republican after all. Its really exciting some of the things that hes bringing to the table on that, Hartman shared. We have Ben Quine, who is from the Christians Engaged, and he works with Bunni Pounds, who just wrote a book, Jesus and Politics. It basically talks about how we always think that you dont separate church and state. But thats not what we think God intended. He was the creator of politics and everything. Hes going to be bringing to the table how we can engage the Christian voter because only one out of four Christians vote, and that is so shocking because I think everybody from my church voted, but its not always true. We also have Steve Hemphill, who is our keynote speaker for Friday night after a nice barbecue dinner. He wrote the book, What Are the Stakes, and he also searched for the real heaven. He is also going to teach us about the spiritual warfare aspect. To learn more about the Abilene Republican Women and their events, visit their 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 KTAB - BigCountryHomepage.com. President Joe Biden delivers a campaign speech where he announced that he will remain in the race at Sherman Middle School in Madison, Wis., on Friday. Photo by Tannen Maury/UPI July 8 (UPI) -- President Joe Biden said that he is not stepping down as the Democratic nominee in a letter to congressional Democrats on Monday. "I want you to know that despite all the speculation and press elsewhere I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race and to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," Biden wrote in the letter, obtained by The New York Times and other outlets. Biden called for the Democratic Party to unite behind him as he campaigns for re-election, highlighting his performance in the nominating process. A majority of primary voters cast ballots for the president in the spring, setting him up to be officially nominated at the Democratic National Convention beginning on Aug. 19. "The voters -- and the voters alone -- decide the nominee of the Democratic Party," Biden wrote. "How can we stand for democracy in our nation if we ignore it in our own party? I cannot do that. I will not do that." President Joe Biden looks towards reporters shouting questions as he walks towards the White House after landing in Marine One on Sunday in Washington, D.C. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI The president has faced calls to step aside following his performance in the first presidential debate against former President Donald Trump last month. "I can respond to all this by saying clearly and unequivocally: I wouldn't be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024," Biden wrote. President Joe Biden and former president Donald Trump stand on the stage as CNN hosts an election debate in Atlanta on June 27. Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/UPI Biden's campaign and White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said after the debate that Biden had a cold. During the debate his voice was hoarse and he appeared lethargic. He tested negative for COVID-19 before taking the stage in Atlanta. Concerns about Biden's debate performance overshadowed that of former President Donald Trump, who shared dozens of falsehoods and signaled the return of immigration policies that have been considered inhumane. Trump also indicated he would end support for Ukraine against the invasion by Russia. Biden wrote that he has "heard the concerns" and is "not blind to them." "Believe me, I know better than anyone the responsibility and the burden the nominee of our party carries," he wrote. Biden contrasted his policies and plans for a second term with Trump's as he warned of Trump's loyalty to the oil industry and plans to further restrict the reproductive rights of women. Biden said he would again make the Roe vs. Wade decision "the law of the land" if Democrats win majorities in the House and Senate and he is re-elected. He also evoked the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol, saying Trump can never be allowed near the office of the president again. "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end," Biden wrote. "We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump." New president at Florida Poly replaces longtime provost with New College administrator New Florida Polytechnic President Devin Stephenson has replaced the school's longtime provost, Terry Parker, with an administrator from New College of Florida in Sarasota. One day after assuming his role as president of Florida Polytechnic University, Devin Stephenson has made a significant staffing change at the Lakeland school. Stephenson is replacing Terry Parker, who has served as provost at Florida Poly since 2016. Bradley Thiessen, an administrator for the past eight years at New College of Florida in Sarasota, will take the role. Parker came to Florida Poly eight years ago from the Colorado School of Mines, regarded as one of the nations top schools for science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs. As provost, Parker directed academics, student recruitment, faculty hiring and the pursuit of research grants. Parker will remain at Florida Poly in an administrative role through Sept. 5, Stephenson said in a news release. We extend our deepest gratitude to Dr. Parker for his exceptional leadership and unwavering dedication to Florida Poly over the years, Stephenson said in the release. Under his guidance, we have witnessed growth and enhancement in our academic programs, alongside the expansion of key research initiatives. These efforts have elevated Florida Polys reputation on national and international stages. Thiessen, 47, was appointed as interim provost and vice president for academic affairs at New College last year, following the departure of longtime administrator Suzanne Sherman. She left the school amid tumult as Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis directed a transformation of New College that included the firing of President Patricia Okker and the elimination of the schools Office of Outreach and Inclusive Excellence and its gender studies program. Thiessen's salary is $250,000, a Florida Poly spokesperson said. Before joining New College, Thiessen worked as a university assessment coordinator at St. Ambrose University, a private institution in Davenport, Iowa. Thiessen also taught in the department of mathematics and statistics and served as department chair during 12 years at the school. In 2020, the University of Hawaii at Hilo announced that Thiessen had been appointed as director of institutional research. He reportedly left that role in 2023. Thiessen previously held administrative roles at Touro University California and in the public school system in Clinton, Iowa, New College said in a news release announcing his hiring in 2016. He holds a doctorate and a masters degree from University of Iowa in educational measurement and statistics, and a bachelors degree in secondary mathematics education from St. Ambrose University, the release said. 'There was no guide': Randy Avent reflects on 10 years of leading Florida Poly in Lakeland While at New College, Thiessen helped oversee accreditation, institutional performance assessment and academic administration and leadership, the release said. Stephenson cited Thiessens STEM credentials as an accredited professional statistician. Florida Poly is the only member of the State University System with programs concentrated on STEM curricula. Stephenson also announced a promotion for Kelli Stargel, the former state senator from Lakeland who joined Florida Poly last year as senior adviser for strategic relationships. Stargel is now associate vice president of strategic relationships. In that role, Stargel will oversee legislative affairs, local government relations, strategic partnerships and international relationships, Stephenson said in the release. Her salary increases to $175,000. As our University continues to evolve, these adjustments will be key to strengthening our administrative framework, elevating our academic programs, solidifying our rising reputation, and ensuring we remain at the forefront of technological advancement and ingenuity, Stephenson said. Stephenson, 71, had served since 2017 as president of Northwest Florida State College in Niceville. Before that, the Alabama native held executive administration roles for more than 15 years at community colleges in Alabama, Missouri and Kentucky. Florida Polys board of trustees voted 7-6 in April to hire him as the successor to Randy K. Avent, who had led the school since its opening in 2014. Stephensons first official day on campus is July 15, according to a news release. Gary White can be reached at gary.white@theledger.com or 863-802-7518. Follow on X @garywhite13. This article originally appeared on The Ledger: Florida Poly's new president hires provost from New College WARSAW, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a bilateral security agreement in Warsaw on Monday, just one day before the start of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) summit in Washington. The agreement spells out Poland's continued defense support for Ukraine, especially air defense. Poland also pledged to support energy security for Ukraine, and participate in reconstruction. The European Union (EU) and 19 countries have signed similar agreements with Ukraine, Tusk noted. The document includes practical bilateral commitments, not just "empty promises," he added. President Joe Biden to speak in Austin as Republican convention kicks off in Milwaukee AUSTIN (The Texas Tribune) President Joe Biden will deliver remarks at Austins Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential Library on July 15 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act, a White House official confirmed on Sunday. The visit is the first of three stops in three days, starting in Austin, then onto Las Vegas where Biden will speak at the 115th NAACP National Convention on July 16 and then the following day at the UnidosUS annual conference, described as one of the largest gatherings of Latinos in the country. His appearance in Austin coincides with the opening day of the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where Republicans will discuss their party platform and formally nominate Trump. The trips to Texas and Nevada follow Bidens poor debate performance against former President Donald Trump on June 27. The presidents fumbles led some Congressional Democrats, starting with U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin, to call on Biden to withdraw from the race for president. Doggett was not immediately available on Sunday to comment on Bidens upcoming visit to Texas. The LBJ Presidential Library has not yet released a statement about the presidents visit but has confirmed the event. On July 2, 1964, Johnson signed the Civil Rights Act into law, which barred discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion or national origin. Biden plans to discuss his administrations progress advancing civil rights and his vision to ensure the promise of America for all communities, according to White House staff. In 2014, U.S. presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter visited Austin for a three-day summit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Bidens remarks at the NAACP national convention in Las Vegas will focus on his administrations efforts to advance racial justice, according to a statement from the White House. Growing numbers of Democrats, including in Texas, have expressed concern that Biden could cost them their seats in November. The president has engaged in a series of campaign stops to try to quell Democrats concerns about whether Biden is fit for another term in office. Biden would be 86 by the end of a second term. This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/07/07/texas-joe-biden-lbj-library/. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Mondays White House briefing devolved into an angry back-and-forth between reporters and White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre after visitor logs reviewed by The New York Times found that renowned medical expert specializing in movement disorders and the treatment of Parkinsons disease visited the White House eight times in the last eight months. Dr. Kevin Cannard, a neurologist at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, made the visits to the White House between July of last year and this March. More recent visitor logs are not yet available to the public. The Times found that on Jan. 17, Canard met with White House physician Dr. Kevin OConnor, and Walter Reed cardiologist Dr. John Atwood. Jean-Pierre was bombarded by questions about Cannards visits, and if he had visited the White House to treat the president or another patient. Has the president been treated for Parkinsons? No. Is he being treated for Parkinsons? No. Jean-Piere declared to the press corps. WATCH: White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre spars with reporters while answering questions about President Biden's health. "Has the president been treated for Parkinson's? No. Is he being treated for Parkinson's? No." pic.twitter.com/YmoVdrj2g3 MSNBC (@MSNBC) July 8, 2024 The assertion came after a long, heated exchange between the press secretary and reporters seeking clarification on Cannards trips to the White House. CBS News correspondent Ed OKeefe accused Jean-Pierre of allowing the issue of Bidens health to fester with indirect answers. Theres no reason to go back and forth in this aggressive way, Jean-Pierre said. Every time, I answer the questions you guys ask. OKeefe countered: You answer incorrectly and we have to come back and clean it up! The White House press briefing today got extremely heated between CBS News correspondent Ed O'Keefe and Karine Jean-Pierre after KJP wouldn't discuss why a Parkinson's specialist repeatedly visited the White House. "It doesn't matter how angry you get with me" pic.twitter.com/VovyOvWklu Justin Baragona (@justinbaragona) July 8, 2024 The reasons for the visits were not specified in the Times report, but earlier this month President Joe Biden signed the Dr. Emmanuel Bilirakis and Honorable Jennifer Wexton National Plan to End Parkinsons Act. The law authorizes the creation of a Parkinsons advisory committee, and requires the Department of Health and Human Services to develop and evaluate progress on a government-wide plan to address Parkinsons and related diseases. Jean-Pierre did not raise the legislation in her response to reporters questions. Instead, she pointed to the presidents most recent physical, in which Dr. OConnor wrote that an extremely detailed neurologic exam was again reassuring in that there were no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder, such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons or ascending lateral sclerosis. Every time hes had a physical, he has had to see a neurologist, Jean-Pierre said. For security reasons, we cannot share names, she added when pressed for clarification about Cannards involvement with the White House. It doesnt matter how hard you push me. It doesnt matter how angry you get with me. Im not going to confirm a name, Jean-Pierre told reporters as tensions rose within the briefing room. What I can share with you is that the president has seen a neurologist for his physical three times. According to his online biography, Cannard served as Neurology Consultant to the White House Medical Unit and the Physician to the President between 2012-2022. The White House declined to comment to the Times on the reason for his visits, but said that a wide variety of specialists from the Walter Reed system visit the White House complex to treat the thousands of military personnel who work on the grounds. The visits have raised alarm bells amid concerns about the presidents declining cognitive health following a disastrous debate against former President Donald Trump in June. Since the debate, Biden has repeatedly ducked questions about whether he would submit to a comprehensive cognitive evaluation, and release the results to the public. Biden has instead referred repeatedly to his annual physical, which includes a neurological assessment. Biden himself has pushed back on theories that his blunders during the debate were caused by a degenerative neurological disorder. During a Friday interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos, Biden blamed his lack of performance on exhaustion. It was a bad episode. No indication of any serious condition. I was exhausted. I didnt listen to my instincts in terms of preparing and and a bad night, he said. The president added that he gets a full neurological test every day, through the demands of his job, and pointed to his annual physical as evidence of his health. Biden added that there was no reason to undergo a separate, independent cognitive evaluation. In a Monday morning interview with MSNBC, Biden was asked directly by Morning Joe host Mika Brzezinski if hed been tested for any age-related illnesses, pre-Parkinsons or anything like that, that might explain sort of having a night like that where you couldnt finish sentences? Biden laughed at the question, replying that he had been feeling ill for the debate and had been tested for Covid-19. If there was something that was wrong that night, its not like it comes and thats one night and it goes away, he added. But while Biden would like to write off the debate as a bad night in an otherwise strong campaign, the answers provided to the public in the days that followed have done little to reassure anxious voters about the health of their president. More from Rolling Stone Best of Rolling Stone LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA) Crew members with NOAAs Hurricane Hunters in Lakeland started flying through Hurricane Beryl on June 29 and landed their final mission Sunday night. Id say it was pretty alarming in the beginning because when I first got pegged for it, I didnt expect much. Its June, maybe a tropical storm. We could get some good research done and then kind of move on with our hurricane season, said Lieutenant Commander Joshua Rannenberg. At least 2 killed after Hurricane Beryl makes landfall But then, LCDR Rannenberg, the lead pilot during hurricane missions, realized things were escalating quickly. We were operating for the first time and we knocked a lot of rust off, he said. LCDR Rannenberg said he often finds himself flying missions over the July 4th holiday, but its not usually for Category 5 hurricanes. Thats something that I dont usually see until October. Its just so warm this year I guess and the conditions were good for it so the storm really took off, said LCDR Rannenberg. The Lakeland-based flight crews fly through storms to collect real time data for forecasters, using doppler radar, dropsondes and even drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles. The bread and butter for our team at NOAA is the research we do. We have the only two aircraft in the entire world that were made special for this mission, said LCDR Rannenberg. LCDR Rannenberg has been flying with the NOAA Hurricane Hunters for nearly six years and clocked more than 2,000 flight hours. He refers to hurricane missions as predictably unpredictable, especially as the aircraft approaches the eye wall. Is it going to be a lot of lateral wind shear pushing us sideways? Is it going to be violent up and down drafts? Is it going to be crazy and choppy or are we going to hit hail, graupel? How is the rain? How is the precipitation going to look? said LCDR Rannenberg. Last year, Hurricane Hunter planes flew 468 mission hours and flew through the eye of a hurricane 120 times. It was a busy hurricane season but only one hurricane made landfall in the United States and that was Hurricane Idalia in Floridas Big Bend area. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. "It was pretty brutal": More Democrats call for Biden to withdraw on leadership call Several Democratic lawmakers told House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries that President Joe Biden needs to step down from the 2024 campaign in a House leadership call on Sunday, CNN reported. The call was held to see where Democrats stand on Bidens candidacy after his deplorable debate performance last month. Some expressed concern that Democrats would lose their chance at a house majority if Biden remained in the race and many agreed that a more adept candidate is Vice President Kamala Harris, a source told CNN. It was pretty brutal, a senior Democratic aide told CNN. Among those who expressed concern in the call were Reps. Mark Takano, Adam Smith, Jim Himes, Joe Morelle, Jerry Nadler and Susan Wild. Nadler, in particular, is notable as he is one of the most senior Democrats in House, serving since 1992 and currently the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee. Jeffries is yet to take a stance on Bidens candidacy and has avoided sharing his own opinion on the matter, CNN reported. A couple other Democrats publicly stated their support for Biden this weekend, but agreed that this week is crucial for the president to regain voters' trust. Given Joe Bidens incredible record, given Donald Trumps terrible record, he should be mopping the floor with Donald Trump, said Rep. Adam Schiff in an NBC interview on Sunday. It should not be even close. And theres only one reason it is close, and thats the presidents age. Schiff said last months debate rightfully raised questions among the American people about whether the president has the vigor to defeat Donald Trump. He urged Biden to consult with people outside his team and inner circle so he can properly assess whether he is the best Democratic candidate to run for president. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Ct., expressed similar sentiments in an interview on CNNs State of the Union on Sunday, stating that this week is crucial for Biden to regain the publics trust post-debate. I think the president needs to make some moves this week to put himself out there in a position to answer those questions. And if he cant do that, then of course, hes going to have to make a decision about whats best for the country and whats best for the party, Murphy said. Murphy added that if Biden can quell voter concerns this week, he absolutely can beat Trump. Five lawmakers have now publicly called for Biden to step down: Reps. Lloyd Doggett, Seth Moulton, Raul Grijalva, Angie Craig and Mike Quigley. In an interview with ABC on Friday, Biden dismissed his debate performance as a bad night and said only the Lord Almighty could convince him to step aside. (Bloomberg) -- Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker is stepping up his fight against Donald Trump, with his pro-choice group buying billboard ads in the city that will host the Republican National Convention next week. Most Read from Bloomberg The campaign seeks to associate Trump and the RNC with the reversal of Roe v. Wade, which led to abortion bans and restrictions in many states. The ads, located near major highways and downtown Milwaukee, were purchased by Think Big America, an organization focused on protecting abortion rights and founded by the billionaire governor last year. Pritzker has turned Illinois into an oasis for reproductive care in the Midwest, and vowed to do whatever he can to keep Trump out of the White House. The governor, who is seen as a potential presidential candidate, has remained mostly silent as more of his fellow Democrats call for President Joe Biden to step aside from the race. The billboards near Wisconsins largest city were placed early this month and will be up through the convention, according to Christina Amestoy, a spokeswoman for Think Big America. One of them reads: MAGA extremists are in town this week to nominate a president who wants a national abortion ban. Stop them. Vote. Thanks to Donald Trump and his allies, access to contraception, IVF, and all reproductive health care is now at risk, Amestoy said in a statement. Whenever a woman is denied the care she needs, remember: MAGA extremists did this to women and were not going to let voters forget it. On Monday, a Republican National Committee panel approved a 2024 platform that details priorities including addressing the migrant border crisis, cutting taxes and boosting domestic energy production. The campaign shared language highlighting 20 principles that didnt mention abortion, but full text of the platform said the party would oppose late-term abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance prenatal care, access to birth control, and IVF (fertility treatments). While J.B. Pritzker takes a break from overseeing the demise of Illinois and the hollowing out of once-iconic Chicago to try to desperately salvage the sinking Biden-Harris campaign, Milwaukee is gearing up for whats shaping up to be a historic Republican National Convention that will highlight the real issues from inflation to crime to a broken border affecting everyday Americans who have gotten worse off since Joe Biden took office, RNC spokesman Kush Desai said in a statement. Milwaukee made headlines last month when Trump called it a horrible city. He later clarified he was referring to crime rates. The city, which regularly votes for Democratic candidates both locally and nationally, will host the RNC from July 15-18. Pritzkers pro-choice group placed two of the billboards at the I-94 and I-43 highways coming into Milwaukee, which is 100 miles (160 kilometers) from Chicago, where the Democratic National Convention will take place in August. The third ad is about a mile-and-a-half away from Fiserv Forum, which will host the Republican event. --With assistance from Sam Hall. (Updates with Republican platform stance on abortion in sixth paragraph, RNC statement in eighth.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Fourth-grader Jeiona Odon sets the tray of food on a lunch table at The Greater Dayton School as fellow student Jacyn Diamond begins placing bowls on a revolving tray at the center. The bowls of Caesar salad, spaghetti and chicken piccata are all made with fresh ingredients. And each bowl has tongs for the half dozen students and a teacher at each table to serve themselves as they rotate the wheel. Two students at the Ohio school step to the front of the cafeteria to present what the schools founding principal A.J. Stich calls the schools grace its goals for each student when they become adults. Get stories like these delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for The 74 Newsletter One of the two students reads each line aloud, then pauses for the 102 kindergarten through fourth grade students in the cafeteria to repeat it: Each day, I will work to achieve our Age 27 goals: Being physically and mentally healthy, Demonstrating character and integrity, Preparing for a career and for financial independence, And living my own definition of success. May this food help our bodies; We are thankful for the hands that made it and for the friends we share it with. Family-style meals and the daily repetition of goals for their adult lives are one of several ways the Greater Dayton School sets itself apart from a typical school. A private school that only accepts low income students, Greater Dayton is designed to help them with more than academics. Its goal is to let students set their own course in life and be financially independent and healthy as adults, not just graduate from high school or go to college. Launched in the fall of 2022, the Greater Dayton School has income limits for all students, other than children of staff who may also attend. The school has a health clinic for students, extended school days until 5 p.m, two teachers in every classroom, individualized learning plans, and even schoolwide toothbrushing times. Initially housed in a former Salvation Army administration building, the school hopes to grow to about 400 students from preschool to eighth grade. Its still an experiment thats too young to show a track record of success, but it already has a buzz around the city and drew Ohios Lt. governor to the grand opening of its new, much larger $50 million building this spring Its really about the whole child, not just about academics, said Larry Connor, a Dayton real estate developer whose company and foundation is funding most of the school. Make no mistake, academics is important. But their physical health and their mental health is integral in obtaining good academic outcomes. The Greater Dayton Schools new building opened this year after founders spent nearly $50 million on land acquisition and construction. (Patrick ODonnell) Though the school is partially funded by state tuition vouchers of $6,165 per student, Greater Dayton spends $30,000 a year or more per student, with Connor and his companys foundation covering the gap. Our objective is to build a model that can be replicated in cities throughout the United States, Connor said. Were trying to take a really long term view, because every community in America has this type of need. Stich and other school leaders consulted successful schools across the country such as Meeting Street Academy in Charleston, S.C., Christina Seix Academy in Trenton, N.J., and the Waterside School in Stamford, Conn. as they built their plan to offer all the supports research says low-income kids need. The giant open staircase with windows on one side and the schools cafeteria on the other is a centerpiece of the Greater Dayton Schools new building. (Patrick ODonnell) The school creates personal education plans for each student and lets them set much of their plan for each day what the school calls their playlist to give them ownership of their learning. It limits classes to 20 students, then places two full-time teachers in each class. Students do much of their work online at their own pace, using programs from Zearn or Lexia while the teachers work with students individually or in small groups. Students are grouped with a few grades in each classroom to intentionally mix ages. Eventually, after it adds grades, the school will group students in classrooms of Prek, K-2, 3-5 and 6-8. Greater Dayton teacher Alyssa Stang, who co-teachers with Brittany Wylie, helps one student with her lesson while the rest of the class works independently. (Patrick ODonnell) From an academic standpoint, I think its wonderful, said Brittany Wylie, who teaches grades 2-4 as the school grows. And its effective. In years past, if I had a fifth grade classroom, the actual academic level of those students could range anywhere from kindergarten through sixth grade, but I was expected to teach them all just fifth grade curriculum, whether they actually grasp it or not. Here, I feel like Im actually seeing students understand and digest and then be able to move on. Greater Dayton also supports students and families with after school activities until 5 p.m. The extra time solves child care needs of working parents, while also helping close the gap between what suburban and affluent students receive in enrichment activities and what lower income families can afford. While some students build models of rockets or the Taj Mahal with Legos, others run a store where others buy items with money they earn by meeting school goals. Mark Kreider, the schools financial literacy teacher, oversees the store after spending the day teaching even the youngest students the basics of business and savings. Students shop at the afterschool store run by Greater Dayton School students to teach them how a business works while teaching other students how to manage money.(Patrick ODonnell) Theres no such thing as too early, Kreider said. I really think that this idea of building wealth, versus just surviving is such a critical concept for our kids, said Kreider. We talk about financial independencebecause if youre in this cycle of paycheck to paycheck, drowning in debt, your options are just incredibly narrow. I dont know what our kids are going to do when they get older, he added. But I just want them to have options. Will they all own a small business? Probably not. But they should at least know how and know how to think about it. Its almost like a worldview, a perspective. Hey, thats the dream. Mark Kreider, Greater Datyons financial literacy teacher, talks with first graders and kindergarteners about how to start a business. (Patrick ODonnell) Students also earn freedom with good behavior, earning the right to work outside the classroom, often on the giant open staircase and terrace with couches that overlook the cafeteria. Student health is a major part of the schools mission. Students have more than an hour of physical education each day. Meals are at least 80 percent whole foods, with minimal processing or sugar, other than a dessert only on Fridays. Students Jeiona Odon and Jacyn Diamond set lunch out on tables before other students arrive. (Patrick ODonnell) The school also has created a medical and dental office in the school, run by Dayton Childrens Hospital, so students can receive care as part of the school day, without parents having to take them out of school. Because Medicaid eligibility is a requirement for most students to enroll, the care is already covered. When its time for kids to go to the doctor, go to the dentist, they walk downstairs, and then they go back to class, Stitch said. The school even makes brushing teeth a daily habit by having all students head to the bathrooms at scheduled times to brush, as teachers watch to be sure they do it right. Mental health is also a priority, particularly since students can come from families facing financial and other challenges. The school has a mental health counselor now for its 102 students and plans to add another as the school grows. Greater Dayton School students dont have to sit in rows of desks, but where they can most comfortably learn, as long as they do their work. (Patrick ODonnell) How much impact the school is having is still unclear. Like other Ohio private schools, its students dont take Ohios state tests. Using NWEA diagnostic test scores and NWEAs own model for comparing scores to Ohio state tests, the school estimates that students are gaining academically faster than state averages and that 72 percent of its students score as proficient, compared to 45 percent of low-income students in Daytons county. Wylie, who previously taught in the high-poverty Youngstown schools, said the school setting high standards and then rewarding students who meet them creates an atmosphere of accountability and trust that shows students how to thrive. We really believe that they can do anything they set their mind to, that they will be successful, and that they are valuable, she said. My personal belief is that students from any background, if they havent had an example modeled for them, they dont know any better. They just need the opportunity to be shown. In the window of a Walgreens in Miami Beach, a community with a high concentration of Jewish residents and a reputation as an international hub for arts and culture, an art installation referenced a highly controversial six-word phrase: From the river to the sea. For some, the phrase is a rallying cry for Palestinian equal rights, autonomy and freedom often chanted at protests around the world calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. For others, that same phrase is hate speech that calls for genocide against Jews and the destruction of Israel. The artwork was rather subtle. Instead of the word river, there was an image the artist took of the Jordan River. Instead of the word sea, there was a photo of the Atlantic Ocean taken in Miami Beach. Miami artist Vu Hoang Khanh Nguyens artwork on display at a Miami Beach Walgreens was removed by arts nonprofit Oolite Art after receiving a complaint about the work referencing the pro-Palestinian phrase from the river to the sea. The nonprofits decision sparked outrage among artists and a controversy in Miamis arts community. The placement of this work in a public space in the midst of Miami Beachs Jewish community, a local art organizations decision to remove it and the subsequent backlash from artists accusing the group of censorship has splintered Miamis tight knit arts community along the same fault lines seen throughout the world. Those critical of the artwork questioned how the group, Oolite Arts, allowed it to go up in the first place. Those critical of the artworks removal questioned why Oolite didnt consult with the artist before deciding whether to take it down, raising concerns about political censorship. Interviews with many of the parties involved made several things clear. Vu Hoang Khanh Nguyen, the artist who goes by Vu, added the artwork to the exhibition to show support for the Palestinian people and didnt tell Oolite about this specific work ahead of time. Oolite staff did not speak to the artist about it after it was installed. And about five weeks went by until someone called Oolite to complain about the work, bringing it to the boards attention for the first time. An artwork by Vu Hoang Khanh Nguyen, an artist who goes by Vu, that referenced the phrase from the river to the sea was removed by arts nonprofit Oolite last month. Tensions have remained high in Miamis arts community, and some artists have called to boycott the organization. Weeks after the work was removed, the local arts community is still reeling from the controversy, with some artists calling for a boycott of Oolite and the resignation of board chair, Marie Elena Angulo. Many demanded a meeting between the artistic community and the board. Meanwhile, others who support Oolites decision to remove the artwork feel silenced. There is one thing everyone can agree on, though. Miamis arts community has never seen something quite like this. That was not the intention at all Oolite Arts boasts a sizeable reputation in Miamis arts scene. Founded in 1984 as ArtCenter/ South Florida, the organization provides local artists with free studio space, grants, professional connections and exhibition opportunities. The nonprofit changed its name to Oolite Arts, referencing the bedrock of Miami, in 2019. Oolite has had an agreement with Walgreens since 1999 to display art publicly in the windows of two Miami Beach locations. Oolite staff typically reaches out to artists who have worked with the nonprofit in some capacity before. That is how Vu, who participated in Oolites travel residency program in 2021, got a call from Oolite project coordinator Laura Guerrero about working on an exhibition at the Walgreens on 67th street and Collins Avenue. Vu, a visual artist and tattoo artist, was born in 1997 in a rural part of Vietnam and immigrated to the United States with their family as a child, eventually settling in Florida. Vu grew up with a talent for drawing and earned a full college scholarship to New World School of the Arts in Miami. The artist graduated in 2020. In their proposal for the Walgreens exhibition, Vu outlined a general idea that would include pottery, fishing nets and artworks that alluded to bodies of water. With this project Id like to play with combining 2D mediums such as painting and drawing with found/hand made object assemblages. I thought this would be a great way to play with and showcase the breadth within my practice, the proposal said. The window display, entitled How we live like water, focused on water as the unifying force that transcends borders and cultures, according to the exhibition description on Oolites website. The artist didnt mention the phrase from the river to the sea or Palestine in the proposal. It was approved by the board, Vu said, and was set to be displayed from March 27 to June 16. Vu got the keys to the window space from Guerrero on March 20 and installed all of the works in the exhibition with the help of some friends. One night that week, Vu came up with the idea to create the from the river to the sea artwork. Gaza was front of mind for the artist. Raised in a family displaced by war, Vu empathized with the plight of the Palestinian people. Vu said they wanted to use their platform to make a statement. South Florida artist Vu Hoang Khanh Nguyen, who goes by Vu, is photographed at the NSU Art Museum Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday, June 18, 2024. Vus art installation in a Walgreens in Miami Beach was removed by arts organization Oolite. I knew it could be found controversial, yes, even offend, but I didnt think they would take it as a literal call for violence towards them, Vu said. Im trying to call for peace, for no violence for anybody. Why would I wish more violence upon you? That was not the intention at all. Vu said that no one from Oolite expressed any concern about the artwork or talked to them about it before May 3. That was the day Angulo said she received a call from a man who found her name on the Oolite website. He told her that he was asked by some members of the community to question why that piece was on the Walgreens window in the middle of a Jewish community and to ask me what Oolite was planning to do about it. Angulo said she told him she was not aware of the piece and that she would investigate. She told the Herald that she quickly consulted with the boards executive committee, who are charged with making fast high level decisions. After a flurry of text messages to Oolites acting interim directors Esther Park and Munisha Underhill, the artwork was taken down within a few hours. To Angulos knowledge, this was the only complaint Oolite had received about Vus artwork. The centerpiece Angulo said she didnt see how the from the river to the sea artwork was a last minute decision by the artist. It was the largest piece of the whole show. It was actually the centerpiece of the show, Angulo said. It was not added to fill at all. It was added to be the main attraction of the show. Angulo said that artists who work on a Walgreens exhibition sign an agreement with a clause that states that any [art] piece added should be approved. But Vus characterization of the process was that it wasnt very strict and that no one from Oolite explicitly told them that the artworks could not be controversial or political. Vu said they were not asked to provide an itemized list or description of each artwork that would be in the show and that Oolite was aware that there would be new artworks that had never been seen before. I thought I had artistic freedom to do what I want, but I guess not, Vu said. Loni Johnson, a Miami-based artist and the 2021 recipient of Oolites Social Justice Award, also had her work displayed in a Walgreens window in the past and described a similar experience. Nobody knew what the final product would be until it was already up, Johnson said. Vu said they wouldve appreciated Oolite having a conversation with them about the complaint instead of rushing to take the work down. I just felt very disrespected. Where was the integrity in that on their end? Vu said. Why was I not allowed to consent to the removal of the work? But Angulo said that even if she had met with Vu prior to removing the artwork, the outcome wouldve been the same. Marie Elena Angulo is Miami nonprofit Oolite Arts board chair. We acknowledge that the process could have been handled better. We are not really looking at this as censorship, Angulo said. We would have taken the same action even if we had taken more time to talk to the artist because we would have done the same in any other context where there was an offensive statement to the members of the community that is viewed by a large number of people in that community as offensive. The decision to remove the work boiled down to the phrases controversial nature and the exhibitions location in a large Jewish community, Angulo said. She drew this comparison: If she had gotten a call from a Black resident about a Confederate flag in a Walgreens window, she said, she wouldve made the same decision. The good thing out of this bad thing How did this happen if it technically violates Oolites own policies? Angulo said Oolites staff has been juggling too much. The people involved in the day to day running of the organization at the time it was installed were Underhill and Park, who are respectively the vice president of development and vice president of programming. Neither responded to a request for interviews. Guerrero also didnt respond for comments. The Miami Herald could not verify if any Oolite employees saw Vus final work installed. In the last six years, Oolite has awarded $3 million to artists through its annual Ellies Awards, funded feature films through its Cinematic Arts Residency program and started a $12,000-a-year housing stipend initiative for resident artists. After the $88 million sale of one of its Lincoln Road buildings, the group is currently overseeing the construction of its $30 million new facility in Little River. Rendering of Oolites $30 million headquarters, located at 75 NW 72nd St. in Little River. Angulo said the organizations staff of less than 10 people has been affected by leadership changes. After the previous CEO and president Dennis Scholl stepped down from Oolite after six years, Tania Castroverde Moskalenko was hired as interim CEO, but she left the organization in February to accept another job. Underhill and Park then took on the roles of co-interim directors in addition to their other duties, Angulo said. After the Walgreens situation, the group removed Underhill and Park as co-interim directors to focus on their respective roles and hired Maggy Cuesta, the former dean of visual arts at New World School of the Arts, as interim director, Angulo said. Cuesta began on May 13, ten days after Vus art was removed. In a June 4 public statement shared on Instagram, Oolites board of trustees stood by its decision and said it is committed to evaluating our decision-making in this matter and to put in place policies so that artists we work with have clear guidelines and expectations. The Oolite Arts Board of Trustees deeply regrets that the removal of Vu Hoang Khanh Nguyens artwork has offended some in our community, and that its contents offended others in our community. We believe strongly in the right to artistic expression, but the particular phrase highlighted in this piece is perceived by many as a literal call for violence against them, the statement said. Oolite hired a consultant to conduct a review on the incident. The good thing out of this bad thing is that we have had time to review our internal processes and know where to make improvements, Angulo said. Were here to tell the times The fallout from the removal of Vus work in Miamis arts community was swift. Days after the work was removed, Vu posted an online statement about the incident, along with an open letter written by a group of artists that accused the organization of censorship and listed several demands. The open letter now has over 700 signatures. An art exhibition at Oolites Lincoln Road location featuring its resident artists was postponed indefinitely in support of Vu. Its been totally overwhelming to be honest, but Im grateful for the community backing me up, Vu told the Herald. Im glad its grown into something kind of beyond me at this point and artists are realizing how powerful we are together. This wasnt the first time a Miami arts institution removed an artwork related to Palestinian people, which has further sparked concerns among artists about censorship. Arts publication Hyperallergic reported that the Institute of Contemporary Art, Miami quietly removed a portrait of the Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said from an exhibition of Charles Gaines work and later re-installed the piece. [Artists] have to speak out on this as a collective, Johnson said. Just because it wasnt you now, it could be you in the future. Harmony Honig, a Jewish Miami-based performance artist who did not find Vus artwork to be hate speech, signed the open letter criticizing Oolites decision as censorship. Its just really shameful that whats supposed to be a public arts institution would try to shame artists for speaking out against a genocide thats happening in Palestine, Honig said. Its one thing to not publicly condemn it, and its another to censor artists who want to speak about it. In June, several South Florida artists protested Oolites decision by adding pro-Palestinian artworks to the blank space at the Walgreens, including images of watermelons, keffiyehs and the phrase Killing the flowers will not delay spring. The works were visible for several days until all the Walgreens windows were covered. Elias Rischmawi, a Palestinian Miami-based artist, participated in the action. Arts organizations tend to present themselves as progressive on most social issues, Rischmawi said, but not for Palestine. An organization like that should never censor any artists because they understand what an artists role is in society, Rischmawi said. Were here to tell the times, and thats what Vu was doing. Several South Florida artists quietly added pro-Palestinian artwork to a Walgreens window display in protest of nonprofit Oolite Arts removal of a pro-Palestinian artwork. Elias Rischmawi, a Palestinian Miami-based artist, added their artwork inspired by censorship. Others in the arts community didnt see it as censorship. For Ariel Baron-Robbins, a Jewish Miami-based artist who had a studio at Oolite from 2014 to 2016, the phrase is inseparable from its association with the militant group Hamas. Its such an extreme sentence that something did need to happen immediately, she said. I felt sad because the people that were the loudest about it and saying this was this horrible thing Oolite did, I felt like I would love to have a conversation with them and carefully explain what it was that made that statement so bad, she said. But then I also felt like my voice would not be heard. Angulo said she has received several messages from people within the arts community who support Oolites decision. Among those who agreed with Oolite is David Schaecter, a 94-year-old Holocaust survivor and former partner of Miami arts storage facility Museo Vault. Six million Jewish people, including 1.5 million children, and 105 members of my family, were murdered because slogans like this one were ignored and excused, at the same time they fostered unprecedented genocidal hatred. I know I was there, Schaecter wrote in a statement. Some in the community find themselves somewhere in between, like one former Oolite resident artist who asked not to be named. The artist didnt agree with how Oolite handled the situation, but didnt find it necessary for Angulo to step down. This is a very delicate matter, and it should be treated with sensitivity and care on both sides, the artist said. We are dealing with peoples lives and reputations, and we have to all remember no organization is perfect. There is always work to be done. The conversation continues Just two days after Oolites public statement was posted on Instagram, several Miami artists shared posts online calling for a boycott. Johnson was among the first to do so. These organizations and these institutions feel like they can treat artists any type of way and dont realize the pull artists can have, Johnson said. They are indebted to us, not the other way around. The boycott asks artists to not participate in Oolite exhibitions, lectures, film screenings or open studio events. It does not ask artists to leave the Oolite studios theyre already in or return or refuse grant money. That would be antithetical to what were trying to do here, said artist and boycott organizer Misael Soto. If an artist is going to take advantage of the space that was afforded to them according to merit, they flat out deserve that and should be taking advantage of that wholeheartedly without the need to give back anything to Oolite. Its not a trade. Soto said organizers dont deny the positive impact Oolite has had on artists careers, but they do believe Oolites board is in need of structural change, like majority artist representation. Organizers will continue the boycott until there is a town hall discussion with Oolite, its resident artists and the wider artistic community. Angulo found the boycott to be preposterous. I think its fascinating that they are willing to boycott certain things but are very happy to keep getting their free studios and their $1,200 housing stipend that they get each month, Angulo said. And that they are not boycotting our money or resources even though apparently our money is dirty money. But there is hope for continued dialogue. After a meeting between Vu and Angulo in late June, the Oolite board will meet with Oolite resident artists to discuss the matter on Aug. 7. Its good to have these kinds of discussions in person, Vu said. Theres so much to be communicated that cant be done through the internet. This story was produced with financial support from individuals and Berkowitz Contemporary Arts in partnership with Journalism Funding Partners, as part of an independent journalism fellowship program. The Miami Herald maintains full editorial control of this work. The Air Force's Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program has nearly doubled in cost to close to $141 billion, but will press ahead. The U.S. Air Force is pushing ahead with its struggling Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) program despite a new projected price tag of nearly $141 billion, close to twice the original estimate, and now years of expected delays. The Pentagon says it has assessed that there are no lower-cost, but similarly capable alternatives to Sentinel, which is expected to replace the existing Minuteman III ICBM as one of the three legs of Americas nuclear deterrent triad. The Office of the Secretary of Defense announced the results of an official review of the Sentinel program today. By law, per what is commonly referred to as the Nunn-McCurdy Amendment, defense programs that see certain levels of extreme cost growth must be canceled unless various criteria are met. Sentinels rising price point triggered a breach of the Nunn-McCurdy statute in January. The Air Force also sacked the top officer in charge of the program last month, but said this was not directly related to the Nunn-McCurdy review, according to Defense One. The Air Force currently has some 400 LGM-30G Minuteman IIIs deployed in silos spread across five states. An LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBM with no live missiles abroad is seen in infrared after launch during a test. USAF An infrared image of an LGM-30G Minuteman III ICBM taken during a routine test launch. USAF Total program acquisition costs for a reasonably modified Sentinel program are estimated by CAPE [the Office of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation] to be $140.9 billion, an increase of 81 percent compared to estimates at the programs previous Milestone B decision in September 2020, according to a press release the Pentagon put out today. The Nunn-McCurdy review determined that the majority of the cost growth is in Sentinels command and launch segment, which includes the launch facilities, launch centers, and the process, duration, staffing, and facilities to execute the conversion from Minuteman III to Sentinel. Per the Pentagon, the review arrived at the following key determinations to continue the Sentinel program despite the cost breach: Continuation of the Sentinel program is essential to national security. There are no alternatives to the program which will provide acceptable capability to meet the joint requirements at less cost. The new estimates of the program acquisition unit cost or procurement unit cost have been determined by the Director of Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation (CAPE) to be reasonable. The program is a higher priority than programs whose funding must be reduced to accommodate the growth in cost of the program. The management structure for the program is adequate to manage and control program acquisition unit cost or procurement unit cost. The Pentagon and the Air Force have both previously said that Sentinel cost growth is primarily associated with required upgrades to existing missile silos and other launch and command and control infrastructure rather than the missile itself, which is designated the LGM-35A. The average expected unit cost of the LGM-35As, which Northrop Grumman is developing, has still grown now, to approximately $214 million from the original projected $118 million, due to the overall increase in program cost. The estimated unit prices presented here notably factor in costs unrelated to the missiles themselves. A prototype of the nose cone shroud that will go on top of each LGM-35A goes flying during a test. Northrop Grumman It is also important to note that the Air Force is now in the process of restructuring the Sentinel program, which will lead to a further revised cost baseline, which could be greater (or less) than the $140.9 billion figure CAPE produced as part of the Nunn-McCurdy review. Reworking the Sentinel program is expected to take between 18 and 24 months. This certification does not indicate business as usual, Dr. William LaPlante, Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, insisted in a call with reporters, including from The War Zone, earlier today. The program will be restructured to address the root causes of the breach and ensure an appropriate management structure is in place to control costs. A picture showing an LGM-35A Sentinel stage-one solid rocket motor at the Northrop Grumman test facility in Promontory, Utah, on March 2, 2023. Northrop Grumman A picture showing a LGM-35A Sentinel stage-one solid rocket motor at the Northrop Grumman test facility in Promontory, Utah, on March 2, 2023. Northrop Grumman The reason why we now know about those [sic] projected cost growth is because weve dramatically accelerated the maturity of the design of the ground segment thats where the vast majority of this cost growth resides and is being driven by, Andrew Hunter, Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics, also noted while speaking alongside Under Secretary LaPlante on todays press call. That increase in maturity happened because Dr. LaPlante approved change an acquisition strategy so that we would get after the construction design and testing of those ground segments earlier in the program compared to the previous plan. So as he identified there were some gaps in maturity we moved to accelerate those elements of the program [and] we uncovered the growth in the size of the ground segment and thats really the driver of the cost growth. No clear explanation was given today as to how the Sentinel program had been able to proceed initially without this fuller understanding of the expected costs of the non-missile elements. It is also unclear what wouldve happened had all of this only emerged later in the process as originally planned. Details about the now-expected modifications to the Sentinel program are limited and could change as the Air Force makes its way through the restructuring process. However, it is set to include basically a scaling back of the size and some of the details of the complexity of the launch facility, according to Under Secretary LaPlante. The other piece that happens when you scale it back is it also reduces the timeline of doing the transition between the existing system Minuteman III and the new system. A previously released rendering of a future Sentinel silo, which also highlights how much of the facility is expected to be entirely new, a contributor to the programs cost growth. Northrop Grumman A rendering of a future Sentinel silo, which also highlights that much of the facility is expected to be entirely new. Northrop Grumman The Air Force has already made major changes to its nuclear enterprise in part in response to problems with Sentinel, including the creation of a new Nuclear Oversight Committee and the establishment of a dedicated Program Executive Office for ICBMs. In addition, no new date is available yet for when the first LGM-35As might begin to enter service, which is now expected to be years behind schedule. The publicly stated goal has previously been for the transition from Minuteman III to Sentinel to occur sometime in the 2030s. The existing aging ICBMs will have to be sustained in the interim. The Pentagon and the Air Force say they continue to assess that keeping Minuteman III in service indefinitely is not a viable alternative to Sentinel. Under Secretary LaPlante said today that hybrid options of different ground facilities and mobile [ICBMs] versus fixed [silo-based] types were evaluated as part of the Nunn-McCurdy review. As part of the process of settling on Sentinel in the first place, the Air Force previously explored keeping Minuteman III, loading existing silos with a derivative of the U.S. Navys Trident II nuclear-armed submarine-launched ballistic missile, and firing new ICBMs from launchers at the bottom of lakes or hidden inside tunnels, as you can read more about here. U.S. officials continue to rebuff broader questions and criticisms about the overall utility of the ICBM leg of the nuclear triad have been raised on multiple occasions in the past, as The War Zone has explored in detail in the past. Some members of Congress have also more recently called for reexamining the possibility of acquiring new road-mobile ICBMs, a capability the U.S. military currently does not possess. Each leg [of the triad] brings unique complementary attributes, which are mutually supporting and key to signaling and establishing deterrence amidst an increasingly complex and dynamic security environment, which for the first time includes the Peoples Republic of China as a major nuclear armed power and strategic competitor, Vice Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force Gen. Jim Slife, who was also on todays press call, said. The land legs geographic dispersal creates targeting problems for our adversaries and our missileers, sitting in an alert posture 24/7, ensures responsiveness. News about the Air Force persisting with Sentinel despite major cost growth also follows the services top leadership warning about the potential for serious budget cuts starting in the 2026 Fiscal Year. Elements of the services flagship Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) initiative, especially plans for a new crewed sixth-generation stealth combat jet, could be at risk. How the need to pay for Sentinels nearly doubled price tag will factor into all this and how non-nuclear programs in particular might be affected remains to be seen. So our current cost profile does not suggest that any of the cost growth in the Sentinel program will be realized over the course of the next five years, according to Vice Chief of Staff Slife. So, really, it is a decision for down the road to decide what trade-offs were going to need to make in order to be able to continue to pursue the Sentinel program. Whether budgets beyond the Air Forces could be impacted is also unclear. Sentinel is part of a larger effort to modernize the entire U.S. nuclear arsenal that includes other high-priced programs like the B-21 Raider stealth bomber, Columbia class nuclear ballistic missile submarine, and B61-12 nuclear bomb. The Columbia submarine program is notably facing its own cost and schedule concerns. We believe we are on the right path moving together and forward, and despite the historic scale and complexity, we can do this, Under Secretary LaPlante concluded in his comments today. We know we have to get this right and we will. At the same time, with much about the Sentinel programs expected costs and future budgets very much up in the air, as well as renewed calls from Congress to reconsider alternatives, there seems to significant uncertainty now in the path forward for Americas next ICBM. Contact the author: joe@twz.com On a warm Monday morning in May, two Columbus code inspectors carefully entered the Northeast Side apartment of Aydarus Farah. Their shoes squished as they stepped in. Both the main floor and the second floor were flooded. Mold crawled up every wall. Drywall, heavy with water, had fallen from the ceiling and walls, revealing joists and studs black with rot. The apartment had been so uninhabitable for so long that Farah, 73, spent weeks sleeping on a makeshift bed in the back seat of his car outside the apartment, where he continued to pay $1,050 a month in rent. Aydarus Farah, 73, has been sleeping in his car for weeks because his Carriage House apartment is uninhabitable due to water damage and mold. 'Whac-A-Mole' It wasn't the first time city inspectors had been to Farah's apartment or to others in the Carriage House complex, off Innis Road near Cleveland Avenue. In fact, inspectors had cited Carriage House with 42 emergency code violations over the past five years, in addition to conventional violations. During the same time span, Carriage House's owner, The Millennia Companies of Cleveland, had also been cited 17 times for emergency violations at its Park Place homes on East 26th Street in South Linden; 12 times at its Fair Avenue apartments in Olde Towne East and five times at its Cassady Village complex on the Northeast Side. City of Columbus property maintenance inspector Cliffort Turner (right) looks at the water damage inside Aydarus Farah's Carriage House apartments on Innis Road on the Northeast Side. Farah, 73, said he reported the damage for weeks but it had not been repaired. Emergency violations make up less than 5% of the city's housing and environmental health violations, which are dominated by non-emergencies such as overgrown weeds or improper trash disposal. But emergency violations are the most serious infractions; they include a lack of water or heat (in winter), sewage backup, exposed electrical wiring, a missing or non-functional smoke detector, or otherwise unsafe structures. About 2,400 landlords were cited for nearly 6,000 emergency code violations between January 2019 and February of this year in Columbus. Most landlords had only one or two emergency violations, but a handful have become familiar to city inspectors. Together, the seven largest violators including Millenia account for more than 10% of all emergency code violations, a Columbus Dispatch analysis of city data found. "It sort of feels like Whac-A-Mole sometimes," said Deborah Coleman, a city inspection supervisor. The Dispatch looked into deeds, mortgages and other documents to discover common ownership of dozens of limited liability corporations that had multiple code violations. By far the largest offender, with more than 200 emergency violations, is Apex Colonial, based in Newark, New Jersey, for its Colonial Village complex on the East Side. The complex went into receivership in 2022, then closed in December last year, prompting more than 1,000 residents to scramble for shelter. Also high on the list is Paxe Latitude, the Lakewood, New Jersey, company that owns the Latitude Five25 towers, which the city shut down over Christmas 2022 after determining them unsafe for residents. May 20, 2024; Columbus, OH, USA; Extensive water damage caused mold to grow inside the apartment of Aydarus Farah, 73. He said he reported the problem months ago, but no one responded and now the Carriage House apartment is uninhabitable. Other frequent violators are owners (or former owners) of Ardmore Village on the East Side, Southpark Apartments on the West Side, The Commons at Water's Edge on the Southeast Side and the Capital Park Apartments in North Linden. Properties with most emergency housing code violations in Columbus, Jan 2019-Feb 2024. Many of the city's biggest code violators are out-of-town corporations that own large complexes across the nation such as Apex and Paxe Latitude (which the city believes share ownership), as well as Millennia and Odin Properties of Philadelphia. Others, such as VineBrook Homes of Dallas, own and manage single-family homes for rent. For several of the landlords, their problems aren't isolated to Columbus. Millennia, for example, has been barred by HUD from receiving new federal housing contracts following a string of problems at the company's 280 complexes nationwide including a 2022 fire in a Little Rock, Arkansas complex that left three residents dead. Problems with the company's properties have sparked the formation of a tenants' group called Millennia Resistance Campaign. Likewise, Apex Colonial's owners, Oron Zarum and Aron Puretz, have seen similar complaints of neglect for properties in Illinois, Indiana, Arkansas and Georgia. After a company Zarum owned stopped paying the utility bills for over 1,000 low-income apartments in Indianapolis, he was prevented from purchasing any new properties in Indiana for seven years in an agreement with the state's attorney general. VineBrook, which rents single-family homes, settled a 2021 lawsuit with Cincinnati in June that alleged that it repeatedly violated the city's building, health and safety codes. Under the settlement, the city dismissed its claims against VineBrook, and the company agreed to adhere to the city's code. Meanwhile, Paxe's owner, Boruch Drillman, recently pleaded guilty in federal court to a $165 million mortgage fraud conspiracy for deceiving lenders into issuing multifamily and commercial mortgage loans from 2018 to 2020. Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein noted that some large complexes have gotten a lot of the city's attention in recent years after being bought by out-of-town investors. "They milk it for everything that it's worth," he said. "They demand that you pay the rent on the first of the month, but they return no money back into the property." Landlords respond Many of the 10 largest violators did not respond to Dispatch queries about the violations. Those who did said they are seeking to remedy the problems. "The Millennia Companies is aware of the code violations and has already remedied some of the concerns," the company said in a statement to The Dispatch. "The management team is working directly with city officials to further understand the remaining violations and develop a repair plan." Link Real Estate Group, whose properties had 51 emergency violations in the past five years, said it is working hard to make repairs at its complexes, including by investing $12 million in improvements at the Commons at Water's Edge, on Refugee Road on the Southeast Side, which it bought in 2019. Looking at emergency code violations alone provides an incomplete picture because it doesn't reflect how quickly violations are remedied, said Dimitri Hatzifotinos, an attorney with Willis Law Firm in Columbus, who said he represents "several" of the landlords on the list including 5812 Investment Group, which owns Eden of Easton. "5812 has an unbelievable record of clearing maintenance requests," he said. "The fact that violations are issued isnt the same as them not doing the work to fix them." Hatzifotinos said many landlords with the most violations also own old apartments that are inherently subject to problems. He noted that one type of emergency violation, a nonworking smoke detector, is often the result of a tenant not replacing a battery. Smoke detector violations made up about 17% of emergency code violations among the top 10 code violators. City of Columbus code enforcement officer Matthew Mercer examines a house with multiple violations at 794 Renick St. on the West Side. He said once a house is boarded up, every window, door and opening must be fully boarded and painted. The Columbus nonprofit housing provider Homeport, whose properties had 40 emergency violations over the past five years (which places it outside the top 10 violators), dedicated additional resources last year to respond to issues and is "prepared to further expand our property maintenance capacity as needed," said CEO and President Leah F. Evans. Some landlords may have more violations simply because they own more units, although few of the landlords with the most violations are the largest landlords in Columbus. Likewise, some landlords may have fewer violations because they were never reported by a tenant using 311 or caught during a proactive city inspection. 'Rats as big as groundhogs' Not far from Farah's moldy two-bedroom, another Carriage House tenant, Anab Awalle, is dealing with leaky plumbing from an upstairs neighbor's apartment that has caused her bathroom and bedroom walls to swell and paint to chip. Down the street, the Carriage House apartment of Farhiyo Dahir's mother has been without air conditioning and gas for cooking for months, Dahir said, despite repeated efforts to get management to fix the problems. "They don't care," Dahir said. "There's nothing we can do." Farhiya Ali said her aunt, Fadumo Dirir, has repeatedly sought help to fix her clogged sink and broken kitchen cabinets at Carriage House, but to no avail. "This company is no good," Ali said. Farhiya Ali (left) is exasperated with the lack of maintenance at the apartment of her aunt, Fadumo Dirir (right), at the Carriage House apartments on the Northeast Side. While the exterior and grounds of Carriage House are generally well-kept, residents have complained of rodents. In June, one caller to the city complained of "rats as large as groundhogs" in the complex. Complaints at other complexes are similar. In June alone, residents at Southpark Apartments, for example, complained of a sink backing up when a neighbor flushed their toilet, water leaking into the hallway when the shower is on, and air conditioners and ovens not working. A growing problem Emergency housing code violations have been generally trending upward in Columbus since 2008, although there was a significant dip with COVID-19 in 2020, according to city data. Some experts say that as affordable housing becomes scarcer in Columbus, tenants are becoming more wary of reporting problems, fearing retaliation by their landlords even though such retaliation is illegal. "The supply-demand imbalance is so great now that I think it serves as a disincentive for landlords to invest in the maintenance of their properties," said Ben Horne, a legal aid attorney who specializes in housing cases. "They know if the tenant moves out, they'll get a new one." City of Columbus property maintenance inspector Cliffort Turner (right) walks past piles of garbage at the Carriage Place apartments the Northeast Side. Though some landlords who purchase troubled properties invest in repairs, others seem to see them as a short-term investment. The Dispatch's analysis of auditor data shows that Columbus' top 30 problem properties were transferred about twice as often as the average county property. Odin Properties, for example, racked up 68 violations at Ardmore Village from 2019 to 2023, when it owned the troubled complex. In an email to The Dispatch, Odin founder and CEO Philip Balderston noted that Odin no longer owns Ardmore. Balderston did not address problems at the complex while Odin owned it. Code inspectors can issue notifications, but not fines Every workday, around 70 code inspectors with the city's Department of Building and Zoning Services fan out across the city. Coleman, who has been in code enforcement since 2001, said initial complaints usually come through 311, but inspectors often discover many more once they visit a complex. "I've been to properties where I've literally had people jump in front of my car. ... some people are that desperate for help," she said. City of Columbus property maintenance inspector Cliffort Turner sticks his hand in a hole caused by water damage at the Carriage House apartments. When they discover violations, inspectors' first step is to issue a notice to the manager and the owner a process that can be time-consuming because many owners' identities are hidden behind limited liability companies. In rare cases, inspectors will declare an apartment to be uninhabitable and make arrangements for the tenant to move. Typically, however, inspectors give the landlord up to 72 hours to remedy emergency violations, and longer for non-emergency violations. "We try to get compliance," said Tony Celebrezze, Building and Zoning's deputy director. "We try to use the carrot more than the stick. ... We don't want to push people out of their house under an emergency situation. We want them to be able to stay there." Columbus code inspectors cannot issue citations or fines, as inspectors in some other cities do, although Celebrezze said the city has considered pursuing that tool. He said they have not done so yet because because a citation immediately turns the situation confrontational. If a landlord makes no effort to fix the violations, city inspectors can prepare a legal case to forward to the city attorney's office, which can file nuisance abatement lawsuits against the landlord in Franklin County's Environmental Court. "We're always trying to work with property owners. And I think it's important to note that most property owners are good people that want to do the right thing," said City Attorney Klein. "If you find yourself with a legal action against us, it's generally because you have refused to fix your property and so we have no choice but to bring legal action." City of Columbus code enforcement officer Matthew Mercer believes in the "broken window" theory of urban living: A house can remain unoccupied and look fine, but as soon as one window breaks and rain gets in the house, the whole building begins to decay. He cited this theory while outside this house at 794 Renick St. on the West Side. Heading to court The city has sued hundreds of landlords for housing code violations during each of the last five years, including some of the biggest code violators like Apex Colonial, Paxe Latitude, Odin Properties and Millennia. In many cases, such as with Colonial Village and the Southpark Apartments, the city filed suits because of a combination of housing code violations and crime. The city nearly always pursues civil, instead of criminal, action against landlords. Civil cases allow the city to bring in other parties such as managers and lenders, and allows the court to levy contempt of court fines and, in extreme cases, place a property into receivership, as happened with Latitude Five25. Civil fines for unresolved violations can range up to $250 per day per violation, but it can take months for the court to mete out these sorts of punishments. In rare cases, Franklin County Environmental Judge Stephanie Mingo has jailed repeat offenders. Columbus landlord Joseph Alaura, for example, was sentenced to jail in May for the third time for failing to maintain livable conditions at his 32 rental properties after the city found rodent and roach infestations, a lack of electricity, and other violations at his rentals. The city has also created a "pro-active code enforcement" (PACE) team to investigate code violations in neighborhoods around the city in an effort to identify problem properties even if they haven't received specific complaints. City of Columbus property maintenance supervisor Deborah Coleman calls in an emergency housing order for Aydarus Farah, after discovering the condition of his townhouse at the Carriage House apartments on the Northeast Side. A double-edged sword Columbus is in the midst of an affordable housing crisis. Only about a fourth of extremely-low income households are able to find housing in their price range, with the majority spending more than half their income on rent, according to a study by the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC) and the Coalition on Homelessness and Housing in Ohio (COHHIO). While strictly enforcing city housing code can help ensure safe and sanitary living conditions, some experts say it can have an unintended side-effect. Repairs cost money a cost landlords often pass on to their tenants. Robin Bartram, a sociologist at the University of Chicago, studied her citys code enforcement and rental data over a decade, and found that as code violations were fixed, rents went up. Landlords sometimes really do need to raise rents to cover the costs of making repairs. I think other times, landlords use repairs as an excuse to hike rents to try to get people who can pay more into their buildings, she said. Bartram said local governments can attempt to offset that effect by providing landlords money to undertake repairs in return for capping rent as Pennsylvania recently did with its Whole-Home Repairs Program though many officials are wary of giveaways for landlords, especially large ones that should be able to afford the repairs on their own. Henry Gomory, a researcher at The Eviction Lab at Princeton University, said that the trade-offs between affordability and safe living conditions point to a need for more government-subsidized housing. If we think housing is a human right (and) if it's not profitable for (landlords) to cater to low-income tenants while maintaining their properties up to code, then I feel like that points for the need for public housing and other forms of social housing, he said. City of Columbus code enforcement officer Matthew Mercer inspects a building with multiple code violations at 160 E. Barthman Ave. on the South Side. 'No home, no home' When inspectors discovered Farah's waterlogged apartments, they instantly deemed it uninhabitable and moved to find Farah emergency housing. "I'm an old man," Farah said as he showed inspectors through what once had been his home. "Now no home. No home." @pitaarji jweiker@dispatch.com @jimweiker This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: What landlords are the biggest violators of Columbus' housing code? NEW YORK, July 7 (Xinhua) -- The state of retail in New York City's vast underground subway system is bleak, and nearly three-quarters of spaces in the transit network are empty, a downward trend that began before the coronavirus pandemic but was exacerbated by it and the rise of remote and hybrid work, according to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority. "For the authority, the surplus of space means a continuing decline in retail revenue at a time when the agency, which runs the country's largest transit system of buses, subways and trains, recently lost a projected 1 billion U.S. dollars in annual revenue with the abrupt cancellation of congestion pricing," reported The New York Times (NYT) on this subject last weekend. "For travelers, the empty storefronts have created a sense of unease and urban decay. Some doors have been locked with chains, their windows covered with for-lease signs. Others have discarded items like restaurant supplies strewed about. Homeless people have taken over empty corners of retail areas and sleep in stairwells," said the report. Both former and current shop owners said they were drawn to the subway system because of the large number of riders who could become customers. Last year, roughly 3.6 million people rode the subway every weekday, a captive audience of potential shoppers to buy drinks and food as well as trinkets, gifts and clothing. Retail owners, especially those not selling food or drink, said rider habits started to change over the past 10 to 15 years. Shoppers started to snap photos of items and say they would just order them on Amazon. More recently, remote and hybrid work dealt another blow, and there are fewer people commuting to work every day. By the 1980s, there were roughly 350 stores, kiosks and concessions operated by the transit authority. More were built in recent years. Now, there are 195 retail spots, most of them clustered in the subway's busiest and largest stations. "The authority collected nearly 53 million dollars in retail revenue in 2023, down from 72 million dollars in 2019," noted NYT. PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) A group of volunteers are taking part in a cool new project in Portsmouth. The Cool Down P-Town project aims to address the rising temperatures in the city. This two-year effort is funded by a $222,000 grant from the Virginia Department of Forestry. Project leaders from Virginia Wesleyan University (VWU), the Center for Sustainable Communities, Elizabeth River Project and Star Base Victory will guide the volunteers. According to a news release from VWU, Portsmouth was selected due to its low tree coverage and widespread impervious surfaces, which heightens the citys susceptibility to extreme heat stress. The citys income disparity rates were also factored into the selection process. Our students, working alongside community residents, will play a central role in this initiative, gaining invaluable real-world experiences while actively contributing to community-driven solutions, says Dr. Elizabeth Malcolm, VWU Professor of Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences and Director of Sustainability. Their enthusiasm and dedication underscore the universitys commitment to fostering environmental stewardship and civic engagement. Volunteers will be trained to heat sensors that will collect data along predesignated routes throughout the city, and the data collected will be used to identify heat islands. Once the heat islands have been identified, a series of town halls and special events will be held to develop a comprehensive action plan to reduce rising temperatures, including pavement removal and tree and scrub planting. The volunteers will meet for training on Tuesday, July 9 at 6 p.m. at New Bethel Baptist Church, 4212 Greenwood Drive. Data collection and monitoring will begin at 6 a.m. on Saturday, July 13. Temperature readings will be taken at three times throughout the day, at 6 a.m., 3 p.m., and 7 p.m. For more information about the project 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 WAVY.com. ELMHURST, Ill. Pre-trial release has been denied for a Chicago man accused of robbing another man who had just given him a ride to his apartment complex in Elmhurst on Friday morning. Bennie Gates, a 19-year-old Auburn Gresham resident, has been charged with one felony count of armed robbery with a firearm, according to DuPage County States Attorney Robert Berlin. Prosecutors said the charge stems from an incident that allegedly unfolded around 7 a.m. when the victim offered to give Gates a ride to the apartment complex from the Chicago Greyhound Bus Station for $40. LATEST CASES: Missing people in Chicagoland According to prosecutors, the victim drove Gates to the Elmhurst Terrace Apartments, but when Gates exited the vehicle, he walked around the car to the drivers side and pulled a gun from his waistband before telling the driver You didnt know I had a gun did you? Prosecutors said Gates then allegedly demanded his money back from the driver while holding him at gunpoint and instructed him to remove his suitcase from the trunk of the car. After the alleged robbery, prosecutors said Gates walked away from the scene, heading eastbound along Fellows Court. Prosecutors: Man disguises as woman to evade capture after Elmhurst armed robbery Around 7:09 a.m. Elmhurst officers, who were on patrol near South Berkely Avenue and West St. Charles Road, were flagged down by the victim who informed them that he had just been robbed in the area. Authorities then began surveilling the apartment complex where Gates was believed to be inside. Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines According to prosecutors, several hours later, a detective spotted what appeared to be a woman dressed in a bomber jacket, a wig and a beanie leaving the complex to get into an Uber. The detective followed the Uber and initiated a traffic stop and once they approached the vehicle, prosecutors said the detective could see that the passenger was actually a man disguised as a woman. Prosecutors said during the traffic stop, gates fled from the Uber on foot, allegedly crossing six lanes of traffic during his escape. Using a helicopter, K-9 officers and drones, authorities located Gates in a nearby detached garage and he was taken into custody. Elderly woman targeted in attempted sexual assault in Humboldt Park: CPD Thanks to the vigilance and outstanding, heads-up work of the Elmhurst Police Department, Mr. Gates attempt to disguise himself as a woman did not fool anyone. Thankfully, the victim in this case was not injured, Berlin said. During a court appearance, Judge Jeffrey MacKay granted the States motion to deny pre-trial release for Gates. Gates is set to appear in court again on July 29, 2024, for arraignment. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence. Its owner, Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc., claims it has now paid off $17 million in overdue bills to vendors at Roger Williams and at Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence. (Michael Salerno/Rhode Island Current) Attorney General Peter Neronha has made it clear he doesnt fully trust the owner of two urban safety net hospitals. So will he take Prospect Medical Holdings, Inc. at its word that it has paid off the $17 million in overdue hospital vendor bills, as ordered by a Providence County Superior Court judge? For now, Neronhas office is noncommittal. Tim Rondeau, a spokesperson, did not comment when asked if the states top prosecutor would take a written position on Prospects July 1 affidavit confirming it had paid off its outstanding bills. Rondeau said in an email Monday that the office was still reviewing the court filings. In November, Neronhas office sued Prospect for violating conditions of a 2021 agreement concerning its stewardship of Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence and Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence. Among other violations, Prospect failed to pay hospital vendors on time, with $24 million in overdue, unpaid bills as of 2023. In June, Superior Court Judge Brian Stern sided with Neronha, ordering the company to pay $17 million (the amount overdue by more than 90 days) within 10 days of June 26. George Pillari, Prospects senior vice president and chief performance officer, submitted a sworn affidavit on July 1, in which he attested the company was in compliance with the court order and prior agreement with Neronhas office. However, Pillari also wrote the company would be unable to provide proof through its second-quarter financial reports until July 30. Which means the ball is back in Neronhas court to decide whether he will accept Pillaris word that the bills are paid off, or challenge the affidavit. Stern has no immediate plans to issue another ruling in response to the affidavit, Jonathan Bissonnette, a spokesperson for Rhode Island Judiciary, said in an email. Otis Brown, a spokesperson for Prospect, declined to comment. The company previously warned in court filings that forcing it to pay off local bills would force it into bankruptcy. The Los Angeles-based company recently revealed in court documents in a separate lawsuit in Connecticut that it has been under federal investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice for more than six months. The cash-strapped company has seen its hospital assets across the country suffer due to a weakened balance sheet. Some of the hospitals have shuttered while others, like Fatima and Roger Williams, face deteriorating operating conditions and severe safety issues, as detailed in court documents. Paying off overdue bills is only one of the 85 conditions state regulators attached to their approval allowing Prospect to sell off its two Rhode Island hospitals and affiliated physician groups, home care and hospice agencies and offices to a new nonprofit owner. The $80 million sale to The Centurion Foundation cannot proceed until all conditions are met; separately, Prospect and Centurion must also get a separate licensing change approval from the Rhode Island Department of Health for the deal to go through. Review on the licensing application has not begun because of deficiencies the health department found in the original application. A completed application has not been resubmitted as of Monday. The post Prospect says it finally paid off its overdue bills at Roger Williams, Fatima hospitals appeared first on Rhode Island Current. When I was 13 years old, I wrote an eighth-grade graduation speech about how I wanted to become a journalist. At the time, I told the audience that I longed for two things: to tell the stories of my community and to make my city and state a better place. A decade later, I joined the Public Investigator team at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel where I take tips, chase leads, and expose problems facing residents throughout the state. Since joining the Journal Sentinel in September, I have written stories and answered readers' questions about evictions, medical billing, disability rights, and more. The reporting has helped to connect readers with powerful decision-makers, resolve burdensome financial disputes and address unsafe conditions in their homes and communities. Among my early stories was the attempted eviction of 98-year-old Carolyn Bolton, whose daughter reached out to Public Investigator after her mother received a wrongful eviction notice under her door. The story led to dozens of residents at Sycamore Place apartments, where Bolton lived, reaching out with similar concerns about treatment of residents, who are mostly Black and older. Following the publication of the stories, the owners of Sycamore Place Apartments apologized to Bolton and hired new management. In June, the story won a first-place Society for Features Journalism Award. Last winter, I followed Milwaukee bar owner Jewel Curries experience trying to get his wheelchair lift repaired. Delays left Currie stuck on the second floor of his apartment for almost two weeks. Experts said the ordeal reflected a national struggle for individuals seeking repairs to assistive mobility technology like wheelchair lifts. Since reporting the story in December, I have continued to pursue stories about health, disability and barriers to accessibility in Wisconsin. Throughout the spring, my colleague Quinn Clark and I reported several stories about readers with health insurance issues. Together, we fielded dozens of calls and emails from patients facing unexplained or confusing bills for standard medical and preventative care. One of our stories documented a couples struggle to fight a $10,000 bill for a colonoscopy related to a misprint on their insurance card and use of an out-of-network provider. After months of inquiries from Public Investigator, the charges were discounted by $3,700. In recent weeks, fellow Public Investigator reporter Gina Castro and I also reported on a contractor with a string of lawsuits who took $2,500 from an elderly couple for a bathroom remodel project. Shortly after we reached out about the situation, Home Depot agreed to compensate the couple their money. Over the past ten months, our Public Investigator trio has helped people save more than $10,000. Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Public Investigators Gina Castro (left), Tamia Fowlkes (center), Quinn Clark (right). Often, our process begins with a community member contacting Public Investigator with a problem or concern. After gaining consent to investigate the person's tip, we bring the issue to the governing body, authority, or stakeholders involved to see if they have insight or solutions. We also seek out third-party experts and regulatory officials to offer perspective. Most of the time, we write a story about our findings. But there are also many cases where we simply direct people to the right person or organization to get their issue resolved. Our goal is to always be available to answer any reader's questions about all things occurring in their community. And if our reporting hasn't answered the question yet, we strive to find answers. In April, we also hosted our first Public Investigator Spotlight Session, welcoming young members of the community to join us at Cactus Club to discuss issues that matter most to the next generation of readers and leaders in the Milwaukee area. Public Investigator Spotlight Session attendees voted for issues that are important to them. At the event, we heard from young Milwaukeeans who wanted more coverage of underrepresented communities, the functioning of local government and student protest movements. We have enthusiastically started to chase stories based on their suggestions and look forward to following up with more events to come. As someone who grew up in Milwaukee, attended school here and at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and took some of my first swings at investigative reporting as an intern at the Journal Sentinel in 2021, I take great pride in coming to work every day. With each story, I am reminded of the importance of listening to and connecting with our neighbors, asking for help when we need it, and working together to build a community that works for all of us. In doing so, we all realize that we are a little less alone. Tamia Fowlkes is a Public Investigator reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Contact her at tfowlkes@gannett.com. Contact the Public Investigator team . Government corruption. Corporate wrongdoing. Consumer complaints. Medical scams. Public Investigator is a new initiative of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and its sister newsrooms across Wisconsin. Our team wants to hear your tips, chase the leads and uncover the truth. We'll investigate anywhere in Wisconsin. Send your tips to watchdog@journalsentinel.com or call 414-319-9061. You can also submit tips at jsonline.com/tips. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Tamia Fowlkes: What it's like being a community-driven investigative reporter Following a large-scale Russian missile attack on Ukrainian cities, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has once again urged Ukraines international partners to accelerate the supply of air defence systems to Ukraine. Source: Kuleba on X (Twitter), cited by European Pravda Details: Kuleba stated that the attack on two hospitals in Kyiv, including the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital, is "Russias true face" and "Putins true response to all peace missions and proposals". "This barbaric strike once again calls on the entire world, all leaders and countries, to supply Ukraine with additional air defence systems and ammunition as soon as possible. Additional Patriots and weapons. I urge partners to take decisions without delay," he added. Kuleba noted that Ukraine has also asked the UN Security Council member states to hold an emergency Security Council meeting with regard to Russias strikes against Ukrainian civilian infrastructure. "I urge all countries and international organisations to strongly condemn today's strike, take immediate steps to strengthen Ukraine's air defence capabilities and reject any appeasement of the murderer of children and other civilians," Kuleba stated. Background: Earlier, Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky criticised the "useful idiots" who are "delusional" about peace with Russia amid the Russian attack on the Okhmatdyt hospital. Edgars Rinkevics, President of Latvia, urged other countries to lift the restrictions on Ukraine striking military targets in Russia after the attack on Okhmatdyt. Support UP or become our patron! QUEENS, N.Y. (PIX11) A Queens woman is facing charges for allegedly trying to hire a hitman online to murder her lovers spouse, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York. Yue Zhou, 42, of Flushing, was arrested on June 5 in the Eastern District of Virginia and transported back to New York for arraignment. More Local News Between March 25 and April 4, 2019, Zhou allegedly tried to hire a hitman through a murder-for-hire website on the dark web to kill her lovers wife, prosecutors said. She paid a middleman in Brooklyn around $5,000 in cash and communicated with the websites administrator to confirm the payment, officials said. Zhou allegedly gave detailed information about her lovers wife, including her address, work schedule and the best times to target her. She also allegedly tried to use the website to set up the murder of her lovers adult daughter, prosecutors said. Zhou allegedly sent a text message to a neighbor of the daughter in February 2021, offering $10,000 and sexual favors in exchange for killing the daughter and disposing her body in a lake, officials said. Woman shot to death and stuffed in bag on Manhattan street: NYPD The website that Zhou paid on the dark web was a scam and there was no hitman for hire, according to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of New York. As alleged, the defendant took affirmative steps to hire a hitman to carry out the ruthless killing of the wife of her romantic partner, said United States Attorney Breon Peace. Her depraved plan was only thwarted because the website she used to set up the murder-for-hire was a scam. Zhou will be arraigned in court on Monday. 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. Radio station parts ways with Biden interviewer for using questions sent in advance A talk radio station in Pennsylvania has parted ways with one of its hosts after she used questions provided by Joe Bidens campaign during his first post-debate interview last week. Sara M. Lomax, President and CEO of WURD Radio, announced Sunday that Bidens interview with The Source host Andrea Lawful-Sanders was arranged and negotiated independently without knowledge, consultation or collaboration with WURD management. Lawful-Sanders violated the stations standards of journalistic independence and mutually agreed to part ways with the station, effective immediately, Lomax confirmed. WURD Radio remains an independent voice that our audience can trust will hold elected officials accountable, Lomax wrote. Agreeing to a pre-determined set of questions jeopardizes that trust and is not a practice that WURD Radio engages in or endorses as a matter of practice or official policy. Lawful-Sanders did not immediately respond to a request for comment. In a statement to The Washington Post for an article published Saturday, Lawful-Sanders said that she never once felt pressured to ask certain questions. In a video posted to Facebook on Sunday, she said she was no longer an on-air host at WURD and tendered my resignation yesterday. It was accepted. Life is moving, things are shifting and changing, and in a day or so, youll hear more, Lawful-Sanders said. The Biden campaign coordinated the interview, not the White House. While interview hosts have always been free to ask whatever questions they please, moving forward we will refrain from offering suggested questions, a person familiar with the Biden booking operation said. Amid concerns over Bidens ability to serve following his debate against Donald Trump in June, the president sat down for pre-recorded interviews with two radio stations in swing states including WURD. In the interviews, which aired July 4, he addressed worries about his poor debate performance and discussed broader issues with a specific focus on those affecting Black voters. Its not at all an uncommon practice for interviewees to share topics they would prefer. These questions were relevant to the news of the day the president was asked about this debate performance, as well as what hed delivered for black Americans, Biden campaign spokesperson Lauren Hitt said in a statement. We do not condition interviews on acceptance of these questions, and hosts are always free to ask the questions they think will best inform their listeners, Hitt added. The Biden campaign has pointed out examples of Trump refusing in recent months to answer questions from local news outlets of which he did not approve. On Saturday, Lawful-Sanders told CNNs Victor Blackwell on First of All that Bidens team sent her several questions, and she chose four of them to ask the president. WURD Radio is not a mouthpiece for the Biden or any other Administration, Lomax wrote, adding that WURD will review its policies and practices as we seek to grow from this incident. Based in Philadelphia, WURD describes itself as the only African-American owned and operated talk radio station in Pennsylvania. During the interview, Biden flubbed the end of his response to a question about what he would say to voters who plan on sitting out the election a gaffe that garnered significant attention in the media and online. Im proud to be, as I said, the first vice president first Black woman to serve with a Black president, proud to have been involved with the first Black woman on the Supreme Court, Biden said. Hitt said: Americans have had several opportunities to see [Biden] unscripted since the debate, including in his Friday interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos. Biden was greeted Sunday with a warm welcome from supporters in Pennsylvania a key battleground in which he has personal roots for a campaign event at a predominantly Black church in Philadelphia. There, he delivered a roughly eight-minute address. Read the letter: Biden tells House Democrats to stop calling on him to drop out Read the letter: Biden tells House Democrats to stop calling on him to drop out Biden sent a stern letter to congressional Democrats reiterating that he has no plans to drop out. He said questions about him were "well-aired for over a week," adding, "It's time for it to end." The list of Democrats calling for Biden to drop out is likely to grow this week. As lawmakers head back to Washington on Monday after their one-week recess, President Joe Biden is issuing a stern warning: I'm not going anywhere; time to pipe down. In a letter to Democrats in both chambers, Biden struck a defiant tone, even as he acknowledged "good faith fears and worries about what is at stake in this election." "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now," Biden wrote. "And it's time for it to end." Five House Democrats have publicly called for Biden to drop out, and more are likely to do so this week. Biden argued that Democratic voters spoke "clearly and decisively" during this year's presidential primary, noting that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. dropped out to become an independent while Rep. Dean Phillips of Minnesota "attacked me for being too old" but "was soundly defeated." Much of the letter reiterated Biden's record as president while highlighting the threat Democrats see from Donald Trump and "MAGA Republicans." Here's the full letter Biden sent on Monday morning: This embedded content is not available in your region. Several news outlets reported that several high-ranking House Democrats including Reps. Jerry Nadler of New York, Mark Takano of California, Adam Smith of Washington, and Joe Morelle of New York said during a private call with colleagues on Sunday that Biden should step aside. Most lawmakers have been able to avoid questions about Biden's viability in the days since his disastrous debate performance. House Democrats largely dodged questions the following day, while senators have not been in session since before the debate. Read the original article on Business Insider This photo taken on May 17, 2024 shows a view of China Wu Yi (Kenya) Precast Company Limited in the industrial town of Athi River, Kenya.(Xinhua/Li Yahui) NAIROBI, July 8 (Xinhua) -- About 30 km southeast of Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, China Wu Yi (Kenya) Precast Company Limited has built an expansive factory for new building technologies, causing ripples in the local construction sector. The company in 2016 established the Kenya Building Industrialization Research Development and Production Base alongside the building materials supermarket project called "Wu Yi Base" in the industrial town of Athi River. The Wu Yi Base is an architectural marvel nestled between serene plains and farmland. For the past several years, the factory has been churning out precast materials, including concrete slabs, steel beams, and columns, for assembly into a modern house. Inside the sprawling complex that houses the production base, a supermarket for building materials, and living quarters, local youth like Brian Calisto Kariuki have secured gainful employment, a platform to gain insight into precast building technology. A geospatial engineering major, the 30-year-old joined China Wu Yi in 2017 to work at the precast building materials factory and has risen through the ranks to become an assistant manager at the firm. In a recent interview with Xinhua, Kariuki noted that with precast technology readily available, a developer only has to assemble columns and slabs on site to construct a house; the technology shortens the time and maintains good quality. "When you do precast, you can do four floors in a month. So you save time and money. You can control the quality of the concrete," said Kariuki. "Another advantage is that it is all-weather, so whether it is raining or sunny, you can still do precast." To date, China Wu Yi has constructed landmark buildings using precast technology, including the Central Bank of Kenya pension towers and the Rose Avenue shopping center building in Nairobi, Kariuki said. He credited his Chinese supervisor for mentorship that has improved his technical and managerial skills, adding that precast technology has revolutionized the construction sector. At the China Wu Yi Base, the design, manufacture, display, and sale of assembled precast components are carried out seamlessly to help meet growing demand. With the capacity to design and produce 50,000 cubic meters of prefabricated components annually, the Wu Yi Base targets developers aiming to set up multi-story apartments and detached houses within a short duration and at a reasonable budget. Senior officials from regulatory agencies have been visiting the Wu Yi Base, appreciating the prefabrication technology amid its huge contribution to Kenya's industrial progress and economic modernization. Meanwhile, during the production of these precast components, China Wu Yi has been controlling dust pollution and wastage of raw materials such as sand and cement. "The prefabricated assembly building realizes minimum damage to the environment caused by the construction project and effectively carries out the concept of green, low-carbon, and environmental protection," said Shi Zuliang, deputy general manager of the company. Next to China Wu Yi's precast production factory, the Coloho Mall home furnishing and building materials exhibition and sales center has been serving clients in Kenya and across the East African region. At the Coloho Mall, China Wu Yi has introduced more than 20 brands of Chinese building materials and home furnishings, such as ceramic tiles, sanitary ware, hardware tools, lanterns, and home furnishings, into the Kenyan market. For local employees like Mercy Wambui, a 30-year-old marketer, both the precast factory and one-stop shop for building materials have fulfilled the dream of homeownership among Kenyans through access to affordable and high-quality building materials. Wambui noted that in the future, she looked forward to enhanced China-Kenya cooperation in the manufacturing and housing sectors to spur the growth of the local economy, technology transfer, and job creation. This photo taken on May 17, 2024 shows an exterior view of the Coloho Mall in the industrial town of Athi River, Kenya.(Xinhua/Li Yahui) A staff member works at a workshop of China Wu Yi (Kenya) Precast Company Limited in the industrial town of Athi River, Kenya on May 17, 2024.(Xinhua/Li Yahui) This photo taken on May 17, 2024 shows an interior view of the Coloho Mall in the industrial town of Athi River, Kenya.(Xinhua/Li Yahui) The News President Bidens nomination is on the knifes edge as Democratic leaders return to Washington today to debate his position on the ticket. Biden has outwardly defied calls from a so-far limited number of Democrats to step down, but he could face a tougher position if a more organized effort emerges this week. Ultimately, the decision rests with Biden given party rules and the limited time remaining, but a mass Democratic call for his exit could be the equivalent of a no confidence vote that forces him to reconsider. Benjys view The news has been moving so fast that it can be hard to keep your bearings. Here are a few ways to think about the running argument thats going on between Democrats as they consider Bidens fate. There are really two debates going on about Bidens age. Calls for Biden to step down from Democrats have largely been presented as an electoral argument: We love what youve done, Joe, but we doubt you can win. Rep. Mike Quigely, an Illinois Democrat, said that Bidens legacy is set in announcing his opposition to his continued run, but that the only thing that [he] can do now to cement that for all time and prevent utter catastrophe is to step down and let someone else do this. Even before the debate crisis, center-left voices who questioned Bidens nomination made a similar case, arguing he was and still is an effective president, but no longer had the oomph needed to sell his record as a campaigner. But Bidens recent debate performance has opened up a separate argument that Republicans have embraced for years, but that Democrats are more reluctant to touch in public: Is Biden up to the job of being president right now, let alone at 86 in a second term? Or, as Nancy Pelosi put it in an ostensibly pro-Biden TV appearance: Is this an episode, or is this a condition? As soon as Bidens position as the nominee fell into question, leaks from allies started appearing suggesting that his health and performance may be in decline and that the debate was not an outlier. If Biden does decisively end up the nominee, that means Democrats will have to publicly vouch for his ability to do the job through 2029 after large numbers of them have, at least privately, lost that confidence. That can have corrosive effects beyond just potentially losing an election it breeds suspicion and cynicism inside and outside the party and ties elected Democrats to any future revelations about his health. Biden is especially vulnerable to a party revolt. Biden is unusual among recent presidents in that he has no significant cult of personality. Instead, his primary source of strength is acting as a bridge-builder within the party who can manage its competing factions and secure wins for everyone. His 2020 nomination win was driven by a flood of last-second endorsements from defeated rivals and party figures who worried that Bernie Sanders, a top rival with a passionate and ideological following, would prove too divisive to beat Donald Trump. Bidens quiet, consensus-based approach has served him well in many ways and hes counting on his longstanding relationships with Black Democrats and labor to help weather the storm. But the other side of a transactional relationship is that you have to hold up your end of the bargain. Many of the Democrats and pundits who sound most publicly concerned about his nomination are also the exact kinds of party pragmatists and swing district moderates who powered his 2020 campaign to victory but now worry the winds have shifted. California Rep. Adam Schiff, the embodiment of the kind of rah-rah partisan who rallies the Democratic faithful on MSNBC, on Sunday strongly implied Biden should consider stepping down. Joe Bidens running against a criminal, it should not be even close, he said. Theres only one reason it is close. And thats the presidents age. Politicians who have clashed with Biden from the left including Sanders himself have, by comparison, been relatively muted since the debate. Bidens age is not like other political problems. Past presidents and nominees have weathered crises that threatened their hold on the party by apologizing for misbehavior, or pivoting to a new issue, or demonstrating their support from voters. In Trumps case, he won in 2016 after prominent Republicans not only called for him to drop out over the Access Hollywood tape, but actively announced they were voting for protest candidates in the general election. Bidens down in the polls, but also could still win in large part because his opponent is unpopular as well, voters are highly polarized, and turnout is uncertain. But one thing that separates Bidens age issue from others is that its harder to imagine how to move past it once the view has set in with voters that hes too old and its been validated to this degree by typically pro-Biden voices. For one, hes by definition only going to get older. But every appearance is now also parsed for even the slightest slip-up, the news is focused like a laser on any signs of health concerns, and even Bidens explanations about his one bad night concede that hes prone to exhaustion in important moments and needs more rest. When the presidents campaign began, his ads rebutted age concerns by pointing to his grueling trip to war-torn Ukraine; this time, Biden told donors he fell asleep on the stage because a European trip almost two weeks earlier had knocked him out. When you set your own bar and fail to clear it, thats not an easy problem to solve. Democrats have no good choices. Some Democrats are publicly rooting for Biden to tough it out, given that Democrats are comfortable defending his record and the alternatives might be even more dangerous for them. The likeliest result is that Vice President Kamala Harris quickly takes over, but shes historically also been unpopular in polls and ran a weak campaign for president in 2020 that ended with her dropping out before voting began. And if Democrats dont quickly coalesce around her, they open themselves to a potentially ugly free-for-all to secure Bidens now-freed delegates just weeks before the election. Whoever wins would then have to withstand overnight vetting in the national media, fend off a barrage of Republican attacks, raise gobs of cash, and coordinate with whatever campaign operation they indirectly inherit from Biden. It would be, as the Biden campaign put it in a fundraising message, weeks of chaos. Those calling for Biden to step aside are aware of all this virtually none of them were pushing this idea before the debate, after all, even though Biden was still trailing in polls of key swing states and his approval rating was stuck in the 30s. Their argument is that the current situation is so untenable that even a risky, unprecedented change of candidate would at least offer a higher chance of success since theyre still less defined with the public and would have a chance to reset the race. Cutting your arm off also seems like a pretty dumb idea, until suddenly it isnt. Notable Semafors Morgan Chalfant reports on a pair of Democrats who have been circulating a plan for a blitz primary if Biden drops out, which would feature high-profile media forums with candidates to help quickly settle on a winner. A dangerous heat wave will persist in the West and spread to additional cities this coming week, as forecasters predict record-breaking temperatures. The National Weather Service (NWS) said dozens of daily record temperatures were expected to be tied or broken this coming week, with highs in the West reaching the 100s and 110s. The temperature is expected to be 15-30 degrees above normal in many of these areas, according to the NWS. Excessive heat warnings the highest alert from NWS will be in effect for many areas in the West and Pacific Northwest, covering about 36 million people, meteorologist Bryan Jackson told The Associated Press. The multi-day nature of the heat and record warm overnight temperatures will cause heat stress to build in people without adequate cooling and hydration, the NWS said in its bulletin Sunday. Already, temperatures broke records in some Western areas. In the city of Redding, Calif., the temperature reached 119 degrees, a record. In Phoenix, the temperature never got below 92 degrees, setting a record for the warmest low temperature. Las Vegas broke its record high on Sunday, recording 118 degrees. A heat advisory remains in effect for Las Vegas until late Thursday evening. Excessive heat warnings were in effect for parts of Arizona, including the Tucson metro area, where temperatures were expected to range from 107 to 112. In Portland, Ore., an excessive heat warning remains in effect, with dangerously hot conditions of up to 105 degrees expected. San Diego remains under excessive heat warning, with expected temperatures of 112 to 119. The warning will be in effect until Thursday night. Los Angeles will remain under the same warning until Thursday, with high temperatures of 106 to 116 degrees expected. In part of Boise, Idaho, the high-level warning will be in effect until Thursday night, and the warning will turn into a watch from Thursday night to Sunday evening. Temperatures are expected to reach 105 to 110 at the peak. The NWS recommends drinking fluids, staying out of the sun, checking in on relatives and neighbors, and avoiding hiking in the mountains and hills. Officials are warning of the risk of heat exhaustion and heat stroke. 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. Some public land destinations in Wyoming, like Libby Flats in the Medicine Bow Routt National Forest, are charging a new day-use fee in 2024. (Jimmy Emerson, DVM/FlickrCC) This story was first published by WyoFile on July 8, 2024. Campground fees, day-use costs and cabin rental rates are climbing across many Wyoming public lands this summer and further hikes are expected as land managers struggle to keep up with increasing demand and impacts from campers, rafters and other recreationists. The U.S. Forest Service is implementing fee increases in the Medicine Bow-Routt and Shoshone national forests this summer, following multi-year public processes. Increases have also been proposed for the Bridger-Teton National Forest and the Bureau of Land Managements Lander Field Office. The changes encompass brand-new fees and hikes of long-standing rates. They will affect everything from group camping sites to lookout cabins and picnic areas. Here is a rundown of 2024 fees and those that may follow in coming years. Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest Users will encounter new or increased fees at nearly 60 sites in southeastern Wyoming this summer. The changes are part of a Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest package affecting sites in southern Wyoming and northern Colorado. Following a period of public outreach and comment, the agencys regional forester approved the changes in May. In Wyoming, users will encounter changes at 57 sites. These include campgrounds a spot at Lake Owen south of Centennial will cost $20, up from $10, for example, while a double campsite at Campbell Creek Campground near Glenrock is now $40, up from $10. Some cabin rentals are also increasing. A stay at the Blackhall Mountain Lookout, which was formerly free, now costs $80 per night for a group of four. In addition, day-use fees will be charged at 14 formerly free locations. These include places like the Libby Flats observation area near the Snowy Range, a high-use area with paved parking, restroom and interpretive trail. Libby Flats has a backlog of deferred maintenance that appropriated funding cannot cover, according to the Forest Service, and fees collected will help staff do things like replace toilets, add picnic tables and fix the observational structure. tent in the Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest Theres a similar refrain for cost increases across public lands. User demand, maintenance backlogs and costs have all grown, and fee increases are needed to help agencies manage their lands. A report released by the Outdoor Recreation Roundtable in June predicts that if spending patterns continue as they are today, the gap between the deferred maintenance backlog at all agencies and federal recreation spending could grow to $34 billion by 2042. The fee increases arent expected to meet all the forests cost needs, Medicine Bow-Routt National Forests Public Affairs Specialist Aaron Voos said. But theyll help with two major things. Number one, close the gap, Voos said. Number two, give us at least a chance to start working on that deferred maintenance and getting closer to bringing it up to the standard that both the public and the Forest Service expect. During its public comment period, the agency received 197 comments. Of those, 80 were opposed to fee increases, 43 were neutral, 42 in support and 32 in conditional support. The Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest expects the new fees to generate around $700,000 per year across both states, Voos said. Though demand is on the rise, the agency isnt yet contemplating adding major infrastructure to its inventory, he said. The whole reason we proposed these fee changes in the first place is we cant keep up with what we currently have, he said. And so, no, there are no plans in place for any sort of new trailheads or campgrounds. The forest may also consider rolling out a volunteer-service-based day-use pass over the next few years. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Shoshone National Forest Across the Shoshone National Forest in western Wyoming, the Forest Service is increasing fees at 26 previously developed sites as well as incorporating fees at a dozen new developed campgrounds. The changes, which also follow a public process, were driven by a need to sustain the quality of visitor experience in the face of growing costs and crowds. The agency last increased fees in 2006, and in recent years most of its campgrounds operating costs exceeded revenue. The forest experienced a notable uptick in visits since 2020, with some of our sites experiencing a 123% increase in visits, Shoshone National Forest Public Affairs Officer Evan Guzik told WyoFile. Along with contributing to increasing maintenance costs, the agency has seen contracting costs increase and has a deferred maintenance backlog exceeding its capacity, according to the fee proposal. Shoshone National Forest signage New fees are in place at campgrounds like Wild Iris near South Pass, which was previously free. Fees are being hiked at locations like Threemile Campground near Cody, where an RV double site costs $40, up from $30; Sinks Canyon near Lander, which is $20, up from $15; and Sunlight Ranger Cabin near the Montana border, which costs $225 to rent, up from $150. The new fee sites will help sustain use in some areas strained by high visitation by offering more developed camping amenities such as restrooms, fire rings, picnic tables and parking spots, according to the agency. Over the last few years our revenue vs. expense is deficient by around $30,000 per year, Guzik said. This increase in potential revenue will allow us not only [to] cover the operations and maintenance but will also allow us to invest in these sites, improving infrastructure and the overall experience for our visitors. The fee changes could raise up to $180,000 annually, Guzik said. The agency will use the funds to hire employees, secure toilet and garbage contracts, update facilities and keep up with additional needs. The fee changes went into effect July 1. Proposals in Bridger-Teton, BLM lands The 3.4-million-acre Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyomings northwest has also proposed fee increases, though they are still in the public comment and review period. The agencys proposed increases are for the Greys River Ranger District and along the Snake River Corridor, where its proposing a special recreation permit for river users. For that busy river corridor, the agency hopes to use revenue to hire staff to help ensure visitor safety and resource protection, Forest Recreation Program Manager Shannon Connolly told Wyomings Recreation Advisory Committee in late June. National visitor use monitoring doesnt drill down to site-specific areas, but we do know from our other monitoring that we have up to 200,000 people coming down the Snake River Canyon in a season, Connolly said, and mostly the use is smashed into an 8-mile section of whitewater and predominantly in late June through mid-August. The agency is proposing a per-vehicle fee of $5 or a season pass for $40 for users utilizing a 23-mile stretch of the river. That is amended from the original proposal, which would have implemented a per-person fee. However, significant public opposition in 2023 spurred the agency to shift gears and revise before opening another comment period this spring. The river corridor is very busy, but the fees are not meant to deter users, Snake River Program Manager Louis Shahan said during the June meeting. The intent of the fees isnt really to reduce the number of people who are coming to the river to enjoy it, but to help manage some of that. Bridger-Tetons other fee proposals, meanwhile, would affect 13 developed sites. Those include Murphy Creek Campground, which would cost $20 a night, up from $7; Lynx Creek group site, which would cost $100, up from free; as well as the Deer Creek Guard Station, which would cost $80 to rent, up from $40. Located in western Wyoming, the Bridger-Teton National Forest The Bridger-Teton National Forest has tallied more than 2 million annual visitations since 2018, according to a presentation delivered in June. The agency spent about $40,000 in 2018 on things like toilet pumping, supplies, cleaning and vandalism damages, and those costs almost doubled since 2018, Connolly said. The cost of doing business and keeping our facilities up to date is definitely increasing. The Bureau of Land Management Lander Field Office also has a proposal on the table. Its plan would standardize fees for its three field office campgrounds: Atlantic City and Big Atlantic Gulch near South Pass and Cottonwood Campgrounds near Jeffrey City. The camping fees, set in 1992, are currently $6 per night per individual site. This proposal would hike them to $20 for standard sites and $40 for group sites. The agency posted its plan on June 5 and collected public comment through July 5. It proposes to implement changes in 2025. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST WASHINGTON President Joe Biden faces a pivotal moment this week as he prepares to host the leaders of more than 31 nations in Washington with a sudden new mission: command the world stage and stabilize a reelection campaign in crisis. Much was already riding on Biden's performance at the summit marking the 75th anniversary of the NATO alliance. While his election opponent, former President Donald Trump, has questioned America's role in the organization, Biden has sought to reaffirm the U.S. commitment to NATO. Yet after Biden's dismal debate performance 11 days ago, he must now allay the fears of worried Democrats openly discussing whether he should drop out of the race or remain their party's presidential nominee. Biden is under immense pressure to calm his critics by demonstrating competence and coherence as he welcomes NATO allies and partners to Washington for the three-day summit and as he tries to prove his case against Trump. Biden's interactions with his European counterparts will be under especially intense scrutiny after incidents in which he has mixed up the names of foreign leaders. More recently, he struggled to complete thoughts and finish sentences during his debate against Trump in late June, setting off a panic among Democrats that has not subsided. Visiting leaders will be looking for similar reassurances about his ability to beat Trump. European officials have expressed private concern about how Trump would approach the alliance if he returns. Biden has also claimed that at earlier summits, heads of state have pulled him aside to say "You cant let him win." "The gravity of this moment for Biden is larger than anticipated," said Rachel Rizzo, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Councils Europe Center. "And it just, I think, puts extra pressure on him to deliver in a way that reassures allies and reassures the American people that he is fit and ready to do this job, not just until the end of his presidency but potentially for another four years." A growing handful of elected Democrats and party heavyweights have said Biden should step aside. The list could expand as lawmakers return to Capitol Hill this week after an extended holiday recess. Biden is likely to be subjected himself to questions from reporters about whether he will quit the race when he holds a news conference Thursday at the end of the NATO summit his first since the disastrous confrontation with Trump. "This is absolutely critical," said Todd Belt, professor and political management program director at George Washington University. "Not only is the microscope going to be on Biden, but the job of commander-in-chief is to be able to work together with our allies. And the critical job of keeping the nation secure is one of the reasons we want someone who is cognitively and physically up to the job." President Joe Biden waves as he boards Air Force One prior to departure from Dane County Regional Airport in Madison, Wisconsin, July 5, 2024, as he travels to Wisconsin for campaign events. Political concerns could upstage NATO Biden will spend much of his time at the summit in group discussions about weighty topics from military and financial support for Ukraine in its costly battle against Russia to the longer-term goals of the defensive alliance that was created after World War II. His schedule includes a one-on-one meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, whose country sought but has not received a formal invitation to join NATO. He also will come face-to-face with newly appointed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who took power last week after the Labour Party won a landslide election. The president and first lady Jill Biden will open the summit Tuesday evening at a commemorative event at Mellon Auditorium, where the North Atlantic Treaty establishing NATO was signed on April 4, 1949. Biden will address NATO allies publicly Wednesday afternoon and hold a dinner that night for leaders and their spouses. His agenda Thursday includes a gathering of the NATO-Ukraine Council and an event with nearly two dozen nations that have signed individual security agreements with Ukraine. He'll cap the summit off with his news conference. "Typically, though, most of these meetings happen behind closed doors," said Steven Fish, a Berkeley political scientist and author of "Comeback: Routing Trumpism, Reclaiming the Nation, and Restoring Democracys Edge." That means Biden's public remarks "for the most part can be scripted," he said. "So this isn't the kind of event where you would expect him to falter. It's not like a debate or an open-ended interview." His political crisis could draw more attention than his larger geopolitical message this week as foreign officials field inquiries about Biden's age. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said last month before Biden's debate that the president is "someone who is very clear, who knows exactly what he is doing and who is one of the most experienced politicians in the world." But Polish Foreign Minister Radosaw Sikorski took a swipe at Biden after the debate ended, writing on X, formerly Twitter: "Marcus Aurelius was a great emperor but he screwed up his succession by passing the baton to his feckless son Commodus (He, from the Gladiator). Whose disastrous rule started Rome's decline. "It's important to manage one's ride into the sunset," Sikorski wrote. U.S. officials argued ahead of the summit that foreign leaders know Biden and what he is capable of. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a briefing that "you're going to see the president being a leader" as he brings NATO allies together for the summit. "Look, foreign leaders have seen the president close-up and personally for the past three years. And I think that's important to know. They know who they are dealing with and how effective he has been." British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden attend a skydiving demonstration at Borgo Egnazia Golf Club San Domenico during the G7 Summit hosted by Italy in Apulia region, on June 13, 2024 in Savelletri. A defiant Biden digs in In his highly anticipated interview Friday with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos, Biden dug in amid unrest from Democrats after his debate debacle. He refused to acknowledge Democratic detractors who want him to drop out of the race, dismissed concerns about his mental fitness and rejected the validity of polls that show him losing to Trump. When asked about the possibility of withdrawing, he responded: "Well, if the Lord Almighty comes down and tells me to do that, I might do that." He insisted that most Democrats want him to remain their nominee even as five House Democrats publicly called for his exit, and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., was reportedly assembling Senate Democrats to ask that Biden drop out. If Democrats wanted to hear a more conciliatory president who recognizes the fallout from his debate performance they did not get it from Biden. "I don't think he did himself any favors," Belt said. "He came off as really hardheaded." President Joe Biden responds to criticism of his debate performance in an exclusive interview with ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos. David Axelrod, a former adviser to President Barack Obama, said Biden is "dangerously out of touch with the concerns people have about his capacities moving forward and his standing in this race." "Four years ago at this time, he was 10 points ahead of Trump. Today, he is six points behind," Axelrod posted on X after Biden's interview. Biden has used appearances at international events to make a forceful case for American democracy, a key theme of his reelection campaign. Without explicitly mentioning Trump, he said last month that World War II veterans were summoning Americans "to stand up to aggression abroad and at home." "This will be a good chance for him possibly to recover some of the authority that he has at home, or that he had more of at home, because this is a forum in which he really shines," Fish said. But, he said, "I don't think there's going to be a lot of opportunities at the summit for him to dig himself out of the hole that he seems to have fallen into, especially after the debate." This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Biden hosts high-stakes NATO Summit while his campaign is in crisis Chancellor Rachel Reeves warned that previous governments' decisions to defer difficult choices undermined Britain's finances - Jonathan Brady/PA Wire Rachel Reeves ordered a review by Treasury officials that could pave the way for autumn tax rises as she warned that Britain is facing the worst public finances since the Second World War. The Chancellor has asked civil servants to compile a dossier on the current state of play over the coming weeks, and will present her analysis to MPs before the summer recess. It is likely to trigger fears that Labour is laying the groundwork for up to 15bn of tax rises in its first Budget, going far beyond anything proposed in the partys manifesto. However, Ms Reeves appeared to rule out a raid on banks reserves of the kind suggested by former prime minister Gordon Brown. In her first speech as Chancellor, she said that Labour has inherited the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War. Ms Reeves said: I have repeatedly warned that whoever won the general election would inherit the worst set of circumstances since the Second World War. What I have seen in the past 72 hours has only confirmed that our economy has been held back by decisions deferred and decisions ducked, political self-interest put ahead of the national interest. A government that put party first and country second. Ms Reeves said that she had instructed civil servants over the weekend to make an assessment of the public finances so that I can understand the full scale of the challenge. In comments that will lead to speculation of tax rises, Ms Reeves said that previous governments had been unwilling to make the difficult decisions to deliver growth. She added: I will not hesitate. Economists have warned that the new Labour government will likely have little choice but to introduce tax rises to rebuild struggling public services. In the run up to the election, Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), criticised all parties for a conspiracy of silence in the manifestos over the true scale of the economic and fiscal challenges facing the new administration. Analysts at the investment bank Citi have said they expect a package of tax increases in the autumn worth around 15bn. The IFS has warned that wealth taxes, such as inheritance tax and capital gains tax, are one of the few options left on the table for a Labour government. On the campaign trail, Labour ruled out increases to income tax, National Insurance, the headline rate of corporation tax and VAT, which combined make up around three quarters of the Treasurys tax take. She has also come under pressure to tax interest paid to banks on reserves that they are required to deposit with the Bank of England. Mr Brown has suggested that introducing a tax could raise 1.3bn. Story continues However, Ms Reeves said: Ive got no intention on changing the way the reserves are treated and the interest paid on those reserves. Kickstarting economic growth is the first of Prime Minister Keir Starmers five key missions for his new Labour government and he has promised to secure the highest sustained growth of any G7 economy. 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. Donald Trumps preposterous efforts to disavow Project 2025, a rightwing blueprint for a radical takeover of the US government if the former president is re-elected in November, have been derided by former Republican figures. The Project 2025 plan includes calls for replacing civil servants with Trump loyalists, eliminating the education department, putting the justice department under the presidents thumb and banning the abortion pill. Democrats have made concerted efforts to say the 900-plus page document from the conservative Heritage Foundation thinktank would be representative of a second Trump presidency. But although it was written by former members of Trumps first administration, and he regularly echoes its policies in his speeches, last week Trump tried to disown the initiative. Posting on his Truth Social website, the presumptive Republican nominee claimed to know nothing about Project 2025 and have no idea who is behind it. He added: I disagree with some of the things theyre saying and some of the things theyre saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them. Olivia Troye, a former White House adviser to Mike Pence who sat in on policy sessions during Trumps first presidency, said Trumps attempt to distance himself from Project 2025 was driven by a recognition that its deeply controversial policy prescriptions could sink his election bid. This is preposterous if you look at the collaborators and the authors of this plan, she told CNN when asked whether Trumps denial was credible. A lot of these peopleserved in Trumps cabinet during his administration. There are people that I worked with. I sat in those policy meetings with them. Troye identified various figures including John McEntee, who was Trumps director of White House personnel, Stephen Miller, a senior adviser in his first administration, Ben Carson, the housing and urban development secretary in his cabinet, and Ken Cuccinelli, a former deputy secretary of homeland security as among the projects leading architects. Carson has been out there on the campaign trail with Trump, she said. I think what this is telling us is that Donald Trump knows that what is written in this plan is so extreme that it is damaging to his possibility of getting elected, and thats what hes concerned about. Exactly how do you disagree with something you know nothing about or have no idea who is behind, saying or doing the thing you disagree with? said former RNC chair and current MSNBC host Michael Steele in echoing Troyes derision. And how exactly dont you know that Project 2025 director Paul Dans served as your chief of staff at the Office of Personnel Management, and associate director Spencer Chretien served as your special assistant and associate director of presidential personnel? Among the plans more drastic proposals are to fire thousands of permanent civil servants and replace them with hired conservative Trump loyalists, dismantling the federal education department, asserting presidential power over the justice department which is nominally independent and a ban on the abortion pill. The Democrats, currently in the throes of a fierce internal debate over whether to retain Joe Biden as their presidential candidate, have settled on trying to make Project 2025 a household phrase in a drive to illustrate what a second Trump presidency would mean. Troye said the project should be seen as a threat not just to Democrats but to moderate conservatives, too. If you go through and really read through this plan, this is complete overreach by the federal government on our individual liberties, she said. [It talks] about law enforcement and how theyre going to use federal law enforcement in local states and local cities with no oversight. Because theres no oversight when they do that. Theyve learned all the lessons during the first Trump term, and that is what is frightening here. I think we need to be paying attention to this, and no amount of distancing by Donald Trump should be believed I sat in [on] policy-making meetings with these people. Trump surrogates have tried to back up his effort to separate himself from the project, with Marco Rubio, a Republican senator from Florida who has been touted as a possible running mate for Trump, claiming in a Sunday interview with CNN that there was no connection between Project 2025 and Trump. Thinktanks do thinktank stuff. They come up with ideas, they say things, he said. But our partys candidate for president is Donald Trump. Related: What is Project 2025 and what does it have to do with a second Trump term? He also dismissed the importance of comments by the Heritage Foundations president, Kevin Roberts, who said in an interview with Steve Bannons War Room podcast last week that conservative-driven second American revolution will be bloodless if the left allows it to be viewed by many Democrats as an implied threat of political violence. Hes not running for president, Rubio said. Our candidates Donald Trump. I didnt see Donald Trump say that. The denials appear to be undermined by close studies of the personnel involved in the documents formulation. Of the 38 people involved in the writing and editing of Project 2025, 31 of them were nominated to positions in Trumps administration or transition team meaning 81% of the documents creators held formal roles in Trumps presidency. The US flag is flown in distress as demonstrators rally in support of women's abortion rights outside the Supreme Court in Washington. Stephen Shaver/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Since the US Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, Republicans on Capitol Hill and conservative justices have regularly cited European laws barring abortion after the first trimester of pregnancy to argue for similar policy in the United States. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. and Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. both cited European abortion limits in their opinions in the Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization case. More recently, South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, who has called for a national ban on abortion after 15 weeks of gestation, told reporters on Capitol Hill that a first-trimester abortion limit would put the US in line with other peer nations. Forty-seven of 50 European nations have national limits on abortion between 12 and 15 weeks, Graham said in April after former President Donald Trump said he would leave abortion policies to the states. This is the civilized worlds position. But in one of those countries, France, which bars elective abortions after 16 weeks gestational age (14 weeks fetal age), the comparison falls flat. For one thing, France holds the distinction of being the only nation that has enshrined the right to an elective abortion in its constitution. And while French law bars elective abortions after the first trimester, that ban includes sweeping exceptions, including medical exceptions that in some cases allow women to access legal abortion through the third trimester. In short, while French law nominally bars elective abortion after the first trimester, it also ensures that the decision about whether to terminate a pregnancy after that period lies with the doctor and the patient not the government. In America, what is different as compared to France is that after [viability], the fetus is protected by the society... In France, the fetus had no existence before the delivery, said Jean-Marie Jouannic, an OB-GYN at Armand-Trousseau Hospital in Paris who specializes in fetal abnormalities. This is very, very important for us. It is a societal belief and a legislative decision, he said. US law By contrast, Louisiana and Alabama both have laws on the books establishing fetal personhood, which gives an embryo rights at the moment of conception. That concept is becoming increasingly popular: 13 state legislatures have floated similar proposals this year alone, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health research organization. In the United States, the Dobbs decision created a patchwork, with a swath of differing policies on what is acceptable and what is not and laws ranging from complete ban on abortion services to no bans at all. As of June, 14 states have total abortion bans in place, and 27 states have a ban based on gestational duration, with seven of those states banning abortion at or before 18 weeks and 20 states at some point after 18 weeks, according to KFF, a health organization. Seven states and the District of Columbia do not restrict abortion based on gestational duration. Trump, the presumed Republican nominee for president, abandoned his partys push for a national abortion ban in April, saying the issue should be left to the states. Many GOP lawmakers praised the move, saying Trumps view represents the majority of Republican voters. Still, some Republicans continue to push federal officials to crack down on Democrat-led states that allow third-trimester abortions. During an April 16 hearing of the Senate Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Subcommittee, Republican Sens. Katie Britt of Alabama and John Kennedy of Louisiana accused the U.S. of being an outlier on the world stage because some states allow abortion up until the moment of birth. Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra called the examples they used fiction. But in the United States, late-term abortions are incredibly rare, representing about 1 percent of all abortions. Theyre usually performed because a fetus is nonviable or there is a danger to the womans health. French law The French first-trimester abortion policy, as codified by lawmakers in March, applies only to voluntary termination of pregnancy. A woman can come in at any point up until 16 weeks gestation, ask for the procedure and receive it. After that, however, theres a very specific process. French law allows for the medical termination of pregnancy, when requested, for fetal malformations, harm to the womans health and, in some cases, psychological or economic distress. In those cases, French law requires the pregnant woman to go to a hospital that specializes in fetal medicine. Once there, two doctors must sign off on the procedure. The law is very precise, explained Jouannic. In some cases, a physician and patient may disagree about the need for an abortion, Jouannic said. If that happens, a larger group of doctors can meet and discuss the case. There is no formal vote on the matter, but the larger discussion helps the two deciding physicians solidify their opinion. In cases of severe conditions associated with pregnancy, like cardiac disease or cancer, three physicians and a social worker or psychologist must sign off on the procedure. Our work is always in the favor of the woman, Florent Fuchs, head of gynecology at Arnaud de Villeneuve Hospital in Montpellier, France, told CQ Roll Call. In the US, by contrast, the post-Dobbs landscape sowed enough confusion about what qualifies as a medical emergency in the context of abortion that the Supreme Court had to intervene. Last month the high court dismissed a case about whether Idahos near-total ban on abortions preempted a 1986 federal law known as the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTALA, which requires hospitals to provide stabilizing care including abortion, when necessary as a condition of Medicare funding. The stay on the Idaho law will continue. But since the court didnt rule on the merits of the case, and because another case on the 1986 law is pending, some advocates and lawmakers believe the future of emergency abortion care remains in question in the United States. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., said Democrats are fearmongering about abortion access. Every state in the country allows for doctors to treat a woman experiencing an ectopic pregnancy, miscarriage or other life-threatening condition. That is called health care, not an abortion, Cassidy said. But Idaho doctors say that when the states abortion ban was in effect, at least six women experiencing pregnancy complications in Idaho had to be airlifted to neighboring states for care. Government facilitating access When the French government does get involved with abortion, its to facilitate access. In 2016 the French government created Numero Vert National, or the National Green Line, a hotline that people can use to access their nearest abortion center or contact about any other sexual health question. Joelle Daviaud, a volunteer elected to the board of directors for Le Planning Familial Lille, the French equivalent of Planned Parenthood, has worked shifts taking calls on the Green Line a few hours a week for several years. She had to receive extensive training to answer questions. My only role or responsibility is to help de-stress and discuss next steps, Daviaud said. Recently, a 21-year-old woman called seeking an abortion. Daviaud gave the woman three options near her small town. The US Department of Health and Human Services lacks such a hotline, but after the Dobbs decision, the Biden administration launched a website to help educate women on their rights, regardless of state laws. The site allows people to file complaints with the HHS Office of Civil Rights if they believe their state isnt following civil rights or privacy laws relating to reproductive care. Changing attitudes Philippe Faucher, a longtime abortion provider at Armand-Trousseau Hospital in Paris, has witnessed French societal opinions on abortion change firsthand. When he first began practicing abortion about 30 years ago, the procedure was legal but considered taboo, he said. Now, there are about 230,000 abortions per year in France, a number steadily increasing even as the number of live births declines. More than 80% of citizens supported enshrining access in the constitution, according to a survey from the French polling company IFOP. In the United States, voters remain supportive of abortion as access wanes. Eighty-five percent of voters say abortion should be legal in certain or all circumstances, according to a May 2024 poll from Gallup. Texas now averages five abortions per month, compared with 4,400 per month before the Dobbs decision. While many US states have limited abortion access, the French consider access to the procedure akin to a government benefit. So concerned were they about provider shortages that the nation in 2022 passed a law allowing midwives to perform surgical abortions. Sandra Queron works the front desk at Trousseau Family Planning Center in Paris, a public hospital, where she meets with women before and after they meet with a doctor about abortion. The front office is covered in signs about womens rights. Honestly, in France, there are no blockades to abortion, she said. In my work Ive never encountered anything that prevented me from giving a woman her right to have an abortion. But health care providers recognize this could change despite the constitutional language allowing abortion. Some worry that the election of a conservative government could lead to budget cuts for family planning clinics, waiting periods before procedures or other barriers. You dont have to forbid an abortion, you just have to complicate it, said Jennifer Constant, a midwife who runs a small private practice outside the northern French city of Lille. And every time you will have women in trouble. Demonstrators march behind a banner reading 'Abortion is fundamental right' as they take part in an abortion rights rally on the annual International Safe Abortion Day. Christophe Archambault/AFP/dpa Republicans drop federal abortion limits from 2024 platform after seeing it being used against GOP candidates Republicans drop federal abortion limits from 2024 platform after seeing it being used against GOP candidates The Republican National Committee is not explicitly endorsing a federal ban on abortion in its current platform as the party conforms to the whims of former President Donald Trump. While Trump has been concerned about the political impact that the issue may have on Republicans, the platform change is a move that anti-abortion activists have been arguing against. The platform does, however, invoke the 14th Amendment to suggest that fetuses are guaranteed rights, and supports a ban on late term abortion, which is not a medical term. An RNC committee adopted a draft platform on Monday that states Republicans will protect and defend a vote of the people, from within the states, on the issue of life. The platform will be finalized next week following a vote of the full convention. A landmark Supreme Court decision in June 2022 overturned Roe v Wade, which enshrined a constitutional right to abortion care. The decision effectively left the legality of abortions up to individual states. We proudly stand for families and Life, the RNC platform section on abortion goes on to state. We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights. That stance brings the platform in line with Trumps approach to abortion. He has often bragged about appointing the Supreme Court justices who overturned Roe but has also shared his concerns about the electoral implications that the issue may have for Republicans. The platform states: After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments). Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S., April 2, 2024. The Republican Party has now adopted a platform abandoning federal limits on abortion (REUTERS) Anti-abortion activists have praised the decision to include language about the 14th Amendment, which Republican lawmakers argue should gaurantee fetal personhood, or the idea that a fetus is guaranteed rights, which abortion rights advocates warn could open the door to more sweeping anti-abortion laws. In 2016, the RNC platform included a 20-week federal limit on abortion or argued that states should pass the Human Life Amendment, which states that the Constitution should be amended to state that life starts at conception. The new text was handed to the RNCs platform committee on Monday. Trump wrote and edited part of the 16-page draft, according to Politico. The new draft platform is noticeably shorter than the current version. Anti-abortion groups are still backing the new platform despite the revised language and the lack of a federal limit. Some groups have argued that the federal limit is no longer needed, even though some Democratic-led states allow abortion at a later stage than 20 weeks. The CEO of Americans United for Life, John Mize, told Politico that weve got to change hearts and minds on this issue before we get to a point where we can begin looking at federal legislation. He added: A 20-week ban, thats like 5 percent of abortions. It doesnt really move the needle. But Republicans have argued for a federal ban for decades. Its the first time in 40 years that the party is not pushing a federal limit. One Republican delegate told the outlet, The RNC is doing this process behind closed doors because they know that the Republican grassroots would never go for this establishment RINO bulls***. The RNC is now functioning as an arm of the Trump campaign after the former president replaced former Chair Ronna McDaniel with former North Carolina Republican Party chair and election denier Michael Whatley, and made his daughter-in-law Lara Trump co-chair. Social conservatives now fear that the party is set to take a step back from the hardline anti-abortion stance it has held for years. Anti-abortion leaders have been urging the Trump campaign to not abandon federal limits, and they shared their anger at efforts to control the platform committee process, such as removing two anti-abortion delegates from the RNC panel. One anti-abortion leader told Politico that the Trump campaign was sacrificing the pro-life cause for political expediency. The change comes after Trump faced criticism from Democrats as President Joe Bidens campaign emphasized that his predecessor nominated half of the Republican majority on the Supreme Court that overturned Roe two years ago. The Independent has contacted the Trump campaign for comment. When reached for comment, the RNC referred back to a press release in which Whatley and Lara Trump said that the platform is a bold roadmap that will undo the devastating damage that Joe Bidens far-left policies have done to this country, power President Trump to a historic victory in November, and Make America Great Again. DNC national press secretary Emilia Rowland said in a statement that Trump and his team overhauled the Republican platform process to keep the public and the press in the dark. She went on to accuse the former president of wanting a national abortion ban. Some Republicans worry a Biden replacement could make the race 'dramatically different' for Trump Some Republicans worry a Biden replacement could make the race 'dramatically different' for Trump Donald Trump has publicly celebrated growing calls for Joe Biden to end his bid for reelection. But some in the GOP are worried that if Biden steps aside, it could make the race harder for Trump. Sen. Lindsey Graham on CBS said a new Democratic challenger would make the race "dramatically different." Donald Trump has gleefully celebrated growing calls for Joe Biden to end his reelection bid, confident that he can defeat any Democrat who challenges him but some members of the GOP aren't so sure. Sen. Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican and longtime Trump ally, on CBS' "Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan" Sunday said a new Democratic challenger would make the race "dramatically different" for Trump. "President Biden will most likely be replaced, and Kamala Harris is gonna be very vigorous," Graham said, speculating that the vice president would take up Biden's mantle in the race if he stepped aside, as many have suggested. "If Biden steps down, Harris is going to have to pick somebody to help her. If she does become the nominee, this is a dramatically different race than it is right now today. I hope people are thinking about that on our side." Graham added that Trump's focus now should be on picking a strong running mate to "add value in 2024, expand the map, prosecute the case against the liberals." Trump has not yet announced a vice president pick in his campaign, but Graham noted that South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, and Ohio Sen. JD Vance are among his top choices. Representatives for Graham did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. While Biden has thus far maintained his intention to stay in the race, it appears Graham is not the only Republican Congressman concerned about what it would mean if he stepped aside. Fox News reported a House Republican, who spoke to the outlet on the condition of anonymity, said a younger and potentially more popular candidate on the Democratic ticket would spell for "a tougher race" for Trump. "As a human, it's probably good for Joe Biden that he's now probably not going to have to be subjected to this another four years. But for the party, it's not great. It's not clear to me that it's good for us, either," the GOP lawmaker said. Trump versus Biden, the House Republican said, was "a very lopsided fight," adding that Democrats "would be insane to run Biden again" but the idea that the incumbent president could be replaced isn't necessarily a positive for the Republican Party. "It changes everything," the GOP lawmaker told Fox News. "It's just a completely unknown wild card right now." A second House Republican and a senior House GOP aide echoed those concerns to Fox News, with the aide saying explicitly that Biden's continued candidacy is Trump's best bet for reelection. "Virtually any Democrat that potentially replaces Biden has an exponentially better chance of defeating Trump," the senior House GOP aide told Fox News. "Biden staying at the top of the ticket is the best-case scenario for a Republican trifecta." When Business Insider reached out for comment, representatives for Trump pointed to a recent post on Truth Social in which Trump urged Biden to stay in the race. "Crooked Joe Biden should ignore his many critics and move forward, with alacrity and strength, with his powerful and far reaching campaign," Trump's post, published Saturday, read. "Yes, Sleepy Joe should continue his campaign of American Destruction and, MAKE CHINA GREAT AGAIN!" Read the original article on Business Insider City records officers say the rising number and increasing complexity of records requests has contributed to massive delays in providing them. (Daniel Walters graphic/InvestigateWest) This story was first published by InvestigateWest on July 2, 2024. Emily Moyer, a 37-year-old photographer, was hoping public records could help save her fiance. With his criminal history and an arrest for drug and firearm possession charges, she said, he was facing life in prison. His public defender was overwhelmed. So on April 12 of last year, Moyer asked for the disciplinary records for a slew of Spokane police officers involved with her fiances case. Speed was crucial: The trial was in August. Moyer was using one of the most important tools the public has for holding government agencies accountable. Ever since voters passed the Washington Public Records Act initiative in 1972, everybody no matter who they are can obtain copies of most documents produced by state and local public agencies. Think of it as a legal crowbar that anyone can use to crack open the governments closed doors, revealing the secrets inside. Indeed, when Moyer got the first records back, they showed multiple officers with a history of discipline problems. Officer Darrell Quarles, to name one, had been written up for repeatedly failing to activate his body camera, making an illegal traffic stop and associating with a drug-dealing prostitute. The records could have raised credibility questions as far as Officer Quarles testifying, Moyer said. But by then it was Sept. 29. The trial had been over for nearly a month. Quarles had testified, and her fiance had already been sentenced to 16 years in prison. Shes still waiting on the rest of the records. It really does me no good now, Moyer said. I just thought it was weird that they waited that long. Delays in receiving responses to public records requests But in Spokane, at least, it isnt weird for records requests to take that long: Its frustratingly common. Roughly 100 records requests to the city of Spokane from November 2022 through November 2023 took six months or longer to fulfill, according to the citys records log. In fact, a request to obtain just a list of requests took over four months. When InvestigateWest brought the problem to Spokanes leadership, recently-elected Mayor Lisa Brown committed to hiring new staff and a council member proposed passing new legislation to try to fix it. But the problem isnt just in Spokane. Graph showing public records delays for Pacific Northwest cities Delays are terrible, says David Cuillier, director of the Brechner Freedom of Information Project at the University of Florida, which advocates for public records access. Theyre getting worse. A rising flood of records requests driven by partisan tensions, technological innovation, corporate data-mining, and vexatious requestors bombarding governments have increasingly swamped under-resourced records agencies. Across the Northwest and the country, residents are facing longer wait times, steep fees and other obstacles to obtaining government records the law says they deserve. Its happening at the federal level, too, with average wait times doubling in the past decade, Cuillier said. The sense that public records responses throughout the region were slowing to a crawl sparked an experiment by InvestigateWest: to assess the speed, thoroughness and cost of local public records systems, we gave the same two record two requests to 15 cities in the Pacific Northwest. The results varied dramatically, but highlighted the seriousness of two major barriers: In Washingtons largest cities, the delays for some types of records could stretch out months, while the records fees in Oregon and Idaho could run into the hundreds or even thousands of dollars. As requests keep flooding in, records advocates fear that legislators in all three states will respond by further damming up access to public information raising fees and passing ever more laws limiting the availability of public records. And in Washington, in particular, transparency advocates and records clerks say, such rules have made the delays much worse. Its a shame, Cuillier said, because in our research, Washington state was one of the best states in the country when it comes to access to government information. Asking the five biggest cities in Washington, Oregon and Idaho for public documents Last December, InvestigateWest asked the five biggest cities in Washington, Oregon and Idaho for their log of records requests from November 2022 through November 2023. We also asked each city for a weeks worth of communications involving either the mayor or the city administrator or managers. Vancouver, Washington, was the clear winner, completing both requests including over 1,800 pages worth of emails and texts within just eight days. And unlike Portland, which asked InvestigateWest to pay $1,800 for communications involving the citys mayor or chief of staff, Vancouver didnt charge a dime. Washingtons two largest cities struggled: Spokane was by far the slowest, taking 129 days to provide records logs, nearly six times slower than any other city tested. InvestigateWest has been waiting more than seven months for Spokane to release all the requested messages from the mayor and city administrator. Seattle, meanwhile, took 42 days to deliver an installment of just nine messages from the mayor and the chief operating officer. Portlands and Spokanes records departments objected to InvestigateWests test, arguing that it was like comparing apples and oranges, considering the wide variety in city sizes, staffing levels and varying job titles. Indeed, the test had a slew of limitations: Spokanes records log, for example, was far more detailed than Caldwells or Portlands. A few cities, like Portland and Seattle, didnt have any city administrator or city manager, forcing us to pick another high-level official. Some cities mistakenly provided only messages between the two officials, instead of all messages that included either. But InvestigateWests test is just one data point in a constellation of evidence pointing to the same problems. Data submitted to the Washington Legislature show that Spokane took a full month of business days to complete a records request on average in 2022 three times longer than the average city in the state. Seattle took almost twice as long as Spokane. Graphic outlining fees required by Pacific Northwest cities for public records Individual examples abound. When Nate Sanford, a reporter at the Inlander newspaper, asked the city of Spokane for a copy of its 2022 records log, he was told he would get it within approximately two weeks. It took 10 months. And when Stranger reporter Ashley Nerbovig asked the Seattle Police Department for a single document on June 3, she was told she would have it by the 28th of February 2025. A woman can produce a baby in about as long as it takes SPD to produce a single police report, she wrote on social media. Laws in the three states differ on how quickly officials must fulfill requests. Idahos law requires providing most records within 10 business days. Oregons encourages completing a response within 15 days though it lets cities slide if, say, they dont have enough staffing. Washington law requires governmental agencies to provide the fullest assistance to inquirers and the most timely possible action on requests for information, including providing a reasonable time estimate within five days. Reasonable' depends on the record, said attorney Kathy George, who has represented organizations like the Seattle Times in records-related lawsuits. She noted, however, it would be ridiculous to take five months to produce a single record like a records log. Plenty of cities throughout the region appear to sometimes violate that standard. Anyone can sue over unreasonable delays, but many residents and media outlets cant afford to. And Candice Bock, lobbyist for the Association of Washington Cities, says the possibility of lawsuits can backfire making public records officers more nervous and less forthcoming. When you are worried about Will this result in litigation? it slows things down, Bock said. The great records glut Major records delays can result from poor records organization, understaffing or miscommunications, records advocates say. But talk to records officers and theyll point to one problem in particular: volume. According to state Legislature data, the average time it took Washington cities to complete records requests increased by 25 percent from 2018 to 2022. One reason? The number of requests had increased by more than a third. Over the last decade, what I hear the most from cities is just they get so many more requests, Bock said. And the requests are more complicated. Technology was supposed to come to the rescue. Since 2005, Washingtons Local Governments Grant Program has given away millions to help cities and counties upgrade to record management software like GovQA. That did make the process more efficient. But it also removed the speed bumps in both directions. It was easier to fulfill requests and easier to make them, too. These online portals reduced a lot of the friction to making these records requests, said Tony Dinaro, public records officer for Spokane County, which used the grant program to upgrade to GovQA in 2018. It made it a lot more visible to people. At the same time, Dan Huizinga, product manager for GovQA, said governments kept producing more records, as public agencies move through the process of digital transformation. When police departments started using body cameras, all that video became available to activists, attorneys, and those YouTube channels that turn police footage into videos with titles that include When a Cannibal Killer Spots His Next Meal and Woman Uses Her Teeth to Rip Out Sisters Eye. When COVID-19 hit, officials began holding meetings on Zoom, Microsoft Teams and WebEx, creating new genres of records. Its like, Oh, gosh, weve got these chats, Bock said. When do you keep them? How do you keep them? Where do you keep them? We keep adding to the pile. As distrust in institutions has grown, partisans and skeptics have relied on records requests to do their own research. As election-related conspiracy theories have grown, Dinaro said one Spokane County man recently asked for three weeks of footage from every surveillance camera outside the Spokane election office. Widely publicized police abuses have ignited a swarm of inquiries into police departments. National fights about COVID restrictions, critical race theory and transgender identities led to an explosion of records requests of schools from conservative groups and parents. And that can spark backlash against the record process. When Toby Nixon, former president of the Washington Coalition for Open Government, gave his public records presentation to the local chapter of Moms for Liberty, a far-right group activist group, he was accused by one critic of teaching extremists how to burden local school districts with unnecessary records requests used as a tool to harass and intimidate. Fees charged for public records Carrie Wilton, legal records supervisor for the city of Portland, marvels at the way that residents in Washington can ask for the whole world and theres little officials can do to curtail them. By contrast, Oregon and Idaho charge fees for complicated records requests. Ultimately, Wilton argues, that is an advantage for everybody. Records officers can use fees to try to push requesters to narrow broad requests, and provide records more quickly. In 2017, Washington passed legislation to allow some agencies to begin to use limited fees as an attempt to deter vexatious requesters those who ask for unreasonably large batches of records, particularly those with malicious intent. Spokane City Councilmember Michael Cathcart But typically, fees in Washington pale in comparison to neighboring states. One analysis of tens of thousands of records requests made through MuckRock, a records assistance website, found that their Idaho requesters faced the steepest fees in the country, while fees have remained the lowest in Washington. Reporters from Portland describe the fee negotiation process as a constant source of frustration, a haggling ritual that becomes a battle of wills. Worst of all, since Oregon charges for the actual wages involved with the work performed, the more inefficient an agency is, the higher the penalty. I once had a small city east of here that had 17 different people review a request and each one of them charged by the hour, said Therese Bottomly, editor of The Oregonian. A 2023 study co-authored by Cuillier argued that aggressive pursuit of fees merely adds another task to already overburdened agency staff while serving as a barrier for those that cannot pay, namely, regular citizens, journalists, and scholarly researchers. In theory, records staffers in Oregon and Idaho can waive fees if the records are in the public interest. But that can be wildly inconsistent. InvestigateWest requested a fee waiver for a week of communications involving either the Portland mayor or his chief of staff. The estimated $1,800 bill worked out to roughly $63 an hour, or an estimated $9 for every 10 messages. Portland offered to provide one hour of free work, but wouldnt budge on the overall price unless we narrowed our request. Of the nine other cities InvestigateWest sent similar records requests to in Oregon and Idaho, only one Hillsboro, Oregon was willing to fully waive the fees. InvestigateWest didnt pay the fees and therefore, was not able to get all the requested records. In 2022, the Salem Reporter asked for documents relating to the exit of the deputy police chief. Salem initially charged over $4,200 for one set of records. The newspaper raised money from their readers to cover the cost before the city relented. In 2020, the Oregonian had to pay more than $2,000 to get receipts from Douglas County showing that commissioners had wildly misspent federal funds on lavish flights and dinners. The clear feeling among practitioners who use the public records law a lot not just journalists is that fees are another way to create hurdles to disclosure to make people go away, Bottomly said. And if requesters are truly trying to be a nuisance, even Portland-sized fees wont stop them. In December 2022, Patrick Cashman a Portland records activist who previously crusaded against the citys refusal to reveal the route of the World Naked Bike Ride asked for every single record the city had already released that year to other requesters. It was an attempt, he wrote in an email to InvestigateWest, to push the city to upload all those records to an open data portal like federal agencies do. Instead, Portland asked him for nearly $68,000 to re-review and upload the records again. So Cashman hit back: He split up his request into 365 separate pieces, one for each day. Cashmans not above paying for records he shelled out nearly $3,000 for Portland records alone but Wilton said he didnt pay the bill on any of those 365. He just made the city jump through a years worth of hoops, then abandoned them. To Cashman, it was a free speech exercise, a way to protest an unaccountable, byzantine records bureaucracy. I enjoy torturing city personnel because it really is the only way we citizens can get some payback, Cashman wrote in an email to InvestigateWest, reasoning he might as well make every day of their life an unendurable hell until they decide on a different career. A report issued this year from Portlands Legal Records Team dedicated an entire section to Cashman and called for new legislation to stymie this kind of requester. But records advocates are wary of such proposals. The line between vexatious and merely persistent is thin, and sometimes gadflies and trolls uncover scandals and change policies. Bottomly recalled a woman whos made numerous records requests about the Multnomah County Animal Shelter over two decades. That is somebody who has made it her lifes mission to be a citizen watchdog of the animal shelters, Bottomly said. There are citizens who, bless em, take very seriously their responsibility to monitor government. And even the requests of someone like Cashman are dwarfed by the real giants in the room: data brokers. In a brief span between 3:50 and 3:55 a.m. on Feb. 7, Justin McNeal made 14 record requests in Portland, part of a spree of 151 requests that day alone. And last year? McNeal made over 9,000 record requests to Portland 11 times more than every media request in 2023 combined, almost all for accident reports. McNeal doesnt live in Portland. He lives in Atlanta, where hes an operations manager for LexisNexis Risk Solutions. LexisNexis is a data broker, a company that makes its fortune hoovering up records on practically everything criminal history, debtor information and then selling records and data insights to insurance companies, law enforcement and even back to consumers. Through LexisNexis, McNeal paid Portland more than $110,000 last year. Meanwhile, a single requester from a competitor, MetroReporting, paid more than $13,000 for over a thousand individual records last year. It was the requests from these sorts of companies that, according to a report from Portlands Legal Records Team, brought the Portland Police Bureau record system to its knees. At its worst, in January 2022, Portlands police records had a backlog of over 22,000 open requests and two-thirds of them were taking more than two months to fulfill. Cuillier, the records expert, said it underscores his study that shows fees dont do much to deter some of the most high-volume requesters like attorneys or data brokers. These companies, theyre perfectly happy paying to get this data because they make money off it, he said. The public interest requesters theyre ones who are getting hosed. Reform for Oregon, restricted access in Washington, Idaho In the past decade, there have been reforms to expand records access in Oregon. But Washington and Idaho legislators keep running in the other direction. In 2020, Idaho legislators passed a bill to exclude legislative notes and the names of private residents who communicate with them from records requests. And last year, The Olympian reported, Washington state House Democrats figured out a creative way to reinterpret a state constitution provision into a legislative privilege that they have used to ignore many records requests. Some legislators have pointed to the burden on local governments and state agencies as a reason for weakening public records laws. This year, for example, Idaho legislators passed bills doubling the time allowed to fill records requests coming from out of state. Yet by winnowing public records laws, legislators have often made the delays worse. The hard part of a clerks job isnt locating records. Its reading thousands of pages of documents, spotting parts they legally need to redact like lists of names if a requester wants them for commercial purposes and blacking them out. The more redactions required, the more complicated the job. And in the past half-dozen years, Washington state legislators have turned personnel records into a Swiss-cheese block of exemptions. Every year the Legislature adds, on average, a dozen or more exemptions. Were now up to more than 650, said George Erb, with the Washington Coalition for Open Government, a nonprofit that advocates for governmental transparency. Every time they do that, it just makes the act more complicated for everybody. Our own public records lawyers say that even they have a hard time keeping up. One new law mandated that if information was contained in a personnel file, the agency had to contact every employee mentioned to give them a chance to legally challenge the request. Another required employees to black out victim and witness names from harassment or discrimination investigation records. Even something that seems like a minor change could be hell on records clerks: Consider a 2020 law requiring redacting the months and year, but not the day, of public employee birthdays. If all we had to do was redact that whole column, that would be easy, Dinaro said. But no, instead, what we have to do is convert this spreadsheet to a PDF, and then make these tiny little boxes on each row. But if a journalist requests the record, the law says the birthdays shouldnt be redacted at all. The complications compound until they sound like the setup to a bad joke: A journalist, a commercial data broker, and a curious resident all walk into a city clerks office and request the same set of employee names and birthdays. The clerk has to redact their records three different times in three different ways. The Legislature hadnt just added more work for clerks. Theyd multiplied it. Easing the burden on clerks without diminishing public access At the local level, at least, some leaders are trying to figure out ways to ease the burden on clerks without cutting off public access. Spokane City Councilmember Michael Cathcart told InvestigateWest he plans to resurrect a 2021 proposal to post many already-processed records online. Its a bit like what the city of San Diego and the Oregon governors office do. And Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown is proposing to hire a new records clerk with the midyear budget. Its the right thing to do to have open and transparent government, Brown said. Spokane Mayor Lisa Brown Despite the delays, Brown praised the citys clerks for their thoroughness and attention to detail. Thats positive when it comes to public records, she said. The issue is speed and capacity. In a statement, the clerks office indicated they had long been under-resourced and overwhelmed. The city has three clerks dedicated to handling requests sent to their office, along with another who splits her time working on fire department records. Since 2014, the clerks office handles a big chunk of police records as well. The clerk assigned to InvestigateWests request for the record logs had never redacted that kind of document before. She was handling over 100 other requests at the same time. Were going to add capacity, Brown said. But were also going to look at best practices and other technologies and ways to improve the system. At least one person mentioned the idea that AI could be a part of this. Brown said one city theyll be looking to is Vancouver, Washington, just across the Columbia River from Portland. While InvestigateWest is still waiting six months later for Spokane to hand over over a weeks worth of communications involving the mayor or city administrator, Vancouver completed the whole thing in only eight days. The average Vancouver request in 2022 only took 10 days to finish a third the time of Spokane and a fifth the time of Seattle. Vancouver City Attorney Cary Driskell didnt name any particularly zesty secret sauce responsible for Vancouvers speed. Sometimes they do charge fees for particularly voluminous requests. Often, theyll save time by disclosing more than they have to. Theyll create records like the records logs in a way that makes them a lot easier to release. These are presumed to be records belonging to the public, and they have a right to see them. I dont think all jurisdictions have had that approach, Driskell said. Vancouver puts up quite a lot of resources towards getting these responded to in a timely fashion. Sometimes, thats the unsexy answer to fixing a broken records system: Spend money. In 2020, Portland created a special initiative, the Police Records Backlog Project, that tapped legal staff, private attorneys, and even Portland Police Bureau recruits to dig through the backlog. And today, the team reports, theyve honed their process, which means quicker responses and lower fees. There are too many public agencies at all levels who do not see public disclosure of information as a core function of government, Bottomly said. They see it as an added burden that they must carry. They dont budget for it, they dont staff for it. InvestigateWest (invw.org) is an independent news nonprofit dedicated to investigative journalism in the Pacific Northwest. A Report for America corps member, Daniel Walters covers democracy and extremism across the region. He can be reached at daniel@invw.org. A contestant competes in a watermelon harvest event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child obstacle race event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child treasure hunting event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child obstacle race event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) A contestant competes in a parent-child obstacle race event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child obstacle race event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child treasure hunting event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) Contestants compete in a parent-child obstacle race event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) A contestant competes in a parent-child treasure hunting event during the desert fun games at Shapotou scenic spot in Zhongwei, northwest China's Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, July 7, 2024. The desert fun games is being held here from July 6 to 8, expected to attract more than 1,000 contestants. (Xinhua/Feng Kaihua) LANCASTER CITY, Pa. (WHTM) The City of Lancaster is asking for the communitys input in its validation sessions. The City of Lancaster Department of Neighborhood Engagement is inviting all city community members to participate in two community validation sessions to review data from the Lancaster City Welcome Initiative Community Survey. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now This Week in Pennsylvania The department is looking to make the communitys voices heard on the strengths and opportunities of tourism advancements and economic impact in Lancaster. This next phase of the tourism master planning effort is an exhilarating step forward, integral to shaping the future narrative of tourism in the City of Lancaster, said Milzy Carrasco, the Director of Neighborhood Engagement. We want residents engaged in this transformative process. The greater participation from city community members and business leaders, the more comprehensive and robust the results will be. All City community members are invited to attend one of the following Community Validation Sessions: Session One When: July 8 from 5:30 PM 7:30 PM Where: The Mix Center 520 North St, Lancaster, PA 17602 Session Two When: July 9 from 6:00 PM 8:00 PM Where: The Ware Center 42 N Prince St, Lancaster PA 17603 A total of 2,946 area residents participated in the departments in-depth survey that ended in March of this 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 ABC27. Newest Restaurant Report Card | If you want the latest Shelby County restaurant scores sent directly to your inbox, sign up for it today on WREGs Newsletter here. Each week WREG is rounding up the highest and lowest scores from Shelby County restaurant inspections. Find more restaurant scores from Shelby County and other Tennessee counties here. Lowest Scores: Vietnam Restaurant 74 N Cleveland St Memphis, TN 38104 Score: 72 Violations include: No handwashing in between tasks; employee cutting cucumber with bare hands to serve to customer; raw shrimp stored over uncovered food; employee did not rinse and sanitize dishes; raw eggs sitting on countertop; unlabeled substances; food stored on the floor; no hair restraints worn in kitchen; soiled wiping cloths on prep tables; racks, where dishes are stored, is dirty; ceiling tile has buildup debris over vent hood. Full report. Wendys 315 Washington Memphis, TN 38103 Score: 76 Violations include: Front hand sink does not dispense soap; lettuce and tomato held at improper temperature; uncovered foods; no hair restraints; microwave interior extremely dirty; dumpster lid open; ceiling is dirty and leaking water; floors are extremely wet; air vents are extremely dirty and black in color. Full report. A&R BBQ #2 3721 Hickory Hill Memphis, TN 38115 Score: 87 Violations include: Cold-holding cooler is not operational; no thermometer in mini deep freezer; flies and gnats throughout facility; deep freezer padding torn on the inside; lobby ice dispenser has black residue on the outside; ceiling tiles are stained or damaged throughout facility and kitchen; floor tiles damaged throughout kitchen. Full report. 100s Muggin Coffeehouse, 606 N. Main St Suite 101 Memphis, TN 38105 The Kent, 61 Keel Ave Memphis, TN 38107 Tacos Mondragon, 505 N. White Station Rd Memphis, TN 38117 Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson will meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on July 10 during the NATO Summit in Washington, Reuters reported on July 7. As Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives since October 2023, Johnson was widely blamed for delaying fresh supplies of aid to Kyiv due to his refusal to hold a vote on various iterations of the foreign aid bill that allocated $61 billion in support for Ukraine. Earlier this summer, Johnson said he disagreed with imposing restrictions on Kyiv regarding the use of U.S.-supplied weapons and criticized the Biden administration's "micromanaging the war effort in Ukraine." The U.S. gave Ukraine permission on June 1 to use American-supplied weapons, including HIMARS rockets, to strike targets in Russia located near the border with Kharkiv Oblast after Russia launched a renewed offensive in the region on May 10. Ukraine said that Washington's initial ban on striking targets in Russia meant Ukraine was unable to attack Russian forces as they were building up before crossing the border into Kharkiv Oblast in the renewed Russian offensive that was launched on May 10. Support for Ukraine is expected to be a key focus for this year's NATO summit. Sitting President Joe Biden has provided significant monetary and military support for Ukraine over the last two years while opposing candidate Donald Trump has promised to end Russia's full-scale war against Ukraine within 24 hours but has not publicly elaborated on how he plans to do so. One plan reportedly involves ceding territory to Russia. Politico reported earlier this month that diplomats and world leaders preparing for next weeks NATO summit are privately voicing significant concerns about President Bidens age, health, and his ability to secure victory in the 2024 presidential election. Biden faces a challenging task at the upcoming NATO summit, where he was set to address allies' concerns about America's commitment to Ukraine. However, his debate performance against Trump has shifted the focus of the summit to an evaluation of Bidens physical and political resilience. The upcoming NATO summit will take place between July 9 and July 11 in Washington, DC. Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukrainian drones attack ammunition, oil depots in Russia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. When Colombias Alberto Lleras Camargo was elected the first secretary general of the Organization of American States in 1948, no one thought it remarkable that he was a man. At the time, it was almost unthinkable for a woman to hold the top job at major political institutions. In 1948, women had not even won the right to vote in presidential elections in at least a dozen Latin American and Caribbean countries. Thankfully, that kind of exclusion now seems as archaic as a steam locomotive. And with the election in June of Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico follows Brazil, Argentina, Chile and ten other nations in the Americas in electing a woman to serve as head of state. This profound change mirrors advances in gender equality that have reshaped every sphere of public and private life in our hemisphere over the last half-century. Wellalmost every sphere. The OAS is a glaring example of a peculiar type of institution that has stubbornly resisted the shift toward equality: it is one of at least 20 international organizations that a woman has never run. Not once. It is hard to believe, but this group includes the United Nations, the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, the Food and Agriculture Organization, and many other bodies with the power to make decisions that affect all humanity. These are public institutions created to tackle problems that impact society as a whole, including the women and girls who make up more than half of the worlds population. Taxpayers of all genders finance the operating capital of these organizations. As a fundamental matter of fairness and accountability, the leadership of these institutions should mirror the societies they are supposed to represent. What can possibly excuse the uninterrupted absence of women from their top jobs? For a long time, the pipeline problem was patronizingly offered as an explanation. We were asked to believe that there are simply not enough women with deep experience in diplomacy, law, geopolitics, peace and security, trade, and economics. Despite the best intentions, governments are unable to find qualified female candidates to fill these vacancies. Today, when tens of thousands of women are recognized as leaders in these fields, this notion is absurd. The OAS, which begins this week with the process of nominating candidates to succeed Uruguays Luis Almagro as secretary general in 2025, is emblematic of this problem. Incredibly, of the 15 elections it has held since 1948, only one (in 2019) even included a woman candidate. On most occasions, one or two male candidates made a single presentation of their plans at OAS headquarters prior to an election that was seen as a foregone conclusion. A reputation as a bastion of gender exclusion is certainly not the main reason for what has been described as the diminished presence of the OAS in issues such as the defense of democracy. But if it wishes to reclaim its standing as an effective forum for addressing crises in areas such as governance, transnational crime, and immigration, the OAS needs to trigger a confidence shock. This could immediately be achieved if many OAS member countries put forward a female candidate for the next secretary general. Instead of a single speech on the eve of the election, these candidates should make multiple public appearances at universities or other venues throughout the coming year. There are early indications that OAS member governments would support this idea. An open, dynamic, and genuinely competitive election featuring women candidates would command attention in the Americas and around the world. It might just give the OAS a chance to model the kind of inclusive leadership and consensus-building that our times urgently demand. Susana Malcorra is Argentinas former Minister of Foreign Affairs and the co-founder and President of GWL Voices, an organization dedicated to advancing womens leadership in global cooperation A commemorative marker was put up in a Fayette County cemetery to honor a Revolutionary War soldier. Reuben Thrope was a private, scout, spy and Minuteman. The Daughters of the American Revolution put the plaque next to his wifes grave at the Irwin Memorial Cemetery. Susan Moon, Thropes 5th great-granddaughter, believes the commemoration can help keep the community informed. Were educating our youth, and hopefully in the future, the youth will be able to understand what these men sacrifice and carry on with honor and respect, Moon said. The Daughters of the American Revolution said their mission is to promote patriotism and preservation. Any woman 18 years or older who can prove lineal descent from a patriot for the American Revolution is welcome to join. Download the FREE WPXI News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Channel 11 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch WPXI NOW TRENDING NOW: Washington County road to close for bridge replacement, planned detour is more than 10 miles Man dies after being shot by woman while trying to enter house in Carrick Woman accused of trying to pass suspected drugs to boyfriend at Penn Hills magistrates office VIDEO: LGBTQ advocates mourn Mercer County teen as some call for hate crime charges DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts Specialty drugs are strong, complex treatments and some need to be given to patients intravenously and in a clinical setting. The prescribing and delivery process for these drugs can cause headaches for everyone involved, as competing interests control the drugs path toward the patient. (Getty Image) Specialty drugs might come in a delicate glass vial in the mail, shipped by a specialty pharmacy in a styrofoam carton cushioned with ice packs. These medicines can be so precious that a clinic or hospital must administer them. Your doctor prescribes and dispenses the drug but your health insurance makes the call on where the prescription gets filled. Its called white bagging when insurers use their own contracted pharmacy to ship specialty drugs to a doctors office. That means they will often refuse claims for drugs filled from a hospital or clinics in-house pharmacy. White bagging is now limited under a bill signed into law Monday, June 24, by Gov. Dan McKee. Rep. Justine Caldwell of East Greenwich sponsored the House version and Sen. Linda Ujifusa of Portsmouth led the Senate companion. Starting Jan. 1, 2025, insurers cannot refuse to pay a clinician for administering a drug in a clinical setting from the providers chosen pharmacy. Insurers have to honor the clinicians choice and cover the claim, but providers also cant charge more than the payers preferred pharmacy. The new law does not change how speciality drugs taken at home are dispensed; the payer can still stipulate which specialty pharmacy fills those prescriptions. This is one of the proudest bills that Ive gotten over the finish line, Caldwell said. It is not, you know, glamorous or easy to understand. But it is going to really help the lives of a lot of sick people in Rhode Island. Insurers say the practice gets patients the best price on expensive meds. Thats also the position of pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, the intermediaries used by insurers to manage prescription drug benefits. PBMs are usually responsible for the selection of specific specialty pharmacies that patients are permitted to use under their insurance plan. White bagging opponents include hospitals, providers and medical associations, who argue the circuitous process can cause delays, errors or inconveniences in treatment. It can also be a hassle to receive and store medicine from an outside pharmacy, which might use barcodes or an inventory system different from the one used by the dispensing clinic or hospital. These parties may suggest buy-and-bill as an alternative, which lets providers manage and use their own stock, which payers like insurance companies or Medicare later reimburse. The new law resonates with what Pharmacy Times called a surge in legislative activity over bagging practices. Last year, over 20 states entertained the idea of limiting white bagging, although the Times noted theres little peer-reviewed evidence one way or the other on the practices merits. State policies may be helpful depending on their specifics. Caldwell said her bill is absolutely a consumer- and patient-centered bill, designed to help specialty drugs biggest customer bases: people with autoimmune conditions and certain cancers. Data from the states Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner shows drugs for these populations have dominated both retail and specialty pharmacies in the past five years. In 2022, commercial payers and Medicaid combined spent $52 million in Rhode Island on chemotherapeutic drugs alone from medical pharmacies. Immunosuppressants Humira and Stelara often appeared in the top five drugs sold at retail. These drugs are frequently used to treat autoimmune conditions like arthritis or inflammatory bowel disease. Caldwell acknowledged the legislation involved compromise like any other and might make all of the parties a little happy and a little unhappy. The two major parties payers and providers seemed content with the new laws terms. Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Rhode Island, the states largest insurer, applauds the bill it helped to amend, said spokesperson Richard Salit. It is not, you know, glamorous or easy to understand. But it is going to really help the lives of a lot of sick people in Rhode Island. Rep. Justine Caldwell, an East Greenwich Democrat, who sponsored the legislation in the House Insurers successfully lobbied to keep providers from charging more than the payers preferred pharmacy to ensure that our members will have access to the infusion medications they need at the lowest possible price, Salit wrote in an email. Lifespan, the states largest health care system, stressed white bagging as an unhelpful addition to patient care: Coordinated care within the health system is the best type of care we can deliver, said Christine Collins, senior vice president and chief pharmacy officer, via email. The practice of white bagging disrupts this coordination, and at one of the most vulnerable points in a patients care the administration of their medication infusion. PBMs under increasing scrutiny The Senate bill inspired 30 pages of written testimony at a Feb. 8 committee hearing. The almost equally divided opinions (five in support, four against) suggested the bills divisive nature. Ujifusa suggested in a recent email that prescription drug costs go unchallenged at their roots: a lack of federal negotiations on drug pricing (the Canadian model, she said) and the suppression of middlemen insurers and their Pharmacy Benefit Managers [who] take billions of dollars for themselves. Ujifusa launched multiple bills against PBMs this session, and Caldwell said she and her peers on the House Corporations Committee are constantly hearing PBM-related legislation. That kind of discussion has become normal in legislatures nationwide as pharmacy companies have widened their scope of business, leading PBMs to become more deeply integrated in their businesses. PBMs force providers and patients to deal with their stipulations, which has made the middlemen a foil for legislators and attorney generals nationwide, who blame them for higher drug prices. That a specialty pharmacy, a regular retail pharmacy, an insurer and a PBM might exist under a single corporate umbrella has been offered as further evidence. Rhode Islands own CVS Health is owner of the countrys largest PBM, Caremark one of the five companies that account for 79% of about 116,000 contractual relationships between hospitals and PBMs. Caremarks contracted specialty pharmacy is, maybe unsurprisingly, CVS Specialty. At left is Rep. Justine Caldwell of East Greenwich is seen on the House Floor on May 28. On the right is Sen. Linda Ujifusa of Portsmouth at a May 16 Senate committee hearing. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) Asked for a comment on the white bagging law, a Caremark spokesperson deferred to the companys trade group, Pharmaceutical Care Management Association. The association responded that it worked with stakeholders across the health policy space in Rhode Island to amend [the bills] to ensure that patients in the state are protected, according to an email from a spokesperson, David Lumbert II. Rhode Island Health Insurance Commissioner Cory King has a role in the new law, too. The amended version that made it to McKees desk prescribes that Kings office oversee the new regulations and publish anonymized pricing data. King said via email that he was anticipating his work with payers and providers to craft a data-driven and fair report on these issues as mandated by the new law. But is white bagging as suffocating to patients as its detractors insist? While I have heard anecdotes about the impact of these drug distribution and payment policies on consumers, King wrote, I would like to withhold judgment until we undertake a more thorough review. Whats so special about specialty drugs? At full price, specialty drugs can cost more than an annual salary $84,000 is the estimated average annual cost without insurance or manufacturer rebates. Federal data shows the medications market growth: The specialty drug sector soared 43% from 2016 to 2021, but the number of prescriptions went up less than 1%. Even with so few consumers, specialty drugs comprised a $301 billion market in 2021 and have recently usurped the profitability of pills, at least as far as profit-per-patient goes. Most oral medications are small molecule drugs that penetrate cells easily when digested. But many specialty drugs are also biologics, meaning theyre manufactured using animal matter and complex chemistry that require special handling, care and provider oversight. These are the kind of drugs Caldwell wanted to protect from outside intervention. She acknowledged the law doesnt change anything for specialty drugs which are administered at home, like the popular Humira or its new-to-market generics (which are called biosimilars in biologic medicine). Caldwells focus was on easing life for people who may already be exhausted by illness and treatment alike. Imagine having cancer, she suggested, and driving to an infusion appointment only to find your medicine isnt there because the insurance-mandated shipment was late. The context of Caldwells empathy is also the context for competing parties financial interests. Specialty drugs tiptoe the line between medical and prescription insurance. One of the first successful biologics was Remicade for inflammatory bowel diseases, derived from human and mouse antibodies. It requires a three-hour infusion a level of involvement that, to many insurers, means the drug falls under medical and not prescription coverage. This chart from the OHIC data hub shows Rhode Islands most lucrative individual drugs distributed via medical pharmacies in 2022. This category includes hospital pharmacies, which are more back-of-house than the public-facing jobs of retail pharmacy. The top three sellers all have the -umab suffix, which is used for antibody-derived drugs. (Office of the Health Insurance Commissioner) Ge Bai, a professor of accounting and health policy at Johns Hopkins University, told Rhode Island Current that efforts to eliminate white bagging may not be purely patient-centered. Hospital lobbying plays a role, as do government programs like 340B reimbursements, which are meant to subsidize care for low-income people via deep discounts for hospitals pharmaceutical purchases. But the programs reporting standards are inexact, leading one 2023 study to conclude the subsidies are probably not helping their intended audience. White bagging allows insurers to grab the profit margin from selling specialty drugs; and restrictions of white bagging give hospitals the sole right to that profit, Bai said. When there is no restriction, insurers and hospitals fight each other for that profit, which puts downward pricing pressure on both of them. If they are too greedy, then they are more likely to be undercut by their opponents. White bagging restrictions protect hospitals, Bai said, giving them room to comfortably expand profits, sometimes at the financial expense of patients and their employers who sponsor health plans. The situation is highlighted in cancer treatment, where corporations like CVS have stacked their multiple assets in the battle for oncology margin, as a 2023 presentation from the Drug Channels Institute put it. PBMs, specialty pharmacies, health insurers and occasionally provider networks (like CVS MinuteClinic) have been vertically integrated to better wrestle for the profits from cancer drugs. Caldwell thought people who take these drugs deserve better, and both she and Ujifusa expressed a desire to reign in PBMs as a means of correcting a profit-crunching system. After all, people taking these drugs are seriously ill, Caldwell offered: The last thing they deserve is to not get the medicine at the place most convenient to them, and at the time that they need it. The post New Rhode Island law protects patients who rely on specialty infusion drugs appeared first on Rhode Island Current. An opening at the Rhode Island Department of Transportation for an environmental planner who can help the state achieve its climate goals has drawn little interest. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current) The job of helping Rhode Islands transportation sector achieve its goals of becoming carbon neutral by 2050 required a masters degree and supervisory experience. But when applications closed June 30, only seven people applied to be the Rhode Island Department of Transportations (RIDOT) supervising environmental planner. We estimate having someone in the position late summer/early fall, said RIDOT spokesperson Charles St. Martin. The new position at RIDOT comes three years after Gov. Dan McKee signed the Act on Climate, which requires the state to develop a plan to reduce all climate emissions from transportation, buildings and heating, and electricity to 45% below 1990 levels by 2030, 80% below 1990 levels by 2040, and net-zero by 2050. The annual salary range is $73,240 to $82,925, according to the June 21 online job posting. That pay rate seemed a little low for such an important job, observed GrowSmart RI Deputy Director John Flaherty. But maybe theyre aiming for somebody who was recently out of grad school, he said. Flaherty added he was not surprised to see that only seven had applied for the position. Its difficult hiring people in this market, he said. Candidates for the position were required to have a masters degree in landscape architecture, geography, natural resources, civil or environmental engineering, soil science, or a closely related field. The job posting also asked for experience in supervision for regional or statewide programs. It did not specify how many years experience was needed. St. Martin said RIDOT has employed environmental experts in the past, but they have worked in different sections of the department. RIDOTs has an environmental division consisting of three different units: natural resources, stormwater, and landscape architecture. This new position, St. Martin said, would be responsible for handling inland flooding across the state along with carrying out the departments Carbon Reduction Plan. Under the federal governments bipartisan Infrastructure law passed in 2021, states were required to create a plan and submit it to the Federal Highway Administration by Nov. 15 in order to receive funding for projects listed. The plan was submitted last fall to the Federal Highway Administration and was approved in the winter, St. Martin said. Rhode Island is slated to get more than $35.7 million over five years. Critics of the plan claimed it did not do enough to try and shift Rhode Island toward alternative modes of transit such as bike, bus, and rail. Overall, $17.9 million over half of Rhode Islands designated Carbon Reduction Program funds are committed to improvements such as sidewalk accessibility upgrades at Rhode Island Public Transit Authority bus stops, along with bike path renovations. But transit and environmental advocates say a new environmental planner could now tweak the states strategy to have even more green projects via the State Transportation Improvement Program, which seeks to invest $9.5 billion over 10 years in highway and road repairs including new bridges and new pedestrian-friendly infrastructure. The plan does not require an emissions reduction analysis in determining what projects the state should tackle, said Emily Koo, senior policy director and Rhode Island program director for the Maine-based Acadia Center. So it makes really broad sweeps of weighing things, she said. There has to be an analysis in order for there to be factored criteria so maybe this person can do that. Flaherty called RIDOTs move to hire an environmental planner a step in the right direction. We have our work cut out for us weve been a little slow off the mark on this, he said. The states transportation sector is responsible for nearly 40% of Rhode islands greenhouse gas emissions, according to the Office of Energy Resources. Flaherty pointed to Colorado for establishing a framework Rhode Island should follow. He cited a 2021 rule created by the Colorado Department of Transportation that sets an emissions ceiling that, if a project exceeds, requires the state to invest further in carbon-reducing alternatives such as public transit. I dont know if well get to that point, but at least hiring somebody to do this work and begin quantifying and working on models its a very good step in the right direction, Flaherty said. The post RIDOT environmental planner job, key to meeting state climate goals, draws just seven applicants appeared first on Rhode Island Current. RIKERS ISLAND, Bronx (PIX11) Several detainees contend they were locked in their cells and dormitories and left to suffer during a fire at Rikers Island, according to a new lawsuit. The lawsuit, first reported by Gothamist, contends at least 15 people were left gasping for air, choking on toxic black smoke, some vomiting, some losing consciousness during a fire in 2023. 6 people accused of smuggling, accepting bribes at Rikers Island: court documents For inmates in the custody of the New York City Department of Correction exposure to smoke from fires is a regular occurrence because of the malfeasance, deliberate indifference, and reckless disregard of human life, the lawsuit reads. The detainees affected were in the North Infirmary Command, an area where some inmates are kept in 23- to 24-hour per day lockdowns pretrial, according to the suit. When the fire broke out on April 6, 2023, it took officials nearly 15 minutes to address the fire, and there were no working sprinklers, according to the suit. It took nearly 30 minutes for any detainees to be evacuated despite correction officers coming in and seeing the fire, the lawyers contend. Some detainees exposed to heavy smoke were never evacuated, according to the suit. Some detainees contend they were never given medical attention they requested. A spokesperson for the citys Department of Corrections told PIX11 News the department has since made fire safety improvements to its jails, including increased inspections, broken sprinkler repairs, new fire extinguishers and equipment and new fire drills. The lawsuit was filed Friday as a class action suit against the City of New York, New York City Health + Hospitals and a slew of city officials. A spokesperson for the citys Law Department said the department will review the case and respond in the litigation. Emily Rahhal is a digital reporter from Los Angeles who has covered New York City since 2023. She joined PIX11 in 2024. See more of her work here and follow her on Twitter here. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. TIOGA COUNTY, Pa. (WETM) A pipe replacement project will close a portion of road in Tioga County, Pennsylvania, for a few days next week. According to PennDOT, the work will begin on Monday, July 15, at 7 a.m. and continue through Tuesday, July 16, at 7 p.m. During this time, Jackson Center Road will be closed between Bailey Creek Road on Route 1011 and Warner Road on Route 1018. Road closure set to begin in Sullivan Township From Wednesday, July 17, through Friday, July 19, Jackson Center Road will be closed during daylight hours only between Bailey Creek Road and Warner Road while the project is being completed. A detour will be in place for the duration of the project using Bailey Creek Road, Route 549 and Pony Hill Road on Route 1018. Drivers are reminded to be alert, drive with caution and expect travel delays when driving through road work areas. Conditions of major roadways can be viewed at any time on 511pa.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 WETM - MyTwinTiers.com. Rob Reiner is calling on President Joe Biden to withdraw from the 2024 presidential race. On Sunday, the Stand by Me and When Harry Met Sally director urged the party leader to step down from his reelection bid in a fiery post on X, formerly called Twitter. Its time to stop fucking around. If the Convicted Felon wins, we lose our Democracy, wrote Reiner, who has been a supporter of Biden until now and a significant donor of the Democratic Party. Joe Biden has effectively served US with honor, decency, and dignity. Its time for Joe Biden to step down. On Monday, author Stephen King joined Reiner and multiple other celebrities, like showrunner Damon Lindelof and Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, in calling for Biden to bow out of the race over fears that hes fumbling away the election to Donald Trump. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election, King wrote on X. Reiner and Kings comments come after Bidens mental acuity and capabilities have been heavily questioned recently, particularly following his shaky debate against Trump last month that has sparked concern among Democrats in Congress. Since the debate, Biden has defended himself, insisting he can win against Trump and run the country for another four years. Im the most qualified person to beat him, and I know how to get things done, Biden told ABC News George Stephanopoulos during an interview last week. He also explained his poor performance at the debate, saying, It was a bad episode no indication of any serious condition. I was exhausted. Still, Biden insisted that he has no desire to exit the race. If the Lord Almighty came down and said, Joe, get out of the race, Id get out of the race, he said. But the Lord Almightys not coming down. Related... The A320neo aircraft handed over to Chengdu Airlines is pictured in Tianjin, north China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran) TIANJIN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- European aircraft manufacturer Airbus on Monday delivered its 700th A320 family aircraft assembled at its A320 Family Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) in north China's Tianjin Municipality. "It means that at least every third Airbus A320 aircraft in China comes from Airbus Tianjin," said Christoph Schrempp, general manager of the Airbus Tianjin Delivery Center. "It underlines the strong commitment of Airbus to China, the Chinese aviation market and its continuous development." The newly delivered aircraft, an A320neo, featuring 180 economy class seats, was handed over to Chengdu Airlines. Chengdu Airlines has 50 Airbus aircraft, said Wang Shushi, the company's CEO. Inaugurated in 2008, the FALA in Tianjin is the first Airbus production line established outside Europe. The FALA has been operating for over 15 years and has become a role model of successful China-Europe cooperation. Following the delivery of the first Airbus A320 aircraft in 2009, the FALA completed the delivery of the 500th A320 family aircraft at the end of October 2020. In less than four years, it has achieved the milestone of delivering the 700th A320. "This figure highlights the long-standing and in-depth cooperation between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry," said George Xu, Airbus executive vice president and Airbus China CEO. Over the years, Airbus has been expanding its industrial footprint in China, integrating its supply chains with China, which has led to an increasing presence of Chinese elements in Airbus aircraft, Xu added. Data from Flight Master, a Chinese intelligent air-travel platform, shows that in the first half of 2024, China's civil aviation passenger transport handled about 2.7 million flights, up 14.8 percent year on year. According to China's five-year development plan for the civil aviation industry, by 2025, its passenger transportation volume is expected to reach 930 million passengers, while the cargo and mail transport volume is expected to reach 9.5 million tonnes. "China is Airbus' largest single-country market globally," said Xu, adding that the number of aircraft delivered by the company to Chinese customers annually accounts for about 20 percent of its total global deliveries. Airbus has seen its market share in China climb from about 20 percent in 2008 to more than 50 percent so far this year. George Xu, Airbus executive vice president and Airbus China CEO, speaks during the delivery ceremony of the 700th A320 family aircraft assembled by Airbus Tianjin to Chengdu Airlines in Tianjin, north China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran) In recent years, the FALA has also delivered airplanes to airlines such as Hungary's Wizz Air and the Philippines' Cebu Pacific. China's stable aviation industrial chain enables Airbus to supply globally from production bases in China, thus fueling the development of the global aviation industry, according to Xu. "We firmly believe that the Chinese aviation market has remarkable potential and will continue to hold an important position. We must seize this strategic market," said Xu. Now, the second FALA project in Tianjin, which broke ground in September 2023, is being built at full speed and is expected to be operational around the beginning of 2026. After the completion of the project, Airbus' global production network is expected to include 10 final assembly lines, two in Tianjin (one currently under construction), two in Toulouse, France, two in Mobile, the United States (one under construction) and four in Hamburg, Germany. "It means that Airbus' A320 family aircraft production capacity in China will account for 20 percent of our global total capacity," noted Xu. According to the company's market forecast, China's average annual growth in aviation transportation will reach 5.3 percent in the next 20 years, higher than the global average of 3.6 percent. More than 40,000 new aircraft will be needed worldwide by 2042, of which more than 9,000 are estimated to be delivered to China. "Airbus remains dedicated to strengthening strategic collaboration with China and fulfilling our long-term commitment to this thriving market," Xu said. Airbus is willing to continue to work hand in hand with its Chinese partners to contribute to the high-quality development of China's civil aviation, and to build a bridge for exchanges and cooperation between China and Europe, Xu added. Officers responding to a disturbance call in Roseville found a woman wanted on fraud charges in Ohio and suspected in a drug trafficking scheme at a Northern California prison. The disturbance call involving a woman and a man came June 30, the Roseville Police Department announced Saturday in a news release. The woman had left the area by the time officers arrived at the scene. Officers identified the woman and learned she was wanted on an arrest warrant from Ohio on multiple fraud charges, police said. Authorities in Ohio confirmed they would extradite her, which prompted officers to search for her. As the officers searched, a plainclothes agent from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation also was searching for the same woman. Police said the CDCR agent told officers the woman might be in the area of the Raleys ONE Market on Blue Oaks Boulevard. The officers found the wanted woman at a nearby yogurt shop and took her into custody. Police said the arrested woman was suspected of being involved in smuggling drugs and phones into Pelican Bay Prison in Del Norte County. The Police Department did not release any further details about the woman arrested last month. Running is a beloved and accessible activity for many, offering great physical and mental benefits. However, ensuring safety while running is essential, especially for those venturing alone or during low-light hours. By staying informed about local resources and incorporating these safety practices, runners in Nashville can enjoy their runs and feel less vulnerable while reaping the rewards of this fulfilling activity. Stepping out your front door for a solo run is convenient, but running in groups or with a friend is a highly recommended safety measure. Join a running group to create strength in numbers Not only does running with others build community, but it also provides a safety net should anything unexpected occur. Runners come up a hill on Music Square East during the 20th annual St. Jude Rock n Roll Nashville Marathon on Saturday, April 27, 2019, in Nashville, Tennessee. Whether its a health issue or an unsettling encounter, having companions nearby significantly increases your chances of receiving prompt assistance. We are fortunate in Middle Tennessee to have dozens of free running groups. Depending on what day, time or area of town you want to walk or run in. Harness technology to help others and protect yourself Running is often an escape from our tech gadgets, but carrying a phone while running is a non-negotiable safety measure for me. While it may not prevent an incident, having it available to call for help is invaluable. One morning, I was running with a group when one of my friends tripped and hit the concrete sidewalk. He was stunned and covered in blood. Thankfully, someone had their cell phone, and we were able to call for medical assistance quickly. Also, consider purchasing and wearing a Road iD with your medical information and emergency contacts. Additionally, leveraging running apps like Strava can provide an added layer of safety by allowing friends or loved ones to know your location or track your progress. Do exercise caution with such apps if your profile is public, as they can inadvertently expose your route and habits to potential threats. To prevent potential stalking, only accept friend requests from folks you know and make sure youre setting the safety features that allow you to blur specific miles, such as your starting and ending points. More: Pioneering women marathon runners like Kathrine Switzer motivated me to keep running Use personal safety devices safely Depending on your level of comfort, you might consider carrying a self-defense tool for runners, like pepper spray or a personal safety alarm. One simple tool to consider is the Go Guarded Ring, a heavy-duty plastic serrated-edge self-defense tool worn on any finger. If you choose to go this route, its crucial that you test the device and understand its usage so youre best prepared if and when you have to use it. Be aware of surroundings It is wise to run in well-lit and highly trafficked areas because being surrounded by people discourages potential attackers. For solo runners, let someone know where you are running, for how many miles and when you expect to finish your run. Additionally, wearing highly reflective clothing is crucial for safety and visibility, especially during low-light periods like dusk and dawn. Swapping black attire for bright colors like yellow or using a clip-on light or reflective vest dramatically enhances visibility. Also, if youre someone who cant run without your playlist, make sure youre using headphones that allow you to hear your surroundings. Overall, when it comes to running safely in Nashville, my biggest pieces of advice are to run with a friend and make informed choices about your running route. Focus on what can be controlled. Remember that these safety measures are simple yet effective, but they can also be easy to overlook. By proactively adopting these habits, youll feel significantly safer during your runs. Christi Beth Adams Christi Beth Adams is the local owner of Fleet Feet Nashville. In 2006, Adams started as an employee at the 4-year-old Brentwood location, which evolved into an ownership opportunity for her. Shes grown Fleet Feet to six locations in Middle Tennessee. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Running is great exercise, but here's how to keep going safely Who is running for New Jersey governor in 2025 and who might still jump in While New Jersey's next primary election is nearly a year away, the 2025 race for governor is well underway with a field that is growing more crowded each week. The primary, set for June 2025, will feature no incumbent as Gov. Phil Murphy is term limited and cannot run again, but the field is full of big-name contenders hoping to secure their partys nomination. Some have held office in Trenton before while others have run cities and towns throughout the state. With so much time until the filing deadline, theres no telling what the field will look like when ballots are printed next year. Who are the Democrats running for NJ governor? There are three candidates officially in the running for the nod on the Democratic side, with at least two more expected by the end of the year. Steven Fulop Jersey City Mayor Steve Fulop, who is running for governor, speaks to the press about his transportation plan for the state. Monday, August 14, 2023 Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop has been a declared candidate for more than a year. Hes spent months outlining proposals and plans on topics ranging from the states transportation infrastructure to affordable housing and has laid out his policy for transparency in government. Hes secured endorsements from several current and former elected officials as well as a handful of trade unions but his anti-establishment strategy has left some party leaders less than thrilled. Steve Sweeney Senate President Stephen Sweeney before the Governor entered the Assembly Chambers to give his State of the State address one January 15, 2019. Former state Senate President Steve Sweeney launched his campaign at the end of last year and quickly racked up both donations and endorsements, including the support of his longtime friend and recently indicted South Jersey power broker George Norcross. Sweeney like Fulop was poised for a run in 2017 but ultimately opted to not run and eventually endorsed Murphy. Ras Baraka Newark Mayor Ras Baraka has led the states largest city since 2014 and served as a council member before that. Before being elected, Baraka was still a public servant, working as a public school teacher and later an administrator. Sean Spiller Montclair Mayor Sean Spiller is the most recent candidate to enter the race. Mayor for just four years, hes opting out of a reelection campaign in favor of pursuing higher office. Spiller already has the backing of one of the states most powerful labor unions, the New Jersey Education Association. Hes also the unions president. Sean Spiller, New Jersey Education Association president, speaks as Governor Phil Murphy holds a press conference in response to the mass shooting at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas at the Office of the Governor in Trenton, NJ Wednesday, May 25, 2022. During a deposition in a lawsuit filed by a former employee against Montclair, Spiller invoked his fifth amendment right hundreds of times, refusing to answer any questions. What about Mikie Sherrill and Josh Gottheimer? While not officially candidates, rumors persist that Rep. Mikie Sherrill, D-Montclair, and Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-Wyckoff, are considering runs for the states top seat. Charlie Stile: Reaction to George Norcross indictment is muted at best. Why? He remains powerful Who are the Republicans running for NJ governor? The field of candidates seeking the Republican nomination for NJ governor is more crowded. Jack Ciattarelli Jack Ciattarelli comes out to address his supporters at 12:30am at the Marriott in Bridgewater, NJ on November 3, 2021. The supporters of the New Jersey gubernatorial candidate were told to wait for all the votes to be counted as Ciattarelli tries unseat incumbent governor Phil Murphy in a tight race that was too close to call. Former Assemblyman Jack Ciattarelli all but declared his candidacy after nearly toppling Murphy in a closer than expected race in 2021. He made it official earlier this year and has already been campaigning in full force, taking swipes at his opponents. Jon Bramnick Jan 27, 2024; New Brunswick, NJ, United States; State Sen. Jon Bramnick, a Republican, announces his run for NJ governor at The Stress Factory. State Sen. Jon Bramnick was the first to officially jump into the race on the Republican side. An ardent Never Trumper, Bramnick has amassed several endorsements and campaigns on the platform of party unity. Ed Durr Trenton, NJ - June 20,2023 -- Senator Edward Durr before the afternoon senate session. The New Jersey Senate Budget and Judiciary Committees convened today at the statehouse in Trenton before the full senate convened to vote on bills as the states budget deadline approaches. Former state Sen. Ed Durr is most well known for unseating Sweeney in 2021 but after just one term he lost his reelection bid. He announced his candidacy for the nomination earlier this year but hasnt seen much attention in the way of endorsements so far. Bill Spadea NJ101.5 radio host Bill Spadea moderates a Morris County mayor's roundtable discussion on the state affordable housing mandate and other redevelopment challenges at the Sheraton Parsippany Hotel. Conservative radio host Bill Spadea is the most recent candidate to jump into the race on the Republican side. He was called fantastic by former President Donald Trump at a recent Wildwood rally. The decision by 101.5 and Townsquare Media to keep him on the air has caused some concern regarding campaign donations and contributions. Attorneys for both Bramnick and Ciattarelli allege that his show gives him an unfair advantage and the states Election Law Enforcement Commission is considering the matter. What about Mario Kranjac? Former Englewood Cliffs Mayor Mario Kranjac is also reportedly considering a run. Kranjac served two terms as mayor of the Bergen County town. He didnt run for a third, having previously cited his belief in term limits. During his time in office the town was involved in a costly affordable housing lawsuit and gained national attention for billing a teen for a Black Lives Matter protest. He later rescinded the bill. This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Here's who is running for New Jersey governor in 2025 The Russians have launched a strike on the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital in Kyiv, injuring people. Source: Vitali Klitschko, the Mayor of Kyiv, on Telegram; Volodymyr Zhovnir, General Director of the Okhmatdyt Hospital, in a comment to Ukrainska Pravda Quote from Klitschko: "There was a strike on a children's medical institution." Details: Zhovnir said that one of the hospital buildings had been hit. They are currently organising the evacuation and relocation of everyone who was there. photo: Volodymyr zelenskyy in TELEGRAM An Ukrainska Pravda source said there are casualties in the hospital. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who likely arrived in Warsaw on 8 July, stated that Kyiv's Okhmatdyt is one of the most important children's hospitals not only in Ukraine but also in Europe. Quote from Zelenskyy: "The hospital has been damaged in a Russian strike, and there are people under the rubble; the exact number of injured and fatalities is unknown. Everyone is now helping to clear the rubble: doctors and ordinary people. Russia definitely knows what its missiles are targeting and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes: against people, against children and against humanity in general. It is of paramount importance that the world does not remain silent about this and that everyone sees what Russia is and what it is doing." photo: bohdan kutiopov, up photo: bohdan kutiopov, up photo: bohdan kutiopov, up photo: bohdan kutiopov, up photo: bohdan kutiopov, up Background: On the morning of 8 July, the Russians carried out another missile attack on the territory of Ukraine. Russian terrorists fired over 40 missiles of various types. Currently, the city authorities in the capital report five people killed and nine injured. Support UP or become our patron! The Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, was hit during a Russian missile attack on July 8, President Volodymyr Zelensky reported. At least two people were killed, the State Emergency Service reported at around 1:30 p.m. local time. Mayor Vitali Klitschko later clarified that both killed were adults. One of them was a doctor. Over 600 patients and at least as many staff members were at the Okhmatdyt and the Ukrainian Center for Pediatric Cardiac Surgery, located near the hospital, at the moment of the strike, Health Minister Viktor Liashko wrote on Facebook. More than 50 people, including seven children, were injured, he added. The Russian attack also destroyed one building and damaged four others in the Okhmatdyt hospital, according to Liashko. Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 According to Klitschko, patients of the children's hospital "are being evacuated to the municipal hospital of the city." "It is a nightmare. This is another evidence of (Russia's) genocide, what Russians are doing to Ukraine and our city," he said. Medical workers at the cardiology department of the Okhmatdyt hospital. The cardiology center is located next to the hospital's main building, which was hit by the Russian military. (Chris York / The Kyiv Independent) "I don't understand how people can be such animals. Even animals don't do such things. They are not even animals," Alla Nesolionova, a doctor at the cardiology center at the Okhmatdyt hospital, told the Kyiv Independent. "I don't know how these pilots can launch missiles. They know the targets. They know the coordinates." "The only thing I want is that this will be back to them a million times worse. I want them to feel it on their own skin," she added. Natalia Svidler and two-year-old Ilia arrived at the cardiology unit of the Okhmatdyt hospital half an hour before the Russian attack. (Chris York / The Kyiv Independent) The Russian military struck the Okhmatdyt hospital with a Kh-101 cruise missile, according to the preliminary data obtained by the State Security Service (SBU). Fragments of the rear body of the Kh-101 cruise missile with a serial number and part of the missile's rudder were found at the scene, the State Security Service said. "I am sincerely grateful to every medic who continues to help, treat, and save despite all the risks and threats. I spent the day at the site of the tragedy, surrounded by our hospital teams. You are incredible," the minister said. Russia launched another attack against Kyiv later during the day, with debris damaging a maternity hospital, killing four people and injuring three. So far, at least 27 people have been recorded killed in Kyiv. Another 72 were injured in the capital, while two others were injured in Kyiv Oblast. Apart from Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and other cities also came under attack. Around 40 missiles of various types were launched against Ukraine, Zelensky said. Read also: Explosions rock Kyiv, other cities in Russian Monday morning massive attack Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russia improves ballistic, cruise missiles to make them harder to shoot down, official says Russian forces have improved their ballistic and cruise missiles, making them more difficult to detect and shoot down, Yurii Ihnat, former Air Force spokesman, wrote on Facebook on July 8. Russia launched a mass missile attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8, killing at least 36 civilians and injuring 149 others. The aerial attack targeted Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk, damaging "50 civilian sites, including residential buildings, a business center, and two medical facilities," the State Emergency Service reported. The Russian military additionally equipped its missiles with radars and heat traps, according to Ihnat. The cruise missiles traveled at extremely low altitudes during the recent attacks. Some of the aerial targets were shot down at an altitude of 50 meters, which "could also lead to terrible consequences on the ground," Ihnat said. Russia launched 44 missiles of various types at Ukrainian cities over the past day, he added. The Air Force earlier reported that Ukrainian forces downed 30 out of the 38 missiles launched on Ukraine in the morning of July 8. "People on the ground sometimes push the limits of available weapons and equipment to shoot down as many Russian missiles and drones as possible," Ihnat said. Read also: Ukraine calls UN Security meeting after mass Russian attack across country Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine, kills at least 41 civilians and injures 149 others Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated. Russia launched a mass missile attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8, killing at least 41 civilians and injuring 149 others. The aerial attack targeted Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk, damaging "50 civilian sites, including residential buildings, a business center, and two medical facilities," the State Emergency Service reported. So far, at least 27 people, including three children, have been recorded killed in Kyiv. Another 82 were injured in the capital, according to Serhii Popko, the head of the Kyiv City Military Administration. Two more people suffered injuries in Kyiv Oblast. In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, where the cities of Dnipro and Kryvyi Rih are located, 11 people were killed and 62 were injured, the State Emergency Service said. Three people were killed and other three suffered injuries in a Russian strike on the Donetsk Oblast city of Pokrovsk on the morning of July 8, the State Emergency Service reported. More than 10 explosions could be heard in Kyiv the morning, according to Kyiv Independent reporters on the ground. Air defense was active in the capital's suburbs, Mayor Vitali Klitschko said. As a result of the attack, missile debris fell in the Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Holosiivskyi, Desnianskyi, Darnytskyi, and Schevchenkyvskyi districts, the city administration said. Buildings were reportedly damaged across the city, with fires breaking out in the Desnianskyi and Dniprovskyi districts. The Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, was hit in the attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. A residential building was also hit in the Schevchenkyvskyi district, damaging its entrances and destroying one of them, Klitschko said. First responders are trying to rescue people trapped under the rubble, he added. Three transformer substations operated by DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy company, were destroyed or damaged, the company said. A company representative told the Kyiv Independent that no other energy equipment apart from the substations was damaged. 0:00 / 1 At least three projectiles targeted the area near the Lukianivska metro station, including the one that hit the Okhmatdyt hospital, a witness told the Kyiv Independent. One of the entrances was closed due to the debris and glass lying on the road nearby. Vadym Trush, 23, a vendor working at the metro station, told the Kyiv Independent that 30-40 people hid underground when the attacks happened. "We don't normally go to the shelter at work, but this time we decided to go. Because we heard strikes in the city. About 5, 10 minutes later, there were three hits," Trush said. During a separate attack against Kyiv later during the day, debris hit the Isida maternity hospital, killing seven people and injuring three, the State Emergency Service said. In another aerial attack in the early hours of July 8, the Air Force reported downing three out of the four cruise missiles over Zhytomyr and Cherkasy oblasts. No casualties or damage were reported. The strikes took place on the eve of the NATO summit in Washington, where Ukraine hopes to receive long-term aid commitments from the allies. "And the entire world must use all its determination to finally put an end to the Russian strikes," Zelensky said on X. "Killing is what (Vladimir) Putin brings. Only together can we bring real peace and security." The July 8 attack has been the deadliest in months, with the casualty figures comparable to massive strikes carried out by Russia during the winter. Russian forces launched a number of large-scale attacks during the spring, but these mostly targeted energy infrastructure. Read also: Russian attacks kill 2, injure 14 over past day Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russia loses another 1,200 soldiers and 40 armoured combat vehicles over past day Ukrainian soldiers. Photo: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook Russian forces have lost 1,200 soldiers killed and wounded, as well as 16 tanks and 40 armoured combat vehicles, over the past 24 hours. 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 8 July 2024 are estimated to be as follows [figures in parentheses represent the latest losses ed.]: approximately 552,190 (+1,200) people; 8,171 (+16) tanks; 15,685 (+40) armoured combat vehicles; 14,966 (+29) artillery systems; 1,115 (+0) multiple-launch rocket systems; 880 (+1) air defence systems; 361 (+1) fixed-wing aircraft; 326 (+0) helicopters; 11,893 (+31) operational-tactical UAVs; 2,353 (+1) cruise missiles; 28 (+0) ships and boats; 1 (+0) submarines; 20,150 (+47) vehicles and tankers; 2,503 (+8) special vehicles and other equipment. The information is being confirmed. Russia's heaviest bombardment of Kyiv in 4 months kills at least 31 and hits a children's hospital Emergency workers respond at the Okhmatdyt children's hospital hit by Russian missiles, in Kyiv, Ukraine, Monday, July 8, 2024. A major Russian missile attack across Ukraine on Monday killed at least 31 people and injured 154, officials said, with one striking a large childrens hospital in the capital of Kyiv, where emergency crews searched the rubble for victims. (AP Photo/Alex Babenko) KYIV, Ukraine (AP) Russian missiles blasted cities across Ukraine on Monday, damaging the country's largest children's hospital and other buildings in a fierce assault that interrupted heart surgeries and forced young cancer patients to take their treatments outdoors. At least 31 people were killed, officials said. The daytime barrage targeted five Ukrainian cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on social media. Ukraine's air force said it intercepted 30 missiles. More than 150 people were wounded. It was Russias heaviest bombardment of Kyiv in almost four months, hitting seven of the citys 10 districts. At least seven people were killed in the capital, including two staff members at the hospital. Strikes in Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyys birthplace in central Ukraine, killed 10. The attack on the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital caused debris to fall into heart patients' open chests in the middle of surgery. Cancer patients had their beds wheeled into parks and onto the streets. "It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, Zelenskyy said. Russia denied attacking the hospital and said the strikes hit military targets. The assault unfolded a day before Western leaders who have backed Ukraine were scheduled to begin a three-day NATO summit in Washington to consider how they can reassure Kyiv of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can survive Europes biggest conflict since World War II. Zelenskyy said during a visit to Poland that he hopes the summit will provide more air defense systems for Ukraine. In a statement, U.S. President Joe Biden called Monday's missile strikes a horrific reminder of Russias brutality. It is critical that the world continues to stand with Ukraine at this important moment and that we not ignore Russian aggression, the statement said. At the hospital in Kyiv, rescuers searched for victims under the rubble of a partially collapsed, two-story wing of the facility. At the main 10-story building, windows and doors were blown out, and walls were blackened. Blood was spattered on the floor in one room. The intensive care unit, operating theaters and oncology departments all were damaged, officials said. At the time of the strike, three heart operations were being performed, leading to the contamination of the patients open chests with blast debris, Health Minister Viktor Liashko said. The hospital lost water, light and oxygen, and the patients were transferred to other hospitals, he told Ukrainian television. Rescuers formed a line, passing bricks and other debris to each other as they sifted through rubble. Smoke rose from the building, and volunteers and emergency crews worked in protective masks. Some mothers carried their children away on their backs, while others waited in the courtyard with their children as calls to doctors phones rang unanswered. A few hours after the initial strike, another air-raid siren sent many of them hurrying to the hospitals shelter. Led by a flashlight through the shelters dark corridors, mothers carried their bandaged children in their arms, and medical workers carried other patients on gurneys. Volunteers handed out candy to try to calm the children. Marina Ploskonos said her 4-year-old son had spinal surgery Friday. My child is terrified, she said. This shouldnt be happening, its a childrens hospital, she said, bursting into tears. Among the victims were Ukraines sickest children, said Volker Turk, the U.N. human rights commissioner. A U.N. team visited the hospital shortly after it was hit and saw the children receiving cancer treatments in hospital beds set up outdoors, he added. This is abominable, and I implore those with influence to do everything in their power to ensure these attacks stop immediately, Turk said. Kyiv city administrators declared July 9 a day of mourning, when entertainment events are prohibited and flags are lowered. Ukraines Security Service said it found wreckage from a Russian Kh-101 cruise missile at the site and opened proceedings on war crime charges. The Kh-101 is an air-launched missile that flies low to avoid detection by radar. Ukraine said it shot down 11 of 13 Kh-101 missiles launched Monday. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called Mondays missile strikes particularly shocking, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting on the attacks for Tuesday at the request of France and Ecuador. Russia, which holds the councils rotating presidency this month, will preside at the meeting. The International Criminal Courts founding charter says it is a war crime to intentionally attack "hospitals and places where the sick and wounded are collected, provided they are not military objectives. Late last month, the court issued arrest warrants for Russias former defense minister and its military chief of staff for attacking Ukraines electricity network. Russias Defense Ministry said the strikes targeted Ukrainian defense plants and military air bases and were successful. It denied aiming at any civilian facilities and claimed without evidence that pictures from Kyiv indicated the damage was caused by a Ukrainian air defense missile. Since early in the war that is well into its third year, Russian officials have regularly claimed that Moscows forces never attack civilian infrastructure in Ukraine, despite abundant evidence to the contrary, including Associated Press reporting. More than 1,600 medical facilities have been damaged since the start of the war and 214 have been ruined completely, according to Ukrainian Health Ministry statistics published last month. Col. Yurii Ignat of the Ukrainian air force said Russia has been improving the effectiveness of its airstrikes, equipping its missiles with enhancements, including so-called heat traps that evade air-defense systems. In Mondays attack, the cruise missiles flew as low as 50 meters (160 feet) off the ground, making them harder to hit, he said in comments sent to AP. About three hours after the first strikes, more missiles hit Kyiv and partially destroyed a private medical center. Four people were killed there, Ukraines Emergency Service said. In the capitals Shevchenkivskyi district, a three-story section of a residential building was destroyed. Emergency crews searched for casualties, and AP reporters saw them remove three bodies. The powerful blast wave scorched nearby buildings, shattered windows and flung a dog into a neighboring yard, resident Halina Sichievka said. Now we dont have anything in our apartment, no windows, no doors, nothing. Nothing at all, the 28-year-old said. The Ukrainian air force said some of the weapons used in the attack were Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, which are among the most advanced Russian weapons. They fly at 10 times the speed of sound, making them hard to intercept. Three electricity substations were damaged or destroyed in two districts of Kyiv, energy company DTEK said. ___ AP journalist Samya Kullab in Kyiv contributed to this report. ___ Follow APs coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine Russian forces have adopted a new tactic deploying reconnaissance drones with their navigation switched off. Source: Colonel Yurii Ihnat, representative of Ukraine's Air Force, on Radio Liberty Quote: "The enemy is using a new tactic: theyre launching UAVs without navigation, with no GPS signal. The signal is switched on directly over the target that the enemy plans to reconnoitre and strike with an Iskander [missile]. So we also have to react to this situation. If anyone thinks nothing is being done, we have already had many conversations [about this], and the task of somehow solving this problem has been set by the senior leadership." Details: The colonel emphasised that Ukraine's defence forces must implement effective measures to counter Russian reconnaissance drones. Ihnat added that up to 50 UAVs fly across the war zone every day, and certain types of drones can also infiltrate Ukraine's rear. Quote: "I would like to remind you that Shaheds [loitering munitions ed.] can fly as far as [Ukraine's] western borders. So this isnt the first time that an Orlan [reconnaissance UAV] has flown into the rear, into Poltava Oblast. This is a problem that needs to be addressed. Innovative solutions are being sought, and FPV (First-Person View) drones and anti-aircraft UAVs, as they are called, are being used to engage enemy reconnaissance drones, and they are working quite effectively. I think the whole of the defence forces should also pay attention to this and introduce such equipment, which is relatively cheap compared to expending missiles. Well, you [still] need missiles, and missiles today act as a deterrent. As we speak, dozens of UAVs 30 or 40 are flying across the war zone... They are conducting aerial reconnaissance around the clock in Sumy and Kharkiv oblasts, where active hostilities are taking place. Sometimes drones fly deep into our territory. Yes, there are various means of counteraction: we have mobile fire teams, and fighter aircraft may be used. We have had a positive experience with Yak-52s [Soviet propeller aircraft] in the South, and there are also electronic warfare systems [at our disposal]." Support UP or become our patron! BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- China urges the United States to stop supporting or endorsing in any way the "Tibet independence" forces and their anti-China and separatist activities, foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Monday. Lin's remarks came after U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a press statement extended best wishes to Dalai Lama on the occasion of his 89th birthday, and reaffirmed U.S. commitment to supporting efforts to preserve Xizang's linguistic, cultural and religious heritage. Lin told a regular press briefing that the position of the Chinese government on Xizang-related issues is consistent and clear. Xizang affairs are China's internal affairs which brook no interference by any external forces. "Over the years, Xizang has enjoyed a booming economy, social harmony and stability, and sound preservation of its cultural heritage. The rights and freedoms of all ethnic groups in Xizang, including the freedom of religious belief and the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages, are fully protected," Lin said, adding this is a fact and seen by many in the international community. As many people know, the 14th Dalai Lama is not a pure religious figure, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion, the spokesperson said. "We urge the United States to fully understand the gravity and sensitivity of Xizang-related issues, truly respect China's core interests, be fully aware of the Dalai group's anti-China and separatist nature, honor the commitments the United States has made to China on issues related to Xizang, and stop supporting or endorsing in any way the 'Tibet independence' forces and their anti-China and separatist activities," Lin said. Moscow has vowed to respond to Ukrainian attacks within its borders after a drone set on fire a warehouse allegedly storing munitions, prompting a state of emergency in Russias south-western Voronezh region. The drone attack took place in a settlement in the Podgorensky district, Voronezh governor Aleksandr Gusev said Sunday. Ukrainian sources said the warehouse was targeted because it was being used to supply ammunition to Russian troops fighting in Ukraine. Several UAVs were detected and destroyed by on-duty air defense forces over the territory of the Voronezh region last night. A fire broke out at a warehouse due to the fall of their wreckage. Detonation of explosive items began in the Podgorensky district, Gusev said. He did not identify the settlement where the attack took place, but said a state of emergency had been declared there. No one was injured in the attack, but two elderly women were taken to hospital for checks, he said. Operational services, military and officials are working on the site to eliminate the emergency, he said, adding arrangements have been made for the evacuation of residents from nearby villages as well. So far, some 50 people from three settlements have been transported to temporary accommodation centers. We are providing them with all the necessary assistance, he said. A Ukrainian source familiar with the matter said drones of the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) targeted the warehouse because it was being used to supply ammunition to Russian troops fighting in Ukraine. The enemy was storing surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, shells for tanks and artillery, and boxes of ammunition for firearms on an area of 9,000 square meters, the source said. CNN is not able to independently verify those claims. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov told a state broadcaster following the attack that the president has said that we would respond and I am convinced that you will see it in the foreseeable future. They the United States and NATO keep on saying that they are not at war with Russia. This is not a brave face on a bad situation, thats what Ill say, and they understand it perfectly well, Lavrov said, according to state news agency TASS. Russias Defense Ministry said on Sunday that Ukrainian drone attacks had also been intercepted Saturday night in the border region of Belgorod. Meanwhile, Russian attacks in Ukraine also continued on Sunday, injuring at least two people in the Kharkiv region, according to local authorities. Further south in Kherson region, rescuers put out 14 fires due to Russian shelling that damaged residential buildings and cars, according to authorities. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com MOSCOW Russia wants have about 2,600 satellites in orbit by 2036, according to Yury Borisov, the head of the Roscosmos space agency. Notably the country aims to put Sfera communications satellites into orbit an analogue of the American-made Starlink and the British OneWeb constellations. Roscosmos previously sought to launch more than 600 systems into space as part of this project, but budget cuts prevented this. Now the agency is eyeing 360 satellites, although Borisov said the goal ought to be at least 1,200. The government has agreed to approve 180 billion rubles (U.S. $2 billion) for 162 satellites. However, thus far the state has allocated 95 billion rubles, and a strategy meant to further develop the domestic communications sector up to 2035 calls for the launch of six geostationary satellites. Sergei Prokhorov, who leads the Sfera project, recently said there is money set aside for four of them. Is this practical? While Borisov, who spoke July 3, is aiming for the production of at least 250 satellites per year for various purposes, the country currently makes about 15 annually despite an existing capacity to manufacture about 40 each year. Roscosmos goal is unrealistic, according to Pavel Luzin, a space policy expert at the Center for European Policy Analysis think tank. He noted the satellites will likely serve several functions, including optical observation, communications, meteorology, radar and television service. All the serious satellites that Russia has launched into space since 2022 were produced using imported Western electronics purchased no later than the mid-2010s, before the first sanctions, Luzin told Defense News, referring to economic restrictions placed on Russia following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. It turns out to be a fundamental contradiction: Russia has a big problem with satellite production, but at the same time Russia declares that in just a couple of years it will be able to produce [250] high-quality satellites for various purposes per year and is already mastering the technologies of their conveyor production, Luzin said. This simply does not happen. Russia can find components on the world market for the production of several satellites, but not enough to produce hundreds, Luzin added. The heads of companies report that despite the sanctions, the industry is alive, although in fact they may not know where to get components for hundreds of satellites. Indeed, Borisov had said industry is functioning relatively stably amid the sanctions. Amid the war, the state has adjusted its satellite production priorities, focusing heavily on dual-use satellites that is, ones that provide military and civilian services. Among its priorities are the optical reconnaissance satellite Razdan; a radar satellite for marine reconnaissance for the Pion-NKS constellation; two radar satellites, dubbed Obzor-R and Kondor; and several Glonass communications satellites. Denis Banchenko, a former employee of Roscosmos, told Defense News that a significant part of the planned satellites, and most likely all of them, will be used in the interests of the Ministry of Defence of the Russian Federation for intelligence, surveillance, navigation and communications purposes. Russian forces struck the city of Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on July 8, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the city's military administration. At least 10 people were killed, including six women and four men, according to Vilkul. Forty-seven people suffered injuries as of 2 p.m. local time, Ukrainian media Suspilne Dnipro reported, citing Yevhen Sytnychenko, the head of the district military administration. Russia carried out a mass aerial attack on the morning of July 8, targeting the cities of Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorsk. The Russian military used Kinzhal ballistic missiles, as well as Kh-101 and Kh-22 cruise missiles, to attack Ukrainian cities. Later in the day, Metinvest, Ukraine's private group of steel and mining companies, announced that the workers of its enterprise were killed in the attack on Kryvyi Rih. Metinvest did not specify the number of casualties in its statement. "The enemy is openly targeting Ukrainian enterprises that ensure the vital activity of cities, civilians, and our children," the statement read. "We will never forget or forgive this crime of the aggressor country. It will make us even stronger in our unity and desire to ensure that those responsible for this war and the tragedies in Ukrainian families are brought to justice." Vilkul earlier reported "several" strikes. One of them targeted an administrative building of an industrial enterprise. Kryvyi Rih, with a population of around 660,000, is the second most populous city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. It has suffered multiple deadly attacks by Russian forces since the outbreak of the full-scale war. Read also: Explosions rock Kyiv, other cities in Russian Monday morning massive attack Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Two injured in Russian attack on Kyiv die at hospital, bringing death toll to 17 and number of injured to 66 photos Seventeen people were killed and 41 more injured in a Russian missile attack on Kyiv on 8 July. There may be people under the rubble of the Okhmatdyt children's hospital. Source: Vitali Klitschko, the Mayor of Kyiv, on Telegram; Serhii Popko, Head of Kyiv City Military Administration (KCMA); Ukraine's Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko on the air of the national joint 24/7 newscast; Ukraines State Emergency Service (SES) on Facebook; Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office (PGO) on Telegram Details: At 11:28, Popko reported that three civilians were known to have been killed and nine injured, but three minutes later he added that the death toll had risen to five. Klitschko added that the number of people who were injured in the attack has also increased. Eleven people have been reportedly injured, eight of whom have been taken to hospital. Later, Ukraine's Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko reported that seven people had been killed in the Russian missile attack on Kyiv. Quote from Klymenko: "At the moment, seven people are known to have been killed. Search and rescue operations are underway. And right here, at the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital, as well. Two people have been killed at the Okhmatdyt location, and five have been killed in Solomianskyi district a residential building and a shopping centre [have been hit there ed.]." Details: The minister further noted that one person was rescued from the rubble alive a few minutes ago. People are being searched for. Klymenko said 15 Kyiv residents were injured. A few minutes later, Popko added that the death toll had reached eight. Quote from Popko: "Early reports indicate that eight people have been killed. We are on the territory of the Okhmatdyt hospital. The rubble is being cleared. There is information that there are people, possibly children, trapped under the rubble." Later, the Prosecutor General's Office reported that the death toll had risen to nine. Some time later, the KCMA reported that the death toll had reached 10 and the number of casualties 35. The Kyiv mayor elaborated that two men who had been taken to hospital died in a Kyiv medical facility. As of 14:00, the data of the Prosecutor General's Office indicated that the death toll has risen to 15. At least 37 people were reportedly injured. During the second Russian attack, the debris from downed Russian air targets fell on a private maternity centre in Kyiv's Dniprovskyi district, killing four people and injuring three more. As of 14:54, Popko reported that 17 people had been killed and 41 injured in the Russian missile strike on Kyiv. The SES noted that the aftermath of the Russian attack on the capital is being dealt with. The aftermath of the attack on Kyiv Photo: SES of Ukraine Search and rescue operations continue in Kyiv's Podilskyi, Desnianskyi, Sviatoshynskyi, Holosiivskyi, Dniprovskyi, Solomianskyi, Darnytskyi and Shevchenkivskyi districts. The aftermath of the attack on Kyiv Photo: SES of Ukraine In particular, a fire has been extinguished in the Shevchenkivskyi district over an area of 1,500 sq. m. The SES reported that five people had been killed and four injured in the area. The civilians injured in the attack have been rushed to doctors to be further taken to hospital. Mayor Klitschko reported from the scene that an entire section of an apartment block in the city's Syrets microdistrict, comprising around 17 flats, had been destroyed. The mayor noted that people are trapped under the rubble and that emergency workers can hear their voices. The aftermath of the attack on Kyiv PHOTO: UKRAINIAN PROSECUTOR GENERALS OFFICE (PGO) ON TELEGRAM A total of 213 emergency workers and 43 appliances are working at the scene. The aftermath of the attack on Kyiv PHOTO: UKRAINIAN PROSECUTOR GENERALS OFFICE (PGO) ON TELEGRAM The aftermath of the attack on Kyiv Photo: Ukrainian Prosecutor Generals Office (PGO) on Telegram Klitschko reported at 15:11 that the number of victims in various parts of the capital had increased to 66, with 44 of them being hospitalised in municipal hospitals. Others were aided on the spot. Background: On the morning of 8 July, Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia had scrambled Tu-95 bombers from the Olenya airfield. Later, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that the Russians had launched missiles and guided aerial bombs on Ukraine, causing an air-raid warning to be issued across the country. Explosions rocked Kyiv and a number of other cities. Following the missile strike on Kyiv, the wreckage was seen falling in the capitals Solomianskyi, Dniprovskyi, Darnytskyi, Desnianskyi, Shevchenkivskyi and Holosiivskyi districts. Support UP or become our patron! Russian attacks against Ukraine over the past day killed at least two people and injured at least 14, including a child, regional authorities said on July 8. In Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, Russian attacks against the city of Nikopol on the evening of July 7 injured a 10-year-old boy and three women aged 41, 64, and 81, Governor Serhii Lysak reported. The governor said apartment buildings, houses, and farm buildings were damaged, and a fire broke out in one of the yards. In Donetsk Oblast, Russian attacks against Pivnichne killed one person and injured another, Governor Vadym Filashkin reported. One civilian was killed by Russia in Hrodivka, one was injured in Illinka, and two in Niu-York, the governor said. Two women aged 50 and 75 were injured shortly after midnight by falling debris of Russian projectiles in Kharkiv, Governor Oleh Syniehubov said. A 48-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman were hospitalized following a Russian attack against the village of Bohuslavka in Kharkiv Oblast on the afternoon of July 7, the governor reported. Russian attacks against Kherson Oblast injured two civilians, according to Governor Oleksandr Prokudin. High-rise buildings, houses, a shop, a gas pipeline, an administration building, farm buildings, and a warehouse were damaged in the attacks, he noted. Ukrainian forces downed three out of the four Kh-101 cruise missiles launched by Russia from Tu-95MS bomber planes overnight, the Air Force said. The missiles were reportedly downed over Zhytomyr and Cherkasy oblasts, but no casualties or damage were reported in the two regions at the time of the publication. Russia also attacked Ukraine with two Iskander-M ballistic missiles, the Air Force said. Chernihiv, Luhansk, Mykolaiv, and Zaporizhzhia oblasts also came under attack, but no casualties were reported. Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukrainian drones attack ammunition, oil depots in Russia Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russia targeted Ukraine with a flurry of missile strikes Monday, killing at least 28 people in a barrage that hit an apartment complex and a childrens hospital. More than 100 people were also injured in the attacks, according to a Telegram post from Ihor Klymenko, Ukraines head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. Klymenko said Russia targeted 50 civilian objects. The attacks killed 11 in the Dnipropetrovsk region and 17 in the capital of Kyiv. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in a post on the social platform X that the Okhmatdyt Childrens Hospital, which he said has saved thousands of children, was struck in the attack. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are people under the rubble, and the exact number of casualties is still unknown, Zelensky wrote. Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes. The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported Russia launched some 38 missiles toward the country, and around 30 of them were taken out by Ukrainian defenses. Another terrorist attack on peaceful cities. Ukraine is mourning, the Ukrainian military wrote on Facebook. Russias campaign to target Ukrainian infrastructure led to the International Criminal Court (ICC) last month issuing arrest warrants for former Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Valery Gerasimov, the nations top general who also oversees the war in Ukraine. The ICC accused them of responsibility for Russias attacks on civilian objects and the targeting of Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 In a rare daytime attack, Russia launched its largest air strike on Ukraine in months, destroying a childrens hospital in Kyiv and killing dozens. Russia fired over 40 missiles, Ukraines President Zelenskyy said, damaging apartment buildings and infrastructure across the country. Andriy Yermak, Zelenskyys powerful chief of staff, wrote on X that the attack on children must be one of the key topics at this weeks NATO summit in Washington, adding that the missile contained dozens of microelectronics produced in NATO countries. Ukraines stretched air defense is also set to be a key topic at the summit, with US officials saying that they expect announcements to boost the countrys protection from Russias aerial attacks this week. WASHINGTON Russian missiles hit targets across Ukraine including a children's hospital killing 36 civilians in a daylight attack as President Joe Biden prepared to welcome NATO leaders to a summit aimed as shoring up the beleagured nation more than 800 days into Moscow's invasion. Monday's barrage was the deadliest air strike in months, officials said, and a pointed message to the Western military alliance. They are not collateral damage. They are not the victims of mishap or a misfire," Ruslan Stefanchuk, speaker of Ukraine's parliament told USA TODAY. "That was a premeditated and targeted attack on the children's hospital. And this attack can be seen as a kind of challenge that Russia is throwing to the rest of the civilized world. The NATO summit, starting Tuesday, is a key test for member states who want to help Ukraine turn back recent Russian advances, and for Biden, who is under pressure to withdraw from the presidential race after a dismal June 27 debate against NATO skeptic Donald Trump. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is attending the summit to lobby for increased aid and eventual NATO membership. More: His reelection campaign in crisis, Joe Biden hosts high-stakes NATO Summit in Washington July 8, 2024: Rescuers clear the rubble of the destroyed Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital following a missile attack in Kyiv. Russia launched more than 40 missiles at several cities across Ukraine in an attack that killed at least 20 people and smashed into a children's hospital in Kyiv, officials said. In Kyiv, hundreds of residents rushed to clear debris from the Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital, where they stood the rubble passing chunks of broken concrete from hand to hand. Parents holding infants walked in the street outside, dazed and sobbing after the rare daylight aerial assault. "It was scary. I couldn't breathe, I was trying to cover (my baby). I was trying to cover him with this cloth so that he could breathe," Svitlana Kravchenko, 33, told Reuters. Zelenskyy said Russia fired more than 40 missiles, damaging residential and commercial buildings and infrastructure in Kyiv, at his home city of Kryvyi Rih, the central city of Dnipro and two eastern cities. An online video obtained by Reuters showed a missile falling from the sky towards the children's hospital followed by a large explosion. The location of the video was verified from visible landmarks. The Security Service of Ukraine identified the missile as an Kh-101 cruise missile. Twenty-three people, including two children, were killed in Kyiv and 82 more were wounded in the main missile volley and another strike that came two hours later, officials said. A maternity hospital was also struck. They demonstrated the language of force," Stefanchuk said. "That's the only language that they understand. But this also means that such kind of message also must be replied with the language of force because that's the only language that Russia understands. And all civilized countries of the world must demonstrate the response to this blatant attack and to this challenge with force. Eleven were confirmed dead in Kryvyi Rih and over 40 wounded, the emergency services said. Three people had been killed in the eastern town of Pokrovsk where missiles hit an industrial facility, the regional governor said. One person was also killed in the city of Dnipro, officials said. "The whole world must act as decisively as it can to put an end to Russian air strikes. Murder this is what Putin brings. Only together we can achieve true peace and security," Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram. The Russian Defence Ministry said its forces had carried out strikes on defence industry targets and aviation bases in Ukraine. Moscow has repeatedly denied targeting civilians and civilian infrastructure, although its attacks have killed thousands of civilians since it launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022. The missile that struck the children's hospital "wasn't off course," Stefanchuk said. It was hitting what it was supposed to hit. "This callous aggression a total disregard for human life, jeopardizing European & Transatlantic security - is why leaders will make significant security commitments to Ukraine this week," the U.S. ambassador to Kyiv, Bridget Brink, posted on X. Ukraine's plea for air defense Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said Ukraine still lacked enough air defences and urged Kyiv's allies to supply more systems promptly to help protect its cities and infrastructure from regular Russian aerial attacks. The power grid has already sustained so much damage from targeted Russian air strikes that began in March that electricity cuts have become widespread and the whirring sound of backup power generators in the streets has become ubiquitous. DTEK, Ukraine's largest private power producer, said three electricity substations and electricity networks had been damaged in the capital. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said the attack on the capital was one of the largest of the war. "We heard an explosion, then we were showered with debris, Svitlana told Reuters after she and her husband Viktor, emerged from a shelter at the hospital with their two-month-old baby. The baby was unharmed, but Svitlana had suffered cuts, and their car was totally buried under the rubble of the destroyed building across the courtyard from the main ward. Contributing: Reuters This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Russia hits Ukraine children's hospital as NATO meets in Washington Russian forces attacked the Okhmatdyt hospital on July 8 using a Kh-101 cruise missile in accordance with a programmed route, a law enforcement source told the Kyiv Independent. The attack was deliberate, a source in on of Ukraine's top security agencies said. The Russian military struck the Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, on the morning of July 8, killing at least two people and injuring at least 16, including seven children, according to local authorities. Fragments of the rear body of the Kh-101 cruise missile with a serial number and part of the missile's rudder were found at the scene, the State Security Service said earlier in the day. The source confirmed that the strike was carried out with the Kh-101 cruise missile, referring to the obtained video footage from the moment of the attack. The missile's appearance in the video matches the design of the Kh-101 cruise missile, the source said. This is indicated by two wings in the lower part of the missile and three control rudders. "In front of the rudders in the lower part of the missile body, there is an engine," the source added. "This is typical of the Kh-101 missile, in which the engine extends from the missile body after launching from an aircraft." The missile was aimed exactly at the hospital, considering the route it followed in the video, the source said. "It (the missile) was not damaged by air defense systems and hit exactly the target it was programmed to hit," the source added. Russia launched a mass missile attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8, killing at least 36 civilians and injuring 149 others, according to the State Emergency Service. Ukrainian forces downed 30 out of the 38 missiles launched on Ukraine in the morning of July 8, according to the Air Force report. Read also: Deadly Monday attack on Kyiv in photos: Children hospital hit, 25 killed, rescue works continue on attack sites Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- China has mobilized several remote sensing satellites to aid rescue and relief efforts following a dike breach on Friday at Dongting Lake, the country's second-largest freshwater lake in central Hunan Province. According to the China Centre For Resources Satellite Data and Application (CRESDA), Gaofen-3 02, Gaofen-3 03, Gaofen-1, and Gaofen-4 satellites have been deployed to provide real-time monitoring of the affected areas. As of Saturday, satellite imaging has been conducted five times, CRESDA said, adding that data has been swiftly provided to the relevant departments. On Friday afternoon, a Dongting Lake dike burst in Tuanzhou Township, Huarong County under Hunan's Yueyang City, triggering flooding in the area. Thousands of rescuers, including firefighters, hydrologists, volunteers and police, have been working tirelessly to safeguard lives and properties. Satellite images revealed extensive flooding in areas previously identified as meadows or land. They documented a significant reduction in land area and expansion of water surfaces within Dongting Lake, exacerbated by inflows from upstream tributaries surpassing alarm levels. "We will continue to closely observe the disaster situation in Huarong County and provide remote sensing satellite data and analysis services for flood rescue and relief, disaster assessment and other work," CRESDA said. Additionally, many commercial satellites have joined the relief operations. Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., a commercial aerospace enterprise based at Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, has deployed its Jilin-1 Kuanfu 01A satellite. On Saturday morning, it captured high-resolution images of Dongting Lake shortly after the dike breach. The breach had widened to 226 meters by that time, with extensive local inundation compared to earlier images. Meanwhile, Smart Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., utilized its SmartSat-X1 satellite to gather detailed data on the disaster area. Beijing Minospace Technology Co., Ltd. also activated its Taijing-4 01 and Taijing-4 03 satellites for the mission. Taijing-4 03 completed imaging at 10:53 a.m. on Saturday, revealing a disaster zone spanning approximately 12.645 km in diameter and affecting an estimated area exceeding 42 square km. Taijing-4 01 identified potential hazardous risks in some southern areas of Dongting Lake. The company said they have promptly shared this information with relevant authorities to enhance their situational awareness and response capabilities. Dongting Lake has historically faced flood challenges. The affected area near Tuanbei Village now covers approximately 50 square km, echoing a similar dike breach incident in 1996. Hunan Province has endured its heaviest rainfall of the year since June 16, surpassing historical records in some localities. Growing military cooperation between Russia and North Korea poses a "distinct threat and a grave challenge to the peace and security on the Korean peninsula and in Europe," South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol told Reuters on July 8. Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Pyongyang on June 18-19, where he signed a partnership agreement with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. The two leaders led hours-long talks before signing the treaty, which pledged to provide aid to one another if either will be attacked. "North Korea is clearly a menace to the international society," Yoon told Reuters. "I hope that Russia will sensibly decide which side - the South or the North - is more important and necessary for its own interests." Yoon gave the comments ahead of his departure to the NATO summit in Washington, D.C., which will take place on July 9-11. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on July 5 that the summit will discuss ways to increase cooperation between Ukraine and South Korea. Seoul last month said it would consider supplying Ukraine with weapons in response to Moscow's recently announced security agreement with North Korea. Up until now, Seoul has only provided humanitarian aid to Kyiv, though it has reportedly indirectly supplied artillery shells to Ukraine via the U.S. Meanwhile, Pyongyang has been supplying Moscow with ammunition for use against Ukraine. Read also: Rather desperate 5 key takeaways from Putins North Korea visit Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian official says U.S. left arms treaty to build weapons to menace China MOSCOW (Reuters) - Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov charged on Monday that a decision by the United States to withdraw from a Soviet-era arms control treaty was made so that Washington could begin to build weapons to intimidate China. Then-president Donald Trump said in 2018 that the U.S. would withdraw from the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF Treaty), which was signed by Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev in 1987 and banned usage of nuclear-based missiles and other weapons by the two countries. Washington formally withdrew in August 2019. The reason for Washington's decision, has now "been revealed with absolute, undeniable clarity", Ryabkov told "International Life," the official publication of the Foreign Ministry. "Americans needed to withdraw from the treaty in order to create such systems to intimidate the People's Republic of China," Ryabkov said. "And it is no coincidence that we have recently had a sharply intensified discussion about when and where the Americans might begin to deploy their medium-range weapons in the Asia-Pacific region. Well, in Europe as well, but above all in the Asia-Pacific region," he said. (Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy Papachristou; Editing by Hugh Lawson) Russians hit Metinvest mining and metal company in Kryvyi Rih, killing several employees Employees of the Metinvest international group of steel and mining companies were killed in a Russian missile attack on Kryvyi Rih on 8 July. Source: statement of the Metinvest company Details: "8 July was a tragic date for Metinvest. Our colleagues were killed in a cynical Russian missile attack on civilian and industrial facilities in Kryvyi Rih," the statement said. The company expressed its condolences and said it would provide all possible assistance to the families of the deceased. It did not disclose the number of casualties, but Ukrainian media reported 10 killed and more than 30 injured. The Russian missile itself hit the administrative building of Metinvest's Northern Mining and Processing Plant, the media reported. Background: On the morning of 8 July, Ukraine's Air Force reported that Russia had scrambled Tu-95 bombers from the Olenya airfield. Later, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that the Russians had launched missiles and guided aerial bombs on Ukraine, causing an air-raid warning to be issued across the country. Explosions rocked Kyiv and a number of other cities. The Russians launched a strike on the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital in Kyiv, injuring people. Thirty-three people were killed and 140 were injured in the Russian attack on Ukraine on 8 July. Support UP or become our patron! Seven people have been killed and another eight people have been injured as a result of Russian attacks on Donetsk, Kharkiv and Kherson oblasts over the past day. Source: Vadym Filashkin, Head of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration; Oleksandr Prokudin, Head of Kherson Oblast Military Administration; Oleh Syniehubov, Head of Kharkiv Oblast State Administration. Details: On 7 July, the Russians killed two civilians in Pivniche and Hrodivka in Donetsk Oblast. Another four people in the oblast were injured. The Russians attacked residential areas of settlements in Kherson Oblast, damaging two high-rise buildings and 19 houses. Local authorities also reported hits on an administrative building, a shop and a gas pipeline. Outbuildings, a warehouse, and a motorcycle were also damaged. Two people were injured due to Russian attacks. Early reports indicate that a 53-year-old man, a 64-year-old woman, a 25-year-old woman, a 5-year-old boy, and a 3-month-old baby were killed as a result of a car hitting a mine near the village of Tsyrkuny in Kharkiv Oblast. The Russians attacked the village of Bohuslavka in the Izium district. As a result of the attack, two houses were damaged. A 48-year-old man and a 70-year-old woman were injured, with the woman being taken to hospital. Additionally, in the village of Novoplatonivka in the Izium district, Russian attacks partially destroyed the community arts centre and damaged four houses. In the village of Mytrofanivka in the Kupiansk district, a MLRS strike damaged three pig-farm buildings on the premises of an agricultural business. Furthermore, a fire broke out in a house as a result of falling ammunition debris in Kharkivs Osnoviansk district on the night of 7-8 July. Two women, aged 50 and 75, were injured and taken to hospital. Background: On 7 July, Syniehubov reported that four members of a family travelling by car had been killed when they hit a Russian mine in Kharkiv Oblast. A child was among those who had been killed. Support UP or become our patron! 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. Ryan Walters personal vanity campaign needs to end, but Oklahoma Republicans couldnt stop it State Superintendent Ryan Walters speaks with reporters after a meeting of the Oklahoma State Board of Education in May in Oklahoma City. (Photo by Nuria Martinez-Keel/Oklahoma Voice) Most PR campaigns are aimed at building a positive image. But from the looks of Oklahoma education Superintendent Ryan Walters national publicity push, hes only breaking down his relationships here at home. And embarrassingly, our other elected officials are allowing it to happen. Walters is paying a Virginia-based communications company as much as $200 an hour to write his opinion pieces and book his media appearances. Records show his agreement with Vought Strategies could be costing taxpayers up to $5,000 a month. Nothing in state law seemingly prohibits elected officials from doing that. While most of our GOP officials, including Gov. Kevin Stitt, often use their platforms to highlight that our state is open for business and explain the logic behind their keystone policy accomplishments, Walters is out there tilting at imaginary foes and spreading dissension. He is using our tax dollars and the platform weve given him to generate a slew of at best cringeworthy and at worst cruel headlines. None of those inspire confidence in our schools and teachers or contain much substance at all when it comes to addressing the complex reasons we rank at the bottom in academic outcomes. On Fox News alone, he has falsely accused our school administrators of pushing woke ideology, called the groups representing our teachers Marxist and published a hateful column that misgendered Owasso High School student Nex Benedict whose suicide sparked nationwide outrage over anti-LGBTQ+ bullying. He further claimed that the truth about the nonbinary teens death was the latest collateral damage in the woke mob and corporate medias efforts to smear school choice, traditional values and the Oklahomans who believe in them. How should Oklahoma children feel when the man in charge of their states public education makes them feel unwelcome and unsafe? Apparently, Walters doesnt care. But in an informal survey, he has been doing a good job getting his message out there. When I ask out-of-staters whose name they recognize Stitt or Walters its almost always Walters. Aside from his name, though, they tend to know few concrete details about our school system, our need for quality teachers and what if anything our state is doing to improve academic outcomes. Given that, its no wonder a bipartisan group of lawmakers tried to clip Walters wings by passing legislation in the final days of session that would force him to slow his roll. Unfortunately, they did it in a really clumsy way. Through Senate Bill 1122, they attempted to ban the State Department of Education from spending our tax money to secure media interviews, to pay for public relations or other promotions unless required to participate in a federal grant program. Stitt vetoed the bill, saying it could go farther than his colleagues in the Legislature intended. As explained in his veto message: It is reasonable to assume that it could be interpreted to prevent SDE from recruiting teachers to teach our school children; prevent SDE from addressing constituent concerns, and prevent any number of routine public communications needed for a state agency overseeing thousands of employees and a majority of our students. Then Stitt, himself, may have tried to slow Walters media machine. But if so, he, too, blundered. He issued an executive order prohibiting hiring outside public relations firms if theyre sole sourced contracts. Thats government jargon for contracts issued without competitive bidding. It makes no sense for state agencies who pay the salaries of communications staff to outsource work to PR firms via sole source contracts, Stitt said of his decision. Its wasteful and were putting a stop to it statewide. The problem is the executive order apparently will do nothing to slow Walters vanity campaign. His in-house PR team wasted no time trumpeting to the world that the governors order wouldnt have any impact. As it turns out, Walters did seek bids for his PR contract. So unless Stitt is quietly targeting some other unnamed agency or he knows something we dont it seems like his executive order is worth little more than the paper on which its printed. On one hand its easy to see why Republicans would want to ban Walters relationships with outside PR vendors. The reckless public relations strategy undermines their own efforts in trying their darndest to bring new development and people to the Sooner State. But most of those same Republicans have voted in favor of the same points that Walters spouts like banning diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Its almost as if Walters focus on his own ambitions, rather than helping the students and teachers in the state where he was elected, is forming fissures within the Republican Party. Maybe they can figure that out by writing their own columns or having their own internal staff do it for them. They wont pay someone $200 an hour to do it. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX State schools Superintendent Ryan Walters speaks with reporters after a meeting of the Oklahoma State Board of Education in May in Oklahoma City. Most PR campaigns are aimed at building a positive image. But from the looks of Oklahoma schools Superintendent Ryan Walters national publicity push, hes only breaking down his relationships here at home. And embarrassingly, our other elected officials are allowing it to happen. Walters is paying a Virginia-based communications company as much as $200 an hour to write his opinion pieces and book his media appearances. Records show his agreement with Vought Strategies could be costing taxpayers up to $5,000 a month. Nothing in state law seemingly prohibits elected officials from doing that. While most of our GOP officials, including Gov. Kevin Stitt, often use their platforms to highlight that our state is open for business and explain the logic behind their keystone policy accomplishments, Walters is out there tilting at imaginary foes and spreading dissension. He is using our tax dollars and the platform weve given him to generate a slew of at best cringeworthy and at worst cruel headlines. None of those inspire confidence in our schools and teachers or contain much substance at all when it comes to addressing the complex reasons we rank at the bottom in academic outcomes. More: Opinion: Oklahoma students should read the Bible in their classes and challenge dubious interpretations On Fox News alone, he has falsely accused our school administrators of pushing woke ideology, called the groups representing our teachers Marxist and published a hateful column that misgendered Owasso High School student Nex Benedict whose suicide sparked nationwide outrage over anti-LGBTQ+ bullying. He further claimed the truth about the nonbinary teens death was the latest collateral damage in the woke mob and corporate medias efforts to smear school choice, traditional values and the Oklahomans who believe in them. How should Oklahoma children feel when the man in charge of their states public education makes them feel unwelcome and unsafe? Apparently, Walters doesnt care. But in an informal survey, he has been doing a good job getting his message out there. When I ask out-of-staters whose name they recognize Stitt or Walters its almost always Walters. Aside from his name, though, they tend to know few concrete details about our school system, our need for quality teachers and what if anything our state is doing to improve academic outcomes. Given that, its no wonder a bipartisan group of lawmakers tried to clip Walters wings by passing legislation in the final days of session that would force him to slow his roll. Unfortunately, they did it in a really clumsy way. Through Senate Bill 1122, they attempted to ban the Oklahoma State Department of Education from spending our tax money to secure media interviews, to pay for public relations or other promotions unless required to participate in a federal grant program. Stitt vetoed the bill, saying it could go farther than his colleagues in the Legislature intended. As explained in his veto message: It is reasonable to assume that it could be interpreted to prevent SDE from recruiting teachers to teach our school children; prevent SDE from addressing constituent concerns, and prevent any number of routine public communications needed for a state agency overseeing thousands of employees and a majority of our students. Then Stitt, himself, may have tried to slow Walters media machine. But if so, he, too, blundered. He issued an executive order prohibiting hiring outside public relations firms if theyre sole sourced contracts. Thats government jargon for contracts issued without competitive bidding. It makes no sense for state agencies who pay the salaries of communications staff to outsource work to PR firms via sole source contracts, Stitt said of his decision. Its wasteful and were putting a stop to it statewide. The problem is the executive order apparently will do nothing to slow Walters vanity campaign. His in-house PR team wasted no time trumpeting to the world that the governors order wouldnt have any impact. As it turns out, Walters did seek bids for his PR contract. So unless Stitt is quietly targeting some other unnamed agency or he knows something we dont it seems like his executive order is worth little more than the paper on which its printed. More: Walters, staff's explanations in meeting revealed even more concerns | Opinion On one hand its easy to see why Republicans would want to ban Walters relationships with outside PR vendors. The reckless public relations strategy undermines their own efforts in trying their darndest to bring new development and people to the Sooner State. But most of those same Republicans have voted in favor of the same points that Walters spouts like banning diversity, equity and inclusion efforts. Its almost as if Walters focus on his own ambitions, rather than helping the students and teachers in the state where he was elected, is forming fissures within the Republican Party. Maybe they can figure that out by writing their own columns or having their own internal staff do it for them. They wont pay someone $200 an hour to do it. Janelle Stecklein is editor of Oklahoma Voice. An award-winning journalist, Stecklein has been covering Oklahoma government and politics since moving to the state in 2014. Oklahoma Voice is part of States Newsroom, the nations largest state-focused nonprofit news organization. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Ryan Walters renews PR contract; his vanity only helps himself A community panel tasked with improving public transparency is inviting Sacramento County residents to participate in a meeting this month to discuss a nearly $1 billion plan to expand the Main Jail downtown and improve services for inmates. The countys Board of Supervisors last year, in a 3-2 vote, approved a plan to spend $925 million in bond debt to build a new intake and mental health annex at the downtown jail. The construction costs had ballooned from a $450 million estimate initially proposed in December 2022. The county has since approved a contract of nearly $600,000 to hire CGL Cos. to review the jail expansion project and determine whether it can be reduced and still provide much-needed improvements for inmate services. The company, which is in the process of reviewing the projects documentation, will discuss its peer review at 6 p.m. July 16 at a meeting of the Sacramento County Community Review Commission, county officials said in a news release. The commission meets in the Board of Supervisors chambers at 700 H St. downtown. The commission meetings also are streamed online. The commission invited the public to participate in the July 16 meeting or submit questions in advance by sending an email to CRC@saccounty.gov. The supervisors raised concerns about the expensive price tag for the jail expansion. In comparison, the countys entire budget for the 2023-2024 fiscal year was $8.4 billion. Supervisors Rich Desmond, Sue Frost and Pat Hume voted for it at Aug. 8 meeting, all saying they hated doing so. Supervisors Patrick Kennedy and Phil Serna voted against the spending plan. I dont think our pencils sharp enough. ... Do I think a facility is necessary? Yes, but Im not here yet, Kennedy said during the August meeting. The price tag is just too much for me to swallow. The project for the new jail annex is to comply with the Mays Consent Decree, which the county entered into in 2019. It requires the county to improve conditions at the two jail facilities run by the Sacramento County Sheriffs Office. Serna has said the consent decree does not require the construction of this new facility. I freely admit there is clearly a need for improved conditions in our jail, improved availability of resources for mental health treatment in our jail system, Serna said in the August meeting. But when its approaching the numbers that it is at this point, I feel more strongly than I did back in December, that I dont want to necessarily look back and say that, for different reasons, that I was boxed in, and I had no other choice. The approved spending plan does not require the county to spend nearly $1 billion on the project, but it gives officials the option to do so. Construction would begin in 2026, and the annex would not open before 2028. Since then, county administrators put a hold on all planning activities for the jail annex as they sought a peer review of the project. In April, the county approved a $585,980 contract to hire CGL Cos. to look for efficiencies in the project and make recommendations as to whether the project scope can be reduced and still achieve compliance with the consent decree. On its website, CGLs philosophy is listed as: We believe bricks and mortar are the last resort rather than the first. As partners, we develop solutions that are responsive to social needsrestoring the legitimate role of the community in the justice system. BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- About 60 young legal professionals and law school students from Hong Kong and Macao gathered in Beijing on Monday for a week-long exchange event. The event, held annually since 2008, is sponsored by the China Law Society (CLS) and consists of exchange activities in Beijing and Nanjing, capital city of east China's Jiangsu Province. The event is aimed at helping youngsters from Hong Kong and Macao learn more about the motherland and exchange ideas with their counterparts on the mainland, said Zhang Ming, vice president of the CLS, at the opening ceremony of the event. Zhang urged young people to be firm patriots, be confident of the "one country, two systems," and contribute to the Chinese modernization. Deng Zhonghua, head of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong & Macao Studies, urged young people from Hong Kong and Macao to carry on the fine tradition of loving both the country and their own regions, uphold the rule of law, and devote their wisdom and strength to building a strong country and rejuvenating the Chinese nation. In Beijing, the participants will visit the Hong Kong and Macao work office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, the Supreme People's Court as well as law firms and attend seminars. In Nanjing, they will visit notable sites, including the Sun Yat-sen Mausoleum, according to the schedule. Salt Lake Co. Sheriff Rivera discusses what split with Unified Police means for her office Salt Lake Co. Sheriff Rivera discusses what split with Unified Police means for her office SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) As of this month, Salt Lake County Sheriff Rosie Rivera no longer oversees the Unified Police Department. The split happened on July 1 in accordance with HB274, which the Utah Legislature passed in 2023, removing her as the CEO of Unified Police. RELATED Unified Police and Salt Lake County Sheriffs Office set to separate after 14 years of joint service While speaking with ABC4s Brien McElhatten on Inside Utah Politics, Rivera explained why she initially pushed back against the change when lawmakers were debating it. At the time, it was more of a defensive mode of Leave my stuff alone, she said. Later, however, she had a change of mind, explaining that it didnt make sense for her, as an elected sheriff, to be under Unifieds governing board. Once the legislature made the decision, I decided to support it, Rivera said, adding: I work for the people. It made more sense that I continue to do that and not for a governing board. Unified Police was created in 2010 under the idea that it would grow. But as more cities in the Salt Lake Valley created their own police departments, it shrunk. Going forward, only a few communities elected to continue their partnership with Unified. They are Midvale, Millcreek, Magna, Kearns, Holladay, Emigration, Copperton, and the Town of Brighton. The sheriffs department had roughly 18 months to plan for the separation from Unified. Focus was first put into operations, and, so far, Rivera said that the change has gone smoothly. However, questions remain on how much the split will cost, as the sheriffs department is still in the process of creating some of its own units such as K-9 and others that it previously shared with Unified. Now, I have to create those same services under the sheriff, Rivera said. Prior to the split, the sheriffs department hired dozens of deputies, 70 of which were from Unified Police, Rivera said. The department is still looking to fill positions in the county 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 ABC4 Utah. Majs. Jonathan and Catherine Fitzgerald are the new leaders of The Salvation Army of Greater Green Bay, the organization announced Monday, July 8, 2024. GREEN BAY - The Salvation Army of Greater Green Bay has welcomed its new leaders, Majs. Jonathan and Catherine Fitzgerald, to its Green Bay Corps Community Center and Kroc Community Center. Catherine Fitzgerald has taken on the role of greater Green Bay area coordinator. She will oversee all activities relating to public relations, fundraising, social services and agency relationships. "I'm excited to learn, to grow and to just engage with the community and all that's happening here and really support people in need," she said. Her husband, Jonathan Fitzgerald, has taken on the role of senior Kroc Center officer. He will oversee the business and operations of the Green Bay Kroc Community Center, which offers programming in education, arts, fitness and recreation to local community members. It is an honor to be assigned to oversee the operations of one of the 26 Kroc Centers across the country, he said in a news release. There are so many inspiring programs and opportunities in this building, and Im looking forward to getting to know the members and being a part of not only the Kroc Center but the greater Green Bay community. The Fitzgeralds are replacing Majs. Matt and Malinda O'Neil. Together, the Fitzgeralds have 16 years of Salvation Army experience and have served as officers in four different cities across the world, including their most recent appointments in New Albany, Indiana, for the past six years. Catherine Fitzgerald said she's excited to take what she's learned in leadership positions around the world and apply those skills to engage with the Green Bay community more effectively. There will be no immediate changes to The Salvation Army of Greater Green Bay, but as they learn and observe they hope to make changes to meet community needs, Fitzgerald said. As they settle into their new roles, the Fitzgeralds will "be in a place of learning first and just observing so we can move forward on the right path," Catherine Fitzgerald said. Alyssa N. Salcedo is a reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: The Salvation Army of Greater Green Bay welcomes new leadership San Angelo makes moves to help Texas coast amid Tropical Storm Beryl what you can do SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage) Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall in Texas on July 8 as a Category 1 hurricane, leaving millions without power and claiming the lives of at least three people as it tore into the coast. San Angelo residents and local organizations have already begun efforts to provide relief for those impacted by the storm heres how you can help. RELATED: 3 people killed in Harris County during Beryl According to information gathered by the Associated Press from CenterPoint energy officials, 2 million residences and businesses in the Houston area lost electrical power. At least three individuals have died as of the time of publication, two of whom died from separate incidents of a tree falling and the other of whom died in a house fire. Donation Drive at Firehouse Subs One San Angelo local has begun to amass donations that she intends to personally shuttle to areas that need it the most. Ashlee Long, night manager of Firehouse Subs, was inspired by her workplaces efforts to help local firefighters. She and her family hope to help the firefighters of the Texas coast through the drive. Me and my dad were talking and we thought, You know, itd be cool if we could get a trailer trailer and help people help with fires and stuff like that, for a hurricane too, Long said. Long will be collecting goods and funds at Firehouse Subs, located at 5789 Sherwood Way, until 10 p.m. on Wednesday, July 10. Her trailer will be at the location starting on Tuesday, July 9. According to promotional material for the drive, the following items are needed: Bottled water Non-perishable food Hygiene essentials Toiletries Undergarments Mosquito repellant Monetary donations are also being accepted. Whatever people are willing [to give to] help, were willing to go down there and do whatever we can, Long said. After the drive concludes, Long plans to ferry the donated items to Matagorda, a region close to where Tropical Storm Beryl made landfall in the Lone Star State. Once there, she will work with firefighters to distribute the donations to those in need. No matter what the traumatic event that happens, Texas always comes together to help, Long said. Salvation Armys Online Donation Efforts The Salvation Armys Texas chapters began to move toward launching assistance operations before Tropical Storm Beryl even hit the state, with the organization reporting on July 6 that the Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services (EDS) team in Texas is actively mobilizing personnel and assets in preparation for likely response efforts along the Gulf Coast. According to San Angelos branch of the Salvation Army, multiple initiatives are underway, including two Salvation Army Incident Command Team operations in Southwest Houston and Wharton alongside 10 mobile kitchens expected to begin feeding efforts in affected communities starting June 9. PHOTOS: Damage after Beryl made landfall in Texas Maj. Alfonso Martinez, commanding officer of the Salvation Armys San Angelo chapter, stated that his division has been placed on standby alongside the Midland, Odessa, Big Spring and Abilene chapters. This hasnt barred San Angelos branch from helping, however. If somebody wants to donate locally, they can drop it off here at the office, and well forward those over to our headquarters so that they receive the funds and everything, Martinez said. The Salvation Army of San Angelos main office is at 34 W. 3rd St. The Salvation Army has also begun accepting monetary donations online through its disaster relief portal. Since the time I began here in 2023, Ive known that San Angelo is a very giving community that cares about citizens nationwide, Martinez said. Do you know of any other disaster relief efforts happening in San Angelo? Be sure to let Concho Valley Homepage know through our Contact Us webpage! Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) While the annual Fourth of July holiday rush is coming to a close, San Diego International Airport officials are signaling travelers might not be out of the woods quite yet when it comes to crowds. According to the airport authority, this summer travel season is expected to be its busiest since 2019, with millions set to take flight from San Diego to destinations around the globe. Sunday saw a steady flow of passengers throughout the day. Initially anticipated to be the single busiest travel day around the Fourth of July, it marked the end to the hectic 10-day holiday travel window, where nearly 800,000 people arrived in and departed from San Diego. Long security lines, a lot of people in each terminal, one passenger who arrived in San Diego from Alabama on Sunday told FOX 5/KUSI of his experience traveling during the holiday rush. Downtown San Diego shuttle service no longer offering free rides Planning ahead helped ease travel headaches for some folks at the airport on Sunday. That includes travelers like the Martinez family who flew into San Diego International Airport from Northern California. We made sure to leave early enough to get [to the airport] in time to not be stressed, one member of the family said, adding that they had no issues with their flight experience in large part because of their advanced preparations. As the summer bears on, airport authority officials want to remind those taking to the skies about a few best practices: Check your flight status and time before arriving at the airport. Arrive at least two hours before your scheduled departure, but also account for possible traffic congestion due to the airports ongoing construction. The busiest times for curbside drop-offs are 4:00 a.m. to 6:15 a.m., 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and 8 p.m. to 12 a.m. Make parking reservations ahead of time to secure a spot in one of the airport lots, if needed. Parking is currently available at the Terminal 2 Parking Plaza, and reservations can be made for the structure or with curbside valet. FOX 5/KUSIs Juliette Vara 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. SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) San Diegos Mission Trails Regional Park is about to get a little bit bigger. On Tuesday, the San Diego City Council voted unanimously to approve a donation of dozens of acres of undeveloped, privately-owned land within the parks boundaries to bolster its conservation efforts in the area. It marks one of the first gifts of land to the city to expand Mission Trails in support of goals outlined in a 2019 update to the citys master development plan to complete the park, as well as other initiatives to preserve native flora and fauna. Volunteers clean up beaches after Fourth of July Already considered one of the largest urban parks in the U.S., the donations of the undeveloped land will bring the parks total acreage to over 7,300, according to the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation, the nonprofit steward of the park that is facilitating the donation. The first donation, which was green-lit by the city on Tuesday and is valued at nearly $1 million, totals about 55 acres of open space in the area called Oak Canyon, just north of State Route 52 and west of Santee. The second gift is anticipated to be about 60 acres in the same area, although the foundation noted the purchase has not been finalized. Grant funding obtained by the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation is being used to acquire both chunks of land. This is a joy, Lane MacKenzie, president of the Foundations Board of Directors, told FOX 5/KUSI on Sunday. The properties have been sitting vacant for years and can be included in the park as far as to outreach the remaining part of the park. The city has been piecing together Mission Trails Regional Park for decades, starting in the 1960s when eastern San Diego underwent a major housing development boom and the U.S. military began decommissioning land in the area it previously used for training. Smaller parks were created by the County of San Diego to preserve Fortuna Mountain and Lake Murray in the succeeding years, with the city eventually buying the area that makes up Cowles Mountain the parks cornerstone in 1974. According to the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation, it was that purchase which eventually helped the park take shape, with the city dedicating more resources towards buying up private property and setting aside existing public land for conservation. Extreme heat shuts down popular hiking trails Now, the 7,220-acre park is considered a crown jewel of the citys park space, boasting dozens of trails and recreational offerings that draw out millions of people each year. According to MacKenzie, the acquisition could also allow the city to add in a few more hiking trails to that list. Im thrilled to see this donation come full circle, San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo, whose district encompasses the park, said during Tuesdays meeting. Our partnership with the foundation creates new pathways that are just beginning to bring in many more contributions and donations, he continued. Mission Trails Regional Park is not done yet, we have more space and more land to expand to. Mayor Todd Gloria will still need to sign off before the foundation can hand over the deed to the land to the city of San Diego. Upon acceptance, the property would be placed under the care of the Mission Trails Regional Park rangers. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Florida Satanists are volunteering to fill school counselor roles after Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) signed a law allowing religious chaplains into public schools amid staffing shortages. Nothing in the text of the bill serves to exclude us, and no credible interpretation of the First Amendment could. Should a school district now choose to have chaplains, they should expect Satanists to participate as well, Lucien Greaves, cofounder and spokesperson for The Satanic Temple, said in a statement to The Hill on Monday. Back when DeSantis signed the bill in April, he described Satanism as not a religion and said its members would not be allowed to participate in the program. But Greaves said the governor openly lied to the public regarding the situation. Either entirely ignorant of the most basic fundamentals of constitutional law, or too incompetent to care, DeSantis fails to recognize that it is not the place of the government to confer unique rights to one religious identity while denying them to another, he said. Reached for comment, the governors office pointed to his remarks from April. Were not playing those games in Florida. That is not a religion. That is not qualifying to be able to participate in [the chaplain program.] Were going to be using common sense you dont have to worry about that, DeSantis said at the time. The Florida move allowing chaplains to serve as public school counselors comes as more states are aiming to inject Christianity into public school environments, including by mandating that the Bible or Ten Commandments be taught in classrooms. The Satanic Temple has increasingly leaned into the fight over freedom of religion in public schools, including through the establishment of After School Satan clubs. The temple, founded in 2014, says its mission is to encourage benevolence and empathy, [and] reject tyrannical authority. Updated at 2:33 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. In SC, hundreds of veterans go homeless. These groups received state money to help. Contractors build tiny homes in Little River for Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center. (Provided/Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center) GEORGETOWN U.S. Army Sgt. Frank Rutledge was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder after returning from his second tour of duty in Iraq in 2005. As he sought health care through the Veterans Benefit Administration, he ran up against a process he found difficult to navigate. Rutledge eventually got the benefits he was entitled to. But in talking with other veterans, he realized not only did they have the same problem, many were in worse situations. After all, he had somewhere to live something many other South Carolina veterans do not have. I saw a great need, said Rutledge, who had joined the Army straight out of high school and served for 20 years. In 2006, the Georgetown native started working out of his home to help others access their military benefits. Then, in 2010, he officially started Low Country Veterans Group, a nonprofit dedicated to helping connect veterans with resources and a place to live. Low Country Veterans is one of four charities receiving money in this years state budget to help homeless veterans. Altogether, the four nonprofits are set to receive $458,000 in one-time spending requested by legislators, which they will use to build tiny home communities and other transitional housing to veterans. Homeless veterans In a state with more than 350,000 veterans, somewhere around 350 are homeless, according to estimates from the national nonprofit Housing Assistance Council. Another 52,500 veterans live in housing that the nonprofit qualifies as inadequate, according to the organization. However, advocates suspect the number of homeless veterans is much higher. Based on local and federal data, Scott Dulebohn, director of Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center, expects there are somewhere between 300 and 500 homeless veterans just in Horry County, where his nonprofit operates. Some veterans receive monthly Social Security and disability stipends. In some cases, thats enough to afford rent or mortgage payments. In others, it amounts to as little as $700 per month, Dulebohn said. Theres not really anywhere youre going to live on $700 a month (in Horry County), he said. Even if someone could find a place to live that they could afford, they would have little to nothing in the way of savings to pay for emergencies or to move somewhere else, Dulebohn added. Tiny homes and transitional housing At Low Country Veterans Group, veterans can stay in one of seven bedrooms at a fully-furnished house in Georgetown while they get back on their feet. The nonprofit took over operations of the home, owned by the Georgetown Housing Authority, in 2010 after the previous operator left. In recent weeks, Rutledge helped an elderly Vietnam veteran get into a homeless shelter in Myrtle Beach after the veteran was sleeping on the back porch of a home from which he had been evicted. That man is now going through a program to help him get back on track, Rutledge said. Its hard for me as a veteran just to think about the word homelessness in the same sentence as someone who has served their country, said Rutledge. While the veterans stay with Low Country Veterans Group, the nonprofit covers their food costs, helps connect them with resources and even helps pay for utility deposits when they move out, Rutledge said. If a veteran is eligible for federal housing assistance, that money goes to pay for the house. Otherwise, the veteran pays nothing to stay there. Our main focus is to see that no veteran is left behind, Rutledge said. To continue that work, legislators set aside $150,000 for the nonprofit in the state budget this year. A dozen or so veterans stay in Low Country Veterans house each year, typically for 30 days at a time, Rutledge said. During colder months, the house typically fills up as living on the street becomes more difficult. When that happens, the nonprofit will send veterans to Dulebohns Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center. There they can stay in one of the four bedrooms at a transitional home in Myrtle Beach, or soon, in one of 25 tiny homes the charity is building in Little River. Those tiny homes, paid for with private donations, are slated to open in mid-August, Dulebohn said. The nonprofit hopes to get enough money to build 16 more tiny homes, in the style of duplexes, to eventually house 41 veterans at a time. Veterans usually stay for three to six months. Legislators set aside $138,000 to help pay for a portion of the remaining homes, but Dulebohn said it will likely take another $1 million on top of that to complete the project. Veterans Welcome Home and Resource Center caps its income-based rent payments at $500 to encourage veterans to save up and move somewhere of their own, Dulebohn said. Upstate veterans struggling with housing can turn to the Upstate Circle of Friends VetForward Program, which houses veterans in a 3-bedroom, 2-bathroom home for subsidized rent. With $96,000 from the state, the program plans to open another duplex of the same size in November. Eventually, the group hopes to open three more homes, according to documents the nonprofit submitted to the state. Housing concerns continue to grow for our veterans who risked their lives for our country, wrote Rep. Wendell Jones, D-Greenville, in his request for the money. We owe them a debt of gratitude. This is our responsibility to them. A place for female veterans When going to Veterans Administration hospitals Army veteran Laurie Strange found people often assumed she was there to get health care for her husband instead of herself. Its what prompted Strange to form PTSD Veterans Village in 2022 with the goal of opening a tiny home village in Bishopville specifically for women veterans. Women veterans, believe it or not, are considered the silent homeless, Strange said. Thats what our project is about. The $100,000 Veterans Village is set to receive from the state will help the nonprofit buy land on which to build the homes, Strange said. The 68 acres the nonprofit is considering includes some homes already. Strange hopes to add enough 600-square-foot cottages to house 10 veterans by the end of the year. On top of $1.6 million to buy the land, the project will likely need more than $2 million to start building houses, most of which will come from private donations and grants, Strange said. Like the other nonprofits, PTSD Veterans Village will be transitional housing, meant for someone to stay short-term while getting connected with other resources, Strange said. But the goal for all of these groups is for the veterans they serve to save enough money to move into their own homes. The Veterans Benefit Administration offers veterans home loans that dont require any down payment and offer lower borrowing costs than they might get elsewhere. In a lot of cases, a veteran owning a home is just a matter of getting them connected with the benefits they earned through their service, Dulebohn said. But the application process for the home loan program is difficult to understand. Both Rutledge and Dulebohn strive to cut down on the red tape. When (veterans) backs are up against the walls and the system keeps denying them certain things because they cant navigate through the system, thats where we come in and put the bureaucrat out of the way, Rutledge said. "They are scared": Trump runs from Project 2025, claims not to know what it's about Donald Trump claimed in a Truth Social post last week to "know nothing" about Project 2025 and have "no idea" who is behind the sweeping plan shaped by the conservative, Trump-aligned Heritage Foundation to stack the executive branch with MAGA loyalists and enact a litany of right-wing policies if he wins a second term. The former president's public disavowal comes more than a year after the plan was first released, but right as it has begun to draw attention from mainstream media outlets in wake of Heritage president's Kevin Roberts' threats of a potentially bloody "second American Revolution." Trump's campaign and Project 2025 have characterized the 900-page policy blueprint as merely a set of recommendations that Trump can adopt at his discretion. "I disagree with some of the things theyre saying and some of the things theyre saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them." Skeptics of Trump's claims say that he's lying to avoid political damage. "The Trump SuperPAC has run ads about Project 2025, and a ton of Trumpworld people are authors of it," MSNBC commentator Chris Hayes wrote on X. "They are scared now because they are desperate for no one to know what they're actually up to." Many central figures behind Project 2025 aren't just Trump supportersthey also worked in the top echelons of his administration. One of them, Trump's former White House personnel director John McEntee, said that Heritage and the Trump campaign plan to "integrate a lot of our work" later this year. Another, Trump's former budget chief Russ Vought, is both advising Project 2025 and sitting on the Republican National Committee's platform committee this year. "If Trump has 'no idea' who the authors behind Project 2025 are, hes showing an alarming cognitive decline," former Labor Secretary Robert Reich wrote on X. "He appointed most of them to roles in his administration! Project 2025 is, in short, the plan to implement what Donald Trump has said he wants to do if hes reelected." Trump's own Super PAC is promoting the project as "Trump's Project 2025" while the GOP nominee himself has repeatedly declared his support for key parts of the agenda, including the implementation of a rule that would allow the president to remove civil servants at will and set the rest of Project 2025 in motion. "I will wield that power very aggressively," Trump said in a campaign video last year. The rest of Project 2025 includes proposals to dismantle the Department of Education, restrict access to birth control, strip away workers' protections, terminate clean energy incentives and grant tax cuts to large corporations and wealthy Americans. Much of it seems eerily familiar to Heritage's "Mandate for Leadership," a policy blueprint for Trump's first term that the former president embraced. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (C) visits the Federal Office for Migration (BAMF) and talks to Carsten Lein (R), document expert, in the Physical Technical Documents Department (PTU). Eckhard Sommer (l), President of the BAMF, looks on behind him. Scholz was informed about the current situation regarding asylum procedures in Germany. In view of the large number of applications, the Federal Office is working at the limits of its capacity. Daniel Lob/dpa Pool/dpa German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he wants to see more speed in deciding on asylum applications during a visit to the Federal Office for Migration and Refugees (BAMF) in Bavaria on Monday. Scholz also promised political efforts, for example to improve the return of asylum seekers as part of the so-called Dublin Regulation at the European Union level. "It must be the case that we achieve a change in practice," Scholz said in Nuremberg. He was in "constant dialogue" with his colleagues in several European countries, he added. Previously, BAMF employees had expressed their dissatisfaction with the current practice to the chancellor. Some countries, including Italy, are currently not accepting any or only a small number of refugees, although they would be obliged to do so under the Dublin agreement. According to the Dublin Regulation, only one EU country is responsible for examining and processing asylum procedures - usually the country on whose soil the person seeking protection first entered the EU. Overall, Scholz called for more speed in the processing of asylum applications. This is crucial to achieve greater acceptance among the population, he said. With regard to digitalization, he said: "We must ensure that we are state of the art." The number of asylum applications in Germany has fallen again this year, although it remains at a high level. From January to June, 121,000 applications for asylum were made in Germany - almost 20% fewer than in the same period last year. Most of them came from Syria, Afghanistan and Turkey. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (L) visits the Federal Office for Migration (BAMF) and is welcomed by employee Volker Maeulen. Scholz was informed about the current situation regarding asylum procedures in Germany. The Federal Office is working at the limits of its capacity in view of the large number of applications. Daniel Lob/dpa Pool/dpa Chronic student absenteeism defined as missing at least 10% of days in a given school year has skyrocketed across the nation in the wake of the pandemic. In Delaware, 23% of students statewide were chronically absent in the 2022-2023 school year, according to the most recently available data. In the last full school year unaffected by COVID-19, that rate was 15%. If students are not in school, theyre not learning, said Delaware Secretary of Education Mark Holodick. That is a problem. Research has found that chronic absenteeism can contribute to lower test scores and literacy, higher high school drop-out rates and increased involvement in the criminal justice system. It also shows another concerning trend: not all students are chronically absent at the same rate. Ken Livingston, who works with schools on issues including attendance through United Way of Delaware, said COVID-19 shed a light on many of the existing barriers and disparities in attendance issues which have just been intensified by the pandemic. State data shows that Black, Hispanic, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander, multi-racial and Native American students have above-average rates of chronic absenteeism, both before and after the pandemic. Black and Native American students had the overall highest rates in 2023, with both groups recording 27% of students as chronically absent statewide. Other subgroups unrelated to race that were identified by the state to have above-average absenteeism rates in 2023 included students in foster care (38%), students experiencing homelessness (54%), low-income students (36%) and students with disabilities (30%). All of these demographics had higher rates of chronic absenteeism in 2019 than the entire state did post-pandemic. What causes chronic absenteeism? Hedy N. Chang, founder and executive director of the nonprofit initiative Attendance Works, said the causes of chronic absenteeism typically fall into four broad categories: barriers to attendance, aversion to school, disengagement from school and misconceptions about the impact of absences. The only way to improve attendance is to understand and address the challenges that prevent kids from getting to school in the first place, Chang said. Hedy N. Chang is the founder and executive director of the nonprofit Attendance Works. Some of these issues like anxiety, boredom and a sense that attendance isnt important tend to be more cross-cutting, Chang said, leading to higher absenteeism across the board. But other causes of chronic absenteeism, such as housing and food insecurity, are particularly exacerbated in certain communities, according to Chang. Theyre also much harder to resolve, and have led to uneven progress in getting kids to return to school. State data shows that schools in Wilmington have especially high rates of chronic absenteeism, with four of the five districts and charters with the worst attendance located within the states largest city. East Side Charter School reported the highest rate, with 78% of students chronically absent in the most recent school year on record. We have to get over our reservations, we have to get over our biases, and then really go to where the students are, Livingston said. Outside of charter schools and districts at large, First State School, Sarah Pyle Academy, Douglass School and Kent Elementary Intensive Learning Center all specialty schools had the highest rates of chronic absenteeism. Livingston, who works with families in New Castle County, said community violence is a major barrier to attendance there. Its why United Way of Delaware has undertaken initiatives to address violence as an organization and worked with community partners to better address the issue. There's no one cure for chronic absenteeism, Livingston said. Each organization and each person has something that they can bring to the table. Ken Livingston works with schools on issues including attendance through United Way of Delaware. Challenges in rural Delaware While community violence is less prevalent in more rural areas of the state, students outside of Delawares cities face their own unique challenges. Gary Zoll, director of student services at Seaford School District, said he sees access to healthcare and transportation as some of the biggest barriers there. Limited public transit means the school bus is often the only option for students to get to school and if they miss the bus, there isnt always a way for a parent or guardian to bring them in. Zoll said students also miss school to attend doctors appointments, which can be far from the district. Sussex County has multiple designated health professional shortage areas, according to the Health Resources and Services Administration. To mitigate this, Zoll said parents can opt to send their kids to the districts wellness center, where they can get mental and physical health care without missing the rest of the day. We want to be proactive and show parents that we're working with them to get their kids in school, Zoll said. Seaford School District had an overall chronic absenteeism rate of 18% prior to the pandemic, and 24% in the most recently available year. Its a marked decrease from the 2021-2022 school year, which saw 30% of students chronically absent. What are the solutions? Attendance Works recommends a tiered approach to addressing chronic absenteeism, starting with foundational strategies that promote positive conditions for learning like academic challenge and engagement, a sense of belonging and connection, student well-being and physical and emotional health. On top of this foundation, specific strategies should be implemented for universal prevention, early intervention and intensive prevention, with each tailored to how much school a student is missing. Holodick said that returning to pre-pandemic attendance levels in Delaware will require strategies that we have not utilized before; specifically, looking at attendance data in real time. Delaware Education Secretary Mark Holodick He said the state is encouraging superintendents to share student attendance data with their school boards and use that data to implement multi-tiered systems of support. He pointed to Seaford School Districts efforts, which rely on having a real-time idea of which students are showing signs of chronic absenteeism and implementing early interventions. Zoll said schools in the district take daily looks at attendance. If they find a student has missed two days in a row, Zoll said the front office will call them to check in and see if (they) can help in any way. Once a student misses five days, someone with student services will reach out and potentially visit their home to get a sense of the underlying problems. It's a proactive thing of, how can we help get your kids to school? rather than why is your kid not coming to school, Zoll said. Seaford School District is also working to revamp its enrollment process to find out what needs students and parents have before they even start school, Zoll said. This would give the district the ability to connect families with housing resources or food banks before the issues become barriers to attendance. Zoll said the district recently received a grant to hire family interventionists who fluently speak Haitian Creole to better connect with families, rather than just have an interpreter to have a level of comfortability. He said Seaford is working to add a Spanish-speaking interventionist soon. The role of the state While the state facilitates some grants, Livingston said that additional funding is needed in order for community-based organizations to work most effectively. Holodick acknowledged that the efforts of the state to support districts is very important, but said action really takes place at the district and more importantly at the school level. But experts like Chang say the state should play a more proactive role. States can implement solutions at a larger scale, Chang said, and even mandate schools to create teams specifically focused on attendance. Some states have also banned the suspension of students as a punishment for truancy a practice that Chang said just makes things worse. Disciplinary actions which state data shows are disproportionately taken against students of color in Delaware are also a cause of chronic absenteeism, as they can deter students from coming to school. Some districts, like Seaford, have explicitly set out to limit the punishment aspect of dealing with chronic absenteeism. (Chronic absenteeism) isn't something we have to accept, Chang said. We can change it. Send story tips or ideas to Hannah Edelman at hedelman@delawareonline.com. For more reporting, follow them on X at @h_edelman. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware students unevenly affected by chronic absenteeism, data shows George Xu, Airbus executive vice president and Airbus China CEO, speaks during the delivery ceremony of the 700th A320 family aircraft assembled by Airbus Tianjin to Chengdu Airlines in Tianjin, north China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran) TIANJIN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- European aircraft manufacturer Airbus on Monday delivered its 700th A320 family aircraft assembled at its A320 Family Final Assembly Line Asia (FALA) in north China's Tianjin Municipality. "This figure highlights the long-standing and in-depth cooperation between Airbus and the Chinese aviation industry," said George Xu, Airbus executive vice president and Airbus China CEO. "Airbus remains dedicated to strengthening strategic collaboration with China and fulfilling our long-term commitment to this thriving market," Xu added. The aircraft, an A320neo, featuring 180 comfortable economy class seats, was handed over to Chengdu Airlines. Chengdu Airlines has 50 Airbus aircraft now, according to its CEO, Wang Shushi. Inaugurated in 2008, the FALA in Tianjin is the first Airbus production line established outside Europe. The FALA has been operating for over 15 years and has become a model of successful China-Europe cooperation. The Airbus Tianjin expansion project, which broke ground in September 2023, is expected to contribute to the company's overall A320 family ramp-up plan, supported by its global production network of 10 final assembly lines. The production network will include two final assembly lines in Tianjin (one under construction), two in Toulouse, France, two in Mobile, the United States (one under construction) and four in Hamburg, Germany. This photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows the delivery ceremony of the 700th A320 family aircraft assembled by Airbus Tianjin to Chengdu Airlines in Tianjin, north China. (Xinhua/Li Ran) The A320neo aircraft handed over to Chengdu Airlines is pictured in Tianjin, north China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran) Guests attending the delivery ceremony of the 700th A320 family aircraft assembled by Airbus Tianjin to Chengdu Airlines pose for a group photo in front of the A320neo aircraft in Tianjin, north China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Ran) Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), a key architect of President Bidens biggest legislative accomplishments, has sought to keep his caucus unified behind the embattled president, even as cracks have appeared. Schumer has stayed in close contact with the White House and Senate colleagues since Bidens disastrous debate in Atlanta. He spoke with Biden on Wednesday and has talked to White House chief of staff Jeff Zients multiple times since the debate, not wavering in his support despite calls from some corners for the president to make way for another candidate. Aides said Schumer is clearly trying to give time for Biden and his campaign to steady his campaign as the dam of support around him threatens to break. Schumers going to hold the line for leadership as long as he can. Its hard to predict if the dam will fully break, but the dam is crumbling, said a Senate Democratic aide. A sign of that came Friday when The Washington Post reported that Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.), an influential centrist, is trying to pull together a group of Democrats to ask Biden to step aside. It tells what peoples real opinions are when you have the leader saying one thing and a prominent Democratic committee chair going in a different direction, the Democratic aide said of Warners behind-the-scenes maneuvers. The aide also said it would be difficult for Schumer and other leaders to maintain unity among their members around Biden, whether they want to or not. Theres just no way everyone is going to be aligned with because if you watched the debate That debate was a disaster, the source added. Still, there are real debates within the Democratic Party about whether it would be better off this fall with or without Biden. Some Democratic sources say Schumers caution reflects the stubborn fact that Biden has amassed 3,894 pledged delegates and has the votes to win the Democratic nomination in Chicago no matter how much Democratic senators and donors complain about it. I dont think he will stick with the president until the last second, but hell stick with the president as long as the odds are that Biden will remain the nominee, said Steven S. Smith, a professor of political science at Washington University in St. Louis. I dont think he really has much choice at this point, he added. Smith said Schumer must be careful not to trigger a civil war within the Democratic Party, which may happen if Biden steps aside and leaves it to competing factions to battle over the next nominee. Its also what might transpire should Biden be forced out or if theres a fractious convention to choose a replacement. Someone like Schumer is likely to be a bit risk averse, he said. The possibility of new divisions emerging among candidates and even deeper dissatisfaction with the ultimate replacement, the safest bet for now is to go with Biden and hope in the next couple weeks he overcomes all the bad news coverage hes been getting. The Biden campaign is still going ahead with a packed schedule of fundraising events over the next several weeks. The Biden Victory Fund will hold a fundraising event with former Sen. Doug Jones (D-Ala.) in Washington on July 10, a reception with Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.) in Baltimore on Thursday and a dinner with Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who will attend in a personal capacity, in Minnesota on Friday, according to a copy of the event schedule obtained by The Hill. Biden insisted at a campaign rally in Wisconsin on Friday that hes not dropping out. Theyre trying to push me out of the race, he told a cheering crowd. Well, let me say this as clearly as I can: Im staying in the race. Im not letting one 90-minute debate wipe out three and a half years of work, he said. Democratic strategists have warned that Biden, despite his flaws, is a well-known and tested candidate and that jumping to Vice President Harris or any other candidate to lead the Democratic ticket poses all sorts of hard-to-predict risks to candidates down ballot. The chattering is nonstop: Is he going to stay in the race? This thing has really hurt him, said a Democratic fundraiser. But the strategist said Harris hasnt distinguished herself as vice president. I dont see where shes distinguished herself in anyway like Dick Cheney did or Al Gore did, the strategist said, referring to George W. Bushs and Bill Clintons vice presidents. I dont see a lot of enthusiasm around her. Really, I dont. And if you talk to Republicans, theyre ready to paint her as a socialist, the source said. But some Democratic aides say that whatever risks there might be in nominating Harris or another candidate instead of Biden, the political situation cant get much worse. Bidens national approval rating has hovered at below 40 percent for much of the past year and now stands at 36.9 percent, according to a compilation of polls by FiveThirtyEight.com I dont know how it can get much worse, said the Senate Democratic aide. I dont know how Harris can be worse. Biden has trailed Trump in the polls for months, and the debate in Atlanta was supposed to be a reset for the presidents campaign. Instead, it put him in an even deeper hole. A New York Times/Siena College poll of 1,532 registered voters nationwide published Wednesday showed Trump had widened his lead over Biden to 6 points after the debate. Jim Kessler, a former Schumer aide and current executive vice president for policy at Third Way, a centrist Democratic think tank, said Democrats in tough races are now wrestling with the question of whether they can do better with a different nominee atop the ticket. Every Senate candidate in a swing state has been outperforming Joe Biden up to this point, and if you look at these candidates, and most of them in 2012, and most of them have experience running in a state thats not necessarily friendly for a Democratic president, he said, adding that Sens. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Bob Casey (D-Pa.) all outperformed the top of the ticket in 2012. I imagine all of them would say they were in a better position predebate than postdebate. Bidens numbers have dropped nationally since the debate, and that means theyve dropped in their [battleground] states, he added. Kessler noted that Schumers job as majority leader is to protect his most vulnerable colleagues. I expect hes listening very carefully to whats happening in those states, he said. His day-to-day job is to protect this caucus as best as possible in an election year. Democratic strategists say Schumer is wary of rushing into a decision Democrats may later regret and is wise to let the tsunami of negative media coverage abate some and allow pollsters to have more time to test just how big a hit Bidens political brand took from the debate. People are going to wait for a round of polling that comes in the aftermath of the debate. Pollsters will say we need a few days before we can really go into the field and find out whats going on, said a second strategist. People will start going into the field after July Fourth [weekend]. Thats when youre going to get the real numbers on what impact the debate had and whether or not Biden is hurt fatally and has an opportunity to get back in the race, the strategist said. I think theyre going to wait for that wave of research to come in. For months, Schumer has taken the lead in voicing strong confidence in Bidens abilities to remain commander in chief. Schumer has confidently predicted that Biden will win reelection and that Democrats will keep their majority, allaying the private concerns of Senate colleagues who have worried for months that Bidens age had become a major political headwind. Biden has ignored calls from major Democratic donors such as Disney heiress Abigail Disney to step down from the ticket, but it would be much harder to dismiss a joint call from Schumer, House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and other senior Democrats on Capitol Hill. Instead, Schumer gave Biden a much-needed endorsement last week during an event in Syracuse, telling reporters: Im with Joe Biden. The Democratic leader highlighted their shared accomplishments, and declared weve delivered a lot for America and for Central New York. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill. Gold miner Shannon Poe's suction dredge mining operation on the South Fork of the Clearwater in Idaho was found to be in violation of the Clean Water Act after the Idaho Conservation League brought a lawsuit. (Courtesy of Jonathan Oppenheimer/Idaho Conservation League) A 10-year battle to hold a California gold miner responsible for violating the Clean Water Act in Idaho by repeatedly dumping suction mining waste into the South Fork of the Clearwater without a permit has ended. Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a petition from gold miner Shannon Poe to review a lower court ruling finding that Poe violated the Clean Water Act at least 42 times since 2014 by dredge mining without obtaining a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. By not reviewing his case, the U.S. Supreme Court left in place the lower court rulings, said Laird Lucas, executive director of Advocates for the West. The Idaho Conservation League and the law firm Advocates for the West, both of which are Boise-based nonprofit organizations, spent a decade documenting Poes dredge mining activities and then steering the case through the court system. Were very encouraged; were happy to see the Supreme Court reject Poes argument and settle this matter once and for all, said Jonathan Oppenheimer, government relations director for the Idaho Conservation League, in a phone interview. It sends a strong message to others who would want to take a chance to dredge mine without the proper permits that they will have to pay a hefty price. (Poe) is facing a $150,000 fine, which he has already started paying. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Efforts to reach Poe through the Pacific Legal Foundation, which represented him in court, were unsuccessful. However, Frank Garrison, one of the Pacific Legal Foundation attorneys on the case, issued a written statement to the Sun on Friday. We are disappointed the Court decided not to grant Mr. Poes petition, Garrison wrote. The Ninth Circuit in this case reflectively deferred to a previous (Environmental Protection Agency) interpretation of the Clean Water Act, which would now be in direct conflict with the Courts decision in Loper Bright. Despite this setback, we will continue to fight against executive agencies overreach, both in the Ninth Circuit and throughout the Country, Garrison added. How did a California gold miner pollute a river in Idaho? Idaho Conservation League staffers learned about Poe after he participated in and posted online about a 2014 Occupy the Water suction dredge mining event on the Salmon River in Riggins that was held in opposition to Environmental Protection Agency regulations, court documents show. Need to get in touch? Have a news tip? CONTACT US The Idaho Conservation League notified the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality and the Environmental Protection Agency of Poes alleged violations, court documents show. When the state and feds didnt step in, the Idaho Conservation League brought a citizens enforcement lawsuit against Poe in 2018. Poe continued to post online about his intent to dredge in Idaho in opposition to EPA regulations and encouraged others to join him, court records show. After Poe would send out an online post, Idaho Conservation League staff and contractors would head out to Idaho Highway 14 and watch for Poe on the South Fork of the Clearwater River. The Idaho Conservation League submitted numerous photos of Poes dredge operation on the river alongside the relevant archived social media posts from Poe as part of the conservation organizations citizens enforcement suit against Poe. He was someone who was relatively easy to keep an eye on because he would announce his intention to come up and violate the law and then tell you where he was going to do it, Oppenheimer said. Effectively he was inviting someone, whether it was the Forest Service, EPA, DEQ or, in this case, ICL, to come up and enforce this. Idaho suction dredge mining Clean Water Act Poe often wrote about dredging in Idaho, court records show. Shortly after the Occupy event, (which Poes organization the American Mining Rights Association attend), we packed up our two dredges and headed for our claim about an hour away on the South Fork of the Clearwater to dredge openly in opposition to the EPA, Poe wrote in one online post, court records indicate. What is dredge mining and what are some of the regulations in Idaho? Suction dredge mining is a form of mining where miners use underwater nozzles to suck up material from the riverbed in search of gold, court documents indicate. Often suction dredge miners use floating pontoon boats with a compressor and dive under water using air breathing kits similar to equipment scuba divers would use. The nozzle is powered by a pump and the material sucked up from the riverbed passes through a sluice box that separates out gold and discharges other material back into the river. Several species of fish listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, including Snake River Steelhead trout and Snake River fall Chinook salmon, live in the South Fork of the Clearwater River. Oppenheimer and Lucas said suction dredge mining disturbs important habitat for those threatened fish by creating large holes in the riverbed and discharging mine tailings that form in large piles downstream. Under prior court rulings, Poe is barred from engaging in suction dredge mining in Idaho unless he obtains the required permits and following the applicable limits and regulations. He was also assessed a $150,000 penalty that is payable to the U.S. Treasury, Lucas said. (The court decisions are) an important step to ensure our fish are protected and our waters are protected, Lucas said in a phone interview. Poes legal team at Pacific Legal Foundation argued that suction dredge mining isnt polluting the river because it is just extracting material from the riverbed and discharging it back into the river, not adding new materials to the river. Suction dredging stirs up water but adds nothing to it, the Pacific Legal Foundation wrote on its website. Therefore, these miners should be exempt from federal permitting rules. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST Search continues for men in armed robbery investigation in Northwest DC WASHINGTON (DC News Now) Police in D.C. are asking for the communitys help in identifying several men wanted in connection to an armed robbery in Northwest. The Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) said shortly before 4 a.m. on Sunday, men, shown in the pictures below, approached two people and demanded their property. When the victims refused, police said one of the men took out a gun. MPD searching for men wanted in armed robbery investigation in Northwest D.C. (Photo Courtesy: MPD) Once the group took their items, they ran away. Police ask anyone with information to call (202) 727-9099, or text the tip line at 50411. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., attended closing arguments Monday in his federal corruption trial in New York and accused the government of being "intoxicated with their own rhetoric." Menendez has pleaded not guilty to 18 charges of bribery, obstruction and acting as a foreign agent. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI July 8 (UPI) -- Closing arguments in Sen. Bob Menendez' federal corruption trial got underway Monday afternoon in New York as prosecutors accused the Democratic lawmaker of putting "his power up for sale." Menendez, 70, who is charged with 18 federal corruption charges of bribery, obstruction and acting as a foreign agent, is accused -- along with his wife, Nadine -- of receiving hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for political influence. During Monday's closing arguments, prosecutor Paul Monteleoni called it a "clear pattern of corruption." "Menendez was in charge. His wife, Nadine, was his go-between," Monteleoni claimed, adding that Menendez "put his power up for sale." After nearly two months of testimony, Menendez said he fully expects to be found not guilty. "The government is intoxicated with their own rhetoric," the New Jersey lawmaker and former chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee told reporters outside the courthouse. "They spent two hours on charts." "I expect that my lawyers will produce a powerful and convincing summation, to deduce how the evidence came out, how they failed across the board and have the jury render a verdict of not guilty," Menendez added. During the eight-week trial, prosecutors called several dozen witnesses and presented hundreds of documents, emails, text messages and phone records as they claimed Menendez received more than $480,000 in cash, gold bars and a luxury car from three New Jersey businessmen. Menendez and two of the businessmen pleaded not guilty. The third businessman pleaded guilty and testified against the others. The defense rested last week without calling Menendez to testify. "From my perspective, the government has failed to prove every aspect of its case, and for me to testify and give them another chance for a second summation -- go through the whole case again, and then go ahead and have their summation, and then have a rebuttal case at the end -- it's simply something that doesn't make any sense to me whatsoever," Menendez argued. During the trial, lawyers for the Democratic lawmaker argued that the gold bars belonged to his wife and that the large amounts of cash found inside the Menendez home were part of a lifelong habit of storing money following his family's 1951 escape from Cuba. Menendez and his wife, Nadine, are facing separate trials after it was revealed she had breast cancer and would undergo mastectomy surgery. She also pleaded not guilty. Her trial date has been postponed to Aug. 5. Last month, Menendez filed to run for re-election as an independent, after serving nearly two decades as a Democrat in the U.S. Senate and 14 years in the U.S. House before that. Menendez has faced corruption charges before. A corruption prosecution on unrelated charges in 2017 ended with a deadlocked jury. Sen. Bob Menendez "sold the power of his office" by accepting hundreds of thousands of dollars in bribes in exchange for using his power to benefit New Jersey businessmen and foreign governments, a prosecutor told jurors in the senator's federal trial on Monday, describing what he called a "clear pattern of corruption." "Robert Menendez, the senior U.S. senator from the state of New Jersey, the ranking member and then-chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, put his power up for sale," the prosecutor, Paul Monteleoni, said during a closing argument that followed almost two months of witness testimony. MORE: Sen. Bob Menendez bribery case: What to know as trial starts At trial, jurors held the gold bars that federal agents seized from Menendez's home in June 2022. The FBI also found nearly a half-billion dollars in cash, some of it stuffed in envelopes inside Menendez's boots or a jacket bearing the senator's name. "They found envelope after envelope of cash," Monteleoni said. Prosecutors claimed the cash, gold and a luxury convertible were all bribes from Menendez's co-defendants, Fred Daibes and Wael Hana. PHOTO: Senator Robert Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, arrives at federal court in New York City, July 8, 2024. (Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg via Getty Images) "It wasn't enough for him to be one of the most powerful people in Washington," Monteleoni said. "Robert Menendez wanted all that power and he also wanted to use it to pile up riches for himself and his wife." Menendez pleaded not guilty to more than a dozen charges and has denied the allegations. An attorney for Menendez is expected to deliver a closing statement on Tuesday. A theme of his defense has been to blame his wife, Nadine Menendez, who faces a separate trial in the case. Nadine Menendez is being treated for advanced breast cancer, which has delayed her trial. MORE: Sen. Bob Menendez 'put his power up for sale,' prosecutor claims in bribery trial Defense attorneys have argued Menendez was kept in the dark about what his wife was demanding from the businessmen in exchange for his help. Prosecutors told jurors they shouldn't buy it. "You don't get to be the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee by being clueless," Monteleoni said. Menendez stepped down as the chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee following the initial indictment in September 2023. He has not resigned from the Senate despite calls to do so from a majority of his Democratic Senate colleagues. Sen. Bob Menendez 'sold the power of his office,' prosecutor claims in closing argument originally appeared on abcnews.go.com Senate Democrats will not be huddling Monday to discuss President Bidens reelection efforts, according to a source familiar with Sen. Mark Warners (D-Va.) thinking. Axios had reported earlier that Warner was spearheading efforts to organize a meeting Monday night to discuss Bidens reelection efforts. According to a source familiar with Warners thinking, this meeting was never scheduled because leaked details of the idea of the meeting made it impossible to have a private conversation. Axios first reported that there would be no Monday meeting. The source would not confirm what the details of the potential meeting would have been about, noting that Warner has not taken a position on whether Biden should pull out of the race following a rocky debate performance. Two sources familiar with Warners efforts told The Hill earlier this week that Warner has been building support among Democrats to ask Biden to drop his reelection bid, saying Bidens candidacy could pose risks to relatively safe Democrat seats. The Washington Post first reported Warners efforts last week, but a spokesperson for Warners office would not confirm that reporting at the time. Like many other people in Washington and across the country, Sen. Warner believes these are critical days for the presidents campaign, and he has made that clear to the White House, the spokesperson told the Post in a statement. When asked about the reporting as he was leaving a Wisconsin campaign event last week, Biden said hes the only one. When asked again about the reports during an interview with ABC News on Friday, Biden called the senator a good man. Mark and I have a different perspective. I respect him, Biden added later in the interview. The president has come under fire in recent weeks following a lackluster debate showing that prompted many Democrats and pundits to raise concerns about whether he can handle a second term. A handful of Democrats have also called on him to step aside from the race. At least four senior House Democrats also said in a private phone call Sunday afternoon that Biden should drop out of the race, according to sources familiar with the matter. Biden has remained adamant that he will be staying in the race. Many Democrats and other public officials have also publicly backed him in the days following the debate. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing Thursday centered on privacy-related concerns stemming from the rise of artificial intelligence (AI), the committee announced Monday. The hearing will examine how AI has accelerated the need for a federal comprehensive privacy law, according to the committee announcement. The hearing was scheduled amid mounting pressure for Congress to put AI rules in place, as well as a comprehensive federal privacy law. The U.S. lacks a comprehensive federal privacy law, as states and other countries roll out new standards that regulate the largely U.S.-based tech giants. The American Privacy Rights Act, a bipartisan data privacy bill led by Senate Commerce Committee Chair Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) and Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.), was scheduled for a markup in the House last month, but the meeting was pulled shortly before it began after pushback from House GOP leaders. The House pushback threatens the bills chances of passage this session, but it is likely to emerge during a Senate hearing on the topic. The bill would give people more control over their data and add requirements such as letting users opt out of targeted advertising and data transfers. It would also create a private right of action that allows consumers to seek financial damages through court and preempt state laws. The Senate hearing will feature testimony from Ryan Calo, a professor at the University of Washington School of Law and co-director of the University of Washington Tech Policy Lab; Amba Kak, co-executive director of the AI Now Institute; and Udbhav Tiwari, director of global product policy at Mozilla. More witnesses will be announced, according to the committee. Congress has also been weighing AI regulations but has yet to pass any laws as the technology advances. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) released an AI roadmap for regulation in May, but the document was light on calls for specific regulation. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Senator Robert Menendez arrives at Federal Court, for his bribery trial in New York U.S. Senator Robert Menendez arrives at Federal Court, for his bribery trial in New York By Luc Cohen NEW YORK (Reuters) -Bob Menendez sold his power for money and gold to help Egypt's government and businessmen who showered the once-powerful senator and his wife with bribes, a prosecutor said on Monday in his closing argument at Menendez's corruption trial. Over more than seven weeks of testimony, federal prosecutors sought to persuade a jury that Menendez accepted hundreds of thousands of dollars of bribes in the form of gold bars, cash, and car and mortgage payments. In exchange, prosecutors said the New Jersey Democrat sought to help Egypt secure billions of dollars in U.S. military assistance and aid the business and legal interests of New Jersery businessmen Fred Daibes, Wael Hana and Jose Uribe. "It wasn't enough for him to be one of the most powerful people in Washington," prosecutor Paul Monteleoni said in his closing argument in Manhattan federal court. "He also wanted to pile up riches for himself and his wife." At the trial, jurors saw gold bars federal agents seized from Menendez's home. The agents also found more than $480,000 of cash, including some stuffed in envelopes inside a jacket bearing the senator's name. Menendez, 70, has pleaded not guilty to 16 criminal charges including bribery, fraud, acting as a foreign agent and obstruction. His lawyers have sought to shift the blame toward his wife, Nadine Menendez, who prosecutors say he used as a go-between for the bribes. Nadine Menendez has also pleaded not guilty and will be tried separately starting in August. The case has likely ended the three-term senator's political career. Bob Menendez resigned as chair of the Senate's influential foreign relations committee after being charged in September. He is running for re-election of his seat in November as an independent, but is considered a long shot. At the outset of a closing argument expected to last five hours, Monteleoni said Bob Menendez sought to benefit Hana and Egyptian officials with whom he was close after Hana put Nadine Menendez on his payroll in a "sham job" that paid her $10,000 per month. Bob Menendez ghostwrote a letter for Egyptian officials to respond to concerns a fellow senator had raised about the country's human rights record, and pressed a U.S. Department of Agriculture official to stop scrutinizing a deal prosecutors say Egypt's government granted Hana's company to certify halal meat. "When Menendez hears Nadine is going to get paid, he springs into action again and again," Monteleoni said. "He sold all of that trust and all of that power for the benefit of Hana and of Egypt for money and for gold." Hana and fellow New Jersey businessman Fred Daibes are on trial alongside Menendez and have pleaded not guilty. Both men also provided Menendez with gold bars, Montelioni said. Uribe, an insurance broker, pleaded guilty to bribing Bob Menendez and cooperated with the government. He testified last month that he bought Nadine Menendez a $60,000 Mercedes-Benz in exchange for her husband leaning on state prosecutors to lay off criminal probes into Uribe's associates. Monteleoni told jurors that the day after Uribe texted Nadine Menendez asking her not to forget about him, Bob Menendez called the former New Jersey attorney general to inquire about the investigations. "Actions speak louder than words, and Menendez's actions are shouting from the rooftops," Monteleoni said. Monteleoni's closing argument is expected to resume on Tuesday. Defense closing arguments will follow before the jury begins its deliberations. (Reporting by Luc Cohen in New York;Editing by Noeleen Walder and Alistair Bell) Press Release July 8, 2024 ZUBIRI: SIGNING OF RECIPROCAL ACCESS PACT WITH JAPAN TIMELY, TO BOLSTER DEFENSE INTEROPERABILITY 08 July 2024 Former Senate President Juan Miguel "Migz" Zubiri today lauded the signing of the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) between the Philippines and Japan, saying this is very timely and will boost the country's defense interoperability with the friendly Asian neighbor. Zubiri, a long-time advocate of the RAA, said the agreement is a partnership of like-minded nations that will truly bolster the country's naval training and use of ships and equipment purchased from Japan, further strengthening the Philippines' defense and security in the Asia-Pacific region. "It was in 2022 when then-Ambassador to the Philippines Koshikawa Kazuhiko and I first discussed the possibility of pursuing a Reciprocal Access Agreement between our countries, and I brought this idea to President Marcos early into his administration," Zubiri expressed. "So, I welcome this signing, and I am very hopeful that it will be a key partnership for achieving peace in the region." Zubiri emphasized that the RAA signing would strengthen the strategic partnership between the Philippines and Japan, which he described as an "invaluable ally" to the Philippines. "Japan is already an invaluable ally, and their assistance has been vital to the modernization of our Coast Guard and Navy. With this RAA, we can further strengthen our capacity-building through joint military exercises," he declared. Zubiri has consistently pushed for the RAA during various meetings with Japanese officials, including President Marcos' visit to Japan in February 2023 and the Senate's own parliamentary visit to Japan in April 2023, where they met with Prime Minister Kishida Fumio. The Prime Minister, upon the invitation of Zubiri, then came to the Philippines in November 2023 to give a historic policy speech during a joint session of the Philippine Congress. It was in this speech that he confirmed that he and President Marcos were in concurrence over the need to pursue the RAA. "Our persistence has paid off, and now we can look forward to strengthened security and defense cooperations under the RAA," Zubiri said. After the Mt. Qomolangma season, Nepalese Sherpas, including Dawa Kami, often migrate worldwide, assisting climbers on various peaks. Nestled on the eastern edge of the Pamir Plateau, part of the Kunlun Mountains, the 7,546-meter-high Muztagh Ata is a popular peak in China due to its high altitude and relatively accessible climbing difficulty. (Bloomberg) -- West African leaders tasked Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye with trying to convince the military leaders of three nations not to withdraw from the regional economic bloc. Most Read from Bloomberg Faye was appointed as an envoy of the Economic Community of West African States at an Ecowas summit in the Nigerian capital, Abuja, on Sunday. They met as the heads of the juntas in Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso signed a treaty in neighboring Nigers capital, Niamey, to form a confederation that seeks to boost political and economic ties. The three nations announced plans in January to withdraw from Ecowas, placing them at risk of losing access to a $702 billion market, and exposing them to increased tariffs and restrictions on the movement of goods and financial flows. Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger have been suspended from the bloc following the coups. Their withdrawal from the bloc will deal a heavy blow to security cooperation and the fight against Islamist insurgents across the sub-region, Ecowas Commission President Omar Touray said. They will lose access to funding, a regional market of 400 million people and risk the suspension of all projects and programs implemented by Ecowas in their countries valued at more than $500 million, he said. The blocs economy is expected to grow 4.3% in 2024, according to a statement issued after the summit. The division of West Africa into opposing alliances of democracies and military rulers comes after the juntas cut military ties with western allies France and the US after the ouster of their civilian leaders in recent years. In turn, theyve boosted cooperation with countries including Russia, Iran and Turkey. Sign up here for the twice-weekly Next Africa newsletter Instability has spread across West Africas Sahel region and now threatens coastal states Ghana and Ivory Coast, more than a decade after France deployed troops to Mali to end an Islamist insurgency there. With a record of more than 11,600 fatalities linked to jihadist violence in 2023, the Sahel is now the epicenter for terrorist attacks globally. Ecowas on Sunday urged member states to contribute troops toward a proposed 5,000-strong regional anti-terrorism force. Faye said plans by the three military-led nations to split with the union risked its disintegration. We must do everything to avoid their withdrawal from Ecowas, he said Sunday. Their creation of a confederation, which follows the forming of a similar Alliance of Sahel States in September, aims to facilitate the free movement of people and goods, reinforce military cooperation and create a regional investment bank and stabilization fund, the military leaders said in a joint statement. The countries also plan to pool their joint assets for strategic mining, energy and infrastructure projects. You can follow Bloombergs reporting on Africa on WhatsApp. Sign up here. --With assistance from Baudelaire Mieu. Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. This column is part of a weekly round-up of notable grand jury indictments and court decisions, following through on cases reported by Savannah Morning News public safety reporter Drew Favakeh. If there are cases you're curious about, email Drew at AFavakeh@Gannett.com. The Judge's Bench for State Court Judge Gregory Sapp inside the Chatham County Courthouse. Man indicted for felony murder in Tatem Street shooting On July 2, a Chatham County grand jury indicted Nazzareth Thacker for two counts of felony murder, aggravated assault, robbery by sudden snatching, two counts of possession of firearm during the commission of a felony, and theft by taking. According to the indictment, Thacker did cause the death of Mahki Hampton by shooting him with a firearm on June 4 and attempted to steal a firearm from Hampton. On June 6, the Savannah Police Department arrested Thacker in connection with the fatal shooting of Hampton, 19, in the 700 block of Tatem Street, according to previous reporting by the Savannah Morning News. Thacker was charged with voluntary manslaughter. More: 19-year-old arrested in connection with Tuesday night fatal shooting on Tatem Street More: In Session: Former Savannah Police administrative assistant indicted for stealing overtime funds More: In Session: Murder charges dropped in 2022 Quacco Road shootout where woman was killed Third defendant indicted for felony murder tied to 2022 Quacco Road shooting On July 2, a Chatham County grand jury indicted Juan Jacobo Lopez with felony murder and aggravated assault. According to the indictment, Lopez did cause the death of Maranda Dover by shooting a firearm at a vehicle in which Dover was an occupant. Maranda Dover, 23 years old at the time, was found fatally shot on the night of April 10, 2022, inside a vehicle at a mobile home park on the 800 block of Quacco Road, according to a news release issued by the Chatham County Police Department. In August 2022, a Chatham County grand jury indicted Ruben Rios and a co-defendant for the same incident, according to previous reporting. Rios was indicted for two counts of felony murder, aggravated assault and criminal attempt to commit a felony. Dwayne McCloud was named as a co-defendant in the August 2022 indictment. He was charged with felony murder, armed robbery and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. According to the indictment, McCloud robbed two men who then chased down McClouds vehicle. McCloud and the two men got into a shootout in their respective vehicles, according to the indictment. Rios allegedly shot at McCloud's vehicle, in which Dover was an occupant, killing her. Chatham County Assistant District Attorney Brian DeBlasiis chose not to prosecute Rios for the murder counts due to "the defendant's agreed upon cooperation with the State," according to a court document. On June 7, Ruben Rios pleaded guilty to two counts of tampering with evidence for the same incident. Georgia law dictates the minimum sentence for tampering with evidence is one year, while the maximum sentence is 10 years. Drew Favakeh is the public safety and courts reporter for the Savannah Morning News. You can reach him at AFavakeh@Gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: chatham county georgia court updates for week of July 8 2024 The main childrens hospital in Kyiv was struck in a Russian missile barrage which killed at least 22 people, including two children, in strikes on the Ukrainian capital. A further 82 people were injured, the citys military administration said. Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, said Russian forces fired more than 40 long-range munitions, including the hypersonic Kinzhal, at different cities in a rare daytime raid. Rescue workers were dispatched to Ohmatdyt Childrens Hospital amid reports that children were trapped in the wreckage of the building. Woman holds a young child in her arms in the wake of the attack Parents holding bloodied babies, crying and dazed, were photographed trying to escape the carnage after the strike. Young patients could be seen receiving treatment on the street as local authorities promised the missile attack would not disrupt services at the hospital. Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital amid reports that children were trapped in the wreckage of the building - Gleb Garanich/REUTERS Volodymyr Zelensky said that there were an unknown number of people trapped under the rubble of the hospital - REUTERS Footage shows a medical worker in blood-stained scrubs joining the rescue effort as emergency services and volunteers passed individual bricks along a line in a scramble to free people trapped under the rubble. The hospitals roof has caved in and there are plumes of thick, black smoke rising from what appeared to be the impact zone. Children hooked up to IV drips and their parents, some wearing face masks, were seen waiting patiently in a queue of seats next to the hospital, as officials said patients would be moved away from the damaged facility. Children hooked up to IV drips and their parents were seen waiting patiently in a queue of seats - REUTERS A woman soothes a young patient near the hospital - REUTERS Emergency workers were met with blood-lined floors, doors and windows blown off their hinges and hospital beds and equipment scattered as they looked for survivors. A woman was pictured carrying a young child, wrapped in a sheet, being carried out of the hospital. The child was bleeding from its forehead, nose, neck and arms. The blue-tinted windows on the outside of the hospital were blown from their frames and piles of rubble was strewn on the floor as part of the building collapsed. Rescuers work at the hospital after a Russian missile strike - REUTERS The hospital's roof caved in following a missile attack - REUTERS Patients at the hospital were being evacuated to nearby facilities in the city, Serhii Popko, the head of Kyivs military administration, said, as another raid siren was sounded over the capital. The hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, people are under the rubble, the exact number of wounded and dead is currently unknown. Now everyone helps to sort out the debris: doctors, ordinary people, Mr Zelensky wrote on the Telegram messaging app. Russia cannot help but know where its missiles are flying, and must fully answer for all its crimes: against people, against children, against humanity in general. It is very important that the world should not be silent about it now and that everyone should see what Russia is and what it is doing, the Ukrainian president added. Pictures distributed by officials from the children's medical facility in Kyiv showed people digging through mounds of rubble - REUTERS The attack has already generated international condemnation with the British government labelling the attack appalling while Paris said it was barbaric. Sir Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, said: Attacking innocent children. The most depraved of actions. We stand with Ukraine against Russian aggression our support wont falter. On the day of the missile attack, Poland and Ukraine signed a bilateral security arrangement in which Warsaw promised to look into ways to use its own air defences to intercept Russian missiles and drones heading for its borders in Ukrainian airspace. A young boy is carried into an ambulance The long-range barrage on Ukraine came as Viktor Orban, Hungarys prime minister, met Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, to discuss a potential peace deal to end the war. Mr Orban has also visited Mr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin in recent days. Vitali Klitschko, the mayor of Kyiv, said the attack was one of the heaviest on the capital since the target of Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. Local authorities reported that debris of Russian missiles intercepted by Ukrainian air defence systems rained down on six neighbourhoods in the Ukrainian capital, damaging residential blocks and offices. Explosions rang out and black smoke could be seen rising from the centre of Kyiv - AFP In Kryviy Rih, central Ukraine, at least 10 people were killed and 31 others injured, Oleksandr Vilkul, the citys mayor, said. Metinvest, Ukraines largest mining company, said 10 employees were killed and 30 injured in a strike at a coal processing plant in the city. Three more people died in Pokrovsk, in eastern Ukraine, when missiles struck an industrial facility. The cities of Dnipro and Kramatarosk were also targeted. 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. Several top House Democrats say Biden should step aside during leadership call More than a handful of House Democratic ranking members told House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries in a Sunday call that President Joe Biden needs to step aside from the 2024 campaign, according to sources familiar with the call. Jeffries held the call to take the temperature of ranking members after Bidens dismal debate performance last month. The call, held before lawmakers return to Washington this week, was filled with deep concern about potential damage to the Democratic ticket and how it imperils the partys chances to win back the House majority. Jeffries did not share with his colleagues where he stands on the question of whether Biden should continue running for reelection, a source who was on the call told CNN. The number of lawmakers who explicitly said Biden should not be the Democratic nominee was greater than the number who spoke up for him to stay, according to one of the sources. Among those who opposed Biden as the nominee were Reps. Mark Takano, Adam Smith, Jim Himes, Joe Morelle, Jerry Nadler and Susan Wild, according to three sources. Five lawmakers have publicly called for Biden to withdraw from the presidential race: Reps. Lloyd Doggett, Seth Moulton, Raul Grijalva, Angie Craig and Mike Quigley. Democratic Reps. Maxine Waters and Bobby Scott spoke in support of Biden, according to one of the sources. One of the concerns expressed during the nearly two-hour call was that Democrats will lose their chance at the House majority if Biden is the candidate, one of the sources said, adding that it was generally acknowledged the nominee should be Vice President Kamala Harris. It was pretty brutal, a senior Democratic aide told CNN, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the private conversation among House leaders. Though not present on the call, lawmakers from the Congressional Black Caucus, including Rep. Joyce Beatty of Ohio and Rep. Frederica Wilson of Florida, were quick to defend Biden from their colleagues calling on the president to step aside. Beatty, former chair of the CBC, said that Democrats shouldnt be going rogue against our own president and that Black voters are loyal and will continue to support Biden. Any leader calling for President Biden to drop out needs to get their priorities straight and stop undermining this incredible actual leader who has delivered real results for our country, Wilson said in a statement. No decisions about demands for a White House meeting or sending a letter to Biden are expected to be made before the full Democratic caucus meets Tuesday, aides said, but Jeffries has made clear he will allow members to speak their minds and make their own judgments. One senior House Democrat said they have been on calls and group chats with dozens of their colleagues where the consensus is that Biden needs to step aside. The member said the caucus is trying to find the best way to move forward while still giving the president the respect they believe he deserves for his storied career. It is the view of the senior House Democrat and another member that Tuesday the day of the planned caucus meeting will be the most consequential day for the president this week. One of the members told CNN they anticipate that is the day when the dam will break. Many Democrats concerned about Bidens viability as a candidate following his poor debate performance are waiting for Jeffries to take a public position. So far, the leader has been in a purposeful listening mode as one person told CNN last week, Jeffries has assiduously avoided sharing his own judgment on the matter as he continues to survey his own caucus. Biden, meanwhile, was busy on the campaign trail in battleground Pennsylvania, speaking earlier in the day at a predominantly Black church in Philadelphia before making a surprise stop at a local campaign office amping up the unscripted and off-the-cuff events his allies have encouraged him to take on. He then made his way to Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he showed off his support from state Democrats Sen. John Fetterman, Rep. Madeleine Dean and Lt. Gov. Austin Davis at a campaign event. It was between those trips on Sunday that Biden answered with a resounding yes when press asked whether the Democratic Party was still behind him. This story has been updated with new reporting. CNNs Jack Forrest, Eva McKend, Edward-Isaac Dovere, Aileen Graef and Samantha Waldenberg contributed to this report. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Several influential House Democrats joined a growing list of party members calling on Joe Biden to step aside and let someone else run in 2024 in a weekend crisis call, according to reports. The House Democratic caucus convened for crisis talks with Hakeem Jeffries, the chambers minority leader, late Sunday afternoon as lawmakers prepare to face the media on Capitol Hill when Congress returns to business the next day. Already, growing fractures are visible as party members take opposing positions on whether the president should remain the partys nominee after a disastrous debate showing against Donald Trump last week. During that call with Jeffries, Reps Jerry Nadler, Susan Wild, Adam Smith and Mark Takano all came out in opposition to Biden running again, according to multiple news agencies. Rep Don Beyer, a Democrat from Virginia, also strongly undercut the presidents argument for staying in the race and suggested that Kamala Harris, his vice president, would have a much stronger chance at winning. Nadler, a close ally of Nancy Pelosi, is the top-ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee; Wild and Smith hold the same respective positions on the Ethics and Armed Services committees. Together, the three become the highest-ranking members of the House Democratic caucus to call on Biden to step aside. Mark Takano, a congressman from California, joined them on the same call while Don Beyer, a congressman from swing-state Virginia, undercut the presidents message so seriously that a spokesman had to issue a statement clarifying that Beyer was continuing to support the presidents campaign so long as it lasted. Jerry Nadler speaks at a press conference on Capitol Hill. The New York congressman has called on Joe Biden to step aside and not run in 2024 (AFP) Hes clearly very, very fragile. Fragile physically, although his handshake is very firm. Also really has trouble putting two sentences together, said Beyer on the call with Jeffries and other Democrats, according to Punchbowl News. He added: I also believe Kamala is in a great position to win in November, probably a much better position than Joe. Beyers spokesman clarified that the congressman supports President Biden and said so on this call, and argued that any reporting to the contrary is a misunderstanding of what he said. The congressman in his own remarks also made clear that he was a team player and would support whatever decision the president made. Joe Biden looks down during a moment in the first presidential debate of the 2024 general election (Getty Images) Their reported positions came the same day that Adam Schiff, the Democratic House impeachment manager and now Senate nominee in California, made an appearance on NBCs Meet the Press and criticized Biden directly for his response to the reaction that has played out across his party in the wake of a raspy, timid performance at the debate where his mind appeared to wander mid-point in some instances. The congressman took issue with how Biden told ABCs George Stephanopoulos on Friday that he would not personally be remorseful if Trump won the 2024 election as long as he gave the race his all. This is not just about whether he gave it the best college try, but rather whether he made the right decision to run or pass the torch. That is the most important decision for him to make right now, Schiff said. Mondays return to Capitol Hill is likely to drive up the number of Democrats calling on Biden to drop out. The s*** is going to hit the fan on Monday, when Congress returns," one House Democrat said to Axios for a piece published on Sunday. People are scared about their own races. But they're also worried about the country, and about democracy. Polls show Biden trailing the former president who is now convicted of 34 felony counts related to a hush money scheme to cover up allegations of an affair with a porn star in most of the battleground swing states he will need to win re-election. A sexual assault at a University Park residence hall was reported early Monday morning to Penn State. Penn State issued a timely warning notification to the university community, which is required by the Clery Act when certain conditions are met. Its the first such warning issued by the university since November. A Penn State student said they were sexually assaulted about 1 a.m. Sunday at an unnamed on-campus residence hall on the southern portion of campus, according to the warning. It did not offer a description of the suspect. According to the warning, it can be assumed that conditions continue to exist that may pose a threat to members and guests of the university community. Undergraduate students do not trust their university to take reports of sexual misconduct seriously nor provide supportive accommodations, nor handle reports fairly according to the results of a universitywide survey released in April 2023. According to University Parks 2022 Sexual Misconduct Climate Survey, only 42.9% of female undergrads and 24.6% of gender-diverse undergrads believed Penn State would take a report of sexual misconduct seriously. That was a significant drop from 2018, when 62.9% of female undergrads answered in the affirmative and from 2015, when 72.8% said the same. A university spokesperson said at the time that the survey data showed results similar to institutions nationwide, but described the findings as troubling. Resources There are more than a dozen resources available to Penn State students and others in Centre County, both on-campus and off-campus. On-campus Off-campus Centre Daily Times reporter Josh Moyer contributed to this article. She said promotions went to lesser-qualified men. Pierce County settles complaint for $80K Pierce County has settled for $80,000 a gender discrimination lawsuit brought by a maintenance technician who claimed she was repeatedly denied promotions in a male-dominated department because she is a woman. Lisa Farrar, a worker in the countys Planning & Public Works Departments wastewater division, sued the county last August, alleging that she was passed over for jobs a half dozen times despite being more qualified than a majority of men who were hired. According to the complaint, Farrar was one of two women working full time in the roughly 50-person department, which had one female supervisor. The suit was officially dismissed July 1 after the two sides reached a settlement, court records show. County spokesperson Erin Babbo told The News Tribune that the case was resolved for $80,000. Pierce County Planning and Public Works is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive workplace where all employees are treated with respect and have equal opportunities to succeed, Babbo said in a statement. Attorneys representing Farrar did not respond to messages seeking comment. The complaint alleged that Farrar, who then had been in her role for seven years, applied to be a mechanics specialist six times since 2018. In the lone instance that the position had been given to a woman, that woman asked to be reassigned after being sexually harassed by her manager, according to the filing. The complaint also claimed that managers had ignored chauvinistic remarks from men in the workplace. Throughout Plaintiffs employment, male employees have made comments about womens work, referring to sweeping, cleaning the kitchen in the break room, and other janitorial work, the filing said. In a response filed in court, the county denied the lawsuits allegations. Sheriff: Man flees from police in Wisconsin, dies after crashing into an SUV in Illinois NEWPORT, Ill. (WFRV) A southern Wisconsin man reportedly died after fleeing from police in Wisconsin and crashing into an SUV in Illinois. According to the Lake County Sheriffs Office in Illinois, on July 6 around 4:30 p.m., deputies responded to a reported crash with injuries. When authorities got to the scene, two vehicles were found with major damage. A preliminary investigation reportedly showed that a 32-year-old man from Salem, Wisconsin was driving a stolen vehicle in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. Police in Pleasant Prairie reportedly found the stolen vehicle and tried to stop the driver. Fond du Lac Sheriffs Office arrests two on multiple felony charges However, the driver allegedly fled at a high rate of speed and police were able to successfully use a tire-deflating device. Officials say that even though one of the vehicles tires was deflated, the driver kept fleeing at a high rate of speed. After police discontinued the chase, the driver still reportedly drove recklessly and excessively fast. Authorities say that the driver of the stolen vehicle ignored a red light and collided with a GMC Yukon. The driver of the stolen vehicle reportedly died. The release mentioned that a 51-year-old passenger of the Yukon was critically injured and was sent to a hospital. The driver of the Yukon as well as six rear passengers had non-life-threatening injuries. There is an autopsy on the driver reportedly scheduled. Police say that the driver of the stolen vehicle had a revoked drivers license and an active arrest warrant out for possessing methamphetamine and was a suspect in several burglaries. Family disturbance in Sheboygan leaves man hospitalized with gunshot wound, suspect at large The crash is still under investigation. 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. More top Democrats are vehemently shifting away from President Joe Biden after a disastrous debate performance last month revealed key issues with the chief executives age. The number of lawmakers who believed that Biden should throw in the towel in the 2024 race outweighed the number backing his decision to stay in, during a Democratic leadership call on Sunday afternoon. At least four more prominent Democratic representatives joined a growing chorus urging Biden to step out, reported NBC News. Those lawmakers included New York Representatives Jerry Nadler and Joe Morelle, California Representative Mark Takano, and Washington Representative Adam Smith. All four men serve as the ranking members on powerful House committees. But even lawmakers who didnt outright agree that the former presidents place on the November ballot was compromised thoroughly questioned his ability to retake the White House for a second term. Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin, Virginia Representative Don Beyer, and Connecticut Representative Jim Himes expressed concerns that Biden was not the strongest candidate the party could put forward. Most lawmakers on the call believed that Vice President Kamala Harris would be a stronger option at the top of the ticket, calling her the obvious choice to replace Biden should he leave the race. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries held the hour-long call with the Democratic brass but did not weigh in with his opinion on the movement to oust Biden, according to CNN. Last week, Representatives Lloyd Doggett, Raul Grijalva, and Seth Moulton formally called on the president to exit the race. But many more have signaled their preference in subtler ways, including legacy politicians such as Senator Sheldon Whitehouse and former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the latter of whom suggested that growing concern over both candidates ages was a legitimate question. Panic over Bidens age and ability has consumed the Democratic Party since the presidents abysmal debate performance last week, during which he appeared dumbfounded and frail through the majority of his first 2024 matchup against Donald Trump. Since the face-off, droves of private-sector leaders, donors, and consultants have urged Biden to call it quits, looking for spontaneous alternatives to a candidate that they openly describe as comatose and dead. As Hurricane Beryl makes landfall across the Texas coast, Shreveport Regional Airport reported that some flights have been canceled due the disturbance. According to Shreveport Airport Authority Marketing and Public Relations Manager, Mark Crawford, all United Airline flights to Houston, Texas have been cancelled for the day. United Airlines is offering waivers related to the storm-- travelers will be able to rebook travel within certain parameters without penalty. United Airlines has canceled all flights to Houston, Texas for July 8, due to Hurricane Beryl. These flight cancellations are part of more than 1,370 U.S. flights that have been canceled or delayed due to Hurricane Beryl. On Monday, July 8, Hurrican Beryl made landfall as a Category 1 hurricane around 4:30 a.m. near Matagorda, Texas-- a coastal community between Corpus Christi and Galveston, Texas. According to the National Weather Service (NWS), the City of Houston received three to six inches of rain causing flash flooding across parts of the city and is expected to see two to four inches of rain as the day continues. NWS also reported that a weather service office in Houston recorded an 81-mph wind gust. According to USA TODAY, Beryl is expected to weaken as it moves further inland. Beryl has left more than 1.5 million customers without power in eastern Texas. Doyle Rice, Thao Nguyen, Cheryl McCloud and Christopher Cann contributed to this story. Eve Chen, Zach Wichter and Nathan Diller contributed to this story. More: Hurricane Beryl tracker: See projected path of Category 5 storm Makenzie Boucher is a reporter for the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Check out the flights that have been canceled in Shreveport due to Beryl LA PAZ, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Bolivia is putting 24 suspects on trial for their role in a failed coup attempt on June 26, with the possibility of facing up to 25 years in prison, Attorney General Cesar Adalid Siles Bazan said Sunday. "The investigation has advanced rapidly. In these 11 days, six formal charges have been determined, where the Prosecutor's Office has shown sufficient evidence of criminal responsibility against these 24 people," Siles Bazan said in an interview with Bolivia TV. Of the 24 suspects charged, three are under house arrest, while the remaining are in preventive detention in Bolivian prisons, he said. Noting the seriousness of the crimes, the attorney general said the terrorism charge alone carries a sentence of 20 years in prison, which, when combined with other crimes, could lead to 25 years behind bars. On June 26, a military faction led by the now-dismissed army commander Juan Jose Zuniga used a tank to storm the government palace located at Murillo Square in the city of La Paz. The suspects are charged with launching an armed uprising, terrorism, threatening the security of the president and other officials, destroying or damaging public property and the improper use of public goods and services. The authorities have carried out raids on homes, military compounds and offices as part of the investigation. A Seminole County judge acted like a playground bully during court proceedings, cursing defendants and robbing them of their rights, a panel of the Florida Judicial Qualifications Commission announced Monday. Circuit Court Judge Wayne Culver is now facing for a second time a potential 60-day suspension without pay from the Florida Supreme Court over two cases in early 2022 where he held or threatened to hold several people in contempt of court. But the high court rejected the 60-day penalty in 2022, raising questions over whether it will find this recommendation sufficient. In February 2022, Culver held Samuel Perez in criminal contempt for failing to complete a domestic violence program and sentenced him to 179 days in jail, the maximum number of days possible. Perez was immediately taken into custody, as Culver denied Perez request to speak on his own behalf. When a woman in the court gallery subsequently attempted to address Culver, he told her, Maam, sit down or youre going into custody as well. Perez later successfully appealed his case and had his sentence vacated, although he had already spent over a month in jail. The appeals court found Culvers ruling had failed to comply with Florida law. The Commissions investigative panel later found it was a violation of due process not to allow Perez his right to be heard. The day after he confronted Perez, Culver yelled at a defendant, Kevin Newton, who had entered the courtroom in the middle of a hearing to shut up and sit down. When the defendant told him he had encountered trouble finding a seat in the gallery to await his hearing, Culver responded with profanity. Thats not shutting up. You want to be held in contempt and go to jail? I asked you a fing question, ahole, Culver said. The Commission found that Culver hadnt allowed Newton his right to be heard as well. The Commission found that in each case Culver violated aspects of Floridas judicial canon including: he did not establish, maintain and enforce the highest standards of conduct; did not promote judicial confidence in the integrity and impartiality of the judiciary; and was not faithful to the law, patient, dignified and courteous. Several figures from the 18th Circuit Court testified on behalf of Culvers character including State Attorney Phil Archer, current Chief Judge Charles Crawford, former Chief Judge Jessica Recksiedler and Seminole County chief assistant public defender James Dowdy. Culver has apologized to other judges on the circuit court for his conduct and any potential embarrassment to the judiciary. He told the Commission his behavior arose from stress due to serving as his ailing fathers primary caregiver. He has been seeing a psychologist since April 2022 and has taken an anger management course. The Judicial Qualifications Commission began investigating Culver that same month for the case involving Newton. Culver and the Commission had reached a settlement in 2022 recommending the same 60-day suspension as punishment. The state Supreme Court rejected the settlement and ordered a full hearing, which expanded to include the second case from that February. It will be up to the Supreme Court to implement the recommended punishment. In addition to the suspension, the panel also recommended Culver be publicly reprimanded and undergo further anger management courses and stress treatment. The floor of Nebraska's unique Unicameral Legislature. (Rebecca S. Gratz for Nebraska Examiner) The tee time for Gov. Jim Pillens property tax mulligan will apparently be sometime in the next month. The states CEO is hoping to get a do-over on his attempt to reduce property taxes in a special session of the Legislature, something he was unable to do in the Unicameral this spring. In the run-up to the special session, hes also mentioned a couple of other issues that might be included in The Call the governors proclamation which gives public notice as to which subjects the special session will be addressing. According to Nebraska statutes, the governor can also amend the call during the special session, adding a subject not designated in the original proclamation. Clearly, the special session will be the governors agenda. But not necessarily his ball game. For that he will need votes. Hes been kicking around two other issues: One revives the oft-tried idea that Nebraska should become a winner-take-all state in presidential elections. The other would create a sea change in public education financing: the state taking over the entire property tax portion for K-12 public school funding. This space has argued the winner-take-all is a reaction to two presidents Barack Obama in 2008 and Joe Biden in 2020 who won the states 2nd Congressional District electoral college vote in redder than red Nebraska. Rather than try to win the district with good candidates and better ideas that translate into more votes, Pillen and the state GOP want to change the rules. Republicans have failed in recent Legislatures but might have the votes to make it happen in a special session. None of which makes it a good idea, but there it is. The governor is also floating an idea although unclear if it makes the special session call that local school districts hand over the purse strings of K-12 public education to the state. That would mean zero property taxes funding public schools. Even among us tax law neophytes, brows are furrowing. Aside from time to vet such a revolution in funding, we must also remember that any discussion of property tax reduction should always be balanced with the impact it would have on public education. While the governor professes his plan would benefit the states public school children, some have a hard time squaring that with his support for Opportunity Scholarships (Legislative Bill 1402), which uses taxpayer money for private school tuition. If Nebraska went to zero, we would join Vermont at the low end of states where K-12 public schools depend on property taxes, followed by Alaska, New Mexico, Alabama, and Kansas. According to a number of rating services, only Vermonts public schools are, like Nebraskas, ranked in the top 10 nationally. Indeed, Forbes magazine had Kansas at 29, Alabama 44, Alaska 48 and New Mexico last. Perhaps thats more correlation than causation, but education quality should always be front and center when the formula by which we fund public schools is the topic whatever the session: bull, regular or special. Of surely greater concern for many school districts is the ceding of local control because no matter how you dress it up, the keeper of the aforementioned purse is the shot caller. The specter of local districts, hats in hand, trundling off to Lincoln to present a PowerPoint to the Appropriations Committee for more funding is rather grim. Plus, in a state whose districts are truly diverse in needs, geography and demographics, the attendant standardization that comes with centralized financing appears to be out of character for Nebraska. What works in Bridgeport may not work in Beatrice. The needs of a city district such as Lincoln surely differ from the needs in rural Loup County. What exactly is the magic property tax formula? A 40% reduction? Zero for schools? How much would eliminating sales tax exemptions squarely on the table to offset revenue loss create further financial strain on low income Nebraskans who pay more than any other income level as a percentage of their earnings? Whats the correct combination of revenue and cuts to pay the bills while we provide services to those paying the freight in the first place? These are longstanding, complex questions, all of which, appropriately, have had lengthy study and debate. If an extra gathering by the Legislature is truly needed yet to be determined then the session should focus solely on property taxes. Adding a political mechanism to elect a president and making a foundational change in school funding would unnecessarily clutter the call. And make the session anything but special. The post Single subject makes it special appeared first on Nebraska Examiner. For six years, Iowa pharmacist stole drugs undetected, then turned himself in The owner of Summit Pharmacy in Fairfield is now barred from entering the building. (Photo via Google Earth) The state of Iowa has barred a southern Iowa pharmacist from continuing to practice or reentering his Jefferson County pharmacy. Bryan Vander Linden, the owner and former pharmacist in charge at Summit Pharmacy, 300 W. Burlington Ave., Fairfield, has entered into an agreement with the Iowa Board of Pharmacy. As part of that arrangement, Vander Linden has agreed to a license suspension and will refrain from practicing pharmacy in Iowa until further notice by the board. In addition, the board has barred Vander Linden from entering the Summit Pharmacy building and barred him from remotely accessing pharmacy records or software. According to the board, the action follows Vander Lindens decision to self-report the fact that he has, over a period of six years, diverted many controlled substances from the pharmacy to his own personal use. The available public documents give no indication as to whether Vander Lindens diversion of drugs had any impact on the individuals who filled their prescriptions at Summit Pharmacy over the past six years. No criminal charges have been filed in the case. As part of a separate agreement with Vander Lindens father, Thomas Vander Linden, Summit Pharmacy has agreed to name a new pharmacist in charge and to change all of the locks at the pharmacy. Summit Pharmacys license to operate has been changed to restricted status to reflect Bryan Vander Lindens prohibition from entering the building. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post For six years, Iowa pharmacist stole drugs undetected, then turned himself in appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch. Since 2018, South Carolina law has required businesses with at least 15 workers to provide accommodations to pregnant employees. (File/July Alcantara/Getty Images) COLUMBIA When Emily Walsh got pregnant last year, she was afraid she would have to quit her job. She typically spends her days driving from house to house, teaching life skills to people with disabilities. But the severe dizziness and fatigue that came with her pregnancy made driving difficult some days. She worried about what would happen if her persistent nausea made her sick in someone elses home. I love my job, and I didnt want to stop doing what I was doing, the 27-year-old said about her job with the nonprofit Able SC. As Walsh, who lives in the Columbia area, fretted about her symptoms, a friend sent her a video shed seen on social media. Did you know, the video said, if youre pregnant youre legally entitled to ask your employer for accommodations? A South Carolina law called the Pregnancy Accommodations Act, which requires workplaces to accommodate pregnant workers, went into effect six years ago. Then, last June, a similar law took effect at the federal level. Walsh hadnt known. After talking to her human resources manager, she got permission to work from home on days when she didnt feel well enough to leave the house, making virtual home visits using video calls. Had Walshs employer not voluntarily met her needs, she could have forced the issue, filing a complaint with the agency that handles housing and workforce discrimination cases in the state. Having that legal backing made the conversation with human resources easier, Walsh said. That gave me a lot more confidence, Walsh said. Complaints About 70,000 women in South Carolina get pregnant each year. In the six years the state law has protected pregnant workers, the state Human Affairs Commission has received 84 complaints about employers not following the rules, according to commission attorney Jamie Smith. In many of those cases, the commission found no evidence of discrimination, according to data provided to the SC Daily Gazette. Because Walshs company was willing to work with her starting in her first trimester she never had to file a complaint. Her human resources manager encouraged her to use sick days and offered to help her apply for short-term disability leave if she needed it. But Walsh didnt want to use those options, she said. Im very grateful to have paid sick leave, but I also didnt want to necessarily do that, Walsh said. I wanted to work. That was the point of the law, said Rep. Beth Bernstein, the primary sponsor of the bill that passed both chambers unanimously six years ago. Along with protecting pregnant women from losing their jobs, Bernstein didnt want women to postpone having children or for expecting mothers to quit their jobs because their workplaces wouldnt give them the grace they needed, she said. Results of complaints Closed for administrative reasons: 6 No cause found: 34 Cause found and agreement negotiations entered: 5 Withdrew after an agreement was reached: 6 Under investigation: 23 Source: S.C. Human Affairs Commission Expanding your family, you shouldnt be discouraged because you think its somehow going to affect your workplace performance, said the Columbia Democrat and mother of two. Some of the accommodations pregnant women can request under the law include longer or more frequent breaks, a chair to sit in if they spend much of the day standing, modified schedules or limits on how much they can lift. Supporters of the law had expected to see more complaints. Kelli Parker, spokesperson for the Womens Rights and Empowerment Network, which advocated for the law, believes the low numbers indicate the law has been a deterrent. Employers are giving their pregnant workers the accommodations they need before getting to the point of a legal complaint, she said. The fact that there have been fewer claims than we expected, I think, is a testament to the need for this, No. 1, and the success of the implementation, Parker said. Of the complaints in South Carolina, 23 remain under investigation, according to Human Affairs Commission data. Another five have yet to be formalized, Smith said. But in 55% of the cases with a completed investigation, the Human Affairs Commission couldnt find enough evidence to prove the employer discriminated against the employee. That doesnt mean the discrimination didnt happen but that the commission couldnt find proof, Smith said. Most of the investigated complaints were found to have no cause. An additional 26% of the complaints were resolved privately between employee and employer, causing the employees to withdraw their complaint. Six complaints ended for administrative reasons, such as being filed for a business with fewer than 15 employees or the complainant not cooperating. The Human Affairs Commission stepped in five times to help negotiate an agreement between the employee and employer. Parker said opponents of this kind of legislation often assume companies will be required to make major concessions. For the most part, the accommodations the law requires are small but still vital to pregnant women. Were just trying to make sure people are comfortable, Parker said. Federal law The federal law that went into effect last June offers protections similar to those implemented at the state level. Both apply to businesses with 15 or more employees and require them to give pregnant workers reasonable accommodations unless it causes the employer undue hardship. Where the two differ is on the issue of abortion. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commissions final rules on what employers can and cant do under the federal law said employers must give accommodations for people seeking abortions as well. That might include time off work for an appointment or recovery. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson joined 18 other Republican attorneys general in suing the Biden administration over its interpretation of an otherwise bipartisan law, arguing that it forces states where abortion is illegal to offer those accommodations. South Carolina bans abortions once after the sixth week of pregnancy officially, when an ultrasound detects cardiac activity. Women seeking an abortion after that point must travel to another state that allows the procedure to take place later in pregnancy. That travel may require time off. The states top lawyer is among those arguing South Carolina companies should not be required to make allowances in those cases. Getting out the word Once Walsh started working from home part of the time, other coworkers who had gotten pregnant around the same time came to her and asked what they needed to do to get their own accommodations. Her coworkers also hadnt realized asking for accommodations was an option. Walsh pointed them to the resources she used, including a sample legal letter and guidance from attorneys with national nonprofit A Better Balance. Walsh said shed like to see the state law promoted more heavily. She suggested businesses be required to hang signs informing employees of their right to ask for accommodations, the same way companies must post information related health and safety worker protections. The Human Affairs Commission offers guides to the laws on its website. Nonprofits such as WREN and A Better Balance promote it as well. People who come to WREN with questions often know a law exists but not what kinds of accommodations it specifies or how to ask for them, Parker said. We could do a better job, for sure, Parker said. Whats next Walshs daughter is now six months old. While state law offers protections for pregnant workers, it offers less for new mothers, she said. A 2020 state law called the Lactation Support Act, also approved unanimously, requires businesses to give breastfeeding mothers extra breaks and a private location other than a toilet stall to pump breast milk. It applies to employers of all sizes, including those with fewer than 15 employees. And separate laws passed in 2022 and 2023 provide parents who work for state agencies, public colleges and school districts up to six weeks of paid parental leave once a child is born or adopted. Last years law made South Carolina the first state in the Southeast to offer teachers that much time off without requiring them to burn vacation or sick days or simply go without a paycheck. But Walsh said she would like to see mothers options expanded. When looking for a job, Walsh knew she would want to have children one day and specifically looked at maternity leave options. She considers herself lucky to have found a job with 12 weeks of paid maternity leave but knows many people dont have the same benefit. Bernstein said paid parental leave is something she has been focused on as well. She was the Houses lead sponsor of the 2022 law that guaranteed up to six weeks of paid leave. Prior to that, state employees had to use up their accrued vacation and sick days before taking unpaid leave. The bill she filed, which the House approved overwhelmingly, provided up to 12 weeks. But to get the bill through the Senate, advocates had to chop the paid time off in half. Bernstein refiled the proposal last year to increase maternity leave for state employees to 12 weeks, as well as boost paternity leave from two weeks to four. But the legislation never even received a hearing. I think weve got to continue to focus our energy on encouraging women in the workplace to have a family, Bernstein said. Know your rights in SC The state Pregnancy Accommodations Act has applied to businesses in South Carolina with 15 or more employees since 2018. It requires the following reasonable accommodations for workers with medical needs arising from pregnancy, childbirth, or related medical conditions: Providing more frequent or longer break periods Providing more frequent bathroom breaks Providing a private place, other than a bathroom stall for the purpose of expressing milk Modifying food or drink policy Providing seating or allowing the employee to sit more frequently if the job requires the employee to stand Providing assistance with manual labor and limits on lifting Temporarily transferring the employee to a less strenuous or hazardous vacant position, if qualified Providing job restructuring or light duty, if available Acquiring or modifying equipment or devices necessary for performing essential job functions Modifying work schedules Additionally, the Lactation Support Act unanimously approved by the Legislature and signed into law in June 2020 applies to all employers in South Carolina, regardless of size. It says all workers must have the opportunity to express milk in a private place other than a toilet stall. Workers who think their employer is violating either of these laws should file a complaint with the state Human Affairs Commission. As for paid time off, separate laws passed in 2022 and 2023 provide parents who work for state agencies, public colleges and school districts up to six weeks of paid family leave once a child is born or adopted. Parents who foster a child in state custody can take two weeks paid leave. The owner of a marijuana dispensary shows marijuana plant buds. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images) More than 100 dispensaries in Ohio are on their way to selling recreational marijuana. The Division of Cannabis Control has given provisional licenses to 110 dispensaries so they can sell both medically and recreationally once they receive final approval. Of the 110, Northeast Ohio has 36. Southwest Ohio has 29, and Central Ohio has 18. Franklin County has the most with 12, Cuyahoga with 11 and Hamilton with nine. Click here to learn which facilities have a provisional license. License applications must be approved or denied by Sept. 7, but the state and policymakers have continued to say that applications could be granted and recreational sales could happen by mid-June. The passage of Issue 2 allowed adults 21 years of age and older to smoke, vape and ingest weed. Individual Ohioans are able to grow up to six plants with up to 12 per household. Ohio Cannabis Coalitions Tom Haren is staying positive despite the delayed start date. Rome wasnt built in a day, Haren said. There is a lot of work that needed to get done. Consumers havent been able to buy weed legally because there is a process that takes place between getting a provisional license and getting a license with a certificate of operation. The state has a list of requirements that shops need to meet, such as keeping visitor logs, having curbside and drive-through pickup and utilizing surveillance systems. Dispensaries will also have to demonstrate they can keep inventory aside to make sure medical patients continue having preferred access. Sellers will also have to do a test sale to a medical patient and a recreational consumer, among dozens of other tasks and evaluations. Weve been going on a hiring blitz, of course, making sure that were staffed up, Brandon Nemec with Verilife said. But Gov. Mike DeWine wants more regulations. We have a problem of walking down the street with your five-year-old and there is marijuana smoke, DeWine said in late June. He has been asking for lawmakers to deal with his safety concerns for months. The Senate has passed and proposed various changes to the law like a restriction or ban on public smoking. However, it would limit home grow, reduce THC levels and ban the vast majority of vapes among dozens of other restrictions and changes to what voters passed. House Speaker Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) has been blocking it, and dispensaries support him. Honoring the will of the voters is very important, Stephens said in late June. That part has been done this was passed in November and its still the law of the land. The lawmakers in both chambers allegedly agree that they want to put more stringent guidelines on advertising, but they cant agree on the vehicle. The House wants a clean version of a bill meaning they dont want the Senate to go against the will of the people, which is what House leaders say the other chamber is doing. The Senate leaders have argued that the citizens didnt actually know what they were voting for, and they dont actually want or need to be able to grow six plants as an individual or up to 12 plants per household. In their most recent move, the Senate proposed S.B. 278, a bill that would ban all public smoking or vaping, but they didnt reduce the home grow amount this time. House leaders, specifically marijuana enthusiast state Rep. Jamie Callender (R-Concord), said a public ban would not be happening under his watch. The House and the Senate both proposed ideas, and their leaders have been arguing about whose policy is better for the state, which in turn has kept marijuana off the shelves despite being passed in November and going into effect in December 2023. Even though sales didnt happen as hoped in June, Haren said Cannabis Control is still ahead of schedule. Technically, they have until Sept. to issue the first batch of licenses. Were very encouraged that we are a matter of weeks away from Ohioans being able to purchase legal, regulated, taxed, tested, adult-use marijuana products right here in the Buckeye State, Haren added. There will likely be no changes to marijuana policy until the end of the year since the chambers are in summer recess until after the Nov. election. Follow WEWS statehouse reporter Morgan Trau on Twitter and Facebook. This article was originally published on News5Cleveland.com and is published in the Ohio Capital Journal under a content-sharing agreement. Unlike other OCJ articles, it is not available for free republication by other news outlets as it is owned by WEWS in Cleveland. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Slow burn Ohio recreational marijuana dispensaries on way to sales appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal. The NATO flag flies with the flags of some of the member countries outside NATO headquarters on March 11, 2024 in Brussels, Belgium. Credit - Omar HavanaGetty Images Few if any world leaders understand the NATO alliance as deeply as Czech President Petr Pavel. A retired army general and veteran of military intelligence, he served as one of NATOs top officials before winning his nation's highest office last year. His voice within the alliance has been among the boldest when it comes to helping Ukraine, defeating Russia, and building Europes military strength. So his message sounds particularly sobering ahead of this weeks NATO summit: Curb your expectations for the war in Ukraine. Obviously, the ultimate goal is a full restoration of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Ukraine, including Crimea, Pavel tells TIME in an exclusive interview before the gathering of NATO leaders, which U.S. President Joe Biden will host in Washington on July 9-11. But we all understand that it's not an easy task. It will not happen in the foreseeable future. He used a historical analogy to explain where the front lines in Ukraine will likely remain in the years to come, comparing them to the disputed borders that divided Europe during the Cold War. For decades, the Soviet Union remained in control of lands it had occupied in World War IIincluding the Baltic States and East Germany. The West continued to denounce these occupations and pressured the Kremlin to end them. Still, the status quo persisted, and Moscow remained in control of these countries until the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991. President Pavel painted a similar scenario as the one to expect for the occupied regions of southern and eastern Ukraine. We should never accept that these territories are part of Russia, he said. We should always call them temporarily occupied territories. But that does not mean Ukraine or its supporters within NATO will be able to end that occupation any time soon: "Achieving a return of full sovereignty and territorial integrity is not a goal for the short term." The alliances response to the war has made that clear to Pavel in the past two years. Even as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky pleaded for weapons to stave off the Russian advance, the West failed to provide them quickly enough. The U.S. and Europe could not produce nearly enough artillery shells to keep pace with Russias military industry. In response, President Pavel announced a plan in February to buy the Soviet-era weapons Ukraine needed. He and his government conducted the deals discreetly, as most of the sellers did not want to antagonize Russia by arming Ukraine. This initiative started with our understanding that we cannot provide Ukraine from our resources, he says. The goal was to track down a million shells from arms dealers around the world, and several NATO members chipped in money to pay for them. The first shipment arrived last month, demonstrating what the alliance can achieve if it shows determination and flexibility, Pavel says. Still, the extra ammo will not change the overall dynamics of the war. The fighting in southern and eastern Ukraine has been at a virtual stalemate since last fall, with neither side able to seize large tracts of territory. In the coming months, Ukraine intends to organize a peace summit, where the Russians will be invited to begin discussing a settlement. The rhetoric coming from both sides does not suggest much space for compromise. Vladimir Putin issued an ultimatum last month, demanding that Ukraine hand over a fifth of its territory while abandoning its plans to join NATO. Zelensky, for his part, has refused to trade away land for peace, insisting that Russia must withdraw its troops from all occupied territories. Once the talks get underway, Pavel expects both sides to continue pushing for advantage on the battlefield. Both of them appear to be running out of time. The Russians, he says, have succeeded in putting their economy on a war footing. But there are also some limits, he says of the Russian forces. They will run out of all the reserves within the latest a year. And that will bring them to an extremely difficult situation. By scaling up support for Ukraine this summer and fall, the U.S. and its European allies can give Zelensky a chance to negotiate with Putin from a position of strength. But that would require unity and resolve within NATO, and Pavel has observed a shortage of both. Some allies, he says, continue to insist that Russias security concerns should form the basis of negotiations. Others have resisted calls to continue arming Ukraine for victory in this war. As a result, Pavel says, the Russians have no pressure whatsoever to sit at the table right now. The gathering of NATO leaders this week will provide another opportunity to change that. But here, too, Pavel does not expect a major breakthrough. "Ukraine will not be invited to become a member in Washington, he says. Thats understood by all. But the Ukrainians will be assured that the process is irreversible: there is a clear path to membership. Completing that path is likely to take years, if it happens. In the meantime, Ukraine plans to reach security deals with as many NATO members as possible, hoping to commit them to assisting Ukraine over the long term. These agreements, Pavel says, cannot serve as an alternative to Article Five of NATOs founding treaty, which commits all members to defend each other in case of an attack. We cannot and dont want to provide any substitution to Article Five or to NATO, he says. At best these bilateral deals with Ukraine will serve as pledges of support. Ukraine will be in a position to assess what they can count on, and from whom. Contact us at letters@time.com. After weeks of dry, hot weather, South Carolina could be headed toward a drought. The South Carolina Drought Response Committee is scheduled to meet on July 9 after monitoring conditions across the state. During the meeting, stakeholders and experts will examine seven indicators to decide whether parts of the state are officially in a drought. While its not uncommon for two or three weeks of warm weather without rain during the summer, conditions have deteriorated quickly in the last month, said State Climatologist Hope Mizzell. We had normal to above normal rainfall throughout the winter and into spring, which was great for replenishing our groundwater and surface water. And then, unfortunately, June hit, and it got dry in a hurry, Mizzell said. Not only have we had much below normal rainfall, we've had much above normal temperatures. So it's that one-two punch from the lack of rain and the heat that has resulted in a flash drought. Lake Hartwell level lower than previous months, as the drought is rated as severe drought (D2) according to the U.S. Drought Monitor, Friday, December 22, 2023. A flash drought is a rapid onset of drought, usually influenced by high temperatures and low rainfall. The committee looks at various indicators or impacts before officially declaring a drought. Indicators include: Percent of normal rainfall Crop moisture Streamflow, lake, reservoir, and groundwater levels Multiple drought indexes showing how long conditions have persisted and the risk of forest fires U.S. Drought Monitor for South Carolina Our committee has to look at the big picture of drought and what are all the impacts across the state, Mizzell said. Mizzell said the Upstate saw above-average rainfall in May, but in June, the region received only half of the normal amount of precipitation. According to data from Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport dating back to 1963, the area receives an average of 4.16 inches of rain in June. This year, the station only measured 1.88 inches, making it the 13th driest June since 1963. The Upstate isnt just seeing less summer precipitation something that scientists have expressed concern about in recent years. This year was also the 11th warmest June in 62 years at the Greenville-Spartanburg International Airport weather station. The station recorded a high of 99 Fahrenheit on June 26. Mizzell said that, generally speaking, the ground needs roughly an inch of rain every week to keep up with summer evaporation. As the water from the ground is released into the atmosphere, the soil becomes drier. Because the soil is drier, farmers across the state are some of the first to see significant impacts. According to the U.S. Department of Agricultures National Agricultural Statistics Service, farmers are already seeing drier soil this summer. In a weekly crop progress update published on July 1, 72% of survey respondents said the moisture levels in their topsoil were either short or very short. Consequently, some farmers also had to feed their livestock hay to supplement nutrition because grazing conditions were poor, something Mizzell said is unheard of this early in the year. Read more: An Upstate drought ended in January. For farmers, the ramifications lasted for months. Allen Kellett, third-generation farmer and owner of Kellett Farms, unloads bales of hay from his truck for a client on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024. For our farmers, and the impacts to them, it has quickly progressed much further past and much beyond the first stage of drought for them. They are experiencing significant impacts, Mizzell said. Additionally, Mizzell said the climatology office has also heard that some water providers are seeing an increase in demand for water and lower streamflow levels than theyd expect to see this time of year. Since this flash drought has been quite intense, we are starting to see some hydrologic impacts, even with some of our streamflows running much below to below normal, she said. As of July 3, the Reedy River near Greenville saw a streamflow in the 12th percentile, considered below normal. A streamflow is considered normal between the 25th-75th percentiles. According to some measures, like the U.S. Drought Monitor, drought has already struck the Palmetto State. As of July 3, much of South Carolina was upgraded to a moderate drought, with some parts of the state, such as Newberry, Marion, Florence, and Sumter counties, reaching severe drought status. However, the U.S. Drought Monitor is just one indicator of many that the committee looks at before declaring a drought. It tends to look more at broad-scale conditions, while state committees can better consider local impact. There is a difference between dry periods and drought, and there's not a clear boundary. It really is based on the temperature and the rainfall and those impacts, and when we start to see the different indicators showing that we have now progressed from just a period of dryness into the first stages of drought, she said. Thats where we are now. It just happened in a very short period of time. The committee meets on Tuesday. Though Mizzell said she cant forecast the decision, she believes some counties in South Carolina will be upgraded to drought status. On Tuesday, members will also decide how frequently to meet based on the severity of the impacts across the state. Sarah Swetlik covers climate change and environmental issues in South Carolina's Upstate for The Greenville News. Reach her atsswetlik@gannett.com or on X at @sarahgswetlik. Have a question for Sustainability with Sarah? Ask here or emailsswetlik@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Low rainfall in June could leave the Upstate facing flash drought South Carolina Man Dies After Putting Firework on His Head to 'Show Off,' Says His Wife Authorities identified the victim as Allen Ray McGrew, 41 Getty Stock image of an exploded firework A South Carolina man died on July 4 after he placed a firework on his head that later exploded as he was allegedly showing off, authorities said. Per a news release and incident report obtained by PEOPLE from the Dorchester County Sheriff's Office, authorities arrived at the 100 block of Cottonwood Drive in the Crestwood Subdivision in Summerville, South Carolina, on Thursday around 10:23 p.m. local time. They found the victim with injuries in a roadway. According to witnesses, the injuries were caused by a fireworks accident, said the sheriffs office. The Dorchester County Coroner identified the victim as Allen Ray McGrew, 41, in a news release, adding that McGrew ignited a large firework device and set it upon his head. The device exploded while on top of his head causing massive head injuries, continued the coroners statement. Mr. McGrew was pronounced dead at the scene at 11:10pm by the coroner. In the incident report, which described what happened as an accidental death, Paige McGrew, the victims wife, told authorities that she and her husband were having a block party and that Allen began drinking around 6 p.m. Paige advised she observed Allen place a firework on his head, which she believes was done to show off. Paige advised she was trying to tell Allen not to do that when the firework went off and she observed Allen collapse, the report states. Related: Family of 11-Year-Old Boy Who Died in Fireworks Accident Will 'Never' Buy Them Again, Aunt Says "He was holding this firework over his top hat, Paige told The Post and Courier newspaper about her husband, who wore an Uncle Sam costume. I thought he was just showboating before he set it on the ground. I didnt realize he had already lit it. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Related: Multiple Injured After Fireworks Shoot into Crowd at Fourth of July Event in Utah Paige also told The Post and Courier that her husband, who wouldve turned 42 in less than a month, loved celebrating Independence Day. An HVAC worker, Allen was also a father to a son who is engaged to be married. "He was a patriot; he was proud of his son and he was excited to have a new daughter-in-law, Paige said of her husband. He was living his best life last night." She also told the newspaper Allen was not a drinker and that he did not regularly drink. Related: Florida Man Initially Thought to Have Been Fatally Shot May Have Died from Fireworks Accident: Police The Dorchester County Sheriff's Office said it is investigating the incident. PEOPLE contacted Paige McGrew for additional information. According to USA Today, as of Friday, July 5, there have been a total of four fireworks-related fatalities, including Allen, in parts of the country extending from this July 4 holiday. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) A south Charlotte house requested for historic preservation sold last month, leaving its future in question. The Akers House has stood at 6501 Sardis Road since 1937, but according to Mecklenburg County real estate records, the owners sold it to a subsidiary of Charlotte developer Levine Properties June 26 for $4.05 million. Harpers Restaurant in SouthPark to close in July after over 30 years in the area The 7,200-square-foot home sits on a 6.45-acre property and was valued at $3.15 million in January. It now belongs to RE 6501 Sardis LLC. Last fall, the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Historic Landmarks Commission began its pursuit of designating the home. In addition to the exterior of the main house, the organization recommends including the exterior of the garage, the summer house, the well house and all of the property associated with the parcel for historic designation. In a January report, the Commission says the overall design gives the house a high degree of integrity as to its original Tudor Revival/Tudor Manor style. The property was formerly under the care of Susan Blanton of the Blanton family estate. Providence Day Schools was rumored to acquire the property in November. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. FILE PHOTO: Doctors strike and shout slogans during a rally to protest against government plans to increase medical school admissions and healthcare reform in Seoul By Ju-min Park SEOUL (Reuters) - South Korea said on Monday it would drop a plan to suspend the licenses of striking trainee doctors, offering a concession to end a months-long walkout prompted by the government's decision to increase medical school admissions. Thousands of trainee doctors, which include medical interns and resident doctors, walked off the job in February, forcing major hospitals to cut back non-emergency services and turn back patients at emergency rooms. Health Minister Cho Kyoo-hong said the government had decided not to suspend the licenses of the striking doctors, whether they return to work or not. Cho said the decision to drop its threat of punitive action was necessary because ending the current shortage in medical services is "more urgent". Two-thirds of the country's residents and intern doctors have walked off the job to protest a plan to raise the number of students admitted to medical school each year by 2,000 in a bid to address what the government says is a shortage of doctors. The young doctors who are protesting say the government should first address pay and working conditions before trying to increase the number of physicians. Cho added that the government would build a "sustainable" medical system that does not rely on excessive work by trainee doctors. "Trainee doctors, do not hesitate any longer, and take out courage to decide. The government will make sure you, our precious resources who have chosen essential medical care even under difficult circumstances, can focus on training without worry," Cho said at a briefing. The minister also called on the trainee doctors to return and join dialogue to discuss their working conditions as well as the medical college admission quota for 2026 and beyond. (This story has been refiled to say 'precious,' not 'previous,' in paragraph 8) (Reporting by Ju-min Park; Editing by Sharon Singleton) BAGHDAD, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' al-Sudani met with visiting U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Daniel Shapiro on Monday to discuss ending the U.S.-led coalition mission fighting the Islamic State group in Iraq. The prime minister's media office said the talks focused on procedures for ending the international coalition mission and strengthening bilateral relations between Iraq and the United States. The meeting also touched on regional issues, with al-Sudani raising concerns about the "suffering of the Palestinian people" and the difficulties of delivering humanitarian aid. He reportedly criticized the international community for not pressuring Israel to halt its actions. Shapiro, according to the statement, emphasized the importance of Iraq's role in regional stability and highlighted the need for continued communication and cooperation in areas like military equipment, security, and enhancing Iraqi forces' capabilities. The meeting follows an agreement in January between Iraq and the United States to establish a joint Higher Military Commission tasked with overseeing the coalition's withdrawal. Iraqi authorities report that the commission has convened on multiple occasions to develop a plan for troop redeployment. South Korean Health and Welfare Minister Cho KyooHong speaks during a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters at the government complex in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, July 8, 2024. South Korea says itll withdraw its earlier plan to suspend licenses of striking doctors to resolve the country's long medical impasse.(Choi Jae-goo/Yonhap via AP) SEOUL, South Korea (AP) South Korea's government announced Monday it will abandon its plan to suspend the licenses of striking junior doctors as part of its efforts to convince them to return to work and resolve the countrys monthslong medical impasse. It wasnt immediately known whether the thousands of striking doctors would return to their hospitals after the announcement. The government's concession could also invite accusations of unfairness given its treatment of previous labor strikes and of doctors who have already returned to work. Health Minister Cho KyooHong said the government has decided not to suspend the licenses of the strikers, who are medical interns and residents, regardless of whether they return to their hospitals or not. He said the government will also offer special measures to returnees to minimize the gap in their training and help them obtain specialist licenses in time. After painstaking deliberations, the government has reached this decision based on an assessment that minimizing the medical vacuum in the treatment of emergency and seriously ill patients and maintaining a training system to supply specialists at the right time will serve the public interest more than anything else, Cho said. More than 90% of the countrys 13,000 medical interns and residents walked off their jobs in February to protest the governments plan to sharply boost medical school admissions. The walkout has significantly burdened the operations of university hospitals where they were training and threatened to disrupt South Koreas medical services. Some senior doctors and professors at those teaching schools supported the walkout by holding rallies and temporarily walking off their jobs or reducing their working hours. Officials have said they want to add up to 10,000 doctors by 2035 to cope with the countrys fast-aging population and a shortage of physicians in rural areas and in low-paying yet essential specialties like pediatrics and emergency departments. Doctors say schools arent ready to handle such an abrupt increase in students and that it would ultimately undermine the countrys medical services. But critics argue that physicians, one of the best-paid jobs in South Korea, are mainly worried that having more doctors would lower their future incomes. The striking doctors suffered a major legal setback after a Seoul court in May ruled in support of the governments plan. The Supreme Court upheld that ruling in June. The government later took steps to withdraw its plan to suspend the licenses of doctors who returned to their hospitals but didnt do so for those who remained off the job. Only a small number of strikers have returned to work. As of last Friday, about 8% of the 13,756 medical interns and residents at about 210 teaching hospitals were working, according to government records. Government officials earlier threatened to impose three-month license suspensions on striking doctors and even indictments by prosecutors for refusing back-to-work orders. President Yoon Suk Yeol who has said illegal strikes should be dealt with in line with the law also called the doctors walkout an illegal collective action. The standoff created strife among doctors, with some harassing colleagues who opted not to join or continue the strike, according to local media reports. Cho, the health minister, said the government was aware of possible criticism over the issue of fairness in its decision not to suspend the licenses of the striking doctors. He said patient groups and some medical officials have called for an early end of the walkout by the striking doctors. Last month, the government finalized a plan to increase next year's medical school enrollment by about 1,500, down from its earlier push for a 2,000-student increase. The current medical student enrollment cap has been unchanged at 3,058 since 2006, with doctors blocking previous government attempts to raise it with vehement protests. South MS food truck racks up 8 violations in failing inspection. 2 other kitchens fail A food truck found to have bugs or rodents and seven other critical violations was one of three South Mississippi kitchens that failed their restaurant inspections in the last week. Mississippi follows the U.S. Food and Drug Administration 2022 food code, which requires inspectors to look for evidence of insects or rodents and the owners to take steps to kill or remove any pests. Those kitchens cited since July 2 are: Taqueria Falcon mobile unit, 827 E. Third St., Picayune, had a scheduled inspection July 2. It was cited for: Food not in good condition, safe and unadulterated Insects, rodents or animals present Food not separated and protected Food contact surface not cleaned and sanitized No person in charge present who demonstrates knowledge and performs duty Inadequate hand washing facilities supplied and accessible Improper cooking time and temperatures Last inspection report not posted A corrective follow-up inspection was held the following day on July 3 and the food truck scored a B when the violations, and an additional violation: Toxic substance properly identified, stored and used, were corrected during the inspection. The food truck got an A on its initial inspection in January and a B in May. Quickly at 11516 Lamey Bridge Road, DIberville, was inspected July 3 for a permit. It was cited for: Inadequate hand washing facilities supplied and accessible, a repeat violation Corrected during the inspection was: Toxic substance properly identified, stored and used This is the sixth C since 2015. Owyhee Bowl, 3821 Promenade Parkway, DIberville, was inspected July 3 for a permit renewal. It was cited for: Inadequate hand washing facilities supplied and accessible. This is the restaurants first C since 2020. For the first six months of this year, the health department scored 1,761 kitchens an A, 317 a B and 79 a C. Restaurants and kitchens in Mississippi are rated A if they pass the health department inspection, B if all violations are corrected during the inspection and C if the violations are critical. The health inspection grade must be displayed in all restaurants, in kitchens such as school cafeterias, day care centers, and cafes and bars where food is sold. Lawyers for a conservative legal group argued Monday in Fort Worth federal court that the Carroll Independent School Districts ability to protect its female students would suffer if new Title IX rules extending protections to transgender and nonbinary students are allowed to go into effect. The Southlake school district is suing the U.S. Department of Education to delay the implementation of the new rules, which are scheduled to go into effect Aug. 1. In a hearing Monday, lawyers for Alliance Defending Freedom, which is representing the district in the case, argued that, in enacting the rules, the department is improperly redefining the concept of a students sex to include their gender identity as well as sex assigned at birth. But Pardis Gheibi, an attorney for the Education Department, argued that the new rules dont broaden the definition of student sex, but rather redefine how districts handle certain student behaviors. Title IX changes expand sex discrimination protections The Biden administration released the long-awaited rules in April. Although the department already interpreted Title IX as offering protections to LGBTQ+ students, the new rules make that policy more explicit. Among other changes, the new rules would bar school districts from creating a hostile learning environment for trans and nonbinary students. The changes dont include new rules dealing with student athletes. Those changes are expected later this year. The rule changes caused immediate outcry among Republican governors. Following the change, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott directed the Texas Education Agency and public colleges and universities to ignore the new policy. Passed in 1972, Title IX prohibits sex-based discrimination in any school district or educational program that receives federal funding. The law makes no mention of LGBTQ+ students. But Education Department officials argue that discriminating against trans and nonbinary students is inherently sex-based discrimination. During Mondays hearing, Gheibi pointed to the U.S. Supreme Courts 2020 decision in Bostock vs. Clayton County, Georgia, in which the court sided with Gerald Bostock, a county employee who was fired because he was gay. Writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote that the county violated Title VII sex discrimination rules because it punished Bostock for behavior in this case, being attracted to men that would have been acceptable if hed been born a woman. Gheibi acknowledged that the ruling dealt with Title VII rules and not Title IX, but said theres no reason to think the same line of reasoning wouldnt apply to trans students. For example, a district couldnt discriminate against a trans girl who wore a dress to school, because that choice of attire would have been acceptable if shed been assigned female at birth. More top stories from our newsroom: Murder suspect put down baby, fired rifle killing 3: warrant More students got zeros on STAAR writing questions North Texas woman, husband survive 4th of July shark attack [Get our breaking news alerts.] But lawyers for Carroll ISD argued the new rules turn Title IX on its head, undoing the laws protections for female students. Mathew Hoffman, an attorney for Alliance Defending Freedom, gave the example of a cisgender female student whod survived a violent rape and felt uncomfortable changing clothes next to a trans woman. In such a case, the departments new rules would create a hostile environment for the cisgender student, he said. Judge Reed OConnor at times appeared sympathetic to Carroll ISDs argument, pressing Gheibi on the question of how the department decided that the potential harm of forcing trans students to use locker rooms corresponding with their birth sex outweighed the potential harm to, for example, cisgender girls who are forced to undress next to a student who was assigned male at birth. Gheibi pointed to research showing the psychological damage exclusionary locker room and bathroom policies can do to trans students. She was unsure if the department consulted similar research on how the presence of trans students affected their cisgender classmates, but said officials heard a range of viewpoints when developing the rules. The case isnt the first Title IX challenge to come before OConnor. Last month, the judge ruled in favor of Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a challenge to initial guidance documents Biden administration officials released ahead of the rule change. In 2016, he ruled against the Obama administration in a challenge to Title IX guidance requiring that trans students be allowed to use bathrooms that correspond with their gender identity. A ruling in the Carroll ISD lawsuit is expected in the coming weeks. VERNON COUNTY, Mo. The fire chief in a southwest Missouri city is accused of driving while intoxicated. According to a Missouri Highway Patrol arrest report troopers arrested Michael Troy Denney, 51. He is the Nevada Fire Chief. Photo of Michael Troy Denney, 51. Denney was arrested just before 12:30 a.m. on July 5. Authorities say Denney was taken to the Nevada police department where he was booked and then released. MSHP says they have forwarded the information to the Vernon County prosecutor who will decide whether to file charges. Interim City Manager, Larry Stevens, says he suspended Chief Denney with pay, and has appointed Capt. Taylor McKlinic as the Interim Fire Chief. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. JOPLIN, Mo. A homeless man pleads guilty to breaking into a local business. This morning, in a Jasper County courtroom, Clayton Burke, 25, pleaded guilty to first-degree burglary, second-degree burglary, tampering with a motor vehicle, and stealing. Clayton Burke, 25. Hes scheduled to be sentenced on September 9. The charges are from an incident on March 3 of last year when Joplin police responded to Wordens Meats on 32nd Street. Officers say Burke broke into the business, setting off the alarm. When they arrived on the scene, Burke ran, but they took him into custody after a short search. Investigators say Burke was linked to other burglaries in the area. He was on probation for other burglaries at the time of this 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 KSNF/KODE | FourStatesHomepage.com. MEMPHIS, Tenn. Southwest Tennessee Community College has announced that they have identified a cyber incident that has impacted its network systems. They say that this issue extends beyond the server problem initially reported to the college on July 3. In a statement from the school, the college says they are actively working with computer forensics experts to thoroughly investigate the incident to determine its full scope and restore full functionality to the computer system as soon as possible. We are deeply committed to protecting important information our students and employees entrust to us, Tracy D. Hall, president of Southwest Tennessee Community College said. Unfortunately, in the current digital landscape, cybercriminal incidents are increasingly prevalent and pose considerable risks. Our team responded promptly to secure our systems and are diligently working to restore our online services and strengthen our defenses. We appreciate the cooperation and patience of our students, faculty and staff as we navigate this circumstance. Families beat the heat at Overton Parks Summer Splash The College will continue remote work and learning. Summer II Term classes and registration will be delayed until Monday, July 15 with registration extended through July 19. Campus child care centers on the Macon Cove and Union Avenue campuses will remain open during normal business hours. In the statement, the College said it is coordinating efforts with the Tennessee Board of Regents and appropriate state officials. Updates will be provided about any potential impacts to students and employees through the Colleges official channels. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. What it is: Two infographics that show 1,600 exoplanets of all types and sizes according to up-to-date astronomical observation data Where it is: All across the Milky Way. (But the Icy and Rocky Worlds and Exoplanet Zoo infographics are available online.) When it was shared: June 2024 Why it's so special: A graphic artist has used the latest astronomical observation data to create two large infographics that artistically visualize and compare more than 1,600 exoplanets of all types and sizes. An exoplanet is any planet that orbits a star other than our sun. Well over 5,000 exoplanets have been discovered in our Milky Way galaxy, according to NASA . Martin Vargic, a Slovakian artist and the author of Vargic's Curious Cosmic Compendium , published these exquisite images on his website, Halcyon Maps , where they are also available as posters . The first infographic, "Icy and Rocky Worlds," contains more than 900 individually illustrated Earth and "super-Earth" sized planets arranged according to their equilibrium temperature. A photo collage of many exoplanets "It includes the majority of known Earth-size and super-Earth planets below six Earth masses, especially those likely to be terrestrial," Vargic told Live Science. The second infographic, "The Exoplanet Zoo," focuses on larger gas and ice giants. Related: James Webb telescope detects 1-of-a-kind atmosphere around 'Hell Planet' in distant star system "Finishing both infographics took about six to seven months," Vargic said. "I worked on both simultaneously while creating planetary textures and rendering the planets one by one." While he illustrated the exoplanets for the two infographics, Vargic also found time to create dozens of individual artist impressions of specific star systems containing notable exoplanets . Vargic wanted to reflect the sheer variety of exoplanets in the infographics. "I tried to include a good, representative number of exoplanets from all equilibrium temperature classes, from cryogenic to yellow-hot, for maximum variety, as well as most of the record-holding exoplanets," he said. The illustrations, therefore, include the largest, hottest and most distant exoplanets known. A photo collage of hundreds of exoplanets RELATED STORIES Earth-size planet found orbiting nearby star that will outlive the sun by 100 billion years NASA detects Earth-size planet just 40 light-years away that's 'not a bad place' to hunt for life Real-life 'Star Trek' planet was actually just an illusion caused by a 'jittery' star "I have several favorite planets," Vargic said. "One is Kepler 277b, an ultra-dense rocky planet more massive than Saturn with a surface gravity of over 10 Gs." Another of Vargics favorites is WASP-12 b , a giant puffy hot Jupiter tidally stretched into an egg-shape, which is being consumed by its star. His pantheon of exoplanets includes extreme worlds unlike anything in the solar system , from lava planets in the process of being vaporized by their star to others where salts, silicates, metals and even diamonds evaporate and condense to form exotic clouds, rain and hail. However, Vargic is excited by exoplanets because of "the possibility of finding habitable exoplanets that could shed much light on the origin and nature of life or nurture intelligent civilizations unlike anything we can imagine." A future project will be to make a super-sized infographic showing every known exoplanet, he added. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) SpaceX launched its Falcon 9 rocket into orbit from the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida on Monday. This was the rockets 15th flight, which has previously launched CRS-26, OneWeb Launch 16, Intelsat IS-40e, O3b mPOWER, Ovzon 3, Eutelsat 36D, and eight Starlink missions, according to the company. Treasure Island officer helps specialists deliver baby sea turtles to the Gulf The launch, originally scheduled for 5:40, was delayed until around 7:30 p.m. due to weather. You can watch the launch in the video player above. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Speaker Johnson to meet with Zelenskyy during NATO Summit Mike Johnson, Speaker of the US House of Representatives, is set to meet with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Wednesday, 10 July, during the NATO summit in Washington. Source: Reuters with reference to Johnsons schedule, as reported by European Pravda Details: Support for Ukraine is expected to be a central topic at the Alliance summit in Washington this week. There are concerns about future US support for Kyiv in the event of a Republican candidate, Donald Trump, winning the presidential election on 5 November. Background: Earlier, at a campaign rally, former US president Donald Trump criticised the extent of support for Ukraine, distorting the facts, and saying that if elected president, he would immediately "have that settled". Trump supported the version of the bill that was eventually passed and expressed support for House Speaker Mike Johnson. Last year, Trump said he could stop the Russo-Ukrainian war "in 24 hours". In a recent interview, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Trump risks "becoming a loser" if he implements a "peace plan" to force Ukraine to make concessions to the aggressor. Support UP or become our patron! Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban here on Monday, and the two sides exchanged in-depth views on the Ukraine crisis. Orban briefed Xi on his recent visits to Ukraine and Russia. Xi expressed appreciation for Orban's efforts in promoting the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and elaborated on China's relevant views and propositions. Xi stressed that an early ceasefire and a political settlement are in the interests of all sides, adding that the priority is to cool down the situation by observing the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no fanning by any party over the flames. Xi called on the international community to create conditions and provide support for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiation between the two sides, saying that only if all major countries inject positive rather than negative energy, can a ceasefire in this conflict emerge as soon as possible. "China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way and encouraging and supporting all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis," he said, adding that the basic propositions of China and Hungary and the direction of their efforts are the same and that China is willing to stay in communication with Hungary and all relevant parties. Xi noted that during his successful state visit to Hungary two months ago, the bilateral relations were elevated to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era, which gave new historical significance to the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year and injected strong impetus into the high-level development of China-Hungary relations. Noting that the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee will be held next week, Xi said China will further deepen overall reform and promote high-quality development and high-level opening up, which will provide new opportunities and create new momentum for China-Hungary cooperation. Xi said that the two countries should maintain high-level exchanges, deepen political mutual trust, strengthen strategic communication and coordination, continue to firmly support each other, strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and continue to enrich the bilateral all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era to better benefit the people. He congratulated Hungary on assuming the rotating presidency of the European Union (EU) and said there is no geopolitical contradiction or fundamental conflict of interests between China and the EU. China-EU relations are of strategic significance and global influence and should maintain steady and sound development, Xi said, calling on the two sides to jointly respond to global challenges. Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the EU, Xi said, adding that the two sides should stay committed to the correct path of bilateral partnership with cooperation as the defining trend, continue to promote two-way opening up, strengthen international coordination, and contribute to world peace, stability, development and prosperity. It is hoped that Hungary, as the holder of the rotating EU presidency, will play a positive role in promoting the sound and stable development of China-EU relations and facilitating constructive interactions, Xi added. Orban said that over the past two months, the two sides have earnestly implemented the important outcomes of President Xi's visit to Hungary, strengthened friendship and mutual trust, and laid a solid foundation for the future development of bilateral relations. In the face of the current turbulent international situation, China not only loves peace but has also put forward a series of constructive and important initiatives, proving with its own concrete actions that China is an important stabilizing force for world peace, Orban said. He added that Hungary highly appreciates and values China's role and influence and is willing to maintain close strategic communication and coordination with China. Hungary advocates strengthening cooperation with China and opposes forming exclusionary cliques and bloc confrontation, Orban said. Hungary is willing to take the rotating EU presidency as an opportunity to actively promote the sound development of EU-China relations, he said. Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren) Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Lin) Steven Bakken, left, chair of the recreational cannabis ballot initiative, brings boxes of petition signatures to the Secretary of State's Office for verification on July 8, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor) Sponsors of a ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana in North Dakota submitted more than 22,000 signatures to the Secretary of States Office for verification on Monday. If approved for the November ballot, it will be the third time since 2018 that North Dakota voters have considered legalizing marijuana. At some point, its going to pass, said Steven Bakken, chair of the initiatives sponsoring committee. Bakken said he believes the ballot measure is more conservative in nature than other cannabis measures passed in other states, which was by design. Thats why its important to have a North Dakota group putting this forward instead of a lot of language and a lot of outside influence coming into North Dakota, Bakken said. As a ballot initiative, the measure needs 15,582 verified signatures. A constitutional measure, including the proposal to eliminate assessed value property tax in the state, requires more than 31,000 qualified signatures. North Dakotans opposed a similar recreational marijuana measure during the November 2018 election with 59% voting no. A second attempt at creating a recreational cannabis industry failed during the November 2022 election with 55% of voters opposed. If the ballot initiative makes it to the November ballot and is approved by voters, North Dakotans 21 and older would be allowed to possess up to 1 ounce of cannabis flower, up to 4 grams of THC concentrate, up to 1,500 milligrams of various cannabis products and up to 300 milligrams of THC edible products. Adults also would be able to grow up to three cannabis plants in a private residence, or on private property, generally not accessible to the public, with the blessing of the property owner. The initiative prohibits cannabis use in all public places, indoor and outdoors. It also prohibits cannabis use while driving and while using public transit. Cannabis manufacturing facilities and dispensaries also would be limited under the ballot measure. Across the state, seven cannabis manufacturers and 18 recreational cannabis dispensaries would be allowed under the ballot measure. Bakken said the reason for the limit on the amount of certified cannabis businesses was to limit a free-for-all atmosphere once the program is implemented. Businesses wishing to become one of the states certified cannabis businesses would need to submit various documentation about the business and pay a non-refundable $5,000 application fee to be considered. If accepted, dispensaries would need to pay a certification fee of up to $90,000 that would last for two years. Accepted manufacturing facilities would need to pay up to $110,000 for a two-year certificate. The Legislature would be mandated to implement the states new recreational cannabis program by Oct. 1, 2025, which would include creating, or designating, an office or department to be responsible for the program. Other provisions of the ballot measure would protect cannabis users in certain situations. Some of those provisions are: Residents cannot be denied parental rights for cannabis use, unless the person presents an unreasonable danger to a minor. People released from prison and those under pretrial release will not be penalized for cannabis use or other provisions of the measure. People may not be denied eligibility for public assistance programs for using new cannabis provisions. Gun rights may not be denied to an individual for using cannabis, or taking part in other provisions of the measure. Penalties for people found violating the new cannabis provisions also are included in the measure. The ballot initiative also states employers retain the right to enforce zero tolerance drug policies at their businesses. I dont partake myself and I dont like being around it, and I dont want to see someone walking down the street and having to smell marijuana, shouldnt have to, Bakken said. But what someone wants to do in the privacy of their own home, thats up to them. In 2016, voters approved a measure for the states medical cannabis program with nearly 64% of the vote that gave residents who qualified under a range of medical conditions the ability to acquire an ID card and purchase cannabis from medical dispensaries. The Secretary of States Office will have until Aug. 12 to verify the petition signatures and announce whether the ballot measure will be approved for the November ballot. It gives the opportunity for voters to make a decision and allows the state to seamlessly regulate, have oversight, license and subsequently tax the cannabis in a recreational fashion, Bakken said. A lot of what we dont want to see is whats going on in some of the other states and we think that this is a measure that fits the conservative nature of North Dakota. Bob Wefald, a former district court judge who lives in Bismarck, voiced opposition against the previous two attempts to legalize recreational cannabis in North Dakota and said hes ready to oppose this third try. It really is terrible for society, Wefald said Monday. There is nothing good to be had by using marijuana other than to say, Well, the kids want to do it, so what the hell. He added the tax money raised by cannabis sales will do nothing to offset the problems created by recreational marijuana. Wefald also said limiting dispensaries would only ensure the black market for drugs in the state will continue. Even if the outlet is near you, you are not going to pay for it when you can get it cheaper from someplace else, some illegal dealer, he said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST A Spring Hill middle school is receiving pushback after a school official was found mixing religious prayer into official school ceremonies the second such time the official was recorded doing so. The Freedom From Religion Foundation, a nonprofit organization that works to protect he separation of church and state, sent a letter of concern to Battle Creek Middle School after a parent at the school told the organization that the schools principal, Mike Kinnard, was leading students in prayer at a May 23, 2024 graduation ceremony. This is the second such incident with the same individual, who was called out by FFRF in 2023 for using a number of Bible verses and prayer to conclude an awards ceremony. After both the 2023 and 2024 incidents, Maury County Public Schools Superintendent Lisa Ventura told the FFRF, in identical letters, that she spoke privately with the principal about the misconduct. The organization has posted the letters online. The sun sets over Battle Creek Middle School in Spring Hill, Tenn., on Monday, Oct. 4, 2021. I have investigated this incident and spoken with (Kinnard), Venturas letter stated, both times. The actions of (Kinnard) violated the school districts policies and procedures. I have issued a private letter of concern, and he has been instructed not to repeat this behavior going forward. Ventura also repeated that school administration would receive training to further prevent such incidents. It makes no difference how many students want prayer or would not be offended by prayer at their graduation ceremony; courts have continually reaffirmed that the rights of minorities are nonetheless protected by the Constitution, FFRF Patrick OReiley Legal Fellow Hirsh M. Joshi wrote to Ventura in response to the May graduation ceremony. Neither Ventura nor Kinnard replied to requests for comment. The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down prayers at school-sponsored events multiple times, including public school graduations, including the 1992 case of Lee v. Weisman, which declared clergy-delivered prayers at a public school graduation unconstitutional, and the 2000 case Santa Fe Indep. Sch. Dist. v. Doe, which found that pre-planned prayers at graduation ceremonies are also unconstitutional, even if student-led. According to 2020 census data collected by the nonprofit Public Religion Research Institute, Maury County is in the top 10 counties for highest religious diversity in the state, with a score of 0.576 per 96,000 residents. The index is calculated so that a score of 1 signifies every religious group is equal in size, and a score of 0 indicates a complete lack of diversity and one religious group comprises the entire population of a given county. The average religious diversity score by county in the U.S. is 0.625, according to PRRI. According to the same data, Maury County is 64% Christian. Despite the repeat incidents at the school, FFRF Co-President Annie Laurie Gaylor said she is optimistic that the school will take steps to ensure adherence to the establishment clause. Even as the actions of this principal have continued to violate the Constitution, we will continue to keep children free from such conduct, Gaylor said. Were pleased that Battle Creek will ensure graduation ceremonies going forward will honor the accomplishments of students instead of being misused for religious proselytization. The USA Today Network - Tennessee's coverage of First Amendment issues is funded through a collaboration between the Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. Have a story to tell? Reach Angele Latham by email at alatham@gannett.com, by phone at 931-623-9485, or follow her on Twitter at @angele_latham This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Battle Creek Middle School faces pushback for religious prayer at May graduation LUDINGTON, Mich. (WOOD) The SS Badger out of Ludington canceled trips across Lake Michigan again Monday as it continued to deal with mechanical problems. A post on the ferrys Facebook page said that the 9 a.m. sailing of the SS Badger was canceled as engineers and electricians worked to resolve the electrical issues. The goal is to resume sailing on Tuesday. We want the Badger to get well very quickly, and our engineers and professional electricians are doing a great job to help her get better so that we can get back to sailing hopefully by tomorrow, said Thom Hawley, a spokesperson for Lake Michigan Carferry, which operates the Badger. The mechanical problem popped up after the Badger left Manitowoc, Wisconsin, on Saturday afternoon. Repairs allowed the vessel to make it safely to Ludington. But with the problems lingering, Sundays voyage was canceled. The SS Badger undergoes repairs while docked in Ludington. (July 8, 2024) The SS Badger undergoes repairs while docked in Ludington. (July 8, 2024) The SS Badger undergoes repairs while docked in Ludington. (July 8, 2024) Hawley said engineers worked around the clock to trace the problem to the electrical system. They have found the problem, isolated it, and they are now making the repairs and are confident that well be able to sail by tomorrow morning, he told News 8 Monday. Put into service in 1953, the Badger is a designated national historic landmark. It was out of commission for a large chunk of last season after its port side ramp system broke. Hawley said the vessels age can make maintenance tricky. Its oftentimes hard to find that technology, so sometimes we have to develop modern workarounds in order for those systems to continue to function, he said. Still, he said that overall, the Badger is probably in its best condition ever. Many updates and repairs have been done to the ship over the years and the company continues to invest a lot of money in its updates, but like anything, youll have a breakdown and the only thing you can do is to stop operating and be sure that the system is fixed so that the problem doesnt occur again, he said. Lake Michigan Carferry apologized for the inconvenience to passengers and said staff was available to give customers information on refunds and the status of future trips. We certainly understand that many passengers were impacted by this issue and we apologize for that and we are sorry that we had interrupted vacations and cases, but we hope people will make another reservation or choose a later time, Hawley said. Anyone with questions is asked to call 800.841.4243 or email info@ssbadger.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 WOODTV.com. The St. Pete Beach City Commission acted appropriately when it appointed new members to four of its five seats in the wake of a mass resignation late last year, a judge ruled last week. It puts an end, for now, to a lawsuit filed early this year by an activist group and nine residents. They alleged the city violated its own charter by appointing new commissioners rather than waiting for a special election, bypassing the democratic process. But in a summary judgment released July 2, Pinellas-Pasco Circuit Court Judge Michael Andrews wrote that the appointments did follow the charters rules for filling vacancies. He also ruled that the plaintiffs lacked legal standing for several of their complaints. The series of December resignations was part of a wave of municipal turmoil around Tampa Bay and Florida, as elected officials left their positions in the wake of a new law requiring them to file more extensive financial disclosure forms. Groups including the Florida League of Cities decried the law, which they said would burden officeholders and deter qualified candidates from seeking office in smaller cities and towns where officials make little or no money. In St. Pete Beach, the resignations of four commissioners all but Mayor Adrian Petrila were complicated by a city charter provision that calls for a special election to be held within 15 days if multiple seats open simultaneously. With the Pinellas County Supervisor of Elections unable to arrange a special election on such short notice, the resigning members spread out their departures over nine days and appointed four temporary members one at a time from a pool of applicants. Two of the appointed members, Karen Marriott and Betty Rzewnicki, maintained their seats after running unopposed in the citys municipal elections in March. A special election for the other two seats will take place Aug. 20. Protect St. Pete Beach Advocacy Group, the organization that sued over the appointments, has also been a leading critic of expansion efforts by local beach resorts. City commissioners this year have approved permits for major expansions at two such resorts the Sirata and the TradeWinds which Protect St. Pete Beach has challenged in court. That challenge, a separate action from the lawsuit resolved last week, is framed around the allegation that the mostly appointed commission was illegitimate, along with several other complaints about the permitting process. It is still pending, said Jane Graham, an attorney for the group. Len Collins, another attorney for the plaintiffs in the appointments lawsuit, said in a statement Friday that he disagreed with the judgment and will appeal it to the extent necessary. These are serious issues that concern the rights of citizens to have a say in the operation of their government, Collins said. We will continue to fight to ensure that the law is followed on this important issue. A news release issued by the city Friday said Andrews ruling affirms its commissions authority in granting those permits for redevelopment. The decision hopefully marks the end of a long-fought battle, it said. A man accused of wielding a gun was detained Monday after a nearly 10-hour standoff in which residents evacuated homes as the man jumped through backyards while carrying the weapon, according to the Sacramento Police Department. Officers were called about 2:15 a.m. to the 8200 block of Essen Way for reports of a man holed up in a home with a gun, police said on social media. Residents of the Valley Hi / North Laguna neighborhood reported to police the man jumped through their fences while carrying a weapon, according to archived audio dispatches reviewed by The Sacramento Bee. Police evacuated homes and called for others to shelter in place as the standoff continued. It was unclear why the man engaged in the standoff as police didnt release a motive. The SWAT team and crisis negotiators were called to the scene, police said. Officers used drones to peer through a home and search backyards, according to dispatches. The man was detained without incident just before noon, said Officer Anthony Gamble, a spokesman for the Police Department, calling it a peaceful resolution. The suspect still has not surrendered. In an effort to safely bring this incident to a peaceful resolution, SWAT and Crisis Negotiators have responded. https://t.co/s9OmOT2JW0 Sacramento Police Department (@SacPolice) July 8, 2024 Who started NATO? How many countries are in NATO? WASHINGTON (DC News Now) NATO is in the news continually, but there has been a particular emphasis on the North Atlantic Treaty Organizaion recently because member countries meet for the NATO Summit in Washington, D.C. from July 9 to July 12 this year. So, how many member countries are there? Well answer that, but first What is NATO? The purpose of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) is to guarantee the freedom and security of its members through political and military measures. The NATO website breaks things down this way: POLITICAL NATO promotes democratic values and enables members to consult and cooperate on defense and security-related issues to solve problems, build trust and, in the long run, prevent conflict. MILITARY NATO is committed to the peaceful resolution of disputes. If diplomatic efforts fail, it has the military power to undertake crisis-management operations. These are carried out under the collective defence clause of NATOs founding treaty Article 5 of the Washington Treaty or under a United Nations mandate, alone or in cooperation with other countries and international organizations. NATO Public Forum: What it is, how to attend Who started NATO? Twelve countries from Europe and North America created NATO on April 4, 1949. The founding member countries were: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, the United Kingdom and the United States. 2024 NATO Summit in DC: What to expect, road closures How many countries are in NATO? The 12 founding member countries began adding to their ranks in the 1950s. The most recent country to join to came in 2024. Article 10 of the North Atlantic Treaty establishes the criteria to join. The treat says membership is open to any European State in a position to further the principles of this Treaty and to contribute to the security of the North Atlantic area. Here are the 32 member countries as of July 2024. Youll find the year in which each joined in parentheses: Albania (2009) Belgium (1949) Bulgaria (2004) Canada (1949) Croatia (2009) Czechia (1999) Denmark (1949) Estonia (2004) Finland (2023) France (1949) Germany (1955) Greece (1952) Hungary (1999) Iceland (1949) Italy (1949) Latvia (2004) Lithuania (2004) Luxembourg (1949) Montenegro (2017) Netherlands (1949) Northe Macedonia (2020) Norway (1949) Poland (1999) Portugal (1949) Romania (2004) Slovakia (2004) Slovenia (2004) Spain (1982) Sweden (2024) Turkiye (1952) United Kingdom (1949) United States (1949) Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Nevada Department of Corrections Medical Director Dr. Kevin Williams, pictured here in a screengrab from a 2020 Tennessee Department of Corrections video. The medical director for the Nevada Department of Corrections has been granted a medical license by the state, almost a year after beginning work without a license, which is a minimum requirement for the job. The Nevada Board of Medical Examiners issued the license to Dr. Kenneth Williams on July 2. Executive Director Ed Cousineau says hes unaware of the board previously granting a license to an individual who practiced without one. Its a felony to practice medicine without a license in Nevada. Last month, Cousineau told the Current the board, to his knowledge, would not act on Williams license until the Attorney Generals office completed its investigation into allegations that Williams practiced without a license. Practitioners at NDOC say the AGs investigators were still interviewing witnesses last week. Counsineau did not respond to requests for comment by publication. Williams, reached by phone Monday, declined to say why he accepted the job without a license and why he waited months to apply. Im just looking forward to, you know, getting to work and serving the state of Nevada and helping to improve healthcare, he told the Current. According to the states licensing website, Williams has a bachelors degree from Xavier University of Louisiana, a doctorate in philosophy, also from Xavier University, and a medical degree from Meharry Medical College. Williams was hired by the State of Nevada almost a year ago. He was placed on administrative leave after the Current reported he had no medical license. The medical board initiated an investigation in March into complaints about Williams filed by practitioners, according to a letter obtained by the Current, but later determined it had no jurisdiction and turned the case over to the Attorney General. He (Williams) needs to be able to prove that he has a medical license in order for him to be able to continue working with us, NDOC Deputy Director Kristina Shea told the Current in June, adding the state had imposed a deadline, which it declined to disclose. Dzurenda, who was appointed by Gov. Joe Lombardo, has refused to say why he hired Williams, given his lack of credentials. Lombardo has also refused to address the states potential liability for employing an unlicensed medical director, given its legal obligation to provide care for inmates. Inmates have filed four lawsuits against Williams for denying medical care, the most recent in May, according to federal court records. A state court ruled Monday that the State Health Plan acted fairly in granting the 2025 contract to administer its health plan to Aetna over Blue Cross NC. The preponderance of the evidence showed that the Plan conducted the procurement carefully and thoughtfully, fairly and in good faith, and that its decisions were properly within its discretion. It also showed that the vendors proposals were evaluated and scored carefully, accurately, and fairly, wrote Administrative Law Judge Melissa Owens Lassiter, who reviewed the complaint by Blue Cross NC. The decision puts an end to a yearlong legal battle unless Blue Cross NC, which filed the case in the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings, takes further action. Blue Cross NC did not reply Monday to a question on whether it would appeal the decision, but said in a written statement through spokesperson Laura Eberhard that while we are disappointed in the courts ruling, we are gratified that the court reviewed the serious questions we raised about the State Health Plans 2022 RFP process. In proposed rulings filed with Lassiter, Blue Cross requested she require the State Health Plan to either award the contract to Blue Cross or put it out for bid again. The State Health Plan asked Lassiter to affirm its decision to award the contract to Aetna. According to state law, the decision of the judge can be appealed by either party in the case to the states superior courts. Any decision there could also be appealed. Blue Cross already filed a petition for judicial review in Durham County Superior Court in February, but that was put on hold while Lassiter considered the case as part of a process in the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings. Aetna, which has been arranging to take over the State Health Plan, can continue with its preparations. Regardless of whether further appeals are made, Sam Watts, the SHP director, told The News & Observer prior to the ruling that theres a zero percent change that State Health Plan members are going to go to their doctor on January 1 no matter what the judge says and not have access to their health care. Weve got enough contingency plans and fallback positions and abilities to fix it that members do not have to worry, he said. The claims are going to continue to be paid, State Treasurer Dale Folwell told The N&O. But unfortunately, weve had to spend millions of dollars in legal fees to defend a process that our board voted for unanimously. According to SHP spokesperson Dan Way, as of late May, the SHP has spent about $1.9 million on the OAH case. Jim Bostian, North Carolina market president for Aetna, said in a written statement Monday that the company is thrilled to begin serving those who teach, protect and otherwise serve North Carolina. Since the contract decision was first announced in December 2022, we have been working on the impending, seamless transition at full speed all while demonstrating in court that the transition to Aetna is in the best interests of the State Health Plan and its members, Bostian said in a statement shared by spokesperson Pat Ryan. Bostian said that to date more than 800 Aetna employees have contributed nearly 60,000 work hours to implementation and that Aetna was on schedule to begin serving the State Health Plan on Jan. 1, 2025. Overarching debate In January 2023, Folwell announced that Aetna would replace Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina as the administrator for the states health insurance plan. Blue Cross NC, which had been the states third-party administrator for more than 40 years, fought back against this decision, filing in mid-February a complaint with the Office of Administrative Hearings. The company hired to be the third-party administrator takes care of administrative tasks associated with health insurance, and sends claims to the state, which is on the hook for covering health care costs. This year, there have been multiple days of hearings, involving witnesses and hours of debate. During the last hearing in late February, attorneys for the parties involved presented closing arguments. Blue Cross argued that the health plan violated the terms of its own request for proposal, a document that solicits proposals during a bidding process. It also argued that the plan exceeded it authority and took actions that were arbitrary and capricious in deciding who would get the contract, in particular in terms of its scoring system for bidders. The State Health Plan defended its own work and that of actuarial services contractor Segal, saying they acted meticulously and within their discretion. Aetna, also a defendant in the case, echoed the states arguments. Documents released by State Health Plan last year to The N&O also showed that prior to the State Heatlh Plan issuing a new RFP, Blue Cross NC had gone live with a new computerized claims processing system. Issues with this system prompted the State Health Plan to put the high-dollar contract out to bid, instead of renewing Blue Cross contract for the optional one-year renewal periods in 2025 and 2026. Network access The State Health Plan covers about 740,000 teachers, state employees and retirees and their dependents. Billions of state funds are involved with the contract, said Matt Sawchak, attorney for Blue Cross NC. With high stakes comes high responsibility, he said. Blue Cross was the lowest bidder on this RFP and it offered the most robust network of providers, especially in rural areas, and yet it was not chosen. In hearings, Blue Cross NC has cited research it commissioned by Gregory Russo, the managing director in the Health Analytics practice of Berkeley Research Group, LLC, an international consulting firm. According to his research which looked at numbers of providers in 2021 over 37,000 plan members received services from providers that are in-network with Blue Cross but are out-of-network with Aetna. Lee Whitman, attorney for Aetna, countered that according to Segal, which looked at how providers were used, 99% of Aetnas claims would have been paid in-network. That 1% disruption is effectively no disruption, he said. Throughout the hearings, the state and Aetna cast doubt on the expertise of Russo, highlighting his receipt of $1.6 million to conduct the research. Scoring of costs Another dispute was on how the state decided to rank cost proposals by the plans. Documents released by the SHP show that bidders for the contract received points and rankings for cost proposals and technical proposals, both weighted equally. The cost proposal portion included a network pricing component, an administrative fee component and a network pricing guarantee component: On the network pricing component or the projection of claims costs Blue Cross and Aetna tied. On the administrative fee component the fee the third party administrator receives for the services it provides to the state Blue Cross NC had the lowest overall bid. Under a three-year contract, on the administrative fee, all bidders came in at about $17.5 billion, with BCBS coming in lower by $17 million or less than a tenth of a percent, as previously reported by The N&O. But Aetna was found to have stronger network pricing guarantees or guardrails should the company fail to meet savings which led to Blue Cross NC and Aetna tying in terms of their overall cost proposals. Pricing guarantee proposals were scored based on guaranteed targets and the amount of the administrative fee the bidders placed at risk should savings targets not be hit. The SHPs attorney, Marcus Hewitt, said during closing arguments that the pricing guarantee scoring was not improper procedure. It was based directly on the competitiveness of guarantee targets and the amounts the bidder put at risk, just like the RFP said. Blue Cross lost on pricing because of its low at-risk amounts, he said. But Sawchack said the SHP and Segal rushed the RFP process, leading to errors. He argued that Segal did not properly score the pricing guarantees and used subjective measures. Blue Cross also argued that the state misread the administrative fees at risk on its discount guarantees, which is a part of the pricing guarantee section. Blue Cross said it put 15% of its administrative fee at risk while the state misread that figure as 5%, Segal said. This happened because it did not add together the three discount guarantees labeled with 5% and instead understood it to mean 5% across the board, argued Blue Cross NC. The State Health Plan said that if Blue Cross NC meant to put a total of 15% it could have written this out on the form explicitly. Timeline of the contract According to legal filings and a timeline published by the treasurers office: The RFP was drafted over five months and then issued in late August 2022. Bidding closed in early November 2022 and proposals were evaluated between Nov. 8 and 16. Bidders were then called on to submit their final offers, and the contract was awarded Dec. 14. Technical scoring On the technical questions, a series of yes-or-no questions regarding the services they could provide, Aetna achieved the maximum score of 310 points. Blue Cross obtained 303. This led to Aetna receiving three points, while Blue Cross NC received 1. Blue Cross also argued against the technical scoring system. In previous RFPs, the plan required bidders to provide narrative responses explaining their ability to meet technical requirements. This years RFP did not allow narrative responses. Blue Cross NC argued the seven-point difference on the technical proposal is not enough to justify awarding the contract to Aetna. The final score, including cost and technical components, had Aetna at 6 points and Blue Cross NC at 4 points. Aetna, as of late May, had so far spent $39 million on the transition, according to Ryan. The majority of this money has been spent developing IT infrastructure specific to the plans needs, including needs required in the technical scoring component of the bid, Ryan wrote in an email. Ryan also said that Aetna has hired about 385 employees dedicated to the State Health Plan so far and in the time since the contract award, has contracted with 4,734 additional providers who are now active or in the process of being on-boarded. Following inquiries in late May, neither Aetna or Blue Cross provided how much the OAH case had cost them. The open-enrollment period to enroll in the State Health Plan for 2025 begins in late September. U.S. District Judge Janis Jack administers the U.S. oath of citizenship to more than 100 area residents representing 25 countries in 2008 aboard the USS Lexington. Jack was the first woman federal judge to serve in Texas south of San Antonio. July 5, 2008. Credit: Courtesy of Todd Yates/Corpus Christi Caller-Times On a chilly morning last January, U.S. District Judge Janis Jack was visibly on edge in her Corpus Christi courtroom. She leaned in and cast a hard look at Cecile E. Young, the Texas Health and Human Services Executive Commissioner appointed by Gov. Greg Abbott during the pandemic. Commissioner Young, Jack said. Have you ever seen the inside of a jail cell? The threat was that Young who had worked in state government for more than 30 years would be led out of the courtroom in handcuffs alongside Stephanie Muth, another Abbott appointee at the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services, if their agencies didnt produce right now documents Jack had previously requested that showed whether their agencies had been complying with court orders regarding Texas beleaguered foster care system. It was a provocative and extremely tense moment, though by far not the only such exchange during that dayslong court hearing. And it crystallized the combative and rancorous relationship that has festered between Jack and Texas welfare officials as theyve fought over a costly class action lawsuit filed in 2011 on behalf of children who had been removed from their parents and become wards of the state. Now, Texas child welfare officials want a higher court to remove Jack from the case, the only one she is overseeing after moving in 2010 to senior status, a sort of semi-retirement for federal judges. Since 2011, shes been the states de facto foster care czar. Among their arguments: She will never let them succeed. The record is replete with instances of hostile remarks and actions toward the state defendants and their counsel hostility that has unfortunately infected the district courts substantive rulings and that casts a cloud over its future decisions in this case, reads the states June court filing asking the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals to remove Jack. At the center of the battle are the roughly 9,000 children in permanent state custody, removed from their homes due to circumstances that can include abuse at home, complex health needs that parents are unable to manage without help, or the loss of family caregivers. The children often represent the most tragic stories and have some of the most complex mental and behavioral needs of any child in the system, yet they are often left in dangerous homes and residential centers with poor supervision frequently overmedicated, trafficked, and unable to get help if theyre continuing to be abused. The state relies on long-term care facilities, hotels, churches, apartments and rental homes to house them. Children in these placements can be as young as 10 but are often teens with complex trauma and behavioral needs. The states extraordinary request to take her off the case is considered to be the nuclear option, triggered after the judge issued her third contempt order against the state in April. The state has spent $100 million in taxpayer money trying to comply with Jacks orders to clean up Texas foster care and stop putting vulnerable youth in its care at risk, an endeavor that has seen some improvements in the conditions Jack and other judges had said were damaging to the kids. But the state has also spent much on fighting them, bringing their arguments to the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals on several occasions. The agencys efforts have been met repeatedly with smackdown rulings delivered alongside caustic reprimands and mocking by the judge, new requirements or deadlines, three contempt findings, exhaustive oversight by expensive court monitors, enormous and ongoing fines and the threat of a complete court takeover of the system. In April, Jack issued a bombshell ruling that found Young and Texas Health and Human Services in contempt of court for the third time and fined the state $100,000 per day until the state could show an attempt to address its routine neglect of investigations into allegations of abuse and neglect of children in the system.The state has appealed the ruling. The concerns over the appearance of bias and prejudice are only heightened by the district courts stated position that there is no end in sight for its supervision of the States foster-care system, the states June request reads. As the court [Jack] has put it, I dont see how you ever are going to get off monitoring with this attitude. I dont know how youre going to ever turn the corner. The 5th Circuit is set to hear oral arguments Aug. 5 on the states appeal of the fines and latest contempt ruling as well as the request to remove Jack. A routine status hearing on the lawsuit is set for September, proceedings that have often resulted in further orders, contempt rulings or reprimands. Attorneys for the children dispute that Jacks orders and courtroom rebukes are anything other than responses to a yearslong pattern of the states repeated efforts to cover up conditions in the system and shortcut, sidestep, block or altogether ignore orders and advice on what child welfare officials should do in order to protect the children in their care. Replacing Jack, who knows the foster care system better than almost anyone else involved in the case, with someone who has less background would be deeply cynical and a huge setback for the children whose lives and health depend on the states foster care system, said Paul Yetter, the attorney who is representing the children in the lawsuit. Shes tough, but she cares deeply about these children and knows the system. Her expertise is critical to achieve the reforms we need to keep children safe, Yetter said in a statement to the Tribune on Wednesday. The state wants a new judge who doesnt know the system or how badly it has hurt children. The states appeal of Jacks April contempt order, which required the state to improve its investigations into allegations of foster children with disabilities being abused, is just one more sign that Texas isnt ready to be let off the hook yet, Yetter said. The state is asking for permission to ignore children who are disabled some of whom are nonverbal and cannot cry out and are in perpetual danger inside the system, Yetter said. Thats a tragedy waiting to happen. Removing Jack from the case and starting over is widely regarded as the most strident attempt yet to change the course of the seemingly endless court fight. But its been building toward this tumultuous peak for more than a year, when lawyers for the children announced they would be asking the court to put the entire foster-care system into receivership. The state acknowledged in its brief that removing Jack from the case would be disruptive but those consequences pale in comparison to the need to preserve the appearance of impartiality, fairness and justice. By comparison, an official court takeover of the state-run system would pose logistical and official nightmares for the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission, which share responsibility for the states foster children. Some contend that Jacks 2015 ruling and continued oversight are the primary drivers for what improvements have been made. Critics say the suit has sucked up financial resources that DFPS could have used to improve foster care. Either way, with its costly attempts at compliance falling short, and court monitors repeatedly uncovering fresh reasons for Jack to continue her oversight and push for change through the lawsuit, Texas is looking for a new exit strategy. A different judge is the first big step to finally getting out from under the courtroom battle and moving its focus back to taking care of its foster kids, the state contends. DFPS agency officials declined through a spokesperson to comment to The Texas Tribune, saying they were limited by the pending litigation. Years of struggling under Jacks critical eye Jack first ruled in 2015 that Texas had violated the constitutional rights of foster children to be free from an unreasonable risk of harm, saying that children "often age out of care more damaged than when they entered." Jack has since issued several orders aiming at widespread reform. Abbotts office, HHSC and DFPS are all named in the court orders, which the state challenged and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals partly upheld. Among the orders that were upheld: The state must increase oversight of residential facilities that house kids, speed up state investigations into abuse and neglect in foster homes, and build software to alert caregivers about child-on-child sexual aggression. The state had been taking a more cooperative approach to the lawsuit since 2019, when the judge found the system in contempt the first time, levied $250,000 in fines against the state for not enforcing 24-hour watches on the kids in its care, and appointed two monitors who serve as watchdogs to observe the state's compliance. Last year, the state appeared to escalate its ongoing legal fight after lawyers representing the children asked the judge to hold the state in contempt of court a third time this time for placing children in unlicensed facilities, mismanaging psychotropic drugs and failing to inform kids how to report abuse and neglect and requested the judge put the system into receivership. Then in May 2023, the state hired three high-profile appellate attorneys to come to its defense. Allyson N. Ho, a conservative star in her own right, is married to James Ho, a sitting judge on the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals the very court that will rule whether Jack should remain on the case. Ho has said he would recuse himself from any hearing his wife is part of. The state also hired two other lawyers that have clerked for other sitting 5th Circuit judges. After the first monitors report in late 2020 uncovering hundreds of foster children sleeping in unlicensed placements resulted in a second contempt order and threats of more fines by Jack, Abbott ordered Texas child welfare officials in a letter to ensure that your agencies fully comply with the remedial orders at issue and submit certifications of compliance by the required dates in order to avoid unnecessary fines. The agencies responded that measures were being implemented, including creating a department within HHS that would be dedicated solely to complying with the orders. At the time, the number of children without placements had surged to the highest point in at least four years with nearly 300 children spending at least two consecutive nights in February 2021 in unlicensed placements, usually sleeping in offices, hotels or community organizations, because no beds were available in licensed facilities, according to DFPS data. At one point during a hearing on those children, Jack suggested that she serve the same treatment to a states attorney, as well as Muth and Young, that their caseworkers were giving to the children without placements. I should sentence [the state defendants counsel] and Ms. Muth and Ms. Young to one of these . . . cheap motels, where they can live off of McDonalds, she told them during a recent hearing. Or they might be subject to the tasering or the handcuffs. What followed was a $100 million effort to respond to some 60 remedial orders. The state says the agency has taken extraordinary measures to fix issues identified by the orders, noting that those have been confirmed both by the court in recent court proceedings and in previous updates by monitors Jack assigned to track the states progress. Texas child welfare officials reassigned staff to focus on monitoring the unlicensed motels and rental homes that house some of the most vulnerable children in the foster-care system. Caseworkers are better trained, their caseloads are lower, and investigators were responding more quickly to protect foster children and youth, all in compliance with most of Jacks orders, the state argued. Currently, the agency has reached full compliance with two orders that require that caseworkers take professional development training and that supervisors be more mindful of recommended caseload guidelines when distributing more cases to employees, DFPS attorneys said. The state agency notes that it has also reached 90% compliance or higher with 10 other court orders designed to improve the speed and quality of child abuse and neglect investigations. Higher priority child abuse and neglect victims are now required to be interviewed in person within 72 hours of an initial report and those investigations must be completed within 60 days. Documentation for those completed investigations must be filed and the parties notified in a timely manner. And caseworkers are now notified of any abuse or neglect accusation that doesnt trigger an investigation. The number of children regularly in unlicensed facilities has dwindled sharply to just 19 on a daily average, according to DFPS data. Weve put absolutely everything into the effort to get real placements for these kids, DFPS spokesperson Patrick Crimmins told the Tribune last week, and it is paying off. 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! EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU) State police have updated their top ten most wanted list as one man has been captured. Pennsylvania State Police announced Monday they have captured Jimmy Carlton Hnery Jr. from Lock Haven who was wanted for the rape of a child. Pennsylvania State Police Three arrested during DUI checkpoint patrols State police say fugitives are selected for the ten most wanted list based on the severity of the crime and the availability of suspect information. Tips may be submitted through the PSP Tips website, or by calling 1-800-4-PA-TIPS. All tips are anonymous and may be eligible for a cash reward. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Anil Sooklal, South Africa's BRICS sherpa, pauses in an interview with Xinhua in Cape Town, South Africa, July 3, 2024. (Xinhua/Wang Lei) CAPE TOWN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- China has played an important role in advancing BRICS, thus leading the Global South's efforts in providing leadership to the world, said Anil Sooklal, South Africa's BRICS sherpa. "I think today the Global South is a major force on the global stage" as it represents 85 percent of the global population and the fastest growing global economies today are from the Global South, Sooklal told Xinhua in a recent interview. China is now the second-largest global economy and a number of economies from the Global South are in the top 10 today, he added. In a world that "has changed dramatically," he said, "BRICS is a champion of the Global South and China has played an important role in advancing BRICS." Invited by China, South Africa in 2011 formally joined the bloc of leading emerging economies that also groups Russia, India and Brazil, the ambassador said. He underlined that the Global South is now providing leadership and China is at the forefront of that, together with BRICS, and they are working with the African continent and other BRICS partners. "They are shaping a new world, a world of hope, a world of inclusivity, and building a community with a shared future," said Sooklal. In the interview, the BRICS envoy also highlighted China's role in supporting Africa's industrialization. "Even during China's presidency of the G20 in 2016, China had as one of its themes and focus areas the industrialization of Africa and LDCs (less developed countries)," said Sooklal. He believed that the theme was continued last year at the BRICS summit when China focused on the industrialization of Africa again, which he said is also a major focus of the African continent. "Industrialization is critical and China, based on its own experience of industrialization, is readily sharing that with us and walking that route with us in terms of assisting Africa in its industrialization, especially in the field of new technologies, and advancing Africa's development," he said. The South African diplomat went on to say that China has also been playing a major role in assisting the development of his country in such areas as economy, technology, urban development, industrialization, and energy. "Given their own experience and given that agriculture is a major sector in terms of food security, China plays an important role in assisting us in modernizing the agriculture sector," said Sooklal. As a global leader in green technology, China is playing "a major role" in helping South Africa transit from fossil fuels to green technology, Sooklal said, adding that a number of Chinese companies are involved in the green technology field in South Africa. "In a number of fields, China has been deeply involved in strengthening relations and helping us grow our economy and advance our people, and lifting our people out of poverty, underdevelopment and unemployment," he said. A Horizon West man running for Florida State Senate has filed multiple lawsuits against his fellow Republicans and a conservative media outlet after a barrage of attacks accusing his campaign of being funded by the Communist Party of China. Bowen Kou is running to unseat incumbent Keith Truenow for District 13, which encompasses Horizon West and Lake County. For the past few weeks, the Florida Republican Senate Campaign Committee, which endorses Truenow, has sent out a series of mailers questioning Kous donor base. The mailers have included Chinese references and images of individual contributions, which Kou said led to threats against some of his supporters. His lawsuits call the accusations malicious and defamatory. Photos: Hurricane Beryl makes landfall in Texas A candidate for Florida Senate has filed lawsuits against his fellow Republicans after attack mailers were sent tying his campaign to Chinese communists. Kou says his out of state donors are (American) friends and business associates of his Asian grocery store chain. @WFTV pic.twitter.com/uuE9FbRlZy Nick Papantonis WFTV (@NPapantonisWFTV) July 8, 2024 Kou immigrated to the United States from China as a college student. He said his parents encouraged him to leave after he was arrested for possessing a Bible. Im an American citizen. My passport is right here, he said, holding it up. I have the same rights to serve my community, to serve this country. Kou currently runs a chain of bakeries and the Fresh International Market Asian grocery store chain, which has nine locations across seven states. According to financial records, most of his campaign is self-funded, but more than half of his contributions and 14.5% of his funds -- come from outside the state of Florida. Kou said those supporters are personal friends and business associates. Read: Preventing crime before it happens: How OPD is keeping your family safe A lot of them, they are third, second generation American, he said, picking up a mailer and indicating its design. They have an arrow pointing to China. Those people have nothing to do with China. In addition, he said the smiling Asian man on the mailer supposedly depicting Kou was not a picture of the candidate himself. None of Truenows backers responded to WFTVs requests for comment Monday. However, the conservative media outlet that ran an interview on the subject the Florida Voice did send a statement. Read: Are you eligible for portion of Costcos $2M flushable wipes class action lawsuit? Were real journalists and dont care about frivolous lawsuits, the writer said. Kou said hes asking voters to focus on his platform of being an independent voice in Tallahassee, and focus on the issues of toll roads, property insurance and illegal immigration not his heritage. Im hoping this lawsuit bring justice to clear the for the false information in the air, Kou said, challenging his opponent to a debate. All [Truenow] wants to talk about is where I came from. America is beyond that. We are one America. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. Stephen King has added his name to the list of prominent figures who have called for President Joe Biden to exit the 2024 presidential race. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election, King wrote on X/Twitter this morning. More from Deadline King has long been outspoken in his opposition to Donald Trump, writing on Sunday that the French right wing is going down to defeat in spite of polls. May it happen to Trump and his head-in-the-sand cronies. RELATED: Joe Biden Calls Into Morning Joe And Tells Hosts, I Am Not Going Anywhere But his concerns about Biden, following his dismal debate performance on June 27, reflect anxiety in the Democratic party and among longtime donors and supporters that the president will be able to defeat his predecessor in November. On Sunday, Rob Reiner called for Biden to leave the race. Major industry donors and supporters Damon Lindelof and Reed Hastings also want the president to step aside. Biden called into Morning Joe this morning and insisted that he was staying in, claiming that the calls for him to drop out are coming from party elites, comparing that to enthusiastic crowds hes been getting on the campaign trail. Best of Deadline Sign up for Deadline's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Stephen King Says Joe Biden Must Step Down; Rob Reiner Agrees: Its Time to Stop Fing Around Because We Lose Our Democracy If Trump Wins Rob Reiner and Stephen King have joined the growing chorus of Hollywood voices publicly urging Joe Biden to step down as the Democratic nominee in the 2024 presidential election. The All in the Family actor and Princess Bride director posted a statement on X to his 2.3 million followers in which he said Bidens exit is imperative considering democracy itself is at stake in this election. Its time to stop fucking around, Reiner wrote. If the Convicted Felon wins, we lose our Democracy. Joe Biden has effectively served US with honor, decency, and dignity. Its time for Joe Biden to step down. More from Variety King wrote to his followers: Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for him in the interests of the America he so clearly loves to announce he will not run for re-election. Calls for Biden to step down erupted after his disastrous performance at the first presidential debate against Donald Trump. Bidens first post-debate interview with ABC News George Stephanopoulos did little to put an end to the calls. Reiner and King join the likes of Netflix co-founder and executive chairman Reed Hastings in urging Biden not to seek reelection. Hastings and his wife, Patty Quillin, happen to be one of the Democratic partys biggest donors. Biden needs to step aside to allow a vigorous Democratic leader to beat Trump and keep us safe and prosperous, Hastings said in a recent email to The New York Times. Bidens lackluster performance at the debate has divided Democrats. The View co-host Sara Haines also proclaimed the morning after the debate that Biden needed to get out of the way if the Democrats are to block Trump from becoming president again. I think President Biden needs to step down and be replaced, Haines told her co-hosts on air. If we want to defeat Donald Trump in November then I absolutely think that theyve got to act fast, and I would implore those closest with the President to have the very hard conversations theyre going to need to have and not just for political ramifications, but for humanity, his integrity and his legacy. Thats all on the line right now. During his interview with ABC News, Biden pushed back against his critics and stressed he currently has no intention of dropping out of the presidential race. Joe Biden has been a fine president, but its time for himin the interests of the America he so clearly lovesto announce he will not run for re-election. Stephen King (@StephenKing) July 8, 2024 Its time to stop fucking around. If the Convicted Felon wins, we lose our Democracy. Joe Biden has effectively served US with honor, decency, and dignity. Its time for Joe Biden to step down. Rob Reiner (@robreiner) July 7, 2024 Best of Variety Sign up for Varietys Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. The post Steve Perry Imposter Scams Journey Fan Out of $122,000 appeared first on Consequence. An Ohio woman was scammed out of $122,000 by an online imposter claiming to be former Journey vocalist Steve Perry. According to the local WKYC news outlet, the woman was contacted by the fake Perry via Facebook messenger in January, and the two kept correspondence over several months by messaging on WhatsApp. Claiming that he had a business opportunity and that he needed a woman in his life the scammer soon got the woman to start sending him money. Get Journey Tickets Here By the time she wises up to what was happening, $122,000 had already slipped away $50,000 in gift cards and $72,000 in the form of wire transfers to various persons in various different states, designated by Perry, through her bank, according to the police report. The final tipping point for the woman came when the fake Perry began getting more demanding, and asked for photos of her passport and drivers license. At that point, she contacted the police, who advised her to report the scam to her bank and file a complaint with the FBIs Internet Crime Complaint Center. Sadly, this is just the latest instance of an ongoing trend of online scams. Last October, there was a story about a catfisher pretending to be the Bee Gees Barry Gibb, who scammed a woman out of $11,000. The topic has even made its way to Hollywood, by way of the new film Thelma, which follows a grandma (June Squibb) as she gets some John Wick-style revenge on scammers. As for the real Steve Perry, hes been laying relatively low in recent years. This past May, he teamed up with The Effect for their cover of Journeys It Could Have Been You, and last year, he contributed to Dolly Partons blockbuster Rockstar album. His old band Journey kicked off their co-headlining tour with Def Leppard in St Louis, Missouri over the weekend. Grab tickets to their upcoming dates here. Steve Perry Imposter Scams Journey Fan Out of $122,000 Jo Vito 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. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has condemned Russia's missile attacks on Ukrainian cities on Monday. Source: Stoltenberg at a meeting with US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at Pentagon, European Pravda reports Details: The statement was made on the eve of the NATO Summit to be held in Washington on 9-11 July. "In Ukraine, Russia continues its brutal war. Only today, we have seen horrendous missile attacks against Ukrainian cities, killing innocent civilians, including children. I condemn these heinous attacks," Stoltenberg said. The secretary general added that the summit in Washington will make a decision on further strengthening support for Ukraine. "And Russia must understand that they are not able to wait those out. They need to sit down and accept a solution where Ukraine prevails as a sovereign independent nation," Stoltenberg said. Background: The United States supports the investigation of the strike on the Okhmatdyt hospital as a war crime committed by Russia. Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, once again urged Ukraines allies to accelerate the supply of air defence systems to Kyiv following the Russian large-scale attack on Ukrainian cities. Support UP or become our patron! When will it stop being 100F in Sacramento and Northern California? When will it stop being 100F in Sacramento and Northern California? (FOX40.COM) Northern California has been on a seemingly endless streak of 100F days, but the National Weather Service shared some optimistic numbers that temperatures could drop soon. On Sunday, the National Weather Service shared a chart showing cities in the Sacramento region and their chances of seeing max temperatures below 100F from July 7 to July 14. The chart does not indicate what the highs will be for those days, just how unlikely it will be that temperatures will reach 100F. In the first half of the week, Sacramentos best chance to see temps drop below 100F is on Tuesday. The National Weather Service said there is a 75% chance temperatures will stay below 100F that day. Helicopter locates missing hikers near Royal Fire Wednesday through Friday do not look too promising with the best chance of not seeing triple-digit temps coming on Friday with a 40% likelihood of sub-100 F weather. Conditions improve drastically on Saturday and Sunday, with 80% and 90% chances respectively of temperatures staying below 100F, just in time for the California Capital Airshow. Auburn, Stockton and Vacaville look to be following similar temperature trends to Sacramento, with Tuesday being the best weekday chance to see temps below 100F and near 100% chances of sub-tripty digit temps by the weekend. One glaring concern for the week is Thursday where the best chance to see temperatures below 100F will be in Auburn with a 25% chance. The rest of the Sacramento Valley has between a 5% and 0% chance of having temperatures below 100F. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. At street fest in Tacoma, explore foods from around world, live music and a kids corner Savor Fest, a food festival where guests can sample dishes from around the world on one Tacoma block, returns this weekend with two dozen vendors, a DJ and dance performances, plus a kids corner and Disney characters. Now in its fourth year, the event has grown from a handful of food stands in one parking lot to its new location in partnership with Mi Centro in Hilltop. On Sunday, 24 vendors will fill South 10th Street from L to M as well as the Mi Centro parking lot. Vendors hail from around Pierce and King counties, making Savor Fest a unique opportunity to try food from businesses that would otherwise require a road trip. Its organized by the intrepid Lydia Mendez, who has been hard at work growing her own Little Miss Sweets NYC wholesale bakery that specializes in Puerto Rican desserts with an exclusive focus on gluten-free treats. You can find her cheesecakes, tres leches, cakes, rainbow cookies and more at local stores, including Tacoma Boys, H&L Produce and Thriftway. Both on staff at Mi Centro, Maribel Galvan, director of arts and culture, and Valentine Cortes, program assistant, assisted Mendez. A native New Yorker-turned-Tacoman, she is particularly excited about being in Hilltop and having a block-party setup. It reminds me of where Im from, she said. The 2024 Savor Fest lineup includes 11 savory vendors, four libation stations, five dessert stands and four local companies with packaged foods such as kimchi and hot sauce. If you attended last years festival at the Waterfront Market in Ruston or the 2022 edition in tandem with Art on the Ave, youre still in for fresh eats: More than half of this years vendors are new to the event. Jumpin Jambalaya serves up Cajun and Creole specialties including the namesake dish, packed with Andouille sausage. Its one of 24 vendors slated for Savor Fest on Sunday, July 14. Kristine Sherred/ksherred@thenewstribune.com Chef Jhonny Reyes is one big-name addition. Reyes is a Chopped champion who has snagged attention in Seattle for his Nuyorican and island-inspired plates that honor the Afro-Latin fusion cuisine prolific in Harlem. After successful pop-ups, he recently opened a brick-and-mortar restaurant, Lenox. Other newcomers include Ricos Fast Food, a Colombian food truck based in Bothell; Chubby Plant, a Tacoma-based vegan catering company; and El Guero, a mobile restaurant known for quesabirria and aqua frescas. DJ Tremenda Diosa will play tunes throughout the day while welcoming several performers to the stage, including Costa Rican folklore and calypso dancing with Cana Dulce Seattle and Dancing Ting, a Caribbean dance hall. Magic in the PNW will have in-costume characters roaming the street for photos. In light of the anticipated sunny and warm forecast, there will be shaded seating areas near the kids area and the stage. Its free to enter. Heres the full lineup: SAVORY FOODS Chubby Plant - vegan soul food El Guero - Guadalajaran Galileos Pizzeria - Neapolitan-style pizza Jan Parker Cookery - seasonal Filipino Jumpin Jambalaya - Cajun and Creole Kaurs Kitchen - Northern Indian Lumpia Love - Filipino Lenox - Nuyorican and Afro-Latin Ricos Fast Food - Colombian Seven Sons Kitchen - Texas-style barbecue Trini Plate - Trinidadian Chef Fabio Carratelli, who has a massive following on Instagram and TikTok as @foodwithfabio, brings Tacoma true Neapolitan-style pies with his roving Galileos Pizzeria. Kristine Sherred/ksherred@thenewstribune.com DRINKS Bobaholic Cafe - bubble tea Cafesito con Ruby - Latin-inspired coffee Infinite Goodness - fresh juice Main Squeeze - fresh lemonade with myriad flavors DESSERT Chill Paletas - fresh-fruit Caribbean ice pops Cut the Crepe - Bretagne-style buckwheat (gluten-free) crepes Hunny Bun Bakery - vegan treats Little Miss Sweets NYC - Puerto Rican and NYC specialties Mauka Shave Ice - Hawaiian shave ice Cool off with a fresh-fruit ice pop from Chill Paletas. Kristine Sherred/ksherred@thenewstribune.com MERCADO Halmoni Kimchi - mother-daughter kimchi company based in Tacoma Hot Babe Hot Sauce -Trinidadian hot stuff Jammin On The One - jarred jam in flavors like ginger-peach and mango-habanero Tickle My Sweets - Mexican chamoy candies SAVOR FEST TACOMA When: July 14, noon-5 p.m. Where: Mi Centro, 1208 S. 10th St. - lot and from L to M, Tacoma What to know: family-friendly, free to enter; live performances and kids corner, plus tons of food, drinks and treats Shaded seating available, follow instagram.com/savorfestpnw for updates Strike up the band: Missouri moves to the front of the MAGA parade Thirty-one percent of Missouri respondents to a recent poll said Donald Trumps new status as a convicted felon would make them more likely to vote for him (Ralph Freso/Getty Images). A recent national poll asked prospective voters in some states how Donald Trumps conviction on 34 felony charges would impact their choice in this years presidential race. In Missouri, 31% of the respondents said that Trumps new status as a convicted felon would make them more likely to vote for him. I had to read that section of the Emerson College poll twice. A jury determines that the former president broke the law by falsifying business records in order to pay a porn star to keep quiet about their sexual encounter, and nearly a third of the Missourians surveyed love him all the more. My first thought: This is bonkers. My next thought: This is Missouri. This is where we are now. Ever defiant. Increasingly eager to double down. No longer content to join the MAGA parade, Missouri seeks to lead it. Signs of this are everywhere. Lets start with the state attorney generals office. Under its current manager, Andrew Bailey, Missouri has sought unsuccessfully to intervene in the U.S. Supreme Court case challenging the use of an abortion drug. It has sued President Joe Bidens administration multiple times. Bailey sued Media Matters, a progressive watchdog group, for, well, doing its job. He just lost a case in the U.S. Supreme Court having to do with the Biden administrations attempts to push back against misinformation on social media platforms. Its difficult to keep track of Baileys frenetic filings. Look for wild lawsuits against Democratic officials or in support of right-wing heroes like Elon Musk and chances are youll find Missouri leading the charge. There are other indicators of the states crazy-right tilt. Missouris delegation in the U.S. Congress was rated the second most partisan in the nation, right behind Alabama, by the Lugar Center at Georgetown University. The ranking is based on the number of bipartisan bills a lawmaker sponsors, and how many cosponsors sign on. Another study placed Missouri in the top five among the states whose legislators have joined at least one far-right Facebook group. And can we talk about the Republican primary campaigns currently underway for state offices? Bailey, who was appointed to his office as attorney general two years ago and is seeking election for the first time, is not even the Trumpiest candidate in the race. That would be his primary opponent, Will Scharf, who cut his teeth in Missouri politics as policy director for disgraced former Gov. Eric Greitens. Apparently fond of disreputable leaders, Scharf is now a personal attorney for Trump. After last weeks U.S. Supreme Court ruling granting presidents legal immunity for anything they do under the broad umbrella of official duties, Scharf told CNN that Trumps scheme to reverse the results of the 2020 election by creating slates of alternate electors from battleground states was indeed an official act. Scharf then made his way to Missouri, where he pledged at a rally in Springfield to investigate corrupt agencies in state government, starting with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. In the race for secretary of state, Republican candidate Valentina Gomez has distinguished herself in a field of eight contenders by posting homophobic videos. And who knows what well see in the final weeks of the GOP primary for governor, as the right-wing provocateur Bill Eigel attempts to close a gap with Jay Ashcroft and Mike Kehoe. I should point out that right-wing extremism isnt exactly new in Missouri. It is, in fact, more the norm than the exception. Throughout its history, the state has been the launching pad for numerous white supremacist and anti-government movements. The Minutemen and CSA (The Covenant, the Sword and the Arm of the Lord) are two of the more memorable ones. More recently, a bust of Rush Limbaugh sits proudly in the state Capitol. Mark and Patricia McCloskey became instant celebrities for waving firearms at Black Lives Matter protesters. And remember the fist pump. A news photo of U.S. Sen. Josh Hawleys salute to the roiling crowd outside of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, shocked some of the people who had voted for him. They predicted it would end his career. It didnt. Hawley had the photo reproduced on coffee mugs. Thats the current state of Missouri in ceramic. Defiant and doubling down. The Emerson Poll, which gauged Missourians reaction to Trumps felony charges, asked the same question of voters in battleground states, and received a milder response. In Minnesota, 15% of voters said they would be more likely to vote for Trump after his conviction. In Arizona, the response was 25%. The state that came closest to Missouris 31% was Pennsylvania, where 29% of the people surveyed said they were more likely to elect the former president as a result of his legal troubles. Missouri, of course, is no longer a battleground state in national politics. But we do love to show the rest of the nation that we know how to fight. The post Strike up the band: Missouri moves to the front of the MAGA parade appeared first on Missouri Independent. Students scoff at a school cellphone ban. Until they really begin to think about it William Schnider, a 17-year-old rising senior at Van Nuys High School, is against the upcoming cellphone ban in Los Angeles schools but says he understands why it is going to be enacted. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) Since William Schnider got his first iPhone in sixth grade, it's become an extension of his very being. By day it's nestled in his right pants pocket; by night it's within arm's reach. He rarely talks to people on his phone, instead communicating via Instagram groups, TikTok memes and texts. He syncs his calendar to his parents' phones. So when William, a 17-year-old rising senior at Van Nuys High School, learned that cellphones would be banned across L.A. public schools, he instantly scoffed like so many others. "I don't see how it will work," he said. "I don't see how it's fair. Is this necessary?" Yet after the initial shock and an absolute "no" is voiced by many teenage students, more nuanced thoughts emerge: Maybe we are falling into social media and cellphone addiction. Maybe all the distractions and the obsession with "likes" are bad for us. Maybe we need some relief. William Schnider is in the Van Nuys High School medical careers magnet program. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times) The Board of Education's 5-2 decision to ban cellphones by January 2025 aims to change the behavior of a generation of students and will be one of the most consequential and closely watched shifts in schooling since students were forced to go to class online many by phone more than four years ago at the onset of the pandemic. Details, such as how the rule will be enforced and where the phones will be stored during the schoolday, will be worked out in the coming months. But the goals are clear. School leaders say they want to combat classroom distractions that are impeding learning and to reduce the dangers of social media addiction. At this point, the leaders say, a strict phone ban is the only way to get students to talk to one another and their teachers and come to value face-to-face conversations over digital connections. Read more: LAUSD approves cellphone ban as Newsom calls for statewide action "I understand the intention of the ban," said Schnider, who is in a medical careers magnet program and wants to become a physical therapist or physician's assistant. "I definitely think phones can be addicting or distracting. It can be really easy to just hyper-analyze what you are putting out on social media. People I fall into that trap really easily. They start to base their self-worth on how many likes they get on their stories, how much their friends are commenting, things that aren't that consequential." He's caught himself endlessly scrolling on Instagram or repeatedly checking how many people liked a story he posted recently of him and a friend on an outing to see "Inside Out 2." He's seen students in class turning to their phones when math instruction gets challenging. He's also enjoyed finishing his assignments early during English and then playing the word game Connections with friends with no teacher objection. Students with good grades like him, he said, don't need a phone ban. When two students were stabbed on campus in November and the school went on lockdown, William texted his mom to say he was safe. He wonders how emergencies will work without that option. "For people with problems, this won't stop any addiction," Schnider said. "If you want to be addicted to your phone, you will be." Los Angeles will join a growing movement in K-12 education to ban phones and has won the support of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has endorsed a bill to make such a rule to go statewide. Last year, Florida passed a policy to bar student cellphones from all K-12 classrooms. A similar law will go into effect in Indiana next year. In Ohio, new legislation will force schools to devise policies to "minimize students' use" of cellphones. New York City, the nation's largest school district, is poised to introduce a student cellphone ban this month that's similar to the one in Los Angeles, after dropping a prior ban in 2015. For Angelica Zamora-Reyes, 17, a rising senior at Downtown Magnets High School, the ban can't come soon enough. She was among the dozens of L.A students who were interviewed by The Times and expressed relief. When her parents gave her an iPhone as a birthday gift three years ago, Angelica was excited because she was one of the last in her group of friends to get one. Over time, she came to see the pros and cons of digital devices. Angelica Zamora-Reyes, 17, pictured using her iPhone at her Los Angeles home on July 2, 2024, will be a senior this fall at Downtown Magnets High School. She supports a coming school district policy to ban students from having cellphones during the day. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times) When Angelica took the public bus to an internship this summer, she texted her parents along the route to let them know she was safe. She has an Instagram account to connect with friends and watches YouTube videos, including campus tours and vlogs of students at USC and Harvard, her dream colleges. She also views online math video tutorials on Khan Academy. Through her phone, Angelica, who lives near Historic Filipinotown and is the daughter of Mexican immigrants, found new ways to learn and expand her world beyond her corner of urban Los Angeles. But she also saw the pitfalls of cellphones. Girls in her school can be "obsessed" with social media, comparing their clothes, weight and followings to other teens', she said. She recently looked at her screen time monitor 2.5 hours by the afternoon on a late Thursday in June and felt accomplished, contrasting herself to a cousin whose daily use was several times that number. Angelica tries to keep her phone in her backpack side pocket during the schoolday. But even if she avoids using it, she gets distracted by other students on theirs. She remembers an incident last year when an Advanced Placement class teacher gave instructions for an assignment but she could barely hear it over loud, ongoing laughter from two classmates engrossed in their phones. "It was not just distracting but it felt disrespectful to the teacher and to any other student," Angelica said. She recalls wishing that all classes were like AP English, where her teacher banned phone use during class. By the last semester of her senior year, she'll get that wish. Read more: Too much screen time harms children, experts agree. So why do parents ignore them? But thinking it over, she also has questions. Could she take out her phone to take photos of friends at lunch, as she often did last school year? Could she still use her phone occasionally in class to snap shots of the whiteboard instead of taking notes? Under the approved ban, the answer is no. However, L.A. school officials said students will be included in the rule making and enforcement policies that will come before the school board in the fall. "As much as it would be good if phones were banned, I see the positives of having them," Angelica said. When another student at her school, Noreen Baig, first found out about the ban from an Instagram post her mom sent via cellphone she thought it was a hoax. "A widespread ban is not OK," the 11th grader said. Some of her classes already ban phones. She also worries about emergencies. Her school had several lockdowns last year; each time, she texted her mom to check in. "Are all of us from one class supposed to now rush to the office to make a phone call?" Baig said. She also uses social media to find out when and where school clubs are meeting. During lunch, she finds her friends in the cafeteria through Instagram messaging. "My phone is a part of me," Baig said. "LAUSD is trying to solve a small issue by taking away technology for everyone." To many students, the reality of what a cellphone ban will mean is hard to grasp. But not for A Quindel Peral, a rising eighth grader at Mark Twain Middle School. Her mother, an algebra and data science teacher at Venice High School, was part of a team of teachers that initiated a school-wide phone-free program in March. A wears a Gabb watch to school, a simpler version of an Apple Watch that's designed to have limited functions GPS and texting among them so parents can keep in touch with kids. At home, A has access to a Wi-Fi-enabled iPad that she uses to text friends and play chess and Wordle. A Quindel Peral will be in the eighth grade this fall at Mark Twain Middle School. Pictured in her home in Mar Vista, she supports the LAUSD cellphone ban. (Wally Skalij / Los Angeles Times) She's just one of two people in her group of middle-school friends without a phone. At first, A felt left out, even angry. Her parents say she'll get a phone when she starts high school, by which point the schoolday ban policy will be in place. But going to school without a phone, A noticed she acted differently than other students. She was able to focus better and longer on assignments and reading. She noticed some classmates would hide their phones behind books during class, pretending to read while actually texting and scrolling. With the encouragement of her mom, she began learning more about teens and technology. "Kids right now are in their critical growth era, basically. They're in a time in their lives when their brain is growing a lot. They're more susceptible to peer pressure," she said. "It's really important that we not abuse the power phones give us. It really just depends on how you are using it." Still, she's looking forward to having a cellphone when the time comes. She's just not counting down to it the way she used to. 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 PHOTO: View of PfizerOs new respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine Abrysvo during its manufacture By Christy Santhosh (Reuters) - Pfizer's respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine for pregnant women was not tied to a higher risk of pre-term or early births, according to a study published on Monday that analyzed real-world use of the shots. The vaccine Abrysvo was approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration last year for women in their second or third trimesters of pregnancy to prevent infections tied to RSV in babies in the first six months after birth. However, some experts had raised concerns over a higher number of pre-term births among participants taking the Pfizer shot compared to those who received a placebo in the company's clinical trial. Researchers from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York conducted the retrospective study in women who were 24 to 36 weeks into pregnancy, and found no significant statistical difference between the vaccinated women's pre-term birth rate of 5.9% compared with unvaccinated women's 6.7%. Health regulators however recommended a narrower gestational window, said Annette Regan, from the University of San Francisco's School of Nursing and Health Professions, in an editorial accompanying the study. "Despite the need for further research and surveillance, results from this study should offer initial reassurance to regulators, policymakers, health care professionals, and pregnant patients," Regan wrote in the article published in JAMA. In most of the continental U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommend the vaccine for women who are 32 to 36 weeks pregnant between September and January. The study analyzed electronic health records of women across two New York City hospitals who gave birth between September last year to late January. RSV leads to the hospitalization of about 58,000 to 80,000 children younger than 5 years annually. Pfizer's vaccine is the only maternal RSV shot approved in the US. The vaccine, along with rivals by GSK and Moderna, is also approved for older adults. (Reporting by Christy Santhosh in Bengaluru; Editing by Vijay Kishore) BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- A special ceremony was held in Brunei on Sunday to honour babies born on the first day of Muharram, the first month in the Islamic calendar, local media reported. The first day of Muharram marks the beginning of a new year in Islamic calendar. The ceremony was held at the Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha Hospital in Brunei. Fifteen babies were born in the hospital on Sunday, consisting of nine boys and six girls, the local daily Borneo Bulletin reported on Monday. According to the Department of Economic Planning and Statistics of Brunei, the total population of the Southeast Asian country in 2023 consisted of 237,700 males (52.8 percent) and 212,800 females (47.2 percent). The sex ratio was 111.7 males for every 100 females. New study reveals disturbing effects of decision following catastrophic train crash: 'I didn't expect to see an impact this far out' Pollution following a train derailment near the Ohio-Pennsylvania border spread carcinogens to 16 states, The Washington Post reported. What happened? The publication explained that in February 2023, a train experienced mechanical issues near East Palestine, Ohio, and more than 50 cars derailed. Some of the cars were carrying hazardous materials, including vinyl chloride, a known human carcinogen. Officials authorized a controlled burn of these hazardous materials to prevent an explosion but as the vinyl chloride burned, it broke down into chloride and hydrogen ions. Those ions then got carried by wind to other areas. Now, a study has revealed that the pollutants spread much farther than previously thought, reaching 16 states and affecting a 540,000-square-mile area. The report said that the toxic chemicals "rained down" throughout the affected area, including in Wisconsin and South Carolina. "I didn't expect to see an impact this far out," lead author David Gay told the Post. "There's more going on here than most people would have guessed, including me." Why is this study concerning? In the area immediately surrounding the accident including East Palestine, where around 5,000 people reside citizens reported symptoms such as rashes, nausea, and headaches. The researchers told the Post that while people farther away experienced lower concentrations of contaminants, the levels were still "pretty unusual." Juliane Beier, an expert on the effects of vinyl chloride at the University of Pittsburgh, who was not involved in the study, told the Post that people should still be concerned, as scientists do not yet know the long-term impacts of these kinds of environmental exposures. Plus, the contaminants, which fell in rain and settled into soil, could run off, affecting plant and animal life. What's being done about harmful pollutants? There are a number of programs across the country that monitor for harmful pollutants. For instance, this study was facilitated by data that is routinely collected through the National Atmospheric Deposition Program at the University of WisconsinMadison. The program collects information from 260 sites across North America each week. Gay, who serves as the coordinator, uses the information to monitor air pollutants. While it's impossible to avoid all environmental pollutants, there are things you can do to reduce their impact on your health. For instance, to protect yourself from outdoor air pollution, you can buy an air cleaner or purifier or a HEPA filter. You should also regularly check the air pollution levels in your area and reduce your time outside if the air quality is not good. Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet. Summer Crisis Program open to residents at or below 175 percent of Federal Poverty level The Ohio Department of Development and Community Action Wayne/Medina offer assistance to help Ohios families stay cool during hot summer months. Through Sept. 30, income-eligible Ohioans can receive assistance in paying an electric bill, purchasing an air conditioner or fan or making repairs to a central air conditioning unit through the Ohio Department of Developments Home Energy Assistance Summer Crisis Program. The Summer Crisis Program assists low-income households or those who have a disconnection notice, have been shut off, are trying to establish new service on an electric bill, require air conditioning or those with an elderly household member (60 years or older) who can provide physician documentation that cooling assistance is needed for their health. Qualifying medical conditions can include lung disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, asthma and others. Through Sept. 30, income-eligible Ohioans can receive assistance in paying an electric bill, purchasing an air conditioner or fan or making repairs to a central air conditioning unit with state assistance. To qualify, Ohioans must have a gross income at or below 175 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines for a family of up to seven members, and 60 percent of the State Median Income for a family of eight or more members. For a family of four, the annual income must be at or below $54,600. Last year, the Summer Crisis Program assisted more than 44,000 households in Ohio, providing a total of $13.4 million in benefits. To apply, clients are required to schedule an appointment with Community Action Wayne/Medina. Appointments can be scheduled by calling 330-461-9333 or online by visiting https://app.capappointments.com. Clients need to take copies of the following documents to the appointment: Copies of most recent energy bills. A list of all household members and proof of income for the last 30 days or 12 months for each member. Proof of U.S. citizenship or legal residency for all household members. Proof of disability (if applicable). Physician documentation that cooling assistance is needed for a household members health (if there isnt a household member over the age of 60). Ohioans enrolled in the Percentage of Income Payment Plan Plus (PIPP) program who meet the above criteria also may be eligible for assistance toward their default PIPP payment, first PIPP payment, central air conditioning repairs, or may receive an air conditioning unit and/or fan. For more information about the Summer Crisis Program, and what is needed to apply, contact Community Action Wayne/Medina at 330-264-8677. To be connected to a local Energy Assistance Provider visit www.energyhelp.ohio.gov or call 800-282-0880. This article originally appeared on The Daily Record: Summer Crisis Program in Wayne County runs through Sept. 30 Video above: Santa Teresa residents speak out about water issues in January 2024. UPDATE: The board meeting for CRRUA for Monday, July 8, has been canceled, according to the utilitys website. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) Sunland Park and Santa Teresa residents will be gathering at the Camino Real Regional Utility Authority (CRRUA) board meeting on Monday, July 8, to protest ongoing water quality issues and rate increases, according to a press release from the Empowerment Congress of Dona Ana County. The press release says many residents have experienced yellow and brown water and the CRRUA has acknowledged arsenic levels that exceeded federal standards. Residents will be calling for immediate action from the CRRUA and will demand the following: The CRRUA must provide arsenic testing strips for all households, allowing residents to independently test their water. The CRRUA must supply clean third-party water to residents for a minimum of six months to compensate for the contaminated water that was previously supplied. A freeze on water rate increases for the next four years, effective from July 1. CRRUA has acknowledged arsenic levels exceeding federal standards, yet their communication has often downplayed the severity, instructing residents that no immediate action is needed. This dismissive attitude towards our health and well-being is unacceptable. The lack of transparency from CRRUA exacerbates these issues, the press release said. CRRUA, which serves Sunland Park and Santa Teresa, last increased its rates in 2019. That year, its board voted to phase in rate increases for water and wastewater service over four years, but the new rates were never implemented. On May 13 of this year, the utilitys board voted to implement new rates starting on July 1. The utility said the rate increases were needed to keep up with inflation, do maintenance on its systems and hire qualified staff members, whose current pay is below market rates for several positions. Monthly residential water rates will increase from $15 to $17.83 for the first 3,000 gallons. Residential wastewater rates will increase from $20.62 to $27 for the first 7,000 gallons. Water and wastewater rates for commercial, industrial, institutional and bulk users will also increase, according to the utility. For commercial users, water rates, for instance, are increasing from $50 to $53.07 for the first 3,000 gallons and from $77.08 to $81.51 for wastewater service for the first 7,000 gallons. CRRUA also reports that the number of calls it receives from customers for discolored water are down 100% since February 2024, when CRRUA began tracking the calls. CRRUA Executive Director Juan Crosby said the number of discolored water calls went from 28 in February when tracking began to zero in June, a decline of 100% in just five months. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Voting stations in the Warner Town Hall on Tuesday, Sept. 13, 2022. (Dana Wormald | New Hampshire Bulletin) New Hampshire cities and towns will be required to provide accessible voting machines for all elections after January 2025, according to a bill signed into law by Gov. Chris Sununu this month. House Bill 1264, signed by Sununu July 3, states that every municipality must ensure that each polling place has at least one accessible voting system during every election. And it creates a pilot program requiring the Secretary of States Office to share those machines with towns and cities in spring 2025. Now those of us with vision and print disabilities will be able to vote independently and keep our votes private like everyone else, said Jean Shriner, an activist, in a statement reacting to the signing Friday. For me, as a blind person, its empowering and exciting. Currently, the Secretary of States Office provides accessible voting machines to cities and towns only during federal elections as required by federal law. That includes the September state primaries, the November general elections, and the presidential primaries. But the state does not provide the machines to cities and towns for other elections, such as town meetings. And only two New Hampshire municipalities Concord and Exeter currently own such machines for those elections. Both municipalities purchased the machines only after residents threatened to bring legal action against them using the Americans with Disabilities Act. The machines are tablets connected to keyboards and headphones that allow those with sight, hearing, or other disabilities to cast ballots without needing to tell a local official their vote. Voters can use the headphones to have an automated voice read the candidate names and allow them to select their choices, and they can use the tablets to accurately select the right candidates. The machines then print out a ballot with the bubbles of the selected candidates filled in; that ballot can be added to a voting tabulator with all others. Advocates for the bills, who include people with disabilities, said that when it came to the availability of machines, the lack of consistency between federal and non-federal elections was unfair. Even though the state owns the machines used in federal elections, Secretary of State Dave Scanlan has argued that programming them and lending them out for each town election would not be feasible. The issue recently caught the attention of the U.S. Department of Justice; in 2018, the federal agency began investigating the city of Concord for its failure to provide the machines, prompting the city to buy the machine in a settlement. Supporters of HB 1264 said it was only a matter of time before more lawsuits forced other towns and cities to do the same. The bill creates a pilot program by which the Secretary of States Office must share the machines it has with cities and towns for the first six months of 2025 town meeting season. That will allow municipalities to use the states machines during a year in which there are no other statewide elections, eliminating Scanlans concerns about reprogramming the machines in time, supporters say. Lawmakers are then hoping to secure state money in the next two-year budget in 2025 in order to help towns purchase the machines themselves. The secret ballot is a fundamental part of ensuring a strong democracy, said Rep. Mark Paige, an Exeter Democrat and the bills prime sponsor, in a statement reacting to the bill signing. This bill sends the message that discriminating against voters with disabilities in local elections will no longer be tolerated. Corrections & Clarifications: A previous version of this article incorrectly indicated a Bremerton City Council public hearing scheduled for July 24, when the council discusses amending an ordinance on unauthorized camping. There will be a meeting, but no public hearing. Bremerton watched on as a large homeless encampment grew month over month on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Way during the summer of 2023, where campers pitched tents and tarps next to one another behind the Salvation Army and where garbage and drug paraphernalia would sometimes fall. Service providers and law enforcement frequented the area while neighbors called on the city for solutions to clear the streets. Now, a ruling from the Supreme Court of the United States issued last week has given local governments the power to ensure they never see an encampment like MLK Jr. Way again. For Bremerton, that assurance also means its homeless population could face arrest for sleeping outside if a new shelter isnt erected by the time the Salvation Army closes its overnight shelter next spring. The Supreme Court on June 28 upheld a camping ban from Grants Pass, Oregon, with a 6-to-3 vote split along ideological lines. The decision overturned the United States Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuits previous decision in 2021 and unraveled protections provided by the same court in its 2019 ruling on Martin vs. Boise, which prohibited cities and counties from enforcing their anti-camping laws if no shelter space was available. That precedent had prevented the City of Bremerton from sweeping its growing encampments until November 1, 2023 when the Salvation Army reopened its 75-bed overnight shelter. The Supreme Court found that the bans set in place by Grants Pass did not violate the Eighth Amendments prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment, ruling opposite to the Ninth Circuit that sided with the six homeless people who sued the City of Boise on the same basis. Grants Pass argued in its appeal to the Supreme Court that public-camping laws are a critical (and constitutional) backstop as cities attempt to stop the growth of encampments and start to make progress on the underlying causes of homelessness. In his opinion for the conservative majority, Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote that federal judges will not decide for individual jurisdictions how they should address their homelessness crises. While it is unclear how cities across Washington State will apply the protections of the ruling to their own policies, the Grants Pass decision has inspired new legislation in Bremerton. Outlawed camping with no requirement of shelter Bremertons camping ordinance, passed by the City Council in September, made it a gross misdemeanor to camp without authorization on public property, like sidewalks. But the ordinance suspends the citys ability to enforce the camping ban when there is no available shelter, naming Martin v. Boise and appellate courts ruling on Grants Pass v. Johnson itself as a legal predicate. Now, Bremerton Mayor Greg Wheeler is working with his administration to draft a replacement ordinance to remove the provision of available shelter. We cannot go back to where we were last summer. We cannot have our streets be so overtaken, our small businesses in our neighborhoods, their safety be compromised, Wheeler said. We already know that when we had camping on our streets, we had overdoses, we had assaults. It was essentially lawless. Wheeler said he wants a low-barrier shelter option in the city and to be able to show compassion for the citys homeless population, but that his highest priority is keeping our community safe by keeping public spaces open and allowing small businesses to thrive. Wheeler will propose the new ordinance to the council on July 24. If it passes in August, the city will be able to punish homeless campers for sleeping outside whether or not there is shelter space available. Council president Jennifer Chamberlin believes personally that you can't regulate people out of homelessness. We need more services, diverse resources, and compassionate strategies, but is committed to act as a nonpartisan voice of the community and welcomes public comment via email to the City Council. She said her decision will be weighed on public comment whether or not to adopt the ordinance. Building Bremertons next homeless shelter One key to whether homeless population could face arrest for unauthorized camping is whether the Kitsap County Affordable Housing Taskforce completes a new city next shelter in less than a year. The city council resolved in January to pass up Wheelers proposal for an approximately 100-bed low-barrier shelter and pursue a hybrid shelter from the coalition of housing and homelessness service providers that would create both a congregate 50-bed shelter and a 40 unit pallet shelter village. Wheeler said his shelter would be ready by October 2024, and worked out a deal with the Salvation Army to extend its shelter service from May 2024 to May 2025 to buy the city some time. The Kitsap Rescue Mission is set to open its 75-bed Pacific Building shelter on Mile Hill Drive in Port Orchard by October 2024 at the earliest, but plans to move many of its approximately 100 homeless guests at the Quality Inn on Kitsap Way to the new shelter first. We are not a shelter and we don't mind filling in the gaps, but at some point, it has to end, said Salvation Army Captain Dana Walters. The nonprofit must convert its day center into a shelter every night, then convert it back the next day. We're really hoping that's the spring of 2025 like everyone is expecting. The Affordable Housing Taskforce originally told the council in January that it planned to complete both its congregate and pallet shelters by October 2024, adhering to the same timeline as Wheeler's now-moot shelter proposal. Now, its timeline has become more elusive. For whatever reason that (homeless people) are living on the streets, whether that's trauma, mental health, drug addiction, those are all difficult places to be and no easy answers, Walters said. It would be great if there was somewhere to go, but we've just not been prepared, or we have just not taken care of this as we should have. I don't think anybody saw the level of homelessness that this country's in, coming down the pike. A property in East Bremerton known as the SwingSetMall was originally eyed as a potential site for the hybrid shelter. After the asking price became more than the Affordable Housing Taskforce could offer, the taskforce is left without a definitive site. It has been working hard to identify a new one, said Bremerton Housing Authority Executive Director Jill Stanton. Stanton could not share the location of any prospective sites, nor a rough date that the shelter would be completed by. But she said the taskforce has been making headway, providing almost 150 housing choice voucher referrals to move along the continuum of housing into specialized shelters with full waitlists, drug treatment facilities or transitional housing. The taskforce also faced delays when it discovered the citys temporary encampment code needed to be amended to accommodate its long term shelter. The citys planning commission recommended the City Council approve the amendments during its July 3 meeting. For the housing authority, we certainly believe that our whole community is safer when our community is housed, so we have a sense of urgency not necessarily tied to (the unauthorized camping) ordinance, Stanton said. This decision doesn't change our urgency to be a part of this project and to get it done. The taskforces goal has always been to complete the hybrid shelter before the Salvation Army closes its shelter function, Stanton said. She believes theyre on track to be finished by May 2025. But as a result of the Grants Pass decision, we're fearful that all those plans are just going to go to the wayside because now they don't have to provide shelter, said Dawn Michele Wilson of Rock the Block, a community-based homeless service provider. She worries the decision has stripped the city of its incentive to invest in the shelter project, opting instead to focus its energy on outlawing camping. There are now 255 unsheltered homeless people in Kitsap County, with 51% of those living in Bremerton, according to the 2024 Point in Time Count. The Kitsap Sun reported in April that it takes time for service providers to connect unhoused people with shelter and services. Kitsap Countys HEART team made 37 successful shelter connections from 286 site visits (a 13% success rate), according to its 2023 year end review. Homeless people may be reluctant to enter a low barrier shelter for many reasons, some being mental health barriers, having pets, addiction issues, fear for safety and comfort and simply not wanting to comply with rules. As far as cities and counties and neighborhoods, I'm glad they have a way to preserve places for kids and parks and safe places where other people in society live, Walters said, but people need shelter, and they need diverse options within that. There's just such a vast variety of needs that I don't think there's a one size fits all. Enforcement is a guarantee, even if shelter isnt I still will enforce this anti-camping law, Wheeler said, whether the Affordable Housing Taskforce is finished with its shelter by next spring or not. While the future of the hybrid shelter remains shrouded, the enforcement of the city's unauthorized camping ordinance and its impact on unsheltered people is the only certainty, Wilson fears. Looking at a future where the Grants Pass decision is the law of the land, Wilson calls on the past to tell her that enforcement will only push people further from resources they need to survive. She recalled the homeless people she was working with on MLK Jr. Way that fled deep out in the woods when the encampment was cleared in November, or when a smaller encampment off Highway 303 by Brownsville Highway NE was cleared on June 17 and she helped campers relocate to Matlock in Mason County. Many campers living at the Hospital Hill encampment near St. Michael Medical Center also relocated to other campsites in Silverdale after the area was cleared in March. Some of the unsheltered homeless people Wilson works with are talking about relocating to remote Department of Natural Resources (DNR) land where camping is permitted, she said, but the problem that we have is not all of our people are survivalists. They're not meant to be camping in the middle of the woods away from resources like that. They don't know how to fend for themselves. Some of them are severely mentally ill, and the jail won't take them. There are no homeless encampments on public county land at present, though there are a few small encampments on private properties and about 15 to 20 throughout Silverdale who are moving from spot to spot every night or couch surfing, said Kitsap County Sheriffs Office deputy David Wolner, who has been partnering with the HEART team to resolve encampments. He will continue to follow HEART policy to resolve encampments and doesnt expect the Grants pass decision will change their enforcement right away. It's a passionate policy, Wolner said. It's been effective so far, and until we hear something different from either our command or from the prosecutors, we don't have any plans to change it. Wheeler also assured that Commonstreet Consulting, a Seattle-based firm, is providing connections to homeless and housing resources while also enforcing the citys camping ban without a badge or a gun. We must have accountability, but also at the same time, Commonstreet allows us to have compassion, he said. Commonstreet could not be reached for comment on its current enforcement of the anti-camping law or future enforcement respective to the Grants Pass decision. The Bremerton Police Department has made a number of arrests for unauthorized camping in the city in the last few months, though it had not made any for at least over six months since the anti-camping ban was passed, Captain Aaron Elton told the Kitsap Sun in an email, though he did not specify the number of arrests. The constant outreach and warnings continue, but some people are not taking the outreach efforts that are being made frequently, and they are not using the shelter we have, Elton said of the arrests. Some of those people habitually violate the camping/storage ordinance, obstruct the sidewalks, and violate other laws (such as trespassing). In the wake of the Supreme Courts decision, Wolner also looked toward the homeless population who have consistently rejected shelter provisions. Speaking personally, he said it's getting to the point with the people who don't want services that the advantage of the Grants Pass decision might be that, for the ones that don't want shelters don't want what we have to offer, there's less of an ability for them to abuse the system just because they want to stay outside and be comfortable. Wheeler will bring his proposed anti-camping ordinance before the City Council on July 24 to be heard in a study session. There will be no opportunity for public comment on July 24, but the Council is set to vote on the proposal August 7 during a regular council meeting where members of the community will be able to comment. This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Grants Pass ruling informs Bremerton homelessness response The U.S. Supreme Court is seen in Washington, D.C., on June 26. The court ruled last week that presidents are immune from prosecution for official acts and executing their constitutional powers. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI. July 8 (UPI) -- The U.S. Supreme Court's decision to at least partially affirm former President Donald Trump's claim of presidential immunity has broadened the scope of presidential power and limited paths to accountability, legal experts say. Chief Justice John Roberts wrote in the majority opinion last week that a president is absolutely immune when executing his core constitutional powers and enjoys the presumption of immunity when performing official acts. The high court said it would not define what official and unofficial acts are at this time but it laid out 10 pages of guidance for lower courts to consider when they revisit the issue. A presumption of immunity puts the onus on prosecutors to prove that a president's actions are not official when seeking a criminal conviction. President Joe Biden has been joined by legal scholars and constitutional experts in sounding the alarm on what the repercussions of this decision could be, even beyond Trump. Redefining presidential immunity President Joe Biden delivers remarks on the U.S. Supreme Court's presidential Immunity ruling for the Trump vs. United States case at the White House on July 1 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Samuel Corum/UPI David S. Weinstein, an attorney with Jones Walker in Miami and former federal prosecutor in the Southern District of Florida, told UPI that the ruling broadly expands presidential power. "A landmark decision that impacts not only the former president but also future presidents," he said. "It really reshapes the democracy we've been used to for over 200 years." Protestors hold up signs outside of the US Supreme Court prior to the courts decision to grant former President Donald Trump limited immunity in his Jan. 6 insurrection case at the U.S. Supreme Court on July 1 in Washington D.C. Photo by Jemal Countess/UPI Weinstein explained that the court's interpretation of presidential immunity severely limits the legal recourse that can be taken against a president who engages in unlawful behavior. It also opens the door for some otherwise unthinkable actions. One hypothetical question that was asked when the issue of Trump's immunity was raised in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals has become more valid, Weinstein said. Judge Florence Pan asked Trump's attorney, John Sauer, whether a president could order SEAL Team 6 to assassinate a political rival. Pan said a president giving orders to armed service members would be considered an official act. Former President Donald Trump stands on the stage during a break in the CNN presidential election debate against President Joe Biden in Atlanta on June 27. Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/UPI Sauer responded with a "qualified yes." Weinstein said that while he hopes this type of incident will never happen in the United States, Roberts' opinion suggests a president could be considered immune for taking these actions. "I have to hope the moral compass of this country, despite who's leading, is something that would stop that from happening," he said. "As a hypothetical, it's a valid hypothetical." Justin Crowe, professor of leadership students and political science at Williams College in Williamstown, Mass., said that the Supreme Court's reaction to this hypothetical has raised some eyebrows, particularly when Justice Samuel Alito laughed off the notion. "Not to get into the realm of dystopian fiction but this is the kind of scenario that the court has done nothing to set aside," Crowe said. "That seems stunning that a president couldn't face prosecution for that. Maybe if the court gets another bite at the apple maybe the court would specify certain things outside the bounds of immunity. Right now, this decision doesn't make clear what those circumstances would be." Opening the door to 'rogue presidents' Stephen Wermiel, professor of practice of law at American University's Washington College of Law, explained why immunity is important to the office of the president. The logic behind the Supreme Court's ruling was likely to ensure that a president has the ability to carry out his duties without fear of litigation. While there is no guarantee that a president will abuse this power, it opens the possibility that one could be emboldened to do just that. "The immunity ruling opens up the possibility of rogue presidents engaging in conduct that we would view as unconstitutional, unlawful, beyond any reasonable sense of conscience," Wermiel told UPI. "The opinion doesn't provide that accountability or say how it would work." Wermiel takes some solace in knowing that Congress and the judicial system still stand as potential checks and balances to a "rogue president" though their tools could be limited by the Supreme Court. He also said the high court could clarify its ruling in the future. Crowe is similarly concerned about how insulating a president from responsibility could have harmful effects on democracy. "We can't, as a republic, rely on only noble citizens pursuing public office. We have to assume people are going to come along and seek to do bad things," he said. "People that are not going to have the public's interest at heart. So part of the logic of the founders, the genius of American government, is it's set up in a way that doesn't assume everyone who comes into office is going to seek to do good things." "Once you set things aside, as the president is no longer reviewable by the criminal process and undermine those checks, all it takes is one president who is going to exploit that leniency and leeway the court has given here for our democracy to look quite different," he continued. Lower courts have been skeptical of Trump's claims for broad immunity, leading to the Supreme Court opinion. It is likely the high court will face this again, but first U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan will have the opportunity to weigh in. It will be up to her to first parse what constitutes an official act. Crowe remains skeptical that many of the acts Trump is accused of would be considered official duties of the office of the president. "It's hard to imagine, for me, how calling state officials and pressuring them to find votes or encouraging them to send false slates of electors or pressuring Vice President [Mike] Pence to engage in some sort of dilatory technique -- it's hard for me to see how those things are part of the president's official acts," Crowe said. "It's not tied to any presidential power. They're not processes in which a president traditionally has a role. The president does not have the power, authority or sovereignty of a king. He is an officer of the United States and a servant of the people." Crowe expects the argument to be made by Trump's attorneys that the alleged actions are in fact part of the "broad conception of presidential power." 'Broad and disturbing' While the concept of a president using their authority to assassinate political opponents is alarming, Wermiel said it is more likely they could discuss and engage in other illegal activities without facing prosecution. This concerns him more. "You could imagine a president exploring different ideas, different modes of conduct with a sitting attorney general that might be illegal or on the cusp and not worrying about it in the least because the president would have absolute immunity," Wemiel said. "That just seems broad and disturbing to me." The question of Trump's presidential immunity arises from the case against him in Washington, where he faces charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, witness tampering, conspiracy against the rights of citizens and obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding. These stem from his alleged attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election and his role in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the Capitol. The presidential immunity decision could have broader implications on the other cases against the former president as well. This includes the 34 felony convictions he already faces. Roberts wrote that courts "may not inquire into the president's motives." The felony fraud case against Trump in Manhattan leaned on days of testimony from star witnesses former attorney Michael Cohen and adult film actress Stormy Daniels to establish the former president's motive for falsifying business documents. Though most of the crimes Trump was convicted of relate to his actions before he was president, there was evidence retrieved from his time in office. The high court's decision brings into question whether that evidence can be used against him. Judge Juan Merchan postponed Trump's sentencing in Manhattan until Sept. 18. It was originally set for next Thursday. "Whether official conduct can be admitted into evidence -- that seemed to go beyond what the court needed to decide," Wermiel said. Typically when the Supreme Court issues its opinions, justices refrain from weighing in on issues outside of the ones in front of them. That was not the case in Monday's opinions. Justice Clarence Thomas, in an adjoining opinion, said the appointment of special counsel Jack Smith was improper and that his prosecution cannot proceed. "A private citizen cannot criminally prosecute anyone, let alone a former President," Thomas wrote. This is an issue Trump's attorneys have raised to Judge Aileen Cannon in the classified documents case in Florida. "He just wrote Judge Cannon's decision for her," Wermiel said of Thomas. "This seemed particularly inappropriate. This, to me, was him sticking his thumb in the eye of those who suggest he should recuse himself. Not only is he not recusing, he's going out of his way to undertake commentary on an issue that isn't even directly part of this case and that is an issue that Trump is litigating in other courts." The appointment of a special counsel, or special prosecutor, is not uncommon. It has been common practice in cases that present some type of conflict of interest for the typical means of prosecution. The Trump administration appointed a special counsel twice. Attorney General Merrick Garland also appointed a special counsel in the gun charges case against the president's son, Hunter Biden. The Supreme Courts stunning ruling giving presidents immunity from prosecution for official acts raises serious questions about orders issued by the commander in chief to the military, especially if those commands clearly violate U.S. or international law. A commander in chief with broad immunity from criminal prosecution would have more power and leeway in issuing controversial orders that the military is in most cases obligated to carry out, according to the chain of command. The Supreme Court ruling, which came in a case related to former President Trumps efforts to overturn the 2020 election, has sparked general fears about an abuse of power using the military, but also particular concerns about Trump, who has promised to exact revenge if he retakes the White House. While there may be legal challenges down the line, experts say the ruling does not extend immunity protections for commanders and enlisted service members who carry out the presidents orders. Victor Hansen, professor of law at the New England School of Law in Boston, explained that service members still have to adhere to legal standards even if the president does not, and said the Supreme Court ruling flips the dynamic on its head. Now you have the subordinates who have not all of the authority but all of the responsibility, said Hansen, who served a 20-year career as a military lawyer in the U.S. Army. And you have a guy at the top who has all the authority and none of the responsibility. It is, in my humble opinion, an absurd and damaging ruling, he added. The ruling decided a challenge from Trumps legal team to a case in Washington, D.C., courts related to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot and other efforts by Trump and his allies to keep power after the 2020 election. His lawyers are now arguing the ruling should apply to a separate case in Florida, where he is charged with illegally keeping classified records, including national security documents. During legal arguments in January, Trumps lawyers made the case that a president should enjoy broad immunity from criminal prosecution as a former executive, even if he were to order the assassination of a political rival using the elite SEAL Team 6. Trump attorney John Sauer told a three-judge panel at the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals that a former president can only be criminally prosecuted if he has been tried and convicted by the Senate. The argument at the time was widely panned as ridiculous; James Pearce, an attorney with special counsel Jack Smith, who is overseeing the Trump federal convictions, told the judges that Sauer had outlined a frightening future. What kind of world are we living in if a president orders his SEAL team to murder a political rival and then resigns or is not impeached that is not a crime? Pearce said at the time. Trumps arguments failed in the D.C. appellate court, leading to an appeal to the Supreme Court, which has a conservative majority after Trump appointed three lifetime-serving judges to the high bench. The high court ruled 6-3 along ideological lines July 1 to give the president absolute immunity for actions taken from core constitutional powers that are bestowed upon taking the Oval Office. U.S. Chief Justice John Roberts argued that a president is already immune from civil liabilities for actions taken while in office, and that shield should be extended to criminal prosecution to ensure the executive branch can effectively carry out its functions without fear of prosecution. But liberal judges harshly dissented. Justice Sonia Sotomayor in a scathing dissent referred to the SEAL Team 6 scenario or a commander in chief organizing a military coup, saying the Supreme Court has given the president a loaded weapon in awarding such broad immunity. Even if these nightmare scenarios never play out, and I pray they never do, the damage has been done, she wrote. The relationship between the President and the people he serves has shifted irrevocably. In every use of official power, the President is now a king above the law. Congressional Democrats also reacted with alarm after the ruling. Under this ruling, if a President, in their official capacity, orders the military to kill other Americans judges, elected officials, reporters, your neighbor they can do so, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.) said. I think most Americans, and I include myself, think that should be a crime. While a president can still be criminally prosecuted for unofficial acts, any order issued to the military is a clear official act. A U.S. service member would not enjoy the presidents same immunity, but the White House could also offer pardons for being loyal. However, a federal pardon would not apply to violations of state law. Geoffrey Corn, director of the Center for Military Law and Policy at Texas Tech University School of Law, said the most extreme scenarios, like using a Navy SEAL team to assassinate a political rival, is unlikely because a president would want to avoid obviously breaking the law, even if he faces no legal consequences. Instead, he pointed to more subtle scenarios, like when Trump tried to invoke the Insurrection Act in 2020 to quell Black Lives Matter protests with the military and National Guard. This incentivizes abuse of power. If you are the president, and you perceive no adverse criminal consequence from ordering what all of the lawyers around are saying is illegal, Corn said, and you dont really worry about political consequence because you have no fear that youre going to be removed by impeachment, whats holding you back? By turning the military into a tool to advance your political agenda, that has risk, he added. U.S. service members are obligated to carry out legal orders unless it is clearly illegal, though making that distinction has always been murky. The Pentagon and each of the military branches have attorneys with the Judge Advocate Generals Corps (JAG) for service members to consult in such cases. Pentagon press secretary Maj. Gen. Pat Ryder noted after the ruling that service members follow the Uniform Code of Military Justice, which lays out criminal law and military-specific codes, such as desertion or disobeying a superior commander. Ryder said lawyers are always available, and that does not change after the Supreme Court ruling. Thats going to enable any leader, regardless of the decision or the order that theyre contemplating, to make informed legal and ethical decisions, Ryder said at a Tuesday briefing. Aside from White House lawyers who are likely to justify a presidents decision, a higher-ranking set of lawyers, such as the Armys general counsel, may also advance controversial or illegal orders. That could conflict with JAG lawyers on the lower end of the chain of command who may see a clear illegal order, thus creating chaos across the ranks, Corn said. Ultimately, the person with the greatest risk is the commander who has to decide, Am I going to obey this order and risk my own [life] and take the risk that in the future, a new administration is going to come in and say everybody who was involved in implementing this order committed a crime? he said. Or am I going to disobey the order and take the risk that the current president is going to prosecute me for willful disobedience of an order? he added. Eugene Fidell, visiting lecturer and senior research scholar at Yale Law School, said the Supreme Court rolled the dice for future presidents and will force service members to also roll the dice. People are trained to follow orders, he said, not to resist them. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 view of the front portico of the United States Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images) A landmark Supreme Court decision that reins in federal agencies authority is expected to hold dramatic consequences for the nations health care system, calling into question government rules on anything from consumer protections for patients to drug safety to nursing home care. The June 28 decision overturns a 1984 precedent that said courts should give deference to federal agencies in legal challenges over their regulatory or scientific decisions. Instead of giving priority to agencies, courts will now exercise their own independent judgment about what Congress intended when drafting a particular law. The ruling will likely have seismic ramifications for health policy. A flood of litigation with plaintiffs like small businesses, drugmakers, and hospitals challenging regulations they say arent specified in the law could leave the country with a patchwork of disparate health regulations varying by location. Agencies such as the FDA are likely to be far more cautious in drafting regulations, Congress is expected to take more time fleshing out legislation to avoid legal challenges, and judges will be more apt to overrule current and future regulations. Health policy leaders say patients, providers, and health systems should brace for more uncertainty and less stability in the health care system. Even routine government functions such as deciding the rate to pay doctors for treating Medicare beneficiaries could become embroiled in long legal battles that disrupt patient care or strain providers to adapt. Groups that oppose a regulation could search for and secure partisan judges to roll back agency decision-making, said Andrew Twinamatsiko, director of the Health Policy and the Law Initiative at Georgetown Universitys ONeill Institute. One example could be challenges to the FDAs approval of a medication used in abortions, which survived a Supreme Court challenge this term on a technicality. Judges will be more emboldened to second-guess agencies, he said. Its going to open agencies up to attacks. Regulations are effectively the technical instructions for laws written by Congress. Federal agency staffers with knowledge related to a law say, in drugs that treat rare diseases or health care for seniors decide how to translate Congress words into action with input from industry, advocates, and the public. Up until now, when agencies issued a regulation, a single rule typically applied nationwide. Following the high court ruling, however, lawsuits filed in more than one jurisdiction could result in contradictory rulings and regulatory requirements meaning health care policies for patients, providers, or insurers could differ greatly from one area to another. One circuit may uphold a regulation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for example, while other circuits may take different views. You could have eight or nine of 11 different views of the courts, said William Buzbee, a professor at Georgetown Law. A court in one circuit could issue a nationwide injunction to enforce its interpretation while another circuit disagrees, said Maura Monaghan, a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton. Few cases are taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court, which could leave clashing directives in place for many years. In the immediate future, health policy leaders say agencies should brace for more litigation over controversial initiatives. A requirement that most Affordable Care Act health plans cover preventive services, for example, is already being litigated. Multiple challenges to the mandate could mean different coverage requirements for preventive care depending on where a consumer lives. Drugmakers have sued to try to stop the Biden administration from implementing a federal law that forces makers of the most expensive drugs to negotiate prices with Medicare a key cog in President Joe Bidens effort to lower drug prices and control health care costs. Parts of the health care industry may take on reimbursement rates for doctors that are set by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services because those specific rates arent written into law. The agency issues rules updating payment rates in Medicare, a health insurance program for people 65 or older and younger people with disabilities. Groups representing doctors and hospitals regularly flock to Washington, D.C., to lobby against trims to their payment rates. And providers, including those backed by deep-pocketed investors, have sued to block federal surprise-billing legislation. The No Surprises Act, which passed in 2020 and took effect for most people in 2022, aims to protect patients from unexpected, out-of-network medical bills, especially in emergencies. The high courts ruling is expected to spur more litigation over its implementation. This really is going to create a tectonic change in the administrative regulatory landscape, Twinamatsiko said. The approach since 1984 has created stability. When the FDA or CDC adopt regulations, they know those regulations will be respected. That has been taken back. Industry groups, including the American Hospital Association and AHIP, an insurers trade group, declined to comment. Agencies such as the FDA that take advantage of their regulatory authority to make specific decisions, such as the granting of exclusive marketing rights upon approval of a drug, will be vulnerable. The reason: Many of their decisions require discretion as opposed to being explicitly defined by federal law, said Joseph Ross, a professor of medicine and public health at Yale School of Medicine. The legislation that guides much of the work in the health space, such as FDA and CMS, is not prescriptive, he said. In fact, FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said in an episode of the Healthcare Unfiltered podcast last year that he was very worried about the disruption from judges overruling his agencys scientific decisions. The high courts ruling will be especially significant for the nations federal health agencies because their regulations are often complex, creating the opportunity for more pitched legal battles. Challenges that may not have succeeded in courts because of the deference to agencies could now find more favorable outcomes. A whole host of existing regulations could be vulnerable, said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF. Other consequences are possible. Congress may attempt to flesh out more details when drafting legislation to avoid challenges an approach that may increase partisan standoffs and slow down an already glacial pace in passing legislation, Levitt said. Agencies are expected to be far more cautious in writing regulations to be sure they dont go beyond the contours of the law. The Supreme Courts 6-3 decision overturned Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which held that courts should generally back a federal agencys statutory interpretation as long as it was reasonable. Republicans have largely praised the new ruling as necessary for ensuring agencies dont overstep their authority, while Democrats said in the aftermath of the decision that it amounts to a judicial power grab. This story was originally published by KFF Health News, a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF. Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows a recovered artifact on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) BAGHDAD, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. The recovered items include a bronze figurine and eight metal boxes containing ancient skeletons, the ministry said in a statement. These artifacts were originally smuggled from the Nimrud archaeological site in Nineveh province to Los Angeles in the 1990s. The ministry highlighted the role played by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani's visit to the United States in April for securing the return of these artifacts. The ministry also announced the return of many artifacts of different eras, which had been smuggled to countries such as Jordan, Norway, Germany, and Britain. The ministry emphasized its commitment to tracking down and reclaiming smuggled Iraqi antiquities scattered across the globe. These efforts aim to preserve this cultural heritage and prevent further tampering or vandalism. A significant number of Iraqi antiquities and archaeological sites were looted or destroyed following the 2003 U.S. invasion. People view recovered artifacts on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq, on July 8, 2024. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows recovered artifacts on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows a recovered artifact on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows a recovered artifact on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows a recovered artifact on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) Photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows recovered artifacts on display at the Iraqi Foreign Ministry in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities announced on Monday the successful repatriation of 181 smuggled artifacts from the United States and other countries. (Xinhua/Khalil Dawood) The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear a challenge to Washington state's ban on conversion therapy, which aims to change a peron's sexual orientation or gender identity. The Supreme Courts 6-3 decision overturned Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which held that courts should generally back a federal agencys statutory interpretation as long as it was reasonable. (Getty Images) A landmark Supreme Court decision that reins in federal agencies authority is expected to hold dramatic consequences for the nations health care system, calling into question government rules on anything from consumer protections for patients to drug safety to nursing home care. The June 28 decision overturns a 1984 precedent that said courts should give deference to federal agencies in legal challenges over their regulatory or scientific decisions. Instead of giving priority to agencies, courts will now exercise their own independent judgment about what Congress intended when drafting a particular law. The ruling will likely have seismic ramifications for health policy. A flood of litigation with plaintiffs like small businesses, drugmakers, and hospitals challenging regulations they say arent specified in the law could leave the country with a patchwork of disparate health regulations varying by location. Agencies such as the FDA are likely to be far more cautious in drafting regulations, Congress is expected to take more time fleshing out legislation to avoid legal challenges, and judges will be more apt to overrule current and future regulations. Health policy leaders say patients, providers, and health systems should brace for more uncertainty and less stability in the health care system. Even routine government functions such as deciding the rate to pay doctors for treating Medicare beneficiaries could become embroiled in long legal battles that disrupt patient care or strain providers to adapt. Groups that oppose a regulation could search for and secure partisan judges to roll back agency decision-making, said Andrew Twinamatsiko, director of the Health Policy and the Law Initiative at Georgetown Universitys ONeill Institute. One example could be challenges to the FDAs approval of a medication used in abortions, which survived a Supreme Court challenge this term on a technicality. Judges will be more emboldened to second-guess agencies, he said. Its going to open agencies up to attacks. Regulations are effectively the technical instructions for laws written by Congress. Federal agency staffers with knowledge related to a law say, in drugs that treat rare diseases or health care for seniors decide how to translate Congress words into action with input from industry, advocates, and the public. Up until now, when agencies issued a regulation, a single rule typically applied nationwide. Following the high court ruling, however, lawsuits filed in more than one jurisdiction could result in contradictory rulings and regulatory requirements meaning health care policies for patients, providers, or insurers could differ greatly from one area to another. One circuit may uphold a regulation from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, for example, while other circuits may take different views. You could have eight or nine of 11 different views of the courts, said William Buzbee, a professor at Georgetown Law. A court in one circuit could issue a nationwide injunction to enforce its interpretation while another circuit disagrees, said Maura Monaghan, a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton. Few cases are taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court, which could leave clashing directives in place for many years. In the immediate future, health policy leaders say agencies should brace for more litigation over controversial initiatives. A requirement that most Affordable Care Act health plans cover preventive services, for example, is already being litigated. Multiple challenges to the mandate could mean different coverage requirements for preventive care depending on where a consumer lives. Drugmakers have sued to try to stop the Biden administration from implementing a federal law that forces makers of the most expensive drugs to negotiate prices with Medicare a key cog in President Joe Bidens effort to lower drug prices and control health care costs. Parts of the health care industry may take on reimbursement rates for doctors that are set by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services because those specific rates arent written into law. The agency issues rules updating payment rates in Medicare, a health insurance program for people 65 or older and younger people with disabilities. Groups representing doctors and hospitals regularly flock to Washington, D.C., to lobby against trims to their payment rates. And providers, including those backed by deep-pocketed investors, have sued to block federal surprise-billing legislation. The No Surprises Act, which passed in 2020 and took effect for most people in 2022, aims to protect patients from unexpected, out-of-network medical bills, especially in emergencies. The high courts ruling is expected to spur more litigation over its implementation. This really is going to create a tectonic change in the administrative regulatory landscape, Twinamatsiko said. The approach since 1984 has created stability. When the FDA or CDC adopt regulations, they know those regulations will be respected. That has been taken back. Industry groups, including the American Hospital Association and AHIP, an insurers trade group, declined to comment. Agencies such as the FDA that take advantage of their regulatory authority to make specific decisions, such as the granting of exclusive marketing rights upon approval of a drug, will be vulnerable. The reason: Many of their decisions require discretion as opposed to being explicitly defined by federal law, said Joseph Ross, a professor of medicine and public health at Yale School of Medicine. The legislation that guides much of the work in the health space, such as FDA and CMS, is not prescriptive, he said. In fact, FDA Commissioner Robert Califf said in an episode of the Healthcare Unfiltered podcast last year that he was very worried about the disruption from judges overruling his agencys scientific decisions. The high courts ruling will be especially significant for the nations federal health agencies because their regulations are often complex, creating the opportunity for more pitched legal battles. Challenges that may not have succeeded in courts because of the deference to agencies could now find more favorable outcomes. A whole host of existing regulations could be vulnerable, said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at KFF. Other consequences are possible. Congress may attempt to flesh out more details when drafting legislation to avoid challenges an approach that may increase partisan standoffs and slow down an already glacial pace in passing legislation, Levitt said. Agencies are expected to be far more cautious in writing regulations to be sure they dont go beyond the contours of the law. The Supreme Courts 6-3 decision overturned Chevron U.S.A. v. Natural Resources Defense Council, which held that courts should generally back a federal agencys statutory interpretation as long as it was reasonable. Republicans have largely praised the new ruling as necessary for ensuring agencies dont overstep their authority, while Democrats said in the aftermath of the decision that it amounts to a judicial power grab. Donald Trump is seeking to build on his Supreme Court victory, which provided immunity from criminal prosecution for his official acts as president, by asking judges in his federal classified documents case and in his New York hush money conviction to throw out all of those charges. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon postponed deadlines Saturday to debate evidence in the classified documents case and instead asked for written arguments about Trumps immunity in the next two weeks. Trumps lawyers asked Cannon on Friday to halt all action in the classified documents case until she rules whether the charges are valid. New York Judge Juan Merchan postponed sentencing Trump for his hush-money conviction of 34 counts of falsifying business records, which had been scheduled for Thursday, until September. When the Supreme Court formally returns the election-interference case to U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan, she must weigh which charges are still valid to prosecute. Neither Justice Department special counsel Jack Smith nor Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg has responded to the Supreme Courts decision yet. Trumps lawyers, Todd Blanche and Christopher Kise, have argued the high courts ruling means each of the judges will have to determine which conduct is official or unofficial and not use any official conduct as evidence for charges against unofficial conduct. Here is where the cases stand: Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump speaks during a campaign rally in Grand Rapids, Michigan on April 2, 2024. Supreme Court orders 'close analysis' of whether Trump conduct was unofficial The reason for uncertainty about criminal charges against Trump is because no former president has ever been charged before and the Supreme Court hadnt ruled on whether they could be. Until July 1. Thats when Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for a 6-3 majority that former presidents cant be tried for their official acts, but could potentially be charged for unofficial acts. The ruling said presidents discussing policy with executive agencies cant even be questioned about their motives. This ruled out charges involving Trump urging his acting attorney general to pursue allegations of election fraud with officials in swing states. But the ruling left open the possibility of charges dealing with Trumps recruitment of fake presidential electors to support him in states President Joe Biden won. Roberts wrote that determining whether Trump's pressure on then-Vice President Mike Pence "requires a close analysis of the indictments extensive and interrelated allegations." The President is not above the law, Roberts wrote. But under our system of separated powers, the President may not be prosecuted for exercising his core constitutional powers, and he is entitled to at least presumptive immunity from prosecution for his official acts." Trial judges must now determine whether Trumps conduct for the various charges was official or unofficial. Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump arrives at the courthouse as he is expected to bid for dismissal in a hearing on a classified documents case, in Fort Pierce, Florida, on March 14, 2024. Judge postpones filings in classified documents case to study Trump's immunity claim Trump was charged with retaining national defense records and conspiring to hide them from government authorities until FBI agents seized them during a search of Mar-a-Lago, his Florida estate, in August 2022. Prosecutors have noted the entire case involves conduct after Trump left the White House in January 2021. Smith's team office said Trump did not have legal authority to designate secret national security documents as personal records and send them to his private home. But Trumps lawyers have argued his decision to ship the documents to Mar-a-Lago was an official act. In an order Saturday, Cannon scrapped a Monday deadline for Trump to disclose his experts and Wednesday deadlines for prosecutors and defense lawyers to share more evidence in the case. Instead, Cannon set a deadline July 18 for Smith to respond to Trumps request for immunity. Trump will have until July 21 to respond. Cannon hasnt set a date for a hearing, but said she could still collect more evidence. Trumps lawyers want Cannon to only move forward on two issues in the case: Smith's request for a gag order preventing Trump from making comments that could incite threats against FBI agents working the case, and whether Smith was properly appointed to his job as special counsel. In the Supreme Courts ruling on immunity, Justice Clarence Thomas, wrote a concurrence questioning Smith's appointment, even though that wasn't at issue in the case and many special counsels have been previously appointed under similar circumstances. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, the Florida judge initially assigned to oversee Donald Trump's classified documents case, answers questions during her nomination hearing by the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary at the Dirksen Senate Office Building in Washington, U.S. July 29, 2020 in a still image from video. Judge in federal election interference must also determine unofficial conduct The Supreme Court hasnt formally returned Trumps election-interference case to Chutkan, under what is called a mandate, which might not happen until Aug. 2. The judgment or mandate of this Court will not issue for at least thirty-two days, Supreme Court clerk Scott Harris wrote July 1 to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. Chutkan will have to review which charges if any can go to trial once she gets the case back. New York Judge Juan Merchan looks on as Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump attends his criminal trial over charges that he falsified business records to conceal money paid to silence porn star Stormy Daniels in 2016, at Manhattan state court in New York City, on May 30, 2024 in this courtroom sketch. New York sentencing postponed because of potential immunity Merchan previously postponed sentencing Trump in the hush-money case, which had been scheduled Thursday, until Sept. 18. But thats only if necessary. Merchan plans to decide Sept. 6 whether Trump is immune from the charges, even though his case involves state charges and the Supreme Court was reviewing federal charges. Trump was convicted May 30 of falsifying records to hide his reimbursement to private lawyer Michael Cohen, who paid $130,000 to silence porn actress Stormy Daniels about alleged sex with Trump before the 2016 election. The financial arrangements between Cohen and Daniels happened before Trump was elected president. But his series of 11 payments to Cohen through his private company happened the first year of his presidency. Merchan previously ruled that Trump filed an immunity argument in the case too late to be considered. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Does Trump have immunity in his other cases? Judges weigh question The Supreme Court Says It's Okay to Kick the Homeless When They Are Down Opinion. I was in Washington, D.C. for Independence Day this year. Typically, when Im in the nations capital, I am there on business with seldom time to sightsee. Since the 4th of July is a national holiday, I had time to do some sightseeing, so I took the Metro down to Arlington National Cemetery. As I rode the tour tram, the tour guide mentioned that we would soon pass the grave of Ira Hayes, the World War II hero who is buried in Section 34 in the cemetery. Hayes, a citizen of the Pima Nation, is also enshrined in the Marine Corps War Memorial near the Pentagon, which is within walking distance from Arlington National Cemetery. A survivor of the Phoenix Indian Boarding School, Hayes fought in the Battle of Iwo Jima, a brutal battle that lasted 36 days and resulted in the deaths of some 7,000 Americans. A Marine paratrooper, Hayes was photographed after the United States captured Iwo Jima with other troop members raising the flag on Iwo Jima. The famous photo served as the basis of the memorial. Hayes gained further fame posthumously with country legend Johnny Cashs rendition of Ballad of Ira Hayes, written by Roger La Farge. The song recounts the battle of Iwo Jima, noting: There they battled up Iwo Jima hill, two hundred and fifty men, but only twenty-seven lived. After the war, Hayes received an Medal of Honor award for his valor and given a heros welcome. Back on the reservation in Arizona, Hayes found poor living conditions. In the early 1950s, he was one of thousands of Native Americans who entered the relocation program that moved tribal citizens from their reservations to large cities. Hayes moved from Arizona to Chicago, where he did not fare well. Even with his fame as a national hero, he suffered from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and alcoholism. He was arrested in the Skid Row section of Chicago for a drunk and disorderly charge. In total, Hayes was arrested 39 times. Tragically, Hayes died at the age of 32 and laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery. On Independence Day, as the tour guide pointed out Hayes grave, I thought about his history and his multiple arrests. Somehow, my mind connected the dots to the recent Supreme Court June 28 ruling in City of Grants Pass, Oregon v. Johnson that allows homeless people to be arrested if they decide to sleep in public. The case involved Grant Pass, a conservative town about 245 miles south of Portland, Ore., close to the Oregon-California border. The core part of the case was about whether the city violated the Constitutions Eighth Amendment when it arrests, fines, and jails unhoused people for sleeping outside. The case arose because the citys charity-run shelter stipulated that there was no smoking allowed and if you stayed there, you had to attend religious services. Some homeless people resisted and took the case to court. The Supreme Court ruling overturned a Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that punishing people for doing something they cannot help is cruel and unusual punishment. As long as there is no option of sleeping indoors, the government cannot criminalize indigent, homeless people for sleeping outdoors, on public property, on the false premise they had a choice in the matter, the appeals court wrote. I find the high courts Grants Pass decision disturbing. Causing more pain to homeless people is like kicking them when they are already down. Many Native Americans, whose ancestors occupied this land, are homeless. While Native Americans represent less than 2% of the overall population of the United States, there are places such as in South Dakota, Alaska, New Mexico, Montana, North Dakota, Oklahoma, and Minnesota, where they represent up to 10% of the homeless population. In Seattle, the Chief Seattle Club, a Native-led housing and human services agency, does great work getting Native Americans off the streets and into housing. The agency provides a reminder that Native people were never homeless before 1492, For those who forgot your history, 1492 is when Columbus arrived in this hemisphere. The agency says in Seattle, Native people are seven times more likely than white people to experience homelessness. After the Grants Pass decision was announced, Derrick Belgarde (Siletz), executive director of Chief Seattle Club, said that Native people represent less than 2% of the population in Seattle and King County, Washington, but in 2020 represented 32% of our chronically homeless. SCOTUSs decision is just another example of how the United States refuses to live up to its promises to Native peoples. Native peoples in Seattle, King County, and across the country continue to experience the highest rates of homelessness stemming from removal and relocation policies the United States put in place, yet they refuse to be accountable and are passing the buck for cities to figure out, Belgarde said in a statement. We know there are numerous reasons why people become unhoused and the vast majority of those reasons have nothing to do with being lazy or being deadbeats. Some just could not afford housing and began sleeping in their cars. Some, like Ira Hayes, are heavily afflicted with alcoholism and become homeless. The Supreme Courts decision in the Grants Pass case is a slap in the face to those who are already down. Instead of kicking them while theyre down, we should be offering them a hand and helping lift them up. Thayek gde nwendemen - We are all related. About the Author: "Levi \"Calm Before the Storm\" Rickert (Prairie Band Potawatomi Nation) is the founder, publisher and editor of Native News Online. Rickert was awarded Best Column 2021 Native Media Award for the print\/online category by the Native American Journalists Association. He serves on the advisory board of the Multicultural Media Correspondents Association. He can be reached at levi@nativenewsonline.net." Contact: levi@nativenewsonline.net COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) A woman who was severely injured from a 2017 malfunction on the Ohio State Fairs Fire Ball ride has won a massive lawsuit against its manufacturer. According to a spokesperson for the law firm Cooper Elliott, Keziah Lewis was awarded $20 million. The judges decision in the case was read in the Somerset County Courthouse in New Jersey, where KMG, the rides manufacturer, is located. The lawsuit stems from an incident in which one person was killed and eight others were injured after one of the rows of seats on the ride snapped off while it was swinging with a full load of passengers on board. North Carolina drowning victim from Columbus identified All victims were transported to the Intensive Care Unit in three Columbus area hospitals. One of the victims was Lewis, who spent months in the hospital and underwent 12 surgeries after she was ejected from her seat before falling to the ground. Lewis boyfriend, Tyler Jarrell, was pronounced dead at the fairgrounds following the incident. An Ohio State Highway Patrol trooper removes a ground spike from in front of the Fire Ball ride at the Ohio State Fair Thursday, July 27, 2017, in Columbus, Ohio. The fair opened Thursday but its amusement rides remained closed one day after Tyler Jarrell, 18, was killed and seven other people were injured when the thrill ride broke apart and flung people into the air. (AP Photo/Jay LaPrete) Lewis was awarded $20 million, which included $10 million designated as punitive damages. The total amount awarded by the court was $78 million, which was disbursed among four injured parties, including Lewis and the estate of Jarrell. The Cooper Elliot firm stated that the court found KMG was aware of the defect in the ride as early as 2012 and failed to alert ride owners nationwide. This negligence, combined with the oversight by inspectors and the rides operators, culminated in the tragic incident. After Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers presented their final reports, no charges were filed after Franklin County Prosecutor Ron OBrien said there was not enough evidence to proceed with a criminal case. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to NBC4 WCMH-TV. Suspected DUI driver arrested after firing gun into air multiple times in St. Pete: police Suspected DUI driver arrested after firing gun into air multiple times in St. Pete: police ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) A suspected DUI driver was arrested after police saw him firing his gun into the air multiple times during a large gathering in St. Petersburg on Sunday night. According to the St. Petersburg Police Department, officers were called to the Catalyst Lounge at 903 22nd Street South at 8:20 p.m. after reports of shots fired. FBI offers tips to protect property owners from fraud A nearby officer said he saw Dwight Williams, 45, drive by on 22nd Street South and shoot multiple times into the air. The officer stopped him without incident. No one was injured during the incident. Williams was arrested and charged with discharging a firearm within 1,000 feet of a person, using a gun under the influence of alcoholic beverages, driving under the influence, and possession of 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 WFLA. From left, Steve Westra of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden, Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber, Lake Preston Mayor Andy Wienk and First Gentleman Bryon Noem participate in a ceremonial groundbreaking for Gevo's Net-Zero 1 project near Lake Preston on Sept. 15, 2022. (Courtesy Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden/Twitter) From left, Steve Westra of the Governor's Office of Economic Development, Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden, Gevo CEO Patrick Gruber, Lake Preston Mayor Andy Wienk and First Gentleman Bryon Noem participate in a ceremonial groundbreaking for Gevo's Net-Zero 1 project near Lake Preston on Sept. 15, 2022. (Courtesy Lt. Gov. Larry Rhoden/Twitter) A company aiming to produce aviation fuel from ethanol in South Dakota has contributed $167,000 to defend a new carbon dioxide pipeline law that voters could be asked to reject in November. The company, Gevo, made the contribution to a ballot question committee called Protect South Dakotas Ag Future. The contribution was not affected by any limits, because there are no limits on contributions to ballot question committees in South Dakota. Voters didnt know about the contribution prior to the June 4 primary election, even though the pipeline law was a major issue in some legislative primary races. Some opponents of the new pipeline law, including Ed Fischbach, of rural Aberdeen, allege that the reporting of the contribution was timed to avoid publicity before the primary. It looked like they were trying to hide it, Fischbach said. The chairman of Protect South Dakotas Ag Future is Walt Bones, who formerly served as South Dakotas secretary of agriculture. He did not specifically address the allegation but did describe the sequence of events affecting the timing of the contributions disclosure. Bones said Gevo authorized the contribution on May 13, but the money had not reached the committee by the time of its required May 20 pre-primary campaign finance report. So that report showed no contributions. After the contribution arrived on June 3, the committee disclosed it in a supplemental campaign finance report filed on June 4, the day of the primary election. Bones said the money is being used to inform voters about the importance of a proposed carbon dioxide pipeline and the benefits of the new pipeline law. Public records on file with the Federal Communications Commission show the effort has included television advertising. This committee is about more than just the pipeline. Thats just part of it, he said. We see this whole debate as a threat to all value-added agriculture going forward. Kent Hartwig is the treasurer of Protect South Dakotas Ag Future and director of state government affairs for Colorado-based Gevo, which wants to build its Net-Zero 1 sustainable aviation fuel plant at Lake Preston. The plant would contribute carbon dioxide to a pipeline proposed by another company, Iowa-based Summit Carbon Solutions. Hartwig said Gevo wants to educate South Dakotans about the pipelines importance to the future of the farm economy. In addition to our work bringing people together, Gevo has invested dollars in trying to get the message out to ensure South Dakotas agriculture industry remains competitive and open to opportunities, he said in a statement to South Dakota Searchlight. The Legislature and Gov. Kristi Noem adopted the new pipeline law last winter. It includes protections for landowners and local governments. It also preserves a path toward regulatory approval for Summit and its proposed $8.5 billion pipeline. The pipeline would capture carbon dioxide from the aviation fuel plant and dozens of existing Midwestern ethanol plants, and transport the carbon to an underground storage site in North Dakota. Federal tax credits available for the project are intended to incentivize the removal of heat-trapping carbon from the atmosphere. Critics have pointed out that the sequestration site is near oilfields, and carbon dioxide can be injected into aging oil wells to make them more productive. Some opponents of the pipeline, including some landowners along the route, view the new state law as a concession to Summit. The law does not prevent the company from using eminent domain, which is a legal process to gain access from unwilling landowners. Everything in that bill is stuff landowners and counties already could have or did negotiate with Summit, Fischbach said. Summit got everything they wanted in that bill. There was no compromise. Opponents of the law formed a ballot question committee called SD Property Rights and Local Control Alliance. They collected about 28,000 petition signatures over 10,000 more than the number required to refer the law to the Nov. 5 election and submitted the signatures last month to the Secretary of States Office. The office is reviewing the validity of the petition and signatures. The committee raised about $11,000 from 21 individual contributions, according to its most recent campaign finance report. Another controversial aspect of the new pipeline law is its language regarding the Public Utilities Commissions authority to override local setbacks laws mandating minimum distances between pipelines and existing features such as homes and businesses. State law formerly said the commission could choose to override local setbacks while considering a permit for a carbon pipeline. The new law says a permit from the commission automatically overrides local setbacks unless the commission says otherwise. The law includes several other provisions, such as requiring carbon pipeline companies to submit an agricultural impact mitigation plan and authorizing a pipeline surcharge to benefit affected landowners and counties. It mandates that pipeline companies, not landowners, are liable for any damages resulting from the projects. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX In Tampa, Jill Biden says Joe Bidens all in to continue his candidacy, so she is too First Lady Jill Biden speaking in Tampa on July 8, 2024. (Photo by Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix) Appearing in Tampa as her husband battles to remain the Democratic Partys nominee for president, First Lady Jill Biden gave a short but rousing speech on Monday afternoon, declaring that Joe has made it clear hes all in, leading to chants of four more years from a crowd at the American Legion Post #111. Her comment came several hours after President Joe Biden made it clear to the growing number of Democratic members of Congress calling for him to withdraw from the contest following his disastrous debate that he has no intention of dropping out. Thats the decision that hes made, she added. And just as always, as he has supported my career, Im all in, too. Jill Bidens strong advocacy for her husband has disappointed some Democrats, who had hoped that she might be the voice the president would respond to after the Atlanta debate ignited serious conversations about his viability as a candidate to challenge Donald Trump effectively over the next four months. But the Bidens as a family have seemingly shut down any such talk. Her comments about the Bidens being all in were the only mention she made regarding the imbroglio dominating national politics. She concentrated the rest of her relatively short speech (which clocked in at less than 10 minutes) on her husbands record on the military as president and compared it to Trumps. With four more years, Joe will continue to fight for you, the military community that he, that we, are humble and proud to call our own, she said, referring to the fact that her own father was a Navy signalman who served in World War II and that the Bidens son, Beau, served with the Army National Guard in Iraq for a year. We know what its like to wait on the other end of that lighting phone call from across the world. To smile through another holiday with an empty chair at the table. Let me ask you this: Does Donald Trump know what any of that is about? she asked the crowd, who responded with a resounding, No! Ms. Biden said that Trump disparaged those who have served in the military, noting that his own chief-of-staff reported that he had called POWs and those who died in war losers and suckers. The remarks were reported in a 2020 story by The Atlantic. The former president has consistently denied saying it, although John Kelly, his former chief-of-staff, confirmed that he had. Dictator on Day One Ms. Biden said that, as president, Trump had dismissed the military community and diminished Americas leadership around the world. And it could be worse this time. He says he wants to be a dictator on Day One. He called the Jan. 6 insurrectionists great patriots. And last week the Supreme Court ruled that there are virtually no limits on what a president can do. Our democracy cannot withstand a Trump presidency with virtually no limits. The first lady was in town ostensibly to announce the formation of Veterans and Military Families for Biden-Harris, a national organizing program that aims to mobilize veterans to back the Democratic presidential ticket this November. Her Tampa appearance was one of three on Monday in the South; she appeared earlier in the day in Wilmington, North Carolina, and was scheduled to conclude her tour in Columbus, Georgia, Monday night. The Republican Party of Florida blasted Jill Bidens visit, labeling her the Enabler-in Chief. The Enabler-in-Chief is in Florida today trying to convince service members and veterans that her husband has delivered for them. They wont be fooled. Joe Bidens actions speak louder than words, the RPOF posted on X. Republican Party of Florida chair Evan Power elaborated in a press release issued on Monday night. Jill Biden is desperately trying to change the narrative that Joe Biden should drop out of the race but the fact is that their lies have caught up with them, Power said. Ms. Biden in her speech went on to extoll some of the policies that President Biden has enacted in his three-and-a-half years in office, including lowering the cost of child care and mental health services for veterans and signing the PACT Act, expanding toxic-exposure benefits. She also said that he had ended the war in Afghanistan because the sacrifice asked of our military families was too steep for too long. Biden did pull troops out of Afghanistan in the summer of 2021, almost exactly 20 years after the U.S. invaded that country following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. It will always be considered controversial because of the way it ended, with 13 American military members killed outside an airport in Kabul. A majority of Americans 54% supported the withdrawal, according to a Pew Research Poll, but the feeling was divided sharply along party lines. Pew reported that about 70% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said the decision to withdraw troops was the right one, while 64% of Republicans said it was wrong. RPOF Chair Evan Power referenced the withdrawal in his statement. You wont find President Trump abandoning our troops in a foreign country like Biden did in Afghanistan and later lie about it, he said, referencing how Biden had falsely stated in the debate that Im the only president this century, this decade, that doesnt have any troops dying anywhere in the world like [Trump] did. Energized crowd The crowd seemed more boisterous and energetic than when Joe Biden last appeared in Tampa in late April amid the possibility the president could leave the race. Tampa Bay area Democratic state Rep. Michele Rayner told the Phoenix that reporters are asking the wrong question regarding whether Joe Biden has the wherewithal to defeat Donald Trump in November. For those asking Joe Biden to step down, theres only one 34-time convicted felon that has been civilly judged as a sexual abuser who likes to grab women by the you-know-what. I dont think we should be talking about Joe Biden, she said. When asked whether she worried about the party being divided about his candidacy, Rayner, an attorney as well as a lawmaker, said that was okay at least for now. I think what youre seeing is what a healthy democracy looks like, right? she said. Were not behind one leader thats a dictator. Were having people who are actually talking about democracy and what things should look like. But I think that ultimately Joe Biden is our president and he is our candidate, and were going to stick beside him, a lot of people are going to stick beside him. He had a bad debate. Ive been bad in court not often but Ive been bad in court. That doesnt mean that you ask him to step down. Jay Alexander, vice president of the Pinellas Democratic Veterans Caucus, said its up to Biden whether he has the vigor and stamina to be the partys nominee, but that he wouldnt worry if Biden steps down because of some of the potential Democratic candidates waiting in the wings. If he decides to go, we have a strong party. Lot of good Democrats out there, specifically mentioning Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker, and Californias Gavin Newsom. Its up to Joe, Alexander said. But it has to happen within a week or so. Angela Birdsong, president of the Hillsborough County Democratic Black Caucus, said no one she knew was deserting the president. The majority of Black voters are still in for Joe Biden, she said as she left the facility. No hesitation at all. This story was updated with quotes from Florida Republican Party Chairman Evan Power. The largest union in the country has locked its own workers out of their jobs after they went on strike for three days, escalating an ugly contract dispute that has already involved the White House. Staffers at the National Education Association said they were told not to report to work at the unions headquarters in Washington on Monday. Last week, the employees went on strike during the NEAs annual convention in Philadelphia, prompting President Joe Biden to back out of a planned speech. The staff union claimed the lockout was retaliation for their Philly walkout, calling it a dangerous and reactionary move by the NEA. A lockout is a work stoppage initiated by the employer, essentially the opposite of a strike. I cannot imagine it lands well that the nations largest union is locking out its staff union, Robin McLean, the staff unions president, said in a statement alleging union busting by the NEA. What does that mean for a so-called labor union to treat hardworking people like this? I cannot imagine it lands well that the nations largest union is locking out its staff union.Robin McLean, president of the NEA staff union The two sides are trying to negotiate a new three-year contract addressing wages, health coverage and other benefits. And while its not unusual for a labor union to have tense negotiations with its own staff, its rare that a labor dispute reaches the point of a lockout. An NEA spokesperson said in an email that the union was bargaining in good faith with staffers, and accused those who went on strike of abandoning members by disrupting the Philadelphia assembly. The NEA argues that the staffers strike was not protected under the law, a point disputed by the staff union. To best protect the interests of our members, the Association, and our staff, we have made the difficult decision to institute a protective lockout, the spokesperson said. The plans for the lockout were first reported by Education Week. A demonstrator chants while picketing in support of the National Education Association Staff Organization outside the Pennsylvania Convention Center, July 5, in Philadelphia. Matt Slocum via Associated Press The NEA represents 3 million teachers, support staff employees and other workers at public schools and colleges across the country. It is a major ally of the Democratic Party, and endorsed Bidens reelection campaign in April, calling his the most pro-public education and pro-union administration in modern history. The standoff broke into public view late last week when the White House said Biden would not be speaking in Philadelphia. Biden, who refers to himself as the most pro-union president in history, did not want to cross a picket line called by the staff union. The staff union alleges that the NEA is trying to strongarm employees into accepting a subpar deal. It recently filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board, claiming that managers unilaterally changed their working conditions and retaliated against a staff member. Related... A Rohingya teenager in Bangladesh has been killed and two others were hospitalised with injuries after being hit by a mortar shell fired from Myanmar. Mohammad Zubair, 18, and others were crab fishing in the Naf River near the Myanmar border when they were hit by a shell fired from the other side, Mohammad Osman Gani, officer-in-charge of Teknaf police station, told the Dhaka Tribune. Zubair succumbed to his injuries on the way to the hospital, while the other two were transferred to Chittagong Medical College Hospital for treatment. Mr Gani said authorities were investigating whether the incident took place during their attempt to cross the border and that it was not known who carried out the attack. This is the second such incident of cross-border shelling in two years since another teenager died in 2022 after a shell fired from Myanmar exploded in Bangladesh. At the time Bangladesh said it would lodge a strong protest with Myanmar over the incident. People of Maungdaw township of Myanmar are seen from the Teknaf area of Bangladesh, at the Myanmar-Bangladesh border (REUTERS) More than 650,000 Rohingya Muslims who fled from Myanmar's Rakhine state during a military crackdown in 2017 live in overcrowded camps in southern Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar. The latest bout of aggravated fighting between the Arakan Army (AA), an armed group of the Rakhine ethnic minority seeking autonomy from the central government, and the Myanmar junta has once again displaced tens of thousands in Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh. Thomas Andrews, a UN special rapporteur, last week said the crisis in Rakhine was "terrifying" and people were at risk of facing "genocidal violence" similar to what the community suffered eight years ago. The violence in Rakhine escalated in November last year when the AA ended a ceasefire which had largely held since a military coup wrested power from the government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021. As fighting rages in western Myanmar near the Maungdaw border of Myanmar, the sounds of explosions and airstrikes have created panic among local residents. The war in Myanmar across the river has been going on for the past six to seven months, bringing fear into our lives, said Nur Hossain, a 55-year-old fisherman. The deafening sounds of shells have become a regular occurrence, and sometimes we even see warplanes. Today, we saw airstrikes again. The escalating violence has spurred some Rohingya Muslims to flee into Bangladesh, even as Dhaka insists it cannot accept more refugees from the neighbour. "Some people have managed to enter Bangladesh in various ways and have taken refuge in different places," said Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, the Bangladesh official tasked with refugee relief and repatriation. He added: "I believe some people are being allowed to enter unofficially." The AA has captured nine key towns in the coastal province and pursued its offensive to take more territory in a nationwide struggle that has left the junta at its weakest since the coup. In May, the UN human rights office warned of frightening and disturbing reports about fresh violence in Rakhine, pointing to attacks on Rohingya civilians by both the military and the AA. Liz Throssell, a spokesperson for the UN agency, highlighted the burning of the town of Buthidaung, air strikes, shootings at unarmed fleeing villagers, beheadings and disappearances in the northern part of Rakhine in recent weeks. Some of the most serious allegations concern incidents of killing of Rohingya civilians and the burning of their property," she said. How a Teenager's Phone Allegedly Revealed that Middle School Teacher Was 'Obsessed with Him,' Leading to Arrest Allison Havemann-Niedrach, 43, who was a teacher at Freehold Intermediate School, was arrested in late June Office of the Monmouth County Prosecutor Allison Havemann-Niedrach A New Jersey middle school teacher is accused of sexually abusing a student and a prosecutor told a court that the teacher was "obsessed with" the alleged victim. Allison Havemann-Niedrach, 43, who was a teacher at Freehold Intermediate School, was arrested in late June and is charged with first-degree aggravated sexual assault and second-degree endangering the welfare of a child, according to a news release from the Monmouth County Prosecutors Office. According to the release, the alleged sexual abuse began earlier in 2024. Its not immediately clear if Havemann-Niedrach has entered a plea. Her attorneys, Thomas Huth and William Wackowski, did not immediately return PEOPLEs calls for comment. According to the Asbury Park Press and Jersey Shore Online, assistant prosecutor Danielle Zanzuccki said in court on Friday, July 5, that there were allegedly 25,000 text messages between the suspect and the 15-year-old boy. (Jersey Shore Online reports that the boy's phone was turned over to authorities after a consent form was signed enabling police to search the phone during the investigation.) According to Zanzuccki, the student told a friend he was dating Havemann-Niedrach. Another teacher told authorities that she saw the suspect "rubbing the victims neck and back area in a circular motion and that she appeared to be flirting with him and noticed her touching his leg," Zanzuccki claimed. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Zanzuccki said that at one point, the boy was hospitalized for a mental health evaluation out of concern for his well-being. "This was so much for this kid that he ended up having a mental health crisis in the middle of the investigation," she said in court, Jersey Shore Online reports. Referencing Havemann-Niedrach, a married mother of two young children, Zanzuccki said, "I would submit that shes obsessed with this child." Superior Court Judge Vincent N. Falcetano ordered the suspect released from jail and placed her on home detention, according to the outlets, which report that the teachers husband and her parents were in court to support her. Havemann-Niedrach has since lost her job, the Asbury Park Press reports, citing the court proceedings. The office of Freehold Borough School Superintendent Asia Michael did not immediately comment immediately, but referred PEOPLE to a statement published in media outlets that said, in part, that the "safety and well-being of our students and staff have been our top priority, and we took immediate measures to ensure their protection." If you or someone you know has been a victim of sexual abuse, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741-741 to be connected to a certified crisis counselor. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tourists visit the scenic spot of Dazu Rock Carvings in southwest China's Chongqing, July 7, 2024. The Dazu Rock Carvings site was inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1999. The finest example of Chinese grotto art, the Dazu Rock Carvings site is of profound historical significance, embodying the vigorous vitality of Chinese culture. (Xinhua/Wang Quanchao) Tenn. Teen Who'd Been Missing for Days Is Found Dead in Woods, Teen Boy Charged with Murder Trinity Bostic's remains were found along the side of a road in Hendersonville, Tenn. GoFundMe Trinity Bostic A week after a Tennessee 17-year-old went missing, another teen has been accused of killing her. A 17-year-old male is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Trinity Bostic, the Hendersonville Police Department said in a press release. Police did not release the identity of the male suspect. Trinity was first reported missing on June 29 in Macon County, police said. The Macon County Sheriffs Office said deputies began collecting information and traced her location to an area outside the county. Attempts to reach her were unsuccessful. Four days after she was reported missing, on July 3, her remains were found along a roadway in Hendersonville by a worker picking up trash, according to Hendersonville police. GoFundMe Trinity Bostic Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage, and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Authorities have not yet determined Trinitys cause of death. The teen suspect is from Westmoreland, Tenn., and is being held in Sumner County, police said. Trinitys high school graduating class started a GoFundMe to raise money for her family. So far, it was raised over $8,000. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. The trooper found the dog, named Luna, wandering a wet roadway in Kingsport, Tennessee Tennessee Highway Patrol Tennessee Highway Patrol Trooper Lance Willis helping Luna the dog on July 5 A dog helped by a Tennessee Highway Patrol trooper in the middle of a downpour on July 5 is safely home. On July 7, Petworks Animal Services in Kingsport, Tenn., confirmed that the pup's owner reclaimed the dog named Luna after the state trooper rescued her. "Luna is home safe with her family," Petworks Animal Service said in a statement to News Channel 11 in Tennessee. "Trooper Willis said Friday that Luna's owner locating her was all he hoped for." Trooper Lance Willis initially thought there was a car crash when he saw traffic slowing down in Kingsport during a downpour on July 5, but he soon found out the source of the delay was a dog wandering on the wet road. "I looked like there was some kind of animal that was in the road," Willis said in a video posted on Facebook by the Tennessee Highway Patrol on July 6. "When I got close enough to see, there was a large dog that looked like a brown German shepherd in the opposite lane of traffic." Related: Woman Adopts One of the 'Perfect' Dogs Who Inspired Her Animal Rescue Work: 'We're So Grateful' (Exclusive) "I [turned on] my blue lights cause people usually slow down when they see the blue lights and called into the radio so they knew where I was," he continued. "I got out and tried to usher the dog towards me." "We like to focus on traffic safety and sometimes, we even rescue dogs out of the roadway," Trooper Willis added. Related: Missing 81-Year-Old Woman Rescued After Police Dog Finds Her Gloves and Walking Cane in the Woods Once Luna was in the car, Willis pulled into a parking lot nearby to wait for an animal control officer to take her to the shelter. He also told News Channel 11 that he saw Luna was wearing a collar" and hoped the dog's owner would see "the video so they would know their pet was found safe." Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human-interest stories. A video of Trooper Willis rescuing the dog was posted on TikTok on July 5 and captioned, "We need to make this human famous." As of July 8, the clip of Willis' act of kindness towards Luna has accumulated 2.5 million views on TikTok. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. A federal judge has ruled a Tennessee woman can't be fined for saying what we're all thinking, even if it's in the form of a yard sign. This past week, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Tennessee ruled that the town of Lakeland, Tennessee, violated resident Julie Pereira's First Amendment rights when it fined her for placing a "Fuck Em' [sic] Both 2024 sign in her yard. According to her First Amendment lawsuit filed last month, Pereira's sign "simply and cogently" expressed her own opinion that neither major party candidate was an acceptable choice for president. A Lakeland code enforcement official disagreed, slapping Pereira with daily fines of $50 for violating the city's prohibition on "obscene" signs. The city only stopped fining Pereira after she covered the u on her sign with tape. By that point, she'd wracked up $688 in fines and other fees because of her sign. But, unwilling to either pay those fees or dilute the "potency" of her message, Pereira sued the city of Lakeland for violating her First Amendment rights. "In the interest of protecting not only my rights, but all citizens in the state of Tennessee this case has been taken to the next level because of its constitutional impacts," she wrote on Facebook, per the New York Post's reporting. In a brief, three-page ruling, the U.S. district court agreed with Pereira. The court barred the city from taking any further enforcement action over her sign and instructed the city to reimburse Pereira for the fines she'd paid, plus $31,000 in attorneys fees, and $1 in nominal damages for having her constitutional rights violated. Few local governments would try to police someone's political speech, however profane, if it was expressed on social media or in a newspaper. Yard signs are a different story, however. Governments are much more willing to regulate owners who are trying to add an expressive element to their own properties, be it a colorful political sign or a fun mural on the side of a local business. Pereira's victory is a reminder that signs are still speech and that freedom only works if you have a space to use it. The post Tennessee Woman's 'Fuck Em' Both 2024 Sign Is Protected Speech, Rules District Court appeared first on Reason.com. Sen. Jon Tester (D-Mont.), one of the Senates most vulnerable incumbents, on Monday said President Biden needs to prove he can serve another four years after his weak debate performance, which has put scrutiny on the presidents energy and mental clarity. President Biden has got to prove to the American people including me that hes up to the job for another four years. Meanwhile, Ill continue to do what Ive always done: Stand up to President Biden when hes wrong and protect our Montana way of life, Tester said in a statement. Tester has sought to distance himself from the Biden administration over its handling of security at the southern border and other issues, such as allowing beef imports from Paraguay into the country. He faces a tough reelection race against Republican Tim Sheehy in a state former President Trump won in 2016 and 2020. Tester issued his statement ahead of the Senates first vote Monday afternoon after a two-week recess, during which many senators stayed quiet about Bidens disastrous debate performance. Other Democratic senators are taking a similarly cautious stance about whether Biden should be the partys nominee in November. Larkin Parker, a spokesperson for Sen. Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), said Bennet also wants Biden to reassure the American people hes up to the task of beating Trump. Sen. Bennet believes President Biden must reassure the American people that he can run a vigorous campaign to defeat Donald Trump. As the Senate comes back into session this week, he plans to discuss with his colleagues the most viable path forward in this existential election, the aide 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. Texas Governor Greg Abbott Jets Off to Asia as Hurricane Beryl Lashes His State Texas Governor Greg Abbott boasted of having very productive meetings with business bigwigs in South Korea on Monday morning just as Hurricane Beryl barreled into his home state, killing at least two people. Abbotts nine-day jaunt to South Korea, Taiwan, and Japan is meant to drive forward progress in industries critical to the future of the global economy, his office said in a July 5 press release. But he departed on Friday as forecasts showed that Beryl was likely to hit Texas on Monday. Indeed, it made landfall along the central Texas coast early Monday, according to Fox Weather, with 70-90 mph wind gusts, a life-threatening storm surge, and blackouts that left more than 2 million residents in the dark without power. As of Monday, two people in Harris County died after Beryl caused trees to fall on their homes, authorities said. Seemingly pre-empting any backlash, Abbott stressed on Sunday that his trip would likely bring billions of dollars to Texas. While I am in Taiwan, South Korea & Japan working on business deals worth billions, I remain in daily contact with Texas Division of Emergency Management & local officials to ensure preparation for Hurricane Beryl. Your safety is our top concern, he wrote. This situation bears an uncanny resemblance to when Texas Senator Ted Cruz quietly jetted off to Cancun during the February 2021 winter storm that ravaged Texas. Cruz later called the trip a mistake and chalked his decision up to being a dad. On Monday, Cruz posted a video of himself in a rain jacket, giving an update on the storm from a flooded freeway in Houston. Spent a very productive afternoon in Seoul. Met with @kita_net and business leaders from across South Korea to discuss economic opportunities in Texas to grow and succeed. I also met with executives from SK Signet to thank them for their investments in Texas. pic.twitter.com/S4TSrtsA5X Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) July 8, 2024 Meanwhile, on X on Monday morning, Abbott shared photos of his meetings with South Korean business leaders and Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul. His replies were flooded with users calling out the inconvenient timing of his trip. In a later post, Abbott did address Beryl and his absence and wrote in part, I remain in regular contact with @TDEM & state officials. Texas emergency management personnel continue working around the clock for #HurricaneBeryl response efforts. I remain in regular contact with @TDEM & state officials. Texans in impacted areas should stay off the roads & heed guidance from local officials. https://t.co/HZTMTQohjj Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) July 8, 2024 In a Monday interview with CNBCs Squawk Box via satellite from Seoul, Abbott gave some insight into his trip and spoke about the storm. Texas has probably the top division of emergency management in the country, and I just got off the phone with the chief of that division, Abbott said. Were concerned about a... heavy rain challenge that were going to see in the state of Texas as well as the winds that continue to whip through the greater Houston area, he added. Abbott then elaborated on what hes been up to since leaving the States. Texas only has, before now, one business office in another country and thats Mexico. This past session, the Texas legislature actually passed a law establishing an office in Taiwan because we support Taiwan both as a country but also economically, he said. According to Abbott, his meetings in Taiwan have reinforced their already robust trade relationship. Abbotts office did not immediately respond to The Daily Beasts request for comment. He is expected to arrive back in Texas on July 13. 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. Texas has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the U.S. Could they get stricter? Lauren Miller and her husband were thrilled when they found out she was pregnant in July 2022. She was having twins, but at her 12 week ultrasound Miller received heartbreaking news. One of the twins would not survive. Doctor after doctor told her the same thing, she said: Their son would die. It was just a matter of how soon, and every day that he continued to develop, he put his twin and myself at greater risk, Miller, who is from Dallas, told reporters during a June 3 news conference. She needed a single fetal abortion, but doctors were hesitant to even say the word abortion, Miller recalls. One specialist tore up his gloves in frustration, throwing them in the trash: I cant help you anymore, he said. You need to leave the state. That was Millers experience under Texas current abortion law that bars almost all abortions. Now, she fears what will happen to other pregnant patients in similar situations if the states abortion laws are restricted even further. Texas has some of the strictest abortion laws in the country, but some advocates want the state to go further and abolish abortion by extending criminal penalties to abortion patients. Its a position thats dividing Republicans and anti-abortion advocates and concerning Democrats, who have made abortion access a top issue for the November election. The idea goes too far, some advocates say, as they push for other changes to state law, such as restricting access to abortion medications and bolstering resources for pregnancy centers. Meanwhile, Democrats and advocates for abortion are looking to the federal government to step in and restore abortion access in Texas. The debates are playing out against the backdrop of a post-Roe country, as patients seeking an abortion in states like Texas with virtual abortion bans struggle to access care, even in emergencies where their lives could be in jeopardy. The state of Texas abortion access When Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022, Texas had a law ready to restrict abortion access. The law, authored by state Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, a Southlake Republican, makes it a crime to perform or attempt an abortion. A person who performs, induces or attempts an abortion could face up to life in prison, if the abortion is successful. They could also be fined at least $100,000 for each violation. A separate Texas law bans abortions once cardiac activity is detected in a fetus. Its enforced through a civil mechanism that allows a person to sue someone who performs an abortion or aids in the performance of an abortion. There are exceptions to the laws for medical emergencies, but doctors have expressed confusion over what necessitates an emergency. The Texas Medical Board clarified the law in June, but some say it still doesnt provide enough guidance. Since Roe was overturned, an average of five abortions per month are performed in Texas, according to The Texas Tribune. Before that, Texas used to see about 4,400 each month, The Texas Tribune reported. More than 35,000 people traveled out of Texas for abortions in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research group that works to advance sexual and reproductive health rights. I think if a woman comes in and is, at the moment, healthy with a pregnancy that is not determined to be viable, unfortunately our only thing that we can offer her are recommendations of where else to go besides Texas, said Dr. Andrea Palmer, a Fort Worth OB-GYN. An April poll found that 45% of Texans think the states abortion laws should be less strict, 23% think they should be kept as they are and 20% think they should be more strict, according to a poll from the Texas Politics Project at The University of Texas at Austin. Protesters outside Planned Parenthood in Fort Worth in 2015 called for the defunding of the organization. Some anti-abortion advocates in Texas favor bringing criminal charges against abortion patients. When separating those results by political party, 35% of Republicans said the laws should not be altered, 26% said they should be more strict, and 26% say they should be less strict. Among Democrats, 68% say state abortion laws should be loosened, while 15% want stricter laws and 11% want the laws left alone. The push to abolish abortion So far in Texas, the idea of extending criminal penalties to abortion patients hasnt become mainstream among Texas Republicans. Bills have been filed in past legislative sessions, but have never had a committee hearing. The idea is also unpopular with voters: 66% somewhat or strongly disagree with it, including 55% of Republicans, according to the April poll. Still, advocates have seen some success widening support for the idea. The Texas GOP platform has previously called to abolish abortion, but has gone further in 2022 and 2024, supporting equal protection of the laws to all preborn children from the moment of fertilization. This years platform also states abortion is not healthcare, it is homicide. While it doesnt explicitly state it, some interpret the platform items as meaning abortion patients could be subject to criminal penalties, even the death penalty for murder. The platform also states that, criminal penalties be attached to any entity convicted of selling body parts of aborted children or, excluding the mother, of conducting an illegal abortion. The idea of criminal penalties for an abortion patient is embraced by Abolish Abortion Texas, which describes itself as mobilizing Christians to advocate in the political halls of power for the end of elective abortion in Texas. We believe that the same laws that protect you and me, born people, should also protect preborn people, said Paul Brown, the groups director of policy and operations. In other words, we believe it should be illegal for everyone to murder anyone, Brown said. Asked if mothers who have abortions should face the death penalty, Brown said the group isnt prescribing specific penalties. That should be left up to the courts, he said. We would not say that the death penalty is wrong or evil or something that we oppose, but were not asking for special provisions to ensure that the mother gets the death penalty under these laws, Brown said. Betsy Riot, center, takes part in the International Womens Day Sit-In for Abortion Rights in the Texas State Capitol Rotunda in March 2023. Both abortion rights and anti-abortion protesters were present on the rotunda. Sixteen Republican Texas House candidates who are on the November ballot, including several who ousted incumbents in the primary, have signed a pledge from the group to abolish abortion in the state. Among them is David Lowe, who beat Rep. Stephanie Klick for a Fort Worth-area seat. The Star-Telegram reached out to Lowe and 10 Republicans in the House and Senate for comment on what could be next for abortion laws in the state. All but two did not respond or were not available for an interview. Other anti-abortion groups in Texas say enacting criminal penalties for abortion patients goes too far. Whenever I talk to committee chairs, whenever I talk to leading legislators who have passed pro-life legislation, this is not a priority, said John Seago, president of Texas Right to Life, an anti-abortion group. Its also not a priority for Texas Right to Life. Bills the group will push for the legislative session next year will continue to preclude abortion patients from prosecution, he said. Brandon Rottinghaus, a University of Houston political science professor, doesnt see the issue gaining traction in the Texas Legislature. Instead, he expects policies related to abortion to focus on limiting out of state travel for abortions or clarifying exceptions to existing laws. He could also see the Legislature debating policies related to in vitro fertilization. Ultimately, the direction of abortion policy in Texas will depend on how far Texas Republicans want to push these issues and who the leaders in the Legislature are, he said. The issue could also be eclipsed by other social issues. These issues ebb and flow, Rottinghaus said. The base cares about various types of social issues, more or less, depending on what else is on the agenda. Hundreds of abortion-rights advocates march toward the Tarrant County Courthouse at the end of a protest in downtown Fort Worth in June 2022. In a sea of hand-drawn signs, chanting people alternated between My body, my choice and Reproductive rights are human rights. Republican state Sen. Kelly Hancock of North Richland Hills said in a written statement that hes focused on reforms to foster care and adoption laws. For too long the far left has made the untrue, straw man argument that pro-life Texans only care about the lives of the unborn, so I see right now as the perfect opportunity to prove them wrong, he said. Im committed to working just as hard at supporting mothers and young families as we have worked to limit the horrors of abortion, and I believe we can do that effectively without having to grow government. Rep. Brian Harrison, a Midlothian Republican who served in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under President Donald Trump, said he looks forward to defending Texas laws to protect the unborn, criticizing the Biden administrations extreme abortion agenda. The Texas Right to Lifes biggest focus for lawmakers is curbing the use of websites to buy abortion medications. Access to the pills is already restricted in Texas. This could be achieved by extending civil penalties to internet providers that dont shut off access to the sites or by requiring credit card providers to block people with billing addresses in Texas from buying abortion medicine. The group would also like to extend the mechanism in Texas so-called heartbeat law that allows virtually anyone to sue a person who performs or aids in accessing an abortion to other abortion laws. Seago, in an interview before the Texas Medical Board offered some clarity on Texas abortion law, said the states definition of medical emergencies is clear. Doctors and hospital administrators need to be educated on what is and is not permitted, but the law itself doesnt need to be changed, he said. Texas Alliance for Life, another anti-abortion group, wants to bolster the states Healthy Texas Families Program to help connect women with an unplanned pregnancy with resources, said Jo Pojman, the groups executive director. He doesnt expect major changes to Texas current laws restricting abortion access. As for extending criminal penalties to abortion patients: We think thats a terrible idea, he said. Virtually the entire pro-life movement thinks thats a very bad idea, Pojman said. The best hope for abortion access Tightened abortion laws could have unintended consequences for access to womens healthcare in general, said Palmer, the Fort Worth OB-GYN. The best and brightest used to consider Texas a place to get a wonderful education, but thats no longer the case, she said. Outside the need of abortion care, I think were going to end up with fewer OB-GYNs in the state over time, Palmer said. Abortion-rights advocates line the steps of the Tarrant County Courthouse after a march downtown in June 2022. Hundreds gathered with a rallying cry of My body, my choice after Roe v. Wade was overturned the day before. As abortion advocates look to the Texas Legislature for signs of hope, Democrats in the legislature have been frustrated in their efforts to deliver. They say theyre simply outnumbered, and their Republican colleagues arent willing to bend on the topic. The reality is that the Republican Party, on the issue of abortion, has been so hijacked by the extremists in their party that they wouldnt even accept an amendment to create an exception in cases of rape or incest, said State Rep. Chris Turner, an Arlington Democrat. State Sen. Nathan Johnson, a Dallas Democrat, introduced three bills in the last legislative session aimed at protecting abortion access. The proposals would have protected and assisted with travel for abortions and prohibited penalties for getting an abortion. The bills didnt gain traction in the Texas Legislature when lawmakers met in 2023. Lawmakers return to Austin on Jan. 14. We cant outnumber people who will vote to take away abortion rights, and until we actually outnumber people who take away abortion rights, what am I doing? Johnson said. On the whole, Texas Democrats believe there are two paths forward for abortion access in the state: Either the federal government steps in, or Texas voters step up. In the short term, action from the federal government is the only hope, Turner said. As long as Greg Abbott is governor and as long as Republicans are in the majority in the legislature, I dont see [abortion laws] changing, he said. National and Texas Democrats are making abortion a top issue in the presidential race and down the ballot, including in the contest between U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, a Republican, and U.S. Rep. Colin Allred, a Democrat hoping to unseat the longtime senator. Miller, the Dallas woman who was unable to obtain an abortion in her home state, was speaking on a video news conference hosted by the Democratic National Committee when she shared her story in June. She, more than a dozen other Texas women and two doctors sued Texas over the law, arguing more defined exceptions are needed in medical emergencies. The state Supreme Court in late May upheld the law. Miller raised concerns about the platform item and the prospect of Trump as president, whom she blames for the devastating choices families like mine had to make and the hurdles to access an abortion. Miller said she was extremely sick throughout her pregnancy and ultimately made plans to get an abortion out of state. I was always going to lose one of my sons, and if the Texas Republicans get their way, I could be sentenced to death for trying to save my life and that of our viable twin, Miller said. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) Texas Tech Health El Paso is inviting the community to their Lighting Campus for Hope event to raise funds for vital cancer screenings. The free event will happen in December and will have a mascot dance-off, photos with Santa and friends, and a grand finale of fireworks, Texas Tech said in a news release. The event will be held on Dec. 6 and will transform the Texas Tech campus into a winter wonderland filled with family-friendly activities. Texas Tech also invites cancer warriors throughout El Paso to the event and to share words of resilience, determination, and hope, Texas Tech said. Last year, the event raised $67,750 for 366 life-saving screenings, Texas Tech said. Lighting Campus for Hope illuminates not just our campus, but the spirit of resilience and unity in our community, said Andrea Tawney, Ph.D., vice president for Texas Tech Health El Pasos Office of Institutional Advancement. Last years success has inspired us to continue supporting our brave cancer warriors, raise funds for life-saving cancer screenings, and bring the warmth of the holiday season to all. The funding will be distributed to help Texas Tech Health El Pasos general cancer screenings following programs: Breast Cancer Education, Screening, and Navigation (BEST) program The Medical Student Run Clinics breast cancer screening program Southwest Coalition for Colorectal Cancer Screening (SuCCeSS) program De Casa En Casa cervical cancer screening program According to Texas Tech, appropriate screenings lower the incidence and death rates of cancer. Cervical and colorectal cancer has decreased by 55-45 percent over the past few decades with death rates declining significantly. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. John Guerrero Jr.s first day on the job was also his last day on Earth. The 46-year-old was part of a crew framing walls for a luxury apartment building sprouting in East Austin on May 16, 2022. The heat index that day reached 96 degrees. The worksite was in direct sunlight with no shade available, an inspector with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration wrote. At that time, Austins water break ordinance had not yet been struck down by the state, and the contractor made sure water and Gatorade were available. Guerrero drank both, but he told others he still wasnt feeling well. He stopped sweating, a sign his body was dangerously overheating. Guerrero finished his shift, then died of heat stroke. Even with access to beverages, the OSHA inspector noted, the employee was not trained on how to identify the symptoms of heat illness and their severity. Studies suggest heat exposure is among the top causes of worker deaths responsible for 600 to 2,000 U.S. fatalities a year, not to mention roughly 170,000 workplace injuries, according to a Public Citizen analysis yet federal action has been infuriatingly slow. Experts have been urging OSHA to set heat safety standards since 1972. OSHA finally launched that rulemaking process in September 2021. The result of that long-awaited effort, a proposed rule unveiled this past week by the Biden administration and championed by U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, is promising. It would require rest breaks and access to shade and water when a job site reaches a heat index of 80 degrees. Importantly, employers would have to provide training and establish emergency response plans for heat-related injuries efforts that could have saved the life of Guerrero and many others whove died on the job. A worker takes a drink of water while framing a new home in Montopolis in 2016. OSHA has developed proposed safety standards for those working in the heat, but finalizing such rules could take a few more years. While heat stroke can afflict workers within a matter of hours, finalizing OSHAs heat safety rule could take at least a year or two. By law, the bureaucratic process requires a period for comments and then responses to every single concern raised. (Other factors, such as potential litigation or a change in presidential administrations, could also upend the rule.) Federal officials say they recognize the urgency, though. At a recent Workers Defense Project event, OSHA assistant secretary of labor Doug Parker called the heat safety rule "our No. 1 rulemaking priority at OSHA," adding that, "we've done this rule faster than most of these types of complex rules have ever been done since the 1980s." And Casar told my American-Statesman colleague Bayliss Wagner: "I'll work with the Biden administration to finalize this rule as quickly as possible, to make sure that there's positive comments and protection of his rule from whichever corporate interests might try to slow it down or block it." It is imperative that OSHA expedite its review. Every day, people are working strenuous jobs in the unforgiving heat. The risk to workers is particularly acute in Texas, which saw one-fifth of all U.S. heat-related deaths last year, according to an Associated Press analysis. Climate change is contributing to longer and hotter summers, while at the same time, Texas lawmakers last year struck down water break ordinances in Austin and Dallas as part of a massive bill nullifying various local regulations. David Chincanchan, policy director for the Workers Defense Project, noted some employers already take the right steps to ensure a safe worksite. But other folks are willing to trade 10 or 15 minutes of productivity, which is how long a water break would take, for potentially a human life, and obviously it's not worth it, he told me. We're not talking about numbers. We're not talking about productivity, he continued. Ultimately, we're talking about individuals with lives and families and hopes and dreams and just full people that are an important part of our community. Unfortunately, workers aren't always seen that way. I kept thinking of Chincanchans words as I read through the OSHA reports of the heat-related worker deaths in Texas just during the time the proposed federal rule has been in the works: May 15, 2022: While replacing the roof on a home in Ennis, Jose Armando Tobar, 63, became ill and fell off the building to his death. OSHA found heat exhaustion caused the fall. June 21, 2022: Jorge Gomez spent the morning framing a new house in Liberty Hill, and he then couldnt stand up after his lunch break. The 49-year-old complained of chest pains before collapsing. OSHA records say his death was caused by heart failure related to heat exposure. June 23, 2022: Gabriel Infante, 24, toiled under the San Antonio sun, using a hand shovel to dig out a fiber optic cable and reinstall it a few feet away. Around 5:30 p.m., he became so combative that police were called; then he collapsed and died at the hospital from severe heat stroke. An OSHA report said Infantes core body temperature had reached 110 degrees. Aug. 8, 2022: Christopher Strickland, 31, spent the day digging narrow trenches with a pickaxe and then laying irrigation pipes for a sprinkler system outside a San Angelo office building. He collapsed and died of heat stroke, OSHA records said. June 20, 2023: Postal carrier Eugene Gates, 66, collapsed while walking along his delivery route in Dallas. OSHA found the heat exacerbated Gates fatal heart condition. June 27, 2023: After handling cinder blocks at a Rockport construction site, Eloy Maldonado Valdez, 59, told a co-worker he didnt feel well. He laid down in the shade. He never got up. All of them went to work one day and never came home to their loved ones. All of them might still be with us, if only the right safeguards had been in place for those working in the heat. OSHA has crafted such a rule. It should move swiftly to finalize it before any more workers trying to provide for their families join this list. Grumet is the Statesmans Metro columnist. Her column, ATX in Context, contains her opinions. Share yours via email at bgrumet@statesman.com or on X at @bgrumet. Find her previous work at statesman.com/opinion/columns. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Texas workers cant afford to wait years for federal heat safety rule Third former Columbus zoo official pleads guilty to crimes from theft scandal A third of four Columbus Zoo and Aquarium officials pleaded guilty Monday morning to six felony charges related to theft and misappropriation of public zoo funds. Tracy Murnane, the zoo's former director of purchasing, arrived in Delaware County Common Pleas Court with $90,000 for restitution, $60,000 of which was to be paid directly to the zoo, with the balance to the Ohio Auditor's office. Murnane faced charges of grand theft, complicity to commit theft, forgery, telecommunication fraud and two counts related to so-call title skipping for purchase and rehabilitation of several classic cars that were sold to third parties for profit without having title. He also pleaded to two misdemeanor charges. Former Columbus Zoo official Tracy Murnane on Monday stands next to his attorney, Bradley Barbin, during a hearing where he pleaded guilty to eight felonies related to his time at the zoo. Video | Columbus Zoo and Aquarium welcomes new elephant: Get to know Johnson When sentenced on Sept. 23, Judge David Gormley could impose up to 8 1/2 years in prison. Attorney Bradley Barbin said his client admitted to all the offenses and didn't directly profit from the array of free tickets, luxury suites for concerts and sporting events or other zoo assets that Gregory Bell, Peter Fingerhut or Thomas Stalf did when they were chief financial officer, marketing director and president/CEO, respectively. "Employees need to know, when their bosses say to them 'Would you help me line my pockets?' you just have to say no. And if you don't, you're going to end up holding the bag," Barbin said. Murnane is accused of selling personal cars to the zoo using a straw seller and personally profiting, attending special events with tickets purchased by the zoo, and booking a party bus for his sons wedding with zoo resources, according to the auditor. Barbin said that as early as four years ago, Murnane began paying back funds that he knew were being misspent. And that he's agreed, as have Bell and Fingerhut, to provide prosecutors new details, many of which will be used against Stalf, considered the kingpin in the zoo scandal, and the only defendant who has yet to plead guilty. Dan Kasaris, senior assistant Ohio Attorney General, who is the lead prosecutor, agreed that Murnane has been cooperative. dnarciso@dispatch.com This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus zoo's Tracy Murnane pleaded guilty to theft, other felonies Thirteen homes were destroyed by the Thompson Fire that blazed through Butte County this month. In reporting its damage assessment Sunday, Cal Fires Butte County unit found that 13 minor structures were also destroyed. The assessment came as the final evacuation zones were lifted for the wildfire that started July 2 and burned through an area sandwiched between the city of Oroville and Lake Oroville, prompting more than 13,000 residents to flee. Cal Fire said an additional five homes and three minor structures were damaged by the blaze, which broke out amid red flag conditions and fierce winds that quickly spread embers. As of Sunday, the fire had scorched 3,789 acres and was 86% contained. Four firefighters were injured during the initial fight but no residents were injured. A home on Bessie Lane was among four structures destroyed in the Thompson Fire burning near Lake Oroville in Butte County Wednesday, July 3, 2024, that has injured four firefighters amid hot, dry, and windy conditions. The fast-moving wildfire prompted evacuations for 13,000 residents. A burned down home and vehicle from the Thompson Fire on Wednesday, July 3, 2024 in Oroville at Bessie Lane. Cal Fire said Sunday morning that crews remained in the burn areas strengthening containment and control lines, and support suppression repair efforts. Firefighters on the line will continue to remain hydrated and ready in the event the fire activity increases, incident commanders said. Record hot and dry weather conditions and rugged topography throughout the fire area are challenging for suppression efforts. Record-high temperatures in Butte County and across Northern California remain a concern for firefighters, who are expecting slightly cooler days temperatures below 105 degrees at the beginning of this week. The cause of the fire remains under investigation. A deer walks on a burned olive grove on Bessie Lane from the Thompson Fire on Wednesday, July 3, 2024 in Oroville. Flames are seen on the shores of Lake Oroville from the Thompson Fire on Tuesday, June 2, 2024. The 3,000-acre wildfire has prompted evacuations of roughly 13,000 residents in Butte County. A helicopter flies over the Thompson Fire near the Oroville Dam on Wednesday, July 3, 2024. An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) HUARONG, Hunan Province, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. Floodwaters from torrential rain caused the breach at Dongting Lake in the city of Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, with at least 7,000 residents having been evacuated since the dike burst on Friday afternoon. According to the Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters, the sealing will expedite drainage and post-disaster reconstruction and alleviate pressure on the second line of defense, a 14.3-km embankment located approximately two kilometers behind the dike. This photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows the site of sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) Rescuers seal the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) Rescuers seal the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers sealing the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. Rescue personnel successfully sealed a 226-meter breach in a dike at China's second-largest freshwater lake at 10:31 p.m. Monday, according to local authorities. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) Are those fireworks or gunshots? Here are ways to tell the difference (FOX40.COM) Many people, especially around holidays, find themselves asking an uncomfortable question: Are the pop-pop-pop sounds they hear are gunshots or fireworks? Although there isnt a definite way to tell, there may be some identifiable differences. Video Above: Why are there fireworks on the Fourth of July? According to Oaklandslide.org, gunshots dont usually overlap. Each pop is followed by a short pause or silence unless theres rapid fire or multiple people shooting guns at the same time. In addition, the sound from fireworks radiate in all directions, while gunfire follows the direction the barrel is pointed. In most cases, the sound of gunfire will travel further than the average firework. The exception is the boom of professional or illegal fireworks that can travel for miles. More citations coming in Northern California after drone reveals illegal fireworks use The AmmoMan School of Guns reported theres a significant difference in the smoke between firecrackers and guns. Firecrackers use black powder and not modern, smokeless gunpowder. According to AmmoMan, if a person hears popping sounds, but doesnt see any smoke, its probably gunfire and not fireworks. With the differences in sounds being so subtle, local law enforcement said theres an influx of reports about gunshots during New Years and the Fourth of July. Its so hard to tell because gunfire doesnt have a distinctive sound. Neither do fireworks, Sacramento Police Department Officer Anthony Gamble told FOX40.com. Either way, if a person thinks they hear gunshots, we dont want to dissuade them from calling. Let us know and we will respond. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. The sight that would have greeted many passengers on Sunday and Monday - IronHeart More than 10,000 passengers have been hit by flight cancellations at UK airports because of bad weather and air traffic control staff shortages in Europe. At least 125 scheduled flights were grounded on Sunday and Monday, including 82 British Airways flights to and from Heathrow. Several airlines also cancelled flights to and from Gatwick. The worst affected airline was easyJet, with 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday. Airlines blamed adverse weather and traffic control delays for the grounded flights, which could see thousands of holidaymakers uncompensated as these causes of disruption are usually deemed to be outside airlines control. Ongoing staff shortages across Europe are thought to be behind the air traffic control (ATC) restrictions, with the number of workers in the sector first falling during the pandemic. It is the not the first time the dwindling workforce has sparked tension between the industry and the airlines with a Ryanair spokesperson claiming ATC services were continuing to underperform. While passengers are unlikely to receive refunds, they could be entitled to assistance this could include refreshments, overnight accommodation and rebooking with alternative carriers. Not the start to a holiday most would like a packed terminal with queues going nowhere - Reuters/Henry Nicholls The weather caused two British Airways planes being taken out of service for safety checks on Sunday after they were struck by lightning. In a message on its website, Ryanair said: ATC services, which have had the benefit of no French ATC strike disruption this summer, continue to underperform (despite flight volumes being 5 per cent behind 2019 levels) with repeated staff shortages. On Monday 8 July, 21 per cent of Ryanairs first wave departures (134 of 579 aircraft) were delayed due to ATC staff shortages. These repeated flight delays due to ATC mismanagement are unacceptable. We apologise to our passengers for these repeated ATC flight delays which are deeply regrettable but beyond Ryanairs control. With 34 flights grounded on Sunday and at least nine on Monday, easyJet was the worst affected airline - Julian Simmonds for The Daily Telegraph A British Airways spokesperson said: Due to Air traffic control restrictions and adverse weather, like other airlines weve had to make a small number of alterations to our schedule. We know this will be frustrating for our customers and our teams are working hard to get them on to alternative flights as soon as possible, with the vast majority already booked onto services that will fly later today. An easyJet spokesperson said: EasyJet operated around 1,800 flights [on Sunday] and is operating a similar number today [Monday], however, some flights yesterday evening and three flights from London Gatwick this morning have unfortunately been disrupted due to the knock-on impact of adverse weather and air traffic control delays. While this is outside of our control, we are sorry for the inconvenience caused and are providing impacted customers with hotel accommodation and meals as well as a refund or a transfer to an alternative flight. 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. Three civilians killed in Russian missile attack on Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast photos All photos show the aftermath of the Russian attack on Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast. Photo: Donetsk Oblast Military Administration At least three people are reported to have been killed in the town of Pokrovsk, Donetsk Oblast, in a large-scale Russian missile attack targeting the whole of Ukraine on the morning of 8 July. Source: Vadym Filashkin, Head of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration Details: Filashkin said early reports indicate that the premises of a company have been hit, claiming the lives of three men. The aftermath of the Russian attack on Pokrovsk on 8 July Photo: Donetsk Oblast Military Administration The aftermath of the Russian attack on Pokrovsk on 8 July Photo: Donetsk Oblast Military Administration Other populated areas of Donetsk Oblast also came under Russian fire, although no information about casualties or damage has been reported. Quote: "Take care of yourselves! Do not ignore the air-raid warnings!" Background: On the morning of 8 July, Russian terrorists once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine, using more than 40 missiles of various types. Various cities were hit: Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk and Kramatorsk. Residential buildings, infrastructure and a children's hospital were damaged. Support UP or become our patron! Palestinians mourn detainees said to have been killed by an Israeli strike upon their release By Hatem Khaled GAZA (Reuters) -The handcuffed bodies of three Palestinian men freed from Israeli custody have been found near Gaza's border with Israel, and an uncle of one of them and a witness said they had been attacked by Israeli forces shortly after their release. Abdel Hadi Ghabayen, an uncle of one of the detainees, Kamel Ghabayen, said he set out at 5 a.m. on Sunday looking for his nephew following his arrest by Israeli forces on Saturday. "I found him left on the ground along with the other two martyrs. They were without clothes, and their hands had plastic cuffs put on them by the Israeli army," Ghabayen said. The bodies were found near the Israeli border fence on Sunday in the vicinity of the Karam Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing in southern Gaza, he said. Reuters could not independently confirm what happened to the three men or the reason for their arrest. In response to Reuters requests for comment, the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said: "From a review conducted the IDF is unfamiliar with an incident in which the suspects were killed by IDF fire." Abdel Hadi Ghabayen said one of the men had lost a leg and his body was "in pieces" after what he said was an attack by Israeli forces carried out shortly after their release. Abdel Hadi Ghabayen said that when he tried to recover the man's dismembered leg the Israelis "started shooting at me, so I stopped." He later carried the bodies of the three on his truck to Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. The three -- Kamel Ghabayen, Mohammed Awad Ramadan Abu Hejazi and Ramadan Awad Ramadan Aby Hejaz -- were among several Palestinians detained on Saturday and held for questioning, according to one of the men, Mahmoud Abu Taha. Abu Taha said they came under fire shortly after their release. "We reached Karkar Street (in Gaza). After 10 minutes of being there, we found a bomb thrown at the people with me. Thank God I was at the front. The bomb hit 6 or 7 people who were detained with us. Thank God I am alive," he said. The war began on Oct. 7 when fighters led by Hamas, which controlled Gaza, attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. More than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli military offensive since then, according to Gaza health officials. (Reporting by Hatem Khaled; Writing by Michael Georgy; editing by William Maclean Miral Fahmy) Monroe County paramedics flew three people, including a child, to mainland hospitals after the fast-moving boat they were on crashed into a bridge in the Florida Keys early Monday morning, according to the fire department. Four other people on the boat were taken to local hospitals, said Kristen Livengood, spokeswoman for Monroe County Fire Rescue. The Sea Hunter center console struck the South Pine Channel Bridge, which connects Middle Torch Key with Ramrod Key in the Lower Keys, at a high rate of speed around 2 a.m., Livengood told the Miami Herald. Firefighters were the first to respond and had to use ladders on the old bridge to get down to the people and rescue them before the boat sank, Livengood said. A badly damaged Sea Hunter center console floats next to the South Pine Channel Bridge in the Lower Florida Keys Monday, July 8, 2024. Officers from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, as well as a boat from TowBoat US a boat-towing business also responded to the crash, said Livengood. Mondays crash comes after a man was struck and killed while spearfishing in the waters off the Lower Keys Friday afternoon, and a person was badly injured in a personal watercraft crash off Key West Saturday. This embedded content is not available in your region. This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available. House Democrats exert pressure: House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (DN.Y.) recently convened a virtual meeting of House Democrats to discuss whether President Joe Biden ought to be replaced by a Democrat with a better chance of beating Donald Trump. "Among those saying explicitly that Mr. Biden should end his candidacy were Representatives Jerrold Nadler of New York, the top Democrat on the Judiciary Committee; Adam Smith of Washington, the ranking member of the Armed Services Committee; Mark Takano of California, the ranking Democrat on the Veterans Affairs Committee; and Joseph D. Morelle of New York, the top Democrat on the committee on House Administration," reports The New York Times. The mere fact that Jeffries convened this meeting is of great significance: It's an acknowledgment from the top that this ticket isn't going to work, and that Democrats have a serious problem that lawmakers do not trust party operatives, campaign staffers, or Biden advisers to solve. Biden, in media appearances this weekend aimed at calming people's nerves about his age, said that only the "Lord Almighty" could convince him to step aside and allow another member of his party to run for president against Trump. Divine intervention needed: "If the Lord Almighty came down and said, 'Joe, get out of the race,' I'd get out of the race," he told ABC. He added that the "Lord Almighty's not coming down." When asked how he would feel if he lost to Trump, he responded: "I'll feel as long as I gave it my all and I did the goodest job as I know I can do, that's what this is about." (Interestingly, ABC and the White House initially disagreed on whether Biden had used the word goodest. More here.) "All the pollsters I talk to say it's a tossupit's a tossup," Biden claimed. FiveThirtyEight, which maintains an "updating average for each candidate in 2024 presidential polls, accounting for each poll's recency, sample size, methodology and house effects," does not support this assessment, saying Trump is polling ahead by 2.3 points. Two recent Ipsos/Reuters polls assessed Biden vs. Trump as well as a Kamala Harris vs. Trump ticket; Harris performed better than Biden in these matchups. Recent Bloomberg/Morning Consult polls in swing states have Biden performing better than he has beena recent uptickbut only in Wisconsin and Michigan, which simply isn't enough. "Like a lot of people, I was pretty horrified," Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (DR.I.) told WPRI, referring to Biden's debate performance. It seems as though all people of sound cognitive state agree: Biden cannot be kept on the ticket. It's Biden who refuses, along with several of the sycophants with whom he's surrounded himself. French chaos: Marine Le Pen's far-right party, National Rally, didn't do as well as predicted in legislative elections yesterday. A left-wing coalition, the New Popular Front, won 178 seats, while President Emmanuel Macron's centrist party took 150; National Rally took 142. No party will win a majority. It's gridlock time: As The New York Times describes it, the "lower house of Parliament, where most legislative power resides, [has] no governing coalition appeared immediately conceivable," meaning Macron's "centrists [are] squeezed between far-right and far-left groups that detest each other and him." It's clear that Macron's gamble, to hold a snap election early versus later in the fall, did not pay off. Radicals on both left and right have more power and presence than before, while Macronwho was already stunningly unpopularwill be caught between the two. "Finding a compromise candidate who could lead the next administration won't be easy," reports Bloomberg. "Some early contenders include Marine Tondelier of the Green party and Raphael Glucksmann of the center-left Place Publique; current prime minister Gabriel Attal might also end up staying on." Macron must step down, ending his second term, in 2027, and current Prime Minister Gabriel Attal has, of this morning, tendered his resignation (as is customary in French politics), which Macron rejected, meaning Attal may stay on. Scenes from New York: Oysters keep dying instead of reproducing, creating a huge problem for the scientists working to restore the bivalve population in New York's waters. QUICK HITS "The Philadelphia radio station WURD has parted ways with a host who interviewed President [Joe] Biden on Wednesday using questions provided to her by the Biden campaign, after the station said the interview violated its journalistic independence," reports The New York Times. "WURD said in a statement on Sunday that 'agreeing to a predetermined set of questions jeopardizes' its listeners' trust. The host, Andrea Lawful-Sanders, resigned in a mutual agreement, according to WURD." Joe Biden's excessive reliance on teleprompters, even in intimate environments like private donor events, has finally been covered by places like The Washington Post (now that it is safe to publish more explicitly negative pieces about the Democrats' guy). Big picture: If vast swaths of the media had stopped being so accommodating toward Biden earlier, and actually done their jobs, we might not be in this late-stage swap-out situation. Zyn imitators "pose a challenge for US regulators, who will have to contend with another wave of unauthorized nicotine products after an explosion in demand for unauthorized flavored vapes since last year," reports Bloomberg. Sierra Leone is reportedly in the midst of an addiction crisis. "The anti-startup bias that is increasingly pervasive across the American government is a clear and present threat to the health and vitality of American technology success," write Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz in a manifesto they call "The Little Tech Agenda." One reason for this situation, they say, is because "tech startups as an industry do not show up in Washington D.C. and in the political system the way big companies do." The post Ticket Change? appeared first on Reason.com. A judge silenced the grieving mother of Aubreigh Wyatt on social media but, in doing so, unleashed an army of TikTok creators and Facebook commenters demanding justice and saying they are speaking up on the familys behalf. Social media users also have shared a link to the gofundme account of Aubreigh Wyatts mother, former Ocean Springs elementary school teacher Heather Wyatt. By Monday morning, the account had raised more than $76,000 for Heather Wyatts legal expenses. Those expenses are mounting as the parents of four girls accused of bullying Aubreigh to her grave have filed two separate lawsuits against Wyatt, further enraging a social media throng bent on #JusticeforAubreigh, as one popular hashtag reads. A number of high-profile creators on TikTok shared Wyatts story after Jackson County Chancery Court Judge Mark Maples issued the emergency injunction after hours on July 1. Maples ordered Wyatt to temporarily shut down her social media accounts. The order, issued in secret but leaked to social media, said he was trying to protect the minors accused of bullying Aubreigh. Social media users jumped right in. A Mobile, Alabama creator with almost 13 million followers on TikTok, affectionately known as MamaTot, looked sadly at the camera as sorrowful music played and her message was highlighted: Since Aubrieghs (sp) Mama cant speak for her, (court ordered) I suppose we will. Right Tatertots? When their voice is silenced, use yours. Another TikTok creator, who goes by the handle POPE and has 84,000 followers, said in a video: They might have shut you down for awhile but they havent shut us down. I will not stop talking about Aubreigh Wyatt and Heather Wyatt until justice is served. You can quiet her, but you cant quiet all of us, and we wont go silent. On Facebook, 24-year-old Alivia Boccaccio, announced she would be setting up a station near Interstate 10 to paint designs honoring Aubreigh on vehicle windows in exchange for donations that would go to Heather Wyatts legal fees. Boccaccio said she also had been relentlessly bullied as a child. Alivia Boccaccio paints symbols of support on a trucks rear window for the Wyatt family after the death by suicide of 13-year-old Aubreigh Wyatt, whose mother Heather Wyatt says bullying is responsible. Boccaccio is donating proceeds to help with legal fees for Wyatt, who is being sued by the parents of girls who others claim are Aubreighs bullies. Aubreigh Wyatts story spreads on social media The comments and videos were among thousands that have popped up on social media about Aubreigh Wyatt. Often, the posts or videos are fact-based, with fiction sprinkled in. For example, one TIkTok creator identified Aubreigh as being from Ocean Springs, Missouri, while countless creators have misidentified the position of authority held by the father of one of the girls accused of bullying Aubreigh. Before Maples ordered her to shut down her social media accounts, Heather Wyatt was active mainly on TikTok. Unlike many commenters, she has not shared the names of the girls who she says bullied her daughter from the fifth grade until she died Sept. 4, after beginning eighth grade at Ocean Springs Middle School. Instead, Wyatt has said she is trying to spread awareness of suicide and mental health. Her account had built to almost 1 million followers, with more than 40 million views on a video she had recently posted about finding notes Aubreigh left behind for each member of her family. Wyatt said she discovered the notes in a box of cards as she packed Aubreighs room for a move. While Aubreighs story spread globally on TikTok, as Twitter user @Holleywood87 noted, other platforms are picking it up, too. The Aubreigh Wyatt story was pretty much contained to TikTok then those a------- sued her mama and the judge decided she had to delete all her social media accounts and not speak her dead childs name. Now because of that ruling the story is all over every platform. Ha! Maples order shutting down Wyatts social media is only temporary. He will review the order at a hearing scheduled for 1:30 p.m., July 18, at the county courthouse in Pascagoula. Many social media commenters say they are planning to show up and are making signs. Based on the sealed court record, the judge also could decide to close the hearing to the public. The Chancery Court lawsuit was filed by the parents of the girls accused of bullying Aubreigh. A previous judge on the case, Ashlee Cole, sealed all the records from public view, but a copy of Maples order found its way to TikTok and Facebook the morning after he signed it. The four sets of parents have filed a separate lawsuit against Heather Wyatt in Jackson County Circuit Court that accuses her of slander. That case is open and viewable. Wyatt has not yet had a chance to respond to the lawsuit, which was filed July 2. The Sun Herald is not naming the parents in order to avoid identifying their minor daughters. Heather Wyatt, center, and her children Taylor, right, and Ryker at the Wyatts home in Ocean Springs on Tuesday, March 12, 2024. Heather and her children have been making TikToks and printing t-shirts to raise awareness for suicide prevention following the death of Heathers daughter Aubreigh by suicide in 2023. Survivor of bullying pitches in for Wyatts Alivia Boccaccio wants to help the Wyatts if she can. She was out in the heat painting vehicle windows after she got off work Sunday. Her husband, Tristen Boccaccio, stayed by her side. I have five suicide attempts under my belt, so this is important to me, said Boccaccio, who grew up in St. Martin, where she still lives. She said that she was bullied from fifth-seventh grades. She was called Tree Hair because of her thick, curly hair, along with other derogatory nicknames. Girls she thought were her friends left her out of sleepovers and other activities, giggling as they discussed their plans. I would get left out, she said. I would get laughed at. She started self-harming at age 13 and attempted suicide beginning at the same age and throughout her teens. Shes 24 years old now but still has self-esteem and body-image issues, she said. I wish I had known that the only value comes from within, she said. The bullies opinions, she now sees, dont matter. Shannon Braender grew up in Ocean Springs but now lives in Mobile. She stopped to get her windows painted for Aubreigh while working her delivery job in Ocean Springs. She said the judge started down a slippery slope when he silenced Heather Wyatt on social media. When you talk about your civil liberties freedom of speech I dont know how you could silence somebody like that. Alyssa Galeos and her daughter Pricilla, 6, stopped outside Ocean Springs to have their car window painted so they could show support for Heather Wyatt, whose daughter died by suicide after being bullied. Vehicles line up Sunday so the drivers can have signs of support painted on their windows for the family of Aubreigh Wyatt, a 13-year-old Ocean Springs Middle School student who died by suicide and whose mother Heather Wyatt says she was bullied from fifth grade until her death as an eighth-grader. Joe Biden, resisting pressure to step aside from the presidential race in wake of a series of alarming fumbles, sent a defiant letter to congressional Democrats on Monday in hopes of quelling a potential revolt on Capitol Hill. "I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump," he wrote, making the oft-repeated claim that he was "the best person to beat Donald Trump in 2024." The growing sentiment among top-level Democrats and a wide swathe of American voters is that Biden's confidence in his ability to defeat Trump and to last another four years as a competent president is gravely misplaced. After a disastrous debate performance against Trump last month, Biden did little to allay concerns with a halting ABC interview in which he dismissed his tumbling poll numbers as fake, a performance that came amid a series of White House leaks suggesting that he was being cloistered from reality by his family and a circle of yes-men. As of Monday morning, at least nine House Democrats including senior figures like Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y. have openly called on Biden to step aside, with many others expressing the same wishes in private or, in the case of Trump impeachment manager Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., nudging the president to exit without pushing too hard. But Biden insisted in his letter that questioning his viability was tantamount a "weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead" that would only "help" Trump and hurt Democrats. Casting himself as a champion of working people and families, Biden claimed that he could run on a strong economic record and portray Trump and MAGA Republicans as "siding with the wealthy and big corporations" by giving a $5 trillion tax cut for rich people so they could cut Social Security and Medicare and repealing the Affordable Care Act. Some Democrats, who largely agree with the message but are skeptical that Biden can deliver it effectively, have said that while finding a replacement atop the ticket is risky, keeping Biden as the nominee would ensure defeat against Trump. But the president can count on support from lawmakers such as Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., who has told Biden's critics to "grow a spite or grow a set." Biden, for his part, claimed in his letter that although he "heard the concerns that people have," by winning the Democratic primaries earlier this year he had already been entrusted by his party's voters with carrying their banner in November. There is nothing you can do now, the president told his fellow Democrats. "We had a Democratic nomination process and the voters have spoken clearly and decisively," he wrote. "I received over 14 million votes, 87% of the votes cast across the entire nominating process. I have nearly 3,900 delegates, making me the presumptive nominee of our party by a wide margin ... Do we now just say this process didn't matter? That the voters don't have a say?" The nominating process, in which an incumbent president is rarely challenged, was largely seen as a coronation for Biden rather than a serious contest, despite the entry of Rep. Dean Phillips, D-Minn., into the race. Critics of Biden's refrain have said that the decision of several state parties to cancel primary elections and the refusal of the Democratic National Committee to sanction debates render his claims of a party mandate meaningless. Some polls now show that a plurality of Democratic voters, and up to three-quarters of all registered voters, think Biden should step aside. Biden says it's his critics who should step aside. If anyone wants to step forward now, Biden said in a Monday morning call with MSNBC, they will have to fight him at the Democratic National Convention. "The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And it's time for it to end," Biden's letter concluded. "We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump." Toddler, 2, dies after shooting himself while left alone in a Walmart parking lot as his parents shopped for fireworks A Georgia toddler has died after accidentally shooting himself in a Walmart parking lot as his parents were shopping just feet away. Nakyzi Odums, 2, was left alone in the car on the afternoon of July 3 while his parents were buying fireworks at a nearby stand, according to local news outlet WALB. Witnesses told police that Nakyzis parents heard the gunshot and ran back to their car where they found the boy had shot himself in the chest. The child was rushed to the hospital in Douglas, Georgia, and later transferred to a trauma center in Jacksonville, Florida, where he died on Saturday, police said in a Facebook post. Douglas Police Chief Brannen Pruette said investigators are trying to figure out how the toddler got a hold of the gun. Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident, he said. Witnesses said Nakyzi was sitting in the front seat of the car, and that the gun may have been in the side of the car door, WALB reported. Nakyzi Odums, 2, died after accidentally shooting himself in a Georgia Walmarts parking lot (GoFundMe) Youre allowed to have a gun in the car, but when theres a child involved, you need to make sure that the gun is secure so that the child doesnt have access to it, Pruette said, addressing the theory. Its unclear if the parents identified by family as Sam Odums and Laileighauna Parks will face charges in the incident. They are not listed in recent arrest reports viewed by The Independent. Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident, police said. Our thoughts and prayers are with the family during this difficult time. The childs grandmother Candi Brinson has created a GoFundMe for the family to help pay for the burial and to allow his parents to grieve properly. She described Nakyzi as a boy who smiled brightly, laughed wholeheartedly [and] loved unconditionally. Toddler dies after accidentally shooting self in Walmart parking lot, Georgia cops say A 2-year-old boy died after accidentally shooting himself in the parking lot of a South Georgia Walmart, police said. It happened July 3 outside the supercenter in Douglas, according to the citys police department. Officers were called at about 2:40 p.m. about a child who shot himself, police said in a news release. Paramedics treated the child at the scene before he was taken to Coffee Regional Medical Center. The toddler was in a car while his parents shopped at a fireworks stand a few feet away, WALB reported, citing witnesses. Thats when they heard a loud pop and realized the 2-year-old shot himself in the face. Its not clear how he got a hold of a gun. The child was later transferred to a trauma center in Jacksonville, Florida, where he died, police said in an update on July 6. Family members identified him as Nakyzi Odums, according to a GoFundMe launched on the familys behalf. Authorities are continuing their investigation to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident, police wrote on Facebook. Our thoughts and prayers are with the child and their family during this difficult time. Authorities didnt release additional details. McClatchy News reached out to the Douglas Police Department for more information on July 8 and was awaiting a response. Douglas is about a 130-mile drive southwest from Savannah. Sonic manager shot and killed by customer in argument over food order, Texas cops say 23-year-old kills his grandparents and confesses to neighbor, Louisiana deputies say Dad falls asleep on couch with 5-month-old, then mom finds baby unresponsive, cops say BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau will pay a state visit to China from July 9 to 13, foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying announced on Monday. During the visit, Xi will host a welcoming ceremony and a banquet for Embalo and the two heads of state will hold talks, Lin Jian, another spokesperson for the foreign ministry, told a press briefing on Monday. Premier Li Qiang will also meet with Embalo, Lin said. Lin noted that the Chinese people firmly supported the people of Guinea-Bissau in their struggle for national independence and liberation in the 1970s. In recent years, the two countries have firmly supported each other on issues concerning each other's core interests, conducted cooperation in economic and social development, maintained communication and coordination in international affairs, and continuously scored new achievements in friendly relations, Lin said. It is believed that this visit will inject strong impetus into deepening relations between China and Guinea-Bissau and promoting bilateral friendly cooperation, he added. The Scoop A secretive local media network with ties to high-profile national Democratic operatives wants to convince regulators in Arizona that despite the political tilt of its stories, it is not a political entity and should not be subject to campaign finance disclosures. Star Spangled Media operates a series of left-leaning websites including the Morning Mirror, a difficult-to-find, barebones blog that for the last few months has periodically published a few unbylined stories about seemingly random topics. Its About Us page simply reads: Welcome to the Morning Mirrorwhere reliability meets fresh insight. Stay informed with us as we deliver on the matters that impact your life. Over the last few weeks, Star Spangled Media has started spending a modest amount to boost Morning Mirror stories on Facebook that tout the pro-abortion rights records of local Democratic candidates running for Michigan House seats. The site is low on content, but it has the backing of the law firm led by Marc Elias, perhaps the Democratic Partys best known elections litigator and a central player in 2024s politics. And Elias law firm is moving to ensure the odd blog is treated as a journalistic operation, not a political one. In a letter to the states campaign finance regulator, the Arizona Citizens Clean Election Commission, in late May, Jonathan S. Berkon, an attorney at the Elias Group, asked the state finance regulator to opine on whether the states campaign finance law applies to Star Spangled Media. The companys activities, argued Berkon, do not constitute campaign media spending, and it shouldnt have to report extensive financial info to state or federal campaign finance regulators. Star Spangled Media is a for-profit media company that is in the business of publishing and distributing original news stories, commentaries, and editorials, he wrote. Star Spangled Media accepts funds in the ordinary course of its business from grants from nonprofit organizations that are interested in funding the type of news coverage that Star Spangled Media undertakes and building an audience for the news coverage via targeted advertising. For tax purposes, this revenue is treated like any other revenue derived from a commercial transaction. Because any funds that Star Spangled Media spends on content and news boosting are the monies it receives via these ordinary course commercial transactions, Berkon concluded, the company is not a covered person under Arizona campaign finance law. Despite Berkons argument, it is clear that there are some ties between institutional Democrats and the Morning Mirror. Many of the articles on the site do not have author bylines, making it difficult to understand who is producing the content. But the sites source code reveals a few clues about the its ties to Democratic politics: The Morning Mirror was created in part by Lucas Anderton, a creative director for SBDigital, a progressive digital advertising firm. Cesar Vargas-Torrico, a former Democratic comms staffer working for a left-leaning Democratic PR shop, is listed as an author on stories. Know More Arizona regulators dont know what to make of the Elias Groups argument. In a response late last month, the commission said that, because The Morning Mirror has extremely limited output, and there is no information available about its editorial process, it is impossible for the Commission to determine whether its political articlesmany of which appear to be generated by using campaign created mediago through the same process as its non-political articles. Because the Commission cannot conclude the press exception applies, the Commission cannot conclude that Star Spangled Media is not a covered person and does not intend to engage in campaign media spending, the letter said. Equally importantly, however, the Commission is not concluding the oppositesimply put more facts about Star Spangled Medias internal operations and news presence in Arizona would be necessary for the Commission to reach a reasoned conclusion about whether the press exception applies. Maxs view The Morning Mirror may not explicitly be a partisan enterprise, but from the outside, it is hard not to view it as part of a political operation. Democratic consultants represented by a law firm that does much of the legal work for Democrats House, Senate, and state legislative committees are running a website with positive stories about Democratic candidates in an election year, and using paid ads to boost those stories. Its part of a multi-pronged push by Democrats to counter conservative media across the country through increasingly creative and sometimes opaque digital strategies ones that blur the line between even the most activist political journalism and paid campaigning for the Democratic Party. Last year, I reported that Democratic consultants and progressive media activists were pushing wealthy Democrats to invest in for-profit media companies and social media influencers in the wake of the collapse of a generation of youth-oriented digital news outlets like Vice and BuzzFeed News. Part of the diagnosis of a widely-circulated 85-page report by longtime Democratic operative and communicator Arkadi Gerney was that center- and left-leaning philanthropists and investors should invest in local television and radio in places where local media has disintegrated. Left-leaning groups have gotten more involved in the digital landscape, as well. As Semafor previously reported, Courier Newsroom, a network of local news sites with close ties to the Democratic Party, ramped up its ad spending to target progressive voters ahead of the 2024 election. While the sites have a fairly transparent point of view, its not always easy to tell who is behind the stories. Earlier this year, Iowa Starting Line ran paid Facebook ads boosting critical articles about a bill that would alter the states education funding, a proposal opposed by state Democrats and the National Education Association, the countrys largest teachers union. But as Semafor previously noted, the articles did not disclose that the union is a major funder of Courier, having contributed half a million dollars to the organization since 2022. To its credit, Courier is far more sophisticated than other players in the space. Prior to this article, the only other piece written about the Morning Mirror was in , Couriers must-read digital political newsletter. Some of these types of sites may undermine confidence in independent journalism, but its not clear that paid Facebook advertising to the web is the major communications channel it was eight years ago. As news consumers habits change, boosting these articles on Facebook also seems unlikely to change many minds even if it becomes a favored channel for spending the money of Democratic political donors. Room for Disagreement In an email with Semafor, Berkon cast Star Spangled Media as a transparently left-of-center replacement for diminished local media. Star Spangled Media is aiming to fill a hole in the media landscape: providing factually accurate information about legislatures, legislative policies, and legislative candidates, and non-policy issues such as the weather, he said. A person familiar with the outlet said that it was not owned, operated, or controlled by a campaign, political party, or political action committee, didnt endorse candidates, and had editorial independence. Notable In his book, , Steven Brill describes a similar phenomenon: pink slime media. They are secretly financed by partisan funders and created to boost their favorite political candidates and tear down their opponents while piously masquerading as independent, nonprofit start-ups launched by civic-minded donors to fill the gap created by the decline of local newspapers. Alex Thompsons own Courier deep-dive for Politico: The operations backers say its where news is heading in the Wild West of social media, where partisan stories often thrive and the old business model is failing. NOTUS Maggie Severns zooms in on Couriers North Carolina site. In our weekly list of business people on the move, we highlight Palm Beach County professionals who are making a difference. These are people from across the spectrum of public and private endeavors, those working in charities, court houses, private practices and beyond. They are moving up within their industry, advancing their careers and standing out for their services within our community. Here are this week's professional standouts: Jewish Federation hires community security director The Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County and the Secure Community Network (SCN), the official safety and security organization for the Jewish community in North America, recently announced the hiring of Brandon Waller as the community security director of South Palm Beach County. Waller will oversee the safety and security of the over 200,000 Jewish residents of Boca Raton, Delray Beach, and Highland Beach. In this role, he will administer the Federations community security program, which provides consultations, building and organizational assessments, training and drills, threat mitigation to Jewish organizations, and response coordination for critical incidents. Prior to joining SCN, Waller served as a Special Agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) from 2003 to 2024, serving at FBI Headquarters, the FBI New York Field Office, and in Toronto, Canada. The Jewish Federation of South Palm Beach County is part of a growing network of Jewish Federations and communities that have partnered with SCN to launch or build upon existing community-wide security programs. Brandon Waller Boca-based JARC adds fresh crop of board members JARC Florida recently named three new, fulltime members to their board of directors. The three new board members are Summer Faerman, Harry Posin, and Jonathan Greenhut. Faerman is the director of the Meryl and Ron Gallatin Tzedakah, Learning, and Chesed (TLC) Program at Bnai Torah Congregation in Boca Raton. Posin is the founder and president of Label & Co. Developments, Inc. Greenhut is an entrepreneur who has founded multiple businesses in the health, wellness, and beauty space, including New Vitality. JARC, a nonprofit organization based in Boca Raton, provides programs and services to educate and empower individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities, Summer Faerman Harry Posin Jonathan Greenhut Property management firm attains national accreditation Rainestone Property Care has earned accreditation from the National Home Watch Association. The NHWA was formed in 2009 in order to establish and maintain the highest industry standards for Home Watch and absentee homeowner services throughout the United States and Canada. Owned by Tandrea Anderson, who has 17 years of customer service experience, Rainestone Property Care serves Wellington, West Lantana, and West Boynton Beach. Tandrea Anderson Quantum House adds board of directors member Cindy Perih was recently named to the Quantum House board of directors in West Palm Beach. Perih has been a leader and vice president of human resources at KAST construction since its inception in 2005. Quantum House is a caring and supportive home that lessens the burden for families whose children are receiving treatment in Palm Beach County for a serious medical condition. Cindy Perih Attorney opens mediation firm in Boca Raton Hank Jackson has started Hank Jackson PLLC - Mediation Services. Jackson has 35 years of experience resolving business disputes, is board certified in Business Litigation by the Florida Bar and has also been certified by the Florida Supreme Court as a Civil Circuit Mediator since 2009. He is committed to understanding the positions of the parties, identifying the impediments to settlement and finding a path forward. The firm is based out of Boca Raton and provides in person and virtual mediations. Hank Jackson Health Care District of Palm Beach County adds two leaders, promotes three The Health Care District of Palm Beach County recently announced the addition of two distinguished healthcare leaders and the promotion of three other veteran leaders. Each reflects the Health Care District's commitment to enhancing patient care and ensuring accessible, high-quality services for all. Julia Francioni, MBA, BSN, RN, joins the Health Care District as the assistant vice president of nursing at Lakeside Medical Center, the districts acute care teaching hospital in Belle Glade. Ali-Reza Force, MD, a board-certified psychiatrist, joins the district as the director of behavioral health for its community health centers. Courtney Phillips, MD, has been promoted to vice president and chief of behavioral health and clinical innovations for the district. Marisol Miranda has been promoted to associate vice president, support services for the district where she oversees security, facilities, mailroom services and plant operations. Jay Mazzone has been promoted to associate vice president, transportation and director of operations Trauma Hawk at the district. Julia Francioni Dr. Ali-Reza Force Dr. Courtney Phillips Marisol Miranda Jay Mazzone Jones Foster attorney elected to ECEPC board Jones Foster recently announced that trusts and estates attorney Rachel L. Sears was elected to the East Coast Estate Planning Council (ECEPC) of Palm Beach Countys board of directors for the 2024-2025 term during its annual meeting and reception. In her role as a director, Sears will work with the board to organize the ECEPCs 2024-2025 season which will include planning for a variety of member events and selecting expert speakers to discuss relevant topics on the ever-changing estate planning landscape at regular meetings. Jones Foster is is a full-service commercial and private client law firm headquartered in West Palm Beach, with offices in Palm Beach and Jupiter. Rachel L. Sears If you are looking for more insight into the movers and shakers operating in the Palm Beaches, subscribe to our real estate newsletter, The Dirt, keep an eye out for stories and perspective from veteran reporters Kimberly Miller and Alexandra Clough. If you have an announcement for Business People on the Move, please send it to Pbbusiness@pbpost.com. Eddie Ritz is a journalist at The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA TODAY Florida Network. You can reach him at eritz@pbpost.com. Help support our journalism. Subscribe today. This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Best businesses, professionals, business people in Palm Beach County Suella Braverman says the Conservatives must start 'talking credibly to Reform voters' - Andrew Matthews/PA Suella Braverman has said the Conservatives will never recover unless they listen to Reform UK voters, calling for the party to run on a platform of protecting national culture. The former home secretary, expected to launch a Tory leadership bid, told the National Conservatism conference in Washington on Monday that the party must start talking credibly to Reform voters or face extinction. The Tory party is never going to recover until it learns some basic manners, she said. Were entitled to not one vote, save the ones we earn by keeping our promises. Saying she planned to make Nigel Farage, the Reform leader, uncomfortable in Parliament, Mrs Braverman urged the Tories to credibly offer Conservative policies which make the existence of a separate, rival, Right-wing party moot. She added: Reform arent going to magically vanish unless we do something about the concerns of their voters. Mrs Braverman, sacked by Rishi Sunak in November after a row about the policing of pro-Palestinian protests, blamed the former prime ministers farcical gimmicks and liberal Conservatism for the partys landslide defeat last week. What the government mostly did after 2022, when Rishi Sunak became prime minister, was roll out a programme our new Labour Government today could quite happily do, she said. She accused Mr Sunak of failing to stop the lunatic woke virus in the Civil Service, and of never wanting to stop small boat migrants from crossing the Channel. It didnt happen because Rishi Sunak didnt want to do it, she said. It was a choice by that politician not to it, it wasnt because it was impossible. Mrs Braverman, the MP for Fareham and Waterlooville, has established herself on the populist Right wing of the party, calling for the Conservatives to abandon the centre. However, Damien Green, a centrist MP, warned in The Observer that a shift to the Right would be weapons-grade idiocy in a first past the post electoral system. On Monday, Mrs Braverman said the Tories should be unashamedly the champions of family and of traditional culture specific to our nation, adding: We must fight to protect our national culture, which is precious because it unifies and allows us to be at home in our national home. That culture is contained in our customs, religion, traditions, common law, architecture, countryside, our art and music, our educational institution, our sporting traditions and our constitution. Ms Braverman attributed the Conservatives defeat to there being far too little audible division on the backbenches, as the vast majority of the Tory party loyally backed Rishi Sunak and his disastrous policies. She named the proposed smoking ban and Mr Sunaks failure to bring down net migration figures as key policy failures. The former home secretary has emerged as an early contender for the Conservative leadership after Mr Sunak announced his intention to stand down following Labours landslide election victory on Thursday. However her potential candidacy was dealt a blow at the weekend when The Telegraph revealed that Danny Kruger, a key ally, had switched his allegiance to Robert Jenrick. Her other likely opponents include Kemi Badenoch, Tom Tugendhat and Priti Patel, although no potential candidates have yet publicly declared their intention to stand. The Conservative Party is divided over how long it should take to choose its next leader, with some MPs including Sir Iain Duncan Smith and Nick Timothy calling for a drawn-out process to allow time for members to reflect on the election loss. Allies of Mr Sunak have suggested he does not intend to remain as leader beyond the summer, which may force the party to choose an interim leader if the contest lasts several months. A man was charged with attempted murder after he shot at police officers and triggered a standoff in Clover last week. On Friday just after 12 a.m., Clover Police Department officers were called to a home on Stanton Street for a domestic incident. Investigators said detectives could hear gunshots inside the home, despite attempts to deescalate. ALSO READ: Death investigation underway in south Charlotte, CMPD says More officers arrived on the scene and police said the suspect, 57-year-old William Dean Jefferis, a Clover employee, shot at the officers. The police department called their SWAT team in and cleared nearby homes. After about five hours, Jefferis was taken into custody by SWAT officers and turned over to Clover police. Neighbors said they couldnt return home after celebrating the Fourth of July. My son came in and out saying there was traffic at the end of the road and hed seen the SWAT team up there, said resident Jim Alexander. People who know Jefferis said this was unusual. Never had no problem with him, said Alexander. Seemed like a nice guy. Maybe just having a bad day. No one was injured in the shootings. Jefferis was charged with three counts of attempted murder and three counts of possession of a weapon during a violent crime. Police said Monday that he is still in jail and that the town of Clover has placed him on leave without pay. The investigation is still ongoing. (WATCH BELOW: 1 hurt in east Charlotte shooting, MEDIC says) Storms posed some traffic issues across different metro Atlanta roads on Sunday evening. The Hall County Sheriffs Office shared a trampoline that had been tossed around by the weather and ended up in the middle of Cleveland Highway near Nopone Road. It is unclear whether the trampoline has been removed from the roadway. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] The town of Clermont saw the biggest impacts of the storm across the county, deputies said. In that area, downed power lines and dangerously high water were reported. Deputies said those in the county should avoid traveling during the storm and if you do have to drive, to do it with caution. TRENDING STORIES: [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] IN OTHER NEWS: They have been so rude: Travelers upset after flight to London suddenly diverted to Boston A plane headed to London was diverted to Bostons Logan International Airport after the Federal Aviation Administration said a crew member saw smoke in the cabin. The plane landed safely just after 5 a.m. Monday and no one was hurt. Jenna Glieespen, of London, said a British Airlines duty manager threatened to call the police on her when she asked what to do next. They have been so rude today, said Glieepsen with her eyes full of tears, I cant imagine paying thousands and thousands a flight...They told people, Hey, get your hotel. Heres a number you can call and you might be reimbursed. She was on British Airways flight 29C that took off from Washington D.C on Sunday night just before midnight and was heading to London. Some passengers say about three-and-a-half hours into the flight they were told the plane is turning around and heading to Boston. I just started to notice on the map that we were suddenly turning back and then the map kind of got shut down and the captain made the announcement that we were being redirected, Michael Hennessy, also of London, recalled. Paramedics brought a stretcher into the terminal but came back out with it empty. Some confused and exhausted passengers filled the baggage claim area wondering what to do next. British Air could have been a little more helpful, Janice Siegel, of Virginia, said. The messaging wasnt perfect. In a statement, British Airways said, We have apologized to our customers for the delay in their journey due to a technical issue. Safety is our top priority and we would never operate a flight unless it was safe to do so. Some passengers said they noticed a burning smell on the flight while others said they didnt smell anything unusual. Photos shared by one passenger showed firefighters and EMTs on the plane after in landed. More than five hours after the plane landed in Boston, some passengers were still waiting in line for new tickets and a hotel. Things happen when you travel. You have to be resilient, said Siegel. Boston 25 has reached out to British Airways to clarify what the technical issue was. 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 Trial for man linked to NMSP officer carjacking murder further delayed NEW MEXICO (KRQE) The trial for a South Carolina man accused of killing a New Mexico State Police officer is being pushed back again. Back in March, police claimed Jaremy Smith stole a car out of South Carolina that later broke down near Tucumcari. State Police Officer Justin Hare stopped to help, and officials said Smith shot and killed him. Smith was found in Albuquerque a few days later and arrested. New director named for Albuquerque Community Safety Department Smiths trial was originally scheduled for this week after a previous pushback, but court records show both sides have agreed to delay the trial. Smith is facing several federal charges, including carjacking resulting in death. If convicted, smith could face the death penalty. Hes also facing 17 charges in South Carolina related to the death of a paramedic. A date for the trial has not been set. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 Massachusetts State Police board on Monday recommended that Trooper Michael Proctor, the disgraced lead investigator in the Karen Read murder case, be suspended without pay amid an ongoing internal affairs investigation into his unprofessional behavior following the death of Boston Police Officer John OKeefe. Interim Massachusetts State Police Col. John Mawn accepted the three-person boards recommendation following a duty status hearing in Framingham, making Proctors suspension effective immediately. Dozens of people gathered outside the Massachusetts State Police barracks in South Boston Monday, celebrating the news that State Trooper Michael Proctor was just suspended without pay. It was a step in the right direction, but its nowhere close to the finish line, said Paul Cristoforo, a Karen Read supporter. Today was just the icing on the cake, but it will be best when hes actually fired as an employee of the state, said another Karen Read supporter, Cathy Carney. Breaking: Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor has been suspended without pay during duty status hearing today. #boston25 Ted Daniel (@TedDanielnews) July 8, 2024 Mawn relieved Proctor of his duty after Judge Beverly Cannone declared a mistrial in the two-month-long murder trial due to a deadlocked jury. Proctor was then transferred out of the Norfolk District Attorneys State Police Detective Unit. He was administratively assigned to Troop H in field services, but he remains ineligible to work. They wouldnt have done that unless they really thought he did something egregious, said Peter Elikann, a legal expert for Boston 25 News. Proctor came under fire for a series of disparaging texts about Read that he sent to friends, family, and supervisors, which he read aloud in court during her trial. Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor shows the jury a broken tail light while testifying, Monday, June 10, 2024, at Norfolk Superior Court, in Dedham, Mass., during the trial for Karen Read. Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. (Kayla Bartkowski/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool) Proctor admitted on the stand that the texts were unprofessional and he apologized multiple times, telling the jury his texts did not impact his investigation into the death of John OKeefe, Reads Boston police officer boyfriend. In those texts, Proctor commented on Reads physical appearance, used vulgar language, suggested he had made up his mind based on evidence as to Reads guilt, and said he wished Read would kill herself. After the internal affairs investigation, the department says it might pursue charges against Proctor that would be adjudicated by a state police trial board. Article 6 - Regulations Establishing Disciplinary Procedures and Temporary Relief From Duty by Boston 25 Desk on Scribd This embedded content is not available in your region. State police noted that every internal affairs investigation culminates in a report that addresses each allegation, which is classified as either unfounded, exonerated, not sustained, or sustained. Read is accused of killing OKeefe by striking him with her SUV and leaving him in a snowstorm in Canton in January 2022. Prosecutors said Read and OKeefe had been drinking heavily before she dropped him off at a party at the home of Brian Albert, a fellow officer. They said she hit him with her SUV before driving away. The defense sought to portray Read as the victim, saying OKeefe was actually killed inside Alberts home and then dragged outside and left for dead. At this point the Norfolk County District Attorney still plans to retry Karen Read after her case ended in a mistrial last week. So how could Proctors suspension affect the next trial? Theres no dancing around the fact that by the time this retrial happens, he could very well be completely fired or facing certain kinds of charges against him for his behavior in the investigation so its certainly agreed by all that hes going to look bad if he has to testify again, said Elikann. RELATED: Defense says jurors had agreement to find Karen Read not guilty of murder charge 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 Tropical Storm Beryl on the verge of hurricane strength as it nears Texas This story has been archived. For the latest on Beryl, click here. TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) Tropical Storm Beryl is expected to reach hurricane strength early Monday morning before making landfall in Texas, according to the National Hurricane Center, prompting officials to warn of potentially deadly conditions. As of 11 p.m., Beryl had maximum sustained winds of 70 mph and was located about 100 miles east of Corpus Christi, Texas. It is moving north-northwest at 10 mph. Beryl remains a strong tropical storm, even though it has been looking a lot more organized on satellite over the past several hours as it continues to move to the NNW around 10 mph, WFLA Meteorologist Eric Stone said. It is still expected to make landfall as a category one hurricane early in the morning around Bay City, Texas bringing rain, wind and storm surge to the area. Rain bands have already been impacting southeast Texas including the Houston area as 6 to 8 inches of rain is expected to fall along Beryls path. Regardless of whether it impacts Texas as a tropical storm or a hurricane, Beryl is forecast to bring dangerous storm surge, flash flooding and strong winds. The storm is expected to dump 5 to 10 inches of rain across the Texas coast and the eastern part of the state. In a news conference in Austin on Sunday, Texas officials urged residents to heed evacuation orders and to expect power outages as Beryl moves through the region. Over 100 counties are now included in the states declared disaster area. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, acting in place of Gov. Greg Abbot, warned that as Beryl strengthens into a hurricane, it will be a deadly storm for those in its direct path. The National Hurricane Center forecast life-threatening storm surge in its Sunday evening update. The following areas are expected to see storm surge levels of varying heights: Mesquite Bay, Texas to San Luis Pass, Texas 4-6 feet Matagorda Bay 4-6 feet San Luis Pass, Texas to High Island, Texas 3-5 feet N Entrance Padre Island NS, Texas to Mesquite Bay, Texas 3-5 feet Galveston Bay 3-5 feet Additional areas have been placed under hurricane warnings and watches. The following areas are under a hurricane warning: The Texas coast from Mesquite Bay northward to Port Bolivar The following areas are under a hurricane watch: The Texas coast north of San Luis Pass to Port Bolivar The following areas are under a tropical storm warning: The Texas coast south of Mesquite Bay to Port Mansfield The Texas coast north of San Luis Pass to Sabine Pass The following areas are under a storm surge warning: Mesquite Bay to Sabine Pass, including Matagorda Bay and Galveston Bay Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. CCTV: President Xi Jinping has concluded his state visit to Tajikistan. Could you share with us the outcomes of the visit? Lin Jian: At the invitation of President Emomali Rahmon of the Republic of Tajikistan, President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Tajikistan from July 4 to 6. This is his third visit to Tajikistan and the first visit by Chinas top leader to Tajikistan after the 20th CPC National Congress, and carries historic significance. Tajikistan placed high importance on this visit. President Rahmon went to the airport to greet and see off President Xi. President Xi attended the welcoming ceremony held by President Rahmon. The two presidents held small-group and large-group talks, and had an in-depth exchange of views on China-Tajikistan relations, mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields and international and regional affairs of mutual interest. President Xi conferred the Friendship Medal on President Rahmon. The two presidents attended the signing ceremony, met the press together, and attended the completion ceremony of the Tajik parliament building and government building that China helped build. President Xi also attended the welcoming banquet hosted by President Rahmon and the two presidents had a good chat over tea. The two presidents signed the joint statement between the Peoples Republic of China and the Republic of Tajikistan on developing a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the new era, announcing the decision to develop the China-Tajikistan comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in the new era, and agreeing to build a China-Tajikistan community with a shared future featuring everlasting friendship, solidarity and mutual benefit at a higher level. Relevant departments of the two countries signed over 20 cooperation documents in areas such as trade, connectivity, critical minerals, security and people-to-people and cultural exchange. The two sides agreed to focus on high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, fully synergize development strategies, accelerate the progress of major cooperation projects, such as the upgrade of the key section of the China-Tajikistan Highway Phase II project, deepen mineral cooperation, and contribute to each others modernization. The two sides stand ready to step up people-to-people and cultural exchange and cooperation in various fields, and cement the social foundation of our everlasting friendship. The two countries will make full use of the Sino-Tajik Center for Traditional Chinese Medicine, the Luban Workshop and other platforms, accelerate the mutual establishment of cultural centers, and support more youth exchanges, women exchanges, and exchanges in such areas as media, think tank and education. The two sides are resolved to step up security cooperation, including jointly fighting terrorist, extremist and separatist forces such as ETIM, keeping the China-Tajikistan border secure, resolutely opposing interference of any third party in the two countries internal affairs, and keeping our region safe and stable. The two sides will continue to strengthen communication and coordination on the Afghan issue, and cooperate under relevant mechanisms. The two sides speak highly of the outcomes of China-Central Asia cooperation, and stand ready to strengthen the China-Central Asia mechanism. Having taken over the rotating presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), China will host the SCO summit next year and welcomes President Rahmon to attend the summit in China. We will work with Tajikistan to carry forward the vision of building a community with a shared future for mankind, the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, and contribute to global peace and development together. President Xis visit had a rich program and produced fruitful results. It marked yet another milestone in the history of China-Tajikistan relations. We have full confidence in the prospects of our bilateral relations. China will remain firmly committed to our mutually beneficial cooperation with Tajikistan. No matter how the international landscape may evolve, China will always be Tajikistans trustworthy friend, reliable partner, and close brother. AFP: Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary is in China today for talks on the war in Ukraine. Is Mr. Orban here on behalf of the EU or just Hungary? Lin Jian: On the morning of July 8, President Xi Jinping met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing. China has released a readout which you may refer to. During the meeting, President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Viktor Orban exchanged views on bilateral relations, China-EU relations and issues of mutual interest. The discussion focused on in-depth communication on the Ukraine crisis. Prime Minister Orban shared information about his recent visit to Ukraine and Russia. President Xi commended the Prime Minister for his effort to seek a political solution and shared Chinas perspective and proposition on the issue. President Xi stressed that an early ceasefire and political settlement of the crisis is in the interest of all parties. The priority now is to observe the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting and no fanning the flames by any party, and to work for deescalation as quickly as possible. The international community should provide conditions and support for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiation between the two parties. Only when all major countries play a positive rather than negative role, can this conflict see an early prospect of ceasefire. China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way, and encourages and supports all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement. China and Hungary share the same basic propositions and are working in the same direction. China is prepared to stay in communication with Hungary and the relevant parties. Xinhua News Agency: China announced Guinea-Bissau Presidents visit to China. Could you share with us the program and Chinas expectation for the visit? How does China view its current relations with Guinea-Bissau? Lin Jian: Chinas friendship with Guinea-Bissau was cultivated by the older generation of leaders of both countries. In the 1970s, the Chinese people firmly supported the people in Guinea-Bissau in pursuing national independence and liberation. In recent years, the two sides have firmly supported each other on issues concerning each others core interests, engaged in highly productive cooperation in the fields of economic and social development, and maintained communication and coordination on international affairs. Our friendly ties have been going from strength to strength. During the visit, President Xi Jinping will hold a welcoming ceremony and banquet for President Embalo. The two presidents will hold talks. Premier Li Qiang will meet with President Embalo. We believe this visit will be a strong boost for deepening our bilateral ties and solidifying our friendly cooperation. Reuters: The Philippines and Japan have signed a reciprocal access agreement. Its a defense pact that allows both nations to deploy forces on each others soil. What is Chinas view of this development? Lin Jian: The exchange and cooperation between countries should not undermine the mutual understanding and trust between other countries in the region. It should not threaten regional peace and stability, target any third party, or harm the interests of any third party. The Asia-Pacific region does not need any military bloc, still less groupings that incite bloc confrontation or a new Cold War. Any move that undermines regional peace and stability, and harms regional solidarity and cooperation will be met with vigilance and opposition from people in regional countries. Japan bears serious historical responsibilities for its aggression and colonial rule over the Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries during WWII. Japan needs to reflect on that part of history and act prudently in fields related to military and security. Global Times: We noted Chinas National Computer Virus Emergency Response Center, National Engineering Laboratory for Computer Virus Prevention Technology and the 360 Digital Security Group jointly released a report. It revealed that the US since 2023 has been creating hypes about the group named Volt Typhoon and engaged in a worldwide disinformation campaign against China. Whats Chinas comment? Lin Jian: I noted the report you mentioned. Actually, back in April, relevant Chinese agencies revealed the scandal about the US framing China for being responsible for Volt Typhoon in order to advance the USs geopolitical agenda. The latest report further revealed that this disinformation campaign is conceived by NSA, FBI and other members of the US intelligence community with the participation of congressional China hawks and multiple federal agencies as well as cybersecurity agencies from other Five Eye countries, and aimed to manipulate public opinion. Till this day, the US still owes us an explanation after the previous report was released, and the US NSA chief continues to spread disinformation about Volt Typhoon. What is worse, the latest report exposed that the US government has been pressuring a cybersecurity company and asking it to rewrite its tech analysis that proves Volt Typhoon to be a ransomware group. This is a clumsy cover-up tactic and clearly has not and will not work. China strongly condemns the irresponsible behavior of the US. The US still owes us an explanation, and should stop its smears and vilification against China at once. We urge the US to act responsibly and contribute to the peace and security of the cyberspace. Bloomberg: I just want to follow up on the Reuters question earlier on the Japan-Philippines forces agreement. Does the Chinese government see this as being aimed at China? You said that Asia-Pacific doesnt need military groupings that are aimed at any one party. Is this your view that this agreement is aimed at China? Lin Jian: I made it quite clear just now that any exchange, cooperation or signing of agreement or treaty between two countries should not undermine the mutual understanding and trust between other countries in the region, or target and harm the interests of any third party, still less should it threaten regional peace and stability. Bloomberg: The Chinese PLA is deployed to Belarus for an exercise in the last few days. Do you see any equivalence between the Chinese PLA deploying to that country and the agreement that is happening between Japan and the Philippines today in that Japan and the Philippines dont see this or they havent stated this agreement is being aimed at anyone. But many countries in Europe have expressed alarm that the PLA is being deployed or is on an exercise in Belarus. Lin Jian: On the joint exercise between China and Belarus, Id refer you to competent authorities. Let me point out that I do not see any basis for the comparison that you mentioned. Beijing Youth Daily: US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a press statement extended best wishes to Dalai Lama on the occasion of his 89th birthday, and reaffirmed US commitment to supporting efforts to preserve Tibetans distinct linguistic, cultural, and religious heritage, including the ability to freely choose religious leaders. What is Chinas comment? Lin Jian: The position of the Chinese government on Xizang-related issues is consistent and clear. Xizang affairs are Chinas internal affairs which brook no interference by any external forces. Over the years, Xizang has enjoyed a booming economy, social harmony and stability, and sound preservation of its cultural heritage. The rights and freedoms of all ethnic groups in Xizang, including the freedom of religious belief and the freedom to use and develop their own spoken and written languages, are fully protected. This is a fact and is seen by many in the international community. As many people know, the 14th Dalai Lama is not a pure religious figure, but a political exile engaged in anti-China separatist activities under the cloak of religion. We urge the US to fully understand the gravity and sensitivity of Xizang-related issues, truly respect Chinas core interests, be fully aware of the Dalai groups anti-China and separatist nature, honor the commitments the US has made to China on issues related to Xizang, and stop supporting or endorsing in any way the Xizang independence forces and their anti-China and separatist activities. Bloomberg: Japans Nikkei newspaper today reported that at the NATO summit in Washington DC, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand will sign an agreement with NATO to increase their cooperation in the Asia-Pacific region. Does China have a response to this report? Lin Jian: As a Cold War legacy and the worlds biggest military alliance, NATO claims itself to be a regional defensive alliance on the one hand, but on the other hand keeps breaching its boundary, expanding its mandate, reaching beyond its defense zone, and stoking confrontation, which reveals its deeply embedded Cold War mentality and ideological bias. This is the real source of risks threatening global peace and stability. NATO should stay within its role as a regional defensive alliance, stop creating tensions in the Asia-Pacific, and stop peddling Cold War mentality and bloc confrontation. NATO should not try to destabilize the Asia-Pacific after it has done so to Europe. Reuters: The Philippine Coast Guard said on Saturday that Chinas largest coast guard vessel has anchored in Manilas exclusive economic zone in the South China Sea, and they also said this is meant to intimidate the Philippines. This follows the high-level dialogue between both countries last week that was aimed at restoring trust. Could the Ministry share more information about this vessel and how was it happening so soon after those talks? Lin Jian: Xianbin Jiao is part of Chinas Nansha Qundao, not the Philippines exclusive economic zone. To patrol and conduct law enforcement activities by Chinese military and Coast Guard vessels in the waters near Xianbin Jiao is within Chinas domestic law and international law, including UNCLOS. Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. An embankment seen as the second line of defense following a dike breach in central China's Hunan Province was under threat on Monday, local authorities said. More than 300 police officers and firefighters are working at the site to stem the piping effect that is eroding the embankment in Huarong County, said the province's water resources department. The 14.3-km embankment is located around 2 kilometers behind the dike that burst on Friday at Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, following a heavy rainstorm. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) HUARONG, Hunan Province, July 8 (Xinhua) -- An embankment seen as the second line of defense following a dike breach in central China's Hunan Province was under threat on Monday, local authorities said. More than 300 police officers and firefighters are working at the site to stem the piping effect that is eroding the embankment in Huarong County, said the province's water resources department. The 14.3-km embankment is located around 2 kilometers behind the dike that burst on Friday at Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, following a heavy rainstorm. The piping effect can hollow out a dike and lead to a burst if not properly handled. At least 7,000 residents have been evacuated following the dike burst on Friday, and workers are racing against time to seal the 226-meter breach. Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) Rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Xue Yuge) Trumps on board with antisemitism act. Why is Roger Marshall still against it? | Opinion Antisemitism is surging nationwide in big cities, on college campuses and in Kansas, too. Ten years after the Overland Park Jewish center shootings, Jewish students at the University of Kansas are facing harassment and intimidation, and officials report incidents of antisemitism across greater Kansas City with more frequency than ever recorded. We know it when we see it, because weve defined antisemitism. Despite a majority of states having done so, efforts to apply the exact same standard at the national level are stalled in Washington. Today, acts of hatred against Jews in Kansas and elsewhere are often committed in plain sight under the guise of free speech. Having adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliances definition of antisemitism in 2022, Kansans can determine when unlawful acts are motivated by antisemitism. After all, you cannot defeat what you are unable to define. Across the country, members of both political parties recognize the need to act, and the U.S. Senate is presently considering the Antisemitism Awareness Act or AAA, which the Republican-led House has already passed by a wide margin. It defines antisemitism nationally in the same way weve done so in Kansas using the IHRA definition. Oklahoma Republican Sen. James Lankford called the IHRA definition of antisemitism a helpful tool to train law enforcement and inform educators about how to identify and combat antisemitism. GOP Rep. Mike Lawler of New York stated: The question for the Senate is simple: Will you stand up to the radicals spouting antisemitism and calling for a genocide of the Israeli and Jewish people? Yet some members of Congress, including Kansas very own Sen. Roger Marshall, are claiming that the AAA is anti-Christian and would prevent the false teaching that the Jewish people are responsible for Jesus death. Marshall has it precisely backwards. What are anti-Christian is antisemitism and teachings contrary to Scripture. The Bible is clear in its assertion that God loves all his children and refutes the claim that Jews were or are responsible for Christs death. Scripture plainly states Jesus gave his life willingly: This Jesus (was) delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God. Any believer who attempts to hold mere mortals responsible for the death of Christ undermines the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus. Of course, the wild claims that the AAA is anti-Christian arent new. President Donald Trump heard them in 2019 and wisely dismissed them when he adopted the IHRA definition in his Executive Order On Combating Anti-Semitism. Trump was right. The critics have been proven wrong. And now is the time to effectively make his executive order into law, just as weve done in Kansas. The AAA does not criminalize speech. It does not criminalize the Bible. It simply empowers leaders to understand antisemitism when they see it. Language is power. We cannot address rising hatred against Jews in America unless we have an established description of it and we cannot allow officials outside Kansas to deny the existence of deep pockets of antisemitism on their campuses and in their communities. Trump led the way. Kansas followed suit. Now it is time for the nation to speak with one voice to declare that when it comes to antisemitism, well call it as we see it, because only then can we fight back against hatred. Sen. Marshall should champion the opportunity to show that Kansas approach has proven a blueprint for the nation and join his colleagues to make this bill into law. Henock Tsegaye is the lead pastor of Ethiopian Fellowship Christian Church in Olathe. Donald Trump wordlessly threw a bone to his Islamophobic followers Sunday night, by mocking President Joe Bidens outreach to the Muslim community. The presumptive Republican nominee posted a caption-less screenshot of a post from Bidens X (formerly Twitter) account to his own Truth Social account. Jill and I wish a Happy Islamic New Year to all families who celebrate. May the arrival of the 1446 Hijri New Year bring you love, peace, and prosperity, read Bidens original post. Although Trumps screenshot bore no caption, his intention was clear: to stir up his followers anger that the president would deign to well-wish Muslims. Since the beginning of his first presidential campaign, Trump has used Islamophobia to attract voters. After Trump first called for a nationwide ban on Muslims entering the United States, while on the campaign trail in 2015, hate crimes against Muslims and Arabs nationwide spiked 23 percent. After he was elected, Trump implemented this overtly racist policy. During his first election, hate crimes seemed to follow Trump wherever he went. Counties that hosted Trump rallies in 2016 saw a 226 percent increase in hate crimes, according to one study. During the presidential debate earlier this month, Trump said Biden had become like a Palestinian, the second time he has publicly referred to the victims of an ongoing genocide as if it were some kind of slur. Trump urged Biden to let Israel finish the jobthe job being a deadly military campaign that has killed more than 38,000 people, primarily women and children; displaced nearly one million refugees; and resulted in a widespread famine and humanitarian catastrophe. Since the beginning of Israels military campaign, the Republican front-runner promised that if elected, he would bar immigrants who support Hamas from entering the United States and arrest and deport pro-Palestinian protesters. Project 2025, a radical blueprint developed by the Heritage Foundation, is designed to reshape America under a potential second Trump administration. Recently, the project has drawn increased scrutiny and criticism in mainstream media, causing visible unease within Trumps camp. Notably, Taraji P. Henson, host of this years BET Awards, called out the plan, and John Oliver dedicated nearly 30 minutes of a recent Last Week Tonight episode to explaining what it would mean for Americans. But it wasnt until Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts, during a July 2 appearance on Steve Bannons War Room show, responded to a question about what the Heritage Foundation is doing to protect the rule of law and to protect individuals in this great country with a boast that we are in the process of the second American Revolution, which will remain bloodless if the left allows it to be, that Trumpworld seemed ready to hit the panic button. See, talk of there being a second American Revolution and hinting that it will remain bloodless only if your political enemies sit back and let you have your way may play well with Bannons audience, but its not exactly the type of thing your average swing voter thinks of as normal. Thats why it wasnt much of a surprise when Donald Trump posted to his Truth Social account, in an attempt to distance himself from the project. I know nothing about Project 2025, he wrote. I have no idea who is behind it. I disagree with some of the things theyre saying and some of the things theyre saying are absolutely ridiculous and abysmal. Anything they do, I wish them luck, but I have nothing to do with them. Trump, however, knows quite a bit about Project 2025 and the people behind it. His campaign press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, has appeared in a Project 2025 recruitment video. Trump White House chief of personnel John McEntee and Trump White House budget chief Russell Vought are both high-profile Project 2025 architects. Dozens of the listed authors of Project 2025s Mandate for Leadership document were affiliated with the first Trump administration or his current presidential campaign. Pro-Trump PACs are running pro-Project 2025 ads online. In a January 2018 blog post, the Heritage Foundation bragged, One year after taking office, President Donald Trump and his administration have embraced nearly two-thirds of the policy recommendations from The Heritage Foundations Mandate for Leadership. But were supposed to believe that Trump has no idea who the Heritage Foundation is? (Hes spoken at the Heritage Foundation before.) And were supposed to believe he doesnt know who people like his adviser, Stephen Miller (seen in a Project 2025 recruitment video sitting in front of a stack of Mandate for Leadership books) are? Well, as Don Moynihan joked at his Can We Still Govern? Substack, then maybe its Donald Trump whos showing signs of cognitive decline, as he cant seem to recognize some of his closest aides! All kidding aside, Trump is obviously just lying. Its really that simple. Its worked for him in the past, and itll work for him in the future. But even his denial of knowledge comes with its own contradictions. As Ellie Quinlan Houghtaling wrote at The New Republic: How can Trump both know nothing about Project 2025 and disagree with it? He doesnt say. But its clear that he recognizes that the plan is a growing political liability. Writing at The Philadelphia Inquirer, columnist Will Bunch said: I wish Trump luck in getting a single person, on either side of the political divide, to believe that he knows nothing about Project 2025 yet somehow knows that he disagrees with most of it. Indeed, this is Trumps 2024 version of the Big Lie, demoting his absurd debate statement that, contrary to his real-time boasts, I didnt have sex with a porn star to only his second-biggest falsehood of the summer. The tangled web between Project 2025 and Trumps deepest inner circle is too public and too improbable to explain away. If all of this is so obvious, why lie? Because a certain segment of the press will (mostly) let him get away with it. But this is where the media needs to step up and do better. Simply parroting Trumps claims in headlines, as a number of outlets did in touting his disavowals, is a disservice to the publicboth The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post ran credulous headlines that took Trumps words at face value. Its essential for journalists to ask the tough questions and demand specific answers. For instance, what exactly does Trump disagree with in Project 2025? Which parts of the 900-page document does he find ridiculous and abysmal? The media should hold him accountable by not accepting vague denials at face value. The real story lies in the details that Trump is avoiding. Trumps disavowal of Project 2025 is not just a simple denial; its a strategic move to distance himself from a plan that could alienate moderate voters. By feigning ignorance, he aims to deflect responsibility while maintaining plausible deniability. But the connections are too deep and too public to ignore. Journalists must delve into Project 2025s specifics and implications. They should scrutinize the involvement of Trumps close allies and campaign members and challenge him to clarify his stance on the policies outlined in the plan. The press must not allow Trump to escape scrutiny by merely issuing blanket denials. The stakes are too high to let this slide. Project 2025 outlines significant changes that could affect millions of Americans, particularly the most vulnerable. As Henson and Oliver highlighted, this is not a game. The public should know whats at stake and where their potential leaders stand on these crucial issues. Ultimately, the medias role is to inform the public, not to provide a platform for unchallenged propaganda. In the case of Project 2025, this means digging deeper, asking tougher questions, and not letting go until they get the answers that the American people deserve. There has been some great coverage of Project 2025, and I hope it continues, but the headlines related to Trumps disavowal were a step backward. Former President Donald Trump took to Truth Social on Sunday night in an apparent bid to mock President Joe Bidens outreach to the Islamic community. The frontrunner in the 2024 presidential race didnt say anything himself, he simply posted a screenshot of Bidens message on X, which read: Jill and I wish a Happy Islamic New Year to all families who celebrate. May the arrival of the 1446 Hijri New Year bring you love, peace, and prosperity. Many of Trumps devout followers knew exactly what their hero was suggesting, responding to the message with disdain for Muslims. One claimed that Bidens account must be run by Hamas Interns, while others posted their praise for the former president. But others said they were perplexed by Trumps post, confused by what was wrong about Bidens acknowledgement of the Islamic New Year. As a Muslim and a Trump supporter, there shouldnt be any issue wishing us well, wrote one woman. Others wrote that Trump was Islamophobic, and took jabs at his sexual abuse lawsuits and voiced solidarity with the Palestinian women and children who have been killed in Gaza. Trump has taken extreme measures in the past, including his travel ban, which became known as the Muslim ban, which blocked refugees and travelers from entering the U.S. from six Muslim-majority countries. He has also made a series of inflammatory remarks in the past, including the false claim that he saw Muslims in the U.S. celebrating 9/11. Trumps post comes as the U.S. is divided on the Hamas-Israeli war in Gaza. In his 2024 run, Trump has pledged that his Muslim ban will make a comeback. Trump is leading Biden in the polls amid calls for the president to resign from the Democratic ticket. 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. MILWAUKEE A small but vocal contingent on the right is frustrated with the new Republican Party platform. There isn't much they can do about it. Even as anti-abortion groups largely lined up behind former President Donald Trumps platform on Monday, some prominent and rank-and-file evangelicals criticized the language for backpedaling on the GOPs longstanding promise to use the federal government to stop abortion. The 2024 platform is a decent statement of campaign priorities, but not necessarily the enduring principles of a party, said Tony Perkins, president of the Family Research Council. Unfortunately, the process was unbecoming of constitutional conservatives which did not allow the document to be amended or improved. Though no one connected to the platform committees proceedings in Milwaukee publicly criticized the former president or threatened to withhold support, some delegates expressed frustration at the way the platform was handled. The document which was whittled down from 66 pages in 2016 to 16 pages this year was developed behind closed doors and hastily presented to and approved by delegates in just a few hours Monday morning. The platform language adopted by delegates did, however, mollify many anti-abortion advocates who believe the federal government should play a role in setting abortion policy by gesturing to the 14th Amendment, which conservatives have long argued protects life starting at conception. Six prominent anti-abortion organizations signed onto a letterin which they called the new party platform a set of common-sense promises that will Make America Great Again and said that it reflected Trumps commitment to protecting life and promoting the family. Still, after the platform's adoption, Perkins worked to gather support for a minority report he and others argued is more representative of where the party has historically been on abortion. Their report, in part, calls for the passage of the Human Life Amendment, which proposes to amend the Constitution to say that life begins at conception and establish legal protections for fetuses that could undo abortion protections in Democratic-controlled states. In no season, under no rationale spurred by the exigencies of a political moment, can or should we abandon the high principles that have created and sustained this party, the report says. These are issues for the ages and not for any single cycle in our national life. Its unclear whether Perkins and other delegates who opposed the abortion language in the platform Monday have a means to get their minority report heard on the floor of next weeks convention. Perkins said that the report has been submitted to the RNC chair, the co-chair of the platform committee and House Speaker Mike Johnson. Johnson, asked about the party platform, did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the RNC and Trump campaign did not immediately respond to requests for comment about the minority report. Other evangelical leaders like Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, who had called on the party not to retreat from the abortion issue, said he was disappointed by the platform. Now is the time to advocate for a robust vision for life at all levels of government not retreat from it, Leatherwood said. A moment when the abortion industry has been knocked on its heels is no time to shrink from a full-throated commitment to protecting preborn lives. Some delegates to the platform committee also voiced frustrations about Mondays process. Gayle Ruzicka, a platform committee member from Utah, said the RNC staff didnt allow a discussion on the language the platform used on abortion. I had planned to go up there to try and make an amendment and they said we could make amendments, she said, adding that she had been on platform committees several times and found it very unusual. They didnt even give us a chance to read it before we voted on it, Ruzicka said. She didnt know exactly how long they had before voting staff had taken her watch, phone and laptop but it was maybe a couple of hours filled by speakers. I'm very frustrated. I think we were treated very poorly. We spent a lot of money to get here. We were supposed to have the opportunity to study it and read it. We didn't get even a chance to read it first, Ruzicka said. They gave it to us, but we kept waiting to go to our committee and then they didn't ever do committees. Sandye Kading, a platform committee member and member of the RNC from South Dakota, called the meeting concise but targeted her criticisms at the process, not Trump. The process was definitely abbreviated," Kading said, adding: I think it could have been stronger on life issues. Natalie Allison contributed to this report. Former President Donald Trump's long-awaited announcement on who his vice presidential pick will be could likely happen this week, senior adviser Jason Miller said on Monday. "By this time next Monday, we will know who President Trump has selected as his running mate for the 2024 election," Miller said during a Monday appearance on Fox & Friends. "It could happen any time this week. Could happen literally right up until the first day of the convention," he added, referencing the Republican National Convention, which kicks off next Monday. MORE: What Trump's VP pick could mean for 2028 He then waded into speculation that the Democratic ticket of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris wouldn't be the ultimate Democratic ticket for November following calls for Biden to withdraw from the top of the ticket following the president's debate performance. In an exclusive interview with ABC News' George Stephanopoulos, Biden brushed off the poor performance as a "bad episode." Though Miller wouldn't delve into specifics about Trump's list of potential vice presidential picks, he did contend that the former president has discussed potential running mates other than Sens. Marco Rubio and J.D. Vance and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum. PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally at Greenbrier Farms on June 28, 2024 in Chesapeake, Va. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images, FILE) While campaigning in Philadelphia last month ahead of his debate with Biden, Trump claimed "in [his] mind" he had decided who his running mate would be. Trump has long said he planned to make his announcement either at or right before next week's RNC in Milwaukee. "Right around the convention, maybe a little before," he said while campaigning late last month. MORE: Would Marco Rubio need to move out Florida if Trump picks him for vice president? PHOTO: Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump, right, and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum attend a caucus night rally, Feb. 8, 2024, in Las Vegas. (Alex Brandon/AP, FILE) The campaign has already begun solidifying preparations for Trump's running mate. A plane for the future Republican vice presidential nominee is already parked in an airport hanger, sources told ABC News; Trump's pick is already scheduled to be at a fundraiser next week in Milwaukee during the RNC, according to an invitation confirmed by ABC News. However, campaign officials still maintain they don't know who Trump's final selection will be, and some of the people reported to be on his shortlist also claim not to have much information. Vance said on NBC's "Meet the Press" on Sunday that he hasn't received a call from Trump asking to be his running mate. He said he is focusing on campaigning for Trump at the moment. PHOTO: JD Vance, co-founder of Narya Capital Management LLC and Republican Senate candidate for Ohio, right, talks on stage with former President Donald Trump during a 'Save America' rally in Vandalia, Ohio, Nov. 7, 2022. (Joshua A. Bickel/Bloomberg via Getty Images, FILE) "I have not gotten the call, Kristen, and I'll certainly -- you know, maybe not the first person that I let know if that happened, but we'll let the media know if I ever get that call," Vance said. "But most importantly, Kristen, we're just trying to work to elect Donald Trump." Rubio also said he has "heard nothing" about joining Trump's ticket. "I heard nothing. I know nothing; you probably know more than I do about it. Donald Trump has a decision to make. He'll make it when he needs to make it. He'll make a good decision," said Rubio during an appearance on CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. PHOTO: Former President Donald Trump stands behind Sen. Marco Rubio at a political rally in South Florida on Nov. 6, 2022. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS via Newscom, FILE) Trump and his campaign have seemingly enjoyed playing the waiting game on this announcement, offering them an opportunity to garner swirling media attention as well as a host of enthusiastic surrogates trying to break through to the No. 2 spot. As time dwindles down for Trump's choice to eventually be made public, he and his campaign say they'll have to be ready to go. "Whoever he does pick needs to be able to step in and do the job on Day 1. Each of the different prospects has their own strengths, and I think really can help chart the nation forward," said Miller on Fox Monday. Trump's VP announcement will come by next Monday: Adviser originally appeared on abcnews.go.com (Bloomberg) -- Taiwans central bank governor was prevented from appearing in the legislature because lawmakers got into shoving matches over a bill put forward by the opposition. Most Read from Bloomberg Yang Chin-long and Financial Supervisory Commission Chairperson Peng Jin-lung were supposed to report to lawmakers Monday morning on plans for a digital currency. The meeting was postponed until Wednesday after some lawmakers who were to meet with Yang and Peng went to an area where the scuffles were happening. The dispute is related to a bill that the opposition put forward to make it harder to recall elected officials. One legislator appeared to have suffered a cut chin in the heated confrontations and another complained she was scratched. Politics in the archipelago of 23 million people at the center of China-US tensions have been in turmoil since President Lai Ching-te took office in May, mostly because he is dealing with Taiwans first divided government since 2008. Lai, of the Democratic Progressive Party, won just 40% of the vote in January, while the Kuomintang and Taiwan Peoples Party formed a coalition to control the legislature. Weeks after Lai took office in May, opposition lawmakers passed measures that enhanced the legislatures ability to investigate the president and officials. Taiwans markets have largely shrugged off the political fractiousness. The benchmark Taiex stocks gauge rose 1.4% on Monday, taking its gain since Lai was inaugurated to about 12%. The advance, driven by the artificial intelligence boom, is the biggest in Asia over the period. The Taiwan dollar slipped 0.1% on the day to 32.50 versus the greenback. Taiwan experienced the biggest protests in years before the law was passed, adding to the difficulties Lai has faced given Beijing has ramped up pressure on his government, including with major military drills. Earlier this month, opposition lawmakers used the bill for the first time against the government, announcing a probe into the authorities role in granting a broadcasting permit to a new television station. The latest dispute in the legislature centers on efforts by the opposition to pass a bill that would make it harder to remove elected officials from their posts. Lawmakers could be seen pushing and shoving each other starting in the morning, repeating episodes seen in the run-up to the passage of the law in June. A DPP lawmaker, Lin Chu-yin, said she suffered a cut on the chin in the scuffle. The hearing on the recall bill was halted for the day due to the confrontations, the semi-official Central News Agency said. A similar disruption on Thursday last week prompted the cancellation of an appearance before lawmakers of National Security Bureau head Tsai Ming-yen. Tsai did meet with lawmakers on Monday. When asked about China detaining a Taiwan fishing boat and two crew members from the archipelago, he said the Chinese Coast Guard had been more active recently. The world was watching Chinas expansionary moves, Tsai added. China has said the nations Chinese Coast Guard was conducting normal law enforcement. (Updates with details of spy chiefs comments to lawmakers and market reaction.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. People insoect the damage in a street in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa At least 20 people have been killed and more than 50 injured in waves of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Monday. Kiev was among the cities worst impacted with seven dead and at least nine injured, the city administration said. Kryvyi Rih in southern Ukraine was also badly hit and at least 10 people there were killed and more than 30 injured. In Kiev, a large children's hospital was also hit, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. He said it was not yet clear how many people there had been killed. He published a short video showing destroyed hospital rooms and traces of blood on the floor. Zelensky spoke of people being buried. "Everyone is helping to clear the rubble - doctors and other people," he wrote. Residents in Kiev's centre heard two dozen explosions, presumably the result of anti-aircraft missiles. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said debris fell in four of the city's neighbourhoods. The Russian army fired cruise missiles and several Kinzhal hypersonic missiles at targets in the city that is home to 3 million people, the Ukrainian Air Force said earlier. Damage was also reported in Dnipro. Other targets included the frontline cities of Sloviansk and Kramatorsk in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donetsk. The Russian military used more than 40 missiles in the attack, Zelensky said. It was unusual that the heavy attack took place during the day at the beginning of the working week. The embattled nation already saw airstrikes by drones, cruise missiles and missiles during the night. Ukraine has been trying to repel a full-scale Russian invasion since February 2022 and depends largely on Western support. Kiev repeatedly urges its allies to provide even more modern air defence systems. Smoke rising after Russian missile attack on Kyiv early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa A street is filled with rubble in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa People insoect the damage in a street in the aftermath of Russian missile attack on Lukianivska District early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Twenty dead in Russian attacks on Ukraine as children's hospital hit At least 20 people have been killed and more than 50 injured in waves of Russian missile attacks across Ukraine, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said on Monday. Kiev was among the cities worst impacted, along with Kryvyi Rih in southern Ukraine. In Kiev, a large children's hospital was also hit, President Volodymyr Zelensky said. The Russian army fired cruise missiles and several Kinzhal hypersonic missiles at targets in the city that is home to 3 million people, the Ukrainian Air Force said. Residents in Kiev's centre heard two dozen explosions, presumably the result of anti-aircraft missiles. Kiev Mayor Vitali Klitschko said debris fell in four of the city's neighbourhoods. Smoke rising after Russian missile attack on Kyiv early 08 July. Andreas Stroh/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa Downtown Minneapolis. Getty Images. The operators of the decades-old energy systems that heat and cool buildings in downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul have ambitious plans underway to reduce emissions. The mostly hidden networks of insulated pipes connected to centralized heating and cooling equipment are known as district energy systems. Theyve long been championed as an energy efficient way to heat and cool campuses or downtowns, especially in cooler climates. Many, though, are connected to fossil fuel facilities, and the systems high efficiency alone wont be enough to help schools, cities, and companies meet their goals of eliminating greenhouse gas emissions by midcentury or sooner. Climate pledges by these institutional customers are now driving efforts to repower district energy systems with clean energy. University district energy systems began initiatives to reduce emissions years ago and now in the last five years were seeing a lot of emphasis on this from cities and towns, said Rob Thornton, president and CEO of the International District Energy Association. In Minneapolis, Cordia Energy, the private company that operates the largest downtown district energy system, is replacing natural gas boilers with electric models. And in downtown St. Paul, officials are seeking federal funding for a project to recover heat from a wastewater treatment plant and reduce energy use for a system currently powered by electricity and biomass. Were doing decarbonization at the rate that our customer base is asking for and we can economically withstand, said Jacob Graff, Cordia Energys north region president. Customers connected to its downtown Minneapolis system range from stadiums and high rises to apartments and medical facilities. From ancient Rome to skyscrapers The concept of district heating has been around for centuries, with its roots in the networks of hot water pipes built in ancient Rome. Some of the first modern steam-based systems were built in New York in the 1880s. Today, the United States has more than 700 district energy systems heating and cooling buildings in downtowns, universities, medical campuses, towns and communities. Cordia Energys Minneapolis system opened in 1972 to serve the 57-story IDS Center, still the tallest building in Minneapolis. Today, the steam and chilled water system manages seven plants that heat and cool the IDS and more than 100 other buildings, including U.S. Bank Stadium, Target Center, and the convention center. Hennepin County owns and operates a much smaller district energy system, connected to a downtown trash incinerator, that primarily serves county buildings and Minneapolis City Hall. District Energy St. Paul began in the early 1980s after then-Mayor George Latimer hired Swedish engineer Hans Nyman to replace the aging steam system with a hot-water central heating system. Latimer wanted to create a national model of district energy and he largely succeeded. District Energy St. Paul has the largest hot water system in the country, with more than 200 buildings. Together, the two systems serve some of the states biggest buildings, which have emerged as the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in both cities. In Minneapolis, 65% of the emissions are from commercial, multifamily and industrial buildings. St. Pauls data is similar. Tapping clean electricity in Minneapolis Cordia plans to reduce emissions from its Minneapolis system by 30% by 2030 before reaching net zero by 2050. Xcel Energys green tariff program will offset around half the electricity Cordia uses this year, and it wants to buy more credits if they become available. The company is replacing older engine-driven chillers with electric models at the former Daytons department store, where it has operations. Chillers modulate the temperature inside buildings and can be powered by electricity or natural gas. Geothermal is another potential solution being studied. A potential geothermal project hasnt cleared the economic hurdles yet, Graff said. I think well eventually get there. Minneapolis customers are not alone in seeking to reduce emissions from district energy systems, Graff said. San Francisco will be Cordias first system to decarbonize using hydropower from a dam the company owns in Yosemite National Park. St. Paul looks to waste heat recovery Downtown St. Pauls district heating system is owned and operated by a company called District Energy, which recently worked with the city and the regional planning agency on a $152 million U.S. EPA grant application to tap heat from a regional wastewater plant for the citys system. It would include a project with Xcel Energy to pay for an electric boiler and hot water storage. District Energy president and CEO Ken Smith said half the system already has been decarbonized through biomass, solar thermal and renewable energy credits. An analysis showed that recovering heat from the Metro Wastewater Treatment Plant, which manages 170 million gallons of water daily, could produce 60 megawatts of thermal energy, and heat pumps could lift the temperature up to the system average. If District Energy receives the Climate Pollution Reduction Grant, the system would go live in 2028 and allow District Energy to provide 92% of energy from carbon-free or carbon-neutral sources, far ahead of its goal of net zero by 2050. This certainly would be able to accelerate that by 30 years, Smith said. From everything weve seen, theres nothing like this, certainly not in the United States, and I dont believe theres anything like it at this scale in Canada, either. St. Paul Resilience Officer Russ Stark said District Energys emissions represent a small portion of the total greenhouse gases in the city. Still, around 50,000 tons of carbon would be eliminated annually, and thats very impactful, he said. The wastewater project would allow District Energy St. Paul to expand to more buildings, decarbonizing them in the process, Stark said. Adding clients is not a simple process but weve been talking a lot about that being an exciting part of the project, he said. I dont know how many major city downtowns there are where theres an opportunity to largely decarbonize most of the downtown in the way that we can. Systems face unique, local challenges A one-size-fits-all solution for decarbonizing district energy systems doesnt exist, as most are unique based on customers and geography. Not all can be inexpensively retrofitted for electricity, and the ongoing office and commercial real estate fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic adds risk to financing projects. Thornton, of the district energy association, said electricity pricing can escalate quickly, especially in summer, creating uncertainty in the market. New technology may require more space, different controls and significant staff training. Federal policy remains unclear about what parts of a district energy system would qualify for tax incentives, he said. Graff ticks off many challenges in decarbonizing Cordias Minneapolis operations. Geothermal works well on campuses and in low-slung neighborhoods where the problem of sending steam to the 50th floor of a skyscraper does not exist, Graff said. Theres not a simple clean power source like natural gas that has the energy density to create and push steam through a network, he said. To illustrate the point during a tour of Cordias downtown plant, he pointed to a pipe with a modest circumference and said the natural gas flowing through it provided the heating for much of the system. Electrification may be a goal of heating and cooling, but offsetting it with clean power is daunting. Cordia would have to install heat pumps capable of drawing more than 400 megawatts from a clean energy source, which would be no small feat, Graff said. Hydrogen sounds promising but has no track record yet for supplying an entire downtown district energy system, Graff said. Biomass has potential, too, but sourcing enough it to service a sprawling district energy system reliably remains difficult. Battery storage, microgrids and other technologies could all play a role, but each brings issues ranging from cost to a lack of testing in a district energy environment, at least at the size of the downtown Minneapolis system. We have the economy of Minneapolis in our hands, and regional economics depend on downtown Minneapolis, Graff said We need a reliable infrastructure that people can count on that can be delivered economically, and its our responsibility to do that. This article first appeared on Energy News Network and is republished here under a Creative Commons license. This photo taken on June 27, 2024 shows a China-assisted telecommunication tower of Solomon Islands' National Broadband Network Project, in Sali village of Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands. China's assistance to the Solomon Islands' National Broadband Network Project, jointly implemented by China Harbor Engineering Company Ltd. and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd., is a landmark project for cooperation between the two countries. The project plans to construct 161 3G/4G wireless communication base stations on 35 major islands in the Solomon Islands' nine provinces. The construction, to last for three years, started on Aug. 28, 2023, with the first telecommunication tower launched on March 22 in Sali village. (Xinhua/Zhang Jianhua) By Zhang Jianhua, Zhang Na HONIARA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Near a scattering of once-isolated villages just 30 km from Honiara, capital of the Solomon Islands, metal pylons are being erected to weave a modern network for the South Pacific country. The communication base stations are spotted through palm groves and sparsely populated grass huts, next to ancient rainforest. China's assistance to the Solomon Islands' National Broadband Network Project, jointly implemented by China Harbor Engineering Company Ltd. and Huawei Technologies Co Ltd., is a landmark project for cooperation between the two countries. The project plans to construct 161 3G/4G wireless communication base stations on 35 major islands in the Solomon Islands' nine provinces. The construction, to last for three years, started on Aug. 28, 2023, with the first telecommunication tower launched on March 22 in Sali village. In a country of more than 900 islands, widespread poverty makes it difficult for people to meet and engage with the outside world. Huawei's project leader Zhao Xin recalled that when he went to the Russell Islands where a base station is being built, a teacher in the village said she really looked forward to the completion of the base station earlier. The teacher bought a smartphone to facilitate her teaching, but only to find there was almost no signal on the island and she had to walk for half an hour on the mountain road with her cellphone, and then took a boat ride for more than an hour before she could find a place with a weak signal. Wang Xingya, general manager of China Harbor Engineering Company Ltd. (Solomon Islands), said the farthest island where base stations are being built is about 1,100 km away from the capital by aerial distance. But if by boat, when things go well, it would be a round trip of two weeks. Half of the 161 base stations are more than 600 km away from the capital, which means around three days of boat trip, Wang said, citing difficulties such as remoteness, high temperature and rains, mosquito infestation and lack of resources, among others. Many islands did not have decent wharves, so components had to be transported by hand, he said. In addition to connecting more islands to broadband network, Wang said the project has trained telecommunications engineering professionals and created more than 3,000 long and short-term jobs. Philsworth Avui, a 26-year-old from a remote village called Longgu, has grown from a college graduate into an experienced project manager. "I'm grateful for China's support for the project, and for the communication channels built for local people and economy," Avui said. Chinese Ambassador to the Solomon Islands Cai Weiming said the national broadband network project in the Solomon Islands will facilitate the flow of information and friendship and provide a more balanced distribution of development opportunities, demonstrating the appealing prospects of Belt and Road cooperation. Ben Dabughau, 34, a worker in a palm plantation near Sali village, said in the past he had to walk up 2 or 3 km in the direction of the capital to get a signal. "No one is happy about this. My eldest son is now a security guard at the base station and has a regular monthly income. I hope my children, or their children, will go out to see the world outside this wilderness and palm groves," Dabughau told Xinhua. Two admit to 2021 murder of Columbus rapper Boog the Bandit To avoid a murder trial, the young shooter and another man pleaded guilty in court Monday for their roles in the 2021 deadly robbery of aspiring Columbus rapper 'Boog The Bandit.' Sincere McIntyre, 20, pleaded guilty to murder in Franklin County Common Pleas Court. Jumada Williams II, 22, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter and aggravated robbery. Sincere McIntyre, 20, left and Jumada Williams II, 22, sit Monday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court ahead of pleading guilty for their roles in the robbery and fatal shooting of 26-year-old Courtney Bruce, aka 'Boog the Bandit,' on May 20, 2021, on the East Side. They admitted they and another man, Kyson Murphy, robbed 26-year-old Courtney Bruce, aka 'Boog the Bandit,' and a man she was with on May 20, 2021, on the East Side. Bruce, of the East Side, resisted the robbery and McIntyre, who was 17 years old at the time, shot her, according to county prosecuting attorneys. Courtney "Boog The Bandit" Bruce, an aspiring rapper from Columbus, was shot and killed on the East Side on May 20, 2021. Photo provided by Tyler Armstrong Williams and McIntyre were scheduled to go to trial on Monday. Williams was facing murder and aggravated robbery charges. McIntyre, who was bound over to adult court to stand trial as an adult but has been incarcerated in the juvenile jail, was facing charges including aggravated murder, murder and aggravated robbery. Judge Jaiza Page sentenced McIntyre to life in prison with the opportunity for parole after 18 years and Williams to 20 years to 25 years in prison. County prosecuting attorneys recommended these sentences as part of the men's plea deals. Murphy pleaded guilty in August 2021 to involuntary manslaughter and robbery. Page will sentence Murphy at a later date. As part of his plea deal, prosecuting attorneys are recommending Page sentence him to 12 to 16 years in prison. Page ordered the three codefendants on Monday to pay back $13,000 stolen that day, which was never recovered by Bruce's family. During the hearing, Wanda R. Bruce, Courtney Bruce's mother, said that her daughter wasn't perfect, but "she was on her way." Wanda R. Bruce, Courtney Bruce's mother, speaks Monday in Franklin County Common Pleas Court to two of the three men who killed her daughter in 2021. She told Sincere McIntyre and Jumada Williams II, center, they get to live their lives but her daughter doesn't. Wanda Bruce said she wanted a lengthier prison sentence for the men and wished there could be an "old-fashioned hanging." "Why do they get to live their life and my baby dont?" Wanda Bruce said. Bruce swayed as she spoke to McIntyre and Williams in front of a courtroom gallery packed with about 20 supporters for the defendants, outnumbering the four people there for Courtney Bruce. Both Williams and McIntyre apologized in court to Bruce's family. At times, the courtroom gallery reacted audibly. After Williams' sentencing hearing, before he left the courtroom, his family shouted to him that they loved him. During discussions of McIntyre getting a life sentence, his family reacted negatively. After McIntyre's sentencing hearing, before he left the courtroom, his family yelled so loud that sheriff's deputies had to warn them to quiet down. A robbery and fatal shooting On the day of the shooting, Bruce was in a car with a 25-year-old man on the 3700 block of Dort Place when a group of men with handguns approached the pair. According to Columbus police, Murphy lured the pair there for a meeting. There was discussion of a drug deal and a rap video production, assistant prosecuting attorney Leigh Bayer said Monday in court. The assailants robbed the man with Bruce of cash, jewelry and his cellphone, court records state. After Bruce resisted, McIntyre shot her and, according to Bayer. The men robbed her of $13,000 in cash, Bayer said. The man with Bruce was not hurt, and he drove Bruce to Mount Carmel East hospital, where he left her at the entrance, Bayer said. Bruce was pronounced dead a short time later, around 6 p.m. 'Boog the Bandit' was an aspiring artist In the months leading up to her death, Bruce released three songs. She was gaining some buzz and was reportedly working on music with Canton-born rapper Trippie Redd. Before becoming a hip-hop artist, Bruce modeled, including for Chris Brown's Black Pyramid Clothing and Rob Kardashian's Arthur George Socks brand. Sharon Richardson, Courtney Bruce's aunt, said in court Bruce was "making it out of the hood" and planned to "change her life and her mother's life." Bayer said we'll never know what Bruce could have become. "She wouldve been somebody we heard on the radio," Bayer said. jlaird@dispatch.com @LairdWrites This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Two plead guilty to murder of Columbus rapper Boog the Bandit Two Boise fires, three houses damaged, one cause: The improper disposal of fireworks Two fires that damaged three houses in Southwest Boise last Friday were caused by improper disposal of fireworks, a spokesperson for the Boise Fire Department told the Idaho Statesman. Boise fire crews responded to a large blaze at 5:46 a.m. Friday and found heavy fire coming from one house after already extending to a neighboring house in the 4500 block of Cochees Way, the department said on social media. The Ada County Sheriffs Office evacuated nearby residents, and firefighters knocked down the fire before it spread to any additional structures. It did extensive damage to both houses, though. The Boise Firefighters Local 149 Burnout Fund is supporting the displaced occupants, according to the social media post. The two-house blaze was the second fire caused by improperly disposed fireworks that Boise Fire responded to the morning after the Fourth of July, the department said. Crews responded at 1:36 a.m. to a fire that was extending up the side of a house in the 5500 block of S Missoula Way, also in Southwest Boise. There were no injuries reported at either incident, Boise Fire said. Aerial fireworks are illegal in Idaho, but its a law that rarely is enforced, so each year the Treasure Valley is awash in dangerous, fire-starting devices. Boise Fire urged people who light their own fireworks to learn how to dispose of them afterward. After you light them, wait until the fireworks are completely cooled then submerge them in water in a metal container overnight, the department wrote in a social media post. Then discard them in the trash. Do not put directly in your curbside garbage can. In both Southwest Boise fires, fireworks were placed directly in cans and not submerged in water, the Boise Fire Department said. Boise Fire responded to 31 fires on July 4 and the early hours of July 5, Lynsey Amundson, communications manager for the department, told the Statesman last week. That number included house fires, grass and brush fires, and even dumpster fires, Amundson said, and was still preliminary. Last year, Boise Fire responded to 25 fireworks-caused fires. The city sent a message to residents prior to the holiday this year reminding them to celebrate safely and encouraging people to attend organized, legal fireworks shows instead of setting off their own. Two men hurt after verbal altercation on Metrobus in Southeast DC WASHINGTON (DC News Now) The Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority (WMATA) said two men were injured after being involved in a verbal altercation on board a Metrobus in Southeast D.C. WMATA said that at about 12:30 p.m., two men started arguing on a Route 90 bus near 8th and E Streets. During the altercation, one of the suspects hit the other in the head with a blunt object. Six-year-old boy dies days after being injured in Fourth of July shooting in Prince Georges County The man who was hit with the blunt object then pulled out a knife and stabbed the initial suspect in the torso. Both men had non-life-threatening injuries. They have been arrested by police and taken to the hospital. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Two more arrested, victim identified in deadly NW OKC shooting OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) Two more arrests have been made in connection to a fatal shooting in northwest Oklahoma City on June 13. According to the Oklahoma City Police Department, officers responded to an apartment complex near the 7500 block of Knight Lake Drive around 10:09 p.m. RELATED STORY: One arrested after fatal shooting in NW Oklahoma City Upon arrival, police say they found 20-year-old Darius Edwards who had been shot while leaving his apartment. He was taken to a nearby hospital where he passed away. Officials say it appeared the victim was involved in an armed confrontation when the shooting happened. Samara Kenoly Dante Winslett. According to OKCPD, 18-year-old Samara Kenoly, 18-year-old Dante Winslett and a 17-year-old have been arrested in connection to 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 KFOR.com Oklahoma City. Two people in car shot by gunman in another vehicle, Richland County deputies say Two people were injured over the weekend in a drive-by shooting, according to the Richland County Sheriffs Department. At about 11 p.m. Saturday, deputies responded to a hospital in South Carolina where two shooting victims were being treated, the sheriffs department said Monday in a news release. Information on the victims conditions was not available. The victims said the shooting happened after they had left a party in the area near the intersection of Briercliff Drive and Hardscrabble Road, according to the release. Thats in the Columbia area, between Interstate 77 and Farrow Road. The victims told deputies that they were in a vehicle driving on S.C. 277 when they were shot at by individuals in another car, according to the release. The sheriffs department said it has not been able to confirm the exact location of the shooting. No other injuries were reported. There was no word about a shooter or shooters, or anyone else involved in the gunfire. Information about a motive for the shooting was not available. No arrests have been reported, and the shooting continues to be investigated by the sheriffs department. Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call CrimeStoppers at 888-CRIME-SC or submit an online tip. This is a developing story, check back for updates. Two of three people who drowned in Nevada County during July 4th week identified by coroner Two of the three people who drowned during the Fourth of July holiday week have been identified by the Nevada County Coroners office. The first incident happened Thursday afternoon when rescuers from the Nevada County Consolidated Fire Department responded to a missing swimmer call about 1:30 p.m. on the Yuba River near Highway 49 at Hoyts Crossing. Enrique Nieto-Hernandez 26, of Yuba City reportedly entered the water and did not resurface. Rescuers were able to locate the man but he was unresponsive to CPR and died. The second incident came around 3 p.m. on the Yuba River near Bridgeport. Nevada County Consolidated firefighters joined with the Penn Valley Fire Protection District to respond to a water rescue. Firefighters did not offer details about rescue or where the mans body was found. The victim was identified Monday as Yonatan Josue Munoz, 24, a Nicaraguan national living in San Francisco. The following day, the body of Juan Carlos Rangel-Avila, 29, of Reno, Nevada, was located after he went missing while swimming in Scotts Flat Lake around 4:30 p.m. Rescuers used divers and drones on the reservoir the Tahoe National Forest. Rangel-Avila was located and brought to shore but was pronounced dead. COFFEE COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) UPDATE 7/8/24: The man has been identified. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) located a body in Normandy Lake on Sunday, according to the Coffee County Sheriffs Office. At roughly 4 p.m., Coffee County deputies were reportedly called to meet the TWRA at the Fire Lake portion of Normandy Lake. The TWRA had found the body of an unidentified white male in the water. The investigation is still ongoing. The man was identified on Monday as 28-year-old Hunter Smithson of Manchester. Read todays top stories on wkrn.com Chief Deputy Frank Watkins with the Coffee County Sheriffs Department told News 2 that preliminary evidence does not indicate any foul play. Additional details were not immediately released. Download the News 2 app to stay updated on the go. Sign up for WKRN email alerts to have breaking news sent to your inbox. Find todays top stories on WKRN.com for Nashville, TN and all of Middle Tennessee. This is a developing story. WKRN News 2 will continue to update this article as new information becomes available. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Former Sen. Brian Kelsey, flanked by attorneys Alex Little and Zack Lawson, leaves the Fred D. Thompson Federal Courthouse in Nashville on Aug.11 after being sentenced to 21 months in federal prison. (Photo: John Partipilo) Former Sen. Brian Kelsey, flanked by attorneys Alex Little and Zack Lawson, leaves the Fred D. Thompson Federal Courthouse in Nashville on Aug.11 after being sentenced to 21 months in federal prison. (Photo: John Partipilo) The U.S. 6th Circuit Court of Appeals will not allow former Memphis state Senator Brian Kelsey to rescind his guilty plea for campaign finance violations, upholding his 21-month prison sentence. Two years ago, Kelsey pleaded guilty to directing a secret plan to funnel over $100,000 from his state campaign account to boost his failed bid for a U.S. Congressional seat in 2016. Kelsey tried to rescind his decision, claiming he wasnt of sound mind because his wife had recently given birth to twins and his father, who later died, was sick. A U.S. District judge denied Kelseys attempt to change his plea, but he appealed the ruling. Kelsey was allowed to remain out of prison during his appeal. Under campaign finance regulations, a state lawmaker cannot use their state campaign account to benefit their federal campaign. Prosecutors said Kelsey shifted money from his state campaign account through two political action committees, including one operated by Nashville club owner Joshua Smith. Smith then gave the money to the American Conservative Union, which bought radio and digital advertisements. As part of the investigation, Smith pleaded guilty about two weeks before Kelsey. He received no prison time but was sentenced to five years of probation and fined $250,000. The ruling Kelsey By ending a standard that has stood for 40 years, the U.S. Supreme Court has raised questions about how regulations will be written to protect the public and who will write them. (Win McNamee/Getty Images) The U.S. Supreme Court just ended something called Chevron deference, in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, Case No. 22-451. Should you worry? Alas, yes, the Supreme Court just threw our protections under the bus. Heres how. In 1984 in a case involving Chevron, the Supreme Court decided that when an agencys implementation of a federal statute is reasonable, the agency is entitled to deference. This is true even if other interpretations could be made. This happens a lot in environmental protection, food and drug safety, occupational safety and health, consumer product safety, you name it. A statute will direct an agency to protect human health, safety and the environment, or something similar. The agency has to implement that standard. It does this by issuing a regulation. This means jumping through hoops. The regulation must be published as a draft. The agency must explain the science, the technology and the costs it considered, and ask for public comments, then respond to those comments, all before it issues a final regulation. If the regulation is challenged, a court will review it to see if it meets the federal standard. Under Chevron, even if the court would have written a different regulation, the agency decision will be given deference. In case of doubt, the agency wins. You may find this unfair, but consider: Career civil servants are assigned to review the science, the technology and the costs of a proposed regulation, using their academic credentials and professional experience. They spend months, sometimes years, reaching their recommendations. If Chevron deference is gone, what happens next? What happens if a reviewing court may simply replace the agencys discretion with its own? A reviewing court may punt: Sorry, Congress, back to you to spell out the standards. All of them. For everything. Good luck to us while Congress figures it out. Protection delayed is protection denied. Or, a reviewing court may appoint a special master to advise the court on the science, the technology and the costs. The special master likely will come from the industries governed by the regulation, where the day job is to lobby for those industries including fighting any new regulations. Will such a special master support the agency or the regulated industries? If you didnt trust civil servants to protect you, try trusting lobbyists. Yikes, you say, but our Kentucky agencies will pick up the slack. Nope. Kentucky statutes often have a no more stringent than requirement. If the federal regulation is in limbo in Congress, its in limbo here. And if lobbyists wrote the federal regulation, guess what the state regulation says. Even if there is no federal regulation, the General Assembly routinely vetoes agency regulations without writing any legislative standards to replace them. The Supreme Court tries to justify its decision as a simple distinction courts interpret the law and agencies apply the facts. Would that it were that easy. The post U.S. Supreme Court sets stage for industry lobbyists to write health, safety, environmental rules appeared first on Kentucky Lantern. (Bloomberg) -- Rachel Reeves will lay out the new Labour governments plans to spur private investment in her first major speech as Chancellor of the Exchequer on Monday, as the party tries to ride the momentum of its landslide UK election win last week in a dash for economic growth. Most Read from Bloomberg There is no time to waste in lifting Britains growth rate, Reeves will tell business leaders in central London, pledging to fix the foundations of the UK economy, according to remarks sent in advance by the Treasury. Reevess plan is based on crowding in billions of pounds of private investment by creating new financial instruments to stimulate demand from institutional investors, Bloomberg reported before the election. For months, Reeves has been working to spark investors interest in projects in areas including green energy, house-building and infrastructure. Reeves will set out more details on Monday, according to the Treasury statement. Theyre due to include bringing back mandatory house-building targets and a blitz of planning reforms to encourage construction. What we want is for infrastructure to be built, housing to be built, the energy system to be more sustainable, Reevess deputy, Darren Jones, said on BBC TV on Monday. Our key focus is on speeding up the planning system. Labour leader Keir Starmer has said lifting growth would mean his government wouldnt have to hike taxes or cut public spending to balance the books. To be sure, economists doubt Labour will be able to do it quickly enough to avoid difficult decisions on tax and spending in their first budget in the autumn, where theyre forecast to face a 20 billion ($26 billion) fiscal hole. Former governor of the Bank of England Mark Carney has been leading a task force advising Reeves on the creation of a national wealth fund. The group includes Aviva CEO Amanda Blanc and Barclays chief executive CS Venkatakrishnan, and will report its findings on Tuesday, according to a person familiar with the matter. Carney is the chair of Bloomberg Inc.s board. The focus on private funds harks back to the last Labour government in the late 1990s and early 2000s, when private finance initiatives and public-private partnerships were expanded under Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. Those so-called PFI projects came to be seen as highly controversial because of questions over their value for money, the quality of privately delivered projects and arrangements used to keep debt off the governments balance sheet. Labour has also said it will stage a global investment summit in its first 100 days in office, and has been holding meetings with what it calls its British Infrastructure Council to discuss with UK-based and international investment firms how it can unlock private capital. Attendees of the meetings have included representatives from BlackRock, Lloyds Banking Group, Santander, HSBC, Phoenix Group and Fidelity International, among others. We want investors to come alongside that government money, Starmer said before the July 4 election. Weve been talking to global investors for the best part of two years, saying that if we put down this money set out in our manifesto, if you come alongside it and put down many more billions of pounds, so that in partnership with the government we can make the changes we need. Reevess economic pitch follows a busy weekend for Starmers team as it tries to convey a sense of urgency since the election. Over the weekend: Defense Secretary John Healey announced extra military aid for Ukraine Starmer visited Scotland in first part of a UK-wide tour Starmer said he wants to improve UKs ties with the European Union Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds said he and Starmer had spoken to Tata Steel over its plan to shut down blast furnaces in south Wales, and that government aid would be contingent on job guarantees Health Secretary Wes Streeting said he would meet junior doctors early this week to discuss the end of strike action, and the British Dental Association to start addressing problems in dentistry Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said she would reset the relationship the education sector and push to recruit 6,500 new teachers Starmer this week will head to Washington for the annual summit of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, giving him a chance to meet face-to-face with world leaders including US President Joe Biden, Ukraines Volodymyr Zelenskiy and Emmanuel Macron of France for the first time as prime minister. Parliament returns Tuesday with hundreds of new Labour MPs taking their seats. (Updates with quote from Labours Reynolds in fifth paragraph.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. ZHENGZHOU, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Downpours lasting from Sunday noon to Monday morning have delayed flights and closed expressways in central China's Henan Province. Rainfall has been heaviest in western and north-central parts of Henan, including its capital city of Zhengzhou, with precipitation reaching as high as 145 mm, local meteorological authorities said. As of 8 a.m. Monday, entrances to the Zhengzhou-Shaolin Temple Expressway and Zhengzhou Ring Expressway were closed because of heavy rainfall. A flight from Changchun in northeast China's Jilin Province to Zhengzhou was cancelled, while five other domestic flights were delayed due to the weather. The provincial department of transport has been publicizing weather and road information via social media, radio broadcasts, television and roadside electronic screens, and has prepared disaster relief materials such as sandbags in advance at places prone to landslides, rock-mud flows and collapse. Nearly 550 emergency response teams consisting of about 30,000 people were formed. In addition, more than 8,000 vehicles, 283 vessels and 2,711 large rescue equipment items including cranes, bulldozers and excavating machinery, as well as emergency equipment like water pumps and alternators, have been made available, in order to cope with extreme situations such as power failures. Vast parts of the country have experienced persistent heavy rains since the flood season began. In Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, a breach in the dike since Friday has forced the evacuation of at least 7,000 residents. The University of Kentucky violated the states Open Records Act twice when it denied releasing public records related to the elimination of the university senate, Kentuckys attorney general said in two separate appeals. In March, the Herald-Leader requested multiple public records from UK after a board meeting in which the university announced it would be examining the role of the university senate as part of an effort called Project Accelerate. At that board meeting, representatives from Deloitte, an international consulting firm, made a presentation which stated that UKs governance structure was different from other, comparable universities. After the presentation, university senate leadership said they had not been interviewed or consulted during Deloittes research. Among the documents requested were the contract between UK and Deloitte, any reports complied by Deloitte or UK related to findings or interviews done while working on Project Accelerate, along with emails and communication between Deloitte and the board of trustees. Around the same time, UK professor emeritus Davy Jones requested similar documents from UK. UK denied documents from both requests, stating the documents were preliminary and fell under attorney-client privilege, exempting them from the open records law. The only record received by the Herald-Leader was a general contract between UK and Deloitte, which did not detail the work done for Project Accelerate. UK board votes to dissolve university Senate, outlines role of new faculty body Both the Herald-Leader and Jones appealed the denials to the attorney generals office, and at the end of June and beginning of July, the attorney general ruled that UK had partially violated the open records law by not properly explaining the reason for denying the requests, and by withholding a Statement of Work that qualified as a contract between UK and Deloitte. The public is entitled to know the details of how efficiently, or inefficiently, (a private entity) has administered a public contract, Attorney General Russell Coleman said in his decision. This cannot be known without public access to the document specifying the details of the work to be performed, whether it is referred to as a contract or by some other title. However, the attorney general said that some documents did qualify as preliminary and were property of Deloitte, and were covered under attorney-client privilege. With the consent of the Board, President Capilouto was operating in secret, while pretending to be transparent, Jones said in a Friday email to the Herald-Leader. Sometimes the truth does prevail. Jay Blanton, UK spokesperson, said Monday the attorney generals ruling supports the universitys position on the records and UK would comply with the ruling to release the statement of work. While UK has not released reports or records from Deloitte, UK has presented the findings from Deloitte publicly at board meetings, Blanton said, which resulted in changing the governance structure of the university. Specifically, however, the Attorney General found that records that are the property of a consultant like Deloitte are not public records, Blanton said. Further, records that involve our discussions with Deloitte such as confidential fact-finding interviews about a project prior to a final action should remain private. And, finally, conversations with an attorney are privileged. They are protected something all clients expect when they have a conversation with their attorney. The Herald-Leader requested a copy of the statement of work last week, but has not yet received the records. Nothing is more important to Kentucky taxpayers and residents than ensuring the work done by our public officials and institutions, including the University of Kentucky, is shared in the light of day, said Richard Green, executive editor of the Herald-Leader and kentucky.com. Were grateful for Attorney General Colemans ruling, he added. I also want to underscore the Herald-Leaders commitment to vigilantly ensure UK officials understand that public records, often involving either large sums of taxpayers money or how the university itself operates, are just that: They belong to all Kentuckians. On the same day as the Herald-Leaders ruling was issued, the attorney general again ruled UK violated the Open Records Act in an unrelated request. The university broke the law when it denied a request made by the Jewish Student Center for being unreasonably burdensome. Elimination of university senate Since that first board meeting, UK and its board of trustees has voted to restructure the university senate, eliminating the existing body and replacing it with an advisory faculty senate. As a result, the faculty senate voted no confidence in President Eli Capilouto, citing concerns with the process used to formulate new governing regulations and the new governance structure. At the June board meeting, UK outlined a process to determine how the new faculty senate will be created, with elections being held no later than Oct. 31. Until then, a provisional faculty senate executive committee led by Provost Robert DiPaola will be in place. It will be composed of 22 members, including the provost as chair, the two faculty trustees and one faculty member from each college, who were announced last week. Though the university senate will cease to exist, several committees and councils will continue, including the UK Core Education Committee and the faculty Senate Advisory Committee on privilege and tenure. Ukraine requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on July 8 after Russia killed over 28 civilians in a mass aerial attack across the country, President Volodymyr Zelensky announced. "We must hold Russia accountable for terror and (Vladimir) Putin for the orders to launch strikes," the president said during the joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. "Russia responds to everything that we try to discuss with it about peace by attacking homes and hospitals." At least 28 civilians were killed, and over 100 suffered injuries in the recent attacks, which targeted the cities of Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, and Kramatorsk, the State Emergency Service said at 3 p.m. local time. The Russian military used Kinzhal ballistic missiles, as well as Kh-101 and Kh-22 cruise missiles, to attack Ukrainian cities. Ukraine called for the meeting after Russia took over the presidency of the UN Security Council on July 1. Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's envoy to the U.N., said earlier that Ukraine is not on the agenda for this month. "We can only force Russia to peace. We can do this only together everyone in the world who really wants peace, " Zelensky said. Read also: Zelensky repudiates Orban, says only strong alliances can be mediators between Russia, Ukraine "This requires sufficient support, sufficient determination, and truly joint action, defending side by side." The Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, was reportedly hit by a Kh-101 cruise missile in the morning Russian attack. At least two people were killed and 16 injured, including seven children, according to the State Emergency Service. During a separate attack against Kyiv later during the day, debris hit the Isida maternity hospital, killing seven people and injuring three, the Prosecutor's General Office said. The July 8 attack has been the deadliest in months, with the casualty figures comparable to massive strikes carried out by Russia during the winter. Read also: Over 100 civilian casualties reported after Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Ukraine intercepted 30 of 38 Russian missiles during mass attack, Air Force says Ukrainian forces downed 30 of the 38 Russian missiles launched during a large-scale attack against multiple cities on the morning of July 8, the Air Force said. In total, Russian forces launched one Kinzhal ballistic missile, four Iskander-M ballistic missiles, one 3M22 Zirkon hypersonic cruise missile, 13 Kh-101 cruise missiles, 14 Kalibr cruise missiles, two Kh-22 cruise missiles, and three Kh-59/69 guided aerial missiles, according to the statement. Ukrainian defenses reportedly shot down the Kinzhal missile, three Iskanders, 11 Kh-101s, 12 Kalibrs, and three Kh-59/69s. Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and other cities across Ukraine were hit, with at least 28 civilians killed and 112 injured as of 3 p.m. local time. The strike took place on the eve of the NATO summit in Washington, where Ukraine hopes to receive long-term aid commitments from the allies. The July 8 attack has been the deadliest in months, with the casualty figures comparable to massive strikes carried out by Russia during the winter. Read also: Explosions rock Kyiv, other cities in Russian Monday morning massive attack Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Kyiv, Ukraine Russia launched dozens of missiles at cities across Ukraine on Monday in an attack that killed at least 31 people and smashed into a children's hospital in Kyiv, officials said. The rare day-time Russian barrage came as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was due in Warsaw, the Polish government said, before he flies to a NATO summit in Washington. Explosions rang out and black smoke could be seen rising from the centre of Kyiv, AFP journalists reported. Pictures distributed by officials from the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv showed people digging through mounds of rubble, black smoke billowing over a gutted building and medical staff wearing blood-stained scrubs. Kyiv Mayor Vitaly Klitschko said two people died at the hospital as a result of the strike, including a 30-year-old doctor, and another 16 were wounded, seven of them children. Klitschko said people's voices were heard from underneath the rubble as rescuers continued digging through the debris. People watch as rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital that was damaged during a Russian missile strikes, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Kyiv, Ukraine July 8, 2024. / Credit: Gleb Garanich/REUTERS "Russian terrorists once again massively attacked Ukraine with missiles. Different cities: Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Kramatorsk," Zelenskyy said, listing major civilians hubs in the south and east of the country. "More than 40 missiles of various types. Residential buildings, infrastructure and a children's hospital were damaged," Zelenskyy wrote on social media. The Ukrainian Air Force said the attack included Russian hypersonic Kinzhal missiles, one of the most advanced weapons in the Russian arsenal. Hypersonic missiles can fly at far greater than the speed of sound, making them very difficult to detect and intersect using the missile defense systems available today. Russia has used Kinzhals in previous attacks on Ukraine since it launched its full-scale invasion, but is thought to use the weapons sparingly as they are in limited supply. Russian forces have repeatedly targeted the capital with massive barrages since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022, and the last major attack on Kyiv with drones and missiles was last month. In addition to the continuous aerial bombardment of Ukraine's cities and power infrastructure, Russia has also pushed its territorial gains in recent months, making incremental advances along the front line that stretches from Ukraine's northern to southern borders. Rescuers work around a wing of the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, after the building was severely damaged during a Russian missile strike, July 8, 2024. / Credit: Gleb Garanich/REUTERS The Security Services of Ukraine (SBU) said its initial assessment found that Moscow had struck the Kyiv children's hospital with a KH-101 strategic cruise missile, while Andriy Yermak, senior advisor to Zelenksyy, said the projectile "contains dozens of microelectronics manufactured in NATO countries." Russian officials acknowledged the massive missile strike on Monday but denied, as they always do, targeting any civilian infrastructure. The Defense Ministry in Moscow, in statements reported by the country's state-run media, said the strike was a response to attempts by Ukrainian forces "to strike Russian energy and economic facilities," and it claimed it had hit Ukrainian "military industry facilities in Ukraine and aviation bases of the Ukrainian Armed Forces." The Russian defense ministry said, without offering evidence, that the images of destruction in Kyiv were "due to the fall of a Ukrainian air defense missile." United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Ukraine Denise Brown harshly condemned Monday's wave of Russian strikes, saying in reference to the hospital that was hit: "It is unconscionable that children are killed and injured in this war." A child is treated after the Russian army launched a rocket attack on the Ukraine's air force said it had shot down 30 of the 38 missiles launched by Russia in Monday's deadly attack. In Zelenskyy's hometown Kryvyi Rih, which has been repeatedly targed by Russian bombardments, the strikes killed at least 10 and wounded over 30, the mayor said. "In Dnipro, a high-rise building and an enterprise were damaged. A service station was damaged. There are wounded," the Dnipropetrovsk governor Sergiy Lysak added. In the eastern Donetsk region, where Russian forces have taken a string of villages in recent weeks, the regional governor said three people were killed in Pokrovsk a town that had a pre-war population of around 60,000 people. There was no immedate comment on the strikes from the Kremlin but it insists its forces do not target civilian infrastructure. Rescuers work at Ohmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine, soon after officials said the facility was severely damaged by a wave of Russian missile strikes on Ukrainian cities, July 8, 2024. / Credit: Gleb Garanich/REUTERS "This shelling targeted civilians, hit infrastructure, and the whole world should see today the consequences of terror, which can only be responded to by force," the head of the presidential administration in Kyiv, Andriy Yermak, wrote on social media, following the attack. Zelenskyy and other officials in Kyiv have been urging Ukraine's allies to send more air defence systems, including Patriots, to the war-battered country to help fend off fatal Russian aerial bombardments. "Russia cannot claim ignorance of where its missiles are flying and must be held fully accountable for all its crimes," Zelensky said in another post on social media. CBS News' Anhelina Shamlii contributed to this report. Sen. Lindsey Graham says if Biden steps aside, it's "a dramatically different race" for Trump Havana Syndrome evidence suggests who may be responsible for mysterious brain injuries Hoppin' clams! "SpongeBob SquarePants" turns 25 Key developments on July 8: Over 200 civilian casualties reported after Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine Two Kyiv hospitals hit during missile attack Russian strike on Kryvyi Rih kills 10, injures 47, strike on Dnipro kills 1 Ukraine calls for emergency UN meeting, western officials condemn attack Indian PM Modi arrives in Moscow Poland, Ukraine sign security agreement Russia launched a mass missile attack on cities across Ukraine including Kyiv on the morning of July 8, killing at least 37 civilians and injuring nearly 170 others. The latest figures can be found here. The aerial attack targeted Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk, damaging "50 civilian sites, including residential buildings, a business center, and two medical facilities," the State Emergency Service reported. The July 8 attack has been the deadliest in months, with the casualty figures comparable to massive strikes carried out by Russia during the winter. Russian forces launched a number of large-scale attacks during the spring, but these mostly targeted energy infrastructure. The strikes took place on the eve of the NATO summit in Washington, where Ukraine hopes to receive long-term aid commitments. "And the entire world must use all its determination to finally put an end to the Russian strikes," President Volodymyr Zelensky said on X. "Killing is what (Vladimir) Putin brings. Only together can we bring real peace and security." Ukrainian forces downed 30 of the 38 Russian missiles launched during a large-scale attack against multiple cities on the morning of July 8, the Air Force said. In total, Russian forces launched one Kinzhal ballistic missile, four Iskander-M ballistic missiles, one 3M22 Zirkon hypersonic cruise missile, 13 Kh-101 cruise missiles, 14 Kalibr cruise missiles, two Kh-22 cruise missiles, and three Kh-59/69 guided aerial missiles, according to the statement. Read also: I want Russians to feel it on their own skin: Shock, fury at the site of childrens hospital attack Two Kyiv hospitals hit during missile attack The Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center, was hit during the attack. At least two people were killed, the State Emergency Service reported. At least 16 people were injured, including seven children. Fifteen victims were hospitalized. The Russian military struck the Okhmatdyt hospital with a Kh-101 cruise missile, according to the preliminary data obtained by the State Security Service (SBU). Fragments of the rear body of the Kh-101 cruise missile with a serial number and part of the missile's rudder were found at the scene, the State Security Service said. Russia launched another attack against Kyiv later during the day, with debris damaging a maternity hospital. At least seven people were killed and three injured after the Isida maternity hospital, a private clinic, in Kyiv's Dniprovskyi district was hit by falling debris, officials said. So far in total, at least 27 people have been recorded killed in Kyiv. Over 70 people were injured in the capital, according to the State Emergency Service. Two more people suffered injuries in Kyiv Oblast. Read also: 3 killed, 3 injured in Russian strike on Pokrovsk in Donetsk Oblast, governor says Russian strike on Kryvyi Rih kills 10, injures 47, Russian forces struck the city of Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on July 8, killing at least 10 people and injuring at least 47. The search and rescue operation was hampered by air raid alerts and reports of missiles fired in the direction of the city. Kryvyi Rih, with a population of around 660,000, is the second most populous city in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast. It has suffered multiple deadly attacks by Russian forces since the outbreak of the full-scale war. Also in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast, the city of Dnipro came under attack. At least one person was killed and 12 others injured. Sign up for our newsletter WTF is wrong with Russia? Sign up Ukraine calls for emergency UN meeting, western officials condemn attack Ukraine requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council on July 8 after the attack, Zelensky announced. "We must hold Russia accountable for terror and Putin for the orders to launch strikes," the president said during the joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. "Russia responds to everything that we try to discuss with it about peace by attacking homes and hospitals." Elsewhere, ambassadors of Germany, Austria, and the U.S. condemned Russia's mass morning attack. "This callous aggression - a total disregard for human life, jeopardizing European and Transatlantic security - is why leaders will make significant security commitments to Ukraine this week," U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Bridget Brink said on X. Austrian Ambassador to Ukraine Arad Benko commented on the hospital strike, saying that his country "has supported this center for many years and many departments." "This is an institution that cares for babies and children in need. The Russian attack is pure terror," Benko said in a post on X. German Ambassador to Ukraine Martin Jaeger also reacted to the attack. "This is a war against civilians. This is Russia's willingness to negotiate and its desire for peace," he wrote. Read also: Zelensky repudiates Orban, says only strong alliances can be mediators between Russia, Ukraine Indian PM Modi arrives in Moscow Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Moscow on July 8 in what was his first trip to Russia since the beginning of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. "Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the special and privileged strategic partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation," Modi wrote on X. "Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people," he added. Modi last met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in September 2022 at the summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Uzbekistan. According to a statement by the Kremlin after the dates of the trip were formalized, Modi and Putin will discuss the "prospects for the further development of traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, as well as current issues on the international and regional agenda." Modi's official website said the visit would entail talks on the "entire range of multifaceted relations between the two countries and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest." The two leaders will reportedly attend a dinner on July 8 and hold talks at the Kremlin the following day. New Delhi has been calling for a diplomatic solution to Russia's war against Ukraine but has been simultaneously fostering close economic ties with Moscow. India became one of the chief buyers of Russian oil following Western sanctions, although pressure from U.S. sanctions increasingly threatens this trade. While India participated in Ukraine's global peace summit in June, Modi did not attend personally, and India's representative did not ultimately sign the joint communique. Modi was also one of the few democratically elected leaders to congratulate Putin on his reelection in March after a vote that was widely considered to be neither free nor fair. Read also: Russian-North Korean military ties pose distinct threat, South Korean president says Poland, Ukraine sign security agreement President Volodymyr Zelensky and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk signed a security agreement on July 8 in Warsaw. Poland is the latest country to sign such an agreement with Ukraine based on a pledge made by the Group of Seven (G7) in July 2023. Others states, including the U.S., the U.K., Germany, and France, as well as the European Union, have signed similar bilateral treaties to help Kyiv repel Russia's aggression. The agreement highlights that Poland was the first country to recognize Ukraine's independence from the Soviet Union on Dec. 2, 1991. Ukraine and Poland agreed to further develop political, military, and economic cooperation, and "cooperate closely in the reconstruction of Ukraine as a sovereign and democratic state." During the joint press conference with Tusk, Zelensky thanked Poland for the "special agreements" in the document. The president added that the security agreement includes a provision to develop "a mechanism" for intercepting Russian missiles and drones in Ukraine's airspace aimed at Poland. Later in the day, the Presidential Office published on its website the full text of the security agreement between Ukraine and Poland. The document consists of 10 chapters covering political, military, economic, and other support, as well as bilateral cooperation in the event of a future threat of Russian aggression against Ukraine. Poland committed to providing several packages of military assistance by the end of 2024 and to continue to assist Ukraine over the next 10 years of the agreement. Warsaw will also consider supplying Ukraine with at least an additional MiG-29 squadron, according to the document. The security agreement includes forming and training a Ukrainian Legion in Poland as well. "The Ukrainian Legion will train in Poland and be equipped with the help of our partners. Every Ukrainian citizen who decides to join the Legion will be able to sign a contract with the Ukrainian Armed Forces," Zelensky said. "Our teams are currently working out all the details of this proposal," he added. Zelensky arrived in Warsaw earlier on July 8, a day before the upcoming NATO summit is scheduled to begin in Washington, D.C. "Perseverance and courage. These words best describe the attitude of Zelensky in the fight for a safe Ukraine and a safe Europe. You can always count on us in this fight," Tusk posted on X shortly after Zelensky arrived in Poland. Read also: Investigation finds EU shell production capacity far below official statements Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. A soldier leads a Chinese rocket launcher at a base during May exercises in eastern Chinas Fujian province (Eastern Theatre Command of the Peoples Liberation Army/AFP/Getty) The Chinese military has begun joint drills in Belarus that are being held over the next 11 days in Brest, close to the border with Nato state Poland. The joint military exercises by two of Russias most important allies come after Belarus became the 10th member of the China-led Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) during its 24th meeting of heads of council in Astana, Kazakhstan. Belaruss government said the drills will allow the laying of a foundation for further development of Belarusian-Chinese relations in the field of joint training of troops. China described it as anti-terrorist training, and said the drills were according to an annual plan and consensus. This is the first time in six years that China has sent military personnel to Belarus for such exercises, with their last bilateral joint drills taking place in China. Both countries also participated in Russias Vostok multilateral exercise in August 2022. Last August, China and Belarus agreed to conduct more joint military drills following a meeting between Chinas then defence chief Li Shangfu and Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk. Photos released by the Belarusian defence ministry showed Chinas Peoples Liberation Army troops arriving in Belarus on a Chinese Y-20 strategic transport aircraft. Brest is located less than 5km (3.1 miles) from the border with Poland, a member state of both the EU and Nato and a significant ally of Ukraine since Russias full-scale invasion in February 2022. Brest is also only 50km away from Ukraine itself. Martin Sebena, a lecturer at the University of Hong Kong who specialises in China-Europe relations, said the timing and location of the drills mean they are likely to be seen as further signalling of Chinese support for Russia and its allies in Europe. He told the South China Morning Post: The exercise will overlap with the Nato summit and takes place on the border where Belarus for many months has weaponised migrant flows to pressure Poland and by extension, the EU and Nato. Natos summit is scheduled to be held in Washington between 9-11 July. Mr Sebena said: It adds two extra layers to the Polish perception. First, the Poles have been reducing train transport from China via the Malaszewicze hub [near Brest] in fears of it being used for tariff circumvention, while China has worked hard to increase train-based overland trade from western China to Europe with this hub being basically the only place where those trains enter through the EU. Second, the Polish president has recently been warmly welcomed in China, and since the Poles will see this exercise as directed at them, hence questions are arising in Poland about how genuine the Chinese side was. Chinese state-run media said the countrys forces also took part in a military parade in Minsk, the Belarusian capital, last Wednesday, marking the 80th anniversary of Belarusian liberation. I believe that thanks to the efforts of both sides, China-Belarus relations will continue to demonstrate robust growth and make substantial progress, Chinese president Xi Jinping said at the SCO summit in Astana where he also met with the Belarusian president. Mr Lukashenko is one of Mr Putins most faithful allies, and the two have exchanged several visits even as many nations have shunned Moscow after its invasion of Ukraine, the most recent being a two-day trip by Mr Putin to Minsk last month. Mr Lukashenko named a new military chief during the visit, signalling continued alignment with Russia. Major General Pavel Muraveyka, who was appointed as chief of Belaruss General Staff and as first deputy defence minister, is known for publicly threatening neighbouring Nato members Poland and Lithuania. Russias deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus further solidifies their strategic partnership, with implications for regional security and Nato relations, experts say. In 2023, Russia moved some of its tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus. Muraveykos appointment is an open challenge to the West and a desire to show Putin Minsks complete loyalty and willingness to maintain a strategic partnership with Russia, independent Belarusian analyst Valer Karbalevich told the Associated Press last month. The deployment of Russian nuclear weapons in Belarus does not leave Lukashenko a strategic choice, turns him into a hostage of the Kremlin and firmly binds Minsk to Moscows policies, Mr Karbalevich said. Mr Putin travelled to China in May for his second visit in just six months, reflecting closer alignment between the two nations amid increasing Western scrutiny and sanctions. The China-Russia relationship today is hard-earned, and the two sides need to cherish and nurture it, Mr Xi told Mr Putin as the leaders met in Beijing. China is willing to ... jointly achieve the development and rejuvenation of our respective countries, and work together to uphold fairness and justice in the world. There are also increasing concerns that China may be considering providing military assistance to Russia, which US officials warn would have serious consequences. Additional reporting by agencies The Russians attacked Ukraine with six air- and ground-launched missiles on the night of 7-8 July. Ukraines air defence has managed to destroy three of them. Source: Ukraine's Air Force Details: In particular, the Russians launched four Kh-101 missiles from Tu-95MS strategic aircraft (from Russias Saratov Oblast) and two Iskander-M ballistic missiles (from Russias Kursk Oblast). "As a result of the combat efforts, three Kh-101 cruise missiles were destroyed in Zhytomyr and Cherkasy oblasts," the Air Force reported. Background: On the evening of 7 July, four Tu-95 strategic aircraft took off from the Olenya airfield in Russia. Around 01:30, they performed launch manoeuvres, and the first groups of missiles were spotted in Ukraine's airspace around 02:30. The air-raid lasted until 03:52. On the morning of 8 July, the Ukrainian Air Force reported that Russian Tu-95 bombers had again taken off from the Olenya airfield. Support UP or become our patron! Ukraine's air defence shot down 30 out of 38 Russian missiles Ukraine's air defence network intercepted 30 of the 38 Russian missiles launched on Monday 8 July. Source: Lieutenant General Mykola Oleshchuk, Air Force Commander, on Telegram Details: Around 10:00, Russia conducted a combined missile strike on Ukraine, using air, sea, and land-based missiles. According to early data, Russian war criminals fired 38 different types of missiles, namely: 1 aeroballistic rocket Kh-47M2 Kinzhal; 4 Iskander-M ballistic missiles; 1 3M22 Zircon cruise missile ; 13 Kh-101 cruise missiles; 14 Kalibr cruise missiles; 2 Kh-22 cruise missiles; 3 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided aircraft missiles. Ukraines air defence managed to destroy 30 Russian missiles: 1 aeroballistic rocket Kh-47M2 Kinzhal; 3 Iskander-M ballistic missiles; 11 Kh-101 cruise missiles; 12 Kalibr cruise missiles; 3 Kh-59/Kh-69 guided aircraft missiles. Quote: "The world must respond decisively to this crime. And arguments about whether it is possible to strike military targets on Russian soil should be avoided altogether. Let us avenge every Ukrainian." Support UP or become our patron! Ukraine's Cabinet of Ministers seeks site to relocate Okhmatdyt hospital staff and patients Aftermath of the Russian attack on the Okhmatdyt hospital on 8 July. Photo: the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine Ukraines Cabinet of Ministers will consider the consequences of Russias 8 July attack, particularly on the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital, at its next meeting. Source: Denys Shmyhal, Prime Minister of Ukraine Details: Shmyhal has ordered the health, economy and finance ministries to work on allocating funds to rebuild medical facilities and help those affected by the Russian strikes. Quote: "We will be examining the consequences of this barbaric attack at the next meeting of the government. I have ordered the health, economy and finance ministries to urgently allocate funds to rebuild the medical facilities and help those affected. The president of Ukraine has instructed the government to consider new locations that Okhmatdyts staff and patients can move to." Details: Shmyhal added that the Ukrainian government hoped Ukraines international partners would "draw their own conclusions". Background: Two adults, including 30-year-old doctor Svitlana Lukianchuk, were killed in a Russian attack on the Okhmatdyt specialised childrens hospital on 8 July. Support UP or become our patron! In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) HUARONG, Hunan Province, July 8 (Xinhua) -- An embankment seen as the second line of defense following a dike breach in central China's Hunan Province was under threat on Monday, local authorities said. More than 300 police officers and firefighters are working to stem the piping effect that is eroding the embankment in Huarong County, the province's water resources department said. The 14.3-km embankment is around 2 kilometers behind the dike that burst on Friday at Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, following a heavy rainstorm. The piping effect can hollow out a dike and lead to a burst if not properly handled. At least 7,000 residents have been evacuated following the dike burst on Friday, and thousands of rescue workers are working around the clock, closing the breach at a rate of 60 to 80 meters a day. The 226-meter breach is expected to be sealed by Tuesday noon. As of 8 a.m. on Monday, 138.5 meters of the breach in the dike had been sealed. At the site Xinhua reporters saw trucks loaded with boulders and gravel lining up to dump their materials on both sides of the breach, while large excavators and bulldozers carried out the filling operations. "Although the water level of Dongting Lake is dropping, we are currently in the main flood season," said Zhang Biao with the Hunan Port Shipping and Water Resources Group Co., Ltd. He noted that should a second flood occur, a larger area will be affected. An unnamed rescue personnel told Xinhua that challenges such as a tight supply of specialized materials, narrow dike roads on either side of the breach, and the scorching summer heat have all affected the efficiency of the operation. Zhang Xuanzhuang with the China Anneng Group First Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd. noted that hectic work will continue even after the dike is sealed. "We are under tremendous pressure reinforcing the dike to ensure long-term stability and draining the water of the flooded fields," he said. Besides, rescuers will help residents quickly resume normal production and daily activities. In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) In this aerial drone photo, rescuers work on an embankment to stem the piping effect in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zhenhai) Ukraine's Ministry of Health has launched a fundraising campaign for the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital, which was hit by a Russian missile on Monday 8 July. The strike killed two people. Source: Ukraines Ministry of Health on Telegram; Okhmatdyt Foundation; Mykhailo Shamanov, spokesman for the Kyiv City Military Administration, on the national 24/7 newscast Details: This link allows you to transfer funds to the Okhmatdyt Foundation. According to Shamanov, help has arrived at Okhmatdyt in the form of 500 police officers who will coordinate the volunteers and assist rescue workers. He also stated that the Children's Hospital is currently aware of two deaths and 15 injuries. Quote: "The hospital's basement remains blocked. As a result, heavy equipment has arrived to gain access to it. There may still be medical staff and children beneath the rubble." Background: On the morning of 8 July, Russian terrorists once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine, using more than 40 missiles of various types. At least 17 people have been killed and 66 injured in the strike, local authorities said. The Russians have launched a strike on the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital in Kyiv, injuring people. Support UP or become our patron! Russian cruise missiles flew at extremely low altitudes during the 8 July air attack on Ukraine, making them difficult to destroy and increasing the threat of consequences from downing them. Source: Colonel Yurii Ihnat, the spokesman for the Ukrainian Air Force, on Facebook Details: In a summary analysis of the overnight attack, Ihnat said the Russians had struck Ukrainian cities using 44 missiles of various types. Air defence managed to shoot down 33 of them. Unfortunately, he said, Russia is constantly improving not only its reconnaissance and strike UAVs but also its other air attack assets, such as cruise and ballistic missiles. As a result, they are becoming harder to detect and destroy. Russian missiles are equipped with additional features, including radar and heat traps. Quote: "During today's attack, cruise missiles were flying at extremely low altitudes. Sometimes they were being dealt with at a height of under 50 metres, which, of course, can also lead to terrible consequences on the ground. So dont ignore air-raid warnings, especially when you know for sure that missiles or drones are heading in your direction. Take care of yourselves and your families! We will take revenge." Support UP or become our patron! Ukrainian forces have technological innovation that will ease pressure on air defence ISW Ukrainian drone operators have been using FPV drones to target Russian reconnaissance UAVs. Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW) Quote: "Ukrainian drone operators appear to be improving their capabilities to interdict longer-range Russian drones in mid-air, and these technological innovations may allow Ukrainian forces to ease pressures on short-range and medium-range air defence assets if successfully fielded at scale." Details: A video posted on 1 June showed Ukrainian forces using first-person view (FPV) drones to target and strike Russian Zala and Orlan-10 reconnaissance drones in mid-flight near the town of Velyka Novosilka, Donetsk Oblast. Later, on 29 June, Kharkiv Operational and Tactical Group published footage of a Ukrainian FPV drone intercepting a Russian Lancet loitering munition in mid-flight on the Kharkiv front. Both Ukrainian and Russian forces are likely improving their tactical use of FPV drones to intercept other drones. However, ISW has not observed Russian forces using FPV drones to hit Ukrainian loitering munitions or longer-range reconnaissance drones in mid-flight. A robust Ukrainian capability to use affordable, widely available drones to disrupt more expensive Russian reconnaissance drones could allow Ukraine to conserve its costly and scarce short- and medium-range air defence interceptors for more significant Russian targets. Although ISW has yet to see Ukrainian forces using FPV drones against conventional Russian reconnaissance drones at scale, both sides are locked in a technological race. Ukraine's ability to deploy technological innovations at a scale faster than Russia can adapt to is crucial to counteracting Russia's current material advantages. To quote the ISWs Key Takeaways on 7 July: Ukrainian forces conducted a drone strike against a Russian ammunition storage point in Sergeevka, Voronezh Oblast on the night of 6-7 July. Satellite imagery confirms that the Ukrainian Air Force conducted a successful strike against a reported Russian regimental command post in Belgorod Oblast in late June 2024, likely with Western-provided weapons further demonstrating how Ukraine could disrupt Russian offensive operations should the West continue to lift restrictions on Ukraine's use of Western-provided weapons to strike military targets in Russia. Ukrainian drone operators appear to be improving their capabilities to interdict longer-range Russian drones in mid-air, and these technological innovations may allow Ukrainian forces to ease pressures on short-range and medium-range air defence assets if successfully fielded at scale. Chechen Akhmat special forces likely coerced a Russian military blogger to issue a public apology after he criticised Akhmat forces an illustrative example of unprofessionalism in the Russian military. Russian forces recently made confirmed advances near Chasiv Yar and Toretsk, and Ukrainian forces recently advanced north of the city of Kharkiv. Open-source researchers analysed satellite imagery and assessed that Russia has removed roughly 42 percent of Russian tanks from pre-war open-air storage since the start of the full-scale invasion. Support UP or become our patron! Ukraines unorthodox efforts to develop ways of defeating Russian drones have taken an apparent new turn, with the appearance of a light airplane carrying a sharpshooter to intercept uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). At this stage, few details about the concept are available, but its notable that the aircraft in question the Ukrainian-made Aeroprakt A-22 ultralight is a type that we have seen in the past adapted as one-way attack drone, something you can read more about here. Ukraines unorthodox efforts to develop ways of defeating Russian drones have taken an apparent new turn, with the appearance of a ultralight airplane carrying a sharpshooter to intercept uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). At this stage, few details about the concept are available, but its notable that the aircraft in question the Ukrainian-made Aeroprakt A-22 is a type that we have seen in the past adapted as a one-way attack drone, something you can read more about here. Footage of a Ukrainian HUR MO operator shooting down a UAV with an automatic rifle from the Aeroprakt-type ultralight aircraft during training. pic.twitter.com/pIwKxLuqTb Status-6 (Military & Conflict News) (@Archer83Able) July 7, 2024 A video that appeared recently shows the drone-hunting ultralight carrying out a training mission, intercepting a small fixed-wing UAV used as a target. The sharpshooter is seated on the left, side-by-side with the pilot, and takes aim as the aircraft is maneuvered into position with the drone off its left wing. At the end of the video, the drone has been successfully hit and tumbles toward the ground as the pilot and gunner congratulate each other with a high-five. The gunner opens fire on the target drone, indicated by the blue crosshairs. via X According to the Ukrainian journalist Roman Bochkala, the idea behind putting a sharpshooter in an ultralight came from the Defense Intelligence of Ukraine (GUR); we have reached out to the organization for confirmation. On his Telegram channel, Bochkala also reports that the aircraft in question was purchased using $35,000 donated by volunteers. In the meantime, the video shows the sharpshooter armed with what appears to be a Malyuk rifle, a bullpup design that is being heavily used by Ukrainian special operations forces units, among others, and which you can read more about here. In his analysis, Bochkala points to a spate of recent Russian ballistic missile strikes on different airfields of Ukraine Myrhorod, Poltava, Kryvyi Rih, Yuzhny, and Pavlograd observing that Russian reconnaissance drones were searching for targets for five to six hours, providing coordinates for these attacks. You can read more about these attacks, and how they rely on drones for targeting, here. Myrhorod Air Base. Not the first time that Russian recon drones have been able to quietly observe before striking with an Iskander cluster missile. It appears that at least 1 Ukrainian Su-27 has been destroyed, while several others are also believed to have been damaged. pic.twitter.com/OsZeeuCMp1 NOELREPORTS (@NOELreports) July 1, 2024 Bochkala says that man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS) are too few in number, Patriot air defense systems are too expensive, and risk being attacked in return, while other ground-based air defense systems are not necessarily effective against drones. Non-standard actions are required, Bochkala says, with the drone-hunting ultralight being the latest example of this. In particular, the armed ultralight is claimed to offer an effective solution against Russian Orlan, ZALA, and SuperCam types of drones. A Russian Orlan-10 surveillance drone is prepared for flight. Russian Ministry of Defense The Aeroprakt A-22, also known by its nickname, the Foxbat, is classified as an ultralight and is produced as a factory-built aircraft and as a kit. As we reported in the past, the small and relatively inexpensive A-22 is a good candidate for adaptation as a one-way attack drone, also known as a kamikaze drone. A converted A-22 was used to attack the Shahed drone production facility in Yelabuga, in Russias southeastern Tatarstan region, in April. There may have been at least one more such attack using an A-22 Foxbat since, according to the Kyiv Independent. The aircraft used shows indeed some similarities to the one I am flying. Very much hope, this wont have negative implications for the aircraft manufacturer. pic.twitter.com/3oJjsJE8qX Julian Ropcke (@JulianRoepcke) April 2, 2024 Now, the same design would also appear to have found utility as a drone hunter, as we see in the new video. As well as being fairly easy and inexpensive to source, the A-22 is stable and simple to fly; with its high wing and ample cockpit glazing, it also provides a very good field of view and field of fire for the gunner. A British-operated Aeroprakt A-22 ultralight. Arpingstone/Wikimedia Commons With maximum fuel, the standard A-22 has a range of around 680 miles, providing a very useful endurance for drone patrols. As we have seen with Ukraines expanding use of the Yak-52 to tackle drones, especially in the south of the country, operating a light, slow-flying, agile platform against UAVs does make some sense, especially in areas where Russian drones proliferate most deep behind the front lines. A Yak-52 carrying a sharpshooter seen here from the perspective of a Russian drone that it was attempting to intercept. via X As one element within Ukraines multilayered air defenses, a light aircraft provided with hand-operated rifle-caliber armament can help fill some of the gaps during daytime operations in lower-threat areas, but ones in which Russian drones are likely to appear. Conceivably, gun-armed A-22s could be deployed at high-value Ukrainian airfields and then used to patrol the local area against the surveillance drones that are used to surveil these facilities for ballistic missile strikes. However, the same caveats that we raised in the case of the Yak-52 would seem to apply to the A-22 as well. These include the high skill level required to down a moving aerial threat from another aircraft (albeit a slow-moving threat that may well not be able to maneuver away or take evasive action). This is something that has required extensive training since World War I. Fast forward to 2024 and using guns to fire on drones from other aircraft is something that both sides in the Ukraine war are now focusing on, and which we have also seen play out over the Red Sea. Then there is the problem of detecting drones in a timely manner, prioritizing them, and alerting the aircrafts crew before vectoring them onto it. This may be less of an issue if the A-22s are, as suggested, used for standing airfield patrols. A detail view of the gun used from the A-22 a locally made Mayluk. The rifle is fitted with a suppressor. via X Surprisingly, perhaps, we are yet to see any kind of gun mounting and sighting system in any of these drone-hunting aircraft, although such devices may well be in development, provided they dont exist already. On helicopters, for example, a strap that goes across the door to support and stabilize the gun is frequently used by aerial snipers. In the meantime, the Mayluk rifle would appear to be in use as an anti-drone weapon aboard the A-22, although other options are clearly available too. The Mayluk is around 28 inches overall and weighs just under 8.4 pounds empty, making it generally well-suited to the confines of the cockpit. It is unknown how far Ukraines drone-hunting ultralight program may have advanced, let alone how many aircraft are available and just as importantly how many gunners have been trained to shoot down UAVs. However, given the level of Russian drone activity inside Ukraine involving a variety of types, and their proliferation well beyond the front lines, this is very likely not the last we will see of this kind of ad-hoc UAV interceptor. Especially now, with Ukrainian airfields under increased risk from drone-directed Russian missile attacks, the appearance of an armed ultralight that could help defend these and other high-value targets is very timely. Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com Medical aid provides to a child after Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed the Okhmatdyt Children's Clinic Hospital. Aleksandr Gusev/SOPA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa The Russian strike on a children's hospital in Kiev will be discussed at a meeting of the UN Security Council. Permanent member France and non-permanent member Ecuador had requested the emergency meeting. It is scheduled for 4 pm (2000 GMT) on Tuesday. Russia launched a wave of missiles at multiple Ukrainian cities on Monday, killing at least 20 people in Kiev and 11 in the central city of Kryvyi Rih. Authorities said more than 125 people were injured. The attack on Ukraine's largest children's medical centre stunned the country and prompted condemnation from several countries. An injured hospital worker watches as rescue efforts begin. Russian missile attacks on the city, damaged and partially destroyed a children's hospital. Madeleine Kelly/ZUMA Press Wire/dpa By Michelle Nichols UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The United Nations Security Council will meet on Tuesday over a Russian attack on Ukraine that struck Kyiv's main children's hospital, said diplomats. Russia blasted the hospital with a missile in broad daylight on Monday and rained missiles down on other cities across Ukraine, killing at least 36 civilians in the deadliest wave of air strikes for months. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned the Russian strikes, his spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said. Guterres found the attack on the children's hospital and another medical facility "particularly shocking," Dujarric said. "Directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects is prohibited by international humanitarian law, and any such attacks are unacceptable and must end immediately," he said. The Security Council meeting scheduled for Tuesday morning was requested by Britain, France, Ecuador, Slovenia and the United States. "We will call out Russia's cowardly and depraved attack on the hospital," Britain's U.N. Ambassador Barbara Woodward said in an X post. The Russian defense ministry said its forces attacked defense industry targets and aviation bases. It has denied targeting civilians, although its attacks have killed thousands of civilians since its invasion in February 2022. (Reporting by Michelle Nichols; editing by Philippa Fletcher) Under the Dome podcast: How lawmakers, not just the governor, control abortion law Start your week in North Carolina politics with our latest Under the Dome podcast, for the week of July 8, 2024. Dawn Vaughan here, your podcast host and The News & Observers Capitol bureau chief. On this episode, Im joined by politics reporter Avi Bajpai, higher education reporter Korie Dean and summer intern Emmy Martin. The focus of our podcast is how abortion is a major issue in the governors race between candidates Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson and Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein. Beyond where Robinson and Stein stand, the most power is held by the General Assembly. The next governor cant sign or veto an abortion bill if the legislature doesnt pass one. Bajpai and I talked to several of the key Republican players who negotiated Senate Bill 20, the abortion restrictions bill that became law in 2023 and bans abortion, with exceptions, after 12 weeks of pregnancy. You can hear more about our work on the podcast and in our story about power and what lawmakers and advocates want to happen in 2025. Will NC abortion law change if Robinson wins as governor? It wont be just up to him. Headliner of the Week After the break, we talk about what it was like in the room, and outside it, at President Joe Bidens rally in Raleigh the day after his debate with former President Donald Trump. Dean and Martin were there, and we discuss what voters are thinking about Biden. Stay tuned to the end for our picks for Headliner of the Week. They range from the resignation of Sen. Jim Perry to the UNC Systems DEI policy to movies and the television series The Summer I Turned Pretty filming in Chapel Hill. Listen to our latest episode below and catch up on previous episodes. You can also listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, Audible, iHeart, Pandora, Amazon Music and Stitcher. Unexpected visitor: Rare bird known for its beauty spotted in Ohio HURON, Ohio (WJW) A rare bird known for its beauty was spotted in northern Ohio recently and may be the first of its kind ever documented in the state. Naturalist and author Kenn Kaufman posted a picture of the bird he identifies as an adult Roseate Tern to social media on July 7, 2024. He wrote that the bird was first spotted in Huron the day prior and has since attracted scores of birders enjoying great views of this unexpected visitor. Put-in-Bay chase leads to golf cart crash, arrest The pictures and post were shared by the Ohio Division of Wildlife which simply wrote, Rare bird alert! According to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, roseate terns are divided into two populations based on their breeding locations. The Northeastern population is listed as endangered while the Caribbean population is listed as threatened. Unfortunately, the birds beauty led to its decline as hunters shot them indiscriminately to decorate hats in the late 1800s, wrote the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Since the 1930s, the species began to rebound when hunting was banned and many of its breeding colonies were protected. Nevertheless, the two populations remain small and vulnerable. AARP releases annual list of ways to save money Kaufman, who published a Field Guide to Birds of North America in 2000, said the rare sighting is the first one ever documented in Ohio. CLICK HERE to learn more. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. United Airlines plane loses tire after takeoff at LAX, the second time in four months United Airlines did not respond to an inquiry about whether two incidents involving lost plane tires might have the same cause. (AaronP / Bauer-Griffin / GC Images) A United Airlines flight departing from Los Angeles lost a tire during takeoff Monday, its second Boeing aircraft to have lost a tire in four months. The Boeing 757-200 departed Los Angeles International Airport around 7:16 a.m. and continued to its destination at Denver International Airport even after losing the tire, according to the Federal Aviation Administration. The plane landed safely around 10:10 a.m. with no reported injuries on the aircraft or on the ground, United Airlines said in a statement. "The wheel has been recovered in Los Angeles, and we are investigating what caused this event," United said. The company did not say which tire on the aircraft was lost. The plane had 174 passengers and seven crew members on board, according to United. United and FAA said they would investigate what caused the tire to fall. This is the second incident involving a tire falling from a United aircraft mid-air in four months. In March, a Japan-bound United flight lost one of its main landing tires seconds after takeoff from San Francisco International Airport. The tire landed in an employee parking lot and damaged several vehicles. The Boeing 777, which carried 235 passengers and 14 crew members, made an emergency landing at LAX and was towed away with no reported injuries. United did not respond to an inquiry about whether the causes for the incidents were potentially the same. In January, a Boeing 757 operated by Delta Air Lines lost its nose wheel while preparing for takeoff at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta. Delta said a nose gear tire and rim had come loose and then rolled down a hill. Passengers had to exit the plane, but no one was injured. Concerns surrounding the safety of Boeing planes has been circulating for years, particularly after two crashes of its 737 Max jets killed 346 people in October 2018 and March 2019. Boeing agreed to plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge over the deadly crashes Monday, avoiding a criminal trial. 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. A United 757 plane lost one of its main landing gear tires as it took off from Los Angeles International Airport Monday morning, the airline said. No one was hurt, United said. The plane continued its flight to Denver and landed without incident, according to the airline. MORE: TSA sets new single-day record with more than 3 million travelers at airport security There were 179 passengers and seven crew members on the plane, according to United. "The wheel has been recovered in Los Angeles, and we are investigating what caused this event," the airline said in a statement. The Federal Aviation Administration also said it will investigate. PHOTO: United Airlines Boeing 757-224 arrives at Los Angeles International Airport on December 29, 2023 in Los Angeles. (AaronP/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images/Getty Images) The incident recalled a similar accident in March when a tire fell off United Flight 35 as it took off from San Francisco International Airport. The tire debris landed in an employee parking lot at the airport, crushing several cars. The plane landed safely after being diverted to Los Angeles International Airport. The tire was one of 12 on the Boeing 777-200's two main landing gear struts, according to United, and is designed to be able to land safely if it loses a tire. United plane loses tire during takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport originally appeared on abcnews.go.com NANNING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Visiting the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in the south of China had been on my wish list for a long time, but I never imagined that my first trip to this scenic multi-ethnic area would be with a group of foreign-invested firms. I traveled with the main organizer of the China International Import Expo (CIIE), the CIIE Bureau, to Guangxi last week, where the expo announced the opening of the exhibitor application process for the eighth CIIE, slated to be held in November 2025. Nearly 120 investment promotion institutions and foreign-invested firms headquartered in countries such as the United States, Japan and Germany participated in the trip. Of these, 26 firms signed up to participate on-site at the exhibition recruitment launch ceremony in Nanning, Guangxi's capital city. Such a gathering of many foreign-invested firms is quite an event for Guangxi, a local colleague told me, as Guangxi, like some central and western regions of China, still boasts ample investment space for foreign enterprises. Guangxi, a coastal region, enjoys natural geographical endowments to promote trade and attract investment. It neighbors the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and is the only provincial-level region in China connected with the ASEAN by both land and sea. Guangxi has for three consecutive years held an investment promotion meeting to attract global firms to tap development opportunities in the Guangxi pilot free trade zone. In 2023, 657 foreign-invested enterprises were newly established in Guangxi, an increase of 22.8 percent year on year. In addition to the exhibition recruitment launch, an investment promotional event, a business match-making session, and field trips to several cities in the autonomous region were also organized to help introduce foreign investors to Guangxi in a targeted manner. I participated in a field trip to Fangchenggang, a port city near the China-Vietnam border. The trip featured a foreign enterprise delegation of 13 people. We chose this city for good reasons. Fangchenggang's economy expanded at the fastest pace in the entire Guangxi in 2023, and the city is building an international medical opening-up pilot zone. Donald Tang, a senior executive of the China branch of German water treatment device maker SYR, had high hopes for the trip. He brought a cooperation plan to manufacture medical devices in Fangchenggang. The local government gave the delegation a warm welcome. After a visit to an exhibition hall to introduce the city, a meeting was held for the delegation, with officials from nearly 10 government agencies attending to answer their questions concerning investing in Fangchenggang. The foreign-invested firms asked about a wide range of issues, including the electricity price, the city's competitive advantages compared with peers, and its specific policies regarding developing medicines for certain diseases. Many delegation members were impressed by the local government's eagerness to attract foreign investment, and so was I. "Fangchenggang, Guangxi and the country at large look forward to more foreign investment. We have a set of preferential policies and services for foreign-invested firms," said an official from the city's commercial bureau. An official in charge of administrative approval sought to reassure the delegation of the city's readiness for win-win cooperation. "The widening opening up is an ongoing process," he said. "The improvement of the policy framework needs foreign-invested firms' contribution. You propose a demand based on a real scenario, and then we will study how to solve the problem." In early 2024, Guangxi unveiled a policy package including 23 specific steps to attract foreign investment, ranging from encouraging foreign-invested firms to set up R&D centers to ensuring fair participation in government procurement activities. "I'm glad to see that Guangxi is constantly changing for the better," said Tang, who worked in Guangxi over two decades ago. He obtained the contact information of local officials, thereby paving the way for further discussions. He indicated that he would return to Nanning after the organized group trip to discuss potential cooperation in upgrading the water treatment facilities in an ancient town. "See you at the upcoming CIIE," Tang said to me. United Airlines flight loses wheel on takeoff, lands safely with no injuries United Airlines planes are parked at their gates at O'Hare International Airport ahead of the Thanksgiving holiday in Chicago, Illinois (Reuters) -A United Airlines jet lost a landing-gear wheel on Monday when it took off from Los Angeles but landed safely in Denver, its planned destination, with no injuries, the airline said. The wheel from United Flight 1001, a Boeing 757-200, was recovered in Los Angeles. "We are investigating what caused this event," United said. The aircraft involved in Monday's incident was a nearly 30-year-old 757, according to FlightRadar24 data. Boeing ended production of the 757 in 2004. In March, a United Boeing 777-200 jet headed for Japan lost a tire mid-air following takeoff from San Francisco and landed safely at Los Angeles International Airport. (Reporting by Pratyush Thakur in Bengaluru; additional reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Shailesh Kuber and Cynthia Osterman) Children work on tablets during a preschool class in Cincinnati in 2023. Many states are expanding pre-K, but there are barriers to attendance for many families. (Carolyn Kaster | The Associated Press) When Tanya Gillespie-Lambert goes to an event in a local park in Camden, New Jersey, she takes a handful of brochures about free preschool with her. She has no hesitation about approaching strangers moms with kids especially to plug the service in the local public school district, where shes director of community and parent involvement. Gillespie-Lambert and her team also hold door-knocking events several times a year to put the word out on free pre-K, dressing up in matching blue T-shirts and hats. Thats in addition to billboards, public service announcements and posters all over town. I still get a little shocked when they dont know about it, she said in an interview. They always say, I didnt know they could start when they were 3 years old, and they dont have to be potty trained. And its free? Forty-four states offer some free preschool, and states from Colorado to Mississippi are expanding their programs. But even when states claim to have universal pre-K for 4-year-olds and sometimes 3-year-olds, some of the most comprehensive programs only serve a slice of the kids who are eligible. Theres a host of reasons for that, beyond a lack of awareness. Some states only provide funding for 10 or 15 hours of preschool per week. Some parents cant afford the cost of before- and after-care, or have transportation problems if theres no bus. In some states, private pre-K providers, who often get state money for their pre-K programs, oppose shifting more state funds to public schools. And many states have a shortage of early education teachers and assistants, limiting the number of slots they can provide. Studies show preschool is highly beneficial for young children, giving them a jump on reading and math skills and the socialization that are key to later school success. Preschool differs from child care, which has less emphasis on academics and often doesnt employ certified teachers. But private preschool is costly, making it difficult for parents with lower incomes to afford pre-K unless its state-funded. Everybody doesnt define universal the same way, said Steven Barnett, senior co-director of the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University. You cant just wave a magic wand. Barnett said a state pre-K program should not be considered universal if theres a cap on funding or a waitlist for slots. He advocates for states to treat pre-K like first grade automatically available. But providing universal preschool is expensive for states. Participation varies More than 1.6 million 3- and 4-year-olds attended state-funded preschools in the 2022-2023 school year, with states serving 7% of 3-year-olds and 35% of 4-year-olds, according to Barnetts institute. But participation varies widely from state to state. The number of 4-year-olds enrolled in state-funded pre-K programs in the 2022-2023 school year ranged from a high of 67% in Florida, Iowa, Oklahoma and West Virginia to single digits in Alaska, Missouri, Nevada, Delaware, North Dakota, Arizona, Hawaii and Utah, according to the institute. Six states have no state-funded preschool: Idaho, Indiana, Montana, New Hampshire, South Dakota and Wyoming. Some states are starting pre-K programs or expanding them. Mississippi doubled the number of kids in preschool in 2022-23 from the previous year to more than 5,300, added another 3,000 seats in 2023-24 and committed to future expansion, according to the state. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis, a Democrat, signed a universal preschool bill in April 2022, and classes started in the 2023-24 school year. But Colorados program provides only 15 hours of free preschool per week in the year before kindergarten. Similarly, Vermonts universal pre-K program, enacted in 2014, provides only 10 hours a week of free school. In addition to being problematic for parents who work 40 hours a week, 10 hours a week of preschool is not enough to provide quality learning, Barnett said. It has to be a big enough dosage of truly high-quality education. Everybody doesnt define universal the same way. You cant just wave a magic wand. Steven Barnett, senior co-director of the National Institute for Early Education Research at Rutgers University Vermont state Sen. Ruth Hardy, a Democrat, called the program technically universal because all 4-year-olds are allowed to participate but acknowledged there are gaps. She filed a bill last year that would have expanded the pre-K program to include full school days but it died, amid other expansions to child care and educational priorities. Hardy, a former educator and school board member, said in an interview that the legislature did enact a measure to study expanding pre-K to all 3- and 4-year-olds and report back by July 2026. It was part of a larger law that focused on providing more child care subsidies, including for families with incomes up to middle-class or close to upper-middle-class levels, she said. To pay for it, the state instituted a new payroll tax of 0.44%. Employers may choose to pay all of it or deduct up to 0.11% of it from employees wages. Concerns about access Hardy said that in Vermont, as well as other states, a roadblock to expanding public pre-K programs is the tension between public and private schools. Many states take a mixed delivery approach to public preschool, under which pre-K is offered in settings ranging from public schools to community-based centers to private schools. But private providers sometimes see expanding the public preschools as competition. Aly Richards, CEO of Lets Grow Kids, a Vermont child care advocacy organization, said the groups concern is equitable access to pre-K programs, especially when parents need kids in all-day instruction and public programs only operate on school-day hours, while private programs often last all workday. Working-class families cant leave their job in the middle of the day if they have to move their kid, she said. She also said there is often not enough room in nearby public schools to accommodate all the children who want pre-K programs. Similar tension is roiling efforts to expand public pre-K in Michigan. Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Democratic lawmakers want to make more children eligible, but private schools worry that legislative proposals would eliminate requirements that a percentage of slots go to private providers and thereby cut their state funding. In Hawaii which has one of the highest-quality public preschool programs, according to the National Institute for Early Education Research the problem is getting enough educators into the classrooms. Hawaii plans to open 44 more classrooms for 3- and 4-year-olds in the fall, bringing the states total to about 90, Lt. Gov. Sylvia Luke, a Democrat, said in a statement. But more staffing is needed if the state is going to reach its goal of getting all 3- and 4-year-olds in preschool by 2032, The Associated Press reported. California is in the third year of a four-year phase-in of a universal pre-K program launched in the 2021-22 state budget. A draft report from the Learning Policy Institute, a California educational research group, found that while most school districts in the state are on track toward getting all 4-year-olds and income-eligible 3-year-olds in pre-K, staffing is a problem and is expected to get worse as new teacher requirements go into effect. Hanna Melnick, a senior policy adviser at the Learning Policy Institute and one of the co-authors of the report, said its unclear how many of the eligible kids are actually taking advantage of the pre-K program. Some families cant afford before- and after-care, she said. Extended care is a really critical barrier. And some families want more of a familylike environment [for their preschoolers]. They might not feel comfortable using out-of-home care or care in a school setting. Back in New Jersey, Democratic Gov. Phil Murphy announced in March that an additional $11 million in state funding had been secured to bring preschool to 16 more school districts in the state. But despite the effort, workers such as Gillespie-Lambert need to keep walking neighborhoods. People dont read, she said. We found canvassing not just flyers, but having a conversation with them seems to work a lot better. Stateline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Stateline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Scott S. Greenberger for questions: info@stateline.org. Follow Stateline on Facebook and X. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX As the federal government invests heavily in domestic technology manufacturing, the University of Minnesota named its first-ever chief semiconductor officer in May. The University is taking the action to help companies and public agencies compete for funding from the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors (CHIPS) and Science Act and help Minnesota retain resiliency in the microelectronics industry. Semiconductors conduct electricity and are essential components in electronic devices like mobile phones and computers. Manufacturers in East Asia dominate the industry, but the CHIPS program aims to make the U.S. more globally relevant and strengthen domestic supply chains. Because semiconductors are also integral to aerospace and defense projects, many feel having better local access to the technology as essential to national security. Steven Koester, a professor in the University's department of electrical and computing engineering, is doing extensive research that could change the semiconductor industry. Koester joined the University in 2010 and has been the director of the Minnesota Nano Center since 2021. In an interview edited for clarity and length, he discussed his works and its significance to the economy. Why is this important for the University of Minnesota? It's important because I think there needs to be some high-level coordination for all of the semiconductor innovation that's happening, both at the University and in the entire state of Minnesota. The Twin Cities has a huge amount of semiconductors here. We can grow as a semiconductor hub. The CHIPS and Science Act has a significant amount of funds that's intending to boost both domestic semiconductor manufacturing and R&D in the United States. So there's a lot of funding opportunities. It's seeding a lot of activity. My position is intended to really try to provide that kind of coordination between academia, industry, state and federal governments to try to enhance the ecosystem that we have here in Minnesota. Can you explain what you're working on? My current research is in advanced semiconductor devices. We're working on making transistors [semiconductor components that control electrical voltage] that can be made smaller than traditional transistors now. If you can make transistors smaller you can fit more of them on a chip. We're working with advanced materials that will allow kind of the ultimate scaling of semiconductor chips. Companies could use these? Some of my work is currently funded by Intel. They're interested in a novel semiconductor called tungsten diselenide, which has the potential to replace silicon. To replace it is a monumental task. But we're reaching the point where you just can't make transistors any smaller using silicon. There's actually some activity that's of interest to industry where you would actually replace silicon with another material that can be made much thinner than silicon. If you can make the material thinner, you can make the transistor smaller. That's a goal? The smaller you can make the transistors, the more powerful your cellphone can be. What is being made at the Nano Center? You can kind of think of it as a prototyping facility for very advanced concepts in really a wide range of technologies. It can be semiconductors, but it could be in a wide variety of fields: magnetics, spintronics, microfluidics, sensors. A whole range of different technologies can be done in the Nano Center. We have capabilities that allow you to do state-of-the-art prototypes. Mainly what we're doing is supporting research. Is the University working with specific private companies? We're doing a couple of things with local companies: Polar [Semiconductor], SkyWater [Technology Inc.], Honeywell, Collins Aerospace and others. The first thing that we're doing is we're working on training. We're working on workforce development because as they expand their capacity, they're going to need more trained workers to work at the facilities. It's absolutely important that they have a trained workforce. The second thing that we're doing is that we're hoping to work on advanced R&D projects. There is a significant amount in the CHIPS and Science Act which is for research and development. We're hoping to be able to partner with some of the local companies on proposals that would be for advanced applications for, say, the Department of Defense and developing new technologies in partnership with them. Remnants of Hurricane Beryl are expected to reach Ohio late Tuesday night and dump 2 inches of rain on some areas. "I would say it will be here about 24 hours," Brian Mitchell, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Cleveland, said Monday morning. Beryl was downgraded from a hurricane to a tropical storm after hitting the Texas coast. The low-pressure system has been forecast to spread out as it goes through Missouri, Illinois and Indiana. The remnants of Tropical Storm Beryl are expected to enter Ohio late Tuesday evening and stay for about 24 hours. High winds will slow as the storm travels inland, but the thunder, lighting and rain will continue. "The tropical characteristics of it kind of go away, but it's still a big low pressure system," Mitchell said. "Since it's coming from the Gulf of Mexico, it's just able to pull up all that moisture with it and bring it up into our area." 'Several rounds' of storms in Ohio as Beryl breaks apart The first portions of Beryl likely will enter the southwestern area of Ohio around 10 p.m. Tuesday as the system travels northeast. The edge of the storm is forecast to reach the I-71 corridor, leaving the eastern half of the Buckeye State relatively dry. "That could shift a little bit further east or a little bit further west," Mitchell said. "Using I-71 as a dividing line, were going to see maybe an inch or so along 71, and west of there upwards of 2 inches." The showers will continue until about 2 a.m. Thursday in some areas of Ohio. "There could be several rounds as it moves up this way," Mitchell said. "There can be an area of showers and thunderstorms and then a break for a while before you see some more." 'The heaviest would be in Northwest Ohio' The center of the storm is projected to cross a piece of Ohio as it travels from Indianapolis toward Detroit. "The heaviest would be in Northwest Ohio," Mitchell said. "From Marion and Upper Sandusky, on north of there." Various models show the storm could take a slightly different path after making contact with other North American pressure systems. ztuggle@gannett.com 419-564-3508 This article originally appeared on Ashland Times Gazette: Tropical Storm Beryl will reach Ohio Tuesday night with heavy rains Passengers line up before their flights at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The U.S. Transportation Security Administration said it screened 3.01 million airline passengers on Sunday, the highest number ever on a single day. That comes after a group representing major U.S. airlines forecast record summer travel, with airlines expected to transport 271 million passengers, up 6.3% from last year. Sunday's total topped the previous high of more than 2.99 million set on June 23 after the agency set a record in May, the TSA said Monday. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said the record-breaking travel had been "spurred by our nations strong economy expected to continue in the months ahead." Airlines for America said U.S carriers plan to fly more than 26,000 daily flights this summer, up nearly 1,400 over 2023, or 5.6%, when they carried 255 million passengers. The summer travel season forecast is for June 1 to Aug. 31. The buoyant estimates come as the Federal Aviation Administration is struggling to address a persistent shortage of air traffic controllers. Some airlines voluntarily trimmed New York flights last summer to address congestion issues, and have raised new concerns about the lack of controllers. Last month the FAA said it was again extending cuts to minimum flight requirements at congested New York City-area airports through October 2025, citing air traffic controller staffing shortages. The FAA said the number of controllers handling traffic in New York is insufficient for normal traffic levels and that without "increased flexibility", congestion, delays, and cancellations are likely at JFK, LaGuardia and Newark airports. Under minimum flight requirements, airlines can lose their takeoff and landing slots at congested airports if they do not use them at least 80% of the time. The FAA's waiver allows airlines to fly fewer flights and still retain slots. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Jan Harvey) US says it has raised concerns with India about its ties with Russia By Simon Lewis and Kanishka Singh WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States has raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia amid Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, a U.S. State Department spokesperson told reporters on Monday in response to questions about a meeting between Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. WHY IT IS IMPORTANT India has faced pressure from the West to distance itself from Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. New Delhi has thus far resisted that pressure, citing its longstanding ties with Russia and its economic needs. Modi met Putin in Russia on Monday in the prime minister's first visit since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. In a post on social media platform X, the prime minister said his talks with Putin "will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship" between the two countries. KEY QUOTE "I will look to Prime Minister Modi's public remarks to see what he talked about but as I said, we have made quite clear directly with India our concerns about their relationship with Russia," a State Department spokesperson said in a press briefing. "And so we would hope (that) India and any other country when they engage with Russia would make clear that Russia should respect the U.N. Charter, should respect Ukraine's sovereignty and territorial integrity." CONTEXT Russia has been India's largest weapons supplier since the Soviet Union days. However, India has also been seeking other options, as the Ukraine war hobbled Russia's ability to supply munitions and spares. Washington in recent years has looked to woo New Delhi, with political analysts saying the U.S. sees India as a counter to China in the Asia-Pacific. While the West has tried to isolate Putin, China, India and powers in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America have continued to build ties. (Reporting by Simon Lewis and Kanishka Singh in Washington; Editing by Alistair Bell) ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA) The University of South Florida and Florida Institute of Oceanography introduced on Monday a new, state-of-the-art machine capable of exploring the deepest parts of the ocean. If it works like scientists and engineers say it will, it could lead to the discovery of new species and livestream the underwater environment. OceanGate co-founder plans to dive into one of worlds deepest ocean sinkholes This is going to provide unprecedented access to the ocean, Nicole Raineault, Chief Scientist at the Florida Institute of Oceanography, said. So that we can understand it more and make new discoveries. The latest and greatest remotely operated vehicle, or ROV, can dive two-and-a-half miles below the surface of the water, according to scientists. Engineers did a partial test on Monday to show off the new capabilities. The multi-million dollar equipment was just acquired by USF and FIO to advance deep-sea exploration. The Taurus remotely operated vehicle returns from partial submersion. (WFLA) Some of the things were studying are sharks in the deep sea, Raineault said. As well as deep sea coral and seep communities that exist right off our shores here. USF is the only university in the continental United States to own an ROV with such advanced capabilities, officials said. The only other place is the University of Hawaii. It allows us to not only innovate, explore, and discover in support of all of our research, Tom Frazer, dean of the USF College of Marine Science, said. Thats really a hallmark of a world-renowned research institution. Beryl downgraded to tropical storm after landfall Its able to go where few machines have ever gone before. This capability will just allow us to really understand our ocean environment, Frazer said. At a time when were facing a tremendous amount of environmental pressures. The ROV will head out to the open ocean aboard the Western Flyer boat for engineering trials for the first time on 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 WFLA. NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) The USNS Kanawha is scheduled to return home to Naval Station Norfolk Wednesday morning after a nine-month deployment, according to the Navy. Kanawha deployed to the Red Sea as the sole replenishment oiler responsible for the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group. Courtesy of Military Sealift Command Atlantic Kanawhas surge deployment in response to Houthis aggression in the Red Sea was historic. Performing superbly in the face of extreme danger and active attacks, Kanawha and her crew was instrumental in keeping the Fleet in the fight, a Navy spokesperson wrote in a news release. During this deployment, Kanawhas 71-member crew safely executed 111 at-sea replenishments. The ship delivered more than 30-million gallons of diesel and jet fuel, along with 4,696,274 marine grade oil, and transferring 3,389 critical cargo pallets. Courtesy of Military Sealift Command Atlantic The Navy says that underway replenishments are a critical naval capability that allows U.S. Navy and allied ships to be resupplied with fuel, food, and stores without pulling into a port. USNS Kanawha is expected to arrive at Naval Station Norfolk at 8:30 a.m. 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 WAVY.com. A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPMs Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version. A Seismic Jolt One week ago today the Supreme Court issued its landmark decision in U.S. v. Trump, creating a monarchial presidency the likes of which the founders would have taken up arms against. The courts response to an attempted auto-coup by a defeated president who is poised to potentially regain office in a matter of weeks was to carve out vast new areas of presidential immunity and invent new rules of evidence that no one was even arguing about yet but to do so with no clear standards or bright lines, reserving to itself the considerable power to set them later or not set them at all and decide things as it sees fit on a case-by-case basis where it can craft its own preferred outcomes. And yet the biggest national political story since then has not been the Supreme Courts unilateral rebalancing of the Constitutions separation of powers in favor of Donald Trumps short-term criminal defense and long-term political power, but rather Joe Bidens decline with age and his fitness to defeat Trump in the November election. Historians will struggle to make sense of this week because its impossibly surreal for those of us living through it. Politics and covering politics is hard even in normal times because there is so much uncertainty, so few anchors or touchstones, and compromise is built in, which can blur lines and make things seem adrift. The kind of feeding frenzy were witnessing now is often driven by an unusual level of seeming certainty. The sense that something is suddenly clear and obvious and undeniable like Bidens debate failure can act like a magnet for those exhausted by all of the nibbling at the margins, hedging bets, and the never-ending difficult task of balancing interests that is required in a mature political economy. Moreover, the supposed obviousness of the immediate issue can often override consideration of the downstream consequences. Sometimes, the decision that looks so obvious in the moment gets a whole lot more opaque when you start to grapple with the knock-on effects. In contrast to Bidens nationally televised failure, the Supreme Courts decision on presidential immunity was complex, in writing, and with impacts that while real remain in many ways contingent and forward-looking. In the media economy, its obvious which story is easier to tackle. Likewise, the entire march toward authoritarian rule remains murkier and harder to cover than the up-and-downs of a political campaign. But I want to stay focused on the Supreme Court decision because I think this past week was a fulcrum in U.S. political history. The Supreme Court Is Now The Kingmaker I mentioned last week that while on the surface U.S. v. Trump seems like a dramatic expansion of executive power the reality is that at its core it aggrandizes power to the high court itself. Well keep returning to this theme, but in the meantime: I want to direct you to this piece by Asha Rangappa: [T]here are so many implications written between the lines that fundamentally alter the balance of power among the branches, not only making the President effectively a king, but making the Courts conservative majority the kingmakers who rubber stamp or veto what kinds of actions get immunity (thereby ensuring that any potential dictator is symbiotically dependent on the Court to preserve his facade of legitimacy). A brief but insightful thread from NBC News Lisa Rubin. SCOTUS Cut The Heart And Soul Out Of America Former Appeals Court Judge J. Michael Luttig continues to be singular voice of our time, a conservative Republican of the old school horrified by his partys abandonment of the rule of law as on organizing principle for democracy: Luttig: The Supreme Court cut the heart and soul out of America with this abominable decision The defining maxim of America has been that no one is above the law. That can never be said about America again after this decision from the Supreme Court. Without any question pic.twitter.com/HcY55W2rm1 Acyn (@Acyn) July 7, 2024 Intellectually Honest Conservatives Get It Richard Bernstein, a former clerk for Antonin Scalia who is cut from the same cloth as Judge Luttig, finds in U.S. v. Trump many of the same hallmarks that conservatives loathed in Roe v. Wade. Thats a provocative point of view for a progressive audience, but hes exhibiting an intellectual consistency that the Supreme Courts right-wing justices have abandoned. SCOTUS Decision Already Impacting The MAL Case A series of developments in the Mar-a-Lago case since the decision in U.S. v. Trump are a taste of the ways in which the Supreme Court has hobbled the Trump prosecutions: Trump is seeking to delay the Mar-a-Lago case in light of U.S. v. Trump. In response, U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon has for now delayed the next batch of deadlines in the case and provided a very generous briefing schedule to consider the impact of U.S. v. Trump on the charges against the former president. Trump is seizing on Justice Clarence Thomas concurrence in U.S. v. Trump to renew his claim that Special Counsel Jack Smith was unlawfully appointed. Cannon rejected Trump co-defendant Walt Nautas motion to dismiss for selective and vindictive prosecution but was careful to note that it should not be interpreted as her taking a position on Trumps still-pending similar motion. She also took a swipe, as per usual, at prosecutors in the final footnote of the ruling. How to Stop Fascism Yale historian Timothy Snyder recounts in some detail the five lessons we learned from the rise of Nazism in 1930s Germany: Voting matters Coalitions are necessary Conservatives should be conservative Big business should support democracy Citizens should not obey in advance Well Put VP: Sadly, the press has not been covering it as much as they should in proportion to the seriousness of what just happened. The Supreme Court essentially told this individual, who has been convicted of 34 felonies, that he will be immune from the activity he has told us he is pic.twitter.com/98OzjYFCah Acyn (@Acyn) July 6, 2024 Good Decisions Arent Made In The Midst Of A Feeding Frenzy I dont have much to add to the maelstrom of Biden coverage and whether he will stay or go, or whether thats a good idea or a bad idea, or who is best positioned to defeat Trump. But Ill refer you to Brian Beutlers thoughtful weighing of the most important considerations. Some Folks Need Killing Following up on some of the ground-breaking reporting that TPMs Hunter Walker has done on the GOP nominee for governor in North Carolina, Greg Sargent highlights a June 30 Mark Robinson speech in which he said: Some folks need killing! Its time for somebody to say it. Its not a matter of vengeance. Its not a matter of being mean or spiteful. Its a matter of necessity! Greg has all of the context, and its not good. The Big Picture MIAMI, FLORIDA JULY 01: John Cangialosi, Senior Hurricane Specialist at the National Hurricane Center, inspects a satellite image of Hurricane Beryl, the first hurricane of the 2024 season, at the National Hurricane Center on July 01, 2024 in Miami, Florida. On Monday afternoon, the storm, centered 30 miles west-northwest of Carriacou Island, became the strongest hurricane this early in the season in this area of the Atlantic. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Houston/Galveston narrowly dodged a climate-fueled bullet this morning as the necessary ingredients came together a few hours too late for Hurricane Beryl to re-intensify into a monster storm. For the casual observer, its worth noting that Beryl was doing climatologically crazy stuff last week in the tropical Atlantic and Caribbean. With record-high sea surface temperatures creating conditions not typically found until the August/September peak of the hurricane season, Beryl was able to do things in terms of intensity and location at a time of the year that simply would not have been physically (as in, physics) possible before. Weather is not climate, but Beryl was such an outlier and our understanding of the physics of tropical cyclones advanced enough that the connection is clearer and more concrete than can sometimes be drawn with other weather phenomena. Related: A year of record breaking global temperatures pic.twitter.com/HhMCKKXvbJ Ed Hawkins (@ed_hawkins) July 8, 2024 Do you like Morning Memo? Let us know! Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, holds talks with Foreign Minister of Belarus Maksim Ryzhenkov in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan) BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi held talks with Foreign Minister of Belarus Maksim Ryzhenkov in Beijing on Monday. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China is willing to work with Belarus to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state and promote the continuous deepening and solidification of the China-Belarus all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership. China is ready to take the rotating presidency of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) as an opportunity to work with all parties to carry forward the Shanghai Spirit and build the SCO's common home into solidarity and mutual trust, peace and tranquility, prosperity and development, good-neighborliness and friendship, as well as fairness and justice. Ryzhenkov said that Belarus attaches great importance to Belarus-China relations, and China is the first country he visited after taking office as foreign minister. He thanked China for supporting Belarus in joining the SCO. Belarus greatly appreciates and will continue to participate deeply in the series of global initiatives proposed by China, and adhere to the practice of multilateralism to jointly address global challenges, Ryzhenkov said. The two sides also exchanged views on the Ukraine crisis. Ryzhenkov spoke highly of the six-point consensus jointly put forward by China and Brazil. Wang said that the top priority is to follow the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no fanning of the flames by any party, so as to ease and cool down the crisis and create conditions for restarting dialogue. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, holds talks with Foreign Minister of Belarus Maksim Ryzhenkov in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan) PORTSMOUTH, Va. (WAVY) The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus issued a statement on Monday in support of President Joe Bidens decision to the stay in the 2024 presidential race. As a Caucus whose focus is on the good of the Commonwealth and 9 million Virginians, our decision to support Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is based solely on shared policy positions, which will continue to grow our economy and build a country with viable futures for our youth, wrote Chair Lamont Bagby (D-Henrico/Richmond) in speaking for the 32-member caucus. Bagby said voters have a choice is between two visions. A second Trump presidency would set us back a generation. We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward. Heres the full statement from the VLBC: As a Caucus whose focus is on the good of the Commonwealth and 9 million Virginians, our decision to support Joe Biden and Kamala Harris is based solely on shared policy positions, which will continue to grow our economy and build a country with viable futures for our youth. As policy makers, we need support and allies at every level to truly deliver for constituents across the country. This administration has ushered in historic economic and job growth, record unemployment, and long overdue investments in healthcare coverage and our infrastructure. Joe Biden and Kamala Harris have demonstrated their values. They have fought for and won policies that protect real, working class people from exploitative corporate interests in the pharmaceutical industry, overwhelming student debt, and the threats our changing climate brings. This administration has proven that they care for the millions of Virginians who voted them into office. The person who we elevate to lead us as a nation must have respect for the democratic process that empowers them to make decisions for the good of the people. The only candidate I trust with this responsibility is Joe Biden. The choice is between two visions. A second Trump presidency would set us back a generation. We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward. Lamont Bagby, chair of Virginia Legislative Black Caucus The statement comes after Biden tries to brush aside growing criticism from Democrats for him to step aside, including Washingtons Adam Smith, the top Democrat on the House Armed Services Committee, and New Yorks Jerry Nadler, the top Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee. No prominent Virginia Democrats have publicly called on Biden to step aside so far, but there have been reports that Virginia Sen. Mark Warner was trying to organize lawmakers to pressure Biden to do so. Rep. Don Beyer of Virginia later clarified his support of the Biden-Harris ticket after initial reports that he was among those calling for Biden to leave the race. Warners co-senator, Tim Kaine, has expressed support for Biden, but told reporters on Monday that its early in this discussion in the aftermath of the debate. Biden sent a letter Monday to Democrats in Congress and said I wouldnt be running again if I did not absolutely believe I was the best person to beat Donald Trump in 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 WAVY.com. Very abnormal heat expected for Tacoma early this week. Learn how to stay cool Brace yourself, Tacoma: Monday was a hot one and Tuesday could be hotter. Western Washington is getting rocked by record-high heat this week. Multiple daily records were smashed on Sunday, the National Weather Services Seattle office wrote on X (Twitter). The post cited that days 93-degree-high at SeaTac, which was three degrees warmer than the previous record set in 2010. Tacoma will keep getting hit by toasty temps this week. A heat advisory is in place until 10 p.m. Tuesday. We are expecting both today, Monday, and Tuesday to be the warmest two days of this stretch, and high temperatures will top out in the mid- to upper-90s, NWS Seattle meteorologist Matthew Cullen told The News Tribune. Were forecasting around 95 in Tacoma today, and about 97 on Tuesday. For perspective, the typical temperature at nearby SeaTac is around 76 during this time a difference of about 20 degrees, he added: Thats certainly very abnormal. Cullen advises Tacoma residents to drink plenty of water and, if possible, to take advantage of air conditioning. Check on loved ones and neighbors. You could always head to a public library or shopping mall someplace with AC to cool down. Even an hour or two cooling throughout the day, that really does make a difference because this heat does accumulate throughout the stretch of very hot weather, he said. With temperatures pushing 90 degrees before noon, Khamiira Richardson, 5, of Orange County, California, cools off at the Wright Park Sprayground while on summer vacation in Tacoma, Washington, on Monday, July 8, 2024. Tony Overman/toverman@theolympian.com City of Tacomas response to the heat To help beat the heat, the city has opened cooling centers and is providing residents experiencing homeless water access, according to a news release. Shelter capacity is expanded during 90-plus degree weather, and encampment removals are paused. Additional shelter beds are available at these locations: Beacon Young Adult Shelter (415 S. 13th St.) for unhoused people ages 18 to 24: 20 more beds. Catholic Community Services Nativity House (702 S. 14th St.) for people experiencing homelessness ages 18 and older: 80 more beds. During normal operating hours, public libraries in Tacoma can serve as cooling centers, according to the citys news release. Other cooling locations are offered throughout the county. Pierce County YMCAs, for instance, can be accessed as cooling centers Sunday through Tuesday when the heat exceeds 90 degrees, per a webpage by the Tacoma Pierce County Coalition to End Homelessness. Pierce Transit giving free rides Pierce Transit is giving passengers free rides to shelters and cooling centers through Tuesday, according to a news release. The timeline could get extended if the heat persists. The transit system has partnered with Pierce County Department of Emergency Management on the move. Round-trip bus and SHUTTLE rides will be offered to folks who notify the driver that they are going to or from a shelter or cooling center, according to the news release. See more tips for beating the heat and locations for cooling centers by visiting PierceCountyWa.gov/6226/Hot-Weather-Information. Free admission to state history museum The air conditioned Washington State History Museum in downtown Tacoma is offering free admission Tuesday. Stay cool while learning how Washingtons past affects its present. The museum, located at 1911 Pacific Ave., features temporary and permanent exhibitions about the states history. Its open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Record High Temperatures! Multiple daily record high temperatures were broken today, including at SeaTac (high of 93). Additional records will likely be broken through Tuesday with continued hot temperatures. #WAwx pic.twitter.com/GffN1ssQhh NWS Seattle (@NWSSeattle) July 8, 2024 Vice President Kamala Harris coming to Greensboro for campaign event Vice President Kamala Harris coming to Greensboro for campaign event GREENSBORO, N.C. (WGHP) The vice president will be on the campaign trail this week with a stop in North Carolina. Vice President Kamala Harris will make a stop in Greensboro on Thursday for what the White House simply called a campaign event. Harris is traveling this week with stops in Las Vegas, Dallas and then Greensboro. Around lunchtime on Monday, First Lady Jill Biden will speak in Wilmington. Jill Biden has visited North Carolina multiple times in the past few weeks, including a visit to Charlotte prior to the debate and Raleigh with President Joe Biden after the debate. Harris has visited North Carolina a few times, most recently in April when she discussed climate change, as well as a visit during North Carolinas primary season to discuss healthcare alongside Joe Biden. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to Queen City News. A former Ramsey County public defender convicted of criminal sexual misconduct charges avoided prison time Monday in a sentence that his victim called extremely lenient. Adam Kujawa, 38, was sentenced in Washington County District Court to four years of probation and 90 days in jail, which can be served on electronic home monitoring, after he struck a plea deal and admitted to amended charges stemming from sexual misconduct on his boat on Forest Lake in May 2021. Kujawa had worked as a Ramsey County public defender for many years, but resigned Feb. 28, a day after pleading guilty to felony criminal sexual predatory conduct and to gross misdemeanor fifth-degree nonconsensual sexual conduct. He had entered an Alford plea, meaning he maintains innocence while acknowledging the state likely has enough evidence to convict him. Judge Siv Mjanger followed the terms of Kujawas plea deal and stayed nearly four years of prison time for four years. He must register as a predatory offender for 10 years and undergo a psychosexual evaluation and follow the recommendations. The woman, now 38, said in court in a prepared statement read by a victim advocate that she was the victim of Kujawas psychological, physical and sexual abuse for more than three years, something that words cannot ever capture. He has taken so many things that I love, and he has taken my time, my safety, my freedom and me away from me and those who love me, she said. I am a completely different person as a result of his abuse. Prosecutors have previously called the plea deal a global resolution because it settled criminal cases in three other Minnesota counties alleging similar conduct by Kujawa involving the woman. Following Kujawas sentencing, Washington County Attorney Kevin Magnuson said in a written statement that sexual conduct cases are among the most important and most difficult cases his office prosecutes. Sexual assaults take an enormous and terrible toll on victims, he continued. I hope the resolution of this case will provide some measure of closure to the victim. I am pleased that Kujawa has been held accountable for his crime through two criminal convictions, incarceration and registration as a predatory offender. Other charges dismissed Washington County prosecutors filed two felony cases against Kujawa in December 2021 one alleging the Forest Lake incident, the other for alleged sexual assaults at his St. Paul apartment in September of that year. Washington County handled the second case for the Ramsey County Attorneys Office due to perceived conflicts of interest. Mjanger dismissed the case last year, citing insufficient evidence to support the charge of third-degree criminal sexual conduct by means of force or coercion. Related Articles The original felony charge in the Washington County criminal complaint also alleged third-degree criminal sexual conduct by means of force or coercion. According to the complaint, a witness reported to police in November 2021 that around May 15, while on the boat, Kujawa grabbed the victim by the hips and waist and pulled her toward himself. The witness said the victim told him no and to stop what he was doing. Kujawa placed his hands up the victims dress at least five times, the witness said. The victim told police that she would try to get away, but he would pull her back. In the Ramsey County case, the woman alleged that on Sept. 29, 2021, she had been raped by Kujawa twice at his Grand Avenue apartment over the prior two days. She told police that she was in a romantic relationship with him for four years, the complaint said. Under the February plea deal, the Cook County Attorneys Office dismissed its case that charged Kujawa with four counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct by means of force or coercion. The charges were filed last September after the woman alleged that Kujawa forced her to have sex on four occasions over three days at a Lutsen ski resort in February 2020. Also, the Aitkin County Attorneys Office agreed not to file a criminal complaint it had drafted charging Kujawa with first-degree criminal sexual conduct and lesser offenses related to an alleged incident on Feb. 29, 2020, according to the plea petition. Meanwhile, the Crow Wing County Attorneys Office considered filing a case against Kujawa but declined charges, according to prosecutors. Special treatment? At Mondays hearing, the woman said Kujawa has stolen my self-worth. Seven years of my life. My safety, privacy, intimacy, self-confidence, belief in the justice system, and my own voice in this world. As she did after the plea deal, she maintained that Kujawa was given special treatment because of his past jobs, which included a stint as an assistant attorney general, and that she was never consulted, never given a chance to react or provide my input. Once again my voice was squashed, just as Adam said it would be, she said. Assistant Washington County Attorney Wade Kish addressed her claim, saying: As Ive stated previously in court, there were many different opportunities in meetings in which this negotiation was presented to (the victim), who had a chance to react and respond. I should also advise the court, as you are well aware, that no less than four counties have signed off on this plea negotiation. The victims assertions of preferential treatment are just simply inaccurate, said Kujawas attorney, David Lundgren, adding his client is a good man and that he had many supporters in court with him. Afterward, a teary-eyed Kujawa was surrounded outside the courtroom by his parents and several of his former colleagues from the Second Judicial District Public Defenders Office. They declined to comment, as did Kujawa. Meanwhile, Kujawas future as an attorney is unknown. Susan Humiston, director of the states Office Of Lawyers Responsibility, the governing body for attorneys, said Monday they have an open investigation into Kujawas criminal conduct. Humiston said she cannot speak of Kujawas open case, adding that, in general terms, conduct by attorneys and the potential punishment, which can include disbarment, is imposed by the state Supreme Court. Related Articles The city of Victorville was presented with a Gordians Job Order Contracting Award for its Wellness Center, which provides the homeless with shelter and wraparound support services. Angeles Contractor, Inc. joined the city in receiving the 2023 Harry H. Mellon Award of Excellence in Job Order Contracting, according to Gordian, a provider of data-driven solutions for all phases of the building lifecycle. The City of Victorville was presented with a Gordians Job Order Contracting Award for its Wellness Center, which provides the homeless with shelter and wraparound support services. Gordian created Job Order Contracting (JOC) and the industry-standard RSMeans Data. The city used Job Order Contracting for the city's Wellness Center, which opened in December 2023 between E Street and the Mojave River in downtown Victorville, Gordian officials said. Victorville, grappling with the second-highest unhoused population in San Bernardino County, was compelled to take swift action when it received a $28 million Homekey Grant from the California Department of Housing and Community Development. Job Order Contracting is an construction delivery method that allows projects to be completed through a single, competitively awarded contract, Gordian said. The Wellness Centers success hinged on time savings, with additional benefits including cost savings, outstanding contractor collaboration and contractor availability. The Wellness Center stands as a unique endeavor, showcasing how [Job Order Contracting] can facilitate rapid commencement and adaptable construction schedules to serve urgent community needs effectively, Gordian officials stated. Gordian Chief Operating Officer Ammon Lesher said that awarding the city is a celebration of "innovation and dedication to the betterment of our communities." Their outstanding work has not just rebuilt structures, it has also given hope, providing hundreds of unhoused residents with the dignity of shelter and access to vital services, He added. 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: Victorville garners award for job contracting Videos show what hit a Ukrainian children's hospital, and Russia is 'gaslighting,' war and weapons experts say Videos show what hit a Ukrainian children's hospital, and Russia is 'gaslighting,' war and weapons experts say A missile struck a children's hospital. Ukraine says it was a Russian strike, but Moscow denies it. War experts dispute Russian claims it was a Ukrainian surface-to-air missile, arguing it was a Russian cruise missile. Visual evidence and expert analysis contradict Russian statements on the missile attack, which killed at least 36. War and weapons experts are disputing the Russian Ministry of Defense's claims that it did not strike a children's hospital in Kyiv on Monday, an attack that has stirred outrage in Ukraine and internationally. The Security Service of Ukraine identified the missile that struck the medical facility as a Russian Kh-101 air-launched cruise missile. The hospital was struck amid a large barrage. Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in response to the attack that "we must hold Russia accountable for its acts of terror and Putin for ordering the strikes." Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 The Kremlin was quick to argue it was not to blame for this. "Statements by representatives of the Kyiv regime about an allegedly intentional missile strike by Russia on civilian targets are absolutely untrue," Moscow's Ministry of Defense posted a statement to Telegram after imagery began to come out. The Russian Ministry of Defense said that photos and videos taken of the strike show that a fallen Ukrainian air defense missile, fired from an anti-aircraft missile system, caused the destruction at the Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital. War analysts took to social media, citing the available visual evidence, to argue against Russia's claims. "MOD is gaslighting," Dara Massicot, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said in a post on X with an accompanying video of the attack from United24 Media. "No, it was not 'Ukrainian air defense' that caused a children's hospital to be struck." Massicot added that other Russian missiles had struck a nearby military plant. The Russian attack struck targets spanning Kyiv and several cities. A video captures the moment a Russian missile targeted a childrens hospital in Kyiv during Monday morning rush hour. pic.twitter.com/pIC5VRWtti UNITED24 Media (@United24media) July 8, 2024 Analysts assessed that the weapon was not an air-defense missile, nor was it a damaged Russian missile that had been knocked off course. There was no noticeable damage caused to the Russian missile or any indication of distress. Fabian Hoffmann, a doctoral research fellow with the Oslo Nuclear Project, determined from the photos and videos of the attack that the missile was intact, the exhaust normal, and the weapon was coming in at a steep angle. "The flight looks fully controlled," he said on X. Additionally, he challenged assessments that it was a Ukrainian surface-to-air missile, noting the visible turbofan engine, long wings in the midsection, and blunted nose, all of which would point to a cruise missile as opposed to an interceptor. The Kremlin has made numerous claims that it does not intentionally target civilian infrastructure; however, the Associated Press has recorded many instances in which Russia has attacked civilian-occupied entities. Ukraine says at least 36 people have been killed in the missile attack during which the children's hospital was struck. Read the original article on Business Insider Viktor Orban, left, met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow in an attempt to resolve the war in Ukraine - Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP Europes war policy is hurting its people and economy, Hungarys prime minister has said after meeting Vladimir Putin as part of an unsanctioned attempt to resolve the conflict in Ukraine. Viktor Orban claimed that the main victims of the Ukraine war policy led by Brussels and Washington were the European economy and the European population. The Hungarian leader, who has been strongly criticised by EU leaders over concerns he is too close to Putin, also said Russia was extremely hard to defeat. Putin cannot lose when you look at it in terms of soldiers, equipment and technology, he said. The defeat of Russia is a thought that is hard to imagine. The probability that Russia could actually be defeated is completely incalculable, he told Bild, the German tabloid newspaper. Mr Orban has used his role as the president of the European Council, which rotates between member states, to try and launch his own process for ending the war via negotiations. Mr Orban met with Mr Zelensky in Kyiv - Maxym Marusenko/NurPhoto/Shutterstock Last Friday, Mr Orban travelled to Moscow to meet with Putin, three days after a visit to Kyiv where he met Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president. He also travelled to Beijing on Monday to see Xi Jinping, the Chinese president. Mr Xi has expressed support for Mr Orbans self-styled Ukraine peace mission, despite it being condemned by EU leaders. The three-part foreign affairs trip was carried out without the support of the European Commission or Ukraine, with Ursula von der Leyen, the commissions president, claiming it was a form of appeasement to Putin. Lets start negotiating In his interview with Bild, the Hungarian prime minister also claimed there was no way to resolve the conflict on the battlefield. People, we, the world, want peace, to stop killing each other, he told the newspaper. Lets start negotiating. Or at least understand that there is no solution on the ground. After complaining that the EUs costly support for Ukraine was harming taxpayers, he suggested the bloc should pull away from Washingtons approach to the war and set up an anonymous policy. Western officials accept that the conflict in Ukraine will most likely end in negotiations of some form, as is often the case in wars. However, there is deep concern that Putin would only be interested in a temporary ceasefire to allow him to bide time, before launching a renewed invasion of Ukraine. Mr Orban has been a strong critic of the EUs military support for Ukraine, which has included a 50 billion (42 billion) funding package to shore up the nations air defences, artillery stocks and infantry. His visit to Russia was strongly condemned by EU leaders, who have stayed away from Moscow since the February 2022 invasion and remain on extremely poor terms with the Russian leader. The EU rotating presidency has no mandate to engage with Russia on behalf of the EU, Charles Michel, the president of the European Council - the body of EU member states national leaders - said. The European Council is clear: Russia is the aggressor, Ukraine is the victim. No discussions about Ukraine can take place without Ukraine. 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. Volusia, Brevard by far Florida's most dangerous for shark bites. But just how dangerous? Cameron Robbins leapt from a sunset cruise in the Bahamas to a horrific end. While on a high school graduation trip, he reportedly took the dare. Classmates watched as the Baton Rouge, Louisiana teen briefly treaded water, then vanished into the darkness. A viral video viewed by millions showed his tragic last seconds and what appeared just before to be the flash of a large shark. The harsh nature of such tragedies is inescapable but the risk infinitesimally low: You have a 1 in 4.3 million chance of dying in a shark attack. You're much more likely to lose your life to lightning, a falling vending machine, being hit by a car on your way to the beach, or just drowning. So despite all the yearly shark hoopla that surrounds Discovery Channel's "Shark Week," as with the infamous Summer of the Shark in 2001, this and last year's shark bites aren't statistically anything beyond the norm. Video shows sandbar sharks attacking fishing charter boat motor off Cocoa Beach Tell that to the three people injured in back-to-back shark attacks in waters off Florida's Gulf Coast on Friday, June 7. Two of the victims an adult woman and a juvenile girl were airlifted to hospitals. One lost half her arm. According to Walton County Sheriff's Office: A 45-year-old woman lost her lower left arm in the first attack, shortly before 1:15 p.m. in Watersound, about 15 miles up the Gulf Coast from Panama City Beach. Two people were injured in the second incident at Inlet Beach between south Walton and Bay Counties. The victims, ages 15 to 17, were in waist-deep water about four miles from the first attack. Lulu Gribbin, 15, had her right leg amputated to the middle of her thigh, and her hand is missing after the shark bit it off, her mother told media after the attack. The incidents mark the first shark-related bites in Florida in 2024, according to trackingsharks.com. Just a few weeks after those attacks, on June 23 legendary pro surfer, Hollywood actor and Honolulu Ocean Safety lifeguard Tamayo Perry, 49, died from multiple shark bites while surfing during a break from his lifeguard duties. Perry's on-camera appearances included the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, Blue Crush and the CBS series Hawaii Five-0. Then five days after the Honolulu attack, on June 28, Nassau County authorities reported that a man in his 40s was critically injured in a shark incident, while boating near Fernandina Beach. The victim, who was not identified, was hospitalized in critical condition after sustaining a severe bite to his right arm, Nassau County Sheriff Bill Leeper told the Jacksonville Florida Times-Union. The man was airlifted to a local hospital where he was expected to recover. Then on Independence Day, two people were bitten by a shark on South Padre Island, a popular tourist destination on the Southeast Texas Coast. Two other people experienced shark encounters but were not seriously injured, Texas Parks and Wildlife stated in a news release. Volusia and Brevard by far riskiest in Florida for shark bites Despite this year's attacks in other counties, Brevard and Volusia are by far Florida's highest-risk counties for shark attacks, or "encounters," if not most of the world. None have been reported yet this year in Brevard, while Volusia has reportedly seen four, including one on the Fourth of July and one the day after in New Smyrna Beach. Most Florida shark bites are "nip-and-runs" from small sharks in the surf that mistake a foot for a fish. And east Central Florida is the perfect storm for more shark bites: ever-more people and surfers in the same paths as migratory and resident sharks. But again, the odds of being bitten remain extremely low. 2023 shark bites by state. Since 1882, Brevard has only had 158 confirmed shark attacks, according to University of Floridas International Shark Attack File. Only one was a suspected fatality, which was never 100% confirmed: an 8-year old boy who died in 1934 after being bit by something just offshore in the Melbourne Beach area. Only Volusia County has had more shark attacks than Brevard in the same 142-year period 351 attack. One, in August 1981, was fatal, after a 17-foot catamaran capsized in rough seas three miles off Ormond Beach. Two young couples clung to the boat all night, then tried to swim to shore at dawn. As they began to swim, Christi Wapniarski, 19, screamed shed been bitten and, Swim to me. I think Im going to die!," the United Press International reported. By the time her boyfriend and another of the survivors reached her, she was dead, according to media reports. Story continues below graphic: There was an increase in unprovoked shark attacks worldwide and an uptick in fatalities in 2023 compared to the previous year, according to University of Floridas International Shark Attack File, a scientific database of global shark attacks. Provoked attacks are when humans intentionally approach a shark or swim in an area where bait is being used to lure fish. UF confirmed 69 unprovoked bites in 2023 and 22 provoked bites. There were 10 fatalities, including two in the United States; four in Australia; and one each in the Bahamas, Egypt, Mexico and New Caledonia. Although higher than the previous five-year average of 63 attacks, the data remain consistent with long-term trends, the UF researchers said. This is within the range of the normal number of bites, though the fatalities are a bit unnerving this year, Gavin Naylor, director of the Florida Museum of Natural Historys shark research program, said in February, when the museum released it's 2023 shark bite statistics, their most recent data. Worldwide, shark attacks have been increasing each decade, according to the Shark Attack File, mostly because of more people in the water. But there is no indication of any change in the per capita rate of attack. Globally, 42% of bites involved surfers, with swimmers and waders a close second at 39%. The United States had 36 unprovoked attacks, accounting for 52% of incidents worldwide. Of those, two one in California and another in Hawaii were fatal. As usual, Florida had more shark bites than any other state, with 16 attacks. Again, the risk of dying from a shark attack is only 1 in 4.3 million, UF's shark researchers estimate. This 2022 video screenshot shows an unidentified fisherman dragging a shark into the ocean at Bicentennial Beach Park in Indian Harbour Beach. Shark fishing from the surf can increase risk of shark bites for nearby swimmers and surfers. To put that in perspective, UF also cites the following risks of dying by other means: Lightning: 1 in 79,746 Drowning: 1 in 1,134 Car accident: 1 in 84 Flu: 1 in 63 Hospital infections: 1 in 38 While the overall risk of being bitten by a shark is extremely low, the highest rate of shark bites in Florida is by far in Volusia, Brevard and Indian River counties. In 2012 research paper, Raid Amin, a professor of at University of West Florida's math and statistics department, found east Central Florida's rate of shark attacks was 9-fold the rest of Florida. Amin analyzed the shark bites with software typically used to identify geographic cancer clusters and other disease hotspots. That said, there are things people can do or not do to lower a low risk to even closer to zero. Swim in groups, not when it's dark, not when there are tons of baitfish jumping in the water, or near lots of surf fishermen, for example. About 1 in 3 of Florida's shark attacks happen in August and September. Those two months bring massive schools of mullet, anchovies, herrings, and sardines migrating along Brevard County and other east Central Florida beaches. Blacktip, blacknose, spinners and sandbar sharks follow by the hundreds to pick off their meals. Some speculate the murkier water near Indian River Lagoon inlets could play a role: it's where the prey is and the cloudier water can confuse sharks. But scientists say sharks are way more scared of and in danger from us than we are of them. "They're all very, very skittish," said Toby Daly-Engel, an assistant professor and shark researcher at Florida Institute of Technology. "Sharks are very, very cautious animals. They'd rather scavenge something dead than hunt," she added. "They're more like wolves, very cautious," Daly-Engel said. "We are not their food." Contributing: Anthony Robledo, Collin Bestor and Cheryl McCloud Contact Waymer at (321) 261-5903 or jwaymer@floridatoday.com. This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Shark attacks in Florida: How dangerous are Brevard, Volusia waters? VP Kamala Harris will stump in NC, as some Democrats call for Biden to end campaign Vice President Kamala Harris plans to hold a political event in North Carolina on Thursday, the Biden campaign confirmed first to McClatchy. Harris visit comes during a tumultuous time for President Joe Biden, as some Democrats and political pundits call for Biden to bow out of the race following a weak debate performance against former President Donald Trump. In a private meeting on Sunday, several senior Democratic members of the U.S. House joined those who expressed that Biden should end his campaign, according to reporting from CBS News, quoting unnamed sources. And all eyes will be on Congress this week as the House and Senate return, for the first time since the debate, from the Fourth of July recess. The House members were part of a call with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, in which other Democrats from their chamber also expressed concerns about Bidens ability to win reelection, CBS reported. But Biden remains resolute that he will not leave the race and continues adding campaign stops to his schedule. And his surrogates continue to campaign on his behalf. That includes Harris, who plans to travel to Greensboro on Thursday, marking her sixth visit to North Carolina this year and her 14th since taking office. She was last in Greensboro in September, when she visited N.C. A&T State University on her Fight for Our Freedoms college tour. First lady Jill Biden plans to visit Wilmington Monday, where she will deliver a speech around 12:15 p.m. at a political event. From there she will travel to Florida and Georgia. The Biden campaign has been hyper-focused on North Carolina, a battleground state that has decided its presidential winner by less than 4% in each election since 2008. That was the year former President Barack Obama became the only Democrat to win the state since 1976. Biden finished behind Trump in North Carolina in 2020 by 1.3 percentage points, the smallest margin of any state Trump won. His campaign has been laser-focused on ensuring that Biden wins the state in 2024, and has opened 18 campaign offices around North Carolina. Which could explain why Biden made Raleigh his first campaign stop following his debate against Trump. During his Raleigh rally, he acknowledged that he wasnt as young as he used to be, but said he wasnt giving up. And thats a message Biden has continued to give in the weeks since. However, there is some speculation that if Biden steps aside, Harris or Gov. Roy Cooper could be on the short list to replace Biden at the top of the ticket and that if Harris becomes the Democratic nominee, Cooper could become her running mate. Cooper and Harris have a relationship that stretches back to when they both served as attorneys general of their respective states. Coopers public schedule for Monday does not include any events, including the first ladys visit to Wilmington. His plans for Thursday have not yet been announced. 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. This photo taken on July 8, 2024 shows dozens of dead goats at a farm in Jezzine, Lebanon. Lebanese military sources state that "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-surface missiles at a farm on Jabal Toura, a mountain in the Jezzine district of southern Lebanon." This strike reportedly destroyed a two-story house and resulted in the deaths of 700 goats and sheep. However, the shepherd, a Syrian national, survived the incident.(Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) BEIRUT, July 8 (Xinhua) -- A Hezbollah official was killed and another individual wounded early Monday in an Israeli airstrike targeting a car and motorcycle in southern Lebanon, according to Lebanese military sources. The sources, who requested anonymity, reported that an Israeli drone launched three separate volleys, each consisting of two air-to-surface missiles, at a car and motorcycle in Qlaileh, near the southwestern city of Tyre. They said the strike killed the motorcyclist and injured the car's driver, both of whom were rushed by ambulance to the Italian Hospital in Tyre. Identified as Mustafa Hassan Salman, the motorcyclist is a local military official within Hezbollah responsible for operations in the western sector of the southern Lebanese border area, according to the sources. The sources also detailed a separate attack, stating that "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-surface missiles at a farm on Jabal Toura, a mountain in the Jezzine district of southern Lebanon." This strike reportedly destroyed a two-story house and resulted in the deaths of 700 goats and sheep. However, the shepherd, a Syrian national, survived the incident. Tensions along the Lebanon-Israel border escalated on Oct. 8, 2023, following a barrage of rockets launched by the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah toward Israel in solidarity with Hamas' attack on Israel the day before. Israel then retaliated by firing heavy artillery toward southeastern Lebanon. The level of tension between Hezbollah and the Israeli army has escalated recently, as the Israeli military announced "its approval of operational plans for an attack on Lebanon." Meanwhile, Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah warned that no place in Israel "will be safe" from his party's missiles in the event of an outbreak of war. A man drags a dead goat at a farm in Jezzine, Lebanon, on July 8, 2024. Lebanese military sources state that "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-surface missiles at a farm on Jabal Toura, a mountain in the Jezzine district of southern Lebanon." This strike reportedly destroyed a two-story house and resulted in the deaths of 700 goats and sheep. However, the shepherd, a Syrian national, survived the incident.(Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) A man holds a goat at a farm in Jezzine, Lebanon, on July 8, 2024. Lebanese military sources state that "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-surface missiles at a farm on Jabal Toura, a mountain in the Jezzine district of southern Lebanon." This strike reportedly destroyed a two-story house and resulted in the deaths of 700 goats and sheep. However, the shepherd, a Syrian national, survived the incident.(Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) A man walks by dozens of dead goats at a farm in Jezzine, Lebanon, July 8, 2024. Lebanese military sources state that "an Israeli warplane fired two air-to-surface missiles at a farm on Jabal Toura, a mountain in the Jezzine district of southern Lebanon." This strike reportedly destroyed a two-story house and resulted in the deaths of 700 goats and sheep. However, the shepherd, a Syrian national, survived the incident.(Photo by Ali Hashisho/Xinhua) GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) For people who love to explore northern Michigan, its no surprise. But for others, its a big deal for a Michigan park to named the Best in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal. In a new ranking of the countrys national parks, writers declared Isle Royale National Park the king of the mountain, even beating out Americas biggest mountain, Denali National Park & Preserve. Isle Royale remains a hidden gem in parks system The rankers used four specific criteria, including hiking and camping options and variety of other recreational opportunities, but one data point stood above the rest, and was key to Isle Royale taking the top spot crowd size. Crowds carried 50% of the weight for the criteria for rankers looking for a serene setting for their outdoor recreation. Isle Royale has that in spades. For one, its location north of the Keweenaw Peninsula means the island is in the winters grip for much of the year. The park closes from Nov. 1 to April 15. Two, its hard to get to. Visitors need to charter a ferry or a seaplane to visit the park. Data from the National Park Service shows approximately 29,000 people visited Isle Royale National Park last year, the highest number in more than 30 years. Thats the fifth-lowest attendance marker across all 63 NPS parks and well off the pace of the 13.29 million people who visited Great Smoky Mountains National Park last year. Even the rankers said they were surprised by the final results. Rock Harbor at Isle Royale. (Paul Brown/National Park Service) This is true wilderness: a land of moose and wolves and the drama forever playing out between them, the rankers said. Backpackers can pitch a tent in one of the parks 36 rustic campgrounds, but visitors will find plenty of day-hiking opportunities, too, and the circa-1956 Rock Harbor Lodge makes up for a lack of bells and whistles with an endless reserve of old-school charm. The organizers behind Visit Keweenaw, the regions tourism bureau, seem to agree. Man sentenced for tampering, vandalizing Sleeping Bear Dunes This Lake Superior gem requires prep and forethought, considering visitors may only access by boat or seaplane but once on Isle Royale, the deep connection to self and nature are rewards untold, the bureau said in a social media post. Isle Royale finished with a score of 81.01. North Cascades National Park in Washington was the only other park that even came close, with a score of 78.89. Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks in California, Texas Big Bend National Park and Denali rounded out the top five, finishing with scores between 71 and 67. While the NPS boasts 63 national parks, the agency also oversees 429 total units everything from parks and preserves to battlefields and national monuments. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. 'I want Russians to feel it on their own skin': Shock, fury at the site of children's hospital attack Nurse Olesia Filonenko was preparing for the first operation of the day at the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv when she heard explosions "somewhere far away." "Then, in a second, everything was blown away," she told the Kyiv Independent. "Dust, smoke. We were all blown out of the operating rooms and into the corridors." Russian forces had just launched a massive missile strike on cities across Ukraine, with Kyiv coming under particularly heavy attack. Okhmatdyt hospital the country's largest children's medical center was struck by a Kh-101 cruise missile, according to the preliminary data obtained by the State Security Service (SBU). At least two people were killed, and at least 16 people were injured, including seven children, officials have said. Largely obscured from the main road, the sight of some 50 rescue workers marching into the grounds, many armed with shovels, indicated the situation at the site. Rescue workers armed with water and shovels head into the site of the strike (Chris York/The Kyiv Independent) At the main entrance, frantic parents begged for information from police officers who had none to give. Inside the grounds of the hospital, the corner of one building was just rubble. Not a single window remained in the ten-storey building next to it. By the cardiology unit, which escaped the worst of the explosion, three women stood cradling their babies, trying to comprehend what had just happened. Olena Kroyter and her two-month-old son Ethan were sheltering in the basement of the cardiology unit when the missile struck. The room they had been in just moments before was "shattered" by the explosion. "The baby's health (issues) meant today we were supposed to be transferred to (the building that was hit), but now we are going home." Olena Kroyter and her 2-month-old son Ethan were sheltering in the basement of the cardiology unit when the missile struck (Chris York/The Kyiv Independent) The grounds of the hospital were soon crisscrossed with human chains, some passing rubble in one direction, others passing water, apples and bananas in the other. At the site of the strike, one chain reached the first floor of the still smoldering building, people standing on nothing but the remains of an entire corner of the structure. Yevheniia, an anesthesiologist from the impacted toxicology unit who declined to provide her last name, was sheltering in the basement when the missile hit. "This building was shaken so much that all the furniture shattered despite it being the shelter," she told Kyiv Independent. "All the windows were blown out. Half of the building (nearby) was destroyed." In the baking July sun, firefighters grabbing a few moments of respite either doused themselves with water or sat on the grass vacantly, staring at nothing in particular. Then, with the rescue operation only just getting going, the air raid sirens again sounded across Kyiv. Ever fearful of Russian double-tap strikes that target rescue workers, many in the vicinity of the hospital crammed themselves in a small underpass just outside the main gate. A dark space was soon packed with at least a hundred people. Another explosion from somewhere over the city made them jump as one. As a wave of startled shrieks subsided, it was replaced with the sound of a woman having a panic attack in the darkness, her friends trying to convince her she was safe. In the cramped space, the temperature quickly rose, and seemingly out of nowhere, bottles of water appeared for anyone who needed one. Above ground, this was being replicated on a massive scale as Kyiv's residents came to help out in any way they could. An emergency aid point at the Okhmatdyt hospital (Chris York/The Kyiv Independent) One man headed to the site of the attack with two shovels, brand new with their labels still on, bought from a nearby hardware store. A reception area not damaged by the strike was empty an hour agonow it's filled with volunteers bringing food, towels, and power banks. Now working as a fundraiser at the Superhumans Center, Yelyzaveta Polyakova was a former anesthesiologist. "I spent a lot of time here during my student years, and it is very painful for me to watch this," she told the Kyiv Independent. "We came after the attack. We distribute food and water to hospital workers and all those who help." The clean-up and rescue operation at Okhmatdyt hospital is still ongoing, just as it is at 50 other locations across Ukraine hit in today's attack. The building at the epicenter of the strike on Okhmatdyt hospital. (Anya Korzun) At least 33 civilians have been killed and 136 injured, the State Emergency Service said. "I don't understand how people can be such animals. Even animals don't do such things," Alla Nesolionova, a doctor at the cardiology center at the Okhmatdyt hospital, told the Kyiv Independent. "They are not even animals. I don't know how these pilots can launch missiles. They know the targets. They know the coordinates." "The only thing I want is for this to be back to them a million times worse. I want them to feel it on their own skin," she added. Read also: Over 100 civilian casualties reported after Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) A Washington County judge has rejected Colby Jenkins lawsuit against the county clerk over allegedly failing to release voter information whose ballots have not yet been cured. The judge reportedly said releasing that information is at the county clerks discretion. Jenkins, who is challenging Rep. Celeste Maloy in a tight Republican primary for Utahs 2nd Congressional District, announced his lawsuit in a statement on Friday, July 5. He called on Washington County Clerk Ryan Sullivan to release the information of hundreds of voters whose ballots were not counted in the primary on the belief the signatures didnt match, or were not cured. Jenkins told ABC4.com the intent of the lawsuit was so his campaign could help notify the over 500 voters in Washington County whose ballots needed to be cured that they needed to fix it by the end of the day Monday, July 8. You would think the county would want to exhaust every opportunity to get that vote counted, Jenkins said. And today, they chose not to. Lyman files lawsuit for signatures endorsing governor campaigns Washington County replied to the lawsuit in a statement on Monday, July 8, saying the lawsuit had lacked any legal basis and that any insinuation that Sullivan was attempting to aid a specific candidate was entirely false. Voters should know that our clerk-auditors office has gone above and beyond to contact those that need their signature cured. Any Insinuation that we are trying to rig the election is false, said Sullivan. This is a voter privacy issue for me. I dont want to release voter information to campaign volunteers only to have them show up at a voters doorstep and potentially harass them into disclosing who they voted for. Washington County Attorney Eric Clarke said the Utah legislature wrote into law that counties have discretion on whether or not to release cure lists and any claim otherwise ignores the legislative intent and statutory language. Jenkins warned if those voters of the uncured ballots learned their ballot needed to be cured and it wasnt, they would become disenfranchised and their vote would not count. Voters who have yet to cure their ballots have until the end of the day on Monday, July 8, to fix their ballots. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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 Washington Post has tapped Krissah Thompson to build out the elusive third newsroom, newly minted executive editor Matt Murray announced in a memo to staff on Monday. The newspapers third newsroom restructuring was set forth by CEO and publisher Will Lewis in June, who outlined the initiative as a combination of service and social media journalism to capture nontraditional media consumers. With a task force she is currently forming and expects to have in place this week, and input from across the newsroom colleagues from the commercial side, she will helm our effort to set up the structure and plans for this next era of growth for The Post, Murray said of Thompson in the memo titled, Building the Future. Thompson, a two-decade-plus veteran of the newspaper, will be stepping back from her normal daily duties temporarily, in order to helm the initiative. The main focus of the project is properly structuring ourselves for a rapidly and regularly changing news ecosystem, Murray continued. We aim to concentrate some of our journalistic resourcestoward developing new products and formatsthat will bring our journalism to different audiences, especially off-platform users who consume Washington Post journalism but are less likely to subscribe for our traditional offerings. Murray praised Thomson as uniquely qualified to shepherd us. A consistent theme in her career has been embracing innovation and seeking new ways to connect with readers that bring others along, The Posts executive editor added. Thompson currently serves as a managing editor of The Post, and was the first Black woman to serve in the role. She has been with the newspaper since 2001 and has overseen features and climate coverage, as well as audio and podcast initiatives. The post Washington Post Taps Krissah Thompson to Build Third Newsroom Digital Initiative appeared first on TheWrap. Watch: French Far Right Has Funniest Response Ever to Election Results Frances New Popular Front Coalition pulled off a stunning parliamentary election victory on Sunday, blocking Marine Le Pens far-right ultranationalist party, the National Rally, from overtaking the countrys government. After a strong showing from a coalition made up of the Republican right-wing party and the National Rally in the first round of voting last week, Frances Prime Minister Gabriel Attal called upon candidates from President Emmanuel Macrons party who were caught in three-way races to begin dropping outand, quite amazingly, they did. As a result, the New Popular Front, a four-party left-green alliance, came in first with 192 seats. Macrons center-right alliance came in second, winning 163 seats, and Le Pens far-right movement came in third, winning only 143 seats. While the New Popular Front did not achieve an absolute majority, and the way forward for the government remains unclear, the surprise victory marked a rare instance of the traditional democratic alliance winning against fascism. Across France, members of the far-right coalition were left dumbfounded as the results of the election rolled in. A video posted to X by France 3 Rhone-Alpes showed a crowd at the National Rally headquarters in Rhone, where onlookers eagerly counted down to the resultsand then couldnt hide their abject disappointment when they realized they had lost. In the murmur of the crowd, a word favored by the French, impossible! can be heard. Reaction au QG du Rassemblement national du Rhone a l'annonce des resultats des #legislatives2024 #RN Notre live = https://t.co/itgb6fnial pic.twitter.com/V2sKqHtMVD France 3 Rhone-Alpes (@F3Rhone_Alpes) July 7, 2024 At an election-night party in Bois de Vincennes, journalist Alison Tassin captured far-right activists who looked more than a little displeased to see the shocking election results. Soiree electorale du RN au bois de Vincennes : des militants a la mine deconfite qui sattendaient a tout sauf a la gauche en tete @LCI @TF1Info pic.twitter.com/Q9nIQrdGhx Alison Tassin (@AlisonTassin) July 7, 2024 Meanwhile, at the headquarters of the far-left La France Insoumise party in Pariss Place Stalingrad, journalist Maxime Dubernet captured the inverse of far-right distress: leftist triumph. Explosion de joie a Stalingrad au QG des Insoumis. pic.twitter.com/IADGTjyXKs Maxime Dubernet (@MaxDubernet) July 7, 2024 French television network BMFTV put reactions from the two camps side by side: the overjoyed La France Insoumise on the left and the dejected National Rally on the right. Resultats legislatives: explosion de joie au rassemblement de La France insoumise apres l'annonce des premieres projections pic.twitter.com/hZVHoz8lco BFMTV (@BFMTV) July 7, 2024 Online, far-right conservatives have decried the election results as the death of France. But many are rejoicing that the National Rally, with its history of antisemitism and Holocaust denialism and vehemently racist, anti-immigration rhetoric and platform, has been kept out of power for now. MEMPHIS, Tenn. Assistant Memphis Police Chief Shawn Jones is no longer with the city as of Monday, Mayor Paul Young and Interim Chief C.J. Davis said. We believe that hes done great work for the city but its time for him to move on, Young said. Both she and Young said Jones had served admirably since taking the role in September 2021. Young denied that the move was due to questions over Jones residency, but was part of an effort to take the city in a new direction. Young said it was his decision. Really for me, it was just a decision based on what is going to take the organization, MPD, to the next level, Young said. Assistant Memphis Police chief lives in Georgia: MPD A way for the department to do that is by making a change to leadership. Ever since I came into office, there have been dialogues around morale of the force and things that people are upset about or frustrated with internally, Young said. And one of the names that would come up would be his. And I think he was making moves and taking actions that were necessary, but it also caused some conflict. But the news conference comes a few days after news broke last week that Jones, who came to the department from Atlanta along with Davis, was still living and voting in Georgia. That prompted backlash from some city leaders. Davis said Jones residency was not at issue with state law because he had a home here. Chief Jones came to work every day, took very few days off, and lived in Harbor Town, Davis said. Davis also said Jones role was never meant to be permanent. His role to come and assist in my moving here was part of supporting me in an administration where I needed someone who could help me do things that was familiar with the way that I like to operate, Davis said. But he was never, he never intended to live in the city of Memphis permanently. City leaders strike back at part-time police official with Georgia address Jones made more than $177,000 annually with MPD. The focus now, they say, is moving forward in terms of making Memphis the best it can be. This means the mayors administration is looking at all departments to make sure they are led by the most adequate personnel. All of our directors and chiefs are appointed employees. So they serve at the will and pleasure of the mayor, Young said. So we are looking at everybody every day because at the end of the day, its about getting results. As for whats next, Chief Davis says they have done some reorganizing within the department to cover the responsibilities Jones leaves behind. Whether or not they will replace him was not made clear. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. SpaceX successfully launched a Falcon 9 rocket Monday evening from Floridas Space Coast. The rocket was carrying the Turksat 6A mission to geosynchronous transfer orbit. This was the 15th flight of the first stage booster which successfully anded on the Just Read the Instructions droneship. Falcon 9s first stage has landed on the Just Read the Instructions droneship pic.twitter.com/iMycx7KvaW SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 8, 2024 Original Story: Falcon 9 will launch the Turksat 6A mission to geosynchronous transfer orbit from Space Launch Complex 40. The rocket is set to lift off at 7:30 p.m. Watch it live on Channel 9 and by clicking here. Read: Pickleball Kingdom eyes Orlando for several clubs This is the 15th flight of the first stage booster, which previously launched CRS-26, OneWeb Launch 16, Intelsat IS-40e, O3b mPOWER, Ovzon 3, Eutelsat 36D, and eight Starlink missions. Following the launch, Falcon 9s first stage booster will land on SpaceXs Just Read the Instructions, a droneship stationed in the Atlantic Ocean. Read: Shark bites teen in Ponce Inlet, 5th confirmed attack this year in Volusia County If needed, a backup opportunity is available Tuesday, with the four-hour launch window opening at 5:20 p.m. Count on WFTV.com and Channel 9 to cover the latest news and launches from our Space Coast. Targeting a Falcon 9 launch of the @Turksat 6A mission from Space Launch Complex 40 in Florida today. Weather is currently 30% favorable during the four-hour launch window that opens at 5:21 p.m. ET. https://t.co/JcTyVjzhiM pic.twitter.com/qn92DYn2ig SpaceX (@SpaceX) July 8, 2024 Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live. Water from a line break floods a portion of Arlington Street in Petersburg Sunday, July 7, 2024. Petersburg is under a boil-water notice, and the city's government and circuit court offices are closed Monday due to low pressure caused by the break. PETERSBURG City offices and the circcuit court are closed Monday, and residents and businesses are under a boil-water notice due to infrastructure issues caused by Sunday afternoon's water-line break in a neighborhood off Halifax Street. The break in the 800 block of Arlington Street has interrupted water service at some residences and forced significant drops in water pressure across town. The broken line is connected directly to the city's main water supply. Crews have been working nonstop to repair the line, city spokesperson Joanne Williams said in an email early Monday morning. Workers are also diverting some of the supply to Petersburg's water tanks to ensure they remain full. When pressure drops, the water tends to become stagnant and a prime breeding ground for bacteria and other microoranisms to grow. The Virginia Department of Health says boiling the water kills off those microorganisms and makes the water safe for consumption. Water should be boiled for at least one minute either on the stove or in a microwave, then allowed to cool before use. Williams said the city is asking residents and businesses to conserve water until repairs on the line are done. The cause of the break remains under investigation. Essential city workers were told to report Monday as usual, while all other employees should work remotely. This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Petersburg told to boil water while crews repair broken line HANGZHOU, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, met with Hung Hsiu-chu, former chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang (KMT) party, in Hangzhou on Monday. Hung is in Hangzhou, capital city of Zhejiang Province, attending the seventh cross-Strait youth development forum, which runs from July 6 to 12. Pledging to promote mutual learning and exchanges between young people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, Song expressed the hope that young people from both sides will resolutely oppose "Taiwan independence" separatism and external interference, actively participate in cross-strait exchanges, cooperation and integrated development, and realize their potential in the great journey toward national reunification and rejuvenation. Hung expressed her hope for enhanced exchanges and communication and deepened mutual understanding between young people on both sides of the Strait, urging them to join hands to oppose "Taiwan independence" and promote national reunification and rejuvenation. Initiated in 2018, the annual cross-Strait youth development forum serves as an important platform for youth from both sides of the Strait to exchange ideas, foster mutual understanding, and learn from each other. JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. (WJHL) A Hickory, North Carolina man was arrested in Jonesborough on Friday after Washington County Sheriffs Office (WCSO) deputies discovered he was a fugitive wanted for taking indecent liberties with a child. A news release from the WCSO said Raymond Edward Harmon Jr., 58, was arrested following a traffic stop for expired tags on his vehicle Friday night at around 8 p.m. on Highway 107. Sheriffs Department: 31 dogs seized in Greene County animal cruelty case Upon making contact, deputies found that Harmon was an active fugitive from North Carolina for indecent liberties with a child and was also convicted of voluntary manslaughter in 1989, the release said. The WCSO said when deputies asked Harmon to exit his vehicle, they observed a pistol in a holster on his right hip. While the WCSO was preparing his vehicle to be towed by taking inventory, they found another small pistol in the center console, according to the release. Harmon was charged with being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun and was transported to the Washington County Detention Center to await extradition. Harmon appeared in court on Monday for charges received by the WCSO during Friday nights traffic stop, the release 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 WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather. Weather worsens CLT airport delays during holiday travel weekend CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) Travelers flying through Charlotte Douglas International Airport over the Independence Day travel period said they anticipated big crowds but were disappointed wet weather in Charlotte and Texas further delayed their travel plans. We came here about three or four hours early to get on our flight, traffic was bad, said traveler Jaimie McAllister. We were at just a standstill. McAllister and Riley Dodson were both heading back to Washington but on separate flights. TSA, American Airlines report record-breaking stats following 4th of July This morning, I got a notification that my flight was delayed and that I wasnt going to be able to make my connecting flight, said Dodson. The direct flight was full so I am going through Dallas now and well see if the hurricane makes me stay in Dallas for a full day and a half. Charlotte Douglas International was among the busiest travel hubs in the country on Sunday and had hundreds of delays and dozens of cancellations. Of the 28 million passengers TSA officials expected its officers to screen 3 million flyers on July 7 alone. Some passengers tried to make the most of the extra time. College friends Vinayak Grover and Lily Jenkins coincidentally both had extra time to meet in Charlotte on Sunday. This was the one day where we had literally two hours of downtime to catch up over three years of not seeing each other in person, said Jenkins. Grover said the crowds at the airport and fluctuating TSA screening wait times kept them close to their gates. Long TSA lines may not spell long wait times ahead of holiday We had planned to meet outside of the airport and then it quickly changed to the coffee shop downstairs by the bags, he said. They said they noticed a clear impact from Hurricane Beryl on the flight schedules and crowding in airports. National Weather Service officials advise Texas visitors to travel home by Monday to avoid the heaviest expected rainfall from the storm. Click here to see our latest Pinpoint Weather forecast! Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. This Week in Louisiana Politics: Natural gas exports, airport upgrades BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) On This Week in Louisiana Politics, a number of passed laws went into effect July 1, the execution methods for death row inmates have expanded and the Louisiana Attorney General filed against President Bidens ban on natural gas exports. Airports in Louisiana have gotten major upgrades because of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act. The legislation passed and secured billions for the states transportation infrastructure. Later, Fred Childers spoke with U.S. Senator Bill Cassidy to discuss the pause of any new natural gas exports. A federal judge ordered the Louisiana State Penitentiary has days to fix its farmwork plan for hot weather. Man on bicycle killed after being hit by car in Gonzales 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. Threats of political revenge are commonplace among Donald Trump and his supporters. Now a former official in the Trump administration is threatening to retaliate against those who challenged Trump's 2020 election claims, the Associated Press reported. Were going to come after the people in the media who lied about American citizens who helped Joe Biden rig presidential elections, Patel said in a recent interview with Steve Bannon, referring to the 2020 presidential election. Were going to come after you, whether its criminally or civilly. Well figure that out. But yeah, were putting you all on notice. Patel's zeal for Trump landed him in the administration's National Security Council, and he served briefly as chief of staff to acting Secretary of Defense Chris Miller. In his final months in office, Trump considered installing Patel as the deputy director at either the FBI or CIA to strengthen his control of the intelligence committee, but was forced to scotch the plan after CIA Director Gina Aspel and Attorney General Bill Barr threatened to resign. Patel had virtually no experience that would qualify him to serve at the highest level of the worlds preeminent law enforcement agency, Barr wrote in his memoir. If Trump wins a second term, Patel will have another chance to realize his plans to "dramatically" limit the FBI's authority, curtail the Justice Department's Civil Division and jettison a Pentagon office that evaluates long-term trends and risks, all under the guise of fighting the "deep state." He appears to be doing everything in his power to make sure that happens, touting Trump at rallies and on radio shows as "our juggernaut of justice" and serving as a national security advisor for the former president, getting more than $300,000 from his leadership PAC since the start of last year for his troubles. Patel may be loyal to Trump, but he has also used his proximity to build his own fame and wealth, emblazoning merchandise with his trademarked "K$H" heraldry, promoting a variety of goods marketed towards Trump supporters that included a COVID-19 vaccine "detoxification system" and publishing two children's books that lionize Trump. In one of them, Patel, adapted as a wizard called the "Distinguished Discoverer," exposes a plot by a thinly-veiled Hillary Clinton against "King Donald." Records show that Patel has made hundreds of thousands of dollars a year from his business with Trump-related entities. Patel appears to be enjoying his newfound wealth and connections, with social media posts showing him attending VIP sporting events like the Super Bowl, Game 7 of the Stanley Cup and a UFC fight. He has also channeled his money to more overtly political enterprises, such as the pockets of two ex-FBI agents who accused the bureau of discrimination after their security clearances were revoked over their views of the Jan. 6 insurrection. But one CIA expert says that his profiting off Trumpworld could present a potential conflict in a second Trump administration. Trump wants an echo chamber and hell get that in Kash Patel, said Douglas London, a retired CIA officer. I do not see Kash Patel saying, Mr. President, if you do this, this bad things going to happen. Editor's note: This is a developing story and is being updated. Ambassadors of Germany, Austria, and the U.S. condemned Russia's mass morning attack against Ukraine on July 8 that killed nearly 30 people and wounded around 90 on the eve of the NATO Summit in Washington. Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk, Pokrovsk, and Kramatorsk came under attack when roughly 40 Russian missiles were launched at Ukraine. Among the targets was the Okhmatdyt hospital, Ukraine's largest children's medical center. "This callous aggression - a total disregard for human life, jeopardizing European & Transatlantic security - is why leaders will make significant security commitments to Ukraine this week," U.S. Ambassador Bridget Brink said on X. Ukraine's Presidential Office head, Andriy Yermak, said that by committing this mass attack on Ukraine, Russia is "trying to intimidate the world before the NATO summit," reiterating that Moscow is committing genocide against Ukraine. "(Russian President Vladimir) Putin believes that hitting our children should scare everyone and force the world to surrender. He shows that he can kill anyone he wants with impunity. The world has no right to remain silent," Yermak said on Telegram. "There should be the strictest possible responsibility for the murders of people, for rockets on sick children. This is the only way to save our world." Support for Ukraine is expected to be a key focus for this year's NATO summit, scheduled for July 9-11 in Washington. U.S. President Joe Biden may hold a bilateral meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during the summit. Read also: Opinion: The new EU leadership must unite on China Austrian Ambassador to Ukraine Arad Benko commented on the hospital strike, saying that his country "has supported this center for many years and many departments." "This is an institution that cares for babies and children in need. The Russian attack is pure terror," Benko said in a post on X. German Ambassador to Ukraine Martin Jaeger also reacted to the attack. "This is a war against civilians. This is Russia's willingness to negotiate and its desire for peace," he wrote. The mass missile attack against Ukraine took place with several important political events in the background. Zelensky arrived in Warsaw early on July 8 for a meeting with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. They are expected to discuss defense assistance for Kyiv and Ukraine's recovery efforts and sign a bilateral security agreement. As Russian missiles were hitting Ukraine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban traveled to China to meet President Xi Jinping, days after his visits to Kyiv and Moscow. Orban, whose country took over the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU earlier in the month, called the visit to Beijing a third step in his "peace mission." The two leaders reportedly exchanged "in-depth views" on the Russia-Ukraine war, with the Chinese president appreciating Orban's "peace efforts" and stressing the need for an early ceasefire. Both Kyiv and Moscow rejected an early ceasefire, saying it would only benefit the opposing side as a chance to regroup its forces. The Hungarian prime minister's visit to Moscow and talks with Putin on July 5 sparked anger across the EU. European officials stressed that the presidency has no mandate to conduct any "peace missions" on the EU's behalf and that Orban's undertaking is a bilateral effort on Hungary's part. Budapest has maintained close relations with Moscow throughout the full-scale war, obstructed sanctions against Russia, and criticized military aid to Kyiv, alleging that it merely "prolongs" and "escalates" the war. Read also: Orbans Kyiv, Moscow trips test boundaries of EU presidency, expert says Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Whatcom County air quality on the decline as wildfire smoke drifts across Washington Wildfires in Eastern Washington are sending smoke over Washington, causing air quality to decline in Whatcom County as the region bakes under a heat wave, the Northwest Clean Air Agency said. Smoke from wildfires burning near Lake Chelan will slightly impact air quality today. Check for updates if conditions change, the agency said Monday on its social media. Some haze was visible in Monday afternoon in Bellingham, along with a hint of smoke in the air, observers told The Bellingham Herald. Similar conditions are possible Tuesday until high pressure moves east and allows the cooling ocean breezes to return through at least Wednesday. Air quality readings about 3 p.m. Monday showed that the air was moderate in Bellingham for particulate matter, which is smoke. Air in the Custer and Lynden area was unhealthy for sensitive groups because of ozone. Ozone results from heat, sunlight, and air pollution combining. So smoke particles could play a role. People with breathing issues may notice some impacts, the Northwest Clean Air Agencys Seth Preston told The Herald. A red flag warning was issued because of the unseasonably hot, dry weather. Whatcom County is banning all burning except for recreational fires, and the National Park Service has banned all campfires in the North Cascades, Ross Lake and Lake Chelan recreation areas. What's too small to maintain a town? An Iowa town just moved to unincorporate The old city hall building in Randalia sold for $25,000. Other items at the auction included a tractor and the city dump truck. Randalia, an Iowa town of roughly 50 people, is no longer classified as a city after its residents moved to unincorporate. Randalia will join Fayette County's other unincorporated villages including Oran, Eldorado and Donnan. The Fayette County Board of Supervisors addressed the city's request over the course of multiple meetings, including having discussions with the state's City Development Board, according to the board's meeting minutes. In June, the state's City Development Board approved the city's request, which is known as a discontinuance. The move became official on June 30, according to KCRG. Where is Randalia, Iowa? Randalia is located in Fayette County in northeastern Iowa. It is nearly a three-hour drive from Des Moines and about an hour and a half north of Cedar Rapids. Why did Randalia residents want to unincorporate? The responsibilities of running a city became too much the dwindling population of Randalia, said Fayette County Supervisor Janell Bradley. "After 128 years as a small city in Fayette County, Randalia has absolved itself from worrying about nuisance dogs or cats, assuring its streets are kept plowed of snow, and electing a city council, among other responsibilities," Bradley said in an email to local media and the Register. The town hosted an auction that brought in roughly $60,000 to pay off the remainder of a loan for the wastewater treatment plant. The funds will also cover the sewer plant's water monitoring by the DNR. The auction sold the old city hall building and a brick shop that was once a creamery. The playground equipment was also sold from the town park. What will happen to city services? The village will no longer need to maintain a city council. Randalia's wastewater treatment plant will be overseen by a sanitation district established by local residents. Fayette County will now manage Randalia's roads. Snow plowing and maintaining roads will all be taken on by the county, according to Bradley. Kate Kealey is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her at kkealey@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter at @Kkealey17. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Randalia, Iowa dissolves. What happens next to the town of 50? Chinese and Australian college students explored ancient Chinese culture while paying a visit to a Neolithic settlement site in China's Anhui dating back 5,300 to 5,800 years. Where does a 3,000 lb great white shark go for lunch? Canada, Mexico and South Carolina. If there is any great white shark that could rise above Jaws acclaim and soften the apex predators infamy, itd be LeeBeth. Caught, tagged and released by Hilton Head Island Charter Captain Chip Michalove on Dec. 8, shes been nothing short of extraordinary. The nearly 3,000 pound fish, lashed with seal scars, has cruised more than 5,200 miles since Michalove tagged her. More well-traveled than most, shes visited three countries in a seven-month span. The behemoth shark was given the moniker LeeBeth to honor Pastor Ed Youngs daughter who died in 2021 at the age of 34. Young has been on a handful of Michaloves fishing trips and was part of the Dec. 8 team. Shes by far the best shark weve ever tagged, said Michalove, who owns Outcast Sport Fishing. And not only is she one of the largest, but she pings in almost every day on the average. When first reeled in, the great white, estimated to be in her mid-to-late 20s, sported four tags upon release. The tags send information to the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy that it uses for research purposes. Now, three remain, but its the SPOT (smart position and temperature) tag thats clearly and continually tracked her journey. Hilton Head Charter Captain Chip Michalove caught, tagged and released LeeBeth, a great white shark, off the island Dec. 8, 2023. Since then, the public has been able to watch her track thats covered over 5,200 miles. From the coast of Hilton Head, LeeBeth swam around Florida, visited beaches in Mexico, turned around, cruised north of Nova Scotia and entered the Gulf of St. Lawrence. She was partial to Tampa, spending about a month in the area. Michalove said there was something substantial holding her interest in the Gulf Coast city, likely a buffet of giant squid. Her track that far west is record-breaking, but it isnt haphazard. She knew exactly where she was going, Michalove said, noting that there wasnt much of a zig-zag in her path. Among the tagged sharks, LeeBeth tops the chart for number of pings emitted from her affixed SPOT tag, which transmits a series of signals to overhead satellites that track her real-time journey. The great whites prolific pinging also revealed patterns. Shed ping several times a day when she would feed on the surface and then go quiet for a few days, relaxing in deeper waters. Currently up north feeding on seals and in the backdrop of the Discovery Channels Shark Week, LeeBeth is still on the move. In Michaloves opinion, her three-country journey beats any Shark Week story. Every state shes traveled near, shes ruffled feathers, giving her quite the following, Michalove said. He gets constant phone calls: How big is she? Should we be concerned? Hilton Head Charter Captain Chip Michalove, along with four others including Megan Winton, a scientist for the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy, tagged and released LeeBeth on Friday, Dec. 8, 2023. She weighed between 2,600 and 2,800 pounds, was about 14 feet long and her journey can be tracked on the Sharktivity app. But LeeBeths public real-time track will end soon. The real-time SPOT tag could stop any day now, Michalove said, but it may hang tight for a few more weeks or months. Shes pinging so much that shes burning up this little AA battery like crazy, the local charter captain said. At some point, all the batteries are gonna die, and everythings gonna come off of her. I hate that were gonna permanently lose her. One of the three remaining tags will be secure for the next seven years, however, it doesnt provide instantaneous tracking. If Michaloves wish came true, he and LeeBeth would meet again to recharge her tag. I dont think shell fall for it twice, he said. Want to track great white sharks? The Atlantic White Shark Conservancy and Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries White Shark Logbook is an online catalog of over 600 tagged and untagged individual Northwest Atlantic white sharks. It shows historic acoustic detection data from 2010 to 2022. For real-time sighting and detection data, head to the free Sharktivity app. Where Rachel Reeves is about to give Nimbys the biggest shock Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, says Labour will consult on a new growth-focused approach to the planning system - LUCY NORTH/PA Rachel Reeves used her first major speech as Chancellor to send a clear message to Britains Nimbys: start quaking in your boots. Planning reform was the central pillar of Labours plan for economic growth during the partys election campaign and the new Chancellor has wasted no time in laying the groundwork for the Governments aim to build 1.5m homes over the next five years. On Monday, Ms Reeves said Labour will consult on a new growth-focused approach to the planning system before the end of July, to reform the National Planning Policy Framework. This will include restoring mandatory housing targets which Michael Gove, the former housing secretary, heavily watered down after bowing to a rebellion from backbench Tory MPs, led by Theresa Villiers. Ms Reeves made it clear that she is gearing up for a brawl. The question is not whether we want growth, but how strong is our resolve how prepared are we to make hard choices and face down the vested interests; how willing, even, to risk short-term political pain to fix Britains foundations, she said. I know that there will be opposition to this. Im not naive to that. Or in other words, she has declared her willingness to fight battles with Nimbys where necessary, says John Myers, founder of the Yimby Alliance campaign group. At a time when the public finances are crippled, planning reform offers a route to growth that is effectively free. Regulatory reform does not require billions of pounds in investment or tax rises to pay for it. The only cost to Labour will be political capital something Ms Reeves has a lot of right now. Its clearly part of what theyve been elected to do and they have got a big majority. So in principle they are in a better position to see off these challenges than any government probably since before the Second World War, says Paul Cheshire, emeritus professor at the London School of Economics and a former government adviser. Londons commuter belt and the South East will be home to the biggest fights and that is where local Nimbys are in for the biggest shocks. Under the existing system, housing delivery in local authorities is measured against their local targets. If local authorities are delivering 85pc to 95pc of their target, they effectively need to increase their target by 5pc over the five years ahead. If they are delivering less than 85pc, the increase in their target is 20pc. This system of penalties became toothless when the targets became advisory, but should have new weight now that the targets will become mandatory again. They do have some reasonably forceful sticks that they have devised to enforce those targets. It should, over time, mean that it becomes more and more difficult for local authorities to not meet their targets, says Mr Cheshire. Labour plans to force local authorities that are not meeting their targets to accept proposals for development. It could also go further and increase the housing delivery test penalties or cut the threshold at which they are imposed, says Simon Coop, senior director at Lichfield planning consultants. Those that have persistently under-performed might face additional action. Nearly a third of local authorities will face some kind of sanction when the targets become mandatory again because they have been consistently under-delivering, says Mr Coop. The expectation is that they will be expected to rapidly and significantly boost their output. The worst performers are heavily concentrated in the South East. Of the 295 local authorities in England, 76 delivered less than 85pc of their housing targets, meaning they will be expected to ramp up their targets significantly. The vast majority of these local authorities that have been falling most short are in the southern commuter belt. Of the 76, 56 were in the South, with 25 in the South East and 14 in the East of England alone. In Conservative-held Epping Forest, in 2022, the local authority had delivered just 30pc of the homes in its target plan. In Southend-on-Sea, Hastings, and Worthing all of which flipped from the Tories to Labour the authorities had delivered 31pc, 32pc and 33pc respectively. Performance is worst in the South East because this is where housing is most unaffordable and where it is hardest to find land, says Mr Cheshire. It is also where the largest number of local authorities have ditched their plans altogether. Many of the worst performers also have land in the green belt on which they will likely come under new pressure to build. Angela Rayner will start making greater use of ministerial powers to make direct interventions in planning decisions - Wiktor Szymanowicz/Anadolu via Getty Images Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, is about to write to local authorities to make it clear that they will need to deliver their local plans and review their green belt boundaries to make land on disused grey belt sites (such as car parks) available for development, Ms Reeves said. I think were going to see some pressure to build on green belt land where authorities havent been meeting their targets or arent going to meet their targets, says Mr Myers. Ms Rayner will also start making greater use of ministerial powers to make direct interventions in planning decisions and will not hesitate to review applications that are in national or regional interests, said Ms Reeves. Other policies include providing a further 300 planning offers across the country, an immediate end to the effective ban on new onshore wind farms in England and new priority to energy projects in planning decisions. Labours political capital to drive planning reform has been further boosted by the landslide local elections in May, in which it won 1,158 seats across the 107 council elections in England. This was more than double the Liberal Democrats, who were in second place with 522 seats. Councils stand ready to help the Government achieve our shared ambitions to boost inclusive economic growth and housebuilding. National growth can only be achieved if every local economy is firing on all cylinders, says Louise Gittins, chair of the Local Government Association. But the fight could prove more heated than Ms Reeves has reckoned with. Telegraph analysis shows that 25 of the 76 local authorities that have been underperforming most on their housing targets are in constituencies that have just swung to Labour new supporters the party may be wary of alienating. These include Stevenage, Adur and Watford. For now, Reeves seems wholly unphased. Be in no doubt we are going to get Britain building again, she said. And there is no time to waste. 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. White House believes Russian strike on Okhmatdyt hospital must be investigated as Russian war crime The 8 July attack is not the first time Russia strikes medical facilities in Ukraine, and the attack on the Okhmatdyt hospital stresses the necessity to investigate these actions. Source: Michael Carpenter, senior director for Europe at the US National Security Council, at a briefing, as reported by a European Pravda correspondent Details: The White House has condemned the latest Russian attack on Ukraine, specifically on the Okhmatdyt childrens hospital. Quote: "Todays horrible attack on Ukraine, specifically on a childrens hospital, proves a terrible price of Russian aggression which Russian leader Vladimir Putin is willing to pay in his war." "This is sadly not the first time that the Russians attacked a maternity hospital, as well as a childrens hospital during the war," Carpenter added. He stated that the US would continue making efforts to support Ukraines capability to resist against the Russian invasion. Carpenter also expects that steps towards strengthening the Ukrainian air defence, which will help prevent such attacks as on 8 July, will be announced this week at the NATO summit. "If Putin thinks he can outlast the West, he is wrong," Carpenter stressed. Background: The White House condemned the latest Russian large-scale missile attack on Ukraine, specifically on the Okhmatdyt hospital, and expressed hope that steps towards preventing such attacks would be announced at the NATO summit. Dmytro Kuleba, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, once again urged Ukraines allies to accelerate the supply of air defence systems to Kyiv following the Russian large-scale attack on Ukrainian cities. Earlier Jan Lipavsky, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Czechia, criticised "useful idiots" who "are delusional" about peace with Russia amid the Russian attack on the Okhmatdyt hospital. Edgars Rinkevics, President of Latvia, urged other countries to allow Ukraine to strike military targets in Russia after the attack on Okhmatdyt. Support UP or become our patron! President Bidens halting debate performance on June 27 has sparked speculation that he may be suffering from symptoms of a degenerative neurological disorder like Parkinsons. But the White House denies that Biden is being treated for Parkinsons, or that he has been examined by a neurologist beyond his last routine physical. Some of that speculation has centered on White House visitor logs that show a neurologist from Walter Reed Medical Center visiting the Presidents personal medical unit at the White House multiple times at the end of 2023 and early 2024. Dr. Kevin Cannard, an expert on treating movement disorders such as Parkinsons disease, met with President Bidens personal physician Dr. Kevin OConnor in the White House on Jan. 17 at 5 p.m., according to visitor logs. The meeting also included Dr. John E. Atwood, a Walter Reed cardiologist, according to the records. The White House logs show Dr. Cannard also visited the residence clinic on March 28, and made six other visits over the previous several months. The entries in the logs were first reported by the New York Post. It is unclear if Cannard has visited the White House in recent weeks. The White House visitor logs, which the administration posts voluntarily on the White House website, show visitors through March. More recent logs have not yet been posted. Cannard has been a part of the broader White House medical team of doctors since 2012, according to his LinkedIn profile. When asked repeatedly about Cannards visits on Monday, White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre refused to explain why he came to the White House. Citing privacy reasons, she said she would not confirm the name of any specific doctors who visited the White House compound to treat the President. She also stressed that more than a thousand military service members are seen by the White House medical unit. Jean-Pierre said Biden has seen a neurologist three times since he became president, and those visits were during Bidens annual physicals. Is he being treated for Parkinsons? No, said Jean-Pierre. Is he taking medication for Parkinsons? No. White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Andrew Bates said that, like previous Presidents, Biden was examined by a panel of doctors with different specialities during his routine annual physicals. Bates also said that no examination has found that Biden shows symptoms of Parkinsons. We do not provide the dates on which the President is seen by the range of specialists who participate in his physical, nor their names, Bates said. But there have been no neurologist visits besides the one for his physical. The White House published a memo from OConnor, the Presidents physician, late Monday that reiterated the details shared by Jean-Pierre and Bates. It explained that regular visits by Cannard, the neurology consultant to the White House, have been related to his work with the White House Medical Clinic that treats military personnel. Biden, meanwhile, has not seen any neurological specialists outside of his annual health exam, the memo stated. The memo cited Bidens latest exam, the results of which were published on Feb. 28, which said the Presidents neurological assessment at the time was reassuring in that there were no findings which would be consistent with any cerebellar or other central neurological disorder, such as stroke, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons or ascending lateral sclerosis. Chad de Guzman contributed reporting. Contact us at letters@time.com. With world leaders converging on Washington for the NATO annual summit, the White Houses top national security spokesperson isnt aware of any concerns among members regarding President Bidens capacity to serve amid questions over his performance at last months presidential debate. National Security Communications Adviser John Kirby denied Bidens condition is even a topic of conversation among NATO members when pressed on the matter on the eve of the alliances yearly gathering one that will mark three-quarters of a century since the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty. I think the question presupposes the notion that they need to be reassured of American leadership and President Biden's commitment, and I don't believe that's the case, he said at a Monday briefing. Kirby was asked if Biden has a plan for reassuring allies that hes up to the job after multiple members of his own party have called for him to stand down from his re-election bid in favor of a younger candidate. We're not picking up any signs of that from our allies at all, Kirby continued, adding that allies are excited about the annual summit. John Kirby says the matter of Bidens capacity to lead hasnt come up among NATO members (Getty Images) Pressed further on whether there have been any conversations with allies to reassure them of Bidens capacity to lead, Kirby flatly denied that any had taken place. I'm not aware of any such conversations that have been had. Certainly none with us and here at the White House and with our staff, he said. Kirby also told reporters that Bidens performance at the debate nearly two weeks ago - where he appeared to freeze, lose his train of thought on multiple occasions and failed to make a case for his capacity to win and serve out a second term - was not reflective of the man and the leader and the commander in chief who Kirby, a retired US Navy admiral, had spent many, many hours with over the last two and a half years. Michael Lee Evans remembered he had misplaced the ammunition clip for a pistol years ago, but he didnt expect to see it come out of his luggage. It was an even bigger surprise for the 72-year-old from Texas to learn he could be facing years in prison for bringing the bullets into Turks and Caicos. Evans said a December anniversary trip turned into a nightmare when he and his wife, Sharon Evans, were stopped by security at Providenciales International Airport. He was arrested and taken to the police station, but it wasnt until he talked to an attorney provided by the local government that he realized the severity of the situation. Subscribe to The Post Most newsletter for the most important and interesting stories from The Washington Post. I asked him, How much trouble am I in? Evans recalled, and the attorney answered, You are in significant risk. Turks and Caicos prohibits the possession and use of unlicensed firearms and ammunition under an ordinance that has led to at least five American arrests in the British territory over the past seven months, including Evans. In interviews with The Washington Post or reports by other media, each of those travelers have said they packed ammunition by accident. That was the same explanation that Rep. Victoria Spartz (R-Ind.) gave after she was charged with bringing an unloaded handgun to Dulles International Airport on June 28. The incidents in Turks and Caicos tie into a trend with U.S. travelers. The number of firearms detected and intercepted at U.S. airports has risen for the past 10 years, with the exception of 2020, when travel diminished with the start of the pandemic. This summer, with a record-breaking number of Americans traveling, more guns and ammo are making their way into airports. Flying with an unloaded gun and ammunition is legal in the United States, but only in a checked bag. Transportation Security Administration regulations require that any guns and ammunition be packed and locked inside a hard-sided case and that travelers declare them at baggage drop. Attempting to bring either in a carry-on bag is illegal, as well as dangerous for TSA agents and other travelers, TSA spokesperson Alexa Lopez said. The number-one reason we hear from people, and I kid you not, is I forgot I had it in my bag, Lopez said. Though shootings inside airports are rare because of fortified security, there have been reports of shootings in pre-security areas as recently as November, when a woman inside Portland International Airport in Oregon was accused of firing a gun near a TSA checkpoint. Tim Carey, law and policy adviser at Johns Hopkins Universitys Center for Gun Violence Solutions, called the rise in Americans caught with improperly packed guns and ammunition a perfect-storm situation brought about by two factors: large-scale increases in U.S. gun ownership and states deregulation of firearm purchasing and possession. In a Gallup poll last year, 30 percent of U.S. adults said they personally own a gun. A 2013 survey requested by the European Commission showed the same was true for only 5 percent of Europeans. There is a very justifiable increased scrutiny on Americans and guns in foreign places, Carey said. Besides Turks and Caicos, he cited Mexico, which is suing five U.S. gun dealers for allegedly facilitating gun trafficking across the border. - - - Misses by TSA Some of the Americans who have been detained in Turks and Caicos, such as Florida resident Sharitta Grier, passed through TSA checkpoints without being stopped. In response to Griers case, TSA acknowledged that rounds of ammunition inside a carry-on were probably missed at Orlando International Airport. Oklahoma resident Ryan Watson was apprehended with ammunition in Turks and Caicos after clearing TSA in Oklahoma City. TSA officials at Will Rogers World Airport made changes, including additional training, in response to a review. According to TSA, loose ammunition can be missed when there is no firearm present, which is why gun owners should start packing with an entirely empty bag each time they travel. Though the U.S. Embassy in the Bahamas had issued a warning about Turks and Caicoss strict gun regulations last year, Sharon Evans said she and her husband had no idea about the law before their December trip. Michael Lee Evans, who suffers from several health conditions, faced months of hearings and ultimately received a suspended 33-week sentence. Another American arrested in Turks and Caicos, Bryan Hagerich of Pennsylvania, had to wait more than 100 days in crowded jail cells and emergency apartment rentals before receiving a suspended 52-week sentence. Both received their sentences after U.S. leaders - including the governors of Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Virginia and a bipartisan congressional delegation - advocated for the release of Americans. Stateside, large GoFundMe campaigns and anxious social media posts raised money and awareness for those arrested. Most have paid fines and received suspended sentences. In January, TSA reported that 2023 was a record-breaking year for guns flagged at security checkpoints. A total of 6,737 firearms were detected at airports across the country, about 93 percent of which were loaded. In the first quarter of this year, TSA intercepted 1,503 firearms. Whether its intentional or inadvertent, trying to pass a gun through airport security has consequences for the gun owner. TSA officers dont confiscate firearms, but they do call local law enforcement, which can then enforce fines or criminal charges that could lead to jail time, depending on local laws. - - - How state laws might be changing gun travel Between 2019 and 2021, an estimated 7.5 million Americans became new gun owners. However, the vast majority of guns purchased during that time were bought by people who already owned one. On average, approximately 1.9 million firearms were purchased per month between January 2020 and April 2021. Just 300,000 of those went to first-time buyers. Following covid, there are millions of excess firearms relative to what we would have expected in a country already inundated with firearms, said Michael D. Anestis, a professor at the Rutgers School of Public Health and executive director of the New Jersey Gun Violence Research Center. If theres more firearms, then there are more opportunities for people to, even unintentionally, bring a firearm with them to a TSA checkpoint. A 2022 Supreme Court decision then opened the door for legal challenges against state attempts to regulate or limit how people can carry their firearms in public. States that are more conservative and more centered on a pro-gun facet have been virtually stripping away their entire regulations or imposing laws to prohibit future regulations, Carey said. The looser regulations and habits around improper gun storage, he said, mean were going to see more guns in places where they shouldnt be. The Turks and Caicos travelers, for example, all lived in states with relatively scant firearm regulations, Carey said. Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Virginia have neither safe-storage requirements nor license or permit requirements for firearm purchases, advocacy groups say. - - - An issue of responsibility Beyond security issues, gun ownership experts say its simply poor form to skirt laws for travelers. To assume that just because you have a firearm, that you can take it anywhere, any place, any time its just not responsible, said Tom OConnor, a board member of the Oregon-based Gun Owners for Responsible Gun Ownership. If youre going to travel, firearm outside the home, you need to know what the safety rules are, what the firearm regulations are. Hagerich, the traveler from Pennsylvania, describes himself as a responsible gun owner who had a slip-up. He keeps his firearms in a separate room protected by two sets of locks and keys and an alarm system, precisely out of an utmost respect for firearms and ammunition. I am one of the most responsible individuals with firearms. So, its not like were reckless individuals here, Hagerich told The Post in a phone interview. Im a human. I make mistakes. We all make mistakes. Unfortunately, mine was a mistake that had very, very, very severe consequences. But gun-owning advocates for gun safety said that forgetting a firearm while traveling - even when a gun owner takes great care otherwise - is reckless, especially given that there are legal ways to travel with them. I think its recklessness and disrespect for laws, said Paul Kemp, a founding member of Gun Owners for Responsible Gun Ownership. As a lifelong gun owner, he said, Id be even more concerned about getting everything right. Peter Gurfein, 75, has hunted for more than 50 years and frequently travels with his firearms across the United States. Whenever he does, he said, he locks his guns in a four-padlocked, hard-sided case and gets to the airport four hours early to avoid any problems. TSA regulations are very efficient, he said. Theres no excuse for someone not following TSA regulations. Gurfein said a responsible gun owner is one who knows where their gun is at all times. Thats basic safety. And for someone to say they dont know where their gun is, is one of the most irresponsible things I can imagine, he said. Related Content Supreme Courts Trump immunity ruling shows risk of Jack Smiths approach As his MLB career begins, those who helped lift James Wood cheer him on Biden meets his critics with defiance. But they see him in denial. Why Was a Fla. Man Arrested After Trying to Withdraw 1 Cent from Bank? Michael Fleming, 41, allegedly entered a Chase Bank location on June 29 and filled out a withdrawal slip for the amount of one cent, per an arrest report Sumter County Sheriffs Office Michael Fleming Mugshot A Florida man was charged with robbery after trying to withdraw one cent from a bank. The suspect, 41-year-old Michael Fleming, entered a Chase Bank location on June 29 at approximately 2 p.m. and filled out a withdrawal slip for the amount of one cent, per an arrest report obtained by PEOPLE. Police say Fleming handed the slip to the bank teller and was told that his request could not be fulfilled. Per the arrest report, he told the bank employee in response, So you want me to say the other word?" The teller feared that the situation would turn violent and called police. Fleming was still inside of the building when police arrived. Later, police say that Fleming said he first went to a nearby Citizens First Bank, but it was closed. The arrest report states that in a recorded interview, the suspect allegedly told police that he intended to get arrested. "Most of the time, the way tellers are trained if someone comes in to rob you, you give them the money and let them go," the suspect allegedly said. Fleming claimed that he was expecting the teller to give him the one cent, after which he would sit in the chair and wait for the police, according to the arrest report. Furthermore, the arrest report states that Fleming does not have a bank account with Chase Bank. It is unclear what bank account information he provided on the deposit slip. Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage, and details of intriguing unsolved cases. Fleming was charged with one count of robbery with no firearm or weapon. The suspect was transported to the Sumter County Detention Center; he's currently in jail on $5,000 bond. The arrest report states that he has "no prior guilty convictions for robbery." It's not clear if he has retained an attorney. For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter! Read the original article on People. Why we are hard-wired to feel 'sunshine guilt' and what you can do to manage it Sunshine guilt is when you feel anxious about staying inside when it's sunny and nice outside. People might have FOMO from seeing others on social media enjoying time outside. A neuropsychologist suggests people liven up their indoor space with plants and stay active. Even if you don't live somewhere known for breaking rainfall records, you've probably seen the effects of "sunshine guilt," as it's called on TikTok. For instance, you might notice your co-workers flocking outside to eat lunch or friends posting about weekend plans involving hiking trails or a day at the beach. Sunshine guilt is when you feel anxious or guilty about staying inside and not enjoying a sunny day to the fullest. Maybe you'd prefer to lie in bed and read or watch TV instead of venturing outside or getting sand in body crevices you can't reach. What is sunshine guilt and why do we experience it? Sunshine guilt refers to the "pressure you feel to be outside and enjoying the weather when it's a sunny day," Patrice Le Goy, a psychologist and licensed marriage and family therapist, told Business Insider. You might feel ungrateful for wanting to be inside resting or doing nothing. This feeling tends to be more common if sunny days are rare or you're transitioning from winter to spring. Since you don't know when you'll have another opportunity to enjoy the weather, sunshine guilt is considered a form of FOMO (fear of missing out), she added. Sometimes you don't have a choice about when you schedule activities. Perhaps you're busy working, studying, or doing household chores and feel like you're "missing out on the benefits and pleasures of being in the sunshine," Sanam Hafeez, a neuropsychologist, told Business Insider. Many people are aware that being outside can contribute to enhanced mood and vitamin D production, so they might feel guilty for having to stay inside. In addition, some "cultures emphasize spending time outdoors in nice weather, encouraging a belief that staying inside is a waste of a good day," she said. Another reason for sunshine guilt is seeing people enjoying outdoor activities. A combination of social media and peer pressure can amplify feelings of guilt, particularly if you think of yourself as a sun worshipper or someone who loves outdoor activities. How is sunshine guilt different from summertime seasonal affective disorder? About 5% of the US population experiences seasonal affective disorder (SAD), according to Mental Health America. Someone with SAD may "experience depression, fatigue, appetite changes, and other disruptions corresponding to darker and colder months," Le Goy said. Of those affected by SAD, about 10% experience depressive symptoms during the spring and summer, otherwise known as summer-pattern SAD or summer depression. Symptoms of summer depression tend to improve as the weather becomes sunnier and warmer or with a treatment such as light therapy, Le Goy explained. Unlike summer-pattern SAD, sunshine guilt is "not a medical condition and does not typically cause severe mood disturbances or functional impairments," Hafeez said. In addition, sunshine guilt is often temporary and can be resolved by spending time outside or directing your focus away from the weather. On the other hand, summer-pattern SAD is a recognized medical condition characterized by symptoms like irritability, trouble sleeping, and loss of interest in activities, which significantly impact daily functioning and quality of life, she explained. This condition can last weeks or months and typically requires medical or therapeutic intervention. Sunshine guilt tends to be situational. For example, you might feel guilty for missing an outdoor concert or wedding. In contrast, summer-pattern SAD may be prompted by changes in sunlight exposure, which affect your circadian rhythms, melatonin production, and serotonin levels, Hafeez said. What can you do to manage sunshine guilt? If you're experiencing sunshine guilt, you can develop strategies to find a healthy balance between indoor and outdoor activities. For instance, you can schedule outdoor activities on your days off and weekends or prioritize completing indoor tasks, so you have more time for outdoor enjoyment, Hafeez said. Another tip is incorporating small amounts of outdoor time throughout your day, like going for a walk at lunch or stepping outside to look at the scenery. If going outside isn't possible or desirable, Hafeez suggested the following practices to help reduce feelings of guilt: Liven up your indoor space with plants and natural light Practice mindfulness by focusing on the present moment Make time for enjoyable indoor hobbies like reading or cooking Stay active with indoor exercise like dance or yoga Spend time with family or friends indoors or plan virtual meetups Be kind to yourself for needing rest Consider talking to a mental health professional if you're feeling depressed or overwhelmed Although sunshine guilt isn't a clinically recognized condition, it's helpful to acknowledge that it is "a real thing people experience, and you don't have to do anything about it if you don't want to," Le Goy said. If you're tired, listen to what your body needs, whether it's rest or a nourishing meal. Remind yourself that sunny weather is enjoyable when you want to be outside. You might even welcome a rainy day because then you won't feel pressured to go outside and make the most of your day, she added. Nandini Maharaj is a freelance writer covering health, wellness, identity, and relationships. She holds a master's degree in counseling and a doctorate in public health. Read the original article on Business Insider Why this local business owner pleaded guilty to role in fatal North Star crash in 2023 The night of Jan. 29, 2023, began as an exuberant one. The Philadelphia Eagles had just won their NFC championship game against the San Francisco 49ers and were headed to the Super Bowl. Walter "Reds" Ferris, owner of Ferris Home Improvements, and his friends were celebrating. Earlier in the day, the local business owner had helped organize a party bus that would allow the group to tailgate at Lincoln Financial Field. He later moved the party back to his North Star home. There, the revelry was set to continue and it did, for a while. That is, until Ferris and several friends, including 47-year-old Jack Birch, hopped on a utility task vehicle and took it for a spin. Ferris, who had been drinking and had marijuana in his system, got behind the wheel a little before 10 p.m. At some point during the ride around his sprawling, wooded property, he lost control and the UTV flipped. Birch, one of Ferris good friends and whose children grew up with Ferris kids, was killed. Ferris, now 48, and a 40-year-old man were taken to a nearby hospital with what police called minor injuries. The Leonard L. Williams Justice Center in Wilmington, formerly the New Castle County Courthouse. Nearly 18 months after festivity turned to tragedy and two weeks before the case was set to go to trial Ferris tearfully acknowledged his choices that night. On Monday in a New Castle County courtroom, he pleaded guilty to two misdemeanors with an expected eight-month prison sentence. Sentencing is set for September, though he was to report to prison Tuesday morning. The initial charges and subsequent plea Ferris was initially charged in June 2023. He faced four counts at the time: two felonies and two misdemeanors. The felonies included criminally negligent homicide and vehicular homicide, while the misdemeanors were related to driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. After months of negotiations including final discussions in the hours before Mondays plea Ferris pleaded to operation of a vehicle causing death, an unclassified misdemeanor, and DUI. INITIAL STORY: Delaware home improvement business owner facing homicide charges in fatal off-road crash His blood alcohol content when hospitalized after the crash was 0.165, more than double the legal limit. Its his second lifetime DUI, the first occurring nearly 30 years ago, in May 1996. Though he faces a maximum sentence of 42 months in prison for the two charges, prosecutors and Ferris defense attorney agreed to recommend eight months behind bars followed by 18 months probation. If the sentencing judge follows the recommendation in September, Ferris will also be required to complete a DUI course, undergo a substance use evaluation, lose his license for at least a year (or more, depending on the Division of Motor Vehicles) and be forbidden to operate off-highway vehicles except on his property and without any passengers while on probation. Should he violate these terms, he could spend up to 30 total months in prison. Birchs family attends court proceedings From the rear of the courtroom Monday morning, two of Birchs family members waited, then watched, as the plea finally got underway about two hours after the daily court calendar began. Their expressions were unreadable as they eyed Ferris, who was dressed in a fitted gray suit and green tie. He appeared contrite even before exiting the courtroom gallery and joining defense attorney Eugene Maurer at a wooden table before the judge, wiping tears from his eyes several times as he snaked his left arm around his wifes shoulders. She, too, was weepy as Ferris made his way next to Maurer, with a bailiff handing her a box of tissues. While Ferris remained largely composed while answering the judges questions, including whether he was guilty to which he quietly replied yes his face crumpled and he again began to cry as the judge accepted the plea. Soon after, Maurer noted the tragedy of the case, calling Ferris disconsolate. Not only are Birchs wife, children, parents, siblings, niece, nephews and countless friends mourning, Maurer suggested, but the 47-year-old was also a close friend, a good friend of the man who took his life. To that end, Maurer said, he and Ferris were requesting that the 48-year-olds bail be revoked at 10 a.m. Tuesday so he could begin serving the yet-to-be-determined prison sentence. It's all very difficult for everyone, Maurer said. Hed like to get started with his punishment. Got a tip? Send to Isabel Hughes at ihughes@delawareonline.com or 302-324-2785. For all things breaking news, follow her on X at @izzihughes_ This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Ferris Home Improvements owner pleads guilty to role in fatal crash Why Nepal had a religious monarchy and why some people want it back Gyanendra Shah, former king of Nepal, will celebrate his 77th birthday on July 7, 2024. Twenty years ago, his birthday would have been a Nepalese national holiday. Indeed, when I first traveled to Nepal in 2001, the nation prided itself on being the worlds last Hindu kingdom. Every rupee note showed the kings face. The national anthem sang his praise. But between 2006 and 2008, Nepal transitioned from a Hindu monarchy to a secular democracy. It dissolved its monarchy completely, and Shah left the palace in June 2008. He has been living ever since as a private citizen. In 2012, when I submitted my doctoral dissertation on the transition, it seemed that Nepal had decisively eliminated its monarchy and that Nepalis were gladly anticipating their secular future. But today many Nepalis are disillusioned with their multiparty democratic system. Following a major pro-monarchy rally in November 2023, Nepals capital has witnessed a series of modest but vocal follow-up demonstrations advocating a return to Hindu monarchy. What had religious kingship looked like in Nepal? Why was it ended and why do some people want it back? Hindu monarchy Unlike European monarchies, which were deeply connected to Christianity, Nepals monarchy was rooted in Hinduism. This meant the king of Nepal needed to be born into a Hindu family, and he needed to marry a Hindu woman. He needed to uphold family lineage rituals and worship in his ancestral shrine room. He also needed to have close relationships with Brahmin priests. The modern palace hired a priestly Brahmin staff salaried employees who reported daily to a palace office to do rituals. The king needed to honor major Hindu holidays by making public appearances and performing rituals. He surveyed the army on Shiva Ratri, a festival that honors Lord Shiva, and blessed government leaders during the Hindu festival of Vijaya Dasami. He received a blessing from his patron goddess Kumari, a young girl believed to be the manifestation of the Hindu goddess Taleju, during the festival of Indra Jatra. These roles made the king the patriarch, protector and archetype of the nation. Even though for most of Nepals history the king was not directly running the government, in a common royalist phrase, the king was Nepals ekata ka prateek: the symbol of unity. Consolidation of monarchy Modern Nepal has existed for only about 250 years. For centuries, what is now Nepal was divided among many small principalities. In the 1760s, though, a minor local king conquered all his neighbors, relocated his capital to Kathmandu and set his dynasty on the throne. But after this ambitious and effective king, the descendants who followed were mostly weak and ineffective rulers. By 1800, the country was being governed in the kings name by regents and self-appointed prime ministers. In 1950, however, King Tribhuvan Shah, who had been serving a purely ceremonial role since 1922, formed an alliance with a budding democracy movement in order to step into more direct political power. From King Tribhuvan onward, Nepals kings would actively lead the government. The modern monarchy was further centralized and consolidated by Tribhuvans son, King Mahendra, who ruled from 1955 to 1972. Urbane and cosmopolitan, he worked to modernize the country and his role as king. Meanwhile, he greatly expanded the idea of Hindu kingship. He also dissolved the countrys first democratically elected government in order to put himself in charge of the panchayat, an ostensibly grassroots democratic system that in reality was tightly controlled by the palace. He also enacted a nationalistic program that would reshape a diverse Nepal into a single identity, around himself as the symbol of national unity. This program was summed up by the slogan ek raja, ek bhesh, ek bhasa: One king, one country, one national-dress. Nepals dozens of minority languages and ethnic identities were suppressed in favor of a national culture around the kings own religious, ethnic and language background. When children went to school, they would learn a carefully constructed curriculum, taught only in Nepali language, from books that praised Hinduism and the centrality of the royal family, from teachers dressed in the newly codified Nepali national outfit for men, the daura suruwal. Modern nationalism thus meant a unified Nepal that erased ethnic, regional and religious differences in favor of the unity of the monarchy. The monarchy crumbles King Mahendra passed the throne to his eldest son, Birendra. But in June 2001, King Birendra was murdered in the palace, allegedly by his own son, along with his wife and children and half a dozen other members of the royal family. This event dealt a catastrophic blow to the monarchy. In the tumultuous aftermath of the royal murders, Gyanendra Shah Mahendras second son, brother to the murdered king succeeded to the throne. The nation was grieving and traumatized, and people found the new King Gyanendra to be an uncharismatic monarch. An armed Maoist insurgency was threatening rural Nepal and working to capitalize on the tragedy, while the multiparty Parliament bickered in the capital. In an attempt to gain control of the situation, King Gyanendra declared a state of emergency and took direct control of the government in 2005. The country united against him. In spring 2006, people took to the streets for three weeks, grinding Nepal to a standstill. King Gyanendra capitulated to the insurgency. At the time, he was so unpopular that the interim government decided to dissolve the monarchy completely. They stripped the king of all ceremonial roles and all religious activities. They wrote the king out of the national anthem and took his portrait off the national currency. They legally declared the country a secular democracy and turned the palace into a museum. The king moved out of the palace in June 2008. The transition away from monarchy attempted to free Nepal from its history of enforced unity. The first post-monarchy Parliament featured representatives wearing all forms of clothing, taking their oaths in many different languages, tasked with writing a new, inclusive constitution. A pluralist national anthem proclaimed, We are one Nepali garland, made of hundreds of different flowers. Challenges today Monarchy supporters are blocked by the police in Kathmandu, Nepal, in 2011. AP Photo/Binod Joshi Unfortunately, Nepals post-monarchy government has struggled to live up to the hopes that swept it to power. The new constitution ran years late, while major leaders have been accused of corruption. The political parties struggle to hold coalitions together, and the constantly overturning government has seen 12 administrations in 16 years. This instability has led some Nepalis to become nostalgic for the idea of unity through monarchy. Today, when some people take to the streets to demand a return to Hindu kingship, many of them are not expressing love for Gyanendra Shah. The former king was not beloved; he ruled under clouds of grief and was fired before many got accustomed to his presence. The ex-king has been living quietly in Nepal for the past 16 years. He rarely makes public appearances, though he occasionally attends religious events, and he once showed up at a nightclub. He periodically makes public statements calling for political peace and unity. While he seems to support recent rallies, he has not explicitly expressed any intention to return to power. But as the current administration bickers, and Nepalis become ever more disillusioned with their government, I argue that the former king makes a useful tool for protest. 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: Anne Mocko, Concordia College Read more: Anne Mocko has received research funding from the US Government through the FLAS and Fulbright Hays programs. BEIJING, July 8 (Xinhua) -- China has mobilized several remote sensing satellites to aid rescue and relief efforts following a dike breach on Friday at Dongting Lake, the country's second-largest freshwater lake in central Hunan Province. According to the China Centre For Resources Satellite Data and Application (CRESDA), Gaofen-3 02, Gaofen-3 03, Gaofen-1, and Gaofen-4 satellites have been deployed to provide real-time monitoring of the affected areas. As of Saturday, satellite imaging has been conducted five times, CRESDA said, adding that data has been swiftly provided to the relevant departments. On Friday afternoon, a Dongting Lake dike burst in Tuanzhou Township, Huarong County under Hunan's Yueyang City, triggering flooding in the area. Thousands of rescuers, including firefighters, hydrologists, volunteers and police, have been working tirelessly to safeguard lives and properties. Satellite images revealed extensive flooding in areas previously identified as meadows or land. They documented a significant reduction in land area and expansion of water surfaces within Dongting Lake, exacerbated by inflows from upstream tributaries surpassing alarm levels. "We will continue to closely observe the disaster situation in Huarong County and provide remote sensing satellite data and analysis services for flood rescue and relief, disaster assessment and other work," CRESDA said. Additionally, many commercial satellites have joined the relief operations. Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., a commercial aerospace enterprise based at Changchun, northeast China's Jilin Province, has deployed its Jilin-1 Kuanfu 01A satellite. On Saturday morning, it captured high-resolution images of Dongting Lake shortly after the dike breach. The breach had widened to 226 meters by that time, with extensive local inundation compared to earlier images. Meanwhile, Smart Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., utilized its SmartSat-X1 satellite to gather detailed data on the disaster area. Beijing Minospace Technology Co., Ltd. also activated its Taijing-4 01 and Taijing-4 03 satellites for the mission. Taijing-4 03 completed imaging at 10:53 a.m. on Saturday, revealing a disaster zone spanning approximately 12.645 km in diameter and affecting an estimated area exceeding 42 square km. Taijing-4 01 identified potential hazardous risks in some southern areas of Dongting Lake. The company said they have promptly shared this information with relevant authorities to enhance their situational awareness and response capabilities. Dongting Lake has historically faced flood challenges. The affected area near Tuanbei Village now covers approximately 50 square km, echoing a similar dike breach incident in 1996. Hunan Province has endured its heaviest rainfall of the year since June 16, surpassing historical records in some localities. Why this is no victory for Macron Sources in Emmanuel Macron's camp insist that his strategy has paid off - AFP On Sunday night the French Left were dancing in the streets, Emmanuel Macrons camp were weakened but not wiped out and Marine Le Pens National Rally failed to wrest power with a parliamentary majority - coming a humiliating third. This is the media narrative emanating from Sundays shock second round of French parliamentary elections, which previous polls had suggested could catapult the anti-immigration, Eurosceptic National Rally into Frances political driving seat. But look closely and the numbers tell a slightly different story. True, the pre-election polls were wide of the mark but so is the idea that this was a major defeat for the Le Pen camp. The RN had a handful of MPs in 2017, won 89 seats in 2022 and the space of two years is heading to double that amount. Indeed, if early results are confirmed, it will become the largest single party force in French parliament, even if bereft of allies, it will not be able to forge an absolute majority. Mr Macron, meanwhile, had privately predicted that his Together alliance could win back the absolute majority it lost two years ago in these snap elections. While his camp has not been wiped out, his prediction has proved totally erroneous. Ensemble has seen his majority drop from 350 in 2017, to 245 in 2022 to a far lower figure today. Elysee sources insist that Mr Macrons bet to clarify French politics has paid off and that he will now somehow manage to cobble together a majority with reasonable centre-Left and centre-Right forces. That may yet prove wishful thinking, and parliamentary paralysis may ensue. Mr Macrons ability to govern effectively - if at all - will be called into question in the coming days. Marine Le Pen said she 'sees the seeds of tomorrow's victory in today's result' - Louise Delmotte Already, the Lefts largest force, led by firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchons France Unbowed, has called for the president to resign and insisted it will apply the entirety of its vastly dispendious programme or not at all - apparently ruling out any compromise. All this could be music to Ms Le Pens ears. In recent days, Mr Macrons father confirmed swirling media reports that one of the centrist presidents main aims for calling snap elections was to hand the Le Pen camp greater power. If the RN shows in two years that it is completely incapable of governing, we can hope that it will go no further. Thats what my son told me two months before the European elections, he reasoned. But the reverse will now take place. Mr Macron paused for photos with supporters after casting his vote in Le Touquet-Paris-Plage - Mohammed Badra While the RN has bolstered its numbers in parliament, it will happily remain an opposition force that can continue to do what it does best; blame others for Frances problems and promise sunlit uplands if the French hand it all the levers of power. Hence Ms Le Pens message that Sundays election has merely deferred her ultimate victory in 2027. The tide is rising. It didnt rise high enough this time, but it continues to rise and, as a result, our victory is only delayed. Sundays results have not killed off all chances of that prediction, au contraire. 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. Why a prominent faith leader is calling out one of Trumps VP candidates Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., speaks to reporters in the spin room after a presidential debate between President Joe Biden and Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump in Atlanta, Thursday, June 27, 2024. | Pablo Martinez Monsivais Tony Perkins has a problem with Sen. Marco Rubio. The prominent evangelical Christian leader, who heads up the Family Research Council, called out the Florida senator on X on Sunday, accusing him of capitulating to the forces of abortion. Im stunned, Perkins said. Marco Rubios position on abortion Perkins tweet stemmed from comments Rubio made about a national abortion ban during a CNN appearance on Sunday. When asked to address the Republican Partys position on abortion, Rubio said it would make sense to change the party platform to match former President Donald Trumps views. I think our platform has to reflect our nominee, and our nominees position happens to be one ground in reality, he said. For years, the GOP platform has included a call for a national abortion ban. That call goes against Trumps position on abortion, which is that abortion policy should be left up to states. Many states will be different, many will have a different number of weeks, or some will have more conservative than others, and thats what they will be, Trump said in a video shared on Truth Social in April, as the Deseret News reported at the time. GOP platform on abortion In his X post, Perkins accused Rubio of misrepresenting whats really going on in the national political landscape and within the Republican Party. There are so many inaccuracies in his comments that I dont know where to start. First, a human life amendment has never been within political reach, it has always been aspirational and so it should remain, he said. Anti-abortion voters will not respond well to a platform change, Perkins added. I can assure you that if the GOP abandons the unborn in the Party Platform, it will dampen Bible-believing, conservative voter enthusiasm and turnout, he said. CNNs Dana Bash cited Perkins and other supporters of a federal ban on abortion while interviewing Rubio, asking him to respond to their concern that changing the GOP platform will depress enthusiasm for Donald Trump among core, anti-abortion grassroots voters. Rubio pushed back against that concern, noting that its safe to assume that Republican voters who support a national abortion ban wont be voting for a Democrat anytime soon. I dont think theres much of an option here, he said. Will Marco Rubio be Trumps VP? Rubios comments on a national abortion ban come as he reportedly pushes to be chosen as Trumps 2024 running mate. Rubio, along with Sen. J.D. Vance and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, is thought to be on Trumps short list of vice presidential candidates, according to The Associated Press. Although political insiders believe the Trump campaign has not yet settled on anyone, the final decision could come as soon as this week, the article said. Demonstrators put symbolic cordon on a bar-restaurant window during a protest against mass tourism on Barcelona's Las Ramblas alley, on July 6, 2024. Credit - Josep LagoAFPGetty Images Thousands of angry Barcelona residents took to the streets over the weekend to participate in a protest against mass tourism in the Spanish city. Their weapon of choice? The humble water pistol. Video footage showed protesters squirting water from colorful pistols at travelers who were dining in Las Ramblas, a tourist-heavy district. As soggy tourists awkwardly scurried away, Catalans were seen chanting tourists go home and using red tape to cordon off hotel and restaurant entry points. Other demonstrators held signs that said tourism kills the city. The scenes were part of wider protest action that saw around 2,800 people calling for limits to tourism in their home city, according to police figures. But organizers have claimed that seven times as many people took part, the Telegraph reported. On Saturday, Jaume Collboni, Barcelonas Socialist mayor, renewed his firm commitment toward eliminating Airbnb style short-term rentals in the city within five years. In a post on social media platform X, Collboni said a new housing plan will remove more than 10,000 properties from tourist usage to be returned to residents. He added that the tourist tax surcharge will be increased from 3.25 ($3.52) to 4 ($4.33) per night, while some tourist revenue will be used to invest in local projects. Barcelona collects around 95 million ($102.9 million) in tourist tax per year, but the sheer expenses incurred from tourism, including cleaning, security, and transportation costs, amounts to 142 million ($153.8.) Spain saw some 85.1 million international visitors throughout 2023, according to the National Statistics Institute, with 15.6 million visiting Barcelona specifically. But the Catalan capital is not the only place where Spanish locals are fighting back against overtourism. In April, tens of thousands of people participated in the largest demonstrations against tourism across the Canary Islands, an autonomous community of Spain. The effort was backed by environmental groups including Greenpeace, WWF, and Friends of the Earth. May saw some 10,000 people on the Spanish island of Mallorca attending similar demonstrations to protest the lack of affordable housing caused by increased tourism. By June, locals occupied Calo des Moro beach in Mallorca to protect it from tourists. Around 300 people held banners saying SOS residents, while some attendees gave out leaflets to British and German tourists. Last month, a further 15,000 people in Malagaa popular Spanish holiday destination, especially among British and French travelersmarched against the high volume of tourists. The city, located in close proximity to the resorts of the Costa del Sol, has given rise to rapid gentrification, causing housing prices to soar and short term rentals to multiply. There are currently more than 400,000 short-term rentals across Spain, according to figures from AirDNA, an information services company. But the Spanish government has said it is considering a nationwide ban on tourist rentals within residential buildings. Spain is hardly the only country to grow weary of tourists. Last year, the city of Amsterdam launched an ad campaign with stay away video messages aimed at rowdy young male British tourists. Greece and other popular destinations are also mulling crackdowns on short term rentals. Write to Armani Syed at armani.syed@time.com. Photo illustration by Getty images. Gun violence has exploded across the U.S. in recent years from mass shootings at concerts and supermarkets to school fights settled with a bullet after the last bell. Nearly every day of 2024 so far has brought more violence. On Feb. 14, gunfire broke out at the Super Bowl parade in Kansas City, killing one woman and injuring 22 others. Most events draw little attention while the injuries and toll pile up. Gun violence is among Americas most deadly and costly public health crises. But unlike other big killers diseases like cancer and HIV or dangers like automobile crashes and cigarettes sparse federal money goes to studying gun violence or preventing it. Thats because of a one-sentence amendment tucked into the 1996 congressional budget bill: None of the funds made available for injury prevention and control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may be used to advocate or promote gun control. Its author was Jay Dickey, an Arkansas Republican who called himself the point man for the National Rifle Association on Capitol Hill. And for nearly 25 years the amendment was perceived as a threat and all but paralyzed the CDCs support and study of gun violence. Even so, a small group of academics have toiled to document how gun violence courses through American communities with vast and tragic outcomes. Their research provides some light as officials and communities develop policies mostly in the dark. It has also inspired a fresh generation of researchers to enter the field people who grew up with mass shootings and are now determined to investigate harm from firearms. There is momentum now, in a time of rising gun injury and death, to know more. The reality is stark: Gun sales reached record levels in 2019 and 2020. Shootings soared. In 2021, for the second year, more people died from gun incidents 48,830 than in any year on record, according to a Johns Hopkins University analysis of CDC data. Guns became the leading cause of death for children and teens. Suicides accounted for more than half of those deaths, and homicides were linked to 4 in 10. Black people are nearly 14 times as likely to die from firearm violence as white people and guns were responsible for half of all deaths of Black teens ages 15 to 19 in 2021, the data showed. Harvard research published in JAMA in 2022 estimated gun injuries translate into economic losses of $557 billion annually, or 2.6% of the U.S. gross domestic product. With gun violence touching nearly every corner of the country, surveys show that Americans whatever their political affiliation or whether they own guns or not support policies that could reduce violence. What Could Have Been It is no secret that many strategies proposed today from school metal detectors to enhanced policing, to the optimal timing and manner of safely storing guns, to restrictions on gun sales have limited scientific ballast because of a lack of data. It could have been otherwise. U.S. firearm production surged in the late 1980s, flooding communities with more than 200 million weapons. In that era, Mark Rosenberg was the founding director of the CDCs National Center for Injury Prevention and Control and his agency, over time, was pivotal in helping to fund research on gun violence and public health. Rosenberg thought then that gun violence could go the way of car crashes. The federal government spent $200 million a year on research to redesign roadways and cars beginning in the 1970s, he said, and had seen death rates plummeted. We said, Why cant we do this with gun violence? Rosenberg said. They figured out how to get rid of car crashes but not cars. Why cant we do the same thing when it comes to guns? The Dickey Amendment sidelined that dream. A study published in 1993 concluded that guns kept in the home are associated with an increase in the risk of homicide, a finding on risk factors that prompted an uproar in conservative political circles. To newly elected representatives in the midterm Republican Revolution of 1994, the research was a swipe at gun rights. The NRA stepped up lobbying, and Congress passed whats known as the Dickey Amendment in 1996. Some Democrats, such as the influential John Dingell of Michigan (a onetime NRA board member who received the groups legislative achievement award), would join the cause. Dingell proposed his own bills, detailed last summer by The New York Times. Under heavy political pressure, the CDC ousted Rosenberg in 1999. Soon after, some CDC administrators began alerting the NRA to research before publication. It was clearly related to the work we were doing on gun violence prevention, Rosenberg, now 78, said of his job loss. It was a shock. Those Who Persevered The quarter-century spending gap has left a paucity of data about the scope of gun violences health effects: Who is shot and why? What motivates the violence? With what guns? What are the injuries? Can suicides, on the rise from gunfire, be reduced or prevented with safeguards? Does drug and alcohol use increase the chances of harm? Could gun safeguards reduce domestic violence? Ultimately, what works and what does not to prevent shootings? If researchers say they lost a generation of knowledge about gun violence, then American families lost even more, with millions of lives cut short and a legacy of trauma passed down through generations. Imagine if cancer research had been halted in 1996 many tumors that are now eminently treatable might still be lethal. Its like cancer, said Rebecca Cunningham, vice president for research at the University of Michigan, an academic who has kept the thread of gun research going all these years. There may be 50 kinds of cancer, and there are preventions for all of them. Firearm violence has many different routes, and it will require different kinds of science and approaches. Cunningham is one of a small group of like-minded researchers, from universities across the United States, who refused to let go of investigating a growing public health risk, and they pushed ahead without government funds. Garen Wintemute has spent about $2.45 million of his money to support seminal research at the University of California-Davis. With state and private funding, he created a violence prevention program in California, a leader in firearm studies. He has documented an unprecedented increase in gun sales since 2020 about 15 million transactions more than expected based on previous sales data. Daniel Webster at Johns Hopkins University focused on teenagers and guns particularly access and suicides and found that local police who coped with gun risks daily were willing to collaborate. He secured grants, even from the CDC, with carefully phrased proposals that avoided the word guns, to study community violence. At Duke University, Philip J. Cook explored the underground gun market, interviewing people incarcerated in Chicago jails and compiling pivotal social science research on how guns are bought, sold, and traded. David Hemenway, an economist and public policy professor at Harvard, worked on the national pilot to document violent deaths knowing most gun deaths would be recorded that way because, he said, if you dont have good data, you dont have nothin. Hemenway, writing in the journal Nature in 2017, found a 30% rise in gun suicides over the preceding decade and nearly a 20% rise in gun murders from 2014 to 2015. The data was alarming and so was the lack of preventive know-how, he wrote. The US government, at the behest of the gun lobby, limits the collection of data, prevents researchers from obtaining much of the data that are collected and severely restricts the funds available for research on guns, he wrote. Policymakers are essentially flying blind. His work helped create the most ambitious database of U.S. gun deaths today the National Violent Death Reporting System. Funded in 1999 by private foundations, researchers were able to start understanding gun deaths by compiling data on all violent deaths from health department, police, and crime records in several states. The CDC took over the system and eventually rolled in data from all 50 states. Still, no federal database of nonfatal gun injuries exists. So the government would record one death from the Super Bowl parade shooting, and the 22 people with injuries remain uncounted along with many thousands of others over decades. Philanthropy has supported research that Congress would not. The Joyce Foundation in Chicago funded the bulk of the grants, with more than $33 million since the 1990s. Arnold Ventures philanthropy and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation have added millions more, as has Michael Bloomberg, the politician and media company owner. The Rand Corp., which keeps a tab of ongoing research, finds states increasingly are stepping up. Timothy Daly, a Joyce Foundation program director, said he remembers when the field of gun harm was described by some as a desert. There was no federal funding. There was slim private funding, he said. Young people would ask themselves: Why would I go into that? Research published in JAMA in 2017 found gun violence was the least-researched among leading causes of death. Looking at mortality rates over a decade, gun violence killed about as many people as sepsis, the data showed. If funded at the same rate, gun violence would have been expected to receive $1.4 billion in research funds. Instead, it received $22 million from across all U.S. government agencies. There is no way to know what the firearm mortality or injury rate would be today had there been more federal support for strategies to contain it. A Reckoning As gun violence escalated to once unthinkable levels, Rep. Dickey came to regret his role in stanching research and became friends with Rosenberg. They wrote a pivotal Washington Post op-ed about the need for gun injury prevention studies. In 2016, they delivered a letter supporting the creation of the California Firearm Violence Research Center. Both men, they emphasized, were NRA members and agreed on two principles: One goal must be to protect the Second-Amendment rights of law-abiding gun owners; the other goal, to reduce gun violence. Dickey died in 2017, and Rosenberg has only kind words for him. I did not blame Jay at all for what happened, he said. The CDC was under pressure from Congress to get rid of our gun research. As alarm over gun fatality statistics from diverse sectors of the nation scientists, politicians, and law enforcement has grown, research in the field is finally gaining a foothold. Even Congress, noting the Dickey Amendment was not an all-out ban, appropriated $25 million for gun research in late 2019, split between the CDC whose imperative is to research public health issues and the National Institutes of Health. Its a drop in the bucket compared with what was spent on car crashes, and its not assured. House Republicans this winter have pushed an amendment to once again cut federal funding for CDC gun research. Still, its a start. With growing interest in the field, the torch has passed to the next generation of researchers. In November, Cunningham helped organize a national conference on the prevention of firearm-related harm. More than 750 academics and professionals in public health, law, and criminal justice met in Chicago for hundreds of presentations. A similar event in 2019, the first in 20 years, drew just a few dozen presentations. You can feel momentum, Cunningham said at the conference, reflecting on the research underway. Theres a momentum to propel a whole series of evidence-based change in the same way we have addressed other health problems. During a congressional hearing weeks later, Yale University School of Public Health Dean Megan L. Ranney bluntly described the rising number of gun deaths noting the overwhelming number of suicides as an alarm for lawmakers. We are turning into a nation of traumatized survivors, she said, urging their support for better data and research on risk factors. Cassandra Crifasi, 41, was a high school sophomore when the Columbine massacre outside Littleton, Colorado, shook the country. She recently succeeded Webster, her mentor and research partner, as co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions. Crifasi has spent much of her career evaluating risk factors in gun use, including collaborative studies with Baltimore police and the city to reduce violence. Raised in Washington state, Crifasi said she never considered required training in firearms an affront to the Second Amendment. She owns guns. In her family, which hunted, it was a matter of responsibility. We all learned to hunt. There are rules to follow. Maybe we should have everybody who wants to have a gun to do that, she said. Crifasi pointed to the 2018 shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Parkland, Florida which left 17 dead and 17 injured as a turning point. Students and their parents took a page out of Mothers Against Drunk Driving showing up, testifying, being in the gallery where laws are made, she said. People started to shift and started to think: This is not a third rail in politics. This is not a third rail in research, Crifasi said. Shani Buggs worked in corporate management before she arrived at Johns Hopkins to pursue a masters in public health. It was summer 2012, and a gunman killed 12 moviegoers at a midnight showing of The Dark Knight Rises in Aurora, Colorado. The towns pain led the national news, and rightfully so, Buggs said. But I was in Baltimore, in East Baltimore, where there were shootings happening that werent even consistently making the local news. Now violence that once was considered out of bounds, out of balance it is more and more common, said Buggs who recently joined the California Firearm Violence Research Center as a lead investigator. Buggs research has examined anxiety and depression among youths who live in neighborhoods with gun violence and notes that firearm suicide rates too have drastically increased among Black children and adolescents. There is a trauma from hearing gunshots and seeing gun injuries, and daily life can be a thrum of risk in vulnerable communities, notably those largely populated by Black and Hispanic people, Buggs said. Last year, Buggs organized the Black and Brown Collective with a core group of about two dozen scientists committed to contextualizing studies on gun violence. The people most impacted by the gun violence we usually hear about in America look like our families, she said of the collective. They are not resilient. People are just surviving, Buggs said. We need way more money to research and to understand and address the complexity of the problem. KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFFan independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Why is it raining more in Milwaukee this summer? If you feel like youve been waking up to gloomy mornings for weeks in a row, youre not imagining it: so far, this summer in Milwaukee has been more rainy than last year. Since mid-May, its rained at least every few days, according to National Weather Service data. The longest streak of non-rainy days in the past two months was three days from May 17 to 19. The summer rain comes after Milwaukee logged its third-wettest spring on record this year, according to National Weather Service data going back to the 1870s. The spike in precipitation was a shift from last years historically dry spring, which eventually triggered a drought from May to June 2023. Heres what else to know about the rainy weather in Milwaukee this summer. How much more rainy is it this year? In June, Milwaukee saw 18 rainy days up from eight days in 2023 and 10 days in 2022. The city last experienced a June with 18 rainy days in 2021, but the total rain that month added up to 2.25 inches. This June, the total rain clocked in at 4.71 inches, slightly higher than the average of 4.38 inches from 1990 to 2022. Across the state, this May was Wisconsins 10th wettest ever since 1895, according to the National Integrated Drought Information System. The NWS logged 6.52 inches of rain in May, up from the 3.52 inches average. Fans struggle to get a canopy set up in the wind and rain before the Milwaukee Brewers' home opener against the Minnesota Twins at American Family Field in Milwaukee on April 2. This past spring was one of the rainiest on record for the city. Why is it raining more than last year? Incoming La Nina conditions are likely causing the rainier weather in Milwaukee, according to local NWS meteorologist Cameron Miller. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration issued a La Nina watch in mid-June, a warning of below-average water temperatures brewing in the central Pacific Ocean. La Nina conditions are likely to develop between July and September and persist into the winter, according to NOAA. That means theres going to be colder waters moving into the area thats off of South America, Miller said. Typically, that gives us a little bit cooler, a little bit wetter conditions around the upper Midwest here. In previous years, the jet stream strong winds that blow from west to east has moved north earlier in the year, Miller said. Thats led to large areas of high pressure forming over the Central Plains and blocking off rain across the Midwest in the summer months. This particular year, we're not seeing that early start to the high pressure patterns over the Central Plains, Miller added. We did have it for a few weeks there mid June, we were getting up into the 90s but since then, weve kind of gone into a cooler pattern and gotten more rain. Still, Miller said the rainier weather is not yet a concern compared to last years drought. Though rain was about a third of an inch above average last month, last year Milwaukee saw only 1.82 inches of rain during June more than two inches below normal. Drought conditions in Wisconsin in late September 2023 (left) versus early May 2024. September 2023 saw one of the worst droughts in the state since the U.S. Drought Monitor began in 2000. What is the forecast for the rest of the summer? Its hard to predict how long the La Nina conditions will persist after they arrive, which also makes it difficult to say how the weather will look the rest of the summer, Miller said. Once the La Nina conditions set in, the Midwest will see cooler weather, he said. But at least for the next month, Wisconsin is in a neutral phase, with equal chances for hotter-than-average or cooler-than-average temperature, he added. For the next three months, in general, climate forecasts show a 40% to 50% chance of above-average temperatures. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Why this summer is more rainy than previous years in Milwaukee The Supreme Court ended its term July 1, partially granting former President Donald Trump's claim to absolute presidential immunity while in office while punting specific questions related to his Jan. 6 prosecution back down to lower courts for further consideration. That decision was par for the course with the court's other rulings this term, which featured a set of high-profile and unpopular opinions that continued to push American law even further to the right. The high court's refusal to bend to public opinion obviously hasn't done much to improve its standing among Americans: According to 538's polling average, the Supreme Court's net approval rating hit an all-time low of -22.8 percentage points at the end of May. Approval has ticked up slightly since then, but the court still has the lowest approval at the end of a term since we began tracking the question in 2021, at -17.2 points. That surpasses even the aftermath of the decision to overturn Roe v. Wade in 2022. PHOTO: 538's polling average of the Supreme Court's approval rating, as of July 8 at 9 a.m. Eastern. (538 photo illustration) This dissatisfaction is reflected across other polling, too. In an AP-NORC poll from late June, only 16 percent of respondents said that they had a "great deal" of confidence in the Supreme Court, down from 28 percent in February 2020. A Marquette University Law School poll from May found a similar decline of 15 percentage points in public confidence in the court over the last four years. And after a consistent trickle of news about the various ethics scandals and personal feuds of the justices over the last few years, the public isn't too confident in their personal neutrality either. In the AP-NORC poll, 70 percent of Americans said that they believe the justices are guided more by their own beliefs and ideologies than by being impartial when it comes to deciding cases. Amid this environment, public opinion about the court's decisions seems especially critical. After all, we know that the justices are still concerned about attitudes toward the institution despite their many assertions that the court is nonpolitical. And while less than half (45 percent) of the court's major cases* over the last four years were decided along purely ideological lines, those more divisive rulings have been notably less popular among the public, according to surveys conducted by SCOTUSPoll, a polling collaboration between a group of academics. The average net support for decisions that relied entirely on a conservative majority was -4.1 points, while the average net approval of rulings that included at least one liberal justice in the majority was the reverse, +4.1 points. (SCOTUSPoll surveys are fielded before the Supreme Court releases decisions in each case, so their numbers don't capture how public opinion may have reacted to each ruling. But the data still gives us a good baseline on how the public feels about these decisions.) As it turns out, the Supreme Court may be considering these trends in public opinion in determining when to release its decisions, putting out more popular rulings earlier and more unpopular ones later. Since 2021, the Supreme Court has handed down most of its unanimous (or close-to-unanimous) decisions first, in May and early-to-mid June. That could be for a few reasons perhaps the justices want to create a narrative of a congenial and moderate court before the more contentious rulings are released. Or perhaps it's because those cases feature less disagreement among the justices and therefore require less time to prepare opinions. Regardless of the reason, the decisions released during that period are also the most popular with the general public, with an average of about +9 net support in surveys from SCOTUSPoll: But the data also shows that since 2021, the court has released a majority of its conservative-only decisions in the final few days of the term. Those unpopular rulings tank average public support by over 10 points. This pattern seems in line with a strategy to minimize public backlash by having the court announce opinions after the media has already begun to settle on a narrative for the term and right before the July Fourth holiday, when the general public isn't paying as close attention. That approach may pay dividends, at least based on attitudes about potential rulings before they were made: The average net support for the court's rulings at the end of its term is -3 points. While that's not a great number, it's close to even and certainly much higher than support for some of the court's most-publicized recent rulings, like Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization and the presidential immunity case. This is a new phenomenon, at least when compared to how the court behaved before Justice Amy Coney Barrett's appointment created a 6-3 conservative majority four years ago. In 2020, the court actually released many of its unanimous or close-to-unanimous decisions at the end of the term, and there was no discernible pattern of when the conservative-only opinions were handed down (there were only two that SCOTUSPoll asked about): This suggests that the justices are aware of how unpopular their rulings have been in recent years and are trying different strategies to minimize backlash except, of course, for handing down more popular decisions. As Chief Justice John Roberts said in his opinion in the Trump immunity case, "unlike the political branches and the public at large, the court cannot afford to fixate" primarily on things like public opinion or the politics of the day. We'll have to wait a few more weeks to be certain of how the public is reacting to the court's latest rulings. But don't expect the justices to change course anytime soon. Footnotes *Defined as a case that was asked about in a SCOTUSPoll. Why the Supreme Court tends to release unpopular decisions late in its term originally appeared on abcnews.go.com A 33-year-old Wichita County man has been sentenced to prison for sex crimes committed against an 8-year-old girl in Electra, according to court records. Hunter James Vowell pleaded guilty Monday to charges of aggravated sexual assault of a child and attempt to commit indecency with a child/sexual contact as part of a plea bargain in 89th District Court. Vowell was being held Monday in the Wichita County Jail, pending his transfer to prison, according to online jail and court records. Vowell Presiding Judge Kelly Moore sentenced him to 12 years in prison on the first-degree felony assault plea and 10 years on the third-degree attempt to commit indecency plea. The sentences will run concurrently. Aggravated sexual assault of a child is punishable by up to life in prison. Attempt to commit indecency with a child is punishable by up to 10 years in prison. Another charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child against Vowell was dismissed on Monday. The offenses occurred at Vowells home in Electra in late 2018, and the case was investigated by the Texas Rangers. Vowell was initially indicted on a charge of aggravated sexual assault of a child in April 2021, court records show. That charged was dismissed because he was re-indicted in June on three charges. He was arrested again June 8 for the newly indicted charges and was freed June 11 from jail on $475,000 bail, according to jail records. This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: Wichita County man to go to prison after plea to sex offenses against a child Woman back in Charlotte after serious crash in Turks and Caicos A young single mother is back from the Turks and Caicos Islands after she was seriously injured in a deadly car crash. Majesty Carr is back in Charlotte and is about to undergo surgery, her family said Monday. The single mom was hospitalized after she was in a car crash while on vacation. PREVIOUS: Woman must raise $25K to bring home daughter, seriously injured in car crash while on vacation One of Carrs friend was killed in the crash and several other people were also hurt. Carr was in critical condition with a fractured jaw and arm, a dislocated hip, and a brain bleed. After the crash, Carrs mother set up a GoFundMe to raise $25,000 for a special air ambulance to get her daughter back home. Doctors said she needed more care than they could provide, and her injuries were so extensive that she needed special transportation. That fund has raised more than $30,000 after the community stepped in, helping bring her home. Channel 9s Hannah Goetz spoke with Carrs family on Tuesday as her healing journey begins. We got her back When we talked to Karen McMillan last month, it was an emotional conversation. She said she was in desperate need of help for Carr, her daughter. Nearly two weeks later, McMillans conversation with Goetz was much different. We got her back, she told Goetz. ALSO READ: Charlotte resident stuck in Jamaica following Hurricane Beryl landfall If the world wouldnt have came together, I still would be trying to figure [the expense] out. But my heart lifted when I realized the money was there and I was like, Oh my God, you know. I was shocked. After her story aired last month, their GoFundMe jumped from $2,000 to $30,000. Carr finally made it home on Saturday and was reunited with her mom and daughter. I just gave her a big kiss and told her I love her, and she looked at me and said, Thank you so much mom, Im so glad to be home. And I said And I am glad youre home, McMillan said. Carr has had two surgeries in two days at Atrium Health to fix her jaw and shoulder and McMillan hasnt left her side. She said she couldnt be more grateful for everyone who helped bring her daughter home. I could give everybody a hug and show how grateful we are and how thankful. And just, we are grateful for their hearts, she said. Carr is expected to be in the hospital for a few more weeks. Her mom said they still have thousands of dollars of medical bills to cover. (WATCH BELOW: Beryl makes landfall on Texas coast as a Category 1 hurricane) JOHNSON COUNTY, Texas (WJW) More than 20 years after a newborn baby girl was found dead on the side of a road in Texas, authorities say, a woman, identified as the childs mother, has been indicted for 2nd-degree manslaughter. According to a press release from the Texas Attorney General, Shelby Stotts is accused of recklessly causing the death of her newborn daughter by leaving the baby unattended on the side of the road, not seeking medical care after giving birth, and not clamping the babys umbilical cord which caused the child to bleed to death. Put-in-Bay chase leads to golf cart crash, arrest It was in November 2001, that the body of the infant was discovered in a ditch with the umbilical cord still attached. According to the Johnson County Sheriffs Office, a local resident was picking up cans when he found the dead infant wrapped in a jacket. This embedded content is not available in your region. Officials with the Johnson County Sheriffs office said they worked tirelessly to identify the child but for years the case went unsolved. The infant became known as Angel Baby Doe. Woman killed after SUV hit in suspected DUI crash Then in 2021, advanced DNA testing helped provide new leads in the case and pointed investigators to potential relatives of the infant. According to officials, Stotts will be prosecuted under the laws that were in effect at the time of the 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 Fox 8 Cleveland WJW. Woman shot to death and stuffed in bag on Manhattan street: NYPD KIPS BAY, Manhattan (PIX11) A family is searching for answers after a woman was killed and stuffed inside a sleeping bag, and then left on a dolly next to a pile of garbage bags on a Manhattan street Friday, police said. Authorities found Yazmeen Williams, 31, with a gunshot wound to the head and wrapped in a plastic bag inside a sleeping bag at 207 East 27th St. near Third Avenue in Kips Bay at around 5 p.m., according to the NYPD and sources. The decomposing body was on a dolly next to a mound of garbage bags, sources said. More Local News We honestly dont know who would hurt her, the womans aunt, Nisha Ramirez, told PIX11 News. Shes sweet. Shes a nice person and she grew up here. We dont know why someone would have a motive to do something to her. A man was seen on video dragging the bag on an electric wheelchair before cops found the body near a tailor shop, law enforcement sources said. It wasnt immediately clear how the man was connected to the case. Its evil, just evil, the victims cousin said. Shes not trash. Williams was college-educated and had a twin brother and an 8-year-old sister, according to her family. She was about to begin a new job at the NYCHA. Its just heartbreaking, the cousin said. The circumstances surrounding the womans death were unclear. The medical examiner deemed the incident a homicide. There have been no arrests and the investigation is ongoing. She was murdered and left in a bag on the sidewalk for garbage collection, according to a GoFundMe post titled Justice for Jazzy. 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). 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. ULAN BATOR, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Another Mongolian opposition party the Hun Party announced on Monday that it has agreed to form a coalition government with the ruling Mongolian People's Party (MPP). "People may wonder why we, the opposition, are choosing to form a coalition government with the ruling party. We aim to foster a culture of stability and collaborative governance," Togmid Dorjkhand, chairman of the Hun Party, said in a statement. "However, we will engage in debates at the parliament level. At the government level, the Hun Party accepts the proposal to form a coalition government, emphasizing the need to move beyond partisan bickering and advance the country's major projects." The MPP secured a narrow margin of victory in the parliamentary elections held on June 28, winning 68 of the 126 seats up for grabs, while the Democratic Party obtained 42 seats. The Hun Party secured eight seats, with the Civil Will-Green Party and the National Coalition each securing four seats. The ruling party has proposed the formation of a coalition government with, the main opposition, the Democratic Party and the Hun Party. On Sunday, the DP announced that it had accepted the ruling party's proposal to form a coalition government. In May 2023, the Asian country's parliament, also known as the State Great Khural, passed amendments increasing the number of legislators from 76 to 126. The elections were conducted under a mixed electoral system, with 78 legislators elected through majority representation and 48 through proportional representation. The Asian country's parliament operates under a unicameral system with a four-year term. Woman stabbed to death by man she knew in Vancouver PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) A woman was stabbed to death by a man she knew who also stabbed himself Sunday evening, Vancouver police said. When officers arrived in the 1000 block of SE 160th, the woman had already died, authorities said. The man was rushed to an area hospital for treatment, but his condition isnt available at this time. Witnesses: Portland street racers fired guns, launched fireworks No further information, such as names or ages or what led up to the incident, is available. This homicide remains under investigation by Vancouver police, who said no other suspects are being sought. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. TOPEKA (KSNT) City workers in Topeka are capping off another busy phase of their ongoing efforts to enforce a new abatement on camping along the Kansas River. 27 News reached out to the City of Topeka for an update on the cleanup efforts which got started earlier this year. City spokeswoman Rosie Nichols said in a written statement that crews have now cleared hundreds of tons of garbage and trash from the riverbank as the new camping abatement is enforced. Nichols provided 27 News with the latest statistics on how many pounds of trash have been cleared during each phase of the abatement along the river. A breakdown of these numbers can be found below: Phase One 177.88 tons/355,760 pounds. Phase Two(a) 61.79 tons/123,580 pounds. Phase Two(b) 192.99 tons/385,980 pounds. Total 432.66 tons/865,320 pounds Wanamaker Road pavement repair project set for July City workers plan to return to the riverbank for phase three of the abatement process to clear additional homeless camps along the riverbank. However, no date is set for the operation. Nichols said City of Topeka Water Pollution Control has logged a total of 267 hours of work so far in the first two phases of the abatement process as they work to clear the encampments. The Topeka Police Department (TPD) has also put in 291 hours of service during these phases assisting city crews. The city is continuing, on a case-by-case basis, to enforce the camping ordinance and abate properties in violation of Topeka Municipal Code across the city, Nichols said in a written statement. We are also continuing to work collaboratively between Housing Services, TPDs Behavioral Health Unit and our community partners to assist individuals impacted and get them connected to the resources they need. Around 20-22 homeless individuals will be or have been impacted by these enforcement efforts thus far. A recent head count of the citys homeless population, the results of which were released on May 31, shows homelessness is increasing with the current number placed at 537 individuals and 442 households. Mental episode and texting while driving causes crash on I-70 in Shawnee County The City of Topekas new camping ordinance, found in 9.45.360 and 9.45.350 of the citys municipal codes, places several restrictions on camping activities in city limits which are being enforced in a phased approach by local leadership. Restrictions include the following: No camping within 500 feet of the centerline of any trail. No camping within 50 feet of the centerline of any sidewalk inside city limits. No camping within a levee-critical zone. For more Homeless Issues 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. The WWI Marines who became the services first Medal of Honor aviators The aviation and intelligence branch of the U.S. Army Signal Corps was evolving into the Army Air Service, when, on March 10, 1918, the Navy Department ordered four land squadrons to aid the British in bombing operations against German targets. By early July, Navy and Marine aircrews trained at French, British and Italian aerodromes were ready and eager to enter the fray. But there were still no aircraft for them to fly. Considering the equipment shortage, many crew members were loaned out to RAF squadrons to gain combat experience. Flying the Liberty DH-4 British-designed de Havilland bombers with American-built Liberty V-12 engines with the RAFs No. 218 Squadron on Oct. 2, U.S. Marine Capt. Robert S. Lytle and Gunnery Sgt. Amil Wiman flew at dangerously low altitudes to deliver food and supplies to endangered troops. The duo also joined in two bombing raids. The following day, the exhausted crew was spelled by 2nd Lt. Ralph Talbot and Gunnery Sgt. Robert G. Robinson, who flew numerous bombing sorties over the subsequent days. How a WWII ace became the unlikely honoree of a submarine combat award Born in Weymouth, Massachusetts, on Jan. 6, 1897, Ralph Talbot studied at Yale before taking an interest in aviation. When war broke out he joined the Navy in October 1917, but transferred to a second lieutenants commission in the Marine Corps Reserve to see more action. Talbots bombardier, Robinson, was born in Wayne, Michigan, on April 30, 1894, and had been wounded on the ground before being reassigned to Talbots back seat. When nine German fighters attacked the British flight during a raid on Ardoye on Oct. 8, Talbot and Robinson flew alone to aggressively engage the enemy planes and were credited with shooting down one. On Oct. 14 the Marines finally had the aircraft numbers necessary for C Squadron, First Marine Aviation Force, to launch the Day Wings first independent operation from Frances Le Fresne Aerodrome, with Capt. Lytle leading eight aircraft against German railways and yards located in the Belgian city of Thielt. One plane dropped out with engine trouble, but the rest dropped 2,000 pounds of bombs on target. On the way back, the Marines came under attack by 11 German fighters. Signaling his pilots to tighten up their formation, Lytle and Wiman fought off the leading German aircraft, then sent the second one spiraling out of control. Illustration depicting the Oct. 14, 1918 battle. (Naval History and Heritage Command) Meanwhile, two bombers had fallen behind due to engine trouble and the Germans were singling out one of them crewed by Talbot and Robinson. A round fired from the German fighter struck Robinson, shattering his left elbow and leaving his arm hanging by a single tendon. Robinson fought on until a cartridge jammed in his weapon. Seeing his gunners plight, Talbot turned on his attackers, only to suffer jammed guns as well. Talbots aggressive move, however, bought Robinson enough time to clear his weapons jam using just his right hand. Robinson resumed firing and may have struck one of the enemy planes before being hit again, this time in the stomach and thigh. He then collapsed unconscious on the DH-4s cables. With great difficulty, Talbot manhandled his plane around to fly headlong at another German aircraft, bluffing the enemy pilot into turning away. Talbot then dived low and crossed the lines at an altitude of just 50 feet. Not wishing to force-land his riddled bomber with his bombardier suffering from 13 wounds, Talbot flew on to the Hondschoote Aerodrome, which he knew had a field hospital. There, the surgeon-general of the Belgian army took a personal hand in successfully grafting Robinsons arm back on. Talbots aircraft was also patched up in time for him to fly it in the Marines next raids on Oct. 17 and 18. On Oct. 25, however, Talbot and 2nd Lt. Colgate W. Darden, Jr. were taking the plane up for an engine test when they failed to clear a bomb embankment trench at the end of the field. The plane flipped over, throwing Darden clear with serious injuries, but trapping Talbot in the cockpit as it crashed into a pile of bombs and exploded in flames, killing him. Talbot was 21 years old. On Nov. 11, 1920, Talbot and Robinson were both awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions on Oct. 14, 1918, making them the first two Marine aviators to receive the award. Robinson eventually recovered from his wounds and lived until the age of 80. He died at his home in St. Ignace, Michigan, on Oct. 5, 1974. The Earths ionosphere protects us from harmful UV radiation, but despite the helpful protection, this slice of Earths atmosphere is incredibly complex. NASAs Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission recently captured X- and C-shaped plasma bubbles that could interfere with communications. Although these shapes have been seen before, GOLD captured them during quiet times and in immense proximity to each othertwo things that scientists did not expect. Extending some 50 to 400 miles above the Earths surface, the ionosphere is our worlds interface with space, as our life-supporting atmosphere gives way to a complex environment of electrically charged particles and magnetic fields. Understanding this layer of Earths atmosphere is vitally important for technologies like radio communication and GPS, but also the overall health of the planet, since it absorbs the Suns extreme ultraviolet rays. Thats why, in 2013, NASA gave the go-ahead for the Global-scale Observations of the Limb and Disk (GOLD) mission. Launched into geosynchronous orbit (GEO) by an Ariane 5 rocket in 2018, the two-channel, far-ultraviolet-imaging spectrograph was a technological hitchhiker aboard the commercial satellite SES-14 (SES is a Luxembourgish satellite telecommunications network provider). Its core mission was to provide unprecedented imaging of the upper atmosphere as well as being the first mission to focus strictly on the weather of the thermosphere-ionosphere, according to the University of Central Florida, one of several universities to work on the project. In the six years since, GOLD has delivered on that mission, and in a new paper published in the Journal of Geophysical Research: Space Physics, scientists reveal how this cost-effective satellite appendage has upended our understanding of the ionosphere by revealing the strange behavior of X- and C-shaped plasma bubbles during unexpected, low-activity quiet times. Earlier reports of merging were only during geomagnetically disturbed conditions," University of Colorados Fazlul Laskar, who was the lead author of the study, said in a NASA press statement. It is an unexpected feature during geomagnetic quiet conditions. These shapes have been seen in this slice of the atmosphere before, but usually during some moment of intense disturbance, whether on the ground (erupting volcanoes) or in space (solar storms). However, because GOLD can track these bubbles over time thanks to its position in GEO, its found that these shapes also form during relatively quiet times with little turbulence, something the scientists did not expect. These shapes form near Earths magnetic equator as charged particles move upward and outward, predictably along magnetic field lines, and the dense bands north and south of the equator are known as crests. However, sometimes these bubbles, which are usually straight, form curved C-shape or reverse C-shape lines, likely due to terrestrial winds; they can even form an X-shape when the lower atmosphere pulls the plasma downward. The X is odd because it implies that there are far more localized driving factors, NASAs Jeffrey Klenzing said in a press statement. This is expected during the extreme events, but seeing it during quiet time suggests that the lower atmosphere activity is significantly driving the ionospheric structure. GOLD has also captured a rare phenomenon of two shapesand C and a reverse-Cless than some 400 miles apart, and experts say that two of these shapes so close together had never been thought of, never been imagined. GOLD has only captured this arrangement twice, and scientists expect that its likely due to some sort of strong turbulence, such as a wind shear or even a tornado. Understanding these shapes, as well as the overall complexity of the ionosphere, will help improve communication technologies while potentially avoiding disruption during major solar storms or other disturbances. The ionosphere is the protective shield that helps life to flourish on Earth, and now that life is finally beginning to solve many of its lingering mysteries. You Might Also Like This is a locator map for Yemen with its capital, Sanaa. (AP Photo) UNITED NATIONS (AP) Yemens Houthi rebels could free a political leader with ties to the internationally recognized government who has been detained for nearly a decade, under a preliminary prisoner swap deal announced by the United Nations on Monday. Mohamed Qahtan is the leader of the Sunni Islamist Islah party, which is aligned with the Saudi Arabia-backed government, and he has been held incommunicado by the Iranian-backed Houthis since 2015, the United Nations said. The office of U.N. special envoy Hans Grundberg convened a meeting in Oman with the International Committee of the Red Cross over the weekend to facilitate talks centered on a prisoner exchange, in accordance with the 2018 Stockholm Agreement, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The two Yemeni sides agreed to meet to discuss the final list of who will be released and the details of Qahtans release, Dujarric said, without providing details on the potential agreement. Qahtans release has been a point of contention for years, Dujarric said. In addition to Qahtan, the Houthi rebels have detained at least 45 Yemeni employees of U.N. agencies, diplomatic missions, private companies and other organizations. Grundberg urged the parties to agree on more releases and also repeated a demand for the immediate and unconditional release of U.N. personnel, aid workers and others detained in the Houthi-held capital of Sanaa who continue to be held incommunicado, Dujarric said. At a U.N. Security Council meeting Monday, U.S. deputy ambassador Stephanie Sullivan called for the detainees immediate release. The detention of U.N. and NGO staff directly and negatively affects the ability of these organizations to provide humanitarian aid, she said. Yemen has been engulfed in civil war since 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen and forced the internationally recognized government to flee from Sanaa. A Saudi-led coalition intervened the following year in support of government forces, and in time the conflict turned into a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The war has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the worlds worst humanitarian disasters. Since November, the Houthis have attacked shipping in nearby waters, saying they aim to pressure Israel to halt its war in Gaza. The Houthis have targeted more than 60 vessels with missiles and drones, killing a total of four sailors. A U.S.-led airstrike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say. Lianna Holden, representing Freeport High School Students Demand Action, speaks at a gun-safety rally in the Maine State House in Augusta on March 13, 2024. (Jim Neuger/ Maine Morning Star) Growing up amid rising school shootings across the country, gun safety had been a key concern for recent Freeport high school graduate Lianna Holden even before the issue hit so close to home. But after Holden, a Lewiston resident, saw the devastation in her community from the mass shooting last fall, she took to the state Legislature to try to compel change. As Holden stood before the Maine Legislatures Judiciary Committee in March, she recounted for lawmakers being paralyzed with fear as sirens went off around her home the days following the shooting and the fear she continues to harbor going to school each day with the premonition that tragedy could strike again. While testifying for the first time before the state Legislature, Holdens nerves were, for the most part, eclipsed by her knowledge of the legislative process. Shed undergone training on grassroots lobbying, workshops on how to write testimony, and had been tracking the changing text and outcomes of these gun bills and other legislation of interest to her and her classmates. Holden is one of the founding members of the Youth Advocacy Team, a part of the Maine Students Vote arm of Democracy Maine, a collaboration of nonpartisan organizations focused on making government more equitable. Holden and other students passionate about making change on a state level brought the idea to the nonprofit and, with its backing, have since lobbied legislators and trained their peers. It was through the youth advocates leadership that Democracy Maine developed a subcommittee dedicated to gun safety, which brought together intergenerational views on the topic and organized people to testify on related legislative proposals. Youth have so much power that just goes untapped because nobody ever gives us the time of day, said Alex Wu, incoming senior at Scarborough High School. Another founding member of the youth advocacy team, Wu said the team has given them the resources and courage to make their voice heard. Youre there. Youre doing the same thing as adults, and that is so empowering, Wu said. You can have an impact. Bringing the idea to life The idea for the group sprouted for Holden in 2022, when an active shooter hoax spread fear across schools in Maine and she decided to turn that fear into action. An intern for Democracy Maine at the time, Holden brought the idea for a team of student advocates to the nonprofit and found that many of her peers shared her interest in this work. In 2023, the first year of Maines latest two-year legislative cycle, the students focused on identifying and tracking legislation on issues that interested them, which in addition to gun safety also included a range of proposals to push for racial, criminal and environmental justice. That bill tracker became a really great tool for us to share with our teacher networks, said Allyson Gardner, director of Maine Students Vote which houses the team. Because it was a research resource created by students of, These are the bills Im interested in, and it wasnt from a particular organization or political partys lens. At its height, the team included six members, Gardner said, many of whom were interns with Democracy Maine. However, the youth advocates engaged about 200 more students in their work, Gardner explained, by taking what theyd learned back to other organizations theyre a part of, such as their respective schools civil rights teams and other clubs. One of the ways the teams work has extended beyond its membership is through workshops on how to write testimony on legislation. Wu has led many of these workshops, which include providing tips on how to navigate the Maine Legislature website and draw from personal experience to bring anecdotal evidence to the issue at hand. In 2024, the advocacy team focused more on putting that learning to work testifying on the legislation theyd tracked as well as speaking directly with their state representatives and senators. The issues Wu has had difficulty accessing mental health services and has seen her peers struggle to do the same, particularly since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Wu told the members of the Legislatures Education and Cultural Affairs Committee on January 11. I am scared for my peers, Wu said. I am scared of a world where instead of living up to solve the problems handed down to us by past generations my peers choose suicide instead. Wu brought her personal experience to testimony in support of a proposal to provide incentives to schools that contract for certain mental health services. The representative of Wus town, Rep. Kelly Murphy (D-Scarborough), noted that shed seen Wu had submitted testimony on numerous other bills as well and asked what spurred Wus interest in testifying. I know that my age demographic is particularly underrepresented, Wu said in response, and I know the importance of civic engagement and how hard it is for legislators to know whats right or wrong specifically in a case like education, where youre speaking on behalf of these students but not really getting much direct input form them. The youth advocacy team tried to bring the student perspective to a range of legislative proposals last session: bills to assist homeless students, address food insecurity, establish a civil rights unit, prohibit unauthorized paramilitary training, advance the self-determination of the Wabanaki Nations, and have Maine joining the National Popular Vote Compact among dozens of others. Some of these topics, like youth mental health, Wu and her peers had an intimate knowledge of, while other issues, like the National Popular Vote Compact, would soon become relevant to them. States that are part of the compact pledge their Electoral College votes to the presidential candidate with the most overall votes across the country, though more states still need to join in order for it to take effect. While not yet old enough to vote, Wu will turn 18 years old just in time for the November election. I do not want my votes importance to be decided based on what state I live in, Wu told Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee when lawmakers first considered the proposal. My friends do not want their votes importance to be decided based on what state they live in. Our votes should be counted equally. The National Popular Vote Compact achieves this. Some of the bills the students advocated for, such as this compact, did become law, but many did not whether that be because of failing to pass the Legislature, secure funding or get the governors sign off. Right now, theyve been doing a lot of reflection about okay, Which bills didnt get passed that you were passionate about? What is the pathway to bring those back to the legislative session? Gardner said of the teams summer plans. With one legislative session under their belts, the youth advocates also now have ambitions to draft legislation of their own. Most of my summer is going to be trying to reread through the Maine legislative drafting manual, Wu said, and seeking out advice from legal experts on bill writing. While Wu and others are eager to continue to expand their knowledge of the legislative process, the students also want to use their unique perspective as students. I think one of the great benefits of not having fully developed yet is that we are just willing to do stuff that goes unquestioned for adults, Wu said. Like, why should that part of that system be part of this system? Thats stupid, thats dumb, lets change it. And then, we make it easier for the next generation of youth. Holden also sees advantages to advocacy work as a young person, particularly when it comes to the issue of gun safety that shed focused on last session. I was just a kindergartener when the tragedy at Sandy Hook unfolded, and I was in sixth grade when the horrors of Parkland took place, Holden told the Judiciary Committee in April, testifying in support of a proposed red flag law. These mass shootings, which have become all too familiar in our society, represent a uniquely American experience one that should never be accepted as the norm. Most adults dont know the fear of attending school with the constant thought in the back of their mind that a shooter could upend their lives, Holden told Maine Morning Star. That perspective is needed and one that students can uniquely provide. There are a lot of doors closed to us, Holden said of youth advocates. But, there are also a lot of doors open. When you're learning how to advocate for other people, you also learn how to advocate for yourself. Lianna Holden, recent graduate of Freeport High School Addressing barriers to youth involvement While Holden, Wu and other members of the youth advocacy team spent a lot of time in the State House during the last session, it wasnt always easy. Accessibility is a huge issue, Holden said, pointing to the fact that Augusta is not a quick commute for many in the geographically expansive state. Committee meetings and chamber sessions also typically occur during school hours, and the Legislature runs on what many call legislative time, Wu added. Wu used the virtual option to provide testimony for a number of bills last session, which made doing so more accessible saving Wu the time and gas money for the more than an hour commute from Scarborough to Augusta. However, Wu quickly realized that blocking off a period of the school day to testify was rarely sufficient because of late starts or unpredictably long meetings. An hour out of your day to do testimony could turn into an entire school day, Wu said. Holden testified in person in favor of several of the proposed gun reforms and said another barrier to youth engagement is parental support. While Holden said her mom allowed her to miss school to go to the State House, a lot of parents arent cool with that. Parents may not agree with their children politically, Holden added, which can be another roadblock. I rarely saw other young people when I was there, Holden said of her time at the State House. Its just really not a young constituent friendly place a lot of the time. The accessibility of language in bill texts and understanding the legislative process itself are additional hurdles, Wu said. Quite frankly, a lot of the language is dry or not understandable, Wu said, explaining that connections to Democracy Maine were pivotal on this front, because through the organization the students had a network of legal professionals who could help them break down legalese. In addition to the legal advice, Democracy Maine allowed Wu and others to get paid for their work through a high school internship program. The organization also recently wrapped its pilot year of a paid fellowship program, open to high school graduates. Subsidizing youth work, or telling the people in power that you want subsidized youth work, is so powerful, Wu said, explaining that money is also a major barrier to youth involvement. Time, transit, those all relate to money. While barriers remain, the youth advocacy team has helped Wu, Holden and their peers overcome many of the obstacles to understanding state policy and making their voices heard. So much of it is empowering, Wu said of their advocacy work. You feel like you can do this stuff you know you can do this stuff because youve been doing it. The students said they learned skills they believe will aid them in their future careers, and more broadly as civically engaged citizens. When youre learning how to advocate for other people, Holden said, you also learn how to advocate for yourself. DONATE: SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST These Young Republicans used a racist song to promote their pool party No one in the Maricopa County Republican Party is the wiser apparently about why a term co-opted by white nationalists would be problematic to hype a pool party. It should not surprise us that the Maricopa County Young Republicans plan to celebrate the end of the primary season with a racist trope-themed White Boy Summer MAGA pool party. Think about that. It. Should. Not. Surprise. Us. Young people in a political organization like the GOP base their beliefs and their behavior on what they learn from more mature members of the party. Mature being the operative word. It's not like their GOP elders serve as best role models These are Maricopa County Republicans, after all, an operation for which its first vice chair, Shelby Busch, called for the lynching of County Recorder Stephen Richer. These are the supposedly grown-up Republicans from which came the fake electors who tried to overturn the 2020 election, including two members of the Legislature, state Sens. Jake Hoffman and Anthony Kern. With such stellar examples for the rule of law and common decency it should not surprise us that the young Republicans from the county plan a pool party they describe on publicity material as White Boy Summer. The Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (among others) has described how, when the phrase White Boy Summer first appeared on social media, it was not intended as a racist trope. But, as the group points out, it has been co-opted by far-right extremists to promote hate and bigotry. Really, no one saw a problem with 'White Boy Summer'? The project goes on to describe how several extremist groups including the Proud Boys, White Lives Matter, the Identitarian movement in Europe and neo-Nazi Active Clubs are all using White Boy Summer to spread propaganda, recruit new members and facilitate targeted hate campaigns including acts of vandalism and hate incidents. This is not new information. Anyone who is familiar with social media would know about the controversy surrounding the phrase White Boy Summer. Why should we 'conserve' this America? Republicans, restore freedom, order instead And there are no individuals more tech savvy than young people. The young Republicans would know about this. Their GOP elders should have known about it as well. Or they would have been told about it. Or someone among them would have read about it, or asked about it, since even if you were completely ignorant of what the phrase has come to mean any reasonable person would be taken aback, at least a bit, by the potentially racist implication of White Boy Summer. You'd think wiser Republicans would be concerned. But, no But, apparently, they were not. Youd think that Republicans, while hoping to draw as many voters to the cause as possible, would be slightly (or more so) concerned that staging an event based on a theme that has become a white nationalist, neo-Nazi trope might be a bit off-putting. If not just wrong. Fed up with an extreme Arizona Legislature? Your vote can moderate it Youd think that the more seasoned members of the Republican Party in Maricopa County would counsel the younger members of the group into changing the theme of their summer pool party into something less suggestively bigoted, less white nationalist, less neo-Nazi. Perhaps the older Republicans made the recommendation, and it was ignored. Or perhaps they didnt bother, having no issue with the partys theme. Either way. It. Should. Not. Surprise. Us. Reach Montini at ed.montini@arizonarepublic.com. For more opinions content, please subscribe. This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa Young Republicans use White Boy Summer for pool party theme [Source] A Japanese YouTuber couple known online as the "Raunano family" drew backlash over their May 23 video featuring their 2-year-old daughter trapped inside a hot car for over 30 minutes. The father claimed the incident occurred by accident while picking up their son from kindergarten, but he chose to film the distressed child instead of seeking immediate help. Despite the couple's apology video, viewers criticized the parents for prioritizing views over their child's safety, with some demanding the removal of their channel, which has over 58,000 subscribers as of this writing. Download the NextShark App: Want to keep up to date on Asian American News? Download the NextShark App today! President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived in Warsaw on July 8 and met with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, the Presidential Office said. The visit comes a day before the upcoming NATO summit is scheduled to begin in Washington, D.C. Zelensky and Tusk will discuss a variety of issues, including the expected outcomes of the summit, bilateral defense cooperation, trade and humanitarian partnerships, and Poland's planned participation in reconstruction works, the Presidential Office said. The two leaders will also sign a bilateral security cooperation agreement. Poland will be the latest country to sign such a bilateral security agreement with Ukraine, following the U.S., the U.K., Germany, France, the European Union, and others. "Perseverance and courage (are the) words best describing the attitude of Zelensky in the fight for a safe Ukraine and a safe Europe," Tusk wrote on X. "You can always count on us in this fight," he added. Read also: White House: Biden may hold bilateral meeting with Zelensky during NATO summit Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Russian artist Kuznetsova Aleksandra applies paint on a Li brocade picture in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, Aug. 25, 2022. (Xinhua) HAIKOU, July 8 (Xinhua) -- In Kuznetsova Aleksandra's studio in Haikou, capital of south China's island province Hainan, an oil painting of St. Basil's Cathedral hangs alongside a portrait of a graceful woman from the Li ethnic minority, reflecting two distinct facets of the artist's life. Growing up in an artist family, the 24-year-old Russian woman fell in love with painting at an early age. Six years ago she moved to Hainan, where she set up her own studio. Her passion for Chinese culture began when she was just 10 years old. "I didn't have Mandarin teachers," she recalled. "I learned the language from the internet, books and TV. I just like the culture of the country." In 2018, fueled by her passion, Aleksandra came to Hainan to study, where she was captivated by the island's serene natural beauty and relaxed pace of life. "It's a very beautiful place, and the people here are kind, lovely and genuinely simple," she said. "Life moves at a leisurely pace, allowing them to harmonize with nature." She noted that being in Hainan enabled her to deeply explore nature and humanity in her artwork, which are her favorite subjects. Local ethnic people and culture became a part of her life when she traveled around the island with her husband, whom she met in Hainan. "We ventured into the heart of Hainan, encountering various communities. It was then that I first encountered the Li people," she recalled. The Li brocade made a profound impression on her. It's a traditional textile of the Li ethnic group in Hainan, known as the "living fossil" of the textile industry, with a history spanning over 3,000 years. "What you see is a woman weaving it (the brocade), telling you a story told by the generations before her, like the Dalishen, or the God of Strength, who is protecting us. It gives me inspiration and power to create," she explained. She then attempted to capture the intricate patterns and totems of the brocades in her paintings, blending local culture into her creations, a process she found deeply fulfilling. During her time in Hainan, Aleksandra has also witnessed the development of the local culture. She said that new cultural landmarks like the tranquil Wormhole Library and the seaside building Sky Mountain have brought her great joy. The latter houses bookstores, cafes, galleries and an outdoor stage. Hainan's artistic scene is burgeoning, Aleksandra noted, adding that the island's inclusive and open environment presents abundant opportunities for artists. "In the past few years, I've met many artists, designers, movie directors, photographers, musicians and architects here. There are numerous activities you can participate in. Artists here share art, music and the joys of life," she said. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Russia, and the beginning of the 2024-2025 China-Russia Years of Culture. Currently, both countries are hosting a series of cultural exchange activities. Art has no boundary and it has the power to bridge cultural gaps, Aleksandra said. She plans to host an exhibition featuring Chinese and Russian culture, hoping to help people from the two countries understand each other better through her artworks. "I will stay in China as long as I can. It's my second home," she said. Russian artist Kuznetsova Aleksandra paints on the wall of her studio in Haikou, capital of south China's Hainan Province, June 14, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhou Huimin) Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in Warsaw. Zelenskyy is in Warsaw to meeth Polish leaders ahead of the upcoming NATO summit and to sign bilateral security agreement. -/Ukrainian Presidency/dpa Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to meet with Polish leaders in Warsaw ahead of the NATO summit in Washington, the Polish government reported on Monday. Zelensky is expected to meet with Prime Minister Donald Tusk around midday. Tusk recently announced that he would most likely sign a bilateral security agreement with Zelensky. In the early afternoon on Tuesday, Zelensky is to meet his Polish counterpart Andrzej Duda. Poland, an EU and NATO member, is one of the most committed political and military supporters of Ukraine, which has been fending off Russia's full-scale invasion for more than two years. Poland also plays an important role as a hub for Western military aid to Kyiv. Nearly 1 million Ukrainian refugees have fled to Poland since the war began. The NATO summit celebrating the alliance's 75th anniversary will take place from July 9-11 in Washington. Leaders from the 32 member countries plan to discuss further support for Ukraine, among other topics. Zelensky has also been invited to the meeting. Kiev is hoping for further commitments at the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, including up to six Patriot systems from Israel. Zelensky has stressed the need for at least seven reliable anti-aircraft systems to protect major cities such as Kharkiv, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhya and Odessa, which are frequently targeted by Russian missile attacks. Since Ukrainian airspace has been closed since the start of the war, Zelensky has to take the land route through Poland for all foreign trips before he can continue by plane from there. Zelensky repudiates Orban, says 'only strong alliances' can be mediators between Russia, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky criticized the so-called "peacekeeping mission" of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, saying on July 8 that successful mediation between Russia and Ukraine can be achieved only by "serious and strong alliances." The comments came during a joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. Orban visited Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on July 5 in what he called a "peace mission," just days after meeting Zelensky in Kyiv. Many European officials expressed anger at Orban's visit to Moscow, and the European Union Council President Charles Michel said that Hungary "has no mandate to engage with Russia on behalf of the EU." Read also: Zelensky dismissed Orbans ceasefire proposal, Kyiv says Ukraine's Foreign Ministry echoed the sentiment, saying that "the decision to make this trip was made by the Hungarian side without the agreement or coordination from Ukraine." Zelensky further emphasized that Orban's trip to Moscow was "his independent choice." Effective mediation requires the most powerful countries or alliances, such as the U.S., China, or the entire EU, Zelensky said, adding that Putin's meeting with Orban "does not mean that he wants to end the war." "(Putin) wants to show some steps, but after this he always has a bloody demonstration, as this morning in Ukraine," Zelensky said. Russia launched a mass missile attack on Kyiv and other cities across Ukraine on the morning of July 8, killing at least 28 civilians and injuring 112 others. Read also: Over 100 civilian casualties reported after Russian mass attack on Kyiv, other cities in Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk (R) meets with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in Warsaw. Zelenskyy is in Warsaw to meeth Polish leaders ahead of the upcoming NATO summit and to sign bilateral security agreement. -/Ukrainian Presidency/dpa Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky rejected Russia's claims that there had been an air defence error causing a deadly strike on a children's hospital in Kiev that caused extensive destruction on Monday, ahead of a NATO summit. "What cynicism the bastards in the Kremlin have shown, that it was allegedly Ukrainian air defence and not a targeted missile strike," Zelensky told a press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Warsaw. Zelensky thanked all those who have posted videos online "on which it can be seen concretely that it is not just a part of one or another missile, but a direct missile strike that killed and injured many people." Zelensky said 27 people were killed and over 100 others injured across the country in a wave of Russian strikes. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has already arrived in the Polish capital and will soon meet with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk. Source: RMF24 with reference to its sources, as reported by European Pravda Details: After 11:00 Kyiv time, journalists learned from sources that Zelenskyy had already arrived in Warsaw, shortly after the Ukrainian president's visit was indirectly confirmed by the Polish Foreign Ministry. During the visit, he will first meet with Donald Tusk, and a joint press conference is expected at around 13:00 in Warsaw (14:00 Kyiv time). After that, he will meet with President Andrzej Duda. Zelenskyy is expected to thank the Polish leaders for their support of Ukraine and report on the situation at the front. They will also coordinate their positions ahead of the NATO summit in Washington. The news article does not mention the planned signing of a bilateral security agreement between Ukraine and Poland, but it is highly likely to take place today. The media reported that the signing of the agreement with Poland could take place on Zelenskyy's way to the United States. In recent comments to the media, the Polish foreign minister said that this should happen "in the coming days". Support UP or become our patron! Zelenskyy: We will continue to strengthen Ukrainian Navy together with UK and Netherlands Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has said that Kyiv will strengthen its naval fleet together with the UK and the Netherlands. Source: Zelenskyy on social media following meetings with the defence ministers of both countries and the Dutch foreign minister in Odesa Details: Zelenskyy said that Ukraine would continue to strengthen its navy in cooperation with the UK and the Netherlands. "There are promising new developments in our cooperation," Zelenskyy said. Zelenskyy indicated that he had discussed strengthening air defence with the ministers of these countries, calling it an absolute priority. He thanked them for their readiness to take the next steps, including the F-16s. Today in Odesa, on the day of our Naval Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, we express our gratitude to all our naval warriors and engage in negotiations to ensure that Ukraines Defense Forces, including our Navy, receive even greater capabilities. We also welcomed the new pic.twitter.com/jWKvaXOSDt Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 7, 2024 Background: The day before, Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp and Defence Minister Ruben Brekelmans from the new Dutch government made their first foreign visit to Ukraine, just days after being sworn in. Veldkamp said that during the trip they were shown a thermal power plant destroyed by attacks and that this underscored the importance of more support for Ukraine, including strengthening its air defences. "The Netherlands is contributing with F-16s and Patriot systems," he said at the time. At the same time, new UK Defence Secretary John Healey pledged to increase support for Ukraine during a visit to Odesa, less than 48 hours after his appointment, announcing a military aid package. Support UP or become our patron! President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has underlined that there can be no mediation between Ukraine and Russia without the combined efforts of the world's most powerful countries to force Vladimir Putin to end the war. Source: Zelenskyy during a joint press conference with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk Details: Zelenskyy was asked whether Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban who went to Moscow immediately after visiting Kyiv, claiming it was a "peace mission" could be an intermediary between the Ukrainian government and the Kremlin. Quote: "Prime Minister Orban was in Kyiv and then flew to Moscow. I had no idea he was flying to Moscow; it was his choice. As for whether he could be an intermediary... there is no mediation between Russia and Ukraine... Only serious, strong partnerships can serve as intermediaries; the entire world can force Russia to end this conflict. It isnt about mediation, but about opportunity. You have to have either an economy that has an impact on Russia or that the Russian Federation and Putin depend on, or a formidable army that Putin is afraid of because its stronger than the Russian army. Are there many such countries in the world? Not many. I believe the United States is one such country [So are] China and the European Union (not one specific EU country, but the EU as a whole). That really could be a mediatory mission. Thats why we came up with an opportunity to put pressure on Russia and stop Putin. We have to pool all our efforts together to accomplish this, because he has no respect for those who are weak. Even if he talks with (a representative of) a certain state, that doesnt mean he wants to end the war. He wants to pretend there are some steps [taken towards peace], but this is invariably followed by a murderous demonstration, such as this morning in Ukraine." Support UP or become our patron! Zelenskyy on morning strike on Ukraine: Russia launched over 40 missiles of various types photos Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has reacted to the morning missile attack by Russian forces on Ukraine, stating that Russia had launched more than 40 missiles of various types. Source: Zelenskyy on Telegram Quote: "Russian terrorists have once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine. Various cities, including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Sloviansk and Kramatorsk, were targeted. Over 40 missiles of different types were fired, damaging residential buildings, infrastructure, and a children's hospital." Aftermath of the Russian attack on Ukraine on 8 July. PHOTO: ZELENSKYY ON TELEGRAM Details: The president said that all the emergency services are working to save as many peoples lives as possible. Aftermath of the Russian attack on Ukraine on 8 July. Photo: Zelenskyy on Telegram Zelenskyy emphasised that the whole world must deploy all its resolve to put an end to Russian strikes. "Murder is what Putin brings. Only together can we bring true peace and security," he noted. Support UP or become our patron! Zelenskyy on Russian missile strike on 8 July: nearly 27 people killed and over 100 wounded video Aftermath of the Russian attack on Ukraine 8 July. Photo: SES of Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has stated that as a result of Russia's missile strike on Ukraine on 8 July, 27 people were killed and more than 100 were wounded. Source: Zelenskyy during a joint press conference with the Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk Quote: "Today (8 July ed.), Russia struck various Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, and cities in Donetsk Oblast. There is a strike on the children's hospital that is especially vital not only for our country, but for the entire region. In the Okhmatdyt hospital in Kyiv, the department was hit where the children were having dialysis. Houses were damaged, searches are going through the debris. More than 100 people have been hurt, and 27 killed in the strike." Details: At the same time, Zelenskyy noted that "Russian bastards" had managed to shamelessly send signals including those from the Kremlin indicating that the strike on Okhmatdyt was the result of Ukrainian air defence efforts. At the same time, the president thanked fellow Ukrainians for releasing a video that clearly shows "not part of this or that missile, but a direct missile strike, which injured and killed many people in Ukraine." According to the Ukrainian president, there will certainly be a response to such actions: "We must all work to bring Russia to justice for terror and Putin for ordering the attacks." Zelenskyy stated that Ukraine is presently initiating an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council in response to Russia's strike on civilian facilities on 8 July. According to Ukraine's Interior Minister, Ihor Klymenko, as of 15:00, 28 people have been killed and 112 have been injured. There were 28 dead (11 in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast and 17 in Kyiv), and 112 injured, with 62 in Dnipropetrovsk, 48 in the capital, and 2 in Kyiv Oblast. Klymenko went on to state that Russia had damaged around 50 civilian sites on Monday, including residential buildings, a business hub, and two hospitals. Update: Ukraine's State Emergency Service reported that as of 15:30, 20 people are known to have been killed and 61 injured in Kyiv. Two people have been killed and 10 injured on the territory of Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital. Four people, including three children, have been rescued. As of 15:00, a total of 31 civilians have been reportedly killed and 125 injured in the Russian attack. Background: On the morning of 8 July, Russian terrorists once again launched a massive missile attack on Ukraine, using 38 missiles of various types. Ukraine's air defence network intercepted 30 of the 38 Russian missiles launched. Later it was reported that the Russians launched a strike on the Okhmatdyt National Children's Specialised Hospital in Kyiv, injuring people. Support UP or become our patron! BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) Buffalo Common Councilwoman Zeneta Everhart is pushing for the City of Buffalo to establish a gun violence prevention office in order to combat gun violence at the local level. The initiative is aimed to provide support for families that have been impacted by gun violence, implement evidence-based interventions, encourage community engagement and work with local law enforcement to address illegal gun trafficking in the city. The initiative is in response to several incidents of gun violence in Buffalo in recent months and years, including the Tops mass shooting on May 14, 2022, a 14-year-old killed when she was among six teens shot on Jefferson Avenue this past May, and the death of a three-year-old on Domedion Avenue last month. The Biden Administration created an Office of Gun Violence Prevention as a way to get guns off the street and protect families. Everhart, who stood alongside anti-violence groups and lawmakers on Monday, wants to bring that same concept to Buffalo. Offices like this are already established across the country because of what happened on 5/14. We dont have one, which is ridiculous, Everhart said in a news conference on Monday. This isnt about law enforcement. This office is about making sure that if someone is shot on the street, their mother can get counseling so shes not stressed out and not sleeping in the middle of the night. I know what that feels like. Everharts son, Zaire Goodman, was injured in the Tops mass shooting, but recovered. There were three separate shootings within the city over this past weekend that left five people hurt. We have to protect our community. Not just from mass shootings, we have to protect our community from everyday shootings, Everhart said. In June, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy declared gun violence to be a public health crisis, driven by fast-growing numbers of injuries and deaths involving firearms across the country. Since last September, the U.S. Office of Justice has allocated $100 million to support gun violence prevention in cities across the country. Multiple large cities, including New York City, Los Angeles, Washington and New Orleans have established local offices to prevent gun violence. We dont have the resources to take care of some of the problems that erupt from somebody losing, getting their lives lost, or a loved one losing their life, said Pastor James Giles of Buffalo Peacemakers. We need an office dedicated to this. If the office is established, the city will work with the White House, the state, Erie County and state and local law enforcement to support families and implement gun violence prevention strategies. Common Council President Chris Scanlon and Fillmore District Councilmember Mitch Nowakowski are also working on the resolution. Shes already made connections with Washington and shes trying to leverage what she can to bring resources back home to change the City of Buffalo to make sure that its safer, Nowakowski said. Everhart said the office would be funded by the federal government and would be located in City Hall. She wants the office to be up and running by the end of the year. I am tired, Im exhausted, Everhart said. Im tired of hearing people talking about gun violence, Im tired of it, I really am. You cant say it enough. Our community deserves better and it starts in government. The resolution requests that the mayor establishes the office by the end of the calendar year. In a statement, Mayor Byron Brown said he supports the creation of an Office of Gun Violence Prevention and looks forward to working with Everhart and the Buffalo Common Council to establish one in Buffalo. The work of my administration has contributed to a significant decrease in gun violence, Brown said. Through the work of various city departments and community partnerships, shooting incidents are down 28 percent, shooting victims are down 32 percent and shooting homicides are down 58 percent in 2023 versus 2022. We are committed to doing more and we are always looking for additional ways to make our city safer and improve the quality of life. He also mentioned the citys implementation of law enforcement intervention strategies, such as the Micro Hot Spot Crime Reduction Strategy, the GIVE (Gun Involved Violence Elimination) Program, hiring additional police officers and more. You can view Mondays news conference in the media player below. 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. Jeff Preval is an award-winning anchor and reporter who joined the News 4 team in December 2021. 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. Alaska Airlines reveals groundbreaking tech getting us closer to sustainable flight it's more watery than we imagined Alaska Airlines' groundbreaking partnership could soon have commuters and vacationers island-hopping in a sustainable seaglider, with the mesmerizing speed of a graceful water bug. What's happening? In January 2024, a coalition of stakeholders helped launch the Hawai'i Seaglider Initiative. The program aims to modernize Hawaii's maritime transportation network and provide reliable, clean-energy solutions to protect and minimize disruption to the islands' sacred and biodiverse ecosystems. Alaska Airlines which announced plans in late 2023 to merge with Hawaiian Airlines is one of those partners collaborating with innovative developer Regent to bring the all-electric, 12-passenger seaglider to market. Unlike traditional fixed-wing aircraft, the seaglider operates in three modes: float (when leaving the dock), hydrofoil (as it speeds up), and fly (once it hits open water). It's quieter, too, according to Regent, and has a range of over 180 miles. The company estimates that next-generation batteries could increase the length of routes to as much as 500 miles per charge. With a cruising speed of around 180 miles per hour, the seaglider will be able to quickly and safely transport travelers and goods to their inter-island destinations. Why is this encouraging? First: It should make inter-island travel more affordable. Per the Hawai'i Seaglider Initiative, these craft often have lower operating costs and require simpler infrastructure (water is a great natural runway, for example), all of which should reduce prices for travelers. According to the initiative's press release, a route feasibility study projects that some one-way tickets could be available for as little as $30. That's great for travelers and commuters, and it would also be a boon to vital infrastructure like cargo and food transport, as well as medical facilities. Second: It's getting us one step closer to sustainable travel. The aviation industry contributes an estimated 2.5% of the world's carbon pollution, and that number is expected to increase as more people around the globe start traveling by air. By contrast, because this seaglider is all-electric, it doesn't release the same harmful pollution when piloted. "Alaska Airlines is proud to support and learn from the Hawai'i Seaglider Initiative, which will provide vital information on the benefits that seagliders could bring to the community," Pasha Saleh, corporate development director at Alaska Airlines, told us via email. "Alaska has set an ambitious goal of reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. In order to reach that goal, we must look at future technologies like the work that Regent is doing with seagliders. We look forward to re-imaging the future of air transportation with them," Saleh said. What is Alaska Airlines' overall sustainability plan? The airline is the fifth-largest carrier in the United States and has been among the airlines making major moves in the sustainability sphere. Alaska Airlines has already launched a sustainable aviation fuel program, making it easy for individual travelers to take part in pulling the industry's greatest lever to reducing carbon pollution. The program rewards elite-qualifying miles (hello, seat upgrades) to mileage plan members who purchase sustainable aviation fuel credits. Moreover, on a day-to-day level, the company's 2023 impact report reveals that allowing customers to pre-order meals before flights has reduced its food waste by 61% compared to 2019 eliminating approximately 460,000 meals' worth of waste that might otherwise be rotting and producing methane in landfills. Other eco-friendly initiatives include a partnership with the Surfrider Foundation, which conducts programs such as beach cleanups and educating others about the problem of plastic waste. Bottom line: While the seaglider technology is still being developed and tested with launch expected mid-decade it's an important step toward more affordable and sustainable travel options, especially in maritime areas like the Hawaiian islands and beyond. Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet. HONG KONG, July 8 (Xinhua) -- A delegation of consular corps and business communities in Hong Kong has departed from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) for south China's Hainan Province on a 5-day visit to explore broader synergy between the two dynamic export hubs. Prior to its departure, a launch ceremony was held at the Hong Kong International Airport, during which Li Yongsheng, deputy commissioner of the Commissioner's Office of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, also the organizer of the event, delivered a speech. Hong Kong has the ability to play a greater role in strengthening the synergy and coordinated development between the Hainan Free Trade Port and Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA), Li said, hoping that through a fruitful visit, the members of the delegation would have a deeper understanding of the construction of the Hainan Free Trade Port as well as the role of Hong Kong in that synergy. David Whitwam, chairman of the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, told Xinhua that New Zealand and Hong Kong enjoy close trade ties, and that the Hong Kong market has a great demand for New Zealand's farm produce and beverages including dairy products. A long-time resident in Hong Kong, Whitwam has been impressed by the rapid changes and vitality of Hong Kong, particularly thanks to a series of newly-rolled out preferential policies, such as starting from July 10, non-Chinese permanent residents of Hong Kong and Macao will be eligible to apply for special travel permits to enter the mainland, from which he sees unlimited opportunities for Hong Kong to link up with the Chinese mainland and beyond. He looks forward to more inspiration and broader business opportunities. From Monday to Friday, the delegation will visit a few cities in Hainan, including Haikou, Wenchang, Qionghai, Danzhou, Changjiang and Sanya. By Heekyong Yang HWASEONG, South Korea (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics workers began a three-day strike for better pay on Monday, with their union pointing to further action should South Korea's biggest conglomerate continue to fall short of its demands. The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), whose roughly 30,000 members make up almost a quarter of the firm's South Korean workforce, also wants an extra day of annual leave for unionised workers and changes to the employee bonus system. Low participation and automated production means the strike is unlikely to have a significant impact on output at the world's biggest memory chipmaker, analysts said. Still, it signals a decline in staff morale at a pivotal point in the chip industry as tech firms embrace artificial intelligence. The union's first industrial action last month involved coordinating annual leave to stage a mass walkout, which Samsung said had no impact on business activity. The firm said on Monday there was no disruption in production. The union, which did not disclose last month's strike participation levels, said 6,540 workers will be striking this week, mostly at manufacturing sites and in product development. It said the strike includes workers who monitor automated production lines and equipment so operations could be affected. Union officials said about 3,000 strikers attended a rally in the rain near Samsung's headquarters in Hwaseong, south of Seoul. Union president Son Woo-mok disputed media reports of low participation, telling Reuters that the five-year-old union did not have enough time to educate members about the issues. "Education about labour unions ... has not been enough. But I don't think this participation is low because our union is still young compared to other unions," he said. Lee Hyun-kuk, the union's vice president, said there could be further strikes if Samsung does not improve its proposals. Samsung's proposals include flexibility in pay and annual leave conditions but do not meet union demands of increased pay and leave, Lee told Reuters. Union officials also want equality in the bonus system. They said bonuses for rank-and-file workers are calculated by deducting the cost of capital from operating profit, whereas those for executives are based on personal performance goals. "I was telling people that I was proud to work at Samsung, but the truth is I am not," said Park Jun-ha, 20, an engineer at Samsung's chip packaging lines who joined the firm in January, adding that he was not satisfied with its "opaque" bonus scheme. The union's membership has grown since Samsung pledged in 2020 to stop discouraging organised labour. Its growing voice is demanding attention just as Samsung struggles to navigate competition in chips used for artificial intelligence (AI) applications, analysts said. Samsung's share price performance has lagged compatriot chip rival SK Hynix, with union officials blaming Samsung's AI woe on slow development in high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips that are in high demand for use in AI processors. Even so, Samsung estimated a more than 15-fold rise in second-quarter operating profit on Friday, as rebounding chip prices driven by the AI boom lifted earnings from the year prior's low comparison base. Its share price was up 0.2% in afternoon trade on Monday after rising as much as 1.72% earlier in the session to its highest since January 2021. Last week, it jumped 6.9% on preliminary quarterly earnings that exceeded analyst estimates. (Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Additional reporting by Jihoon Lee; Writing by Ju-min Park; Editing by Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing and Kim Coghill) If you are sending a Letter To the Editor, please be sure to follow these rules: Letters have a firm 200-word limit and will be edited for grammar, clarity and accuracy. The person who signs the letter must be the author. Anonymous letters will not be considered. Letters must address the editor, not a third party. We will not print form letters, libelous letters, business promotions or personal disputes, poetry, open letters, letters espousing religious views without reference to a current issue, or letters considered in poor taste. Letters reflect the opinion of the writer. The Yakima Herald-Republic cannot verify the accuracy of all statements made in letters. Writers are limited to one published letter per calendar month. A boy injured in an Israeli attack is seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) GAZA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. Considering the ongoing threats by the Israeli army to large neighborhoods of Gaza City, and the killings and displacement it is carrying out, the head of Hamas's political bureau Ismail Haniyeh has made urgent contacts with mediators, Hamas said in a statement. Haniyeh warned of the repercussions of Israel's operations in Gaza City, Rafah and other areas across the Strip, noting that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli army would bear full responsibility for the collapse of the negotiation path, the statement added. On Sunday and Monday, the Israeli military instructed tens of thousands of people residing in 19 blocs in Gaza City to immediately evacuate, according to a report published by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Monday. As of Monday, Al Ahli Baptist Hospital and the Patients Friends Association Hospital were evacuated, in fear of intensified military activities that would render them inaccessible or non-functional, and critical patients were transferred to the Indonesian and Kamal Adwan Hospitals in North Gaza governorate, it added. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on Monday that following intelligence indicating the presence of Hamas and Islamic Jihad infrastructure, operatives, weapons, and investigation and detention rooms in Gaza City, the army began an operation in the area overnight. "With the start of the operation, the IDF called on and warned civilians about the operational activity in the area, and a defined route will be opened to facilitate the evacuation of uninvolved civilians from the area," it added. Hamas signaled last week that it had dropped a key demand that Israel first commit to a permanent ceasefire before the group would sign an agreement, raising hopes for progress in the internationally brokered negotiations, according to media reports. 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 were taken hostage. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. People injured in Israeli attacks are seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) A man injured in an Israeli attack is seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) People injured in Israeli attacks are treated at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) A girl injured in an Israeli attack is seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) A man injured in an Israeli attack is seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) People injured in Israeli attacks are seen at a hospital in the north of Gaza City, on July 8, 2024. Hamas has made urgent contacts with mediators, warning that the Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip would return the ceasefire negotiating process to point zero, the movement said on Monday. During the past 24 hours, the Israeli military killed 40 people and wounded 75 others, bringing the total death toll to 38,193 and injuries to 87,903 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Monday. (Photo by Mahmoud Zaki/Xinhua) Thank you for reading! Please log in, or sign up for a new account and purchase a subscription to continue reading. President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Viktor Orban exchanged views in the Kremlin on how to resolve the war in Ukraine and develop bilateral relations. In his greetings in front of the press Orban thanked Putin for receiving him even under these difficult circumstances. He said Hungary was slowly becoming the only country in Europe that could speak to both warring sides.Orban said he wanted to make use of this situation to discuss important matters with the Russian president and to gauge his stance on issues that are important for Europe. Commenting on the impending closed-door part of the meeting, Putin said he hoped that we will have the opportunity to exchange views on building bilateral relations in this difficult situation and, of course, to talk about the prospects for the development of the biggest European crisis, I mean in the Ukrainian direction. Regarding finding a solution to the crisis in Ukraine, Putin added: Of course, I am ready to discuss the details with you regarding this issue and I expect that you will also outline the position of your European partners. He also touched on bilateral ties, regretting that trade turnover was down 35%. All in all, we have work to do and we will realise the projects, he added. Photo: PM's Press Office Vivien Cher Benko ********************************* 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! BAGHDAD, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Two civilians were killed and one wounded on Monday in an attack by the extremist Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraqi Salahudin province, a provincial police source said. The incident occurred when IS militants opened fire on the civilians who were on a hunting trip in a rugged area near the town of Amerli, some 160 km north of Baghdad, Colonel Mohammed al-Bazi from the media office of the police command of Salahudin province told Xinhua. Iraqi security forces rushed to the scene and launched a search operation in the area looking for the attackers who fled the scene, al-Bazi said. The security situation in Iraq has improved since the defeat of the IS in 2017. However, IS remnants have sneaked into urban centers, deserts, and rugged areas, carrying out frequent guerilla attacks against security forces and civilians. The government is expecting immediate, swift and effective measures to tackle the unacceptable conditions at the Budapest Liszt Ferenc International Airport, government spokeswoman Eszter Vitalyos said. The past weeks have seen many flights delayed or cancelled Europe-wide, including Budapest, Vitalyos said on Facebook. She thanked the airport for designating two zones where stranded travellers can access food and water, as well as mothers rooms for mothers with babies, and baby food and health-care packages for families. At the same time, in the 21st century, it is unacceptable that Hungarian families and visiting tourists should be stranded at the airport for long hours, without relevant information and provisions. The developments at the airport now are the consequences of the period before the government took possession of the airport. As soon as the airport is truly, physically passed over [to the new owners], the situation will improve, she said. On June 6, the government announced that it had bought an 80% stake in the airport along with Vinci, which had acquired 20%. According to HATC.hu - Budapest Airport sets up 'long-wait area' due to delays Budapest Airport has set up two assistance areas for passengers who are forced to wait in the airport, due to the growing number of delayed flights across Europe, the state-owned airport manager announced. In the BUD:carezones in the transit area information is continuously provided to passengers waiting due to flight delays, as well as sandwiches and water if necessary, and diapers, baby food and wipes for small children. The two designated zones will be expanded by an additional unit if necessary. In addition, more comfortable, high-backed chairs, lie-down beds, telephone chargers, and unlimited Wi-Fi access throughout the airport is offered. QR codes to be posted in the next few days, will help passengers to find useful information about flight delays and cancellations and answers to frequently asked questions. Economy Minister Marton Nagy summoned the head of the air traffic controller HungaroControl, after Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Kossuth radio on Friday morning that he considers the conditions prevailing at Budapest airport to be unacceptable. The Economy Ministry noted that flight delays have become significant in recent weeks. The head of the state-owned company was asked to immediately develop a plan to address existing problems. In addition, Nagy ordered Budapest Airport to provide adequate equipment and infrastructure to ensure that passengers experience the least possible inconvenience. And if necessary, even though this is not its task, the airport will supply food and drinking water to passengers left stranded by delays. Seb is a corporate strategy and transformation specialist and interim-Executive, having spent the last 14 years consulting with McKinsey & Company, KPMG and 4C Associates. With his parents and siblings moving to Dubai whilst starting University, Seb caught the expat bug early. He met his wife Ildiko in Malta and their first daughter was born in Hong Kong, raised in Thailand - with another girl expected at the end of 2024. They're now back in Hungary spending time with family awaiting for the next beckoning adventure! He is a globe-trotting, Magyar-English-family-man and management consultant. 1. When did you arrive in Hungary and what brought you here? We moved at the end of 2024. My lovely wife Ildiko is originally from Neszmely and so we have taken a few months out in order to spend more time with our family back here. 2. Have you ever been an expatriate elsewhere? We have had the expat bug for years! Dubai (5 years), Malta (2), Shanghai (1), Hong Kong (3), Thailand (3) and now Hungary (6 months and counting!) 3. What surprised you most about Hungary? How much we would enjoy exploring the rest of the countryside and the many beautiful villages Hungary has to offer. A lot of the new roads across the country have also been a very pleasant surprise! 4. Friends are in Budapest for a weekend - what must they absolutely see and do? A night cruise on the Danube is an amazing way to see the city Then afterwards walk up to the Fishermans Bastion for some dinner and then hop on a bicycle or scooter to roam around the city in search of a good sor (or 2)! 5. What is your favourite Hungarian food? Anything my mother-in-law cooks (she is a formidable chef). But if I had to choose, probably chicken paprikash with nokedli. 6. What is never missing from your refrigerator? My toddlers thieving little hands! 7. What is your favourite Hungarian word? Hupikek torpikek. (The Smurfs) 8. What do you miss most from home? From all the places weve lived, it is always the people we miss the most 9. What career other than yours would you love to pursue? Events Management Ive always loved festivals and events. 10. What's a job you would definitely never want? Festival toilet cleaner. 11. Where did you spend your last vacation? Mallorca, Spain 12. Where do you hope to spend your next holiday? Montenegro 13. Apart of temptation what can't you resist? I tend to graze on various tasty treats and snacks throughout the entire day. Much like a cow. In Hungary this has now extended to kolbasz which is not helping my ever-expanding waistline! 14. What was your favourite band, film, or hobby as a teen? As a teen, my favourite band was Slipknot, I loved the film Plunkett and Macleane or The Matrix and I used to play a lot of rugby. 15. Red wine or white? White to start. Red to finish. 16. Book or movie? Book (historical fiction or high fantasy normally) 17. Morning person or night person? I am a night person. But my daughter has decided we should all be morning people! 18. Which social issue do you feel most strongly about? Avoiding further global escalation of conflict. 19. Buda or Pest side? Buda 20. What would you say is your personal motto? I have mine tattooed at the top of my leg if we ever meet I might just tell you (or even show!) No doubt, Eid al-Adha is among the most important days in the Islamic calendar. The holiday is celebrated in commemoration of Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his only son to show his obedience to God. Eid al-Adha, also known as the Festival of Sacrifice or Feast of the Sacrifice, is celebrated by all Islam believers worldwide. Muslims in Kumasi city of Ghana perform the prayer of Eid al-Adha. Photo: Mohamed Hossam Source: Getty Images Just like all the other Islamic ceremonies, Eid al-Adha is celebrated with so much zeal in Ghana. Muslim men, women, and children dress in the best religious clothes and perform Eid prayers at mosques or outdoors. A short sermon always follows the prayers. What is the meaning of Eid al-Adha? Eid-ul-Adha is a Muslim holiday commemorating Prophet Ibrahim's love for Allah and willingness to sacrifice his son, Ismail. But, instead, Allah replaced Ismail with a ram, right before the sacrifice. This mandate from Allah was a litmus test for Prophet Ibrahim's readiness and devotion to fulfil his Lord's command completely. As a result, Eid al-Adha meaning can be translated to the festival of sacrifice. What is Eid al-Adha and how is it celebrated? The tenth day of the final (twelfth) month of the Islamic Lunar Calendar, Dhu-al-Hijjah, is Eid-ul-Adha. A genuine sighting of the moon determines the date of the celebration after the yearly Holy Pilgrimage of Hajj. Eid-ul-Adha can continue anywhere from two to four days, depending on the country. Following the Eid Salaah (Eid Prayers), which are recited in congregation at the nearby Mosque on the morning of Eid, the act of Qurbani (sacrifice) is performed. What are the Eid al-Adha traditions? On Eid al-Adha, Muslims sacrifice animals usually sheep to commemorate Ibrahim's story. The family performing the sacrifice eats a third of the meat, while the rest is given to the needy. When is Eid Al Adha? The date of Eid-ul-Adha is projected to be June 16 2024, in the Arabic world, and June 17 2024, in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and other areas of the world. Muslim children gather to perform the Eid Al Adha (Feast of Sacrifice) prayer in Atebubu, Ghana on August 11, 2019. Photo: Musa Alcan Source: Getty Images The in Ghana is June 16, 2024. The ceremony begins on the evening of Sunday, 16 June, and ends on the evening of Thursday, 20 June. However, these dates vary from one region to another since they are based on the crescent moon's official sighting. The moon is used to determine when the month will begin or end. As a result, it causes a difference in the dates and a backward drift of 11 days from the western calendar based on the sun. It is impossible to accurately predict the exact Eid ul-Adha Ghana date because the moon's visibility depends on the weather conditions. Why is Eid Adha important? The festival reminds Muslims of obedience. Obedience is manifested in Ibrahim's willingness to sacrifice his only son. During the festival, Muslims ask for forgiveness for all the times they have failed to be entirely devoted to Allah and pray for the strength to gain complete devotion. Eid Al Adha also allows Muslims to visit their friends, family members, and the less fortunate in society. Some of the essential greetings and phrases during this period are: Eid Mubarak - Have a blessed Eid. - Have a blessed Eid. Eid Saeed - Happy Eid. - Happy Eid. Kul' am wa enta bi-Khair - May each year find you in good health. - May each year find you in good health. As-Salaam u Alaikum - May peace be unto you. - May peace be unto you. Taqabbala Allahu Minna wa minkum - May Allah accept from you and us. Eid ul-Adha wishes Considering the day's significance, some of these wishes may come in handy. They include: Have a blessed Eid to you and your family, and may Allah open the doors of joy and prosperity during this festival. You are one of the reasons I live such a colourful life. I wish that we could make every Eid ul-Adha bright for one another. On this sacred and holy ceremony, I want to wish you a day that is full of laughter and happy moments. Happy Eid to you and your family. Eid is a day of cheer and laughter. It is a moment that Allah will fill you will all the heavenly blessing from above. I wish you all the best. May this festival bring you joy, love, kindness, and good tidings, and may Allah accept all your prayers and give you his great rewards. I want to wish you a happy Eid ul-Adha and all your loved ones. May you receive all the opportunities for success in your life. May the kindness and blessings of Allah be with you. Happy Eid ul-Adha from my family to yours. Anyone who desires to meet with the Lord should do good deeds and not associate themselves with anyone during worship. May the holy Eid ul-Adha give you all the time that you need to rejoice and make merry because of Allah's splendour in your life. May the blessing of Allah surround you and follow you wherever you go. I wish you a happy Eid ul-Adha. Let your doors remain open, for the wave of the blessings of Allah is coming your way. All the best to you and your family. May the sparkling light of the crescent moon be your guide towards an enlightened future and a spiritual life! Happy hold day. Why do we celebrate Eid ul-Adha? Eid ul-Adha is a festival celebrated in remembrance of prophet Ibrahim on his trial, forbearance, patience, and unwavering faith in Allah when he was asked to offer his only son Ishmael as a sacrifice. What happens on Eid ul-Adha? During the festival, the Muslim men, women, and children dress in their best religious attires to perform various celebratory rituals. The Eid al-Adha observances are as follows: Ceremonial prayers Muslim people offer morning Eid al-Adha prayers at the historic Jama Masjid mosque. Photo: Naveen Sharma Source: Getty Images Muslims spend a few hours in prayers and listening to sermons at the Mosque. They also buy and wear new clothes, offer gifts to younger children, and visit their friends and other family members. Mecca and Hajj formalities If the Islam devotees are physically and financially fit, they are expected to perform Hajj at least once in their lifetime. Then, they travel to Mecca and other surrounding regions in Saudi Arabia to perform Hajj. Religious offerings During the celebrations, Muslims are expected to donate clothes and money to the less fortunate. They should also make sure that the poor enjoy a meat-based meal as it is believed to bring about good fortunes. Some households can also decide to come together and buy a goat or sheep and offer it as a sacrifice to Allah. This process is referred to as Gurbani, and the sacrificial animal is known as Udhiya. How do you know when there is Eid ul-Adha? To know when there is an Eid ul-Adha festival, Muslims follow the Islamic calendar based on the lunar calendar with 365 days. Therefore, the festival falls on different dates every year. Is Eid a Muslim holiday? Yes. The Islamic holiday Eid al-Fitr, popularly known as the "Festival of Breaking the Fast," is one of two major Muslim holidays observed worldwide. It marks the end of Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month. The Islamic calendar's second major festival, Eid al-Adha, occurs after the conclusion of the Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage. Eid al-Adha is the holiest ceremony for Muslims, and every believer around the world awaits it with bated breath. There are numerous things to participate in, ranging from attending prayers and sermons to providing food and clothing to the homeless, among many morehappy Eid 2024 to all Muslims in Ghana and worldwide. Yen.com.gh recently published an excellent article about Ghana's Golden Stool. The golden stool reflects the Asantehene's (king's) authority, exalts the nation's soul, and symbolizes the kingdom's oneness. Did you know that the stool was thought to have supernatural abilities by the locals? Discover everything there is to know about this artefact, including its history, significance, facts, and location. Source: YEN.com.gh CNG And PNG Price Hike: After Delhi, Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL) revised prices for compressed natural gas (CNG) and domestic piped natural gas (PNG) in and around Mumbai on Monday. The price of the CNG has been hiked by Rs 1.50 per kg, bringing the revised price to Rs 75 per kg, inclusive of all taxes. Meanwhile, the price of domestic PNG will rise by Rupee 1 per standard cubic metre (SCM), resulting in a new price of Rs 48 per SCM in and around Mumbai. Notably, these prices will be effective from midnight tonight. Reasons Behind the CNG and Domestic PNG Price Hike The firm said that to meet the increasing volume of CNG and domestic piped natural gas (PNG) segments and due to further shortfall in domestic gas allocation, MGL is sourcing additional market-priced natural gas (imported LNG) which has resulted in higher gas cost. On June 22, Indraprastha Gas Ltd, the city gas license holder for the national capital and adjoining cities, hiked the CNG price by Re 1 per kg to Rs 75.09 in Delhi. It, however, had not touched PNG rates, which continue to be priced at Rs 48.59 per scm. "Even after the above revision, MGL's CNG offers attractive savings of about 50 per cent and 17 per cent as compared to petrol and diesel, respectively, at current price levels in Mumbai, while MGL's domestic PNG continues delivering unmatched convenience, safety, reliability and environmental friendliness to consumers," the company said. "Even after the minor increase, MGL's price of CNG and domestic PNG are amongst the lowest in the country". Natural gas pumped out of the ground and seabed is turned into CNG for running automobiles and piped to households for cooking. But supplies from state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC's) domestic fields have not kept pace with the demand. Gas from ONGC fields makes up for 66-67 per cent of CNG demand and the rest has to be imported. Last week, Gujarat Gas increased the price of industrial natural gas by Rs 2 to Rs 2.48 per SCM starting from July 4 this year for the Morbi region in Gujarat, which hosts India's largest ceramic clusters. (Inputs From PTI) No proper roads, no major educational institutions, nor any paths for self-employment. The "Dehra" constituency of Kangra, a large district in Himachal Pradesh, is still yearning to breathe in free air. This area has become crucial today due to a by-election triggered by independent MLA Hoshiyar Singh's resignation and his decision to contest again on a BJP ticket. Now, there's a direct contest with Congress's candidate, Kamlesh, the Chief Minister's wife. Kamlesh is contesting elections for the first time, mirroring BJP's strategy by fielding Chief Minister Sukhu's wife. Since Sukhu became the Chief Minister from Congress in Himachal, his challenges have increased. From rebellious Congress MLAs causing by-elections to attempts to topple the government, giving a ticket to his wife is a strategic move. Kamlesh Thakur seems to benefit directly from being the CM's wife while working on the electoral strategy, as Congress aims to increase the number of trustworthy MLAs. Dehra's seat is unique in many ways, and the reality is that development has not reached Dehra. The divide between the Shanta and Dhumal camps in BJP sidelined Dehra. Hoshiyar Singh, who became an independent MLA twice, took advantage of this. He is primarily a businessman with large enterprises in India and abroad. But since he wasn't part of any government, Dehra's development stalled. Hoshiyar kept winning by sharing joys and sorrows, marriages, and peace. Now, Congress alleges that BJP has bought independent MLAs, and BJP has handed over the lotus to an "outsider," sidelining party workers. This dissatisfaction is evident on the ground for BJP. Neither Ravinder Ravi (a former candidate and Dhumal supporter) nor Ramesh Dhawala (a former candidate and Shanta supporter) have come out in support. Party state president Rajeev is overseeing the constituency but seems unable to rally support. Apart from Hoshiyar's luck, BJP struggles to justify the lack of development. Chief Minister Sukhu offers a straightforward answer: if not Congress, then no development for the next three years. People understand that power in the state is still in Sukhu's hands, and it's in Dehra's interest to elect his wife. In Haripur village, Nek Ram says, "People are confused, Sukhu also came here, and BJP people also came." BJP workers are not just disappointed here but in all three by-elections. BJP has given tickets to three independents on all three seats, including Nalagarh and Hamirpur. For the first time in the state's history, an established Congress government has been destabilized and entangled in repeated elections and by-elections. The next direction of the state will be decided by these three results. All of BJP's leadership is putting in efforts, and in Congress, the onus is on Sukhu. But BJP's crisis is the inability to unite their own with outsiders, while Congress enjoys the comfort of power and public anger against the rebels. Kamlesh can change Dehra's fate. With half of BJP's "Kamal" (lotus) and the government's double engine, Kamlesh stands poised to bring development to Dehra. A tragic incident occurred during the annual Rath Yatra in Odisha's Puri, where a devotee died of suffocation while pulling the chariot of Lord Balabhadra. The man was rushed to the Puri district headquarters hospital, but doctors declared him dead on arrival. According to the media reports, several other devotees were injured in a stampede-like situation on the grand road. The injured individuals were also taken to the Puri district headquarters hospital. Notably, the Rath Yatra is one of the largest religious gatherings in India. This year, the Yatra will be a two-day affair after a gap of 53 years, which has led to a higher turnout of devotees. In response to the unfortunate event, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi announced an ex-gratia of Rs 4 lakh to the deceased's next of kin. What Does Administration Says According to the administration, the death was due to suffocation, clarifying that there was no stampede, even though a massive crowd had gathered to see and join the procession of Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra, and Lord Balabhadra. Officials attributed the man's death to the intense heat and humidity, along with the crowded conditions. They highlighted that ample preparations had been made, including the deployment of ambulances to handle such incidents. Despite efforts to cool the devotees by sprinkling water, many were seen being carried out on stretchers and transported in ambulances after collapsing. President Droupadi Murmu Attends Rath Yatra President Droupadi Murmu also took part in the yatra on Sunday. The chariots began their procession at approximately 5:20 PM, following a visit by Puri Shankaracharya Swami Nischalanada Saraswati and his disciples to the chariots of Lord Jagannath, Lord Balabhadra, and Devi Subhadra. The ritual of 'Chhera Pahanra' (chariot sweeping) was then performed by Puri's titular king. Cracking the UPSC exam, one of the toughest in the world, is a feat few achieve. Every year, millions from across India sit for the exam, aspiring to become IAS officers, but only a few hundred succeed. While some clear the UPSC in their first or second attempt, others, like IAS officer Ramya CS, take multiple attempts to achieve their dream. Ramya cleared the exam on her sixth attempt, securing an All India Rank (AIR) of 46 in 2021. Background and Education Ramya CS hails from Coimbatore district in Tamil Nadu. She achieved the second rank at the state level. With a graduation degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering (EEE) from Coimbatore Institute of Technology, she also holds an MBA from IGNOU, showcasing her commitment to continuous learning. Taking the Leap In 2017, Ramya decided to leave her job at an instrumentation company in Bengaluru, where she had worked for over three years, to focus entirely on preparing for the UPSC exam. She followed her passion and started her preparation journey. Balancing Work and Studies During her preparation, Ramya worked as a data entry operator and took on data collection tasks to fund her studies. Her determination and hard work paid off when she finally cleared the UPSC exam in her sixth attempt. Inspiration for Many Ramya CS's journey from a data entry operator to an IAS officer is a testament to her perseverance and dedication. Her story inspires many aspiring candidates, showing that with determination and hard work, achieving dreams is possible. Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Monday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to travel to Manipur to offer solace to state's residents who have been impacted by ethnic violence. The Congress MP said that his party will do everything it can to bring peace to Manipur. Gandhi described the Manipur tragedy as "tremendous" during a press conference held in capital Imphal. "The Prime Minister should visit the state and listen to the woes of the people as it would give comfort to them," Gandhi advised. He claimed that he travelled to the state in order to hear about the suffering of those affected by violence and to give them hope. "We'll exert every effort to restore harmony to Manipur... I've been attempting to exert pressure on the government as a member of the opposition," he added. Manipur is a proud State of the Indian Union - every patriot should reach out and help bring back peace here. In the face of this huge tragedy, I request the Prime Minister to come here, listen to the people and offer them comfort. Congress party is ready to support anything pic.twitter.com/C6aplaBjnL Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) July 8, 2024 Gandhi paid visits to a number of the relief camps housing those uprooted by the ethnic violence in the state's northeast. Since May of last year, the conflict has taken the lives of over 200 people. The Lok Sabha LoP paid a visit to Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey on Monday while he was in the state. After visiting relief camps in several locations and interacting with victims of ethnic violence, the Congress leader met with Uikey in the evening at the Raj Bhavan. Details on the approximately 45-minute-long minute are not yet available. This is Gandhi's third visit to the state since ethnic tensions erupted in May last year. Earlier in the day, the former Congress president visited relief camps in several locations. Refugees from the ethnic violence that has killed over 200 people in the northeastern state since May of last year are being housed in those camps. Mihir Shah, the 24-year-old son of a Shiv Sena leader and the main suspect in the Worli hit-and-run case, has gone missing a day after the accident that resulted in the death of a 45-year-old woman. Six police teams are currently searching for him as his speeding BMW hit the couples bike, leaving the woman dead and her husband injured. They were returning home after shopping at Navkha Bazaar when the incident occurred. Accused Drunk, Attempted To Destroy Evidence Reports reveal that Mihir Shah was heavily intoxicated at the time of the accident. The night before, he had been drinking in Juhu and, in his inebriated state, took over the driving from his driver, Rajendra Singh Bijawat, after reaching Worli. The crash occurred around 5:30 a.m. Following the accident, Mihir allegedly attempted to remove a Shiv Sena sticker and the number plate from the BMW to dissociate the vehicle from his father. He then abandoned the car in Bandra Kalanagar and fled the scene. Who is Mihir Shah? Mihir Shah is the son of Rajesh Shah, a Shiv Sena leader in Palghar district. The Shah family is involved in the construction business. Mihir studied up to the 10th grade before joining his fathers business. As per reports, after the incident, the accused tried to contact his father, explained the situation, and then switched off his phone. Police suspect his girlfriend might be aiding him in hiding. Rajesh Shah, the deputy leader of the Shiv Sena in Palghar, is reportedly close to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. He is known for his influence over various communities in Palghar. Shah controls the scrap business in the MIDC area and supplies construction materials. Mihir, however, lives in their Borivali house and is not well-known in Palghar. Mumbai BMW Hit-and-Run Case Worli police have arrested Rajesh Shah and driver Rajendra Singh Bijawat for non-cooperation. They will be presented in court on Monday. The BMW car involved in the accident is registered in Rajesh's name and has also been confiscated from Bandra. Mihir faces charges of reckless driving, involuntary manslaughter, endangering life, and violations of the Motor Vehicle Act. The incident resembles the high-profile Pune Porsche case, where a 16-year-old accused hit two IT professionals after being intoxicated. The Supreme Court, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, will hear a series of petitions today demanding a re-conduct of the NEET-UG 2024 exam. The petitions cite allegations of paper leaks and other malpractices, affecting over 2.3 million candidates who took the exam. NEET UG 2024 Controversy Conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on May 5, NEET-UG 2024 has faced allegations of question paper leaks and inflated scores, sparking nationwide protests and political debates. The results, declared on June 4, showed an unprecedented 67 candidates achieving perfect scores of 720, with some from the same exam centre. The controversy led to the replacement of the NTA head by the Union Government. Government And NTA's Stance On Friday, the Union government filed an affidavit opposing the re-conduct of the exam, arguing that it would disrupt the academic calendar and is unnecessary due to the lack of widespread evidence of malpractice. The affidavit, filed through the Ministry of Education, stated, In the absence of any proof of any large-scale breach of confidentiality in a pan-India examination, it would not be rational to scrap the entire examination and the results already declared. The Supreme Court, in a previous hearing on June 18, underscored the need to maintain the integrity of the examination process, highlighting the importance of addressing even minimal negligence by the NTA. Perfect Scores And Grace Marks NTA clarified that the perfect scores achieved by 67 candidates were due to the reduced syllabus caused by the pandemic. Additionally, the Centre proposed withdrawing scorecards issued to 1,563 students who received grace marks due to time lost during the May 5 test. These students were given the option to appear for a fresh exam on June 23, but only 48% chose to retake the test, while the rest retained their scores without the grace marks. None of the candidates could score full marks during the re-exam. This reduced the number of toppers to 61 from 67. NEW DELHI, July 8 (Xinhua) -- At least four Indian army troopers were killed and six others wounded in a militant attack Monday on an army convoy in the Indian-controlled Kashmir, local media reports quoting officials said. The convoy was attacked in Machedi area of Kathua district, about 300 km south of Srinagar, the summer capital of Indian-controlled Kashmir. Militants reportedly first lobbed a grenade and then resorted to heavy firing, which was retaliated by the troopers. "A total of 10 troopers were wounded and four of them later succumbed to their injuries," a local newspaper quoted an official as having said. The remaining six are said to be undergoing treatment at a hospital. Reports said following the attack, the militants managed to escape into the nearby forest. Authorities have rushed reinforcements to the area to trace the militants. During the Monday proceedings in Supreme Court, the National Testing Agency (NTA) acknowledged the allegations charged against it, stating that the issues occurred but on a minor scale. The agency said, All of this happened at the miniscule level. CBI is probing it. Meanwhile the court said, "If the the sanctity of the examination has been lost, if we are not able to identify candidates who are guilty of wrong-doing, a retest has to be ordered," reported Bar and Bench. On Monday, the Supreme Court is hearing over 30 petitions concerning the NEET-UG 2024 medical entrance exam controversy. These petitions include allegations of irregularities and malpractices during the May 5 examinations. A bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, along with Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, is also addressing a separate plea from over 50 successful Gujarat-based NEET-UG candidates. These candidates are seeking to prevent the Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA) from canceling the exam amidst controversy. NEET-UG 2024 exam: Supreme Court observes that one thing is clear that leak (of question paper) has taken place. The question is, how widespread is the reach? The paper leak is an admitted fact. pic.twitter.com/qyfZQESMsx July 8, 2024 Petitioners' lawyers argued for the exam's cancellation, citing issues such as paper leaks, OMR sheet manipulation, impersonation, and cheating. However, they argued against canceling the test, stating that only a "miniscule" number of students were involved in the alleged malpractices. They emphasized that the interests of the 23 lakh students who took the examination honestly should not be jeopardised. Russia is expecting a "very important and full-fledged visit" by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Moscow for summit-level talks with President Vladimir Putin, with the Kremlin saying the West was watching the trip with "jealousy". Prime Minister Modi will be in Moscow from July 8 to 9 at the invitation of President Putin for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. It will be Modi's first visit to Russia since Moscow invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The two leaders will review the entire range of multifaceted relations between the two countries and exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest, the Ministry of External Affairs said in New Delhi on Thursday while announcing the high-level visit starting on Monday. The programme of Prime Minister Modi in Moscow will be extensive and the two leaders will be able to have informal talks, Peskov said in an interview with Russias state-run VGTRK television channel on Saturday. Obviously, the agenda will be extensive, if not to say overbusy. It will be an official visit, and we hope that the heads will be able to talk in an informal way as well, he said. Peskov said that Russian-Indian relations are at the level of strategic partnership. He said that there would be both one-on-one talks in the Kremlin and those involving delegations. We are expecting a very important and full-fledged visit, which is so crucial for Russian-Indian relations, he was quoted as saying by the official Tass news agency. Peskov also emphasised that the West is closely and jealously watching Prime Minister Modis upcoming visit to Russia. They are jealous that means they are closely monitoring it. Their close monitoring means they attach great importance to it. And they are not mistaken, there is something to attach great importance to, Peskov said in response to a question about the jealous attitude of Western politicians towards Modis visit to Russia, the Tass report said. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Modi has held several telephonic conversations with Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, stressing the importance of ending the war that has impacted the global economy. In reflection of its strong friendship with Russia, India has not yet condemned Moscow's invasion of Ukraine and it has been maintaining that the conflict must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. India's import of discounted Russian crude oil has also gone up significantly notwithstanding the G7 price cap and increasing disquiet over the procurement in many Western capitals. It will be Modi's first visit to Russia in nearly five years. His last visit to Russia was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in the Far East city of Vladivostok. The annual summit between the prime minister of India and the president of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries. So far, 21 annual summits have taken place alternately in India and Russia. The last annual summit was held on December 6, 2021, in New Delhi when Putin visited India. MUMBAI, July 5 (AP) Mumbai's Worli area witnessed a heartbreaking incident on Sunday when a high-speed BMW, allegedly driven by Mihir Shah, the son of a prominent Shiv Sena leader, collided with a two-wheeler. The accident led to the tragic death of 45-year-old Kaveri Nakhva and left her husband, Pradip Nakhva, injured. The couple, both fish sellers, were on their way home from Sassoon Dock when their scooter was struck from behind. The impact was so severe that the couple was thrown into the air, landing on the car's bonnet. While Pradip managed to jump off, Kaveri was dragged for 100 meters before succumbing to her injuries en route to the hospital. The driver, Mihir Shah, 24, allegedly intoxicated at the time, fled the scene immediately after the accident, according to police reports. Mihir Shah: A Profile of Privilege Mihir Shah is the son of Rajesh Shah, a significant figure in Maharashtra's Palghar district and a leader of the Shiv Sena party. Mihir's education ceased after the 10th grade, after which he joined his father's construction business. On the night before the accident, Mihir was reportedly consuming alcohol in Juhu. In a drunken state, he instructed his driver, Rajendra Singh Bijawat, to take him on a drive. Eventually, Mihir took control of the wheel, leading to the fatal accident around 5:30 a.m. In the aftermath of the collision, Mihir allegedly tried to cover his tracks by removing a Shiv Sena sticker from the car and dismantling the number plate. He then abandoned the vehicle in Bandra Kalanagar and fled. It is believed that Mihir contacted his father before switching off his phone, and there is speculation that his girlfriend is aiding him in evading the police. The Legal and Moral Implications Rajesh Shah and the driver, Rajendra Singh Bijawat, were arrested last evening for obstructing the investigation and are facing additional charges. They are scheduled to appear in court today. The BMW involved in the accident is registered under Rajesh Shah's name. The Worli police have charged Mihir Shah with rash driving, culpable homicide not amounting to murder, endangering life, and violations of the Motor Vehicles Act. Six police teams are currently on the hunt for Mihir. A Broader Issue of Privilege and Responsibility This incident raises critical questions about the intersection of privilege, responsibility, and accountability. Mihir Shah's actions and subsequent escape highlight how individuals with power and influence often attempt to evade the consequences of their actions. The case has sparked outrage and calls for stricter enforcement of laws to ensure that justice is served, regardless of one's social or political standing. The Nakhva family's tragedy is a stark reminder of the human cost of reckless behavior and the urgent need for systemic changes to prevent such incidents in the future. The public is watching closely to see if justice will be served in this high-profile case, as it may set a precedent for holding influential individuals accountable for their actions. Lakhipur: Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi arrived in Assam on Monday to meet the flood-affected victims at a relief camp in Fulertal, Lakhipur. The Congress leader arrived at Kumbhigram airport in Silchar district, in the morning and visited a flood relief camp in Lakhipur to interact with the displaced residents. Rahul Gandhi received a heartfelt reception at Silchar Airport from leaders of Assam and Manipur. After his visit to the relief camp at Fulertal in Assam, Rahul Gandhi proceeded to Manipur to visit relief camps at three different locations. The leader of the Opposition will also call upon the Manipur Governor this evening. As per the current flood situation in Assam, 58 people have died and 53,429 are seeking refuge in shelter camps across the state. As many as 23.9 lakh people have been affected across 3,535 villages so far. 68,769 hectares of total crop area have been submerged. 114 animals, including 6 rhinos, have died in Kaziranga National Park, as per the report. Meanwhile, the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) submitted a letter on the current flood situation in the state to Rahul Gandhi at Silchar airport on Monday. As per the official APCC letter, "The key to Assam's flood problems lay in the hills. Due to large-scale deforestation in the hills, there is immense siltation in Assam's rivers. The resultant rising of the riverbed has progressively reduced the carrying capacity of Assam's rivers." "Therefore, in the monsoon season and with climate change, we are seeing extreme rainfalls--the water discharge is beyond the carrying capacity of rivers. The long-term solution therefore is a pan-Northeast water management authority, suitably empowered by Parliament to do everything necessary to control floods," it said. "The short-term solution is strengthening the current flood management infrastructure like embankments, and providing immediate relief and rehabilitation to those affected," stated the letter. Meanwhile, APCC leaders, MPs, MLAs, Frontal Heads, DCCs and BCCs are touring the flood-affected areas. The letter further requested Rahul Gandhi on behalf of the people of Assam to take up the matter of the flood situation and a special case and help the state receive adequate relief and compensation for the severe losses incurred due to the floods from the GOI. "We would be grateful to you for carrying our voice of agony to the Centre. Assam should get a package to tackle the grim situation, as the state government has failed to get adequate funds from the Central government, a double failure of the double-engine government," it said. A bus carrying over 40 school children overturned in the Panchkula district of Haryana on Monday morning. The incident happened near Naulata village in Pinjore town. The bus carrying children was a Haryana Roadways vehicle. According to the media reports, a woman who sustained critical injuries has been referred to PGI Chandigarh for further treatment. Initial police reports indicate that the accident was primarily caused by the bus driver's excessive speed. Additionally, the bus was overcrowded, exceeding its capacity, and the poor condition of the road contributed to the accident. Reports suggest that Pradeep Choudhary, the Congress MLA representing the Kalka assembly constituency in Panchkula has confirmed that an investigation into the incident is underway. Further updates are expected as the investigation progresses. In a significant blow to terrorist outfits in South Kashmir, security forces successfully conducted twin encounters in Kulgam, resulting in the elimination of six terrorists. The operation, aimed at thwarting the nefarious designs of terrorists targeting the ongoing Amarnath Yatra, was hailed as a milestone achievement by top police and army officials. DIG South Kashmir, Javaid Iqbal Matoo, along with Commanders Brigadier Prithvi Raj Chauhan and Brigadier Anirudh Chauhan, briefed the media in Anantnag about the successful mission. Army and police officers stated that joint cordon and search operations were launched based on specific inputs regarding the presence of terrorists in Chinigam, Frisal, and Matergam areas of South Kashmir. During the operation, terrorists opened fire on security forces, resulting in one Army personnel sustaining grievous injuries. Despite immediate evacuation to 92 Base Hospital, the soldier succumbed to his injuries. In response, security forces engaged with precision and neutralized four terrorists affiliated with Hizbul Mujahideen, recovering war-like stores from the scene. The slain terrorists were identified as Yawar Ahmad Dar, Zahid Ah Dar, Tauheed Ah Rather, and Shakeel Ah Wani, all with prior involvement in terror activities in Kulgam and neighboring districts. Security forces exercised restraint to minimize collateral damage during the operation and have initiated further investigations into the recovered materials, officials said. In another operation at Matergam, Kulgam, two more terrorists affiliated with Lashkar-e-Taiba and TRF were eliminated by joint forces. Another army soldier made the supreme sacrifice for the nation during this operation, dealing a major blow to terrorist outfits operating in South Kashmir. Security forces have recovered a huge cache of sophisticated weapons, gadgets, and ammunition from the encounter spots. The successful operation has dealt a significant blow to terror outfits in South Kashmir, disrupting their plans to target the ongoing Amarnath Yatra. Police have registered a case under relevant laws, emphasizing continued efforts to eliminate terrorism from the region. New Delhi: Nifty scaled to an all-time high for the third straight session on Friday, though the BSE Sensex came down from the 80,000-mark. Analysis by Mr. Ajit Mishra SVP, Research, Religare Broking Ltd said, "After opening lower, the Nifty traded within a narrow range throughout the day, ending near its upper boundary. Key sectors like energy, pharma, and FMCG posted gains, while banking and financials lagged. Broader indices continued their strong performance, each gaining more than half a percent. Looking ahead, we anticipate continued consolidation in the index and recommend a focus on individual stock trading strategies. Traders should exercise caution in stock selection due to potential increases in volatility." Meanwhile, ahead of the market opening today, as per Zeebiz Tata Group Stocks, Bandhan Bank, Bank of Baroda, Federal Bank, CAMS are likely to be in focus today. 1. Bandhan Bank Bandhan Bank has announced the appointment of Ratan Kumar Kesh, Executive Director & Chief Operating Officer, as Interim MD&CEO of the Bank, with effect from July 10, 2024, for a period of three months or till new MD&CEO takes charge, whichever is earlier. 2. Tata Group Stocks Tata group companies such as Tata Motors, Tata Steel are set to be in the spotlight owing to their June growth reports. 3. Computer Age Management Services Limited (CAMS) CAMS shares will trade ex-dividend today. The company said that the record date for Final Dividend of Rs 16.50 per equity share, recommended by the Board at the meeting is be 08th July 2024. 4. Bank of Baroda BoB has released its provisional business figures. As of 30th June 2024, Global Business of the bank grew by 8.52% YoY to Rs 23.77 trillion; Global Advances of the bank grew by 8.14% YoY to Rs 10.72 trillion; Global Deposits of the bank grew by 8.83% YoY to Rs 13.06 trillion, said BoB. 5. Federal Bank Federal Bank has entered into a strategic Bancassurance partnership with Bajaj Allianz Life Insurance Co Ltd. "With this collaboration, we now have a total of 10 insurance partners. This strategic alliance aims to provide Federal Bank's customers access to Bajaj Allianz Life insurance companys product suite," the company said. New Delhi: Bollywood stunner Kriti Sanon has got another feather to her cap by being the first Indian actress to be at F1 in Silverstone. Continuing her great spree, Kriti Sanon established herself among the prominent celebrities spotted at the F1 Grand Prix event. The actress took to her social media and shared a video from the event, today. While expressing her excitement about being at the F1 for the first time, she also wished luck to Max and Checo! With an exciting array of projects, Kriti Sanon will be seen in Do Patti. It is the maiden project for her production house Blue Butterfly Films. Apart from co - producing the film Kriti also stars in it along with Kajol. The actress won rave reviews for her last release The Crew co-starring Tabu and Kareena Kapoor Khan. Kriti ventured into beauty business with the launch of her leading skincare brand 'Hyphen'. New Delhi: In today's digital age, the presence of personal information on the internet has become both a convenience and a concern. While many individuals find it beneficial for their information to be accessible through Google search results, others prioritise privacy and prefer to keep their details confidential. Unfortunately, our increasingly interconnected world can lead to inadvertent exposure of sensitive data such as social media profiles, contact numbers, residential addresses, and even financial information. Results About You Feature Google has launched a feature called "Results About You" for users. This feature is designed to help users remove their personal information from Google. With it, you can easily delete your own personal details from search results. Here's how to remove your personal information from Google using the "Results About You" feature: Step 1 : Visit the Google Support Page: Start by going to the Google support page. Step 2: Fill Out the Form: Complete the form by mentioning the URL(s) you want to be removed from search results. Step 3: Add Multiple URLs: You can include several URLs in the form at once. Step 4: Verification by Google: Google will verify the pages. If the information provided is correct, Google will remove the URLs. Step 5: Allow Some Time: The process may take a little time, so be patient. How to Remove Your Personal Information Directly from a Website? Another method to remove your personal information is to request its removal directly from the webpage where it appears. Heres how: Step 1: Visit the Page: Go to the webpage containing your personal information. Step 2: Click the Three Dots: Click on the three dots next to the URL. Step 3: Go to 'About this result': Select the "About this result" page. Step 4: Click 'Remove result': Choose the "Remove result" option. This will initiate the process to remove the page from Google's search results. How to Track Your Removal Requests? After following either of these processes, you can track your removal requests. To do this, open the Google app and go to "Results About You." Click on your profile photo, and youll be able to see the status of your requests. Further, you can add new removal requests and monitor their status from this section. After you submit a removal request, Google will review the content to see if it meets their criteria for removal. KYIV: Russian missiles struck a childrens hospital in Kyiv and killed at least three people elsewhere in the Ukrainian capital Monday, authorities said, while another attack in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih killed at least 10 people. It was the biggest bombardment of Kyiv in several months. The daylight attacks included Kinzhal hypersonic missiles, one of the most advanced Russian weapons, the Ukrainian air force said. The Kinzhal flies at 10 times the speed of sound, making it hard to intercept. City buildings shook from the blasts. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Russia targeted five cities with more than 40 missiles of different types, hitting apartment buildings and public infrastructure. In Kryvyi Rih, 31 people were injured in addition to the 10 deaths in what the head of city administration, Oleksandr Vilkul, said was a massive missile attack. There was no immediate word on casualties at Okhmatdyt childrens hospital in Kyiv, Ukraines biggest childrens medical facility. The Kyiv city administration reported falling debris, presumably from intercepted missiles, in a handful of Kyiv areas, starting fires. Thick plumes of smoke rose from several Kyiv neighborhoods. The head of Ukraines presidential office, Andrii Yermal, said the attack occurred at a time when many people were in the citys streets. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said official assessments of the attack's consequences were still being carried out. Explosions were also reported by local officials in Ukraines central Dnipropetrovsk region. The attack came on the eve of a three-day NATO summit in Washington, which will look at how to reassure Ukraine of the alliances unwavering support and offer Ukrainians hope that their country can come through Europes biggest conflict since World War II. KHARTOUM, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Chairman of Sudan's Transitional Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan on Monday stressed the keenness to make the Jeddah negotiating platform a success. Al-Burhan made the remarks while receiving Waleed bin Abdulkarim El-Khereiji, deputy foreign minister of Saudi Arabia, in Port Sudan, the capital city of the Red Sea State in eastern Sudan, the sovereign council said in a statement. "The discussions dealt with the call to resume the Jeddah platform," Hussein Awad, undersecretary of Sudan's Foreign Ministry, was quoted in the statement as saying, noting that Al-Burhan has stressed "Sudan's keenness to make the Jeddah platform a success as a foundation to build on." However, Awad added that Al-Burhan expressed reservations over the presence of any party supporting the "rebel militia." The undersecretary added that, during the meeting, El-Khereiji stressed Saudi Arabia's commitment to the security and stability of Sudan, recognizing that Sudan's stability directly influences the security and stability of the region. Since May 2023, Saudi Arabia and the United States had been sponsoring talks between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the Saudi Arabian port city of Jeddah. Several truces were reached, but both sides have accused each other of breaching the agreements. The Jeddah peace talks were suspended in October 2023 over fundamental differences between the Sudanese warring parties. Sudan has been embroiled in a deadly conflict between the SAF and the RSF since mid-April 2023, which has so far claimed at least 16,650 lives, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said in an update last month. Over 7.7 million people have been displaced internally within Sudan since the outbreak of the conflict, while about 2.2 million others have crossed borders into neighboring countries, according to the figures released on June 25 by the UN International Organization for Migration. The reports of rising tensions within the Democratic Party regarding President Joe Biden's candidacy has persisted for quite some time now. However, now the rising calls for Vice President Kamala Harris as a potential alternative is being voiced boldly. Several top House Democrats are urging President Joe Biden to step aside from the 2024 campaign, expressing deep concerns about his potential impact on the Democratic Party's chances in the upcoming elections, ANI reported citing CNN. Concerns Over Biden's Candidacy During a leadership call on Sunday, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wanted to hear the thoughts of senior members before everyone returned to Washington this week. Sources say the main topic of conversation was the worry that Biden's candidacy might hurt the Democratic Party's chances of winning back the House majority. Kamala Harris: A Viable Alternative? With former President Donald Trump as the Republican candidate, questions are mounting within the Democratic Party: Does Vice President Kamala Harris have a better chance than Biden of beating Trump? While Biden has repeatedly stated his intention to stay in the race, the possibility of Harris stepping up is gaining traction among party donors, activists, and officials. Harris, 59, a former U.S. senator and California attorney general, would make history as the first woman to become president of the United States if she were the party's nominee and prevailed in the November 5 election. She is also the first African American and Asian person to serve as vice president. As recently as last year, many inside the White House and the Biden campaign team privately worried that Harris was a liability for the campaign, but that seems to have taken a sharp turn. Harris On Abortion Rights, Israel-Hamas War Harris voice on key issues like abortion rights has claimed her impact among young voters. Since the Supreme Court repealed women's constitutional right to abortion in 2022, Harris has become the Biden administration's foremost voice on reproductive rights, an issue Democrats are betting on to help them win the 2024 election. Democrats think Harris could excite groups that typically support them but have lost enthusiasm for Biden, such as Black voters, young voters, and those unhappy with Biden's handling of the Israel-Hamas war. Harris's increasing focus on these important issues might help her gain support where Biden is struggling. Biden's Confidence Remains Unshaken According to report by CNN, despite increasing calls for his resignation, President Biden displayed confidence during a visit to Pennsylvania, a key battleground state, asserting that the Democratic Party remains unified in its support for him. (With inputs from agencies) Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi to his official residence on Monday for a 'private engagement'. "PM Modi was welcomed by President Vladimir Putin of Russia at his official residence in Novo-Ogaryovo for a private engagement," MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal wrote on X. He claimed the meeting was between two close friends and trusted partners. "A time for the two leaders to cherish and celebrate friendship," the Spokesperson stated. PM Modi arrived at Vnukovo-II International Airport to a ceremonial welcome, his first visit to Russia's capital since 2015. Denis Manturov, Russia's first deputy prime minister, greeted him. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Modi will meet with the Indian community in Russia, lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Kremlin, and then visit the Rosatom pavilion at an exhibition venue in Moscow. These engagements will precede a restricted-level meeting between Prime Minister Modi and Putin, which will be followed by delegation-level talks. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues," Prime Minister Modi stated in his departure speech. He emphasised that the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has progressed over the last decade, particularly in energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges. KINSHASA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will engage in diplomatic efforts during and after its humanitarian truce with the rebellion of the March 23 Movement (M23), which has taken numerous parts in eastern DRC, said Therese Kayikwamba Wagner, DRC state minister for Foreign Affairs, at a press briefing held here Monday. This 14-day truce, from July 5 to 19, constitutes "a path marked out for the return of peace" in the eastern DRC, troubled by violence for decades, underlined Wagner, ensuring that the protection of the DRC population remains "the first priority" of her mandate. "A truce does not mean that we are not vigilant," explained Wagner, saying diplomatic efforts aim at a "lasting solution" to restore peace, particularly disrupted by the advance of the M23 rebels whom the authorities accuse of being supported militarily by Rwanda, an accusation rejected by Kigali. "We remain firm in our position that any discussions will take place within the framework of the Luanda peace process," initiated by Angolan President Joao Lourenco, said Wagner when responding to a query regarding dialogue between the DRC and Rwanda. More than 900,000 newly displaced people were reported between January and April 2024, bringing the total number of the displaced to around 7.3 million in the country, including more than 5.6 million in the three eastern provinces, namely North Kivu, South Kivu and Ituri, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The DRC is experiencing "one of the most serious, most complex and most neglected humanitarian crises of this era", noted Bintou Keita, the representative of the UN Secretary-General in the DRC before the UN Security Council in New York Monday. RAMALLAH, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The Israeli authorities on Monday demolished a school and five houses and razed some agricultural land in the West Bank, Palestinian sources said. The Israeli forces stormed Khillet Amira, part of the "Khillet al-Mai" municipality, east of Yatta, south of Hebron, and demolished the Khillet Amira Mixed Elementary School, according to the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission of the Palestine Liberation Organization. The 330-square-meter school, attended by 70 students from the first to the fifth grade, was built at the expense of the local residents and European institutions, according to the statement. The statement noted that the school had been attacked several times by settlers who vandalized its contents in an attempt to pressure the residents to leave the area. According to the Ministry of Education and Higher Education, 57 schools in the West Bank have been stormed and vandalized by Israeli forces and settlers since Oct. 7, 2023. Israeli forces also demolished three houses, razed lands, health units, and water tanks, and uprooted trees in Masafer Yatta, south of Hebron. Osama Mokhamara, an anti-settlement activist, told Xinhua that Israeli forces stormed Khirbet Aqwees in Masafer Yatta, and demolished a one-story house of 100 square meters, inhabited by 12 people. He added that the forces also demolished two houses in the village of Shaab al-Batim in Masafer Yatta, each measuring 60 square meters and inhabited by 14 people. He considered that the demolition of houses and land razing by the Israeli forces in Masafer Yatta aimed to displace residents and expand the settlements established on their lands south of Hebron. In Tulkarm, Israeli forces demolished two houses and razed agricultural greenhouses north of the city, according to Palestinian sources. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli side regarding 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. ADDIS ABABA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Ethiopian scholars have praised China's Global Civilization Initiative (GCI) as a significant step toward building a shared future and addressing global crises. These remarks were made during a high-level dialogue, titled "The Civilization Lecture Series," held Saturday in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital. The event aimed to strengthen exchanges and cooperation between the civil societies of China and Ethiopia. Yonas Adaye, commissioner of the Ethiopian National Dialogue, told Xinhua that GCI serves as a platform for nations to conduct exchanges and understand each other's civilizations based on win-win cooperation. "As the Chinese president proposed, a new Global Civilization Initiative is absolutely mandatory, making every human being responsible for their survival and saving the planet from catastrophic disasters," Adaye said. Appreciating China's commitment to promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, Adaye said African leaders need to draw lessons from Chinese civilization and make people a source of power to build trust between their governments and citizens. "The lesson we can learn from Chinese civilization is cooperation, harmony, working together, listening to each other, and celebrating and respecting diversity," Adaye added. He noted that Chinese culture, based on hard work, respect, dignity, humanity and communality, aligns with the African philosophy of Ubuntu -- "I Am Because We Are." Gedion Gamora, a senior adviser to the United Nations Development Program, said Chinese civilization serves as an important model for African countries aspiring to achieve rapid economic growth and development. "China has an ancient civilization that dates back more than 5,000 years. It has a lot to share with the world, particularly African countries, in realizing peaceful coexistence, bringing fast economic growth, lifting hundreds of millions of people out of poverty, and expanding industrialization and infrastructure development," Gamora said. He said the high standard of railways, industrial parks, economic zones, roads and ports built in China are valuable lessons for African countries to replicate and spur their development and accelerate the continental free trade area. Melaku Mulualem, a senior researcher in international relations and diplomacy at the Ethiopian Institute of Foreign Affairs, said GCI is an excellent opportunity to promote peace, development and mutual learning among the world's civilizations. "African and Chinese civilizations complement each other, and African countries can leverage Chinese civilization to promote peaceful coexistence, mutual learning and common development," Mulualem said. By Azernews Ulviyya Shahin Italy has emerged as the leading European buyer of Azerbaijani gas, marking a notable development evident in quarterly reports since the beginning of 2024. During a meeting in Milan between Minister Parviz Shahbazov and Italian Minister of Environment and Energy Security Gilberto Picetto Fratini, it was announced that Azerbaijan plans to supply Italy with 9.6 billion cubic meters of gas this year. The discussions encompassed broad cooperation in the energy sector, including topics addressed at the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29) and Italy's leadership in the G7. Both parties expressed satisfaction with the robust and strategic partnership between Azerbaijan and Italy, emphasizing the growth of cooperative relations. The meeting underscored President Ilham Aliyev's commitment to advancing Azerbaijan's ties with Italy, highlighting Italy's status as Azerbaijan's primary trading partner. Italy has received over 30 billion cubic meters of gas out of the total 37.9 billion cubic meters supplied to Europe, positioning Azerbaijan among Italy's top three gas suppliers and marking significant achievements in bilateral relations. Further discussions included plans to expand the capacity of the Trans-Adriatic Gas Pipeline (TAP) by 1.2 billion cubic meters starting in 2026, aimed at enhancing collaboration in energy security and efforts towards decarbonization. The meeting also addressed cooperation with Ansaldo Energia on equipping a 1,280 MW power plant and substations in liberated areas, alongside exploring opportunities for renewable energy supply. Italy expressed keen interest in accessing 'green energy' from Azerbaijan via the Caspian-Black Sea-European Green Energy Corridor, signaling mutual aspirations for sustainable energy solutions. Speaking to Azernews British expert Neil Watson noted that Italy has always been a very significant energy partner for Azerbaijan. "Currently, Italy imports 23 percent of its energy, and Baku is the second greatest supplier of gas after Algeria. This is predominantly because the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) section of the Southern Gas Corridor delivers to an Italian interconnector. Baku Caspian Gas and Crude Oil are a reliable and diversified energy source for Italy and across Europe. Gas is also recognized as a transitional energy source before carbon-neutral sources take over. Italy recently announced plans to increase TAP capacity by 1.2bcm per annum to reach 11.2bcm by 2026, eventually reaching 20bcm," the expert added. According to him, Italy has already achieved an 18 percent increase in its level of domestically produced renewable energy. "Nonetheless, its potential requirement for energy from renewable sources remains considerable, and it will certainly be a prime customer for so-called green energy through the proposed Black Sea-European Green Corridor if it is to achieve its COP29 commitments, much of which will be generated via the join projects in renewable energy to be implemented in the liberated territories." N. Watson concluded that Italian-Azerbaijani energy relations are already very strong, and only just lag behind that with the UK. "I believe that Italy will strongly propound the current and future role of Azerbaijan in the European energy mix, both in hydrocarbons and renewables. Italian politicians and policymakers have already witnessed the proactive and pragmatic approaches of Official Baku. The Italian G7 Presidency and Azerbaijani COP29 hosting will complement each other, demonstrating the strength of this partnership at a time when Europe needs diversified and reliable energy sources." Leather shoes and bags made in China are displayed during the 48th Dar Es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 6, 2024. The 48th DITF, running from June 28 to July 13, hosted more than 4,000 exhibitors from 26 countries, including over 200 Chinese companies.(Photo by Emmanuel Herman/Xinhua) DAR ES SALAAM, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Mussa Kaisi, a cashew nut farmer from Tanzania's Mtwara region, could not take his eyes off a 50-horsepower tractor displayed by Bada (Shandong) Agricultural Machinery Company Ltd. at the 48th Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF). "I bought this type of tractor from this company in March this year, and it is helping me in my cashew nut farming," said Kaisi, who owns 125 hectares of cashew nut trees. Using the tractor, he expects to boost his cashew nut production from 20 tonnes to more than 35 tonnes in the next harvesting season, starting in September 2024. "Products displayed by Chinese companies are helping Tanzanian entrepreneurs improve production in various sectors, including agriculture and manufacturing," he added. Many other Tanzanians visiting the DITF, like Kaisi, were also attracted to various Chinese products on display at the Chinese pavilion. The trade fair, running from June 28 to July 13, hosted more than 4,000 exhibitors from 26 countries, including over 200 Chinese companies. Themed "Tanzania: Your Best Destination for Business and Investment," the trade fair is an annual event showcasing Tanzanian products and those from other African countries. The China pavilion is coordinated by East Africa Commercial and Logistics Center (EACLC) Limited, a Chinese company promoting business between Tanzania and China. EACLC has organized exhibitions for Chinese companies at the fair for four consecutive years. Cathy Wang, director-general of EACLC Limited, expressed her hope that Chinese exhibitors would find markets in Tanzania, discover high-quality Tanzanian sources, seize investment opportunities and achieve success. She said that this year's exhibition focuses on business cooperation and exchange, with supporting activities like B2B meetings, cultural performances and investment exchanges. The Chinese pavilion showcases products ranging from agricultural machinery, food production, processing and marketing, electrical machinery and equipment, feed and veterinary medicine, biopharmaceuticals, and automobile industries. Yusuf Salum Zuberi, a medical doctor at Mwananyamala Referral Hospital in Dar es Salaam, was seen making an order for a cement block-making machine at the Shandong Hongfa Scientific Industrial and Trading Company Limited booth. "I am planning to start a block-making project, and this is the perfect place for securing a state-of-the-art machine at very affordable prices," said Zuberi. "Products displayed by Chinese companies at this trade fair provide business opportunities for Tanzanian entrepreneurs," he added. "Tanzania has an environment that is favorable for business and investment. This is my first time participating in this trade fair. I am looking forward to future events," said Mike Zhang, director of The Nile Machinery Company Limited, a leading manufacturer of mining and construction equipment in China's Hunan province. He said that his company was receiving many orders from enterprises in Tanzania, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Zambia. Sun Ganmin, chief accountant of the Department of Commerce of Shandong Province, east China, said the province has maintained close economic and trade exchanges with Tanzania, an important trading partner in the African market. Tanzanian Minister of Industry and Trade Selemani Jafo praised the Chinese pavilion at the 48th DITF, organized by the Tanzania Trade Development Authority, for showcasing infrastructure development, investment prospects, and technology advancements. He urged Tanzanian traders and businessmen to learn from modern Chinese technologies to boost production and secure profitable business deals. A Chinese exhibitor demonstrates an agricultural machine during the 48th Dar Es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 6, 2024. The 48th DITF, running from June 28 to July 13, hosted more than 4,000 exhibitors from 26 countries, including over 200 Chinese companies.(Photo by Emmanuel Herman/Xinhua) A bulldozer produced and shipped by a Chinese company is displayed at the 48th Dar Es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 6, 2024. The 48th DITF, running from June 28 to July 13, hosted more than 4,000 exhibitors from 26 countries, including over 200 Chinese companies.(Photo by Emmanuel Herman/Xinhua) Tanzanian Minister of Industry and Trade Selemani Jafo speaks at the opening of China Day of the 48th Dar Es Salaam International Trade Fair (DITF) in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, July 6, 2024. The 48th DITF, running from June 28 to July 13, hosted more than 4,000 exhibitors from 26 countries, including over 200 Chinese companies.(Photo by Emmanuel Herman/Xinhua) JOHANNESBURG, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The new South African government will among other issues address logistical challenges in the next five years to grow the economy, said Transport Minister Barbara Creecy Monday. "South Africa's logistical sector is not operating as either an effective economic facilitator or social service," said Creecy when addressing the 42nd meeting of the Southern African Transport Conference in Pretoria, the country's administrative capital. "As the 7th administration, we are aware of these challenges and aim to address them comprehensively throughout the next five-year term," she said. South Africa will focus on key logistics corridors, addressing backlogs and congestion at strategic border crossings, and combating cable theft and maintenance backlogs at the country's transport utility Transnet, according to the minister. The government will also work to improve operational automation and real-time tracking of shipments to assist port management, and modernize the management of its railway system, said Creecy. "By fully integrating and upgrading our rail networks in the southern African region, we can further the objectives of agreements such as the African Continental Free Trade Area and, from a South African perspective, take advantage of our membership of BRICS to access new markets." HANOI, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Vietnam's economy could beat all the forecasts to expand at 7 percent for the full year with a growth rate of 7.4 percent and 7.6 percent in the two last quarters, respectively, said the country's Ministry of Planning and Investment. Providing updates for economic growth scenarios in the second half of this year, the ministry opted for the second scenario on the positive growth of economic sectors, more rapid recovery of private investment, and state-owned enterprises, positive growth momentum of foreign direct investment, robust export, improving tourism and consumption and new policies, Vietnam News Agency reported Monday. Minister of Planning and Investment Nguyen Chi Dung said if the growth momentum was maintained, the Vietnamese economy could fulfill or even exceed the National Assembly's target of 6.5 percent. The Vietnam's economy grew at 6.42 percent in the first half of this year, according to the General Statistics Office. KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Police have discovered more than 2 tonnes of illegal drugs including heroin and destroyed poppy farms in south Afghanistan's Kandahar province over the past two days, provincial police spokesperson Mullah Asadullah Jamshid said Monday. The contraband, which included hashish, heroin and objects used in manufacturing heroin, have been discovered and destroyed during a series of operations since Saturday, the official said. Police also destroyed 1.5 acres of poppy farms over the period, the official added. The Afghan caretaker government banned poppy cultivation, its processing into drugs, and drug trafficking in April 2022. PHNOM PENH, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement and bilateral free trade agreements (FTAs) have ensured Cambodia's seamless access to major Asian markets, Kith Meng, president of the Cambodia Chamber of Commerce, said here on Monday. Cambodia is a member of the RCEP agreement that engaged with 15 Asia-Pacific countries, and the Southeast Asian country also has bilateral FTAs with China, South Korea and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Meng said with a strategic location in the heart of Southeast Asia and a rapidly developing infrastructure, Cambodia is an ideal production base for reaching Asian markets. "Our extensive network of regional free trade agreements such as ASEAN and RCEP and bilateral FTAs with China and South Korea, as well as the UAE, ensures seamless access to major Asian markets," he said in a speech during the opening ceremony of a Cambodia-France business forum in Phnom Penh. "Our competitive labor costs and supportive business environment make us an attractive destination for manufacturing and export," he added. Meng said Cambodia is not just a strategic export-oriented manufacturing hub, but also a nation committed to a pro-business environment and investment-friendly policies. Regional and bilateral FTAs have served as catalysts for Cambodia's economic and export growth in the long term. The government has predicted that the kingdom's economy will achieve a rate of 6 percent in 2024, up from 5 percent in 2023. "This nation has been one of the fastest growing economies in the region, and expected to continue to grow," he said. "We are eager to join forces with investors on a journey towards shared prosperity." Cambodian Ministry of Commerce's Secretary of State and Spokesperson Penn Sovicheat said the RCEP agreement and bilateral FTAs will help Cambodia realize its ambitious goals of becoming an upper-middle-income country by 2030 and a high-income nation by 2050. "These free trade pacts have not only given a boost to Cambodia's sustainable trade growth in the long run, but also become a magnet to attract more foreign direct investments to the kingdom," he told Xinhua. "I believe that this regional trade pact will help transform ASEAN into a new engine of growth for Asia," Sovicheat added. The RCEP member countries include the 10 ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) member states of Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam, and their five trading partners, namely China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. Entered into force in 2022, RCEP will ultimately eliminate 90 percent of the tariffs on goods traded among its signatories over the next 20 years. Thong Mengdavid, a lecturer at the Institute for International Studies and Public Policy, a school of the Royal University of Phnom Penh, said RCEP, the world's largest FTA, has helped diversify Cambodia's economy and boost its exports. "For regional cooperation, this regional mega-trade pact has played a significant role in integrating regional economy and supporting multilateralism mechanism that enhances regional trade capacity and fosters mutual economic growth," he told Xinhua. ISLAMABAD, July 8 (Xinhua) -- An officer of the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) was killed in a terrorist attack in Pakistan's southern port city of Karachi, police officials have said. CTD Deputy Inspector General Asif Aijaz Shaikh told media on Sunday that unknown terrorists riding a motorcycle sprayed bullets at a senior CTD officer when he was visiting his friend in Karimabad area of Karachi, critically injuring him and a security guard. The injured CTD officer succumbed to his injuries on the way to a nearby hospital, said the CTD official, adding that the attackers fled the scene after the attack. Police said that it was a targeted attack on the CTD personnel, and the attackers opened fire after he came out of his bullet-proof vehicle. BERLIN, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Germany's foreign trade volume shrank in May, with imports and exports falling considerably, according to figures published by the country's Federal Statistical Office (Destatis) on Monday. Exports by Europe's largest economy fell by 3.6 percent month-on-month to 131.6 billion euros (142.1 billion U.S. dollars), while imports dropped by as much as 6.6 percent to 106.7 billion euros, Destatis said. "We are currently seeing a dramatic slump on both the export and import side," said Dirk Jandura, president of the Federation of German Wholesale, Foreign Trade and Services (BGA), on Monday. The weakness of foreign trade is "largely home-made," Jandura added, emphasizing the critical role of free trade. "If Germany does not take a leading role on this issue, nothing will happen here in the future either," he warned. China remained Germany's most important supplier country in May, with goods worth 13 billion euros, an increase of 1.7 percent on the previous month. Meanwhile, German exports to countries including the United States and China recorded declines. Jandura also warned of negative consequences from the European Commission's tariffs on electric vehicles imported from China, saying that these are not in Germany's or in Europe's interests. "We must accept international competition and not isolate ourselves from it," he said. According to the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association, new registrations of battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) saw a year-on-year decline of 12 percent in May. Their market share fell to 12.5 percent, over 1 percentage point lower than the previous year. A spokesperson for German carmaker Volkswagen said last week that the timing of the European Commission's decision is detrimental to the current weak demand for BEVs in Europe. "The negative effects of this decision outweigh any benefits for the European, and especially the German, automotive industry." (1 euro = 1.08 U.S. dollar) by Burak Akinci ANKARA, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Turkiye is making efforts to mend ties with its Syrian neighbor, driven partly by the desire to repatriate millions of refugees amid growing anti-immigrant sentiment among its population, experts say. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced at the end of June that there is no obstacle preventing Turkiye and Syria from restoring diplomatic ties, which were severed after the Syrian civil war erupted in 2011. His comments mirrored those of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad days earlier, suggesting a potential thaw in relations between the neighboring countries. "There is no reason why (diplomatic ties) should not be established," Erdogan told reporters in Istanbul on June 28. Before the war, Erdogan and Assad shared a close relationship. High-level talks between Ankara and Damascus, held under Russia's auspices in late 2022, failed to achieve concrete results. However, rising public pressure in Turkiye to return some 3.1 million Syrian refugees has renewed Ankara's efforts for reconciliation. "A detente between Turkiye and Syria may lead to an agreement overseeing the mass repatriation of Syrian citizens residing in Turkiye back to Syria. This is only viable through negotiations," said Batu Coskun, a political analyst at Libya's Sadeq Institute, in an interview with Xinhua. Recent anti-Syrian riots in Turkish cities, particularly in strongholds of Erdogan's ruling party, have underscored the urgency of the refugee issue. Efforts to repair ties with Damascus and attacks on Syrian refugees have also led to tensions in Turkish-controlled northern Syria, where over 600,000 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the past two years. "The government is likely calculating that anti-migrant sentiments have grown exponentially and are now causing significant societal tension," Coskun emphasized. While Turkiye has been praised for hosting millions of Syrian refugees, social and economic tensions have dramatically deteriorated public sentiment in recent years. Coskun highlighted the Ankara government's urgency in reaching an arrangement for the return of Syrian refugees, though he noted that normalization will likely be a difficult path. A significant point of contention is the Turkish military presence in northeastern Syria. Damascus demands the withdrawal of Turkish forces as a prerequisite for any rapprochement, while Ankara insists on protecting its national security from threats posed by Syrian Kurdish armed groups, which it labels as terrorist organizations. Throughout the Syrian conflict, Ankara has primarily supported groups fighting against the Syrian government forces. In a recent sign of potential detente, Erdogan suggested he might invite the Russian and Syrian presidents to Turkiye. "We may have an invitation to Putin and Bashar al-Assad. If Mr. Putin visits Turkiye, this could mark the beginning of a new process," Erdogan said on Friday while answering journalists' questions on his return flight from Kazakhstan to Turkiye, where he attended the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit and met with Putin, according to the Anadolu Agency. Oytun Orhan, director of Levant Studies at Ankara's Center for Middle Eastern Strategic Studies, noted that the Syrian government is also hopeful for rapprochement. "Al-Assad aims to continue the normalization process with the Arab states and its non-Arab neighbors," Orhan told Xinhua, reminding that in 2023 Syria was readmitted as an active member of the Arab League. "With encouragement from Russia and Arab countries, the al-Assad administration seems more willing to rebuild ties with Turkiye," Orhan added. Both analysts highlighted that Russia has been pushing more actively than before on this matter, adding that Iraqi mediation efforts have also made progress in convincing the Syrian government to engage with Turkiye. However, Turkish officials recognize that these efforts will require significant time and will not be easy as long as both parties maintain their current positions, Orhan concluded. SARAJEVO, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) parliamentary members met with the European Union's (EU) Political and Security Committee (PSC) delegation on Monday to discuss BiH's EU membership path. Members of the Collegium of the House of Representatives and the House of Peoples of the Parliamentary Assembly of BiH met with the PSC delegation of the Council of the European Union in Sarajevo. The meeting highlighted BiH's appreciation for the EU for its support, culminating in the European Council's approval to initiate accession negotiations with BiH. BiH legislators emphasized the need for increased governmental efforts to overcome stagnation and leverage the momentum from the accession talks. They called for proactive reforms to accelerate integration. PSC representatives urged BiH's commitment to meeting EU accession requirements and advocating for the swift legislative adoption. They reaffirmed support for BiH's territorial integrity, constitutional framework, and European aspirations. NEW YORK, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The sales of fragrance is the fastest-growing in the prestige beauty sector in the United States, climbing 13 percent in the first quarter this year, according to market research firm Circana recently. Over 100 million units were sold in the U.S. last year, with annual sales projected to hit 9 billion U.S. dollars by 2026. First-time buyers and men are driving much of these gains, gravitating toward high-end brands, while younger shoppers, particularly tweens, are stocking up on gift sets and body sprays available at lower price points, said the Washington Post in a recent report about the trend. It also noted that "the upswing speaks to evolving consumer habits after the pandemic, from which Americans emerged flush with savings and eager to indulge." According to Circana, sales among shoppers aged 25 to 44 have soared 19 percent, though unit sales are notably more robust in households with children. Gen Alpha -- those born from 2010 to 2024 -- is keen on body spray, which tends to be a lower-cost, less potent option. For example, according to beauty conglomerate Coty, its seven top brands -- Hugo Boss, Burberry, Calvin Klein, Chloe, Davidoff, Gucci and Marc Jacobs -- accounted for nearly 90 percent of its fragrance sales. Net revenue in the category swelled nearly 60 percent year over year. The beauty sector, which includes makeup, skincare and hair care, tends to be resilient regardless of broader economic conditions. Larissa Jensen, a beauty industry advisor at Circana, said people spend when they're feeling good and when they're feeling down. If the economy is in a slump, people buy a low-ticket luxury to boost their mood. The guests of the 14th Silk Road International Music Festival have enjoyed a vibrant show delivered by TURKSOY artists and the Turkish Inegol Folk Dance Ensemble, Azernews reports. At the beginning of the concert held at Heydar Aliyev Center in Shaki, the spectators were informed about the activities of the Inegol Folk Dance Ensemble. Founded in 2021, Inegol successfully represents Turkiye at major music events and festivals held in the country and abroad. The ensemble took the third place at Lazgi International Folk Games Festival 2024, held in Uzbekistan. It has been brought to attention that the collective, consisting of 40 people, participates in the Shaki festival with 12 dancers. The artistic director of the collective is Atilla Mert, his adviser is Fatih ?en. Colorful dance show as well as the performances of People's Artist of Kazakhstan Bakhtiyar Taylakbayev and Kazakhstan's Cultural Worker Lara Rysbay, were warmly welcomed by the audience. The concert featured Azerbaijani, Turkish and Kazakh songs. At the end of the concert, the festival's artistic director, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Composers' Union, People's Artist Frangiz Alizade, and Azerbaijan's representative in TURKSOY Elchin Gafarli, expressed their gratitude to the artists for a fascinating concert. On behalf of the festival organizers, the artists were presented with the symbolic symbol of the festival, as well as TURKSOY's commemorative gifts. Note that TURKSOY has its roots in meetings held in 1992 in Baku and Istanbul, where the ministers of culture from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkiye, and Turkmenistan declared their commitment to cooperate in a joint cultural framework. The International Organisation of Turkic Culture TURKSOY is the UNESCO of the Turkic World and was established in 1993 upon the signature of its founding agreement by the Ministers of Culture of Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, and Turkiye. WASHINGTON, July 8 (Xinhua) -- Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to the two crashes of its 737 Max jetliners, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Sunday. Under the deal, the U.S. planemaker has agreed to pay a fine of 243.6 million U.S. dollars to resolve the DOJ's investigation into two 737 MAX fatal crashes that killed 346 people. The decision follows the government's determination that Boeing violated an agreement shielding it from prosecution for over three years. Prosecutors accused the planemaker of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and its pilot-training requirements. Last week, they gave Boeing the choice of either entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. As part of the deal, Boeing also agreed to spend at least 455 million U.S. dollars over the next three years to boost safety and compliance programs. The DOJ said in a court filing that it and Boeing are working to document the full written plea agreement and file it in federal court in Texas by July 19. COSHOCTON Hes right where he wants to be. I knew I had an engineering mind with attention to detail, assessed Doug Speicher. My mom joked that I could tell who was visiting our house when I was 5 years old because I recognized the vehicles they drove. Id say I have dual interests, he added. On one hand I love concentrating on detailed economic principles/stats/graphs, but on the other side Ive always been a helper. I love to help and educate people if Im able. It took me until my mid-30s to finally figure out my present-day occupation was a perfect blend of the two. Doug Speicher, financial adviser for Edward Jones of Coshocton Today, Speicher is a financial adviser with Edward Jones in Coshocton. My role, he explained, is to be a guide and resource for anyone I can, in order to help them have confidence in their long range plan, and to retire with dignity so they can do what I like to do spend more time with the people I love and probably spoil the grandkids as much as possible! Speicher, 51, was born in Kansas City and grew up in upstate New York. But, he recalled, my grandparents were moving to Columbus the day I was born so Ohio was always a second home for me until I moved here. Wed pack six people in a station wagon in the 1980s to drive 8 hours to Ohio for summer vacations and Christmas breaks. Speicher graduated from high school in Syracuse, New York in 1990, then drove 500 miles to attend Ohios Mount Vernon Nazarene University. My wife, Angie, is from the Cincinnati area, he said. I met her at college and for that compelling reason, Ive resided in Ohio ever since. Speicher worked in restaurant management for a while. Thats what brought him to Coshocton in 1997. He then entered the banking industry in 1999 and went on to obtain a masters in business administration in 2003. We planned to be here a few years and then move away, he said, but we fell in love with this small community and found it was a great place to raise our girls. They graduated from River View in 2013 and 2014, and have given us two grandkids each two girls and two boys. The Great Recession, he continued, had a major impact on my mortgage business in 2008, as well as my wifes occupation at Help Me Grow, which was a federally and state funded program, and those funds were being cut. By an interesting chance, I found that Mike Remington's office of Edward Jones was looking to bring on another financial adviser with the purpose of eventually opening a second office, which I did in 2011. Steve Oster is superintendent of Coshocton County Board of Developmental Disabilities, and a client. Story continues When Doug works with his clients, said Oster, he gets to know their needs, what they value, what their goals are and what it will take to help them achieve their financial goals. He takes the time to explain options in a simple, understandable manner. He stays up to date on investments, the market and he also gives back to the Coshocton community. Ive found there can be much fear around navigating a financial life prior to retirement and after retirement, Speicher responded. But there doesn't need to be. When I see someone breathe a sigh of relief at the end of a full review of their financial plans and actually move from a state of apprehension to a state of happiness and excitement, thats what I work for. Ive spent 15 years building this business and Ive found my purpose, he concluded. Im right where I need to be for the rest of my career. Doug Speicher with Edward Jones is located at 45 Downtowner Plaza. For more information, call 740-623-0560. Aces of Trades is a weekly series focusing on people and their jobs whether theyre unusual jobs, fun jobs or people who take ordinary jobs and make them extraordinary. If you have a suggestion for a future profile, let us know at ctnews@coshoctontribune.com. This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Doug Speicher found his career and home in Coshocton According to new statistics from the US Department of Labor, the nations hotel industry added 700 jobs to payrolls in June 2024 and total hotel employment stands at approximately 1.92m. The AHLA (American Hotel and Lodging Association) has highlighted that this is 196,000 jobs short of pre-pandemic levels - a shortfall it believes reflects the scarcity of available employees. AHLA interim president and CEO Kevin Carey commented: Halfway through 2024, the hotel industry is behind where it needs to be when it comes to hiring staff, despite near-record high wages and expanding workplace benefits and flexibility. The reason is the nationwide workforce shortage, which is preventing hoteliers from meeting their full potential as demand for travel remains strong. AHLA is calling on the Department of Homeland Security to expand the workforce by making 65,000 additional H-2B temporary non-agricultural worker visas available as soon as possible, as part of the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act. The organisation is also insisting that Congress pass The Closing the Workforce Gap Act of 2024, The H-2 Improvements to Relieve Employers (HIRE) Act, and The Asylum Seeker Work Authorization Act so that hoteliers can maintain and expand their operations. Carey concluded: Both Congress and the administration can provide relief to our members, many of whom are small business owners, and AHLA will continue to call for action to expand the pool of available workers. The US is undergoing a presidential election campaign with the winner to be announced in November 2024, heralding further changes to the job market and immigration levels for the hotel industry to navigate. "AHLA calls on US government to improve hotel job market" was originally created and published by Hotel Management Network, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - Chip buyers, including the German car industry, need the older generation computer chips that Chinese chipmakers are currently investing in, the CEO of equipment maker ASML said in an interview with Germany's Handelsblatt newspaper published on Monday. The remarks by Christophe Fouquet, who took over as CEO at Europe's largest tech firm in April, come as the European Commission has begun surveying firms including ASML for their views on Chinese firms' investments in so-called "legacy" chips, an important source of revenue for ASML. "The automotive industry in particular, including the German one, needs a lot more chips that are manufactured using simpler, long-known technologies," Fouquet told the paper. Facing U.S.-led restrictions on more advanced technology, Chinese firms are expanding capacity to produce these older chips, raising Western concerns about the long term potential for oversupply. Fouquet said that global demand for such chips is rising dramatically, but making them is not very profitable and Western firms are not investing enough. "Europe cannot even cover half of its own needs," Fouquet said. According to estimates by industry group SEMI, Chinese chipmakers will increase capacity by 14% in 2025, more than twice the pace of the rest of the world, to 10.1 million wafers per month in 2025, representing about a third of total global production. "If someone wants to slow it down, for whatever reason, then alternatives are needed. There is no point in stopping someone from producing something you need," Fouquet said. (Reporting by Toby Sterling, Editing by Louise Heavens) approved mortgage application document with house key Roughly eight months after acquiring PacWest Bancorp in a rescue deal, Banc of California is selling roughly $2 billion in business-purpose residential mortgage loans, according to Bloomberg. PacWest had already sold the servicing on the debt service coverage ratio (DSCR) loans, which were originated by its subsidiary Civic Financial Services, before Pacwest was acquired by Banc of California in late 2023. Bids were due on June 28 and Morgan Stanley led the bidding process, according to Bloomberg. In July of 2023, Bloomberg reported that JPMorgan Chase pledged to buy nearly $2 billion worth of mortgages to grease Banc of Californias purchase of PacWest Bancorp. The bank entered into an agreement to buy $1.8 billion of single-family residential loans at a discount. More recently, regional banks have been looking to shed assets ahead of the Basel III Endgame regulations. Private credit lenders, which do not fall under the proposed regulatory changes, are often the acquirers. PacWest had a similar business model to First Republic Bank, which served wealthy clients by offering interest-only mortgages in which the borrower didnt have to pay back any principal for the first 10 years of the loan. As with many other regional banks, PacWest had billions of dollars worth of unrealized losses in its bond portfolio and uninsured deposits that were at risk of being pulled. Independent specialist insurance and reinsurance broker BMS has chosen Charlie Rozes as group CFO and executive director. Based in London, Rozes will report to Nick Cook, BMS Group CEO and will take over from Nick Moss, who is retiring. He will work closely with Cook and the executive leadership as he drives BMS strategy, organic growth plans and M&A plans. Nick Cook said: I am delighted to announce Charlies appointment. He has extensive experience leading UK and overseas operations and has successfully driven substantial growth for global and FTSE organisations. His experience will be crucial as BMS looks to continue its momentum, hit its growth ambitions, and further its reputation as the home of an innovative, collaborative and high-performance culture. I would also like to thank Nick Moss for his tremendous contribution to the company over the past five years. Nick has been a driving force behind the incredible growth in BMS and we all wish him well in his retirement. Rozes added: It is with great enthusiasm that I join BMS. Nick and his team are exceptional, and this is reflected in the tremendous growth BMS has been able to achieve. The opportunity to return to the insurance industry means a great deal to me, especially given the opportunity to contribute to BMS at this exciting stage in its growth. I am thrilled to join the team and look forward to working with my new colleagues. In addition, BMS has appointed Ryo Iizuka as a director of the private equity, mergers & acquisitions, and tax in Japan. Based in Tokyo, Iizuka will report to Tim Hewitt, head of BMS Japan, and joins effective immediately. BMSs Japan office has been operational since mid-2023, and Iizukas appointment rounds out the local team to a trio of experts from legal, investment banking, consulting, and insurance backgrounds. In addition, Iizuka joins with a wealth of experience with large global investment banking and M&A consulting firms, having worked in senior positions including at Deloitte, Accenture, and HSBC. "BMS appoints group CFO and executive director" was originally created and published by Life Insurance International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. BMW has asked Brussels to calculate lower tariffs for imports of its China made electric Mini to Europe which are currently subject to the highest duties under provisional EU regulation, according to a Reuters source 'familiar with the matter'. The move was aimed at getting the model included in the group of companies which cooperated with the investigation. That would bring duty levels to 20.8%, down from 37.6% under the current plans, the news agency said. Last week, the European Commission announced provisional duties on European imports of electric vehicles produced in China, giving EV producers until 18 July 18 to comment. Reuters said models of BMW's Chinese-made electric Mini had only been produced for a few months and were not part of Brussels' sample analysis in the run-up to the tariff announcement which meant they were automatically subjected to the highest tariff level. BMW expected its electric Mini to be ultimately hit with a lower tariff, the Reuters sources said, adding an official process for new market entrants to seek lower duties would only be made possible in autumn once final duties have been set. Under the EU process, any company that was not represented in the sample groups and wishes to have its own individual duty can ask for an "accelerated review" just after the imposition of definitive measures, Reuters noted. BMW declined to comment to the news agency. "BMW pleas for Mini tariff deal report" was originally created and published by Just Auto, 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. Boeing (BA) will plead guilty to criminal fraud conspiracy in a Justice Department agreement that brands the aviation giant as a corporate felon but could resolve a big legal headache as Boeing tries to convince customers and investors that it has its problems under control. The plea deal described by US prosecutors in a court document Sunday relates to actions taken by Boeing to mislead FAA regulators before two 737 MAX fatal crashes at the end of last decade. Boeing will have to pay fines of up to $487.2 million, although a judge will rule on the final amount. The Justice Department asked that Boeing be credited for fines already paid, which means the new amount could be $243.6 million. The company will also have to operate with a corporate monitor for the next three years and spend $455 million to improve its compliance and safety. We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms," Boeing said in a statement. Boeing stock was roughly flat in Monday midday trading. The deal presents Boeing with plenty of new perils. A plea deal could get rejected by a judge. Families of the victims of the two crashes last decade have vowed to oppose the pact. And perhaps the biggest danger is the effect that a conviction may have on Boeings already-battered bottom line. Criminal convictions can foreclose or suspend a companys right to contract with the federal government and frustrate its ability to secure loans, according to Eddie Jauregui, a former federal prosecutor and white-collar defense attorney with Holland & Knight. Those consequences have particular meaning for Boeing, which counts the federal government as its largest customer. It also happens to be the countrys largest exporter. The matter could end up with an executive agency known as the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee (ISDC), which holds power to discuss government-wide suspensions and debarments that can end or disrupt a companys business with the US government. "The considerations are many, and they are weighty," Jauregui said. "I think the government contract work is probably an extremely important component for Boeing." Boeing is in this spot after DOJ officials decided to officially revoke legal protections extended to Boeing in a January 2021 deferred prosecution agreement. The prior agreement followed investigations into two 737 Max 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. A Boeing 737 Max aircraft during a display in Farnborough, Britain, in 2022. REUTERS/Peter Cziborra/File Photo (Reuters / Reuters) Boeing previously had admitted that two of its former Max test pilots deceived the FAA about a flight control system called Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, or MCAS. Story continues Prosecutors agreed to table a charge alleging that Boeing conspired to defraud the federal government so long as Boeing spent three years designing, implementing, and enforcing a compliance and ethics program for safer manufacturing and oversight practices. Just days before that agreement was set to expire this past January, Boeing found itself at the center of a new safety crisis caused by a door plug blowout aboard an Alaska Airlines (ALK) Boeing 737 Max 9. Prosecutors told a judge in May that Boeing had violated the 2021 deferred prosecution agreement. Boeing did not have a lot of good choices as the DOJ weighed a new criminal charge. If Boeing chose not to plead guilty, the DOJ could take the company to trial, which would expose Boeing to more turmoil and public scrutiny. "It's never an easy decision for a company, especially one that is as tied with the United States government as Boeing, to make a decision to plead guilty," Jauregui said. But even this new plea deal still faces challenges. One law firm representing families of people killed in the Boeing 737 Max crashes said the families will be asking the judge "to not accept the plea deal in its current form." Another law firm has said families "would most certainly object" to what it called a "sweetheart plea deal" described to them by DOJ officials. Justice Department seal, in Washington. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) Boeing and the DOJ would, in fact, need court approval to enter a plea deal. The two sides expect to file a final agreement by July 19. If a deal were rejected, Boeing and the government could then go back to the drawing board to negotiate new terms or the government could press forward with charges. Matthieu Goddeyne, a former New York County assistant district attorney and federal white-collar defense lawyer for Gunster, said a guilty plea from Boeing still leaves the Justice Department with the difficult task of enforcing the law while also trying to uphold victims' rights and encourage safe aircraft manufacturing. "I don't necessarily think that the government's job is to try and make Boeing fail or try and put thousands of people out of work," Goddeyne said. "I think that their job is to try to do justice, to do right by the victims, and try and effectuate some change within the company." Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance BYD Auto is expected to announce plans to build a US$1bn electric vehicle (EV) assembly plant in Turkey to target the domestic and European markets, according to local reports citing Turkish government officials. The announcement - expected later this week - would come just days after the European Union imposed additional duties of up to 38% on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) imported from China, on top of the existing 10% tariff, after an investigation by the European Commission found Chinese manufacturers had unfairly benefited from substantial government incentives for over a decade. BEVs imported by BYD from China would incur additional EU tariffs of just over 17%. Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan is expected to announce a deal with BYD at a press conference on Monday in Manisa province where the plant was scheduled to be built. The facility was expected to produce electric and hybrid vehicles for Turkey and export to Europe. BEV sales in Turkey exceeded 72,000 units last year and hybrid sales approached 105,000 units while total vehicle sales in the country amounted to 1.28m units. The Turkish government last week indicated it was reconsidering plans announced last month to impose an additional 40% import tariff on all vehicles imported from China, with the country looking to prioritise inward investment. President Erdogan met with Chinese President Xi Jinping last week at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation conference in Astana, Kazakhstan. Shenzhen-based BYD, Chinas largest EV manufacturer, previously revealed plans to bring in low cost BEVs to Europe, including its Seagull passenger car priced at around EUR20,000. The company hopes to bypass EU tariffs by producing vehicles in Turkey which has a customs union with the EU. Last week BYD opened a new 150,000 ERV assembly plant in Thailand to target mainly markets in south-east Asia. It is also building a plant in Hungary. "BYD to announce EV plant in Turkey" was originally created and published by Just Auto, 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. China beefs up computing power as new economic catalyst Xinhua) 08:20, July 08, 2024 A staff member checks equipment at a data center of China Mobile in Horinger, Hohhot City, north China's Inner Mongolia, Nov. 28, 2023. (Xinhua/Li Zhipeng) BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Amid the global race to build artificial general intelligence, the development of stronger computing power has become a major focal point of China's strategic initiatives, driven by the needs of a booming digital economy and innovations in large language models. Data revealed at the Global Digital Economy Conference 2024, which closed on Friday in Beijing, showed that by the end of last year, the total number of standard racks in use at data centers nationwide had exceeded 8.1 million in China, with a total computing power of 230 EFLOPS. EFLOPS is a measurement unit used to determine a computer's speed. A 1 EFLOPS computing system can complete 1 quintillion floating-point operations per second. In the era of interconnected devices and data surges, computing power, as the "new energy" of the digital economy, is reshaping global economic landscapes at an unprecedented pace, said Wang Xiaoli, who is with the China Academy of Information and Communications Technology, at the conference. Looking ahead, China aims to boost the country's aggregate computing power by more than 30 percent by 2025, according to a plan released by six government departments in October 2023. The plan also sets a target for China's total computing power to reach 300 EFLOPS by 2025. During this process, computing systems and data centers require substantial electricity to operate and cool hardware, making energy efficiency a critical consideration in the development of computing power. In order to meet increasing energy demands, China's related sectors have undertaken extensive efforts to integrate the development of green energy with computing power. At the just-concluded conference, Yan Gang, technical director of Yovole Network, a Shanghai-based cloud computing data center service provider, outlined their strategy for efficient energy storage using advanced energy management technologies. "Our intelligent computing center employs combined cooling, heating, and power systems using hydrogen energy, photovoltaic storage, indirect evaporative cooling and liquid cooling technologies. In April, we also partnered with Tesla to apply their Megapack energy storage technology at our intelligent computing center," Yan said. Meanwhile, due to the strong demand for computing power, eastern regions of China have shared development opportunities in the digital era with the rest of the country. This aerial photo taken on Nov. 28, 2023 shows a financial technology center project of Bank of China in Horinger, Hohhot City, north China's Inner Mongolia. (Xinhua/Li Zhipeng) Expansive and resource-rich western provincial-level regions in China leverage significant advantages in terms of green energy and favorable geographical conditions. These factors enable them to provide high-quality computing resources and have led them to seize the opportunity to establish massive data centers that support the country's intelligent industries. In December 2023, the city of Ulanqab in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region signed a strategic cooperation memorandum with the Beijing Municipal Commission of Economy and Information Technology to promote the influx of green computing power into Beijing. According to Chai Yue, vice mayor of Ulanqab, the city plans to provide Beijing with over 10,000 PFLOPS of green general-purpose computing power annually by 2025. One PFLOP, or petaFLOP, equals one quadrillion floating-point operations per second. Additionally, the region's computing power resources have transformed it from a traditional hub of the livestock industry into an attraction for AI-related sectors. According to the Big Data Management Bureau of Hohhot, the regional capital, half of the 70 large models registered in Beijing are undergoing training in Inner Mongolia. In addition to establishing infrastructure such as data centers, computing service providers across various industries are exploring ways to integrate computing power directly into enterprises, households and business districts. This promising sector is exploring the "computing power plus" model, forging deep collaborations with sectors including finance, education, healthcare, and transportation. In 2020, Beijing launched an autonomous driving demonstration area in Yizhuang, located in a southern suburb of the capital. The intelligent road system utilizes holographic smart devices to monitor traffic conditions, supported by multifunctional poles along the road that transmit computational data to vehicles and real-time cloud systems. This vehicle-road collaboration technology, powered by abundant computing resources, optimizes driving solutions for cars, thereby enhancing traffic safety and efficiency. "Computing power is widely applied across various sectors, including government, industry, transportation, and healthcare, continually driving the emergence of new technologies, models, and business forms. This infusion of innovation is providing significant momentum for high-quality economic development," said Jin Zhuanglong, minister of industry and information technology. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Fatime Letifova The Ambassador of Azerbaijan to Afghanistan Ilham Mohammadov met with the Minister of Public Health Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali, Azernews reports. The Ministry of Public Health says that joint cooperation in the field of health, sharing experiences in the pharmaceutical industry, capacity building of Afganistan health personnel and a number of other topics were discussed in the meeting. Amidst a backdrop of mixed global economic signals, the Hong Kong market has shown resilience with the Hang Seng Index posting modest gains during a holiday-shortened week. This context sets the stage for exploring dividend stocks like China Resources Gas Group, which can offer investors potential stability and steady income streams in uncertain times. Top 10 Dividend Stocks In Hong Kong Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating China Construction Bank (SEHK:939) 8.02% Chongqing Rural Commercial Bank (SEHK:3618) 8.01% CITIC Telecom International Holdings (SEHK:1883) 9.41% Lenovo Group (SEHK:992) 3.43% S.A.S. Dragon Holdings (SEHK:1184) 8.97% China Electronics Huada Technology (SEHK:85) 8.20% International Housewares Retail (SEHK:1373) 9.18% Bank of China (SEHK:3988) 6.69% China Mobile (SEHK:941) 6.22% Sinopharm Group (SEHK:1099) 4.31% Click here to see the full list of 89 stocks from our Top Dividend Stocks screener. Let's review some notable picks from our screened stocks. Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: China Resources Gas Group Limited operates as an investment holding company primarily involved in the distribution of natural and liquefied gas, as well as the connection of gas pipelines, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$68.15 billion. Operations: China Resources Gas Group Limited generates revenue through various segments including HK$82.63 billion from the sale and distribution of gas fuel and related products (excluding gas stations), HK$10.89 billion from gas connection services, HK$4.04 billion from comprehensive services, and smaller amounts from gas stations and design and construction services. Dividend Yield: 3.9% China Resources Gas Group Limited, trading at 50% below our estimate of its fair value, shows potential as a dividend stock despite a history of unstable and volatile dividends. Recently, the company declared a final dividend of 100.69 HK cents per share for the year ended 31 December 2023. With earnings forecast to grow by 7.39% annually and recent strategic agreements to supply energy solutions through its subsidiary, the company's financial outlook may support ongoing dividends. However, with a lower yield (3.93%) compared to top market players and coverage ratios indicating just sufficient earnings and cash flow support (Payout Ratio: 50.2%, Cash Payout Ratio: 53.5%), investors should weigh growth prospects against dividend consistency risks. Story continues SEHK:1193 Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Beijing Jingneng Clean Energy Co., Limited, operating in the Peoples Republic of China, focuses on producing energy through gas-fired power, wind power, photovoltaic power, and hydropower with a market capitalization of approximately HK$16.49 billion. Operations: Beijing Jingneng Clean Energy Co., Limited earns revenue from gas-fired power, wind power, photovoltaic power, and hydropower across various regions in China. Dividend Yield: 7.5% Beijing Jingneng Clean Energy offers a dividend yield of 7.51%, slightly lower than the top quartile in Hong Kong's market. Despite a decade of stable dividends, both earnings and cash flows currently do not adequately cover these payments, with a high cash payout ratio of 224.8%. The company's debt level is also notably high. However, it has shown some financial growth with an earnings increase of 9.1% annually over the past five years and is predicted to grow by 18.05% per year moving forward. Recently, at its AGM on June 26, 2024, it approved an increased final dividend payment and reappointed its auditors while also announcing steady first-quarter sales and net income growth compared to the previous year. SEHK:579 Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Anhui Expressway Company Limited specializes in constructing, operating, managing, and developing toll roads and associated services in Anhui Province, China, with a market capitalization of HK$22.24 billion. Operations: Anhui Expressway Company Limited generates revenue primarily through the construction, operation, management, and development of toll roads in Anhui Province. Dividend Yield: 6.7% Anhui Expressway has maintained stable dividends over the past decade, with a reasonable payout ratio of 60%, ensuring dividends are well-covered by earnings. However, its dividend yield of 6.75% falls below the top quartile for Hong Kong dividend stocks at 7.99%. While earnings grew by 10.8% last year and are expected to rise by 7.16% annually, dividends aren't fully supported by free cash flow, indicating potential sustainability issues despite a favorable P/E ratio of 9.1x compared to the market's 9.5x. SEHK:995 Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Turning Ideas Into Actions Get an in-depth perspective on all 89 Top Dividend Stocks by using our screener here. Are you invested in these stocks already? Keep abreast of every twist and turn by setting up a portfolio with Simply Wall St, where we make it simple for investors like you to stay informed and proactive. Join a community of smart investors by using Simply Wall St. It's free and delivers expert-level analysis on worldwide markets. Contemplating Other Strategies? This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:1193 SEHK:579 and SEHK:995. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com Amid a backdrop of moderate gains in major European stock indexes, including a 1.32% rise in Germany's DAX, investors continue to navigate through an environment marked by political shifts and economic uncertainties. In such a climate, dividend stocks like Dinkelacker may offer a blend of stability and potential income, appealing to those looking for more conservative investment avenues in the current market scenario. Top 10 Dividend Stocks In Germany Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Allianz (XTRA:ALV) 5.29% Deutsche Post (XTRA:DHL) 4.61% Sudzucker (XTRA:SZU) 6.46% OVB Holding (XTRA:O4B) 4.76% Mercedes-Benz Group (XTRA:MBG) 8.10% DATA MODUL Produktion und Vertrieb von elektronischen Systemen (XTRA:DAM) 6.76% MLP (XTRA:MLP) 5.17% SAF-Holland (XTRA:SFQ) 4.67% Deutsche Telekom (XTRA:DTE) 3.23% Uzin Utz (XTRA:UZU) 3.17% Click here to see the full list of 30 stocks from our Top Dividend Stocks screener. We're going to check out a few of the best picks from our screener tool. Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Dinkelacker AG, with a market cap of 294.05 million, is engaged in the rental of real estate properties across Germany. Operations: Dinkelacker AG generates its revenue through the leasing of real estate properties throughout Germany. Dividend Yield: 3.2% Dinkelacker AG, with a dividend yield of 3.17%, falls below the top-tier German dividend payers at 4.61%. Despite this, it has shown consistent dividend reliability over the past decade and has increased its dividends during this period. The company's payout ratio stands at 54.2%, indicating that dividends are well-covered by earnings. However, Dinkelacker carries a high level of debt and recent financials show a slight decline in net income from 5.38 million to 4.87 million year-over-year, alongside stable revenue figures around 12 million. BST:DWB Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Brenntag SE operates as a distributor of industrial and specialty chemicals and ingredients across regions including Germany, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas, and Asia Pacific, with a market capitalization of approximately 9.24 billion. Operations: Brenntag SE's revenue is segmented across various geographical regions, with Brenntag Essentials - North America generating 4.28 billion, followed by Brenntag Essentials - Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) at 3.34 billion, Brenntag Essentials - Asia Pacific (APAC) contributing 0.71 billion, and Brenntag Essentials - Latin America at 0.67 billion. Story continues Dividend Yield: 3.3% Brenntag SE offers a dividend yield of 3.28%, which is below the top 25% of German dividend stocks. Despite this, dividends have shown stability and growth over the last decade, supported by a conservative payout ratio of 48.9% and a cash payout ratio of 28.1%. The stock is currently perceived as undervalued, trading at 62.6% below estimated fair value with expected earnings growth of 9.32% per year, suggesting potential for price appreciation alongside reliable dividend payments. XTRA:BNR Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: DATA MODUL Aktiengesellschaft, Produktion und Vertrieb von elektronischen Systemen operates in the development, manufacture, and distribution of flatbed displays, monitors, electronic subassemblies, and information systems globally with a market capitalization of approximately 104.37 million. Operations: DATA MODUL Produktion und Vertrieb von elektronischen Systemen generates revenue primarily through two segments: 98.96 million from Systems and 175.39 million from Displays. Dividend Yield: 6.8% DATA MODUL exhibits a dividend yield of 6.76%, ranking it in the top quartile of German dividend payers. Despite its attractive yield, the company's dividend history has been marked by volatility and unreliability over the past decade. However, both earnings and cash flows sufficiently cover dividends, with payout ratios at 50.7% and 26.9% respectively, indicating a sustainable payment structure moving forward. Trading at a P/E ratio of 7.5xwell below the German market averageDATA MODUL also presents good value relative to its peers. XTRA:DAM Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Summing It All Up Take a closer look at our Top Dividend Stocks list of 30 companies by clicking here. Shareholder in one or more of these companies? Ensure you're never caught off-guard by adding your portfolio in Simply Wall St for timely alerts on significant stock developments. Join a community of smart investors by using Simply Wall St. It's free and delivers expert-level analysis on worldwide markets. Ready To Venture Into Other Investment Styles? This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include BST:DWB XTRA:BNR and XTRA:DAM. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com The security perimeter is set for the Republican National Convention, and with it are the designated protest areas. The massive event is scheduled to take place July 15-18 and is expected to bring thousands of delegates, police, media, guests and protesters to the city. Those protesting the convention and presumptive nominee Donald Trump have two designated "First Amendment zones" on the north and south sides of the security zones. Zeidler Union Square (lower center) is one of two demonstration areas for the Republican National Convention taking place from July 15 to 18. The Baird Center, UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena and Fiserv Forum are shown in the upper left. And businesses near those areas are preparing for the crowds who, like the delegates, want their voices to be heard. South of the security perimeter, Zeidler Union Square is going to be a main area for protesters to gather during the convention and it will also be the launching point for the parade. WEC Energy Co., known as We Energies, is located feet from the square. More: Milwaukee protest group slams RNC demonstrations plan, vows to march its own route Brendan Conway, spokesman for We Energies, said the company will continue to work with Milwaukee police, the Secret Service and other law enforcement agencies to ensure a safe event. Employees who work in those buildings are being encouraged to work remotely that week, if they have the ability to do so, Conway said. That is something we shared with employees earlier this year. We will have our facilities in and around the secured zone staffed appropriately. Haymarket Square Park (lower center) is one of two demonstration areas for the Republican National Convention taking place at Fiserv Forum (upper left) and other Milwaukee venues July 15 to 18. The protest areas have been a source of fierce debate between officials with the convention, protesters and local officials. Originally it was thought one of the protest areas would be Pere Marquette Park but the Republican National Committee filed a permit to reserve the park and the Milwaukee County Historical Society. Local activists are upset with the city and party officials over the new areas for protest and some have planned to march on their own route. On the north end of the convention area, the protest area is planned to be at Haymarket Square Park on West McKinley Avenue and North King Drive. Mark Olson, owner of Best Fish, a fish pet store at 1335 N. King Dr., said he isnt taking any extra security precautions and will be open throughout the convention. The only real concern I have is the lack of business I will have during the convention, Olson said, adding the store's proximity to the event will likely deter some customers from coming. More: Fenced-in perimeter, demonstration areas for RNC announced. What to know. Charter Communications, which operates Spectrum, is near the intersection of King Drive, McKinley Avenue and East Knapp Street. That location also houses Spectrum News 1. Story continues A spokesman for Spectrum News said the news channel will be fully staffed for the convention but did not elaborate on if it was planning to use additional security for the building or any other precautions. And feet away from Haymarket Square Park is an Associated Bank branch. A spokesperson for the bank said that branch will be closed the week of July 15 but customers can go to the Wisconsin Avenue branch, which is less than a mile from the Haymarket Square branch. This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: We Energies, Associated Bank respond to nearby RNC protest zones An entire Florida homeowners association board quits after $60K special assessment dispute what happened Homeowners in the Villas of Carillon townhome community of Feather Sound, Florida are trying to wrap their heads around a request from their homeowners association board for a $60,000 special assessment. The homeowners received notice of the assessment in early June, which detailed how the HOAs reserves had never been fully funded in its 20-year history, presenting the community with a significant financial challenge moving forward. 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You need to get together, this problem is not going away, resident Robert Regan said. And condos, they need to have 100% reserves. And then, in an email after the vote on June 21, the entire board announced it had resigned effective immediately. Whats creating exorbitant special assessment fees? Following the 2021 Surfside collapse which killed 98 people in Miami due to construction flaws regulations now require more frequent inspections of condo buildings, while many condo associations are raising fees to build a larger reserve for repairs. Now, Florida state reforms require reserve and milestone studies and mandate annual contributions to reserves, but they only apply to units that are three stories or higher. The townhomes at the Villas arent condos and theyre just two stories tall. The HOA board said that insurance companies would no longer insure the complex in a few years if it didnt have the necessary reserves to pay for new roofs. Read more: Thanks to Jeff Bezos, you can now use $100 to cash in on prime real estate without the headache of being a landlord. Here's how Story continues Not everyone agrees it's necessary But Patricia Staebler, a certified reserve specialist based in Sarasota, notes that a projects time-equivalent cost should already be banked ahead of the renovation if the association wanted to avoid any special assessments. Staebler says these reserve studies should help the board plan for the next fiscal year as well as subsequent years, building in an annual increase over a 30-year period. And while its unnecessary for the reserves to be fully funded it is crucial that these yearly assessments are met with the appropriate full funding. There is a difference between being 100% funded and funding your reserve requirements for the upcoming fiscal year 100%, she says. I've been doing this for 15 years. In my entire reserve specialist career, I have not seen an association which is 100% funded. In the meantime, the communitys townhouse owners hope that postponing the vote may give them more time to gain some insight into why the special assessment fee is so high. So that we're able to get additional documentation, review all the financials, see how they got to these numbers, Rodeffer said. What to read next This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. German investment group E3 Holding has snapped up a majority stake in local rye bread producer Pema. The investor has acquired 74% of the company for an undisclosed sum. Formerly owned by the Leupoldt family, Pema started searching for a buyer after being unable to find a successor to take over the group. The family holds the remaining 26% share in the company. Pema's rye breads portfolio includes high protein, multi-grain, sunflower and chia-infused varieties, as well as a gluten-free rice-based bread. Its products are supplied to retailers throughout Germany. Around 160 employees work for Pema at its headquarters in Weienstadt, in upper Franconia, Bavaria. Its annual sales currently stand in the "double-digit million euro range", according to a statement from E3. Former shareholder Dr Laura Krainz-Leupoldt is expected remain involved in the company in an "advisory capacity". Speaking on the news in a statement, Krainz-Leupoldt said: "As a family that feels a strong connection to the employees, the suppliers and the entire region, we have now found a new main owner who shares our values and will develop the company in our spirit." Olivier Weddrien, founder and CEO of E3 Holding, added: "Pema is a solidly managed, traditional company with a first-class product range. "But there is more to the company than that. As a long-term owner, we want to support Pema in exploiting its full growth potential and will implement the growth plans with the necessary care." The purchase marks E3's second investment in the food industry. In March 2023, the group acquired local salami, bratwurst and sliced ham processor Konrad Bohnlein, for an unknown figure. Konrad Bohnlein generated total sales of 45m ($48.8m) in 2022. It employs 160 people. Similar to Pema, the German meats manufacturer was formerly family-owned. Commenting on the group's investment strategy, Weddrien said: "We are building up our portfolio slowly but steadily. The deal pipeline would enable us to [do] significantly more of the proprietary transactions that we are aiming for. "But we want to make sure in each individual case that we are a good fit for the company and the current owner. "The trust that is shown in us in discussions and negotiations encourages us to continue to act calmly and prudently." In addition to Pema and Konrad Bohnlein, E3 also holds investments in cyber- security consultancy Coligo and cleanroom solutions provider Clean-tek. "German bakery Pema sells majority stake to investor E3 Holding" was originally created and published by Just Food, a GlobalData owned brand. Story continues The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. The Lufthansa airline logo can be seen on a Lufthansa building in Hamburg. The European Commission is launching an investigation into whether German government state aid for Lufthansa during the Covid-19 pandemic breached EU rules. Bodo Marks/dpa The European Commission launched an investigation on Monday to find out if German government state aid for Lufthansa during the Covid-19 pandemic breached EU rules. The investigation comes after a decision from the EU General Court in May 2023 to annul the state aid awarded to the German airline. The top competition regulator in the European Union is now assessing whether Lufthansa was eligible for the German state subsidies and the condition of market competition at airports in Germany and Austria. The German government granted state aid to Lufthansa worth billions of euros in June 2020 when usually strict subsidy rules were loosened to help support governments impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Lufthansa airline logo can be seen on a Lufthansa building in Hamburg. The European Commission is launching an investigation into whether German government state aid for Lufthansa during the Covid-19 pandemic breached EU rules. Bodo Marks/dpa The European Commission launched an investigation on Monday to find out if German government state aid for Lufthansa during the Covid-19 pandemic breached EU rules. The investigation comes after a judgement from the EU General Court in May 2023 to annul the state aid awarded to the German airline worth 6 billion ($6.5 billion). In June 2020, the German government granted state aid to Lufthansa worth billions when usually strict subsidy rules were loosened to help support governments impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. Travel restrictions during Covid-19 brought Lufthansa's business to a virtual standstill. Tens of thousands of jobs were on the line at the group, which employs around 138,000 people. In the ruling last year, the court found the EU's executive arm should not have approved the state aid and made errors in the assessment process. In particular, it said the commission should have checked closer whether Lufthansa had the collateral to obtain loans for itself. The commission, which is the EU's top competition regulator, is now re-examining its own earlier decision, in order to assess whether Lufthansa was eligible for the German state subsidies or could have secured new financing on private markets. The commission is also assessing the condition of market competition at airports in Germany and Austria and taking into account the presence of Lufthansa's operations in Vienna and Dusseldorf. Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Belgium together pledged a total of 9 billion in aid to the Lufthansa Group, but this was not used in full. Germany provided the majority of the fund, the 6 billion, taking on 20% of equity in Lufthansa with financing provided by the German Economic Stabilisation Fund, while the state-owned KfW Bank contributed a loan of 1 billion. The other European partners only joined the state aid pact at a later date. Lufthansa repaid the aid in full by the end of 2022 and partly replaced it with its own debt. The German state did not lose any money and actually made a profit of around 760 million from interest and share sales. The opening of the investigation does not prejudice the outcome, the commission said. The German state and Lufthansa may not submit comments to investigations. By Leyla Tarverdiyeva, Day.Az President Ilham Aliyev visited Khojaly airport. As the owner, he busily walked around the territory, got acquainted with the reconstruction project of this air harbor, and gave the necessary instructions and recommendations. The Armenian public is saddened by the "masterpiece" of architect Barseghyan, realizing that the building, like everything else built by the Armenians during the occupation, will be liquidated. Everything related to the period of the separatist regime's rule will be radically redone. Needless to say, serious changes are expected at Khojaly Airport. Today it has one runway (GDP), 2,170 metres long and 45 metres wide, two taxiways, one apron, one terminal and three aircraft parking lots. After the reconstruction, the length of the GDP will be increased to 3,000 metres and the width to 60 metres. The long-awaited changes await the appearance of the harbour. The new main building of Khojaly Airport will be radically different from the rough, heavy, pretentious "masterpiece" of the Armenian architect. It will be an airy, lightweight structure, shaped like an airplane. A great idea, by the way. The airport near Khankendi was built in 1974 with funds from Soviet Azerbaijan. In 1992, after the occupation of the Khojaly region by Armenia, the airport passed into the hands of Armenian gangs. Like many other things at that time, the instruction from Baku to destroy the runway and airfield equipment was not fulfilled, and the Armenians, although they burned the building, were able to use the airfield for military purposes. The history of Khojaly airport is closely connected with the name of the National Hero of Azerbaijan, Alif Hajiyev. During the Soviet period, he worked in law enforcement agencies. After trying to expose the Krunk organisation, he ended up in court and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. After Azerbaijan regained its independence, the verdict was overturned. Alif returned to his homeland, Karabakh, and began serving in the police force again. In December 1991, in an unequal battle, he recaptured the Khojaly air hub from the Armenian occupiers, for which he received the rank of major. Armenians have set a considerable reward for the head of a brave police officer. On the night of February 25-26, 1992, Alif Hajiyev's detachment fought for several hours for the airport with many times superior enemy forces. It was not possible to defend the airport in the current conditions, but they managed to blow up the control tower and destroy the documentation. The airport was captured and burned by the Armenians. Alif Hajiyev died after being ambushed near the Armenian village of Nakhichevanik while helping Khojaly residents flee the massacre... In 2008, the occupation regime began to build a new main building. Although it was about the reconstruction of the Khojaly airport, the Armenian side stubbornly talked about a certain new "Stepanakert" airport. Apparently, in order not to remind once again about the genocide with which the world community associated the name Khojaly. The building was designed in the style beloved by our neighboursin the form of an eagle spreading its wings. Armenians are very fond of eagle feathers, beaks, and claws; they have them everywhere. However, this "eagle", which cost them $ 5 million, was never destined to take off. After the completion of the project in 2012, the Armenian side announced that the Khojaly airport had received an official international certificate and was put into operation. But it was a lie. Khojaly Airport is located on the internationally recognised territory of Azerbaijan, and only the Azerbaijani side could apply to the ICAO regarding the certification of the air harbour. And she didn't do that, of course. On the contrary, she openly informed the OSCE and the ICAO that she would stop Armenia's attempts to use the airport. Armenians in Armenia and in the occupied territories grabbed their suitcases, as the RA Civil Aviation Authority promised that flights would begin in the coming days. But the planes from Khojaly never took off. The warning was not a joke, and no matter how brave they were in Yerevan, the Armenians did not dare to start flights. Until the end of the occupation, the airport remained only an illegal military heliport of the occupying forces. Serzh Sargsyan is still reminded of his promise to become the first passenger on the Yerevan-Khankendi flight and prove that Azerbaijan is "bluffing", "will not dare", and so on. Despite the external bravado, Sargsyan knew perfectly well that Baku was not joking, saying that it would not allow violations of its airspace. Taking into account that the Khojaly Airport is located in the region of Azerbaijan occupied by Armenia, and it is impossible to guarantee complete flight safety in these territories, according to the Law "On Aviation" this territory was declared a prohibited zone for civil aviation flights by the State Administration of Civil Aviation of Azerbaijan. Armenia's attempts to use the airport in the occupied territories of Azerbaijan were a direct violation of the Convention on International Civil Aviation of December 7, 1944. Both the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense of Azerbaijan, without hysteria, calmly and therefore especially frighteningly warned that all international companies operating at the Khojaly airport should immediately suspend their activities in the occupied Azerbaijani territories. Otherwise, the Azerbaijani side will take adequate steps towards these companies. In particular, it was about the Franco-German company Tales, which provided equipment for the Armenian dummy. After the Azerbaijani side protested, the company's representatives apologised and said that they had been misled. The International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), as well as the European Civil Aviation Conference (ECAC), also supported the position of the Azerbaijani side on this issue. The ICAO Secretary General stated that he supports all resolutions adopted by the UN Security Council on the Karabakh conflict. He also stressed that attempts to unilaterally commission the Khojaly airport without the permission of the Azerbaijani side and carry out certification can cause great damage to the conflict settlement process and are assessed as a violation of the Chicago Convention on Civil Aviation and international legal norms. Thus, the eagle stood idle until the Second Karabakh War. After the Russian peacekeeping contingent entered the region, the Armenian side tried to take a cunning manoeuvre and use the airport under the cover of the needs of the RMK. The separatist regime was very surprised by the command of the peacekeepers with the "permission" to use the airport to provide RMK. The Armenian media claimed with full confidence that the airport would start functioning as early as December 2020 and would receive AN-12 and AN-26 military transport aircraft. As always, the Armenians forgot to ask permission from the legitimate owner? Thus, that stood idle until the Second Karabakh War. After the Russian peacekeeping contingent entered the region, the Armenian side tried to take a cunning manoeuvre and use the airport under the cover of the needs of the RMK. The separatist regime was very surprised by the command of the peacekeepers with the "permission" to use the airport to provide RMK. The Armenian media claimed with full confidence that the airport would start functioning as early as December 2020 and would receive AN-12 and AN-26 military transport aircraft. As always, the Armenians forgot to ask permission from the legitimate owners. Even if there had been Baku's permission (and it did not exist and could not have been), only heavy cargo liners of the Russian Aerospace Forces could have solved the issue of providing RMK, and the runway of the Khojaly airport was not suitable for them. It made no sense to build a new IDP and spend money from the Russian budget since Azerbaijan would not have allowed the airfield to be used anyway, besides, the duration of the peacekeepers' stay was limited. GWM ORA UK has formed a new dealership alliance with automotive retailer Arnold Clark, marking a significant advancement in the expansion of its UK network. This collaboration will see the inauguration of new showrooms in Glasgow, Linwood and Stirling. This initiative is part of the Chinese EV brand's efforts to ensure that customers have convenient access to maintenance and repair services without needing to travel long distances. GWM ORA managing director Toby Marshall said: Expanding our retail network is something were dedicated to delivering and we are well on track for our targets this year. The appointment of a known household brand like Arnold Clark is a testament to the reputation GWM ORA is building across the UK. The partnership with Arnold Clark increases GWM ORA's presence in the UK to 40 customer service points, encompassing sales, aftersales, and test drive facilities. Arnold Clark GWM ORA brand director Gavin McKenzie, said: Were delighted to welcome GWM ORA to the Arnold Clark family. While they may be a relatively new manufacturer in the UK, they are an established brand with a fantastic reputation, and we look forward to a long and fruitful partnership. Our new branches are now up and running in Glasgow and Stirling and our employees are thrilled to welcome our customers through the doors and share the fantastic range of GWM ORA models we have available as well as preview the exciting new models which are coming later in the year. The newly launched ORA 03 PRO+ variant from the company features an enhanced 63kWh battery providing a WLTP range of 260 miles. It also includes additional amenities such as heated and cooled front seats with a massage function, a heated steering wheel, a panoramic sunroof, a powered gesture tailgate, rear privacy glass, and advanced automatic parking assistance. The brand's upcoming model, ORA 07, will unveil its GT variant at the Goodwood Festival of Speed on 11 July. In April, GWM ORA launched a new in-house battery inspection and evaluation initiative to support its existing aftersales operations and third-party repairers in the UK. This newly formed, dedicated technical team will provide field-based assistance, offering manufacturer guidance on the status and repairability of traction batteries after a reported customer collision or accident. "GWM ORA UK expands network with Arnold Clark partnership" was originally created and published by Motor Finance Online, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Amid a backdrop of mixed global economic signals, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index showed resilience with a modest gain during a holiday-shortened week. This context of cautious optimism in the market sets the stage for considering growth companies with high insider ownership, as these firms often demonstrate aligned interests between shareholders and management, potentially navigating uncertainties with strategic agility. Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Hong Kong Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth iDreamSky Technology Holdings (SEHK:1119) 20.2% 104.1% Fenbi (SEHK:2469) 32.7% 43% Tian Tu Capital (SEHK:1973) 34% 70.5% Adicon Holdings (SEHK:9860) 22.4% 28.3% Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology (SEHK:9863) 15% 73.4% DPC Dash (SEHK:1405) 38.2% 90.2% Zylox-Tonbridge Medical Technology (SEHK:2190) 18.7% 79.3% Ocumension Therapeutics (SEHK:1477) 23.1% 93.7% Beijing Airdoc Technology (SEHK:2251) 28.7% 83.9% Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) (SEHK:2315) 13.9% 100.1% Click here to see the full list of 54 stocks from our Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener. Let's review some notable picks from our screened stocks. Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: BYD Company Limited operates in the automobile and battery sectors across China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$727.70 billion. Operations: The company's revenue is primarily generated from its automobile and battery sectors. Insider Ownership: 30.1% BYD, a growth company in Hong Kong, has shown substantial progress with a 52.7% increase in earnings over the past year and is trading at 33.1% below its estimated fair value. Its Return on Equity is expected to be robust at 22.3% in three years, outpacing the forecasted Hong Kong market growth. Revenue projections indicate a 13.7% annual increase, surpassing the local market's 7.7%. However, insider trading data for the past three months shows neither significant buying nor selling by insiders, suggesting a stable but cautious ownership stance amidst growth. SEHK:1211 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: ESR Group Limited operates in logistics real estate development, leasing, and management across regions including Hong Kong, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, India, and Europe with a market capitalization of approximately HK$47.02 billion. Story continues Operations: The company's revenue is derived primarily from fund management at HK$774.64 million and new economy development, contributing HK$105.48 million. Insider Ownership: 13.1% ESR Group is poised for notable growth with its earnings expected to increase by 26.5% annually, outstripping the Hong Kong market's 11.3%. Despite trading at a substantial discount to its estimated fair value, concerns persist due to low forecasted Return on Equity and poor coverage of interest payments by earnings. Recent events include a potential privatization proposal valued between US$7 billion and US$8 billion, suggesting confidence from major investors despite current financial pressures and a changing board composition. SEHK:1821 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Growth Rating: Overview: Meituan is a technology retail company based in the People's Republic of China, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$731.89 billion. Operations: The revenue segments for this company are not specified in the provided text. Insider Ownership: 11.4% Meituan has demonstrated robust growth with its Q1 2024 sales rising to CNY 73.28 billion from CNY 58.62 billion year-over-year, and net income increasing to CNY 5.37 billion. The company's earnings are projected to grow by 31.2% annually over the next three years, outperforming the Hong Kong market prediction of 11.3%. Despite this positive trajectory, there's been significant insider selling recently, although Meituan is trading at a substantial discount to its estimated fair value. Recent activities include a US$2 billion share buyback program, underscoring strong internal confidence in its valuation. SEHK:3690 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jul 2024 Seize The Opportunity Explore the 54 names from our Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership screener here. Hold shares in these firms? Setup your portfolio in Simply Wall St to seamlessly track your investments and receive personalized updates on your portfolio's performance. Enhance your investing ability with the Simply Wall St app and enjoy free access to essential market intelligence spanning every continent. Contemplating Other Strategies? This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.The analysis only considers stock directly held by insiders. It does not include indirectly owned stock through other vehicles such as corporate and/or trust entities. All forecast revenue and earnings growth rates quoted are in terms of annualised (per annum) growth rates over 1-3 years. Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:1211 SEHK:1821 and SEHK:3690. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com From left, Scott Wagstaff and Mike Wagstaff, co-presidents of Holiday Oil, pose for a portrait at a Holiday in Magna on Thursday, June 27, 2024. | Megan Nielsen, Deseret News Brothers Scott and Mike Wagstaff are the leaders of one of Utahs most successful home-grown businesses. Their company, Holiday Oil, turned 60 this year. Year-in, year-out its growth has been as steady as a metronome. In July theyre set to open their 75th store. By the end of the 2020s they plan to hit 100. They have 1,000 employees on their payroll, and counting. How have they survived, thrived and expanded when so many other family-run gas station businesses have been kicked to the curb, engulfed by the fuel companies and the big corporations? Whats their secret? Basically it boils down to four words: What would Jerry do? From left, Scott Wagstaff and Mike Wagstaff, co-presidents of Holiday Oil, talk during an interview at a Holiday in Magna on Thursday, June 27, 2024. | Megan Nielsen, Deseret News Jerry is Scott and Mikes father. He died two years ago, a month shy of his 80th birthday. But its Jerry Wagstaffs fingerprints that remain, testifying to the practicality of Holidays rather unorthodox way of doing business. For one thing, he built an empire without going into hardly any debt. For another, he insisted on owning the ground his gas pumps stand on. For yet another, he never stopped changing with the times. That goes through my head a lot, what would he (Jerry) have done, says Mike, 53, as his older brother Scott, 60, nods his assent. The brothers are taking a break at the big 10-pump Holiday Store in Magna, sitting at an outdoor table, telling Jerry stories. The family enterprise was launched innocuously enough in February of 1964. Jerry had just returned from a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints to Scotland and married Floy, the girlfriend who waited for him. The newlyweds settled down in what was called Granger then and is now called West Valley City. Through oil contacts of his father, Nathan, Jerry took over the leases of a few struggling gas stations that were on their last fumes. He named his new business after Holladay, the city where his grandparents had a small farm on the east side of the valley, but he changed the spelling to Holiday. In time he added a smiling clown as the logo. He said, I want something happy, says Mike. Some of his leased stations found their footing, others did not and had to be shut down. All the while, Jerry, with no education beyond his diploma from Highland High School, lived by his wits. He had a gift with people, says Scott. I think a lot of the success of the company was due to the kind of charm he had in getting people to help him and get excited about what he was doing. In 1969 Jerry made a sharp pivot out of the leasing world and decided to buy an acre of land on Redwood Road and build a small station on the corner. Story continues That, according to his sons, is the only time Jerry Wagstaff ever went into debt. And it only lasted maybe five years, says Scott. He was very opposed to having any type of debt. From the start, Jerry made it his goal to have the lowest gas prices in town. That would be his niche; his way to attract and keep customers. To see what his competitors were charging, he would get in his car and circle the valley, then come back and lower his price a penny or two, sometimes going under cost. His boys smile when they tell about how, on Friday afternoons, their dad would watch until the manager of the gas station across the street would go home; then hed run out to the sign in front and lower Holidays price, ensuring a weekend with the cheapest gas. Besides attracting customers with the low prices, it was about volume, says Mike. His game was always, how can I get enough volume to be able to negotiate with the refinery to get a better price? Hed say margin would come eventually, but if you lose all your volume its really hard to get back. A major change came in the 1970s when 7-Elevens started adding gas pumps. Seeing this, Jerry said, Well, if theyre going to start selling fuel Im going to start selling Twinkies. He hired a veteran of the grocery business, Darwin Sorensen, to help him transform his stations. Out went the two-stall mechanic bays, cemented over and replaced by soft drink machines. Another change came when Phillips 66 stations added free self-serve car washes. Seeing that, Our dad said, well, I guess I need to go get a car wash, says Scott. To this day Holiday Oil stations have self-serve car washes, although theyre no longer free. He was always innovating, says Mike, and we continue to try to change and do something different. Its not like Scott and Mike are new to any of this. Theyve been working at Holiday since they were kids and have been largely in charge since 2003, when Jerry and Floy left for three years to serve another church mission. But its Jerrys core philosophy they zealously keep in place: low debt, high volume, own the property every station sits on and be sure to not let the world pass you by. Among other things, that means nobody gets in the car anymore, Jerry style, to circle the valley and check on the other guys price. We used to spend four or five hours every Saturday morning taking a loop around the valley. Now you can find out everything on your cellphone, says Scott, a bit wistfully. Jerrys was a good world to live in. Daniel Garcia, an employee of Holiday for six years, wipes the counters by the soda bar at a Holiday in Magna on Thursday, June 27, 2024. | Megan Nielsen, Deseret News Luciano Mortula - LGM / Shutterstock.com Many people have a bucket list of one or several travel locations they would like to visit, and these bucket-list destinations are probably going to cost you a lot of money. Discover More: 10 Best US Vacation Destinations for Retirees on a Budget Trending Now: 6 Subtly Genius Moves All Wealthy People Make With Their Money If you are thinking of going to one of these travel locations soon, you may want to consider planning a trip sooner rather than later, as the costs to visit these destinations are only likely to increase in the future. Check out these travel cities that are becoming to expensive to visit. Earning passive income doesn't need to be difficult. You can start this week. Antarctica Antarctica is one of the most difficult and expensive places to visit as a tourist. However, due to its terrain, wildlife, and location, Antarctica is a truly unique location. Some people want to visit every continent, and Antarctica is often one of the last ones on their list due to the difficulty of getting there. You can get to Antarctica by cruise or airplane. The average cruise costs $1,000 per person per day for an entry-level stateroom. To fly, you would need to first get to Chile or Argentina and then take a flight from there to King George Island, off the Antarctic peninsulas coast. Global warming means melting ice in Antarctica, killing wildlife habitats, and changing the landscape. This problem will continue in the future, and prices to get to Antarctica will also increase. Be Aware: Dave Ramsey 7 Vacation Splurges That Are a Waste of Money Venice Venice, Italy, is an iconic travel destination that has been popular for decades. Since the city is small and the demand for tourism is high, hotels, tours, and restaurants can charge a premium. There is no room to build anything new, so business owners must compensate by charging tourists higher rates. There is also the added pressure of Venice sinking. Since Venice is built on a shallow lagoon in the Adriatic Sea, settling lagoon sediments and human activities are causing the city to sink. The citys highest point is only three feet above sea level. There is no guarantee that Venice will be available to visit as a tourist in the way that it is now in the future. The overtourism (in Venice) is really taking a toll. Hotels and restaurants know they can charge pretty much anything because people are so desperate to experience Venice, said Nausheen Farishta, a travel expert and founder of Globe Gazers. When I looked into going back recently, I was shocked by the prices. Most affordable rooms were going for two or three times what I paid before. Even cheap meals were well over $20 not realistic for longer trips. And forget about enjoying quieter areas off the main routes. Locals are understandably trying to reclaim their city. Story continues Tokyo Tokyo, and Japan in general, has recently become an even more popular travel destination. Thankfully, Americans have the advantage regarding the exchange rate since the Yen is at a 34-year low against the U.S. dollar. However, the weak Yen has also increased travel demand. Since October 2023, the cost of a JR rail pass has risen by about 70%. Japan is also far from the United States, with nonstop flights from the West Coast to Tokyo clocking in around 11 hours. Tokyos unique blend of traditional culture and modern innovation, along with attractions like the bustling Shibuya crossing and historic temples, has made it a sought-after travel destination, said Robin Salvador, Travel Blogger and Founder of Vinz Ideas. The citys growing popularity, especially in the lead-up to major events like the Olympics, has contributed to rising accommodation and transportation costs. Maldives The Maldives are a popular bucket list holiday destination for many couples, individuals, or even families looking to relax. Beautiful overwater bungalows are a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many but at great cost. Getting to the Maldives is very difficult and expensive. The Maldives are far away, and to get to the islands, you will likely need to take several flights, including a floatplane. There are no other budget options to get to the different resorts. And once you arrive at your resort, there is nowhere to go. You must pay whatever prices are charged for food, tours, and anything else the resort offers. Dubai Dubai is filled with the new and fancy. While it is possible to visit Dubai on a budget, it wont be cheap if you want to experience the most of Dubai. Dubai is filled with unique restaurants and food, extravagant experiences, designer shopping, and five-star hotels. Once you arrive in Dubai, it can be difficult not to spend money to enjoy the unique and extravagant things it offers. Getting to Dubai from the United States can also be costly, as a nonstop flight from New York is about 12.5 hours, and a nonstop flight from Los Angeles is almost 16 hours. Botswana Botswana is popular for luxury African safari experiences. While all African safaris are expensive, Botswana, in particular, offers many luxury camps and specialty experiences. A week-long trip to see several of the most popular reserves and parks can be between $5,000 and $8,000 per person. Plus, getting to Botswana is not cheap. You will need to fly into Maun or Gaborone, two popular safari launch points. Not many flights go into these cities, so your choices will be limited, and you may need to make multiple connections. The Bottom Line Many individuals, couples, or families find it difficult to afford a big, expensive vacation. Be sure to research the estimated costs of these vacations, as they are not cheap. Set a realistic budget and save for it in advance. However, if the trip to one of these locations is on your bucket list, now may be the right time. This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: In Less Than a Year, You Might Not Be Able to Travel to These Six Locations As global markets navigate through varying economic signals, Sweden's market remains a focal point for investors seeking stability and potential growth through dividend stocks. Amidst this backdrop, understanding the characteristics that define a strong dividend stock is crucial, especially in a market environment marked by political shifts and economic adjustments across Europe. Top 10 Dividend Stocks In Sweden Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Betsson (OM:BETS B) 5.59% Loomis (OM:LOOMIS) 4.57% Zinzino (OM:ZZ B) 4.16% HEXPOL (OM:HPOL B) 3.38% Axfood (OM:AXFO) 3.03% Nordea Bank Abp (OM:NDA SE) 8.26% Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken (OM:SEB A) 5.43% Duni (OM:DUNI) 4.98% Avanza Bank Holding (OM:AZA) 4.37% Bilia (OM:BILI A) 4.60% Click here to see the full list of 23 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: Loomis AB specializes in offering comprehensive services for the distribution, handling, storage, recycling of cash and other valuables, with a market capitalization of approximately SEK 19.11 billion. Operations: Loomis AB generates its revenue primarily through services in Europe and Latin America, totaling SEK 13.86 billion, and in the United States of America, with revenues amounting to SEK 15.17 billion, alongside a smaller segment from Loomis Pay at SEK 61 million. Dividend Yield: 4.6% Loomis AB, a notable player in the Swedish market, recently increased its dividend to SEK 12.50 per share, reflecting a commitment to shareholder returns despite its earnings dip in Q1 2024 with net income falling to SEK 359 million from SEK 403 million year-over-year. The company also launched a share repurchase program, buying back shares worth SEK 200 million. While Loomis's dividend yield of 4.57% stands above the market average and dividends are well-covered by both earnings and cash flow (payout ratio: 61.2%, cash payout ratio: 32.4%), the dividend track record over the past decade has been unstable and unreliable, indicating potential risks for long-term dividend sustainability. OM:LOOMIS Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: Nordea Bank Abp is a financial services provider operating in Sweden, Finland, Norway, Denmark, and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately SEK 443.01 billion. Story continues Operations: Nordea Bank Abp generates revenue from various segments, including Business Banking (3.55 billion), Personal Banking (4.75 billion), Asset and Wealth Management (1.44 billion), and Large Corporates & Institutions (2.46 billion). Dividend Yield: 8.3% Nordea Bank Abp's dividend yield of 8.26% ranks in the top quartile within Sweden, supported by a payout ratio of 63.8%. Despite this attractive yield, the bank's dividends have shown volatility over the past decade, lacking consistency in growth and stability. Recent financials show a robust year-on-year increase in net income to 1.36 billion for Q1 2024 from 1.15 billion, underpinning current dividend payments. However, earnings are projected to decline annually by 2.5% over the next three years, raising concerns about future dividend sustainability amidst its recent fixed-income offerings totaling 747.81 million aimed at bolstering green initiatives. OM:NDA SE Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: Overview: AB SKF (publ) is a global manufacturer and supplier of bearings, seals, lubrication systems, and related services with a market capitalization of approximately SEK 96.09 billion. Operations: AB SKF generates revenue primarily through two segments: the Automotive segment, which brought in SEK 29.79 billion, and the Industrial segment, with revenues of SEK 72.25 billion. Dividend Yield: 3.6% AB SKF, recently added to the OMX Nordic 40 Index, offers a modest dividend yield of 3.55%, below the top quartile in Sweden. Despite a decade of increasing dividends, payments have been volatile and unreliable. The company's dividend sustainability is questionable with an unstable track record, although currently supported by a payout ratio of 55% and cash payout ratio of 45.2%. Recent innovations may boost performance but Q1 2024 saw earnings drop to SEK 1,888 million from SEK 2,073 million year-over-year amidst challenging currency impacts forecasted to negatively affect upcoming profits by approximately SEK 200 million. OM:SKF B Dividend History as at Jul 2024 Turning Ideas Into Actions Delve into our full catalog of 23 Top Dividend Stocks here. Have you diversified into these companies? Leverage the power of Simply Wall St's portfolio to keep a close eye on market movements affecting your investments. Maximize your investment potential with Simply Wall St, the comprehensive app that offers global market insights for free. 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 OM:LOOMIS OM:NDA SE and OM:SKF B. Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com SINGAPORE, July 8, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International's award-winning travel program, is once again poised to offer its members thrilling, once-in-a-lifetime experiences at the highly anticipated race in Singapore. Ahead of Singapore's marquee sporting event of the year, Marriott Bonvoy and The Ritz-Carlton invite members to experience the thrill of a race weekend through its partnership with the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team. Marriott Bonvoy Moments offers members the opportunity to redeem points for an ultra-exclusive experience with Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, inviting them to savor the thrilling world of motorsports up close and fuel their passion amidst the roar of the engines. Fifty packages will be available for bidding from 22 July 23 August 2024, for more information and packages inclusions check out the Marriott Bonvoy Moments platform. In 2019, Marriott Bonvoy became the "Official Hotel Loyalty Program" for the Mercedes-AMG PETRONAS F1 Team, and The Ritz-Carlton the team's first ever "Official Hotel Partner". The collaboration has resulted in the delivery of stand-out experiences for Marriott Bonvoy members in Melbourne, Montreal, Budapest and around the globe. For more information and to sign up for Marriott Bonvoy for free, visit www.marriottbonvoy.com. Existing members can enter the sweepstakes and explore additional exclusive experiences on the Marriott Bonvoy Moments platform. About Marriott Bonvoy Marriott Bonvoy, Marriott International's award-winning travel program and marketplace, gives members access to transformative, eye-opening experiences around the corner and across the globe. Marriott Bonvoy's portfolio of more than 30 extraordinary hotel brands offers renowned hospitality in the most memorable destinations in the world. Members can earn points for stays at hotels and resorts, including all-inclusive resorts and premium home rentals, as well as through everyday purchases with co-branded credit cards. Members can redeem their points for experiences including future stays, Marriott Bonvoy Moments, or through partners for luxurious products from Marriott Bonvoy Boutiques. With the Marriott Bonvoy app, members enjoy a level of personalization and contactless experience that allows them to travel with peace of mind. To enroll for free or for more information about Marriott Bonvoy, visit marriottbonvoy.com . To download the Marriott Bonvoy app, go here . Travelers can also connect with Marriott Bonvoy on Facebook , X , Instagram and TikTok . Story continues Media Contact: Kiran Hans Sr. Manager, Communications Asia Pacific excluding China, Marriott International Kiran.hans@marriott.com Marriott Bonvoy Logo (PRNewsfoto/Marriott International) Cision View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/apac/news-releases/marriott-bonvoy-delivers-extraordinary-moments-with-the-mercedes-amg-petronas-f1-team-in-singapore-302190552.html SOURCE Marriott International By Victoria Waldersee STUTTGART (Reuters) -Mercedes-Benz will wait to see if EV demand picks up before adding more battery cell capacity, with lower projected EV sales meaning it will no longer need the capacity initially planned for 2030, its technology chief said on Monday. The German automaker had said in 2022 it would need more than 200 gigawatt hours (GWh) of battery cell capacity by the end of the decade and planned to build eight cell factories worldwide with partners, including four in Europe. But with EV demand lower than many automakers had forecast, Mercedes-Benz said earlier this year it did not expect sales of electrified vehicles, including hybrids, to reach up to 50% of the total until 2030 - five years later than its previous forecast of 2025. The 200 GWh prediction was based on the assumption that Mercedes-Benz's entire annual sales of about two million vehicles would be electric by 2030, Chief Technology Officer (CTO) Markus Schaefer said on Monday. "Is the 200 gigawatt hour capacity still necessary? It's a question of the timeline," he said. The carmaker signed a deal with CATL in 2022 to receive battery cells from the Chinese firm's 100 GWh plant being built in Hungary, though it did not disclose the size of the deal. It will also receive cells from a 40 GWh plant in France via joint venture ACC, in which it holds a 30% stake. Plans to build two further ACC plants in Germany and Italy were paused last month because of low EV demand. Mercedes-Benz also has suppliers in the U.S. and China. "We are relatively flexible. We will think about next steps when we have more transparency on demand," Schaefer said. Listing the automaker's current supplier relationships, he added: "This is enough to cover the next stage." Mercedes-Benz has not reined in investments to electrify its product line-up and Schaefer said it was not putting significant sums into combustion engine cars beyond planned updates to bring its vehicles in line with emissions regulations. Still, CEO Ola Kaellenius said in February the company would ensure its combustion engine line-up was competitive well into next decade to meet demand. BATTERY TECHNOLOGY Schaefer was speaking to journalists at the inauguration of a research and production centre for battery cells at Mercedes-Benz's headquarters. The site will produce tens of thousands of battery cells a year in a 10,000 square metre factory, as the company strives to take greater control of the chemical composition and industrial manufacturing of its batteries. Story continues Mercedes-Benz is working on lithium ion cells with high-energy anodes and cobalt-free cathodes, as well as solid-state technology, which holds the promise of more energy storage, longer driving ranges and faster charging. Increasing the energy density of EV batteries is key particularly for premium automakers looking to reduce vehicle weight and costs while boosting driving range. Cell designs developed at the new centre will be shared with partner companies and incorporated into future battery cells from suppliers, Schaefer said (Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by David Holmes and Mark Potter) Having more space translates to better service for customers. That's how Mike Tozzi put it Wednesday morning during a grand reopening for Eagle Mark 4 at its newly renovated location. A ceremonial ribbon was cut on Wednesday to celebrate the reoping of the Eagle Mark 4 location near the Ohio Brass building. "It's a testament to our employees. They deserve it," Tozzi, the company president, said. "We've seen significant growth the last few years. This is for them." Eagle Mark 4 is a trusted name in the yard truck industry. Also known as a terminal tractor, a yard truck is a vehicle designed for moving trailers in or around commercial freight yards. It can normally move three units in the same time that a standard tractor would move a single unit. Tozzi said the company now has a showroom and can store more parts, along with having more office space. Eagle Mark 4 has about 80 employees. The new site is at 95 Ohio Brass Road, just behind the Ohio Brass building. Tozzi said it was a foundry for Ohio Brass at one time. "It was an empty warehouse when we took it over, so quite the facelift," he said. The facelift was courtesy of Scout Construction in Madison Township. Current location gives company more than 10 acres Eagle Mark 4 now has more than 10 acres. "Our lot is full of trucks for our customers," Tozzi said. A broad range makes up those customers. Historically, the yard trucks were used in trucking and rail terminals, according to a news release. With the boom of e-commerce, Eagle Mark 4 has seen a spike in the need for rental equipment for distribution centers and online retailers nationwide. Hannah Moskowitz, marketing and business partner for GNCO Corp. in support of Eagle Mark 4, explained the operation. "It's very similar to a car dealership," she said. "We do anything that a car dealership does with parts and service. We'll go to customers on site." While Mansfield is the company headquarters, Eagle Mark 4 also has locations in North Carolina and New Mexico. "We can get parts the same day with one, two days' local shipping," Moskowitz said. Richland Area Chamber & Economic Development was on hand for Wednesday's ribbon-cutting. Aurelio Diaz, Mansfield City Council representative for the 5th Ward, also attended. U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown and state Sen. Mark Romanchuk sent proclamations, while Ellen Heinz, chamber president and CEO, encouraged more people to join in the ribbon-cutting. "Come on in," she said. "It's an exciting day." mcaudill@gannett.com 419-521-7219 X: @MarkCau32059251 This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Mansfield company celebrates newly renovated location By Bayram Elshadov-Day.Az While there are more and more voices in Europe for leaving the EU, some European politicians are doing everything possible to accelerate the process of the collapse of a united Europe, which was already created with difficulty. No sooner had the informal OTS Summit ended in Shusha, in which Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban took part as the head of the observer country's delegation, than shouts and comments on this event were heard from Brussels to the head of the Hungarian government, saying that the Hungarian Prime Minister did not have the right to participate in this Summit and did not have the authority to represent the EU (so as from July 1, 2024, Hungary holds the presidency of the EU for a period of 6 months). All this mouse fuss, started around the participation of Prime Minister V. Orban at the instigation of the Armenian lobby and aimed at depriving Hungary of the legitimate right to preside over the EU, aims to damage the image of the head of the Hungarian government, who conducts an independent foreign and domestic policy regardless of the instructions of Brussels officials. After the inappropriate comments of the hapless head of the EU External Relations service, Borrel, who was leaving his post, who hastened to announce to the whole world that Prime Minister V. Orban did not represent the EU at this Summit (the future pensioner, apparently due to his advanced age and incompetent assistants, is still not aware that Hungary is an independent state and has the right to be a member of various regional and international organisations without the permission of Brussels, and the Hungarian Prime Minister participated in the event as the head of the observer state in the Organisation of Turkic Having received an invitation only in this capacity), his "gentle", impregnated voice against Mr. V. Orban was raised by French MEP Natalie Loiseau, known for her Turkophobic and Islamophobic position, for whom everything related to the Turks, Azerbaijan and Turkiye acts like a bullfighter's red rag on a bull during a bullfight. This lady, who has long been sick with chronic hatred of ethnic Turks, hastened to condemn the participation of the Hungarian Prime Minister in the Summit in Shusha, not failing to repeat the ancient narratives of her Armenian sponsors, who still question the belonging of the Karabakh region and the city of Shusha to Azerbaijan in the hope of revenge. Such a destructive position of these gentlemen, who, due to illiteracy and lack of objectivity, are destroying the EU with their actions and statements from within, suggests the existence of hidden supporters of the collapse of the union within this European union, who are quietly doing everything possible to offend a number of EU member states that pursue an independent policy and force them to leave the union. Sick with black envy, these short-sighted politicians are jealous that the countries of the Turkic world, which unites several hundred million people from Europe to China, simply do not take them into account and move forward, integrating more and more and not paying attention to enemies and envious people. By the way, as proof that Mr. V. Orban did not speak on behalf of the EU at the Summit in Shusha, it was that the Hungarian delegation did not use symbols, including the EU flag, which corresponds to the protocol adopted in Brussels. That is why all sorts of shouts and groans from some officials from Brussels and MEPs have no basis. As for the participation of the delegation of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in the event as an observer, it should be recalled to the guardians of the territorial integrity of Cyprus that the reason for the partition of the island in 1974 was a coup organized by supporters of enosis (annexation) of Cyprus to Greece from the terrorist organization NOCF 2 with the support of the dictatorship of black colonels from Athens, who were the first to begin the genocide of the Turkish population. And in response, according to international agreements, Turkiye was forced to send troops to protect the Turks living on the island. And all negotiations on a peaceful settlement of the Cyprus problem were "successfully" torpedoed by representatives of the Greek community, who rejected the plan of UN Secretary General K. in a referendum in 2004. Annan, which provides for the creation of a confederation of two communities. Demand for Nashville condominiums is strong, especially in the downtown core. But what should potential buyers know about getting into the market? The top questions revolve around price and location, Parks | Compass broker Sydney McCann said. In the downtown Nashville area, median home prices over the past 12 months are around $660,000, according to data from the Greater Nashville Realtors. But different submarkets within that area provide different neighborhood feel, and location can make a big difference when it comes to closing a deal. The amenity deck of 505 Church is visible from the window of a unit in Viridian, also on Church Street in downtown Nashville. Several towers have transformed the neighborhood in recent years. In addition, homeowners' association fees come along with condo ownership, and they can rack up. So, do condos make a good investment? Here's what Nashville Realtors had to say about getting into the downtown condo market. A good investment? The truth about condo appreciation According to Jack Gaughan of the Greater Nashville Realtors, condos typically don't appreciate in value as quickly as single-family homes, and their value depends on several factors that are sometimes out of an individual owner's control. For example, amenities may need upgrading in older condominium buildings, but it takes a large investment and the entire HOA to agree to make those changes, which ultimately impact the value of each unit. Overall, condo ownership is a lifestyle choice not always a strategic investment, Gaughan said. "In general, the demand for a condo is always going to be lower because there are fewer people who want that lifestyle," he said. "Going into a condo thinking its going to be a prime investment probably isnt the right mindset." But because condos typically have a more accessible entry-level price than single-family homes, it can be a way for buyers to get into the real-estate market instead of sitting on the sidelines. The outdoor amenity area at Pullman Gulch Union, a new condo tower near downtown Nashville. For first-timers: Consider your options McCann always encourages her clients to consider all the options in the market before coming to a final decision. In downtown Nashville, that means buyers must consider at least a dozen high-rise condo buildings, including newcomer Pullman Gulch Union. Other examples of condo towers include the Viridian, 505 Church, Twelve Twelve, Icon and Broadwest, among others. Each of these offers a slightly different neighborhood, amenities and price points. Inside the Four Seasons Residences $15 million penthouse, one of the ultra-luxury condo properties in downtown Nashville. "Typically, one will resonate with a buyer over the other," McCann said. "We always encourage buyers to take a look at the condo resale market and compare what they can get there versus what they can get in a new building." In new buildings, amenity packages are top-of-the-line and include trendy features like pickleball courts and remote-work areas. And in older buildings, the design of common areas may be outdated. Story continues HOA fees, building management, neighbors Owning a condominium comes with paying HOA fees, and those are constantly climbing in Nashville. The fees are determined by the HOA board and usually correlate with unit square footage. For owners, that's an additional expense that requires consideration. Additionally, Gaughan said, living in a condo building means living with other homeowners on all sides. Potential buyers should pay attention to how the building is managed and whether there are maintenance issues to consider. "Generally, people underestimate what its like to live with homeowners all around you," he said. "Everyone has different ideas about how the building should be run." Love your view? Find out if it will stay that way Nashville's skyline is changing constantly. If a condo unit is appealing because of the view, potential buyers should make sure that won't be taken away. The upside of buying in a more established neighborhood is there are fewer empty lots poised for redevelopment. "What is happening around you?" Gaughan asks his clients. "Construction? New buildings coming to obstruct your view? That little parking lot next door doesnt have to be a parking lot." Reporter Molly Davis covers growth and development in Nashville. Reach her at mdavis2@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: Nashville's condo market: Investment, appreciation, HOA, hidden fees BlueScope Steel Architectural Award - Malaysia KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia, July 08, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--NS BlueScope Malaysia Sdn Bhd is calling for entries to its inaugural BlueScope Steel Architectural Awards in Malaysia (BSAA MY). The new awards program launched across online media and social media throughout Malaysia, while equivalent awards programs were also launched by NS BlueScope in other major ASEAN markets. It aims to celebrate excellence and innovation across multiple applications of steel use in architecture and design. The BlueScope Steel Architectural Awards are run under the theme of "Beautiful Strength" and will highlight projects of class and beauty and shine a spotlight on innovation in creative steel architecture. There are five award categories open for submission: Industrial, Commercial, Residential, Institutional, Others, and Lasting Beauty of COLORBOND steel. "Our objective with this new awards program is to set the industry benchmark for excellence in architectural steel use. We will do this by showcasing completed building projects that have harnessed BlueScope steel materials or solutions to create truly spectacular results. This way we can increase awareness of how innovative steel use can benefit architectural design while also giving a platform to the leading-edge projects Malaysias architectural sector is delivering," said Mr. Ken Wong, VP of Marketing, NS BlueScope Malaysia. "For all architects with worthy steel-based projects of the past five years, this is the ideal opportunity to showcase your project and shine!" BSAA MY will shortlist three winners for each category, selecting a Gold, Silver and Bronze placing. The projects selected as Gold Winners from BSAA MY will then advance to the next round to compete in the BlueScope Steel Architectural Awards 2024 ASEAN. There they will join other Gold Winners from Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam, to compete for the ultimate ASEAN awards at the regional level. Having both national and regional awards programs tied together will encourage architects, designers and developers to better understand the versatility and innovation possible with steel and will help foster closer bonds and appreciation of steel applications in neighbouring countries. The panel of jurors will shortlist projects based on four main criteria: design excellence, community & humanity, innovation, and sustainability. The final of the inaugural BlueScope Steel Architectural Awards Malaysia will be held on 20 September 2024. For entries submission, please log on to: www.steelpedia.com.my/bluescope-steel-architectural-award-2024 Story continues For more information about NS BlueScope Malaysia, please visit www.nsbluescope.com/my View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240705350728/en/ Contacts James Li T +65 6832 3512 E james.li@bluescope.com Devon Energy, based at the Devon Energy Center in Oklahoma City, said Monday it had agreed to acquire the Williston Basin business of Houston-based, private equity-sponsored Grayson Mill Energy. Devon Energy's $5 billion purchase of ongoing production and untapped drilling sites in North Dakota was a conservative move fitting with the OKC-based oil and gas company's usual approach to mergers and acquisitions, an analyst said. Devon said Monday it had agreed to acquire the Williston Basin business of Houston-based, private equity-sponsored Grayson Mill Energy in a $5 billion transaction consisting of $3.25 billion of cash and $1.75 billion of stock to the sellers. The deal is expected to close by the end of the third quarter. Private equity-sponsored means Grayson Mill is funded by outside investors, and is not an independent operating company. Devon did not respond to an inquiry from The Oklahoman, but the transaction isn't expected to result in much change, if any, to Devon's operations in OKC. Devon trading under ticker symbol DVN on the New York Stock Exchange said the acquisition will strengthen returns to investors and improve its financial strength by allowing it to reduce $2.5 billion of debt over the next two years. Devon stock closed Monday at $46.52, down $0.51 or 1.08%. Devon Energy gets production, not just opportunity, with Grayson Mill acquisition "In this deal, it appears 70-80% of the total deal value Devon is paying for Grayson Mill is for existing production with the remainder going to undeveloped inventory," said Andrew Dittmar, principal analyst at Enverus Intelligence Research, in Austin, Texas. Williston Basin is in eastern Montana, western North Dakota, South Dakota, southern Saskatchewan and southwestern Manitoba. Devon is acquiring properties in North Dakota and a sliver of eastern Montana, part of the subsurface Bakken Formation. The acquisition of Grayson Mill is an excellent strategic fit for Devon that allows us to efficiently expand our oil production and operating scale while capturing a meaningful runway of highly economic drilling inventory, said Rick Muncrief, Devons president and CEO. This transaction also creates immediate value within our financial framework by delivering sustainable accretion to earnings and free cash flow that will result in higher distributions to shareholders over time. Analyst: Devon Energy continues with its conservative approach to expansion Dittmar said Devon also went conservative with its prior acquisitions of RimRock Oil and Gas LP assets in the Williston and Validus Energy, an operator in the Eagle Ford Shale formation in Texas, in 2022. The approach "may have prevented Devon from coming out on top in the various scrambles for core Permian (Basin) opportunities," he said, but "this deal makes the Williston a key operating region for Devon, where they might otherwise have been a seller if they couldnt find a scalable opportunity to increase their footprint." Story continues Dittmar said the deal "continues a trend of buyers looking beyond the Permian," in West Texas and southeastern New Mexico, "to find buyable opportunities of scale in an increasingly consolidated market." Devon Energy nabs 'one the largest remaining private opportunities' with Grayson Mill acquisition, analyst says Dittmar said Grayson Mill was one the largest remaining private opportunities "reasonably likely to come up for sale" with some 500 drilling locations and production of over 100 million barrels of oil equivalent per day a standard way of measuring production that includes both crude oil and natural gas. "Among private equity-sponsored E&P's (exploration and production), as opposed to truly private companies like Continental Resources, Grayson Mill had the largest count of remaining undeveloped gross drilling locations," Dittmar said. "While Devon still had a substantial runway of remaining drilling opportunities, pressure may have been mounting on the company to strike a deal to keep pace with peers that had been rapidly rolling up remaining opportunities." Grayson Mill had been a natural acquisition target for Houston-based Chord Energy with its "closely fitting operations," Dittmar said. "Now that Devon has committed to the basin, Chord could find itself the next acquisition target in another of the public-public company mergers that have largely dominated M&A (merger-and-acquisition) activity." Highlights of the Devon Energy-Grayson Mill transaction Devon outlined highlights of the acquisition: The transaction adds to Devon's key financial measures, including earnings, cash flow, free cash flow and net asset value. The acquisition "adds a high-margin production mix that further positions Devon as one of the largest oil producers in the U.S." Devon estimates its oil production to average 375,000 barrels per day, with total production reaching an average of 765,000 oil-equivalent barrels per day across its portfolio. "The transaction significantly expands the companys position in the Williston Basin with the addition of 307,000 net acres (70 percent working interest). Production from the acquired properties is expected to be maintained at approximately 100,000 Boe (barrels of oil equivalent) per day (55 percent oil) in 2025. "With enhanced scale in the basin, Devon expects to realize up to $50 million in average annual cash flow savings from operating efficiencies and marketing synergies." The transaction "supports Devon retaining its strong investment-grade credit ratings. ... The company plans to improve its financial strength by allocating up to 30 percent of its annual free cash flow towards reducing $2.5 billion of debt over the next two years." Sign Up: Weekly newsletter Real Estate with Richard Mize Senior Business Writer Richard Mize has covered housing, construction, commercial real estate and related topics for the newspaper and Oklahoman.com since 1999. Contact him at rmize@oklahoman.com. Sign up for his weekly newsletter, Real Estate with Richard Mize. You can support Richard's work, and that of his colleagues, by purchasing a digital subscription to The Oklahoman. Right now, you can get 6 months of subscriber-only access for $1. This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OKC's Devon Energy buys assets from Houston driller in $5 billion deal (Bloomberg) -- Paramount Global agreed to merge with Skydance Media in a deal that hands control of the storied Hollywood studio to producer David Ellison, ending one of the industrys most dramatic acquisitions. Most Read from Bloomberg As part of the complicated deal that was months in the making, Paramount Chair Shari Redstone agreed to sell her familys National Amusements Inc., which controls about 77% of the voting stock in Paramount, for $2.4 billion, according to a statement from the company on Sunday. The accord marks an abrupt turnaround after talks between Redstone and Ellison, the son of Oracle Corp. co-founder Larry Ellison, collapsed last month. Redstones decision at the time to end discussions shocked the board and frustrated employees and investors, sending the stock tumbling. But Ellison and Redstone remained in touch and worked to resolve their differences. Redstone had long made clear that she felt Ellison, an upstart movie mogul, made the most sense for Paramount and represented the best opportunity to protect her familys legacy. In the past few weeks, Ellison made a few changes to the deal, including offering more protection against potential shareholder lawsuits. According to terms of the new deal, the Ellison family and RedBird Capital Partners have agreed to invest more than $8 billion in the business. That includes $1.5 billion to help pay down Paramounts debt and $4.5 billion to buy Paramount shares. The deal would allow non-Redstone voting shareholders to cash out for $23 a share or roll their shares into the new company. Non-voting shareholders would be able to receive $15 a share in cash or 1 share in the new company. Those terms represent a 48% premium for non-voting shareholders and a 28% premium for voting shareholders compared with Paramounts share price as of July 1. After the deal closes, which is expected in the first half of 2025, the Ellison-led group will own about 70% of Paramounts shares outstanding. The sellers have 45 days to seek better offers. The Skydance deal includes a $400 million breakup fee if it falls apart. Paramount shares slid 4.5% on Monday morning to $11.28 in New York. Theyre down 24% so far this year. New owners and additional capital could provide a fresh start to beleaguered Paramount, the parent of CBS and MTV. Laden with more than $14 billion in debt, the iconic Hollywood company has struggled to compete in streaming and has suffered as cable TV audiences canceled their subscriptions and abandoned traditional channels like CBS and Nickelodeon. The company had a net loss of $554 million, or 87 cents a share, in the first quarter. Story continues Given the changes in the industry, we want to fortify Paramount for the future while ensuring that content remains king, Redstone said in the statement. As a longtime production partner to Paramount, Skydance knows Paramount well and has a clear strategic vision and the resources to take it to its next stage of growth. We believe in Paramount and we always will. Ellison, 41, will be chairman and chief executive officer. Jeff Shell, a former NBCUniversal executive, will be president. Ellison, who was raised around Silicon Valley luminaries like Steve Jobs, believes the company could thrive if it invests more in technology. Skydance will use artificial intelligence to turbocharge content creation capabilities that improve overall productivity and lower costs, the company said. Paramount, which owns the movie studio behind films including Titanic and The Godfather, has been controlled for three decades by the Redstone family. But the shares have lost more than half of their value since the Redstones recombined CBS Corp. and Viacom Inc. in 2019 to create Paramount Global. Ellison has been pursuing Paramount for months, sensing a rare opportunity to own one of Hollywoods most iconic studios. Ellison said that Paramount, as a legacy media company, needs to double down on story telling, but it really needs to make the transition to being tech-hybrid as a company. On a conference call with analysts, Ellison noted that big tech companies have been aggressively moving into the media space and that for Paramount to be successful, it needs to move toward being a tech company. Bringing together tech and media, thats whats essential to chart a course forward in this environment, he said. Redstone, 70, pushed for a merger of Paramount with Skydance over a deal with other interested parties and despite opposition from the companys management and other shareholders, the resignation of four board members and the looming specter of litigation. She dismissed the companys Chief Executive Officer Bob Bakish, a vocal skeptic of the deal, replacing him with a management committee of three leaders who have promised $500 million in annual cost savings. The Skydance deal will produce about $2 billion in cost savings, the companies said. Just as a deal with Skydance seemed imminent last month and a special committee of the board convened to discuss the proposal, Redstone backed out. By that point Ellison had reduced his offer for Redstones National Amusements so he could give more money to other Paramount shareholders, a sticking point for the company to agree to the deal but one that turned Redstone off. Paramount, which was purchased by Shari Redstones late father Sumner in 1994, has been up for sale since late last year. National Amusements has held talks with various suitors, including Sony Group Corp. and Apollo Global Management Inc., which proposed a $26 billion deal. But that offer, which would have involved a foreign owner and the consolidation potentially of two large Hollywood studios, was seen as problematic and likely to face tough regulatory scrutiny. More recently, Barry Diller, the 82-year-old chairman of IAC Inc. and former head of Paramount Pictures, has expressed interest in the company. So has longtime media executive Edgar Bronfman Jr. Until the deal closes, the three Paramount CEOs will continue with their plans to reduce costs through job cuts and seeking opportunities for streaming joint ventures and more possibilities to license content to other networks. Ellison reiterated the companys commitment to its money-losing, direct-to-consumer streaming services, noting that better technology, such as an improved discovery system, could bolster the user experience on Paramount+ and decrease subscriber churn. While people often debated whether content or distribution ruled the day, my father was governed in all of his decisions by his belief that content was indeed king, Redstone told employees in an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. We continue to create content that resonates with our consumers, that they continually seek out, and that keeps them wanting more. --With assistance from Lucas Shaw, Edwin Chan and Brandon Mioduszewski. (Updates with details from analyst call and shares.) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. Mexicos state energy company, Pemex, has partnered with Grupo Carso to resume the development of the Lakach natural gas project, reported Reuters. Located 93km south-east of Veracruz and 131km north-west of Coatzacoalcos, in the Gulf of Mexico, the Lakach deep-water gas field has been shelved twice previously. The collaboration will see Grupo Carso injecting more than $1.2bn to develop the project, and acting as the service provider. Pemex will retain ownership of the Lakach field and its reserves. Grupo Carso's role will involve constructing an onshore facility. Grupo Carso was cited by the news agency as saying in a statement that the onshore station will be equipped to treat gas and condensates for disposal at sale conditions. Production is expected to start in around two and a half years. Carso, a company controlled by Mexican business investor Carlos Slim, plans to team up with a local unit of Spains Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas and Talos Energy to develop the Lakach field, reported Bloomberg News. In March 2024, Reuters reported Pemex was in talks with Slims group regarding the control and development of the Lakach field. Discovered in 2007, the Lakach field is estimated to hold 900 billion cubic feet of natural gas. The collaboration comes after the previous partner, New Fortress Energy, exited the project in 2023 as the parties could not agree on terms including pricing. Since then, Pemex has been scouting for a new partner for the fields development. "Pemex and Grupo Carso collaborate to develop Brazilian gas project" 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. This week on Pipeline Moves, we start by looking at Alnylams Phase III win with Amvuttra in ATTR amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy. Meanwhile, Junshi Biosciencess toripalimab saw a Phase II investigator-led ovarian cancer trial suspended. On a positive note, Shiongi's S-309309 reported a Phase II trial completion in obesity. Alnylam win in Phase III ATTR amyloidosis trial Alnylam Pharmaceuticalss Amvuttra (vutrisiran) saw its Likelihood of Approval (LoA) rating increase in transthyretin (ATTR) amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy after a Phase III trial in the same indication met all endpoints. The LoA for Amvuttra shot up by 11 percentage points from 55% to 66% in ATTR amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy. LoA is calculated by GlobalDatas analysis using a combination of machine learning and a proprietary algorithm. LoA can be calculated for a drug by considering characteristics like therapy area, indication and molecule type. A press release from Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, released on 24 June 2024, states that the HELIOS-B trial achieved statistical significance on the primary and all secondary endpoints. GlobalData evaluated the asset on 26 June 2024. The press release says that the trial achieved 28% and 33% reduction of all-cause mortality and recurrent cardiovascular events in the overall and monotherapy populations, respectively. The Phase III trial (NCT04153149) evaluated the efficacy and safety of Amvuttra in patients with ATTR amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy. The trial randomised 655 adult patients with ATTR amyloidosis with cardiomyopathy at a 1:1 ratio for Amvuttra or placebo. The drug was administered subcutaneously once every three months during a treatment period, which went up to 36 months. Alnylam will now move ahead with global regulatory submissions later this year, including filing a supplemental New Drug Application with the FDA using a Priority Review Voucher. Phase II trial of Shionogis obesity candidate completion Shionogis S-309309 saw its Phase Transition Success Rate (PTSR) increase following a Phase II trial completion in obesity. The drugs PTSR rose by nine points to 34% in obesity. PTSR is the probability, given as a percentage, of a drug progressing successfully from one development stage to the next. The trials status was updated on its ClinicalTrials.gov from active, not recruiting to completed on 28 June and GlobalData evaluated the asset on 1 July. The Phase II trial (NCT05925114) evaluated the efficacy of S-309309 in 365 obese adult subjects, compared to placebo. The trials primary endpoint evaluated the change from baseline in body weight for a time period of up to 24 weeks post-treatment. Story continues The asset is a monoacylglycerol acyltransferase 2 (MGAT2) inhibitor. The drug candidate is an oral asset that plays a major role in lipid metabolism by inhibiting MGAT2, which is highly expressed in the small intestine. Junshi Biosciencess ovarian cancer loss in Phase II trial Shanghai Junshi Biosciencess toripalimab saw a 10-point fall in its PTSR in ovarian cancer following the extended suspension of a Phase II institution-led study. PTSR is the probability, given as a percentage, of a drug progressing successfully from one development stage to the next. It can be calculated for a drug by considering characteristics like therapy area, indication and molecule type. The PTSR change took place on 28 June, following a change in the trials start date (NCT05479045) on ClinicalTrials.gov from June 2024 to August 2024 on 25 June. As per the ClinicalTrials.gov entry, the protocol amendment is pending and its status remained suspended. The Georgetown University-led Phase II study, which also lists the US Department of Defence as a partner, is designed to investigate a combination therapy strategy to prevent anti-PD-1 therapy resistance in metastatic ovarian cancer patients. The updated study protocol swapped Bristol Myers Squibbs Opdivo (nivolumab) with toripalimab in a combination regimen with a New York-esophageal cancer 1 (NY-ESO-1) peptide vaccine. The trial measured median progression-free survival as its primary endpoint. Toripalimab is a PD-1 monoclonal antibody that prevents binding of PD-1 with PD-L1 and PD-L2, blocking downstream signalling. This acts to restore immune function through the activation of T cells and T-cell-mediated immune responses against tumour cells. Toripalimab is currently approved for the treatment of nasopharyngeal carcinoma under the US brand name Loqtorzi, and marketed as Tuoyi in China. The Shanghai, China-headquartered company is also investigating the therapy as a treatment for breast cancer, small cell lung cancer, and liver cancer amongst other conditions. Cartesians cell therapy falls in multiple myeloma Cartesian Bios Descartes-08 saw its PTSR decrease in multiple myeloma after a Phase II trial was terminated. The PTSR dropped by ten points to 24%. The Phase II trials (NCT04816526) status was updated from completed to terminated on ClinicalTrials.gov on 27 June, and GlobalData evaluated the asset on the following day. According to the studys ClinicalTrials.gov listing, the sponsor did not disclose the reason for terminating the study. The purpose of the study was to assess the minimal residual disease (MRD)-negative complete response rate after consolidation treatment with Descartes-08 in patients with high-risk myeloma who have residual disease following induction therapy. The study enrolled 13 patients. Descartes-08 exhibits antineoplastic activity by targeting cells expressing B cell maturation antigen (BCMA) and is under development for the treatment of multiple myeloma (third-line therapy), myasthenia gravis, systemic lupus erythematosus and unspecified autoimmune diseases. Phase II multiple sclerosis trial completes Hope Biosciencess HB-adMSCs saw a nine-point jump in its PTSR, landing at 36% in relapsing/remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS), after a Phase II trial was completed. The studys ClinicalTrials.gov listing (NCT05116540) was updated from active, not recruiting to completed on 20 June. GlobalData evaluated the asset on 24 June. The randomised, double-blind Phase II study compared the efficacy and safety of autologous HB-adMSCs compared to placebo in multiples sclerosis patients. Led by the Hope Biosciences Stem Cell Research Foundation, the trials primary endpoint evaluated the efficacy of intravenous infusions of the therapy against placebo in patients, measured as improvements in the Multiple Sclerosis Quality of Life (MSQOL) 54 Instrument. Sugar Land, Texas-based Hope Biosciencess cell therapy uses adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells to treat RRMS. The treatment acts by eliciting regenerative effects as the cell therapy differentiates into numerous cell types. The company is also investigating the cell therapy for its use in several other conditions including cerebral palsy, Parkinsons disease, and traumatic brain injury. Note: The indication in paragraphs one, four and five has been updated. Read the last edition: Need to know: GlobalDatas proprietary model uses a combination of machine learning and an algorithm to calculate an individual drugs PTSR and LoA. While LoA provides the probability of a drug ultimately receiving market authorization, PTSR indicates the probability of a drugs advancemen "Pipeline Moves: Alnylams Amvuttra approval prospects up after Phase III win" was originally created and published by Clinical Trials Arena, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. (Bloomberg) -- Thousands of Samsung Electronics Co. workers walked off the job Monday to stage a rally demanding better pay, beginning the biggest organized labor action in the South Korean conglomerates half-century history. Most Read from Bloomberg Disgruntled employees and union supporters gathered in the pouring rain outside one of Samsungs biggest chipmaking complexes south of Seoul. Wearing red headbands proclaiming total strike and black raincoats, they formed neatly organized ranks along a broad thoroughfare, chanting slogans and singing in unison with raised fists. Union leaders, who said more than 6,500 signed up for the action, hope the highly publicized protest galvanizes a three-day walkout that will send a message to Koreas biggest company. Police later put the turnout at closer to half that, at about 3,100. Samsungs largest union spent weeks preparing for the walkout, after negotiations over pay and vacation time collapsed last month. It marked an escalation from a single-day strike in early June the first in Samsungs 55 years of existence. The action is intended to drive home their demands by disrupting production at one of the companys most advanced chip facilities, union leaders say. The labor union had aimed to gather up to 5,000 people for the rally outside Samsungs facility in Hwaseong, about 38 kilometers (24 miles) south of Seoul, Lee Hyun-kuk, deputy secretary-general of the union, told Bloomberg News on Friday. Its unclear how many in total will actually walk off the job over the ensuing days, though markets have so far remained calm. Samsungs shares closed largely unchanged Monday, after saying in a statement the strike has had no impact on chip output. Still, the risk is that the unprecedented action may eventually hurt the countrys best-known and wealthiest corporate name and spur similar responses across the tech industry. Many of those who turned out Monday were chip assembly line employees who expected to skip a few days work, according to the union. Our goal for this walkout is to disrupt production, said union leader Son Woo-mok. For Samsung, it can ill-afford turmoil within its ranks or production snarls at a critical time. Its pulling out the stops to convince Nvidia Corp. to use its high-end AI memory chips a prerequisite for staking a larger claim on a booming AI market. In May, it abruptly replaced the head of its semiconductor division, which since 2023 has seen SK Hynix Inc. dominate the crucial high-bandwidth memory, or HBM, chip arena. Story continues This week, Samsungs preparing to unveil new foldable phones and watches as well as a smart ring in Paris ahead of the Olympics, in an attempt to forestall a challenge from Apple Inc. on its global market lead. In Samsungs favor however is an anticipated rebound in global memory and electronics demand from historic post-Covid era depths: the company on Friday posted a 15-fold surge in earnings, but off a very low 2023 base. The timing of this strike is particularly critical as it coincides with ongoing semiconductor supply chain challenges, said Billy Leung, an investment strategist at Global X Management Co., a member of the Mirae Asset Financial Group. Samsung accounts for about 20% of the global DRAM market and around 40% of NAND flash, which is used in smartphones and servers. Any disruption in Samsungs operations could have a ripple effect. Samsung Electronics has long avoided the kind of ground-up turmoil that plagued many of Koreas leading companies from Hyundai Motor Co. to Ssangyong Motor Co. Labor action in the past has occasionally turned violent. Analysts have credited Samsungs tight control of labor activism as a reason for its success, helping the company dominate the electronics sector from its perch in Suwon for well over a decade. Lee Kun Hee, late chairman of Samsung and father of current leader Jay Y. Lee, went to great lengths to prevent unions from forming. Now, the National Samsung Electronics Union the largest of the tech giants several unions with some 30,000-plus workers says its escalating things because of a breakdown in pay talks, after initially seeking a less dramatic resolution. Union leaders spent weeks encouraging members to join in this weeks maneuvers. Samsung on Thursday tried to deflate that endeavor by announcing first-half performance-related bonuses for semiconductor staff. But the maximum 75% of monthly salaries they promised fell short of a full-months payout typical in the past. Because executives are on contract, they mostly care about short-term performance and goals, said Park Seol, a 35-year-old woman who works at Samsungs Pyeongtaek complex. We stand up for what is best for the company. At the heart of the dispute are higher wages and additional paid leave. Union leaders last week changed their demands to include their entire cohort after initially saying they wanted a bigger salary increase for around 855 staff who didnt agree to a 3% annual basic pay hike. Other issues include bonuses tied to Samsungs excess profit, which chip workers didnt receive last year when their unit lost about 15 trillion won. They fear they may get left out again this year even if the division returns to profit, according to union leaders. Samsung calculates those bonuses via a complex formula that deducts cost of capital from operating profit, adjusted for taxes on a cash basis. The union said its asking the company to simply use operating profit like some of its peers or to be more transparent in how it determines those numbers. Historically, bonuses make up a significant portion of worker pay, so missing out can mean a meaningful reduction in compensation. --With assistance from Shinhye Kang and Vlad Savov. (Updates with police data and comments from the second paragraph) Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek 2024 Bloomberg L.P. By Heekyong Yang HWASEONG, South Korea (Reuters) -Samsung Electronics workers began a three-day strike for better pay on Monday, with their union pointing to further action should South Korea's biggest conglomerate continue to fall short of its demands. The National Samsung Electronics Union (NSEU), whose roughly 30,000 members make up almost a quarter of the firm's South Korean workforce, also wants an extra day of annual leave for unionised workers and changes to the employee bonus system. Low participation and automated production means the strike is unlikely to have a significant impact on output at the world's biggest memory chipmaker, analysts said. Still, it signals a decline in staff morale at a pivotal point in the chip industry as tech firms embrace artificial intelligence. The union's first industrial action last month involved coordinating annual leave to stage a mass walkout, which Samsung said had no impact on business activity. The firm said on Monday there was no disruption in production. The union, which did not disclose last month's strike participation levels, said 6,540 workers will be striking this week, mostly at manufacturing sites and in product development. It said the strike includes workers who monitor automated production lines and equipment so operations could be affected. Union officials said about 3,000 strikers attended a rally in the rain near Samsung's headquarters in Hwaseong, south of Seoul. Union president Son Woo-mok disputed media reports of low participation, telling Reuters that the five-year-old union did not have enough time to educate members about the issues. "Education about labour unions ... has not been enough. But I don't think this participation is low because our union is still young compared to other unions," he said. Lee Hyun-kuk, the union's vice president, said there could be further strikes if Samsung does not improve its proposals. Samsung's proposals include flexibility in pay and annual leave conditions but do not meet union demands of increased pay and leave, Lee told Reuters. Union officials also want equality in the bonus system. They said bonuses for rank-and-file workers are calculated by deducting the cost of capital from operating profit, whereas those for executives are based on personal performance goals. "I was telling people that I was proud to work at Samsung, but the truth is I am not," said Park Jun-ha, 20, an engineer at Samsung's chip packaging lines who joined the firm in January, adding that he was not satisfied with its "opaque" bonus scheme. Story continues The union's membership has grown since Samsung pledged in 2020 to stop discouraging organised labour. Its growing voice is demanding attention just as Samsung struggles to navigate competition in chips used for artificial intelligence (AI) applications, analysts said. Samsung's share price performance has lagged compatriot chip rival SK Hynix, with union officials blaming Samsung's AI woe on slow development in high bandwidth memory (HBM) chips that are in high demand for use in AI processors. Even so, Samsung estimated a more than 15-fold rise in second-quarter operating profit on Friday, as rebounding chip prices driven by the AI boom lifted earnings from the year prior's low comparison base. Its share price was up 0.2% in afternoon trade on Monday after rising as much as 1.72% earlier in the session to its highest since January 2021. Last week, it jumped 6.9% on preliminary quarterly earnings that exceeded analyst estimates. (Reporting by Heekyong Yang; Additional reporting by Jihoon Lee; Writing by Ju-min Park; Editing by Jamie Freed, Christopher Cushing and Kim Coghill) Fatime Letifova The Speaker of the Armenian Parliament, Alen Simonyan, will meet with Speaker of the Azerbaijani National Assembly Sahiba Gafarova in Geneva in November, Azernews reports. Based on the preliminary agreement reached in the previous meeting, the next meeting between Alen Simonyan and the Speaker of the National Assembly will take place in November in Geneva. It should be noted that on March 22, the speakers of the Azerbaijani and Armenian parliaments, Sahiba Gafarova and Alen Simonyan, had a bilateral meeting within the framework of the 148th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union held in Geneva. During the meeting, issues regarding how the parliaments of the two countries could support the peace process amid ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia were discussed. On May 16, the second meeting between the speakers of the Azerbaijani and Armenian parliaments was held within the framework of the 1st Session of the Organising Committee of the VI Global Conference of Parliament Speakers held in Geneva. The discussion continued on how the parliaments of the two countries could support the peace process amid ongoing peace talks between Azerbaijan and Armenia. Pernod Ricard is spending 25m ($27.1m) on a new distillery for its Ki No Bi gin brand in Japan. The site, based 45 minutes away from the current site in the south of Kyoto city, has an increased capacity and is set to open in the back half of 2025. Just Drinks met (virtually) with a group of Pernod Ricard executives to discuss the project, their outlook for the ultra-premium Japanese gin and the French giants view of the broader gin category. Dean Best (DB): Youve got a new distillery coming on-stream for Ki No Bi. Where is the gin made at the moment? Anna Schreil, VP operations at Pernods The Absolut Company arm (AS): I will leave it to Hiro to specify the details but the gin is currently made in Kyoto. Hiroyuki Nagai, head of distillery operations in Kyoto (KN): The Kyoto Prefecture is made up of a number of the different cities and we are currently located in Kisshouin, which is a southern part of Kyoto city. DB: When the new distillery is open, will the current site close? HN: That, to be honest, is undecided. Whilst we are definitely going ahead with a new distillery, we are currently assessing how we are able to repurpose, or put some value, into the current site as well. DB: What's the plan for the workforce? HN: There will be no job loss at all whatsoever. In fact, this will give opportunity for more people in Kameoka city to increase their employment opportunities. DB: How many staff do you have working at the current site and how many will you have at the new facility? HN: We have about 20 FTEs, full-time equivalents, at the Kyoto distillery, It's a very small operation. Out of that, we have a brand site home and we have operations. We've got other corporate services like finance and HR as well, so the bottling and the distillery operation is under ten. DB: And then the new facility? HN: When we move, our aim is to increase the full-time employment by five. DB: Pernod Ricard says the new distillery will be carbon neutral. Thats a term thats come into the spotlight across FMCG. How do you define carbon neutral? AS: I think in general, when we speak about carbon neutrality, we typically speak about Scopes 1 and 2, so our own operations and the energy consumed for our own operations. Typically, carbon neutrality would be achieved through our usage of renewable energy, like green electricity, typically. I will let Hiro speak to the specifities for the new distillery of Ki No Bi. HN: So, in Japan, the rates for normal power and the rate for carbon-neutral power are different. All of the power stations declare their generation of energy and what is from coal and fire against what is geothermal, hydro solar power, etc, etc. This portion of the rate is dearer [but] we are able to buy the power from that particular sector. Obviously, in any power station, theyre not able to store energy [and say] this has come from this part and this has come from that part but there is a quite strict, third-party, auditing happening to all the power stations, so that theyre not able to cheat the total amount of energy that has come from that sector and sell a greater amount. Story continues Currently, in our distillery, were using a gas boiler. Now when it comes to gas, there is no choice but there is a CO2 emission. When we move to the new factory, we are going to use a 100% electrical boiler and, in fact, we will use electric forklift trucks as well. We will eliminate the use of gas completely out of the operation and continue to pay the higher rate that the power station declares. DB: Will the site use offsets in any way to get to carbon-neutral status? HN: No, were not. DB: Are Ki No Bi sales growing in value and volume terms? What figures can you provide? Murielle Dessenis, global marketing VP for gins (MD): Yes, we are definitely still [growing] double-digit. I will say that, in a more difficult gin environment, Ki No Bi is performing quite impressively. The brand has done an amazing job and, even this year, while its more difficult for other brands, it has been growing significantly and taking share on ultra-premium. DB: How would you define ultra-premium? MD: We have two definitions. I will start with price. Price points of course vary substantially between markets, but generally, ultra-premium gins are typically 35 and above per bottle. Then I will say, from a more qualitative standpoint, where you can find Ki No Bi, its clearly in the finest places. Its really for connoisseurs, not only gin connoisseurs actually, its also for what we call people who are passionate about Japanese luxury, who are attracted to Japan savoir-faire on whisky. Theyre also fascinated about having an option on gin. The fact [Ki No Bi] is also coming from Kyoto is clearly a factor of all the craftsmanship in everything we have done. The work with local botanicals is key. I would say that, on a more qualitative side, its really this idea of connoisseurs or explorers in spirits. We have both in spirits. DB: Where are the principal markets for Ki No Bi geographically? MD: So, clearly, today, Japan is still the home and the largest market but we have also a fantastic success story in Italy, in GTR [global travel retail], in China and India, so we can see some places where the brand is growing. A little bit of France also. These are the markets where the brand is growing. DB: Has a category developed yet around Japanese gin or is it still too early? What are the other gin styles that a brand like Ki No Bi is competing with? Adrien Timpano, head of global marketing for Ki No Bi: In terms of the Japanese style of gin, so far its been very much a Japanese take on London dry for the most part, for example. So, besides Ki No Bi, there is Suntory Roku and some other brands, who are true to the London style but who use botanicals that are true to Japan. People now recognise those botanicals because most of them are well-known globally, so this is what they expect from the Japanese gin category. From a global market standpoint, its also reassuring that its a well-known category for them, the gin category, but with an Asian or Japanese twist. That is important because, as Murielle mentioned, its all about exploring within something thats kind of familiar already. DB: As a team, how would you say the overall gin category performing at the moment? It's quite challenging out there. Do you think styles like Japanese gin are a way to reignite consumer interest? MD: What we believe on gin is that clearly its been, I would say, eight years of double-digit growth. We call it the gin-naissance. I remember in my first year at Pernod Ricard, everyone was talking about cycles. That's true. We are in an industry of cycles. Also, about the cycle of TGV Tequila, gin, vodka. Its true that gin now is entering a new life-stage and a new growth cycle. Murielle Dessenis The reality for gin is that, yes, its true that gin now is entering a new life stage and a new growth cycle. Thats for sure. We can see in the projections that the category is not growing anymore double-digit but still the category is growing and still the category is expected to premiumise the highest level of growth will be driven by super-premium and ultra-premium. Thats what we know. What we also know is gins growth is really based on key consumer trends, which are really lasting in spirits. I would start with what we call mindful drinking, botanicals, which is providing this more clean and natural perception. The second driver is really this expectation of the younger adult generation of having a serious spirit but not one taking itself seriously. They call it cool sophistication, which is not anymore, for example, the whisky of my dad or another kind of very serious category. I will say a third pillar is around visualisation and the digital aspect of gin. Gin is the number two category among the most talked about on digital when actually its clearly not the number two category in spirits. So, we believe clearly that gin is entering a new life stage but its really anchored into long-term consumer trends. DB: Youre preparing a new distillery with a bigger capacity, so you must have confidence in your projections for Ki No Bi. What gives you confidence the brand can capitalise on those trends? MD: First of all, I will respond as a portfolio. We have an unlimited portfolio. We have Beefeater, which is one of the only brands that's growing on [the] premium segment. Its a brand which is clearly not only beating the market but with a strong equity. It really owns the premium segment, still a lot of work to be done but still its the core pillar. Credit: monticello / Shutterstock.com Then you have Malfy, the Italian Queen of super-premium. It started as a flavoured gin but actually with a very strong SKU originally that is performing very well and helps us to go beyond flavoured gin [to] more like a lifestyle brand. Its very quickly growing in most of the markets. And then on ultra-premium, we have two gems. Monkey 47 is clearly performing well, especially in the US we have great results and the equity of the brand is fantastic. Last but by no means least is Ki No Bi, which is starting with a very specific, ultra-premium, connoisseur expectation, bringing tradition, heritage, craftmanship, the quality of the process of production and also with this Japanese, I would say, personality, which is super-authentic. I feel comfortable that we have as a group a superb portfolio of brands, which have momentum but also have really strong equity, which is key. DB: In terms of geography, will the focus for Ki No Bi be the group of markets that you outlined earlier: Japan, Italy, France, India, China? MD: They will be the top priorities with more [markets] also but, yes, were going try to really focus on these key markets to really build success stories and then scale up internationally. DB: Will there be a mix of off- and on-premise or focus on the on-premise? MD: We know that on-premise and advocacy are at the heart of the success of this brand because its a brand that you need to hear the narrative of, a brand that you need to taste, a brand that you need to hear bartenders explain to you the story, so on-trade and advocacy should be still at the heart. And then we'll see selective off-trade but for us the key work is the seeding and advocacy work. We have a gin with strong credentials and we know that it's a key asset versus, for example, other Japanese brands, this savoir-faire that is really making a difference and what is giving you an edge. Thats why for us on-trade and advocacy is really where we need to win first. DB: Do you think it will be a challenge to get drinkers to try a Japanese gin over another type of gin? Its quite an emerging area versus some of the more established parts of the gin category, isn't it? MD: What I love in gin is that I dont believe and we know its not the case, actually that its one gin, one brand, which is very different from other spirit categories. The beauty of gin is versatility. My master distiller here based in London used to say that gin is a chameleon. Even for consumers, you can start with a gin and tonic when youre leaving your office in London and then you might visit some rooftop [bar] with Malfy but then you might go with specific people to a nice hotel with bartenders and its Okay, make me discover something that I dont know. This is where Ki No Bi is a little gem. We know there is a lot of navigation through gin brands and this is why we want to have a very balanced portfolio of brands. DB: And on pricing, thinking about consumer confidence, any concerns you may struggle to get drinkers to try Ki No Bi? MD: Its a fair question. I will say that, at this stage what were seeing from this year, is that brands like Ki No Bi and Monkey 47 are not the ones which have been the most impacted. Its more impacting the brands on the premium price target. It could [happen] at a certain point, maybe, but, so far at the places where actually we are selling this product, price sometimes is also a token of quality. We are monitoring this very carefully but also you are paying by the glass, by the cocktail, so its not just the price of a bottle. Its really also a gin experience that you have: the place, the beautiful drink with the fantastic ingredients and the best gin. I would say that so far we dont see any concern on the price we have on Ki No Bi but we are keeping an eye thats for sure. "We have a superb portfolio of brands, which have momentum Pernod Ricard on prospects in gin" 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. By Tom Hals WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) -A record $7 billion in attorneys' fees for three firms that successfully challenged Elon Musk's $56 billion Tesla pay package provides an incentive for lawyers to hold corporate boards accountable, an attorney for a company shareholder told a Delaware judge on Monday. For more than six hours, legal teams for the company and a shareholder sparred over how much to award to three law firms which represented Richard Tornetta, who owned nine shares of Tesla when he sued over Musk's pay package in 2018. The fee Tornetta has asked for on behalf of the firms equals around $7.3 billion at Tesla's Monday stock price and amounts to a rate of roughly $370,000 for every hour worked by the 37 lawyers, associates and paralegals, court documents submitted by Tornetta's lawyers showed. John Reed, Tesla's lawyer, said on Monday that the fee petition never should have been filed. "It looks like a real-life lawyer joke," he told Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick of the Court of Chancery. The legal fee represents a cut of the value that the plaintiff's lawyers say was created for Tesla by a Delaware judge's January ruling that rescinded Musk's $56-billion pay package. The firms that represented Tornetta include Bernstein Litowitz Berger & Grossmann. Tornetta's attorney Greg Varallo said the shareholder's legal team was seeking far less than the law allows, which is up to 33% of the benefit to Tesla from the lawsuit. He said the January ruling was the largest judgment ever by an American court, excluding punitive damages, and argued that Tornetta's lawyers should receive 11% of that judgment paid in the form of 29 million Tesla shares. Varallo argued that a large fee award would encourage shareholder attorneys to try to protect small investors. "If Delaware continues to perceive value in policing bad behavior, then narrowing incentives would be a very bad idea," Varallo said. Reed countered that the January ruling destroyed value by sending Tesla's stock down as it created uncertainty about Musk's future at the company. He asked McCormick to award as little as $13.6 million as a fee. More than 8,000 Tesla stockholders have flooded the court with some 1,500 letters and objections over the fee, according to court documents. The request vastly outstrips the current record fee in shareholder litigation of $688 million in an Enron class action, according to Stanford Law School. The Musk case took a dramatic turn when Tesla shareholders in June voted to ratify Musk's pay, which Tesla has argued corrected the flaws in the 2018 process that McCormick identified in her ruling. Story continues The company argues that Musk's pay package has been restored and that Tornetta's legal victory has been transformed into a loss. McCormick will hear arguments about the legal impact of the ratification vote in the coming weeks. McCormick may take weeks or months to rule on the legal fee. The Delaware Supreme Court is considering a $267 million fee request in a shareholder class action involving Dell Technologies and that decision could provide fee guidance. (Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Editing by Aurora Ellis, Rod Nickel and Richard Chang) As global markets exhibit mixed signals with some indices reaching record highs and others showing contraction, investors are navigating through a landscape marked by fluctuating interest rates and economic indicators. In this context, identifying undervalued stocks becomes crucial as they may offer potential for appreciation in a market where growth has been narrowly driven and certain sectors may be poised for recovery. Top 10 Undervalued Stocks Based On Cash Flows Name Current Price Fair Value (Est) Discount (Est) Hibino (TSE:2469) 2600.00 5188.77 49.9% Anhui Anli Material Technology (SZSE:300218) CN13.30 CN26.59 50% Sparebanken Vest (OB:SVEG) NOK131.68 NOK262.87 49.9% Revu (KOSDAQ:A443250) 10320.00 20628.32 50% Arcadis (ENXTAM:ARCAD) 59.30 117.91 49.7% Hexatronic Group (OM:HTRO) SEK53.08 SEK105.89 49.9% Musti Group Oyj (HLSE:MUSTI) 26.80 53.36 49.8% Yara International (OB:YAR) NOK294.90 NOK589.44 50% YIT Oyj (HLSE:YIT) 2.332 4.66 49.9% Beijing Aosaikang Pharmaceutical (SZSE:002755) CN9.49 CN18.84 49.6% Click here to see the full list of 942 stocks from our Undervalued Stocks Based On Cash Flows screener. Underneath we present a selection of stocks filtered out by our screen Overview: Turkiye Garanti Bankasi A.S. offers a range of banking products and services across Turkey, with a market capitalization of approximately TRY 514.08 billion. Operations: The bank's revenue is primarily derived from Corporate and Commercial Banking, which generated TRY 95.05 billion, and Retail Banking with TRY 75.02 billion in revenues. Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 13.7% Turkiye Garanti Bankasi, trading at TRY122.4, is valued below our estimated fair value of TRY141.83, reflecting a modest undervaluation based on discounted cash flows. The bank has demonstrated robust financial performance with a net income increase to TRY 22.29 billion in Q1 2024 from TRY 15.37 billion the previous year, supporting its strong earnings growth forecast of 26% annually. Despite this potential, its dividend reliability remains uncertain due to an unstable track record. Additionally, plans to issue up to US$2 billion in debt could impact future valuations depending on market conditions and execution. IBSE:GARAN Discounted Cash Flow as at Jul 2024 Overview: Ryanair Holdings plc operates as a scheduled-passenger airline in Ireland, the UK, Spain, Italy, and other international locations, with a market capitalization of approximately 18.96 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through its scheduled-passenger airline services, with Ryanair DAC contributing 14.08 billion and Other Airlines adding 1.47 billion. Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 26.3% Ryanair Holdings, priced at 16.83, is significantly undervalued compared to its fair value of 22.83, reflecting more than 20% potential upside based on discounted cash flow analysis. The company has shown a strong growth trajectory with earnings increasing by 30.5% annually over the past five years and revenues projected to grow at 7.1% annually, outpacing the Irish market forecast of 4.2%. Despite this robust financial performance and positive analyst expectations for a price increase of 44.3%, Ryanair's dividend track record remains unstable, and its share price has been highly volatile recently. ISE:RYA Discounted Cash Flow as at Jul 2024 Overview: Royal Gold, Inc., along with its subsidiaries, specializes in acquiring and managing precious metal streams, royalties, and related interests, boasting a market capitalization of approximately $8.61 billion. Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through stream interests, which contributed approximately $405.82 million, and royalty interests, which added about $171.12 million. Estimated Discount To Fair Value: 35.9% Royal Gold, trading at US$131, appears undervalued by over 20% against an estimated fair value of US$204.44 based on discounted cash flow analysis. Despite a recent dip in quarterly earnings from US$63.88 million to US$47.17 million and sales from US$168.4 million to US$147.45 million, the company is poised for substantial growth with expected revenue and earnings increases of 13.2% and 20.3% annually respectivelyoutstripping broader market projections. This financial trajectory suggests potential for significant appreciation despite current underperformance in return on equity forecasts at just 12.7%. NasdaqGS:RGLD Discounted Cash Flow as at Jul 2024 Make It Happen Take a closer look at our Undervalued Stocks Based On Cash Flows list of 942 companies by clicking here. Invested in any of these stocks? Simplify your portfolio management with Simply Wall St and stay ahead with our alerts for any critical updates on your stocks. Enhance your investing ability with the Simply Wall St app and enjoy free access to essential market intelligence spanning every continent. Seeking Other Investments? This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned. Companies discussed in this article include IBSE:GARANISE:RYA and NasdaqGS:RGLD Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com The UKs new Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, has appointed Member of Parliament (MP) for Ilford North, Wes Streeting as the newest Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, taking over from Victoria Atkins. The move comes following the much-expected election win of the UK Labour Party last Thursday in which the centre-left party took a majority of 411 seats against the Conservative partys 121 seats. Now, Wes Streeting is set to take over a government department beset with issues from across the country, from strikes and medical staff wages to crumbling hospitals and lopsided investment. Initially entering government in 2015 after winning his seat in Ilford North, Streeting would go on to become the Shadow Minister for Schools as part of the opposition government under the Labour Party, before moving on to later become Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. Addressing the country following his appointment as Heath Secretary, Streeting iterated that the party was committed to negotiations with National Health Service (NHS) staff in a bid to end the ongoing strikes, as well as a promise to slash wait times. Streeting said: When we said during the election campaign, that the NHS was going through the biggest crisis in its history, we meant it. When we said that patients are being failed on a daily basis, it wasnt political rhetoric, but the daily reality faced by millions. Previous governments have not been willing to admit these simple facts. But in order to cure an illness, you must first diagnose it. I have just spoken over the phone with the British Medical Association (BMA) junior doctors committee, and I can announce that talks to end their industrial action will begin next week. Responding to Streetings comments, the BMA has said that it is keen to work together in hopes of getting the NHS back on its feet as research produced by the BMA reveals that more than 7.56 million people are currently on some form of waiting list for a procedure within the NHS. In a letter to Streeting, Philip Banfield, BMA chair of the council said: We have heard your commitment to pay restoration as a journey and put our faith in your intentions to work together towards a resolution. Medical associate professions are being employed across the NHS without any defined national scope of practice, posing a real and present patient safety risk. The profession will be looking for you to take urgent action; the dangerous substitution of doctors must be stopped. In the private space, it has yet to be seen how Streetings appointment will play out, with the UKs life sciences sector tentatively embracing the stability that a change in the UK government represents after a period of healthcare management that has largely seen government investment driven into regional, southern research facilities as opposed to broader investment. Story continues Commenting on the appointment of Streeting, chief executive of the British Healthcare Trades Association, David Stockdale, said: I would like to congratulate Mr Streeting on his appointment as the new Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. With his experience leading the opposition on healthcare matters, Mr Streeting will be well informed on the challenges facing the health service. On behalf of the industry, we stand ready to work with the new Health Secretary and collaborate on creating a vibrant health and social care sector that truly delivers for patients. "The UKs new Health Secretary who is Wes Streeting?" was originally created and published by Hospital Management, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has pulled up four pharmaceutical companies, namely Novartis, Pfizer, Otsuka, and Novo Nordisk, for breaking its code of practice. The UK body stated that the companies have discredited and reduced confidence in the pharmaceutical industry by not adhering to certain clauses related to payment disclosures to healthcare professionals and patient organisations. ABPI noted that Novo Nordisk was involved in the most serious breach, having failed to disclose transfers worth approximately 7.8m ($10m) taking place between 2020 and 2022. Novo Nordisk voluntarily said it failed to disclose approximately 500 transfers to 155 vendors including healthcare institutions, patients, and journalists. The undisclosed transfers made up approximately 10% 14% of each years total transfers of value, as per Novo Nordisks declaration. ABPI tagged Novo Nordisks failure to disclose payments as extremely concerning and said the company had a lack of oversight and its processes were wholly inadequate. This is not the first time that the Danish pharmaceutical company has been in hot water with ABPI. In March 2023, the industry organisation suspended Novo Nordisks membership for two years citing serious breaches in conduct. As part of the suspension, Novo Nordisk will be subjected to audits in late 2023 and 2024, with ABPI deciding on the companys reinstatement. Novartis breach centred around out-of-date prescription information for its heart failure medication Entresto (sacubitril/valsartan). The UK agency alleged that an event organised and funded by Novartis failed to tag the Entresto prescription document as promotional. Entresto generated $6bn in sales last year, as per the company's financials. Entresto sales are predicted to decline as generic variants become available shortly, with the therapy only expected to pull in $1.2bn in 2030, as per GlobalData analysis. GlobalData is the parent company of Pharmaceutical Technology. Pfizers transgression was promoting an unlicensed Covid-19 vaccine on X (formerly Twitter). The tweet was posted by a senior member of the Pfizer development team, which was then shared by a senior Pfizer UK employee. Covid-19 products were a major revenue source for Pfizer, however, those sales have fallen in recent months. ABPI found Otsuka Pharmaceuticals to have breached the code for failing to disclose relevant information in its response to a previous case concerning the conduct of a senior Otsuka employee. The complaint filed by an ex-Otsuka employee noted that interviewees had not been allowed to see or sign the statements submitted to the Prescription Medicines Code of Practice Authority (PMCPA) in connection with that case. The complaint went on to say that three employees were forced out of the company as they were seen to be whistleblowers. Story continues "UK pharma group reprimands Novo Nordisk for undisclosed payments" 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. Vinson & Elkins Partners Benjamin Heriaud (left) and East Berhane (right) East Berhane and Ben Heriaud Bring Valuable Experience Working with Private Equity Sponsors and Public Companies By Exec Edge Editorial Staff Vinson & Elkins today announced it has hired Partners East Berhane in Dallas and Benjamin Heriaud in New York to bolster the firms core strengths in finance and capital markets transactions. Berhane advises private equity sponsors and other private and public companies in a wide range of finance transactions. Her practice focuses on debt financings, including acquisition and sponsored leveraged buyout financings, syndicated loan transactions, asset-based lending, debt restructurings and other complex transactions. Heriaud represents corporate, private equity sponsor and investment banking clients and specializes in capital-raising transactions, with a focus on initial public offerings, alternative, hybrid and private capital transactions, acquisition financings and high-yield debt offerings. He also regularly advises clients on mergers and acquisitions and other strategic transactions, as well as disclosure, corporate governance and compliance matters. Berhane most recently was a partner at Kirkland & Ellis and previously served a secondment at KKR & Co, Inc. in New York. At Kirkland & Ellis, she served as co-head of the firms New York Black Affinity Group and a partner advisor to its Associates Committee. Easts experience with complicated leveraged acquisitions and other sophisticated financings will prove instantly valuable to our clients, said Vinson & Elkins Partner David Wicklund, head of the firms Global Finance Practice Group. I expect East to play a central role in the growth of our Finance Practice as we continue to respond to demand from our clients investing in the energy transition and infrastructure assets. Heriaud joins from Simpson Thacher & Bartlett where he was a partner in the firms Corporate Department. He also served on the firms Recruiting Committee. Bens broad range of capital markets experience advising clients across a spectrum of corporate activities fits in perfectly with our strengths and the needs of our clients, said Sarah Morgan, who co-heads Vinson & Elkins Mergers & Acquisitions and Capital Markets Practice Group. We are excited to have him join and continue to grow our strong corporate practice, in New York and beyond. Berhane and Heriaud both said they were enticed by Vinson & Elkins dynamism and plans to build on its already strong Corporate capabilities. Story continues The firm has a leading reputation in Finance, a strong client base, and ambitious plans to expand its practice in exciting ways with private equity firms and throughout all aspects of infrastructure investing, said Berhane, who earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of California and a Juris Doctor degree from New York University School of Law, where she was an editor on the schools law review Ive always been impressed by Vinson & Elkins Capital Markets platform and reputation for client service, and am thrilled to join the team as part of the firms continued growth in New York, added Heriaud, who earned Bachelor of Arts and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Virginia. Contact: Executives-Edge.com Editor@executives-edge.com By Medha Singh and Seher Dareen (Reuters) - Nuclear power companies Constellation Energy and Vistra have become the top S&P 500 performers after Super Micro and Nvidia, as investors look beyond semiconductors and bet on firms catering to an artificial intelligence boom in any capacity. Shares of Vistra have jumped 132% this year, and those of Constellation Energy climbed 81%, compared with a 16.7% rise in the benchmark S&P 500, as rising demand for power from data centers, manufacturers and electric vehicle makers creates a need for clean and sustainable supply of energy. "Long-only" investors and hedge fund exposure to the sector are at record highs, Bank of America said in a note in June. More than 20% of large cap funds own at least Vistra or Constellation's stock compared to just 13% at the beginning of the year, BofA said. "You'd want to be levered to the clean energy theme and anything that's related to data center demand," within the sector, said Adam Turnquist, chief technical strategist for LPL Financial. Nuclear energy companies such as Constellation and Vistra are particularly expected to benefit from the U.S. government's push for big tech firms to invest in new climate-friendly energy generation to cater to surging AI power needs. Joseph Dominguez, chief executive officer of the largest operator of U.S. nuclear plants Constellation Energy, said in May "the data economy and Constellation's nuclear energy go together like peanut butter and jelly." Analysts believe the unregulated utilities, which allow more competition, could also enter long-term contracts with AI data centers, similar to the one signed between Talen Energy and Amazon Web Services (AWS) earlier this year, which would improve their margins and cash flow. The Talen-AWS deal has "helped drive higher expectations for Constellation and Vistra which also have nuclear facilities that are well positioned to execute a similar transaction," said James Thalacker, managing director at BMO Capital Markets. VALUATION Bets that the 10-year U.S. Treasury yields have peaked are supportive of the dividend-paying utilities sector that competes with fixed income for capital. However, the valuations of some unregulated utilities are trading above the industry average. Constellation trades 25 times its 12-month forward earnings estimates compared with S&P 500 utilities sector's 16.5 multiple, LSEG data showed. "The valuation premium is justified by the quantum increase in profits that these companies will capture on the back of tighter supply-demand," said Michel Sznajer, portfolio manager at Ecofin. Story continues Until May, utilities was among the best performing S&P sectors but has since pared some gains. Nicholas Colas, co-founder of DataTrek Research, said investors' "backdoor play on artificial intelligence ... seems to have fizzled, at least for the moment." "Utilities sector is a reasonable place to put capital for a decent long run total return, but we'll stick to tech stocks as a more direct way to profit from AI," Colas said. (This story has been refiled to fix the spelling of Bank of America in paragraph 3) (Reporting by Medha Singh and Seher Dareen in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli) Wilco has notified the state it could close the Hazelnut Growers of Oregon portion of its business and lay off 70 employees by the end of the year. Wilco Farmers Cooperative has filed a notice with the state that it could lay off as many as 70 people at the cooperative-owned Hazelnut Growers of Oregon and close the business by the end of the year. In a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, the company said it will lay off 28 people by Aug. 31 at the processing facility, which opened in 2018 north of Donald. Hazelnut Growers of Oregon, which merged with Wilco in 2017, operates out of a 120,000 square foot facility. We recognize the importance of the hazelnut industry to the greater Willamette Valley region, and we are disappointed we have not been able to achieve an acceptable level of performance with the Hazelnut Growers of Oregon business, Wilco board chair Ben Coleman said in a statement. The Hazelnut Growers of Oregon processing facility in Donald opened in 2018. Mt. Angel-based Wilco, which was founded in 1967, said it has 3,000 farmers in the co-op and over 500,000 customers. It has 25 farm store locations in the northwest, including locations in Salem, Silverton and Stayton. Wilco also has divisions that sell crop protection products and a fuels division. Wilco announced in June it was trying to sell the Hazelnut Growers of Oregon portion of its business. In making that announcement, Wilco said it would make its final payments to hazelnut growers for the 2023 crop on June 14, but it also would not take a crop this year. According to the WARN notification by Wilco vice president of human resources Lisa Smith, employees at Hazelnut Growers of Oregon were notified on June 3 of the impending layoffs. Smiths letter to the state, dated July 2, said the company began negotiations since then with a potential buyer, though that buyer was not identified. If a deal is not made, the facility will close on Dec. 27. Wilco says it is negotiating with a potential buyer to sell Hazelnut Growers of Oregon, but if that deal isn't completed that it could lay off 70 people. In recent years, prices for hazelnuts have plummeted from all-time highs in 2014. According to the Hazelnut Bargaining Association, the guarantee minimum price for most varieties was 50 cents per pound in 2023. Thats half of what it was a few years ago and down from the highs of $1.70 per pound in 2014. Estimates by the U.S. Department of Agriculture are that 99% of hazelnuts grown in the United States are grown in the Willamette Valley. Bill Poehler covers Marion and Polk County for the Statesman Journal. Contact him at bpoehler@StatesmanJournal.com This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Wilco trying to sell Hazelnut Growers of Oregon By Azernews Fatime Letifova The informal summit held in Shusha on July 5-6, with the participation of the leaders of the Organisation of Turkic States, concluded with the adoption of an important document comprising crucial points. It is certain that this event will go down in the history of the entire Turkic world as a significant milestone. This is also the first ever international summit held in the liberated territories of Azerbaijan. Also, the signing of the Garabagh Declaration is particularly noteworthy. There is no doubt that this summit will further strengthen the unity of the Turkic world. The political analyst Amid Aliyev, commenting on the issue for Azernews, stated that holding this summit in Shusha was extremely important for various reasons. "The informal summit of the OTS held in Shusha last week was notable for several reasons. The meeting had a predominantly political purpose. Given the global changes occurring in the world and the reformation of the region's geopolitical landscape, holding this meeting in the Caucasus, specifically in Shusha, was extremely significant. At the summit, the message was conveyed that Shusha is not only the political centre of Azerbaijan but also of the entire Turkic world. In the next 10 years, Shusha will be capable of fully competing with the Davos and Munich conferences," he said. The expert mentioned that in the future, the OTS could also ensure a military dimension in its activities. "Important theses were voiced by Azerbaijan's leader, President Ilham Aliyev, at the Shusha meeting. Considering that the upcoming century will be the "Turkic Century," it was firmly stated that the OTS will play an essential role. For this purpose, key goals such as the development of transport and communication lines within the Turkic Council's geography, the exploitation of energy resources, especially alternative energy sources, and the creation of an economic union were identified. All of this suggests that in the near future, the Turkic Council will be fully operational in political, economic, and likely military aspects," the expert added. The political analyst also recalled the Turkic Council's efforts on climate change. He noted that discussions on this topic within the council are necessary. "In the context of global challenges and climate change, the unity of the Turkic Council is extremely important. Within this geography, the complete drying up of the Aral Sea, the decline in the Caspian Sea level, difficulties in accessing drinking water sources, and destruction caused by annual rainfall give ground for more active discussions on these processes within the council." He drew attention to the upcoming COP29 event to be held in Azerbaijan. "It is gratifying that this issue is being discussed within the framework of the Turkic Council before the COP29 event to be held in Azerbaijan in November. The Shusha summit, which occupies a middle ground between the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and the COP29 events, played a key role in solving political, economic, and social problems in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres." The expert commented on Shusha hosting the Turkic Council's meeting. He said that the declaration signed within the summit reflects the future of the Council. "After the Second Garabagh War, Shusha, which played the role of a political centre for the second time, became significantly important in the formation of the OTS and its operation as a unified organisation. The Garabagh declaration signed at the end of the meeting can be considered a document that determines the strategic development path of the Turkic Council for the next decade," he noted. The political analyst said that the principles of security and development of the countries in the region will be the main foundations of the future period. "In the following period, the Turkic Council will face a new era in terms of quality and content. The main elements of this era will be free economic development, social stability, military security, and integration into the world community of the states and peoples located in this geography," the expert said. Patrick Walsh, an Irish historian and political analyst, drew attention to Azerbaijan's relations with the Turkic world, especially with Turkiye. The relationship between Azerbaijan and Turkiye is very important. It was significant in the winning of the 2020 war and has a decisive geopolitical effect in the region. It means that the Western Powers and Russia have to take account of Turkiye when they are dealing with Azerbaijan. This is particularly important with regard to Moscow, which cannot attempt to intimidate Baku without endangering very important relations with Ankara, which have become all the more vital with the conflict in Ukraine. The expert stated that Azerbaijan's strategic importance in terms of connecting the West and the East is unequivocal. Azerbaijan occupies a significant link in the developing Eurasian chain which will bring the East, and particularly China, closer to Europe. It is also a North-South nodal point between Russia and Iran. All this makes peace and stability in the region vital for the wider world and it is in everyone's interests that economic development takes place along associated corridors and transit routes. The participation of Hungary in the informal summit of heads of state of OTS in Shusha, representing Europe, and the discussions regarding Hungary's becoming a member state of OTS in the future added special importance to the event. Patrick Walsh did not rule out highlighting Hungary's participation in the Shusha summit. He mentioned that it is gratifying that Brussels is interested in cooperating with Azerbaijan. Hungary is another independently minded country. Part of the EU but not willing to sacrifice its national interests to Brussels' whims. It is welcome that this most independently minded country joins with 2 other similar states - Turkiye and Azerbaijan - in the mutual interest of support and development, he added. However, it is significant to note that Hungary's participation in the summit was not unequivocally received by the European Union. A criticism addressed by Josep Borrell, the head of the EU's foreign policy administration, to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban for participating in the Turkic Council summit revealed the European Union's jealous attitude towards Hungary making independent decisions among Turkic-speaking countries. The New Zealand government is considering a second application for a prospecting permit to mine seabeds off the western coast of Taranaki. Officials are weighing up an application from Ngarara Exploration Limited (NEL) to mine for vanadium a metal increasingly viewed as a safer and more renewable alternative to lithium in batteries. NELs plans for the South Taranaki Bight area has aggravated a heated debate over the damage deep-sea mining inflicts on New Zealands marine ecosystems, fishing industry and local communities. NEL follows Trans-Tasman Resources (TTR), an Australian mining giant already pursuing approval to extract 50 million tonnes of iron sands just off the Taranaki coastline in a protracted, back-and-forth battle with the government in Auckland. Greenpeace joins local groups criticism of deep-sea mining in New Zealand Greenpeace has added its voice to the sharp criticism for NEL, TTR and the New Zealand governments seabed mining ambitions, which threaten to turn the seas around Aotearoa [New Zealand] into an open-cast mine, it says. In a statement, the environmental NGO said: Greenpeace has long-opposed TTRs attempts to mine 50 million tonnes of seabed in a 66 square kilometre area in the South Taranaki Bight every year for 35 years to access five million tonnes of iron ore and dump the rest back into the ocean. Greenpeace also pointed to the catastrophic consequences for marine life in the South Taranaki Bight, naming the pygmy blue whale and critically endangered Maui dolphin as particularly vulnerable to seabed mining. NELs Director Andrew Stewart formerly the CFO of TTR has been a target of much of the backlash. Campaigners accuse Stewart and NELs other top brass of exploiting New Zealands oceans, lands and indigenous groups to boost the firms topline. It adds insult to injury having mining industry CEOs like NELs Andrew Stewart appropriate Maori company names to greenwash their pollution and destruction by mystifying their intentions with Indigenous names and the values and worldviews they imply, according to Juressa Lee, campaigner at Deep Sea Mining. Its clear wannabe seabed miners are queuing up to plunder and destroy precious marine life as a result of the Luxon governments Fast Track Wrecking Bill, and the low bar it has now set. New government, new minerals strategy There has been a gradual rollback of previous Prime Minister Jacinda Arderns environmental policies under Christopher Luxon, a former business executive who said his main priority is to improve the New Zealand economy when he gained office last October. Story continues At the forefront of this shift is the proposed draft for New Zealands new Minerals Strategy, released last week. Shane Jones, Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, said the strategy will put in place actions that will lead us on an export-led growth pathway to double the sectors exports to $2 billion by 2035. Currently, New Zealands production is limited to a handful of minerals and metals. Our vast mineral reserve and the role it could play in transforming our future remains largely unexplored, Jones added. Other countries use their minerals sectors as cornerstones of their economy to support the sustainability of their regions, to increase resilience, and to boost prosperity. Jones originally launched the draft strategy for New Zealands minerals sector in May. Speaking at a community meeting in Blackball on New Zealands west coast, he said: Today, in the heart of mining country, I am telling Kiwis they are back in business. No longer will these communities with rich histories intertwined with mining be told they cannot utilise the rich mineral endowments contained in their land. "New Zealand debates second seabed mine in push to double mineral exports" 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. The New Zealand government is considering a second application for a prospecting permit to mine seabeds off the western coast of Taranaki. Officials are weighing up an application from Ngarara Exploration Limited (NEL) to mine for vanadium a metal increasingly viewed as a safer and more renewable alternative to lithium in batteries. NELs plans for the South Taranaki Bight area has aggravated a heated debate over the damage deep-sea mining inflicts on New Zealands marine ecosystems, fishing industry and local communities. NEL follows Trans-Tasman Resources (TTR), an Australian mining giant already pursuing approval to extract 50 million tonnes of iron sands just off the Taranaki coastline in a protracted, back-and-forth battle with the government in Auckland. Greenpeace joins local groups criticism of deep-sea mining in New Zealand Greenpeace has added its voice to the sharp criticism for NEL, TTR and the New Zealand governments seabed mining ambitions, which threaten to turn the seas around Aotearoa [New Zealand] into an open-cast mine, it says. In a statement, the environmental NGO said: Greenpeace has long-opposed TTRs attempts to mine 50 million tonnes of seabed in a 66 square kilometre area in the South Taranaki Bight every year for 35 years to access five million tonnes of iron ore and dump the rest back into the ocean. Greenpeace also pointed to the catastrophic consequences for marine life in the South Taranaki Bight, naming the pygmy blue whale and critically endangered Maui dolphin as particularly vulnerable to seabed mining. NELs Director Andrew Stewart formerly the CFO of TTR has been a target of much of the backlash. Campaigners accuse Stewart and NELs other top brass of exploiting New Zealands oceans, lands and indigenous groups to boost the firms topline. It adds insult to injury having mining industry CEOs like NELs Andrew Stewart appropriate Maori company names to greenwash their pollution and destruction by mystifying their intentions with Indigenous names and the values and worldviews they imply, according to Juressa Lee, campaigner at Deep Sea Mining. Its clear wannabe seabed miners are queuing up to plunder and destroy precious marine life as a result of the Luxon governments Fast Track Wrecking Bill, and the low bar it has now set. New government, new minerals strategy There has been a gradual rollback of previous Prime Minister Jacinda Arderns environmental policies under Christopher Luxon, a former business executive who said his main priority is to improve the New Zealand economy when he gained office last October. Story continues At the forefront of this shift is the proposed draft for New Zealands new Minerals Strategy, released last week. Shane Jones, Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, said the strategy will put in place actions that will lead us on an export-led growth pathway to double the sectors exports to $2 billion by 2035. Currently, New Zealands production is limited to a handful of minerals and metals. Our vast mineral reserve and the role it could play in transforming our future remains largely unexplored, Jones added. Other countries use their minerals sectors as cornerstones of their economy to support the sustainability of their regions, to increase resilience, and to boost prosperity. Jones originally launched the draft strategy for New Zealands minerals sector in May. Speaking at a community meeting in Blackball on New Zealands west coast, he said: Today, in the heart of mining country, I am telling Kiwis they are back in business. No longer will these communities with rich histories intertwined with mining be told they cannot utilise the rich mineral endowments contained in their land. "New Zealand debates second seabed mine in push to double mineral exports" was originally created and published by Energy Monitor, 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. Guangzhou Zhiyi Biotechnology (Zhiyi Biotech) has reported positive data from the Phase I clinical trial in the US assessing SK10, a heat-killed Bacteroides fragilis, intended for the treatment of chemotherapy-induced diarrhoea (CID). The double-blind, randomised, placebo-controlled, sequential dose-escalation trial was designed to assess the safety and tolerability of SK10 in healthy adult subjects. In August 2023, the company dosed the first three subjects in the trial with a total of 24 subjects. The results indicated that all dose groups of SK10 were generally safe and well-tolerated. Importantly, all treatment-emergent adverse events (TEAEs) were mild and did not increase with the dose. SK10 is said to be the first Bacteroides fragilis-based live biotherapeutic product (LBP) to receive investigational new drug application (IND) approval from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Research has demonstrated that it can mitigate 5-FU-induced injury through the mitochondrial apoptotic BCL2/BAX pathway, decrease inflammatory cytokines, and bolster mucosal barrier function. Consequently, the therapy effectively curbs the inflammatory response of intestinal epithelial cells caused by chemotherapy and the resulting diarrhoea symptoms. The safety profile of heat-killed Bacteroides fragilis is notably better in cancer patients, and it also presents improved commercialisation prospects, the company noted. CID is often a side effect of cytotoxic drugs or targeted therapy, with limited treatment options available presently. The company focuses on the research and development of LBPs based on next-generation probiotics (NGPs). Its lead drug candidate, SK08, is currently in a Phase III clinical trial for the treatment of IBS-D. Zhiyi Biotech previously secured $60m in a funding round with investments from Qingkong SinoKing Capital and SDIC Venture Capital among others. "Zhiyi Biotech reports positive Phase I results for SK10 in CID treatment" was originally created and published by Clinical Trials Arena, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Two intersections on the far north side of Colorado Springs could get traffic signals, part of a state plan to address access needs and improve safety along an approximately 10-mile stretch of Colorado 83, a Public Works Department presentation showed Monday. The City Council at its work session appeared to informally support approving an intergovernmental agreement with El Paso County and the Colorado Department of Transportation for a proposed comprehensive access control plan for Colorado 83. The access control plan focuses on 9.85 miles of the roadway between the southbound ramp to Colorado 21/Powers Boulevard and County Line Road farther north. The city has been working with the Colorado Department of Transportation on the access control plan, Colorado Springs Traffic Engineering Division Manager Todd Frisbie told the council. As El Paso County has grown there is now more traffic along the Colorado 83 corridor, engineering and design consultant Atkins wrote in an October 2021 report prepared for the state, county and city. Consultants expect traffic volume on the highway will increase between 17% and 86% by 2045. Without changes to the highway, the projected increase in traffic volumes poses the potential to increase delay, produce higher levels of congestion (and) pollution, and expose all roadway users to an increase in the number of crashes, according to the report. The access control plan defines how this portion of Colorado 83 can be accessed today and in the future, so landowners and developers know how the roadway can be accessed as they prepare development applications for county and city review, an item summary linked on Mondays City Council work session agenda said. The plan will support city, county and state planning objectives. The purpose here is really to help define expectations among landowners, jurisdictions, developers and (the Colorado Department of Transportation) on what access should look like along Highway 83, Frisbie told the council on Monday. Supplemental to the access control plan is a map showing existing roadway access configurations and what configurations will be allowed in the future. An intergovernmental agreement on which the council will formally vote at a future meeting is the agreement between the three jurisdictions to collaboratively implement the plans recommendations for Colorado 83. Featured Local Savings Four Colorado Springs intersections are included in the plan area. There are no changes identified for two of them, according to Frisbies presentation; North Gate Boulevard and Flying Horse Club Drive are both signalized intersections that allow vehicles to make every left, right and through movement. This configuration is planned to remain the same. Two other full movement intersections currently controlled by stop signs are anticipated to get signals in the future, the citys presentation showed: Old North Gate Road, and an access road on Colorado 83 that turns into a state Department of Transportation maintenance facility. This way, the intersections can be signal-controlled when warranted, Frisbie said. Other benefits of the access control plan are that it will improve traffic flow along Colorado 83, could reduce vehicle-related crashes, will efficiently space road signals and will accommodate all modes of travel, Frisbie said. If city, county and state officials fully implement the plan, it will eliminate or restrict access on the types of turns allowed at specific intersections, helping reduce the number of locations where vehicles, pedestrians or bicyclists cross paths with each other called conflict points. This improves overall safety for all travelers by reducing the opportunity for crashes, officials said in the October 2021 report. The access control plan will reduce the total number of accesses on this portion of Colorado 83 from 72 to 34, or by a little more than 50%, the document states. The plan too will create new access locations that allow for combining adjacent driveways and that better accommodate future development. Fewer vehicles turning onto or off Highway 83 will reduce congestion, according to the 2021 report. Colorado Springs and El Paso County officials must agree to the access control plan and sign the intergovernmental agreement before it is presented to the State Transportation Commission. Once the Colorado Department of Transportation signs the agreement, the access control plan goes into effect. The City Council is expected to vote on a resolution approving the intergovernmental agreement at its regular meeting July 23. By Alimat Aliyeva Following the results of the elections to the Great State Hural (Parliament), the political parties of Mongolia reached an agreement on the formation of a joint government and signed a memorandum of cooperation, Azernews reports. He recalled that the democratic parliamentary system has existed in Mongolia for over 30 years. "But many citizens were not represented in the hural, which this year increased to 126 representatives of all sectors of society. Three parliamentary parties have signed a memorandum of cooperation and will form a government that will correct the mistakes of the past 30 years," the prime minister said. The head of the Mongolian government added that he had discussed with the chairman of the Democratic Party Luvsannyamyn Gantumur and the head of the Labor National Party Togmidyn Dorzhkhand the state program "Vision 2050 - long-term development policy of Mongolia". They approved the implementation of this program. "Mongolia's development planning has been unstable since 1990. Projects in the energy sector, infrastructure and to solve the problems of the capital, which have been suspended for 30 years due to politicization, can be implemented in a short period. A new 30 years of the country's development are beginning," the Prime Minister said. A volunteer group seeking to ban the hunting of Colorado wildcats has submitted signatures to election officials to get the measure on the November ballot. The group called Cats Arent Trophies, which is behind Initiative 91, delivered 188,000 signatures to the Secretary of State on Wednesday. The state requires valid signatures from 124,238 registered voters to secure the measures placement on the November ballot. Supporters described the hunting of mountain lions and bobcats inhumane and called it commercial killing. Opponents, meanwhile, countered that its a threat not just to Colorados hunting tradition but also to wildlife management itself. Today we submit signatures to give Colorado voters an opportunity to stop the inhumane, unsporting killing of mountain lions and bobcats for their heads and their beautiful coats, said Samantha Miller, the groups campaign manager. This is commercial killing, with lion-hunting guides charging an $8,000 fee to guarantee a trophy and trappers selling bobcat pelts to China. The initiative would declare the intentional killing, wounding, pursuing or entrapping of any mountain lion, bobcat or lynx as illegal. Individuals found in violation of its provisions would face a Class 1 misdemeanor, and, if convicted, would be unable to hold or exercise a wildlife license for five years. Featured Local Savings Two or more offenses would result in a lifetime suspension. Opponents argue that decisions about managing wildlife resources should be left to wildlife experts not in the hands of fringe animal rights activists. Decisions about how best to manage our rich wildlife resources should be left to the experts at Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission not fringe animal rights activists, Bryan Jones, Colorado and Wyoming coordinator for Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, said in a statement on the Colorado Wildlife Conservation Project website. Colorado already has strong regulations in place to ensure a healthy mountain lion population, including harvest limits and hunter reporting and inspection requirements. Coloradans for Responsible Wildlife Management said it would strip away the very foundation of science-based wildlife management, and thereby deprive Colorados Wildlife Managers and the sporting community of their rights to manage, pursue, and harvest these well-regulated species. The Secretary of State has 30 days to review the petition to determine whether it contains a sufficient number of valid signatures. Rachel Gabel is a longtime agriculture writer and the assistant editor of The Fence Post Magazine. Iowa Senate Majority Whip Waylon Brown, R-St. Ansgar, announced his resignation in a press release Monday. Brown's resignation will take effect July 10, just weeks after his narrow victory in June's primary election against Republican challenger and former Mason City school board member Doug Campbell. The two candidates had conflicting platforms regarding eminent domain and the proposed CO2 pipeline that would pass through all four counties in the district, with Brown notably burying legislation while chairing the Senate Commerce Committee that would limit the ability of the state to claim the land required for the pipeline via eminent domain. Brown was endorsed by both Iowa Small Business PAC and the Iowa Association of Business and Industry. Brown did not give a reason for his resignation in the press release. "I will forever be grateful to the people of my district who entrusted me to represent them in the Iowa State Capitol. Im thankful for my wife, Julie, and our two kids, who have supported me throughout my tenure as state senator," the release stated. Brown has served in the Iowa Senate since defeating incumbent Democrat Mary Jo Wilhelm in 2016. He represents Mitchell, Worth and Cerro Gordo counties as well as portions of Floyd County. According to state law, Iowa Republicans must now call a special convention where party delegates from District 30 will select a new nominee to take Brown's place on the ballet in November. It's unclear when and where the convention will be. Campbell said that he isn't certain that he'll be selected as the nominee, but that he is picking up his campaign right where it left off. "You lose the primary, and so you're not on the ballot. And now the possibility exists, the same as before, but the process is a little different. It's all about the delegates [now]," Campbell said. In a statement Monday, Democratic candidate for District 30, Rich Lorence of Mason City, thanked Brown for his time serving in the Senate and wished him well moving forward. Lorence is still looking ahead to November. "As we move forward, I am more committed than ever to serving North Central Iowa and making our state better for everyone," he said. Brown could not be reached for comment. In the press release announcing his resignation he stated: When I took office, I said I wanted to leave things better than I found them, and I believe I accomplished that. In the past seven years, we have enacted responsible budgeting, including the elimination of the inheritance tax and taxes on retired income. We said goodbye to needless red tape and are getting Iowans into the workforce faster because of licensing reform. As Chair of the Commerce Committee, I oversaw significant energy policies, making Iowa more competitive and increasing the stability of our electrical grid. "Our rural and agricultural communities are stronger than they were seven years ago. This is critical since ag and rural industries are the lifeblood of Iowa." When Jim Kerner arrived at Park Lake to fish, he sure found fish scattered dead by the hundred across the lakes shore. Wednesday evening, Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks got word of a huge Arctic grayling fish kill, or mass death, at Park Lake near Clancy. There were so many that Kerner thought someone had dumped their fishing haul until he saw even more dead on the other side of the lake, the Great Falls man said. I counted 28, and I only walked about 30 feet, Kerner said. FWP water pollution biologist Trevor Selch, who was sent to the popular fishing spot in the days that followed, estimated anywhere from 500-800 fish may have died. He counted 200 fish alone when he walked a quarter of the bank, and between the birds picking off the remains, the final toll may have even broken 1,000. Early water testing yielded normal numbers for just about everything they typically look at, like temperature and oxygen, he said. A fish kill at this time of year is very unusual. This hasnt happened in a few decades, Selch said. But the otherwise normal numbers have yielded FWP biologists a clue, echoing back to a similar fish kill around 20 years ago, FWP fish biologist Ron Spoon said Monday. Metal might be to blame, he said. An artificial feed to the lake runs past mines, and the previous kill was related to metal picked up in the water. Although the issue was fixed at the time, its entirely possible the feed found a way to carry metal again, Spoon said. Zinc, arsenic, copper, lead and cadmium are the leading suspects, Selch said, with zinc being the most likely offender. FWP wont know for sure until water testing is finished sometime in the next few weeks. Cutthroat trout stocked by local hatcheries are unlikely to be the cause either, Spoon said, because the last stock was in 2021 plus it's not the trout being found dead. In the meantime, Selch said its too early to know how this will affect other life at the park. Only Arctic graylings about 8-10 inches big were found dead, Selch said, meaning there should be enough fish left to restore the population. That said, the lake could be restocked if later counts deem it needed. For now, there is no public advisory about Park Lake, and Selch doesnt think itll need one. What hurts fish is different than what hurts humans, Selch said. But if there is a warning put out, itll be by the U.S. Forest Service, which is in charge of the lake. The U.S. Forest Service was unable to provide comment by publication. Three people died after a plane crashed in the Nebo community, just inside Rutherford County. A plane that left Mountain City, Tennessee, headed toward Rutherford County Airport was reported overdue to McDowell County officials around 5:45 a.m. on Monday, said Will Kehler, emergency services director for McDowell County. Emergency crews were initially sent to an area off Rolands Chapel Road, just south of Lake James, where the plane was last detected. Crews were unable to find a downed aircraft there, Kehler said. Another set of coordinates took responders to an area off Brackett Town Road in Nebo near McDowell Countys border with Rutherford County, Kehler said. It is a steep and remote area, but once crews were in the wilderness area, they quickly located the downed aircraft, Kehler said. Three people died in the crash, he said. There were no survivors. The victims names have not been released, pending notification of next of kin. Officials did not say when the plane left Mountain City or when it was expected to land in Rutherford County. Officials did not identify the type of plane that crashed. Heavy fog hindered search efforts Monday morning, Kehler said. We were unable to use any type of drone or request any type of aerial search via helicopter due to the extent of the fog in the area so we had to rely on ground search and rescue teams to locate the missing aircraft, Kehler said. Sheila Rhom, who lives on Macedonia Church Loop several miles from the scene of the crash, said it was raining and foggy early Monday morning. It would be difficult (to fly), it would be very bad, Rhom said. She added, Its scary. Its very scary. The Federal Aviation Administration and National Transportation Safety Board both have been notified of the crash, Kehler said. Its a terrible tragedy, said McDowell County Sheriff Ricky Buchanan. We appreciate all the efforts between the McDowell County Emergency Services, Rutherford Emergency Services, the Rutherford County Sheriffs Office and the North Carolina State Highway Patrol. Weve all worked together on this. You hate to see this outcome but great effort on our rescue parts. Emergency responders expect to be in the area for some time, Buchanan said. Dysartsville, Glenwood and Nebo fire departments also responded to the scene. GUEST OPINION: Imagine freely surfing the Internet, and no one is able to steal your personal information. With the right strategies, this vision is possible. Immerse yourself in these eight fundamental tips for safe and secure web surfing in the year 2024. Master Digital Hygiene Practices In the rapidly developing threat environment, it is necessary to meet the requirements of digital cleanliness to safely navigate the web. This practice entails clearing the browser cache and cookies. Often, this helps to stop unauthorized tracking and can generally enhance the internet speed. It is also necessary to change the browsing patterns from time to time to reduce the chances of engaging in risky behaviours like clicking links that are in doubt or downloading files whose source cannot be ascertained. These small measures can greatly decrease ones exposure to cyber threats. Furthermore, digital hygiene does not stop with the human body but also encompasses ones devices. Make sure your desktop and portable devices are clean from malware by frequently scanning them with an anti-virus program. Organization and cleaning up your files can also make it easier for you to notice any suspicious activity. In this way, you make the browsing environment better and more secure, which ultimately contributes to more efficient work on the Internet. Explore Decentralized Browsers Decentralized browsers are another way to describe new opportunities for users who take the problem of privacy seriously. Unlike normal browsers, Decentralized browsers run on P2P networks; this implies that they do not use server systems. This structure makes it much more challenging for the bad actors to monitor your activities online or steal your information. Some of the browsers that have pioneered in ensuring that the users are given the best experience when browsing include brave and Tor browsers. Other advantages include not allowing unwanted ads and trackers to be displayed in the first place if one chooses to use decentralized browsers. Not only does this make you more anonymous, but it also makes your web surfing all the faster. If you decide to dive further into the concept of the decentralized browser, then you can take back the reigns of your privacy and surf the internet without much worry. Harness the Power of AI for Safe Browsing AI is the most prominent technology that has changed the use of the internet in the modern world, and the same applies to cybersecurity. By using AI-powered tools, one can easily identify and prevent cases of malicious websites and phishing attempts in real time. These tools work based on patterns and behaviours and give alerts of possible threats, thus adding another level of protection that changes with different types of threats in cyberspace. Moreover, AI can help in the management of your identities online by recommending better passwords, notifying you of suspicious activity, and even handling the reporting and escalation of an incident for you. With the help of AI you can predict and prevent as many threats as possible while browsing the Internet, thus, you can feel more safe and confident. Adopt Zero Trust Principles Another well-known approach to security is the zero-trust security model, which is gaining popularity among organizations. This approach works on the modality that no one, connected or disconnected to your network, should be taken at par with a default trust. However, every request for access has to be authenticated. When adopted, Zero Trust can greatly improve the security situation by greatly reducing the chances of data breaches and unauthorized access. In the case of applying Zero Trust on personal browsing, it means that one should not trust any incoming data or connection. Make it a habit to verify whether a site is actually a credible one or not, look at the validity of the attachments before opening them, and do not provide any personal details when it is unnecessary. The overall idea behind Zero Trust means that you can surf the web with more safety and more attention. Stay Informed About the Latest Cyber Threats It is crucial to be aware of current threats in the world of the internet to be able to protect oneself from them. It is almost impossible to eradicate cyber threats because new techniques are invented from time to time. This way, you can be aware of these trends and thus easily notice possible threats and risks in order to avoid them. Read cybersecurity news and blogs from professional sources so that one does not fall behind. Other forms of learning that can be proactive are also included in webinars, online courses, and community forums that are related to cybersecurity. By discussing with other people who work in the field or with regular Internet users, it is possible to receive useful tips and information on how to defend oneself. In this way, you improve the circumstances that allow you to navigate the websites with confidence and without risks. Leverage Privacy-Focused Search Engines There are seedy search engines that are very good and do not track users like DuckDuckGo and Startpage. These platforms do not track your search history or collect other information about the user. One should use a search engine that minimizes the amount of data that third parties can collect about a user. Besides, these search engines offer anonymity and sometimes more objective results because the search engines do not modify content according to the users history. It can result in a more transparent and non-prejudiced use of the websites. Through the use of privacy oriented search engines, one is able to increase his/her privacy on the internet thus have a better control of his/her information. Utilize a Reliable VPN Let me explain what a Virtual Private Network (VPN) is; it is a very useful tool for secure web browsing. A good VPN forms a secure cover on your Internet connection, and this makes it hard for hackers and other wrongdoers to tap into your line. This is especially important when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks since they are usually vulnerable to attacks. Furthermore, a VPN will also assist in keeping your anonymity as it hides your IP address, thus reducing the ability of websites and advertisers to monitor your activities on the internet. In this way, using a VPN lets you surf the internet with more anonymity and security so that your identity cannot be easily compromised. For more info about how to select the right VPN service provider, it is worth reading users experiences and specialists advice. Implement Advanced Encryption Tools Internet connection privacy and security require the use of enhanced encryption tools. Extensions such as HTTPS Everywhere guarantee that your connection to the site is secure and that no data is intercepted during the connection. Encryption tools can also be used to secure your emails, messaging apps, and cloud storage, offering full protection for your digital communication. End-to-end encryption of your online activities means that only you and the recipient of the information exchanged can understand it. Such a level of security is needed for cases of transaction and communication that require high security. The use of complex encryption tools will allow you to increase the level of security while online and surf the internet in a safer way. Following these unconventional and innovative strategies, one would be able to enhance online security and surf the internet in 2024 without a hitch. It is crucial to remain active, knowledgeable and prepared when it comes to the online environment. As businesses increasingly seek integrated solutions to manage various functions, Zoho's suite becomes even more relevant. The future trends in Zoho implementation will shape how companies utilize technology to achieve their goals. These trends are driven by advancements in AI, increased demand for customization, a focus on data security, the rise of remote work, and the integration of blockchain technology. AI and Automation One of the most significant trends in Zoho implementation is the increased use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation. Zoho has already integrated AI across its applications through its AI assistant, Zia, which helps with tasks ranging from data analysis to customer support. In the future, we can expect even more sophisticated AI tools that will automate routine tasks, provide deeper insights from data, and enhance customer interactions. AI will allow businesses to focus on strategic initiatives by reducing the time spent on mundane activities. Moreover, the continuous learning capabilities of AI will ensure that the solutions become smarter and more effective over time. Customization and Flexibility As businesses become more diverse and their needs more complex, the demand for customization and flexibility in software solutions will grow, which makes finding a Zoho implementation partner an important task. Zoho is already known for its highly customizable applications, allowing businesses to tailor the software to their specific requirements. Future trends will see an even greater emphasis on personalization, with Zoho offering more tools and options for customization. This will include advanced workflow automation, custom applications built using Zoho Creator, and more flexible integrations with third-party applications. Businesses will be able to create a seamless, integrated ecosystem that caters precisely to their needs, enhancing efficiency and productivity. Enhanced Data Security With the increasing volume of data being generated and shared, data security has become a paramount concern for businesses. Zoho has always prioritized security, but future trends will see even more robust measures being implemented. This will include advanced encryption techniques, stricter access controls, and enhanced compliance with global data protection regulations. Zoho will also invest in educating its users about best practices for data security, helping businesses to safeguard their sensitive information. As cyber threats continue to evolve, Zoho's proactive approach to security will be crucial in maintaining the trust of its users. Support for Remote Work The rise of remote work, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, has fundamentally changed the way businesses operate. Zoho has been at the forefront of supporting remote work with tools like Zoho Remotely, which offers a suite of applications designed for remote collaboration and productivity. Moving forward, Zoho will continue to innovate in this area, offering enhanced features for remote teams. This will include improved communication tools, better project management capabilities, and more robust virtual collaboration platforms. By providing the tools needed to work effectively from anywhere, Zoho will help businesses adapt to the new normal of remote and hybrid work environments. Integration of Blockchain Technology Blockchain technology is another trend that will significantly impact the future of Zoho implementation. While still in its early stages, blockchain has the potential to revolutionize various business processes by providing enhanced transparency, security, and efficiency. Zoho is exploring ways to integrate blockchain into its applications, which could lead to more secure transactions, improved supply chain management, and better compliance tracking. For example, using blockchain for secure document management and verification could enhance trust and reduce fraud. As this technology matures, we can expect to see more innovative uses of blockchain within the Zoho ecosystem. Emphasis on User Experience Another emerging trend in Zoho implementation is the heightened emphasis on user experience (UX). As businesses increasingly recognize the importance of seamless and intuitive software interactions, Zoho is prioritizing UX enhancements across its suite of applications. This focus involves not only refining the design and interface of existing tools but also incorporating user feedback to develop more user-friendly features. Enhanced UX will lead to higher adoption rates, reduced training times, and increased overall satisfaction among users. By making its applications more accessible and enjoyable to use, Zoho aims to empower businesses to achieve greater productivity and foster a more engaged and efficient workforce. Final Thoughts The future of Zoho implementation is poised to be exciting and transformative, driven by advancements in AI, a greater focus on customization, enhanced data security, support for remote work, and the integration of blockchain technology. These trends will enable businesses to leverage Zoho's comprehensive suite of applications to drive growth, efficiency, and innovation. By staying ahead of these trends and continuously evolving its offerings, Zoho will remain a key player in the business software landscape, helping companies navigate the challenges and opportunities of the digital age. COMPANY NEWS: MongoDB, Inc. (NASDAQ: MDB) today announced that Bendigo and Adelaide Bank (ASX: BEN) has partnered with MongoDB to modernize its core banking technology with MongoDB Atlas as the keystone of an ambitious application modernization initiative. During the initiative, the bank: Reduced the development time required to migrate a core banking application off of a legacy relational database to MongoDB Atlas by up to 90%. Migrated onto MongoDB Atlas at one-tenth of the cost of a traditional legacy-to-cloud migration. Automated repetitive developer tasks with new AI tooling in order to accelerate developers pace of innovation. For example, AI-powered automations reduced time spent running application test cases from over 80 hours to just five minutes. In less than three months, the bank modernised its Agent Delivery System, a legacy retail banking application, on MongoDB Atlas with the help of MongoDB Relational Migrator and generative AI-assisted modernization tools, notes MongoDB. The Agent Delivery System is a retail teller application for the banks agent branches, and is used in communities where digital banking functionality is made available from non-bank businesses, like newsagents or pharmacies. Prior to partnering with MongoDB, the bank ran the system on a legacy relational database that lacked the flexibility to easily evolve to reflect the complex data mapping requirements that todays modern applications demand. Because of these database-related challenges, the banks analysts and developers were committing significant effort to complex database management tasks in order to keep the application running. As a technological leader in the Australian financial services market, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank was eager to enable its developers to focus on more meaningful innovation so the bank could remain agile in a fast-moving market. To do so, the bank decided to modernise its Agent Delivery System to make it easier for its developers to work with data and create innovative, accessible banking services. Specifically, the bank sought to adopt a new microservices architecture to help integrate its data and a robust API ecosystema series of connective mechanisms that enable easy data exchangeto facilitate fast, easy data flow between the banks applications, third parties, and consumers. The bank chose MongoDB Atlas as the underlying platform for its tech stack because of the high levels of security and reliability offered by MongoDB Atlas, its ability to manage the banks real-time, operational data on a unified platform, and because of the intuitive developer experience offered by MongoDBs document model, which maps to how developers think and code, enabling them to build applications faster. To migrate the Agent Delivery System to MongoDB Atlas, the bank deployed MongoDB Relational Migrator a tool that helps customers eliminate barriers like time, cost, and risk frequently associated with cloud migrationsto expedite codebase analysis, service decomposition, and application refactoring, ensuring a secure and efficient migration. MongoDB Professional Services worked with Bendigo and Adelaide Bank to create customisable generative AI tooling, including scripts and prompts tailored for the banks unique tech stack, which accelerated the modernization process by automating integration testing and code generation for seamless deployment of the new Agent Delivery Systems microservices architecture. Legacy migrations can otherwise be long, expensive processes, but these solutions enabled Bendigo and Adelaide Bank to complete the migration with 90 percent less human effort and at one-tenth of the cost of a traditional legacy migration. With this migration, Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has eliminated volumes of routine code writing and programming work with automated generative AI tooling, which has empowered the banks developers to innovate with increased agility and more quickly deploy highly-available and performant application features that enhance end-user experiences. This migration was an enormous step forward in our transformation journey and a perfect marriage of people smarts and tech smarts. Its an investment in our customers, said Andrew Cresp, Chief Information Officer at Bendigo and Adelaide Bank. Now, our lean, highly skilled team can ask MongoDB Atlas and the generative AI tooling MongoDBs Professional Services team built for us to do really smart things, leaving our developers free to focus on other ways they can deliver great outcomes for our customers. Weve started by modernizing our most critical applications, and next, we intend to tackle a number of other outdated legacy applications across the bank, putting us on track to meet our target of 50 percent of our critical workloads in the cloud by the end of the year. Its important that MongoDB empowers its customers to modernize with applications that are not just future ready, but future-defining. This is paramount for financial institutions, who need to transform quickly and take advantage of advancements like generative AI to best serve their customers, said Simon Eid, Senior Vice President, APAC at MongoDB. Applying the power of AI to Bendigo and Adelaide Banks migration process was game-changing. MongoDB looks forward to helping more customers quickly and easily ditch the rigid legacy technology that is slowing them down to achieve all the benefits a modern technology stack can bring to their businesses. About MongoDB Atlas MongoDB Atlas is the leading multi-cloud developer data platform that accelerates and simplifies building modern applications with a highly flexible, performant, and globally distributed operational database at its core. By providing an integrated set of data and application services in a unified environment, MongoDB Atlas enables development teams to quickly build with the security, performance, and scale modern applications require. Millions of developers and tens of thousands of customers across industriesincluding Cisco, GE Healthcare, Intuit, Toyota Financial Services, and Verizonrely on MongoDB Atlas every day to innovate more quickly, efficiently, and cost-effectively for virtually every use case across the enterprise. To get started with MongoDB Atlas, visit mongodb.com/atlas. About MongoDB Headquartered in New York, MongoDB's mission is to empower innovators to create, transform, and disrupt industries by unleashing the power of software and data. Built by developers, for developers, MongoDBs developer data platform is a database with an integrated set of related services that allow development teams to address the growing requirements for today's wide variety of modern applications, all in a unified and consistent user experience. MongoDB has tens of thousands of customers in over 100 countries. The MongoDB database platform has been downloaded hundreds of millions of times since 2007, and there have been millions of builders trained through MongoDB University courses. To learn more, visit mongodb.com. About Bendigo and Adelaide Bank Bendigo and Adelaide Bank is Australias better big bank, with more than 7,000 staff helping our 2.5 million customers to achieve their financial goals. Bendigo and Adelaide Banks vision is to be Australias bank of choice, by feeding into the prosperity of customers and their communities. Gateway has been the big foot in the door that has helped me get into this industry. Without them, I dont know what would have taken place. Kris Dunker, Gateway Technical College graduate Kris Dunkers lifelong dream was to be in the military. Dunker enrolled at the Kenosha Military Academy of Indian Trail High School to help reach that dream. All was going well for Dunker through much of high school the course was set to enlist in the Air Force after graduation. That was until the decision was made to not enlist in the military. What to do now? A high school class combined with a closer look at area colleges helped Dunker shift gears into a new career path and enroll at Gateway Technical College. The fire Dunker had for the military became the fire that sparked an interest in welding and, just a year and a half after high school, the Indian Trail graduate earned a Gateway Welding technical diploma and is employed at a local business. Gateway has been the big foot in the door that has helped me get into this industry, said Dunker. Without them, I dont know what would have taken place. Im 5-foot-3 and heading into the welding industry. No one would have accepted me without that Gateway degree but Gateway has such a great reputation for its quality training that companies considered me. Dunker initially decided college was needed, but also knew the four-year college route wasnt the best option for him. Dunker had taken some Gateway welding classes in high school, liked them and thought that would be the path to continue at the college. I was in my last semester of high school, and they opened up a welding class, said Dunker. I thought, This is a class where I can play with fire why not? I knew I had to go to college, so I thought, Gateway is 10 minutes away. They have some good courses there, so lets go and see what I can do. Dunker works as a repair welder and says the freedom experienced at Gateway to choose a career and classes is mirrored at the workplace. Gateway was my first introduction to being on my own, to being independent, Dunker said. Going there is the first big decision I made in my life. I said to myself, I have to do something with my life. Why not start at Gateway? My journey at Gateway has given me some great guidelines on how I should do things in my career and my life. I gained a great sense of responsibility at the college. Dunker says Gateways appeal is its flexibility and ability to offer students the opportunity to work and take classes at their own pace. I had no problems at all getting the classes I needed. They were very flexible and I loved that. The overall experience was very easy going, said Dunker. While the instructors allowed students to work at their own pace, they were also quick to help if anyone was struggling with a skill or assignment. They worked with you they wanted you to be good at welding, not just going through the motions, said Dunker. They are all very student-focused about quality rather than just getting certificates. It was a great community, very homey and nice to be in. It was that teaching and the skills gained that gave Dunker a solid foundation and the confidence to do well in the workplace now. I didnt want a conventional job, just sitting in a chair. That seems so mundane to me. My days now vary all the time. I like what Im doing, said Dunker. For more information about Gateway Technical College, please visit gtc.edu. Open house events Looking for a career like Kris? Or maybe to learn some new skills that will help you gain more pay and move up the ladder at your current job? Look no further! Gateway will hold a series of open house events for visitors to explore academic programs, see the training labs and have all their questions answered. All events will be held from 4 to 7 p.m. July 16 Kenosha Campus, 3520 30th Ave., Student Commons Kenosha Campus, 3520 30th Ave., Student Commons July 17 Racine Campus, 1001 S. Main St., SC Johnson Student Life Center Racine Campus, 1001 S. Main St., SC Johnson Student Life Center July 18 Elkhorn Campus, 400 County Road H, Student Commons More information: gtc.edu/openhouse This content was produced by Brand Ave. Studios. The news and editorial departments had no role in its creation or display. Brand Ave. Studios connects advertisers with a targeted audience through compelling content programs, from concept to production and distribution. For more information contact sales@brandavestudios.com. 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 Convenient mobile payments bring better travel experience for foreigners Xinhua) 08:22, July 08, 2024 A staff member provides foreign tourists with guide materials about payment methods in north China's Tianjin Municipality on April 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue) BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- For Jamie and Liliana, a couple who traveled to the southwest Chinese city of Chengdu from Australia, using Alipay for payment was an experience as unique as strolling through the historic Kuanzhai Alley. "The payment went through so quickly. It's very convenient," said Liliana, who usually pays through cash or with credit cards when traveling. Liliana is among many foreign visitors who have benefited from China's commitment to facilitating mobile payments for foreigners. Years of rapid growth have made China a front-runner in mobile payment. The penetration rate for mobile payments in the country reached 86 percent, the highest in the world, by the end of 2023. However, the widespread use of mobile payment also poses hurdles for first-time visitors to China. Foreign visitors relying on bank cards and cash may encounter difficulties during payment processes, as street vendors or small-scale service providers often prefer mobile payment to cash or international credit cards. Taking note of this phenomenon, the Chinese government has rolled out multiple measures to help foreigners enjoy a hassle-free payment environment in China akin to that enjoyed by locals. Thanks to simplified mobile payments for foreigners, visitors like Liliana can now easily bind overseas bank cards with Alipay or Tenpay, two major payment apps in China. In the first half of the year, the number of foreign card transactions through mobile payment platforms increased 6.65 times from a year ago to nearly 37.4 million, and the total transaction volume increased 8.03 times to 5.42 billion yuan (about 760.29 million U.S. dollars), according to data from Chinese online payment clearing house NetsUnion Clearing Corporation. Major payment platforms have been guided by China's central bank to raise the single transaction limit for overseas travelers using mobile payments from 1,000 dollars to 5,000 dollars and increase the annual cumulative transaction limit from 10,000 dollars to 50,000 dollars. Today, more and more foreign visitors are relishing the experience of navigating China on a mobile phone. A recent survey conducted by Beijing Foreign Studies University on 714 foreign tourists from 103 countries found that 86 percent of the respondents who have visited China believe that the payment experience has become more convenient. Most of them have used mobile payment. From the commercial district near the Jiefang Monument in the "mountain city" of Chongqing to the bustling Chunxi Road in Chengdu, Isaac used his phone to pay for everything he needed, such as food, drinks, accommodation and tickets. The university student from Singapore said he was surprised to be able to use digital wallets from Singapore to pay for tickets for high-speed trains and subways in China. Since the beginning of the year, CHAGEE, a famous China-chic tea beverage brand, has received many more foreign customers, said Chen Xiaoming, general manager of the brand's Sichuan subsidiary. Many foreign customers are happy to learn they can use digital wallets from their home countries. NetsUnion Clearing Corporation's data showed that more than 28.75 million transactions were made using foreign digital wallets in the first half of the year, amounting to 5.32 billion yuan. Alipay currently accepts 12 foreign digital wallets from nine countries and regions, including Singapore, Thailand and the Republic of Korea. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) American company Boeing will admit to criminal charges of wrongdoing linked to two deadly passenger jet crashes. The aerospace manufacturer will also pay a fine of $243.6 million. The U.S. Department of Justice said late Sunday that the company had violated an agreement that had protected it from legal action for three years. The two crashes of Boeing 737 MAX airliners killed 346 people in a five-month period from 2018 to 2019. Government lawyers gave Boeing the choice of entering a guilty plea and paying the fine or facing a trial. If the trial had taken place, Boeing would have faced felony charges of criminal conspiracy to defraud the United States. The government, which approved the airplane and the pilot training required for it, charged Boeing with lying. A federal judge still must approve the deal before it can go into effect. In addition to the plea and fine, the government will name an independent monitor to supervise Boeings safety and quality methods for three years. The company must also spend at least $455 million on compliance and safety programs. The deal only covers the wrongdoing by Boeing before the crashes. The Justice Department said it does not protect Boeing from recent dangerous incidents in which, for example, a panel of a plane came off during an Alaska Airlines flight in January. The deal only affects the company and not current or former Boeing officials. The company confirmed it had reached a deal with the government but had no other comment. The complete written agreement is expected to be presented to the federal court by July 19. Families of some of the people who died on the flights criticized the deal. Paul Cassell is a lawyer for some of the families. He said, This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died. A group of the families is asking the government to seek a fine of nearly $25 billion. The companys guilty plea will be entered in a U.S. District Court in the southwestern state of Texas. Judge Reed OConnor has called Boeings behavior egregious criminal conduct. Two crashes The case involves two crashes. One took place in Indonesia and the other in Ethiopia. Investigators said the pilots in the Lion Air crash did not know about flight-control software that would affect control of the airplane. The pilots of the Ethiopian Airlines crash knew about the software but were still unable to control the plane. The software is called the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System. Boeing designed it to cause the airplanes nose to point down under a certain set of flight conditions. The software aimed to save money by reducing the amount of training time pilots needed to use the system. The software is used in 737 MAX airplanes and did not exist on earlier aircraft. The Justice Department charged Boeing in 2021 with lying to Federal Aviation Administration officials about the software. Under a deal at the time, the government did not bring charges if the company paid a $2.5 billion settlement, which included a fine of $243.6 million. Boeing was also required to meet the requirements of anti-fraud laws for three years. Boeing blamed two low-level employees for misleading government officials. The government charged a former company official. In 2022, a jury found a former Boeing chief technical pilot not guilty in connection with the companys wrongdoing. After the crashes, the government grounded or halted all flights of the 737 MAX airplanes involved for about 20 months. Boeing is based in Arlington, Virginia, although the 737 MAX aircraft are built in the state of Washington. Im Mario Ritter, Jr. David Koenig and Alanna Durkin Richer reported this story for the Associated Press. Mario Ritter, Jr. adapted this report for VOA Learning English with additional reporting from Reuters sources. ____________________________________________ Words in This Story plea n. a statement of innocence or guilt presented to a court of law felony n. a serious crime conspiracy n. a secret plan by two or more people to do something harmful or illegal monitor n. a person who observes an activity, often to make sure rules or laws are not broken egregious adj. easily seen or noticed; very bad conduct n. behavior We want to hear from you. Our comment policy is here. Scientists studying the spread of bird flu in the United States say they worry about a lack of data in tracking the virus, called Type A H5N1. In recent months, the disease has spread to 129 groups of cows across 12 states. Experts have identified the disease in other mammals, as well, from alpacas to house cats. The scientists are concerned about rising cases among cows. They say the increase probably means the virus has been changing. They say such changes could make it easier for the virus to spread from animals to humans. Three people in the U.S. have tested positive for H5N1 bird flu since late March after being in close contact with cows. Scott Hensley is a professor of microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania. He said the threat of a pandemic is currently low but could rise quickly. Health officials say the earlier they know about cases of human infection, the sooner they can take steps to reduce its spread. The U.S. government tests cows for the virus. However, those tests are currently limited to cows crossing state borders. Government health officials and pandemic flu experts told Reuters news agency there is very little testing of people who come into contact with sick cattle. Human and animal health agencies sometimes differ in the ways they deal with the flu. Experts say these differences could make it harder to respond quickly to an outbreak. Still, a U.S. Department of Agriculture spokesperson said the agency is working around the clock with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC) in a whole-of-government response". The spokesperson added that research shows "Americas food supply remains safe, sick cows generally recover after a few weeks, and the risk to human health remains low. Some pandemics, including COVID-19, arrive with little warning. In the last flu pandemic, caused by H1N1 in 2009, the virus had first spread among animals for several years, Hensley said. But he added that more tracking of the virus would have helped health officials prepare. The CDC estimates that between about 150,000 and half a million people died worldwide during the 2009 pandemic. The World Health Organization (WHO) says there is no evidence of H5N1 spreading from human to human. For that reason, the WHO says the risk to humans is currently low. Wenqing Zhang is the head of the WHOs Global Influenza Preparedness agency. She said health organizations have ways to launch large production of tests, treatments and vaccines if needed. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is a non-profit based in Oslo, Norway. The organization works to develop vaccines and other ways to fight against pandemics. CEPI aims to create a collection of vaccines for viruses that could cause pandemics. This would help drugmakers start large production and deliver the medicine where necessary within 100 days of an outbreak. Some countries are taking steps to protect people against H5N1. The U.S. and Europe are gathering pre-pandemic flu vaccine that could be used for high-risk groups, including farm or lab workers. Zhang, of the WHO, said expanding vaccines to more people is complex. Makers of pandemic flu vaccines make seasonal flu shots and cannot produce both at once, she said. Most flu vaccines are made using virus grown in eggs. That means it could take up to six months to produce pandemic shots. However, mRNA vaccines can be produced more quickly. On July 2, the U.S. government gave $176 million to drug-maker Moderna to finish development and testing of their mRNA vaccine against H5N1. Experts also say there is a need to balance quick action against reacting too strongly to virus threats. Wendy Barcla is a virologist at Imperial College London. She also advises the UK Health Security Agency on bird flu. She said health officials want to give warnings "without saying the world is about to end." Im Andrew Smith. And Im Jill Robbins. Julie Steenhuysen and Jenifer Rigby reported this story for Reuters. Andrew Smith adapted it for VOA Learning English. Well-groomed hair is one of the main components of a good appearance. However, in the modern rhythm of life, you don't always have the desire and opportunity to visit a beauty salon. ADVERTISIMENT Fortunately, you can trim the ends and refresh your hair at home. The Patry Jordan English You Tube channel explains how to do it accurately. Regular hair trimming helps to get rid of split ends, maintain healthy hair, and give it a more well-groomed look. However, you don't have to go to the hairdresser every time to trim a centimeter of hair and waste your time and money. You can easily make a beautiful even or semicircular cut yourself. Preparation Before you cut your hair, you need to wet it a little. This will smooth out any creases, making it more manageable and easier to cut. But remember that wet hair stretches in length. As a result, when it dries, it will appear shorter, so always remove an inch less than you originally planned. Also, buy high-quality and sharp scissors that will not damage the hair and allow you to make an even cut. ADVERTISIMENT Trimming the ends If you want to trim the ends but keep the length of your hair as long as possible, first comb and moisturize your hair well. Then make a low ponytail and secure it with elastic bands along the entire length. The last elastic should be almost at the very tip of the hair. Then flip the ponytail forward so that the hair is not twisted and make a straight cut. Semicircular cut If you want your hair to have a soft semicircle shape at the back instead of a straight cut, then first divide it exactly in half. Then flip it forward and tie it with a rubber band under the chin as shown in the photo. ADVERTISIMENT After you make a straight cut under the elastic and flip your hair back, it will have a smooth semicircular shape. Smooth cut If you want a perfectly straight cut, divide your hair in half in the middle of your head. Then flip it forward, pinch it with your fingers like a clip, and move your hand to the outer lower diagonal, towards your shoulder. Make sure that no hairs slip out of your hands. Finally, make a diagonal cut straight with your fingers. ADVERTISIMENT Then repeat the same on the other side. Subscribe to the OBOZ.UA channels in Telegram and Viber to keep up with the latest events. Prominent activist Joshua Wong asked for a lesser sentence in court Friday after he earlier pleaded guilty in Hong Kongs biggest national security case. Wong was one of 47 activists charged in 2021 under the national security law with conspiracy to commit subversion for their involvement in an unofficial primary. The activists were accused of attempting to paralyze Hong Kongs government and topple the citys leader by aiming to win a legislative majority and using it to block city budgets indiscriminately. Wong and 44 others admitted their liability or were convicted by the court. They could be sentenced to life in prison, though those who pleaded guilty have a better chance of receiving shorter sentences. Wong waved at the public gallery after he walked into the courtroom. Former Democratic Party chair Wu Chi-wai, former pro-democracy lawmaker Jeremy Tam and activist Tam Tak-chi were among the five other activists who also appeared in court. Wongs lawyer Marco Li said his client should be considered an active participant because he neither organized nor assisted in the unofficial primary. The security law calls for active participants to face a jail term of between three to 10 years. Li said Wong hoped that he could part with his past history and would be able to reform himself after serving his sentence. He suggested the judges offer his client a one-third reduction of sentence given his guilty plea. Wong first became a household name in Hong Kong as a teenager in 2012 for leading protests against the implementation of national education in the citys schools. In 2014, he rose to fame as one of the student leaders in the citys Occupy Movement, during which demonstrators occupied streets for 79 days and brought traffic in some areas to a standstill, demanding direct elections for Hong Kongs leader. In the 2019, Wong helped drum up overseas support for the protests. His activism resulted in Beijing calling him as an advocate of Hong Kong independence who had begged for interference from foreign forces. When the security law was enacted on June 30, 2020, Demosisto, a political party he co-founded, was disbanded. The mitigation hearings for the 45 convicted defendants are expected to continue until early August and sentencing will come at a later date. The national security law authorizes a range of sentences depending on the seriousness of the offense and the defendants role in it, going from under three years for the least serious to 10 years to life in prison for people convicted of grave offenses. Critics said the case illustrated how the security law is being used against the citys democracy activists. But both the Hong Kong and Beijing governments maintain that it restored stability following the 2019 protests. KANIS LEUNG, HONG KONG, MDT/AP Chinas Ministry of Public Security has launched a major crackdown on money exchange gangs operating in Macau, targeting illegal foreign exchange activities linked to a surge in fraud, robbery and kidnapping. The ministry said the move is to curb the arrogance of criminals and disrupt the entire illicit network. According to the ministry, the money exchange gangs refer to groups in Macau illegally providing large-scale cash exchange services and loan sharking to gamblers. In recent years, the ministry has seen a significant increase in the number of these groups organizing mainland Chinese to illegally engage in foreign exchange trading in Macau. The crackdown has already yielded results, with authorities across China reporting a series of successful operations. In Jilin, police cracked a case involving RMB10 million in illegal exchange activities, while in Jiangxi, over 30 people were arrested for selling illegal entry and exit documents to facilitate Macau trips for illicit currency trading. Guangdong police, meanwhile, eliminated three fraud gangs using practice banknotes (non-genuine banknotes) for exchange, detected five illegal exchange cases, and busted six underground money laundering operations, arresting 101 suspects and seizing RMB1.47 billion. These criminal organizations are reportedly overseen by hidden financers, and the transfer of Hong Kong currency and renminbi is carried out through clandestine financial institutions in the nearby city of Zhuhai. It is estimated that these illicit activities have yielded yearly earnings exceeding HKD1.5 billion. Sit Chong Meng, Judiciary Police (PJ) director, has acknowledged the strong support of the ministry. He said public security authorities across mainland China are comprehensively cracking down on related black and grey industries and have already achieved significant results. In recent months, there has been a drop in the number of illegal crimes involving money exchange gangs, he said. The (PJ) will actively cooperate with the mainland public security authorities in special operations to rectify the illegal activities of money changers at the source. The crackdown comes as Seaport Research Partners analyst Vitaly Unmasky, warned of the potential negative impact on Macaus gaming industry, with the disruption of unofficial currency exchange channels potentially leading to a slowdown in mainland Chinese travel to the gambling hub. However, the authorities appear determined to maintain a strict and high-pressure campaign against the money exchange gangs, vowing to take further measures to eliminate the problem at its source. Victoria Chan Annie the Musical is coming to the Macau Cultural Centres Grand Auditorium for twelve shows from Aug. 2 to Aug. 14. This optimistic celebration of love and the power of family is part of The 1st Macau International Childrens Arts Festival. The musical, featuring memorable tunes like Tomorrow and Its the Hard Knock Life, tells the uplifting story of brave orphan Annie as she escapes the clutches of the evil Miss Hannigan and finds a new family with billionaire Oliver Warbucks. The original Broadway production won seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical. Produced by Crossroads Live North America and Broadway Asia, this touring production is making its way around the world. Related The Labour Party has won Britains general election, bringing a new party to power for the first time in 14 years. But Labour leader Keir Starmer didnt actually become prime minister until a carefully choreographed ceremony on Friday during which King Charles III formally asked him to form a new government. Its a moment that embodies the fact that, technically at least, the right to govern in the United Kingdom is still derived from royal authority, centuries after real political power was transferred to elected members of Parliament. The process is swift, if somewhat brutal for departing prime ministers, like Rishi Sunak. Heres how ceremonial events unfold after an election. HISTORY MEETS THE MODERN WORLD While Britain is a constitutional monarchy where the kings power is strictly limited by law and tradition, much of what happens here has echoes of the past. In this case, the process harkens back to a time when the king exercised supreme power and chose his preeminent minister the prime minister to run his government. Today, the prime minister is the leader the party that holds a majority in the House of Commons, but technically he or she must still be offered the post by the monarch, said Anna Whitelock, professor of history of the monarchy at Londons City University. It reflects our historic past and it reflects the fact that we do have a constitutional monarchy, a parliamentary democracy, and the prime minister and the monarch therefore work hand in glove, she said. Both of them have a key role in the Constitution. And we see that enacted, on the day where a prime minister formally takes up his position. WHAT HAPPENS AT THE PALACE? First, the outgoing prime minister Sunak, in this case goes to Buckingham Palace to offer his resignation to the king. Then the incoming one Starmer arrives for his first audience with Charles. Theres a tiny window where between the exiting prime minister, and officially the appointment of the new one, where technically power resides for those few minutes with the monarch, Whitelock said. So theres a brief moment where theres effectively a kind of vacuum in terms of parliamentary democracy. But, of course, straight away there is that moment where the new prime minister is appointed. That occurs when the prime minister-to-be sweeps into the palace for a ceremony known as the Kissing of Hands, though no kissing actually occurs. After the king asks the new prime minister to form a government, he bows and shakes Charles hand. A photo is snapped to record the moment power is transferred. Though theres no record of what is said between monarch and prime minister, dramatic activity swirls outside the palace gates. News helicopters followed Starmers and Sunaks cars to the palace. Commentators breathlessly record their progress and speculate about whats being said behind closed doors. Traditionally, the new prime minister then leaves the palace in a prime ministerial car and returns to Downing Street to make a statement, receiving the applause of staff members as he enters the famous black door of No. 10 and begins the business of government. WHAT ABOUT SUNAK? In Britain, the verdict of the voters is delivered swiftly. After suffering a brutal defeat at the polls, Sunak was forced to vacate the prime ministers official residence before Starmers arrival just a few hours later. Sunak was driven to the palace in a chauffeur-driven ministerial car. But after tendering his resignation, he left in a private vehicle. The transition is so rapid that the moving van for the exiting leader is usually somewhere near the back door of Downing Street as the new leader takes his bow out front. Why does the ceremony matter? The whole royal choreography shows, if nothing else, that the monarchy remains a symbol of stability and continuity at a time when deep divisions in society are driving angry political debate. The king, who stands above the political fray, nonetheless runs the show albeit ceremonially and will continue to do so even after this prime minister is gone. Everyone will say, Well, this is all the ceremonial bit, but its a really important part of the fact that governments can change in the U.K., and we dont do riots, said George Gross, a royal expert at Kings College London. Maybe that didnt need to be said before, but in the context of the current political world and geopolitics, I think that is really healthy. In her 70-year reign, Queen Elizabeth II was served by 15 prime ministers. Charles, who has been on the throne for less than two years, is now greeting his third. This is the summit of power, Gross said. Ultimately the monarchy is the continuity and prime ministers come and go. WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? The king holds weekly meetings with the prime minister to discuss government matters. While the monarch is politically neutral, he still has right to advise and warn the prime minister if he believes its necessary. These meetings are private and the matters discussed remain confidential. The king will return to the public stage later this month for his next big royal event: the state opening of Parliament. Traditionally, the monarch arrives in a horse-drawn carriage, sits on the Sovereigns Throne in the House of Lords and wears the Imperial State Crown. Then, during a joint meeting of House of Lords and the House of Commons, he will deliver a speech written for him by the incoming government to lay out its legislative program. Its a moment of pageantry, true. But it typifies the role of the monarchy in modern Britain. DANICA KIRKA, LONDON, MDT/AP JIM GOMEZ, MANILA, Philippines A former Philippine opposition senator accused ex-President Rodrigo Duterte of plundering state coffers in a criminal complaint filed Friday, alleging that he conspired with an aide to award government infrastructure contracts worth millions of dollars to cronies. Filed with the Department of Justice in Manila, the accusation adds to the former presidents legal worries, which include an investigation by the International Criminal Court into allegations of crimes against humanity over the widespread killings of suspects during Dutertes crackdown on illegal drugs. Former Sen. Antonio Trillanes IV said two construction companies, owned by the father and brother of longtime Duterte aide and now Sen. Christopher Lawrence Go, received more than 100 government construction contracts worth at least 6.6 billion pesos ($114 million) from 2007 to 2018 in the southern city of Davao, while Duterte was mayor and vice mayor and after he became president in 2016. Neither company had the resources or manpower to handle large-scale infrastructure construction, Trillanes said. Go said he has not seen the complaint but denied the allegations against him and Duterte. What I can assure everyone is I have not benefitted, and my family has not benefitted from my being in government, Go said in a statement to reporters. Even if you ask around, my relatives could not approach me even my own father and half-brother to get help in getting any project or government contract. Duterte did not immediately comment, but he has previously denied any wrongdoing in office. Trillanes accused Duterte, Go and the relatives who owned the two companies of plunder. Under Philippine law, the crime of plunder is committed when a government official acquires ill-gotten wealth of 50 million pesos ($862,000) or more from government funds through corrupt acts in combination with family or associates. Its punishable by life in prison. The government can also seize illegally acquired wealth or properties after a final conviction. Go, in conspiracy with Mr. Duterte, used his position, authority and influence to corner billions worth of government projects in favor of his father and brother, thus, unduly enriching himself and the members of his immediate family, Trillanes said. Now is the perfect time to make them accountable. He added, without elaborating, that the former president would face more lawsuits in the future. Trillanes, an anti-corruption advocate who served as senator from 2007 to 2019, was one of Dutertes most vocal critics. Trillanes also initiated a complaint against Duterte over the widespread killings under the former presidents deadly campaign against illegal drugs that sparked a still-ongoing investigation by the International Criminal Court. Government prosecutors will conduct their own investigation before deciding whether to indict Duterte and the others accused in a process that could take months or years. Duterte, 79, was a longtime mayor and vice mayor of Davao before rising to the presidency on a promise to rapidly rid his poverty-plagued Southeast Asian country of corruption and illegal drugs both of which hes acknowledged failing to accomplish. One of Asias most unorthodox recent leaders, Dutertes six-year presidency was marked by expletives-laced outbursts and high-profile efforts to nurture cozy ties with Chinese President Xi Jingping and Russian leader Vladimir Putin while openly lambasting U.S. and European leaders. Duterte, a former government prosecutor and legislator, launched police-enforced crackdowns against illegal drugs when he served as mayor and vice mayor to his daughter, Sara Duterte, in Davao city, and later as president. Those campaigns killed more than 6,000 mostly minor suspects. The campaign was unprecedented in its scale and lethality in recent Philippine history and drew alarm worldwide. Duterte and his top police officials denied authorizing extra-judicial killings under the campaigns, but he openly threatened drug traffickers with death and encouraged policemen to shoot drug suspects if they violently resisted arrest. JIM GOMEZ, MANILA, Philippines, MDT/AP At least 10 citizens have fallen victim to an online part-time job scam this month, resulting in the theft of their MPay accounts and a cumulative loss of nearly 140,000 patacas, according to the Judiciary Police. The Judiciary Police has issued a warning about the growing trend of online part-time job scams that involve the theft of MPay accounts. The scam typically begins with an advertisement on social platforms, promising safe and legal part-time work without requiring advance payments. The scam operates by sending out fraudulent job postings on social media platforms, enticing applicants to complete Like Task missions. Victims are instructed to bind their MPay account. During this process, the victim must enter their MPay account number, login password and transaction password. However, once the information is provided, victims find themselves unable to log into their MPay accounts, and the scammer obtains the victims MPay account information through a phishing website and steals the account, transferring the funds away. NS Mainland authorities have recovered RMB9.23 million in fraudulent funds from Macau, according to the Judiciary Police (PJ). As part of a wider crackdown on cross-border fraud and money laundering, the police froze 277 bank accounts linked to 45 fraud cases in Macau. The PJ has returned the seized funds to the victims. This announcement comes amid a surge in fraud cases in Macau. From January to May, the police have opened 1,035 fraud cases, marking a 43% increase compared to the same period last year. During this time, the police arrested 122 suspected members of fraud syndicates. To combat the rise in fraud, the police have implemented measures such as notifying the banking sector of 249 suspicious bank accounts, freezing funds and issuing early warnings. The PJ director, Sit Chong Meng, described these efforts as an effective result by the authorities. Most of the 321 fraud cases involved internet fraud, up 12.2% year-on-year, and 221 cases of unauthorized use of credit cards, up 88.9% year-on-year. Phishing text messages and websites remain the primary sources of credit card data loss. From January to May, the police and telecom operators cooperated to successfully block 276 phishing websites. To raise awareness and provide assistance, the Judiciary Police launched a WeChat anti-fraud mini program in April, which had recorded more than 22,000 visits by the end of May. Meanwhile, the PJ also reported a significant increase in gaming-related crimes in the first five months of 2024, with a 75.5% year-on-year rise. Between January and May 2024, 579 gaming-related crimes were recorded, a notable jump from the same period in the previous year, the PJs data shows. Loansharking cases rose by 86 in the period, reaching 104. The PJ noted an uptick in theft and failure to report found objects, primarily occurring in high-traffic gaming districts. Furthermore, gaming-related fraud cases increased by 52 to 130, with the PJ attributing 66.7% of these incidents to money exchange gangs. In response, the PJ and the Public Security Police intercepted 1,924 money exchange gang members, 927 of whom were referred to the Gaming Inspection, and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) to be placed on the prohibited casinos list. Additionally, 30 Macau residents were notified of engaging in illegal money exchanges, which has led the PJ to initiate administrative penalty procedures. While Macau has not reported any cases of murder or kidnapping in the first five months of 2024, the PJ said social security remains stable despite the growing trend of gaming and tourism-related crimes, as well as an increase in fraud and information-based offenses. Victoria Chan & Nadia Shaw A man who stabbed South Koreas opposition leader in the neck earlier this year was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Friday, court officials said. The knife-wielding man attacked Lee Jae-myung, head of the liberal Democratic Party, South Koreas biggest political party, in January after approaching him asking for his autograph at an event in the southeastern city of Busan. After being detained by police, he told investigators that he wanted to kill Lee to prevent him from becoming South Koreas president. The Busan District Court said the man was handed the prison term after being found guilty for an attempted murder and a violation of an election law. The court said that both the man and prosecutors have one week to appeal. The attack happened ahead of the countrys crucial parliamentary elections in April, which ended with Lees Democratic Party and other opposition parties winning a massive victory against President Yoon Suk Yeols conservative governing party. A court verdict called the attack a grave challenge to the countrys election systems and an act that significantly destroys social consensus and confidence on the basic liberal democratic principles, according to Yonhap news agency. It cited the verdict as saying the attacker had long loathed Lee because of differences of political opinions, practiced stabbing his neck in advance and followed him on five public events. The courts public affairs office couldnt immediately confirm details of Fridays verdict. The court didnt disclose the mans identity. Police earlier said hes about 67. The attack left Lee bleeding and slumped on the ground. He was hospitalized for eight days receiving surgery and other treatments. While leaving a Seoul hospital later in January, Lee expressed hopes for an end to politics of hatred in South Korea. During police questioning, the attacker said he was unhappy with what he thought was a lack of progress in authorities investigations of Lee over various corruption allegations. He told investigators that he tried to kill Lee to hurt his partys prospects for a victory in the parliamentary elections and to eventually eliminate chances of Lee becoming South Koreas next president, according to police. Democratic Party officials earlier confirmed the attacker became a member last year. The ruling People Power Party said he is currently not their member but media reports said the man, only identified as his surname Kim, was previously affiliated with the partys predecessor. Lee, a sharp-tongued former provincial governor, lost the 2022 presidential election to Yoon, a former top prosecutor, by the narrowest margin recorded in a South Korean presidential election. Their closely fought race and post-election political bickering have intensified South Koreas already-toxic conservative-liberal divide. Surveys have showed that Lee is one of the early favorites for the 2027 presidential election. Yoon is by law barred from seeking reelection. HYUNG-JIN KIM, SEOUL, MDT/AP * Market Exchange Beijing tightens grip on illicit money exchange groups, as authorities seize RMB9.23 million in fraudulent funds amidst rising gaming-related crimes * 1955 footage of 2nd GP | Life in Macau in the mid-1950s beyond Guia race track * The price tag for Cotais new temporary arena may cost up to MOP113 million as the govt invites six bidders for the construction * Hong Kong racers dominate qualification races for Macau GP * Hong Kong: Activist Joshua Wong asks for a lesser sentence in landmark security case DOWNLOAD PDF Monday, July 8, 2024 edition no. 4518 The government has extended invitations to six companies to take part in the tender process for the construction of Cotais new 50,000-seat temporary outdoor performance venue, aimed at enhancing the citys cultural and tourism growth. The project, which is expected to take 107 days to complete, has received six bids ranging from MOP84 million to MOP113 million, according to the Public Works Bureau. The selected venue will feature a reinforced concrete platform, complementary electromechanical systems, and water drainage facilities, as well as mobile amenities such as restrooms, offices and rest areas. Leong Chun Kit, a member of the Islands Social Advisory Committee, believes the venues completion will inject new vitality into Macaus cultural and tourism development and community economy. The outdoor performance arena is expected to attract more high-profile concerts and large-scale events to Macau, enhancing the citys competitiveness in the international performing arts market, he said. Also, Leong remarked that the venue is expected to extend tourist stays and revitalize community spending. Therefore, he also called on the government to strategically place temporary market stalls, food trucks, and retail booths around the venue to provide more business opportunities for local merchants. However, the influx of up to 50,000 concertgoers is expected to put significant pressure on the nearby transport infrastructure. The government has acknowledged the need for a comprehensive traffic diversion plan, including the provision of specialized bus stops, temporary parking areas, and clear signage to nearby light rail stations, to ensure the safe and convenient dispersal of the audience. The selection of the Cotai site, located at the intersection of Avenida do Aeroporto and Rua de Tenis, is seen as a strategic move to reduce disturbance to the community. This decision comes after residents raised concerns about the noise and traffic disruption caused by a previous K-pop concert held at the Taipa Stadium. Victoria Chan With Israels war in Gaza creating an ever-worsening humanitarian disaster and drawing ire and opposition from the world, the Jewish states latest land appropriation in the occupied West Bank will only stoke Palestinian animosity and trigger condemnation worldwide. Peace Now, an Israel-based settlement watchdog, reportedly said [last week] that the Israeli authorities have approved the appropriation of 12.7 square kilometers of land in the occupied West Bank, marking the largest single appropriation in about three decades. Israeli settlements in the West Bank have for years been a major obstacle for resolving the decades-long Palestinian-Israeli conflict. The Palestinians view the settlements as preventing any possibility of a cohesive state and most members of the international community consider the settlements the main barrier to any lasting peace agreement. Late last month, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the fighting against Hamas was very close to an end. But tension on the Israel-Lebanon border has subsequently flared higher, marking a dramatic turn in Israels strategy and drawing growing worries that the conflict will spread beyond Gaza. With the Israel-Hamas war drawing near to its 10th month, the Israeli authorities may feel compelled to adjust their strategy amid the mounting pressure from home and abroad. To date, the war has deprived the lives of more than 37,800 Palestinians in the Gaza strip, according to Hamas sources. Though being reluctant to scale down the military offensive in Gaza, Netanyahu may have already set his eyes on the post-Gaza conflict era, and the latest land theft in West Bank could be part of Israels attempts to squeeze the space for the Palestinians. But such an approach will only result in a strong backlash. Over 2 million people are living in what amounts to an open-air prison, without adequate access to water, electricity, food, medication, and fuel. This man-made humanitarian disaster and serious breach of international law must end, and Israel must heed the international communitys call to ensure the rapid and safe entry of humanitarian supplies into Gaza. With the war in Gaza showing multiple signs of spilling over and involving more players in the region, Tel Aviv should exercise more restraint and stop making any irresponsible moves that may exacerbate confrontation and enmity with the Palestinian side. It should fulfill its obligations under international humanitarian law and fully implement United Nations Security Council resolutions on expanding humanitarian access and implementing an immediate cease-fire in Gaza. Influential players in the region, the United States in particular, should also use their arts of persuasion to convince Tel Aviv to implement the relevant UNSC resolutions so that a cease-fire can be realized. Editorial, China Daily The World Anti-Doping Agency says it is disappointed to learn of a U.S. criminal investigation into the case of 23 Chinese swimmers who were allowed to continue competing despite testing positive for a banned substance in 2021. The Associated Press reported last week that U.S. investigators had launched a probe into the case and ordered a top official of the international swimming federation to testify as a witness. It could become the highest-profile use so far of a U.S. federal law passed in 2020 that allows investigations into suspected doping conspiracies even if they occurred outside the United States. The World Anti-Doping Agency is disappointed to learn that the U.S. Department of Justice is now investigating the 2021 contamination case of 23 swimmers in China, WADA said in a statement. At this time, WADA has not received any contact or request from U.S. law enforcement. A U.S. House Committee on China had asked the Justice Department and the FBI on May 21 to investigate the case under the 2020 Rodchenkov Anti-Doping Act, named for a whistleblower who exposed Russian state-backed doping. WADA said the reports about the investigation validate the concerns expressed broadly by the international community about the Rodchenkov law. WADA has previously criticized the law, warning of the risk of overreach from the extraterritorial jurisdiction the law would give to U.S. federal agencies. The International Olympic Committee has also voiced concerns. The 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for a banned heart medication in January 2021 yet were allowed to continue competing. Some of them won medals at the Tokyo Olympics later that year. 11 of them are part of the Chinese swimming team heading to the Paris Olympics. Chinese anti-doping authorities blamed the positive tests on food contamination, saying traces of the substance were found in the kitchen of a hotel where the team stayed. WADA accepted the theory and has repeatedly defended its handling of the case, which was only made public this year through reporting by the New York Times and German broadcaster ARD. WADA reviewed the Chinese swimmer case file diligently, consulted with scientific and legal experts, and ultimately determined that it was in no position to challenge the contamination scenario, such that an appeal was not warranted, the agency said in the statement. Guided by science and expert consultations, we stand by that good-faith determination in the face of the incomplete and misleading news reports on which this investigation appears to be based. The international swimming federation, World Aquatics, confirmed to the AP last week that its executive director, Brent Nowicki, was subpoenaed to testify in the U.S. investigation. Late last month, China Anti-Doping Agency (CHINADA) refuted claims by the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), calling them out of context with emotional and political rhetoric and mere preconceptions. USADA CEO Travis Tygart testified at a congressional hearing in the United States last month, claiming, WADA sat back and allowed China to disregard the rules in dealing with TMZ contamination cases involving 23 Chinese swimmers in 2021. CHINADA said in a statement that Tygart was speaking out of context with emotional and political rhetoric and mere preconceptions, made hostile attacks on Chinas anti-doping work, accused the Chinese athletes of intentional doping without any factual basis, and vilified CHINADA and the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) for jointly covering up the positive tests of the Chinese swimmers. This has severely undermined the reputation of CHINADA, WADA, and the global anti-doping system, said CHINADA. MDT/AGENCIES After discussing maritime security capabilities with the AFP Chief, Thailand Navy on Thursday met with the Department of National Defense (DND) to discuss prospective defense industry cooperation. Defense Undersecretary Angelito M. De Loon and Royal Thai Navy Commander-in-chief Admiral Adoong Pan-Inam in the meeting underscored the importance of sustaining defense partnership and a shared vision of peace and security in the region. - Advertisement - Both officials agreed to increase navy-to-navy engagements through established dialogue mechanisms, DND Spokesperson Arsenio Andolong said. Undersecretary De Leon shared the DNDs implementation of the Comprehensive Archipelagic Defense Concept, where Thailand could be among the Philippines partners in developing its self-reliant defense posture. In response, Admiral Adoong shared Thailands best practices in manufacturing its own ammunition, weapons, missiles, and military naval assets, particularly its offshore patrol vessels, and spare parts for its frigates. He also mentioned Thailands willingness to support Philippine defense industries through enhanced partnership and collaboration. Under the implementation of the 2021 Memorandum of Understanding on Logistics and Defense Industry Cooperation, Undersecretary De Leon conveyed possible areas of cooperation, including linkages with tech and systems developers to jointly enhance cybersecurity, and ensure the protection of cyber-networks as both countries recognize the importance of cyber defense in protecting critical infrastructure. Both officials also looked forward to other commemorative activities in relation to the 75 anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, particularly the official visit to the Philippines of the Defence Minister of Thailand this year. Hundreds of Kenyans attended a concert in Nairobi to commemorate the dozens killed during recent anti-government protests. The event, held on the historically significant Saba Saba Day, saw attendees chanting slogans and paying tribute to those who lost their lives opposing planned tax hikes. The protests, which claimed at least 39 lives, succeeded in pressuring President William Ruto to scrap the controversial finance bill. However, the gathering also served as a reminder of the high cost of this political victory, with many mourning the lives lost in the struggle. Activists used the concert to reaffirm their commitment to continued advocacy, with placards reading We promise well keep fighting and chants of Ruto must go echoing through Uhuru Park. The event highlighted the tension between celebration of the protesters impact and grief over the lives lost. In response to the unrest, Ruto has proposed new austerity measures, including reducing his advisory team and dissolving 47 state corporations. These changes aim to address the budget gap created by withdrawing the tax hikes, which were expected to raise $2.7 billion. The concert, featuring local artists, also commemorated the 1990 protests that led to multi-party politics in Kenya. As the country grapples with economic challenges and political tensions, the event underscored the ongoing struggle for change and accountability in Kenyan politics. Rival Sudanese political factions met in Cairo for reconciliation talks, marking the first such gathering since the conflict began 15 months ago. However, deep divisions and the absence of key military actors limited the prospects for meaningful progress. The Democratic Bloc, aligned with the army, refused to hold joint sessions with the Taqaddum faction, accusing them of sympathizing with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Neither the army nor the RSF attended the talks, further diminishing hopes for a breakthrough. The ongoing war has displaced almost 10 million people and sparked warnings of famine and ethnic violence. Recent RSF advances in Sennar state have exacerbated the humanitarian crisis. Previous U.S. and Saudi-sponsored negotiations in Jeddah failed to produce results. While Egypt managed to bring some parties together, fundamental disagreements persisted. The factions only agreed to form a small subcommittee to draft a communique calling for an end to the war, which some key leaders refused to sign. Jibril Ibrahim, Finance Minister, expressed skepticism about the talks, citing the need for RSF withdrawal from civilian areas and an end to alleged UAE support for the RSF. Former Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, leading the Taqaddum coalition, rejected accusations of RSF links and called for patience in the peace process. With multiple overlapping peace initiatives underway, diplomats and participants acknowledged the complexity of the crisis and the need for sustained efforts to resolve Sudans devastating conflict. Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have set up a Confederation to defend their shared geostrategic interest, sending a strong message to the Algerian regime and France, the former colonial power. The new regional entity was announced during the first summit held over the weekend by the military rulers of the three Sahel countries in Niamey. They signed a treaty establishing officially a confederation between them, confirming their irreversible decision of leaving the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The leaders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have pledged to enhance integration and step cooperation ties in a wide range of sectors. 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: cottonbro studio from Pexels Public health officials are concerned about bird flu, which so far has been detected in three dairy farmworkerstwo in Michigan and one in Texasas well as in cattle in a dozen states. The farmworkers' symptoms were mild, and researchers have not found that the H5N1 virus, also known as bird flu, can spread from person to person. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says there is little risk to the general public. However, flu viruses evolve, and H5N1 could mutate and gain the ability to infect people more easily. "The reason public health authorities are and should be on high alert is because this is a potential high-consequence pathogen," said Meghan Davis, an epidemiologist and microbiologist at Johns Hopkins University. That's why state officials are so focused on testing and surveillance of dairy workers. But they are encountering significant challenges. H5N1 is deadly to domestic poultry and can wipe out entire flocks in a matter of days, the U.S. Department of Agriculture says. As a result, the poultry industry has responded vigorously to the threat, culling entire flocks when they detect even one infected bird. But H5N1 is milder in cows, and the response on dairy farms has been less aggressive. The CDC and USDA have advised dairy farms to monitor for the virus in cattle and humans, but testing remains voluntary, except for herds moving across state lines. In addition, dairy farms are often in remote rural areas, and workers have little access to transportation and no sick leave. As a result, it's difficult for them to travel to health care providers for testing and treatment. Many dairy workers, who are mostly immigrants, speak Indigenous languages like Nahuatl or K'iche, according to the National Center for Farmworker Health, a nonprofit that offers support and training for centers that focus on the health of farmworkers. Dr. Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease physician and scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security, emphasized that the current bird flu strain isn't a pandemic threat to humans. That's why, he said, this is the perfect time to get the right testing and surveillance measures in place. "If you can't get it right with something that's as forgiving as this virus has been, in terms of its inefficiency in infecting humans, it really doesn't bode well for when the stakes are higher," Adalja said. So far, cases of the virus have been documented among domestic livestock in Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, South Dakota, Texas and Wyoming, according to the USDA. Last month, federal officials announced grants to farms to offset the cost of milk loss from sick cows. Four statesKansas, Nebraska, New Mexico and Texasare launching voluntary pilot programs to test for the virus in dairy farms' bulk milk tanks. In Michigan, where the virus has been detected in 25 herds, Tim Boring, director of the state Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said efforts are focused on trying to help farmers recoup losses and agree to testing. Last month, the agency announced it would use a combination of federal and state money to give as much as $28,000 to up to 20 affected farms. The state also launched a study to find out if there are antibodies in people exposed to sick cows, aiming to determine if there have been any asymptomatic infections. Dr. Natasha Bagdasarian, Michigan's chief medical executive, said the state is working with community health clinics and local health departments to reach farmworkers. "They not only know the farms in their counties, but they also know many of the farmworker organizations," she said. Dairy farmworkers, who are often immigrants, can't afford to miss a day of work, and can be reluctant to reach out to request testing or say they feel sick, advocates say. "This is a population of people that is just vastly underserviced when it comes to both outreach and trust established with state and federal agencies," said Elizabeth Strater, strategic campaigns director at United Farm Workers, a labor union. "This is a group of workers that are some of the poorest workers in the United States." Immigrants make up 51% of daily labor at dairy farms, and farms that employ immigrants produce 79% of the nation's milk supply, according to the National Milk Producers Federation. Amy Liebman of the Migrant Clinicians Network, an education and outreach group of experts in migrant health, said testing should be administered on the farms rather than in clinics. "Dairies are in rural areas, very isolated geographically. You're not going to get all these workers in one place to be able to do any kind of surveying or testing. It is a matter of really trying to go to where the workers are," she said. But it hasn't been easy getting farm owners to agree to that. The Texas state health department told Stateline it has offered on-site testing to farmers, but as of mid-June, it had tested only about 20 symptomatic dairy workers who volunteered for testing. It also has given personal protective equipment to "interested dairies" and posted a notice online offering to deliver the equipment. Coordination among state or local agricultural and health departments is key to tracking viral spread. A lack of coordination and monitoring can be contributing to underreporting cases. "I think it is definitely more widespread than is currently reported," said Dr. Shira Doron, chief infection control officer at Tufts Medicine. "The barriers between the agencies are really hampering our efforts right now." The CDC has offered a $75 payment to any farmworker who agrees to be tested and provide blood and nasal swab samples to the agency. But Doris Garcia-Ruiz, who directs farmworker outreach at Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid, said that won't make up for days of lost income. "If they take the time off to go to their doctor's office, they don't have sick leave, so they're not going to get paid," she said. The CDC's latest figures show that at least 53 people have been tested in the cattle outbreak, with a majority of those in Michigan. Strater says that's not enough. "That's abysmal," she said. "Our method of testing is so passive. They're relying on workers reporting to medical clinics; these are workers that are not going to be taking themselves for medical treatment unless they're experiencing something life-threatening." Getting workers to use personal protective equipment also is a challenge. The CDC recommends that workers wear respirators, waterproof aprons and coveralls, unvented safety goggles or a face shield, and rubber boots with sealed seams that can be sanitized. It also advises that workers follow a specific sequence of steps to remove the PPE at the end of a shift to avoid contamination. "Dairy work is very wet, very hands-on," said Christine Sauve, who leads community engagement at the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center. "While some industries are very familiar with PPE the full recommendation from CDC is new and different. And so that really needs the full promotion from the employer, and then also from the state agencies." Sauve worries that Michigan is prioritizing farmers' losses, rather than farmworkers' health, in its response. While the risk to the public is low, she and other experts say the population of farmworkers shouldn't be forgotten. Bethany Alcauter of the National Center for Farmworker Health described bird flu threat as "kind of a ticking time bomb." "Maybe it hasn't fully gone off yet. But if we don't manage it well, it could," Alcauter said. 2024 States Newsroom. 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: Study design. Credit: Nature Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41591-024-03039-x Circulating protein levels may serve as a biomarker for cardiorespiratory fitness, an important but previously hard-to-measure component of overall health, according to a study published in Nature Medicine. Although cardiorespiratory function can provide a snapshot of holistic health, no standardized method currently exists to measure cardiorespiratory fitness, said Ravi Kalhan, MD, MS, professor of medicine in the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, of Preventive Medicine in the Division of Epidemiology, and a co-author of the study. "As a doctor seeing patients, I can't measure the fitness of a patient sitting in front of me," said Kalhan, also the Louis A. Simpson Professor of Pulmonary Medicine. "We could do various fancy tests, but that's a big undertaking, and not every patient can walk on a treadmill, such as those who are older or have chronic lung disease." Cardiorespiratory fitness impacts almost every system in the body, from the metabolism to the brain, Kalhan said, so developing a way to measure it would allow physicians to accurately assess general health. "This is a much more global ascertainment that we were aspiring to measure through biomarkers, as opposed to singular biomarkers that reflect an organ system, like LDL cholesterol," Kalhan said. In the study, Kalhan and his collaborators employed statistical models to identify circulating proteins that had the biggest impact on overall health in more than 14,000 study participants. The investigators then created a cardiorespiratory fitness score which considered an individual's levels of key circulating proteins, including those implicated in inflammation, neuronal survival and growth, and oxidative stress, among others. They then validated their scoring system using data from 20,000 individuals in the UK Biobank and found that a favorable score was associated with a reduced risk of all-cause mortality, according to the study. To further test their scoring system, the investigators analyzed the circulating proteins of more than 600 people before and after a 20-week exercise program. Study participants' cardiorespiratory fitness score was found to correlate with the positive effects of exercise on their cardiorespiratory system, according to the findings. The findings lay the groundwork for a scoring system which could accurately assess holistic health with a simple blood test, Kalhan said, and may help scientists better understand the link between fitness and health. "We don't totally know why improving fitness improves health," Kalhan said. "In the long run, this could help us understand the biology of what happens when someone improves their fitness, and then we can understand the mechanism and target specific biologic pathways to improve health." Building off this development, Kalhan and his colleagues will attempt to apply the protein scoring methodology to other areas of overall health, he said. "We know a lot about trajectories of health. Someone might be on a declining trajectory, but when we see patients at one time point, it's really hard for us to extrapolate what a trajectory of someone's health may be," Kalhan said. "If we could apply these single-time-point measurements using a blood test that reflects a greater, more difficult-to-ascertain factor of health, that really would be interesting." More information: Andrew S. Perry et al, Proteomic analysis of cardiorespiratory fitness for prediction of mortality and multisystem disease risks, Nature Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41591-024-03039-x Journal information: Nature Medicine 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: Cell (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.06.012 To understand why some cancers successfully circumvent the immune system to grow unchecked, researchers turned to pregnancy. "In pregnancy, the immune system does not reject the growing fetus, so we know there must be mechanisms active in the placenta. In cancer, it's the same thing: the growing tumor is not rejected by the immune system. It means the cancer cells have developed strategies to suppress immune rejection, the same as in pregnancy," said Weiping Zou, M.D., Ph.D. It's a good thing in pregnancyit allows the baby to grow. But in cancer, it means the tumor grows unchecked and treatments meant to stimulate an immune response are not effective. To understand this overlap, Zou collaborated with other researchers from the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Centerbringing together unique expertise in immunology, cancer genetics, gynecologic pathology and medicinal chemistry. They found that indeed there is a molecular mechanism shared in cancer and pregnancy that suppresses the immune system. Block this mechanism, called B7-H4, and the immune system revs up to slow cancer's growth. Looking at mouse models and cell lines of breast and gynecologic cancers, the researchers identified the hormone progesterone as a key regulator of the B7-H4 immune checkpoint. The work is published in Cell. B7-H4 expression has previously been associated with shorter survival in cancer patients. The Rogel researchers discovered that B7-H4 plays an active role in moderating the immune system in both the placenta and the tumor microenvironment. Further, while the male hormone androgen has previously been linked to immune suppression in prostate cancer, this is the first time the female sex hormone progesterone has been shown to impact immune response in cancer. Researchers used an inhibitor to block progesterone signaling in mice with breast cancer and in human breast cancer tissue samples, which did slow the cancer's growth in mice and activated the immune response. The effect was clear but not dramatic, however. "B7-H4 is an important checkpoint, but it's complicated," Zou said. "Progesterone regulation is one mechanism, but we need more studies to understand whether other mechanisms are also involved in regulating B7-H4. We do not have a direct way to block this signaling pathway. The receptors remain unknown. There's something in the basic immunobiology that we still don't understand." Researchers plan additional studies looking at mechanisms regulating B7-H4 protein stability, as well as the role other factors play in cancer immunology. Additional authors include Jiali Yu, Yijian Yan, Shasha Li, Ying Xu, Abhijit Parolia, Syed Rizvi, Weichao Wang, Yiwen Zhai, Rongxin Xiao, Xiong Li, Peng Liao, Jiajia Zhou, Karolina Okla, Heng Lin, Xun Lin, Sara Grove, Shuang Wei, Linda Vatan, Jiantao Hu, Justyna Szumilo, Jan Kotarski, Zachary T. Freeman, Stephanie Skala, Max Wicha, Kathleen R. Cho, Arul M. Chinnaiyan, Samantha Schon, Fei Wen, Ilona Kryczek, Shaomeng Wang, and Lieping Chen. More information: Jiali Yu et al, Progestogen-driven B7-H4 contributes to onco-fetal immune tolerance, Cell (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.06.012 Journal information: Cell 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 "You had to pay the fee, or the doctor wasn't going to see you anymore." That was the takeaway for Terri Marroquin of Midland, Texas, when her longtime physician began charging a membership fee in 2019. She found out about the change when someone at the physician's front desk pointed to a posted notice. At first, she stuck with the practice; in her area, she said, it is now tough to find a primary care doctor who doesn't charge an annual membership fee from $350 to $500. But last year, Marroquin finally left to join a practice with no membership fee where she sees a physician assistant rather than a doctor. "I had had enough. The concierge fee kept going up, and the doctor's office kept getting nicer and nicer," she said, referring to the decor. With the national shortage of primary care physicians reaching 17,637 in 2023 and projected to worsen, more Americans are paying for the privilege of seeing a doctoron top of insurance premiums that cover most services a doctor might provide or order. Many people seeking a new doctor are calling a long list of primary care practices only to be told they're not taking new patients. "Concierge medicine potentially leads to disproportionately richer people being able to pay for the scarce resource of physician time and crowding out people who have lower incomes and are sicker," said Adam Leive, lead author of a 2023 study on concierge medicine and researcher at University of California-Berkeley's Goldman School of Public Policy. Leive's research showed no decrease in mortality for concierge patients compared with similar patients who saw non-concierge physicians, suggesting concierge care may not notably improve some health outcomes. A 2005 study showed concierge physicians had smaller proportions of patients with diabetes than their non-concierge counterparts and provided care for fewer Black and Hispanic patients. There's little reliable data available on the size of the concierge medicine market. But one market research firm projects that concierge medicine revenue will grow about 10.4% annually through 2030. About 5,000 to 7,000 physicians and practices provide concierge care in the United States, most of whom are primary care providers, according to Concierge Medicine Today. The concierge pitch is simple: More time with your doctor, in-person or remotely, promptly and at your convenience. With many primary care physicians caring for thousands of patients each in appointments of 15 minutes or less, some people who can afford the fee say they feel forced to pay it just to maintain adequate access to their doctor. As primary care providers convert to concierge medicine, many patients could face the financial and health consequences of a potentially lengthy search for a new provider. With fewer physicians in non-concierge practices, the pool available to people who can't or won't pay is smaller. For them, it is harder to find a doctor. Concierge care models vary widely, but all involve paying a periodic fee to be a patient of the practice. These fees are generally not covered by insurance nor payable with a tax-advantaged flexible spending account or health savings account. Annual fees range from $199 for Amazon's One Medical (with a discount available for Prime members) to low four figures for companies like MDVIP and SignatureMD that partner with physicians, to $10,000 or more for top-branded practices like Massachusetts General Hospital's. Many patients are exasperated with the prospect of pay-to-play primary care. For one thing, under the Affordable Care Act, insurers are required to cover a variety of preventive services without a patient paying out-of-pocket. "Your annual physical should be free," said Caitlin Donovan, a spokesperson for the National Patient Advocate Foundation. "Why are you paying $2,000 for it?" Liz Glatzer felt her doctor in Providence, Rhode Island, was competent but didn't have time to absorb her full health history. "I had double mastectomy 25 years ago," she said. "At my first physical, the doctor ran through my meds and whatever else, and she said, 'Oh, you haven't had a mammogram.' I said, 'I don't have breasts to have mammography.'" In 2023, after repeating that same exchange during her next two physicals, Glatzer signed up to pay $1,900 a year for MDVIP, a concierge staffing service that contracts with her new doctor, who is also a friend's husband. In her first couple of visits, Glatzer's new physician took hours to get to know her, she said. For the growing numbers of Americans who can't or won't pay when their doctor switches to concierge care, finding new primary care can mean frustration, delayed or missed tests or treatments, and fragmented health care. "I've met so many patients who couldn't afford the concierge services and needed to look for a new primary care physician," said Yalda Jabbarpour, director of the Robert Graham Center and a practicing family physician. Separating from a doctor who's transitioning to concierge care "breaks the continuity with the provider that we know is so important for good health outcomes," she said. That disruption has consequences. "People don't get the preventive services that they should, and they use more expensive and inefficient avenues for care that could have otherwise been provided by their doctor," said Abbie Leibowitz, chief medical officer at Health Advocate, a company that helps patients find care and resolve insurance issues. What happens to patients who find themselves at loose ends when a physician transitions to concierge practice? Patients who lose their doctors often give up on having an ongoing relationship with a primary care clinician. They may rely solely on a pharmacy-based clinic or urgent care center or even a hospital emergency department for primary care. Some concierge providers say they are responding to concerns about access and equity by allowing patients to opt out of concierge care but stay with the practice group at a lower tier of service. This might entail longer waits for shorter appointments, fewer visits with a physician, and more visits with midlevel providers, for example. Deb Gordon of Cambridge, Massachusetts, said she is searching for a new primary care doctor after hers switched to concierge medicinea challenge that involves finding someone in her network who has admitting privileges at her preferred hospitals and is accepting new patients. Gordon, who is co-director of the Alliance of Professional Health Advocates, which provides support services to patient advocates, said the practice that her doctor left has not assigned her a new provider, and her health plan said it was OK if she went without one. "I was shocked that they literally said, 'You can go to urgent care,'" she said. Some patients find themselves turning to physician assistants and other midlevel providers. But those clinicians have much less training than physicians with board certification in family medicine or internal medicine and so may not be fully qualified to treat patients with complex health problems. "The expertise of physician assistants and nurse practitioners can really vary widely," said Russell Phillips, director of the Harvard Medical School Center for Primary Care. 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain The ultrasound in February that found a mass growing in her uterus and abnormally thick uterine lining brought Jonell Anderson more than anxiety over diagnosis and treatment. For Anderson and other patients in this rural community who need gynecological care, stress over discovering an illness is compounded by the challenges they face getting to a doctor. After that initial ultrasound, Anderson's primary care provider referred her to an OB-GYN nearly an hour's drive away in Coeur d'Alene for more testing. Getting care for more serious gynecological issues, like a hysteroscopy, endometriosis, or polycystic ovary syndrome, has become much more difficult in Sandpoint, a town of about 10,000 people in Idaho's panhandle region. A state law criminalizing abortions drove multiple OB-GYNs to leave town about a year ago. The effects have been far-reaching. The OB-GYNs who left Sandpoint were also providing care to patients in nearby outlying areas, like Bonners Ferry, a roughly 40-minute drive into Idaho's northernmost county. Doctors have spoken out about not feeling safe practicing medicine where they could face criminal charges for providing care to their patients. Republican lawmakers in Idaho contend doctors are being used in an effort to roll back the ban, and they declined to amend the law this year. According to the Idaho Coalition for Safe Healthcare, a group advocating for a rollback of the state's strict abortion ban, at least two hospitals, including Bonner General Health in Sandpoint, ended labor and delivery services in the 15 months after the state criminalized abortion in 2022. During that same time period, the number of OB-GYNs practicing in Idaho dropped by 22%. The report's authors noted that many rural residents rely on consultations from medical specialists in urban parts of the state that are already struggling to provide care. Those departures have expanded care deserts and added obstacles between patients and care, including for Anderson, 49. Anderson's car broke down when she was on the way to see an OB-GYN in Coeur d'Alene a few weeks after her initial ultrasound. Her husband took off work to drive her to a rescheduled appointment the same day. After hours of mishaps, she arrived for the visit, which lasted about 15 minutes. There, the doctor told her she'd need to come back for a hysteroscopyan exam that shows the inside of the cervix and uterusa few weeks later, followed by another appointment to go over results. Four months later, in June, early results showed that the mass in Anderson's uterus did not appear to be cancerous. She's relieved, she said, but still concerned about nearing menopause and not having the support of an OB-GYN nearby to help her manage any symptoms or health issues that could come up. "It sure was a whole level of stress that just added on because I had so much further to transport," Anderson said. "Three years ago I would have been 10 minutes away from my appointment, not 60 minutes away." Those hardships patients face weigh heavily on the specialists who left. Amelia Huntsberger, an OB-GYN, said that she and her husband are still grappling with a feeling of grief after being "forced out of Idaho" last year. They had lived in the state for more than a decade and practiced in Sandpoint. While leaving was a difficult decision, she said, she has no doubt it was the right one for her; her husband, who was a doctor in the emergency room at Bonner General; and their children. "I think about things like who we are as a people," Huntsberger said. "What do we value, and do our actions reflect our values?" Limiting access to care for women, pregnant or not, and their infants suggests lawmakers do not consider them important, she said. Usha Ranji, an associate director for Women's Health Policy at KFF, said she has heard anecdotally about providers leaving states with strict abortion bans like Idaho's. Some recent medical graduates are also avoiding residency positions in states restricting abortion, making it harder to replace the outgoing providers, Ranji said. Sandy Brower, a spokesperson for Bonner General, said the hospital is working to hire a gynecologist and is focused on building out its family provider team. She said other providers at the hospital are still treating women before and after pregnancy, but not during delivery unless it's an emergency and the person cannot be transported. Susie Keller, CEO of the Idaho Medical Association, said there's a growing number of doctor vacancies in the state and that the number of applicants has "absolutely plummeted and those jobs are taking about twice as long as normal to fill. "We are witnessing the dismantling of our health system," Keller said. As more community members feel the effects of a strained health system, some are following in the path of the doctorsthey're considering leaving. Anderson is among them. Local education issues play a large part in that decision-making process, she said, as she considers her 9-year-old daughter's future. But access to women's health care is another piece of the puzzle. "If I don't have the care I need and she doesn't have the care she needs," Anderson said, "is that really somewhere we want to live?" Ranji said polling indicates health care is a priority for people, so it could play into decisions about where they want to plant roots. And that leads into another way community members could respond to the changes in local careby voting in state elections. Primary election results from May in northern Idaho, where Sandpoint is located, showed signs of voters backing Republican candidates who hold more moderate views on abortion. Former state Sen. Jim Woodward narrowly beat Sen. Scott Herndon, a fellow Republican who sought reelection to his seat in the legislature. Woodward, a self-described pro-life candidate with a stance against elective abortions, supports efforts to include exceptions for the health of the mother and removing the threat of felony charges against doctors who perform abortions. Herndon, on the other hand, provoked strong reactions during last year's legislative session when he sponsored a bill that would have removed the already strict law's current narrow exceptions for rape and incest. Kathryn Larson, 66, has been campaigning as a Democrat for a seat representing most of Boundary and Bonner counties, the two northernmost in the panhandle region, in the state's House of Representatives. She also has had recent firsthand experience falling into the care gap created by the exodus of OB-GYNs in Sandpoint. In January, Larson went to the emergency room at Bonner General, a 25-bed critical access hospital, with severe chest pains. A cardiologist suggested an infection could be to blame. Larson said she also experienced vertigo and rapid heartbeat and later developed symptoms of a urinary tract infection. She was given rounds of antibiotics to treat the infection, but the symptoms returned. More testing finally revealed the crux of the issueLarson was dealing with a prolapsed bladder, which is not life-threatening but causes discomfort or pain and affects one in three women in their 60s. After about five months of back-and-forth communication with providers in Post Falls and the eastern Washington city of Spokane, she scheduled an appointment for surgery in early June in Spokane, more than an hour's drive from Sandpoint. Following surgery, during which doctors implanted a mesh structure to support her bladder, Larson is spending six to eight weeks recovering before heading into the final stretches of election season. She said the November election will help others in her party tell if it will be possible to work across the aisle to loosen restrictions on the abortion policy during next year's legislative session. She wants to slow the loss of needed providers across the state. "People don't feel safe," Larson said. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on June 27 that Idaho must for now continue to allow abortions in medical emergencies. The ruling came in a lawsuit filed by the Biden administration, which argued that the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act requires such care. But the ruling does not provide a permanent solution. It kicks the case back to lower courts. Confusion remains over a doctor's ability to perform abortions even in emergency settings, and the Idaho Medical Association said it will continue to work toward a clear health-of-the-mother exception within state law during next year's legislative session. "We still need more clarity for our state's doctors," OB-GYN Megan Kasper said in a medical association press release. 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: (from left) Dr. Ibrahim Hawwari, Prof. Bernardo Franklin and Lukas Ronagel discover new intercellular communication mechanism in which blood platelets, so-called thrombocytes, regulate the function of monocytes. Credit: Alessandro Winkler, University Hospital Bonn Monocytes, a special type of white blood cell, secrete cytokines as inflammatory messengers that are crucial for an appropriate immune response. Researchers at the University Hospital Bonn (UKB) and the University of Bonn have now discovered that platelets, also known as thrombocytes, communicate with monocytes and increase their inflammatory capacity. By understanding the platelet-monocyte interaction, they hope to improve the treatment of immune disorders and associated diseases. The results of the study have been published in EMBO Molecular Medicine. Monocytes are white blood cells, known as leukocytes. They are an important part of the innate immune system and contribute to host defense in the blood by secreting large quantities of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Abnormal activity of monocytes leads to hyperinflammation, i.e. very severe inflammation, as well as life-threatening cytokine storms. On the other hand, disturbed monocyte function is associated with immune paralysis. In this condition, the immune system's ability to fight off invaders such as viruses and bacteria is inhibited. This increases susceptibility to infections. "It is therefore crucial to understand how the functions of monocytes are regulated," says senior and corresponding author Prof. Dr. Bernardo Franklin from the Institute of Innate Immunity at the UKB and the Cluster of Excellence ImmunoSensation2 at the University of Bonn, explaining the motivation to investigate the role of platelets in the regulation of monocyte-induced inflammation. Platelets as a central checkpoint in immune defense Platelets play a central role in blood clotting, but are also thought to perform important functions in the immune system. Prof. Franklin's research team has already identified platelets as an important regulator of inflammation. They report that a low platelet count in the rare blood disorder immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) or the artificial removal of platelets from healthy monocytes results in "immunoparalysis." This is characterized by a disturbed cytokine reaction and is an immunological challenge. "Remarkably, supplementing monocytes with fresh platelets reverses this condition and restores the monocyte cytokine response," says corresponding and co-first author Dr. Ibrahim Hawwari, a postdoctoral fellow of the University of Bonn at the Institute of Innate Immunity at the UKB. The Bonn researchers discovered that the pro-inflammatory signals, including NF-B and p38 MAPK, propagate from platelets to monocytes and maintain their inflammatory capacity. "Platelet vesicles as an extended arm of platelets control this intercellular communication," says co-first author Lukas Ronagel, Ph.D. student ot the University of Bonn at the Institute of Innate Immunity of the UKB. The results of the study point to a new intercellular communication mechanism in which platelets regulate monocyte function. "Clinically, this suggests potential therapeutic strategies to counteract monocyte immune paralysis in conditions such as ITP and other inflammatory diseases with the addition of platelets," says Prof. Franklin, who hopes that an understanding of platelet-monocyte interactions will lead to improved treatment of immune disorders and related diseases. More information: Ibrahim Hawwari et al, Platelet transcription factors license the pro-inflammatory cytokine response of human monocytes, EMBO Molecular Medicine (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s44321-024-00093-3 Journal information: EMBO Molecular Medicine 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 Vaccinating mothers against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during late pregnancy to protect their newborns is not associated with an increased risk of preterm birth or other poor outcomes, according to a study by Weill Cornell Medicine and NewYork-Presbyterian investigators. Infants are particularly vulnerable to the virus which can cause a serious lower respiratory illness. The study published in JAMA Network Open on July 8 adds real-world evidence to the existing data from clinical trials about the safety of Pfizer's Abrysvo vaccine. The researchers found that there wasn't a significant statistical difference in preterm birth rates between vaccinated women (5.9%) and unvaccinated women (6.7%). "The real-world evidence provides an additional layer of confidence about the safety of this vaccine during pregnancy," said the study's lead author Dr. Moeun Son, associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Weill Cornell Medicine. "Randomized clinical trials don't always emulate the populations we see in the clinical setting, but now we have data from multiple populations showing no increase in preterm birth risk." The study's senior author is Dr. Heather Lipkind, professor of obstetrics and gynecology and director of Clinical Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine and a gynecologist-obstetrician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. RSV protection from day one Every year, RSV infections cause up to 80,000 hospitalizations and up to 300 deaths in children under five, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). For the first time last fall, mothers could reduce this risk in August 2023, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the Abrysvo vaccine for women between 32 and 36 weeks of pregnancy based on clinical trial results. A month later, the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended the vaccine for eligible pregnant women during RSV season, September to the end of January. The single-dose shot stimulates production of protective antibodies that are transferred from mother to infant through the placenta. To further study the vaccine's safety in actual practice, Dr. Son and her colleagues analyzed pregnancy outcomes in 1,026 vaccinated and 1,947 unvaccinated patients who received care at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center and NewYork-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital during the first year the vaccinations were available. All patient data was de-identified to protect privacy. In addition to preterm birth rate, the team evaluated other birth risks in vaccinated and unvaccinated pregnant women. The two groups had similar rates of stillbirths, small-for-gestational-age birthweight, neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admissions, respiratory distress with NICU admissions, jaundice, low blood sugar and sepsis among the newborns. The data are particularly reassuring because they include some women with health conditions that could increase the risks of poor pregnancy outcomes who were excluded from the vaccine clinical trial. "Patients and clinicians can feel confident that vaccination during pregnancy is a safe way to protect infants from harmful RSV infections," said Dr. Son, who is also a maternal-fetal medicine physician at NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Vaccination rates can be improved To verify their results, Dr. Son and her colleagues conducted three separate analyses using different statistical methods. In one of the three analyses, they found a slightly increased risk of high blood pressure during pregnancy in vaccinated women. However, whether the difference in that analysis reflects a genuine concern or is the result of chance or differences between the two groups of women is still being determined. For example, vaccinated women were more likely to have insurance or to have undergone in vitro fertilization. "These are things we will continue to explore in future studies," Dr. Son said. The study also showed that the two New York City hospitals vaccinated 35% of the pregnant women under their care, which is almost double the national average of 18%. "We had onsite availability of the RSV vaccine in most of our prenatal outpatient clinics, which we think increased vaccination rates," Dr. Son said. However, the researchers identified some disparities in vaccination rates. Black women, women with public insurance and those who had fewer prenatal visits were less likely to be vaccinated. "As we prepare for the next RSV vaccination season in September, we are going to speak with different communities to help understand what might cause vaccine hesitancy among women or create barriers to access," Dr. Son said. "We want to ensure that all who would benefit will receive the vaccine." More information: Moeun Son et al, Nonadjuvanted Bivalent Respiratory Syncytial Virus Vaccination and Perinatal Outcomes, JAMA Network Open (2024). DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.19268 , jamanetwork.com/journals/jaman /fullarticle/2820865 Journal information: JAMA Network Open 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 If you want to keep your heart healthy and prolong your life, the answer might be as simple as taking the stairs. A recent study found that climbing stairs could be the key to reducing your risk of premature death and cardiovascular events like heart attacks and strokes. The study, presented at a European Society of Cardiology conference, analyzed data from nearly 500,000 people and discovered those who regularly climbed stairs had a 24% lower risk of dying from any cause and a 39% lower chance of dying from cardiovascular disease, Health reported. "This is the first systematic review and meta-analysis to specifically look at the association between stair climbing as a form of physical activity and cardiovascular risk," lead study author Dr. Sophie Paddock told Health. The secret behind stair climbing's effectiveness lies in its vertical nature, according to Health. When you climb stairs, your body works against gravity, providing a more intense workout compared to walking on flat ground. This extra effort improves your cardiorespiratory fitness and strengthens your leg muscles, increasing mobility and resilience. And here's the best part: You don't have to climb skyscrapers to reap the benefits. Some studies suggest climbing just five to six flights daily (or 50 to 60 total steps) can make a difference. Nonetheless, "any stairs are better than none," Dr. Tamanna Singh of the Cleveland Clinic told the health publication. Incorporating stair climbing into your daily routine is simple. Health.com suggests skipping the elevator and looking for stairs wherever you goat home, work or even in parking garages. And if stairs aren't your thing, you can still get similar health benefits from other types of exercise, including swimming, biking or rowing. The key is to keep your body moving consistently. "Any physical activity is better than none," Singh said. "Your heart really does not care what you do as long as there is a consistent practice of exercise." 2024 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 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 Students who walked out of Cherry Creek High School five years ago to protest what they saw as glossing over a classmate's suicide are still working to share their message that youth can remake the culture around mental health. Jack Padilla, 15, died by suicide in March 2019. In response, some of his classmates and his older brother launched a group they called Jackstrong to push for more open discussion of mental health. Four leading members met Monday to discuss their ongoing work with The Denver Post. The group started meeting to brainstorm shortly after Jack's death, said Gio Villagrana, 20, who now attends Metropolitan State University Denver. They initially focused on events to draw attention to the problem, including the school walkout and a Colorado Avalanche game dedicated to Jack, he said. Since then, all have graduated and either gone to college or started their careers. They've also testified in favor of mental health bills, including, most recently, one that created a mental health screening program for students in sixth through 12th grade. But the core of their work is still focused on helping youth to help each other, said John Padilla, 25, who is Jack's older brother and now lives in Montana. "I think the political landscape and the social landscape were very different in 2019," he said. Rick Padilla, father of John and Jack, said the group has honored Jack's life. He also got involved in mental health, switching careers to work as a suicide prevention administrator for the Denver Department of Public Health and Environment after Jack's death. "We all want to be remembered, and these kids have helped keep Jack's memory alive," he said. The most recent data on youth mental health, from 2023, showed fewer young people reported possible depression or suicidal thoughts than at any point since 2013. The Healthy Kids Colorado survey found about 11% of youth had considered suicide in the previous year, 9% had made a plan and 6% had made an attempt. Villagrana said he isn't sure whether youth mental health has actually improved since Jack died: Young people have even more to worry about now than they did then, but they also feel more open talking about their struggles. Adults also are changing their viewshis mother recently talked about whether a family member would benefit from therapy, which is something she never would have considered a few years ago, Villagrana said. That's especially noticeable when it comes to talking about suicide, said Janie Wishmier, 20, who lives in Denver. During the 2019 walkout, students said adults at school hadn't discussed Jack's death or another student's suicide earlier in the semester. The school did hold an assembly that it said focused on suicide prevention, unity and resilience. "I think suicide isn't as scary a word as it used to be," Wishmier said. Youth need space to process their feelings after a peer dies by suicide, particularly since not everyone grieves on the same timeline, according to Boston Children's Hospital. Adults should be honest that the person died by suicide, but not discuss details such as a method or speculate about a cause, the guidance said. Any memorials shouldn't blame the person for their death, but also shouldn't glorify them, to avoid sending a message that dying is a way of getting sympathy or love. High school is difficult for almost everyone, and students need an environment where they feel comfortable talking to someone if they're struggling, said Lily Osborne, 20, who attends the University of Nebraska Lincoln. They also need encouragement from people who've been through it recently that life gets better after graduation, she said. "You've just got to make it there," she said. People don't automatically feel better when they get to college, though, because they're dealing with new pressures without their friends and parents there for support, John Padilla said. The group is working to reach more students on college campuses, including through screening documentaries that he's worked on about mental health in Colorado and offering resources to viewers, he said. The "top-down" approach where authority figures start a program or tell young people what to do isn't effective in improving mental health, John Padilla said. Youth need to know how they can help, and one of the powerful things they can do is to ask struggling friends if they have a suicide plan, he said. Research has repeatedly shown that asking about suicide won't plant the idea in someone's head or push them to do it. The only lasting changes come out of communities working together to address their mental health problems, Villagrana said. "I don't think that mental health can be dealt with any other way," he said. 2024 MediaNews Group, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Detection of HPV16 E7 oncoproteins in urine samples using ultrasensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay Image caption: Researchers have now validated a noninvasive method for screening cervical cancer. This could open new avenues for cancer screening by collection of urine sample by the patients themselves and then delivering it to medical facility for testing. This alternative method is a step forward to eradicate cervical cancer by lowering the barriers related to screening. Credit: Dr. Etsuro Ito from Waseda University Cervical cancer is one of the most common cancers in women, with approximately 660,000 new cases and 350,000 deaths worldwide in 2022 alone. Almost all cases are linked to high-risk human papillomavirus (HPV) infections. Current screening methods involve detecting HPV DNA, but emerging research suggests that measuring the cancer-causing activity of HPV, may provide a more accurate assessment of cancer risk. Can a new, super-sensitive test accurately measure proteins linked to HPV in urine to help detect cervical cancer? A group of researchers led by Professor Etsuro Ito from the Department of Biology, Waseda University, Japan, along with Professor Toshiyuki Sasagawa from Kanazawa Medical University, Japan, and Dr. Martin Muller from the German Cancer Research Center, Germany developed an ultrasensitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) to detect high-risk HPV16 E7 oncoproteins in urine. Their findings were published in Microorganisms on 14 June 2024. Ito explains, "Cancer can be prevented by vaccination before it develops and by regular screening. But screening is a big hurdle for young women." "Our new urine test can detect HPV16 E7 proteins, which are critical markers of cervical cancer risk, at extremely low levels. This means that women may be able to screen for cervical cancer without the discomfort and inconvenience of a traditional Pap test." Current screening methods for cervical cancer typically involve a Pap smear or an HPV DNA test, both of which require a visit to a health care provider and can be uncomfortable for many women. This new urine test offers a noninvasive alternative, which could encourage more women to participate in regular screening. The researchers used ELISA to detect the E7 oncoproteins in urine samples. The test was able to identify these proteins in the urine of women with different stages of cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN), a precursor to cervical cancer. The ELISA test detected E7 proteins in 80% of women with CIN1, 71% with CIN2, and 38% with CIN3, suggesting that the presence of E7 oncoproteins correlates with lower-grade CIN lesions. The researchers theorize that this discrepancy may be due to variations in the HPV life cycle or oncogenic activity. Ito says, "We believe that the E7 oncoprotein is critical in the early stages of HPV-related cervical carcinogenesis and E7 may play a more significant role in the progression of CIN1 and CIN2 than in CIN3." This innovative approach aligns with global health goals to reduce cervical cancer rates, especially in low- and middle-income countries where access to traditional screening methods is limited. With further development and validation, this urine test could become a standard tool in the fight against cervical cancer, helping to save lives through earlier detection and treatment. The development of a noninvasive urine test for detecting HPV-related proteins represents a significant step forward in cervical cancer screening. It offers a promising solution to increase screening rates and reduce the incidence of cervical cancer worldwide. Ito concludes, "This new method holds great promise for early detection and prevention of cervical cancer. We are optimistic that further development and validation of this assay will lead to its widespread use in clinical settings." More information: Daiki Makioka et al, Quantification of HPV16 E7 Oncoproteins in Urine Specimens from Women with Cervical Intraepithelial Neoplasia, Microorganisms (2024). DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms12061205 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 medical team and their patient (left to right): Dr. Tobias Krickau, Dr. Nora Naumann-Bartsch, Patientin Uresa A., Prof. Dr. Markus Metzler, nursing professional Vanessa Gartner. Credit: Luise Laufer/Uniklinikum Erlangen In June 2023, Uresa A. (who was 15 years old at the time) received CAR-T cells at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen. The treatment was the last resort to slow down systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), which is a serious autoimmune disease that was attacking Uresa's body and suddenly and seriously affected her ability to lead a normal life. "One year after the treatment, I feel as good as I did before my diagnosis, except for a few colds," says Uresa today. This procedure was unusual since CAR-T cells had previously only been used for leukemia or lymphoma and during studies on adults with certain advanced autoimmune diseases. These cells had previously never been used for treating children with autoimmune diseases. The girl, who is now 16 years old, was the first child with SLE to receive the immune therapy as part of an individual treatment attempt at Deutsches Zentrum Immuntherapie (DZI) at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen. The treatment team in Erlangen has now published the results of this successful treatment in the journal The Lancet. "Simply the fact that we have administered CAR-T cells for an autoimmune disease is something special, since it was previously only authorized for certain advanced types of cancer," explains Dr. Tobias Krickau, Uresa's pediatric rheumatologist at the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen. "As Uresa's SLE was progressing at an increasingly fast pace despite all her medication, we were confronted with the question of whether we should give these immune cells modified in a lab to a child. This off-label treatment for an autoimmune disease in a child had never been attempted anywhere in the world, as far as we knew," says senior physician Krickau. This treatment involves removing some immune cells (T cells) from the patient before the CAR-T cell infusion and equipping these cells with a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) in a special cleanroom laboratory. These CAR-T cells are then given to patients and dock onto damaging autoreactive B cells in their blood and destroy them. This results in a "reboot" for the immune system. Uresa's symptoms began in fall 2022 with migraines, exhaustion, joint and muscle pain and the red butterfly rash on the face that is typical for lupus. She had a high temperature, not enough red blood pigment and decreased levels of certain proteins that play a role in immune response and higher levels of lupus-specific autoantibodies that were attacking her healthy tissue. The SLE diagnosis was confirmed in an external clinic. Several treatments with various medications followed. However, they attacked Uresa's liver. Despite intensive treatments, her condition deteriorated and her kidney levels also worsened. A kidney condition known as lupus nephritis occurs in over 50% of patients with SLE. Although SLE is not as common in children as it is in adults, the disease is often more aggressive in children. Currently available treatments are more often associated with complications and serious side effects. Dr. Krickau, who is a pediatric rheumatologist, ultimately took Uresa on as a patient at the end of 2022. "We started with the tablets and monthly intravenous therapies approved for children with the aim of suppressing her overactive immune system," he explains. "But her kidney function rapidly deteriorated. Her kidneys were unable to transport fluids out of her body and Uresa developed severe water retention that caused her legs, hands, feet and face to swell up. She also developed high blood pressure." From March 2023, she spent more time in hospital than at home. "In conjunction with the Pediatric Nephrology department, the next thing we tried was a highly immune-suppressive type of chemotherapy that can help with acute immunological kidney disease, but her condition did not improve," says Tobias Krickau. In the space of a few months, doctors had to watch how the "lupus got out of control," as Dr. Krickau says. "Our patient had an enormous amount of inflammatory messenger substances in her body. We tried flushing out the damaging autoantibodies from her blood with plasmapheresisevery day for two weeks." But Uresa's kidneys continued to deteriorate until they finally failed completely and she had to start dialysis. Uresa, who is from Upper Franconia, was in hospital on a permanent basis by this point, isolated from friends and family, which affected her badly. "I don't like hospitals, I just didn't want to be there any more," she remembers. 'I have nothing left to give her' Dr. Krickau had come to the end of the line as far as treatment options were concerned. "I have nothing left to give her"this is what Dr. Krickau said to the team at the Pediatric Oncology department when he approached them with the idea of trying CAR-T cell therapy. "Up to now, this type of immune therapy has only been used in children with cancer and there is no experience with using it to treat autoimmune diseases at this young age. This is why such an initial application requires a particularly high amount of preparation and risk assessment," explains Prof. Dr. Markus Metzler, head of Pediatric Oncology at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen. In addition, a great many organizational and legal obstacles had to be overcome. The Department of Medicine 5Hematology and Oncology at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen has a cleanroom laboratory for producing CAR-T cells as part of clinical studies and individual treatments. After discussing the case in detail with his colleagues, Prof. Mackensen agreed to produce and use CAR-T cells in the young patient. "The entire treatment team organized it all alongside their regular duties at the hospital in a very short amount of time," emphasizes Dr. Krickau. "We initiated the CAR-T cell therapy for Uresa as part of an extended access program for severely ill patients in accordance with the German Medicinal Products Act and the Ordinance on Medicinal Products for Compassionate Use as something known as an individual treatment attempt." Since 2021, a team led by Prof. Dr. Georg Schett, Director of the Department of Medicine 3Rheumatology and Immunology and Co-Speaker of the DZI, and Prof. Mackensen have successfully treated patients with various autoimmune diseases (including SLE) using CAR-T cells. In February 2024, the team presented 15 cases as part of a pilot study in the New England Journal of Medicine; the CASTLE study with 24 participants is currently ongoing. All those who received treatment are wellthey are either healthy or have significantly fewer symptoms. This is ultimately what led the team to agree to treat Uresa. "PD Dr. Fabian Muller, senior physician at the Department of Medicine 5 and Prof. Schett explained to us how effective the treatment is in adults and how they thought it had potential for Uresa," says her mother Albana A. "But I was scared of losing her. She convinced me herself and said 'I want to do this, you have to sign the form!' The whole team worked really hard and did everything for my daughter," she remembers. Overview of the course of treatment with CAR T-cell therapy and disease activity. Credit: The Lancet (2024). DOI: 10.1016/S0140-6736(24)00424-0 No previous treatment had been as effective Uresa was given a mild course of chemotherapy to prepare for the treatment that made some space for the CAR-T cells in her blood at the BMT ward of the Department of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. "The trick was to strike a balance between ensuring that the chemotherapy was working properly and was not being immediately flushed out by the dialysis on one hand, and making sure that the remaining kidney function was not being put at risk on the other," explains pediatric oncologist Prof. Metzler. The big day came on June 26, 2023: Uresa was transferred from the pediatric oncology department to the Department of Medicine 5 and received the CAR-T cells specially modified for her. "Her kidney and lupus values improved from the third week after the treatment, " says Dr. Krickau. "We had never achieved that with any medication previously." All her symptoms gradually disappeared. At the end of July 2023, Uresa was finally able to go home and she completed her school leaving certificate. Her aim is to complete an apprenticeship in the automotive trade, move out of home soon, and get a dog. She is very happy that she can meet up with friends again, go out and lead the life of a normal teenager. "There are still a large number of the CAR-T cells in her blood. Because they have not only eliminated damaging B cells, but also healthy ones, they are now missing, which means Uresa's body can't defend itself properly against certain infections," explains Prof. Mackensen. Until her own B cells return, Uresa therefore receives vital antibodies intravenously every four weeks at Universitatsklinikum Erlangen. "We were able to prevent any permanent damage to her organs because we decided to carry out the CAR-T cell therapy so early on," says Dr. Krickau. "This success was only possible because of the way in which the physicians from several disciplines at Deutsche Zentrum Immuntherapie work closely together," emphasizes Prof. Schett. Apart from the monthly IV of immunoglobulin, Uresa no longer needs any medication or dialysis. "She was seriously ill and her kidneys have now fully recovered, something nobody believed could happen to this extent," says Dr. Krickau. In conjunction with the pediatric oncology department, pediatric rheumatologist Krickau is now planning a study with other children and teenagers with autoimmune diseases where he hopes to use the great potential of CAR-T cells in pediatric rheumatology. The federal government has awarded $800,000 to the Montana Department of Labor and Industry for people affected by the closures of Pyramid Mountain Lumber and Roseburg Forest Products. The U.S. Department of Labor sent the money as a part of the National Dislocated Worker Grant, which gives assistance to "areas experiencing a major economic dislocation event," according to the Department of Labor. The money will move into seven counties and two reservations as some employees seek to relocate toward industrial hubs. More than 250 people have been or will be laid off by Pyramid and Roseburg this year. In March, Pyramid announced plans to close its doors for good after struggling to find housing for its employees. The mill ran its final logs through the sawmill last week as it winds down operations. Pyramid has been in operation for the last 75 years and has been Seeley Lake's largest employer for decades. The mill's closure could cause an economic backslide in the small mountain community, while also rattling the state's wood products industry. Missoula-based Roseburg announced it would close in May, just days after the Pyramid news. The $800,000 will go to Missoula, Flathead, Lake, Lincoln, Mineral, Powell and Sanders counties, as well as the Confederated Salish and Kootenai and Blackfeet tribes. In April, the state labor department announced a new program to help reemploy timber workers though a skills matching dashboard. Here are some of the headlines from this past week in the Missoulian. To read the full stories, click the link on each headline: As floating season gets in full swing, Mountain Line wants to remind Missoulians of a lesser-known stop for the Missoula city bus service that drops floaters at a popular starting point in the Clark Fork River. The bus service has a stop at the Sha-Ron parking lot as part of the existing Route 4 line between downtown Missoula and Bonner, according to Mountain Line Interim Executive Director Jennifer Sweten, offering an alternative to the canceled University of Montana shuttle. She said in a call with the Missoulian that the line has been used for years as a drop-off point, but with the popular UDASH shuttle between the university and Sha-Ron, the option has been relatively unknown. The university announced in June that the shuttle will not run this summer because of driver staffing shortages. "This is not a change, but we want to make sure people know that this is an option," Sweten said. Sweten said Mountain Line has been working with Montana Fish, Wildlife and Parks and the Clark Fork River Ambassadors to provide the service. The Sha-Ron site has boomed in popularity the last several years. In 2023, a new parking lot was built to accommodate the floaters, but lines of cars along Highway 200 still congest the area. There are a wide variety of public infrastructure and private redevelopment projects that the Missoula Redevelopment Agency is hoping to push forward in the coming years, including a major rehab of the riverbank near downtown and possibly a new project at the Riverfront Triangle, MRA executive director Ellen Buchanan told the city council last week. She said that the Agency is continuing to work to entice developers to work with the city on coming up with a plan to develop the Riverfront Triangle, which sits inside an Urban Renewal District on the northwest corner of Front and Orange streets. It has been mostly vacant for decades, and several large projects to redevelop the site and increase the property tax base have fallen through. "We don't have a lot of money in that district," Buchanan said. "We do have some revenue. We are actively working with a group of developers on the city's 3 acres in Riverfront Triangle and we're trying to work though how we get the infrastructure in place that would be needed for a project to be built there." The city owns a portion, while private property owners own a big chunk as well. When Tanya Plainfeather-Gardner approached Trey Hill, her ceramics professor at the University of Montana, about creating 500 porcelain elk tooth replicas for an elk-tooth dress, he was cautiously optimistic. Making teeth sounded like something they could do, but 500 was a lot to make. Plainfeather-Gardner had never done anything like this before, and Hill estimated the project would take her at least the entire semester. She told him that even if she couldnt make 500 teeth in time for graduation, shed use whatever she had for the dress. That way, the project would still be a success, even if she fell short of her target. That wasnt necessary. Plainfeather-Gardner hit her goal in one weekend. I started molding, and I was like, Trey, I have 500, Plainfeather-Gardner recalled, laughing. And hes like, Oh, you werent kidding, huh? She didnt stop there. Over the course of her final semester of college, Plainfeather-Gardner, who is Crow, handmade about 1,500 porcelain elk teeth, 900 of which were used to create an elk-tooth dress. Pyramid Mountain Lumber is closer to full closure after running its last logs through the sawmill on Tuesday, silencing some of the giant machinery that has run for decades. The last mill in Missoula County announced its impending closure in March after suffering from a multi-year labor shortage and a drop in the value of timber products. Approximately 10 people were expected to be let go by the company this week, said Pyramid General Manager Todd Johnson. Those employees and future layoffs will receive severance packages, he added. "We took our last logs in March, that was step one. Today is step two," Johnson said in a phone call on Tuesday. "Every step you take closer to the closure brings a reality check to the situation." A proponent of conservation and education, 92-year-old Betty Thisted is an advocate for the importance of both. The former Frenchtown high school biology teacher owns 622 acres in the Ninemile Valley and Lolo National Forest area. The land is covered by several conservation easements and has been in the Thisted family since 1938. Well, I'm a teacher. You never quit teaching, Thisted said during a recent school field trip at her property. So what I want to do is use all of this land that I own. It's not huge, but it's significant for its own purposes. Over the years, the land has become a field trip area for students of all ages to explore and learn more about the importance of conservation and agriculture in the valley. The newest group to explore the area was a group of sixth to eighth graders participating in the STEEM Collaborative program through the Montana Natural History Center. The group of middle schoolers took a bus up to the area on June 20. A man doing research at the University of Montana admitted to falsifying documents related to a federal investigation, the U.S. Attorneys Office announced. The defendant, Braxton A. Norwood, 43, from Marburg, Germany, pleaded guilty on June 27 to falsification of records in a federal investigation, according to court filings and a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office. Sentencing is scheduled for Oct. 30 in front of U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. Norwood faces a maximum possible penalty of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and at least three years of supervised release. Norwood was the owner and CEO of Expesicor LLC, which conducted neurological disorder research at UMs campus in Missoula. The company received federal dollars from the National Institutes of Health (an agency of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). Norwoods position directed projects for federal research grants given to Expesicor. BUTTE Complexities bedevil Superfund cleanup of the Clark Fork River. In some ways, as the work has progressed, the challenges have become thicker than a thriving stand of riparian willows. Money is tight, for one thing. That means more of the contaminated soils and tailings from historic mining and smelting upstream will be left in place. The primary state agencies leading the cleanup the Montana Department of Environmental Quality and the Natural Resource Damage Program have learned from the sections remediated to date that wholesale removal of soils and vegetation isnt always the best course. One wag called that method the Walmart parking lot approach. It removed undercut banks, willows, water birch and other habitat important to brown trout and other wildlife. The population of brown trout in the upper, remediated reaches of the Clark Fork River has plummeted, even as water quality has improved. Now, to preserve habitat for fish and other wildlife and provide a source of seeds for ongoing revegetation, the agencies strive to preserve healthy stands of metals-tolerant riparian vegetation whenever possible. But that adjustment carries its own complexities. If you opt to leave vegetation rooted in contaminated tailings and the river channel shifts, as river channels do, the pollution could be re-entrained. It definitely is a cost-benefits analysis, said Jessica Banaszak, a project manager for DEQ. A resident of a Missoula affordable housing complex recently celebrated her 100th birthday, a dramatic triumph for someone who escaped war and repression. The story of her second chance in life, and the new life she found in Missoula, is also closely intertwined with the services offered by the nonprofit that provides housing to her and many other low-income residents of the city. Xong Xiong (her first name is pronounced "song") is a Hmong immigrant from Laos who came to the United States as a refugee in 1978. The Vietnam War, the Laotian Civil War and ethnic repression in Laos were devastating for the Hmong minority. Many Hmong refugees were resettled by the International Rescue Committee in the Missoula area during that era and theyre now a thriving community here. Xiong said she was "very poor" when she moved here, but she found work as a dishwasher and in food service for many years. Housing would have been a huge struggle for her, but she was able to secure an apartment at the Council Groves Apartments, which were built starting in 1972. For 52 years, the 72-unit complex has been serving people who are classified as either very low or "extremely low income by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, which means the residents are often homeless when they arrive. In his memoir, "The Right Kind of White," an author who grew up in Montana with a do-gooder spirit examines his life. Thomas Plank, for the Missoulian Missoula's community cinema is presenting Emma Stone's follow-up to "Poor Things," Mia Goth's horror trilogy finale, and "2001: A Space Odyssey." Charlotte Macorn, for the Missoulian While First Friday happens to fall the day after the Fourth of July, galleries and museums will have their doors open and art on display. This is the last art walk to see a few big shows before they come down, and the first chance to see some fresh selections. Andrew Bird and Nickel Creek start off Big Sky Brewing's concert season and two different (and unusual) traveling circuses stop in town. There's a new healing arts center in downtown Missoula with a cacao bar. There's also going to be a new splash pad for kids in town. A former Blackfeet official was sentenced to five months in federal prison for stealing more than $70,000 in federal dollars allocated to the tribe for COVID-19 response supplies, court filings show. James C. McNeely pleaded guilty in January to one count of theft from an Indian tribal government receiving federal funding, according to federal court documents. He was sentenced by a federal judge on June 18 to five months in prison, which will be followed by two years of supervised release. McNeely was also ordered to pay $78,775.76 in restitution. McNeely previously worked as the tribes operations manager and public information officer. It's a common refrain across the West each summer, echoing through hotel lobbies, cafes, bike shops and gear stores: "Where's all this smoke coming from?" A fire maybe near, maybe far clouds Montana's Big Sky and leaves visitors wondering whether their plans are ruined, or whether they should cancel their trip to the state altogether. Is it safe to recreate outside? Will they see anything? Is Glacier National Park even open? Western Montana's Glacier Country the state's official tourism organization for Ravalli, Missoula, Lake, Sanders, Mineral, Lincoln, Flathead and Glacier counties hopes to help frontline tourism and hospitality workers answer those questions with a new educational initiative branded "Don't Add Fuel to the Fire." The free 20-minute online course advises workers who interact with visitors to Montana on where to find accurate and detailed information about wildfires and smoke, and how to relay that to the public. Often, the course stresses, Montana's vaunted public lands and recreation opportunities remain mostly open to visitors, even when social media is flooded with photos of billowing infernos. Outdoor burning has closed in Missoula County as fire officials anticipate a shift to hot, dry and windy summertime weather coinciding with the Fourth of July holiday. The Missoula County Fire Protection Association, a consortium of local governments, fire agencies and land management agencies, announced Monday that opening burning fires larger than 48 inches across would be prohibited starting Tuesday, July 2. Open burning includes agricultural burning, prescribed fire and general debris burning, but not campfires, warming fires or cooking fires smaller than 48 inches across. Open burning closed July 3 last year. "The outdoor burning seasons have been open for four months, with pockets of good burning weather throughout. Spring burning should be complete by now," Ashley Burwick, Missoula Unit fire management officer with the state Department of Natural Resources and Conservation, stated in Monday's announcement. "With weather trending hotter and drier, grasses beginning to dry out, and many firefighting resources helping neighboring regions, it is time to restrict the risk of human-caused starts due to open burning and focus available resources on fire season readiness." Missoula's County Commissioners purchased the Walla Walla University social work building on Mullan Road on Tuesday to house part of the county sheriff's department. The county approved spending roughly $2 million of its cash reserve funds to secure the building at 2415 Mullan Road. "There have been (sheriff) space issues for so long, and I thought it would be decades before we ever dealt with it, but this came along so soon," Commissioner Juanita Vero said. The new sheriff's office will be used for detective operations and administrative staff. The space will operate across the street from the county detention center, making the site ideal for a purchase, according to county chief administrative officer Chris Lounsbury. Missoula's County Commissioners approved a 3% cost of living raise for most elected officials within the county, including the top attorney, sheriff and all three commissioners. State law requires the county to form a compensation board each year to determine pay increases around the region while also comparing their pay rates to similar counties. That board requested a 3% increase, which Missoula County Chief Administrative Officer Chris Lounsbury said matches the increase non-union county employees will see next year. Missoulians got a reminder Monday afternoon that wildfire season has begun, with smoke visible from town as a small blaze burned in the North Hills. Firefighters were dispatched at around 3:30 p.m. to respond to a brush fire along Grant Creek Road. The Missoula Fire Department wrote on social media that no more reports of smoke from the fire were needed, as fire crews had already responded. The fire was contained by about 6 p.m., according to an update from the department. Montana will see $41 million in federal dollars for a technology hub that will have a mandate to help the United States develop "smart optical sensing technologies," according to Sen. Jon Tester. Tester announced Tuesday that the Headwaters Tech Hub, which is being developed in Montana, is one of only 12 Regional Tech Hubs nationwide to get a Phase 2 investment under the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022. That legislation was billed as a big federal incentive to lure certain industries back to the U.S., such as chip-making, rather than relying on China. Tester's office said that the "smart optical sensing technologies" developed in Montana will "address pressing priorities such as autonomous systems, national defense, precision agriculture and critical resource management." It's unclear exactly how the money will be spent and exactly what types of jobs will be created in Montana. In other states, specific U.S. companies have been named as recipients of CHIPS and Science Act funding, but it's been a little more vague in Montana. A Missoula business owner is facing a sexual assault allegation, though details about the incident included in court documents are sparse. Drake E. Doepke is cited with misdemeanor sexual assault, Missoula city court filings show. Hes pleaded not guilty to the charge, which was initially filed in May. The charging documents allege Doepke assaulted a woman in early April by inappropriately touching her at a downtown bar on South Higgins Avenue. Missoula attorney Dwight Schulte is defending Doepke and the Missoula City Attorneys Office is prosecuting the case. Mr. Doepke is presumed innocent, and he looks forward to his day in court to present the facts, Schulte said in a phone call with the Missoulian. Human remains were discovered in a rural area west of Missoula over the weekend, the Missoula County Sheriffs Office said Monday. Detectives were unable to immediately identify the remains, which were found Saturday afternoon along Deep Creek Road, according to an update from the sheriffs office published on Facebook. The road runs through a mountainous area to the north and west of Blue Mountain. No further details were provided in the social media post. A sheriffs office spokesperson did not immediately respond to a phone call Monday requesting more information. People in northwest Montana will have a second choice for the Public Service Commission after a Missoula resident successfully gained enough signatures to run as an independent candidate. Elena Evans, a Missoula County employee, submitted more than 5,200 signatures to the county election center in June. State law requires 3,050 to make the ballot. The Montana Secretary of State's office confirmed to the Missoulian on Monday that the office has verified more than 5,000 signatures, but an exact number was not available. BILLINGS In a convention that felt tamer than two years ago when the Montana Republican Party had sharp debates over how to deal with things like abortion access, the state GOP set its party platform over the weekend. The convention made several changes that reflected the partys sharp criticism of Montanas judiciary and added language to reflect other stances such as the opposition to ranked-choice voting, all while managing long-simmering divisions within the group. I think it's time that we take our platform seriously, and we require people to abide by it. Thats all, former state Rep. Brad Tschida, a Missoula Republican, said to applause at the close of the convention Saturday afternoon. If they don't want to, I don't have any hard feelings. I think what we need to have them do is to run as an independent, run as a Libertarian, run as a Green Party member, but don't put an R after your name. Some of the more pointed debates were muted this time by convention rules. Jeff Essmann, who chaired the meeting, said that any substantive changes needed to be made in individual issue, or plank, committees that met the day prior and were closed to press. Those larger changes would not be up for consideration before the whole group. Republican nominee for the U.S. Senate Tim Sheehy stepped down from his role as CEO and a board member from his Belgrade-based aerial firefighting company, Bridger Aerospace, the company announced Monday morning. Sheehy has been with the company since he co-founded it in 2014 shortly after leaving the Navy. As of late April, Sheehy had a 21.35% ownership stake in the company through his nearly 10.4 million shares, which are currently valued at roughly $36.4 million in total. Bridger Aerospace has struggled in recent months, saying it may not be able to meet its financial obligations. Its stock has declined nearly 50% this year. In 2023, Sheehy made $2.46 million from Bridger Aerospace. Nearly all of that income $2.3 million came from a bonus, according to public financial filings. Sheehy was also granted a stock award valued at $17.75 million in 2023, but returned it to the company. According to the press release, a new board member and an interim CEO have been appointed, and the company's board will also start the search for a permanent CEO. Missoulas newest expanded child care facility opened on Monday, with renovations now allowing the Missoula Family YMCA to serve nearly 100 kids. The building will offer licensed child care options for children up to 5 years old to combat Missoulas child care shortage. It has the space to host 94 children, which is about double the Ys previous capacity, according to Heather Foster, CEO of the Missoula Family YMCA. One of the best ways to set children up for future success is through early education child care programs. The Y has been a champion of quality, affordable child care for more than 20 years, and were committed to addressing our communitys need for reliable child care options, Foster said in the news release. The new building will allow us to increase the number of children served through the program. For the second time in two weeks, a person has been caught on surveillance camera ripping down a Pride flag from a downtown Missoula business. The Import Market, a retail business located across the street from the Missoula County Courthouse on West Broadway in Missoula, posted the video on social media last week. The video clearly shows a man jumping up to grab the Pride flag, ripping it off the awning and stuffing it in a nearby trash can. Two weeks earlier, on June 12, the business had posted a video of a group of people ripping down a pride flag and stuffing it into the trash can. Lake County officials have identified a boater who is presumed to have drowned after he was last seen on Flathead Lake last week. Chad Hansen, 34, of Missoula, was last seen by witnesses on the evening of June 27, near the Narrows between Finley Point and the islands north of Polson, according to Lake County Sheriff Don Bell. The witnesses attempted to reach Hansen but were unable to before he disappeared from sight, Bell said. Search-and-rescue teams from Lake, Flathead and Missoula counties, along with a team from Idaho, were unable to find Hansens body using sonar and divers, Bell said. Hansen had not been wearing a life jacket when he was last spotted, according to the witnesses. Matthew OReilly isnt afraid of being a little irreverent. The Canadian artist, whos spent the past two years as a resident at the Clay Studio of Missoula, likes to make functional work and sculptures that lean into the grotesque and satirical. He wants to get a chuckle that helps the deeper material go down more smoothly. In Shed Light, his show thats just wrapped up his time at the nonprofit clay center, he sculpted statuesque male heads with everyday names like Max and Jim. Some of them are standalone busts, or vases, even lamps. He built a functional throne thats occupied by three cats with human heads. I deal with some heavier themes around suffering and human experience and hard emotions, and then I find humor, the grotesque in particular, is really disarming, and it allows people to have a conversation about something without raising all these guards we have, he said. He sculpted busts of stern-looking men that make you think of the long history of masculine rulers and patriarchy. Some of them have goofy expressions. Some are mournful, scowling, surprised or elated. Chief Petty Officer Jeffrey Gaston, a native of Superior, serves the U.S. Navy assigned to Trident Training Facility Bangor at Naval Base Kitsap, homeport of West Coast ballistic-missile and guided-missile submarines. Gaston graduated from Superior High School in 2006. The skills and values needed to succeed in the Navy are similar to those found in Superior. Growing up, I learned that family is the most important thing, said Gaston. I joined the silent service because of the small-town mentality. Submarine crews are a small, very tight-knit community. Being able to take care of anything that comes your way, being independent and thinking about how to solve problems quickly is another thing I learned. Gaston joined the Navy 13 years ago. Today, Gaston serves as an electricians mate (nuclear). The military has been a part of my family since the Civil War and I wanted to continue that tradition in a branch my family hadnt served in for decades, said Gaston. My dad was Air Force, my grandpa was in the Coast Guard during the Vietnam War, my great-grandpa was in the Army and my brother has been in the Army for 14 years. Hes stationed at Joint Base Lewis McChord in Tacoma. I joined the Navy to travel the world and meet new people from across America. Navy Office of Community Outreach Nominated Senator Karen Nyamu expressed bewilderment over Law Society of Kenya (LSK) President Faith Odhiambos decision to decline President William Rutos appointment to a task force tasked with auditing the countrys public debt. Nyamu, known for courting controversy, criticized Odhiambo for rejecting an opportunity to serve the interests of Kenyans. Im not sure the rationale for LSK president Faith Odhiambo to decline the Presidents appointment to the taskforce that will conduct a forensic audit of Public Debt, Nyamu stated. She has turned down an opportunity for Kenyan interests to be represented by the premier bar association, Nyamu added. The LSK, in its response to Rutos appointment, cited constitutional concerns, particularly underlining that auditing public debt falls within the purview of the Auditor-General as stipulated in Article 229 of the Constitution. Florence Muturi, LSK Secretary, highlighted this constitutional provision and the judiciarys interpretation, asserting the task forces establishment as unconstitutional. The Law Society of Kenya Council has therefore resolved that neither our president nor any of our members shall accept appointments or participate in the said task force, the LSK statement clarified. Additionally, the LSK cautioned against the task forces potential financial burden on already strained public resources. Karen Nyamu, however, took issue with Faith Odhiambos stance, interpreting her refusal as a lack of enthusiasm in addressing Kenyas significant debt crisis. Nyamu emphasized the severity of Kenyas debt challenges, labeling them as crucial obstacles to the countrys development trajectory. She expressed disappointment that Odhiambo did not seize the opportunity to contribute to the initial steps aimed at resolving the crisis. Public debt is a momentous challenge we face as a country and Im somewhat disappointed that she wasnt eager to be part of the first step to figuring it out, Nyamu remarked critically. Nyamus comments reflect ongoing debates about the proper channels for addressing national economic issues and the roles of constitutional bodies in safeguarding public interests. The controversy surrounding the task force appointment underscores broader concerns over governance, constitutional interpretation, and the responsibilities of professional bodies in national affairs. Kenyans Respond to Karen Nyamus Criticism of LSK President Faith Odhiambo Iraq Retrieves Smuggled Mesopotamian Treasures The artefacts were displayed at the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Baghdad. ( The National) Iraq has recovered 181 artefacts that had been smuggled out of the country, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said on Monday. The ancient artefacts were handed over to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism, and Antiquities by the Foreign Ministry at a ceremony in Baghdad. Among them were a bronze statue of a man and eight metal boxes containing skeletons. The skeletons are from the ancient Assyrian city of Nimrud outside the present-day city of Mosul in northern Iraq, it said, adding that they had been taken to Los Angeles in the 1990s. The Assyrians arose around 2,500BC in northern Iraq and at one point ruled over a realm stretching from the Mediterranean coast to Iran. No details about the other artefacts were made public. The pieces were retrieved from US, UK, Norway, Germany and Jordan, the ministry added. The recovery of antiquities was announced after a trip by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia' Al Sudani in April. Modern Iraq is the site of the world's first civilisations. They span 7,000 years of Mesopotamian history, including the ancient Babylonians, Sumerians and Assyrians. It has nearly 25,000 known archaeological sites, most badly affected by decades of war, lack of security and mismanagement. After the 1991 Gulf War, when a US-led international coalition drove Saddam Hussein's army from Kuwait and the UN imposed economic sanctions, illegal archaeological digs became widespread, mainly in remote areas that troops were unable to secure. With the fall of Baghdad during the 2003 US-led invasion that toppled Saddam's government, looters broke into the Iraqi National Museum, walking off with thousands of priceless artefacts and leaving the floor littered with shattered pottery. Only a few thousand have been retrieved. Since then, looters continued digging in thousands of unprotected archaeological sites nationwide, leading to hundreds of pieces showing up on the international market. With the help of the international community, Iraq has managed to retrieve thousands of pieces of its stolen heritage from different countries. More important artefacts will return this month from Switzerland as well as a "rare archaeological collection" from Japan, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said on Monday in the statement without elaborating. Hungary PM Orban arrives in Beijing The Foreign Ministry says Viktor Orban would meet President Xi Jinping "for in-depth communication on issues of mutual interest". File photo: AFP Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Monday he had arrived in Beijing on "Peace mission 3.0" after recent visits to Moscow and Kyiv. Orban was greeted at the airport by Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying, according to a photo he posted on social media platform X. His arrival in Beijing follows surprise visits to Russia and Ukraine in the past week since Hungary took over the European Union's rotating presidency at the start of July. Orban, the friendliest EU leader towards Moscow, held talks with President Vladimir Putin on Friday about the war in Ukraine during a trip criticised by both Kyiv and the EU, which said it threatened to undermine the bloc's stance on the conflict. His visit also came days before a Nato summit that will address further military aid for Ukraine against what the Western defence alliance has called Russia's "unprovoked war of aggression". In a short statement, the Foreign Ministry said the Hungarian leader would meet President Xi Jinping on Monday "for in-depth communication on issues of mutual interest". Hungary, under Orban, has become an important trade and investment partner for China, in contrast with some other EU nations. (AFP/Reuters) Chancellor Austin A. Lane was recognized July 9 by the Illinois FFA for outstanding service to agricultural education and FFA programs with an Honorary State Degree at the Illinois FFA Association State Officer meeting on campus. (Photo by Russell Bailey) Illinois FFA to bestow award on SIU Carbondale chancellor by Tim Crosby (Note: Story is updated to include a photo of Chancellor Lane with Illinois FFA officers) CARBONDALE, Ill. Southern Illinois University Carbondale Chancellor Austin A. Lane will receive an award from a major agriculture organization when it meets at SIU on Tuesday, July 9. Illinois FFA will present Lane with an Honorary State Degree during the Illinois FFA Association State Officer meeting. The meeting, which begins at 9 a.m. in Room 209 in the Agriculture Building, also will include 30 FFA officers representing each geographic area of the state preparing for the upcoming year and receiving training for their new leadership roles. Chancellor Lane has continued to connect with each group of FFA members that attend events on SIUs campus, and he has proven the commitment of SIU leadership to uphold SIUs reputation as a leading supporter of Illinois FFA and the next generation of agricultural leaders, said John Edgar, assistant executive director of Illinois FFA and a two-degree alumnus of SIU. We are excited to present this award to Chancellor Lane and recognize SIUs support of Illinois FFA over the years. Media availability Reporters, photographers and news crews are invited to cover Illinois FFAs presentation of its award to Chancellor Austin A. Lane at 11 a.m. Tuesday, July 9, in Room 209 at the Agriculture Building on the SIU campus, where he will also greet new FFA officers. Lane is one of 29 recipients of this years FFAs Honorary State Degree, the organizations highest recognition for outstanding service to agricultural education and FFA programs. During the meeting, five newly elected major state FFA officers will join 25 section presidents, each elected by about 15 local FFA chapters to represent their geographic region of the state. SIU has played host to this annual meeting for more than 10 years, Edgar said. The event showcases the many opportunities SIU has to offer while reinforcing SIUs commitment to the agricultural industry and the next generation of leaders, Edgar said. Allosteric modulators are not common yet, and theyre a lot more difficult to discover and to work with, he said. Compound 368 is the first known allosteric modulator that can help turn off opioid receptors. The researchers picked out compound 368 from a library of 4.5 billion compounds. Using advanced high-throughput techniques, they were able to screen the entire molecular library in just two days. To identify potential allosteric modulators that could cooperate with naloxone, they selected for compounds that bind only to receptors already saturated with naloxone. Compound 368 an otherwise rather unremarkable compound, OBrien said stood out for its ability to tightly bind to opioid receptors only in the presence of naloxone. Like a loyal sidekick, it doesnt work with other drugs, and it doesnt work alone. Powers combined When researchers exposed cells with opioid receptors to compound 368, they found that the compound alone made little difference. But when cells were given the compound with naloxone, the combination was a powerful deterrent against opioid binding. The more compound 368 they added, the better naloxone was able to block opioids, including morphine and fentanyl. The compound itself doesnt bind well without naloxone, OBrien said. We think naloxone has to bind first, and then compound 368 is able to come in and cap it in place. Indeed, using cryoEM imaging to visualize frozen molecular structures, the researchers found that compound 368 docks right next to naloxone on the opioid receptor, forming bonds that secure the drug in place and slow its natural degradation by the body. Boosting naloxone Next, collaborators in McLaughlins lab tested the new compound in mice that had been given morphine. Because opioids reduce pain sensation, the researchers observed how quickly a mouse removed its tail from hot water. The stronger the opioid antidote, the faster a mouse would take its tail out of the water. When mice on morphine were treated with compound 368 alone, nothing changed. The compound in mice, at least from the assays weve run, does nothing on its own, OBrien said. We dont observe any off-target effects. We dont see anything happen to the mice even when we inject a massive amount of compound 368. This was exactly what the researchers had predicted from their molecular work and a good sign of the compounds safety, he added. The more tools at our disposal, the better well be able to fight this epidemic of fentanyl overdoses. When they also gave the mice a small dose of naloxone an amount that typically would have no effect the pairing with compound 368 dramatically improved naloxones effects. When we start to give them more and more of compound 368 with that low dose of naloxone, they take their tail out of the water pretty quickly, OBrien said. Other effects of opioids, such as respiratory depression (the usual cause of death in opioid overdoses), were also reversed by a small dose of naloxone enhanced with the new compound. Remarkably, the combination of compound 368 with a half dose of naloxone was strong enough to counter fentanyl, which is about 100 times more potent than morphine and the main culprit of overdoses in the United States. By requiring less naloxone, the new compound could also ease the withdrawal symptoms that opioid users experience after overdose treatment. These symptoms including body aches, shivering, nausea and diarrhea are immediate and can be extremely uncomfortable, OBrien said. The researchers found that a low dose of naloxone plus compound 368 could reverse the effects of opioids with much milder withdrawal symptoms in mice, this meant less teeth chattering, jumping and diarrhea. Saving lives The team, with the Majumdar labs expertise in medicinal chemistry, is now tweaking compound 368 so it can help naloxone counter strong opioids for longer durations. Were still working on optimizing the compounds properties for those longer-lasting effects, OBrien said. But first showing that it works cooperatively with these low doses of naloxone suggests that were on the right track. OBrien is optimistic that this track will lead to trials in humans. Overdoses from synthetic opioids, primarily fentanyl, continue to surge, killing nearly 74,000 Americans in 2022. The more tools at our disposal, the better well be able to fight this epidemic of fentanyl overdoses, he said. Researchers from Kurume University, SLAC National Acceleration Laboratory, Princeton University and University of Copenhagen also contributed to the work. The study received funding from an American Diabetes Association Postdoctoral Fellowship, an American Heart Association Postdoctoral Fellowship, the National Institute of Health (grant RO1DA057790) and the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub. PNN Chandigarh (Punjab) [India], July 8: Chitkara University, through its knowledge partnership with EY, introduces a pioneering online MBA program in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence - the first of its kind in India. This forward-thinking initiative equips future leaders with vital Data Science and AI proficiencies, empowering them to drive innovation and organizational success through data-driven decision-making, meeting the rapidly evolving demands of the digital age. Leveraging EY's global competence, the online MBA in Data Science and AI offers a meticulously crafted curriculum that seamlessly integrates rigorous academic training with invaluable practical insights from seasoned industry experts. This unique program combines business education with training in Data Science, machine learning, and AI, enabling students to effectively navigate complex business scenarios by leveraging the transformative power of these technologies to achieve sustainable competitive advantages. "Chitkara University's online MBA in Data Science and AI, in collaboration with EY India as our knowledge partner, is a pioneering program engineered to meet the evolving needs of the digital era head-on," said Dr Madhu Chitkara, Pro-Chancellor of Chitkara University Punjab and Chitkara University Himachal Pradesh. "By harmonizing academic rigor with real-world expertise, offering extensive learning opportunities, and providing comprehensive placement support, we are paving the way for a new generation of data-savvy leaders who will drive innovation and efficiency in a data-driven world." The program's unique selling point is its immersive learning experience, featuring masterclass sessions led by industry experts in Data Science and AI from EY India. These interactive sessions provide students exclusive access to cutting-edge knowledge and insights, keeping them updated with industry trends and best practices. Recognizing the pivotal role of strategic career guidance, the online MBA in Data Science and AI provides comprehensive placement support, including customized resume-building workshops and interview preparation sessions. This holistic approach empowers graduates to confidently navigate the job market and secure coveted roles at the intersection of business and technology. Students will have access to specialized courses from LinkedIn Learning and Coursera, covering diverse topics in Data Science and AI. This collaboration ensures a well-rounded education, integrating theory with practical applications. The program also includes access to Harvard Business Publishing's global case studies, allowing students to understand the real-world implications of their learning and how to apply their knowledge in business contexts. This exposure to best practices prepares students for diverse professional environments. With its pioneering vision and industry-validated curriculum, the Chitkara University online MBA in Data Science and AI is poised to reshape the educational landscape, producing a new breed of data-driven leaders who will chart the course for organizational success in the digital era. To learn more about the online MBA in Data Science and AI in Knowledge Partnership with EY, visit www.onlinechitkarau.com Chitkara University: Chitkara University is a private university located in Rajpura, Punjab, India. It offers undergraduate programs, post-graduate program and doctoral programs in fields like Engineering, Management, Pharmacy and other courses in Health Sciences, Nursing, Hospitality, Art & Design, and Education. Chitkara University was founded by the Punjab State Legislature under "The Chitkara University Act" in 2010. The university comes under the establishment of the Chitkara Educational Trust based in Chandigarh and founded by Dr Ashok K Chitkara and Dr Madhu Chitkara in 1998. EY: EY exists to build a better working world, helping to create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets. Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate. Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today. EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com. (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) PRNewswire Nashik (Maharashtra) [India], July 8: Cupid Limited, a renowned exporter of premium condoms, is excited to announce the grand opening of its new Mother Warehouse in Bhiwandi, Mumbai. This strategic initiative is in response to the remarkable growth of its business-to-consumer segment. Launched just six months ago, Cupid's consumer business, under the brand names 'Cupid', 'Cupisure', and 'Cupikit', has already made a substantial impact, contributing over 14 per cent to the company's total revenue. The 'Cupid' brand encompasses condoms, deodorants, and other personal care products, while 'Cupikit' focuses on rapid IVD products, and 'Cupisure' offers pregnancy detection kits. The new Mother Warehouse underscores Cupid Limited's commitment to meeting the soaring demand for its products. Currently available in 50,000 outlets, the company aims to double this number within six months. This expansion will not only increase product accessibility for consumers but also solidify Cupid Limited's market position. "We are thrilled with the overwhelmingly positive response to our consumer business in such a short time. The opening of our new Mother Warehouse demonstrates our dedication to meeting customer needs, ensuring product availability in more locations, and enhancing our value chain," said Aditya Halwasiya, Managing Director, Cupid Limited. With this strategic expansion, Cupid Limited is set for continued growth and success in the consumer-branded business sector. Stay tuned for more exciting developments as Cupid Limited continues to innovate and expand its product offerings, bringing new and exciting products to our customers. About Cupid Limited: Established in 1993, CUPID Limited is India's premier manufacturer of male and female condoms, water-based lubricant jelly, IVD kits and Deodorants. The company boasts a production capacity of up to 480 million male condoms, 52 million female condoms, 210 million sachets of lubricant jelly and 30 million IVD Test Kits annually. The company has recently launched its line of CUPID Deodorants and Pocket Perfumes. In March 2024, the company completed a strategic land acquisition in Palava, Maharashtra, enabling it to amplify its production capacity by 1.5 times the existing output. As a result, the annual production capacity will be augmented by approximately 770 million male condoms and 75 million female condoms. This expansion is in addition to the current production capacity. The company has a prominent presence in international markets and is the first company in the world to attain WHO/UNFPA pre-qualification for male and female condoms. CUPID currently exports its products to over 105 countries, with over 90 per cent of its revenue generated from international markets. Furthermore, CUPID has established a long-term agreement with WHO/UNFPA. The company is listed on BSE (BSE: 530843) and NSE (NSE: CUPID). (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) Recognizing the critical role of MSMEs, SBI Research has advocated for a dedicated Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme tailored specifically to their unique needs, which could further enhance their sectoral contribution and facilitate broader economic growth across industries such as textiles, garments, food processing, electronics, and more. The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme has been instrumental in augmenting India's manufacturing capacity by attracting fresh investments and facilitating substantial economic activity. According to the SBI Research report, as of January 2024, 746 applications have been approved under the PLI scheme across 14 sectors, with an expected investment exceeding Rs 3 lakh crore. Among these, 24 per cent (176 applications) are from Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), underscoring the scheme's impact on smaller businesses. The PLI scheme has proven to be a transformative force for India's manufacturing landscape. The Production Linked Incentive (PLI) has not only attracted investments worth over Rs 1 lakh crore as of November 2023 but has also catalyzed incremental sales amounting to Rs 8.61 lakh crore. This includes an export share of around 40 per cent, reflecting the scheme's success in enhancing India's manufacturing capabilities and global market presence. Significant contributions to this growth have come from large-scale sectors such as electronics manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, food processing, and telecom products. These sectors have seen exports surpassing Rs 3.20 lakh crore, highlighting India's strengthening position in global trade and its expanding industrial base. MSMEs play a crucial role in India's economic development, contributing approximately 45 per cent to the country's exports and about 40 per cent to manufacturing Gross Value Added (GVA). The inclusion of MSMEs in the PLI scheme has been a game-changer, providing them with the necessary support to scale up their operations and enhance their market competitiveness. The PLI scheme has particularly benefited MSMEs involved in sectors such as bulk drugs, medical devices, pharmaceuticals, telecom, white goods, food processing, textiles, and drones. For instance, under the PLI scheme for food processing, there has been a significant increase in the sourcing of raw materials from Indian farmers and MSMEs. This shift has not only boosted the incomes of local producers but has also strengthened the supply chains of small and medium-sized enterprises. The PLI scheme's impact is evident across multiple sectors, each contributing uniquely to India's economic fabric. The textile industry, known for its extensive labour force and export potential, has seen substantial benefits from the PLI scheme. Increased investments and production capacities in this sector have not only boosted exports but have also created numerous employment opportunities, especially in rural and semi-urban areas. The handicraft and leather industries, which are deeply rooted in India's cultural heritage, have received a new lease on life through the PLI scheme. Enhanced production capabilities and access to international markets have empowered artisans and small business owners, fostering sustainable economic growth. The food processing sector has witnessed a surge in activity, with the PLI scheme encouraging increased domestic sourcing of raw materials. This shift has positively impacted farmers and MSMEs, creating a ripple effect that has strengthened the entire agricultural value chain. The electronics and auto components sectors have been major beneficiaries of the PLI scheme, with significant investments leading to accelerated production and exports. This has positioned India as a key player in the global supply chain, reducing dependency on imports and enhancing the country's technological prowess. Given the pivotal role that MSMEs play in India's economic landscape, there is a growing call for a separate PLI scheme tailored specifically to their needs. Such a scheme could further boost the sector's contribution to exports and manufacturing GVA, while also facilitating employment generation across diverse industries such as textiles, garments, handicrafts, food processing, leather, electronics, auto components, and bulk drugs. A dedicated PLI scheme for MSMEs would not only support their expansion but would also reduce India's dependency on imports, particularly from countries like China. By empowering MSMEs with targeted incentives and support, India can enhance its self-reliance and strengthen its position in the global market. (ANI) SMPL Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 8: Arsomaa India Private Limited, Noida based home appliances company organized its Second Meet & Greet function on 6th July. The gathering of about 100 people was attended by Company Promotors, Manufacturing Team, Key Channel Partners, Arsomaa Family Members and Media Representatives. The function was Organised with lot of warmth, energy and enthusiasm due to the grand success of the company in the first year of its operation. Addressing to the gathering Chandra Prakash Shrivastav, CEO & Director shared the snippets of journey of Arsomaa since its incorporation. The company grew its business by about 220% over last year in the first quarter of its operation in the current financial year. The selling point also increased to 137 from 23 last year as the company sold about 109 SKUs in one year. The company grew in infrastructure as well, as Arsomaa now has three offices, two warehouses, and all India service network through a third-party franchisee. Chandra Prakash Shrivastav proudly informed during the function that besides the volumetric achievements, Arsomaa managed to carve its niche in the market as "Quality Product at Affordable Price". Prakash expressed his gratitude and thanks to the manufacturing team for their excellent work on the product. Arsomaa also managed a unique distinction of working on Room Cooler business with real time Inventory. This reflects on smart coordination among sales, logistics and factory on rotation and management of inventory. Despite exponential growth in the cooler business during the selling season, the company is virtually carrying zero inventory by the end of season. The company felicitated the manufacturing team and channel partners with trophies. The Arsomaa family members were also given appreciation awards during the function. The function was attended by channel partners from Bihar, Jharkhand, and Haryana. The distributors expressed their happiness and satisfaction with the product offerings and operation of the company. Naushad Alam from Bihar, who sells the complete range of Arsomaa, expressed his happiness with product and retention. Sanjeev Kumar from Gaya and Rahul Kumar from Ara in Bihar also shared their good experience in dealing with Arsomaa. Aayan from Muzaffarpur who had vouched for the good quality and customer preference for Arsomaa Cooler over leading brands in his market during last meet, reiterated the same impression again. He himself grew by 178% over last year for Arsomaa Coolers. Deepak Prakash, Business Head for Bihar and Jharkhand expressed his gratitude to his Dealers and Distributors and Sales Team for exceptional performance in their markets. Deepak was also promoted to the level of Zonal Business Head for East India. Continuing with the trend of good performance, Chandra Prakash Shrivastav shared the company's expansion and future plans. Arsomaa is now expanding its operation to entire East India, Haryana, Gujarat, UP and Maharashtra. Abhaya Verma, promotor of the company informed in the meet how Arsomaa is focused on accessibility of Indian Customers on quality products at affordable prices. Sangeeta Shrivastava another promotor of the company shared Arsomaa's commitment towards creating job opportunity, specially at lower levels in smaller towns. The meeting was also addressed by key associates of the company like Aashna Khanna - Company Secretary, Satish Kushwaha - Chartered Accountant, Sarika Arora - Media Consultant, Markandeya Verma - Legal Advisor. The complete range of products was also put on display. For more information, please visit - * Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/arsomaa_india/ * Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61550587942751 * Linkedin - https://www.linkedin.com/company/arsomaa-india-pvt-ltd/ (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) VMPL New Delhi [India], July 8: P-TAL, an ayurvedic, artisanal brand dedicated to reviving traditional cookware, proudly announces the release of their first music video 'Bhaande Bois'. The inspiration for Bhaande Bois comes from the Punjabi word 'bhaande,' meaning utensils, and their artisans are the 'boys'. This groundbreaking video campaign, the first for a D2C brand, celebrates artisans as rock stars, shining light on their passion and cultural heritage. The song, written by Dhrruv Yogi and performed by RJ Kisna, is beautifully composed by Khwaab Music. Directed by Dawat-e-Hind and filmed by Nazaare Productions, the video highlights the remarkable skills and dedication of the artisans. It offers a refreshing, celebratory glimpse into their daily lives and work, underscoring the cultural legacy they carry forward with each handcrafted piece. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oi4ieLN9eKo Bhaande Bois is a tribute to the Thatheras of Jandiala Guru, artisans who handcraft P-TAL utensils and have the distinction of practising India's only UNESCO-listed craftform. In this unique music video, the Thatheras dress as rock stars from a band with their handcrafted utensils serving as their instruments, like a brass tawa as a guitar or a glass as a microphone. Bhaande Bois aims to capture the life of these artisans and represent them as rock stars rather than focusing on a sorrowful narrative through a beautifully composed music video. It highlights how the artisans genuinely enjoy doing what they do and love their craft, which is a part of their cultural legacy. Speaking about Bhaande Bois, Aditya Agrawal, Co-founder of P-TAL adds, "Whenever people talk about artisans, they often associate their lives with one filled with sorrow and unfulfilling lives, struggling to survive or finding a means of livelihood. At P-TAL, we believe that our artisans are not just artisans--they are true rock stars! In 'Bhaande Bois,' you will see them joyfully celebrating, and that's what we want our viewers to do as well! 'Bhaande Bois' celebrates their beautiful craft, culture, and legacy. When you purchase from artisans, it's not out of a sense of obligation but a genuine desire for their creativity. It's a choice that respects their craft and values their contribution to our cultural heritage." ABOUT P-TAL: P-TAL is an artisanal brand dedicated to modernising traditional brass, copper, and bronze cookware with rich Ayurvedic benefits. Each product is meticulously handcrafted by artisans practising India's UNESCO-listed craftform, using 100% pure A-grade metals. P-TAL supports over 80 artisan families, significantly increasing their incomes, and has earned trust among top chefs worldwide. Featured on Shark Tank India Season 3, P-TAL secured an all-shark deal, highlighting its commitment to transforming age-old traditions into contemporary kitchen trends that blend heritage craftsmanship with innovative design. Beyond preservation, P-TAL aims to make traditional items relevant and exciting for modern lifestyles. By bridging heritage with modernity, P-TAL not only preserves cultural legacies but also introduces them to a global audience. This approach ensures that each piece not only carries historical significance but also meets the demands of today's kitchen enthusiasts, making P-TAL a leader in revitalising ancient practices for the modern world. (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) PNN Pune (Maharashtra) [India], July 8: Every child is the most beautiful human for his parents. Every parent wants his child to be the most successful person in the world. But in most cases, the time crunch leaves the parents in deep grief about the development of their child. Boostmychild (BMC) has come forward to eradicate the grief of Parents. Boostmychild (BMC) is an AI-driven technology platform aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP) and National Curriculum Framework (NCF) guidelines designed for Teachers and Parents for the holistic development of early year's children (0 to 8 years). A pre-seed funding of one Rs. Crore has been invested in this venture. Chairman of Vardhan Group Nitin Jawalkar and founder of Boostmychild Vipul Joshi shared this information in a press conference. Amrita Joshi, Co-founder of Boostmychild and Prof Dr Bhavana Ambudkar, Design Thinking expert were present at the occasion. As per medical science, the brain develops after the 14th day of conceiving, when the child is in the shape of an embryo in the mother's womb. After that, every child develops differently acquiring different skills, talents, and abilities. In early childhood, the child absorbs everything in his persona. But parents' contribution in shaping a child's persona is almost 65%. The contribution of school is around 35%. Hence in the early childhood years from 0 to 8, the child needs a perfect blend of guided development including both of them viz, parents and school. Boostmychild Pvt. Ltd., incorporated in Oct 2021, results from 4 years of focused Research & Development. The team comprises leading Child Psychologists, Pediatricians, Early Childhood Educators, and some of the brightest minds in Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Software Product Development. The School Assessment Module (SAM) helps Teachers to assess their student's holistic development using a simple and intuitive user interface using their Smartphones, Tablets, or PCs. Boostmychild Mobile App allows parents to understand their child's 360-degree development in 6 categories and 21 areas. Using their propriety AI-driven Recommendations Engine the App weekly provides customized Parent-Child Activities, Worksheets & Parenting Guidelines specific to their child's developmental needs. Boostmychild provides tailored learning experiences to meet the unique needs and interests of each child. It equips parents with a comprehensive tool to support their child's development and growth. It empowers teachers with tools and resources for effective classroom management and instructional delivery. Parent-teacher collaboration is the most unique feature of Boostmychild. It helps school teachers to create digital portfolios of each student with digital report cards. Parents can connect with teachers, discuss their child's progress, and seek guidance or clarification. This collaboration strengthens the home-school partnership, ensuring a unified approach to each child's holistic development. BMC also encourages parents to actively participate in their child's education journey. Offer a wide range of fun and educational activities parents can enjoy with their child. These activities promote cognitive, physical, and social, emotional development, creating meaningful bonding experiences while supporting the skills and concepts taught in your classrooms. Parents and school teachers can monitor their child's progress through our development tracking feature. It also provides parents with expert-approved articles, tips, and advice on early childhood development. The BMC app is available in various languages like English, Hindi, Marathi, and Assamese. More regional languages are coming shortly. 360 Degree Coverage with 6 Categories & 21 Areas Conforming to NEP/NCF Standards. The BMC Allows Teachers to Focus on Personalized Teaching Multi-dimensional reports highly useful in PTM Discussions Branch/Area Wise Collated Data & Analysis Significantly reduce teacher's Time Customized Parent-Child Activities, Age-Specific Activity, Toolkits Child-Specific Parenting Guidelines and Integration with Existing School Apps. Boostmychils is a brainchild of Vipul Joshi, a native of Pune for which an investment of Rs. One crore has been extended by the Vardhan group. It was incorporated in Oct.2021 and registered under DPITT, MSME. It is Funded by Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS) in May 2023. BMC App has won the ECDF Award for 'Innovation in Early Years Education'. This startup acquired a seed fund of Rs. 20 lakhs under the start-up India seed fund scheme in May 2023. Vipul Joshi is a brilliant software engineer, with a master's in science from the US. The startup has a team of around 20 extraordinary minds and growing fast. More information can be sought at www.boostmychild.com. The BMC App is available free on the Google Play Stores. (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) VMPL Gurugram (Haryana) [India], July 8: Start-up Accelerator Chamber of Commerce (SACC) India proudly announced the winners of its most recent cohort for the SACC India Pragati Seed Grant Program under the esteemed HDFC Parivartan Start-up Grants. This grants program provides funding to incubators and accelerators that focus on 'social impact start-ups' in areas such as improving education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. This year, 41 incubators and accelerators in the field of social impact entrepreneurship received grants totaling Rs19.6 crore to support 170 start-ups working across critical focus areas through HDFC Bank Parivartan Start-up Grants. Following an extensive selection process, SACC India meticulously sifted through 248 applications. From this pool of talent, the top 10 start-ups were handpicked to partake in the Parivartan Cohort Pragati program. This program featured a rigorous 2-week, 5-session Capacity-Building Acceleration Program throughout March 2024. Notably, the initiative garnered enthusiastic participation from 10 mentors and esteemed investors representing prominent venture capitalist firms. Finally, three start-ups--Innogical, Uniconnect, and Aavya--were selected for seed grants. The valedictory 'Grant Ceremony' took place in the Chandigarh capital region. Owing to the impact driven by this program, SACC India was recognised at the prestigious Global CSR and ESG Awards 2024 held on 29th June 2024. SACC was honoured with the "Most Impactful NGO of the Year 2024" award held in Gurugram. Notably, SACC has been working in empowering youth to take up entrepreneurship since 2014 and in that process has sensitised more than 100,000 youth and has given handholding support to over 1000 start-ups and MSMEs with incubation, acceleration and impact investing. The organisation derives support from several state governments and private sector corporates like Google, Netsmartz Group, HDFC Bank, IDS Infotech, Infosys and DLF to name a few. In a statement regarding this milestone, Manipal Dhariwal, Co-Founder and President of SACC India, conveyed his exhilaration regarding the recent developments. He underscored the profound impact anticipated from these supported start-ups within the realms of education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. Dhariwal accentuated the invaluable support provided by the incubator and the substantial grants furnished by corporate entities, paving the way for ground-breaking innovations. In a statement about the HDFC Parivartan start-up acceleration program hosted by SACC India, Vice President Mr Nitin Monga expressed his enthusiasm for the initiative's progress and its future impact. He emphasized the crucial role the supported start-ups will play in advancing education, skill development, and livelihood enhancement. These combined efforts of HDFC Parivartan and SACC India are poised to accelerate innovations and make significant contributions to societal development. Vineet Khurana, CEO of SACC India, expressed his excitement about the latest advances in a statement on this milestone. He emphasized the significant influence that these funded start-ups are expected to have in the areas of livelihood improvement, skill development, and education. Besides cash grants, support will be extended by HDFC Bank and SACC India to the start-ups through ongoing mentoring and creating new business opportunities over the next year. Neha Agrawal, Senior Vice President, Start-ups, HDFC Bank, said, "We are dedicated to fostering impactful social start-ups that drive positive change within our communities. By backing incubators and accelerators, we aim to fortify and cultivate the entire start-up ecosystem in India. Through the HDFC Bank Parivartan Start-up Grants, our goal is to empower these innovative ventures to achieve SDG targets and create a better future for all with their solutions." Nusrat Pathan, Head CSR, HDFC Bank, said, "Our Parivartan Start-up Grants program reaffirms our steadfast commitment to fostering social innovation in our communities. Innovation is the key to addressing the development needs of society. Through strategic collaborations and targeted investments, we aim to nurture and amplify the impact of innovative social start-ups across critical sectors, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and inclusive future for all." HDFC Parivartan, a flagship corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative by HDFC Bank, endeavors to foster sustainable economic and social development across India. Embracing thematic areas such as education, healthcare, livelihood enhancement, and environmental sustainability, HDFC Parivartan empowers communities and spearheads inclusive growth. With an unwavering commitment to innovation, collaboration, and tangible impact, HDFC Parivartan plays a crucial role in driving significant change, paving the way for a brighter future for all stakeholders. (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) PNN Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], July 8: Dr. Agravat Healthcare Ltd, headed by Dr. Bharat Agravat has announced that his company is now offering Franchise Option for its health and beauty products. The Shop In Shop Health & Beauty Franchise is expected to break records for the plenty of exciting offers on the table for the franchisee owners. These salubrious products have been lauded by people for their amazing qualities and benefits to overall health, both inside the body and outside. But why choose AGRAVAT is definitely a valid question. What would people gain from taking up its franchise? The three key benefits of franchise AGRAVAT is offering are:- 1. No franchise fee 2. No royalty 3. No monthly target "We want our partners to grow, and grow big from the get go. Charging them enormous fees with absurd monthly targets is one of the reasons most Indian startups end up failing. Our franchisee owners need to be given the confidence that not only are they selling tremendous Ayurvedic, Neutraceuitical health and wellness products, but also they also get to keep a chunk of their profits -- which is a lot of money!" said Dr Kartavya Agravat, CEO with Dr. Bharat Agravat https://www.drbharat.agravat.com. Franchisees also get free support system from AGRAVAT for localised promotion through diverse and effective social media marketing and promotions. AGRAVAT also offers various tools and referrals on their online store to help each franchisee grow with efficient selling of products. Apart from that, the franchisees also get brand recognition, proper training, direct support, and territory without competition so that they can grow even better. By leveraging the exclusive brand of AGRAVAT and through comprehensive training on the best and most affordable health and wellness products manufactured completely from Ayurvedic, Herbal and medicated OTC solutions, AGRAVAT franchisees are virtually guaranteed to do tremendous business with the exclusive territory given to them. For more information, please visit their website. www.agravat.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) The flagship platform for Taiwan-India economic and cultural exchanges, "Taiwan Expo in India 2024," returns to New Delhi after a five-year hiatus. The 7th edition of the Taiwan Expo, featuring exhibitions and networking events, was inaugurated on Monday. Leading the event were Cynthia Kiang, Director General of the International Trade Administration (TITA), and James Huang, Chairman of the Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA). The expo, hosted at Bharat Mandapam (Pragati Maidan), saw the participation of about 120 Taiwanese companies. The opening ceremony was graced by several guests, including Lalduhawma, Chief Minister of Mizoram; Richard Vanlalhmangaiha, Member of Parliament from Mizoram; Manish Sharma, Chairman of the Electronics Manufacturing and Energy Storage Committee of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI); Rajoo Goel, Secretary General of the Electronic Industries Association of India (ELCINA); Bau Shaun Ger, Representative of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in India (TECC); and prominent Taiwanese business leaders. In his speech, James Huang emphasized, "India's rise in the global manufacturing sector since 2018, aligning with international trends and becoming a popular regional manufacturing hub." "Taiwan, a leader in chip manufacturing, aims to enhance supply chain resilience by collaborating with India to establish a wafer fab, aligning with the "Make in India" initiative. Taiwan's AI capabilities will bolster India's "Digital India" and "Smart Cities" initiatives, setting new milestones in the global technology manufacturing industry." Cynthia Kiang highlighted India's position as the world's second-largest manufacturer of footwear and textiles. With the global "China+1" strategy in effect, India has become a key production base for supply chain relocation. TITA introduced a "Cross-Industry Alliances" approach, integrating petrochemical, machinery, and textile industries for joint marketing promotion. At this Expo, TAITRA and the Taiwan Textile Federation established the "Smart Manufacturing Pavilion" and the "Sustainable & Innovation Textile Pavilion," showcasing Taiwan's intelligent and efficient solutions in petrochemical, shoemaking, and textile processes to capture business opportunities in India. Bau Shuan Ger, Representative of TECC in India, expressed confidence in the strengthening partnership between Taiwan and India, impacting the dynamic global market. To support New Taipei City enterprises expanding into the Indian market, Chu Tih-Ju, Deputy Mayor of New Taipei City Government, and Amy Ho, Commissioner of the Economic Development Department, led 20 well-known businesses to establish the "New Taipei City Pavilion." This pavilion focuses on smart cities, electronics and machinery manufacturing, smart healthcare, and e-sports, targeting India's industrial needs and green transformation opportunities. On the first afternoon of the expo, TAITRA held the "Taiwan-Japan Business Cooperation Seminar and Matchmaking in India," inviting representatives from the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) New Delhi office, major Japanese trading companies Sumitomo and Marubeni, and companies like Panasonic, Delta Electronics, and Ahamani to share their experiences in the Indian market. The three-day Taiwan Expo 2024 in India, offers Taiwanese companies a prime opportunity to showcase their top products in New Delhi. (ANI) Chairperson of HCLTech, Roshni Nadar Malhotra, has been conferred the "Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur" (Knight of the Legion of Honour) by France, the country's highest civilian award. The award recognises her contributions to the business world, her endeavor to promote economic ties between France and India, as well as her commitment to social and environmental causes. Instituted in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte, Chevalier de la Legion d'Honneur is the highest civilian award given by the French Republic for outstanding service to France, regardless of the nationality of the recipients. The President of the French Republic is the Grand Master of the Order of the Legion of Honour. The award was conferred on the HCLTech Chairperson by Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India, on behalf of the President of the French Republic, during a special ceremony at the Residence of France in the national capital, as per a company release. Malhotra, Chairperson of HCLTech, said, "It is my privilege to receive this honor and it underscores the strategic relationship between India and France. HCLTech has a longstanding presence in France, which is a strategic market for us." "We are committed to scaling our operations in the country and supporting the digital transformation of French businesses through our differentiated portfolio of services." HCLTech is a leading global technology company serving enterprises across 60 countries. It works across in providing solutions in financial services, manufacturing, life sciences and healthcare, technology and services, telecom and media, retail and public services. Consolidated revenues during 12 months that ended in March 2024 totaled USD 13.3 billion. "Under her forward-thinking mindset focused on emerging technologies as AI and cybersecurity, HCL has remained at the cutting-edge of the industry, and has been recognized as an active promoter of business relations between France and India. The French Republic acknowledges today not only Ms Nadar Malhotra's professional achievements but also her impact on society and her commitment to strengthening bilateral relations between our two countries," Thierry Mathou, Ambassador of France to India, said, as per the release. HCLTech has been operating in France since 2009. It is a digital transformation partner to G2000 French companies across diverse industries including aerospace, manufacturing, financial services and pharmaceuticals. (ANI) Tripura's Agriculture Minister, Ratan Lal Nath, inaugurated the Mango Festival here on Sunday. Speaking at the inauguration of the mango festival aimed at promoting the efforts of the farmers, the minister highlighted the diversity of mango varieties grown in the area. Tripura Agriculture Minister also said that the progressive farmers of the Ganda Twuisa subdivision, formerly known as Gandacherra under the Dhalai district of Tripura, created a mini world of mangoes in the state. Speaking to ANI on the sidelines of the event, he said, "Almost all the famous varieties of mangoes from countries like Thailand, Japan, Bangladesh, and other parts of the world are cultivated here. These mango orchards are privately owned, and the progressive farmers of the state have taken the initiative to develop this mini world of mangoes." "We have decided to install a solar-powered mini cold storage in the area. Additionally, we also have plans to set up a solar-powered water pump to ensure an uninterrupted water supply for the farmers," Nath told ANI. Nath also disclosed that the farmers of the area grow 22 varieties of mangoes, including Amrapali, Banana, King of Chakapat, Bari, and Haribhanga. "There are around 144 farmers reliant on mango farming here, with 15 considered experts. Each farmer reportedly earns between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 15 lakh per annum," he said. Tapan Jyoti Chakma, a local farmer, shared his success in mango farming, now in its fifth year. "I cultivate 13 varieties of mangoes in my orchard. The production is impressive and profitable, but we need advanced equipment that is currently unavailable in the state. Government support in this area would significantly boost our production," Chakma told ANI. Another farmer, Priyo Chakma, emphasised the need for proper marketing support. Growing six varieties of mangoes, he expressed concerns about the lack of buyers. "We need logistical support from the government. Just as outside traders of woollen clothes are allowed to do business in a designated area in Agartala during the winters, we should also have the opportunity to showcase our products in a commercial space," he pointed out. Tripura Agriculture also virtually inaugurated the Farmers Knowledge Centre at Raisyabari in the same district. The event was attended by ADC Executive Member Rajesh Tripura, ex-MP Rebati Tripura, MLA Nandita Reang Debbarma, and other senior officials. (ANI) Police have arrested Rajendra Singh Bidawat and the father of the main accused, Rajesh Shah for their alleged involvement in the Worli hit-and-run case that took place on Sunday (July 7). Both of them were taken to Worli Police Station after their medical examination. This comes after a BMW car hit a bike in Mumbai's Worli area on Sunday (July 7), resulting in the death of a woman travelling with her husband. Meanwhile, the main accused in the Worli hit-and-run case, Mihir Shah, has been absconding since the incident, and the police have formed a total of six teams to nab the accused. Police arrested Rajesh Shah, father of the main accused, Mihir Shah and another person, Raj Rishi Rajendra Singh Vidawat, in this case. Both will be presented in court on Monday. According to information received from sources, it is being said that both the accused have been arrested for not cooperating with the police and under other sections and they will be presented in court on Monday. The deceased woman has been identified as Kaveri Nakhwa (45), a resident of Worli Koliwada. Meanwhile, the deceased's husband sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment at a hospital. Earlier on Sunday, Worli police said that they had confiscated the car from the Bandra region. "Worli police recovered and confiscated the BMW car from the Bandra area of Mumbai," the police said. Meanwhile, a statement from the Mumbai Police said that a BMW car ran over two people riding a bike. It said, "The woman died in this incident and the other person was injured. This incident took place at 5:30 am this morning when the couple riding on a bike were passing in front of Atria Mall in Worli." The police emphasised that the luxury car belonged to the leader of a political party based in Maharashtra's Palghar. "The luxury car belongs to a leader of a political party based in Palghar and his son was sitting in the car with the driver," said the police. Meanwhile, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Sunday assured that strict action would be taken against the culprits behind the hit-and-run case. "The Mumbai hit-and-run case that has happened is very unfortunate. I had a conversation with the police. Whoever is guilty, action will be taken against them...We treat everyone equally. Whatever happens will be legal," CM Shinde said while speaking to the media. Also, Aaditya Thackeray took to his official X handle and posted about the hit-and-run case. He said, "Visited the Worli Police Station today and met with senior police officers investigating into the hit-and-run case that occurred in Worli today." He added, "I will not go into the political leanings of Shah, the accused of the hit-and-run, but I hope the police will act swiftly to catch the accused and bring him to justice. Hopefully, there will be no political refuge by the regime." Thackeray also said that MLC Sunil Shinde and he met Nakwa, the husband of the victim. "We promised him that we would do everything to bring the accused to justice." (ANI) Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha on Sunday visited GB Pant Hospital to assess the preparations for the first-ever kidney transplantation in the state. The kidney transplantation is scheduled to take place on July 8 at the GB Pant Hospital in the Agartala district of Tripura. During his visit, CM Saha, who also serves as the Health Minister of Tripura, interacted with the kidney donor and the recipient and offered them words of encouragement and support. CM Saha also held discussions with the attending doctors and other hospital officials, assessing the preparations and ensuring that everything was in place for the groundbreaking medical procedure. He expressed confidence in the medical team's capabilities and conveyed his best wishes to everyone involved in the transplantation. This historic event marks a significant milestone in Tripura's healthcare sector, showcasing the state's progress in providing advanced medical care to its residents. Earlier in the day, on Sunday, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha, on the occasion of National Doctor's Day and Jagannath Rath Yatra, inaugurated the Blood Donation Camp in Agartala, Tripura. This camp was organised by the Indian Medical Association at IMA House in Agartala at the Tripura Branch. Inaugurating the camp, Chief Minister Manik Saha said, "Doctors always work for people. They engage themselves in the service of people 24x7 from morning to night. Now they themselves are giving blood to save the lives of the poor. It will send a good message to society. Doctors not only take blood from others but also donate blood themselves. We are all human. And there must be a mindset to work for people." On the occasion, while addressing the doctors, the Chief Minister said that the responsibility entrusted to them should be well implemented and work should be done on time. If people have problems beyond time, you will come forward to solve them. You always work for people. Even if there is a call at two o'clock in the morning, run away. Apart from this, the Chief Minister thanked the organisers of the blood donation camp, the blood donors and the team that came to collect the blood. (ANI) Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed grief over the death of a devotee during the Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra procession in Puri on June 7 and announced Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia to the next kin of deceased. "Chief Minister Majhi expressed deep grief over the death of a devotee named Lalitha Bagarti of Saitala block of Balangir district due to the crowd during the procession today and expressed his condolences to the bereaved family," read the post by the Chief Minister's Office (CMO). Chief Minister Majhi announced Rs 4 lakh ex-gratia to the kin of the deceased who died during chariot pulling in Puri and free treatment for the injured. A devotee tragically died due to suffocation during the pulling of Lord Balabhadra's Taladhwaja chariot at Rath Yatra in Puri. Though rushed to hospital, he was declared brought dead, said the CMO. As per reports, a man died and several others were injured due to a stampede-like situation during Rath Yatra in Odisha's Puri on Sunday. Thousands of people pulled forward giant chariots from the century-old Jagannath temple in Puri on Sunday afternoon. The wooden horses were fitted to the chariots and the servitor pilots guided the devotees to pull the chariots in the right direction. President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday took part in the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra in Puri, one of the significant and eagerly awaited festivals in India. Along with the President, Odisha Governor Raghubar Das, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also took part in the celebrations. A large number of devotees from across the country gathered today in Odisha's Puri to take the blessings of Lord Jagannath as a two-day Lord Jagannath Rath Yatra commenced on Sunday. The Rath Yatra, also known as the Chariot Festival, is believed to be as old as the Jagannath Temple in Puri. The festival is associated with Lord Jagannath, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, and his siblings. During the Yatra, the deities Lord Jagannath, his brother Balabhadra, and his sister Subhadra are carried on wooden chariots from Jagannath Temple to Gundicha Temple in Puri. (ANI) Another batch of pilgrims departed today morning from Pantha Chowk in Jammu and Kashmir's Srinagar for the annual pilgrimage--Amarnath Yatra. The departure was made for the Baltal and Pahalgam routes under tight security measures. Ankpradhuman, an excited pilgrim from Uttar Pradesh said that it was his first time to Amarnath. "This is the first time I am going to Amarnath and I am very happy. I will be gping from Pahalgam." Talking about the security arrangements, he said "The security facilities are good and everything is going in a flow. I am very lucky that I can go for this Yatra." "I am going from Pahalgam. This is the first time I am going and I am very happy. All the arrangements made are very good," said another pilgrim Umesh Rathore from Madhya Pradesh. Previously yesterday, another group of pilgrims had departed from the Baltal base camp in Srinagar. Excited pilgrims chanted 'Har Har Madev' (hailing Lord Shiva) as they embarked on the much-awaited journey. Monika, a pilgrim from Indore, Madhya Pradesh said "We are very excited. We made plans all of a sudden. Certainly, the Lord has called us. The arrangements are very good here. There is no issue. The administration is taking good care of us." Another pilgrim, Vijay Bhaskar from Hyderabad said that he was eager to have a glimpse of 'Baba Amarnath'. "I am feeling very good. I am eager to have a glimpse of Baba Amarnath. I would like to thank the government for having made great arrangements for us pilgrims," he said. Further, to ensure a safe and efficient movement of the pilgrims and commuters during the holy Amarnath Yatra, the Jammu and Kashmir Traffic Police issued an advisory on July 6 on the National Highway 44 -- with cut-off timings and clear instructions for the various convoys and non-convoy movements. The Amarnath Yatra started on June 29 and will end on August 19. The devotees of Lord Shiva undertake the arduous annual pilgrimage to the holy cave which is located in the Kashmir Himalayas. (ANI) As per reports, a Haryana Roadways bus overturned near Naulata village of Pinjore town. The injured were admitted to Pinjore Hospital and Sector 6 Civil Hospital in Panchkula. A woman, who sustained critical injuries was referred to PGI Chandigarh. As per the police, the accident was caused due to overspeeding by the bus driver. The bus was also filled beyond its capacity with passengers. Hence, overloading and poor road condition have been attributed as additional reasons for the accident. Congress MLA Pradeep Choudhary of Kalka assembly constituency in Panchkula said an investigation into the accident has been initiated. Further details in the matter are awaited. Last week, six people were injured in a collision between a car and a truck on the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway. (ANI) Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh and Director-General of Police (DGP) Prashant Kumar visited Ayodhya and inspected the preparations for the upcoming Kanwar Yatra that will begin on July 22. To ensure the smooth conduct of the Yatra, the officials inspected the Hanuman Garhi Ramlala and Mani Parvat Temples. After the inspection, Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh said, "The annual Shrawan Mela is set to be organized in Ayodhya during the month of Sawan. Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath is concerned that the crowd will be bigger this year. Many people will come for darshan at the Shri Ram Lalla temple." "For the smooth conduct of these events, we have come to inspect the arrangements so that the people who come here have a good experience. In this regard, for crowd management and for the convenience of the people, all the departments should work in unity," said the official. Uttar Pradesh Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh and DGP Prashant Kumar on Sunday held a review meeting in Ayodhya with various departments. Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Singh and DGP Prashant Kumar led a review meeting on Sunday. The discussions in the meeting focused on the Yatra's route, traffic management, and security measures. UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had previously directed thorough preparations for the event. While speaking to the media, Uttar Pradesh, DGP Prashant Kumar emphasized the government's commitment to ensuring maximum convenience and safety for all Kanwar Yatra pilgrims, which will begin on July 22 in Uttar Pradesh. "Efforts will be made from the government's side to provide the best possible facilities to all pilgrims to ensure their convenience and safety. Adequate police forces will be deployed at every religious site," the DGP said. DGP Kumar said that security arrangements will be made at the places where the Kanwar camps will be set up, and on the routes through which the pilgrims will pass. "Apart from this, security arrangements will also be made at the places where the Kanwar camps will be set up, and on the routes through which the pilgrims will pass," the DGP said. "Additionally, special arrangements will be made in Ayodhya and other major locations to ensure safety, especially in crowded areas and main temples, where medical facilities will also be available," DGP Kumar said. The DGP said that the Police will also deploy ATS and STF to ensure the smooth conduct of the Kanwar Yatra. "Advanced technologies like CCTV coverage will be extensively used. We will also keep adequate security arrangements in reserve at every place. ATS and STF teams will be deployed, and SDRF and NDRF teams have been enlisted for emergency response. and the local administration and navy teams will also be involved," DGP Kumar added. DGP Prashant Kumar mentioned that the police will regulate the songs played by DJs and the sound limits during the Yatra. Special security measures will be in place on the borders of Delhi, Haryana, Uttarakhand, and Rajasthan, with active dog squads, bomb disposal teams, IB, intelligence, and LIU teams. Liquor and meat shops along the Kanwar route will be closed. Electric poles will be covered with polythene and transformers with nets to prevent any accidents. Camps along the Yatra route will be set up away from highways and expressways. DGP Kumar also mentioned that officials from other states have been instructed to provide ID cards to the Kanwar pilgrims to ensure they can be contacted and assisted in case of any issues. Additionally, the villages and police stations of the groups of pilgrims should be noted. (ANI) Late on Sunday night the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) received information from the Sub Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Tanakpur about severe waterlogging in Jagpura. A SDRF team led by Sub-Inspector Manish Bhakuni rushed to the site and and despite difficult conditions, commenced rescue operations and evacuated everyone safely. Those rescued were sent to the night shelter in Banbasa by bus. Following this a sub team was despatched to Ward-9 in Tanakpur and the other left for another site in Jagpura which also saw waterlogging. Taking to social media platform X, the SDRF Uttarakhand Police posted yesterday night "Rescue operation: SDRF rescues people trapped in Champawat's Jagpura flooded area late night amidst heavy rain. Your priority is our safety. SDRF Uttarakhand Police is ready." On Sunday the India Meteorological Department (IMD) issued a 'red alert for the State of extremely heavy rainsin various parts of the State till July 10. Water level of the Ganges in Rishikesh witnessed a high surge. With the water level reaching the Triveni Ghat Aarti Sthal, the SDRF issued an alert for the travellers and warned them to avoid staying at the ghats at night. Lokjeet, Superintendent of Police (Rural), Dehradun, said that the police have been in constant touch with the administration and the people residing near the river banks have been displaced. Further, the police official said, "Efforts are being made to stop the people from visiting the river banks." The Char Dham Yatra was also temporarily suspended. (ANI) A large number of devotees from across the country gathered today in Odisha's Puri to take the blessings of Lord Jagannath to celebrate the second day of Rath Yatra. The annual Lord Jagannath's Rath Yatra began in Odisha's Puri on Sunday. The Rath Yatra, also known as the Chariot Festival, is believed to be as old as the Jagannath Temple in Puri. President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday took part in the annual Jagannath Rath Yatra in Puri, one of the significant and eagerly awaited festivals in India. Along with the President, Odisha Governor Raghubar Das, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan also took part in the celebrations. Extending wishes to fellow Indians, President Droupadi Murmu, in a post on X said on Sunday, "On the occasion of the world-famous Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath, I extend my heartfelt best wishes to all the countrymen. Today, countless Jagannath lovers from all over the country and the world are eagerly waiting to see the three forms of Bhagavat seated on the chariot. On the occasion of this great festival, I pray to Mahaprabhu Shri Jagannath for everyone's happiness, peace and prosperity". "On the occasion of the holy Rath Yatra, I extend heartfelt greetings and best wishes to everyone. May the boundless compassion of Lord Jagannath bring prosperity to every region of our state, fostering a new and enriched Odisha. This is my prayer," Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi wrote in a post on X. According to the Hindu calendar, the festival is celebrated on the Dwitiya Tithi of Shukla Paksha (waxing moon fortnight) in the month of Ashadh. The festival is associated with Lord Jagannath, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, and his siblings. During the Yatra, the deities Lord Jagannath, his brother Balabhadra, and his sister Subhadra are carried on wooden chariots from Jagannath Temple to Gundicha Temple in Puri. (ANI) The demands include wage hikes, weekly leaves, and toilet and medical camp facilities among others. The sanitation workers took to the streets to stage a protest in Thoothukudi for their nineteen demands. Speaking to ANI, Thoothukudi Corporation Mayor NP Jegan Periyasamy said, "5 demands of the protesters will be implemented immediately after meeting with the union representative of sanitation workers. They have 19 demands including wage hike." The workers were surrounded by the police during their demonstration near the Thoothukudi Municipal Corporation. Earlier on Sunday, at the mayor's request, the mortal remains of the slain Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Tamil Nadu president K Armstrong were placed at the Corporation School Ground in Chennai for public tribute. The BSP leader was brutally murdered by a group of unidentified men near his residence in Perambur, Chennai. A heavy police force was deployed outside the Corporation School Ground to ensure peace and public safety. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin expressed his grief over the incident, calling it "deeply saddening." Greater Chennai Police Commissioner Sandeep Rai Rathore announced on Saturday that eight suspects have been caught in connection with Armstrong's murder. He assured that the situation in Chennai remains normal and emphasized their commitment to solving the case, promising to investigate all angles and bring all culprits to justice. (ANI) The Delhi HC on Monday sought a reply from Jail authorities on a plea of Delhi's Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal seeking 2 additional legal meetings with his lawyers through video conferencing from Tihar Jail. He is in judicial custody in the Delhi Excise policy case. Justice Neena Bansal Krishna sought a reply in five days. The matter has been listed for arguments on July 15. His application was rejected by the trial court. Senior advocate Ramesh Gupta appeared for Arvind Kejriwal and submitted that the applicant is seeking additional legal meetings with his counsel. There is nothing wrong with it. On the other hand, senior counsel Zoheb Hossain appeared for ED and he also wanted to file a reply. Senior advocate Ramesh Gupta objected and said that ED is not a party in this application. Meanwhile, the counsel for jail authorities also appeared and sought time to file a reply. The court granted him time. Kejriwal has challenged the orders passed by the trial court on April 10 and July 1, denying him two additional legal meetings with his counsel. The Rouse Avenue Court on July 1 denied Kejriwal two additional meetings with his lawyers through video conferencing (VC) from Tihar Jail. Special judge Kaveri Baweja dismissed the application moved on behalf of Arvind Kejriwal. He had moved an application seeking directions to the Jail Authorities for granting two additional meetings with his lawyers through VC. A special judge said, "Learned counsel for the applicant has failed to convince the court as to how the applicant is entitled to two additional legal meetings through VC on the same grounds that have been discussed and dealt with in the earlier order. There appears to be no reason whatsoever to take a different view on the basis of the contents of the application under consideration." It also said that it is not in dispute that a similar application filed by the applicant seeking the same relief of additional legal meetings with his lawyers was dismissed by this court vide a detailed order of April 10, 2024. The Court observed, "The application under consideration discloses no new/freshground to take a different view from the earlier order dated April 4, 2024. The order dated February 22, 2024, and relief granted to co-accused Sanjay Singh have already been discussed and differentiated in the order dated April 10, 2024." "Thus, having considered the submissions made and the observations already made in the order of April 4, 2024, I see no reason whatsoever to allow the application under consideration. The application is accordingly dismissed," the court ordered on July 1. It was submitted that Kejriwal is facing about 30 litigations throughout the country and requires two additional meeting with his lawyers through VC to discuss the cases, and claim his right to fair trial. The counsel for Kejriwal also submitted that, after filing this application, the applicant has been arrested in one more case by the CBI. Further, co-accused Sanjay Singh was allowed additional legal meetings by an order of February 22, 2024. (ANI) In a devastating hit-and-run case that occurred in the Bopodi area of Pune in the early morning hours today, one police personnel died and one person was injured. The incident occurred around 1:30 a.m. when a four-wheeler vehicle struck two beat marshals riding a motorcycle. The accused fled the scene, leaving the officers injured. One police personnel succumbed to injuries and the other is undergoing treatment at a local hospital. The injured police personnel is currently under medical supervision and his condition has been reported stable. As per DCP Vijay Magar, the vehicle involved in the incident has been traced. The driver of the vehicle is yet to be apprehended. Further investigation on the case is on. Meanwhile, in a similar hit-and-run case that was reported in Mumbai yesterday, a BMW car hit a bike in Worli which resulted in the death of a woman travelling with her husband. As per information from the police, the car belongs to the leader of a political party based in Palghar and his son was sitting in the car with the driver. The deceased has been identified as Kaveri Nakhwa (45), a resident of Worli Koliwada. The deceased's husband sustained injuries and is undergoing treatment at a hospital. The police have arrested Rajendra Singh Rajawat and the father of the main accused Rajesh Shah. Both the arrested will be presented in court on Monday. Meanwhile, the main accused has been absconding since the incident occurred. Six teams have been formed to arrest the accused. According to information from sources, it is being said that both the accused have been arrested for not cooperating with the police. Earlier on Sunday, the Worli Police said that they had confiscated the car from Bandra." Worli Police recovered and confiscated the BMW car from Bandra in Mumbai," the police said. The police also gave further information and said that the incident had occurred at 5:30 a.m. "The woman died in this incident and the other person was injured. The incident took place at 5:30 a.m. when the couple was riding on a bike and were passing in front of Atria Mall in Worli." Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde assured that strict action would be taken against the culprits behind the hit-and-run case. "The Mumbai hit-and-run case that has happened is very unfortunate. I had a conversation with the police. Whoever is guilty, action will be taken against them. We treat everyone equally. Whatever happens will be legal," Shinde said while talking to the media. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Lal Yadav on Monday expanded his cabinet inducting Ramniwas Rawat, who recently switched sides to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) took oath as a Cabinet Minister at Raj Bhavan in the state capital Bhopal. State Governor Mangubhai C. Patel administered the oath to Rawat and Chief Minister Mohan Yadav was also present on the occasion. After taking oath as a minister in the Madhya Pradesh Cabinet, Rawat told ANI, "Today, I took oath as a minister. I am very thankful to the CM and the entire party. Whatever responsibility I will be given, I will do it with full devotion." CM Yadav congratulated Rawat and said that the people of the state would benefit from the newly appointed minister in the government. "Our senior leader Ramniwas Rawat has taken oath today and I extend my congratulations to him. The people of Madhya Pradesh will benefit from the newly appointed minister in the government. He has a long experience and he has a stronghold in the entire state, especially in the Chambal region. It is an area with a lot of possibilities for development. The state government will work with its spirit and continuously move forward for the betterment of the state. I extend my good wishes to him," CM Yadav said. State cabinet minister Prahlad Singh Patel also extended his best wishes to Rawat and said that an experienced leader would play his part in the development of the state. "Today Ramniwas Rawat has taken oath as a cabinet minister in the Madhya Pradesh government. An experienced leader will play his part in the development of Madhya Pradesh. I extend my best wishes to him," Patel said. Rawat is a six-time MLA from Vijaypur assembly constituency in Sheopur district and he switched his sides to the BJP during the Lok Sabha elections on April 30 this year. (ANI) Supreme Court on Monday issued notice on an appeal filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenging the Allahabad High Court's acquittal of Surendra Koli, accused in the 2005-06 Noida Nithari killings. A bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan issued notice to convict and others and tagged the matter along with the other pending case. During the brief hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the CBI, argued that Koli was a serial killer who used to lure young girls and kill them. He said the killings were "gruesome" and told the bench that there were accusations of cannibalism and the trial court had awarded the death penalty to Koli, but the same had been reversed by the Allahabad High Court. Earlier, the apex court had sought response from Uttar Pradesh government and others on an appeal filed by Pappu Lal, the father of one of the victim girls, challenging the High Court acquittal order of businessman Moninder Singh Pandher and Koli. In October last year, the Allahabad High Court acquitted Pandher and his domestic help Surendra Koli in some of the cases concerning the Nithari killings and overturned the death penalty imposed on them by the trial court. It had acquitted Koli in 12 cases and Pandher in two cases, where they were earlier held guilty for murder and awarded the death penalty by the trial court in these cases. The CBI had registered 16 cases against Koli and Pandher over rape and killing of girls that had shocked the nation. The case came to public attention in December 2006 when skeletons were discovered in a drain near a house in Nithari village, Noida. Pandher was the owner of the house and Koli was his domestic help. Koli was made accused in all of the cases on various charges including murder, abduction, rape, and the destruction of evidence. However, Pandher was named in six of them. Koli was convicted of committing multiple rapes and murders of various girls and was sentenced to death in more than 10 cases. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Monday expressed confidence over winning the Amarwara assembly bypoll saying that just like the Lok Sabha election of Chhindwara, they would win the Amarwara bypoll too. Amarwada assembly seat is scheduled to undergo a bypoll on July 10 after the sitting MLA from the seat Kamesh Shah switched sides from the Congress party to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ahead of the Lok Sabha election in March this year. Shah took membership of the BJP along with his wife Madhavi Shah and sister Kesar Netam in the presence of CM Mohan Yadav, state BJP chief VD Sharma and others at CM House on March 29. "It is a matter of happiness that the way results are being seen in Amarwara, people are working and our workers are going door to door. The response that is received, it is definitely true that just like we won the Lok Sabha elections of Chhindwara, in the same way, we will win the Amarwara elections too," CM Yadav told ANI. CM Yadav also took a potshot at former CM and veteran Congress leader Kamal Nath saying the latter betrayed the people of Chhindwara. "Congress leader Kamal Nath has betrayed the people of Chhindwara. The BJP won for the first time in Chhindwara and now the BJP will create a new record of development in Amarwara and in the state as well," he added. Last month, the Election Commission announced the date to hold bye-elections to fill vacancies in 13 assembly constituencies of seven states. These seats were vacant due to the resignations or deaths of the sitting MLAs. The elections will be conducted on July 10 and the counting of the votes will be done on July 13. Kamlesh Shah is contesting the bypoll from Amarwada assembly seat on BJP symbol while the Congress party has fielded Dheeransha Invati from the seat. Notably, Chhindwara has been the stronghold of Kamal Nath and the Congress party. There are a total of seven assembly seats in Chhindwara district and all the MLAs were from the Congress party. But after Kamlesh Shah joined the BJP, now the Congress party was left with six MLAs in the district. Besides, the BJP won the Chhindwara Lok Sabha constituency in the recently concluded general elections. (ANI) Chief Minister Nitish Kumar condoled the death of 12 people due to lightning in seven districts in Bihar and announced an ex-gratia of four lakh rupees each to the dependents of the deceased. "The Chief Minister has expressed deep condolences on the death of three people in Jamui, three in Kaimur, two in Rohtas, one in Saharsa, one in Saran, one in Bhojpur and one in Gopalganj due to lightning in the last 24 hours," a press release by the state government said on Monday. The Chief Minister said that he is with the affected families in this hour of disaster. "The Chief Minister has today given instructions to give an ex-gratia grant of four lakh rupees each to the families of the deceased," the release added. The Chief Minister has also appealed to the people to exercise full caution during bad weather. In case of bad weather, follow the suggestions issued from time to time by the Disaster Management Department to protect themselves from lightning. Stay indoors and stay safe during bad weather, the release said. The Chief Minister also conducted an aerial survey of rising water levels of rivers in West Champaran, East Champaran and Gopalganj districts of the state on Monday. Earlier on Sunday, the CM took to his official X handle and expressed his condolences to the bereaved families. "It is sad that 2 persons died in Nalanda, 1 in Vaishali, 1 in Bhagalpur, 1 in Saharsa, 1 in Rohtas, 1 in Saran, 1 in Jamui, 1 in Bhojpur and 1 in Gopalganj due to lightning. Deep condolences to the bereaved families. Rs 4 lakh each will be given as ex-gratia to the families of the deceased," he wrote on X. Urging people to remain cautious, Kumar added, "People are appealed to be cautious during bad weather. Follow the suggestions issued from time to time by the Disaster Management Department. Stay indoors during bad weather, and stay safe." (ANI) The Supreme Court on Monday ruled that courts cannot ask accused to share their Google Maps location, to enable tracking their movements, as a condition to grant bail stating that doing so would amount to a violation of privacy rights. A bench of Justices Abhay S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan held that there can't be conditions that enable the police to constantly track the movements of the accused and virtually peep into the privacy. It also held that no court can impose bail conditions that frustrate the purpose of granting bail itself. The top court passed the order while examining whether a bail condition requiring an accused to share Google Maps location with the investigating officer to access his location is violative of a person's right to privacy. The apex court set aside the bail condition that required the accused to share their Google Maps location with the police. "Two things we have said. There cannot be a bail condition defeating the purpose of bail. We have said Google PIN cannot be a condition. Police cannot peep into the accused's private life for bail," said the bench in its verdict passed today. The detailed judgment will be out later in the day. The order was passed on an appeal against certain conditions imposed by the Delhi High Court in 2022 in its order granting interim bail to a Nigerian national, Frank Vitus, who was accused in a drug case. The High Court had ordered the accused man and a co-accused to drop a pin on Google Maps to ensure that their location was available to the investigating officer of the case. The accused were also asked by the Delhi High Court to get an assurance from the High Commission of Nigeria that they would not leave India and would appear before the trial court. To this, the apex court said that there cannot be bail conditions that defeat the purpose of granting bail. (ANI) Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh on Monday hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his visit to Russia asking a series of questions which included whether the PM would question Russian President Vladimir Putin about the unsustainable trade deficit between the two countries. The Congress leader also asked whether the meeting of PM Modi and the Russian President meant cooling of relations between the two countries. He also asked about 50 Indian youths who are fighting in the Russian army due to unemployment in India. "I have raised three questions to the non-biological Prime Minister. Dr Manmohan Singh and Putin and the Russian PM Dmitry Medvedev had met 16 times in 10 years. Putin and Modi have met 11 times. So does this mean some cooling of relations between Russia and India? That's the first question," he told ANI. "Second, our imports from Russia are almost $46 billion. Our exports to Russia are hardly about $3.5 billion. This is a completely unsustainable trade deficit. So what is the non-biological PM doing? Will he raise the issue of this unsustainable trade deficit which is hurting our industry, which is hurting our trade?" Jairam Ramesh added. "And third and most important issue is that 50 Indian youths are fighting in the Russian army. It means there are no jobs here. They are desperate, they are looking for jobs and they have to go and become agniveers for Russia. And two of them have died. So who is recruiting them? Which is this contractor? What are its political links? We can't give jobs to our youth... So will the non-biological PM raise this issue with Putin?" he said. PM Modi left for a two-nation visit to Russia and Austria on Monday stating that the visit to the two countries will present an opportunity for India to deepen ties with these nations. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." When asked about Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's visit to Manipur, Jairam Ramesh said that this is the third visit of Rahul Gandhi to show people in a sensitive way that their pain is our pain. "Non-biological Prime Minister is going to Moscow and Rahul ji, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, is going to Manipur. This is his third visit. In the last 17 months, the Prime Minister has not said anything about Manipur. He has not met the Chief Minister of Manipur, has not met the political parties of Manipur, MPs, MLAs and he has not gone to Manipur at all, not even for 45 hours," he said. "This is the third visit of Rahul Gandhi to show people in a sensitive way that your pain is our pain. The Supreme Court has said that the constitutional machinery, the constitutional system, has collapsed there and we cannot trust the state government. This is what the Supreme Court said, these are their comments," the Congress leader added. Rahul Gandhi reached Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state on Monday. He is scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at 5.30 pm. after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office at 6.15 pm. He visited the Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp and offered support to the victims of violence there. The official handle of the Congress party took to a microblogging site and posted on X, "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp, meets victims of violence and offers support in their darkest hour. His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause." (ANI) Reacting to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge's 'Modi Ki Chinese Guarantee' remark, Aam Aadmi Party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Monday claimed that the Indian Army is short of 3 lakh soldiers in the last 5 years adding that the central government has surrendered before China. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday attacked the Central government on the issue of Chinese incursion into Indian territory and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of "failure to maintain the status quo ante" at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) adding that "Modi Ki Chinese Guarantee continues as his government wears 56-inch big Chinese Blinkers on its Laal Aankh." "Not the Indian Government but a US-based satellite imaging company revealed that China has crossed the LAC and come in 5km of our territory. It is making bunkers near the Pangong Lake and deployed its Army in the region," Bharadwaj told ANI. "On the other hand, India has stopped recruitment in the Army after 2019-20. Every year 60000 soldiers retire, which makes the Indian Army short of 3 lakh soldiers in the last 5 years. The central government has surrendered before China. China is dependent on India for most of its trade. But we are unable to stop our trade with China," he added. Kharge asked how can China build a military base near Pangong Tso, on land that was under Indian occupation until May 2020. "Even as we enter the 5th year of the "CLEAN CHIT" given by PM Narendra Modi on Galwan, where our brave soldiers sacrificed their lives, China continues to impinge upon our territorial integrity!" Kharge posted on X. Alongside his post, the Congress chief shared a media report that claimed the Chinese army digging in close to Pangong Lake in eastern Ladakh. Attacking PM Modi, Kharge said, "10th April 2024 - PM Modi in an interview to foreign press failed to put forth India's case strongly at the global stage. 13th April 2024 - EAM's statement that "China has not occupied any of our land" exposed Modi government's Meek Policy towards China! 4th July 2024 - Even though EAM meets his Chinese counterpart and says "Respecting the LAC and ensuring peace and tranquillity in the border areas is essential." Kharge further said that China continues to be "belligerent on occupying our territory and constructing a military base at Sirijap", reportedly a land that was under Indian control. "Modi Government is responsible for not maintaining the status quo ante at the LAC. We have lost possession of 26 Patrolling Points (PP) out of 65 including points in Depsang Plains, Demchok and Gogra Hot Springs area. 'Modi Ki Chinese Guarantee' continues as his government wears 56-inch big Chinese Blinkers on its Laal Aankh!" he said. He further said that Congress once again reiterated its demand to take the nation into confidence on the border situation at LAC. "We stand shoulder to shoulder with our valiant soldiers," he said. (ANI) Huawei's smart village project launched in southern Zambia Xinhua) 08:54, July 08, 2024 This photo taken on July 5, 2024 shows solar panels at a mini-solar plant as part of a smart village project sponsored by Chinese firm Huawei Technologies in Namwala, Zambia.(Photo by Martin Mbangweta/Xinhua) NAMWALA, Zambia, July 6 (Xinhua) -- Zambia on Friday launched a smart village project in the southern district of Namwala sponsored by Chinese firm Huawei Technologies. The project, which includes a communication tower and a solar system capable of powering numerous homes, is the first of its kind in Zambia. "We extend our sincere gratitude to Huawei Technologies Zambia for their support, which aligns with our government's digital agenda to bring development to rural areas," said Zambian President Hakainde Hichilema at the launching ceremony. At the event, the Chinese technology firm also signed a memorandum of understanding with the Zambian government to establish 100 smart villages across the country's 10 provinces. The project was another example of the commitment of the Chinese government and Chinese companies to the pledges made to strengthen Zambia's digitalization during the Zambian president's state visit to China last year, said Wang Sheng, charge d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy in Zambia. According to Wang, the establishment of 100 smart villages is expected to offer electricity and internet access to 400,000 villagers and create more than 5,000 new jobs. Phil Li, Huawei's vice president for the southern Africa region, said the company was ready to work with various partners to bridge the digital gap in Zambia and contribute to the country's digitalization. The smart village project was the start of Huawei's effort to ensure that no Zambian village lagged regarding electricity access, said Li. This photo taken on July 5, 2024 shows solar panels at a mini-solar plant as part of a smart village project sponsored by Chinese firm Huawei Technologies in Namwala, Zambia.(Photo by Martin Mbangweta/Xinhua) Pupils are seen during the launch of a smart village project sponsored by Chinese firm Huawei Technologies in Namwala, Zambia, July 5, 2024.(Photo by Martin Mbangweta/Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday hit out at the Assam government over the grim flood situation in Assam and said that the situation of the state reflects the "gross and grave mismanagement" by BJP's double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a "flood-free Assam". "The extreme devastation caused by flooding in Assam is heartbreaking - with innocent children like 8-year-old Avinash being taken away from us. My heartfelt condolences to all the bereaved families across the State. Assam Congress leaders apprised me of the situation on the ground: 60+ deaths, 53,000+ displaced, 24,00,000 affected. These numbers reflect the gross and grave mismanagement by BJP's double-engine government which came to power with the promise of a flood-free Assam," Rahul Gandhi posted on X. He further said that Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision. "Assam needs a comprehensive and compassionate vision - proper relief, rehabilitation, and compensation in the short term, and a pan-Northeast water management authority to do everything necessary to control floods in the long term," he added. The Congress leader said that he stands with the people of Assam and urged the central government to extend all possible help and support to the State expeditiously "I stand with the people of Assam, I am their soldier in Parliament, and I urge the Central govt to extend all possible help and support to the State expeditiously," he added. Meanwhile, a team of the Assam Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC), led by President Bhupen Borah submitted a memorandum to LoP Rahul Gandhi urging him to take up the issue of the perennial flood of Assam in Parliament. As per the official APCC letter, "The key to Assam's flood problems lay in the hills. Due to large-scale deforestation in the hills, there is immense siltation in Assam's rivers. The resultant rising of the riverbed has progressively reduced the carrying capacity of Assam's rivers." "Therefore, in the monsoon season and with climate change, we are seeing extreme rainfalls--the water discharge is beyond the carrying capacity of rivers. The long-term solution therefore is a pan-Northeast water management authority, suitably empowered by Parliament to do everything necessary to control floods," it said. "The short-term solution is strengthening the current flood management infrastructure like embankments, and providing immediate relief and rehabilitation to those affected," stated the letter. Meanwhile, APCC leaders, MPs, MLAs, Frontal Heads, DCCs, and BCCs are touring the flood-affected areas. As per the current flood situation in Assam, 58 people have died and 53,429 are seeking refuge in shelter camps across the state. As many as 23.9 lakh people have been affected across 3,535 villages so far. 68,769 hectares of total crop area have been submerged. 114 Animals, including 6 rhinos, have died in Kaziranga National Park, as per the report. (ANI) Amidst the ongoing campaign to make Punjab a safe and secure state, Amritsar Commissionerate Police has busted an interstate organised crime syndicate with the arrest of its kingpin and four members from a flat located in Kharar, said officials on Monday. Director General of Police (DGP) Punjab, Gaurav Yadav said that the kingpin of the syndicate has been identified as Jai Sharma, alias Sukha Pistol Ambarsarya, a resident of Prem Nagar in Amritsar. "Four members have been identified as Nikhil Sharma, alias Lala, of Sandhu Colony in Amritsar, Moni of Kot Khalsa in Amritsar, Arpit Thakur and Karan Sharma, both residents of Sri Naina Devi in district Bilaspur of Himachal Pradesh. Accused Sukha Pistol has a criminal history with seven cases pertaining to Arms Act, snatching and theft registered against him," he said. Police teams have also recovered two 32-bore pistols, three magazines and eight live cartridges from their possession. DGP Gaurav Yadav said that following reliable inputs that accused Sukha Pistol along with his accomplices had gone to Khandwa in Madhya Pradesh to procure illicit weapons, teams from Police Station Civil Line Amritsar started keeping vigil on their movements. On their return from Madhya Pradesh, police teams have pinpointed their location in Kharar. "Acting swiftly, police teams under the supervision of ADCP City-2 Abhimanyu Rana have conducted a raid at a flat and successfully arrested all accused persons and recovered two pistols along with ammunition from their possession," said the DGP. He added that preliminary investigations have revealed that the accused persons were planning to attack members of rival gang. "Accused persons have been booked under the newly introduced section 111 (Organised Crime) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS)," the DGP added. Sharing more details, Commissioner of Police (CP) Amritsar Ranjit Singh Dhillon said that this criminal syndicate was engaged in criminal acts including theft, snatching and arms trafficking. He said that further investigations are on to trace the forward and backward linkages of this module, and identify the MP-based arm smugglers. "More arrests and recoveries are expected," he added. (ANI) Aam Aadmi Party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not visiting Manipur and said that PM Modi has time to visit abroad but no time to visit Hathras and Manipur. Earlier today, PM Modi left for a two-nation visit today, beginning with Moscow, Russia, where he has been invited by President Vladimir Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. "China is slowly advancing towards the northeast, which has remained a conflict zone for decades because of insurgencies and militancy. One whole state of the northeast has been burning for the last year but the Prime Minister does not want to visit Manipur. He has time to visit abroad but no time to visit Hathras. And opposition leaders are going there. This is the failure of the central government," Saurabh Bharadwaj said. Earlier today, Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi reached Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state. The Congress leader arrived at the Imphal airport earlier this afternoon to visit relief camps here and will call upon Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey this evening. He is scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at 5.30 pm. after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office at 6.15 pm. Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi visited the Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp and offered support to the victims of violence there. The official handle of the Congress party took to a microblogging site and posted on X, "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp, meets victims of violence and offers support in their darkest hour. His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause." Rahul Gandhi will shortly visit the relief camp at Sadbhavna Mandap, in Tuibong, Churachandpur district in Manipur. The northeastern state has been witnessing ethnic violence since May 3 last year following clashes during a rally organised by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category. (ANI) The Delhi High Court on Monday reserved the order on a plea by Arvind Kejriwal's close aide Bibhav Kumar seeking direction to declare his arrest by Delhi Police as illegal. The bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna after hearing both sides at length decided to reserve the order. Appearing for Bibhav, Senior Advocate N Hariharan submitted that the FIR was registered after a delay of three days. "He's picked up illegally without being served notice u/s 41A from CM's residence. I (Bibhav Kumar) put an anticipatory bail plea, while around 4:00-4:30 it is being heard, I am arrested around 4:15. If the arrest is happening in such a fashion then the court must intervene. My fundamental right to be arrested in such a fashion was exploited and hence, I am here. You flouted the 41A procedure," the Advocate said. "Section 41A mandates police to issue notice to the person accused of committing an offence before arrest without a warrant. There no urgency of arrest and till 18th he did not move. 16th, the FIR was registered. He was picked up at a time when Kumar apprised them that he was ready to cooperate with the investigation. Police picked him up at 12 and till 4:15 there was no news of arrest. On the day when they registered the case, the IO seized all the electronic evidence and the entire record. In the interregnum 16/17th--- the forensics team...How can I tamper with the evidence on 18th? There was no necessity to arrest me when I had agreed to cooperate with the investigation," he added. Senior Advocate and former Additional Solicitor General Sanjay Jain for Delhi Police submitted that the arrest memo contained the reasons for arrest but even grounds of arrest in the remand application were supplied to him. Information regarding his arrest was given to his wife. The accused's lawyer was there to oppose the bail and remand. "The appointment of the petitioner was co-terminus with the CM. There was material against him based on which the LG terminated his services. He was not arrested in haste. Had he been arrested in haste, the police would've arrested him in Bombay. When the police went on to the site on the 17th he was there. On 17th police and an officer of additional DCP had visited, it was found on the 17th that certain video recordings were missing, the telephone was formatted, video recording leaked to the media was also missing. Based on all this, the investigating officer decided to arrest him. Portraying as we are some villain," the Delhi Police lawyer said. "We are the custodians and we are doing our duty. When he was being investigated it was seen that he had taken his mobile phone in Bombay and he formatted his mobile phone and this amounted to tampering of evidence and a case of making an attempt of tampering with the evidence," the Lawyer stated. There was positive evidence available and there were material circumstances pointing out towards the justifiability of arrest, the lawyer added. Bibhav Kumar was arrested by the Delhi Police on May 18, in connection with a FIR registered by Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal assault case. Bibhav through his plea also sought appropriate compensation for his alleged illegal arrest, in deliberate and blatant violation of the provisions of law. The Departmental Action must be initiated against the unknown erring officials, who were involved in the decision making viz. the arrest of the Petitioner, stated the plea. (ANI) After six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan also mentioned that, during the operation, one Army personnel also sacrificed his life. "In the Chinigham operation, our soldier Prabhakar Praveen made the supreme sacrifice for the nation. We had been monitoring movements in this area for several days with the help of all agencies and Army surveillance devices. On July 6, we received information about terrorist movements in the Chinigham area. Around 4 pm, one of our soldiers noted the movement. When we challenged them, they started firing, and our parties responded fully, during which one of our soldiers was martyred. After concluding the operation, we found and promptly destroyed an IED weighing approximately 6 kg, keeping collateral damage in mind. The killing of four terrorists in this operation, and a total of six in South Kashmir, is a significant blow to Hizbul Mujahideen," he said. Speaking on the Kulgam encounter, Javed Ahmad Matoo, DIG South Kashmir, said that in two joint operations conducted from July 6 to 7, two terrorists were killed in total. "Adil, who had multiple FIRs against him in different police stations, was killed in one operation. The second encounter took place in the Chinigham area based on specific information, resulting in the killing of four terrorists. Among them was Yavar Bashir Dar, a Category 'A' terrorist. The others were identified as Tauheed Ahmed, Shakeel Ahmed Wani, and Zahir Ahmad Dar. A significant cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from the encounter site. Both locations had hideouts that the terrorists had been using for a considerable time," Matoo said. The Indian Army on Sunday paid tributes to the two soldiers who lost their lives in two separate encounters in Jammu and Kashmir's Kulgam district. "Chinar Corps Commander, Chief Secretary of J-K, DGP J-K, and other dignitaries and all ranks paid homage to Lance Naik Pardeep Kumar and Sepoy Pravin Janjal Prabhakar, who made the supreme sacrifice in the line of duty in Kulgam on 06 Jul 2024," Indian Army Chinar Corps posted on X on Sunday. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh High Court has quashed an FIR against a government doctor accused of rape citing that the complainant and the doctor had a relationship of over 10 years and a case of rape could not be registered against him because he refused to marry her. The FIR was registered against the doctor, posted in the government hospital, Katni district on November 26, 2021, after a written complaint was made to the police at Mahila Thana, Katni. The complainant alleged that the doctor developed physical relations with her by making false promises of marriage. "In the complaint it is stated by the woman that they have known each other since last 11 years. It is stated by the woman that when the petitioner was studying in school, she was studying in Class 11. During summer vacation, the petitioner used to come to his village and meet her. There was an affair between them. The petitioner had also proposed and assured her for marriage and also asked her to continue her studies and as such in the month of June, 2010. When he came to his village during summer vacation, he developed physical relations with her. This relationship continued till 2020," the statement in the High Court order read. Thereafter when he was posted in the Government Hospital, Katni as a doctor, he often called the woman in his house allotted to him in the hospital premises and used to develop physical relations with her, but later on he refused to marry her. Thereafter, the woman informed her father and lodged a report alleging that the petitioner had threatened her that if the report is lodged, he would kill her, it added. The judge stated in the order, "It is clear that in 2010 when the incident occurred for the first time, the woman got cause of action to register an FIR as, according to her, physical relation was developed by the petitioner despite her resistance on the pretext of marriage and that relationship continued till 2020. However, no FIR was lodged by her and when the petitioner refused to enter into the marriage then only a report was lodged in 2021." "The consent cannot be considered to be a consent obtained under misconception of fact reason being the relationship between the parties existed for a long period of 10 years but the woman never realised that the petitioner was exploiting her by developing physical relation with her continuously. Therefore, in the facts and circumstances of the present case, it is difficult to sustain the charge levelled against the petitioner that he developed physical relation with the woman on a false promise of marriage," he added. "The Supreme Court has very specifically observed that there must be adequate evidence to show that at the relevant time i.e. at the initial stage itself, the accused had no intention whatsoever, of keeping his promise to marry the victim. There may, of course, be circumstances, when a person having the best of intentions is unable to marry the victim owing to various unavoidable circumstances," the statement in order read. "It is also apt to mention here that considering the facts and circumstances of the case parties were called to the Court and they were advised to get married but even in the Court the parents of the parties because of some differences could not reach a consensus and as such the attempt made by the Court to resolve the dispute failed. Thus, in my opinion, the present case does not come within the definition of rape as defined in Section 375 of IPC because consensual relationship and affair between the parties are apparent on the face of the record and admitted by the woman herself," the statement further read. "The FIR registered against the petitioner at Police Station Mahila Thana, Katni district for the offence punishable under Sections 376, 376(2)(n), 506 and 366 of the Indian Penal Code is hereby quashed and consequently the charge sheet/Final Report filed against the petitioner by the prosecution on account of registration of said criminal case is also hereby quashed," the Judge said in the order. (ANI) Congress MP Manickam Tagore on Monday accused the Manipur government of not governing the state properly and said that Rahul Gandhi stands with people who are in pain. MP Manickam Tagore made the statement on the day when Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi is in Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state. "Manipur has been in pain for the past few months. The people of Manipur have spoken and two MPs of the Congress party have been elected...The state government ruled by the BJP is not governing the state properly...He is visiting the families who have been affected by violence...Rahul Gandhi stands with people who are in pain," Tagore told ANI. Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at 5.30 pm. after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office at 6.15 pm. Meanwhile, the Congress leader also visited the Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp and offered support to the victims of violence there. The official handle of the Congress party took to a microblogging site and posted on X, "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp, meets victims of violence and offers support in their darkest hour. His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause." Rahul Gandhi will shortly visit the relief camp at Sadbhavna Mandap, in Tuibong, Churachandpur district in Manipur. The northeastern state has been witnessing ethnic violence since May 3 last year following clashes during a rally organised by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category. (ANI) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday demanded that BJP national president J P Nadda must explain to people how his party allowed Chikkaballapur BJP MP to allegedly distribute liquor to party workers. Speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha, he said, "Liquor has been distributed to BJP party workers at a public event in Nelamangala. To register a case in this regard is another matter, but before that BJP National President J P Nadda must answer how his party allowed its MP to distribute liquor to its party workers at a public event." "Rather than the local BJP leaders, it is important that national leaders of BJP tell people how the BJP is upholding the culture of land by distributing liquor in public meetings," he demanded. Earlier on Tuesday, DK Shivakumar said he would focus on good work rather than worrying about unconstructive criticism. Speaking at a 'Government at your doorstep' event in Channapatna taluk, he said that criticism dies while good work lives on for a long time. People's service is important to me. I am the son of Channapatna, my doors are always open to the people. Some are saying that I will go away after the by-elections. They did not do any good work in the constituency when they were in power. He said that a grant of Rs 167 crore had been released from the Irrigation department for Channapatna ahead of the by-elections. The Chief Minister has agreed to release a special grant of Rs 100 crore for the taluk. Rs 70 crore has been allocated for various other works such as elephant barricades, railway overbridges, drainage, etc. A barrage is being built for Rs 50 crore across the Kanva river near Addaalahalli. Irrigation works in Sattehala are being done at a cost of Rs 540 crore. He announced that about 2,500 people have submitted pleas for sites and 1,121 people have requested for homes. Officials would issue sites and homes to the needy after reviewing the applications. A new 100-acre layout has been formed in Kanakapura and a similar layout will be formed in Channapatna. (ANI) Congress General Secretary Rajeev Shukla said that while the opposition party has no objection to the Prime Minister going to Russia, they wanted to point out that he should be visiting violence-hit Manipur as well. "We have no objection to PM going to Russia. PM's visit was already proposed. But we have been continuously demanding in Parliament that he should go to Manipur. Why is North East being neglected? He should go there," Shukla said speaking at a press conference in Chandigarh. Earlier in the day, Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi reached Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state. Speaking about Kiran Chaudhury's exit from the Haryana Congress, Shukla pointed out that Chaudhury has been in the party for 30 years. "There is a strong organization in Haryana. The process is going on there too. Kiran Chaudhary was in Congress for 30 years but now she is speaking against Congress," Shukla said. Kiran Choudhry, the daughter-in-law of former Haryana Chief Minister Bansi Lal was a strong face of the Haryana Congress before he jumped ship and joined the Bharatiya Janata Party last month. Speaking about the political crisis that the Himachal Pradesh Congress had to go through when six MLAs quit the party, Shukla said, "Our MLAs were broken through money power in Himachal. Out of 6, 4 MLAs have lost the elections. BJP has ruined their political career," Shukla said that the Congress is on its way to win in all the three by-elections in the state. "Now 3 by-elections are being held. We will win these elections too," he said. Slamming the Aam Aadmi Party over the poor law and order situation in Punjab, Shukla said, "The law and order situation in Punjab is bad. The Punjab government will have to fix it. This will increase resentment among the public." (ANI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu and Congress party workers on Monday paid tribute to former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on his third death anniversary at Congress headquarters Rajiv Bhawan in Shimla. Today is the third death anniversary of the late Virbhadra Singh, who was six-time Chief Minister of the state. Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu paid tribute to the former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and said he is also following in his footsteps of developing Himachal Pradesh. Taking it to a social media post on X, he wrote, "Tributes to the creator of modern Himachal, former Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh ji on his death anniversary. Following his footsteps, we are determined to take Devbhoomi to the pinnacle of progress. Shraddha Suman." https://x.com/SukhuSukhvinder/status/1810130403711234321 Congress MLA Nandlal, General Secretary Yashwant Chhajta, and other Congress workers paid tribute to him by offering flowers in his picture and remembering the development work done by him. Congress MLA and Finance Department Chairman Nand Lal said that it is the day to remember his contribution. "Today is Virbhadra Singh's death anniversary and congressmen are remembering him. Virbhadra Singh served the state for 65 years. . He established new dimensions of development and developed every corner of the state. He said that Virbhadra Singh did unprecedented work in the field of health. Along with building medical colleges, he strengthened health services in rural areas. The public had a lot of affection towards him, as a result of which he became the Chief Minister six times and people still remember him. The public can never forget the development work done by him and he will always be remembered," said Nand Lal, Congress leader and CPS. Virbhadra Singh Served as a six-time Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh and Union Minister with a political career of over 5 decades. He died on July 8, 2021. (ANI) The Supreme Court on Monday laid down guidelines in connection with portrayal of the persons with disabilities (PWD) by visual media and directed to avoid language that individualises the impairment and overlooks the disabling social barrier. A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justice JB Pardiwala said," As long as the overall message of the film justifies the depiction of disparaging language being used against persons with disabilities, it cannot be subjected to restrictions beyond those placed in Article 19(2). However, language that disparages persons with disabilities, marginalises them further and supplements the disabling barriers in their social participation, without the redeeming quality of the overall message of such portrayal must be approached with caution." The top court noted that such representation is problematic not because it offends subjective feelings but rather, because it impairs the objective societal treatment of the affected groups by society. "We believe that representation of persons with disabilities must regard the objective social context of their representation and not marginalise persons with disability," the top court said while laying down guidelines. Among the guidelines, the first one by the top court is about the "words cultivate institutional discrimination." "Terms such as "cripple" and "spastic" have come to acquire devalued meanings in societal perceptions about persons with disabilities. They contribute to the negative self-image and perpetuate discriminatory attitudes and practices in society," the court said. The court also directed that language that individualises the impairment and overlooks the disabling social barriers (eg terms such as "afflicted", "suffering", and "victim") should be avoided or adequately flagged as contrary to the social model. The apex court also said that the creators must check for accurate representation of a medical condition as much as possible. The misleading portrayal of what a condition such as night blindness entails may perpetuate misinformation about the condition, and entrench stereotypes about persons with such impairments, aggravating the disability, the top court said. Besides this, the other guidelines are that visual media must reflect the lived experiences of Persons with disabilities, who are under-represented and said that their portrayal must capture the multitudes of their lived realities, and should not be a uni-dimensional, ableist characterisation. "Visual media should strive to depict the diverse realities of persons with disabilities, showcasing not only their challenges but also their successes, talents, and contributions to society. This balanced representation can help dispel stereotypes and promote a more inclusive understanding of disability. Such portrayals should reflect the multifaceted lives of persons with disabilities, emphasizing their roles as active community members who contribute meaningfully across various spheres of life. By highlighting their achievements and everyday experiences, media can shift the narrative from one of limitation to one of potential and agency," the court said. "They should neither be lampooned based on myths (such as, 'blind people bump into objects in their path') nor presented as 'super cripples' on the other extreme. This stereotype implies that persons with disabilities have extraordinary heroic abilities that merit their dignified treatment. For instance, the notion that visually impaired persons have enhanced spatial senses may not apply to everyone uniformly. It also implies that those who do not have such enhanced superpowers to compensate for the visual impairment are somehow less than ideal," it added. "Decision-making bodies must bear in mind the values of participation. The 'nothing about us, without us' principle, is based on the promotion of participation of persons with disabilities and the equalisation of opportunities. It must be put to practice in constituting statutory committees and inviting expert opinions for assessing the overall message of films and their impact on the dignity of individuals under the Cinematograph Act and Rules," the top court said. "The CPRD also requires consultation with and involvement of persons with disabilities in the implementation of measures to encourage portrayal that is consistent with it," the top court said. "Collaboration with disability advocacy groups can provide invaluable insights and guidance on respectful and accurate portrayals, ensuring that content aligns with the lived experiences of persons with disabilities," the top court said. "Training and sensitization programs should be implemented for individuals involved in creating visual media content, including writers, directors, producers, and actors. These programs should emphasize the impact of their portrayals on public perceptions and the lived experiences of persons with disabilities. Topics should include the principles of the social model of disability, the importance of respectful language, and the need for accurate and empathetic representation. Regular workshops and collaboration with disability advocacy groups can foster a deeper understanding and commitment to responsible portrayal," the top court said. The court direction came on Nipun Malhotra's petition who is the founder of an organisation that promotes awareness about disabilities, conducts policy research and provides education to underprivileged children. The appellant was aggrieved by the manner in which persons with disabilities have been portrayed in the movie titled 'Aankh Micholi'. He challenged the judgment dated 15 January 2024 of the High Court of Delhi by which a petition was dismissed on grounds of maintainability. The appellant sought guidelines against filmmakers, regarding the provisions of the RPwD Act and the composition of the Board and the Advisory panel under the Cinematograph Act and recommendations to beep certain parts of the present film as well. "We endorse slow interference with the determination of an expert body under the Cinematograph Act, particularly to allow the exhibition of a film. It is for the Board to draw the line between permissible and impermissible portrayal of social ills through visual media, and ensure that the Guidelines are meant to be read as broad standards for the same.109 The certification in the present case implies that the Board found that the overall message of the film was in accordance with the guidelines and the RPwD Act.110 We are not inclined to interfere with this finding by recommending beeping out parts of the film, especially considering the inclusion of a disclaimer in the film," the top court said. (ANI) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Monday addressed a public meeting organized in Pokhri, Chamoli in support of BJP candidate Rajendra Bhandari in the Badrinath assembly by-election and said that India is moving forward rapidly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Chief Minister said that both Mahendra Bhatt and Rajendra Bhandari are harbouring the vision to take this area forward together. He sought public support in favour of Rajendra Bhandari and urged to vote for him on July 10. "The BJP candidate is a candidate for the service of the public. Bhandari has resigned for the development of the Badrinath Assembly. With Bhandari ji's victory, the development work of this area will get a boost," he said. The Chief Minister said that the development of Uttarakhand is going on under the leadership of PM Modi. "India is moving forward rapidly under the leadership of the Prime Minister. All-round development of Uttarakhand is going on under the leadership of Modi ji. Historic decisions have been taken in the country under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi ji. Article 370 has been abolished from Kashmir. CAA law was implemented. Triple Talaq has been abolished from the country. The dream of building a Ram temple in Ayodhya has been fulfilled under the leadership of Modi ji. Under the guidance of the Prime Minister, the state government first implemented equal civil rights. Uttarakhand has become the first state in the country to implement UCC. Uttarakhand has progressed in many areas," CM Dhami said. He further said that the anti-cheating law of the country has been implemented in the state, due to which examinations are now being conducted with complete transparency in government jobs. "Encroachment is being removed from government lands. Homestays are being opened everywhere. Mahalaxmi Kit Yojana, Lakhpati Didi Yojana, Uttarakhand Ayushman Yojana, Old Age Pension Scheme have been started in the state. 3 gas cylinders of Antyodaya card holders are being refilled in 1 year," the CM said. The Chief Minister said that work is in progress on the master plan of Rs 424 crore for the grand Badrinath Dham. "The ropeway from Auli to Gaursons has been approved. An amount of Rs 3.50 crore has been approved for building a mini stadium in Pokhari. A tourist accommodation house has been constructed in Pokhari. Work is going on to build a multi-storey parking in Joshimath. He said that BJP is working to take the country and the state forward but on the other hand Congress is doing politics of lies and division. Congress is a party without leadership. The people of Uttarakhand have shown in the Lok Sabha elections that politics of lies will not work in the state," he added. The Chief Minister said that under the leadership of the Prime Minister, many development works have been done in this country for every section including SC ST OBC. Today the services of the government are reaching the person standing at the last end. He had described Mana as the first village of the country from the land of Chamoli. "After losing the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress is now targeting Hinduism. Rahul Gandhi had described Hindus as violent in the Lok Sabha. Congress leaders did not go to the Ram Mandir Prana Pratishtha program so that Congress's favourite vote bank does not get angry with them. Congress has only done corruption in Uttarakhand. Everyone needs to be cautious of the Congress party," he said. Voting for the assembly by-polls in the Badrinath and Manglaur seats will be held on July 10. From Uttarakhand, Rajendra Singh Bhandari from Badrinath and Kartar Singh Bhadana from Manglaur have been fielded by the party. The Badrinath seat fell vacant after Congress MLA Rajendra Bhandari resigned and joined the BJP. The Manglaur seat fell vacant after the death of Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Sarwat Karim Ansari. (ANI) Delhi Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Monday held a meeting with all the Delhi Hospital's chiefs over preparations to combat Dengue and other vector-borne diseases. The meeting was attended by the Medical Director (MD) and Medical Superintendent (MS) of all Delhi government hospitals. On Friday, Saurabh Bharadwaj on Friday chaired a meeting, which was attended by the concerned departments of the Secretariat over preparedness to deal with Dengue. "When the rainy season starts, the risk of dengue, chikungunya, and malaria increases. In such a situation, discussions are held with all the departments. We have sent instructions to DDA, MCD, PWD, NDMC, and the Health Department to ensure that water does not accumulate in their respective jurisdictions so that breeding does not occur. Hospitals have also been alerted to keep all the information related to dengue," he said. Recently, the Delhi government held an emergency meeting in view of heavy rains and waterlogging in the national capital on Friday. The meeting was held at the Delhi Secretariat. Following the meeting, Delhi Minister Atishi said that an emergency meeting was attended by all senior officials of the government and several important decisions were taken. Atishi said that the Delhi government has identified 200 hotspots that are prone to waterlogging. She said that the reason behind waterlogging is excessive rainfall which is more than the capacity of drains. The Union Health Ministry has urged the states to maintain a constant state of vigilance through screening of pregnant women for Zika virus infection and monitoring the growth of the foetus of expecting mothers who have tested positive. The health facilities and hospitals have been assigned a nodal officer to monitor and act to keep the premises Aedes mosquito-free. Additionally, states have been instructed to strengthen their entomological surveillance and intensify their vector control activities in residential areas, workplaces, schools, construction sites, institutions and health facilities. (ANI) Former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Ghulam Nabi Azad on Monday condemned the terrorists' attack on an Indian Army convoy in Kathua district. In a post on X, Azad pointed out that the rise in terrorism in the Jammu province is deeply concerning. "Deeply saddened and strongly condemn the ambush on an army vehicle by terrorists in Kathua, resulting in the tragic loss of four jawans and injuries to six others. The rise in terrorism in Jammu province is deeply concerning. Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured and their families. The government must act decisively to tackle terrorism and ensure public safety!" he said. Four Army soldiers were killed and some others were injured in a terrorist attack in the Machedi area of Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir today. An encounter is still underway between troops and the terrorists in the area. As per the officials, the area in Jammu and Kashmir falls under the 9th Corps of the Indian Army. Meanwhile, after six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan also mentioned that, during the operation, one Army personnel also sacrificed his life. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. Speaking on the Kulgam encounter, Javed Ahmad Matoo, DIG South Kashmir, said that in two joint operations conducted from July 6 to 7, two terrorists were killed in total. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a "spike" in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralized in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain had said. (ANI) An encounter is still underway between troops and the terrorists in the area. More details are awaited. As per the officials, the area in Jammu and Kashmir falls under the 9th Corps of the Indian Army. Meanwhile, after six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan also mentioned that, during the operation, one Army personnel also sacrificed his life. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a "spike" in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralized in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain had said. (ANI) Bharatiya Janata Party national general secretary Tarun Chugh on Monday condemned Congress MP and LoP Rahul Gandhi for "politicizing the law and order situation" in Manipur. Slamming Rahul Gandhi for his Manipur visit, Chugh said, "As Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already updated the nation on how the Centre and the state government have overcome the crisis, Rahul Gandhi is now just indulging in "political tourism." Chugh further stated, "Rahul Gandhi was deliberately trying to foment trouble in the region while playing "cheap politics" in the sensitive state. If he was so worried about law and order in the country, he should have first visited Bengal and Tamil Nadu where violence has been so rampant." Chugh also criticized the Congress leaders for trying to run down the Prime Minister's Moscow visit. He said, "While the prime minister was adding to the nation's international glory, the Congress has only been sulking and trying to hit India's international status." Earlier in the day, Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Manipur and suggested PM Modi to listen to the people of the state as it will provide "comfort" to the people of Manipur. Addressing a press conference, Rahul Gandhi said that the Indian government and everybody who considers himself a "patriot" must reach out and "embrace" the people of Manipur and bring peace to Manipur." Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Monday afternoon reached Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state. The Congress leader arrived at the Imphal airport earlier this afternoon to visit relief camps and will call upon Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey this evening. He is scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey, after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office at 6.15 pm. Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi visited the Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp and offered support to the victims of violence there. The official handle of the Congress party took to a microblogging site and posted on X, "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp, meets victims of violence and offers support in their darkest hour. His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause." Rahul Gandhi also visited the relief camp at Sadbhavna Mandap, in Tuibong, Churachandpur district in Manipur. (ANI) Assam Minister for Industry, Commerce and Public Enterprise, Bimal Borah attended a review meeting on Rubber Plantation with the Union Minister for Commerce and Industry at Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh on Monday. The meeting was presided over by the Union Minister Piyush Goyal. In the review meeting, the various policies and programmes were discussed under the Act East Policy, which was initiated under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Center and is complemented by those of the Government of Assam led by Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma. He also said, "Assam has witnessed a phenomenal and unprecedented industrial growth trajectory." The minister took to his official X handle and posted about his participation in the review meeting. He said, "While addressing the meeting, Industry Minister Bimal Borah emphasized how Assam today leads the North Eastern region in rubber plantation coverage of 61,716 hectares with an annual production of 58,359 Metric Tonnes." He also underscored how Sarma's visionary amendment of the Assam Industrial Policy has yielded an investment of over Rs 13,000 crores and also laid the stage for setting up of the Semi-Conductor Plant by the Tata Group valued at around Rs 22,000 crores. The Minister also conveyed immense gratitude to Piyush Goyal for the continuous support and guidance of the Union. He said, "The Union government has reiterated our commitment to our collaborative efforts in achieving the goal of establishing Assam and the North East as the next engine of growth of the nation and a hub of industrial innovation and prosperity." The meeting was also attended by the Minister for Commerce and Industry, Govt of Arunachal Pradesh, Nyato Dukam, Additional Secretary (Plantations), Dept of Commerce, Ministry of Commerce & Industry Amardeep Singh Bhatia, Commissioner, Industries & Commerce, Govt of Assam, Oinam Sarankumar Singh, Former Chairman, Rubber Board and rubber sector expert, Dr Sawar Dhanania, Executive Director, Rubber Board, M Vasanthagesan, Director, Tribal Welfare Dept, Govt of Tripura, Prabhu S, Research Officer, Tribal Welfare Dept, Govt of Tripura, Subodh Debbarma and several other officers and representatives of the board. (ANI) BJP national president JP Nadda will visit Kerala on Tuesday and take part in an expanded executive meeting of the state BJP in Thiruvananthapuram in the evening. The BJP chief will also attend another crucial meeting with state party leaders. This visit marks BJP's National President's first visit to Kerala following the Lok Sabha elections. It is noteworthy that in the recent Lok Sabha elections, BJP not only opened its seat tally in Kerala but also increased its vote share significantly. The party made gains in nearly a dozen assembly constituencies and contested directly on several Lok Sabha seats, including Thiruvananthapuram and Pathanamthitta. From an organizational standpoint, BJP National President Jagat Prakash Nadda's visit to Kerala has been considered highly significant. Nadda will arrive in Thiruvananthapuram tomorrow at 11:40 AM, where he will receive a grand welcome from senior party officials. Following his arrival, at 12:20 PM, he will participate in an important organisational meeting in Thiruvananthapuram. Nadda will reach the Girideepam Convention Center in Thiruvananthapuram at 3:55 PM, where he will address the extended executive meeting of the Kerala BJP. Following this, he will conduct another important meeting with senior party leaders of the state at the same venue. The Bharatiya Janata Party has opened its account in Kerala in Lok Sabha elections for the first time with actor-politician Suresh Gopi winning from the Thrissur Lok Sabha seat by more than 72,000 votes. Earlier on Friday, Tripura Chief Minister Manik Saha expressed confidence in the BJP's success and said that the party will expand its presence in West Bengal and Kerala as the people's confidence has grown in the party. Saha said that the BJP is poised to expand its governance to West Bengal and Kerala, as public confidence in the party continues to grow due to its commitment to development. (ANI) Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Annamalai said that the murder of state Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president K Armstrong has highlighted the poor state of law and order in the state. "We are extremely saddened by the death of a prominent leader in Tamil Nadu, BJP chief K Annamalai...this murder has clearly showcased the poor law and order in Tamil Nadu and DMK govt's denial. Tamil Nadu has become a land where murders are happening on one hand and surrenders are happening on the other, people come out of jail very fast and they commit murder again...government has to first acknowledge...until they let the Police act freely, there is not going to be an end to this menace..," Annamalai said speaking to reporters on Monday. "Tomorrow in Delhi, our prominent SC leaders along with Union Minister L Murugan will meet National Commission for Scheduled Castes, National Human Rights Commission and will appeal regarding the murder of Armstrong and few other leaders...," he added. Armstrong was hacked to death on Friday evening by a group of unidentified men near his residence in Perambur, Chennai. Annamalai said that his party will be requesting Union Home Minister Amit Shah to investigate the murder of state Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) president K Armstrong. "Tamil Nadu BSP president late Armstrong should get justice. So we are requesting Union Minister Amit Shah to know the reality of the murder and to investigate the case," Annamalai said. Annamalai further said, "17 incidents have taken place recently in Tamil Nadu. BJP senior leaders from Tamil Nadu are going to meet the National Human Rights Commission chairman and other officials in Delhi." Following the brutal killing of K Armstrong, the Chennai police suspect the involvement of associates of gangster Arcot Suresh, who was murdered in August last year. In an interview with ANI on Sunday, Asra Garg, Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order), North Chennai, said, "After sustained interrogation, due analysis, and diligence regarding the facts and circumstances of each suspect, we have arrested eight people. We have seized seven blood-stained weapons, one Zomato t-shirt, a Zomato bag, and three bikes that were used in the commission of the offence." Highlighting the suspected motive behind the killing, ACP Garg mentioned that the associates of gangster Arcot Suresh, who was assassinated last year, believed it was "conspired" by Armstrong. "In continuation of this, the special teams formed by the Chennai police have secured three more suspects. The preliminary investigation so far indicates that the motive prima facie appears to be based on different types of analysis. In August 2023, Arcot Suresh was murdered by a gang; his family and associates believe it was done under the direction or in conspiracy with Armstrong, who was murdered on Friday," he stated. The Chennai police have formed special teams to comprehensively probe the case. Earlier on Saturday, the BSP supremo, Mayawati, called for immediate action from the Tamil Nadu government. "The brutal murder of a hardworking and dedicated leader of the BSP in Tamil Nadu and the state party unit president K. Armstrong outside his Chennai residence yesterday evening has sent shockwaves across society. The government should immediately take strict and necessary action to prevent such incidents in the future," she said in a post on 'X'. (ANI) Hitting out at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his visit to Manipur, Union Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Giriraj Singh on Monday called him "Yuvaraj" for not visiting West Bengal when atrocities were committed on Hindu women and stated that his visits can deteriorate the situation of Manipur. Giriraj Singh said, "Some people have become habitual of political touring, but the "prince" was silent when Hindu women in Bengal were beaten on roads, that too according to the Sharia law. When the political situation is improving in Manipur, he has gone to deteriorate the situation of the state." Singh further slammed Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on his remarks of "Modi Ki Chinese Guarantee" and said instead of Modi Ji, it was Nehru Ji who gave India's land to China. Lashing out at Mallikarjun Kharge's remarks of 'Modi Ki Chinese Guarantee', Singh asserted, "33,000-34,000 sq. km land, which Nehru Ji had given, apart from it, Modi Ji hasn't let anybody to take an inch of land. I am saying this while thumping my chest. I urge Kharge Ji to not spread lies. It was Nehru Ji who deceived India and its land. He gave 34,000 sq. km of land to China and Congress should apologize for it." Hitting out at Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for mocking BJP's slogan of 400 paar, Singh said, "Congress is trying new methods to turn their defeat in Lok Sabha elections into a victory. First of all, Congress leaders should accept their defeat for the third consecutive term where they couldn't even secure 99+ seats. Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor should speak on this issue." On the issue of fresh terror encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Singh stated, "During Congress rule, from Jammu and Kashmir to Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, and Bihar, there were terrorist attacks in the nation. But now, these terrorists stay hidden like rats in their holes and when they show up, they are sent to hell and the same thing happened in Kashmir. Congress should refrain from demoralizing the security, paramilitary, and military forces of Jammu and Kashmir. Instead of praising, the Congress has only abused the bravery of the army personnel." On Rahul Gandhi's confidence in defeating BJP in Gujarat, Singh said, "They haven't won even a seat in some states. First, they should open their account in those states and then say something." Earlier in the day, Congress MP and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi reached Imphal to meet the victims of violence at the relief camps in the state. The Congress leader arrived at the Imphal airport earlier this afternoon to visit relief camps and will call upon Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey this evening. He is scheduled to meet Governor Anusuiya Uikey at 5.30 pm. after which he will address a press conference at the Manipur Congress office at 6.15 pm. Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi visited the Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp and offered support to the victims of violence there. The official handle of the Congress party took to a microblogging site and posted on X, "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits Jiribam Higher Secondary School relief camp, meets victims of violence and offers support in their darkest hour. His third visit to Manipur post-violence shows his unwavering commitment to the people's cause." Rahul Gandhi also visited the relief camp at Sadbhavna Mandap, in Tuibong, Churachandpur district in Manipur. (ANI) Among 86-year-old Guo Dashun's most vivid memories, which span decades of archaeological exploration, the one that shines brightest, despite first being glimpsed more than 40 years ago, happened at the Niuheliang Site in Chaoyang, Liaoning province. "That was a moment etched in time, as the clay head of a goddess that we had just unearthed lay before us, gazing skyward with a smile that seemed to invite conversation," says Guo, an honorary director of Liaoning Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, and a leading scholar of Hongshan Culture studies. "Her eyes, adorned with jade, gleamed with a mesmerizing intensity, and drew everyone closer. It was our first glimpse of the face of our ancestors from 5 millennia ago." The sculpture is a life-size terracotta representation of a woman with distinctive facial traits: high cheekbones, shallow eye sockets, a low nose bridge, thin lips and eyes inset with sparkling, jade circular pieces. It was discovered at the Niuheliang Site, which has been identified as a late-stage primitive settlement of the Hongshan Culture. The culture, pivotal in Neolithic Chinese history, once flourished across modern-day Liaoning, Hebei province, and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region. Presently, a replica of this captivating face is on display at the Shenyang Museum in the provincial capital, Shenyang. Alongside it are 265 artifacts, which take visitors on a journey into the beauty and enduring legacy of early Chinese civilization. The exhibition, The Light of Civilization: Hongshan, Liangzhu, and Chinese Civilization, opened last month, elevates the Hongshan and Liangzhu cultures to equal importance, examining them within the grand narrative of the origins of Chinese civilization, according to Wang Chuang, the exhibition curator, and member of the Shenyang cultural heritage center. About 1,500 kilometers from the core area of Hongshan Culture, the Archaeological Ruins of Liangzhu City in Zhejiang province was a hub for a jade-worshipping and rice-cultivating regional civilization lasting from 5,300 to 4,300 years ago. It was listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019. "The exhibition focuses on three key themes: the height of civilization, Chinese characteristics, and cultural heritage," Wang says. "We hope visitors will see the interconnectedness of Chinese civilization and the enduring influence of both the Hongshan and Liangzhu cultures." The first two sections of the exhibition explore the two cultures individually. The third draws comparisons between them. "By comparing the two cultures in terms of production methods, large-scale architecture, social governance and ideological concepts, we aim to illustrate the foundations of Chinese civilization," he says. Wang says that with one culture in the south and the other in the north, the distinct natural conditions and geographical environments of Liangzhu and Hongshan shaped their production methods and social structures. In the north, millet was grown, while the south focused on rice. The north practiced dry farming, and the south specialized in water-based agriculture. "Architecturally, the north produced large ceremonial buildings, while the south boasted the ancient city of Liangzhu. Their religious ideologies also differed, with the north leaning toward theocracy, and the south combining military and royal authority in a theocratic-political system," Wang says. The first two sections of the exhibition highlight the differences between the two cultures, both in their developmental stages and paths taken. The final section brings them together, allowing visitors to see their commonalities and particular traits. Viewed from a broader perspective, both cultures share similarities. "They were built on advanced agriculture, supported by sophisticated handicrafts, and produced large sacrificial structures and high-grade noble tombs," Wang says. Both cultures had advanced agricultural practices, and paid close attention to seasonal changes and climate. They adapted to their environments, using local resources wisely and living in harmony with nature. Both also produced anthropomorphic artifacts, such as jade figures and deity-beast faces, emphasizing ancestor worship a key value in Chinese civilization. This respect for ancestry reflects a deep-rooted spirit. Their jade artifacts were ceremonial, not weaponry, highlighting the importance of harmony, he adds. "The two cultures both demonstrated organized social governance and a unified spiritual belief system," Wang says. "They also shared an aesthetic preference for squares and circles, which has had a lasting influence on Chinese architecture, currency and design." "From Hongshan to Liangzhu, we see the sequential brilliance of Chinese culture across different regions, marking a developmental process of rising and flourishing cultures, even though they did not follow a direct lineage," Gan Chao, chief director of the documentary series, China Before China, said after attending the exhibition. Wang explains that the exhibition focuses on a significant number of precious artifacts that date from the Chahai Culture to the later periods of the Hongshan, Liangzhu and Songze cultures. Chahai Culture is a Neolithic period culture that originated at the West Liaohe River Basin in northern China 8,000 to 7,500 years ago. "Notably, exquisite jade artifacts from Hongshan Culture sites like Niuheliang, Dongshangang, and Banlashan are prominently featured in this exhibition, providing visitors a visual feast," Wang says. One of the highlights is a jade pendant of both a dragon and a phoenix. The top part features a horizontal dragon head, while below it, a phoenix with its beak curved toward the dragon completes the composition. "This piece is significant as it marks the first archaeological discovery of a combined dragon-phoenix motif on a jade artifact unearthed from Niuheliang Site, making it the earliest and only known 'dragon-phoenix jade pendant' in the country," Wang says. As early Chinese civilization evolved, intricate spiritual beliefs developed, with animals often venerated as totems. Among these, the reverence for dragons and phoenixes stands out as one of the earliest and most central, he adds. "Dragons and phoenixes, symbols of beauty, fortune and prosperity in ancient Chinese mythology are also the shared spiritual icons and cultural symbols of China. The Liaohe River Basin, where this pendant originated, is recognized as one of the birthplaces of dragon and phoenix imagery and beliefs," Wang says. The exhibition, which had been in planning since March, brings together artifacts from a range of sources, primarily from cultural and archaeological institutions in Liaoning and Zhejiang provinces. Following extensive coordination, 266 artifacts have been chosen for display. "We've gathered objects from the storage room at our archaeology institute, including several that haven't been displayed before, like the stone bearings from the Chahai Culture," Wang says. "They mark a milestone in productivity, and provide tangible evidence of early mechanical technology." Huang Li, deputy director of the Liangzhu Museum, emphasizes the importance of the exhibition. "It presents the latest research on Liangzhu and Hongshan cultures from a variety of perspectives, demonstrating the diversity of Chinese civilization and highlighting significant achievements," she adds. In addition to the exquisite artifacts on display, the exhibition incorporates cutting-edge digital exhibits. For instance, it uses holographic projections to illustrate the concept of the symbiosis between heaven, earth and humanity for both cultures. Spanning 1,200 square meters, Wang says the exhibition hall requires about half a day for a thorough exploration. There are also volunteer guides to provide detailed explanations to visitors. "Understanding prehistoric artifacts isn't as straightforward as with later historical periods. That's why we emphasize the importance of comprehensive interpretation," he says. In a meeting, CM Dhami discussed various points related to the governmental works and the public welfare schemes that are in the run. He applauded the party workers for their cooperation in highlighting the public welfare schemes in the public. The Chief Minister said that along with public service, the party workers have always cooperated in taking the various public welfare schemes of the government to the people. The hardworking workers who work continuously with the goal of Antyodaya and poor welfare are the backbone of the BJP organization. Meanwhile, CM Dhami also held a review meeting of development works with district-level officers at Vikas Bhawan in Pauri Garhwal. Earlier in the day, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami addressed a public meeting organized in Pokhri, Chamoli in support of BJP candidate Rajendra Bhandari in the Badrinath assembly by-election and said that India is moving forward rapidly under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Chief Minister said that both Mahendra Bhatt and Rajendra Bhandari are harbouring the vision to take this area forward together. He sought public support in favour of Rajendra Bhandari and urged to vote for him on July 10. "The BJP candidate is a candidate for the service of the public. Bhandari has resigned for the development of the Badrinath Assembly. With Bhandari ji's victory, the development work of this area will get a boost," he said. The Chief Minister said that the development of Uttarakhand is going on under the leadership of PM Modi. (ANI) The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Jharkhand High Court order granting bail to Hemant Soren in the money laundering matter related to the land scam case. Earlier the Jharkhand High Court granted bail to former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha Chief, Hemant Soren, in the alleged land scam case. Soren was arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in January on charges related to an alleged land scam and money laundering. The investigation concerns the purported generation of substantial proceeds through the forgery of official records, involving fake sellers and buyers to acquire large parcels of land worth crores. Soren had resigned as Chief Minister following his arrest in the money laundering case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. Days after he was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand for the third time, Hemant Soren won the floor test during a special session of the state assembly on Monday. Hemant Soren won the vote of trust with the votes of 45 MLAs in his favour. He was sworn in as the 13th Chief Minister of Jharkhand in Raj Bhavan, Ranchi on July 4. Hemant Soren was released from the Birsa Munda Jail on June 28 after nearly five months following bail from Jharkhand High Court in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. Champai Soren who had taken over as the CM following the arrest, resigned from the post just five months after taking the oath, setting the ball rolling for Hemant Soren to again take over the role on Wednesday. Champai Soren had taken oath as the 12th Chief Minister of Jharkhand in the Raj Bhavan on February 2 this year. Earlier in a video message Hemant Soren had accused the BJP of leveling false allegations against him. "In the 2019 Jharkhand Assembly Elections, the people of Jharkhand gave our party mandate but the conspirators were unable to digest how an Adivasi youngster can sit in such a high position. At last, on January 31, they (the BJP) made false allegations against me and removed me from the post of Chief Minister. Because of the people's blessings, I'm out here sitting in front of you. We will always be the voice of the people. Today, the public opinion of the people of Jharkhand will rise again. By taking charge, the work will be carried out again," he said. Hemant Soren's return as CM will bolster the JMM, which won three seats in the tribal-dominated state of Jharkhand in the Lok Sabha elections. In 2019, JMM fought the assembly elections in alliance with the Congress and Lalu Prasad's Rashtriya Janta Dal (RJD) and got a comfortable majority with forty-seven seats in the 81-member house. (ANI) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested a man from Maharashtra's Latur in connection with the NEET paper leak case. The man has been identified as Nanjune Dhppa who used to claim to increase the marks of the students by taking money from students. The agency has made several arrests from Bihar, Gujarat and Jharkhand in connection with the NEET UG Paper leak row. Earlier today, the Supreme Court said that there is no doubt that the NEET-UG held on May 5 was compromised by a question paper leak and asked the National Testing Agency (NTA) to apprise it about the steps taken to identify the candidates who were benefited from the paper leak. A bench of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra also asked NTA to inform about the steps taken by it to identify the centres/cities where leak of paper took place and modalities followed to identify beneficiaries of the leak and how the leak was disseminated. Saying that the fact of the paper leak in the NEET-UG exam cannot be denied, the bench observed that it has to be ascertained if the nature of the leak was widespread or isolated to decide on ordering a re-test. "The fact that the sanctity of exam has been compromised is beyond doubt. It is an admitted fact that there is a leak and the nature of the leak is something that we are determining. If it is not extensive then there is no cancellation. But before we order a retest, we must be conscious of the extent of the leak as we are dealing with 23 lakh students...," said the bench. "So what is the nature of the leak, how was the leak, the time, how was the leak disseminated, what are the actions which Centre and NTA has taken to identify the beneficiary students of the wrongdoing," said the CJI. The apex court also said that if the leak was on social media, then it would have been very widespread. It asked the testing agency, NTA, when the paper leak first took place, the manner in which the question papers leaked were disseminated, and the time duration between the occurrence of the leak and the exam on May 5. The apex court also sought a status report from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the probe it has made so far into the alleged paper leak and material which has come to light till date. The apex court said it will have to be scrutinised whether an alleged breach has taken place at the systemic level, whether the breach has affected the integrity of the entire exam process, and whether it's possible to segregate beneficiaries of fraud from untainted students. In a situation where a breach affects the entirety of the process and it's not possible to segregate beneficiaries from others, it may be necessary to order a re-test, it said. Where the breach is confined to specific centres and it's possible to identify beneficiaries of wrongdoing, it may not be proper to order re-test such an exam, which has been conducted on massive scale, it added. The top court asked CBI to file a status report and Centre and NTA their affidavits with all the details by 5 pm on July 10. The case will be heard next on July 11. The apex court was hearing a batch of pleas seeking direction to recall NEET-UG 2024 results and to conduct the examination afresh, alleging paper leakage and malpractices in the test held. Aspirants had approached the top court and raised the issue of leakage of question paper, awarding compensatory marks and anomaly in the question of NEET-UG. NEET-UG examination, conducted by NTA, is the pathway for admissions into MBBS, BDS and AYUSH and other related courses in government and private institutions across the country. The NEET-UG, 2024 was held across 4,750 centres on May 5 and around 24 lakh candidates appeared in it. (ANI) Delhi to get massive upgradation weather and rain forecast system, said Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh here Monday at a special high-level meeting convened by him to exclusively address the public concerns and inputs in the wake of the ongoing monsoon season across the country including the national capital. Everything possible will be done, he said, to make the forecast system people-friendly in order to ensure convenience and ease of living for the citizens and to save man days as well as economic fall-out of unexpected weather changes. Presently Delhi has 17 Automatic Weather Forecast Centers. The Minister directed to install 50 more systems at the earliest and later upto 100. The aim is to take the number of AWS to 100 and bring it on par with the world standards. These automatic weather forecasting systems provide very specific, precise and time-to-time forecasts. The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Science and Technology, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Earth Sciences, MoS PMO, Department of Atomic Energy and Department of Space and MoS Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions Dr Jitendra Singh convened a high-level meeting on Delhi monsoon and particularly for the National Capital region. He reviewed the upgradation of weather forecasting systems across the country. On the upgradation front, Jitendra Singh shared that 3 radars and 180 automatic weather forecasting systems will be installed in Delhi NCR in the coming time. In Mumbai 2 radars have been installed and 4 more are in the pipeline. In Chennai 3 radars already exist and One more will be installed in Kolkata as well. Jitendra Singh said, "Not only in metro cities, this up gradation will continue in other cities as well cities which have more than 10 lakh population and will be replicated in tier towns and other remote areas." The Minister of State of Earth Sciences informed that IMD is embarking on a huge upgrade mode with future-ready advanced weather prediction models strengthened with long-period average (LPA) data. Singh also informed that a high-performance Computing (HPC) System with a capacity of 20 petaflops will be installed as part of up gradation. The minister lauded the efforts of IMD of sharing data with district authorities, the armed forces and disaster management authorities to play a pivotal role in disaster risk reduction. The IMD is continuously improving weather forecast systems to help the common man and share the benefits of world-class weather forecasting technology. The Earth Sciences Minister who is also the Minister for the Department of Space and highlighted the multi-fold advantages of new space policy and new geospatial policy. He also mentioned the recently launched Geoportals and its applications. He also guided that similar efforts can be taken in weather forecasting and create a larger and wider impact on society. He also said that many people wouldn't understand the criticality of forecasting systems but in recent years the forecasting and early warning systems have benefited the fishermen on a large scale. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision is to empower the farmers, fishermen and common man by these weather forecasting systems, said Jitendra Singh while guiding the team of IMD. Dr Mrityunjay Mohapatra, DG IMD and other senior officials of IMD and Earth Sciences ministry were present for the meeting. (ANI) Assam's Guwahati police on Monday busted a gang that was running a human trafficking and flesh trade racket and rescued two abducted minor girls from a brothel in Bihar's Rawta. Taking to their official X handle, Guwahati Police posted, "A CGPD team from Bhangagarh Police Station rescued two abducted minor girls from a brothel in Rawta in Bihar with the help of Bihar Police." According to the Guwahati city police, an investigation led to the busting of a network of human traffickers. The probe led to the arrest of Tanveer Alom from Bihar, Idrish Ali from Basistha in Assam, Sikandar Ali from Paltan Bazaar Railway station, Khairun Nesa (of Panjipara in West Bengal) from Basistha. "Two minor girls were sold by Idris Ali and Khairun Nessa to one person of Panjibara, Bihar for Rs 1,10,000, who later handed them over to Tanvir Alom. The gang tapped vulnerable young girls and women before luring them to be abducted and sold to work in brothels," Diganta Borah, Commissioner of Police of Guwahati said. The senior police officer also said that, on June 29, a complainant lodged an FIR at Bhangagarh Police Station in Guwahati, Assam, stating that her daughter aged 18 years, had been troubling her to purchase a new mobile phone and on their refusal to her demand, she went to the house of another girl, and thereafter, both the girls were missing. Borah informed, "While investigation was on full swing, one person called the brother of the victim demanding Rs 30,000 for her release. The call was traced to Purnia, Bihar. Accordingly, a police team of Bhangagarh police station was sent to Purnia, Bihar. Police apprehended Tanveer Alom, who gave the extortion call and recovered both the victim girls." Borah added, "During the investigation it came to light that while both the victim girls were planning to go Delhi, a person named Sikandar Ali met them at Paltan Bazaar railway station in Guwahati who, after convincing them that he would help them to go to Delhi, handed over the girls to Idrish Ali of Basistha. Idris Ali and his wife (Babli) later, in association with a lady named Khairun Nessa of Panjipara, West Bengal, took them to Siliguri by bus and sold them to another person at Rs 1,10,000, who took the victim girls and handed over to Tanvir Alom who put them to work in a brothel at Rawta, Bihar." (ANI) The Governor said that Arunachal Pradesh holds a significant portion of India's hydropower potential. With more than 58,000 MW of hydro potential, the State has substantial untapped resources. "The strategic importance of Arunachal Pradesh, given its geographical location and natural resources, underscores the need for developing its hydropower capabilities to meet both regional and national energy demands. Natural terrain and available water resources provide an attractive opportunity for the State and also for the Nation," he said. The Governor said that the development of hydropower in Arunachal Pradesh offers a promising opportunity to contribute to India's renewable energy goals and enhance the State's economic development for a State. He said that it is a boon and inclusive development through the hydro-power projects will facilitate rapid progress of the State. The Union Minister assured the Governor to provide all necessary assistance for the State of Arunachal Pradesh from his ministries. Meanwhile, Manohar Lal Khattar also held meet Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu and Deputy CM Chowna Mein. Taking to social media platform X, Khattar wrote, "Pleased to meet Hon'ble Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh Shri @PemaKhanduBJP & Deputy CM Shri @ChownaMeinBJPin Itanagar. Reviewed various ongoing hydropower projects, a comprehensive scheme of transmission & distribution and the revamped distribution sector scheme in the state. Arunachal Pradesh has demonstrated a steadfast commitment to enhancing its power infrastructure, resulting in significant strides in sustainability." (ANI) The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation Education (NMMC) Department has declared a holiday in all schools in its jurisdiction in view of the heavy rain warning in Mumbai on Tuesday. All government and private schools will remain closed as per the NMMC, Education Department orders. In a letter, Dr Kailas Shinde, Commissioner Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation said, "Heavy rain warning has been received on July 9. For the safety of children, all schools of all mediums in the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation area should be closed tomorrow, Tuesday, July 9, 2024. The said order should be strictly implemented." The Regional Meteorological Centre (RMC), Mumbai, has issued a red alert for Mumbai, Raigad, Ratnagiri and Sindhudurg for Monday. RMC has also issued a red alert for Pune and Satara. IMD has predicted heavy rainfall at isolated places in Mumbai till July 12. IMD has predicted heavy to moderate rainfall in Palghar, Thane, Dhule, Nandurbar, Jalgaon, Nasik, Ahmednagar, Kolhapur, Sangli, Sholapur, Aurangabad, Jalna, Parbhani, Beed, Hingoli, Nanded, Latur, Osmanabad, Akola, Amravati, Bhandara, Buldhana, Chandrapur, Gadchiroli, Gondia, Nagpur, Wardha, Washim and Yavatmal upto Jul 12. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Mumbai for July 9, Tuesday. The city is expected to receive very heavy rain in the next 24 hours. Mumbai recorded heavy rainfall on Monday morning, leading to traffic jams and waterlogging. IMD Director at Mumbai Sunil Kamble told ANI, "Around 270 mm of rainfall was recorded between 2 am and 6 am today. An 'orange' alert for heavy to very heavy rainfall has been issued in Mumbai for the next 24 hours. An 'Yellow' alert for heavy rain has been issued for tomorrow." In Mumbai, Ram Karan Yadav, General Manager, Central Railway, told ANI that it has been raining heavily since Sunday night. "It has been raining heavily since (Sunday) night. More than 300 mm of rain has fallen in 6 hours. We are monitoring the situation and trying to keep the trains running," Yadav said. He added, "Due to heavy rains, especially on the main line, there is waterlogging around Kurla Bhandup and here on the Harbour Line, from Wadala to Mankhurd, it is closed because there is a lot of waterlogging around Chunabhatti.These services are disrupted..." Appealing to people not to leave their homes unnecessarily, Yadav said, "We have cancelled some trains and diverted some trains..." Meanwhile, flight operations at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) were affected due to heavy rainfall in Mumbai on Monday morning. Schools were shut down, and exams were cancelled scheduled for today due to heavy rains. (ANI) Former Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Kavinder Gupta expressed condolences to the bereaved families and said that cowards will not be spared. "Terrorists have once again launched a cowardly attack. Security forces made a lot of efforts to bring peace to J-K...If such incidents occur, it is a matter of sadness. But these cowards will not be spared. I express my sympathies to the bereaved families..." said Kavinder Gupta. "I salute the martyrdom of the four jawans...I think the terrorists will be neutralised soon...Work is being done on zero-tolerance policy...Pakistan knows that it can't win a direct fight, so it attempts to do this," he added. Four Army soldiers were killed while some were injured in a terrorist attack in the Machedi area of Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir. As per the officials, the area in Jammu and Kashmir falls under the 9th Corps of the Indian Army. Meanwhile, after six terrorists were killed in two different encounters in Jammu and Kashmir, Brigadier Prithviraj Chauhan, Commander 1sec RR, said on Monday that the killing of terrorists in South Kashmir is a significant blow to Hizbul-Mujahideen. Chauhan also mentioned that, during the operation, one Army personnel also sacrificed his life. The first encounter broke out between terrorists and security forces in Modergam village. Hours later, another encounter broke out in the Frisal Chinnigam area of the district. Jammu and Kashmir has witnessed a "spike" in the number of terrorist attacks in the past few months. In June, three terrorists were neutralized in an encounter with security forces in the Gandoh, Bhaderwah sector of district Doda in Jammu and Kashmir, ADGP Anand Jain said. (ANI) Union Minister of Power and Housing and Urban Affairs, Manohar Lal, chaired the review meeting of the power sector of Arunachal Pradesh on Monday in Itanagar. Chief Minister Pema Khandu, Deputy Chief Minister Chowna Mein, Secretary (Power) Pankaj Agarwal, and Chief Secretary Dharmendra were present in the meeting. In his address, Manohar Lal, Union Minister of Power and Housing and Urban Affairs, mentioned that the Central Government is making continuous efforts for the overall progress of the North-Eastern region of the country. In the last decade, the Union Government has been extremely sensitive to the needs of the region and has been taking up work for better connectivity, improved infrastructure and the welfare of the people. He mentioned that Arunachal Pradesh has about 38 per cent (about 50 GW) of India's total hydropower potential, the highest among all states. "It was discussed that Compensatory Afforestation Land availability is crucial for taking up early development of hydropower projects in the State. It was discussed that land for Compensatory Afforestation Land may also be explored in other States as well. It was emphasized to simplify the process for sanction of new connections and the format of electricity bills which may be easily understood by the consumers," the Power Ministry said in a statement. Further, he suggested for providing options to consumers for self-meter reading once every two months and bill generation through a mobile App. He emphasized that the availability of supply of quality power in the State will also facilitate growth in the industrial sector which will create opportunities for employment in the State. On the Power Distribution front, he advised for expeditious implementation of works sanctioned under RDSS. He advised for implementation of various reform measures prescribed under the scheme for improving the financial viability and operational efficiency of the Power Department. Power Department was also advised to target improvement in the consumer service rating from 'C' to at least 'B' within this year. The Minister sought cooperation from the State in achieving the ambitious goals that were set before the power sector of the country. The Chief Minister thanked Union Minister of Power for selecting Arunachal Pradesh on his 1st visit to any State after the new Government has been formed. He assured of taking necessary measures/ policy decisions to ensure the growth of the Power sector in the State. He informed that over the past few years infrastructure development in the State has picked the pace and sought continued support from Govt. of India in the near future. The Deputy Chief Minister assured full support of the Power Department to CPSEs for different Hydro projects in the State. He expressed that with joint efforts of the State Government and CPSEs, 13 HEPs will be completed within stipulated timelines. This will contribute about Rs. 10,000 crore per annum to the revenues of the State, thereby raising the per capita income to the level of developed States. He suggested for taking all necessary measures for the early completion of the prestigious 2000 MW Subansiri Lower and 2800 MW Dibang Multipurpose Project. During the meeting, detailed deliberations were held in respect of the overall scenario of the Power sector in the State of Arunachal Pradesh with a special focus on the aspects of Hydropower Generation, Power Transmission and Distribution Sector in the State. Additionally, deliberations were also held with respect to the Power Sector reforms, the measures to be taken to promote Ease of Living for the electricity consumers and the Resource adequacy plan to be finalised in order to meet the future demand. The State Government also provided its inputs and suggestions during the course of deliberations. In his welcome address, Secretary (Power) highlighted the rich Hydropower potential in the State and the pivotal role that Arunachal Pradesh can play in meeting the growing demand for clean energy. During the review of the Transmission sector, the "Comprehensive Scheme for Strengthening of Transmission & Distribution, Arunachal Pradesh" being implemented by Power Grid Corporation of India Limited was discussed. During the meeting, major concerns such as Right of Way (RoW) in the Reserve Forest (RF) areas, O&M of completed elements and issues related to downstream connectivity were also discussed and addressed. On the Power Distribution front, the State Government was requested to expeditiously implement the works sanctioned under the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) with the aim of improving the quality and reliability in supply of electricity in the State. It was highlighted that implementation of Smart Metering works will facilitate energy accounting and will also empower the consumers with ease of payment and better control on their electricity consumption. State Government assured to complete Feeder metering by December 2024. Secretary (Power) emphasized that we need to keep working towards the growing energy demand. The interest of the consumer needs to be at the centre of our strategy to ensure quality and reliable power at an affordable rate. (ANI) Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday to visit Manipur, listen to the violence-affected people, and console them. He also said that the INDIA bloc is ready to assist in every step that can improve the situation and restore peace in the violence torn state "In this terrible tragedy in Manipur, I request the Prime Minister to come here, listen to the people, and console them. The INDIA alliance is ready to assist in every step that can improve the situation and restore peace," the Congress leader said in a post on X. This comes as Rahul Gandhi, on Monday, met the victims of clashes at the relief camp at Moirang in Manipur's Bishnupur. "LoP Rahul Gandhi visits the relief camp at Phubala High School in Moirang, where he meets victims of the Manipur violence and offers support during these challenging times," Congress posted on X. PM Modi, during his address in the Rajya Sabha last week, reaffirmed that the central government is making efforts to normalise the situation in Manipur. "The government is continuously making efforts to normalise the situation in Manipur. More than 11,000 FIRs have been registered and over 500 people have been arrested. Incidents of violence are continuously reducing in Manipur," PM Modi said. He further said that the central and state governments are establishing interactions with all stakeholders to restore peace. "Today, schools, colleges, offices and other institutions are open in the state. The central and state governments are talking to all stakeholders to restore peace," the Prime Minister added. Violence erupted in the northeastern state on May 3 last year following clashes during a rally organised by the All Tribals Students Union (ATSU) to protest against the demand for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe category. (ANI) This photo taken on June 27, 2024 shows a bronze exhibit during an exhibition named "Unveiling Sanxingdui and Jinsha of Ancient Shu Civilization" at the Grand Canal Museum of Beijing, in Beijing, capital of China. With a total of 265 pieces of relics featuring ancient Shu civilization, the exhibition kicked off here on Thursday and will last until Oct. 10. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao) Scorching weather and its location far from downtown Beijing are not proving to be obstacles to people's enthusiasm for admiring the brilliance of ancient cultures. Over the last two weekends, visitors have had to stand in long lines for hours on end to enter the Capital Museum East Branch to see artifacts from remarkable Bronze Age civilizations that flourished over 3,000 years in present-day Sichuan province. The widely anticipated exhibition, Unveiling Sanxingdui and Jinsha of Ancient Shu Civilization, which opened on June 27 and which will run through to Oct 10, has placed 265 artifacts on display and shows the efforts over the last century to decode a distant past. The Sanxingdui site in Guanghan was discovered in the 1920s, but what really amazed the world was the milestone 1986 discovery of two pits, presumably used for sacrificial ceremonies. Exotic-looking bronze masks, statues and gold artifacts ushered people into a world full of romance and imagination. The Jinsha site, discovered in 2001 in the provincial capital of Chengdu, is famed for its exquisite bronze, jade, stone relics and numerous ivory tusks. Thanks to the two sites, ancient Shu civilization was able to emerge from mythology and literature to yield its treasures and character. "Through tireless exploration and the generational efforts of archaeologists, the image of ancient Shu civilization, represented by the Sanxingdui and Jinsha cultures, is becoming increasingly clear," says Gao Hongqing, curator of the exhibition. Nevertheless, the open-ended explanations on the artifacts on display demonstrate that the ongoing exploration of ancient Shu civilization still has a way to go. As the bronze masks, human figures with protruding eyes, bronze wheel, and gold scepter on display show, the groundbreaking 1986 discovery at Sanxingdui leaves many issues unanswered. A new round of excavations between 2020 and 2022, which revealed six more "sacrificial pits", raised even more questions. Tang Fei, deputy director of the Sichuan Provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeology Research Institute, says that about 60 of the exhibits in the ongoing display come from this new round of excavation, which led to the unearthing of more than 17,000 artifacts, including 4,800 that were mostly intact. The bronze statue, depicting a man kneeling, twisting his body and clasping his hands together, was widely covered by the media after it was found in Sanxingdui in 2021, but visitors to the exhibition in Beijing may still wonder what exotic ceremony he is involved in. Another bronze statue, with the body of a dragon, head of a tiger, and a bird resting on the base, also arouses curiosity about its use. "Visitors can develop their own explanations," Gao says. "They may even inspire our own studies, as well." Yu Jian, deputy director of the Sanxingdui Museum, says the ongoing exhibition displays the new mindset toward artifact restoration, as even damaged items can convey a great deal of information. Despite their initially strange appearance, the Shu artifacts also demonstrate close links and frequent interaction with other regions in the rest of modern-day China, particularly in the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River, Gao says. For example, a jade cong, a square tube with a circular bore, is typical of both Sanxingdui and Jinsha, but can be traced back to the Liangzhu Culture, which existed 5,300 to 4,300 years ago in modern-day Zhejiang province, nearly 2,000 kilometers away. Some bronze vessels from the sites also feature elements typical of the central Shang Dynasty (16th century-11th century BC). "They provide significant evidence for a profound understanding of the diverse and integrated origins and development of Chinese civilization," Gao says. "Regarding Sanxingdui and Jinsha, what moves us so deeply is not only the beauty, awe and mystery of the objects, but also the people themselves and their rich expression of self through materials like bronze, gold and jade," he says. "This expression embodies the commonality of the era and the individuality of regional culture blending tradition with innovation." The Beijing event is the third major exhibition of recently excavated artifacts from Sanxingdui outside its home, after exhibitions in Hong Kong and Shanghai. It also lifts the curtain on a series of exhibitions tracing early-stage Chinese civilizations at the Capital Museum. This photo taken on June 27, 2024 shows the scene of an exhibition named "Unveiling Sanxingdui and Jinsha of Ancient Shu Civilization" at the Grand Canal Museum of Beijing, in Beijing, capital of China. With a total of 265 pieces of relics featuring ancient Shu civilization, the exhibition kicked off here on Thursday and will last until Oct. 10. (Xinhua/Chen Zhonghao) Several top House Democrats are urging President Joe Biden to step aside from the 2024 campaign, expressing deep concerns about his potential impact on the Democratic Party's chances in the upcoming elections, CNN reported. The sentiments were revealed during a leadership call organised by House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries on Sunday, aimed at gauging the opinions of ranking members and leaders before the return of members to Washington this week. According to sources familiar with the call, the discussion was dominated by apprehensions regarding the potential damage Biden's candidacy could inflict on the Democratic ticket and the party's prospects of reclaiming the House majority. Jeffries, however, did not disclose his own stance on whether Biden should continue running for re-election, leaving the issue open for debate among the participants, as reported by CNN. The call saw a notable division among House Democrats, with a greater number of lawmakers advocating for Biden to step aside than those who voiced support for his candidacy. Notable figures among those opposing Biden included Representatives Mark Takano, Adam Smith, Jim Himes, Joe Morelle, Jerry Nadler, and Susan Wild. Conversely, Representatives Maxine Waters and Bobby Scott were reported to have spoken in favour of Biden, underscoring the internal divisions within the party leadership. One of the primary concerns raised during the nearly two-hour call was the perceived risk of losing the opportunity to secure a House majority if Biden were to remain the Democratic nominee. Several participants expressed a preference for Vice President Kamala Harris to lead the ticket, viewing her as a potentially stronger candidate. "It was pretty brutal," remarked a senior Democratic aide anonymously to CNN, describing the intensity of the discussions that unfolded during the private call among House leaders. The aide indicated that no immediate decisions regarding formal demands or actions, such as a White House meeting or a letter to Biden, were expected before the full Democratic caucus convenes on Tuesday. Jeffries reportedly emphasised that members would be allowed to voice their opinions freely and make their own judgments on the matter. Another senior House Democrat revealed that sentiment within the caucus overwhelmingly supports Biden stepping aside. The member emphasised that while there is respect for Biden's lengthy career in public service, there is a growing consensus that the party needs to strategise effectively to move forward. Tuesday's scheduled caucus meeting was anticipated to be a pivotal moment for Biden, according to sources within the Democratic Party. Many Democrats dissatisfied with Biden's recent debate performance are awaiting Jeffries' public stance on the matter. Thus far, Jeffries has maintained a cautious approach, refraining from publicly endorsing any particular course of action as he continues to assess the sentiments within his caucus. President Biden, meanwhile, appeared confident during a visit to battleground Pennsylvania, affirming his belief in the Democratic Party's unified support behind him. When questioned by the press, Biden unequivocally asserted that the party continues to stand behind him, CNN reported. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will depart for a two-nation visit today, beginning with Moscow, Russia, where he has been invited by President Vladimir Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Following his engagements in Russia, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Austria on July 9-10. This visit marks a historic occasion, as it will be the first time an Indian Prime Minister has visited Austria in 41 years. Speaking to ANI, EAM S Jaishankar said that this visit will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and Russian President Putin to sit and discuss the relationship. "There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are two countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. Last year when I went to Moscow, I carried a message from the PM that we are committed to the annual summit and we will do it sooner rather than later...it is a regular recurrence. It is a way of taking stock of any relationship," PM Modi is expected to meet Putin later in the day on Monday. Indian Ambassador to Russia, Vinay Kumar said the visit was a very important one. "Russia is now one of the very important sources of energy resources in India. Also, trade has expanded in other areas. So this visit becomes very important for the leaders to exchange views on all these developments in the bilateral relationship, but also other regional and international issues of mutual interest," he said. Vinay Kumar said that PM Modi during his visit will have a private meeting with Russian President Putin, attend the lunch-on hosted by Putin and visit an exhibition centre. He said that PM Modi will address a gathering of Indian community members in Russia. Elaborating on PM Modi's schedule during his visit to Russia, the Indian envoy said, "The program includes a private meeting with President Putin, delegation-level talks, restricted talks, luncheon hosted by President Putin for Prime Minister and his delegation, visit to an exhibition centre in the VDNKH Complex, Rosatom Pavilion, and also exchange of documents which we are preparing to sign and exchange during the visit." Earlier, sharing details about the PM's visit to Russia, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra on July 5 said that both leaders have spoken on the phone multiple times since their unofficial meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in 2022. "The last, that is the 21st, annual summit, you would recall was held in New Delhi in December 2021. The two leaders thereafter met in September 2022 in Samarkand on the margins of the SCO summit in Uzbekistan. They have also stayed in touch with each other through several telephonic conversations through these years," Kwatra said. As per the Foreign Secretary PM will arrive in Moscow in the late afternoon of July 8. Russian President Putin will host a private dinner for PM Modi on the day of arrival. PM Modi and the Russian President will review the full range of multifaceted ties between India and Russia. "These engagements will be followed by a restricted level talk between the two leaders, which will then be followed by delegation level talks led by the Prime Minister and the Russian President" as per the Foreign Secretary. PM Modi will then travel to Austria as India and Austria celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations. The Prime Minister will hold discussions with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer on strengthening the bond between the two nations and exploring new avenues of cooperation. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for a two-nation visit today, beginning with Moscow, Russia, where he has been invited by President Vladimir Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. In a post on X, the Ministry of External Affairs said "PM Narendra Modi sets off on a 2-nation visit to Russia and Austria. The first leg of the visit takes him to Moscow for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. An opportunity to further accelerate - partnership." Following his engagements in Russia, Prime Minister Modi will proceed to Austria on July 9-10. This visit marks a historic occasion, as it will be the first time an Indian Prime Minister has visited Austria in 41 years. Earlier speaking to ANI, EAM S Jaishankar said that this visit will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and Russian President Putin to sit and discuss the relationship. "There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are two countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. Last year when I went to Moscow, I carried a message from the PM that we are committed to the annual summit and we will do it sooner rather than later...it is a regular recurrence. It is a way of taking stock of any relationship," he said. PM Modi is expected to meet Putin later in the day on Monday. Indian Ambassador to Russia, Vinay Kumar said the visit was a very important one. "Russia is now one of the very important sources of energy resources in India. Also, trade has expanded in other areas. So this visit becomes very important for the leaders to exchange views on all these developments in the bilateral relationship, but also other regional and international issues of mutual interest," he said. Vinay Kumar said that PM Modi during his visit will have a private meeting with Russian President Putin, attend the lunch-on hosted by Putin and visit an exhibition centre. He said that PM Modi will address a gathering of Indian community members in Russia. Elaborating on PM Modi's schedule during his visit to Russia, the Indian envoy said, "The program includes a private meeting with President Putin, delegation-level talks, restricted talks, luncheon hosted by President Putin for Prime Minister and his delegation, visit to an exhibition centre in the VDNKH Complex, Rosatom Pavilion, and also exchange of documents which we are preparing to sign and exchange during the visit." Sharing details about the PM's visit to Russia, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said that both leaders have spoken on the phone multiple times since their unofficial meeting in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, in 2022. "The last, that is the 21st, annual summit, you would recall was held in New Delhi in December 2021. The two leaders thereafter met in September 2022 in Samarkand on the margins of the SCO summit in Uzbekistan. They have also stayed in touch with each other through several telephonic conversations through these years," Kwatra said. PM Modi will arrive in Moscow in the late afternoon of July 8. Russian President Putin will host a private dinner for PM Modi on the day of arrival. PM Modi and the Russian President will review the full range of multifaceted ties between India and Russia. "These engagements will be followed by a restricted level talk between the two leaders, which will then be followed by delegation level talks led by the Prime Minister and the Russian President" as per the Foreign Secretary. PM Modi will then travel to Austria, as India and Austria celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations. The Prime Minister will hold discussions with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer on strengthening the bond between the two nations and exploring new avenues of cooperation. (ANI) As Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for a two-nation visit to Russia and Austria he said that the visit to the two countries will present an opportunity for India to deepen ties with these nations. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." PM Modi said that he wishes to discuss aspects of bilateral cooperation with his friend President Putin. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM said. PM Modi added that the special and privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. After Russia PM Modi will leave for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. Speaking about the visit the PM said "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." "This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well-regarded for its professionalism and conduct," he added. Earlier speaking about the PM's visit to Russia, EAM S Jaishankar said " " ...There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are 2 countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. Last year when I went to Moscow, I carried a message from the PM that we are committed to the annual summit and we will do it sooner...it is a regular recurrence. It is a way of taking stock of any relationship...one of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously...at the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other." President Putin will host PM Modi later on Monday, on Tuesday the PM will attend a community event in Moscow. (ANI) Japan and the Philippines on Monday signed a bilateral defence agreement to facilitate joint exercises for closer security cooperation, amid China's growing assertion in regional waters. Japanese Foreign Minister Kamikawa Yoko and Phillippines Defence Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr. signed the Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) treaty documents in the presence of President Ferdinand R Marcos Jr. in a ceremony at Malacann Palace according to reports from state media of the two countries-Philippines News Agency (PNA) and Kyodo. Prior to signing of the new defence deal, President Marcos met with Kamikawa and Japanese Defence Minister Minoru Kihara. Marcos termed the deal as "very important agreement" while Kamikawa said the signing of the RAA is "a great achievement" for the two countries deepening bilateral relations. The agreement, which will come into force after getting ratified by respective legislative bodies of the Philippines and Japan, is expected to ease restrictions on personnel transfers between the Japan Self-Defence Forces and the Philippine military for joint drills and disaster relief operations in each other's country. Once the agreement takes effect, Japan will be able to participate as a full member in the large-scale Balikatan military exercise conducted annually by the Philippines and the United States near the Southeast Asian nation, which the SDF have previously joined in an observer capacity, reported Kyodo. The treaty comes after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Marcos agreed last November to start negotiations. AS per PNA, the Phillippines has inked similar defence pacts with the United States and Australia, while another defence deal is being pursued with France. Similarly, Japan has pacts with Australia and Britain and one with the US called the Status of Forces Agreement. Earlier this year on June 17 Chinese and Philippine sailors clashed near the Second Thomas Shoal about 200 km away from Palawan island. As per Al Jazeera, during that incident, the Chinese forces injured Filipino navy personnel and damaged at least two military boats in the South China Sea. Additionally, the Filipino sailors also accused Chinese coastguards of stealing and damaging their equipment. Meanwhile, later today Kihara and Kamikawa will take part in a "two-plus-two" ministerial security dialogue with Teodoro and Philippine Foreign Secretary Enrique Manalo. In June, this year, the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces Philippines, General Romeo Brawner ticked off China over repeated confrontations between the Philippines and China in the South China Sea and accused China for "Acting Like Pirates" as per a report in the Al Jazeera Notably, the incidents of confrontations in the South China Sea have been continuing despite an international tribunal ruling its claim to have "no legal basis" in 2016. As China has made expansionist claims over almost the entire South China Sea claiming it to be under the Nine-Dash Line. The same news report also claimed that the country has also build artificial islands and military outposts near the reef. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier during his two-day official visit to Russia for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. PM Modi said in a statement that the visits to Russia and Austria will present an opportunity to deepen ties with these nations. In a post on X, Prime Minister Modi said, "Over the next three days, will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." https://x.com/narendramodi/status/1810178614702260335?s=46&t=TbrKHKgG29uXA1CMFN38Pw PM Modi said that he wishes to discuss aspects of bilateral cooperation with his friend President Putin. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role in a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM said. PM Modi added that the special and privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. After Russia PM Modi will leave for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. Speaking about the visit the PM said "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." "This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well-regarded for its professionalism and conduct," he added. Earlier speaking about the PM's visit to Russia, EAM S Jaishankar said "There was a bit of a delay in our annual summits, it is a good tradition, we are 2 countries which have a strong history of working together. We did value the need for an annual summit. Last year when I went to Moscow, I carried a message from the PM that we are committed to the annual summit and we will do it sooner...it is a regular recurrence. It is a way of taking stock of any relationship...one of the biggest changes has been, that our economic relationship with Russia has grown tremendously...at the leadership level, it will be a great opportunity for PM Modi and (Russian) President Putin to sit down and directly talk to each other." President Putin will host PM Modi later on Monday, on Tuesday the PM will attend a community event in Moscow. (ANI) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Secretary General and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly, Omar Ayub on Sunday evaded arrest in a raid on his residence in Sector F-10 by a joint team of Islamabad and Mianwali police after warrants for his arrest were issued by an anti-terrorism court (ATC) in Sargodha, Pakistan-based daily Dawn reported. Mianwali police, in a handout, claimed that their assistant sub-inspector (ASI) had only gone to the residence to serve the bailable warrants, not to arrest the opposition leader, Dawn reported. The PTI leader, who went into hiding after the raid, lashed out at the authorities for being so "desperate" to apprehend him, Dawn reported. "Bailable arrest warrants were issued for me by ATC Sargodha, but Mianwali police and Islamabad police teams came to my Islamabad house to arrest me a few minutes ago," he said in a social media post. Ayub added that their struggle will continue till PTI leader Imran Khan becomes the Prime Minister again. "Arrest warrants issued for me by ATC Sargodha. Mianwali Police and Islamabad Police teams went to my Islamabad house to arrest me a few minutes ago. The form 47 Federal Government, Punjab Government, and agencies must be very desperate to arrest the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly. They will prove beyond doubt that there is no rule of law in Pakistan. Let there be no doubt that we will continue our lawful struggle until PM Imran Khan is the Prime Minister of Pakistan," he said. https://x.com/OmarAyubKhan/status/1809889540250951766 Speaking to Dawn, PTI spokesperson Raoof Hasan said that Ayub's home was raided by the Mianwali and Islamabad police personnel. "Some of the police personnel were in uniform while some were in plain clothes... fortunately the PTI secretary general was not at home," he said, adding that Omar Ayub was at a safe place. Hasan also said that the police had not sought prior permission from the National Assembly speaker to conduct the raid for his arrest. He said that the raid was conducted in connection with a terrorism case. The ATC Sargodha had issued warrants for his arrest. (ANI) A fortnight after Sheikh Hasina's visit to India, the Bangladesh Prime Minister on Monday departed from Dhaka for Beijing on a four-day official visit to China at the invitation of Chinese premier Li Qiang, local media reported. Hasina's China visit, is believed to elevate the "strategic partnership" between Bangladesh and China to a "comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership," the Dhaka Tribune reported. Xi Jinping had visited Bangladesh in October, 2016, during which the two countries upgraded their relationship to "Strategic Partnership" while Sheikh Hasina last visited Beijing in July 2019. A special flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying Hasina and her entourage departed from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 11:05am today, as per the Bangladesh newspaper The Daily Star. During her China visit, Hasina will hold separate meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qiang and join a summit meeting on Trade, Business and Investment Opportunities between the two countries. Dhaka and Beijing are likely to sign some 20 or so MoUs and announce inauguration of some development projects after a bilateral meeting between the two sides to be led by the two premiers, the Daily Star reported. Bangladesh will seek China's assistance in areas of investment and trade, financial assistance and repatriation of Rohingyas to their homeland, Foreign Minister Hasan Mahmud told reporters at a press briefing on Sunday. Meanwhile, Hasina visited India on June 21-22 on the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and held bilateral discussions. The two countries signed 10 memorandums (MoUs) of understanding, including that of management and conservation of the Teesta River in Bangladesh. Earlier addressing an event in Dhaka ahead of Hasina's visit to China, Awami League General Secretary Obaidul Quader described India as Bangladesh's "political friend" and China as its "development partner." "China has contributed significantly to the development of many sectors in our country. Why will we not accept support from China for the sake of the country's overall progress?" Quader said as cited by the Bangladesh newspaper The Daily Star. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to land in Moscow on Monday as part of his two-nation visit to Russia and Austria. Among the Prime Minister's engagements in Moscow is an interaction with the Indian community scheduled for Tuesday. Amongst the expatriate Indian population in Moscow, there is a palpable air of excitement on PM Modi's visit. Swarup Dutta, an owner of a chain of restaurants in Moscow for 30 years, says that everyone is looking forward to the PM's visit. " I have been living in Moscow for the last 30 years and I run a chain of restaurants here. Everyone is excited and waiting for him... We have introduced many Gujarati dishes to our menu. Even the menu which has been specially curated for the Prime Minister, we have introduced many new dishes from Gujarat... We made some special dishes for the delegation coming with the Prime Minister... Russians like Indian food. They were adamant to try it first, but when they did, there was no going back," he said Meanwhile, a vibrant community event is set to highlight cultural ties between India and Russia, featuring performances by Russian artists trained in Kathak dance. Russian artists will showcase their skills in Kathak, a classical Indian dance form they have diligently practised at cultural centres. Expressing her excitement, Natalia, one of the Russian artists, shared, "I have been learning Kathak dance for the past 7 years, and I am thrilled to finally perform my favourite art form in front of PM Narendra Modi. His visit to Moscow signifies the strong relationship between our two beloved countries." Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Russia, the Indian Russian business community hopes that the PM will initiate talks on technology exchange with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Expressing his excitement ahead of the PM's visit, Sammy Manoj Kotwani, president of Indian Business Alliance, Indian National Culture Centre SITA said, "When you talk about bilateral ties, Mr Modi knows that he has got one million young population every month seeking jobs. He has a lot of responsibility back home and he understands that we need technology that will only come from the West. He is going to convince Putin to help with the technology." As Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for a two-nation visit to Russia and Austria he said that the visit to the two countries will present an opportunity for India to deepen ties with these nations. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." (ANI) Of the 14 People's Liberation Army (PLA) aircraft, 13 crossed the Taiwan Strait median line in the northern, central, southwestern, and southeastern portions of the country's air defence identification zone (ADIZ), Taiwan News reported, quoting the Ministry of National Defense. In response, Taiwan sent aircraft and naval ships and deployed coastal-based missile systems to monitor PLA activity. So far this month, the MND has tracked Chinese military aircraft 160 times and naval ships 52 times. Since September 2020, China has increased its use of gray zone tactics by incrementally increasing the number of military aircraft and naval vessels 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." On Sunday, the MND detected 15 Chinese military aircraft and 10 naval vessels have been detected around Taiwan in the past 24 hours till 6 am (local time). In response to China's action, Taiwan's armed forces employed aircraft, naval vessels and coastal missile systems to monitor Beijing's activities.In a post on X, Taiwan's Ministry of National Defence stated, "15 PLA aircraft and 10 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 14 of the aircraft crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's central, southwestern, and southeastern ADIZ. We've monitored the situation and responded accordingly." This latest incident adds to a series of similar provocations by China in recent months. Beijing has increased its military activities around Taiwan, including regular air and naval incursions into Taiwan's Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) and military exercises near the island. (ANI) More than 700 officers and soldiers from the airforce of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Southern Theater Command departed for Yueyang, central China's Hunan Province, on Sunday to undertake flood relief and rescue operations. Carrying 46 vehicles, they are scheduled to arrive at designated areas before midnight on Sunday, with the tasks of inspecting dikes, reinforcing embankments and assisting in the restoration of local production and daily life. Heavy and prolonged rainfall has resulted in flooding in various regions of China, notably causing a breach in the dike of Dongting Lake, the country's second-largest freshwater lake, located in a county administered by the city of Yueyang. Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the Russian capital, the Indian diaspora residing in Moscow expressed their enthusiasm towards meeting PM Modi and asserted that they are happy and grateful to the Indian Embassy for allowing them to meet the Prime Minister. PM Modi will be on a two-day official visit to Russia on July 8 and 9, to hold the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit with President Vladimir Putin in Moscow. Young members of the Indian diaspora in Moscow also raised slogans of 'Vande Mataram' and cheered for Narendra Modi ahead of his arrival to the country. Speaking with ANI, Ananya Rai, hailing from UP, said she has been living in Russia for 10 years. She said, "I am really excited to meet PM Modi. This is the first opportunity that I have gotten from the Embassy as well as the school to meet the Prime Minister." Another student Anshika Singh, who has been living there for 11 years, said, "I am very honoured and excited to meet the Prime Minister." Sidhu, hailing from Tamil Nadu, has been living for 17 years, and said, "I am very excited to meet PM Modi and I am very grateful to the embassy of India for giving us the opportunity to meet PM Modi." Another girl while speaking with ANI also asserted that she is very excited and grateful to the Indian Embassy for allowing them to greet PM Modi. Another girl said, "I feel very lucky to have the opportunity to meet PM Modi. Abir Imtiaz, who has been living in Moscow for 11 years asserted that he is feeling very proud. "I am feeling very honoured that our PM is coming to Moscow and we have the chance to meet him." Deepali Choudhary, hailing Bihar's Muzzafarpur said she has brought painting for PM Modi. "I wish him a warm welcome to Moscow and I hope he enjoys his time in Russia." Aarav, a student in class 12, said, "We are eagerly waiting for the Prime Minister. He has been an inspiration for us for such a long time. It will be good to see him up close in person." Meanwhile, ahead of PM Modi's arrival, Russian artists in Moscow beat dhol and rehearse. The artists also expressed their enthusiasm ahead of Modi's visit. Speaking with ANI, a Russian artist, speaking in Hindi, said, "I am delighted that we have received the opportunity to dance and welcome Mr. Narendra Modi." Another Russian artist, Zarina, said, "I am from Moscow. I am very happy and excited to perform here and I like to dance." Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for a two-nation visit today, beginning with Moscow, Russia, where he has been invited by President Vladimir Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. In a post on X, the Ministry of External Affairs said "PM Narendra Modi sets off on a 2-nation visit to Russia and Austria. The first leg of the visit takes him to Moscow for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. An opportunity to further accelerate - partnership." He is scheduled to land in Moscow later in the day today. Among the Prime Minister's engagements in Moscow is an interaction with the Indian community scheduled for Tuesday. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." PM Modi said that he wishes to discuss aspects of bilateral cooperation with his friend President Putin. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role in a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM said. PM Modi added that the special and privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. PM Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin will have a meeting today. The two leaders have met 16 times over the past 10 years. The last in-person meeting between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2022. PM Modi was conferred the highest Russian state honour 'Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First' in 2019. Notably, India and Russia have a longstanding and time-tested relationship with more than 77 years of mutually beneficial diplomatic ties. The relations between the two nations were elevated to the level of "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" in 2010. After concluding his visit to Russia, PM Modi will depart for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. Speaking about the visit, the PM said "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." (ANI) The Sindhi Foundation organised a demonstration at the Broken Chair in front of the United Nations in Geneva on Monday, calling for the release of Priya Kumari, a minor girl who has been missing for the past three years from the Sindh province of Pakistan. The protest coincided with the UN Human Rights Council's 56th Session. Munawar "Sufi" Laghari, the Executive Director of the Sindhi Foundation, emphasised the urgency of Priya Kumari's case. He said, "I have come all the way from Washington, DC to Switzerland, especially for Priya Kumari. Three years ago, she was forcefully disappeared in Sindh province of Pakistan. She was only seven years old. Still, we don't know where she is, but there are speculations that Sindh's feudal lords, shahs, and their supporters, including the Pakistani military, are responsible. Why are they disappearing our daughters? They are trying to forcefully kidnap Sindhi Hindus for ransom and to drive them out of Sindh." Expressing hope and determination Laghari said, "Through our struggle and this momentum, Priya Kumari will one day be free. This is not our first demonstration in front of the UN; we have protested in Toronto, the UK, and our next focus will be the United States. I am confident that we will garner support from various places for Priya Kumari. I call on the international community, especially the United Nations, to conduct an independent investigation into her disappearance. This is not the first girl to be forcefully disappeared; there are many others." Maqbool Channa, a Sindhi political activist from Manchester, UK, also joined the protest. He criticised the Pakistan Army and its intelligence agency, the ISI. He said, "The Pakistan Army claims the ISI is the world's strongest intelligence agency. For three years, Priya Kumari has been missing. Everybody knows that she has been kidnapped by the Shah family, but they don't want to release her. The agencies, the police, the army - we are asking the Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir: if you claim to be the most powerful person, then where is Priya Kumari? She has been missing for three years. Is it because she is a Hindu and belongs to a poor family?" Channa accused Nasir Shah, a politician from Sindh, of being behind the kidnapping. He said, "The kidnappers are very powerful. Nasir Shah is a minister in the government of Sindh. I am asking Bilawal Bhutto to take action. He is a kidnapper. We want the release of Priya Kumari." Later, the Sindhi Foundation submitted a letter to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, urging the United Nations' assistance for the safe release of Priya Kumari. It said that Priya Kumari was kidnapped by an influential local when she was offering water to the mourners of the Shaheeds of Karbala in front of her home in 2021. In the letter, the Sindhi Foundation said, "On 19th August 2021, which was also the 9th of Muharram 1443 AH, this innocent girl was offering water in front of her house to the mourners of the Shaheeds of Karbala in an act of humanity as she did not belong to the religion of mourners. She was in her innocence seeking to do a good deed by quenching the thirst of the mourners on a hot, humid day. It was during her performing this noble and humanitarian act that she was kidnapped by a local influential who has very strong connections with the army and their supported party that has continuously ruled Sindh since 2008 and has been in power before too." It added, "The politicised police of Sindh are unable to act against the guilty because the influence wielded by the abductor deters them from performing their duty, as they fear reprimands from the political bosses to whom they are loyal, rather than the law of the land." The Sindhi Foundation also requested Volker Turk to set up an international independent investigation to secure the release of innocent Priya Kumari from the clutches of her abductors. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday arrived in Moscow for a two-day official visit to Russia on the invitation of Russian President Vladimir Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. PM Modi was received by the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia, Denis Manturov. Manturov is senior to the Deputy Prime Minister who received the Chinese President during his visit to Russia. In a rare gesture, the first Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Manturov will also accompany PM Modi to the hotel from the airport in the same car. PM Modi and the Russian President will hold a meeting today. PM Modi will attend a community event in Moscow on Tuesday. Ahead of PM Modi's visit, the Indian diaspora expressed enthusiasm to welcome PM Modi. Earlier, Savika, a member of the Indian diaspora said, "I am very excited. I have seen him (PM Modi) only on TV and this will be the first time I will see him in person and I am very happy that the Prime Minister is coming here." Young members of the Indian diaspora in Moscow also raised slogans of 'Vande Mataram' and cheered for PM Narendra Modi ahead of his arrival to the country. Another student Anshika Singh, who has been living there for 11 years, said, "I am very honoured and excited to meet the Prime Minister." Sidhu, hailing from Tamil Nadu, has been living for 17 years, and said, "I am very excited to meet PM Modi and I am very grateful to the embassy of India for giving us the opportunity to meet PM Modi." Abir Imtiaz, who has been living in Moscow for 11 years asserted that he is feeling very proud. "I am feeling very honoured that our PM is coming to Moscow and we have the chance to meet him." Deepali Choudhary, hailing Bihar's Muzzafarpur said she has brought painting for PM Modi. "I wish him a warm welcome to Moscow and I hope he enjoys his time in Russia." Speaking with ANI, Ananya Rai, hailing from UP, said she has been living in Russia for 10 years. She said, "I am really excited to meet PM Modi. This is the first opportunity that I have gotten from the Embassy as well as the school to meet the Prime Minister." Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday left for a two-nation visit today, beginning with Moscow. In a post on X, the Ministry of External Affairs said "PM Narendra Modi sets off on a 2-nation visit to Russia and Austria. The first leg of the visit takes him to Moscow for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. An opportunity to further accelerate - partnership." In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." PM Modi said that he wishes to discuss aspects of bilateral cooperation with his friend President Putin. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM said. PM Modi added that the special and privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Notably, PM Modi and Putin have met 16 times over the past 10 years. The last in-person meeting between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2022. In 2019, PM Modi was conferred the highest Russian state honour 'Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First'. Earlier on Sunday, India's Ambassador to India, Vinay Kumar said, "The program includes a private meeting with President Putin, delegation-level talks, restricted talks, lunch on hosted by President Putin for Prime Minister and his delegation, visit to an exhibition center in the VDNKH Complex, Rosatom Pavilion, and also exchange of documents which we are preparing to sign and exchange during the visit." "Prime Minister will also address a gathering of Indian community members who are very eagerly looking forward to this visit to Moscow by Prime Minister after a gap of nine years. The last Prime Ministerial visit to Moscow was in 2015. So these are some of the important elements of the program," he added. Notably, India and Russia have a longstanding and time-tested relationship with more than 77 years of mutually beneficial diplomatic ties. The relations between the two nations were elevated to the level of "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" in 2010. After concluding his visit to Russia, PM Modi will depart for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. In his departure statement, PM Modi stated, "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." Earlier, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer took to X to extend a welcome to PM Modi for his visit to Austria. "I very much look forward to welcoming @narendramodi, the Prime Minister of India, the world's largest democracy, next week in Vienna. This visit is a special honour as it marks the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister in over forty years, and a significant milestone as we celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations with India. We will have the opportunity to talk about further deepening our bilateral relationship and closer cooperation on the many geopolitical challenges," Karl Nehammer said in a post on X. (ANI) France President Emmanuel Macron, whose centrist alliance came in the second place after the New Popular Front's Left Wing coalition in the runoff to parliamentary elections, on Monday asked his Prime Minister Gabriel Attal to stay in his post for now, CNN reported citing a source from the Elysee presidential palace. Attal posted a selfie on his X platform just before heading out to offer his resignation, which was rejected by Macron, "for the time being in order to ensure the country's stability." Results from the elections showed New Popular Front emerging winner with 182 seats making it the largest group but well short of the 289 required for an absolute majority. Macron's Ensemble alliance won 163 seats and took second place while Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally and its allies were relegated to third place with 143 seats. Also, former French President Francois Hollande, who governed the country for one term from 2012 to 2017, has been elected as the member of the French parliament for Correze, which he represented in the 1980s and 1990s, CNN reported. "Although the formation of a government will now be very complicated, I think it is very good how the center and center-left parties and the left spectrum have worked together to prevent France from drifting into nationalism and Europe from getting into even more difficult waters," he said. According to CNN, Macron is unable to call a new election for at least another year. With three more years left of his term, President Macron looks set to preside over an unruly parliament, as problems mount at home and abroad, the US media channel analysed. The New Popular Front (NFP) a cluster of several parties including from the far-left France Unbowed party to the more moderate Socialists and the Ecologists -- won 182 seats in the National Assembly, making it the largest group but well short of the 289 required for an absolute majority. The results of the elections were welcomed by other leaders in Europe. Germany's Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said he is "thoroughly relieved" after the far right failed to win an outright majority in the French National Assembly. Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hailed the victory. "This week, two of the largest countries in Europe have chosen the same path that Spain chose a year ago: rejection of the extreme right and a decisive commitment to a social left that addresses people's problems with serious and brave policies," Sanchez wrote in a post on X. "The United Kingdom and France have said YES to progress and social advancement and NO to the regression in rights and freedoms. There is no agreement or government with the extreme right," Sanchez said. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni had earlier last week congratulated the National Rally's performance in the first round. Meanwhile, France's left-wing leader Jean-Luc Melenchon has said that the Left is "ready to govern" after emerging as the largest political bloc in parliament. The New Popular Front (NFP) coalition is led by Melenchon and its allies. (ANI) Sindh Rescue 1122 spokesperson Hassaan Khan confirmed that there were no casualties in the fire incident. Hassan Khan informed that the fire initially broke out on the fourth floor of the Ali Habib Trading Company building on I.I. Chundrigar Road. He further added that the cooling process of the building had started as fire brigades reached the spot. Sindh Rescue 1122 spokesperson also informed that as soon as Central Command and Control received the information regarding fire, noted that as soon as Rescue 1122's Central Command and Control received the information, two fire brigade trucks reached the spot to douse the blaze, according to Dawn. To extinguish the fire, one snorkel and a total of six fire brigades had reached the building, Khan said. Due to the fire incident, trading was halted at around 10:30 am and resumed at around 12:30 pm. Once the fire was brought under control, the KSE-100 index, the PSX's main index, gained 484 points in intraday trade at around 2:00 pm and reached 80,697 points, according to Dawn. (ANI) The Indian diaspora has expressed happiness at the upcoming visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Austria and said that it's a matter of pride that an Indian Prime Minister is visiting the country after 40 years. PM Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Russia from Monday, reached a hotel in Moscow. Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, who received PM Modi at the airport, accompanied him to the hotel, where members of the Indian diaspora had gathered to welcome him. After Russia, PM Modi will leave for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. Speaking with ANI, Samir, hailing from Maharashtra said, "It is great that PM Narendra Modi is coming here. As far as I know, it has been 40 years since an Indian PM visited this country. And I think this would be a good initiative for the cultural and economic ties between both nations. I am looking forward to seeing him here." Gaurav from Punjab, who has been residing in Vienna for 12 years said, "PM Modi is coming here and I am really happy. My eyes are yearning to see him. After 40 years, an Indian PM is coming to Austria. It feels good and tomorrow, we will be more excited about seeing him." Amarjeet from Chandigarh said that it is a big thing that an Indian PM is coming to this place after 40 years. "I have been here for the last 23 years. It's a good feeling. The Indian population, which is around 30,000 to 35,000 is feeling good. Those people who would be able to see PM Modi will be lucky," he said. Vikramjeet Singh from Punjab, who has been living in Vienna for 12 years said that PM's visit will help in boosting tourism sector in Austria, "It is a very good thing that PM Modi is coming here. An Indian PM is coming here after 40 years. It is a matter of happiness for Austria. His visit will also result in an increase in tourism in Austria and this will be very helpful," Singh said. Meanwhile, speaking about the Austria visit, PM Modi said "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." "This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well-regarded for its professionalism and conduct," he added. (ANI) A group of protestors comprising locals and activists protested in front of China-built Pokhara International Airport, denouncing the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as a tool to intervene in the Himalayan nation. Over 200 people took part in the protest called by the Rashtriya Ekata Abhiyan or National Unity Movement, on Monday afternoon. The protest comes during the visit by a parliamentary committee to inspect and investigate claims of embezzlement at the time of construction of the airport which only operates domestic flights. Rajendra Prasad Lingden, one of the members of the parliamentary committee met with the protestors at the site. The protestors also organized a sit-in in front of the airport raising slogans demanding "Full operation of Pokhara International Airport", "Investigate the corruption during the construction of Pokhara International Airport", and "Convert the Chinese loan to grant" amongst others. Binay Yadav, the chairman of the National Unity Movement, criticised China and alleged that the nation wants to capture the Pokhara International Airport. "China wants to capture the Pokhara International Airport as it did with the Hambantota port of Sri Lanka and Pakistan's Gwadar Port as this place has geological significance," Yadav said. He added, "Nepal cannot pay back the pricy loans and interest. Embezzlement also needs to be investigated which were made during its construction." The construction of Nepal's Pokhara airport, primarily funded and executed by Chinese companies, has raised concerns about the quality of work, the manipulation of oversight, and the burden of debt on Nepal. Additionally, the airport's association with China's BRI has ignited diplomatic tensions with India, making it challenging for the airport to attract international flights. The Pokhara airport serves as a stark example of the pitfalls associated with importing China's infrastructure development model, highlighting concerns about financial sustainability and transparency, all while fuelling geopolitical rivalries in the region. On May 12, 2017, Nepal and China signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral cooperation under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative. The then Foreign Secretary of Nepal, Shanker Das Bairagi and Chinese Ambassador Yu Hong had signed the MoU. Notably, on June 27, the lawmakers from the Nepali Congress warned the government against BRI loans and proceeded forward without consultation during the parliamentary meeting. Opposition lawmaker and former foreign minister Narayan Prakash Saud, while addressing the house session, warned the government not to take loans under the BRI of China. The former foreign minister rather suggested the government accept the grants but in line with the provisions that Nepal has with other countries. "In regards to BRI, we should be clear that we should accept the grant like we have been doing with other countries. Talking about the loans, there are priorities that determine the need to take them; there should be potential plans, management of the finances, and a feasible market. Until and unless no feasible market has been ensured, big projects shouldn't be taken forward depending on the loans, if we move forward with it, then it would be a trap for ourselves," Saud said. The former Foreign Minister also took a jibe at the government for recalling the ambassadors despite the dilute geopolitical situation and ongoing tension, claiming it has diluted the image of the nation. Lawmaker Saud also suggested the government make decisions about BRI only after holding consultations with the opposition and all the parties present in parliament. (ANI) Indian ambassador to Austria Shambhu Kumaran on Monday said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Vienna will give much-needed dynamism and impetus to the Indo-Austrian relationship. PM Modi's upcoming visit to Austria will be the first prime ministerial visit in 41 years, the last being of Indira Gandhi in 1983. "This is one of the Prime Minister's first visits after being re-elected for the third time as Prime Minister. There is a great deal of interest in Austria to see how this tall leader of the democratic world shares his perspective on various issues. This is the first time in many decades that high-level political visits are happening. This gives the much-needed dynamism and impetus for this relationship to develop in the matter it has the potential to," Kumaran told ANI. PM Modi's official visit on July 9-10 in Austria comes when both countries mark 75 years of their diplomatic relationship. Kumaran further added that the India-Austria partnership has multiple dimensions as business and technology partnership is very important along with people-to-people connect. "There are a growing number of Indians working in Austria. There is a great deal of interest in Austria for Yoga, Ayurveda and India's civilisational dimensions," Kumaran said. When asked about the focus areas for the India- Austria relationship, the Indian Envoy said, "We have identified several sectors like infrastructure, transportation, mobility, renewable energy and other clean technologies. Broad-based innovation partnership and startup-level cooperation. We have set up a startup bridge between the two countries this year. It is a partnership that will focus heavily on technology in particular clean and digital technologies" Kumaran elaborated that PM Modi will hold substantial talks with the Austrian leadership with Chancellor Karl Nehammer. He will also meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and interact with Austrian CEOs and Indian business delegation. PM Modi will also address the Indian community in the last leg of his visit to Austria. PM Modi, who is on a two-day visit to Russia from Monday, reached a hotel in Moscow. Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, who received PM Modi at the airport, accompanied him to the hotel, where members of the Indian diaspora had gathered to welcome him. After Russia, PM Modi will leave for Austria. Meanwhile, while speaking about the Austria visit, PM Modi said, "In Austria, I will have the opportunity to meet President Alexander Van der Bellen and Chancellor Karl Nehammer. Austria is our steadfast and reliable partner and we share the ideals of democracy and pluralism." "This is the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister in over 40 years. I look forward to my discussions to take our partnership to even greater heights in new and emerging areas of innovation, technology and sustainable development among others. Together with the Austrian Chancellor, I look forward to exchanging views with business leaders from both sides to explore mutually beneficial trade and investment opportunities. I will also be interacting with the Indian community in Austria which is well-regarded for its professionalism and conduct," he added. (ANI) On Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the country, Abhay Kumar Singh, United Russia party's Deputat (MLA), from Russia's Kursk on Monday said that the talks between PM Modi and Russian President Putin will focus on crucial global matters including defence deals, cultural topics, economic and geopolitical discussions. Speaking with ANI, Singh said that PM Modi's visit was awaited for a long time. "Since the last two years, he had not come, and his visit was not only awaited by President Vladimir Putin but the local public too," Singh said. The Kursk MLA further said, "The people here are quite excited about his visit and are very enthusiastic." Elaborating on the talks to be held between both the leaders, Singh mentioned that discussions and agreements would cover significant global topics, including defence deals. "With Russian collaboration, BrahMos is giving good results. Similarly, some more defence deals will be struck after which Russian arms will be manufactured in India." Singh also asserted that the meeting would include discussions on cultural matters. He said, "Cultural topics will be touched upon. Hindi films were very famous in Russia, and across the Soviet Union in the past. In the past two years, Indian cinema - especially South Indian cinema - has been coming to Russia. People have started liking it." He also mentioned that economic discussions would be on the agenda between the two countries. Singh stated, "Talks will also be held on the Rupee-Ruble (Russian currency) trade." He said that the neighbouring countries of India like Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and Nepal will utilise Indian currency and Russia's neighbouring nations like Belarus and Kazakhstan will utilise Russian currency. With this, the currencies of both countries will become quite strong. Singh also emphasized that geopolitics topics will undoubtedly be covered in discussions. "The entire world is watching this. I think the results can change the situation of the entire world," he said. Meanwhile, upon arrival in Russia's Moscow, PM Narendra Modi was accorded Guard of Honour at VNUKOVO-II International Airport. In a rare gesture, Russia's First Deputy PM Denis Manturov received PM Modi at the airport. During his visit to Moscow, PM Modi will hold a meeting with Russian President Putin today and will also attend a community event in Moscow on Tuesday. Notably, PM Modi and Putin have met 16 times over the past 10 years. The last in-person meeting between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2022. In 2019, PM Modi was conferred the highest Russian state honour 'Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First'. Notably, Abhay Kumar Singh came to Kursk in 1991 and in 2010, he received Russian citizenship. In 1992, he entered the Kursk State Medical Institute, Faculty of Medicine. In 1999, he graduated from the Tver State Medical Academy, specializing as physician. In 2013, he graduated from the Russian State Social University, specializing in organization management.(ANI) A Rawalpindi court on Monday rejected Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) founder and former Prime Minister Imran Khan's plea for a weekly WhatsApp call with his sons, ARY News reported. Notably, Imran Khan had filed a petition and sought permission to have a conversation with his sons via WhatsApp once a week. However, the jail administration asserted that there is no legal provision that allow prisoners to communicate with their relatives through WhatsApp. The court had earlier said that Imran be allowed to talk with his children twice a month, who currently reside in the UK with their mother Jemima Khan, according to ARY News. Earlier, the former Pakistan Prime Minister had submitted an application to Rawalpindi Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) after he was denied a telephonic conversation with his sons from Adiala Jail. In the petition, the PTI founder had argued that he has been denied to speak with his sons despite being allowed to do so by law. The ATC, presided over by Judge Malik Aijaz Asif, had sought a response from the jail administration, ARY News reported. Meanwhile, an anti-terrorism court, a day earlier, reserved its decision on Imran Khan's interim bail requests in cases associated with the May 9 incidents in 2023, including the Jinnah House and two other cases, Pakistan-based The Express Tribune reported. During the hearing on Saturday, Imran lawyer, Barrister Salman Safdar, argued that the PTI founder was being targeted for political reasons. "In my entire career, I have never seen so many cases against a single individual. Those who were actually inciting against institutions at the scene were not arrested," Safdar alleged."How could a case be filed against him when he was in custody at the time of the crime?" PTI chief's lawyer questioned. In response, the government's lawyer argued that according to a special branch report, Imran Khan had asked his followers to target civil and military installations if he got arrested.The prosecutor said, "The directive to attack military installations across Pakistan resulted in the events that transpired." After hearing arguments from both sides, the court reserved its verdict on the PTI founder's interim bail requests, The Express Tribune reported. On May 9 last year, violent clashes broke out across Pakistan after former prime minister Imran Khan was arrested. The protests were held in remote and major cities as the party workers were agitated due to Khan's arrest, with Balochistan, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Islamabad summoning the armed forces to ensure law and order, ARY News reported. Army installations, including the Corps Commander's house in Lahore, had come under attack during the protests by PTI workers. Notably, the PTI founder was named as the main accused in all the May 9 riots cases. (ANI) Tourists visit the Temple of Heaven in Beijing, capital of China, May 2, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] China's optimized visa-free policy, together with several other measures aimed at enhancing international exchanges, has substantially increased the number of foreign travelers arriving in Beijing. In the first half of the year, the number of foreign visitors entering the Chinese capital reached 1.02 million, a year-on-year increase of 257 percent, according to data from the Beijing General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection. By last month, China had reached agreements or made arrangements to simplify visa procedures with over 40 countries and achieved comprehensive mutual visa exemption with more than 20. Travelers with ordinary passports from New Zealand, Australia and Poland are among the latest beneficiaries of China's optimized visa-free policy. In an arrangement that took effect on Monday and will continue till the end of next year, people from the three countries can enjoy visa-free stays of up to 15 days in China for business, tourism, family visits or transit purposes. Previously, China had extended visa exemptions to 12 countries in two rounds first to ordinary passport holders in France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and Malaysia in December, and then to those in Switzerland, Ireland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg in March. A Dutch traveler in Beijing, who only gave his name as Teun, said the new policy had made visiting China very convenient for foreigners. "The visa-free policy is just great! It makes one's trip nice in many ways," he said, adding that one of the many things he loves about Beijing is its public transportation system. "It is so easy to get anywhere you want." Lyu Naipeng, deputy director of the border inspection office of the Beijing General Station of Exit and Entry Frontier Inspection, said China is making concerted efforts to attract more foreigners for the purposes of business, education and tourism. "We have helped 14 airlines implement the usage of electronic boarding passes, allowing travelers to go paperless," Lyu said. "We expect the total number of inbound and outbound travelers passing through Beijing's ports to increase." Over 159,000 foreign nationals from the 12 visa-exempt countries have entered the city under China's visa-free policy this year, according to the Beijing exit and entry authority. The border inspection office is helping local travel agencies organize international group tours more efficiently. In the first half of the year, over 30,000 foreign visitors came to Beijing as part of such tours, a 30-fold increase compared with the same period last year. Also during that period, 33,700 eligible foreign inbound travelers capitalized on China's 144-hour visa-free transit policy, a sevenfold increase year-on-year, according to the Beijing exit and entry authority. A British tourist identifying herself as Daisy, who is traveling with Teun, said she took advantage of the 144-hour policy for their trip to Beijing. She said she hopes China's visa-free policy will be extended to visitors from the United Kingdom. "It would allow me to visit more cities in China," she added, as the 144-hour policy restricts travelers to specific areas in the country. Kelvin Ramirez, a professor in his 40s from Florida in the United States, who visited the Forbidden City on Wednesday during his first trip to China, described his experiences in Beijing as "amazing". "I used Alipay China's mobile and online payment service during my trip, and it is so convenient," he said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin at the President's House in Moscow on Monday. Putin welcomed PM Modi and the two leaders shared a hug. The two leaders shook hands and warmly greeted each other before proceeding to the meeting. They will have a private meeting and dinner together. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on Monday spoke about the agenda of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Russia. Earlier in the day, PM Modi arrived in Moscow for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Russian President Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov received PM Modi at the Vnukovo-II airport. PM Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the airport. Highlighting a notable gesture by Russian President Putin, he mentioned that PM Modi will share a private dinner with President Vladimir Putin in the evening. Taking to his official X handle, Jaiswal posted a video and said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi has arrived for the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. At the Airport arrival, he was received by the first Deputy PM Denis Manturov. He was also given a ceremonial welcome and a Guard of Honour." Jaiswal further said that at the hotel, PM Modi was welcomed by a large gathering of Indian community members. He said, "In the evening, he will be hosted by President Putin in a private dinner. This is a special gesture." Elaborating further on PM Modi's schedule, Jaiswal said, "Tomorrow, PM Modi has a packed schedule. He will be attending the 22nd Annual Summit and will have delegation-level talks. He will meet the Indian community, will address the Indian community members and also visit Rosatom (State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom) and exhibition space. Notably, PM Modi and Putin have met 16 times over the past 10 years. The last in-person meeting between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2022. In 2019, PM Modi was conferred the highest Russian state honour 'Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First'. After arriving in Moscow, PM Modi stated that he looks forward to further deepening the "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" between the two nations. In a post on X, PM Modi stated, "Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people." Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, who received PM Modi at the airport, accompanied him to the hotel, where the members of the Indian diaspora had gathered to welcome him. PM Modi greeted members of the Indian diaspora, who were outside The Carlton Hotel to welcome him. He shook hands and interacted with members of the Indian diaspora. He met with children who were happy to see PM Modi. People held Indian flags and posters of PM Modi and chanted "Modi Modi" to welcome him at the hotel. Artists dressed in Indian attire performed in the hotel to welcome PM Modi. Expressing gratitude to the Indian community in Russia, PM Modi in a post on X stated, "An unforgettable reception in Moscow! I thank the Indian community for the warm welcome." After Prime Minister Narendra Modi landed in Russia, the Indian tricolour lit up Moscow's Ostankino Tower, RT News reported. It is PM Narendra Modi's first visit to Russia since the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv started in 2022. According to Indian government sources, the solution to the Russia - Ukraine conflict cannot be found on the battleground. It is also the view of the global south and naturally needs to have both parties for the resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy, the Indian government sources further said. In his departure statement, PM Modi said, "Over the next three days, I will be in Russia and Austria. These visits will be a wonderful opportunity to deepen ties with these nations, with whom India has time-tested friendship. I also look forward to interacting with the Indian community living in these countries." PM Modi said that he wishes to discuss aspects of bilateral cooperation with his friend President Putin. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," the PM said. PM Modi added that the special and privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges. Notably, India and Russia have a longstanding and time-tested relationship with more than 77 years of mutually beneficial diplomatic ties. The relations between the two nations were elevated to the level of "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" in 2010. After concluding his visit to Russia, PM Modi will depart for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. (ANI) President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a two-day official visit to Russia, held an informal meeting on Monday at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence of the Russian president near Moscow. https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/1810382593126494213 The Russian Foreign Ministry shared a video on X showing a warm greeting between PM Modi and Vladimir Putin. The clip, posted on Monday, shows the two leaders embracing each other as PM Modi arrives at the president's residence, marking the start of their informal meeting. Further, Putin expressed gratitude for hosting PM Modi and said, You are welcome here, friend. I'm really happy to see you." "At the Novo-Ogaryovo residence of the President of Russia near Moscow, Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister @narendramodi, who is on a two-day official visit to Russia, hold an informal meeting," Russian Foreign Ministry said on X. "The talks will cover prospects for further development of traditionally friendly Russian-Indian relations, as well as current international and regional issues," it added. https://x.com/narendramodi/status/1810368302176190843 In response to this, PM Modi also shared a post on X and expressed gratitude to the Russian President for hosting him, adding that he also stated that he looks forward to their talks, which will strengthen India-Russia friendship. "Gratitude to President Putin for hosting me at Novo-Ogaryovo this evening. Looking forward to our talks tomorrow as well, which will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia," PM Modi said on X. https://x.com/RusEmbIndia/status/1810387109238223358 In a friendly gesture, Putin took PM Modi on a ride in his electric car around his residence, Novo-Ogaryovo. The Russian Embassy in India shared a video of the two leaders enjoying the drive, which followed a conversation between them. "Russia's President Vladimir Putin and India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi @narendramodiin NovoOgaryovo RussiaIndia DruzhbaDosti," the Russian Embassy in India said on X while sharing the video. Earlier in the day, PM Modi arrived in Moscow for a two-day official visit at the invitation of Russian President Putin to attend the 22nd India-Russia Annual Summit. Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov received PM Modi at the Vnukovo-II Airport. PM Modi was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the airport. Notably, PM Modi and Putin have met 16 times over the past 10 years. The last in-person meeting between the two leaders took place on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Uzbekistan's Samarkand in 2022. In 2019, PM Modi conferred the highest Russian state honor, 'Order of the Holy Apostle Andrew the First.' It is PM Narendra Modi's first visit to Russia since the conflict between Moscow and Kyiv started in 2022. After concluding his visit to Russia, PM Modi will depart for Austria in what is the first visit to the nation by an Indian Prime Minister in 40 years. (ANI) An Algerian man who disappeared 26 years ago has been found alive and yards away from his home after years of searching. According to a story in The Sunday Times, Omar Bin Omran disappeared from his home in El Guedid, around 320km from the capital, Algiers, in 1998. It wasnt until recently, when a Facebook post tipped off the village, that Bin Omran, now 45, was discovered being held captive, seemingly in plain sight, at a neighbors house a little more than 200 meters (650 feet) away. The neighbor, and prime suspect in this case, is a shepherd 16 years Bin Omrans senior, who had befriended him years earlier. As to why the shepherd, who remains anonymous, held Bin Omran captive so long is still unknown. Djamila Bouhired, the 83-Year-Old Woman Revolutionary Leading Algerias New Uprising In his late teens, the Times reported, Bin Omran left home, telling his parents he was travelling to the city of Djelfa, 45 miles away, for a vocational training program. They never saw him again. A neighbor of both the shepherd and Bin Omrans family believes that Bin Omrans forced incarceration could have something to do with revenge for an arranged marriage plot gone awry. Others think black magic could be involved. Another idea bandied about is that the captor might be gay and was holding Bin Omran for sexual purposes. In a surprising twist, Bin Omrans whereabouts couldve possibly been revealed earlier had villagers paid attention to his beloved dog, Rocky. According to Daniel, Rocky often went to and barked at the shepherd's home. The dog later vanished, which looks suspicious in retrospect. Currently, the police have six suspects in custody, including the tipster, who is the sister of the shepherd and the bride in the arranged marriage. Theories aside, Bin Omran is now a free man learning to reintegrate into 2024 Algeria. Bin Omran is reportedly reconnecting with old and new family and is learning to use a cell phone. However, he refuses to discuss details from his decades in captivity. 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. Is change coming to Delaware school funding? New commission will explore options Lawmakers will create a new commission dedicated to school funding reform in Delaware. Passing in the final days of session last week, it's a first move for the General Assembly following the release of the long-awaited independent assessment on Delaware's education funding system last winter. That report already recommended some sizable changes. The national firm executing the analysis not only concluded "an alarmingly clear and negative relationship exists between the percentage of low-income students served by schools and the outcomes they achieve for students," but also that the First State should update its funding formula to follow students. Those recommendations, published in December 2023, at a glance: Increase overall state investment in public education Distribute more resources according to student need Implement a weighted student funding formula for the state Improve funding transparency Allow more flexibility in how districts use resources Regularly reassess property values Simplify the calculation of the local share provided to charter schools, while a formula is applied consistently to both districts and charter schools The report marked the latest development in a 2020 settlement, after Delawareans for Educational Opportunity, the NAACP and others sued the state in 2018 for being aware of deficiencies in resources provided to lower-income students, students with disabilities and multilingual learners. Now, this commission should continue that conversation. Changes to school funding? New report calls on Delaware to spend more, update school funding to follow students What would this look like? Laura Sturgeon, D-Brandywine West being sworn in for the start of the 150th General Assembly at Legislative Hall in Dover. Sturgeon was a primary sponsor of a bill to create a new commission dedicated to school funding reform in Delaware. This coming task force or a "commission of legislators, educators, community leaders and other advocates" is tasked to conduct a "comprehensive review of how public education is funded in the First State, and recommend a series of reforms to better address student need and more equitably distribute resources across districts and charter schools," explains a release from the Senate June 25, following the resolution's Senate vote. The measure saw primary sponsors in both Senate Education Committee Chair Laura Sturgeon and House Education Committee Chair Kim Williams. The Public Education Funding Commission" is charged with: Examining those recommendations set forth in a report from American Institutes of Research Determining which components of the public education system should be modified Developing a multiyear plan for implementing reforms, including the order in which changes should be made and when Carrying out work with 31 members, including legislators, Cabinet secretaries, parents, educators, education support professionals, special education professionals, principals, administrators, district financial officers, community organizations and advocates Holding its first meeting no later than Oct. 1, while issuing its first set of recommendations by Oct. 1, 2025, to be considered in the governors recommended budget for fiscal year 2027 Over the last five years, the courts, independent researchers and community members have all weighed in and consistently confirmed what our public educators have been telling us for decades, Sen. Sturgeon said in a statement after her vote. The time has come for us to stop kicking this can down the road and start working on real systemic reforms that will improve Delawares schools." But some advocates find it hard not to see this as another punt. "Our hope is that legislators attack this with some urgency," said Mike Brickner, ACLU of Delaware's executive director. "We know what the issues are; we've had countless reports, countless task forces, countless commissions who have all pointed to these issues." Brickner noted this is well within lawmakers' perimeters, but his team maintains concern with any delay or possible lack of progress after another year to form additional recommendations. The civil rights organization plans to keep a close eye on the commission's work, though no formal invitation has been made for ACLU-DE to serve in the body. "We're certainly happy to help this task force in any way possible," Brickner said. "Or to help other elected officials who want to address these issues with even more speedily." Wilmington day care: This Delaware child care center failed to report abuse concerns. What happened next? What could be done in school funding? First grade students wait patiently in the hallway to enter the classroom on the first day of school at Pleasantville Elementary School near New Castle, Aug. 28, 2023. Many know Delaware has an old, unit-based system for funding its schools. Try over 80 years old. Reform here could look like updating the state's funding system to add certain "weights" or more funding based directly on student needs, as recommended in last year's report. That would resemble current Delaware efforts with opportunity funding, also a result of the 2018 lawsuit. The same findings suggest that spending isn't enough. The report recommended a base funding per student around $10,000, as previously reported. Researchers also suggested officially taking into account other differences among districts, like smaller tax bases, in the state funding formula. According to the research group, such "equalization funding," has been long-due for an update, while described by district educators as broken and flawed. All of this, and more recommendations, would be largely new for Delaware. School project support: Major school projects across Delaware see funding in final legislative push Delaware has been set in its ways for decades on school funding. And though many can agree on the problems, it seems common solutions have been more difficult to come by. ACLU-DE shared polling from late last year with Delaware Online/The News Journal that showed some 54% of Delawareans polled "strongly agree" that the state's public schools are underfunded. About 40% of the same sample said they "strongly support" increasing that funding, even if it means their taxes go up. About 34% opposed or strongly opposed the same question. "You need a political champion," said Jennifer ONeal Schiess, a senior partner and national policy leader with Bellwether, days before the report dropped last year. "Or a set of political champions, who have the power and the influence to move the conversation." Rep. Kim Williams, D-Newport Back in Dover, Rep. Kim Williams thought back to other efforts in education reform coming across the floor greater mental health supports, free school meals, a teacher pipeline and more. She believes a piece has been missing. Wilmington with fewer school districts? Delaware lawmakers signal support for removing Christina School District from Wilmington "While these have been critical steps, the fundamental issue lies in how we fund public education in our state, she said in a statement June 25. The Public Education Funding Commission will help us create a more equitable system that truly meets the needs of all students and educators." Got a story? Contact Kelly Powers at kepowers@gannett.com or (231) 622-2191, and follow her on X @kpowers01. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Delaware school funding: New commission to explore changes TREMONT TOWNSHIP, Pa. (WHTM) A New Jersey man was flown to the hospital after a tractor-trailer rollover closed a link between Lebanon and Schuylkill Counties Friday. State Police at Schuylkill Haven said the crash happened around 9:40 a.m. on Gold Mine Road in Tremont Township. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest The winding rural road is a key link between Tower City and the Fort Indiantown Gap area. Troopers said Rene Fernandez Rivera, 46, of New Brunswick, was headed north on Gold Mine Road in a tractor-trailer. They said he was driving at a high rate of speed and rolled the truck in a left-hand corner. The truck slid off the roadway, striking a utility pole and a tree. Firefighters from Wiconisco, Muir, Orwin, and Sheridan responded and rescued the man, who was then flown to Hershey. Troopers said he will be cited for careless driving. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Adult film actress Jesse Jane arrives at the 29th annual Adult Video News Awards Show at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino January 21, 2012 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Porn star Jesse Jane overdosed on cocaine and fentanyl in January at her boyfriend's home in Moore, according to an autopsy report made public Sunday. Her death was ruled an accident. Jane is best known for starring in the 2008 high-budget adult film, "Pirates II: Stagnettis Revenge." She also is known for roles in the 2004 movie Starsky & Hutch and the HBO series Entourage. "I got into porn right at the perfect time, when porn stars mattered," Jane told the magazine GQ in 2018. "Porn stars back then, they were big, glamorous. You walked into a room, you turned heads. Everybody knew who you were because they actually had to buy your product or DVDs, everything. Porn was so naughty, but everybody watched it." She was 43. Moore police found the bodies of Jane and her boyfriend, Brett Hasenmueller, 33, on Jan. 24 during a welfare check. Police at the time said they were investigating the deaths as drug overdoses. The Office of Chief Medical Examiner for Oklahoma released only the first page of the report on Jane's death, in keeping with state law. The full report will be released July 17. The report being made public on a Sunday was unusual. The report describes Jane's body as decomposed. Last year, the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Control called fentanyl "the biggest threat to public health and safety in the state." This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Porn star Jesse Jane cause of death revealed by Oklahoma officials South Carolina Congressional candidate Michael B. Moore speaks at a rally outside of the U.S. Supreme Court on October 11, 2023, in Washington, DC. South Carolina voters and Civil Rights are calling on SCOTUS to protect Black voters in the Alexander V. SC State Conference of the NAACP court case. (Photo by Shannon Finney/Getty Images for Rooted Logistics) The Democratic candidate for South Carolinas 1st Congressional District called for President Joe Biden to withdraw from the U.S. presidential race on Thursday. Michael Moore, who won the Democratic primary last month and will challenge U.S. Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., in November, posted his call for Biden to step down on X, formerly known as Twitter. Moore said the president should help in transitioning to a new nominee. Today, Im calling on President Biden to withdraw from the 2024 White House race and to help guide Democrats transition to a new nominee ahead of the November election. Michael B. Moore (@michael_b_moore) July 4, 2024 Moore told the SC Daily Gazette on Friday that following the first presidential debate last week, where Biden performed poorly, he is concerned Biden will not be able to win again. Biden was trailing Trump already in the polls, he said, and has slid further since the debate. I think the debate performance Americans not going to be able to unsee that, Moore told the Gazette. I dont think that President Biden is the best person to lead the country going forward. That said, Moore wanted to emphasize that Biden should be acknowledged for what he has achieved in his first term, and still has an important role to play for the party by guiding a new nominee. He did not name a specific person he wanted to replace Biden. Biden said on Friday that he is not stepping aside, but Moore said that statement did not change his concerns about Biden, or his position the president needs to step aside. This week two other Democrats in Congress, U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett of Texas and U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva of Arizona, have called for Biden to step aside. On Friday afternoon the Washington Post reported that Sen. Mark Warner, D-Virginia, is trying to gather other Democrats to ask Biden to leave the race. U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, South Carolinas only current Democratic member of Congress and a co-chair of the Biden-Harris Campaign told MSNBC on Tuesday that he still backs Biden at the top of the ticket. Clyburn did say, if Biden steps aside, he would support Vice President Kamala Harris as the partys nominee. Downpours lasting from Sunday noon to Monday morning have delayed flights and closed expressways in central China's Henan Province. Rainfall has been heaviest in western and north-central parts of Henan, including its capital city of Zhengzhou, with precipitation reaching as high as 145 mm, local meteorological authorities said. As of 8 a.m. Monday, entrances to the Zhengzhou-Shaolin Temple Expressway and Zhengzhou Ring Expressway were closed because of heavy rainfall. A flight from Changchun in northeast China's Jilin Province to Zhengzhou was cancelled, while five other domestic flights were delayed due to the weather. The provincial department of transport has been publicizing weather and road information via social media, radio broadcasts, television and roadside electronic screens, and has prepared disaster relief materials such as sandbags in advance at places prone to landslides, rock-mud flows and collapse. Nearly 550 emergency response teams consisting of about 30,000 people were formed. In addition, more than 8,000 vehicles, 283 vessels and 2,711 large rescue equipment items including cranes, bulldozers and excavating machinery, as well as emergency equipment like water pumps and alternators, have been made available, in order to cope with extreme situations such as power failures. Vast parts of the country have experienced persistent heavy rains since the flood season began. In Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake, a breach in the dike since Friday has forced the evacuation of at least 7,000 residents. Texas National Guard troops stop migrants from entering a popular crossing area along the bank of the Rio Grande in El Paso, Texas, in 2022. (JOHN MOORE/GETTY IMAGES) Originally published by The 19th In Southern Arizona, on an over-100-degree day in June, humanitarian aid workers found a group of migrants standing in a thin slice of shade formed by the large steel slats of the border wall. Among them were a pregnant woman, an elderly woman, two women showing signs of heat exhaustion and young children. In total, about 30 people had crossed into the United States and were waiting for the Border Patrol to pick them up so they could make an asylum claim. They were some of the lucky ones. Advocates say that more and more people are ending up stranded in the desert because of onerous Trump and Biden administration restrictions that make it difficult to ask for asylum at official ports of entry. Instead, people are trying to cross through remote desert areas. Thats a risky decision year-round; the desert can be disorienting and people can get lost, injured or fall prey to criminal organizations that operate on the Mexican side of the border. But in the summer, that decision can be deadly for another reason: Temperatures regularly exceed 100 degrees Fahrenheit without reliable water sources. Even for migrants waiting to make asylum claims on the U.S. side of the border, you are going to be waiting against a very large 30-foot-tall, heat-conducting wall, with very little in the way of shade, said Brad Jones, a volunteer and media liaison with Humane Borders, whose members encountered the asylum seekers by the border and countless others in the Arizona desert. Crossing the desert is a dangerous gamble, but often the only option left for asylum seekers after their long and arduous journeys from places like Venezuela, Honduras, Guatemala and Haiti, which are beset by violence, political instability and poverty. We know, based on 20-plus years, that the harder you make it, the greater the risks that they will take in the desert, whether it is in Texas or Arizona, Jones said. It means that risk-taking exponentially increases the likelihood you will die. Historically, men made up the majority of those dying in the border desert. But in recent years, the balance has shifted. Increasingly, those dying are women. The Rio Grande forms the U.S.-Mexico border at Big Bend Ranch State Park near Presidio, Texas, which is situated right at the edge of the Chihuahuan Desert. (John Moore/Getty Images) For the last several decades, those crossing the border into the United States were mostly Mexican men looking for jobs, said Colleen Putzel-Kavanaugh, a policy analyst with the Migration Policy Institute, a liberal think tank. But starting around 2010, that began to shift, with people from other countries making the trip more than in previous decades, as well as more families. Experts say these demographic changes could also explain the shift in demographics of migrant deaths. In April, No More Deaths, a humanitarian aid organization, issued a report quantifying the changes in who is dying while trying to cross the border. The report examined deaths in the Border Patrols El Paso sector, which covers southwest Texas and the bootheel of New Mexico. In 2023, the group documented 140 deaths in that area 31 more than in 2022. Of those, 51 percent were women. Its the first time that data captured anywhere along the border has indicated a higher number of deaths for women than men. And across the board, the number of women who die appears to be rising. According to the Humane Borders Migrant Death Mapping, a partnership with the medical examiners office in Pima County, Arizona, that tracks deaths in the states border desert region, 38 women were found dead in 2023 or 22 percent of all cases. Just the previous year, women made up 15 percent of all deaths. Between 2010 to 2020, they accounted for approximately one in 10 deaths. Melanie Nezer, vice president of advocacy and external relations for the Womens Refugee Commission, said women are driven to migrate for the same reason as men: lack of employment, persecution by local armed gangs and, increasingly, climate change, which is affecting farming yields and food security. Climate-intensified disasters have also led to high levels of displacement around the world and are linked to higher rates of domestic violence and sexual assault in their aftermath. All these factors interact in ways that can lead a person or a family to migrate. A lot of times when youre talking about women, youre also talking about children, Nezer said. Women, she said, dont want their kids to be forcibly recruited by gangs. They want their kids to be able to grow up and go to school and work and have a future. According to the No More Deaths report, many of the deaths in the El Paso sector in the last year were related to environmental exposure, dehydration and hyperthermia, a term used to describe heat illness. In data going back to 2014, the report also included migrants who died trying to climb over the border wall, among them a 19-year-old pregnant Guatemalan woman who died in 2020, or by drowning in canals. It also noted deaths involving the Border Patrol, in which migrants died while in custody, while being chased or by use of force. The data in the report comes from medical examiners offices, news sources and from the volunteers themselves, who find remains out in the desert every year while they are leaving food and water along the trails used by migrants. The tally is different from the number the U.S. Customs and Border Protection provides. In most years, No More Deaths documented a higher number of deaths than the federal agency. One exception is 2023, when CBP registered 149 deaths in the El Paso sector. On its website, CBP says that statistics are pulled from designated target zones, which comprise 45 counties along the southwest border. Any figure is also likely an undercount in part because of the vastness of the U.S.-Mexico border, which spans nearly 2,000 miles, and because of how animals and the elements scatter remains. In the 1990s, the United States implemented a prevention through deterrence border strategy aimed at funneling migrants away from cities by concentrating more agents in urban hotspots. This forced people over more hostile terrain, less suited for crossing and more suited for enforcement, according to the plan details. Advocates say this is why so many people die making the trek in the first place. Since 1998, the Border Patrol has recorded over 8,000 deaths along the border, with a majority occurring in the Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts, located in Arizona and New Mexico, respectively. Last week, the agency reported three deaths in the Sonoran desert, including a 17-year-old girl. Advocates believe the growing number of deaths in El Paso and elsewhere along the border stems from a combination of two things: changes in asylum requirements converging with the growing number of asylum seekers. Asylum is a form of protection given to people fleeing persecution over identifiers like their religion and race or for being a part of a certain social group. Unlike refugees, who are granted permission to enter the country ahead of their arrival, asylum seekers request protection once they are already in the country or at ports of entry, which are the official entry and exit points into a country. To start the process, migrants have to undergo what is known as a credible fear interview, where an asylum officer determines if they meet the minimum threshold to request asylum. A 22-year-old migrant from Venezuela holds her 3-year-old daughter while being denied entry after attempting to cross through concertina wire from the U.S. side of the Rio Grande River on March 26, 2024, in El Paso, Texas. (Brandon Bell/Getty Images) As the number of people migrating across the world has continued to climb, actions by both the Trump and Biden administrations forced many migrants to stay in Mexico while their asylum claims are being processed. In June, faced with intense political pressure from Republicans in an election year where immigration and the border rank as top-of-mind issues to voters President Biden swung right. He issued an executive order that triggered a ban on migrants requesting asylum between ports of entry if the southern border is experiencing over 2,500 crossings a day. The order also raised the bar for migrants seeking protection, and requires migrants to voluntarily share or demonstrate their fears of persecution before being asked by a Border Patrol officer in whats known as the shout test. A requirement implemented last year remains unchanged: Asylum seekers must first make an appointment through an app called CBP One and wait in Mexico. The problem is that it can take many months to get an appointment. And the longer people have to wait, the more desperate they become. In an interview, Bryce Peterson, a volunteer with No More Deaths who helped compile the report, said he recently visited a migrant camp in Ciudad Juarez, the Mexican city bordering El Paso, where there is very little sanitation and no cooling system, so temperatures were consistently over 100 degrees. Staying in Mexico is also very dangerous, Nezer said, as migrants are essentially sitting ducks for organized crime. The shelters are completely overwhelmed, and security, particularly for women and children, is a major issue. Extortion, sexual violence, kidnapping all of those things, she said. At some point, if theyre waiting for an appointment that may never come, they make the decision to try to enter wherever they can, with the plan of presenting themselves to border authorities once they cross. While there arent official stats breaking down how many asylum seekers coming to the United States are women, anecdotally, Peterson and Jones say they are seeing more women crossing and more women with families. And because they initially come to seek asylum, these people may be less prepared for a desert crossing and not as aware of the dangers of heat. Now with even more asylum restrictions in place this summer, advocates are wary of how many will then take the chance as summer temperatures continue to climb. Our biggest concern is that asylum seekers are just going to take greater risks, Jones said. That means entering in more remote areas to get into the country. That is our biggest concern. Border policy sometimes incentivizes risk. Crosses left by border activists mark the locations where the remains of migrants who died trying to cross into the United States through the harsh conditions of the Sonoran Desert were discovered, in the Altar Valley, Arizona. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis/Getty Images) Recent measures by Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, who ordered the placement of concertina wire along the Rio Grande and deployed state troopers and the Texas National Guard to patrol the border, may be pushing more people to cross through the El Paso sector, Peterson said. Around El Paso, average temperatures are typically in the 90s during the hottest months, which are June, July and August. But heat records in the region keep getting shattered. In 2023, there was a 44-day stretch of 100-plus temperatures in El Paso, which broke the previous record of 23 days in 1994. Last year, Tucson, a southern Arizona city about an hours drive from the border, also broke its own record: 15 consecutive days over 110 degrees. Extreme heat can become deadly in a matter of hours, causing a persons heart to pump faster in order to circulate more blood to the skins surface in an effort to cool the body down, which can lead to a heart attack or organ failure. Heat also causes sweating, the bodys natural evaporative cooling mechanism; in extreme cases, that can lead to dehydration and kidney failure. Pregnant women are particularly vulnerable to extreme heat because they have a harder time controlling their body temperature and get dehydrated more quickly. Extreme heat is also linked to a higher rate of preterm birth and miscarriage. In the El Paso sector, according to the No More Deaths report, most of the deaths are occurring near neighborhoods and densely-populated areas. But in Arizona, Jones said, some people who opt to cross can become frustrated with the wait at the border and choose instead to walk across the desert. Its a recipe for death, he said. There is no potable water apart from the water stations we maintain. And stumbling upon those is like a needle in the haystack. So we go to great lengths to put the word out: Do not venture out on your own, because you may not be coming back. SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE The post Under increasing pressure to migrate, more women are dying at the U.S.-Mexico border appeared first on Utah News Dispatch. A US Marine Corps aircraft has landed on a rebuilt runway on a World War II-era Japanese airfield on the Pacific island of Peleliu, site of one of the Marines bloodiest battles of the war and now a possible US basing option in a strategy to counter China. The KC-130 Hercules transport aircraft touched down on the 6,000-foot runway on June 22 in what a Marine Corps press release called a significant and triumphant return to this iconic World War II site. Marine engineers had been working on rebuilding the runway for months, clearing brush, removing trees and ensuring no unexploded ordnance remained from the World War II battle on the island, which is part of the island country of Palau. More than 1,500 US troops and nearly 11,000 Japanese were killed on Peleliu between August and November of 1944, according to the US Naval History and Heritage Command, which noted that some Japanese troops hid in the islands jungle and werent found until two years after World War II ended. One US unit, the 1st Marine Regiment, suffered 70% casualties in six days of fighting on the island. The Marines named the rebuilt landing strip the Sledge runway in honor of a veteran of the Peleliu battle, Pfc. Eugene Sledge, a mortarman on the island who wrote about it in a memoir With the Old Breed: At Peleliu and Okinawa, and whose memories were portrayed in the HBO miniseries The Pacific. Troops of the First Marine Division head toward beaches of Peleliu Island in 1944. - Corbis/Getty Images Sledge described Peleliu as an alien, unearthly, surrealistic nightmare like the surface of another planet. Now the runway bridges the past and the future, honoring WWII sacrifices while enhancing regional security and cooperation, the Marine Corps release said. That regional security has been largely focused on China in recent years, which the Pentagon identifies as its pacing threat. Part of mitigating the threat has been building facilities where the US could disperse assets like aircraft in the event of hostilities, including in the so-called Second Island Chain, locations far enough away from the Chinese mainland that Beijing would have difficulty striking targets there. The First Island Chain, in such places as Okinawa in Japan, and US bases in the Philippines, is neither a survivable nor viable operating location due to Chinese military capabilities in long-range bombers, cruise missiles, and theater ballistic missiles, US Air Force Lt. Col. Grant Georgulis wrote in a 2022 commentary posted on the US Defense Department website. Thus, the United States should prioritize Midway Island, the Marianas, Palau, and the Marshall Islands to complement an already fortified Guam, Georgulis wrote. China has been deeply critical of Washingtons alliance-building efforts in the Pacific, viewing them as an attempt to halt Beijings rise as a military and economic superpower. Beijing has long felt boxed in by the US presence in the First and Second Island Chains and under leader Xi Jinping has become much more assertive in regional waters and confrontational with neighbors such as Japan and the Philippines. It has also sought to boost its own diplomatic and security ties across the Pacific region. In a bid to protect its hegemony, the United States is forming blocs globally to target specific countries, provoke confrontation and destabilize the world, Chinas state-run Xinhua news agency wrote in a recent editorial. It claims to protect its allies under mutual defense treaties, but in reality, the treaties serve as a tool to subordinate them to the superpower and push them to the forefront of conflicts. Reviving airfield used by US atomic bombers Meanwhile, on Yap island in the Federated States of Micronesia, midway between Guam and Palau, the US Air Force in its 2025 budget requested $400 million to extend the runway at the islands international airport also a former Japanese military airfield so it can be used by US military aircraft. The US is already performing work on other locations in the Second Island Chain, including reviving North Field on Tinian island in the Northern Marianas, from where the US bombers that dropped the atomic bombs departed in August 1945. The United States must focus like a laser on the need for air superiority in the Pacific region. The United States must recapitalize islands gained during World War II to form a Second Island Chain of strategic expeditionary points, Georgulis wrote. For Washington, establishing strong ties to Pacific island states is also seen as a way to keep China from gaining footholds in the region. The Biden administration has signed a bilateral defense agreement with Papua New Guinea and reopened an embassy in the Solomon Islands since the beginning of 2023. Palau is a remote archipelago of coral and volcanic islands in the western Pacific and home to about 20,000 people. Since 1994, Palau has been covered by a compact of free association with the United States, making Washington responsible for its defense needs and allowing Palauans to serve in the US military. Palau last year signed a bilateral law enforcement agreement with Washington that will let the US Coast Guard enforce its laws in its exclusive economic zone without a Palau officer present. US Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro visited Palaus capital of Koror in March as part of a Pacific trip that included stops at two key US allies, Japan and South Korea, during which he said Washingtons partnership with the island state directly supports a free and open Indo-Pacific. I can assure you that the United States remains committed to Palaus national security, Del Toro said during a trip that also included a visit to the Peleliu island runway work. Palau President Surangel Whipps Jr. has been critical of Chinas increasingly assertive moves in the region, including toward Taiwan. Palau is one of the few remaining countries to diplomatically recognize Taiwan over Beijing. Along with the runway, US Marines are helping make improvements to the Peleliu Civic Center Museum, to house artifacts from the World War II battle. At an event last month marking the landing of the Marine aircraft on Peleliu, island Gov. Emais Roberts thanked the US Defense Department for its efforts there. Our small island community has benefitted immensely with the US Marine presence. We value the great partnership, and we feel safe and protected with the support of the greatest country in this world. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com (KNWA/KFTA) Walmart must face a class-action lawsuit over allegations that it engaged in deceptive and unfair pricing practices on groceries, a federal appeals court ruled on July 3. The plaintiff, Yoram Kahn, claims the retail giant has taken advantage of consumers with small price discrepancies that add up to hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Kahn alleges that Walmart is aware of these discrepancies between shelf prices and register prices and that its unfair and deceptive pricing practices are pervasive and continuous, the lawsuit states. Walmart announces plans to roll out digital shelf labels at 2,300 stores Kahn said he shopped at a Walmart in Niles, Illinois, on August 2, 2022. Relying on the marked prices on the shelves, he decided what to purchase. Once he went to check out, Kahn scanned 15 items and later learned the price of six of the 15 items scanned had 10 to 15 percent markups above the shelf prices, the lawsuit claims. In total, Kahn paid Walmart $1.89 in overcharges on these six items, nearly seven percent of the pretax total of his bill, the lawsuit states. Small change for Kahn as an individual, no doubt, but keep in mind the volume of Walmarts business. (Photo by Paul Weaver/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) A Walmart spokesperson provided the following statement to Nexstars KNWA: Well always work to provide our customers everyday low prices they can count on. We are confident in the evidence and look forward to arguing our case. This case was previously dismissed in March 2023 after a judge ruled that Walmart providing a receipt after purchase negated unfairness caused by the inaccuracies in shelf prices. However, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago recently reversed the lower court judges ruling and said customers could try to prove Walmart has used a bait-and-switch method that violates Illinois consumer protection laws. Texas man sued Walmart for $100M or free shopping for life. Why a judge tossed the lawsuits This isnt the first time Walmart has faced legal problems regarding its prices. In June, Walmart agreed to pay $1.64 million to settle claims by regulations in New Jersey for inconsistent unit pricing, according to a news release from New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs said in a consent decree that the departments investigation showed the 64 stores in the state violated unit pricing regulations by failing to use a standard unit of measurement such as quart, pound, or per 100 sheets on groceries and other items. Earlier this year, Walmart announced its plans to install digital shelf labels in nearly 2,300 by 2026. The new addition will allow employees to update prices through a mobile app and eliminate the need to change paper tags by hand, the company said. Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11. West Virginia is having a record year for tornadoes. Experts say its hard to pinpoint why The National Weather Service in Charleston, W.Va., has recorded 18 tornadoes in West Virginia so far this year, a new state record. (National Weather Service graphic) As tornado season winds down, West Virginia is having a record year for the storms. As of June 17, the National Weather Service in Charleston had recorded 18 twisters in the Mountain State so far this year, which is a new state record for the most tornadoes in a calendar year. Until this year, the most active year for tornadoes in West Virginia was 1998, when 14 tornadoes occurred. Its not just West Virginia. The United States is seeing an increase in the storms this year as well. According to preliminary numbers from the Weather Service, as of June 26, the United States had 1,262 tornadoes, compared to the average annual trend of 1,004 through this time. Reasons thats a tough thing to say, said Harold Brooks, a senior scientist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administrations National Severe Storms Laboratory. Basically, the ingredients [for tornadoes] have come together more often than they have in the past this year. While climate change is impacting extreme weather, increasing the frequency and intensity of heat waves, droughts, floods and wildfires, experts say connecting climate change to an increase in tornadoes isnt as simple. Tornadoes are very localized events, and the United States does not have a very long record of tornadoes to refer to, said Jana Houser, an associate professor at The Ohio State University. Houser studies radar analysis of tornado formation and the processes that impact their evolution, intensity and path. Theres some question about how has climate change actually modulated the larger scale pattern that could potentially make conditions over a larger geographic area favorable for tornadoes, she said. So you cant pinpoint any one exact event to climate change, but at the same time, climate change is modifying the larger scale environment, so it could have made a signal just kind of like a little bit more robust than what it might have been otherwise outside climate change. The nations formal tornado database goes back to 1950, but for 20 years, from 1950 until 1970, those reports came from students in the 1970s who dug through newspaper reports for mentions of tornadoes and tallied the numbers for those storms, Houser said. In the 1990s, the National Weather Service brought online a series of weather radars able to determine areas of storm rotation, she said. Prior to that point, somebody had to see the tornado, somebody had to see the damage, somebody had to call the Weather Service and report the tornado, she said. But with the advance of the radar system weve been able to much more accurately understand the nature of tornado frequency. Brooks said theres no scientific evidence that tornado activity in the United States is linked to climate change. A large part of that is because the U.S. is unique because our environments are so dominated by the presence of the Gulf [of Mexico] and the Rockies, and those arent going anywhere, Brooks said. Tornadoes are pretty hard to pin down as a climate effect anyway. For tornadoes to develop, there needs to be a combination of lots of warm moist air at low levels and lots of cool dry air aloft. Storms also have to be organized and rotating, which require wind shear, a change in wind direction and/or speed at a height. [With climate change] some of the ingredients that are important for tornadoes will become more favorable, others will become less favorable, Brooks said. And what the balance is is really hard to tell. Jason Hubbart, a professor and associate dean of research and the associate director of the West Virginia Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, said climate change may indeed be involved in the uptick. With increasing temperatures and continental climate instabilities in the higher atmosphere, we may see an increased formation of high-velocity unstable winds and subsequent tornadoes in the Midwest and Appalachia, he wrote in an email to West Virginia Watch. Additionally, citizens and agencies are equipped with better technologies to detect and track tornadoes, so increased numbers may be detected. Many West Virginians may have heard the states hilly terrain prevents tornadoes from forming or breaks them up as they travel. But Brooks said the states elevation matters more than the terrain when it comes to tornadoes. The tornadoes that happen in the middle of the country are due to the presence of the Rocky Mountains and the Gulf of Mexico. It takes more effort to get the moisture required for thunderstorms into West Virginia, he said. Its because youre high, not necessarily because there are hills, he said. If you were high and flat, it would still have trouble getting enough moisture to get storms to go. Since 1875, 117 West Virginians have died in tornadoes, and most of those deaths were prior to 1950. A total of 192 tornadoes have been confirmed in West Virginia since 1875, though many more have occurred than were reported, the Weather Service said. In 1944, a tornado tore through Shinnston as well as communities in Maryland and Pennsylvania, destroying 404 homes and killing a total of 153 people, including 103 West Virginians. According to the National Weather Service in Charleston, the states uptick this year may be nothing abnormal at all. The numbers have increased largely because weaker tornadoes are being reported. Due to the prevalence of security cameras, cell phones and social media, many more of these tornadoes are being recorded now than was possible in the past, according to the Weather Service. Drones have improved the weather services ability to distinguish tornado damage from straight-line wind damage, which can be challenging, the weather service said. This is especially true in hard to access areas or where theres not very many damage indicators, the Weather Service said. Before drones became commonplace, NWS survey teams were limited to what they could see from the road since aerial reconnaissance had to be done by costly fixed-wing planes or helicopters. Drones can now give us a complete picture of the damage, even in hard to access areas, and they have allowed us to be more accurate in what we call tornado vs. straight-line wind damage. All of the tornadoes reported this year in West Virginia so far have been weaker, EF0, EF1 or EF3 on the Enhanced Fujita Scale, a 0-to-5 scale gauging tornado strength based on estimated wind speeds and related damage. Of the 18 tornadoes that have been reported in the state this year, 10 were reported on April 2, breaking the record for the number of tornadoes on one day in the state. That day, a total of 17 tornadoes were reported across the National Weather Service Charlestons 49-county area in Ohio, Kentucky, Virginia and West Virginia. In West Virginia, the tornadoes damaged or destroyed 376 homes, according to West Virginia Emergency Management. An EF1 tornado was reported east of Parkersburg in May. Also that month, an EF2 tornado hit Hancock County, reportedly destroying homes and farmland. Houser said reports of more intense tornados, those with EF3, EF4 and EF5 ratings, have been constant, if not decreasing. But theres been an increase in reporting of weaker tornadoes, likely because theyre easier to report these days than they have been in the past. Anybody can be out there and take a picture, and have really easy access to Twitter or the National Weather Service, the local news place, she said. We have storm chasers out covering the country in a way that has never before happened within the last 10 years or so. So basically there are people who are going to see tornadoes, and if theres one to see, somebodys going to see it, and somebodys going to report it. Prior to radars that can confirm rotation and cellphone pictures of funnel clouds, there were instances where tornadoes could have been identified as a wind event, she said. So, were basically surveying the atmosphere in a way that has never been done before, Houser said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX US troops have completed a withdrawal from their base in Nigers capital of Niamey and will fully depart from Agadez in the north before a September 15 deadline set by the countrys military rulers, both countries said Sunday. Nigers military leaders scrapped a military cooperation deal with Washington in March, after seizing power in a July 2023 coup. The United States had around 650 soldiers in Niger as part of anti-jihadist missions in several Sahel nations of West Africa, including a major drone base near Agadez. The defence ministry of Niger and the US Defence Department announce that the withdrawal of American forces and equipment from the Niamey base 101 is now completed, the two countries said in a statement. A final flight carrying US troops was due to leave Niamey late Sunday. The US presence had stood at around 950 troops, and 766 soldiers have left Niger since the military ordered their departure, AFP learned at a ceremony at the base attended by Nigers army chief of staff Maman Sani Kiaou and US General Kenneth Ekman. American forces are now going to focus on quitting airbase 201 in Agadez, the statement said, insisting that the withdrawal would be completed by September 15 as planned. Niger had already ordered the withdrawal of troops from France, the former colonial power and traditional security ally, and has strengthened ties with Russia which has provided instructors and equipment. On Saturday, Germanys defence ministry also said it would end operations at its airbase in Niger by August 31 following the breakdown of talks with military leaders. A similar shift has taken place in neighbouring Mali and Burkina Faso, which are also ruled by military leaders and faced with violence from jihadist groups. Area law enforcement officials recently offered their assessment of a former southwest Iowa police chief who used his office to funnel illegal weapons to his Denison gun shop. Brad Wendt was sentenced to five years in federal prison for conspiring to make false statements to the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, making false statements to the ATF and illegal possession of a machine gun. The 47-year-old had been the police chief in Adair while also owning BW Outfitters, a federally licensed firearms dealer in Denison. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Iowa stated evidence presented a trial showed that Wendt used his position to obtain machine guns for his own personal use and profit, including to sell at his store, between July 2018 and August 2022, according to a news release. We expect law enforcement officers to uphold their oath to protect and serve our communities," FBI Omaha Special Agent in Charge Eugene Kowel said in the release. "Instead, Brad Wendt broke the law and betrayed the community by unlawfully obtaining and selling firearms for his own personal profit. The FBI remains steadfast in aggressively investigating and bringing to justice those who misuse their authority for personal gain. Generally, machine guns made after May 1986 are illegal to transfer and possess. But law enforcement agencies can buy machine guns for their official use and an authorized dealer can get machine guns to demonstrate to a police department for the departments future possible purchase. If a police department wants to purchase or receive a demonstration of a machine gun, it can submit a letter to ATF, referred to as a law letter, expressing its need for and interest in the machine gun. Between July 2018 and August 2022, Wendt wrote nearly 40 law letters, requesting the purchase or demonstration of 90 machine guns for the Adair Police Department. In the law letters to purchase machine guns for his two-man department, Wendt said he was buying the machine guns for the official use of his department and was not getting the machine guns for resale. In the law letters requesting demonstrations of machine guns, Wendt said the Adair Police Department wanted a demonstration for the departments future possible purchase of the requested machine guns. A jury found that Wendt made false statements in several of the law letters, convicting him of one count of conspiracy to make false statements to the ATF and eight counts of making a false statement to the ATF, according to the release. At its core this case was about false statements, driven by the personal ambition of man who saw his badge as a means to an end, rather than a calling., Southern District of Iowa U.S. Attorney Richard Westphal said in the release. Thank you to our dedicated law enforcement partners at FBI and ATF, and a hard-working prosecution team for pursuing a challenging case and holding Brad Wendt accountable. Evidence at trial showed that Wendt purchased machine guns for the Adair Police Department, but later resold those machine guns at a personal profit of nearly $80,000. The evidence also showed Wendt used demonstration law letters to purchase machine guns for BW Outfitters, including a .50 caliber machine gun called a Ma Deuce, which he immediately mounted to his personally owned armored Humvee. Wendt was also convicted of one count of illegal possession of a machine gun, based on his personal possession of a belt-fed, M60 machine gun registered to the Adair Police Department. Wendt, along with BW Outfitters, hosted a machine gun shoot in April 2022, where he charged the public to shoot machine guns, including several registered to the Adair Police Department. The jury found Wendt was not acting within the scope of his official duties when he possessed the M60 machine gun. Wendt was held accountable for committing a betrayal of the publics trust by engaging in this machine gun trafficking scheme for personal gain, Gordon N. Mallory, acting special agent in charge of ATFs Kansas City Division, said in the release. This sentence sends a loud message to anyone in public service: if they betray their oath of office and their responsibility to their community, they will be held accountable. New electric vehicle standards, veteran local health care access and cybersecurity concerns were all the subjects of letters sent to different government agencies by Iowa lawmakers last week. A new bill would require social media platforms to report instances of drug trafficking to authorities. Read about what Iowas congressional delegation has been up to below: New bill targets drug trafficking on social media platforms Iowa Republican Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Minnesota Democrat Rep. Angie Craig introduced legislation aimed at preventing the sale of drugs on social media platforms. The Cooper Davis and Devin Norring Act, named after two teens who died from drugs purchased on Snapchat, requires social media companies to alert authorities when drug dealing occurs on their platform. Fentanyl is a plague in our communities, killing countless Americans and destroying their families, Miller-Meeks said in a press release. By requiring social media companies and other communication service providers to alert law enforcement of fentanyl distribution on their platforms, we could hopefully save many more lives. Roughly 1 in 3 instances of illegal drug trafficking is connected to social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, according to data from the Drug Enforcement Agency. In the years since Cooper and Devin lost their lives to drug dealers operating on social media, weve heard the same canned response from social media companies that theyre aware of the problem and are working to correct it. However, theyve done nothing to put a stop to these dealers targeting our children, Devin Norrings mother Bridgette Norring said in the press release. Grassley calls for boost of cybersecurity defense Sen. Chuck Grassley is launching an oversight inquiry into the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency after the agency revealed it suffered a days-long hack in January. The hackers potentially had unauthorized access to internal surveys, security plans and assessments which may have revealed sensitive information about U.S. infrastructure, according to CISA. In a letter sent to CISA Director Jen Easterly, Grassley demanded access to records showing the agencys response to the hack, what information the hackers had access to, how the agency assessed damages and contacted impacted parties. Ive been conducting oversight of the departments with known cyber vulnerabilities in our critical infrastructure, but now were learning CISA the agency whose sole responsibility is to protect U.S. cybersecurity doesnt even have its own house in order, the letter says. CISAs failure to safeguard its systems puts Americans at risk. Grassley previously called for bolstering the U.S.s cybersecurity in a different letter he sent to multiple agencies in April. Read the full letter here. Grassley: Improve veterans access to health care Grassley and Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran sent a letter to the Veteran Affairs (VA) Department Secretary Denis McDonough requesting he change policies harming veteran health care access. According to the senators, recent changes in the VA have limited community health care options for veterans which hurts the progress made under the Trump administration. It is incumbent on you to reprioritize resources from non-patient care areas and reduce waste, fraud and abuse, not to unilaterally implement purported cost-savings measures that, even as an unintended consequence, decrease veteran choice and endanger veteran lives, the letter says. Back in May, Grassley and others launched an oversight inquiry into the Veterans Community Care Program regarding the findings of an internal report. The senators alleged the VA was limiting veterans access to local health care options in favor of connecting veterans to the VAs direct care system. Grassley and Morans letter was co-signed by 18 other Republican senators, including Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst. The full letter can be read here. Republicans criticize new EPA electric vehicle rules Iowa Rep. Randy Feenstra and Indiana Sen. Mike Crapo penned a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) urging the administration to reverse a decision requiring new emission standards for heavy-duty vehicles. Alongside Feenstra and Crapo, over 150 other lawmakers co-signed the letter, including the entirety of the Iowa congressional delegation. The decision is intended to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by mandating that 25% of sleeper cab tractors, which includes semi-trucks, buses and tractors, be zero-direct-emission vehicles by 2032. Some lawmakers and car manufacturers are criticizing the move over the financial costs of the switch and its impact on agricultural workers. The Biden administrations mandate that impacts all trucks, tractors, buses, and semis would strain our supply chains, hurt our farmers, harm our economy, and increase costs for every single American, Feenstra said in a press release. Feenstra and others have called the rule a de facto electric mandate, although the rule does not ban the driving or production of new gas-powered vehicles. This unaffordable and unachievable regulation will leave rural communities with grid capacity challenges and limited range versus comparable diesel vehicles. When regulations are rushed and the impacts on the economy are not sufficiently considered, business closures and job losses will result, the letter reads. The zero-direct emissions do not account for emissions associated with the production, distribution or disposal of the vehicle. Read the full letter here. You are here: World Flash Ehab al-Ghussein, undersecretary of the Hamas-run Ministry of Labor, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the west of Gaza City on Sunday, said Palestinian sources. Israeli forces targeted a house west of the city in the northern Gaza Strip, killing four Palestinians, including the senior official, Palestinian security sources told Xinhua. Israeli state-owned Kan TV news also reported the killing of Ghussein. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military about the incident. The wife and daughters of Ghussein were killed in a previous Israeli attack in Gaza. Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in the Gaza Strip to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and around 250 were taken hostage. The Israeli attacks have so far killed 38,153 Palestinians and injured 87,828 others in the strip, said the Gaza-based health authorities in an update earlier in the day. Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger announced the creation of a confederation that will bring the three nations under one institutional umbrella, in a decision that signals a no-return to the West African regional bloc, the ECOWAS. The leaders of the three countries announced the confederation decision at a summit in Niamey, accusing ECOWAS of taking orders from outside powers. The three military-ruled nations tilted towards Russia building on anti-western sentiment that led to ordering a departure of western troops from the Sahel. The nearly 50-year-old ECOWAS has become a threat to our states, said Nigers military leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani. Its up to us today to make the confederation alliance of Sahelian states an alternative to all bogus regional groupings, by building a sovereign community of people, Tchiani said. Westerners consider that we belong to them and our wealth also belongs to them. They think that they are the ones who must continue to tell us what is good for our states. This era is gone forever; our resources will remain for us and our populations, Burkina Faso military ruler Traore said. The attack on one of us will be an attack on all the other members, said Malis leader, Col. Assimi Goita, who was chosen as the alliance leader. The three military leaders staged separate coups against the backdrop of a surge in terrorist activity in the Sahel, which they failed to curb so far. Moroccos largest telecom operator, Maroc Telecom, is expected to take a blow in terms of its profitability at the Casablanca stock exchange after losing a case brought by its competitor Wana Corporate. Maroc Telecom said it will appeal the decision by a commercial court in Casablanca ordering the operator to pay Wana corporate, known by its Inwi brand, 6.4 billion dirhams. The court, which confirmed a first instance verdict, found Maroc Telecom guilty of violating free competition rules and abusing its position as market leader. However, the market expected the sanction and Maroc Telecom shares dropped slightly only, with share price devaluing from 105 dirhams to 89.5 dirhams on July 4. The sanction makes Maroc Telecom shares an investment on the medium and longer terms, as the company could withhold sharing this years dividends, according to observers. The company plans to distribute 2023 dividends worth 3.7 billion dirhams. Some market experts expect the company to resort to debt to pay both dividends and the compensation to Inwi. In 2020, Maroc Telecom was found guilty of practicing anti-competitive practices since 2013, the regulator ARNT said, imposing a fine of 3.3 billion dirhams on the operator. Maroc Telecom was fined for refusing to share unbundling on its network with other competitors in order to maintain monopoly of fixed broadband. Maroc telecom posted a profit of 6.19 billion dirhams in 2023. The company is listed both on Casablanca and Euronext and operates in Morocco, Benin, Burkina Faso, the Central African Republic, Chad, Gabon, Cote dIvoire, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, and Togo. French Veolia plans to sell its stake in utilities company Lydec, a Casablanca-listed company that manages water supply, electricity distribution, and sewage. Veolia will sell its stakes to Societe Regionale Multiservices Casablanca-Settat, in line with authorities plan to put utilities under the authority of regional companies owned by the state. Lydec oversees the delegated management of public services for the distribution of drinking water, electricity, wastewater and public lighting for the city of Casablanca and its region. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2024, once all the necessary administrative approvals have been obtained, the company said in a statement. Divestment from Lydec has no impact on Veolias 2024 financial guidance or on the objectives of Veolias GreenUp strategic plan, it said. Moroccan authorities plan to not renew deals with other utilities in big cities, as regional state-owned companies will take over. Oil and gas rich Nigeria has defeated Algeria and other competitors, after it was chosen as the host of the newly created Africa Energy Bank, worth $5 billion. In hosting the new lender, Nigeria will become at the forefront of Africas energy future, said Nigerian oil minister Heineken Lokpobiri. The new bank aims to address the funding challenges faced by Africas oil and gas industry amid the global energy transition. As a supranational institution, it will provide funds for African energy projects, including emerging oil and gas projects across the continent. Nigeria promised to contribute $100 million to the bank, which will finance both fossil fuels and renewable energy projects. Besides Algeria, the other countries that lost the race to host the banks headquarters are Benin and Ghana. Algerias opposition party, the Rally for Culture and Democracy (RCD), has announced its decision to boycott the upcoming presidential election of Sept.07 due to lack of fair & free electoral competition and growing crackdown on political activists and journalists. In a statement published Monday July 8 by Asharq Al-Awsat newspaper, the party leader, Othman Mazouz deplored the restrictions imposed by Algerian authorities on freedom of expression and assembly, saying his party has decided not to participate in the upcoming vote. The partys stand confirms the alarming reports released by international human rights organizations which have called on Algerian regime to release all human rights militants imprisoned for the exercise of their freedom of expression, opinion, and association. They have also urged the Algerian regime to stop intimidating and targeting political opponents, denouncing the violation of their freedom of movement and the excessive use by the authorities of the terrorism law to build bogus cases against vocal critics to toss them in prison. Algerias presidential election of 2019 was marred by mass boycott, record low turnout and violent clashes between police and pro-democracy protesters, casting doubts over the legitimacy of the vote derided as a sham. Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photo: Getty Images Last week, the Supreme Court handed Donald Trump a huge win when it ruled that current and former presidents could not be criminally prosecuted for acts deemed official. The 6-3 decision means further delays in federal governments January 6 case, headed by Special Counsel Jack Smith. But the ruling is already having broader effects. Trumps lawyers cited it in a successful request to delay their clients sentencing in the New York hush-money case. His lawyers again cited the immunity decision when they requested that Judge Aileen Cannon, who oversees the federal classified-documents case against Trump, put those proceedings on hold altogether. (Even if that tactic fails, it has already resulted in yet another Cannon-approved delay.) There is surely more of this to come, in these and other Trump-involved cases. I recently spoke with Steve Vladeck, a University of Texas law professor and CNN Supreme Court analyst, about how the Courts ruling may affect Trumps remaining trials and his concerns on how the decision could embolden a future president. Trumps legal team succeeded in getting Judge Juan Merchan, who is overseeing Trumps hush-money case, to push back his scheduled sentencing by months, and they want Merchan to overturn the conviction altogether. Could the Supreme Court ruling open the door to that? Theres a remote possibility; I think its unlikely. But I think the impact on the January 6 case is going to be substantial. Where do you think things now stand with the January 6 case? I think a lot is going to depend on the special counsel. Jack Smith and his team are super-savvy, and theyre parsing the ruling even more than we are. I think the question is, Are they going to try to restructure the case? Are they going to file a superseding indictment? Are they going to do other things to try to mitigate the need to resolve some of the hard questions the Supreme Courts decision leaves open? And in that respect, the ball is very much in their court. The Georgia election-subversion case deals with similar issues as the federal governments but on the state level. If the federal case is severely curtailed or even thrown out entirely, could it affect what happens in Georgia? At least to a degree. The Georgia case is different in some respects: Trumps not the only defendant; the charges have involved a whole bunch of state law. I think its a straighter line in the Georgia case to stuff thats clearly not an official act of the president. Calling the Georgia secretary of state and asking him to find 11,000 votes is not a presidential act. I think the problem really is that theres no way to be confident in any direction in any of these cases about what the effects are going to be. Its going to be a lot of uncertainty all the way down. The federal governments classified-documents case was already up in the air thanks to Judge Aileen Cannon, who has set a slow pace and made a series of strange pro-Trump rulings. Now, shes facing this immunity argument Trumps team is making. Is there a scenario in which she could toss the case by arguing that Trumps handling of the documents was an official act, even though he was out of office by that time? I dont think thats a good argument, but I think its an argument that will be made. Judge Cannon has shown herself to be open to arguments that are not necessarily good. Theres also Justice Thomass concurrence, which has not gotten a lot of attention. Theres a motion before Judge Cannon raising the exact unconstitutional appointment argument that Justice Thomas embraced in his concurrence. I think the reverberations of this decision are going to be widely felt and are going to take a fairly long period of time to fully sort themselves out. Right. In his opinion, Clarence Thomas questioned the legality of Smiths appointment in the first place. Cannon was already set to hold a hearing on that very subject. Could Smiths position be at risk? The fact that it was only Thomas should give folks pause about this argument, which I think is a completely meritless one. But if Cannon relies upon it, then she could rule that Smiths appointment was unconstitutional, which Smith would obviously then appeal. The Supreme Courts jurisprudence is quite clear that the special counsel is something called an inferior officer, not a principal officer. Congress, by statute, has authorized the attorney general to appoint inferior officers. Unlike in the case of the independent counsel, the special counsel is directly answerable to the attorney general. And so, even for those who think the Supreme Courts decision upholding the independent-counsel statute was wrong, this is radically different. Theres a 2019 ruling by the D.C. Circuit expressly rejecting this very challenge in the context of the appointment of thenSpecial Counsel Bob Muller. The overwhelming weight of authority is against this argument as reflected in the fact that only one justice endorsed it. But thats no guarantee that Judge Cannon will feel bound to reject it. What stuck out to you about the Supreme Courts ruling when it first came down? I was struck by two things. I was struck that the Court wasnt able to find any kind of cross-ideological consensus, which historically in cases like this has really been one of its principal goals. And I was struck by the point of departure between the majority and Justice Barrett, specifically the majoritys to me completely unjustified and problematic holding that even when the underlying crime can be tried, otherwise immunized conduct cant even be used as evidence. I think it says a lot about how extraordinary and extreme that holding was that Justice Barrett felt compelled to write separately to say she didnt agree with it. Is it unusual that Amy Coney Barrett would feel the need to put that on the record, so to speak? Unusual except that she did the same thing in the Colorado ballot-disqualification case, where she also was slightly critical of the five other Republican appointees for going further than she thought was necessary. Wholly apart from the legal analysis, which is problematic unto itself, it really drives home just how much further the majority went than it needed to. There has been a lot of discussion on what makes something an official act versus an unofficial one. How are you looking at this question? I think thats going to be hard but not intractable. Lower courts sometimes actually do confront similar questions, with lower stakes, about official versus nonofficial conduct. Im much more worried about the evidentiary point because I just dont understand how prosecutors are supposed to establish the difference between an act being official and unofficial if their hands are so thoroughly tied with regard to what evidence they are or arent allowed to introduce. So its not that the ruling explicitly allows these things but that it muddies the waters a bit. It muddies the waters a lot. It removes this guardrail that everyone assumed existed, that any president would be subject to the law. Removes the guardrail is strong. It certainly lowers the guardrail. The lower the guardrail, the easier its going to be for presidents to drive off the road. In her dissent, Justice Sonia Sotomayor put forward several scenarios in which she worries a future president could be immune under this ruling. These include giving a pardon in exchange for a bribe or using Seal Team Six to assassinate a political rival, which came up at oral arguments. From your perspective, are these things now legal for a president to do? Its impossible to disagree with her concern. I think the problem with assessing each of her hypotheticals is that the majoritys opinion isnt clear. And so the concern to me is not that its obvious a president would be immune in those cases; its that its not obvious he wouldnt be. What else are you looking for in how this ruling may reverberate down the line? I think the problem is that this rule is going to have two sets of reverberations: Its going to have short-term reverberations in somewhere between one and four of the Trump prosecutions, and its going to have long-term reverberations for the entire structure of our federal government and the ways in which we do and dont hold presidents accountable. The problem is that its just impossible to say this early whether those reverberations are going to be good or bad. Ill just say Im worried that theyre going to be bad, but only time will tell. What is the worst-case scenario for a second Trump term or any future presidency? The real concern here is what this ruling will incentivize or at least what this ruling will fail to deter. Whether its a second Trump administration or a second Biden administration or an anybody else administration, presidents ought to be at least somewhat worried that if they break the law, theyll be held accountable. And given how feckless the impeachment process has shown itself to be, its not obvious how any future president acting in good faith or bad would actually be worried about being held to account for breaking the law. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Photo: Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc/Getty Imag The hits keep coming for Boeing. The beleaguered aviation giant agreed to a plea deal with the U.S. Justice Department in connection with two fatal Boeing 737 Max crashes. Under the deal, the company will plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States, pay a $487.2 million fine the maximum criminal penalty for that charge and be placed on probation for three years. As part of the probation terms, the company will be overseen by a government-appointed independent compliance monitor and be required to invest a minimum of $455 million in its compliance and safety programs, as well as making Boeings board of directors available to meet with the families of crash victims. Boeing will not be granted immunity in any current or future federal investigations as part of the plea deal, leaving the company open to further penalties down the line. The parties have agreed to the deal in principle, but it still has to be signed off by a federal judge before its terms go into effect. The Justice Department had charged that Boeing violated a 2021 settlement that allowed it to avoid prosecution in connection with the crashes of Lion Air Flight 610 in 2018 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 in 2019, which killed a total of 346 passengers and crew members, per the Associated Press. The 2021 deal required the company to make internal changes to its compliance and ethics program in order to prevent future fraud violations. Paul Cassell, an attorney representing family members who lost loved ones in the crashes, criticized the deal and urged the judge to reject it. This sweetheart deal fails to recognize that because of Boeings conspiracy, 346 people died. Through crafty lawyering between Boeing and DOJ, the deadly consequences of Boeings crime are being hidden, he said in a statement. The bad news for Boeing which is no stranger to negative publicity lately didnt stop with the guilty plea. Reuters reported Monday that the Federal Aviation Administration has ordered that 2,600 Boeing 737 aircrafts be inspected out of concern that their oxygen masks could potentially fail when deployed. The agencys order requires that the planes passenger service unit oxygen generators be inspected and, if needed, repaired within 120 to 150 days. stop the presses How Did the New York Post Get Away With That? Two former Page Six reporters, Frank DiGiacomo and Susan Mulcahy, on their 528-page oral history of Rupert Murdochs tabloid, Paper of Wreckage. Flash Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Sunday sent a congratulatory message to Keir Starmer on assuming the position of Britain's Prime Minister. Li said in the message that China and Britain are both permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and the world's major economies, adding that strengthening coordination and cooperation between the two nations not only serves the interests of the two countries, but also is conducive to the unity of the international community in addressing global challenges. The Chinese government attaches great importance to its relationship with Britain, and stands ready to work with the new British government to consolidate mutual political trust, expand mutually beneficial cooperation, enhance people-to-people and cultural exchanges, support the economic and social development of both countries, and jointly promote world peace, stability, and prosperity, said Li. This PICTUREI am Humbly Grateful Seattle yall SHOWED UP & SHOWED OUT for our 2nd show #OutOfThisWorldTour from TOP to BOTT0M yall was turnt& Yall made it back to EARTH safely! Next Spaceship757 will be landing in OAKLAND pic.twitter.com/4TtLYnSMBm Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) July 7, 2024 ATTENTION Due to the Demand There are NEW SHOWS ADDED!! We are adding new dates to the OUT OF THIS WORLD Tour with me, @ciara @BustaRhymes & @Timbaland! Artist presale starts on Thurs, May 2nd @10am local! Get ur tix using the LINK IN MY BIO & General public pic.twitter.com/AnJxV2myrW Missy Elliott (@MissyElliott) April 30, 2024 Missy Elliott kicks off her tour in Vancouver via TT: sarayaturko pic.twitter.com/XXLX54f3vm HipHopDX (@HipHopDX) July 6, 2024 LOOK. AT. THESE. VISUALS. . Keep the videos and photos coming! Looks like it was one hell of a night #OUTOFTHISWORLDTOUR pic.twitter.com/a12mcYpb8z MissyElliottUK #OUTOFTHISWORLDTOUR (@MissyElliottUK) July 5, 2024 Setlists: Timbaland (Tim serves as the the opening hype man, and sings a long to a bunch of his hits and tracks he's done for other artists. Would have been better if he pretended to DJ like he did in Justins FutureSex Tour tbh) Ciara 1. Goodies 2. Get Up 3. Oh 4. Ride 5. Body Party 6. Promise 7. Wind it Up 8. Drop Your Love 9. How We Roll 10. Like a Boy 11. I Bet 12. 1, 2 Step 13. Level Up Busta Rhymes 1. Respect My Conglomerate 2. Ante Up (Remix) 3. Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See 4. Turn It Up/Fire It Up 5. Make It Clap 6. Uh Oooh (Remix) 7. Touch It 8. I Know What You Want 9. What's It Gonna Be?! 10. Master Fard Muhammad 11. Look at Me Now 12. All I Do Is Win (Remix) 13. Don't Stop Believin' 14. Break Ya Neck 15. Pass The Courvoisier Missy Elliott 1. Throw It Back 2. Cool Off 3. We Run This 4. 4 My People 5. Sock It 2 Me 6. I'm Really Hot 7. The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly) 8. I'm Better 9. She's a Bitch 10. Gossip Folks 11. All n My Grill 12. Get Ur Freak On 13. Lick Shots 14. Funky Fresh Dressed 15. One Minute Man 16. Hot Boyz 17. Beep Me 911 18. DripDemeanor 19. Toyz 20. Pussycat 21. Bad Man 22. (interlude medley) If Your Girl Only Knew/Where My Girls At/Let It Go/So Gone/Holding You Down 23. Ching-A-Ling 24. WTF (Where They From) 25. Work It 26. Pass That Dutch 27. Up Jumps Da Boogie (with Timbaland) 28. Touch It Remix (with Busta Rhymes) 29. Lose Control (with Ciara) The "Out Of This World" Tour kicked off this week with shows in Vancouver, BC and Seattle, WA.The entire show is about 3 hours, with Missy doing a tight 70 minutes, Busta and Ciara 45 minutes each, and Timbaland 30 minutes. Also, in case anyone missed it, she had added a few more dates to the shows from the initial announcement a few months ago.Some more close-up clipsSource 1 Leaders attending the Shanghai Cooperation Organization cast the group as capable of exerting increasing influence on the world stage. But beneath a veneer of solidarity, cracks are visible in the foundation. The two-day SCO summit concluded July 4 with the signing of a bevy of documents, including a joint declaration that outlined an intention for the organization to exert a greater degree of global influence. Tectonic shifts are occurring in global politics, the economy and other areas of international relations, the document stated. A fairer and multipolar world order is emerging. Earlier during the summit, Russian leader Vladimir Putin described the SCO as a one of the key pillars of a fair multipolar world order. To substantiate Putins assertion, Russian media cited statistics that had little connection to tangible accomplishments, noting, for example, that SCO member states now account for almost 27 percent of the worlds landmass and more than 42 percent of the global population. The summits most tangible result was the admission of Belarus as a full member. Most of the documents signed were aspirational. In a carefully worded speech, the summits host, Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, indicated that the SCO needed to become more cohesive. The SCO must strengthen its stabilizing and creative role to overcome the erosion of international law, prevent geopolitical fault lines and, ultimately, strengthen peace and security in a broad global context, Tokayev said. The SCO has expanded from its original membership of Russia, China and all Central Asian states except Turkmenistan, to include India, Iran, Pakistan and, now, Belarus. The speeches at the summit provided clues suggesting not all participants are on the same geopolitical page. Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for a complete set of measures on information sharing among members to promote mutual security. Security is a prerequisite for national development, and safety is the lifeline to the happiness of the people, Xi said. Putin, meanwhile, focused his address on criticism of the West. Perhaps the clearest sign of differences within the group was the speech made by Indias representative, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who subtly criticized Beijings economic cooperation with Pakistan. Meanwhile, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who participated in the Astana summit, sought to focus the groups attention on pressing global matters, urging ceasefires for the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, and calling for an improved response to the climate emergency. The SCOs unifying factor at present is a general desire to see a reduction of Western global influence. Beyond that, theres not much else that binds the organization. Kazakh political scientist Dimash Alzhanov believes SCO members prioritize their own interests rather than try to stake out a shared vision, noting that they have substantial tactical differences on efforts to contain Western influence. Temur Umarov, a fellow at the Carnegie BerlinCenter, described the SCO as an organization lacking in operational substance to back up its grand intentions. The SCO is still trying to understand what it is now and what it can be, Umarov said in an interview with Radio Azattyk, the Kazakh service of RFE/RL. In the end, its main advantage is only its size and collective GDP, but there are still almost no significant results. By Almaz Kumenov via Eurasianet.org More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Argentina could be a step closer to start exporting LNG and monetizing its huge resource in the Vaca Muerta shale play after maritime LNG infrastructure firm Golar LNG signed a 20-year deal with Pan American Energy (PAE) for the deployment of a Floating Liquefied Natural Gas (FLNG) vessel in Argentina. The FLNG project will monetize Argentine gas, tapping into the vast resources from the Vaca Muerta shale formation in the Neuquina Basin, the world's second-largest shale gas resources, Golar LNG said. The project is expected to start LNG exports by 2027, establishing Argentina as an LNG exporter, the company added. Vaca MuertaSpanish for dead cowhas been dubbed the Argentinian Permian, although its geologic properties have been compared more appropriately to the Eagle Ford. Argentinas Vaca Muerta shale play is estimated to hold recoverable resources consisting of 16 billion barrels of oil and 308 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. Those numbers make the Vaca Muerta the worlds second-largest shale gas deposit. Golar LNGs deal for FLNG offshore Argentina is planned to be the first phase of a potential multi-vessel project, the company said, adding that it is anticipated that other large natural gas producers in Argentina will join. The project will provide an international outlet for Argentinas vast and attractive natural gas reserves, creating value to Argentina and its gas stakeholders, Karl Fredrik Staubo, chief executive officer of Golar LNG, said. Argentina is also reportedly considering exporting gas from Vaca Muerta to Brazil via pipelines in Bolivia, by potentially reversing the flow northbound to Brazil. Energy companies from the three South American countries have started talks, but progress has been slow and there are a lot of issues to overcome to make such gas flows happen, industry executives and analysts told Reuters earlier this year. Despite being South Americas top crude oil producer, Brazil has faced a shortfall of natural gas as its demand is soaring. The gap in supply has led to Brazil importing more LNG, especially when hydropower conditions arent optimal. By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com Oil and gas companies operating in Pakistan plan to invest $5 billion over the next three years to explore drilling sites in the South Asian country, Pakistans Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said this weekend. Representatives of the firms working in the Pakistani exploration and production (E&P) industry met with government officials and said the companies plan to drill about 240 sites in search of hydrocarbons in the country, which depends on imports to meet most of its energy demand. Pakistan set up a committee that will draft proposals for attracting investments in oil and gas exploration after consulting the industry, Pakistani outlet The News reported. Apart from looking to attract investments in exploration, Pakistan is keen to boost its oil imports from Russia, the Pakistani prime minister said. Pakistan has held useful discussions with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Sharif said. Hope he will visit Pakistan soon, The News quoted the Pakistani prime minister as saying. We want to import more oil from Russia, he added. Last year, Pakistan started importing Russian crude oil, initially on a government-to-government basis in a trial run of imports with cargoes that arrived in June 2023. Pakistan has been desperate to import energy at low costs after it was outspent on the market in 2022 when oil and gas prices surged while its foreign exchange reserves dwindled. The country has a currency swap with China, which would make it easier to pay for crude than using the little U.S. dollar reserves it has. In October, private Pakistani refiner Cnergyico said it had imported the first Russian crude cargo in the private sector in the South Asian country. The private refiner, which operates Pakistans largest refinery with 156,000 barrels per day (bpd) capacity, has consulted sanctions counsel and carried out due diligence to ensure that the purchase doesnt breach the sanctions against Russia, a spokesman for Cnergyico told Reuters at the time. By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com Natural gas flows to Freeport LNG's export plant in Texas fell close to zero on Sunday as Hurricane Beryl roared towards the Texas coast, with flow volumes expected to remain that way on Monday according to data from financial firm LSEG. One of the most important LNG export plants in the U.S., Freeport is closely watched thanks to a history of swaying global gas prices whenever it shuts down. "We have safely ramped down production at our liquefaction facility and intend to resume operations once it is safe to do so after this weather event," officials at Freeport LNG told Reuters over the weekend. With a capacity to handle 2.1-Bcf/d, Freeport is the nation's third-biggest LNG export plant behind Cheniere Energy's (NYSE:LNG) 4.5-Bcf/d Sabine Pass in Louisiana and 2.4-Bcf/d Corpus Christi in Texas. Freeport has three liquefaction trains capable of turning about 0.7 Bcf/d of gas into LNG. LSEG data showed that feedgas to the facility averaged around 1.7 Bcf/d from June 30 to July 6. Natural gas prices have, however, remained little changed on Mondays trading with other LNG export plants located near where Beryl made landfall expected to pull in gas on Monday coupled with news that Beryl has passed Corpus Christi with minimal impact. Sabine is expected to receive 4.3 Bcf/d of feedgas on Monday, Corpus Christi at and Cameron LNG in Louisiana are expected to receive 2.3 Bcf/d and 1.8 Bcf/d, respectively. Hurricane Beryl has largely spared Corpus Christi, defying predictions of serious damage. An overview provided by municipal officials showed that as of 7 a.m. Monday, the storm had few to no impacts in the city--including areas well-known for major flooding, such as North Beach and Laguna Shores. By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Fifteen Union Pacific train coal cars derailed in Gibbon over the weekend. According to Union Pacific, approximately 15 coal cars derailed in the area of Highway 30 and Pawnee Road around 2 a.m. Sunday. No one was injured in the incident, Union Pacific said. The company said the cause of the derailment is under investigation. Crews clean up crews were on scene Monday. Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of June 2024 Flash Presidential candidate Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran's former health minister, attends an electoral campaign in Tehran, Iran, July 3, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] Iran's reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday won the 14th presidential election in Iran, succeeding late President Ebrahim Raisi to become the ninth president of the country. According to Iran's Election Headquarters Spokesperson Mohsen Eslami, Pezeshkian, also former health minister, secured 16,384,403 votes, more than 53 percent of the total, whereas principlist Saeed Jalili, Iran's former chief nuclear negotiator, garnered 13,538,179 votes, more than 44 percent of the total. As Pezeshkian rises to power, the Iranian people hope the new government can mitigate the domestic economic crisis, address escalating tensions with Israel, and promote prosperity and stability by enhancing ties with other countries. Higher turnout Pezeshkian and Jalili squared off in the runoff on Friday as neither candidate garnered the majority of votes required to win the presidency in the first round. Voting for Iran's presidential runoff came to an end at midnight Friday after being extended for three times or six hours from the scheduled closing time. According to the Iranian authorities, the final turnout for the runoff election stood at 49.8 percent, with over 30.5 million of the 61 million eligible voters casting their ballots. The turnout exceeded that of the first round and the figures from Iran's 2021 presidential election. In an address to reporters following the announcement of the election winner, Iran's Interior Minister Ahmad Vahidi hailed the Iranian people for their participation in the election. Pezeshkian said "We will extend the hand of friendship to everyone; we are all people of this country and should utilize everyone's efforts for the nation's progress," reported Iran's Press TV. The 14th presidential election, originally scheduled for 2025, was brought forward due to the unexpected death of Raisi in a helicopter crash on May 19. With Pezeshkian's victory, a new four-year term will start. Presidential candidate Masoud Pezeshkian (C), Iran's former health minister, casts his ballot for Iran's 14th presidential election at a polling station in Tehran, Iran, June 28, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] A reformist Pezeshkian, 69, is a cardiac surgeon and a lawmaker in the country's parliament. He was the parliament's first deputy speaker from 2016 to 2020 and served as health minister in the government of former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami between 2001 and 2005. He ran for president in 2013, but withdrew, and his second bid for the presidency in 2021 did not meet the qualification criteria. Throughout the election process, Pezeshkian has presented himself as a reformist. During his campaign, he advocated for social and economic reforms and promoted engagement with major countries regarding Iran's nuclear program to lift the sanctions that have severely impacted the economy. "Do we want to solve our problems with the world or not? I believe we must get out of the deadlock to solve the country's problems," he said at a presidential debate ahead of the second round of voting. "I consider sanctions a detriment to the country. My foreign policy aims to normalize relations with the world," he added. He stressed the need to expand cooperation and ties with regional countries to promote domestic economic development. "We need to first interact with regional countries for growth and prosperity, and then with other countries across the world," he said. Hamidreza Gholamzadeh, a political commentator, said Pezeshkian's proposal to return to the 2015 Iran nuclear agreement to lift sanctions has won the support of middle-class voters in big cities. As an advocate of ethnic rights, Pezeshkian campaigned to reach out to Iran's many ethnic groups, burnishing his image among Iran's minorities. "I will extend the hand of friendship to everyone and try to involve everyone in the country's development," Pezeshkian said. The Special Anti-Robbery Squad was accused of killing Kolade Johnson, he was shot dead while watching a Premier League match on Olu Aboderin Street, Lagos, on Sunday. The police reacted with a press release below; Press Release By The Nigerian Police Force On 31/03/2019 at about 5.05pm, the Command received a distress call that Lagos- Abeokuta Express Way has been blocked by some angry youths who were protesting the shooting of one Kolade Johnson m of No.1 Beco street, Onipetesi, Mangoro Bus Stop by a team of Policemen from Anti Cultism unit. A team of policemen from the Rapid Response Squads and Metro patrol were promptly drafted to the scene. The account of eye witnesses helped in identifying the team which fled the scene immediately after the incident. Members of the team suspected to be involved in the shooting have since been arrested and are currently in Police custody undergoing interrogation. They will be subjected to internal disciplinary procedures, and may be prosecuted in conventional Court if implicated by ongoing investigation. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police Lagos State, CP Zubairu Muazu mni calls for calm, assuring that justice will prevail in this case. The CP also condoles with the family, friends and well wishers of Kolade Johnson. The CP has promised to initiate far reaching reforms to help in repositioning the Anti Cultism Squad for effective service delivery, particularly in areas of respect for Human Rights & proficiency in the use of firearms. Members of the Public who have complaints on the activities of Anti Cultism Squad or any of our Police teams should call the following numbers 08063299264, 08065154338 and 08060357795, please DSP Bala Elkana Police Public Relations Officer Lagos State. #AskThePolice Morocco, Ghana and Tunisia are among African nations that would lose the most if the U.K. doesnt negotiate a deal by the time it has to exit the European Union, according to a study by a United Nations agency. Total export losses from 20 African countries could be as much as $420 million, according to the UN Conference on Trade and Development. The study shows 11 nations on the continent would boost their exports by a total of $3.66 billion, led by South Africa, Mauritius and Botswana. Bloomberg reports that some African countries stand to gain from a no-deal Brexit, others not A no-deal Brexit could damage smaller economies trading with the United Kingdom, the agency said in a statement. The U.K.s intention to lower most-favored-nation tariffs could increase the competitiveness of some of its trading partners, UNCTAD said. Many developing nations exports enjoy favorable market access to the U.K. thanks to bilateral trade agreements and because of EU unilateral preferential schemes. Countries wanting to retain this market access need to negotiate and quickly with the U.K., UNCTAD said. Post Views: 73 Two officials of the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) have been kidnapped, Premium Times reports. The two officials were kidnapped in Iwaraja, Oriade Local Government Area of Osun State, on Monday. The officials were identified as Bayegunmi and Abioye. The FRSC spokesperson, Bisi Kazeem, and the Osun State police spokesperson, Folasade Odoro, confirmed the kidnap to Premium Times. Ms Odoro said efforts are on to rescue the victims. The officers belong to Akure unit. The wives also confirmed and they said the kidnappers are asking for ransom, Mr Kazeem said. Kidnapping for ransom is rampant across Nigeria including in Osun State. A professor at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, was recently released by kidnappers after ransom was reportedly paid. Three people were also kidnapped on Sunday in neighbouring Ekiti State. The kidnappers are demanding over N20 million as ransom. The nation was saved from tragedy on Saturday as the helicopter, Augusta AW139, conveying Vice-President Prof Yemi Osinbajo crash-landed in Kogi State. The incident occurred in Kabba, where the VP had visited in continuation of his engagement of Nigerians on the Next Level re-election plan of President Muhammadu Buhari. The Presidency said the accident would be investigated in line with protocol. Osinbajos Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mr Laolu Akande, who spoke with The Punch, disclosed that an investigation would be immediately set in motion. Responding to a specific question on whether the incident would be investigated, he said, We will follow all the necessary due diligence; that will be certainly done. That is the protocol and it is the order of things to happen. Asked further to speak on the condition of Osinbajo and other occupants of the ill-fated chopper, Akande said, He is completely safe. He is actually at a road stop here in Kabba and he is addressing a mammoth crowd. He is safe and everybody is fine. Everybody got out of the chopper safely after that incident. The VP has since gone on to address people on the way. This is his second stop in Kabba right now. An eyewitness told one of our correspondents that the helicopter managed to land at about 2.22pm at stadium in the town before its propeller suddenly pulled off. Although the remote cause of the accident was not known as of the time of filing this report, it was learnt that the pilot of the helicopter might have found it difficult to land due to the dusty terrain of the stadium. Immediately the incident happened, the Vice-President was said to have been immediately evacuated from the scene of the incident into a waiting vehicle and was thereafter driven in convoy with other political office holders to the palace of Obaro of Kabba on a courtesy call. Akande also issued a formal statement confirming the accident and the safety of Osinbajo. The statement reads in part, Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, arrived in Kabba, Kogi State today. His chopper had crash-landed after a landing incident, but everyone is safe. Prof Osinbajo is now in Kabba after the incident and continuing his engagements in the state, engaging the people on the Next Level plan of the Buhari administration. Were grateful to God, says VP Meanwhile, Osinbajo has expressed gratitude to God for saving him and the lives of all those aboard the chopper. Speaking in Kabba, he said, We are extremely grateful to the Lord for preserving our lives from the incident that just happened. Everyone is safe and no one is maimed. God has kept us safe and alive, delivered us from death so we can do more for our people and country. To Invest & Make More Money To Buy Delicious Noodles Pizza To spend 7 years behind bars A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced a retired senior official of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Vice Marshall Tony Omenyi (retd) to 21 years cumulative term of imprisonment after being convicted on a three-count charge of fraud. Omenyi was the Managing Director of Aeronautical Engineering and Technical Services Limited, a subsidiary company of Nigerian Air Force, when he was said to have committed the offence. Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, in a judgment on Thursday, sentenced Omenyi to seven years per count and directed that the term of imprisonment shall run concurrently. The EFCC had in 2016 charged Omenyi and his company, Huzee Nigeria Limited with three counts of money laundering, upon a report by the panel set up by the Federal Government to investigate the use of the funds allocated for the purchase of arms under previous administrations, The prosecution said Omenyi, between January and November 2014, received various sums of money estimated at about N136,323,000. through his company, Huzee Nigeria Limited from Sky Experts Nigeria Limited, a contractor with NAF. M.S Abubakar, who led the prosecution team alleged that Omenyi, a sole signatory to the bank account of Huzee Nigeria Limited, received various sums of fund from the contractor when he and the company reasonably ought to know that the various sums of money formed part of the proceed of corruption. By their conduct, the defendants were said to have violated section 15(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 and punishable under section 15(3) and (4) of the same Act, which provided a minimum of seven years and maximum of 14 years imprisonment for the offence. Omenyi was arraigned, with his company, Huzee Nigeria Limited, on November 11, 2016 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). They were charged with abuse of office and money laundering to the tune of N136,323,000 . The defendants, who was represented by Gordy Uche (SAN), denied the charges and pleaded not guilty to the charges, following which a trail was conducted, during which the prosecution called five witnesses and tendered about 20 documents, which were admitted in evidence, and closed its case on April 17, 2018. The defendant also conducted their case at the closure of the prosecutions case. In his judgment on Thursday, Justice Dimgba analysed the evidence led by both parties and found that of the prosecution credible. The judge said: Having fully reflected on the above defence as well as evaluated the evidence before me, as a matter of fact, I agree with the prosecution that the defence is a sham. What motivation does the defendant have, for spending his own personal funds towards the execution of contracts awarded by the Nigerian Air Force on behalf of the contractor, when the proper thing to do is get the Nigeria Air Force to expend the funds on behalf of the contractor to ensure the project is done? One indisputable thing is that, by the state of the law, and the entire circumstances of the case, the money received by the defendant as played out in count one, two and three, by themselves, raised criminal abilities against the defendants. I do not believe that the explanations given by the defence to the charges are credible A public official with any role to play in any contract awarded by a government agency to a contractor should at all times operate at an arms-length with the said contractor. The first defendant (Omenyi) has not operated by this standard. In the final analysis, the funds received by the defendants, as contained in counts one to three, are kickbacks in the contracts awarded by the Nigerian Airforce. Any way it is looked at, either as a direct bribe or kickbacks, or as a share of revenue or profits with a business partner, so long as the source of the funds is from the Nigerian Airforce and linked to the execution of contracts of Nigerian Airforce, I am of the view that the monies as contained in count one to three are rooted in corruption. The judge proceeded to convict the defendants on all the counts and sentenced the first defendant to seven year-per-count. Justice Dimgba equally ordered Huzee Nigeria Limited, being a corporate entity to forfeit the sum of N60 million in the custody of the EFCC to the Federal Government. He added: I further order that the second defendant be compulsory wound up by the Federal Government. Pepe has endured a difficult start to his Premier League career, scoring just once, a penalty against Aston Villa. Nicolas Pepe Arsenal forward, Nicolas Pepe, has admitted he is struggling for confidence. Much was expected of the Ivory Coast international, after the Gunners shattered their transfer record by agreeing to pay 72million over five years for him. Pepe has endured a difficult start to his Premier League career, scoring just once, a penalty against Aston Villa, from his eight appearances so far. Against Manchester United, he conceded possession on 17 occasions at Old Trafford and was taken off with 16 minutes remaining, replaced by youngster Reiss Nelson. [My start] Its not been easy, we must tell the truth. Im not good enough in my stats or my usual form, its not the same as in Lille or during the Liverpool match early in the season. The confidence must come back. I am not very worried. People may be worried about statistics, but Im not. I have to keep working because the level is different, so is the language. Its a new championship for me. I have to adapt quickly but it will not be long, Pepe told RMC. Allen Ifechukwu Athan Onyema, the Chairman, CEO, and founder of Air Peace, a Nigerian airline, has been charged with bank fraud and money laundering for moving more than $20 million from Nigeria through United States bank accounts in a scheme involving false documents based on the purchase of airplanes. The international airlines Chief of Administration and Finance, Ejiroghene Eghagha, has also been charged with bank fraud and committing aggravated identity theft in connection with the scheme. Onyema allegedly leveraged his status as a prominent business leader and airline executive while using falsified documents to commit fraud, said U.S. Attorney Byung J. BJay Pak. We will diligently protect the integrity our banking system from being corrupted by criminals, even when they disguise themselves in a cloak of international business. Robert J. Murphy, the Special Agent in Charge of the DEA Atlanta Field Division commented on the indictment: Allen Onyemas status as a wealthy businessman turned out to be a fraud. He corrupted the U.S. banking system, but his trail of deceit and trickery came to a skidding halt. DEA would like to thank the many law enforcement partners and the subsequent prosecution by the U.S. Attorneys Office who aided in making this investigation a success. This case is a prime example of why IRS-CI seeks to partner and leverage its expertise in an effort to thwart those seeking to exploit our nations financial system, said Thomas J. Holloman, IRS-Criminal Investigation Special Agent in Charge of the Atlanta Field Office. With the importance of our banking system to the movement of money around the world, those attempting to use intricate schemes to commit bank fraud through the use of falsified documents and other means should know that the odds are now heavily stacked against them as law enforcement is combining its talents to protect the sanctity and integrity of the nations financial system. Onyema setup various innocent sounding multi-million dollar asset purchases which were nothing more than alleged fronts for his scam, said acting Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer, who oversees HSI operations in Georgia and Alabama. Im proud to be part of a team of law enforcement agencies that come together to identify and attack criminals that attempt to profit from the exploitation of our nations financial systems. According to U.S. Attorney Pak, the indictment, and other information presented in court: Onyema, a Nigerian citizen and businessman, is the founder and Chairman of several organizations that purport to promote peace across Nigeria, including the Foundation for Ethnic Harmony, International Center for Non-Violence and Peace Development, and All-Time Peace Media Communications Limited. Beginning in 2010, Onyema began travelling frequently to Atlanta, where he opened several personal and business bank accounts. Between 2010 and 2018, over $44.9 million was allegedly transferred into his Atlanta-based accounts from foreign sources. Onyema is also the CEO and Chairman of Nigerian airline Air Peace, which he founded in 2013. In years following the founding of Air Peace, he traveled to the United States and purchased multiple airplanes for the airline. However, over $3 million of the funds used to purchase the aircraft allegedly came from bank accounts for Foundation for Ethnic Harmony, International Center for Non-Violence and Peace Development, All-Time Peace Media Communications Limited, and Every Child Limited. Beginning in approximately May 2016, Onyema, together with Eghagha, allegedly used a series of export letters of credit to cause banks to transfer more than $20 million into Atlanta-based bank accounts controlled by Onyema. The letters of credit were purportedly to fund the purchase of five separate Boeing 737 passenger planes by Air Peace. The letters were supported by documents such as purchase agreements, bills of sale, and appraisals proving that Air Peace was purchasing the aircraft from Springfield Aviation Company LLC, a business registered in Georgia. However, the supporting documents were fake Springfield Aviation Company LLC, which is owned by Onyema and managed by a person with no connection to the aviation business, never owned the aircraft, and the company that allegedly drafted the appraisals did not exist. Eghagha allegedly participated in this scheme as well, directing the Springfield Aviation manager to sign and send false documents to banks and even using the managers identity to further the fraud. After Onyema received the money in the United States, he allegedly laundered over $16 million of the proceeds of the fraud by transferring it to other accounts. Allen Ifechukwu Athan Onyema, 56, of Lagos, Nigeria, and Ejiroghene Eghagha, 37, of Lagos, Nigeria, were indicted on November 19, 2019, on one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, three counts of bank fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit credit application fraud, and three counts of credit application fraud. Additionally, Onyema was charged with 27 counts of money laundering, and Eghagha was charged with one count of aggravated identity theft. Members of the public are reminded that the indictment only contains charges. The defendants are presumed innocent of the charges and it will be the governments burden to prove the defendants guilt beyond a reasonable doubt at trial. Being a statement by the US Attorneys Public Affairs Office. Race against time to combat dike breach in China's second-largest freshwater lake Xinhua) 09:03, July 08, 2024 An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) CHANGSHA, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Thousands of rescuers, including firefighters, hydrologists, volunteers and police, have joined hands to protect people's lives and property following a dike breach on Friday at Dongting Lake, China's second-largest freshwater lake in central China's Hunan Province. At 5:48 p.m. on Friday, a Dongting Lake dike burst in Tuanzhou Township, Huarong County, administered by the city of Yueyang in Hunan Province, causing flooding in the area. The breach was initially about 10 meters wide but later expanded. Following the immediate relocation of around 5,000 residents from the affected area, urgent measures have been taken to repair the breach. As of Sunday noon, 75 meters of the 226-meter breach in the dike had been sealed, according to the Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters. Rescuers are also racing against time to reinforce a 14.3-kilometer-long embankment, viewed as the "second line of defense," located around 2 kilometers from the breached dike. As of 2:40 p.m. Saturday, the water levels both inside and outside the breach had nearly matched, while the water flow had slowed down. Zhang Xuanzhuang, with the China Anneng Group First Engineering Bureau Co., Ltd., noted that the repair work was expected to take four days. At the national emergency management headquarters in Beijing, a large central screen showed live footage of the breached dike, while screens on the sides displayed scrolling hydrological data, geographical conditions, rescue operations, and related information. The Ministry of Emergency Management (MEM), the Ministry of Water Resources and the China Meteorological Administration have continued their joint efforts to conduct consultations and video links with front-line teams and local authorities in Hunan, to monitor the progress of rescue and relief operations, as well as the need for personnel, materials and equipment. A work team has also been dispatched to Hunan to guide rescue efforts, according to the MEM. As of Saturday night, over 1,400 personnel from the China National Comprehensive Fire and Rescue Team had arrived at the site. The MEM's natural disaster emergency rescue center has also deployed 350 professionals to support rescue efforts. According to the Yueyang flood control and drought relief headquarters, 4,739 rescuers have rushed to join the frontlines as of 2 p.m. on Sunday. Surveying drones and remote sensing satellites are being used to collect images of the breach and the surrounding affected area, while an emergency rescue vessel from the provincial capital Changsha has arrived to assist with placing sandbags to block the breach. Additionally, emergency supplies have been dispatched to evacuation and resettlement areas for the affected residents. At a vocational school dormitory in Huarong County, more than 700 affected residents are being housed. In addition, students have volunteered to take necessities such as food and groceries to the villagers. "Thanks to door-to-door visits by township officials and loudspeaker warnings in the village, my husband and I evacuated in time," said Ye Yanjiao from Tuanbei Village, who is in her 70s. "We feel safe staying here," she added. According to staff at the resettlement point, over 120 volunteers are working hard to provide services and support at the school. As of Friday, 5,000 family emergency kits had been organized and dispatched to Hunan from storage facilities across the country. Hunan is not the only region to experience persistent heavy rains since the start of the flood season, with many other parts of the country also facing major risks and threats to local embankments and reservoirs. Government agencies of meteorology, water conservancy, natural resources, and urban and rural development have provided flood control instructions for 18 rain-affected regions, including Hunan, Shandong, Henan and Shaanxi. Local governments are prioritizing the monitoring of rain and flooding, while also creating contingency plans and reinforcing flood control facilities. An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Sihan) An aerial drone photo shows rescuers working to block the dike breach in the Dongting Lake in Huarong County, central China's Hunan Province, July 7, 2024. (Xinhua/Chen Zeguo) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Flash Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday sent a congratulatory letter to the Green Development Forum of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Countries. Xi pointed out that it is the consensus of SCO countries to protect the environment and promote green development. China, committed to the philosophy that lucid waters and lush mountains are invaluable assets, has in recent years unswervingly pursued a model of sound development featuring improved production, higher living standards and healthy ecosystems, leading to remarkable achievements in building a beautiful China. China hopes to strengthen communication and cooperation in the field of green development with all parties via the forum, to boost the sustainable economic and social development of all countries and promote harmonious coexistence between human and nature, Xi said. Describing the SCO as a model for a new type of international relations and regional cooperation, Xi noted that China has recently taken over the rotating presidency of the SCO. China is ready to work with all sides to carry forward the Shanghai Spirit, strengthen unity and coordination, promote green development, write a new chapter of common development, and jointly build an even closer SCO community with a shared future, Xi added. The Green Development Forum of SCO Countries opened on Monday in the coastal city of Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province. Speaker of Parliament, Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin has outlined some three components he considers as very crucial in Education. Speaking at the North Hills International School Annual Speech and Prize-Giving & Graduation Day for the 2023/2024 academic year, Mr Bagbin also stressed the importance of faith, discipline, and attitude in education. He explained Not just belief, but faith in your God. Anytime you have a challenge, please take the challenge to God in prayer. Very, very important." Themed Enhancing Learning in Schools; The Role of Stakeholders, this significant event took place at the schools forecourt and brought together students, parents, faculty, and distinguished guests in a grand celebration of academic and extracurricular achievements. According to the Rt. Hon Speaker, the three key components of education are knowledge, skills and competencies, and attitude. He emphasized that knowledge forms a small aspect of ones success, developing skills and competencies, along with the right attitude, are crucial. Attitude carries 70% of what is going to make you who you are, he noted. Adding that: "Many of the challenges faced in Ghana are self-inflicted due to mindset and attitudes." Headmistress Address Earlier in her welcome address, the headmistress, Mrs. Emma Coleman Opoku, highlighted significant improvements and achievements within the school. She announced the restocking of the school library with a diverse range of books and resources, transforming it into a vibrant hub of knowledge and discovery. In addition to the library enhancements, each classroom is now equipped with projectors and computers, Mrs. Opoku stated, emphasizing the schools commitment to fostering interactive learning experiences. The installation of blinds in all classrooms was another noteworthy improvement, ensuring a conducive learning environment free from distractions and glare. Mrs. Opoku also shared exciting news about the construction of a state-of-the-art conference room with a seating capacity of approximately 700. This facility will serve as a hub for various school events, assemblies, performances, and community gatherings. Additionally, the school cafeteria has been renovated to provide a more inviting and comfortable dining environment for students. These enhancements signify our ongoing commitment to providing a supportive and enriching educational environment for all members of our school community, she added, expressing gratitude to the dedicated staff, supportive parents, and directors who made these improvements possible. Honours The day featured numerous awards and recognitions, celebrating the hard work and dedication of both students and staff. Celestine Binney and Obed Asamoah were honored with the prestigious Best Teacher Award for the year, receiving double-door fridges and fully funded scholarships to pursue any education-related program at a university of their choice. The teaching and non-teaching staff were also recognized for their hard work and commitment. Students from Year 1 to Year 9 received prizes for their exceptional achievements, with special awards sponsored by distinguished individuals and organizations, including Rt. Hon. Alban Sumana Kingsford Bagbin, Alhaji Lilu Mohammed, Dr. Kuma Aboagye, Lordina Foundation, and End Point Homeopathic Clinic. About North Hills School Established in September 2017, North Hills International School runs a dual curriculum, integrating the globally recognized Cambridge Assessment International Education (CAIE) system alongside the Ghana Education Service (GES) curriculum. This unique blend ensures that students receive a holistic education, equipping them with the knowledge and skills to excel both locally and internationally. In a remarkable display of academic excellence, North Hills International School recently surpassed the international average score in the Cambridge Exams for both Primary and Lower Secondary levels. 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 Government of the Republic of Ghana has acceded to a request made by the Odumna Ebusua of the late President John Evans Atta-Mills to have access to the Asomdwe Park in order to remember their departed son/clansman according to customs and tradition. In a letter dated 21st June, 2024, the Chieftaincy Minister, Honourable Stephen Asamoah-Boateng, responded to an earlier letter dated, May 28, 2024, in which the Kyidomhemaa of the Odumna Ebusua, Ekumfi Traditional Area, Nana Enfiua III, made the request. The letter reads in part: The Chief of Staff has granted approval to the Odumna Ebusua of the late President John Evans Atta-Mills to use the Asomdwe Park for the day of Wednesday, July 24, 2024, to perform the traditional and customary rites as requested of the 12th Anniversary Remembrance Ceremony of the late President. May the departed soul of your beloved son continue to rest peacefully in the Lords bosom. According to information gathered, the Family of the late President is having a series of events which will officially begin on Sunday, July 21, 2024, at the Asomdwe Park to mark what would have been the 80th birthday of the late President. It would be recalled that the late President celebrated his 68th birthday on Saturday, July 21, 2012, before meeting his still inexplicable mysterious death on Tuesday, July 24, 2012. In the evening of Tuesday, July 23, 2024, there would be a cultural gathering at Asomdwe Park before the main event starts at dawn on Wednesday, July 24, 2024. According to the Family, the very final event will take place on August 10, 2024 - which would mark 12 years of the date of burial of the late President John Evans Atta-Mills. He was buried on August 10, 2012. The Family continues to remain grateful to the Government of Ghana for helping keep the legacy of their late illustrious son and clansman alive. The General Public is to take note and allowed to join the family gather and celebrate the late President in a very cordial and convivial atmosphere. Nana Enifua III, Kyidomhemaa of the Odomna Ebusua, Ekumfi Traditional Area and Ebusuapanyin Kobina Biney, Head of the Odomna Family, are the ones leading their People to converge and celebrate the memory of the late President John Evans Atta-Mills who per all available records, hailed from Ekumfi Otuam - his maternal lineage. 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 Chairman of the Greater Accra Chapter of the Ghana Journalists Association (GJA), Charles Benoni Okine, has appealed to the Minister of Information, Fatimatu Abubakar, to help to revive the Presidential Media Encounters. The move, he said, would help bridge the information gap between the media and the presidency, while fostering a more transparent and accountable government. As media personnel, we want to have direct engagements with the President as is the case elsewhere and, therefore, we will want to use your good offices to channel our appeal to the President for consideration, Mr Okine said when he led the leadership of the regional chapter to pay a courtesy call on the Minister of Information. Other members of the delegation were, the Vice-chairman of the regional chapter of the association, Norman Cooper, and acting Treasurer, Kester Aburam Korankye. Mr Okine emphasised the importance of direct communication between the Presidency and the media, saying it helps to clear misconceptions and offers the President to clarify major issues of national concern. Let us not forget that, Ghana has a good image out there and therefore, such regular interactions with our President will further boost our image as a shining example of democracy in the sub-region, the continent and even globally. The call comes at a time when the Presidential Media Encounters have stalled, a development which has prevented the media from seeking high profile clarifications on major government policies and programmes. Mr Okine said reinstating that series would not only benefit the media but also enhance the country's democratic credentials. He said regular interactions between the President and the press would promote a more informed public and strengthen the relationship between the government and the media. Training Mr Okine also raised the issue of continuous training for journalists and other media practitioners, highlighting the need for many of such opportunities, particularly on ethics, and suggested a two-week crash programme for young journalists to be done in partnership with the Institute of Journalism of the University of Media, Arts and Communication (UniMac-IJ). We want our members to be abreast of the essence of adhering to ethics of the profession and also the need to be guided by what helps to avoid misinformation and disinformation, he added. The regional chairman expressed concern over the rising trend of misinformation and disinformation, urging institutions of state to be more forthcoming with information to clarify issues when approached by journalists. Mr Okine commended the Right to Information (RTI) Commission for its prompt assistance that enabled journalists to access information, but stressed that the condition should not exist for the RTI to become the sole means of obtaining crucial information in the interest of the public. He said the association remains committed to promoting excellence in journalism and fostering a collaborative relationship between the media and government institutions. Abuse Mr Okine bemoaned the abuse of journalists in the performance of their duties, especially by some police officers, and called for protection of journalists as the country got closer to the December elections. Pledges Ms Abubakar acknowledged the importance of such Presidential encounters and hinted of measures underway to revive it. She said there were already discussions underway at the presidency to bring back the series to enhance government communications. Ms Abubakar also announced a hybrid training programme for journalists, focusing on ethics and media law, to be conducted both online and offline. She also assured the association of the governments commitment to the welfare of journalists, adding that training programmes for journalists were in the pipeline. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The Director-General of the Ghana Tertiary Education Commission (GTEC), Professor Ahmed Abdulai Jinapor, has appealed to the Colleges of Education Teachers Association of Ghana (CETAG) and the various teacher unions to call off their strike action and return to the classroom pending the outcome of negotiations between the government and the unions. I can assure you that your grievances are being addressed. You (teachers) play a very important and critical role in our national developmental aspirations and your welfare is governments utmost priority, he assured teachers. At the 16th Congregation of the Offinso College of Education of the Methodist Church Ghana at Offinso in the Ashanti Region, he advised the CETAG members, saying, You can be in the classroom while you still make your case. It was held on the theme: Equipping the young teacher for the 21st Century classroom. Also present was the Offinsomanhene, Nana Dwamena Akenten II, and the Methodist Bishop of Kumasi Rt. Rev. Stephen Kwaku Owusu, who is also Council Chairman of the College. Conditions of service According to him, the current variance between the teacher unions and the government was not necessarily about money, but rather conditions of service, which he said must be tied to the scheme of service of their affiliate universities. So, if the scheme of service within the university architecture states that for you to be a lecturer you need to have a terminal degree of a PHD and you dont have it..Within the University of Cape Coast for instance, if you are an assistant lecturer, it is a probational transitional stage. So, you will be there for a certain period and you will be asked to make sure that you redeem yourself, he explained. People are there on a contractual basis, which is, you stay there for a certain period within four years. You should be able to progress to the next stage or else your contract is terminated, he emphasised. Professor Jinapor urged members to respect the law and appreciate the fact that there were checks and balances within the governance architecture that people needed to be held responsible and accountable for their actions. GTECs commitment He said GTEC remained committed to supporting teacher educational delivery in the country as well as other initiatives that promoted educational leadership development in Ghana. The GTEC Director-General believed that strong leadership was essential for achieving the national educational goals aimed at building a brighter future for all Ghanaians. Principal The Principal of the College, Very Rev. Dr Joseph Nkyi Asamoah, also joined the call by the GTEC D-G for teachers to return to the classroom, and that their absence was taking a toll on the academic calendar. For the past two weeks, they (students) have been doing their own private studies. And the semester is 16 weeks, he said, adding that if the teachers failed to return to the classroom on time, it would distract the academic calendar. Motivational speaker For her part, the Principal of Jackson Education Complex, Theodosia Jackson, seized the opportunity to motivate the graduates as they prepared to enter the world of work. Accept posting to rural areas if your services are needed there. Always dress decently, she urged the graduates, adding that teaching was the most honouring profession when given the needed dedication and devotion. A teacher herself, having taught for the past 54 years, Mrs Jackson told teachers that it was rewarding to be a teacher, once they devoted their time and energy in effectively nurturing the leaders of tomorrow. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video As political parties lace up their boots to launch their manifestos ahead of this years general election, the Government Statistician, Professor Samuel Kobina Annim, has advised the parties to make data on all sectors of the economy the bedrock of their manifestos. Data should be the bedrock of their manifestos because you cannot say I want to intervene in this area when you don't have the baseline, he said, as he justified the relevance of data as a source of information to help address critical national problems. Speaking in an exclusive interview in the Executive Studios of the Graphic Communications Group Ltd in Accra, as he shared insights into the importance of data in national development, he said the Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) was working to empower the people to use data available to interrogate the various manifestos when they were launched. When we say statistics and when we say data, people look at the Ghana Statistical Service and the policymakers only but we really want to empower the civil service or the civil society organisations, the media and the general public to use data as a tool in asking questions. For instance, why are you putting this policy intervention in let's say health, rather than education? Premise Since 1992, it has become almost completely evident that manifestos of political parties are based less on available data but rather on mere rhetoric meant to excite the electorate to vote in a particular direction. Analysts have in the past argued that most of the programmes and policies outlined in the manifestos of the leading political parties in particular, are not only coined to attract voters but lack substance because they do not address the teething problems on the ground. As a result, most of these policies and programmes are either difficult to implement or do not make any meaningful impact as intended purely because they are not based on available data, and therefore not scientific. Data for planning Professor Annim said data was crucial for planning because it helped policymakers to target particular areas of concern. In the last six months for instance, we have been trying as much as possible, to provide the general public with a lot of information. As I said, last week, we did the multi-dimensional poverty index and it has 13 indicators. In all these 13 indicators, we have computed them for all our 261 districts, and indeed, within each district, we've completed same for at least 20 localities. Prof. Annim said the GSS had data across 13 indicators for at least over 5,000 localities in the country. In addition to that, we've identified, based on the just launched vision 2057, the long term development perspective framework, and we've gone into it. We do see in the targets, there's a component on social development. We have identified another set of 15 indicators, completed these indices across all the 261 administrative districts and ranked them. According to him, this is the information that the GSS has on its app, adding that So if we are going to go into the manifestos, without paying attention to the numbers that are in the manifestos, vie the population base data and ask these very simple questions like - why are we saying that you're going to focus on this when the data on another issue shows that it's more concerning than this other issue. Prof. Annim said this is what our colleague CSOs should be doing? This is what you guys the in media should be doing? And that is why we always want to build your capacity in these areas. He said if the manifestos came out and we didn't interrogate them, from a statistical perspective, in terms of the numbers and all what we were already privy to, then we might have challenges going into the implementation. So it means that we as journalists, should also be very interested in the data and be able to interrogate the manifestos when they come out. I mean, if they come up with some policies in certain areas, you should be able to interrogate them to find out the truth. He advised. Prof. Annim said what the GSS intended to do was to deepen the relationship with CSOs, the media and the general public in the same way. He noted that the whole exercise was about transparency and accountability, and it's your responsibility to use the facts for purposes of accountability, have a purpose for asking questions at the time that the policies are being developed and ask what the reasoning behind them is. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video The immediate past Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Very Rev. Prof. Joseph Obiri Yeboah Mante, has urged Ghanaians not to believe the lofty promises of any politically confidence trickster and vote him in the upcoming general election. He wants the electorate to look for someone who is competent and sincere, capable of delivering and steering the countrys affairs. Rev. Prof. Mante said this at the 2nd Annual Heritage Lecture Series hosted by the Presbyterian College of Education at Akropong Akuapem, where a multipurpose office complex was named after him. Rev. Prof. Mante emphasised that in order for voters to make wise choices, they must carefully consider the past works of presidential candidates. He noted, If after voting for the person, you go out there to demonstrate or engage in violent protests, it means you dont understand democracy. The basic principle of democracy is to be vigilant about the leader you vote for. At the same occasion, Rev. Dr. Kwabena Opuni-Frimpong, former General Secretary of the National Peace Council, delivered a speech titled Unity in Diversity: Celebrating Heritage and Embracing Change. He suggested that Ghanas cultural diversity should be considered as a strength rather than a weakness, and advised politicians to avoid using cultural differences to divide the population. The Moderator of the Presbyterian Church of Ghana, Rt. Rev. Nana Opare Kwakye, explained the reason the six-storey multipurpose office complex was named after Rev. Prof. Mante. Source: Daily Guide Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video Three legal practitioners have called on men to leverage their position and influence to create a more practical and equitable work environment that foster greater gender equality. That, they said, should involve actively engaging more men as allies and advocates to support women in the practice of law across both private and public sectors. Those who made the call are Senior Partner at AB & David, Dr David Ofosu-Dorte, the Founder and Managing Partner, B & P Associates, Adelaide Benneh Prempeh and Senior Associate at Sam Okudzeto & Associates, Dr Edem Okudzeto. They were speaking at a panel discussion in Accra last Friday (July 5) as part of the launch of the gender equality in law campaign. The programme was organised by the Institute for African Women in Law (IAWL) in collaboration with the Office of the Chief Justice and the Ghana Bar Association (GBA). The campaign raises awareness through evidence-based research and public advocacy about the challenges women in law face to ignite policy reforms for equitable and women-inclusive legal institutions. Positions Dr Ofosu-Dorte emphasised the importance of getting more founders of various law firms to understand the importance of creating a more practical environment for female legal practitioners to thrive since many of the law firms had men as founders. The participants In his law firm, for instance, management allowed female lawyers to bring their kids after 2 p.m. as part of practical measures to actualise the support given to women, he said. Ms Prempeh explained that women simply wanted to be listened to and supported in the working environment. We simply want to be supported to bring our expertise on board and once you listen, its important that you as a male lead that effort to develop that gender equality atmosphere, she said. She underscored the need for men to have a zero-tolerance approach towards actions that affected the progress of women in the workplace adding; Call out male allies for inappropriate behaviour, casting out a female colleague during contribution in a meeting. Dr Okudzeto said men could be brought on board by drawing experience from their relationship with their mothers, wives and daughters. They can be empathic and they can then see where they are coming from to support, he said. Campaign The Chief Justice, Justice Gertrude Sackey Torkornoo, who launched the campaign, highlighted Ghanas efforts towards getting more women in the legal profession into leadership positions. She said despite the strides, women in law and leadership continued to face unnecessary and daunting challenges on account of their gender. Some of the challenges, Justice Torkornoo said, included gender bias and toxic approaches to competition. Nevertheless, she challenged women to remain steadfast in their commitment to law and justice, undeterred by external pressures. My hope is that as justice delivery becomes guided with greater efficiency, women will feel enabled to give their best despite the peculiar challenges that we face in our roles as child bearers and primary caregivers of the human race, she said. She further commended the IAWL for setting itself up to support the work of formidable women in law across Africa and the African diaspora, and staying true and committed to its goal of becoming the focal point for addressing their challenges and issues. Equal A Board Member of IAWL, Elizabeth Adu, stressed the need for everyone to be given an equal opportunity to grow and lead. We look forward to working with you to ensure this campaign has the impact we desire. Lets work together to make this happen, she stressed. For her part, the President of the Ghana Bar Association Womens Forum, Sheila Minkah-Premo, called on law firms to provide mechanisms to address the discriminatory issues women faced in their line of work. Source: graphiconline.com Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video A barrage of Russian missile strikes hit targets in cities across Ukraine on Monday, including a childrens hospital in Kyiv, killing at least 22 people and injuring hundreds more, government officials said. Ukrainian officials said the rare daytime aerial assault had struck Ukrainian cities during rush hour, including Kyiv, Dnipro, Kryvyi Rih, Slovyansk and Kramatorsk. According to Ukraines general prosecutor, nine people had been k!lled in the capital, while 23 others had been injured. In Kryvyi Rih, 10 people had d!ed and 37 more were hurt, according to local officials. Among the buildings hit was Kyivs Okhmatdyt Hospital, Ukraines largest childrens medical centre. Every year, around 7,000 surgeries including treatments for cancer and hematological diseases are conducted at the hospital, according to Ukraines human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets. Videos from the scene showed volunteers working with police and security services sift the rubble as smoke billowed from the hospital, while staff described how they tried to rush children to safety in the wake of the attack. Ukraines health minister Viktor Liashko said intensive care units, oncology departments and surgery units had been damaged. The key task here is to get people out of the rubble and provide assistance to those we can reach, as we have already taken out all the first ones, he said in a Telegram post. Natalia Sardudinova, a senior nurse, described the moment the strike hit the hospital saying that it was scary, but we survived. It was loud, the windows were crunching, she told CNN. As soon as the alarm sounded, the children were taken out into the corridor. She said two children had been in the operating theatres at the time of the blast. Everything was in smoke, there was no air to breathe. The doctor was cut by shrapnel. The windows and doors were blown out. One nurse in the hospital was heavily injured. Sardudinova added. My hands are still shaking. They dont let anyone in now, they are afraid it will collapse. Yulia Vasylenko, the mother of an 11-year-old cancer patient at the hospital, said her son Denys was evacuated outside following the strike. My son is on painkillers. He has cancer. He has been without medication for half a day. He was brought down the stairs from the third floor. There was smoke (and) heavy dust, she said. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy said in a post on X that the exact number of casualties at the hospital was not yet known and that there are people under the rubble but that everyone from doctors to local residents are helping clear debris in the strikes aftermath. Apartment buildings, infrastructure, and a childrens hospital have been damaged. All services are engaged to rescue as many people as possible, Zelensky wrote in a post on X. He also said that around 40 missiles of various types had been launched against Ukraine. The entire world must use all its determination to finally put an end to the Russian strikes. Killing is what Putin brings. Only together can we bring real peace and security, he added. Several European nations denounced the attacks with France calling it barbaric while the United Kingdoms new prime minister Keir Starmer said attacking innocent children was the most depraved of actions. Watch video below- A childrens medial facility!! Thats what russia decided to target today in Kyiv! A CHILDRENS MEDICAL FACILITY! #russiaisateroriststate https://t.co/Dqr4O19xbx pic.twitter.com/N3gt5IfGKJ ne Back versen (@IneBackIversen) July 8, 2024 Okhmatdyt Children's Hospital in Kyiv. One of the most important CHILDRENS hospitals not only in Ukraine, but also in Europe. Okhmatdyt has been saving and restoring the health of thousands of children. Now that the hospital has been damaged by a Russian strike, there are pic.twitter.com/TmRlUmSBri Volodymyr Zelenskyy / (@ZelenskyyUa) July 8, 2024 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 Reign Star Group is thrilled to announce a solo exhibition by the renowned artist R.O. Mantey, themed "A Real Focus on Sustainability Art." The exhibition will take place from July 15 to July 21, 2024, at The Wellington, Temple Stairs, Victoria Embankment, London, WC2R 2PN. The gallery will be open to the public daily from 10 AM to 6 PM. R.O. Mantey, celebrated for his innovative approach to sustainability in art, brings a collection that challenges viewers to reflect on the beauty and importance of nature. Repurposing existing material for his artwork, this exhibition promises to be a compelling exploration of art that speaks to the pressing need for environmental consciousness and action. We are honored to host R.O. Manteys exhibition, which not only showcases his artistic talent but also raises awareness about sustainability, said Papa Agyeman, Director at Reign Star Gallery, part of Reign Star Group. His work is a powerful reminder of the impact we have on our planet and the role art can play in advocating for change. In a generous effort to support the cause, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of the artwork will be donated to the Wellington Trust, a charity dedicated to preserving Londons historic vessels and promoting sustainable maritime heritage. Exhibition Details: Dates: July 15 - July 21, 2024 Time: 10 AM - 6 PM daily Location: The Wellington, Temple Stairs, Victoria Embankment, London, WC2R 2PN About R.O. Mantey: Hailing from Larteh-Akuapem in the Eastern Region of Ghana, R.O. Mantey is an artist whose work has gained international acclaim for its unique blend of aesthetic beauty and sustainable art. His pieces often incorporate recycled materials of wood, metal and others to showcases vibrant art highlighting themes of conservation and sustainability. R.O has held successful exhibitions in Ghana, the Galleria Africana Exhibition in Chicago, USA, The Juneteenth Art Show and Exhibition, Australia and other notable galleries around the world. About Reign Star Group: Reign Star Group is a Management consultancy known for its commitment to fostering and managing talent including contemporary art that inspires and captivates. The gallery arm of the group supports artists who are pushing boundaries and engaging with critical issues of our time through their works. About Wellington Trust: Wellington Trust is a charity dedicated to the preservation and promotion of Londons maritime heritage, ensuring that historic vessels are maintained and that future generations can learn about the importance of maritime sustainability. For more information, please contact: Naa Ayele Armah Business Administration Reign Star Group Email: [email protected] Phone: +44 (0)7984 604936 Website: http://www.reignstargroup.com Source: Reign Star Group 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 Flash Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing, capital of China, July 8, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua] Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Beijing on Monday, and the two sides exchanged in-depth views on the Ukraine crisis. Orban briefed Xi on his recent visits to Ukraine and Russia. Xi expressed appreciation for Orban's efforts in promoting the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis and elaborated on China's relevant views and propositions. Xi stressed that an early ceasefire and a political settlement are in the interests of all sides, adding that the priority is to cool down the situation by observing the three principles of no expansion of the battlefield, no escalation of fighting, and no fanning by any party over the flames. Xi called on the international community to create conditions and provide support for the resumption of direct dialogue and negotiation between the two sides, saying that only if all major countries inject positive rather than negative energy, can a ceasefire in this conflict emerge as soon as possible. "China has been actively promoting peace talks in its own way and encouraging and supporting all efforts conducive to a peaceful settlement of the crisis," he said, adding that the basic propositions of China and Hungary and the direction of their efforts are the same and that China is willing to stay in communication with Hungary and all relevant parties. Xi noted that during his successful state visit to Hungary two months ago, the bilateral relations were elevated to an all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era, which gave new historical significance to the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties this year and injected strong impetus into the high-level development of China-Hungary relations. Noting that the third plenary session of the 20th Communist Party of China Central Committee will be held next week, Xi said China will further deepen overall reform and promote high-quality development and high-level opening up, which will provide new opportunities and create new momentum for China-Hungary cooperation. Xi said that the two countries should maintain high-level exchanges, deepen political mutual trust, strengthen strategic communication and coordination, continue to firmly support each other, strengthen practical cooperation in various fields, advance high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, and continue to enrich the bilateral all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership for a new era to better benefit the people. He congratulated Hungary on assuming the rotating presidency of the European Union (EU) and said there is no geopolitical contradiction or fundamental conflict of interests between China and the EU. China-EU relations are of strategic significance and global influence and should maintain steady and sound development, Xi said, calling on the two sides to jointly respond to global challenges. Next year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and the EU, Xi said, adding that the two sides should stay committed to the correct path of bilateral partnership with cooperation as the defining trend, continue to promote two-way opening up, strengthen international coordination, and contribute to world peace, stability, development and prosperity. It is hoped that Hungary, as the holder of the rotating EU presidency, will play a positive role in promoting the sound and stable development of China-EU relations and facilitating constructive interactions, Xi added. Orban said that over the past two months, the two sides have earnestly implemented the important outcomes of President Xi's visit to Hungary, strengthened friendship and mutual trust, and laid a solid foundation for the future development of bilateral relations. In the face of the current turbulent international situation, China not only loves peace but has also put forward a series of constructive and important initiatives, proving with its own concrete actions that China is an important stabilizing force for world peace, Orban said. He added that Hungary highly appreciates and values China's role and influence and is willing to maintain close strategic communication and coordination with China. Hungary advocates strengthening cooperation with China and opposes forming exclusionary cliques and bloc confrontation, Orban said. Hungary is willing to take the rotating EU presidency as an opportunity to actively promote the sound development of EU-China relations, he said. In a thought-provoking address at the 15th MTN Pulse Africa Transform Summit in Kumasi, Haruna Iddrisu, the Member of Parliament (MP) for Tamale South, delivered a fervent critique of the prevailing state of democracy in Ghana, cautioning against what he labels as the emergence of moneycracy overshadowing core democratic values. Expressing profound apprehension over the escalating encroachment of financial power in Ghanas democratic landscape, Iddrisu highlighted the worrisome trend wherein monetary influence supersedes the foundational principles of fair representation and equality of opportunity within the political sphere. Notably, he drew attention to the pervasive impact of economic factors on the democratic processes, lamenting the erosion of the essence of genuine democratic governance. During his discourse, particularly accentuated by reflections on the Affirmative Action Bill which he deemed flawed, Iddrisu acknowledged being complicit in the system that he now scrutinizes. He urged the younger generation to rise against this disturbing paradigm shift and advocate for a return to the authentic ethos of political engagement where ideas and public service commitments take precedence over financial prowess. Recounting an era characterized by campaigns focusing on aspirants ideologies and dedication to public welfare rather than their monetary leverage, Iddrisu underscored the transformation of the democratic landscape into what he terms a monocracy. Highlighting the disillusionment stemming from the current fixation on financial contributions and bidding wars within electoral processes, he implored the youth to vehemently oppose this narrative for the collective good of the nation. In our democracy today, it has devolved into a realm where the highest bidder prevails, eclipsing the essence of genuine representation and fair competition, stated Iddrisu solemnly. Acknowledging his own evolution within this milieu, the MP urged for a reclamation of the foundational tenets of democracy, envisioning a return to a realm where merit and ingenuity drive political discourse rather than monetary incentives. Emphasizing the imperative role of the youth in challenging the status quo and safeguarding the integrity of Ghanas democratic fabric, Iddrisu invoked historical precedents to inspire civic activism among the emerging generation. Encouraging proactive dissent against the prevailing tide of monecratic influences, he echoed a sentiment reflective of his tenure as a grassroots campaigner, evoking a sense of nostalgia for a bygone era defined by principled dedication to public welfare over material wealth. 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 Former President John Dramani Mahama, has reassured Ghanaians of his governments preparedness to turn things around for the better for all Ghanaians if elected president in the upcoming December 7 general elections. In an engagement with the media on Sunday, July 7, 2024, the former President, who has staged a comeback on the ticket of the largest opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), John Mahama acknowledged the hardships Ghanaians and business owners in Ghana are going through. John Dramani Mahama attributed the economic downfalls to the reckless spending of the Akufo-Addo/ Bawumia led government. Mr. Mahama said, We shall turn this governments destructive tide into positive and progressive waves, waves that will reverberate in every home and corner of our country and across the globe, demonstrating that Ghana has once again gotten back on track. According to Mr. Mahama, the unprecedented levels of poverty, unemployment, deterioration in livelihoods, and social inequity have exposed the dubious strategy of hiding incompetence under slogans. He explained, "It confirms without hesitation that the disruptive and hasty experimentation with the lives of the Ghanaian people was underpinned by naive exuberance, arrogance, and selfishness." "I am referring to economic challenges that have shattered the dreams of our youth and the aspirations of the vulnerable. No one has been sparedchildren, adults, including the middle class, and the elderly have all been hit very hard. The flagbearer of the NDC is imbued with hopefulness and optimism that the fortunes of all and sundry shall be turned around if he is given the mandate to be President of the republic. John Mahama posited that, the change Ghanaians are looking for is in the vote they cast for the NDC. He urged Ghanaians to consider the numerous infrastructure he had undertaken as head of state, ranging from hospitals, markets, schools and industries to cast their votes for his because he has a track record of the undertaking projects and completing them. This is the Time for Change because of the urgent need for a transformative shift in the way we govern, the way we create jobs, the way we live, the way we provide social services, including health and education and the way we envision the future of our country, Ghana. 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 Godfred Yeboah Dame, the Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, has stated that the request made by the Chief Justice, her ladyship Gertrude Torkonoo to have some judges appointed to the Supreme Court is justifiable. The statement of Mr. Dame is in response to a legal advice being sought for from the President, Nana Addo Danquah AkufoAddo, on a plea by the Chief Justice to have more judges appointed to the Supreme Court. Considering the loads of work that the Justices of the Supreme Court are required to undertake, the Chief Justice requested of the President to appoint more judges to the Supreme Court in order to help facilitate the plethora of cases that ought to be heard and adjudicated. According to the Chief Justice, the expertise of the Justices she recommended to the President are very vital in Ghanas jurisprudence and delivery of legal services. However, the opposition National Democratic Congress General Secretary, Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, described the action of the Chief Justice as unconstitutional and lacks merit. According to the NDC, the presidency had already occupied the Supreme Court with charges whose loyalty lean towards the ruling government, the New Patriotic Party(NPP). In rebutting the assertion of the NDC, Mr. Godfred Dame stated, "given the breadth of the multiplicity of jurisdictions of the Supreme Court, the request for the increase in the number of justices serving on the Supreme Court from the conventional fifteen (in addition to the Chief Justice) to twenty, is not only constitutional but would ensure speedy and effective justice, minimise delays and unnecessary expense and conduce to the general efficient administration of the Supreme Court. The Attorney-General further added, Understandably, the permutations in the constitution of the panels, almost simultaneously, could be daunting for effective and efficient work in the face of the limited number of Justices at the Supreme Court, as the Court is incessantly inundated with cases. 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 darling prophet of the New Patriotic Party, Prophet Badu Kobi of the Glorious Wave Church International claims the NPP has never won an election in Ghana despite being an incumbent. He claims the party will suffer another defeat in the upcoming December 7, election even if they rig. Prophet Kobi also expressed his anger on President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo. If they are thinking of stealing it, the stealing will not work. You act as if I haven't prayed for you before. Akufo-Addo became president and changed all of a sudden. I prayed for Akufo-Addo, and because of him, I had to embark on several journeys. He said Adding that: "When I became a pastor, you were not even president. I've been a pastor for a long time, and those you consult now are people we introduced to you," he claimed. Whether they like it or not, they will lose this year's elections. They have never won an election. Ghanaians should not make any mistakes this year. he said on UTV's cooking show 'U COOK'. He also suggests that the NPP's flagbearer is immature for the position of president. Ghana doesn't need children. Ghana doesn't need people who feel entitled to the presidency. He urged Ghanaians to be vigilant and choose an experienced leader as president. "Give the country to someone who has the experience and knowledge to do so. This is not a message from me; it's from God. Give the leadership of the country to the right person," he said. 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 Despite the numerous promises by the Vice President and Presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP), Dr Mahamadu Bawumia to Ghanaians, he cannot even order the payment of school feeding caterers in the Ashanti Region, the supposed World Bank of the party. The caterers in Ashanti Region on June 22, 2024, organised a press conference and issued a notice, threatening to embark on a demonstration following the governments refusal to pay them their outstanding arrears due for three academic terms. The caterers who have expressed disappointment and frustration lament that they have not received any payment from September 2023 to June 2024, after several unfulfilled promises from the government. The situation they indicated is affecting their operations as they are unable to pay their creditors, some of whom are threatening to get them arrested. Based on this, the Chief Executive Officer of Marrer Ghana Limited, Susatgad Boat Building and Fishing Industry, Mr Novihoho Afaglo has stated that Dr Bawumia has nothing better to offer Ghanaians and therefore must not be taken seriously. If close to 11 months you have not paid caterers in one of your touted legacies of having transformed the educational sector than any other government, If this is not a scam tell me what it is, Mr. Afaglo stated. He said that currently there are many government institutions and organizations that the NPP government owes right from the National Health Insurance Scheme, NaBCO workers, school feeding caterers, and a host of others. "This clearly shows that the NPP is not ready to alleviate the plight of the citizens". Mr. Afaglo said the situation in the Ashanti Region is not peculiar to the region alone but, cut across the whole country where the school feeding caterers are reported to be assaulted by their creditors in many areas. Even if Ashanti Region, their supposed stronghold complaining of 11 months of nonpayment, imagine caterers in Western, Volta, Oti, and Western North areas consider to be for the opposition party. Research conducted by the education think tank, Africa Education Watch, noted that a 200% increase in the cost of the school feeding program is required for the provision of quality food to beneficiaries. It is estimated that an amount of GH3 billion is needed to sustain the programme. 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 French President, Emmanuel Macron refused the resignation of the countrys prime minister, asking him on Monday, July 8 to remain temporarily as the head of the government after the weekend's chaotic election results that left the government in limbo. Macron on Monday his PM to stay, pending difficult negotiations to form a new government after a left-wing surge delivered a parliament divided into three. The leftist New Popular Front (NFP) emerged as the dominant force in the National Assembly after Sundays election, thwarting Marine Le Pens quest to bring the far-right to power. However, no party has secured a working majority, meaning the electoral outcome heralded a period of political volatility. Possibilities open to the French government include the NFP forming a minority government or the coming together of a coalition of right, left and centrist parties with no common ground, meaning legislation might never get passed by Parliament. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal, a centrist and close ally of Macron, tendered his resignation on Sunday, but the head of state, Macron rejected it. The President has asked Gabriel Attal to remain prime minister for the time being in order to ensure the countrys stability, Macrons office said in a statement. A fragmented parliament will weaken Frances role in the European Union. The left won 182 seats, Macrons centrist alliance 168 and Le Pens National Rally (RN) and allies 143, Interior Ministry data cited by Le Monde newspaper showed. Jean-Luc Melenchon, one of the most divisive figures in French politics, explicitly ruled out any deal with centrists on Sunday, and on Monday his ally Eric Bompard sounded uncompromising. The president must appoint as prime minister someone from the New Popular Front to implement the NFPs programme, the whole programme and nothing but the programme, he said on France 2 television. However, there is little chance that any of the left-wing blocs key proposals, which include raising the minimum wage, reversing Macrons pension reform and capping the prices of key goods, would pass a parliamentary vote without some kind of agreement with lawmakers from outside the bloc. 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 NPP National Communications Director, Richard Ahiagbah has implored the public to disregard attempts by the National Democratic Congress (NDC) to attach negative labels to Dr Matthew Opoku Prempeh (NAPO), Running Mate of his party. Mr. Ahiagbah urged Ghanaians to focus on NAPOs potentials and not fall for the propaganda of the NDC. He posted on his X saying NAPO is widely recognized for his generosity. If you look up synonyms for generosity in the dictionary, you will find words such as goodness, big-heartedness, nobleness, self-sacrifice, nobility, and philanthropism, among others. He continued; According to Christian Smith, the American sociologist and current William R. Kenan Jr. Professor of Sociology at the University of Notre Dame, generosity is not a random behavior, but a fundamental orientation to life, adding It involves not only expressing moral goodness but also rejecting certain vices such as selfishness, greed, fear, and meanness. Please disregard the opponents attempt to attach negative labels to NAPO and instead recognize the potential for a generous leader in NAPO to partner with H.E. Bawumia to drive Ghanas agenda. Be there at his outdooring tomorrow; it will be historic! Ghana needs a big-hearted president and vice president, Mr. Ahiagbah further remarked. NAPO is widely recognized for his generosity. If you look up synonyms for generosity in the dictionary, you will find words such as goodness, big-heartedness, nobleness, self-sacrifice, nobility, and philanthropism, among others. According to Christian Smith, the American pic.twitter.com/tWBAQNe8eW Richard Ahiagbah (@RAahiagbah) July 8, 2024 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 political tension in Awutu Senya West continues to escalate as supporters of NDC Member of Parliament Gisella Tetteh-Agbotui have allegedly renewed their efforts to vandalize and destroy the campaign materials of Mr. Eugene Arhin, the NPPs parliamentary candidate for the constituency. In the early hours of Monday, newly installed billboards of Mr. Eugene Arhin at Yamoah Nkwanta in the Papaase Electoral Area were reported destroyed. This incident is the latest in a series of targeted attacks against Mr. Arhin's campaign materials, which has sparked outrage and concern among constituents. In a controversial move back in May this year, Mrs. Tetteh-Agbotui's supporters were accused of ripping up the sign boards and posters of her main contender. This blatant disregard for electoral laws raised serious concerns about the integrity of the electoral process in the constituency. Multiple eyewitness accounts and reports from local residents confirmed that her supporters were seen destroying Mr. Arhins campaign materials in several locations, including Bontrase, Amontrom, and Pobikwaa. These incidents created a tense atmosphere in the constituency, with many expressing fears of potential clashes between the two political factions. Despite the outcry and the clear violation of electoral norms, it appears that Mrs. Tetteh-Agbotui is not relenting in her aggressive campaign tactics. The destruction of Mr. Arhin's billboards this morning at Yamoah Nkwanta is a stark reminder of the ongoing hostilities. Local residents awoke to find the newly installed billboards torn down and defaced, further inflaming an already volatile situation. The recurring nature of these incidents has prompted calls for immediate action from electoral authorities and law enforcement. Many constituents are urging the Electoral Commission to step in and ensure a fair and peaceful campaign environment. The fear of potential clashes between supporters of the two candidates looms large, with the community leaders and local organizations calling for calm and restraint from both sides. Mr. Eugene Arhin, in a statement, condemned the actions and called for his supporters to remain peaceful and adhere to the law. "We must not allow these provocations to derail our commitment to a peaceful and democratic process. I urge all my supporters to remain calm and let the authorities handle the situation," he said. Mrs. Tetteh-Agbotui has yet to comment on the latest allegations, but her silence is being interpreted by many as an implicit endorsement of the actions of her supporters. This ongoing saga in Awutu Senya West is a sobering reminder of the challenges facing Ghana's democratic process, where political rivalry can sometimes spill over into unlawful and destructive behavior. As the election date draws closer, the eyes of the nation are on Awutu Senya West. There is hope that the relevant authorities will take decisive steps to restore order and ensure that the electoral process proceeds smoothly, free from intimidation and violence. The people of the constituency deserve a fair and peaceful election, where their voices can be heard without fear of retribution or coercion. Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority. Featured Video This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph showing Salmonella Typhimurium (red) invading cultured human cells Credit: Rocky Mountain Laboratories, NIAID, NIH Artificial intelligence (AI) could be used to identify drug resistant infections, significantly reducing the time it takes for a correct diagnosis, Cambridge researchers have shown. The team determined that an algorithm could be trained to identify drug-resistant bacteria correctly from microscopy images alone. Antimicrobial resistance is an increasing global health issue that means many infections are becoming difficult to treat, with fewer treatment options available. It even raises the specter of some infections becoming untreatable in the near future. One of the challenges facing health care workers is the ability to distinguish rapidly between organisms that can be treated with first-line drugs and those that are resistant to treatment. Conventional testing can take several days, requiring bacteria to be cultured, tested against various antimicrobial treatments, and analyzed by a laboratory technician or by machine. This delay often results in patients being treated with an inappropriate drug, which can lead to more serious outcomes and, potentially, further drive drug resistance. In a study published in Nature Communications, a team led by researchers in Professor Stephen Baker's Lab at the University of Cambridge developed a machine-learning tool capable of identifying, from microscopy images, Salmonella Typhimurium bacteria that are resistant to the first-line antibiotic ciprofloxacineven without testing the bacteria against the drug. S. Typhimurium causes gastrointestinal illness and typhoid-like illness in severe cases, whose symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache, nausea, abdominal pain, and constipation or diarrhea. In severe cases, it can be life threatening. While infections can be treated with antibiotics, the bacteria are becoming increasingly resistant to a number of antibiotics, making treatment more complicated. The team used high-resolution microscopy to examine S. Typhimurium isolates exposed to increasing concentrations of ciprofloxacin and identified the five most important imaging features for distinguishing between resistant and susceptible isolates. They then trained and tested machine-learning algorithm to recognize these features using imaging data from 16 samples. The algorithm was able to correctly predict in each case whether or not bacteria were susceptible or resistant to ciprofloxacin without the need for the bacteria to be exposed to the drug. This was the case for isolates cultured for just six hours, compared to the usual 24 hours to culture a sample in the presence of antibiotic. Dr. Tuan-Anh Tran, who worked on this research while a Ph.D. student at the University of Oxford and is now based at the University of Cambridge, said, "S. Typhimurium bacteria that are resistant to ciprofloxacin have several notable differences to those still susceptible to the antibiotic. While an expert human operator might be able to identify some of these, on their own they wouldn't be enough to confidently distinguish resistant and susceptible bacteria. "The beauty of the machine learning model is that it can identify resistant bacteria based on a few subtle features on microscopy images that human eyes cannot detect." In order for a sample to be analyzed using this approach, it would still be necessary to isolate the bacteria from a samplefor example a blood, urine or stool sample. However, because the bacteria do not need to be tested against ciprofloxacin, this means the whole process could be reduced from several days to a matter of hours. While there are limitations to how practical and cost effective this particular approach would be, the team says it demonstrates in principle how powerful artificial intelligence could be in helping the fight against antimicrobial resistance. Dr. Sushmita Sridhar, who initiated this project while a Ph.D. student in the Department of Medicine at the University of Cambridge and is now a postdoc at the University of New Mexico and Harvard School of Public Health, said, "Given that this approach uses single cell resolution imaging, it isn't yet a solution that could be readily deployed everywhere. "But it shows real promise that by capturing just a few parameters about the shape and structure of the bacteria, it can give us enough information to predict drug resistance with relative ease." The team now aims to work on larger collections of bacteria to create a more robust experimental set that could speed up the identification process even more and allow them to identify resistance to ciprofloxacin and other antibiotics in a number of different species of bacteria. Sridhar added, "What would be really important, particularly for a clinical context, would be to be able to take a complex samplefor example blood or urine or sputumand identify susceptibility and resistance directly from that. That's a much more complicated problem and one that really hasn't been solved at all, even in clinical diagnostics in a hospital. "If we could find a way of doing this, we could reduce the time taken to identify drug resistance and at a much lower cost. That could be truly transformative." More information: Tuan-Anh Tran et al, Combining machine learning with high-content imaging to infer ciprofloxacin susceptibility in isolates of Salmonella Typhimurium, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49433-4 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: 400-year-old female dingo skull from Skull Cave, Augusta, Western Australia. Credit: Dr. Sally Wasef Dingoes arrived in Australia more than 3,000 years ago. Now a new study has compared DNA from fossilized dingo remains dating back 2,746 years with DNA from modern dingoes. The work finds that K'gari dingoes have no domestic dog ancestrythey are pure dingo. The paper is published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Co-lead author, paleogeneticist Dr. Sally Wasef from QUT's School of Biomedical Sciences, said this dataset provided a rare glimpse into the pre-colonial genetic landscape of dingoes, free from any mixing with modern dog breeds. "Consequently, they are behaviorally, genetically, and anatomically distinct from domestic dogs," Dr. Wasef said. "Modern-day dingoes' ancestors arrived in Australia more than 3,000 years ago, most likely transported by seafaring people. The samples we analyzed represent the oldest ancient DNA recovered in Australia and indicate broad possibilities of future DNA and conservation work that could be carried out on dingoes and other animals. "Dingo populations are classified into east and west groups, which were previously thought to have formed during post-colonial human activity. Our findings show, however, that dingoes' population structure was already in place thousands of years ago, and clarify the genetic heritage of dingoes, while highlighting the importance of using ancient DNA for wildlife conservation. "For example, all K'gari dingoes we analyzed do not have any domestic dog ancestry, proving they preserve their full ancestral heritage. Although we studied only a small number of K'gari dingoes, our findings highlight the importance and usefulness of our pre-colonial ancient genomic data to conserving our unique native animals. Due to poor human behavior that causes some dingoes to become habituated to seeking food from tourists, several problem dingoes have been culled, which is concerning given their small population size." Co-lead author Dr. Yassine Souilmi, from the University of Adelaide's Australian Centre for Ancient DNA and Environment Institute, remarked that the unique dataset of ancient dingo DNA had helped to uncover crucial details about the ancestry and migration patterns of the modern-day dingo. "Dingoes had distinct regional populations, split roughly along the Great Dividing Range, long before the European invasion of Australia, and certainly predating the dingo-proof fence," Dr. Souilmi said. "The DNA analysis also showed less interbreeding between dingoes and modern dogs than was previously thought, with our research confirming today's dingoes retain much of their ancestral genetic diversity. "Dingoes hold significant cultural importance to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples and play an essential role in the Australian ecosystem. Understanding their historical population structure helps us preserve the dingo's role in Australian ecology and culture. Dingoes are currently under threat from lethal culling programs, and our research highlights the importance of protecting populations in national parks and beyond." Flash Editor's note: Last week, Chinese President Xi Jinping paid a state visit to Tajikistan following the conclusion of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Astana. During the visit, President Xi and his Tajik counterpart, Emomali Rahmon, decided to elevate the bilateral ties to comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era. Here, China.org.cn revisits key quotes from President Xi's visit. 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 wildlife crossing, which will be covered by local plants, aims to provide safe passage for the mountain lions. Hollywood stars aren't the only celebrities who live in the hills around Los AngelesSouthern California's mountain lions also make their homes there and are sometimes almost as famous. The animal, also known as a puma or a cougar, is the region's apex predator, and spotting them is something of a hobby for locals. A 2013 photograph of the much lovedbut unimaginatively namedP-22 in front of the Hollywood sign cemented the creature's place in the popular imagination. But the picture also highlighted the difficulties faced by a species whose habitat has been invaded by people, as well as from the growing risks of extreme weather events driven by human-caused climate change. Mountain lions have "lived here forever, and now we're building homes and facilities out on their property," Andy Blue of the San Diego Humane Society's Ramona Wildlife Center, told AFP. "So it's inevitable that there's going to be interaction between them." One of the most ambitious efforts to reduce humanity's impact on mountain lions is taking shape northwest of Los Angeles: the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing. The first phase of the project, on track to open in 2025, will see the completion of a bridge for wild animals over 10 lanes of Highway 101, one of the busiest roads in southern California, with over 300,000 daily travelers. A mountain lion is tested for vitals at the San Diego Humane Society's Ramona Wildlife Center before his release back into the wild. "When the 101 freeway was constructed through this area about 60 years ago, it had the unintended consequence of cutting off all of the Santa Monica Mountains" from another nearby mountain range, said Lauren Gill, the National Wildlife Federation's deputy director for California. That separation created what Gill called an "island of habitat, cut off from all of the wild area to the north." 'Extinction vortex' The consequences of that highway have been significant for the area's wildlife. Not only did it diminish the genetic diversity of several native species, it also markedly reduced the mountain lions' usual habitat for hunting and reproducing, putting the animal at risk of an "extinction vortex," Gill explained. The wildlife crossing, which will be covered by local plants, aims to remedy the problem by reconnecting the mountains, providing safe passage for the pumas and other fauna in the region. "You wouldn't think that birds would need the help of a wildlife crossing," Gill said. Wildlife photographer Johanna Turner hikes to check on her remote "camera trap," which is motion-triggered to captures images of passing wildlife, in the hills above Glendale, California, just north of Los Angeles. "But in fact, we have some smaller birds like [the] wrentit, who are indigenous to this area, and they're so tiny that the wind currents generated by the freeway make it impossible for them to cross." Once completed, the $80 million project will be the largest wildlife crossing in the world, according to organizers. Threat from cars The need for a protected zone like the crossing is evident at the Ramona Wildlife Center, where all kinds of animals from raccoons to bears are nursed back to strength after falling sick or being orphaned or injured. Blue said mountain lions come into their care for any number of reasons, but most stem from "human-wildlife conflicts." "One to two mountain lions are struck by cars a week in California, and it's the number one reason for mountain lion deaths in the state," he said, adding that the public needed to be better educated about how to interact with animals. In June, an animal that was treated at the center was released back into the mountains near Los Angeles. A mountain lion blends into his surroundings upon release back into the wild by an environmental scientist with the California Fish and Wildlife Department. Wildlife photographer Johanna Turner, who uses remote cameras to capture animals in their natural habitat, said it does not take much to make the area around Los Angeles safer for mountain lions. "I just want people to know how lucky they are to have this wildness, and it can go away," Turner said from a hill overlooking the city's skyline. "It can end so fast." When P-22 died in December 2022, the outpouring of grief ended up being a wake-up call for Los Angeles. Then last month, as often happens in Tinseltown, a new star was born when a Hollywood Hills resident captured images of another mountain lion before it disappeared into Griffith Park. "We're so used to tragic stories about wildlife and having to just give up and say, 'This is a city... It just can't be that way here,'" Turner said. "P-22 showed us it absolutely can." 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: Sea-Bird Scientific Solar Tracker Aiming System measuring total water radiance and sky radiance at a solid angle, and downwelling irradiance, which are used to compute remote sensing reflectance. Reproduced with permission from Sea-Bird Scientific (2017). Credit: Frontiers in Remote Sensing (2024). DOI: 10.3389/frsen.2024.1336494 For almost two years, Robert Brewin collected data from the bow of a superyacht as it sailed pristine waters from the Caribbean Sea to the Antarctic Ocean. The Archimedes, a 222-foot "adventure" yacht then owned by the late hedge funder James Simons, boasts a gym, a jacuzzi and an elevator. But between 2018 and 2020, Brewin was concerned only with the boat's Sea-Bird Scientific Solar Tracking Aiming System, installed to measure light reflecting off of the water. A senior lecturer at the UK's University of Exeter, Brewin and his colleagues were analyzing microplanktonmicroscopic organisms at the base of the marine food chainby studying the ocean's color. The Sea-Bird's readouts helped them verify satellite imagery. Brewin's was not your typical superyacht itinerary, but he is one of hundreds of scientists to have used an adventure yachtalso known as expedition or explorer yachtsto conduct research on the ocean. In a paper published in Frontiers in Remote Sensing, Brewin and his co-authors touted the potential of "harnessing superyachts" for science, concluding that "reaching out to wealthy citizen scientists may help fill [research capability] gaps." It's a view sharedand being pushedby the Yacht Club of Monaco and the Explorers Club, a New York City-based organization focused on exploration and science (of which, full disclosure, I am a member). In March, the groups co-hosted an environmental symposium that included an awards ceremony for yacht owners who "stand out for their commitment to protecting the marine environment." The Archimedes won a "Science & Discovery" award. "If a yacht is operating 365 days a year, rather than having it sit idle it'd be much better for it to contribute a positive return through science and conservation," says Rob McCallum, an Explorers Club fellow and founder of US-based EYOS Expeditions, which runs adventure yacht voyages. EYOS charters yachts from private owners for its excursions, and is a founding member of Yachts for Science, a four-year-old organization that matches privately owned yachts with scientists who need time at sea. (Other members include yacht builder Arksen, media firm BOAT International, and nonprofits Nekton Foundation and Ocean Family Foundation.) Yachts for Science will enable about $1 million worth of donated yacht time this year, McCallum says, a figure he expects to hit $15 million by 2029. "There's a personal satisfaction that we are contributing to something that is bigger than us," says Tom Peterson, who co-owns an insurance underwriting company in California and has what he jokingly refers to as a "mini superyacht." Every year for the past decade, Peterson has donated about 15 to 20 days of time and fuel on the 24-meter Valkyrie to scientists, who he takes out himself as a licensed captain and former scuba dive operator. He often works with the Shark Lab at California State University Long Beach, and allows researchers to stay aboard for days at a time instead of having to constantly make the 1.5-hour trip to and from shore. To link up with scientists, Peterson works with the International SeaKeepers Society, a Florida-based nonprofit that engages the yachting community to support ocean conservation and research. "The more we understand things about the ocean in general, the better we all are in the long run," he says. When "superyacht" and "the environment" appear in the same sentence, it's usually in a different context. In 2019, one study estimated that a single 71-meter superyacht has the same annual carbon footprint as about 200 cars. In 2021, another paper found that superyachts were the single greatest contributor to the carbon footprint of 20 of the world's most prominent billionaires, accounting for 64% of their combined emissions. "If you really want to respect the environment, you can just go surf," says Gregory Salle, a senior researcher at the French National Center for Scientific Research and author of the book Superyachts: Luxury, Tranquility and Ecocide. Salle is open to the idea that superyachts could be used to advance scientific research, but says it's contradictory for anyone to buy a superyacht and claim to be truly concerned about the environment. McCallum says people who own adventure yachts tend to be younger than your standard superyacht owner, and have a particular interest in remote and pristine places. "They're not the sort of people that are content to just hang out in the Mediterranean or the Caribbean," he says. "Antarctica, the Arctic, the remote Indian Ocean, the remote Pacific Ocean, the Subantarctic islands that's where you're going to find us delivering our services." Explorer yachts aren't the only way scientists can reach those destinations, but demand for dedicated research vessels does outstrip available supply. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), arguably the world's greatest collector of oceanographic data, has a fleet of 15 research and survey vessels for the use of its scientists. Academic researchers can also apply to use the fleet, often at a subsidized rate. But scientists request roughly 15,000 to 20,000 days of boat time every year. In 2019, NOAA was able to fill just 2,300 of them, according to an internal study. That gap is particularly problematic as the planet warms. Oceans provide services that scientists call "existentially important," producing more than half of the oxygen we breathe and serving as the world's largest carbon sink. They also absorb 30% of our carbon emissions and 90% of the excess heat generated by them. G. Mark Miller, a retired NOAA Corps officer who was in charge of several of the agency's research vessels, has a different solution in mind when it comes to bolstering ocean research: smaller boats, fit for purpose. Superyachts can cost north of $500 million, he says, "why don't we build a hundred $5 million vessels and flood the ocean science community?" After leaving NOAA, Miller in 2021 launched Virginia-based Greenwater Marine Sciences Offshore with a vision of building a global fleet of research vessels and offering their use at affordable prices. He says hiring a NOAA boat can cost scientists between $20,000 and $100,000 per day. GMSO plans to charge less than $10,000 a day for most missions. The company says it's close to acquiring its first three vessels. Miller hopes his business model will help scientists conduct the work they need toparticularly in under-served regions like the Asia-Pacificwithout worrying about getting a luxury yacht covered in "muddy worms, plankton goo, dead fish [and] whale snot." He describes yacht owners donating boat time to scientists as "better than nothing," and says it can help get regular people interested in science and exploration. Christopher Walsh, captain of the Archimedes, says he and his crew love taking part in science initiatives, especially when there's an educational component. "I get a real thrill when we can stream to the classroomsyou can't imagine the enthusiasm the kids display," Walsh says. "That gives me a lot of hope for the future." More information: Robert J. W. Brewin et al, Superyachts could support satellite ocean colour validation, Frontiers in Remote Sensing (2024). DOI: 10.3389/frsen.2024.1336494 Journal information: Frontiers in Remote Sensing 2024 Bloomberg 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 Ranchers, farmers and owners of stores and restaurants gathered at folding tables in a community center to discuss a subject they are deeply concerned about: their declining groundwater. The meeting in late June offered a chance for people to share their fears not only with neighbors, but with three visiting state legislators and a high-ranking water official from Sacramento. "We are an engaged community," said Lynn Carlisle, executive director of the Cuyama Valley Family Resource Center. "We're a committed community. But we need help." The Cuyama Valley north of Santa Barbara is one of the areas of California where groundwater levels have been rapidly dropping, and where water continues to be heavily pumped to irrigate thousands of acres of farmland. Like other regions, the Cuyama Valley has developed a state-mandated plan to address overpumping under California's groundwater law, the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. But while that plan is just starting to be implemented, disagreements over addressing the water deficit have led to a bitter legal fight. A group of agricultural landowners in 2021 sued other property owners throughout the valley, asking a judge to determine how water rights should be divided. That case, called a water adjudication, sparked an outpouring of opposition and prompted residents to organize a boycott of carrot-growing companies that are the valley's biggest water users. Participants have put up signs and banners reading "Boycott Carrots" and "Stand with Cuyama Against Corporate Greed." As the meeting began, some residents said the court case is saddling them with thousands of dollars in legal bills. Others said they fear the lawsuit could undermine the parallel process of limiting pumping under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, or SGMA. "We know that SGMA is not perfect," Carlisle said. "We want it to work." She said residents organized the meeting to tell legislators how the groundwater law is playing out, and "how it is now being challenged and potentially compromised." Those attending included state Sen. Monique Limon (D-Goleta), Assemblymember Gregg Hart (D-Santa Barbara) and Sen. Melissa Hurtado (D-Sanger). Brenton Kelly, a community facilitator, said groundwater levels have dropped about 500 feet in part of the valley over the last half-century. He pointed to data showing "a consistent extraction of more than twice the natural recharge." The local plan calls for cutting water use by as much as two-thirds by 2040. But five years into its implementation, Kelly said, there haven't yet been substantial reductions in pumping. On lunch tables decorated with olive branches, organizers placed a packet of papers with numbers and graphics. A color-coded map marked areas of rapid depletion in red and orange. It read: "The big pumpers are pumping us dry." "We have the power dynamics of essentially David and Goliath, where we have a couple of powerful entities that are in control," Kelly said. "And then we have a disadvantaged community that's trying to preserve its natural resources." He was referring to two of the world's largest carrot-growing companies, Grimmway Farms and Bolthouse Farms, as well as other companies that lease them farmland. The two farming companies dropped out of the lawsuit last year, while other landowning companies stayed on as plaintiffs in the case, which is pending in Los Angeles County Superior Court. Those who organized the meeting said representatives of the companies weren't invited. Ella Boyajian, who helped organize the boycott, said many people saw the companies' lawsuit as an unfair attempt to impose cutbacks on others, and an affront to the tight-knit community's collaborative values. She said the lawsuit seems "adversarial" to the aims of the state groundwater law. "Now we have adjudication, which is encouraging everybody's self interest," Boyajian said. "And we are all fighting for our little slice of the pie, the groundwater." The case has prompted many in the community to hire lawyers. Boyajian said for some, the mounting bills are bringing financial trouble, forcing them to sell vehicles or delay retirement plans. Even the local school district was forced to hire a lawyer, and Supt. Alfonso Gamino said the legal bills have reached more than $28,000. Dave Lewis, a farmer who grows pistachios and lavender, said he and other small growers are struggling with as much as $50,000 in legal bills while also worrying that declining aquifer levels could leave them with dry wells. "The water is declining really quick," Lewis said. "It's the big pumpers." He said he's concerned water allocations will likely be calculated based on past usage, benefiting large growers while harming his small operation. "I'm just a little guy," he said. "So I rely on the government and agencies to protect me. And right now, I'm not feeling it." Pam Doiron, who owns a cattle ranch, said the lawsuit "has thrown us a staggering amount of overhead that is unsustainable." "If we have our water usage cut as a result of the adjudication, there will be no way to keep ranching here," she said. Doiron said it's sad that while local residents were working toward a solution to reduce water use, the large Bakersfield-based growers were "working behind the scenes to undermine the groundwater sustainability agency and the livelihood of our Cuyama families." Grimmway Farms has said it's not in favor of cutting the water rights of the school or small residential water users. The company withdrew from the case as a plaintiff in October. Bolthouse Farms has said its decision to withdraw from the lawsuit in August was "driven by our commitment to sustainability," and that the company is reducing water usage. One of the remaining plaintiffs is Bolthouse Land Co., a subsidiary of Bolthouse Properties, which split from Bolthouse Farms in 2005. Daniel Clifford, vice president and general counsel for Bolthouse Properties, said a decision by other growers to challenge the basin's boundaries "delayed the adjudication for almost a year and half and ended up costing every groundwater user, including the school district and water district, unnecessary time and money." He was referring to pistachio growers and a large vineyard owned by a subsidiary of Harvard University's investment company. "Sustainability requires one basin-wide approach where all groundwater users share water cutbacks equally," Clifford said in an email, adding that the company supports a "scientifically and legally appropriate" groundwater sustainability plan. Robert Kuhs, a lawyer representing plaintiffs Diamond Farming Company, Lapis Land Company and Ruby Land Company, said the local groundwater agency voted to impose cutbacks on growers in the central part of the valley, and the lack of regulated pumping in other areas "inhibits sustainability and disproportionately impacts certain landowners." Kuhs said in an email that the companies sought the adjudication to have the court determine their water rights, and to ensure that "all commercial agricultural pumpers share in reductions." The Cuyama Valley is one of nine areas in the state where such cases are pending. During the meeting, some residents accused carrot growers of over-irrigating with sprinklers and allowing water to run in ditches. "They waste a lot of water because I've seen it," farmworker Veronica Espinosa Lopez said, speaking in Spanish. "I think there should be management, for them as well as for us in the community." She also expressed concern that growers have been hiring local farmworkers for shorter periods in recent years, leaving them with less income. Longtime resident Roberta Jaffe, who dry-farms wine grapes on a five-acre farm, said that in past cases, water allocations have often been granted based on historical usage, "which means the largest pumpers are going to gain the most," while small farmers who have been conserving will likely be penalized. During the discussion, farmer Jim Wegis pointed at state water official Paul Gosselin and asked: "We presented a plan. You made adjustments to it. Are you going to help support it when it goes to court?" "That's a loaded question," Gosselin replied, eliciting laughter from around the room. "We're tracking a number of these adjudications very closely, for a variety of reasons," Gosselin said, with the goal of preserving "what was the promise of SGMA about local control and bringing basins into balance." The law's implementation is now entering its most difficult period, he said. "This is where the rubber is meeting the road," Gosselin said. "And you're all sort of at the tip of the spear, involved in this change that's going to profoundly change how water is managed." The legislators said they want to help work on solutions. "I think we are faced with a really difficult decision, that a policy did thisa policy that was meant to help, and a policy that can help," Limon said. "And so we, I think, are going to take this back to figure out how we need to correct the policy," she said. "We are walking out with a profound sense of the challenges that are in front of you." 2024 Los Angeles Times. 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 Victimization (SES-V), the gold standard measurement of sexual exploitation designed for adults over age 18, has been released in a special issue of the Journal of Sex Research. As the first revision since 2007, the new SES-V is an interdisciplinary collaboration among experts across more than 10 U.S. universities and the Kinsey Institute, led and coordinated by Dr. Mary Koss from the University of Arizona. It adopts more inclusive language and incorporates additional tactics and actions victims experience today, such as being sexually targeted online, being made to penetrate someone, or being lied to about contraception. "Sexual exploitation research must keep pace with the real-life experiences of victims," said Dr. Koss. "Better solutions will come from the more comprehensive and accurate measurement of sexual exploitation that the updated SES-V captures." The special issue also features preliminary data collected using the revised SES-V, one of the first national studies published since the #MeToo movement began. Among this nationally representative sample of 347 adults aged 18 to 83, 90% of survey respondents experienced some degree of sexual exploitation. Further, 60% of women and 29% of men recorded experiences that met the Federal Bureau of Investigation definition of rape or attempted rape. "Although preliminary, these findings reveal a fullerand more alarmingpicture," said Dr. Zoe Peterson, Director of the Kinsey Institute's Sexual Assault Research Initiative and lead author on this study. "We urgently need to expand how we fight sexual exploitation to address the array of experiencesfrom unwanted sexual attention online to physically forced sexual penetrationthat SES-V brings to light." SES-V has been made freely available in English and Spanish to enable other scientists to contribute data in a standardized way. Other preliminary findings indicate: Across all categories, women were more likely than men to report experiencing sexual exploitation, except technology-facilitated exploitation. 67% of respondents experienced technology-facilitated exploitation, such as receiving unwanted sexual materials or threats about sharing intimate photos online. 18% of respondents experienced reproductive coercion, including someone lying about or tampering with contraception or "stealthing" (removing a condom without permission). 17% of respondents reported being made to penetrate another person by someone who used illegal tactics; this category was particularly important for capturing men's experiences of sexual victimization. Experiencing lower-level sexual exploitation such as non-contact voyeurism or flashing was associated with experiencing more severe sexual exploitation such as illegal sexual assault. When asked to describe the incident they remembered most clearly, the most common exploitative tactic reported was victims having their refusal ignored. According to RAINN, every 68 seconds an American is sexually assaulted. The CDC estimates the annual economic cost of rape in the United States at nearly $3.1 trillion, although the actual cost could be much higher. Despite increased government funding promised in recent yearssuch as $1 billion in supplemental funding for the bipartisan Violence Against Women Actthese latest SES-V data show that more comprehensive measures are urgently needed to meaningfully address this health and social crisis. More information: Zoe D. Peterson et al, Preliminary Prevalence Estimates of Sexual Exploitation as Measured by the Sexual Experiences Survey-Victimization (SES-V) in a National US Sample, The Journal of Sex Research (2024). DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2024.2359639 Journal information: Journal of Sex Research Provided by Kinsey 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: a, Schematic illustrations of interlayer-sensitizing system for blue MR-TADF emitters. b, Molecular structures of MR-TADF emitters and TADF sensitizers employed in the interlayer-sensitizing configuration. c, Device configuration of interlayer-sensitized hyperfluorescence devices. Credit: Jianghui Wang, Peng Zou, Letian Chen, Zhentao Bai, Hao Liu, Wen-Cheng Chen, Yanping Huo, Ben Zhong Tang and Zujin Zhao* Multi-resonance thermally activated delayed fluorescence (MR-TADF) materials are promising candidates for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) with narrow electroluminescence (EL) spectra. Scientists in China propose an interlayer sensitization strategy to improve EL efficiencies of blue MR-TADF emitters with blue MR-TADF sensitizer, and successfully realize blue hyperfluorescence OLEDs with high color quality and outstanding EL efficiencies simultaneously. The results demonstrates the promising application of the interlayer sensitization strategy in the construction of high-performance blue hyperfluorescence OLEDs. MR-TADF emitters are promising candidates for OLEDs with narrow EL spectra. However, many MR-TADF emitters suffer from serious triplet-involved quenching processes, which undermine EL efficiencies and cause sharp efficiency roll-offs and many current researches focus on addressing this issue by fabricating hyperfluorescence OLEDs. But for optimizing blue MR-TADF emitters, the current sensitization strategy of co-doping MR-TADF emitters with TADF sensitizers in the same wide-energy-gap host layer may not be the best option because the polarity of a single host could be not suitable for both blue TADF sensitizer and blue MR-TADF emitter. In a paper published in Light Science & Applications, a team of scientists, led by Professor Zujin Zhao from South China University of Technology, Guangzhou, China have developed an effective interlayer sensitization strategy for blue MR-TADF emitters, in which TADF sensitizer and MR-TADF emitter are separated into two adjacent emitting layers (EMLs) with different hosts, and MR-TADF emitters can be sensitized by TADF sensitizers via long-range Forster energy transfer (FET). Based on this interlayer sensitization strategy, high-performance hyperfluorescence OLEDs using different blue MR-TADF emitters and different TADF sensitizers are prepared, furnishing strong blue light with narrow EL spectra and outstanding external quantum efficiencies (EQEs) of up to 38.8%, which are apparently improved in comparison with those of unsensitized devices. These results demonstrate that this interlayer sensitization strategy is applicable for the fabrication of blue hyperfluorescence OLEDs with high EL efficiency and high color purity simultaneously. More information: Jianghui Wang et al, Promising interlayer sensitization strategy for the construction of high-performance blue hyperfluorescence OLEDs, Light: Science & Applications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41377-024-01490-6 Journal information: Light: Science & Applications Provided by Light Publishing Center, Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics And Physics, CAS 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 woman uses a fan as she walks with her companion on a hot day in Beijing, June 16, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Andy Wong, File Earth's more than year-long streak of record-shattering hot months kept on simmering through June, according to the European climate service Copernicus. There's hope that the planet will soon see an end to the record-setting part of the heat streak, but not the climate chaos that has come with it, scientists said. The global temperature in June was record warm for the 13th straight month and it marked the 12th straight month that the world was 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) warmer than pre-industrial times, Copernicus said in an early Monday announcement. "It's a stark warning that we are getting closer to this very important limit set by the Paris Agreement," Copernicus senior climate scientist Nicolas Julien said in an interview. "The global temperature continues to increase. It has at a rapid pace." That 1.5 degree temperature mark is important because that's the warming limit nearly all the countries in the world agreed upon in the 2015 Paris climate agreement, though Julien and other meteorologists have said the threshold won't be crossed until there's long-term duration of the extended heatas much as 20 or 30 years. "This is more than a statistical oddity and it highlights a continuing shift in our climate," Copernicus Director Carlo Buontempo said in a statement. Jorge Moreno, a worker, drinks flavored water to cope with the heat wave during his workday at a construction site in Veracruz, Mexico on June 17, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Felix Marquez, File The globe for June 2024 averaged 62 degrees Fahrenheit (16.66 degrees Celsius), which is 1.2 degrees (0.67 Celsius) above the 30-year average for the month, according to Copernicus. It broke the record for hottest June, set a year earlier, by a quarter of a degree (0.14 degrees Celsius) and is the third-hottest of any month recorded in Copernicus records, which goes back to 1940, behind only last July and last August. It's not that records are being broken monthly but they are being "shattered by very substantial margins over the past 13 months," Julien said. "How bad is this?" asked Texas A&M University climate scientist Andrew Dessler, who wasn't part of the report. "For the rich and for right now, it's an expensive inconvenience. For the poor it's suffering. In the future the amount of wealth you have to have to merely be inconvenienced will increase until most people are suffering." A woman cools herself with a fan during a hot day in London, June 26, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File Even without hitting the long-term 1.5-degree threshold, "we have seen the consequences of climate change, these extreme climate events," Julien saidmeaning worsening floods, storms, droughts and heat waves. June's heat hit extra hard in southeast Europe, Turkey, eastern Canada, the western United States and Mexico, Brazil, northern Siberia, the Middle East, northern Africa and western Antarctica, according to Copernicus. Doctors had to treat thousands of heatstroke victims in Pakistan last month as temperatures hit 117 (47 degrees Celsius). June was also the 15th straight month that the world's oceans, more than two-thirds of Earth's surface, have broken heat records, according to Copernicus data. Most of this heat is from long-term warming from greenhouse gases emitted by the burning of coal, oil and natural gas, Julien and other meteorologists said. An overwhelming amount of the heat energy trapped by human-caused climate change goes directly into the ocean and those oceans take longer to warm and cool. Andrea Di Miele, right, from Hoboken, N.J., puts water on his daughter, Sofia Di Miele, 10, with the Lincoln Memorial behind, June 21, 2024, in Washington. Temperatures are forecast to reach 100 degrees on Saturday. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File The natural cycle of El Ninos and La Ninas, which are warming and cooling of the central Pacific that change weather worldwide, also plays a role. El Ninos tend to spike global temperature records and the strong El Nino that formed last year ended in June. Another factor is that the air over Atlantic shipping channels is cleaner because of marine shipping regulations that reduce traditional air pollution particles, such as sulfur, that cause a bit of cooling, scientists said. That slightly masks the much larger warming effect of greenhouse gases. That "masking effect got smaller and it would temporarily increase the rate of warming'' that is already caused by greenhouse gases, said Tianle Yuan, a climate scientist for NASA and the University of Maryland Baltimore Campus who led a study on the effects of shipping regulations. Climate scientist Zeke Hausfather, of the tech company Stripes and the Berkeley Earth climate-monitoring group, said in a post on X that with all six months this year seeing record heat, "that there is an approximately 95% chance that 2024 beats 2023 to be the warmest year since global surface temperature records began in the mid-1800s." Margarita Salazar, 82, wipes the sweat off with a tissue inside her home in Veracruz, Mexico on June 16, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Felix Marquez, File Hunter Van Dyne pauses to wipe sweat from his forehead inside a hot fireworks tent as he works to set up for the opening of Powder Monkey Fireworks, in Weldon Spring, Mo., Monday, June 17, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Jeff Roberson, File A woman, center, weeps as patients of heatstroke receive treatment at a hospital in Karachi, Pakistan, June 25, 2024. June 2024 was the hottest June on record, according to Europe's Copernicus climate service on Monday, July 8. Credit: AP Photo/Fareed Khan, File Copernicus hasn't computed the odds of that yet, Julien said. The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration last month gave it a 50% chance. Global daily average temperatures in late June and early July, while still hot, were not as warm as last year, Julien said. "It is likely, I would say, that July 2024 will be colder than July 2023 and this streak will end," Julien said. "It's still not certain. Things can change." Andrew Weaver, a climate scientist at the University of Victoria, said the data show Earth is on track for 3 degrees Celsius of warming if emissions aren't urgently curtailed. And he feared that an end to the streak of record hot months and the arrival of winter's snows will mean "people will soon forget" about the danger. "Our world is in crisis," said University of Wisconsin climate scientist Andrea Dutton. "Perhaps you are feeling that crisis todaythose who live in the path of Beryl are experiencing a hurricane that is fueled by an extremely warm ocean that has given rise to a new era of tropical storms that can intensify rapidly into deadly and costly major hurricanes. Even if you are not in crisis today, each temperature record we set means that it is more likely that climate change will bring crisis to your doorstep or to your loved ones." Copernicus uses billions of measurements from satellites, ships, aircraft and weather stations around the world and then reanalyzes it with computer simulations. Several other countries' science agenciesincluding NOAA and NASAalso come up with monthly climate calculations, but they take longer, go back further in time and don't use computer simulations. 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission. 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 They glow like fading stars and have made memories of shimmering summertime backyards for generations. Whether called a firefly, glowworm, or Latinlampyridaelightning bugs are part of American life, particularly in Southern culture. They've been sung about by Taylor Swift and flown into the prose of William Faulkner. And while 40% of the world's insect species are facing extinction, no one knows how healthy the firefly species are, said Virginia Tech entomologist Eric Day. There just isn't enough data. Without more well-funded, long-term studies, Day said, it is impossible to determine the species' health or to categorize them as threatened, endangered or robust. Out of the approximately 130 species of fireflies in North America, Virginia has close to 30. "There's none that I know of that are endangered in Virginia," Day said. "There are a lot of them that the numbers are low." For many Virginia species, there's little to no preexisting data. "So, that's really the missing factor, that if we find low numbers, we don't really know what that means because there are no previous studies of it." Most scientific literature lists lightning bugs as DD: data deficient. "I don't have the funding to do firefly research. I would love to have that kind of a grant," Day said. "But that's not where the money is." Anecdotal evidence suggests, however, that firefly numbers have fallen in developed areas and remain in better shape in more rural environments. Fireflies will always be more attracted to open fields, especially those near rivers or streams. The flies are carnivorous and depend on healthy ecosystems for good hunting. They spend the early part of their lives with their legs on the ground, eating other insects and sometimes, even, slugs. The males take to the air in mass after evening temperatures rise above 70 degrees. "When they're flashing, they kind of only have one thing on their mind: Boy meets girl." Every lightning bug species has a unique flash pattern. The males will flash while in flight and the females will respond with the same pattern from the ground. Faulkner mentioned the bugs in his 1957 novel "The Town:" "Then, as though at signal, the fireflieslightning-bugs of the Mississippi child's vernacularmyriad and frenetic, random and frantic, pulsing; not questing, not quiring, but choiring as if they were tiny incessant appeaseless voices, cries, words." 2024 The Virginian-Pilot. 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: Graphical abstract. Credit: One Earth (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.oneear.2024.06.002 In a study published in One Earth on July 5, a research team led by Prof. Deng Ye from the Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences proposed the core-bacteria-forecast model (CoBacFM), which links the changes of bacterial species, soil pH, and climate change together in the global grassland ecosystem. Soil microbiota are sensitive to climate change, and are key drivers of biogeochemical processes, particularly interacting with soil pH. However, current terrestrial models often neglect microbial communities due to their complexity and high diversity. In this study, Deng and the international collaborators, including 12 research teams from six countries, devoted a great deal of time to collecting and constructing the global grassland soil microbiota dataset. "The co-authors are very willing to share their raw research data. This is very helpful in expanding the dataset," said Prof. Deng, corresponding author of the study. They found that the grassland soil pH changes under climate change can be well predicted through microbial responses. Grassland soil pH tends to increase in Northeast Asia, Africa, and Oceania, and decrease in Central North America, Southern Africa, and Eastern Asia. About one-third of the alkaline areas will become more alkaline. And the warming simulation field experiments support these predictions. "This study shows that bacterial responses can serve as bioindicators of soil pH changes, providing valuable insights for future climate adaptation strategies. The model could be expanded to other ecosystems," said Prof. Deng. More information: Kai Feng et al, CoBacFM: Core bacteria forecast model for global grassland pH dynamics under future climate warming scenarios, One Earth (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.oneear.2024.06.002 Journal information: One Earth 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 Medical schools around the country are trying to recruit Black, Hispanic, and Native American students, all of whom remain disproportionately underrepresented in the field of medicine. Research has shown that patients of color prefer seeing doctors of their own raceand some studies have shown health outcomes are better for Black patients seeing Black doctors. But a recent swell of Republican opposition threatens to upend those efforts, school administrators say, and could exacerbate deep health disparities already experienced by people of color. Since 2023the year the Supreme Court voted to outlaw affirmative action in higher educationmore than two dozen states, including Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, North Carolina, and Texas, have introduced or passed laws to restrict or ban diversity, equity, and inclusion, or DEI, programs. "I don't expect this movement of anti-DEI legislation to slow down or stop at all," said Anton Gunn, a health care consultant and former head of the Office of External Affairs at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "And it likely will exacerbate if Donald Trump gets the opportunity to be president of the United States again." Diversity programs face pushback In 2023, Florida and Texas became the first states to pass laws that banned DEI efforts in higher education. Several other states, including Idaho, North Carolina, and Wyoming, passed laws targeting such programs this year. In Mississippi, state Rep. Becky Currie and state Sen. Angela Burks Hill, both Republicans, introduced separate bills that would have restricted how colleges and universities could spend money on DEI initiatives. Both bills died in legislative committees and were not brought before the 2024 legislature for a vote. In a statement, Hill said that Mississippi needs more doctors of all kinds, not just more Black doctors, and that she thinks money spent on DEI salaries and programs should be reallocated to initiatives benefiting all students. "Qualifications should determine who gets into medical school not color or socioeconomic status," she said. "Can't we just be happy with more highly qualified doctors no matter their skin color? I thought a color blind society was the goal." Nationally, the movement to ban DEI programs has broad conservative support. Jay Greene, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, said he believes diversity programs "fail for a hundred reasons." He cited research he conducted with a conservative medical advocacy group called Do No Harm refuting the premise that access to Black doctors improves health outcomes among Black patients. "That doesn't mean there's no potential benefits for having greater diversity in the doctor workforce," Greene said. Having more Black doctors, for example, might encourage more Black children to consider a career in health care, he said. "But that benefit is not health outcomes." Meanwhile, school administrators are closely watching the progress of such laws. In March, the University of Florida eliminated all DEI programs and terminated jobs related to those efforts. In Alabama, lawyers and school leaders are grappling with a bill signed the same month by Republican Gov. Kay Ivey that bans DEI programs in public schools, state agencies, and universities starting Oct. 1. "We have to be very, very careful," said Richard deShazo, who teaches at the University of Alabama's Marnix E. Heersink School of Medicine in Birmingham and used to chair a committee that raised money for Black medical school students. "You cannot raise money for Black kids. You have to raise money for medical students," he said. A bitter history A shortage of Black doctors isn't unique to Mississippi. The same story could be told in many other places, especially across the South, where more than half of all Black Americans live and where health outcomes regularly rank among the worst in the United States. But a look at Mississippi, one of the unhealthiest states in the country, shows how the roots of systemic racism continue to shape the nation's health care workforce. "A lot of the Black physicians in the state have a bitter taste in their mouth about our medical school," said Demondes Haynes, associate dean of medical school admissions at the University of Mississippi Medical Center, where he graduated in 1999 as one of four Black students in his class. An estimated 1.1 million Black people live in Mississippi, where there are fewer than 600 Black doctors. Research suggests health outcomes would improve if there were more. One study published last year in the medical journal JAMA Network Open found that life expectancy was longer among Black patients in counties with higher ratios of Black primary care physicians. In a study based in Oakland, California, that involved more than 1,300 Black men, those who were assigned a Black doctor were more likely to agree to screening tests for diabetes, cholesterol, and other health concerns, according to the findings published in 2018 by the National Bureau of Economic Research. "We absolutely are not saying every Black patient has to have a Black doctor," Haynes said. But because the patient population in Mississippi is diverse, "they should at least have the right to say, 'This is what I want,'" he added. However, most Black patients aren't afforded that choice. Nearly two dozen of Mississippi's 82 counties have no Black doctors, while four counties claim no doctors at all, according to a physician workforce report published by the state in 2019. For more than a century, dating to its founding in the mid-1800s, the University of Mississippi didn't admit Black studentsand that policy applied to its medical school. In 1972, nearly 10 years after the Civil Rights Act of 1964 banned racial segregation in higher education, the first Black physician graduated from the medical school in Jackson. Even then, very few Black students were admitted to study medicine there each year. Before the federal government banned the school from rejecting Black applicants because of their race, aspiring Black doctors who applied were diverted to one of the historically Black colleges and universities, or HBCUs, such as Meharry Medical College in Nashville, Haynes said. Many older Black physicians in Mississippi still remember getting those rejection letters, he said, pointing out composite photographs of physician graduates that line the walls of the medical school building in Jackson. Many of the earliest composites, dating to the 1950s, showcase classes of all-white, and almost all-male, students. "Mississippi historyeverybody remembers it," Haynes said. "And those people who experienced it, it's hard for them." 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: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain Astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore spent an unexpected Fourth of July aboard the International Space Stationbut it was hardly a patriotic display of engineering prowess. The two NASA astronauts docked with the orbiting lab June 6 for what was supposed to be an eight-day mission, but their return home may be delayed for months in what has become a star-crossed test flight for Boeing's new Starliner capsule. Not only was the launch of the spacecraft with astronauts aboard for the first time repeatedly delayed because of multiple problems, but NASA and Boeing are taking a cautious approach in returning the pair to Earth largely because of five thrusters that malfunctioned during docking. Four of the tiny engines that direct the craft in space are now working properly, but engineers don't have a clear understanding of what caused the shutdown, so they have decided to conduct ground tests at NASA's White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico, NASA officials said. The tests will put a Starliner thruster through its paces in a replicated space environment. The delay also will allow engineers to further study a helium leak in the capsule's propulsion system that was first detected before launch and worsened as Starliner made its way up to the space station roughly 250 miles above Earth. The gas is used to pressurize the Starliner's propulsion system. However, both the company and space agency stressed at a news conference earlier this week that the astronauts are not stranded in space and, if need be, they could board Starliner and return to Earth immediately if there is an emergency aboard the space station. "We're not stuck on ISS. The crew is not in any danger, and there's no increased risk when we decide to bring Suni and Butch back to Earth," said Mark Nappi, manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program. Ken Bowersox, an associate administrator at NASA, said the delay will allow for the collection of more data and that there is no hurry to bring the astronauts back. "We have the luxury of time," he said. Before launch, NASA had said the batteries aboard Starliner were rated for 45 days but during the news conference they indicated they were performing well and would be rated to last another 45 days. On regular missions to service the station, Starliner would stay docked for six months. NASA and Boeing also will not have a chance to examine the thrusters or investigate the helium leak when Starliner returns since the propulsion system is jettisoned before the return to earth. Nevertheless, the desire to conduct ground tests expected to take weeks has highlighted yet again how far Arlington, Virginia-based Boeing, the world's largest aerospace company, has fallen behind Elon Musk's Hawthorne upstart SpaceXat least in the program to service the space station. Both companies were given multibillion-dollar contracts in 2014 to develop their crafts, and since 2020 Elon Musk's Hawthorne company has ferried more than half a dozen crews aboard its Crew Dragon capsule to the stationwhile Boeing has managed only two remote flights, including a first that failed to reach orbit and a second in May 2022 that docked with the orbiting lab. The current mission with astronauts aboard was scheduled to launch last year but was delayed because of the need to replace flammable tape used extensively in Starliner and a second issue with the parachute system that will slow its descent for a ground landing in the Southwest. Then, this year's May 6 launch date was repeatedly delayed, at first because of a malfunctioning valve on the Atlas V rocket that launches Starliner into space. The workhorse rocket is manufactured by United Launch Alliance, a joint venture of Boeing and Lockheed Martin. Additional launch dates were missed because of the helium leak, believed caused by a single defective seal, so software fixes were developed to work around itbut then additional leaks developed after the launch. However, NASA and Boeing officials says the craft has 10 times more helium than it needs to return to Earth. Boeing has reportedly had to absorb $1.5 billion in Starliner cost overruns, even as it continues to deal with the fallout from the two crashes of its 737 Max 8 jets in 2018 and 2019. The company is weighing whether to plead guilty to a charge of fraud over allegations it misled regulators who approved the new, larger version of the 737, including how much flight training pilots would need, according to the Associated Press. Boeing also announced plans this week to acquire Spirit AeroSystems, a key supplier it had spun off in 2005 as it moved to outsource more work on its commercial jets. Spirit supplied the fuselage of the Alaska Airline Max 9 that experienced a panel blowout Jan. 5 on its way to Ontario International Airport in San Bernardino County. Boeing's chief executive called the acquisition "in the best interest of the flying public." Meanwhile, SpaceX last month was awarded a NASA contract worth as much as $843 million to build a spacecraft to guide the International Space Station out of orbit so it can burn up in the atmosphere when it is retired in 2030. Bloomberg reported last month that the privately held company is now valued at a record $210 billion following a company tender offer to insiders that priced shares at $112. Should Starliner get certified, the dismantling of the space station would leave the spacecraft with only a handful of scheduled service flights, prompting speculation that Boeing may end the program. However, the company says it has plans for Starliner to service the Orbital Reef orbiting station in development by Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin space company. 2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. Flash Boeing will plead guilty to a criminal fraud charge related to the two crashes of its 737 Max jetliners, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) said on Sunday. Under the deal, the U.S. planemaker has agreed to pay a fine of $243.6 million to resolve the DOJ's investigation into two 737 MAX fatal crashes that killed 346 people. The decision follows the government's determination that Boeing violated an agreement shielding it from prosecution for over three years. Prosecutors accused the planemaker of deceiving regulators who approved the airplane and its pilot-training requirements. Last week, they gave Boeing the choice of either entering a guilty plea and paying a fine as part of its sentence or facing a trial on the felony charge of conspiracy to defraud the United States. As part of the deal, Boeing also agreed to spend at least $455 million over the next three years to boost safety and compliance programs. The DOJ said in a court filing that it and Boeing are working to document the full written plea agreement and file it in federal court in Texas by July 19. 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 restored oyster reef in a sanctuary in the James River, Maryland. Credit: Fisheries Conservation Lab, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center In the campaign to restore Chesapeake Bay, oyster sanctuaries rank among the most hotly contested strategies. But new research suggests these no-harvest areas are working, and not only for the oysters. In a new study published July 4 in Marine Ecology Progress Series, Smithsonian biologists have discovered that oyster sanctuaries contain more abundant populations of oysters and other animal lifeand the presence of two common parasites is not preventing that. Oysters form the backbone of Chesapeake Bay. Besides injecting millions of dollars into the regional economy each year, they also act as vital habitat and filter feeders that clean the water. But their populations have dwindled to roughly 1% of historic levels. Disease, overharvesting, habitat loss and pollution have all whittled down their numbers. Over the past two decades, Maryland and Virginia have worked to restore their oysters by creating vast networks of sanctuaries where oysters are protected from harvest. This has led to a rebound of oyster growth, habitat quality and biodiversity within the sanctuaries, the new study reported. "The sanctuary programs appear to be working and facilitating oyster reef regrowth after so many decades of overharvesting," said lead author Zofia Anchondo, who did the research as part of her graduate fellowship with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. But at the same time, the resurgence in marine life went hand in hand with a rise in oyster parasites. The study looked at two parasites in particular: the boring sponge and the mud blister worm. Boring sponges drill holes through oyster shells to find shelter. Blister worms form U-shaped burrows inside the shells. The presence of either can render oysters unsightly or even unmarketable. Both are considered likely native to the bay, and neither are harmful to people. For this study, the researchers did not look at dermo or MSX, two non-native parasites responsible for some of the worst oyster crashes, though they collected data for a follow-up study. Parasitism is the most common lifestyle on Earth, so a parasite's presence is not necessarily a sign that the environment is out of joint, the authors pointed out. "Parasites have been ignored as an important component of biodiversity," said Allison Tracy, a co-author from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County and the University of Maryland School of Medicine. "But they're a natural part of ecosystems. The way ecosystems naturally function depends on parasite effects." A striped bass, also known as a rockfish, swims above an oyster reef in Chesapeake Bay. Credit: Fisheries Conservation Lab, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center "They're not preventing high oyster densities," said Matt Ogburn, a co-author and senior scientist with the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. They may even be good for the oysters' long-term evolution, Ogburn added, though that question needs more definitive research. "Restoring the oyster reefs is likely to be helping the oyster population become more resilient to the parasites that are out there now, compared to what would be possible if everything was harvested all the time." The new study focused on three Chesapeake tributaries: the Choptank River, the Great Wicomico River and the James River. Each had its own oyster sanctuary and another harvest area for comparison, where watermen and -women could freely catch oysters. The scientists used footage from underwater GoPro cameras to give each reef a habitat "score" (one through four, based on the percentage of oyster cover and vertical structure). The GoPro videos also enabled them to record other animals visiting the oyster reefs. Working under state research permits, divers later collected some of the oysters from each reef to estimate oyster density and search for parasites. Overall, oysters fared better in the sanctuaries. All three tributaries had higher densities of legal, harvest-sized oysters in their sanctuaries than in their harvest sites. In two tributariesthe James and Great Wicomico riversoysters of all sizes, including juveniles and baby oysters, were more abundant in the sanctuaries. Allison Tracy deploys a camera rig with GoPros attached to survey oyster reefs underwater. Credit: Fisheries Conservation Lab, Smithsonian Environmental Research Center Sanctuaries also scored higher for habitat quality, and the videos captured plenty of underwater animals taking advantage of them. Blue crabs, rockfish and summer flounder were just a few of the species that flocked to the sanctuary reefs. In the James and Great Wicomico rivers, the researchers estimated sanctuaries hosted 10 times as many animals, and nearly double the number of species, as the harvest reefs. The one exception was the Choptank River, where animal life was low in both the sanctuary and harvest sites. Yet as the oysters flourished, so did the two parasites. More than half the oysters in all six sitessanctuary and harvesthad the telltale holes of a boring sponge attack. However, the boring sponge was more prevalent in sanctuaries than in harvest sites within two of the three tributaries. Mud blister worms were far less abundantinfecting 210% of oystersbut still higher in sanctuaries than harvest sites for two of the tributaries. Neither parasite, the authors pointed out, is dangerous to humans. Both parasites only infect oyster shells, not the oyster tissue that people eat. Matt Ogburn on a tagging expedition. Credit: Jay Fleming/Smithsonian Institution "It's more of a concern for the fishery, because they can make the shells less attractive," Tracy said. "It can decrease the value of the oyster for the half-shell market. But they have no effect on our health." In the unlikely event that a person did accidentally slurp up one of these parasites with their raw oyster, Tracy said, it would simply pass through their system without impact: "There's no shell that it can find to bore into in your stomach. So basically, it would be uninterested." More information: ZB Anchondo et al, Reefs in no-take reserves host more oysters, macroparasites, and macrofauna than harvested reefs across an estuarine salinity gradient, Marine Ecology Progress Series (2024). DOI: 10.3354/meps14615 Journal information: Marine Ecology Progress Series Provided by Smithsonian 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: Comparison of reconstructed tropical surface, tropical subsurface and deep ocean temperatures during the Eocene. Credit: Fokkema et al. 2024. Polar regions are known to be warming at an enhanced rate compared to lower latitudes, with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change citing a ~5 C increase in air temperature over Arctic land masses during the 20th century and the highest rates of ~1 C per decade since the 1980s. Clearly, this so-called "polar amplification" of warming, defined as the ratio of high-latitude (>60 N/S) to low-latitude (<30 N/S) warming, is a significant issue not only affecting the organisms calling polar regions home, but also how this impacts the rest of the planet. Specifically, land and sea ice in the Arctic and Antarctic has a prominent role in modulating climate through ice-albedo feedbacks. This occurs due to ice being 'white,' thus reflecting incoming solar radiation and helping to maintain both temperature and ice masses. However, as climate warms and ice melts, more of the comparatively darker land and sea surface is exposed, which absorbs the incoming solar radiation, warming the ambient environment further and causing additional melting, and so the loop continues. Such a feedback loop poses concerns for the future of our polar regions, but it is not the only mechanism by which an ice-free world can occur, as changes in atmospheric moisture and clouds can impact radiation. It is, in fact, unclear how much albedo and atmospheric processes contribute to polar amplification, which also poses large uncertainties for the magnitude of future polar warming and ice melt. Fortunately, we can look to the geological past to analyze a period in which Earth was ice free. This excludes large ice-albedo changes as a driving force, so that all polar amplification was caused by atmospheric processes. Such a period is known from the Eocene, particularly the earliest part of the Ypresian, which occurred ~4856 million years ago (Ma), and saw mean surface temperatures rising 1016 C above pre-Industrial Revolution levels. New research published in Climate of the Past has now quantified polar amplification of global climate variability that was caused by variations in the Earth's orbit around the sun (Milankovitch cycles), particularly during a succession of short-lived (<200,000 year-long) warming events known as hyperthermals. These include the Paleocene-Eocene Thermal Maximum (~56 Ma) and Eocene Thermal Maximum 2 (~54 Ma). Doctoral researcher Chris Fokkema, of Utrecht University, Netherlands, explains the importance of studying polar amplification, particularly during this interval of Earth's history, "At present, polar amplification is a key uncertainty in predictions of future climate warming, with latest IPCC model estimates ranging from factor 2 to 4. Polar warming has global consequences, because ice sheet melting causes sea level rise, but also because permafrost thaw can release large quantities of carbon dioxide. "Two factors dominantly control polar amplificationice-albedo and atmospheric feedbackswhich cannot be easily separated since both are active in the modern era. Data to validate theory will have to come from paleoclimate. To quantify the non-ice-albedo-related polar amplification feedbacks, here we reconstructed polar amplification in the ice-free climate state of the early Eocene. "Previously, this was only possible on multi-million year timescales (very far from present climate change) because no tropical sea surface temperature record of higher resolution was available. Here, we solved this issue by generating a ~4,000-year resolution sea surface temperature record at a tropical location." For these hyperthermal intervals, the temperature variations of the high latitude oceans were already known from temperature reconstructions of the deep ocean, which, as in the modern era, derived from high latitudes during the Eocene. The missing piece to assess polar amplification was Eocene sea surface temperature reconstructions from the tropics. Therefore, Fokkema and colleagues have used cell membrane lipid biomarkers from Nitrososphaera microorganisms to resolve this. This relationship of microorganisms as recorders of temperature from the geological past is based upon the TEX 86 paleothermometer. Fokkema further reveals how this process works: "This method is based on analyzing the membrane lipids of archaea (Nitrososphaera) that live near the ocean surface. The simple principle behind this method is that these archaea produce relatively more rings in their membrane lipid molecules at higher ambient temperatures, to retain their membrane rigidity. These molecules are preserved very well in the sediments after they reach the ocean floor, which makes it possible for us to extract them out of ancient marine sediments. "We measured the relative occurrence of these different structures of membrane lipids in our sediment samples, which was then related to a sea surface temperature by using present-day relationships. We chose the TEX 86 method because these lipids were abundant in these unique sediments and the method works well to reconstruct the warm temperatures >36 C of the early Eocene tropics." The scientists analyzed sediments from Ocean Drilling Program cores in the tropical Atlantic Ocean off the coast of North Africa (Site 959) and found that temperature variability in the tropics was time-equivalent with that at high latitudes during the hyperthermals, but also across Milankovitch cycles, providing strong evidence that these variations were global. This proves a link between the orbital cycles, global temperature variability and the carbon content of the atmosphere. Given all of this, the scientists attribute orbital forcing as a major driver of changes in the carbon cycle, which relates to the input of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere that exacerbates global warming. They cite soils, peats, permafrost and methane hydrates as potential major sources of the carbon release. The research team also identified that high latitude ocean temperatures during hyperthermals and orbital cycles varied about two times (1.7 to 2.3) stronger than the tropical surface ocean, therefore implying warmer polar regions. So even during the ice-free Eocene, high latitudes warmed and cooled twice as much as tropical regions, without ice-albedo feedbacks, suggesting strong atmospheric feedbacks. Furthermore, because of polar amplification, the temperature gradient between the pole-derived deep ocean waters and tropical sea surface temperature was lower during hyperthermals. Global mean sea surface temperature for the Eocene hyperthermals increased ~11.5 C during the events, which is comparable to modern rates of ~1 C. Fokkema and colleagues then compared this Eocene polar amplification factor with that calculated by the same climate models that are used to project future climate change, but then adapted for Eocene geography and ice-free conditions. This showed that models underestimate polar amplification (1.11.3x). Consequently, this may imply that models underestimate the impact of warming in the Arctic and Antarctic. Understanding how polar amplification may progress in the future is vital to assess how thawing of permafrost and melting of ice sheets may influence sea level rise, as well as the carbon cycle. "Our new study shows that the current warming is already on the same scale of some of these hyperthermals, which strongly impacted climate and oceans," Fokkema concludes. "By comparing this new record to previously published open ocean bottom water temperatures we were able to calculate polar amplification on short timescales during multiple orbitally-forced global temperature changes. "We found a polar amplification factor of 2. Interestingly, this is slightly larger than the polar amplification that climate models predict in an ice-free, early Eocene world, which may imply that climate models underestimate polar warming for the future." More information: Chris D. Fokkema et al, Polar amplification of orbital-scale climate variability in the early Eocene greenhouse world, Climate of the Past (2024). DOI: 10.5194/cp-20-1303-2024 Journal information: Climate of the Past 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: The figure illustrates that the shift to organic farming methods is not linear, but that training measures can accelerate the process. Credit: Dr Nathalie Luck, University of Passau For several years, a team of economists from the University of Passau has been investigating in Indonesia which measures are effective in ensuring that sustainable farming methods are used in the long term. They found that training, soil testing and awareness-raising are inexpensive and effective ways to support the process. Indonesia is feeling the effects of intensive agriculture: soils have lost their fertility, pesticide residues are polluting food and groundwater. For several years, politicians and non-governmental organizations have therefore been trying to encourage a shift to sustainable farming methodswith little success so far. "The measures are not targeted enough and do not appeal to smallholders," says Professor Michael Grimm, holder of the Chair of Development Economics at the University of Passau. Together with his former colleague Dr. Nathalie Luck, he has investigated in various projects over the past few years whether specific training and awareness-raising measures can accelerate this process. The team examined whether farmers are more willing to adopt organic farming methods when they know more about them and recognize that this improves soil quality. The researchers have been following more than 1,100 farmers in 60 villages in three different districts of Yogyakarta and Tasikmalaya provinces for six years. From 2018 to 2023, the economists conducted a total of four waves of data collection and a randomized field experiment with a treatment group that received training measures and a control group that was not trained. The findings at a glance: The transition to organic farming methods is not linear. There are "early adopters," "dis-adopters," who start, stop in between and start again later, and "late adopters." Practicing the methods in a group setting is important. There has been a slump in some places as a result of the contact bans due to the pandemic, when farmers' organizations no longer come together. The likelihood of farmers using sustainable methods increases if they have received training with practical exercises and are sufficiently sensitized to the problems. The use of organic fertilizer without manure is 17 percentage points higher among farmers who have taken part in the training than in the control group. In comparison to the control group they also significantly reduce the use of nitrogen. Training programs are even more effective when they are combined with soil tests and the farmers see that the soil quality improves. "The data show that over time, a certain level of knowledge and awareness of the problem is built and the adoption of sustainable practices increases," says Professor Grimm. However, the studies suggest that in some cases the effect of the training wears off after just one year. "To achieve a lasting effect, we need more measures and support from local extension workers, who should carry out regular soil tests," says Dr. Luck. Provided by Universitat Passau 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 Future European Union housing policy must address the twin challenges of providing adequate housing for all while drastically reducing current levels of resource use. Voluntary reductions in living space could make a significant contribution to achieving these goals. To facilitate this, the EU should promote the construction of smaller apartments set in attractive neighborhoods and enable the more flexible use of existing housing stock, according to a new study published in Buildings & Cities co-authored by scientists from the Research Institute for SustainabilityHelmholtz Center Potsdam (RIFS). "Construction and energy use in housing are major contributors to climate change. Reducing per capita living space would reduce related greenhouse gas emissions, in particular from heating. We wanted to understand the conditions in which this could occur in Europe," explains RIFS Director Doris Fuchs, co-author of the study. The researchers investigated the acceptance, motivation, and anticipated effects of voluntary reduction in living space in five EU countries: Germany, Latvia, Sweden, Spain and Hungary. The research was conducted under the auspices of the EU 1.5 Lifestyles consortium, which is coordinated by the RIFS. A number of questions are addressed in the study, including: What could motivate Europeans to live in smaller spaces? What impact would downsizing have on neighborhood and community engagement or consumption practices, for example? What changes in society could improve people's well-being in smaller living spaces? The researchers gained insights through interactive workshops with citizens and stakeholders from civil society, science, business, politics and the media in the five countries. Few citizens willing to voluntarily downsize living space In Europe the average per capita living space increased by 16% between 2000 and 2018. However, there are major differences between the individual countries: In Latvia, the average per capita living space is 29.6 square meters, whereas in Sweden it is 48.7 square meters. "Nevertheless, respondents in all countries expressed similar concerns about downsizing their living spacein particular that it would result in a loss of personal freedom and privacyand described housing markets as challenging. Home-owners widely view their properties as long-term investments that confer a particular social status," says first author Matthias Lehner (Lund University). At 42%, the willingness to reduce living space was highest among workshop participants in Spain, while in Hungary just 15% of participants expressed a willingness to downsize. Communal living arrangements were even less popular than smaller apartments across all of the countries studied. Hungarian participants cited negative experiences of communal living during the Soviet era as a relevant factor. Enabling environments could encourage compact living Despite the many challenges involved, European citizens would be willing to embrace smaller living under the right circumstances, explains Fuchs. "Many participants expressed a preference for centrally-located apartments in green, friendly, and safe neighborhoods with access to services and leisure facilities, coupled with communal amenities and public spaces to compensate for the reduction in private living space and improve their overall quality of life." According to the researchers, if the EU wants to promote a reduction in per capita living space, it should encourage the construction of smaller apartments in neighborhoods that afford citizens a good quality of life. Measures could also be introduced to facilitate the more efficient use existing housing stock, for example by dividing or merging apartments for different household sizes, promoting shared apartments, and improving sustainability through renovations. This would require appropriate legislation and economic incentives for construction and planning. The study also notes that "soft values" are important in building a good community, and politicians should support initiatives aimed at fostering social cohesion and inclusion. More information: Matthias Lehner et al, Living smaller: acceptance, effects and structural factors in the EU, Buildings & Cities (2024). DOI: 10.5334/bc.438 Provided by Forschungsinstitut fur Nachhaltigkeit Helmholtz-Zentrum Potsdam 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 schematic illustration of size-tunable PEG-grafted copolymers (gPEGs) for optimizing the passive glioblastoma multiforme (GBM)targeting. MW, molecular weight; BBTB, bloodbrain tumor barrier; i.v., intravenous; RES, reticuloendothelial system. Credit: Kanjiro Miyata's Lab Currently, there is no effective treatment for glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most frequent and malignant type of brain tumor. Some low molecular weight antitumor agents are used to permeate the gaps between endothelial cells in the BBTB (bloodbrain tumor barrier), which is a characteristic blood vessel structure and formed by the partial collapse of the bloodbrain barrier, but they are rapidly excreted from the kidneys, resulting in low GBM accumulation. Additionally, their nonspecific distribution in healthy tissues often induces severe side effects such as myelosuppression and immunosuppression. It is known that 30100 nm-sized nanomedicines avoid rapid renal excretion and increase drug accumulation efficiency in some tumor models. However, the GBM accumulation level of such nanomedicines remains limited, presumably because of the relatively low blood vessel permeability in the BBTB. Now, the Innovation Center of NanoMedicine (iCONM) has announced with the Graduate School of Engineering of The University of Tokyo that a group led by Prof. Kanjiro Miyata, Visiting Scientist of iCONM (Professor, Department of Materials Engineering, The University of Tokyo), has found that the threshold for tissue permeability of brain tumors is in the range of 1030 nm, using a nanoruler, which is a biocompatible polymer used for measurement of gaps in the body. In particular, when the size of the nanoruler is adjusted to 10 nm, it achieves an unprecedentedly high brain tumor accumulation. Obtained results have provided significant guidance for the design of future brain tumor nanomedicine. Miyata and the team studied size-dependent GBM targetability using a size-tunable stealth polymer, termed a "polymeric nanoruler," and reported the results in the journal Bioconjugate Chemistry. Small gPEGs exhibited efficient brain tumor accumulation, with 10 nm of gPEGs achieving the highest accumulation level (19 times higher than that in the normal brain region and 4.2 times higher than that of 30 nm of gPEGs), presumably because of the optimal size associated with enhanced BBTB permeability and prolonged blood circulation. In conclusion, this study explored the size effect of nanomedicine on passive GBM targeting with size-tunable poly(ethylene glycol)-grafted copolymers (gPEGs) as polymeric nanorulers (ranging from 8.5 to 30 nm). Miyata will report on the drug conjugation and optimization for the enhanced GBM-targeted drug delivery in future work. Overall, this study provides a useful molecular design to develop GBM-targeted nanomedicines for chemotherapy, radiation therapy, photodynamic/thermal therapy, and diagnostics. More information: Yukine Ishibashi et al, Size-Dependent Glioblastoma Targeting by Polymeric Nanoruler with Prolonged Blood Circulation, Bioconjugate Chemistry (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acs.bioconjchem.4c00235 Journal information: Bioconjugate Chemistry Provided by Innovation Center of NanoMedicine 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: It depicts the generation of mouse and cattle cholangiocyte organoids, and the complete development of Cryptosporidium parvum in vitro.. Credit: Yaoyu Feng, South China Agricultural University In a paper published in hLife, a team of Chinese scientists describes simple procedures for generating mouse and bovine cholangiocyte organoids (Chol-orgs) and establishing an in vitro system for culturing Cryptosporidium and transcriptomic studies of biliary cryptosporidiosis. This study is led by Prof. Feng (College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural University) and Prof. Xiao (College of Veterinary Medicine, South China Agricultural University). The team established a culture system for the cultivation of Cryptosporidium parvum derived from mouse and bovine cholangiocyte organoids (Chol-orgs). Cryptosporidium parvum is a protozoan parasite that causes gastrointestinal disease in humans and animals worldwide. Infection is usually self-limited in immunocompetent individuals, but is a major problem in immunocompromised hosts and a serious health risk in AIDS patients. C. parvum can infect the epithelial cells lining the gallbladder and bile ducts, resulting in sclerosing cholangitis. However, studies of the mechanisms and host-pathogen interactions are severely limited by the lack of accessible cultures and models of biliary cryptosporidiosis. This team described simple procedures for the generation of mouse and bovine Chol-orgs, and the establishment of an in vitro model of biliary cryptosporidiosis. Chol-orgs expressing stem and biliary cell markers could be maintained for more than three months and stored in liquid nitrogen for more than a year. The Chol-orgs allow the complete development of C. parvum in vitro, producing oocysts that are infectious to mice. In RNA-seq analysis, C. parvum upregulates host immune and inflammatory responses, and downregulates metabolic and signaling pathways involved in cell growth and proliferation. The results of this study provide a convenient method to study Cryptosporidium-host interactions and biliary cryptosporidiosis. The cholangiocyte organoid culture system will greatly facilitate further studies on the pathogenesis and effective therapies for AIDS cholangiopathy and other liver infections. More information: Miner Deng et al, A cholangiocyte organoid system for Cryptosporidium parvum cultivation and transcriptomic studies of biliary cryptosporidiosis, hLife (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.hlife.2024.05.001 Provided by Tsinghua University Press Atlantic County Police Academy recruits received instruction on victimology response, investigation and prosecution of domestic violence from the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office on Wednesday at the Anthony "Tony" Canale Training Center in Egg Harbor Township. The recruits were given an overview of domestic violence, including the cycle of violence that exists within an abusive relationship, response modalities and resources available to victims. Domestic violence is a common call for police officers and frequently a contributing factor in future violent crimes, the Prosecutor's Office said Monday in a news release. The presentation, led by Assistant Prosecutor Joseph Remy and forensic nurse examiner coordinator Sarah McGaffney, also examined nonfatal strangulation, as well as a multidisciplinary effort led by the New Jersey Attorney General's Office known by the acronym BREATHE (Breathing/blood flow Restriction Event/Advocacy/Treatment/Help/Empowerment). McGaffney said the training should help recruits identify the core red flags of domestic violence and how to help protect victims. Strangulation is the fourth most common cause of homicide in the U.S., and even if it is a nonfatal incident, the effect can last a lifetime, she said, so detection is critical. "Having every member from the BREATHE Team respond to a strangulation/smothering event can remove the victim from a dangerous environment, give a full head-to-toe physical assessment with medical imaging, thorough evidence collection and provide resources and therapies available to them," McGaffney said. Flash At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President Umaro Sissoco Embalo of the Republic of Guinea-Bissau will pay a state visit to China from July 9 to 13, foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying announced on Monday. During the visit, Xi will host a welcoming ceremony and a banquet for Embalo and the two heads of state will hold talks, Lin Jian, another spokesperson for the foreign ministry, told a press briefing on Monday. Premier Li Qiang will also meet with Embalo, Lin said. Lin noted that the Chinese people firmly supported the people of Guinea-Bissau in their struggle for national independence and liberation in the 1970s. In recent years, the two countries have firmly supported each other on issues concerning each other's core interests, conducted cooperation in economic and social development, maintained communication and coordination in international affairs, and continuously scored new achievements in friendly relations, Lin said. It is believed that this visit will inject strong impetus into deepening relations between China and Guinea-Bissau and promoting bilateral friendly cooperation, he added. New Jersey public schools are suspending Black and Hispanic students at a higher rate than white students, according to a new state report. The report, looking at the 2022-23 school year, is the first time the state has released demographic data for district- and school-level discipline. Schools were required to submit the data to the state under a law that took effect this year. Previously, only statewide data were available. Its important that we get the data so we are not guessing, said state Sen. Andrew Zwicker (D., Somerset), the bills sponsor. Now we have the data. It is clearly showing that there is a racial disparity in disciplinary action. The findings largely follow national trends that have shown disproportionate discipline for some students of color compared with the same actions committed by their white peers. Although Black students constitute only 15.5% of the states student population, they account for 29.8% of referrals from schools to law enforcement, and 28.9% of arrests in schools, according to the Department of Education. Joe Johnson, policy counsel for ACLU-NJ, attributes the disparity to racial bias. There are at least a dozen New Jersey cases alleging discriminatory discipline under investigation by the U.S. Department of Educations Office of Civil Rights. Johnson said he was troubled by the reports finding that Black students were not only suspended more often, but also reported to law enforcement. Nearly half of the more than 10,000 incidents statewide reported to police were not mandatory referrals, such as assaults and weapons offenses, and resulted in 552 arrests, the report found. In an ideal world, the police would only be involved when they are required, said Johnson, who pushed for the demographics law. There is work to be done to determine why there are so many referrals. Troubled Hammonton nursing home placed under receivership after owners miss deadline A Superior Court judge has appointed an independent receiver to run a Hammonton nursing home after its owners failed to give up financial control of the facility by a June 17 deadline, the Office of the State Comptroller said. According to the report, 61,132 students total were suspended at least once, with 44,261 getting an out-of-school suspension. Most suspended students were suspended once for less than a week of school, although many were suspended several times. According to statewide figures, 9% of Black students were suspended in the 2022-23 school year, a share more than three times higher than the 2.7% of white students suspended. More than 4% of Hispanic students and 1.2% of Asian and Pacific Islander students were suspended statewide. (District-level and school-level data are available at the Department of Educations website.) At Collingswood Public Schools, a district that made headlines in the spring when high school students allegedly organized a white student union, the percentage of Black students suspended was 7.2 times higher than white students, with 19.5% of Black students suspended and only 2.7% of white students suspended, an Inquirer analysis found of the 2022-23 report. The percentage of Hispanic students suspended (5.9%) was 2.2 times higher than white students. The school had an overall rate of 6.5%, or 146, of its students suspended. Said Mary Anne Degenhart, cofounder of Embracing Race, a Collingswood-based group that organizes conversations about race: Surprised and disappointed. I cant say shocked, Degenhart said. Collingswood Superintendent Fred McDowell said the Camden County district has restructured its leadership team and created a position for a director of school culture who aligns social-emotional learning. The district also plans to develop a restorative practices conduct guide. We seek to reimagine our current practices and behavioral responses with a restorative lens to maximize the time all students are in class, McDowell said in a statement. Naimah Howard, a mother in Gloucester County who fought to get her daughter readmitted to Kingsway Regional High School after she was given a long-term suspension, welcomed the report. Her daughter, who is Black, was suspended the entire 2023-24 school year. Black students at the district were suspended at a rate 3.3 times higher than white students in 2022-23, according to the report. South Jersey student suspended for a year must be allowed back in school, state official rules A South Jersey student suspended for the entire school year and placed on home instruction because of a cafeteria fight must be allowed back in school immediately, acting state Education Commissioner Kevin Dehmer has ruled. Howard has contended her daughter, Sania Anderson, was viewed as a threat to the school community. It definitely confirms what I already knew, Howard said. I felt she was excluded because she is Black. Kingsway officials did not return a request to comment on the report. At Clayton Public School District, where the percentage of Black students (4%) suspended was 4.4 times the percentage of white students (0.9%), Superintendent Nick Koutsogiannis acknowledged that the data suggests disparities in disciplinary actions, and this is not something we take lightly. The district recently received a grant to expand counseling services and provide more professional development for staff. We are committed to taking concrete actions to address these disparities and to ensure that our discipline policies are fair and just for all students, Koutsogiannis said in a statement. Black students at Haddon Heights are 5.3 times more likely to be suspended than white students, according to the report. Haddon Heights Superintendent Carla Bittner said the districts strategic plan includes a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion, and the system continues to make changes to reflect those efforts, including removing traditional barriers for students who are interested in taking honors and AP courses. Rancocas Valley Regional High School District saw 14.3% of its students suspended in 2022-23, with Black students suspended 3.4 times the percentage that white students were suspended, and Hispanic students suspended 3.1 times the percentage of white students. Superintendent Christopher Heilig cautioned against using the demographics to compare schools. The numbers fail to present a full picture of the climate and culture of every school, he said. We fear that a summary report of this data creates dangerous misperceptions about the state of many of our New Jersey schools and the intentions of our educators and, ultimately, threatens support for and progress of many initiatives in motion to address equity, Heilig said. Heilig said his district, based in Mount Holly, has stepped up efforts in recent years to improve equity and has worked with focus groups that include students who may feel underrepresented. The district is among 15 nationwide to participate in a collaboration by the National Center for Safe Supportive Schools to promote equity and student well-being, he said. Absecon man found guilty of driving with suspended license for prior DUIs An Absecon man accused of driving while his license was suspended for a previous driving under the influence charge six years ago was found guilty Tuesday, the Atlantic County Prosecutor's Office said. Here are some other takeaways from the School Safety and Discipline Report: Boys were five times more likely than girls to be restrained or secluded. For the first time, state law requires districts to provide information on the use of physical restraint and seclusion techniques, which Johnson called an eye-opener. According to the report, 2,470 students, mostly those with disabilities, were subjected to restraint or seclusion at least once. The report said restraint or seclusions should not be used as disciplinary action, but may be appropriate if a students behavior poses an imminent danger to the student or others. The report provides information on how many students were restrained, secluded or both. According to the report, male students were five times more likely than female students to be subjected to restraint or seclusion. Although more white students were restrained or secluded than any other racial group, a greater proportion of Black students were subjected to restraint or seclusion. Preschoolers through second graders were more likely to be restrained or secluded than other students. A large portion of harassment and bullying incidents happened in middle schools. Most harassment, intimidation and bullying incidents occurred on school grounds with nearly half of the 9,011 occurrences experienced in middle schools, the report said. Schools are imposing disciplinary action other than suspension for HIB offenders, the report said. The most common remedial action for offenders and victims is counseling, the report said. Hammonton nursing home faces looming financial crisis over fraud concerns The fate of residents at a nursing home and rehabilitation facility in Hammonton is up in the air as New Jersey officials investigate whether the facilitys owners engaged in Medicaid fraud here. Asian and Black students were more likely than other students to be targeted because of their race, the report said, as well as students with disabilities, and those targeted because of their gender identity and expression, the report said. The state urged districts to review their data and take proactive steps. The ACLU plans to push to have the discipline demographics included in the states annual school performance report issued for every district, to make it readily available to the public as mandated by the law, Johnson said. The state urged districts to review their disciplinary action and compare the findings to state-level results to consider whether any proactive steps are needed. Johnson said districts should examine how their policies have contributed to the racial disparities. In a statement, a spokesman for New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said the state plans to continue to work with schools and take enforcement action if necessary to ensure that disciplinary policies and practices do not discriminate against students based on race, national origin, or any other protected characteristic. The office issued a guide last August on steps schools should take to ensure that their policies treat all students fairly. If you have wide disparities in discipline based on race, you have a real problem in your district, Zwicker said. No matter what, its unacceptable. You need to do better. The U.S. Forest Service's method of calculating road density and closing roads in the Flathead National Forest, along with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's analysis of the issue, have been deemed illegal under the Endangered Species Act for a second time because of potential harm to grizzly bears and bull trout. Nonprofits Swan View Coalition and Friends of the Swan, represented by Earthjustice environmental law firm, sued the Forest Service and Fish and Wildlife Service over the Forest Service's revised management plan for the Flathead, often called a forest plan, and FWS' analysis of whether and how components of the plan related to road closures, road density calculations and culvert removal would harm grizzlies and bull trout. The lawsuit was the second the groups have brought over the issue. The Swan View Coalition, Friends of the Swan and WildEarth Guardians first sued in April 2019 over the revised Flathead plan, which the Forest Service adopted in December 2018. In 2021, U.S. District Judge Don Molloy ruled that the Forest Service and FWS violated the Endangered Species Act by watering down road density and closure standards and culvert removal requirement, and failing to properly analyze or justify the impacts of the changed standards. Molloy let the plan remain in place but ordered the agencies to revisit the issues and remedy deficiencies. Swan View Coalition and Friends of the Swan appealed the decision to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The 9th Circuit dismissed the appeal in June 2023, ruling the issue moot because FWS had by then released its revised analysis of the issue, as Molloy had ordered. But the groups believed the revised analysis and Biological Opinion from FWS, which the Forest Service relied upon in its forest plan, held many of the same deficiencies as the original. Swan View Coalition and Friends of the Swan filed the new lawsuit over the revised Biological Opinion in 2022, before their original appeal was dismissed, bringing many of the same issues back anew before a federal judge in Missoula. The latest decision in the matter came as a ruling in that lawsuit. In a 49-page order signed June 28, U.S. District Court Judge Dana Christensen found that the Forest Service and FWS continued to violate the ESA, even with the revised Biological Opinion ordered in the prior lawsuit. "The government admits that illegal use of closed roads is a chronic problem, but has twice failed to account for those additional impacts to threatened grizzly bears," Keith Hammer, chair of Swan View Coalition, wrote in a statement. "We are pleased that the court has again sent the agencies back to the drawing board." The Forest Service does not comment on litigation. Density dispute The underlying issue in the cases was how the Forest Service handles and classifies disused roads on the forest and whether those roads figure into calculations of road density. Grizzly bears tend to die in or disperse from roaded forests, according to numerous studies collected by the Interagency Grizzly Bear Committee and FWS. Grizzly sow and cub survival generally falls when the density of open roads surpasses 0.64 miles of road per square mile of land. Runoff from road surfaces, particularly when roads go unmaintained, and culverts that allow streams to pass under roads can harm bull trout and degrade their habitat. Most of the Flathead National Forest 2.1 million of a total 2.4 million acres falls within grizzlies' Primary Conservation Area, or PCA. The Flathead's portion of the PCA accounts for 37% of the entire Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem PCA for the species, which is listed as threatened under the ESA. The Northern Continental Divide Ecosystem, home to more that 1,000 grizzlies, is one of two successful ecosystems, alongside the Greater Yellowstone, targeted for grizzly recovery under the ESA. The Flathead also contains "12 bull trout core areas of the Columbia Headwater Recovery Unit and contains designated bull trout critical habitat in four sub-units of the Clark Fork River Basin Critical Habitat Unit," according to Christensen's ruling. The Forest Service amended the Flathead's original 1986 forest plan in 1995 to specify standards for calculating density of open roads and all roads, open or not, on the forest. Amendment 19 required that open motorized road density not exceed 1 mile of open road per square mile in the PCA for grizzly bears. Total motorized road density was not to exceed 2 miles per square mile in the PCA. Amendment 19 also set a threshold for when a disused road could be excluded altogether from total road density calculations. A road had to be fully "reclaimed" that is, "treated in such a manner so as to no longer function as a road or trail and has a legal closure order until reclamation is effective." Reclamation, per Amendment 19, required that culverts be removed entirely, the road bed be regraded to match the natural contours of the terrain, natural debris be placed sporadically across the former road, and natural plants grown along the former road. The first 200600 feet must also "be treated in such a manner so as to preclude its use as a motorized or non-motorized travel way." In other words, a road could only be excluded from road density calculations if the full length of the road had been reclaimed to a natural condition and made virtually impossible to use. Reclaimed roads were not considered for reopening or any future use. The 2018 plan retained the numeric limits on road density but scrapped Amendment 19's standards for excluding a road from density calculations in favor of what conservation groups argued, and courts have twice agreed, is a less-stringent standard that likely leads to greater-than-allowed road density and usage in practice. Rather than a road needing to be completely reclaimed to be discounted from density calculations, the revised forest plan stated that a road merely be made "impassable" to be excluded. Impassable roads need only be blocked at the start with a road-closure device and could remain in the forest's road inventory if the Forest Service intended to use the road again in the future. And, critical to bull trout, the revised plan did away with the requirement for culvert removal along disused roads. So, under the new plan, a road need only be closed off, rather than fully reclaimed, to be excluded from road density calculations. But road closures are often ineffective. A Swan View Coalition survey released in May 2023 found only a 65% efficacy rate for road closures, such as berms or gates, across the Flathead National Forest. A survey by FWS found that road closure efficacy on the Flathead ranged from 90% to 97%, with a forest-wide average of 92%. However, in a separate recent ESA case against the Forest Service over roads in grizzly habitat, Alliance for the Wild Rockies v. Marten, Forest Service law enforcement records introduced as evidence showed that road closure devices on the Helena-Lewis & Clark National Forest were effective only 43% of the time. And a 2004 survey submitted as evidence in the current Flathead lawsuit found that road closures were only 37.5% effective. When developing a specific project or revising a forest plan, the Forest Service must consult FWS, the agency that oversees species protected under the ESA, to determine whether, how and to what degree a Forest Service proposal will harm protected species. FWS releases a Biological Opinion outlining its assessment, which the Forest Service then relies on in crafting and justifying its action. Despite acknowledging a variety of surveys indicating the efficacy, or lack thereof, of road closure devices, and scientific evidence showing how unauthorized road use negatively impacts grizzly bears, FWS nonetheless concluded in its revised Biological Opinion that it was not possible to ascertain how ineffective road closures might impact the species. Christensen ruled that FWS violated the ESA because the agency "offered an explanation for its decision to exclude impassable roads from (total road density) that runs counter to the evidence before the agency." He further ruled that FWS violated the ESA in its revised Biological Opinion because the agency "failed to address the exclusion of unauthorized motorized use from road density calculations and, to the extent the agency did address this issue, failed to articulate a satisfactory explanation regarding its decision." Regarding bull trout, Christensen ruled, FWS violated the ESA because the agency "failed to address its decision to abandon the culvert removal requirement with respect to impassable roads." For the Forest Service's part, Christensen ruled, the agency violated the ESA by relying on the "flawed provisions of the revised Biological Opinion." Similar to Molloy's 2021 ruling in the first lawsuit on the matter, Christensen sent the issue back to the Forest Service and FWS for further consideration, but he did not invalidate the contested components of the revised forest plan. He determined that voiding portions of a complex and interconnected plan would cause more harm than letting the insufficient standards remain in place pending further agency analysis. PARIS (AP) French President Emmanuel Macrons expected political failure in decisive parliamentary elections Sunday could paralyze the country, weaken him abroad and overshadow his legacy, just as France prepares to step into the global spotlight as host of the Paris Olympics. Frances youngest-ever president is known on the international stage for his tireless diplomatic efforts and pro-European initiatives. Now, many wonder how he will manage to keep the reins of the country with likely no majority in parliament and a confrontational government. Constitutionally barred from running for a third consecutive term in 2027, Macron, 46, is facing a struggle not to become a lame duck. Whatever the outcome of Sundays runoff, its not expected to be good news for Macron. French media have recently described an end of reign atmosphere at the Elysee presidential palace. Polls suggest Macron's centrist alliance is headed for defeat in Sundays runoff, after coming in third in the first round. It looks as if on the first ballot, the French wanted to punish their president, Paris-based political analyst Dominique Moisi told the Associated Press. Governing with a rival party will likely weaken Macron If the far-right National Rally and its allies win a majority in parliament, it would place the centrist president in the awkward situation of having to work with an anti-immigration, nationalist prime minister. Otherwise, Macron may have to seek a way to form a functioning government, possibly by offering a deal to his left-wing rivals. In any case, he would no longer be able to implement his own plans, which have been based on pro-business policies meant to boost Frances economy. We are in the unknown. The unknown unknown," Moisi said. Because coalition governments are not a French tradition. Abroad, Macron used to appear as a key world player known for his non-stop diplomatic activism. He has been deeply involved in Western steps taken to support Ukraine since Russias invasion in February 2022. In the Middle East, France has been pushing for diplomatic efforts with its Arab partners. Earlier this year, Macron also outlined his vision for the European Union, urging the bloc of 27 nations to build its own robust defense and undertake major trade and economic reforms in order to compete with China and the U.S. The French Constitution gives the president some powers over foreign policy, European affairs and defense. But the division of power with a prime minister from a rival party remains unclear, and without the backing of a government, Macrons role may end up being limited. His pro-business policies lowered unemployment but were still controversial The job of president is Macrons first elected office. In his 30s, Macron quit his job as a banker at Rothschild to become Socialist President Francois Hollandes economic adviser, working for two years by Hollandes side at the presidential palace. Then, as economy minister in Hollandes government from 2014 to 2016, he promoted a package of measures, notably allowing more stores to open on Sundays and evenings and opening up regulated sectors of the economy. First elected president in 2017 after leaving the Socialists, Macron was then a successful 39-year-old political newbie. He sought to make the labor market more flexible and passed new rules to make it more difficult for the unemployed to claim benefits. His government also cut taxes for businesses to boost hiring. The yellow vest anti-government protests soon erupted against perceived social injustice, leading to Macron being dubbed the president of the rich. He is still perceived by many as arrogant and out of touch with ordinary people. Opponents on the left accused him of destroying workers protections. Macron argued that unemployment has fallen from over 10% to 7.5% now and France has been ranked the most attractive European country for foreign investment in recent years. Macron was reelected in 2022, defeating for the second consecutive time his far-right rival Marine Le Pen in the runoff of the presidential election. But he lost his parliamentary majority, even though his centrist alliance took the largest share of seats in the National Assembly. He then struggled to pass an unpopular plan to raise the retirement age from 62 to 64, prompting months of mass protests that damaged his leadership. Riots swept hundreds of cities, towns and villages in 2023, after the fatal police shooting of a teenager. The election may weaken the political center and leave him a lame duck Politically, the centrist leader launched his own party on a promise to do better than the mainstream right and left. But that, also, now appears as bound to fail. His call for snap elections actually pushed forward two major forces: the far-right National Rally and a broad leftist coalition including the Socialists, the greens and hard-left France Unbowed. Macron's own camp questioned the president's political skills after he announced the surprise decision to dissolve the National Assembly last month. Bruno Le Maire, his finance minister for seven years, told France Inter radio that this decision has created in our country, in the French people, everywhere concern, incomprehension, sometimes anger. Macrons former prime minister, Edouard Philippe, accused him of having killed his centrist majority. Macron's fate may become a topic for discussion next week at a NATO summit in Washington that will be the occasion for world leaders to meet with the new British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Kathmandu, Nepal, July 11, 2024: Relief is felt in Nepal after reduced monsoon rainfall from Monday. The Meteorological Forecasting Division (MFD) has said that decrease in rainfall is expected across Nepal. Reduced monsoon rainfall has become possible after low-pressure line near Nepal, the MDF has stated. The MFD, however, has forecasted light to moderate rain in most parts of Koshi and Gandaki provinces, with heavy rain in one or two areas. Likewise, Madhesh, Bagmati, Lumbini, Karnali, and Sudurpaschim provinces may also experience light to moderate rainfall in certain locations. The state authority that manages the science and technology campus in downtown Richmond is seeking a new leader. Chandra Briggman, president and CEO of Activation Capital, said Monday that she would resign. Members of Gov. Glenn Youngkins administration expressed dissatisfaction with her performance, said Del. Mark Sickles, D-Fairfax. But a spokesperson for Youngkin said the governor himself was not involved, adding that Briggman played a significant role in business growth. For the past year, Activation Capital has sought a science or technology company to fill a not-yet-built $53 million innovation center downtown. Last year, state leaders awarded the authority $15 million contingent on finding a tenant for the building. But a tenant has not been identified, and the building hasnt gone up. Its a hard market (for) what were trying to do, said Sickles, vice chair of the House Appropriations Committee. Shes in charge of building a technology authority and growing that is a hard business. Sickles said the administration was involved in Briggmans decision to resign. An interim replacement has not been identified. But Christian Martinez, a spokesperson for Youngkin, called Briggman an exceptional leader. With many exciting developments in the life sciences and entrepreneurship sectors in the commonwealth, we hope Chandra will continue to be a vital leader, Martinez said. In a statement, Briggman said it was always her goal to create a team, prove its model and transition to the next opportunity to build. Asked about the administrations role, a spokesperson for Activation Capital referred back to Briggmans remarks. Michael Rao, president of Virginia Commonwealth University and chairman of the Virginia Biotechnology Research Partnership Authority board, said Briggmans time here has been defined by impact, and her impressive body of work has energized our region. Kipton Currier, vice president of operations at Activation Capital, will lead day-to-day operations while the group searches for an interim director. Activation Capital operates the 34-acre VA Bio+Tech Park, a science campus in downtown Richmond that houses nearly 70 research groups, including VCUs Medicines for All and drugmaker Phlow. It also oversees the regions advanced pharmaceutical manufacturing cluster and supports small-business groups. Hired in 2020, Briggman came from the Boston area, where she led a nonprofit that helped spur innovation. In Richmond, she helped launch a cluster of medicine-building organizations called the Alliance for Building Better Medicine, which includes VCUs Medicines for All, Phlow and Civica. The collaboration won a $53 million grant as part of the Build Back Better Regional Challenge, and Greater Richmond was designated as a national tech hub. Several state agencies have lost their leaders during Youngkins term, including the Department of General Services and the Virginia Alcoholic Beverage Control Authority. Theyre supremely confident in everything they do, said Sickles, referring to the administration. Im not too surprised. ... There are too many cooks in the kitchen. Richmond upcoming concerts:Iron Blossom Music Fest, RVA East End Festival Richmond Folk Festival Lake Street Drive My Morning Jacket Arrested Development Music in the Park Flowers After 5 Diana Ross Straight No Chaser Andre 3000 GWAR Slowdive Anthony Hamilton Samara Joy Nate Smith and Butcher Brown KEM Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., isnt ready to fall in line behind other Democrats who rallied on Monday in support of President Joe Bidens intensifying push to save his candidacy for reelection in a looming rematch with former President Donald Trump. Warner tried unsuccessfully days earlier to organize a meeting between Biden and Democrats concerned over his health and political viability, only to run into a defiant defense by the president and his allies, particularly Black elected officials in Congress and Virginias General Assembly. But the senior senator did not back down from his challenge to Biden to reconsider the best path forward to defeat Trump. Another Trump term would be perilous for rule of law and for our democracy, Warner said in a statement on Monday afternoon. President Biden has made America stronger, guiding the nation through some of our most difficult days. I am proud of my work on his agenda. With so much at stake in the upcoming election, now is the time for conversations about the strongest path forward, he said. As these conversations continue, I believe it is incumbent upon the President to more aggressively make his case to the American people, and to hear directly from a broader group of voices about how to best prevent Trumps lawlessness from returning to the White House. Earlier in the day, Biden pushed back hard against Warner and other Democrats who want him to reconsider his candidacy after a disastrous debate with Trump almost two weeks ago that ignited fierce concerns about his health and mental ability to win the election and serve four more years as president. The question of how to move forward has been well-aired for over a week now. And its time for it to end, the president wrote in a two-page letter to Democrats in Congress. We have one job. And that is to beat Donald Trump. We have 42 days to the Democratic Convention and 119 days to the general election. Any weakening of resolve or lack of clarity about the task ahead only helps Trump and hurts us. It is time to come together, move forward as a unified party, and defeat Donald Trump. Americans are split over whether Trump should face prison in the hush money case, AP-NORC poll finds Americans are about evenly split on whether former President Donald Trump should face prison time for his recent felony conviction on hush money charges, a poll finds. Bidens call for unity was echoed by Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., who said in a Richmond appearance on Monday that he will completely respect Bidens decision and that he will support the president if he stays in the race. Kaine said the continuing dribbling out of Democrats criticism of Biden is not helpful. We need unity and we need energy to be successful in November, he said. Sen. Lamont Bagby, D-Henrico, chairman of the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, made clear on Monday that he supports Bidens reelection and, like many other Black Democratic leaders across the country, does not want the embattled president to surrender to calls for him to end his candidacy. Bagby, whose caucus represents 32 Black members of the General Assembly, said Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have delivered on their promises to voters who elected them in 2020. This administration has proven that they care for the millions of Virginians who voted them into office, he said in a statement. The person we elevate to lead us as a nation must have respect for the democratic process that empowers them to make decisions for the good of the people. The only candidate I trust with this responsibility is Joe Biden, Bagby said. Rep. Jennifer McClellan, D-4th, who served as vice chair of the caucus before her election to Congress last year, also issued a statement in support of the president on Monday. I stand with President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris to continue their historic progress to protect our freedoms, build an economy that leaves no one behind, and address the threat of climate change, McClellan said. Communities in Virginia and across the country know how much is at stake this election cycle, she said. We must re-elect President Biden and stop Donald Trump from bringing his anti-democracy, anti-reproductive freedom and anti-health care access policies back to the White House. Earlier Monday, Biden issued the statement to congressional Democrats in which he reiterated that he will not leave the contest. I want you to know that despite all the speculation in the press and elsewhere, I am firmly committed to staying in this race, to running this race to the end, and to beating Donald Trump, Biden said in the letter. Larry Sabato, head of the Center for Politics at the University of Virginia, said in a social media post: Like it or not, thats the end of that. Biden-Harris it is for Dems. Legally, Biden has the high ground he has to agree to step aside and he is clearly not going to do so. Tough stretch for Democrats Kaine, who is seeking a third term in November against Republican Hung Cao, said he has not talked to Biden, adding any advice I have for the president, Im going to share with the president, and I dont think I will share with anybody else. As Biden makes his decision, I will completely respect that decision, Kaine told reporters after an event Monday at Reynolds Community College, at roughly the same time Biden released the letter. The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus is ridin with Biden all the way The choice is between two visions. A second Trump presidency would set us back a generation. We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward. pic.twitter.com/6YVWO3l06L Virginia Democrats (@vademocrats) July 8, 2024 Biden is a patriotic person who will put the country over his own needs and I think hell do that as he makes this decision, Kaine said. If he believes fully that he can do this, I will respect that judgment. But I also completely believe that if he has doubts about whether he can do it, hell level with the American public about it. Kaine added: Joe Biden is the best Democrat. I cant say it better than I said. He won a race against Donald Trump in 2020 here in Virginia and nationally and has done a great job as president ... Its been a tough stretch, said Kaine, but added: Im just going to tell you, it is the 8th of July, and it is early in this discussion in the aftermath of the debate, so well see. A huge issue Kaine, who has been on the campaign trail in his own bid for reelection, said Bidens performance in the first debate June 27 is a top concern on voters minds. Obviously the question is a huge issue, much bigger than my race. But again, I think this is going to, I believe its going to work out in a good way, he told reporters after the event at Reynolds. Now Mark Warner always says Im too positive about everything, he added. He said he expects Biden and Harris will come to Virginia for additional campaign events, and youll see me with them. Like it or not, that's the end of that. Biden-Harris it is for Dems. Legally, Biden has the high ground--he has to agree to step aside and he is clearly not going to do so. Today's question: Will Dem officeholders, donors, rank-and-file reunify quickly, or will they do what they https://t.co/Fj2mpP5MK0 Larry Sabato (@LarrySabato) July 8, 2024 Kaine said Democrats who try to address concerns about Bidens age by saying that the presidency is a team effort help a bit to address worries. But its not a complete answer. I mean, it is the case that the team is very important, he said. And what youve seen with the Biden team is you havent seen a lot of drama, not a lot of people leaving, not a lot of turnover, not a lot of chaos. Its very stable team. And thats important. Two visions Black Democratic leaders have emerged as a solid foundation of support for Biden, as they did during the Democratic primaries that rescued his candidacy in 2020, first in South Carolina and a week later in Virginia and other states holding their party primary on Super Tuesday. The Hill, an influential political journal in Washington, published a story on Monday about strong support for the president from members of the Congressional Black Caucus and their frustration with other Democrats who have called for Biden to step down after the disastrous debate with Trump triggered a panic among many in the party over the health and mental condition of the 81-year-old president. Any leader calling for President Biden to drop out needs to get their priorities straight and stop undermining this incredible actual leader who has delivered real results for our country, said Rep. Frederica Wilson, D-Fla., in a statement on Sunday. Bagby and other Black leaders said Democrats need to focus on one thing: defeating Trump. The choice is between two visions, he said. A second Trump presidency would set us back a generation. We have full faith that a second Biden presidency would keep us moving forward. Beryl leaves behind 69 tons of sargassum on Isla Mujeres beaches Isla Mujeres, Q.R. Dozens of islanders spent the weekend removing more than 60 tons of sargassum that was left behind on Isla Mujeres beaches. It is the second time already this season that the islands beaches, which normally remain sargassum-free, have been inundated. Dayana Alejandra Perez Medina, the Director of Isla Mujeres Zofemat, said a majority of the unwanted seaweed was located on Playa Norte. The sargassum arrived again, like last time, after a severe storm. On this occasion, Perez Medina explained that a total of 69 tons was pitchforked and netted from beaches due to Hurricane Beryl by around 50 volunteers, one backhoe and two dump trucks. Thirty nine tons was collected Saturday and another 30 tons Sunday, adding up to a total of 69 tons in two days, she said. After the clean, the Municipality of Isla Mujeres posted our warriors from Zofemat Isla Mujeres do not let their guard down to keep the beaches looking spectacular. Faced with the atypical sargassum washup left behind by Hurricane Beryl, the Zofemat team has been on the job since early in the morning and in two days has removed 69 tons of seaweed. Help us keep the beaches of Isla Mujeres beautiful, remember to put your trash in its place! Ayuntamiento de Isla Mujeres reported. It is the second time the island, who usually remains sargassum free, has been left to deal with the soggy algae after the passing of a storm. In June, islanders collected over 580 tons of sargassum from the same beach areas after the passing of Tropcial Storm Alberto. Man attempting to flee crocodile found stuck under Cancun Hotel Zone pierbefore being arrested Cancun, Q.R. A man who was found trapped under a Cancun restaurant was rescued before being arrested. The incident happened Sunday morning on the shores of the Nichupte Lagoon when emergency services were made aware of a man stuck under a wooden pier. Tourist Police were first on scene, requesting assistance from Cancun firemen when they learned the man became stuck trying to get away from a crocodile. It was around 6:00 a.m. when emergency services arrived at the restaurant at Kilometer 11 of Boulevard Kukulcan. Under a section of the restaurant overlook extension is where they found a man identified as 32-year-old Carlos Enrique P. He became wedged among the boards under the extension while trying to flee a 2.5 meter long crocodile. Firemen proceeded to break open a part of the restaurants floorboards from the inside to lift him out. Not far away the crocodile was seen resting on a piece of old concrete dock. It is not clear why the man was in the lagoon. Carlos Enrique P was treated for minor abrasions at the scene before being handed over to local authorities. Carols Enrique P was arrested and transferred to the Cancun Hotel Zone police station for property damage caused to the restaurant. Two stabbed in early morning PDC street fight Playa del Carmen, Q.R. A fight outside the Las Hamacas bar in Playa del Carmen left two with knife injuries and one in jail. Police were made aware of the street flight around 1:30 a.m. on 30th Avenue. Emergency services sent ambulances after reports of two men being stabbed. Municipal Preventive Police and paramedics arrived at the scene where they treated one man for a hospital transfer. The second stabbing victim left the scene before medical personnel arrived. He is reported to have gone to hospital on his own. During a search, police located a man suspected of being involved in the attack. Those involved have not been publicly identified. A motive for the argument and subsequent attacks are unknown. We feature a curated selection of some of the biggest, most important, and fascinating news thats making waves online A study links common foods such as coffee, eggs, and white rice to elevated levels of toxic PFAS chemical in humans. (Photo: Getty Images) And that's a wrap. Thanks for tuning in. We'll catch y'all again tomorrow. Hello to all our readers, Yahoo Singapore will be bringing you live news updates today. High levels of PFAS 'forever chemicals' have been found in humans consuming white rice, eggs, red meat, seafood and coffee, according to a study. Read more here. Pope Francis urged politicians to shun populism and instead work together to build stronger societies and tackle voter apathy. Find out more here. An AI manager improved efficiency and employee relations at a company, highlighting AI's potential to support human managers while raising concerns about cybersecurity and over-reliance on technology. More on the story here. Citigroup has eliminated management layers and other roles focused on Asia Pacific to streamline operations, according to a report. Read more on the retrenchment here. New research shows Canada is the top relocation choice globally, preferred for its natural beauty and high living standards despite a high cost of living. Read more here. In tennis, British tennis star Emma Raducanu forced the deciding set but took a medical timeout after slipping at the start of the third, as qualifier Lulu Sun won 6-2 5-7 6-2 to reach the quarterfinals. Game, set and match here. With the champagne on ice, Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) thought they were on the brink of victory but it didn't happen. Exit polls show the left and centrists leading RN, despite topping the polls in the first round of voting in the French election. China's 'monster ship' stirs tension in disputed waters but the Philippines is standing firm. Here's the recent development around the South China Sea. Spain, Netherlands, England, and France advance in Euro 2024, showcasing resilience and standout performances. Here's how the contenders are ranked. Boeing pleads guilty to fraud for violating a 2021 settlement on 737 Max crashes, facing up to US$487.2 million in fines and mandated safety improvements. More on the story here. Singapore is embracing the edible insects trend after 16 species approved for consumption. Find out more here. Singapore hawkers deal with unsubsidised stalls, high rentals, extra fees, mandatory low-cost meals, restricted suppliers, and fines, making it difficult to sustain their business. Read more here. The rich and famous are not immune when it comes to fraud, and many have lost large chunks of their fortunes over the years. Check out the stars who got swindled here. PARIS Paris' famed Moulin Rouge cabaret got its red windmill back Friday during a special ceremony that featured can-can dancing on the plaza outside. The mill's huge sails inexplicably collapsed after a show earlier this year at the iconic venue, an emblem of the surrounding Montmartre neighborhood. Part of the cabaret's illuminated sign also crashed to the ground as a result of what its director called a technical problem. No one was hurt, and the mayor of Paris' 18th district said the structure was not in danger. The Moulin Rouge scrambled to repair the damage before the Olympic torch relay passes through the area July 15, expected to draw big crowds. The windmill was first illuminated on Oct. 6, 1889, at the opening of the Moulin Rouge. The cabaret, marking its 135th anniversary this year, is a major tourist attraction and was celebrated in the 2001 Baz Luhrmann film musical starring Nicole Kidman. Cabaret management says its performers represent 18 nationalities and it receives 600,000 spectators a year. 25 photos of what Paris looked like the last time it hosted the Olympics An aerial view of Paris in 1928 Paris cafe society in the 1920s A look at a Parisian street map in the 1920s Place de l'Etoile in the 1920s Tourists on top of the Arc de Triomphe in 1929 Travelers departing from Gare Saint-Lazare in 1929 The Rue Lepic, in the center of Montmartre, in 1926 Le Bourget Airport in 1929 A bus used to transport people to the Olympic Stadium of Colombes in 1924 The Olympic Village at the 1924 Games The opening ceremony at the Stade Olympique Yves-du Manoir in 1924 The Prince of Wales and the president of France during the opening ceremony in 1924 The opening soccer match of the 1924 Summer Olympics The radio station at the Colombes Stadium during the 1924 Olympics The high dive competition at Tourelles Pool at the 1924 Paris Olympics The 1924 US Olympic rowing team A US discus thrower at the 1924 Olympics The long jump event at the 1924 Summer Olympics US Olympic swimmers at the 1924 Games A cross-country event at the 1924 Summer Olympics 25 photos of what Paris looked like the last time it hosted the Olympics British Olympians lay a wreath on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier 25 photos of what Paris looked like the last time it hosted the Olympics The view under the Eiffel Tower in the 1920s The Place de la Concorde in 1928 Eric Liddell, who inspired 'Chariots of Fire,' competing at the 1924 Paris Olympics Painters on the Seine in 1929 Whats next after Supreme Court curbs regulatory power: More focus on laws wording, less on their goals Posted on 8 July 2024 by Guest Author This article by Robin Kundis Craig, Professor of Law, University of Kansas is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Federal Chevron deference is dead. On June 28, 2024, in a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court overturned the 40-year-old legal tenet that when a federal statute is silent or ambiguous about a particular regulatory issue, courts should defer to the implementing agencys reasonable interpretation of the law. The reversal came in a ruling on two fishery regulation cases, Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless, Inc. v. Department of Commerce. This decision means that federal courts will have the final say on what an ambiguous federal statute means. Whats not clear is whether most courts will still listen to expert federal agencies in determining which interpretations make the most sense. While courts and judges will vary, as a scholar in environmental law, I expect that the demise of Chevron deference will make it easier for federal judges to focus on the exact meaning of Congress individual words, rather than on Congress goals or the real-life workability of federal laws. Who decides what the law means? Chevron deference emerged from a 1984 case that addressed the Environmental Protection Agencys interpretation of the term stationary source in the Clean Air Act. The EPA asserted that a source could be a facility that contained many individual sources of air pollutant emissions. This meant, for example, that a factory with several smokestacks could be treated as a single source for regulatory purposes, as if it were enclosed in an imaginary bubble. In upholding the EPAs decision, the Supreme Court created a two-step test for deciding whether to defer to a federal agencys interpretation of a statute that it administers. In Step 1, the court asks whether Congress directly addressed the issue in the statute. If so, then both the court and the agency have to do what Congress directs. In Step 2, however, if Congress is silent or unclear, then the court should defer to the agencys interpretation if it is reasonable because agency staff is presumed to be experts on the issue. Justice John Paul Stevens reportedly told his colleagues, When I am so confused, I go with the agency. The central question in both the Loper Bright and Relentless cases was whether the U.S. secretary of commerce could require commercial fishers to pay for onboard observers they were required to bring on some fishing voyages to collect catch data. Lower courts in these cases deferred to the agencys interpretation that, under the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act, it could require fishers to pay. However, in an opinion by Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court majority concluded that Chevron deference contradicts the Administrative Procedure Act. This broad law governs both the procedures that federal agencies must follow and, more importantly, the standards that federal courts must use to review agency actions. As the majority pointed out, under the Administrative Procedure Act, courts must decide all relevant questions of law explicitly including interpreting statutes. Curbing the administrative state Since 1984, Chevron deference has become pervasive in federal administrative law. By the Supreme Courts count, 70 of its own decisions in that time have turned on Chevron deference. More importantly, thousands of lower federal court decisions more than 400 a year on average have deployed Chevron deference on issues ranging from Social Security benefits to workplace safety standards, immigration eligibility and environmental protection requirements. Chevron deference gave many federal agencies broad flexibility to use laws to address new and emerging problems that Congress did not anticipate. But some members of the current Supreme Court as well as some federal appellate judges criticized this doctrine, for two key reasons. First, it authorized executive branch agencies to interpret federal law and forced courts to accept agencies reasonable interpretations. However, since the Supreme Courts 1803 decision in Marbury v. Madison, it has been the duty of courts not federal agencies to say what the law is. Second, Chevron deference arguably allowed federal agencies to grab more regulatory authority than Congress intended them to have, usurping the legislative branchs responsibility to make law and delegate authority. EPA How much does Loper Bright undo? The court majority emphasized that prior court decisions upholding agency interpretations based on Chevron deference cannot be challenged solely because of that fact. As Roberts wrote, these holdings are still subject to statutory stare decisis. Stare decisis, or the thing is decided, is legalese for why courts will respect prior decisions. In other words, no challenger can go back to a court that relied on Chevron deference and ask the court to change its original decision that the agencys interpretation was OK. Thats good so far as it goes. However, many agency interpretations of statutes can be challenged multiple times. For example, the Clean Water Act protects waters of the United States. In 2023, the Biden administration issued new regulations interpreting which bodies of water the law covers. Challengers who disagree with that interpretation can attack the regulations directly and argue that the agencies reading of the law is wrong, as the fishing companies did in the Loper Bright cases. However, under many laws, businesses and individuals can also challenge an agency interpretation at the moment when the agency decides that a general regulation applies specifically to them. These are called as applied challenges. After Loper Bright, any time an agency that benefited from Chevron deference goes to apply its interpretation to a new regulated entity, that regulated entity can challenge the agency interpretation and this time the agency wont get Chevron deference. Will federal courts still listen to regulators? Eliminating Chevron deference will likely worsen an existing division among judges, and justices, about how to go about interpreting statutes. It centers on how much a statutes purpose and context should matter or, instead, how much the judge should focus on the plain meaning of the particular words that Congress chose to use. Suppose, for example, that a federal court faced the issue of how to define a vegetable for purposes of determining whether import taxes apply to imported tomato sauce. A plain meaning approach would emphasize that Congress decided to tax vegetables and that tomatoes are fruits; hence, tomato sauce is not subject to the import tax. An approach focused on Congress purpose, in contrast, would emphasize that Congress wanted to tax all imports of savory foods that the public generally considers to be vegetables. Using this approach, the Supreme Court in 1893, in fact, decided that tomatoes were vegetables subject to import taxes. Federal agencies typically take Congress purpose and the context in which regulators act very much into account when they decide what laws mean. For example, when the Food and Drug Administration had to distinguish proteins, which qualify as biologics for regulatory purposes, from chains of amino acids, which qualify as drugs, it focused on Congress reasons for creating the two categories. Ultimately, the agency decided that a molecule made up of amino acids had to have a certain level of complexity to qualify as a protein, and hence a biologic. In contrast, ever since the late Justice Antonin Scalia joined the Supreme Court in 1986, federal judges and especially Supreme Court justices have taken an increasingly plain meaning, or textualist approach, to statutory interpretation. The current Supreme Court, for example, would almost certainly never have allowed a tomato to be a vegetable. Dissenting Justices Elena Kagan, Sonia Sotomayor and Ketanji Brown-Jackson, along with many other legal experts, foresee serious problems for future cases that turn on highly technical issues. What will happen when a statutes nonexpert plain meaning makes no practical sense in a highly technical or scientifically nuanced regulatory regime, such as the FDA classifying biologics and drugs? AP Photo/Susan Walsh How long will the APA matter? This ruling also may signal that the court plans to pay greater attention to the 1946 Administrative Procedure Acts primacy in federal administrative law. This statute had been in place for almost 40 years when the Supreme Court decided Chevron in 1984, and the Chevron majority did not see it as a problem at the time. Now, however, it has become a reason to overturn Chevron deference. Other court-created glosses on administrative law may also be dead doctrines walking. Congress can and has created different standards of review in other statutes, including the Clean Air Act that led to the Chevron decision. What if a future Congress specifically directs that the implementing agency should take the lead in interpreting a particular statute? I expect that the Supreme Court would reach for the Constitution and declare any such delegation unconstitutional. In other words, it is probably only a matter of time before Loper Brights overruling of Chevron deference becomes a matter of federal constitutional law. Care and Feeding is Slates parenting advice column. Have a question for Care and Feeding? Submit it here. Dear Care and Feeding, I am very happily expecting a baby solo (the whole process has been solo; I used a donor). Im surrounded by a loving community and network of support and feeling about as ready as I could be. However, I hold local elected office, and the questions have started to come in about who the father is, accompanied by a barrage of strange and unhelpful and judgy comments when I furnish an answer. I recognize that other peoples feelings about this are none of my business, and honestly, I dont lose sleep over thembut Id like to avoid as much of it as possible. My process is not a secret, but this job is hard enough (and public enough!) as it is, and people are always up in my business about everything. I really dont want to explain and/or litigate my choices with everyone who crosses my path. Im looking for ideas about how to politely accept peoples well-wishes but sidestep the uninvited opinions and questions and not invite further discussion. Can you help? Not Interested in the Feedback Dear Not Interested, From your phrase my process is not a secret, Im a little unclear whether you want the answer to be public/findable, so people stop asking you directly, or whether you want to keep things vague. So, Ill give you a few options. If you want the one-and-done proactive approach, Id put a personal statement on your website or reach out to your community newspaper about a profile piecemaybe theyd want to do a story on single parenting or donor conception and use you as the leading character in the article. Afterward, if anyone asked, you can answer with a simple, Oh Im Google-able and leave it there. Advertisement If your preferred approach is more Im not hiding it but Im also not proactively sharing, which is where I think you lean, then try a few of these responses on for size, depending on how earnest or irreverent you want to be: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I have my city council hat on right now, so the baby Im most interested in discussing today is the annual budget. Whos the father? Thomas Edison. Our connection was just electric! (Or: Odysseusits been quite a journey getting here; etc.) Anyway, back to infrastructure... I used a donor, and Im really excited, but Im sure you understand I get a lot of questions about it so lets leave it there. But thanks for the well-wishes! Im doing this solo, technically, but this baby has five honorary aunties and uncles in the wings, so I have a whole village ready to welcome them. Also, even though this is a relatively small concern (in the grand scheme of political messaging), I wouldnt discount the possibility of hiring a public relations practitioner to truth-check this advice and get more professional guidance. Im sure you can find someone for a moderate consulting fee; plus, having them in the wings could be nice if the questions continue or balloon after the birth. Good luck to you! Advertisement Want Advice on Parenting, Kids, or Family Life? Submit your questions to Care and Feeding here. Its anonymous! (Questions may be edited for publication.) Dear Care and Feeding, Im 14 and have two siblings aged 11 (Ben) and almost 7 (Eliza). Ben is autistic, and so am I, although not as obviously as Ben is (he will have a meltdown in front of anyone; I will keep everything bottled up until I get home). Eliza is neurotypical and quite obviously the favorite on our mums side of the family (we dont see our dads often), because she is small and cuteeveryone buys her gifts all the time. I am not at all the favorite, but everyone still enjoys spending time with me and I am obviously appreciated. Advertisement Advertisement But everyone always forgets Ben. They seem to view him as more of a difficult problem than a person. He never gets invited to anyone in the familys house unless all three of us are invited. Our grandma will go on about how all of HER children were always perfectly behaved etc. whenever he has a meltdown. He isnt really close with anyone in the extended family, and no one really seems to like him (at least not as much as they like me and Eliza). I have no clue how to bring this up with my mum as I know she will defend her family and say it just seems that no one likes Ben because Eliza is small and cute and Im more like an adult. Any advice would be appreciated. Fed Up With Being the Favorite Dear Fed Up, Advertisement Advertisement Talk to your mom about what youre noticing from the extended family; keep the focus on what you have observed and how it makes you feel, rather than speaking in absolutes (Grandma always, Nobody ever). Its possible your mom has already noticed the same behavior that you have and is already trying to address it with her family, so try to give your mom the benefit of the doubt when you talk. Ask questions and be ready to talk about what kinds of things youd want to be different. At the same time, though, be prepared for your mom to push back on you a little bit, depending on what kinds of expectations she thinks would be reasonable for these family members. Unfortunately, some folks simply dont know how to interact with neurodivergent kids whose behaviors are unpredictable or extreme. Its not necessarily a moral failing on your moms part if shes unable to find a way to fix her familys behavior. If you can come to this conversation already assuming you and your mom are on the same side, she may be less likely to be defensive, and you might get deeper insights as a result. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Beyond this conversation, think of other ways you can be your brothers ally. The next time your grandma complains about him, maybe you can (respectfully) say, Hes doing his best. Lead by example, showing him patience, empathy, and acceptance. Publicly and privately, be there for Ben and let him know through your words and actions that you love, respect, and enjoy him. I obviously dont know how aware Ben is of these family dynamics, but I know that as we grow up, we remember the people who showed up for us in our childhoods. Youre doing a good job as Bens big sister; keep going. Advertisement Catch Up on Care and Feeding Missed earlier columns this week? Read them here. Discuss this column in the Slate Parenting Facebook group! Advertisement Dear Care and Feeding, My partner (who lives with me and family) has not been present in his daughters life since shortly after I met him five years ago. His parents adopted his daughter around seven years ago (she is now 10, I believe). He was struggling with DUIs, etc., and has since cleaned up and is working full time and has gotten several promotions. But he wont even answer me when I bring up reaching out to his daughterhe said he wants to wait until he gets his license restored, which Im trying to help with. I desperately want us to be in her life, or at least him. I suspect he has narcissistic tendencies (if not a true narcissist). When in addiction, he was such a bad person. He is so much better now. Do you have any advice for me? He says he wants to marry me but Im not sure I can continue to be with someone who doesnt place importance on his daughter and who doesnt even want to talk about it with me. I know, Im a mess. The Mess Dear Mess, Advertisement Advertisement I could speculate on what might be going through your partners mind about his relationship to his daughter, and so could you. But right now, I dont think that should be your focus. Instead, I think there are two key questions you need to answer for yourself. Question one: Why isnt your partner willing (or able) to talk about his daughter with you? Is it pent-up shame and regret that makes the topic too painful? While its perfectly reasonable to have certain topics you dont want to belabor with a partner, your letter makes it seem like this entire topic is always off-limits between you two, which Im not sure is a mark of the kind of healthy communication youd want in a long-term relationship. While he likely has a lot of complicated and heavy emotions around this subject, which is understandable, you want to be confident that a long-term partner is able to share these vulnerabilities with you. Advertisement Advertisement Question two: Its great that you want your partner to be in his daughters life, but its not your call to make, and your use of the word desperately makes me nervous. What if he decides he cant or wont do it? Are you willing to stand by him and accept his choice, or would a continued estrangement from his daughter be a dealbreaker for you? You cannot move forward in this relationship hoping that youll convince or wear him down to contact herthis needs to be something he does of his own volition on his own time. Its OK if you cant accept that, but you owe it to him and yourself to be honest about it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I understand you want what you feel is best for both dad and daughter, but this sounds like its a lot more complicated and daunting to him than just placing importance on his daughter, as you put it. If you dont think that grey area is a place you can metaphorically live, you might want to consider whether this is the relationship for you. Dear Care and Feeding, Ive been trying to help my narcissistic mother-in-law for 15 years. For the first few years, when shed threaten suicide, I would call the authorities as well as have a mobile psychiatrist see her. As the years have gone on, Ive learned that these seem to be casual and empty threats. (She has mentioned suicide about twice a week for at least 15 years, several times in front of my child.) Advertisement Shes very histrionic, which can make it hard to gauge. She is often a busybody who delights in judging and talking trash about all of us when she isnt in four-day-old jammies and talking about death. She lives four houses away but calls each of us (my husband and me) at least four times a day to complain about ridiculous things. She is bipolar and medicated for it, which helps the mania, but the depression is deep. Advertisement Advertisement This all falls on my husband and me because no one else will help. My father-in-law wants nothing to do with her which is also awful and undoubtedly contributing. But no matter what we do, its not enough. She is constantly testing how far we will go for her, which is exhausting. I dont know how to help anymore. Im finding myself avoiding calls from her for my own sanity. Advertisement To make it worse, I am on federal disability for a long-term and painful condition. It seems to annoy her that she has to consider that. I regularly hear, Youre so smart, surely you can find a job before launching into a what-about-me/no-one-cares-about-me diatribe. (I had a 25-year career in advanced tech. Retiring at 47 was not a choice but I am physically and sometimes mentally not dependable now. She refuses to acknowledge this.) How do we help someone who needs us but is on our last nerves? Defeated in San Francisco Dear Reading, I dont know if you can help her. Are she and your father-in-law still married and living together? If so, his dismissal is really unfortunate, since Id say he should be taking the lead herebut I suppose he may also feel the same way you all do and has simply washed his hands of the situation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This has been going on for more than a decade, and no amount of taking her calls, encouraging her to seek help, or calling emergency services has made an impact. Quite the contrary, she has continued the behavior even in front of your child; to me, that shows that shes prioritizing her need for attention above the emotional safety and security of her grandchild, and thats not OK. Advertisement I dont think you can continue to entertain this behavior. Seek the help of a family therapist who can counsel you through drawing a firmer boundary around behavior you will no longer tolerate. Your mother-in-law is not interested in getting help, but that doesnt mean that you and your family must maintain this status quo. She is not entitled to your time or attention, and given that you yourself have enough on your plate, medically and probably emotionally, Id rather you and your husband focus your energy inward. Good luck. Allison More Advice From Slate My Aunt Mildred has just passed. She was in her late 80s, it was in her sleep, were all at peace about it. Heres the problem: In her will, she left my 14-year-old daughter her horrible bird. I am biased, because I grew up in New York and see all birds as rats with wings, but I never imagined one would wind up living and pooping in my house. Latrice Royale is no stranger to adversity. Before shooting to fame in Season 4 of RuPauls Drag Race, the large and in charge drag performer, pageant queen, ordained minister, and all-around queer icon with the big heart and even bigger personality had, in her words, been through a lot. Raised by a single mother in Compton, California, Royale worked hard to escape from violence and homophobia, but a year in a Florida prison on a minor drug charge would delay her progress before she eventually turned her life around. Now, at 52, she is more in-demand than ever. Hot on the heels of her first season co-hosting HBOs award-winning reality series Were Herein which a troupe of drag legends travels around small-town America, empowering members of the local LGBTQ+ communities to embrace their authentic selves through no-holds-barred drag performancesshes wrapping up her residency at RuPauls Drag Race Live in Las Vegas before taking on the role of Audrey II (the plant) in an off-Broadway production of Little Shop of Horrors. Season 4 of Were Here saw Royale and her co-hosts, Sasha Velour and Priyanka, defy anti-drag protests in Oklahoma as they sought a space that would allow them and their new proteges to stage a show. They eventually found a safe haven in the most unlikely of placesthe Parish Church of St. Jerome in Tulsa. In a poignant moment, Royale, a powerful, plus-sized queen who stands tall at 6 feet, 4 inches, was moved to tears as local priest Father Joshua told his congregation, Everyone is welcome, no matter if they are gay or straight, cisgender or transgender or nonbinary, conservative or liberal, faithful or nonbelieving, rich or poor, Black or white. If Jesus were to walk this earth today, hed be out there with them, continued Father Joshua, referring to the LGBTQ+ community, adding: You have got to follow Jesus to the margins of our society, to embrace those who have been oppressed, to welcome those who have been abandoned by their families. Advertisement Visibly emotional, Royale told her castmates: Ive always heard the opposite. Slate caught up with Latrice Royale between shows in Vegas to talk about faith, how the experience in Oklahoma impacted her, and where she stands as the queer community in America faces its most divisive election year to date. Our conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Slate: You were raised in a religious household. Could you tell us about your Christian upbringing and how it impacted you? Latrice Royale: I come from very humble beginnings in a single-parent home in Compton, California. My mom was doing it for herself, you know, and, of course, I was raised in the church. I was in the choir and I loved singing. But my pastor was old-school and had some very archaic teachings; he didnt believe women should be ministers. He was definitely a homophobe and taught that being gay was an abomination, that we were all going to hell, and that whole thing. And that stuck with me through my developing years. I wasnt even out when I left California, but Id stopped going to church because my mom was fed up with my pastor because of his ways. She left and became a minister, so, yeah, Im a preachers kid! I had left the church because of that, but then I was outed. My brother outed me and we got into a huge fight and thats why I left California in search of my own identity. But Id started to lose my faith because I didnt understand what I was being told versus the way I felt on the inside. How did that affect your coming-out process? Advertisement Advertisement I knew I was dealing with being gay, so my faith and sexuality were definitely at odds. I chose to live free and happy and didnt care too much about consequences, because I didnt believe that if God was so loving and all-powerful, why would he specifically hate this group of people? If were made in your image, why would we be unacceptable in your sight? That didnt make sense to me! So I was, like, To hell with it! I felt my own journey was my own journey and my relationship with God was personal, so I did my thing. Now Im a full-grown-ass man and know what Ive been through. I had only one instance where I felt there was nobody who could help me but God, and that was when I was in prison. When I reconnected with my faith, it was just me and God riding it out in jail. So once we got through that, and I was focused on what I wanted to do with my career and drag was it, it became my ministry; it became my mission to be the best I can be. And I know that only me and my higher power have gotten me to where I am. So nobody, none of these Christiansso-called Christianscan tell me a damn thing about the power of the Lord, darling. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement How did your mom, the minister, reconcile her faith with your identity? Beautifully. Very Christlike, as you do. I was on my way to a pageant in South Carolina and my mom called and she was like, Baby, you are so beautiful! Id sent her a care package with all these pictures and a video, and that was my coming out to her. Shed opened up the box and was like, Baby, I didnt know who this was. I was like, Why are you sending me these pictures of this beautiful lady? And then shed popped in the tape and watched the video and saw the whole arc and she was so proud. She was like, Youre so classy and elegant. And that was everything I wanted to hear. And then she goes, I need some of this hair, so that became our thing. My mother loved some wigs! Advertisement After I was open about everything, I felt like I got my mom back and she got her son back. Once I did that, it was just magical. You said you reconnected with your faith after prison. How do you reconcile being queer and Christian today? Advertisement I dont consider myself a Christian. Im nonreligiousIm definitely spiritual, but I am not over there, because theres too much trauma and too much damage and it can never be undone. So, no, God is in your heart and has always been in my heart. I take him everywhere I go. I get emotional because Ive been through a lot, you know? Ive been through too much for anybody to invalidate the blessings that have been bestowed upon me. You have no idea until youve walked in my shoes what Ive gone through and what its taken to get here. Ive done that through prayer and faith, and nobody can take that away from me. So, you can believe in your Bible, but I dont. When I tell you, Ive never had more disdain for a book in my life than the Bible. And thats on the record! I have never had so much disdain for something that has been weaponized and used for harm and used for war and used for murder. Theres no way you can tell me this is of God. The Bible is of man, of editing. When it comes to Jesus, I feel like Jesus was with the riffraff, with the whoremongers and the misfits, he was in the trenches. Jesus was loving and accepting and meeting people where they were. Jesus was out in the community. I try to do that, I try to meet people where they are. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement What would you say to someone who is queer but also believes in the Bible? Do you think the two can coexist? Id say, believe in whatever you want, but be mindful, be smart and educated. Do not let it lead you to think youre less-than or unworthy because of your lifes truth. I dont think we were put here on earth to be unhappy, or to not be our authentic selves. Were supposed to learn and grow and teach each other, all in the name of love. I dont know why thats not the thing. But what a wonderful world it would be if we just did that, you know? That actually resonates with what Father Joshua said in his church on Were Here. What was it that got under your skin in that scene? Just the affirmation. Hearing him say the words drag and ministry together was so powerful because thats what I feel like Ive been called to do. That was my purpose when I was on Drag Race. Sharing my story. I felt like that was the way I was going to help people. Im ordained. I am a drag-queen minister. I started doing weddings, and that was my thing for a while, especially when I was fighting for marriage equality and that snowballed into me wanting to actually get married one day. And this manifestation thing happened, and here I am, 12 years with my husband and married six years ago. But Im nondenominational because, as I said, I do not do the church so much. Advertisement Advertisement Do you think youd feel differently if youd met someone like Father Joshua sooner? Oh my goodness, maybe. Maybe if Id known there was something like that out there, that there was another way of thinking and believing and receiving, there could have been some damage control. But with organized religion, I just cant get behind something thats hurt and is still hurting so many people. The sad part is there are really wonderful Christians out there who actually love and are trying to do what Christ would have done. Advertisement Looking at how the political climate has evolved since the first season of Were Here aired in 2020, you and the other new hosts have come in at a far more volatile time. How did you feel taking on the challenge Advertisement I felt like this was an extension of what I was already doing. We need to understand that were still being ostracized and that theyre trying to eradicate us. Im ready to have a conversation, and I want to understand the situation, because its important for people to do that in order to learn and growif both parties are willing, of course. Advertisement Advertisement Its scary, though. The legislation and the attacks are all just hate-motivated. And I learned through our experience in Oklahoma that it starts with fear, and then fear turns into ignorance, from the misinformation thats being spewed out. And then the ignorance turns to hate. And I dont understand how we get there, because it seems like we skipped some steps in between. Like, you were scared, and you dont even know why youre scared, but you know you hate it. And were challenging their belief system. Advertisement Related From Slate The Original Turing Test Was a Drag Show Read More Meanwhile, this is happening in the context of an election year. What can we do to stand up to the bullies? I am so scared for us right now. We have two candidates and one choice. Does that make sense? And we cannot do the other thing, but lets just be real, were not excited about Biden, either. But we cant do the other guy. We cannot do Trump, because Im not going to live in a world of dictatorship. Im not going to have my rights stripped away from everything Ive worked for. Are you crazy? Advertisement The fact that [the right] are comparing him to Jesus. To me, thats blasphemy. And if you want to go to the Bible, you should not make idols or worship any other gods. The Bible always warns us about false prophets. And here he is. And look at all the little sheep following him right to hell. Advertisement Advertisement What does this mean for the election with so many LGBTQ people turning against Biden right now? Put this in bold print: You cannot be complacent. A non-vote is a vote for Trump. An independent is not getting in there, it has never happened in the history of this country and it aint about to happen now. So, we have two candidates, period. One Trump, the other Bidenor whoever the Democratic nominee ends up being. We cannot do Trump, period. Do not waste your vote by voting some independent or saying Im going to just sit it out. That just shows you dont give a shit about anybody, not even yourself. The only way we stand up to the bullies is in the polls. What counts is that little checkbox. That is the only way. If Joe Biden is inclined to step aside as president (granted, a big if), dont expect him to do so until after Thursday. That will be the last day of the NATO summit in Washington, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the North Atlantic alliance. Biden will make sure to host that event, even if its (literally) the last thing he does as leader of the free world. The summit, which starts Tuesday, will be a grand convocation of the Western leaders, with splendid rhetoric to match. The agenda is well planned; the concluding document is prebaked: It will welcome Sweden as the latest of the alliances 32 members. It will proclaim that, for the first time, the alliance overall has met its pledge to spend 2 percent of gross domestic product on defense. It will reaffirm, and considerably boost, military support for Ukraine. It will lay out a road map to welcome Ukraine into the alliance at well, some point in the not-too-distant future. Finally, the assembled leaders, in their opening or farewell speeches, will thank Biden not just for convening the summit but for his huge role in making its accomplishments possible. And they will be telling the truth. Biden has done much to revitalize NATO after the four years of Donald Trumps neglect and hostility. More broadly, Biden has made foreign policy the centerpiece of his half-century-long political career, as senator, vice president, and president. Throughout, he has touted alliances as key to an effective foreign policy, and he has heralded NATO as the central alliance, without which American interests and values could not long survive in a turbulent world. Advertisement So, President Biden will be there, and he will be there as President Biden. However, the summittrue to the words originsmay be the peak of Bidens idealization of NATO, and the downhill slope on the other side may be steep, especially from the vantage of Bidens political future. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement There will almost certainly be postsummit news stories reporting that several of the leaders or their aides were shocked or stunned by Bidens frailty or mental decline, even compared with just a month ago, during the get-together at Normandy marking the 80th anniversary of D-Day. Reporters will avidly seek out leaders and their aides, asking questions designed to evoke such observations (off the record or on background, of course). Advertisement Unless Biden truly is in as much denial as he has appeared to be these past few days, he must know that these stories will be writtenthat his closest foreign allies, who will have just lavished him with praise and glory in public, will proceed to express wincing doubts in private about his suitability to serve four more years in the White House. If Biden does plan to step down (and thats, again, a big if), he might do so soon after the summit, before these harsh verdicts take their tollso that, as in respectful obituaries, the effusive tributes get the high-up paragraphs. A swift departure may also ensure a wave of Biden nostalgia in the history booksno small consideration to a man like Biden, who studies history and mulls his own legacy. This may be the last completely harmonious NATO summit, and that harmony will be linked to Biden, especially if its his final summit as president. Advertisement Advertisement If Trump is back in power at the next summit, he will almost certainly throw some wrench into the works. He is known to have no love for entangling alliances in generaland no appetite at all for the idea of activating Article 5 of the North Atlantic treaty, which regards an attack on one NATO member as an attack on all. He admires Vladimir Putin and mocks Volodymyr Zelensky. His plan for ending the war in Ukraine quickly is simply to halt all aid to Ukraine. The leaders of the Baltic states, Poland, and every other member wonder how concerned he is about their security. Some of these leaders will conclude that they must go their own way (despite lacking the resources to do so) or make accommodations with Moscow. Trans-Atlantic ties will be frayed. Biden could be remembered as the last trans-Atlantic American president. Advertisement Advertisement Even if Trump doesnt win, the future cohesion of NATO is in doubt. The alliances most prominent leaders are unpopular at home. The French parliamentary elections this past weekend dealt a thumping blow to the far-right National Rally party led by Marine Le Pen, but the center and left partieswhich cooperated to block Le Pens ascentdidnt win a majority. Awkward coalitions will have to be formed, and Macron himself did nothing to boost his own partys standing. Some are predicting deadlocks in policymaking, which will only further alienate voters. Advertisement Advertisement Meanwhile, Hungarys prime minister, Viktor Orban, a onetime democratic reformer who now ranks among the continents most avid authoritarians and friends of Putin, is nowby the rules of random rotationthe president of the European Council. The post doesnt give him enough power to sway European policy, but it may enable him to stymie or block moves to strengthen the European Unions stance toward democracy and a common defense. A somehow-revitalized Biden, or some successor who shares his values and priorities, might slow down or reroute some aspects of this trend but probably wont be able to halt it. What follows might induce wispy meditations by future memoirists and historians about Bidens presidency as a golden agebut only if he gets out at its high point, before the deluge. Donald Trump may be sitting back to watch Democrats implode. But RFK Jr. has opted to seize this moment of existential angst over the future of President Joe Bidens campaign by presenting himself as, well, more erratic than ever. All last week, as Democrats were engaged in an internecine struggle, RFK Jr. posted video clips of an alternative debate he had held after not qualifying for the CNN debate; fanned the flames of a damning Vanity Fair expose that featured several dark secrets from his past; then, seemingly apropos of nothing, posted some unprompted thoughts about 9/11 to X. My take on 9/11: It's hard to tell what is a conspiracy theory and what isn't. But conspiracy theories flourish when the government routinely lies to the public. As President I won't take sides on 9/11 or any of the other debates. But I can promise is that I will open the files Robert F. Kennedy Jr (@RobertKennedyJr) July 5, 2024 The independent candidate clarified in a follow-up tweet that he was responding to all kinds of speculation on X and that he was making a political statement in favor of open-mindedness and government transparency for all kinds of controversial issues, including unidentified anomalous phenomena. But the seeming randomness of a 9/11 trutherism statement after a week of bad publicity was an oddly unnecessary attempt to court controversywhen, by all accounts, it could have been a week for RFK Jr. to try to look, as they say, presidential. The Vanity Fair article was a deep dive into his past troubles and his relationship with his family. It also detailed a number of damaging claims about the candidate, including an allegation that he had groped a 23-year-old woman working as a part-time babysitter for his children in the 1990s, and featured a photo of him with what appeared to be a barbecued dog, an image he allegedly sent to a friend with a joke about eating dogs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The article also detailed the bleak trajectory of Kennedys conspiracy-theorist outlook and advocacy. Perhaps the most horrifying example came from 2019, when Kennedy and his wife, Cheryl Hines, flew to Samoa to meet with the countrys prime minister and promote anti-vaccine policies after two children died there from vaccines that, it turned out, were improperly administered.* His campaign was successful; the Samoan prime minister halted the administration of the MMR vaccine. In the months that followed, the island was hit by an outbreak of measles that killed 83. Paul Offit, a pediatrician and member of the Food and Drug Administrations advisory committee on vaccines, is quoted in the Vanity Fair article, blaming RFK Jr. for the disinformation that led to the deaths. (Kennedy has denied his connection to that outbreak, despite clear evidence of his involvement. In a forthcoming PBS documentary, according to Vanity Fair, RFK Jr. becomes vividly agitated when confronted with the facts of the Samoa case, insisting that I had nothing to do with people not vaccinating in Samoa; I never told anybody not to vaccinate. ) Advertisement The article also hints that most of the Kennedy family sees RFK Jr. as a spoiler candidate who might allow Trump to win the election, a theme that has repeatedly come up in reporting on the candidate. Some of his family members seem to think that his years of heroin abuse permanently altered his brain, causing him to become irrational. Advertisement If RFK Jr. were a more serious candidate, the revelations in the Vanity Fair article would have been earth-shattering. But Kennedy has a long history of saying remarkably strange, wrong, and damagingly offensive things. He has dabbled in conspiracy theories about Bill Gates and 5G; compared public health officials with Nazis and anti-vaxxers with Anne Frank; and posited that COVID was ethnically targeted to spare Ashkenazi Jews and Chinese people. Advertisement Advertisement Still, even his defense of himself last week was strange. The candidate appeared on the politics podcast Breaking Points on Tuesday and, when asked about the groping allegation, said, I am not a church boy. I had a very, very rambunctious youth, RFK Jr. added. I said in my announcement speech that I have so many skeletons in my closet that if they could all vote, I could run for king of the world. When pressed directly about the allegation, he said he had no comment. Instead, Kennedys camp has, since the Vanity Fair piece, apparently focused almost entirely on refuting the dog-related allegation. His campaign has asserted, on social media and in statements, that the photo featured a goat, not a dog, and that it was taken in South America, not Korea. RFK Jr. described the Vanity Fair story as a lot of garbage and alleged that it was coordinating with Democratic Party leadership. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He now appears to have decided he has moved on from his scandals and is posting about Bidens mental decline and also about his more standard promises: fighting Big Pharma, opposing the prospect of war with Russia. He praised Edward Snowden, promising the whistleblower that he would allow him to serve his country again. But above all, RFK Jr. seems to be committed, in the midst of a great existential crisis over the American political system, to being weird in ways big and small. Right now, Kennedys pinned post on X is footage of him picking up a western diamondback snake with his bare hands, to have it moved to the wilderness. That was on July 4. Two days before that, the same day the Vanity Fair article dropped, he posted another video of him rescuing a snake. This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!) On this Saturdays Amicus podcast, Dahlia Lithwick convened her annual end-of-term breakfast table to discuss the big themes, controversies, and surprises that mark the end of the Supreme Courts term. She was joined by Slate senior writer Mark Joseph Stern; Mary Anne Franks, a professor at the George Washington University Law School; and Steve Vladeck, a professor at Georgetown University Law Center. An excerpt of their conversation, below, has been edited and condensed for clarity. Dahlia Lithwick: I wanted to gauge where everyones head is at. Weve all had time to read the immunity decision a few times, and the effect is seismic. But Im just sitting with what this decision signals about how six members of this Supreme Court look at the Trump presidency, the events of Jan. 6, 2021, the threats Trump speaks aloud every single day, Project 2025 and the separation of powers. We got hyperfocused in this media cycle on Donald Trump himself, but I would like to talk about what all this says about the court. Advertisement Steve Vladeck: When we did the breakfast table last year, we talked about how the word of the term was arrogance. I think weve gone from arrogance to DGAF. That is my term for this term. Not just because of the Trump case, but because of the message the court has sent, in almost all of its major rulings, that it just doesnt care about how half the country perceives it. In the Fischer case, for example: that its decision is going to be held out as some kind of massive victory and exoneration of the Jan. 6 defendants. The court doesnt care, in the administrative law cases, that its going back on things that have been taken for granted for 30, 40, 50 years. And it doesnt fear any retribution. Whats remarkable to me too is that sometimes the other five conservatives are going too far even for Justice Amy Coney Barrett. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mary Anne Franks: I think that thats largely right, but I think my takeaway mostly was, when you look at decisions like Rahimi and the challenge to mifepristone, you also see the court avoiding its own messes. Its saying, Weve basically created, through Bruen and through Dobbs, all of this havoc, and when the natural and entirely predictable consequences of that havoc start to appear, the court says, Well, thats obviously not what we meant. Clearly, people are getting this wrong. Mark Joseph Stern: I sense that we are feeling the lack of any true swing justice in a lot of different ways. Theres no Justice Kennedy there who could sometimes moderate the conservatives. Theres certainly no Justice OConnor who could build these bridges or give the conservatives reason to tone down their rhetoric. And Chief Justice Roberts looked like he was emerging as a swing vote, toward the tail end of the Trump years, in part because there were a few cases, like the census citizenship case and the DACA case, where he sided against the Trump administrationlargely because of its sloppy lawyering and poorly concealed lies. But now I feel like there really is not any justice who sits in the middle, who can legitimately be won over by the liberal bloc in any meaningful way. Advertisement Steve Vladeck: I think the real sort of individual story of the term is: John Roberts is done trying to be an institutionalist. Look back to 2019 and 2020, when Kavanaugh was early on the court, when you still had Justice Ginsburg with the other three Democratic appointees. We saw Robertswho for much of the first 15 years of his time on the court was conservative but not crazyactually trying to keep the court together, at least to some degree. He was writing narrow opinions, trying to keep everyone onside in the Trump cases in 2020 especially. And Im struck this term by how much he just didnt care. Advertisement And you see this in his opinion in the immunity case. You see this in his opinion in the Chevron cases, Loper Bright and Relentless. You see this in his opinions in the Colorado ballot case and in Fischer. I mean, theres opinion after opinion where, instead of trying to actually build any consensus, John Roberts just basically threw his lot in with the Thomas/Alito/Gorsuch wing. Advertisement And thats a really big deal because if Roberts isnt going to be an institutionalist, who is? Who, other than Barrett, is going to even tepidly stand up for the courts relationship with the rest of the government and with all of us? Among that bloc of justices, its really striking that John Roberts has gone all the way over to this side, but I think its undeniable. Advertisement Advertisement Dahlia Lithwick: I think the story of the term is: John Roberts becomes a MAGA justice. He just becomes in line with where Thomas and Alito have been all along. Its almost like he got tired of being that fourth lone guy who would hive off and vote with the liberals. He wants his court back, and so hes gonna take it back by being them. And I think its worth drawing out really explicitly that whatever Barrett is doing, I dont see it necessarily as institutionalism. Its a kind of course correction, error correction, but I dont think shes, like, lying awake at night, fussed about the institutional regard for the court. And we imputed that to John Roberts for years, for decades. And I think thats gone. Advertisement The other turn is the court giving itself power to decide all things. Theres nothing theyre not experts on. The Supreme Court is the policymaker for all policies in the country, and the conservatives are really comfortable just announcing that theyre now experts on clean water and air pollution. This is just politics by another name. The court has structurally arrogated all this power but feels no shame. They are perfectly comfortable telling us how were going to regulate drugs now. Advertisement Mary Anne Franks: It is an amazing move. On the one hand, you have this degradation, this contempt for actual expertise, right? In any number of fields, whether thats history or science or medicine. And at the same time, the court is also putting itself in the position to say, Well, none of these experts know anything, and the court gets to decide everything. Advertisement And its been more embarrassing this term than most because, of course, this has been the term where the conservative justices have made mistakes about what chemicals they are talking about, or how to even refer to certain types of procedures, right? They expose the fact that they dont know what theyre talking about. So, yes, you can never get consistency from the far right of the court. I always think about, back in 2016, when the election results were looking uncertain and Trump was asked: Are you going to respect the outcome of this election? He said he would respect it if I win. And I think that has defined this entire moment. Were living in it. Its where the conservatives say: I will respect whatever it is, that science, expertise, lawbut only if we win. And thats it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its really depressing for me to have to confront that because, as law professors, we like things to be interesting and complicated and not just naked power grabs. Whatever rule they endorse seems to be set up purely for the advantage of the far right. And as soon as it might be used by the other side, they will find a way to say: We didnt mean you guys. I think that thats one of the most incredibly depressing things about the cycle, even though weve seen it happen for some time. Advertisement But its so clear now to say what the court is doing. Its saying: We own everything, and we will make sure that we are the final arbiters. Not just of law, but of truth itself, all the time, over and over again. And they have no shame about that. Theres no shame in these justices saying, We can do this better than experts. We can do this better than scholars. We can do this better than scientists because we are somehow divine. Mark Joseph Stern: I just keep going back to Neil Gorsuch, in his opinion blocking the EPAs plan to limit ozone pollution, repeatedly mistaking nitrogen oxidewhich is the pollutant that causes smogwith nitrous oxide, which is laughing gas. That confusion resulted in an opinion that repeatedly purports to limit the EPAs ability to regulate laughing gas in upwind states. If you needed a clearer illustration of why the Supreme Court should not be seizing these deeply in-the-weeds policy decisions for itself, you couldnt find a better one than that. This is a special edition of Keeping Up With the Trump Trials. The Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump (and all future presidents) enjoys absolute immunity for official acts committed while in office. The decision will affect every one of the criminal indictments Trump is currently facingeven the hush money case, in which a jury already found the former president guilty of 34 feloniesand in order to make sense of what could happen next, were going through Trumps legal cases one by one to understand how his immunity affects each prosecution. Last week, the Supreme Court ruled that Donald Trump is in fact immune from criminal prosecution for official acts he undertook while in office, and now the judges assigned in all four of his criminal indictments must go back to the drawing board to figure out what comes next. These judges must comb through every page of prosecutors lengthy indictments to delineate which of Trumps actions should be considered an official actwhich prosecutors can no longer touch, as a charge or evidenceor an unofficial act, which carries no immunity protection. The court didnt offer many guidelines here, declaring only that official acts are core presidential powers. Though Chief Justice John Roberts did write that Trumps discussions with his Department of Justice, during which he pushed to have the 2020 election results overturned, are an official act. So are Trumps actions to push his vice president, Mike Pence, to reject swing states electoral votes on Jan. 6. Advertisement In order to suss out what could happen next, we spoke to Adam Pollock, a former assistant attorney general of New York, and went through each of Trumps indictments to get a sense of where the cases stood before the SCOTUS immunity decision and how they stand to change. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The New York Hush Money Case This was the case about Trumps affair with adult film star Stormy Daniels and how the former president orchestrated a hush money scheme to keep Daniels quiet ahead of the 2016 presidential election. Its the only criminal case against Trump that has gone to trial, and a jury found the former president guilty of 34 felony counts. Before SCOTUS decision: New York Supreme Court Justice Juan Merchan had scheduled Trumps sentencing for Thursday. Advertisement Whats next: Immediately after the ruling, Merchan announced that sentencing would be delayed until Sept. 18 while he considered both sides arguments on how presidential immunity affects the conviction. He will spend the next three months deciding which, if any, portions of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs criminal indictment contain official acts that Trump should be immune from. The bulk of this case rests on Trumps personal activity, before he entered the White House, which would be considered unofficial acts that are not protected by presidential immunity. Trumps attorneys havent disputed that fact and instead are arguing that the evidence prosecutors used in this caseTrumps social media posts and phone recordsshould be considered official-acts evidence. Pollock feels that this argument doesnt hold water, since talking while president doesnt alone transform something into an official act. Advertisement Advertisement What may get dicey is that multiple Trump White House officials, including his former Communications Director Hope Hicks, testified during the hush money trial; Hicks testimony affirmed that Trump knew about the Daniels payment and cared about how news of the payment was playing with the publics perception of him. Merchan could find that Hicks was an official adviser to the president. That would make her testimony off-limits for prosecutors because, according to SCOTUSs immunity decision, testimony or private records of the President or his advisers cant be used as evidence. Advertisement However, Pollock believes, even if Merchan finds that Hicks conversation with Trump was an official act, it may not undo the former presidents guilty verdict. He would still likely find it to be a harmless error that didnt affect the jurys consideration, said Pollock. Merely talking while president should not convert the conversation to an official act. My impression is that the test should be about what they are talking about and not who theyre talking to. Advertisement The Georgia Election-Interference Case Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis charged Trump and 18 others under Georgias RICO law for participating in an illegal plot to overturn the states 2020 election resultsaka the fake-electors scheme. Since the beginning of this year, this case has been plagued with drama after misconduct allegations surfaced about Willis. Advertisement Advertisement Before SCOTUS decision: This case has been on pause since June, when Georgias Court of Appeals ordered that all pretrial proceedings be halted until it could resolve an appeal from Trumps attorney that seeks to disqualify Willis from prosecuting the former president. Whats next: Once the appeals court rules issues its ruling, the case will go back to Judge Scott McAfee, who will have to consider a big question: Was Trumps attempt to influence fake electors in the aftermath of the 2020 election an official act? Pollock thinks the answer is a pretty straightforward no: The only reason you would be attempting to influence electors is with your candidate hat on and not your president hat on. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barretts concurring opinion seems to hint at this, with a footnote that acknowledges, Sorting private from official conduct sometimes will be difficultbut not always. She proceeds to write that the Presidents alleged attempt to organize alternative slates of electors, in her view, is conduct thats private and not entitled to immunity protection. Advertisement Advertisement Willis indictment also includes conversations Trump had with his Justice Department, which would be off-limits for her. Whats not clear is whether Willis can still use Trumps infamous phone call with Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, in which he demanded that 11,780 votes be found to overturn Bidens victory in the state. SCOTUSs decision did not explicitly rule on how to interpret Trumps conversations with a wide variety of state officials and private persons, leaving that to McAfee to parse. Advertisement The Federal Election-Interference Case Special counsel Jack Smiths election-interference indictment charges Trump with four felony counts in a conspiracy to defraud the U.S., citing his actions on Jan. 6 and in the fake-electors scheme, which targeted seven states Trump lost to President Joe Biden. Trumps attorneys have been insisting that the case be thrown out because the former president holds absolute immunity, an argument that U.S. District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, the first to rule on the question, initially rejected. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals later rejected it too. Advertisement Trumps defense team refused to let up and continued to appeal Chutkans decision until the case was taken up by the Supreme Court, and finally the former president hit the jackpot. Before SCOTUS decision: Chutkan had placed this case on pause six months ago, until SCOTUS could rule on Trumps presidential immunity appeal. Whats next: Although Chutkan is tasked with going through Smiths lengthy indictment and deciding which of Trumps actions are official and unofficial, this is the one case for which the Supreme Court offered some swim lanes. Conversations Trump had with his DOJ are off the table for Smith to use to charge Trump or to submit as evidence, as are Trumps actions to pressure Pence to reject states electoral votes. However, theres still the larger fake-electors scheme, in which Trump and his attorneys worked across seven swing states to assemble fake electors to send in phony certificates to Congress that falsely certified Trump, not Biden, as the winner of the 2020 election. The courts majority opinion failed to rule on how to interpret these actions, simply delegating lower courts to figure it out. Its hard to view that as anything more than stall and delay or catch and kill, said Pollockshould Chutkan make a decision that goes against Trump, his defense team will almost certainly appeal. And the case could very well end up in front of SCOTUS again, this time in a much more narrow way. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Other experts predict that Trumps defense team will argue that his actions around the fake-electors scheme were necessary election oversight and his discussions with state officials simply a way of ensuring that the election had been run appropriately. Related From Slate These Weird Pics of Donald Trump Have a Much Darker Backstory Read More Federal Classified Documents Case Also spearheaded by Smith, this indictment charges Trump with 37 felony counts related to mishandling classified documents, obstructing justice, and making false statements. Trumps personal aide Walt Nauta also faces charges in this indictment. Before SCOTUS decision: Judge Aileen Cannon wiped the trial date for this case back in May, and since then, she has been slowly issuing orders and holding hearings to resolve a mountain of pretrial motions filed by Trumps legal team. Advertisement Whats next: Trumps lawyers have already filed a request with Cannon to review the classified documents case for official conduct that would be immune from prosecution. Smith has said that the Supreme Courts immunity decision has no bearing on the classified documents indictment since the case deals with Trumps actions after the presidency. Pollock agrees with the special counsel here. Theres really no way that this should turn on official acts, he noted. However, Cannon has been extraordinarily sympathetic to Trumps defense, he said, so its hard to tell exactly how shell apply SCOTUSs immunity decision. Advertisement Trumps lawyers also filed a fresh motion arguing that Smiths appointment as special counsel was illegal, a position that has gained steam from Justice Clarence Thomas concurring opinion stating that Smiths appointment was invalid because there is no law establishing the office that the Special Counsel occupies. Cannon recently held four-hour hearing on this very topic but has yet to issue a decision. Pollock asserts that, regardless of how Cannon rules, Trumps defense team will file an interlocutory appealan appeal of a judges decision before a case goes to trialto try to ultimately get Smiths entire indictment dismissed. I dont doubt that the creative legal minds in the Trump team could come up with some idea of how to get this decision before the Supreme Court, said Pollock. They have a sympathetic judge, a relatively sympathetic appellate court, and a relatively sympathetic Supreme Court. This summer, millions of Americans have sweat through record-breaking heat waves. Tragically, not all of them have survived the ordeal. Dozens of communities have already recorded deaths from these latest rounds of extreme heat; hundreds more people could lose their lives before summer ends. If someone were to push a killer heat button, law enforcement would make stopping them a top priority. We have not treated lethal, climate-induced heat as that sort of public safety threat because we see heat waves as natural disasters. But many of the extreme heat waves weve seen in recent years are not naturalthey are environmental disasters that in some cases would have been virtually impossible but for human-caused climate change. These catastrophes are happening in large part because of the actions of a small number of oil and gas companies. Those companies have generated a substantial portion of the greenhouse gas emissions that have caused the planet to heat up, while simultaneously deceiving the public about the dangers of those emissions. From this perspective, deaths from climate-related extreme heat start to look less like tragic accidents and more like crimes. But could there really be enough evidence to credibly charge Big Oil with homicide for causing lethal heat waves? To answer that question, we carefully assessed the available evidence and concluded that a formal investigation, built on top of already-public evidence, could give prosecutors what they need to convict the corporate perpetrators and bring justice to the victims of extreme, unnatural heat. Advertisement Any real prosecution would turn on hard facts, so we focused our analysis on a specific real-world scenario: the lethal heat wave that struck the American Southwest in July 2023. That event caused a massive loss of life, including hundreds of deaths in Maricopa County, Arizona. Arizonas reckless manslaughter and second-degree murder laws punish causing death through conduct that is reckless or that manifests extreme indifference to human life. Voluminous evidence already shows that oil companies were aware that producing and selling fossil fuels would contribute to, in their own words, globally catastrophic climate harms that would submerge New York, do great irreversible harm to our planet, have serious consequences for mans comfort and survival, and cause suffering and death due to thermal extremes. Fossil fuel companies even raised the height of offshore drilling platforms to account for expected sea-level rise. Demonstrating criminal recklessness based on that knowledgeplus the additional evidence a formal investigation would likely turn upseems eminently feasible. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Related From Slate We Have a Theory About Why John Roberts Went Full MAGA This Term Read More Causationi.e., showing that Big Oils actions in fact caused victims deathsis admittedly complex. Still, its important to remember that in Arizona and elsewhere, a defendant cannot avoid liability for [a] causative act by claiming that the conduct of some other person was also a contributing cause. Federal prosecutors regularly grapple with a similar, perhaps even harder to prove causation standard when charging drug dealers with having sold the drugs that later caused a users death. With Arizonas standard in mind, we believe that it would be possible to prove each link in the causal chain between Big Oil and a given climate-related death. Link 1: The Maricopa County Department of Public Health recorded hundreds of deaths in July 2023 as heat caused, meaning that environmental heat was the direct cause of death, not just a contributing factor. Advertisement Link 2: Climate-attribution studies found that the occurrence of such heat in Phoenix would have been virtually impossible but for human-caused climate change. Link 3: A small number of fossil fuel companies are responsible for a large portion of all the human-generated greenhouse gas emissions. These companies also actively spread climate disinformation, which for years enabled them to continue to emit the carbon at the core of their businesses. Advertisement Putting the links together, we feel that a prosecutor could build a case that would reasonably convince a grand jury and ultimately a trial jury that Big Oil recklessly caused many of the deaths during last Julys heat wave. And the evidence of their emissions and climate deceptions would only grow stronger with a formal investigation. Advertisement Of course, the fossil fuel industry would respond to a prosecution with all the legal firepower at its disposal, so we also assessed a range of likely defense arguments. For example, companies might try to break the causal chain by blaming regular peoples consumptiontheir driving habits, air-conditioning use, etc. But to shield an actor from liability, an intervening cause must have been unforeseeable. Big Oil not only clearly foresaw that its products would be used precisely as intended; it also extended our carbon-burning habits by forestalling safer energy alternatives through deceptive disinformation campaigns. Advertisement Big Oil might also assert a necessity defense, arguing that shifting away from fossil fuels would have imperiled the greater good. But a necessity defense requires an imminent threat and an absence of legal alternatives. Although an overnight shutdown of all fossil fuel production would be very damaging, this was never an imminent threat. The only threats that fossil fuel companies sought to avoid were lower profits and a gradual transition to clean energy sources. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The oil companies lawyers might also argue that it would be unfair to prosecute them because producing and selling fossil fuels is legal. But the act behind reckless manslaughter or second-degree murder is often otherwise legal: Driving, for example, is authorized, subsidized, and regulated. And yet driving in a manner that recklessly causes death is still a crime. Similarly, recklessly generating planet-heating emissions at a scale that causes death should be a crime. Fossil fuel companies will probably frame any prosecution as a conspiracy to use the criminal justice system to further political goals. But pursuing justice for victims and their bereaved families is the fundamental function of a prosecutor. In a courtroom, facts beat spin, and the facts look clear: Victims are dead; they were killed in a heat wave that was made possible by climate change; and fossil fuel companies knowingly caused climate change. Advertisement These climate disasters didnt come out of nowhere. Arizonas heat wavelike other climate catastrophes, including the extreme heat baking millions of Americans this summerwas caused by particular actors that chose to maximize profits even if doing so meant inflicting suffering and death. Although recent Supreme Court decisions may hinder any effective regulatory solution to this ongoing climate threat, using criminal law as an alternative means for holding these actors accountable could vindicate past wrongs and encourage better future behavior. Regular people are paying the ultimate price for those decisions. These victims deserve justice no less than do victims of street-level homicide. Piecing together a criminal case will take immense work, but our analysis shows that prosecutors may have a path to secure that justice if they choose to pursue it. Kostya works as a carpenter. Marharyta believes she will continue her work as a psychologist someday. (Source: Elizaveta Blahodarova) Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share Marharyta Rudenko worked as a psychologist before she went on maternity leave after the birth of her daughter. Kostiantyn Chepizhenko made furniture. They lived in the Kharkiv region. They had to flee Ukraine because of the war. The night before they left, they did not sleep at all. The house next door was hit by a rocket and a grandmother with a small child died inside. At five o'clock in the morning, they got in the car and drove to western Ukraine. It was dangerous in and around Kharkiv, especially at the beginning of the war. But after months of fighting, the situation there is highly critical again. Russia launched a new offensive in the area in May. A rocket hit a supermarket in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second-largest city, killing 16 people. Dozens of civilians were injured. Since then, attacks and casualties have been continuously reported from the area almost every day. Electricity is often out in the city, and water supplies have been repeatedly cut. The metro has been shut down, with all stations functioning as shelters. The Russians are also believed to have used glide bombs, which have wings and can fly to their targets. They can make a crater up to 15 metres wide. The Russian army is also attacking civilian targets and hitting neighbourhoods. Read also Read also Being 21 in Slovakia means university. Being 21 in Ukraine means survival, says student Read more Still terrible in Kharkiv right now Marharyta says the missiles have been destroying the Kharkiv region every day for almost two and a half years, from schools, hospitals to shops. "We know those places. We used to go to the Epicentre shopping mall that was hit. There is a cinema there that we used to visit as well," Kostya says. He says that, even for greater peace of mind, they cannot afford to not follow the Telegram groups and news from home. "You have to know what's going on, I couldn't not look at it," Kostya says. Kharkiv as big as half of Slovakia Kostya is from Kharkiv, which had a population of 1.7 million before the war. "It's as big as half of Slovakia," Kostya laughs. Marharyta comes from the smaller town of Zmiiv, sitting on the banks of the Seversky Donets River. The energy sector plays an important role in the local economy, with the large Zmiiv thermal power plant located near the town. This has also been hit by the Russians. Zmiiv is also an attractive place for tourists. Surrounded by nature reserves and protected areas, the local nature attracts people for recreation, fishing, hiking and water sports. "Even Zmiiv has been hit by rockets, people have died there, too. Rockets are still flying over people's heads," Marharyta describes the situation in her hometown. In Kharkiv, Marharyta and Kostya both studied, worked and rested together, but they did not want to live in such a big city. They lived in a house near the city. It is still standing. "Compared to the time before the war, about half the people in Kharkiv are still there, and many businesses and shops are closed," Kostya says. Family and friends in Kharkiv Their whole family and many friends stayed in Kharkiv. They are in daily contact with them, on the phone with them several days ago. Marharyta's mother is coming to visit Slovakia, so they worked out the logistics. They talk about the war, but also about everyday things like how their cat gave birth to kittens and how the dog is doing. "When we talk, we always hear sirens too, it's very hard on the psyche," Kostya says. Marharyta's mother also lives in the town where they used to live. There is no official shelter there, the only place people can go to is the basement. The whole family on a trip to the High Tatras. (Source: Courtesy of M. R.) Toys, blankets and 150 litres of diesel "Our journey to Slovakia was easy," says Marharyta. In March 2022, they departed the region together in a single car. The roads were already emptier than days before. For those who had left before them, the journey had taken four long days, standing in endless queues, driving in the cold and often hungry. Marharyta packed toys for her young daughter, then two and a half years old, and some food and blankets. She says that she was afraid they were heading the wrong way, as they didn't see any queues anywhere. "In one hand I held the baby and in the other I held an icon, a church picture," she says. Kostya took 150 litres of diesel because he knew from the others that refueling along the way might be a problem. "The whole car smelled of diesel, the boot was full of it, there was no room for anything else. I had the windows open, I could smell it anyway," Kostya recalls. He also has two older children with his first wife; they left the Kharkiv region on February 24, 2022. His son took only one thing then, a computer. The night the war started "Everybody said there would be a war, I didn't believe it, I told others it wouldn't happen," Kostya says. On February 21, he went to buy a car. He found out from his wife when she woke him up that war had started. Marharyta says that as late as February 23 she was still living a contented life, going to the post office with her young daughter, calling that day with her grandmother, who also, like many others, thought that the war was about to start. Marharyta, like her husband, did not believe it until the last moment. "As a mother of a small child, I don't sleep peacefully. It was the same on February 24, suddenly I heard a helicopter flying, then something fell. I went down to the ground floor of our house. My mother was already there, and she told me: The war has started," Marharyta recalls that terrible night. Immediately she felt enormous stress and fear. Since that night, Kostya has thought of nothing else but how to make a shelter for his family to keep them safe. He also left every morning in his car to help people in need. Gradually, no one was interested in the furniture and the services of the carpenter any more. Never heard of Kosice before "I learned that Kosice existed in March 2022," says Marharyta. Kostya adds that it is similar to Poltava, a Ukrainian city. They decided to come to Kosice because Kostya had a friend who had been there for a month and had a job. He had also never heard of Slovakia before the war. He never thought he would leave Ukraine. But staying at home would not have been the right decision, they both say today. They do not regret leaving, though they are homesick. "For a very long time, I wanted to return home. I've lived next to my mum all my life. It's a shock that she didn't come with me. But today I just want to go home to visit. It's not safe there. I really want to smell the scent of home, though," says Marharyta. Kostya recalls how his young daughter was initially frightened by the sounds of the lift in Slovakia, but adds that leaving was better than staying. Kostya's sister is worse off; although she also has a young child, she has remained in Ukraine. Her husband is unable to travel. Kostya has three children, so he was allowed to leave the country. "She would like to go, for the safety of her child, but she doesn't want to leave without her husband," he says. Marharyta Rudenko and Kostiantyn Chepizhenko lived in the Kharkiv region. They left due to the war. (Source: Elizaveta Blahodarova) Return in two months, they thought Marharyta and Kostya did not think at all that they would go away for so long. They did not even take all their documents. They assumed it would be for a month or two. But they like their life in Kosice. Their little daughter started going to kindergarten. She is learning Slovak. "She speaks Ukrainian in kindergarten and Slovak at home, she is very communicative. She can talk to anyone on the street," laughs Marharyta. She also attends an online Ukrainian kindergarten, but Marharyta likes the Slovak one better. She says that the children have been visited by policemen and firemen. The children then see how they work and look, destined to trust them in the future, she adds. For Marharyta, that is important. She says that her daughter was afraid of the noise because she saw how her mother reacted. Children sense what their mother is experiencing and they feel accordingly. Sometimes when a police car drives by, the little girl becomes a little nervous, says the mother. Kostya's eldest son attends secondary school and speaks Slovak well. His classmates are all Slovaks. The middle daughter went to Germany with her mother. Establishing his own business After arriving in Kosice, Kostya started working in a factory. He went there at six o'clock, then had Slovak lessons at eight o'clock. "You still want to sleep from getting up early, but you also want to attend class," he smiles. Later he started working in a furniture company. He made furniture at home for 16 years, every day of the week. Before the war, he was even going to build a new workshop. "Everybody around me told me to set up a trade. In the end, I did that. That's the life I know. I lived it in Ukraine too," he says. He earned the money for a flat in Ukraine in two years, by working seven days a week. In Slovakia, he was afraid at first that he would not get contracts, but believed it would get better and better with time. The first customers were mainly Ukrainians who have lived in Slovakia since 2014, when Russia annexed Crimea. Today he has Slovak customers as well. He promotes his work on social networks. He also relies on good personal references. Kostya was advised how to set up a business in the Facebook group Ukrainians in Kosice. "I wrote what I wanted to do, and a few hours later they told me what to do and how to do it. It was not complicated. There are supposedly some possibilities of borrowing money to buy a machine or to get some help. I will definitely figure it out," he says, adding that he is not afraid at all that he will not find his way around. The war took her career Marharyta is seeking a job in Slovakia, also to improve her Slovak. She has already taken some courses. She understands the language, but is not yet fluent. In Ukraine, before going on maternity leave, she worked as a psychologist with internally displaced people who left their homes in the eastern parts of the country after 2014. She worked with traumatised children and adults. She is angry that the war took away her profession, and therefore a part of her life that was important to her. Kostya and Marharyta and their family. (Source: Courtesy of M. R.) What is war like? "When you watch it on TV, you will never understand it. I also watched the 2014 war news from Luhansk and Donetsk Oblasts, but I didn't feel it in relation to myself. It was only when the war came directly to Kharkiv that I understood it, I began to feel scared," Kostya says. According to him, no television can show what war is really like. "When you feel the first explosion or a bomb falls on a bridge, every cell of your body feels it, your whole body trembles, it's terrible, for children, women and men. I don't wish anyone to feel how terrible war is," Marharyta describes. She adds that she used to wake up at night. When she cannot sleep, she watches the news. She cannot not watch it. They both say that they will never forget the war and what they experienced. Kostya adds that it was the same for his grandfather, who never forgot the Second World War and the Germans. Marharyta says that she is thinking about how she will talk about the war to her daughter. Experience with Slovaks "If a person is good and behaves well, they will be against killing, war and pain," thinks Marharyta. She herself meets those who perceive war as she does. In her opinion, there is no justification for Russian aggression. The facts are clear. Kostya adds that pro-Russian people also live in Ukraine. Some are explicitly awaiting the arrival of the Russian army, for nostalgia's sake, and even hand over nursery buildings or power stations without a fight. "It's shocking. It's mainly older people, I don't believe that young people would do that," he thinks. "I have nothing against Russia, but if you want Russia, go to Russia," he adds. He wants Ukraine to be part of the European Union. They have had both good and bad experiences in Slovakia; they think people are good and bad everywhere. They were surprised at how everyone greets each other in the house or in the shop, even if they don't know each other personally. Marharyta also sees that though people may think something unpleasant about Ukrainians, they do not say it out loud. Ukraine must not give up its territory The idea of Ukraine giving up part of its territories for peace is completely unacceptable to both of them. "What did so many people die for then? I was born in an independent Ukraine, it has to stay that way," Marharyta says firmly. Both have friends their own age who have not returned from the war. They left behind widows and children. In Slovakia, some people tell them that Czechoslovakia was also divided (the peaceful split of Czechoslovakia was a political decision made by Czech and Slovak politicians in 1992, Ed.) and that is the end of it. Kostya, however, says that if Ukraine leaves territories to Russia, it will go on like that. "They won't stop in Ukraine, they will go to other countries," he thinks. He adds that if people in Kharkiv or Donetsk wanted to go to Russia, Kyiv would already know that. Only 15 percent of the population there supports Russia, he says. "If there was 50 percent of them, they would go to Zelensky. If they are not going to him, then they don't want to go to Russia. If they are not going to Kyiv, they trust what he's doing," Kostya says. Sme This text was created with the support of UNESCO under the Support for Ukrainian Refugees through Media program, funded by the Japanese government. At a castle, PM Robert Fico delivered a critique of liberal ideologies. At a farm outside Bratislava, he reminisced about his rural upbringing. Agriculture Minister Richard Takac (Smer) hugs PM Robert Fico as he arrives at the field in Voderady, near Trnava, on July 8, 2024. (Source: Sme - Marko Erd) Font size: A - | A + Comments disabled Share Three days after making his first public appearance and 55 days following the shooting attack that left him seriously injured, Prime Minister and Smer party leader Robert Fico decided to visit farmers in a field outside Bratislava. His brief trip to Voderady near Trnava highlighted ongoing health issues, though the specific nature of these issues remains undisclosed. Using a French crutch, he stepped out of a limousine. It was the first time the prime minister was seen walking, albeit with difficulty. https://sk.frame.mapy.cz/s/jojozesugo I hope that by August 20 (the anniversary of the Warsaw Pact invasion of communist Czechoslovakia in 1968 to suppress democratisation efforts, Ed.), Ill be able to jump rope, he joked. During his press briefing, Prime Minister Fico emphasised Slovakias aim for self-sufficiency, rejecting modern trends and asserting that certain Ukrainian crops on the sanctions list will not enter the Slovak market. Acknowledging the reality of climate change, he noted that the harvest now begins a month earlier. Fico also proudly stated that Slovakia is closing the gap on the EUs standard of living, 20 years after joining the union. Fico declined to field questions from journalists, a practice not new to him. He refuses to talk to selected serious media outlets because he considers them biased. In 2016, during his participation in the harvest, he sharply rebuked a journalist. Please, dont bother us. Were in the middle of the harvest, he then said. On Monday, he refrained from attacking anyone. Instead, against a backdrop of American tractors and German harvesters, he expressed gratitude to tractor and harvester operators, as well as others in the agricultural sector. Yelich, Perkins power Brewers to 9-2 victory over Dodgers and avoid being swept in weekend series Milwaukee Brewers' Christian Yelich, left, heads to first for a two-run home run as Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Justin Wrobleski watches during the fourth inning of a baseball game Sunday, July 7, 2024, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill) LOS ANGELES (AP) Christian Yelich and Blake Perkins both homered, had three hits and drove in three runs as the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 9-2 Sunday to snap a seven-game losing streak at Dodger Stadium. Eric Haase had a two-run homer in the fifth inning for the Brewers, who avoided a sweep in the weekend matchup of National League division leaders and are one of three teams in the majors not to have a losing streak of at least four games this season. Yelich rose to the occasion when we needed him. Perkins was unbelievable too. Great effort by our guys, Brewers manager Pat Murphy said. Yelich started the scoring with a two-run homer in the fourth inning off Dodgers' starter Justin Wrobleski (0-1), who was making his major league debut. It was the second straight game Yelich had gone deep to center. He added an RBI double in the ninth inning. Its good to win, especially on getaway day. We had two tough losses, Yelich said. Yelich, voted in as one of the NLs starting outfielders for the July 16 All-Star Game, batted .393 (11 for 28) with three homers and five RBIs during the Brewers six-game road trip. I have no idea what any of my stats are. The home runs are probably the only one I know. I don't look at them because they change so much throughout the year," he said. "You just try to keep contributing to wins and stack them. Perkins had a solo shot in the seventh inning and then drove in two runs when his base hit with the bases loaded just got by Dodgers' third baseman Kike Hernandez and into left field. Jakob Junis (1-0) got the win. The right-hander allowed two runs in 2 2/3 innings after he replaced starter Dallas Keuchel, who didn't allow a run in 4 1/3 innings. Keuchel gave up three hits and walked five. Chris Taylor supplied the Dodgers' runs with a two-run shot in the seventh inning. Los Angeles ended up going deep eight times in the series. Despite the loss, the Dodgers (55-36) are two games in front of the Brewers (53-38) for the second-best record in the NL. Los Angeles heads to Philadelphia which has the majors best record at 58-32 for a three-game series beginning Tuesday. Shohei Ohtani stole a pair of bases. With 28 home runs and 20 stolen bases, he joins Davey Lopes (1979) and Matt Kemp (2011) as the only Dodgers player to reach the 20-20 mark before the All-Star break. Wrobleski faced the minimum through three innings before running into trouble. The lefty allowed four runs on five hits in five innings with two walks and four strikeouts. I felt pretty comfortable out there. I thought I was gonna be pretty nervous, but I dont know, like any other game. Felt normal, felt like I belong, so it was a lot of fun," Wrobleski said. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Wrobleski would be heading back to the minors after Sunday's start, but added they will see him again soon. Im really, really impressed with the way he carries himself, the way he cared himself today. I know his stuff plays here," Roberts said. "He left the slider, sweeper to Yelich. The Haase at-bat, I think he just left a fastball up and out over. But all things taken into consideration, I thought he did a really nice job. TRAINER'S ROOM Brewers: RHP Devin Williams (back stress fractures) will throw a live batting practice before Tuesday's game. Dodgers: LHP Clayton Kershaw (left shoulder surgery) could make a rehab start on Saturday after throwing two innings in a simulated game. ... RHP Joe Kelly (right posterior shoulder) hit two batters in his one inning of work in a simulated game. UP NEXT Brewers: Face Pittsburgh on Tuesday to start a six-game homestand. RHP Colin Rea (8-2, 3.34 ERA) is 5-0 in his last eight games, including six starts. Dodgers: RHP Bobby Miller (1-1, 6.12 ERA) will take the mound against the Phillies on Tuesday. ___ AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/boeing-pleads-guilty-to-criminal-fraud-charge-over-2-737-max-crashes---reports-1119285798.html Boeing Pleads Guilty to Criminal Fraud Charge Over 2 737 MAX Crashes - Reports Boeing Pleads Guilty to Criminal Fraud Charge Over 2 737 MAX Crashes - Reports Sputnik International Boeing has agreed to plead guilty and pay a $243.6 million fine to a criminal fraud charge related to two fatal 737 MAX crashes that occurred in 2018 and 2019, the CNBC broadcaster reported, citing the US Department of Justice. 2024-07-08T06:44+0000 2024-07-08T06:44+0000 2024-07-08T06:44+0000 world us justice department us department of justice boeing boeing 737 max https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e6/07/0c/1097224574_38:0:1962:1082_1920x0_80_0_0_8494690f7e91318d68a0a86807bdfc4f.jpg "We can confirm that we have reached an agreement in principle on terms of a resolution with the Justice Department, subject to the memorialization and approval of specific terms," CNBC quoted the company as saying. The plea deal will install an independent monitor to oversee the plane maker's compliance for three years. Boeing will also have to invest at least $455 million in compliance and safety programs, CNBC said. The Justice Department notified Boeing in May that it was subject to criminal prosecution after it had determined that the company breached a 2021 settlement that had Boeing pay $2.5 billion in penalties and vow to improve its safety and compliance protocols. Federal prosecutors recently recommended to senior Justice Department officials that Boeing be prosecuted for failing to improve the safety of its aircraft after a series of mishaps this year, including a door panel that blew out of an Alaska Airlines flight shortly after the takeoff, a source familiar with the matter told Sputnik. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240502/strange-coincidence-another-boeing-whistleblower-dies-after-sudden-illness-1118221422.html Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International boeing pleads guilty, boeing criminal charges, boeing case, boeing accidents, boeing incidents https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/central-asian-nations-azerbaijan-to-hold-joint-military-drills-in-kazakhstan-from-monday-1119287010.html Central Asian Nations, Azerbaijan to Hold Joint Military Drills in Kazakhstan From Monday Central Asian Nations, Azerbaijan to Hold Joint Military Drills in Kazakhstan From Monday Sputnik International Kazakhstan will hold joint military drills, Birlestik-2024 (Unification-2024), together with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan starting Monday, the Kazakh Defense Ministry said. 2024-07-08T08:59+0000 2024-07-08T08:59+0000 2024-07-08T08:59+0000 military kazakhstan azerbaijan kyrgyzstan tajikistan uzbekistan military drills military exercises joint military exercises https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/07/08/1119287091_0:158:3079:1890_1920x0_80_0_0_f3c29db4caf3e0dc2f9d65ed2112dcb7.jpg "The regional international exercise 'Birlestik-2024' will be held in the Mangistau region. Military contingents from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan will take part in the development of combat training tasks," the ministry wrote on social media. The drills will take place on the Oimasha training grounds in the country's west and along the Kazakh Caspian Sea shore, 1.2 miles off the Tokmak cape, from July 8-17. Some 4,000 soldiers and up to 700 items of military equipment will be involved in the exercise. These include ground and aerial reconnaissance forces, marines, army and front-line aviation crews, warships, artillery crews, assault and tank units. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240611/second-stage-of-russias-non-strategic-nuclear-forces-drills-began---defense-ministry-1118901719.html kazakhstan azerbaijan kyrgyzstan tajikistan uzbekistan 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 military drills, military excercises, joint drills, combat training drills, drills in kazakhstan https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/draft-of-nato-joint-statement-may-claim-kievs-path-into-alliance-irreversible---reports-1119302028.html Draft of NATO Joint Statement May Claim Ukraine's Path Into Alliance 'Irreversible' - Reports Draft of NATO Joint Statement May Claim Ukraine's Path Into Alliance 'Irreversible' - Reports Sputnik International A draft of the NATO joint communique set to be released later this week may describe Kiev's path to join NATO as 'irreversible.' 2024-07-08T22:11+0000 2024-07-08T22:11+0000 2024-07-09T04:35+0000 world kiev ukraine jens stoltenberg russia nato white house nato enlargement nato summit https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/19/1119115841_0:161:3071:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_d42b25996794db5115ab086afec26aa6.jpg The report said on Monday that this joint statement could send a strong signal to Kiev amid Russia's special military operation. NATO leaders will convene in Washington from July 9-11 to discuss a range of issues, especially Russia's special military operation in Ukraine. White House officials have said that significant deliverables are expected at the NATO leaders' summit this week, including announcements of additional security assistance for Ukraine. However, an invite to Ukraine to join the alliance has been ruled out. In April, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg during a visit to Kiev said Ukraine has a rightful place in NATO and that the alliance is working on placing it on an irreversible path toward membership in NATO when the time may be right. Russia has repeatedly said it stands against Ukraine's membership in NATO due to national security concerns, but never opposed Kiev's aspirations to join the European Union. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240707/a-bridge-too-far-nato-bosses-mull-how-to-better-dangle-membership-carrot-before-ukraines-nose-1119280542.html kiev 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 ukraine to join nato, nato summit, memo on ukraine nato membership https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/frances-new-popular-front-to-nominate-candidate-to-head-government-in-one-week--leader-1119286387.html Frances New Popular Front to Nominate Candidate to Head Government in One Week Frances New Popular Front to Nominate Candidate to Head Government in One Week Sputnik International Frances New Popular Front will nominate candidate for head of French government within one week, the leader of the Socialist party, Olivier Faure, said on Monday. 2024-07-08T07:31+0000 2024-07-08T07:31+0000 2024-07-08T07:34+0000 world europe france french interior ministry olivier faure national assembly european union (eu) https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/07/08/1119286474_0:161:3071:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_688e0f531e55686b020dca8b9ce4cf13.jpg Earlier in the day, the French Interior Ministry said that the left-wing New Popular Front coalition won the parliamentary elections in France, receiving 182 seats in the 577-seat National Assembly, the lower house of the French parliament. france 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 french elections, parliamentary election in france, who won most seats in france, who is the winer in french election, french elections winner https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/hamas-accuses-israels-netanyahu-of-sabotaging-ceasefire-negotiations-in-gaza-strip-1119300899.html Hamas Accuses Israel's Netanyahu of Sabotaging Ceasefire Negotiations in Gaza Strip Hamas Accuses Israel's Netanyahu of Sabotaging Ceasefire Negotiations in Gaza Strip Sputnik International The leader of the Palestinian movement Hamas said in a statement that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is using "tricks" to create obstacles to a ceasefire. 2024-07-08T19:40+0000 2024-07-08T19:40+0000 2024-07-08T19:40+0000 world benjamin netanyahu ismail haniyeh israel defense forces (idf) hamas palestine gaza strip israel middle east israel-gaza conflict https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/1a/1119132384_0:160:3072:1888_1920x0_80_0_0_abb999ba16f783ef78f108e4600f9b07.jpg Earlier in the day, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) urged citizens and displaced persons to immediately evacuate from an array of Gaza City's districts to the humanitarian area in the central area of the enclave, Deir al Balah. The movement called on the intermediaries to "intervene with the goal of putting an end to Netanyahu's tricks" and asked the international community and the UN to apply pressure on Israel. Hamas politburo chief Ismail Haniyeh warned that the actions of the Israel Defense Forces risk reversing the negotiation process "back to zero." On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. Nearly 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others abducted during the attack. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. As many as 120 hostages are believed to be still held by Hamas in Gaza and 43 hostages died in captivity. More than 38,100 people have been killed and over 87,900 others have been wounded in the Gaza Strip as a result of Israel's military operations, Gaza authorities said. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/idf-calls-on-residents-of-areas-of-gaza-city-to-immediately-evacuate-to-humanitarian-zone-1119291060.html palestine gaza strip israel Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International ceasefire talks in gaza, netanyahu sabotaged peace talks, ULAN BATOR, July 8 (Xinhua) -- The ruling Mongolian People's Party (MPP), the main opposition Democratic Party (DP), and the Hun Party, meaning "Person" in Mongolian, signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Monday to form a coalition government, following regular parliamentary elections held on June 28. In the ninth parliamentary elections, the MPP secured a narrow margin of victory, winning 68 of the 126 seats, while the DP obtained 42 seats. The Hun Party secured eight seats, with the Civil Will-Green Party and the National Coalition each securing four seats. The decision to form a coalition government aims to swiftly address Mongolia's development challenges, consider the critical international relations and geopolitical situation, and emphasize national unity, according to the parties. After signing the MoU, Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene, Mongolian prime minister and chairman of the MPP, said, "Our country's government has had an average life expectancy of 1.5 years, and development policy planning has been unstable since 1990. Many projects that have been initiated remain unfinished and undergo continuous changes without reaching completion." "The memorandum aims to change this situation, quickly solve the problems of development, and send a message to foreign investors that Mongolia is a more stable and trustworthy country," he said. Luvsannyam Gantumur, chairman of the DP, affirmed their coalition participation with a focus on economic growth, livelihood improvement, healthy business environment, and individual freedoms. Togmid Dorjkhand, leader of the Hun Party, expressed his confidence that Mongolian politics, especially at the government level, is now adopting a completely new attitude, culture, and structure. "Over the past 30 years, our country has operated under a two-party system marked by excessive partisanship and mutual blackmailing, which has resulted in lost development opportunities. Today's decision prioritizes the interests of the country over those of individuals and parties," said Dorjkhand. In May 2023, the Asian country's parliament, also known as the State Great Khural, passed amendments increasing the number of legislators from 76 to 126. The elections were conducted under a mixed electoral system, with 78 legislators elected through majority representation and 48 through proportional representation. The Asian country's parliament operates under a unicameral system with a four-year term. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/idf-calls-on-residents-of-areas-of-gaza-city-to-immediately-evacuate-to-humanitarian-zone-1119291060.html IDF Calls on Residents of Areas of Gaza City to Immediately Evacuate to Humanitarian Zone IDF Calls on Residents of Areas of Gaza City to Immediately Evacuate to Humanitarian Zone Sputnik International The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Monday that residents of some areas of the Gaza City to humanitarian shelters in Deir al Balah in the central Gaza Strip. 2024-07-08T12:41+0000 2024-07-08T12:41+0000 2024-07-08T12:41+0000 world middle east israel defense forces (idf) gaza strip palestine-israel conflict israel https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/06/04/1118762719_0:187:3072:1915_1920x0_80_0_0_520cecd4c5e8344f865ef975459d1d6c.jpg "An urgent appeal to all residents and displaced persons in ... districts... For security reasons, evacuate immediately to shelters in Deir al Balah in the humanitarian zone," an IDF representative said on X. The IDF listed a total of 14 neighborhoods that should be immediately evacuated. gaza strip israel Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 2024 Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 News en_EN Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 1920 1080 true 1920 1440 true 1920 1920 true Sputnik International feedback@sputniknews.com +74956456601 MIA Rossiya Segodnya 252 60 Sputnik International gaza genocide, is israel committing genocide, whats happening with gaza, israeli genocide against palestinians, will israel be charged with genocide, whos backing israel, un hearing on gaza, current developments in gaza, whats happening to palestinians, us military aid to israel, us arms supplies to israel, us violating international law, what weapons is israel getting from us, israeli strikes, israel strikes gaza, israel kills civilians, operation in rafah, incursion into rafah, palestinian statehood, palestine independence https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/orban-reveals-three-reasons-why-russia-cannot-be-defeated-1119288527.html Orban Reveals Three Reasons Why Russia Cannot Be Defeated Orban Reveals Three Reasons Why Russia Cannot Be Defeated Sputnik International The idea of Russia's defeat is impossible for the country to imagine, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said. 2024-07-08T09:48+0000 2024-07-08T09:48+0000 2024-07-08T09:48+0000 world viktor orban vladimir putin gergely gulyas russia hungary https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/0c/0e/1115592092_0:0:2971:1671_1920x0_80_0_0_9192cbe728f727872d5f8a7cea4dc3dd.jpg "[Look at Russia's] Soldiers, equipment, technology, which you use in a war, so to defeat Russia is an idea which in Russia it is even difficult to imagine. The possibility that Russia will be beaten is totally out of any calculation," Orban told Bild.Following his recent discussions with Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, Orban stated that "the next two to three months will be much more brutal than we think."Last Friday, Orban and his delegation arrived in Moscow and met with Russian President Vladimir Putin. He described the Moscow visit as the next phase of his peace mission, the first phase of which was a trip to Kiev on July 2. The Hungarian Prime Minister announced his intention to soon hold several more "similarly unexpected" meetings. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto advised European politicians to "buckle up" for Orban's next steps in the "peace mission."At the same time, Hungary does not have a peace plan for Ukraine."We do not have a specific peace plan, we are sure that it can be worked out only together with the parties [to the conflict], but we are also sure that a ceasefire is necessary for dialogue, because it is unrealistic to hold effective negotiations before that," Gergely Gulyas, the Hungarian prime minister's chief of staff, told a briefing, broadcast by M1. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240707/orbans-realpolitik-approach-to-putin-talks-enraged-eu-warmongers--1119271018.html russia hungary 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 viktor orban, hungary, russia, ukraine, ukrainian crisis, ukrainian conflict, war in ukraine https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/putin-sends-no-message-to-biden-nato-countries-through-orban---kremlin-1119288083.html Putin Sends No Message to Biden, NATO Countries Through Orban - Kremlin Putin Sends No Message to Biden, NATO Countries Through Orban - Kremlin Sputnik International Russian President Vladimir Putin did not send any message to US President Joe Biden or NATO countries through Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday. 2024-07-08T09:36+0000 2024-07-08T09:36+0000 2024-07-08T09:59+0000 world viktor orban joe biden vladimir putin tehran iran washington nato kremlin masoud pezeshkian https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e7/0a/11/1114255580_0:0:2831:1592_1920x0_80_0_0_2dd33f8272cf9b632c9652d9499785b7.jpg "No. Indeed, Mr. Orban is taking a serious initiative in order to compare the positions of different sides based on primary sources. And we highly appreciate - President Putin gave the same high assessment - these efforts of Mr. Orban," Peskov said in response to a question about whether Putin sent a message through Orban to Biden and other participants of the NATO summit in Washington.The spokesman added that Moscow expects to continue close partnership relations with Tehran after the end of the presidential elections in the country.Putin, Modi to Hold Informal 1-on-1 Talks Monday EveningRussian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold an informal one-on-one meeting on Monday evening with narrow and wide-format negotiations following the next day, Peskov noted.On Tuesday, Putin and Modi will hold talks in wide and narrow formats, the spokesman said, adding that there will be no joint press conference, but it will be compensated with "substantial exchanges" during the talks.On India's possible proposals for a peaceful solution to the Ukrainian crisis, Peskov added that there is "hardly any point in discussing it prior to the talks" between Putin and Modi and that Russia will timely provide information on all the issue's details.French Voters' Change of Heart in Legislative Polls Interesting to RussiaRussia has been closely watching the French legislative elections, given their significance and the changing voting preferences, Peskov noted.Russia will monitor the process of government formation and coalition negotiations in France, Peskov said. He admitted that the victory of those who support the restoration of relations between France and Russia would be more preferable. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/what-to-expect-from-putin-modi-talks-in-moscow-1119268671.html tehran iran washington 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 putin and orban, putin orban talks, putin and orban on ukraine, russia and iran ties, russian iranian cooperation, russian iranian partnership https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/russia-to-build-1st-high-speed-train-in-2027---company-1119290215.html Russia to Build 1st High-Speed Train in 2027 - Company Russia to Build 1st High-Speed Train in 2027 - Company Sputnik International Russia's first high-speed train will be produced in 2027, connecting Moscow and St. Petersburg, Anton Zubikhin, deputy director general at Sinara Group, told Sputnik on Monday. 2024-07-08T11:22+0000 2024-07-08T11:22+0000 2024-07-08T11:22+0000 russia russia russian railways moscow saint petersburg https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/07/08/1119290295_0:129:3182:1919_1920x0_80_0_0_0312beb798bbd897f8495c396e1f8f9c.jpg "The first electric train will be produced in 2027. It will go for certification, so that we receive a conformity certificate in 2028," he said. Sinara Group's rail transport branch will make 43 electric trains to service a new high-speed rail between Moscow and St. Petersburg, which is currently under construction, Zubikhin said. State rail company, Russian Railways, signed an agreement with Sinara for the production of two high-speed trains in April. The trains are expected to be delivered by late March 2028, according to the contract. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240424/infographics-legendary-baikal-amur-mainline-turns-50-marking-russias-presence-in-asia-pacific-1118086837.html russia moscow saint petersburg 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 speed trains, russian high speed trains, russian sapsan, moscow saint petersburg train https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/several-explosions-heard-in-russias-belgorod-1119301362.html Several Explosions Heard in Russia's Belgorod Several Explosions Heard in Russia's Belgorod Sputnik International Several explosions were heard in the Russian city of Belgorod on Monday while the missile alert was on, a Sputnik correspondent reported. 2024-07-08T20:50+0000 2024-07-08T20:50+0000 2024-07-08T22:12+0000 russia russia belgorod sputnik newsfeed https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/1b/1117584357_0:320:3072:2048_1920x0_80_0_0_cb0dec56242c5a3c8825c5c599a80b2f.jpg Plumes of smoke can be seen above the central part of the city, according to the correspondent.Late on Monday night, the Russian Defense Ministry issued a statement saying that it shot down another Ukrainian drone over the Belgorod area."On July 8 of this year, at about 11:10 p.m. Moscow time, another attempt by the Kiev regime to carry out a terrorist attack using an aircraft-type UAV against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation was thwarted. The Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicle was destroyed over the territory of the Belgorod region by air defense systems on duty," the ministry's report said (translated).Later in the day, the Russian Defense Ministry said that air defense shot down one Ukrainian fixed-wing drone over the Belgorod Region.The missile alert was lifted in Belgorod and the Belgorod Region, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said, adding that one person was killed and two others were injured in the attack.The governor added that several air targets were destroyed on approach to Belgorod. russia belgorod 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 belgorod explosions, missile attack in belgorod, drone attack in belgorod https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/stronger-russia-india-ties-to-benefit-peoples-of-two-countries---modi-1119291609.html Stronger Russia-India Ties to Benefit Peoples of Two Countries - Modi Stronger Russia-India Ties to Benefit Peoples of Two Countries - Modi Sputnik International Stronger ties between India and Russia will benefit the peoples of the two countries, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday. 2024-07-08T12:57+0000 2024-07-08T12:57+0000 2024-07-08T15:27+0000 world narendra modi russia moscow india vladimir putin https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/07/08/1119298612_0:0:3074:1730_1920x0_80_0_0_bb2fbd579ddf9a3b78789cf8759fe544.jpg "Landed in Moscow. Looking forward to further deepening the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between our nations, especially in futuristic areas of cooperation. Stronger ties between our nations will greatly benefit our people," Modi said on X.Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Moscow on July 8-9 to co-chair the 22nd Russia-India Annual Summit with President Vladimir Putin. This is Modis first official visit after being sworn in for a third term as India's prime minister after elections in June.The last time Putin welcomed Modi in Russia was in 2019, while in September 2022 the two leaders met at a Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Uzbekistan. They have met 16 times since Modi assumed office. How have Russo-India relations evolved? russia moscow 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 indian prime minister narendra modi, narendra modi in russia, narendra modi in moscow, narendra modi and vladimir putin, modi putin talks, modi putin meeting, russia and india, russian indian ties https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/west-eyes-false-flag-chemical-weapon-accusation-against-russia-overlooks-ukraines-violations-1119291874.html West Eyes False-Flag Chemical Weapon Accusation Against Russia, Overlooks Ukraine's Violations West Eyes False-Flag Chemical Weapon Accusation Against Russia, Overlooks Ukraine's Violations Sputnik International A special investigation is reported to be being organized by Ukraine, the US and Germany to incriminate Russia. 2024-07-08T14:05+0000 2024-07-08T14:05+0000 2024-07-08T14:05+0000 organisation for the prohibition of chemical weapons (opcw) russia ukraine russia germany russian ministry of defense ukrainian armed forces chemical weapons chemical attacks https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/07/08/1119292174_0:164:3060:1885_1920x0_80_0_0_eeaafd7b7b060ea686ce2a682dde822c.jpg Moscow has hit back at efforts to accuse Russia of using chemical weapons in the special military operation.Lieutenant General Igor Kirillov, chief of the Russian Armed Forces' Radiological, Chemical, and Biological Defense forces explained that Germany, Ukraine, and the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons' (OPCW) Technical Secretariat are preparing a 'special investigation' to incriminate Russia. He spoke at a briefing of the Russian Ministry of Defense titled "Violations by Ukraine of Obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention.""According to available information, the US and Germany, together with Ukraine and the OPCW Technical Secretariat, are preparing to launch a special mission to investigate so-called instances of chemical weapons use in Ukraine with the aim of accusing Russia," Kirillov said at the briefing."One of the so-called 'independent' states is expected to initiate the investigation and fabricate evidence that Russia used toxic chemicals during the special military operation," added the chief of RCB defense.According to him, the US has already allocated around $400,000 for these purposes.Kirillov also recounted the evidence that Moscow has accumulated of Kiev's use of chemical weapons, all of which is largely overlooked by Western governments.More than 400 instances of Ukraine using non-lethal toxic chemicals have been recorded during the special military operation. "Most of them have been officially confirmed by an accredited laboratory of the Russian Ministry of Defense," he continued.The Ukrainian Armed Forces used chloropicrin mixed with chloroacetone in the areas of Donetsk, Bogdanovka, Gorlovka, Kremennaya, and Artemovsk. Kirillov added that Ukrainian forces regularly use chemical riot control agents: gas grenades containing the American-made CS substance, Ukrainian-made hand grenades with irritating chemical agents labeled Teren-6, and homemade chemical munitions. According to him, Ukrainian prisoners of war said that "such means are supplied to assault groups of the Ukrainian Armed Forces."Likewise, Russian forces discovered a laboratory near Avdeyevka that was clearly used to produce toxic substances with general poisoning effects. According to him, the lab contained a semi-industrial rotary evaporator, a filtration extraction system, chemical reactors, carbon dioxide cylinders, as well as shelves with laboratory glassware and reagents. In addition, personal respiratory protection equipment, including American-made gas masks, and Polish-made skin protection suits were found."Analysis of the contents of containers found in the lab showed the presence of sulfuric acid and sodium cyanide, indicating the equipment was used to produce toxic substances. Further, swabs were collected from the laboratory equipment and the extraction system in accordance with OPCW requirements and sent to the Russian Ministry of Defense's chemical-analytical laboratory for in-depth analysis," Kirillov explained.According to him, research established the presence of sodium cyanide, sulfuric acid, and trace amounts of cyanide anions in the samples."The presence of these chemicals clearly indicates that the laboratory was used to produce toxic substances with general poisoning effects," Kirillov emphasized.The laboratory in Avdeyevka could produce at least 3 kilograms of toxic substances per day."It is operated by a staff of 2-3 people. Note that the lethal inhalation dose for this group of toxic substances is very small, only 70-80 mg for a human," Kirillov said.He reminded that, according to the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), substances of this group, including hydrogen cyanide, are listed in Schedule 3 of the CWC and their use is prohibited by Article 1 of the Convention.In May 2024, the Ukrainian Armed Forces dropped munitions on Semyonovka in the DPR, causing symptoms of hydrogen cyanide poisoning among local residents. According to Kirillov, the use of toxic chemicals, including hydrogen cyanide, by the Kiev regime is confirmed by numerous witness testimonies both civilians and Russian military personnel.In early June, the Ukrainian Armed Forces also used a hydrogen cyanide munition in the Graivoronovsky district of the Belgorod region.Kirillov noted that Ukraine and the OPCW's Technical Secretariat have signed an agreement on privileges and immunities for Kiev. He believes that this agreement will allow Ukraine to use the OPCW "in its interests, bypassing existing procedures under the Convention, imposing its false conclusions about chemical incident investigations on the organization." Furthermore, the OPCW has received instructions from Western curators to ignore Russia's statements about Ukraine's violations of the chemical weapons convention.Kirillov highlighted that several publications have expressed concern over Ukraine's creation of a "dirty bomb" using radiochemical substances. The import of spent nuclear fuel and by-products of hazardous chemical production continues into the country through Poland and Romania, turning Ukraine into a "dumping ground" for highly dangerous waste. This process is overseen by the head of the Ukrainian President's Office, Andriy Yermak, and funded by the Soros Foundation, the Russian general noted.Despite Western efforts, the global expert community has taken note of the information from the Russian Ministry of Defense regarding violations by the US and Ukraine of their non-proliferation obligations concerning weapons of mass destruction.According to Kirillov, relevant comments were published in European and American media, as well as on information portals in the Asia-Pacific region. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240426/ukraine-plotting-chemical-weapons-provocation-amid-battlefield-failures--russias-opcw-envoy-1118127294.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20231009/russia-exposes-new-members-of-military-bio-programs-in-ukraine-1114033955.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20230201/truth-too-big-to-hide-how-washington-fails-to-sweep-ukraines-biolab-revelation-under-rug-1106893548.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240507/after-positioning-military-biolabs-around-the-globe-us-officials-urge-biodefense-buildup-1118314833.html ukraine russia germany 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 biowarfare, chemical weapons, opcw, russia, ukraine, us, igor kirillov https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/what-to-expect-from-putin-modi-talks-in-moscow-1119268671.html What to Expect From Putin-Modi Talks in Moscow What to Expect From Putin-Modi Talks in Moscow Sputnik International Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting Moscow on 8-9 July to co-chair the 22nd Russia-India Annual Summit with President Vladimir Putin. 2024-07-08T05:00+0000 2024-07-08T05:00+0000 2024-07-08T06:38+0000 analysis russia india vladimir putin narendra modi official visit kudankulam nuclear power plant international north-south transport corridor (instc) new delhi https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e5/0c/06/1091282770_0:0:2960:1665_1920x0_80_0_0_d4de7e7345b9a8f32855d5b0c76d07fb.jpg Moscow is looking forward to a very important, full-scale visit, significant for Russian-Indian relations, the Kremlin underscored ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modis arrival in Moscow."Given the trusting nature of the relationship between President Putin and Prime Minister Modi, we can expect that there will be an exchange of views on all issues that are on the agenda," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in an interview with Russian TV journalist Pavel Zarubin. Regional and global security, along with bilateral trade and economic interaction, will be a focal point, added Peskov.The last time the head of the Indian government was in Russia was in 2019, when he came to the Far East city of Vladivostok. Modi's last trip to Moscow was in 2015. The 21st India-Russia Summit was held in 2021.Russia is a country that remains very important for India's engagement in Eurasia, beyond the overarching bilateral strategic relationship the two sides are developing, Dr. Raj Kumar Sharma, a senior research fellow at NatStrat, a New Delhi-based think tank, told Sputnik.He underscored that the upcoming talks should be viewed from the lens of an extremely promising bilateral context, which allows India and Russia to strengthen their strategic autonomy amid global geopolitical changes.In a geopolitical scenario where NATO continues its proxy war in Ukraine, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict rages unabated, and elections loom in the US, Modi rightly chose to visit Russia, highlighting the resilience of India-Russia ties amid many geopolitical changes, he noted.Indeed, for Modi, the trip to Moscow is a demonstration of India's strategic autonomy and his own ambitions as a leader of the non-Western world. For Putin, the talks fall in line with a succession of recent meetings with leaders of the Global South, symbolizing the pivot towards a new world order.Agenda of Modis Visit to MoscowModi will arrive in Moscow on Monday afternoon and will be welcomed with a private dinner hosted by the Russian president. This will be followed by formal summit discussions, highlighting the personal rapport between the two leaders, said Indias Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra.On Tuesday, Modi will meet with the Indian community in Moscow. After this, the Indian PM will lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Kremlin and visit the RUSSIA EXPO exhibition venue in Moscow.The core of the visit will be bilateral talks between Putin and Modi. They will first be held in a restricted-level format, to be followed by broader, delegation-level talks.Key Topics on the TableThe two leaders will review the entire range of multi-faceted ties between their countries, said Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, as he spelled out to journalists the likely agenda of Modis discussions with Putin.The summit will offer an opportunity for the two leaders "to review the whole range of bilateral issues, including defense, trade, investment, energy cooperation, science and technology, education, culture and people-to-people exchanges among others," Kwatra noted at a briefing in New Delhi. The senior diplomat hailed the fact that the "special privileged strategic partnership" between the two countries has remained "resilient in the wake of multiple geopolitical challenges."Modi and Putin are expected to share perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest and also assess the status of bilateral engagements in groupings such as BRICS, Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, G20, East Asia Summit (EAS) and the United Nations (UN)," Kwatra stated.India is hoping to boost its exports, Kwatra said, adding:The foreign secretary underscored that investment ties between the two nations have also been growing, including in energy, banking, railways and steel. A sustainable payment mechanism amid the de-dollarization drive is also to be discussed.The foreign secretary stated that enhancing cooperation on projects such as the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC), Chennai-Vladivostok Maritime Corridor and Chabahar Port, is expected to figure prominently in talks between Modi and Putin.Indeed, this June, Russia for the first time sent two trains laden with coal to India via the International North-South Transport Corridor, reminded Dr. Raj Kumar Sharma.Dr. Sharma also mentioned that in South Asia, Sri Lanka will shortly hand over management of its Chinese-built Mattala International Airport in Hambantota to a joint India-Russia venture.When asked about the Wests sanctions targeting Russia, he noted that New Delhi has been careful to adhere to UN sanctions, but where the G7 sanctions are concerned, we have been very regularly in touch with the G7, essentially to protect and progress our national interest and our national needs when it comes to our economic and political interests.After the start of Russias special military operation in Ukraine, Western countries greatly reduced their purchases of Russian oil and gas in a move that was intended, but failed, to cripple the Russian economy. India, however, has seen its imports of Russian oil soar. The countrys imports of Russian oil grew tenfold in just 2023.It was reported in May that Indias largest private corporation Reliance Industries and the Russian energy company Rosneft signed a one-year agreement for up to three million barrels of oil per month that will be paid in Russian rubles as part of the drive towards ditching the US dollars hegemony.State nuclear agency Rosatom and its Indian counterpart are also negotiating a potential partnership in scientific and technological fields such as quantum computing, communications, and quantum sensors, according to Rosatom head Alexey Likhachev.The leaders will also discuss cooperation between India and Russia in the Russian Far East, which is the main focus of the "Act Far East" policy announced by Modi in 2019.Russia remains India's main weapons supplier, accounting for 36% of its arms imports. The two sides keep implementing defense industry projects focused on technological cooperation. Furthermore, at the Moscow summit, the sides are likely to sign a long-awaited Russia-India mutual logistics agreement.The Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement is designed to enhance military cooperation between the two nations by streamlining military logistics support.Applicable during both wartime and peacetime missions, it will:Russia and India likewise hope to implement mutual visa-free travel by the end of 2024. India is reportedly planning to announce the opening of two more consulates in Russia.After the conclusion of the Russia-India summit in Moscow, the two countries intend to announce a series of documents that have been prepared for Modi's visit to Moscow, according to Kwatra. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240531/india-russia-oil-for-rubles-deal-another-sign-of-rapid-dedollarization-1118725665.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20230313/kremlin-russia-india-oil-cooperation-to-be-based-on-contacts-with-contractors-1108352896.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240523/potential-northern-sea-route-projects-with-india-under-discussion---rosatom-says-1118600882.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20240705/russia-india-enterprise-hands-35000-ak-203-assault-rifles-to-indian-armed-forces---rostec-1119250514.html https://sputnikglobe.com/20211206/from-trade-to-space-cooperation-highlights-of-putin-modi-talks-at-21st-india-russia-annual-summit-1091289666.html russia new delhi 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 what to expect from russia-india talks in moscow, russia-india annual summit, visit to russia of india's prime minister narendra modi, putin-modi talks, why is narendra modi coming to russia, what are russia-india relations like, what do russia and india cooperate on, russia india cooperation, russia india ties, russia india relations, russia india military cooperation, russia india joint enterprise, dedollarization, india-russia oil deal, international payments in local currencies, international payments in rubles https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/yemens-houthis-claim-targeted-eilat-in-israel-in-joint-operation-with-iraqi-militia-1119301217.html Yemens Houthis Claim Targeted Eilat in Israel in Joint Operation With Iraqi Militia Yemens Houthis Claim Targeted Eilat in Israel in Joint Operation With Iraqi Militia Sputnik International The Ansar Allah movement, also known as the Houthis have claimed a successful attack against Israeli targets in Eilat 2024-07-08T20:37+0000 2024-07-08T20:37+0000 2024-07-08T20:40+0000 world ansar allah houthis yemen palestine iraq https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/07e8/03/0e/1117334355_12:0:874:485_1920x0_80_0_0_1d209e9c856e1eba9294d8d5e5ee090f.png "The Yemeni Armed Forces, alongside the Iraqi Islamic Resistance, carried out a joint military operation targeting a vital target in Umm al-Rashrash [Eilat], south of occupied Palestine, with a number of drones. The operation has successful achieved its objectives," the movement wrote on its Telegram channel.In a separate statement, the Islamic Resistance in Iraq confirmed its cooperation with the Ansar Allah movement.Monday morning the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) said it shot down a suspected drone over the Red Sea using a fighter jet.Late last month, the CEO of the Port of Eilat, Gideon Golber, requested financial assistance during a meeting with the Knesset's Economic Affairs Committee."The port has been non-operational for eight months due to attacks, meaning it has no revenue," he complained. https://sputnikglobe.com/20240708/hamas-accuses-israels-netanyahu-of-sabotaging-ceasefire-negotiations-in-gaza-strip-1119300899.html yemen palestine iraq 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 drone strike in eilat, houthi blockade, iraqi militant groups, islamic resistance in iraq The 10-race Sunday, July 7 card at Rideau Carleton Raceway ended with fireworks as the late double saw Jet Rock romp in the $10,000 Preferred Handicap Pace and Carson Star Choice extend his win streak to seven in the finale. Leaving from post four in the scratched down field of six, driver Robert Shepherd changed tactics with the reliable closer Jet Rock. Hustled off the gate at 9-5, Jet Rock flew to the front in the first turn, briefly releasing Light The Torch (Pascal Berube) to the lead at the quarter in :27. Not content to sit the pocket, Shepherd moved Jet Rock back to the lead by the line the first time and on the way to the half in :56. The 2-5 favourite, The Light Speed (Guy Gagnon), moved into second at the leader's wheel as a revved up Jet Rock led to three-quarters in 1:23.2. Under Shepherd urging, Jet Rock countered the challenge by The Light Speed on the final turn to get to the top of the lane 1-1/2 lengths clear. Powering home in :27.3, Jet Rock throttled to the wire two lengths clear to win in 1:51. The Light Speed was second, with Light The Torch finishing third. The victory was the first in nine starts in 2024 for Jet Rock. Trained by Isabelle Darveau, the eight-year-old gelded son of Rocknroll Heaven-Jet Wash is owned by Ecurie Csl and Les Ecuries Dorleans Inc. He has banked $370,455 lifetime following his 35th career victory. Guy Gagnon turned the tables on Robert Shepherd in the finale as Carson Star Choice earned his seventh straight win against $7,800 conditioned company. Leaving from the rail, Gagnon sent the 2-5 favourite to the lead in a speedy opening quarter of :27.2. Shepherd wheeled second-choice Acapulco Sunburn first-over from fifth within a length of the leader as Carson Star Choice slowed the pace down, getting to the half in :57. Acapulco Sunburn looked Carson Star Choice in the eye on the backstretch before the favourite countered with a :26.4 third quarter to put the lead back to a length a three-quarters in 1:23.4. Acapulco Sunburn remained persistent on the final turn, refusing to go away as Carson Star Choice turned for home a length in front. Carson Star Choice dug in gamely in the lane, fending off the stubborn Acapulco Sunburn by a length on the wire in 1:52.1. Shotgun Jerry (Stephane Pouliot) finished fourth and was placed third following interference by Allstar Cheddar (Ryan Guy) in the first turn that resulted in Allstar Cheddar being placed eighth after crossing the finish line third. Undefeated since joining the Gagnon barn on May 14, Carson Star Choice is now a nine-time winner in 27 starts this season. The five-year-old gelded son of Betterthancheddar-Carsons Ladyluck is owned by Ecuries Guy Gagnon Inc. and Seth McLeod. He has banked $91,108 for his career. Guy Gagnon and Robert Shepherd each had driving doubles on the card, while Jimmy Gagnon led all drivers with four victories on the night. To view Sunday's harness racing results, click the following link: Sunday Results - Rideau Carleton Raceway. (Standardbred Canada)